Association of American Geologists and Naturalists. 149 



Permit me here to add as a claim of the western geologists, rather 

 strangely overlooked by some eastern writers on ivestern geology, — that 

 besides these all the other western rocks yet made known, have been 

 described by western geologists. Especially the bed of mountain or 

 carboniferous limestone, superimposed on the cliiF at the upper rapids 

 of Mississippi, underlying the great Illinois coal basin, cropping out at St. 

 Louis, and forming the bluffs at and above Alton, Illinois, with its char- 

 acteristic fossil, the Archimedes of Le Seuer, was well known to Messrs. 

 Troost, Owen and myself. The same rock occurs within the limits of 

 the survey of the Professors Rogers, who belong, in part at least, to the 

 western corps. In 1839, I had the pleasure of comparing notes with 

 Prof. James Rogers, on the characters of this very rock as it occurs in 

 Indiana and Illinois on the one part, and in Western Virginia on the 

 other. I hope yet more specifically to settle the claims of the various 

 laborers in our western geology. At the same time I would observe 

 that it is impossible for an eastern geologist, without visiting the west, 

 or even by a post-haste journey over the trans- Appalachian world, to 

 Avrite upon its geology without committing errors injurious to his own 

 reputation, the publication of which, he would of course, gladly recall. 



Remarks were offered and facts stated on the above subject by 

 Dr. King, Mr. Haldeman, Mr. Teschemacher, Prof. Henry 

 D. Rogers, Dr. C T. Jackson, Prof Vanuxem, Prof Hitch- 

 cock, Prof Beck, and Dr. Dana. 



Mr. Haldeman laid on the table, at the request of Dr. Morton, 

 some copies of a work on cretaceous fossils, bringing our know- 

 ledge of this subject near the present day, most of these being 

 from the researches of Prof. Nicollet. 



A letter was read from Prof Park of Philadelphia, regretting 

 his inability to attend the present meeting. The Association ad- 

 journed to — 



Tuesday, April 2Qth, 9 o'clock, A. M. — Prof Locke in the 

 chair. The committee on the constitution and by-laws was call- 

 ed upon for report. Dr. Jackson read the rules, as submitted by 

 this committee. 



Constitution and By-Laws of the Association of American Geologists 

 and Naturalists.^' 



Art. I. The Society shall be called " The Association of Ameri- 

 can Geologists and Naturalists." 



* The constitution and by-laws as here printed, were in fact adopted at the session 

 of Wednesday, but it is thought expedient to insert them here, as they embrace all 

 the rules which were adopted on Tuesday and thus to avoid repetition. 



