OF THE CARBONIFEROUS SERIES. 617 



These include the coal-fields of Castlecomer and Killenaule, with 

 the surrounding districts occupying portions of the counties of 

 Carlow, Queen's County, Kilkenny, and Tipperary, those of Mill- 

 street in co. Cork, and a few latches in the counties of Kerry, 

 Limerick, and Clare. The succession of the beds above the Carbo- 

 niferous Limestone in these districts is remarkably uniform, and 

 has been illustrated in the memoirs of Griffith, Kane, Meadows, 

 and of the officers of the Geological Survey ; so that all that remains 

 for me to do is to describe the series in one district as a type of the 

 whole, and refer the different beds to their representatives in Eng- 

 land and Wales. For this purpose I shall take the section which 

 may be made out in crossing the country from east to west through 

 Carlow and the centre of the coal-basin of Castlecomer, referring to 

 the accompanying section (fig. 1) in illustration of the subject. 



It will be seen from this section that the Castlecomer Coal- 

 field forms a basin, in the centre of which are the highest beds, sur- 

 rounded by a zone of " Gannister Beds " (stage E) supported by 

 flagstones, and these latter by shales and flaggy beds, which in their 

 turn rest on the Carboniferous Limestone. This order of succession 

 may be observed in many places on all sides of the coal-field ; and 

 the strata may be arranged as follows in descending order, the 

 stages (A, B, C, &c.) affixed to each division corresponding with 

 those of the British series (see Table, pp. 615, 616) : — 



Descending Series of the Castlecomer and Killenaule Coal-fields *. 



Stage G. Upper Coal-measures. — Absent (probably owing to denuda- 

 tion). 



Fresh- f St age F. Middle Coal-measures (Jarrow series). — Sandstones, shales 

 ^Estua- 1 * I ^ c '' with several coal-seams from the "Jarrow Coal " upwards, 



rine. [ Fossils. — Anthracosia ( Unio), Myalina ; Crustacea, Reptilia, &c. 



/'Stage E. " Gannister Beds." — Grits, shales, and two or three thin seams 

 of coal, with roofs containing marine shells. 

 ~Fo8SiLS.—Phillipsia, Bellinurus regina (Baily), Goniatites, Bellerophon, 

 Avicidopecten, and many others stated below, recently discovered 

 (p. 621). 



Stage D. Flagstone Series (representing Millstone Grit Series). — Beds 



of rippled micaceous flagstones and shales. 

 Fossils.— Chiefly tracks of marine Annelids or of Molluscs t. 



Stage C. Shale Series (representing the Yoredale Beds). — Grey sandy 

 shales, passing downwards into dark shales, with earthy limestones. 

 Fossils. — Goniatites sphcericus, Bellerophon, Euomphalus, Aviculopecten 

 'papyraceus, Posidonomya Becheri, P. membranacea, &c. 



Stage B. Carboniferous Limestone. — (a) Upper Limestone (with beds of 

 chert); Coralline ; (b) Middle Limestone or "Calp" beds; Carbona- 

 ceous shales and earthy limestones; (c) Lower Limestone, compact 

 V limestone, often dolomitic. 



Total thickness 1700 ft. 



* Explanation of sheets 136 and 137 of the maps of the Geological Survey 

 of Ireland. 



f W. H. Baily, Explan. of sheet 128 of the maps of the Geol. Survey, p. 15. 



QQ 





