THE ORIGIN OF COAL 



337 



show us, on the slabs that have just been separated 

 by the blow of the hammer, various wonderful de- 

 signs in which we recognize without hesitation the 

 imprint or mold of some form of vegetation. There 

 is no mistake about it; a plant has left its remains 

 there ; we behold in very truth the leaf with its sub- 



Fem Imprints from the Coal Epoch 



divisions and its veins. It is all there, even to the 

 minutest detail. It is really the leaf minus the 

 green color, for which is substituted the black of the 

 coal. We should not obtain a more exact representa- 

 tion if we ourselves took the imprint of some suffi- 

 ciently firm leaf on a soft plaque of clay. 



"Pending the time when some lucky chance shall 

 bring you into the neighborhood of a coal mine 

 where you can obtain a laminate block that you can 



