TRIASSIC STRATA OF LANCASHIRE. 121 



Salmesbury, there appears to be a synclinal axis, similar 

 to what is seen in the Ribble and Darwen, between Preston 

 and Roach Bridge, and previously described. 



These pebble-beds are of great thickness; and the pebbles, 

 although only in the middle portion of the rock, and found 

 very sparingly, undoubtedly do occur. It is probable 

 that the lower portions of the red sandstone seen in the 

 Darwen at Bannister Hall Weir, and below Barton^s farm 

 in Salmesbury, may belong to the lower soft and mottled 

 red sandstone. There is ample space for that rock. 



From the neighbourhood of Salmesbury up to near Scor- 

 ton I have not carefully examined the country to say with 

 certainty what it consists of; but I have heard of no sec- 

 tions showing the relation of the Triassic and Permian beds 

 to the millstone-grits or limestone shales. 



In a valley to the south of Scorton, known by the name 

 of Glriesdale, is a bed of black shale containing large nodules 

 of ironstone, some of them of a rich red colour. They, as 

 well as a coarse gritstone seen in the same neighbourhood, 

 dip a little west of south, at an angle of 35°. These beds 

 appear to belong to the millstone -grit series, and can be 

 traced at intervals through Scorton, Cleveley, and Ellel. 

 In Cleveley I have seen that rock in the form of a soft 

 reddish-brown sandstone of coarse grain, which dipped 

 slightly west of south, at an angle of 16°. 



Further north, in Ashton, at a place called the Outer 

 Park Quarry, the millstone-grit is seen as a fine-grained 

 sandstone, of a beautiful white colour, quite soft when first 

 taken from the quarry, especially the upper beds of it, and 

 much used as a building-stone. It is one of the most clear 

 and pure silicious grits that has ever come under my notice, 

 and appears to be well suited for glass and china manu- 

 factures, and for making cores for iron castings. Some of 

 the beds contain pebbles of white quartz, and traces of 



