233 LiGNiTic Stage 31 



each other ; thickness 20 feet. At the summit of these deposits 

 there is a fossiliferous streak containing quite a number of small, 

 imperfect oysters. Perhaps 20 feet higher still, and at the south 

 end of the cut a bed of O. thirsce comes in. Beds of this species 

 stretch along the railroad for over a mile towards Pine Hill. A 

 few Vejiericardia pl-anicosta and Turritella inortoni are sprinkled 

 in here and there. This secftion is interesting, for it .shows with- 

 in a few feet the dividing line between the Lignitic and Midway 

 stages. 



Along the Alabama river south from the famous Mat- 

 thews' landing outcrops of Midway claj^s beds of dark 

 sandy and lignitic clays give place to the Nanafalia marls 

 at Gullettes' landing, replete with Ostrea thirscE. The 

 best colledling ground, however, does not appear until Yellow 

 bluff is reached. This is practically the same fauna as that at 

 Gregg's landing. Large specimens of Ostrea compressh'ostra and 

 Venericardia planicosta are fairly abundant, but the fauna is princi- 

 pally of gastropods, including Turritella mortoni, T. huinerosa, 

 T. prrecinda, Mesalia alabaviiensis, Calyptraphorus trinodiferus , 

 Valuta newcombiana, Pseudoliva vetusta, Fiisus harj^isi, Cornulina 

 armigera, Levifusus pagoda, L. trabeatus, Natica Ihnula, N. aper- 

 ta, N. emimcla, Pleurotoma nasuta, et. al; Peden greggi, and 

 Crassatella halei are typically developed here. 



Gregg's landing some miles below is perhaps the best lower 

 Lignitic colledling ground in the State. There is no mass of 

 fossils from which large quantities of any given species can be 

 obtained, but by diligently picking over the cliff, from one end 

 to the other a great variety of mollusca as well as corals can be 

 obtained. 



Farther downstream at Peeble's and Lower Peach Tree land- 

 ing outcrops occur, not important for the number and variet}^ of 

 their fossil fauna, but containing noticeably large concretions, 

 •reminding one of the Tombigbee river above Tuscahoma. 



Bell's landing, another very important outcrop, can be passed 

 over with only a passing mention, for its strata and fossils have 

 been studied with considerable care by Smith, Johnson and Al- 

 drich. This is the last good exhibition of lower Lignitic beds 

 on the Alabama. 



Four miles above Hamilton bluff, as the river sweeps west- 

 ward before its final southern defledlion through the " Buhr- 

 stone' ' at Hamilton bluff, there is a low outcrop of upper Lignitic 

 or Woods bluff marls on the southern bank of the river. 



