| Show I FIND FOOTPRINTS 25 I MILLION YEARS OLD I Marks Made by Animals Long Since Extinct InI I i Washington Footprints made In Inthe inthe Inthe the sand approximately twenty five twenty million years yeara ago alO by llY animals long since extinct have e been discovered to In Inthe Inthe the Grand canyon of the Colorado river They have e been preserved Inv In- In Indelibly In the lie record of or the rocks In inthis this Instance the Coconino sandstone of Arizona Dr Charles W Gilmore the pale pale- paleontologist t who uncovered many ot of these ancient trades ranks hn has brought specimens of ot them to Washington lie He Hede de describes the lie unique for or the tho first OrRt time In II a bulletin of the Smith Smith soulan Institution Hard to Grasp The rhe human mind aC according to Doc Doc- Doctor Doctor tor Gilmore can scarcely grasp rasp the idea Iden o of the Ilse vast ae age of lit animal life on the he earth that Is presented by these strange p footprints Some tracks of extinct Quadrupeds were first dis discovered covered erCel In the Grand canyon In 1015 h by Prof Charles In Tn W t Dr John C 0 Merriam president of the Carnegie Institution of Washing Washing- Washington ton conceived the Idea of havin having a permanent exhibit of ot the lie footprints In place just as ns the they were found so that the lie tourist to that visits the Grand canyon mn may see sen e them I I Such Suh an nn exhibit has lias been heen prepared on the lie Hermit trail liy hy Doctor iii mor more In addition to the lie specimens brought to Washington fie fhe tracks Include those of new and unknown species that lived In the wet sand of this tills re region lon when the earth was much younger oun er The Smithsonian In- In Institution In Institution hopes hOlIes Inter later to tio do do similar work worl In other oilier localities and to take steps to preserve such natural phenomena om ell a The great reat antiquity of these foot font footprInts prints font prInts which occur from JOO to 1030 I feet below helow the llie level leel of the present rm rim of ot the lie canyon any n says SItS Doctor Gil- Gil Gilmore mor more Is clearl clearly demonstrated at this J locality oa II tr Beyond Comprehension It Is obvious that since silice the day when wIlen those Morose animals Impressed their feet In what at that time was moist sand more than 1000 feet of rock making rock materials were plied piled up In III successive above them them and tills this does not take Into account many hundreds ot of fet feet more that lint have been heen eroded ofT from the present top of ot the canyon wall The great length of oC time required for the cutting away or erosion of the lie rock to form the lie deep canon canyon and the even oven Jon longer er time necessary for forthe forthe forthe the original deposition of tills this great reat mass of ot stone Is when translated in- in into In Into to terms term of years ars If that were that were possible ble hie so stupendous as to 10 be almost beyond human bunion comprehension It is looped that the object lesson so graphically tau taught ht liy hy thIs tills unique may mor serve as an nn example to stimulate the preparation and preservation preservation allon of ot other natural phenomena to be found In our government Jo con con- controlled controlled trolled parks monuments and reser reser- reservations |
