66 HORN EXPEDITION — GENERAL GEOLOGY. 



(1) Area, west of Lakes Eyres and Torrens. 



William Springs (123 miles south from Oodnadatta), a well defined impression 

 of a Cinnaniontiiin leaf on the sui'face of a characteristic piece of chalcedonised 

 Desert Sandstone was presented to the S.A. Museum in 1872. 



Bottle Hill and Andaniooka (west side of Lake Torrens). — Several slabs of 

 flaggy quartzites, rich in leaf impressions, were obtained at these localities by Mr. 

 W. L. R. Gipps in 1876, and presented by him to the University Museum at 

 Adelaide. Similar specimens from the former locality, collected by Mr. Wentworth 

 Hardy in 1883, were donated to the same institution. 



Lake Gairdner and the Elizabeth River. — In 1883 Mr. Clement Salnne trans- 

 mitted to the University Museum similar fissile quartzites, sliowiiig abundant 

 plant-remains on their surfaces, from these localities. Accompanying the above 

 was a block of an excessively fine earthy sandstone, without bedding planes, con- 

 the casts of the following determinable species of marine bivalves : — Maccoyella 

 harklyi, Cyprina clarkei, and Nucula quadrata. The stone was obtained from a 

 quarry situated at "seven miles S.W. from Mount PaLsley, say long. \ifi' 45' and 

 lat. 30° 15"." These facts establish the presence of marine Cretaceous beds and 

 phytiferous strata in the same area ; and though there is no direct evidence of the 

 superposition of the latter, yet it may assumed to be so from the circumstance 

 that a similar, if not identical, quartzite forms the surface-bed over much of the 

 surrounding country and imparts to the table-topped outliers and low ranges their 

 characteristic outline. 



Arcoona (west of Andamooka).^ — Similar phytiferous quartzites were presented 

 by the Government Geologist, Mr. H. Y. L. Brown, in 1888, to the Adelaide 

 University. 



(2) Area south-east of Lake Eyre, hetween Lake Frame and the Barrier Ranges 

 In well-sinkings near Lake Frome (a south-eastern extension formerly of Lake 

 Eyre), sandstones and clays, blackened with coal-smut, were passed through. 

 From the information and specimens furnished by the Conservator of Water for 

 the South Australian Government, Professor Tate reported (Trans. Roy. Soc. S. 

 Aust., vol. v., p. 98, 1882) that exogenous leaves, all of one species, were aliundant 

 and associated with casts of marine sliells ; the period assigned was Miocene. 

 On reconsideration of the evidences in the light of additional and collateral 

 information, he is of opinion that the marine fossils are of Cretaceous age, as the 

 known distribution of the marine Eocene is incompatible with its occurrence at this 

 locality, whilst the Cretaceous age conforms with the area over which undoubted 

 uiarine beds are known to cover. The marine fossils indicate the presence of four 



