Geology of part of Asia Minor. 585 



S.S.W. towards Karabunar and Karajah Dagh ; whilst many others of a similar 

 character encircle its base to the N.W., extending; towards Akserai. Those 

 on the N.W. side are all in the present valley, and, with the exception of one 

 which, although higher up the slope of Hassan Dagh, appears to belong to the 

 same formation, are considerably below the horizontal beds of trachyte which 

 cap the hills on the north side of the valley, and which stretch away N, 

 and N.E., thereby proving their recent origin, which must have been subse- 

 quent to the scooping out of the valley between Hassan Dagh and the hills to 

 the north. Prom one of these cones a very considerable stream of black vesi- 

 cular lava has flowed for some distance into the plain towards Akserai, and en- 

 circled some of the smaller cones, which stand at a lower level. On the sum- 

 mit of several of these conical hills (or Puys), slight depressions are visible, but 

 they are scarcely deep enough to justify their being called craters. 



The hills which form the northern boundary of this valley, are about 300 

 feet in height, and are capped, for some distance, with a white pumiceous 

 rock, the stratification of which is either horizontal, or dips almost imper- 

 ceptibly towards the north. The surface slightly undulates, and the edge or 

 scarp of this table-land is much indented and broken. This pumiceous rock 

 immediately overlies the red and yellow sands and sandstone conglomerates. 

 Near the point A, in Section 4, I obtained the following section of the dif- 

 ferent beds in an ascending order, the whole thickness being about sixty feet. 



A. — A soft whitish yellow pumiceous peperite or volcanic sand, about eight feet thick. It de- 

 composes and is easily washed into large caves and cavities, in consequence of which the super- 

 incumbent beds have fallen down, and large masses of them cover the S.W. side of the hill for 

 some distance. 



B. — A similar rock, but much harder and more compact ; about 12 feet thick. A very distinct 

 line separates these beds. 



C. — A soft pumiceous sandstone resembling A. The upper portion of this bed differs consider- 

 ably from the lower, apparently in consequence of its being overlaid by a rock which was pro- 

 bably deposited in a more incandescent state. The upper portion is full of long narrow nodules of 

 a much harder rock, striking downwards from the surface of the bed, and varying much in length. 

 They effervesce with acids, and as the matrix does not contain calcareous matter, they were proba- 

 bly formed by the aggregation of the lime, in a manner similar to that which has produced sep- 

 taria in other formations. The thickness of the bed is four or five feet. 



D. — A brecciated rock, containing numerous angular fragments of coarse pumice stone. This and 

 the two overlying beds have a closeness of grain and almost viscous and semicrystalline appearance, 

 which renders it difficult to determine, whether they are due to volcanic sands which were deposited 

 horizontally under water, or whether they are trachytic beds, closely resembling some of the do- 

 mites of central France, which flowed from a subaqueous crater and were spread over the bottom 

 of an ancient sea or lake. 



