Branner — Geology of the Hawaiian Islands. 307 



Calcareous beds like those mentioned by Dr. Dall are exposed 

 along tlie road leading from Waikiki beach past the lighthouse, 

 and these beds appear to be horizontal. This appearance of 

 horizon tality, however, is deceptive and is due to the direction 

 of the sections cut along the road. The beds are mostly calcar- 

 eous sands dipping seaward an angle of from thirty to thirty- 

 two degrees. (The highest angle of dry sand is thirty-iive 

 degrees.) The accompanying photograph shows the bedding 

 fairly well. These beds are about fifteen feet thick at this 

 place, and it is my opinion that they are old sand dunes that 

 were blown up from the beach against the eastern flank of 

 Diam.ond Head after the crater ceased to be active. In any 

 case, these sands rest directly npon the Diamond Head tuffs, 

 and are overlain by an old soil containing fossil plants, and by 

 talus derived from the breaking up of the tuffs of the upper 

 part of Diamond Head. The beach was farther north when 

 these sands were blown np than it is now, for the waves have 

 long been cutting away and encroaching npon the land. 



The talus along this same road and near the lighthouse at 

 the base of Diamond Head deserves a word. This talus for the 

 most part has the same dip as the tuffs beneath them, but here 

 and there they are horizontal for a short distance. Nearly all 

 of them, however, appear to be horizontal owing to an angle at 

 which they are cut by the road. This appearance of horizon- 

 tality, therefore, is deceptive. The talus deposits are probably 

 as much as thirty feet thick at and near the quarry south of the 

 lighthouse. It is evident, however, that if they were really 

 horizontal, as they were regarded by Dr. Dall, they would 

 have a much greater thickness than they really have. The 

 talus beds contain scattered throughout them a great many 

 fossil shells. These shells are sometimes found in old soil layers, 

 but they are found in almost every part of the materials, even 

 among the loose, open angular rock fragments. These fossils are 

 land shells. Whether they are living forms I did not ascertain. 

 The aniuials have died, have fallen on the surface, and have 

 eventually been buried by talus sliding down the steep slopes 

 of Diamond Head. It is to these that Dw Dall seems to refer 

 when he says the tuffs, i. e. the talus beds, overlie the calcareous 

 rock. 



Since the above was written I have seen an article published 

 (American Geologist, Jan., 1901) by Mr. S. E. Bishop of 

 Honolulu in which he also disagrees with Dr. Dall in regard 

 to the origin of the calcareous sand. Pie says that it is 

 aeolian, and he accounts for the shells in the same way as the 

 writer. I do not agree with either Mr. Dall or Mr. Bishop 

 about the tuffs of Diamond Head having been deposited in 

 shallow water. I think they are all land deposits ; at least I 



