PROSSER. | The Upper Permian. 91 
Lodge valley, Professor Hill referred to them as “the problematical 
formation known as the Red-Beds, Triassic of various writers.”! 
The Medicine Lodge gypsum has been traced by Professor Cragin 
to Herman in the Cimarron valley in northern Oklahoma, while he 
accepts provisionally the statement that it has been traced to 
Darlington, near El] Reno, on the North Fork of the Canadian, in the 
southeastern part of Oklahoma. He concludes that ‘the principal 
stratum of gypsum described and illustrated in the Red River Re- 
port of Captain Marcy and Doctor Shumard as occurring on the 
Canadian and on the forks of the Red river, can scarcely be other 
than the Medicine Lodge gypsum.’ 
When the above distribution of the massive gypsum is considered 
in connection with Professor Cummins’ statement that “As soon as 
the beds of the Double Mountain division are passed in ascending 
order there is no more gypsum,” there seems to be sufficient evi- 
dence to warrant us in referring the Kansas Red-Beds provisionally 
to the Permian system. This tentative conclusion is supported by 
Professor Cummins’ statement that “Only the upper part of the 
Permian is found north and west of the Wichita mountains and 
along the Canadian river, and in that there are fewer fossils than 
elsewhere in the Permian strata, so that anyone visiting that part 
of the formation might not find fossils sufficient to determine the 
horizon definitely or satisfactorily, and the mistake might very 
easily be made of calling all of the beds Triassic; while to the south 
and southwestward of the Wichita range no such mistake need be 
made, because the fossils are numerous and distinctive.” This con- 
clusion is also supported by Professor Cope who apparently regarded 
the Red-Beds along the Cimarron river in the northern part of 
Oklahoma as belonging in the Upper Permian, though in one place 
they are spoken of as “Permian or Trias.’ 
On comparing the description of the Permian sections of the 
Red-Beds of Texas with those of Kansas it is readily seen that 
there is a decided difference in the lithological characters of the 
1 American Journal Science, 3d series, vol. L, p. 207. 
2K. W. Cragin, Colorado College Studies, vol. VI, p. 30. 
3 Geological Survey of Texas, Fourth Annual Report, 1893, p. 281. 
4 Ibid., Second Annual Report, 1891, p. 429. 
Dia ae Proceedings Academy Natural Science, Philadelphia, Pt. I, 1894, 
pp. ,’ , O 
