1908] Excursions. 93 



Mr.Halkett followed, speaking of the food of the Salamander, 

 caught by Mr. Lemieux, and showed some land shells which it 

 eats. He also spoke of some spiders' capsules, remarking that 

 at the excursion held at Beechwood two weeks previously, such 

 capsules held the eggs of spiders, but that now the young spiders 

 had hatched out. One capsule was found to contain hymenop- 

 terous parasites. 



Air. Wilson described how the party under he and Mr. E. 

 Wilson had examined the rocks as exposed along the west side 

 of Beaver Meadow. The party went into a quarry where many 

 interesting geological facts were noted. Attention was called 

 to the dip of the beds Vv'hich is clearly shown at the quarry, 

 and the use made of the dip and strike in working out the geology 

 of a country was also explained. The quarry is in the lower 

 Trenton and" probably near the junction of that formation with 

 the Black River. 



The following fossils collected during the afternoon have 

 since been detemiined by Dr. Ami. Pachydictya acuta, Orthis 

 plicatella, Strophomena incurvata, Rhynchotrema iiKsqmvalvis 

 Asaphiis sp., Illmtus sp., several Montictiliporidce. Prasopora 

 Selwyni, Batostoma sp., and other branching forms. 



After a few concluding words from Mr. Halkett, the party 

 broke up, all well pleased with their outing. 



N. C. 



The sub-excursion on the afternoon of Saturday the 23rd 

 of May was held at Ironsides, and those who attended spent an 

 enjoyable time roaming the woods in search of insects and flowers, 

 or in observing the general phenomena of nature, and the geo- 

 logical character of the locality. 



The following interesting notes, bearing on the geological 

 features of the district, are by Mr. W. J. Wilson: 



" Ironsides is situated on a clay terrace about 182 feet above 

 sea level. Chelsea .Station is on a similar terrace or old sea 

 beach and is 365 feet above the same datum, so that in less than 

 three miles there is a rise of 183 feet. Nearly forty years ago this 

 slope was fire swept and the forest completely destroyed; then 

 the soil, bare and unprotected, suffered most severe and rapid 

 denudation. Wherever there were watercourses, however small, 

 deep gullies were cut into the clays and much material was 

 (^arried to lower levels. In a short time after the fire deciduous 

 trees began to spring up and a fierce battle raged for some years 

 between the forest and the eroding agencies. Gradually the 

 3^oung trees forced their roots deeper into the soil and steadily 

 gained a firm hold till now they have the complete mastery 



