- 247- 



and we can imagine th"^ sea plants. the algre, and likowise the protoza 

 the Bacillaria, and the Radiolaria besides the sponges and the Foranae- 

 nifa when they die and their protophxsm changes to petroleum aud 

 rock oil, and evaporating leaves the asphaltum behind. And this is the 

 way asphaltum of California carne, from protoplasra. 



It is interesting to write that petroleum is said to carne from inor- 

 ganic substances by such a chemist as Berthelot in 1866, by Bryasson in 

 1870, by Mendeljep in 1877, by Cioes in 1877, by Von Humboldt in 1804, 

 by Rozet in 1835, by Protk in 1846, by Parran in 1854, by Thore in 1872, 

 but these theories are unteuable. It ii regarded as of organic origin 

 and from plants by Lesqnereaux. He thinks the marine alg* are the 

 origin of it. But he did not study the protista being merely a fossi! 

 botanist or a student of fossil botany. Sterry Hunt mentions a certain 

 black band in the Hamilton period, but does not consider the petroleum 

 in connection theiewith. 



Wall and Kruger in 1880 pointed out that petroleum, or rather 

 asphaltum , was preseiit in the island of Irinid and Rupest Jones, 

 without referiiug directly to the Diatoms or Bacillaria says that they 

 are the cause of it. From auimals, they are supposed to be obtainable. 

 And from a misture of animals and vegetables. Ali of these observers 

 do not take into consideration that protoplasm is the same thing in one 

 —protista vegetable and animals. So that we see that petroleum, rock 

 oil or asphaltum may be obtained from organic matterofany kind. In 

 California at least it comes the recent strata of the coast , from the 

 Eocene as the geologists term it, the infusial earth, thus day of Baile 

 and Etnenberg and Blake at Monterey and San Francisco. 



