135 



much broken and of inferior quality. From Pennyquick the 

 carriages ascended the steep hill by the Old Foss-way, and 

 passed over the " Inferior Oolite " and " Fuller's Earth " beds 

 to the plateau of the Great Oolite at Odd Down, (ascertained by 

 aneroid to be 450 feet above the Avon at Bath,) and descended 

 on the other side into the valley of Midford, where the new line 

 to Evercreech was in process of construction. Here an excel- 

 lent section was presented, cut out of the " Midford Sands " of 

 William Smith, and by him considered to occupy the place of 

 the Upper Lias — a wonderful example of the diagnostic faculty 

 of the " Father of Geology," which later and more exact know- 

 ledge has confirmed. These beds are doubtless the equivalents 

 of the " Upper Lias Sands " of Frocester Hill, and are overlaid 

 at this point by the " Trigonia Grits" of the "Parkinsoni-zone," 

 representing the highest beds of the *' Inferior Oolite" — the 

 "OoHte Marl" and all the subjacent beds (200 feet thick) being 

 absent; and this is found to be the succession of the beds 

 throughout the Bath district. 



At four o'clock the party assembled at Mr. Cossham's new 

 residence at Weston Park, where about fifty sat down to a 

 sumptuous entertainment provided by their kind and generous 

 host, this being the third successive year in which the Cottes- 

 wold Club has partaken of the same splendid hospitality. 

 Dinner being over, and the toasts loyal and personal having 

 been given and duly responded to. Dr. Weight was called upon 

 by the President to read his promised paper on " The Genesis 

 of the Oolites." The lecture was illustrated by excellent figures 

 and sections. 



The Doctor commenced by saying that this subject had long 

 occupied a place in his thoughts, and that only of late it had 

 gathered such form and consistence as would permit him with 

 confidence to put it forward. He had long been persuaded that, 

 without an intimate knowledge and study of the structure of 

 the Zoophyta, it was not possible to comprehend the incalculable 

 importance of those obscure creatures in the seas of ancient 

 and modern times. He briefly described the anatomy of the 

 "Sea Anemone" as typical of a large section of these Zoophytes, 



