205 



contains marine shells in such abundance that they are dug up and 

 burnt for lime. They are all species which now inhabit the Indian 

 seas, such as Pyrula vespertilio. Purpura carinifera, Cardita antiquata. 

 Area granosa and Area rhombea. The sand is usually bounded by 

 granite, which appears at the surface at Sadras, Madras and other 

 places. Immediately beyond the town of Pondicherry, however, the 

 recent beds rest upon some low hills of red sandstone. A bed of 

 limestone containing numerous fossils succeeds, and at the distance 

 of four miles due west the red sandstone is again met with and there 

 abounds with silicified wood. At about sixteen miles from the sea 

 the sandstone is bounded by hills of black granite. 



The surface of the country does not offer any section exhibiting 

 the relative positions of the limestone and sandstone. In the former, 

 numerous fossils in a high state of preservation were discovered by 

 Mr. Kaye, including species of Baculites, Ammonites, Nautilus, Ha- 

 7nites, Ptyehoeeras, Ancyloceras, Valuta, Cyprcea, Conus, Tornatella, 

 Rostellaria, Pyrula, Aporrhais, Trochus, Solarium., Natica, Eulima, 

 Scalaria, Ceriihium, Turritella, Dentalium, and Calyptraa ; Ostrea, 

 Exogyra, Spondylus, Pecten, Trigonia, Mytilus, Pinna, Area, Pectun- 

 culus, Nueula, (Jardium, Isoeardia, Anatina, Cythercea, Solen, Phola- 

 domya, Clavagella, Lutraria and Terebratida. Also some fishes' teeth, 

 Echinodermata and corals, accompanied by wood (calcareous) bored 

 by Teredo. 



The fossil wood found in the sandstone exhibits no traces of worm- 

 borings, and occurs in the form of trees denuded of their barks, some 

 of them as long as 100 feet, and all apparently Coniferce. 



2. Six miles from Verdachellum in Southern Arcot, about forty 

 miles from the coast and fifty from Pondicherry, the valley of the 

 river is formed of a limestone which underlies the sandstone and con- 

 tains marine fossils, including species of Ammonites, Nautilus, Mela- 

 fiopsis ?, Pleurotomaria, Natica, Pecten, Area, Artemis, Modiola, Exo- 

 gyra, Lima, Cardita, Cardium, Lutraria and Terebratula. 



3. Trinchinopoly . — In this district, at about thirty miles from the 

 town of the same name, one hundred from Pondicherry, and sixty 

 from the sea, is a limestone formation which Mr. Kaye was unable 

 to visit in person, but from which he procured a quantity of fossils 

 belonging to twenty-seven species of various genera, including Na- 

 tica, Turritella, Triton, Fusus, Pyrula, Valuta, Melanopsis ? (same spe- 

 cies as at Verdachellum), Aporrhais, Strambus, Maetra, Psammobia, 

 Area, Pecten, Ostrea, Cytheraea and Cardium. A fragment of an 

 Ammoaiite accompanied them. 



None of the species appear to be common to the three deposits. 

 Three species are common to Trinchinopoly and Verdachellum. 

 From the latter locality there are 28 species of mollusca identical 

 with lower greensand fossils found in Britain. A single species 

 appears to be identical with one of those from Pondicherry ; but none 

 of the testacea from the last mentioned locality agree with those 

 from Trichinopoly. The greater part of those from Pondicherry 

 appear to be undescribed forms. Accompanying the very remarkable 

 assemblage of molluscan genera at the latter locality was a single 



