﻿322 . Scientific Intelligence. 



agreed in regarding Permian as a division of geological time or 

 as the name for a deposit holding a certain fauna. Professor 

 Newberry said he followed the latter definition, and Professor 

 Hicks the former, in agreement with which he had identified the 

 Nebraska deposits. Mr. Claypole referred to Heilprin's recent 

 identification of certain so-called Permian beds in the Wyoming 

 valley of Pennsylvania as true Upper coal measures, and Professor 

 H. S. Williams closed the discussion by noting that the beaks of 

 certain shells (Streptorhynchus) in the Nebraska collection were 

 not enough twisted to be considered Permian. Professor Hicks 

 then described diagrams of sections found in typical deep- well 

 sections, and exhibited a map of the salt-basins near Lincoln ; the 

 streams flowing from some of the basins are made strongly saline. 



Cambrian in New York. — Mr. C. D. Walcott briefly announced 

 the discovery of fossils showing the Cambrian age of the roofing- 

 slates of Granville, Washington Co., N. Y. 



Cretaceous Flora, Devonian and Carboniferous Fishes. — Pro- 

 fessor Newberry presented papers upon the U. S. Cretaceous 

 flora and Devonian and Carboniferous fishes. The angiosperm 

 plants of the Cretaceous were described as appearing suddenly 

 in great variety and advanced development, and displacing the 

 pre-existent flora ; many forms were even then closely like trees 

 still living, and certain flowers had been identified by Dr. Gray 

 as Composite, though the author could not yet fully accept so 

 surprising a determination. 



In describing the fossil fishes, the remarkable discoveries of 

 Hertzer and Terrell were recounted, and fine specimens and plates 

 exhibited. Collections from eastern New York gave promise of 

 a rich fauna in the Catskill formation, which was regarded as a 

 fresh-water lake-deposit, much like the old red sandstone of 

 Scotland in many features. The Pterichthys of this formation 

 was compared with existing Siluroid fishes from South America, 

 partly because of similar markings where the arm was joined to 

 the body. Professor Cope thought that too little was known of 

 these ancient forms to attempt to trace such relationships, and 

 thought that the correspondence in markings might be homo- 

 plastic, the result of development under similar conditions, and 

 not homogenetic, or inherited from a common stock. 



Recession of Niagara River. — In the Niagara discussion Mr. 

 Woodward gave the following numerical results : 



Points located. State Survey, 1842. Lake Survey, 1875. Geological Survey, 1886. 



Horseshoe fall, 12 16 30 



American fall, 18 15 24 



Twenty-three hundred feet is the length of the front of the 

 Horseshoe fall, to which the following numbers relate : 



Interval. Area worn away. Mean annual recession. 



1842-1875 4-25 acres. 2*44 feet. 



1842-1886 5-62 2'42 



1875-1886 1-37 2*38 



The fastest recession is at the center of the fall, where a pro- 



