council for 1876. 
9 
sion of tlie leaseliold property, did so with, the object of 
preserving it as an open space, and eventually, when their 
income permitted, of annexing it to the grounds of the Society, 
they felt hound, under the circumstances, to co-operate with 
the Committee in obtaining the fee simple of the land, and, so 
far as their power extends, to aid in the promotion of a scheme 
which has for its object the instruction of the people and the 
improvement of the city. In July last, the purchase money, 
£4000, and the cost of the grant, £10 10s., were paid to the 
Representatives of the Crown, and the Council hope soon to he 
able to announce that the Crown Grant has been received, and 
no time will then be lost in completing the arrangement. 
The Curator of Geology reports that the cases required 
for the better display of the Yorkshire Fossils have been 
completed. The re-arrangement of the specimens has been 
carried out to the end of the Inferior Oolite series (our 
Honorary Member, Mr. XTudleston, having kindly assisted). 
The gallery contains the following, viz., Peat deposits, drift 
from the sea coast, Fossils from the gravel pits around York, 
chiefly collected by the late Mr. James Cook; Chalk, Red 
Chalk, Speeton Clay, including Neocomian, Portlandian and 
Kimmeridgian strata; then the Coralline Oolite, of which the 
Society possesses a magnificent series; the Lower Calcareous 
Grit, Oxford Clay, Kelloway Rock, and Cornbrask. 
In the lower room, the Inferior Oolite series, which is kept 
in separate sub-divisions, consists of the Upper Plant Bed, 
Scarbro’ Limestone, the unique and valuable collection of 
Brandsby Slate, part of the Cook collection, then the Middle 
Plant Bed, the Millepore series, the Whitwell Limestone, the 
Lower Plant Bed, the Red Inferior Oolite of Glaizedale, and the 
Peak Dogger Beds. In re-arranging the collection, space has 
been left for additions. It is hoped that dming the present 
year the lower room will be completed. The Lias series are 
already named and divided into zones by the Rev. J. F. 
Blake, whose valuable work on the Yorkshire Lias appeared 
dining the past year. The collection of Carboniferous Lime¬ 
stone Fossils is unfortunately very deficient. 
B 
