A GEOLOGICAL HISTORY. 43 



occasionally rocks of the more primitive orders 

 such as spurs of the Highlands of the Hudson 

 River. I have always considered this as the old 

 red Sandstone, or an equivalent for it, but as ob- 

 jections are made to its being called the " old red 

 Sandstone" we will describe it. In the first place, 

 it is destitute of fossils, it is of many qualities of 

 coarseness, but is not known to have many grains 

 as large as a pigeon's egg. In colour it has all 

 the varieties of red, chocolate brown, buff, yellow, 

 gray and dirty white, and where altered, as if by 

 heat, it passes into jasper, with all the above 

 colours, to which may be added blue and violet. 

 Imbedded in it, are Nodulous, Crystalline, Carbo- 

 nate of Lime, inclosed in Micaceous oxide of Iron. 

 Micaceous oxide of Iron in geodes, Sulphuret of 

 Copper, &c. ; for other minerals see catalogue. It 

 is my opinion, that the impressions of fish said to 

 be found in this Sandstone, do not come from this 

 formation, but from one of the upper members of 



the Coal Measures* which lie above it, and are in 



A 



* Since writing the above, I have visited the Pompton fish locality, 

 and am more strengthened in my opinion, that the shales which hold these 

 fossil fish impressions belong to the Coal Measures. It is situated at one 

 of the extreme westerly points of the trap rocks, and there is all the 

 appearance of a fault, which should be the right place to find a dislocation 

 of this kind. The rocks in situ, lie as described before by Mr. Thompson. 



