562 Revieios — G. H. Oirty — Guadalupian Fauna. 



Glossopteris and otlier plants, as well as reptilia, occur. The Beaufort 

 Series contains the well-known and remarkable series of reptilia, 

 including Pareiasaurus and numerous other genera, as well as 

 amphibia, fishes, freshwater mollusca, plants, etc. Dr. Broom, who 

 contributes a chapter on the reptiles, remarks, "In probably no part 

 of the world is there a formation of greater interest to the palaeon- 

 tologist, for here in the 14,000 feet or so of strata we have beds 

 which when fully studied will yield us a continuous history of the 

 land animals of one part of the world during a period of possibly over 

 2,000,000 years." The Stormberg Series, with its great series of 

 volcanic beds, closes the record of Jurassic events. 



The TJitenhage Series is separated from earlier strata by evidence of 

 unconformity, and the latest researches on the molluscan fauna by 

 Dr. F. L. Kitchin render it probable that the entire series is of 

 Neocomian age. Higher Cretaceous strata are represented in the 

 Pondoland Series, which includes Senonian and possibly also Danian. 



The volcanic pipes and the occurrence of diamonds, the traces of 

 possible Tertiary (thick sands with layers of clay and lignite), and the 

 various Pleistocene and recent deposits are duly described, but we find 

 no references to any discoveries of ancient stone implements. The 

 discovery of Mastodon in gravels of the Vaal River is noted, and 

 regarded as of Pleistocene age. Interesting observations are made on 

 natural saltpans, on hot springs, water supply, and economic geologv 

 in general. There is also a chapter giving a summary of the geological 

 history of the Colony, including reference to Professor Penck's view 

 that the land is a bent surface of denudation, and that the position of 

 the coast roughly marks the axis about which the bending has taken 

 place. 



In conclusion we may remark that the progress of geological know- 

 ledge is greatly aided by works like the one before us, and we wish 

 that the geology of all countries, so far as known, could be dealt with 

 in an equally judicious manner. 



III. — The Guadalupian Fauna. By Gr. H. Girtt, United States 

 Geol. Surv. Prof. Paper 58, 1908. 



IN this comprehensive work we find much that is of interest to 

 palseontologists generally. Three new families — Guadalupiidse, 

 Cystothalamiidse, and Polysiphonidse of the order Sycones, and seven 

 new genera — Anihracos^con [order Lithistida, sub-order Tetracladina], 



Virgula [sub-order Tetracladina], PseuAovirgtda [sub-order Tetra- 

 cladina], Stromatidium [order Hexactinellida, sub-order Dictyonina], 



Guadalupia [order Sycones], Polysiplion [order Sycones], Cystothalamia 

 [order Sycones] — are founded among the Spongidse. The family 

 Guadalupiidse contains but one genus, and is distinguished by the 

 mode of growth, " usually in lamellar expansions," and by the 

 construction of the walls, " which are composed of tubes having 

 a direction normal to the two surfaces, the superficial layers being 

 reticulated and apparently formed of large, mutually consolidated 

 spicules." The Cystothalamiidae includes only one species and is 



