f,"^

/

^^m;

Oi^^^

'^f^ f

CA,H

\zi^

/^*/\

I

WHITNEY LIBRARY,
IIARVAKD UNIVERSITY.

THE GIFT OF
J. D. WHITNEY,

Sturtjis Hooper Professor

MUSEUM or COMPAKATIVE ZOOLOGY

THE

CANADIAN

^ataralist ma geologist,

AND PROCEEDINGS OF THE

NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY

OF MONTREAL.

• ONDUOTED BY A COMMITTEE OP THE NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.

VOLUME VII.

Pontreal:
PUBLISHED BY DAWSON BROTHERS, 23 GREAT ST. JAMES ST.
'^'1862.

CANADIAN NATURALIST

This Magazine is published bi-monthly, and is conducted by a Com-
mittee of the Natural History Society of Montreal.

EDITORS FOE THE YEAE 1862—3.

J. W. Dawson, LL.D., F.G.S., Principal of McGill College.
T. Sterry Hunt, A.M., F.R.S., Chemist to Geological Survey of Canada.
E. Billings, F.G.S., Palceontologist, " " "'

Prof. S. P. Robbins.

General Editor. — David A. Poe Watt.

EX OFFICIO.

"W. H. HiNGSTON, M.D., Corresponding Secretary Nat. Hist. Society.
John Leeming, Recording Secretary " " "

Entered according to the Act of the Provincial Parliament, in the year
One Thousand Eight Hundred and Sixty-two, by Dawson Brothers,
in the Office of the Registrar of the Province of Canada.

CONTENTS OF VOLUME VII.

PAffB

Abticlb I. — On the Primitive Formations in Norway and in Canada,

Part I. By Thomas Macfarlane 1.

II. — On the Shore Zones and Limits of Marine Plants in

the United States. By the Rev. Alex. F. Kemp 20

III. — Contributions to Meteorology for' the year 1861, By

Charles Smallwood, M.D. LL. D 34

IV. — On the Mammals and Birds of the District of Montreal.

By Archibald Hall, M.D. Part II 44

V. — Note on the laconic System of Emmons. By T. Sterry

Hunt, M.A., F.R.S 78

VI. — Notes on the Flora of the White Mountains, in its Geo-
graphical and Geological relations. By J. W. Daw-
son, LL.D., F.G.S 81

VII. — On the failure of the Apple Trees in the neighborhood

of Montreal. By John Archbold 102

Vni. — On an Erect Sigillaria and a Carpolite from the Joggins,

Nova Scotia. By J. W. Dawson, LL.D., F.G.S 106

IX.— On the Primitive Formations in Norway and in Ca-
nada. Part II. By Thomas Macfarlane 113

X. — The New Spectrum Discoveries 129

XI. — List of Diurnal Lepidoptera from the vicinity of

London, C. W. By W. Saunders 130

XII. — An account of the Botanical and Mineral products,
used by the Chipewyan Indians. By Bernard R.

Ross 133

XIII. — List of Mammals, Birds, and Eggs, from the McKen-

zie's River District. By Bernard R. Ross 137

XIY. -Notes on Chemical Subjects. By Prof. S. P Bobbins.. 15S
XV. — On the date of the Report on the Geology of Wiscon-
sin. By E. Billings 156

XVI. — On the Primitive Formations in Norway and in Cana-
da. Part III. By Thomas Macfarlane 161

XVII. — On the Mammals and Birds of the District of MontreaL

By Archibald Hall, M.D. Part III 171

XVIII.— On the Extraction of Cobalt Oxide from Iron Pyrites. By

Thomas Macfarlane ^ 194

XIX. — List of Entomologists in Canada. By Rev. Charles J.

S. Bethune 199

XX.— On the Chemistry of the Earth. By T. Sterry Hunt,

M.A., F.R.S 201

XXI. — Description of a new Enaliosaurian from the Coal Mea-
sures of Nova Scotia. By 0. C. Marsh, B. A 205

XXII.— A Lecture on Force. By Prof. John Tyndal, F.R.S.. 241
XXIII. — On the Utilisation of the Power involved in the Rise

and Fall of the Tides 252

XXIV. — On the Primitive Formations. From the German of

Naumann, by Thomas Macfarlane 254

XXV.— On Jphui Avm(R. By George Lawson, Ph. D., LL.D. 264
XXVI. — On the footprints of Limulus, by J. W. Dawson,

LL.D., F.R.S., &c 271

IV INDEX.

PAGE.
XXVIL — On the destruction of Apple-trees by Saperda Candida.

By William Couper 278

XXYIII. — Discovery of Microscopic Organisms in the Siliceous

Nodules of the Palaeozoic Rocks of New York. . . . 281
XXIX. — List of Orthoptera collected on a trip from Assiniboia

to Cumberland. By Samuel H. Scudder 283

XXX. — On the Mammals and Birds of the District of Montreal.

By Archibald Hall, M.D. Part IV 289

XXXI. — On the Geology and Physical Characteristics of New-
foundland. By Moses H. Perley 321

XXXII. — Review of Hooker's Outlines of the Distribution of

Arctic Plants 334

XXXIII. — On the Mammals and Birds of the District of Montreal.

By Archibald Hall, M.D. Part V 344

XXXIV.— On the Cattskill Group of New York. By Prof. J. Hall. 377
XXXV. — On the superficial deposits in Canada, By Charles

Robb, C.E 382

XXXVI. — Remarks on Prof. Hall's Contributions to Palaeontolo-
gy. By E. Billings, F. G. S 389

XXXVII. — Remarks on Tceniapectinata. By Dr. T. Spencer Cob-
bold 394

XXXVIII. — Col. E. Jewett, of Albany, on the age of some

rocks in New York 395

XXXIX. — On the Mammals and Birds of the District of Mon-
treal. By Archibald Hall, M. D. Part VI 401

XL. — Notes on some of the habits of the pine-boring beetles

of the genus Monohammus. By E, Billings, F.G.S. 430
XLI. — Zoological Classification ; or Ccelenterata and Protozoa.

versus Radiata. By Prof. J. W. Dawson, F. R. S. 438
XLII. — On a new Crustacean from the Potsdam sandstone. By

Prof. James Hall 443

XLIII. — Contributions to the History of the Acton Copper Mine.

By Thomas Macfarlane 447

RiTiEws AND Notices of Books.

A Manual of the Sub-Kingdom Ccslenterata. By Prof. Greene.. 158

Scrii)ture and Science. By Archdeacon Pratt , . 159

OflBcial Reports of the Geology of Kentucky, Wisconsin, Maine,

and the Colorado River 213

Descriptive Catalogue of the Economic Minerals of Canada. . . 216

Dana's Manual of Geology 474

Miscellaneous.

Chromic Iron ore and Asbestus. , 80

Notice of the Natural History Collections of the McGill College, 221

On the Land Flora of the Devonian Period, in N. E. America. 223
Couper on the Occurrence of the Blue Grosbeak, Stone Chat,

and Yellow Rail, near Quebec 319

Honeyman on the Gold Fields of Nova Scotia 3 20

Meeting of Entomologists 396

On the age of the Pyramids of Egypt 472

On the cause of attraction .... 473

Correspondence.

An Entomological Grave-digger 317

K atural History S ociktt.

Annual Meeting of 224

Report of, for 18G1-2 ' .* .' 230

Proceedings of 399

LIST OF ERRATA.
Volume V.

Paf'e 244, line 15 from bottom, for "Environs," read "Emmons."
u u u 3 " " " " 1850," read " 1858."

" 247 " 11 " top, " " Thisbe;' read " Thysbe."

u "' " 3 " bottom, " '^ McMurtrici,'' read ''McMurtreei:'
u 248 " 6 " " " " contiqua," read " contiguaj'

" 249, *' 8 " top, after "Spring" insert a full stop, and

"Imago in."
u u «' 9 « bottom, for " 1448," read " 1488."
<i 251 " 9 " top, insert " on the outerside" after "accom-
panied."
ti a « 18 " bottom, for " cones," read " leaves."
a 253 " 7 " top, for "/i/iea^«," read "Zinea^jri/na."
" 255' " 6 " " " "incomplete," read "incompletely,"

and omit the comma after it.
(( u ii 14 u u u iipisco,'^ vead ^^fusco."
II ii « 19 " " insert " is " after " hue."
({ u ii 21 " " for " uniform," read " cuneiform."
" 258 " 17 " bottom, for "^/Yt§og-opo7us," read "0-ag-o/)OgOMi?."
" ''62' " 11 " top, insert a full stop after " White," and sup-

' ply a capital H to " head."

" 264, " 18 " bottom, for " 8," read " 6."
{I li u >i u a " " Cerrino,'' read " Cervino."

Volume VI.

Page 36, line 7 from bottom, for " denis," read " dei-iis:'

" 3^ " 19 " " " "corai'erzaria," read "coni-ergana.-

" 40' " 18 " top, for " Sugar-bush," read " Round."

i: u' (£ 17 u bottom, for "fose/nia," read "cor«7?u"a."

(( u a 16 " " " " cons^jers^," read " cons^jersa."

"41 "16 " top, for ^^fusio," read ^^fusco."

it 121' " 7 " bottom, dele "F. 30th June."

II u' u 5 a a for 13th," "read "30th."

(( u u 3 u a after " Town " add " Line."

129 » 6 " " " " Sphagnum," dele " and.'

123,

^^^ 10 " " for "distinct," read "district."

124' << 1 " " add " Limestone " before " rocks."
u 126 '' 24 " " for " June," read " September."
" 13l' " 16 " " " " pine," read " fine."

II (£ ' (£ 3 u ii " " pinging," read " fringing."

li 133 it 4 'J top, for " Chip-nambo," read " Chip-munk."
u a ^ II 7 a a u a 20th June," read " 16th July."
" " after " Smilacina stellata," add " Smilnchia bifolia, Ker.

Abundant everywhere in woods ; F. 20th June."
" 136, line 11 from top, for " 30 Tune," read " 30th June."
'• Sugar-Bush Lake" frequently occurs instead of "Round Lake."
'■■ St. Jean Lake " instead of " Eagle-nest Lake."
'• Chain Lake " instead of " Balsam Lake."

Volume VII.

rage 81, last line for " Plcdrophanes nivalis'' read " Fringilla {Junco)

hy emails."
" 101 line 4th from bottom, for " those which escape," read " that
which escapes" ; and line 2nd from bottom, for "render," read
" renders."
" 377, line 10 from top for "specimens" read "species,
a 380 '< 3 " " after parenthesis, insert " between."
" 381 " 27 " " for "4th" read "3rd."

THE

CANADIA2s^

MTUMLIST AID GEOLOGIST.

Vol, YII. FEBRUARY, 1862. No. 1.

ARTICLE I. — On, the Primitive Formations in Norway and
in Canada^ and their Mineral Wealth, By Thomas
Macfarlane,

(Presented to the Natural History Society.)

Some apology may appear necessary here for the use of a terra,
regarded by many geologists as calculated to perpetuate false'
ideas as to the character and origin of the series of rocks which
it comprehends. The object of the following paper, however,
being merely to point out certain analogies, and possibly, differ-
ences, between certain groups of rocks in Norway, and their
equivalents in Canada, the name given them is of minor import-
ance ; and when it is considered how difficult it is to choose
among the various terms which have been proposed and used for
designating these formations, the one adopted in the above title
may appear excusable, and not perhaps be deemed unserviceable
on this occasion.

The groups of rocks, whose equivalents in Norway I propose
in some measure to describe, are here known as the Laurentian
system, the Huronian and the Metamorphic Silurian series.
The first of these is generally designated the Primitive Gneiss
formation, {Urgneiss Formation) in Germany and Scandi-
navia, while the two last mentioned groups make up what is
termed there the Primitive Slate formation (Urschiefer For-
mation). I propose to describe these groups of rocks as they
Can. Xat. 1 Vol. VII.

2 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

occur in Norway, principally in regard to their petrographical
and economic characters. I shall follow the order in which they
are mentioned above, inserting at the end of each description, a
few remarks on their development in Canada. The various facts
related in the following descriptions are principally derived from
such authorities as Naumaun and Keilhau ; my personal obser-
vations of the districts under notice, having only served to im-
print on my mind the descriptions of these and other philoso-
phers. The particulars narrated as to the various mining estab-
lishment^', are to a great extent however, the results of my own
experience and observation. As to the various features touched
upon with regard to Canada, my principal source of information
has of course been the reports of the officers of the Geological

Survey.

I. The Primitive Gneiss Formation.

In Keilhau's "First attempt towards a Geological Map of
Norway," as yet the only complete geological map of the coun-
try published, there are distinguished three geographical divisions,
belono-ino- to the Primitive Gneiss formation, separated from each
other by groups of rocks, belonging either to the primitive slate,
the eruptive granite and syenite, or to the Silurian series.
The first of these is situated high up in Finmark, its most north-
ern point being tlie North Cape. The second stretches from
Beiern-fiord, north of Trondhiem, along the whole coast of Nor-
way, southward to Christiansand, and from thence north-east-
ward to Kragero. To this division, the gneiss districts of
Kongsberg and Modum also belong. The third division is that
lying to the eastward of Christiania-fiord and lake Miosen.
These three divisions form only the most westerly parts of the
great Primitive Gneiss formation, which extends through Sweden
to Finland, and which is the characteristic feature of Scandina-
vian geology. The rocks which constitute this formation are the
following : —

1. Gneiss in many varieties, the most common being what is
called by Keilliau, characteristic gneiss^ and which he thus de-
scribes. " Tlie rock consists of white or reddish white feldspar,
(orthoclase), grey quartz and black mica; the feldspar and quartz
being combined with each other granularly, and the mica ar-
ranged in this mass in parallel layers ; so that the structure is
more an alternatively granular and slaty one, than a regularly
slaty structure, with quite equal distributions of the three con-

in Norway and in Canada, 3

stituents. In this way, there is caused a characteristic streaked
appearance, sometimes with broad black or dark grey bands, and
sometimes with the same streaks, narrower an] farther from each
other, according as the mica is more plentifully or more sparingly
distributed in the rock. The grains of feldspar, quartz and mica,
are mostly rather small in this variety of gneiss, so that it seldom
becomes coarsely granular." Gcea Norvegica^ p. 251. Through
a gradual disappearance of the feldspar ; the gneiss sometimes
changes into mica schist, and through a gradual change in
the position of the laminae of mica, from that of parallel layers,
to being irregularly distributed, the gneiss often passes into
granite. Of the many varieties of gneiss, one deserves special
notice ; it has been called Porphyroid gneiss, and differs from
the characteristic gneiss in containing lenticular-shaped aggrega-
tions of feldspar in a fine schistose matrix. It is this variety
which has sometimes been called Eye gneiss.

2. Hornblende gneiss, differing from the characteristic gneiss in
having exchanged the scales of mica for crystals of hornblende,
arranged parallel with each other according to their longest axis-
Sometimes however, the hornblende has only partially supplanted
the mica, in which case intermediate varieties are formed between
the hornblendic and common gneiss. Through gradual disap-
pearance of both quartz and feldspar, the hornblende gneiss often
changes into hornblende schist, and sometimes through a change
in the structure of the rocks from schistose to granular, syenitic
and greenstone rocks are formed.

3. Granite of the usual composition. It often occurs as a very
coarse grained aggregation of dark red orthoclase with sparingly
distributed quartz and mica.

4. Mica schist, composed of quartz and mica, with a schistose
structure, and often containing garnets. It exhibits transitions
into hornblendic schist as well as into gneiss, (fee.

5. Hornblendic schist, forming transitions into greenstone, and
when the structure continues coarse grained, into diorite and
diabase.

6. Chlorite schist, consisting principally of chlorite and a little
feldspar ; here and there interwoven with fibres of hornblende.

7. Talc schist, mostly quartzose.

8. Quartz, as granular quartz rock, forming layers and zones ;
sometimes slaty, forming quartz slate.

9. Euphotide, consisting of brown diallage and white feldspar.

4: Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

Other rock« allied to this, have been discovered in a good many
localities, and described as gabbro.

10. Sfrjyentine, sometimes occurs in such considerable masses a&
almost to entitle it to be regarded as a member of the formation.
It is generally of a light yellow colour. The well known de-
posit of noble serpentine, occurring in the parisii of Snarum, comes
under this head.

11. Granular limestone, as marble, in layers and irregular
masses.

12. Conglomerates ^Ti^ breccia, mostly the latter. One is de-
scribed as " a granite-like combination of gneiss and granite,"
another " angular pieces of gneiss united by a gneissoid cement ; "
a third consists of " a gneissoid or granitic matrix, enclosing
small fragments of other gneissoid rocks."

Besides the rocks above enumerated, there occur numberless
varieti^^s, forming transitions between these types of rock, some of
which have been already adverted to. Sometimes, as Naumann
remarks, '* within small spaces, one and the same specific com-
position shews characters so quickly and so frequently changing,
than we soon- get accustomed to seek what is similar, only in the
specific identity of the constituents, and not at all in the way or
quantity in which they are combined." Beitriige zur Kentniss
Norwpgens, I. 188.

As the name Primitive Gneiss formation implies, the most
widely distributed rock is the gneiss, either in its characteristic
form or its varieties. The next most frequently recurring rocks
are granite, mica schist and hornblende schist, or rocks related
to these types. Some other rocks which I have enumerated, such
as chlorite and talc schists, gTanular limestone and quartzitc,
occur in comparatively small quantity, while the remainder of
those mentioned must be looked upon as uncommon occurrences.

As to the mode in which these rocks are associated with each
other, the whole of them are arranged in parallel layers or zones,
side by side, underlying or overlying each other. Hitherto no
regular succession of rocks has been marked ; they appear to be
interstratified with each other without rule. The aTanitic masses
are partly conformable with the parallel masses of the schistose
rocks, and partly occur irregularly. It has been remarked that
when the granite becomes more or less gneissoid, its masses are
regularly interstratified with the other schistose rocks; but where
the granite is totally free from all traces of gneissoid texture, the

171 Norway and in Canada. 5

form in wliich it occurs deviates more or less from that of layers
or beds. A remarkable instance of this is described by Keilhau,
as occurring near Norefield. There he saw a mass of granite,
which on the whole, was gneissoid and bedded, gradually change
at a certain place into a perfect granite, and then, in complete
uninterrupted continuity, pierce the rock in the form of a dyke.
Another instance is mentioned of a granite rock occurring in the
schistose rocks, " partly in very regular layers, partly as isolated
knolls and lumps, and partly asamultitudeof veins; which in several
places run through large portions of the neighbouring mountain
as a close net-work." In spite of this however, this granitic rock
showed in many places, a gneissoid structure. The relations of
the hornblende schists and greenstones resemble those of the
granite. The hornblende schist is regularly interstratilied with
the gneiss, mica schist and other rocks. Where its texture be-
comes less slaty, the layers or zones are not so continuous, but
form, in the direction of the strike, elongated nuclei, which, with
their hard masses, often stand out from the general surface^ and
thus form well distinguished peaks, such as Johnsknuden near
Kongsberg, and Fagerlidknatten south-east in Nedenses, In-
stances of crystalline amphibolites cutting the strata, occur
in the most northern gneiss district, but these appear to have been
formed much later than the gneiss. Mention is also made of a
diorite, or feldspathic hornblende rock, occurring in veins in a
granular mixture of quartz, feldspar and garnet, which latter rock
appeared to form a transition into the gneiss.

One of the most striking features seen in the structure of
this group of rocks, is the foldings and contortions, which the
strata exhibit in all the divisions of the group. This is observed
as well where no granitic masses are seen, as in the neigh-
bourhood of sucL On the high road from Hougsund to Kongs-
berg, and shortly before reaching the latter place, the traveller
can observe, without dismounting, the most wonderful bends and
contortions in the structure of the gneissoid rocks occurring there.
Scheerer, in describing these contortions, compares them to the
windings figured upon marbled paper. Naumann, in remarking on
the same phenomena on the north-west coast, expresses him-
self as follows : " It is usually said of gneiss, that it is
always clearly and regularly stratified. This assumes thai the
parallelism of the masses, of not too great extent, has a relation
to one plane ; that the positions of the planes of structure

6 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

within small distances, are only subjected to sciall, and gpnerally"
crradual and continuous alterations; that these do not frequently
shew sudden faults, or leaps in the most varied directions,
within a few paces. If we however examine much of the gneiss of
northern Bergenstift, we find exactly the opposite of this. Let
one only observe the profiles which the play of the waves keeps
so clearly and distinctly exposed on the rocky banks of Evenig-
fiord, Outer Dalsfiord, and especially of Sondelvsfiord. In what
absolute indefiniteness, in what indescribable confusion is the
structure of the masses exhibited ! And yet there reigns the most
unequivocal parallel structure within those thousand-fold mean-
dering windings of the single zones, in which no rule, no law is
evident, for the wonderful winding appear so lost in each other
that neither drawing nor description is able to follow them."

In the presence of such contortions, and of local foldings on a
larger scale, it is of course difficult to ascertain the general strike
of the strata. It seems however, that in all the principal gneiss
regions of Norway, the rocks run most generally north and south,
or at least N.N.E. and S.S.W., and this, although there are nume-
rous exceptions, appears to be the general strike. It seems also
that a generalisation is possible as well with regard to the dip, as
to the strike of the rooks constituting this gTOup. The strata are
almost always vertical or nearly so. This is the distinguishing
character of the formation, and, en passant^ let me remark the great
difficulty hitherto experienced in all theorizings as to its origin.
Horizontal and less inclined strata have indeed been remarked in
several places, but they must be regarded as exceptional. The
dip is almost always over 45°, generally 60® to 80°, while per-
fectly vertical strata arc often observable. These much inclined
strata may be traced continuously many miles on the above men-
tioned north-easterly strike, and taken together, strike and dip,
form a remarkable feature in the architecture of these rocks. As
Keilhau remarks, " there lies spread out before us an area of many
thousand square miles, which shews only in a few places, any other
than steeply inclined strata. In a great many, and indeed we
may say in the mo^t and greatest portions of this area, we see these
steep strata following some law of regular course. We find
them stretching away ten, twenty and often many more
geographical miles, according to the same lines, and it ap-
pears to us that there where new fields of strike beginj it is still
the same parallel masses which we have previously observed, and

in Norway and in Canada* 7

wbich have only changed the direction of their strike." Goea
Norvegica I, 375,

The landscape features in the gneiss region vary much. We
find in it sometimes tame hills, flat undulating plateaux, in which
only the valleys cut into it, have exposed more rugged forms ;
but sometimes we find zigzag ridges, sharp peaks, and other
remarkable mountain shapes. In the gneiss districts of the
south, long-drawn, broad massive mountain ridges are most
common, but on the north-west coast, the gneiss rises in rugged
and fantastic forms above the surface of the water, in the numer-
ous and intricate fiords of that region.

The mineral deposits of these districts are neither few nor un-
interesting. Some of these are worked, and produce silver, copper,
cobalt, nickel and iron, while others capable of yielding^ some of
these metals or other minerals, remain unwrought or undeveloped.
Foremost among the modes of occurrence of metals in this region,
must be noticed the so-called fahlbands. These are not exclu-
sively confined to the south of the Fields which run north-east-
ward across Norway at its broadest part, but it is there, and espe-
cially in the district of Buskerud, that they have experienced their
greatest development. From a point to the west of Kongsberg,
and near the junction with the so-called Telleraarken group, after-
wards to be described, north-eastward to Tyrifiord, or to where
the gneiss formation in Modum is overlaid by Silurian strata,
there occurs a series of parallel zones of rock, having the same
strike and dip as the rocks enclosing them, but distinguishable
from these by the decomposed appearance and reddish-brown
color which they present on the surface. This peculiar appear-
ance, to which, according to Bobert, they owe their distinguishing
name (from/aAZ or /aid, rotten, as the German miners, who first
were employed in their exploration, termed them,) is attributable
to the metallic sulphurets which they contain, and especially to
iron pyrites ; the ferric oxide and the sulphates produced in the oxi-
dation of this being the coloring and decomposing agents. The
quantity of metallic sulphurets necessary to produce this color-
ing and decomposing etiect, is exceedingly small, and indeed it is
sometimes scarcely possible to distinguish them, so finely dissem-
inated are they through the mass of the rock constituting the
fahlband. The sulphurets most generally present are common and
magnetic iron pyrites, and copper pyrites; although blende and
galena have both been mentioned as impregnating materials.

8 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

they are comparatively rare. Besides these, cobalt glance, co-
baltiferous arsenical, and iron pyrites, nickeliferous magnetic
pyrites, and argentiferous iron pyrites characterise peculiar lo-
calities. The impregnation seems to be altogether independent of
the nature of the rock ; gneiss, mica schist, hornblende schist, <fec.,
being alike found constituting fahlbands. The continuity of these
impregnated zones is frequently astonishing, some of them hav-
ing been traced in the direction of their strike, nearly north and
south, upwards of ten miles. Their course is often marked by
depressions in the rocks, caused by their greater proneness to de-
composition, and these depressions are frequently occupied by
marshes and lakes. The thickness of these bands varies
from a few feet to several hundred, and they have been fre-
quently observed to split up and throw oflf side bands, some
of which seem to connect with other similar zones. Although,
as in the case of the glance cobalt and cobaltiferous mispickel,
the impregnating material is sometimes the object of mining
enterprise, it is generally on the veins or irregular masses occur-
ring in these fahlbands, that the mines of the district are situ-
ated. Concentrations of metallic sulphurets or other minerals in
fissures parallel with or crossing the strata, are by no means un-
common, and in some instances have given rise to very profitable
mining. The metallic deposits which I propose to notice in con-
nection with those fahlbands, are the silver mines of Kongsberg,
the copper mines of Eker, the cobalt mines of Skuterud, and the
nickel mines of Kingerike, all of which are at present being
worked.

The rocks in which the fahlbands of Kongsberg occur are
gneiss, mica schist and hornblende schist ; other rocks, such as
granite, talc schist and chlorite-schist, granitic gneiss and green-
stones occur also in the immediate neighbourhood. Seven differ-
ent fahlbands or groups of fahlbands have been recognized as
existing in these rocks around Kongsberg, on every one of which,
at some time or other since the year 1623, more or less mining
has taken place. The two fahlbands which have been most mi-
nutely examined, have an average thickness, respectively, of 200
feet and 1100 feet. The impregnating sulphurets are iron pyrites,
magnetic and copper pyrites ; some of which appear to be argen-
tiferous, since the fahlband itself contains one-eighth of an ounce
silver per cwt. These fahlbands are intersected throughout the
whole extent, about six miles, by numerous veins containing gen-

in Norway and i? Canada, 9

erally calcspar, fluorspar, quartz arid metalJic silver, and more
sparingly, bitterspar, stilbite, prehnit/ harmotome, laumontite,
anthracite, fibrous pyroxene, chrysi Je, asbestus, actinolite,
axinite, adularia, and perhaps albite, auriferous silver, metallic
gold, horn silver, metallic arsenic, silver glance, red silver ore,
galena, blende, magnetic, iron, and copper pyrites. These cross
veins are exceedingly well developed within the fiihlband, but
beyond its limits they exhibit little distinctness or regularity, and
moreover are totally destitute of silver. They do not however,
while intersecting the fahlband, uniformly contain that valuable
metal ; on the contrary its occurrence there is almost as uncertain
as that of a valuable ore in any other lode, but only within the limits
of the fahlband can one expect to find it. The only rule which
seems to have been ascertained to exist with regard to its distri-
bution in the vein, within the fahlbands, is this — that where the
latter is most strongly charged with the impregnating sulphurets,
the vein at that point is richest in silver.

Such are the characters of the Kongsberg silver veins, striking
examples of the influence which the wall-rocks exert on the con-
tents of metallic lodes, and little liable to be neglected in theories
regarding the filling of such. The connection between the
pyritous impregnation of the fahlbands, and the argentiferous con-
tents of the veins, necessitates the deduction that the silver has
been derived from the pyrites, and as these have been found to
be arjxentiferous, the deduction assumes the character of a fact
itself. As to the mode in which the silver has been secreted
various opinions may exist ; the most probable appears to me to
be the following : —

Through gradual contact with the waters containing oxygen,
percolating through the rocks, the sulphurets, especially the
iron pyrites, were decomposed, sulphates of protoxide and peroxide
of iron, and sulphate of protoxide of silver being the results.
The first named salt would be produced in the earlier stages
of the decomposition, and removed ; the two latter salts, pro-
duced towards the end of the process, can exist simultaneously
in solution. On reaching the fissure. thus, in solution, they were
met by some agent capable of precipitating the silver of the sul-
phate. The agent which seems to me to have accomplished this,
is the sulphate of protoxide of iron, already alluded to as a pro-
duct of the decomposition of the pyrites. The precipitation of
silver salts by a solution of copperas, is a well known chemical rcac-

10 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

tion, the products being metallic silver and sulphate of peroxide of
iron.

The number of veins intersecting the fahlbands at Kongsberg
is very great indeed. While the mines belonged to the Danish
government, almost the whole of them received some share of
attention, an extensive but rather desultory system of mining
thus resulting. Since the Norwegian government undertook the
working of the mines in 1812, a different system has been
pursued, rather the other extreme, of working at too few points.
Only three veins, those of Kongen's Gruhe, Armen Gruhe, and
Gottes-Hillfe-in-der-Noth, have been the subject of raining ex-
plorations. However this may be, the mining of the last twenty
to thirty years has been eminently successful, and a source of
considerable revenue to the Norwegian government. On account
of the shortness of the veins, their exploration is pursued
chiefly downwards, but as yet, in going downwards, no dimi-
nution in richness has been observed. On the contrary, large
masses of metallic silver, similar to those which obtained for,
the mines their celebrity in earlier times, have been recently
found. These large masses are of course the exception, the
most of the silver which is produced being separated from
the vein-stone, in breaking it up, after its extraction from the
mines. A large portion is also obtained in the stamping and
washing of middle and poor ores at the mines, and in the same
operations considerable quantities of more or less argentiferous
schlichs and shmes are produced. The whole of these products
are farther treated in the smelting-house in Kongsberg. The
poorer slimes and schlichs, containing from f to 1^ oz. per cwt.,
are smelted with about one-and-a-half times their own weight of
a basic slag, containing very much ferrous oxide, from a subsequent
smelting, and about half their own weight of iron pyrites. The re-
sulting products are a regulusof sulphuret of iron, containing 3j
or 4* oz. of silver per cwt., and slags, containing -^-^ oz. silver, which
are set aside as useless. The raw regulus is roasted' in heaps, and
then smelted with one-and-a-half times its weight of rich slags
from subsequent operations, containing from 8 to 9 oz. of silver.
The regulus from this operation, as it is drawn off from the fur-
nace into the crucible outside, is there stirred up with molten
lead, poor in silver. From this results argentiferous lead (which is
used over again in the same way, until it contains from 8j to 10
per cent silver,) and a lead regulus (sulphurets of iron, lead and

in Norway and in Canada. 11

silver), containing of silver, 14 oz., per cwt. The slag from this
second operation is what is used in the raw smelting. The
lumps of metallic iron formed at the same time, and called iron
swine, are worked up with the lead regulus, by being smelted
together with the litharge and the hearths from the cupellation of
the argentiferous lead. This operation produces lead containing
only from 1^ to 2 per cent, silver, which is used in the treatment
of the argentiferous regulus, as described above.

The lead regulus from this last smelting, which contains from 6
to 20 oz. of silver per cwt. is again smelted with lead,
and its silver content is thus brought down to 4 or 6 ounces. It
is then roasted and smelted with its own weight of poor slags
containing 6 to 8 oz. of silver, when there results lead containing
4 to 5 lbs. of silver per cwt., which goes to the second operation ;
together with slags which are used in the first operation ; and a
copper regulus, containing 1 per cent silver, and 20 to 30 percent
copper. The latter is repeatedly smelted and treated with poor
lead, until it contains not more than J oz. silver per cwt., when
it is roasted and smelted to black copper.

The lead from the second operation, containing from 8^ to 10
per cent of silver, is cupelled in a German cupelling hearth, in which
operation, hot air is used with great advantage. The resulting silver,
and the rich silver ores from the mines, are refined in a furnace some-
what like the English cupelling furnace, the hearth of which rests on
a well-arranged carriage, on which, after the operation is completed,
the hearth is lowered on the one side, and the silver poured into
the moulds standing prepared for it. The sweepings of this re-
finery, and the furnace hearths, are carefully smelted in a
small furnace, and the products worked up, according to their
contents in silver, in one or other of the operations already des-
cribed.

The Eker copper mine consists of an irregular mass of iron and
copper pyrites, situated on the strike of a fahlband, part of the
impregnated rock of which is found to be so richly impregnated
with copper pyrites as to be worth smelting. The ores are
brought up by hand-picking at the mines, to about four per cent.
They are then carted about four miles to the smelting house, where
they are roasted in heaps. The roasted ore, with the addition of
a little limestone, is smelted in shaft furnaces. The resulting re-
gulus, of about 16 per cent, is concentrated by being again roasted
and smelted, yielding a regulus of from 40 to 50 per cent. This

12 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

when again roasted and smelted produces black copper, which,
being refined on the small hearth to gahr copper, is sold in Chris-
tiania or Hamburg.

The cobalt mine of Skuterud occurs on a fahlband, which has
been traced about five miles, the rock being a quartzose mica
schist. Layers of impregnated hornblende and actinolite schists
are also of frequent occurrence. The rocks run north and
south, and have a dip nearly vertical; sometimes inclined slightly
to the east, sometimes to the west. In these rocks the following
metallic minerals have been observed ; magnetic, iron and
copper pyrites, characterising the fahlband ; cobalt glance, co-
baltine, cobaltiferous mispickel, magnetic iron ore, graphite, and
molybdenite are found more sparingly, impregnating the fahl-
band at certain places. These latter minerals do not occur
in veins, but they are sometimes associated with quartz. They
seem to form rather a succession of small layers, running parallel
with the foliation of the rock. They are by no means generally
distributed through the fahlband, and it has only been by taking
out the whole mass of this, that the cobaltiferous portions
have been jrot at hitherto. The fahlband itself has a breadth

o

of from one to five fathoms, and it seems, toward the north,
to be divided into two difi"erent bands, separated from each
other by a large mass of dead rock. The mines were discovered
in lt''72, and have since been uninterruptedly worked, notwith-
standing an extraordinary decrease in the value of the products.
The treatment of the ores, as at present pursued, is as follows.
The rocks are broken and sorted into rich and common
ores. In the treatment of the smalls by means of a fall
wash-work, washed ore of a very small size is produced, besides
the above sorts. The whole of this ore is so finely disseminated,
that it can only be advantageously treated by stamping and
washing. The stamping mill is of the construction used in
Saxony. The resulting stamp meal and slimes are concentrated
first on percussion and then on sleeping tables. The rich ore
treated in this manner yields per ton 86^ lbs. of fichlich, contain-
ing 17.96 lbs. metallic cobalt. The common ore yields per ton
29 lbs. of schlich, containing 1.88 lbs. of cobalt. The poorer
schlichs are further concentrated by being partly roasted, and
smelted with an addition of some limestone and slag. The
resulting slag is set aside. The regulus (sulpharseniurets of
iron, cobalt and copper,) containing about 22 per cent metallic

in

NorwaTf and in Canada, 13

cobalt, is roasted in reverberatory furnaces, and being mixed with
the richer schlichs, which have also been calcined in the same
way, forms what is called zafFre, containing about 30 per cent
cobalt oxide. This is sent to market in England, where it is ma-
nufactured into cobalt oxide and smalt. A small quantity of the
former product is manufactured on the spot in the humid way,
but this quantity does not exceed one sixth of the whole amouct
of the cobalt oxide here produced in manufactured and unmanufac-
tured products. '^)'

The fahlbands in the neighbourhood of Ertelien, and Ringerike,
have not been so carefully studied as those of Kongsberg and
and Skuterud ; nevertheless it admits of no doubt, that the nickel
mines of the former locality occur on impregnated zones of
rock like the fahlbands. The deposits are irregular masses of
magnetic iron pyrites containing two per cent of metallic nickel.
Although a definite veinstone is not observable, it appears from
the presence of selvages in various places, that the deposits par-
take of the nature of veins. Besides the nickeliferous pyrites,
copper pyrites is produced at the mines in some quantity, but
so contaminated w^ith the former, as to be altogether useless
as a copper ore. Occasionally, beautiful crystals of iron pyrites
(pentagonal dodecahedrons), have been found, containing two
per cent of metallic cobalt. The nickeliferous pyrites is sorted
out at the mine, very pure, almost entirely free from rock.
It is then roasted in heaps, and smelted in a shaft furnace
with the addition of a little limestone. The resulting products
are a very heavy slag, with is a basic silicate of ferrous oxide ; a
regulus of sulphuret of iron, containing about six per cent nickel,
and iron swine, which collect in the interior of the furnace during
the smelting, and interfere very much with its proper working.
The regulus is again roasted in heaps and smelted, a more con-
centrated regulus with thirty per cent of nickel, resulting. The
regulus, as well as the iron swine produced in both smeltings, are
farther refined on a hearth similar to that used on the continent
for refining copper. A farther scorification of iron takes place in
this operation, and a regulus with fifty per cent of nickel and fifteen
per cent of copper results, which after being ground to powxler, is
sent to market. It is mostly sent to Hamburg and sold to Ger-
man nickel refiners. These mines were formerly wrought, and the
pyrites roasted for the manufacture of copperas ; it is only during
the last fourteen years that they have been wrought for nickel.

14 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

Besides the four establishments here described, which are
in full operation, there are a good many deposits connected with
fahlbands, which are either abandoned, or have not as yet been
worked. Of these the fallowing may be mentioned — the cobalt
mines of Svartefield, very similar in character to those of Skuterud,
the copper works in Sognedalen, and on Kobberbergselven.
There are also numerous localities of pyrites containing small
quantities of nickel or cobalt, or both. The magnetic pyrites from
Hoiassen contains three per cent of nickel and six tenths per cent of
cobalt; that from E-ustand, six tenths per cent of nickel and one per
cent of cobalt ; that from Olafsbye one per cent of cobalt, and the
iron pyrites from Satersberg one per cent of cobalt.

There are however other deposits of pyrites in this formation,
whose connection with fahlbands is more uncertain. Such
localities for instance are those of Meinkier Grube, containing
copper pyrites, nickeliferous magnetic pyrites and cobaltiferous
iron pyrites ; and Steenstrup's Kiesgrube, on Lyngdalselven, con-
taining the same minerals. Dahll* looks upon these as contact de-
posits, and connects them with the intrusion of so-called gabbro.

Closely allied in nature to the fahlbands above described are
certain other zones of impregnated rock, occuring in this forma-
tion. The impregnating material, however, is magnetic iron ore,
the bands containing which scarcely possess such a length in
the direction of the strike, as the fahlbands. Moreover the
magnetic iron ore, besides occurring in this finely divided state,
forms considerable beds in the impregnated zones referred to. It
is from these deposits that the iron works of Sweden and Norway
are supplied with the material from which their celebrated iron is
prepared. These deposits are of frequent occurrence in the south
of Norway, especially in the neighbourhood of Arendal, where
there exist eighteen different beds of ore, which well repay the
cost of working them. They are situated in a narrow straight
zone, which runs parallel with the coast for a distance of six
miles. The prevailing rock is gneiss, which graduates into mica
and hornblende slate. The ore is magnetic oxyd, usually
without any admixture of ferric oxide. The minerals most fre-
quently accompanying it are augito, hornblende, garnet, epidote,
calcspar, and the three essential constituents of the gneiss, espe-
cially mica. Besides these, about thirty other minerals have
been mentioned as having been found in the deposits, but these are

* Om Kongsberg's Erts District ; Christiana, 1860.

in Norway and in Canada, 15

of rarer occurrence. The masses of ore appear flattened,
almond-shaped, and drawn out parallel with the foliation of
the enclosing rock. In the direction of the strike, they thin out,
or branch off and disappear. Their average thickness is from
two to six yards, but it sometimes reaches twenty yards. The
iron works of Ulefoss, Fossum, Froland, Nas and others, are all
more or less dependent on these deposits for their ores. The si-
tuations of these iron works seem to have been chosen, less with a
view to economically transporting the ore, than to taking advan-
tage of the magnificent water powers, which exist everywhere in
Norway. The fuel is charcoal, mostly from pine, and it has also
to be carted considerable distances. The blast furnaces used, are
partly similar to those used in Sweden, and partly to those used
in Germany. They are thirty feet high, from four to four and a
half feet wide at top, and from seven to eight at their widest part.
The percentage of metallic iron contained in the mixture to be
smelted, ranges from 25 to 42 per cent, and the average production
of raw iron from a furnace is 2^ tons daily. l| tons of charcoal
are consumed in the production of one ton of iron. The refining
takes place on what are called " frisch hearths," and hammers are
used in the further mechanical treatment of the resulting lumps of
malleable iron. The iron produced, is like the Swedish, celebrated
for its purity. It is shipped to Hamburg, and from thence
mostly to America.

Large quantities of titaniferous iron ore occur at Ekersund and
Snarum ; that from the former locality contains 43 per cent of ti-
tanic acid. Phosphate of lime has also been worked and exported
from the neighbourhood of Kragero. With these I must close
this sketch of the economical minerals of the primitive gneiss
formation of Xorwa}', and turn to compare it in its various features
with that of Canada.

The parallelism of the Laurentian formation of Canada with
the gneiss of Scandinavia was long ago pointed out by Sir "William
Logan, and in the more recent reports of the Geological Survey,
especially those of 1853-56, we find the features of the Canadian
formation fully described. The rocks there occurring are essen-
tially the same as those of Norway. Keilhau's characteristic
gneiss corresponds to the granitic or micaceous gneiss of Canada,
and the hornblende gneiss of Norway is the syenitic or hornblen-
dic gneiss of the Laurentian formation. Even the e^je gneiss
variety appears to exist here, and from the description, to be syno-

1 6 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

nymous with the reticulated gneiss. In corroboration of this I take
the liberty of quoting the following remarks of Sir William
Logan: — " In the Reports of the Survey, the Laurentian rocks
have been described in general terms, as gneiss, interstratified
with important masses of crystalline limestone. The term
gneiss, strictly defined, signifies a granite with its elements,
quartz, feldspar and mica, arranged in parallel planes, and con-
taining a larger amount of mica than ordinary granite pos-
sesses, giving to the rock a schistose or lamellar structure.
"When hornblende, instead of mica, is associated with quartz and
feldspar, the rock is termed syenite, but as there is no distinct
specific single name for a rock containing these elements in a
lamellar arrangement, it receives the appellation of syenitic
gneiss. Gneiss rock then becomes divided into two kinds,
granitic and syenitic gneiss, and the word gneiss would thus ap-
pear rather to indicate the lamellar arrangement than the min-
eral composition. Granitic and syenitic gneiss were the terms
applied to these rocks in the first Reports ; but as granite and
syenite are considered rocks of igneous origin, and the epithets
derived from them might be supposed to have a theoretical re-
ference to such an origin of the gneiss, while at the same time
it appears to me that the Laurentian series are altered sedimen-
tary rocks, the epithets micaceous and hornblendic, have been
given to the gneiss in later Reports, as the- best mode of de-
signating the mineral composition and lamellar arrrangement,
without any reference whatever to the supposed origin of the
rocks. (Report 1853-56, pp. 49 and 50.)

Further " The space between them (the bands of limestone)
is occupied by gneiss, the banded structure of which is vis-
ible in a vast number of places, but a large part of the rock is
coarse grained ; the feldspar being in individuals, frequently at-
taining an inch and sometimes more in diameter, while the mica-
and the quartz, often accompanied by hornblende, and the former
sometimes replaced by it, are distributed among the feldspar in
such a manner as to give a reticulated aspect to the surface.
Beds of this character are sometimes thin, but when thick and
massive, which they usually are, they might upon a first inspec-
tion be mistaken for igneous instead of altered rocks. Upon a
careful study of the case, however, it will be perceived that this
reticulated structure is accompanied by an obscure arrangement
of the meshes of the net-work, into parallel lines, which are found

in Norway and in Canada, 17

to be conformable with tbe more distinctly banded portion of the
strata." {Ibid, p. 9-10.)

Besides gneiss, the following rocks are mentioned as occurring
in the Laurentian system. A crystalline aggregate of feld-
spar and quartz, granite in veins, mica and hornblende schists, chlo-
ritic gneiss, quartz-rock or quartzite, hypersthenite, serpentine,
crystalline limestone, greenstone, hornblende rock, besides syenite
and porphyry, which latter intrusive rocks however belono- to a
later period. These rocks are, on the whole, the same as those
occurring in the primitive gneiss formation of Norway. Granite
however does not seem to occur iu masses running parallel with
the other rocks, unless we include under this denomination the
above mentioned crystalline aggregate of feldspar and quartz.
The hypersthene rocks described by Mr. Hunt in his inte-
resting Report 1855, seem to be of a character similar to
those occurring in Norway, and there described as gabbro and
euphotide, however much the latter rocks, in their true types,
differ from hypersthenite. The confusion existing among mine-
ralogists regarding the nature of these rocks seems still to prevail^
notwithtanding the able and exhaustive work of Mr, Hunt on the
subject. As a proof of this, I may refer to a recent paper by
Dahll on the ore district of Kongsberg, where there is a rock
described as gabbro, which is composed of " violet or brownish
labradorite and dark green hornblende. The color is that of the
hornblende, consequently dark. Diallage, which is known by its
shining lustre, is perhaps oftener present than has hitherto been
demonstrated ; ilmenite is characteristic ; and magnetic pyrites oc.
curs frequently ; with these, a little brown mica is frequently re-
marked." Oni Kongsberg^ s Erts District, p. 16, Gabbro is
commonly described as " a crystalline, granular or sometimes
schistose mixture of feldspar or saussurite with diallage orsraarag-
dite ;" Cotta : Gesteinslehre, p. 53. It is diflScult to conceive how
the above described rock resembles gabbro ; unless as Dahl furth-
er remarks concerning it, "labradorite is decisive of gabbro."*

(Editor's note, by T. Stebry Hunt.)

* The name of gabbro, originally employed by the Italians to desig-
nate a diallagic serpentine, is, by most modern authors, applied to a
rock composed of a tricliuic feldspar (such as labradorite) with pyroxene.
When the latter is of the variety called hypersthene, the rock takes the
name of hyperite or hypersthenite, but when it assumes the form of dial,
lage or of smaragdite, the name of gabbro is given to the rock. In smar-
Can, Nat. 2 ^ Vol. VU.

18 Macfarlane on the Frimitive Formations

The serpentines of the Laurentian formation, are described by Mr.
Hunt as of a paler colour than those of the raetamorphic series*
He failed to detect either nickel or clirome in them,and in his exam-
ination of a serpentine said to be from Modum in Norway, (proba-
bly that of Snarum, from its being associated with ilmenite), these
metals were also absent. This is consequently another point
of resemblance between the serpentines of the Laurentian formation
and those of the Norwegian gneiss formation, distinguishing both
of them from the serpentines of the metamorphic series. The crys-
talline limestones of the Laurentian formation appear to be much
more frequent, and more regularly interstratified than those of the
Noiweo-ian gneiss formation, and this is one of the features in
which a difference is remarkable between the two formations.
In the Laurentian, as in the Norwegian gneiss formation,
the gneiss is the prevailing rock, and interstratified with most of
the rocks above mentioned. The strike of the strata of the Lau-
rentian formation is most generally N. E. and S. W; or W. N. E-
and S. S. AV. and the dip much inclined, though perhaps gene-
rally less so than ihose of the Norwegian gneiss formation.

With regard to the economic minerals of the Laurentian form-
ation, the existence of falilbands similar to those of Norway seems
to be uncertain. Still we find in the Geological Reports, descrip-
tions of red-weathering rocks, which bear no slight resemblance
to them, and should they be found to possess the character of
fahlbands, a search for economic minerals in connection with
them, would most like'y be successful, because the metalli-
ferous area is limited and well defined. The colour of the rock
would assist in tracing it along its strike, and any veins cros-
sing it or occurring in it would be easily recognised. Whether
the pyrites of Daillebout occurs in connection with a fahl-

agdite we have an intimate mixture of pyroxene with hornblende, afiford-
inga transition to rocks composed of triclinic feldspars and hornblende ;
ia other words to diorite and diabase. Those rocks which consist of
such feldspars, with diallage or hypersthene, I arrange under the generic
name of dolerite. When the feldspar in these predominates, and is gran-
ular or compact, including masses of diallage, the rock has been in-
correctly called euphotide. This name was originally given by Haiiy
to a mixture of diallage or smaragdite with what he called saussurite,
a mineral which by modern lithologists has been strangely confounded
with compact feldspar, from which it is distinguished by its much great-
er gravity and hardness, and is, as I have elsewhere shown, a compact
zoisite or epidote. The true epidotic euphotides however sometimes in-

in Norway and in Canada. 19

band is uncertain ; looking to the character of the mineral, which
contains nickel and cobalt equivalent to 0*55 per cent of the
oxides of these metals, I think it is very probable. The cobalti-
ferous pyrites of Brockville seems, on the other hand, to be an in-
dependent deposit, seeing that it occurs in such extraordinary
quantity. I found the compact variety to contain metallic cobalt
corresponding to 0.50 per cent cobalt oxide. This result was con-
firmed by Mr. Himt, who found O'o2 per cent. In the neighbour-
hood of the copper mine of Escott, I found no traces of anything
resembling fahlbands, so that I am inclined to parallelize this
locality with the pyritiferous deposits above described as oc-
curring at Meinkier and Lyngdalselven, independent of the fahl-
bands. In no particular does the Laurentian formation so much
resemble the primitive gneiss formation of Norway, as in containing
those enormous deposits of magnetic iron ore, which occur in the
townships of Madoc, Marmora, Crosby, Hull, (fee. In extent
however, the Canadian deposits far surpass the Norwegian.
In like manner, the deposits of titaniferous iron of Bay
St. Paul far surpass .in extent those of Snarum and Ekeisund.
The phosphate of lime of Burgess and Elinsley, differs from the
deposits of the same mineral in Norway, in being associated with
crystalline limestone, and in occurring in far greater quantities.

I have thus endeavoured, as far as my knowledge of Canadian
geology permits, to parallelize the various features of the Lauren-
tian and primitive gneiss formations. Doubtless many who are
more intimntely acquainted with the geology of this country will
be able to recognize further points of resemblance, and in view of
this possibiUty, I have described the Norwegian formation at
greater lengih. I shall be guided by the same considerations in
describing the two other groups of rocks which I have yet to
compare with their Canadian equivalents. I cannot however

elude triclinic feldspars, and thus pass into diallagic dolerite or gabbro.
The feldspathic rocks of the Laurentian system, above referred to, consist
of labradorite, andesine, or some relatedfeldspar, and often include pyrox-
ene, which from a variety like sahlite, passes into hyperstheneaud dial-
lage, giving rise to hypersthenite, and to the incorrectly named gabbro
and euphotide of most modern lithologists. The rock from Kongsberg,
as above described by Dahll, except in the substitution of hornblende
for pyroxene, agrees closely with a variety of diallagic dolerite common
in the Laurentian series. For further illustrations of this subject,
see a paper on Euphotide and Saussurite, in Silliman's Journal of Science
for March 1859.

20 Hev. A. F. Kemp on the Shore Zones of

leave tliis division of my subject, without referring to one impor-
tant difference which exists between Norway and Canada, in re-
gard to the economic minerals of this group.

In the former country, despite its comparative poverty, those
deposits are well developed. In Canada they remain dead and
unproductive. Why they should be so, it is difficult to say.
Canada has the advantage of Norway in having richer mineral
deposits, better means of transport by its canals and railways, and
a much greater command of capital. With regard to fuel, both
charcoal and imported coal, it is equally as well situated as Nor-
way, and although labour is much dearer than in the latter
country, there is every prospect of this disadvantage becoming
less considerable. The severity of the winter presents no greater
hindrances to mining in Canada than in Norway,. and Canada is
rapidly acquiring the skilled labour essential for successful min-
ing. In view of these considerations therefore, one may hope
that the great accumulation of economic minerals in Canada will
soon become one of her most important sources of national

wealth.

{Tote continued.)

ARTICLE l\.— On the Shore Zones and Limits of Marine
Plants on the North Eastern Coast of the United States.
By the Rev. Alex. F. Kemp.
(Readbefore the Botanical Society of Canada, at Kingston.)
While spending a vacation, during the month of August, 186],
at Peak's Island, in the State of Maine, and Bay of Casco,
it was a special and very profitable amusement of mine, to note
the botanical features of that region of country. The season was
too far advanced to find many of the beautiful land plants which
have their special home in the Northern United States. The
Kahnia angustifolia was out of flower, and its branches covered
with seed. The fragrant Myrica cerifera w2iS m a similar con-
dition. The Rosa blanda, though here very abundant, was out
of season. Gerardia maritima was in fine condition, and in one
or two swampy localities near the shore, very abundant. Along
with it, but more generally diffused, Spiranthes gracilis, grew in
beautiful profusion, and shed forth its delicate lily fragrance.
In one locality I found the pretty blue Trichostema dichotomum,
and in another the curious little Pine weed Hypericum Sarothra,
Other plants common to Ccinada and the United States flourished

Marine Flanti on the N. E, United States. 21

in much profusion. I also collected, and figured in my note
book, fifty one species of the larger fungi, some of them very
beautiful and curious. The chief field of my researches was,
however, in the department of marine plants. These were speci-
ally interesting to me as I had not before had sufiScient opportu-
nity of personally examining their peculiar habits and growth in
the United States. I first sought out the best localities in which
to collect good specimens ; afterwards I made a collection of all
the plants that could be found at this season of the year. I was
somewhat disappointed at the limited number of species which
the coast afforded, and believe that, from some cause or other,
there was a short crop that season of many of the more delicate
and beautiful forms. The Fuci were, however, in great perfec-
tion, and astonishing profusion. The rocks were everywhere
clothed with their dark and mottled drapery, and on the shores
of every little bay they lay in dense aud matted beds, in which
were mingled such other species of Algae, and of animals, as in-
habit the rocks of the sea coast.

It occurred to me that it would be a pleasant and an interest-
ing occupation to note the lines or zones upon the rocks and
shores at which the various plants found a special home, and
the limits to which they were accustomed to travel. A very cur-
sory survey convinced me that each plant had its favorite shore
region within which it grew to perfection, and beyond which it
either ceased to grow, or became dwarfed in its form. I was
aware that all the Hand Books on the Algce had noted the special
localities of each species, whether it grew at high or low water
mark, at half tide or in deep water ; but T was not aware that in
any of the books, shore lines and limits of plant growth had been
made the subject of special treatment. This subject may be re-
garded as a minor branch of the important enquiry as to the
geographical distribution of plants. It is akin to the phenomena
of the vertical distribution of land plants, on the slopes and peaks
of mountains. Perhaps, something interesting may come of the
observations which leisure and opportunity permitted me to make
at Peak's Island. I am far from thinking that my knowledge of
the subject is yet so complete as to entitle me to speak with any
degree of confidence upon it. All scientific observers know that
a first survey of any subject is almost necessarily imperfect in its
details, and that these can only be fully worked out by repeated
examinations under every variety of circumstance. A beginning

22 Rev. A. F. Kemp on the Shore Zones oj

must however be made of the induction of particulars, if any sa-
tisfactory conclusions are to be reached, in this as in every other
branch of scientific enquiry. What I have to say at this time
on this subject, imperfect though it must be, may yet, as a be-
ginning, and so far as it goes, be suflSciently accurate to afford
rehable information to those who have not made this branch of
botany their study; it may also, as a starting point, lead to fur-
ther observations in the same field on the part of those who are
adepts in the sub-kingdom of Sea- Weeds.

The tides along the Atlantic shores of the United States rise
about fifteen or twenty feet, and in their range atford a fine field
of research for the naturalist. This tidal shore I would divide into
six distinct zones.

I. The Drift or beach Zone.

II. The Ulva Zone.

III. The Fucus Zone.

IV. The Laminaria Zone.
V. The Chondrus Zone.

VI. The Deep sea Zone.

I. The Drift Zone.

The first of these is not properly a zone of vegetation. Nothing
grows in it, to my knowledge, excepting millions of sea lice. It is
however important to the amateur collector. Here the waves drive
up masses of all the kinds of sea-weeds which the coast affords.
After a storm from the ocean no better field of research can be
resorted to for fine specimens of Algre. Ladies who are in search
of " mosses " for ornamental work, need go no farther to find all
that they want, than to this line on the beach. Timid collectors
too, who fear to wet their feet in the pools, or to hazard their
limbs on the slippery rocks of the lower shore, will find enough
to fill their wallets at zone number one. I note it chiefly for the
benefit of young collectors, and to point out to them, that in pro-
secuting the study of marine plants, they may, through the po-
tent agencies of the waves and the tides, do so without the least
inconvenience to themselves.

II. The Ulva Zone.

I call this zone by the name of the beautiftil green Ulva^ be-
cause this genus of plants has its chief habitat in the warm
pools and on the rocks which are found a little below high water
mark, 'the whole order Ulvacece^ indeed, flourish best in this
locality over the wide geographical limits within which it is

Marine Plants on the N. E, United States. 23

found. Here almost all its species grow to their greatest per-
fection, both as to quality and quantity. A reason for this may
be that the bright green color which distinguishes most of the
species requires a larger amount of sun light for its production
than the olive, and red-colored plants require which inhabit lower
zones and deeper water. The color of those plants of the order
Ulvacece which travel into deep water, is for the most part of a
darker hue than tbose which grow in shallow places. I have
also noted that the color of specimens from the tropical and subtro-
pical regions is more brilliant and permanent than is that of plants
iu the colder regions of the north. Some of the species of this or-
der have besides a special love for fresh water, either in the shape
of land drainage or of shallow streams. Enteromorpha clathrata
for example may often be seen travelling far up fresh water
rivulets.

In this zone Ulva lotissima is found in great abundance and
beauty. Wherever pools of water are left by the tide this plant
finds a happy home ; rejoicing in the heat and light of the sun it
spreads out its broad ruffled fronds, with a gentle undulating mo-
tion in the water. It is often gemmed with glistening glubules
of eliminated oxygen, thus purifying the wa^ er and contributing
both to the health and shelter of the innumerable animals which
live in the same pools. I did not find Ulva Linza here, although
it is found abundantly on other parts of the coast. The Ulva
passes readily down into deeper water, and maybe found on rocks
and in the pools of the third zone, but although it grows well
there it is yet neither so beautiful nor so luxuriant as it is in its
own natural home.

The most abundant genus however of the order Ulvacea? to be
found in this zone is that of Enteromorpha. I found the four
species, E. intestinalis, E. comjjressa^ E. clathrata and E. Hojj-
kirkii with their various forms growing in profusion in the pools,
and on the shores on places where fresh water was ])resent. The
upper part of their fronds float on the surfaces of the pools, after
the manner of fresh water confervse, and are, like them, inflated
by the oxygen which their fronds rapidly eliminate. The api-
cies of these plants are frequently blanched and much decayed
from exposure, their color is also of a lighter and more yellowish
tinge than is that of the Ulva. The last species E. Hopkirkli is
rare both in America and in Europe, and is readily known by the
confervoid articulation of its ramulae. Along with these, an 1 firmly

24 Rev. A. F. Kemp on the Shore Zones of

adhering to the rocks, clumps of Cladophora rupestris, C.uncialis^
and C. Jiexuosa were found. Masses of the bright green and gelat-
inous Hormotrichum Younganum were also found adhering to the
edges of the rocks. These plants have a considerable range of
growth and some of the Cladophorse may be found in fine condi-
tion as far down as the lower limits of the third zone, but there
. they assume a deeper green color and stronger texture. Entangled
among other plants, the dark green crisp and tortuous Ghcetomor'
pha litorea finds also a home. This plant has however a consi-
derable range of growth, and is not specially abundant in any
place only it does not grow in very deep water or far down on
the shore. Of the £Jnte7'omorpha it may be remarked that it is
very troublesome to the fishermen, as it infests the bottoms of the
boats, and greatly retards their progress in sailing. It adheres to
them with great tenacity, and in an incredible short space of time,
covers them with a perfect foi-est of long green fronds. The
only remedy for this pest is frequent scraping, burning and tar-
ring.

In this second zone there are found, besides, stragglers from the
zone beneath.

The chief and most notable of these is a dwarf species of
Facus. It grows in the corners aud crevices of the water pools,
and travels very little beyond the Ulva Zone. In its dry state it
has much the appearance of a Bictyota, but in its fresh condition
it is thick and feathery as a Facus. It may be a dwarf form of
Fucus vesiculosus^ but in no case did I either find air vessels or
terminal receptacles upon it. It had always the same appearance :
a plain narrow frond with a slender midrib frequently bifurcating
in a dichotomus manner. Its colour is a pale olive. Hervey
does not notice this plant in his Nereis Borealis but in his Manual
he describes a plant of the same kind as a variety of Fucus vesicu-
losus under the name of F. Balticus, stating at the same time
that it is probably a depauperised condition of F vesiculosus. It
may be so, but I was not able to trace the connection between the
two by intermediate forms. I am disposed to think that it is enti-
tled to a specific name, and that it may retain that of F. Balticus,
Dwarf specimens of Fucus nodosus are also found creeping up
into this zone, but regarding these no doubt can be entertained.
Their linear form and occasionally inflated fronds sufiiciently
indicate their connection and origin. The rocks are also covered
with a soft velvety green substance apparently made up of a

Marine Plants on the N. E. United States, 25

species of a confervoid plant and a very small Diatom. These I
"was not able to examine in their fresh state under a high power
of the microscope, and in the dry state I find the confervoid plant
altogether broken up and without form.
III. The Fucus Zone.

This third zone I would divide into three distinct sub-zones :

(1) The nodosus.

(2) The vesiculosus.

(3) The furcatus.

(1 ) The first or uppermostof these is almost exclusively occupied
with Fucus nodosus. This plant grows to great perfection on the
Atlantic coast of America. It has a range as far south as New
York Bay. Every where it is found within this region fringing
the shores and the rocks near high water mark. For its proper
growth it requires evidently a measure of dryness, a good deal of
light, and showers of rain. It is the hardiest of all the Fuci, and
may be found in a depauperised state high up in fresh water
creeks, or in rivulets. It is a hard dark olive and ribless plant»
easily known by its slightly petioled and club-shaped branchlets,
and by the large bladder-like air vessels formed by the inflation
of its fronds, with which it is crowded. On this coast it covers a
belt of shore of from one to three yards in breadth. It is fre-
quently covered with Ceramium ruhrum. In manyplaces so densely
does this parasite grow upon it, that it gives quite a feature to
the plant.

(2) In the next sub-zone Fucus vesiculosus grows in great
profusion. It seems to retain more water among its fronds than
the previous more leathery plant. It is easily known by its
broader ribbed frond, its air vessels, occurring frequently in paii-s,
and by the viscid character of its terminal receptacles. This
plant is also.infested with Ceramium^ rubrum\\\%OY)iQ of its many
varieties, with C.fastigiatum and sometimes also with the parasitic
plants Elachista fucicola and Ectocarpus siliculosus. It occupies a
space on the shore of from one to three yards in breadth, com-
pletely covering with its wet and slimy fronds, the rocks upon
which it grows.

(3) Fucus furcatus. — Occupies the chief place in this sub-zone,
and is unquestionably the most beautiful and graceful of the three.
Harvey remarks in his Nereis Borealis, that he is unacquainted
with this species. We wonder at this, as it is a very abundant
and remarkable plant on the coast of Maine. He describes it on

S6 Rev» A, F* Kemp on the Shore Zones of

tlie authority of Aghardh under this name " as having a com-
** pressed stipes expanding into a linear dichotomus ribbed /rowc? ;
*' margin very entire ; air vessels none ; receptacles elongate,
** linear, flattish repeatedly forked, three inches in length, scarcely
** thicker than the frond, and tapering towards the apices." This
plant is found at the ordinary low water raark and is scarcely
«ver altogether out of the water. It retains a great deal of water
in its meshes, as the fronds, lying flat upon one another, do
not permit the water to escape. It is of a lighter olive color in
the water than the other plants of the genus. It measures from
1 to 2 1 feet in length, and is remarkably strong and firmly at-
tached to the lock by Its discoid root. Waving gracefully in the
rising or falling tide, or lashed by the angry waves, it presents an
interesting and beautiful appearance. Under its folds a variety
of Chondrus^ like that described as C, Norvegicus in Hervey*s
Manual, is found in great abundance, adhering to the rocks. The
•curious plant called Gigartina mamillosa^ but which seems in all
its features more allied to Chondrus than to Oigartina, finds
a secure habitation under its dense folds. On the lower part of its
stems Machisfa fucicola grows in great profusion affording a
byssoid ornamentation to that portion of the plant.

There can be no doubt that these three plants occupy always
the same relative positions to one another in which they are here
found. The line of division may not, it is true, be so well marked
as are the lines of garden plots ; to some extent indeed they
mingle at their boundaries ; but there are considerable centrcg
in which they are found in great luxuriance, and in which no
other allied species grow. F. nodosus is the hardiest of all the
Fuci, and from its thicker and more leathery character can best
withstand the drying influences of the atmosphere and the sun.
These are indeed the conditions in which it grows to its fullest
dimensions, F. vesiculosus is more liable to be afi'ected by light
and heat than nodosus, and while it requires a measure of these
for its full growth, it can yet do with less than its neighbour.
F.furcatus again is more tender than either, and is less able to
resist the influence of the atmosphere. It is consequently from
its position two thirds less time out of the water than F. nodosus
and one third less than F. vesiculosus. In all probability it will
also contain fully more iodine than either of these plants, and
would form a better manure for the fields.

Marine Plants on the N, E. United States. 27

Within this zone there are, on the Atlantic coast, and wherever
rocks abound, frequent pools of water more or less large and
deep, in which may be found many of the hardier species of deep
sea plants. In the lower belt ot this zone and contiguous to F.
furcatus, I found Chondrus criapus^ the "well known Cariyeen
Moss growing in much luxuriance, having crept up thus far
from its natural home. But the plant which more generally filled
these pools was Halosaccion ramentaceum. In every variety of
form it abounded there, but frequently in so depauperized a state,
as to indicate that it w'as not exactly in its native home. Speci-
mens of the largest size to which this plant attains I did not
often find, but in one form or another it was present in great
abundance. The curious and pretty plant called Cystoclonium
purpurascens^ together with Hypnea musciformis, had here
also their natural home and grew in great perfection. They too to
some extent are deep sea plants, but for the most part they covet a
home in the rocky pools of the shore. Chordaria fiagelliformis
threw out its long filamentous fronds in every pool of this zone,
and in many crevices of the rocks left bare by the tide. Here
also Rhodymenia palmala the dulse of America, with its blood
red frond, grew in great beauty and abundance both on the
rocks and as a parasite on other Algae. But one of the most
striking inhabitants of this zone is Chaetornorjyha melagonium.
Its long pea-green filaments afford a pleasing variety of colour*
It grows often solitary but is not unfrequently clustered together in
considerable bunches, Cladophorce and Rhodymenia palmata, and
Ulva latissima, commonly growing as parasites on the ends of its
fronds. Occasionally a bunch of Delesseria sinuosa is found in the
deeper and more shady pools. Once only I found a little plant of /?.
alata and Euthora cristata, but these are stragglers and seldom flou-
rish out of deep water. The inflated fronds of Asperococcus sinuo-
sus, a deep sea plant, were occasionallyfound. In the more sheltered
places, large patches of Corallina officinalis grew very luxuriantly.
Its horny pinnate branches, with the reddish tinge of its natural
state, render it a very pleasing object in the water. This curious
calcareous plant has a wide range of growth, but it does not tra-
vel higher up on the shore than the second line of the Fucus
zone. It is however found at a considerable depth in the sea.
I constantly found it attached to the roots of the large deep sea
plants, and in some places it grows at the depth of fifty fathoms.
A Gigartina^ probably G. tenax, is also found inhabiting these

28 Rev. A. F. Kemj) on the Shore Zones oj

pools in great abundance, and quite at home in them. It is a
rigid dark red plant bifurcating twice or thrice. A curious plant
called Furcellaria fastigiatia is also a characteristic denizen of
this zone. Its soft texture and forked apices are its characteristic
features. Over the three belts of this zone and attached to the
rocks in considerable masses, the very gelatinous Pori^hyra laci-
■ nata is found in perfect condition. This is the laver of the Scotch
shore. It is a most widely dififused plant, but chiefly inhabits the
northern waters; in southern latitudes it becomes delicate and
small.

The third line of the zone is perhaps the finest field of any on
the shore in which to search for growing specimens of the pre-
vailing shore plants, and the more hardy inhabitants of the deep
sea. Time and labour spent here will always be rewarded by the
discovery of either unknown species, or of new varieties and
habitats of those already known.
IV. The fourth zone is that of the Laminaria.

This is the largest kind of marine plants. The species never
leave the water if they can help it, and are found in the pools which
touch upon low water mark. They often grow in the channels
and grooves of rock, up which the water, at low tides, is generally
flowing at the rise and fall of every wave. The Laminaria digi~
tata which grows here, either rooted to the rock or to some large
shell, such as Mytillus edulis^ with its strong fibrous roots, attains
sometimes to a great size. Its stem is not generally more than
two or three feet in length, sometimes it is much shorter, but the
frond which grows upon it is frequently from four to six feet long
and split up into numerous laminje. This is a, strong leathery
plant, of a dark olive colour, and conspicuous for its size among
the drift along the whole northern shore of America. L. saccha-
rina is next to it in size, with its variety latifolia, but its stem is
somewhat shorter, and its frond narrower and longer, and its mar-
gin frequently waved and fringed. These long oar-like plants
are very abundant, and are remarkable for the density of their
structure. When tossed about by the strong waves of the ocean,
they lash the shore with great force. When driven ashore they
generally bring the piece of rock or the shell to which they are at-
tached with them. They are the favorite haunts of innumerable
Sertularice, Bryozom and Sponges. The beautiful dulse, or Body,
menia pahnata^ very generally grows in luxuriant profusion upon
their stems. The smaller species, L. Phyllitis and L, dermaiodea,

Marine Plants on the N. E. United States. 29

are also found along with these in all stages of growth. The Sea
Colander or Ar/arum Turneri is here, too, a well known plant. It
grows sometimes to the size of from ten to twelve feet. For the
most part it is a deep water plant, but it yet frequently appears on
the shore among the Laminaria. Only dwarf specimens are how-
ever found here, showing that this is not its natural home. I
picked lip a small plant of this species which had an anomalous
peculiarity in the shape of a trilaminate frond. " From the cen-
" tre of its laminae along its whole length there projects a wing
" or additional lamina, making with the two halves of the true
" leaf a third lamina" This peculiarity has evidently arisen from
the splitting up of one of the laminae of the frond. I would infer
this from the fact that the lamina to which the third one is in-
clined, and to which it is united at the midrib, is thinner than the
lamina on the other side of the midrib. The perforations also on
the two associated laminae correspond in many respects, although
the mother lamina seems to have grown considerably since the
separation of one half of its substance took place. I am parti'
cular in noting this, as I find in Harvey's Nereis Borealis a Lam-
inaria described as L. trUaminata on account of a peculiarity of
identically the same kind as that which I have noted. The des-
cription of that species is taken from Olney's hst of the Rhode
Island plants, published in the proceedings of the Providence
Franklin Society. Harvey is doubtful about it, and had he seen a
good specimen of the so called plant, he would at once have detected
its origin, and refused it a place as a distinct species. It can be
considered as nothing more than an anomalous form. The most
interesting and curious of the plants that are found in this belt is
the Alaria escidenta. It is found on the Atlantic shores of Ame-
rica, from Newfoundland to Cape Cod, and is abundant on the
west coast of Scotland and Ireland. " It has a root of many
grasping fibres, a stem naked at the base and cylindrical, from two
to four lines in diameter, and from eight to ten inches in length.
On its lower half there are numerous stemless leaflets, above which
the stem is winged on each side, and passes gradually into the
midrib of a foliaceous frond which is from one to twenty feet or
more in length." — Harv. It is of a bright olive colour, and cover-
ed over with a very adhesive mucous. Unlike most others of
the order to which it belongs it adheres closely to paper. Its
natural home seems to be about low water mark, among the rocks
of the shore. It is in many respects a beautiful plant, and its

30 Rev. A. F. Kemp on the Shore Zones of

bearded stem gives it a striking and characteristic appearance.
The whole breadth of this zone does not exceed one yard.

V. The fifth zone is that of the Chondrus.

Perhaps this belt is scarcely entitled to a separate place.
It blends so much with the preceding as scarcely to be dis-
tinguishable from it. Nevertheless Chondrus occupies so con-
spicuous a place here, and drives out of this, its special
retreat, almost all other plants, that it appears entitled to
be considered as possessing a separate territory or home. I
was not aware of the special locality of this plentiful and
useful plant, until I had examined the shore at extreme neap
tide. I then found much to my" astonishment that the lowest
part of the shore rocks which the tide had left bare, but which
were only bare at very low water, were deserted by almost every
other species, and that Chondrus alone covered every rock with
a densely matted carpet. So closely did the plant grow that not
a particle of the rock could be seen. Only in the interstices of
the rocks did some plants of Laminaria, Alaria^ and Chondaria
grow, all else was in undisputed possession of Chondrus. This
region is apparently its central home; here it retains its nor-
mal purplish-red colour, and is in all its parts regularly devel-
oped. It is however a great traveller. Specimens of it may be
found in pools far up ou the shore, even among the green Ulva,
and it extends its growth far out into the deep water. This is the
only really useful plant on the coast. It is very gelatinous, and
is considered njiirishing as an article of food, it makes very good
hlanc mango, r.d en being mixed with other materials is said to
be capital .eed lor cattle and pigs. For invalids it is often recom-
mended. Thrf article is imported from Europe to this country,
blanched and tiee Irom salt, and is kept by most druggists. It
grows in such immeasurable abundance along the whole Atlantic
coast of ximsrica from Nova Scotia to Long Island, that it seems
like bringing coals to Newcastle to import it to this country.

VI. The Deep Sea Zone.

Under cover of the deep blue waters of the ocean the finest
and most beautiful of the marine plants are generally to be found.
Many of the larger plants attain also their largest dimensions in
the deep waters. A large number of species belonging to the
order Laminareacece find their natural home in the deep sea.
One remarkable plant of this order is found growing only in deep
water ; and for this locality its structure is specially fitted ; I re-

Marine Plants on the N. E. United States. 31

fer to L. Imigicrucis. This is a noble plant. Its stem is fre-
quently eight to twelve feet long, slender at the base as it springs
from its root of clasping fibres, it gradually widens upward to an
inch in diameter, where it is hollow or tubular, and thence taper-
ing to the apex, terminates in a broadly expanding oblong lan-
ceolate frond, beautifully waved at the margins and obtuse at the
termination. The colour of the stem is a pale yellowish brown,
and of the lamina a beautiful pale greenish oHve. I measured
one noble specimen which had attained to the dimension of 32
feet, the stem of which was one inch in diameter at its thickest
part, and the lamina about 2 feet in breadth. It is peculiarly a
North American species; and although it is found as far south as
Cape Cod, it is there much stunted in its growth, and very dif-
ferent in size and texture from specimens that are found on the
northern shores. In Europe it is scarcely known to grow beyond
the limits of the Arctic Sea, whence water-worn specimens occa-
sionally reach the coasts of Scotland, and the north of Ireland,
By the force of the waves it is frequently detached from its place
of growth, and its hollow stem enables it to float easily upon the
water. The greenish olive of its lamina shows that it requires a
good deal of sunlight to bring it to perfection ; that therefore it
may get as much of this element of its life as possible, its long
and hollow stem seems to have been provided. It is generally
covered with parasites both vegetable and animal. Some of the
more delicate deep sea plants will commonly be found growing
upon the lower parts of its stem. At Peak's Island I found
upon it the beautiful and delicate Delessaria alatciy and frequently
the stem was fringed along its whole length with Ectocarjpus
granulosus. Amateurs looking for deep sea plants, would do
well to direct their attention to the stems of drifted individuals of
this plant. The prevailing deep sea plants of this region are
Rodomela sub/usca, Delesseria simwsa, D. alata, and D. denii-
culata. The two former in great abundance, the two latter are
rather rare. Enthora cristata, the analogue of the European
Plocamium coccinium^ is among the most beautiful and common
that is driven on shore from the deep. Phyllophora memhrani'
folia is also found although by no means common. Ptilota serrata
and P. elcgans are frequently cast ashore in abundance. They
inhabit the whole northern shore, and abound in the Gulf of St.
Lawrence. Growing upon Zostem marina I also found Ectocar-
pus siliculosuSj Poly svfhonia fibrillosa, and, Punctaria tenuissima.

32 Rev. A. jP. Kemp on the Shore Zones of

In sandy bays, in water of from 1 to 4 fatlioms deep, the curi-
ous cord-plant Chorda Jilum grows abundantly, and is from
30 to 40 feet long. It is a hollow and chambered plant,
and in its young state is covered with green byssoid fibres.
In the same category may also be noted the beautiful Grinellea
Americana^ frequently found on this coast, the analogue of the
brilliant WormshioUia sanguinea of Europe. It is peculiarly
American, and grows abundantly in Long Island Sound, and
New York Harbour.

Other plants might be added to these which we have noted^
as inhabiting the various belts of the shore, and the deep waters
of the North American coasts. These only occurred to me in
my investigations at Peak's Island. Were however these zones
of distribution to be permanently maintained, in works on the
marine plants, they would greatly facilitate the work of collecting.
Further researches would increase the number of plants which
make their special homes in each, and would enable us to deter-
mine the habits of growth of those species whose special homes
we have succeeded in locahsing. It would farther be interesting
to trace the deep sea limits of the various plants on this coast,
after the manner of Forbes' researches in the Mediterranean.
Little or nothing has yet been done in this branch of plant dis-
tribution in this country. The difficulties attending such inves-
tigations, on the boisterous and rocky coast of Eastern America,
are very great, but it is to be hoped that some of the zealous bo-
tanists of America, with means and leisure at command, may turn
their attention to this interesting department as their special
study.

To sum up our work, we present the following classification of
the plants noted in the several zones.

I. The plants found in the Drift Zone are a collection of all
kinds.

II. The plants in the Ulva Zone are : —

Ulva latissima.
Enteromorpha intestinalis.
" compressa.

" clathrata,

" Ilopkirkii,

Cladophora rupestris.
" uncialis,

" Jlexuosa.

Marine Plants on the N. E, United States, 33

Chaetomorpha Utorea.
Hormotrichum Younganum,
Fucus Balticm.
in. The plants in the Fucus Zone are: —

(1) Fucus nodosus.

(2) " vesiculosus,

(3) " furcatus.
Asperococcus sinuosus.
Chordanajlagelliformis,
Ectocarpus siliculosus.
Elachista/wcico/a.
Rhodomela sub/usca.
Corallina officinalis.

Bhodymenm palmata. •

Hypnea mvsciformis.
Cystoclonium purpurascens.
Gigartina tenax^

" mamillosa,
Halosaccion ramentaceum.
FuTceWsLTia. fastigiata. '
Ceraraium rubrum.

" fastigiatum,
Porphyra laciniata.
Chadophora rupestris.
Chaetomorpha melagonium,

IV. The plants of the Lammaria Zone are :—

Agarum Turner i,
Alaria esculenta,
Laminaria digitata.

" saccharina.

'* Fascia.

« Pkyllitis.

" dermatodea,

V. The plants of the Chondrus Zone are :—

Chondrus crispus.
Larainariae,

VI. The plants of the Deep Sea Zone are :

Laminaria longicrucis.
Punctaria tenuissima.
Ectocarpus granulosus.

34 Dr. C Smallwood^s contributions to

Eutbora cristata.
Ptilota serrata.
" elegans.
Polysiphonia Jibrillosa.
Phyllophora memhranifolia.
Delesseria sinuosa.
" alata.
" denticulata.
Zostera marina.

ARTICLE TV .— Contributions to Meteorology for the year 1861
from observations taken at Isle- Jesus Canada East. By
Charles Smallwood, M. D. LL. D. Professor of Meteoro-
logy in the University of McGill College Montreal.
Tte following observations are a continuation of the Annual
Report of the results of the observations taken at the Observatory.
The means are reduced from tri-daily observations taken at 6 a. m.,
2 p. m. and 10 p. m. The whole of the observations are all re-
duced to the usual standards, and the necessary corrections depend-
ing upon any peculiar construction of the instruments have been
applied. It may be further stated, that the instruments are in the
same position in which they have stood during a long series of
years, and they are all subjected, at short intervals of time, to
certain manipulations and corrections, so as to secure, as far as
possible, accuracy ; many of them are self-registering, and every
means have been adopted to prevent either terrestrial, zenith or
solar radiation on the bulbs of the thermometers ; extra hours are
set apart for observing any unusual phenomena, and a more particu-
lar attention has been directed to every sudden and great fall in
the barometric column as indicating any unusual atmospheric
wave, and also on the sudden fall of the thermometer indicating
any extreme degree of cold as during our " cold terms^'' for the
purpose of comparing observations here with those taken in any
distant part of the world, and which may have a bearing on the
theory of the formation of storms.

A seismometer has been added to the other instruments for
the purpose of ascertaining the direction and amount of elevation
of the earthquake wave. The more than usual frequency of late
of earthquakes in this neighbourhood has led to the placing of
the seismometer, so as to indicate and to estimate any such in-
teresting phenomena.

Meteorology for the year 1861. 35

Barometer. — The highest reading of the barometer during the
year occurred at 9.30 p. m. on the evening of the 23rd of January,
and indicated 30.687 inches; the lowest reading occurred on the
274;h day of May at 1. 45 p. m. and indicated 28.883 inches, giv-
ing a yearly range of 1.804 inches ; several sudden and great
changes occurred during the year both with arising and with
a falling column. The j5rst remarkable wave was on the 4th of
March, when a very sudden fall took place ; at 6 a.m. the ba-
rometer stood at 30.454 inches, and it fell in 24 hours 0.780 of
an inch and continued falling until 2 p. m. of the 6th day when
it attained a minimum of 29.450 inches; it then continued to rise,
and at 10. p. m. the 7th day attained a height of 30.398 inches,
showing a sudden rise of 0.948 of an inch. On the 15th of March
a rise of 0.342 of an inch took place in 8 hours, and a like sudden
rise occurred on the 30th day of 1.230 inches in 24 hours. Another
sudden rise took place on the 28th of September at 6 a. m ; the
mercurial column indicated 29.276 inches, and in 24 hours it rose
to 29.999 inches, showing a rise of 0.623 of an inch, and it conti-
nued rising until it attained a maximum of 30.3 15 inches ; another
sudden depression of 0.200 of an inch in 8 hours occurred
on the 22nd of October, and a corresponding rise on the 24th
day, also in 8 hours, of 0.409 of an inch. In November the mer-
cury was as usual subjected to several fluctuations ; the highest
crest of the wave occurred on the 1st, 10th, and 20th days, and a
corresponding trough took place on the 3rd, 16th, 24th and 30th
days. In December, from the 12th to the 21st day, the mercurial
column indicated great fluctuations, falling from 30.341 inches,
to 29.746 inches, rising again to 30.137 inches and then again
falling to 29.600 inches and again rising to 30.191 inches, again
falling to 29.611 inches and attaining on the 21st a maximum of
30.269 inches ; a sudden rise occurred on the 27th day, the column
rising 0.293 of an inch in 8 hours. The mean barometric pres-
sure for the year w^as 29.737 inches, showing a decrease of 0.046
of an inch compared with the mean of last year, but an increase of
0.061 of an inch when compared with a series of years. The fol-
lowing tables show the mean reading of each month and also the
monthly range of the barometer in- inches ; the mean yearly range
was 1.093 inches.

36

Dr. C. Smallwood^s contributions to

Monthly Means,

Inches.

Inches.

Inches.

January

29.983

May

. . 29.721

September..

29.849

February . . .

29.750

June

.. 29.720

October . , . .

29.876

March

29.878

July

.. 29.734

November . .

. 29.714

April

29.882

August . . .

.. 29.353

December. . .

29.892

Monthly Range.

January . .
February .
March . . ,
April ....

Inches.
1.350
1.484
1.401
1.381

Inches.

May 1.349

June 0.815

July 0.637

August 0.770

September .
October. . .
November .
December .

Inches.
1.023
1.014
0.902
0.994

The lowest, range (or the least difference) was in July, and
this has held good for a series of years. January for a long period
shows the greatest range, but the month of February 1861 shows
a greater range than January ; the mean range for a series of
years has been found to be 1.032 inches, which is 0.060 of an
inch less than the yearly range of 1861. January shows the
highest mean of the year and June the lowest. The mean reading
of the barometer for the Winter Quarter was 29.883 inches, for
the Spring Quarter 29.827 inches, for the Summer Quarter 29.769
inches, and for the Autumnal Quarter 29.813 inches.

Thermometer. — The mean temperature of the air for this year
varies but very slightly from the mean temperature of a series of
years, but the mean temperature indicated 1°89 degrees less than
the mean temperature of last year (1860), and 0°16 of a degree
only more than the mean annual temperature of a long series of
years; the mean temperature for the year 1861 being 41°72.
The highest reading was on the 9th of June at 3 p.m. and indic-
ated 99°7 degrees ; the lowest reading was at 6 a.m. on the morn-
ing of the 8th of February, and indicated — 37°1 degrees (below
zero), giving a yearly range or climatic difference of 13 6° 8 degrees.

The warmest day of the year was the 10th of June, the mean
temperature of the day was 81°1 degrees; at 11 a.m. the thermo-
meter stood at 87°8 degrees, and at 3 p.m. 96°0 degrees, and at
4 p.m. 95°8 degrees; at 10 p.m. it stood at 76°7 degrees and it
fell to 60°3 in the night, which was clear and calm, the terrestrial
radiator indicated 57° degrees. The coldest day of the year was
the 8th of February, the mean temperature indicated — 28°5
degrees (below zero) ; below is a record of the cold term of January
and February.

Heterology of the year 1861. 37

January 11, 1861. 6 a. m.— 23M (

[below zero.)

8 " — 23^0

it.

9 « _19M

«

Noon — 17^0

it

2 p. m.— 10^6

it

4 « — U\8

u

6 p. m.— 17^0

u

8 " —20°. 4

u

10 « —20°. 6

it

January 12, 1861. 6 a. m.— 34°. 9

u

8 « —34°. 7

u

10 « —24°. 6

((

Noon —14° -4

u

2 p. m. — 5°.l

«

4 " — 7°. 3

a

6 *• —14°. 9

u

8 « —17°. 4

u

10 p. m— 17°.9

u

Midnight— 20°. 4

u

January 13, 1861. 6 a. m.— 26°.6

u

8 " —20°. 8

a

10 " —12°. 5

u

Noon — 5°.l

a

2 p. m.— 1°.6

u

4 " — 1°.0

11

6 " —11°. 2

a

8 " —14°. 3

u

10 *' —16°. 9

u

Midnight— 19°. 2

li

January 14, 1861. 6 a. m.— 13°.8

li

8 " —10°. 4

u

10 " — 3°.l

((

Noon + 2°.0

(above zero.)

The thermometer was 81 hours and 45 minutes below zero.

The February cold term exceeded somewhat the above temperature,

and was as follows : —

February 8, 1861. 10 p. m.— 21°.3

(below zero.)

Midnight— 34°. 6

(t

6 a. m— 37M

'c

9 " — 32°.l

u

38 Dr. C. Smallwood's contrihtctions to

Noon —22*^.2

[below zero.)

2 p. m.— 14^.1

((

4 " — 19°.0

((

6 « —20°. 9

It

8 « —19^.8

ti

10 " —190.5

«

Midnight— 20°. 4

u

6 a. m.— 24°.0

u

9 « «_20° . 1

u

Noon +1°1

11

The thermometer was for 56 hours

below zero.

The following table shows the Mean Temperature for each month.

January.... 10°.43May 51°. 86

February... 18°. 25 June 65°. 83

March.'.... 21°. 94 July 67°. 66

April 38°. 99' August 66°. 84

September. 5 8°. 06

October 46°. 64

November... 33°. 60
December... 20°. 54

July was the warmest month, but was 6°92 degrees colder than
the mean temperature of J uly for a series of years.

The temperature of the Winter Quarter was 12°28 degrees, for
the Spring Quarter 34°29 degrees, for the Summer Quarter 66°77
degrees, and for the Autumn Quarter 46°10 degrees ; the tempera-
ture for the same period of last year (1860) was Winter Quarter
12°59 degrees, Spring Quarter 45°55 degrees. Summer Quarter
6'7°63 degrees, and Autumn Quarter 46°49 degrees. A thermo-
meter sunk 18 inches in the ground showed a temperature of, in
May 49°9, in June 59°8, in July 60°0, in August 66°0, in Sep-
tember 58^0, in October 53^0, and in November 4Y°4' The
range of temperature or climatic difference exceeded by 19*^2
degrees the range of 1860 ; below is a table of the climatic differ-
ence for each month of 1861 : —

January 66 .5

February 90°. 3

March 65°. 5

April 55°. 3

May 42°. 9

June 59°. 6

July 51°. 8

August 4 3°. .3

September... 44°, 6

October 42°, 4

November 28^.6

December ... 56^.9

February shows an excessive range of temperature ; this was
owing to the excessive cold term of that month; November shows
the least climatic change, and this is rather unusual for November ;
the range for November 1860 was 5 9 "^4 degrees, the mean range
for November for a series of years being 6l°l degrees ; the 1st
frost of the Autumn occurred on the 5th of September ; a sudden
fall of temperature took place in March, at 2 p.m. on the 16th

Meterology of the year 1861. 39

day the thermometer stood at 36°7 degrees, and in 24 hours it
fell to — 5°0 degrees below zero, showing a difference of 41°7
degrees in that short period ; this sudden change was accom-
panied by a rise in the barometer and a high wind from the west;
December showed a cold term but of short duration ; the following
table shows the temperature : —

Dec. 20th, at 9 p.m.— 0.0

Midnight — 10.0 (below zero)

21st, 6 a.m.— 10.1 "

11 " __ 3.2 «

Noon — 0.5 "

0.20 0.0 *'

This was the Ist cold term of the winter 1861-2.

Humidity of the Atmosphere. — The mean relative humidity
for the year was 0.774, saturation being equal to 1.000.
The following table shows the relative humidity for each month :

January 752|May 7 70 September. . . .804

February 755June 735 October 843

March 768 July 765:N'ovember. . . .787

April 780|August 736 December .. . .796

June was the driest month of the year, but July has been the
driest for a series of years. Complete saturation occurred only
once during the year.

Rain. — Fell on 106 days, amounting to 46.701 inches; it was
raining 531 hours and 14 minutes, and was accompanied by
thunder on 16 days ; the number of days on which rain fell exceeded
by 13 the number of days of rain of 1860, and by 112 hours 14
minutes, but was 5 days less than the number of rainy days in
1859, but exceeded by 33 days the amount of days of rain com-
pared with a series of years ; the amount of rain which fell in 1859
was 50.035 inches, and in 1860 was 48.132 inches, and the
amount of rain in 1861 exceeded by 3.697 inches the average
amount compared with a series of years ; a very heavy rain
storm occurred on the 27tb May, it began at 4.25 p.m. from

h.m. Inches.

the E.N.E. and at 4.45 the fall registered 1.700
4.50 {wind veered to ^¥.) 2.066
4.53 2.333

4.55 2.433

5.00 2.483

and ceased at 5.10 and equalled 2.48C inches,

*o

Dr, C. Smallwood^s contrihutiont to

which fell in 45 minutes. The Riviere des Prairies, a branch
of the Ottawa, rose .very high during May, and a like rise has
not been witnessed since 1848.

The following table shows the monthly amount and the duration of fall :

Amount. Time

Amount- Time.

January. .
February,
March . .
April . . . .
May ....
June . . . .

Inches.

0.100

0.761

1.Y56

2.921

8.642

4.868

h. m.

4.10'july

1*7.251 August

52.35|September.
60.42|October...
49.32jNovember.
56. 18 December.

Inches
10.188
1.950
4.816
5.370
1.023
1.306

h. m.
79.49
12.31
66.50
69.30
32.52
31.00

July shows a very large amount of rain but is not the greatest
amount on record here for July, but exceeds by 4.456 inches the
amount of last July (1860), but is less by 2.026 inches the amount
of rain which fell in July 1859, which was the most rainy July
on record here ; this was accompanied by a very heavy storm and
showed an amount of rain equal to 6.374 inches, and the rivers in
this neighbourhood rose at this time nearly 2 feet ; the rain storm
lasted 45 hours and 40 minutes.

Thunder and lightning occurred on 16 days, the yearly mean
for a series of years is 14 ; last year (1860) thunder only occurred
on 11 days; there were 43 cloudless days only during the year
1861, the average for a series of years being 57. The prevailing
clouds were Cumuli Stratus and a rather larger amount of Cirri
Stratus, giviog rise to haloes; and there were but 123 nights suit-
able for astronomical purposes ; this is less by 20 than the number
of nights in the year 1860. Snow fell on 45 days amounting to
99.53 inches; it was snowing 365 hours and 54 minutes, which is
less by 1.77 inches the average amount for a series of years, but
is 38.26 inches less than the amount of snow which fell in 1860,
and is 40.57 inches less than the amount which fell in 1859.
The last snow of the winter 1860-1 fell on the l7th of April, and
the Ist snow of the autumn fell on the 24th October. "Winter
did not fairly set in until the 23rd of December.

Evaporation. — The amount of evaporation from the surface of
water during the 6 months which are recorded is 16.90 inches,
which is nearly 1 inch less than the mean amount ; the amount of
evaporation also from the surface of ice was somewhat less than
the average.

Heterology of the year 1861. 41

The greatest intensity of the SurCs rays was 104^3 degrees,
which is less by 6^3 degrees than the intensity for the year
1860, and is 12°Y degrees less than the intensity for the year
1859. The lowest point of the terrestrial radiation^ was — 39°4
degrees (below zero.)

Dew. — The yearly amount of dew was below the usual mean
or average ; an apparatus has been used for a short time for the
purpose of ascertaining the hour at which dew begins to fall and
when it ends, and also the amount, and it is believed will lead to
some interesting results in this department of research ; the appa-
ratus is self-registering and leaves a permanent impression.

Wind. — The most prevalent wind during the year was the N. E.
by E. and the least so E. by N. ; the next in frequency was the W.
and W. S. W. and a good deal of S. E. winds prevailed ; below is
a table of the amount of horizontal miles of wind for each month :

MiJes.

Miles.

MUes.

January. . .

6380.10

May ....

. . 4989.20

September.

3447.48

February . .

5549.95

June . . . .

.. 6067.93

October . . .

3664.29

March . . . .

5437.69

July....

. . 4499.68

November.

4142.30

April

3565.12

August . .

.. 2736.05

December..

5816.99

giving a total for the year of 55296.78 miles linear, which is
11083.26 miles more than the amount for the year 1860 ; the
mean velocity for the year was 6.312 miles per hour, which shows
an increased velocity of 1.270 miles per hour for 1861 over that
of 1860. June was the calmest month last year and indicated only
2905 . 36 miles ; a tornado passed over Montreal on the 9th of July,
but was little felt here ; on the 10th of August a very heavy hail
storm passed near this place over St. Laurent and Montreal, doing
considerable damage to crops and buildings; there were several
storms of wind during the year preceded by rain and a low
barometer.

The Aurora Borealis, was visible at observation hour on 42
nights ; a bright display with considerable magnetic disturbance
occurred on the night of the 1st of September, the same period
that the splendid display which caused so much sensation over
the world occurred last year.

The Zodiacal Light was frequently seen ; it was generally bright
and well defined.

Solar and Lunar Halos have been more than usually frequent
during the year. A remarkable solar halo occurred on the 12th
of August, when the temperature had fallen considerably during

42 Dr, €. Smallwood's, contributions to

the night. The thermometer at 6 A.M, stood at 46°0Y degrees.
The terrestrial radiator had indicated a temperature of 41^03
degrees. The wind at 10 A.M., (mean local time) was from the
N.E. by E., with a clear sky, from which time light cirrus clouds
began to form in the higher region of the atmosphere, passing
from W. to W.S.W., in a direction contrary to the lower current
of wind (N.E. by E.) At lOh. SSm. a slight halo was seen round
the sun, and at lOh. 45m. it presented a very rare and beautiful
spectacle. The sun, bright and ivhite, was in the centre of a
halo or circle of 44 degrees in diameter, its lower or southern
limb being about 37 degrees above the horizon ; this circle was a
bright halo of light, white and bright at its outer edge, and
which was shaded inwardly and towards the sun of a pale orange
colour, and an occasional tint of blue and red ray nearly 2 de-
grees in breadth. Both the lower limbs of this halo on the edge
next the sun were more broad than elsewhere, giving the appear-
ance of a crescent on each side. This halo or bright circle was
filled in as it were with a dark ground, consisting of cirrus
clouds, which passed quickly and constantly across from a west-
erly direction.

Another circle of a white colour and less bright, was also seen.
The circumference of the wheel was in the centre of the bright
halo, or more properly in the sun itself ; the ring extended be-
yond the zenith, and exceeded the brighter one considerably in
diameter. Another smaller circle was enclosed between the bright
northern limb of the halo and the last mentioned circle, which on
approaching its periphery separated somewhat, and crossed each
other from right to left, extending east and west for a short dis-
tance, and the breadth of these circles were from 1 J- to 2 degrees.

Lower down, nearer the horizon, on either side of the halo,
were arcs or broken portions of an imperfect circle, somewhat
resembling inverted rainbows, with distinct prismatic colours
which varied both in brightness and extent. These appearances
decreased and ceased at 12h. 40m. P.M. The wind veered into
the S.E. by E. with an increase of temperature and a cloudy sky.
The following day at 11 A.M., another halo appeared round the
sun, but unattended with any of the peculiar appearances as
above noticed.

The other solar and lunar halos and coronae, although more
frequent than usual, offered no peculiarities.

Meterology of the year 1S61. 43

Observations on the Solar Spots still form a part of the re-
cords at this place.

Ozone. — The observations have been continued by means of
the calico ozoneometer, which is kept moving by clock work, so
as to indicate the variable amount, and has furnished very inter-
esting results, as also the action of the coloured rays of light and
polarized light and its development.

Atmospheric Electricity. — The tri-daily observations have been
taken with Pelletier's and Ramerhausen's apparatus as heretofore,
but these observations are far too extended for a short notice.

Comets were seen, Thatcher's in May ; a bright one 30th June,
and a smaller one, October.

Earthquakes. — A smart shock was felt on the 11th of July at
9 hours 3 minutes P.M., local time, it lasted for 20 seconds. The
wave passed from N.N.W. to E., and another slight shock was
felt in October. A register will for the future be kept in con-
nexion with the seismometer.

The Lunar Eclipse of the iTth December was not seen, being
obscured by clouds.

Crows (Corvus corojia), first seen on the 27th of February.
The song sparrow (^Fringilla melodia), first heard 4th of April.
Wild geese [Anser Canadensis), first seen flying W. on the 29th
April. Swallows [Hirundo riifa), first seen 23rd April. Frogs
[Eana fontanalis), first heard the 24th day. Shad (Alosa pros-
tabilis), first caught 30th May. Fire flies {Lampyris corusca)^
first seen 19th June. Snow birds {Plectrophanes nivalis), first
seen iVth of November. Crows left on the 7th day of November.

Currants and gooseberries in leaf on the 16th May. Wild
strawberries in flower, 24th. Dandelion in flower, 23rd. Cur-
rants and gooseberries in blossom on the 24th. Lilac in blossom
on the 3rd of June. Apples on the 4th. Chokecherries in
blossom on the 6th of June.

The magnetic observations carried on at this Observatory, will
form a separate paper for future publication.

Observatory, Isle Jesus, 22nd January, 1862.

44

Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals andBirds

ARTICLE IV, — On the Mammals ami Birds of the District of
Montreal By Archibald Hall, M.D., L.R.C.S.E.

(Continued from page Z()% Vol VI.)
BIRDS,

Species that winter in the district of Montreal, or that during that
period visit it.

Falco Palumbarius.

Pyrrbula Enucleator.

Strix Virginianus.

Strix Funerea.

" Cinerea.

" Nyctea.

" Nebulosa.

*' Otus.

Parus Palustris.

" Tengmalmi.

Corvus Corax.

Emberiza Nivalis.

" Cor one.

Picus Villosus.

-" Canadensis.

" Pileatus.

Picus Pu'bescens.

Tetrao Umbellus.

" Tridactylus.

" Lagopus.

Tetrao Canadensis.

Bombycilla G^rrula.

Emberiza Lapponica.

Linaria Minor, probably.

Table giving a comparative view of the number and colour of
the eggs of the species that incubate in the district of Mon-
treal as far as ascertained.

Geiius.

Species.

Colour of Eggs.

(

F. Sparverius

4 to 5 brownish yellow, mottled

Faleo '

P. Oolumbarius....

brown.

2 to 4 white, mottled with red.

^gnila. ...... a

F. Chrysaetos

F. Leucocephalus ..

2 to 3 dirty white, spotted red.
I to 2 white.

C

Halietofi }

I

F. Halietos

2 to 4 cream yellow, blotched
with red.

F. Palumbarius....

2 to 4 blueish white, mottled

Astur

with brown.
4 dirty white, blotched with red.
Unknown.

F. Fuscus

F. Cooperii

F. Lagopus

4 white, mottled with red.

F. Buteodis

2 to 4 waved with green, spotted

Bute©

F. Borealis

with yellow on a white ground.

Unknown.

F. Hyemalis

Unknown.

F. Cyaneus

3 to 5 plain blueish white.

(

Strix Funerea

2 white.

Surnia )

« Nyctea

2 white.

\

" Naevia

4 to 6 white.

C

" Virginianus...

2 to 4 white.

Bubo '

" Cinerea......

2 white, mottled with blackish

brown.

" Otus

4 to 5 white.

" Brachyotus. ..

2 to 4 white.

Uluia ,

" Nebulosa

4 to 5 white.

" Tengmalmi. . .

2 white.

" Acadica

Unknown.

" Dalhousii

Unknown.

Lanius

Lanius Excubitor...

6 cinereous white, mottled at the

larger end with rufous.

of the District of Montreal,

45

Genu3.

Colour of Eggs.

Muscicapa.

Vireo.

Muscicapa T/rannus

« Crinata.

Musicipeta Nunceola
" Virens..

" Querula.

Setophaga Ruticilla

Vireo Flavifrons .

■* Olivaceus .

Sylvia

Turdus

Tanagra

« GilTus

Sylvia Citrinella.

Varia
Coronata .
Pennsylranica
Maculosa ....
Pardulina ....
Philadelphica.
Blaclj:burnica .
Virens

5 yellowish white, blotched with
brown.

4 dull white blotched and mot-
tled with purple.

5 pure white.

3 to 4 cream colour, spotted and
blotched at larger end with
lilac and brown.

5 white.

3 to 4 cream white, mottled with
yellowish brown.

4 white, mottled with light and
dark brown at larger end.

3 to 4 white, mottled with light
and dark brown.

3 to 4 white, spotted blackish
purple at the larger end.

4 dull white,mottled with brown,

5 u u M.

Unknown.

Striata...
Castanea.
Pinus. .. .

Regulus Calendulus
" Cristatus..

Troglotides Fulvus

" Europaeus
Anthus Spinoletta

Ampelis Sialia. . .
Bombycilla Garrula
" Carolinensis

Turdus Migratorius.

« Rufus

«* Felivox

" Minor

" Mustelinus .

" Melodius . . .

" Noveboracensis

" Aurocapillus. .

Tanagra Rubra....

4 flesh colour, mottled with pur-
ple and brown.

4 to 5 white, mottled with brown.

Unknown.

4 greenish white, mottled with
pale brown and light purple.

Unknown.

6 to 12 yellowish white, spotted
with red.

10 to 18 white, with a few red-
dish spots.

10 to 18 white, spotted with red.

4 to 5 sullied white, mottled with

brown.

5 to 6 pale blue.
Unknown.

4 to 5 white, spotted black at
the larger end.

5 blueish green.

5 greenish white, spotted brown.

4 to 5 emerald green.

4 to 5 greenish blue.

4 to 5 emerald green.

4 to 5 greenish blue.

4 to 5 flesh colour, spotted dark
at larger end.

4 to 5 white, mottled reddish
brown.

3 to 4 dull blue, mottled brown-
ish purple at larger end.

46

Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Genus.

Colour of Eggs.

Quisculus
Oreolus ..

Eirundo . . .
Cypsilus . . .
Caprimulgus

Alauda.
Parus . .

Emberiza

Fringilla

Pyrrhula.

Icterus

Stumus

Quisculus Versicolor

" Baritus

" Ferrugineus
Oreolus Baltimorus.

Hirundo Purpurea. .

" Rufa

" Bicolor . . .

" Fulva ....
Cypsilus Pelasgius.
Caprimu's Vociferus

" Virginianus.

Alauda Alpestris*. .
Parus Palustris

Emberiza Nivalis. . .
" Lapponica*

Fringilla Cyanea...
" Nivalis

" Pennsylvanica.
" Melodia

" Canadensis . . .

" Leucophrys . . .
" Vocalis

" Graminea . . . . .
" Tristis

" Pinus

" Linaria

" Iliaca

" Ludoviciana . .

" Purpurea

Pyrrhula Enucleator
Icterus Phoeniceus. .

" Agripennis .

" Pecoris....,
Stur'usLudoviciana^

5 to 6 dull green, spotted with

dark olive.
5 dark coloured, spotted dusky.

5 dusky, spotted black.

4 to 5 blueish white spotted and

streaked with dark brown.
4 to 6 white.
4 white, spotted brown.
4 to 5 white.
4 white, spotted dusky brown.

4 white.

2 blueish white, blotched with
dark olive.

2 blueish white, mottled with
umber brown.

Unknown.

6 to 12 white, spotted reddish
brown.

5 whitish, mottled brown & grey.
5 to 6 yellowish rusty, clouded

with brown.
5 greenish white.

3 to 5 pale green, spotted cine-
reous.

Unknown.

4 to 5 greenish white, mottled
brown.

5 pale brown, mottled with dark
brown.

4 to 5 chocolate or dusky colour.
4 to 5 greenish blue,mottled with
dark and light brown.

4 to 5 whitish, mottled and
blotched with reddish brown
at larger end.

3 to 5 white, mottled lavender,
purple and yellowish brown
at larger end.

Unknown.

5 blueish white, spotted red.

5 mountain green,mottled brown

4 to 5 white, spotted brown.
Unknown.

4 to 5 white ?

3 to 5 blueish white, streaked
purple and dark brown.

5 to 6 olivaceous white, blotched
with lilac and rufous brown
at larger end.

3 to 5 greenish white, spotted
olive brown.

4 to 5 white, tinged with blue,
spotted^reddish brown.

* It is doubtful if those marked with au asteric breed in the district.
It is not improbable that they do so occasionally.

of the District of Montreal,

47

Genus.

Colour of Eggs.

Corvus
Certhia

Sitta

Trochilus
Alcedo . .

Picu3.

Cuculus
Tetrao . .
Lagopus

Columba ,

Charadrius .

Vanellus

Ardea . .
Botaurus

Calidris..,
Strepsilus

Numenius

Scolopax,
Limosa. .

Corvus Corax.

" Corone . . . .

" Cristatus ..

" Canadensis

Certhia Familiaris. ,

Sitta Carolinensis ..
" Canadensis . ..
Trochilus Colubris.
Alcedo Alcyon....
Picus Auratus

" Erythrocephalus

" Varius

" Villosus

" Pubescens

" Pileatus

" Tridactjlus ....

Cuculus Dominicus,

Tetrao Umbellus...

" Canadensis .

5 to 6 muddy blueish green,
spotted with olive brown.

2 white.

5 dull olive, spotted brown.

3 to 4 blue.

5 dull white, spotted brown.
Unknown.

7 or more cinereous spotted red-
dish yellow, and streaked
dark brown.

2 white.

6 white.
6 white.

6 white, spotted red ?

4 white.
0 white.
6 white.
6 white.

4 to 5 white.

3 to 5 blueish green.
10 to 15 dull yellow.

5 white, varied yellow & black.

Columba Migratoria2

" Carolinensis*, 2

Lagopus ...:7 to 15 rufous yellow, spotted
I with reddish black.

white, " one of them abor-
tive." Wilson,
white, breeds in the Southern
I States.
CharadriusVociferus 4 yellowish cream colour, spot-
I ted black.
" Pluvialis* .... 4 to 5 pale olive, spotted with

j black.
" Semipalmatus*,4 dark coloured, spotted with
I black.
Vanellus Helveticus4 cream colour, spotted and
I blotched with light and pur-
plish brown.
Ardea Herodias. ... 4 greenish blue.

" Discors 4 greenish blue.

" Lentigino3a..J4 cinereous green.

" Exilis jUnknown, but if resembling the

European species — white.
Calidris Arenaria*.. 4 dusky, spotted with black.
Strepsilus Interpres* 4 olive green,3potted with brown.
Xumenius Borealis*4 greenish spotted with light
I umber brown.
" Longirostri3 4 cream colour, spotted brown?

" Hudsonius .

Scolopax Grisea. . .
" "Wilsonii .
" Minor....

Limosa Fedoa* . . . .
" Hudsonica*.

4 dark blueish grey, spotted with

black or dark brown.
Unknown.

4 olivaceouSjSpottedwithbrown.
4 olivaceous white, blotched with

yellowish brown.
Unknown.
4 dark olive, spotted with pale

brown.

48

Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Genus.

Species.

Colour of Eggs.

Phaleropus

Phale. Hyperboreus*

3 to 4 olivaceous, thickly spotted
with blackish brown.

r

Tringa Alpina*. . . .

4 oil green, spotted liver brown

" Pectoralis..

Unknown.

Tringa. ■

" Rufescens..
« Pusilla ....

Unknown.

Unknown,

" Rufa*

4 dun colour, spotted red.

" Semipalmata*

4 to 5 white spotted with black.

Totanus Vociferus..

Uncertain or unknown, (4 dark
colour, spotted black. "Hut-
chins.")

Totanus

" Flavipes

Unknown-

" Chloropygius.

Unknown.

" Macularius ...

4 greyish yellow, speckled with

dark brown.

Rallus Virginianus.

6 to 10 cream colour, sprinkled
with brownish red, and pale

Rallus ■

purple.
Uncertain.

" Carolinus

" Noveboracensis

10 to 16 white.

Fulica ••••••••••

T^'nlifn. Amprinnnfl

Uncertain.

3 to 4 smokey olive, blotched

(

X U1X^C« XXliXVl J-k^ullcl/ . .

Colymbus Glacialis*

Colymbus •

with umber brown.

\

" Septemtrionalis*

2 pale oil green colour.

Podiceps Cornutus.

3 to 4 white, spotted brown.

" Cristatus ..

3 to 4 greenish white, waved
with dark brown.

Podiceps •

« Minor

5 to 6 dirty white.

" Rubricollis..

3 to 4 greenish white, sullied
with yellowish brown.

" Carolinensis

Unknown.

Sterna Hirundo

3 to 4 dull yellowish, or pale
whitish olive, blotched with
dark brown.

Sterna •

" Arctica*

2 to 3 light yellowish brown, or

blueish grey, spotted with

brown.

" Nigra

3 to 4 olive brown, mottled

brown and black.

Larus Atricilla

3 olive grey, spotted pale pur-
ple and dilute brown.

" Tridactylus..

3 olivaceous white, spotted light
and dark grey.

" Canus*

3 " blueish ochraceous," spotted
cinereous and blackish.

Larus

" Fuscus .... .

2 olive brown or grey, blotched
with dusky.

" Argentatus *

2 to 3 olivaceous, spotted with
dark cinereous.

" GlaucuB*....

3 pale purplish grey, spotted
with umber brown, and pale

' purple.

Anser Canadensis..

6 to 7 greenish white.

Anser '

" Hyperboreus*

yellowish white.

" Leucopsis* . .

Uncertain as to this country.

" Bernicla* . . .

Uncertain.

of the District of Montreal,

49

Genus,

Species.

Colour of eggs.

Cygnus Ferus...

Cjgnus Ferus

Anas Boschas

5 to 7 olivaceous green & rough.
10 to 18 blueish white.

" Clypeata

" Strepera

" Obscura

12 to 14 pale greenish yellow.
8 to 9 greenish grey.
8 to 15 white.

Anas

" Discors

" Crecca

dirty white, spotted with

brown.

" Americana . . .

6 to 8.

C

" Acuta

" Sponsa

" Albeola

8 to 9 greenish blue.

12 to 13 yellowish white.

Unknown.

Clangula }

Oidemia

" Clangula

" Hystrionica . .
" Perspicillata*.
" Fusca*

7 to 10 white.
12 to 14 white.
4 to 6 white.

8 to 10 white.

Harilda

« Glacialis

" Ferina

" Marila

" Rufitorquis . . .

llergus Senator

" Cucullatus .

5 pale greenish grey.

12 to 13 greenish white.

Unknown.

Unknown.

8 to 13 blueish white.

6 white.

Fuligula )

Mergus \

I

" Merganser. .

10 to 14 white.

Cam. Nat.

Vot. VII

ad

Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Table shewing the species met with in the District of Montreal,
their extreme Northern range, whether migratory or resident
in the District, their winter quarters, and the month of their
arrival at, and departure from the District.

Specific names.

Extr Resid.
ofN. jor Mi-
Lat. grat'ry

Falco Sparverius. . . Common.

" Columbarius . Scarce.

" Chrysaetos . . . iScarce.

" Leucocephalus Scarce.

" Halietos jCommon.

" Palumbarius . Common

" Insignatus . . . Rare

'• Fuscus

" Cooperii ....

" Lagopus ....

" Buteodis ....

" Borealis ....

" Hyemalis . . .
Cyaneus

ISStrix Funerea

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

47

48

" Nyctea . . .
" Naevia....
" Virginianus ....

" Cinerea

" Otus

" Brachyotus..
" Nebulosa . . .
" Tengmalmi .
" Acadica ....
" Dalhousii....
Lanius Excubitor
Muscicapa Tyrannus
" Crinata .

Muscipeta Nunciola.
" Virens...
" Querula .
Setophaga Ruticilla.
Vireo Flavifrons . . .
*' Olivaceus. . . .

" Gilvus

Sylvia Citrinella.. .

Varia

Coronata . . .
Pennsylvanica
Maculosa ....
Pardulina . . .
Philadelphica,
Blackburnica

Virens

Striata

Castanea . . . .

Pinus

Rubricapilla .

Migr 'y
Migr 'y
Migr 'y
iMigr'y

Winter quar-
ters.

W. I. Mex. &c
Mexico.

Common.

Rare.

Common.

Common.

Common.

Scarce.

Rare.

Common.

Common.

Scarce.

Common,

Common,

Common,

Common,

Common

Scarce.

Scarce.

Rare.

Common.

Common.

Common.

Common.

Common.

Scarce.

Common.

Scarce.

Common.

Rare.

Common.

Common.

Common.

Common.

Common

Common.

Scarce.

Rare.

Scarce.

Common,

Scarce.

Common

Rare.

South. States.
'Migr 'yiTropics.
Resid. JFur Countries

IMigr'y
49 jMigr'y South. States.
68 I Migr 'y

58 iMigr'y Mid. States.
55 jMigr'yS. California

Migr'yjSouth. States.
68 iMigr 'y South. States

Mar
April
April
April

April Nov

68
75

68
68
60
67
53
60
50

54
57

58

Resid.
Resid.
Migr 'y
Resid.
{Resid.
Resid.
IMigr'y
iResid.
Resid.
Migr 'y
Migr 'y
Migr 'y
Migr 'y
Migr 'y
igr'y

South. States.

North. States.
North. States.

55

54

Tropics.
Tropics.

Migr 'y South. States
Migr 'ylSouth. States
Migr'y

Migr 'y
Migr'y
Migr 'y

68 Migr'y
JMigr -y

56 Migr'y
Migr 'y

55 Migr'y
Migr'y
Migr'y
Migr 'y
Migr 'y
Migr 'y
Migr'y
Migr'y
Migr 'y
Migr' y

South. States
United States
Tropics.
South. States
South. States
Tropics.

South. States.
South. States
Tropics.

Sep.
Nov.
Nov.

April

Mar.
Mar.
Mar.
May.

April

Mar.

Nov.

Dec.
Nov.
Nov.
Oct.

Nov.

Dec.

South. States

Mar.

Mar.

April

June,

June,

May.

May.

May.

May.

May.

May.

June.

May,

May.

June,

May.

June

June

June

June.

June.

May.

May,

May.

June.

Dee.
Dec.
Nov.
Sep.
Sep.
Oct.
Oct.
Oct.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.

of the District of Montreal,

51

Specific names.

49 Regulus Calendulus Scarce.

50 Regulus Cristatus.. Scarce.

51 Troglotides Fulvus. Common.

52 " Europasus Scarce.

53 Anthus Spiuoletta. . Scarce.
54Coccyzu3 America's Scarce.

55 " Canadensis . Scarce.

56 Ampelis Sialia Common.

67 Bombycilla Garrula Scarce.

58 " Carolinensis Common.

59 Turdus Migratorius. Common.

60 " RufQS Common.

61 " Felivox. . . . Common.

62 " Minor Common.

63 " Mustelinus .. Scarce.

64 " Melodius ... Common.

65 " Noveboracensis Rare.

66 " Aurocapillus .. Elare,

67 Tanagra Rubra Common.

68 Quisculus Versicolor Common.

69 " Baritus.. Common,
VO " Ferrugineus Scarce.

71 Oreolus Baltimorus. Common,

72 Hirundo Purpurea. . Common,

73 « Rufa Common,

74 " Bicolor .... Common,

75 " Fulva Common

76 Cypsilus Pelasgius. Common

77 Caprimul's Vociferus Common

78 " Virginianus. Scarce.

79 Alauda Alpestris,. . Scarce.

80 Parus Palustris Common

SlEmberiza Nivalis... Common

82 " Lapponica Rare.

83 Fringilla Cyanea. . . Common

84 " Nivalis ... Common,

85 " Pennsylvanicus Common

86 " Melodia Common

87 " Canadensis . . . Common

88 " Leucophrys . . . Rare.

89 " Graminea Common

90 « Tristis Common

91 « Pinus Rare.

92 " Linaria Scarce.

93 « Iliaca Rare.

94 " Ludoviciana .. Scarce.

95 " Purpurea Common

96 " Socialis Common

97 Pyrrhula Enucleator Common

98 Icterus Phoeniceus. . Common

99 " Agripennis.. Common
100 " Pecoris .... Scarce.

ExtrResid.

ofN
Lat.

or Mi
grat'ry

Migr* y
Migr' y
Migr* y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr* y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr'y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Resid
M. & R
Migr' y
Migr' y

Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
M. & R
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y

South. States.
South. States. May
South. States. Sep.
South. States. June.
South. States. June.
South. States. May.
Mex., Tropics Jan.
Mex., Tropics A&M
South. States. iMay.
South. States. 'June.

Florida.
South. States,

Winter quar
ters.

I o "5

Q e3

Tropics.

May.
May.
May.

Flor., Brazil.

South. States.

South. States.

Tropics.

Brazil.

Tropics.

Louisiana.

S. America.
S. America.

Mexico,

May.
May.
May.
May.
May.
May.
June.
June.
May.
June.
May.
May.
May.
April
May.
May.
May.
May.
Sep.

Nov.

April

June.

April

Sep.

April

May

O c8

Qts

Oct.

Oct.

Aug.

Aug.

Nov.

Sep.

Sep.

Sep.

Feb.

Sep.

Oct.

Sep.

Oct.

Sep.

Oct.

Sep.

Sep.

Sep.

Sep.

Sep.

Oct.

Sep.

Sep.

Aug.

Sep.

Aug.

Aug.

Sep.

Sep.

Sep.

Nov.

May.

Sep.
Oct.
Nov,
Sep.
Sep.

South. States,

California

North, States. June.lSep.

M. & S. States|April'Oct.

Mexico. JMay. Nov.

IMay. iSep.

Fur Countries May. jSep.
M. & S. States May iSep,
M. & S. States May, |Sep.
South. States. April Sep.

Fur Countries Dec.
Mexico, &c. |M«y.
South. States, April

Mexico.
Mexico.

May.

May.

Mar.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.
Sep.

* Observed only in cold winters, when a scarcity of food drives them
8oath,

52

Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

101
102
103
104
105
106

lot

108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116]
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149

Specific names.

SturnusLudoviciana

Corvug Corax

" Corone* .. .
" Cristatus...
Gorvus Canadensis*
CerthiaFamiliaris. .
Sitta Carolinensis. .
" Canadensis . .
Trochilus Colubris.
Alcedo Alcyon....

Picus Auratus

" Erythrocephalus

" Varius

" Villosus

" Pubescens

" Pileatus

" Tridactylus ....

Cuculus Dominicus.

Tetrao Umbellus...

" Canadensis .

" Lagopus . . .

Columba Migratoria

" Carolinensisf

Charadrius Pluvialis

" Vociferus

" Semipalmatus
Vanellus Helveticus

Ardea Herodias

" Discors

" Lentiginosa .

" Exilis

Calidris Arenaria. .

Strepsilus Interpres.

Xumenius Borealis.

" Longirostris

" Hudsonius .

Scolopax Grisea...

" Wilsonii,.

" Minor+ . .

Limosa Fedoa

" Hudsonica.

P haleropus Hy perbo,

Tringa Alpina

" Pectoralis . .
■' Rufescens . .

" Pusilla

" Rufa

" Semipalmata
Phalacrocorax Dilop

Rare.

Rare,

Common,

Common,

Common,

Scarce.

Scarce.

Common.

Common,

Common,

Common,

Common,

Scarce.

Common,

Common,

Scarce.

Scarce.

Scarce.

Common,

Common,

Rare.

Common,

Rare.

Common,

Scarce.

Scarce,

Rare.

Scarce.

Common,

Common,

Rare.

Common,

Scarce.

Scarce.

Rare.

Scarce.

Rare.

Common,

Common,

Rare.

Scarce.

Scarce.

Common,

Scarce.

Rare.

Common.

Common,

Common,

Scarce.

Extr
ofN,
Lat

Resid.
or Mi-
grat'ry

Migr' y
Resid,
M. & R
Migr' y
Resid.
Migr' y
Migr' y
iMigr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Resid.
Resid.
Resid.
Resid.
Migr' y
Resid,
Resid,
Resid,
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y
Migr' y

South. States. May.
Fur Countries!
Fur Countries!
M. & S. States May.
Fur Countries
South, States, May
Mexico, jApril

South, States. 'April
Mexico. 'May.

Mex., Tropics May.
South. States. May.
South. States. May.
S. StateSyMexMay.

Winter quar- % f.

ters. i"^*S

Tropical Am

South. States,

May.

May.

May.
May.
May,

Tropics.
California.
South. States.
South, States. lApril
M. & S, States|May.
South. States. JMay.
South. States, May.

!May.

, & S. States May.
Tropics. May.

May.

May.

May.

S. States, Tr's May.
South. StatesJApril
South. States. jMar.
S. States, Tr's May.
S. States, Tr's.May.

A.,M.

South. States.'April

April

I April

S. States, Tr's A,,M.
S, States, Tr's A.,M,

April

Mid, States, JApril

Sep.

Oct.

Sep.

Sep.

Sep.

Aug.

Sep.

Sep.

Sep.

Oct.

Aug.

Sep.

Not.
Nov.
Nov.
Nov.
Sep.
Oct.
Oct.
Sep.
Sep.
Oct,
Nov.
Nov.
Nov.
Sep.
Nov.
Oct.
Nov.
Nov.
Nov.
Nov.
Oct.
Oct.
Nov.
Nov.
Nov.
Dec.

♦ Has been frequently observed wintering in the District.
fOne specimen killed in June, 1838.

X Leave about the 20th October, but have been seen in mild autumns,
as late as the 10th of December.

of the District of Montreal.

53

Specific Names.

Extr
ofX.
Lat.

Resid.
or Mi-
grat'ry

Winter quar-^ S > « |

ters. "S '£ ^ o

150 Totanus Vociferus. .
151, " Flavipes . .
152 *^ Chloropygius
153. " Macularius . .
154Rallu3 Virginianus.

155 Rallus Carolinus. . .

156 " Xoveboracensis
157Fulica Americana..

158 Colymbus Glacialis.

159 " Septemtrionalis.

