Dr. Van Rensellaer on Salt. 361 
considered the peculiar repository of salt, and then alludes 
to the lofty and detached columns of dark red sandstone, 
found by Col. Long’s party at the foot ofthe Rocky Moun- 
tains. as a member of the salt-formation. 
He appears evidently to have confounded here, the old 
red sandstone below the coal strata with the new red sand- 
stone of red marl, which by the united testimony of Euro- 
pean Geologists is the peculiar repository of salt and gyp- 
sum. The order of super-position is very clearly laid 
down by Dr. James in his narrative.—First, the old red 
sandstone in highly inclined strata and steep ridges at the 
foot of the rocky mountains—then an overlying mass of 
grey sandstone or slaty clay connected with large bodies of 
trapp, extending over a large district characterized by its 
peculiar verdure—lastly, above this, the red friable sand- 
stone, easily crumbling into sand and forming, when disin- 
tegrated, the sandy covering of the deserts ; in which were 
found large beds of gypsum and the numerous salines on 
the Canadian and Arkansa. This new red sandstone ex- 
tended across the deserts till it was overlaid by the hori- 
zontal limestone. In the last number of the Geological 
ransactions is an account of ajourney from Delhi to 
mbay. This narrative discloses a similar arrangement 
of rocks. The province of Agimere is occupied by a nu- 
cleus of granite, gneiss, &c. Un the Eastern border of the 
same, is an extensive tract of inclined quartzy sandstone 
reaching from Delhi southward beyond Agra. West of the 
nucleus is the extensive saline desert of Western India, con- 
sisting of the new red sandstone or alternating horizontal 
beds of rubbly sandstone, marl and clay. South o the nu- 
cleus is one of the most extensive trapp formations in the 
world. It extends over the greater part of Central India 
from Malwa to Poonah and even Goa. It has this pecul- 
iarity, that the trapp is not arranged in narrow ridges with 
naked intervals of the subjacent sandstone, but is spread 
like an uniform covering over the whole country e 
Same peculiarity was observed, though in a less perfect de- 
gree, in the trapp rocks at the foot of the rocky moun- 
tains 
Having visited the Western part of New York, and ob- 
served the arrangement of the rocks in that interesting re- 
gion, we have been led toconclude that they might be re- 
Vor. VII.—No. 2. 46 
