THE AKCH^AN ROCKS. 5^7 



vems, of a pinkish color, and containing much of the greasy, talc-like mineral, which, 

 in places, imparts a liighly schistose character to tlie rock, sometimes predominating 

 over the quai-tz. In these cases tlie slaty lammas incUne westward 15°, whilst the whole 

 rock is mtersected by E. W. planes standing at neai-ly 90°. The schistose layers are 

 only in the upper portion of the belt which further south is purer quartzite with an evi- 

 dent northward dip. 



As indicated in the figure, the quartzite is over-topped, for nearly the whole length 

 of the section, by horizontal sandstone and conglomerate layers. The conglomerate 

 capping the bluflf m its lugher portions, and overlying the veined quartzite, shows a 

 mass of pebbles and small bowlders of the veined rock, compacted together without 

 matrix, or with one that is very hard and quartzite-hke, and of a brownish color. A 

 fine exposm-e of this conglomerate is to be seen at the top of the chff, at a point just 

 east of the southernmost of the two railroad bridges within the Narrows, and on the 

 south side of the bend which both gorge and river here make to the eastward. At the 

 top of the diff, on tlie north side of the bow, 140 feet above the raOroad track, sand- 

 stone, partly hard and brownish, with a vitrified appearance, and partly friable, is un- 

 derlaid by horizontal ledges of a conglomerate, having a hard quartzite matrix, and 

 including red quartzite pebbles and bowlders of all sizes. Twenty-five feet below the 

 top of the cW, the junction of the conglomerate with the underlying vertically-bedded 

 quartzite is seen. As viewed from the track below, the unconf ormabihty is very striking. 

 The conglomerate extends northward from tliis point, and. down the side of the ravine 

 next north of the bend of the river, to within 30 feet of the raibroad track. Its lower 

 portions (1278) show a loose, friable, biownish matrix of coarse sand, the quartzite peb- 

 bles running up to a foot in diameter, but being usually smaller than this. Below the 

 conglomerate, and abutting directly upon the railroad track, is a cliff 20 to 30 feet high, 

 of coarse, brownish, friable sandstone, without pebbles, showing cross-lamination on a 

 grand scale. North of the ravine, a low sandstone ridge is capped by the lower layers 

 of bowlder-conglomerate. 



On Sec. 31 of the town of Excelsior, is another gorge, known as the Narrows of 

 Narrows Creek. In its structure and rock occurrences, this gorge is similar to the 

 Narrows of the Baraboo, the veined quartzite, however, being less developed than at 

 the latter place. Between the two gorges the summit of the range is quite level. 



Westward from the passage of Narrow's Creek, the north quartzite range curves south- 

 ward to meet the north and south ridge that connects it with the southern or main 

 range. In the road near the center of Sec. 36, T. 12, R. 4 E., Reeilsburg, well up on 

 the ridge, quartzite is exposed with an E. W. strike and dip of N. 70°. This is its north- 

 em hmit, and the western end of the range, for just west of the road a rocky ravine, 

 over 100 feet in depth, shows the quartzite flanked on the north by heavy beds of coarse 

 conglomerate and friable sandstone, the quartzite occurring only on the eastern wall of 

 the ravine, the western side being altogether of sandstone. 



South from the center of Sec. 36, along the connecting ridge, the ground rises steadily 

 for several mites. For the first mile, horizontal sandstone ledges are seen rising to an 

 elevation of 520 feet. In the north part of Sec. 13, T. 11, R. 4 E., Westfleld, eleva- 

 tions of over 600 feet are reached. In this vicinity, and over a considerable area in sec- 

 tions 11, 12, 13, 14, 23 and 24, low outcrops of quartzite occur, the area including them 

 being all very high, and constituting a rounded swell above the general level. A long, 

 low outcrop near the Lutheran church in S. W. qr. Sec. 13, shows dark, purpHsh-red, 

 flaky-textured quartzite (1322,), which is plainly bedded, and laminated, and dips 57" 

 N. W., the strike being N. 47° E. 



Southward from the quartzite outcrops the elevation continues to be between 500 and 

 600 feet, in sections 23 and 26, but the only rock to be seen is horizontal sandstone. 

 Westward from these sections, the elevation remains about the same, and one passes 



