136 



PROF. T. E. JOISTES ON NUMMULITES ELEGANS 



In the 'Proceed. Geol. Assoc' vol. ii. (1872) p. 158, Mr. Caleb 

 Evans referred to this Nummulite, described by Sowerby and found 

 at " Emsworth Common," as possibly indicating the presence of the 

 " Bracklesham Series w at that place, about 3 miles to the east of 

 Portsdown Hill. 



Mr. Clement Reid, E.G.S., who is also well acquainted with the 

 country near Chichester and Havant, writes me (Oct. 23, 1886), in 

 reply to inquiries : — " I have referred to all the maps, but cannot 

 make out how any Nummulite rock can occur in situ at Emsworth. 

 It may, however, be possible that Sowerby is right ; for having 

 worked within two miles of Emsworth, I find that as the Chichester 

 synclinal is a good deal sharper than on our old Geological Survey 

 map, Bracklesham beds may occur near Emsworth. There is another 

 possible explanation, namely, that Sowerby's specimen was from an 

 erratic block. There are several blocks of Bognor Rock scattered 

 over the country." 



Mr. Keeping, in a letter dated November 25, 1886, says — " The 

 strata at Emsworth are London Clay and Woolwich beds ; so we may 

 be certain that the occurrence of the Nummulite is a mistake." 



In the British Museum, the late Mr. E. E. Edwards's collection 

 contains several loose specimens of both JS r . PrestwicManus and 

 N. variolarius, labelled as having come from " Emsworth ; " but this 

 is exceedingly doubtful, for they and the small Mollusks and other 

 fossils with some of them have every appearance of specimens from 

 Barton and High cliff. 



1837. H.Galeotti, inhis "Memoire surla constitution geognostique 

 de la Province de Brabant" (Mem. couron. Acad. B. Belg. vol. xii. 

 1837, p. 141), quotes " Nummulina elegans, nobis et Sowerby, Min. 

 Conch, pi. 538. fig. 2," as occurring at Eorets, Jette, and Laeken, in 

 Belgium, and at Barton ! 



1846. In Prof. Prestwich's memoir " On the Tertiary Eormations 

 of the Isle of Wight," in the Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc. vol. ii. at page 

 254, bed no. 16 at Whitecliff Bay is said to contain " Nummiditcs 

 elegans " (the Bev. 0. Eisher regards this as probably being N. vario- 

 larius, Q. J. G. S. vol. xviii. p. 70 ; and it is near the position of 

 Mr. Keeping's Prestivic7iianus-hed, see p. 145) ; beds nos. 14—12 

 to contain JSf. Icevigatus ; and bed no. 11 to contain iV. elegans and 

 scaler (referable to N. variolarius and JV. Icevigatus). At page 257 

 the bed " no. 29" at Alum Bay is said to have N. loevigatus and 

 N. elegans. Here the latter agrees with Sowerby's determination 

 (see above) ; whilst the former species may occur lower down in the 

 Bracklesham portion of the bed " no. 29," but it is doubtful *. 

 Mr. Keeping states that N. variolarius (or a thick PrestwicManus) 

 is met with in Mr. Prestwich's " no. 29," in the upper portion of 

 the brown part, and the flattened form midway between this and 

 the base of that clay (Letter, November 25 & 29, 1886). 



1848. In Bronn's ' Lethsea geognost., Index palaeontolog,' vol. i. 



* I did not note this species in Mr, Prestwich's collection from Alum Bay in 

 1852 (see page 147). 



