November 3, 1916] 



SCIENCE 



647 



while the Lower and Middle Cambrian are 

 separated by a diastrophic break of consider- 

 able magnitude. 



ORDOVICIAN FORMATIONS AND FAUNAS 



Nearly half of the iron smelted in Canada 

 is obtained from the Wabana iron ore deposits 

 on Bell Island in Conception Bay, Newfound- 

 land. Dr. A. O. Hayes, in a recently published 

 memoir, 5 has given an excellent description of 

 these ores and their occurrence. Oolitic iron 

 ore with ferrugineous shales and sandstones 

 forms part of a sedimentary series containing 

 a fauna which correlates with the Arenig and 

 lower Llandeilo stages of Wales, correspond- 

 ing roughly to the Beekmantown, Chazy, and 

 Black Eiver of the Appalachian province. 

 The spherules of ore are composed of alter- 

 nating concentric layers of hematite and 

 chamosite (a green iron silicate) and in many 

 cases were pierced by living boring algae. 

 Algse are found in all horizons in the ore beds 

 and doubtless played an important part in the 

 precipitation of these primary bedded ores. 

 Practically all of the calcium and phosphorus 

 of the ores is derived from linguloid brachio- 

 pod shells. Layers of oolitic pyrite associ- 

 ated with a graptolite fauna occur in the 

 midst of the shales between two of the iron 

 ore zones. These are interpreted as indicative 

 of open ocean currents and deeper water. The 

 chapters treating of the origin of these beds 

 make use of many data obtained from recent 

 studies of Drew, Doss, and others, concerning 

 the chemical reactions induced by marine bac- 

 teria. 



Epicontinental seas of Ordovician time were 

 much more basin-like in character than was 

 formerly supposed. Difficulties have fre- 

 quently arisen from the fact that minor for- 

 mation names were carried over wide expanses 

 of territory without due examination of fossil 

 faunas. Especially is this true of the strata 

 deposited during the latter part of the period. 

 Eaunal studies by A. E. Eoerste, now in prog- 

 ress, are yielding very important results con- 

 is ' ' Wabana Iron Ore of Newfoundland, " A. O. 

 Hayes, Geological Survey, Canada, Memoir 78, 

 1915. 



cerning the so-called Lorraine and Richmond 

 terranes of Ontario and Quebec. 6 The investi- 

 gations embrace two general areas: that ex- 

 tending from the northern shore of Lake On- 

 tario northwestward across Georgian Bay, and 

 that east of the Erontenac axis in eastern On- 

 tario and southern Quebec. 



The faunas of the "Lorraine" formations 

 in the more westerly of these two basins are 

 so different from the typical Lorraine fauna 

 of New York that the use of the term Lor- 

 raine can be of little value. The terms Mays- 

 ville and Eden may prove much more appro- 

 priate, as these strata can probably be corre- 

 lated with the formations so named in the 

 vicinity of Cincinnati, Ohio, at least in a gen- 

 eral way. Apparently the " Lorraine " of On- 

 tario presents much more in common with the 

 strata of a similar age in the Ohio basin than 

 with the Lorraine of the province of Quebec. 

 The latter is, also, faunally distinct from the 

 New Tork Lorraine and evidently represents 

 sedimentation in a somewhat isolated basin. 

 Quite probably the Frontenac axis was suffi- 

 ciently developed in later Ordovician time to 

 form a faunal barrier along the southern and 

 western border of the region in which accumu- 

 lation of the Quebec Lorraine was being ef- 

 fected. 



In neither of the Canadian provinces is 

 there a definite line of demarcation between 

 the " Lorraine " and Richmond. The Rich- 

 mond fauna seems to have invaded the " Lor- 

 raine " seas gradually, a few species at a time, 

 rather than en masse. The upper part of the 

 so-called Lorraine of Ontario is doubtless of 

 Richmond age. The Richmond includes also 

 the Queenston shales, largely of a red color, 

 which occur in eastern Ontario and Quebec as 

 well as in the vicinity of Lake Ontario. These 

 shales appear to be merely the estuarine repre- 

 sentatives, along the southern margin of the 

 Laurentian highlands, of marine strata else- 

 where known as the Richmond formation. 

 The Richmond fauna of the eastern basin has 

 a decidedly western aspect and embraces only 



« ' ' Upper Ordovician Formations in Ontario and 

 Quebec," A. F. Foerste, Geological Survey, Can- 

 ada, Memoir 83, 1916. 



