20I IviGNiTic Stage 9 



East of Bra-zos River. — Lignite deposits are known to increase 

 rapidly in areal extent eastward from the Brazos, but so far as 

 we are aware there are no sections better adapted for stud}'' 

 than the one just cited along that river. One thing, however, 

 seems very remarkable, viz, the occurence of fossils on the 

 Sabine river so far down as Sabinetown, that have a lignitic 

 aspe(5l. They were obtained by C. W. Johnson, while coUedl- 

 ing for the L,ea Memorial Collection. It is certainly strange that 

 in counties to the north, as Cherokee, Rusk and Nacogdoches, in 

 Texas and Bossier and Bienville parishes in Louisiana, typi- 

 cal Lower Claiborne fossils should be found in abundance, 

 while at Sabinetown, this seemingly Lignitic fauna occurs. This 

 is the first Lignitic fauna discovered west of Alabama. 



That Lower Claiborne deposits also occur near or at this 

 bluff, is proven by the fossils received by the Geological Sur- 

 vey of Texas, while the writer was one of its employes. They 

 were furnished by Mr. John W. Low, who resides in a neigh- 

 boring town, and consist of Veiiericardia planicosta, Leviftisus 

 trabeatus, Nassa scalata, and Pseicdoliva vetusta ; Nassa scalata is 

 so far as known confined to the Lower Claiborne. 



There seem to be no grounds whatever for regarding this 

 bluff as of Jackson or ' ' Mansfield ' ' age. 



Mr. Johnson has very kindly furnished me with the section 

 at Sabinetown given below. The bluff he estimated to be about 

 200 feet in length, and to show a southern dip of about 20 

 feet. He remarks " I got the fossils from the upper portion, 

 where the bluff was not over 35 or 40 feet high. A large 

 spring was pouring over the bank, which probably prevented 

 the fossiliferous strata from becoming sandstone, as it was on 

 the dry portion of the bluff. The}^ were not ver}' plentiful, 

 and it was hard work to find the few I got. I was told that 

 just above the ferr)^ ( probably a half mile above the bluff ) 

 was a bed of lignite etc." 



Se^ioii at Sabinetozvn, Texas. 



Soil 5 feet 



Sand, stratified and more or less indurate 25 feet 



Laminated sandy clay 12 feet 



Yellowish sand with thin layers of iron-stone 3 feet 



Grayish sand 7 feet 



