FUKTHER NOTES ON THE "PERMO-CAR- 



BONIFEROUS FOSSIL CLIFFS" AT 



DARLINGTON, MARIA ISLAND. 



By R. M. Johnston, F.S.S. 



(Bead lOfh May, 1900.; 



Maria Island, lying to the east of Spring Bay, 

 must be regarded as the most southerly outline of the 

 great granite axis forming the eastern fringe of Tas- 

 mania, traceable northwards through Schouten Island, 

 Freycinet's Peninsula, Bicheno, Falmouth, St. Helens, 

 Eddystone Point, to Gladstone. Crossing the narrow 

 Banks' Strait it may be further traced through Clarke 

 Island, Cape Barren Island, Long Island, Goose Island, 

 Hummock Island, the Strzelecki Peaks, and Killicrankie 

 Range of Flinders Island, and the elevated masses of 

 granite forming the interesting cluster of islets known as 

 the Kent's Group. From this point the granite axis is 

 again traceable through the rocky shoals, reefs, and 

 islets to the most southerly Hmit of the Australian main- 

 land at the granite headlands of Wilson's Promontory. 



Maria Island, like Bruni Island, is divided into two 

 parts — North Maria and South Maria. The two 

 divisions are connected, between Oyster Bay on the west 

 and Reidle Bay on the east, by a narrow strip of sand 

 two or three miles long, giving the island^ as a whole, 

 somewhat the appearance of an ancient hour-glass. The 

 greatest length lies between Cape Boulanger on the 

 extreme north, and Cape Peron on the extreme south, 

 covering a distance of about 15 miles. The greatest 

 breadth, about 10 miles, lies in a line between Long 

 Point on the west, and Ragged Head on the east ; that 

 is within the larger division of the North Island. Maria 

 Island, as a whole, covers an area of about 38 square 



