August 31, 1882] 



NA TURE 



425 



of fossils more akin to the fauna of the Bracklesham than the 

 Barton. 



" No marine fossiliferous beds are known below the lowest at 

 Bracklesham Bay, until we reach the Bognor Rock of the 

 London clay — at Bognor — excep it be a thin stratum of clay at the 

 very base of the Bracklesham series at the Whitecliff Bay. The 

 following shells range through the Brackle-ham group, and are 

 confined to it, viz., VenericarJia plamcosta, Sauguinolaria 

 llollowaysii, Solertoblu/uus, Ctherea suberycinoides, Voluta cithara, 

 Turritella suleifcra, and Pecten corneas; the last-named species 

 occurs in the High Cliff beds." The Rev. O. Fisher, through 

 the confined range of certain species, has divided the whole 

 series into four principal groups. Vide Quarterly Journal oj the 

 Geological Society, vol. xviii. pp. 66 — 75. 



Group A The upper, abounding in gasteropoda, and has one 

 0/ its fossil beds in the eastern part of its range full 

 of Nummulina variolaria. 



Group B is more sandy in its general condition, and dis- 

 tinguished by the presence of the large gasterop da. 

 Cerithium giganteum, Nummularia variolaria, oc- 

 curs in this member at Whi'ecliff Bay. 



Group C Sandy like the last, but its chief fossil-bearing bed is 

 pr fusely crowded with Nummnlina laevigata. 



Group D embraces the lowest fossiliferous sands of Brackles- 

 ham Bay the distinctive shells are Cardila acuticosta, 

 and Cyprcca tuberculosa. 



Bracklesham beds at Whitecliff Bay. — These beds rest on the 

 Lower Bagshot sands, and agree with bed No. 6 of Professor 

 Prestwich's section, their lase being di-tinguished by a bed of 

 rolled flint pebbles about one foot in thickness. 



Reading in descending order Mr. Fisher's group A. including 

 the beds xix., xviii., xvii., xvi., xv., xiv., and xiri., correspond 

 with the beds numbered 17, 16, 15, and 14 in Profes'or Prest- 

 wich's ; together they mca-ure 254 fee - . The position of the 

 beds here renders them ea ily accessible at Bracklesham Bay, but 

 they are nearly horizontal, and consequently must be paced to 

 be understood. Beds No. xvii. and xiv, of Group A are the 

 most fossiliferous, and both contain Nttmmuliiui variolar ia. 



Mr. Fisher's Cboup B includes beds xii., xi., x,. and ix., or 

 Professor Prestwich's No. 13. No. ix. of Fisher and 13 of Prest- 

 wich is the chief fossilliferous bed. Nummulina variolaria, 

 Voluta nodosa, and Sauguinolaria llollowaysii, at e the chief fossils 

 in this bed, the thickness of the group is only 27 feet. 



Group C with beds viii., vii., and vi., correspond to 

 Professor Prestwich's Nos. 2 and II. No. vii. contains the 

 distinctive and characteristic nummulite, N. l.ez-igala, also 

 equally abundant at Bracklesham Bay with Sauguinolaria 

 Hollcnoaysii, bed No. vi. of Fbher, ai.d No I of Prestwich is 

 very fossiliferous. These three beds mea: lire 123 feet. 



Group D is composed of beds No. v., iv., iii., ii., and i., or 

 Nos. IO, 9, 8, 7, and 6 of Prestu ich. The only fossiliferous bed in 

 this group is No. iv. of Fi-her, and 9 of Prestwich, in which the 

 great Vencricardia plamcosta abounds, as at Bracklesham Bay, the 

 tine shell Cypnea tuberculosa not occurring at Whitecliff Bay. 

 The beds comprising this group are 251 feet thick ; in all, the 

 Bracklesham beds at Whitecliff Bay measure 653 feet. I have 

 deemed it important to partly particularize this remarkable section 

 at Whitecliff Bay by way of comparison with the fine section 

 shown at low water in Bracklesham Bay, where the beds occupy 

 the shallow shore for three and a half to four miles, and are 

 nearly horizontal, or dip S. by E., with a strike of W. by S. 

 and £. by. N. So nearly level are the beds, that there is no 

 oqportunity given to measure the dip or thickness with accuracy. 

 Mr. Fisher, in his excellent sec ion, has given the order of 

 succession of the beds, and the distances between the outcrops. 

 The beds exposed towards, or near Selsea Bill, belong to the 

 upper members, and their strike is nearly tangential to the 

 shore, consequently we continue our walk upon the same out- 

 crop for a long distance in step-like planes. I give the Rev. 

