Geology and Fossil Flora of F.E.J. 1 1 7 



Northumberland Strait into Prince Edward Island, to a "new 

 Red Sandstone" formation, including in the geology of that time 

 both the Permian and Triassic. As early, however, as 1842 *the 

 writer wns able to announce the existence of Carboniferous fossils in 

 these beds, and in 1845, in two papers published in the Journal 

 of the Geological Society of London, to refer the whole of the Red 

 Sandstone of the south side of Northumberland Strait and a 

 portion of that of Prince Edward Island to the " Newer Coal 

 formation," a name afterwards changed, in so far as the upper 

 beds were concerned, to " Permo-carboniferous." 



In 1871, in conjunction with Dr. Harrington, the writer insti- 

 tuted a geological examination of the whole Island, at the instance • 

 of the local Government, and published a report of fifty page*, with, 

 a map, sections, and figures of fossils. In this report were 

 described and catalogued twenty species of fossil plants, of which 

 sixteen were referred to the Permo-carboniferous and four to the 

 Triassic. In the Eeport referred to, it was proposeel to arrange tl^ 

 strata of the Island in two groups, Permo-carboniferous and Trias- 

 sic, and to divide the latter into a lower and upper series, and in our 

 map we limited the distribution of the foimer group to these 

 regions in which it was distinctly characterized by infra-position and. 

 by fossils, thus leaving the greater part of the surface to appear ;is 

 Triassic. Since 1871, Mr. Bain has been able to discover fossil 

 plants of Permo-cavboniferous types in several places in which they 

 were not found by us, thus extending the range of that formation^ 

 These facts he published in the paper in the Canadian Natur- 

 alist above referred to. More recently, he suggests a three-fox 

 division of the beds, and would refer to Permian that part of the 

 Series which we designated Lower Trias. Mr. Ells of the 

 Geological Survey of Canada, who has recently re-examined the 

 rocks of Prince Edward Island (Eeport of Survey, 1883-4), not 

 only extends the limits of the lower series, but regards the Trias as 

 very limited, and not clearly distinguishable from the Pei mo- 

 carboniferous ; but in this last respect I cannot but think he exag- 

 gerates the difficulty occasioned by the low dips of all the beds,. 

 and the strong mineral resemblance of the Trias to the under- 

 lying Permo carboniferous, from whose disintegration it has un~ 

 doubtedly been derived. 



* Notes on Geology of Prince Edward Island, Hazard's Gazette. 



