Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 183, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 August 1911 — LAVA CHARRED LOG [ARTICLE]

LAVA CHARRED LOG

Found Imbedded in Basalt Bock Formation Near Spokane. Piece of Wood, Said to Be 100,000 Years Old, May Throw Light on Geological Status of Valley— Is Well Preserved.

Spokane, Wash. —Believing that the discovery of a lava charred log, Imbedded 80 feet from the face of a cut Into the basalt rock formation in the eastern part of Spokane will aid science to deduce pouch important data regarding the geological status of the Spokane valley, experts connected with Smithsonian institution at Washington, D. C., will be requested by the Spokane chamber of commerce to make thorough analyses of the mass. Father J. J. Adams, S. J., Instructor of physics at Gonzaga college, Spokane, has made a series of experiments to determine the character of the tree, but beyond establishing the fact that It is a hard wood, the log so tar has withstood all attempts at chemical analysis, probably owing to the numerous changes It has undergone.

“After consulting every reliable authority at my command,” Father Adams said, “I have reached the conclusion that the Spokane valley Is of comparatively recent formation, a product perhaps of the Cenosoic period. Of course the surrounding mountains, such as the Cascades and the Rockies, are of much older formation, dating back, no doubt, to the Mesosoic period. “The more recent crustal movements in all probability took place after the glacial period, although the volcanic eruptions in the vicinity of Spokane would seem to date back 200,000 years. This peculiar volcanic belt underlying Spokane would seem to date back at least 100,000 years. The formation In Division street, in the locality of the stump, indicates that the tree was embedded during the recent crustal changes. “The nature of t£e surroundings and other geologic conditions accompanying the discovery are of utmost significance to the people of this , age, since they aid science to deduce much Interesting data relative to the geological status of this locality not heretofore established.” The log was found by laborers employed in a rock cut on the Spokane International railway. The mass was split and backed by the men, who did not know its scientific value, though three large fragments, the size of cord-wood, were rescued by representatives of the Spokane chamber of commerce, Gonzaga and Spokane colleges and civil engineers connected with the railroad. H. A Margoyles, a local railway contractor having charge of the work, &Ibo secured several eight-foot pieces, which he will have fashioned into an easy chair. 'Dfce formation at the point where the log was encountered included a layer of rock, one of ashes and another of rock, the thickest part of the wood being Imbedded in ashes with the basalt rock covering !L The roots ware burned off, while the rest of the log was charred to depth ranging from one to two Inches. The color of the wood Is dark brown. It Is of dose grain and In a good state of preservation.