146 



closely and spirally disposed. By the same lens I was enabled to 

 trace similar lines, undulating on several parts of the flatter surface ; 

 and, in one or two spots, could discover six or eight of these lines, run- 

 ning pretty straight, close and parallel with each other, and connected 

 together by numerous lateral minute fibres or tubuli, giving the ap- 

 pearance of a species of microscopic tubipore, rather than of mille- 

 pore, madrapore, or alcyonium. A magnified figure of this part of 

 the fossil is presented Plate XII. Fig. 13, c. 



But were we even capable of determining the genus of this microsco- 

 pic polypean fabric, still we, perhaps, should thereby make but little 

 progress, in ascertaining the real nature of the large ramose bodies, 

 which seem to bear no other relationship to the minute tubipo- 

 rean bodies just described, than merely serving as a ground-work, on 

 which they have been formed. Of the real nature of the ramose bo- 

 dies themselves, I must confess myself unable to form a conjecture 

 which seems to make any approach to probability. That they are the 

 remains of some animal substances, formed by the labours of poly- 

 pes, appears to be indubitable, from the situation in which they are 

 found, and from the bodies with which they are associated ; but 

 every character which they possess, differs materially from those of any 

 known substance, which has been marked by the pen or pencil of the 

 natural historian, as deriving its origin from such a source. 



On examining the substance of which these several fossils of St. Pe- 



o 



ter's Mountain are formed, numerous variously figured cavities are 

 observable, evidently formed by shells and other marine bodies, which, 

 having been removed, have left spaces exactly corresponding with the 

 forms which they possessed. It is most probably from this circum- 

 stance, that some, especially Mr. Walch, have been led to the suspi- 

 cion, that the various figured bodies which we have been here examin- 

 ing, have been all casts or impressions of different substances of a co- 

 ralline nature, which have been involved in the mass, whilst it was in 

 a soft or fluid state ; but having been since removed by decomposi- 



