1869.] GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 71 



His Excellency also stated verbally that he should be happy 

 to become Patron of the Society. 



On the afternoon of February 3rd, His Excellency visited the 

 Society's Museum. He was accompanied by His Worship the 

 Mayor, Col. McNeil, A.D.C., Lieut. Col. Duchesnay, P.A.D.C , 

 Mr. Turville, Lieut. Gov. Howland, Hon. A. Campbell, Hon. 

 John Eose and C. E. Lee, Esq. At the Society's rooms His 

 Excellency was received by the President, Principal Dawson, 

 Rev. Dr. De Sola, Hon. Jas. Ferrier, Dr. Smallwood, Dr. J. B. 

 Edwards, and others. He examined with care the collection of 

 North American and exotic mammalia and birds, the more inter- 

 esting features of which were explained by Principal Dawson, and 

 Mr. Whiteaves. The visit lasted about an hour, during which 

 the Governor General expressed his gratification at the interest 

 taken in the study of Natural History in Montreal, and the 

 pleasure which his visit had afforded him. 



GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 



The Wakefield Cave. — Though Sir Duncan Gibb has 

 enumerated no less than thirty Canadian caverns, they are for the 

 most part insignificant and scarcely deserving of the name. The 

 Wakefield Cave, recently described by Dr. Grant, F. G. S., in a 

 paper read before the Natural History Society of Ottawa is more 

 important. It is thus described by Dr. Grant : — 



'' North from Ottawa, in an almost direct line, via, the Portland 

 Road distant eighteen miles, on the fiirm of Mr. Pellessier, is the 

 " Wakefield Cave.''' It is situated on the side of oue of the Lau- 

 rentian Mountains, and faces the North. The mouth of the cave 

 is fully eighteen feet in diameter, of an oval shape, beautifully 

 arched and having overhanging it pine and cedar trees of conside- 

 rable size. The entire height of the mountain is about 300 feet, 

 and the entrance to the cave is about 100 feet from the summit. 

 At the base of the mountain is a small lake, which discharges 

 into the Gatineau River through a mountain gorge of exquisite 

 beauty. Looking inwards from the mouth of the cave it is funnel 

 shaped, directed obliquely forwards and downwards, a distance of 

 seventy-four feet, at which point it is contracted to a height of 

 five feet and width of fifteen feet. This contraction forms the 



