Ward, Henry A. Letter to Dewey, Chester (1857-03-21)

Extent

10 pages

Transcription

Paris. March 21st. 57 Respected Sir. Accompanying this I send an account of my journey from Munich through Austria, Hungary, & Northern Italy to Genoa. The letter was written at this latter place nearly three months ago, but I had kept it with the intention of adding as much as should be requisite to describe the balance of my trip. I reached Paris nearly six weeks ago, but I have been unwell ever since & been able to do no writing or studying until this past week I will now add but a word as to my tour in Italy and Sicily for I fear that you will hardly excuse me the demand which I have made already upon your attention. I went by steamer to Leghorn which city has in its immediate

vicinity some extensive bits of Quaternary limestone lying a little above the present level of the Mediterranean and containing many fossil shells of which nearly all have their analogues at the present day although some now only inhabit tropical seas. Twelve miles west of Leghorn rise the snow topped Apennines, & at their base flows the River Arno on which is Pisa--the, to me, finest city in Italy. There I spent an hour on the famous "Leaning Tower" and the rest of my New Year's day at the University, visiting with and viewing the collection of Professor Meneghini who is unquestionably the greatest geologist in Italy. He has studied in a very through manner the geology of Tuscany & has published a large work upon its sedimentary rock and eruptive rocks. These latter are very interesting both from their number & variety as well as for the metamorphose in action which they have had on the Cretaceous and Jurassic limestone which they have traversed producing the So celebrated Italian marbles. Another fact which professor Meneghini has brought out very strongly in his work And map both of which he gave to me is the relation of age between the interruptive and the sedimentary rocks. Thus for instance throughout all Tuscany The Euritia Porphyries reach the term of the Pliocene. The serpentine dikes and with the Miocene, the Diorite And Ophite with the Eocene, the Ophiolite with the cretaceous, &c, &c. I obtained from the prof a complete and nicely trimmed and labeled suite of 54 of the principal eruptive, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks of Tuscany and also 50 species of Pliocene fossils in exchange for eight C. gigantum and some other Paris fossils he also gave me a long Itineraire and a hastily drawn map to serve me in an excursion which I made about 45 miles at sea southwest of Leghorn to "Elba." I staid upon the isle three days during which time I crossed it on horseback in several directions visiting the ancient and inexhaustible mines of Iron ore. The mineral occurs in immense dikes with serpentine and is as abundant as it is rich. The fine specular specimens the pyrites etc. Are not nearly near as abundant as I had inferred, but I succeeded in tying up on my horse two bags of them which were so heavy that after this I was obliged to go on foot and I also brought another large lot of specimens at Porta Ferrajo, the chief town of the isles.

Vicinity some extensive beds of quaternary limestone lying a little above the present level of the Mediterranean and containing many fossil shells of which nearly all have their an out analogues at the present day although some now only inhabit tropical seas 12 miles west of leghorn rise the snow topped Apennines and at their base flows the river Arno on which is Pisa to me the finest city in Italy there I spent an hour on the famous leaning tower and the rest of my New Year's Day at the University visiting with and viewing the collection of Professor Meneghini who is unquestionably the greatest geologist in Italy he has studied in a very thorough manner the geology of Tuscany and has published a large work upon its sedimentary and irrupt of rocks these latter are very interesting both from their number and variety as well as for the metamorphosing action which they have had upon the Cretaceous and Jurassic lime stones which they have traversed producing the [socelitiated] Italian marbles another fact which professor Meneghini has sought out very strongly in his own in his work

