448 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



forms. The facts set forth have raised several interesting ques- 

 tions, among them the problem as to how far a fauna gradually 

 or suddenly involved in such conditions as this deposit of metal- 

 lic sulfid indicates could survive and with what modifications 

 of form and structure life might be continued. We have found 

 that the pyrite embraces representatives of various groups of 

 animals, fishes, Crustacea, brachiopods, gastropods, cephalopods, 

 plants, etc., and all seem to have suffered in very much the same 

 way from their surroundings, that is to say, with rare excep- 

 tions all have a diminutive size which may express an atrophy 

 of function or an arrest of development. Some time ago I asked 

 Dr F. B. Loomis of the biologic department of Amherst college 

 to undertake the investigation of this problem. He has studied 

 the matter with much care with material from various outcrops 

 of the pyrite layer, has been enabled to free the organisms and 

 identify them, and by a series of experiments has drawn some 

 interesting conclusions as to the causes which have modified 

 them and the conditions which prevailed over the sea bottom 

 during the period of their life. Dr Loomis's results will be 

 given in a future report. 



Contributions to the geologic map of the state. In the compila- 

 tion of a geologic map of the state by the state geologist, I 

 have been pleased to place at his disposal all 1 the data in the 

 possession of this department which could in any way serve to 

 render more accurate the delineation of the formational contact 

 lines among the sedimentary rocks. These facts were those 

 accumulated for this purpose by the late Prof. Hall and partly 

 by myself under his supervision or independently. For the sake 

 of the accuracy of this official map, I have also undertaken the 

 determination by active field observations of some doubtful 

 points, all in the hope that this map may, so far as the sedi- 

 mentary rocks are concerned, express our best and most ac- 

 curate knowledge of their distribution and classification. 



Index to state publications on paleontology. The University has 

 undertaken the preparation of an index or series of indexes to 



