THE ERIAN OR DEVONIAN FORESTS. 



105 



side of the bay, though we find there beds, probably on very nearly 

 the same horizon, holding Psilophyton in situ. 



As an illustration of one of the groups of shaly beds, and of the 

 occurrence of roots of Psilophyton, I may give the following sec- 

 tional list of beds seen near " Watering Brook," on the north shore 

 of the bay. The order is descending : 



FT. IN. 



1. Grey sandstones and reddish pebbly sandstone of great 



thickness 



2. Bright-red shale 8 0 



3. Grey shales with stems of Psilophyton, very abundant 



but badly preserved 0 5 



4. Grey incoherent clay, slickensided, and with many 



rhizomes and roots of Psilophyton .... 0 3 



5. Hard grey clay or shale, with fragments and roots of 



Psilophyton . 4 0 



6. Red shale , ' 8 0 



7. Grey an£ reddish crumbling sandstone 



Groups of beds similar to the above, but frequently much more 

 rich in fossils, occur in many parts of the section, and evidently in- 

 clude fossil soils of the nature of under-clays, on which little else 

 appears to have grown than a dense herbage of Psilophyton, along 

 with plants of the genus Arthrostigma. 



In addition to these shaly groups, there are numerous examples 

 of beds of shale of small thickness included in coarse sandstones, 

 and these beds often occur in detached fragments, as if the rem- 

 nants of more continuous layers partially removed by currents of 

 water. It is deserving of notice that nearly all these patches of 

 shale are interlaced with roots or stems of Psilophyton, which some- 

 times project beyond their limits into the sandstone, as if the vege- 

 table fibres had preserved the clay from removal. In short, these 

 lines of patches of shale seem to be remnants of soils on which 

 Psilophyton has flourished abundantly, and which have been par- 

 tially swept away by the currents which deposited the sand. Some 

 of the smaller patches may even be fragments of tough swamp soils 

 interwoven with roots, drifted by the agency of the waves or possibly 

 by ice ; such masses are often moved in this way on the borders of 

 modern swamps on the sea-coast. 



The only remaining point connected with local geology to which 

 I shall allude is the admirable facilities afforded by the Gaspe coast 

 both for ascertaining the true geological relations of the beds, and 

 for studying the Devonian plants, as distinctly exposed on large sur- 

 11 