Elba contains a few secondary rocks of the Jura formation, which are greatly dislocated, much altered by heat, & contain very few fossils. The platonic rocks are on the contrary very abund- ant. Among them are Granites of two widely sep- arated ages. One with crystals of Tourmaline thrown up during the Eocene period, & another without the mineral which dates from the carboniferous group. From Elba I returned to Leghorn & thence by steamer to </u Civita Vecchia > by Dilligence, to Rome. Here I </u sought > Uniossin the Fiber, & visited the beds of Travertine of which the city is built. I also called on Prof. Ponzi of the University who explained to me how the "sulfatargs" in southern Italy followed (on its eastern side) the range of the Apennines, & for him, marked the line of fracture made by their </u Soulevement >. I gave the Prof. some Paris fossils for some (Pliocene) from "Monte Maris." & then after taking a glance at St. Peters & the Coliseum. I returned to Civita Vecchia & took steamer to </u Naples >. I spent two weeks in & around this latter City, but much of my time was lost on account of an almost daily fall of rain. I visited the Temple of Serapis" (described so fully by Lyell), several extinct craters which abound in fumerales, 'Monte Muovo" (about the size of My. Hope) which was thrown up 3 centuries ago only. the famous "Grotto del Cane" & last but not l;east Vesuvius which rises above the Bay of Naples in all its grandeur & which pours from its top a constant cloud of smoke & vapours. It was in a state of partial eruption when when I was ^at Naples^ </s there > & although it has yielded as yet no </u flow > of lava. it thundered so fearfully when I was upon the summit and sent upwards such frequent & abundant sowers of melted lava that I shall </u never >forget the grandeur of the scene. I bribed my guide to go back to the city without me - & when he was fairly gone I went down into the crater, went close up to the little ^cone^ <.s center >(30 feet high) of eruption. clopped coin into the red hot lava as it fell, roasted some eggs at a fumerole, burned my fingers severely red by the action of some gas which issued from the crevices in the lava over which I walked! <.u This was the grandest day of all my life. > I never, never, saw anything, before seeing this volcano. I have a </u great deal > which I wish to tell you, Sir, about Vesuvius too much to write

-take it by letter. I called on Prof. S'cacchiat the University & saw a fine collection of Vesuvian minerals. He gave me in charge for Prof.Dava a variety 5 of Fer Oligiste from the lavas of 1880 which occurs in perfect octohardrous. & which he has given a particular name. He also presented ^me^ with his large work which contains the </u every > day life of Vesuvius for the last five years, with the results of many [analzaed] of Fumeroles & Solfateras, made by himself & Mr. Sainte Claire DeVille of Paris. I arranged att the University an exchange of Paris fossils (which I am now packing) for a complete suits of Vesuvian Minerals, Lavas, Tops, Fofeiliferous blocks thrown out of the crater (?) & c. I also made a little exchange with a naval officer for 50 species of shells which he had dredged in the Bay of Naples.& then having bought a host of shells & echinaceas . of the fisherman I took a little steamer to Sicily. We passed very close under Stromboli, whose cloud-capped cone rises directly out of the sea, and passing through the Straits of Messina we landed first at </u Reggio > in Italy & then crossed over to </u Messina, >. At this latter place I spent three days very pleasantly. I had much antic- pated visiting </u Catania >, where is Prof. Gan Etna- but my time upon the island was so limited that I could do neither. I called at Messina on Mr Luigi Benoit who is publishing at his own expense a large work full of plates on the Fenestrial & fluviatile shells of Sicily. He gave me some Pliocene fossils from </uPalermo > & then some curios from </u Syracuse >, of the single species which is found in Sicily. I purchased some fine Sulphus & Strontian in the town as also some handsome digonants & other shells. I then packed up May 14th a last, large box of specimens & took the steamer for </u Marseillles. > The Mediteranean has often served me false.& so it did this time. We were in a monstrous & stout steamer, but when hours from Messina, the sea became so terrible that the captain took us back to port & waited until the storm was over. We then started anew, passed through the starts of Bonifacis, & reached Marseilles in 3 days. I then took the cars north to Paris, stopping by the way to visit a fine Museum of fossils at </u Lyons >.

