1892.] NEW YOEK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 97 



except some frajjments of lignite, had been found in them. Neverthe- 

 less, nearly every geologist who had occasion to study the region 

 recognized what the probabilities were and concluded that the strata 

 must be of cretaceous age and that they underlay the entire area 

 mentioned. 



On April 4, 1881, Dr. N. L. Britton read a paper before this 

 Academy, entitled "The Geology of Richmond County, N. Y." 

 This was published in the Annals, vol. ii, No. 6, and in it the pre- 

 diction was made that cretaceous clays would be found beneath the 

 drift to the south of the archtean ridge wherever this drift might be 

 removed. In regard to organic remains, I quote as follows from 

 Dr. Britton's paper: "No fossil leaves or shells have been taken 

 from the clays of Staten Island, but it is not improbable that they 

 will be found when the excavations are more advanced than at pre- 

 sent." All geologists agreed practically with these views, and the 

 failure to discover any fossil marine organisms in the clays, either 

 on Staten Island or in the adjacent New Jersey beds, was consid- 

 ered as an indication that these clays had been deposited in fresh 

 water, especially when coupled with the presence of land plant 

 remains. 



Facts have been slowly coming to light, however, and especially 

 during the past five months important discoveries relating to the 

 subject have been made. Most of these were recorded by me in 

 the Proceedings of the Natural Science Association of Staten Island, 

 and by Dr. Britton in the Transactions of this Academy, but their 

 full importance has never been discussed. 



Following is a brief review of the sequence of the.se discoveries, 

 which will be of value as a prelude to the consideration of the de- 

 tails in connection with them : — 



In June, 1883, a single cast of a large shell was found by Mr. Wm. 

 T. Davis on the surface of a sandy cultivated field at Tottenville. 

 It was identified by Prof. R. P. Whitfield as Pachycardium Bur- 

 lingfo7iense, Whitfield. Its significance was not realized, however, 

 and it was regarded as most likely to be an accidental estray. 



In November of the same year, while in company with Dr. Brit- 

 ton, I found on the shore of Tottenville a few blocks or concretions 

 of ferruginous sandstone containing imperfect impressions of vege- 

 table remains, evidently similar to specimens previously found at 

 Glen Cove, Long Island, and Keyport, N. J. The identity of these 

 was at once noted by Dr. Britton and Prof. J. S. Newberry, by 

 whom they were declared, almost with certainty, to be of cretaceous 

 age. 



In November, 1885, fossil vegetable remains, consisting of leaves, 

 fruit, lignite, and amber, were found in one of the clay beds at 

 Kreischerville. They were too fragmentary for determination, but 

 were apparently identical with similar remains from the Aniboy 

 clays. 



During the autumn of 1888 a piece of ferruginous sandstone con- 

 taining impressions of leaves was found at Arrochar by Mr. Gilman 



