Thomas Stock — Rhizodus at Wardie. 77 



to me it seems rather to point to the fact that the condition of things 

 oceanic since the commencement of the Tertiary period differed and 

 still differs from that which existed in earlier times, and is therefore, 

 looking at it in this light, rather against than for the hypothesis that 

 the oceans and continents occupy permanent positions on the earth's 

 surface. 



The distinguished author of the " Origin of Species," so fertile in 

 suggestions, yet so fair in judgment, while upholding in a letter to 

 the writer his published views ' on the subject, considers, as we all 

 must, that it is full of perplexities, and that the more it is discussed 

 the better, 



VI. — On the Discovery of a nearly entire Bhizodus in the 

 Wardie Shales. 



By Thomas Stock, Esq., 



Natural History Department, Museum of Science and Art, Edinbui-gh. 



(Read before the Edinburgh Geological Society, 16th December, 1880.) 



THE fact of the occurrence of Bhizodus at Wardie has been 

 known for a good many years. It appears as an addendum 

 to a list of fossils from that locality published^ in 1861 by the 

 Geological Surve}'' of Scotland. The specimens hitherto collected, 

 however, have been the merest fragments, consisting principally of 

 detached scales. Almost the first fossil obtained by the writer from 

 Wardie was a badly-preserved fragment of the jaw of Bhizodus 

 containing teeth. Since then a few fragments have occurred refer- 

 able to the same genus. From the fact that these were invariably 

 found along a particular part of the beach, the suspicion was 

 gradually awakened that they had been derived from a common 

 source. This suspicion was confirmed by the discovery of the 

 remarkable specimen which, is the subject of this notice. It was 

 found lying in the direction of the strike of the beds, its head 

 seawards, its tail to the shore. The greater part of it was buried 

 under from six inches to a foot of shale. The end of the tail and 

 the anterior portion of the head had been bared by the waves, and 

 though the tail remains almost intact, the head has suffered a good 

 deal from the erosion of the sea. The rest of the fish is preserved. 

 As the bed in which it was entombed is accessible only at yery 

 low-water, considerable difficulty was experienced in getting the 

 specimen away ; but, thanks to the help of Mr. Macpherson of 

 Trinity, this was effected, and a noble fish has been saved to science. 

 It is undesirable at present to say much about the new facts which 

 this specimen reveals. Much may be made out as to the shape of 

 the fish and the position of the fins ; but it would be unwise to 

 give forth statements involving facts of great structural importance 

 until these can be corroborated by examination of the fish, after it 



' I am indebted to Mr. Topley for calling my attention (Geol. Mao. Dec. 1880, 

 p. 573) to Mr. Darwin's views. 



* The Geology of the JSTeighbourhood of Edinburgh, London, 1861. 



