GEOLOGICAL FORMATIONS. 



6l 



with the stratification of the earth's crust follow each other 

 in regular sequence, and that in this sequence they differ 

 from the present creation, as they do from each other. 



We must make ourselves acquainted with the order of 

 succession of these strata. They are the shelves in 

 which the vegetable and animal remains lie stored. To 

 arrange them was certainly possible only by taking the 

 organisms which they contained as guides or clues. We, 

 however, shall take this arrangement as our data, and, 

 with the object we have in view, we shall naturally con- 

 sider only those strata and rocks in which fossils — using 

 this word in its widest interpretation — are or might be 

 contained, those, namely, which are proved to be sedi- 

 mentary, i. e. aqueous deposits. Our information is lim- 

 ited to a great part of Europe, numerous districts of 

 America, and scattered points of the rest of the world. 



The following table gives the arrangement of the sedi- 

 mentary strata from above downwards: — 



of English 



Series. 

 See p. 307 of 

 Page's Ad- 

 vanced Text 

 Book. 



Gault. 



Neocoman (Wealden). 

 Jurassic formation or Oolite. 

 Upper White Jura (Malm). 



