190 ON THE ROCKS OP THE QUEBEC GROUP. 



northern edge. At the foot of this step, Mr. Bell observed in one 

 place a mass of gray-weathering yellowish-white limestone pro- 

 truding for a few inches through the soil. This mass, when exca- 

 vated from its position, proved to be about a foot in diameter, and 

 very fossiliferous. Persuaded that it had fallen from the conglo- 

 merate band, he tried farther on in the strike, and found another j 

 and finally, in the distance of about fifty feet along the strike, he 

 obtained five masses, each as heavy as would require a strong 

 man to lift ; and twelve smaller masses, each of about twenty 

 pounds weight and upwards. They were all rich in fossils. Some 

 of these gave to Mr. Billings his limestone No. 1, and others that 

 of No. 3. All of these masses, some of which were sharply angu- 

 lar, rested on the slate, just at the base of the conglomerate band ; 

 and with the exception of the small portion of the first one, were 

 wholly covered by the soil, one of them to a thickness of a foot ;. 

 requiring, before it could be extracted by aid of pick, shovel, and 

 crow-bar, a hole to be made of two feet deep. It appears to me 

 much more probable that these masses should have fallen from 

 the conglomerate band which they touched, than that they should 

 have been transported nearly half a mile from the Redoute, and all 

 laid at the foot of the conglomerate band A 2 , in a row in its strike. 

 It is by no means supposed that the stock of these masses was ex- 

 hausted by Mr. Bell ; more may probably be obtained in the strike, 

 and I am persuaded, that if the adjacent parts of the conglomerate 

 band were laid bare, similar masses would be found imbedded in it. 

 Mr. Marcou states that the limestones Nos. 1 and 3, without 

 doubt come from the Redoute ; and that in respect to No. 1, so 

 rich in trilobites, he could almost point out the exact spot from 

 which it came. Soon after the first discovery of fossils at Point 

 Levis, I spent a good deal of time in endeavouring to obtain spe- 

 cimens from Guay's quarry, but with very indifferent success. 

 Fragments of trilobites were observed, but the only recognizable 

 species obtained was Menocephalus globosus. Perceiving that 

 Mr. Marcou had been so fortunate as to meet with upwards of nine 

 species of trilobites in the locality, I last season renewed my attempt ; 

 and with Mr. Billings, made a diligent search of the rock, but with 

 no better luck than had attended my previous researches ; Menoce- 

 phalus globosus being again the only speeics procured. Mr. 

 Marcou states that the stratification is indistinct, and that in con- 

 sequence of the hardness of the stone, it is difficult to obtain spe- 

 cimens. This perfectly accords with what we observed ; but not 

 with the characters of the limestones Nos. 1 and 3 ; which are cot 



