BEATRICEA-LIKE ORGANISM FROM THE MIDDLE ORDOVICIAN. 
3 
•below the Lowville, these beds are correlated with the upper 
part of the Pamelia formation of New York. 
At the locality in Carden, the Beatricea-like fossils are found 
on the weathered surfaces of the flat- lying strata, and have the 
form of long, narrow chambered tubes. They have the general 
appearance of cephalopods, but are easily distinguished from them 
because they do not taper appreciably, though some specimens 
are 18 inches long, the chambers are of irregular depth, there is 
no siphuncle, and while usually nearly straight, many of the 
specimens are irregularly or abruptly curved. Most of the 
specimens lie parallel to the bedding planes, and are usually 
incomplete; but some are found which were buried in a vertical 
position and on cutting and polishing these, some are found to 
preserve a good deal of their original structure. 
It will be remembered that Beatricea is one of those unfor- 
tunate genera whose systematic position has not been satisfactorily 
determined. Originally described by Billings, 1 these fossils have 
been called plants, foraminifera, rugose corals, and cephalopods, 
and at last have found a resting place as a family among the 
Stromatoporoids, this position having been fixed for them by 
Nicholson. 2 
DESCRIPTION OF THE SPECIMENS. 
This fossil has a long flexuose, cylindrical form of unknown 
length, only the upper termination having been seen. Frag- 
ments from 12 to 18 inches long are not uncommon. The 
diameter appears to be approximately uniform throughout 
the length of the fragments observed. Most of the specimens 
are from 10 to 20 mm. in diameter, but as will be hereafter shown, 
this does not show the true thickness of the fossil, as in nearly 
all specimens a part has failed of preservation. No well pre- 
served outer surface has been seen, but from the evidence of 
sections of embedded specimens, it would appear that the surface 
is covered with small papillae. Sections perpendicular to the 
long axis show that the fossil is made up of concentric zones of 
1 Geol. Surv. of Canada, Rept. of Prog, for 1856, 1857, p. 343. 
2 Monograph British Stromatoporoids, Palaeontographical Society, Lon- 
don, 1886, pp. 86-89, pi. 8, figs. 1-8. 
