1875.J 400 [Stevenson. 



field in 1872. His report for 1871 is not in my possession. In the Comox 

 field the rocks fall naturally into seven well-marked groups as follows : 



G. Upper conglomerate 320 ft. 



F. Upper shales 776 ft. 6 in. 



E. Middle conglomerate 1100 ft. 



D. Middle shales 76 ft. 



C. Lower conglomerate 900 ft. 



B. Lower shales 1000 ft. 



A. Productive coal measures ' 736 ft. 6 in. 



Total 4912 ft. 



Below these come at once the crystalline rocks, so that the fossiliferous 

 sandstones found below the Nanaimo coals must be absent, or, if present, 

 overlapped by Division A. 



Division A, consists of shales, sandstones, and coals, the latter very 

 irregular. The rocks contain no animal remains, though vegetable im- 

 pressions are abundant. B is made up of brownish-black argillaceous 

 shales with thin layers of gray sandstone and arenaceous shale. The 

 argillaceous portions are rich, both in individuals and species of 

 animal remains. Mr. Richardson obtained Ammonites, 7 sp., Ancyloceras, 

 2 sp., Inoceramus, 4 sp., undetermined Lamelli-branchiata, 15 sp., and 

 Natica, 1 sp. 



Division C is composed of coarse pebbles, held in a brownish-gray 

 sandy matrix, which contains wood and occasional shells. The fossils 

 from this division are rare, as would naturally be expected, but Mr. 

 Richardson obtained one species of Ammonites and one of Area. Division 

 D resembles B, but is rather more arenaceous. Thin streaks of coal are 

 common. Lenticular patches of limestone are of frequent occui-rence, 

 and yield Ammonites, Baculites, Nautilus, Ostrea, Inoceramus, Area, 

 ■ Nueula, together with numerous undetermined fragments of Lamelli- 

 branchiata and Gasteropoda. 



Division E is an exceedingly coarse conglomerate, and its matrix is a 

 coarse sand. No fossils were observed in the matrix, though some were 

 seen in the included fragments of limestone. Division F resembles D, 

 but is much more arenaceous. Near the top it contains thin streaks of 

 coal and many fragments of fossil wood, which show the structure dis- 

 tinctly. For the most part G resembles E, but contains no fragments of 

 limestone. At the base it usually exhibits a mass of gray sandstone, 

 with thin seams of coal and occasional Belemnites. 



During 1872, Mr. Richardson examined also the deposits in the Queen 

 Charlotte Islands, north from Vancouver. The section shows the follow- 

 ing succession, but the groups were not measured : 



1. Upper shales and sandstones. 



2. Coarse conglomerates. 



3. Lower shales with coal and iron ore. 

 A. p. S. — VOL. XIV. 3g 



