42 



THE GEOLOGIST. 



easy in a new country to find out the best and most productive places, 

 and a few hints from any one who knows them well are invaluable. 



With these introductory remarks, ^e proceed at once to the more 

 immediate object of this paper. There is no county in the British 

 Isles where the Geology is so varied or interesting as Gloucestershire, 

 associated as it is with diversified and beautiful scenery which would 

 render it attractive to the mere casual observer. When it is recollected 

 that many difi'erent PormatioDs, from the Middle Oolite down to the 

 lower Silurian system inclusive, can be studied with comparative ease, 

 and a good suite of fossils collected from each stratum, the geologist 

 will at once perceive the richness and extent of such a series, and the 

 wide field of observation opened out before him. These difi'erent 

 geological groups comprise a very extensive mass of rocks of vast bulk 

 and thickness, of great value for economical purposes, and contain a 

 distinct and variable fauna, which gives us an insight into the earth's 

 history in past times, from one of the earliest ages up to a much more 

 recent period. 



The neighbourhood of Cirencester is undoubtedly the best for ex- 

 amining the upper portion of the Lower Oolite, the only member of the 

 Middle being the Oxford clay, which has yielded an instructive set of 

 fossils, and includes a band which appears to represent the Kelloways 

 rock. The geological student will do well to devote a few days to the 

 Cornbrash, Forest Marble, and Bradford clay, in connection with the 

 Great Oolite, which may be reached within an easy distance of the town, 

 and form the chief geological features of interest there. Though the 

 Cornbrash is a comparatively thin bed, it makes a valuable soil to the 

 agriculturist, and also yields a rich harvest of organic remains to the 

 palaeontologist. These consist chiefly of marine shells, some of which 

 are peculiar to this Formation, while others occur also in the Inferior 

 Oolite, and may be met with in the quarries near Cirencester, and also 

 on the road to Pairford and Cricklade. Among the Brachiopoda there 

 are several species of Terebratulae, and among the Echinodermata several 

 forms of urchins, which are highly characteristic. The most instructive 

 section may be seen at Kemble, on the line of the Great Western 

 railway, where the Cornbrash, Forest Marble, Bradford clay, and Great 

 Oolite are all present in situ, and exhibit an instructive fault, the 

 Cornbrash on one side of it being brought down to a level with the Great 

 Oolite on the other. 



