NORWOOD— GEOLOGY 01' HOTUAM. 
421 
Several interesting rocks of the secondary scries pass by this village, 
generally in bands of inconsiderable thickness, and in a direction nearly 
N.W.JS". In most other districts widely separated, they can liere be 
examined near a single point; for we can walk in about two miles from 
the New Red Sandstone, across the Lias and Oolite, to the top of the 
Chalk. And as these rocks are, in part, little known, and, in part, 
have been long held to be exceptional and peculiar — moreover, as they 
seem to me to throw light upon questions not quite settled at the present 
time — such as the existence of the Bone-Bed and Insect-Bed, at the base 
of the Yorkshire Lias, and of the Inferior Oolite in the long litigated 
neighbourhood of Cave — I am induced to offer some observations upon 
them, which I made at Hotham during two very short vacations, and 
which, I trust, will be found to be of general, as well as of local 
interest. The purpose of this paper wiU be, to compare some of the 
most important formations occurring near Hotham with the same 
formations as they are more typically represented, and more familiarly 
known, in other parts of England. 
(I.) The road from Jforth Cave to Market Weighton, through South 
and North Cliiie, lies, for about four miles, in the direction already 
indicated, under a low and regular range of hill, which slopes down 
close upon it on the right hand side. This range is the escarpment of 
the lower Lias limestones and shales, which may here be seen resting 
conformably upon the New Eed Sandstone, and presenting to the west, 
that gently- elevated line of richly- wooded country, which commonly 
marks the junction of these two rocks. Immediately on the other side 
of the road there stretches away a wide -extended level plain — sandy 
and barren towards the N.W., where it is broken by the insulated hill 
of Holme, and contains the famous lake of Beahheclc ; but covered 
towards the S.W., in the neighbourhood of the rivers Ouse and Humber, 
by great depths of alluvial accumulations. 
The numerous pits which have been dug along this ridge of Lias, for 
the purpose of marling the light sandy lands adjacent, afford good 
opportunities for noting the character of the formation, and collecting 
its distinguishing fossils. There are the usual alternations of shales 
and bands of limestone which we see along the cliffs of the Severn, in 
Gloucestershire, and wherever else this part of the Lias is exposed. 
The fossils, also, are identically those which we should expect. 
Eeckoning downwards from the top of the ridge, wc have Grijphm 
