38 GEOLOGY. 



ToPLEr, W. The Channel Tunnel. Pop. Sci. Rev. vol. xiii. pp. 394- 

 403, plate cxiv. (Geological Map and Sections). 



The author passes in review the known facts regarding the geolo- 

 gical structure of the coasts of the Strait of Dover, and the inferences 

 which may thence be drawn as to the structure of the sea-bed. The 

 water-bearing qualities of the strata are described. Prof. Prestwich's 

 proposal to construct a tunnel through the Palaeozoic rocks is discussed, 

 as is also a proposal by Mr. H. Willett to tunnel through the Kime- 

 ridge Clay, which has been proved to be over 600 feet thick in the 

 Sub-Wealden Boring. The author concludes that the Lower Chalk 

 offers the best chance of constructing a tunnel. W. T. 



. Notes on the Geology of Rothbury [Northumberland]. 



Chap. X. (pp. 49-56) of ' Guide to Rothbury and Upper Coquet- 



dale.' Alnwick. Small 8vo, ed. 2. The Geology reprinted from 



ed. 1, 1873. 



The rocks of the district belong to the Carboniferous Limestone 



series and consist mainly of sandstone ; but there are many beds of 



shale, limestone, and workable coal. "Rothbury Grits" is suggested 



as a fitting name for the thick beds of sandstone so well displayed 



round the town. The chief fossiliferous localities are noted. The 



intrusive basalt known as the Whin Sill is described, and also the 



vertical dykes. The paper concludes with a description of the Drift, 



the scenery, and the denudation of the district. W. T. 



, and G. A. Lebofr. On the Whin Sill of Northumberland. 



Rep. Brit. Assoc, for 1873, Sections, p. 92. 



The authors show that the bed or beds of basalt known as the 

 Whin Sill is intrusive. This is proved by the altered nature of the 

 rocks above the whin, especially when they consist of shales, and by 

 the fact that the whin does not lie at one uniform level amongst the 

 sedimentary rocks, but frequently comes up in bosses, cutting through 

 them, and shifting its relative position amongst them to the extent of 

 1000 feet or more in short distances. A note by Mr. S. Allport, on the 

 microscopic structure of the basalt, is appended. W. T. 



Walker, H. The Glacial Drifts of Muswell Hill and Finchley, with 

 Map, Sections, and other Illustrations. Pp. 24. London. 



The author describes the various sections of gravel and Boulder Clay 

 at Muswell Hill and Finchley. In accounting for the origin of these 

 beds, he says that at Finchley we see the material of a moraine which 

 has been extended beneath the sea from the land-ice, and distributed, 

 by means other than that of moving water, over the sea-bottom ; and 

 he also states that the original moraine-form may still be seen in the 

 deposit. He adopts the theory of Mr. S. Y. Wood, jun., as to the 

 direction whence the glacial clay was brought to Finchley, viz. from 

 Lincolnshire, by a glacier probably 1000 feet thick, ploughing out 

 materials from the Trias, Lias, Oolite, Neocomian, and Chalk, and 

 which had its terminal moraine at Finchley, containing relics of most 

 of these beds. F. J. B. 



