of the Rocks associated with the Coal of Australia. 309 



containing Pachydomus globosus seem to rest on a sandstone con- 

 taining remains of plants, and which is known to belong to the 

 top of the coal series : Count Strzelecki, who made this observa- 

 tion, doubts its correctness himself, and expressly states that it 

 needs re-examination to establish the fact of those Pachydomus 

 clays really existing in this position. Nevertheless the inference 

 has been drawn from this observation, that the Jerusalem coal- 

 basin was much older than that at Newcastle, N. S. Wales, 

 where the sandstones containing the Pachydomi were always seen 

 to dip distinctly under the coal-measures : countenance was ap- 

 parently given to this supposition by the few plants which were 

 collected from Jerusalem coal-field proving to be all specifically 

 and some generically distinct from those known to exist in the 

 Newcastle basin. When to this we add, that the beds containing 

 the fossil animal remains rest on a siliceous breccia, the age of 

 which is unknown, and that the coal strata are overlaid by varie- 

 gated sandstone and yellow limestone, supposed from its few or- 

 ganic remains to belong to the pleiocene period, we have I believe 

 stated all that is known on the geological relation of those 

 deposits. 



With regard to their palaeontology*, we have seven species of 

 plants noticed in M. de Strzelecki' s work by Mr. Morris, one of 

 which is identical with a species from the Indian coal-field of 

 Burdwan ; and the general resemblance to the oolitic plants of 

 Britain is noticed, as well as the absence of the characteristic 

 forms of the older genuine coal-fields of Europe. In the inferior 

 strata there are forty-eight species of animal remains noticed, 

 one of which is supposed to be identical with a species of the 

 British mountain limestone ; the remainder are all (except two 

 new types) of palaeozoic genera ; but the absence is remarked of 

 Nautilus, the true Leptcena and Orthida, all of which how r ever I 

 have now been able to add. 



In the above notice I have given seventeen species of fossil 

 plants from the Mulubimba district, which is a portion of the 

 great Newcastle and Hawkesbury basin, twelve of which are con- 

 sidered new. Those plants belong to ten genera, two of which 

 ( Vertebraria and Zeugophyllites) are only known here and in the 

 supposed oolitic coal-fields of India: one genus (Gleichenites) 

 I have provisionally used for the Pecopteris odontopteroides of 

 Morris, from the verbal characters given by Goppert for that genus, 



* Since the above was printed, I learn from a letter of Mr. Dana's that 

 he is just putting to press his account of the palaeontology of this district, 

 which, as naturalist to the United States exploring expedition, he has re- 

 cently investigated under more favourable circumstances than any of his 

 predecessors ; we may soon therefore expect from this accomplished natu- 

 ralist a great addition to our knowledge on this subject. 



