312 



FOKEST AND STREAM. 





A WEEKLY JOURNAL, 



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NE1V YORK, THURSDAY, DECEMBER ill, 1874. 



To Correspondents. 



All commnmcations whatever, whether relating to business or literary 

 correspondence, must be addressed to Tiie Forest and Stream Pub- 

 LianrNo Compajtt. Personal or private letters of course excepted. 



All communications intended lor publication must be accompanied with 

 real nnrae, as a guaranty of good faith. Names -will not be pnblished if 

 objection be made. No anonymous contributions will he regarded. 



Articles relating to any topic within the scope of this paper are solicited. 



We cannot promise to return rejected manuscripts. 



Secretaries of Clubs and Associations are urged to favor ns with brief 

 notes of their movements and transactions, as it Is the aim of this paper 

 to become a medium of useful and reliable information between gentle- 

 men sportsmen from one end of the country to the other ; ami they will 

 find oar columns a desirable medium for advertising announcements. 



The Publishers of Forest and Stream aim to merit and secure the 

 patronage and couutenance of that portion of the community whose re- 

 fined intelligence enables them to properly appreciate and enjoy all that 

 is beautiful in Nature. It. will pander to no depraved tastes, nori-iervert 

 the legitimate sports of laud and water to those base uses which always 

 tend to make them nnpopular with the virtuous and good. No advertise- 

 ment or business notice of an immoral character will be received on any 

 terms ; and nothing will bo admitted to any department of the paper that 

 may not he read with propriety in the home circle. 



We cannot, be responsible for the dereliction of the mail service, if 

 money remitted to us is lost. 



Advertisements should be sent in by Saturday of each week, if possible. 

 CHAIILES HALLOCK, Managing Editor. 



WILLIAM C. HARRIS, BusinesB Manager. 



MERRY CHRISTMAS! 



"■T"TT"HEN rosemary, and bays, the poet's crown, 



VV Are bawled in froquent cries through all tho town; 



Then judge the festival or Christmos near- 

 Christmas, the joyous period of the year. 



Now with bright holly all your temples strew, 



With lairel green and sacred mistletoe; 



Now, heaven-born Charity! thy blessings shed; 



Bid meagre Wanttiprcar her sickly head; 



Bid shivering limbs be warm; let Plenty's bowl 



In humble roofs make glad the noedy soul! 



See, see! the heaven-born maid her blessings shed; 



Lo! meagre Want uprcurs her sickly head; 



Clothed are the naked, and the needy glad, 



While eelhsh Avarice oloue is sad." 

 The most important day in the Christian calendar lias 

 again made its annual round, and with it comes all those 

 little kindnesses that render home the scene of particular 

 enjoyment to the young, and of deep pleasure to all. Dear 

 are its memories, and fondly is it greeted, for it brings a 

 cheerfulness to every household in the land, to which many 

 of them are often strangers. It is a day of rejoicing to all 

 classes, but to the Christian it possesses an interest above 

 its mere social phase, for to hint it is the anniversary of the 

 hirth of a faith that freed the world from a groping 

 religious slavery, and gave mankind a promise of future 

 life ami a hope of salvation. Since the day that Christianity 

 was heralded to tho world, the shackles of mental and 

 physical slavery have been gradually falling off, and the 

 cause of man has been ever onward and upward. The 

 Christian world therefore hails the return of that day with 

 pleasure, and makes it a marked event in the year. To the 

 most unimpressible nature it brings memories dear, for il 

 is a compendium of the greatest, hopos and achieved re- 

 sults of childhood's days, and is the representative of a 

 period of open gonerosity, gracious courtesies and unal- 

 loyed happiness. Even to the old its return brings some 

 social event which leaves a train of pleasurable emotion in 

 the mind long after it has followed in the cycle of time. 

 Throughout Europe the day is one of great rejoicing, and 

 no matter how poor the family may bo, their house on this 

 occasion will be decorated with evergreens, many lights will 

 illumine it, good cheer will be abundant and happiness will 

 reign supreme. Though the wassail bowl, the boar's head 

 and the yule log have long 6ineo been suppressed, and 

 kissing under tho mistletoe is no longer practiced, except 

 in a few instances, yet the day has lost none of its interest; 

 ..■■■parted pleasures are at. least balanced by our 



modern comforts, for, although the latter may lack the 

 quaint romantic aspect of their predecessors, they more 

 lhan compensate for this by their variety and quality. The 

 sturdy swain and tho fair young damsel must, however, 

 regret the absence of that mistletoe bough, from which so 

 much innocent amusement was extracted, and so many 

 prophecies gleaned. In our own broad html Christmas is 

 becoming a more important evettl, every year, but in por- 

 tions of New England it still retains the flavor the Puritans 

 gave it, hence is nol welcomed with the same warmth that it 

 is in other seel ions of the country. This indifference is, 

 however, being rapidly overcome, so this Christmas will, 

 no doubt, be generally observed throughout, the length and 

 breadth of ihc laud. This is as if. should be, for our holi- 

 days are few enough, and as the day is above all others one 

 of pleasure to old and young, and one of kindly greetings 

 among all, we join in the general salntalion, and bid Our 

 readers a Merry Christmas mid many of them, and hope 

 all may realize, (he fruits of that blessing which the angels 

 Uttered: "Peace on earth to men of good will." 



