THE SCIENTIST. 
^5 
throii^i^li solid I'ock, heiico, caused the 
belief, that mineral may be found pro- 
mi scuo us] 3^ 
At various times I have been told, that 
flint is a <^ood indication of minei-al, find 
when people who were sinkin;^ thronoli 
solid rock struck nodules of flint, they 
erroneously think they will find zinc. 
As a matter of fact, there are a gre:it 
man}' nodules of flint in some of the lime 
rocks. Jn or near a fissure, the water fre- 
quently dissolvfs the lime around the in- 
Kolu')le flint. Now, because the zinc is 
found arouiu] the flint, they take flint for 
a g'ood indication wliile in fact it is very 
innocent of beini? either fi o;ood or bad 
indication. How the leads attained such 
width has ali-cady been explained. 'J he 
straraof lime rock frequently chani^es 
olfto strara of cla}^ and shales, the filter 
jition of the lime rock made the subrtjince 
verj^ soft where the fissures are. This 
consequently ciuised the erosions there 
to be llie deepest, fuul in nearly all in- 
stances whei-e I suppose that there are 
such fissures, they were found to be the 
chaimels of the surface water, but as the 
veihS extended above the present level 
it appears that the softer vein matter 
wfis wa hed away and left some of the 
hai'der pieces of lead and zinc ore expos- 
ed to the surface. Mfuiy, though not all, 
river beds in southern Missouri are leads. 
1 certainly believe that there are such 
leads under some river bottoms or creeks 
which further development will expose 
sooner or later. There ma}^ be dift'erent 
theories and others may not concur with 
my views, though in many instances 
where my opinion was based upon the 
foregoing observations as well as accord- 
ing to the theory above defined, my 
statements have been verified not only 
in instances where I maintained no min- 
eral could be found, but also where I had 
indicated the most mineral was to be ex- 
pected. 
Proceedings Kansas City Academy of Science. 
Scientific Value of Fossils. 
By Edwin Walters. 
1. Fossils serve as an index to his- 
torical geology. 
1. Environments during life. 
It is fair to assume that results obtain- 
ed in the present and those recorded of 
the past, when similar, were produced by 
like, or some\vh;it similai", causes. By 
a study of modern organic forms, and 
the environmeiits that modify them, we 
are en;d3led to determine, by the aid of 
companitive anatomy, chemistry and 
orh "r sciences, the completed for-ns and 
the environments of the plants and aiu- 
mals wliose fragmentary fossil remains 
we find preserved in the rocks. 
Certfdn forms of organic life must fil- 
ways be associated with moist and warm 
or hot climates. We know that this is 
true in the present, hence, we assume 
that the same laws of harmony and asso- 
ciation obtained in prehistoric or geo- 
logical times. At present, we know that 
the gigantic ferns, palms, equisitje etc 
are peculiar to warm and moist climates 
hence, we assume, or conclude, from a 
study of the mammoth fossils remains of 
siyillaria lepidodendron, calamites, equi- 
palms and other plants of the coal 
age that the climate of tlie carbonifer- 
ous period must have been warm and 
moist to a degree unknown in modem 
times. 
2. Means Of Deposition. 
By the application of known law, it 
is possible from the study of fossils, to 
determine their medium of deposition. 
Sometimes this is found to be salt water, 
at other times fresh or brackish water. 
Sometimes it is fair to assume that the 
situ of fossils is attributable to 
wind, waves or even to the agency of 
man. Salt and fresh water specimens 
are easily distinguished. Those peculiar 
to brackish waters are usually at, or near 