(5)

I am sorry, Sir, to have passed over in such few words the things which I saw & learned upon my trip between Venice & Messina. This was by far the most interesting & in- structure part of my whole journey, I antic- irate, however, with a great deal of pleasure the time when I can speak with you in full both of the Grology of Italy & also of that of the whole country which I have gone over. At present I can only beg your indulgence towards me for the length at which I have taken the liberty to write you. I do not know if I ought not to make some apology to my friends at home for the fact that I have allowed myself this four months vacate in the regular course o my studies, When the journey was proposed to me last fall, I felt that if it were merely to see the countries through ^which^ it was to lead me - their sights & their cities, - that I could not afford the time which the tour would demandI thought however that </s the > I could by attention render the journey in some sort an application practise of what I had already learned. In this I have succeeded even better than I had dared to hope. I have not only seen directly many things of which my only previous idea was derived from arid and descriptions, but also I have become acquainted with a large number of things entirely new to me. As a result of these observations I find my- self at the present moment with a much more correct & definite idea of the true principles

I have much work before me to label & pack to America these collections from my trip & others -all of which together fill two large rooms so full that they have actually overflowed into all the bureau drawers & closet shelves of the third room in which I live! The time which I have devoted to this class of labour for the past year has undoubtedly been a great drawback to my studies but I can not but think it on the whole desirable when I consider the other advantages which I have been able to procure merely by the aid </s of >(pecuniarily) of such collection. With the present state of my purse I can hope for little more than to get safely back to America in the early part of the summer. I shall feel very sorry to not have visited Switzerland with its glaciers & its striking physical scenery, & especially to not be able to spend a month or 6 weeks at London in the British Museum of the Royal Geological Society, and at least six weeks more in travelling upon the most interesting geological paths in England, Scotland & Wales. I see clearly & certainly how I could accomplish this </u without involving my future to the extent of one single dollar >, had I only the ready money to invest in the undertaking. I expect to write to Uncle Levi upon this subject next week & I would prefer making him & yourself Sir, my sole confidants in the matter. Should I be aided to do this I should not reach home before the month of September. In case I go </u thus > to England I shall be only too happy to procure for yourself & Prof. Weed (please, Sir, present him my respects) a box of fossils from the "Old Red", which you request. I should like to know exactly the class of fossils which you would prefer (those most characteristic?) as also the sum to invest. This latter you would be as good as to hand to </u Mother > instead of sending it to me. I shall be most happy, Sir, if you will please accept for your collection the [o. gigantenus] & the [H. pomatial (singater)]which I sent in the box.

of the science to which I anticipate devoting myself in the future as also of the importance & seriousness of the preparatory studies which I shall require. The collateral advantages of my journey are as great as they are varied. - I have obtained a distinct connected, although of necessity a very ^superficial^ </u general, > acquaintance with the geology of a large part of Europe. I have become conversant with much of the geologies investigation which is at present being made on the continent. I have also received from the various geologists whom I have visited something like a hundred pamphlet publications., each containing from ten to three hundred pages of scientific matter, which I can always read, or refer to, with pleasure. The greater part of these are in German & Italian which languages now read with a much greater facility than if I had not been for months in the countries where they are spoken. Finally my </u collections > have been very large. -</u 14 > boxes in all. I have many fine valuable minerals, but I paid much less attention to their collection from the reason that they are of less importance to me than are characteristic rocks & fossils as also living shells. Of these two latter classes of specimens I have made large acquisitions. It is but a few days since that Prof. Sismondaz of Turin (Piedmont) sent me a large box with </u 300 species of Pliocene fossils, > all well represented & labelled. I have now the fossils of the different diverse of the tertiary series finely represented, viz. A large

collection of </u Eocene > fossils of the Paris Basin. Another large collection of </u Miocene > from Bordeaux & from Vienna had a 3d. large collection of </u Pliocene > from Piedmont Tuscany, Papal States & Sicily. Finally I have a very considerable collection of </u Pleistocene > in Quarternany fossils (in boxes in America) which we collected from the large, recently elevated, banks which border the Red Sea. I hardly know Sir, what you will say to the system of traffic or rather exchange which I have been carrying on during my voyage. I saw that this must be the case before I started from Paris for not having the funds necessary to obtain the specimens which I wished. I must needs go without or procure them by exchange deciding upon the latter I took with me several suites of 100 species of Paris fossils from my collection, & about 20 specimens of the large [Centhium gigantenin]. These were eagerly received by the different Profs. who had objects to give me in return. & in this manner I disposed of all save 1 C. giganteum, which I sold at [Leghorn] (for $15.) I also arranged some subsequent exchanges in accordance with one of which I am now sending off a box of Paris fossils to the University of Naples for a complete suite of Vesuvius Minerals. By far the greater part of my European collections find their way into the cabinet of my friend Charlie Wadsworth which is commencing already acquire colossal dimensions

