634 
Proceedings of the 'Royal Society 
On a supposed Organism from the Marble of Sutherland. 
I have never seen fit to express an opinion upon the vexed 
question of the eozoon canadense. This, not because I have not 
formed an opinion, hut because I have never seen specimens 
sufficiently characteristic to furnish me with grounds ample enough 
to enable me to give force to my opinion ; also because I consider 
that certain of the grounds adduced by those who hold the same 
view as my own, are weak, or at least not strong, from a mineralogi- 
cal point of view. 
Having myself found, and being as yet the only one who has 
studied the mode of occurrence of the structure to which I now 
direct attention, it may be considered that a similar amount of 
reticence is not in its case either reasonable or justifiable. 
The thing of which I write was found in the white saccharine 
marble of Sutherland last summer. I have during many summers 
made myself familiar with the modes of occurrence of minerals, — 
in fact, I have become a successful mineral hunter , just in virtue 
of familiarity with the modes of occurrence of minerals ; I am 
perhaps then not going too far in saying that when, after a full 
consideration of the mode of occurrence and structure of that thing , 
I concluded that it does not accord with minerals, either in mode of 
occurrence , or in structure , it must be at least worthy of the atten- 
tion of those who are more familiar with structures not mineral 
than I am. 
As the thing at first sight looked exceedingly like eozoon (what I 
knew of it), and as its resemblance to eozoon only increased the 
longer I looked at its sections (which I prepared with my own 
hands, in all directions), I sent it to Dr. Carpenter, making over to 
him in toto the investigation of its inner nature , but reserving to my- 
self-— that which he could not do — the telling all the rest about it. 
I was well aware that, in concluding that it was wonderfully like, 
if not identical with, eozoon, I was giving to it a stratigraphical 
position which many would hold was one “ where nae sic thing 
should be;” but, as it is one of the tenets of my geologic faith, that 
where a thing is, is where that thing should be, I was not much 
disturbed in my conclusions. 
I am permitted to say, and it may be well that I should state 