160 Podiceps Cornutus .

161 " Cristatus .

162 « Minor....

163 " Rubicollis

164 ^' Carolinensis

165 Sterna Hirundo

166' " Arctica

167^ " Nigra

168 Larus Atricilla

169
170|
171
172
1731

Tridaetylus. .

Canus

Fuscus

Argentatus . .

Glaucus

174Anser Canadensis..

175 " Hyperboreus .

176 " Leucopsis . . .

177 " Bernicla ....

178 Cygnus Ferus

179 Anas Boschas

Common.

Common,

Scarce.

Common.

Common.

Common,

Rare.

Scarce.

Common,

Rare.

Scarce.

Common,

Rare.

Scajce.

Scarce.

Common,

Common,

Scarce,

Scarce.

Common,

Common.

Scarce.

Scarce.

Common,

Common,

Scarce.

iRare.

iRare.

Rare.

180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199

Clypeata . . . .

Strepera

Obscura

" Discors

" Crecca

" Americana...,

" Acuta

" Sponsa

" Albeola

" Clangula .- . .
" Histrionica .. .
" Perspicillata..

" Fusca

Harelda Glacialis . .

Fuligula Ferina

" Marila

" Rufitorquis. . .

Mergus Serrator . . .

" Cucullatus .

" MergajQser . .

15

ommon.
Scarce,
Rare.
Common.
Common.
Common.
Scarce.
Common.
Common.
Common.
Common.
Rare.
Rare.
Common.
Common.
Scarce.
Scarce.
Rare.
Common.
Scarce.
Common,

Migr'
.Migr
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
xMigr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
73 JMigr'
jMigr'
73 JMigr'
iMigr'
68 |Migr'
70 I Migr'
68 Misrr'

60
70
68

62
57
55
70
74
68
68

68
62

57
75
60

74
71

75
75
70

ys. States, Tr's April Oct.
yte. States, Tr's A.,M. Oct.
yiUnited States A.,M. Oct,
yjUnited States April Oct.
y South. States. ;May. Sep.
y Tropics. May. Sep.

y Tropics. jMay. Sep.

y California. May. Sep.
yMid'le States. 'April Dec.
y United States. April Dec.
yMid'le States. May. Sep.
y South. States. May. Sep.
y South. States. iMay. Sep.
y South. States. May. Sep.
y South. States. May. Sep.
y Tropics. lApril Nov.

y M. & S. States'April Nov.
y M. & S. StatesiMay. Nov.
J Tropics. lApril Nov.

y United States. 'April Nov.
yMid'le States. [May. Sep.
y Mid'le States. 'May. Sep.
y Mid'le States. ;May. Oct.
y Mid'le States. April Oct.
y Mid'le States. April Nov.
y UnitedStates. April Nov.

y April Nov.

y South. States. April Nov.

y April Nov.

y California. April Nov.
y Mexico. April Nov.

y

Mexico.

Mid'le States,
yj Mexico.
yiTropics.

Migr'
58 Migr'
70 jMigr
68 Migr'y-M. & S. States

Migr'
Migr'
Migr'
Migr'

70

54

68

68

68 IMigr'

72 |Migr'

.72 JMlgr'

75 IMigr'

68 Migr'

68 Migr'

68 Migr'

68 Migr'

68 j.Migr'

68 JMigr'

.Mexico.

Mexico.

Mexico.

M. k S. States
y Mid'le States.
vlUnited States.

April Oct.
April Nov.
April Nov,
April Nov.
May. Oct,
April Oct.
April Oct.
April Nov.
April Nov.
May. Oct.
May. Dec.
April Nov.
April Nov.
Oct.

y Mid'le States.

y Mid'le States.

y M. & S. States May

y M. & S. States|May. Oct.

y M. & S. States May. 'Oct.

y South. States.lMay. jOct.

yjSouth. States.! April Oct.

y|United States;May. Nov.

54 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

BIRDS.
Fam. Accipitres. — Genus Falco.

Gen. char. Beak more or less hooked, furnished with a cere which
is more or less hairy, and usually coloured ; mandibles frequently
dentated ; nostrils lateral, rounded or oval, open, and surrounded
by the cere ; tarsus feathered or naked, in the latter event always
scaly ; toes four — 3 before, and 1 behind ; anterior middle one
longest, and the exterior usually connecterl with it by a membrane
as far as the first joint ; talons sharp, more or less curved and
retractile ; tail of 12 feathers ; wings long.
Suh- gen. Falco.

Sub gen. char. Beak short, incurved ; upper mandible with
one or two teeth ; legs robust ; tarsi short, toes long ; talons
sharp and hooked ; 1st and 3rd primaries subequal, 2nd longest.
The 1st and 2nd have an abrupt emargination of their inner web
towards their extremities.

F. sparverius. Sparrow hawk.

Falco (^Tinnunculus) sparverius. Linnseus and Baird!

v.s.p. Cere yellow ; legs and feet yellow ; bill bluish black :
irides hazel ; eggs 4 to 5, brownish yellow, mottled brown. Male
plumage, dorsal aspect. — A black streak from each angle of the
mandibles ; crown of head reddish brown, surrounded by a coro-
net of ashy bine; auriculars white^ a narrow white line forms the
base of the frontlet, and is continued over the eye ; the back and
Dearly the whole tail, light reddish brown ; interscapular region
dotted with black. Ventral aspect. — Chin, throat, breast, belly,
and vent dirty white, with oval black spots across the body, and
continued thence to the wings as fnr as the primaries ; seconda-
ries ash blue above, with black oval spots ; primaries black, with
their inner webs barred with white ; inferiorly the inner webs of
both are barred with faint black lines on a white ground, the
outer webs being wholly black. The outer lateral tail feather
barred with black and white, the bars continued to the outer
web of the 2nd ; all the other tail feathers of the dorsal tint ; a
broad black bar terminates the reddish brown, which is itself
terminated, except in the two central feathers, by a white tip.
The same distribution of colour marks the under surface of the
tail, only fainter. Length from the bill to the extremity of the
tail fourteen inches ; alar expanse twenty-six inches. The female
presents the same characters about the head as the male. On the

ofthi District of Montreal, 55

occiput, however, the ash blue ceases, and the whole remaining
dorsal region presents a uniform series of deep reddish brown, and
brownish black bars; on the tail these bars are 10 or 12 in num-
ber. The ventral aspect is white with longitudinal brown streaks.
i^. columharius. Pigeon hawk.
Falco (Hypotriorchis) columharius. Linn ! Baird !

v.s.p. Bill light blueish gray, tipped with black ; eyelids and
cere greenish yellow ; tarsi yellow ; eggs 2 to 4 mottled with red.

Dorsal aspect. Feathers on the head and back of the neck,
black with brown edges ; a light brown streak from the cere pro-
ceeds backwards over the eyes, which are prominent, and is lost
on the neck. Krom this part downwards the colour is deep cho-
colate brown. The primaries and secondaries have this colour
relieved by whitish brown oval spots, tipped with the same. The
tail with 4 interrupted whitish brown bars, with a terminal one
of same colour.

Ventral aspect. Chiu, 'throat, auriculars, breast, belly, and
vent, with the femorals, yellowish, streaked chocolate brown. Ou
the chin and throat these streaks are little more than confined to
the shafts of the feathers, but on the breast and belly they are
large, and of a lanceolate shape. The under tail coverts are
streaked like the femorals ; under surface of the tail chocolate
brown, barred with white ; the wing linings yellowish brown,
spotted with white, and the inner surface of the primaries banded
like the tail.

The bill is compressed, hooked, deeply toothed, with a corres-
ponding groove in the lower mandible ; nostrils round ; 3rd primary
longest; 2nd about a line shorter, and 1st about a line shorter
than 4th; tail square, the feathers angled off at their tips; toes
with cushions at the joint ; middle toe longest, more than twice
the length of the hind toe. Length of a specimen in the author's
possession, 12j inches ; alar expanse 25 inches.
Siib. genus Aquila.

Sub. gen. char. Bill strong, of considerable length, hooked
towards the apex and straight at the base ; eyes sunk ; nostrils
subcircular; cere hispid; 4th and 5th primaries longest: legs
strong, feathered to the toes ; toes strong; talons incurved, and
channelled inferiorly.

F. chrysaetos. Golden eagle.
F. fulvus of Temminck 1

B6 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

F. Canadensis of Gmelin !

Aquila fulva of Meyer !

Aquila Canadensis. Linn. ! Baird !

v.s.p. Cere and feet yellow ; irides orange brown ; beak blue
at the base, brown at tip ; eggs 2 to 3 impure white, spotted red.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head and nape of neck with acumi-
nate feathers of a bright rufous orange tinge. The rest of this
aspect dark brown, more or less inclined to black, according to
the age of the bird.

Ventral aspect. Dark brown verging to black ; tail dark grey,
banded irregularly with blackish brown, and terminated by a
broad band of the same colour; scapulars invariably brown.
" The young is uniformly of a ferruginous brown, and with the
feathers nearly all white towards the base ; tail white, with a broad
terminal brown and mottled band and no bars. (Nuttall.)
Length about 3 feet ; alar expanse 6 feet. Female about 6 inches
longer than the male.

Sub genus Haliaetos.

Sub. gen. char. Ridge of the beak convex and compressed ;
nostrils luneiform ; cere slightly hispid ; wings long ; tarsi fea-
tlfered on their upper half with short close set feathers, and scut-
ellated on the anterior inferior portion ; talons of equal length,
much bent and grooved internally.

F. leucocephalus. Bald or White headed eagle.
Haliaetos leucocephalus. Linn. ! Baird !

v.s.p. ET V. Bill, cere, irides and tarsi, yellow. The young
bird with a black bill and pale brown irides.

Ventral and dorsal aspects. Head, upper part of neck, tail
and coverts, pure white ; body and wings chocolate brown ; the
margins a shade or two lighter ; quill feathers brownish black
with paler shafts ; 4th primary longest ; 3rd subequal ; outer
webs of the primaries sinuate ; inner webs abruptl}'' emarginate
towards their ends ; tail round ; tarsi feathered for more than
half their length; the anterior naked part strongly scutellated ; hind
toe very long, and its talon longer and stouter than the others ;
middle toe longest, with the shortest talon and grooved on its inner
surface. Length 38 inches; alar expanse 61 inches.

This bird does not assume its adult plumage until the 4th year,
during which time its plumage varies considerably according to its
age. Young bird. Feathers of the head and neck acuminate, inter-

of the District of Montreal, 57

nally white, then umber brown, and tipped with whitish brown.
Whole dorsal aspect except the wings pure brown ; tail black with
minute whitish brown mottlings on the outer vanes of the feath-
ers and blotched with pure white on all the inner vanes except the two
centre feathers. Ventral aspect. Feathers of the chin and throat
like the head, the white however more apparent; breast,
belly and vent, brown ; inner wing coverts white tipped with
brown ; primaries white, 2nd mottled with whitish brown on both
vanes; tertiaries white, mottled with brown and brown tips;
tail round, blotched with white about the centre of each inner
vane ; femorals blackish brown, 'with whitish brown tips to the
end of the shafts ; tarsi yellow, very strong, feathered on the upper
half; toes stout, thickly cushioned ; claws long, much curved,
deeply grooved and compressed along their inferior margin ;
claws of the inner and hind toes equal in length ; bill 2| inches
long from the eye ; the curve commencing at the extremity of the
cere which projects half the distance ; nostrils oval diagonal and
naked ; upper mandible lobed near the end, beyond which the
inner surface drops perpendicularly to form the apex; there
is another rudimentary lobe a little posterior to the front one ;
lower mandible not notched, but rather compressed at its sides ;
the wings extend to about 2^ inches of the extremity of the tail.
Length 38 inches ; alar expanse 72 inches.

Another specimen, a younger bird probably, or perhaps of a
different sex, presented throughout the same essential characters,
but differed slightly in the colour, which was lighter and more
rusty. It measured 40 inches with an alar expanse of Y6
inches.

The young of this species has often been confounded with that
of the F. chrysaetos. The distinguishing characteristic is, that in
the latter the tarsi are completely feathered, while in the former
they are only feathered on their upper half, the lower half being
naked and scaly. The young of the F. albicilla, an European
species, resembles our present bird more than any other. Tem-
minck has suggested that the tail of the European species is larger
than that of ours; Richardson suggests another characteristic,
that the upper mandible of the former has two lobes, while that
of the i^. leucocephalus has but one. From what I have seen
there seems to be a mistake here, for the two specimens alluded
to, which have furnished me my description, have very evidently
two— a large very obtuse one near the curve, and a 2nd one

58 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

not so large, but perfectly distinct behind it, and a little anteriorly
to the base of the cere. It is the case also in another specimen
which I have since examined.

F. haliaetos. Fish hawk or Osprey.
Aquila halicetus of Meyer !
Ti/pe of sub gen. Pandion of Cuvier !
Pandion Carolinensis. Gmelin ! Baird !
v.s.p. Cere and bill bluish black ; claws pale blue ; irides
orange and yellow ; eggs 2 to 4 cream yellow, with red blotches ;
tarsi strong, about 2 inches long, feathered down their anterior
surface, and scutellated on their other parts, the scales being
rounded and tiled ; soles and inner surface of the claws shagree-
ned; talons curved, tapering, rounded beneath.

Crown of the head white on each side, with a central streak of
black continued to the neck, these feathers occasionally edged
with yellow, and erectile; a dark brown stripe includes the orbit
and is lost upon the shoulders. Dorsal aspect generally umber
brown verging to black ; tail brown and barred with a deeper
brown ; the inner vanes of the feathers barred with dusky brown
and brownish white ; wing feathers with the outer vanes black,
and their inner ones barred similarly to the tail. Ventral aspect
generally white, with yellowish delineations on the breast ; ante-
rior and lateral femorals streaked with brown; inner and posterior
ones white. The female is two inches longer than the male, and
is spotted with brown on the breast. The young birda have the
feathers on the dorsal aspect tipped with yellowish white, have a
fawn coloured spot on the breast, and blue feet. Length of an
old male 23 inches ; alar expanse 54 inches.
Suh genus Astur.
Sub gen. char. Bill strong ; tooth well defined ; nostrils
rounded ; middle toe longest, and connected to the adjoining
outer one ; 4th primary longest.

F. palumbarius. Goshawk.
F. atricapillus of Wilson !
F. regalis of Tomminck !
Ti/pe of sub genus Astur of Bechstein I
Ti/pe of sub genus Dcedelion of Savigny !
F, gallinarius, Young, Gmelin and Frisch !
Astur atricapillusy (Wils.) ! Bonap. ! Baird !
V.S.P. Bill blackish blue, whitish below the cere, with a cor-
responding spot on the lower mandible ; cere and legs yellow ;

of the District oj Montreal, 59

irides orange yellow ; eggs 2 to 4 blue white, mottled with
brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of the head, nape of the neck, cheeks
and auriculars black, with the white bases of the feathers ap-
pearing. A white stripe, with the shafts of the feathers black,
crosses over the eyes, from the base of the bill on each side, and
loses itself upon the neck ; back, wing coverts, interscapulary
regions as far as the rump blueish gray with black shafts ; pri-
maries and secondaries with their coverts brown, with lighter
edges ; rump white, with two perfect brown bars, and occasion-
ally an imperfect third : tail, two centre feathers blueish grey,
with 4 dark brown bars, and an imperfect fifth ; four next lighter
brown, with five distinct bars, imperfectly continued to the inner
vane of the last feather; primaries dark brown, mottled white
towards their insertion.

Ventral aspect including the femorals and wing linings of short
wavy lines of greyish black on a white ground, with dark grey
shafts; tail dirty white with brown bars, indistinct on the two
outer feathers ; tail coverts white, a few of them mottled grey.

Tarsi half feathered ; toes strong ; talons curved, long, grooved
inferiorly, the middle one with a salient inner edge ; upper man-
dible compressed, toothed ; lower one rounded near the apex ;
nostrils oval, clothed with stiff hairs presenting a stellated ap-
pearance a little over the commissure of the mouth. The upper
hairs meet over the nostrils, all closely appressed ; 4th primary
longest; 3rd about a line shorter; 2nd, 3 lines shorter than the
3rd ; 1st about half an inch longer than 6th, and shorter than
the 5th. Length 26 ^ inches; alar expanse 42 inches. The
female is met with about 5 inches longer than the male. Her
dorsal aspect is brown, slightly tipped with white, and a white
relieves the place of the mottled ventral aspect of the male with
occasional patches of brown of an oblong shape on the breast and
throat, and oval on the belly. In both male and female the tail
is much rounded, the outer feathers being 1 ^ inches shorter than
the centre ones.

F.fuscus. Slate coloured hawk.

F. Pennsylvanicus of Wilson ! Adult male.

F. velox of Bonaparte ! Young female.

Acdpiter fringilloides of Vigors !

Accipiter Pennsylvanicus of Swainson !

Buteo Pennsylvanicus. Wilson ! Bonap. ! Baird !

'60 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

v.s.p. Bill blueish black ; cere geenish yellow ; irides reddish
orange ; tarsi bright yellow ; claws black ; eggs 4, dirty white
blotched with red.

Dorsal aspect. Crown and nape of the neck blackish, soon
changing to a blueish grey, which invests the whole dorsal re-
gion, including the wings and tail ; the shafts of the primaries,
secondaries and tail feathers brown ; the shafts of all the other
feathers black. Towards the primaries and tail, the blueish grey
changes to a brown, which in the former is barred with a deep
brown mottled with white, and in the latter is intersected by 4
broad bars of a deep brown colour, and tipped with white. The
1st band is imperfect,the three next are very distinct, and gradually
increase in breadth. The last one is very broad, and bounded
by the terminal white tip.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat white, with black shafts;
breast, belly, and vent reddish brown, barred with white, and
black shafts ; femorals like the belly with white shafts ; wing
surfaces white barred with brown, the white changing to an ashy
blue towards the extremities of the primaries and secondaries;
tail coverts white ; the bars on the under surfaces of the wings
and tail very distinct.

Legs long ; scales on the anterior surface of the tarsi minute ;
toes long ; middle one longest, and twice the length of the hind
toe ; claws long, curved, sharp, and grooved beneath ; nostrils
oval, placed longitudinally ; 1st primary equal to the seconda-
ries; 2nd about two lines longer than 1st; 3rd and 6th sub-
equal ; 4th longest, and 5th about a line shorter ; tail square.
Length of a male in the author's possession 11 J- inches; alar
expanse 21 inches. Nuttal says that "the feathers on the breast
and sides of a young female were marked with broadish trans-
verse pale brown bars, terminated by oblong, oblanceolate spots."

F. Cooperii. Cooper's Hawk.
Accipiter Cooperii, Bonap ! Baird !

D.c. This bird I have not yet met with, but have no doubt, in
consequence of its range, that it is an occasional visitant in this
section of Catiada.

*' Tail rounded, with 4 blacl^ish bands, and tipped with white,
wings extending when folded to the second band. 2nd quill
nearly equal in length to the 6th, and the 3rd to the 5th. Length
18 or more inches. Young, dusky brown, skirted with ferru-

of the District of Montreal. 61

gineous, beneath white, with oblanceolate dusky brown spots."
(Nuttal).

S\d) genus Btiteo.

Sub gen. char. Bill short, curved from its base ; lobe blunt ;
sides of the lower mandible in-curved ; wings long ; 1st priraary
shortest; four first primaries indented in their inner web. The
tarsi of some are feathered the whole length, distinguished from
the eagles by their bill curving from the base, and from the
goshawks by the naked space between the eyes and bill.
F. lagojms. Booted hawk. Rough legged falcon.
F. Sdavonicus. Latham !
F. spadicius of Idem !
Archihuteo lagopus. Briinnich ! Gray ! Baird I

v.s.p. ET M. Cere and irides light drab ; tarsi yellow; bill and
claws black ; eggs 4, white, mottled with red.

Dorsal aspect. Head and neck light yellowish brown, streaked
with umber brown, and black shafts ; dorsal region as far as the
rump umber brown, the feathers edged with light yellowish
brown, these tips disappearing towards the rump ; wing coverts
umber brown, tipped with rufous ; four first primaries indented in
their inner webs, white near their quills, and dark chocolate
brown towards their extremities ; shafts white, edged with brown
along the quills, the remainder brown; the basal half of the tail
is brownish white, terminated by umber brown, tipped with grey-
ish white.

Ventral aspect. Throat, breast and belly, like the upper sur-
face, but with narrower streaks ; on the breast the streaks are
broader ; then comes an apparent interruption, which is followed
by a broad belt of umber brown across the belly ; the feathers
here being, except in the centre, not edged with white ; wing
coverts and vent feathers brownish white, with white shafts ; tail
yellowish white at the base, with a terminal slate grey border .
inner shafts of all the wing feathers white, the quills themselves
white towards their base, with their distal halves shining blackish
brown; shoulders white; tarsi feathered to the toes; femorals
very long reaching to the toes, yellowish brown, streaked with
chocolate, in the form of an oval spot at the extremity of each
feather.

Toes stout, cushioned ; middle toe longest; claws long, strong,
not much curved, grooved beneath, the middle one with a salient

62 2>r. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

inner edge. Length 24 inches ; alar expanse 50 inches ; 1st and
Yth primaries equal ; 2nd about 1^ inch longer than 6th ; 3rd
and 5th equal ; 4th longest; 2nd two lines longer than the 3rd»
tail square. " The female is generally lighter on the back, but
browner on the sides and belly. The young bird has the belt only
indicated by large brown spots on the side, with the feathers of
the thighs transversely barred. The tail with three broad bands
towards its extremity, and with the iris brownish yellow."
(Nuttall).

7^. Sancti Johannis, Black hawk.
F. niger. Wilson !

Archibuteo Sancti Johannis. Gmelin ! Gray ! Baird !
v.s.p. The only specimen of this species which has fallen
under my notice is a young bird shot this spring (1838) at the
Priests' Farm, Montreal, of which the following is a description.
I have little doubt but that this species and the former have fre-
quently been confounded by naturalists.

" Bill black ; cere, angles of the mouth, and tarsi yellow ; eggs
unknown ; irides yellow ; whole dorsal and ventral aspects uni-
form blackish brown, with the white under surface of the feathers
appearing on crown and throat ; primaries, secondaries, and the
tail white, with their distal halves clove brown ; 3rd, 4th and 5th
primaries indented on their outer vanes; tail with brownish white
tips to the feathers and not barred, and with brownish white
shafts ; femorals long reaching nearly to the toes, with light
brown emarginations to the feathers ; tarsal feathers brown tip-
ped like the femorals ; 3rd primary longest ; 2nd shorter than
4th; 1st and 7th equal; hind claw longest; anterior middle
claw with an inner salient edge. Length 23 inches ; alar ex-
panse 43 inches. The bill, legs and claws more slender than in
the F. lag opus. Audubon considers the variety as the result of
age. He told me so in 1842, when in this city.

F. Dawsonis. Dawson's Falcon. (New Species, Hall !)
I have only seen two specimens of this beautiful Falcon, the one
in the Museum of the Natural History Society, and evidently from
its dimensions, as well as fact, a female ; the other a young male
belonging to Mr. Hunter, the taxidermist of the Society. The
first was bought in the market of Montreal a few years ago, and
the second was shot at Lachine this autumn (1861) by a relation
of Mr. Hunter. It bears some resemblance to Prof. Cassin's Hiero*

oj the District of Montreal, 63

falco sacer, especially his description of the young bird, but dif- *
fers from it in having the claws black; and the under part of the
claws are not greenish yellow, but of the same hue as the tarsus ;
and the general tint of the dark parts of the plumage is not
brown, but emphatically slate color. It also somewhat resembles
the description given by the same gentleman of the F. atricapillns
or plumbarius but differs in having greenish blue tarsi, and a
bluish cere, with black irides. I believe this bird to be a new
species, and have taken the liberty of calling it after Dr. Dawson
the esteemed principal of McGill College.

v.s.p. Bill stout, strongly toothed in upper mandible, the tooth
corresponding with a notch in the lower one, of a bluish color, ter-
minating in a black tip, which is the color of the cere and irides.
Tarsi feathered half way to toes, of a dark greenish blue. Toes
long, moderately strong, claws black and much curved. Eyelids
dirty white this color forming a complete circle round the eyes.

Dorsal aspect. The prevailing tint is dark slate color tipped
with cinereous on the back of the neck, interscapulars and second-
aries, and with rufous on the back, the upper tail coverts tipped
with dirty rufous white. Many of the secondaries have a rufous
white rounded spot near the end of their outer vanes. Tint of the
upper part of the tail of a brownish slate color, with about 1 1 to
14 bars of light rufous terminating in rufous white near the tip,
the tail tipped with the same color. The tail consists of about 11
feathers, the extrenjities of which are all rounded.

Ventral aspect. Chin and upper part of throat whitish, each
feather having a narrow streak along its shaft of slate color. The
prevailing tint, like that of the back is slate color, but differing
from the back in that each feather has the outer vane white, with
an irregular long white spot on the inner vane, leaving the central
portion of the prevailing color. Femorals as long as the tarsals, the
white on the feathers here assuming almost a banded or barred
appearance, which in the female is distinctly so. Under tail coveiis of
alternate rufous white and slate colored bars. The under surface of
the tail exhibits a rufous tint, while the bars are more distinctly seen.
2nd. Primary longest; 1st shorter than the 3rd, but longer than
the 4th ; inner vanes of the primaries barred with white.

The female which resembles the male in every respect except
the bars on the femorals, had its bill a good deal worn, thus indi-
cating it to be an old bird. Length of the male 23^ inches. Alar
expanse 38 inches. That of the female 27J inchest with an alar
expanse of of 42 inches.

64 Dr, A* Hall on the Mammals and Birds

F. buteoides. Short winged buzzard.
F. buteo of Pennant!

v.s.p. ET V. Bill and claws black ; tarsi yellow ; irides (" dark
brown," Nuttall,) bright yellow ; eggs 2 to 4 whitish, waved
with green and spotted yellowish.

Dorsal aspect. Feathers of the head, neck, and dorsal regions
blackish brown edged with ferruginous, least so on the back and
head, and broadly so on the neck ; scapulars brown, with indica.
tions of white bars on the inner vanes below the surface ; a ferru.
ginous tint predominating on the outer vanes, and a white on
the inner vanes ; wing coverts ferruginous brown, tipped with
ferruginous white, and indications of white bars on the inner
vanes of the greater coverts ; rump brown ; tail coverts, centre
ones white on the outer vanes, barred with white on the inner
vanes, on a blackish 'brown ground, and tipped with white; tail
round, ferruginous near the base, soon changing to a pale
brown, tipped with soiled white, and with 9 to 11 bars of dark
blackish brown. Primaries clove brown ; the quill halves of
inner vanes ferruginous white, spotted with clove brown spots ;
the ferruginous white continued to the outer vane of the 2nd,
3rd, 4th and 5th ; secondaries paler brown, with half of the
inner vanes white barred with the brown.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat, breast, belly, tail and wing co-
verts white, tinged with ferruginous, with oval and oblanceolate
brown spots at the end of each feather ; vent ferruginous white \
femorals the same colour with a lanceolate spot of brown.

Legs long, feathered for one-third their length, scutellated on the
remaining portion. 4th primary longest; 3rd a little shorter
than 5th ; 2nd about 4 lines longer than 6th ; 1st and 8th equal.
F. borealis. Red tailed hawk.
F. levorianus young bird.
Buteo (Poecilopternis) borealis. Gmelin 1 Vieill. I Baird !

D.c. " Bill greyish black ; cere, sides of the mouth, and tarsi yel-
low ; upper parts dark brown touched with ferruginous ; scapu-
lars barred beneath the surface ; the lateral tail coverts white,
barred with rusty ; middle ones dark ; tail rounded, extending
two inches beyond the wings, of a reddish brown or brick colour,
with a single band of black near the end, and tipped with brown-
ish white; the breast rust coloured, streaked with dark brown ;
chin white ; vent and femorals pale ochreous, the latter with a
few small heart shaped spots of brown ; iris yellow. Length 22

of the District of Montreal, 65

inches ; alar expanse 45 inches." (Nuttall). I have not met with
a male bird as above described, but the following description is
from a young female in a state of moult, probably her first. It
differs somewhat from a description of an old female by Richard-
son.

v.s.p. Bill and claws blueish ; cere and legs greenish yellow ;
feathers on head and back with streaks of chocolate brown, narrow
on the head, and streaked with white, except on the shoulders, where
a rufous tinge terminates them. Vanes of the primaries yellowish
brown towards the base, with indication of bars, changing to
brown on their distal halves ; upper tail coverts barred with
brown ; the last bar on each feather heart shaped. Tail dark
chocolate brown, tipped with dirty white, and having 8 bars of a
reddish brown, the red line gradually disappearing towards the
extremity where it changes to a light brown. Basal ends of the
primaries and secondaries, white or yellowish white, soon
changing to slate colour with bars. Femorals, yellowish white,
with minute brown spots near the extremity of the shafts. Tarsi
feathered anteriorly for an inch, and thence protected by 12
tiled scales ; length, 22 inches ; alar expanse, 44 inches.

F. hyemalis, Winter falcon or red shouldered hawk.

F. hyemalis, adult male of Audubon and Wilson.

F. Uneatus, young male of Audubon.

Buteo\Poecilopternis) lineatus. Gmelin ? Jardine !
T.S.p. Bill blackish, cere and legs yellow ; irides reddish
hazel.

Dorsal aspect. Feathers on the head and neck acuminate
brown, edged with ferruginous and black shafts; on the back and
rump dark brown, edged with lighter brown ; small wing coverts
reddish brown, with a black stripe down their centres. Greater
wing coverts brown, with reddish brown tips ; primaries and
secondaries, dark brown, barred and tipped with white ; scapulars
of a lighter hue, barred also. Tail, umber brown, with 6 white
bars, and tipped with white.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat like the head; prevailing
hue of breast and belly, femorals and wing linings, bright rufous
barred with white and shining brown shafts ; vent and tail coverts
cream white ; wing and tail surfaces brownish white, barred with
slate colour.

1st primary about two lines longer than the secondaries ; 2nd,
two lines longer than the 6th ; 3rd and 5th, equal; 4th, longest;
Can. Nat. 5 Vol. VII.

66 Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

wings about one inch shorter than the tail. This elegant bird
measures 22 inches, and has an alar expanse of 44 inches. The
above description is from a very perfect specimen in the author's
possession. Young " brown and ferruginous, beneath rusty slightly
varied with faint bars ; wings dusky and barred ; tail black,
crossed and tipped with 5 bands of white." (Nuttal.)

Buteo insignatus. (Cassin 1 Baird !) McCulloch's or the
Canada Buzzard.
D.c. Form robust ; wings rather long, 3rd quill longer, second-
aries emarginate at their tips ; quills unusually broad ; tail rather
short, slightly rounded ; tarsi feathered in front below joint;
naked behind, having in front 10 transverse scales; under wing
and tail coverts white, the former striped longitudinally with pale
ferruginous, and some of the transversal with dark brown ; the
latter with transverse slips of pale reddish brown.

Plumage of the tibia dark ferruginous mixed with brown ;
throat and a few feathers in front white, with narrow lines of
black ; entire other plumage above and below, dark brown, nearly
every feather having a darker or nearly black line on its shaft ;
quills above brown with a purple lustre, beneath pale ashy with
their shafts white, and irregularly barred with white near their
bases ; tail above dark brown, with an ashy or hazy tinge, and
having about 10 obscure bands of a darker shade of the same
colour beneath nearly white, with conspicuous bands of brown,
the widest of which is next the tip which is paler ; tarsi and feet
yellow. — Sex unknown. Dimensions. Total length, (of skin) 17
inches; wing 14|, making an alar expanse of 29j inches ; length
of tail, n\.

Hab. Canada, Dr. McCulloch and Dr. Hall. — Specimen in the
private collection of the 'late Dr. McCulloch, now possessed by
Mrs. McCulloch.

Frequently after having examined this bird, the late Dr.
McCulloch and myself considered it new, but we had no means
of verifying our opinion, until the visit of Prof. Cassin, of Phila-
delphia, in 1854. Dr. McCulloch fell a victim to the cholera dur-
inir its epidemic of that year, and the following spring it was for
warded to Mr. Cassin, in Philadelphia who identified it as a new
species. Only one specimen has as yet been obtained in this coun-
try, although Mr. Cassin has had the good fortune to secure a second
specimen, which now constitutes the representative of this Buteo
in the museum of the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia.

of the District of Montreal. 67

In colour it resembles, in some respects, the young of the Circu3
Hudsonius or ferrugineus. The specimen above described was
shot in the vicinity, I believe, of Terrebonne, and was brought to
the late Dr. McCulloch, by one of the farmers residing in that
neighborhood. It is evidently a very rare species, as this is the
only specimen of it which has been seen here. The foregoing
description I have taken from Prof. Cassin, who has described the
bird under its present name, " Buteo insignatus", in his valuable
work, " Illustrations of the birds of California, Texas, Oregon,
British and Russian America." In memory of the late Dr.
McCulloch, and his promotion of the study of the natural
sciences in this city, it should receive the name of McCulloch's
Buzzard, although Mr. Cassin has attached to it the name
of " Canada Buzzard."

F, Cyaneus, Hen harrier.

F. uliginosus. Wilson and Buonaparte I !

D.c. I have never met with a specimen of this bird, but from
its extensive geographical range, it ought to be an occasional
visitant with us. The following description is from Nuttal's
'* Ornithology of the United States and Canada."

"In the old male, the upper parts are of a blueish gray. The
quill feathers are white at their origin, and black the rest of their
length ; the internal part of the base of the wings, rump, belly,
sides, thighs, abdomen and beneath the tail is white without spots;
upper part of the tail of a cinereous gray, with the ends of the
feathers whitish ; iris and feet yellow; length 20 and 21 inches."

We desire only to add to our list of the Falconidae, which we
have endeavoured, with every care, to render as perfect and com-
plete as possible, that with the varying names given to the species
by authors, together with the differences in plumage, (sometimes
remarkable) between the male and female bird, and also between
that of the young bird and its parents, the greatest of difficulties
has originated and has unquestionably caused, in our opinion, some
mistakes in the nomenclature. With the exception of the Gull and
Tern tribes, to which we might add one or two other genera, we
know of none more diflScult of study, or identification than the
Hawks.

Genus Strix.

Gen. char. Bill compressed and curved from the base.
Ce*re more or less covered by stitf, erect hairs ; head large,
feathered ; nostrils lateral, rounded, open, and concealed by the

68 Dr, A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

hair of the cere; eyes large, orbits surrounded by feathers which
are erect, or in a stellated form around them, giving the appear-
ance of a flattened disk ; tarsi feathered, often as far as the talons;
feet 4-dactyle, three before and one behind ; outer toe versatile ;
3rd primary longest.

Suh-gen. Surnia,

Sub-gen. char. External auditory apertures oval — of moderate
size — naked — facial disk small and composed of slender feathers
which are repressed along the cheeks. This genus forms a con-
necting link between the hawks and true owls.
1st. Subdivision.

Heads without ears or tufts.

S.funerea. Hawk owl.
S. Hudsonia of Wilson.
Surnia ulula. Lemm. ! Bonap. ! Baird !

v.s.p. Ridge of the upper mandible yellow ; its inferior por-
tion, with the lower mandible black; claws black; irides bright
yellow ; eggs two, white.

Dorsal aspect. Hair-like feathers of the cere gray, with black
mucronate shafts ; facial disk composed of grayish white stiflf
feathers, bounded by black posteriorly ; upper surface of head
and neck deep blackish brown, with numerous white spots. Dorsal
region ; scapulars, wing coverts and rump, brown, with less
numerous white spots, except on the scapulars which appear
almost barred with white; tail rounded, brown, with seven im-
perfect white bars.

Ventral aspect. Chin grayish black ; the black line bounding
the facial disk, continued to the fore part of the neck ; behind
this a white streak, the feathers composing which are tipped
with black ; this again is bounded by another black line ; the two
black lines meeting behind the ear, and thence diverging to the
neck; breast, belly, and vent grayish white, intersected by numerous
narrow rusty brown bars ; under the wings, these bars assume a
darker tint, which is continued to the inner wing cover:s;
femorals and tarsals silky, of a dirty yellow colour and faintly
barred, the feathers continued to the extremities of the toes ; tail
itself brownish slate colour with distinct white bars; primaries
and secondaries barred internally ; the bars composed of white
spots on the vanes of all the feathers; the outer vane of the 1st.
primary has its barbs slightly recurved.

of the District of Mon treaL 6 9

3rd. primary longest; length 16 inches; alar expanse 28
inches. The female has the tints less clear, and the young bird
has the plumage of a rusty brown.

S. nyctea. Snowy owl.

S. Candida of Latham !

Nyctea nivea. Gray ! Baird !
v.s.p. ET V. Bill and claws blueish black ; irides bright yellow ;
eggs 2 white.

Dorsal asoect. Facial disk white ; head, neck and whole dorsal
region pure white, with more or less distinct umber brown, in
some instances, blackish bars ; rump and tail coverts white ; tail
white with three imperfect terminal blackish bars ; primaries and
secondaries white, with bars on the vanes of the former, and
black spots on the inner webs of the latter.

Ventral aspect. Throat, vent, tail coverts, wing linings, and
tail white ; breast and belly white barred like the back.

Nostrils large, oval, obliquely situated at the margin of the
cere ; femorals as long as the tarsus ; tarsus feathered to the
talons, the feathers here being long and soiled ; claws black, long,
curved, and very sharp ; 3rd primary longest ; 2nd, 3rd and 4th
have their outer vanes abruptly notched ; barbs of the outer vane
of the 1st primary have their points reverted and open. Length
25 inches ; alar expanse 54 inches. The female is a little larger
than the male, and more spotted. The old males are nearly
altogether pure white.

2nd Subdivision.

Heads furnished with ears.

S. ncevia. Mottled owl, or screech owl.

S. asiOf male. Audubon !

>S. a«*o of Linnoeus !

S. noevia of Wilson ! Adult.

Scojys asio. Bonaparte ! Baird !
v.s.p. Bill and claws white bone colour, the latter tipped with
black ; irides bright yellow ; at a distance the prevailing hue of
the bird is gi'^y.

Dorsal aspect. A near approach defines the facial disk to be
of a gray white colour, with a pale brown line on the upper
eyelid; the disk bounded by a black line meeting in the throat,
and terminating below the ears ; hair-like feathers of the cere,
very long ; anterior ones projecting considerably beyond the bill ;
upper part of the head and neck gray and brown, streaked with

70 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

blackish brown — the streaks fading on the lower part of the neck \
dorsal region, rump, scapulars, (except the outer vanes of the outer
feathers which are white tipped with black,) and greater wing,
coverts, coloured like the head ; inner vanes of the primaries and
secondaries, light brown, with umber brown bars ; outer vanes of
the primaries ferruginous next the shaft, with white edges,
and barred like the inner vanes; outer vanes of the secondaries,
mottled and barred with brown, gray, and white ; tail dark
brown, with 7 or 8 bars of a reddish brown ; the bars being in-
distinct on the distal end, which is also mottled with brown.

Ventral aspect. Above and below the black streak on the
throat, white prevails ; breast and belly, gray white, with light
brown bars, and blackish brown streaks ; these streaks are very
large on the breast, and become narrower towards the vent ; vent
feathers white ; tail coverts generally white, with indications of
brown bars; the lateral feathers white and very silky; wing
coverts present the same characters ; quills slate colour, with gray
bars; femorals and tarsals silky, 4 or 5 inches long, and
slightly tipped with rufous superiorly ; toes feathered only to the
last joint; ears composed of 8 to 10 feathers coloured like those
on the head.

4th primary about a line longer than 3rd ; 3rd equal to 5th and
2d to 6th ; 1st primary not longer than the secondaries. " Outer
and inner vanes of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th primaries notched." 5th
notched on the outer vane. The barbs of the outer vanes of 1st
and 2d primaries revolute. Claws long, much curved ; inner edge
of the middle toe, salient, and very sharp, outer toe versatile.
Hind toe very short, shorter than the outer one. Middle toe lon-
gest. Length 13 inches; alar breadth 20 inches. I must observe
that the colours of this bird are much blended with one another,
and render the description of it no easy task. The female has a
prevailing reddish brown tint, streaked and barred with ash and
brown; face whitish; breast and belly whitish, with bars and
streaks of black and brown ; femorals and tarsals pale brown j
irides yellow, bill and claws greyish horn color. She lays 4 to
6 eggs, which are white and nearly round. The young bird is
tawny red, with narrow dark spots along the shafts of the feather.
Suh'genus Bubo.

Sub-gen. char. Beak strongly inclined from its base, nostrils
large, concealed; ears of moderate size. Facial disk tolerably dis-
tinct.

of the District of Montreal, 71

1st. Subdivision.
Heads with ears.
S. Virginianus. Great Horned Owl,
Bubo Virginianus. Gmelin ! BoDap! Baird!

v.s.p. «k V. Upper mandible black; lower one horn colour;*
claws pale at their insertion, changing to black towards their
tips, irides bright yellow. Eggs 2 to 4, white, large.

Dorsal aspect : — Facial disk immediately round and in front of
the orbits greyish black, bordered with reddish brown — the shafts
of the feathers being continued beyond the vanes, and forming a
kind of fringe. This frinire is bounded by a black border. Above
the eye the facial circle is incomplete. Ear-tufts of 10 to 12
feathers, black on the outer vanes, and mottled brown on the
inner vanes, the smaller posterior ones being wholly brown.
Crown,neck, back, rump, scapulars, and wing coverts black, mottled
with grey and brown, the light brown bases of the feathers ap-
pearing often through the black tips : the grey white on the back
having an undulatory appearance. Primaries and secondaries
mottled and barred, the inner vanes presenting on their quill
halves a fine reddish brown colour, barred with dark brown.
These vanes have a peculiar velvety feel, caused by a fine fringe
projecting from the superior outer margin of each barb. The
reddish brown almost changes to an orange on the secondaries.
Tail banded with six blackish brown bars ; the bars most
distinct on the inner vanes, which are reddish brown, while the
outer vanes, besides the bars, are much mottled with grey and
brown.

Ventral aspect. Chin \vhite, succeeded by a belt, which is
continuous with the black border of the facial disk. This belt is
succeeded by a crescentic spot of pure white, situated at the
lower part of the throat. A little below the crescent, and separ-
ated from it by an irregular line of black and brown, commences
a mesial line of pure white, broad at its commencement, gradually
contracting and terminating at the vent. On either side of this
line the feathers are white, barred with numerous fine zigzag de-
lineations of umber brown, with lighter edgings, the yellow
bases of the feathers appearing through them ; flank feathers about
6^ inches long, enveloping the thighs and forming a kind of
fringe underneath the tail ; they are much barred ; inner wing
coverts white, barred with umber brown ; tail light reddish brown,
distinctly barred ; femorals yellowish brown ; tarsal feathers

72 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

whitish, barred with brown : of toes whitish and short with faint
delineations of darker brown bars ; toes feathered as far as the
last joint, the feathers projecting over it.

3rd primary longest ; 4th a little shorter ; barb of outer vane
of 1st primary revolute; length, 26^ inches; alar expanse 46j

inches.

2nd Subdivision.

Heads without ears.

S. cinerea. Great Grey or Cinereous owl.
S. Lapponica of Temmink.
Syrnium cinereum. Gmelin ! Audubon ! Baird.
v.s.p. Bill pale horn colour, thickly embedded in the cere
feather ; claws black ; irides yellow. Eggs 2, mottled with
blackish brown.

Dorsal aspect. Facial disk large and well developed, black for
a short space, immediately anterior to the orbits ; all the rest
grey, barred with a blackish brown ; the bars concentric, 6 to 7
in number ; disk bounded posteriorly by a circle of feathers, the
front ones of which are velvety and of a deep liver brown colour ;
posterior ones white, with a deep brown streak along the shaft.
Dorsal region, except the quill feathers of the wing and tail, blackish
brown, mottled and barred with white, more or less pure. Quill
feathers of the wing and tail blackish brown, barred with a lighter
brown and mottled with dirty white, 5 to 6 bars; on the tail
there is the same number of bars, but not well defined, composed
of alternate deep clove brown and white streaks, with mottled
whitish brown interstices. These raotlings are most distinct on
the two centre feathers.

Ventral aspect. Liver brown and white distributed in about
equal proportions, without regularity ; flank feathers brown, bar-
red with white ; wing and tail coverts dirty white, barred with
brown; tail and wings brownish slate colour, mottled and streaked
like the upper surface ; tarsal feathers long, impure white, barred
with brown; toes feathered as far as the origin of the claws;
claws long, not much curved, sharp and compressed beneath with
indications of a groove.

In the specimen before me the 6th primary is longest ; 4th and
5th equal ; 3rd about 2 lines shorter ; 2nd about an inch shorter
than 3rd, and the 1st equal to the secondaries, in consequence of
which the wing when expanded has a rounded appearance ; tail

of the District of Montreal. 73

rounded. Length 30 inches, alar expanse oQ inches. I believe it
to be a female. The distinctive character between the sexes is
rifling.

Suh-genus Ulula.

Sub-gen. char. Concha large, with a membranous operculum;
facial disk well developed.

1st Subdivision.
Head with ears.
S. otus. Long eared owl.
Otus Willsonianus. Lessen ! Baird.

v.s.p. Bill and claws black ; irides orange yellow ; eggs 4 to 5,
white and subrotund.

Dorsal aspect. Facial disk black, immediately in front of^
above and below the orbits; the black margin succeeded by
grey ; posterior parts ferruginous brown, inferiorly and posteriorly
margined with white, the feathers tipped with black ; auricular
ring composed of velvety white feathers, mottled aud tipped with
liver brown, the line thus formed meeting on the anterior part of
tae throat, where the white predominates ; dorsal region deep
brown, mottled and barred with white ; outer vanes of the scapu-
lars and greater wing coverts, with white spots and a single bar
of brown ; the quill half of the primaries, yellowish brown,
with brown bars; distal ends deep brown, with whitish bars,
mottled with brown ; tail like the primaries ; the yellowish
brown less distinct, and traversed by 11 bars of the dorsal colour,
with intermediate bars of a fainter tint bordered with dirty white ;
tail tipped with white.

Ventral aspect. White with clove brown streaks, mottles and
bars ; wing and tail coverts yellowish white ; quill half of prima-
ries and secondaries, yellowish white; distal half, slate brown,
with broad white bars ; tail, yellowish white, verging to slate at
its distal end and barred with deep slate brown ; femorals and
tarsals, yellowish brown ; toes feathered to the last joint.

2nd primary longest; 3rd next; 1st next; 4th next. Ears
long, composed of 8 to 10 feathers, black on the outer vanes,
white mottled with brown on the inner vanes; bart) of outer
vanes of 1st primary revolute,of 3rd and 4th a good deal intiexed.
Length 16,^ inches; alar expanse, 34 inches.

S. brachyotos. Short eared owl.

S. hrachyota of Latham !

Brachyotus Cassinii. Brewer! Baird!

74' Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

D.c. This is one of our most common owls, but unfortunately
at the time of writing, I cannot lay my hands on a specimen.
The following is from Nuttall : " Ear-like tufts inconspicuous, of
2 or 3 very short feathers ; general colour, ochreous, spotted with
blackish brown ; face round the eyes blackish ; tail without 5
bands, not extending beyond the tips of the wings ; female with
the general tints paler. In the young the face is blackish. Length
13 to 15 inches. Head of old bird small ; tail ochreous, with small
bands, and tipped with white ; beneath Isabella yellow, with
longitudinal spots of blackish brown ; bill black ; feet and toes
feathered : iris of a bright yellow."

2nd Subdivision.

Heads without ears.

S. nehulosa. Barred owl.

Syrnium nehulosum. Gray ! Baird.

v.s.p. ET V. Upper mandible yellow ; lower one blueish black,
except where it closes against the upper one; claws blueish black.
Eggs 4 to 5, white ; irides deep blue, verging to black.

Dorsal aspect. Facial disk in front of the orbits black, bounded
by greyish white ; all the other parts brownish grey, posteriorly
barred and tipped with brown. A line of brown feathers, tipped
and barred with white, bounds the facial disk and meets on the
throat. Head, neck, back, rump, tail, scapulars, coverts, prim-
aries and secondaries, liver brown, barred with white, which
has a yellow tinge. These bars are most numerous on the neck,
and most distinct on the back ; those of the wings and tail have a
brownish tinge, about 5 in number on the latter, and tipped with
the same colour, and 5 or 6 on the wings composed of spots
which are darker on the outer vanes.

Vental aspect. Chin brown ; neck below the brown line con-
tinued from the facial disk, white, succeeded by white barred with
liver brown. A single bar occurs on each feather, which is also
tipped with the same. The bars change to streaks on the breast
and belly ; vent and tail coverts and wing coverts yellowish white,
the second and last with narrow, brown specks ; tail slate colour,
with 5 bars; wings same, barred; femorals and tarsals short, yellow-
ish white, with a faint barring ; toes feathered to the last joint.

Claws long, not much curved but very sharp ; claw of the mid-
dle toe longest, with a salient sharp inner ridge ; hind toe com-
pressed ; 4th and 5th primaries equal, if anything 5th longest ;

of the District of MoyitreaL 75

3rd and 6th equal ; 2nd and Yth equal ; 1st shorter than the
secondaries ; barbs of the outer vanes of 1st and 2nd primaries
revolute ; barbs of the outer vanes of 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th revo-
lute at their tips ; inner vanes of 2nd and 3rd, and outer vanes of
2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th notched ; tail rounded. Length 24
inches ; alar expanse 42 inches. The female and young scarcely
differ from the male.

In Richardson's description of the comparative lengths of the
primaries of this bird, there appears to me to be an error. I have
verified mine in several specimens, and find it differing substan-
tially from his. And so far from the toes being "only half
covered with feathers," in all the specimens that I have seen, they
are distinctly covered to the last joint, the feathers thence pro-
truding over the talons, and but 4 transverse scales appearing
beyond this line, instead of 7 as mentioned by our author. I am
inclined to the belief, that the remarks made by him at the end
of his description of this bird in his Fauna, must have been de-
rived from an imperfect specimen.

S. Tengmalmi. Tengmalm's owl.
S. Passerina ? "Wilson I

v.s.p. Upper and lower mandibles black, with the ridge of
the former white ; claws black ; irides yellow ; eggs 2, white.

Dorsal aspect. Facial disk, black in front of and below the
orbits ; below and posteriorly white, bordered by blackish grey,
bounded by a line of deep velvety brown, mottled with white,
and meeting on the anterior part of the throat, where the white
predominates, and thence continued upwards to the chin, separated
by a msesial line of brown, and downwards for a little distance to
the breast ; crown and occiput liver brown, with white spots —
these latter most numerous on the crown, and larger and more
distinct on the occiput and nape of neck. The dorsal region liver
brown, variegated with white spots, which are largest on the
scapulars, on some of which a pair may be seen, but most gener-
ally, a single one is met with on the outer vane, of a round shape.
Primaries marked by 5 rounded white spots on their outer vanes,
and 5 correspondent linear bars on the inner ones ; bars broad-
est on the secondaries ; tail with 5 imperfect white bars, made
up of oval spots on their outer, and of lines on their inner vanes.

Ventral aspect. Below the throat the prevailing tint is liver
brown, mixed with nearly an equal quantity of white — the former
colour predominating on the sides, and the latter on the middle

76 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

parts; wing linings and tail coverts dead white, with imperfect
brown marks ; wings and tail slate colour, with white spots cor-
responding to those on the upper surface; femorals and tarsals
yellow white, with dark brown bars, the tarsals continued to
toes as far as the insertion of the talons.

3rd primary longest ; 2nd, 4th and 5th subequal ; 1st and Yth
equal ; outer barb of the 1st primary revolute ; tail square.
Length 12 inches ; alar breadth 20 inches.

Eichardson refers the S. Passerina to the S. Tenpmalmi, on
no other grounds than a similarity in the plumage of the head.
The two birds, however, are totally distinct ; the S. Passerina
not only being much smaller than the S. Tengmalmi, but differs
also from it in its ventral plumage, which is wholly brown, and
moreover, has but three white bars on the tail, whereas the S.
Tengmalmi has five. A greater difficulty, however, occurs in the
distinctive characters between the S. Balhousii, S. Passerina^ and
>S^. Acadica^ which resemble one another in nearly all their essen-
tial points. Might not the trifling varieties which are found to
exist between them be the result of ao-e ? Nuttal refers the
S» Passerina to the S. Acadica, to which I feel also much in-
clined to refer the S, Dalhousii. A degree of uncertainty, how-
ever, at the best, hangs over these species, which it would require
a comparative examination of numerous specimens of different
ages and sexes to clear up. The two following species agree
with the plates of the respective birds, as figured in Wilson and
Buonaparte's splendid work. The descriptions of both of them
are taken from prepared specimens, shot in the vicinity of Mon-
treal in 1837.

S. Acadica. Acadian owl. ,

S. passerina ? Wilson !

S. Dalhousii? Audubon!

S. Acadica of Bonaparte ;

Nyctale Acadica, Gmelin 1 Bonap. ! Baird !
v.s.p. Bill and claws black ; the former tipped with white at
the apex of the upper mandible ; irides pale yellow.

Dorsal aspect. Facial disk, white superiorly, and black ante-
riorly and posteriorly, with a few white feathers inferiorly ; bounded
posteriorly by brown feathers, tipped with white, forming a line
which meets immediately below the chin ; frontlet yellowish
white ; crown and nape of neck liver brown, (which is the pre-
vailing dorsal tint) with indications of, or imperfect, white streaks

of the District of Montreal, 77

especially on the nape of neck. A white spot tinged with yellow
on the outer vanes of the scapulars and wing coverts ; 3 or 4
white spots on the outer vanes of the primaries, which are rudi-
mentary on the 1st, and form bars on the inner vanes ; tail with two
white bands, tipped with white ; the bars made up like those on
the wings.

Ventral aspect. Breast and throat liver brown, distinctly
defined ; lower part of the breast and belly, reddish brown ; tail and
wing coverts whitish ; quills of both slate coloured, barred with
white ; femorals and tarsals yellowish white, short, and continued
almost like hair along the toes, as far as the talons.

Toes long and slender ; middle toe, with the claw, 8 lines long;
claws long, slender, very slightly grooved, except on middle
toe, which has a salient sharp inner edge. Inferior surface of
the talons compressed ; wings much rounded when extended ;
3rd and 4th primaries equal ; 2nd and 5th equal ; 1st and 8th
equal; tail square. Length 8^ inches; alar expanse 16 inches.
(Probably a female.)

S. Balhousii. Dalhousie's owl.

v.s.p. The whole appearance very much resembling the former
species.

Dorsal aspect. Facial disk dirty white round the orbit, except
anteriorly, where it is blackish ; extremities of the facial disk
brown ; auricular ring like that of the former ; crown and nape
of neck liver brown, streaked with white, the white streak being
along the centre of each feather ; scapulars, wing coverts, wings
and tail, like the >S'. Acadica ; the spots on the inner vanes of the
primaries, however differing from those on the S. Acadica, in
being oval, and scarcely presenting the appearance of bars.

Ventral aspect. Breast and belly streaked with reddish bi-own
and white, instead of being wholly brown as in the former.

3rd primary longest ; 2nd and 4th equal ; 1st and 8th equal;
resmbles the former in all its other characters.
S. Kirtlandii. Kirtland's Owl.

Nyctale Kirtlandica. Hog ! Cassin !

This rare, beautiful, and diminutive of the owl tribe was caught
alive in a grain store in this city a few years ago by Mr; Hunter,
Taxidermist to the Natural History Society. It was identified
through the instrumentality of Prof. Cassin's work on " The birds
of California, Texas, Oregon, and British and Russian America."
It is there mentioned as an inhabitant of the State of Wisconsin,
by Dr. Hog, who first described it, having obtained his specimens

78 Dr. Hunt on the Taco7iic System of Emmons.

four in number, in the neighbourhood of Racine in that State. I
am happy to have had it in my power to add it to the list of Owls.

v.s.p. Bill black and nearly concealed by small feathers and
black bristles arising from its base. Irides yellow. Above eyes
and on each side of bill a dirty white line ; remainder of the front
composed of chocolate brown feathers edged with dirty white,
their tips causing at the edge of the front a dirty white line. Fea-
thers behind eyes darkest. Tarsi feathered to extremities ot toes
with fine appressed ochrey colored feathers. Toes and claws long.

Dorsal aspect. Prevailing tint chocolate brown, relieved on
the scapulars, secondaries and primaries by whitish spots, on the
latter the spots existing on both the outer and inner veins, form-
ing 3 or 4 imperfect bars. Tail with three bars of white and
faintly tipped with the same color.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat chocolate brown changing on
the abdomen, flanks, and inferior tail coverts, to an oohry color.
Under wing coverts whitish.

3rd primary longest, 2 and 4 subequal, 1 and 1 being about
equal. Wings rounded when expanded. Length from crown of
head to tip of tail 7^ inches. Alar expance 15 inches. The
whole plumage is peculiarly velvety to the feel.
(To be continued.)

ARTICLE V. — Note on the Taconic System of Emmons; by
T. Sterry Hunt, M.A., F.R.S.

In a notice of the Taconic rocks in the last volume of this
Journal, (p. 379,) it was explained that Emmons asserts that in
going eastward from the line of fault which brings up the Taconic
group to overlie the Trenton and Loraine formations, we meet suc-
cessively with lower rocks, all dipping eastward, until in the Green
Mountain gneiss we have a rock which is older than the Taconic
group ; so that the newest rocks appear to be at the base, and
the oldest at the summit of the series. It was however main-
tained, in opposition to this view, that the apparent order of super-
position from the great fault, going eastward to the Green Moun-
tains is in the main, the true one, and that the black slates of Em-
mons, which he regards as the newest rock of his series, are really
the oldest; while the Green Mountain gneiss is a rock higher in
the series than any of those to the west of it.

These propositions we still maintain, but in explaining what
we conceive to be Mr. Emmons' error, we have said that in order
to explain this supposed inversion in the succession of the rocks, he

Dr, Hioit on the Tacoiiic System of Emmons. 79

imagines a great overturn of the whole series in question. In
this we have been misled by the language of Mr. Emmons,
which has caused him to be misinterpreted by others as
well. In speaking of the succession of rocks, he uses the term
"inverted strata," and Mr. Barrande has spoken of the " overturn
(renversement) of the whole system." Mr. Marcou, apparentlv as
the interpreter of Emmons, speaks of the strata in question as
having been " overturned {renversees) on each side of the crys-
talline and eruptive rocks which occupy the centre of the chain,
presenting thus a fan-shaped structure, and all the accidents which
accompany a complete overturn of a whole system of strata," so
that in going eastward towards the centre of the chain, we find
that the most recent strata appear to be placed beneath the most
ancient, "in consequence of an overturn {renversement).'''' Comjytes
Rendus de VAcad. xliii. 804.

Now in justice to Mr. Emmons it should be said, that despite
his use of the expression " inverted strata," he has never main-
tained any inversion or overturn, as a careful examination of his
descriptions will show. (Taconic St/stem. p. 17). He supposes
that during the accumulation of the Taconic rocks, the gneiss
which formed the eastern limit of the basin was progressive^'
elevated, so as to successively bring the older members above the
ocean from which the sediments were being deposited ; and that
the upper parts of the formation, such as the black slates, were
thus confined to a narrow basin, and never extended far eastward ;
at the same time he conceives that denudation may have removed
large portions of the upper beds. At a subsequent period a series
of parallel faults, with upthrows to the eastward, is supposed to
have broken the strata, given them their eastward dip, and caused
the older beds to overlap the inner ; thus giving rise not to an in-
version of the strata, but to an apparent inverted succession. Now
we find in Canada abundant evidence that the slates which Em-
mons regards as the newest, are really near the base of the series,
and cannot consequently admit his hypothesis to explain an order
of things which we conceive to have no existence.

The careful study of the region in question shows, that although
such a great upthrow and overlap does bring the Quebec group to
the surface from beneath the higher rocks, to the east of this fault
undulations, overturns, and downthrows to the eastward, diversify,
with eastern upthrows, the structure of this complicated region.
The gneiss of the Green Mountains, like that of the Scottish High-
lands and like the granite of the summits of the Alps, is the newest

80 Miscellaneous,

rock of the chain, the structure of all these mountain regions being
synclinal, as we have endeavoured to show in the case of the Alps,
{SilUman's Journal {2) xxix. 118,) and as Sir Roderick Murchison
has beautifully represented in his late section across the Scottish
Highlands. (See his new Geol. Map of Scotland).

MISCELLANEOUS.

CHROMIC IRON ORE AND ASBESTUS.
We copy from a late number of the Chemical News, the fol-
lowing notice of the chromic iron and asbestus from the vicinity
of Baltimore, lately imported into England. It is known to many
of our readers that the Geological Survey has already shewn the
existence in several parts of the Eastern Townships, and in Gaspe,
of large deposits of this valuable ore, equal in richness to the
samples from the United States : — " The amount of sesqui-oxide of
chromium in the present ore, as determined by Dr. Genth, is stated
to be equivalent to 63 per cent, of chromic acid — a mode of ex-
pressing the value of the ore by the quantity of chromic acid
produced on fusion with an alkali, and not that of the green sesqui-
oxide actually contained therein. Ore of this superior description
may be obtained in casks ready for shipment, at the rate of about
one dollar for each one per cent, of chromic acid per ton, and in
quantities of about 200 tons annually. It is, however, considered
more judicious to work this ore in admixture with other qualities
which are produced in greater abundance, — 1500 tons annually, —
the average composition of such samples furnishing usually
about 50 per cent of chromic acid. The ore last described
was accompanied by specimens of asbestus, and of paper con-
taining about one-third proportion of the same. This mineral
may be procured at the rate of 1^ cents per pound, — a low
price considering the high quality of the article offered. The
specimen sent is beautifully white, and the fibres are long and
delicate. It has been tried in America for paper-making and for
the manufacture of steam-packing, in both of which applications
it is said to be very serviceable. Its property of resisting heat,
and its bad conducting power, would render this material particu-
larly valuable in connection with steam machinery. The sheet
of paper sent is a portion of an experimental manufacture ; it
burns with flame, leaving a white incombustible residue, which,
with careful management, retains the form of the original sheet ;
the weight of ash amounting precisely to 30 per cent."

MOXTIILY METEOKOLOGICAL KEGISTER, ST. MARTINS, ISLE JESUS, CANADA EAST, (NINE MILES WEST OF MONTREAL,) FOR THE MONTH
Latitude, 45 degrees 32 minutes North. Longitude, 73 degrees 36 minutes West. Heigljt above the level of the Sea, 118 feet.
BY CHAKLES SMALLWOOD, M.D., LL.D.

OF DECEMBER, 1861.

=

T

-"-' - '1 -. (1 -R ''

1

^"S '^f.T "'"

Tempwature

Of the

Tension of Aqueous

Humidity of the
Atmosphere.

Direction of Wiud. 1

^-'' ^^^ ^ — ; —

[A cloudy sky is represented by 10, a cloudless one by 0.]

*?

(Enilish inches >

-' ■■ ':''', '1 ind™.

i

29 5U

6a m

10 pm

6am

2pn.

10 p. in.

2 p.m.

10 p. m.

Ca.m. ' 2,..m. i in p. m.

6 a.m.

2 p.m.

10 p.m.

sol

"5

22 2

2^4

El

120
081

117

oos

i
1

171

i

1
1

•i

.87

1'^':: ■ ' '■■ ' '■ ' '■■ '

k

|£str. 10.
C. C. Str. 4.

Cu. Str. 10.

'I|

30 147
2J I)!?

2^

fi

20 (I
3b 2

1

212
11

i

i

1
079

ii

1

rJ:

cXr. lo'.

Cu.Str. 10.

Kain. ^°'
Jir.Cu. Str? 8.

1

'

i

150

:8o

.30

v.'n.e.

221..™ 1 ;: i

\'£ ;: !;:■:::-■■ -^-

Clear. Inapp. halo Aurora Boreal.
3. O^Str. 10.

oSf' 4. and Halo.

1

.77

:7i

1

-

1

0^^

096

036
036

.'78
Jl

.S.byli.' .sVe. N.N.E.

C.C.Str. lS:P.halo.||S;^ ^^^
girstr. . ptr. 10.

—

m?T>A

REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF JANUARY, 1862.

Bai ometer— coriLCtcd
and reduced to

(Engltsh inches )

Tension of Aqueous

■«||

[A cloudy sly is represented b

I cloudless one by 0

s.'s.'vv. " |W.
W. N. W. W.

REMARKS FOR DECEMBER, 1861.

rHishcst.the 12tli day, 30-372 inclies.
\ Lo%vest, the 23rd day. 23.378 "
• ■) Monthly Mean. 29.892

,■ lTir!;~=f the stli dnv, 4G»9.

minutes.
Most prevalent wind, W. S. W.

r,ca~tVrfval>;nt «iiul, the N.

"'':,,'!; 'i

.ra.

2

p.m.

10 p. m.

'-" ri;:::::

Rain.

Clrar. "pa

„t^'uroraB„r..,is. '

6.

Ou. Str.

4.

rlLr"''

8.

" ' ' ^i:.;.' rr„

t.

'^;ulVr.

10.

oi;;^ir.

W

inoM.

Clear.'

Clear.

10.

?rs;r

10

10.

Oiea'r.

cK'

Snow.

:::::::;::::

^-

10.

"-"^■' |:i|

.%

the weight of ash amounting precisely to 30 per cent.

THE

CANADIAN

MTUEALIST AND GEOLOGIST.

Vol. VIL APRIL, 1862. No. 2.

ARTICLE Yl.— Notes on the Flora of the White Mountains,
in its Geographical and Geological relations. By J. W.
Dawsok, LL.D., F.G.S.

(Read before the Montreal History Society.)

The group of the White Mountains is the culminating point of
the northern division of the great Appalachian range, extending
from Tennessee to Gaspe in a south-west and north-east direc-
tion, and constituting the breast-bone of the North American con-
tinent. This great ridge or succession of ridges has its highest
peaks near its southern extremity, in the Black Mountains ; but
these are little higher than their northern rivals, which at least
hold the undisputed distinction of being the highest hills in north-
eastern America. As Guyot* has well remarked, the White
Mountains do not occur in the general line of the chain, but rather
on its eastern side. The central point of the range, represented by
the Green Mountains and their continuation, describes a great curve
from Gaspe to the valley of the Hudson, and opposite the middle
of the concave side of this curved line toweis the almost isolated
group of the White Hills. On the other side is the narrow val-
ley of Lake Champlain, and beyond this the great isolated mass
of the Adirondack Mountains, nearly approaching in the altitude
of their highest peaks, and greatly exceeding in their geological

* Silliman's Journal.
Can. Nat. 6 Vol. VII

82 Dr. Dawson on the Flora

age, the opposite White Mountain group. The Appalachian
range is thus in this part of its course, supported on either side by
outliers higher than itself.

My present purpose is not to give a general geographical or
geological sketch of the White Mountains, but to direct attention
to the vegetation which clothes their summits, and its relation to
the history of the mountains themselves. For this purpose I may
first shortly describe the appearances presented in ascending the
highest of them, Mount Washington, and then turn to the special
points to which these notes relate.

In approaching Mount Washington by the Grand Trunk Rail-
way, the traveller has ascended from the valley of the St. Law-
rence to a height of 802 feet at the Alpine House at Gorham.
Thence in a distance of about 8 miles along the bank of the Pea-
body River, to the Glen House, he ascends to the elevation of
1632 feet above the sea ; and it is here or immediately opposite
the Glen House, that the actual ascent begins. The distance
from the Peabody River, opposite the hotel, to the summit is
nine miles, and in this distance we ascend 4656 feet, the total
height being 6288 feet above the sea.* Formerly only a bridle
path led up this ascent ; but last year a regularly| graded and ad-
mirably finished carriage road was opened, by which visitors can
drive comfortably to the top and back without any of the fatigue
formerly experienced. This enterprise, almost |Worthy of com-
parison with the great roads over the passes of fthe^Alps, was un-
dertaken several years ago by a joint-stock company, and has at
length been finished, at a cost, T believe, of $40,000, the interest
on which it is hoped will be paid by the tolls levied on travellers,
whose annual numbers are estimated at about 5000 for this road*
This royal road to the summit is however by|far too democratic
for the taste of some visitors, who mourn the olden days^of po-
nies, guides, and adventures ; and though it gives an excellent
view of the geological structure of the mountain, it does^not afford
a good opportunity for the study of the alpine flora, which is one
of the chief attractions of Mount Washington. For this reason^
though I availed myself of the new road for gaining a general
idea of the features of the group, I determined to ascend by
Tuckerman's ravine, a great chasm in the mountain side, named
in honour of the indefatigable botanist of the North American

* According to Guyot, but some recent surveys make it^a^little higher j

of the White Mountains, • 83

lichens.* I was aided in this by the kindness of a gentleman of
Boston, well acquainted with these hills, and passionately fond of
their scenery. Our party, in addition to this gentleman and my-
self, consisted of two ladies, two children, and two experienced
guides, whose services were of the utmost importance, not only in
indicating the path, but in removing windfalls and other obstruc-
tions, and in assisting members of the party over difficult and
dangerous places.

We followed the carriage road for two miles, and then struck off
to the left by a bridle path that seemed not to to have been used
for several years — the gentlemen and guides on foot, the ladies and
children mounted on the sure-footed ponies used in these ascents.
Our path wound around a spur of the mountain, over rocky and
uneven ground, much of the rock being mica slate, with beautiful
cruciform crystals of andalusite, which seemed larger and finer
here than in any other part of the mountain which I visited. At
first the vegetation was not materially different from that of the
lower grounds, but as we gradually ascended we entered the
" evergreen zone," and passed through dense thickets of small
spruces and firs, the ground beneath which was carpeted with
moss, and studded with an immense profusion of the delicate little
mountain wood-sorrel (^Oxalis acetosellci), a characteristic plant
of wooded hills on both sides of the Atlantic, and which I had
not before seen in such profusion since I had roamed on the hills
of Lochaber Lake in Nova Scotia. Other herbaceous plants were
rare, except ferns and club-mosses ; but we picked up an aster (^,.
acuminatus)^ a golden rod, (^Solidago thyrsoidea), and the very
pretty tway blade [Listera cor data).

In ascending the mountain directly, the spruces of this zone
gradually degenerate, until they present the appearance of little
gnarled bushes, flat on top and closely matted together, so that
except where paths have been cut, it is almost impossible to pene-
trate among them. Finally they lie flat on the ground, and be-
come so small that, as Lyell remarks, the rein-deer moss may be
seen to overtop the spruces. This dwarfing of the spruces and
firs is the eftect of adverse circumstances, and of their struggle
to extend their range toward the summit. Year by year they

• Dr. Bigelow and Prof. Tuckerman have been the chief botanical ex-
plorers of the White Mountains ; though Pursh was the first to determine
some of the more interesting plants, and Peck, Booth, Oakes and othera,
deserve honourable mention.

§4 • Dr, Daimon on the Flora

stretch fortli their roots and branches, bending themselves to the
ground, clinging to the bare rocks, and availing themselves of
every chasm and fissure that may cover their advance : but the
conditions of the case are against them. If their front advances
in summer it is driven back in winter, and if in a succession of
mild seasons they are able to gain a little ground, less favourable
seasons recur, and wither or destroy the holders of their advanced
positions. For thousands of years the spruces and firs have striven
in this hopeless escalade, but about 4000 feet above the sea seems
to be the limit of their advauce, and unless the climate shall
change, or these trees acquire a new plasticity of constitution, the
genus Abies can never displace the hardier alpine inhabitants
above, and plant its standard on the summit of Mount Wash-
ington.

I was struck by the similarity of this dwarfing of the upper
edges of the spruce woods, to that which I have often observed on
the exposed northern coasts of Cape Breton and Prince Edward
Island, where the woods often gradually diminish in height to-
ward the beach or the edge of a clifi", till the external row of
plants clings closely to the soil, or rises above it only a few inches.
The causes are the same, but the appearance is more marked on
the mountain than on the coast.

On the path which we followed, before we reached the upper
limit of trees, we arrived at the base of a stupendous cliff", forming
the termination of a promontory or spur of the mountain, sepa-
rating Tuckerman's ravine from another deep depression known
as the Great Gulf. From the top of this precipice poured a little
cascade that lost itself in spray long before it touched the tops of
the trees below. The view at this place was the most impressive
that it was my fortune to see in these hills.

0[)posite the mouth of the Great Gulf, and I suppose at a height
of about 3000 feet, is a little pond known as Hermit Lake. It
is nearly circular, and appears to be retained by a ridge of stones
and gravel, perhaps an old moraine or sea beach. On its margin
piped a solitary sand-piper, a few dragon flies flitted over its sur-
face, and tadpoles in the bottom indicated that some species of
frog dwells in its waters. High over head and skirting the edges
f the precipices, soared an eagle, intent no doubt on the hares
that frequent the thickets of the ravines.

Before we reached Hermit Lake we had been obliged to leave
^our horses, and now we turned aside to the left and entered

of the While Moimtains. 85

Tuckerman's ravine, where there is no path, but merely the bed
of a brook, whose cold clear water tumbles in a succession of
cascades over huge polished masses of white gneiss, while on both
sides of it the bottom of the ravine is occupied by dense and al-
most impenetrable thickets of the mountain alder (Alnus viridis.)
Tuckerman's ravine has been formed originally either by a
subsidence of a portion of the mountain side or by the action of
the sea. It is, like most of the ravines and '* gulfs " of these
hills, a deep cut or depression bounded by precipitous sides, and
terminating at the top in a similarly precipitous manner. It
must at one period have been in part filled with boulder clay,
steep banks of which still remain in places on its sides ; and ex-
tensive landslips have occurred, by which portions of the liniiting
cliflfs have been thrown toward the centre of the valley, in large
piles of angular blocks of gneiss and mica slate, in the spaces
between which grow gnarled birches and spruces that must be
used as ladders and bridges whereby to scramble from block to
block, by every one who would cross or ascend one of these rivers
of stones.

At the head of the ravine we paused to rest, to admire the wild
prospect presented by the ravine and its precipitous sides, and
to collect the numerous plants that flower on the surrounding
slopes and precipices. Here on the 19th of August were several
large patches of snow, one of them about an hundred yards in
length. From the precipice at the head of the ravine, poured
hundreds of little rills, and several of them collecting into a brook,
had excavated in the largest mass of snow a long tunnel or
cavern with an arched and groined roof. Under the front of
this we took our mid-day meal, with the hot August sun pouring
it^ rays in front of us, and icy water gurgling among the stones
at our feet. Around the margin of the snow the vegetation pre-
sented precisely the same appearances which are seen in the low
country in March and April, when the snow banks have just
disappeared — the old grass bleached and whitened, and many
perennial plants sending up blanched shoots which had not yet
experienced the influence of the sunlight.

The vegetation at the head of this ravine and on the precipices
that overhang it, presents a remarkable mixture of lowland and
mountain species. The head of the ravine is not so high as the
limit of trees already stated, but its steep sides rise abruptly to a
plateau of 5000 feet in height intervening between Mount Wash-

86 Dr, Dawson on the Flora

ington and Mount Munro, and on which are the dark ponds or
tarns known as the Lakes of the Clouds, forming the sources of
the Amonoosook river, which flows in the opposite direction.
From this plateau many alpine plants stretch downward into
the ravine, while lowland plants availing themselves of the
shelter and moisture of this cul-de-sac, climb boldly upward
almost to the higher plateau. Other species again occur here
which are found neither on the exposed alpine summits and
ridges nor in the low country. Conspicuous among the hardy
climbers are two coarse and poisonous weeds of the river valleys,
that look like intruders into the company of the more dwarfish
alpine plants ; — the cow-parsnip {Heracleum lanatum) and the
white hellebore ( Veratrum viride). Both of these plants were seen
struggling up through the ground at the margin of the snow,
and climbing up moist hollows almost to the top of the preci-
pices. Some specimens of the latter were crowded with the in-
fant caterpilars of a mountain butterfly or moth. Less conspicuous,
and better suited to the surrounding vegetation, were the bluets
( Oldenlandia coerulea)^ now in blossom here as they had been
months before in the low country, the dwarf cornel ( Cornus Can-
adensis)^ and the twin-flower {Linncea borealis), the latter
reaching quite to the plateau of the Lake of the Clouds, and en-
tering into undisputed companionship with the truly alpine plants,
though it is also found at Gorham four thousand feet lower.

Of the plants which seemed to be confined or nearly so to the
upper part of the ravine, one of the most interesting was the
northern painted cup, {Castelleia septentrionalis) a plant which
abounds on the coast of Labrador and extends thence through all
Arctic North America to the Rocky Mountains, and is perhaps
identical with the C Sibirica of Northern Asia and the C. pallida
of Northern Europe. Large beds of it were covered with their pale
yellow blossoms on the precipitous banks overhanging the head of
the ravine. With the painted cup and here alone, was another
beautiful species of a very difierent order, the northern green
orchis, (^Platanthera hyperhorea) a plant which occurs, though
rarely, in Canada, but is more abundant to the northward. Here
also occurred. Peck's geum, {G. radiatum, var.), Arnica mollis^
and several other interesting plants.

Of the Alpine plants which descend into the ravine, the most
interesting was the Greenland sandwort, (Arenaria [Alsine)
Groenlandica) which was blooming abundantly, with its clusters

of the White Mountains, 87

of delicate white flowers, on the very summit of the mountain,
and could be found here and there by the side of the brook in the
bof torn of the ravine.

Clambering by a steep and dangerous path up the right side
of the ravine, we reach almost at once the limit beyond which
the ordinary flora of New England can extend no longer, and are
in the presence of a new group of plants comparable with those
of Labrador and Greenland. Here, on the plateau of the Lake
of the Clouds, the traveller who has ascended the giddy preci-
pices overhanging Tuckerman's ravine, is glad to pause that he
may contemplate the features of the new region which he has
reached. "We have left the snow behind us, except a small
patch which lingers on the shady side of Mount Munro ; for it is
only in the ravines into which it has drifted an hundred feet
deep or more, that it can withstand the summer heat until
August. We stand on a dreary waste of hard angular blocks of
mica slate and gneiss, that lie in rude ridges as if they had been
roughly raked-up by Titans who might have been trying to pile
Monro upon Washington; but which seem to be merely the
remains of the original outcropping edges of the rocks broken up
by the frost, but not disturbed or rounded by water. Behind us
is the deep trench-like ravine out of which we have climbed :
on the left hand a long row of secondary summits stretching out
from Mount Washington to the south-westward, and designated
by the names of a series of American statesmen. In front this
range descends abruptly in great wooded spurs or buttresses to
the valley of the Amonoosook which shines in silvery spots through
the trees far below. On our right hand towers the peak of Mount
Washington, still more than a thousand feet above us, and covered
with angular blocks, as if it were a pile of fragments rather than a
solid rock. These stones all around and up to the summit of the
mountain, are tinted pale green by the map lichen (Lecidea Geogra-
phica) which tinges in the same way the alpine summits of European
mountains. Between the blocks and on their sheltered sides nestle
the alpine flowering plants, of which 20 species or more may be
collected on this shoulder of the mountain, and some of which ex-
tend themselves to the very summit, where Alsine Groenlandica
and the little tufts of deep green leaves of Diapensia Lapponica
with a few Carices seem to luxuriate. Animal life accompanies
these plants to the summit, near which I saw a family of the
snow bird {Plectrophanes nivalis) evidently summer resident*

88 Dr» Dawson on the Flora

here, and a number of insects, conspicuous among which was a

brown butterfly of the genus Hipparchia, Shortly before sun-
down, when the thermometer at the summit house was fast set-
tling toward the freezing point, a number of swallows were hawk-
ing for flies at a great height above the highest peak. To
what species they belonged I could not ascertain. Possibly the
cliflF swallows find breeding places in the sides of the ravines, and
rise over the hill top to bask in the sunbeams, after the mountain
has thrown its shadows over their homes.

To return to the alpine flora which is peculiar to the peaks of
these mountains — are the species comprising it autochthones
originating on these hill tops and confined to them, or are they
plants occurring elsewhere, and if so where ; and how and when
did they migrate to their present abodes ? These are questions
which must occur to every one interested in geology, botany, or
physical geography. They have been answered in various ways;
but without entering into controversy, I shall merely state a few
facts, bearing on and illustrating that view which I myself prefer.

Not one of the alpine plants of Mount Washington is peculiar
to the place. Nearly all of them are distinct from the plants of
the neighboring lowlands, but they occur on other hills of New
England and New York, and on the distant coasts of Labrador
and Greenland, and some of them are distributed over the Arctic
regions of Europe, Asia and America. In short they are strag-
glers from that Arctic flora which encompasses the north polar
region, and extends in promontories and islands, along the high
cold mountain summits far to the southward.

Some of the humble flowerless plants of these hills are of nearly
world wide distribution. I have already noticed the pale green
map lichen which tints the rocks of the Pyrenees, the Alps, and
the Scottish Highlands ; and the curious ring lichen {Parmelia
centrifuga) paints its conspicuous rings and arcs of circles
alike on Mount Washington and the Scottish hills. A little club
moss {Lycopodium selago) is not only widely distributed over
the northern hemisphere, but Hooker has recognised it in the
Antarctic regions. Not long ago we unrolled in Montreal an
Egyptian mummy preserved in the oldest style of embalming,
and found that, to preserve the odour of the spices, quantities of
a lichen (Evernia furfuracea) had been wrapped around the
body and had no doubt been imported into Egypt from Lebanon
or the hills of Macedonia for such uses. Yet the specimens

of the White Mountains, 89

from this old mummy were at once recognised by Professor
Tuckerman as identical with this species, as it occurs on the
White Hills and on Katahdin in Maine. These facts are how-
ever easily explicable in comparison with those that relate to the
flowering plants.

The spores of lichens and mosses float lighter than the lightest
down in the air, and may be wafted over land and sea, and drop-
ped everywhere to grow where conditions may be favourable.
Had the Egyptian embalmer used some of the first created spe-
cimens of Evernia furfuraeea, it might easily within the three
thousand years or so since his work was done, have floated round
the world and established itself on the White Hills. But, as we
shall see, neither the time nor means would suffice for the flower-
ing plants. The only available present agency for the trans-
mission of these would be in the crops or plumage of the migratory
birds ; and when we consider how few of these on their migra-
tions from the north could ever alight on these hills, and the
rarity of their carrying seeds in a state fit to vegetate, and further
that few of these plants produce fruits edible by birds, or seeds
likely to attach themselves to their feathers, the chances become
infinitely small of their transmission in this way. The most pro-
fitable course of investigation in this and most other cases of ap-
parently unaccountable geographical distribution, is to inquire as
to the past geological conditions of the region, and how these
may have affected the migrations of plants.

The earlier geological history of these mountains far ante-
dates our existing vegetation. It belongs in the first instance to
the Lower Devonian period, in which the materials of these moun-
tains were accumulating, as beds of clay and gravel, in the sea
bottom. These were buried under great depths of newer de-
posits, and were baked and metamorphosed into their present
crystalline condition. Again heaved above the sea level, they
were hewn by the action of the waves to some degree into their
present forms, and constituted part of the nucleus of the Ameri-
can continent in the tertiary period. They were again with all
the surrounding land depressed under the sea in the newer Plio-
cene period, and in the Post-pliocene or modern, slowly upheaved
again to their present height. These last changes are those that
concern their present flora, and their relations to it are well stated
by Sir C. Lyell in the following passages from his interesting ac-
count of his ascent of Mount Washington in 1846.

90 Dr. Dawson on the Flora

" If we attempt to speculate on tlie manner in which the pecu-
liar species of plants now established on the ] highest summits of
the White Mountains, were enabled to reach those isolated spots,
while none of them are met with in the lower lands around, or
for a great distance to the north, we shall find ourselves trying
to solve a philosophical problem which requires the aid not of
botany alone but of geology, or a knowledge of the geographical
changes which immediately preceded the present state of the
earth's surface. We have to explain how an Arctic flora con-
sisting of plants specifically identical with those which in-
habit lands bordering the sea in the extreme north of America,
Europe and Asia, could get to the top of Mount Washington.
Now geology teaches us that the species living at present on the
earth are older than many parts of our existing continents ; that is
to say they were created before a large portion of the existing
mountains, valleys, plains, lakes, rivers, and seas were formed.
That such must be the case in regard to Sicily, I announced my
conviction in 1833, after first returning from that country, and a
similar conclusion is no less obvious to any naturalist who has
studied the structure of North America, and observed the wide
area occupied by the modern or glacial deposits, in which marine
shells of living but northern species are entombed. It is clear that
a great portion of Canada, and the country surrounding the great
lakes, was submerged beneath the ocean when recent species of
mollusca flourished, of which the fossil remains occur about 500
feet above the level of the sea at Montreal. Lake Champlain
was a gulf or strait of the sea at that period, large areas in Maine
were under water, and the White Mountains must then have con-
stituted an island or group of islands. Yet as this period is so
modern in the earth's history as to belong to the epoch of the
existing marine fauna, it is fair to infer that the Arctic flora now
contemporary with this was then also established on the globe.

" A careful study of the present distribution of animals and
plants over the globe, has led nearly all the best naturalists to the
opinion that each species had its origin in a single birth-place,
and spread gradually from its original centre to all accessible
spots fit for its habitation, by means of the powers of migration
given to it from the first. If we adopt this view, or the doctrine
of specific centres, there is no difficulty in comprehending how
the Cryptogamous plants of Siberia, Lapland, Greenland, and
Labrador, scaled the heights of Mount Washington, because the

of the White Mountaim. 91

sporules of the fungi, lichens, and mosses, may be wafted through
the air for indefinite distances like smoke ; and in fact heavier
particles are actually known to have been carried for thousands of
miles by the wind. But the cause of the occurrence of Arctic
plants of the Phoenogamous class on the top of the New Hamp-
shire Mountains, specifically identical with those of remote polar
regions, is by no means so obvious. They could not in the pre-
sent condition of the earth affect a passage over the intervening
lowlands, because the extreme heat of summer and cold of win-
ter would be fatal to them. We must suppose, therefore, that
originally they extended their range in the same way as the
plants now inhabiting arctic and antarctic lands disseminate them-
selves. The innumerable islands in the polar seas are tenanted
by the same species of plants, some of which are conveyed as
seeds by animals over the ice when the sea is frozen in winter, or
by birds ; while a still larger number are transported by floating
icebergs, on which soil containing the seeds of plants may be
carried in a single year for hundreds of miles. A great body of
geological evidence has now been brought together to show that
this machinery for scattering plants as well as for carrying erratic
blocks southward, and polishing and grooving the floor of the
ancient ocean, extended in the western hemisphere to lower lati-
tudes than that of the White Mountains. When these last still
constituted islands in a sea chilled by the melting of floating ice,
we may assume that they were covered entirely by a flora like
that now confined to the uppermost or treeless region of the
mountains. As the continent grew by the slow upheaval of the
land, and the islands gained in height, and the climate around
these hills grew milder, the Arctic plants would retreat to higher
and higher zones, and finally occupy an elevated area which
probably had been at first or in the glacial period, always covered
with perpetual snow. Meanwhile the newly formed plains around
the base of the mountain, to which northern species of plants
could not spread, would be occupied by others migrating from the
south, and perhaps by many trees, shrubs, and plants, then first
created, and remaining to this day peculiar to North America."

The time to which the above views of Sir C. Lyell would refer
the migration of the White Mountain flora, is historically very re-
mote. The changes of level which have submerged the American
continent and re-elevated its land, have occupied long periods.
Whether with Lyell we measure these periods by the recession

92 Dr. Dawson on the Flora

of the Falls of Niagara, or by the growth of the alluvial plain of
the Mississippi ; or with Agassiz, by the extension of the Peninsula
of Florida, or endeavour to estimate the time required for the
abrasion and deposition of the great mass of clay that fills the
valley of the St. Lawrence, we cannot suppose that less than two or
three hundred centuries have elapsed since the alpine plants of
the White Mountains were cut off from all connection with their
Arctic relatives. Their reign upon the mountain tops not only
antedates all human dynasties, but reaches far beyond the creation
of man himself and many of his contemporaries.

Positive evidence of the existence of some of these plants dur-
ing a large portion of this lapse of time, has actually been pre-
served in the Post-phocene deposits of Canada. At Green's
Creek on the Ottawa, in nodules in the clay containing marine
shells, and coeval with the Leda clay of Montreal, there are
numerous remains of plants that have been embedded in this
clay at a time when the Ottawa valley was a bay or estuary, and
when the Adirondack Mountains of New York and the moun-
tains of New England were two rocky islands separated from each
other, and from the mainland on the north, by wide arms of the
sea. The plants found in these nodules all appear to be of mo-
dern species. It is of course not easy to recognise the specific
characters in these fragments, but I think I have good evidence
of Potentilla Norvegica^ P. tridentata, and possibly P. Canadensis;
Populus balsamifera, Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Trifolium repenSy
Drosera rotundifolia, Potamogeton natans, and P. perfoliatum.*
There are also seeds apparently of ranunculaceous plants ; grasses
and carices, and mosses. Several of these plants are found on
the White Mountains, and they are all northern and arctic species.
I have no doubt that further examination of these deposits will
lead to the discovery of additional examples. This fact, proving
as it does the existence of these species at the period in which
the theory of Lyell and Forbes requires them to have migrated,,
is in itself strong corroborative evidence. We can say that some
of these species were waiting on the shores of the north, ready to
be drifted to the insular spots to the south-west, and that their
seeds were actually being washed out to sea by the streams which
emptied themselves into the then estuary of the Ottawa.

* These determinations were made from specimens in the collection
of the Geological Survey, and from others kindly collected for me by

(^ the White Mountains. 93

Another aspect of the inquiry which has perhaps not been re-
garded with sufficieot attention, is that which relates to the re-
duction of temperature, which might be consequent on the great
•depression of the land which we know to have existed at the close
of the tertiary period, a fact on which I have insisted in former
papers on the Post-pliocene deposits of Canada.* A very clever
writer on the subject of geographical distribution,f has pictured
the case of a subsiding continent with the fauna and flora of its
lowlands becoming gradually concentrated on the spots which
had previously been alpine summits, but now reduced to low and
temperate islands. But he has left out of view the fact, that if
land still existed in mass in the arctic regions, and if the subsid-
ence was that of land in temperate regions, then on the principles
long ago so well stated by Sir C. Lyell, these islands might have
a mean temperature far below that of the former plains, and might
in consequence be suitable only to such an alpine flora as that
which they had previously borne.

Now this is precisely what occurred in the I^ost-pliocene pe-
riod. The arctic land remained in great mass, detaching into
the sea annual crops of icebergs, which have strewed all the north-
ern hemisphere with boulders : the temperate regions were sub-
merged except a few insular spots. These are the very con-
ditions required for a low mean temperature both in the sea and
on the land, and these geographical conditions correspond pre-
cisely with the facts as indicated by the fossil animals and plants
of the period.

Further, it would be easy to show that the alpine plants of
Mount Washington would thrive under such conditions as those
supposed, at the sea level ; a low and equable temperature with a
moist atmosphere being that which they most desire, and their
greatest enemy being the dry parching heat of the plains of the
temperate regions. Those of them, such as Potentilla tridentataj
Linncea borealis^ and Alsine Groenlandica, wliich occur within the
limits ot the United States, are found under shaded woods, in
damp ravines, or on the moist sea coast; and as we follow the
coasts northward, we find these plants on thesc^ and on neighbor-
ing islands, in lower latitudes than those in which they occur in-
land. When the summer mists roll around the summit of Mount
Washington, it is in every respect the precise counterpart of an

* Canadian Naturalist, Vol. IV. f Wollaston.

94. Dr, Dawsoii on the Flora

islet anywhere on the coast of America from Cape Breton to the
arctic seas, and when winter wraps everything in a mantle of
snow, all these lands are in like manner under the same conditions.
So in the Post-pliocene period, though the islets of the White
Mountains may have experienced a less degree of winter cold,
they must have had very nearly the same summer temperature as
now; and as this is the season of growth for our alpine and arc-
tic plants, it is its character that determines the suitableness of the
locality to them.

Those stupendous vicissitudes of land and water which have
changed the aspect of continents, and swept into destruction races
of gigantic quadrupeds, have dealt gently with these alpine plants,
which long ages ago looked out upon a waste of ice-laden waters
that had engulfed the Pliocene land with all its inhabitants, as
securely as they now look down upon the pleasant valleys of New
England. It is curious too that the humbler tenants of the sea
have shared a similar exemption. In the clay banks of the Saco,
on the shores of Lake Champlain, and mixed with the remains
of these very plants in the valley of the Ottawa, are shells that
now live in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and on the coast of Maine,
intermixed with other species that are now found only in a few
bays of the Arctic seas. Just as in the Post-pliocene clays of the
Ottawa, the remains of arctic plants are found in the same nodule
with those of Leda truncata, so now similar associations may be
taking place on the coasts at the mouth of the Great Fish River.
Truly, in nature as in grace, God hath chosen the weak things of
the world to confound those that are mighty, and has left in the
earth's geological history, monuments of his respect and regard
for the humblest of his works.

We look in vain among the alpine plants so long isolated in
these mountains, for any evidence of decided change in specific
characters. The alpine plants for ages separated from their arc-
tic brethren, are true to their kinds, and shew little tendency to
vary, and none to adapt themselves to new forms in the sunny
plains below. This is especially noteworthy in Mount Washing-
ton and the neighboring peaks, because the soil of these is the
same with that of the valleys below. Several of the plants pecu-
liar to these hills, as the black crow-berry (Fmpetrum nigrum),
for instance, even when other conditions are favourable, shun rich
calcareous soils, and aft'ect these of granitic origin. In many cases
the difference in soil is a sufficient reason for the non-occurrence

of the White Mountains, 95

of such plants except on certain hills. At Murray Bay, and on
the shores of Lake Superior, the plant above named occurs only
on the Laurentian gneiss. In Nova Scotia, its relative, Corema
Conradi, is confined to the granite barrens of the south coast.
Many such plants skirt the whole Laurentian range from Labra-
dor to Lake Superior, but refuse to extend themselves over the
calcareous plains of Canada. But in the White Hills the soil of
the river alluvium is the same micaceous sand that fills the cre-
vices of the rocks in the mountains, and hence there is no ob-
struction, in so far as soil is concerned, to the diff'usion of plants
upward and downward in the hills. In like manner there is every
possible condition as to moisture and dryness, sunshine and shade,
in both localities. These circumstances are of all others the most
favourable to such variation as these plants are capable of under-
going. The case is the same with that which Hugh Miller so
strongly puts in relation to the species of algae that occur at dif-
ferent distances below high water mark on the coast of Scotland,
each species there attaining a certain limit, and then instead of
changing to suit the new conditions, giving place to another. So
it is on Mount Washington ; and this whether we regard the
lowland plants that climb to a certain height and there stop ; the
plants that are common to the base and summit, or the plants
that are confined to the latter.

I have already referred to the evident struggle of the spruces
and firs, and the plants associated with them, to ascend the moun-
tain ; and the same remark applies to all the plants that one after
another cease to appear at various heights from the lower valleys.
One by one they become stunted and depauperated, and then
cease, without any semblance of an attempt to vary into new and
hardier forms. And this must have been proceeding, be it ob-
served, from all those thousands or myriads of years that have
elapsed since the elevation of the mountains out of the glacial seas.
It is to be observed also that the new plants that occur in ascend-
ing, often belong to different genera and families from those left
behind, not to closely allied species ; and in the few cases in which
this last kind of change occurs, there is no graduation into interme-
diate forms. For instance Solidago thyrsoidea and >S^. vi>ya-aurea
occur around the base of the mountain, and for some distance up
its sides. At the height of four to five thousand feet, the latter only
remains, and this in a dwarfish condition. This corresponds to
its distribution elsewhere, for according to Richardson it occurs in

96 Dr, Dawson on tlie Flora

lat. 55° to 65*^ in Arctic America, and according to Hooker it is
found in the Rocky Mountains, while it also occurs in the hills of
•Scotland, and very abundantly in some parts of Norway. In the
White Mountains aS'. thyrsoidea prevails toward the base, S. virga-
aurea toward the summit ; and at the top of Tucker man's ravine
I found the former of these golden-rods in blossom, within a few
hundred feet of the latter, each preserving its distinctive peculi-
arities. Much has lately been said of the appearance of specific
diversity that results from the breaking up of the continuity of
the geographical areas of plants by geological changes ; but here
we probably have the converse of this. The mountain species is
no doubt a part of the older arctic flora, the other belongs to the
more modern flora of the plains, and they have met on the sides
of the White Hills.

Some hardy species climb from the plains to heights of 5000
feet or more, with scarcely even the usual change of being de-
pauperated, and then suddenly disappear. This is very note-
worthy in the case of two woodland plants, the dwarf cornel or
pigeon-berry {Cornus Canadensis), and the twin-flower (^Linnosa
borealis). The former of these is a plant most widely distributed
over northern America, and probably belongs to that newer flora
which overspread the continent after its re-elevation. In August
this plant in the woods around the base of Mount Washington is
loaded with its red berries. At an elevation of four to five thousand
feet it may be found in bloom ; above this a few plants appear
destitute of flowers, dwarfish in aspect, and nipped by cold, and
then the species disappears. No doubt the birds that feed on its
little drupes have carried it up the mountain, and have sown it a
little farther up than the limit of its probable reproductiveness.
The beautiful little Linncea is a still more widely distributed
plant; for it occurs on the hills of northern Europe, and is found
across the whole breadth of the American continent from Nova
Scotia to the Columbia River. It is almost beyond question a
member of the old arctic flora which colonised the islands of the
Post-pliocene sea, and has descended from them on all sides as
the land became elevated. This plant also climbs Mount Wash-
ington to a height of 5000 feet, and presents precisely the same
characters on the top as at the bottom, only losing a little in the
length of its stem. Specimens bearing blossoms and quite in the
same stage of growth, may be collected at the same time on the
highest shoulders of Mount Washington, and on the flats at Gor-

of the WJiite Mountains. 97

ham. The Linncea in this is true to its designation. For as if
it belonged to it to support the reputation of the great systematist
after whom it is named, it preserves its specific characters with
scarcely a tittle of change throughout all its great range. One
cannot see this hardy little survivor of the glacial period, so un-
changing yet so gentle, so modest yet so adventurous, so wide in
its migrations yet so choice in the selection of the mossy nooks
which it adorns with its pendant bells, and renders fragrant with
its delicious perfume, without praying that we might in these days
of petty distinctions and narrow views, be favoured with more
such minds as that of the great Swede, to combine the little de-
tails of the knowledge of natural history into grand views of the
unity of nature.

Another plant which, being less dependent on shade and shel-
ter than the Linncea^ mounts still higher, is the cowberry or fox-
berry ( Vaccinium vitis-Idma). This also is both European and
American, and is probably a survivor of the Post-pliocene period.
It still occurs in at least one locality in the low country of Massa-
chusetts, and on the coast of Maine. It is found along the gran-
itic coast of Nova Scotia, and extends thence northward to the
arctic circle, being found at Great Bear Lake and at Unalaska.
This too is a most unchanging species, and the same statement
may be made respecting Ruhus Chamcemorus, the cloud-berry,
Empetrum nigrum^ the black crowberry. Ledum lati/olium, the
Labrador tree, Potentilla tridentata^ the three toothed cinque-foil,
which grows on ihe coast of Nova Scotia, and is found in the
nodules of the Ottawa clay, the same in every detail as on Mount
Washington, Vaccinium uUginosum, the bog bill berry, and V.
coespitosum, the dwarf billberry. Several of these too it will be
observed, are berry-bearing plants, whose seeds must be deposited
in all kinds of localities by birds. Yet they never occur in the
warm plains, nor do they show much tendency to vary in the dis-
tant and somewhat dissimilar places in which they occur. In the
case of most of these species, the most careful, comparison of spe-
cimens from Mount Washinijton with those from Labrador, shows
no tittle of difference. When we consider the vast length of time
during which such species have existed, and the multiplied vicis-
situdes through which they have passed, one is tempted to believe
that it is the tendency of the " struggle for existence" to confirm
and render permanent the characters of species rather than to
modify them.
Can. Nat. T Vol. YII.

98 Dr* Dawson on the Flora

Of the more specially arctic plants which have held their
ground unchanged on Mount Washington, the following are some
of the principal. Diapensia Lapponica in beautiful deep green
tufts ascends quite to the summit. It occurs also in the Adir-
ondack Mountains, and on Mount Katahdin in Maine. It is
found in Labrador, and according to Hooker, extends north to
Whale Island in the Arctic seas ; but it is not found west of the
Great Fish River. It occurs also on the mountains of Lapland,
and is described as the hardiest plant of that bleak region.
Arenaria {Alsine) Groenlandica, the Greenland sandwort, adorns
with its clusters of white flowers every sandy crevice in the rocks
of the very summit of Mount Washington, and is trodden under
foot like grass by the hundreds of careless sight-seers that haunt
the peak in summer ; though I should add that not a few of
them carry off little tufts as a memento of the mountains, along
with the fragments of mica which appear to form the ordinary
keepsakes of unscientific visitors. It is a most frail and delicate
plant, seemingly altogether unsuited to the dangerous pre-emi-
nence which it seeks, yet it loves the bare unsheltered mountain
peaks, and when it occurs in the more sheltered ravines, has
only its stems a little longer and more slender. It occurs on the
Adirondack Mountains and on Katahdin, where — if I may judge
from specimens kindly sent to me by Mr. Goodale — it attains to
smaller dimensions than on Mount Washington, on the Katskills,
and at one place on the sea coast of Maine. I have not seen it in
Nova Scotia, but it ranges north to Greenland.

Another of the truly arctic plants is the alpine azalea (Loi-
seleuria procumhens), a densely tufted mountain shrub, with hard
glossy leaves, that look as if constructed to brave extremest hard-
ships. It is found on the mountains of Norway, at the height of
3550 feet on the Scottish Hills according to Watson, and ac-
cording to Fuchs at the height of 7000 feet in the milder climate
of the Venetian Alps. In America it is found in Newfoundland,
in Labrador, and in the barren grounds from lat. 65^ to the ex-
treme arctic islands. Gray does not mention its occurrence else-
where in the United States than the summits of the White Moun-
tains. A member of the same family of the heaths, the yew-
leaved phyllodoce {P. taxifoUa)^ presents a still more singular dis-
tribution. It is found on all the higher mountains of New
England and New York, and occurs also on the mountains of
Scotland and Scandinavia, but its only known station in northern

^ of the White Mouviains, 9D

America is, according to Hooker, in Labrador. As many as nine
or ten of the alpine plants of the White Mountains belong to the
order Ericaceoe. Another example from this order is Rhododen-
dron Lapponicum, a northern European species, as its name in-
dicates, and scattered over all the high mountains of New Engr-
land and New York, occurring also in Labrador, on the arctic
sea coasts, and the northern part of the Rocky Mountains.

It would be tedious to refer in detail to more of these plants,
but I must notice two herbaceous species belonging to diflferent
families, but resembling each other in size and ha\)it — the alpine
epilobiura [E. alpinum or alsine/oUum), and the alpine speed-
well ( Veronica alpina). Both are in the United States confined
to the highest mountain tops. Both occur as alpine northern
plants in Europe, being found on the Alps, on the Scottish High-
lands, and in Scandinavia. Both are found in Labrador, and on
the Rocky Mountains, and the Veronica extends as far as Green-
land. The alpine epilobium is one of the few White Mountain
plants that have attained the bad eminence of being regarded as
doubtful species. Gray notes as the typical form, that with ob-
tuse and nearly entire leaves, and as a variety, that with acute
and slightly toothed leaves, which some other botanists seem to
regard as distinct specifically. Thus we find that this little plant
has been induced to assume a suspicious degree of variability ;
yet it is strange that both species or varieties are found growing
together, as if the little peculiarities in the form of the leaves were
matters of indifference, and not induced by any dire necessities
in the struggle for life. Facts of this kind are curious, and not
easily explained under the supposition either of specific unity or
diversity. For why should this plant vary without necessity, and
why should two species so much alike be created for the same
locality. Perhaps these two species or varieties, wandering from
far distant points of origin, have met here fortuitously, while the
lines of migration have been cut off by geological changes, and
yet the points of difference are too constant to be removed even
after the reason for them has disappeared. If this could be
proved, it would afford a strong reason for believing the existence
of a real specific diversity in these plants.

I have said nothing of the grasses and sedges of these moun-
tains ; but one of them deserves a special notice. It is the alpine
herd's grass (^Phleum alpinum), a humble relation of our common
herd's grass. This plant not only occurs on the White Moun-

100 Dr, Dawson on the Flora

tains, in arctic America, and on the hills of Scotland and Scan-
dinavia, but has been fotind on the Mexican Cordillera, and at
the Straits of Magellan. The seeds of this grass may perhaps be
specially suited for transportation by water as well as by land.
It is observed in Nova Scotia that when the wide flats of mud
deposited by the tides of the Bay of Fundy, are dyked in from the
sea, they soon become covered with grasses and carices, the seeds
of which are supposed to be washed down by streams and mingled
with the marine silt ; and fragments of grasses abound in the post-
tertiary clays of the Ottawa.

It seems almost ridiculous thus to connect the persistence of the
form of a little plant with the subsidence and elevation of whole
continents, and the lapse of enormous periods of time. Yet the
power which preserves unchanged from generation to generation
the humblest animal or plant, is the same with that which causes
the permanence of the great laws of physical nature, and the
continued revolutions of the earth and all its companion spheres.
A little leaf entombed ages on ages ago in the Post-pliocene
clays of Canada, preserves in all its minutest features the precise
type of that of the same species as it now lives, after all the
■prodigious geological changes that have intervened. An arctic
and alpine plant that has survived all these changes, maintains in
its now isolated and far removed stations, all its specific characters
unchanged. The flora of a mountain top is precisely what it
must have been when it was an island in the glacial seas. These
facts relate not to hard crystalline rocks that remain unaltered
from age to age, but to little delicate organisms that have many
thousands of times died and been renewed in the lapse of time.
They show us that what we call a species represents a decision of
the unchanging creative will, and that the group of qualities
which constitutes our idea of the species, goes on from generation
to generation animating new organisms constructed out of different
particles of matter. The individual dies but the species lives, and
will live until the Power that has decreed its creation shall have
decreed its extinction ; or until in the slow process of physical
change depending on another section of His laws, it shall have
been excluded from the possibility of existence anywhere on the
surface of the earth.

While the huge ribs of mother earth that project into moun-
tain summits, and the grand and majestic movement of the crea-
tive processes by which they have been formed, speak to us of

of the White Mountains. 101

the majesty of Him to whom the sea belongs, and whose hand
formed the dry land, the continuance of these little plants preaches
the same lessons of humble faith in the divine promises and laws,
which our Lord drew from the lihes of the field.

It is suggestive in connection with the antiquity and migra-
tions of these plants, to consider the differences in this respect of
some closely allied species of the same genera. Of the blueberries
that grow on the White Mountains, one species, Vacdnium ulig-
inosurifij is found at Behring's Straits and in northern Europe.
F. ccespitosum has a wide northern range in America, but is not
European. V. Pennsylvanicam and V. Canadense from their
geographical distribution do not seem to belong to the arctic
flora at all, but to be of more southern origin. The two bear-
berries {Arctostaioliylos uva-ursi and alpina), occur together on
the White Hills, and on the Scottish and Scandinavian moun-
tains, but the former is a plant of much wider and more southern
distribution in America than the latter. Two of the dwarf wil-
lows of the White Mountains i^Salix repens and S. herhacea), are
European as well as American, but aS^. uva-ursi seems to be con-
fined to America. Ruhus trijiorus, the dwarf raspberry, and E.
Chamoemorus, the cloud-berry, climb about equally high on Mount
Washington, but the former is exclusively American and ranges
pretty far southward, while the latter extends no farther south
than the northern coast of Maine, and is distributed all around
the arctic regions of the Old and New Worlds. It is to be ob-
served, however, that the former can thrive on rich and calca-
reous soils, while the latter loves those that are barren and grani-
tic ; but it is nevetheless probable that R. trifloms belongs to a
later and more local flora. Similar reasons would induce the be-
lief that the American dwarf cornel or pigeon-berry, (^Cornus
Canadensis)^ whose distribution is solely American and not pro-
perly arctic, is of later origin than the C. Suecica, which occurs
in northern America locally, and is extensively distributed in
northern Europe.

I can but glance at such points as these ; but they raise great
questions which are to be worked out, not merely by the patient
collection of facts, but by a style of scientific thought very much
above those which on the one hand escape such problems by the
supposition of multiplied centres of creation, or on the other,
render their solution worthless by confounding races due to ex-
ternal disturbing causes with species originally distinct. Diffi-

102 Archhold on the failure of the Apple Tree

culties of various kinds are easily evaded by either of these ex-
treme vifews; but with the fact before him of specific diversity and
its manifestly long continuance on the one hand, and the remark-
able migrations of some species on the other, the true naturalist
must be content to work out the problems presented to him with
the data afforded by the actual observation of nature, following
carefully the threads of guidance thus indicated, not rudely
breaking them by too hasty generalisations.

ARTICLE VIT. — On the failure of the Apple Tree in the neigh-
bourhood of Montreal. — A communication to the Committee
of the Natural History Society of Montreal. By Joun
Archbold.
The failure of the apple trees in the neighbourhood of Montreal,
and I believe in all the Island, is a sad calamity as regards do-
mestic luxury, as well as in a commercial point of view. I have
seen Montreal, in its palmy days of apple-growing, export its
thousands of barrels of Pomraes Crises, Bourassas, and Fameuses.
These were the principal sorts sent to Europe, the refuse of which,
as well as the great quantities of wild apples, that is apples
from seedlings, always found a ready market at Quebec and the
ports below it, at remunerative prices. With these facts clearly
before us, it is not to be wondered at that strict enquiry should
be made by all who feel the least interest in the culture of the
apple, as to the cause of its decay. I have been a resident in
Montreal since 1832, and for the last twenty -five years have
lived on the south-eastern slope of the Mountain, on the Cote
St. Antoine road, and have acted in the capacity of gardener at
Mount Pleasant, the then residence of the late Joseph Savage,
Esq.; also at Rosemount, the residence of the Hon. John Young,
and subsequently at Forden, the residence of Capt. R. T. Raynes,
and of the late Charles Bowman, Esq. ; one of the most zealous
friends and supporters of Horticulture, in his day, that Montreal
could boast of. All these places were noted for the production
of fine varieties of the apple, the pear, and the plum. The latter
place, Forden, in particular, used to yield about fifteen years ago,
from 1000 to 1500 lbs. of fruit, but the last three years have made
sad havoc with the trees, and unless some reaction in the growth
takes place, there will not be one of the old trees living three
years hence. I noticed the decline of some sorts of the apple

in the neighbourhood of Montreal. 103

twenty years ago. I had a talk with the late Henry Corse, Esq.,
about that time, on the failure of the Early Harvest apple, and he
was under the impression that it was then extinct about Montreal,
but I convinced him that it was not, for in each of the above
mentioned places, I had seen trees of the Early Harvest which
gave from three to four barrels of good apples, but these few
trees are, I have every reason to believe, now gone. There were
also the Ribston Pippin, (much on the decline these last ten
years,) the Keswick Codlin, Hawthornden, Grant's Major, John
Richardson ; but these and some others, I always looked upon as
being tender, from the softness of their wood, which is not nearly
8o hard as that of the Bourassa, Pomme Grise, and Faraeuse, and
therefore do not wonder at their destruction. These latter sorts
have, however, for the last ten years, been declining in the vigour
of their growth, and the size of their fruit. I was for some time
under the impression from what I could learn from some garden-
ers, and other cultivators of fruit, that the above named three
sorts of apples, would not bear fruit in any other locality than in
the Island of Montreal, but that impression was completely re-
moved, by visiting the Provincial Exhibition held at Brantford,
C. W., some years ago. I saw there as fine specimens of the
Bourassa, as Montreal could produce in its best days. At Ham-
ilton I also visited some of the gardens, and there to my surprise,
I found the Pomme Grise, Fameuse, and Ribston Pippin, growing
side by side, and loaded with fine fruit, with not the slightest
appearance of decay. These remarks, however, are by the way ;
the point of discussion, at present, is the cause of the decay
in the apple trees in the vicinity of Montreal. There will no
doubt be a great many opinions put forth on the subject, and
some light will I hope be thus thrown on both the cause and the
cure. Were the decay confined to one place, one kind of soil, or
one mode of pruning or culture, there would be less difficulty in
discovering both the cause and cure ; but when we find the decay, in
one fell swoop, taking off the whole of the young orchards that
have been planted within these fifteen or twenty years past, and
that even the old savage^ as the Canadians call it, that has stood
the severity of the winters for the last fifty years, is suffering the
same fate, the difficulty of giving an opinion is ail the greater.
When also it is observed that apple trees both in the most shel-
tered nooks and on the bleakest exposures, on the best alluvial
soil, and on the gravelly and limestone rock, all alike share the

104 ArchhoJd on the failure of the Apple Tree

same fate, the necessity of careful consideration is much increased.
I noticed in several of the apple trees, after the severity of the
winter three years ago, that many of the large limbs became
disordered by their cellular tissues not admitting that uniform
and free flow of sap to the outer extremities of the branches, which
was necessary for healthy growth. The consequence was, that
there remained in the trunk an overflow of sap, and some very
severe freezing nights coming at the time, the sap froze, and
caused the outer bark to burst ; the trunk soon after presenting
a black and decaying appearance. This is one of the causes to
which I attribute the decay.

I have also observed in gardens and orchards, at a season when
the trees are in full vigour of flower and foliage, that they have
been completely denuded of their leaves by the ravages of the
caterpillar. Thus being left bare to the influence of a June sun,
their health and vigour were seriously impaired. I have observed
that trees which suff"ered so, for two years in succession, hardly
ever recovered from the eftects of it ; this is one other cause to
which I attribute the decay of the apple. To avoid injury to the
trees, care should be taken as to the time ot pruning. When this
is done in the beginning of March, or, as is sometimes the case,
before that time, and wounds are left bare, without any cover or
protection, the influence of a hot sun by day, and hard frost
by night, is such, that these wounds emit a portion of the sap,
and cause the parts atlected to become black, a sure forerunner
of decay. In my humble opinion, that work should be deferred
till later in the season. My reason for forming this opinion is,
that I have observed in my practice of budding, which com-
mences about the middle of July for stone fruits, and continues
all through August for the pear and the apple ; that having to cut
and prune the stocks to a considerable extent, I always found the
wounds, at that season, to heal up very quickly, and leave no trace
of black, such as might be seen in early spring pruning. Another
cause of decay, seems to me to be some kind of atmospheric
agency, for I have frequently noticed a portion of the branches of
apple trees becoming black in parts where there were no wounds.
Sometimes at the junction of the lateral branches with the
main branch, and sometimes near the outer extremity of the
branch. Some persons attribute the appearance to lightning, but
that appears to me rather doubtful, for although thunder and
lightning are common in the summer months, in Canada, I never

in the neighbourhood of Montreal, 105

noticed any parts of apple trees to be blackened to the extent tbey
now are, until these last four years past. There might, indeed,
occasionally have been symptoms of decay in some trees, and
in certain localities, but the cause in such cases was easily ac-
counted for. This commonly occurred when trees were planted
in hard blue sub-soil, saturated with water at all seasons of the
year, without the least attention being paid to drainage. On
consulting any of the British authors who have written on the
culture of the apple, they will all be found to agree that the soil
should undergo a thorough preparation, previous to planting, and
that it should be trenched at least to the depth of two feet. If
such preparation is an essential in such a mild climate as Great
Britain, it is much more so in Canada, where we have frequently
such a long continuance of drought in the summer, and severe
frost in the winter. I have often been struck with the short
life of the apple trees about Montreal. There was an impression
made on my mind, in early life, that the apple was a long lived
tree. I have known apple trees in the west of Ireland, in the
neighborhood of the town of Sligo, to attain the age of 150 years,
and then to be bearing good crops of apples. I also find that
A. J. Downing, one of the most reliable and best American au-
thors, in writing on the age of the apple, says he saw in*
Rhode Island, two trees 130 years old. He however reckons our
fine garden sorts to live only from 50 to 80 years. Now, I ques-
tion if we could find about Montreal, any of our fine garden sorts
half that age, that is 40 years old. He also strongly recommends
trenching the soil, and says it adds greatly to the long life of the
trees. I must confess that I have not seen that proper attention
paid to fruit trees in the neighborhood of Montreal which they re-
quire. I have seen, in many cases, trees planted on the green
sward, without any other preparation than simply making a hole
and putting in the tree ; leaving it afterwards to take care of it-
self. In such cases the result may be easily conjectured. In taking
up numbers of both pear and apple trees, the heads of which were
dead, I have found that their roots were generally perfectly sound,
not showing the least symptom of decay below the surface. The
cause of decay does not therefore lie with the root.

The question often occurs to me, shall we ever see Montreal
producing the fine fruits that it did twenty-five years ago ? The
markets were then filled to overflowing with the finest varieties
of the plum and the pear, and a pretty good quantity of the peach

106 Dr. Dawson on an Erect Sigillaria

and apricot, of open wall culture. Now there is no such thing to
be found as a good Bon-chretien pear, or an Autumn Bergamot, or
a Burmese Spruce, or yet a luscious Bolman's Washington plum,
or a Greengage, or even a coarse Magnum Bonum ; and but sel-
dom will you find a good basket of the common wild red plum
of the country. I have also noticed a de(4ine in the vigour and
growth of several other plants, these last few years past, in com-
parison with what might have been seen twenty years ago. Then
I saw the gardens about Montreal produce enormous crops of
melons, with very little care or attention ; now it is uncertain if you
get a good crop with all the care you can give them. I have also
Seen good crops of grapes raised in the gardens, and have myself
raised at Mount Pleasant, good crops of the Sweet Water and
Black Cluster in good condition, in the open ground. Then there
was no such thing as the mildew, or the nip, as it is now ; nor
was that troublesome pest, the curculio, known about Montreal.
Yet with all these facts before us, it will not do to be idle lookers
on ; better to be up and doing. I would suggest that any man
possessed of land, whether little or much, should plant trees ac-
cording to his means, and let what is planted, be planted in the
best possible way, and under the best conditions of soil and cul-
ture. He may then hope for good results in time to come.

These few remarks, hastily penned, are respectfully submitted
to the Montreal Natural History Society.

Forden, 6th January, 1862.

ARTICLE VHL — On an Erect Sigillaria and a CarpoUte from
Nova Scotia, By J. W. Dawson, LL.D., F.G.S.
(jPVotA the Journal o/ the Geological Society of London.')

'I'he erect trees so frequent in the Joggins coast-section,
though often distinctly ribbed, rarely show the minute markings
of the leaf-scars in a sufficiently perfect state to enable them to
be compared with those of the flattened trunks seen in the shales
and ironstones. This, no doubt, arises in part from the circum-
stance that the bases of the trunks of Sigillarice did not always
retain their characteristic markings, and in part from the unfavour-
able influence of an erect position in coarse and often laminated
sediment. The specimen, to which this note relates, and which
I obtained in 1859 from a sandstone in Group XIV. of my sec-
tion of the South Joggins*, affords an exception to the generally

♦ Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc. vol. x. r. 6.

and a CarpolUefrom Nova Scotia,

107

imperfect condition of these trunks sujQSciently remarkable to
merit a short notice.

The specimen measures 3 feet in height, and is 10:J- inches in
diameter at the base, 9 inches in the middle, and 7^ inches at the
top, where it was abruptly broken oflf. (Fig. 1.) At the base it shows
the usual tendency to divide into four main roots ; but these hare
been nipped off or flattened by pressure, not having been filled
with sediment. The trunk retains its form on one side, but on the
other the bark has been rent from top to bottom, and in part
folded inward. This seems to have been caused by the pressure

Fig. 1.

Fig. 2.

of the surrounding sediment, and has probably somewhat dimin-
ished the diameter of the stem. The interior of the trunk is
filled with grey sandstone, similar to that of the enclosing bed.
The outer bark, less than a line in thickness, is in the state of
bituminous coal ; and an internal cast with a thin coaly envelope
represents the pith. This internal cast extends through the great-
er part of the length, but has fallen to one side. It is only half
an inch in diameter. The coaly matter remaining on its surface
shows, when prepared with nitric acid, cellular structure ; and
traces of transverse Sternbergian markings remain in parts of it,
so that it must not be regarded as the woody aziSy which has di^
appeared, but merely as the pith-cylinder.

The leaf-scars and other surface markings are preserved throogh-
outthe specimen, but only in a few places in suflScient perfection
to show the more minute features of the former. At the upper

108 Dr, Dawson on an Erect Sigillaria

part the ribs are very prominent, and there are twenty-six in the
whole circumference, the breadth of each rib being about nine-
tenths of an inch. On the outer or cortical surface each rib is
flattened, or even concave, along the middle, and strongly round-
ed at the sides, descending into deep intercostal furrows ; the flat
mesial portion being smooth, the lateral portions marked with
sharp vertical ridges, and in places with very delicate longitudinal
and transverse striae. The leaf-scars extend across the smooth
middle portion of the rib, and are distant from each other one
inch vertically. In form they resemble those of Sigillaria trans-
versalis, S. Defrancii," and S. Brochantii, Brongt., being trans-
versely lanceolate, emarginate above, with acute lateral edges.
Those best diplayed show two vascular punctures, with a third
mark or prominence between and rather below them. On the
so-called ligneous surface, or that of the inner bark, the ribs are
slightly furrowed or striated lengthwise ; and the leaf-scars are re-
presented by two deep punctures of the vascular scars. (Fig. 2.)

In tracing the ribs downward, some of them wedge out and dis-
appear : so that at the middle of the length of the trunk there
may be about 22 ; each with a breadth increased to one inch and
four-tenths, and flatter than those at the top, with the intercostal
furrow shallower. The leaf-scars are now widened transversely,
aud have lost their minute markings on the cortical surface ;
while on the ligneous surface the vascular punctures are twice as
far apart as at the top. About the middle the vertical distance of
the scars diminishes somewhat suddenly to seven-tenths of an
inch.

In the lower third of the stem the ribs are quite obliterated,
and the whole surface is wrinkled with coarse waving striae or
small furrows, due apparently to the expansion of the outer bark.
The leaf-scars still remain in regular vertical rows ; but these are
reduced to about twelve, and apparently at the base to as few as
nine. The vertical distance of the scars is still about 0*7 inch ;
but the transverse distance between the centres of the rows is in-
creased to 2-8 inches or more. In form the leaf-scars are now
transverse furrows, an inch or more in length, and the
vascular punctures are half an inch or more apart in each
scar. A single row of these wider scars is shown in (Fig. 3.)

Of the roots I could obtain no specimens ; but the markings on
the bark at the base of the trunk are precisely similar to those on
many Stigmarian roots found attached to less perfectly preserved

and a Carpolite from Nova Scotia,

109

stems, and a few stigmaroid areoles are perceptible on the lower sur-
face of the stump.

The woody axis has entirely disappeard, nor does any mineral
charcoal appear in the base of the cast. It has either been en-

Fig. 3.

tirely removed by decay, or has been washed out by the waves before
the hollow bark was filled up.

As this trunk appears to belong to a species not previously de-
scribed, and we have a better knowledge of its parts and mode
of growth than of those of most of the named species, I may pro-
pose for it a specific appellation, and would call it Sigillaria
Browniiy in commemoration of the many interesting discoveries
in relation to these plants made by my friend Richard Brown,
Esq., of Sydney, Cape Breton.

The following are the most important points relating to
Sigillanoe in general, illustrated by the specimen above-de-
scribed :— 1. The evidence of the exogenous growth of Sigillaria.
The growth of the trunk took place, as I have elsewhere main-
tained,* by the introduction of new woody wedges in the axis and'
by additions to the surface of the axis and to the inner bark, after
the manner of exogenous stems. When the present trunk had nine
rows of scars it was only three inches in diameter, perhaps
much less, and as it grew in height the base expanded in such a man-
ner as to increase the distances between the scars and the distances
between the vascular punctures in the scars, while new rows of
leaves were added above until the number amounted to about 2G.
The same appearances in a species quite distinct from the present

• Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc. vol. x. p. 32.

