| OCR Text |
Show Utah Fertile Geologic Field 0 5 4 Fossil Remains Unearthed PROFESSOR FEEDEHICK J. FACK, head of the geological department jj i of the University of Utah, holding a tooth of a mammoth. In the haok-J haok-J ground are cases of Utah minerals and geological specimens in the University ' of Utah museum. ') i' v!s:' ' ago by Ben E. Argyle, a University of Utah student. State Negligent. "Though Utah lias such wonderful nelics and geological specimens, the state is allowing the treasures to be carried off by museums and institutes of other states," Professor Hack said. ' ' This is because no appropriation or appreciation seemingly, on the part of the people has made it possible for them to remain here. As yet no legislative legis-lative appropriation has been made for unearthing the specimens although museums mu-seums of the country have spent largo sums of money in taking away Utah's treasures for exhibit elsewhere." At present plans are under way to make it possible for Utah to keep her treasures and let Utah museums benefit bene-fit thereby, according to Professor Pack. Not oue Utah museum has anything any-thing -but casts of the large animals of antediluvian days, he declared. The following account of "Where Geology Should bo Studded," taken from Professor Pack's pamphlet, which contains beautiful illustrations of Utah's wonders, such as the natural bridges, the mountain lakes of Big Cottonwood, Cot-tonwood, Devil's Slide, glacial canyons, fault escarpments, and pleistocene deposits de-posits extols the natural beauties of the state. "No one will attempt to deny the advisability of studying geology in a country where a wide variety of geological geolog-ical phenomena are easily accessible," Professor Pack says. "Yet from this point of view many of our foremost American university are poorly situated. sit-uated. "The field of nature is the geologist's geolo-gist's laboratory. It is just as unreasonable unrea-sonable to deprive the geological student stu-dent of proper field work as it would be to attempt a course in modern chom- . University of Utah Booklet B Describes Opportunities 11 Open to Students. I UTAH is not only one of the greatest fossil regions, but is the best situated region in the world for tho study of geology, according to Professor Frederick J. . Pack, 1 head of the geological depart II irent of the University of Utah, which last week distributed ' a new pamphlet on "Wonders of Utah Geology," written writ-ten by Professor Pack. Only one mammoth has ever been unearthed in Utah, he said. The bones I of the mammoth, which were found near Springville, having been deposited in a swampy region, were like the ashes of a cigaret, he said, and though they were unearthed in their entirety, the minute they wero touched they fell to pieces. Teeth Saved. The teeth, however, which were preserved pre-served in perfect condition, were saved. From the picture one can gain an idea of the immensity of the mouth of the beast, which in size was as large as the largest elephant, with tusks twelve feet in length. Professor Pack said it appeared that the animal had been mired. It stood upright on its legs with its head turned upward to' one side. The animal, Professor Pack said, lived about the time when old Lake Bonneville covered the present Salt Lake valley to a depth of 200 feet. The mammoth "was discovered two years c-an be picked up by haiulfmls. These and other Cambrian forms are known to occur at Ophir, Santaquin and Cottonwood Cot-tonwood canyon. A great variety of marine Triassic fossils occurs right at the university's back door. The wide occurrence of vertebrate fossils is iust now being recognized. The Mesozoic forms of eastern Utah have already become be-come famous." at the foot of a great granite cliff and clustered about by pines and ferns, jeweled here and there with the wild flowers of the mountains. "The University of Utah stands in the midst of this unparalleled wealth of natural -resources. Here the geologist geolo-gist can find the superlative of almost everything known to his science. "If he wishes to examine ore bodies, coal deposits, hydrocarbons, oil shales, rare metals, cement rocks, phosphate and potash deposits, etc., they are all here. Or, if he wishes to investigate structural problems he will find abundant abun-dant examples of anticlines, synclines, faults, overthrusts, and what-not. If lie inclines toward topography or differential dif-ferential erosion he can go to no place on earth that will equal the San Raphael, Ra-phael, Zion canj'on, Cedar breaks, Uinta basin, San Juan, Haynes canyon or Great Basin. "The stratigrapher and paleontologist paleontolo-gist are equally as well provided for. There is an abundance of formations ranging from pre-Cambrian to recent. They are all boldly exposed and easily acccssib'e from the university campus, only Cretaceous and Tertiary being more than three hours' walk distant. "fThere is also a great wealth of invertebrate and vertebrate fossils. At Antelope sprines Cambrian trilobites istry without having adequate laboratory labora-tory facilities, or a course in history without a library. , The geologist, without with-out field work, learns his subject only theoretically, and even that but poorly. poor-ly. His work is of such a nature that he cannot go far without verifying the results outside tho laboratory and classroom. In a word, field experience experi-ence is absolutely