342 THE PICTOU COAL FIELD — POnLE. 



forms seen are obscure even on the weathered surfaces. They 

 are, however, worthy of a close examination, for it is possible 

 their fossil contents may shew that the rocks thus classed are of 

 two distinct divisions Plant remains are best seen on the south 

 side of the Union Centre bridge, over the Middle river. 



Millstone Grit. — The great mass of these beds seem to be abso- 

 lutely barren, but the basal ? beds associated with conglomerates 

 at McDonald's mill dam on McLeod's brook and also on the Mid- 

 dle river carry numerous remains of plants. Higher up on 

 McLeod's brook also they are to be found close below Picken's 

 Street bridge. 



Coal Measures.* — Cypris shells are found in the black shales- 

 over the Albion main and Acadia seams and at many points. The 

 grey shales over the Acadia seam have preserved fine specimens 

 of lepidodendron, one of wdiich is in the Geological Survey 

 Museum at Ottawa. Most of the coal seams shew many forms in 

 their roof shales which unfortunately are generally of such a 

 friable nature that they cannot be preserved, but in situ broad 

 stems can be seen to extend for many feet. The best preserved 

 specimens have been got from the bat associated with the stellar 

 oil coal.-f- The iron stone balls partly sulphurous occasionally 

 shew the form of corals, and it was from the roof of the 9' 3" coal 

 of the Dalhousie pit that Dr. Dawson obtained his unique speci- 

 men, Baphetes planiceps and teeth of Diplodus acinaces. 



The black bats of the Upper Coal Measures on McLellan's 

 brook and at Fraser's Adit on the Merrigomish road supply re- 

 mains of ganoid fishes, scales, spines, teeth and coprolites. 



Penniwii. — The concretionary limestone close above the mouth 

 of Smelt brook, on the East river, contains fish scales. The 

 wdiite arenaceous band below the concretionary limestone to the 

 eastward on the top of Fraser's mountain holds the Spirorbis 

 arietina described by Dawson and figured page 14 of Logan's re- 

 port. In the sandstones at the mouth of Smelt brook Stigniaria 

 roots with rootlets in position are numerous, again at the mouth 

 of Rear brook the quarry there shews the rootlets running down 



»Trans. Vol. 1, p. 30. 



tSee H. Poole's collection in the Piovincial Museum, Halifax. 



