THE GliANI) GASON J)1STRICT. 
These portions occur in tlie beautiful valley of the Virgen, and they, as 
well as the features which characterize the entire front of the Vermilion 
Cliffs, merit some attempt at description. 
Each of the greater sedimentary groups of the terraces, from the Eo- 
cene to the Permian, inclusive, has its own style of sculpture and architect- 
ure; and it is at first surprising and always pleasing to observe how 
strongly the several styles contrast with each other. The elephantine 
structures of tlie Nile, the Grecian temples, the pagodas of China, the cathe- 
drals of Western Europe, do not offer stronger contrasts than those we suc- 
cessively encounter as we descend the great stairway which leads down 
from the High Plateaus. As we pass from one terrace to another the scene 
is wholly changed; not only in the bolder and grander masses which dom- 
inate the landscape, but in every detail and accessory ; in the tone of the 
coloi’-masses, in the vegetation, and in the spirit and subjective influences 
of the scenery. Of these many and strong antitheses, there is none 
stronger than that between the repose of the J ura and the animation of the 
Trias. 
The profile of the Vermilion Cliffs is very complex, though conforming 
to a definite type and made up of simple elements. Though it varies much 
in different localities it never loses its typical character. It consists of a 
series of vertical ledges rising tier above tier, story above story, with inter- 
vening slopes covered with talus through which the beds project their fretted 
edges. The stratification is always revealed with perfect distinctness and 
is even emphasized by the peculiar weathering. The beds are very numer- 
ous and mostly of small or moderate thickness, and the partings of the 
sandstones include layers of gyj^sum or gypsiferous sand and shale. The 
weathering attacks these gypseous layers with great effect, dissolving them 
to a considerable depth into the wall-face, producing a deeply engraved line 
between the including sandstones. This line is always in deep shadow and 
throws into strong relief the bright edges of the strata in the rock-face, 
separating them from each other with uncommon distinctness. Where the 
profiles are thrown well into view the vertical lines, which bound the 
faces of the ledges, are quite perpendicular and straight, while the lines 
of the intervening slopes are feebly concave, being, in fact, descending 
