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V. — On the Fossil Flora of the Staffordshire Coal Fields. By R. Kidston, 



LL.D., F.R.S. 



(Read November 17, 1913. MS. received November 24, 1913. Issued separately March 12, 1914.) 



[Plates V.-XVL] 



PART III. 



THE FOSSIL FLORA OF THE WESTPHAL1AN SERIES OF THE 

 SOUTH STAFFORDSHIRE COAL FIELD. 



Introduction. 



The first of this series of papers, that on the "Fossil Plants collected during the 

 sinking of the shaft of the Hamstead Colliery, Great Barr, near Birmingham," was 

 published in 1888,* and the second, dealing with the "Fossil Flora of the Coal Field 

 of the Potteries," in 1891.t 



Since that date the North Staffordshire Coal Field has been re-surveyed by members 

 of the Geological Survey ,} and the result of this re-examination of the geology of the 

 Potteries Coal Field was the classification of the strata into several well-defined 

 groups. These groups are given in the following table, and opposite them, in the 

 third column, the terms employed in my paper on the " Fossil Flora of the Potteries 

 Coal Field " :— 



Thickness. 



Potteries Coal Field. 



Earlier Divisions used in Paper 



on " Fossil Flora of the Coal 



Field of the Potteries." 



Over 700 feet. 

 300-350 „ 

 800-1100 „ 



300-450 „ 



Keele Group. 



Newcastle-under-Lyme Group. 

 Etruria Marl Group. 



Black Band Group. 

 Middle Coal Measures. 



Lower Coal Measures and 

 Millstone Grit. 



> Upper Coal Measures. 



i Middle Coal Measures (from 

 < Brassey Mine Ironstone to 

 ( Ash Coal). 



Lower Coal Measures (from 

 below Ash Coal to top of 

 Millstone Grit). 



Subsequent investigations of the fossil plants of the rocks which I there classified 

 as Upper Coal Measures showed me that they must be removed from that series — with 

 the exception of the Keele Group, which I think is best regarded as the base of the 



* Trans. Roy. Soc. Edin., vol. xxxv. p. 317. + Trans. Roy. Soc. Edin., vol. xxxvi. p. 63. 



I Memoirs of the Geological Survey, England and Wales : The Geology of the North Staffordshire Goal Fields, by 

 Walcot Gibson, B.Sc, F.G.S., with contributions by G. Barrow, F.G.S., and C. B. Wedd, B.A., F.G.S. And 

 a Palceontological Account, with list of Fossils, by John Ward, F.G.S. , 1905. 



TRANS. ROY. SOC. EDIN., VOL. L. PART I. (NO. 5). 10 