 O. Fisher's section and sequence round Selsea Bill, as he 

 observed them, as a guide to those who may visit the area. 

 Vide Quarterly Journal of tie Geological Society, toe. cit. 



Commencing at a spit of gravel seen at low water off "the 

 Bill," brought together by the meeting of the tides from the 

 "Park" and Bracklesham Bay, and going westward or towards 

 Wittering, we have the following ascending section : ' — 



1 Every yard of this bay and its extended beds were measured and paced, 

 snd the map constructed by Mr. Bristow and myself, and the fossils observed 

 * L 'a beds compr.sing the sect'on. 



" Beds then covered with sea sand . . . 600 

 Outcrop of septaria, on sandy clay weathered 



green beds covered with sea sand . .127 

 Hard dark grey, sandy bed, numu.ulilic in 

 ti|ipir part (nummnlites abundant at 216 

 paces, concretions at 226 paces) . . . 420 

 Nummulina variolaria, and other foraminifera in 



cla y 324 



"Taking up this last-named bed again as being the highest 

 distinguishable 3.1 this place, we then have the general descending 

 series along nearly three miles of the shore " westwards. 



Descending Section of Bracklesham Beds at Braeklesham Bay 

 22. Clay. — Nummulina variolaria, Alvcolina 

 saiulosa Quiihjucloculina, Hawcrina, Bilo- 

 culina ring< us, Rotalia obscura, Turbinolia 

 sulcata, &c. ...... 324 



21. Hard calc. sand; "Hard Bed" forami- 

 nifera, Tellina . ..... 140 



^20. Greyish clay with Coriula and Nummulina 120 



19. (a). Dark clay (Cypnea bed, Dixon) . . 460 



iS. Sandy clay containing same shells as 19 (d) . 66 



17. ,, ,, green foss. in upper part . . 194 



Pleistocene mud ' . . . . .112 



{ Green sandy clay ..... 300 



/16. (e). Sands full of casts, bivalves . . . 218 

 Pleistocene mud ' . . . . .80 



15. Hard sand, weathered green ... 70 

 1 14. Shelly sand, greenish-brown, full of fossil-, 

 Cerithea and Cytherea striatula (Little 



bed) 29 



13. I>ark sandy clay with Turritella imbricaJa . 240 

 Pleisl ccne clay, laminated Ostrea edulis, 



&C. 1 124 



; 12. (/). T'ark Clayey sand with numerous Ceri- 

 thium triganhum, Pcctuuculus puivimtus, 



&c, &c 163 



,11. Septaria, resting on shelly sand with black 



Hint pebbles 150 



10. Laminated liver-coloured clays, sandy to- 

 ward, the bottom 246 



9. Ostrea tentra bed, iS inches thick . . 52 

 S. Dark green sand, full of broken shells, 

 /'ec/miculus pulvinatus, Lucina, Bulla 

 rdsii ... , I 



Towards upper part (79 paces less) . . "• 

 Shelly in the middle (4S) abounding in Tur- 

 ritella terebeilata at the base 

 7. Soft laminated dark-coloured clay . . 177 



Pleistocene mud, out of which places pro- 

 trudes a clay weathered green 1 . . 2S8 

 6. [g). Nummulina lei'iga/a bed, with numerous 



fossils (Little Park bed) .... 40 

 5. Sandy clay, weathered green . . . 107 

 Beds covered partly with sea-sand and partly 

 with Pleistocene mud .... 105 

 4. (/;)■ Dark mottled clay, shells and scattered 

 nummulites, fish and serpent remains 



(" Palate Bed ") 134 



Covered with sea sand . . . . .96 



3. Dark sindy clay ...... 53. 



,, ,, ,, with broken shells . . m 

 Covered ....... 30 



2. Turritella led, T. imbrica/aria and T. sulci- 



ftr* ■ . • 92 



I. Septaria containing shells and occasionally 

 Rosttllaria ampla (6S paces), resting on a 

 mass of VeutriciirdiiiplanicostazxiA C. acu- 

 tiros/ra ; the lower part of the bed is Green- 

 sand crowded with shells, among which 

 immediately beaeath the Cardita, the 

 Cypriea tuberculosa occurs. The bed then 

 become less fossiliferous, and passes into a 

 dark grey laminated clay, broken up and 

 re-arranged, mixed with dark sand and 

 black pebbles (" Barn bed," Dixon) . 330 



* These clay beds are nearly modern in age, and cover up unconformably 

 the underlying Bracklesham beds. 



c.< 



