﻿146 
  PKOCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SOCIETY. 
  [Feb. 
  3, 
  

  

  Even 
  in 
  the 
  western 
  region, 
  to 
  which 
  we 
  now 
  invite 
  attention, 
  Pro- 
  

   fessor 
  Sedgwick 
  showed 
  the 
  existence 
  of 
  equivalents 
  of 
  the 
  eastern 
  

   Magnesian 
  Limestone 
  at 
  St. 
  Bees 
  Head 
  and 
  in 
  Furness, 
  though 
  he 
  did 
  

   not 
  propose 
  to 
  unite, 
  as 
  we 
  do, 
  the 
  lower 
  and 
  the 
  upper 
  Eed 
  Sandstones 
  

   in 
  the 
  same 
  natural 
  group 
  ; 
  on 
  the 
  contrary, 
  the 
  upper 
  sandstone 
  

   (the 
  Upper 
  Permian 
  or 
  St. 
  Bees 
  Sandstone 
  of 
  our 
  Memoir) 
  has 
  been 
  

   left 
  to 
  this 
  day 
  in 
  all 
  maps 
  as 
  the 
  New 
  Bed 
  or 
  Bunter 
  Sandstone. 
  

  

  The 
  transference 
  of 
  the 
  sandstones 
  of 
  St. 
  Bees 
  and 
  Corby 
  to 
  the 
  

   Permian 
  group 
  is, 
  we 
  grant, 
  not 
  founded 
  on 
  any 
  evidence 
  of 
  a 
  con- 
  

   tinuation 
  of 
  a 
  similar 
  type 
  of 
  a 
  fossil 
  Fauna 
  or 
  Flora. 
  "We 
  base 
  our 
  

   conclusions 
  on 
  the 
  evidence 
  afforded 
  by 
  clear 
  and 
  unmistakeable 
  

   sections, 
  which 
  show 
  that 
  these 
  upper 
  sandstones 
  are 
  connected 
  with 
  

   the 
  lower 
  sandstone 
  or 
  Rothliegende 
  through 
  the 
  intervention 
  of 
  

   the 
  Magnesian 
  Limestone 
  or 
  its 
  equivalent, 
  and 
  that, 
  thus 
  united, 
  

   all 
  these 
  strata, 
  from 
  the 
  base 
  to 
  the 
  summit, 
  form 
  a 
  continuous 
  

   series. 
  In 
  truth, 
  the 
  central 
  or 
  calcareous 
  member 
  has 
  alone 
  as 
  yet 
  

   proved 
  to 
  be 
  really 
  fossiliferous 
  ; 
  certain 
  footsteps 
  only 
  having 
  been 
  

   observed 
  in 
  the 
  lower 
  sandstone. 
  

  

  Turning 
  to 
  the 
  consideration 
  of 
  the 
  Continental 
  equivalents 
  of 
  

   these 
  rocks, 
  let 
  me 
  say, 
  that, 
  in 
  exploring 
  Russia, 
  I 
  was 
  led, 
  by 
  com- 
  

   paring 
  the 
  rocks 
  of 
  this 
  age 
  with 
  those 
  of 
  Britain 
  and 
  Germany, 
  to 
  

   dwell 
  upon 
  the 
  highly 
  diversified 
  or 
  protean 
  characters 
  of 
  these 
  de- 
  

   posits. 
  I 
  observed 
  that, 
  in 
  the 
  vast 
  regions 
  around 
  the 
  large 
  ancient 
  

   kingdom 
  of 
  Permia, 
  the 
  lithological 
  distribution 
  was 
  very 
  different 
  

   from 
  that 
  of 
  synchronous 
  deposits 
  in 
  Germany 
  and 
  Britain, 
  and 
  yet 
  

   I 
  saw 
  that 
  the 
  age 
  of 
  the 
  strata 
  was 
  clearly 
  proved 
  by 
  order 
  of 
  super- 
  

   position, 
  and 
  by 
  imbedded 
  fossils 
  distinct 
  from 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Carbo- 
  

   niferous 
  rocks 
  below 
  and 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Trias 
  above. 
  

  

  My 
  several 
  researches 
  in 
  Germany 
  having 
  strengthened 
  the 
  con- 
  

   viction, 
  as 
  expressed 
  in 
  the 
  second 
  edition 
  of 
  ' 
  Siluiia,' 
  and 
  in 
  a 
  

   Memoir 
  offered 
  last 
  year 
  to 
  this 
  Society, 
  it 
  has 
  given 
  me 
  great 
  satis- 
  

   faction 
  to 
  examine, 
  in 
  company 
  with 
  Professor 
  Harkness, 
  all 
  the 
  

   chief 
  localities 
  to 
  which 
  we 
  allude, 
  and 
  to 
  convince 
  myself 
  that 
  these 
  

   British 
  sections 
  fairly 
  sustain 
  the 
  conclusions 
  at 
  which 
  I 
  had 
  ar- 
  

   rived 
  by 
  the 
  survey 
  of 
  foreign 
  tracts. 
  The 
  exploration 
  of 
  last 
  

   summer, 
  following 
  upon 
  previous 
  examination 
  of 
  the 
  fossiliferous 
  

   Permian 
  shales 
  near 
  Manchester, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  my 
  old 
  inference 
  that 
  

   the 
  south-western 
  Scottish 
  or 
  Dumfriesshire 
  red 
  sandstones 
  were 
  of 
  

   Permian 
  age, 
  have 
  completely 
  satisfied 
  me 
  that, 
  notwithstanding 
  

   their 
  very 
  striking 
  lithological 
  dissimilarity, 
  the 
  magnesian 
  strata 
  to 
  

   the 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  Permian 
  chain, 
  and 
  the 
  red 
  sandstones 
  to 
  the 
  west 
  of 
  

   it, 
  are 
  truly 
  synchronous 
  groups. 
  Again, 
  in 
  the 
  sandstones 
  of 
  the 
  

   east 
  and 
  west 
  of 
  England 
  the 
  distinction 
  is 
  most 
  striking. 
  Thus, 
  

   whilst, 
  according 
  to 
  Sedgwick 
  and 
  all 
  his 
  successors, 
  including 
  

   myself, 
  the 
  incoherent 
  yellow 
  sandstone 
  of 
  Durham 
  is 
  a 
  true 
  though 
  

   poor 
  representative 
  of 
  the 
  Rothliegende 
  of 
  the 
  Germans, 
  this 
  rock 
  

   has 
  not 
  the 
  remotest 
  resemblance 
  to 
  the 
  red 
  sandstones 
  and 
  con- 
  

   glomerates 
  which 
  occupy 
  the 
  same 
  place 
  in 
  the 
  series 
  in 
  our 
  own 
  

   north-western 
  tract. 
  Even 
  on 
  the 
  eastern 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  island 
  the 
  

   changeful 
  nature 
  of 
  this 
  Lower 
  Permian 
  Sandstone 
  has 
  been 
  specially 
  

   pointed 
  out 
  by 
  myself. 
  For 
  the 
  very 
  same 
  strata 
  beneath 
  the 
  Mag- 
  

  

  