1878.] 345 [Kathbun. 



and sketches, with which it is illustrated, were drawn by Prof. Hartt 

 himself. The greater part of them represent regions never before 

 depicted. The subjects discussed, mostly from personal observations, 

 are the following : The provinces of Rio de Janeiro and Espirito 

 Santo ; the Mucury and Jequitinhonha basins in Minas Gerses ; the 

 Abrolhos Islands and Reefs ; the Southern coast of Bahia, and the 

 vicinity of the city of Bahia and the Bahia Railroad ; the provinces 

 of Sergipe and Alagoas ; the basin of the Rio Sao Francisco below 

 the Falls ; and the vicinity of Pernambuco. His description of the 

 interior of the province of Bahia, and the upper Sao Francisco basin, 

 are made up largely from the notes of Messrs. St. John, Allen, and 

 Ward of the Thayer Expedition. The volume closes with a valuable 

 appendix on the Botocudo Indians. 



From a review of his book, we find that the following geological 

 formations were known, or supposed, to be present in Brazil at the 

 time of its publication : — 



Eozoic. The gneisses, etc., of the plateau of Brazil, including the 

 Serra do Mar, and the plateaus of Guyana and the Chiquitos 

 region were, at least for the most part, referred to this age. 



Silurian. It was suggested by Hartt that the clay and talcose 

 schists, itacolumites, etc., of the gold regions of Minas Geraes are prob- 

 ably referable to the Silurian. They closely resemble similar forma- 

 tions in Nova Scotia. No Silurian fossils were found. 



Devonian. Unknown. 



Carboniferous, including the beds of coal, with accompanying 

 deposits, containing remains of plants, in Rio Grande do Sul. Prof. 

 Agassiz, in " A Journey in Brazil," has referred to the finding of 

 Palaeozoic fossils by Major Coutinho on the Lower Tapajos, but it 

 remained for Hartt to afterwards determine their Carboniferous age. 



Triassic (?). A thick series of red sandstones, underlying the 

 Cretaceous over a large part of Sergipe. No fossils were found. 



Cretaceous. Existing through most of the northern coast prov- 

 inces, and forming separated basins, partly of marine, partly of fresh- 

 water, origin. Fossils had been collected at a few localities. The 

 Cretaceous had also been found on the Rio Purus. 



Tertiary. The clays and ferruginous sandstones of the coast, and 

 of many of the river basins and plateaus, were referred to the Tertiary, 

 although there were no palaeontological evidences as to their age. 



Drift. Prof. Agassiz's ideas of the distribution of drift were 

 mostly accepted, and Hartt adds his own personal observations made 

 in the vicinity of Rio, Bahia, etc. 



