354 Proceedings. 



session, together with an excellent plate, shewing the 

 objects magnified about 30 diameters. They are all 

 described as belonging to the genus Carbonia, and the 

 number of species, six. Messrs. Jones and Kirby say the 

 Carbonia are rarely found associated with truly marine 

 fossils — but they swarmed in muddy waters of the coal 

 period with fish, amphibia, Anthracosia, and shells of that 

 family, the ubiquitous Spirorbis Carbonarius, and coal plants 

 (ferns excepted), and are probably indicative of Estuarine 

 habitats. The old name for these fossils was Ostracoda. It 

 is interesting to have these illustrations, but they do not 

 compare successfully with the beauty of the same objects 

 when seen under the microscope, as preserved in the lime- 

 stones, where every detail of the shell construction is 

 beautifully shewn. The microscope sections exhibited to 

 the Society have also been examined in London by 

 Professor Jones, Mr. Newton, and others, who believe the 

 Entromostraca therein to be the same as those submitted by 

 Mr. Roeder. The various forms of Annelida seen in the 

 limestone sections may be understood by comparing them 

 with a plate published in the Geol. Mag. for 1880. That 

 volume contains a series of Articles by R. Etheridge, Junr., 

 on the British Carboniferous tubicular A nnelida. There are 

 several forms of Spirorbis described and shewn, two 

 of which occur in the Levenshulme limestones. Mr. 

 Etheridge says the living Spirorbis is a marine insect. 

 The two varieties of Spirorbis which I believe to be 

 represented in our limestones, are (i) vS". Pusillus and 

 (2) S. Ambiguus. S. Pusillus \s stated by Mr. Etheridge 

 to occur in the Ardwick Limestone, and to be the species 

 described by Phillips, Binney, and Salter. The range of 

 strata through which this tiny annelid existed is enormous 

 as it was found by Dr. Hibbert, at Burdie House, in a lime- 

 stone at the very base of the Coal Measures — as well as 

 in our limestones at the uppermost portion. At least 10,000 