essential to proper geological training. "Then again, the nature of the field (or the laboratory or the library) will have much to do in determining the student's success. Bold geological exposures ex-posures are far superior to obscure ones, for after the student has become well acquainted with type phenomena he can readily identify them even though they may be exposed only in part. The student very commonly experiences ex-periences difficulty in comprehending say, an unconformity, a plunging anticline, anti-cline, a graben, or an overthurst, but. when he has once seen these features in their entirety he can identify others even when poorly present. For this reason the student trained in regions of bold exposures is ordinarily far superior supe-rior to one who has done his work in a plains country or a big city. "Ideal conditions demand a wide variety of geological phenomena, boldly exposed and easily accessible. In this respect the University of Utah is probably prob-ably better situated than any other institution in-stitution of learning on tho American continent. In support of this very sweeping statement the following outline out-line of a few of Utah's geological, resources re-sources is herewith presented. It will bo noted that practically every phase of geological investigation is repnee sented. "Utah divides itself naturally into two great provinces, an eastern and a western. The eastern half contains many of the higher and more narrate mountain ranges, while the western half lies within the Great Basin, much of which is relatively flat with here and there mountain ranges half buried in the sediments of ancient Lake Bonneville. Bonne-ville. The western face of the Wasatch mountains and the high plateau forms the dividing line between these two provinces. "The Wasatch mountains rise in the north-rent.ral part of the state and ex- tend in a southerly direction for about 150 miles and terminate in Mt. Nebo, which is situated almost precisely at the middle of the state. This central highland continues to the south as the high plateau country and ends abruptly abrupt-ly just before the Arizona line is reached. "The topography of the Wasatch mountains is typically sharp and serrate; ser-rate; that of the high plateau presents precipitous and in many places vertical cliffs with broad, flat tops, occasionally occasional-ly mounted with great castellated spires. "The canyons in the mountainous country are characteristically V-shaped, except as they are locally modified by glacial action. "Box canyons" are abundant in the plateau country and are often wholly inaccessible from the sides. When once entered they must commonly be followed for miles before lateral exit is possible. "The Uinta mountains are situated in the northeastern part of the state. These mountains are more than one hundred, miles long and trend east-west. In this feature the Uinta mountains stand practically alone among American Amer-ican ranges. They present several peaks in excess of 13,000 feet in height. For scenic beauty the lofty mountains and wooded canyons, studded with a thousand glacial iakes, are not only unsurpassed un-surpassed but unsurpassable. "The Henry mountains are situated to the southeastward, not far from the Colorado river and just below the i 'unction of the Green and the Grand, iecause of their laccolithic origin these mountains are perhaps better known to geologists than any others in America. Some of nature's most fantastic ero-sional ero-sional forms arc presented in this general gen-eral vicinity. The inaccessible nature of the region has kept secret many of these features until within the past few 3rears, and even now there remains ample reward for the adventurous explorer, ex-plorer, t is within this country, onlv half a decade back, that the world's greatest, and now most famous, natural bridges were discovered. And there still remain miles of country -not yet trodden by the foot of white man. West of the Wasatch mountains and within the Great Basin there are numerous nu-merous mountain ranges trending north-south. north-south. They are principally of the "block type." When viewed from a little distance many of these ranges, because of the deposition of alkaline sediments around them, appear to emerge, as it were, from the surface of an nnripnled sea. "Salt Lake valley extends north-south north-south immediately at the western base of the Wasatch mountains. It com-nri'es com-nri'es a great structural depression bronght about through faulting. Tlr far-famed Wasatcli fault, fully 150 miles long, forms the western face nt the Wasatch mountains and the eastern east-ern boundary of the valley. "During Pleiso'en', times npftrlv h whole of western Utah was buried beneath be-neath the waters of a great inland se;i many times lartrer than the present vestigial ves-tigial lake and more than lfoo fee' deer. Far up the mountain sides this predecessor of Great Salt Lake has left nearly a score of well marked terraces the highest of which was formed ,i9t before the lake discharged its waters into the Pacific ocean. "The Wasatch mountains, right af hand, furnish evuVneo of recent gla-ciation, gla-ciation, as truly Alrdne in nature a?-tlwt a?-tlwt of Switzerland. Even now ves tiges of these former glaciers sometime persist throughout the year. Perhar.: no more inspiring sieht can be imagined imag-ined than One of Utah's glacial lakes indigo blue in color, crouching closely |
