324 The American Geologist. May, 1895 
ions of the Devonian have not as yet been definitely worked out, 
it is known that a well marked Devonian fauna, that of the 
Lime Creek shales described by Calvin,* probably represents 
the closing stages of that period. It has recently been sug- 
gested that there is reason to believe that the Louisiana 
limestone, the basal member of the Missouri Kinderhook, may 
be of Devonian age.f As has been said, there is little reason 
to believe that this formation is present in Iowa, and the low- 
est member here is probably to be correlated with the Hamil- 
ton shale. 
The larger collections of fossils from the Iowa Kinderhook 
have come from the sandy layer below the oiUite at Burlington. 
In 1885 Tiffany! maintained, and quoted H. S. Williams as 
authority, for the statement that this bed was Devonian. 
Until recently the shales lying at the l)ase of the Burling- 
ton section have been regarded as non-fossiliferous. A num- 
ber of fossils have, however, now been collected from them. 
These include a few Spirifers, llhiinchonellas and Lhigulas, 
species undetermined, which are non-diagnostic. There are 
also certain obscure crustacean forms. In addition to these 
there is one specimen which may be referred to Goniphoceras, sp. 
und. The bearing of this form is important. The genus has 
been regarded as terminating with the close of the Devonian. 
The only exception has been Gomphoceras potens Hall, des- 
cribed from the Waverl}'. The author states that the most 
important structural parts of this specimen were missing, a 
statement which the figure given amply justifies. For the 
livesent GompJtoceras 2^otens can hardly be considered to be 
more than a doubtful species. There are also a few specimens 
of an Orthis very closely allied to OrtJu's iuu-ensis Hall, and 
differing from it only in some features of the muscular scar. 
The dift'eiences are not great, and yet a species maker might 
regard the form as new. In general, however, it very closely 
resembles the typical forms from the Lime Creek shale. Gyro- 
ceras hurluujtonensi.s Owen, is also found, it being a form 
originally described from the oolitic bed of the same locality. 
The genus Gyroceras presents closer affinities with theunder- 
*Bul. U. S. Goog. and Geo). Surv.. iv. 725, 1878. 
fKeyes: Am. Geologist, x. 880-384, 18!)2. 
:j:Geol. of Scoit county, Iowa, and Ilock Island county, 111., etc., p. 28. 
Glass and Hoover, Davenport, 188.5. 