THE BAD LANDS SOUTH OF THE 

 BLACK HILLS. 



GREAT are the attractions of the Black Hill country. 

 While hundreds of venturesome minors are waiting 

 till Spring to risk their scalps for gold, n devotee of science 

 has braved both the storms of AYiuter and the most hostile 

 Indians for fossil bones. 



It has long been known to geologists that the region 

 south of the Black Hills, through which the White River 

 flows, is the basin of an ancient lake of Tertiary age, in 

 which are entombed the remains of many tropical animals 

 that once lived around its borders. Comparatively few of 

 these remains, however, have hitherto been secured, but 

 these were of great interest to scientific men. 



There has always been one great obstacle to the explora- 

 tion of these beds. The headquarters of Red Cloud and 

 Spotted Tail, and their powerful bands — the Ogallalah and 

 Brule Sioux, thousands in number — are on tho White 

 River south of the Black Hills, and these have hitherto 

 guarded effectually the approaches to that wonderful re- 

 gion. These tribes, especially the former, although pro- 

 fessing friendship for the whiles, have for years been vir- 

 tually hostile; and it is not too much to say that most of 

 the Indian outrages of the past live years, between the Mis- 

 souri River and the Rocky Mountains, although attributed 

 to various other bands, have been committed by the Ognl- 

 lalahs. 



We have therefore until the present time been obliged to 

 content ourselves with the meagre information and collec- 

 tions of the earlier expeditions. 



Since Gen. Custer's reconuoissance to the Black Hills, 

 the Indians have been especially jealous of any encroach- 

 ment on their territory in that direction, and have threat- 

 ened with death any white man who should dare to ap- 

 proach that region in search of gold. It required, there- 

 fore, no small amount of courage for any man to venture 

 into the very stronghold of the Indians in quest of fossils. 

 The statement that the explorer merely wished to pick up 

 some of the bones with which the B ad Lands are strewed, 

 met with little credence. Tour Indian cannot comprehend 

 why any one should want the bones of the giants that lived 

 in the olden time,bef ore the little men of to-day were created, 

 and naturally supposes that the statement of the white man 

 is only a shallow excuse invented for tho purpose of gain- 

 ing an entrance to the Black Hills, and seeking there the 

 gold that all the white men w T ant. To succeed in reaching 

 these bone fields, then, it required courage, and something 

 more. It required a clear, cool head, a calm, well bal- 

 anced judgment, and an energy ready for any emergency 

 and capable of grasping the slightest advantage. 



For the last five years Prof. Marsh has been engaged in 

 the study ol the extinct animals of this country, especially 

 those of the far West. During this time he has described 

 over two hundred species of fossil mammals, birds, and 

 reptiles, among which the following are some of the more 

 interesting: A large number of new Mososaurs, huge ma- 

 rine reptiles, veritable sea serpents, that lived in the cre- 

 taceous ocean, where now the Rocky Mountains are, but 

 with small fore and hind limbs in the shapo of paddles, 

 and ranging from twenty to seventy feet in length; the 

 first Pterodactyles, or flying dragons, that have been found 

 in this country, some of them of gigantic size, having a 

 spread of wings of at least twenty-five feet; the first fos- 

 sil birds described from this country; among them anew 

 sub-class of birds (Odontonulhcs), with teeth, and having 

 biconcave vertebrae, the latter a characteristic feature of 

 fishes; as well as a giant diving bird (Hesperomin), resem- 

 bling in some respects our loon (Colymbus torquatus — Briiu.), 

 but which was about six feet in height. All these are from 

 tho cretaceous of Kansas. He has also described a new 

 order of Perrissodactyle mammals (Dinocerata), nearly or 

 quite equalling the elephant in bulk, and remarkable on 

 account of many strange features. The skull of these ani- 

 mals was armed with at least two, and perhaps three, pairs 

 of horns, and they had enormous canines in the upper jaw, 

 resembling those of the walrus. Another discovery of im- 

 portance was that of fossil Marsupials, animals allied to 

 the opossun, of fossil bats and of fossil monkeys, none of 

 which had ever boon observed before in this country. 



About the 1st of last October, Prof. Marsh received in- 

 formation from Gen. Ord, commanding the Department of 

 the Platte, of a new and very wonderful deposit near the 

 Black Hills, and it became evident to him that a great 

 opportunity for the acquisition of some of the won- 



ders of this new country was at hand if the suspicions of 

 the Indians could be allayed and permission obtained to 

 enter the forbidden ground. In fact, the information was 

 too important to be disregarded. Prof. Marsh started at 

 once, and on reaching the West organized a parly from I he 

 guides and frontiersmen that he had employed on former 

 expeditions. Accompanied by a military escort from Fort 

 Laramie, he started for the Bad Lauds through tho terri- 

 tory of [he Sioux. 



