200 Miscellanies. 



ham line, about four miles S. S. W. from the city of Middletown. The 

 strata of slate bearing the impressions, have a thickness of six or eight 

 inches, and are situated near the bottom of a narrow ravine, excavated by 

 a small stream which falls over the ledges, and affords a beautiful piece of 

 scenery. Specimens are not so easily procured here as at Westfield, but 

 they are far more perfect, both in vividness of color and distinctness of 

 impression. The most delicate parts of the fins and scales are almost in- 

 variably preserved. It is very rarely that any vestige of bones is met with 

 in that part of the body covered by scales ; but traces of them about the 

 head are not uncommon. It is no unusual thing to find impressions per- 

 fect in every part, with the exception of a fin, or a portion of the tail, or a 

 narrow strip along one side of the body, which are sometimes seen lying 

 at the distance of two or three inches, and sometimes are removed by 

 greater intervals. Not unfrequently the fish appears to have been entirely 

 decomposed previous to its becoming fixed in its stony bed, so that the 

 rays and scales are scattered in all directions over a space of one or two 

 square feet, no two of the scales, perhaps, being observed in connection. 

 The slate, upon which the impressions are found, is very strongly impreg- 

 nated with bitumen, and occasionally presents thin layers of calcareous 

 spar. It occurs in every variety of texture, from the finest clay up to the 

 coarsest conglomerate ; though no ichthyolites are seen except on three or 

 four of the darkest colored and most delicate layers. Below the fish 

 strata, as well as above, the slate, well characterized, is several feet in 

 thickness ; after which, it passes gradually into sandstone. 



The erroneous opinion, somewhat extensively circulated, of this local- 

 ity being exhausted, probably arose from the difiiculty experienced in ex- 

 cavating the rock, which, owing to its peculiar position, is not so easily 

 quarried as that of Westfield. But if visitors go adequately prepared, and 

 with a proper guide, and commence operations on a scale sufficiently ex- 

 tensive, little difficulty will be experienced. The most proper course to be 

 pursued is, to pry out the rocks which have been loosened by the ice of the 

 preceding winter. Blasting will be of no use, as the slates are thereby 

 shattered in pieces, and they do not separate in layers till after the frost 

 has acted upon them. The proprietor of this locality is one of those en- 

 lightened and enterprising farmers, whose leisure moments have been de- 

 voted to reading, study, and meditation upon scientifi^c subjects. He takes 

 great pleasure in assisting strangers who may visit the place, and is ready 

 at all times to communicate any desired information. 



I have obtained as many as five species from Middlefield. Whether 

 they have as yet been named, with the exception of the two varieties men- 

 tioned above, is somewhat uncertain, owing to the rarity of works which 

 treat of fossil ichthyology. If they have not, I wait for other and more 

 experienced collectors to describe and classify them. D. L. H. 



Central Village, Ct., March 15, 1838. 