110 Dr. Dawson on an Erect Sigillaria

are illustrated in my paper on the South Joggins section. Speci-
mens which I have observed, however, as well as facts stated by
Mr. Brown and by Brongniart, induce me to believe that in some
species this mode of growth was so far modified that new ribs
were introduced to the very base of the trunk. The expansion of
the trunk was accompanied by the flattening out of the ribs, and
also by the giving way of the thin outer bark, the inner or middle
bark evidently remaining in a growing state lo the base of the
stem. 2. The decadence of the leaves from the lower part of the
trunk in the living state, is proved by the condition of the scars.
We may also note the shorter vertical distance of the scars
on the lower part of the trunk, showing that, when young,
the leaves were much more crowded than subsequently : and
the absence of bands of deformed and crowded scars sometimes
seen on Sigillarice^j probably connected with periods of fructifi-
cation, and possibly occurring on the upper part of the trunk only.
3. The difficulty of comparing the characters of erect with those
of prostrate Sigillarioe; the former usually showing only the base of
the stem, the latter often only the upper part, and these differing
so materially that they may be mistaken for distinct species. 4. The
mode of growth illustrated by the specimen may apply only to a
portion of the plants usually included in the genus. The spe-
cies of Sigillaria found at the Joggins may amount to about
twenty ; and with reference merely to the habit of growth, with-
out regard to the resemblances or differences in the leaf-scars,
these may be arranged in three groups. The first will include
the present species with S. reniformis^ S. alternans, S. organumj
and another [S. ovalis, mihi) with oval scars like those of S' ca-
tenulata but an inch apart vertically. These have broad and well-
marked ribs, attain to a large size, and often occur erect. Other
species with narrow and less distinct ribs and more or less crowd-
ed scars, as S. elegans, JS, Knorrii, S. scutellata, S. Saullii, (fee,
do not appear to have attained to so great diameter, and are
more rarely seen erect. In some of these species the markings
and leaf-scars seem to be more perfectly preserved to the very base
of the trunk than in the species before mentioned. A third group
consists of species like S. De/ranciij S. Menardiij &c., which are
destitute of ribs and have the scars arranged spirally. Some of
these were of considerable diameter, others quite small ; but they
are rare, and I have not recognized them in the erect position,

* Ibid. vol. xv. p. 640.

and a Caryolke from Nova Scotia, 111

5. In connection with the absence of the usual remains of wood
as mineral charcoal from this trunk, it may be stated that the
bast-like tissue of the inner bark of SigUlarice is abundant in
some of the coal of the Joggins ; whilst the discigerous tissue*
is prevalent in the great Pictou coal-seam. In the former case
the decomposition of the vegetable matter was probably sub-
aerial, or like that of a forest-soil ; whilst the conditions of the
latter were those of peaty bogs.

Carpolite from the Coal-Formation of Cape Breton.

All the best authorities on coal-plants are disposed to refer
the seeds or fruits known by the generic names Trigonocarpum
and Rhabdocarpus to phaenogams, and probably to gymnosperms.
In this case they may have belonged to Coniferce or Sigillarioe, or
to both. That they belonged in great part to the latter is, I think,
rendered probable by their occurrence very abundantly in the mid-
dle part of the coal-measures where SigUlarice abound, by their
various forms corresponding rather to the many species of /S^i^iZfoWoE
than to thefew of Conifers, and by their abundant occurrence in the
interior of hollow stumps of Sigillarios and in the surrounding
beds. Still these fruits or seeds may have belonged to very dif
ferent plants ; and as an example of the type of structure most
frequently associated with SigUlarice^ I have prepared a short
notice of a species of which very well-preserved specimens exist
in my collection, and to which I have assigned the name of

Trigonocarpum Hookeri.

Numerous specimens of this species occur in a thin calcareous
layer in the coal-measures near Port Hood, Cape Breton. They
are not compressed, and are fossilized by calc-spar and iron-
pyrites. Their form is ovate, — the length being 0-3 inch, and
the breadth 0*2 inch. The external surface is rough and destitute
of distinct markings. Internally they present the following struc-
tures : — 1. An outer coat (^to), which is thick, carbonaceous,
and apparently of a dense cellular structure. This corresponds
to the outer supposed " fleshy coat" of Lindley and Ilooker ; but
in this species I think it must have been firm and hard, like the
outer coat of the seeds of pines, which it much resembles in ap-
pearance and structure. 2. An inner coat (tegmen or emhryo-sac)

* Ibid. vol. xii. p. 631.

112

Dr, Dawson on an Erect Sigillaria

which is thin and marked on its outer surface with interrupted
ridges, almost precisely in the manner of the corresponding coat
in the seed of Pinus pinea. This coat is often pyritised, and in

Figs. 1 to 5. — Trigonocarpum Hookeri, Dawson ; from the Coal"
measures of Cape Breton.

Fig. 3. Fig. 5.

Fig. 1.

Fig. 2.

Fig. 1. Perfect specimen, natural size.

Fig. 2. Specimen deprived of its outer coating.

Fig. 3. Broken specimen magnified.

Fig. 4. Section magnified : a, the testa ; 6, the tegmen ; c, the nucleus,

and dj the embryo.
Fig. 5. Portion of the surface of the inner coat more highly magnified.

some specimens it presents toward the smaller end indications of
three ridges. It corresponds, no doubt, to the outer coat of the
ordinary Trigonocarpa. 3. A nucleus occupying the whole in-

and a Carpolite from Nova Scotia. 113

tenor of the last-mentioned coat, and exhibiting at the smaller end
certain wrinkles and a projecting tubercle, marking the position
of the embryo and micropyle. When the seed is sliced longitu-
dinally, the nucleus is seen to present an outer thick layer of calc-
spar, stained by vegetable matter, and an inner mass which is
colourless. In the smaller end, toward the micropyle, the remains
of the embryo and its suspensor are seen replaced by iron-pyrites,
in the manner represented in fig. 3. In some specimens the
outer coat appears as if divided into two layers, and the nucleus
has shrunk inwards from the inner coat, presenting two additional
surfaces, which may represent original lines of structure, but are
perhaps, results of decay.

A very similar species, which occurs in vast abundance in the
interior of an erect Sigillaria at the Joggins, has the outer
coating v^ry dense and coaly, and with a transverse fibrous
structure. In some specimens it shows a projecting ridge on
each side, and longitudinal striae, which might entitle it to be
placed in the genus Rhabdocarpus ; but no coal-fossils are more
deceptive than these carpolites, which, when flattened or deprived
of their outer coats, present appearances very dissimilar from
those of the perfect condition.

I am by no means certain that this note adds much to the know-
ledge already possessed of the structure of Trigonocarpum ; but
it aff'ords an additional example, and this of a species similar to
those most frequently associated with remains of Sigillarice,

ARTICLE IX. — On the Primitive Formations in Norway and
in Canada, and their Mineral Wealth. By Thomas
Macfarlane.

{Continued from page 20.)

II. The Primitive Slate Formation.
A : The Quartzose Group,
The district in which the above-named group of rocks is prin-
cipally developed is that of Tellemarken, in the south of Norway,
celebrated by tourists as containing perhaps the most wild and
•picturesque scenery in the north of Europe. There exist also
northward from Trondhjem, some districts, where the same
group seems to prevail, but these cannot be compared with that of
Tellemarken, either in extent or economic importance ; nor have
Can. Nat. 8 Vol. VII

114 Macfarlanc on the Primitive Formations

they been studied or described so minutely * Naumann entitled
this district, the Nummedal and Tellemarken Quartz Formation ;
Keilhau described it as the Goustafjeld Region, from the mountain
which is its most distinguished topographical feature ; while Dahll
somewhat indefinitely calls it the Tellemarken Slate Formation.
The rocks which constitute this group are the following :

1. Quartzite or quartz slate. This, the most widely distributed
rock of the group, occurs in the most multifarious varieties.
Pure quartz, with a granular structure and glassy lustre, of con-
siderable transparency, and of a white or greyish-white colour, is to
be found in beds of great thickness. Fine-grained quartz, with
a fatty lustre, and rose-red or flesh-red in color, is also observed in
equally powerful beds. The most common varieties are however
the splintery, grey, and slightly micaceous quartzites, which are
known as quartz slates. Amongst the more impure varieties,
talcose, feldspathic, and hornblendic quartzites are to be distin-
guished.

2. 3Eca schist, differing considerably in general character from
that which occurs in the Primitive Gneiss Formation. The broad-
leaved very micaceous variety, with garnets, which is common in
that formation, has not been observed at all in this quartzose
series. In the constitution of the mica schist belonging to the
latter, quartz greatly preponderates, and the rock differs from
quartz slate, only in containing a somewhat larger quantity of sil-
ver-white or brownish-black mica.

3. Gneiss may be also said to occur in this group, but of a
-character widely different from what is usually understood by
this term. It is finer grained and less slaty than the characteris-
tic primitive gneiss, while the feldspar and quartz, and especially
the latter, greatly preponderate in quantity over the mica. This
latter mineral, which plays such an important part in the compo-
sition of ordinary gneiss, is very little developed, and hornblende
is never found replacing it ; so that nothing resembling hornblendic
gne^'ss is found in this group.

4. Hornstone and hornstone porphyry , passing into jasper, often
occur, and seem to consist of the same minerals, and in the same
proportions, as the two last named rocks, but so fine grained that
the species are no longer recognizable. The mica schist is seen

• According to Keilhau, the district in West Finmark and Quaenanger,
in which the Alten Copper Mines occur, belongs to this group. It ia
probable also, that another district to the east of the North Cape is of
the same formation.

in Norway and in Canada. IIS

in some places to pass into a grey, coarse, splintery, quartzose
hornstone ; while the gneiss gives a red or brown hornstone, with
fine splintery, and nearly smooth fractures.

5. Hornblende slate.

6. Talc slate.

I. Chlorite slate.

8. Clay slate.

9. Limestone has only been remarked at one place in the whole
group, where a thin bed of granular yellowish-white limestone,
occurs in the quartzose gneiss.

10. Greenstone and diorite, composed principally of albite and
hornblende, occur in large and important masses.

II. Granite does not seem to occur interstratified with the
members of this group, but frequently intersects them in the
form of veins, and also forms irregular masses.

12. Conglomerates and breccias occur in such quantity, and of
such peculiar characters, as to constitute a distinguishing feature
of the formation. The whole of the rocks already named as
forming part of this group, but especially the quartzites, often
contain beds or irregular masses, having the aspect of conglo-
merates ; which are made up of fragments of the respectively en-
closing rocks, cemented together either by a micaceous or talcose
substance. The fragments are more or less rounded, and often
of oblong forms ; they generally lie parallel with each other, but
very often bear little resemblance to boulders.

The rocks just enumerated, form layers, often of enormous
thickness,which alternate with each other, forming parallel groups,
in which one or the other of them (generally the quartz), predo-
minates. The fine and coarse grained greenstones or diorites of
the formation, are most generally in layers running parallel with
the other rocks. They sometimes however occur as veins cutting
these, and more frequently as irregular masses. The greenstone
beds are often of great extent, and pass through gradual transitions
into the neighboring rocks. A layer of diorite occurs in the
parish of Skafse, having a thickness of 1000 feet. In the middle
it is granular, but towards each side, it gradually assumes a slaty
texture. It has also been remarked of other greenstone layers in
the group, that they assume a slaty structure, as they approach
the rocks above or below them. Keilhau has the following re-
marks with regard to the extent which these greenstone or diorite
rocks occupy in the series before us. '* We may obtain a good

HB Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

idea of the extent to which this member of the group is de-
veloped, fi'om the district west of Bandag Lake. On the road to
Mo church, we are surrounded by rugged mountains about 2500
feet high, and these from the bottom of the valley to their sum-
mits, consist of the same mass of diorite, which has here a breadth
of about two geographical miles."

The conglomerates, of which mention has already been made,
have such an important bearing on the question of the origin of
the primitive slate formation, that I may be excused for inserting
here, at length, a translation of Keilhau's description of them.
These conglomerates have been observed : 1. above Hjserdal
church ; 2. on the road from Fladdal to Manddal ; and, 3. on
the road from Guldnaes to Berge, in Morgedal. " The first loca-
lity in which the conglomerate quartzites occur in repeated alter-
nations with hornblende rock (diorite), has been described by
Naumann (Beitrage I, 79). The quartz layers there consist of
what often appears to be a very fine-grained micaceous sandstone ;
in which harder round or oval concretions, sometimes feldspathic,
sometimes quartzose, and sometimes of still more varied natures,
are imbedded. The softer cementing matter is frequently worn
away, so that the harder masses stand out from the rock, like
hemispheres. The smaller and more varied in their nature these
concretions (which appear formed exactly like boulders) are, the
more talcose the enclosing mass becomes ; whereby the slaty
texture of the quarzite becomes undulating and confused."

The second of the above mentioned localities is on the Mandcela,
a short distance before it falls into the Sillegjord. The bluish-
grey, very pure and crystalline quartzite which here occurs, is
for a considerable distance around, apparently unstratified, and
cannot strictly be defined as quartz-slate. It forms powerful
masses, in the midst of which large and indistinctly limited por-
tions, are more or less thickly impregnated with small rounded
portions of quartz of the most difierent shades of color, from
white to red and dark-grey. Some of these are quartz, others
jasper, while others resemble hornstone; but all of them, even those
which most closely resemble their quartzose matrix, are sharply de-
fined, and appear like pebbles cemented into it. The fact that
these portions are not arranged as separate layers, but spread
out as irregular areas, in the massive and crystalline quartz,
is to be regarded as unfavorable to the opinion of the me-
chanical origin of these conglomerates." " At the third of the

in Norway arid in Canada, 117

above mentioned localities, the conglomerate is also enveloped
in a large group of quartzite, which contains besides, only a few
isolated masses of greenstone. The perfectly boulder-like con-
cretions of the conglomerate bed, which range from the size of a
hazelnut, to that of the human head, are here of the same sort
of greyish-white splintery quartz, which forms the strata of the
whole surrounding group. A few of them only are reddish, and
remind one of the jasper-like masses which appear to be gene-
rally associated with these conglomerate quartzites. At the Hjaerdal
locality, already described, Naumann found whole layers of jasper,
close to the conglomerate. The cementing material of the con-
glomerate betwixt Guldnaes and Berge is argillaceous, and small
in amount ; and is certainly to be regarded as analogous to the
small beds of clay slate, which occur as regular layers between the
thick quartz strata, at other points in this neighborhood. Al-
though the foliation of the pure quartzite is retained in the con-
glomerate, which is many fathoms thick, this nevertheless, like that
below Manddal, does not appear to occupy any well-defined
horizon in the stratification. In place of forming a continuous
zone along the strike, it appears rather to be a comparatively
short and irregular mass.

Occurrences of this sort, which may be regarded as belonging
at once to the quartz and to the mica schist, are found to a con-
siderable extent on the northwest of Sillegjord Lake. Here, on
the boundary of the primitive gneiss formation, at several points
where the quartzite begins to replace the mica-schist, we find
layers in which the quartz occurs in the shape of long
cylinders as thick as the finger, and rounded oflf at both ends, as
elongated almond-shaped masses ; or in the form of boulders, im-
bedded in a cement of mica schist.

Some time since, Naumann directed attention to the fact that the
amount of talc contained in the cement is greater, the more the
conglomerate is varied in its composition. I have often confirmed
this, and have moreover remarked that the talc seems to stand
in some intimate connection with these problematical rocks. This
may be the reason why they have nowhere been found more fre-
quently than on the road between Berge in Brunkeberg, and Qvale
in Hoidalsmo ; where the quartz beds are associated with other
rocks, and especially with those of a talcose nature. The most re-
markable conglomerate of this district, as well on account of its
composition, as its thickness, is splendidly exposed in a narrow

118 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

ravine called Ormebraekjuvet, which cuts across the conglom-
erate, inclined at an angle of 70°. A road and a rivulet here pass
through the ravine, and the rocks are seen in profile on both sides.
In a coarse mass of quartzose talc-slate, sometimes more or less
micaceous or argillaceous, different varieties of quartz are im-
bedded ; which have the form of small boulders, or are elongated
in the direction of the stratification. Besides these, there may
be remarked in the slate, a multitude of red and very fine-grained
feldspathic concretions, which betray here and there a gneissoid
nature, caused by dark mica-like streaks. These feldspathic con-
cretions are the more remarkable, since hitherto, no rock far or
near,has been discovered bearing the slightest resemblance to them,
although their oval form, in some parts, and the fact that they are
sometimes bent in the direction of the undulations of the sur-
rounding mass of slate, would favor the view that they are pebbles
from an older rock. They become still more remarkable when
we observe them repeated at very distant points. Exactly similar
gneissoid concretions with those of Tellemarken, of which we
here speak, have been remarked in the conglomerate rocks of
North Trondhjems Amt. The boulder-like fragments in the rock
of Ormebraekjuvet, attain the size of a closed fist, and lie usually
so near to each other, that they constitute the greater part of the
whole rock. Eastward from Holvig, towards Vase, down in Vest-
^orddalen, conglomerate talcose rocks also are found. Here, in
a talcose slate, a layer was observed including larger and smaller
kernels of quartz, sometimes almond-shaped, at other times more
irregular ; and one part, apparently segregations from the slate it-
self. The foliated portions of the rock are bent and rolled around
these masses. On the weathered surfaces of the rock, these ir-
regular, and, as it were, imbedded portions, have a lighter color
than the surrounding mass. There is probably some feldspar
present in these, as well as in the gneissoid concretions already
mentioned, and their lighter colour may be due to kaolin from its
decomposition. Southward from Holvig, a layer of similar rock
occurs, which belongs to the clay slate."

" Conglomerates which belong to the chloritic rocks in this
district, are found at various places in the upper part of Vest-
ijorddalen, in the neighborhood of the cataract Rjukanfbss.
From Vaa3, over and beyond Maristigen, a hard chloritic slate
predominates ; which appears often as if it had been torn in pieces,
and then joined together again, and which contains other very

in Norway and in Canada* 119

curious aggregations. There may be observed masses like s^r--
pentine, portions of greenstone, &c., combined in the most varied
manner with the slate ; while many phenomena render this place
suitable for a more minute study of these conglomerates."

" Farther on, at several points in the neighbourhood of Aamdal,
it may be observed that the mica schist contains concretions having
the appearance of imbedded fragments, and with an aspect,
from which one must believe that it has once been broken up,
and its pieces afterwards irregularly joined together. For ex-
ample, there is exposed between Aamdal Copper-work and Skafse
church, a large area of this character. The rock is a fine slaty
quartzose mica schist, which, as if by an internal breaking-up^
has acquired a well marked brecciated structure. Only a few of
the recemented pieces have rounded angles, the most of them
being sharp-cornered. The whole rock, but especially the frag-
ments, contain some feldspar. I will mention one other instance,
from which it appears that hornblende schist may also some-
times contain fragments of foreign masses. This is the case
on Skafseberg, over which the road leads from Mo to Skafse
church. Here the concretions are again feldspathic, and even
gneissoid, but most of them resemble rather the rudiments of
small bent layers or beds, than fragments cemented into the horn-
blende schist."*

As before remarked, the quartzites or rocks allied to them,
such as the quartzose mica schists and gneiss, constitute by far
the greatest portion of the group. Next in frequency and extent,
the greenstones or diorites may^be placed ; after these the horn-
blende, talc, and chlorite schists, and the clay -slates ; and lastly,
the conglomerates.

Foldings of the strata in the quartzose group, have been ob-
served in various places, but they do not approach, in intricacy, to
the contortions of the gneiss formation. The strata are seldom
found horizontal, and generally have a dip of more than 45° ;
although they do not seem, generally, to be so near to the
vertical as those of the gneiss formation. The direction of the
strike varies much more than in the latter, but parallel groups
have been traced upwards of eight geographical miles, on the
strike. In some places, an approach to a regular succession of
the rocks has been observed, but the particulars related are by no
means conclusive.

As before mentioned, the scenery of this district is of the most
* Geae Norvegica, I. 430.

120 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

wild and rugged nature. The Fjelds, consisting of quartz rock,
sometimes present massive peaks, rising in the shape of terraces
one above the other ; which latter form is caused by the outcrops
of the highly inclined quartz beds. Goustaijeld itself, is a huge
peak, rising to the height of 7000 feet, and presenting from a
distance, a peculiar furrowed appearance, the cause of which is
thus explained by Keilhau : — "The upper part of Goustafjeld is
formed of two varieties of quartzite, one of which is the prepon-
derating, and the other the subordinate constituent. The former
belongs to the purer varieties of the quartzite, and resists de-
composition. In the latter, which easily disintegrates to a
coarse sand, particles of feldspar are more or less abundantly
disseminated. From that part of the mountain where these rocks
are found in situ, which is about 300 feet perpendicularly beneath
the sharp ridge forming the summit, going upwards,there is observ-
able only a succession of very regular beds, having a dip of from
20° to 30°. The mountain is here so sharply peaked, that the beds
crop out, as well on the side of the direction of the dip, as on the
opposite side. If now the relations of the rocks were as usual,
the feldspathic quartzite would be found to form more or less
isolated layers, between the strata of the preponderating rock ;
but in place of this, the feldspathic quartzite extends in an entirely
opposite direction through the mass of the prevailing rock. It
goes right across the strata, and that without in the least (like
veins) interrupting the continuity of the several beds, because
these otherwise diflferent rocks, at their junction, run into each
other, the pure quartz gradually becoming feldspathic. The con-
sequence of this remarkable relation is very striking. On account
of the feldspathic quartzite being so easily disintegrated, and the
pure variety, on the other hand, resisting so well, there are
produced, where the former crops out, cuts on the ridge, and fur-
rows on the sides of the mountain. On account of the height of
the mountain (7000 feet), these furrows remain filled with snow
throughout the whole year, and are recognisable from a great dis-
tance. Thus GoustaiJ^ld preserves the marked features which
distinguish this surprisingly furrowed peak, for those who view
it from the heights of Hallingdal or Hadeland."

" It is a characteristic trait of this group, as well as of the other
sections of the country, analogous with it in geological character,
and worthy a mention at the outset, that it is especially well sup-
plied with copper ores."* This great prevalence of cop-
* Gese Norvegica I, 441 .

in Norway and in Canada, 121

per ores has given rise, since the beginning of the 16th cen-
tury, to the establishment of six different copper works or
mining establishments ; all of which however, with but one
exception, that of Aamdal, are abandoned. In describing the
various mineral deposits, I shall only refer to those of most
importance, neglecting alt ^g etlier the innumerable localities of
less value. The mines about to be described are those belonging
to the copper works of Guldn^es, Aamdal, flvideseid, Sauiand
and Hovindbygden.

The deposit on which the Giiklnaes mines occur, is probably
the most important of the whole district. It is situated on the
southwest side of Sundsbarm Lake, in the parish of Sillegjord, at
least 1500 feet above the sea, and inaccessible, unless to the foot
traveller. It has the form of a layer, and lies between a bed of
quartzite, and one of clay slate. It has a length of about 100
fathoms, and a breadth of about 100 feet, and is composed
of a flesh-red and sometimes greenish-white aggregation of
quartz, feldspar and talc ; in which purple copper and copper
pyrites are more or less abundantly disseminated. The ore is
found in irregular nests and veins, quartz accompanying it in
the latter. These irregular bunches of ore are frequently found
in such quantity, as to render the whole mass of the layer worthy
of excavation. There is not much of the rock with finely dis-
seminated mineral, and the ore is much more suited for be-
ing dressed by means of crushing and jigging, than by stamping
and washing. The latter processes were nevertheless those em-
ployed when the mines were being worked, and this may partially
account for the unsuccessful result. The copper ores occurring
here are argentiferous ; the metallic copper resulting from their
treatment, containing one per cent, of silver.

The mines belonging to the Aamdal copper works are very nu-
merous ; the most important of them being HofFnung mine, Naes-
mark mine and Mosnap mine. The works themselves, are situated
1 300 feet above the sea,on the river called Vierkselven, in the parish
of Skafse ; which is subordinate to that of Mo. Hoflfnung mine
lies about 160 feel higher, near the junction of a gneissoid gran-
ite, of eruptive origin, with the primitive slates. The two lodes
containing the ore, occur on both sides of a layer of hornblende
schist ; which varies from two to six feet in thickness, and has a fall
of from 50° to 60^ to the W.N.W. They run parallel with the
strata, and the lode underlying the hornblende schist is the most

122 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

important. It has a thickness of from four to thirty inches ; the
vein-stone is quartz, and is well filled with copper pyrites, generally
massive, seldom finely disseminated. In the deeper workings, the
lode almost contains as much purple copper as copper pyrites, with
no admixture of iron pyrites, or other mineral, except a little feld
spar. The ore, on being excavated, was crushed by flat-faced
hand hammers, brought up, by jigging, to 30 per cent., and
then smelted or sold. Nsesmark mine is like HofTnung, situated
in the immediate neighborhood of the work, on a granite vein,
two fathoms thick, which intersects primitive slates. In this vein,
(from which also side veins shoot out into the adjoining slates,)
there occur, running in a direction at right angles with its line
of strike, numerous lodes of from two to six inches thick, filled
with quartz and copper glance; the latter containing six oz. of sil-
ver per cwt. The granite in the neighborhood of these quartz
veins is also impregnated with copper glance , to such an extent,
as to make it amply worth stamping and washing. This mine is
a most promising one ; is altogether new, and the granitic vein has
been discovered at a distance of three miles from it, at Bergland
mine ; where it bears copper glance in exactly the same manner
as at Nsesmark. The ore from the quartz lodes of this mine was
brought up by hand-jigging to 70 per cent., and then either
smelted or sold. The finely divided ore was worked by stamping
and washing. Mosnap mine is about 10 miles distant from the
work, and probably lies 2000 feet above the sea. The rocks in
the neighborhood are the gneiss, mica schist, and hornblende
schist, peculiar to the quartzose group. The mine itself is situ-
ated on a granitic vein,which contains irregular quartz layers. Cop-
per pyrites, purple copper, and molybdenite are disseminated
through it, bat are more especially associated with the quartz.
The vein itself has a thickness of several feet, and were it more
conveniently situated, would doubtless be considered a very valu-
able deposit. It is only very lately that the ores from these mines
began to be treated by crushing and jigging, and then sent to
market. They were previously stamped and washed, at least the
poorer sorts, and the products were smelted at the works,
along with the richer ores. The smelting, however, even after
the discovery of a vein of fluor spar, which was used as flux, was
carried on but with indiff'erent success, on account of the highly
quartzose natures of the ores. After the introduction of jigging,
the ores were treated as follows, at the smelting works : — The
copper glance from Najsmark was calcined in a reverberatory

in Norway and in Canada, 123

furnace, and tlie silver extracted according to Ziervogel's method ;
by treating it with water, and afterwards precipitating the dis-
solved silver by metallic copper. The lixiviated residue from
this process, was then smelted together with the rich copper py-
rites and schlichs from the Hoflfnung mine, (previously calcined
in a reverberatory furnace), in a small shaft furnace. From this
operation, there resulted a slag, very rich in ferrous oxide, which
was rejected ; a regulus with 55 per cent, of copper, and a small
quantity of coarse copper. The regulus was roasted and again
smelted ; coarse copper, and a small quantity of thin regulus
being produced. The coarse copper was then refined on the small
German gahr hearth.

The two most important mines belonging to Hvideseid copper-
works, occur in the parish of Hvides, and are as follows : Haukum
mine, situated beneath BrokeQeld, in the neighborhood of a
powerful granite vein, wherein orthoclase and oligoclase are
observable. This vein intersects primitive slates, and is accom-
panied by several irregular granitic masse?, on the largest of
which the mine occurs. The granite mass is more or less impreg-
nated with purple copper, and this is occasionally accompanied
by metallic silver in fine threads ; which occur in small cavities,
with crystals of laumontite and stilblte. The crystals of laumon-
tite form fan-like groups, which are coloured green by the
oxyd of copper A very small scale of gold has been found
in this mine. The following minerals are also met with : mag-
netic iron ore, molybdenite, garnet, epidote, and traces of cop-
per pyrites.* Bandag mine is situated on the precipitous south
side of Bandag Lake. The surrounding rock bears a strong
resemblance to granitic gneiss, but nevertheless diff'ers from it
in having a larger quantity of quartz, and, as a consequence,
a lighter colour. The ore deposit lies parallel with the stra-
tification of this rock, and consists of a granular mixture of
quartz, mica, copper pyrites, purple copper, highly argentiferous
galena, zinc blende, and a little feldspar. Metallic silver in
threads, has also been remarked in this mine. The ores from
these, and other mines, were for a considerable time smelted at the
Hvideseid works, and although the smelting was ultimately aban-
doned, the operation was more successful here than anywhere else
in the district, being carried on for a longer time.

The Sauland smelting works were built for the copper ores
occurring at Guli, in the parish of Sauland, which is subordi-
• Dahll, Om Telemarken's Geologic, p. 27.

134 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

nate to Hjaerdal. The lode, which occurs in a coarse grained
diorite, is sometimes of considerable thickness, and consists of
quartz well charged with purple copper. Here, too, the smelting
was unsuccessful, even more so than elsewhere in the district.

The ore deposits near Horindbygden in the parish of Tin, are
described by Keilhau,* and are the following: I. Thatof Rodsoe
consists of a layer of quartz, containing partly massive and partly
disseminated copper glance. The thickness is about three feet,
the strike north and south, and the dip vertical. It is traceable
over a length of 200 feet. II. That of Daarudberge contains also
some copper glance in a quartz bed, two feet thick, but appears
less rich than that of Rodsoe. III. That of Vashoed is a quartz
layer of six inches thick, with a strike north and south, and con-
tains some purple copper. The adjacent rock is full of magnetic
iron ore, disseminated, and crystallized in very small octohedrons.
A deposit of iron ore has been described by Dahll,f as occur-
ring in Nissedal, between the farms Aarhuus and Sofdestad. It
appears to be a vein, and runs from north to south over the hill
called Grubeaasen. It dips 30° to 50° towards east, and has a
thickness of nine feet on an average. It is exposed for a distance
of 210 fathoms, between two small valleys. In the deepest por-
tion, it consists of magnetic iron ore, but on ascending the hill
from both sides, the magnetic ore becomes mixed with iron
glance, (specular iron ore); the quantity of which gradually in-
creases, .until, at the highest part, iron glance alone is present. The
surrounding slates are mica schist, containing a little hornblende,
hornblende schist and feldspar, and containing portions having
a granular structure. The vein is more distinctly separated from
the side rock, where it consists of magnetic ore, than when the iron
glance is present. The latter penetrates into the side rock, where
it replaces the feldspar. It is thus possible to find hand spe-
cimens consisting only of iron glance and hornblende. Quartz
and desraine are present in the vein. It is impossible to deter-
mine v/ith certainty the age of this deposit, but it is intersected
by granite veins.

In concluding this description of the quartzose division of the
primitive slate formation, and of its economic minerals, as deve-
loped in Norway, I think that the following features may be
mentioned as characteristic of the group. I. The preponderauce
of quartzose rocks ; II. The presence of conglomerates of a pecu-

* Geae Norvegica, p. 442.

fOm Telemarken's Geologie, p. 31.

m Nortvay and in Canada, 12§

liar character ; III. The prevalence of copper ores, of a high per-
centage, unmixed with iron pyrites ; the veinstone accompanying
them being quartzose, and therefore diflScultly fusible ; IV. The
presence of iron glance in the few deposits of iron ore occurring
in the group.

The equivalent of these rocks in Canada appears to be the
Huronian formation. In support of this view I shall avail
myself of the minute descriptions of the latter to be found in the
Reports of the Geological Survey, and particularly in Sir W. E.
Logan's Report on the north shore of Lake Huron. The rocks of
the Huronian formation are, by these authorities, described as fol-
lows:

" The quartzites have sometimes the aspect of sandstones, but
at other times lose their granular texture, and become a vit-
reous quartz. Not unfrequently the quartzite is thin bedded, and
even schistose in its structure, and it sometimes holds a Uttle
mica, passing into a variety of mica schist;

** These quartzites often become conglomerate, enclosing pebbles
of quartz and various coloured jaspers. These pebbles are some-
times arranged in thin layers among fine grained beds. At other
times, the conglomerates form thicker beds, which swell into moun-
tain masses; including great portions which contain blood-red
jaspers in a white matrix, constituting a very beautiful rock.

" In addition to these, there are conglomerates of a distinctly
diflferent character, belonging to this formation. They are somposed
chiefly of syenitic pebbles, held in a grey argillo-arenaceous ce-
ment,which is more frequently of a greenish color, from the presence
of chlorite. The pebbles, which are of reddish and grey colors,
vary greatly in size, being sometimes no larger than swan shot,
and at others, boulders rather than pebbles, measuring upwards
of a foot in diameter.

" The quantities in which they are aggregated vary much.
They sometimes constitute nearly the whole mass of the rock,
leaving but few interstices for a matrix, and sometimes on the
contrary, they are so sparingly disseminated through con-
siderable portions, as to leave spaces of several feet between
neighboring pebbles ; which are still, in such cases, often several
inches in diameter. With the syenitic pebbles, are occasionally
associated some of diflferent colored jaspers. The matrix ap-
pears often to pass on the one hand, into the grey quartz rock, by
an increased proportion of the arenaceous particles ; and on the
other, into a thin bedded greenish fine grained slate, which is

126 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

sometimes very chloritic. In a third form, the matrix is scarcely
distinguishable from a fine grained greenstone In the slate, the
stratification is often marked by slight differences of color, in the
direction of which, it is occasionally clcavable. The bands in
other instances, are firmly soldered together, but in both cases,
joints usually prevail, dividing the rock into rhomboidal forms,
which are sometimes very regular."

These slates sometimes approach to argillites, but often, through
the chloritic varieties, appear to pass into greenstone or diorite,
which, in its typical form, consists of a greenish white feldspar,
with dark green or black hornblende. The feldspar is sometimes
however, more or less tinged with red, and the rock then occa-
sionally appears to pass into a kind of syenite, by the addition of
a very sparing amount of quartz. These two forms of the rock
are generally highly crystalline, and not very fine grained. The
greenstone, however, sometimes displays a fine texture ; and in
such cases it frequently holds much disseminated chlorite, giving
it a very decided green colour. Portions are found, containing
so great a proportion of the mineral, as to yield with facility to
the knife.

Associated with these, are three bands of impure limestone,
often silicious and sometimes dolomitic, the uppermost one of
which, is interstratified with a large amount of hornstone, in
very regular beds. The total thickness of the formation on
Lake Huron, is estimated about 18,000 feet; of which more than
10,000 feet are quartzites, including the jasper conglomerates.
900 feet of the remainder are hmestone and hornstone bands, and
the remainder the slate conglomerates, with chloritic and epidotic
slates the whole being interstratified with diorites.

While the great mass of these greenstones or diorites, are sup-
posed to be altered sedimentary beds,there are other greenstones,
which, as well as certain granites in the formation, are evidently
intrusive.

The most important mineral deposits of the Huronian series
are the copper lodes at the Bruce, Wellington, and Huron Bay
mines. The ores are here yellow and purple sulphuret, in veins,
of quartz, which cut the diorites of the region. According to Sir
W. E. Logan's careful examination of the Bruce Mines, made in
1848, about 3000 square fathoms of the lodes were computed to
contain, on an average, 6^ per cent, of copper. Since then, about
9000 tons of 18 per cent, ore have been raised from the mine,
which has been opened to a depth of 50 fathoms. Attempts

i7i Norway and in Canada, 127

were made to smelt the ores, in a furnace erected on tlie spot, but
they are now shipped to Great Britain or to the United States.
The adjacent mines appears to be yielding even larger quantities
of ore than the Bruce. Copper mining has been attempted also
at Root River, at Echo Lake, and in many other localities in this
formation ; which, like its Norwegian equivalent, appears to be
eminently cupriferous. At the Wallace mine on Lake Huron,
copper pyrites occurs, with an arsenical snlphuret of nickel, but
the deposit has not been much examined. In the same vicinity,
Mr. Murray has described a bed of specular iron or red hematitic
ore, and he has shown that the immense deposits of this ore now
so extensively wrought at Marquette, in Northern Michigan, be-
long to the Huronian formation.

From this sketch of the Huronian formation I think it will
appear evident that the same particulars characterize it as the cor-
responding group in Norway, viz: L The preponderance of
quartzose rocks. H. The presence of conglomerates of peculiar
character. HI. The occurrence of great masses of interstratified
diorites or greenstones. IV. The beds of hornstone or chert.
V. The presence of copper ores of a high percentage, unmixed
with iron pyrites ; the veinstone accompanying them being of
quartzose. VI. The presence of iron glance (specular iron ore)
in the few deposits of iron ore occurring in the group.

In the absence of organic remains, it seems to me that the only
means left of identifying the same group in remote localities, is
to compare minutely their petrographical and other physical
characters. If this view be correct, there can be little doubt but
that the quartzose division of the primitive slate formation in
Norway, and the Huronian formation of Canada, are identical.

In conclusion, I have to remark with regard to the development
of the mineral resources of both formations, that more appears to
have been accomplished in this respect in Canada, than in Norway;
seeing that the copper mines on the north shore of Lake Huron
have had more permanency than those of Tellemarken. Greater
progress is probably attributable only to the greater amount of
capital which has been invested in the former mines. The ob-
tacles met with have been substantially the same in both coun-
tries : the remoteness and inaccessibility of the region from the
ordinary markets, and the difficulties in the treatment of the ores.
These however have been overcome in this country, and the prin-
cipal mines on Lake Huron are now well established, and pro-
fitably wrought.

128

New Spectrum ditcovmes.

M

■fl

B-B-

■ Cff u

II II

dirrm

o

Ni;i

1-1 c^

1 30 Saunders* List of Diurnal Lepidoptera.

the appearance of two red lines beyond the visible red of the
solar spectrum. These new metals have since been found widely
distributed but in very small |)roportions. Mr. Grand eau, by the
evaporation of several thousand litres of the waters of Vicliy, col-
lected about two grammes of the double chloride of platinum and
caesium, and a still smaller proportion of the same salt of rubidi-
um. A larger amount of both these metals is present in the
waters of Bourbonne-les-Bains, and the same chimist has found
them in different specimens of lepidolite, in the refubC of salt-
petre manufactories, and elsewhere. s. P. R.

ARTICLE XL — List of Diurnal Lepidoptera collected (unless
otherwise specified) in the immediate vicinity of London*
C. W. By W. Saunders.

(Read before the Natural History Society.^
In naming these insects, preference has been given to the family
names in the Smithsonian Catalogue, as being the most reliable and
easily accessible authority, but where long usage has popularized
certain family names they will be found enclosed in brackets.

Papilio turnusj Linn. — Not uncommon.

" troilus, Linn. — Common.

" Philenor, Linn. — From Rev. Chas. J. S. Bethune, Cobourg. This
fine insect taken in such numbers at West Flamboro' by
Mr. B. in June 1858, See Canadian Naturalist for Au-
gust 1858, is not uncommon about Toronto, and has also
been taken near Woodstock.

" Asteriasj Fab. — Common everywhere.

" Thoas, Linn. — This splendid butterfly, usually considered pecu-
liarly southern, has been taken in Canada by the Rev.
Dr. Sands, of Chatham, C. W. Several years since he
captured three specimens on the Mersey, one of which
is now in possession of the Lord Bishop of Huron. The
Rev. Dr. states that they are not uncommon in that lo-
cality, and that they are found through several townships.*
He has repeatedly seen specimens on the wing, since the
captures above alluded to were made. Although I have
no Canadian specimen of P. Thoas the fact of its un-
doubted occurrence in Canada is a matter of too much
interest to entomologists to allow it to continue unno-
ticed.

* P. thoas has also been seen on the wing near Port Stanley, by a res-
ident collector, but the insect being exceedingly difficult to capture, he
has never succeeded in taking one.

Saunders* List of Diurnal Lepidoplera, 131

Pieris Protodice. Boisd. — Common some seasons. Very plentiful last
summer.
" oleracea^ Harris. — Rather scarce around London, but generally
common throughout this part of the province.
Terias Lisa, Boisd. — One specimen taken at Port Stanley last August,
where it was rare. Mr. T. Reynolds, has sent me a pair
from Hamilton, where it appears to be more common.
Danais Archippus, Fab. — Common everywhere.
Argynnis Cybele, Godt.— Usually abundant.

" Myrina, Cram. — Common in wet places.
" Bellona, Godt. — Common in wet places.

" Aphrodite, Godt. — Usually common. Concerning the identity
of this species with A. Cybele there exists much diversity
of opinion. Boisduval states that the difference between
them is merely sexual, while other writers regard them
as distinct species. They are both undoubtedly subject
to considerable variation, and they incline to run into
each other, but the larvae must be made a further sub-
ject of study before the opinions of either side can be
fully established. In the meantime I must confess I am
inclined to look upon them as distinct.
Melitcea Phceton, Cram. — Of this butterfly I have only one specimen,
which was taken by a friend last summer at Hall's mills,
about seven miles from London. At the time it was cap-
tured they were tolerably common in that locality but
upon visiting the spot a week or two after not one could
be found.
" ismeria, Boisd. et Leconte. — Not uncommon, although chiefly

confined to one or two favorite spots.
" Tharos, Cram. — Abundant.
Grapta (^Vanessa) interrogationis, Godt. — Common in the neighborhood of
hop-yards.
" " comma, Harris. — Not common.

Vanessa J-alhum, — Boisd. et Leconte. — Generally common, but much
scarcer than usual for the last one or two years.
" Milberti, Encyc. — Usually abundant.
" Progne, Cram. — Common.
" Antiopa, Linn. — Plentiful.
Pyrameis (^Vanessa) Atalanta, Linn. — Common.

" " cardui, Linn. — Usually abundant.

" " Huntera, Smith. — Common.

Inonia " ccenia, Boisd. et Leconte. — Taken at Port Stanley, Au-

gust 1861. See Canadian Journal for November 1861.
Nymphalis (Limenitis) Ursula, Fab. — Rare. Of this beautiful insect three
specimens have been taken in this vicinity within the
last two years. It has also occurred at Port Stanley
where it has been somewhat more plentiful.

132 Sauvders* List of Diurnal Lepidoptera.

Nymphalis (Limenitis) j^rthemu, Drury. — Not common.

" " disippusj Godt. — Common.

Neonympha eurythris, Fab. — Very common in wet places and on the bor-
ders of swamps.
" canthus, Linn. — Rare, Found usually in swamps.

Erehia nephele, Kirby. — Sent from St. Catherines by D. W. Beadle, Esq.,

where it is usually plentiful.
Thecla falacer, Godt. — Taken at Port Stanley in August 1861, when it

was common in one locality not far from the town.
Thecla niphon, Boisd. et Leconte. — Rare.
" mopsus, Boisd. et Leconte. — Not common.
" laeta, Edwards (new species). — Rare.

" a^adica, Edwards (new species). — Very rare. These last two are
new species which the collector has had the fortune to
discover. They were both taken within a mile of
London. Of T. Zaefa, which is a very handsome little crea-
ture, two specimens have been taken ; of T. acadica only
one. They will probably be soon described by Mr. Ed-
wards who has named them.
Argus Pseudargiolus, Boisd. et Leconte. — Not common.
Polyommatus comyntas, Godt. — Taken at Port Stanley in August 1861,
where it is common some seasons.
" phleas, Godt. — Abundant everywhere.
" thoe, Boisd. et Leconte. — Generally scarce.
Lycana Scudderij Edwards. — This handsome little blue, recently described
by W. H. Edwards, Esq., in the Journal of the Proceedings
of the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, is very
common in one locality near London. It extends from
the cemetery to the Great Western Railway track, and
along the line for about a quarter of a mile. Here early
in June and again in August it may be taken in consi-
derable numbers.
Goniloba (Eudamus) Tityrus, Smith.- — Rare.
Jfisoniades (^Thanaos) Juvenalis, Smith. — Common.
" " Catullus, Smith.— Rare.

" " Brizo, Boisd. et Leconte. — Common.

Cyclopidas coras, Cram. (Hesperia otho. Boisd. et Leconte) Not common,
Pamphila viatellius, Smith. — Common.

" origenes, Fab.— (Hesperia cernes. Boisd. et Leconte) Common,
" Zabulon, Boisd et Leconte. — Abundant.
" Peckii, Kirby. — Common.
Hesperia bathyllus, Smith. — Not common.

The collector takes this opportunity of acknowledging his in-
debtedness to Mr. W. H. Edwards, Newburgh, N, Y. for kindly
determining a number of the smaller butterflies.

Ross on Botanical and Mineral Products. 133

ARTICLE. XII. — An account of the Botanical and Mineral pro-
ducts^ useful to the Ckipewyan tribes of Indians, inhabiting
the McKenzie River District. By Bernard R. Ross,
H.B.CS.

(^Read before the Natural History Society of Montreal.')

A nation of hunters, paying no attention whatsoever to agri"
culture, can enjoy but few of the numerous benefits aflforded by
the vegetable kingdom to the human race in general. Such is
the condition of the Chipewyan tribes of Indians. Though the
benefits derived from the inighty forests which fill the Mackenzie
valley, are but few to their denizens, they may be considered not-
withstanding their fewness, to be of essential, indeed of vital im-
portance to the existence of the aboriginal dwellers in these wilds ;
since without fuel to warm them, and without canoes to migrate,
they would soon cease to exist.

From the vegetable kingdom are derived fuel, canoes, sleds,
paddles, snow-shoes, baskets, dyes and food, besides other articles
which will be noticed hereafter. Two trees, the canoe birch
(^Betula papyracea) and the white spruce (^Abies alba) stand out,
^rom their importance, in bold relief; but the larch and willow are
used also, as well as several kinds of plants,which furnish medicines,
dyes, and edible berries that are useful in periods of scarcity. Indeed
in summer, a considerable portion of the ordinary food, as well as
the luxuries of the natives, is drawn from this source.

According to the method adopted in my former paper on the
zoological products, I shall pass the various uses of each species
briefly in review : —

The Canoe or Paper Birch (Betula papyracea). — The benefits
which this valuable tree confers on the inhabitants of the McKenzie
River District, are many and important. Its baik is used in the
construction of canoes, and in the manufacture of various utensils
for domestic use, such as drinking cups, dishes, and baskets. It
also yields spunk or touchwood of the best quality. Of its woodi
platters, axe-helves, paddles, snow-shoe-frames, dog-sleds and other
articles are made, and as it is a strong and durable material, of
close grain, and susceptible of receiving a tolerable polish, the
white residents avail themselves of it for the construction of furni-
ture. In spring, the sap forms a pleasant drink, from which a
syrup can be manufactured by boiling, and which may be further
transformed, by fermentation, into an agreeably flavoured wine of
considerable potency. Beyond the arctic circle, the birch is rare

^♦«

>

i ^m

Useful to the Chipewyan Tribes of Indians, 135

Mineral Products.

The mineral kingdom affords but few and unimportant articles
for the necessities of the Indians.

Sulphur is found in considerable quantities at the Sulphur Cove
on Great Slave Lake. Here sulphur springs occupy a space of
several hundred yards in length along the beach. They are very
clear, and flow in small rivulets, whose banks are encrusted with
a deposit of sulphur which becomes serviceable when thoroughly
dried, and is used by the Chipewyan Indians who come to Fort
Resolution, in the fabrication of matches.

Common Salt is procured from the salt plains lying about 20
miles up the Salt Elver, a tributary of the Slave. The springs is-
sue from the base of a long ridge, some hundreds of feet in height,
and spreading their waters over a clayey plain, deposit the salt by
evaporation in cubical crystals of various degrees of fineness. The
mother liquor flows into Salt River, giving a name as well as a most
abominable taste to that stream, which is still sensibly brackish
at its junction with the Slave. At present, the main supply of salt
is confined to one large jet d^eau from which a strong brine,
mingled with completely formed crystals, is perpetually thrown.
Around this spring, evaporation has formed a hillock of dry salt
many feet high ; and a pole forty feet long was shoved into the
spring without finding boltom. Sir John Richardson considers
that these fountains belong to the Onondaga Salt group of the
Upper Silurian Series of New York.

Numerous bands of buffalo, elk, and reindeer frequent these
plains to lick the mineral, of which they are extremely fond*
The salt is of excellent quality, strong and well-flavoured. It
preserves meat, meal, and butter, fully as well as that imported
from England, being far superior to the description manufactured
in the plain country of the Swan River District. As the Salt
River is very crooked, with generally too litt.le water to float any
craft larger than a small canoe, the transport of the salt from the
springs to its mouth is by horses.

Ochres, red and blue, are procured at several points in the Dis-
trict, and are ueed for painting snow-shoes and sleds, by the na-
tives. The Loucheux of the Youcon River paint their faces with
these colors in the same way as the tribes of the Plain.

White earth or Pipeclay is found associated with the coal beds
at the mouth of Bear River. When newly dug, it is plastic, but

136 Ross on the Botanical and Mineral Products

soon dries. It is eaten in times of scarcity by the natives, and is
also used as a soap for washing their clothes, and by the whites
for white-washing their houses. At the request of Sir John
Richardson it was analyzed by Drs. Davy and Prout, but was not
found to contain any nutritious matter.

Mineral Tar is procured at several spots along the Arthabaska
or Clear Water River ; it is also found on Great Slave Lake, at a
short distance N. E. of Big Island, and also near to Fort Good
Hope. It is little used by the natives, except to mix with and to
soften gum f « r paying canoes with. It becomes, after being boiled
and purified, an excellent tar for boat-building purposes, for which
it is used.

Iron Pyrites is found in the Mountain Ranges. The Gens-
des-Bois, a tribe living on the banks of the Pelly River, use it
instead of flint to strike fire with.

Pieces of Agate are used occasionally as flints, and native cop-
per has been made into knives, spear and arrow heads.

Lignite exists in large quantities near the mouth of Bear River
where it is seen in a state of combustion. It is of little value as fuel,
and quite unserviceable for forge use. The legend told by the Slave
and Dog Rib Indians, of the origin of the fire in these lignite
beds is rather curious. The story relates that in the days of old,
before Indians roamed the forest, or glided over the waters in their
birchen canoes, a giant, tall as a pine tree, dwelt at the east-
ern end of Slave Lake, then a much larger sheet of water. The
giant hungered and he went to hunt. His spear was a tall fir-tree,
hardened in the fire, and tipped with native copper. The skins
of gigantic elks served him for clothing. Travelling on, he found
a beaver-house ; the beavers in those days were of extraordinary
size, and their houses of corresponding proportions. With great
exertion and toil, the house was broken open : it contained two
animals, a female and her young. The latter was killed, but the
dam escaped, pursued by the giant, who bore the dead cub over
his shoulder on the point of his spear. On they sped, until the
western end of the lake was reached, where a rocky barrier then
stretched across. Through this, the beaver pushed her way, giv-
ing vent to the waters of the lake, and thus forming the Tess-
chi or McKenzie's River, the flood of which swept her down-
wards, far out of the pursuer's reach. The giant still continued
the chase, until hungry and exhausted, he reached the mouth of
Bear River, where he stopped to cook the cub, which was the

Useful to the Chipeivyan Tribes of Indians. 337

size of a moose- deer ; and thus lit the fire which continues burning
to the present day.

With these I think I have completed this series of notes, in
which I believe that nothing of importance to the comfort or wel-
fare of the natives omittt^d.

Among the Eskimos, the arts and manufactures of savage life
are in a much more advanced state than among the Indian tribes,
and I trust that I shall, at some future period, have the gratifica-
tion of laying an account of them before the Natural History So-
ciety of Montreal.

ARTICLE XIII. — List of Mammals, Birds, and Eggs, observed

in the McKenzie^s River District, with Notices. By Bernard

R. Ross, Corresi)onding Member Nat. His. Soc. Montreal.

(^Presented to the Natural History Society.)

MAMMALS.

Order 1. — Rapacia.

(Insectivora.)

Family SoRECiDiE.

Genus Sorex.

1. Sorex Fosteri? (Richardson). ^ This genus is abundant throughout

the district as far north as the Arctic
I coast, I cannot speak confidently as
I to either the names or the number of

2. Sorex palustris? (Bachm). J the species.

(Carnivora.)

Family Felid^.

Gentis Lynx.

3. Lynx Canadensis (Rafen). — Canada Lynx — Loup-cervier, of the Ca-

nadians— Cat, of the Hudson's Bay residents — Pichen of
the Cree Indians and Red River half-breeds — Ch^e-say
of the Chipewyan Indians. This animal is numerous
some years, but is migratory, following the hare (Lepus
Americanus) its principal food. It ranges to the Arctic
coast in summer. In winter, it does not leave the shelter
of the woods.

Family Canid^.

(Lupinae.)

Genus Canis.

4. Canis griseo-albus (Rich.) — Strongwood Wolf — Loup-gris, of the Ca-

nadians— Maheecan of the Cree Indians — Nun-dee-yah of
the Chipewyan Indians— Mah-nu(5kh of the Anderson Ri-
ver Eskimos — Yess of the Copper Indians. Of this species
I consider that there are two varieties, one of which is

1 38 Ross on the Mammals, Birds j and Eggs

of dark color and large size, inhabiting the wooded por-
tions of the district as far north as the Youcon River.
The other is usually a dirty white tint, with in general
a dark stripe down the back, and frequents the barren
grounds N. to the Arctic cost. It is of smaller size than
the first mentioned variety, and lives in much larger
bands ; Indeed it may possibly be a distinct species.

(Vulpinae.)
Genus Vulpes.

5. Vulpes fulvus : var. fulvus, var. decussatus, var. argentatus. Red.

Silver, and Cross Foxes. Ma-kay-sis of the Cree Indians
— Naw-k^e-thay of the Chipewyan Indians. Pee-soot-
eh of the Anderson River Eskimos. This species, in all
its varieties, is found all over this district to the Arctic
coast. They are most numerous around the shores of
the lakes, and in swampy tracts on the banks of the
larger rivers. In the mountain ranges they are rare.
The proportions of the various colors killed in the Mc-
Kenzie district is as follows : Red ^ ; Cross -^g ;
Silver fj.

6. Vuljyes lagopus, var. Lagopus, var. fuliginosus. — White and Blue

Foxes. Both these varieties inhabit the barren grounds
and shores of the Arctic coast. The latter is exceedingly
rare, much more so than the Silver Fox is in the fulvus
species. White Foxes have been killed on the south
shore of Great Slave Lake, and a single blue one on the
North shore.

Family Mustelid^e.
(Martinse.)

Genus Mustela.

7. Mustela Americana (Turton) — American Sable — Marten-tha of the

Chipewyan Indians — Naw-they or Nau-fey of the Slave
Indians. Common wherever there are woods, but mi-
gratory. The farther north that the skin is obtained,
the darker the tint of the fur. On the Youcon River
they strongly resemble the Siberian Sable.

8. Mustela Pennantii (Erxleben). — Fisher — Pecan of the Canadians.

Zha-cho, or big Marten of the Chipewyan Indians. Rare-
Range to 62° north.

Genus Putorius.

9. Putorius pusillus (Aud. v. Bach.) — Least Weasel— New York to Big

Iceland. Great Slave Lake.

10. Putorius Cicognanii (Bonap). — Small brown Weasel. Boston to 62°

North. Common.

11. Putorius? Richardsonii (Bonap.) — Little Ermine. Boston to Lapierres

House. Rather rare.

Observed in the McKenzie River DistricL 139

12. Putorius ? Noveboracensis (Dekay). — Ermine. Northern New York

to 62° north. Rare.

13. Putorius ? longicauda (Richards.) — Long-tailed Weasel. Upper

Missouri to 62° N.; rare. I am far from certain of the
identities of the three last species. All the Ermines
which are killed in this district have the white of the
winter coat slightly tinged with sulphur-yellow.

14. Putorius vison (Rich.) — Brown Mink — Teth, jew-say, of the Chip-

ewyan Indians. Trai-ek-puck, of the Eastern Eskimos.
Florida to the Arctic coast. Common.

15. Putorius nigrescens (Aud. & Bach.) — Little black Mink. Northern

New York to 62'' north. This species is nothing more
than the young of the P. Vison.

Genus Gulo.

16. Gulo luscus (Sabine). — "Wolverine — carcajou — No-gah, of the Chip-

ewyan Indians ;-kha-vig of the Eastern Eskimos. North-
New York to Arctic coast. Common.

Luteins.

Genus Lutra.

17. Lutra Canadensis (Sabine). — Otter. — Naw-pee-ah of the Chipewyan

Indians. Florida to the Arctic coast. Not uncommon.

MELINiE.

Genus 3Iephitis.

18. Mephitis mephitica (Shaw). — Common Skunk. Texas to Fort Reso-

lution, Great Slave Lake. I have never seen a living
specimen of this animal in McKenzie's River: but I found
the bones and a part of the skin of one at a short distance
from the shores of Great Slave Lake.

Family Ursid^.
Genus Ursus.

19. Ursus horrihilis (Ord).— Grizzly Bear. Sas-tel-kieof the Chipewyan

Indians. Plains of Upper Missouri to Youcon River.
Not rare in the mountain ranges.

20. Ursus Americanus: ^a.v. Americanus var. cinna77ion€MS (Aud & Bach).

Black and brown Bears : Sas of the Chipewyan Indians.
Common throughout to the Arctic circle and beyond.
The brown variety is very rare.

21. Ursus ardos? Barren-§:round bear. Inhabits the barren-grounds

and Arctic coasts. Distinguished from the U. horribilis
by its smaller size and reddish coloration.

22. Ursus maritimus (Linn.) — Polar Bear. Nait-suck of the Eastern

Eskimos. Common along the Arctic coasts.

140 Ross on the Mammals, Birds, and Eggs

Order 5. — Rodentia,

Family SciuRiDiE.

(Steturinse.)

Genus Steturus.

23. Sciurus Hudxonius (Pallas). — Chickaree. Throughout to within the

Arctic circle.

Genus Pteromys.

24. Pteromys alpinus (Rocky Mountain flying Squirrel) (Richardson).

Found on the mountain ranges of the Liards River.
Rather rare.

Genus Tamias.

25. Tamias ^warfrm^tof MS (Richardson). — Missouri striped Squirrel, from

Lat. 83° 30' to 67° worth. Very abundant on the
Liards River.

Genus Arctomys.

26. Arctomys monax (Gmelin). — Ground-hog. South Carolina to 62°

North. Rare.

27. Arctomys pruinosus (Gmelin). — N. to Arctic circle. Abundantinthe

mountain ranges.

28. Arctomys Kennicottii (Ross). — This I consider to be a new species,

but may be wrong. It is of small size, and inhabits
the northernmost ranges of the Rocky Mountains.

(Castorinse.)

Genus Castor.

29. Castor Canadensis (Kuhl).— Beaver. Isa of the Chipewyan Indians.

Throughout North America, to within the Arctic circle;
very abundant.

Family Murid^.

(Murinse.)

Genus Jaculus.

30. Jaculus Hudsonius (Wagler). — Jumping Mouse — Pennsylvania to

Youcon River. Common at Portage La Sache ; rare in
McKenzie's River.

Genus ffesperomys.

31. Hesperomys (Gapper) Hamster Mouse. New York to the Arctic

Sea, very abundant E. of the Rocky Mountains; not found
westward on the Youcon River. This species is very
annoying in dwellings, as it carries off quantities of sugar,
rice, &c. in its cheek pouches, to store them up for its
winter consumption.

Genus Arvicola.

32. Arvicola riparia (Ord). — Middle States to Arctic Sea. Common.

33. Arvicola Rickardsonii (Dekay). — 62° north. Rare.

34. Arvicola xaiithognathus (Leeich). — Red-cheeked Arvicole. North to

the Arctic Sea. Common.

Observed in the McKenzie River District. . 141

Genus Fiber.

35. Fiber zibethicus (Cuvier). — Musk-rat; Djin of the Chipewyan In-

dians. North America to the Arctic Sea, abundant.
Family HYSTRiciDiE.
Genus Erithezon.

36. Erithezon dorsatus (Cuvier). — White-haired Porcupine, From

Pennsylvania to within the Arctic circle. Common.

37. Erithizon epixanihus (Brandt). — Yellow-haired Porcupine. From

Upper Missouri to Liards River.

Family Leporid^,
Genus Lepus.

38. Lepus Americanus (Erxl.) — "White Rabbit. Kha of the Chipewyan

Indians. From Virginia to within the Arctic circle.
Abundant ; Migratory.

39. Lepus glacialis (Leach). — Arctic Hare — Xewfoundland N. to the

Arctic Sea; not common.

Genus Lagomys.

40. iogomysjjrinceps (Richardson). — Little Chief Hare — Commonamong

the mountain ranges of the Liards River.

Order 3, — Ruminantia.

Family Cervid^.

(Cervinae.)

Genus Alee.

41. Alee Americanus (Jardine). — Moose — Fin-dee-yah of the Chipewyan

Indians. New York to within the Arctic circle. Abun-
dant.

Genus Rang if er.

42. Rangifer caribou (And. & Bach.) — Strong-wood Caribou. From

Maine to the Youcon River, Abundant.

43. Rangifer Groenlandicus. — Barren-ground Caribou. Barren grounds,

and Arctic coasts in spring, summer and autumn.
Fringes of the woods in winter.

Family Cavicornia.

(Antilopinse.)

Genus Aptocerus.

44. Aplocerus montanus (Richardson). — Mountain Groat. From North-

ern Cascade Mountains to the Arctic Sea. Not common.
(OviNiE.)
Genus Ovis.

45. Ovis wxmtana (Cuvier). — From the Upper Missouri to within the

Arctic ciicle.

(Bovine.)

Genua Ovibos*

46. Ovibos moschatus (Blainville). — Musk ox, Eh-gir-ray-yaz-ey,

142 Ross on the Mammals, Birds, and Errors

(Little Buffalo) of the Chipewyan Indians. Barren
grounds and Arctic coast. Not rare.
Genus Bos.

47. Bos Americanus (Gmelin). — Bison — North to Little Buffalo River ;

Great Slave Lake.

Order 4. — Cheiroptera.

48. Vespertilio subulatus, (Say.) — North to Salt River. Very rare.

BIRDS.

(Those marked * are winter residents : f Eggs procured.)
Order 1. — Raptores.
Family Falconid^.
Genus Falco.

I. Falco anatum, (Bonap.) — Duck Hawk. North to Slave Lake. Rare.
f2. Falco columbarius, (Linn.) — Pigeon Hawk. North to Lapierre's

House. Common.
fS. Falco sparveriuSj (Linn.) — Sparrow Hawk. North to Lapierre's
House. Rather rare.

Genus Astur.

4. Astur atricapilluSj (Bonap.) — Black Hawk. North to Port Good

Hope. Rare.

Genus Archihuteo.

5. Archihuteo sancti, Johannis, (Gray.)— Black Hawk. North to Salt

River. Rare.

6. " lagopus, (Gmelin.)— Rough-legged Hawk. North to La-

pierre's House. Common.

7. " ferrugineus? (Gray.) — Squirrel Hawk. N. to Simpson.

Uncertain. Rare.

Genus Buteo,
fS. Buteo Swainsonii, (Bonap.) — Swainson's Buzzard. N. to Slave Lake.
Rare.

Genus Accipiter.
]9. Accipiter fuscus, (Gmelin.) — Sharp shinned Hawk. N. to Simpson.
Common.

Genus Cli'cus,
10. Circus Hudsonicus, (Lacep.) — Marsh Harrier. N. to Slave Lake.
Rather common.

Genus Aquila.

II. Aquila Canadensis^ (Linn.)— Golden Eagle. N. to Arctic Coast.

Rare.

Genus Halinetus,
tl2. Haliaetus leucocephalus, (Linn.) — Bald Eagle. N. to Arctic Coast.
Common.

Genus Pandion.
tl3. Pandion Carolinensis, (Gmelin.)— Osprey. N. to Arctic Coast
Common.

Observed in the McKenzie River District. 143

Family Strigid^.
Genvs Bubo.
•14. Bubo Virginianus, var. subarcticus, (Swains.) — Horned Owl. N.
to Arctic circle and beyond.
Genus Otas.
♦15. Otus Wilsonianus, (Lesson.)— Long Eared Owl. N. to Fort Simp-
son. Rare.

Genus Brachyotus.
•16. Brachyotus Cassinii, (Brewer.) — Short Eared Owl. N. to Fort
Simpson. Common.

Genus Nyctale.
t*l7. Nyctale Richardsonii, (Bonap.) — Sparrow Owl. N. to Fort Simp-
son. Rather rare.

Genus Nyctea.
•18. Nyctea nivea, (Daudin.) — White Owl. N. to Fort Norman. Rare.

Genus Suinia.

t*19. Surnia ulula, (Linn.) — Hawk OwL N. to Arctic coast. Common.

Order 2 — Scansores.

Family Picid^.

Genus Picus.

•20. Picus villosus, (Linn.) — Hairy Woodpecker. N. to Fort Simpson.

Common.
•21. " pubescens, (Linn.) — Downy Woodpecker. N. to Fort Liards.
Not rare.

Genus Picoides.
•22. Picoides Arcticus, (Swains.) — Black-backed Woodpecker. N. to

Fort Simpson. Rare.
•23. " hirsutus, (Vieillot.) — Banded Woodpecker. N. to Fort

Good Hope.
•24. " dorsalis, (Baird.) — Striped Woodpecker. N. to Fort

Simpson. But one specimen of what I am disposed to
consider to be this very rare bird, has been secured. It
resembles the P. hirsutus, except that the white is mark-
ed on the back in longitudinal instead of lateral lines.
Genus Sphyrapicus.
t25. Sphyrapicus varius J (Baird.) — Yellow-bellied Woodpecker, N. to
Fort Simpson. Common.

Genus Hyldtonius.
26. Hylatomus pileatus, (Baird ?)— Black Woodcock. N. to FortLiards,
Rare.

Genus Colaptes.
127. Colaptes auratus, (Swains.)— Golden Woodpecker. N. to Peers
River. Common.

144 Ross on the Mammals, Birds, and Eggs

Order 3. — Iimessores.

Family CAPRiMULGiDiE.

Genus Chordiles.

f28. Chordiles popetue, (Vieillot.)— Night Hawk. N. to Lapierre's House.

Rather rare.

Family ALCEDiNiDiE.

Genus Ceryle.
129. Ceryle alcyon, (Boie.) — Kingfisher. N. to Peel's River. Common.

Family CoLOPTERiDiE.

(Tyranninae.)

Genus Tyrannus.

30. Tyrannus CaroUnensis, (Baird.)-King bird. N. to Fort Simpson. Rare.

GenuH Sayornis.
fSl. Sayornis fuscus, (Baird.)— Jewee. N. to Fort Simpson. Rare.

32. " saytis, (Baird.) — Say's Flycatcher. N. to Fort Simpson.

Rare.

Genus Contnpus.

33. Contopus borealis, (Baird.) — Olive-sided Flycatcher. N. to Fort Re-

solution. Rare.

Genus Umpidonax."
134. Empidonax pusillus, (Swain.) — N. to Fort Simpson. Rare.
f35. " Traillii, (Traill's Flycatcher.)— N. to Fort Resolution.

Rare.
|36. " mmmws, (Baird.) — Least Flycatcher. N. to Fort Simp-

son. Common.

Family Turdid^. (Oscines.)

(Turdinas.)

Genus Tardus.

f37. TMrdMsPaZZasu? (Cabanis.)— Hermit Thrush. N. to Fort Simpson.

Identity uncertain.
f38. " Swainsoniij (Cabanis.) — Olive-backed Thrush. N. to La-

pierre's House. Abundant.
f39. " aliciae, (Baird.)— N. to Youcon River. Only found W. of

Rocky Mountains.
140. " migratorius, (Linn.)— Robin. N. to Lapierre's House.
Abundant.

(Regulinge.)

Genus Rcgulus.

41. Regulus calendulus, (Licht.)— Ruby-crowned Wren. Fort Resolu-

tion. Rare.

Family Sylvicolid^;
(Motacillinse.)
Genus Anthus,

42. Anthus ludovicianus, (Licht.)— Tit-Lark. N. to Fort Simpson. Not

common.

Observed in the McKenzie River District, 145

(Sylvicolinae.)
Genus Mniotilta.

43. Mniotilta varia, (Vieilltot.)— Black and White Creeper. N. to Fort

Simpson. Very rare.

Germs Opornis.

44. Opornis agilisi (Connecticut Warbler.) — Fort Simpson. Identity

very doubtful.

Genus Helmintophaga,
t45. Helmintophaga peregrina, (Cabanis.)-Tenne3see Warbler. N. to Fort

Simpson.
t46. " celata, (Baird.) — Orange-crowned Warbler. N. to

Resolution. Rare.
47. " rujicapilla, (Wilson.) — Nashville Warbler. N. to

Resolution. Rare.

Genus Seiurus*
t48. Seiurits noveboracensis, (Gmelin.) — Water Thrush. N. to Lapierre's

House. Common.

Genus Dendroica.
f49. Dendroica coronata, (Linn.) — Myrtle bird. N. to Lapierre's House.

Rare.
fSO. " striata, (Forster.) — Black-poll Warbler. N. to Lapierre's

House. Common,
t51. " (Bstiva, (Gmelin.) — Yellow Warbler. N. to Lapierre's

House. Abundant.
t52. " maculosa, (Gmelin.) — Black-and- Yellow Warbler. N. to

Fort Simpson. Rather rare.
t53. " palmarum, (Gmelin.) — Yellow-red-poll Warbler. N. to

Resolution. Rare.

Genus Myiodioctes.
54. Myiodioctes pusillus, (Wilson.) — Green-Blackcap Flycatcher. N. to

Lapierre's House. Very rare.
Genus Setophaga.
155. Setophaga ruticilla, (Linn.) — Red-start. N. to Fort Good Hope.

Common.

Family Hirundinid^.

Genus Hirundo.
57. Hirundo horreroum, (Barton.) — Barn Swallow. N. to Fort Resolu-
tion. Rare.
t58. " Zwrn/roTw, (Say.)— Cliflf Swallow. N. to Rat River. Com-
mon.
59. " bicolor, (Vieillot.)— White-bellied Swallow. N. to Fort
Good Hope. Rare.

Genus Cotyle.
t60. Cotyle riparia, (Linn.)— Bank Swallow. N. to Fort Simpson.
Abundant.
Can. Nat. 10 Vol. VIL

146 Ross on the Mammals ^ Birds, arid Eggs

Family BoMBYCiLLiDiE3.

Genus Ampelis.
1*61. Ampelis garrulus, (Linn.) — Wax-wing. North to Youcon River,
Not rare. An egg of this bird has been obtained on the
Youcon, by Mr. R. Kennicott. I have been informed by
Mr. John Hope, a schoolmaster of the Church Mission-
ary Society, resident at Fort Franklin on Bear Lake,
that these birds build in numbers in that vicinity ; but
so high up the trees as to render it a difficult task
to obtain the eggs. A specimen was shot in February
at Fort Liards, which causes me to mark the species as
a winter resident.

Family Laniid^e.

Genus Collyrio.

62. Collyrio borealis, (Bon.) — Northern Shrike. N. to Fort Good Hope.

Not rare.

63. " ludovicianus ? (Linn.) — Loggerhead Shrike. Rare. Fort

Simpson. Doubtful.

(Vireoninae.)

Genus Vireo.

64. Vireo olivaceus, (Vieilltot.) — Red-eyed Flycatcher. N. to Fort

Simpson. Rare.

65. " gilvus, (Bon.) — Warbling Flycatcher. N. to Fort Simpson,

Rare.

Family Parid^.

Genus Parus.

*66. Parus septentrionalis^ (Harris,) — Chickadee. N. to Fort Simpson.
Not rare.

*6l. " atricapillus, (Linn.) — Blackcap Tit. N. to Fort Simpson.
Rare.

*68. " Hudsonicus, (Forster.) — Hudson's Bay Tit. N. to Fort Simp-
son. Not common.

Family Fringillid^.

(Cocotliraustinae.)

Genus Finicola.

*69. Finicola Canadensis, (Brisson.) — Pine Grosbeak. N. to Fort Good

Hope. Not rare.

Genus Curvirostra.
*10. Curvirostra leucoptera, (Gmelin.) — N. to Fort Good Hope.

Genus Aegiothus.
t*7l. Aegiothus Linaria, (Linn.) — Lesser Red-poll. N. to Fort Good

Hope. Abundant.
t*72. " canescens, (Gonld.) — Mealy Red-poll. N. to Lapierre's

House. Common.

Observed in the McKenzie River District. 147

Genus Plectrophayies.
(Plectrophanes.)

73. Pledrophanes nivalis^ (Meyer.) — Snow Bunting. N. to Fort Good

Hope. Abundant.

(Centroplianes.)

74. " lupponicus, (Selby.) — Long-spur. N. to Fort Simpson.

75. " pidus, (Swainson.) — Painted Bunting. N. to Fort

Simpson. Eather rare.

(Spizellinae,)
Genus Passerculus.
*76. Passerculus Savanna, (Bon.) — Swamp Sparrow. N. to Fort Simp-
son. Abundant around Slave Lake.

77. " Sandioichensis, (Baird,) — N. to Fort Simpson. Rare.

78. " Anthinusl (Qaax:6..) — Great Bear Lake. Uncertain.

Genus Zonotrichia.
179. Zonotrichia leucophrys, (Forster.) — N. to Resolution. Rare.
fSO. " Gambelii, (Nuttall.) — N. to Lapierre's House. Abun-

dant.
fSl. " albicollis, (Gmelin.) — N. to Fort Simpson. Rather

rare.

Genus Tunco.
82. Tunco Oregoneus, (Towns.) — Oregon Snow Bird. N. to Fort Simp-
son. Rare.

183. " hyenialiSj (Sclater.) — Snow Bird. N. to Fort Good Hope.

Genus Spizella.

184. Spizella Montecola, (Baird.) — Tree Sparrow. N. to Lapierre's House.

Abundant.
f85,* '* sodalis, (Wilson.) — Social Sparrow. N. to Fort Simpson.

Abundant.
t85.^ " socialis, (Wilson.) — Striped-crown variety. N. to Fort

Simpson. Common.

186. " pallida, (Bonap.) — N. to Fort Resolution. Rare.

Genus Melospiza.

187. Melospiza Lincolnii, (Baird.) — Lincoln's Finch. N. to Fort Simp-

son. Not rare.
88. Melospiza palustris, (Baird.) — Swamp Finch. N. to Fort Resolution.
Rare.

(Passerellinge.)

Genus Passerella.
189. Passerella Iliaca, (Swainson.) — Fox Sparrow. N. to Lapierre's
House. Common.

Family Icterid^.

Genus Molothrus.
90. Molothrus pecoris (Swains.) — Cow-bird. N. to Fort Simpson. Very
Rare.

148 Ross on the Mammals, Birds, and Eggs

Geffius Agelaius.
t91. Agelaius Phaniceus, (Vieill.) — Swamp Blackbird. N. to Fort Nor-
man.

92. Agelaius gubernatovj (Bon.)— Red-shouldered Blackbird. N. to

Fort Simpson. Common,

93. Agelaius tricolor, (Nutt.) — Red and -white-shouldered Blackbird.

N. to Fort Simpson, Rare.

Genus Xanthocephalus,

94. Xanthocephalus sterocephalus, (Baird.) — Yellow-headed Blackbird.

Though no specimen of this bird has been procured, I
once observed it at Fort Simpson.
(Icterinae.)
Genus Scolecophagus.

95. Scolecophagus ferrugineus, (Swains.) — Rusty Blackbird. N. to Fort

Good Hope, Common.

96. Scolecophagus cyanocephalus (Cabanis,) — ^Brewer's Blackbird. N. to

Fort Simpson. Not rare.
(QuiscaliDae.)
Genus Quiscalus.

97. Quiscalus versicolor, (rieill.) — Crow Blackbird. N. to Fort Simp*

son. Rare.

Family Corvid^.
Corvinse.
Genus Corvus,
*98. Corvws carmrorws, (Bartram.) — Rayen. N. to Arctic coast. Abun-
dant.
99. Corvus Americanus, (Aud.) — Common Crow. N. to 61** north lat.
Abundant.

(Garrulinae.)
Genus Pica.
*100. Pica Hudsonica, (Bon.) — Magpie. On west of Mountains N. to
Lewis and Pelly Rivers. Not seen in the Mackenzie val-
ley.

Genus Perisoreus.
♦101. Perisoretis Canadensis, (Bon.) — Canada Jay. N. to Lapierre's House
Abundant.

Order 4. — Rasores.
(Columbse.)
Family Columbid,®.
(Columbinae.)
Genus Ectopistes.
102. Ectojristes migrataria, (Swains.)— Wild Pigeon. N. to Fort Nor-
man. Not common.

Observed in the McKenzie River District, 149

(Gallinae.)

Family TETRAONiDiE.

Genus Tetrao.

♦103. Tetrao Bichardsonii, (Douglas) Black Partridge. N. to Fort Hal-

kett. Only in the Mountains.

t*104. Tetrao Canadensis^ (Linn.) — Spruce Partridge. N. to Arctic

coast. Abundant.

Genus Pedioecetes.
t*105. PedicBcetes phasianellus^ (Baird.) — Sharp-tailed Grouse. N. to
Fort Good Hope.

Genus Bonasa.
t*106a Bona^a umbellus, (Steph.)— Ruffed Grouse. N. to Fort Simpson.

Common.
t*1066 Bonasa umbellus^ var. umhelloides^ (Baird.) — Grey Mountain
Grouse. N. to Lapierre's House. Common.
Genus Lag opus.
*107. Lagopus albusj (Aud.)— "White Ptarmigan. N. to Arctic coast.

Common.
•108. Lagopus rupestris, (Leach.)— Ptarmigan. N. to Arctic coast.

Rather rare.
*109. Lagopus leucurusj (Swains.) — White-tailed Ptarmigan. N. to
Lapierre's House in the mountains.
Order 5. — Grallatores,

(Herodiones.)
Family Gruid^.
Genus Grus.
110. Grus jimericanus, (Ord.) — White Crane. N. toFort Simpson. Rare.
fill. Grus Canadensis^ (Temm.) — Brown Crane. N. to Arctic coast.
Common.

112. Grusfraterculus, (Cassin.) — N. to Youcon River: but only west of

the mountains.

Genus Botaurus,

113. Botaurus lentiginosuSj (Steph.) — Bittern. N. to Arctic coast. Rare

northward.

(Grallse.)

Family Charadridae.

Genus Charadrius.

114. Charadrius Virginicus, (Bork.) — Golden Plover. N. to Arcticcoast.

Abundant.

Genus Aegialltis.

115 Ae^ialitis semipalmatus, (Cab.) — Semipalmated Plover. N. to Fort

Simpson. Common.

Genus Squaterola.

116 fi'jwateroiaf/gZmYica, (Cuv.)— Black bellied Plover. N to Fort Simp-

son. Rare.

150 I

b

Es^s

srs

117 Str^sOas

118 Reemrnrmtra,

Sae. Hare.

Family Scolopa

.r. At: 5.::.. X. ;o Fort

Bare.

G'. V rkamjMf.

jl2l MaerorhamphM* s. . 1 ; — ?; :- :i: ■: i iSii- ^. X. to Fort
3fonii2.r :;.;^.

122 lfaerorft4»pft«t l;~r^-.^.; — 5. .o 1 ^.

Baie.

Gfemis Tringa.

123 TnagaMaeulaia^(Yuanjy-®iui}LSmp^. X 7 : Sii-r.r Cera-

mon.

124 r . ; ; >»m, (Iji attaiL)-— Least fikndpipcr. IT. to Fo

sLather rare.
tl23 2Vvnfa ButmapartUf (Sdilegel.) — ^R. to Fort SintpooiL. Bare.
6renu« CoKn.n.i.
126 CbJHW«flrewir«i, (Dligcr.>---Sand^ilir.g. 2C, v^ L ^ Island. Baze.

Genus Ereunetes.
12 1 ErtnmeUs petrijieetuSf (DL) — Semi^lisat^ Sandpiper. K. to Fort
Simpsoiu Bare.

Genus Micropalama,
tl28 MUeroptdma Mmaniopus, (Baird.) — ^NF. to Fort Simpson. Yerv rare.
(Totaninae.)
Genus Gambetfaj
129 Gambetta vulamUuea, (Tell-tale) (Bon.)— X. to Fort Simpson.
Bare.
flSO Gambetta flampeSf (Bon.) — Yellow legs. 31. to Lapierre's Honse.
Abundant.

Genvjs Eyacophtlu$.
131/ : rfiw, (Bon.)-Solitarf sandpiper. JT. to Fort Simp-

r-^^ ''.on. It is rather a misnomer to call this bird
:jiTe generallj obserred them in large flocks*

I

Observed in the McKenzie River District, 151

Genus Tringoides.
1132 Tringoides macularius, (Gray.) — Spotted sand-piper. N. to Fort
Simpson. Abundant. I have never observed this spe-
cies to keep in flocks.

Genus Tryngites.

133 Tryngites rufescens, (Cabanis.) — Buff breasted sandpiper. Rare. N.

to Fort Simpson.

Genus Limosa.

134 Limosa Hudsonicaj (Swainson.)— N. to Big Island and Fort Rae.

Bare.

Genus Niimenius.

135 Numenius borealis, (Latham.) — Eskimos Curlew. N. to Fort Good

Hope. Rare.

Family Rallid^.

Rallinse.

Genus Porzana.

(Porzana.)

136 Porzana Carolina, (Yiell.) — Common Rail. N. to Big Island. Rare.

Genus Fidica.
J37 Fulica Americana, (Gmelin.)— Coot. N. to Fort Simpson. Rather
rare.

OrderQ. — Natatores.

(Anseres.)
Family Anapidae.

(Cjgninse.)
Genus Cygnus.
(Olor.)
138 Cygnus Americanus, (Sharpless.) — American Swan. N. to Arctic

Coast. Not common.
tl39 Cygnus buccinator, (Richardson.) — Trumpeter Swan. N. to Arctic
Coast. Common.

(Anserinae)

Genus Anser.

(Chen)

140. Anser hyperboreus, (Sallas.) — Snow Goose. N. to Arctic Coast.

Abundant.

141. Anser albatus, (Cassin,) — North to Fort Resolution. Although no

specimen of this Goose is among our collections, I am
confident that I have shot it on Slave Lake.
*142 Anser Rossii, (Baird).— Ross's Wavy. N. to Fort Resolution.
Rather common. There can be little doubt of the exis-
tence of these three species of Snow Geese, (exclusive of
the Blue Wavy of Hudson's Bay) as the Slave Lake In-
dians have a different name for each kind. The first
which arrives is the middle-sized species which I believe

1^ Ross on the Mammals ^ Birds, and Eggs

to be the ^. albatus ; next comes the smallest sort, the
^. Rossii ; and lastly the ji. Hyperboreus, which arrives
when the trees are in leaf, and is called the yellow wavy
by the Indians,

(Anser.)

143 Jnser Gambelii, (Hartlaub).— White-fronted Goose. N. to Arctic
Coast. Common.

Genus Bemicia,

tl44 Bernicla Canadensis, (Boie). — Canada Goose. N. to Arctic Coast.
Common.

tl45 Bernicla Hutchinsii, (Bonap). — Hutchin's Goose. N. to Arctic
Coast. Rather common.

*146 Bernicla Barnstonii ? (Ross). — This Bird was shot at Fort Simpson.
It is of very large size, with the breast of a bright fawn
color. The delta of feathers running up into the lower
mandible, is white, instead of black as in JB. Canadensis,
The tail is of sixteen feathers. The Indians consider it a
species distinct from the Canada Goose. It seldom flies
in parties of more than five or six. I cannot however
positively state it to be a new species, until the Berniclae
of North America are properly worked up, as our know-
ledge of them is at present very imperfect.

14*7 Bemicia Brenta, (Stephens). — Brant. N. to Youcon River. From
information. This may probably be the B. nigricans^
(Cassin), as the Youcon has in all likelihood a Pacific
Fauna.

(Anatinoe.)

Genus Anas.

f 148 jinas boschas, (Linn). — Mallard. N. to Arctic Coast. Abundant.

Genus Dajila.

tl49 Dafila acuta, (Senyns). — Pin-tail. JN^. to Lapierre's House. Com-
mon.

Genus Nettion.
tl50 Nettion Carolinensis, (Baird). — Green-winged Teal. N. to Peels
River. Abundant.

Genus Querquedula.
tl51 Querquedula discora, (Steph).— Blue-winged Teal. N. to Fort
Resolution. Rare.

Genus Spatula.
tl52 Spatula clypeata, (Boie).— Shoveller. N. to Fort Good Hope. Not
common.

Genus Moreca.
tl53 Moreca Americana, (Stephens). — American Widgeon. N. to Peels
River. Common.

Observed in the McKenzie River District, 153

(Fuligulinae).

Genus Fulix,
154. Fulix marila, (Baird).— Big-black-head. N. to Fort Resolution.

Rather rare.
tl55. J^mZix a^nw, (Baird).— Little-black-head. N. to Peels River. Abun-
dant,
156. Fulix collaris, (Baird). — Ring-necked duck. N. to Fort Simpson.
Rare.

Genus Aythya.
fl57. Aythya vallisneria, (Bon). — Canvass Back. N. to Slave Lake.
Common.

Genus Biicephala.
tl58. Bucephala albeola, (Baird). — Spirit duck. N. to Arctic Coast. Abun-
dant.
1159. Bucephala americana, (Baird). — Golden-eye. N. to Arctic Coast.
Not rare.

Genus Histrionicus.

160. HistriorAcus torquatus, (Bon). — Harlequin duck. N. to Arctic Coast.

Rare.

Genus Harelda.

161. Harelda glacialis, (Leach). — South-southerly. N. to Arctic Coast.

Abundant.

Genus Malanetta.
tl62. Malanetta velvetina, (Baird). — Velvet duck. N. to Arctic Coast.
Not rare.

Genus Pelionetta.

163. Pelionetta perspicillata, (Kaup). — Surf duck. N. to Seels River.

Abundant.

Genus Somateria.

164. Somateria V. nigra, (Gray). — Slave Lake Eider. A male specimen

of this very rare bird was shot by me at Fort Resolution
in 1858, and a female was obtained by Mr. Alex, McKen-
zie in 1861 at the same place. It is exceedingly rare,
having never been seen anywhere else in this District.

(Erismaturinae.)

Genus Erismatura.
IQ5. Ervimatur a rubida, (Bon). — Ruddy duck. N. to Slave Lake. Rare

(Merginae.)

Genus Mergus.

166. Mergus serrator, (Linn). — Red-breasted Merganser. N. to Peels

River. Common,

Genus Lophodytes.

167. Lophodytes cucullatus, (Reich). — Hooded Merganser. N. to Slave.

Lake. Rare.

154 Ross on the Mammals, Birds, and Eggs

(Gaviae).
Family Phalacrocoracid^.

Genus Graculus.

168. Graculus dilophus, (Gray). — Double-crested Cormorant. Slave

Lake. Rare.

Family Pelecanid^.
Genus Pelecanus.
(Cyrtopelicanus.)

169. Pelecanus erythrorhynchus, (Gmelin) (American Pelican). — N. to

Big Island. Common

Family Larid^.
(LestridinaB.)

Genus Stercorarius.
IVO. Stercorarius pomarinus, (Temm). — Pomarine skua. Slave Lake.

Very rare.
171. Stercorarius parasiticus, (Temm). — Arctic skua. N. to Fort Simp-
son. Rare.
tl72. Stercorarius parasiticus, var. Richardsonii. — Slave Lake. Rare.

173. Stercorarius catarractes, (Temm.) — Slave Lake. Very rare.

174. Stercorarius cejyp/iMs, (Brunn).-Buflfon's skua. N. to Lapierres & Co.

Rare.

(Larinas.)

Genus Larus.
tl75. Larus glaucescens, (Licht). — Glaucus-winged Gull. Slave Lake.

Abundant. '
tl76. Larus argentatus, (Briinn). — Herring Gull. N. to Arctic Coast.

, Abundant.

tl77. Larus Calif ornicus, (Lawrence). — California Gull. Slave Lake.
Abundant.

Genus Chroicocephalus.

178. Chroicocephalus Philadelphia^ (Lawrence). — N. to Fort Simpson.

Not rare.

Genus Rissa.

179. Rissa septentrionalis, (Lawrence). — Slave Lake. Common.

(Sterninae.)

Genus Sterna.
tl80. Sterna Caspia, (Pallas). — Caspian Tern. Slave Lake. Rare.
flSl. Sterna Wilsonii, (Bon). — Wilson's Tern. Slave Lake and Bear

Lake. Rather rare.
tl82. Sterna macroura, (Naum). — Arctic Tern. N. to Bear Lake. Abun-
dant.

Genus Hydrochelidon.
183. Hydrochelidon plumbea, (Wils). — Short-tailed Tern. Slave Lake
Rare. Numerous other species of the sub-family Lari

I

Observed in the McKenzie River District. 155

nae doubtless exist in this District, which "will appear

by degrees, as the collections increase.

Family Colymbid^.

(Colymbinae).

Genus Colymhus.

184. Colymhus torquatus, (Briinnich). — Loon. N. to Arctic Coast. Abun-

dant.

185. Colympus Adamsi. — Abundant on Great Slave Lake.

tl86. Colympus arcticus var. Pacijicus, (Linn). — N. to Arctic Coast.
Rather rare.
18Y. Colymhus septentrionalis, (Linn). — Red-throated Diver. N. to Arc-
tic Coast. Abundant.

(Podicipinae).

Genus Podiceps.

tl88. Podiceps griseigena, (Grey). — Red-necked Grebe. — to Peel's River.

Common.
tl89. Podiceps cornutus, (Latham). — Horned Grebe. N. to Lapierres &
Co. Common.
190. Podiceps auritus, (Lath). — Eared Grebe. Slave Lake. Rare.
Genus Podilymhus.
tl91. Podilymhus podiceps, (Lawrence). — Slave Lake. Not common.

(Additional.)
192. Numenius Hudsonicus, (Latham). — Hudsonian Curlew. Slave Lake.

Rare.
The Northern range of the birds means the Northernmost Post at which
a specimen has been obtained. I have on hand about 300 specimens, as
yet unexamined, among which a few additional species will doubtless be
found.

The following other collections have been made : —
Fish. At Fort Resolution, Big Island, Simpson and Bear Lakes, and
Fort Liards.

Insects. At Resolution, Simpson, Youcon, Peel's River and Fort Good
Hope.

Geological specimens. Fossils, &c., at the Clear TVater, Elk, MacKen-
zie, Anderson, and Rat Rivers, and Slave Lake.
Ethnological specimens. In the District generally.

ARTICLE XIY .^-JSfotes on Chemical Subjects. By Prof. S. P.
Boll) ins.
Much attention has been directed within the past ten years to
the economical value of silica as a preservative of metals and
stone, and as a water-proof, and to some extent fire-proof coating
for wood, as well as an important ingredient in the manufacture
of artificial stone. Heretofore, however, it has been commonly
applied in the form of a solution of the soluble silicate of potash

1$6

Niftmtm^^ Cktmwd ^wyacft .

:l . >

— -:;; ^ -_V\i -:--.^- :.._-; . to

which the so-

lability

ft".-.- -

action of the

vr:-,-^:'-

,.

:he pur-

ere ne-

^■.-

^do*.

t j . -

^^■••-•-^r f^-^^-^'^^ •»-•

T'

il- :: ;

: Dure silica may in

i^ ilphide of sili

.„-.... _..,._ is evolved, a:

red and in large amount; or

s.

:am <rf parchment paper It

s; . ..:

^ ^ -rsatnrated with hjdrochlori

days the

hrdrochloiic acid and chloride of sodiii:

^-' ■ _

the septom will \e»m an aqoeoos solatioD of si

side of the diaphragm. It is obTious that sach

11". ■•.■ '_ .

r^pared in many other ways than thos

-M.

?5 many advantage over a solution of

-. — -- -

ve whether of wood or of stone.

As ■:

ni its malleability, dnetility,

" ' ■ ri '

ab'e !;_:-

fil colour and impai^rity

t.i:S-r c'

emical agents which so

:sh

5 • _ ■.-

etals, prombes

- t- /. T

(r: ::-

^-g to find that

- _:■>_: .:::o-

toll is :

fiii: 7 diminishing, so that its pri .

- tended from

£?: :-e:

"':■, :.;> ""?... :-.t '^V.:\l •;rioe it is now n

rnished by the

a: ■.:--:

:l: W;.-;:. -■.: \,-:.r.i.

vr

\ o:" :hr F::\:iklin Instir.::? :::v

id

idi

Hi

mi

AETICLE XT— On tAe date of ike RejpoH on Oe Geoio^ of
Wi»exnuim^ moticed i» ihi$ Jomnud^ VoL VI. p. 465.
In the numbtf of this Journal for December last, there is a
votice of one sheet of Prof. HalFs recent Report on the Geology
of Wisoonsui. On the 12th of March, 1862, two copies of ihe
same rqwrt were received at the office of the Geological Survey
of Canada, by maiL Both of these are dated January 1, 1891.
On one of the copies there are indoised with pen and ink the

On date of Report on Geology of Wisconsin, 157

words, "Published Nov., 1861." I do not recognize the hand-
writing, but it is evident that one of the dates must be incorrect,
and I believe both are. I have some evidence that the report was
not published until about the middle of December, 1861, eleven
months after the date printed on the cover, and I am obliged to
call attention to it for the following reasons :

On the 21st of November last, I pubhshed a paper containing
descriptions of a number of new species of fossils, principally from
the Potsdam sandstone and other associated formations. On the
22nd I sent a copy to I'rof. Hall by mail. In the January No.
of SilHman's Journal, he alludes to it in his letter on the Pots-
dam sandstone, and Hudson River rocks of Vermont. As a gen-
eral rule, articles intended for that Journal must be in the hands
of the pubHshers about one month previously to the date of pub-
lication. It seems quite certain, therefore, that my paper was in
Prof. Hall's possession in the latter part of November, most pro-
bably about the 24th of the month. In my paper I described a
new genus of fossil Brachiopoda under the name of Obolella,
One of the species to which I referred as exhibiting the characters
of the genus, occurs in the Potsdam sandstone of Wisconsin,
Prof. Hall has described this species on p. 24 of his report, under
the name of Lingula polita, and has also pointed out that its
characters are not the same as those of either Obelus or Lin-
gula. His remarks are in substance the same as mine except
that he notices an " obtuse dental process on each side of the
rostral cavity," which is not visible in any of our specimens. On
comparing the two papers any person would be justified in sup-
posing that I had taken the idea of the genus Obolella from Prof.
Hall. Thus by antedating his report eleven months, he lays me
open to the charge of plagiarism, which is certainly very unfair.
I never saw his report, nor had any knowledge of its con-
tents, nor of its existence, until I saw the notice of it in this
Journal in the beginning of February, 1862, at which time the
December number was issued, — more than two months after my
paper was distributed, and fourteen months after the time he has
given the public to understand that his was published. I am com-
pelled, therefore, in self-defence, to correct his erroneous date.

Some of my scientific friends have advised me to take no notice
of this and similar matters. They, however, are engaged in dif-
ferent fields of research from that occupied by Prof. Hall and
myself, and as they cannot come into collision with him, thev can

158 Reviews and Notices oj Booh,

look upon these affairs with the most stoical composure. Were
they in my position, they would soon feel their magnanimity very
sensibly diminished, and rapidly oozing away from them. For
the last four years I have been subjected to great annoyance in
consequence of Prof. Hall's extraordinary practice of antedating
his publications, and I have a perfect right, and shall not hesitate
on every occasion, to resist in the most public manner.

E. Billings.
Montreal April 15, 1862.

REVIEWS AND NOTICES OF BOOKS.

A Manual of the Sub-Kingdom Ccelenterata. By Joseph Reay
Greene, B.A., Professor of Natural History in the Queen's
College, Cork. London, 1861. Longman & Co. 12 mo,
pp. 271.
*"The author of this work is already favourably known by his
" Manual of Protozoa," with a general introduction on the Prin-
ciples of Zoology — which is an excellent text-book for students.
The present volume is an abiidgraent of a larger work, which the
author hopes ere long to publish. The Ccelenterata include such
animals as the Hydra, Sertularia, Medusa, Actinia, and Zoophyte.
They are all furnished with an alimentary canal, freely communi-
catino- with the general or somatic cavity. The substance of the
body consists essentially of two separate layers; an outer, or ec-
toderm, and an inner, or endoderm. These two membranes, but
especially the former, are in general provided with ciliae. In the
integument of those organisms we constantly meet with peculiar
thread-cells, which, when they come into contact with the human
skin, frequently produce disagreeable stinging sensations. The
sub-kingdom is divided into two orders : — 1. Hydrozoa^ixi which
the wall of the digestive sac is not separated from that of the so-
matic cavity, and the reproductive organs are external ; 2. Acti-
nozoa, in which the wall of the digestive sac is separated from
that of the somatic cavity by an intervening space, subdivided in-
to chambers by a series of vertical partitions, iu the faces of which
the reproductive organs are developed. The author gives the
morphology, physiology, classification, and distribution as regards
space and time, of the animals included in these two orders.
The facts are stated in a clear and interesting manner, and are

Reviews and Notices of Booh. 159

illustrated by numerous excellent woodcuts. The author has
given the most recent observations in regard to the anatomy and
physiology of the animals, and has produced a manual of great
value to the student of zoology, to whom these lower types of
animals must ever present attractive subjects for observation.
Physiology is indebted in no small degree for its progress to the
labours of naturalists who have made researches into the functions
of these animals, and we do not know any department of natural
history more deserving of attention. Much has been done of late
years in the illustration of the various divisions of the Ccelenterata
by Forbes, Allman, Huxley, Hincks, Busk, Strethill, Wright,
Gosse, Agassiz, Sars, Siebold, Steenstrup, Miiller, Milne-Edwards,
Gegenbaur, Leuckart, and others. We have much pleasure in
recommending Mr. Greene's work as an excellent epitome of all
that has been done by these authors. There is a valuable biblio-
graphy appended, along with a series of questions which are well
calculated to test the student in regard to his knowledge of the
subject." — Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal.

Scripture and Science not at variance; with RemarTcs on the
Historical Character^ Plenary Inspiration, and Siirpassing
Importance of the Earlier Chapters of Genesis. By John
H. Pratt, M.A., Archdeacon of Calcutta. 4th Edition
London: Thomas Uatchard. 1861. 8vo, pp. 158.

" It has often been said that the discoveries of science are at
variance with the statements of Scripture, and it is sometimes diffi-
cult for those who believe in the inspiration of the sacred volume
to repel the charge made against it by sceptical men of science.
The object of Archdeacon Pratt's work is to present such persons
with a reply in a concise and portable form. It points out the
difficulties to be met with and the objections to be removed, and
tends to strengthen the faith of those who believe the Word of
God. The author gives instances in which Scripture and science
were supposed to be antagonistic, but which were cleared up by
subsequent discoveries. He then enters on an examination of the
earlier part of the Book of Genesis, and concludes that no new
discoveries, however startling they may appear at first, need dis-
turb our belief in the plenary inspiration of the sacred volume, or
damp our ardour in the pursuit of science. The vexed questions
in regard to the six days of creation, the origin of man and of

160 Reviews and Notices of Booh.

species, of death before Adam, the nature of the Deluge, the ori-
gin of languages, are ably handled. Many apparent discrepan-
cies are explained, and several false theories are exposed. The
author writes as a man of science, and at the same time a believer
in the Bible ; and he supports his views by able and judicious
arguments. " The hasti/ and immature deductions of science
may sometimes stand in opposition to Scripture ; but their settled
results, in which the body of philosophers agree, often confirm
and illustrate the statements of the inspired Volume. Let us
then hold firm oui' grasp upon this truth, that the Scriptures are
the infallible Word of God, true in every statement they contain,
although the interpretation sometimes demands more knowledge
than we at present possess ; but let us at the same time remem-
ber, that there is no ground whatever for ceasing to pursue
science, in all its branches, with an ardent and fearless mind.
God's Word and Works never have contradicted each other, and
never can do so. The progress of science in inevitable, and it is
the glory of man's intellectual endowments. It is the setting
forth of the greatness and wisdom of the Creator in His works.
Let us therefore push on investigations to the utmost with untir-
ing energy. We have nothing to fear. The greatest perplexities
may at any time surround us ; but both reason and experience
have armed us with arguments which assure us that all will be
right. Whatever happens, let our persuasion always be avowed,
that Scripture cannot err. Let us be content rather to remain
puzzled, than to abandon, or even question, a truth which stands
upon so immovable a basis." — Edinburgh New PhilosopJiical
Journal,

Erratum. — On Page 8*7 last line, for " Plectrophanes nivalis'
read *^ Fringilla nivalis^ Wilson,"

MONTHLY METEOROLOGICAL REGISTER, ST. MARTINS, ISLE JESUS, CANADA EAST, (NINE MILES WEST Of MONTREAL,) FOR THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY, 1861.

Latitude, 45 degree3 32 minutes Nortli. Longitude, 73 degrees 36 minutes West. Height above tlie level of the Sea, U8 feet.

BY CHARLES SMALLWOOD, M.D., LL.D.

21 30, 174 30, ]

Tcuaioii of Aqucoub

Humidity of tlie

S, bv E.
N. E. liy I

S. 8. E.
W. by K.

S, S,E,
N, E, l)v E

s. s. w.

N. by W.
N. It. by I
W. by Sr.

8. W.
N.B.byE
W. by N.
N. E. by E
W. by N.

,byE.

r. s. w.

Ilii

^^ATnEB, CLOUDS, EEMARK3, &C. &C.

[A cloudy sky is represented by 10. a cloudless o

Cirr. Cum,
C. C, Str.

Clear.

Cu. Str.

Cu. Str. '
C. C. Str
Cu, Str.
Clear.
Cu. Cir.

Clew, Imp, Lunar H»lo,

C. C. Sir. 8. Lunar Coroni.

Clear. Zodiacal Light Bright.

Clear, iu, Bo'r. J: Zod. Lt. Brig
Cu. Sir. 10.
Clear,
Cu.Slr. 10.

Clear. Zodiacal Light Bright.

Snow.

Cu. Str. 10.

REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH, 1862.

Tumporaturo of the

Uircctiou of "Wi;

W.by S.
W. by S.

S. by li.
S.£
W. by S.
W. 8. W.
N. E. by B.
N.B.byE,

r. E. by I
V.S.W.

2.5 [ iuapp;' ■ir8iip.|

C. Str.
Cu. Str.

Gleal-.
Cu. Str.
Clear.

C. Cum, 4. Lunar Halo.

"tr. 2.

irstr, 10.
JO.

Slight Snow.

Str 1.

Clear. Zodiacsl light. Au. Borealis.

Clear. Zodiacal Light Bright.

EEMARKS FOE FEBRUARY, 1861.

rudiatiou,— 20 o

i.rHst \v liiii^ ihiy the ,jth day. mean mil

Zodiacal Light bright and welldefiucd,
3 Lunar Haloes aud 1 Corona seen.
1 Solar Halo.

The Eleclrical state of thi
lerate intcusily.
Crows Ist seen on tlie 10th c

Atmosphere has indicated uio-

rUighest, the 13th day, 30,279 inch
i!.,.„„.,.4„,. ILowest, the «h da,v, 20,313

'>^'°™'-''' )Monthly Moan. 29.85S i ■

Olontlily Range, 8,061 '

(Highest, the 27tli day, 52 = o.
Ti.n....„«,.ni«.. JLowest, the 3rd day,— 4=1.
incimomcici. Sjio„ti,iy jican, 29»20.

CMontldy Bange, 60 °1,
Greatest intensity of the Sun's rays. 73 = 1 .
Lowest point of Terrestrial radiation,— 5 ° 7.
Mean or humidity. -793.
Rain fell on 4 days, amounting to 0.021 inches ; it v

Most prevalent ivind, N, E, by E.
Least prevalent vfind, E.
Most windy day, the 16th day ; mean m
Least windy day, the 20th day ; Calm.
Aurora Borealis visible on 2 nights.
Solar Halo visible 1 day.
Lunar H.ilu visible 1 night.
Zodiacal light frequently very bright.

the Atmosphere h.is indicated feeble

CANADIAN

MTUEALIST AND GEOLOGIST.

Vol. VII. JUNE, 1862. No. 3.

ARTICLE XVI. — On the Primitive Formations in Norway and
in Canada^ and their Mineral Wealth. By Thomas
Macfarlane.

( Continued from page 1 2 7. — Conclusion.)
II. The Primitive Slate Formation.
B : The Schistose Group.
The second or schistose division of the Primitive Slate Forma-
tion in Norway, may be said to exist, with certainty, in two dis-
tinct areas, the one to the northeast and southeast of VestQord, in
the Nordlands, and the other to the northeast, west, southeast, and
south of Trondhjem. Keilhau describes the former of these re-
gions as " The Mica Schist districts of Tromsen and Senjen." The
latter region he includes in what he entitles " The Norwegian
portion of the central transition territory of the Scandinavian
Peninsula," because it appears, through transitions, to stand in
intimate connection with the fossiliferous Silurian strata, which
are developed around the northern end of Mjosen Lake. Be-
lieving however, with Naumann, that although the division line
between the two formations, may sometimes become very indis-
tinct, nevertheless, "on careful examination its existence will be
found in most cases, capable of demonstration," I have assumed,
with him, that the strata of the last mentioned region belongs
to the Schistose Group of the Primitive Slate Formation.

The rocks of which they are composed are given in the fol-
lowing list, in the order of the frequency of their occurrence.
Can. Nat. 11 Vol. VII

162 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

1. Mica schist, " a slaty crystalline mixture of mica and
quartz,"* occurring most frequently and characteristic in the dis-
tricts of Tromsen and Senjen. It is, however, often found of a
more equivocal character, and is then called micaceous schist. It
presents numerous transitions into the other schistose rocks of the
group. Thus, gradually becoming fine-grained, it passes into clay
slate, micaceous clay slate, or argillaceous mica schist, and by the
disappearance of the mica, through quartzose mica schist, into
quartz slate. Similarly, when chlorite and talc occur in it, it often
becomes a chloritic or talcose mica schist; the former of these being
the most frequent.

2. Clay slate, " an impalpable (indistinctly mixed,) distinctly fo-
liated, soft rock ; generally of a greyish, greenish, or bluish col-
or,"! appears to be, next to mica schist, the most frequently occur-
ring rock. It is however, more developed in the districts around
Trondhjem, and is of a more variable character than even the
mica schist. Besides the many varieties that may be included
under the general term of argillaceous slate, which is frequently
applied to these rocks, there occurs a clay slate, described as be-
ing both micaceous and chloritic, (Chloritischer Thonglimmer-
schiefer) ; from which it appears that, even mechanically, the same
substances are distinguishable in some clay slates, which Sauvage
found by chemical analysis to be present in the slates of the Ar-
dennes ; viz., a chloritic mineral which was decomposed by hy-
drochloric acid, with a micaceous mineral decomposable by
sulphuric acid, and quartz.];

8. Chlorite schist, " a soft schistose, mostly greenish colored
rock, consisting principally of chlorite. Quartz or feldspar, or
both together, are however frequently mixed with the chlorite."||
It is often found in its characteristic form, but is also frequently
described merely as chloritic schist, and occurs principally in the
districts around Trondhjem.

4. Limestone comes next in frequency. It is developed especially
in the districts of Tromsen and Senjen, where its texture varies
from granular to impalpable, and its colour from white to dark
grey. The limestone of the districts around Trondhjem, is mostly
yellowish-white, and of an impalpable, sometimes slaty structure.

♦ Lehrbuch der Geogaosie II, 281.

t Gotta : Gesteinslehre, p. 140. j Idem, p. 147.

i Ann : des Mines VII, 441.

II Gotta : Gesteinlehre, p. 145.

in Norway and in Canada, 163

5. Quartz slate and Quartzite, appear as transitions from mica
schist, in the manner above referred to.

6. Gneiss, more or less characteristic, occurs in the group, es-
pecially towards the junction with the Primitive Gneiss Forma-
tion.

7. Hornblende schist, occurs in the Trondhjem region, and
also in more northern districts. In both, it is connected with, and
forms transitions into diorite.

8. Diorite and other Greenstones. Diorite is " a crystalline,
granular mixture of hornblende and albite, sometimes also slaty
or porphyritic."* Most of the greenstones in this group
seem to be diorites. They are, however, often of very variable
characters, and by the substitution of diallage for hornblende,
graduate into a species of diabase.

9. Granite and Syenite, are also eruptive rocks occurring in
the group, sometimes intimately associated with the diorites.
Hornhlendic granite, a connecting link between granite and syen-
ite, and granulite are also mentioned.

10. Serpentine sometimes occurs in considerable masses. It
is confined to the schistose districts south of Trondhjem, and con-
sists of the common dark-coloured variety, differing altogether
from the light coloured serpentines of the Primitive Gneiss For-
mation. Chromic iron ore invariably accompanies it.

11. Euphotide; a rock thus named is described by Keilhau,
as containing large grained diallage or hypersthene. This is
however a feldspathic rock, and by reference in a note in a for-
mer portion of this paper, p. 17, it will be seen that it is to be
regarded as a kind of diabase, and distinct from the true eupho-
tides of the Alps.

12. Talc schist.

13. Steatite or Soapstone. This, together with the rocks yet
to be enumerated, is of comparatively rare occurrence.

14. Dolomite.

15. Conglomerates and breccias, somewhat resembling in char-
acter those already described in the quarztose division of the
schistose formation.

The rocks above enumerated form, as already mentioned, two
distinct geographical regions, which differ also in petrographical
characters. The first is the one already mentioned, of Tromsen

* Cotta : Gesteinlehre, p. 57.

164 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

and Senjen, where the preponderating rock is mica schist ; with
which limestone, more or less granular, is very generally inter-
stratified. Besides these, more or less characteristic gneiss, horn-
blende, chlorite, and talc schist occur as subordinate constituents.
Well-defined clay slate is of comparatively rare occurrence, aj-
though the mica schist often assumes an argillaceous character.

The second region is that spread out to a considerable distance,
in the directions before mentioned, around Trondhjem. In this also
the mica schist may be termed the preponderating rock, but the
jnterstratified limestone is less frequent. Moreover clay slate and
chloritic schist are of far greater frequency than in the first named
district, as is also serpentine ; which latter rock may be said to be
characteristic of the second district, especially of that part of it
which constitutes the Dovrefjeld Mountains. The serpentine
masses seem to be irregularly in terst ratified with the slates, and
sometimes to graduate into them. The greenstones and granites,
besides occurring in distinct beds, often form irregular masses and
regular veins, intersecting the schistose members of the group.
Here, as in the two groups of rocks already described in this
paper, these crystalline rocks, as they approach their limits, gra-
dually assume a schistose structure. Not only does " the green-
stone, in this way, change into hornblende slate or greenstone
slate, and the granite become gneissoid, but the greenstone is
found even to graduate into mica schist and clay slate. The more
purely granular the greenstones are, the more does the form of
the deposit deviate from that of a layer or bed.

Various subdivisions or zones have been distinguished in this
group, which greatly difi"er in their general strike. The principal
zone of the Dovre^eld Mountains, seems to run E.N.E., which is
also about the direction of the Dovre^eld range. The dip
varies much, but seems to be, on an average, about 45'^. To judge
from the direction of the dips given on the geological map, vari-
ous folds occur in the strata, from their junction with the primi-
tive gneiss, to where they graduate into fossiliferous beds.

In the country south of Trondhjem, the mountain masses of
Dovrefjeld and Fillefjeld, consist principally of the micaceous, ar-
gillaceous, and chloritic schists, already referred to. They con-
stitute ns it were, the pedestal for the higher peaks of these
ranges, such as the Jotunfjeld. These peaks are generally of
igneous rocks. The Faastenen are, however, composed of serpen-
tine, and Snehsetten, of a peculiar sort of gneiss.

in Norway and in Canada, 165

The most important mines of the district south of Trondhjem,
are the copper mines of Roraas and its neighborhood, the chrome
mines on the Dovrefjeld, and the nickel mines of Espedal.

The rocks around Roraas consist of micaceous slates, partly
chloritic, and partly argillaceous. They graduate into glossy clay
slates, and are sometimes described simply as green slates. These
frequently assume the character of fahlbands, being impregnated
with pyritous minerals, and weathering red. The deposits of
Roraas, which have been worked since 1744, seem to partake of
this nature. They form layers in the slates, varying from one to
fourteen feet in thickness ; the whole of which, however, by no
means consists of cupreous minerals, but usually of many small
pyritous beds, lying side by side ; these being again divided into
smaller ones, separated from each other by scales of chlorite
schist. The preponderating ores are copper pyrites, and iron
pyrites, which are sometimes mixed with magnetic pyrites and
zinc blende ; while chlorite, brown mica, quartz, garnet, actino-
lite, and asbestos, also accompany the metallic sulphurets. The
ores, as they are delivered to the smelting houses at Roraas and
Foldal, average only five per cent., and frequently are as low as
three per cent. They are roasted in heaps, and then smelted to reg-
ulus in shaft furnaces ; little or no flux being required. The result-
ing regulus is roasted repeatedly upon hearths, (stadeln) and again
smelted, when black copper is obtained, which is refined on the
small gahr hearth. The copper is principally sold for home con-
sumption, but part is also sent to the Hamburg market, where it
is known as " Drontheimer" copper.

The chromic iron mines of Roraas in Sundal, and in Lessoe,
have been, and still are wrought with very considerable success.
They all occur in serpentine, and in one year as many as 100 have
been worked. Some of these are large and regular deposits, and
others are of less extent. The most important of them are situ-
ated in the districts to the east of Roraas, Rohararaerne, and Fer-
agsfjeldene, and are owned and worked by the proprietors of the
chromate of potash manufactory at Leren. Three different sorts
of ore are produced at the mine, : No. 1, the best, which is
exported to England, although its content in chromic oxide is
much beneath what is usually contained in the Baltimore ore;
No. 2, an inferior sort, which is worked up into bichromate of
potash at Leren ; No. 3 is a still poorer quality, which is stamped
and washed, the products being also used in the manufacture of

166 Macfarlane c the Primitive Formations

bichromate. At the macractory, the ore in fine powder is simply
ignited in a reverberatorfarnace, with about 30 per cent, of cal-
cined potash, and little o no saltpetre. The resulting mixture
yields, on lixiviation witlwater, a solution of neutral chromate of
potash, which separates t^a granular salt on evaporation. It is
redissolved, and the soluon is treated with a certain quantity
of sulphuric acid, when (ystalli zed bichromate of potash is ob-
tained. The sulphuric aci is manufactured in the same establish-
iwent. One hundred pariof ore yield about thirty-seven of bi-
chromate, so that the oraised must contain only about twenty
per cent, of chromic oxk.

The nickel mines of E«dal, which are now abandoned, fur-
nished an ore much of theame character as those of Ertelien in
Ringerike, described in th4irst part of this paper. The mode of
treatment was also similar

The rocks of the two a«as just described, offer, as we have
seen, very considerable ihological differences. Those of the
northern region do not spear to present any striking resem-
blances with the Canadianocks, but the region about Trondhjem
strongly resembles that of le Eastern Townships of Canada, and
garees with it in the very pnts in which it differs from the mica
schist region of Tromsen ai Senjen. Among these are the pre-
dominance of clay slates, it presence of serpentines, with chro-
mic iron, and the occurrem of ores of copper disseminated in
the schists. These rocks i Eastern Canada have been traced
from the line of the state o Vermont, for 140 miles north-east-
ward to the Chaudiere Rivf, and thence, at intervals, as far as
Gaspe. As described in tL Reports of the Geological Survey,
they consist in great part oniica schists, passing into a gneiss,
sometimes granitoid, on the ne hand, and into clay slates on the
other. Roofing slates are amdant in this series, and beds of
steatite and chlorite slate ai not uncommon. Quartzites, some-
times conglomerate, are me'>vith, and hmestones, which are very
often magnesian, and weatsr of a reddish or brownish color
from the presence of iron orianganese. They are sometimes re-
placed by carbonate of nifioesia. Beds of serpentine are art
important feature in this sera ; they are often mingled with lime-
stone, dolomite or magnese, and always impregnated with
chrome and nickel. These irpentines are sometimes associated
with diallage and with feldsp.hic rocks, which constitute varieties
of diorite and diabase. Thei same rocks are traced southwards

.ix,

m

Hg^

in Norway and in Canada. L67

in the Green Mountains, through a large part of the United States^
All of them find representatives in the Norwegian group around
Trondhjem, and in the Dovre^eld,

This resemblance is still further traced in the metalliferous
deposits of the two regions. In the Eastern Townships of Can-
ada, copper sometimes occurs in the native state, in clay slate, but
much more frequently in the form of yellow and variegated sul-
phurets, or of copper glance, disseminated in micaceous or chloritic
slates, or in limestone. These deposits are of the nature of fahl-
bands. Those of Sutton and Ascott, especially the latter, have a.
strong resemblance to that of Roraas. The copper ores of this re-
gion are generally subordinate to the stratification. The short,
and irregular veins of quartz and bitter-spar, which traverse these
copper-bearing strata, sometimes however carry rich ores of cop-
per, occasionally with gold.

Iron schists, which consist of scaly peroxyd of iron, intermin-
gled with various proportions of quartz and chlorite, constitute
important beds of iron ore in some parts of this series, as in the
townships of Brome and Sutton, where they were formerly wrought
to a small extent. These schists resemble the itabirite of Brazil.

Chromic iron accompanies the serpentine in Canada, as in Nor-
way. The deposits of this ore occurring in the townships of
South Ham, Bolton, and Melbourne, greatly exceed those of Nor-
way in richness and extent. The deposit in the first named
township has been worked, producing an ore containing forty-
three per cent of chromic oxide.

As far as regards the developement of the mineral resources of
the group, Norway is in advance of Canada. Not only has the
mining of copper and chrome ores been long established, but the
manufacture of the valuable products obtainable from these, has
been long and profitably pursued. The mines of Roraas are be-
ginning to sufi"er from the scarcity of fuel at the great height, (2080
feet above the sea,) and the chrome mining and manufacturing
has had to contend with expensive cartage, and often with high
prices for potash, which is to a great extent imported from Russia.
In Canada, around the mines of the Eastern Townships, the settler
destroys acres of timber, the softer sorts of which he might
burn to charcoal ; and manufactures tons of potash, which the
chrome miner might buy, and use to manufacture his ore into
chromate of potash, at a rate alike profitable to producer and con-
sumer. I am not aware of any district where greater advantages

168 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

exist. May they soon be appreciated, and taken advantage of,
as they deserve.

These crystalline rocks in the Eastern Townships are re-
garded by the Geological Survey of Canada, as a meta-
morphosed portion of the Quebec group, which belongs to the
inferior part of the Lower Silurian series. This view of their age
coincides somewhat with that of Keilhau, relative to the similar
formation around Trondhjem, which according to him " appears,
through transitions, to stand in intimate connection with the
fossiliferous Silurian strata."

In the foregoing, I have endeavoured to compare in their pe-
trographical and economic relations, the three groups of rocks
mentioned at the commencement of this paper. It was not
originally my intention to pursue the subject farther than this ;
but seeing that the comparison which I have endeavoured to in-
stitute would be incomplete without some reference to the mutual
geological relations of these groups in Norway, I oflfer the follow-
ing remarks before concluding.

The oldest of these groups is the Primitive Gneiss formation.
This at least was the opinion of the older geologists, such as Nau-
mann, Keilhau and others, who specially studied the saviour
Scandinavian formations, but Kjerulf and Dahll, to whose re-
searches I have yet to refer, have lately declared themselves op-
posed to this view. According to Keilhau, the gneiss formation
of Kongsberg and of Flesberg, is, to the east of these districts, con-
formably overlaid by the Tellemarken quartzose group, into the
rocks of which the gneiss forms a gradual transition. The same
relations are described by Keilhau, as occurring at other points
of junction, and he concludes that the Tellemarken quartzose
group is to be regarded as filling up a very broad depres-
sion in the underlying gneiss formation. The quartzose group
is not found in contact with any of the schistose series described,
but the analogous quartzose group of Alten and Quaenanger is
overlaid conformably by the mica schist rocks of Trorasen and
Senjen. The relations of the latter to the DovreQeld slates are
unknown, for wherever the last mentioned come in contact with
strata belonging to the primitive gneiss formation, both the
quartzose and mica schist groups are absent, and the slates
of Dovrejeld rest conformably on the gneissoid strata. On
the other hand, these Dovrejeld slates form a continuous transi-
tion, through less and less crystalline slates, grey wa eke slates, and

in Norway and in Canada, 169

sandstones, into the fossiliferous Silurian strata of the district north
of Mjosen Lake. It seems therefore that the succession of these
groups, in the order of their antiquity, is as follows : —

1. Primitive Gneiss formation^

2. Quartzose ffroup. ") ^ . . .

^ Z' ( Primitive Slate

5. Micaceous group. >

4. Argillaceous and chloritic group. )

5. Greywacke slates, sandstones, and limestones.

6. Fossiliferous Silurian strata.

It is to be remarked, that besides these stratified groups, various
■eruptive formations occur, whose age or place in the above list it
is difficult to determine. Among these, the gneiss-granite of Vest-
flord, and the granite and gneiss-granite in the southern parts of
Bratsbergs Amt are the most important. The relations of the
latter to the Tellemarken quartzose group, have been minutely
investigated by Dahll, and described in his paper " Om Tellemark-
ens Geologie." He there unequivocally establishes the following
succession, commencing with the more modern formations.

1. Syenite with associated granite, rhomboidal porphyry and
augite porphyry.

2. The Devonian formation.

3. The Silurian formation.

4. Gneiss-granite and granite.

6. The slate formations of Tellemarken.

The relations of the latter formation to the primitive gneiss are
not touched upon in Dahll's paper ; but in another ^' Om Kongs-
bergs Erts District," by Kjerulf and Dahll, it is asserted that the
gneiss and mica schist of Kongsberg, or as they are called, the
Kongsberg slates, " are exactly the same as those which in a more
unchanged condition, are spread over large areas in Tellemarken,"
but separated from these by a band of eruptive gneiss-granite.
The primitive gneiss formation is declared to have no existence,
but to be resolvable into gneiss-granite, which is eruptive, and into
slates, whose two principal types are quartz slate and hornblende
slate. It is even said that gneiss " as a petrographical term, in
its older and more extended meaning, is no longer advantageous
to science, but the opposite." The order of succession in these
older group?, according to Kjerulf and Dahll, is as follows, com-
mencing wilh the oldest:

1. Tellemarken slates.

2. Granite and gneiss-granite. (Eruptive.)

170 Macfarlane on the Primitive Formations

3. (Esterdal slates (which are the same as the DovreQeld slates.)

4. Silurian formation.

5. Devonian formation.

6. Younger granite, syenite, &c. (Eruptive.)

That the extreme opinions entertained by Kjernlf and Dahll as
to the gneiss formation, are capable of being substantiated, is much
to be doubted. At least it seems to me that in their work above
cited, nothing very conclusive is brought forward in support of
their views, and moreover, no reference is made to the many well
substantiated facts, upon which the older view, as to the age of
the Tellemarken quartzose rocks, is founded. This total oblitera-
tion of the gneiss formation, is perhaps the most extreme point
to which the supporters of ultra metamorphism have yet at-
tained.

