302 The American Geologist. ^^^'' i^*^^- 
action of atmospheric forces. The writer has never seen, with- 
in the Hmits of the Wisconsin drift areas, an instance of ver- 
tical chiTs (lemoHshed in this ste])-hkc fashion to snch a degree 
of irregularity hy atmospheric forces. Such weather effects 
require more time, and here they probably date from pre- 
lowan glaciation. 
Other digging. 
It had been planned to make some excavation in the loess 
of the surrounding region with a view to comparing the loess 
at the Concannon tunnel with the general loess deposit, but the 
time available would not permit a satisfactory test of that kind. 
However twoi pits were dug- about six feet deep. 
One pit was toward the south up the valley of "'the little 
tributary creek." It was in the surface of a small flat area, 
about twenty or thirty rods south of the house but on the west 
side of the creek where no rock or rock debris could be seen, 
appearing like an ancient terrace level of lowan date. Its hight 
was approximately lOO feet above the bottom land of the river. 
A trench, or trench-like pit, was dug in the brink of this sup- 
posed terrace. The soil was found rather thin, grading down 
into a homogeneous sandy loess without structure, pebbles or 
limestone debris, but with black bits that appeared like char- 
coal, but may have originated underground by carbonization 
of roots or other wood without having been burnt at the sur- 
face. Throughout this pit were tubules, but no' sign oif lime. 
Iron crusts and small iron balls and j^erhaps some manganese 
stains were seen in it, of which the irregular distribution 
caused a slightly blotched appearance. This pit was above the 
level of the limestone forming Level No. 3 foregoing. 
Another pit was dug- about ten rods from the house and 
about on a level with the bottom of the limestone forming level 
No. 3, also in the west side of the valley of "the little tributary 
creek," about thirty or forty feet above the floor of the tunnel, 
and about ten or twenty feet above the "little relic-bearing de- 
posit." This trench was dug six and a half feet deep. With- 
in the last three feet we found much limestone debris, coarse 
and fine, loess-kindchen and one rounded white quartz pebble, 
three-quarters of an inch in diameter. The material passed 
through below the soil (18-24 inches) was first loess-like and 
