18!) 



bcL'ii exceplionally t'avoiu'ablt', maiutaiu tliat Uio latest clevatiuu ut the 

 Hock}' Mountains took phiee at a period long subsequent to the deposition 

 of tlie Cretaeeous rocks. The exact words made use of by Dr. ira3-den 

 in reference to this subjeet are: — "We believe, therefore, that the 

 elevated ridges which form the nuclei of the mountain ranges began to 

 emerge above the surface of the surrounding country, near the close of 

 the Eocene period."' "We think, also, that the evidence is clear that 

 there wore periods of subsidence and repose, but the thought which we 

 wish to illustrate is, that there was a slow, long-continued, quiet, upward 

 tendency which began near the close of the Cretaceous epoch, and 

 culminated in the present configuration of the western portion of our 

 continent, near the commencement of our present period." * Along 

 the eastern flanks of the Eocky Mountains, on tlic '-'Third Prairie 

 Plateau," in the vicinity of the forty-ninth parallel, strata holding 

 marine fossils of Cretaceous age are known to occur at an elevation of 

 at least 3,000 feet above the present sea level. Even if we suppose 

 that the latest elevation of the Eocky Mountains had been effected 

 prior to the accumulation of these marine sediments, and that the whole 

 continent was sulisequently submerged to the depth of 3,000 feet, a water 

 communication between the two oceans would still be possible to the 

 north-westwards, l^y the valley of the Peace Eiver, as suggested to the 

 wi'iter by Dr. G. M. Dawson. 



In the Cretaceous rocks of Europe and Southern India, whose local 

 fauna? have been studied and described by so many palasontologists, it is 

 fjund that a large number of the species have a very wide geographical 

 distribution. Stoliczka, fn- instance, says that one fourth of the 

 Cretaceous Cephalopoda, and twelve per cent, of the Pelec\-poda (or 

 lamellibranchiata) of Southern India, occur also in deposits of the same 

 age in Europe. Some of the fossils of the Yancouver Cretaceous appear 

 to have an equally extensive ••eographical range, as may be seen by 

 the following list of species, most of which are believed to be common to 

 the coal-bearing rocks of the Nanaimo and Conux districts and to the 

 chalk formation of Europe, Asia or Africa. 



(j. Yancouver Upper Cretaceous species which occur in other localities 

 than North America. 



Ammonites Gardeni, Bailey. — Cape of Good Hope ; Bailey. S. India and (?) Aus- 

 tria; Stoliczlia. 

 " Velledaj, Mich. — Gault of France and Switzerland ; Pictet. Caucasus 

 and S. India ; Stoliczka. 



* American Journal of Science and Arts, Second Series, Vol. 33, (1SG2), p. 313. 



