1895.] NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. 89 



THE EOCENE TERTIARY OF TEXAS EAST OF THE BRAZOS RIVER. 

 BY WILLIAM KENNEDY. 



Since the publication of Dr. EGlgard's report on the Geology of 

 Mississippi probably no other publication occupies so prominent a 

 place among the geological literature of the tertiary deposits of the 

 Gulf coastal slope as the "Tertiary and Cretaceous Strata of the 

 Tuscaloosa, Tombigbee, and Alabama Rivers," by Smith and John- 

 son. 1 The Tertiary section there shown has been recognized not 

 only as the section of the Alabama beds, but has also been con- 

 sidered as typical of the whole tertiary areas along the Gulf coast. 

 Dall says that the Gulf section has been practically determined 

 and its fauna largely recorded in this section, but he considers that 

 important information and a rich fauna 'may be obtained from 

 the Texas section, 2 and lately, Harris, in speaking of the same Bul- 

 letin, says: "It was not until 1886 that the typical section of Ameri- 

 can marine Eocene, namely, that of Alabama was published. 3 " 



At that time (1888) very little was known regarding the Texas 

 Tertiary. Desultory work, it is true, had been done by several 

 observers, and some fossils figured and described by Gabb and others, 

 but no continuous or connected work had been attempted, or, if so, 

 the results were inaccessible and unknown. It was generally con- 

 ceded, however, that it might be safely assumed from the geological 

 conformation of the neighboring States that all or nearly all of the 

 divisions ranging from the Eo-Lignitic to the Grand Gulf, inclusive, 

 were represented, and that a considerable part belonged to the 

 Lower Eocene as seen at Claiborne, Alabama, and in Clark County, 

 west of Claiborne. 4 



In 1889 the first systematic work in those deposits was begun by 

 Prof. R. A. F. Penrose, Jr. During that year he followed three of the 



1 Bulletin 43 U. S. G. S., by Dr. E. A. Smith and Lawrence C. Johnson. 



2 Tenth Annual Report U. S. G. S., 1888-89, p. 168. 



3 Am. Journ. of Sci., Vol. XL VII, April, 1894, p. 302. 



* Heilprin, Cont. to Tert, Geol. of U. S.. 1884, pp. 37, 38. 



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