200 SPOLIA ZEYLANICA. 



Ih mile from the coast, at about sea level. The section shows 

 about 9 feet of alluvium resiing on the clay bed which is about 

 2i feet thick, the lower part being under water. The bed is full 

 of marine shells, and contains also concretionary nodules with 

 shells, serpula3, and crab remains. All these also occur commonly 

 washed out and scattered over the sand banks of the Matti-aru. 

 The common crab, used medichrAlly, is 3Iacropthalmiis Latreillei 

 (Desmarest), the " medicine " crab of the Chinese pharma- 

 copoeia ; it has been found in the Post-tertiary clays of Southern 

 China. A single chelate pincer belonged to Scylla serrata (De 

 Haan), the great Indian swimming crab. The following shells 

 together with annelid tubes, Balani, fossil wood, and the crabs 

 complete the list of organisms collected : — 



Telescopium telescopium (Linnaeus). 

 Potamides Jiuviatilis (Potiez and Michaud). 

 Purpura carinifera (Lamarck). 

 Nassa ornaia (Kiener). 

 Melongena pugilina (Bour). 

 Natria, sp. 



Scapharca rhombca (Bour). 

 Arca^ sp. 



Placuna placenta (Linnaeus). This is the "window-pane 

 oyster," and it is exceedingly abundant in the bed. 

 Tapes undulata (Bour). 

 Tapes textrix (Chemintz). 

 Diplodonta., cf. ohlonga (Hanley). 

 Tellina, sp. 



Dosinia salchrosa (Roemer). 

 Chione allied imhricata (Sowerby). 



Three points in Mr. Bullen Newton's paper must be 

 noticed : — 



(1) As stated in my paper, nodules occur in the clay bed, 



and one crab-nodule was found iv, situ ; there is 

 therefore no foundation for his suggestion that the 

 fossils in the nodules may be younger than those in 

 the clay. 



(2) It does not appear how the identity of littoral fauna 



can prove the recent connection of Ceylon with 

 India. 



()}) The particular specimens examined were not presented 

 as stated. 



ANANDA K. COOMARASWAMY. 



