Pauk. — On. the Waitemata Series. 395 



merates, and occasionally sheets of solid lava, consisting of 

 dolerites rich in olivine, hornblende, and augite-andesites. 

 These can be traced southward to the Hoteo and Kaukapa- 

 kapa, and an examination of the bush country south of the 

 latter will probably show that they are connected with the 

 breccias of the Waitakerei Range and Manukau Heads. The 

 fossils in the Koniiti beds indicate a range from the Awamoa 

 series to the Grey Marls series,''' which would thus fix the 

 period of volcanic activity in the Kaipara district somewhere 

 about the horizon of the Hutchinson Quarry beds at Oamaru, 

 the deposition of which was attended by violent volcanic 

 displays. 



2. In his paper on the age of the Orakei Bay bedsf Pro- 

 fessor Hutton states that the Parnell grit either passes below 

 the Fort Britomart beds or thins out in that direction. In 

 1885 I showed in the report already referred to that at dead 

 low water it can be seen distinctly passing below the Mechanics' 

 Bay beds, and, as its inferior position has now been admitted, 

 nothing more remains to be said except to point out that if 

 the Fort Britomart beds are the equivalents of the Orakei 

 Bay beds, as maintained by Mr. McKay, then it follows that 

 the Parnell grit nnist also underlie the latter, as it has been 

 proved to pass below the former. 



3. With regard to this point, I shall have something to say 

 later on. 



4. In 1885 I obtained sufficient evidence at Howick and 

 Turanga Creek to clearly demonstrate that there was com- 

 plete conformity between the Waiteniatas and concretionary 

 greensand. I showed that the stratigraphical break contended 

 for by Professor Hutton and Mr. Cox at Turanga Creek wa& 

 only apparent, resulting from the peculiar contours produced 

 by the unequal erosion of hard and soft strata, this view being 

 supported by the discovery of Pecten zittelli and Pecten fischeri 

 and other Orakei Bay fossils in the concretionary sand- 

 stone.]: 



5. No fresh evidence has yet been discovered to lead me in 

 any way to modify this conclusion. 



6. This point will be dealt with later on. 



7. With regard to this, it should be observed that on the 

 slopes of the Maraetai Eange the Papakura limestone rests 

 hard upon the old rocks. It does not, however, by any means 

 follow that conformably lower beds may not be developed 

 towards Hunua and Papakura, and I believe it quite possible 

 that detailed survey in that direction may show that the 



* " Geological Reports," 1880-87, p. 228. 

 t " Trans. N.Z. Insfc.," vol. xvii., p. 311. 

 \ Geological Reports, 1885-86, p. 151. 