The views of the Canadian geologists as to the Laurentian and
Huronian series are the same as those of the older geologists of
Norway, where, as has been shown, these rocks are represented
by the Primitive Gneiss, and by the quartzose division of the Pri-
mitive Slate formation. The DovreQeld slates, with their serpen-
tines, are regarded as more recent, and as closely related to the
adjacent Silurian strata. This is precisely the view of the
Canadian geologists, with regard to the Quebec group, except
that they include this, with its slates and serpentines, in the Silu-
rian series, regarding it as a peculiar development of the lower
part of this, and younger than the Primordial Zone. According
to Sir W. E. Logan, this Quebec group was connected with a deep
sea, and with movements of elevation and subsidence, the result of
which is, that along the outcrop, or the shore line of the original
basin, these peculiar strata are wanting. Mr. Sterry Hunt has
called attention in a recent paper in this Journal, to the fact that a
similar condition of things to that of Canada, seems traceable
across the ocean, into Scotland, and probably as far as Scandinavia.
In the Scottish Highlands, we find a schistose series, having the
lithological characters of the Quebec group and the Dovrefjeld
slates. This series has been the subject of much controversy. As
in Norway, some have maintained that these strata are older than
the lowest Silurian rocks, but Sir Roderick Murchison, with Ramsay
and Harkness, seems to have shown that they are really younger
than the oldest fossiliferous rocks of Scotland, and that the condi-
tion of things described by the Canadian geologists in Eastern
Canada, extends across the Atlantic. Can. Nat. Vol. VI, 93.

in Norway and in Canada, 171

Thus is it not only in Canada, that the position of the rocks of
the schistose group is equivocal. Different views prevail as to
their age in different countries. In Cornwall, they are considered
Devonian, in Scotland, Lower Silurian, and in Bohemia, as in Nor-
way, Pre-Silurian. In Belgium, Rhenish Prussia, Westphalia and
Nassau, they are by some geologists regarded as Devonian, and
by others as belonging to an older formation. In East Russia,
on the western slope of the Ural Mountains, they are supposed
to represent metamorphic Lower Silurian strata. A dissimilarity
of views will probably continue to prevail as to the position of
these rocks, until the question is decided, as to what value, in the
absence of fossil remains, the petrographical characters of a group,
taken in connection with its stratigraphical position, should
have in determining its age. Perhaps there prevails at present,
too much of a tendency to attribute extraordinary influences
to metamorphic agencies. So soon as the true limits and
effects of metamorphism are recognized, it will probably be
acknowledged that, whatever view may be entertained as to their
origin, the schistose rocks above referred to, underlie the Silurian,
and all unaltered or metamorphosed fossiliferous strata. Follow-
ing close upon more moderate views as to metamorphism, will
probably come the recognition of Werner's old rule, as to the suc-
cession of these older rocks ; namely that the gneiss groups gene-
rally underlie those in which mica schist preponderates, and that
the latter are overlaid by argillaceous and cbloritic groups.
Thus the ground will be cleared for an impartial investigation into
the origin ot the primitive formations.

Acton Vale, Canada East, 8th April, 1862.

ARTICLE XVII.— O/i the Mammals and Birds of the District,

of Montreal By Archibald Hall, M.D., L.R.C.S.E.

(Continued from page 18.)

Okd. II. Passeri>ce.

Fani I. Dentirostres. — Genus Lanius.

Gen. char. Bill long, compressed, toothed on the upper man-
dible, and much bent ; tip of the lower one suberect, and not
notched ; nostrils concealed by nuchal bristles ; cere wanting ;
nostrals subrotund, half closed by a membrane. 3rd and 4th
primaries longest.

I'^S Dr, A* Hall on the Mammals and Birds

L. excuUtor. Great American Shrike or butcher bird.
L. septentrionalis. Gmelin ! Buonaparte !
Collyrio borealis ? Buonaparte ! Baird !

v.s.p. Bill horn colour; claws black; irides hazel; eggs 6,
■cinereous white, mottled and streaked at their large end With
rufous.

Dorsal aspect. Crown, nape of neck, interscapular region, and
rscapulars, drab slate colour, or French white ; auriculars black, as
also the streak in front and behind the orbits and the nuchal
bristles ; above and below the orbits a narrow streak of white »
small wing coverts light brown, scapulars tipped with white;
greater wing coverts black, tipped with brownish white ; rump
white ; tail coverts white, with distal halves of the dorsal tint ;
tail cuneiform, two central feathers black, two next tipped with
white ; the white predominates in the others as far as the outer
or lateral feathers, the outer vanes of which are wholly white, the
inner vanes half white, the quill half being black; quills of the
primaries white — the remainder black, with minute brown white
tij)s ; secondaries black, tipped with white.

Ventral aspect. Dirty brownish white, intersected by linear"
zigzag lines of slate brown ; vent, tail and wing coverts white ;
primaries and secondaries slate colour ; tail black, verging to
slate, except the white of the upper surface, already mentioned,
which apears more conspicuous on the ventral aspect.

4th primary longest ; 3rd a little shorter ; tarsi black, slender ;
■middle toe a little longer than hind toe; claw of hind toe longest
and stoutest, all of them grooved ; inner edge of talon of middle
toe slightly salient. Length 10 inches; alar expanse about 14
inches.

Genus Muscicapa.

Gen. char. Bill moderately large, subtriangular, depressed at
the base, and compressed towards the tip which is deflected, both
mandibles emarginate; nostrils basal, suboval, and partly con-
cealed by nuchal bristles ; tarsus as long as the middle toe ; 4th
primary longest ; external and middle toes basi connected ; outer
.toe not versatile.

M. tyrannus. Tyrant Fly- catcher.
Tyrannus Carolinensis? Baird.

v.s.p. Bill, tarsi, and claws black; irides hazel. Eggs 5, yel-
3owish-white, blotched with brown.

of the District oj Montreal, 173

Dorsal aspect. Eyelids white ; auriculars black ; forehead,
sides of the crown, and nape of neck black, the qnill end of the
feathers grey ; crown orange red or scarlet, tipped with black,
forming a crest erectile at pleasure. Scapulars, interscapulary
region and rump, brown, with occasional greyish-white tips to the
feathers, especially on the back. Primaries and secondaries pure
brown, with their outer vanes edged with white ; greater and
smaller wing coverts brown, edged with white ; tail coverts black,
tipped with white; tail subrotund, of 12 feathers, black, with a
broad terminal band of white on the central feathers ; the lateral
feathers minutely edged with white.

Ventral aspect. White, except on breast, sides, and flanks,
which are slate colour ; wing coverts slate colour, shaded to
white towards the edges and tips ; tail coverts white ; wings slate
brown ; tail blackish-brown.

2r.d primary longest ; 1st and 4th subequal ; toes and tarsi of
equal length ; middle toe longest ; two outer toes equal ; talons
short, a salient inner ridge to the middle one. Length 8^ inches;
alar expanse 13 inches. Female and young resemble the male
in every respect except in the scarlet crest, which is wanting.
M. Crinata. Great crested Fly-catcher.

v.s.p. Bill brownish externally, yellow internally ; claws and
tarsi black ; irides hazel ; eggs 4, dull white, blotched and mot-
tled with purple.

Dorsal aspect. Coronal crest brown ; feathers acuminate,
erectile at will; nape of neck, scapulars, and dorsal region, olive
brown ; greater and smaller wing coverts clove brown, tipped with
dull white; primaries and secondaries clove brown, inclining to
bright rufous on the outer vanes of the former, and to white on
the outer vanes of the latter, with a paler rufous tinge on the in-
ner vanes of both. Tail of 12 feathers, square, the 2 centre feathers
clove browm, all the others clove brown on the outer vanes, and
bright rufous on the inner vanes.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat, and auriculars bluish-grey,
shaded on the breast into bright sulphur yellow, which clothes
the breast, belly, vent, and tail and wing coverts. The bluish-
grey of the breast is continued along the sides as far as the flank^
becoming in its course blended with the sulphur yellow.

2nd and 3rd primaries subequal ; 1st and 5th equal. The bill
of this bird is about 1^ inch long from the angle of the mouth to

174 Dr, A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

the apex, and about 7 lines broad at the angles. The tooth is
situated close to the apex, and not well defined. The curve com-
mences immediately above it. There is a slight emargi nation at
the apex of the lower jaw correspondent with the tooth of the
upper one. Nostrils subrotund, imperfectly concealed by the
nuchal hairs ; aad between the orbit and the nostrils a few white
mottlings on the feathers are occasionally seen. Length 9 inches;
alar breadth about 13 inches. The female has the same tints as
the male but less bright.

Genus Muscipeta.

Gen. char. Bill large, broader than deep, ridged above, much
depressed ; upper mandible notched and hooked ; hook short ;
base set with strong nuchal bristles, which imperfectly conceal a
round nostril ; side toes unequal ; external toe longer than the
internal, and united to the middle one ; 3rd and 4th primaries
longest.

M. nunceola. Phgebe Flycatcher or Peewit.
M. atra of Gmelin !
M. phcehe of Latham !
M.fnsca of Buonaparte !
Sayornis fuscus. Gmel. 1 Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, tarsi, and claws black ; irides hazel ; eggs 6, pure
white.

Dorsal aspect. Dark olive brown, tips of wing coverts brown,
secondaries edged with brownish-white on their outer vanes ; tail
square, brown, outer vane of the last feather minutely edged with
white.

Ventral aspect. Yellowish-white, except the sides of the breast
which are of the dorsal tint.

3rd primary longest ; 2nd and 4th subequal ; 1st and 6th sub-
•equal. Length 6 inches; alar expanse about 9 inches. The
crown feathers of this bird, as well as of the birds of this genus,
form a crest which is erectile at pleasure.
M, virens. Wood Pewee.
M. rapax of Wilson.

D.c. " Bill, tarsi, and claws black ; irides hazel ; eggs 3 to 4,
yellowish-white, spotted and blotched with lilac and dark brown.
Whole dorsal aspect brownish-olive, verging to blackish on the
head. Ventral aspect, pale yellowish almost inclining to white ;
tail subfurcate ; 2nd primary longest. Length 6 inches ; alar
breadth 10 inches." (Nuttall).

of the District of Montreal. 175

M. querula. Small Pewee.

V.S.P. Bill blackish-brown ; tarsi and claws black ; eggs 5,
white ; irides hazel.

Dorsal aspect. Dull olive green, darker on the head ; prima-
ries and secondaries brown, the latter edged with brownish-white;
orbit surrounded by a ring of the same colour. Tail square, of
same colour as the wings, with a minute edging of white on the
outer vane of the lateral feathers.

Ventral aspect. Pale yellowish-white verging to an olive brown
on the sides of the breast ; inner wing and tail coverts pale yel-
low. 3rd primary longest ; 2nd subequal to 4th ; and 1st to the
6th. Length 6 inches; alar breadth 9^ inches. I feel utterly
unable to identify this species with the catologue list of Mr. Baird.
Genus Setophaga.

Gen. char. Bill depressed, with nuchal bristles ; both man-
dibles of equal length and acute, upper one scarcely notched,
scarcely bent at tip, and scarcely inflected on the lower ; 2nd and
3rd primaries subequal ; tail long and subcuneiform. The birds
of this genus are included under the sub gen. Saxicola of Genus
Motacilla of Cuvier. They appear, however, to deserve a separate
generic position by themselves, being intermediate between the
Muscipetal and Sylvian tribes, possessing the depressed inflected
bill of the fc^mer, and the long tail and tarsi of the latter, being .
more musical than the former, in fact emulating the latter in
point of vocal capacity.

S. ruticilla. American Redstart.
Muscicapa ruticilla^ of Linngeus and Wilson !!
Ruticilla minor Americana of Edwards !
Setophagus ruticilla. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, tarsi, claws and irides black ; eggs 3 to 4, cream
white mottled with yellowish-brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head, nape of neck, dorsal region,
rump and scapulars deep black; tail of 12 feathers, long, round,
four centre ones black, the others orange, with thin distal halves
black; primaries and secondaries, except the outer web of the 1st,
and the three or four last secondaries orange at their insertion, and
the remainder black, the orange gradually increasing in breadth
and depth of tint as far as the secondaries.

Ventral aspect. Throat, chest, and front of the belly black ;
sides of the chest, and wing coverts bright orange ; lower part of

176 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

the belly, and vent and tail coverts white ; wings pale orange ex-
cept the dismal ends which verge to slate colour.

2nd primary longest ; 3rd scarcely a line shorter, and 1st a
little shorter than 3rd; tarsus much longer than the middle toe
slender ; toes slender ; claws slender, compressed ; outer toe con-
nected to inner one at the base. Length about 5 inches ; alar
breadth about Y inches. The female has the tints paler, and the
orange changes to a yellow. The young birds thus far resemble
the female, but in exception they are deficient in the orange tint
of the wings, and are paler in other respects.

S. Buonapartii. Buonaparte's Gnat-catcher.

v.s.p. Upper mandible blackish-brown; lower one pale at
base edged with blackish brown; tarsi, toes and nails pale; eggs
unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Greyish-ash except the crown, the feathers of
which are black minutely tipped with grey, and the interscapular
space which is faintly olive green. A yellow streak from the
nostrils invests the eye, and a black streak from the angle of the
mouth proceeds below the eye to the shoulders, where it appears
to commence the zone of black spots which cross the chest like a
necklace ; auriculars grey ; primaries and secondaries with the tail
pale brown. The two former paler on the inner vanes and edged
with white towards the quills.

Ventral aspect. Bright gamboge yellow, only interrupted by
a zone of black spots across the chest. These spots are caused
by the feathers in that place being tipped with black. Tail and
wing coverts whitish.

3rd primary longest ; 2nd and 4th subequal ; 1st shorter than
the 4tb, but longer than 5th. Length 4| inches ; alar expanse 8
inches. This bird is rarely met with. The specimen from which
the foregoing description is taken, was killed at St. Kemi in the
spring of 1858. Is their sufficient difference between this bird
and the Sylvia pardalina, to constitute two species of different

genera ?

Genus Vireo.
Gen. char. Bill short, moderately compressed, curved at the
base, with nuchal bristles ; upper mandible curved at the extrem-
ity, slightly notched, resembling in this respect the Muscipeta, but
differing from the latter in being more compressed, and not at all
depressed, in consequence of which it is deeper than broad ; lower
mandible a little shorter than the upper, and recurved slightly at

of the District of MontreaL 177

the tip ; tongue cartilaginous and bifid ; 2nd and 3rd piimaries
longest ; outer toes connected at the base. Prevailing dorsal tint
olivaceous green, whence the familiar appellation " Greenlet."
V. Jlavifrons. Yellow-throated Greenlet.
V, (^Lanivireo,) flavifrons. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, tarsi, and feet greyish-blue ; irides hazel ; eggs 4,
white, mottled with light and dark brown at the larger ends.

Dorsal aspect. Crown, and nape of neck olive ; scapulars and
dorsal region dark ash colour almost slate ; greater and smaller
coverts edged and tipped with white on the outer vanes, causing
an appearance of two bars of that colour ; primaries and secon-
daries clove brown, edged with olive which verges to white on the
outer vanes, and tipped with white on the inner vanes of all ex-
cept the three last secondaries ; tail of 12 feathers, round, clove
brown, with the three outer feathers edged with white on both
sides, and the centre feathers invariably edged with brownish-
white on their outer vanes.

Ventral aspect. A yellow streak round the orbits, intersected
anteriorly by a streak of dark olive passing from the base of the
bill ; chin, throat, and upper part of the breast, bright yellow, al-
most king's yellow, changing to olive on the sides of the breast,
and below the shoulders, and assuming an ashy tint on the flanks ;
belly, vent, wing and tail coverts white.

2nd and 3rd primaries subequal and longest; 1st and 4th sub-
equal. Length 5j inches ; alar breadth 9 inches.

V. olivaceus. Red-eyed Greenlet.
Muscicapa olivacea of Wilson !
M. altiloqua of Viellot !

Vireo (vireosylvea) olivaceus. Linn.! Viel.! Baird !
v.s.p. Upper mandibles blackish-brown ; lower one pale ;
claAvs pale with a black lateral streak ; middle one with a salient
inner ridge, all of them much compressed ; irides red in the adult,
hazel in the young birds ; eggs 3 to 4, white, mottled with light
and dark brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head ash colour, with a lateral mar-
gin over the eyes of a darker tint, a streak of white above the eye,
and a faint streak of grey from the angle of the mouth to the
auriculars; neck, back, rump, and scapulars olivaceous green;
primaries, secondaries, and tail light brown, with their outer
vanes edged with olive green and their inner ones with white.
Can. Nat. 12 Vol. VII

178 Dr. A* Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Ventral aspect. White with an inclination to pale yellow on
the sides ; wing and tail coverts white tinged with yellow.

2nd primary longest. Length 5f inches ; alar breadth 8 inches.
V. gilvus. Warbling Greenlet.
Muscicapa melodia of Wilson !
M, gilva of Viellot !
Vireo gilvus, Viel.! Buon.! Baird !
D.c. " Length 5 inches ; above pale olive green much mixed
with ash on the neck and shoulders ; line over the eye and lower
parts whitish ; near the breast and sides, and under the wings
tinged with pale greenish-yellow ; wings greyish-brown, edged
with pale olive green inclining to grey ; tail similarly edged and
slightly forked ; legs, feet and bill above lead colour ; the lower
mandible pale flesh colour; iris dark hazel. The sexes nearly
alike." (Nuttall).

Genus Sylvia.
Gen. char. Bill subulate, straight, slender, deeper than broad
at the base ; upper mandible frequently notched ; lower one
straight ; nostrils lateral, suboval ; tarsus longer than the middle
toe ; bastard wing short or wanting ; 2nd and 3rd primaries usu-
ally longest and subequal ; scapulars and wing coverts short.

S. citrinella. Summer Warbler. — Yellow-bird.
Dendroica cestiva. Baird!
V.S.P. Bill bluish; tarsi and feet pale; claws horn colour;
irides hazel ; eggs 4, dull white mottled with brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown gamboge yellow ; nape of neck, inter-
scapulary region, and rump olivaceous green ; wing coverts, pri-
maries, secondaries, and tail clove brown edged with yellow. The
two central tail feathers have a minute yellow edging. The others
nearly altogether yellow except a clove brown streak along each
side of the shafts, which widens as it approaches the tips.

Ventral aspect. Light gamboge yellow streaked with rufous
orange.

Bastard wing wanting ; 1st, 2nd, and 3rd primaries subequal,
if anything the second longest. Length 5 J inches ; alar breadth
7^ inches. One of our most common songsters.
S. varia. Black and White Warbler.
Certhia maculata of Wilson !
Mniotilla varia. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill black above, pale below ; upper mandible slightly

of the District of Montreal. 179

cui'ved and compressed towards the apex ; tarsus not much longer
than the middle toe ; irides black ; eggs 5, whitish mottled with
brown.

Dorsal aspect. A white streak bordered by a black one, and
this by a white one immediately above the eye, proceeding from
the base of the bill, traverses the crown of the head and nape of
the neck, and is lost upon the shoulders, A black streak from
the angle of the mouth proceeds below the eye and includes the
auriculars. This is separated by a white line on the throat from
its fellow. Dorsal feathers black streaked with white ; tail coverts,
and greater and smaller wing coverts black, with white edging
and tips on the outer vanes ; primaries and secondaries clove
brown, with white edgings to the inner vanes of all, and slate
coloured edgings to the outer vanes, except on the 1st primary
and two last secondaries ; the former of which is minutely, and
the latter broadly edged with white ; tail feathers clove brown •
the two outer ones with broad white tips on the outer vane, the
rest, except the centre ones, edged with white on the inner vanes,
and slate white on the outer vanes. The two centre feathers clove
brown, with slate white edgings ; tail subfurcate.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat black, all the rest white with
black streaks.

2nd primary longest; 1st and 3rd equal. Length 4f inches ;
alar breadth 8 inches. The female has the crown wholly black ;
primaries edged with olive, and less yellow ; the throat, as also in
the young bird greyish ; bastard wings rudimentary.

S, coronata. Yellow-crowned Warbler. — Myrtle-bird.
Dendroica coronata. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, tarsi and toes black ; irides hazel ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head, and rump bright orange-yellow ;
forehead black, all the other parts slate colour spotted with black,
the spots most conspicuous in the interscapulary region, and least
so on the nape of the neck ; they are subtri angular ; greater and
smaller wing coverts brownish black, edged with slate and tipped
with white ; primaries and secondaries clove brown, edged with
brownish-white ; tail subfurcate, clove brown, edged with brown-
ish-white, and with a large white spot on the distal end of the
inner vanes of the three outer feathers.

Ventral aspect. Chin, belly, vent, and tail coverts Wack;
breast black, with white tips ; sides of the breast king's yellow ;
wing coverts slate ; flank feathers streaked with black. A black

ISO Dr» A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

line from the angle of the mouth proceeds backwards and includes
the auriculars.

2nd primary longest ; 1st and Srd equal. Length 5^ inches ;
alar expanse 8j inches. Winter plumage brownish-olive, with
scarcely any black, and the yellow much fainter. The young bird
much resembles the old in its winter plumage.

S* Pennsylvannica. Chesnut-sided Warbler.
,S^. icterocephala of Latham and Audubon 1!
Dmdroica Pennsylvannica. Baird !

V.S.P. Bill, tarsi, and toes black ; irides deep hazel ; eggs un-
known.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of the head yellow with an olivaceous
tinge ; dorsal feathers and scapulars black, tipped and edged with
olive yellow; greater and smaller wing coverts black, broadly
tipped with white tinged with yellow ; primaries clove brown,
edged with white on the outer and inner vanes ; secondaries edged
with yellow on the outer vanes, and with white on the inner vanes,
and tipped with the same colour ; tail subfurcate, clove brown,
the three outer feathers have the distal ends of the inner vanes
white, the edges of the other feathers minutely and faintly white.

Ventral aspect. A black streak from the angle of the mouth
passes above the eye and meets its fellow behind the yellow crown.
From the same point another passes downwards and backwards,
and terminates at the commencement of the chesnut band ; chin,
breast, belly, vent, tail and wing coverts white ; sides of throat,
the breast, and flanks, bright chesnut red.

2nd and Srd primaries equal and longest; 1st and 4th equal.
Length 4^ inches; alar breadth 7| inches. The female has the
crown and chesnut sides paler, and the young birds resemble her.
She also wants the black spot below the eye.

S. maculosa. Spotted Warbler.

S* magnolea of Wilson !

Dendroica maculosa. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill black ; tarsi and toes brown ; claws horn colour ;
irides deep hazel ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown, and nape of the neck ashy blue ; inter-
scapular region black with yellow tips to the feathers ; rump yel-
low ; tail coverts black ; scapulars black edged yellow ; greater
and smaller wing coverts black, with broad white tips and narrow
edgings ; primaries and secondaries clove brown edged with white,

of the District of MontreaL 181

the ■white minute on the outer vanes and tinged with brown ; tail,
all the feathers, except the two centre ones, have a single broad
bar of white on the centre of their inner vanes.

Ventral aspect. A white streak passes from the nostril, sur-
rounds the eye, separates the ashy blue crown and nape of neck
from the black auriculars, and loses itself on the shoulders ; whole
lower aspect gamboge yellow, streaked with black along the
breast, sides and flanks ; tail and wings, with vent, white.

2nd primary longest ; 3rd a little longer than 1st. Length 4^
inches ; alar breadth V inches. The female has the breast whit-
ish and the colours duller.

S. pardalina. Canada Warbler.
Muscicapa Canadensis of Wilson.
Myiodioctes Canadensis. Baird !

v.s.p. Upper mandible brown ; lower one pale ; tarsi, toes,
and claws pale; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown black ; nape of neck, inters capulary re-
gions, scapulars, greater and smaller wing coverts, and tail coverts
ashy, with an olivaceous tinge in the interscapular space; wings
and tail brown, with a minute brownish white edging on the outer
vanes of the feathers of the former.

Ventral aspect. Eyelids yellow. A white streak from the angle
of the mouth, proceeds backwards below the eye, and including
the auriculars, terminates on the sides of the neck. All the in-
ferior surfaces gamboge yellow, with a broad belt of black spots
across the breast ; wing and tail coverts white.

2nd primary longest. Length 5^ inches ; alar breadth, 8j- in-
ches. Does this bird differ in any material respect from the Se-
tophaga Buonapartii ?

S. Philadelphica. Mourning Warbler.
Geothlypsis Philadelj^hica. Baird !

v.s.p. Upper mandible black with pale edges ; lower one, tarsi,
claws, and toes pale flesh colour; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Head and neck lead colour, darker on the crown
of the head, and terminating on the breast in a crescent of black
feathers, tipped wnth greyish white ; dorsal region, scapulars,
greater and smaller wing coverts, tail coverts and tail olive green,
the vanes of the last inclining to brown ; primaries and secon-
daries light brown, with olivaceous green edgings on the outer
vane of each feather, except the 1st on which it is white.

Ventral aspect. Lower part of breast, belly, vent, inner tail and

182 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

wing coverts, light king's yellow, changing to olivaceous on the
flanks.

3rd primary rather longest ; 2nd and 3rd subequal. In some
cases the 2nd is a little shorter than 3rd, and 1st than 2nd. The
female resembles the male in every respect, except that the plu-
mage is duller. Length 5 inches ; expanse 8^ inches.

S. BlacJchurnm. Blackburn's Warbler.
Dendroica BlacJchurnice. Baird !

V.S.P. Bill, tarsi, toes, and claws black ; irides black ; eggs
unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head and nape of neck black, the
former intersected by a stripe of bright orange, and bounded as
well as the latter by a stripe of the same colour, which com-
mences at the nostrils and passes over the eye ; dorsal region
black, interspersed with a few streaks of brownish -white ; tail co-
verts black, margined with brownish white ; tail square, black.
The inner vanes of nearly all the lateral feathers white except to-
wards the tips ; outer vanes margined with brownish-white ; small
wing coverts black ; greater ones black with white tips to the
outer vanes ; coverts of the secondaries or scapulars all white.
Brownish-white margins on the outer vanes of the quill feathers.

Ventral aspect. An orange spot below the eye; auriculars
black, bounded by orange ; chin and throat bright orange, bound-
ed by black spots becoming more numerous on the belly and
flanks ; breast yellow, dull, fading to white on vent and tail fea-
thers, numerously interspersed with black streaks except in the
two last positions.

1st primary longest, then the 2nd, and then the 3rd. Length
4J inches ; alar expanse 8 inches. According to Nuttall the
three lateral feathers only have white on their inner webs. In the
specimens which I have seen, some five or six, it existed on the
inner vanes of all except the two central feathers. This bird is
one of the most pretty of the Sylvian genus. On the Island
of Montreal it is not plentiful, but is found much more numerous-
ly in the groves of St. Remi on the south side of the river.
S. virens. Black-throated Green Warbler.
Dendroica virens. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, legs, and feet black ; irides black ; eggs 4, flesh
colour, mottled with purple and brown.

Dorsal aspect. Front yellow ; crown, nape of neck, and dor-

of the District of Montreal. 183

sal region yellowish-green ; tail coverts and scapulars grey with
yellowish-green tips ; greater and smaller wing coverts black with
white onter margins and tips ; quill feathers blackish-brown with
brownish white margins on the outer vanes, and white on haU
their inner vanes ; tail feathers brownish-black with brownish-
white emarginations on the outer vanes, and white spots on the
inner vanes of the 3 outer lateral ones.

Ventral aspect. Line over the eye, sides of the neck, and auri-
culars gamboge yellow ; chin and throat black ; breast and belly
whitish with black spots, most numerous on the sides ; inner
wing and tail coverts white.

1st and 2nd primaries subequal and longest ; 3rd about a line
shorter than the 2nd ; 4th a line shorter than the 3rd ; and 5th
about 2 lines shorter than 3rd. Length 5 inches ; alar breadth
8 inches. The female is said to have the " chin yellow, and the
throat blackish tinged with yellow."

S. striata. Black Poll Warbler.
Dendroica striata. Baird !

v.s.p. Upper mandible black ; lower one and legs pale flesh ;
irides hazel ; eggs 4 to 5, whitish mottled with brown.

Dorsal aspect. Grown and nape of neck deep black, bordered
by greyish white ; interscapular region, back and rump black, the
feathers margined with grey ; greater and smaller wing coverts
tipped with white, causing an appearance of two white bands on
the wing ; primaries and secondaries brown, the former with the
outer vanes edged with greenish-olive, the latter with greenish-
white. Two lateral tail feathers with white spots towards the
extremities of their inner vanes.

Ventral aspect. Auriculars and cheeks white ; throat, breast,
belly, and vent white, margined by a continuous line of black
spots or streaks, commencing at the brown mandible, and ending
on the flanks, and becoming gradually broader and larger from
the throat downwards ; inner tail coverts white.

1st primary longest. Length 5 inches; alar breadth 9 inches.
" Female and young dull yellow olive, streaked with black and
grey ; breast white ; cheeks and sides of the breast tinged with
yellow."

S. castanea. Bay-breasted Warbler.
Dendroica castanea. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill black ; legs and feet pale ; irides deep hazel ; eggs
unknown.

1 84 Dr, A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Dorsal aspect. Forehead and cheeks black, including the eyes
and the auriculars ; behind the auriculars a spot of bufFy white ;
crown of head bright bay ; scapulars, dorsal region and rump
brownish-black, with broad margins and tips of olivaceous yel-
low ; greater and smaller wing coverts black, tipped with white^
causing an appearance of two white bands; primaries, secon-
daries, and tail feathers brown, the three lateral tail feathers with
white spots on the inner webs near their tips.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat, "Breast, and sides, bay ; belly, tail,
inner tail and wing coverts white, tinged with yellow.

2nd primary longest ; 1st and 3rd equal. Length 4J inches ;
alar breadth 7| inches. The female has a paler bay on th^
breast, and less black on the head.

S, ^:>mw5. Pine Warbler.
Dendroica pinus. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill and feet brown ; irides hazel ; eggs 4, greenish-
white, mottled with pale brown and slight purple.

Dorsal aspect. Olive brown interspersed with streaks of a dark-
er hue ; tail coverts olive yellow ; primaries and secondaries edged
with brownish-olive, narrowly on the 1st primary, rather broadly
on the 2nd ; the tips of all having a whitish worn appearance.
A yellow line, from the nostrils over the eye, terminates over the
auriculars which are of the dorsal colour.

Ventral aspect. Faint gamboge yellow, interrupted on the
breast by olive brown streaks, which are continued along the
flanks ; tail coverts bright yellow ; tail clove brown, outer vanes
edged with olive yellow ; inner vanes of the two lateral ones white
towards their tips.

2nd primary longest ; 1st, 3rd and 4th, subequal. Length 4f
inches ; alar breadth 7J inches. According to Nuttall, — " The
male is bright olive yellow tinged with green, beneath yellow
with obscure spots ; vent white ; wings with two white bands, and
with the tail dusky brown ; two lateral tail feathers partly white ;
lores not black." My description is taken from a female.
Sylvia rubricapilla. Nashville ^^^arbler.
Helminthophaga ruficapilla. Bair.: !

v.s.M. Bill horn colour, pale beneath at the b;ise; irides dark ;
legs and feet pale ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown dark chesnut; frontlet, sides of head,
lores and occiput, ashy, tinted in the latter situation on the male

of the District of Montreal, 185

with olive yellow. Line from the nostrils to eye yellowish-white ;
line encircling the eye white ; interscapulary region, scapulars,
rump, tail and wing coverts olive yellow, brightest on the rump
and back : quill feathers and tail dusky, edged on the outer vanes
with yellow olive.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat, breast, flanks, and tail coverts
king's yellow, diluted with ash on flanks ; belly and vent white ;
upper femorals white, tinged with ash, brown or yellow. Very rare.

Length about 4 J inches ; alar expanse, 7 inches. There is very
little difference between the male and female. The feathers on
the occiput in the specimen before me are destitute of the olive
yellow tint, and the line from the nostrils to the eye is white.
The yellow in the ventral aspect is equally as bright as in the
male. She has in contradistinction to the observation of Mr. Nut-
tall the bright chesnut crown, which is however scarcely so large
as in the female. A pair of these birds was shot by Sir W. Logan
in this vicinity, in the year 1841, from which this description is
taken.

Sylvia Canadensis. Black- throated Blue.
Dendroica Canadensis. Baird !

v.s.M. Bill black ; legs and feet dusky ; irides dark ; eggs un-
known.

Dorsal aspect. Head, interscapulary region, wing and tail
coverts slate blue ; quill feathers of wing and tail clove brown ;
all the primaries except the first, and the two outer tail feathers
with a white streak, which on the latter is situated on the inner
vanes ; outer edges of vanes of primaries and secondaries edged
with olive green ; of the tail with slate blue.

Ventral aspect. Cheeks, throat, and flanks below the wings,
deep black ; breast, belly, inner wing, and tail coverts white.

3rd primary longest; 2nd and 4th subequal; 1st shorter than
4th, but considerably longer than 5th. Length 4f inches ; alar
expanse 7 inches. A fine specimen, from which this description
is taken, was shot by Sir W. E. Logan in May, 1841. I have not
seen either the female or young. According to Nuttall, the black
of the female inclines to dusky ash or is wanting ?

The foregoing fourteen species of this numerous genus, are the
only ones which it has fallen to my lot to observe in this neigh-
bourhood. I have no doubt, however, that the district of Mont-
real might also furnish us with the S. AuricoUis, Autumnalip^

186 Dr. A* Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Parus, Americana, Trocbilus, Trichas, and probably Azurea,
These birds are Lnown to migrate as far North as, and
in one or two cases, beyond Canada, and they are to be discovered
in this District. As the object of this paper is not to speculate
upon what might be found, but to give descriptions of what really
has been found in this District, I refrain from any further re-
marks on this tribe at present.

Genus Regulus.

Gen. char. Bill straight, slender, deeper than broad, com-
pressed from the base, narrowed in the middle, with somewhat
incurved edges, and furnished with nuchal bristles ; upper man-
dible slightly notched and curved at the tip ; nostrils basal, oval,
and half closed by a membrane ; 3rd primary longest ; 1st and
Tth equal ; tarsus longer than the middle toe ; tail notched.
R, calendula. Ruby-crowned "Wren.
Sylvia calendula of Wilson !
R. calendula. Baird.

v.s.p. Bill and legs brown ; irides black ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Olive green, darker on the frontlet ; on the pos-
terior part of the crown an oval vermilion spot ; eyelids pale yel-
low ; tail and wing feathers clove brown, with yellow edgings on the
outer vanes of the quills of the former, and primaries of the lat-
ter. Inner vanes of all, and outer vanes of the secondaries edged
with white ; greater and smaller wing coverts tipped with white.

Ventral aspect. Yellowish-white throughout ; spureous wing
feather nearly an inch long.

3rd and 4th primaries equal ; 2nd and 5th equal ; 1st a little
shorter than the 6th, but longer than the 7th ; tail subfurcate.
Length 4 inches ; alar breadth about 6 J inches. The female and
young bird want the vermilion spot, and are otherwise more som-
bre.

R, cristatus. Golden-crested Wren.
Sylvia regulus of Wilson !
R. satrapa. Baird.

D.c. Bill black ; legs brownish-yellow ; feet and claws yellow ;
irides hazel ; eggs 6 to 12, yellowish-white spotted with red.

Dorsal aspect. Olive yellow inclining to ash on the nape and
sides of neck. A white line from the nostril, proceeds over the
eyes, and terminates above the auriculars. Above this passes a
broadish stripe of black, both stripes meeting on the frontlet ;
trown of the head rich flame colour. A black line from mandible

of the District of Montreal. 1S7

to the auriculars is accompanied by a white one below it ; wings
and tail dusky edged with yellow olive ; inner vanes of the pri-
maries and secondaries whitish ; greater and smaller wing coverts
tipped with white, edged in the former with brown, forming two
white wing bars ; tail long subfurcate. Female much more dusky
and dull whitish beneath. Length 4 to 4J inches ; alar breadth
7 J to 8 inches. — {Condensed from Nuttall.')

Genus Troglotides.
Gen. char. Bill slender, subulate, not so much compressed as
in the last, slightly curved ; nostrils basal, oval, half closed by a
membrane ; tarsus longer than the middle toe ; inner toe free ;
nail of the hind toe longest; wings short and rounded ; 4th and
5th primaries subequal and longest.

T.fulvus. House Wren.

T. cedon of Audubon ! and Baird !

Sylvia domestica of Wilson !

Sylvia fulva of Latham !

T. cedon ^ Baird !
Y.s.p. Upper mandible brown ; lower one, legs and feet pale,
inclining to yellow ; eggs 10 to 18, white, with a few reddish
spots.

Dorsal aspect. Brown, darkest on the head, and except on
this place and the neck, barred with dusky ; primaries and se-
condaries clove brown, the latter barred with dusky and rufous
brown, the former with clove brown and white on the outer vanes
only; tail cuneiform, rufous brown with 9 to 10 dusky bars,
white taking the place of brown on the outer vane of the lateral
feathers.

Ventral aspect. Brownish-grey, barred on the vent, flanks and
tail coverts with blackish and brownish-white. A streak of the
ventral colour passes from the nostril over the eye, and terminates
behind the auriculars ; spurious wing feathers long.

2nd 3rd, and 4th primaries subequal, if anything the 2nd long-
est. Length 3| inches ; alar breadth 6 inches.

T. Europoeus. Winter Wren.

T. hyemalis of Viellot I

Sylvia troglotides of Wilson !

T. (anorihura) hyemalis. Baird !

v.s.p. Upper mandible black ; lower one, legs and feet pale ;
irides deep hazel ; eggs 10 to 18, white spotted with red.

188 Dr» A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Dorsal aspect. Rufous brown, darker on head and neck, and
numerously barred with dusky except in these two situations. On
the sides of the neck, and among the wing coverts, a few white
tips to the feathers may be seen ; wings and tail like the last.

Ventral aspect. Throat and breast rufous brown, with indi-
cations of bars of a deeper tint ; belly, vent, and tail feathers deep
brown, barred with a lighter shade ; spurious wing feathers
long.

3rd and 4th primaries equal ; 2nd and 5th equal ; 1st and 7th
equal. Dimensions same as the last.

T. Parkmanni. Parkman's Wren.
T. Parkmanni. Baird.

Y.s.p. Bill, upper mandible horn colour, and slightly curved ;
lower one whitish underneath; irides black; tarsi brownish,
coloured with seven distinct scutelse; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Prevailing tint reddish-brown, the dorsal feathers
tipped with white ; tail of the same hue, rounded, composed of
12 feathers with 12 bars of dusky black, the outer vanes of the
lateral ones with spots of whitish.

Ventral aspect. Prevailing tint on throat and breast greyish,
with faint barrings of umber brown ; abdomen greyish- white ;
hinder tail coverts whitish, barred with dusky black.

Length from tip of bill to extremity of tail, 4|- inches ; alar ex-
panse 5 inches. 1st primary half the length of the second, thus
giving the wing a rounded appearance. The tail is also rounded.

A specimen of this beautiful wren was shot in the vicinity of
this city by Mr. Hunter, Taxidermist to the Natural History So-
ciety, during the spring of 1861. It is now a specimen in the
cabinet of the Society.

Qenus Anthus.
Gen. char. Bill straight, slender, subulate from beyond the
nostrils ; upper mandible slightly notched near the tip ; nostrils
half closed by a membrane, basal and lateral ; hind claw longer
than the toe; 4th primary and 2nd scapular equal ; 2nd and c'rd
primaries longest.

A. spinoletta. Brown Lark. — Shore Pepit.
A. aquaticus of Audubon !
Alan da rufa of Wilson !
A, Ludovicianus. Baird ?
v.s.p. Upper mandible black; lower one pale; legs and feet

of the District of Montreal. 189

brown ; irides hazel ; eggs 4 to 5, sullied white, mottled with
brown.

Doi-sal aspect. Dark greyish-brown. Two central tail feathers
with margins of a lighter hue ; all the lateral feathers clove
brown, except the two external ones, the last one of which has
its whole outer web, and half its inner web white, and a spot of
white towards the distal end of the next one ; primaries and se-
condaries clove brown, with whitish margins to their outer webs •
scapulars clove brown with worn edges ; 2cd longer than 4th
primary, and white on the margin of the outer vane ; greater
wing coverts margined and tipped with brownish-slate colour ;
smaller ones tipped with pure white.

Ventral aspect. A streak from the nostrils encircling the eyes,
cheeks, sides of neck, and belly and vent light brownish red. On
the flanks, breast, and sides of neck, streaks or spots of black ;
chin white, merging into the reddish-brown of the throat.

1st, 2nd, and 3rd primaries subequal and longest. Length 6^
inches ; alar breadth 11 inches. The female differs from the male
in being more spotted, and the young bird has an olivaceous
blackish-brown dorsal tint.

Genus Am])eUs.
Gen. char. Bill short, a little depressed, deeper than broad ;
trigonous at the base ; upper mandible notched and curved at the
tip ; lower one straight and compressed at the sides ; nostrils
basal, lateral, subrotund, and half closed by a membrane ; tarsus
strong, a little shorter than, or as long as the middle toe ; inner
toe free; hind one longer than the nail ; lateral toes united as far
as the second joint ; 2nd primary longest.

A. sialis. The Blue Robin.

Sialia Wilsonii of Swainson !

Sylvia sialis of Wilson !

Saxicola sialis of Buonaparte !

Sialia arctica

Sialia sialis. Baird I
v.s.p. Bill and legs black ; irides bright hazel ; eggs 5 to 6,
pale blue, unspotted.

Dorsal aspect. Including the wings and tail, bright, glossy
azure blue. Towards the tips and edges of the inner vanea of the
primaries and secondaries there appears an incliDation of the blue
to a brown.

190 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Ventral aspect. Ferruginous, deeper on the breast and paler on
the throat and vent, the latter almost white ; inner tail covert&
whitish.

2nd primary longest; 1st and 3rd subequal, and very little
shorter than 2nd. Length 6| inches; alar breadth 12 inches.
The female is duller coloured, and the young bird is dusky, with
occasional spots of white, and inferiorly whitish clouded with
dusky, but the wings and tail azure blue; hind claw only 2. the
length of the tarsus including the nail; middle toe and tarsus
equal.

Genus Bomhycilla,

Gen. char. Head crested ; bill short, straight, elevated, as d«ep
as broad at the base ; nostrils ovoid, basal, open, concealed by
nuchal bristles, projecting forward ; upper mandible with a strong-
ly marked tooth, and slightly curved towards its extremity;
exterior toe joined to the middle one as far as the 1st joint ;
1st and 2nd primaries longest ; spurious wing feathers very short ;
middle toe a little longer than the tarsus.

B. Carolinensis. Cedar Bird — Cherry Bird — Recollet.
Ampelis Americana of Wilson !
Ampelis cedrorum. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black ; eggs 4 to 5, white, spotted
black towards their larger end.

Prevailing tint of the dorsal and ventral aspects, fawn, deepen-
ing in tint on the back, and changing to a yellow on the abdo-
men ; upper tail coverts black ; lower ones white ; primaries and
secondaries dark ash colour, with brownish- white margins to the
outer vanes, and white on the inner vanes ; shafts of the secon-
daries elongated with broad scarlet waxen tips. These tips vary
in number ; in the specimen before me there are seven, and in
others I have seen but one or two existing, and very often none
at all. Tail with a terminal broad yellow band, occasionally tip-
ped like the secondaries ; frontlet, streak to, and beyond the eye,
with the chin velvet black. A white streak on the posterior half
of the lower mandible, and on the posterior half of the eyelid ;
Crest large and conic.

2nd primary longest; 1st larger than the 3rd. Length 7
inches; alar breadth 13 J inches. The young birds are deficient
in the waxen tips, and I believe that the same ornaments are not
unfrequently met with in old females.

of the District of Montreal, 191

B. garrvtlus. Waxen Chatterer.
Ampelis garrulus of Linnaeus and Baird !

D.c. " Feet and legs black ; irides reddish ; eggs unknown.

"Anterior part of the head bay, passing posteriorly into a red-
dish drab, which is the prevailing dorsal tint, as well as of the
breast ; lower part of the back and rump ochreous ; belly and
femorals pale ash ; vent reddish chesnut ; quills dusky, the 1st
spotless, all the others with white spots towards the tips of the
outer webs; four of the secondaries with red waxen tips ; feathers
of the bastard wing tipped with white; tail 3 inches, black,
broadly terminated with pale yellow." — {Condensed from Nut-
tall.) They are extremely rare visitants and seen chiefly during
the early and latter winter months frequently accompanying the
Crossbill and Grosbeak.

Genus Turdus.

Gen. char. Bill straight, compressed and curved at the apex ;
upper mandible notched and furnished with nuchal bristles, point-
ing forward ; nostrils basal, lateral rounded, and half closed by a
nak«d membrane ; outer and middle toes connected at the base ;
3rd, 4th and 5th primaries longest ; scapulars about as long as
the secondaries.

T. migratorius. The Kobin. — Le Grieve.
T. (^Planesticus) migratorius. Baird !

v.s.p. Upper mandible black, with yellow edgings ; lower one
yellow with a black tip ; legs and feet dark brown ; eggs 5 bluish
green.

Dorsal aspect. Brown ; crown of head, occiput and auriculars
black; primaries, secondaries, and greater wing coverts dark
brown, with edgings of a lighter hue; tail square^ black; two,
sometimes three of the lateral feathers with white tips.

Ventral aspect. Orbit with three marginal white spots ; chin,
and throat white streaked with black ; breast, belly, sides, and
inner wing coverts red, the feathers tipped with white ; vent and
tail feathers white, the latter with a single broad conical brown
spot in the centre of the vanes; wing linings tinged with red.

3rd primary longest; 1st and 5th equal; scapulars half the
length of the secondaries. Length 10 inches; alar breadth 16
inches. The female ha^ duller colours.

T. rufus. Ferruginous Thrush or Thrasher.

r.s.p. Upper mandible black, not notched ; lower one, legs

192 Dr* A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

and feet pale flesh colour, the lower mandible black towards tho
tip ; irides yellow ; eggs 5, greenish-white speckled with brown.

Dorsal aspect. Ferruginous ; greater and smaller wing coverts
of same colour, succeeded by a deep brown, terminated by a white
tip ; primaries and secondaries ferruginous on the outer vanes,
and inclining to ash on the inner ones, except the three last se-
condaries which are wholly ferruginous ; tail 5j inches long,
cuneiform; the three lateral feathers inclining towards their
tips.

Ventral aspect. White, with tear shaped spots of blackish-
brown on sides of neck, breast and flanks; tail coverts ferru-
ginous white.

4th primary longest ; 2nd of same length as secondaries; 1st
very short ; in consequence of which relative length of these quills
the wing is short and rounded. Length llf inches; alar breadth
13 inches. Female scarcely difl'ers from the male.
T.felivox. The Cat Bird.
Mimus CaroUnensis. Baird !

v.t.p. Bill black, not notched ; legs brown ; irides deep hazel;
eggs 4 to 6, emerald green.

Dorsal aspect. Slate colour ; crown of the head and tail black ;
primaries and secondaries blackish-slate colour.

Ventral aspect. Pale slate ; undertail coverts reddish-brown ;
tail rounded.

3rd primary longest. Length 8 J inches ; alar breadth 10 inches.
The female does not diff'er from the foregoing description. In
the young bird of the year the black of the head is not developed,
and the reddish-brown of the undertail coverts is paler.

T, minor. The Hermit or Little Thrush,
T, solitarius of Wilson !
Turdus pallasi ? Baird !
V.S.P. Upper mandible black ; lower one towards the base and
the legs pale flesh ; irides deep hazel ; eggs 4 to 5, greenish-blue,
mottled with olive.

Dorsal aspect. Olivaceous, inclining to rufous on the head, ac-
cording to Nuttall — in the specimen before me, olivaceous ; tail
ferruginous ; primaries and secondaries inclining to ferruginous
on the outer webs, and ashy on inner ones.

Ventral aspect. Line round the eye white ; chin, throat, and
breast yellowish-white, streaked with black on the side of the

of the District (^ Montreal, 193

throat, and spotted with black on the breast. The spots have an
olivaceous tint on the breast, and become blended together on
the flanks; abdomen, vent, and tail coverts pure white ; inner
webs of the secondaiies with an oval yellowish- white spot towards
the base of their inner webs.

3rd primary longest; 1st a little longer than 5th. Length 7J
inches; alar breadth 11 inches. Bill slightly notched.

T. musteJinus. The Little Thrush.
T. Wihonii of Buonaparte !
T. mustelimis. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill blackish-brown, except at the base of the lower one
which is pale ; legs pale brown ; irides deep hazel ; Qgg^ 4 to 5
emerald green.

Dorsal aspect. Brownish ferruginous ; an oval spot of yellow-
ish-white cowards the base of the inner webs of the secondaries.

Ventral aspect. Line round the orbits pale; cheeks, throat, ab-
domen, vent and tail coverts pure white; breast, and sides of the
neck cream colour spotted with brown ; sides of the breast and
flanks inclining to ash.

2nd primary longest; 1st and 3rd equal. Length 7 inches;
alar breadth 11 J inches. Tail square, feathers pointed.

T. melodus. The Wood Thrush.
T. mustelinus of Wilson ! Baird !

D.c. Above bright cinnamon brown, brightening into rufons
on the head, and mclining to olive on the rump and tail. Bt^neath
whitish, thickly marked with pencil shaped spots; vent pure
white ; orbits of the eye white ; bill dusky brown sligiitly notched,
the lower mandible flesh coloured towards the base ; legs and
claws very pale flesh colour ; iris dark chocolate. Length 8 inches;
alar breadth 13 inches.

(To be continued.)

Can. Nat. 13 Vol. VII

194 Macfarlane on the Extraction of Cobalt Oxide

ARTICLE XVIIL— O/z the Extraction of Cobalt Oxide from
the Iron Pyrites occurring near Brockville, C. W, By
Thomas Macfarlane.

About two miles to the north-west of Brockville, in the town-
ship of Elizabethtown, C. W., there exists a deposit of iron pyrites
ofvery considerable extent and importance. It belongs to the Lau-
rentian system, but it is not known what rocks immediately ad-
join it, as they do not come to the surface. Although an exca-
vation of fifty feet long, and thirty broad, has been made in the
deposit, the limit of the minerals in either direction, has not been
reached. Two varieties of the pyrites are found here, the one
somewhat porous and dull, and the other compact, of a yellow-
ish-white colour, and a very bright lustre. Iron pyrites, as is
well known, contains one equivalent of iron and two of sulphur ;
or 45. YY per cent, of the former, and 54.23 per cent, of the lat-
ter element. It is a most important source of sulphur for the
manufacture of sulphuric acid. The iron pyrites of the above
mentioned locality contains the usual constituents, but in the com-
pact variety especially, a portion of the iron is replaced by a
small per centage of cobalt, equal, according to Dr. Hunt's anal-
ysis, to 0.52 per cent, of cobalt oxide, and according to my own
to 0.50 per cent. The occurrence of cobalt in many pyrites of
the Laurentian formation, has been repeatedly remarked by Dr.
Hunt, and I have detected its presence in many specimens of
pyrites occurring in the Primitive Gneiss formation in Norway.
While at the Modum Smalt works, and the Skuterud cobalt
mines in that country, I had opportunities of experimenting on
these pyrites, and of devising a process for economically extract-
ing the cobalt which they contain. The principal object of the
present paper is to describe the manner in which this process
might be advantageously applied in treating the Brockville py-
rites.

When the compact variety of the cobaltiferous iron pyrites of
the above deposit, in fine powder, is mixed with one-tenth of
its weight of common salt, also finely divided, and calcined at a
low red heat, with free access of air, the following chemical
changes take place : — First, the greater part of the sulphur of
the pyrites is oxidized, and disengaged as sulphurous acid, the
iron also combining with oxygen and forming peroxide of iron.
At the same time the small proportion of cobalt present is con-

from the Iron Pyrites occurring near BrocJcville. 195

verted into cobalt oxide. At a later stage of the operation, part
of the sulphurous acid formed comes in contact with the peroxide
of iron, and is, through its agency, further oxidized into sulphuric
acid, which combines with the iron oxide, forming finally a com-
paratively small quantity of sulphate of peroxide of iron. The
cobalt oxide also combines with sulphuric acid, forming sulphate
of protoxide of cobalt. These sulphates react on the common
salt, producing sulphate of soda, with perchloride of iron and
protochloride of cobalt. Air having still access, the perchloride of
iron is resolved into peroxide of iron and chlorine gas, which es-
capes and may be recognized by its odour, so soon as the evolu-
tion of sulphurous acid has ceased. Protochloride of cobalt is also
decomposable by heating in a current of air, the products being
chlorine and cobalt oxide ; but this change does not take place
until the perchloride of iron has been wholly decomposed. It is
at this point that the calcination must be interrupted; that is, as
soon as the perchloride of iron is decomposed, but before the
decomposition of the protochloride of cobalt commences. When
the operation is stopped exactly at this point, the calcined resi-
due yields with water a solution containing no iron oxide, or but
a trace, and the whole of the cobalt in the state of protochloride.
I have made many trials of the above process with the Brock"
ville pyrites, all yielding results confirmatory of the above reac-
tions. Tho following are among the most conclusive of them :
1000 grains of the ore were calcined as above described, with 100
grains of common salt in a common muffle furnace. The mate-
rials were withdrawn from the muflfle, as soon as strong and pure
chlorine commenced to be evolved, and the evolution of chlorine
continued until the materials were cooled to a certain point. The
calcined residue weighed 780 grains, and contained in 100 parts,

Peroxide of iron 85.300.

Sulphate of soda 5.700 = 1.28 sulphur.

Protochloride of cobalt, . . 1.343 = 0.775 cobalt oxide.

Protochloride of copper.. 0.327 = 0.193 cupric oxide.

Perchloride of iron 0.059 = 0.029 ferric oxide.

Chloride of sodium 7,271 by difference.

100.000
The five last mentioned constituents were of course soluble in
water. According to these results, the 780 grains of residue must
have contained six grains of cobalt oxide ; consequently 0.60 per
cent, of this substance had been extracted from the pyrites. The

196 Macfarlane on the Extraction of Cobalt Oxide

1000 grains of pyrites contained 542.3 grains of sulphur, and
the 780 grains of the residue, only 9.98 grains Consequently
98.16 per cent, of the sulphur had escaped as sulphurous acid,
and only 1.84 per cent, had been converted into sulphuric acid
and combined with soda.

That the iron oxide, as stated above, has considerable influence
in converting the sulphurous acid into sulphuric acid, will appear
from the following experiment: 59 grains of iron pyrites, 58^
grains of common salt, and 234 grains peroxide of iron, (free
from sulphuric acid) were mixed and calcined in a mufl3e, at a
low red heat, until sulphurous acid and chlorine ceased to be
evolved. The materials weighed after calcination 336 grains, and
contained in 100 parts :

Peroxide of iron 19.5

Sulphate of soda 19.2 = 4.31 sulphur.

Chloride of sodium. ... 1.3 by difference.

100.0
The original 59 grains of iron pyrites used, contained 32,
and the resulting 336 grains, 14.48 grains of sulphur. Conse-
quently 55 per cent, of the sulphur had escaped as sulphurous acid,*
and 45 per cent, were converted into sulphuric acid, instead of
1.84 per cent, as in the experiment above described. That the
larger quantity of salt used did not materially contribute to this
result, I have proved by a series of experiments, which resulted as
follows : —

1. When iron pyrites, mixed with 5 per cent, of its weight of
common salt, is calcined as in the last described experiment, 1.24
per cent, of the sulphur contained in it, is converted into sulphuric
acid, and combined with the soda.

2. When 10 per cent, of salt is used, 1.84 per cent, of the sul-
phur is, as we have seen, converted into sulphuric acid.

3. With 50 per cent, of salt, 2.86 per cent, of the sulphur is re-
tained as sulphuric acid.

4. With 100 per cent, of salt, 7.46 of the sulphur is thus re-
tained.

In this last, th<? proportion of common salt to the pyrites is
the same as in the experiment where peroxide of iron was used,
but in the latter case five times more sulphur was converted into

• The sulphurous acid was accompanied by chlorine, in almost the
proportions necessary for their complete conversion of the two into sul-
phuric and hydrochloric acids, on being brought into contact with steam.
(S08+ CI + HO = SO3 + HCl).

from the Iron Pyrites occurring near BrocJcville. 1 97

sulphuric acid, than when the pyrites was calcined with salt
alone.

Having thus explained the rationale of the process, I proceed
to touch upon its application on the large scale. It will be seen
from the above experiments that only a very small proportion of
the sulphur contained in the pyrites, is necessary for the extrac-
tion of the cobalt. There would be abundance of it left in the
pyrites for this purpose, even although it were previously roasted
in pieces of about the size of an egg. It has been found that the
residue from the burning of pyrites in lumps, in the manufacture
of sulphuric acid, contains six or seven per cent, of sulphur,* and
this would also be the case with the Brockville pyrites, if roasted
in heaps or shaft furnaces. A previous roasting would be of
advantage, because it would lessen the cost of the subsequent
calcination, render the pyrites more easily stamped to powder,
and admit of the manufacture of sulphuric acid from the sulphur-
ous acid evolved. After roasting, the pyrites is reduced to pow-
der, and mixed with the salt. The mixture is then brought on
to the hearth of a common calcining reverberatv->ry furnace, heated
to low redness, raked about, and tested from time to time.
So soon as pure chlorine is evolved, and the mass ceases to glow
in the furnace, and gives with water a solution containing little or
no iron, the mixture is withdrawn from the furnace. When cool,
it is brought into a large tub, where it is stirred up with hot
water. If the calcination has been properly performed, a solution
is obtained having a beautiful rose colour. This is drawn off, or
if necessary filtered from the insoluble residue of peroxide of iron
which is washed with fresh quantities of water until it no longer
yields a solution containing cobalt The more dilute solutions
thus obtained, are used for treating fresh quantities of the cal-
oined material. The rose-coloured solution contains besides the
oobalt, a small quantity of copper, and a trace of iron, together
with whatever sulphate of soda has been formed, and the com-
mon salt which may have been left undecomj^osed. The copper
and iron may be separated from the solution by adding a slight
quantity of a dilute solution of carbonate cf soda. They are pre-
cipitated as carbonates, before the cobalt, and are separated from
the solution by filtration. The filtrate is then treated with a
further quantity of a solution of carbonate of soda, more con-

• Fabriques de produits chimiques. Rapport a M. le Ministre de I'ln-
terieur, par la Commission d'enquete. Bruxelles, 1856.

198 Macfarlane on the Extraction of Cobalt Oxide

centrated than before. Carbonate of oxide of cobalt falls as a
peach-blossom colored precipitate. This is washed by subsidence
and decantation, collected on a linen filter, dried and ignited in
close vessels. The result is pure cobalt oxide, such as is used
for imparting a blue colour to porcelain and stone-ware. Its price
in the English market, about a year ago, was thirteen shillings
sterling the pound, and probably its present value may with safety
be assumed to be eleven shillings sterling.

The cost of the process above described, depends of course,,
much on the locality where it is carried into operation. But even
supposing this to be some distance from the mine, I believe the
manufacture would be found to be remunerative. The cost of both
mining and manufacturing might be estimated as follows : —

Excavation, per ton $3 .00

Roasting " 0.25

Freight to factory, say 2.50

Stamping 0.50

Calcining 6.00

Lixiviatiou, precipitation, &c 1.25

Freight to market, agency, &c 0.50

$14.00
From one ton of ore there might be produced, making some
allowance for occasional failures, at least eight pounds of cobalt
oxide, worth eleven shillings sterling the pound, equal to £4 8 0
Or $21.12. I think therefore that the treatment of the
Brockville pyrites for cobalt might reasonably be expected to
yield a profit of, say $7 per ton. Of course, many disadvantages
and failures are apt to attend the commencement of any new
manufacture, but in the above estimate I have made some allow-
ance for such.

In this calculation, I have reckoned nothing for the sulphur
which the pyrites contains. Were the manufacture of sulphuric
acid combined with that of the cobalt oxide, there is no doubt
but that a very remunerative business might be established.
Canada is certainly not a manufacturing country. It is therefore
improbable that much sulphuric acid would be used here for
manufacturing soda, or in bleaching or dyeing. But Canada
contains inexhaustible sources of rock oil or petroleum. Ow-
ing to the ofi"ensive odour of this substance in its crude state, it
is diflScult to prooure freight for it to Great Britain. This neces-

from the Iron Pyrites occurring near BrocJcville, 199

sitates its purification in Canada, and as is well known, sulphuric
acid is the most efi'ective deodorizer that can be employed in re-
fining it. In proportion then as refineries for petroleum are es-
tablished, the demand for sulphuric acid will increase, and no
doubt a manufactory of this acid would be able to dispose of an
immense quantity. There are very few chemical manufactures
which may be said to be indigenous to Canada, but this one, of
the products to be obtained from these pyrites, in conjunction with
that of refined oils from crude petroleum, possessing a natural
and sound foundation in the province, would flourish rapidly, and
doubtless be permanently successful.
Acton Vale, C. E., 13th May, 1862.

ARTICLE XIX. — List of Entomologists in Canada. By Rev.
Charles J. S. Bethune, B. A., Cobourg, C. W.
The following list of those engaged in the study of Entomology
in Canada has been prepared chiefly with the object of making
collectors known to each other. It is almost unnecessary to state
that the idea was suggested by the lists in Stainton's Entomologists'
Annuals. It was at first considered that the great and primary ad-
vantage to be derived from it was that collectors in one part of
the country would be enabled by its means to find out who are
addicted to their favourite pursuit in other places, and thus obtain
specimens of those local species in which their own collections are
deficient Since, however, the number of those engaged in this
study has proved to be so much larger than was at first anticipa-
ted, several of my correspondents have agreed with me in the opin-
ion that it would tend very much to the advancement of Entomo-
logy in this country, were a club to be formed, and meetings to
be held once or twice a year at some central place, to be decided
upon hereafter. We have come to the conclusion that, if this
project meets with sufficient encouragement from Entomologists,
no better time or place could be selected for the first meeting than
that appointed for the next exhibition of the Provincial Agricultu-
ral Association, which is to be held at Toronto, during the week
commencing September 22nd, 1862. If such a meeting can be
held, it is much to be desired that Entomologists should bring to
it all their undetermined specimens, as well as any duplicates they
may have of rare species; by so doing favours could be mutually
conferred, and much information difl'used with regard to the dis-
tribution of species, etc. The Meeting would, doubtless, prove ad-

^0 Rev. Chas. J. S. Bethune

vantageous in many other respects ; and, in addition, such a reu-
nion of kindred spirits could not fail to prove exceedingly agree-
able. I trust, therefore, that this project may not fall to the
ground, but that before long, Canadian Entoniologists may have
the pleasure of making each other's acquaintance.

In the following list is enumerated every Entomologist in Ca-
nada whose name and address I could learn, and who was willing
to permit his name to appear ; there may be a few others, — if so
I trust they will speedily make themselves known either to Mr.
Saunders (who has kindly shared with me the trouble of prepar-
ing this list) or to myself.

1. Beadle, D. W., St. Catherines, C. W. Coleoptera and L^pidoptera.

2. Bell, R., Provincial Geological Survey, Montreal. All orders ; hut

especially Coleoptera and Lepidoptera.

3. Bbthdne, Rev. Charles J. S., B. A., Cobourg, C. W. Coleoptera

and Lepidoptera.

4. Billings, B., Prescott, C. W. Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, and Orthop-

tera.

5. Billings, E., F.G.S. Provincial Geological Survey, Montreal. Coleo-

ptera and Lepidoptera.

6. Bush, Geo., Cold water. County of Simcoe, C. W. Insects of all

orders ; collects also for sale.

7. Clementi, Rev. Vincent, B. A., Peterboro', C. W. Coleoptera and

Lepidoptera.

8. Cottle, Thomas, Woodstock, C. W. Lepidoptera.

9. CouPER, William, National Bank Building, John street, Quebec.

" Entered the Entomological fields of Canada in 1843, and still con-
tinues his researches. Collects all the orders, and studies the geo-
graphical distribution of Coleoptera."

10. CowDRY, Thomas, M. D., York Mills, County of York, C. W. All
orders.

11. CowDRY, Harrington, York Mills, C. W.

12. Croft, Prop. Henry, D.C.L. University College, Toronto. Collects
all orders, but more especially Hymenoptera and Coleoptera. His col-
lection of Coleoptera is the finest in the Province.

13. Crooks, Miss Kate, Hamilton, C. W.

14. CcMMiNGS, WiLLOUGHBY, Chippawa, C. W. Coleoptera and Lepidop-

tera.

15. Denton, J. M., Dundas Street, London, C. W. Lepidoptera and Cole-

optera.

16. Devine, Thomas, Crown Lands Department, Quebec.'

17. Dewar, Miss, London, C. W. Coleoptera and Lepidoptera.

18. Edwards, W., Port Stanley, C. W. Coleoptera and Lepidoptera.

19. Gibbon, Miss, St. Mary's, C. W. Lepidoptera.

20. GiRDWOOD, G. P., Asst. Surgeon, Grenadier Guards, Montreal.
31. GiRDWOOD, Mrs. G. P., Montreal.

<m Entomologists in Canada. J801

22. Grant, Francis, Orillia, C. W. Coleoptera and Lepidoptera.

23. Hill, Rev. Geo. S. J., M. A., Markham, County of York, C. W.
Coleoptera and Diptera.

24. HiscKS, Rev. William, F. L. S., Prof, of Nat. Hist. University Col-
lege, Toronto. Studies all orders ; b-.t does not collect.

25. HuBBERT, James, Knox's College, Toronto, and (during Vacations)

Grafton, County of Northumberland, C. W. Diptera, Neuroptera,
andj to some extent, Coleoptera.

26. Kreighoff, C, Quebec. Insects of all orders ; pays particular atten'
iion to Lepidoptera {Heterocera, and Coleoptera.

27. Lawford, J. M., Toronto. Lepidoptera and Coleoptera.

28. Lawrason, W. L., Dundas Street, London, C. W. Lepidoptera and

Coleoptera.

29. Morris, Beverley R., M.D. Institution for the Deaf and Dumb, and
the Blind ; 490 Queen street, Toronto. Ml orders ; hut chiefly Cole-
optera and Lepidoptera.

30. Provancher, Rev. L., St. Joachim, Montmorency, C. E. All orders
except Apt era ; pays especial attention to Lepidoptera and Coleoptera.

31. Reed, E. Baynes, London, C. W. Coleoptera and Lepidoptera.

32. Reynolds, T., Financial Director, Great Western Railway, Hamil-
ton, C. W. Lepidoptera.

33. RooKE, Capt. W. S., Scots Fusilier Guards, Montreal. Coleoptera
and Diurnal Lepidoptera.

34. Saunders, William, Dundas Street, London, C. W. Ml orders;
chiefly Coleoptera and Lepidoptera.

35. Tcrton, F., Simcoe Street, London, C. W. All orders ; chiefly Cole-
optera and Lepidoptera.

36. Rogers, Robt. V., Jr., St. James' Parsonage, Kingston.

ARTICLE XX.^Onthe Chemistry of (he Far th. ByT.STERRT
HuKT, M. A., F.R.S. ; of the Geological Survey of Canada.

Extract of a letter to Elie de Beaumont, published in the Comptes Rendu*
of the French Academy of Sciences, June 9th. 1862.

On the 28th of October, 1844, a memoir was deposited with
the Academy by the illustrious Cordier. Being in a sealed packet,
its contents remained unknown until after liis death, when at the
request of his widow, the seal was broken, and the paper, which
bears the date of October 22, 1844, was first made public; in the
Comptes Remlus of the Academy for February 17, 1862. In this
remarkable memoir, wliicli has for its title "On the origin of the
calcareous rocks which do not belong to the primordial crust,"
(De Vorigine des roches calcaires, etc.,) the author givos his
views upon the formation of limestone and dolomite. He rejects
Von Buch's theory of dolomitization, wuich still finds some sup-

202 Dr. Hunt on the Chemistry of the Earth,

porters, and which supposes that the magnesia was introduced
subsequent to the deposition of the sediments, by a " certain mys-
terious action of intrusive pyroxenic rocks," which have been ejected
in the vicinity of deposits of pure limestone. Mr. Cordier also
combats the idea that these last have been formed entirely of the
debris of testacea and zoophytes, which according to him, form
but a small proportion of limestone formations. Going back still
farther, he finds the source alike of the carbonate of lime of these
organic remains, and of the great mass of calcareous rocks, in cer- '
tain chemical reactions. The pure limestones, according to him,
pass into magnesian limestones by an admixture of dolomite, and
form thus a transition to the pure dolomites, so that we must ad-
mit a common origin for all these rocks. The source of the two
carbonates which compose them, according to Mr. Gordier, is to
be found in the reaction of carbonate of soda upon the chlorids of
calcium and magnesium in sea-water ; the carbonate of soda
being derived from the decomposition of feldspars, from alka-
line springs, and from plutonic emanations. This alkaline salt,
reacting upon the salts of sea-water, would give rise to chlorid of
sodium and carbonate of lime, and under certain conditions, to
calcareo-magnesian precipitates. From this reaction must result
a secular variation in the composition of the ocean, which cor-
responds to the progressive changes in the marine fauna of suc-
cessive geological epochs.

Such is the theory of Mr. Cordier, which is now published, for
the first time, in 1862 ; and which I have thus noticed in order to
call the attention of the Academy to my own published papers, in
which I have maintained similar views for the last four years. In
The American Journal of Science for January, 1858, 1 endeavored,
in admitting the igneous theory of the earth's origin, to obtain some
notion of the chemical conditions of the cooling globe,by supposing
the matters which now form the earth's crust to be fused together
by an intense heat. From this would result an atmosphere hold-
ing, in the state of acid gases, all the carbon, the sulphur, and the
chlorine, besides the elements of air and water ; while the bases,
such as the alkalies, lime, magnesia, oxyd of iron and alumina, in
combination with silica, would form the solid crust. This would
afterwards be attacked by the acids precipitated, with water, un-
der the pressure of a high atmospheric column, and at an elevated
temperature ; from which would result the separation of a great
amount of silica, and the formation of an ocean, whose waters

Dr, Hunt on the Chemistry of the Earth, 203

would contain in the state of chlorids and sulphates, not only al-
kalies, but also large portions of lime and magnesia. At a later
period, the decomposition of exposed portions of the silicated crust
under the influence of water and carbonic acid, would give rise,
on the one hand to clays, and on the other to carbonate of soda.
This latter, reacting upon the calcareous salts of the sea-water,
must produce chlorid of sodium and carbonate of lime. We have
here a theory of the source of the quartz, the carbonate of lime,
and the argillaceous matters of the earth's crust, explaining at the
same time the origin of the chlorid of sodium of the sea, and the
fixation of the carbonic acid of the atmosphere in the form of
carbonate of lime. In this is seen a great and harmonious series
of chemical processes, which have operated, and which continue
to operate at the surface of the globe. These notions of the chem-
istry of the earth has been taught in my public lectures for the
last four years, and will also be found in a paper read before the
Geological Society of London on the 5th of January, 1859, and
published in the Quarterly Journal of the same Society for that
year, p. 488. In support of these views will be found the results
of a series of investigations published in the Reports of the Geo-
logical Survey of Canada, and in the American Journal of Sci-
ence for 1859, upon the reactions of solutions of bicarbonate of
soda with sea-water, and upon the conditions required for the
precipitation of carbonate of magnesia and the formation of dolo-
mite. We have there also shown the mutual decomposition at
ordinary temperatures, of solutions of bicarbonate of lime and
sulphate of magnesia, resulting in the formation of gypsum, and
of a soluble bicarbonate of magnesia, which becomes the source of
dolomite or of sepiolite. A notice of the first part of these researches
will be found in the Comptes Eendus for May 23, 1859. In the
continuation of them, as cited above, it has been shown that the
association of magnesian and pure limestones, establishes the fact
that these rocks have both been deposited as sediments, and
that the hypothesis which explains the origin of dolomites by a
subsequent alteration of pure limestones is inadmissible. It was
also shown that great portions of limestone, even in fossiliferous
formations, have the characters of precipitates resulting from
■ chemical reactions, and have never formed part of organised be-
ings ; which last, moreover, owe their carbonate of lime to similar
reactions.

My views upon the composition of the primitive ocean were

2^4 Dr, Hunt on the Chemistry of the Earth,

farther supported by the analyses of nuraerous saline waters from
Lower Silurian limestones. In these waters, the bases of which
are almost wholly in the condition of chlorids, about one-half of
the chlorine is combined with sodiura, and the other half is nearly
equally divided between calcium and magnesium.

The Academy will perceive from the short analysis above given,
the extent and the importance of my generalizations, with which
the ideas of Mr. Cordier are, for the most part, in perfect accord-
ance. It will farther be observed, that the publication of Mr.
Leymerie, in which similar views are, to a certain extent, indi-
cated, (see the Comptes Rendus of March 10, 1862,) dates only
from 1861, while my own papers appeared in 1858 and 1859.

My researches upon the origin of dolomites and limestones fully
justify the previsions of Mr. Cordier. He however, in his theory,
excepted the limestones of primitive formations, but these are
known to modern geologists to be nothing more than metamor-
phosed sedimentary formations, and consequently offer no excep-
tion to the general view. The different sources of carbonate of
soda indicated by Mr. Cordier, may moreover be reduced to a
single one, inasmuch as both the salts of alkaline springs, and those
of what he calls plutonic emanations, are probably derived from
the decomposing feldspathic minerals of sedimentary rocks. The
argillaceous rocks, deprived of a large proportion of the alkali
which they once contained in the form of feldspars, are the equiv-
alents of the limestones which have been formed at the expense
of the chlorid of calcium of the primitive ocean.

The waters of certain rivers contain alkaline carbonates, in some
cases with notable proportions of silica and potash ; an example
of this is found in the water of the Ottawa. The presence of
silica and potash in river waters appears to be in great part due
to the soluble matters derived from the decomposing vegetation
of peat bogs, for in the waters of deep-seated springs, both neu-
tral and alkaline, the salts of potash are generally found in very
minute quantities. This is not surprising \^hen we consider the
great stability of potash-feldspar, and also the power which alum-
inous soils possess of removing silica and potash from infiltrating
waters, and of replacing the latter by soda. Atmospheric waters thus
dissolve from sediments only the soda, lime and magnesia which
these contain, and, with the intervention of organic matters, oxyd
of iron, and sometimes oxvd of mano-anese. It results from these
affinities that the sediments which are most silicious, and conse-

Dr, Hunt on the Chemistry of the Earth. 205

quently most porous, retain at last little more than silica, alum-
ina and potash; while the more or less impalpable and imperme-
able sediments, which include large proportions of clay and marl,
retain their soda, lime, magnesia and oxyd of iron, and yield,
when metamorphosed, triclinic feldspars, pyroxene, hornblende,
and other minerals of basic rocks. The alteration of the more
silicious and thoroughly lixiviated rocks, on the contrary, will
yield chiefly orthoclase, mica and quartz. In this way is
explained the origin of the two great classes of rocks, the gran-
itic or trachytic, and the pyroxenic types. These two types ap-
pear alike among the metamorphic strata, and the intrusive
masses, which last we have distinguished by the title of exotic
rocks, regarding them as displaced metamorphosed sediments,while
the metamorphic strata in situ are indigenous rocks. It follows
as a consequence of the principles above defined, that the com-
position of aluminous sediments must vary in the different geo-
logic epochs. In the Laurentian, which is the oldest known system,
rocks, having abase of triclinic feldspars, which contain much
soda, abound, while argillaceous rocks, like argillites, are un-
known. These however become abundant in more recent for-
mations, where natriferous anorthites, like those of the Lauren-
tian system, are comparatively rare. (See farther Quar. Jour.,
Geological Society, 1859, p. 488, and Am. Jour, of Science.)

ARTICLE XXI. — Description of a new Enaliosaurianfrom the
Coal Measures of Nova Scotia. By 0. C. Marsh, B. A,
(Abridged from SUliman^s Journal.')
The Reptilian remains from the Coal-measures, hitherto de-
scribed, are few in number, and have nearly all been regarded as
Batrachian, or Amphibian. Previous to the year 1844, the
existence of even this low form of reptilian life during the Car-
boniferous period was unsuspected by most geologists, and its
first appearance upon the earth confidently referred to the Per-
mian epoch. In that year Herman von Meyer announced the dis-
covery in the Rhenish Bavarian Coal-measures of a reptile allied
to the Salamanders, which he described under the name Apateon
pedestris;^ and about the same time Dr. King published an
account of the footprints of a large Batrachian, which he had

• Leonhard and Bronn, Neues Jahrbuchfiir Mineralogie, etc., 1844, page
33$.

S06 Marsh, description of a new Enaliosaurian

observed in the coal strata at Greensburg, Penn * In 1852 Sir
Charles Lyell and Prof. J. W. Dawson obtained in the Coal-
measures of Nova Scotia the bones of the Dendrerpeton Acadia-
num (Wyman and Owen), which were the first reptilian osseous
remains described from the Carboniferous rocks of America.f

Since these discoveries were made, the Coal-fields of England
and Nova Scotia, as well as those of Ohio and Pennsylvania, have
aff'orded additional Batrachian, or Amphibian, bones and foot-
prints, so that at the present time the prevalence of this type
of reptilian life during the Carboniferous period is generally ad-
mitted. The more recent researches of Prof. Dawson in the
Coal formation of Nova Scotia have been rewarded by the im-
portant discovery of a new genus (^Hylonomus) of very small rep-
tiles, which, he considers, had affinities to the Lacertians, and
possibly belonged to that family, rather than to the Batrachians.|

The remains which form the subject of the following description
are of great interest, since they indicate the existence during the
Palaeozoic period of a group of highly organized marine reptiles
of large size, which have previously been found only in Second-
ary strata. These remains consist of two vertebrae, or more strictly
two centra or bodies of vertebrae. The vertebrae was discovered
by the writer in August, 1855, while examining the Coal-measures
of Nova Scotia in company with his friend, Mr. WiUiam E. Park, of
Andover, Mass. Their resemblance in form and appearance to the
vertebrae of an Ichthyosaurus was so marked, that at the time of the
discovery the writer referred them to that genus, and made a careful
exploration in the vicinity for further remains, but without success.
As soon as an opportunity occurred, the fossils were compared
with the vertebrae of Ichthyosauri from the Lias, and, although
some points of difi'erence were noticed, the Enaliosaurian charac-
ters seemed to be equally well marked in each. Wishing to ob-
tain, if possible, some additional remains, the writer for sometime
deferred publishing a description of the vertebrae ; but a careful re-

* Description of fossil footmarks (of Thenaropus heterodactylum) found
in the Carboniferous series in Westmoreland County, Penn. ; by Alfred
T. King, M.D., Am. Journal of Science, vol. xlviii, page 343. Also in
vol. i, new series, page 268.

f On the remains of a reptile (Dendrerpeton Acadianum, "Wyman and
Owen), and of a land shell discovered in the interior of an erect fossil
tree in the Coal-measures of Nova Scotia ; by Sir Charles Lyell, F.R.S.,
&c., and J. W. Dawson, Esq. Quarterly Journal of the Geological So-
ciety, London, May, 1853, vol. ix, p. 58.

X Proceedings of the Geological Soc. of London, 1859. Also Supple-
ment to Acadian Geology, page 33.

from the Coal Measures of Nova Scotia. 207

examination of the locality during the past summer afforded nothing
of a similar nature, and there seemed to be no reason for longer
delay in announcing so important a discovery. The remains were,
accordingly, briefly noticed by the writer in the last number of
the American Journal of Science ; and, as they appeared to be
generically distinct from any hitherto described, he then proposed
for the species the name Eosaurus Acadianus, in allusion to the
early appearance on the earth of this higher type of reptilian
life*

The locality which furnished these fossils is at the South Jog-
gins Coal formation, in Nova Scotia, on the southern shore of
the Chiegnecto channel, a branch of the Bay of Fundy. The
Coal-measures at this place, according to Sir W. E. Logan, havef
a vertical thickness of 14,570 feet, or nearly three miles; and con-
tain seventy-six distinct seams of coal, with erect trees and plants
at twenty-two different levels. The strata dip to the south at an
angle of about 25° ; and the destructive tides of the bay are con-
stantly undermining the high cliffs, and exposing for miles along
the coast fresh sections, rich in fossil treasures of vegetable and
animal life.

The present remains were imbedded in a stratum of argillaceous
chocolate-colored shale, which forms part of group XXVI. in the
elaborate section of the formation made in 1852 by Sir Charles
Lyell and Prof. J. W. Dawson. J The position of this group is a
little more than 10,000 feet above the lower limits of these Coal-
measures, and beneath nearly 5,000 feet of coal strata, containing
at least twenty separate veins of coal. It is about 800 feet above
the locality which afforded the remains of the Dendrerpeton and
Hylonomus.

This group is sixty-six feet in thickness ; and consists of choco-
late and gray shales, containing ironstone nodules, and interstrati-
fied with bands of gray sandstone, in which may occasionally be
observed ripple marks, and carbonized land plants. Erect Sigil
larioe, often of large size, occur at one level, and erect Calamite
at another. Prof. Dawson considers these deposits estuary or flu-
viatile sediments, covering flats, which were at times dry, or near-

* From r)ws the dawn, and cravpos, a lizard. The specific appellation
is from Acadia, a former name of Nova Scotia.

t First Report on the Geology of Canada, 1845,
X Transactions Geological Society of London, 1853.

208 Marsh, description oj a new Enaliosaurian

ly so, and at others inundated. On one of the rippled sandstones
he noticed a series of footprints, which he supposes might have
been made by a large Dendrerpeton.

Group XXV., immediately beneath the locality of the vertebrae
is ab'tut twenty feet in thickness; and consists of a series of un-
derclays, or fossil soils, with S ti(/maria, Siud small seams of coal, in
which may be seen Sigillorim jmd Lepidodendra. Two feet below
group XXVI. there is a stratum of bituminous limestone, which
contains the scales of ganoid fishes (^Palceoniscus), coproiites, bi-
valve shells of the genus Naiadites and Spirorbis carhonarius at-
tached to plants and trunks of Sigillarioe.

The vertebrae, as already stated, are two in number : and when
discovered were attached to each other. Their uniformity in size
and appearance, as well as their collocation when found, would in-
dicate that they belonged to the same animal, and were contiguous
in the vertebra! column. They are remarkably well preserved ; and
this results from their complete ossification in their natural state, as
well as from the peculiar matrix which has since contained ihem?
and furnished the material for their mineralization. The posterior
vertebra, in fact, with the exception of a small fracture, seems to
be nearly as perfect as in its original condition ; and from it the
description and measurements which follow are mainly tak'^n.

k close examination of the fossils shows, that subsequent to the
death of the animal, and before being imbeded in the shale, they
were subjected to considerable violence. One of them has been
pushed aside from its original position about one-third of its di-
ameter, and also turned on its axis about 90°, so as to leave its
superior surface in apposition with the lateral surface of its fellow.
Through the center of the anterior vertebra an irregular cavity has
been made, and a wide fissure separates a segment from the rest of
the centrum. The edges of each of the fossils are somewhat
abraded, apparently from having been rolled about by water:
this, however, could not have been long continued ; as the
delicate reticulate texture of the non-articular surfaces, being
protected by their slight concavity, is perfectly preserved These
injuries were evidently received before the entombment of
the vertebrae ; and, as no similar remains could be found in the
vicinity when these were discovered, it is quite probable that the
same force, which caused tlie injuries, also widely separated the
different parts of the skeleton.

from the Coal Measures of Nova Scotia. 209

The general form of the vertebrae is cylindrical, but their sides,
are somewhat compressed obliquely, which gives to the contour
of the center a sub-hexagonal appearance. They are much flatten-
ed in the direction of the antero-posterior diameter, which has to
the transverse diameter about the proportion of 1 to 3. Both the
articular terminal facets are deeply and equally concave ; but
from the center to the margin, the surfaces are convex, and this
convexity is greatest near the center. The cavities for the reception
of the intervertebral matter begin immediately from the margin ;
and are considerably deeper than in the corresponding arts of the'
/cA^^yosawrws, indicating a greater degree of flexibility in the spinal
column. The margins of the vertebrae are somewhat raised, as if they
had yielded to a forcible compression applied longtiudinally and'
hence the lateral surfaces of the centers are concave in an antero-
posterior direction. This concavity is greater in the upper half of
the vertebra, and was undoubtedly more marked originally than at
present, since the appearance of the margins indicates considerable'
abrasion. The non-articular surfaces of the centra are smooth
and regular ; and the external fibres of the osseous tissue are
singularly reticulated.

-The neurapophyses are not anchylosedto the centrum, as in the
mammalia, nor connected to it by sutures, as in the crocodiles ;
but their union with the vertebra is indicated by two pits, which
served for their articulating surfaces. These depressions are sit-
uated on the supei-ior surfaces of the centrum, intermediate be-
tween the anterior and posterior margins of the extremities. They
are circular in form, and sink directly into the body of the verte-
bra; instead of being elongated longitudinally, and raised on
ridges, as in the Ichthyosauri. The pits are about a line in depth,
and in the more perfect of the fossils are not in their original
position ; as a fracture in the upper part of the centrum has push-
ed them obliquely apart, so that a line passing through their cen-
ters would form an angle of about 30*^ with the transverse
diameter of the vertebra. The depressions occupy about one-third
of the distance between the margins of the articular extremities,
indicating that the base of the neural arch was of less antero-pos-
terior extent than the centrum. The floor of the spinal canal is
narrow, being but five lines in breadth ; and its surface in the pos-
terior vertebra is broken by the fracture previously mentioned,
which passes lengthwise through its center. No neurapophyses
were found with these fossils, but the nature of the superior arch

Can. Nat. 14 Vol. VII.

210 Marsh, description of a new Enaliosmirian

is indicated by the articular surfaces which served for its attach-
ment. "Without doubt its ossification was complete, since the
neurapophyses are never inferior in this respect to the body of the
vertebra. It is also probable that in the present case these parts
were anchylosed to each other and to their spine, as in the neural
arch of the Ichthyosaurus.

A rudimentary transverse process, or exogenous tubercle, is sent
off from each lateral surface of the centrum, at points equidistant
from the extremities ofthe vertical diameter. Their position is near
the margin of the anterior articular surface, and the edges of these
parapophyses make the transverse diameter of this extremity some-
what greater than that of the corresponding facet. At the surface
ofthe vertebra, each of these tubercles is about six lines in diameter,
but they rapidly diminish in size as they extend outward, and at a
distance of one and a half lines from the centrum terminate in obtuse
points. They present no indications of articular surfaces; but exter-
nally appear to be composed of radiating fibres of osseous tissue, and
without doubt served for the attachment of muscles. These ele-
vations resemble in form and position the rudimentary transverse
processes on the caudal vertebrae of the Ichthyosaurus tenuirostris,
and this similarity affords some ground for referring these fossils
to the same part of the vertebral column. That their true posi-
tion is in the anterior or central caudal region, is further indicat-
ed by the absence from the centrum of true costal surfaces, or ar-
ticular depressions for the attachment of ribs, which we should
expect to find present in the cervical or dorsal part of the spinal
column ; and also by the absence of a lateral compression of the
centers, which, in the Ichthyosauri, marks the posterior caudal ver-
tebrae. Both of the fossils are somewhat injured on their inferior
surfaces, and hence it is impossible to ascertain from the specimens
themselves whether haemapophyses originally existed.

A microscopic examination of the osseous structure of these
vertebrae of the Eosaurus exhibits well-marked reptilian char-
acters. The Haversian canals are few in number, but large in
size, as is usual in this class. The lacuna?, although somewhat
irregular in shape, are much elongated, and show very little re-
semblance to the quadrate or stellate form of the bone cells in
fishes. They are frequently arranged concentrically around the
Haversian canals, and their walls are almost invariably well defined.
Thecanaliculi, as in the Ichthyosaurus and Plesiosaurus, are not
numerous, but appear to be finer than those in most saurians. They

from the Coal Measures of Nova Scotia, 2 LI

do not taper off and ramify, as in the bones of fishes, nor anastomose
with the corresponding tubes from the neighboring cells, although in
one of the longitudinal sections there are a few indications of such
a connection. Some of the other sections examined show a larger
number of canaliculi ; but generally there are only a few
of these tubes attached to each lacuna, and in some cases they
appear to be entirely wanting. As the canaliculi vary
much in number in different saurians, and also with the age of
the animal, their paucity in this case is not remarkable. It is
possible, however, that the method employed in preparing the
sections was not well adapted to rendering these minute tubes
visible. In a part of the transverse section a structure is
seen, which is quite different from the surrounding osseous
substance. This may be due to the presence of a small
cavity in the bone before the introduction of the mineral
matter, or to an imperfect ossification at that point : more prob-
ably the latter, as these vertebrae, like those of the PlesiosauruSy
show in their interior structure a degree of ossification somewhat
inferior to that at the articular terminal surfaces.

It will readily be seen from the previous description, that a very
close resemblance exists between these vertebrae and those of the
Ichthyosaurus. This is especially noticeable in their flattened and
sub-hexagonal form, in their deep and regular terminal concavities^
and in the separate state of the neural arch. The differences
which exist, however, although of much less importance, must not
be disregarded. The most marked of these have already been
alluded to; and may be seen in the absence from the sides of the
centrum of costal articular surfaces, in the deeper concavities at
the vertebral extremities, and in the form and dimensions of the
superior arch. The first of these differences would alone be
deemed sufficient, by the highest authority, to establish a distinction
between these remains and the vertebra3 of the Ichthyosaurus;
for in that genus, according to the statement of Prof. Owen, which
is peculiarly applicable to the present case, — " The lower tubercle
for the attachment of the rib never wholly quits the centrum :
any detached vertebral centrum therefore that might be dis-
covered, which had no lateral tubercle or articular surface for a
rib, might be safely pronounced, whatever the form of its anterior
and posterior articular surfaces, not to have belonged to a true
Ichthyosaurus, provided it was not compressed laterally, as in the
small terminal ribless caudal vertebrie which supported the caudal

212 Marsh, description of anew Enaliosaurian

fin in the Ichthyosaurus.^^* The absence of any lateral compression in
the present remains, together with their sisse and proportions,
prove conclusively that they cannot be brought under the excep-
tion which Prof. Owen makes of the terminal caudal vertebrae of
the Ichthyosaurus ; and hence the application of his rule would
separate them from that genus.

The points of similarity, then, between these vertebrse of the
^o^awrws, and those oHhe Ichthyosaurus, which they most resem-
ble, clearly indicate that they belong to the same natural group
of marine reptiles, and to the same order; while the differences
which exist between them seem to be sufficiently numerous and
important to authorize the conclusion that they are generically
distinct ; as might naturally be expected from the vast periods
of time that separated their existence.

Since the genera of Enaliosaurians from the secondary forma-
tions, although contemporaneous, differed so widely in form and
structure, analogy would lead us to infer that a Palaeozoic repre-
sentative of the family would present still more marked peculiarities
in these respects. It is, therefore, particularly interesting to find
indications of so strong a resemblance between this primitive sau-
rian and the more recent Ichthyosaurus. These fossils, however,
present some features of a lower and more ichthyic type of struc-
ture than that genus possessed, and it is not unlikely that other
parts of the skeleton would show a wider divergence.

These vertebrae of the Uosaurus, although the only remains of
the genus at present known, are so characteristic and well pre-
served that they afford considerable evidence in regard to the
structure and habits of the animal to which they belonged.
They indicate that this reptile, like the later Enaliosaurians, was
of great size,* air-breathing, cold-blooded, and carnivorous ; that
it was aquatic, and probably marine, inhabiting the sea or es-
tuaries; or possibly, as might be inferred from the place of
its entombment, the mouths of rivers flowing into the sea.f The

* Report on British Fossil Reptiles, Part I, page 102.

♦ If we suppose the number of vertebrae and the relative length of the
head of this saurian to have been the same as the Ichthyosaurus, its entire
length must have been between twelve and fifteen feet, which is at least
three times the extent of any reptile hitherto found in Palaeozoic strata.

t Although the strata which contained the vertebra are probably
fluviatile or estuary deposits, this would not preclude the possibility of
their containing marine remains; as the waters from which they were
precipitated were undoubtedly so connected with the sea that an occasion-
al transfer of the inhabitants from one to the other might readily be made.
Analogous cases are not uncommon at the present time.

from the Coal Measures of Nova Scotia. 213

flattened form of the vertebrae ; the great depth of their ter-
minal concavities; the separate condition of the neural arch ; and
its short longitudinal extent at the base, — all are consistent with
the conclusion that the Uosaurus was capable of rapid progress
through the water in pursuit of its prey, which was probably fishes ;
and since it had then, according to our present knowledge, no su-
perior in point of size, it must have reigned supreme in the waters
of the Carboniferous era.

As the vertebrae which have been described in this paper were
discovered in 1855, they are, consequently, so far as the writer is
aware, the first osseous remains of a true air-breathing Saurian
from the Coal formation; and the only Enaliosaurian remains
yet obtained from below the Upper Triassic. Occurring as they
they do in Palaeozoic strata, they add another to the arguments
that have been brought against the so-called "Development
Theory ;" and they show with how great caution we should re-
ceive the assertions, so frequently and confidently made on nega-
tive evidence alone, of the exact date of the creation or destruction
of any form of animal or vegetable life. They prove, moreover,
that during the deposition of the Coal-measures the atmosphere
was suflBcientJy free from the destructive gases, which, many
suppose were contained in it, to permit the existence of a high
type of air-breathing reptiles. This period was, in fact, the fore-
shadowing of an age, then far in the future, when reptilian life
should hold undisputed sway upon the earth, until in turn supplanted
by a higher and a nobler form of existence.

KEVIEWS AND NOTICES OF BOOKS.

Fourth Report of the Geology of Kentucky^ by Owen mid others.
Report of the Geological Survey of Wisconsin^ by Hall and Wliit-

ney.
Report on the Colorado River of the West, by Ives, Newberry ^ and

others.
Report of the Geological Survey of Maine, by Hitchcock.

It is not a little creditable to the people of the United States,
that while engaged in the costly and bloody strife for their national
existence, they do not wholly intermit their public exertions
on behalf of natural science. Each of the above mentioned works

214 Reviews and Notices o/BooJcs,

is a bulky volume, aud some of them are expensively printed and
illustrated, while all are replete with interesting and important
scientific facts.

The Kentucky report possesses a melancholy interest in con-
taining the obituary of the head of the survey, Dr. Owen, who
closed his useful course in November 1860. It contains an im-
mense amount of valuable local geology by Owen, Lesley and
Lyon, and a great number of analyses of ores and soils by Dr.
Peter, chemist to the survey. One of its principal features, at
least to geologists at a distance, is the palseontological report by
Lesquereux, in which he enters into an elaborate investigation of
the flora of the several coal seams, with the view of ascertaining
their peculiarities, and of obtaining evidence for the determination
of the different seams from their fossil plants. We doubt if this
last end can be attained to the extent that Mr. Lesquereux anti-
cipates, since our experience has so far led to the belief, that in
the middle coal measures the flora is very uniform, and varies
rather in consequence of local differences of soil and moisture
than from any general cause. The differences, however, in the
upper and lower members of this great series are in some res-
pects quite marked ; and such investigations as those of Mr. Les-
quereux are most praiseworthy and valuable.

The "Wisconsin report is occupied in great part with a detailed
account of the remarkable deposits of lead, in the form of galena,
occurring in the older silurian limestones of Wisconsin and other
regions in the West. Prof. Hall contributes the introductory
chapter on general geology, and a palaBontological report, accom-
panied with a systematic list, which is in many respects one of the
most useful forms in which to present such information. In this
list appears the unfortunate little Lingula^ whose appearance in
the report of 1861 has excited some controversy in this Journal.
It is proper to state with respect to this, that Prof. Hall explains
the misapprehension, as he regards it, in respect to the date of
his notice of this species, by the delay which has occurred in
the publication of operations stated to have been made long pre-
viously. It is one of the misfortunes of the rapid progress of
palaeontology that it should occasion such interference of work-
ers in this field, and raise suspicions very unpleasant to all par-
ties.

The Colorado report includes the results of the exploration of
the largest stream but one flowing from the United States terri-

Reviews and Notices of Booh. 215

tory into the Pacific. The physical features of t^ie region are re-
markable, presenting a series of deep ravines or '' canons" in
which the Colorado and its tributaries flow at depths amounting
in some cases to two or three thousand feet below the level of
the neighbouring table-lands. The scenery presented in these
deep cuts is of the most magnificent description, apalling the vis-
itor with its gloomy grandeur. In the lofty precipices the whole
palaeozoic series of rocks may be seen in regular and undisturbed
succession, and resting on older metamorphic rocks ; while in the
higher table-lands cretaceous and triassic rocks appear, the
whole apparently constituting a continuous undisturbed series.
Dr. Newberry, the geokgist of the expedition, has well availed
himself of these magnificent exposures. He attributes the pre-
sent irregular features of the country entirely to aqueous erosion,
and this by running water. It is indeed the long prevalence of
river action in an undisturbed country that can alone produce
such efi'ects.

The survey of Maine, at the opposite extremity of the Union,
from the Colorado river, was commenced last year by Mr. Hitch-
cock, and his report shows a most praiseworthy diligence,
and an excellent combination of effort with others working in
neighbouring fields, along with great capacity for such work.
The observations made and fossils collected enable us for the first
time to form just ideas of the parallelism of large portions of the
rocks of Maine with those of New York, Canada and Nova Sco-
tia. The lower silurian rocks are represented by clay slates,
holding a few fossils regarded as primordial in their type.
Other deposits occurring in several places are regarded as upper
silurian, and correspond very nearly with the " Arisiag series " of
Nova Scotia. There are extensive deposits of Devonian rocks, in
one member of which, exposed at Perry, we have three remark-
able plant-beds, some of the fossils of which have been noticed in
this journal. The drift deposits have also been carefully sketch-
ed, and with the aid of Mr. Fowler of Portland, a list of these fos-
sils has been prepared, and comparisons instituted between them
and those of the similar deposits in Canada, with which they cor-
respond very closely in their arrangement and fauna. The indica-
tions are those of a marine fauna similar to those of the present
coast, but with a prevalence of more northern forms indicating a
somewhat colder climate. J. w. d.

516 Reviews and Notices of Booh.

Descriptive Catalogue of the Economic Minerals of Canada and of
its Crystalline EocJcs, by Sir W. E. Logan and T. Sterry Hunt.
This catalogue, prepared for the Great Exhibition in London, is
an instance of that thoroughness which characterises everything
attempted by Sir AV. E. Logan. It is in truth a descriptive list of
everything known to be of economic value in Canadian mineralogy;
and must be of immense service to the industrial interests of the
province ; more especially when practical men in England can
compare its clear and accurate statement of facts with actual
specimens of the products themselves, as exhibited in London.
Mr. Hunt adds a similarly descriptive catalogue of rocks ; which
with the specimens exhibited, will present to European geologists
a better exposition of the lithology of Canada than, in so far as
we are aware, any other region on this side of the Atlantic can
boast, and one quite equal, to say the least, to anything of the
kind afforded by European rock collections.

We cop3% as specimens, the notices of a few of the more impor-
tant of the newer mining localities and their products.
" Ramsay Mines, Ramsay, lot 3, range Q... Foley & Co.y Montreal^
"A vein cutting nearly horizontal beds of grey, geodiferous,
brown-weathering dolomite. The vein is composed of calcspar,
and has a breadth varying from two and a half to five feet, in
which the galena is disseminated in a width of from eight to twenty-
four inches. In some portions the vein is almost dead ground,
while in others, judging by the eye, it would yield nearly two
tons of eighty per cent, per fathom. The bearing of the lode is
about N.W., and its underlie to the north-eastward, about a foot
in a fathom. A trial shaft has been sunk on the lode to the depth
of thirty-seven feet, and the working of seventy-five fathoms of
ground, in 1858, yielded twenty-six tons of ore of eighty per cent.
A smelting furnace was erected to reduce the ore, and a ten horse-
power engine used to give blast to the furnace and dry the shaft,
but a considerable spring of water having been struck, it became
necessary to erect a more powerful engine,and one of fifty horse-
power has just been completed. The dolomite is underlaid con-
formably by sandstone, which crops out about a mile from the
mine, and is unconformably supported by crystalline limestone
and gneiss of Laurentian age. About 105 fathoms south-eastward
from the main shaft, a counter-lode joins the main one, at an
angle of about 20° ; its course being nearly N.N.E. and S.S.W.
At the junction of the two lodes a shaft has been sunk in sand-

Revieivs and Notices of Books. 2l7

stone, to a depth of 21 feet, and in the excavation of the pit, in
^hich the united lodes have a breadth of ten feet, there have been
obtained about seven tons of ore of twenty per cent. — Calciferous
formation^ Lower Silurian.''''
'* Ijansdowne, lot 3, range 8 Geological Survey T

" Ore from a vein cutting crystalline limestone, and running
N. 60° W. The vein has a thickness of from six to twelve inches,
and is composed of calcspar, in which the galena is disseminated
.in lumps, which, in a trial shaft of about fifty feet, sunk in 1854,
on the land of Mr. Buel, were sufficient to pay the expenses. The
largest of these lumps may have been five or six inches in width.
A counter-lode diverges from the main one near the shaft, and
in this neighbourhood, there occur four additional lead-bearing
veins, running parallel with the main one, all contained in a
breadth of about 1000 feet. They run obliquely across the lots,,
and thus intersect the lands of several proprietors. On lot four
of the same range, Messrs. Foley and Co., of Montreal, have sunk
a small shaft on one of the lodes. — Laurentian,^^
" Bedford, lot 19, range 7 Geological Survey.^''

" Ore from one of five nearly parallel lodes cutting crystalline
limestone, in a breadth of about a quarter of a mile, on the proper-
ty of Mr. Weston Hunt, of Quebec. The gangue of the lode is
a mixture of heavy spar and calcspar. About a mile to the east-
ward of these, are other nearly parallel lodes, also cutting crystal-
line limestone, on land belonging to the same proprietor. Shallow
trial shafts were many years ago sunk on some of these, but what
quantity of lead-ore was obtained in them is not known. On lot
13, range 5, of Bedford, Messrs. Foley & Co., of Montreal, have
sunk a trial shaft to a depth of fourteen feet, on a lead-bearing
lode of six inches, of which the gangue is heavy spar. It cuts
crystalline limestone, and reaches gneiss, and in both rocks shows
good bunches of ore. This lode is about three miles south-west
from those first mentioned, and runs parallel with them. — Lau-
rentianJ'^

"N.B. — The distance between the Lansdowne and Bedford
lodes is about twenty -five miles ; they bear for one another, and
it appears not at all improbable that the veins in the two locali-
ties may be identical, or belong to one group. If a line from
the Bedford to the Lansdowne lodes were continued twenty-five
miles farther, it would cross the St. Lawrence, and strike Rossis
in St. Lawrence County, New York, where a well known group

518 Reviews and Notices o/Booh,

of veins of lead ore intersects Laurentian gneiss. Though just
now abandoned, some of these are supposed to be still unexhausted,
and two of them are known, at one period, to have yielded a
great quantity of ore; one of them as much as |142 worth to
a fathom. The Ramsay lode belongs to a series of veins which
run parallel with those of Bedford, at a distance of about forty
miles to the north-eastward, and although the two groups cut
different rocks, both are probably of one age, which would not be
older than that of the Calciferous formation of the Lower Silu-
rian series."

" Bruce Mines, Lake Huron, Montreal Mining Co^

" At the Bruce mines, a group of lodes traverses the location in
a north-westward direction, intersecting a thick mass of inter-
stratified greenstone trap. The strata here present an anticlinal
form, the lodes running along the crown of it. All of the lodes
contain more or less copper ore, which is disseminated in a gangue
of quartz. The main lode, which is worked with another of ab-
out the same thickness, is, on an average, from two to four feet
wide. In a careful examination made in 1848, about 3000 square
fathoms of these lodes were computed to contain about 6j- per
cent, of copper. The quantity of ore obtained from the mine,
from its opening in 1847, was 472 tons of seventeen per cent
The deepest working is fifty fathoms from the surface. The num-
ber of men employed is thirty-four. Smelting furnaces, on the
reverberatory principle, were erected at the mine in 1853 ; the
fuel used in these was bituminous coal imported from Cleaveland ;
but after a trial of three years, the Company themselves ceased
smelting, and subsequently leased their smelting works to Mr. H.
R. Fletcher. At present, the ores are in part sent to the Balti-
more market, and in part to the United Kingdom. — Huronian^

" Wellington Mine, Lake Huron, West Canada Mining Co."

"The lodes of the Wellington Mines are probably a north-west-
ward continuation of those of the Bruce Mine. They are of the
same general character, some of them occasionally reaching a
thickness of ten feet. They occur on the ground of the Montreal
Mining Company, from whom they are leased by the West Can-
ada Mining Company at a royalty, and continue in the adjoining lot
called the Huron Copper Bay location, where they are worked by
the same Company. The quantity of ore obtained by this Com-
pany, from the Wellington mine, since 1857, is a little over 6000
tons of twenty per cent. In 1861, the quantity was 1175 tons of

I

Reviews and Notices of Books. 219

nineteen per cent., and from the Huron Copper Bay mine, pro-
bably about 1300 tons; making tbe total quantity obtained by
the two mining companies in that year about 3000 tons. The
deepest working on the West Canada Company's ground is about
twenty fathoms. The number of men employed on the Welling-
ton and Copper Bay mines is supposed to be about 260. All of
the ore raised by this Company is sent to the United Kingdom. —
Jluronian.''^
*' Acton Mine, Acton, lot 32, range 3,

W. H. A. Davies and C. Dunkin, Montreaiy
" The ore of the Acton mine occurs in masses subordinate to
the stratification, at the summit ofa band of greyish white and red-
dish grey compact sub-crystalline dolomite, from 200 to 300 feet
thick, belonging to the base of the Quebec group. The dolomite
is divided into two massive beds ; it is associated with a good
deal of chert, and encloses mammillated fibrous concretionary
forms, resembling those of travertine. At the summit, the
dolomite often terminates in a breccia or conglomerate, with an-
gular and rounded masses of limestone, intermingled with ragged,
irregular masses of chert. In many places the dolomite is mark-
ed by the occurrence of the yellow, variegated and vitreous sul-
phurets of copper, which are in patches, running with the strati-
fication. In the neighbourhood of these, many veins, and strings
and veins of quartz interset the rock, in various directions, and
hold portions of tbe sulphurets of copper. The copper ores which
often contain native silver, appear to be more abundant in the
upper part of the rock. At Acton the conglomerate is separated
from the main body of the dolomite by between eighty and ninety
feet of dark grey or black slates, intermixed with diorite ; in these
the conglomerate lies in large isolated masses, running parallel
with the summit of the main body of the dolomite. On the open-
ing of the mine, the sulphurets, where most abundant, appeared
partially to surround them ; in some parts constituting the paste
of the conglomerate. As the work proceeded, many slips and
dislocations, of no great magnitude, where found to cut the
strata. Some of them appear to run with the strike, and others
in two parallel series, oblique to one another. These disturb the
regular continuity of the copper-bearing bed, producing apparent
undulations in the dip, and causing the diorite and the limestone to
protrude into the copper ore, or unexpectedly to interrupt one an-
other. The ores were found to be concentrated in three large masses,

.220 Reviews and Notices of Books.

occurring in a length of about 120 fathoms. Proceeding south-
westwardly, the space occupied by tbe most northern mass, from
a breadth of a few inches, gradually widened out to about ten
fathoms, in a length of about forty fathoms ; beyond which it ap-
peared to be thrown about fourteen fathoms, obliquely to the
westward. The general bearing of the succeeding two masses
was still to the south-west. They were about fifteen fathoms ;
apart, and the larger or more southward one swelled to a breadth
of more than fifteen fathoms. The depth to which the ground has
been worked on the general slope of the bed, is about ten fathoms.
The cupriferous rock at this depth has a breadth of about twelv©
feet in a shaft on the northern mass, and shows rich ore in the
floor and the parts adjacent ; but with the exception of what is
called Pike's pit, in the most southern part, the floors of the other
masses do not at present exhibit that same abundance of ore which
characterized the upper part. The working of the mine however
up to the present time, has been confined to the extraction of the
rich ore which was in sight. Little or nothing has been done for
discovery, and it cannot be said how near to the present floor
of the mine, may be found other masses, similar to those that
have been excavated. Beyond these masses in opposite directions on
the surface, the ore becomes more scattered in the strata ; but
there is evidence of its continuance for several hundred feet, in
spots and patches occasionally aggregated into masses of much
less importance than the three principal ones. In the first few
weeks' work in 1859, about 300 tons of ore, containing nearly
thirty per cent, of copper, were quarried, in open cuttings, from
two of the masses, without making much apparent impression on
the quantity in sight. The total quantity sent from the mine up
to the end of ] 861, is said to be nearly 6000 tons; holding on the
average about seventeen per cent., of copper. — Quebec gro^ip^
Lower Silurian.^''

The catalogue gives similar details respecting our deposits o^
iron, nickel, silver, gold, chromic iron, petroleum, plumbago,
building stones, marbles, slates, clays, &;c., and should be in the
hands of every one interested in the economic geology of the'
country. It is, we believe, on sale at the bookstores, j. w. D.

Miscellaneous. 22 1

MISCELLANEOUS.

NOTICE OF THE NAflTURAL HISTORY COLLECTIONS OF THE MC(HL&
UNIVERSITY.

The collections of the University in Natural History, which
have been accumulating under the care of Dr. Dawson, are now
placed in the new rooms provided by the liberality of Mr. Molson,
though the naming of the specimens has not been quite completed,
and will still require much time.

The principle of arrangement adopted has been that of dis-
posing in flat and wall glass cases, suites of specimens illustrative
of the subjects of the lectures in Natural History, in the order in
which they are taken up in the lecture room. Geographical col-
lections, and duplicate and extra specimens are placed in drawers
under the cases in which objects of similar character are arranged.
The greatest possible facilities will thus be afforded to the ele-
mentary student, while there will also be opportunity for farther
and more detailed study.

The whole collection numbers about 10,000 specimens, of
which about 2000 have been collected by Principal Dawson, or
contributed from his private collection. The remainder have
been procured by purchase or exchange, or by donations from
friends of the University, The specimens may be grouped under
the following heads :

1. Mineralogy. — The basis of this department is the collection
of about 2000 Canadian and foreign minerals acquired from the
late Dr. Holmes. To this have been added several species and
varieties by donation and purchase.

2. Geology and Palceontohgy. — In this department are the
fossils of the Holmes collection ; the collections of rocks and
fossils presented by Sir W. E. Logan, and numbering 475 speci-
mens ; collections of British fossils presented by H. Chapman,
Esq., G. Evans, Esq., and others ; collections of tertiary and car-
boniferous fossils, and local collections from the Azores, Murray
Bay, Lake Superior, Lake Huron, &c., contributed by the Prin-
cipal ; with a great number of miscellaneous specimens, dona-
tions from friends and students. This collection is still very in-
complete in Permian, Triassic, and Tertiary rocks and fossils,

3. Zoology, — In this department there are about 300 speci-
mens of Vertebrate animals, selected as far as possible with a view

222 Miscellaneous,

to illustrate orders and families. Many of these specimens have
been acquired by purchase, a few have been collected for the
College, and there are valuable donations from J. Barnston,
Esq., and others. In Articulates we have the Couper collection
of 2400 specimens of Canadian insects, the Coleoptera of which,
numbering nearly YOO species, ha/e been catalogued by Le
Conte ; a miscellaneous collection of insects arranged by Mr,
D'Urban to illustrate the orders and families ; and a collection of
British Hymenoptera presented by the same gentleman. In
Arachnida, Crustacea, and Annelida, the collection is still incom-
plete, though there are a number of valuable specimens, collected
by the Principal, or contributed by Mr. R. J. Fowler and other
friends. In MoUusks the basis of the collection consists of speci-
mens presented by H. Chapman, Esq. ; the valuable collection of
South Sea shells presented by Sir Wm. Dennison ; 100 species of
fresh-water shells acquired from Mr. Anthony, and duplicates from
the Principal's collection. There are also a valuable collection of
Norway shells presented by R. McAndrew, Esq., the commence-
ment of a local Canadian collection, some rare and specially in-
teresting species obtained by purchase, and donations from several
friends. The collection of Radiates consists of specimens pro-
cured by the Principal, with donations from the Smithsonian In-
stitute, Mrs. J. Redpath, Miss Carey, Rev. C. G. Carpenter, Mr.
Fowler, Mr. Packard, and other friends. It is more full in
Echinoderms than in any other class, and is still very incomplete
in corals and their allies.

4. Botany. — The principal part of this collection is the Holmes
Herbarium of 500 Canadian plants, exclusive of the grasses and
carices, which though named and revised by Col. Munro, have
not yet been catalogued. There is also a collection of sixty speci-

'mens of Canadian woods collected by the late Dr. Barnston; a
collection of Canadian woods presented by D. Davidson, Esq. ; a
collection of Australian woods presented by Sir Wm. Dennison,
and collections of mosses, lichens, fungi and algae. The whole of
these are now very conveniently arranged in a separate room.
Only the commencement of a collection of exotic plants has as
yet been made.

5. Ethnology^ &c. — In this department there are a number of
Indian relics from Montreal, presented by the Principal, several
valuable casts of antiques presented by Mr. Blackwell, and a num-
ber of miscellaneous objects. It is not intended however to de-

Miscellaneous. 223

velop the collection much in this direction, as the available space
is not more than suflScient for the specimens required in Natural
History proper.

Measures are now in progress which it is hoped will tend to
supply some of the principal deficiencies, and add useful geogra-
phical collections, so as to make the Museum all that it is intend-
ed to be, a small but thoroughly serviceable collection for the
purpose of instructing students, and facilitating the research of
local naturalists, for which purposes it will be in constant use.
No attempt will be made to amass a large general collection like
that of the Natural History Society, or to rival either that institu-
tion or the Geological Survey in the departments in which they
are eminent. After securing a suflficient general collection of types
for educational purposes, any farther additions will be made as far
as possible in objects not adequately represented in the other collec-
tions in the city. Its arrangement in the new building will much
facilitate the labours of the professors of Natural History and
Mineralogy, and it is hoped, add new interest to the subject
in the minds of students.

It is intended that every specimen shall be labelled with its
name, locality, and donor, and this work has been already in great
part accomplished, so that it is hoped that the Museum may be
opened to students at the commencement of next session on the
6th September.

"Ow ike Land Flora of the Devonian Period in North-Eastern
America:' By J. W. Dawson, LL.D., RR.S.
(From Abstracts of the Proceedings of the Geological Society of London.)
First noticing what was formerly known of the Devonian Plant-
remains in these states of New York and Pennsylvania (TTall, Va-
nuxem, and Rogers), in Gasp^ (Logan), in New Bruns\» lek and
Main (Gesner, Robb, Bennet, Hartt, Matthew, and HiLehcock),
the author stated that with Messrs. Hartt, Matthew, and others at
St. John's, he had lately examined the productive localities near
that city, and is now enabled to add largely to the account of the
Devonian plants he had already published in the 'Canadian Natu.
ralist,' vol. vi. 1861. He now enumerates about VO species (32
genera) of plants as occurring in Upper Devonian of Pennsyl-
vania, New Brunswick, Maine, New York, and Gaspe, in the
Middle Devonian of New York and Gaspe, and in the Lower De-
vonian of Gaspe. Of these 70 species, two {^P silophyton princeps
and Cordaitesangustifolia) are referred also to the Upper Silurian

224 Annual Meeting of the

of Ga6p6; and 10 (not including these two) reappear in tte Car-
boniferous strata. The Devonian Flora is less perfectly preserved
than that of the Coal-measures, and is probably yet very imper-
fectly known. It presents more resemblance to the floras of the
Mesozoic period and of modem tropical and austral islands thatt
the coal-plants. The facies of the Devonian Flora in North
America is very similar to that of the same period in Europe.

NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF MONTREAL.

The Annual Meeting of this Society was held in their rooms
yesterday evening, the President, the Most Reverend the Lord
Bishop of Montreal and Metropolitan in the chair. A large at-
tendance of the members was present. The Recording Secretary,
Mr. John Leeming, read the minutes of the last meeting', after
which his Lordship the President said :

Gentlemen, — It becomes my duty once more, on this occasion
of the Annual Meeting of our Society to give some account of
our proceedings during the past year. I confess that it is with
no small consciousness of my own unworthiness for the post I
occupy, that I now again address you as your President ; because
I cannot but feel that I have myself been able to do so very little
for the advancement of those objects, which it is the business of
Buch a Society to investigate and illustrate. I can however, most
truly lay claim to a warm interest in its success, to an anxious
desire to encourage in every way I can, the learned and useful
labours of others ; and I do most sincerely rejoice in being able
to congratulate you on the success of those labours, and the steady
advance which the Society is making in general usefulness, and
in the estimation of the public. The more direct and systematic
work of the Society is that which is done at the regular monthly
meetings of the members ; where papers are presented and read
upon any of those subjects which come at all within the purvieu
of this Institution ; and discussions and conversations take place
respecting them. As will necessarily be the case, where science
of any kind is the subject matter, these may not always be equally
interesting to the million, but are sometimes, as Hamlet says,
t' caviare to the general ;" yet they have been valuable, as contri-
butions to the cause of Natural Science, in almost every depart-
ment, and have been afterwards preserved and widely dissemin-
ated in the bi-monthly numbers of the Canadian Naturalist.

Natural History Society of Montreal. 225

edited in this city by some of our members. These may be classed
under seven different heads, numbering altogether about 35 orig-
inal papers, exclusive of Dr. Smallwood's valuable meteorological
tables ; viz : — Geology, 13 ; Zoology, 12 ; Botany, 5 ; Ethnology,
1 ; Meteorology, 1 ; Philology, 1 ; Chemistry, 2.

List of original papers read before and presented to the Natural
History Society of Montreal, from May, 1861, to May, 1862 : —
On the Pre-carboniferous Flora of New Brunswick, Maine, and

Eastern Canada. By J. W. Dawson, LL.D., F.G.S.
On the origin of some Magnesian and Aluminous Rocks. By T.

Sterry Hunt, M.A., F.R.S.
Considerations relating to the Quebec Group, and the Upper

Copper-bearing rocks of Lake Superior. By Sir W. E.

Logan, F.R.S.
Notes on the History of Petroleum or Rock Oil. By T. Sterry

Hunt, M.A., F.R.S.
List of recent Land and Fresh-water Shells collected around Lakes

Superior and Huron in 1859-60. By Mr. Robt. Bell.
Catalogue of Birds collected and observed around Lakes Superior

and Huron in 1860. By Mr. Robert Bell.
On the Mammals and Birds of the District of Montreal. By

Archibald Hall, M.D., L.R.C.S.E. (A paper for which a

silver medal was awarded by the Society to its author :n

1839, but never before printed; it is now in course of pub-
lication).
On some of the Rocks and Fossils occurring near Phillipsburgh,

Canada East. By E. Billings, F.G.S.
Recollections of the Swans and Geese of Hudson's Bay. By Geo.

Barnston, Esq.
On the occurrence of Graptolites in the base of the Lower Silu-^

rian. By E. Billings, F.G.S.
A short review of the Sylviadae or Wood-warblers found in the

vicinity of Montreal. By H. G. Vennor.
Additional Notes on Aboriginal Antiquities found at Montreal.

J. W. Dawson, LL.D., F.G.S.
Mr. Barrande on the Primordial Zone in North America, and on

the Taconic System of Emmons. By T. Sterry Hunt, M.A.,

F.R.S.
List of Coleopterous Insects collected in the County of Lincoln,

C. W. By D. W. Beadle.

Can. Nat. 15 Vol. VIL

226 Annual Meeting of the

On the recent discoveries of Gold in Nova Scotia. By J. W.

Dawson, LL.D., F.G.S.
On the origin of the name "Canada." By Rev. B. Davies, LL.D.,

Member of the Council of the Philological Society of

London.
An account of the Animals useful in an economic point of view

to the various Chippewyan Tribes. By B. R. Ross, H.B.C.S.
On the Land and Fresh-water Mollusca of Lower Canada, with

thoughts on the general geographical distribution of Animals

and Plants throughout Canada. By J. F. Whiteaves, F.G.S.,

Honorary member of the Ashmolean Society of Oxford,

&c., &c.
On the Primitive Formations in Norway and in Canada, and their

Mineral Wealth. By Thomas Macfarlano.
On the Shore Zones and Limits of Marine Plants on the North-

Eastern Coast of the United States. By the Rev. Alex. F.

Kemp.
Contributions to Meteorology for the year 1861 from observations

taken at Isle-Jesus, Canada East. By Charles Smallwood,

M.D., LL.D., Professor of Meteorology in the University of

McGill College, Montreal.
Note on the Taconic System of Emmons. By T. Sterry Hunt,

M.A., F.R.S.
Notes on the Flora of the White Mountains, in its Geographical

and Geological relations. By J. W. Dawson, LL.D., F.G.S.
On the failure of the Apple Trees in the neighbourhood of Mont-
real.— A communication to the Committee of the Natural

History Society of Montreal. By John Archbold.
On an Erect Sigillaria and a Carpolite from the Joggins, Nova

Scotia. By J. W. Dawson, LL.D., F.G.S.
The New Spectrum discoveries. By Professor Robbins.
List of Diurnal Lepidoptera collected (unless otherwise specified)

in the immediate vicinity of London, Canada West. By W.
Saunders.
An account of the Botanical and Mineral products, useful to the
Chippewyan Tribes of Indians, inhabiting the McKenzie
River District. By Bernard R. Ross, H.B.C.S.
List of Mammals, Birds, and Eggs, observed in the McKtnzie
River District, with Notices. By Bernard R. Ross, Correi
ponding Member, Nat. Hist. Soc, Montreal.

Natural History Society of Montreal, 227

Notes on Chemical Subjects. By Professor S. P. Robbins, Mc-

Gill Normal School.
On the date of the Pweport on the Geology of Wisconsin, noticed

in this Journal, Vol. VI, p. 465.
Many of these papers combine great practical utility, with the
scientific knowledge displayed in the manner in which the subjects
have been handled. For example : — " Considerations relating to
the Quebec Group, and the Upper Copper-bearing rocks of Lake
Superior," by Sir W. E. Logan. *' Notes on the History of Pe-
troleum or Rock Oil," by Professor Hunt. " On the recent dis-
coveries of Gold in Nova Scotia," by Principal Dawson. " On the
Primitive Formations in Norway and in Canada, and their Mineral
Wealth," by Mr. T. Macfarlane. (A series of exceedingly valuable
papers.) " On the failure of the Apple Trees in the neighbour-
hood of Montreal," by Mr. John Archbold. — While others were
of such a nature as to be of general interest to all Canadians; such
as " Additional Notes on Aboriginal Antiquities found at Mont-
real," by Principal Dawson. '* On the origin of the name of
Canada," by Rev. Dr. Davies; and some others. But whatever
may be the estimate formed, by those amongst whom we live, of
the labours of this Society, and the proverb too often holds good
that " a prophet hath no honour in his own country;" yet the
Natural History Society of Montreal, is now a known and hon-
oured Institution, not only on this Continent, but in England, in
all parts of the Continent of Europe, and elsewhere. Besides its
regular circulation, 50 copies of the Canadian Naturalist are
distributed, on every issue of the Bi-monthly Numbers, amongst
as many of the principal Scientific Societies throughout the world ;
and extracts therefrom are constantly being republished by them,
in their own Journals and Periodicals, with most honourable men-
tion of our contributions to the cause of Natural Science in gen-
eral, and the illustration of Canadian Natural History and Geology
in particular. I wish, also, to direct attention to our Museum,
which, in its Zoological Department, and indeed I believe I may
say, as a general collection, is second to none now existing in the
Province; and which we are anxious to see made useful, both as
a means of assisting the labours of students, and creating a taste
for Natural Science in the public at large. There is one depart-
ment of which I would make special mention, both on account of
its own value, and also because it: is only very recently that it has
been placed in a condition to be at all easily accessible by those

228 Annual Meeting of the

ceeking information from its stores. I allude to the Rerharium^
respecting which I have received an interesting account from the
Rev. A. F. Kemp, than whom there is no one amongst us better
qualified to judge of its value, or describe its contents.

Some account of the Herbarium of the Natural History Society
of Montreal.

" A Committee has been appointed to put this valuable Herba-
rium into such order as to render it henceforth more useful for
the promotion of botanical research. Some progress has already-
been made in the work. It has been put into the hands of a gen-
tleman well acquainted with the method adopted by the Botanical
Society of Edinburgh in the preparation and arrangement of spe-
cimens. Less is known about the collection of dried plants, and
less attention has been directed to it than its extent and value
merit. It is understood that the late Dr. Holmes, whose Her-
barium is one of the treasures of the McGill Museum, presented
duplicates of most of his specimens, many years ago, to the Natu-
ral History Society. These form the original nucleus of our
Herbarium. Additions have from time to time been made to it
by other friends of the Society. Lady Dalhousie, who, while in
Canada, was an enthusiastic botanist, presented a large collection
of well prepared specimens of Canadian Flora, which it is under-
stood forms part of the collection. The chief and by far the
most valuable portion of the Herbarium, as well as the case in
which it is preserved, was however bequeathed to the Society
by the late Mr. Macrae, who devoted some years to the study and
collection of Nortti American Flora. For this purpose he trav-
elled extensively in the Northern States of America and in Canada
East. He devoted much time and care to the preparation of his
callections, and has left them in admirable condition and preser-
vation. They have all been determined in accordance with the
system of the latest American botanists ; and comprise several
valuable specimens from the Herbaria of Carey and Gray. Mr.
Macrae fell into ill health and was long an invalid. An enthusiast
in the science of botany, he deserves honourable mention and re-
membrance. Although he published nothing to attract attention,
he yet is entitled, considering the extent and beauty of his collec-
tion, to be named along with the distinguished Botanists of
America. The collection should be entitled the Macrae Herba-
rium. If properly labelled and catalogued, it would form a good

Natural History Society oj Montreal, 229

oasis for a eomplete illustration of North American Botany. It

is hoped that before long, by the exertions of the Committee to
whose care the Herbarium has been entrusted, it will be rendered
easy of reference to the members of the Society, and that by a
system of exchanges its lacunae will be filled up."

