152 
The characteristic fossil of the “red sand” and underlying 
“shelly band” is Gryphca dilatata. The remains are in poor 
condition, and crumble on exposure to the atmosphere. The 
fossils of the “ Ferruginous Sandstone” are not much better. 
It is to the band of “‘ Calcareous Sandstone ” that the attention 
of observers has been specially attracted; indeed, the interest 
of the cutting may be said to centre in that bed. 
An analysis of the rock yielded to the Professor the follow- 
ing results: 
Per cent. 
Silica (as insoluble silicates) ... at oe «» 60°74 
Calcium Carbonate ... avs aoa Ane «se §=34°35 
Ferric Oxide ... ie See wee ae Pree ae S10) 
Alumina... ee oe see es oe er 64 
In physical character it is of a slaty blue colour, is intensely 
hard, and is crowded with remains of animals and plants. 
These include five species of Ammonites, many in splendid 
preservation. Lamellibranchs belonging to the genera Modiola, 
Pholodomya, Myopsis, Isocardium, &c., and two or three species 
of Brachiopods. Perhaps the most remarkable remains are 
those of plants. Scattered through the rocks are pieces of 
wood, varying in size from the merest splinters, to pieces, in 
one case reaching 18 inches in length by 3 inches in other 
directions. This wood is still in a carbonaceous condition, and 
crumbles under the knife or even under the pressure of the 
thumb nail. Sections of this wood were exhibited under the 
microscope. Another feature of this band of sandstone is its 
remarkable coneretionary character. A section shows a series 
of concentric coats or shells of regular form round a concentric 
nucleus, which was invariably found to consist of either one 
or more Ammonites, or occasionally of a great number of 
Brachiopods or Lamellibranchs, mixed with bits of wood. The 
presence of so much wood points to the proximity of land, and 
the condition of the wood supports the theory that the rock 
was very rapidly consolidated. 
Professor Harxer next drew attention to the special feature 
of the cutting which has led to its celebrity. A preliminary 
boring made by the contractors did not reveal more than a few 
