^ PROCEEDINGS OP THE BOSTON MEETING 



of American geologists ; by Dr 11. C. Hovey, speaking in personal rem- 

 iniscence, and by Professor W. H. Niles, referring to Doctor Hall's youth 

 and his eagerness for knowledge. 



After some announcements by the Secretary relating to the work of 

 the Society, by Mr Warren Upham concerning the program of the week, 

 and by Professor W. H. Niles in behalf of the Boston Society of Natural 

 History and the Local Committee, the reading of papers was declared 

 in order. 



The first paper upon the program was 



SOME FEATURES OF THE STATEN ISLAND DRIFT, NEW YORK 

 BY AETHUR HOLLICK 



[Abstract'] 



Topographically Staten island, New York, may be. divided into two parts— a hill 

 region at the northeastern end, due to the ridge of serpentine which extends from 

 New Brighton, at the extremity nearest to New York city, to Richmond, at about 

 the center of the island, and a plain region wlaich occupies the rest of the area. 



The eastern and southern borders of the hill region are precipitous, reaching a 

 maximum elevation of about 375 feet on Todt hill, at a distance of about a mile 

 from the southern border, and thence sloping irregularly northwestward until tide- 

 level is reached, at the waters of the Kill von Kull and Staten Island sound, which 

 separate the island from the adjacent mainland of New Jersey. 



The elevations throughout the plain region are due to morainal hills, which have 

 a maximum elevation of about 170 feet at Woodrow and near Forf Wads worth. 



The frontal moraine extends in an irregular line from the Narrows, at Fort Wads- 

 worth, to Tottenville, opposite Perth Amboy, New Jersey. 



Two areas of the island are driftless. One of these areas is in the vicinity of 

 New Dorp and Garrettsons, where the moraine bends northward and rests upon 

 the serpentine ridge, forming a prominent sinus immediately south of the highest 

 point on the ridge. The other is a similar but much smaller area in the vicinity 

 of Tottenville. 



These main facts were described by Dr N. L. Britton some years ago in a paper 

 on the geology of the island, read before the New York Academy of Sciences April 

 4, 1881, and published in the Annals, volume ii, pages 1G1-182; but since that time 

 ' many additional facts have been brought to light, especially in regard to the char- 

 acter of the morainal material and the structure of the moraine. 

 • Lithologically the boulders have been more or less satisfactorily identified with 

 prominent rock outcrops northward, the most abundant being Triassic trap and 

 red shale and sandstone, which latter give a prevailing red color to all the morainal 

 soil. , Lithological determinations, however, are not always conclusive as to geolog- 

 ical age, especially in the case of sedimentary rocks, and for this reason every fos- 

 siliferous boulder found was carefully examined, and all fossils contained in each 

 were determined, if possible. 



This work has extended over a period of about eighteen years, -and we now have 

 from the Staten Island drift a list of about 125 Paleozoic, about 50 Mesozoic, 2 Ter- 

 tiary, and 1 Quaternary species definitely identified, besides considerable more 



