NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 201 



and, on being dried, tlie Foraminifera could be seen in great 

 numbers along with fragments of mussel-shell It was only when 

 examined microscoijically that the true interest of this deposit 

 was evolved. 



Portions of unmistakable sea- weed in a very fragmentary state, 

 leaves of mosses, scraps of the tissue of vascular plants, and little 

 bits of the epidermis of mussel-shell, were then revealed as 

 the organic constituents of this peaty mass. From the exami- 

 nation of a large quantity of it, I have hitherto found that 

 there are altogether at least eleven species of marine Algce, three 

 of which seem to be Melanosperms, six Bhodosperms, and two 

 Chlorosperms. In the absence of fruit, or indeed of any tangible 

 character, it would be unsafe to attempt a reference of these plants 

 to their species. I will therefore just indicate their possible 

 affinities. 



A bit of black seaweed, on being subjected to gentle pressure, 

 emitted bodies which I recognised as the sporangia, or parent 

 cells of the germ cells of a Fucus, likely F. vesiculosus. One small 

 fragment shows remains of an air-vessel ; it may be a Cystoseiria, or 

 possibly Haliclrys siliqiiosa. 



Among the red weeds, Callophyllis laciniata seems to be re- 

 presented by a fragment with granular cell structure. The 

 portions titled Polysiphonia may belong either to that genus or 

 Ceramium, for the siphons are not well defined. The long purple 

 weed, with opposite articulated ramuli, is most probably a 

 Cryptonemaceous plant, but I cannot find that it agrees with any of 

 the sj)ecies in that order. 



One specimen is likely a Callithamiiion. 



In the Chlorosperms, that named Porphyra vulgaris is probably 

 correct, and the inflated plant resembles Enteromorp)ha intestinalis,, 

 althousfh the characteristic colour is absent. 



Besides these seaweeds there were also remains of terrestrial 

 plants. Two distinct species of mosses occurred, and also one leaf 

 of a Jungermannia ; fragments of the tissues of Phanerogams were 

 abundant, . and consisted of the pith of stems, with surrounding 

 cellular tissue, parenchyma, and spiral vessels. 



The facts thus evolved are very suggestive of the conditions 



under which these strata were deposited. The intense cold of 



the period represented by the lower stratum had gradually given 



way to a more genial temperature, involving the extinction of 



2a 



