40 S. F. Peckham—Pitch Lake of Trinidad. 
by direct conversion from woody fiber, leaving entirely out of 
consideration the conclusions of this eminent author in refer- 
ence to the production of hydrogen sulphide, to which further 
reference will be made. It is, however, just to these authors 
to remark that the general knowledge of the world concerning 
bitumens and their origin has been vastly increased during the 
thirty-five years that have elapsed since they issued their report. 
Charles Kingsley and some others have written descriptions 
of the lake since 1860, but no new facts are stated by them.* 
During 1892 the Hon. W. P. Pierce, then United States 
Consul at Port of Spain, at the request of the department, 
made a very full and able report upon the asphalt of Trinidad.t 
The fullness with which all sources of information are made 
to lend their quota towards a general conclusion in regard to 
all possible aspects of this question, is of itself the best guar- 
antee, to any unprejudiced reader, of the eminent fairness of 
this report. Its appearance was almost immediately followed 
by another report made by Mr. Clifford Richardson, at that 
time Inspector of Asphalt and Cement for the District of 
Columbia.t 
This report of Mr. Richardson, while seemingly emanating 
from a wholly disinterested source, presents statements and 
conclusions in many respects quite different from those reached 
by Consul Pierce and previous observers. - It was for the pur- 
pose of satisfying myself as to the facts, and also of studying 
the occurrence of bitumen in Trinidad in the light of such 
observations as I had made in California and elsewhere, that I 
lately made a trip to Trinidad and the Pitch Lake. 
On approaching Point La Brea from the northwest, the reef 
of asphaltum that forms a barrier around the point and against 
the sea, is plainly visible. Upon the point itself and jutting 
into the sea are what appear like low ledges of rock, which 
a nearer inspection proved to be masses of asphalt taken 
from village lots, that had been p led for shipment, but had 
been so long left in the tropical sun that they had melted and 
flowed into a solid homogeneous mass, that looked at a short 
distance off like ledges of slate. The piles, which were origi- 
nally about twenty-five feet in height, were not more than three 
feet thick. Near these masses were other piles of the same 
material, from which lighters were being loaded, and which 
had not remained in the sun long enough to melt. Many 
hundreds of tons were included in these masses, the original 
pieces of which had so far coalesced that the asphalt had to be 
again broken with a pick before removal. 
* A Christmas in the West Indies, London, 1879. 
+ Consular Reports, No. 145, Oct, 1892. 
¢ Reports of the operation of the Engineer Department of the District of 
Columbia, for the fiscal year ending June 30th, 1892, Washington, 1893. 
