54? PROCEEDINGS OF THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. [NoV. 4, 



of the Purbeck series in North Wiltshire, but as there appeared to 

 be some doubt upon the subject, it seemed desirable to notice its 

 now certain occurrence, derived both from the evidence of geological 

 position and organic remains. 



2. Additional Remarks on the Deposit of GEningen in Switzer- 

 land. By Sir Roderick Impey Murchison, G.C.S., V.P.G.S. 



Referring to a memoir published by him in the Transactions of 

 the Geological Society* eighteen years ago, the author explained 

 that, with the consent of Dr. Mantell, he had requested Professor 

 Owen to examine critically the original specimen of the so-called 

 " Fossil Fox of CEningen," which has never been out of his pos- 

 session. This request was made in consequence of a recent work 

 of M. Hermann von Meyer, who, judging from the drawing alone 

 of that animal, had named it Canis palustris. In alluding to cer- 

 tain criticisms of M. von Meyer, Sir Roderick admitted that he had 

 misconstrued the ideas of M. Karg respecting the freshwater deposit 

 in which the CEningen fossils are found, the opinion of that author 

 having to a great degree anticipated his own. On the other hand 

 it was shown, that M. von Meyer had misinterpreted the meaning 

 attached to a diagram published in the paper referred to in the 

 Transactions of the Geological Society, presuming that it was in- 

 tended to represent the Molasse sandstone and the conglomerate, on 

 which the freshwater deposit reposes, as being made up of highly 

 inclined strata. Not having such intention, Sir Roderick stated that 

 he merely wished to indicate that the underlying rocks were essen- 

 tially different from those above them ; since these inferior strata 

 could be followed eastwards to the south side of the adjacent lake 

 of Constance, where they are highly inclined and charged with fossils 

 exclusively marine. They thus differ entirely from the superposed 

 marls of CEningen, which are, it is well known, of pure lacustrine 

 character. Now, as the name " Molasse Mergel," applied by M. 

 von Meyer to the fossiliferous beds of CEningen, would imply that 

 they are intercalated in the Molasse, Sir Roderick Murchison ob- 

 jected to a term which commingles a very peculiar, insulated, and 

 overlying freshwater deposit with a subjacent marine stratum of the 

 miocene age. But whilst he contends that these two deposits must 

 be separated in classification, since they are distinct in nature, he 

 now inclines to the belief, that the freshwater accumulation of 

 .CEningen (with its quadrupeds, birds, tortoises, lizards, insects, fishes 

 and mollusca) may rather belong to the older pliocene age than to 

 the still more recent tertiary epoch, to which, in consequence of the 

 modern aspect of many of those animals, he formerly assigned it. 



* 2nd Series, vol. iii. p. 275. 



