164 Proceedings of the Royal Physical Society. 



stances generally so indestructible would surely have left some 

 fragment of themselves, more or less, which they have not done. 

 Most of the markings are formed chiefly of micaceous laminae, 

 like the rest of the rock, and in the two or three instances 

 where the presence of a foreign body can be detected, it seems 

 to be of a concretionary nature. Mr Robert Loudon Irvine, 

 of Hurlet Chemical Works, who kindly consented to analyse 

 one of these foreign bodies sufficiently to determine its chief 

 ingredients, thus reports on it. " It consists mainly of car- 

 bonate of lime, with iron existing mostly in the state of pro- 

 toxide and alumina. There are neither sulphates nor sul- 

 phurets present. The black colour is probably due to the 

 presence of carbonate of protoxide of iron." Sir Roderick 

 Murchison and the Rev. Mr Mitchell of Craig have, indepen- 

 dently of each other, pointed out a remote resemblance in the 

 impressions to what is in Forfarshire called " the Kelpie's 

 foot;" but neither of those gentlemen regards the pheno- 

 mena as identical. At the suggestion of Sir Roderick, the 

 matter has been referred to Professor Phillips of Oxford, who 

 has had much experience of obscure markings like the present. 

 He has already received specimens of the impressions; and 

 it is probable that one of the larger pieces of the slab will 

 have to go to England for thorough examination there. 



II. Notice of Various Ornithic Fossil Bones from New Zealand. 

 By James M'Bain, M.D., R.N. 



The bones which I have now the pleasure of exhibiting to 

 the Royal Physical Society were found in a limestone cave in 

 the northern island of New Zealand, and were given to me for 

 examination by Mr D. F. Paterson, of Kerr Street, near Stock- 

 bridge, in this city. In a letter received from Mr Paterson, 

 he states, that " the large bones were sent home by Dr A. S. 

 Thomson, of the 58th regiment, to his father, James Thom- 

 son, Esq. of Glendowan, as rare bones. The skull was unknown 

 to Dr Thomson, and differed from all the Moa's skulls that he 

 had seen ; at the same time, he thinks it belongs to the genus 

 Dinornis. The bones of the little bird, found along with the 

 others, were altogether unknown. The cave in which the bones 

 were found is on the western side of the North Island, near 



