258 PROCEEDINGS OF THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. [Mar. 10, 



1829), founded chiefly upon the occurrence of gypsum and brine 

 springs^ in a formation bearing considerable resemblance in lithological 

 character to the new red sandstone, without any reference whatever to 

 its fossils, which at that period had not been examined by competent 

 observers. 



Mr. Lyell, in a paper on this subject read before the Society in 

 1843, and more recently in his * Travels in America,' has clearly 

 shown, from their proximity to the older rocks, the great disturbances 

 which (compared with the coal-measures) they have undergone, and 

 more particularly from their characteristic fossils, that the gypsife- 

 rous strata of Nova Scotia and Cape Breton are the representatives of 

 the lower beds of the carboniferous limestone of Europe ; but hitherto 

 I am not aware that any decided example of the superposition of 

 the millstone grit and coal-measures has been observed. It affords 

 me therefore much satisfaction to be able to furnish a section of the 

 strata forming a lofty cliff at Cape Dauphin, the western boundary 

 of the Sydney coal-field, where the carboniferous limestone and 

 associated marls containing gypsum, with the millstone grit lying 

 conformably thereon, are brought up to the surface within a very 

 limited horizontal space, by the protrusion of the granitic ridge of 

 St. Ann's, as represented in the annexed cut. 



Cape 

 Q _ . Dauphin. 



-^•^ S.E, § N.W. C" 



PQ O 



^mmM^ A , ?^^^IW?/v.V.v;. 









e d 



f. The newer conglomerate. 

 , ; e. The coal-measures. 



d. The millstone grit. 



c. Carboniferous limestone, shales and marls containing gypsum, 

 b*. The old conglomerate. 

 a. The red granite. 



The following is a section of the strata in detail, from the millstone 

 grit across the carboniferous limestone and associated beds, to the 

 granite, in the descending order, the measurements being taken at 

 right angles to the planes of stratification. 



Thickness in feet, 



31. fMillstone grit 200 



, 30. Finely laminated grey shales with thin bands of limestone ... 110 



'29. Slaty sandstones with traces of plants 10 



28. Blue and grey shales, with some thin beds of nodular limestone 120 



; 27. Strong sparry limestone 6 



26. Soft crumbling marls 90 



* This conglomerate is seen in the section on page 260, to which the above 

 references also apply. 



t The coal-measures (e) are not seen in actual contact with the millstone grit 

 at Cape Dauphin, having been abraded by the heavy surf continually beating 

 upon this exposed point, but they overlie it in a more sheltered situation about 

 half a mile higher up the Strait. 



