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SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLI. No. 1050 



cup or Texan oak and finds it to have an 

 age of 300 years, it is clear from these 

 facts of ecological succession that it has 

 been much more than 300 years since there 

 was a lake, where the trees now are. 



Through a study of trees that germinated 

 on these lands in and about 1847 I was 

 able to determine that at that time the con- 

 ditions were essentially as at present, since 

 in the so-called lake beds the same species 

 of trees are developing now as in 1847. I 

 testified that in the lands in suit the evi- 

 dence of ecological succession shows be- 

 yond all question that even a thousand 

 years ago these so-called lakes must have 

 been land, and it is my firm belief that 

 there have been no lakes in these sites for 

 at least two thousand years. 



The physiographic evidence corrobo- 

 rated the ecological evidence in striking 

 fashion. It is a well-known fact that de- 

 posit is more rapid on the immediate banks 

 of the Mississippi than farther back, much 

 coarse material being deposited near the 

 shore, whereas further back the material 

 is finer and finer and constantly less in 

 amount. It is this fact that accounts for 

 the formation of the natural levees ; thus in 

 these so-called lakes which mostly lie some 

 miles back of the river front, the alluvial 

 accumulation is slight. It is mostly to the 

 much slower accumulation of vegetable 

 material that they owe their gradual ele- 

 vation above the water table. Excavations 

 near the river and in the so-called lakes 

 brought out this difference most strikingly. 



Furthermore, the spur roots which are 

 sent out at the ground line are still uncov- 

 ered by accumulated alluvium, even on the 

 oldest trees. Had lakes existed in 1847 

 and been subsequently filled by detritus, 

 it is clear that the spur roots of old trees 

 would be deeply buried. In the so-called 

 lake beds there are many logs of trees that 

 fell in the earthquake of 100 years ago, 



and even these logs are still unburied, 

 thus showing an absence of appreciable 

 alluvial accumulation for at least a cen- 

 tury. 



Two questions may have occurred to 

 you that are more of human than of ecolog- 

 ical interest. What was the object of a 

 fraudulent survey of such colossal magni- 

 tude, and how were the suits decided? As 

 to the motive of the surveyors, it may be 

 noted merely that in 1847 our government 

 surveyors got a certain sum per mile for 

 ordinary surveying, and considerably more 

 for surveying lake shores because of the 

 greater difficulties involved; it was an ob- 

 ject to return lakes, even if the meander 

 lines had to be traced while in camp. 

 As to the decision of the suits, the district 

 judge at Little Rock, in the first test suit, 

 made a sweeping decision in favor of the 

 government as against the lumber inter- 

 ests, though an appeal has been taken to 

 the higher courts. It may Be interesting 

 to note that the judge based his decision 

 largely on the ecological facts, in the 

 face of testimony given by some of the 

 oldest inhabitants that they had actually 

 seen the lakes in question! However, 

 other equally old and perhaps more 

 respectable inhabitants testified that condi- 

 tions in 1847 were essentially as they are 

 to-day. It was brought out in court that 

 it is safer to believe a tree than a man! 

 Thus a line of investigation which we had 

 supposed to be theoretical only has turned 

 out to have large practical significance. 



No claim is made, of course, that this is 

 the first demonstration of the utility of 

 ecology. A field of research of almost 

 limitless possibilities is indicated by 

 Shantz's splendid paper on the natural 

 vegetation as crop indicators in the Plains. 

 Just as untold sums of money have been 

 wasted in the search for gold where the 

 geological formation is such that the pres- 