" It is also worthy of notice that the Society has a considerable
collection of Marine Alga3, carefully catalogued and determined,
which miorht be useful to the Students of this department of
Botany. The Society will be happy to receive additions to these
collections from scientific friends."

The usual course of Somerville lectures were delivered during
the last winter ; as will be more fully noticed in the report of the
Council, which will be read to you by-and-bye. I was only able
to be present at two out of the six, having been absent from town
when the rest were delivered, or else prevented by some unavoid-
able engagement elsewhere. But if the others were as interesting
as those I heard, which I have every reason to believe they were,
they will well have kept up the good name which the Society has
earned in former years.

The first lecture, at which I was present, was that delivered by
Rev. A. F. Kemp, " On minute forms of life, especially addressed
to the young." And it was matter of much regret to me and
many others, that he so rigidly confined himself as to time, that
he could not make use of half the very beautiful diagrams, which
he had so carefully prepared to illustrate his subject. The other
lecture was by the Rev. E. Wood, " A popular account of the
Durham Coal-fields, with a brief narrative of a visit underground.'^
This was, I should think, one of the most popular of the whole
course ; both from the graphic description given of those subter-
raneous regions — which, however, I own seem to me much pleas-
anter to hear of than to explore — and also from the circumstance
that just at the time of its delivery we had received from England
the heart-rending intelligence of the terrible catastrophe at the
Hartley Colliery ; the nature of which the lecturer most fully
explained w^ith appropriate diagrams. I think then that in various
ways the Society is endeavouring faithfully to accomplish the ob-
jects for which it was incorporated, and to aid in which it receives
an annual grant from the Legislature. And some indication that
it is at length beginning to be better appreciated by the citizens
of Montreal, may be gathered from the fact that 87 new mem-
bers have joined us during the last year, more than one-third as

230 Annual Meeting of the

many as our whole previous numbers. When I look bact upon
the state of the Society some ten years ago, at the time of
my first becoming a member of it, when I think of the feeble
efforts it was then making for the mere preservation of its actual
existence, when I contemplate the names now on our list, both as
to numbers, and, in so many instances, as to standing and well
earned reputation, as men of science and learning, the good re-
sults of whose labours are acknowledged far and wide, wherever
natural science is valued and cultivated, when I look at our pres-
ent place of meeting with its well arranged museum, laboratory,
library, and lecture room, when I see how and by whom I am
now surrounded and supported, I begin with some confidence to
realize the truth of the motto which the Society has adopted, and
I feel that it is indeed becoming no idle boast to assert, " Tandem
fit surculus arbor." And though our usefulness and progress are
still very much crippled by the remaining debt due by the Society,
incurred by erection of this building in which we are now as-
sembled ; yet 1 cannot but entertain a strong hope that, by the
increasing support of our fellow-citizens, which it is our endeavour
to merit by our labours, we shall, at no distant day be entirely
relieved from this incumbrance.

Report op Council.

The period having arrived when it becomes the duty of your
Council to lay before you the usual Annual Report, they have
now the pleasure of presenting you their Report of progress dur-
ing the past year, and such a statement of the affairs of the So-
ciety as they hope will meet with your entire approval.

The Society during the past year has steadily advanced and
prospered. Many valuable and interesting papers have been
read, the monthly meetings have been well attended, and the
Somerville Course of Lectures delivered to large audiences. Im-
portant additions have been made to the Museum and the Lib-
rary, the list of members has largely increased, and the amount of
dues received from this source has improved the finances of the
Society. The publication of the " Canadian Naturalist and Geo-
logist " has been continued with increased efficiency, and its cir-
culation much extended.

LECTURES.

The following Annual Free Course of Somerville Lectures was
delivered under the auspices of the Society :

Natural History Society of Montreal, 231

February 6th, 1862. — On the harmoDy resulting from apparent
discords and anomalies in nature. — Charles Robb, Esq., C.E.

February 13th, 1862. — On the utility of birds to agriculture, and
the desirability of endeavoring to prevent their destruction on
the Island of Montreal. — Alfred Rimmer, Esq.

February 20th, 1862. — On minute forms of life, especially ad-
dressed to the young. — Rev. A. F. Kemp.

February 29th, 1862. — " A popular account of the Durham coal
fields, with a brief narrative of a visit underground."

Rev. Edmond Wood, M.A.

March 6th, 1862. — On some relations of the mineral, vegetable
and animal kingdoms. — Dr. T. S. Hunt.

March 20th, 1862. — On the Geological History of a lump of
coal. — Dr. Dawson.

MEMBERSHIP.

This department has been under the charge of a Committee of
the Council of four members, whose labors have been most praise-
worthy and successful.

The list of members compared with that of last year is as fol-
lows : —

1860-61 1861-62

Life members, 36 38

Ordinary members, - - - - 180 261

Eighty-seven ordinary members having been elected during
the year, and two only having resigned, and two died. Two cor-
responding members only were elected. Two ordinary members
of the Society, C. Dunkin, Esq., M.P.P., and H. J. Ibbotson,
Esq., have been elected life members on account of very ttumifi-
cent donations of books to the library.

PAPERS READ.

During the year twenty-eight papers have been read at the
monthly meetings, and the more important of them published in
the " Naturalist." These papers have been more fully noticed in
the President's address.

PUBLICATION 0» THE " NATURALIST."

In connection with the system of exchanges with scientific
journals of other countries, your Council have to rem^rk that the
papers published in the " Naturalist " have been extensively re-
produced in other journals, and the reputation of this society, and

232 Annual Meeting of the

its journal extended and increased, and the "Naturalist" obtained
a wider and larger circulation and a foremost place as one of the
representatives of Canadian science, very many valuable ex-
changes have thereby been added to our library, which when
carefully preserved and bound will largely increase the number
of volumes in charge of the librarian.

To D. A. Poe, Esq., of the Editing Committee, to whom was
entrusted the editorial supervision, as well as the members of the
Editing Committee, the Society is indebted for their exertions and
labors in connection with the " Naturalist."

MUSEUM AND LIBRARY.

The Reports of the Library Committee and of the Curator are
herewith submitted. Very many valuable donations have been
presented to the Society during the past year, both to the muse-
um and to the library. There is still much to be done in the
labelling and arrangement of the specimens in the museum ; and
it is hoped that this work will be pushed forward by our succes-
sors. The cabinet-keeper, Mr. Hunter, has assiduously attended
to his duties, the interests of the Society and the care of the mu-
seum. The numerous additions to the latter have been carefully
prepared and preserved by him.

GENERAL AFFAIRS.

The Council have to acknowledge with pleasure the receipt of
the annual grant of $1000 cy., from the Government in aid of the
Society. The financial aflairs as detailed in the annexed Treas-
urer's Report are highly gratifying. The actual debt of the
Society has been lessened about $300 cy., and all interest on the
loans and the old accounts fully paid up. Negotiations to trans-
fer the debt in mortgage, with a lesser rate of interest, are now
nearly completed. There is every reason to ho}*e that, by in-
creased exertion, the burdensome debt now cripphng the Society
may in the coming year be decreased.

The notification of the monthly meetings is now made by cir-
cular to each member, and the charge for advertisements in the
newspapers, which from the number of meetings formerly reached
to a large sum, entirely done away with, and the attendance of
members secured at little expense.

Petitions have been forwarded to the Legislature for legislative
enactment for the protection of the smaller birds, similar to that
which exists in other countries, and should action be therein taken

Natural History Society of Montreal, 233

by the Legislature, great benefit will be conferred on the farmer
and gardener. An act for the amendment of the constitution is
now under the consideration of parliament, and, if passed, the effi-
ciency of the Society will be thereby increased.

A committee of the members is now on deliberation concerning
the "disease of the apple trees on the Island of Montreal," a sub-
ject of great and practical importance, and their report will be of
great value to horticulturalists and to the Society.

From a review of the events of the past year, and the progress
of the Society, your Council have every reason to believe that
their ardent wishes for the increase of the prosperity and useful-
ness of the Society will be realized, and that the Society may meet
with still greater success, and obtain that support from its mem-
bers and the public to which it is justly entitled, much, very much
depends upon the zeal and activity of the members, and if they
would see the Society rank more prominently as a public institu-
tion, its debt liquidated, and its membership augmented, they too
must assist. It is upon the subscription that we are to depend in
a great measure for funds not only to meet the current expenses,
but to pay the old debts, and enable the Society to engage in fur-
thering the study of Natural History. Let the members feel that
a certain amount of responsibility rests upon them. The Council
acting in conjunction would find additional motives for zeal and
activity, and in promoting the legitimate objects of the Society.
They should feel that the members are auxiliaries in their labors,
and that their valuable counsel and assistance is afforded. The
Society then will surely realize its important position.
Montreal, 15th May, 1862.

List of Donations to the Museum.

Donors' Names.

Donations.

John Leeming, Esq

James Ferrier, Jr., Esq.
Stanley C. Bagg, Esq..

Mr. William Hunter.

Specimen of a Wi\\-^s,h,{LepidosteusHuronensis.)

Do. do.

Snuflf-box of a Mandarin.
Map of the Seceding States of America.
Piece of Christ Church Cathedral Bell.
Piece of Magnetic Wire from Sebastopol.
Rock Specimen from Cape Diamond, C, E.

Do. Sault-aux-Recollets.

Male Canada Porcupine, (Hystrix dorsata.)
Nest of Indigo Bird, (Spyzia Cyanea,) 4 eggs.

234 Annual Meeting of the

List of Donations to the Museum.

Donors' Names.

Mr. William Nivin,

John Leeming, Esq.

S. J. Lyman, Esq. ...
Alfred Baynes, Esq. . .
Mr. John C. Struthers.

Mr. Atcheson

F. D. Fulford, Esq
Mr. David

Mrs. Col. Denny...

Mrs. Harvey

H. G. Vennor, Esq
George Barnston, ;

John D. McCord, Esq. .
Mr. William Hagar. ...

Donations.

Rice Bunting, Dolichonyx oryzevora.)
Baltimore Creole, (Icterus Baltimore.)
Red-winged Starling, (Aglaius Phaniceus.')
Tyrant Fly-catcher, male and female, (Muscica-

pa tyr annus.)
Yellow-billed Woodpecker, male and female,

(Picus varius.)
Common Blue-bird, female, (Sialia Wilsonii.)
Three Purple Grakles, two males and one fe-
male, (Quiscalus versicolor.)
Red-winged Starling, (Aglaius Phceniceus.)
Rice Bunting, (Dolychonyx oryzivora.)
Purple Finch, (Erythrospiza purpurea.)
Nest of Young King-fishers (7,) {Alcedo alcyon.)
Common Crow, (Corvus Americanus.)
A pair of live Turtles for the Aquarium.
A young female Fox, ( Vulpesfulvus.)
Common Tree Frog, (Hyla versicolor,) from

Darlington, 0. W.
Specimens of Conglomerate from Hamilton,

C. W.
Egg of the Great Northern Diver, or Loon,

( Colymbus glacialis.)
White-breasted Nest-hatch, {Sitta Carolinensis.)
Specimen of Garter Snake, (Coluber sirtalis.)
Female Gos-Hawk, (Falco paluinbarius,) from

Three Rivers,
kin of a Flamingo fro m Carthage.
A species of Lizard.

A species of Turtle from Constantinople.
Three Eggs of the Spotted Sandpiper.
Four Eggs of the White-throated Sparrow.
Garter-Snake and young, (Coluber sirtalis.)
Piece of the Cap of a Bell burnt by Confeder-
I ates at Harper's Ferry.

Mr. J. C. Swanston 'Coin of the reign of Queen Anne, IY03.

Mr. Ro we | Great Blue Heron, (Ardea Herodias,) from Nor-
ton Creek, C. E.
Mr. Thomas Swanston. . . Specimen of Horned Frog.

Peter Redpath, Esq.

Mr. Charles Robb.

Thos. Savage, Esq.

A. F. Brown, Esq

Mr. James Hempstead.

Mr. G. H. Vennor

Dr. J. A. Crevier

Mr. James Thomson. . .

Gorgonia pinnata from California.
Cray-fish from Mammoth Cave,
Virginia.

Copper Beads and Shells of Purpura ; Indian
relics found near Brockville, C. W., with
explanatory notice.
Great Horned Owl, (Bubo Virginiana,) from

Sheflford, C. E.
Specimen of Fruit.

Collection of New Zealand War Implements.
Salmon Trout from Lake Magog, C. E.
A Turtle from Constantinople.
Pair of Gold Fishes for Aquarium.

I

Natural History Society of Montreal,
List op Donations to the Museum.

235

Donors' Names.

Mr. John Sheppard .
John Leeming, Esq.
Dr. Dawson

Donations.

Specimen of Scrub Pine.

" Fungus.

Nine Busts and Statuettes.
Three Porcelain Jugs and Vases.
Collection of Plants from Mount Washington

List of Donations to the Library.

Donors' Names.

Names of Books.

Official

The Publishers

Exchange for Naturalist

W

The Publishers.

Official

The Author.

J. A. Perkins, Jr

Smithsonian Ins., Wash-
ington

Mr. Hammond

Royal Academy, Stock
holm

Dr. Dawson

U.S. Patent Office, Wash
ington

Canada Gazette.

Journal of Education.

Canadian Naturalist and Geologist.

Canadian Journal, Toronto.

Annals of Botanical Society of Canada.

Proceedings of Lit. and Hist. Soc. Quebec.

Silliman's American Journal.

Journal Franklin Institute.

Proceedings of Essex Institute.

" Entomological Soc. of Phila.j 'g

London Geologist. ^

" Technologist.

" Phytologist.
Journal of Society of Arts.
British American Journal.
Scientific American.
Academy of Arts and Sciences, Philadelphia,

5 volumes, and Nos. 329 to 884.
Statutes of Canada, in English and French.
Historical Magazine, June, 1861.
Explication du Zodiaque, Caen, 1861.
Les Oiseaux du Canada, par J. M. Lemoine.
Dundas, or Early Canadian History, by James

Croil, Esq.
Pamphlets on Sanguinaria Canadensis, by Dr.

Gibb.
Smithsonian Contributions for 1856.

Do. do.

Pamphlets on Nat. Hist. Konigsberg..

Entomologiska Bidrag, P. Ill, 1859.
Calendar of McGill University,

United States Patent Laws and Directions,

2 vols.
California Agricultural Soc. Jour., March to

May, 1861.

236 Annual Meeting of the

List of Donations to the Library.

Donors' Names.

Names op Books.

C. Dunkin, Esq., M.P.P,

S. L. Goodale, Esq.
Dr. Gibb, London.

Jules Marcou, Esq.

University of Norway. . ,
Hon. East India Co., Lon-
don

Geological Soc, Berlin. .
John Leeming, Esq

19 vols. Natural History of State of New York,

with the accompanying maps.
Ray's Natural History.
Report of Maine Board of Agriculture, 1860.
Addresses of Presidents Geol. Soc. of London,

3 copies.
Pamphlets on Taconic and Lower Silurian

Rocks.
Scientific Pamphlets, 1 book and 16 pamphlets.

Magnetical and Meteorolojgical Observations
for 1859, Bombay Observatories, 9 pam-
phlets.

8 pamphlets on Scientific Subjects.

Taylor's Statistics of Coal, 1 vol. 8vo.

Bituminous Substances employed in arts, Phil-
adelphia, 1855,

Waddington's Visit to Ethiopia, London, 1822.

Antiquities, &c., in St. Peter's, Westminster.

6 vols. Statistique General de la France,
vols. Bibliotheque des Memoires.

1 vol. Algebra, M. Bourbon.

5 vols. Chimie, Thenard.

I vol. Histoire des Etats Europ^ens.
" " de Moyen Age.
vols. CEuvres de Me. la Duchesse de Duras.

1 vol. Litt^rature et des Arts.
4 vols. Mulray's Chemistry.

vols. Wilkinson on Galvanism.

2 vols. Outlines of Mineralogy and Geology.

4 quarto vols. Life of James the First of England.

The Canadian Naturalist.
The Canadian Naturalist is sent to the following Institutions,
and Societies: —

CANADA, ETC.

University College, Toronto.

Trinity College,

Canadian Institute "

Knox College "

Victoria College, Cobourg.

Queen's College, Kingston.

Botanical Society, "

McGill College, Montreal.

Bishop's College, Lennoxville.

Laval University, Quebec.

Literary and Historical Society "

Natural History Society St. John, N. B.

Natural History Society oj MontreaL 237

UNITED STATES.

Harvard College Cambridge, Mass.

Amherst College ' Amherst.

Yale College, New Haven.

Natural History Society, Boston.

American Acad. Sciences "

Essex Institute, Salem.

Lyceum of Natural History, New York.

Astor Library "

Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia.

Franklin Institute *'

American Philosophical Society '*

Smithsonian Institute, Washington.

Academy of Science, St. Louis.

University of Nashville, Tennessee.

GREAT BRITAIN.

Geological Society, London.

Linnean Society, "

Royal Society, "

Entomological Society, London.

Zoological Society, "

Society of Arts, "

Chemical Society "

Geological Survey of Great Britain "

Botanical Society, Edinburgh.

Royal Physical Society, "

Royal Society, "

Royal Scottish Society of Arts, *'

Geological Society, Dublin.

Royal Irish Academy, "

Royal Society, "

Literary and Philosophical Society, Manchester.

Natural History Society, Newcastle upon Tyne

CONTINENT OF EUROPE.

Societe G6ologique de France, Paris, France.

Academy of Sciences "

Acad6mie des Sciences, Arts, <fec., Dijon. "

L'Acad6mie Royale des Sciences, etc Lyons. "

Academia Car. Leop., Jena, Saxe Weimar.

238 Annual Meeting of the

Kaiserlichen Academie, Vienna, Austria.

Im. Geological Institute "

DeutschesGeolog.Gesellschafft, Berlin, Prussia.

Koniglichen Akademieder Wissenschaften. " "

Koninklijke Akademie van Wetenschappen. Amsterdam.

Konigl. Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften. . .Gottingen.

Soci^t^ HoUandaise des Sciences Haarlem.

Konigl. Sachs. Gesellschaft der Wissen-
schaften Leipzig.

Society Imperiale des Naturalistes Moscou.

Konigl. Bayerischen Akademie der Wissen-

chaften Munich.

And to the following Periodicals : —

CANADA.

The Medical Journal, Montreal.

Journal of the Board of Arts Toronto.

UNITED STATES.

Silliman's Journal, New Haven.

GREAT BRITAIN.

Annals and Magazine of Natural History, . . London.

The Geologist, "

The Phytologist, "

The Zoologist, **

The Ibis, **

The Technologist, "

London, E. and D. Philosophical Magazine . "

Natural History Review, **

Microscopical Journal, '*

Chemical News, "

The Builder, "

The Engineer, , „ "

The Gardeners' Chronicle, '*

Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal,. . .Edinburgh.

CONTINENT OP EUROPE.

Annales des Sciences Naturelles, Paris, France.

Archives de Mus^e, , , " **

AUgemeine Deutsches Naturh. Zeitung,.. .Dresden, Saxony.

Natural History Society of Montreal, 239

Archiv. fur Naturgeschichte by Weigman,. Berlin, Prussia.

Leopoldina, Jena, Saxe Weimar.

Leonhard und Brohn Jahrbuch, Stutgardt, Wurtemburg.

Flora, Ratisbon, Bavaria.

OFFICERS FOR 1862-3.

President — The Lord Bishop of Montreal and Metropolitan.

Sir W. E. Logan, LL.D., F.R.S.
Principal Dawson, LL.D., F.R.S.

Vice-President J ^^"^^ ^' ^' ^®™P'
Vice-rresiaents^ ^^^ ^ ^ ^ j^^^.^^

T. Sterry Hunt, M.A., F.R.S.

E. Billings, F.R.S.

Corresponding Secretary — W. H. Kingston, M.D.

Recording Secretary — Mr. John Leeming.

Treasurer — Mr. James Ferrier, jr.

Curator — R. Craik, M.D.

Council — Rev. Dr. DeSola, Messrs. E. Murphy, Stanley C.
Bagg, Alfred Rimmer, W. Fraser,M. D., D. A. Poe, Prof. P. J.
Darey, M. A., Prof. A. Johnson, LL.D., C. Robb, C. E.

Library Committee — Messrs. J. C. Becket, H. Rose, Professor
Cornish, Dr. Fenwick, and D. Mackay.

Editing Committee of the ^^ Naturalist ^'' — Mr. D. A. Poe
Acting Editor ; Principal Dawson, Prof. T. S. Hunt, Mr. E.
Billings, Professor Robins, W. H. Kingston, M. D., and Mr. John
Leeming.

240 Muml Meeting of the Natural History Society,

moo
i-i c^ o
l^- O

5 ^

O <U

'a a g

t3 o bo

c3 DO d

o

o

to

CO

CO

t-

•

4J

f^

oe

.

!<;

•->

fc

„

i

Pi

gi;

H

u<

CO

M

fl«2

m d oS

T3 "^ "^
Oi V «
t» ► t-

C<I o « o

00 . ^ ^ ^

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
MOOC^OO.-<l:-OOC0— ■•^OJC^

^ O O CO 00 (M

•^ 00 C^ 00 fr- m o

-OO-^— '(Mi-<00C»00t3Tj>OC0

_ "" o

5iS

fl (D O ^ ^

_ «^ «"

<o • • • "^ fl « S fi

a : ^ • .2 « «= K §

«^ "-I t> H c3

' cS ^3 2

. - ^2 :: s 2 = 3 = =

5^pS

^

s

OS

S

o

MONTHLY METEOROLOGICAL REGISTER, ST. MARTINS, ISLE JESUS, CANADA EAST, (NINE MILES WEST OF MONTREAL,) FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL,
Latitude, 46 degrees 32 minutes North. Longitude, 13 degrees 36 minutes West. Height above the level of the Sea, 118 feet.
BY OHAELES SMALLWOOD, M.D., LL.D.

Barometer— corrected
and reduced to

32»F.
(English inches.)

Temperature of the

Tension of Aqueous

Direction of Wind.

W. S. W.

N. B. by B.

S.S. \r.

s;w.

N. N. E.
s'. e'. by 1

W. by N.

S. B. by B.
S. B. by E.

S.'by W.
S. W. by S.
W.

i-.e':'^-

W. by N.

II i J

[A oloudy sky is represented by li

iucWs.|

m.

2 p.m.

10 p. m.

4.

Cu. Str.

":

Cu.Str. 9. Hail i rain 7.10 pm.

rirr. Str.

10.

Jain.

jle'a^. Zodiacal Light Bright.

:::.::.: Z

8.

Clear.

Cirr. Cum
Clear.

S.H.9.30.

sliBl.t Bain.
'r' C^'str. 0.

IP

ISP-

gu^sfr":-
Clear.

1:

gi^^int^Bor.
aiV?2.' ZoiU'acal Light.

Ol'ear!'''Zod?4cal Light Bright.
£■■. Faint Aur. Bor.

Cu.Str.

i

;

it

REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF MAY, 1862.

Barometer— corrected
aud reduced to

(English inches.)

6 a.m.

2 p.m.

795

34.3

884

892

672

411

868

SSi

606

702

667

Direction of Wind.

N. B. by I

N. N. E.

w. s. w.

N. N. W.

W. S. W.
N.W. by \?

S. by W.
N. E.byB.

S. W.

slw!

W.

N. N. E.
N. N. B.
S. S. W.
S. by W.

"■MI:

byW.
.S. E.

iby W.

'. S. W.

REMARKS FOR APRIL, 1862.

Thermometer..

Iiowest point or -le:
Mean of Humidity
Snow f«r - • ^-
t hours 0.6

(■Highest, the 11th day, 30'407 ii
\ Lowest, tlie 23rd day, 29.464
J Monthly Mean, 30.074 day,

CHighest, the°m'h'day, 66=4.
3 Lowest, the 8th day,— 501.
IMonthly Mean, 39=06.
^Monthly Range, 61 =3.
tyof the Sun's rays, 82=2.
Terrestrial radiation.- 6 = 0.

lunting to 8.70 inches, it v
days amounting to 0.395 inches it

Most prevalent wmd, E. S. E.
Least prevalent wind, the S.

Most windy day the 24th day, mean miles per hour, 19.03.
Least windy day the 13th day, mean miles per hour, 0.00.
Aurora Borealis visible on 21 nights.
Zodiacal Light bright and well defined.
The Electncal state of the Atmosphere has indicated very
'eeble intensity. , ^ , ^ , , .. .

Fringilla Meladia, Song Sparrow. [Rosttgnol French) first

Swallows, k'irundo Rufn let seen 20th day.

" • !nsis, 1st seen flyij

t heard 29th day.

I flying N. 26th da.v.

byE.

N.'W.
S. W.
W.

by W.

s:e.

by W.
S. by W.
W. i W.

w. s. w.

S. B.

w.s.w.

W. by N.

itii

[A cloudy sky is represented b

Cu. Str.
Clear.
Hazy.

Cu. Str.
Clear.
0. C. Str.

Clear.
Cu. Str.
Hazy.

Meteor S. 8 p. m.

Cu.^Str.
Clear.

(■Highest, the 1st day, 30.129 inches.

iLowest, the 6th day, 29.343 "
Barometer ■}Moiithly Mean, 29.738

(Monthly Range, 6.784

(■Highest, the 8th day, 91 = 0.

ILowest, the 24th day, 28=2.
Thermometer, ■jjionthlv Mcan,54=61.

(Monthly Kange. 62=9.
Greatest intensity of the Sun's rays, 98 =2.

Lowestpointof Terrestrial radiation,— 24 = 7.

Mean ofhumidity, ■786.-Amouut of Evaporation, S.61 inc

Rain fell on 11 days, amounting to 2.726 inches ; it was rai

34 hours and 46 minutes and was accompanied by thunder

Amount of Evaporation 3 61 inches.

REMARKS FOE MAY, 1862.

Snow fell on 1 day amount
hours and 20 minutes.
Most prevalent wind. S. W,

ug to 3-911

Least prevalent wind, N

Most windy day, the

Least windy day, the

Aurora Borealis visihle

The Electrical state ol

Temperature of the ground 18 inchi

day; Calm.
2 nights,
he Atmosphere i

r^

rH («i? MH S»'

THE

CANADIAN

NATURALIST AND GEOLOGIST.

Vol. Vir. AUGUST, 1862. No. 4.

ARTICLE XXn.— ^ Lecture on Force, delivered before the
Royal Institution of Great Britain on the 'fith of June,
1862, hy Prof. John Tyndal, F.R.S.*

The existence of the International Exhibition suggested to our
Honorary Secretary the idea of demoting the Friday evenings
after Easter of the present year to discourses on the various agen-
cies on which the material strength of England is based. He
wished to make iron, coal, cotton, and kindred matters, the sub-
jects of these discourses ; opening the series by a discourse on the
Great Exhibition itself ; and he wished me to finish the series by
a discourse on Force in general. For some months I thought
over the subject at intervals, and had devised a plan of dealing
with it ; but three weeks ago I was induced to swerve from this
plan for reasons which shall be made known towards the conclu-
sion of the discourse.

We all have ideas more or less distinct regarding force ; we
know in a general way what muscular force means, and each of
us would less willingly accept a blow from a pugilist than have
his ears boxed by a lady. But these general ideas are not now
sufficient for us ; we must learn how to express numerically the
exact mechanical value of the two blows ; this is the first point
to be cleared up.

* From the L. E. and D. Philosophical Magazine for July, 1862.
Can. Nat. 16 Vol. 711

242 Professor TyndaVs Lecture on Force,

[A sphere of lead weighing one pound was suspended at a height
16 feet above the theatre floor. It was liberated, and fell by-
gravity. The weight required exactly a second to fall to the
earth from that elevation ; and the instant before it touched the
earth, it had a velocity of 32 feet a second. That is to say, if at
that instant the earth were annihilated, and its attraction an-
nulled, the weight would proceed through space at the uniform
velocity of 32 feet a second.]

Suppose that instead of being pulled down by gravity, the
weight is cast upward in opposition to the force of gravity, with
what velocity must it start from the earth's surface in order to
reach a height of 16 feet ? "With a velocity of 32 feet a second.
This velocity imparted to the weight by the human arm, or by
any other mechanical means, would carry the weight up to the
precise height from which it had fallen.

Now, the lifting of the weight may be regarded as so much
mechanical wort. I might place a ladder against a wall, and
carry the weight up a height of 16 feet; or I might draw it up
to this height by means of a string and pulley, or I might sud-
denly jerk it up to a height of 16 feet. The amount of work
done in all these cases, as far as the raising of the weight is con-
cerned, would be absolutely the same. The absolute amount of
work done depends solely upon two things : first of all, on the
quantity of matter that is lifted ; and secondly, on the height to
which it is lifted. If you call the quantity or mass of matter m,
and the height through which it is lifted A, then the product of m
into ^, or mh, expresses the amount of work done.

Supposing, now, that instead of imparting a velocity of 32 feet
a second to the weight, we impart twice this speed, or 64 feet a
second. To what height will the weight rise ! You might be-
disposed to answer, "To twice the height:" but this would be
quite incorrect. Both theory and experiment inform us that the
weight would rise to four times the height ; instead of twice 16^
or 32 feet, it would reach four times 16, or 64 feet. So also, if
we treble the starting velocity, the weight would reach nine times
the height; if we quadruple the speed at starting, we attain six-
teen times the height. Thus, with a velocity of 128 feet a second
at starting, the weight would attain an elevation of 256 feet.
Supposing we augment the velocity of starting seven times, we
should raise the weight to 49 times the height, or to an elevation
of 784 feet.

Professor TyndaVs Lecture on Force. 243

Now the work done — or, as it is sometimes called the mechan-
ical effect — as before explained, is proportional to the height, and
as a double velocity gives four times the height, a treble velocity
nine times the height, and so on, it is perfectly plain that the
mechanical eflfect increases as the square of the velocity. If the
mass of the body be represented by the letter m, and its velocity
by V, then the mechanical eflfect would be represented by wv^.
In the case considered, I have supposed the weight to be cast
upward, being opposed in its upward flight by the resistance of
gravity ; but the same holds true if I send the projectile into
water, mud, earth, timber, or other resisting material. If, for
example, you double the velocity of a cannon-ball, you quadruple
its mechanical eflfect. Hence the importance of augmentine the
velocity of a projectile, and hence the philosophy of Sir William
Armstrong in using a 50 pound charge of powder in his recent
striking experiments.

The measure then of mechanical eflfect is the mass of the body
multiplied by the square of its velocity.

Now, in firing a ball against a target, the projectile, after col-
lision, is often found hissing hot. Mr. Fairbairn informs me that
in the experiments at Shoeburyness it is a common thino- to see
a flash of light, even in broad day, when the ball strikes the tar-
get. And if I examine my lead weight after it has fallen from a
height, I also find it heated. Now, here experiment and reason-
ing lead us to the remarkable law that the amount of heat gen-
erated, like the mechanical eflfect, is proportional to the product of
the mass into the square of the velocity. Double your mass,
other things being equal, and you double your amount of heat ;
double your velocity, other things remaining equal, and you qua-
druple your amount of heat. Here then we have common me-
chanical motion destroyed and heat produced. I take this Wolin
bow and draw it across this string. You hear the sound. That
sound is due to motion imparted to the air, and to produce that
motion a certain portion of the muscular force of my arm must
be expended. ^Ye may here correctly say, that the mechanical
force of my arm is converted into music. And in a similar way
we say that the impeded motion of our descending weight, or of
the arrested cannon-ball is converted into heat. The mode of
motion changes, but it still continues motion ; the motion of the
mass is converted into a motion of the atoms of the mass ; and
these small motions communicated to the nerves, produce the

244 Professor TyndaVs Lecture on Force,

sensation which we call heat. We, moreover, know the amount
of heat which a given amount of mechanical force can develope.
Our lead ball, for example, in falling to the earth generated a
quantity of heat sufficient to raise the temperature of its own mass
three-fifths of a Fahrenheit degree. It reached the earth with a
velocity of thirty-two feet a second, and forty times this velocity
would be a small one for a rifle bullet. Multiplying three-fifths by
the square of forty we find that the amount of heat developed by
collision with the target would, if wholly concentrated in the lead,
raise its temperature 960 degrees. This would be more than suf-
ficient to fuse the lead. In reality, however, the heat developed
is divided between the lead and the body against which it strikes ;
nevertheless, it would be worth while to pay attention to this
.point, and to ascertain whether rifle bullets do not, under some
circumstances, show signs of fusion.

From the motion of sensible masses, by gravity and other means,
the speaker passed to the motion of atoms towards each other
by chemical affinity. A collodion balloon, filled with a mixture
of chlorine and hydrogen, was hung in the focus of a parabolic
mirror, and in the focus of a second mirror, twenty feet distant,
^ strong electric light was suddenly generated. The instant the
light fell upon the balloon the atoms within it fell together with
explosion, and hydrochloric acid was the result. The burning of
charcoal in oxygen is an old experiment, but it has now a
significance beyond what it used to have ; we now regard the act
of combination on the part of the atoms of oxygen and coal, ex-
actly as we regard the clashing of a falling weight against the
earth. And the heat produced in both cases is referable to a
common cause. This glowing diamond, which burns in oxygen
as a star of white light, glows and burns in consequence of the
fallincr of the atoms of oxygen against it. And could we mea-
sure the velocity of the atoms when they clash, and could we
find their number and weight, multiplying the mass of each atom
by the square of its velocity, and adding all together, we should
get a number representing the exact amount of heat developed by
the union of the oxygen and carbon.

Thus far we have regarded the heat developed by the clashing
^f sensible masses and of atoms. Work is expended in giving
motion to these atoms or masses, and heat is developed. But we
reverse this process daily, and by the expenditure of heat execute
work. We can raise a weight by heat ; and in this agent we

Professor TyndaPs Lecture on Force. 245-

possess an enormous store of mechanical power. This pound of
coal, which I hold in my hand, produces by its combination with
oxygen an amount of heat, which, if mechanically applied, would
suflBce to raise a weight of one hundred lbs. to a height of twenty
miles above the earth's surface. Conversely, one hundred pounds
falling from a height of twenty miles, and striking against the
earth, would generate an amount of heat equal to that developed
by the combustion of a pound of coal. Wherever work is done
by heat, heat disappears. A gun which fires a ball is less heated
than one which fires blank cartridge. The quantity of heat com-
municated to th^ boiler of a working steam-engine is greater than
which could be obtained from the re-condensation of the steam
after it had done its work ; and the amount of work performed
is the exact equivalent of the amount of heat lost. Mr. Smyth
informed us in his interesting discourse, that we dig annually 84
millions of tons of coal from our pits. The amount of mechanical
force represented by this quantity of coal seems perfectly fabu-
lous. The combustion of a single pound of coal, supposing it to
take place in a minute, would be equivalent to the work of 300
horses; and if we suppose 108 millions of horses working day"
and night, with unimpaired strength, for a year, their united
energies would enable them to perform an amount of work just
equivalent to that which the annual produce of our coal-fields
would be able to accomplish.

Comparing with ordinary gravity the energy of the force
with which oxygen and carbon unite together, the chemical aflBnity^
seems almost infinite. But let us give gravity fair play : let us
permit it to act throughout its entire range. Place a body at
such a distance from the earth that the attraction of the earth is
barely sensible, and let it fall to the earth from this distance. It
would reach the earth with a final velocity of 36,747 feet in a
second ; and on collision with the earth the body would gener-
ate about twice the amount of heat generated by the combustion
of an equal weight of coal. We have stated that by falling
through a space of sixteen feet, our lead bullet would be heated
three-fifths of a degree ; but a body falling from an infinite dis-
tance has already used up 1,299,999 parts out of 1,300,000 of
the earth's pulling power, when it has arrived within IG feet of
the surface; in this space only Taooooo^^'s of the whole force
is exerted.

Let us now turn our thoughts for a moment from the earth to-

246 Professor TyndaVs Lecture on Force.

wards the sun. The researches of Sir John Herschel and Mr
Pouillet have informed us of the annual expenditure of the sun
as regards heat ; and by an easy calculation we ascertain the
precise amount of the expenditure which falls to the share of our
planet. Out of 2300 million parts of light and heat the earth
receives one. The whole heat emitted by the sun in a minute
would be competent to boil 12,000 millions of cubic miles of ice-
cold water. How is this enormous loss made good ? Whence is
the sun's heat derived, and by what means is it maintained ? No
combustion, no chemical affinity with which we are acquainted
would be competent to produce the temperature of the sun's sur-
face. Besides, were the sun a burning body merely, its light
and heat would assuredly speedily come to an end. Supposing
it to be a solid globe of coal, its combustion would only cover
4600 years of expenditure. In this short time it would burn it-
self out. What agency can then produce the temperature and
maintain the outlay ? We have already regarded the case of a
body falling from a great distance towards the earth, and found
that the heat generated by its collision would be twice that pro-
duced by the combustion of an equal weight of coal. How much
greater must be the heat developed by a body falling towards the
sun ! The maximum velocity with which a body can strike the
earth is about seven miles in a second ; the maximum velocity
with which it can strike the sun is 390 miles in a second. And
as the heat developed by the collision is proportional to the
square of the velocity destroyed, an asteroid falling into the sun
with the above velocity, would generate about 10,000 times the
quantity of heat generated by the combustion of an asteroid of
coal of the same weight. Have we any reason to believe that
such bodies exist in space, and that they may be raining down
upon the sun ? The meteorites flashing through the air are small
planetary bodies, drawn by the earth's attraction, and entering
our atmosphere with planetary velocity. By friction against the
air they are raised to incandescence, and caused to emit light and
heat. At certain seasons of the year they shower down upon us
in great numbers. In Boston 240,000 of them were observed in
nine hours. There is no reason to suppose that the planetary
system is limited to " vast masses of enormous weight ;" there is
every reason to believe that space is stocked with smaller masses,
which obey the same laws as the large ones. That lenticular en-
velope which surrounds the sun, and which is known to astron-

Professor TyndaVs Lecture on Force. 247

omers as the zodiacal light, is probably a cloud of meteors ; and
moving, as they do, in a resisting medium they must continually
approach the sun. Falling into it, they would be competent to
produce the heat observed, and this would constitute a source
from which the annual loss of heat would be made good. The
sun, according to this hypothesis, would be continually growing
larger ; but how much larger ? Were our moon to fall into the
sun it would deveiope an amount of heat sufficient to cover one
or two years' loss ; and were our earth to fall into the sun a cen-
tury's loss would be made good. Still, our moon and our earth,
if distributed over the surface of the sun, would utterly vanish
from perception. Indeed, the quantity of matter competent to
produce the necessary effect would, during the rang« of history,
produce no appreciable augmentation in the sun's magnitude.
The augmentation of the sun's attractive force would be more
appreciable. However this hypothesis may fare as a represen-
tant of what is going on in nature, it certainly shows how a sun
might be formed and maintained by the application of known
thermo-dynamic principles.

Our earth moves in its orbit with a velocity of 68,040 miles
an hour. Were this motion stopped, an amount of heat would
be developed sufficient to raise the temperature of a globe of lead
of the same size as the earth, 384,000*^ of the centigrade ther-
mometer. It has been prophesied that " the elements shall melt
with fervent heat." The earth's own motion embraces the con-
ditions of fulfilment ; stop that motion, and the greater part, if
not the whole of her mass, would be reduced to vapour. If the
earth fell into the sun, the amount of heat developed by the shock
would be equal to that developed by the combustion of 6435
earths of solid coal.

There is one other consideration connected with the perma-
nence of our present terrestrial conditions, which is well worthy
of our attention. Standing upon one of the London bridges, we
observe the current of the Thames reversed, and the water poured
upward twice a-day. The water thus moved, rubs against the
river's bed and sides, and heat is the consequence of this friction.
The heat thus generated is in part radiated into space, and then
lost, as far as the earth is concerned. What is it that supplies
this incessant loss ? The earth's rotation. Let us look a little
more closely at the matter. Imagine the moon fixed, and the
earth turning like a wheel from west to east in its diurnal rota-

248 Professor TyndaVs Lecture on Force.

tion. Suppose a higli mountain on the earth's surface ; on ap-
proaching the moon's meridian, that mountain is, as it were, laid
hold of by the moon, and forms a kind of handle by which the
earth is pulled more quickly round. But when the meridian is
passed, the pull of the moon on the mountain would be in the
opposite direction, it now tends to diminish the velocity of rota-
tion as much as it previously augmented it ; and thus the action
of all fixed bodies on the earth's surface is neutralized. But sup-
pose the mountain to lie always to the east of the moon's meridian,
the pull then would be always exerted against the earth's rota-
tion, the velocity of which would be diminished in a degree cor-
responding to the strength of the pull. The tidal wave occupies
this position — it lies always to the east of the moon's meridian,
and thus the waters of the ocean are in part dragged as a brake
along the surface of the earth ; and as a brake they must dimin-
ish the velocity of the earth's rotation. The diminution, though
inevitable, is, however, too small to make itself felt within the
period over which observations on the subject extend. Supposing,
then, that we turn a mill by the action of the tide, and produce
heat by the friction of the millstones ; that heat has an origin
totally diflferent from the heat produced by another mill which is
turned by a mountain stream. The former is produced at the
expense of the earth's rotation ; the latter at the expense of the
sun's radiation.

The sun, by the act of vaporisation, lifts mechanically all the
moisture of our air. It condenses and falls in the form of rain,
— it freezes and falls as snow. In this solid form it is piled upon
the Alpine heights, and furnishes materials for the glaciers of the
Alps, But the sun again interposes, liberates the solidified liquid,
and permits it to roll by gravity to the sea. The mechanical
force of every river in the world, as it rolls towards the ocean, is
drawn from the heat of the sun. No streamlet glides to a lower
level without having been first lifted to the elevation from which
it springs, by the mighty power of the sun. The energy of winds
is also due entirely to the sun ; but there is still another work
which he performs, and his connection with which is not so ob-
vious. Trees and vegetables grow upon the earth, and when
burned they give rise to heat, and hence to mechanical energy.
Whence is this power derived ? You see this oxyd of iron, pro-
duced by the falling together of the atoms of iron and oxygen;,
here also is a transparent gas which you cannot now see — car-

Professor TyndaVs Lecture on Force. 249-

bonic acid gas — which is formed by the falling together of carbon
and oxygen. These atoms thus in close union resemble our lead
weight while resting on the earth ; but I can wind up the weight
and prepare it for another fall, and so these atoms can be wound
up, separated from each other, and thus enabled to repeat the
process of combination. In the building of plants carbonic acid
is the material from which the carbon of the plant is derived;
and the solar beam is the agent which tears the atoms asunder,
setting the oxygen free, and allowing the carbon to aggregate in
woody fibre. Let the solar rays fall upon a surface of sand ; the
sand is heated, and finally radiates away as much heat as it receives ;
let the same beams fall upon a forest, the quantity of heat given
back is less than the forest receives, for the energy of a portion
of the sunbeams is invested in building up the trees, in the man-
ner indicated. "Without the sun the reduction of the carbonic
acid cannot be eff'ected, and an amount of sunlight is consumed
exactly equivalent to the molecular work done. Thus trees are
formed; thus the cotton, on which Mr. Bazley discoursed last
Friday, is formed. I ignite this cotton, and it flames ; the oxygen
again unites with its beloved carbon; but an amount of heat
equal to that which you see produced by its combustion was sa-
crificed by the sun to form that bit of cotton.

But we cannot stop at vegetable hfe, for this is the source,
mediate or immediate, of all animal life. The sun severs the
carbon from its oxygen ; the animal consumes the vegetable thus
formed, and in its arteries a reunion of the severed elements takes
place, and produces animal heat. Thus, strictly speaking, the
process of building a vegetable is one of winding up ; the pro^
cess of building an animal is one of running down. The warmth
of our bodies, and every mechanical energy which we exert, trace
their lineage directly to the sun. The fight of a pair of pugilists,
the motion of an army, or the lifting of his own body up moun-
tain slopes by an Alpine climber, are all cases of mechanical en-
ergy drawn from the sun. Not, therefore, in a poetical, but in a
purely mechanical sense, are we children of the sun. Without
food we should soon oxidise our own bodies. A man weighing
150 lbs. has sixty-four lbs. of muscle; but these, when dried,
reduce themselves to fifteen lbs. During an ordinary day's work,
for eighty days, this mass of muscle would be wholly oxidised.
Special organs which do more work would be more quickly oxi-
dised : the heart, for example, if entirely unsustained, would be

250 Professor Ty^idaVs Lecture on Force.

oxidised in about a week. Take the amount of beat due to the
direct oxidation of a given amount of food ; a less amount of heat
is developed by this food in the working animal frame, and the
missing quantity is the exact equivalent of the mechanical work
which the body accomplishes.

I might extend these considerations ; the work, indeed, is done
to my hand — but I am warned that I have kept you already too
long. To whom, then, are we indebted for the striking general-
isations of this evening's discourse ? All that I have laid before
you is the work of a man of whom you have scarcely ever heard.
All that I have brought before you has been taken from the la-
bors of a German physician, named Mayer. Without external
stimulus, and pursuing his profession as town physician in Heil-
bronn, this man was the first to raise the conception of the in-
teraction of natural forces to clearness in his own mind. And
yet he is scarcely ever heard of in scientific lectures, and even to
scientific men his merits are but partially known. Led by his
own beautiful researches, and quite independent of Mayer, Mr.
Joule published his first paper on the "Mechanical Value of
Heat," in 1843 ; but in 1842 Mayer had actually calculated the
mechanical equivalent of heat from data which a man of rare
originality alone could turn to account. From the velocity of
sound in air Mayer determined the mechanical equivalent of heat.
In 1845 he published his Memoir on " Organic Motion," and ap-
plied the mechanical theory of heat in the most fearless and pre-
cise manner to vital processes. He also embraced the other
natural agents in his chain of conservation. In 1853 Mr. Wa-
terston proposed, independently, the meteoric theory of the sun's
heat, and in 1854, Professor William Thomson applied his ad-
mirable mathematical powers to the development of the theory ;
but six years previously, the subject had been handled in a mas-
terly manner by Mayer, and all that I have said on this subject
has been derived from him. When we consider the circum-
stances of Mayer's life, and the period at which he wrote, we
cannot fail to be struck with astonishment at what he has accom-
plished. Here was a man of genius working in silence, animated
solely by a love of his subject, and arriving at the most impor-
tant results, some time in advance of those whose lives were en-
tirely devoted to Natural Philosophy. It was the accident of
bleeding a feverish patient at Java in 1840, that led Mayer to
speculate on these subjects. He noticed that the venous blood

Professor TyndaVs Lectiire oji Force. 2-51

in the tropics was of a much brighter red than in colder latitudes,
and his reasoning on this fact led him into the laboratory of natu-
ral forces, -where he has worked with such signal ability and suc-
cess. Well, you will desire to know what has become of this
man. His mind gave way ; he became insane, and he was sent
to a lunatic asylum. In a biographical dictionary of his country
it is stated that he died there ; but this is incorrect. He recovered ;
and, I believe, is at this moment a cultivator of vineyards in
Heilbronn.

While preparing for publication my last course of lectures
on Heat, I wished to make myself acquainted with all that
Mayer had done in connection with this subject. I accordingly
wrote to two gentlemen who above all others seemed likely to
give me the information which I needed. Both of them are
Germans, and both particularly distinguished in connection with
the Dynamical Theory of Heat. Each of them kindly furnished
me with the list of Mayer's publications, and one of them was so
friendly as to order them from a bookseller, and to send them to
me. This friend, in his reply to my first letter regarding Mayer,
stated his belief that I should not find anything very important
in Mayer's writings; but before forwarding the memoirs to me
he read them himself. His letter accompanying the first of these
papers, contains the following words : — " I must here retract the
statement in my last letter, that you would not find much matter
of importance in Mayer's wiitings : I am astonished at the mul-
titude of beautiful and correct thoughts which they contain ;"
and he goes on to point out various important subjects, in the
treatment of which Mayer had anticipated other eminent writers.
My second friend, in whose own publications the name of Mayer
repeatedly occurs, and whose papers containing these references
were translated some years ago by myself, was, on the 10th of
last month, unacquainted with the thoughtful and beautiful essay
of Mayer's, entitled *' Beitrage zur Dynaraik des Himmels ;" and
in 1854, when Professor William Thomson developed in so
striking a manner the meteoric theory of the sun's heat, he was
certainly not aware of the existence of that essay, though from a
recent number in Mo.cmillan^s Magazine I infer that he is now
aware of it. Mayer's physiological writings have been referred
to by physiologists — by Dr. Carpenter, for example — in terms of
honourable recognition. We have hitherto, indeed, obtained
fragmentary glimpses of the man, partly from physicists and partly

252 Utilisation of the Power involved

from physiologists ; but his total merit has never yet been recog-
nised as it assuredly would have been had he chosen a happier
mode of publication. I do not think a greater disservice could
be done to a man of science, than to overstate his claims ; such
overstatement is sure to recoil to the disadvantage of him in
whose interest it is made. But when Mayer's opportunities,,
achievements, and fate are taken into account, I do not think
that I shall be deeply blamed for attempting to place him in that
honourable position which I believe to be his due.

Here, however, are the titles of Mayer's papers, the perusal of
which will correct any error of judgment into which I may have
fallen regarding their author. " Bemerkungen iiber die Krafte
der umbelebten Natur," Liebig's Annalen, 1842, vol. 42, p. 231 ;
'^ Die Organische Bewegung in ihrem Zusammenhange mit dem
Stoffwechsel ;" Heilbronn, 1845; "Beitrage zur Dynamik des
Himmels," Heilbronn, 1848; "Bemerkungen nber das Mechan-
ische Equivalent der W^rme," Heilbronn, 1851.

ARTICLE XXIII. — On the Utilisation of the Power involved in
the Pise and Pall of the tides.*
The tendency of modern scientific discovery has been to show
that all the various forms of force with which we are acquainted
are mutually convertible into one another. Thus, of the six forces
known to us in connection with the universe — gravitation, motion,
light, heat, electricity, and chemical afiinity— it is well known
that any one of the five latter is capable, by appropriate means,
of generating the other four, the force of gravitation being ca-
pable, through the medium of motion, of giving rise to the other
five forces, whilst it cannot itself be generated. Gravitation may
therefore be assumed to be the elemental force, since it is the only
one of the six which will generate all the others. So accurately
have these correlations been studied, that the quantitative value
of gravitation has even been ascertained, it having been found
that the mechanical force required to lift 772 pounds to the height
of one foot, is capable, when converted into the force of heat, of
raising the temperature of one pound of water 1°F. In other
words, this amount of heat may be generated by an appropriate
utilisation of the gravitating pull, exerted by a weight of 772
pounds during its downward movement through the space of one

*From the " Chemical News," 12th July, 1862.

{?i the Rise and Fall of the tides. 253

foot. Supposing, therefore, we were in possession of an unlimited
number of 7 7 2 -pound weights, and were to employ in the most
judicious manner the force thus evolved in their downward pro-
gress, we should have an unlimited reservoir of power which
could be converted at will into light, heat, electricity, or chemi-
cal affinity, and could be made to toil for human benefit without
any corresponding expenditure of human labour so long as the
weights continued their downward progress unarrested. If, how-
ever, any good were to be gained by such a machine, it must be
managed so that the motive force — gravitation — should always
remain on the pull, and this is, and always will be, the obstacle
to the attainment of perpetual motion ; the act of overcoming the
force of gravity to re-raise the weights, requiring the expenditure
of exactly the same amount of power as has been generated dur-
ing their downward fall ; and so, before we can seriously discuss
the feasibility of such a machine, we must find a perpetual flow
of gravitating force always at hand, craving to be satisfied, and
yet inexhaustible. In other words, we must construct a clock
which will wind itself up when the weight has run down, without
any expenditure of human power.

Sitting by the sea-shore a few days since, we could not help
noticing the large reservoir of mechanical power existing in the
ocean. We do not refer to the noisy dash of the waves as they
break upon the beach, but to the infinitely mightier, although
silent and progressive, energy exerted in the gradual rise and
fall of the tides. Compared with the stupendous power capable
of being utilised for man's benefit, and present in the rise or fall
of millions upon millions of tons of water through a space of ten
or twenty feet four times a-day, all the steam, water, or wind
power in the world, together with the united muscular force of
every living being, human and animal, sink into utter insignifi-
cance. We will try to form some idea of this power. Let us
suppose that by the action of the tides the difi"erence of level of
the surface of the ocean at a certain spot, is 21 feet between high
and low water ; omitting for the present all consideration of the
power of the subjacent liquid, what is the mechanical value of a
space of 100 yards square of this water ? 100 yards square by
21 feet deep equals 70,000 cubic yards of water, which are lifted
to a height of 21 feet, or to 1,470,000 cubic yards Hfted to a
height of 1 foot. Now, since one cubic yard of water weighs
about 1683 pounds, 1,470,000 cubic yards weighs 2,474,010,000

254 Naumann on Primitive Formations,

pounds, which is lifted in six hours. This is equivalent to lifting-
a weight of 412,335,000 foot-pounds in one hour 5 and since one
horse-power is considered equivalent to raising 1,800,000 foot-
pounds per hour, we have locked up in every 100 yards square of
sea surface, a power equal to a 236 horse-power steam-engine,,
acting, be it remembered, day and night to the end of time, re-
quiring no supervision, and costing nothing, after the first outlay,
but the wear and tear of machinery.

By means of appropriate machinery connected with this tidal
movement, any kind of work could be readily performed. Water
could be hoisted, or air compressed to any desired extent, so as
to accumulate power for future use, or for transport to distant
stations. Light of surpassing splendor could be generated by
means of magneto-electric machines : and with a very little exer-
cise of ingenuity, every lighthouse on the coast could be illumin-
ated with sun-like brilliancy, and with absolutely no expenditure
of fuel ; the very same mechanical power of the ocean, which in;
its brute force would dash the helpless vessel to pieces against
the rocks, being bound and coerced like the genii in Eastern
tales, and transformed by man's intellect into a luminous beacon
to warn the mariner against the approach of danger.

ARTICLE XXIV. — On the various theoretical views regarding
the origin of the Primitive Formations. Translated from the
German of Carl Freidrich Naumann, {Lehrbuch der Geog-
nosie II. 160), by Thomas Macfarlane.
The parallel structure, and the stratification of gneiss, mica-
schist, etc., have, from the earliest dates of geological history,
given rise to the opinion that water must, in some way or other,
have had a part in the formation of these rocks. Werner and
other geologists believed it to be even possible that they had
been deposited from the waters of the ancient ocean, as crystal-
line sediments. But seeing that the mineralogical composition of
the gneiss does not appear to be compatible with this view, geolo-
gists sought to explain the sedimentary origin of these rocks in a
somewhat different manner. Thus, Von Beroldingen declared
gneiss to be but a regenerated granite, that is to say, a rock result-
ing from granitic sand, washed together, in which the mica lami-
nae came to be deposited parallel with each other, among the
grains of feldspar and quartz. The same view was later enunciated
by Bou^ (Essai g^ologique sur I'Ecosse, p. 445), but afterwards

Naumann on Primitive Formations, 25 &

again abandoned by him. Saussure, also, expressed himself in
most decided opposition to Von Beroldingen's views. While
narrating that Monte Rosa, from base to summit, consists of gneiss
and rocks related to it, he says : " On ne dira done plus, que les
granites veines, le gneiss et les autres roches de ce genre, ne sont
que les debris des granits, rassembles et agglutines au pied de&
baut^s montagnes."* Moreover, (in a note to § 2143 of the work
just quoted), Saussure, otherwise mild and delicate in judging and
confuting the opinions of others, deals very severely with Von
Beroldingen's gneiss theory. f

Somewhat related to this old view is the supposition expressed
more recently by Dana, that gneiss and mica-schist bear a rela-
tion to granite, similar to that in which basaltic tufa stands to
basalt, or volcanic tufa to lava ; the materials of these rocks (the
gneiss and mica-schist) having been thrown up to the surface
before and during the eruptions of the granite, in the form of
sand-like ejections, and transformed into gneiss and mica-schist
by the action of glowing hot water. The perfect and thoroughly
crystalline character of the gneiss, the enormous extent which
the primitive formations occupy in so many districts, the archi-
tecture of these great gneiss districts, and their occurrence totally
independent of larger granitic masses, are all incompatible with
this idea.

In certain respects the Huttonian theory, which afterwards be-
came so influential, may be compared with that of Von Beroldin-
gen's, since this celebrated Scottish geologist, in his Theory of
the Earth in 1795, attempted, with much minuteness, to prove
that the whole of the so-called primitive rocks had been formed
of the debris of older preexisting rocks, deposited on the bed of
the ocean; the strata, consisting originally of loose materials, hav-
ing been, under the pressure of the ocean, exposed to a high tem-
perature for a long time, in which manner their consolidation was
effected. I

* Voyage dans les Alpes, § 2139.

t Especially on account of Beroldingen asserting that the opponents
of his theory were destitute of all geological knowledge, and saying
that the circulation of their writings ought to be prohibited. Beroldin-
gen's writings, Saussure thought it was altogether unnecessary to pro-
hibit ; " I'extreme d^sordro, I'intol^rable diflfusion, et les perpetuelles
contradictions qui y regnent en d^gouteraient assez le plus grand nom-
bre des lecteurs."

t Compare Explication de Playfair sur la theorie de la tcrrc, par
Button, traduit par Basset.

256 Naumann on Primitive Formations.

At present there are especially two hypotheses maintained by
different parties, regarding the origin of gneiss, and of the rocks
associated with it. The first of these theories is founded on the
•notion of the metamorphisni of rocks, and the second, on the
theory of the originally fused condition of our planet. •

The great majority of the geologists of the present day in-
cline to the opinion that these oldest cryptogenous rocks, as wel
as the recent formations resembling them, have been produced
hj a peculiar metamorphosis of preexisting sedimentary strata »
consisting essentially in a recrystallisation of the materials of
these strata, and caused either by a high temperature, or by mole-
cular movements excited in some other way.

The supporters of this theory found it especially upon the
parallel structure and stratification of these rocks, upon the indis-
putable fact that clay-slate in the neighborhood of large granite
masses is frequently changed into mica-schist and rocks of a
gneissoid character, and upon the scarcely doubtful fact that in
many countries, gradual transitions may be followed, from gneiss,
through mica-schist and clay-slate, into grey wacke slate. By these
transitions, gneiss is brought into such close connection with
grey wacke slate, that these appear only as the extreme members of
^ single series ; for the whole of which one and the same original
mode of formation must be assumed. Now since greywacke
slate is undoubtedly a sedimentary rock, the clay-slate, mica-schist
and gneiss lying under it, must have been something similar. But
because the mineralogical composition and the crystalline nature
of these deeper rocks appear the more opposed to this inference
the deeper they lie, the disciples of the metamorphic theory were
obliged to suppose the action of a metamorphism working from
beneath, which has reacted upon, and so altered these oldest sedi-
mentary strata, that they now appear as gneiss and mica-schist.

This theory, which at the first glance appears so satisfactory,
was first enunciated by Boue in 1822, was afterwards adopted by
many other geologists, and found in the year 1833 more decided
expression through Lyell,who gave the strata thus altered the name
of hypogenous metamorphic rocks ; a title which is intended to
indicate a metamorphosis which took place in the depths of the
earth's crust, and proceeded from beneath upwards. Properly
speaking, these views were very similar to those which Hutton
attempted to establish in the years 1V88 and 1Y95,* and bis

* His Theory of the Earth appeared for the first time in the Edinburgh
Philosophical Transactions for 1788.

Naumann on Primitive Formations, ^hl

<5omraentator Playfair, in 1802 ; so that it is ia reality possible to
maintain that the present theory of the metaraorphic origin of the
primitive formations is only a farther development of the Hutton-
ian theory, Bou^ however first understood how to bring this
theory into more decided harmony with the details of geological
phenomena, and besides making use of internal heat, brought
emanations of gases and vapors out of the interior of the earth,
to his assistance, in order to explain the alteration of sedimentary-
slates into gneiss and mica-schist. " La chaleur ign^e," says he,
*' et les emanations gazeuses de Tint^rieur de la terre auraient
donne aux schistes, peu a peu, et sous une plus ou moins forte
compression, une espece de liquefaction ignee, assez serablable a
celle dont M, de Dree a fait mention dans ses belles experiences.*
Les elemens des schistes auraient perdu de leur force de cohesion,
leurs parties constituantes auraient ete ecart^es les unes des
autres, at ies emanations gazeuses auraient pu s'insinuer dans les
vides ainsi laiss^s. De cette maniere les aflSnites chimiques au-
raient pu s'exercer dans certaines limites, posees par les forces
adverses de la cohesion, et les parties constituantes des roches
auraient pu prendre, pendant la liquefaction et le refroidissement
lent, un arrangement plus ou moins crystallin, suivant les circons-
tances, et sans deranger ou detruire notableraent la structure
feuilletee primitive. De plus, le jeu des aflBnites chimiques,
aidee par les substances dtrangeres, inlroduites, pour ainsi dire,
par sublimation, dans ces roches, aurait donne naissance a cette
foule d'especes minerales crystallines, qui sont diss^minees dans
nids, en amas, et en petits filons au milieu des schistes crystallins.
Cette theorie hardie pr6sente du moins incontestablement I'avan-
tage d^expliquer tous les faits geologique d'une manidre satisfai-
sante."t

Very many geologists agree with this theory in its principal
features. Others, among whom may be especially mentioned
Keilhau, Studer and Escher, think it doubtful that the metamor-
phosis has been accomplished by high temperature, and by va-
pors, and believe rather, that inward transforming processes
may have come into operation at ordinary temperatures, whose

* De Dr6e described these experiments in the Journal des Mines, No.
139. The principal point to which Boue refers is that the melted or half-
melted rocks preserved their texture, and the distribution of their con-
stituent particles unchanged, as has also later been shown by Gerhard
to be the case with granulite.

t Annates des Sciences Naturelles, 1824, Aout, p. 417.

Can. Nat. 17 Vol. VII

258 Naumann on Primitive Formations,

inferior energy may have been compensated for by their long
duration. But while these philosophers do not express a decided
opinion regarding the real character of these transforming pro-
cesses, G. Bischof and Haidinger are inclined to suppose that a
long continued percolation of water through the rocks* has pro-
duced a substantial alteration and recrystallization, in the same
way as must have taken place in the production of certain altera-
tion pseudomorphs.f Many believe it possible to indicate more
nearly the sedimentary rocks from which these cryptogenous rocks
have been produced. Thus, in 1833, Hitchcock was of opinion
that the gneiss had probably been previously a coarse micaceous
sandstone, a view which Durocher also adopted, while Forch-
hammer believed it possible to prove that the gneiss of Egeberg,
near Christiana, was produced from the alum-schist, which occurs
there. I

We have already remarked however that parallel structure and
stratification, cannot in every case, be considered as decisive proofs
of sedimentary origin. Even MaccuUoch, in other respects a
zealous supporter of the metamorphic theory, admits this. He
says expressly that he is obliged to explain the parallelism of the
laminae of mica, so often adduced, as a proof of the sedimentary
deposition of gneiss, in quite another manner, because even hy-
persthenite sometimes shows a parallel deposition of its crystals
of hypersthene, and at Kerrera a trap which occurs in veins is, like
mica slate, filled with scales of mica, all lying parallel with the
aides of the vein.

We have also already mentioned the doubts brought forward by
Hofi'man and Riviere against the view that widely extended gneiss
areas are to be considered as altered sedimentary masses. De

* So early as the year 1785, Von Trebra enunciated the view that the
alteration of whole mountain masses, for example, of granite into gneiss,
and of greywacke into clay slate, had been caused by a very long con-
tinued process of alteration, which he characterised as a sort of fermen-
tation, and which was produced essentially by the circulation of water,
and by the action of heat. Since these causes, which although unper-
ceived, are nevertheless thoroughly active, and still at work, and will
continue, so as long as circulation goes on in the immeasurable round
of nature, he is convinced that the alterations, decompositions and re-
compositions which they produce everywhere in the interior of the rocks
will continue as long as the world itself.— (Erfahrungen von Innern der
Gebirge, p. 48.)
t Lehrbuch der Phys. und Chem. Geologic, II. 247.
t Journal fiir Praktische Chemie. Bd. 36, 1845, S. 404.

Naumann on Primitive Formations, 259

la BecTie expressed himself, even earlier, in the same manner as
Riviere, and doubted whether the metamorphic theory (the sweep-
ing hypothesis, as he called it) was admissible in such cases, al-
though he quite acknowledges it within its proper limits (Report
on the Geology of Cornwall, p. 34). With this, A. Erdmann, a
high authority with regard to the Swedish primitive rocks, and
Von Blode, who has explored Finland in various directions, per-
fectly agree. Von BloJe says : that the raetamorphism is un-
deniably present where it can be recognised by observation, and
explained generally by physical science. Still the class of rocks
with which this is the case, is only limited, and not at all favor,
able to the baseless hypothesis which is now being carried to ex-
tremes. (Neues Jahrbuch fiir Mineralogie, 1844, s. 53.) Von
Leonhard, Petzholdt and others, have also repeatedly declared
against the too wide extension of the metamorphic theory, and we
are obliged, from complete conviction, to rank ourselves with thera^
The transitions from gneiss, through mica-schist, into crystalline
clay-slate are not to be denied, but whether the transitions from
crystalline clay-slate into real greywacke slate may pass, in
every case, for fully proved, may still be doubted. Griiuer re-
marks distinctly that the clay-slate which is associated with gneiss-
and mica-schist is always diflferent from the clay-slate of the
greywacke; for which reason he declares himself unable to assert
that these older rocks, as they appear in the departments of the
Rhone and Loire, are metamorphosed greywacke slates. (Ann,
des Mines, 3ieme serie, t. 19, 1841, p. 70).

In our opinion the principal difficulty, and one scarcely to be
overcome, lies in the fact that there are far younger gneisses
mica-schists, etc., which overlie sedimentary rocks, without the
slightest transition into these underlying rocks being observable.
In such cases every idea must disappear relative to a hypogenous
or anogenous metamorphosis ; for how could the overlying rock
have been metamorphosed by some agency from beneath, while
the strata beneath remain unaffected by any influence. Just
as little can a catogenous metamorphosis be thought of, for what-
ever cause one may suppose as the real agency, it is impossible
that it can have found in descending, such a sudden and entire
check, along one and the same plane of deposition, that the com-
pletely re-crystallised rock, should be, by this plane of deposition
separated from the perfectly unchanged rock. In such cases
there is nothing left for us but the supposition that these strati-

260 Naumann on Primitive Formations,

fied, crystalline, silicated rocks, have been originally formed, and
deposited, in the state in which they now appear to us. If we
are not able to comprehend the modality of their process of for-
mation, we can comfort ourselves with the adherents of ultra-meta-
morphism, who are quite as much at a loss. After all, it is per-
haps immaterial whether we assume a problematical process of
alteration, or a problematical process of formation ; but if we
were, once for all, to choose between one of the two enigmas,
we would probably rather prefer the latter, which at least
is in unison with the state of the facts. A second objection
against the too wide application of the metamorphic theory,
arises out of the fact that many gneissoid rocks shew undoubted
evidences of an eruptive origin, and that granulite also, which is
so nearly related to gneiss, sometimes occurs under such circum-
stances as appear to demand for it an eruptive mode of formation.
If this is really the case, it is a proof that certain cryptogenous
rocks are decidedly not of metamorphic origin.

The great resemblance which gneiss and the most of the rocks
accompanying it, bear to granite and other eruptive rocks ; the
probability that the most of these eruptive rocks have been solid-
ified from a state of igneous fluidity ; the almost unavoidable as-
sumption that our planet was originally in the same state, and
was only later covered with a solidified crust; finally the fact that
in the primitive gneiss formation, granite and gneiss are found
regularly interstratified with each other, have called forth the
second of the hypotheses prevailing at present; namely, that the
primitive formations form the first solidified crust of our planet.

This hypothesis has not indeed found so many supporters* as
that of the metamorphic origin of the primitive rocks, neverthe-
less the objections against it are probably neither greater nor
more numerous than against the latter. It leads necessarily to

* The following geologists support this theory : Fleurian de Bellevue,
(Journal de Physique, an XIII) ; Breislak, (Lehrbuchder Geol., I, 372) ;
Cordier, in the third part of his celebrated treatise on the temperature
of the interior of the earth, (Ann. des Mines 2, s^rie II, p. 120) ; Marcel
de Serres ; Kapp, (Neues Jahrbuch fur Min. 1834, 255, and 1843, 326) ;
Von Blode, Neues Jahrbuch fiir Min. 1837, 176; De la Beche, Report on
the Geology of Cornwall, &c., 1839, p. 31 ; Petzholdt, Geologic, 1840,
p. 24, and 1845, p. 35 ; de Roys, Bull, de la Soc. G^ol. XIII, 1840, p-
240 ; Scheerer, Karsten and Von Dechen, Archiv. vol. 16, 1842, p. 159 ;
Noggerath, Entstehung der Erde, 1843 ; Gotta, Grundriss der Geog-
nosie, 1846, p. 161 ; Riviere, Bull, de la Soc. Geol., 2 s^rie VII, p. 327.

Naumann on Primitive Formations, 261

the inference that the succession of the primitive rocks in a down-
ward direction, corresponds to their age from oldest to youngest,
because it was, of course, through a solidification from the outside
inwardly, that the strata in question were formed, (Lehrbuch I,
489). The only way of explaining the origin of the newer cryp-
togenous rocks, left to the supporters of this hypothesisi, is to
suppose that their material has been protruded from the interior
through the earth's crust in an eruptive form.

The most considerable difficulties which this hypothesis has to
contend with, arise from the relations of the structure of the prim-
itive formations, and from the mineralogical character of certain
of the rocks belonging to it. Whether these difficulties can be
explained away by the supposition of a hydro-pyrogenous devel-
opment of the outside'part of the primitive solidified crust, as in-
dicated by Angelot, Rozet, Fournet, Scheerer and others, we must
leave undecided in the meantime. Scheerer attempted, in a pe-
culiar manner, to overcome the difficulties which the structure
and architecture of the gneiss present. He regards them as an
original phenomenon, produced during the solidification itself,
by the action of electro-magnetic currents ; and comes to the
final conclusion, " that the primitive formations, with all the di-
versity of their rocks, are only to be regarded as the first hardened
crust of the solidifying earth." If the vertical position of the
primitive gneiss strata, as displayed in their parallel-zoned,
fan-shaped and gable-formed architecture, is really to be looked
upon as their original position, then the verdict which Kittel
thus expressed, must be pronounced correct : " so long as a hy-
pothesis is unable thoroughly to explain the almost vertical posi-
tion of the primitive strata, it cannot be regarded as even approx-
imately near the truth." (Skizze der geogn. Verhaltnisse von
Aschafi'enburg, p. 40).

Scheerer concludes from the contortions and undulations of
the gneiss layers, that the primitive rocks must have originally
been in a soft, plastic state, and MaccuUoch, even earlier, ar-
rived at the same conclusion, from the surprising contortions of the
mica-schist, which he compared with similar windings in the
structure of certain basalts. There is probably nothing to be said
against the correctness of this deduction, which receives complete
confirmation from the so frequently occurring elongation of the
constituent of gneiss and other primitive rocks. But whether this
plastic condition has been occasioned by high temperature alone,

262 Naumann on Primitive Formations,

or by the simultaneous action of heat and water, or only by the
latter element, are questions whose solution we must still expect
from the future. In the meantime the real mode in which the
primitive rocks have been formed, is still involved in such obscurity,
that they may, with complete justice, be termed cryptogenous rocks*

Note to the preceding paper ; hy T. Sterry Hunt, M.A., F.R.S.
The foregoing sketch of the progress of theoretical views as to
the origin of the crystalline rocks, gives an excellent statement
of the question up to 1857; since which time more definite notions
as to the nature of the metamorphic process, as understood by
Hntton and Boue, have begun to be entertained. The problem
of rock metamorphism is the conversion of mechanical or chem-
ical sediments into definite mineral species, by molecular changes;
that is to say, by crystallization, and a re-arrangement of their
particles; or by chemical reactions between the elements of the
sediments. Pseudomorphism, which is the change of one mineral
species into another, by the introduction, or the elimination of
some element, presupposes metamorphism ; since only the defi-
nite mineral species of metamorphic or plutonic rocks can be the
subjects of this process. To confound metamorphism with pseu-
domorphism, as Bischoff", and others after him have done, is there-
fore an error. It may be further remarked, that, although certain
pseudomorphic changes may take place in some mineral species,
in veins, and near to the surface ; the alteration of great masses
of silicated rocks by such a process, is as yet an unproved hy-
pothesis.

The study of the local metamorphism of sediments in the
vicinity of intrusive rocks, goes far to show, in opposition to the
opinions of some authors quoted above, that heat has been one of
the necessary conditions of metamorphism. In 1857, I showed
by experiments, that besides heat and moisture, certain chemical
reagents might be requisite, and that water impregnated with
alkaline carbonates or silicates, would at a temperature not
above that of boiling water, produce chemical reactions among
the elements of many sedimentary rocks; dissolving silica and
generating various silicates. Some months subsequently, Dau-
bree found that in the presence of solution of alkaline silicates,
at temperatures above 700° F,, various silicious minerals, such as
quartz, feldspar and pyroxene, could be made to assume a crys-
talline form ; and that alkaline silicates, under these conditions,

Naumann on Primitive Formations, 263

might combine with argillaceous matters to produce feldspar and
mica. These observations were the complement of ray own, and
both together showed the agency of heated alkaline waters to be
sufficient to effect the metamorphism of sediments, by the two
modes just mentioned ; namely, by molecular changes, and by
chemical reactions.

Following upon this, Daubr^e observed that the thermal spring
at Plombieres, at a temperature of 160° F., had, in the course of
centuries, given rise to the formation of zeolites, and of various
other crystalline silicated minerals, among the bricks and cement
of the old Roman baths. From this, he was led to suppose that
the metamorphism of great regions might have been effected by
hot springs; which rising along certain lines of dislocation, and
thence spreading laterally, might produce alteration in strata near
to the surface; while those beneath would, in some cases, escape
alteration. In this way, would be resolved the great difficulty
urged by Naumann against the theory of metamorphism by heat
from below; namely, that in descending, a certain plane, some-
times limits the metamorphism, and separates the altered strata
above from the unaltered ones beneath, without any apparent
transition between the two.

Daubree's ingenious hypotheses of metamorphism by hot
springs, in some instances meets this difficulty ; but while undoubt-
edly true in certain cases of local alteration, it seems utterly
inadequate to explain the complete and universal metamorphism
of areas of sedimentary rocks, embracing many hundred thousands
of square miles. On the other hand, the study of the origin and
distribution of mineral springs, shows that the alkaline waters,
whose action in metamorphism I first pointed out, and whose
efficient agency Daubree has so beautifully shown, are confined
to certain sedimentary deposits, and to certain stratigraphical
horizons; above and below which, waters totally unlike in charac-
ter, are found impregnating the strata. This fact seems to offer
a simple solution of the difficulty advanced by Naumann, and a
complete explanation of the theory of metamorphism of deeply
buried strata, by the agency of ascending heat; which is operative
in producing chemical changes only in those strata in which
soluble alkaline salts are present See farther on this subject, the
Canadian Naturalist^ vol. iv. page 414 ; the Quarterly Journal
of the Geological Society of London^ for 1859, page 488 ; and the
Report of the Geological Survey of Canada for 1853-66, page 477.

264 Lawson on Aphis Avence,

ARTICLE XXV. — On Aphis Avence^ By George Lawsow,

Ph., D., LL.D.

(^For the Canadian Naturalist).

In my Report an the Insects affecting the Field Crops, &c., in
Canada, during the season of 1861, notice was taken of the sud-
den appearance of the Wheat or Grain Aphis (not found to b©
identical with the Aphis Avenoe of Europe,) in alarming numbers
on Wheat, Oats, Rye, &c. During the present season (1862) the
insect has played over again the part which it took in 1861^ and
which created so much alarm among our farmers. They are
better acquainted with the stranger now, knowing that he comes
merely to suck the green juicy grain without the means of doing
much mischief; but, having obviously become a permanent co-
lonist, it is desirable that a few facts connected with his first ap-
pearance and settlement in our country should be placed on re-
cord in the Canadian Naturalist.

In the beginning of August, 1861, ears of wheat infested with
this insect were transmitted to me by several farmers and others
in the neighbourhood of Kingston, all of whom regarded the in-
sect as a new pest to the country. The earliest examples were
received from Professor Williamson, Portsmouth, John Duff,
Esq., Princess Street, A. Drummond, Esq., Manager of the Mon-
treal Bank, Messrs. Piatt, Napanee, and from farmers in the neigh-
bourhood of Odessa, and in Pittsburg. A few days afterwards
reports were found in the newspapers of its appearance in various
parts of Upper and Lower Canada, and over a considerable por-
tion of the Northern States ; all reports spoke of the insect as
new and unknown to the farmers. More special enquiry among
entomological friends and reference to published works, only ser-
ved to confirm the surmise that there existed no record or tradi-
tion of its previous occurrence in our fields. Prof. Williamson,
who had for many years observed with care the insects affecting
the crops in this locality, had not previously seen this species of
Aphis on any of the grains ; numerous farmers of whom enquiries
were made in different parts of the country knew nothing of the
insect in former years. And, lastly. Dr. Asa Fitch, the able en-
tomologist to the State of New York, whose keen eye has added
so much to our knowledge of economic entomology, recognised
in the Aphis a new vagabond whose photograph and antecedents
required to be reported to the State authorities.

The insect is individually minute, like all the Aphides, but pre-

Lawson on Aphis Avence, 265

sents a formidable appearance on account of the vastness of its
numbers. In some fields, a few days after its first appearance,
the ears of grain became covered with it; in fact the wheat was
commonly spoken of as " dark with it." The fly presented itself
chiefly in the wingless form, the individuals clustering in great
numbers in the upper parts of the culms and panicles of wheat,
rye, oats and barley, and this season they have been observed on
Indian corn and various other grasses. Most of them are station-
ary, but some are usually moving about with a rather awkward
motion resembling that of mites under a magnifying glass. On
each panicle or head of grain they are found to be of various sizes,
according to age, some scarcely large enough to be visible to the
naked eye, others as large as the capital letters on this printed
page. They vary in colour ; some are pale apple-green, some of
a brownish yellow colour, and many, especially the older and
larger ones, are of a rather deep brick-red colour, when they be-
come very conspicuous. In some cases where the whole ears
were covered with the insects, the total destruction of the crops
seemed to some of the farmers to be inevitable. They looked
upon the ** new bug plague " (for everything that looks like an
insect is called a bug) as the greatest calamity that had ever be-
fallen our fields. It was deemed advisable therefore to publish
in the Kingston newspapers an account of the habits of the insect*
with the view of allaying unnecessary fears. Attention was drawn
to the following among other facts : — The aphides do not gnaw
the plant's stem and leaves like caterpillars, nor like the wheat
midge, injuriously afi'ect the young grain, but simply suck the
juices of the exposed parts of the plant. The plant necessarily
8uff"ers from this injury, its energies are weakened, the leaves
and other parts shrivel and blister, and an inroad is formed for
other diseases ; but, while aphides are highly injurious to thin
and succulent leaved plants, the compact tissue of wheat and
other grains, hardened too by silica, is not so liable to suflfer and
become deformed, and a vigorous healthy crop of grain will hard-
ly be injured. No doubt the yield is lessened by the presence of
the insect in vast numbers, and the quality of the grain perhaps
slightly deteriorated, but the injurious efi'ects are by no means
so extensive as the formidable appearance of the insects would in-
dicate.

In Britain the bean crop is annually liable to the attacks of an
allied black species (Aphis JRumicis) which appears in such nam-

266 Lawson on Aphis Avence,

bers that in autumn when many of the individuals have acquired
wings and left the bean fields, they spread over the country, dark-
ening the atmosphere with living clouds, — yet the farmers do not
find their bean crops very light, even during the worst seasons of
this so called " cholera fly." Items of information and assurances
such as the above served to allay the fears of the farmers, and to
prevent unnecessary expenditure of time and money and probable
injury to the crops in experimenting with the various remedial
applications recommended in the public prints to stay the *' insect
plague," such as smearing the standing grain with gum arabic,
pulverised hellebore, scotch snufF, flowers of sulphur, aloes and
other substances, which, however obnoxious, they might have
been to the aphis, would not have improved, by any means, the
flavour of the grain and flour.

As the season advanced, the aphides increased in numbers, and
were no longer confined to wheat, but became abundant and con-
spicuous on oats and rye. Daily parcels of grain ears were being
received from various ports of the country from farmers who
feared that, while entomologists were ferreting out the history of
the insect, their crops would in the meantime be eaten up. In
the counties of Frontenac, Lennox and Addington, the insect was
universal. Wheat proved to be generally light; but the real
damage seems to have been done by a less conspicuous but more
destructive insect, — the wheat midge, — which was at work early
in the season, and, being a sly rogue in grain, was probably not
observed by many of the farmers, although quite common in the
Kingston district.

As the season advanced, the insects preying upon the aphis
seemed to increase ; but the most marked eff'ect was observed to
result from the heavy rains of the night of Wednesday, 21st, and
Thursday, 22d August, which very sensibly reduced the numbers
of the aphis. Gardeners say that watering plants overhead rather
encourages the production of aphides than otherwise. No doubt
aphides like moisture, and especially a moist atmosphere. But it
was long ago observed by ray correspondent, Mr. Hardy, of Pen-
manshiel, who has devoted special attention to these insects, that
heavy rains served to dispel them.

During the present season (1862) the aphis has again made its
appearance, and in as great numbers as before. It has naturally
attracted less notice, but appears to be widely difi'used in all the
cultivated parts of central Canada. In August, 1862, 1 traced it

Lawson on Aphis AveruB, 267

from Kingston, on the scattered farms along the Addington Road^
back to the township of Olden, a distance of about fit'ty miles.
When we consider that many of the farms referred to are mere
isolated patches of clearing in the woods, -widely separated from
each other, in some cases by miles of interminable forest and
swamp, we see that the diflfusion of this insect is totally indepen-
dent of its own limited locomotive powers. In its winged state it
is no doubt carried in clouds by the winds, like the seeds of
thistles and other winged plants.

In looking over a general collection of insects, one is struck
with the large numbers of species peculiar to certain countries or
districts, and which, in spite of their locomotive powers and other
means of diffusion, seem to persist in adherence to circumscribed
localities. The aphides are of a different character ; those of
them which infest cultivated plants may probably, with most truth,
be regarded as cosmopolitan, having no special regulating influ-
ences that we know of beyond the supply of their food and
extremes of climate. They are like the corn weeds that spring up
wherever the cereal grains are cultivated, and whose original
nativity has been lost. The careful observation of animals and
plants of this character, in a new country where settlement is still
progressing, is calculated to afford valuable information to the
zoological and botanical geographer.

The wingless aphides found in such numbers during the sum-
mer are all females, but some of the females are winged. Re-
markable as it may appear, it is nevertheless true, that the females
have the power of bringing forth living young, without any inter-
course of the sexes. This may be readily observed by enclosing
one under a glass, and observing the production of new individuals,
which is regarded by naturalists rather as the result of a process
of budding than a true reproductive process. Late in the season,
when cold weather comes on, males are produced, all being
winged ; they are known from the winged females by the absence
of the tail-like process at the apex of the abdomen. The sexes
pair, the females lay eggs, these may remain dormant and be
hatched during the following spring, and the young issuing from
them are females, capable of giving birth, as before mentioned, to
successive broods of young, in a viviparous manner, in the absence
of males.

The reproduction of aphides thus presents some of the most
remarkable phenomena with which naturalists are acquainted,

268 Lawson on Aphis Avencd.

but which are now explained by corresponding peculiarities in
some other groups. A full history of the enquiries of Bonnet
and others was given by Mr. Hardy, in a series of papers published
some years ago in the Scottish Gardener.

Prof. Huxley's important papers " On the Agamic Reproduc-
tion and Morphology of Aphis '* will be found in the third part of
the 22d volume of the Transactions of the Linnean Society(1858).

The following is a detailed description of the wheat or grain
aphis :

Aphis Aven^. — Plump, pale reddish to brown or apple-green
(usually pale-red but very various as regards colour), with black-
ish legs and feelers, appears late in summer in colonies, on flow-
ering panicles of grasses and cereal grains, becoming winged and
leaving the ears, as the season advances and the grain ripens.

Viviparous Wingless Female. — Body, medium sized, j^^h. to
Y^L^th of an inch in length, oval-oblong, convex with a rim on
each side, more or less glossy, especially when mature, varying in
colour from pale apple-yellow to deep reddish yellow or reddish
brown when young, becoming darker when old ; often of a deep
brick-red or chestnut brown, especially on the dorsal surface of
the abdomen and other exposed parts, rarely the whole body is
of a dull glaucous green, sparsely covered with scattered hairs.
The feelers are black, rather more than half the length of the
body, rough throughout with bristly hairs, the two basal joints
short and thick, especially the first, the terminal one remarkably
long and slender, transversely notched throughout its whole
length, the intermediate ones four or five times as long as broad
(only six joints are developed). The eyes are dark, the rostrum
quarter the length of the body, of a yellowish or tawny hue, the
terminal joint black, the nectaries almost black. The legs are
tawny, the knees, the feet, and the tips of the shanks black, all
rather closely covered with bristly hair.

Viviparous Winged Female. — Dark brown, sometimes almost
black, feelers longer than the body, hairy, dorsal processes of the
abdomen (" nectaries") about a fifth the length of the body ; legs
dark, the knees, feet, <fec., black, hairy ; wings ample, colourless,
longer than the body. Size of body \ inch ; of the wings -j inch,
Mr. Walker has been very successful in distinguishing aphides
by the venation of the wings. I therefore give in his words the
description of the wing veins: — " Distance between the first and
second veins at the base less than half that between them at the

Lawson on Aphis Avenoe. 269

tips; third farther from the second at the tip than it is at the
base, as near to the second at the base as the second is to the
first ; first fork nearer to the second fork than to the third vein,
nearer to the third vein than the third vein is to the second ; se-
cond fork a httle nearer to the fourth vein than to the first
fork ; fourth vein much curved near the base, almost straight to-
wards the tip, very much nearer to the second fork than to the
tip of the rib-vein."

The synonymy of this species is as follows : —

Aphis Avence, Fabricius. Schrank ; Gmelin Ed., Syst. Nat.
Linn. 1, pt. 4, p. 2206. Villers, Stewart, Turton Ed., Syst. Nat.
Linn. 11, pt. 1, p. 705. Macquart, Walker, " Ann. Nat. Hist,
ser. 2, III, pp. 45, 57," and in List of Homop. Insects in Brit.
Mus. IV, p. 972.

Aphis granaria^ Kirby, " Linn. Trans. IV, p. 238,"

Curtis. Fitch, Count. Gent., Albany, N. Y., Aug. 16,1861,
XVUI, p. 114.

Aphis Hordei^ Kyber.

Aphis cerealis, Kaltenbach.

Bromaphis, Amyst, *• Ann. Soc. Ent. Fr., 2e Serie, V, p. 479.

In order to ascertain with precision whether our Canadian in-
sect was identical with the European one, I sent specimens to Mr.
Walker of the British Museum, who is well known to be the
ablest authority in this difficult and confused branch of Entomo-
logy, and he, in the kindest manner examined the specimens and
expressed himself as sure of its identity with the European species.
Dr. Asa Fitch, of Salem, Mass., who has studied the habits of the
new aphis with great care, writes to me that he is satisfied of its
identity with the A. avence of Europe. Mr. Walker in his letter
to me dated South Grove, Highgate, near London, Sept. 19, 1861,
observes : — " The colour of this and of many other kinds of Aphis
is very variable, and is therefore of no use in identifying the spe-
cies. It occurs of different shades of green-red and of brown, and is
occasionally mottled with these colours. I do not think that there
is need to be much alarmed at its appearance, or that it will inflict
serious or permanent injury, for its swarms are only occasional,
and not annual. When it is once established on the corn, the
attempt to arrest its ravages is useless, neither do 1 believe that it
can be hindered from migrating to the corn, for its natural or
original food is various kinds of grass, and when its wings are

270 Lawson on Aphis AvencB,

developed, and its supply of food fails, it seeks for other means of
subsistence. I do not see any mention of it in Fitch's " Noxious
Insects," but I believe that his Aphis Maidis is the same species.
It has been observed on the following plants :—Secale cereale,
Friticum sestivum, &c., Avena sativa, Dantbonia strigosa, Hor-
deum vulgare, H. murinum, Bromus mollis, B. secalinus, Dactyhs
glomerata, IIolcus lanatus, Glyceria jfluitans, Poa annua, &c.,
Polygonum Persicaria."

Mr. Walker calls attention to the fact that the aphis has many
insect and other enemies in Europe, and it Canada it also has its
enemies which have during the past two seasons been busily at work
lessening its numbers. These have been so graphicallly depicted
by Dr. Fitch, in the Albany Country Gentleman, that I cite his des-
cription : — "On many of the wheat heads may at present be noticed
from one to half a dozen or more of these lice, which are very large,
plump and swollen, of the colour of brown paper, standing in a
posture so perfectly natural you suppose they are alive. Touch
them with a point of a pin, you find they are dead. Pick off a
part of their brittle skin ; you see there is inside a white maggot,
doubled together like a ball. Put one or two of these wheat heads
in a vial, closing its mouth with a wad of cotton. In a week's
time or le>s, you find running actively about in the vial, some lit-
tle black flies like small ants. These you see have come out from
the dead lice through a circular opening which has been cut in their
backs. Drive one or two of these flies into another vial, and intro-
duce to them a wheat having some fresh lice. See how the fly
runs about among them examining them with its antennsB. Having
found one adapted to its wants, watch how dexterously it curves
its body forward under its breast, bringing the tip before its
face, as if to take aim with its sting. There, the aphis gives a
shrug, the fly has pricked it with its sting, an egg has been lodged
under its skin, from which will grow^ a maggot like that first seen
inside of the dead swollen aphis. And thus the little fly runs
busily around among the lice on the wheat heads, stinging one
after another, till it exhausts its stock of eggs, a hundred probably
or more, thus insuring the death of that number of lice. And of its
progeny, fifty we may suppose to be females, by which five thou-
sand more will be destroyed. We thus see what effectual agents
these parasites are in subduing the insects on which they prey.
I find three different species of them now at work in our fields
destroying this grain aphis. I have not space here to describe

Lawson on Aphis Avence. 271

them. A particular account of them will be given in my Report
in the forthcoming volume of Transactions of our State Agricultu-
ral Society. And aiding these parasites in the work which they
have been created to perform, are several other insects, to which
I can only briefly allude. A lady bug or Coccinella (C 9-notata,
Herbst) a pretty little beetle, nearly the size and shape of a half
pea, of a bright yellow or red color, with nine small black spots,
has all season been common in our grain field, it and its larvae
feeding on this aphis. Another insect of the same kind, but much
smaller and black, with ten yellow dots on its wing covers, (J5ra-
chyacantha 10-pustulata, Melsheimer,) is little less common. The
Chrosopa, or Goldeneye flies, are also there, placing their white
eggs at the summit of slender threads, that their young may feed
on these lice. The larvae of diflferent Syrphus flies, small worms
shaped like leeches, may also be seen on the grain heads, reaching
about as an elephant does with his trunk, till an aphis is found,
which is thereupon immediately seized and pulled from its foothold
and devoured. "

In Britain, the aphides are fed upon by earwigs.

We have in Canada a large number of aphides, two of which
were very destructive last year. One of them, Aphis Brassicce^
attacks cauliflowers, Brussels sprouts, cabbages, (fee, and another
Aphis Cerasi, is very injurious to the cherry tree, especially in
orchard houses and sheltered situations. These two species have
been fully described in the Proceedings of the Botanical Society
of Canada.

ARTICLE XXYI. — On the footprints of Limulus as compared
with the Protichnites of the Potsdam sandstone. By J. W.
Dawson, LL.D., F.R.S., <fec.

Prof. Owen in his description of the remarkable footprints from
the Potsdam sandstone of Beauharnois, submitted to him by Sir
W. E. Logan,* after referring these probably to crustaceans, re-
marks, "The Limuhis, which has the small anterior pair of limbs
near the middle line, and the next four lateral pairs of limbs bi-
furcate at the free extremity, the last pair of lateral limbs with
four lamelliform appendages, and a long and slender hard tail,
comes the nearest to my idea of the kind of animal which has
left the impressions on the Potsdam sandstone." I do not know
that this view of Prof. Owen has ever been subjected to the test
of experiment, and having on a late visit to Orchard Beach ob-

* Journal of Geological Society of London. Vol. 8.

272 Dawson o?i the footprints ofLimulus,

tained a living Limulus,* it occurred to me to observe the nature
of its footmarks, and to compare these with the ancient Prot-
ichnites. The Limulus frequents this beach, which in its appear-
ance and character is probably not imlike the sandy flats repre-
sented by the Potsdam sandstone, in the spring, for the purpose
of spawning, and in storms many of them are cast on shore. In
summer they are more rare, and my specimen was a small indi-
vidual taken in a pool of salt water near the mouth of the Scar-
borough river. I had no means of preserving permanent impres-
sions of its footprints, but tried its mode of locomotion under
various conditions on the sandy shore, and preserved sketches of
the markings.

The Limulus is provided with three sorts of locomotive appa-
ratus. In the male three pairs, and in the female four pairs of
the thoracic feet are didactyle, walking and prehensile feet^
serving for locomotion on hard bottom under water. The poste-
rior pair of thoracic feet are longer and stronger than the others,
and furnished, in addition to a small didactyle foot, with four
broad, flat claws or nails, which when spread out and pressed
against the surface, enable the creature to move on the moist
sand of the shore, and also to scoop out the sand and force itself
beneath the surface in burrowing. Lastly, the flat abdominal feet
are used for swimming, and with the aid of these the creature
could rise to the surface and swim around a pail in which it was
kept. Its motions were not rapid, and its principal means of
security seemed to be burrowing under the sand, and when touched
doubling up the abdomen under the thorax in the manner of a
Trilobite, though less perfectly, and at the same time erecting and
brandishing the sharp caudal spine.

When laid on damp sand near the margin of the sea, the crea-
ture immediately began to walk, but in a circuitous manner with-
out apparent object. Its body rested upon the edges of the
broad cephalo-thorax, as on a pair of sleigh runners, and it urged
itself forward principally by the two posterior feet. The impres-
sions made consisted of two distinct furrows, with slight ridges
exterior to these, formed by the edges of the carapace. Within
these were series of punctures, deepest behind, in which the four
marks left by the nails of the posterior feet were most prominent,
and sometimes the only marks seen. In the centre was an ir-
regular groove formed by the tail spine, which was drawn along

* Limulus poly phemus^ Latreillej Polyphemus occidentalism Lamarck.

Dawson on the footprints of Limultis,

273

the sand, but occasionally moved slightly from side to side, or up
and down, in such a manner as to make a broken, irregular trail.
When the creature turned abruptly, the impressions on the inner
side of the curve were much stronger than those on the outer,
and the tail mark became more irregular, or was drawn toward
the inner side. Occasionally the spines on the sides of the abdo-
men touched the ground, and produced slight longitudinal
scratches among the footprints. These appearances are repre-
sented in Fig. 1, reduced to one-third of the natural size.

As compared with Proticlmites these tracks of the Limulus
agree in the median groove, and in the regularity of the suc-
cessive groups of impressions at the sides ; in reference to which
the track of Limulus might be named if it were a fossil, '' Ichnites
quatuor-iiotatus ;^' and it is to be observed that in Limulus the
regularity of the impressions results from the use of a pair of
limbs divided into several strong points at their free extremities.
The principal diflference is in the lateral grooves, which do not
appear in Protichnites, and in the less proportionate size of the
impressions of the feet, and the smaller number in each series. It
is however to be observed, that my specimen was a small animal,
giving an impression only 4 inches wide, and that a full grown

Can. Nat. 18 Vol. VII

274

Dawson on the footprints ofLimulus,

female of the American Limulus would give a track fully nine
inches in width, and much stronger in the principal impressions,
while in such a large track the minor impressions of the anterior
feet would also be more distinct.

When the Limulus creeps on quicksand, or on sand just covered
with water, so that its body is partly water-borne, it appears
principally to use its ordinary walking feet, and the footprints
then resolve themselves into a series of longitudinal scratches
after the manner of Protichnites lineatus, while the lateral and
median grooves retain their distinctness, the former being appa-
rently even of greater proportionate depth than on firm sand.
This kind of impression is represented in Fig. 2.

I^ffff.^

« ^11^^^

■

Fig. 2.

Fig. 3.

When placed in shallow water, just covering the body, the
creature used its flat abdominal swimming feet, and though the
impression made was very faint, and not readily observed under
water, it was obviously very different from those before men-
tioned, agreeing with them only in the lateral and median
grooves, while between these were series of furrows extending ob-
liquely from each side of the middle groove, and resembling ripple
marks. (Fig. 8.) These were produced by the sand swept up by the
swimming feet. The appearance was not unlike that of the im-
pressions found by Dr. Wilson in beds containing protichnites,
and recently described by Sir W. E. Logan in this Journal, under
the name Climactichnites, except that in the track of Limulus
the lateral and medial lines are furrows instead of ridges. The
supposition in respect to CUmacticJmites has been, that it is
possibly the track of a gasteropod, or of an annelide ; but my re-
cent observations of Limulus show that it mai/ have been pro-
duced by a crustacean moving by broad swimming feet, having a
median notch like that in the largest pair in Limulus. To pro-

Dawson on the Jootprints of Limulus.

275

duce all the appearances observed in the climactichnites, it would
be necessary that the animal should not trail its tail along the
sand, and that the swimming feet should be broad and powerful,
and have considerable mobility from side to side. I may also
state that at Orchard Beach I was puzzled for some time by
small cliraactichnite-like (racks on the beach, and at length as-
certained that they were made by a large beetle ^ which occa-
sionally settled on the wet sand, and crept for some distance on
its surface, apparently making the transverse tracks by means of
its tarsi.

Fig. 4.

The Limulus burrows in soft sand with great ease. It inserts
the sharp anterior edge of the cephalo-thorax under the sand like
a plough-share, and labouring vigourously with the broad toes of
the posterior thoracic feet, throws out sand behind, while it pene-
trates more deeply in front, at the same time jerking the caudal
spine. When nearly buried it presents the singular appearance
represented in Fig 4. When it has completely buried itself, it
slightly elevates the body and causes the sand to fall off on all
sides, so that when it subsides, only a very slight, smooth eleva-
tion marks the spot where it is concealed. The form of the ce-

* I suppose Melolontha (Polyphylla) variolosa.

276 Dawson on the footprints of lAmidus,

phalo-thorax in the Limulus is evidently related to this operation
of burrowing, and as in many trilobites it seems even better
adapted for such a use, it is probable that they also were bur-
rowers, which would however suppose the existence of strong feet
similar to those of Limulus.

From the foregoing observations we may, I think, safely de-
duce the following inferences respecting Prothichnites :

(1). The conjecture of Owen that they may have been made by
a creature somewhat resembling Limulus, is verified by the im-
pressions made by that animal.

(2). The further view of Owen that the grouping of the im-
pressions depended on multifid limbs, and that the number of
impressions in a group might indicate specific diversity, is also
vindicated by the facts, with this limitation, anticipated by Prof.
Owen, that tracks like P. lineatiis, might have been made by any
of the animals which made the other impressions, and that if
like Limulus they possessed one large pair of feet making the
principal marks, and smaller ones occasionally used, the numbers of
marks may have somewhat differed in different circumstances. Still
it is evident that a species of Limulus having a different number
of divisions of the posterior toes, from that to which these remarks
relate, might be distinguished by its footprints.

(3). The animal or animals producing the Protichnites prob-
ably resembled Limulus in general form, and in the possession of
a strong caudal spine. They probably differed from Limulus in
the less breadth or depth of the cephalo-thorax, and in the greater
complexity and comparative size of the feet.

(4). Some at least of the Protichnites were probably produced
by animals creeping on wet sand ; but P. lineatus and the Cli-
mactichnites, if the work of a similar animal, were formed under
water. Tliis accords with the view entertained by Sir W. E.
Logan as to the conditions of deposition of the Potsdam sand-
stone ; and it is probable that these ancient crustaceans, like the
modern Limulus, frequented the sandy beach for the purpose of
spawning, and may sometimes have been left dry by the tide.

(5). The suppositions above stated would account for the ab-
sence or rarity of remains of the animals which produced the
Protichnites. It is rare to find on the modern beach any frag-
ment of an adu'-t Limulus, except on the dry sand above high
water mark. The creatures are driven on shore only in storms,
and then, owing to the lightness of their crusts, are drifted high
on the beach. Their remains are probably to be found in cii:-

Dawson on the foot'prints ofLimulus. 211

cumstances favourable to their preservation, only on the muddy
bottoms at a distance from the sandy shore. Young individuals
only appear to frequent the sand in summer, and occasionally to
be imbedded in it.

(6). If we enquire what animals, known to palaeontologists, have
produced the Proticbnites, it would seem that no others fulfil the
necessary conditions in any particular, except the larger trilobites,
for instance those of the genus Paradoxides. It is true that we
know nothing as yet of the feet of these creatures, but it seems al-
most certain from analogy that they must have possessed such
organs. Nor have these trilobites a caudal spine like that of
Limulus ; but here again Mr. Billings points out to me that the
pygidium of Paradoxides is narrow and spine-like, though I should
think not sufiiciently so to form the very distinct median groove of
Proticbnites, unless indeed the creature was in the habit of walking
with this organ pointed downward. On the whole we may safely
conclude that if any of the larger primordial trilobites were pro-
vided with walking and swimming feet of the type of those of
Limulus, but differing in details of structure, they may have pro-
duced both the Proticbnites and the Climactichnites. On the
other hand, it is quite possible that these impressions have been
formed by crustaceans yet undiscovered, and approaching in some
respects more nearly to Limulus than any of the known trilo-
bites. In this last case I should suppose that the animal in
question had a flatter or more shallow cephalo-thorax than that
of Limulus, proportionately stronger and perhaps more divided
feet, and a stouter caudal spine.

It is scarcely necessary to observe that the footprints ofLimulus
differ materially from those of the higher crustaceans, and also
from the galleries formed by many small burrowing Crustacea.
With these last Mr. T. Rupert Jones, in an interesting article in
the "Geologist" for April, seems disposed to compare Climac-
tichnites Wilsonii ; but this appears to me to have more the
character of a surface impression, though what appear to be
galleries of small crustaceans are also found in the Potsdimi sand-
stane. The "iVereiVes" of Emmons,* from the Taconic rocks of
that author, also resemble in some respects the sub-aquatic trails
of Limulus, and may be tlie work of Trilobites ; and the same re-
mark applies to some of the markings from the Clinton of New
York, figured by Hall,f and referred to Crustacea and worms.

•Agriculture of New York, Vol. I.

t Palaeontology of New York, Vol. II, PI. 13 to 16.

278 Couper on the destruction of Apple-trees

ARTICLE XXVII. — On the destruction of Apple-trees hy
Saperda Candida in Districts surrounding Quebec. By
William Couper, Quebec.

I have been frequently told that apple-trees will not prosper in
the districts surrounding Quebec ; the reason is stated to be long,
severe winters. " In ascending the flank of the hill, (St. Hilaire,)
fine orchards of apple-trees were once more observed on the poor
granitic gravels, and many of the trees were loaded with fruit.
The apple trees do not thrive on the clay soils of the flats of the
St. Lawrence, in consequence, I suppose, of their tenacious na-
ture, while good orchards are met with throughout the island of
Montreal, where the soil rests upon the limestone, and is more
friable." — N. America^ its agriculture and climate, hy R. Russell.

I have quoted the above to show how conflicting opinions are
published without proper investigation. I know little regarding
the chemical properties of the clay soils or flats of the St. Law-
rence, but am informed that apples were at one time produced
in large quantities in the Quebec districts.

I have taken the following extract from the Montreal corres-
pondent of the Toronto Globe , June 13 : —

" I regret to say that there is a poor prospect of fruit this year.
Apple, pear, and plum-trees are decaying, as they have been for
three years back, caused, it is alleged, by severe frost, and the
caterpillars swarm in the orchards."

In my entomological excursions into these districts, I captured
the insect which is considered the chief cause, and lost no time
in visiting several gardens to examine the trees. The gardeners
informed me that the trees were invariably imported from the
United States, hence, the insect has been introduced within the
young trees from our neighbours' nurseries. I rest satisfied re-
garding the introduction into Canada of this tree-borer, and will
state one reason, that during a residence of seventeen years in
Toronto, I never captured the insect ; nor will it fill a place in
the Upper Canada fauna while they depend on their own nur-
series for young trees.

In a garden on the north side of the Beauport road, upwards
of twelve trees contained the insect, and had to be taken up, tbus
affording me an opportunity of cutting them up to obtain their
destroyers. In doing so, I discovered what I think is new in
entomology, i. e., that in trees containing males no opposite sex
were found, and those that contained females had that sex only.
The illustration is a fac-simile of a young tree cut oflf at the

hy Saperda Candida in District of Quebec. 279

trunk, close to the earth. AA are holes from which I procured
the perfect beetles.

" The borer of the apple-tree, a white worm or grub, devours

A young Apple-tree showing the holes bored
by the larvae of Saperda Candida. Fab.

the fragments of wood it gnawed in making its cylindrical path
within the trunk of the tree, and pushes the undigested refuse

280 Couper on the destruction of Apple-trees

out of the hole by which it has entered. When fully grown it
becomes a pupa, which like the door-bug, exhibits short folded
legs, wings and horns, of no use to it while within its burrow.
Early in June, the pupa-skin is ruptured, and the insect emerges
from the tree by gnawing through the thin covering of bark that
protects the upper extremity of the hole. Upon issuing into
the air it is found to be a beetle,* white beneath, and longitu-
dinally striped with brown above. In this, its perfect state, it lives
only upon the young and tender leaves of the apple and other
allied trees."— T. W. Harris, in iV. U. Farmer^ vol. 11. 1833.

Fig. 1. Saperda Candida. Fig. 2, Larva of Same.

The above is all that was known of this borer when Mr. Harris
wrote in 1833, yet his knowledge of the insect was suflScient to
cause the apple growers at that time to look out and prevent its-
extension. It is from carelessness and inattention that this insect
is now found in every apple-growing State in the Union. In
1825 an orchard in the neighbourhood of Troy was injured by
this Saperda to the extent of two thousand dollars.

The Natural History of New York, vol. V., p. 120, states that
the Saperda Candida is three years in coming to maturity. I have
reason to doubt the length of metamorphosis here given by Mr.
Emmons, who is not considered an entomological authority — the
above book being full of errors. From my own observations, the
metamorphoses are gone through annually, that is to say, the
arva casts its skin periodically for 12 months, the insect appear-
ing in June, and the ova deposited in June. The fact of the beetle
being " more abundant some years than others," as stated by

♦ Say, the American entomologist, described this insect as Saperda
bivittata, two longitudinal stripes running from the thorax to end of
elgtra. The Fabrician name is preferable on account of priority.

ly Saperda Candida in District of Quebec. 281

Emmons, is conclusive evidence that the deposition of the eggs
was attended with congenial weather. Any person who has
studied the hahits of forms constituting the Longicorn family, will
hold with me as to the strong parasitical attachment of the parent
insects to their favourite plants, while propagating their species ;
and we have hundreds of instances where insects only take a few
weeks to complete their stages, being some years scarce, while at
other times so common as to overrun the country.

The Saperda Candida or apple-tree borer, becomes perfect in
the neighbourhood of Quebec, on the 9th of June, and continues
to issue from the trees up to the 12th or longer ; therefore, the
trees should be carefully examined and protected as hereafter
specified, during the whole of the above month. The insect in-
variably deposits its eggs at the base of the tree, where it enters
the earth ; the larva cuts its way obhquely upwards, cross-cutting
the circulation of the sap, and depriving it of its nourishment.

The following instructions should be carried out to ensure suc-
cess in exterminating the borer : —

1. Import no more young apple-trees from the United States,
without a thorough examination for the larva. It would be pre-
ferable to obtain them from the Upper Canada nurseries where
the insect does not occur.

2. Mix an earth-mortar or clay such as is used for grafting
purposes, and with it surround the lower part of the tree, say 1^
or 2 feet. It should have a thickness of Ij- or 2 inches, and
made to adhere closely to the earth where the trunk enters it.
Apply it also from the 1st of June to any of the attacked trees
showing symptoms of life. If there are any perfect insects to
issue, escape will be cut off, and much good done in this way.
It is useless to use solutions of any kind, as the larva ascend the
tree and will remain untouched.

3. It would be advisable to use the same precaution with pear
trees during this period, as the apple-borer may select them when
deprived of its more congenial tree.

ARTICLE XXYIII. — Discovery of Microscopic Organisms in
the Siliceous Nodules of the Palceozoic Rocks of New York,

At Prof. Dana's suggestion, Dr. M. C. White, well known for
his devotion to the microscope, has examined various specimens
of the hornstone nodules found in the Devonian and Siluriaa

282 Discovery of Microscopic Organisms.

rocks of this country, with a view to determine the presence of
organisms analogous to those well known to exist in the flints of
the Chalk. This research has been rewarded by the discovery of
abundant organisms referable to the Desmidiese, besides a few
Diatomaceae, numerous spicuia of sponges, and also fragments of
the teeth of Gasteropods. Among the Desmids, there is a large
variety of forms of Xanthidia supposed to be the Sporangia of
Desmids, besides an occasional duplicated Desraid ; also lines of
cells, some of which appear to be sparingly branched. The re-
searches have been mostly confined to the hornstone of the Cor-
niferous limestone ; though extended also to the hornstone from
the Black River limestone and that of the sub-Carboniferous
limestone of Illinois, both of which contain some organisms.

The hornstone nodules from the Black River limestone (as
well as the Corniferous) have been since examined also by Mr.
F. H. Bradley with similar results.

These observations will be regarded with much interest by geo-
logists as well by miscrocopists. They carry back to a very early
epoch forms of life which have hitherto been looked upon as be-
longing only to a much more recent era in the life of our planet.

The analogy of these hornstone nodules to the flints of the
Chalk is obvious ; and the discoveries here anounced may be re-
garded as establishing their similarity in origin. The organisms
figured so closely resemble those of the flint that they might be
taken for them ; it is difficult in all cases to make out a differ-
ence of species.

The extreme abundance of the hornstone nodules in our pa-
laeozoic limestones will render it easy to multiply observations
in this new field of research, which presents an interesting addi-
tion to the labors of the microscopist. It will be remembered
by those who undertake such examinations that the use of turpen-
tine renders the chips of chert almost as transparent as glass. —

To THE Editors, — Having recently been engaged in examining
the microscopic structure of hornstone from Palaeozoic rocks, I
send you the accompanying sketches of organic forms which I
have discovered. They consist of spicules and gemmules of
sponge and fragments of sponges ; Desmidiese, several species of
Xanthidia, and disks which probably are to be considered as Dia-
toms. Hornstone from the corniferous limestone of central and
western New York contains the greatest variety of these organic
forms. A few specimens have been found in hornstone of the
Black River Limestones from Watertown, N. Y. * * * *

Scudder^s List of Orthoptera, 283

These investigations were undertaken at the suggestion of Prof.
Dana, who furnished the specimens of hornstone, the examination
of which has enabled me to make these most interesting discover-
ies. Yours, &c. M. C. White.

New Haven, Conn., March 22, 1862. — Am Jour, of Science.

[We commend the above interesting discovery to the notice of
microscopists in Canada. Some of our oldest limestones and
cherts, as for example those of the limestones of the Quebec group,
present a microscopic appearance similar to that of ordinary flint,
and contain numerous minute fragments and globular and spi-
cular bodies, some of which may probably be of the same nature
with those discovered by Dr. White, though we have not as yet
been able to satisfy ourselves of their organic character. Eds.]

ARTICLE XXES. List of Orthoptera collected on a trip

Jrom Assiniboid to Cumberland. By Samuel H. Scudder.

The species enumerated below were obtained during a canoe
trip, taken during the summer of 1860, from the Red River set-
tlements to the Pas on the Saskatchewan River, and during a
few days stay at Fort Garry at the former place. The collections
made were small in number both of individuals and of species,
because of the meagre opportunities given for collecting upon a
hurried trip of this nature, but are interesting because of having
passed — so far as the trip extended — over the exact route, taken
by Sir John Richardson when making the collections which form-
ed the basis of Kirby's work on the Insects of Boreal America. I
have been enabled to determine, with but the least deo:ree of
doubt, the few Orthoptera described by him, which since his day
have been involved in obscurity. This list lays no claims to com-
pleteness, but as being an advance on anything hitherto known,
it is offered with the hope that by exhibiting to others the mea-
greness of our knowledge of the Orthopteran fauna of the great
North-West, it may stimulate increased activity in this interest-
ing department, where so much remains to be done. Collections
from every portion of the British Provinces are earnestly solicited
by the author, the most common no less than the uncommon
species, in return for which he will be glad to furnish labelled
series of collections sent, or of species found within the limits of
New England.

Cambridge, Mass. July 8th, 1862.

284 Scudder's List of Orthoptera,

Phasmid^ — Leach.
DiAPHEROMERA, Gray.

D. FEMORATA.

Spectrum femoratunif Say, App. Long's Second Exp. 297.

Diapheromera Sayi, Gray, Synopsis of Phasmidse, 18,

Bacteria (Bacunculus) Sayi, Burm. Handb. d. Ent. II, 566.

A single specimen was brought to me at the Selkirk settlements
on Red River. I have seen specimens also from Massachusetts,
N. Hampshire, Illinois, and Nebraska.

LocusTARi^ — Latreille.

Udeopsylla, Scudd.

This genus is to be placed between Ceuthophilus* Scudd. and
Daihinia, Hald. The maxillary palpi are rather long : the first
and second joints equal and small ; third more than equal to the
preceding together ; fourth little more than half as long as third ;
fifth a httle longer than third, somewhat curved, split along the
whole under side. As in Ceuthophilus the pro- meso- and meta-
nota nearly conceal the epimera of the thoracic segments. Hind
femora very heavy, thick and especially broad, but not so much
so as in Daihinia, where, as in this genus, the whole limb is
swollen, and not the basal portion only, as in the neighboring
genera ; it differs from Daihinia in the structure of the tarsal
joints, which here have the first and fourth joints equal and long-
est, the second and third equal and small, the second overlap-
ping the third above.

Daihinia robusta, Hald. is the type of the genus, a species
found in Nebraska.

U. NIGRA, nov. sp.

Shining black, with a faintly indicated, narrow, reddish, dorsal
line, a reddish tinge on the front of the face, the basal half of the
inner surface of hind femora, and the terminal half of the ovipos-
itor reddish ; the hind femora of the male have upon either edge
of the under surface, but especially on the inner, short but heavy
spines, not crowded, the hind tibiae are furnished on either edge
of the upper surface with four or five opposite, long and slender
spines, between each two of which are placed three or four sup-
pressed spines ; there is a single row of short spines upon the

* Ceuthophilus is a new genus, of which Rhaphidophora maculata, Harr,
is the type, for full characteristics of this and Udeopsylla see an article
on N. American Orthoptera, presented to the Boston Society of Natural
History in May, 1862, and now publishing in their Journal, Vol. VII,
No. 3.

Collected in the North-West* 285

under surface, which become double towards the tip ; the inner
valves of the ovipositor have five teeth growing longer and more
curved towards the tip, where they are very long and slender.

Length of body, .8-9 in.; of hind femora, .68 in.; .56 in. ;
of ovipositor, .33 in. ; of antennse, about 1 in.

This species was taken by Mr. Kennicott at Red River, and I
obtained it in northern Minnesota, upon the Red River trail, leap-
ing about in the grass, at mid-day.

Phaneroptera, Serville.

P. cuRVicAUDA, Serville, Ann. Sc. Nat., 1st ser. XXII, 159.

Locusta curvicauda, De Geer, Mem. Ill, 446, PL 38, fig. 3.

Gryllus [Phyllo2)terus) myrtif alius, Drury, Ill.,Ex.Ent. (West-
wood's edition) II, 88, PI. 41, fig. 2 (Syn. del.).

Phaneroptera angustifolia, Harris, Report Ins. Mass., 3d edi-
tion., 160, fig. 76.

This species varies very much in size and in the proportions of
the wing-covers. I obtained it at Red River, and have seen it also
from most of the N. England states, where it is somewhat abundant.

[I enclose the two succeeding species in brackets, because I
have very strong doubts whether the specimens obtained by m^
are referable to the species mentioned, and I only place them
there now in order to indicate their affinities.

XiPHiDiuM, Serville.

X. FAsciATDM, Serv., Ann. Sc. Nat., 1st ser. XXII, 159.

Locusta fasciata, De Geer, Mem. Ill, 458, PI. 40, fig. 4.

Orchelimum gracile, Harris, Rep. Ins. Mass. 3d ed. 163, fig. 78.

I have this species in large numbers IromNew England ; those
obtained at Red River diff"er from these in having a larger body,
and a longer ovipositor.

X. BREVIPENNIS, UOV. Sp.

This species as found in New England maybe characterized thus:

Size of X. fasciatiim, with which it agrees in coloration through-
out, except that the wings are a little darker, the dorsal band is
a little broader and is of a reddish brown throughout, while in
X.fasciatum it is green at the base : wings .08 in. shorter than
the wing covers, both shorter than the body ; ovipositor nearly
equalling the hind femora in length : in these respects it diff"ers
very much from X.fasciatum.

Length of body, .5 in.; of wing covers .33 in.; of hind fe-
mora .43 in. ; of ovipositor .4 in.

The single specimen I have from Red River is smaller than
any I have seen elsewhere, has no wings, and the wing covers but
.14 in. in length.]

286 Scudder^s List of Orthoptera,

AcRYDii — Latreille.

Chloealtis, Harris.

C. coNSPERSA, Harris, Report Ins. Mass., 3d Ed. 184.

C. abortiva, " " " "

This species was obtained in abundance on the 4th July, at Dog's
Head, eastern shore of Lake Winnipeg, leaping about actively
when disturbed, and apparently living exclusively among the
lichens which bordered the patches of rocks.

Stenobothrus, Fischer Fr.

S. CURTIPENNIS.

Chloealtis curtipennis^ Harr., Report Ins. Mass. 3rd ed. 184
pi. 3, fig. 1.

This species, which is one of the commonest N. England forms,
was found abundantly at the Red River settlements. The figure
in Harris' Report is quite inaccurate.

Aroyptera, Serville.

A. GRACILIS, nov. sp.

Vertex of the head rather broad, swollen at front border of the
eye, the edge raised to a ridge, with a medial ridge extending
over the whole top of the head ; foveolae long and narrow, trian-
gular, rather deep; pronotum rugose ; wing covers short and broad,
costal border somewhat swollen near the base, internal border full.

Dark brown; a narrow curved dark line extends from the
upper border of the eye to the lateral carina3 of the pronotum,
and is the inner limit of a rather broad brownish-yellow band,
which extends from the hind border of the eye to the lateral
carinse, whence it continues backwards crossing the carinsB ;
below this upon the upper border of the sides extends a
narrow black'band from the eye to the hind edge of pronotum ;
the medial carina is black ; wing-covers uniform dusky brown,
except the internal border, which is yellowish brown ; wings
dusky, with a yellowish tinge on the internal half; hind femora
reddish, black at apex ; hind tibiae yellow with black spines,
with the base and apex black, and a dark annulation at the upper
limit of the spines.

Length of body -85 in. ; of wing-covers '78 in. ; breadth of wing-
covers in middle -22 in.; length of hind femora -52 in.

This species seemed to be rather abundant at Red River. I
know it elsewhere only by a single specimen from Maine.

Pezotettix, Burmeister.

P. BOREALIS, nov. Sp.

Vertex of the head with a broad longitudinal furrow in advance

Collected in the North- West. 287

of the middle of the eyes ; sides of pronotum very nearly parallel,
slightly wider at hind border, which is arcuate ; medial carina
slightly higher than the lateral, not prominent; wing-covers longer
than the wings, not quite reaching the extremity of the abdomen.

Dark brown, darkest above ; a broad black band behind the
eye, extending over the upper portion of the sides of the prono-
tum to the hind border; front dark yellowish brown, mouth
parts dirty yellowish ; legs yellowish brown ; hind femora streaked
with black, with the apex black; hind tibiae reddish, with a faint
paler annulation near the base, the spine tipped with black ;
wing-covers dirty yellowish brown, spotted irregularly with darker
brown ; wings colorless, a little dusky on costal border.

Length ofbody '65 in.; ofwing-covers-4in. ; of hind femora -4 in.

This species is fond of places where the grass grows thinly. I
obtained specimens at the Pas on the Saskatchewan River, and
at different points along Lake Winnipeg. I have also seen mu-
tilated specimens, doubtless of this species, from the Island of
Anticosti in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Caloptenus, Serville, (emend).

C. FEMUR-RUBRUii^ Bum. Handb. d. Ent. IL 638.

Acrydium femur-ruhrurriy DeGeer, Mem. in.498 PI. 42, fig. 5.

Acrydium femorale^ Oliv. Encyc. Meth. lY. 228.

This is a wide spread and exceedingly abundant species. I
found it in considerable quantities at Red River, and I have spe-
cimens also from Minnesota, Illinois, Nebraska and N. England.

C. BiviTTATus, Uhler in Say's Ent. of N. Am., ed. Leconte, II. 238.

Gryllus bivittatus, Say, Journ. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phil. IV. 308.

Locusta leucostoma, Kirby, Faun. Bor. Am. IV. 250.

CalojHenus femoratics, Burm. Handb. d. Ent. II. 638.

Acrydium flavovittatum, Harris, Report Ins. Mass., 3rd ed. 173.

I found this species in considerable abundance in grassy places
along the shores of Lake Winnipeg, particularly near the mouth
of the Saskatchewan. It is a wide spread species ; for I have seen
specimens from as widely separated localities as Maine, Maryland,
Texas, Nebraska, Illinois, Minnesota, and Lake Winnipeg.

(Edipoda, Latreille.

Qi. ^QUALis, Uhl. in Harr. Report Ins. Mass., 3rd ed. 178.
Gryllus cequaliSy Say, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sc. Phil. IV. 307.

This species was not found farther north than the southern shore
of Lake Winnipeg. I have taken it also in Minnesota andN. England.

CE. VERRUCDLATA.

Locusta verruculata^ Kirby, Faunn, Bor. Am. IV. 250.

288 Scudder's List of Orthoptera,

Locusta latipenniSy Harr. Report, Ins. Mass., 3rd ed. 178.

I found this species at Pt. Wigwam, Lake Winnipeg, on 1st Au-
gust, abundant at mid-day flying about on the sandy spots, like the
preceding species it makes a crackling noise with every successive
flutter of its wings. I have seen it elsewhere only from N. England.

Uhler, (Harr. Report Ins. Mass., 3rd ed., 178,) considers this
to be identical with the previous species, in which opinion I can
hardly concur — it differs from (E. eequalis in the following par-
ticulars : in (E. cequalis the black band across the middle of the
wings is broad, its outer edge as well as the inner distinct, the
outer border at first straight, then well rounded, curving inwards
where it approaches the outer border ; beyond the band the wing
is pellucid with black veins not cloudy, and at the tip there is
either a dusky patch, or irregularly clustered square blackish
spots ; in CE. verruculata the inner border of the band is more
wavy and is illy defined ; the outer border is straight, and where
it approaches the outer border of the wing is turned slightly out-
wards instead of inwards, and is frequently very indistinct, being
merged into the more or less dusky space beyond it, which in-
creases in cloudiness to the tip, where it is as* dark as the band ;
the band itself is quite narrow in the middle, so that it might be
said to be made up of two triangular patches which meet and
merge in the middle ; the broadest band I have seen in CE. ver-
ruculata is not more than half the width of the narrowest I have
observed in (E. cequalis ; in (E. cequalis the hind tibise are either
wholly coral-red, or have a pale yellowish annulation at the base ;
in (E. verruculata the tibise have the base and apex black, with
the middle half yellowish, with generally a dusky annulation in
the middle.

