Fossil Bones found in Vermont. 257 
Fossil Cetacean.—The fossil bones, which it is more particu- 
larly the object of. this paper to describe, were found on the line 
of the Rutland and Burlington Railroad in the month of August, 
1849, in the township of Charlotte, about twelve miles south of 
Burlington, and a little more than one mile eastward from the 
shore of Lake Champlain. In widening a deep and extensive 
cut through stratified sand and clay, the workmen there struck 
upon a mass of bones. They were between eight and nine feet 
below the natural surface of the ground, and were very compactly 
bedded in fine adhesive blue clay. Little notice was taken of 
them at first, until some of the overseers, thinking that they 
observed peculiarities in the form of several of the bones, were 
induced to commence an examination. They soon found that 
the skeleton. 'T'o recover these if possible, I immediately visited 
the locality ; and at this and a subsequent visit, I succeeded in 
obtaining most of the anterior portion of the head, nine of the 
teeth, and thirteen additional vertebree, together with the bones 
my doubt was soon removed by a careful examination of the cau- 
dal vertebra. These I found to have their articulating surfaces 
convex and rounded in such a manner as to allow of very exten- 
Sive vertical motion of the tail, and but very little lateral motion. 
his circumstance plainly indicated that the movements of the 
animal in the water were effected by means of a horizontal 
caudal fin, and that it, therefore, belonged to the family of 
elacea., 
Fig. { represents the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth ver- 
tebre of the tail, showing the manner in which they move upon 
Seconp Sentss, Vol, IX, No. 26.—March, 1850. 33 
