38 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS \t)L. 66 



The breaking up of the ice in 191 5 was exceptionally gentle and early. By 

 the middle of June the usual spring freshet, following the break-up. had so 

 far subsided that I thought it feasible to make another attempt to revisit the 

 fossil places examined the previous fall and to extend my'explorations to the 

 elevated silt beds reported to be on the Big Anyui River. 



This time I hired a " carbass," one of the light fishing boats of the natives, 

 and set out on June 17, 1915, accompanied by the photographer of the party. 



All the elevated fossil banks on the Little Anyui were overhauled once more 

 carefully with the exception of the last two that had yielded no fossil material 

 before and were not likely to do so now. This time only a few scattered 

 insignificant fossil remains could be found. All these places were practically 

 as bare as I had stripped them the previous fall. The reason is evidently this : 

 All these silt ridges were freezing fast when I left them late in September, 



Fig. 51. — Timdra beach near Chaun Ray. Fossils found here, August. 1915. 



1914. The power of the sun, still feeble, had not yet been able to thaw them, 

 nor had the water, running only such short time again, been able to undermine 

 them. Therefore, no recent slides had occurred and no new fossil remains 

 had been brought to light. 



We hurried downstream again, entered — by the same connecting slough 

 mentioned above — the Big Anyui and went up river. In general appearance 

 this river is practically an exact counterpart of the Little Anyui. 



Approximately 60 versts above the mouth of the Big Anyui a first elevated 

 silt ridge, two versts in length and about 80 feet high, was encountered on the 

 left river bank. Fifteen versts farther on a second one of the same dimensions 

 appeared on the same side. And finally, another 15 versts beyond and facing 

 the river likewise on the left bank, a third silt ridge of about the same height 

 but only half the length was met with. The general appearance of these 

 frozen bluffs did not in any way differ from that of similar places on the 

 Little Anyui described above. 



