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About The Nebraskan. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1892-1899 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 4, 1895)
THE NEBRASKAN Vou IV. No. 2. UNIVERSITY OF NHHRASKA, LINCOLN, OCTOBKK l, isr. Pmcn t) Cknts IN THE BAD LANDS REGENT MORRILL EXPEDITION Wns a Profltablo and Enjoya bio Trip Good Specimens Socurod Doc's Ac count of It. It wns n Jolly party of students which stinted from tho University onrly In Juno for tho Dnomouollx hods of north west Nebraska, nnd tho hip had lands nf Smith Dakota. Tho following won' In the pnrty: Prof. Harbour, Col. Cor nell, Doc Everett, Freddie Hnll ami his brother Gib. 15. F. Klnir. commonly called Hex, T. H. Mutslund, Jessie Howe, and O. H. WIeland. Wo wore nont out through the generosity of Ro & tit Morrill, who provided funds for tills and tho two previous expeditions, on arrival at Harrison, Neb., we met ur driver and started at once for the oiksorow beds. ramp was pitched In the midst of the Dartuouellx fields at Eegle Crap, some time miles north of Harrison. These lu.tnonellx beds are the remains of an ll lake bottom, which tenches over an t. nt of many hundred miles. Thoy .nt roughly bounded on the north by :li.- White river and on the south by the Niobrara. Their extent to the east and to the west In Wyoming has not yet been dellnltely determined. All lnall they cover an estimated area of 400 ot 50J square miles. In them, on the sides t elllTs, ravines anil blow-outs are found the peculiar fossils lrom which they take their names. The blow-outs are hollows in the surface of the ground which have been formed by the action ol the wind. Each blow-out has a cen tra core of some harder material hi-.. mid tho region.-alUwhleh the softer soil has been blown away. These beds are nothing more nor less than n sedi mentary sand rock some 250 feet In thickness, interspersed by tllnty layers and denser portions of slllclous nature. The Daemonellx, or devil's corkscrew, Is found near the top of this layer and beneath the upper larger lllnty layer. The Daemonellx Is a peculiar fossil from two to nine feet In height and hav ing an average diameter of eight Inches There are line collections of this forma tions In the State University museum, hieh ate the only ones In existence. Nebraska has cause to be proud of them for thoy are peculiar to herself. They nly occur in the Tine Hldge table '.nds of Sioux county, Nebraska. The epical form, roughly speaking, rcscm 'a an lnvited corkscrew wlih half of nie handle gone or else a magnliled cum? wrapped with lire hose. It Is formed of a harder matetial than the roek surrounding, and thus weathers out and resists disintegration better. These corkscrews have a regular spir al form with the trunk or bundle part sloping upward from the colled column. In some tare forms there Is no trunk i letk-m. Kaclt coll Is u I ways a definite Inru? mnaller tliun Its preceding upper neighbor. For tills reason the whole spiral tajters from the top gradually to the bottom. The Hunk is trout twelve Hit-hea upward In diameter anil from three to fourteen foot In length. All prominent geologists are Inter twi In this matter, and many theories have btMm advanced by thorn. Never liieltam, tho exact method of formation iiH not yet been explained. If this were actually determined, tho diseov eiy would bear the same relation to geology us the discovery of a star of the llrst magnitude does to astronomy. The three theories which ure the most xenerally accepted are the accretion, tho burrow and tho plant theory. The accretion theory Ik to this general offect that these corkscrews were formed by the collection and aggregation of par ticles of tho corkecrew material around a common point. Thus the oc currence of a corkscrew would be a mere accident. Now If they were mere "accidents," accretions, they would not occur so often and of such a regular form. There la no other "accident" knew t to geology which occura so regu larly and In such profusion. The sec ond theory, that of the burrow of an nnlnial gophorllke has received a grent deal of attention and has now mnny firm supporters. This theory ex plains Itself. There arc many objec tions to It also, tho chief ones of which being ; There are no remnlns of the animal which Is supposed to have made them found In thorn; tho scratches which a rodent would mako with his claws on tho sides of the screw are en tirely missing. Those Daemonellx bodH nt the tlmo when these fossils were formed were the muddy bottom of the lake, or else a very marshy, boggy place, subject to sudden overllow and covering up with sand and mud. The nature of the material In which they tiro found would preclude any such hut rowing nt