WEDNESDAY. DECEMBER 14. 1949
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN, LAWRENCE, KANSAS
PAGE THREE
Mt. Oread Is Slowly Eroding And Quietly Going Downhill
By FRANCIS KELLEY
Mt. Oread is slowly being eroded and surface materials are being carried into the valley, Dr. J. M. Jewett, geologist of the state geological survey, said today.
"Many houses built on the side of Mt. Oread have cracked basement walls as a result of the slipping nature of the weathered Lawrence shale." Dr. Jewett said. "In the past, there have been instances of city water mains breaking. I strongly suspect the breaks were caused by the slipping shale.
"Three members of Oread limestone capping the hill rest upon about 130 feet of Lawrence shale. This shale is micaceous in composition and has a strong tendency to slip when wet."
Micaceous shale, he explained, generally is sandy shale containing minute mica particles that, because of their shape, are natural lubricants.
Near the surface this shale "weathers," changing in texture from the action of the sun, wind, and water. Although firm where it is protected from the action of weathering and filtering waters, this sheet of weathered shale slowly creeps down the slopes of the hill.
As the clay minerals in the relatively loose surface material becomes wet and dried they swell and shrink. This swelling and shrinking tends to promote "creep" on slopes and exerts pressure on foundations and basement walls.
For many years, school officials have realized the need for accurate information in the construction and maintenance of University facilities. Dr.Jewett said.
"Recently, the ground water division of the state geological survey was called upon by the University administration to make test borings on the hill and to study the drill cuttings." Dr. Jewett said.
"It tested sites for the new addition to Corbin hall and for the proposed Memorial campanile. It also tested for the addition the past year of a new generator for the power plant at the University.
"A commercial core-drilling company has taken samples from the site of the proposed Physical Science building south of Robinson gymnasium."
State architects and engineers are fully aware of the slipping characteristics of the surface material on the hill and take it into consideration in planning and constructing new University buildings, Dr. Jewett believes.
Elaborating on the earth formation of Mt. Oread, Dr. Jewett explained that beneath the Lawrence shale is a layer of Haskell limestone. Outcroppings of this limestone are to be seen near Haskell institute. Under this limestone there is approximately 75 feet of shale and sandstone.
"All of these rock layers have a slight inclination to the west," Dr. Jewett said.
"Mt. Oread is a part of an escarpment, an eastward-extending prong between the valleys of the Kansas and Wakarusa rivers."
East of a north-south line drawn approximately through Wichita and Abilene are the Osage plains. This area is marked by east-facing bluffs or escarpments winding from north to south across the state.
"These Osage plains hills are the physiographic expression of westward-dipping layers of rock,"
Dr. Jewett said, "Eroded edges of resistant rock beds form the bluffs. Mt. Oread is one of these edges."
Dr. Jewett pointed out that this erosion is a continuous process.
"Blue Mount, the hill near Eudora, and Mt. Oread were undoubtedly a part of the same escarpment thousands of years ago," he said. "Wind and weather have worn away their connecting rock strata until today they are two separate hills."
In time, Dr. Jewett believes, Blue Mount will disappear completely and Mt. Oread will gradually recede westward a considerable distance.
But students at the University today won't need to worry about Mt. Oread disappearing. They won't be around many thousands of years from now when it happens.
Faculty Attends Education Meeting
Six members of the administration and faculty attended a regional meeting on general education at Washburn college in Topeka Dec. 9 and 10. The meeting was sponsored by the North Central association.
- Sketch by State Geological Survey
Those attending from the University were: L. C. Woodruff, dean of men; Paul B. Lawson, dean of the College; Gilbert Ulmer, assistant dean; A. C. Edwards, associate professor of English; J. Eldon Fields, associate professor of political science; and Maude Elliott, associate professor of Romance languages.
The above cross-section sketch of Mt. Oread, drawn by Mrs. Grace Muilenberg of the state geological survey drafting department, shows approximate depths of material layers making up the hill.
The top layer, from one to 3 feet of weathered shale and limestone, is continually creeping down the slopes of Mt. Oread, damaging house foundations and basement walls. This weathered shale is eventually carried into the Wakarusa and Kansas river valleys by rain and wind.
Beneath the weathered shale and limestone are layers of Oread limestone, Lawrence shale, and Haskell limestone with their approximate depths indicated at the left in the sketch. The overall height of Mt. Oread is estimated at 180 feet. The sketch is not drawn to scale.
Interviews Find Opinion
Determining racial prejudice through the non-directive interview was discussed by Mrs. Louise Cochrane, instructor in sociology and western civilization, at a meeting of the Civil Rights Co-ordinating committee Monday night.
Mrs. Cochran, while working on her master's degree in sociology, experimented with the non-directive interview on her sociology class. This method enables the observer to get a cross-section of opinion on a given subject. By getting the group into a free discussion, the members' actual views may be ascertained.
Several constituent groups of the C.R.CLL. will use Mrs. Cochran's cases to determine the feelings of their members.
George Floro, instructor in sociology, was chosen as faculty advisor to the group. The next meeting will be held Monday, Jan. 9.
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