4 



T. S. TTall — Graptolite Eods, Victoria, Australia. 44:7 



Sness, from South Tarra, while a few other badly preserved examples 

 of Monograptus have also been found at tliis last locality. From 

 Alexandra a large number of specimens of the same genus have 

 been obtained, all a])parently of the one species, but all so badly 

 preserved that no useful purpose would be served by either recording 

 them as old species or describing them as new. It is worthy of 

 remark, however, that no sign of Diplograptidge has been found at 

 this locality, so that we may perliaps assume that the beds are not 

 very near the base of the formation. 



The record, then, of Silurian forms is meagre in the extreme, for 

 we can do little more than assert their presence in the formation, 

 and must await the advent of better material before reliable definite 

 statements can be made. 



The absence of many characteristic genera, both Ordovician and 

 Silurian, from our records must be regarded as apparent rather than 

 real. The Lower Ordovician beds are the only ones that have been 

 examined in any detail, while the Upper Ordovician rocks, hitherto 

 worked, are either badly jointed mudstones or highly indurated 

 slates, in which graptolites merely appear as a glaze on the surface. 



Other Australasian Localities. 



With regard to other Australasian graptolites the information is 

 as yet meagre. 



Tasmania has apparently yielded a single specimen, which was 

 identified as Diployraplus iiodosm} I have elsewhere^ given reason 

 for supposing that a Diplograptus was found, and for the worthless- 

 ness of the specific identification; and for the correlation with 

 Victorian beds founded upon it. 



New South Wales has recently aiforded some Upper Ordovician 

 forms as recorded by Mr. W. S. Dun.^ Dicrauograptidae and 

 Diplograptiilfe are common, but badly preserved. Phijllograptns 

 is doulitfuUy recorded from the same beds, and Mr. Dun kindly 

 showed me the specimen, which, however, I am inclined to regard 

 as one of the Retiolitidse. Phijllograptus certainly does not range 

 as high. These forms come from the south-east corner of the colony, 

 but similar forms have since then been found as far north as the 

 latitude of Sydney, and throw considerable light on the age of a series 

 of slates and sandstones hitherto tentatively regarded as Silurian. 



In New Zealand Lower Ordovician graptolites occur, and Sir 

 James Hector* gives a few rough woodcuts of some of the forms, 

 but does not identify any of the species. Freeh' gives a few 

 records, which are all of Lower Ordovician forms, and I have 

 examples of Didt/mograpttis bifidus from Nelson. 



1 Thureau, "Report on the . . . Lisle Goklfield " : Tasmaman House of 

 Assembly Journal, vol. xliii (18S2), No. 146. 



2 Rep. Aust. Ass. Adv Science, Sydney, 1898, p. 401. 



3 Records Geol. Surv. New South Wales, vol. v (1897), p. 124. 

 * Cat. N.Z. Geol. Exhibits, ind. and Col. E.xhib., 1886, p. 82. 

 ° Lethtea Palseozoica, lid. i (1897). 



