of the Connecticut River Valley. 395 
of sandstone each containing one or more fragments of bone, but 
the larger number of these are so much broken up, that it was 
found ‘impracticable to determine anything with regard to their 
nature. All are soft, chalky and friable; and in no instance is 
there one entire bone or one c complete articulating surface visible. 
Yet imperfect as they are, coming from the New Red Sandstone, 
anything which can be determined with regard to any of them is 
of great interest. For while we have well preserved the innumer- 
able impressions of the feet of birds and reptiles, the bones here 
noticed are, in so far as I can learn, the only ones which are pub- 
licly known to have been brought to light. 
ne of the best preserved bones is the fragment of a vertebra, 
the body of which is nearly entire, and is probably one of the “ tail 
bones” described by Dr. Porter, but according to his description 
must have been more complete than it now is. Thearch is broken 
off ; the base of one pedicle remains; a transverse process on the 
left side is indicated by an imprint in the matrix; this process is 
broad at the base, thin and triangular, projets laterally 1 in a hori- 
zontal plane and is slightly recurved. One extremity of the body 
is so completely imbedded in the matrix that only a slightly con- 
vex border is visible ; the other extremity is exposed but is oblique- 
ly fractured, leaving only a part of the natural surface visible, and 
this is concave ; the body is constricted in the middle, having an 
hour-glass shape, has no indentations on the side, and is somewhat 
compressed laterally. The floor of the spinal canal is represented 
b channel, the sides of which meet at the bottom at 
an acute angle midway, but at either end spread out and become 
nearly level. The dimensions of the vertebra were as follows, 
Length of body, . . : rae ea, 
Breadth of body at extremity, . . : : . 055 
Breadth of body in the middle : . 030 
Length of transverse process (imperfect), ee POU 
‘. Breadth of transverse at : ; - O62 
Breadth of spinal canal at narrowest part, : Ore 
In front of the body just vega is the fragment of what 
appears to be a second vertebra, and beneath this is a pointed 
fragment about seven-tenths of an doth in length, bifurcated 
where it touches the other bones and which has the character of 
an inferior spinous process. Behind the more complete vertebra 
is the anterior portion of a third, obliquely fractured so that a por- 
tion of its concave anterior extremity, and the edge of the left trans- 
verse process alone remain. In another piece of matrix is a por- 
tion of the arch and a cast of the spinal canal of a fourth vertebra, 
having also a portion of the Spinous process ; the canal conforms 
to that already described, and in front of this last vertebra is the 
fragment of the spinous process of a fifth. In another piece of 
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