J. W. Dawson— Footprints, etc., on Carboniferous Rocks. 19 
I have long been of opinion that many of the cylindrical 
markings which have been described as plants under the names 
Palewochorda, Buthotrephis, Paleophycus, Arthrophycus, &c., are 
burrows of this kind, but the main difficulty seemed to be to 
account for their branching in a radiate or palmate manner. 
have recently met with specimens from the Primordial and 
Carboniferous which seem to explain this. They show a cen- 
tral hole or burrow from which the animal seems to have 
stretched and withdrawn its body in different directions, so as 
to give an appearance of branching and radiation, possibly due 
merely to the excursions of the same worm from the mouth of 
its burrow. 
No distinct examples of the Primordial and Silurian worm- 
trails known as Nereites, Myrianites and Crossopodia, have yet 
occurred to me in the Carboniferous. 
_ Diplichnites Dawson. 
hence been induced to su that these imprints may have 
been produced by the pocueal of ventral fins of fishes armed 
