314 THE CANADIAN NATURALIST. [Vol. ix. 



River may be referred to the Lower and Upper Cobequid series 

 of the author. la rocks of the latter series occurs the great vein 

 of specular iron on the west side of the river. To the former 

 belong the ridges of so called trap and much of the slate and 

 quartzite of the east side. Unconformably superimposed on 

 these as detached troughs and constituting a long line of outcrop 

 on the north-east side, are slates and iron ores holding fossils of 

 the middle and upper part of the Arisaig series (Upper Silurian). 

 There are two beds of iron ore differing somewhat in the fossils 

 associated with them, but both Upper Silurian and newer than 

 the Clinton age. The ore is a red Hematite, and the lower bed 

 is in some places thirt}^ feet in thickness. The upper bed is of 

 less thickness, but apparently superior in quality. The upper 

 Silurian rocks holding these ores are traceable all the way to 

 Arisaig on the coast, though at that place less rich in iron. 



The valley of the East Branch of the East River is occupied 

 by a narrow band of Lower Carboniferous beds, and at the junc- 

 tion of these with the older rocks there are fissures holding a rich 

 vein of Limonite. 



The geological structure of this region is therefore similar to 

 that of the Cobequids, though more complicated, and the iron 

 ores are of different ages and occur under different conditions of 

 deposit. These are, 1st, large and irregular veins of crystalline 

 ores in the rocks of the Cobequid series ; 2nd, bedded ores in 

 the Upper Silurian rocks ; and 3rd, Limonite veins at the 

 junction of the Carboniferous with the older rocks. 



As to the age of the Cobequid series, this is certainly older 

 than the Upper Silurian ; but probably newer than the gold 

 series of the Atlantic Coast. It may be of the age of the 

 English Borrowdale and Skiddaw series as the author has else- 

 where suggested. 



The paper was illustrated by maps, diagrams, samples of ore 

 and a large collection of rocks and fossils. 



The sixth meeting was held on Monday evening, April 26th. 

 The President occupied the chair. 



Mr. W. J. Morris presented to the museum a mass of apatite 

 interstratified with chert and pale amethyst, from North Bur- 

 gess, Ont. 



Mr. J. B. Goode laid on the table several flowers of Eepatica 

 acutiloha and Sanguinaria Canadensis, as representatives of our 

 earliest flowering plants. 



