﻿582 
  MB. 
  G. 
  W. 
  LAilPLTGH 
  ON 
  THE 
  

  

  These 
  divisions 
  I 
  will 
  now 
  proceed 
  to 
  describe, 
  commencing 
  with 
  

   the 
  lowest. 
  

  

  F. 
  Upper 
  Kimeridge. 
  

  

  The 
  lowest 
  beds 
  I 
  have 
  myself 
  seen 
  at 
  Speeton. 
  whether 
  in 
  the 
  

   cliff 
  or 
  on 
  the 
  shore, 
  are 
  hard 
  dark 
  bituminous 
  shales, 
  finely 
  

   laminated. 
  These 
  are 
  best 
  seen 
  off 
  Middle 
  Cliff 
  when 
  the 
  shore 
  

   is 
  uncovered, 
  cropping 
  out 
  for 
  over 
  150 
  yards 
  in 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  sharp 
  

   folds 
  (see 
  fig. 
  1). 
  They 
  may 
  also 
  often 
  be 
  studied 
  in 
  a 
  low 
  section 
  

   at 
  the 
  foot 
  of 
  Xew 
  Closes 
  Cliff. 
  

  

  Southward 
  they 
  may, 
  under 
  favourable 
  circumstances, 
  be 
  followed, 
  

   underlying 
  the 
  higher 
  clays, 
  across 
  the 
  beach 
  off 
  Black 
  Cliff, 
  nearly 
  

   as 
  far 
  as 
  Speeton 
  Gap, 
  though 
  for 
  the 
  greater 
  part 
  of 
  this 
  distance 
  

   only 
  the 
  topmost 
  beds 
  are 
  seen 
  above 
  low-water 
  mark. 
  

  

  Xorthward 
  from 
  Speeton 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  these 
  bituminous 
  shales 
  in 
  

   several 
  places 
  on 
  the 
  shore, 
  especially 
  off 
  the 
  neighbourhood 
  of 
  

   the 
  village 
  of 
  Eeighton. 
  

  

  These 
  shales 
  are 
  nearly 
  everywhere 
  very 
  fossiliferous, 
  but 
  the 
  

   fossils 
  are 
  crushed 
  between 
  the 
  laminae 
  in 
  such 
  a 
  manner 
  as 
  to 
  ren- 
  

   der 
  their 
  specific 
  determination 
  difficult. 
  Ammonites 
  in 
  this 
  con- 
  

   dition 
  are 
  very 
  abundant, 
  and 
  there 
  are 
  also 
  many 
  small 
  bivalves. 
  

   Belemnites 
  are 
  very 
  rare, 
  the 
  shales 
  in 
  this 
  respect 
  being 
  in 
  marked 
  

   contrast 
  with 
  the 
  overlying 
  clays. 
  The 
  few 
  specimens 
  of 
  Belem- 
  

   nites 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  found, 
  however, 
  have 
  all 
  been 
  in 
  good 
  condition 
  

   and 
  fine 
  examples 
  of 
  their 
  kind. 
  

  

  They 
  are 
  all 
  closely 
  allied 
  to 
  Bel. 
  Owenii, 
  Pratt, 
  and 
  have 
  been 
  

   determined 
  as 
  varieties 
  of 
  that 
  species, 
  thus 
  supporting 
  the 
  expressed 
  

   opinion 
  of 
  Phillips, 
  Judd, 
  and 
  others, 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  Jurassic 
  age 
  of 
  

   this 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  section 
  *. 
  

  

  The 
  folding 
  and 
  consequent 
  repetition 
  of 
  these 
  shales 
  makes 
  it 
  

   a 
  difficult 
  matter 
  to 
  measure 
  them 
  on 
  the 
  beach, 
  and 
  the 
  section 
  

   given 
  in 
  fig. 
  3 
  (facing 
  p. 
  618) 
  is 
  the 
  only 
  one 
  I 
  have 
  obtained. 
  

   Though 
  incomplete, 
  it 
  will 
  serve 
  to 
  show 
  the 
  character 
  of 
  the 
  strata. 
  

  

  The 
  nodules, 
  which 
  occur 
  in 
  bands 
  in 
  these 
  shales, 
  differ 
  in 
  many 
  

   ways 
  from 
  those 
  in 
  the 
  Xeocomian 
  beds. 
  They 
  are 
  of 
  large 
  size, 
  

   being 
  in 
  some 
  bands 
  from 
  two 
  to 
  ten 
  feet 
  in 
  diameter, 
  and 
  discoidal 
  in 
  

   shape, 
  and 
  they 
  are 
  composed 
  of 
  a 
  palish 
  blue 
  limestone 
  with 
  strongly 
  

   marked 
  septa 
  of 
  yellow 
  calcareous 
  crystals. 
  They 
  seem 
  to 
  have 
  

   been 
  formed 
  subsequently 
  to 
  the 
  compression 
  of 
  the 
  shales, 
  as 
  I 
  have 
  

   noticed 
  cases 
  in 
  which 
  a 
  film 
  of 
  crushed 
  Ammonites 
  ran 
  through 
  

   these 
  concretions, 
  just 
  as 
  through 
  the 
  surrounding 
  shale. 
  

  

  As 
  will 
  be 
  seen 
  from 
  the 
  fauna 
  as 
  given 
  below, 
  there 
  can 
  be 
  no 
  

   doubt 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  age 
  of 
  these 
  beds, 
  which 
  thus 
  give 
  us 
  a 
  base 
  to 
  

   work 
  from. 
  They 
  represent 
  the 
  ' 
  Upper 
  Kimeridge 
  ' 
  of 
  English 
  

   geologists 
  (see 
  note 
  at 
  conclusion 
  of 
  this 
  paper, 
  p. 
  608). 
  

  

  The 
  following 
  species 
  have 
  been 
  determined 
  in 
  my 
  collection 
  from 
  

   these 
  shales 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  * 
  See 
  Appendix, 
  p. 
  610. 
  

  

  