814 



SIK J. W. DAWSON ON THE EOZOIC AIS^D PALEOZOIC 



stone is perhaps the richest of all the palaeozoic limestones in fossil 

 corals, and indicates a long continuance of truly marine conditions. 

 These beds abound in fossil plants and, locally, in remains of fishes, 

 and both the fishes and the plants are generically similar to those of 

 Britain, and divisible into two series, representing the lower and 

 the upper members respectively. The beds do not appear, however, 

 to be lake- deposits but, rather, estuarine and littoral. They have 

 been fully described in the papers referred to below *. 



In the Bale de Chaleur, for example, the lowest series is charac- 

 terized by Psilopliyton and Nematophijton, and by fishes of the genera 

 Cephalaspis, Coccosteus, Ctenacaathus, and Homacantliusf . The 

 upper division is characterized by ferns of the genera Archceopteris 

 and Platypliyllum^ and by fishes of the genera Ptericlitliys, Dipla- 

 canthus, PhaneropJeuron, GrlyptoleiDis, Gheirole-pis, and a new genus 

 named by Whiteaves EusthenopteronX. 



The only truly marine portion of the system in the Maritime 

 Province is the lower part, corresponding to the Oriskany of the 

 interior, and this may perhaps be regarded as an equivalent of the 

 Downton Sandstones of England. 



The greatest granitic intrusions of Nova Scotia belong to the close 

 of the Devonian, as do many granitic masses in jSFew Brunswick and 

 Quebec. These are the equivalents of the Devonian and Cornish 

 granites, though perhaps a little earlier in date, and are also repre- 

 sented by the felsites of the Scottish Devonian. 



The remarkably rich flora of the Erian of the east of Canada was 

 first made known in the Journal of this Society, and still holds its 

 position as probably the most copious known in this age, though I 

 have been obliged to withdraw two of its species, Selaginites formosus 

 and Equisetites Wriglitianus, as probably Crustacean, and the genus 

 Dictyopliyton as certainly belongiDg to sponges and not vegetable §. 



YII. The Caebontfeeous System, &c. 



The Carboniferous formations of Xova Scotia have been described 

 by the writer in a number of papers in the Journal of this Society!!. 

 Like the Carboniferous of Britain, these rocks present many local 

 diversities. Their subdivisions are : — 



1. A lower series corresponding to the Tuedian of the IN^orth of 

 England and Calciferous of Scotland both in mineral character and 

 fossils (the Norton Series of my later papers) ^. 



2. A Carboniferous Limestone, associated, however, with gypsum, 

 and marly and red sandstones, but having fossil remains for the most 



* Quart, Journ. Geol. See. vols. xv. and xviii. 



t Dawson's Report on Erian Plants. Whiteaves, Trans. Roy. See. Can. 

 vol. iv. " On Devonian Fishes." 



t aid. 



§ Quart. Journ. Geol. See. vols, xv., xviii., xxvii., xxix., xxxvi., xxxviii. The 

 Devonian Flora of Scotland and that of Belgium, as described by Crespin, and 

 exhibited in the Brussels Museum, are closely alhed to that of Eastern Canada. 



II Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc. vols, i., ii., v., ix., x., xi., xv., xix., xxii., xxix., 



XXX 



% Acadian Geology, 3rd edition. 



