pip. No^' 2lT' JOHN H. KERR RESERVOIR BASIN — ^MILLER 57 



stems mostly from the lack of an accurate c? lonology and the residuum of doubt 

 regarding the authenticity of most of the American finds. [Stewart, 1949, p. 

 145.] 



At the close of the 19th century Putnam (1888, p. 424) asked a num- 

 ber of pertinent questions regarding Early Man in the New World 

 which are just as mianswerable today as when first expressed. "Was 

 he of one race on the two continents ? Has he left descendants or has 

 he passed out of existence with the mammoth and the mastodon?" 

 At the present time, the physical remains of Early Man are usually 

 assigned to the dolichocephalic category which are comparable to 

 Homo sapiens sapiens forms f omid in the Old World. 



It is quite conceivable that the artifacts from the various sites in the 

 eTohn H. Kerr Reservoir area might vary in age in spite of similar 

 materials, patination, and workmanship. The earliest material was 

 usually chert, to be followed by rhyolite, then quartz and quartzite, 

 with chalcedony used only sporadically over the whole range of occu- 

 pation. Patination on the various chert artifacts is exceedingly deep, 

 bringing about not only a change physically in composition but also 

 in coloration. At this point, is quoted a statement by Dr. William F. 

 Foshag, geologist, U.S. National Museum : 



From the petrographic examination of the materials, some of them are mani- 

 festly very old. Practically all of the blackish cherts are so bleached and altered 

 that they now display a pale yellowish-gray surface. The bleaching has pene- 

 trated so far that only the very central portion retains the original color. 

 These conditions are notably shown by the various cross sections of chips and 

 small artifacts. 



The great age of these specimens is beyond question. They have been bleached 

 by long exposure to the weather and the shallow ground waters since they were 

 worked into their present shape. This process is a very slow one, as may 

 be seen in the natural outcrops of these rocks, which are discolored to only 

 a shallow depth, as a rule. 



On the other hand, there are a few specimens in comparatively fresh condition, 

 even on the surface. Apparently these are either less ancient or they have been 

 imbedded in soil of a denser texture and hence have not been so fully exposed to 

 the weather and the percolating ground waters. Such specimens are few in 

 number. [ Foshag, 1954, personal communication.] 



Merrill (1913, pp. 215-216) has stated— 



that the weathering of chert, which is classified among the siliceous sedimen- 

 tary rocks poor in alkalies or iron-bearing silicates, is caused mainly through 

 disintegration in that the silica, which exists either as crystalling or chalcedonic 

 forms, has passed into solution. 



Hovey (1894, pp. 727-729) as quoted by Merrill (1913, p. 215) 

 shows that — 



The change is evidently mainly physical, though it is more than probable that a 

 certain amount of interstitial silica has been removed. It is, of course, possible 

 that here, as in other forms of decomposition, extensive solution may have 

 taken place, leaving a residue which, so far as composition is concerned, gives 

 no clue to the changes which have occurred. 