the time of deposition, since excavations of this nature would bo impossible. If they wete modern bur rows made since the sand solidified In to rock, then the animal which con structed them must have been a marvel for the rock Is so hard now that It rond ors work with tho pick almost Impossi ble. Prof. Harbour's plant theory Is the most plausible and tenable of the three. Ho says that those were un doubtedly plants resembling the mod ern seaweed In structure. They grow at the time when this country wan a lake and ns the bottom became filled up with sediment these corkscrews were cov ered up and fresh ones took their places above them. Thus we have a layer many feet In thickness with corkscrews at every level. The most Important fact In support of the plant theory Is that throughout the whole corkscrew plant's cells are to be found. The fact that their stems are always perpendic ular goes to show that It could not have been a burrow. No animal Is known with such a delicate brain as animals must have had capable of mak ing the burtow. The work of excavating was difficult but the scenery and the camp life com pensated us for all our trouble. Our camp was pitched In one of the pret tiest spots outside of the. canons In that part of the country. The view from the tent northward was, perhaps, the finest one. We could look through a gap In the bad lands of Hot Creek basin, and In the distance see the dim outlines of the Hlnck Hills. After work In the evening target practice and sleep wns Indulged In. Sleep seemed to co me the most natural. Sunday was always a holiday. There was no church near, so we hitched up the team, took guns and cameras, to gether with an ample lunch, and spent the day in some of tho adjacent canons. There was plenty of shade the most Important thing excepting our lunch and good cool spring water. A Pine Hldge or bad lands appetite Is a thing to be carefully watched and pro vided for. It is self-assertive und seems to take no enjoyment in the scenery. Wild raspberrleb and "sarvlce berries" grew near, and nt the close of our lunch, without moving from our seats, w could pick enough for our desert. In the course of the afternoon King came running breathless to the wagon. He said the brook was full of fish. Here was pleasant news, for It promised a change ftotn the monotony of camp fare, There was not a hook or even a line in the crowd, and the fish were a foot In length. Everyone's face grew long at the thought, and then our brightest mind suggested that we shoot the fish. The change was instan taneous. There was a general rush for the wagon for the guns, Some of us had boon bathing in a pool near by, and were In consequence bare-footed. Cactus was abundant, and the men who hated water were obliged" to walk through It to get their guns. That was their part of the labor. Shooting fish In two or three feet of water Is rather trying. If you shoot straight at the fish the water turns the ball, and you miss him with a margin of about two feet. It you think that you'll shoot a little uhort of him the bullet is sure to go about an Inch this side, and so much gravel will be scattered that when the tContmiicil on I'iikc! ).) OURFOOTBALL TEAM IS AT WORK IN EARNEST Some Hoavy Mon Expoctod From the Law School Mako a Good Show ing Alroady. Although the heavy-weight mon In the law department havo not returned, yet the football tonin Is taking on a varsity appearance, and the dally prac tice gives one the Impression that wo are to have a first-class team. It look ed for a while as If the team would bo too light to bo able to hold Its high po sition among the western colleges, but the advent of several Inrger men has given the team a more formidable ap pearance. The practice Is being prolonged and the boys are nil working hnrder than thoy were Inst week when the weather was too hot for much violent exercise, but the cool weather of the past week has put new life Into the boys and thoy put an Interest into the game such ns wns never before seen on the Nebraska campus. The captain was or Is a little late In rcturnlng so Mr. Thomas has had to take complete control and tend to all the nffnlts. The captain should be here to assist In getting suits on some of the heavier men who are needed to brace up the team. The coach not being familiar with the men In the university is greatly handicapped in the procur ing of the new matetial. Up to date not a single person bus been Injured In any way, and ns this Is the critical time and the boys are more apt to be hurt because of not being In condition, we are very fortunate.