Revieivs — Geological Survey of India. 567 



IV. — Records of the Geological Sukvet of India. 



Ij'^IVE contributions on various subjects appear in the first part of 

 . the forty-second volume of the Records (1912). Of these, one 

 " On the Survival of a Miocene Oyster in Recent Seas", by Messrs. 

 E.. B. Newton & E. A. Smith, contains descriptions of some large 

 oysters found during excavations in a recent deposit in Clive Street, 

 Calcutta. These shells, characterized by their great height and 

 extensive development of the ligaraental area, ai'e the same as 

 a form still living in the Simderbands and elsewhere. Their special 

 interest lies in the fact that they have been proved identical with 

 the Miocene Odrea gryphoides (Schlotheim), generally known by 

 the name crassissima of Lamarck. A new variety, cuttackensis, 

 a shell less prolonged and having a deeper lower valve, is 

 described, and the paper is illustrated by eight very fine plates. 

 Mr. Cowper Reed's paper on Silurian fossils from Kashmir deals 

 mainly with Brachiopods and Trilobites, which are poorly [)reserved, 

 only the internal casts or traces of external ornament remaining. 

 These have been determined as almost certainly of Llandovery age, 

 and one new form, Acidaspis Icashmirica, is described, A list of 

 species is given, the determinations of which are fairly certain since 

 they can be compared with European material in a similar condition. 

 The note on specimens of Blodite from the Salt Range, by Mr. Cyril 

 Fox, contains chemical and crystallographic details and is illustrated 

 by one plate. 



The occurrence of gold in the alluvial deposits of Mong Long, 

 Hsipaw State, Northetn Slian States, is the subject of a report by 

 Mr. J. C. Brown. The gold occurs in thin laminaB and scales, 

 associated sometimes with ' ultra' nuggets, but results of assays show 

 that the deposits are not worth large-scale exploitation. The paper, 

 which is illustrated by three plates, contains full details of the streams 

 examined, and gives a table showing the distribution and area of the 

 auriferous gravels. The last paper in this part, is by Mr. C. S. 

 Middlemiss, and places on record the discovery of large deposits of 

 steatite in the Idar State. 



The second part of the same volume contains the General Report of 

 the Survey for 1911, with which is issued an account by Professor 

 A. C. Seward of some dicotyledonous leaves from the Assam Coal 

 Series at Margherita. Tfie specimens were sent to the Survey in 

 the hope of furnishing evidence of the age of the Assam Series. The 

 data are insufficient, however, to warrant any decisive statement, but 

 Professor Seward inclines to the view that they belong to a Tertiary 

 rather tlian to a Cretaceous flora. The leaves are referred pro- 

 visionally to the genus '■Phjllites\ and two new forms are described — 

 P. hamarupensis, n.sp., an oblong-elliptical leaf, about 20 cm. long, 

 with strong midrib and entire margin, and Phyllites sp. (cf. Nerium 

 spp.). The leaves have a superficial resemblance to recent species of 

 Magnolia, but there is a difference in the secondary veins. Professor 

 Seward takes the opportunity of criticizing the frequent attribution 

 of Cretaceous and Tertiary leaves to Magnolia, because in many 

 cases the reasons given are altogether insufficient. He contends that 



