﻿Geology 
  and 
  Natural 
  History. 
  149 
  

  

  II. 
  Geology 
  axd 
  Natubal 
  History. 
  

  

  1. 
  The 
  Geological 
  and 
  Natural 
  History 
  Survey 
  of 
  Minnesota, 
  

   IN". 
  II. 
  Winchell, 
  State 
  Geologist. 
  The 
  Geology 
  of 
  Minnesota, 
  

   Vol. 
  IV 
  of 
  the 
  final 
  report; 
  by 
  N. 
  H. 
  Winchell 
  assisted 
  by 
  

   U. 
  S. 
  Grant, 
  J. 
  E. 
  Todd, 
  W. 
  Upham 
  and 
  H. 
  V. 
  Wixchell. 
  

   St. 
  Paul, 
  1899. 
  — 
  This 
  volume 
  deals 
  with 
  the 
  geology 
  of 
  the 
  

   northern 
  third 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  of 
  Minnesota, 
  including 
  all 
  the 
  

   counties 
  bordering 
  on 
  Lake 
  Superior 
  and 
  on 
  the 
  international 
  

   boundary, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  the 
  great 
  iron-producing 
  sections 
  of 
  the 
  

   State. 
  The 
  region 
  to 
  which 
  it 
  is 
  devoted 
  is 
  an 
  absorbingly 
  inter- 
  

   esting 
  one. 
  The 
  interest 
  is 
  located 
  at 
  the 
  two 
  extremes 
  of 
  the 
  

   geological 
  scale. 
  With 
  the 
  exception 
  of 
  a 
  few 
  scant 
  remnants 
  

   of 
  a 
  once 
  extensive 
  Cretaceous 
  formation, 
  all 
  the 
  older 
  rocks 
  of 
  

   the 
  region 
  belong 
  to 
  the 
  Archean 
  or 
  to 
  the 
  overlying 
  Animikie 
  

   and 
  Keweenawan 
  which 
  are 
  together 
  designated 
  by 
  Winchell 
  as 
  

   "Taconic" 
  contrary 
  to 
  common 
  usage. 
  Upon 
  the 
  glacially 
  

   abraded 
  surface 
  of 
  these 
  older 
  formations 
  lies 
  the 
  late 
  Pleisto- 
  

   cene 
  drift, 
  and 
  imposed 
  indifferently 
  upon 
  the 
  drift 
  and 
  older 
  

   rocks 
  are 
  the 
  features 
  of 
  the 
  Glacial 
  and 
  post-Glacial 
  lacustrine 
  

   occupation. 
  There 
  are 
  thus 
  two 
  classes 
  of 
  geologists 
  who 
  will 
  

   be 
  especially 
  interested 
  in 
  the 
  volume, 
  viz 
  : 
  those 
  who 
  have 
  

   worked 
  in 
  pre-Cambrian 
  geology 
  and 
  those 
  more 
  particularly 
  con- 
  

   cerned 
  with 
  the 
  problems 
  of 
  the 
  Pleistocene. 
  Of 
  the 
  thirty-two 
  

   chapters 
  contained 
  in 
  the 
  volume 
  six 
  are 
  devoted 
  to 
  Pleistocene 
  

   and 
  Recent 
  geology, 
  two 
  by 
  Upham 
  and 
  four 
  by 
  Todd. 
  The 
  last 
  

   chapter 
  of 
  the 
  volume 
  is 
  by 
  H. 
  V. 
  Winchell 
  and 
  deals 
  with 
  u 
  Min- 
  

   nesota 
  Iron 
  Mining, 
  economically 
  and 
  statistically 
  considered." 
  

   The 
  remaining 
  twenty-five 
  chapters 
  deal 
  chiefly 
  with 
  the 
  geol- 
  

   ogy 
  of 
  the 
  older 
  rocks. 
  Thirteen 
  of 
  them 
  are 
  written 
  by 
  N. 
  H. 
  

   Winchell 
  and 
  twelve 
  by 
  Grant. 
  The 
  volume 
  is 
  large 
  and 
  im- 
  

   portant 
  in 
  appearance 
  and 
  has 
  the 
  attractiveness 
  which 
  graphic 
  

   representations 
  give 
  to 
  otherwise 
  tedious 
  geological 
  descriptions, 
  

   there 
  being 
  no 
  less 
  than 
  31 
  geologically 
  colored 
  plates, 
  48 
  photo- 
  

   engravings, 
  and 
  114 
  cuts 
  in 
  the 
  volume. 
  The 
  volume 
  does 
  not, 
  

   however, 
  contain 
  as 
  much 
  as 
  its 
  size 
  would 
  lead 
  one 
  to 
  suppose. 
  

   This 
  is 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  method 
  adopted 
  for 
  the 
  presentation 
  of 
  the 
  

   subject 
  matter 
  of 
  the 
  volume. 
  The 
  first 
  twelve 
  chapters 
  give 
  a 
  

   description 
  of 
  this 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  by 
  counties. 
  In 
  the 
  

   majority 
  of 
  cases 
  contiguous 
  counties 
  have 
  the 
  same 
  or 
  closely 
  

   analogous 
  geological 
  features. 
  Each 
  county, 
  however, 
  or 
  in 
  some 
  

   instances 
  a 
  group 
  of 
  counties, 
  is 
  written 
  up 
  as 
  if 
  the 
  others 
  were 
  a 
  

   terra 
  incognito. 
  In 
  consequence 
  of 
  this 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  wearisome 
  

   reiteration 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  statements 
  without 
  any 
  comprehensive 
  

   discussion 
  of 
  the 
  region 
  as 
  a 
  whole. 
  This 
  subdivision 
  of 
  a 
  scien- 
  

   tific 
  work 
  along 
  the 
  purely 
  arbitrary 
  lines 
  of 
  county 
  boundaries 
  can 
  

   not 
  be 
  condoned. 
  It 
  throws 
  upon 
  the 
  reader 
  the 
  task, 
  which 
  should 
  

   clearly 
  devolve 
  upon 
  the 
  author, 
  of 
  subdividing 
  the 
  work 
  along 
  

   natural 
  or 
  rational 
  lines 
  and 
  so 
  massing 
  the 
  facts 
  as 
  to 
  afford 
  the 
  

   broadest 
  possible 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  questions 
  discussed. 
  As 
  if 
  the 
  itera- 
  

  

  Am. 
  Jour. 
  Sci.— 
  Fourth 
  Series. 
  Vol. 
  IX, 
  Xo. 
  50. 
  — 
  February, 
  1900. 
  

   11 
  

  

  