﻿26Q 
  PBOCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  S0CIET5T. 
  [Mar. 
  23, 
  

  

  present 
  everywhere, 
  and 
  keeping 
  pretty 
  much 
  the 
  same 
  thickness 
  

   throughout, 
  but 
  losing 
  altogether 
  its 
  coarseness 
  and 
  massive 
  character 
  

   in 
  the 
  south. 
  

  

  The 
  Haslingden 
  flags, 
  the 
  second 
  bed, 
  maintain 
  their 
  thickness 
  

   and 
  character 
  unchanged, 
  until 
  they 
  thin 
  away 
  somewhat 
  suddenly, 
  

   about 
  five 
  miles 
  south-west 
  of 
  Buxton. 
  

  

  The 
  Third 
  Grit 
  runs 
  through 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  the 
  district 
  ; 
  but 
  from 
  

   a 
  thickness 
  of 
  more 
  than 
  400 
  feet, 
  which 
  it 
  reaches 
  in 
  Lancashire, 
  

   it 
  lessens 
  down 
  to 
  about 
  100 
  in 
  the 
  neighbourhood 
  of 
  Congleton, 
  and 
  

   still 
  further 
  south 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  on 
  the 
  point 
  of 
  dying 
  out 
  altogether. 
  

   Though 
  this 
  bed 
  becomes, 
  without 
  doubt, 
  finer 
  to 
  the 
  south, 
  it 
  keeps 
  

   more 
  than 
  any 
  other 
  a 
  certain 
  massiveness 
  of 
  structure 
  to 
  the 
  last. 
  

  

  The 
  little 
  coal 
  on 
  the 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  Third 
  Grit 
  is 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  per- 
  

   sistent 
  beds 
  in 
  the 
  series. 
  Seldom 
  reaching 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  foot 
  in 
  

   thickness, 
  it 
  is 
  found 
  here 
  and 
  there 
  over 
  the 
  whole 
  country. 
  

  

  The 
  passage 
  of 
  the 
  fourth 
  or 
  Kinder 
  Scout 
  rock 
  from 
  an 
  enormous 
  

   mass 
  of 
  gritstone 
  and 
  conglomerate, 
  a 
  thousand 
  feet 
  thick, 
  into 
  two 
  

   beds 
  of 
  finer 
  gritstone 
  with 
  a 
  shale 
  between, 
  north 
  of 
  Buxton, 
  has 
  

   been 
  pointed 
  out, 
  as 
  also 
  the 
  further 
  change 
  which 
  the 
  latter 
  undergo 
  

   into 
  still 
  finer 
  sandstones, 
  and 
  their 
  total 
  disappearance 
  in 
  the 
  Bid- 
  

   dulph 
  and 
  Eudyerd 
  basins. 
  

  

  These 
  general 
  results 
  are 
  embodied 
  in 
  the 
  set 
  of 
  vertical 
  sections 
  

   given 
  in 
  fig. 
  10. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  well 
  known 
  that 
  the 
  Millstone 
  -grit 
  is 
  wanting 
  in 
  the 
  South 
  

   Staffordshire 
  Coal-field 
  *, 
  and 
  is 
  only 
  feebly 
  represented 
  in 
  Leicester- 
  

   shire 
  ; 
  a 
  still 
  further 
  thinning 
  away 
  of 
  the 
  series 
  must 
  therefore 
  

   take 
  place, 
  below 
  the 
  New 
  Red 
  Sandstone, 
  between 
  these 
  places 
  and 
  

   the 
  country 
  under 
  notice. 
  

  

  One 
  other 
  point 
  calls 
  for 
  notice. 
  On 
  the 
  top 
  of 
  each 
  of 
  the 
  grit- 
  

   stone-beds 
  there 
  are 
  traces, 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  distinct, 
  of 
  coal 
  : 
  the 
  Pea- 
  

   theredge 
  coal 
  on 
  the 
  Rough 
  Rock, 
  the 
  little 
  coal 
  found 
  near 
  Buxton 
  

   on 
  the 
  Second 
  Grit, 
  the 
  coal 
  just 
  mentioned 
  on 
  the 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  Third, 
  

   and 
  the 
  very 
  thin 
  seams 
  of 
  coal 
  which, 
  accompanied 
  by 
  Gannister 
  or 
  

   Gannister-like 
  rock, 
  often 
  lie 
  on 
  the 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  Kinder 
  Scout 
  Grit 
  in 
  

   Lancashire. 
  The 
  rough 
  thick-bedded 
  grits, 
  and 
  the 
  finely 
  laminated 
  

   shales 
  that 
  lie 
  between 
  them, 
  must, 
  of 
  course, 
  have 
  been 
  deposited 
  

   under 
  very 
  different 
  circumstances, 
  and 
  these 
  coal-beds 
  seem 
  to 
  

   point 
  out 
  that 
  in 
  the 
  intervals 
  during 
  which 
  the 
  changes 
  were 
  being 
  

   Drought 
  about, 
  each 
  grit-bed 
  became 
  in 
  turn, 
  for 
  a 
  time, 
  almost 
  a 
  

   land-surface. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  Yoredale 
  series 
  we 
  have 
  seen 
  that 
  the 
  upper 
  group 
  dies 
  

   away 
  altogether. 
  The 
  Quartzites 
  must 
  also 
  partake 
  in 
  the 
  general 
  

   thinning 
  out, 
  for 
  they 
  are 
  wanting, 
  most 
  likely, 
  in 
  Leicestershire, 
  and 
  

   certainly 
  in 
  South 
  Staffordshire 
  ; 
  but 
  in 
  the 
  just 
  described 
  country 
  

   they 
  do 
  not 
  show 
  any 
  very 
  marked 
  falling 
  off. 
  The 
  low 
  r 
  est 
  group 
  

   is 
  also 
  wanting 
  in 
  South 
  Staffordshire, 
  and 
  is 
  only 
  30 
  or 
  40 
  feet 
  

  

  * 
  This 
  may, 
  however, 
  be 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  that 
  part 
  of 
  England 
  was 
  dry 
  

   land 
  at 
  the 
  early 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  Carboniferous 
  period 
  : 
  see 
  Hull, 
  ' 
  Coal-fields 
  of 
  

   Great 
  Britain 
  ;' 
  Jukes, 
  ' 
  On 
  the 
  South- 
  Staffordshire 
  Coal-field,' 
  Memoirs 
  of 
  the 
  

   Geological 
  Survey 
  of 
  Great 
  Britain. 
  

  

  