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in many localities in the Midland Counties of England. At the close 

 of the day only so much of the section had been understood as to increase 

 our desire for further investigation, but as time was pressing we had to 

 content ourselves with what little information we could reap together 

 during this our first visit. A roughly drawn section, shewing two well 

 marked, but distant zones, was all that could be committed to paper. Near 

 the top of the series we found many good and well preserved specimens of 

 Ammonites semicostatu^, and from near the bottom I was fortunate 

 enough to obtain the fragment of a large lima, on which were growing 

 two species of oyster, both characteristic of the white lias of Warwick- 

 shire and the West of England. One of these is the well known Rhaetic 

 oyster, Ostrea interstriata, and the other an undescribed species always 

 occuriing, though more rarely, in the same beds. Now there is nothing 

 wonderful in all this, for both the zones characterized by these fossUs 

 appeared in their proper places in the series; but it was thought 

 remarkable that Gryphites should occur in plenty so low down as to be 

 found associated with Rhfetic fossils, there being abundance of these 

 shells in the cutting; indeed I may say that where this one soUtaiy little 

 oyster was found, a hundred Gryphites might easily have been obtained. 

 For this apparent anomaly we had been prepared by Mr. Etheridge, 

 who had said that Gryphites would be found from the top to the bottom 

 of the section. Such was the state of things when I forwarded to Mr. 

 Jones, the Giyphite which he figured, and it was the statement accom- 

 panying these figures which attracted the notice of our friend, Mr. 

 Moore, who was well acquainted with the Bridgend section. In the 

 correspondence which followed, Mr. Moore maintained that no other 

 strata than those called the lima beds, and characterized by the presence 

 of Ammonites BucUandi, occuiTed at Bridgend, and was somewhat 

 doubtful as to the occurrence of the true Ostrea interstriata, fully ad- 

 mitting, however, that should its presence there be proved, it would be 

 strong evidence against his own statement. In this state of things it was 

 suggested that the most satisfactory plan would be to institute a fresh 

 investigation, and accordingly we agreed that we would together examine 

 anew the section in question. This was done during the summer of 

 1863, the party consisting of Mi-. Moore, Mr. Kieshaw, Mr. Gibbs, and 

 myself We were long in finding a specimen of the little Rhsetic oyster, 

 but at length I found one growing on a half-rounded lump of mountain 

 limestone, near the bottom of the section, the limestone being firmly 

 embedded in the lias. This discovery did not tend to lessen our diffi- 

 culties, nor did another speedily made by Mr. Moore, of a large example 

 •of Ammonites BucUandi, near the same geological level, render the 



