CLAYS OF NEW YORK 



605 



About one quarter mile south of Myers's brick yard is that of 

 Stewart. The section at this locality (now obliterated) as given 

 by Dr Merrill^: ' 



Surface stratum yellow micaceous clay 35 feet 



Reddish and sandy clay 5 



Blue black sandy clay with nodules of white pyrites. ... 25 " 

 White sand 



Total thickness 65 " 



A local deposit of grayish blue sandy clay occurs at East Willisr 

 ton. It varies in depth from 6 to 20 fe^t and is underlain by 

 sand. On my last visit to this locality I found a number of stems 

 and leaf fragments in the clay but none sufficiently well preserved 

 for identification. 



There is still some doubt as to the exact conditions under which 

 the beds of clay and gravel which form the greater portion of 

 Long Island were deposited, but it is probable that the clays repre- 

 sent shallow water marine deposits of Cretaceous and Tertiary age. 

 The overlying sands and gravels have in most instances a cross- 

 bedded structure, with a south dip, and were probably deposited 

 by swift currents as stated by Dr Merrill. 



The age of the clays is still largely a matter of speculation, and 

 will probably remain so in many cases unless paleontologic evidence 

 is forthcoming. Those on Gardiner's island are quite recent, as 

 shown by the contained fossils, and the clay on Littleneck near 

 Northport is Cretaceous as previously noted. The proof of the 

 age of the Glencove clay is not absolute. 



Cretaceous leaves in fragments of ferruginous sandstone have 

 been found along the north shore of Long Island from Greatneck 



1 F. J. H. Merrill. " Geology of Long Island," Ann. N. Y. acad. sci. Nov. 

 1884. 



