Yol.  49.]  METAMORPHIC  ROCKS  AROUND  THE  SHAP  GRANITE.  365 
augite  with  the  usual  crystallographic  relation.  The  appearances 
are  very  similar  to  those  in  a  common  kind  of  ‘  uralitization/butit  is 
almost  certain  that  we  are  dealing  here  with  an  original  parallel 
intergrowth.  The  amphibole-mineral  often  projects  in  a  fringe  into 
a  contiguous  crystal  of  epidote  or  calcite,  and  apparently  isolated 
needles,  with  the  same  orientation,  lie  embedded  in  the  latter 
mineral.  (See  PL  XVII.  figs.  2  and  4.) 
III.  The  Silurian  Beds  of  Wasdale  Beck. 
Leaving  the  basic  lavas,  we  pass  on  to  some  other  points.  In  our 
former  paper  we  stated  that  the  oldest  members  of  the  Silurian 
were  not  visible  in  the  Shap  district.  Since  that  statement  was 
written  we  received  from  Prof.  H.  A.  Nicholson  a  specimen  which 
induced  us  to  re-examine  the  Wasdale  Beck  section. 
Prof.  Nicholson’s  specimen  is  a  black  mudstone,  somewhat 
hardened,  and  generally  resembling  the  Hags  of  Wasdale  Beck, 
but  blacker  and  less  splintery  than  those  above  the  junction  of 
that  beck  with  Blea  Beck,  whence  its  finder  believes  it  was  derived, 
though,  as  it  has  been  in  his  possession  for  some  years,  he  is  not 
certain  that  it  was  obtained  in  situ .  It  shows  every  sign  of  having 
been  altered  to  the  same  extent  as  the  supposed  Coniston  Plags  of 
that  locality,  and  indicates  the  existence  of  the  convolutus- zone  of 
the  Skelgill  Beds  in  the  Shap  district,  for  it  contains  Monograptus 
communis ,  Lapw.,  M.  convolutus,  His.,  M.  gregarius,  Lapw.,  M. 
Hisingeri ,  Carr.,  and  Uastrites  liybriclus ,  Lapw.  Our  re-exami¬ 
nation  led  us  to  believe  that  the  fiaggy  beds  near  the  junction  of 
the  streams  have  been  correctly  referred  to  the  Coniston  Plags,  but 
that  Stockdale  Shales  may  occur  higher  up  the  beck.  The  matter  is 
not  one  of  importance  as  affecting  our  studies  of  the  metamorphic 
rocks,  for  the  shales  of  the  Stockdale  series  could  no  doubt  be 
altered  in  much  the  same  way  as  those  of  the  Coniston  Plags,  but 
it  is  of  interest  to  note  the  probable  occurrence  of  Stockdale  Shales 
in  Wasdale  Beck,  where  Prof.  Nicholson  long  ago  recorded  their 
existence. 
Our  re-examination  of  the  section  in  Wasdale  Beck  led  to  the 
discovery  of  discontinuous  calcareous  bands  in  highly  argillaceous 
rocks,  cropping  out  of  rushy  ground  \  mile  S.W.  of  Shap  Wells. 
The  calcareous  bands  yielded  an  obscure  brachiopod,  and  from  the 
general  appearance  of  the  rock  we  believe  that  we  have  here  either 
an  exposure  of  the  glctber- zone  of  the  Skelgill  Beds  or  else  of  a 
portion  of  the  Ashgill  Shales,  but  more  probably  the  former.  These 
calcareous  bands  will  be  referred  to  again. 
Some  features  in  the  metamorphism  of  the  Silurians  of  Wasdale 
Beck,  which  had  escaped  our  notice,  have  been  pointed  out  by 
Mr.  Hutchings.1  He  describes  garnets  as  occurring  in  great  numbers 
in  some  of  the  slates,  at  about  the  same  stage  as  the  development 
of  decided  4  spots.’  As  the  crystals  do  not  exceed  inch  in 
diameter,  the  precise  variety  would  not  be  easy  to  determine,  but  we 
1  Geol.  Mag.  for  1891,  p.  459. 
