﻿ROCKS 
  OF 
  THE 
  LEICESTERSHIRE 
  COAL-EIELD. 
  31 
  

  

  and 
  Elmesthorpe 
  Gorse 
  the 
  older 
  Palaeozoic 
  rocks 
  rise 
  to 
  the 
  north- 
  

   east 
  from 
  under 
  their 
  covering 
  of 
  Coal-measures, 
  and 
  that 
  the 
  dip 
  

   of 
  the 
  rocks 
  at 
  this 
  point 
  must 
  be 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  general 
  direction 
  as 
  

   it 
  is 
  in 
  the 
  Nuneaton 
  district, 
  eight 
  miles 
  further 
  west 
  *. 
  

  

  Market 
  Bosworth 
  Borings. 
  — 
  In 
  the 
  years 
  1880-1882 
  three 
  borings 
  

   were 
  made 
  in 
  search 
  of 
  coal 
  on 
  the 
  estate 
  of 
  Sir 
  Beaumont 
  Dixie, 
  

   near 
  Market 
  Bosworth, 
  but 
  hitherto 
  no 
  information 
  about 
  these 
  has 
  

   been 
  available, 
  except 
  the 
  statement 
  that 
  in 
  one 
  of 
  them 
  Cambrian 
  

   or 
  Lower 
  Silurian 
  rocks 
  were 
  entered 
  at 
  400 
  feet 
  (Strahan, 
  Geol. 
  

   Mag. 
  1886, 
  p. 
  556). 
  

  

  Through 
  the 
  courtesy 
  of 
  Mr. 
  J. 
  S. 
  Rolleston, 
  of 
  Leicester, 
  who 
  is 
  

   in 
  possession 
  of 
  the 
  cores 
  from 
  these 
  borings, 
  I 
  have 
  recently 
  had 
  

   an 
  opportunity 
  of 
  examining 
  them, 
  and 
  of 
  obtaining 
  information 
  

   having 
  an 
  important 
  bearing 
  on 
  the 
  present 
  inquiry. 
  

  

  The 
  exact 
  position 
  of 
  the 
  borings 
  is 
  as 
  follows 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  No. 
  1. 
  At 
  Cowpasture, 
  f 
  mile 
  N.E. 
  of 
  Market 
  Bosworth. 
  

  

  No. 
  2. 
  At 
  Bosworth 
  "Wharf, 
  f 
  mile 
  W. 
  of 
  Market 
  Bosworth. 
  

  

  No. 
  3. 
  At 
  Kingshill 
  Spinney, 
  2 
  miles 
  S.W. 
  of 
  the 
  town. 
  

  

  (1) 
  The 
  Cowpasture 
  Boring. 
  — 
  The 
  total 
  depth 
  reached 
  was 
  

   545 
  feet. 
  Down 
  to 
  380 
  feet 
  it 
  is 
  in 
  New 
  Eed 
  Marls 
  and 
  Sand- 
  

   stones. 
  Below 
  this 
  there 
  are 
  53 
  feet 
  of 
  a 
  breccia, 
  consisting 
  of 
  very 
  

   angular 
  fragments 
  of 
  rock 
  in 
  a 
  red 
  marly 
  matrix, 
  and 
  exactly 
  similar 
  

   in 
  appearance 
  to 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  Permian 
  breccias 
  of 
  the 
  Leicestershire 
  

   Coal-field. 
  This 
  Permian 
  breccia 
  rests 
  directly 
  on 
  dark-coloured 
  

   StocJcingford 
  Shales, 
  exactly 
  similar 
  to 
  the 
  shales 
  of 
  the 
  Sapcote 
  and 
  

   Spinney-Hill 
  borings. 
  In 
  all 
  112 
  feet 
  of 
  these 
  shales 
  were 
  pierced 
  

   when 
  the 
  boring 
  was 
  abandoned. 
  At 
  500 
  feet 
  a 
  bed 
  of 
  igneous 
  

   rock 
  was 
  passed 
  through. 
  

  

  (2) 
  Boring 
  at 
  Bosworth 
  Wharf. 
  — 
  Total 
  depth 
  of 
  boring 
  1364 
  feet. 
  

   The 
  Trias 
  here 
  was 
  744 
  feet 
  thick, 
  and 
  at 
  its 
  base 
  was 
  a 
  breccia 
  

   10 
  feet 
  in 
  thickness. 
  This 
  I 
  should 
  judge, 
  from 
  its 
  appearance, 
  

   belongs 
  to 
  the 
  Trias 
  rather 
  than 
  to 
  the 
  Permian. 
  The 
  breccia 
  rests 
  

   on 
  an 
  igneous 
  rock, 
  traversed 
  by 
  tine 
  joints 
  filled 
  with 
  infiltered 
  

   dolomite. 
  Below 
  this 
  are 
  the 
  Stockingford 
  Shales, 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  type 
  

   as 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Sapcote 
  and 
  Spinney-Hill 
  borings. 
  In 
  the 
  upper 
  

   part 
  the 
  beds 
  are 
  variegated 
  with 
  red, 
  and 
  throughout 
  show 
  a 
  high 
  

   angle 
  of 
  dip 
  with 
  considerable 
  contortion 
  and, 
  occasionally, 
  slicken- 
  

   siding. 
  At 
  1251 
  feet 
  from 
  the 
  surface 
  a 
  second 
  bed 
  of 
  igneous 
  rock 
  

   was 
  penetrated, 
  57 
  feet 
  in 
  thickness, 
  and 
  from 
  this 
  down 
  to 
  1330 
  

   feet 
  occurred 
  bluish-black 
  Stockingford 
  Shales, 
  which 
  apparently 
  

   overlie 
  a 
  highly 
  consolidated 
  reddish 
  breccia, 
  made 
  up 
  principally 
  

   of 
  fragments 
  of 
  slate 
  and 
  igneous 
  rock, 
  imbedded 
  in 
  a 
  hard 
  calca- 
  

  

  * 
  It 
  is 
  a 
  noteworthy 
  fact 
  that 
  at 
  Barrow 
  Hill, 
  only 
  f 
  mile 
  N.N.E. 
  of 
  this 
  

   outcrop 
  at 
  Elmesthorpe, 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  small 
  boss 
  of 
  igneous 
  rock, 
  marked 
  on 
  the 
  

   Survey 
  map 
  as 
  " 
  greenstone." 
  This 
  has 
  been 
  described 
  by 
  Hill 
  and 
  Bonney 
  

   (Quart. 
  Journ. 
  Geol. 
  Soc. 
  vol. 
  xxxiv. 
  1878, 
  p. 
  230) 
  as 
  resembling 
  somewhat 
  in 
  

   appearance 
  the 
  Warwickshire 
  diorites. 
  It 
  is 
  highly 
  probable 
  that 
  further 
  

   investigation 
  will 
  prove 
  the 
  Barrow 
  Hill 
  rock 
  to 
  be 
  really 
  intrusive 
  in 
  the 
  

   Stockingford 
  Shales, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  possible 
  that 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  bosses 
  of 
  igneous 
  rock 
  

   of 
  Sapcote, 
  Croft, 
  and 
  Enderby 
  may 
  also 
  be 
  intrusions 
  in 
  the 
  Shales 
  or 
  their 
  

   associated 
  rocks. 
  

  

  