93 



In confirmation of the opinions here advanced, the author gives 

 a detailed account of observations made by himself, in the course 

 of an excursion from the City of Albany to the Hilderberg moun- 

 tains, over a plain which extends about thirty miles from north to south, 

 and sixteen miles from east to west. The surface of this plain, which is 

 324 feet above the level of the Hudson River, consists of sand incum- 

 bent upon a very thick deposit of the marl above noticed, which is 

 found also in various parts of the United States, as far south as 

 Louisiana. Near the Hudson River this marl is incumbent upon 

 transition rocks ; but at the Hilderberg mountains, it rests on carbo- 

 niferous limestone, containing the fossils usually found in that forma- 

 tion, and imperfect seams of black chert or flint. This range is re- 

 markable for its fissures and caves, one of which, more than 1500 

 feet long, situated in the town of Bethlehem, is minutely described by 

 the author. Within this cavern is a pool of water, along which one 

 of the attendants paddled himself in a small skiff, to the distance of 

 800 feet, in a course parallel to that pursued by the author, and 

 separated by a screen of natural pilasters with occasional openings : 

 this pool forms the head of a rivulet about one third of a mile from 

 the entrance of the cave. — The author was unsuccessful in his endea- 

 vours to discover bones within the cavern, though it abounds in 

 diluvial matter, which in some places presents a section of at least 

 seven feet in height. — There is another cave in the same neighbour- 

 hood, said to be still more extensive, which he proposes to explore. 



No regular search for bones has yet been made in the caves of the 

 United States. The only fossil bones hitherto found in any cave in 

 that country, are those of the megalonyx ; although the bones of the 

 megatherium, elephant, mastodon, ox and horse, have been discovered 

 in other situations. But so little attention has been paid to the cir- 

 cumstances under which these remains occurred, that it is impossible 

 to decide whether they were lodged in alluvial or diluvial deposits. 

 In the author's opinion, no fossil remains of the hyaena, rhinoceros, 

 hippopotamus, bear, or tiger, have ever yet been found in the United 

 States. 



A letter was read, addressed to Dr. Fitton, President of the Geo- 

 logical Society, by Samuel Woodward, Esq., respecting some re^ 

 markable fossil remains found near Cromer, in Norfolk. 



The author notices the limited extent of the marine formation of 

 Eastern Norfolk, and is of opinion that its rejectamenta may point 

 out the boundary of a former sea in that district. 



The marine remains, denominated Crag, are found at Cromer, and 

 westward of that town, at Coltishall, and around Norwich. To the 

 eastward of these situations, instead of marine shells, a layer of lig- 

 neous and mammalian remains is found reposing on the chalk. — • 

 The author considers that a line drawn from Cromer, or a little east 

 of it, and passing in a south-east direction towards Lake Lothing by 

 Lowestoff, will very nearly describe the course of the antediluvian 

 shore j — to the eastward of which, immense numbers of the fossil re- 

 mains of the elephant, horse, deer, &c. mingled with the trunks, 

 branches and leaves of trees, have been found, even to the distance 



