HAWORTH. | Introduction. 118% 
Mississippi valley for thousands of years. It is not an idle 
dream that the proverbial American ingenuity and business 
enterprise will, in some way, in the near future combine these 
various factors of wealth in such a way that our gypsum will 
become one of our principal sources of revenue. 
The general discussions given by Professor Grimsley and 
Professor Bailey are so complete in their scope and in details 
that little need be added from any other source. It might be 
well, however, to give the reader a sort of bird’s-eye view of 
the geologic conditions in Kansas in order that he may the 
more readily orient himself properly while reading the more 
detailed accounts of the geology given by Professor Grimsley in 
chapter III. 
GEOLOGY OF GYPSUM. 
The student of geology is more liable to err by entertaining 
too contracted a view of geologic conditions than by one of too 
wide an expanse. One cannot well consider the great geologic 
conditions surrounding the formation of the Kansas gypsum 
deposits without at the same time carrying his observations 
both north and south beyond the limits of our state. The 
series of conditions which produced gypsum in Kansas were 
extended in both these directions throughout a long period of 
geologic time, with the result that similar gypsum deposits 
were formed in many other places. 
Neither is the geologic age of a formation any indication of 
the probability of its carrying gypsum. The gypsum in some 
parts of America is Silurian in age. Elsewhere it occurs in 
the Coal Measures, at least to a limited extent. The lower- 
most part of the Permian which immediately overlies the Coal 
Measures contains the lowest beds of gypsum in Kansas. From 
here upward, through almost every distinct formation in the 
Permian, gypsum occurs in our state, while the Permian of 
Texas and the Cretaceous of lowa have large quantities of it. 
One who is searching for gypsum, therefore, should heed indi- 
cations favorable for gypsum formation rather than be looking 
for any particular geologic age, simply because elsewhere in 
America or in the world gypsum has occurred in that age. 