Tetrix, Latreille, (emend).

T. GRANULATA.

Acrydium c/ranulatum, Kirby, Faun. Bor. Am. IV. 251.

Tetrix ornala, Harris, Report Ins. Mass., 3rd ed. 186.

(Not Acrydium ornatum^ Say, Am. Ent. I. PL V.)

I have not seen this species from British America, but only
from northern Minnesota, on the Red River trail, and from N.
England, but mention it here because of its having been first de-
scribed by Kirby. It is not the species described by Say under
the name of ornatum, although it is closely allied to it — it differs
from ornatum in the longer extension of the pronotum backward,
its greater size, and in the prominence of the vertex, which is
angulated in front — it varies much in coloration.

Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds. 289

ARTICLE XXX. — On the Mammals and Birds of the District

of Montreal. By Archibald Hall, M.D^ L.R.C.S.E.

(Continued from page 193.)

Turdus novehoracensis. Aquatic Thrush.

T. aquaticus of Audubon !

Sylvia novehoracensis, Latham and Buonaparte !!

v.s.p. Legs and bill brown ; irides black ; bill slightly notched ;
eggs 4 to 5, flesh colour, spotted dark towards the larger end.

Dorsal aspect. Olive brown, with a ring of a lighter tint
round the neck.

Ventral aspect. A line from the nostrils over the eye, termin-
ating beyond the auriculars of a cream colour ; auriculars pale
brown; sides of the neck, throat, breast, belly, vent, and tail
coverts yellowish white, thickly spotted with brown streaks, most
numerous and largest on the breast, and finest on the throat.

2nd and 3rd primaries subequal and longest; 1st longer than
the 4th. Length b\ inches ; alar breadth 8 inches. The female
differs little.

T. aurocapillus. Golden-crowned Thrush.
Sylvia aurocajnlla of Buonaparte !
Seirus aurocapillus. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill short, and with the legs pale flesh colour ; irides
hazel ; eggs 4 to 5, white mottled with reddish brown.

Dorsal aspect. Olivaceous yellow; crown brownish orange,
with a lateral border of black from the nostrils, lost upon the oc-
ciput, succeeded by the dorsal tint immediately above the eye ;
primaries and secondaries ashy, edged with whitish.

Ventral aspect. Pure white with black spots on the sides of
the neck, breast and flanks ; inner wing coverts pale yellow ; eye-
lids white.

1st, 2nd, and 3rd primaries equal. Length 6 inches; alar
breadth 9 inches.

Genus Tanagra.
Gen. char. Bill short, robust, triangular at the base, carinate *
upper mandible curved and notched wider than, and projecting
over, the lower one ; lower one straight, somewhat gibbous to-
wards the middle ; nostrils basal, round, and open ; tarsus equal
to the middle toe ; external and middle toe connected at base •
2nd and 3rd primaries longest.
Can. Nat. 19 Vol. VU

290 Dr> A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

T. rubra. Scarlet Tanager.
Pyranga rubra. Linn. ! Viell. 1 Baird !
v.s.p. Bill horn coloured, black at the base ; legs and feet
bluish; irides deep hazel ; according to Nuttal " cream colour,"
which I never observed, although I have inspected upwards of a
hundred specimens. Eggs 3 to 4, dull blue, mottled with brown-
ish purple towards the larger end.

Dorsal aspect. Scarlet, varying in depth of tint from the
brightest to an orange; wings and tail black, the latter emargin-
ate.

Ventral aspect. Scarlet, paler about the vent.
2nd primary longest ; 1st a little shorter than the 3rd. Length
6| inches ; alar breadth 11 inches. The young bird has some
touches of green about it, especially among the scapulars, and
the ventral aspect inclines to a yellowish tinge.
T. cestiva. Summer Redbird.
Pyranga oestiva, Gmel. ! Linn. ! Viell. ! Baird !
V.S.P. Bill horn coloured, whitish where the mandibles meet ;
legs and feet greyish blue ; irides hazel ; eggs 4 to 5 light blue.

Dorsal aspect. Crimson ; wings light brown, the edges of the
outer vanes margined with greenish yellow ; tail composed of 12
leathers ; the two external ones greenish yellow, the middle ones
crimson.
Ventral aspect. Crimson.

Length from extremity of tail to beak YJ inches ; alar expanse
about 9 J inches.

This is a beautiful bird but very rare. In all my rambles I
never met with it. The specimen before me, and which I have
described, is a young bird, shot by Mr. Hunter, taxidermist to the
Natural History Society, on the mountain. He wafe accompanied
by an associate which Mr. Hunter could not succeed in obtaining.
The old bird differs from the young one in having, according to
Audubon, " the tips and inner webs of the quills tinged with
brown."

The adult female differs essentially from the male. Thus ac-
cording to the same authority, " the general colour above is light
brownish green, the sides of the head, and the under parts gen-
erally are brownish yellow ; large wing coverts dusky edged with
yellow ; quills deep brown, externally margined with yellowish
red ; tail feathers of the same colour," This with its congener
are our two most flashy birds.

of the District of Montreal. 291

Genus Quiscalus.

Gen. char. Bill moderately long, compressed, entire, with sharp
and inflected edges ; upper mandible projecting over the lower,
and extended backwards on the forehead; nostrils oval, half
closed by a membrane ; outer and middle toe connected at the
base ; 2nd and 3rd primaries longest ; tail more or less rounded.

Q. versicolor. Purple Grackle.
Gracula quiscala.
Quiscalus versicolor, Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black; irides white; eggs 5 to 6
dull green, blotched and spotted with dark olive.

Dorsal and ventral aspects. Black, with a purple or steel blue
iridescence on the head and neck ; bronze on the belly and back,
and bronze and violet on the greater wing coverts and secon-
daries ; primaries black without iridescence ; tail rounded almost
cuneiform, with steel blue reflections.

3rd primary longest; 1st, 2nd, and 4th subequal. Length 12
inches ; alar breadth 17§ inches. Female less brilliant than the
male.

Q. baritus. Common Blackbird.
Gracula barita of Linnaeus !
Oriolus niger of Gmelin.
Qniscalus baritus, Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black; irides black; eggs 5, dark
coloured S2)0tted with dusky.

Dorsal and ventral aspects. Deep black, with a faint steel blue
iridescence, inclining to green about the wings ; feathers generally
faintly tippe({ with brownish ; tail nearly square ; lateral feathers
on each side shortest ; J inch shorter than the centre ones.

2nd primary longest; 1st next. Length 9 inches; alar ex-
panse 14j inches. According to Nuttal the female is dull brown-
ish, with the eyebrows and ventral aspect whitish.

Q.ferrugineus. Rusty Grackle.
Gracula ferruginea of Wilson.
Scoleophagus ferrugineus ^ Baird !

V.8.P. Legs, bill and feet black ; irides white ; eggs 5, dusky
spotted with black.

Dorsal and ventral aspects. Glossy black, with ferruginous
tips to the feathers ; head and neck iridescent with dark green.

292 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

2nd primary longest ; tail rounded. Length 9j inches ; alar
expanse 15 inches. The female has the belly and rump ashy.
Genus Oriolus.

Gen. char. Bill conic, horizontally compressed at the base ;
upper mandible ridged and carinate ; nostrils basal, lateral and
naked, and horizontally pierced in a large membrane ; tarsus and
middle toQ subequal in length ; outer and middle toes connected
at base ; 2nd primary longest.

0, Baltimorus. Baltimore Oriole.
Icterus Baltimorus. Buonaparte ! Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet pale blue ; irides deep hazel ; eggs 4
to 5, bluish white, spotted and streaked with dark brown ; ne&t
pendant.

Dorsal aspect. Head, neck, and back deep black; rump or-
ange ; tail square, the two central feathers black with minute
orange tips ; all the lateral ones black with their distal halves
orange ; smaller wing coverts orange ; greater ones black tipped
with white on their outer vanes, the three or four last secondaries
similar ; primaries and the other secondaries black, with faint
emarginations of white on their outer vanes.

Ventral aspect. Neck black, terminating in a cone on the
lower part of the throat ; breast and all the other parts orange.

2nd primary longest; 1st and 3rd very little shorter. Length
7 J inches; alar breadth 11 inches. The female differs consider-
ably from the male. Her dorsal aspect is yellowish brown, with
the tail olivaceous; the wing coverts tipped with yellowish; se-
condaries much more broadly margined with white than in the
male ; head of the dorsal tint. Ventral aspect yellowish.. Taken
from a living female in the author's possession ; her second moult.
The winter plumage is the same as the summer.
Family II. Fissirostres.
Genus Hirundo.

Gen. char. Bill short, triangular, depressed and wide at the
base, and cleft nearly to the eyes ; upper mandible notched, and
a little hooked at the point ; nostrils basal, oblong, semi-closed by
a membrane ; exterior and middle toes united to the first joint ;
1st primary longest ; tail more or less furcate.
H. purpurea. The Purple Martin.
Progne purpurea. Linn. ! Baird !

V.S.P. Bill, legs and feet black ; irides hazel ; eggs 4 to 6, white.

of the District of Montreal. 293

Dorsal and ventral aspects. Prussian blue, with purplish steel
reflections ; tail furcate, and as well as the wings sooty brown.

1st primary longest Length 9 inches ; alar breadth 16j inches.
The female is greyish on the ventral aspect, and with the young
bird of the first moult is altogether not nearly as brilliant in ap-
pearance.

H. rufa. The Bam Swallow.

H. Americana. Wilson !

H. horreorum. Barton ! Baird !

v.s.p. Bill black ; legs and feet purplish black ; irides hazel ;
eggs 4, white spotted brown.

Dorsal aspect like the last ; frontlet ferruginous.

Ventral aspect. Throat ferruginous ; breast covered by a pur-
ple band ; belly, vent, wing and tail coverts of a pale ferruginous
tint

Tail deeply furcate ; lateral feathers twice as long as the centre
ones, and all spotted with white on their inner webs, presenting a
orescentic band which is most conspicuous on the lower surface ;
wings and tail feathers brownish black ; 1st primary longest.
Length 6j inches; alar breadth 12 J inches. The female has the
belly and vent rufous white.

H. bicolor. White-bellied Swallow.
H. viridis. Wilson!

v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet blackish ; irides hazel ; eggs 4 to 5,
white.

Dorsal aspect. Blue, with purple reflections.

Ventral aspect. White, inclining to greyish on the flanks.
tail subfurcate; wings sooty brown.

1st primary longest. Length 5 J- inches; alar expanse 11 inches.
The female and young resemble the male.
H.fulva, CliflF Swallow.
H. lunifrons. Say ! Baird !

D.c. "Blue black ; beneath brownish white ; throat and rump
ferruginous ; front with a paler semilunar band ; tail even ; tail
coverts pale yellowish red; wings and tail brownish black.
Length 5^ inches ; alar extent 12 inches." — (Nuttall).
Genus Caprimulgus.

Gen. char. Bill slender, short, depressed, and cleft beyond the
eyes; upper mandible generally furnished with long bristles;
slightly hooked ; nostrils basal, wide, more than half closed by a

S94 Dr. A* Hall on the Mammals and Birds

feathered membrane, having a tubular opening ; anterior toes
united as far as the first joint ; middle claws long and pectinate ;
hind toe versatile ; 2nd and 3rd primaries longest.

C. vociferus. The Whip-poor-will.
Antrostomus vociferus, Wils. ! Buonap. ! Baird !

v.s p. Bill black ; legs and feet whitish ; irides deep hazel ;
eggs 2, bluish white blotched with dark olive.

Dorsal aspect. Feathers of the head and back minutely speck-
led with brown and white, with black streaks along the shafts ;
a ferruginous tint prevails on the scapulars and coverts, the former
of which are broadly tipped with black ; tail round ; the three
lateral tail feathers white on their distal halves ; the others speck-
led and barred with black, brown, and ferruginous ; primaries
and secondaries brown, speckled with ferruginous towards their
extremities; with ferruginous spots, causing bars on the outer
and inner vanes of both.

Ventral aspect like the dorsal ; a narrow white line traverses
the throat, and a pale ferruginous tint prevails on the abdomen,
though much intermingled with black ; vent feathers and inner
tail coverts pale ferruginous.

2nd primary longest ; 3rd next; 1st a little longer than 4th.
Length lOj inches, alar breadth 19 inches; middle claw pectin-
ate on its inner margin. The female has the white parts of the
male pale ochreous.

C. Virginianus, Night Hawk or Mosquitoe Hawk.
Chordeiles popetue ? Baird !

v.s.p. Bill black ; feet and legs blackish ; irides deep hazel ;
eggs 2, bluish white mottled with umber colour.

Dorsal aspect. Glossy brownish black, speckled with numerous
small spots, and narrow zigzag bars of a pale grey or cream co-
lour; the cream colour predominating on the scapulars; wings
brownish black, tipped with soiled white, and intersected on the
five first primaries by a white spot forming a band ; the white
spot obsolete on the outer vanes of the 1st ; tail furcate, blackish
brown barred with grey. " In the male there is a white band on
the tail."— (Nuttall).

Ventral aspect. A white spot on the throat ; breast, belly and
vent dirty cream colour, barred with blackish brown ; the bars
lorgest and most distinct on the belly ; most numerous and least
distinct on the breast and chin.

0) the District of Montreal, 295

1st primary longest. Length 9| inches; alar breadth 22
inches.

G. Americanus, Linn. !

v.s.p. Bill and legs pale flesh colour ; the former black to-
wards the tip ; irides hazel.

Dorsal aspect. Prevailing tint a light coloured brown or fawn
colour, intersected on the crown of the head by a narrow black
streak; feathers of the occiput minutely powdered with light
fawn ; those of the neck with a black bar tipped with cream co-
lour; scapulars brown, distal halves of their outer vanes black,
with cream coloured edges and barred below the surface ; small
wing coverts brown, minutely barred and powdered with black ;
greater wing coverts brown, barred and speckled with black ; a
well defined bar towards their extremities, succeeded by a cream
coloured tip ; tail rounded, lateral feather and quill half of tbe
outer vane of 2nd feather brownish black ; the remainder of the
outer vanes and whole inner vanes of 2nd, and whole of the 3rd
white ; centre feathers of the prevailing dorsal tint with 10 to 11
bars of black, and speckled with the same colour in the interme-
diate spaces; wings brown ; the 5 first primaries with a white bar
across the outer and inner vanes, not obsolete on the outer vanes
of the 1st.

Ventral aspect. A white spot on the throat ; breast and chin
ferrugineous, barred with black ; belly and vent pale ferruginous,
barred with dusky.

Bill with bristles projecting about 4 lines beyond the extrem-
ity of the bill ; legs longer than the C. Virginianus ; 1 inch, 3
lines from the knee to the tarsus ; middle toe with claw as long
as the tarsi, inner edge of the claw pectinate. Length 10^ inches ;
alar breadth 18 inches. 3rd primary longest; 2nd and 4th equal ;
1st a little longer than the 5tli.

Described from a specimen in the museum of the Natural His-
tory Society of Montreal.

This is a Mexican species, which in its wandering contrived to
reach this neighbourhood. It was shot on the mountain by the
late Mr. Broome, who held for many years the situation of taxi-
dermist to the Natural History Society. It was identified by Mr.
Cassin of Philadelphia, as a Mexican species, under the above
designation. See appendix.

296 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Family III. Conirostres,
Genus Alauda.
Gen. char. Bill short, conic ; mandibles of equal length ; up-
per one convex and entire ; nostrils basal, oval, partly concealed
by the feathers of the forehead ; tongue bifid ; toes free ; hind
claw prolonged, nearly straight, and longer than the toe ; spuri-
ous feathers short or aberrant ; 2nd and 3rd primaries longest ;
two of the scapulars nearly as long as the primaries ; tail furcate;
coronal feathers erectile at pleasure.

A. alpestris. Shore Lark.

V.6.P. Bill dusky; legs and claws] black; irides hazel; eggs
unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, and line over and round the eye, end-
ing above the eyes yellow, succeeded on the forehead and sides
of the head by black ; nape of neck, crown of head, and dorsal
region reddish fawn ; small wing coverts tipped with white ; dor-
sal feathers with central black streaks ; tail square ; lateral fea-
thers white on their outer vanes ; all the rest blackish brown ex-
cept the two centre ones which are broadly edged and tipped
with fawn verging to white ; wings brownish black ; secondaries
and two or three last primaries edged with whitish, and tipped
with the same ; outer vane of 1st primary altogether white.

Ventral aspect. Auriculars light brown, a black. streak from
the angle of the mouth to the cheeks, gradually increasing in
breadth ; upper part of the throat and sides of the neck yellow ;
breast with a broad black crescent ; abdomen, wing and tail co-
verts white ; vent and sides of the breast fawn.

2nd primary longest ; 1st shorter than 3rd, but two lines longer
than the 4th. Length YJ inches ; alar breadth 13 inches.

Genus Parus.
Gen. char. Bill short, straight, conic, compressed entire, fur-
nished with nuchal bristles ; nostrils basal, rounded, and concealed
by the projecting feathers of the forehead ; feet with the toes
divided ; hind claw strongest and most bent ; 4th and 5th pri-
Ciaries the longest,

P. Palustris. Black-capped Titmouse.
P. atrieapillus. Baird 1
v.s.p. Bill black ; legs bluish ; irides dark hazel ; eggs 6 to
J.2, white speckled with reddish brown.

of the District of Montreal, 297

Dorsal aspect. Crown, occiput, and nape of neck black ; au-
riculars and cheeks white, projecting conically forward to the
angle of the bill ; dorsal region bluish grey ; wings and tail dark-
er, the former edged with whitish.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat black ; the sides white tinted
with brown.

Length 5 J inches ; alar expanse 6 J inches ; head not crested.
(Compiled from Nuttal).

Genus Emheriza.

Gen. char. Bill short, compressed, conic, with inflected edges ;
upper mandible narrower than the under ; nostrils basal, rounded,
partly concealed by projecting feathers from the forehead ; toes
divided ; hind claw short and bent ; tail more or less furcate.
E. nivalis. The Snow Bunting.
Plectrophanes nivalis. Linn. ! Baird !

v.s.p. Bill yellowish ; legs and feet black ; irides deep hazel ;
eggs 5, whitish mottled with brown and grey.

Dorsal aspect. (Winter plumage as they appear in this dis-
trict). Crown, occiput, and nape of neck stained with rufous ;
dorsum interscapular region and scapulars black, the feathers
tipped with rufous ; greater and smaller wing coverts and rump
white ; tail coverts black with white tips ; spurious wing feathers
black ; primaries blackish brown, white at their insertion and
with white margins on their outer vanes and tips ; secondaries,
except the four last which have rufous outer margins, white ; tail
subfurcate, their lateral feathers white with black tips, the rest
blackish brown with white margins and tips.

Ventral aspect. White, with rufous stains on the throat, sides
of breast and flanks.

1st primary longest. Length Y^ inches; alar breadth 13 inches.
Tiiis bird varies considerably in the minor ghades which charac-
terize its plumage.

E. lapponica. Lapland Longspur Bunting.
Plectrophanes lappoiiica. Linn. ! Baird !

v.s.p. Bill yellow tipped with black ; legs and feet black ;
irides hazel ; eggs 5 to 6, yellowish rusty clouded with brown.

Dorsal aspect. Front, and crown of the head black ; nape of
the neck rufovs ; back, rump, tail coverts and scapulars blackish
brown^ with broad rufous edging and tips ; greater and smaller
wing coverts blackish brown tipped with white ; tail and quill

898 Dr. A, Hall' oh the Mammals and Birds

feathers black, edged with white on the outer vanes ; the lateral
tail feathers on the whole of the outer vane, and distal half of the
inner vanes, with a tear shaped spot of blackish brown on the ex-
tremity of the shafts.

Ventral aspect. Breast, throat, chin, and cheeks black ; a
white line from the nostrils proceeds along the eye, and soon
acquires a yellow tint, and gradually increasing in breadth de-
scends behind the auriculars, and separates the black cheeks from
the rufous sides of the neck ; belly, vent and tail coverts white ;
flanks streaked black.

1st and 2nd primaries equal. Length 6j inches ; alar breadth
11 inches; hind claw with nail 11 lines long.
Genus Fringilla.

Gen. char. Bill short, robust, conic, unnotched ; upper man-
dible wider than the lower, gibbous, with the apex slightly in-
clined ; nostrils basal, round, concealed by the feathers of the
forehead ; tarsus shorter than the middle toe ; all the toes free ;
hind nail longest and largest ; wings rounded ; 3rd and 4th pri-
maries longest ; tail square or subfurcate.
F. cyanea. Indigo Finch.
Cyanospiza cyanea. Linn.! Bairdl

v.s.p. ETV. Lower mandible pale; upper one, legs and feet
black ; i rides black or very deep hazel ; eggs 5 greenish white
without spots.

Dorsal aspect. Sky blue, deepening on the head and neck into
a fine ultramarine ; back and rump blue, with a verdigris green
reflection; greater and smaller coverts black broadly tipped with
blue ; quills of the wing and tail blackish brown, the former edged
with verdigris green, the latter with pale bluish white.

Ventral aspect. Ultramarine on the throat and upper part of
the breast, changing to a verdigris green on the abdomen ; vent
pale brown ; tail coverts blue tipped with white.

2nd primary longest. Length 5j inches ; alar breadth 8 inches.
The female is flaxen tinged with ferruginous ; cheeks and below
ferrugineous white ; lower mandible almost white. In the winter
plumage the dorsal aspect is brown ; the feathers internally re-
taining a bluish tinge. The sky blue is still retained on the
shoulders, the wing coverts, and margins of the quills of the wings
and tail ; chin white, with a fine blue streak from each angle of
the mouth, lost upon the breast, which is pale brown with indis-
tinct bluish spots ; belly and vent white.

of the District of Montreal. 299

F, nivalis. Snow bird.
F, hudsonia of Wilson !
F. hyemalis of Audubon !
Junco hyemalis. Linn. ! Baird !

v.s.p. ET V. Bill and legs pale ; eggs 3 to 5, green, spotted
and speckled with cinereous ; irides black.

Dorsal aspect. Greyish black ; wing feathers blackish brown ;
Primaries edged with white ; secondaries with brown on the outer
vanes, and all more or less edged with white on their inner vanes ;
tail square ; two lateral feathers, and outer vane of 3rd white ;
Centre feathers blackish brown.

Ventral aspect. Like the dorsal, except the belly, vent, and
tail coverts which are white ; wing coverts pale grey, edged and
tipped with white.

2nd and 3rd primaries equal ; 1st shorter than 5th. Length
YJ inches ; alar breadth 8j inches.

F. Pennsylvannica. White-throated Sparrow.

F. alhicollis of Wilson !

Zonoirichia alhicollis. Gmel. ! Baird !

v.s.p. Upper mandible bluish horn colour ; lower one, legs
and feet pale flesh colour ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown and nape of neck black, divided in the
centre by a line of white, and bordered laterally by another line
of white, which becomes yellow between the nostrils and the eye,
and black behind the eye ; back with the scapulars blackish brown
broadly edged with chestnut ; greater and smaller wing coverts
brown tipped with white, causing a couple of bars across the
shoulders ; tail square, long, glossy chestnut, edged with a lighter
tint ; primaries and secondaries brown, the former edged with
whitish, the latter broadly with chestnut.

Ventral aspect. Cheeks, breast, and flanks lead colour, ap-
proaching to brown on the last mentioned situation ; belly and
tail coverts, with a spot upon the throat white.

1st, 2nd and 3rd primaries subequal. Length 6J inches ; alar
breadth 8j inches ; length of tail 2 J inches.

F. melodia. Song Sparrow.
Melospiza melodia. Wilson ! Baird !
v.s.p. ET V. Upper mandible bluish horn colour ; lower one
pale ; legs and feet pale flesh colour ; eggs 4 to 5, greenish white
mottled with brown.

300 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Dorsal aspect. Crown chesnut, divided in the centre by a
greyish streak; scapulars blackish brown, broadly edged with
chesnut ; rump chesnut ; tail square, blackish brown along the
shafts and broadly edged with chesnut ; primaries like the tail ;
secondaries blackish brown, with broad edgings of chesnut and
tipped with the same.

Ventral aspect. A line over the eye as far as the auriculars
grey ; auriculars chesnut ; chin, belly, and vent white ; on either
side of the throat a triangular spot of blackish brown, and a sim-
ilar one in the centre of the breast, most conspicuous when the
feathers are a little separated ; the other parts of the breast and
ffanks streaked with chesnut.

4th primary longest ; 3rd and 5th subequal ; 2nd and Cth sub-
equal; 1st equal to 7th. Length 5f inches; alar breadth Y
inches. One of the first immigrants that visit us.

With regard to this bird, " the song sparrow," whose nests are
built in the immediate contiguity of dwellings, and near every
thoroughfare, the following anecdote was told me by Mr. Hunter,
the taxidermist to the Natural History Society : On one of his
walks to the mountain, close to the footpath of the road leading
in that direction, he discovered the nest of one of these birds,
covered at the time with a dry leaf. Buildings were being
erected in the neighbourhood. Next day on returning to the
spot, he found that shavings occupied the place previously used
by the leaf, which most carefully concealed the young ones. The
colour of the shaving or chip was about that of the young birds
at that period of their growth. On visiting next day the nest,
the young birds escaped from it. In this instance the instinct of
the bird exhibited itself in the employment of a material for the
concealment of its nest, the least likely to attract observation from
the fact of the erection of a building in the neighbourhood.
F. Canadensis. The Tree Sparrow.
F. arborea of Wilson.
Spizella monticola. Baird !

v.s.p. Upper mandible and tip of lower one black ; the re-
mainder with the legs and feet pale ; irides deep hazel ; eggs 5
pale brown mottled with dark brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown bright chesnut, the feathers faintly
tipped with whitish ; nape of neck mixed chesnut and grey ; back
and scapulars blackish brown edged with pale brown ; rump pale
brown ; smaller wing coverts grey tipped with white ; great wing

of the District of Montreal. 301

coverts chesnut on the outer vanes, black on the inner and broadly
tipped with white, causing an appearance of a couple of bars ;
primaries and secondaries brown, edged with white on the outer
vanes of the former, and with pale brown on the outer vanes of
the latter; tail square, brown, minutely edged with white on both
outer and inner vanes.

Ventral aspect. A line from eye to nostrils white, changing
above the eye to grey, which passing between the auriculars and
chesnut crown, is lost over the sides of the neck ; chin and upper
part of throat, belly, vent, inner wing and tail coverts white ; re-
mainder of the throat and breast ashy grey ; in the centre of the
breast a black spot, most conspicuous when the feathers are a
little removed.

1st and 6th subequal ; 2nd and 4th equal; 3rd longest and
very little longer than 2nd and 4th. Length 6j inches ; alar
breadth 9 inches ; length of the tail 2f inches.

F. socialis. The Chipping Sparrow.
Spizella socialis. Wils. ! Buon. ! Baird !
v.s.p. Bill black ; legs and feet pale flesh colour ; irides deep
hazel ; eggs 4 to 5, greenish blue mottled with dark and light
brown.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet black ; crown bright chesnut ; back,
scapulars and wing coverts black, broadly margined and tipped
with brown ; on the scapulars the brown partakes of a chesnut
tinge ; rump grey ; primaries, secondaries and tail brown ; the
secondaries edged with chesnut brown on the outer vanes, and
the primaries with white on the outer vanes ; tail minutely edged
with faint white.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat, belly and vent white ; breast,
sides of neck and cheeks ashy grey; a line from the nostrils
above the eye white ; flank whitish grey.

2nd primary longest ; 3rd next; 1st shorter than 4th but con-
siderably longer than 5th. Length 5 inches; alar breadth 7 J
inches.

F. leucophrys. White-crowned Finch.
F. leucophrys of Wilson.

Zonotrichia leucophrys. Forster ! Sw. ! Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet pale brown ; irides hazel ; eggs 4 to
5, chocolate or dusky colour.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head white, bordered laterally, an-
teriorly and posteriorly by a broad black line ; a line over the We

302 Dr. A» Hall on the Mammals and Birds

white ; nape of neck ashy grey ; interscapular region with the
scapulars pure brown tipped with greyish white ; rump and tail
coverts greyish brown ; small wing coverts brown tipped with
white ; great wing coverts blackish brown margined broadly with
chesnut on the outer vanes and tipped with white ; primaries and
tail cinnamon brown ; outer vane of the lateral tail feathers pale ;
outer vanes of all the primaries edged with white, most conspicu-
ous on the 2nd and 3rd ; secondaries clove brown, broadly mar-
gined with chesnut on the outer vanes and tipped with white ; tail
square.

Ventral aspect. Chin and belly white ; throat and breast ashy
grey ; flanks and tail coverts pale ochreous.

3rd primary longest ; 2nd subequal to 3rd ; 1st shorter than
6th. Length 8 inches; alar breadth 11 inches; length of tarsus
and middle toe together 1 inch 10 lines.
F. graminea. Grass Finch.
F. graminea of Wilson !
Pooecetes gramineus. Gmel. ! Baird !

V.S.P. Upper part of upper mandible brownish ; lower one, legs
and feet pale flesh colour ; irides hazel ; eggs 4 to 5, whitish
mottled and blotched with reddish brown at their larger ends.

Dorsal aspect. Crown, neck, both scapulars, and rump clove
brown, margined and tipped with dusky brown ; smaller wing
coverts bay on their outer vanes ; primaries, secondaries and tail
brown ; the first edged with white on their outer vanes ; the lat-
eral tail feathers white except a brown streak on the inner vane ;
a white spot towards the tip of the second.

Ventral aspect. Chin, belly, vent, and tail coverts pure white ;
throat, cheeks, breast and flanks streaked with brown.

2nd primary longest; 1st and 3rd subequal, and very little
shorter. Length 6f inches ; alar breadth 10 inches ; tail sub-
furcate.

F. tristis. American Goldfinch. (Chadronn^e).
Carduelis Americana of Edwards.
Chrysometris tristis. Linn.! Bon.! Baird!
v.s.p.ETv. Bill brownish orange; legs and feet pale flesh
colour ; irides deep hazel ; eggs 3 to 5, white, mottled at their
larger ends with yellowish brown and subdued lavender purple.

Summer plumage. Dorsal aspect. Crown black ; neck, dorsal
region, rump and scapulars gamboge yellow; tail coverts and

of the District of Montreal. 303

smaller wing coverts white ; shoulders black ; greater wing co-
verts and secondaries jet black tipped with white ; primaries
wholly black ; tail square, black, with a white spot at the ex-
tremity of each outer vane.

Ventral aspect. Tail and wing coverts white ; all the other
parts bright gamboge yellow.

Winter plumage. Dorsal aspect. Brovniish olive ; paler on
the rump; greater wing coverts and secondaries tipped with
brownish olive, which also supplies the white spots of the tail.

Ventral aspect. Chin yellow ; breast and flanks pale brownish
olive ; belly and vent soiled white.

2nd primary longest ; 1st and 3rd equal. Length 4j inches ;
alar expanse YJ inches.

F. pinus. Pine Finch.

Chrysometris pinus. Wils. ! Bon. ! Baird !

v.s.p. Bill brown ; legs and feet purplish black ; irides hazel ;
eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown, neck, dorsal region, scapulars and
rump clove brown, with broad light brown emarginations to the
feathers, causing a dusky appearance ; greater and smaller wing
coverts clove brown edged and tipped with olive brown ; primaries
and secondaries blackish brown, the former edged with yellow on
their outer vanes, the latter edged and tipped with olive brown,
and a gamboge yellow spot on the outer vane near the quills, con-
cealed by the greater wing coverts ; tail subfurcate yellow at the
quills, the remainder blackish brown.

Ventral aspect. Chin, breast, belly, flanks, and tail coverts
clove brown, broadly edged and tipped with soiled white ; vent
soiled white.

2nd primary longest ; 1st subequal to 2nd ; and 3rd scarcely
shorter than the 1st. Length 4j inches ; alar breadth Y inches.

F. linaria. Lesser Red Poll.
Linaria rubra minor. Ray !
Linaria minor. Ray !
Aegrothus linaria. Linn. ! Baird !

v.s.p. Bill horn colour; legs and feet black; irides hazel;
eggs 6, bluish white spotted with red.

Dorsal aspect. Crown shining lake colour; neck, back and
scapulars dusky brown edged with flaxen ; on the rump the tips
are almost white ; great and small wing coverts clove brown tip-

304 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

ped with white : wings and tail brown, minutely edged with white
on the outer vanes of the primaries, and broadly on the outer
vanes of the three last secondaries ; tail subfurcate.

Ventral aspect. Chin brownish black ; sides of throat, breast,
and flanks like the back ; belly and vent white. This description
is taken from a female. In the male the *' ventral aspect and
crown are pale crimson approaching to white on the vent ; crown
deep crimson ; frontlet and chin black."

2nd primary longest ; 1st and 3rd equal. Length 5 J inches ;
alar breadth 9 inches.

F. iliaca. Ferrugineous Finch.
Passer ella iliaca. Baird !

v.s.p. Upper mandible brownish horn colour ; lower one pale
flesh with a black tip ; legs and feet pale flesh colour ; eggs 5,
mountain green mottled with brown.

Dorsal aspect. Head, scapulars, and back dark greyish brown,
brightening into ferruginous on the rump and wing coverts, the
latter of which are tipped with ferruginous white ; primaries and
secondaries umber brown ; the outer web of the 2 first primaries
edged faintly with white ; the outer webs of all the others, as well
as the scondaries, with bright ferruginous ; the 3 or 4 last secon-
daries broadly on outer webs of the tail feathers ferruginous,
inner webs umber brown ; tail coverts ferruginous.

Ventral aspect. Lower eyelid white ; cheeks ferrugineous ;
chin, throat, breast and flanks white, with numerous triangular
spots of bright ferruginous, most numerous on the breast ; middle
of the throat, belly, vent, tail and wing coverts white.

3rd primary longest ; 2nd and 4th equal ; 1st a little shorter
than the 5th. Length Y inches ; alar breadth 9j inches.

F. ludoviciana, Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Quiraca (Goniaphea) ludoviciana. Linn.! Sw.! Baird !

vs.v. Bill white horn colour ; legs and feet bluish ; irides
hazel ; eggs 4 to 5, white, spotted brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown and nape of neck black ; scapulars and
dorsal region as far as the rump black, edged with olivaceous ;
rump and tail coverts white, some of the former tipped with
brown ; greater and smaller wing coverts blackish brown tipped
with white ; tail black ; the three lateral feathers with a white
spot occupying more than half the inner vanes.

Ventral aspect. Chin feathers black, minutely tipped with

of the District of Montreal. ^305

lake ; throat, and upper part of the breast, and inner wing coverts
rich lake ; the lake on the throat occasionally descending in a
medial line on the breast ; flanks white with a few black spots ;
belly, vent and tail coverts white.

The young bird and female are varied " with pale flaxen, dark
olive, and whitish." In the female there is no lake on the breast
or wings ; but the young male has a roseate tinge on the flaxen
throat, and the lake wing linings as perfect as in the old male ;
its upper mandible also is brownish.

2nd primary is longest ; 1st a little shorter than the 3rd, and
of equal length with the 4th. Length 8 inches; alar breadth 10 J
inches.

F. purpurea. Purple Finch.

Carpodacus purpureus. Gm. ! Gray ! Baird !

V.S.P. Bill brownish horn colour ; legs and feet brownish
white ; irides hazel ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Shining lake colour ; most varied on the head,
and neck, and rump ; the centre of the dorsal feathers being
brownish black ; wings and tail, dusky brown, edged on the outer
vanes with lake ; greater and smaller wing coverts blackish brown
edged with lake.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat, breast, and sides of the belly,
rich lake colour ; vent and tail coverts white, tinged rosaceous.

2nd primary longest ; 1st and 3rd subequal ; tail subfnrcate.
Length 6j- inches ; alar expanse 8j- inches ; crest erectile at
pleasure.

" Female and young varied with pale brown, and dusky with-
out crimson ; beneath yellowish white, spotted with dusky brown."
Genus Pyrrhula.

Gen. char. Bill short, gibbous ; tip of upper mandible deflected
over the lower; nostrils basal, lateral, rounded, and usually con-
cealed by the frontlet feathers ; tarsus shorter than the middle
toe ; all of them free ; 4th primary longest ; tail subrotund or
square ; tongue thick and fleshy.

P. enucleator. Pine Grosbeak. — Canadian Bulfinch.
Loxia enucleator of Wilson.
Pinicola Canadensis. Baird !

V. 8. p. ETV. Bill, legs and ftet brownish horn colour; irides
hazel ; eggs 4 or 5, white.

Dorsal aspect. Crown, nape of neck and rump, bright lake
colour; dorsal region and scapulars blackish brown, broadly
Can. Nat- 20 Vol. Vll

306 Dr, A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

edged and tipped with lake ; greater and smaller wing coverts
black, broadly edged and tipped with white on the outer vanes;
tail coverts blackish brown, tipped with lake colour ; primaries,
secondaries and tail, blackish brown ; the primaries edged with
lake colour, the secondaries with white on the outer vanes ; the
outer vanes of the tail feathers edged with brownish lake.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat, breast, cheeks, and sides of the
belly, lake colour, fainter than on the back ; middle of the belly
and vent feathers, dusky grey.

3rd primary longest; 2nd next; 1st shorter than the 4th.
Length 9 J inches; alar breadth 14 inches.

The young bird is wholly dusky beneath and on the back, the
crown of the head and rump being olivaceous brown. The female
possesses the same characteristics. The young bird of the second
year has the inner parts and the rump with a lake tinge : which
is also conspicuous on the ventral aspect.
Genus Icterus.
Gen. char. Bill longer than, or as long as the head, conical, un-
notched, grooved internally,and slightly flattened towards the apex,
compressed in the middle ; nostrils basal, lateral ; tarsus equal to
or longer than the middle toe ; 3rd and 4th primaries longest.
Icterus phcenicius. Red-winged Blackbird.
Sturnus prcedatorius of Wilson.
Agelaius phoenicius. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black ; irides hazel ; eggs 3 to 5
white, tinged with blue, streaked with purple and dark brown.

Whole dorsal and ventral aspects, including the primaries,
secondaries and tail, shining jet black ; small wing coverts and
shoulders rich scarlet, except the lower row, which fades to
orange.

3rd primary longest ; 2nd and 4th equal ; 1st and 5th equal.
Length 4 J inches ; alar breadth 13 inches.

The female has the dorsal aspect black, with grey edgings to
the feathers ; the ventral aspect greyish white, streaked with
black ; the throat occasionally with a scarlet tinge. The young
bird has the dorsal feathers edged with brownish ; a white line
over the eye ; the smaller wing coverts brownish red ; and the
ventral feathers black edged with grey.

Sub genus Emherizoides.
Sub gen. char. In these the bill is short, conic, straight, not
dilated at the base, and not so pointed as in the Fringilla tribe.

of the District of Montreal, 307

The genus bear a great resemblance to the finches, but diflfers
from them in their habits.

/. agripennis. Rice Bunting. — Goglue. — Bob-o-link.
Emberiza oryzivora of Wilson.
Dolichonix oryzivorus. Baird !

v.s.p. ET V, Bill horn colour ; legs and feet pale flesh colour ;
irides hazel ; eggs 5 to 6, dull white, inclining to olive, blotched
with lilac and rufous brown towards the larger end.

Dorsal aspect. Front and crown of head black, the feathers
sometimes tipped with rufous white ; back of head, and neck
rufous white ; interscapular region black, the feathers edged with
rufous white ; rump brown ; tail coverts brownish white ; scapu-
lars white, edged with rufous white ; small wing coverts and great
wing coverts black, the latter edged on the outer vanes with ru-
fous white ; primaries, secondaries and tail brownish black, edged
on the outer vanes and tipped with brownish white ; tail cunei-
form, the feathers acuminate, the centre ones most so.

Ventral aspect. Black, the feathers tipped with rufous white,
most conspicuous on the breast and belly ; cheeks and auriculars
black.

2nd primary longest ; 1st next; the others graduated. Length
6^ inches ; alar breadth 9 J inches.

The female and young male resemble one another, they are
varied with brownish black and brownish yellow above, while a
dull yellow prevails on their ventral aspects. The winter plu-
mage of the male resembles that of the summer female, but on
the whole yellower. This bird is the famous Butter Bird of the
West Indies, which is there esteemed so great a delicacy. The
tarsus and middle toe of this bird are equal in length.
/. pecoris. Cow Troopial or Cow Blackbird.
Emberiza pecoris of Wilson.
Molothrus pecoris. Baird!

v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black; irides white; eggs 3 to 5.
greenish white, spotted with olive brown.

Head, neck, and throat above and below, rusty brown, the rest
of the dorsal and ventral aspects black, with a steel blue reflec-
tion ; wings and tail blackish brown.

1st primary longest ; the rest graduated ; tail square. Length
6 inches ; alar breadth 1 1 inches.

The female is wholly sooty brown. The young bird resembles
the mother but has a spotted breast.

308 Du A* Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Genus Stumus.
Gen. char. Bill conical but long, depressed, obtuse ; base of
upper mandible projecting on the forehead ; nostrils broad, lateral,
semi-closed by a membrane ; tongue sharp, bifid ; exterior and
middle toes connected at base ; 2nd and 3rd primaries longest.
S. Ludovicianus. Meadow Lark or Starling.
Alauda magna of Wilson !
Sturnella magna. Baird 1
v.s.p. Upper mandible horn colour ; lower one, with the basal
and distal thirds horn colour, centre white ; legs and feet pale
flesh colour ; eggs 4 to 5, white tinged with blue spotted with
reddish brown.

Dorsal aspect. Three streaks of white separated by two of
brownish black on the crown of head ; neck, dorsal region, rump,
tail and wing coverts, with scapulars brownish black, the feathers
edged with chestnut, which is terminated by a white margin ;
primaries and secondaries brown, edged with brownish white on
the outer vanes of the former, and barred and edged with the
same colour on the outer vanes of the latter ; tail rounded ; 3
lateral tail feathers wholly white except towards the end of the
outer vanes ; 4th brownish black, with a white streak down the
centre ; the centre feathers brown, edged with whitish brown with
imperfect bars ; a streak from the orbit to nostrils gamboge yel-
low ; behind the eye a black line terminating behind the auricu-
lars which are grey ; cheeks white.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat, breast and belly, gamboge yel-
low with a crescent of black on the chest, and a triangular spot
of the same colour on each side of the throat ; flanks white, spotted
with black ; vent dirty white ; tail coverts brownish white with
a black streak in the centre of each feather.

1st and 2nd primaries subequal; some of the secondaries elon-
gated, nearly equal in length to the 3rd primary. Length 9|
inches ; alar breadth 14 inches. The young bird has the yellow
fainter and the crescent of a duller black. This is a very rare
bird in this district, but is occasionally met with.
Genus Corvus.
Gen. char. Bill thick, compressed at the sides, stout, and bent
towards the apex ; nostrils basal, open, and concealed by the pro-
jecting bushy feathers of the frontlet ; toes like the other genera
of this family, but free ; middle toe shorter than the tarsus ; 3rd
and 4th primaries longest ; wings long and acuminate.

of the District of Montreal, 309

C. corax. The Raven.
C. carnivorus. Baird !
D.c. Bill, legs and feet black ; irides with two circles, greyish
white and cinereous brown; eggs 5 to 6, muddy bluish green,
spotted with olive brown.

Dorsal and ventral aspects, glossy black with steel blue reflec-
tions ; tail much rounded extending beyond the wings ; 3rd pri-
mary longest. Length about 26 inches. A rare bird in the
district of Montreal, though occasionally met with.

C. corone. The Common Crow.
C. Americanus. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black ; irides hazel ; eggs 2 white.
Dorsal and ventral aspects. Glossy black, with purple reflec-
tions on the back, and sombre on the vent. Tail rounded a little,
extending but little beyond the wings. The feathers acute. 1st
primary very short ; in length equal to 9th. 4th primary long-
est. Length 18J- inches. Very common, often hybernating with
us.

Subgenus Garrulus.
Sub. char. Bill shorter and straighter than with the crows.
Upper mandible somewhat inflected at tip ; lower one keeled ;
tail more or less cuneiform ; feathers of head erectile.
C. cristatus. Blue Jay.
Cyanura cristata. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill and legs with the feet black ; irides hazel ; eggs 5,
dull olive, spotted brown.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, and line rising perpendicularly from
the nostrils, black ; streak from the eye passing above the auri-
culars and uniting on the nape of the neck jet black ; crest, small
wing and tail coverts sky blue ; dorsal region sky blue tinged
with purple; tail long, subrotund, sky blue, with 10 or 12 bars
of black on the centre feathers, the bars diminishing in number to
the lateral feathers, on which they are obsolete, or at least imper-
fect; all the feathers except the centre ones broadly tipped with
white; greater wing coverts sky blue, barred black and tipped
with white; primaries brownish black on the inner vanes, and
sky blue on the outer ; secondaries, except the three or four last
which are marked on both vanes, like the great wing coverts, the
others brownish black on the inner vanes, and sky blue barred
with black on the outer.

310 Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Ventral aspect. A semicircular spot over the eye, chin, throat
and auriculars bluish white tinged with blue, darkest on the
throat at the mesial line ; a crescentic spot on the breast, ascend-
ing upwards and.terminating behind the auriculars ; belly and vent
grey, lighter on the vent ; wing coverts blue ; tail coverts white,
5th primary longest ; 6th next ; 4th and 7th subequal ; 2nd
and 9th equal ; 1st considerably shorter than the secondaries.
Length 11 J- inches ; alar expanse 16 inches; length of tail 5f
inches ; length of bill 1 inch 1 line. A very elegant bird. The
whole dorsal aspect being very glossy.

C. Canadensis. Canada Jay.
Perisoreus Canadensis. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black; irides hazel; eggs 3 to 4,
lilac.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, and front half of the crown dirty
white, changing to blackish brown on the hind part of the crown
and nape of the neck; back, rump, scapulars and wing coverts,
slate grey ; primaries and secondaries blackish brown tipped with
dirty white, and edged with slate colour on the outer vanes ; tail
cuneiform, slate grey, approaching lead colour, tipped with soiled
white.

Ventral aspect. Auriculars, sides of the throat, chin and throat
soiled white, the shafts prolonged in a filiform state beyond the
vanes and black, causing a hairy appearance beyond the feathers.
This also occurs in the C. cristatus. Breast, belly, wing and tail
coverts brownish grey.

5th primary longest ; 4th and 6th equal ; Srd a line shorter
than the Tth ; 2nd shorter than the 8th ; 1st shorter than the
secondaries. Length 11 inches ; alar breadth 16 inches.
Fam. IV. Tenuirostres.
Genus Sitta.
Gen. char. Bill straight, attenuate, awl-shaped and acumin-
ate ; upper and lower mandibles recurved from the centre ; nos-
trils basal, lateral, rounded, and concealed by nuchal bristles ;
tongue horny ; feet robust, 3 toes before and 1 behind, exterior con-
nected to the middle at its base ; hind toe long with a strong
hooked nail ; tail of twelve feathers of moderate length, short
in some species ; 2nd, Srd and 4th primaries longest.
S. Carolinensis. White-bellied Nuthatch.
S. Carolinensis. Baird 1
v.s.p. Upper mandible, and distal half of the lower, black ;

of the District of Montreal. 311

basal half of the lower, white ; legs and feet pale flesh colour ;
irides hazel ; eggs 5, dull white spotted with brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown and nape of neck jet black ; dorsal re-
gion to the rump lead colour ; greater and smaller wing coverts
black, edged and tipped on their outer vanes with lead colour ;
primaries and secondaries blackish brown, edged with lead colour
on the outer vanes of all, except the three first primaries, the 1st
of which is unmarked in any way, and the two next with a white
edging about the centre of their outer vanes ; tail square, the two
centre feathers lead colour, the others blackish brown, with a
broad white spot ; the outer vane of the lateral feather wholly
white.

Ventral aspect. A line from nostrils over the eye, cheeks, sides
of neck, (and here bounded by a black line,) chin, throat, breast,
belly, and tail coverts white, vent feathers tinged with rusty
colour.

2nd primary longest ; 3rd next ; 4th next ; and 1st shorter than
5th. Length 5j inches ; alar expanse 9^ inches. The young
bird is stated to have a lead coloured head.

S. Canadensis. Red-bellied Nuthatch.
S. Canadensis. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill black, with the exception of the basal half of the
lower mandible ; legs and feet dusky, greenish yellow ; eggs un-
known.

Dorsal aspect. Crown and nape of neck jet black ; a white
line from the nostrils passes over the eye above the auriculars and
is lost upon the shoulders ; this is succeeded by a black line from
the angle of the mouth and ending in the same place ; auriculars
white; dorsal region, rump, scapulars, and wing coverts lead
colour ; primaries and secondaries pale brown, faintly margined
on their outer vanes with lead colour ; tail short, square ; two
central feathers lead colour, the others blackish brown, with a
white spot like a bar commencing about the centre of the lateral
feathers, and terminating at the tip of the 4th.

Ventral aspect. Chin white ; throat, breast, and belly, with
vent feathers, rusty coloured.

2nd primary longest ; 1st and 4th equal. Length 4^ inches ;.
alar breadth 7^ inches. The young bird with a plumbeous heads
Genus Certhia.
Gen. char. Bill more or less long, with a greater or less cur-
vature, triangular, compressed, slender and acuminate ; nostrih

312 Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

basal, naked, horizontally perforated in a membrane and half
closed by a membrane; feet slender; inner toe free; outer toe
connected at base to inner one ; claws considerably curved, that
of the hind toe longest; tail graduated, elastic and acuminate ;
3rd and 4th primaries longest.

C.fam,iliaris. Brown Creeper.
C. Americana. Baird !

v.s.p. Upper mandible dark; lower one pale flesh colour;
legs and feet dusky ; eggs 7 or more, cinereous, spotted with red-
dish yellow and streaked with dark brown.

Dorsal aspect. Prevailing tint ferruginous, darkest on the
head, mixed with white on the interscapular region, scapulars*
and wing coverts, and pure ferruginous on the rump ; tail cunei-
form, drab colour, the feathers acuminate ; wings rounded, pale
brown, with a single white bar across their middle tinged with
ferruginous, and margined faintly with brownish white on the
outer vanes.

Ventral aspect. French white ; the feathers of the whole
body exceedingly silky and long.

3rd primary longest ; 2nd shorter than 4th. Length 5 inches ;
alar expanse 7 inches. Tail about two lines longer than the
body.

Genus Trochilus.

Gen. char. Bill long, straight or more or less arcuate, slender,
the base depressed, and as wide as the forehead, point acumin-
ate ; nostrils linear, basal, covered by a membrane ; tongue, long,
extensible, bifid and tubular; legs very short; tarsus shorter
than middle toe, more or less feathered ; front toes nearly free ;
wings acute; 1st primary longest.

T. colubris. Ruby-throated Humming Bird.
T. colubris. Baird !

V.S.P. Bill, legs and feet dusky black ; irides deep hazel or
black ; eggs 2, white.

Dorsal aspect. Except the wings and tail rich golden green,
darkest on the head ; wings and tail brownish black ; the former
falciform, the latter furcate.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat and cheeks rich ruby colour, the
feathers somewhat erectile ; shoulders, breast, belly, and coverts
pale brown, in the first mentioned situation, tinged with golden
green ; vent white.

of the District of MontredL 313

1st primary longest ; the others graduated. Length 3| inches ;
alar expanse 4 inches. The female has a similar dorsal aspect to
the male, but less brilliant ; her ventral aspect is white, the feathers
feintly edged and tipped with rufous, and the three lateral tail
feathers tipped with white. In the young bird the throat strongly
inclines to yellow. In the adult males which I have seen, I have
not detected '* the three outer tail feathers rusty white at the
tips," as according to Nuttal.

2nd division of Passerince, in which the external and middle toes
are united to their penultimate articulation,

Fam. Syndactyla.
Genus Alcedo.

Gen. char. Bill quadrangular, long and straight, edged, acu-
minate ; nostrils basal, lateral, oblique, almost wholly closed by
a naked membrane ; legs short, naked above the knee for a con-
siderable space ; tongue short and fleshy; outer toe connected to
the middle as far as the second joint, and the inner to the middle
as far as the first joint . 3rd primary longest.

A. alcyon. Belted Kingfisher.
Ceryle (Megacerile) alcyon. Baird !

V.S.P. Bill black, pale at the tip ; legs and feet bluish ; claws
black ; irides hazel ; eggs 6, white.

Dorsal aspect. A white spot between the orbit and nostrils ;
crest, nape of neck, interscapulary region, scapulars, small and
greater wing coverts, (which are also faintly tipped with white,)
and rump, bluish slate colour ; primaries and secondaries black ;
the former with half of their inner vanes white, and barred with
white on the collateral portion of the outer vane ; the four or five
last ones edg d on the outer vane with bluish slate colour and
tipped with white; secondaries bluish slate on the outer vanes;
black barred with white on their inner vanes, tipped with white
except the 4 or 5 last ones which are wholly bluish slate colour ;
tail square; the two centre feathers bluish slate, with a black
streak down their shafts, the others all black, with 11 or 12 nar-
row bars of white, with a terminal tip of the same colour, and
edged with slate blue on the outer vanes.

Ventral aspect. Chin, throat, and sides of neck, belly, vent,
wing and tail coverts white ; breast with a slate blue belt reach-
ing from shoulder to shoulder.

314 Dr, A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

3rd primary longest ; 2nd next ; 1st about a line shorter than
the 4th. Length 13^ inches; alar expanse 19^ inches. Length
of bill from angle of mouth 2 inches and two thirds. The fe-
male has the sides and a belt on the breast ferruginous, and the
slate blue duller.

OrD. in. SCANSORIA.

Genus Picus,

Gen. char. Bill more or less long, straight, and cuneiform at
the tip ; nostrils basal, open, covered by bristly feathers ; tongue
round, extensile, sharp and rigid at the point, and armed with
stiff reversed bristles ; two toes before and generally two behind ;
feet robust ; anterior toes connected at their base ; posterior ones
divided ; 3rd and 4th primaries longest ; two lateral tail feathers
very short ; the shafts of all the tail feathers mucronate, strong,
and very rigid,

1st Section, — Tetradactyla.
Subdivision 1. With the hill curved^ cuneiform, under mandible
not carinate.
P. auratus. Golden-winged Woodpecker.
Colaptes auratus, Baird !

v.s.p. Bill dusky horn colour ; legs and feet pale bluish ;
irides hazel ; eggs 6, white.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head cinereous brown tinged with
olivaceous ; posterior part of the crown with scarlet crescentic
streak ; nape of neck, interscapular region, scapulars, greater and
smaller wing coverts, and outer vanes of the secondaries, umber
coloured barred with black; rump white; tail coverts white
barred with black ; outer and inner vanes of the primaries, and
inner vanes of the secondaries black, with rudimentary white bars
on the outer vanes of the 3rd and upwards ; tail cuneiform, the
feathers acuminate black ; the outer vane of the lateral ones bar-
red with white, the bars rudimentary on the outer vanes of the
second ; the shafts of the quills of the wings and tail golden
yellow.

Ventral aspect. Cheeks, and around the eye, auriculars,chin,and
throat, cinnamon colour approaching to fawn, deepening into cin-
ereous on the sides of the neck ; moustaches and crescent on the
breast jet black ; belly, vent, and sides of tianks with round black
spots on a white ground in the two former situations, and on a
cinnamon ground in the two latter ; tail coverts white with black

of the District of Montreal. 315

bars ; wing coverts yellow ; inner surface of wing and tail tinged
with golden yellow, changing to black towards the tips and edges
of the feathers ; the spots on the belly and vent are orbicular,
those of the flanks and sides cordiform approaching to reniform.

1st primary very short ; 2nd shorter than the 8th ; 4th and 6th
equal; 5th longest. Length 11 J inches; alar breadth 16j
inches. The young bird is dull grey, and wants the red and
black crescents. The female wants the black moustaches, but has
the other two distinctive marks. A most elegant bird.

Subdivision 2. With the hill straight, and carinate above and

below.
P. erythrocephalus. Red-headed Woodpecker.
Melanerpes erythrocephalus. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill white at the base, bluish towards the end ; legs and
feet bluish; irides hazel ; eggs 6, white spotted with red.

Dorsal aspect. Head and neck crimson ; dorsal region in-
cluding the scapulars and wing coverts jet black ; primaries and
tail black, the three lateral feathers of the latter with white tips ;
secondaries and rump white.

Ventral aspect. Chin, cheeks, sides of neck, and breast crim-
son like the head ; belly, flanks, vents and tail coverts white.

3rd primary longest ; 2nd next ; 1st next. Length 9 inches ;
alar expanse 15^ inches.

P. varius. Yellow-bellied Woodpecker.
Sphyrapicus varius. Baird !

V.S.P. Bill black ; legs and feet bluish ; irides hazel ; eggs 4,
white.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of the head crimson, bordered posteri-
orly by a crescent of black ; nape of neck yellowish white ; inter-
scapular region and rump varied with white, yellowish white, and
bleck spots and bars ; scapulars and small wing coverts black ; a
few of the greater wing coverts white ; tail coverts with their
outer vanes black, their inner ones white ; primaries and secon-
daries black, tipped and barred with white ; tail cuneiform ; the
two lateral feathers edged with white on the outer vanes, and
tipped with the same colour ; a streak of white along the inner
vanes of the central feathers with two or three black spots.

Ventral aspect. A yellowish white line over the eye termin-
ating on the nape of the neck ; from behind the eye a black line
including and terminating behind the auriculars ; from the nos-

316 Dr, A. Ha2l on the Mammals and Birds

trils a yellowish white streak passes below the eye and terminatee
on the shoulders ; from the angle of the mouth a black streak
passes down on each side of the throat and terminates on the
black orbicular spot which invests the breast ; the black streak
on either side invests the crimson chin and throat ; the black
breast is bounded by a gamboge yellow streak which commences
on the shoulders, meets at the lower part of the breast, and is
thence continued in the mesial line to the belly and vent; sides
of the breast, and flanks yellowish brown streaked with black ;
inner wing and tail coverts whitish yellow.

2nd and 3rd primaries subequal and longest; 1st considerably
shorter than the 4th. Length 8^ inches ; alar expanse 13 inches.
P, villosus. Hairy Woodpecker.
P. (Trichopicus) villosus. Baird !

v.s.P. Bill, legs and feet bluish horn colour ; irides hazel ;
eggs 5, white.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet feathers brownish white ; crown
black, bordered posteriorly by a crimson crescent ; line from the
nostrils over the eye white, terminating at the crimson crescent ;
line from the eye passes backwards, including the auriculars, and
meeting its fellow on the nape of the neck, forms a black border
to the crimson ; white sides of the neck separated in two portions
by a black streak commencing below the angle of the mouth and
terminating on the shoulders ; nape of neck black ; interscapular
region and rump black, with a white irregular streak down the
centre : scapulars black ; greater and smaller wing coverts black,
with a white spot near the tips of the outer vanes ; the two lateral
tail feathers white ; the third black with a dirty white tip ; the
others all jet black with shining shafts ; primaries and secondaries
black barred with white.

Ventral aspect. White, soiled towards the vent.

3rd and 4th primaries subequal and longest ; 2nd and 5th sub-
equal ; 1st shorter than the 6th. Length 9 J inches ; alar ex-
panse 14 inches. The occipital band in the female is black.

(To be continued.)

Correspondence » 317

CORRESPONDENCE.

AN ENTOMOLOGICAL GRAVE-DIGGER.
To the Editor of the " Canadian Naturalist."

SiK, — As I was sitting this morning on the lower step of my
veranda, my gaze fixed listlessly, during the noontide heat, upon
the gravel- walk before me ; " thinking," I verily believe, ** of
nothing," or at most, entertaining a dreamy impression that I
was becoming a focus for the concentration of the sun's rays —
my eyes were suddenly attracted to an insect whose motions very
soon riveted my attention.

I at once perceived that it belonged to the order Hymenoptera,
but even now that I have the specimen in question before me, I
am afraid to name its genus : it is, however,
similar to the Tenthredo scropkzdaria, if it
is not actually that insect. The accompa-
nying sketch may enable you to arrive at
a decision on this point : it is the natural
size, the length being exactly five lines.

The little creature, when I first caught sight of it, had already
commenced, within four feet of the spot on which I was seated,
its work of excavation ; for as I looked it disappeared, and short-
ly afterward returned to the surface of the ground tail first ; and
running backward over a tiny mound it had previously made, de-
posited a grain of gravel fully as large as its own head outside the
mound, with the evident intention that it should not roll back
again into the cave it was in process of forming. This operation
was continued with great rapidity ; and ever as it re-entered the
orifice I saw minute particles of sand fly upward, impelled pur-
posely by its descending feet.

The care with which the insect distinguished between the larger
and the smaller grains was wonderful ; those only whose gravity
might have caused them to roll down again, had they been placed
below the apex of the mound on the side on which the work was
carrying on, were conveyed beyond the mound ; the smaller grains
were added to the mound itself without much apparent discrimin-
ation.

After a time the work was evidently completed to the satisfac-
tion of the laborer, for it flew away to the grass-edging of a flow-
er-border distant about six feet from the cave, and immediately
emerged from thence, dragging after it, for it was running back-

318 Correspondence,

ward, the body of a large spider not long dead, — a spider whose
bulk was at least three times as great as that of its intending
sexton. On arriving within twelve inches of the sepulchre the
insect left the corpse, and hastened thither to ascertain, as I can-
not doubt, whether or not the orifice was large enough for its
admission : it was not so, and the grave-digger resumed his work
enlarging, though but very slightly, showing thus how true his
eye was, the opening he had made. Returning to the spider he
dragged it onward, and, still running backward, pulled it after
him within the hole ; and I noticed that so nice had been the
calculation, there was exactly sufficient space for the passage of
the body — sufficient, but not a hair's-breadth to spare.

The insect soon once more emerged, and immediately com-
menced filling in the grave, a work he speedily though carefully
accomplished. And when that work was completed, he ran round
and round with great celerity upon the surface, scattering the
gravel in all directions with his feet, with the undoubted object of
obliterating every, the faintest mark by which his cache might be
discovered : and so efi'ectually was this portion of his operation
executed, that half an hour subsequently I was unable, though I
searched diligently and anxiously, assisted too by eyes far keener
than my own, eyes that had also watched the whole transaction,
to find it out myself.

Meantime, having sent for ray net, I, not without some feelings
of compunction, captured the little workman, and putting him to
death by the shortest possible method, made a sketch of him for
future reference.

Now, what was the object of the little creature in conveying
beyond the ken of other insects the booty it had discovered ? My
first impression was that it was an Ichneumon, and that it was
about to deposit its eggs within the body of the spider ; but Ich-
neumons, I believe, invariably make use of living caterpillars for
that purpose ; and after having efi'ected my capture, I could dis-
cover no trace of an ovijjositor. I imagine, therefore, that it
must have intended to make a meal, or many meals oflf the car-
case : but why it should have expended so large an amount of
time, and given itself so much trouble on that account, I confess
I am unable to determine.

A reflection, and I conclude. How slender is the line of de-
marcation separating instinct from reason ! and how marvellous
the Creative Power that could have imparted to an insect so in-

Miscellaneous. 319

significant, faculties such as I have attempted, however feebly, to

describe !

I have the honour to be, Sir,

Your most obedient servant,

Vincent Clembnti, B. A., Cantab.
Peterboro', C. W.,
26th July, 1862.
NoT&. — The insect referred to by our correspondent was pro-
bably one of the fossorial wasps or Sand-wasps, some species of
which have precisely the habit described. Their object is to pro-
vide foot for their young ; their eggs being deposited with the
spiders or caterpillars which they bury, and the larvae subsisting
on the provision thus made for them. Were the specimen sent to
us, no doubt the species might be determined. Eds.

MISCELLANEOUS.

Occurrence of the Blue Grosbeak (Guiraca ccerulea^ Swainson)
at Mille Vaches, Lower St. Laiorence.
Canadian Ornithologists will be gratified to learn that the
beautiful Blue Grosbeak is now for the first time added to the
list of birds visiting Canada : — On the Vth of May both sexes of
the species were noticed by Mr. Beverley, sen., of Mille Vaches •
they were accompanied on the same tree by the little Indigo
bird. Mr. Beverley is continually residing in the vicinity of the
primitive forests, where he has good opportunities of observing
our feathery visitors, and the unusual occurrence of a bird having
such brilliant blue colour at once attracted his attention ; he
therefore lost no time in securing the male which is stuflfed and
in his possession. The habitat of the Blue Grosbeak is the
" more Southern States from the Atlantic to Pacific, south to
Mexico." Judging from the season, together with the fact of the
female having been noticed, there is good evidence that they
intended to build in this country.

Occurrence of the Stone Chat [Saxicola cenanthe. Bechst.) at

Beauport, near Quebec.

A single specimen of this pretty bird was procured and stuffed

by me ; it is now in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution,

Washington. It also forms an addition to Canadian Ornithology.

320 Miscellaneous.

Occurrence of the Yellow Rail {Porzana novehoracensis) in the
vicinity of Quebec.
Although this handsome little bird is mentionned by Swainson
in the " Fauna Boreali Americana " on the authority of Mr. Hut-
chins who resided on the coast of Hudson's Bay, near the eflflux
of Severn River, I am not aware that it has appeared in any of
the published lists of Canadian birds. It is extremely rare in this
latitude, only two specimens have been procured during two years 5
both were shot by Mr. G. Campbell of the Quebec Customs ; one
is in his possession, and the other he presented to me, which I
atuflfed, and is now in the collection of S. Derbishire, Esq.

Wm. Coupbr, Quebec.

(From proceedings of the Geological Society of London.)

On the Geology of the Gold-fields of Nova Scotia. By the
Rev. David Honeyman. (Communicated by the President.)

The author, at the request of the Provincial Government Com-
mission for the International Exhibition, made some observations
on the auriferous rocks at Allen's and Laidlow's farms, near the
junction of the Halifax and Windsor and the Halifax and Truro
railways. He found chloritic schist, with vertical auriferous
quartz-veins, and a gold-bearing horizontal quartz- vein (the "bar-
rels" of the miners) lying on the schist and overlaid by quartzite
and gravel. By the neighbouring railway sections the chlorite-
schist is seen to alternate in broad bands with quartzite, and to
be associated with granite. The author thinks there is reason to
believe that the quartzite may be of Lower Silurian age.

" On some Fossil Crustacea from the Coal-measures and De-
vonian Rocks of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Cape Breton."
By J. W. Salter, Esq., F.G.S., ofthe Geol. Surv. Great Britain.
One of the Devonian fossils is apparently allied to the Stomapods,
and is named Amphiioeltis paradoxus by Mr. Salter ; it was ob-
tained by Mr. Hartt and Dr. Dawson near St. John's, where it
occurred with plant-remains ; another Crustacean fossil from the
same locality collected by Mr. Payne, is a new Eurypterus^ E.
pulicaris. Other remains of Eury2)teri have been sent also by
Dr. Dawson, from the coal-measares of Port Hood and the Jog-
gins ; and with these a new Amphipod, DiplostT/lus, having some
characters of alliance with Typhis and Brachyocelus,

MONTIILV METEOROLOGICAL REGISTER, ST. MARTINS, ISLE JESUS, CANADA EAST, (NINE MILES WEST OF MONTREAL,) FOR THE MONTH OF JCNE, 1862
Latitude, 45 degrees 32 minutes Nortb. Longitude, 13 degrees 36 minutes West. Heiglit above tbe level of the Sea, 118 feet.
BY CHARLES SMALLWOOD, M.D., LL.D.

Barometer— corrected

Tousion of Aqueo

673 62.4 89.9 7p.7

s. w.

W. by S.
N. W.
N. !•:. by I
N. N. W.
S. W.
S. S. W.

llll!

n.nNF

BAIN 1

sl.5-^

&Z.

i^te.

17.80

1.5

158. GO

68.70

S.O

230.70

' tiw

1.5

i 11

...".'..'.".

E, CLOUDS. EEMARKS, &C. &C.

i represented by 10, a cloudless o

Clear. Eclipse of Hie Moon.

Cu. Str. 4. Distaut Liehtniug.

-tr. lo'.

O.Str. 4. Dist. Thunder.

2. DUt. Light. 1 Til.

REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF JULY, :

Barometer— corrected
and reduced to

(ISnglish inches.)

m. I 2 p. m. I 10 p.m. 6 a.m.

ca. m.

2 p.m.

10 p. m.

'w%\

fl

W'-

%-'^''-

i. S. W.

W. by S.

J'.'n'' ' "

N.B.byE.

REMARKS FOR JUNE, 1862.

b prevalent wind, S.

Tliennomotcr ... < Monthly Ml-;

Amouut of I

Rain fell < .

occompauiudby thunder on Z days,

Least "prevalent vnnd, the B.
Most Arindy day the 22nd day, mean miles per hour, 0.62.
Least windy day the 2nd day, mean miles per hour, Calm.
The Eclipse of the Moon wm visible.

The Electrical state of the Atmosphere has indicated liifc'li
Intensity.
Fire flies {Lampyris Coruscar) latsccn lUIi day.

?■ s w

b^-

1:^^-

-,^r..

OZOVE

nuv

-1

iu. Ii.^^.

193 10

■> u

25.40

103. 20

211.90

•is

268.50

■"

r ,

rSS-i'l!

■s

'

1S9. 00

S.80

1,1.

Distant Tbuu. & Lightning.

Ou. Str.
C. Str.

f Highesl, the 4th day, 30.002 inches.

„ ,„,„,. J Lowest, tbe Stb day, 20.397 "

l^'»o™"=' ^Montblir Mean. 29.731

[Monthly liange, 6.965

f Highest, the 6th day, 91=0.
Thermometer. j^Ztiy M?a"?5 =S' " ° "'

(Monthly Range, 6*00.
Greatest intensity of the Sun's rays, 103 *1.
Lowest point of Terrestrial radiation,— 37 ° i.
Mean of humidity, '737.

REMARKS FOR JULY, 1862.

iivaporal

lays, amounting to 3.767 inches ; it was raining

day. the 31st day. 0.37.

The Elcctrical'stato of
derate intensity.

day ; mean miles per hour, i:

gms ; ana wim laese a new iiiiipijipou, j^ijjiuait/Lus, naviiig some
characters of alliance with Typhis and Brachyocelus.

THE

CANADIAN

NATURALIST AND GEOLOGIST.

Vol. VIT. OCTOBER, 1862. No. 5.

ARTICLE XXXL — Observations on the Geology and Physical
Characteristics of Newfoundland, By Moses H. Perlet,
Esq., President of the Natural History Society of New Bruns-
wick, <fec, &c.

This well-known Island lies on the north-east side of the entrance
into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It is separated from Canada by the
Gulf; its South West point, Cape Ray, approaches Cape Breton ;
to the North and North East, are the shores of Labrador, from
which it is divided by the Straits of Belleisle ; and its eastern coast
is washed by the North Atlantic.

Its form is somewhat triangular, but, without any approach to
regularity, each of its sides being broken by numerous bays, har-
bours, creeks, and estuaries. In straight lines, as the sea-gull would
wing its flight, its circuit is not much less than 1000 miles.

Its width at the widest part, between Cape Ray and Cape
Bonavista, is about 300 miles. Its extreme length from Cape
Race to Quirpen, at its north-east extremity, is about 419 miles,
measured on a curve through the centre of the island. Its area
is estimated at 36,000 square miles, equal to 23,040,000 acres.

Newfoundland is the nearest part of America to Europe, the
distance from St. John's, the capital, to Valentia in Ireland, being
only 1656 miles.
Car. Nat. 21 Vol. VI

322 Parley^ s observations on the

From the sea, Newfoundland has a wild and rugged appear-
ance, which is anything but inviting. Of its interior, very little
is known, as it has been but very partially explored. Such parts
as have been visited by persons capable of giving a satisfactory
description, were found much broken up with water ; lakes, and
marshes, rocks and scrubby trees, forming its chief features.

The prevailing character of Newfoundland is that of a rugged,
and, for the most part, a barren country. Hills and valleys con-
tinually succeed each other ; the former, but seldom rising into
mountains, and the latter, rarely expanding into plains.

The hills, more or less lofty, are greatly varied in character.
Sometimes they form long flat-topped ridges ; occasionally, they
become round and isolated, with sharp peaks and craggy preci-
pices.

The valleys also vary greatly. Sometimes they present deep
mountain gorges, and the wildest of ravines ; while in others,
they form depressions with gentle slopes toward the water, which
is ever found flowing at their greatest depth.

The sea-Clio's of Newfoundland, — especially on the coast, between
St. John's and Cape Race, thence westwardly, between Cape
Bace and Cape Ray, and thence northerly along the western
coast and Bonne Bay, — are almost everywhere bold and lofty,
with deep water close at their foot.

Loose rocks of all sizes, and with them huge boulders, are
scattered all over the country. They increase the general rough-
ness of its appearance, and give it a repulsive character.

This rough and rugged surface is covei'ed by three different
kinds of vegetation, which form three distinct districts.

The people of Newfoundland assign to these several districts,
the names of, " Woods, Marshes, and Barrens."

The woods are in general found on the sides of hills, or the
slopes of valleys, wherever there is natural drainage for the sur-
plus water. For this reason, the forests, if they can be so called,
occur most frequently, and the trees are of the greatest size, near
the sea-coast, or near lakes and rivers, when the soil and other cir-
cumstances are favourable.

Newfoundland has been frequently described as a thickly wooded
country, but such is not the case. The trees consist chiefly of
spruce, {Ahies nigra,)— white fir, {Abies alba,) — yellow birch
(Betula excelsa,) — white birch, {Betula2)opuli/olia,)—iind hackma-
tack or larch, (Larix Americana.) But what are considered large

Geology of Newfoundland. 323

trees on Newfoundland, and were pointed out to the writer as
timber trees, would be laughed at by a New Brunswick lumber*
man, and not deemed worthy of his axe.

On the eastern or Atlantic coast of Newfoundland, there is
but little wood of any value, except for fuel, and the building
of fishing boats.

In the northern part of the island, on the limestone formation^
it is said that formerly extensive forests existed, but that great
fires destroyed the largest trees, and these have been succeeded by
others of an inferior and much smaller species.

The greater part of the wood is of small and stunted growth,
consisting chiefly of fir trees, about 20 or 30 feet high, and not
more than 3 or 4 inches in diameter. In general, these insignifi-
cant trees grow so close together, that their twigs and branches
interlace from top to bottom. The endless quantity of decayed
trees, rotten stumps and branches, newly fallen trees, combined
with the young shoots, and tangled brushwood, form very fre-
quently a thicket that is almost impenetrable.

The trees are often covered with lichens, and tufts of white,
dry moss, are entangled about the branches. Other green and
softer mosses spread over the ground, concealing alike the gnarled
and twisted roots of the standing trees, the pointed stumps of
those that have fallen, the sharp edges and most slippery surfaces
of the numerous rocks and boulders, and the holes and pit-falls
between them.

Every step in the woods and wilds of Newfoundland is matter
of toil and anxiety, requiring constant vigilance to avoid falling,
and unremitting labour to find standing room. Climbing, creep-
ing, and every other mode of progression, must be used to get on-
ward. The course has constantly to be changed, and new direc-
tions are taken, in order to find those places through which to
force a slow and tortuous way.

During the heat of summer, or what is called such in New-
foundland, the thickness of the low and stunted trees shuts out
every breath of air, while they are not sufficiently thick at top to
exclude the scalding rays of the sun. And this heated atmos-
phere is rendered more unpleasant by the strong smell of turpen-
tine which emanates from every pore of the scrubby spruces and
firs.

Such are the leading characteristics of what in Newfoundland
are called *' the woods." Embosomed in these woods, and cover-

324 Perley^s ohservatioris on the

ing the valleys and lower lands, are found large open tracts which
are called " marshes."

Let it be understood that these marshes are not always
low-lying lands, or even very level. They are frequently found
at a considerable height above the sea, and often with an undu-
lating surface.

Moss covers these marshes to the depth of several feet; it
is green, soft, and spongy, and is bound together by straggling
grass, and a variety of marsh plants. The surface is uneven,
abounding in holes and hillocks, the tops of the hillocks being
frequently covered with a short, dry, crisp moss.

The various colours of the mosses on these marshes, give them
a peculiarly rich appearance, especially if seen from a distance,
clothing the slopes of a hill with tufts or thin skirts of wood,
scattered about. In such cases, a person not acquainted with
the country would be led to believe it possessed great agricultural
capabilities, and might be highly cultivated.

Except in long continued droughts or hard frosts, these mar-
shes are always wet, and incapable of bearing the weight of a
person walking across them. A march of three or four miles
across a Newfoundland marsh, sinking into the moss at every
step, always as far as the ancle, but sometimes knee-deep, is a
most fatiguing operation, and most toilsome if a load has to be
carried on the shoulders.

This thick coating of moss is precisely like a great sponge
spread over the country. At the melting of the snow in spring,
it becomes thoroughly saturated with water, which it lon^ re-
tains and which every rain-fall continually renews.

Numerous ponds of water are found everywhere in Newtound-
land* and it is scarcely possible to walk a mile, in any direction,
without encountering large pools, sometimes spreading out into
very considerable lakes. In the lower parts small sluggish
brooks or gullies are met with everywhere.

The extreme wetness of the marshes is due almost entirely
to the spongy nature of the moss, as the slope of the ground
is in almost every case quite sufficient for surface drainage.

Where the moss is stripped off these so-called marshes,
either dry, rounded gravel, or bare rock, is generally found be-
neath.

Next we come to, —

The " barrens " of Newfoundland, which are extensive dis-

Geology of Nevfoundland, 325

tricts occupying the summits of the hills and ridges, and other
elevated and exposed positions. They are covered partially with
a thin, scrubby vegetation, consisting of berry-bearing plants and
dwarf bushes.

Bare patches of gravel and boulders, and crumbling fragments
of rock, are frequently met with in the barrens, and generally
they are altogether destitute of vegetable soil.

It is only by means of these barrens, these stony sterile
tracts, that any large portion of the interior of Newfoundland can
be visited or explored. Though frequently broken, rugged, and
precipitous, they are delightful to tread upon after traversing the
heavy marshes or toiling through the tangled and annoying
woods.

Sometimes, in the hollows of the barrens, and in other places,
where the disintegration of the rocks has created a little soil, a
bed of dwarf hackmatack or larch is met with. These stunted
trees are called in Newfoundland " tucking bushes ;" they grow
about breast-high, with strong branches at right angles to the
stem, all stiffly interlaced, the tops being as flat and level as if
they had been hewn off. These '* tucking bushes " are so stiff
that in some places one can almost walk upon them ; but as this
is not quite possible, the labour of pushing and thrusting through
them can scarcely be conceived by those who have not made the
attempt.

These different tracts, " woods, marshes, and barrens," are
none of them of any great extent at any particular place ; but
they are continually alternating with each other in the course of
a day's journey.

The most remarkable feature of Newfoundland is the immense
and scarcely to be credited abundance of lakes of all sizes, all of
which are called indiscriminately " ponds."

These are found universally over the whole country, not only
on the valleys but on the highest lands, even on the hollows of
the summits of the ridges, and on the very tops of the highest
hills.

These ponds vary in size from pools of 50 yards in diame-
ter to lakes upwards of 30 miles long, and 4 or 5 miles in width*
The number of ponds which exceed a couple of miles in ex-
tent, must on the whole amount to several hundreds ; those of
smaller size are absolutely countless.

It has been estimated, that in Newfoundland the quantity of

^326 Perley^s observations on the

ground cos'ered by fresh water is fully one third of the island,
and in this estimate I quite concur, believing it, if any thing, rather
below the mark.

Taken in connection with this remarkable abundance of lakes
and ponds, the scarcity of navigable rivers is almost anomalous.
The broken and undulating character of the country with its
craggy hills and deep ravines, is doubtless one cause of the ab-
sence of large rivers; while small rocky rattling streams are
found in countless profusion.

Each lake, or small set of ponds, communicates with the sea by
a valley of its own, of greater or less extent. Down this valley
they send their superfluous waters, in what may be considered a
mere brook. The general scantiness of these brooks, and the
vast abundance of the ponds, are accounted for by the small-
ness of each system of drainage and the vast coating of moss found
all over the country.

Upon every great accession of moisture, either from rain or
melted snow, the chief portion is absorbed by this huge sponge ;
the residue fills the numerous ponds to the brink, and these dis-
charge themselves gradually by the brooks.

Great periodical floods which would sweep out and deepen the
channels of the rivers, are quite impossible, from the almost infi-
nite number of small streams falling singly into the sea. These
streams have not the power, at any time, of breaking down or
overcoming the barriers which separate them, and so uniting their
waters.

In dry weather, when the ponds begin to shrink, they are sup-
plied by the slow and gradual drainage of the marshes, where
the water has been kept as in a reservoir, to be given ofl" when
required. In this way, many ponds that have no great depth,
and would otherwise be exhausted, are kept full of water in the
driest seasons, and it is only in the greatest and most long con-
tinued droughts, when the marshes themselves begin to dry up,
that the ponds are found to shrink much below their usual level.

CLIMATE.

As there are nearly five degrees of latitude between the south-
ern and northern extremities of Newfoundland, there is of course
a considerable diff"erence in the severity and duration of winter.
The climate of Conception Bay, which is in the south coast, and
to the eastward of St. John's, the capital of the colony, is consi-

Geology of Newfo2indland, 327

dered to afford what may be deemed the mean temperature of tke
island.

The weather there, although severe, is less fierce than in Lower
Canada, and during winter, the extraordinary brilliancy of the
Aurora Borealis, and the splendid lustre of the moon and stars,
give a rare and peculiar beauty to the atmosphere.

The eastern coast of Newfoundland is much more humid than
the western, owing to the heavy fogs which are driven in from
the Grand Bank; and it is also more subject to violent gales and
storms, owing to its exposed position. On the west coast, from
Cape Ray to the north, and in the interior, the atmosphere is
generally clear, and the climate is much the same as that of the
district of Gaspe, in Lower Canada.

THE GEOLOGY OF NEWFOUNDLAND.

In the years 1839 and 1840, Mr. J. B. Jukes, a fellow of the
Geological Society, who has since greatly distinguished himself in
South Australia,was employed by the Government of Newfoundland
to make a geological survey of the Island. The means placed
at the disposal of Mr. Jukes by the Legislature, were exceedingly
small, and it was only an ardent love of science, and a desire
to do all that man could do, in an interesting but most difficult
country, that induced Mr. Jukes to persevere as long as he did.
Because Mr. Jukes, at the outset of his explorations, did not en-
counter anything of very great value, the Legislature declined to
assist him in further researches, at the very point where those
researches were beginning to be interesting, and becoming of
practical value.

The only authentic account, therefore, of the Geology of New-
foundland, is that of Mr. Jukes, but to that has been added within
a few years, the observations of other scientific men, who have
been employed to explore certain sections of the island, with a
view to discover its mineral wealth.

Mr. Jukes divides Newfoundland, geologically, into two sections,
which are shown on the map by a line drawn from Cape Ray,
the south-western angle of the island, to Quirpen, very nearly
through the centre of the island.

To the south-westward of this line, the geological character
of the country is such as to indicate a broken and sterile country,
with but slight hope of mineral wealth ; while to the Northward
and eastward of the line, the country is composed of rocks of

328 Perley^s observations on the

much more recent character, inchiding an extensive coal forma-
tion, with various indications of other minerals.

The aqueous or stratified rocks of Newfoundland consist of the
following formations : —

The upper, and the lower, or red portion of the coal formation.

Next in the descending order, magnesian limestone. Then, an
upper slate formation, consisting of shale and gritstone, and
variegated shales.

Below these, a lower slate formation — and then the gneiss,
and mica slate.

The unstratified, or igneous rocks, consist of various kinds of
trap, greenstone, serpentine, hypersthene, porphyry, syenite, and
granite.

The upper part of the coal formation consists principally of dark
shales, with brown or yellow sandstones, or gritstones, in thin
beds.

The lower part of this formation is characterised by beds of red
sandstone, red and green marls, and gypsum.

These two portions of the coal formation pass by insensible
gradations into each other.

Yellow, brown, and whitish flags and sandstones, dark blue
clay, with an occasional bed of black shale, occur throughout the
whole of the coal formation. Some of the lighter colored sand-
stones contain carbonate of lime, red and green marl, and large
masses of gypsum in thick beds.

The total thickness of the coast formation is considerable, and
the portion examined by Mr. Jukes had a thickness of 1000 to
1500 feet.

The magnesian limestone which was seen, was generally of a
yellow colour, about 50 feet thick, in beds of 2 or 3 feet each, fre-
quently splitting into flags.

One bed of carbonate of lime was found of a grey colour, about
2 feet thick, with a band of brown chert.

The upper slate formation is supposed to be below the coal
formation in the series.

The superior portion consists of dark aicaceous shale splitting
into thin laminae, with interstratified beds of a very fine grained
grey gritstone, which increase in number, thickness and coarse-
ness of grain, with the increasing depth, until the shale disappears
altogether. The thickness of the two portions seen is estimated
at several hundred feet.

Geology of Newfoundland, 329

The lower slate series is deemed by Mr. Jukes to belong to an
older formation and to be composed of two groups.

1st. A mass of grey and red sandstone, which at the entrance to
the harbour of St. John's, has a thickness of 800 feet.

And 2nd. The St. John slates, in which beds of red, green,
and grey stone alternate near the junction of the sandstone and
the slate rocks, forming the transition beds between the two. The
thickness of this formation is estimated at between 2000 and
3000 feet.

The cleavage of the slate is frequently parallel to the line of
stratification, and in these cases produces excellent roofing slate.

Veins of white quartz and masses of porphyry are found asso-
ciated with these slates.

Descending lower in the Geological scale, there is found the
mica slate and gneiss and also the igneous rocks, which do not
difier from those usually found in other parts of the globe ; the
mica and the gneiss however alternate with and pass into each
other.

Except in some indistinct vegetable impressions in the coal
formation, no organic remains have yet been found in Newfound-
land ;* but it must be remembered that its rocks have not yet
been subjected to the careful examination of modern geologists, nor
yet to the keen scrutiny of some of the younger members of this
society, whose well directed exertions have enabled them to dis-
cover evidences that animal life had existed in formations which
"were supposed to be far below the existence of any living thing.

The strike throughout the island rarely varies from a true
N. N. E., and S. S. W. course.

Hence, all the other prominent features of the country run in
the same direction, not only as regards the ranges of hills, but
also the principal lakes ; all the deep bays and the numerous
valleys lie in the same line of bearing.

The strike of the cleavage is not invariably parallel to the
strike of the beds ; but the cleavage is much more constant as
regards the strike and dip in relation to the points of the compass

♦ Trilobites of the Genus Paradoxides have been found in the older
slate formation of Mr. Jukes, and several lower silurian fossils have been
obtained by Mr. Richardson, of the Geological Survey of Canada, in the
limestone formation of the North of the Island, described in the con-
cluding part of this paper.

330 Perlexfs observations on the

than it is in relation to the strike and dip of the beds, or than
those latter are to the horizon, and points of the compass.

As regards the relative age of the igoeous rocks, Mr. Jukes sup-
poses that the granites are generally newer than the mica slate
and the gneiss, which repose upon them.

The coal formation seems to be contemporaneous with those of
Tfestern Europe, Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, and New Brunswick,
and with the most modern group of stratified rocks in Newfound-
land.

On the west coast of Newfoundland, as might have been pro-
phesied by the most casual geological observer of the formations of
Cape Breton and the adjacent shores of the mainland, there exists
the continuation of the coal formation of New Brunswick, Nova
Scotia and Cape Breton, the great coal basin of the St. Law-
rence, probably the largest in the world, extending from the Bay
of Chaleur to the profound solitudes, vast morasses,- tangled
forests and innumerable lakes, ponds, and brooks, which cover and
intersect so great a portion of Newfoundland.

The province of Avalon is nearly separated from the
rest of Newfoundland by the Bays of Placentia and Trinity, a
narrow isthmus only between 3 or 4 miles in width, existing be-
tween those two deep and spacious bays, and thus connecting
Avalon with the main body of Newfoundland.

In Avalon there are two principal ranges of hills, which form
regular watersheds.

The most easterly range is that which rises from the back of
Keneuse to Holyrood in Conception Bay. 'though not lofty,
this range is very rugged, the faces of the hills being abrupt and
precipitious. Along this range are some remarkable hummocky
hills called the " butter-pots," of which the passing voyager
between Cape Race and St. John's has a capital view in fine
weather. Each of these "butter-pots" has about the same
height above the sea, probably rather more than 1000 feet.

The southern coast of Newfoundland has very lofty cliffs, and
the high lands contiguous to the sea exclude all view of the in-
terior from that quarter. Mr. Jukes declares his belief that the
country is composed chiefly, if not entirely, of granite.

Three varieties of granite were observed ; one white, rather
fine grained, with abundance of mica ; another of a coarse grain,
with less mica and of a reddish colour ; and the third, by far the
most abundant, a somewhat coarse red granite with large im-
bedded crystals of flesh-coloured feldspar.

Geology of Newfoundland. 331

The country, from the Dead Islands to Port aux Basques and
Cape Ray, is composed entirely of mica slate and gneiss ; and
these rocks continue around Cape Ray for some distance to the
little Cadroy river where they terminate.

A chain of hills, called the Long Range, composed almost
entirely of this gneiss and mica slate, runs into the country from
Cape Ray and is believed to intersect and divide the whole Is-
land.

The south side of St. George's Bay, between this Long Range
and the Gulf of St. Lawrence, is occupied by the coal formation.
The cliffs on the sea-shore and a baud of country a few miles
Tvide, lying parallel to it, exhibit the lower beds of the coal forma-
tion, namely the red sandstones and marls, with gypsum.

In the cliffs, near Cadroy Island, (where the writer first landed
in Newfoundland) there is much red and green marl, with bands
of white flag-stone.

The white flag-stone, and the greenish marl, contain many
veins of white fibrous gypsum, and interstratified with these and
the red marls are some thirty beds of white and grey gypsum, of
a singular character.

The Micmac Indians of this coast report a bed of coal, of
two feet in thickness, some distance up the Cadroy river ; but
Mr. Jukes was unable to procure a guide to it. The bed is said
to be of very considerable extent.

Mr. Jukes, however, penetrated the coal formation from Crabb's
River, which is about half way up the south side of St. George's
Bay. He found that at least six miles of the country, formed of
the lower beds of this formation, must be crossed directly from
the coast, before arriving at the higher beds, in which the coal is
situated.

Ha\nng passed over the lower beds, Mr. Jukes at length ar-
rived at a bed of coal, three feet in thickness, resting on soft brown
sandstone, with ferruginous stains. Whether this seam of coal
was the whole, or only the lower portion of a bed, could not be
determined ; but the quality was found to be good, as it proved a
bright, caking coal.

The distance from the sea shore, where this coal was
found, is about 8 miles ; but the nearest and only harbour is
that of St. George's, distant about 20 miles. From the best ob-
servations Mr Jukes was able to make, he concluded that the
tract in which coal might be found, would be an oval, some 20

332 Perley^s ohsei'vations on the

or 30 miles long, by 10 miles in width, bounded by the sea coast
on the north, and the range of primary hills on the south.

Mr. Jukes penetrated the interior more to the north east, by
the Grand Pond, and near its eastern extremity, on the banks of a
small brook, discovered a seam of coal, part of it resembling
cannel coal — and in the bed of the brook itself, which is rapid and
rocky, large pieces of coal were found, clearly showing that more
beds existed higher up the stream.

There is here a large district, throughout the whole extent of
which it is probable coal may be found.

The north side ofSt. George's Bay is occupied by magnesian
limestone, lying above the shale of the coal measures, in which
shale it is alleged coal has been found at Port-aux-Ports.

The country between Port-aux-Ports and Bay of Islands, and
thence northerly to Bonne Bay, and Cow Head — is lofty and un-
broken, (the writer now speaks from his own observations) and is
occupied chiefly by igneous rocks.

Around Lark Harbour, the rocks are high, pointed and precip-
itous, consisting of igneous rocks of the most varied character,
the scenery is wild, picturesque, and in the elevated portions,
sterile to the last degree. Down the deep and narrow ravines,
the winds rush with fearful violence, and the suddenness of the
gusts are such as to render the operation of beating into Lark
Harbour very exciting.

From the neighbourhood of Lark Harbour, nearly to the head
of Humber Sound (a magnificent piece of water, by the way, in-
terspersed with numerous islands, having broad and deep chan-
nels between them, forming altogether wonderfully striking scen-
ery of unusual character) the rocks consist of dark brown and
red schist or shale, grey gritstones, and black, grey, and red slate.
Beyond this commences the great calcareous formation, which is
supposed to form almost the entire north eastern extremity of
Newfoundland.

At the north of the Humber, by far the largest river in New-
foundland, this formation consists of beds of limestone, containing
veins and flakes of mica, so entangled with quartz rocks, and in-
timately associated with the gneiss and mica slate, as to leave no
doubt of its being entitled to the denomination of a primary lime-
stone.

The highest beds of this limestone are of a hard dark grey
colour, with brown concretions, that on a surface which had

Geology of Newfoundland, 333

for some time been exposed to the weather, stood out in bold
relief.

Below these higher beds, are some thin beds of hard sub-crys-
talline limestone — some white, and some flesh coloured with white
veins.

These thin beds have a thickness of about 100 feet, and from
the thickness of the beds they are especially adapted for marble
slabs, as they would take a good polish, and be highly orna-
mental.

Below this formation lies a few feet of thin-bedded black mar-
ble, of similar qualities.

Still farther down come large masses of grey compact lime-
stone, having a thickness of 300 or 400 feet, passing into a per-
fectly white saccharine limestone, without any mark of stratifi-
cation, and but few joints, or division lines of any kind.

About three miles up the Humber River, it forms lofty white
precipices, of pure marble, crowned and surrounded by thick
woods, which, closing in upon the rapids, produce most pictur-
esque scenery.

Blocks. of this magnificent marble, of any size required, might
be procured here, and readily floated down the river into the
sound, where vessels of any size may find safe and excellent
anchorage.

From Cow Bay northward, along the west coast of Newfound-
land, the coast is low, and altogether of primary limestone, which
appears to form a belt of two or three leagues in width, bounded
by a lofty ridge of mica slate, gneiss, and their associated rocks,
forming aj^parently a continuation of the Long Range, and ex-
tending to Lake Quirpon, the extreme northern point of the island
of Newfoundland.

This country has not yet been examined by any geologist, and
the writer speaks of its general features from observations made
while passing to and fro through the straits of Belleisle.

Having thus briefly and imperfectly pointed out the leading
geological features of Newfoundland, it only remains to say that
in addition to the gypsum which is found abundantly at Cadroy,
and the splendid white marble of the Humber, ores of copper, in
difi'erent varieties, have been found in several districts, and ex-
plorations are being carried on by various parties, whose dis-
coveries have not yet been made public.

An extensive deposit of lead was found at La Manche in Pla-

334 Review o/HooJcer^s Outlines

centia Bay, on the southern coast, which was worked for a short
time by an American company, who carried away from it many
hundred tons of valuable ore.

The people of Newfoundland are sanguine that gold will be
found in their island, which is quite possible; the geological char-
acter of the island, in some of its characteristics, might warrant
the belief, and induce some exertions to explore it more thoroughly.

Any notice of Newfoundland would be imperfect without an
allusion to its fisheries, which furnish employment to its people,
and provide its staple export. The Arctic current which passes
swiftly and continuously along its eastern coast, rendering that
side cold, damp, and cheerless — the dense fogs occasioned by this
icy current meeting the lighter and warmer waters of the Grulf
stream — the long, deep, and narrow arms of the sea, which pene-
trate far into the land, in every part of the island, and re-
semble very closely the "fiords" of Norway and Sweden, in all
their principal features, affording the best and safest of harbours,
— together with the fish and fishing of Newfoundland — will fur-
nish ample materials for other papers hereafter.

[While the above paper was in the hands of the printer, intel-
ligence reached us of the untimely decease of its able and accom-
plished author. Mr. Perley was a man eminent for his powers of
observation, and possessed a vast store of information on the
physical features and resources of the maritime provinces, which
he was ever ready to render useful to his countrymen. He is well
known in British America, and abroad, as the author of valuable
reports on the fisheries, on timber trees, on emigration, and other
subjects of public importance. The paper which we now publish
was read before the Natural History Society of New Brunswick,
not long before his departure on what was destined to be his last
journey, and was kindly sent by the Council of the Society for
publication in the Naturalist. — Editors.]

ARTICLE XXXIL—Eeview of Hooker's Outlines of the Bistri-
button of Arctic Plants.^
In this paper Dr. Hooker presents a most valuable summary of
the Arctic Flora, entering in great detail into its wonderful geo-
graphical distribution, and very properly re-uniting in his lists
many varietal forms that have been promoted too hastily to the

♦ Outlines of the Distribution of Arctic Plants. By J. D. HooKliK,

of the Distribution of Arctic Plants, 335^

rank of distinct species. Dr. Hooker also enters on the questions
aa to the antiquity and migrations of the species of this flora,
and the variations which they raay have undergone in the lapse
of time. From many of his conclusions on these points, however,
geologists who have investigated the posi-pliocene deposits of
Europe and America will find themselves obliged to dissent, as
well as from the assumption, for it is nothing more, of the unli-
mited variation of species in a Darwinian sense, which pervades
the paper, notwithstanding the positive geological testimony to
the permanence of several of these throughout a great lapse of
geological time. We take the following extracts and summaries
from an able condensation of the paper by Prof. Gray, in the
American Journal of Science : —

' The immediate subjects of the treatise are the Arctic plants, of
every phaenogamous species known to occur spontaneously any-
where within the Arctic circle ; the geographical distribution of
which, so far as known, is carefully indicated : 1. Within the
Arctic region, under the several divisions — Europe, Asia, W.
America (Bebring's Straits to the Mackenzie River), E. America
(Mackenzie River to Baffin's Bay), and Arctic Greenland. 2.
Without this circle, and under the general divisions of N. and
Central European and N. Asiatic Distribution, with three lono-i-
tudinal subdivisions; American Distribution, with appropriate
subdivisions ; S. European and African Distribution ; Central and
S. Asiatic Distribution. The theory upon which the facts are
collocated and discussed, and which they are thought strongly to
confirm, is that of Edward Forbes, which was completed, if not
indeed originated by Darwin :* — " first, that the existing Scandi-
navian flora is of great antiquity, and that previous to the glacial
epoch it was more uniformly distributed over the Polar Zone than
it is now ; secondly, that during the advent of the glacial period
this Scandinavian vegetation was driven southward in every longi-
tude, and even across the tropics into the south temperate zone ;
and that, on the succeeding warmth of the present epoch, those
species that survived both ascended the mountains of the warmer
zones, and also returned northward, accompanied by aborigines of
the countries they had invaded during their southern mii^ration.
Mr. Darwin shows how aptly such an explanation meets the diflS-
culty of accounting for tlie restriction of so many American and

♦ This is scarcely correct. The theory of distribution originated by
Forbes should be distinguished from the extension of it suggested by
Darwin. Eds.

336 Review of Hooker's Outlines

Asiatic arctic types to their own peculiar longitudinal zones, and
for what is a far greater difficulty, the representation of the same
arctic genera by closely allied species in diflferent longitudes.* * *
Mr. Darwin's hypothesis accounts for many varieties of one plant
being found in various alpine and arctic regions of the globe, by
the competition into which their common ancestor was brought
with the aborigines of the countries it invaded. Diflferent races
survived the struggle for life in different longitudes ; and these
Taces again, afterwards converging on the zone from which their
ancestor started, present there a plexus of closely allied but more
or less distinct varieties, or even species, whose geographical limits
overlap, and whose members, very probably, occasionally breed
together." A further advantage claimed for this hypothesis is,
that it explains a fact brought out by Dr. Hooker in a former pub-
lication, viz. : " that the Scandinavian flora is present in every
latitude of the globe, and is the only one that is so.'

* Moreover, Dr. Hooker, discovers in the flora of Greenland a
state of things explicable upon this hypothesis, but hardly by any
other, viz. : its almost complete identity with that of Lapland;
its general paucity, as well as its poverty in peculiar species ; the
rarity of American species there ; the fewness of temperate
plants in temperate Greenland ; and the presence of a few of the
rarest Greenland and Scandinavian species in enormously remote
alpine localities of West America and the United States. Our
author reasons thus : " If it be granted that the polar area was
once^occupied by the Scandinavian flora, and that the cold of the
glacial epoch did drive this vegetation southwards, it is evident
that the Greenland individuals, from being confined to a peninsu-
la,!would have been exposed to very different conditions from those
of the'great continents. In Greenland many species would, as it
were, be driven, into the sea, that is, exterminated ; and the sur-
vivors would be confined to the southern portion of the peninsula,
and, not being there brought into competition with other types,
there could be no struggle for life amongst their progeny, and,
consequently, no selection of better adapted varieties. On the
return of heat survivors would simply travel northwards, unaccom-
panied by^the plants of any other country.'

* The rustic denizens of Greenland, huddled upon the point of
the peninsula during the long glacial cold, have never enjoyed
the advantages of foreign travel ; those of the adjacent continents
on either side have * seen the world,' and gained much improve-

of the Distribiaion of Arctic Plants, 337

ment and diversity thereby. Considering the present frigid climate
of Greenland, the isotherm of 32° just impinging upon its south-
ern point, its moderate summer and low autumnal temperature,
we should rather have supposed the complete extermination of
the Greenland ante-glacial flora ; and have referred the Scandi-
navian character of the existing flora (all but eleven of the 207
arctic species, and almost all those of temperate Greenland, being
European plants,) directly to subsequent immigration from the
eastern continent. Several geographical considerations, and the
course of the currents, which Dr. Hooker brings to view on p.
270, would go far towards explaining why Greenland should have
been re-peopled from the Old rather than from the New World.
While the list (on p. 272, 273) of upwards of 230 Arctic Euro-
pean species which are all likewise American plants, but are re-
markable for their absence from Greenland, would indicate no
small difficulty in the westward migration, and render it most
probable that thedifi'usion of species from the Old World to thp
New was eastward through Asia, for the arctic no less than (as
has elsewhere been shown) for the temperate plants. Was it that
Greenland and the adjacent part of the American continent remain-
ed glacial longer than the rest of the zone ? And if our northern
regions were thus colonized by an ancient Scandinavian flora, this
seems to have been in return for a still earlier donation of Ame-
rican plants to Europe, to which a very few existing but nume-
rous fossil remains bear testimony. Speculative inquiries of this
sort are enticing, and the time is approaching in which they ma^
be fruitful.'

* Indeed, the characteristic features and the immediate interest
and importance of the present memoir, as of others of the same
general scope and interest, are found in this : 1. That the actual
geographical distribution of species is something to be accounted
for; 2. That our existing species, or their originals, are far more
ancient than was formerly thought, mainly if not wholly antedat-
ing the glacial period; and, 3. That they have therefore been sub-
ject to grave climatic vicissitudes and changes. There may be many
naturalists who still hesitate to accept these propositions, as there
as one or two who deny them; but these or similar conclusions
have evidently been reached by those botanists, paleontoloo-jsts
and geologists in general who have most turned their thouo-hta
to such enquiries, and who march foremost in the advancino- move-
ment of these sciences. In this position, the author of the
Can. Nat. 22 Vol. Yll

338 Review o/HooJcer^s Outlines

present memoir — prepossessed with Darwin's theory of the diver-
sification of species through natural selection — having occasion to
revise systematically the materials of the arctic flora, is naturally
led to compare the new theory with the facts of the case in this
reo"ard ; to see how far the vicissitudes to which it is all but
demonstrated that the plants of the northern hemisphere have
lono- been subjected, and the modifications and extinctions which
he thinks must have ensued under such grave change and perils,
during such lapse of time, may serve to explain the actual distribu-
tion of arctic species and the remarkable dispersion of many of
them. That the enquiry is a legitimate and a hopeful one we must
all agree, whether we favor Darwinian hypotheses or not. How
well it works in the present trial we could not venture to pronounce
without a far more critical examination than could now be under-
taken. But there are good reasons for the opinion that this is
just the ground upon which the elements of the new hypothesis
figure to the best advantage.'

' The mass of facts, so patiently and skilfully collected and
digested in this essay, have a high and positive value, irrespective
of all theoretical views. We cannot undertake to offer an abstract,
but may note here and there a point of interest. The flowering
plants which have been collected within the arctic circle number
762, viz. : 214 Monocotyledons, and 548 Dicotyledons. They oc-
cupy a circumpolar belt of 10° to 14*^ of latitude. The only
abrupt change in the vegetation anywhere along this belt is at
Baffin's Bay, the opposite shores of which present, as has been
already intimated, an almost purely European flora on the east
coast, but a large admixture of purely American species on the
west.'

" Regarded as a whole, the arctic flora is decidedly Scandina-
vian ; for Arctic Scandinavia, or Lapland, though a very small
tract of land, contains by far the richest arctic flora, amounting to
three-fourths of the whole." This would not be very surprising,
since this is much the least frigid portion of the zone, and has the
highest summer temperature ; but " upwards of three-fifths of the
species, and almost all the genera of Arctic Asia and America are
likewise Lapponian ;" so that the Scandinavian character pervades
the whole.'

' In the section on the local distribution of plants within the
arctic circle. Dr. Hooker shows that there is no close relation dis-

of the Distribution of Arctic Plants. 339

coverable between the isothermal lines (whether annual or monthly)
and the amount of vegetation, beyond the general fact that the
scantiness of the Siberian flora is associated with a great southern
bend in Asia, and its richness in Lapland, with an equally great
northern bend there, of the annual isotherm of 32^. Yet" the
same isotherm bends northwards in passing from Eastern Ame-
rica to Greenland, the vegetation of which is the scantier of the
two ; and it passes to the northward of Iceland, which is much
poorer in species than those parts of Lapland to the southward of
which it passes." A glance at the supposed former state of things
would suggest the explanation of all that is anomalous here.'

" The June isothermals, as indicating the most eflfective tempe-
ratures in the arctic regions (when all vegetation is torpid for nine
months, and excessively stimulated during the three others) might
have been expected to indicate better the positions of the most
luxuriant vegetation. But neither is this the case ; for the June
isothermal of 41°, which lies within the arctic zone in Asia, where
the vegetation is scanty in the extreme, descends to lat. 54° in the
meridian of Behring's Straits, where the flora is comparatively
luxuriant." The aridity of the former, and the humidity of the
latter district here ofi"ers an obvious explanation ; also the great
severity of the winter in the former, and its mildness in the latter.
And Great Britain, in which a far greater diversity of species are
capable of surviving without protection than in the Eastern United
States under the same annual isotherms, indicates the advantage
of a anean over an extreme climate in this respect, if only there
be a certain amount of summer heat. For lack of that, doubtless,
very many of the introduced denizens of Britain would soon dis-
appear, if deprived of human care.'

" The northern limit to which vegetation extends varies in every
longitude ; the extreme is still unknown ; it may, indeed, reach
to the pole itself. Phrenogamic plants, however, are probably
nowhere found far north of lat. 81^. Seventy flowering plants
are found in Spitzbergen ; and Sabine and Ross collected 9 on
Walden Island, towards its northern extreme, but none on Ross's
Islet, 15 miles further to the north."

" Saxifraga oppositi folia is probably the most ubiquitous, and
may be considered the commonest and most arctic flowering plant."
There are only eight or nine phienogamous species peculiar to the
arctic zone, and only one peculiar genus, viz. : the grass, Pleura-

;40 Review of Hooker'' s Outlines

pogon.^ Of the 762, found south of tlie circle, all but 150 have,
advanced beyond lat. 40° N., in some part of the world ; about.
50 of them are identified as natives of the mountainous regions of
the tropics, and 105 as inhabiting the south temperate zone.'

" The proportion of species which have migrated southward in.
the Old and New World also bear a fair relation to the facilities,
for migration presented by the different continents." The tables
given to illustrate this " present in a very striking point of view,
the fact of the Scandinavian flora being the most widely distribu-
ted over the world. The Mediterranean, South African, Malayan,
Australian, and all the floras of the New World, have narrow;
ranges compared with the Scandinavian, and none of them form
a prominent feature in any other continent than their own. But
the Scandinavian not only girdles the globe in the arctic circle,
and dominates over all others in the north temperate zone of the
Old World, but intrudes conspicuously into every other temperate
flora, whether in the northern or southern hemisphere, or on the
Alps of tropical countries." * ^ * *' In one respect this migration
is most direct in the American meridian, where more arctic species
reach the highest southern latitudes. This I have accounted for
(Flora Antarctica, p. 230) by the continuous chain of the Andes
having favored their southern dispersion."

' In presenting the actual number of arctic species, and in deli-
neating their geographical ranges, the question, what are to be
regarded as species, becomes all important. As to this, it does not
so much matter what scale is adopted, as to know clearly what
the adopted scale is. Here we are not left in doubt. Taking
European botanists by number, we are confident that nine out of
ten would have enlarged the list of 162 pha;nogamous arctic
species to 800 or more, and would not have recognized a goodly
number of the synonyms adduced, thereby considerably affecting
the assio-ned ranges, especially into temperate and austral latitudes.
In this regard we should side with Dr. Hooker on the whole, but
with difterences and with questionings — with halting steps follow-

* ' Douglasia is mentioned in another place (p. 269) as an absolutely
peculiar arctic or arctic alpine genus of E. America. But we have con-
sidered this genus as identical with Gregoria, of Duby. It would ap-
pear as if these two genera were established in the same year, since Lin-
dley himself, in the Botanical Register, refers to Brande's Journal for
January, 1828, for his original article. But this article will be found in
the volume of that Journal for 1827 ; so that the name Douglasia is to
be adopted, if the genua is sufficiently distinct from ^ndrosacej

of the Distrihuion of Arctic Plants, 341

ing his bold and free movement, but probably arriving at the same
goal at length. Indeed, we freely receive the view which Dr.
Hooker presents as appropriate to his particular purpose, and as
the most useful expression of our knowledge of the relationships
of the plants in question, when collocated in reference to the ideas
upon which this memoir is based.'

Among the geological objections to the general conclusions
views of Dr. Hooker, we may state the following :

1. The modern distribution of plants in the arctic regions is
plainly related tt) the more or less'^equable temperature, greater
moisture or dryness, and varying soil and geological structure, of
portions of this area, in connection with the direction of ocean
currents, of prevailing winds, atid tbe migrations of animals.
When we consider the distribution of arctic plants to the south-
ward, and the peculiarities of their position in respect to meri-
dians, we have farther to take into account the great post-pliocene
subsidence and the distribution of coast lines and ocean currents
at that period, as well as the cold climate, which is only one ele-
ment, and a subordinate one, in the decision of the question.

2. The present flora of Scandinavia is related to its varied levels
and soils, and to the moderation of its climate by the action of
the gulf stream. In the glacial period its level was reduced by
several hundreds of feet, and its climate was probably as cold as
that of Greenland. Consequently, though the species inhabiting
Scandinavia, or many of them, are no doubt ancient, their residence
in Scandinavia may be modern, and there are no facts to show
which of them resided there before the glacial period began.

3. The distribution of the sub-fossil shells of the post-pliocene»
shows a shore connection between Scandinavia and Greenland,
and at the same time a great depression of temperate Europe and
America.* That is, there was much arctic land and little in the
temperate zone. This geographical arrangement was no doubt, as
Sir C. Lyell argues, the actual cause of the cold of the period. It
was consequently impossible that plants could migrate southward
except as seeds floated over the ocean, because they were cut oflf
by wide seas from all southern l^nd. Nor did they so need to
migrate, for the cold of the glacial period did not necessarily im-
ply extremes fatal to them, even in the arctic regions, though it
produced conditions favourable to them in the islands that re-
mained far to the southward.

• See Canadian Naturalist, vol. 5, p. 199.

342 Review of Hooker'* s Outlines

4. In the post-pliocene period Greenland was either nnder
water, or if land quite as suitable as now for arctic plants. Most
probably it was in the latter case. Scandinavia had in that period
a much less advantage, if any, over Greenland in point of climate
than at present, and was probably connected with it by land or
chains of islands, while there is no reason to suppose that Green-
land was then connected with America. The flora of neither re-
gion could migrate to the south over the plains, because they
were submerged, unless indeed covered with that general glacier
which Agassiz at one time advocated, and Ramsay has recently
proposed to revive. That these plants migrated by means of drift
ice far to the south, there is good reason to believe ;^ but if they
were extirpated from their arctic homes, they could not have re-
turned in that way against the prevailing currents, nor could they
have returned over the emerged plains, which would have been
too warm and dry. They could have returned by only one agen-
cy, that of migratory birds, an agency which though not needed
for this purpose, has probably done much to give Lapland its rich
flora, as well as to scatter arctic plants to the south along certain
meridians.

5. The law of distribution of arctic plants must always have
been different in America and the eastern continent, owing to the
north and south character of the coast lines and mountains in the
former, and the opposite arrangement in the latter, with the varied
effects of these diflerent arrangements on climates and on geolo-
gical subsidences and elevations. It could easily be shown that
this fact accounts for many apparent anomalies.

6. It is farther to be observed that difierencc of geological for-
mation, and difference of soil as depending on this, constitute
great determining causes in the distribution of plants, as well as
in their variations. Until the botanical geographer pursues his
studies of distribution with a geological map in his hand, and a
knowledge of the habitudes of plants in reference to soils, his
labours will be to a great extent fruitless. A little more lime or
a little less alkali in the soil renders vast regions uninhabitable
by certain species of plants. For many of the plants of our Lau-
rentide hills to extend themselves over the calcareous plains south
of them, under any imaginable conditions of cHmate, is quite as
far beyond the range of possibility as to extend across the wide
ocean. A multitude of apparent anomalies belong to this cate-

* See Can. Nat., April, 1862.

of the Distribution of Arctic Plants, 343

gory, and it becomes specially important when we consider that
so perfect are the arrangements for the migrations of plants, that
they will discover and colonise every suitable spot, however small
and however distant, and that the strugg-le for existence is really
not between one plant and another, but between all plants and
external conditions, of which soil is one of the most important.

Lastly, the actual geographical distribution of Arctic plants is
very imperfectly known, except for a limited district in the west
of Europe, and the evidence from fossil remains as to the distri-
bution in the post-pliocene period is almost nothing. To this must
be added the uncertainty that attends the determination of species
in the case of plants so widely distributed. Though no one more
competent than Dr. Hooker could undertake tlie task of compa-
rison and generalistation, we venture to say that every one of his
local lists will be open to serious objections and corrections of local
botanists, where there are any, and where there are none the risk
of error must be ten-fold greater. For example, in a list of a few
Greenland species, said to occur only in one other locality beside,
we find Potentilla tridentata and Arenaria Greenlandica. The
former of these occurs not only in Greenland and Labrador, but
in the White Mountains, on the coast of Maine, in Nova Scotia,
and various places north of Canada, and it is one of the few spe-
cies that are known to have inhabited Canada in the post-pliocene
period. The latter is also found on the coast of Maine, and no
doubt in many places between that and Greenland. Only a few
months ago the discovery of Calluna vulgaris^ the common hea-
ther of the old country, was reported in a locality in New Eng-
land supposed to have been well explored ; but this plant has been
stated to occur in Newfoundland, and many years ago the writer
was informed by local collectoi"s that it occurs in Cape Breton.
No doubt it may be found along the coast of north-eastern Ame-
rica everywhere where conditions are favourable, which can be
however only in a few exceptional localities on the coast, and these
somewhat out of the way of ordinary collectors.

In conclusion. Dr. Hooker deserves our thanks for his able
and original treatment of his subject; but the problem is very
intricate, and we believe that he has not sufficiently weii^hed
some of the elements for its solution, and has been disposed in-
stead to lean on the hypothesis, which however specious and appa-
rently useful in explaining difficulties, has not yet been proved by
a single tangible fact, that under certain circumstances two real

344 Dr, A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

species may spring from one. "We remarked tlie same defects
some time ago in the author's introduction to his Australian flora.
The time was when it was the failing of naturalists to separate
varieties from each other as species, in order to avoid diflBculties
of distribution. Now the opposite tendency prevails, to account
for the number of species by their supposed mutability and mi-
grations. So science in its progress always sways between ex-
tremes, and the middle way of truth appears only after these
oscillations have spent themselves. j. w. d.

ARTICLE XXXIIL— 0?i tlie 3Iammals and Birds of the Dis-
trict of Montreal. By Archibald Hall, M,D., L.R.C.S.E.

(Continued from page 316.)

Picus puhescens. Downy Woodpecker.
P. ( Trichojncus) puhescens. Baird !

v.s.p Bill black ; legs and feet bluish ; irides hazel ; eggs 6,
white.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet brownish white ; crown of head jet
black, bordered laterally by a white streak commencing over the
eye, and posteriorly by a crescent of crimson with which the white
streaks are cQntinuous ; immediately behind the eye a broad black
streak begins, and including the auriculars, terminates below the
crimson crescent on the nape of the neck, meeting its fellow of
the opposite side ; sides of neck white, the white projecting back-
wards to the nape of the neck, where it is intersected by a narrow
mesial line of black ; interscapular region black, the centre fea-
thers black; scapulars and rump black; small wing coverts
black, the lowest row tipped with white ; greater wing coverts
black with a large white spot towards their tips ; primaries and
secondaries brownish black barred with white ; the two lateral
tail feathers, and a spot on the third white, with rudimentary
black bars ; all the other feathers black.

Ventral aspect. White, usually soiled on the chin and throat;
the feathers as well as those of the interscapulary region very
silky.

3rd primary longest; 4th next; 2nd next; 1st shorter than
the 6th. Length 6J^ inches ; alar expanse 10 inches. In the fe-
male the occipital band is black.

of the District of Montreal, B45

P. pileatus. Cock of the woods. — Pileated Woodpecker.
Mylatomus pileatus. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill bluish black above, paler below ; legs and feet
bluish black ; irides (golden ?) hazel ; eggs 6, white.

Dorsal aspect. Crown and crest crimson ; line round the eye
including the auriculars and meeting its fellow on the nape of
the neck below the crest, brownish black, and separated on the
side of the head from the crown by a narrow streak of white,
which commences over the eye and terminates above the auricu-
lars ; moustaches crimson ; a whitish Hne from the nostrils passes
between the moustaches and eye and auriculars, expands on the
side of the neck, and soon contracting descends to the shoulders
and is lost under the wings ; nape of neck, interscapulary region,
rump, scapulars, wing and tail coverts brownish black — in the
specimen before me, bronze ; primaries and secondaries brownish
black, with their basal halves cream white, and a tip of soiled
brownish white on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th primaries; tail black;
the white of the wings concealed by the great wing coverts.

Ventral aspect. Chin white ; throat, breast, belly, vent, and
tail coverts brownish black ; the feathers on the belly tipped
with white ; wing coverts white ; wings half cream white and
half brownish black,

1st primary very short; 2nd and Vth subequal; 4th longest;
3rd and oth subequal. Length from extremity of bill to extrem-
ity of tail 18j inches; alar expanse 27J inches. The moustaches
of the female and young bird are dusky.

2nd Section. — TridactyJoe.

P. tridactylus. Northern Three-toed Woodpecker,
Picoides arcticus. Baird !

Y.s.p. Bill, legs and feet bluish black ; irides deep hazel ;
eggs 4 to 5, white.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head rich golden yellow ; occiput,
nape of neck, interscapulary fegion, rump, wing and tail coverts
glossy black with blue and purple reflections; primaries and
secondaries black, the former and a few of the latter barred with
white; the lateral tail feathers and the distal halves of the 2nd
and 3rd white, usually much sullied ; the centre feathers black.

Ventral aspect. A white line from the nostrils down the side
of the neck, followed by a black one from the angle of the mouth,

846 Dr. A. Halt on the Mammals and Birds

both lost upon the shoulders ; chin, throat, middle of breast, belly,
and vent white ; sides of the breast and flanks white with black
bars ; shoulders black; central tail coverts white ; the lateral ones
white barred with black on their inner vanes.

1st primary rudimentary; 3rd to 4th subequal and longest.
Length 9f inches ; alar expanse 14 J inches. The female has the
head wdiolly black.

P. hirsutus. Northern Banded Woodpecker.
P. hirsutus. Viellot !
Picoides hirsutus. Baird !

D.c. Crown yellow, spotted with white ; throat and beneath
white, barred witii black on the flanks ; the four middle tail
feathers black ; outer feathers white.

Female smaller ; head black with white spots.

Length 9 inches; alar breadth 15 inches.

The above description is taken from Audubon's work. The
following is a description of a young male now before me :

v.s.p. Dorsal aspect. Prevailing tint black; crown of head
spotted with white ; from behind the eye reaches a streak of white
meeting a circle of white at commencement of the dorsal region ;
back barred with white ; tail coverts black ; the three outer tail
feathers with their outer vanes white or soiled white ; the outer-
most feather wholly white with the exception of three or four
black bars on the inner vanes ; central feathers black with an
occasional whitish spot; the primaries and secondaries with
white spots, the former on both vanes ; the latter on the inner
only.

Ventral aspect. Throat and breast white ; flanks and ventral
portion white barred with black ; hinder tail coverts white.

This bird has only three toes, and has the bill straight, some-
what flattened, with the upper bill acutely ridged ; the nuchal
bristles stand forwards, closely appressed and bristly.

Length 7 J inches ; alar expanse 13 inches.

The bird before me was shot last autumn (1861) on St. Helen'^
Island, opposite this city, and presented to Mr. Hunter of the
Natural History Society. Its sex was verified by Mr. Hunter, and it
therefore in almost every respect resembles the adult female. It
must have been a bird hatched last summer. I cannot but regard
this species as extremely rare visitants.

of the District of Montreal. 347

Genus Cuculus.
Gen. char. Bill as long as the head, compressed and curved,
and carinate above and below ; nostrils basal, lateral, oval, and
surrounded by a naked and prominent membrane ; tarsi feathered
below the knee ; feet slender ; outer toe versatile ; interior and
middle connected at base ; tail cuneiform ; 3rd primary longest.

C. Dominicus. St. Domingo Cuckoo.
Coccygus Dominicus of Nuttall !
Cuculus erythroptTialmus of "Wilson !
Coccygus erytJiroptliahnus. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, feet and legs bluish black; irides light hazel;
eggs 3 to 5, bluish green.

Dorsal aspect. Over the whole surface light bronze colour,
exceedingly glossy ; tail cuneiform, of the dorsal tint, tipped
with white.

Ventral aspect. White, tinged with bronze on the chin and
throat ; wing and tail coverts yellowish white.

A naked space round the eyes of a vermillion colour ; 3rd
primary longest ; 4th next ; 2nd shorter than the 6th ; 1st equal
to the secondaries. Length 11^ inches ; alar expanse 14^ inches.
This bird does not appear to possess the characteristic of other
cuckoos ; viz., in laying her eggs in the nests of other species, but
on the contrary, prepares her own nest, hatches her own eggs,
and tends her young ones with the most maternal anxiety. It is
addicted however to the practice of sucking the eggs of other
birds.

Coccygus Americamts. Yellow-billed Cuckoo.
Cuculus Carolinensis. Wilson,
v.s.p. ET M. Upper part of upper mandible, and tip of lower
black; lower part of upper, and all the lower except the tip
yellow ; irides hazel ; eggs 2 to 4, bluish-green.

Dorsal aspect. Whole dorsal aspect greyish-brown, with grey-
ish-bronzy reflections, which are almost absent on the tail coverts.
Two middle tail feathers of the dorsal tint, all the others black-
ish. The 3 exterior feathers largely, 4th minutely, lipped with
white ; the outer tail feathers half the length of the middle ones ;
the greater portion of the vanes of the primary, and nearly all
the secondaries, bright rufous colour.

Ventral aspect. White. The two central tail feathers whitish,
tipped with black. The rufous part of the rings is scattered be-

348 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

low ; inner wing coverts white, tinted with nankeen. Feathers
of leg long dusky white.

Length 12 inches: alar expanse about 16 inches. This de-
scription is taken from a female. The male has all the dorsal
feathers, except the two centre ones, broadly tipped with white
By no means a common bird in this vicinity.

OeD. IV. GALLINACEiE.

