Apbil 13, 1906.] 



SCIENCE. 



589 



River, a few miles from Lake Ontario, were 

 found extensive exposures of the upper Lo- 

 raine shales, and these in certain layers were 

 found to be very fossiliferous. 



Prom Syracuse a short trolley trip was made 

 to the Solvay quarries at Split Rock and the 

 upper Siluric and lower Devonic formations 

 were examined, and the Siluro-Devonic con- 

 tact noted. Owing to the fact that this trip 

 was made on a very wet afternoon, no detailed 

 work was done. 



From Syracuse a side trip was also made 

 to Tully, where the type locality of the TuUy 

 limestone was visited, and fossils were col- 

 lected from the Hypothyris cuboides fauna, 

 famous as representing the mingling of Euro- 

 pean and American faunas at the beginning 

 of upper Devonic time. The Moscow shale, 

 underlying the Tully limestone, was examined 

 and many fossils collected from it where it is 

 exposed near the Solvay salt wells, a few miles 

 from Tully village. Tinkers Falls, some six 

 or eight miles from Tully, was visited. Here 

 a small creek has cut a gorge through the 

 black Genesee shales above and falls over the 

 edge of the exposed Tully limestone. This 

 limestone, some twenty or thirty feet thick, 

 projects out from the cliff for nearly thirty 

 feet, the soft Moscow shales below having 

 been eroded away. 



At Rochester the party made a short stop 

 and ■ hasty examination of the lower Siluric 

 formations as exposed in the Genesee gorge, 

 and then went on to Niagara Falls and 

 vicinity. Here a very careful study was made 

 of the Medina, Clinton, Rochester and Lock- 

 port formations, and many fossils were col- 

 lected from them. An attempt was made to 

 picture the region as it was in preglacial time, 

 when the watercourses were very different 

 from what they are now, and to understand 

 the cause and meaning of the physiographic 

 features now existing. After spending several 

 hours at the Upper Rapids, Goat Island, the 

 Lunar and American Falls, the party followed 

 the gorge along the American side, walking 

 down the tracks of the New York Central 

 Railroad as far as Lewiston. Then a car was 

 taken up the Canadian side and stops were 

 made at the Whirlpool Rapids, and at some 



of the best points for viewing the Horseshoe 

 Falls. 



After completing the work at Niagara, the 

 party went south to Eighteen Mile Creek and 

 the shore of Lake Erie. Eighteen Mile Creek 

 was followed from the Lake Shore Railroad 

 bridge to where it empties into Lake Erie, 

 then we walked along the Lake Shore section 

 for several miles to both the north and south 

 of the creek. Here were found excellent ex- 

 posures of the Hamilton and Portage groups, 

 including the Ludlowville shales, Encrinal 

 limestone, Moscow shale, Styliolina limestone, 

 Genesee, Middlesex, Cashaqua and Rhinestreet 

 shales. An abundance of fossils was collected 

 from most of these beds, and many of the beds 

 were followed for miles along their excellent 

 and continuous outcrops. 



From Buffalo short trips were made to Lan- 

 caster, Williamsville and North Buffalo. At 

 Lancaster the Stafford limestone was found 

 and many fossils collected from it. The pe- 

 culiar position of this limestone between two 

 beds of middle Devonic shale was carefully 

 examined in an endeavor to understand why 

 it was there and how it was caused — whether 

 by change of sedimentation or continental os- 

 cillation. The party saw evidence of the fact 

 that after Onondaga time there was a gradual 

 shoaling of the waters over central and west- 

 ern New York, as is indicated by the deposi- 

 tion of shales instead of limestones. Twice 

 during Mareellus time there was a return of 

 pure water conditions, with an invasion of a 

 western fauna. One of these is marked by 

 the Agoniatite limestone and the other by the 

 Stafford limestone. 



At Williamsville were found the Bertie and 

 Cobleskill (Greenfield), with the Onondaga 

 resting disconformably upon the latter. In 

 the Onondaga, where it was being quarried, 

 was found a most perfect example of a Paleo- 

 zoic coral reef. The reef in the center of the 

 quarry was made up of massive coral heads, 

 some of them five and six feet across. On 

 either side the bedding planes sloped gently 

 away from the center of the reef. Quarrying 

 operations were stopped when the reef was 

 reached because the massive unstratified lime- 

 stone could not be readily worked. 



