August 17, 1900.] 



SCIENCE. 



245 



Coos Bay quadrangles having been com- 

 pleted and the reports advanced to publi- 

 cation, surveys were continued in the Port 

 Orford quadrangle, covering the southwest- 

 ern portion of the Klamath Mountains 

 (Diller). 



' In the Sierra Nevada and adjacent 

 ranges, a survey was made of the Silver 

 Peak quadrangle, Nevada, and additional 

 work was done on the Yosemite and Mount 

 Lyell quadrangles, California, in prepara- 

 tion for final survey (Turner). 



In the vicinity of San Francisco the study 

 of the Coast Eanges was continued, and 

 material prepared for publication as folios 

 (Lawson). A reconnaissance was made 

 of the Santa Lucia Range from Monterey 

 to San Luis Obispo (Willis, Fairbanks). 



Alaska. — In the autumn of 1899 all the 

 Alaskan parties returned after having suc- 

 cessfully accomplished the tasks laid out 

 for them without serious accident. Messrs. 

 Peters and Brooks had traversed the 

 northern foothills of the St. Elias Range, 

 finding one of the most interesting features 

 of the region to be a recently abandoned 

 broad valley, trending northwest and south- 

 east, across which the present streams now 

 flow. The geology of the region, includ- 

 ing formations from the ancient metamor- 

 phic schists to Tertiary deposits and asso- 

 ciated igneous rocks, was studied along the 

 route of progress, and occurrences of cop- 

 per on the northern side of the Wrangel 

 Alps were located. North of the Yukon a 

 traverse was carried from Eagle City to the 

 Koj'ukuk, and the headwaters of that 

 stream, far beyond the Arctic Circle, were 

 explored by Mr. Schrader. The general 

 surface of the Yukon plateau was traced 

 into the summits of high mountain ranges, 

 and the distribution of the various geologic 

 formations along the route made out. The 

 reports of these expeditions are included in 

 the Twenty-first Annual. Late in the au- 

 tumn both Schrader and Brooks, hearing of 



the Cape Nome excitement, proceeded to 

 Nome, and there, in spite of the wintry 

 season, gathered data for a report, which 

 was published as a special document during 

 the winter. Plans for Alaskan work dur- 

 ing the current fiscal year were matured as 

 early as 'Congressional action permitted, 

 and at the present time Schrader, Spencer 

 and Grerdine are entering the Copper River 

 region to undertake a detailed topographic 

 and geologic survey of the Chettyna dis- 

 trict, while Messrs. Barnard, Peters, Brooks 

 and Mendenhall, with a strong corps of as- 

 sistants, are en route in the Coast Survey 

 steamer Pathfinder to Golofnin Bay, to un- 

 dertake a topographic and geologic survey 

 of the Seward Peninsula, of which Nome 

 is now the center of interest. In the prepara- 

 tion and execution of these plans the Coast 

 and Geodetic Survey and the Geological 

 Survey have cordially co-operated to the 

 great advantage and economy of the work. 

 Hydrographie Work. — This branch of the 

 Geological Survey is making systematic ex- 

 amination of the water resources of the 

 United States, considering water as a min- 

 eral of fundamental economic importance. 

 Not only are the fluctuations of surface 

 streams being investigated, but the occur- 

 rence of water underground, especially 

 where reached by deep or artesian wells. 

 During the past year this work has at- 

 tracted widespread public attention , and the 

 demand for data, both published and in proc- 

 ess of completion, has been notable. This 

 has come from all parts of the United States, 

 but especially from the Appalachian region 

 where water powers are being utilized, and 

 from the arid region of the far West, where 

 agricultural development depends upon ir- 

 rigation. Engineers and investigators ap- 

 preciate the importance of accurate data 

 concerning the flow of streams and their 

 fluctuations from season to season and from 

 year to year. The recent disaster to the dam 

 at Austin, Texas, which cost, with its aeces- 



