SUB-REGENT MARINB BEDS. 65 



and made up almost entirely of separated valves of Femis seabra drifted 



together. A little to the east of the village is an exposure of shelly marl 



containing innumerable valves of a Cytherea and many shells of Helix 



vittata and Nanina tranqueharica. From its position this shelly marl 



may be inferred to rest upon the Venus bed. 



An estuarine deposit seems in course of formation in the bed of 



,, , J rr • u the back-water running along the coast from 

 Manapadu and Trich- => ° 



endur sandstones sub- Kulasekhara-pattanam to Trichendur. Great 

 aerial. p -i , j -ht 



masses or sandstone occur at Manapadu and at 



Trichendur, but they seem to be mainly subaerial in their origin and 

 will therefore be considered further on when treating of .the coast 

 dunes. The base of the cliffs in both cases are surrounded by a narrow 

 fringe of reef which presents the appearance of frmging coral reef, 

 but I could not see any live coral growing in either. 



To return to the unquestionably marine beds. The next outcrops to 

 Panampirai quarry ^® recorded occur 7 miles to the west-north-west 

 sections. p£ Christianagaram or Kalan-Kudi Iruppu (Kau- 



lungcoode-irripoo), at a place called Panamparai (Pannumpaura). The 

 beds here seen strongly resemble those already described as occurring 

 at Bishop CaldwelPs quarry at Thisianvilai (Teggayamvella) and are 

 like them a shelly calcareous grit. Being greatly in demand as a 

 building stone they have been largely quarried, but the quarries have 

 not been worked deep enough to expose the underlying rock. They have 

 furnished the material for the construction of the very fine church at 

 the Church Mission Station of Megnanapuram, 3 miles to the east. The 

 beds lie horizontally or dip at a very small angle to the south-east. 

 False bedding on a small scale is common, and the accumulations of 

 fossil shells present the appearance of having been found by drifting 

 currents. As at Tissianvilai, the fossils are very difficult to extract 

 in a whole condition. All that were determinable belonged to living 

 specieSj but many were far too much comminuted to allow of even 

 generic determination. The Balanus which is the most characteristic 

 fossil at Tissianvilai is common also at Panamparai. The pi'evalent 

 E ( 65 ) 



