The Rocks of the John Day Valley. 163 



these the bones of the rhinoceros are frequent, 

 but the remains of an extinct animal, allied 

 in some respects to the camel, in others to the 

 tapir family, are most abundant. Paleontolo- 

 gists have designated the genus by the name 

 of Orecdon. The remains of three or four 

 species of this animal are found in Central 

 Oregon. One of these, new to science, was 

 discovered thirty miles from here, and was by 

 Dr. Leidy named Oreodon Superbus, from its 

 superior size. The shaly rocks in which these 

 remains are found are very brittle, and the en- 

 closed fossils partake of that brittleness to 

 such an extent that if not handled with the 

 utmost care they crumble into small frag- 

 ments. Two nearly entire heads were dis- 

 covered in a ravine that opens into Bridge 

 Creek valley. They had been exposed all 

 winter to rain and frost, and were very brittle, 

 almost ready to drop to pieces. They were 

 passed by until the following day, when a 

 careful treatment to several coats of good 

 flour paste was rendered the more efficient by 

 additional pasting on of common paper. This 



