PREVIOUS OPINIONS 101 



New Brunswick and IsTewfoundland." It may be noted in passing that 

 the rocks referred to in jSTew Brunswick lie across the strike of the 

 Meguma series and have no claim to be regarded as a continuation of it, 

 and that on the east the strike of this series swings so far south as to 

 clear southern Cape Breton completely; hence it is most unlikely that 

 any rocks in Newfoundland so far to the northeast are continuations of 

 the j\Ieguma. This opinion of the age of the series Dawson held to the 

 last; and the practice of Canadian geologists generally and of the Geo- 

 logical Survey of Canada officially is to call it Lower Cambrian. Murray 

 (1881, pages 534-535) noted strong resemblance to the gold-bearing 

 series of Newfoundland, which is "unconformable below the Primordial," 

 the base of which is the Aspidilla or Saint Johns slate. 



Faribault (1887, page 144) regarded the Eophyton of Selwyn as inor- 

 ganic, and compared the series with the Cambrian of the eastern town- 

 ships of Canada and with the rocks of the Lake of the Woods region 

 studied by Lawson. Walcott (1891) thought that part may be Cam- 

 brian, but much is older. A'^an Hise (1892) regarded Eophyton as 

 organic, and hence a valid fossil, but considered the series as probably 

 Algonkian. Becker (1895), upon the basis of literature, concluded that 

 the series is more probably Algonkian than Cambrian. Faribault (1899) 

 still called the rocks Lower Cambrian, and this practice has continued 

 largely to the present. 



It will be seen from this summary that most of the writers have no 

 special evidence in favor of their opinion as to the age of the series, and 

 that those who do present testimony employ chiefly two classes — "fossils" 

 and lithology. It is believed by the author that neither of these has been 

 successful in establishing a probability of the Cambrian age of the 

 Meguma, and that whatever evidence it is possible to adduce from other 

 sources than tliese two indicates a probable pre-Cambrian age. 



Evidence 

 qraphite 



Both the formations composing the series contain small amounts of 

 graphitic material. It is rarely in distinct layers or concentrated suffi- 

 ciently to have any definite shape, but is diffused in minute grains and 

 scales. In many of the mining districts the Goldenville formation con- 

 tains it in the darker slates. Waverley, especially parts of East Waverley, 

 and Salmon river near the contact with the Devonian are examples. 



In the Halifax black slate formation above, the graphite is so widely 

 distributed that no place can well be singled out. In the southeastern 

 part of the Cariliou gold district, Halifax county, close to the contact be- 



