A FIELD-DAY FOR THE PROFESSOR. 323 



out, and that when he tried to follow, he was struck 

 on the head by his quondam rival, and, still clinging 

 to the chimney's edge, his fingers were pounded until 

 their hold was loosed, and the victim sucked under 

 the roof, against which the waters were already beat- 

 ing. The man and woman, however, claimed that it 

 was the whirl of the waters against pegs and logs 

 which had disfigured the corpse. Three weeks after- 

 ward they were married. 



" And now, gentlemen," said our foreman, rising 

 from his barrel, when the evidence was all in, "the 

 question for the jury to decide is, Was it the water 

 that did it?" 



A doubt existing in the case, we gave the prisoner 

 its benefit; but there was murder in the air, and 

 Rombeaux knew it. Before morning he had de- 

 parted Marie said for La Belle France, but, as the 

 citizens generally believed, really for Texas. 



The next twenty-four hours constituted a regular 

 field-day for the Professor, being distinguished by 

 an event which, from a scientific stand-point, was 

 among the most important of our entire expedition. 

 This was the discovery of a large fossil saurian, 

 which we came upon while exploring quite in sight 

 of Sheridan, and not more than half a mile from its 

 eastern outskirts. 



Descending the side of a deep, desolate rift in the 

 earth, we found ourselves among unmistakable traces 

 of violent volcanic action. The ground was strewn 

 with black sand, and with yellow pebble-like masses, 

 apparently impure sulphur. There were numerous 

 round cones also, looking like diminutive craters, 