Genus Tetrao.
Gen. char. Bill short, thick, arched above, entire, and naked
at base ; nostrils basal, semiclosed by a membrane, and partly
concealed by the small projecting frontlet feathers; eyebrows
naked, studded with scarlet papillae ; tarsi feathered and destitute
of spurs ; 3 toes before and one behind ; front toes connected at
the base, all of them pectinated on both inferior margins; 3rd
and 4th primaries longest ; tail consisting of 15 to 18 feathers.

Suh genus Tetrao,

Sub gen. char. With the lower portion of the tarsus and the
toes naked.

T. umhellus. Ruffed Grouse.
Bonaza umhellus. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill horn colour ; legs and feet livid ; irides hazel ; eggs
10 to 15, dull yellow.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head crested, waved with black, grey
and brown, the first colour predominating ; on the nape and sides
of the neck, there is a similar intermixture of colours, but a pre-
dominance of white tinged with brown ; interscapulary region
and rump brown, with very minute wavy black lines, with a tri-
angular spot of whitish in the centre of each feather towards the
tip ; inner vanes of the scapulars black towards the ends, waved
black and brown internally ; outer vanes with a streak of cream
white near the shafts bordered by black, and finally edged with
brown sprinkled with black ; great and small wing coverts brown,
streaked and sprinkled with black on the inner vanes, brown
sprinkled with black on the outer vanes, with a central streak of
white ; tail round, grey, banded narrowly with black, and sprink-
led with black in the interstices of the bars, with a broad ter-
minal band of black feathers being lastly broadly tipped with
grey sprinkled with black; primaries and secondaries dusky
brown ; the six first primaries spotted with cream white on their

of the District of Montreal. 349

outer vanes; the outer vanes of the secondaries edged with
brown sprinkled with black ; on the few last secondaries the tips
of the inner vanes are similar to the outer vanes, and on the outer
vanes a large spot of black.

Ventral aspect. A streak from the nostrils to the eye, and
from the eye above the auriculars cream white ; cheeks and au-
riculars black mixed with brown ; chin, upper part of throat, and
sides of throat rufous ; on each side of the lower part of the neck
a ruff of black feathers with purple reflections ; lower part of
throat anteriorly, rufous edged with black ; breast brownish white
barred near the end with rufous, and lastly tipped with pure
white ; sides of the breast under the wings, rufous with a streak
of white along the shafts, and minutely sprinkled with black at
the tips and along the edges ; belly and flanks white with a
brownish band of rufous and tipped with white ; vent rufous white ;
tail coverts rufous tipped with white, the white runniug up the
shafts for some distance.

3rd and 4th primaries subequal and longest ; 2nd and 6th
equal ; 1st and 7th equal ; the shafts of the wing feathers in-
curved; wing itself much rounded. Length iTf inches; alar
expanse 23 inches. The female bears a great resemblance to the
male. The ruff, however, is smaller and browner. The general
hue of the bird varies considerably. In the specimen before me
a rufous tint prevails. The most usual predominant tint is a
chesnut brown. In those specimens where the plumag-e is tinged
with chesnut, the tail partakes of a light brown hue. In this
species the eyelids are not naked.

T. Canadensis. Spruce Partridge. — Spotted Grouse.
T. Canadensis. Baird 1

v.s.p. Bill horn colour, dark ; feet and legs livid brown ; irides
hazel ; eggs 5, varied with white, yellow and black.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head, nape of neck, interscapulary
region and rump, black waved with grey, darkest on the head
and back, and lightest on the neck and rump ; the feathers of the
rump are black barred semicircularly, and tipped with grey ;
scapulars, and greater and smaller wing coverts black waved with
chesnut ; tail coverts black, barred with grey ; tail round, black,
with a broad terminal tip of bright chesnut ; a spot above each
nostril, a streak below the eye, and another above the auriculars,
white ; a naked spot above the eye bright vermilHon ; cheeks
and chin black.

350 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Ventral aspect. A semicircle of white meets on the throat,
commencing at the auriculars ; feathers of throat black tipped
with white; those of the upper and lower parts of the breast
black ; sides of breast black, broadly tipped with white, meeting
on the centre of the breast causing a banded appearance ; feathers
of body and vent black tipped with white ; flank feathers black
waved with chesnut, and a streak of white down the shafts ; tail
coverts black broadly tipped with white.

3rd and 4th primaries longest; 1st and 8th equal; 2nd and
6th equal ; quills incurved, dusky brown, the six first primaries
edged with white on the outer vanes. Length 14 inches ; alar
expanse 20j inches. The female is 13 inches long, and is much
lighter coloured. In her the black breast and throat are wanting,
and generally the black of the dorsal aspect is supplanted by a
chesnut or bright ferruginous; the secondaries and scapulars
have streaks of cream white on their inner vanes ; the rump is
waved with grey; the two central tail feathers barred with ches-
nut, which is imperfectly continued to the outer vanes of the
other tail feathers ; the feathers of the belly and breast barred
black and white, and tipped broadly with white.

Suh genus Lagopus.
Sub gen. char. "With the tail round or square, and toes fea-
thered similar to the tarsi.

T. lagopus. White Grouse or Ptarmigan.
Lagopus alhus. Baird !
D.c. " Bill weak, compressed towards the point ; nails subu-
late, black and curved ; the male constantly with a black band
through the eyes ; female without the dark ocular band, Cica-
trice over the eye smaller. Summer plumage. — Above greyish
rufous, marked with numerous zigzag lines; on the breast
and flanks a great number of black feathers waved with pale
rufous; wings, all below the breast, and feet, pure white ; the fe-
male and young less white ; cicatrice over the eye scarlet ; weight
24 ounces. Length 14j inches; alar extent 23 inches." — (Nut-
tall, pnge 674).

Genus Columha.

Gen. char. Bill moderate, straight, compressed, rather gibbous
towards the tip which is also curved ; base of nostrils covered
with a soft skin, with an inflated appearance, in which the nos-
trils are situated, which are medial and longitudinal ; feet short,

of the District of Montreal. 351

robust, usually red ; tarsi reticulated ; toes free, 3 before and 1
behind; tail of 12 to U feathers ; 2nd primary usually longest.

Suh genus Columba.

Sub gen. char. Legs and ifeet short and robust ; tail square
or cuneiform ; wings long and acute.

Subdivision II, loitk the tail long and cuneiform.

C. migratoria. Passenger Pigeon.
Ectopistes migratoria. Baird!

v.s.p. Bill black ; nasal protuberance whitish ; irides red ;
legs and feet red ; eggs white, two in number, one of them, ac-
cording to Wilson, usually abortive.

Dorsal aspect. Head, neck, interscapular region, rump, scapu-
lars, great and small wing coverts slate blue ; the bluish tint pre-
vailing on the head and rump ; on the neck with golden green and
purplish reflections ; scapulars and great wing coverts with a few
long black streaks on the inner vanes of the inner row of scapu-
lars, and on the outer vanes of the outer row of scapulars and the
coverts ; primaries and secondaries dusky brown, the 2nd, 3rd,
4th, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th primaries margined with white on their
outer vanes ; tail coverts bluish slate colour ; tail cuneiform, of
12 feathers ; the two central feathers brownish black ; the two
lateral feathers nearly white, the others mostly pale slate colour,
with a predominance of white on their inner vanes ; near the in-
sertions of all, except the central feathers, on the inner vanes, an
oval black spot succeeded by rufous more internally.

Ventral aspect. Cheeks and sides of neck slate blue ; chin
pale; throat and breast rufous, ('* vinaceous " — Nuttall,) with a
golden green iridescence ; belly and vent paler rufous ; wing
coverts and flanks white tino^ed with slate blue ; tail coverts white;
inner surface of wings slate blue.

2nd primary longest; 1st next; the others graduated. Length
including the tail IGj inches; alar expanse about 22 inches;
length of the tail 7J inches. The female wants the rufous breast,
or at most has but a tinge of it in that situation. The young
bird, when it arri/es in this district, or is bred here, has a deep
slate coloured dorsal and ventral aspect, interspersed with soiled
white spots. The down, of a dirty yellow colour, may also often
be seen above the plumage.

352 Dr* A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

C, Carolinensis. Turtle-dove or Carolina Pigeon.
Zenaidura Carolinensis. Baird !
D.c. Forehead and breast vinaceous ; a black spot of it under
each ear ; tail of 14 feathers, with 4 of the lateral ones black near
the extremity and white at the tips ; crown and upper part of
neck o-reenish blue ; general dorsal colour pale yellowish brown ;
some of the inner wing coverts spotted with black; below. brown-
ish yellow. Length 12 inches; alar extent 17 inches. I saw a
specimen of tliis bird in 1831 which had been shot by some Ca-
nadians in the woods on Isle Jesus. It is extremely rare.

Ord. V. Grallatori^.
Fam. II. Fressirostres.
Legs long ; without a thumb, or the thumb too short to reach
the ground ; bill moderate.

Genus Charadrius.
Gen. char. Bill shorter than the head, compressed, slender,
straight, and rather gibbous towards the tip ; nostrils basal, placed
horizontally in the membrane which covers the nasal fossa ; legs
slender, of moderate length, of the three toes projecting forward
the exterior is connected to the middle one by a short membrane ;
the inner toe free ; thumb obsolete ; tail rounded or square ; 1st
primary shorter than 2nd which is the longest.

C. pluvialis. Golden Plover.

C. apricarius of Gmelin and Wilson I Adult bird in sum-
mer plumage.
C. Virginicus. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black; irides hazel; eggs 4 to 5 pale
olive spotted with black.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet and space round the eyes greyish
white ; crown of head, interscapulary region, rump, scapulars,
and greater and smaller wing coverts greenish black, the feathers
tipped with brown, yellow, yellowish white, or in some instances
white ; nape of neck grey streaked with dusky ; tail coverts
white tipped with pale lemon yellow ; tail white barred with
greenish black ; on the two centre feathers the bars assume a
serrated appearance, the feathers also tipped with lemon yellow ;
primaries black, their inner vanes white except towards the tips.
Ventral aspect. Chin, belly, vent, tail and wing coverts white ;
cheeks, sides of throat, throat, breast,, white streaked with dusky.

of the District of Montreal, 353

1st priraary longest, the others graduated. Length lOj inches;
alar expanse 20 inches. In the summer plumage the ventral as-
pect is black.

C. vociferiis. Kildeer Plover.
Aegialitis (^Oxyechus) vociferiis. Baird!

v.s.p. Bill black ; legs and feet yellowish ; irides dark hazel ;
eyelids scarlet ; eggs 4, yellowish cream colour, spotted with
black.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, round the eye, and spot above
the auriculars white; front of crown black; remainder of crown,
auriculars and dorsal region, including the wing coverts, olive
gi-ey ; nape of neck forming a part of the collar, white ; rump and
tail coverts tawny ; primaries blacki>h brown, white on most of
of the inner vanes, with a streak of the same colour close to the
shafts, on the outer vanes about i their length ; lower row of the
greater wing coverts tipped with white ; the lateral feathers wholly
white, with 5 rudimentary blackish brown bars which are imper-
fectly cariied on to the vanes of the second feather.

Ventral aspect. Streak from the angle of the mouth to the
auriculars blackish brown ; collar including the chin white ; belt
on the breast black, intersected by a narrow white streak; all the
other parts white including the wing and tail coverts ; tail sub-
rotund, the feathers accuminate.

1st prim.iry longest, the others graduated ; one of the axil-
lary feathers as long as the 3rd primary. Leno-th 10 inches*
alar expanse 19j inches. A very elegant bird.

C.semipalmatus. Semipalmated Ring Plover.

Tringa hiaticula of Wilson.

Aegialitis semipalmatus. Baird!
v.s.p. Bill orange at base, black towards the tips ; leo-s and
feet yellow ; irides dark hazel ; eggs 4, dark coloured, spotted
with black.

Dorsal aspect. Fore part of the crown black, with a crescent
of white immediately over the frontlet feathers ; a spot below the
eye white; streak from nostrils below the eye to the auriculars
black; back part of the crown, and the whole dorsal reo-ion, in-
cluding the wing coverts, dark-olive grey ; rump and tail coverts
paler; the lower row of the great wing coverts tipped with white ;
primaries brownish black, broadly edged with white on the inner
vanes, and extending itself into a streak along the shafts on the
Can. Nat. 23 Vol. VII.

354 Dr, A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

outer vanes of the three or four last; tail olive grey, deepening
into brownish black tipped with white ; the lateral tail feathers
wholly white, and the white tips of the two adjoining very
deep.

Ventral aspect. Collar, including the chin, white, but across
the breast black; all the other parts white.

1st primary longest, the others graduated ; the longest axillary
feathers scarcely longer than the 4th primary ; feet semipalraated
— whence its name. Length 7 J- inches ; alar expanse 13 J inches.

Tail subsquare.

Genus Vanellus.

Gen. char. Feet 4-toed ; thumb short with a nail and reticu-
lated feet.

V. helveticus. Black-bellied or Swiss Plover.

C apricarius of Wilson !

Charadius helveticus of Brisson !

Vanellus melagonaster of Becstein and Temminck !

Tringa helvetica of Linnaeus !

JSquatarola helvetica. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black ; irides deep hazel ; eggs 4,
cream colour, spotted and blotched with light brown and purplish
brown.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet and sides of the crown white ; crown
and nape of the neck black with brownish white tips to the fea-
thers, giving these parts the latter colour ; dorsal region blackish
brown broadly tipped with yellowish white ; smaller wing coverts
olive brown tipped with brownish white ; greater wing coverts
olive brown tipped with white ; rump feathers white barred with
brown ; primaries blackish brown, a broad streak of white cover-
ing one-half of the inner vanes ; the middle portion of the shafts
white, the white sometimes continued in a streak to the outer
vane ; axillary feathers brownish black, edged and tipped with
soiled white in a serrated manner on the margins ; the outer
vanes themselves having a worn serrated appearance ; tail sub-
square ; the lateral feathers wholly white ; all the others white
with 8 or 9 bars of brown.

Ventral aspect. The white border over the auriculars con-
tinued down the sides of the neck, terminating broadly under the
wings ; cheeks, auriculars, chin, throat, breast and belly, and its
sides black ; vent, flanks, and tail coverts white ; feraorals also
white ; 1st primary longest.

of the District of Montreal, Zd^

1st primary longest; long axillary feathers shorter than the
4th primary, but longer than the 5th. Length 11 J inches ; alar
expanse 22 J inches.

In its winter plumage this bird has its ventral aspect wholly
white ; the dorsal aspect blackish brown, varied with greenish
yellow fringed with crimson, The young birds have a good deal
of white mixed with the black on the ventral aspect.

Fam. II. Cultirostres.
Genus Ardea.
Gen. char. Bill subequal in length to the head, long, com-
pressed and acuminate ; upper mandible furrowed slightly ; ridge
rounded; nostrils lateral, basal, semiclosed by a membrane, and
placed in a groove ; lores and orbits naked ; legs long and slen-
der, a naked space upon the knee ; middle and outer toes con-
nected at the base ; inner one free ; hind toe long; tail of 10 to
12 feathers ; 2nd and 3rd primaries longest.

Sztb genus Ardea.

Sub gen. char. Bill straight, longer than the head ; neck long
and slender, and with long pendant feathers from its lower sur-
face ; legs long.

A. herodias. Great Heron.
A. herodias. Baird !

D.c. " Bill yellow and black ; legs brownish black tinged with
yellow, netted with seams of whitish ; naked space above the
legs brownish yellow ; irides orange; eggs 4, greenish blue.

" Dorsal aspect. Space round the eye from the nostnl light
purplish blue ; forehead and middle of the crown white passing
over the eye ; sides of crown and occiput bluish black, and crested,
with two long tapering black feathers 6 inches long ; whole upper
part of wings, tail and body light ash, the latter ornamented with
a profusion of long narrow white feathers, originating on the
shoulders and falling gracefully over the wings ; primaries dark
slate.

" Ventral aspect. Chin, cheeks, sides of head, white ; throat
white streaked with double rows of black ; the rest of the neck
brownish, but from the lower part of which proceed narrow
pointed white feathers, which spread over the breast nearly to the
thighs; under these plumes, the breast, and middle of the belly,
are deep blackish slate, the latter streaked with white ; flanks

356 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

bluish asli; vent white; thighs, and ridges of the wings dark
pjurplish rust colour.

" Bill 8 inches long ; \\ inch wide. Length 4 feet 4 inches ;
alar extent 6 feet." — (Taken from Nuttall's Ornithology).
Suh genus Botaurus.
Sub gen. char. Bill subequal to head, compressed, deeper
than broad ; upper mandible sensibly curved ; legs and neck
comparatively short; naked space above the tibia short; feathers
of neck voluntarily erectile.

Section /, with occipital feathers.
A. discors. Night Heron.
A. nycticorax of Wilson !
Nyctiardea gardeni, Baird !
T.s.p. Bill black, tip pale horn colour ; legs bluish green ;
irides red; eggs 4, greenish blue; eyelids purplish blue; lore
pale greenish yellow, (bluish white, — Wilson).

Dorsal aspect. Econtlet, and line continued from it over the
eye white ; crown of head, back, and scapulars jet black with a
pea green iridescence ; nuchal region ashy white ; rump cinere-
ous; tail, secondaries and primaries dark ashy, the latter tinged
with bluish slate ; the first primary white on the outer vane, the
others having a worn appearance ; great and small coverts ashy
brown ; occipital feathers 2 to 3 or 4, long, narrow, white.

Ventral aspect. White, purest on the chin and throat, tinged
with ashy on the flanks, and with cream colour on the belly and
vent; femorals white.

3rd primary longest; 2nd and 4th subequal ; ]st longer than
tbe 4th. Length 24f inches ; alar expanse 34j inches. Length
of the occipital feathers C to 8 inches ; length of bill from the
angle of the mouth to the tip 3j- inches; breadth across the
angle of the mouth 1 inch 1 line.

The young bird has a deep brown dorsal aspect, streaked with
rufous white, and triangular spots of white on the back and
wings ; quills ashy, with a terminal spot of white. Ventral as-
pect. Cinereous streaked with white ; irides orange. They want
the occipital feathers.

Section 11^ without the occipital feathers.
A. lentiginosa. American Bittern.
A. minor of Wilson and Buonaparte !
Botaurus lentiginosus. Baird !
V.8.P. Bill yellow at the sides and beneath, blackish brown

of the District of Montreal, 357

above ; lores, eyelids, and legs pale greenish yellow ; irides or-
ange ; eggs 4, cinereous green.

Dorsal aspect. Line over the eye yellowish white ; crown
ferruginous brown ; feathers of nape and sides of neck, large, long,
with straggling vanes, ferruginous yellow streaked with brown ;
below the auriculars a streak of black descends 3 or 4 inches
down the neck ; dorsal feathers umber brown mottled with black,
with cream coloured margins ; greater and smaller wing co-
verts, scapulars, secondaries, rump, and tail brown, sprinkled
with brownish yellow and black ; the brownish yellow predom-
inating on the great wing coverts ; primaries clove brown with
pale outer margins.

Ventral aspect. Chin white, with a narrow line of brownish
yellow in the medial line ; throat cream colour, the feathers with
broad central brownish yellow streaks ; on the belly and vent
the streaks are narrower ; flanks brownish yellow, sprinkled with
brownish black ; tail coverts cream colour ; wing coverts cream
colour sprinkled with brownish black.

2nd and 3rd primaries subequal in length and longest ; 1st
about a Hne shorter. Length 21 inches ; alar expanse 31 J- inches.
The female resembles the male, and the young bird is also sim-
ilar but has the tints less decided. The legs of the American
bittern are long; length of the tarsus 3 inches 2 lines; length of
middle toe from the ankle joint to extremity of the nail 3 inches
8 lines ; length of bill from the angle of the mouth to the tip 3j
inches.

A. exilis. Little Bittern.
Ardettaexilis. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill yellow with a black ridge ; legs and feet yellow
tinged with green anteriorly ; irides orange yellow ; eggs un-
known, but if resembling the European analogous species, white.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, chesnut deepening into black on the
crown of head, which has a deep sea green reflection ; sides of
head, nape of neck, chesnut ; feathers of back and scapulars dark
chesnut tipped with rusty yellow ; small wing coverts brownish
yellow, with a central broad spot of brownish black ; upper row
of great wing coverts, with the lower row of the smaller ones,
rusty yellow ; lower row of great wing coverts bright chesnut ;
rump cinereous, the feathers tipped with whitish ; piimaries and
tail dusky, the former tipped with chesnut.

368 Dr, A* Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Ventral aspect. A streak on either side the throat white ;
chin, remainder of the neck to the breast rusty yellow, with a
fine central streak of black in the centre of each feather, inter-
nally the neck feathers are white, the rusty yellow confined to the
distal halves; on each side of the breiist the inner feathers are
blackish brown tipped with chesnut ; belly and vent white ; thighs
feathered to the knees.

2nd primary longest; 1st and 3rd subequal, the rest graduated.
Length 11 J inches; alar expanse 14 J inches; length ol the bill
from the angle of the mouth 2 inches 2 lines ; length of middle
toe 1 inch 6 lines. A very rare bird in this district, only met
within the extensive swamps on the southern shore of the St.
Lawrence so far as I am aware.

Fam. II. Longirostres,
Genus Scolopax.
Gen. char. Bill longer than the head, more or less curved ;
thumb too short to assist in walking ; 1st and 2nd primaries usu-
ally longest with the axillary feathers usually elongated.

Sub genus Calidris.
Sub gen. char. Bill moderately long, slender, straight, soft,
flexible, compressed at the base, depressed at the tip, flattened
and obtuse ; nostrils lateral, and longitudinally cleft ; legs slen-
der ; toes divided ; 1st primary longest.

C. arenaria. Sanderling Plover.

C. rnbidus of Wilson !

Charadrius calidris of Graelin and Brisson !

Tringa arenaria of Linnaeus !

Type of genus Arenaria of Bechstein I

Type of genus Calidris of Vigors !

Calidris arenaria. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black ; irides dark hazel ; eggs 4,
dusky spotted with black.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet and side of the head white ; crown black
the feathers tipped with brownish white ; nuchal region cinere-
ous with linear darker streaks ; dorsal region, scapulars and small
wing coverts black, with four whitish spots on each feather ; on
the back the white spots have a yellow tinge ; rump feathers
brown faintly tipped with blackish brown ; lateral tail coverts
white ; centre ones brownish tipped with rufous ; upper row of

oj the District of Montreal, 369

greater wing coverts like the rump ; lower row broadly tipped
with white; tail subrotund ; the two centre feathers blackish
brown tipped with yellowish white ; the lateral ones more or less
tinged with cinereous ; primaries black with white shafts.

Ventral aspect. A line from the nostrils to the eye blackish
brown ; cheeks white, faintly marked with cinereous ; chin, sides
of throat, and throat, breast, belly, vent, tail and wing coverts,
and flanks white ; sides of breast faintly tinted with rufous and
tipped with cinereous.

1st primary longest, the others graduated ; the long scapulary
feathers subequal to the 5th primary. Length 8j inches ; alar
expanse 14 inches. The winter plumage is the only state in which
we meet with this bird in the district. The dorsal aspect, when
moulting, is considerably varied with grey.
Sub genus Strepsilas.
Sub gen. char. Bill moderate, hard at the point, strong,
straight, slightly elevated at the tip, with a flattened ridge and
truncated tip ; nostrils basal, lateral, semiclosed by a membrane ;
feet 4-toed ; the thumb barely reaching the ground ; the ante-
rior toes connected at the base; 1st primary longest.

jS^. interpres. The Turnstone.

S. collar is of Temminck !

Tringa interpres of Wilson !

Tringa monnilla of Linnaeus ! young of 1st year.

Strepsilas interpres. Baird I
v.s.p. Bill black ; legs orange yellow ; irides hazel ; eggs 4,
olive green spotted with brown.

Dorsal aspect. A line from the ridge of the bill to above the
eyes including the frontlet, a line from the angle of the mouth
to the collar, the auriculars all black ; an orbicular spot in front
of the eye, another below the auriculars, and a third below the
collar, white ; crown and nape of neck streaked with black bor-
dered on the sides with white ; feathers of the back, scapulars,
and coverts varied with chesnut, black, with occasional white tips
to the feathers ; rump white ; upper row of tail coverts black ;
lower row white ; lateral tail feathers white, with a spot of black-
ish brown on the inner vanes ; bases of all the others white,
changing to blackish brown and tipped with white; primaries
blackish brown, white on the inner vanes near their insertions ;
shafts white.

360 Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat white ; breast, sides of the
breast, with the collar black ; all the rest white.

1st primary longest, the rest graduated ; long scapulary feather
subequal to the 3rd primary; tail square. Length 9j inches;
alar expanse 1 7 inches. The young of the 1st year have no traces
either of black or chesnut, but a cinereous brown assumes its
place ; the feathers of the back have yellowish tips ; the feet are
yellowish red.

Suh genus Numenius.

Sub gen. char. Bill long, slender, compressed at base, de-
pressed at the tip, furrowed for half the length and curved ; nos-
trils in the furrow of the upper mandible, basal, and lateral ; legs
long, moderately stout ; toes short compared to the \Q:g ; thumb
barely reaching the ground ; front toes connected at the base;
1st primary longest.

N. longirostris. Long-billed Curlew.
N. [Numenius) longirostris. Baird I

D. c. Bill V inches long, brownish black, purplish flesh colour
below towards the base ; legs and feet greyish blue or lead colour;
irides dark hazel ; eggs 4, cream coloured spotte'l brown ?

Dorsal aspect. Blackish brown, spotted and interruptedly bar-
red with different shades of rufous ; line round the eye brownish
white ; primaries brownish black on the outer edges, pale rufous
on the inner and barred with black ; shafts of the 1st primary
white; the rest of the wing pale reddish brown, with waving
linear bars of dusky ; axillaries plain with a few remote dusky
marginal streaks; tail rounded, pale rufous, with about 10 dusky
brown bars; crown blackish with whitish streaks and no medial
line.

Ventral aspect. Chin, brownish white ; neck pale, whitish buflf",
streaked with black ; belly, thighs, and vent pale rufous white
without spots ; wing linings salmon rufous sparingly dotted with
blackish.

Length about 25 inches ; alar expanse 39 inches; weight about
30 ounces. (Compiled from Nuttall.)

N. Hudsonicus. Esquimaux Curlew\

Scolopax horealis of Wilson !

N. (^Phacopus) Hudsonicus. Baird 1

v.s.p. Bill black, purplish towards the base of the under man-
dible ; legs and feet dark lead colour; irides hazel ; eggs 4, dark
bluish grey spotted with black or dark brown.

of the District of MontreaL 361

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head dark brown with a medial line
of greyish white ; an oval spot between the eye and nostrils, and
line over the eye white ; a streak of dark grey between the angle
of the month and the eye ; cheeks, sides of the neck, and nape
greyish white with brown streaks ; whole dorsal region, includ-
ing the axillaries, wing and tail coverts, and rump, pale dusky
brown, with an occasional violet iridescence, the edges of the
feathers having a worn appearance, the outer vanes of the ax-
illaries especially having a serrated and worn appearance ; tail
square, dusky brown inclining to a rufous tinge at the base,
barred with blackish brown. The shaft of the 1st primary white,
that of the next pale brown, all the others deep brown ; the quills
brownish black barred with greyish white on the inner vanes, and
on the outer vanes of all except the three first primaries ; the
long axillaries not barred.

Ventral aspect. Chin, belly and vent white ; throat and breast
greyish white streaked with dusky which is d^irkest on the throat ;
flank and lateral tail feathers rufous white, barred with dusky
brown ; wing linings salmon colour barred with dusky brown ;
centre tail feathers white.

1st primary longest; long scapulary feather?, equal to the 5th
primary; length of the bill 3j- inches; length of the bird 17|-
inches; alar expanse 28j inches.

iV. horealis. Small Esquimaux Curlew.
N. hrevirostris of Temminck 1
Scolopax horealis of Forster !
iV". (^Phacopus) horealis. Baird!

v.s.p. Bill slender, brownish black ; legs and feet olive black ;
irides hazel ; eggs 4, spotted with light umber brown.

Dorsal aspect. Blackish with a medial line of greyish white;
sides of crown brownish white ; streak from the nostrils brown,
prolonged behind the eye to above the auriculars ; nape and sides
of neck brownish, with streaks of a darker tint ; interscapulary
region, scapulars, long axillary feathers, greater and smaller wing
coverts blackish brown, with rufous white marginal spots of a
triangular shape ; tail coverts and tail rufous white, barred with
blackish brown ; belly and vent rufous white.

Ventral aspect. Chin white ; throat and breast, with the sides
of the latter rufous white, streaked with blackish brown, and
barred with a V shaped spot of the same colour on the breast;

362 Dr, A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

flank feathers rufous white barred with brown ; lateral tail coverts
rufous white barred with brown on the outer vanes of the lateral
ones; wing linings salmon colour barred with blackish brown;
belly and vent rufous white.

1st primary longest ; long axillary feathers longer than the
5th but shorter than the 4th ; all the primaries except the 1st
and 2ud tipped with white. Length 14 inches; alar expanse 25
inches ; length of the bill 2 J inches. In the female the medial
line on the crown is obsolete.

Suh genus Scolopax.

Sub gen. char. Bill slender, long, compressed, soft, straight,
with a turned tip, the tip of the upper mandible projecting over
the lower and tuberculated ; both mandibles furrowed for half
their length ; nostrils lateral, basal, linear, in the furrow of the
mandible, and covered by a membrane ; feet not palmated ; the
orbits placed far back on the head. In some species the exter-
nal and middle toes are connected to the first joint.

S. grisea. Red-breasted Snipe.

S. novehoracensis of Latham and Gmelin ! !

Macroramphus griseus of Leach !

Macrorhamphus griseus. Baird 1
vs.p. Bill black towards the tip, the remainder dull olive;
legs and feet bluish grey ; irides hazel ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown blackish brown tipped with brownish
chosnut ; sides of the head commencing at the nostrils greyish
white ; a streak from the angle of the mouth to the eye, and
another more faint beyond it greyish brown ; cheeks greyish
white ; nuchal region grey ; interscapulary region, scapulars, long
axillary feathers blackish brown, tipped and striped on the mar-
gins with chesnut ; small wing coverts and great wing coverts,
dusky, the former tipped with grey, the latter with pale chesnut ;
rump, tail coverts and tail, white barred with blackish brown, the
latter also tipped with pale chesnut ; primaries brownish black.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat greyish while; breast rufous
with imperfect and irregular streaks of brown ; flanks rufous white
with faint wavy linesof brown; internal linings white with black-
ish brown bars ; tail coverts rufous white with bars ; belly and
vent white tinted with rufous.

1st primary longest; 2nd considerably longer than the 3rd;
long scapulary feathers longer than the 4th primary but shorter

of the Distiict of Montreal, 363

than tte 3rd. Length lOf inches; alar expanse 16j inches;
length of bill 21 inches. The shaft of the first primary is white,
that of all the others pale brown.

^S'. Wilsonii. Common or Wilson's Snipe.
S. gallinago of Wilson !
Gallinago Wilsonii* Baird !

v.s.p. Bill black at the tip, the rest brown ; legs and feet
grey; irides hazel; eggs 4, olivaceous spotted with brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head black, separated in two by a
medial liiie of white; line from the ridge of the bill over the eye
brownish white ; and another from the nostrils to the eye black-
ish brown ; the auriculars and cheeks greyish white, the former
margined with brown ; nuchal region ferruginous streaked with
blackish brown ; dorsal region and scapulars black, the latter
edged with cream colour on the outer vanes, and spotted with
chesnut on both ; scapulary feathers edged with white on the
outer vanes, spotted and barred with chesnut ; great and small
wing coverts dusky tipped with greyish white ; rump and tail
coverts brownish black barred with rufous brown, the bars caused
by spots on the vanes of the feathers ; tail rounded, jet black,
with a subterminal band of bright chesnut succeeded by a narrow
black border, and lastly tipped with rufous white; primaries
dusky, the outer vane of the first white, and the outer vane of the
second margined with white, all of them faintly tipped with
white.

Ventral aspect. Chin white; throat and breast brownish
white spotted with brown ; belly and vent white ; flanks white
elegantly barred with brownish black ; tail coverts rufous barred
with brown.

1st primary longest; 2nd subequal to it; long scapulary fea-
thers subequal to the 3rd primary. Length 11 inches; alar
expanse 16 J inches; length of the bill 2| inches. The two
lateral tail feathers of this bird are wholly white, with 7 equi-
distant blackish bars ; these bars are imperfectly continued to the
next ones, becoming less in number until we arrive at the centre
ones where they are obsolete ; the chesnut band commences at
the third, and deepens in tint as it approaches the central fea-
thers,

364 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

S. minor. "Woodcock.
Rusticola minor of Nuttall !
Philohela minor. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill bluish black tinged with orange towards the base ;
legs and feet pale orange ; i rides dark hazel ; eggs 4, olivaceous
white blotched with yellowish brown.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet and crown as far as the centre of the
head cinereous tinted with pale rufous ; occiput and nuchal re-
gion black with three transversal narrow bands of rufous, the
lowest one tinged with cinereous, the remainder of the nuchal
region cinereous ; a line from the angle of the mouth to the eye
black ; cheeks and auriculars cinereous white, with irregular nar-
row wavy lines of black ; dorsal feathers and scapulars black bar-
red and tipped with bright chesnut ; the outer vanes of the outer-
most row of both wholly cinereous, thus causing four broad
streaks of cinereous down the back ; great and small wing coverts
with the secondaries dusky, barred with wavy zigzag lines of
blackish brown, cinereous, hnd pale chesnut; primaries dusky,
the outer vanes of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th edged with whitish ;
rump black barred with bright chesnut in an irregular manner,
and tipped with cinereous ; central tail coverts black tipped with
chesnut ; the lateral ones bright chesnut with wavy lines of
black; tail round, jet black, with a subterminal narrow band of
chesnut, and broadly tipped with cinereous ; all the primaries
tipped with white.

Ventral aspect. Chin white ; throat, sides of the throat, breast,
belly, vent and flanks rufous, tinted with cinereous on the sides
of the throat, pale on the belly and vent, and very bright on the
flanks ; tail coverts bright rufous, the lateral feathers tipped with
white ; tail jet black, with a broad terminal band of glossy white
corresponding with the cinereous tip of the dorsal aspect.

3rd primary longest; 4th next ; 1st and 8th equal; the longest
scapulai-s subequal to the 3rd primary ; from the comparative
length of the primaries the wing is very much rounded. Length
12 J inches ; alar expanse 17 inches; length of bill 2| inches.
This bird though considerably smaller than the European bird,
has its bill of exactly equal dimensions.

Suh genus Limosa.

Sub gen. char. Bill longer than in the last sub-genus, straight,
more or less incurved from the centre, soft and flexible ; the nasal

of the District of Montreal, 3G5

farrows extend nearly tlie whole length ; nostrils basal, lateral,
linear and pervious ; middle and external toes connected at the
base ; thumb short and slender, scarcely touching the ground.

L.fedoa. Great Marbled God wit.

Scolopax fedoa of Wilson !

Liniosa feclon. Baird !
D.c. Bill incurved ; rump nniforra in colour with the rest of
the plumage ; tail brownish banded with black. Summer plu-
mage dusky brown varied with rufous, beneath pale ferruginous ;
winter dress cinereous, beneath whitish ; male with the breast
marked with undulating bars of dusky brown* This bird is very
rarely met with in this district ; an occasional straggler however
has been seen as I have been informed.

L. Hudsonica. Hudsonian Godwit.

Scolopax Hudsonica of Latham ! and Pennant I

Limosa Hudsonica. Baird !

v.s.p. Ridge and tip of bill brown, the rest purplish flesb
colour ; leo's and feet black ; irides dark hazel ; eo-o-s 4, dark
olive spotted with pale brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of he^d and occiput spotted wood
brown and greyish white ; line from the nostrils over the eye,
white with faint spots ; another from above the angle of the
mouth to the eye woody brown ; neck, interscapulary region,
and scapulars blackish brown with spots of rusty white ; the long
scapulars with ragged outer vanes and spotted with brownisti
white ; rump white ; tail white at the base, terminating iu a deep
blackish brown and tipped with white ; great and small wing
coverts dusky, with pale ragged edgings ; the lower row of the
great coverts edged with white ; primaries clove brown, the shafts
white to near the tips, and inclining to white on the inner vanes.

Ventral aspect. Chin white ; cheeks white spotted with wood
brown ; neck, breast and belly ferruginous, the feathers with a
subterminal band of blackish brown, generally zigzag, and tipped
with white flank feathers, barred with blackish brown ; tail co-
verts with their basal halves white, their distal halves ferruginous
and elegantly barred with blackish brown ; the lateral coverts
paler than the central ones.

1st primary longest ; the others graduated ; longest scapular
subequal to the 4th primary. Length 1 of inches; alar expanse
25 inches ; length of the bill 3 inches.

366 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

, A young bird in the Museum of the Natural History Society,
has its dorsal aspect, with the exception of the transversal band
of the rump, which is white, dusky, barred with brown on the
dorsal region and short scapulars ; the long scapulars and quills
clove brown, the latter tipped with white, the former with a few
terminal bands of pale ferruginous ; on the ventral aspect, the
chin and cheeks are white; throat and breast dusky ; belly, vent
and flanks, with the tail coverts dusky white, the last with a
streak of brown in the centre of each feather and margined with
dusky ; the line from the bill to the eye like the old bird. This
bird is a rare one in the district of Montreal, and appears to as-
sociate with the curlews.

Sub genus Phaleropus,
Sub gen. char. Bill a little longer than the head, slender,
straight, depressed at the base, furrowed on both mandibles to
near the tip; tip of upper mandible inflected on the lower, and
rather subulate ; nostrils linear, lateral and basal ; front toes con-
nected at base by a membrane, the inner toe to the first joint, the
outer toe to the second joint; the membranous margin of the re-
mainder of the toes broadly and deeply scolloped ; hind toe short,
scarcely touching the ground, and consequently scarcely used in
walking.

P, hyperhoreus. Hyperborean Phalerope.

P. fuscus of Latham !

Lohipes hyperhoreus of Cuvier !

Tringa hyperhorea of Linnaeus !

Tringa lobata, young of do. 1

Phaleropus hyperhoreus. Baird 1
v.s.p. Bill black ; legs and feet blackish greeen ; irides hazel ;
eggs 3 to 4, olivaceous, thickly spotted with blackish brown.

Young bird ; dorsal aspect. Frontlet, line over the eye, and
between the auriculars, and nuchal region white ; spot in front
of the eye, auriculars, and crown of head blackish brown, de-
scending in a streak along the centre of the nape of the neck ; the
remainder of the nape of neck white tinged with cinereous ; in-
terscapulary region and scapulars blackish brown edged with
tawny; rump blackish brown, the feathers tipped with white ;
lateral tail coverts white, central ones blackish brown tipped with
tawny ; tail blackish brown, the centre feathers tipped with
tawny, the lateral feathers edged and tipped with white ; small

of the District of Montreal, 367

wing coverts plain blackish brown ; upper and lower row of great
wing coverts blackish brown tipped with white; quills blackish
with white shafts, and edged with white on the inner vanes.

Ventral aspect. White, except on the sides of the breast and
flanks, where the white is tinted with cinereous.

"The old male is black varied rufous ; beneath white; sides of
neck and breast bright rufous and ash ; sides and front of neck
bright brownish orange."

1st primary longest ; the others graduated ; long scapulars sub-
equal to the 3rd primary. Length 7f inches; alar expanse 13
inches ; length of bill 1 inch scarcely. I have never seen the old
bird in its nuptial dress. The young birds however are not un-
common, and when they are met with the young and old resemble
one another in their leading features.

Suh gemts Tringa.

Sub gen. char. Bill of medium size, as long as, or a little
longer than the head, rather curved, flexible, subcylindrical, com-
pressed at the base, with a smooth tip, and with both mandibles
furrowed to near the tip ; nostrils situated in the furrows, basal,
lateral and linear, covered by a membrane ; feet 4-toel, tarsus
slender ; hind toe barely touching the ground.

T. alpina. The Dunlin or Ox Bird.

T. variabilis of Temminck !

T. cinclus of Linnaeus !

Tringa (Shoenidns) alpina, var. Americana, Baird !
v.s.p. Bill blackish ; If gs and feet blackish brown ; irides
hazel ; eggs 4, oil green spotted liver brown.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, line over the eye, cheeks, and nape
of neck white, with irregular blackish brown streaks ; crown and
occiput black, the feathers edged broadly with ferruginous ; dor-
sal region, rump, and short scapulars black, with very broad fer-
ruginous margins, almost chesnut, and tipped with white ; the
short scapulars with a subterminal band of blackish brown ; long
scapulars, and small wing coverts dusky ; great wing coverts
dusky tipped with white ; central tail coverts black broadly edged
with ferruginous; lateral ones wholly white; quills dusky with
white shafts and white inner vanes; the oth, 6th, 7th, 8th, and
9th with a touch of white on the centre of the margin of the
outer vanes ; tail dusky, the lateral tail feathers nearly altogether
white.

368 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Ventral aspect. Chin wliite ; throat and breast cinereous white
streaked with bhickish brown ; flanks, tail coverts and vent white
with blackish brown streaks in the centre of the feathers ; belly
black, wi h white edgings to the feathers.

1st primary longest; the others graduated; the long scapulars
which have a ragged appearance, longer than the 5th but shorter
than the 4th primary. Length 9 inches; alar expanse 14 inches ;
length of the bill 1 J inch. Described from a male in its nuptial
dress.

T.pectoralis. Pectoral Sandpiper.
Pelidna pectoralis of Say !

v.s.p. Bill black at the tip, reddish yellow at the base ; legs
and feet olivaceois ; irides dark hazel, almost black ; eggs un-
known.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head, interscapulary region, and
rump black, with ferruginous tips and edgings; nape of neck
dusky streaked with brown ; scapulars black margined with fer-
ruginous and tipped with white on the outer vanes only ; long
scapulars black edged with ferruginous on both vanes ; great and
small wing coverts dusky, the latter tipped with pale ferruginous,
the former, with ferruginous on both vanes, except the extremity
of the outer vane where it changes to white ; tail with the lateral
feathers dusky tipped with brownish white ; the centre feathers
jet black margined with ferruginous ; lateral tail coverts white
spotted with blackish on the outer vanes ; quills plain clove
brown; shaft of 1st primary white ; the shafts of all the others
brown; streak from the nostrils to and around the eye white;
another from the rictus to the eye umber brown.

Ventral aspect. Chin white ; cheeks, sides of throat, throat
and breast brownish white with dusky streaks ; flanks, axillaries,
vent and tail coverts white.

1st primary longest ; the others graduated ; long scapulars
shorter than the 4th, longer than the 5th. Length 8j- inches ;
alar expanse 13 inches ; length of bill about 1 inch and about a
line; length of tarsus 1 inch; length of middle toe with the nail
1 inch, 1 line. The winter dress of this bird is cinereous brown
with a white ventral aspect.

T. rufescens. Buflf-breasted Sandpiper.
Tringiies rufescens. Baird I
D.c. " Bill blackish, scarcely the length of the head, nearly

of the District of Montreal. 369

straight, below pale ferruginous ; inner webs of the primaries
mottled; rump blackish-; legs and feet brown; tarsus 15 lines
long. Summer plumage varied with black and brownish rufous ;
beneath rufous much paler on the abdomen. "Winter dress un-
known."— (Nuttall). From the geographical range of this species
I have no doubt but that it visits this District, although I have
not hitherto met with a specimen of it.

T. Pusilla. Little Sandpiper.
T. Temminckii of Leisler.
Tringa Wilsonii. Baird ?
v.s.p. Upper mandible blackish ; lower one orange at the
base, black at the tip ; bill shorter than the head ; legs and feet
brownish ; irides hazel ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Line from the nostrils over and beyond the
eye cinereous white; crown and interscapulary region black
broadly edged and tipped with ferruginous ; nuchal region cine-
reous ; rump, scapulars blackish brown, edged with ferruginous
on both vanes, except at the tip of the outer vane which is white ;
small and great wing coverts dusky tipped with ferruginous ;
lower row of great wing coverts tipped with white ; central tail
coverts black ; lateral ones white ; tail rounded, the two central
feathers blackish brown, tipped with ferruginous white ; lateral
ones cinereous deepening in tint from the sides over to the center
ones ; quills plain clove brown with white shafts.

Ventral aspect. Cheeks, breast, and sides of the breast cine-
reous with dusky streaks ; chin and remainder of the ventral as-
pect pure white.

1st primary longest; the ^others graduated ; long scapulars
longer than the 4th but shorter than the 3rd primary. Length
6 inches ; alar expanse lOj inches ; length of bill | inch. The
Tringa minuta and Tringa Wilsonii^ from their geographical
range, may visit us, but I cannot state so with certainty, having
never met with either species.

T. rufa. Red-breasted Sandpiper.

T. cinerea. Winter plumage. Linnaeus and Wilson ! !

T. camita, islandica, cinerea, australis, noevia, grisea of

Gmelin !
Macrorhamphus griseus. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet blackish ; irides hazel ; eggs 4 dun
colour spotted red.
Can. Nat. 24 Vo YII.

370 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Dorsal aspect. Crown, interscapulary region and rump, black-
ish brown margined with greyish white, which is tinted with
rufous on the crown and back ; nape of neck cinereous streaked
with blackish brown ; short scapulars blackish brown edged with
pale rufous, and a couple of subterminal spots of the same colour,
and tipped with cinereous ; long scapulars plain dusky ; great
and small wing coverts dusky, the lower row of the former broadly
tipped with white, and all of them with pale edgings ; tail coverts
white elegantly barred with blackish brown ; tail square, cinere-
ous ; primaries clove brown, white on the internal vanes towards
the base, with white shafts, and edged with white towards the
centre of the outer vanes of all except the first and second.

Ventral aspect. Line from the angle of the mouth to the eye
blackish brown ; auriculars blackish brown ; line from the nos-
trils to, over, and beyond the eye above the auriculars, pale
rufous ; throat, breast and sides pale rufous, with faint bars of
blackish brown in the latter situation ; belly and vent white
tinged with rufous; flanks white with zigzag bars of blackish
brown ; tail coverts white with a subterminal triangular spot of
blackish brown ; axillaries cinereous with a terminal band of a
deeper tint and tipped with white.

1st primary longest ; long scapulars longer than the 4th, and
shorter than the 5th ; the bill is straight, flattened, and rather
spoon-shaped at the tip ; tip of the upper inflected over the lower
and \\ inch long; legs of moderate size, stout; toes free, mar-
gins serrated. Length lOj inches; alar expanse 21 inches. The
above description is taken from a specimen which is moulting
from its summer to its winter plumage. Another in its complete
winter dress lies beside me, constituting the T. cinerea of Wil-
son. The wholt) dorsal aspect, including the long scapulars and
tail is cinereous tipped with cinereous white ; the lower row of
great wing coverts tipped with white ; tail coverts white barred
with cinereous, and the ventral aspect is white tinged with rufous
very dilutely, with specks of dusky on the throat breast, cheeks
and sides. The rictu-orbital streak brownish black, and the streak
from the nostrils to, over, and beyond the eye, above the auricu-
lars, white. Perhaps there is not a bird whose varieties of plu-
mage in its diff'erent ages and states, have caused it to be described
under so many diff'erent names.

of the District of Montreal, 371

T, semipalmata. Semipalmated Sandpiper.
Ereunetes petrificatus. Baird !

D.c. "Bill shorter than the head, straight, somewhat de-
pressed and enlarged towards the point ; rump blackish ; middle
tail feathers longest. Summer plumage varied with blackish,
olive grey, and pale rufous ; beneath, except the breast white.
Winter dress dark cinereous, beneath principally white ; feet
semipalmate." — (Nuttall).

Sub genus Tetanus.

Sub gen. char. Bill moderate, slender, straight, furrowed to
near the middle, compressed, acute, slightly curved at the point ;
nostrils basal, lateral, linear ; inner toe cleft, outer toe connected
to the middle as far as the first, sometimes to the second joint ;
thumb short, slender, barely touching the ground.

T, vociferus. Greater Yellow-shanks.
T. melanoleucas of Viellot and Buonaparte !
Scolopax vociferus of Wilson !
Gambetta melanoleuca, Baird !

v.s.p. Bill black changing to yellow at the base ; legs and feet
yellow ; irides hazel ; eggs uncertain or unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Line from the nostrils to, and circumventing
the eye white; crown of head brown, margined with white; neck
cinereous with brown streaks ; interscapulary region, and rump
cinereous, margined and occasionally spotted with white ; great
and small wing coverts, long and short scapulars cinereous, chano-.
ing to glossy brown on the long scapulars, with marginal trian-
gular spots of white on both outer and inner vanes ; tail coverts
white wth zigzag bars of brown; tail brown barred with white*
quills plain clove brown ; the shaft of the first primary white.

Ventral aspect. Chin, belly, vent, central tail coverts, white •
throat streaked with brown ; sides of the breast brown, with a
terminal spot of white on each vane near the tip ; flank feathers
axillaries, and lateral tail coverts pure white, with irreo-ular dis-
tant zigzag bars of brown ; lower surface of the quills hoary.

1st primary longest ; long scapulars subequal to the 5th pri-
mary. Length 14J inches; alar expanse 22 inches; length of
bill 2A inches ; length of the tarsus 2\ inches ; length of middle
toe Ij inch.

372 Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

T.flavipes. Yellow-shank Tatler.
Scolopax Jlavipes of Wilson !
Gamhetta Jlavipes. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill blackish ; legs and feet yellow; irides hazel; eggs
unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Line from the base of the bill to the eye white ;
another from the nostrils to the eye, brown ; crown of head brown
edged with white ; nuchal region dark cinereous, faintly streaked
with white ; interscapulary region, long and short scapulars, great
and small wing coverts glossy brown, with triangular marginal
spots of white, which are tinted with brown on the back ; rump
white ; tail coverts white barred with brown ; tail square, white
barred with cinereous brown ; the two or four central feathers
deepest in colour ; the lateral ones pale irregularly barred ; the
side feathers wholly white on the inner vanes, and mottled on the
outer ; quills clove brown, from the 5 th downwards tipped with
white.

Ventral aspect. Chin, belly, vent, and central tail coverts
pure white ; auriculars brown ; cheeks, throat, sides of the breast
and sides cinereous, the feathers tipped with ashy white and
white; flank feathers white, irregularly spotted with cinereous;
lateral, tail feathers, and axillaries white, barred with cinereous
brown.

1st primary longest ; long scapulars subequal to the 5th pri-
mary, and longer than the 6th. Length 9j inches ; alar ex-
panse 18 inches; length of bill Ij inch; length of tarsus 1 inch
and about 10 lines to 2 inches.

T. chloropygius. Green-rump Tatler.
Tringa solitaria of Wilson !
Rhyacophilus soUtarius, Baird !

v.s.p. Bill black ; legs and feet olivaceous brown ; irides dark
hazel ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Line from the base of the bill over the eye,
white ; rictu-orbital line brown ; crown of head and nuchal re-
gion deep brown, the feathers faintly tipped with white ; inter-
scapulary region, long and short scapulars, and great wing coverts
glossy olive brown, with a deep sea green iridescence ; small wing
coverts and rump, plain glossy olive brown ; middle tail coverts
and middle tail feathers olive brown, with faint marginal white

of the District of Montreal. 37^

spots ; lateral tail coverts and tail feathers white, elegantly barred
with blackish brown ; primary quills dark blackish brown, with
brown shafts.

Ventral aspect. Chin, belly, flanks, and lateral tail coverts
with the vent pure white ; throat and middle of the breast white,
streaked with brown ; sides of breast and sides barred with brown,
very thickly so in the former place ; axillaries white, barred with
brown ; central tail coverts white with a deep subterminal bar of
brown.

1st primary longest ; the others graduated ; long scapulars
equal to the 5th primary. Length 9 inches ; alar expanse 15
inches ; length of bill from the angle of the mouth \\ inch ;
length of the tarsus equal to the bill, viz., \\ inch.

T, macularius, Sandlark or Spotted Tatler.

Tringa maculata of Edwards !

Tringa (^Actodromas) Knaculata. Baird!

B.C. This bird although exceedingly common, I am unable at
present to describe from a specimen, as I cannot obtain one. The
following however is from Nuttal :

Glossy olive brown waved with dusky ; rump and tail of the
same colour as the rest of the plumage; one or more outer tail
feathers white barred with black ; quills dark olive brown with a
large spot of white on the inner web. Adult beneath white with
roundish dusky spots; bill yellow below, black towards the tip.
Young, beneath white ; wing coverts edged but not barred with
waving dusky Hues ; upper mandible blackish.

I have never met the T. Bartramii in this district.

Fam. V, Macrodactyli,
Oenus Rallus,

Gen. char. Bill longer or shorter than the head, thick at base,
becoming suddenly compressed, grooved for the half length of the
upper mandible, curved at the extremity, and the base projecting
on the forehead ; nostrils in the furrow basal, lateral, more or less
linear ; toes four ; thumb long, not longer than a single joint of
the middle toe ; wings rounded ; 2nd, 3rd, and 4th primaries
longest, the flight consequently feeble ; tail of 12 feathers, not
longer than the coverts.

Subdivision ist. Bill longer than the head, curved, nostrils
linear.

374 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

R. Virginianus. Lesser Clapper Rail.
i?. Virginianus, Baird !

v.s.p. Bill brown on the ridge, yellow on the lower man-
dible; legs and feet dusky reddish brown ; irides red; eggs 6 to
10, cream colour sprinkled with brownish red and pale purple.

Dorsal aspect. Line from nostrils to the eye, and a spot below
the eye white ; in front of the eye to the angle of the mouth, a
subtriangular black space having the orbits for its base, shaded
to slate colour on the sides of the crown, cheeks, auriculars, and
sides of neck ; crown blackish slate colour ; neck, interscapulary
region, scapulars, rump and tail coverts, deep blackish brown,
with olivaceous brown edgings ; great and small wing coverts
chesnut ; primaries plain dusky ; tail short, rounded, and in colour
like the primaries.

Ventral aspect. Chin white ; sides of the chin, throat, breast,
and belly ferruginous; on the sides of the breast tinged with
olivaceous, brightest in tint on the breast, and paler on the centre
of the belly ; flanks and vent black, with irregular whitish bars ;
tail coverts blackish brown, with a subterminal band of white,
tipped with dilute ferruginous.

2nd and 3rd primaries subequal and longest ; 1st equal to the
6th ; long scapulars equal to the 5th. Length 9j inches ; alar
expanse 12j- inches ; length of bill Ij inch.

Subdivision 2. Bill shorter than the head, robust, acute at
point ; nostrils oblong.

R. Carolinus. Carolina Rail.
Gallinula Carolina of Latham I
Gallinula minor of Edwards !
Porzana (JPorzona) Carolina. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill yellow with a blackish tip ; legs and feet yellowish
green ; irides reddish hazel ; eggs uncertain.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, space in front of the eye, and centre
of the crown blaek ; line over the eye and cheeks ashy ; auricu-
lars pale olive ; sides of the crown and nuchal region olive ; in-
terscapulary region and scapulars olive, with a central streak of
blackish brown, and edged with white on the outer vanes ; the
long scapulars with white on the inner vanes above rump, black,
tipped broadly with olive ; great and small wing coverts plain
olive ; tail coverts blackish brown edged with olive, a few of the

of the District of Montreal, 375

central ones with white margins ; tail cuneiform broadly edged
with olive ; outer edge of the 1st primary white ; outer vanes of
the 2nd speckled with white about its centre ; all the rest of the
quills olive brown.

Ventral aspect. Chin, and line down the throat black ; sides
of throat, commencing from the cheeks ashy; breast ashy barred
with white ; sides, and flanks olive barred with ash white ; vent
and centre of the belly white ; tail coverts white, the central ones
tinted with yellow.

2nd primary longest ; long scapulars equal to the 4th primary ;
Length VJ inches; alar expanse \\\ inches; lengih of bill f
inch ; length of tarsus and middle toe together 3 inches.

R. Noveboracensis. Yellow-breasted Rail.

Gallinula Noveboracensis of Latham !

Fulica Noveboracensis of Gmelin !

Perdix Hudsonica of Idem !

Rallus ruficollis of Viellot !

Porzana (Columicops) Soveboracensis^ Baird !

v.s.p. Bill dusky brown, greenish yellow at the base, and for
a short distance on the ridge ; legs and feet dusky flesh colour ;
irides hazel; eggs 10 to 16, white, (according to Richardson.)

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, line over the eye and sides of the
neck yellowish brown, faintly barred with dark brown ; crown of
head, and nape of neck black, with minute white tips to the
feathers ; interscapulary region, and scapulars, rump, great and
small wing, and tail coverts black, with one to two narrow white
bars on the feathers, and broadly margined, especially on the
scapulars, with yellowish brown : tail cuneiform, short, black,
with irregular, scarcely conspicuous, bars of white, not more than
three in number ; quills dusky, with a subterminal faint bar of
white ; auriculars brown, with a minute subterminal bar of
white.

Ventral aspect. Chin yellowish white; throat, breast, and
sides brown internally, the remaining half of the feathers, first
faintly white, succeeded by yellowish brown, and tipped with
brown, giving these parts a wavy appearance of brown, yellowish
brown, and faint white; belly white; flanks and vent black, with
a couple of narrow bars of white ; tail coverts black with a sub-
terminal narrow bar of white, succeeded by brown and tipped
with white.

376 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds.

1st and 2nd primaries subequal and longest ; the long scaptt*
lars subequal to the 3rd primary. Length 6| inches ; alar ex-
panse 10 inches; length of bill | inch ; length of middle toe and
tarsus 2 inches and 1 line. This rail is very scarce indeed, having
been only met with in the extensive swamps on the southern shore
of the St. Lawrence in the neighborhood of Sorel,

Genus Fulica,

Gen. char. Bill shorter than the head, strong, conical, com-
pressed, deeper than broad at the base ; mandibles furrowed on
each side at the base, equal ; upper mandible projecting over the
lower at the sides, and its base spreading on the forehead ; lower
mandible navicular; nostrils lateral, longitudinally cleft, semi-
closed ; all the toes connected at the bases with a scolloped mem-
brane; 2nd and 3rd primaries longest.

F. Americana. Common Coot.
F. atra of Wilson !
Fulica Americana. Baird !

v.B.p. Bill yellowish at the base, succeeded beyond the nos-
trils by a chesnut ring, tipped horn colour ; frontal callosity
white, with a rhoraboidal chesnut coloured spot ; irides red ; legs
and feet yellowish green ; eggs uncertain.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of the head, cheeks, nuchal region,
slaty black ; interscapulary region and scapulars slaty black, ting-
ed with olive ; tail coverts olive black, great and small wing
coverts and tail slate colour ; primaries dusky, the outer vane of
the first primary edged with white, and the secondaries which are
slate, tipped with white.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat black; breast pale slate with
faint tips of slaty white to the feathers ; belly and vent pale slate
colour, the whitish bars more numerous, but irregular, thus
giving this part a whiter appearance ; flank feathers slate tinged
with olive ; tail coverts white.

2nd primary longest, 1 and 4 equal ; long scapulars equal to the
2nd primary; length 16j inches; alar expanse 27 inches; length
of tarsus 2 inches ; length of middle toe to the heel including the
nail 3^ inches.

(To he continued.)

Prof, Hall on the CattsJcill Group ofN. F. 377

ARTICLE XXXrV.— 0^ the Cattskill Group of Nexo YcyrK
By Prof. James Ball. A Letter addressed to Principal
Dawson J dated Albany , October ^ 1862.

Having furnished you with a cousiderable number of specimens
of DevoDiaa fossil plants, from the State collections, and from
my own cabinet, for study and desciiption, I have felt not only
great interest in the matter, but much solicitude in regard to the
geological position of some of them ; and this feeling has been
increased by studying your list of specimens with reference to the
geological formations, for it seemed to me that there were some
results not quite in accordance with palaeontological laws, and
that there was reason to question the geological order assigned
to the specimens. •

A considerable number* of these had been collected by myself
or under my immediate direction many years since, and of these
I feel secure ; but there were others which, though obtained from
authenticated localities of the Cattskill group^ had not been col-
lected by myself ; and in regard to some of these and some of the
others not of my own collecting, I believe I expressed doubts,
though the greater proportion were reliable.

Late investigations, combined with those heretofore made, have
forced upon me the conviction that the greater part of the area
colored on the geological map of New York as CattsJcill group^'is
in fact occupied by the Portage and Chemung groups.

Several years since, in making sections across the country from
north to south, and through the counties of Albany and Schoharie,
I ascertained that the Hamilton group, as indicated by its well
marked and characteristic fossils, extends to the southern limit of
the coloring indicating Chemung group, on the geological map,
I am now prepared to show that the Hamilton group in the counties
of Albany, Greene, Schoharie, Otsego, and a part of Chenango,
with the exception of some outliers on the higher hills, occupies
nearly the entire belt colored as Chemung, the southern line cor-
responding very nearly with the limit assigned to that formation ;
thus leaving the Chemung group with its southern limits still un-

The Investigation of the extent and limitation of this group
has been beset with difEcuUies, both towards the west and east of
the typical region in southern central New York. In tracing ta^l
the eastward the strata of the Chemung group, we find them gra-

378 Pi'of' James Hall on the

dually assuming a coarser character, attended by a diminution of
the number of fossils, both of individuals and of species. With the
accession of coarse materials comes diagonal lamination, and
abrupt changes in the nature of the sediment, with other attend-
ant features indicating a deposit of littoral character.

Until within a few years the State collection had been nearly
destitute of fossils from the rocks of Delaware county, which ac-
cording to the map is occupied by the Cattskill group. Some time
since Prof. Orton, late of the Normal School in Albany, sent to
the State Cabinet numerous specimens from the so-called Catts-
kill group of that region, and they were thus arranged ; but I
readily recognised nearly all of these as characteristic Chemung
fossils. Although obtained within the area colored as Cattskill
group, it was still possible to suppose that they might have been
derived from transported masses, and no investigation having been
made to decide this question, the matter rested.

More recently, Mr. J. M. Way, of Franklin, Delaware County,
has directed his attention to the fossils of his neighbourhood, par-
ticularly to the fish remains, which he has found in considerable
abundance. From loose and scattered masses he has been able to
trace the specimens to their position in the hill slopes, and has
ascertained the existence of no less than three distinct beds con-
taining these ichthyic remains. Associated with the latter, he has
found numerous shells which are typical species of the Chemung
group ; and these he has traced to near the tops of the highest
hills in Franklin, and occupying large areas of what have been
regarded as the unequivocal Cattskill group. Mr. Way has sent
collections of these fossil remains to several geologists in the coun-
try, with a view of obtaining information to aid him in his re-
searches.

Having since personally examined the region in question, I do
not hesitate to say that we have in the fossil remains taken to-
gether the most unequivocal evidence of the occurrence of the
Chemung group in these localities. A section from the north side
of the Susquehanna river to the high hills in the south part of
Franklin gives the following beds, the characters of which I have
not yet studied in detail, and the thickness given may be regarded
as approximate : —

1. — Greenish-gray sandstones and shaly sandstones ; 100-150
feet to top of hills.

CattsUll Group of New York. 379

2. — Fossiliferous band with Scales, bones, and teeth of fishes;
Aviculo pectm ? and a few Brachiopoda. (Remains of plants occur
a little above the animal remains.)

3. — Greenish and gray sandstones, shaly sandstones and shales;
about 150 feet.

4. — Fossiliferous band, containing bones and teeth of fishes ;
Brachiopoda and Lamellibranchiata, among which the Spirifer
mesostrialis, Hall, is abundant, and Cypricardites chemungensis of
Vanuxem is common.

5. — Sandstones and shaly sandstones, similar to those above,
but less greenish, and sometimes more heavily bedded ; between
100 and 150 feet.

6. — A fossiliferous band, similar to the one above, with the
same species of fossils, and conspicuously marked by a compact
argillo-calcareous band with carbonate of iron, and consisting
largely of crinoidal remains in small fragments. Crinoidal bands
of precisely similar character occur in the Chemung group in the
central and western part of the State.

Y. — Non-fossi lifer ous shale and shaly sandstone, embracing flag-
stones aud sandstones ; about 100 feet.

8. — Red shale and shaly sandstone, with numerous fucoidal
remains; 400 to 500 feet.

9. — Greenish and gray shales and shaly sandstones, with darker
shales to the top of the Hamilton group ; the thickness not well
ascertained.

10. — Hamilton group.

Associated with these fossiliferous beds, and more conspicuously
with the upper ones, we have bands of a peculiar greenish shaly
conglomerate or cornstone, which likewise contain fish remains.
These cornstones, with their fossil remains, were noticed by Mr.
Vanuxem in his report upon the adjacent country.

There is a thickness of between 1,000 and 1,200 feet above the
Hamilton group, the lower half of which is not yet known to be
fossiliferous beyond the fucoids in the red shaly sandstone.

This red shaly sandstone and the dark and green shales below,
together with the non-fossiliferous beds of No. Y of the section,
represent the Portage group; while the upper members are
always marked by characteristic fossils of the Chemung group.

I have carried forward observations across the country from
the Susquehanna to the Delaware river, and up to the " head of
the Delaware " at Stamford ; and I am satisfied that in the region

§80 Trof. James Hall on the

to the north and west of the we^ branch of the Delaware, and
to a great extent (if not entirely) the east and west branches of
the Delaware, there are no beds of rock of more recent age than
the Chemung ; and, from what I have seen elsewhere, I am in-
clined to believe that until we ascend the slopes of the CattskiU
mountains, and rise to an elevation of at least 2,000 feet above
tide-water, we find no rocks of newer age than the Chemung
group.

The CattskiU group has been compared with strata newer than
the Chemung group, and consisting mainly of red and greenish
shales and shaly sandstones. I am now satisfied that the red shaly
sandstone near the base of the section, as here presented, has misr
led most of those who have heretofore investigated these rocks ;
while at the same time the harder and more arenaceous character
of the Hamilton rocks in their eastern extension (in which cha-
racter they simulate the Chemung rocks,) has caused them to be
identified with the latter. I am satisfied, moreover, that through
this means Mr. Vanuxem was misled ; and though I have not re-
examined the section at Mount Upton, the locality of the charac-
teristic bivalve shells, I am not willing to believe it will prove
to be newer than Chemung, even if it be much above the top of
the Hamilton.

You will perceive, therefore, that all the specimens of plants sent
you as coming from the CattskiU group are really from beds of
the Chemung group proper ; and, so far as possible in this hastily
written note, I have given you my reasons for adopting this
belief.

In looking back to the history of the adoption of the term
CattskiU group, it would appear that there was not entire unani-
mity as to its signification in some points, among the geologists
of the 1st, 3rd, and 4th districts.

Prof. Mather, in adopting the term, says it includes Nos. 9, 10,
11, and 12 of the Pennsylvania Survey ; whUe Mr. Vanuxem
restricts it to No. 9. As both these gentlemen placed it above the
Chemung group as defined in central and western New York, I
regarded it (without having made personal examination) as iden-
tical with a red shaly sandstone and conglomerate which clearly
comes in above the Chemung in the adjacent counties of Penn-
sylvania bordering the 4th district. Having considered the Che-
mung group as No. 9 of the Pennsylvania Survey, I regarded the
red rock with Holoptychus as No. 11 ; the conglomerate. No. 10,

CattsJcill Group of New York, S?-t

had not been recognised in my district, or adjacent to its southerns
limits.

I consider that at this time there can be no doubt that the
Chemung group is identical with No. 9 in the original nomencla-
ture of the Pennsylvania Survey ; and the term Chemung group
having been adopted, and well understood in its relations and sig-
nification, and well marked by its fossils, we cannot with any
propriety continue to extend the term Cattskill group over a
large area occupied by the older rocks, and well characterised by
their contained fossils.

Mr. Mather, in his descriptions of the rocks, has recognized the
Chemung group as lying below the Cattskill group, but, as I have
shown, the area colored by him as Chemung, is really Hamilton
group ; and it now becomes necessary to restrict the term Catts-
kill group to the beds above, or to those formerly known as X
and XI of the Pennsylvania Survey.

Adopting this view, which is imperatively required of us, some
modification is necessary in the reference of certain fossils ; but I
am satisfied that it will remove one great cause of misunderstand-
ing relative to the groups of strata on the confines of the coal
measures ; and we shall avoid the complication which must ensue
from referring the same species of fossils to two distinct groups of
strata, according to the present application of our nomenclature.

On reference to the Geological Reports of New York, you will
observe that the fossils of the Cattskill group, given in the 1st and
4th Districts, are of plants, with two species of shells. The red
shaly sandstone, (called old red sandstone or Catskill group,) rest-
ing in outliers on some of the higher hills in the 4th district
and occuring in continuous strata in Pennsylvania near the south-
ern limit of New York, did not afi*ord specimens of these plants
or shells ; while the scales and other remains of Holoptychius are
the characteristic fossils of the rocks in these western localities.
But so far as I am aware, no scales of Holoptychius have been
found in the area colored as Cattskill group in Delaware and the
adjacent counties on its west.

In tracing the Chemung group westward, there are many indi-
cations that it may yet require to be restricted in its desio-nation
The Waverly sandstone group of the Ohio Reports, at one timi
regarded as entirely equivalent to the Portage and Chemuni
groups, may in its upper members constitute a distinct group
though we do not yet know any line of demarcation betweei
them.

382 Robb on Superficial Deposits of Canada,

ARTICLE. XXXV. — Some observations relating to the physical
condition of the superficial deposits in Canada, By Charles
Robb, Esq. C. E. Montreal.

(Read before the Natural History Society^ Nov. 1862.)
I.

The structure of the fundamental rocks of Western Canada
and their geographical boundaries, have been thoroughly ascer-
tained and defined by the Provincial geologists ; and from the
simplicity of that structure, the regularity of their sequence, and
the slight alteration both in position and mineral character, which
they have undergone since their original deposition, this part of
their task would have been comparatively easy, were it not for
the thick masses of clay^ sand and gravel which for the most part
envelop and conceal them. Athough the I>rift, as these superfi-
cial deposits are called, is one of the most recent of all the geolo-
gical formations, its date being immediately before the creation
of the existing species of organized beings, it seems remarkable
that its precise nature and origin should be less clearly under-
stood than those of the more ancient rocks on which it reposes.
Apart from the interest attaching to the subject in a purely scien-
tific point of view, its investigation is of the utmost practical im-
portance in an agricultural country like this ; as such knowledge
is calculated to render material aid in understanding the nature and
durability of our soils, and in determining the best methods of de-
veloping their resources and preventing their deterioration. To
these investigations, in so far as they refer to Lower Canada, Dr.
Dawson has devoted much attention and made many valuable
contributions, and in the Upper Province the researches of Pro-
fessor Chapman of Toronto, and of Mr. Robert Bell, under the di-
rection of Sir Wm. Logan, have thrown much light on the subject ;
and we may shortly expect to be put in possession of the result of
their combined labours in a lucid and condensed form by the
publication of Sir Wm. Logan's elaborate General Report on the
Geology of the Province.

The three accomplished observers whom I have named agree,
upon independent grounds, in dividing the superficial deposits of
Canada into a lower and upper member ; the former consisting
chiefly of dark blue and greyish clays, the debris of the under-
lying limestone, and nearly destitute of boulders ; and the latter
of sand and gravel of granitic and gneissoid origin, with numerous

Robh on Superficial Deposits of Canada, 383

boulders. Throughout Lower Canada, and as far west as King-
ston, the relative age of these deposits has been determined by
appropriate fossils of recent or existing species ; and although
these are wanting in the Upper Province, the analogy is presumed
to be established by other characteristic features. The fact to
which I would desire to call your attention, and which I am not
aware of having been previously observed, is that the older forma-
tion prevails almost exclusively in Western Canada on the elevat-
ed platform bounded on the east and north by the Niagara es-
carpment, which sweeps in a bold and abrupt manner from the
Niagara river round the head of lake Ontario, and northwards to
Cabot's head on Lake Huron, forming a very marked feature in
the physical geography of the Province. The whole of the coun-
try, for a great distance to the east of this line, and especially to-
wards the base of the escarpment, is thickly strewn with sand,
gravel and boulders of Laurentian origin ; while to the west these
are of very rare occurrence, and are replaced by materials evident-
ly derived from the disintegration of the underlying limestone
rocks. From the Niagara escarpment westward to the height of
land near Woodstock, this difference is less marked than from
that point still farther west to the shores of Lake Huron. The
influence which I would draw from these facts is one which cor-
roborates the view which has been entertained by Sir Charles
Lyell and others, who have examined the physical geography of
Canada ; namely that the contour of the fundamental rocks of the
country has been impressed upon it at an epoch long anterior to
glacial or drift period ; and that the elevated platform of the west-
ern peninsula, if not actually above the level of the sea at that
period, was sufficiently high to resist the intrusion of the ice is-
lands charged with the debris of the Laurentian and other more
ancient northern rocks, which would be drifted by the glacial cur-
rents from the north-east.

The chemical composition of the drift clays of the more west-
erly parts of the province, as compared with those of the east
offers a remarkable corroboration of this view. By the analysis of
Mr. Hunt, a specimen of the sub-soil clay from a district west of
London, and which may be taken as an exponent of the consti-
tuent elements of the clays of the whole western district, yielded
not less than 29.40 per cent of carbonate of lime ; while a similar
specimen from the Niagara district gave only 15.30 per cent.
In fact, in some of the few places in the west where the rocks and

S84 Rohh on Superficial Deposits in Canada.

calcareous shales are exposed they may be seen decomposing into
clay ; while the fossils and fragments of sione found in the clay
are sharp and angular, indicating that they have not travelled far
from their native beds. Probably this fact of the great excess of
calcareous matter in the western soils may account for the supe-
rior nature of the timber which grows there, as well as for the su*
perior fertility and early period of their vegetation and harvests.

ii.

Many of the facts connected with the physical condition of the
superficial deposits in Canada, and especially of the vast ochre-
beds and deposits of marl, bog iron-ore, &c., are attribniable to
the existence of powevail chemical actions wliich have been for
indefinite periods, and still are in action at no great distance from
the surface. I beg to call attention to certain phenomena illus-
trative of this subject, which have partly come under my own
observation, and partly been related to me by trust-worthy wit-
nesses. No doubi similar facts might be discovered in many other
parts of the Province, should they happen to come under the
notice of competent observers.

In the month of October, 1859, 1 visited the farm of a friend who
resides on the 1st lot of the broken front range on the road pass-
ing through Arkona village, in the township of Bosanquet. This
point is, according to the determination of our Provincial Geolo-
gists, immediately on the line of j miction of the Corniferous lime-
stone and Hamilton shales of the Devonian formation; and as it
has been observed that metallic deposits occur most frequently in
the neighborhood of such junctions, which may possibly affect
their formation, it may reasonably be inferred that some connec-
tion exists between the phenomenon I am about to relate and the
existenc.e of such deposits. I am not prepared to give an exact
explanation of the causes of the proximate chemical reactions
which are found in operation at the locahty in question ; still less
do I feel competent to offer any solution of the vexed question of
the origin and mode of formation of mineral lodes ; I shall simply
relate the facts as a slight contribution to our knowledge of the
chemical geology of some of the superficial deposits, and possibly
also of the formation of metallic veins.

The river Sable flows through the lot in question at its north-
ern extremity, and at the distance of about 200 yards to the
south their occurs upon this lot a tract of low-lying ground

Bjobh on Superficial Deposits in Canada. 385

running parallel with it, the intervening space being for the
most pa»-t a marl-bed. In this dell or ravine numerous springs
exist, which constantly pour forth large quantities of water
strongly impregnated with iron; the water on coming to the
surface is clear, transparent and colorless, but with a strong ferru-
ginous taste ; and very shortly after exposure to the air it yields an
oleaginous-looking scum of a highly iridescent appearance, which
floats on the surface of the ditches, but quickly dissipates and
subsides to the bottom, forming a deposit of hydrated peroxide
of iron or ochre, which is found here and in some of the
neighboring lots in beds varying from one to three feet in thickness,
and of an extent and quality which seems to be economically
available, although much mixed with vegetable remains. The
springs impregnated with this ferruginous matter penetrate a
bed of clay about ten feet in thickness, and where they are
strongest appear to have excavated holes in the clay-bed,
forming natural wells ; but it is a remarkable fact that they
appear to run in veins in a south-easterly direction, as there occurs
between two of the strongest springs at a short distance apart
another very powerful and deep spring, which is compara-
tively free from ferruginous matter. This latter spring which
has entirely cut away the clay to a diameter of about six feet, form
ing a well as regular as if artificially excavated, apparently yields re-
markably pure and clear water, and is intermittent in its action?
occasionally throwing up the water with great violence to the
heio-ht of about eighteen inches above the surface, as if from the
eflfects of gaseous pressure applied under the source of the water.

I should here state that the rocks of the country abound in iron
pvrites, and loose masses of this substance are found abundantly
strewed all around.

In this natural well, my friend who resides on the lot found, on
probing the quick-sand at the bottom, with a pole to a consider-
able depth, a long straight wooden twig about an inch in di
ameter, with a little bag of deer-skin tied to one end with a thong
of the same material, and coated all over with a bright metallic
substance resembling tin, and which on submitting a portion of
the stick to my friend Dr. Hunt, he pronounced to be of the fol-
lowing nature and origin : " The specimen of wood is very inter-
esting, in as much as thehard metallic coating is /row /)yn7e5, formed
by the decomposing action of the organic matter of the wood
upon the sulphates in the water, in presence of a solution of
Can. Nat. 25 Vol. VII.

386 Rohh on Superficial Dejyosits in Canada,

iron. The same reaction takes place when oxide of iron is put
into a close vessel with any vegetable matter, sulphate of lime
being present ; and such, or a similar process, I conceive to have
intervened in every case where metallic sulphurets are found in

nature."

For what purpose the twig with the leather bag had been used
and how long it had been immersed in the water, I am unable to
stale nor have I had any opportunity of ascertaining the chem-
ical composition or temperature of the water yielded by the springs
referred to. At one place I observed that the water was very
sour to the taste, and probably contained a small proportion of
free sulphuric acid. I was informed that occasionally the air
in this ravine was oppressively hot and sulphurous, and that when a
slio-ht fall of snow would lie in other parts of the lot, it would
rapidly melt here. A salt well occurs at no great distance from

this place.

Towards the southeast of the spot more immediately referred
to and at a distance of about half a mile from it, there occurs a
series of remarkable pits or depressions in the earth, some long
and irregular, but mostly conical or funnel shaped, and ranging in
a line with each other and with the hollow where the springs are
situated, but at a considerably higher elevation. The conical pits are
remarkably regularin shape, and judging by the eye, may be about
50 feet in diameter by about half that in depth. That they are of
very recent origin is proved by the fact that in more than one
instance I found trees of no very great age growing perpendic-
ularly to their sloping sides.

I have now to direct attention to a very singular and interesting
occurrence at the locality in question, which, taken in connection
with the details I have already given may throw some light on
the subject of earthquakes and their associated phenomena. The
facts I have now to state are given on the authority of my friend
who resides on the lot, and whom I know to be a very intelligent
and trustworthy observer ; and as it is best that facts of this nature
should be given circumstantially, and in the language employed by
the observer at the time of their occurrence, I shall quote from his
own letter written within two days after the event ; premising that
the frame house in which he dwells is situated on a rising ground
immediately above, and in full view of the hollow in which the
remarkable springs occur.

Robb on Superficial Deposits in Canada, 387

BosANQUET, 8th January, 1861.

• "One singular occurrence which happened on the 6th

inst., I will state as fully as my time will permit. Having retired
to bed for the night about 9 o'clock, p. ra., we had scarcely lain
down when my wife became alarmed, by the appearance of flashes
of light entering our bedroom windows ; and supposing the house
on fire, to satisfy her I got up, looked out and around, and found
2lll right. I noticed the flashes of light before my wife did, but
supposing she might be alarmed needlessly said nothing. After
laying down, it appeared two or three times again, the light
continuing for about two seconds or so each time, accompanied at
this time by a dull rumbling noise of about six or seven distinct
pulsations. The light appeared to shine and the noise to come
from a point about four or five chains up the hollow above the
large spring north of the house, and within two or three chains
of the house. The sky was somewhat clouded at the time ; the
sounds were very distinct and abrupt ; and the reflection of the
light appeared a mixture of pale red and intensely bright but miH
light.

" Next morning a neighbour met me on the road, and asked me
what I thought of the curious ' phenomenon,' as he called it, we
had lately. On asking him what he referred to, he stated that his
son-in-law, who has lately built a house on the corner of the clear-
ing next to us, and in the line of, and between two of those pits
or depressions the range of which I pointed out to you the day
you left us — the two pits and house range S. E. with the hollow
below our house, where the deep spring is, and about 25 or 30
chains S. E. from the spring — his son-in-law told him that he
heard curious noises the previous evening, that the log-house shook,
and some tin dishes were thrown from the shelves to the ground
and that next morning he observed a line of vapor along the line
of the depressions, which vapor seemed to be ejected upwards in
several places with considerable force ; it was about daylitrht the
next morning that the vapor was seen. I noticed it too when I
went out early in the morning, at which time there was a rapid
thaw. I went to the great spring to see the eflfect of the thaw on
the ditches. I did not then notice any difference, except a depres-
sion in a part of the hollow below the spring, as if of late occur-
rence, and a large increase in the limbs, twigs, etc., which still
continue to be thrown up. For the last two weeks the spring has

388 Rohb on Superficial Deposits in Canada.

been precipitating in the channel flowing from it, a very large in-
crease of coloring matter, and of a deep clear red color."

The inference which I would draw from all the circumstances I
have so miuutely detailed is, that powerful chemical reactions are
at the place referred to, in constant operation at the surface or in
fissures of the rocks underlying the superficial deposits, decom-
posing the pyrites and converting it into the sulphate of protoxide
of iron, which is soluble in water and is brought to the surface by
the springs, and then receiving oxygen from the atmosphere, and
being afi'ected by the alkaline solutions also contained in the water,
is again changed with the insoluble peroxide and precipitated on
the surface of the ground, forming an ochre bed. The abstraction
of the material thus displaced will, in the long process of these
operations, leave cavities under the surface which must be filled
by the subsidence of the superincumbent earth in the same man-
ner as is often observed in places where coal beds have been
entirely excavated and abandoned. I have little doubt that the
remarkable dell or ravine which I have described is of this nature
and origin ; and that the series of isolated pits or depressions
ranging in the same line with it is only a continuation of it, but at
a less advanced stage of formation.

To account for the oxidation of the pyrites, which I have sup-
posed to be the primary cause of all these phenomena, is not such
an easy matter, unless we can conceive it to exist in the bowels of
the earth in a minutely subdivided state.

" It is well known," says Sir Charles Lyell, " that mixtures of
sulphur and iron sunk in the ground and exposed to moisture give
out sufficient heat to pass gradually into a state of combustion,
and to set fire to any bodies that are near. If a large quantity
of clean iron filings be mixed with a still larger proportion of sul-
phur, and as much water as is necessary to make them into a firm
paste, let the mixture be then buried in the earth and the soil
pressed firmly down upon it. In a few hours it will grow warm,
and swell so as to raise the ground. Sulphurous vapors will
make their way through the crevices and sometimes flames appear.
There is rarely an explosion, but when this happens the fire is
vivid and if the quantity of materials is considerable, the heat and
fire both continue for a long time."

The spontaneous combustion of beds of bituminous shale and
of the refuse coal thrown out of mines is also generally due to
the decomposition of pyrites — and it is the contact of water,

E. Billings on Prof. Heirs recent publication, 389

not of air, which brings about the change. A smouldering heat
results from the various new combinations, which immediately take
place when the sulphur and other substances are set free. Similar
effects are often produced in mines where no coaly matter is pre-
sent, when substances capable of being decomposed by water are
heaped together.

This explanation may suffice to explain in a general way not
only the production of the ochre beds from the decomposition of
pyrites, but also the flames, vapors, and pulsations and subsidence
of the ground.

The deoxidation of the protoxide of iron dissolved in the water,
and its reconversion with the sulphuret through the agency of the
organic matter of the wood, is a highly interesting and instructive
fact, and throws much light on the origin not only of bog iron ores
but on the formation of mineral deposits in general. It affords a
striking illustration and coroboration of the theory now generally
received among chemical geelogists, that the origin of the metallic
sulphurets found so copiously in nature is due to a similar reac-
tion through the agency of organic matter on the soluble sulphates
contained in the primeval waters ; but on this point we cannot at
present enter.

ART. XXXVl.—Eemarks upon Prof. HalVs recent publication,
entitled : " Contributions to Falceontolo^y." By E. Billings.

I have this day (4th November, 1862) received by mail a pub-
lication by Professor James Hall of Albany, purporting to be a
continuation of Appendix C, of the Fifteenth Annual Report of
the Regents of the University of New York.

On page 169 there is the following notice :

" Twelfth Annual Report of the Regents on the State Cabinet.

Tete first seventeen pages of the palajontological part of this Report
were printed and stereotyped in January and the early part of February,
1859 ; and nearly one hundred copies were distributed immediately
thereafter. The entire report was printed and published previous to the
20th September, 1859 ; and any person, procuring proof sheets from the
printer " in the beginning of the month of Jlugust," must have obtained
the sheets at least as far as page 56, which had been printed in the early
part of July. The proof sheets of the Tenth Report were in like manner
procured from the printer , as fast as issued. Similar practices have been
resorted to by interested parties, with respect to other reports ; proof-

390 E. Billings on Prof. HalVs recent publication.

sheets having been obtained from the printing-office, many months in ad-
vance of publication : and I wish simply to record the fact in this place. I
had supposed that authors considered such proceedings disreputable, and
I scarcely believe that there can be a difference of opinion among gen-
tlemen in regard to acts of this kind. [See Canadian Journal of Indus-
try and Science, N. S. No. 34, p. 355 ; and Canadian Naturalist and
Geologist, Vol vi. No. 4, p. 317.]

The two articles, in the "Canadian Naturalist" and "Canadian
Journal," referred to at the end of the above quotation were
written by me and published under my name ; and it would
appear therefore that Professor Hall is desirous of having it
understood that I procured the proof sheets of some of his works
before publication. In answer to this charge, so unfairly made,
I shall only say that I never procured either directly or in-
directly a vestige of the proof sheets of any of his works
either before or after publication, with one exception, and this
by no fault of mine. The circumstances are as follows, and
they are well known to him. In Silliman's Journal for July,
1859, p. 149, 1 saw a notice of a pamphlet of 18 pages, published
by Prof. Hall. This was the portion of the Twelfth Annual Report
referred to by him in the above quotation and which he says
was printed in January and February, and published " immediately
thereafter." As the criticism in that Journal pointed out that
Prof. Hall had described one of my genera under a new name, I na-
turally felt desirous of seeing the work. No copy had been sent
to our survey, although according to his own showing it had been
published five months. I wrote to a friend in Albany to procure
one for me. I did not ask for the proof sheets but for the work
itself. My friend could not get a copy but sent me several loose
leaves, some of which were evidently proof sheets, as they were
printed only on one side and had some corrections in the margin.
There were 25 pages and 17 of these bad been published as
above stated some months previously. The other 8 pages con-
tain the genera iVwc^eospVa, dated by him 185Y ; Trematospiray
ISSY ; Rhynchospira^ 185*7, Tropidoleptus^ 1856, and part of
Leptocoelia 1856.* Now, when an author places dates after the

* It is of great importance that the dates of genera and species
should be correctly given at first. Many of Prof. Hall's are either er-
roneous or ambiguous, I do not admit that those here cited are the true
dates.

E. Billings on Prof, HaWs recent puhlicofion. 391

names of his genera, he gives the public to nndersland ihrtt he
has described the genera in question in some other work, publish-
ed at the time indicated by those dates. On Prof. Hall's own
showing therefore, the first 17 or 18 pages of the sheets in my
possession had been published about five months, and the sub-
stance of the other 8 pages two or three years before I procured
them. He says that there must have been 56 pages, but this as-
sertion is totally untrue; I received only 25.* An intimate friend
of his saw them in my room, and informed him that I had
some of his proof sheets. This same friend afterwards called and
said he had been instructed by Prof. Hall to inquire into the
matter. Fearing they might get some innocent person into trouble
(although I could not see how), I refused to give him any further
information than he possessed ; and, besides, removed the sheets
from my office, and never saw them again until this day.
The above are all the facts relating to these proof sheets, and
the reader can see that it was not intended to take any advantage
of Prof. Hall ; and, further, that the work came into my hands in
the form of sheets quite accidentally, and with no desire on my
part to procure it in that form. Prof. Hall is well aware of
all the circumstances, and why cannot he give a true and fair ac-
count of them. By blending a mere particle of truth with a great
deal that is not true, he has magnified 25 pages obtained uninten-
tionally after publication, into whole volumes of proof sheets pro-
cured designedly before. This is only a continuation of the un-
fair treatment I have received from him during the last four years.
It may be that the proof sheets of the tenth and other reports
mentioned by him were obtained by parties interested in their
contents, but they never were by me ; and yet by a special reference
to two articles well known to have been written by me, he makes
it appear that I procured them. I would recommend all persons

* la one of ray papers I have said 18 pages, but I had not the work
before me, and supposed I had only the number mentioned in Silliman.
I have, in order to make certain, looked them up and find that there are
1*7 leaves, the first nine of which were printed on both sides, and the
other 8 on one side only. There were thus, just 25 printed pages be-
sides the title page. The fact of the last 8 leaves being printed ou
one side only, convinces me that the work had only proceeded as far as
page 25 when these sheets were procured. I shall always believe there-
fore that the description of Triplesia on page 44 (of the 12 Rep.) was
drawn up after Prof. Hall had seen m^ description of Camerella.

392 E. Billings on Prof, HalVs recent publication,

who may have occasion to read Prof. Hall's papers to examine
them closely, as it is not unusual for him — especially in questions
of priority — to arrive at decidedly erroneous conclusions.

I shall now proceed to point out a few palseontological errors
in his new work.

1. The genus Cryptonella, illustrated on PI. 3, p. 133, is pre-
cisely identical with CharioneUa^ described by me in the Cana-
dian Journal of March, 1861, p. 148 and illustrated in the May num-
ber, p. 2*73, 274. It includes the species described by Prof. Hall
in the Thirteenth Report under the names of Meristella Haskinsi^
M. Barrisi, M. Doris, Terehratula Linckheni. T. rectirostra
T, lens, and T.planostria. Besides these the Atrypa scitula oi
the N. Y. Reports, C. Circe, and apparently a number of Euro-
pean species belong to it. Crijptonella was first published in July
or August, 1861, three or four months after the learned author
became acquainted with its characters through the study of my
papers.

2. Centronetla impressa, PI. 3, figs. 1-5, is C, Hecate published
by me in the Canadian Journal, May 1861, p. 272. The date of
Prof. Hall's description is July or August of the same year.

3. Euomphalus {StraparoUus) (jlymenioides, PI. 6, fig. 3, is
Straparollus Canadensis described by me in the begining of July
1 86 1, in the Canadian Journal Prof. Hall's species was published
in October 1861.

4. At page 166 we have the plate with the suppressed
figure of Conrad's genus Cypricardites, well copied in full-
Palaeontology is indebted to me for the publication of this
important plate. Had I not described the genus Cyrtodonta,
I fear it would have remained for ever in the dark. The
reason given by Prof. Hall for publishing it now is simply
that I charged him, in a respectable journal, with holding it in
his hands for eighteen years without publication. I here reiterate
that charge. There was no mention made of this figure in any
of Prof. Hall's publications from the time it was drawn in 1840^
or thereabouts, until the yea 1859. His ideas with regard to
the laws of scientific nomenclature are not correct. The rule ap-
plicable in this case is, that if a name imply that the genus
belongs to a family, order, or class different from that to which it
does actually belong, then it should be changed. For example, if
the Trilobite Bathynotus were to be called Bathyocrinus or Bathy-

E, Billings on Prof, HalVs recent puhlication, 393

osaurus, it could not be retained, no matter how long in use,
because it would be absurd to give a Trilobite a name which would
imply that it is a Crinoid or a Saurian. So with Cyprkardites,
The name implies a close aflSnity with Cypricardia, sl genus of the
family OrpRiNiDiE, while the fossils to which Prof. Hall would
apply it belong to a different family, Arcade, or rather to a
group which appears to form a passage between that family and
AvicuLiD^. The name Athyris, quoted by Prof. Hall as afford-
ing an analogous case, is quite a different instance. It does not
refer the genus to any family, and is only objectionable when used
for species with a perforated beak. And for this reason, some of
the best palaeontologists reject it altogether. Even Mr. Davidson
who still uses it, says that he would have adopted D'Orbigny's
generic name Spirigera^ had he not been influenced by other au-
thors (British Carboniferous Brachiopoda, p. 79). The greatest
authority on the Brachiopoda thus retains Athyris for shells with
perforated beaks, simply in deference to the views of others and
contrary to his own convictions.

5. The genus Zygospira^ p. 126, is not separable from Atrypa,
The connection of the two spires is not of generic importance.
The same structure occurs in Spirifera^ some species of which
have the spires connected and others not. Atrypa modesta is
scarcely distinguishable from A. erratica [Orthis erratica of the
Pal. N. Y., Vol. 1), and this latter again passes into A. Headi,
In these two species the shell structure is precisely that of A,
reticularis. I have referred them to Athyris^ at the same time
stating that it would become necesssary to place them in the genus
Atrypa^ should the position of the spires be found similar to those
of that genus. (See New Species of Lower Silurian Fossils, June
1862, p. 146.)

6. Orthis emacerata^ PI. 2, figs. 1, 2, 3, is not separable from
0. testudinaria.

Y. The mistakes with respect to Barrandia and Clioderma
were first pointed out by me, and so were the affinities between
Rhodocrinus and Thysanocrinus. The corrections are published
in this book as if they were original.

8. Specimens of Phragmostoma from Tennessee in my posses-
sion have a circular aperture in the septum.

394 Dr. Cohhold on Taenia pectinata.

ART. XXXVTI. — Remarks on Tasnia pectinata. In a letter
from Dr. T. Spencer Cohhold, M.D., F.L.S., London
(^England), to Professor Lawson, Queen's College, Kingston,

(For the Canadian Naturalist.)

39 Norland Square, Notting-Hill, London, W.,
Monday, September 22nd, 1862.

My dear Sir, — You have rightly conjectured that I am still
interested in Entozoa, and I thank you ranch for your thoughtful
consideration in troubling yourself to send me some Cestode pa-
rasites. You may be sure Pouchet and Verrier's observations
have not escaped me, and I flatter myself very few other authors
who write on Entozoology are unknown to me by name or other-
wise.

The tape-worms you have so kindly sent are very interesting
specimens.* I make no doubt that they are referable to the

T^NIA PECTINATA, GoCZC.

T. pect. also of Schrank, Gmelin, Rudolphi, Batsch, Bremser,

Dujardin, and Diesing.
T. acutissima Leporls of Pallas.
T. Leporina, Limbourg.

T. Cuniculi sylvestris, Doubrenton and Marigues.
T. Marmolcs, Frolick.
Alyselminthus pectinatus, Zeder.
Halysis pectinata, also of Zeder.
Nine out of every ten zoologists would have described your
worm as a new species, but I protest against the system which
some here adopt of never looking up the older writers.

Hitherto this worm has only been noticed in the hare {Lepus
timidus), rabbit (L. cuniculus), and marmot {Arctomys Mannota),
and therefore its occurrence in Hystrix dorsata is a novel fact of
very considerable interest.

This Cestode is very like (at first sight) a new tape-worm just
discovered by Leuckhart, as infesting the human body and dogs
in North Greenland (^Bothryocephalus cordatus of Leuckhart) ;
but its essential characters are very different. In B. cordatus the

* The specimens were obtained from the intestines of the Canada por-
cupine {Hystrix dorsata), male and female individuals of which were
shot by Mr. Fox and Mr. Moore during one of Prof. Lawson's expeditions
to the Rideau and Gananoque Lakes.

Col, E, Jewett on the Catskill Grou]), 395

head (as seen under the microscope) presents quite a different ap-
pearance, whilst the reproductive organs are differently disposed.
In those you sent me they are all on one side, but some of the
above-mentioned authorities state that their position is sometimes
reversed. This I suspect is an error.
Yours very truly,

T. Spencer Cob bold.
Prof. George Lawson, LL.D.

ARTICLE XXXNlll.— ColE. Jewett, of Albany, on the geolo-
gical age of the rocks of New York, heretofore referred to the
Old Red Sandstone.

The following account of the important discovery made by
Col. Jewett is given in the Fifteenth Annual Report of the Regents
of the New York University.*

"A few week since, an interesting collection of teeth and plates
of fishes, supposed to be from the Old Red Sandstone of Delaware
county, was received at the Geological Rooms. The Curator was
directed to visit the locality, for the purpose of enlarging the col-
lection. The following is his report.

Albany, September 20, 1862.
Dr. Woolworth, Secretary of Regents, &c.

Agreable to your directions, I went to Delaware county, to col-
lect fossils from the Catskill group, or Old Red Sandstone.

At Franklin I found Mr. J. M. Way, a gentleman who for
years has been examining the rock and collecting the fossils ; and
although he is unacquainted with any other localities, and has
never seen a collection of fossils, he has succeeded in investigating
the whole strata of the neighborhood, and collecting many fossils.
With his assistance, I was able to make a section from the Oleout
creek to the top of a hill about three miles southwest of the vil-

♦I received a letter from Col. Jewett in September last, containing
the results of his researches in the so-called Catskill group. It will be
observed by another paper published in this number that Prof. Hall in-
directly associates himself with the discovery ; but I am informed that
he did not visit the locality until after Col. Jewett had been there and
decided the question. — E. B.

Miscellaneous,

lage of Franklin, more than 800 feet in thickness. The base is a
brick red shale, with occasional red argillaceous sandstone, about
400 feet. On this is about fifty feet of greenish shale ; on which
lies a stratum of gray sandstone, with teeth and plates of fishes, and
fossils of the Chemung group. Seventy feet of green shale lies
on this fossiliferous stratum ; when another thin band of fossils,
with gravel and the same formation, continues with alternate shale
and gray sandstone and fossils to the top of the hill, where the
Chemung fossils are more numerous. Spirifers, Rhynchonellas,
Pectens and Athyres are found in all the strata of the upper three
hundred feet, and the whole formation is undoubtedly Chemung,

I examined other localities with the same result.

Mr. Way has examined the rock as far as Deposite (twenty-
five miles southwest), with great care, and finds the same forma-
tion. He has also collected the same fossils at Delhi, seventeen
miles southwest.

From my investigation, I believe there is no Old Red Sandstone
in this State. I found no forms among the fish remains like those
of the Old Red Sandstone ot Great Britain, but we have plates far
larger than those found there.

The Teeth closely resemble those described by Dr. Newberrt,
from the Corniferous rocks of Ohio and New York.

Respectfully your obedient servant,

E. Jewett."

MEETING OP ENTOMOLOGISTS.

In accordance with the suggestion made in the June number
of the Naturalist^ that a meeting of those interested in the study
of Entomology, should be held in Toronto, during the Provincial
Exhibition, a number of ardent votaries of this branch of science
assembled at the residence of Professor Croft, on Friday evening,
September 26th. The following gentlemen were present : — Rev.
Prof. Hincks, F.L.S., and Prof. Wilson, LL.D., of University
College ; Thomas Cottle, Esq., Woodstock ; Thomas Cowdry, Esq.;
M.D.,York Mills ; W.L. Lawrason, Esq., London, C. W.; Beverley R.
Morris, Esq., M.D., Toronto ; E. Baynes Reed, Esq., and William
Saunders, Esq., London, C. W. ; and Rev. C. J. S. Bethune, B.A.,
Cobourg : — a very fair representation, on the whole, of the En-
tomologists in the western portion of the Province. Several

Miscellaneoits. 397

gentlemen signified their regret at being unable to attend, in con-
sequence of other engagements, while they expressed at the same
time their hearty approval of the objects of the meeting.

Its first and great object was, naturally, the formation of an
Entomological Club, or Society. After some discussion upon the
subject, it was decided that, in consequence of the smallness of
the number present, no definite org-aoizatioQ should be formed as
yet ; but that another meeting should be held during the ensuing
spring, due notice of the time and place being previously given
to all interested. It was further agreed upon, that the objects of
the contemplated society should be, — first, theformation of as com-
plete a collection as possible of Canadian Insects, to be kept in
some central place for general information and reference ; secondly,
the charge of a depository of duplicate specimens contributed by
Entomologists for distribution among its members ; and thirdly,
the holding of meetings from time to time for mutual information,
and the advancement of the science throughout the country at
large.

The greater portion of the evening was most pleasantly spent
in examining and admiring the very extensive and beautiful col-
lections of Prof. Croft, as well as those of others kindly contri
buted for the occasion. A brief enumeration of their several
points of interest will not, it is hoped, be out of place here. First
and foremost, must be mentioned the large and varied collections
of both native and foreign Insects displayed by Prof. Croft, —
among the former, his Longicorns and several other families of
Coleoptera, attracted general observation, both from the rarity
of many of the specimens, and the completeness of the series;
and among the latter, his huge Chinese beetles — including the Di/-
nastes Herculi, — and magnificent moths, were veiy much admired.
Too much indeed, cannot be said of his various collections, the inspec-
tion of which so greatly enhanced the enjoyment of the evening.
Dr. Morris exhibited a number of rare specimens of Lepi-
doptera, among which may be mentioned Polyommatus epix-
anthe, a new addition to our Canadian butterflies ; Darapsa
myron, S'phinx Kalmice and other Sphinges ; that pretty Litho-
sian Gnophria vittata, etc. He also brought a number of Cole-
optera, as well as several interesting specimens of both orders col-
lected by him in the neighbourhood of Portland, Me., — of these
last, his specimens of Satyrus alope, Strangalia fugax^ Chryso-
chus auratuSf and Meloe ? — were particularly fine.

Miscellaneous.

Mr. Saunders (who took the first prize for his collection of In*
Beets at the recent Provincial Exhibition) brought a number of
the rarer specimens to the meeting. The most remarkable among
them were : — that magnificent butterfly Papilio thoas, not itself a
native specimen, but yet highly interesting as being a represen*
tative of a species occasionally found in Canada ; Terias liza, Me-
litoea 2^limton^ M. ismeria, Thecla acadicay (a new species dis-
covered by Mr. S.,) T. niphon, Lyccena Scudderii, (with specimens
of which he will be happy to supply any Entomologist,) Foly-
ommatus doixas, P. ComyniaSy and other rare butterflies. His
undetermined specimens of Hesperidae, and Sphingidse also
attracted notice. This gentleman with characteristic liberality,
brought also a large case of duplicate specimens for distribution
among all who wished for them.

Mr. Reed, who had just returned from a visit to the old country,
exhibited a complete collection of English butterflies, the speci-
mens of which were very perfect, and also some ingenious appa-
ratus for collecting purposes, including a pocket butterfly net, lan-
tern for attracting Noctuadge, etc.

Mr. Lawrason brought a very remarkable specimen of the group
Sphingina, captured in the vicinity of London, C. W. It has been
submitted to the inspection of several eminent Lepidopterists, and
is considered by them as quite sui generis, difi'ering from anything
they had ever seen before.

Dr. Cowdry exhibited a number of English specimens of Lepi-
doptera and Coleoptera, chiefly conspicuous among which were
the moths Anthrocera jilipenduloej Callimorpha Jacohoece, seve-
ral Cmxulionidce, etc.

Rev. Mr. Bethune contributed specimens of several rare insects,
including the butterfly Melitoea mylitta ; a very beautiful
sphinx, Thyreus nessus ; a new species of Cicindela, some foreign
Cetonias, etc.

Mr. B. Billings, of Prescott, though unable to attend himself,
kindly sent up several cases of interesting specimens, among
which were a number of rare and beautiful Longicorns, several
£tlaters, some very fine Noctuadoe, and a butterfly new to Canada
Polyommatus cratoegi.

His brother, Mr E. Billings, of the Geological Survey, Montreal,
also contributed a few handsome Chinese specimens, and several
rare and interesting native Coleoptera.

Miscellaneous, 399

On the whole, it may be safely affirmed that never before in
Canada had such large and varied collections of insects been
brought together ; the only cause of regret was that there were
not more Entomologists to inspect them. The few that were pre-
sent, however, enjoyed the occasion to the utmost, only separating
at a late hour, with grateful thanks to Prof. Croft for his kind hos-
pitality, and unanimous expressions of delight at the pleasant
evening they had spent.

Thus passed the first meeting of Entomologists ever held in
Canada, the inauguration, it is trusted, of better days and brighter
prospects for this, hitherto, much-neglected branch of natural
science. May the recollection of it serve as a stimulus to incite
those who were present to increase their exertions in this delight-
ful pursuit, and induce others also to look into the world of in-
sects,— an investigation which cannot fail to be replete with unal-
loyed pleasure !

c. J. s. B.

PROCEEDINGS OP THE NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OP
MONTREAL.

Aug. 25th. Ordinary monthly meeting; Dr. Hingston, Cor.
Sec. in the Chair.

Messrs. B. Hutchins, J. McArthur, B. Dawson, T. C. Griffith,
J. Lovell, and C. Freeland were elected ordinary members.

After the usual business, the following donations were pre-
sented : —

A crab, several fishes and aquatic plants, for the aquarium. By
Jas. Ferrier, Junr. Esq.

Skin of white American Pelican, a field mouse {Arvicola), also
five skins of fishes from Lake Superior. By G. Barnston, Esq.

Specimens of Limulus polyhemus from Orchard Beach. Dr.
Dawson.

With several other donations for which the thanks of the So-
ciety were voted.

Sept. 29. Ordinary monthly meeting ; Dr. Dawson, Vice-Pre-
sident, in the Chair.

Messrs. D. M. Patterson, Percival Winning, and G. A. Holland,
were elected ordinary members.

400 Miscellaneous,

After the usual business, the following papers were laid before
the Society and discussed :

On the Physical Geography of Newfoundland, by M. H.
Perley, Esq., President of the Natural History Society of New
Brunswick. Communicated by the Nat. Hist. Soc. of New Bruns-
wick for publication in the Naturalist.

On the Footprints of Limulus as compared with the Frotick-
nites of the Potsdam sandstone ; by Dr. Dawson. This paper
published in the Naturalist^ was explained and illustrated by the
author with the aid of specimens and drawings.

On the Apple-tree Borer; by W. Couper, Esq., Quebec.
This paper, also published in the Naturalist^ was illustrated by
specimens of the animal and its work, presented by Mr. Couper.

A specimen of the Silkweed {Asclepias cornuti) was exhibited
by the Hon. Mr. McGee, and a discussion ensued as to the value
of its silky coma, and the tough fibres of its bark, as substitutes
for cotton and hemp.

The following donations were presented :
Specimens of the young of Limulus polyphemus. By Mrs.
P. Redpath.

Gold-fish and eels, for the aquarium. By Jas. Ferrier, Junr. Esq

A collection of fish from the St. Lawrence ; a large specimen
of Amia ocellicauda from Lake St. Peter; a specimen of the
Canada jay ; eggs of Emys picta. By Mr. William Hunter.

Continuation of the voyage of the frigate Eugenics. From the
Academy of Stockholm.

Oct. 2'7th. Dr. Dawson, Vice-President in the Chair.

The following donations were presented : —

From James Ferrier, Junr. Esq., Fishes for the Aquaria.

From G. Barnston, Esq., several skins of fishes from Lake Su-
perior, also the skin of a young beaver.

From Mr. W. Hunter, a specimen of Ficus hirsutus.

From Dr. Van Courtlandt, specimens of Gasterosteus and Leu-
cisus.

From Dr. Dawson, a paper on Carboniferous Reptiles from
Nova Scotia, by Prof. Owen.

From the Lit. and Phil. Society of Manchester, vol. 1, and
vol. 2, part 1st, of its Memoirs; with various periodical publica-
tions from difierent donors.

THE

CANADIAN

NATURALIST AND GEOLOGIST.

Vol. YIT. DECEMBER, 1862. No. 6.

ARTICLE XXXlX.— On the Mammals and Birds of the Uis-
trict of Montreal. By Archibald Hall, M.D., L.R.C.S.E.
(Conclicded from page 316.)

Order VI. Palmipedes.

Fam. I. Brachyj^tera.
Genus Colymhus.
Gen. char. Bill straight, smooth, compressed, and more or less
acuminate ; nostrils basal, lateral, linear ; feet more or less com-
pletely palmated.

Suh genus Podiceps.

Sub gen. char. Bill moderate, robust, straight, hard, compres-
sed ; points more or less subulate ; upper mandible furrowed deep-
ly and broadly to the centre in which are situated the nostrils
which are basal, lateral, and pervious, the posterior half covered by
a membrane ; feet situated far back ; the tibia mostly hidden in
the body ; tarsus compressed ; front toes depressed, connected at
base by a membrane which forms a broad lobe round each toe •
hind toe compressed ; nails wide and flattened ; wings short and
narrow ; 2nd and 3rd primaries subequal and longest ; tail want-
ing, but in its place a small tuft.

Can. Nat. 26 Vol. VII.

402 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

P. comatus. Horned Grebe.
Cohjmhus cornufus of Gmelin.
Podiceps cornutus. Baird !

V. s. p. Bill shorter than the head, bhiish black with a white
tip ; legs and feet brown pale anteriorly ; irides red ; orbits and
rictus lake colour ; eggs 3 to 4 white spotted brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head, nuchal region and cheeks black,
with a greenish iridescence ; space between eyes and nostrils ches-
nut ; upper part of the ruff commencing above the eye buffy
orange, the remainder of the ruff black ; interscapulary region
and scapulars black, the feathers margined with whitish ; great
and small wing coverts and primaries clove brown ; secondaries
white ; rump blackish brown.

Ventral aspect. Chin, upper part of throat, cheeks and auri-
culars glossy greenish black ; lower part and sides of the throat
glossy chesnutof a very deep tint; vent and tail coverts cinereous;
flanks (ihesnut brown mixed with black ; the remainder of this
aspect glossy white sometimes tinged with yellow.

2nd primary longest ; long scapulars longer than the primaries ;
length 16^ inches ; alar expanse 19 inches ; middle toe nail pecti-
nate. The young bird is deficient in the ruff; its chin and cheeks
with the ventral aspect is white ; all the other parts except the se-
condaries are brownish cinereous. This young bird forms the Po-
diceps obscurus et caspicus of Latham and the Colymhus nigricans
of Scop, and var. A. of Latham.

P. cristatus. Crested Grebe.
Colymhus urinator of Gmelin.
Podiceps cristatus. Baird !

V. s. p. Bill longer than the head about two inches, reddish
white at the point ; legs and feet blackish, interiorly yellowish
white ; naked space from the bill to the eye red ; irides carmine ;
eggs 3 to 4 greenish white waved with deep brown.

Upper surface of head, occipital crest and lateral ruff, shining
black ; bases of the latter and sides of the nape tinged with ru-
fous ; back of neck, dorsal plumage and wings blackish brown ;
upper border of the wing teriiaries and all the secondaries, except
3 or 4 posterior ones, a spot before the eye, chin, sides of head
and under plumage of the neck and body, white silvery below ;
length 23 to 24 inches. (Nuttall), — I have never met with the
old bird, but a young bird beside me has the following distinc-
tive characters :

of the District of Montreal, 403

Bill white, livid on the ridge ; irides red.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head, occipital crest, nuchal region,
lower half of the neck on tiie sides, interscapulary region, rump,
scapulars and wing coverts, including the primaries, cinereouss
brown ; secondaries white, as well as a space between the nostrils
and orbit; chin, upper half of the throat, front of the remaining
half, and remainder of ventral aspect, including the shoulders
white ; silvery on the belly and breast ; the white is tinged on
the flanks with cinereous ; the ruff is wanting, but the occipital
crest is present.

1st and 2nd primaries subequal and longest; long scapulars
equal to the primaries ; length 22 inches ; alar expanse 28 inches ;
length of bill from the angle of the mouth 2^ inches.

P. minor. Little Grebe.

V. s. p. Bill short, strong, compressed, black, with the base of
the lower one, white in the adult ; ridge brown, sides and lower
one yellowish in the young bird ; legs and feet greenish brown
externally, flesh colour internally ; irides reddish brown, dark
brown in the young ; eggs 5 to 6 dirty white.

Dorsal aspect of a young bird after its first month as it lies be-
fore me : Crest wanting ; crown of head brown, varied with yel-
lowish brown ; nape of neck and dorsal region including the pri-
maries and rump blackish brown with olivaceous reflections, which
are wanting in the primaries ; secondaries white on the inner
vanes and at the base.

Ventral aspect. Chin and middle of the breast and bellv white ;
cheeks and sides of throat white tinged with rufous, and with ir-
regular streaks and bands of the latter colour ; upper part of the
breast and sides banded with rufous brown and black, in which
faint white streaks may be discerned ; sides of belly and flanks
blackish ash.

2nd primary longest ; 1st and 4th subequal ; long scapulars long-
er than the longest primary ; length 11^ inches; alar expanse 16
inches ; length of the bill from the angle of the mouth 1 inch
and 2 lines.

P. ruhricollis. Red necked Grebe.

Colymbiis ruhricollis et subcristatus of Graelin !

Podiceps grisedgena. Baird !

D. c. Bill as long as the head, black, yellow at the base, from

404 Dr, A. Hall o?i the Mammals and Birds

the front to the tips 1^ inches; irides reddish brown ; legs and
feet black, internally yellowish green ; eggs 3 to 4 whitish green?
soiled with yellowish brown.

Adult with the cheeks and throat ash colour, neck and breast
rufous ; crown and nape with a narrow black space, a short occi-
pital black crest, but no ruff; front black; secondaries white ;
young duller coloured and spotted ; no occipital crest ; cheeks
and throat white, the former striped with black. This bird will
likely be found in this district, but I have not hitherto met with
it.

P. Carolinensis. Red bill Dobchick or Grebe.
Colymhus podiceps of Gmelin !
Colymbus Ludovicianus of Catesby !

V. 9. p. Bill pale with a black band across the centre including
the nostrils ; legs and feet blackish brown ; irides hazel ; eggs un-
known.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head and nape of neck blackish ash
colour mixed with cinereous ; dorsal region, rump, and scapular
olive brown ; great and small wing coverts, primaries and outer
vanes of secondaries brown; inner vanes of secondaries white;
cheeks and sides of the neck ashy.

Ventral aspect. Chin and orbicular space down the throat jet
black ; the remainder of the throat, its sides, and the cheeks as
far as the nuchal region cinereous mixed with white ; breast and
its sides blackish brown, the feathers broadly tipped with soiled
yellow ; belly and sides glossy white, internally cinereous ; the
latter colour visible through the white vent and flanks, glossy
blackish brown.

2nd primary longest ; 1st shorter than the 3rd but longer than
the 4th ; length 13^ inches ; alar expanse 16^ inches ; length of
bill from the angle of the mouth 1 J inch. In the young bird the
transversal band of the bill is obsolete or at most very faintly de-
lineated ; the chin is white, the breast and flanks light chesnut
brown, and the belly silvery white tinged with brown. The inner
and middle toes of the bird are connected beyond the first articu-
lation, and the outer and middle toes are subequal in length.

Subgenus Colymhus.
Sub gen. char. Bill longer than the head, stout, straight, sub-
cylindrical, compressed, with a subulate tip ; nostrils basal, lateral,
oblong, semiclosed by a membrane ; feet placed far back ; tarsus

of the District of Montreal. 405

compressed ; anterior toes wholly palmated ; hind toe small, bare-
ly touching the ground ; wings moderate, small and acuminate :
1st and 2nd primaries longest; tail short, composed of 12 or 10
feathers. This genus appears to be the last of a connecting link
between the true palmipedes and those whose toes are free.
Their acuminate bill approximates them to the latter, while their
really webbed feet induces us to classify them among the former.
In general systematic works they have obtained a station after the
I>uck tribe ; unjustly so; Cuvier's arrangement is decidedly the
best, ranking them in their present position, which I have adopted.

C. Septemtrionalis. Red throated Diver.

C. striatus )

C. stellatus > Young bird in its different states.

C. Itorealis )

C. Septemtrionalis. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill black ; tip brown colour ; legs and feet blackish
green ; irides red ; eggs 2, of a pale oil green colour.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head, cheeks and sides of neck lead
colour, approaching to black in the centre of the crown ; a stripe
along the back of the neck, branching off" to the sides of the neck,
black streaked with white ; interscapulary region and scapulars
black, with a couple of faint white spots on the tip of each feather ;
rump and tail black ; great and small wing coverts brownish
black ; primaries and secondaries black, tipped with green brown
and white on the inner borders at the base.

Ventral aspect. Chin lead colour ; throat with a mesial line
of deep purplish red ; breast, belly, vent and tail coverts white ;
sides of flanks streaked with black ; inner wing linings white.

1st primary longest ; scapulars short; length 31 inches; alar
expanse 37 inches ; length of bill from the rictus 3 inches 1 line ;
the lower mandible is navicular ; the upper one is about a line
longer than the lower ; the ridge of the upper mandible is inclined
to yellowish brown in the specimen before me, and an irregular
streak of white runs along the side of the lower one.

A female shot in the Lachine rapids in the spring of 1837 and
in my possession has the following distinctive characters :

Dorsal aspect. Crown, nape of neck cinereous ; dorsal region
including the scapulars dark ash colour with a couple of white
streaks on the tip of each feather, giving this region a crossed or
zigzag appearance ; rump and tail blackish ash ; primaries black, as

406 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

well as the secondaries, white on the inner vanes towards the
base.

Ventral aspect white ; sides of flanks streaked with black. In
another female, probably a younger bird, the anterior part of the
throat and cheeks is mixed cinereous and white, imparting a
gYQ.j or hoary appearance to these regions. The length of the
latter specimen is 2*7 inches, that of the former 28 inches. Nut-
tal gives as the length of the male bird 29 inches. The stuffed
specimen of the male, the description of which is given above,
measured as stated 31 inches, probably owing to an irregularity
in the manner in which the specimen has been set up. The bird
is a rare one in our markets. The male specimens are even rarer
than the female.

C. glacialis. Loon or Great Northern X>iver.
C immer of Gmelin ! Young bird.
Colymhus torquatus. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black ; irides red ; eggs 3 to 4
smoky olive, blotched with umber brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown, cheeks, chin and whole neck jet black,
deep black on the head, glossy at the lower part of the neck, with a
purple reflection ; on the front of the neck, a narrow band, scarce-
ly reaching the sides, and about two inches below it, a collar com-
mencing broadly behind and narrowing to the front, white, with
broad longitudinal black lines, the black streaks occupying the
centre of the feathers ; interscapulary region, scapulars, great and
small wing coverts; rump and tail coverts, black, verging to
brown on the coverts, with rows of white spots ; these spots being
square and in pairs on the scapulars ; suborbicular and in pairs
on the dorsal region, and single and round on the coverts and
rump ; primaries, secondaries and tail blackish brown, white on
the inner vanes of the two former near the base.

Ventral aspect. Shoulders white, streaked with black, like the
collar ; wing and tail coverts, and breast and belly white ; sides
and flanks black, streaked and spotted with white.

1st primary longest; length 34 inches; alar expanse 51 in-
ches ; length of the bill from the rictus 4f inches. The female
is in every respect analogous to the female of the C. Septemti'io-
nalis, but on a larger scale ; the feathers of the head and neck of
this bird are uncommonly velvety in feel, and from its approxima-
tion to the characters of fur and from its durability is often used
for the same purpose by our Aborigines. The C. Arcticus, the

of the District of Montreal. 407

only other species of this orenus met with on this continent does
not visit us. It is a peculiarly northern sea bird, never met with
beyond the sea coasts.

Fam. II. Longipennes.
Genus Sterna.

Gen. char. Bill as long or as longer than the head, compres-
sed, slender, more or lest acuminate with sharp edges ; upper
mandible, curved at the tip, never hooked, and equal in lencrth to
the lower ; nostrils in the middle of the bill, longitudinally cleft
and pervious ; legs and feet slender and small, with a naked space
above tlie knee ; tarsus shorter than the middle toe ; the 3 front
toes webbed ; hind toe very short barely touching the ground ;
wings long, acuminate; 1st primary longest; tail of 12 feathers
long and forked.

^S'. Hiinindo ? The Great or Common Tern.

v.s.p. Bill fine orange, faintly delineated with black, near the
tip, which is pale lake ; irides deep hazel ; legs and feet black.

Dorsal aspect. Crown, occiput, including the eye, black, des-
cending for a short distance down the nuchal region, the remain-
der of which, with the rump and tail, is white ; mantle pearl co-
lour ; the three first primaries greyish black, the others hoary
pearl colour, all of them with a faint streak of white, running
longitudinally along the inner vanes ; shafts white ; lower eyelid
white.

Ventral aspect white.

1st primary longest, the others graduated ; the tail moderate
furcate; length from the lateral tail feather to the tip of the bill
20 inches; alar expanse 4G inches; the specimen a female,
length of bill from the rictus 3j inches; length of the tarsus If
inch. This bird diflers in several particulars from the S. Rirundo
of Nuttall, so much so that I feel almost inclined to rank it a se-
parate species, were it not for the risk of multiplying species.
The points in which they difl'er are the following :

S. Hirundo. S. Hirundo ?

Crown and occiput wholly black, Crown and occiput wholly black

including the eyes. including the e3"e, lower eye-

lid white.
Mouth bluish white or pale lead Mouth pearl colour.

colour.
Tail greatly forked. Tail moderately forked..

408 Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Bill reddish yellow or crimson Bill orange, with a faint streak of
tipped with black. black on both mandibles near

the tip, which is pale.
Tarsus red, 1 inch long. Tarsus and web black, the for-

mer 1§ inch long.
Length 15 inches ; alar expanse Length 20 inches ; alar expanse
30 inches. 46 inches.

From this comparative view of these two birds, there can be
little doubt but that they are distinct. Under present circum-
stances, however, I do not wish to establish a new species, for
they are sufficiently numerous ; I much rather prefer ranking it
under the head of S. Hirundo with a point of interrogation after
it, thus implying my doubt as to its being' in reality the bird men-
tioned by authors under that name. The specimen from which
my description is taken is in the Museum of the Natural History
Society of Montreal. This bird differs also very materially from
the Sterna Boysii,

S. arctica. Arctic Tern.
S. argentea of Brehm !
S' macroura of Newman.
Sterna macroura. . Baird !

v.s.p. Bill orange tipped with black ; legs and feet scarlet ;
irides brown ; eggs 2 to 3, light yellowish brown or bluish grey
potted irregularly with brown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown and nuchal- region jet black ; mantle
pearl grey; rump and tail coveits white; outer vane of the 1st
primary black ; outer vanes of all the others, as well as the tips,
and a stripe down the inner vanes along the shafts, hoary grey,
verging to black at the tips ; outer vane of the lateral tail feathers
black ; of all the others pearl grey ; inner vanes of primaries, se-
condaries, and tail feathers white.

Ventral aspect. Cheeks, throat, vent, tail coverts, and wings
linings pure white ; all other parts pearl colour.

1st primary longest ; wings extending long over the tail ; length
14 inches ; alar expanse 30 inches ; length of the bill from the
rictus 1 inch 9 lines ; tarsus and toes small ; middle toe, without
the nail, equal to the tarsus. Li two other specimens before me,
the new lateral tail feathers only have their external vanes pearl
grev, and not black at all, and all the other tail feathers white.
This Tern is the most common one in this district.

of the District of Montreal. 409

S. nigra. Black Tern.
S.fissipes of Gmelin !
;S'. ohscura of Latham !
S. plumhea of Wilson !

v.s.p. Bill black, pale towards the base of the lower mandible ;
legs and feet brown or purplish black ; irides brown ; eggs 3 to 4
olive brown, mottled brown, and black.

Dorsal aspect of the young bird. Frontlet ashy white ; crown
and nape blackish ash ; interscapulary region and scapulars dark
ash, tipped with rufous white; wings, rump and tail pale ash;
the former with a narrow edging of white on the inner vanes ;
crescent in front of the eyes, and auriculars black.

Ventral aspect. Throat and its sides, chin, middle of the breast,
belly, tail and wing coverts white ; sides, flanks, and axillaries
pale ash ; shafts of all the wings and tail quills black.

1st primary longest ; wings extending about Ij inch beyond
the tail which is subfurcate ; length 9j- inches ; alar expanse 20
inches ; middle toe, without the nail, longer than the tarsus.

