596 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



Dr r. J. H. Merrill describes in detail the formations exposed 

 on the island, and mentions the insnfficiencv of data necessary to 

 afford definite conclusions concerning the sequence of geologic 

 events. Examinations of the various clay outcrops on the island 

 since made show that eight years have made considerable changes ; 

 permitting the collection of additional data and obliterating many 

 localities described by him. With the exception of four similar 

 deposits on the north shore, all the.cla}^ beds as exposed at the 

 brick yards are rather unique in appearance. 



The most western clay outcrop on Long Island, of which the 

 writer has any knowledge, is on Elm point near Greatneck."^ 

 There is here a bed of stoneware clay over 30 feet thick, overlain 

 by 15 to 20 feet of yellow gravel and drift. The clay is <lark 

 gray and contains streaks of lignite in a good state of preservation. 

 In appearance the clay resembles the Cretaceous ones of JSTew 

 Jersey and will doubtless prove to be of the same age. The over- 

 lying yellow gravel contains sandstone concretions and also sand- 

 stone fragments containing Cretaceous leaves.^ 



There is an outcrop of clay at Glencove on the east shore of 

 Hempstead harbor, at the mouth of Mosquito inlet. This has 

 long been considered of Cretaceous age from the plant remains 

 found^ in sandstone fragments embedded in the clay. The layers 

 of the latter are blue, red, black or yellow, and dip northeast 

 10°-15°. ISTear this locality and on the south shore of Mosquito 

 inlet is an outcrop of pink clay, belonging to Carpenter Bros, 

 and used for fire brick and stoneware. Dipping under it to the 

 north at an angle of 30° is a bed of alternating layers of quartz 

 pebbles and clay. The pebbles crush easily to a white powder. 

 Associated with this clay is a bed of feldspathic clay called " kaolin," 

 but the exact relations of the two deposits are not known. And 

 similar clay also crops out from under the gravels of the west shore 



1 H. Ries, " Notes on the clays of New York state," Trans. N. Y. acad. sci., 

 12. 



2 C. L. Pollard, " Note on Cretaceous leaves from Elm point, L. I.," Trans. 

 N. Y. acad. sci., 13. 



3 A. Hollick, Trans. N. Y. acad. sci., 12. 



