The critic., 1890-12-31
TIE EARTMS STRATA.
Men Discourse Learnediy of It's Various
and CnrIOus EOrmntiOns.


The Geological Society of America ban
quoted at Willard's last evening after the
afternoon session. At $50 the company
arose from the table and recommended
their meeting. The papers read were on
Antiquities from under ruolumne Table
Mountains, California" by George +.
Becker; observations upon the Lava De-
posits of the Smoke River Valley Idaho"
by G. i. Wright; "An Exhibition of Some
New Photographed Microscopes, by A.
G. Lane; "A Jointed Earth Augur," by n.
ii. Duston, and the report of the commit
tee ON photographs by Mr.. j. $. Dillon,
chairman of the society.
Owing to the large number Of papers
presented ut the convention of the Geo
logical Society of America, II was found
necessary to hold the meeting this morn
ing in two sections, one being held in the
general meeting room and the other in
the section room simultaneously. a
pleasant atmosphere of study and learn
ing in the matter composing the crust of
the earth which supports us pcrvadcd the
top floor of the Columbian University,
where the meetings are taking
place. Hanging around the walls
and sketched roughly on blackboards
were maps of numerous regions, with
curious combinations of color running In
irregular streaks around the country rep
resented; meaningless to the eye of the
ignorant, but full of interest and infor-
nation for the geologist. Little groups
were constantly forming and separating,
all discussing the interior material of the
region about Washington, or the places
which they had inspected and studied,
studying fossils and bits of rock, or criti-
oising the opinions of others.
For, like all the rest of the learned men
of the world, all did not agree, although
they secured much valuable information
from the explanations of their colleagues.
In the main meeting-room, Professor
Alexander Winchell commenced his
paper, "a Last Word With the Huronian,"
which he was obliged to postpone owing
to n lack of opportunity to read it before.
ii. d. Campbell and W. G.. Brown of Lex
ington, Va, had fifteen minutes on the
Mineral and Chemical Composition of
Certain Igneous Rocks from the Mezozoic
Area in Culpeper County, Va" The re-
mainder of the programme follows;
Geology of the Environs of Quebec
by Jules Marcou, Cambridge, Mass. This
paper gave a detailed description of the
geology of Montmorcncy Falls, Indian
Lorette Falls, City and Citadel Hill of
Quebec, Pointe Lewis and La Chaudiere.
This was read by the secretary.
The next paper was "On the Geology of
Quebec and Its Environs," by Henry NJ.
Ami of Ottawa, Canada. This contains
some new and important facts bearing
upon the age of this highly-disturbed and
problematical region. Without entering
into an elaborate discussion of the views
held at present by American biologists
and others, the author presented plain
facts, archaeological and stratigraphical,
as they are met in the field, with the hope
that they may assist in arriving at salts
factory solution and in removing many
difficulties which have been in the way
as to the age or precise geological position
OF the series Of terranes in question. The
paper contained numerous lists of fossils
from definite localities, and sections were
shown indicating the nature of the deposit
from which these were obtained.
After this paper was finished, one was
read ON "The Post-Archaean Age of the
White Limestones of Sussex County, n.
j." by Frank l.. Mason of New Brnns-
wick, n. j. This included-Part l: His
torical Sketch of the White 1imestoncs
as recorded by the earlier biologists and
those associated with them. Part H.:
Geography and Topography of the White
Limestoncs and their associated Blue
Limestones and Sandstones. Part III:
Rocks associated with the White Lime
stones; GRANTEES, gabbro, diabase, etc.,
contact phenomena observed with each.
Part lV: Distribution of the White and
the Blue Limestones in folds, and the re-
lationss of the, underlying sandstones.
Part V: Conclusion-That the White
Limestones and the Blue Limestones of
the Northwest belong to synchronous
horizon, ltoccupied 40 minutes.
The next was on 1.-TWO Fossil Bearing
Belts in the Triassic Formation of Con-
necticut,n by w. NJ. Davis and $. w.
Loper Of Cambridge, Mass. The triassic
formation of Connecticut, as interpreted
by the dislocations of the trap sheets is
found to be divided by oblique faults into
number of blocks, with dsplacements
of this, 1t has been found possible to cor
relate nearly all the known iish-bcaring
black shales as the disjointed outcrop OF
only two shale belts, and to discover sew
eral new localities of these shales at speci-
fled points, predicted in advance in ac-
cordance with the faulted structure.
Professors n. s. Shaler and II. s. Will
liams spoke on the geology of Little Falls
N. y, and B. X. Emerson followed
sets.
The members divided their time be-
tween the two meeting rooms, both being
Of equal interest. Robert Bell read the
first paper before the audience in the
section room on "The Nckle and Copper
Deposits of Sudbury District, Canada"
The author described the Huronan belt
in which the deposits occur. He de-
scribed the Theological characters, mode
Of occurrence and geological relations of
the rocks occurring there-greywackes,
Quartzites, diorites, ETC., and isolated areas
of gneiss and .quartz-syenite which may
not belongt to the series. The limits of the
nickeliferous area were defined; the mode
in which the nicllel-bearing sulphides
occur was given in detail and the source
Of the ores was sought in the diorite.
The next was interesting, being on "The
Phosphate Deposits of the Island of Ma
yassa, w. I.,n by Il. V. D'Invilliers Of
Philadelphia, Pa. There are two varieties
cially known as grey Navassa' and 'red
Navassa," he said. The former occupies
terrace encircling the island and from
ten TO seventy feet above sea level, the
latter an upper terrace, $50 feet above sea
level, on top the island, Astounding in
caves, the phosphate occupying irregular
"lleldsn or areas separated by barren reefs
Of coral limestone. The line of demarca-
ton between phosphates and rock is gen
orally sharp, though always irregular.
Walter Harvey Weed of this city spoke
for twenty minutes ON the "Cinnabar and
Bozeman Coal Fields of Montana pre-
senting the results of recent study of the
coal-bearing rocks, near Livingston, and
of the Cinnabar coal field, with evidence
showing their position in the geological
series. 1tshowed also the number and the
extent of seams, the quality of the Goals
and the localities now being worked,
with notes upon the, extent of
II. w. Turner and w. II, Melville of Val
ley Springs, Cal, explained apapergiving
Geological Notes ON Mount DiablO, Calf
fornia.n The main central mass of the
mountain is composed of metamorphic
rocks with some pre-tertiary rocks,
thought to be igneous; and this central
core is surrounded by little altered sedi-
ments, embracing all formations recog-
Il IL. 4 4.