- alr has a twisted knee, which he received nt Atchison In a game with the Kansas state univer sity team, but it is not serious enough to keep him from practice. Otis Whipple had to get out of a sick bed In Okla homa to return In time for school, but ns he Is gaining about ten pounds a week he will soon be In football form again. Harry Oury will not have time to play this year. This Is to be regretted very much as Harry was a veritable wall and never gave the captain any uneasiness as to his position because it was certain to be tilled up to the re quired standard. Spooner will also be greatly missed ns his folks have de cided that they think the game a lit tle too rough for Clinton, but we do not think so us he Is growing and get ting stronger every year and Is not built like one of the boys who get hurt. A man who Is well put together and has gone through one hard season Is not going to get hurt In the next. It Is only the men who go Into the game without conditioning themselves that are hurt. While we may possibly ob tain some one who can pass the ball as well as Spooner, he will bo certainly greatly missed on defensive work, as his tackling was always one of the brilliant features of the game. The new candidates are also Improving and showing good form, especially Shedd and Jonos. It looks us If Missouri would be our most formldablo opponont on the grid Iron this fall as she has been fortunate In all matters. In tho first place, Young is an excellent captain, and "Pop" HIIsh of Yale fame a good coach. Then she had $3,500 given her by the regents with which to fit out an athletic field, to obtain a coach, to fit up a training tabic and to buy suits. We "couldn't team. They were quite unfortunate In do a thing" with $3,500, could we? And then Kansas must be watched. Hecton Cowan Is piobably the best tackle that ever stood and he is up holding his reputation gained at Prince ton in '00 by his work with the Kansas losing their captain, who had his leg broken In practice, but the new incum bent, William Henry Harrison Piatt Is no novice In the service as he was on the first team over organized In Kan- sas, played on down through tho days when Halter used to whip her regularly, and was on the team last year when Nebraska, wont down und cleaned them out In such a pleasing fashion. Iowa Is an uncertain qunntlty as oil we know Is from vague reports gath ered by various moans. One of those Is that she has no conch. Another Is that thoy will not havo much of a team anyway. Wo are really sorry Hint wo rubbed It Into old Iowa so last fall If it Is going to break her up so com pletely. Hut you can't toll. Shu will probably turn up with ns good u foam ns she could expect. RIFLES' HUSINMOSS MEETING. A called mooting of tho Pershing Ri fles brought forty-live members to tho armory Monday evening, W. 15. Rood occupying the chair. Prospects of an election of ofllcers nnd arrangements for the lieutenant's reception were tho causes which brought tho largo nttund nnce. The first business to come up was the admittance of members. Four names were proposed and voted In. Hofore proceeding further It wns thought necessary to have a secretary, and ns II. S. Parmelee was convenient ly seated In a front seat he was ap pointed to fill this position. Reports of committees were then heard. The committee on iwnntinn m. 'ported progress made. Iiivitntirma im.i iw1n tli,.f,i ., , . . , been ptlnted and sent out. Arrange- ments for securing repivsontative hall music, Janitors, etc., had been com- ploted. In view of a possible deficit It was moved and carried that the Rifles assure tho payment of any debt left unould for lac'.' of funds. Letters from f. M. llentley, former vleepresldent, nnd Capt. C. A. Elliott wete read, tendering their resignations us they will not be In school this year. This left vacancies over which a discus sion arose as to whether they should be filled before the regular annual busi ness meeting, which would occur Thurs day evening. The general opinion was that theolllcersshould be on hand Wed nesday evening, but the constitution provides that no officer shall be elected to the same position for two or more consecutive years, and this would ne cessitate another election Thursday ev ening. The matter was finally compro mised by suspending the rules and vot ing this meeting tho regular annual business meeting nnd doing away with the one Thursday evening, provided in the constitution. This being settlod to evory one's sat isfaction the election of officers began. Robert Hlltner was proposed for pres ident. A motion Immediately followed that tho nominations be closed, and the secretary wns instructed tdcast a unanimous vote for him. At this W.D. Reed relinquished the chair and the election proceeded under the now presi dent. C. 13. Adams was unanimously elected vice-president; H. S. Parmelee secretary and H. S. Langworthy treas urer. Hefore