                                                     (9)           [another hand- Mar 21, 1857]

I received one letter from you at </u Trieste > & found 3 more awaiting me at Paris - each of which was full of interest & very gratyfying to me. I should like, Sir, to speak about many things in them, but neither my time nor your patience will allow me to add any more to this letter save a word in relation to an article which I proposed to you last fall to offer to the Am. Journal of Science upon the Paris Basin, My long journey & a series of headaches which have hindered all study since my return, have entirely prevented my thinking upon the subject again until wthin a few days past. Thee encouragement which your remarks upon the subject contained has induced me to commence reading & studying up upon the matter with the view of writing the article </s which > before leaving Paris. As to its length I can not now say exactly but hardly think that I could limit it to less than 20 or 25 pages. Would it be necessary to "divide" a memoir of this length , & to avoid such a thing had not I better be even a little more concise? You asked me, before having read the sheets which I sent you with my map (& of which I kept a copy) if they" were in whole or in part the article proposed. "They were not so at all, although of course much of their matter would be used in another form. I think that I have about an idea of what would present the most interest to the readers of the journal.

I am aware that on the one hand a mere [drog] enumeration of factors will be of no interest while on the other </s hand > or series of highypotheses & conjectures will not be allowed the place

which should be held by real information. Again, I am not describing a series of beds until then or unknown, nor am I seeking to give that which will serve as an complete </s turn > scale of comparison with similar formations at home - for either of these the reader should refer to Bronziart's work upon the subject. My single [disos] would be to present a conscious general view of the [se]Ferting deposits as they present themselves in the Paris Basin to mention the agencies which appear to have presided at their formation, & to draw, </u with much caution >such conclusions as they offer towards the elucidation of the Principles of Geology. I have as yet thought of no particular arrangement of my subject, but propose [ ist a one as may include these several points viz? An account (less detailed than the one I sent you?) of the different [beds] dwelling especially as those little known in America, as the [Sysssum, colcaire] [Sropien] Plastic class. & chalk - and of their principal mineral contents, both general & accidental. 2. A view of the distribution of these deposits - as illustrating their manner of formation. 3. Such conclusions from the whole as may demonstrate the </u regime > to which the Basin was submitted, as the oscillations it underwent the alternote admission of fresh & salt water, the date of the English channell & c. & c. Should I not say a little about the </s Oney > early history of the Basin, such as I mentioned it to be in my letter to you? Are any dissrefuc- ions, upon the formation of chalk. Gypsum & c. ad- missible? Finally, how many cuts would be allowed? I should like one to show the [Iuropisante] antecedents of the Basin (The same which I sent you) One surface view of its present beds. One section giving a complete series of the beds, & Two to small maps showing the form of the [Eucene] sea at two different ages. These cuts could be very coarse, but they seem a necessary accompaniment of the memoir. You

see, Sir, that I am somewhat interested  in the thing

which I propose. Will you be so kind as to give me a word of advice upon the subject as soon as your con- venience will permit. I should prefer to a days the article to you in order that you might see & {pruve] it before it was presented Its final acceptation & public- ation would of course be gratifying to me, but the chief & great profit would result from the [Column] & study of writing it. Hoping to hear a word from you upon the subject. & thanking you for all your past & present interest in me. I remain, Sir, Yours very respectfully. Henry A. Ward [ybg]

Place sent from

Paris, France

Place sent to

Rochester, New York, United States of America

Country

France

Tags

ybg

Collection

AW23 Ward (Henry Augustus) Papers (Rare Books, Special Collections and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester)

Citation

Ward, Henry A. (Henry Augustus), 1834-1906, "Ward, Henry A. Letter to Dewey, Chester (1857-03-21).", AW23 Ward (Henry Augustus) Papers (Rare Books, Special Collections and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester), Ward Project, accessed December 27th, 2024, https://wardproject.org/items/show/13209

Transcribe This Item