﻿XXXIV 
  PKOCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SOCIETY. 
  

  

  rocks, 
  which 
  form 
  the 
  axis 
  of 
  the 
  principal 
  range 
  of 
  the 
  Blue 
  Moun- 
  

   tains 
  of 
  Jamaica, 
  supposed, 
  in 
  accordance 
  with 
  the 
  geology 
  of 
  the 
  

   period, 
  to 
  be 
  " 
  transition 
  rocks 
  " 
  by 
  Sir 
  Henry 
  de 
  la 
  Beche 
  (Geol. 
  

   Trans. 
  2nd 
  ser. 
  vol. 
  ii. 
  p. 
  143), 
  were 
  really 
  of 
  Cretaceous 
  age, 
  contain- 
  

   ing 
  the 
  characteristic 
  fossils 
  of 
  the 
  Hippurite 
  -limestone. 
  He 
  also 
  

   ascertained 
  that 
  the 
  " 
  Orbitoidal 
  limestone," 
  formerly 
  regarded 
  as 
  

   Carboniferous, 
  was 
  at 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  Miocene 
  series 
  ; 
  and 
  from 
  the 
  

   newest 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  well-known 
  white 
  Miocene 
  limestone 
  he 
  obtained 
  

   71 
  Shells 
  and 
  several 
  Corals, 
  afterwards 
  examined 
  by 
  Mr. 
  H. 
  Moore 
  

   and 
  Dr. 
  Duncan, 
  the 
  results 
  of 
  which 
  are 
  printed 
  in 
  oar 
  Journal. 
  

  

  I 
  am 
  informed 
  that, 
  in 
  his 
  letters, 
  Mr. 
  Barrett 
  gave 
  many 
  valuable 
  

   details 
  respecting 
  the 
  newest 
  Tertiary 
  strata 
  (Pliocene) 
  of 
  Jamaica 
  ; 
  

   and 
  that 
  he 
  might 
  the 
  better 
  understand 
  their 
  relations, 
  he 
  com- 
  

   menced 
  to 
  dredge 
  the 
  neighbouring 
  sea-bottoms 
  in 
  from 
  15 
  to 
  150 
  

   fathoms 
  and 
  upwards, 
  in 
  which 
  he 
  found 
  about 
  100 
  species 
  of 
  minute 
  

   shells 
  similar 
  to 
  those 
  that 
  have 
  been 
  found 
  at 
  similar 
  depths 
  on 
  the 
  

   coasts 
  of 
  Norway, 
  Japan, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  JEgean 
  Sea. 
  It 
  would 
  be 
  out 
  

   of 
  place 
  here 
  to 
  give 
  a 
  list 
  of 
  these 
  forms 
  ; 
  but 
  I 
  have 
  been 
  told 
  

   by 
  Mr. 
  S. 
  Woodward 
  that 
  from 
  them 
  he 
  " 
  acquired 
  the 
  belief 
  that 
  

   9-10ths 
  or 
  perhaps 
  99-100ths 
  of 
  the 
  sea-bed, 
  viz. 
  the 
  whole 
  area 
  

   beyond 
  the 
  100-fatJwm 
  line, 
  constitutes 
  a 
  single 
  nearly 
  uniform 
  

   province 
  all 
  over 
  the 
  world." 
  

  

  There 
  still 
  remained 
  for 
  Mr. 
  Barrett 
  the 
  region 
  of 
  the 
  coral-reefs, 
  

   which 
  cannot 
  be 
  explored 
  with 
  the 
  dredge, 
  and 
  there 
  he 
  expected 
  

   to 
  find 
  the 
  living 
  representatives 
  of 
  the 
  fossils 
  described 
  by 
  Mr. 
  

   Moore 
  and 
  Dr. 
  Duncan. 
  In 
  1862 
  Mr. 
  Barrett 
  was 
  in 
  England 
  as 
  

   one 
  of 
  the 
  Commissioners 
  from 
  Jamaica 
  to 
  the 
  International 
  Exhi- 
  

   bition 
  ; 
  and 
  on 
  his 
  return 
  to 
  Jamaica 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  year, 
  he 
  took 
  with 
  

   him 
  a 
  diving- 
  apparatus 
  to 
  enable 
  him 
  personally 
  to 
  explore 
  the 
  reefs. 
  

   Having 
  once 
  gone 
  down 
  safely 
  and 
  successfully 
  in 
  shallow 
  water, 
  

   he 
  would 
  not 
  wait 
  for 
  the 
  assistance 
  of 
  his 
  friends 
  ; 
  and 
  set 
  out 
  on 
  

   the 
  19th 
  of 
  December, 
  attended 
  by 
  a 
  negro 
  crew 
  and 
  servants, 
  to 
  the 
  

   coral-reefs 
  outside 
  Port 
  Royal. 
  At 
  some 
  distance 
  from 
  the 
  land 
  he 
  

   descended 
  into 
  deep 
  water, 
  provided 
  with 
  100 
  feet 
  of 
  air-tubing, 
  

   and 
  holding 
  the 
  " 
  life-line 
  " 
  only 
  in 
  his 
  hand 
  ; 
  and 
  after 
  the 
  lapse 
  

   of 
  more 
  than 
  half 
  an 
  hour 
  he 
  floated 
  to 
  the 
  surface, 
  but 
  no 
  longer 
  

   alive. 
  Thus 
  unhappily 
  perished 
  Mr. 
  Barrett, 
  a 
  victim 
  to 
  his 
  own 
  

   enthusiasm, 
  at 
  the 
  early 
  age 
  of 
  25. 
  To 
  these 
  sorrowful 
  details 
  I 
  

   may 
  add 
  that 
  Mr. 
  Barrett 
  was 
  married 
  only 
  a 
  few 
  days 
  before 
  his 
  

   first 
  voyage 
  to 
  Jamaica 
  ; 
  and 
  he 
  has 
  left 
  one 
  child, 
  Arthur, 
  whom 
  

   he 
  never 
  saw, 
  and 
  who 
  was 
  born 
  at 
  Cambridge, 
  in 
  January 
  1863, 
  

   after 
  his 
  own 
  untimely 
  end. 
  

  

  He 
  was 
  the 
  author 
  of 
  eleven 
  memoirs 
  on 
  geological 
  and 
  zoological 
  

   subjects, 
  chiefly 
  published 
  in 
  the 
  * 
  Annals 
  of 
  Natural 
  History 
  ' 
  and 
  

   in 
  the 
  ■ 
  Quarterly 
  Journal 
  of 
  the 
  Geological 
  Society.' 
  

  

  Though 
  not 
  at 
  any 
  time 
  actively 
  engaged 
  in 
  geological 
  science, 
  

   the 
  Society 
  has 
  lost 
  by 
  the 
  death 
  of 
  the 
  venerable 
  Maequis 
  ofr 
  

   Landsdowne, 
  one 
  whose 
  capacious 
  understanding 
  and 
  great 
  accom- 
  

   plishments 
  induced 
  a 
  corresponding 
  sympathy 
  with 
  almost 
  every 
  

  

  