FLORA OF THE KOOTANIE FORMATION. 285 



As these fossils showed some forms not previously found in the 

 Kootanie flora, and as the new field promised to t)e of unusual interest, 

 Professor Ward was induced to visit it in the simmier of 1895, for the 

 piu'pose of niakin,i!; larjici- collect ions. In this hv was very successful, 

 making a consideral)lc colhM-tion of selected specimens. The rock 

 material of the specimens collected by Pi'ofessor Ward and Mr. Weed 

 is identical and the plants are the sanu\ indicating that although Professor 

 Ward ditl not succeed in hnding the precise spot from which Mr. Weed 

 collected his .specimens, tlie two collections were made from essentially 

 the same beds. It is the ol)ject of this paper to describe the i)lants 

 found in both collections. 



The spot from which these specimens were collected is situated in 

 Cascade County, Mont., 5 or 6 miles south of the stage station of Geyser 

 and 40 miles east-southea.st of (Jreat Falls. The plants occur in a fine- 

 grained, veiy fissile shale, that has a lea(l-gra>' coloi-. The shale is 

 connected with a coal seam, an<l Weed's specimens come fi'om the I'oof 

 shales of a coal .seam. From the nearness of this locality to (ireat Falls, 

 where plants had been previously collected, we might infer that the 

 Geyser plants occur in the same formation. This their general character 

 confirms. In speaking of the strata which yield the fossils I shall desig- 

 nate them the Geyser beds. 



The shale in which the fossils are fovmd is well fitted to pre.serve 

 them in great perfection, but unfoi'tunately they seem before entombment 

 to have been long immersed in water. Hence they are found in small 

 fragments, Init some of these show even the most delicate pai-ts and 

 impressions. 



Besides this a considerable number of the species are represented 

 by mimerous specimens, selected to show as nuich detail as po.ssible, 

 so that a good deal of the character of the plants may he made out Ijy 

 putting them together. Owing to the fine-grain and paper-like cleavage 

 of the shale a number of details are shown with uncommon distinctness. 



Considering tlie large amount of material the numljer of species is 



1898. (See pp. 481-482.") Professor Fontaine was not aware tliat his previous report had l>een pubhshed, 

 and in the final elaboration treated all the collertions together, not preserving; any of the tneniuranda made in 

 determining; Mr. Weed's colleclions. .\.s a eonse(|Uenee it has proved impossible in most cases to identify the 

 types of bis first report. .Nearly all those selected for illustration were from my own collei'tions. Mr. Weed's 

 specimens are generally very imperfect, and I have not attempted to have any drawn that were not selected for 

 this purposely by Professor Fontaine.— L. F. W. 



