The Geological Features. i6i 



lepidodendra, stigmaria, &c. The Gilmerton Lime- 

 stone, being higher in the scale, and a marine deposit, 

 furnishes many good specimens of corals, encrinites, 

 and shells. The coal workings in this group of strata 

 at Loanhead, Gilmerton, and Niddrie are all favour- 

 able places for the collector. The belt of strata 

 known as the Millstone Grit is, comparatively speak- 

 ing, unfossiliferous, few specimens being found in any 

 of the beds, and those which are present being 

 probably stragglers from the formation below. The 

 Upper Coal-measures of the Dalkeith coal-field are, 

 however, rich in fossil remains, and from the number 

 of pits, and the refuse-heaps of disused workings in 

 this group, many opportunities of securing specimens 

 are offered to the collector. 



Those interested in the action of ice during the 

 Glacial Period will find numerous examples of glaci- 

 ation in the neighbourhood. Scarcely a projecting 

 rock, indeed, but shows unmistakable evidence of the 

 polishing it has undergone, the striae, in many cases, 

 being very fine. Good examples of this glacial action 

 are to be seen at Arthur's Seat, the top of Salisbury 

 Crags, and the Queen's Drive above Samson's Ribs, 



