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Marsh Building on Mount Marcy

Upon the open summit of Mount Marcy, 5,344 feet above sea level, there are two small marshy areas. One is a decided depression in the northeast slope; the other is on the eastern slope and nearer the summit. The water necessary to maintain the character of these marshes is probably supplied in part by rainfall, and in part by melting of snows which have accumulated in the crevices of the rocks above. The two marshes are cold botanical gardens of natural formation, unique indeed, as there is no evidence that the soil for them could have been brought from other sources, while everything suggests that the mosses and lichens at the present time growing on the bare surfaces of the rocks are active soil-makers. The boulders of the summit are variegated by the different colours of the lichens growing on their hard and almost naked surface. The rock beneath the lichens is more soft and scaly than elsewhere, and the moss tufts have the spaces between their lower stems and leaves filled with dirt and sand. The soil in most places is but a few inches deep, and largely composed of dead vegetable matter. Only plants of the most hardy nature are found here, and these are small and imperfect representations of similar plants growing at lower altitudes. The total number of species found on the summit is 206, of which 103-just half of the total number-are dependent for their existence on the other half, the Lichens, Liverworts, and Mosses.