CRINOID GENUS SCYPHOCRINUS 5 



skill and patience, he prosecuted quarrying operations for several weeks, which 

 resulted not only in the recovery of some of the most remarkable specimens 

 of fossil crinoids ever obtained, but in settling finally the facts upon which the 

 interpretation of Camarocrinus must depend. It was a work of no small 

 difficulty, as the physical obstacles were formidable. The layer could be readily 

 traced, but it was not everywhere fossiliferous, and when it was a place had 

 to be found with a soft seam underneath along which it could be easily separated 

 from the one next below. Even then it still remained to be seen whether good 

 specimens would be found exposed when the rock was lifted from its bed. 

 Several feet of overlying material had first to be removed, and it was then 

 found that the crinoids were limited to the lower 2 inches of a heavy bed of 

 impure argillaceous limestone, averaging 6 to 7 inches in thickness. This could 

 not be parted by splitting, and it was therefore necessary to remove the upper 

 half by the slow process of chipping with hammer and chisels, in order to 

 reduce the slabs to manageable weight. This done, the remaining part of the 

 layer was pried up in as large pieces as possible, parting readily from the 

 underlying rock along the line of an intervening seam of fine-grained clay, 

 which adhered closely to the lower surface of the slabs, where alone the crinoids 

 were found in good condition. 



This fact is important to remember: that while the lower two inches of 

 the bed is chiefly composed of a dense mass of crinoid stems, firmly cemented 

 together with a scanty matrix passing gradually into the limestone above — the 

 calices and other parts scattered through them crushed, broken, and distorted 

 by pressure — it is only on the under side, where the adherent clay has acted 

 as a mould and protected them from the effects of the pressure, that the crowns 

 are found well preserved. 



The material taken up was not all equally rich, some of it having to be 

 rejected because barren. The fossiliferous part of the layer proved to be 

 limited to a small area, and it is evident that the fossils found here are the 

 remnant of a thickly crowded colony, suddenly killed by some change in the 

 water or movement of the sea bottom, and imbedded in the soft mud without 

 much disturbance by currents. Four large slabs were selected of about 500 

 to 1,500 pounds weight each, together with some smaller pieces, the whole 

 weighing 4,500 pounds. Two of the slabs fit together, forming a single one 

 of nearly 4 by 7 feet, containing the most important specimens (PI. I). 



The locality was several miles distant from any station or landing, and 

 it was necessary to transport lumber to make strong packing cases for the 

 slabs, bedding them in plaster to secure the specimens from injury in handling. 

 Then a chute 60 feet long was constructed to slide the packages down with 

 ropes and tackle over a sloping rock levee of about 35 feet (vertical) descent 

 to the water's edge, where they were shipped on a passing river steamboat. 



