JVotices of Fossil Wood in Ohio. 107 



Two instances of wood found in digging upon the river bottoms, 

 have come to my knowledge, one about five miles from Springfield, 

 on Mill-creek bottom, at the depth of thirty feet, and one at Cincin- 

 nati, on the Ohio bottom, at the depth of thirty-five feet. 



The instances of fossil wood in Ohio with which I am acquainted, 

 are much more numerous upon the upland or table land, than upon 

 the bottoms. 



The quantity of this wood and its so general dispersion, clearly 

 evince that it has not fallen into fissures of the earth, opened by 

 earthquakes; besides, strata of soil or black mould, are frequently 

 met with, which have every appearance of having been the surface : 

 they vary from six inches to four feet in thickness, and are generally 

 interspersed with grape vines and the appearance of leaves and drift.* 

 The tree in Mr. Newel's wells, induces the opinion that the trees 

 grew where they now lie; for it was broken in the trunk near the 

 root, and yet both parts lay in a conformable position, except that 

 the ends of both parts at the fracture were lower than if the trunk 

 had not been broken, i. e. it was sunken at the broken place ; which 

 facts cannot easily be accounted for, unless we suppose that it now 

 lies where it originally fell. 



There is not a primitive rock in this region, except bowlders of 

 granite, which have evidently been transported from another and a 

 northern region. They are numerous in Ohio, but there is not one 

 in Kentucky ; from the Ohio river the banks are too high, for those 

 bowlders to have been carried up by water, which would turn its 

 course after meeting the river and follow down its bed. The con- 

 formable rocks are universally transition limestone, fragments of which 

 lie unconformably in all cases interspersed with the bluish gravelly 

 earth, above the fossil wood. 



There are two indications here of two former inundations. Gran- 

 ite bowlders are lying on the surface of the earth, under which whole 

 trees are lying at the depth of forty feet ; and such bowlders are 

 also found lying upon conformable transition lime rocks. 



I have made inquiry respecting conformable rocks overlying fos- 

 sil wood ; but have not learned one instance of such a fact. 



* This is the language used in giving me information, and means such vegetables 

 as are thrown together by swollen streams. 



