﻿174 
  T. 
  F. 
  JAMIESON 
  OK 
  THE 
  RED 
  CLAY 
  

  

  greater 
  amount 
  of 
  submergence 
  rather 
  than 
  a 
  less. 
  Had 
  they 
  been 
  

   estuary 
  clays 
  these 
  beds 
  should 
  have 
  contained 
  characteristic 
  estuary 
  

   shells, 
  such 
  as 
  Littorina 
  litorea 
  and 
  L. 
  rudis, 
  Cardium 
  edule, 
  Mytilus 
  

   edulis, 
  Scrobicularia, 
  &c, 
  all 
  of 
  which 
  are 
  wanting 
  ; 
  and 
  so 
  are 
  even 
  

   the 
  more 
  characteristic 
  shells 
  of 
  shallow-sea 
  water, 
  such 
  as 
  Tellina 
  

   balihica. 
  The 
  group 
  is 
  also 
  intensely 
  arctic, 
  more 
  so 
  in 
  fact 
  than 
  

   those 
  reported 
  from 
  any 
  other 
  part 
  of 
  Scotland, 
  and 
  is 
  just 
  such 
  

   a 
  lot 
  as 
  might 
  be 
  dredged 
  in 
  pretty 
  deep 
  water 
  on 
  the 
  coast 
  of 
  

   Spitzbergen 
  at 
  the 
  present 
  day. 
  This 
  intensely 
  arctic 
  character 
  was 
  

   particularly 
  remarked 
  by 
  Dr. 
  Torell, 
  and 
  affords 
  another 
  good 
  

   reason 
  why 
  the 
  submergence 
  should 
  not 
  be 
  attributed 
  to 
  a 
  period 
  so 
  

   late 
  as 
  that 
  to 
  which 
  Dr. 
  Geikie 
  refers 
  it. 
  

  

  I 
  am 
  of 
  opinion 
  therefore 
  that 
  the 
  shell-beds 
  of 
  the 
  red 
  clay 
  at 
  

   Errol 
  and 
  Montrose 
  belong 
  to 
  the 
  same 
  epoch 
  of 
  submergence 
  as 
  the 
  

   Red 
  Clay 
  of 
  the 
  Aberdeenshire 
  coast, 
  and 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  not 
  estuarine, 
  

   but 
  deep-water 
  beds 
  belonging 
  to 
  a 
  period 
  antecedent 
  to 
  the 
  last 
  

   great 
  advance 
  of 
  the 
  glaciers. 
  Although 
  no 
  bed 
  of 
  Boulder-clay 
  

   overlies 
  the 
  Errol 
  shell-bed, 
  yet 
  the 
  latter 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  mere 
  

   denuded 
  patch 
  ; 
  and 
  the 
  same 
  remark 
  will 
  apply 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  Montrose 
  

   and 
  of 
  Elie 
  in 
  Eife. 
  Had 
  these 
  clays 
  been 
  laid 
  down 
  in 
  estuaries 
  

   after 
  the 
  glaciers 
  finally 
  passed 
  away, 
  we 
  might 
  expect 
  to 
  find 
  them 
  

   more 
  widely 
  distributed 
  at 
  levels 
  beneath 
  90 
  feet, 
  whereas 
  they 
  

   appear 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  much 
  wasted, 
  and 
  occur 
  only 
  here 
  and 
  there 
  in 
  

   patches, 
  and 
  range 
  up 
  to 
  heights 
  above 
  90 
  feet. 
  

  

  I 
  mentioned 
  that 
  some 
  remains 
  of 
  starfishes 
  were 
  got 
  in 
  the 
  clay 
  

   of 
  Aberdeenshire 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  species 
  was 
  not 
  determined. 
  Probably 
  they 
  

   were 
  the 
  same 
  as 
  those 
  got 
  at 
  Montrose, 
  St. 
  Andrews, 
  and 
  Dunbar, 
  

   which 
  have 
  all 
  been 
  referred 
  to 
  Oj>hiolepis 
  gracilis 
  of 
  Allnian. 
  At 
  

   Montrose 
  they 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  confined 
  to 
  a 
  thin 
  seam 
  of 
  dark 
  micaceous 
  

   sand, 
  in 
  which 
  they 
  are 
  occasionally 
  pretty 
  numerous. 
  At 
  St. 
  

   Andrews 
  they 
  also 
  occur 
  in 
  a 
  thin 
  seam 
  of 
  sand 
  in 
  the 
  brick 
  

   clay 
  at 
  Seafield 
  (see 
  R. 
  Walker 
  in 
  the 
  * 
  Scottish 
  Naturalist 
  - 
  

   for 
  April 
  1875). 
  This 
  tbin 
  layer 
  of 
  sand 
  with 
  Opliiolepis 
  may 
  

   very 
  likely 
  mark 
  a 
  definite 
  horizon 
  in 
  the 
  clay 
  all 
  along 
  the 
  east 
  

   coast 
  from 
  Dunbar 
  to 
  Aberdeen. 
  Dr. 
  Howden 
  of 
  Montrose 
  says 
  

   that 
  when 
  first 
  exposed 
  this 
  micaceous 
  sand 
  had 
  a 
  strong 
  sulphurous 
  

   smell 
  as 
  of 
  putrid 
  animal 
  matter. 
  

  

  Although 
  a 
  few 
  skeletons 
  of 
  the 
  whale 
  have 
  occurred 
  in 
  "The 
  

   Carse 
  " 
  or 
  post-glacial 
  estuary 
  mud 
  of 
  the 
  Eorth, 
  I 
  am 
  not 
  aware 
  

   of 
  any 
  remains 
  of 
  this 
  animal 
  having 
  been 
  got 
  in 
  the 
  earlier 
  glacial 
  

   clays 
  of 
  Scotland 
  — 
  which 
  is 
  rather 
  curious, 
  seeing 
  that 
  bones 
  of 
  the 
  

   seal 
  have 
  been 
  met 
  with 
  in 
  several 
  cases. 
  

  

  The 
  features 
  of 
  the 
  Aberdeenshire 
  coast 
  which 
  I 
  have 
  described 
  

   in 
  the 
  foregoing 
  pages 
  seem 
  interesting 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  1st. 
  Erom 
  the 
  evidence 
  afforded 
  of 
  a 
  movement 
  of 
  ice 
  flowing 
  

   northward 
  along 
  the 
  coast. 
  

  

  2nd. 
  From 
  the 
  close 
  connexion 
  which 
  is 
  evinced 
  between 
  the 
  

   presence 
  of 
  the 
  ice 
  and 
  the 
  submergence 
  of 
  the 
  land. 
  

  

  3rd. 
  Erom 
  the 
  evidence 
  at 
  Aberdeen 
  which 
  shows 
  that 
  the 
  glaciers 
  

   had 
  again 
  advanced 
  to 
  the 
  coast 
  after 
  the 
  submergence 
  during 
  which 
  

   the 
  Red 
  Clay 
  was 
  laid 
  down. 
  

  

  