﻿218 
  J. 
  W. 
  DAWSON 
  ON 
  THE 
  "UPPER 
  COAX-EOEMATION 
  OF 
  

  

  each 
  other, 
  though 
  in 
  Nova 
  Scotia 
  the 
  Trias 
  rests 
  unconformably 
  

   on 
  the 
  Carboniferous. 
  I 
  believe, 
  however, 
  that 
  this 
  apparent 
  

   conformity 
  in 
  Prince-Edward 
  Island, 
  and 
  the 
  resemblance 
  of 
  the 
  

   two 
  series 
  in 
  mineral 
  characters, 
  arises 
  from 
  the 
  almost 
  horizontal 
  

   position 
  of 
  the 
  Carboniferous 
  beds, 
  and 
  from 
  the 
  circumstance 
  

   that 
  the 
  Trias 
  has 
  been 
  in 
  part 
  formed 
  from 
  their 
  waste. 
  The 
  

   Triassic 
  fossils, 
  though 
  few, 
  are 
  of 
  species 
  quite 
  distinct 
  from 
  those 
  of 
  

   the 
  Carboniferous. 
  Further 
  details 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  relations 
  of 
  these 
  

   formations 
  in 
  Prince-Edward 
  Island 
  will 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  my 
  Report 
  on 
  

   that 
  island. 
  

  

  To 
  sum 
  up, 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  said 
  that 
  the 
  beds 
  which 
  overlie 
  the 
  Coal- 
  

   field 
  of 
  Pictou 
  and 
  extend 
  into 
  Prince-Edward 
  Island, 
  and 
  which 
  

   constitute 
  the 
  upper 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  Upper 
  Coal-formation, 
  have 
  such 
  

   strong 
  points 
  of 
  resemblance 
  to 
  the 
  lower 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  European 
  

   Permian, 
  both 
  in 
  their 
  mineral 
  character 
  and 
  organic 
  remains, 
  that 
  

   they 
  may 
  fairly 
  be 
  named 
  Permo-Carboniferous, 
  a 
  name 
  already 
  

   applied 
  to 
  certain 
  marine 
  limestones 
  in 
  the 
  West, 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  

   Carboniferous 
  graduates 
  upward 
  into 
  the 
  Permian. 
  They 
  may 
  

   also 
  be 
  held 
  to 
  some 
  extent 
  to 
  bridge 
  over 
  the 
  gap 
  which 
  in 
  Eastern 
  

   America 
  separates 
  the 
  Carboniferous 
  from 
  the 
  Trias. 
  

  

  I 
  may 
  add 
  that 
  in 
  Nova 
  Scotia 
  the 
  Lower 
  Carboniferous 
  beds 
  are 
  

   usually 
  more 
  hardened 
  and 
  altered 
  than 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Middle 
  Coal- 
  

   formation, 
  and 
  the 
  latter 
  more 
  than 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Upper 
  Coal-forma- 
  

   tion. 
  Moreover 
  there 
  are 
  instances 
  in 
  Nova 
  Scotia 
  of 
  local 
  uncon- 
  

   formability 
  of 
  the 
  Lower 
  Carboniferous 
  beds 
  ; 
  and 
  the 
  New-Glasgow 
  

   conglomerate 
  affords 
  evidence 
  of 
  extensive 
  denudation 
  of 
  the 
  Lower 
  

   Carboniferous 
  before 
  the 
  deposition 
  of 
  the 
  productive 
  Coal-measures. 
  

   These 
  facts 
  indicate 
  the 
  long 
  duration 
  of 
  the 
  Carboniferous 
  period 
  

   and 
  the 
  extent 
  of 
  the 
  physical 
  changes 
  which 
  it 
  included 
  ; 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  

   evident 
  that, 
  had 
  unconformability 
  or 
  extensive 
  local 
  denudation 
  

   occurred 
  somewhat 
  higher 
  in 
  the 
  system, 
  it 
  might 
  have 
  been 
  

   regarded 
  as 
  forming 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  an 
  overlying 
  Permian 
  series. 
  

  

  I 
  have 
  discussed 
  somewhat 
  fully 
  the 
  relations 
  of 
  the 
  flora 
  of 
  the 
  

   Lower 
  Carboniferous 
  to 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Devonian 
  on 
  the 
  one 
  hand, 
  and 
  

   of 
  the 
  Upper 
  Members 
  of 
  the 
  Carboniferous 
  on 
  the 
  other, 
  in 
  a 
  ' 
  Report 
  

   on 
  the 
  Fossil 
  Plants 
  of 
  the 
  Lower 
  Carboniferous 
  and 
  Millstone 
  Grit,' 
  

   recently 
  published 
  by 
  the 
  Geological 
  Survey 
  of 
  Canada 
  *. 
  I 
  hope 
  

   that 
  I 
  may 
  be 
  able 
  at 
  some 
  future 
  time 
  to 
  describe 
  and 
  illustrate 
  

   fully 
  the 
  plants 
  of 
  the 
  Upper 
  Coal-formation 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  manner. 
  

  

  Discussion. 
  

  

  Prof. 
  Ramsay 
  agreed 
  with 
  the 
  author 
  in 
  thinking 
  that 
  these 
  

   Upper 
  Carboniferous 
  rocks 
  represented 
  the 
  Permian, 
  and 
  that 
  there 
  

   is 
  a 
  gradual 
  passage 
  from 
  the 
  Carboniferous 
  to 
  the 
  Permian. 
  In 
  

   North 
  Staffordshire 
  there 
  is 
  some 
  evidence 
  of 
  this 
  passage, 
  but 
  not 
  

   in 
  other 
  parts 
  of 
  England. 
  Mr. 
  Binney 
  had 
  argued 
  that 
  the 
  Per- 
  

   mian 
  is 
  the 
  uppermost 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  Carboniferous 
  series 
  ; 
  but 
  this 
  is 
  

   not 
  true 
  in 
  the 
  English 
  area, 
  although 
  it 
  is 
  true 
  if 
  we 
  consider 
  the 
  

   * 
  Montreal, 
  1873. 
  

  

  