voting on the military ofllcers the president nppointod Ralph Saxton and L. p. Sawyer tellers, and tho vote taken by ballot. John Dixon, captain of company "li" for ')3-4, was nomi nated by C. C. Pulls, Joe Heurdsley's name was presented by Hugh Wilson. Heed withdrew ftom nomination wheii his name wns mentioned, in favor of John Dixon. Tho ballot resulted, IJoardsley 28, Dixon 14, Reed 1. A mo tion was then put to make It unani mous for Joe lleardsley, and It carried with arush. The remaining ofllcers were elected unanimously, without any opposition: First lieutenant, C. C. Pulls; second lieutenant, C. F. Schwartz; first ser geant, H. C. Parmelee; second sergeant. T. F. McCarthy; third sergeant, C. 13. Adams; fourth sergeant. W. Wilson; fifth sergeant, R. C. Paxton. The elec tion of corporals was left to the com missioned ofllcers for their recommend ation. Their t nines will be proposed at tho next meeting. The mallet of Incotporutliig the com pany was then brought up. The com mittee appointed to look Into It, re ported that no definite action had yet been taken. After remarks by Lieut. 1 ei-dilng, u committee of t i e was ap pointed to file articles of incorporation of the Pershing Rifles. Fred Clements, J. H. Ramos and W. II. Oury will con stitute the committee. A committee on membership consist ing of R. C. Saxon, T. F. McCarthy and H. F. Gage being appointed, the meet ing adjourned. CAPTAIN GUILFOYLE NOTES ON HIS MILITARY LIFE Has Expor-lonced Somo Inter esting Scenes Graduato of West Point-A Life Skotch. Captain Ollfoylo took charge of the cadets Wednesday evening, Introduc ing himself In a neat speech before the battalion. He said he was much pleas ed with his first impression of the corps of cadets, especially with the. snap in which tho drill masters gave their com mands. if expressions heard on the side amount to anything tho Impression tho now conmiandant made upon the ca dets was as favorable as that made upon tho commandant. His military ap peal ance was quite pleasing and seem ed fully to meet the requirements of a cadet's Ideal. Capt. John Gullfoyle entered the mil itary academy of West Point, N. Y., In 1S7L', having been appointed from Mary land. He graduated from this Institu tion In 1ST", as Second Lieutenant. He Joined his troop, "D" of the Ninth Reg iment of cavalry In Texas in December, 1ST", on the Mexican border, and serv ed there for nearly a year. From that place ho marched to southwestern Col orado and served In that state before It was very much settled, for one year. He then served In Now Mexico nnd commanded a company of Apache In dian scouts, In the Indian wars of New Mexico ot S0-S1. He participated in three pitched battles with Indians while commanding these scouts, and was brevetted First Lieutenant for gallantry In them. This brevet was not conferred, however, until fourteen years after the affair occurred. He was pro moted to First Lieutenant Ninth Cav alry on November 1, 1SS1. He was ap pointed regimental quartermaster in 1SS3, und regimental adjutant In 1SS4, holding the latter position until 1SSS. He participated in the Sioux cam paign of 1890-91 und was adjutant of Col. Henry's squadron of the Ninth Cavalry which made the famous ride in that campaign, nnd went to the res cue of tho belengured Seventh Cav alry. He was promoted to captain In Feb ruary, 1891, and bus served since the latter dato at Fort Robinson, Nob., commanding troop "I" of the cavalry. He commanded his troop during tho strikes of 1801 nnd during the Jackson Hole troubles last summer. BATTALION NEWS. For a few moments of unalloyed pleasure, Just watch the band drill. Monday evening the companies were sized up nnd now cadets assigned to companies. Each company will average about seventy mon. Orders were read Wednesday ev ening, malting It Imperative that ca dets order their uniforms from the Honderson-Amos Company. Tho new drill legulatlons have not yet been secured. Tho lessons In mili tary science are being assigned in the old tactics, tho first part of which Is not affected by tho change In rifles. Corporal RubhoII bocame so enthusi astic In drilling his squad the other n'ght that when tho call sounded he marched his men Into the armory In their shirt sleeves. leaving their coats on the campus. The reception tendered to Lieut. Pershing Wednesday night by thocadet corps and the Pershing Rifles was at tended by between 300 and 400 guests. Representative hall was decorated In truo military style and presented a fine appearance with the draped flags and crossed swords. Chancellor MacLean and wife, Hon. C. H. Gear and daugh ter and othors received the guests as thoy arrived. The ball was a completo success and reflected much credit on the arrangements committee.
