ROSS-SHIRE. 263 



of such regularity and thickness as to be valuable 



for the floors of houses and the roofing of buildings, 



although being laminated and not amorphous, it 



cannot be utilised for the corners of structures 



requiring sharp regular edges. One characteristic 



of the Gneiss and Mica Schist formation is the 



production of abrupt deep ravines, and in the 



Coire Hallach Ravine and Falls in Braemore the 



depth is 250 feet, while in the narrowest part the 



width does not exceed 60 feet. No fossils have 



been found in this portion of the Silurian rocks, or 



in the lower parts of the Silurian series, except in 



the Laurentian Gneiss, and then only the somewhat 



mythical " Eozoon." 



The same reasons which have induced the author 

 to mention a little of the geology of the west coast 

 have also led him to dip lightly into a short de- 

 scription of the flora of this district, and for all 

 information on this head he is indebted to the 

 kindness of Mrs. Arthur Fowler, who is herself an 

 ardent botanist. Nearly all the commoner varieties 



