422 



THE GEOLOGIST. 



samples of coal he has had he is of opinion the Japanese, not understanding 

 the art of mining, work indiscriminately for bad or good seams, thereby pro- 

 ducing a mixture unfit for general steam purposes, but that there must be 

 splendid coal in the country, if they will only allow of the aid of a little science 

 in working the mines. — " China Telegraph." 



Alton Museum. — Sir, — Eor the information of geologists visiting Sel- 

 bourne, or any other place in the neighbourhood of Alton, I wish to state 

 in the pages of your journal that the museum of the Alton Mechanic's Institu- 

 tion possesses a collection of local specimens deserving their attention. They 

 are from the drift, the tertiary clay and sand, the chalk-marl, malm-rock, 

 gault, &c. They are not yet fully labelled, but I shall be happy to give in- 

 formation respecting them to any one who may pay us a visit. 



So much has been said of late in disparagement of local museums; they 

 have so often — and too often perhaps justly — been styled mere collections of 

 rubbish, that where their existence is known they may happen to be overlooked 

 and neglected when they may really contain much that is worthy of notice. 



I may add that the Alton Museum contains, besides the collection of local 

 fossils, one representing most of the British formations ; also others of British 

 mammals and birds, eggs, and land and fresh- water moUusca, chiefly local. 



Besides these there are small collections in comparative anatomy, conchology, 

 mineralogy, &c., all of them sufficient for the illustration of lectures and of 

 class-teaching. — I am yours, &c., Wm. Curtis. 



Ancient Indian Arrow-heads. — Sir, — Throughout Canada various relics 

 are turned up by the spade and the ploughshare which were in use among the 

 most ancient inhabitants. These relics coDsist of Indian arrow-heads from 

 one and a-half to four and a-half inches long, darts or spear-heads six to seven 

 inches long, battle-axes or hatchets, gouges, and chisels, all being composed of 

 various kinds of stone and of copper, but principally of flint and chert. 

 Sometimes the larger implements are formed of limestone, greenstone, or scliist, 

 whilst the smaller, such as the arrow-heads, are formed of grey or fawn-coloured 

 chert or flint, and more rarely of red and black slates, and white chalcedony. 



On the sites of ancient battle-grounds the arrow-heads are ploughed up in 

 tolerable numbers, but elsewhere isolated specimens are casuaUy picked up. It 

 is a curious fact that no arrow-heads are found in any of the comparatively 

 modern Indian bui'ial-grounds, but the stone gouges are sometimes met with, 

 thus indicating the more recent origin of the latter. 



If flint arrow-heads are encountered, with other relics of stone and copper, 

 among human skeletons, I think it affords an evidence of the extreme antiquity 

 of the latter, which may probably be coeval with the Celtic period of Britain 

 Some of the arrow-heads are exceedingly smooth, whilst the majority are 

 rougli, with a number of facets, and seem to have been formed by chipping the 

 flint, and are not dissimilar to the ancient flint weapons of the British Isles. — 

 Geo. D. Gibb, M.D., M.A., E.G.S. 



Errata in Dr. Gibb's Paper on Canadian Caverns. — Page 132, 3Ith 

 line, for B/mchetie's read Bouclieffe's. Page 162, loth line, for Uiov.sand read 

 hinidrcd. Page 162, 3Ist line, for mall read loall. Page 16S, 6th line, for 

 Mcr;i(iii read ^Ungaii. Page 169, 15th line, for Baric read Boric. Page 173 

 tt'oot-nole, 2nd line) for Keep read Beef. Page 17 1, last line, for icaij read baij. 

 Page 217, ISth line, for Baij read Bass. 



