OK GLACIAL CONDITIONS IN THE PALAEOZOIC ERA, ETC. 249 



19. On ADDITIONAL EVIDENCE of the OcCUREENCE of GlACIAL CONDITIONS 



in the Paleozoic Era, and on the Geological Age of the Beds 

 containing Plants of Mesozoic type in India and Australia. 

 By W. T. Blanford, Esq., LL.D., E.E.S., Sec. G.S. (Read 

 March 24, 1886.) 



The two subjects mentioned in the title of this paper are accidentally- 

 connected, the evidence of contemporaneous origin in certain Indian 

 and Australian beds that contain plants of Mesozoic types being 

 strongly supported by peculiar physical characters believed to be due 

 to the action of ice. The last number of the ' Records of the 

 Geological Survey of India/ contains several contributions to the 

 history of the question, and these appear to me to form an addition 

 to our knowledge of general stratigraphical geology of importance 

 sufficient to justify my calling the attention of the Society to them. 

 The subject is one to which I have given much attention in past 

 years, and which I have discussed at various times, and this will, I 

 trust, serve to excuse my writing upon it, although I have no new 

 observations of my own to produce. 



The principal papers to which I wish to call attention are, first, 

 one by Mr. Richard Oldham entitled " Memorandum on the Corre- 

 lation of the Indian and Australian Coal-bearing Beds," chiefly 

 giving the results of a ^isit to Australia by a geologist who had had 

 the advantage of seeing some of the Indian Gondwana beds ; and, 

 secondly, one by Dr. W. Waagen, with the title of *' Note on some 

 Palaeozoic Fossils recently collected by Dr. H. Warth in the Olive 

 Group of the Salt Range." A paper by Mr. Griesbach on rocks near 

 Herat, and a recent observation of Mr. R. Oldham's in Northern 

 Rajputana, furnish some additional facts of value. 



Before proceeding to notice the new data contained in these papers, 

 it will be useful to point out as briefly as possible the previous 

 state of our knowledge. As is well known, three great groups of 

 beds, chiefly of freshwater origin, in three countries bordering on 

 the Indian Ocean — namely, the Karoo formation of South Africa, the 

 Gondwana system of the Indian peninsula, and the Coal-measures 

 and associated beds of Australia — present remarkable points of 

 resemblance in mineral character, fossil contents, and the rarity or 

 absence of bands containing marine fossils. Roughly, these various 

 great groups are thus classed, minor subdivisions being omitted : — 



South Africa. India, Australia. 



Stormberg. ^ ^Pl^?' | Sa^Maleif^''^^'''' I ^^f ^' plant-beds of 



^ Gondwana. | Raj,^ai,ai. J Queensland, &c. 



Beaufort. Panchet. Wianamata. 



Hawkesbury (glacial). 

 Konap. Damuda. Newcastle, 



Karharbari. Upper marine beds 



(glacial). 

 Ecca (glacial), Talchir (glacial). Stony- Creek beds. 



Lower Marine beds 

 (glacial). 