It is needless to repeat in detail the incidents of the trip.. 

 The determined opposition and hostility of the Indians,, 

 the council fea.sts anil numerous presents given by Prof. 

 Marsh to propitiate them, and, when all these failed, the 

 stolen mareli by night across the White River, arc told of 

 in the daily journals. It, is enough to say thai, the deposit 

 was reached) and nearly two tons of fossil bones secured,. 

 notwithstanding the continued opposition of Hie Indians; 

 and the, bit lor cold, and thai the party returned in safety. 

 Some of the fossils are now in New Haven, and the rest arc- 

 on their way and will soon be deposited in the Peabody 

 Museum, 



The most interesting of the forms found at this locality 

 was the gigantic animal that Prof. Marsh has named Bivn- 

 tetheriitm. The first species of this genus was found by 

 the first Yale scientific expedition in the bad lands of Colo- 

 rado, which were discovered and first explored by Prof. 

 M. and party during the Summer of 1870. The remains 

 secured at that time, however, were few indeed compared 

 with those obtained this Fall on the White River. Prof. 

 Marsh has stated that on the first day he saw at least a 

 dozen skeletons or portions of skeletons of this animal. 



BronUttherinm gi</<is (Marsh) was proportioned somewhat 

 like the rhinoceros, but nearly equalled an elephant in bulk. 

 The skull is about two and one half feet long, and was 

 armed with a pair of huge horns, projecting from the nose. 

 These horns are not placed one before the other in the me- 

 dian line, as in all living two horned rhinoceroses; but 

 one on each side of the face transverse to the axis of the 

 head as in the horned ruminants of to-day. The animal 

 had short legs like a rhinoceros, a neck of moderate length, 

 so that a proboscis was not required; but it could lower its 

 head to the ground in feeding. It is probable, however, 

 thai the upper lip was somewhat prehensile, perhaps some- 

 thing like the snout of the present tapir. Another animal 

 of this genus was Brontntltfrittm. ingem (Marsh), which ex- 

 ceeded the preceding in bulk by about one third, the skull 

 being fully a yard in length. 



In the locality south of the Black Hills Prof. Marsh evi- 

 dently found an extensive .sepulchre of these huge crea- 

 tures, ne hits stated that in some places which he passed 

 the Bud Lands were fairly whitened with their bones. He 

 succeeded in unearthing many portions of the skeleton 

 hitherto unknown, and, what was more important, he fouud 

 in several instances the bones of the feet all occupying 

 their relative positions, just as they laid when the carcass 

 was covered with the mud. This was particularly fortu- 

 nate, since in animals so remotely related to existing species 

 as those under consideration it is very difficult to make out 

 the relations of the bones of the extremities, and from tho 

 relations of these bones maybe inferred in no small degree 

 the zoological affinities of the animal. 



Elotherium. was another species that was largely repre- 

 sented in these beds. This animal was about the size of a 

 tapir, but resembled the hog in many of its characteristics. 

 An interesting animal found in the same formation was 

 Anchit/terium. This was a little horse-like animal, about 

 the size of a sheop, and differing from the horse in having 

 three toes, all reaching the ground. The middle and larg- 

 est one corresponded to the single hoof of the modern 

 horse. In another stratum higher up in the same deposit, 

 were found multitudes of fossil turtles of various descrip- 

 tions ranging from six inches to two feet in diameter, and 

 near these the Oreodon, an animal about the size of a sheep, 

 and showing points of resemblance to the hog, the deer, 

 and the camel, was very abundant. 



All these animals belonged in one lake basin of Miocene 

 age. Over these were deposits of a second lake which 

 existed in Pliocene time, and abounded in remains of fossil 

 horses, camels, and rhinoceroses. The remains of horses 

 were especially numerous, and represented at least a dozen 

 different kinds varying in size from that of a sheep to that 

 of the largest, modern horse. The animals entombed in 

 this lake were all different from those of the older Miocene 

 lake, and also quite distinct from any now living. In life 

 they roamed about the borders of these fresh inland seas 

 and daily came down to the water's edge to drink. Occa- 

 sionally, no doubt, one of them became mired in the tena- 

 cious clays that formed the banks of the lake, and being 

 unable to extricate himself was drowned- At other times, 

 when crossing the rivers which poured into the lake at 

 various points, the swift current would bear away one or 

 two to the common tomb of the species. Thus gradually 

 these relics of a far distant past were accumulated, which 

 arc now being brought to light through the labors of the 

 devoted students of science. 



-»•»» 



Vanity Faib Tobacco.— Those sportsmen to whom the 

 "Vanity Fair Tobacco" of Messrs. Kimball & Co., of 

 Rochester, was such a solace in camp during the Summer 

 and Autumn seasons, will find it no less acceptable as they 

 walher around their Winter hearthstones to recount the 

 adventures of the past. Read their advertisement and be 



happy. 



— . ..< i> 



jay-State Fish. Commissioners will oblige m by sending 

 ■ , i j n I reports as soou as published, 



