THE GEELONG NATURALIST. 23 
“New Geelong.” After sinking between 20 and 30 feet through 
soil and clay, they came on a bottom of polyzoal limestone, the same 
as that at Pakington Street, Belmont North. This shaft we will 
call No.1. Failing to find the fire clay, they moved further down 
the hill, and close to the Germantown Road, they sank shaft No. 2. 
Here, after passing through surface soil, 5 feet, and then yellowish 
sand with a few shells, they came on a light grey clay full of fossils, 
which continued for 35 feet, when there succeeded 10 feet of 
black silty clay also full of fossils. At 50 feet they came upon a 
very hard band of light grey stone, full of bivalves, probably an 
ancient sea beach, underlaid by 5 feet of yellow limestone, with 
the same shells as the deposit last mentioned. Below this came 
8 feet of a lighter silt, then 2 feet of hard grey rock, resting upon 
2 feet of sandy clays, when they bottomed on the polyzoal rock of 
the district. This was at about 72 feet from the surface, while in 
No. 1 shaft, the same rock was reached at 30 feet, which gives a 
slope of 42 feet in about 60 chains, Upon this sloping sea beach 
were deposited the bivalves and gastropods of that age, and they 
have been carried upward on the gradually rising land, until they 
have reached their present position. ۱ 
The finding of a miocene marine deposit at such a height 
above sea level—I do not know the exact height, probably not 
less than 200 to 250 feet—(the Shelford deposit is 150 feet above 
river level), Messrs Hall or Pritchard do not give the height (at least E 
did not notice it in their report on the Moorabool mioceye) shews 
- the miocene sea had a good share in cutting out the valleys of the 
Moorabool and Leigh, the tides could not flow in and out for go 
many years without doing a considerable amount of work, and 
perhaps leaving their deposits of shells on the then sea beach, as 
the eocene sea did on the limestone of Belmont and Birregurra 
and the basalt of Curlewis. Then again I would like to point out 
the finding of one layer of shells above the other does not necess- 
arily make the bottom the oldest if it was a lowering land when 
they were placed in position the bottom portion would be the first 
‘laid down, but if a rising land, the top would be the oldest. As in 
the raised sea beaches along our shores composed of recent shells as 
well as fossil the highest line of recent shell was first laid down, the 
youngest that being deposited now. Let us think what Hobson’s 
Bay will be like in a few thousand years if the land continues to 
rise as it appears to be doing; the shells that are living now will 
then be on top, and those deposited after at the bottom. I should 
like to point out to those members of the Club who take an interest 
in geology, the three questions we should try and settle during the 
coming season—First, visit the miocene, at the Viaduct, put a short 
tunnel into the hill and find if possible its extent and prove what is 
the older the shell deposit or the basalt. The next question is, 
which is the older, the Lara limestone or the basalt adjoining, the 
limestone we know is plicoeen and if the basalt overlays, it must be 