The adult plumage in nuptial dress : coverts of wholly blackish
ash ; the winter dress of adult birds is lead colour, with the head
and neck deep black, and the front, throat and vent white. This
bird is not often met with in this district.
Genus Larus.

Gen. char. Bill moderate, rather stout, straight, compressed,
naked at the base, with sharp incurved edges ; upper mandible
rounded above with the apex curved ; lower one shorter, gibbous
and angular beneath the point which is blunt ; nostrils medial,
lateral, longitudinal and open ; tail slender ; thumb small, not
touching the ground ; hind nail occasionally wanting ; wings long
and acute ; 1st and 2nd primaries subequal and longest ; tail,
more or less square, of 12 feathers.

L. atricilla. Black headed Gull — Laughing Gull.
L. ridibundus of Wilson !
Chroicocejyhalus atricilla. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet red ; irides hazel ; eggs 3 olive grey,
spotted, pale purple, and dilute brown.

Mantle dark bluish ash, quills black; above and below the
eyes a spot of white ; eyelids and sides of the mouth lake red ;
head and neck black ; the whole ventral aspect white ; 5 first pri-
maries black towards their tips and except the 1st and 2nd tipped

410 Pr. A. Hall 071 the Mammals and Birds

with white, the secondaries broadly so ; the closed wings extend-
ing two inches beyond the tail. In winter, the hood is wanting,
and the young birds have a subterminal band of black on the
tail, while their dorsal and ventral aspects are brownish, tipped
with rusty white. Length of an adult 17 inches; alar expanse
36 inches. A specimen of this bird is in the Museum of the Nat-
ural History Society ; it is a rare one in this vicinity.
L. tridactylus. Kittiwake Gull.
L. rissa of Pennant !
L. rissa tridactyla. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill of the old bird yellowish ; of the young bird
black, brownish at the base ; legs and feet yellowish, (black ac-
cording to Nuttall) ; orbits orange ; irides hazel ; eggs 3, olivace-
ous white spotted light and dark grey.

Old bird summer plumage. Mantle bluish grey ; 5 exterior
quills and outer web of 1st black ; 4th and 5th tipped with
white ; all the other parts white. In winter plumage, the occiput
and neck are French grey, and the rictu-orbital space streaked
with black. A young bird before me presents the following cha-
racters :

Crown of head, occiput, and scapulars grey skirted with brown-
ish white ; rump and wing coverts, except the upper row of the
small wing coverts which is brownish black, bluish ash colour ;
tail wdiite with a subterminal band of black, and tipped with
white ; all the primaries black towards the extremities, the black
running down the outer and inner margins in a narrow streak ;
the whole outer vanes of the 1st primary black ; all the primaries
except the 1st tipped with white ; auriculars brown.

Ventral aspect white.

1st primary longest ; length 14 inches ; alar expanse 30 inches ;
the tarsus and web have dried pure white, so that I doubt very
much whether a black colour, as given by Nuttall, could even
characterize this part in the young bird. I have never met with
an old specimen.

L. canus. Common Gull or Mew.

V.S.P. Bill yellow ; legs and feet blackish grey, blotched with
yellow on the webs ; irides hazel ; eggs 3, bluish or ochraceous,
spotted with cinereous and blackish.

Summer plumage. Mantle bluish grey ; the first six primaries
with black near the tips, forming a narrow bar on the 6th ; the

of the District of Montreal, 411

1st and 2ncl with a long whife space near their tips ; all the
others including the scapulars and secondaries broadly tipped
with white ; all the other aspects white.

In winter plumage, the head and neck are spotted with black
and the young is brownish cinereous varied with rusty.

Length 19 inches ; alar expanse about 36 inches.

L.fuscus. Silvery Gull.

v.s.p. Bill yellow, angle on the lower mandible lively red ;
legs and feet yellow ; irides hazel ; orbits red ; eggs 2, olive brown
or grey, blotched with dusky.

Winter plumage. Mantle slate black; 1st and 2nd primaries
with an oval white spot ; all the other parts of the' quills black,
except a white tip, which is also observable on the scapulars and
secondaries ; head and neck streaked with light brown ; ventral
aspect and tail white. In summer the head and neck are pure
white, and the young bird is bluish grey, mottled with yellowish
rusty.

Length 20 inches; alar expanse about 38 inches.

L. argentatus. Herring Gull.
L. argenteus of Brehm !
L. argentatus. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill and orbits yellow, the former with the angle of the
lower mandible lively red ; irides hazel; legs and feet flesh colour ;
eggs 2 or 3 olivaceous, spotted with dark cinereous.

Summer plumage of adult. Ventral aspect, head, neck, rump,
and tail pure white ; mantle bluish ash colour ; primaries black
towards their extremities ; the fir.^t one with a spot of white near
the tip, which is obsolete on the second ; and all of them, as well
as the secondaries and scapulars, tipped with white. In winter
the head and neck are varied with brown Hues. The young bird
blackish ash, mottled with rusty.

Length 24 inches ; alar expanse 50 inches. The female is
about an inch shorter than the male. This gull is commonly met
with in the autumn.

L. glaucus. Burgomaster.
L. glaucus. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill brown colour at the base, blackish near the tip ;
legs and feet flesh colour; irides dark hazel; eggs 3 pale purplish
grey, spotted with umber brown and pale purple.

412 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Slimmer adult plumage. Mantle bluish asli colour ; quills
greyish white ; primaries, secondaries, scapulars, tipped with
white ; all the other parts white. In winter the head and neck
are streaked and mottled with pale wood-brown. The young birds
have longitudinal pale brown streaks on the head and neck, and
the upper plnmage transversely barred with ash grey and greyish
yellow.

Length 29 inches; alar expanse 44 inches.

Fam. IV. LameUirostres.
Genus Anas.

Gen. char. Bill broad and large, furnished on the edges with
thin salient laminas placed transversely; feet placed far back, not
sufficiently so as to incapacitate them from walking, but so as to
render them a weak and uneasy kind of waddle ; their wings mo-
derately long, and their tail mpie or less acute or round.

Suh genus Anser.

Sub gen. char. Bill short, thick, rather compressed, deeper
than broad at the base, and depressed at the apex ; marginal
teeth short, conic and acute ; nostrils lateral, medial, elliptical,
large, open, pervious, covered by a membrane ; tongue fringed on
the sides, short and thick; 1st, 2nd, and 3rd primaries longest;
tail rounded, of 16 to 20 feathers.

A. Canadensis. Canada Goose.

Bernida [Leucohlepharon) Canadensis. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet black; irides reddish hazel ; eggs 6
to 7 greenish white.

Dorsal aspect. Head and neck black ; a spot on the brown
eyelid, and a uniform patch from the auriculars, meeting its fel-
low on the chin, white ; interscapulary region and scapulars dark
bi'own, with pale edgings ; secondaries and wing coverts pale
brown; primaries and tail black ; rump black; tail coverts white.

Ventral aspect. Lower part of the neck and sides greyish
brown, with pale edges ; centre of the breast and belly greyish
white; vent, flanks, and tail coverts white.

2nd primary longest; 1st and 2nd subequal ; length 37 inches ;
alar expanse 60 inches ; length of bill from frontal feathers 2 in-
ches and 2 lines ; length of the middle toe and tarsus together
6^ inches.

of the District of Montreal. 413

A. Jiyperhoreus. Snow Goose.
A. (Chen) Tii/jyerhoreus. Baird !
D.c. Bill, feet and orbits deep or aurora red ; irides dark hair
brown ; eggs yellowish white.

General colour white ; quills pitch black, their shafts white at
the base ; head glossed with ferruginous, extending sometimes to
the neck and even to the middle of the belly.

Length 32 inches; alar expanse 33 inches (Nuttall). This spe-
cies.and the two following are extremely rare in this district, being
only birds of passage, through it, an occasional straggler only
being killed.' I never met with a specimen of this bird and I have
never seen but a single specimen of each of the following :
A. leucoj^sis. Barnacle Goose,
Anas leucojms of Linnaeus !
Anas erythiopsis of Temminck !
Bernicla or Clahis of Latham !
, Bernicla (Leucajmreia) leucoj>sis. Baird !
D.c. Bill, legs and feet black ; irides blackish brown.
Front sides of the head and throat pure white ; a small stripe
between the eye and bill, occiput, nape, neck, uppei- part of the
breast, tail and quills black ; feathers of the back scapulars and
wings of an ashy grey from their origins, with a wide band of
black towards their ends and all tipped with whitish grey ; lower
parts pure white, with the exception of the flanks which have a
cinereous tint.

Length 25 to 27 inches (Nuttall).

A. hernicla. Brant or Brent Goose.
A. torquatus of Veillot !
Anas hernicla of Linnaeus and Latham !
Bernicla [Bernicla^ hreiita. Baird !
D.c. Bill, legs and feet black, the former shorter than the head ;
irides hazel.

Head and neck with shoulders and breast greyish black;
quills, tertiaries, rump and tail greyish black ; back scapu-
lars and outer and inner wing coverts clove brown, marcrined
with yellowish grey ; a mottled spot on the side of the neck ; tail
coverts above and below, sides of the rump and vent, white •
belly yellowish grey; flanks narrowly barred with bluish grey
and white ; tail coverts as long as the tail, which is much rounded.
Length 24 inches; alar expanse 42 inches (Nuttall).

414 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Sub-genus Cygnus.
Sub gen. char. Bill higher than broad at the base, gibbous,
obtuse, and equally broad throughout ; teeth lamelliform ; nostrils
central, oval, pervious, and covered by a membrane; tongue
fringed at the sides ; lores naked ; neck long ; feet placed far
back ; tarsus shorter than the middle toe ; primaries and second-
aries subeqiial in length ; 2nd and 3rd longest ; tail cuneiform.
C, ferns. Wild or Whistling Swan.
C. musicus of Bechstein and Buonaparte ! !
Anas O'.ferus of Linnaeus!
Anas cygnus of Linnaeus and Latham ! !
Cygnus Americanus. Baird !
vs.p. Bill black ; care and space round the eyes yellow ;
irides dark hazel ; legs and feet black ; eggs 5 to *? olivaceous,
green and rough.

Dorsal and ventral aspects. White, except the crown of head
and neck, which are more or less tinged with yellowish.

The young bird is pale grey, with a dull black bill and a livid
care, and reddish grey feet.

Length of a specimen killed opposite Longueuil, and at present
a conspicuous object in the Museum of the Natural History So-
ciety, 66 inches ; alar expanse 90 inches ; length of the bill from
the tVontal feathers 4 inches, 10 lines : do of tarsus and middle
toe with nail 11| inches. The specimen alluded to is the only
one of the species known at present to have been killed in this
District. It is an extremely rare bird. I do not think that the
C. buccinator has ever been met with here. The specimen in
the Natural History Society has the frontal feathers only tinged

yellow.

Sub genus Anas.

Sub gen. char. Bill broader than deep at the base, becoming
slightly contracted, and then widening towards the tip, which is ob-
tuse and flattened ; marginal teeth lamelliform and weak ; upper
mandible entirely covering the under ; nostrils basal, open, per-
vious, and covered by a membrane ; tongue fringed at the sides ;
neck about the same length as the body ; tarsus about equal to the
middle toe; wings moderate, acute; 1st or 2nd primaries longest ;
tail rounded or cuneiform, composed of 14 to 16 feathers. In
most species the lower row of wing coverts is very gaudily col-
oured, and extremely glossy, and is the part alluded to in the
following description of the species under the name of " specu-
lum."

of the District of Montreal, 415

A. bosckas. Common Mallard.

A. domestka of Richardson and Swainson ! !

Boschas major of Ray !

Anas boschas. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill livid, the nail yellow (Bill wax yellow, Nnttall !) ;
irides reddish brown ; legs and feet orange ; eggs 10 to 18 bluish
white.

Dorsal aspect. Head and neck rich glossy emerald green ;
collar white, interrupted on the nape of neck ; interscapulary re-
gion light chesnut brown with paler edgings ; shoulders and sca-
pulars whitish grey, elegantly undulated with clove brown ; the
exterior row tinted with rich chesnut ; small wing coverts greyish
brown, the outermost ones margined with white ; speculum rich
glossy purple, with a deep sea green iridescence, and bounded
above and below with jet black and white ; rump and tail covert?,
black, with a deep emerald green iridiscence ; the two central tail
coverts recurved ; tail composed of 16 feathers, brown in the
centre along the shafts, broadly margined with white ; the
feathers acuminate ; primaiy quills pure brown.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat to the breast like the head ;
breast dark chesnut; wing linings and axillaries white; belly
sides and tianks greyish white, finely undulated with clove brown ;
tail coverts velvet black.

2nd primary longest ; length 23j- inches ; alar expanse 34 in-
ches ; length of bill from frontal feathers, 2 inches and two lines ;
length of tarsus, middle toe and nail together, 4 inches.

" The female and young are wholly brownish, varied with yel-
lowish and bluish."

A. clypeata. Shoveller.

A. rubens of Gmel. ! var. young male !

Spatula clypeata. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill livid black ; legs and feet orange ; irides reddish
brown (yellow?) eggs 12 to 14, pale greenish yellow.

Dorsal aspect. Space in front of the orbits, frontlet and me-
dial line to the interscapulary region, and interscapulary region
umber brown, tinted with green on the head and margined with
wood brown in the latter situation ; cheeks and sides of the neck,
dusky emerald green; lower half of the neck, short scapulars and
sides of the rump, white ; long scapulars, with the outer vane pale
blue, and the inner vane white, margined with jet black, tinted

416 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

with green ; small wing coverts pale blue ; speculum brilliant
grass green, bounded above and below with white ; rump brown-
ish black, tinted with sea green ; tail coverts sea green ; tail cu-
neiform ; the four central feathers umber brown, all the others
white, more or less spotted with brown ; primaries umber brown,
their shafts white.

Ventral aspect. Chin and upper half of throat umber brown ;
breast and wing linings white ; belly, vent, and sides chesnut ;
flanks chesnut, finely undulated with dark brown ; tail coverts
black with a sea green iridescence.

2nd primary longest, Istsubequal to 2nd, the others graduated;
leno-th 20 inches ; alar expanse 35 inches ; length of bill from
the frontal feathers 2f inches. The female is liver brown above,
with broad borders of pale wood-brown — beneath, pale wood-
brown with obscure livid brown marks ; the lesser wing coverts
are slightly glossed with pale blue, and the speculum is less vivid
than in the male.

A. strepera. The Gadwell.
Chaulelasmus streperus. Baird !

D.c. " Speculum white bordered with black and chestnut ; feet
*' orange ; their webs blackish ; tail of 16 feathers ; male blackish,
*'■ waved with white ; rump black. Female duller and rump uni-
" form in colour with the rest of the plumage."

Length 23 inches ; do of bill 1 inch 7 lines. I have no doubt
that this species is to be met with in this District, but it has as
yet escaped my notice.

A. ohscura. Dusky duck — Black duck.
A. ohscura. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill livid, its nail black ; legs and feet yellowish ;
irides hazel ; eggs 8 to 15, white.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head blackish brown ; frontlet streak-
ed with drab ; cheeks and sides of the neck drab, streaked with
blackish brown ; interscapulary region, rump, scapulars, and lower
wing coverts umber brown, margined with pale chesnut ; tail co-
verts black, margined with pale chesnut ; tail cuneiform, blackish
brown edged with brownish white ; primaries dusky ; speculum
purplish green, bordered above and below with jet black, the
lower border terminated by white.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat drab, streaked with blackish
brown ; the remaining parts of this aspect umber brown, streaked

of the District of Montreal. 417

witli cbesnut in the centre of each feather on the breast, belly
and flanks, and margined with pale chesnut in the two latter si-
tuations.

2nd primary longest, 1st next, the others graduated.
The female resembles the male.

A. dhcors. Blue Winged Teal.
Querquedula discors. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill livid black; legs and feet yellow; irides hazel;

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head and border of a crescentic white
patch extending from the crown to the chin, between the orbits
and bill, brownish black; cheeks, sides of the neck and nape
greyish, with a lavender purple iridescence ; interscapulary region
and short scapulars umber brown, zigzag barred, and margined
with cream colour ; long scapulars striped with blackish green^
pale blue, and deep cream colour, some of them wholly blue *,
rump umber brown with pale margins ; lateral tail coverts black'
ish green, centre ones wood-brown ; tail subrotund with acumi-
nate feathers which are umber brown with pale margins ; small
wing coverts pale blue ; upper row of great wing coverts blackish
brown at their bases, with while distal halves; speculum dark
green ; primaries umber brown, pale on their inner vanes.

Ventral aspect. Chin and upper half of the throat like the
cheeks ; remainder of the throat, breast, belly, vent, sides and
flanks, pale chesnut, with orbicular black spots on the breast
and sides, and black bars on the belly and flanks ; sides of the
rump white ; under tail coverts umber brown ; axillaries white.

1st primary longest ; length 16 inches; alar expanse 23^ in-
ches; length of bill from the frontal feathers to the tip 1 inch 9
lines ; length of tarsus, middle toe and nail 3 inches.

The female wants the white patch on the rump, and the cres-
cent before the eye, and the purple iridescence on the head and
neck. Her long scapulars are uniform in colour with the rest of
the interscapulary region, and her ventral aspect has the chesnut
tinge less developed, and irregularly blotched wiih black. The
young birds are deficient in the green speculum, but resemble the
mother in other respects.

A. crecca. American Teal.
Nettion crecca. Baird I

v.s.p. Bill bluish black ; legs and feet reddish grey ; irides
hazel ; eggs dusty white spotted with brown.

Can. Nat. 27 Vol. VII.

418 Dr. A. Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head, cheeks, and sides of the neck
glossy cbesnut; encircling the eye and proceeding backwards
from it a glossy emerald green band bordered inferiorly by black,
and then faintly with white ; nuchal crest indigo blue ; lower
part of the neck white, elegantly waved with fine lines of brown-
ish black ; interscapulary region and rump pale brown or ash,
finely waved with white near the tips of the feathers ; long sca-
pulars and small wing coverts ash colour, outer ones bordered on
their outer vanes with jet black ; short scapulars finely waved with
white and blackish brown ; tail coverts black, margined with cream
colour, the lateral ones having a deep purple iridescence ; quills of
the tail and primaries dusky, the former having pale edges ; spe-
culum glossy grass green, bounded superiorly by brownish white,
inferiorly by white, and on either side by jet black ; the shoulder
"with a crescentic white band.

Ventral aspect. Chin brownish black, remainder of the throat
halfchesnut and half white, waved with brownish black ; breast
wood-brown with semi-orbicular black spots ; belly and vent
white glossed with wood-brown ; sides and flanks white, waved
with blackish brown ; lateral tail coverts white, glossed with wood
brown, central ones jet black, the long ones of which are edged
with white.

1st primary longest, 2nd subequal to it, the rest are graduated
in respective lengths ; length 15j inches ; alar expanse 23 inches ;
length of bill from frontal feathers 1 inch aiid 4 lines; length of
middle toe, nail, and tarsus 2 J inches.

The female wants the crest, the brilliant colours on the head,
the stripes on the scapulars, the black under tail coverts, the or-
bicular spots on the breast, and the wavy markings on the back
and sides. In lieu of which her dorsal aspect is liver brown with
pale margins, and her chin and belly white, the latter marked
with brown. (Nuttall.)

A. Americana. American Widgeon.
Mareca Americana.
Mareca Americana. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill bluish grey on the upper mandible, which is tipped
with black ; lower mandible wholly black ; legs and feet red ;
irides hazel ; eggs 6 to 8.

Dorsal aspect. Front and crown to the occiput white ; a patch
on the side of the head, including the orbits, and proceeding back-
wards to the nuchal crest, black, with a bronzy and sea green

of the District of Montreal, ^IjS

iridescence, and irregularly barred with white ; space before the
orbits, remainder of the cheek and sides of neck, white, barred
with'dull black ; on the cheeks the white is tinged with yellow ;
interscapulary region and scapulars elegantly waved with fine
lines of black, reddish brown, and white, the last colour only met
with on the outermost of the short scapulars ; long scapulars half
velvet black, with a green reflection and half clove brown, bor-
dered on the outer vane with white, with shafts of the same co-
lour ; rump clove brown with cinereous margins, finely waved with
white ; tail coverts black, margined on the inner vanes with white ;
tail cuneiform ; the two long central feathers hair brown, the la-
teral ones cinereous, margined and tipped with white ; primaries
clove brown, pale in tint on the inner webs ; small wing coverts
crimson ; speculum velvet black, inferiorly green above, bordered
superiorly with black and internally with crimson white.

Ventral aspect. Chin blackish brown spotted with white ;
upper part of throat cream colour, minutely spotted with black,
remainder of throat white, spotted black ; breast and sides red-
dish brown, with a shining grey gloss to the feathers ; belly, vent
and sides of the rump white ; femorals greyish white finely waved
with brown ; under tail coverts jet black , the centre ones brown
tipped with white.

1st primary longest, the others graduated ; the longest scapu-
lar subequal to the 6th primary ; length 21^ inches ; alar expanse
32 inches ; length of bill from the frontal feathers 1 inch 8 lines.
In the female, the dorsal aspect is liver brown, edged and barred
with pale brown and white ; the bronzy green iridescence on the
head is wanting, and the tail is more rounded.
A, acuta. Pintail duck.
A, caudacula of Richardson !
Dajlla acuta. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill livid with a black ridge ; legs and feet grey ; irides
reddish hazel ; eggs, 8 to 9, greenish blue.

Dorsal aspect. Crown and front, with the occiput, umber brown,
with pure brown edging:^ ; cheeks and sides of the neck hair brown
with a lavender purple iridescence on the side of the neck below
the occiput; nuchal region blackish brown, divided from the hair
brown side of the neck by a white stripe, which runs up from the
lower half of the throat to near the occiput ; anterior part of tlie
back, interscapulary region, short scapulars and rump white, beau-
tifully waved with transverse lines of black ; long scapulars black-

420 Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

ish green with cinereous borders, the outermost ones striped with
white ; short tail coverts brownish white, with a brown streak
along the shaft ; long coverts blackish brown on the outer vanes,
brownish white on the inner vanes; wing coverts cinereous; pri-
maries and tail quills clove brown ; the shafts of the former white,
and the outer vanes of the former edged with brownish white ;
the two long central feathers blackish green, extending more than
two inches beyond the longest of the other feathers of the tail;
speculum bronzy green bounded above by ferruginous, and be-
low by white.

Ventral aspect. Chin and upper half of the throat umber
brown ; remaining half, breast, and belly white ; sides and flanks
white, waved with black like the back ; vent white, minutely
sprinkled with grey ; sides of the rump cream white ; tail coverts
jet black, half of the outer vanes of the outermost ones white.

1st primary longest; 2nd subequal ; length 29 inches; alar
expanse 36 inches ; length of bill from the frontal feathers, 2 in-
ches and 2 lines. In the female the two long tail feathers are
wanting, together with the wavy flanks and sides, and the specu-
lum wants the bronzy gloss ; her dorsal plumage is brownish
black, with a spot on each side of the shaft, with borders of reddish
white. The speculum is wholly deficient in the young bird.
A. spoma. Wood duck.

JDendronessa sponsa of Richardson and Swainson !
Aix ^oonsa. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill red, a stripe on the ridge, its tip and its margins
black; lower mandible wholly black; legs and feet orange ; irides
red ; eggs 12 to 13 yellowish white.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head and space round the eyes deep
sea green ; a stripe from the projecting base of the bill to the
crest, and another from above the auriculars to the crest white ;
the iridescence from the eye to the crest is bronzy, and on the
cheeks purple and reddish purple ; a crescent from the auriculars
to the chin, and another on the side of the throat, white, below
which crescents the plumage is deep purplish black ; nuchal crest,
composed of bronze, deep purple, purplish red, sea green, and
white hair like feathers ; interscapulary region and rump bronze ;
tail coverts bronzy green, the lateral ones hanging gracefully over
the side of the tail in a hair like manner ; short scapulars jet
black, with a faint bronzy reflection ; long scapulars half black,
and half bronzy green ; long scapulars half black and half purple ;

of the District of Montreal, 421

wing coverts cinereous, the lower internal ones with a purplish
iridescence ; speculum purplish blue, tipped inferiorly with white,
and bordered internally with bronze ; tail feathers blackish green,
the form of the tail round ; primaries hoary white on the outer
vanes ; clove brown on the inner vanes, which are also tipped with
purple.

Ventral aspect. Chin and upper half of the throat white, re-
mainder of the throat and breast bright glossy chesnut brown
with terminal triangular spots of white ; belly and vent white ;
shoulders with a crescent of white, the feathers of which are
broadly tipped with jet black ; sides yellowish brown, elegantly
waved with blackish brown ; flank yellowish grey finely waved
with black, the tips of the long feathers broadly barred with
white and black ; sides of the rump purplish red ; axillaries white,
barred with blackish brown ; tail feathers bronze ; inner aspect
of the wings cinereous.

2nd primary longest ; 1st longer than the 3rd ; length 20 in-
ches ; alar expanse 28 inches ; length of bill from frontal feathers
1^ inch.

The female has the head and crest and a white patch round the
eye brownish ; the wavy lines on the flanks and the pendant tail
coverts are wanting ; the crest is shorter, and on the whole the
plumage is less vivid.

Sub-genus Clangula.

Sub-gen. Char. Bill short, narrow at the base, not much ele-
vated, slightly curved or scolloped from the base to the curve at
top ; nostrils suboval and subcentral ; tail moderately long.

A. albeola. The Spirit duck.

Clangula albeola. Richardson and Swainson!

Fiiligula albeola. Bonaparte !

Anas bucephala of Pennant !

Bucephala albeola. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill blueish black, yellowish at the tip ; legs and feet
yellow ; irides yellow ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Crown of head and sides of neck glossy reddish
pnrple; front, cheeks, and lower part of crest on the nuchal re-
gion, dark green ; a broad band from the eye to the occipital
crest, and lower part of the neck at its sides and back, white ;
interscapulary region, long and inner short scapulars, rump, and
primaries, black; outer scapulars, and outer wing coverts, white,

422 Dr* A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

the former fringed with black; speculum white; tail cdvertS
blackish grey; tail hoary blackish grey, edged with brownish
white.

Ventral aspect. Chin and upper half of the throat splendent
reddish purple ; lower half of the throat, breast, sides, and flanks,
white ; belly, vent, and tail coverts, glossy greyish white.

1st and 2nd primaries subequal and longest; length 19 inches;
alar expansion 20 inches ; length of bill from the frontal feathers
1 inch and 1 line ; length of tarsus, middle toe and nail, 3 inches
4 lines.

The female is smaller. Head and dorsal plumage dark black-
ish brown ; fore part of back, scapulars and tertiorus edged with
yellowish brown ; fore part of neck, sides, flanks, and vent, black-
ish grey ; breast and belly white, glossed with browish orange ;
lower coverts blackish brown. The young males resemble the
females. " Individuals vary much in size." Nuttall. This bird is
not uncommon, and it is without exception one of the loveliest of
the tribe met with in this district. None of them are more diffi-
cult to kill on the water, diving with the greatest rapidity on the
least noise, whether from the pull of the trigger or other causes.

A. clangula. Golden eye.
A. glaucyon. Young bird of Pennant !
Faligula clangula of Bonaparte !
Olangula vulgaris of Leach and Fleming !
Bucephala Americana. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill black ; legs and feet orange yellow ; irides golden
yellow; eggs 7 to 10, white.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet dull blackish brown ; crest, crown,
nuchal region, cheeks, and sidos of neck, splendent dark green ;
lower half of the neck white ; interscapulary region, long scapu-
lars, outer wing coverts, rump, and primaries, black ; long outer
scapularies white ; outer short scapulars white, with a streak of
black ; inner wing coverts and speculum, white ; tail coverts
black ; tail hoary greyish black. A round patch before and be-
low the eye, and at the base of the bill, and a spot on the auricu-
lars, white.

Ventral aspect. Chin, and upper third of the throat, blackish
brown; remainder of throat, breast, belly, and sides, white; vent
feathers greyish black, tipped with white; tail coverts greyish

of the District of Montreal. 42?

black, broadly margined and tipped with white ; flank feathers
white, margined with jet black on the upper vanes.

2nd primary longest; 1st next; length 22 inches ; alar expan-
se 29 inches; length of bill from the frontal feathers, 1 inch 4
lines. The female resembles that of the A. albeola. The white
patch in the cheek does not make its appearance until the second
year. The trachea of this species presents a singular conforma-
tion in the male.

A, kisirionica. Harlequin duck.

Fuligula histrionica. Bonaparte !

Clangula histrionica of Leach, Richardson, and Swainson !

Histrionicus torquatus. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill bluish black, orange red at the tip; legs and feet
blackish brown ; irides hazel ; eggs 12 to 14, white.

Dorsal aspect. Space between the eye and bill, a spot on the
auriculars, a streak on each side the nuchal region, collar at the
base of the neck, a transverse stripe on the shoulders, the outer
vanes of the scapulars, white ; a stripe from the base of the bill
to the occiput bluish black, bounded on the sides by a stripe of
chestnut, commencing over the eye, and meeting on the occiput;
the remainder of the head and neck dark plumbeous blue ; com-
mencement of back and shoulders dull blue ; interscapulary resfion,
rump, and wing coverts, blackish brown ; tail coverts blackish
green, as well as the speculum ; tail acuminate, hoary blackish
brown ; primaries blackish brown ; the white on the shoulders
bounded by black.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat bluish black ; breast bluish
slate colour; belly, vent, and tail coverts, dark blackish brown ;
sides and flanks chesnut, faintly barred with black ; sides of the
rump bluish black.

1st primary longest, the others graduated ; length 18 J inches ;
alar expanse 26 inches; length of bill from the frontal feathers
1 inch 1 line ; length of the middle toe, tarsus and nail, 3j
inches.

Sub-genus Oidemia,

Sub-gen. Char. Bill broad ; gibbous above the nostrils, with
dilated margins ; teeth laraelliform and coarse ; nostrils central,
large, oval ; tail short for the size of the bird.

424. Dr. A, Halt on the Mammals and Birds

A. perspicillata. Black or surf duck.
Fuligula perspicillata of Bonaparte !
Oidemia perspicillata of Richarckon and Swainson !
Pelionetta perspicillata, Baird !
D.c. Bill reddish orange ; the nail paler ; a square black spot
on the lateral protuberance ; legs orange ; the webs blackish
brown ; irides yellow ; eggs 4 to 6, white.

Dorsal and ventral aspect. Velvet black, with a reddish reflec-
tion ; a broad white band between the eyes, and a triangular
patch of the same on the nape ; throat brownish ; no speculum ;
female sooty brown, whitish near the bill and auriculars.

Length 24 inches ; the wing 9j- inches ; the bill above, 1 inch
4^ lines ; tarsus 1 inch 3 lines. This bird is occasionally met
with. A specimen exists in the museum of the Natural History
Society.

A.fusca. Velvet duck.
Fuligula fu sea of Bonaparte !
02c?emia/«sca of Richardson !
Melanetta velvetina. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill, protuberance, posterior part of the upper mandible,
margins, and a spot at side of the tip, black ; the rest orange ;
legs scarlet, with black webs ; irides pale yellow ; eggs 8 to 10,
white.

Dorsal aspect. Blackish brown, of a velvety hue and feel ; a
crescent of white on the lower eyelid, extending behind the eye ;
speculum white.

Ventral aspect. Throat and breast blackish brown, and velvety
like the back ; belly, vent, and sides, sooty brown, — brightest on
the sides.

1st primary longest; length 24^ inches; alar exoanpc 38
inches ; length of bill from the frontal feathers, and along the
protuberance, 1 inch 10 lines ; from the rictus to the tip 2 inches
and 10 lines.

A young bird in the museum of the Natural History Society is
wholly sooty brown, with greyish white on the auriculars, lower
eyelid, and on the toes. It measures 21^ inches long, and its
bill is wholly black, and the protuberance but very slightly ele-
vated. This bird is common iti the spring of the year.
Sub-genus Harelda.
Sub gen. Char. Bill short, tip much arched, high at the base ;
laminae distant, prominent, and cutting, lower ones divided into

of the District of Montreal. 425

two rows ; nostrils sub-basal, large, and oblong ; tail long and
tapering.

A. glacialis. Long-tailed duck.
Harelda glacialis of Richardson and Swainson ! !
Fuligula glacialis of Bonaparte !
Anas caudacuta harelda of Ray !
Harelda glacialis. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill black, with an orange transversal band near the
tip ; legs and feet dusky ; irides red, approaching to hazel ; eggs
5, pale greenish grey.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, crown, and cheeks, dusky drab, —
lightest on the crown, and darkest on the cheeks; auriculars
black, this colour descending down the sides of the neck in the
form of an irregular broad patch ; remainder of the neck to the
interscapulary region white ; interscapulary region, rump, and
wing coverts, shining black ; long and short scapulars a?hy white,
the long scapulars hanging gracefully over the wings ; four cen-
tral tail feathers black, and very long ; the four adjoining ones on
each side cinereous along the shafts, broadly margined with white,
the other lateral ones wholly white ; central tail coverts black ;
lateral tail coverts white on the outer vanes, and black on the
inner vanes ; primaries blackish brown, secondaries brown, the
tips of the latter forming a shining brown speculum.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat white ; breast and half of
the belly black ; remainder of the belly, vent, and sides of the
rump, white ; sides and flanks greyish.

2nd primary longest ; 1st next, and subequal to the 2nd ; length
23 inches; alar expanse 29 inches ; length of bill from the fron-
tal feathers 1 inch and 2 lines.

The female has the tail short ; a spot on the throat and eye-
bands, white ; crown of head blackish ; breast varied with ash
and brown ; and the feathers of the back black, margined and
tipped with ashy rufous ; the irides pale brown. " Nuttall."
Suh-genus Fuligula.
Sub-gen. Char. Bill long, broad and flat, gibbous at the base,
and more or less dilated at the extremity ; nostrils basal, oval.
A.ferina. The Pochard, or Red-headed duck.
Fuligula ferina of Stephens!
Aythya Americana. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill greyish blue, with a black tip ; legs and feet black;
irides reddish hazel ; eggs 12 to 13, greenish white.

426 Dr, A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

Dorsal aspect. Whole head and two-thirds the neck rich ches?
nut, with a reddish iridescence ; remainder of neck and commence?
ment of back, with the shoulders, black ; intersoapulary region,
rump, and short scapulars, finely zigzag waved with clove brown
on a white ground ; inner long scapulars grey, with a reddish iri-
descence ; outer margin of the external long scapulars black ;
tail coverts blackish brown ; tail hoary greyish ; wing co-

verts grey, faintly sprinkled wiih white; primaries pale grey,
tipped with clove brown, which is also the colour of the outer
vane of the two first primaries ; speculum whitish grey, fringed
with white inferiorly.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat like the dorsal aspect ; re-
mainder of the throat and breast black, fringed with white as it
approaches the belly ; belly pure white ; vent white glossed with
chesnut, and with faint wavy lines of grey ; tail feathers brownish
black; sides and flanks waved with clove brown on a white
ground.

1st primary longest; length 21J inches; alar expanse 30j
inches ; length of bill from the frontal feathers 2 inches 1 line.
The bill of this bird is recurved.

The female is liver brown, with pale edgings, and the chesnut
of the head is margined with yellowish brown. The white of the
ventral aspect is tinted with grey.

A, Labradorica, Labrador duck.
Fuligula Labradorica. Anderson !
Camptolcemus Labradorus. Gmel. ! Gray ! Baird !
v.s.p. Cire flesh colour ; remainder of bill blackish horn
colour ; tarsi and irides yellow.

Dorsal aspect. With the exception of a streak of black stretch-
ing from the base of the bill to the occiput, and a very light
brown streaky stain stretching from the cire to below the ear,
all the rest of the head, with the secondaries, pure white; re-
mainder of the back black; tail, which is rather acuminately
rounded, blackish brown ; the distal third of the outer edge of
the outer scapulars coloured with black, and the whole of the
inner vanes of the inner half dusky, terminating in blackish,
giving to the under surface of the wing a dusky appearance ; the
primaries are all dusky black ; the feathers on the cheek have a
bristly feel ; in other parts of the head and neck the feathers have
a velvety feel, a good deal resembling that of the Great Northern
Diver.

of the District oj MdntreaL ^SST^

Ventral aspect. A belt of white across the breast until it
touches the wing, and separated from the white of the head by
a ring of black about half an inch broad ; remainder of breast
black, quickly changing to blackish, which itself changes to brown
on the abdomen and under wing coverts ; the flanks, like the
lower part of the breast, are shining black.

Length, from tip of bill to apex of tail, 20j inches ; alar ex-
panse 27^ inches ; the two first primaries longest and subequal.

A specimen of this beautiful duck, the first which I have seen,
was shot in the bay of Laprairie this spring (1862) by a habitantj
and was purchased by Mr. Thompson of this city, who has kindly
placed it at my disposal for examination, I believe it to be one
of the rarest of our visitants of this species, and to demonstrate
that an acquaintance with our Fauna must be a work of many
years.

A. marila. Scaup duck.

Fuligula marila of Stephens and Bonaparte ! 1

Fulix marila. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill greyish blue ; nail black ; legs and feet blackish
brown ; irides yellow ; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet black ; all the other parts of head and
upper part of neck glossy dark green ; remainder of neck, com-
mencement of back, shoulders, rump, and tail coverts, black ;
interscapulary region and scapulars finely waved with zigzag lines
of clove brown on a white ground ; long scapulars glossy black-
ish green ; wing coverts hair brown, the inner ones finely waved
with white ; primaries hair brown, paler on the inner webs ; spe-
culum white, bounded superiorly, inferiorly, and internally by
glossy blackish green.

Ventral aspect. Chin and throat brownish black; lower half
of the throat, breast, and sides of the rump, black ; belly white ;
vent white, waved with clove brown ; sides white ; flank feathers
waved with clove brown near the tips ; tail coverts brown.

1st primary longest, the rest graduated; length 20^ inches;
alar expanse 30 inches ; length of bill from the frontal feathers 1
inch 10 lines. The female has the head and neck blackish brown;
lower part of the neck, breast, and rump, dark brown. The
young males resemble the female.

A. rujitorquis. Ring-necked duck.
Fuligula rujitorquis of Bonaparte I
Anas fuligula ot' Wilson!
Fulix collaris. Baird !

V.8.P. Bill black, except a line round the base, a belt near the

428 Dr. A, Hall on the Mammals and Birds

tip, and the rictus, which are light blue ; legs and feet blackish
brown; irides yellow; eggs unknown.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet blackish brown ; crown, checks, upper
part of neck, and nuchal region, black, with a violet purple irides-
cence ; collar round the neck dark chesnut ; remainder of the
neck, shoulders, interscapulary region, rump, and tail coverts
brownish black, with a minute sprinkling of white on the scapu-
lars ; wing coverts and tail brown ; primaries blackish brown,
paler on the inner webs ; long scapulars blackish green ; speculum
blueish ash, bounded superiorly and internally, by blackish green.

Ventral aspect. Chin white; throat to the collar blackish
brown ; breast black ; belly white ; vent, sides, and flanks, white,
waved with zigzag lines of clove brown ; sides of the rump and
tail coverts brownish black.

1st primary longest; length 18^ inches; alar expanse 26
inches ; length of bill from the frontal feathers 2 inches 2 lines.
In the female the dorsal plumage is dark brown edged, as also on
the breast, with chesnut.

Genus Mergus,

Gen. Char. Bill moderately long, slender, and straight, sudden-
ly narrowing from a broad base, the edges serrated, and with
subulate and sharp teeth inclining backwards ; nostrils lateral and
subcentral ; tongue short and subulate, with recurved papillae ;
legs short, placed far back on the abdomen, with full webs ; hind
toe touching the ground at its tip, and furnished with a mem-
brane.

M. serrator. Red-breasted Merganser.
M. serrator. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill brownish on the ridge, orange at the sides, and on
the lower mandible ; legs and feet red ; irides red ; eggs 8 to 13,
bluish white.

Dorsal aspect. Head and neck jet black, with dark green iri-
descence ; occipital crest black, composed of long slender feathers ;
collar round the throat white, with a black mesial nuchal line;
remainder of the throat chesnut brown, the feathers bordered with
black ; interscapulary region, short, and inner long scapulars,
jet black ; rump grey, waved with irregular lines of white ; tail
coverts cinereous, with pale edgings; tail hoary greyish brown;
shoulders white, the feathers broadly edged with jet black ;
outer short scapulars, inner wing coverts, and outer long scapulars,

of the District of Montreal, iSf

white, the latter bordered with black on the outer vanes ; specu-
lum white, crossed with black; primaries blackish brown.

Ventral aspect. Chin and upper part of the throat to the white
collar, velvet black ; breast chesnul brown, the feathers margined
with black ; belly, vent, and tail coverts, white ; sides, flanks,
and sides of the rump, white, elegantly waved with zigzag lines
of black.

1st primary longest; length 25^ inches; alar expanse 32
inches ; length of bill from the frontal feathers 2 inches 4 lines.
The female differs very little from the male.

M. cucuUatus. Hooded Merganser,
Lophodytes cucuUatus. Baird !

v.s.p. Bill, legs and feet, blackish red ; irides- red ; eggs 6,
white.

Dorsal aspect. Frontlet, crown of the head, blackish brown ;
occipital crest large, white tipped with blackish green, the white
coming behind the orbit, and forming a triangular space, the apex
of which is the eye ; sides of the neck, nuchal region, and short
scapulars, black, with a deep sea green iridescence ; long scapu-
lars sea green black, with a stripe of white ; rump and intersca-
pulary region brownish black ; tail coverts blackish brown, edged
with brown ; tail long, brownish black ; shoulders with two broad
bars of black and white; primaries clove brown, paler on the
inner webs ; small wing coverts cinereous ; great wing coverts
grey ; speculum white, with two black bars,

Vential aspect. Chin and throat blackish green ; breast, belly,
and vent, white ; sides and flanks chesnut brown, waved with
black ; sides of rump brown ; tail coverts greyish white, sprinkled
with brown.

2nd primary longest; 1st longer than the 3rd; length 21^
inches ; alar expanse 28 inches ; length of bill from the frontal
feathers 1 inch 11 hnes.

M. Merganser, Gooseander.
M. castor of Gmelin, Latham, and Finch ! ! !
Mergus Americanus. Baird !
v.s.p. Bill black on the ridge, vermillion on the sides, and
horn colour on the tip ; legs vermillion colour ; irides red ; eggs
10 to 14, white.

Dorsal aspect. Head and upper part of the neck blackish
green, with a purplish green on the cheeks and a verditer green

'^430 Billings on the Pine-boring Beetles.

on the neck ; lower part of neck white ; anterior part of the back
and inner short scapulars jet black ; interscapulary region, rump,
and tail coverts, bluish ash, the rump feathers tipped with white ;
tail hoary cinereous; primaries blackish brown, paler on the inner
webs ; secondaries white ; great and small wing coverts white,
the latter tipped with black.

Ventral aspect. Chin black, with a purple iridescence ; upper
part of neck blackish green ; lower part of neck, breast, belly,
vent, central tail coverts, and sides, white, glossed with flesh
colour; flanks and sides of the rump cinereous, speckled and
barred with white ; lateral tail coverts white, sprinkled with crim-
son on the outer vanes.

1st primary longest ; length 27 inches ; alar expanse 34 inches ;
length of bill from the frontal feathers 2 inches 3 lines ; length
of middle toe, tarsus, and nail, 5 inches 9 lines.

A bird before me in the act of moulting, presents brown fea-
thets, appearing through the blackish green ones of the crown
and sides of neck ; and white ones through the purplish black of
cheeks and chin ; and the outer scapulars cinereous. Ashy feathers
through the white ones of the neck ; but in all other respects re-
sembling the perfect specimen described.

In the female the head and nei*k is rufous brown, with the ex-
ception of the belly and vent, which are white tinged with flesh
colour ; all the other parts which are white in the male are ashy,
and the dorsal aspect generally is ashy, tipped with white. The
young birds precisely resemble the female.

ARTICLE XL. — Notes on some of the habits of the pine-boring
beetles of the genus Monohammus. By E. Billinos, F.G.S.
{Read before the Natural History Society of Montreal, 24th Nov., 1862.)

The number of insects inflicting injuries upon forest trees by
feeding upon the roots, bark, wood, or leaves, is much greater than
is generally supposed. Entomologists have ascertained that
nearly two hundred species prey upon the English oak alone.
In Canada, where there are such vast forests of so many different
kinds of trees, there must be quite a multitude of the wood-des-
troying tribes to occupy the attention of the naturalist. To work
out the history of these, is, to us Canadians, a labor of something
more than mere scientific importance ; for there are few countries

Billings on the Pine-horing Beetles. 431

whose commercial prosperity depends so largely upon the growth
of native woods. Full one fourth of the total value of our export
trade is derived from the forests, and there is usually abouk one
tenth of the whole province under license from the government
to the lumberers for the purpose of making timber * Besides this
there are great tracts of land covered with wood of commercial
value, in which, the sound of the lumberer's axe has never yet been
heard. How long this great source of national wealth is to remain
unexhausted, and what are the causes which may some day put
an end to so important a branch of our commerce, ate subjects
well worthy of serious consideration. It belongs to Canadian En-
tomologists to give an answer to one of the several questions that
must be discussed during the investigation. I do not profess to
know enough of the science to class myself in that body of obser-
vers ; but having lived many years in the valley of the Ottawa
where there are extensive forests of pine, I have paid some atten-
tion to the habits of several of the most prominent of the wood-
destroying beetles. I shall this evening give a short account of
some of the species, although I do not feel quite sure that Ento
moligists will think my remarks of much value.

It appears that in Canada we have four species of beetles belong-
ing to the longicorn genus Monohamraus.

The largest, and apparently the most abundant of these is
Monohammus confusor, a magnificent insect, and very destructive
to the several kinds of pine timber of this country. The length,
exclusive of the antennae, varies from three fourths of an inch to
one inch and a half, the majority of the individuals being about
thirteen lines. The antennae of the males vary in length from one
and a half to three inches ; the female is about the same length as
the male, but her antennae are a! ways shorter and her body broader.
When very perfect, these insects are of a light ash-grey color, with
a few dark brown spots. The grey colour is due to a coat of very

*By a reference to the trade returns for the year 1861, it will be seen that
our total exports during that year, amounted to $36,614,195, and of this
sum the products of the forest made up $9572,645, or somewhat more
than one fourth of the whole. Mr. Langton, (Auditor General) says
that in 1860 the quantity of land licensed by the government to lum-
berers, was" 2 7,413 square miles, or 17,544,320 acres.'! See an interesting
article by John Langton Esq., (Auditor General) " On the age of timber
trees and the prospects of a continuous supply of timber in Canada." Trans.
Lit. and Hist. Soc. of Quebec, vol. 5, page 61, May 1862.

4m

Billings on the Pine-bori?ig Beetles.

fine short light hairs. When these are rubbed off, the head and
thorax are seen to be nearly black and smooth and shining, the
thoraK being scarcely at all punctured. The elytra, when depriv-
ed of the hairs becomes of a horn colour, darkest near the thorax,
and covered with small punctures. Some specimens are almost
entirely destitute of the dark brown spots, and in general the nnm-

!|

ber and size of these marks vary a good deal. On each side of
the thorax there is a short broad-based spine. The antennae con-
sist of eleven joints, the second of which is very short, and the
first much thicker than any of the others. This species is found
in all parts of Canada where there are pine trees, and Dr. LeConte
says it is abundant at Saratoga in New York.^ A specimen has
lately been caught flying in the streets of Philadelphia.f

•Lk Conte, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci, Philadelphia, 2d Sec. Vol. 2, p. 148.
t Trans. Entomlogical Society of Philadelphia, Vol. 1, p. 98.

Billings on the Pine-boring Beetles, 45^-

Next in order is Monohammus scutellatus (Say), which is about
one fourth smaller than M. confusor, and can always be readily
recognized by its dark, nearly black, shining bronze colour ; some
of the individuals having a i^ev^ irregular spots of yellowish white
scattered over the surface. The thorax and elytra are rugose, with
large transverse punctures, or rather short confluent wrinkles dis-
tinctly visible to the naked eye. The scutellum is white, the
thorax armed with a short spine on each side. The length of this
species is usually eight or ten lines, but individuals of from five to
eight lines are occasionally met with. The antennae are from'
three fourths of an inch to two inches in length.

This species, although not so abundant as M. conftcsor, appears
to have a more extensive geographical distribution. It occurs in all-
parts of Canada, and it is found also in Nova Scotia, and in the Hud-
son Bay territories, northward to the Arctic regions. Mr. Couper
says it was taken by Sir John Richardson at Fort Simpson on the
Mackenzie River, in lat. 62^ N*. Mr. D'Urban says it was pro-
cured by Mr. Barnston, from Great Slave Lake, in lat. 54 N.f

The third species is Monohammus marmoratus, (Randall). It is
described by Le Conte as being very much like M. confusor ; the
pincipal difi'erence consisting in the markings of the thorax, which
is closely covered with large rugose punctures, while in M. con-
fusor this part is not punctured. The antennae are black, and in
the female annulated with ash-grey. The elytra are quite sca_
brous at the base from elevated points." Le Conte now unites
with it M. maculosus, (Haldimand) and his own two species, M.
mutator, and M. fatuor ; the first of the latter two described in
Agassiz's Lake Superior, and the last in the Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phi.2d Ser. Vol. 2, p. 148. It is abundant at Lake Superior. I have
never seen it ; and if it occurs in the valley of the Ottawa, it
must be very rare.

The fourth species is J/bttoAa?wmws titillator^\ (Fabricius), Mr.
Couper cites it as occuring at Toronto, (Canadian Journal, 1st Ser.
Vol. 3. p. 212.) It is also given in Mr. Ibbetson's list of Canadian ■
Goleoptera, at page 326 of the same volume. As neither of these
two entomologists mention M. confusor^ and as the original spe-

* Couper in Canadian Journal, 1st Ser. Vol. 3, p. 212.
t D'Urban in Canadian Naturalist Vol. 5, p. 227.
Jin the new edition of Harbiss' Insects this species is figured with
thirteen joints in the antennae.
Can. Nat. 28 Vol. VII.

434 Billings on the Fine-boring Beetles,

cimen on which the specios M. titillator was founded is an in-
sect from the Southern States, it may be that they have applied
the name to our most common and largest species. This question
however, remains to be decided by further observations.

There are in the collection of McGill College three specimens
from Toronto, of the size of the smaller individuals of M. confusor^
which have a light reddish tinge diflferent from the usual colour of
that species. I have also seen several specimens from Lake Sim-
coe, in the collection of Capt. Rooke of the Scots Fusilier Guards,
which seem to be of the same colour as those of McGill College.
I have never seen this variety in the valley of the Ottawa, and it
may be peculiar to the western part of the province. Whether
or not it will constitute a distinct species, remains for our entomo-
logists to determine.

The first two of these species, M. confusor, and M, scutellatus,
attack and destroy great quantities of pine timber. No doubt the
other two species do also prey upon the pines, but I have never
yet observed them ; and, in fact, they appear to be either rare or of
a limited geographical distribution. The trees attacked by them
are the white or Weymouth pine, {Pinus strohus) and the red pine,
IP, resinosa) the two most valuable timber trees of Canada.
The female Monohammus during the summer and autumn lays
her eggs in crevices in the bark both of the standing trees, and of
those which are dead and lying on the ground. The larva, after
being hatched, soon acquires strength of mouth sufficient to enable
it to work its way deeply into the wood. There it remains about
a year, boring a long winding gallery nearly half an inch in di-
ameter sometimes into the very heart of the tree. As the time
approaches for its final transformation, it turns, and works out-
wards towards the surface ; just before reaching which it enters
the chrysalis state. When the perfect beetle is developed, it soon,
with its powerful mandibles, gnaws a passage for itself to the open
air. I am of opinion that the insect does not come out as soon
as the opening is made, for I have often seen them lying quite
motionless in iheir burrows, with the head just peeping through.
In this position the antennae are not visible, as they are laid back
on the sides of the body. On the 20th of July, 1860, while cross-
ing Mount Royal, I noticed in a fallen pine tree, on the top of the
mountain, several burrows in the bark, which had been lately
opened, and were empty. On examining further, I found three
others, with the head of a M* confusor filling each j on being

Billings on the Pine-boring Beetles, 435

touched they withdrew a short distance, but not out of sight.
With the poiT\t of my geological hammer I sooq stripped off the
bark, and extracted all three. It seems improbable (although it
is possible) that they all arrived at the surface at the same time.
It is more probable that after the opening is made, the insect
remains for a while, perhaps for a couple of days, iu its burrow,
until its elytra become consolidated. Although I have often
found large white or yellowish larva, deep in the body of pine
trees, I have never been able to ascertain to what species they
belonged. This and many other questions relating to the natural
history of these insects, remain to be decided by the researches of
our entomologists.

These insects attack dead timber, and also trees which have
received some injury, and are in an unhealthy condition. I have
never seen the female laying her eggs on a perfectly healthy and
sound pine tree. Timber newly fallen is always attacked by them.
The first dwellings constructed in the new settlements are generally
made of logs with either the whole or a portion of the bark remain-
ing on them. The inside is not plastered, except in the crevices
between the logs; if these latter happen to be pine, the Monoham-
mus lays her eggs in the bark, on the outside of the house, and
for months afterwards the larva may be heard in the stillness of
night, making a noise like the boring of a small augur. The per-
fect insect sometimes comes out on the inside of the wall, and
suddenly drops down upon the floor, the table, or the bed, to the
great consternation of the inmates, who imagine that an insect
with such great horns must bite or sting with proportionate
severity.

For the manufacture of boards or planks, the pine trees are cut
up into lengths of from 12 to 18 feet, and are either drawn or
floated to the mill. The logs are got out during the winter, and
if they remain in the mill-yard one season, they are invariably
found to be bored through in all directions by larva of these
beetles, and the boards greatly deteriorated in value. Where
extensive operations are carried on, a single lumberman will some-
times have a license giving hini possession of over a hundred
square miles of pine forest. In the months of May and June it
often happens that great fires sweep through the woods, burning
up all the fallen trees and dry branches strewn over the ground,
and so scorching the living pines that most of them wither at the
top and die during the season. Trees thus injured are soon after

436 Billinprs on the Pine-horing Beetles.

attacked by both .Tf. confusor and M. scutellatus, and within one
year are so greatly bored that they are unfit for the manufacture
of timber. Those experienced in the business, however, well un-
derstand the habits of the insect in this respect, and hasten to
make the timber before it is destroyed. Pines scorched by the
spring fires must be cut down and made into timber the next
autumn. After one of these fires it generally happens there is a
regular race between the lumberers and the beetles, the prize being
a grove of white or red pine. I was told that Messrs. Egan & Co.
lost £40,000 worth of timber by some unavoidable delay of a few
months. Pine trees, when scorched, would be sound enough for
timber five years afterwards, if it were not for the attacks of these
formidable destroyers.

Where there are only a few pines, as in the neighborhood of
this city, it is rare to meet with more than one or two of these
beetles together. But in the great forests of the Ottawa it is not
unusual to find 15 or 20 on a single tree. On one occasion I saw
an extraordinary number, and entered an account of the circum-
stances in my note book on the spot. It was on the llth day of
September, 1857. I was at that time making some geological
observations in the neighbourhood of Lake Clear, in the county of
Renfrew. Following an old lumber road through the woods, I
came to a place which bad been burned over some time during
the preceding spring. There was one large white pine standing
on the sunny side of a small gently sloping hill. The height of
this tree was about 120 feet, and its diameter nearly 3 feet. About
30 feet at the base was scorched. It was 60 feet to the lowest
branch, and as nearly as I could judge, the foliage for 20 feet at
the very top, had turned yellow. The remainder was green and
apparently healthy. This tree was swarming with M. con/usovy
and many of the females were occupied in laying their eggs. I
think there were at least 300 of both sexes, and I saw several fly-
ing from other trees 30 or 40 yards distant. In flying, the body
is not horizontal, butinchned at an angle of only 15° or 20° from
the perpendicular. The insects were on all parts of the tree, and
they did not appear to take a firm hold of the bark, for a heavy
blow with the hammer, at the base, would bring down a dozen at
a time, some of them falling from near the top. While falling,
they did not attempt to fly. I had 50 or 60 crawling around me
at once, and had a fine opportunity to observe the very consider-
able variations in the size of the individuals, and length of the .

Billings on the Pine-boring Beetles, 43'''

antennaB. When two of them going in opposite directions, met
face to face, a clumsy kind of afighttook place, in which they reared
up and pushed against each other, until one or the other fell over
backwards. They bit each other with their mandibles, but with
no eflfect that I could perceive. The females fought with each
other, or with the males, indifferently. There can be little doubt
but that this tree was, during the next twelve months, totally des-
troyed. If there were 150 females, and if each laid 200 eggs, and
half of these produced a healthy larva, then in one year this tree
must have been perforated by 15,000 galleries. I examined other
trees in the neighbourhood, and on a few only did I see any of the
beetles, usually from one to four or five on each. I can only ac-
count for the preference given to this particular tree, by supposing
that it was in a better condition for the nourishment of the larva
than the others, and that the instinct of the females directed them
to it. It is probable that nearly all the females for a considerable
distance around were thus brought together on one tree, and were
followed by the males.

I cannot say whether or not these insects ever attack a perfect-
ly healthy and sound tree. I think they do not ; and yet their
ravages are certainly highly injurious to the commerce of this
country, as they destroy a vast deal of the fallen or scorched tim-
ber, which otherwise might be brought to market at any time dur-
ing several years after the trees have received their death-blow by
fire or storm. I think also that thousands of the trees, only suiB-
ciently injured by fire to throw them for a while into a weakly or
unhealthy condition, would recover were it not for the attacks of
these formidable creatures.

The beetles of the genus Monohammus are, as is well known
to entomologists, assisted by many species of other genera in the
work of destroying pine trees. Canadian naturalists who have
selected the wonders of the insect world for their study, have
1>efore them a vast and little- wrought field. In an interesting
paper on the trees of Canada, by our colleague, Mr. Robb, it is
said that Canada produces "about seventy kinds of timber trees,
of which, at present, we make profitable use of not more than
eight or ten, the rest being left to absolute decay. Her forests
extend over about 360,000 square miles ; and are unrivalled
throughout the world for the variety of species, and more partic-
cularly for the size of the timber of full growth. Of sixty-four
samples sent to the Paris Exhibition of 1855, by Mr. Andrew

438 Zoological Classification,

Dickson, of Kingston, one half were collected from an area of
one hundred acres. The trees which we find most generally in
our woods are the oak, beech, maple, iron-wood, elm, birch, ash,
pine, hemlock, tamarack, cedar, poplar, and bass-wood. All
these trees attain to a considerable size, and grow to a greater or
less extent, in all parts of Canada, except on the coast of Labra-
dor, where the only trees that thrive are the white birch, the fir,
spruce, beech, and one of the varieties of pine. The trees of
smaller growth common to all the country are the hickory, wil-
low, alder, wild-cherry, dog-wood, sassafras, and a few others. The
black-walnut, tulip-tree, and chesnut are confined exclusively to
the western peninsula. Oak and elm are more abundant and of
better quality in Canada West than in the eastern part of the
province ; but all the other woods attain greater perfection in
Canada East." * Now all these trees have their own species of
insect persecutors. How many species prey upon each tree ?
When does each species deposit its eggs, and in what part of the
tree? when is the larva produced, what is its form, and upon what
part of the tree does it feed ? how long does it remain in the larval
state ? what is the form of the chrysalis,and when does the imago ap-
pear ? and lastly ,is there any method of protecting the tree? When all
these questions shall have been answered, our entomologists, of
which we have now a few good men and true, will have performed
a great work. It seems almost impossible to protect a forest
against an insect foe, but who knows what may be achieved by
patient study ? By accumulating facts, sooner or later, a means of
protection may be discovered. At all events, when our interests
are threatened by an enemy, it is well to know all about him,
his numerical strength and the plan of his operations ; without
knowing these we can never hope to discover his weak points.

ARTICLE XLI. — Zoological Classification ; or Coelenterata and
Protozoa^ versus Madiata,

The recent appearance of the fourth volume of Agassiz's mag-
nificent contributions to the natural history of North America,
and of various manuals, text-books, and articles, on the sub-divi-
sions of the Radiata of Cuvier, have forcibly attracted our atten-

* Descriptive list of the principal Canadian Timber Trees. By Charles
RoBB, 0. E. Canadian Journal, 2nd Ser., Vol. 6, p. 29.

Zoological Classification. 439

tion to the state of the classification of these creatures, and the
changes recently proposed in it.

We are not specially zoologists, but have devoted some atten-
tion to the subject in its relations to geology, and as interesting
in itself, as well as in connection with the teaching of its? elements
to students. We speak, therefore, as addressing zoological spe-
cialists from without their own circle, and desire to do so with all
the humility becoming this exoteric position.

A number of zoologists have lately added to the Cuvierian
fourfold division of the animal kingdom, two new types of Pro-
tozoa and Coelenterata, the former being probably more widely
accepted than the latter, though it also is supported by some high
names. We have not been able to convince ourselves of the
necessity of either of these groups, in the rank assigned to them;
and, on the contrary, fear that their establishment will tend to
confuse our conceptions of the natural subdivisions of animals.

The group of Protozoa is confessedly distinguished from the
others merely by negative characters, — ^by deficiency of impor-
tant systems of organs, as of nervous system and organs of sense.
It cannot, therefore, be regarded as embodying a type of structure
distinct from those of the Radiates, Mollusks, and Articulates^
but rather as embracing all the creatures which are so simple that
we cannot recognise in them any distinct type. It is obvious that
such a group, however convenient, cannot be recognised as co-
ordinate with the others above named, and that it must be merely
provisional, containing animals whose afiinities have not yet been
ascertained, and which may be humbler members of one or all of
the other recognised types. The real question as to the position
of these creatures is this. — Can we ascertain their aflBnities?
If we can, let us place them in their true relations. If not, let us
admit that they do not consitute a veritable sub-kingdom, but
merely a residuum which we are unable to classify.

Regarding, with Carpenter, the Protozoa as consisting of Phi-
zopoda, Porifera, Infusoria, and Grec/arinida,^ it is at once ap-
parent : (1.) That all these creatures, in point of simplicity of
structure, are as low as, or lower than the humblest members of
the other invertebrate kingdoms. (2.) That they do not present,
in any distinct form, the types of structure characteristic of these
sub-kingdoms. (3.) That many of them strongly resemble the

* These latter may possibly be humble Entozoa.

440 Zoological Classification,

embryonic or immature stages of certain Radiates^ Mollusks, and
Articulates. These statements being admitted, it remains to en-
quire whether the balance of affinities inclines to one rather than
to the others of these provinces or sub-kingdoms.

The great difficulty here is to find any distinct type of structure
in these humble creatures, and some of the naturalists best ac-
quainted with them hold that no such affinities are to be dis-
covered, while others appear to think that their affinities would
place them at the base of more than one province. In these cir-
cumstances, we are more likely to be guided aright by a conside-
ration of the general principles of classification, than by that
minute search for distinctions with which zoologists are mor^
familiar.

To any philosophical student of animals, it must be apparent
that our primary divisions or types are based on considerations of
general form, and of the arrangements of the nervous system, and
organs of support. On the first of these grounds alone, we must
of necessity divide animals into but two groups of Radiata and
Bilaterata; on the second, it is equally apparent that we must
have two groups of Vertebrata and Invertebrata.

There has been of late a tendency among many naturalists to de-
ny or overlook the fact that many of the lower animals present, in
the words of Agassiz, " a vertical axis, around which the primary
elements of their structure are symmetrically arranged," while the
main axis of the body cannot, as in the other animals, be regard-
ed as a horizontal one, with corresponding parts on its two sides.
But nothing can be more illogical than to overlook this general
radiated arrangement, because some subordinate parts present
traces of bilateral symmetry. It is a mere forcing of nature within
the bonds of an arbitrary system. It would be quite as reasonable
to deny the prevalence of radiation from an axis or centre in
plants, because a is bilateral ; or to maintain that a cuttlefish has
no bilateral symmetry because its arms spread from a centre ;
or that a man is a radiated animal, because the iris of hiseye is
radiated. The Radiata constitute a division of animals asnatural
on one ground, as the Vertebrata do on another.

Vertebrates^ again, differ from Invertebrates y in the grand dis-
tinguishing point of the separation of the principal masses of the
nervous system from the general viscera, in a distinct chamber
above the centres of the system of support.

Zoological Classification. .443.

If we separate the Vertebrates on the one hand, and the Radi-
ates on the other, there remain the Mollusks and Articulates,
groups as markedly distinct from each other, as from the other
provinces. We may thus obtain by a somewhat different process
from that usually employed, the fourfold Cuvierian classification
into sub-kingdoms, and this without leaving any distinct place for
the Protozoa as a group of this rank.

Let us next inquire if the Protozoa may rank as a class. Agassiz
has well shown that our classes, orders, &c., in zoology are not
arbitrary or accidental, but based on the relations of our own
minds to the actual order of nature. Classes, he maintains, are
formed on the manner in which the plan or type embodied in the
province is carried out, so far as ways and means are concerned ;
and we may add, of course, with a reference to uses or objects. It
seems to have occurred to him that this implies a certain and de*
finite number of classes to each province, for he has but three in
each of his invertebrate provinces; though he subdivides more
minutely in the vertebrates, deviating in this, as it appears to us,
from the large general view which he has himself expressed.

In the Vertebrates four classes have commended themselves to
the comnaon sense of mankind, — the mammals, birds, reptiles, and
fishes ; and while it is easy, for example, to subdivide the reptiles
into two groups, or the fishes into several, these have obviously
respectively a less value than the mammals and birds, and conse-
quently cannot be classes. What, then, are the ways^ means^ and
ends involved in the vertebrate sub-classes ? They are as follows:
1st. The mammal 'implies reproduction without metamorphosis,
and the highest development of the sensorium and of intelligence.
2ndly. The bird implies the highest development of the locomo-
tive apparatus, and parts subsidiary to this. 3rdly. The reptiles
imply development of the merely vegetative hfe. 4thly. Fishes
embody the lowest condition of the external members and respi*
ratory process, and of the nervous system.

A little thought may satisfy us that we cannot suppose a fifth
class co-ordinate with these four, however much we may subdivide
any one of them. The question remains, do the other provinces
admit of more divisions, or of fewer ? K truly co-ordinate with
the first, they should admit of the same number, because each
type is placed in the same circumstances, in respect to ways,
means, and ends.

442 Zoological Classification,

In the Articulates we can readily distinguish four classes, cor-
responding to those of the Vertebrates : 1st. The arachnidans,
with high sensorium and intelligence, and no metamorphosis, and
representing the mammalia ; 2nd. The insects, corresponding to
the birds ; 3rd. The crustaceans, corresponding to the reptiles ;
ith. The worms, corresponding to the fishes.

In the MolluskSy we have : 1st. Cephaiopods, corresponding to
arachnidans and mammals ; 2nd. Pteropods and gasteropods, cor-
responding to birds and insects ; 3rd. Lamellibranchiates, corres-
ponding to reptiles and crustaceans; and lastly, the tunicates,
brachiopods, and bryozoa present an enlarged representation of
the fishes.

If the Radiates really constitute a natural group, they should
conform to this general plan. Here we have : 1st. Echinoderms,
which constitute a class, and the highest of the province ; 2nd.
Acalephs,the specially locomotive class; 3rd. Anthozoa, or acti-
nozoa, or polyps, the vegetative class ; and lastly, protozoa, with
the lowest endowments in respect to internal parts and sensorium.

Our Protozoa are thus required in order to bring the Radiates
into harmony with the other provinces ; and it seems plain that
the group is much nearer its true place as a class, than as a pro-
vince. The question still remains, whether some of the Protozoa
might not be more naturally placed at the base of other sub-king-
doms than those of the Radiates ^ as, for instance, the Vorticellce,
with the Bryozoa; Gregarinida and some Infusoria with the
worms. It seems likely that this may eventually be done ; and
that just as the Bryozoa^ Entozoa^ and Rotifers are now gene-
rally separated from Radiates, a more nice analysis of the cha-
racters of the more aberrant Protozoa, may enable some of them
to be separated from that group.

As an additional evidence of the correctness of the view above
stated, I may remark that the divisions of Protozoa proposed by
Carpenter have much more of the character of orders than of
classes, in this respect that they imply rather gradations of rank
than different ways and means of execution. Another proof is
offered by the strong resemblance of many Protozoa to the embry-
onic states of true members of the province Radiata.

With respect to the Coelenterata, the case is still more clear.
The structural and embryonic evidence given by Agassiz, in his
last and the preceding volume, amply prove the aflinity of these

Trof, Hall on a New Crustacean* 443

creatures to JEJchinoderms, their radiated structure, and their place
in the system as two of the classes of the Radiata.

It may be objected that these views savour of the arbitrary
methods proposed by MacLeay and Swaiuson. If, however, there
is system in nature, it must admit of some general statement ;
and the time must come when naturalists will be obliged, by the
necessities of the case, to search for and apply such general views.

Specialists will object that they must have more subdivisions of
animals than those above admitted ; but they have full scope for
this in the formation of families, orders, and genera, without at-
tempting to disintegrate our higher groups. The family, in par-
ticular, as distinct from the order, is a group of great value, and
to the cultivation of which their attention might be very properly
directed, more especially since the genus is fast losing its impor-
tance, from the tendency to erect every little group of species,
distinguished by some minute structural peculiarity, into a new
genus. Since, however, the greater part of these are clearly
nothing but sub-genera, it might be well to have some arrange-
ment which might enable them to be recognized for purposes of
determination, while the grand generic unity should be maintained
by retaining the name of the genus proper, in the nomenclature,
with a mark or number to indicate the sub-genus.

The views thus slightly outlined are not of yesterday ; but have
resulted from much thought on the subject. They are, however,
thrown out merely as suggestions for the consideration and criti-
cism of naturalists, and in the hope that they may, at least in
part, be found to harmonize with the true order of animal nature
in its lower forms, as the progress of discovery brings this more
distinctly into view.

J. W. D.

ARTICLE XLll.— On a new Crustacean from the Potsdam
sandstone. By Trof. James Hall. A Letter addressed to
Principal Dawson, dated Albany, Zlst October, 1862.

I have been much interested in reading your observations upon
the tracks of Limulus in sand, and comparisons with the tracks
in the Potsdam sandstone ;* more especially as these observations
connect themselves in a remarkable manner with a recent discov-
ery of my own ; and a question may arise as to whether you have

* Canadian Naturalist for August, 1862.

444 ^rofs Hall on a New Crustaeean.

described an animal which I have found, or I have found the ani-
mal corresponding to your description. I will leave you and the
scientific world to judge of the facts. However, after what you
have written, I cannot now publish what I communicated to the
Albany Institute last winter, without referring to your paper, and
in the mean time you may lay this note before the Montreal Na-
tural History Society, and publish it, or such parts of it, as you
please.

In February last, I communicated to the Albany Institute a notice
of a new crustacean from the Potsdam sandstone of Wisconsin,
and subsequently I sent a drawing of the same to M. Barrande.
In 1855, I obtained from the Potsdam sandstone of the upper
Mississippi River, a fragment of what appeared to be a spine of a
crustacean, of very remarkable and peculiar structure, reminding
one of that of bone ; and which might at one time, before we
had accustomed ourselves to limit the geological range of fishes,
have been taken for an ichthyic remain.

This fragment remained in my collection a subject of much in-
terest, for I was aware from its structure that it could belong to
no genus of Trilobites, but at the same time I did not think it
worth while to publish any notice of it from its incompleteness.

In 1851, Mr. Daniels, of the Geological Survey of Wisconsin,
discovered in the Potsdam sandstone of Black River, in that State,
tracks similar to those described by Sir W. E. Logan, in the sand-
stone of Canada. This added a new interest to the unknown crus-
tacean fragment; and in 1860 I visited the Black River region,
to procure if possible some of these impressions. I failed how-
ever in finding the precise locality ; and in 1862 sent my assis-
tant in the Wisconsin survey, Mr. Hale, to make farther explora-
tions, but he did not succeed in finding anything of interest. At
another locality however, he obtained some fragments of the crus-
tacean before mentioned, among which are two cephalic shields
suflSciently perfect to be characterized. I inclose you a drawing of
one of these.

The relations to Limulus are at once suggested by the form
and expression of these carapaces, while the large prominent eye-
tubercles hold relatively the same position as the small approxi-
mate oculiform tubercles or spots on the anterior part of the
shield in Limulus, (and also in Eurypterus), The carapace is
proportionally flatter than in Limulus ; and has, like that, a strong

Trof, Hall on a New Crustacean, 445

thickened border ; the posterior angles rounded. The margin is
impressed or sinuate in front, and there are slight indications of
longitudinal grooves on each side of the central, leaving a median
lobe proportionally wider than in Limulus. The eyes, though
imperfect, remind one somewhat of the eyes of Trilobites, and are
remarkably prominent.

Carapace of jlglaspis from Wisconsin.

There is a single fragment of what appears to have been an ar-
ticulation of the thorax, or a portion of some appendage analogous
to the branchial feet of Limulus ; it has a flattened, curving, point-
ed extremity. Another fragment I infer may have been the cau-
dal extremity ; it is comparatively thick and strong ; but the spe-
cimen is too imperfect to be determined. The first specimen I
obtained is a straight spine-like body, and I infer that the animal
may have been provided with a caudal spine, as in Limulus.

Such, in general, are the characters of this crustacean. Whether
this may have been the animal which made the peculiar tracks in
the sandstone, I cannot say, but I have so inferred. The first speci-
men was found at a distance of thirty miles or more in a north-
westerly direction from the locality of the tracks of Black River,
and in higher beds of the sandstone. The last found specimens
are from a more distant locality, in a southeasterly direction, and
also from beds above those of the tracks. All this, however, can-
not furnish matter for argument against the origin of the tracks,
in the present state of our knowledge of a country which has
been comparatively but little exj)lored.

Whatever may be proved hereafter in this respect, it does not
diminish the great interest attaching to so new and remarkable a
form of crustacean from the unequivocal primordial zone of the
northwest.

Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine. 447

ARTICLE XLIII. — Contributions to the History of the Acton
Copper Mine. By Thomas Macfarlane.

(Read before the Natural History Society of Montreal.)

Three years have elapsed since the openiDg of the Acton Cop-
per Mine, and probably few mines have in such a short time
gained a greater or more merited celebrity. It has been my good
fortune to be connected with it since September, 1861, in such
a capacity as enabled me to gain much experience as to the na-
ture and value of the deposits of copper ore, which are here the
objects of mining enterprise. Had it not been for this circum-
stance I should not have ventured upon another description of
the Acton Mine, seeing that so many valuable papers on the sub-
ject are already in our possession. As it is, the few observations
which I have made, and which I now proceed to record, are only
to be regarded as supplementary to former descriptions, especially
to those of Sir W. E. Logan, and the Rev. A. F. Kemp ; and as
embracino- a sketch of the progress of the mine from September,
1861, when Messrs. Davies and Dunkin, the proprietors, received
the mine back from the lessees who had previously worked it,
until the first of October, 1862, when the mine was purchased by
the Southeastern Mining Company of Canada.

In the month of September, 1861, mining operations were being
carried on in the following workings : Flowers's pit, Williams's pit,
Harvey's pit, and No. 2 shaft. It is to be observed with regard
to these names, that the word pit is applied to an open work-
ing of irregular and very considerable dimensions, while the name
of shaft is given only to regular sinkings of the usual and smaller
dimensions. The position of the above named workings, and the
character of the rocks in which they occur, and by which they are
bounded, will be seen from the accompanying map.

The whole of the open workings occur upon a bed of what has
been called in former descriptions " copper limestone," the general
strike of which is N.E. and S. W., with a dip more or less inclined
to the N. W. Immediately underlying this cupriferous limestone,
which is dolomitic, there occur from twenty to eighty feet of dark
colored shales, in which, especially near the cupriferous limestone,
copper pyrites is frequently found disseminated in thin strings and
layers. Beneath this occurs another bed of limestone, of very
considerable thickness, the outcrop of which forms the hill run-
ning along the south-east side of the mine. Between the cupri-
ferous Umestone and the underlying shale, there is often intruded

448 Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine.

a fine-grained greenstone, which sometimes forms very con-
siderable and irregular masses, sometimes intersects the limestone
strata, and often presents a peculiar banded structure, resembling
more that produced by igneous flow, than that due to deposi-
tion from water. This greenstone, although intruded most fre-
quently between the underlying shale and the cupriferous lime-
stone, is sometimes observed occurring between the latter and the
hanging shale. This hanging shale, of a black color, which
overlies the cupriferous limestone, is also often impregnated
with copper pyrites, and has a very considerable thickness. It
has not yet been ascertained what rock overlies the hanging shale
in the immediate neighborhood of the mine, but from observa-
tions elsewhere, it appears to be followed by lighter colored shales,
containing small interstratified quartz veins. Upon these shales is
superposed a finely and evenly foliated clay-slate, with transversal
cleavage. At greater distances from the mine there is found a
considerable development of clay-slates and sandstones ; some of
the latter posses-^^ing the characters of the greywacke sandstone
of German geologists. The whole of these rocks are apparently
destitute of organic remains. According to Sir William E. Logan,
they constitute a part of the Quebec group, of the Lower Silurian
series Referred to the systems of continental geologists, they
■^ould appear to occupy a place between the primitive slate forma-
tion and the Silurian, in a forraation corresponding to Barrande'a
Azoic formation in Bohemia, or to the Cambrian system, as
this is understood to be constituted by Cotta ; viz., of less crystal-
line clay-slates and silicious slate, of non-fossiliferous greywacke
sandstone and conglomerate.*

Having thus referred to the geological character and age of the
rocks in the neighborhood of the mine, I proceed to describe the
various workings above named. Flowers's pit, the most north-east-
erly of the open workings, has a triangular shape, an average width
of forty-five feet, and had in September, 1861, a depth of twenty
feet. The bottom of the excavation consisted, on the south-easterly
side, of shale, while the outcrop of the cupriferous limestone, hav-
ing a thickness of four feet, ran along the north-west side. The
original thickness of forty-five feet of limestone, had thus, on
account of a fold in the underlying shale, decreased to four feet,
as shown in the following section at No. 4 shaft.
'The excavation of the limestone at a was continued, (the point

j_*Cotta: Die Flo tz Form^tionen^p. 204.

Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine, 449

of sliale b having been previously taken down) in the south-
westerly half of the opening, along a distance of about sixty feet
and to an additional depth of seven feet.* The limestone was more,
or less charged with ore along the whole of this distance; but hav-
ing in view the disadvantages which attend such large excavations
in depth, it was resolved to sink a shaft, in order to examine the

Section along the line a — h of the general plan.

S.E.

A, Hill limestone ; B, underlying shale ; C, cupriterous limestone ;
D, hanging shale.

ground before hand. Accordingly shaft No. 4 was commenced
in the south-west end of the working, and sunk, at intervals, to a
depth of seventy-five feet on the inclination of the bed. The first
twenty-five feet sunk below the open working was in rock con-
taining very good ore, of which rock eighteen and a half cubic
fathoms were excavated, and yielded —

If 3 5 2 t^°s of first quality ore of 24.0 per cent of copper.
133|i " crush " 2.0 " «

These quantities correspond, after deducting the loss in dress-
ing the crush ore (one-third of the copper contents), to 18.6
tons of 12 per cent ore, or about one ton per cubic fathom. The
co.st of sinking these twenty-five feet, and bringing the rock to the
surface, amounted to 8482.94 ; or to 826.10 per cubic fathom of
rock, and 825.96 per ton of 12 per cent ore. Below the twenty-
five feet the ground was poor ; and in June, 1862, the sinking was
discontinued, in order to the stoping of the ore ground on each
side of the shaft. Up to the end of July, 45.62 cubic fathoms

• It is to be remarked with regard to this and other sections in this
paper, that unless when otherwise mentioned, they are not drawn to a
scale, and are merely intended to give an idea of the succession of the
rarious rocks, without reference to their thickness.

Can. Nat. 29 Vol. VII,

450 Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine,

were sloped out in the north-east side of the shaft, and yielded —
10|||^ tons first quality ore of 22.0 per cent.
4311.11 « " " " 18.4 "
12||_ « second " " 9.0 '<

154 " crush " 4.06 "

These quantities, after deducting loss in dressing, correspond to
119i||_ tons of 12 per cent ore, or 2.62 tons per cubic fathom.
The total expenses of excavation and bringing to surface, amounted
to $574.10 ; equal to $12.59 per cubic fathom, and to |4.80 per
ton of 12 per cent ore. The average thickness of the bed was here
19^ feet, = 3i fathoms. Consequently one square fathom of the
bed yielded 8.51 tons of 12 per cent ore, at an expense of $40.92.
During the following months of August and September the stoping
was continued, accompanied by drifting under the old road lead-
ino- into Flowers's pit (see map). Here were excavated 63.37 cubic
fathoms of ground, which yielded —

49147 lbs. first quality ore of 21.2 per cent.

23850

u u

u

u

19.8

u

7114

" second

a

((

13.5

il

17600

u .t

u

u

11.5

(I

40320

" crush

((

5.2

a

134400

(( ((

((

4.1

u

22400

" smalls

((

3.5

11

128427

a a

u

2.6

it

These quantities, after deducting one-fourth of the copper contents
of the crush ore, correspond to 95|||y tons of 12 per cent ore,
or 1.5 tons per cubic fathom. The total expense of mining and
raising this quantity was $873 ; equal to $13.77 per cuHc fathom,
or to $9.19 per ton of ore. The average thickness of the bed
was at this place 2^ fathoms. Consequently a square fathom
of the bed yielded 3.75 tons of 12 per cent ore, at an expense of

$34.32.

As regards the north-east extremity of Flowers's pit, a shaft
had been sunk in the limestone there previous to September,
1861, to a depth of twenty feet on the incline, below the bottom
of the open working, and forty-four feet below the floor, on the
present collar of the shaft, now called No. 5. At the bottom, a
considerable quantity of copper pyrites was observable, partly in
veins permeating the limestone, and partly impregnating the same.
In order to the examination of the ground here it was resolved

Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine. 451

to sink this shaft. The ground gradually improved, and at a
depth of fifty-four feet presented an appearance exactly similar to
the rich deposits previously excavated on the surface. This ap-
pearance has been most suitably and accurately described by Sir
W. E. Logan as " a breccia or conglomerate, with a paste com-
" posed of variegated and vitreous sulphurets of copper, mingled
" with fine grained silicious matter, enclosing fragments of lime-
" stone, some angular and some rounded, some of them almost
" wholly calcareous and others largely silicious."* The avera^-e
thickness of the bed in the ten feet thus sunk, was nine feet, the
length of the shaft on the strike of the limestone, twelve feet.
From the five cubic fathoms thus excavated, there were produced

^23 1 2 ^^^^ fi^s* quality ore of 22.0 per cent.
SSfj " crush " 4.5 "

These quantities, after allowing for the loss, correspond to 23.1 tons
of 12 per cent ore, or 4.6 tons to the cubic fathom. The costs of
raining the above five cubic fathoms, and bringing them to the
surface, amounted to $133.33, which is equal to $26.66 per cubic
fathom, and to 86.03 per ton of 12 per cent ore. Calculated at
the above mentioned thickness of Ij- fathoms, a square fathom of
the bed yielded 6.9 tons of 12 per cent ore, and cost 840. The
sinking of No. 5 shaft was discontinued during the winter, but re-
sumed during the summer, and at the end of July attained a depth
of seventy-six feet on the incline. From it, at a depth of sixty feet
a gallery was carried towards the west, 30f feet; at which distance
from the shaft the limestone was cut off by the hanging wall, every
indication seeming to point out the presence here of a left-hand
throw. This fault had a direction of N. 10° W. Some stoping
was done both above and below this gallery. Up to the end of
July there were excavated in shaft, drift and stopes, 65j- cubic
fathoms of ground. These yielded

53|fi2 tons first quality ore of 19.1 per cent.

4|i|| « second " " 9.0 "

316f||^ " crush " 3.95 «

which quantities correspond to ISSfif^ tons of 12 per cent, ore,
or 2.38 tons per cubic fathom. The total expense of mining
and raising this quantity was $1512.04; or $23.17 per cubic

• Report of Progress for 1858, p. 59.

452 Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine,

fethom, and $9.'72 per ton of ore. The thickness of the bed
at this point was 16 J feet, = 2| fathoras. Consequently a
square fathom of the bed contained 6.54 tons of 12 per cent
ore, and cost $26.73. The limestone in No. 5 shaft gene-
rally maintained a dip of from 70° to 80°, and the character
of the ore was principally that described by Sir W. E. Logan, as
above quoted. The richest specimen assayed from this shaft
contained 41.2 per cent copper, and 19.2 per cent of silicious
matter. It was not altogether free from limestone. The strike
of the bed of limestone from shaft No. 4. to No. 5. is N.
34°. E. Friction grooves have been observed at the junction of
both the foot and the hanging shale with the limestone. These
generally dip to the west at an angle of about 50°. In August
and September, No. 5 shaft was further sunk fifeeen feet, thus
reaching a depth of ninety-one feet. The ground between the
shaft and the fault above noticed was also stoped out. It was
poorer than that previously excavated, but the thickness of the
bed increased to twenty-four feet.

Immediately to the west of Flowers's pit, there appears to exist
one or more powerful faults, which have thrown the cupriferous
limestone 140 feet to the right hand. These are indicated on the
map, from which it will be seen that the principal one has a di-
rection of about east and west, and comes in at the east end of
Harvey's pit, where the evidences of the existence of this right
hand throw are very striking. It is worthy of remark, that a
great accumulation of rich ore was excavated from Flowers's pit,
at the point where this fault intersected the one described as oc-
curring in the drift to the west of No. 5 ; traces of this are also
be found on the surface. These faults, the existence of which
was, I believe, first pointed out by Principal Davvsou, will doubt-
less be found to influence considerably the ore-bearing qualities of
the limestone bed.

Harvey's pit is the next open working to the west of Flowers's
pit. On the surface it has a length of one hundred, and a breath
of eighty feet. A section of the working, at right angles to the
direction of the strike, is given on the next page ; from which it will
be seen that the same relations exist here as in Flowers's pit, so far
as the architecture of the limestone and the underlying shale is con-
cerned. The same contraction in the thickness of the limestone is

Macfarlane on the Acton Cojrper Mine*

453

visible here, as at Flowers's pit. This rock, before its excavation,
bent over the point a, and constituted the arch of limestone men-
tioned in a former descriptioo of the mine, by the Rev. A. F. Kemp.*
It was on this arch that the first excavation was made in opening
the mine. Harvey's pit was last worked in September, 1861.
The previous mining had been done very irregularly, and the
cupriferous limestone had not been wholly removed; but a con-
siderable part of it was left against the hanging wall, as shewn in
the following sketch. This Hmestone had, moreover, been sup-

Section along the line c — d of the general plan,
N. W. S. E.

A, hill limestone ; B, underlying shale ; C, cupriferous limestone ;
D, hanging shale ; E, greenstone.

ported by heavy timbering, which again had been loaded with
waste rock. To have taken down the whole of this limestone
would have been expensive, and to have cut through it to the
hanging wall beneath the timbering would have left the pit in a
very unsafe condition. To have sunk a shaft at one end of the
pit would probably have been the best plan, had it not been
thought preferable to sink or drive from No. 1 shaft, 140 feet
northwest of Harvey's pit. These considerations prevented any
excavation from being made in this opening ; and, since September,
1861, it has been used as a reservoir for water employed in dress-
ing the ore. There is still ore visible in Harvey's pit, nearly in
the middle at the deepest point, and on the stope at the west end.
The next open working of importance, to the west of Harvey's
pit, is Williams's pit. In September, 1861, it was separated from
Pike's pit by a piece of ground, since removed, under which a
very large drift had been excavated. The east side of Williams's

♦ See Canadian Naturalist, Vol. V. page 360.

454

Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine.

pit, was worked in September, 1861, and 161^ cubic fathoms of
rock excavated. These yielded :

16^i|^ tons, first quality ore of 24.0 per cent.
21111 " crush " 4.5 "

which, after deducting loss in dressing, correspond to 85 tons of
12 per cent ore. The eastern stope, consequently, contained 0.52
tons of 12 per cent ore per cubic fathom. The total expense of
excavation was $1292.00; or $8 per cubic fathom, and $15.1'7
per ton of 12 per cent.

The distance from the underlying to the hanging wall, on the east
slope of Williams's pit, is 135 feet ; which extraordinary width is
wholly filled up by limestone of slightly different varieties. Next
to the foot wall may be observed a fine grained, light grey
limestone, with which thin leaves of slate are intercalated, the
slate being the more cupriferous. Further to the north-west,
there follows a limestone of a coarser grain and slightly darker
color, in which the richest copper deposits seem to occur. Por-
tions of this are also slaty, but less regularly so than the variety
just mentioned! Still further to the northwest, the first mentioned

Section from g to h on the general plan,

N. W. S. E.

A, hill limestone ; B, underlying shale ; C, cupriferous limestone ;
D, hanging shale ; E, greenstone.

slaty limestone again appears ; after which succeeds a cupriferous
limestone, characterised by being impregnated with copper pyrites,
and by containing here and there patches, consisting of silicious
matter and copper pyrites, which project from the surface of the
limestone, wherever it has been exposed to the influence of the at-
mosphere, in the form of moss-like efflorescenses. The extraor-
dinary thickness which the limestone attains in Williams's pit,
seems to be attributable to foldings in its strata. The stratification
of the limestone is very obscure, and is rendered more so by innum-

Macfarlane on the Acton Coj^per Mine.

455

erable joints, and veins of calcspar, which ramify through the
limestone in all directions. Judging however from the position
which a certain narrow band of schistose limestone occupies, it
appears as if the limestone of the east slope of Williams's pit
was stratified as sketched in the preceding section.

Between Williams's pit and Pike's pit there existed, as already-
mentioned, previous to January, 1862, an arch of limestone; which
was perhaps the most picturesque feature of the mine. During
the winter, a large quantity of water having accumulated in Wil-
liams's pit, and become frozen over, it was judged advantageous to
take down the arch, while the access to it by means of the ice was
convenient. The piece of ground on the south side of the arch
abutting against a huge mass of greenstone, together with the
rock above the arch, contained 770 cubic yards = 96 cubic fathoms
nearly. These produced :

tons first quality ore of 23.0 percent.
« crush " 4.7 "

{( u u 2.7 "

which quantities correspond to 69 J tons of 12 per cent ore.
Consequently, a cubic fathom of this rock gave 0.72 tons of
12 per cent ore. The cost of mining and hauling was 8o39, or
$5.61 per cubic fathom, and 87.75 per ton of 12 per cent ore.
The following is a section of the limestone and the adjoining rocks,
at this point, as seen from the north-east side, previous to the ex-
cavation :

4

Mil

67

A

54

^4

Section along the line e—f of the general plan.

S.E.

N.W.

The letters denote the same rocks as in former sketches. The
dotted lines show the piece of ground mentioned above. It will
be observed that here also there exist evidences of foldings in the

456 Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine.

limestone strata, and that towards the west end of the mine, the
greenstone becomes extensively developed.

After blasting down the arch, Williams's pit was not worked un-
til May, 1862. By that time, however, it was completely filled
with water ; and the quantity contained in it could not, consider-
ing the immense area of the excavation, have been much under
a million of gallons. Previous to working the pit, it was emptied
to within a few feet of the bottom, by means of a syphon made of a
two-inch malleable iron pipe, 350 feet in length, leading into No. 1
shaft ; from which the water was raised by the pump attached to the
stationary engine there. Blasting was then commenced, and up
to the end of July there were excavated 1104 cubic yards = 138
cubic fathoms of limestone, which yielded :

6 If f f tons first quahty ore of 20.0 per cent.
56 IHf " « " 18.4 "

2'7'7 2VV0 " crush « 5.2 «

These quantities correspond to 1Y5 -^f^^ ^^^^ of 12 per cent, ore
or 1.27 tons per cubic fathom. The total expense of emptying
the pit, excavating the rock, and bringing it to the surface,
amounted to $1092.29, or $7.91 per cubic fathom, and to $6.24
per ton of 12 per cent ore. Mining was continued in Williams's
pit during the months of August and September, and a consider-
able part of what constituted the floor of Pike's pit was removed.
During these two months there were excavated in all 1468 cubic
yards = 183 J cubic fathoms of rock; of which about one-third
was in the rich ore-ground on the south-east side of Pike's pit, and
the other two-thirds in the much poorer rock situated between
the old face of the western stope of Williams's pit and No. 3 shaft.
The following lots of ore were produced from the above quantity
of rock :

236215 lbs. first quality ore of 19.3 per cent.

169200

U « ((

a

19.8

28456

*' second «

((

13.5

120000

a (( u

((

11.5

454720

" crush

((

5.0

680960

U ((

((

3.5

143360

" smalls

u

2.8

327040

U ((

u

3.5

These, after deducting one-fourth of the copper contents of the
crush ore, are equal to 507 ^f || tons of 12 per cent ore. Con-

Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine, 457

sequently, a cubic fathom of this rock yielded 2.Y6 tons of 12
per cent ore. The total expense of niining and hauling to surface
was 8l'777.12, or $9.68 per cubic fathom, and 83.50 per ton of 12
per cent ore. The width of the limestone horizontally across
"Williams's pit, at this point, is 150 feet; the width of the stope
nine fathoms. If we assume the thickness of the limestone, at
right angles to the underlying shale, to be twelve fathoms, which is
evidently a moderate estimate, then a square fathom, along the
plane of the bed at this point, contains 33.12 tons of 12 per cent
ore. In the upper part of Williams's pit, the conglomerate charac-
ter of the cupriferous limestone, referred to in describing No. 5
shaft, is beautifully developed. Masses of this character have fre-
quently been blasted out, measuring at least eight cubic yards. A
large mass of nearly the same dimensions was found loose on
the surface of this deposit. On drilling a hole into it, preparatory
to blasting it, the borings obtained were carefully collected and
examined. They contained :

Silica, 36.98

Carbonate of lime, 4.64

Alumina, 0.84

Iron, 7.01

Copper, 34.20 by assay.

Sulphur, 16.33 by difference.

100.00

The three last ingredients calculated to 100 parts give

Iron, 12.18

Copper, 59.44

Sulphur, 28.38

100.00

which figures approximate pretty closely to some analyses of pur-
ple copper. In the bottom of Williams's pit, about forty feet below
where this mass was found, the ore is more solid, not so much
diffused through the limestone, but concentrated in veins, which
are pretty distinctly separated from the side rock. In one of
these, of considerable thickness, I found the purest purple copper
which I have yet observed on the mine. It contained neither
lime nor silica, and assayed 61.9 per cent of copper. At no great ^

458 Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine,

distance from this vein, the limestone was destitute of copper, and
had the following composition :

Silica, 1.50

Alumina and peroxide of iron, 2.85

Carbonate of lime, 'Zl.lO

Carbonate of magnesia, 24.12

99.57
Previous to September, 1861, No. 2 shaft had been sunk through
shale, and into the limestone to a depth of seventy-eight feet ; and
a drift carried from it, at this depth, both towards the hanging wall,
and towards the foot wall. The direction of this drift was N. 10°
E. ; consequently not at all at right angles to the direction of the
strike, (which in this part of the mine appears to be N. 20^ E.) ;
but rather parallel with it. The length of the drift from the
shaft to the hanging wall was forty-two feet, to the foot wall sixty
feet. This latter, which was partially cut through, was found to
be of greenstone, or rather a shaly greenstone, composed of alternate
layers of that rock, and of shale with copper pyrites. This con-
stituted at least the lower part of the face of the drift. The upper
part was of limestone. In view of these circumstances, and although
a gallery had been driven twenty-seven feet along this foot wall to
the west, it was deemed proper to continue the main drift. This was
done for a distance of sixty feet in the same direction of N. 10° E.,
always in limestone ; the bottom of the drift consisting almost the
whole distance of the same shaly greenstone. Some good patches
of purple copper were met with, and also some veins of calcspar
with purple copper and copper pyrites, dropping down from above ;
these veins led to the belief that the drift was being carried along
underneath the ore. At the distance of 1 20 feet from the shaft, the
direction of the drift was altered to N. 63° W. (iu order to meet
No. 3 shaft) ; the drift was then carried sixty-three feet further, al-
ways on the foot wall, which gradually rose, until the driving was dis-
continued ; when it was found to have an inclination to the N. W, of
40°. In driving this sixty-three feet, some little copper was discov-
ered, principally in veins of calcspar from one to three inches thick.
Shortly after the driving here was discontinued, No. 3 shaft, which
was meanwhile being sunk, was carried down to the drift, and
made to communicate with it. No. 3 shaft had, previous to Sep-
tember, 1861, a depth under the floor of Pike's pit, of twenty-

Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine, 459

six and a half feet. In March and April it was further sunk
twenty-seven and a half feet, and at the depth of fifty-four feet
it broke through into No. 2 drift. The last six feet sunk was in
poor rock, but, previous to this, twelve feet had been sunk through
cupriferous limestone, permeated by veins of calcspar and
quartz, containing purple copper. One of these veins seemed, in
the southeast corner of the shaft, to have a dip of about 45° to
the N. W., but on the opposite side it became very much flatter
This circumstance seemed to confirm the opinion that No. 2.
drift had been carried along underneath the copper, so that it
was determined to stope back from No. 3 shaft, overhead in the
drift. In a short time the few feet of poor rock constituting the
roof of the drift were removed, and a bed of limestone exposed, con-
taining numerous veins consisting of purple copper and silicious
matter, and presenting an appearance similar to that described as
occurring in the bottom of Williams's pit. The following sketch
is a section along a line running from No. 2 shaft to No. 3, and
thence across Williams's pit :

Section from i to ^, and thence to I, on the general plan.
S.E. N.w.

A, hill limestone; B, underlying shale; C, cupriferous limestone;
D, hanging shale ; E, greenstone ; C2, dark coloured silicious lime-
stone, distinctly stratified, with impregnating copper pyrites.

It will be observed that a jog or bend of the footwall occurs in
No. 2 drift, similar to those occurring at the surface in Harvey's
pit and Flowers's pit ; and that it was in the basin thus formed, and
a little from the bottom of the same, that the rich ore at a was
discovered. The excavation of ore at this point, by widening the
drift and stoping overhead, commenced on the 1st of June. From
that date until the 8th of August, 573 cubic yards = 71.6 cubio
fathoms were excavated. These produced :

460 Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine.

^zHs ^^"s first quality ore of 22.0 per cent.
l^s-VsV " " " " 18.4 "
HMi " " " " 24.0 "
2///^ " second " " 9.0 "

269 " crush " 4.2 "

corresponding to lOl/j"/^ tons of 12 per cent ore, or 1.41 tons
per cubic fathom.

The total expense of mining and bringing to surface was $1288,
or $18 per cubic fathom, and $12.71 per ton of 12 per cent ore.
Mining was continued here after the above date, but up to the end
of September no further measurement had taken place. Probably
nowhere else on the mine are such beautiful and distinct specimens
of the copper conglomerate, or rather breccia, observable, as in the
excavation above No. 2 drift. In many cases the line of division
between the cupreous matrix and calcareous fragments is sharp and
distinct ; and it not unfrequently happens that there may be found
in close proximity to each other, pieces of matrix almost free from
lime, and fragments of limestone containing not a trace of copper.
To judge from the appearances in No. 2 drift, the cupriferous
limestone there does not contain a definite bed of conglomerate
running irregularly through, and subordinate to it. It seems
rather that the limestone has been cracked in all directions, and is
now filled with a network of veins from an inch to two and a half
feet thick, and containing purple copper, copper pyrites, silicious
matter, and fragments of limestone. The matter of these veins
has so often a brecciated character, from the presence of angular
fragments of the adjoining limestone, as frequently to entitle it to
the old German name of" Gang brockengestein," a term sometimes
used for characterising this brecciated structure in veins. The
accompanying sketch shews a section of one of these veins cut
through in stoping upwards from No. 2 drift.

The following analysis was made of a piece of veinstone, from
the same vein which enclosed a well defined angular fragment of
limestone :

Silica 38.65

Carbonate of lime, 0.95

Iron.... 7.31

Copper 37.20

Sulphur, 15.89 by diflference.

100.00

I

I

462 Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mi

me.

The angular fragment contained no copper, but gave

Silicious matter, 8.25

Alumina and peroxide of iron . . . 2.75

Carbonate of lime 73.20

Carbonate of mas^nesia 15.50

99.7
Other specimens of veinstone examined, contained as follows : —

1.

2.

3.

18.3

30.5

36.9

47.4

42.6

33.4

Silica
Copper

From the various analyses made of the purple copper, it does
not seem to differ essentially from the variety of this mineral to
•which the formula Fe Cu^ S* has been given.

I have thus described the progress of the mine, and the results
obtained in the various productive workings during the thirteen
months ending 30th September, 1862. If we take the average of
these results, we find that the average produce per cubic fathom has
been 1.6 tons of 12 per cent ore ; the average cost of mining and
bringing to surface, $11.28 per cubic fathom, and $7.03 per ton
of 12 per cent ore. These, it will be observed, are the results of
minino- in the produclive part of the cupriferous bed, exclusive al-
together of the cost of explorative work, of which latter it was
only in No. 2 drift that any considerable amount was done. Pro-
bably the cost of prospective work did not exceed $1.50 on each
ton of ore produced; so that we may assume that the cost of
searching for ore, mining and bringing it to the surface, was $8.50
per ton of 12 per cent.

Before leaving this part of the subject, I may be per.nitted to
make some remarks as to the nature of the deposit and the source
of the ore. It will probably be admitted on all hands, that the
bed of limestone in which the ore occurs, is of sedimentary origin,
and originally possessed a horizontal position. Nor will it pro-
bably be denied, that a part at least of the copper ; viz., that part
which occurs in the form of copper pyrites, finely disseminated
through some parts of the rock, was deposited, in some state or
other, simultaneously with the limestone. That the limestone
and the rocks adjoining it have, by certain powerful agencies,
been raised from their horizontal position, and in this process been

Macjarlane on the Acton Copper Mine, 463

rent, broken, bent and twisted in the most violent manner, is evi-
dent from the various phenomena presented in every part of the
mine. Whether this upheaval was caused by the greenstones
being thrown up from beneath, seems to be uncertain, but it is
probably not unreasonable to suppose that this protrusion of the
greenstone occurred simultaneously with the upheaval of the
strata ; and that both may have been caused by certain more gen-
eral and wide spread movements of the earth's crust. Whatever
may have caused the upheaval, it seems sufficiently evident that
the upheaval caused the rending of the limestone, the formation of
the fissures and crevices, in which the copper ore was subsequently
deposited, and the partial filling up of these by detached fragments
of limestone of all possible dimensions. With regard to the fill-
ing up of the fissures by the copper ores, we may conceive three
different modes in which this may have been eff'ected : 1. The
ores may have been injected into these fissures in a fused state*
2. They may have been removed from the impregnated side
rock by certain solvents, and re-deposited in the fissures. 3. They
may have been brought up from beneath by springs. With re-
gard to the first of these theories, it must be remarked that the
general appearance of the veins, coupled with the presence of green-
stone in the neighborhood, would seem to be in its favor. But
when it is considered that the ore is intimately associated with
quartz, or rather with chert, this view of the origin of the ore does
not appear admissible. It is difficult to conceive of a fused material
so homogeneous as the substance which forms the matrix of the brec-
cia, consisting exclusively of metallic sulphurets and silica. And
even although it were possible to imagine a fused mass of this
composition, the degree of heat required for its fusion would have
been such as to exert an action on the adjoining limestone, simi-
lar to that produced by certain igneous rocks, viz., a conversion of
the greyish colored limestone into white crystalline marble.
With regard to the second theory, the presence of sillica does not
present any difficulty, because it is a well-known fact that that
substance is deposited in large quantities from hot springs. It is
not unreasonable to suppose that the water percolating through
the rocks possessed a high temperature, because it is not unlikely
that a higher temperature than the present prevailed after the
Lower Silurian strata had been deposited. With regard to the
manner in which the copper may have been dissolved, and held

464 Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine.

in solution by tlie water, it seems evident that it could not have
existed in the water in the state of sulphate of copper, from the
oxydation of impregnated copper pyrites; because such a solution
on coming in contact with limestone would have formed with it
sulphate of lime and carbonate of copper. Nor is it possible to
ignore the physical properties of copper pyrites, and suppose it to
have been, to however slight an extent, soluble in water. The
only solvents known for heavy metallic sulphurets, are the alka-
line sulphurets. Many heavy metallic sulphurets when fused with
sulphuret of potassium or sodium, yield when treated with water,
solutions containing considerable quantities of the heavy metals ;
and I have found that on fusing a regulus containing iron, copper,
cobalt and nickel, with sulphate of soda and charcoal, and treat-
ing the result with water, a dark green solution was obtained,
containing, after careful filtration, all four of these metals. This
solution, on exposure to the air, gradually oxydized, became color-
less, and deposited the metallic sulphurets as a black powder. I
am not quite prepared to assert that the copper in the veins above
referred to was deposited in this manner ; but I am of opinion that
if we are to adopt the theory of secretion from the side rock, this
is the only explanation which is admissible. The third theory of
the source of the copper is probably the correct one, and it is the
one which is most in accordance with generally received opinions*
Colta, for instance, regards it as certain that mineral veins proper
have been filled up by infiltration, and that the material thus de-
posited came from beneath.* If we however attempt to go a
step beyond this general explanation, we must enquire as to the
nature of the solvent, and in doing so can scarcely arrive at other
results than those mentioned in connection with the second the-
ory. We must regard the alkaline sulphurets as the most probable
solvents under the circumstances ; and when we reflect that the
sulphurets of platinum, gold, mercury, tin, tellurium, antimony,
arsenic, vanadium, molybdenum, tungsten, nickel and iron, are all
soluble in alkaline sulphurets, it will appear that the latter may
have played a more important part in the formation of ore veins
than has been hitherto supposed. When moreover it is remem-
bered, how numerous and diverse the double sulphur salts are, and
how many of these, especially arsenic and antimonious sulphurets

• Cotta; Erzlagerstatten, p. 127.

Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine, 465

occur in ore veins, the importance of the agency of tlie alkaline
sulphurets in the filling up of such can scarcely be over-rated.*

This sketch of the recent results of mining at Acton, would
scarcely be complete without a description of the processes em-
ployed for concentrating the ore, and a reference to certain experi-
ments instituted for the purpose of ascertaining the amount of
copper lost in the processes of crushing and jigging.

As soon as the ore has been brought to the surface it undergoes
the process of coarse spalling ; that is, it is separated from the
waste rock, and broken into pieces having a diameter of from four
to six inches. These pieces are sorted, according to the quantity
of copper they contain, into first quality ore, second quality ore,
crush ore and fourths. The first three sorts then undergo the pro-
cess of fine spalling. The first quality ore is broken into pieces
of the size of an egg^ and any poor rock which these may con-
tain is picked out. It thus yields marketable first quality ore,
containing from eighteen to twenty-four per cent. The second
quality pieces, treated in the same way, yield marketable second
quality ore, containing from ten to thirteen per cent. The

Editofs note, by T. Sterrt Hunt, f, r. s.

De Senarmont, in his researches on the artificial formation of the min-
erals of metalliferous veins by the moist way, has shown that by the aid
of heated solutions of alkaline sulphurets and bicarbonates, at tempera-
tures of 200O and 300^ Centigrade, it is possible to obtain in a crys-
talline form many of the native metals metallic sulphurets, and
sulpharseniates, besides quartz, fluor spar and sulphate of barytes. These
observations, and those of Daubree are cited by me in a paper in the
Naturalist for December 1859, p. 500, with the remark that, in them, " we
have, beyond a doubt, a key to the true theory of metalliferous veins.' '
Heated alkaline solutions (sulphurets and carbonates,) which are at the
same time the agents of metamorphism, dissolve from the sediments the
metallic elements which these contain disseminated, and subsequently
deposit them, with quartz and the various spars, in the fissures of the
rock." Mr. Macfarlane's view seems to be in perfect accordance with
the theory which I have advanced. The notion that the contents of the
rein have been deposited from springs coming from below, is in no
way inconsistent with that of their secretion from the wall-rock, inas-
much as we conceive that metalliferous and other mineral waters, in all
cases, derive their soluble matters from certain permeable strata, and
may afterwards either deposit these dissolved matters in the same strata,
or more frequently rise to higher formations, where a lower temperature if
more favorable to the precipitation of the dissolved elements.
Oah. Nat. 30 Vol. VII.

466 Macfarlane on the Acton Copyer Mine,

crush ore, after having been spalled down, and separated from
the waste rock, assays from three to five per cent. It is further
ti-eated by crushing and jigging. The so-called fourths consist
of limestone containing copper pyrites in coarse grains, small
strings and finely disseminated particles. This quality is not
worked up at present. It is piled in separate heaps, in order
to be treated by stamping and washing, so soon as the appa-
ratus for that purpose is procured. Besides the coarser rock,
there is produced, in the various workings, smalls, which consist of
pieces of ore and rock whose diameter does not exceed three or four
inches, and which are usually so coated with mud as not to be
easily separable from each other. These smalls are first thrown
upon a screen, the bars of which are one and a quarter inches apart;
the larger pieces which remain upon it are sorted and spalled in the
same way as the coarser rock ; while the smaller pieces, which pass
through, and assay from two to three per cent, are at once sub-
jected to crushing and jigging.

The crush ore, and the finer part of the smalls, are reduced,
by passing between cast iron rollers, to such a size as to pass
through a sieve of twelve holes to a square inch. The crushed
product is then brought into a jigging sieve, having sixty-four
holes to a square inch. This sieve is wholly immersed in water,
where it receives a succession of jerks, each of which causes it to
descend, and suspends its contents in the water. These then
arrange themselves according to their relative specific gravities ;
the richest and largest particles at the bottom of the sieve, the
poorest and smallest at the top. After the sieve has received
a sufiicient number of jerks, it is raised out of the water,
and the upper layer, or skimmings, scraped off". These contain
from one and a-half to two per cent copper, and are thrown aside.
That part which collects at the bottom of the sieve, and contains
twelve to fourteen per cent of copper, is called ragging, and is a
marketable product. There is sometimes produced au intermediate
sort called seconds, occupying a position on the sieve between the
skimmino-s and the ragging. This is laid apart, and afterwards re-
jigged, the same products being produced as those above mentioned.
In this process of jigging a considerable portion, the finest part of
the crush work, falls through the sieve into the box below, which
contains the water, and is called hutch-work. This, on being
washed in a streak from the slime which it contains, assays from

Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine, 467

eight to eleven per cent, and is then in a marketable state. The
costs of these various dressing operations were as follows : — Coarse
spalling costs from fifteen to twenty-five cents per cubic yard of
rock, according as the same contains less or more ore ; fine
spalling from fifty to eighty cents per ton of the resulting ore,
according to the quality of the rock operated on. The processes
of crushing and jigging cost during January, February and
March, 1682, $5.60 per ton of products, and 81.15 per ton of
crush ore. The total expense of coarse and fine spalling, and
crushing and jigging, per ton, of all the products is at present
$5.25.

The crushing and jigging processes are ulmost the same as
those adopted in Cornwall for the dressing of crush ore, ;^et
they are attended with the loss of much of the copper contained
in the original crush ore. Having for a long time estimated
the quantities, and assayed the samples of the crush ore put through
the rollers; and ascertained the weight and contents of the resul-
ting products, I have found that the loss of copper is much more
than might at first sight be imagined. I subjoin a few of the
results obtained: From the I'Zth of November to the 12th of
December, 1861, there were crushed 956,760 lbs. of ore, contain-
ing 4.6 per cent, or 44,010 lbs. copper. From this there were
produced 283,451 lbs. of products, averaging 10.95 per cent, and
containing 31,052 lbs. copper. There were consequently lost
673,309 lbs. of skimmings and slimes of 1.92 per cent, con-
taining 12,958 lbs. copper. Thus 29.5 per cent of the copper
contained in the crush ore was lost in the skimminofs and
slimes. Further, during January, February and March,
1862, there were crushed 2,881,100 lbs. of ore averaging 3.4
per cent, and containing 100,303 lbs. of copper; from which
there were roduced 615,520 lbs. of products averaging 9.5 per
cent, and containing 58,711 lbs. of copper. There were con-
sequently 2,265,580 lbs. of skimmings and slimes of 1.83 per cent*
containing 41,592 lbs. of copper. Thus 41.5 per cent, of the
copper contained in the crush ore was lost. It is to be remarked?
however, with regard to the foregoing results, that much of the
copper contained in these skimmings and slimes is with proper
appliances recoverable. Subsequent to the first of July, 1862, ar-
rangements were made for dressing the ore by contract, and for
working up a part of the slimes as these were being produced.
Under this system the following result was obtained : — During

468 Macfarlane on the Acton Coj^fper Mine.

the months of July, August and September, 1862, there were
crushed 3,348,887 lbs. of crush ore and smalls, of from 2.0 to 5.9
per cent, averaging 4.1, and containing in all 13*7,969 lbs. of cop-
per. From this there were produced 1,073,644 lbs. of products
of from 8.0 to 12.6 per cent., averaging 9.9 per cent, and con-
taining 106,625 lbs. of copper. There were consequently cast
aside 2,275,243 lbs. of skimmings and slimes, averaging 1.38 per
cent, and containing 31,344 lbs. of copper; which is equal to 22.7
per cent of the copper contained in the original ore.

From the results here narrated, it would appear that at least
one-fourth of the copper contained in the crush ore is lost in the
process of dressing it. The actual value thus wasted goes far to
counterbalance the saving of freight which results from concen-
trating the ore. It would not certainly be attended with greater
advantage to send the crush ore of four or five per cent to market
instead of dressing it ; but it admits of plain proof, that it would
be better at once to sell an ore of seven per cent, and pay freight
on it to Boston or New York, rather than to submit it to further
concentration by crushing and jigging, and sustain the great loss
of copper which occurs in these operations. The following calcu-
lations will be found to confirm this statement :

100 tons of 7.0 per cent ore would bring in Boston
$4.00 per unit ; which for 6.5 per cent, (^ per cent
being deducted for the difference between dry and
humid assay) is equal to $26.00 per ton, $2600.00

From this deduct freight, barrels, &c., at $9.00 per ton, $900.00

There remains, $1700.00

On the other hand, 100 tons of 7.0 per cent ore would
yield, by crushing and jigging, about 43f tons of
12.0 per cent products ; which would bring, say at
$4.30 per unit, for 11.5 per cent, $49.50 per ton,. . . $2163.43
From this deduct :

Cost of crushing, &c., at $5.50 per ton, $240.70

Freight and barrels, at $9.00 " 393.75 634.45

There remains, $1528.98

or $1.71 per ton less than when at otice sent to market. It is
thus evident that an advantageous concentration of a seven per
cent ore by means of crushing and jigging, is not possible. The

Macfarlane on the Acton Copper Mine. 469

question next arises, as to whether such an ore could not be
smelted at the mines, and a large part of the cost for freight and
barrels saved : —

100 tons of this ore might, by smelting, be made to
yield 16f tons of regulus of 36.0 per cent (even sup-
posing that one-seventh of the copper were lost in the
operation). This would be worth, at 84.50 per unit,
or $162 per ton, 82700.00

From which deduct :

Cost of smelting, at 85.00 per ton, ..... 8500.00

Barrels and freight, 89.00 " 150.00 650.00

There remains, 82050.00

The 100 tons of 7.0 per cent ore sent to market, would

have yielded, according to the previous calculation,. . 1700.00

Consequent profit by smelting 8350.00

or 83.50 per ton of seven per cent ore. It would thus appear
that the best mode of treating the crush ore would be to separate
from it as much seven per cent ore as possible, and to treat the
refuse from this, which might assay two per cent, by stamping
and washing. Of this two per cent ore, the fourths (now set aside)
would, on being worked up, yield a large quantity ; and although
they might be unable to bear much of the mining expenses, would
considerably more than pay the cost of their own concentration.
In order to ascertain the fitness of some of the products
for metallurgical treatment, the following examinations were made
towards the close of last year. A sample of first quality ore from
No. 4 shaft gave,

Silica 25.12

Carbonate of lime 33.10

Iron 5.81

Copper 24.75

Sulphur, 11.22 by diflerence.

100.00

470 Macfarlane on the Aeton Copper Mine,

A sample of ragging gave : —

Silicious matter 16.92

Carbonate of lime 53. 0*7

Carbonate of magnesia ..•••• . . trace

Iron 4.06

Copper 13.07

Sulphur 11.62 by difference*

100.00.

A sample of butch-work gave : —

Silicious matter 24.32

Carbonate of lime 53.10

Carbonate of magnesia 2.10

Iron. 3.36

Copper 9.95

Sulphur 7.17 by difference.

100.00

From these results, and from others previously given, it will ap-
pear that silica and lime are almost the only slag-producing ma-
terials contamed in these ores. Iron is present in small quantity,
but without previous calcining, which in this case is inadmissible, it
would go to the formation of the regulus. The compounds of
silica with lime are all but infusible ; but these substances form
with iron oxide, easily fusible slags, which are frequently produced
iu copper-smelting works. In smelting the Acton ores, therefore,
a flux containing iron oxide, such as puddling slag, or roasted iron
pyrites, is indispensable. The cost of these would not add very
materially to the expense of smelting ; but it would of course be
better, if such could be had in the neighborhood, to use in place
of these fluxes, poor pyritous copper ores, previously calcined.

The total product of the Acton Mine during the period to
which this paper has reference, viz., from September 1st, 1861, to
September 30th, 1862, was 2336 tons of 2,352 lbs. ; or 2,747 tons
of 2,000 lbs, the average copper contents of which amounted to
12.0 per cent. This is equal to an average monthly production
of 179 tons of ore of 2,352 lbs., or 211 tons of 2,000 lbs. In reality,
however, the production was much greater in the summer than the

Macfarlane on the Acton Cojyper Mine, 471

winter months. For instance, the total produce during July,
August and September last, was, —

366if|i

tons first quality ore.

mm

" second " "

150^¥ft

" ragging

312|Ht

" hutch- work

sVsVj

" buddle-work

994|f If tons in all, or 331 tons monthly.

With regard to the future of the mine, I see no reason to
doubt that it will be as successful as its past; provided always
that a due amount of prospective work is done, and that arrange-
meuts are made for saving freight, and increasmg the value of the
poorer ores, by smelting the products of the mine on the spot.
To this must of course be added prudent and economical manage-
ment, without which even the richest mines yield little profit.

In conclusion, I have to remark, that it may seem to some, that
in the foregoing, I have been unnecessarily minute. I have, how-
ever, thought myself justified ingoing into detail, by the altogether
exceptional character of the deposit. As far as I am aware, there
is no instance known of a mineral deposit bearing even a moderate
resemblance, in its various relations and characters, to that of the
Acton Mine ; and, consequently, it is impossible to draw on any
stock of experience gained elsewhere, for guidance in exploring it.
That the future of the mine may be successful, and its permanency
established, no fact, however seemingly trivial, observed in its ear-
lier working ought to be regarded as unimportant. That other
deposits of a similar nature may yet be discovered in the district
is not impossible ; and in the working of such, the experience
gained at Acton may not be altogether valueless. For these
reasons I have, in the foregoing paper, mentioned details and
minutite, which few may find useful ; but at the same time I trust
there will be found in it matter of more general interest.

Actonvale, Canada East, 28th October, 1862.

472 Miscellaneous,

MISCELLANEOUS.

ON THE AGE OF THE PYRAMIDS OF EGYPT.

Mahmoud Bey, astronomer to the Vice-roy of Egypt, has just
published the results of his investigations of the pyramids, under-
taken at the request of the Vice-roy. The measures of the great
pyramid he finds to be 231 meters for the sides of the square
base, and 146.5 meters for the height; so that the faces form an
angle of 54° 45' with the horizon. This agrees with the known
inclinations of the six other pyramids of Memphis ; which vary be-
tween 51° and 53°, and average 52° 30'. This common inclina-
tion ; and the fact that the pyramids, and the other funereal monu-
ments which surround them, are, as Mahmoud has satisfied him-
self, always placed exactly facing the four cardinal points, suggests
that these pyramids had some relation to a celestial phenomenon,
and to the divinity which presided over that in the Egyptian my-
thology. Now he has found that Sirius, when it passes the me-
ridian of Gizeh, shines vertically upon the southern face of the
pyramids ; and in calculating the change in the position of this
star for a series of centuries, shows that 3,300 years before the
Christian era, the rays of this star, at its culmination, must have
been directly perpendicular to the southern face of the pyramids,
inclined at an angle of 52° 45' with the northern horizon. Ac-
cording to the principles of astrology the influences of a star are
greatest when its rays fall perpendicularly upon an object. If
now we suppose that these pyramids were constructed a little
more than 5,000 years ago, it would appear evident that their
faces received the angle of 52 degrees, in order to be perpendicu-
lar to the rays of Sirius, the brightest star of our northern heaven ;
which was consecrated to the god Sothis, the celestial dog, and
the judge of the dead, and was also said to be the soul of this deity.

This opinion is confirmed in an unexpected manner by the fol-
lowing considerations. The pyramids, being tombs or funereal
monuments, would naturally be under the patronage of that divin-
ity who presides more particularly over the" dead, that is to say
with Sothis, who is no other than the thrice-great Hermes, Cyno-
cephalus, Thoth or Anubis. Now the hieroglyphic designation of
Sothis is a pyramid by the side of a star and a crescent. Nothing
is therefore more natural than this relation thus discovered by
Mahmoud Bey between Sirius and the pyramids. The date of

Miscellaneous. 473

3,300 B. C, thus assigned to these structures, accords with Bun"
sen's determination, according to which king Cheops reigned in
the thirty-fourth century before our era. It also agrees with the
tradition of the Arabs, according to which they were constructed
three or four centuries before the deluge ; which they assign to
the year 3,716 before the Hegira. — {Le Cosmos, JVov.21st, 1862.)

T. .S .H.

ON THE CAUSE OF ATTRACTION.

The Rev. Father Secchi, the learned director of the Roman As-
tronomical Observatory, has just published an essay, in which he
discusses from an advanced point ' >f view the theory of attraction
After having shown, in accordance with the views so ably ex-
pounded by Mr. Tyndal in his paper on Force, published in the
Naturalist, (p. 241,) that all the physical forces or movements of
which we are cognizant come to us from the solar centre, the
learned Jesuit inquires, " But how does this movement or se-
ries of movements return to the sun ? Who knows but what that
part of the heat thus emanating from the sun, which is not lost
by radiation into space, is converted into an impulsion of the
mass of the earth towards the sun ? I do not pretend to give a
theory, but only to propose a conjecture, which it will be suffi-
cient for me to show not to be absurd."

" We see that the intensity of heat, like that of gravity, dimi-
nishes inversely as the square of the distance. We know also
that a prodigious quantity of molecular movements come from
the sun by luminous and calorific radiation, and under the form
of vibratory disturbances, remain, apparently destroyed, at the
earth's surface, instead of being lost by radiation towards the
planetary spaces. In fact, heat coming from sources of a very
high temperature (that is to say, heat of short undulations,) when
brought to a lower temperature, (or to long undulations,) can no
longer traverse the terrestrial atmosphere and radiate into space.
A certain quantity of motion coming from the sun must thus rest
imprisoned in terrestrial bodies, by the chemical force to which it
gives rise. So that in reality the vis viva, and the quantity of move-
ment in the terrestrial globe, and its surrounding mass of ether,
must increase indefinitely, if there were not some way of escape
or discharge. Why may not this discharge be the incessant fall
of the earth towards the sun, a fall expressed by the linear dis-

474 Review,

tance which the earth deviates from the tangent of its orbit ; which
tangent the earth would follow, in virtue of its inertia, did not
some cause draw it towards the solar centre ?"

Of this brilliant and novel conjecture, the learned editor of Le
Cosmos, from whom we extract the above, remarks, that it seems
to be one of those happy inspirations which belong to truth alone ;
and he adds, " there is great merit in having originated an idea
which has never before presented itself to the human intelligence
and which, in time to come, may bring forth fruitful results." — Le
Cosmos, Nov. 21, 1862. t. s. h.

REVIEW.

DANA'S MANUAL OF GEOLOGY.*

In no part of the world has the science of geology been more
successfully cultivated than in North America. But the results
that have been arrived at, are scattered through a multitude of
reports of the different surveys, and papers of greater or less
length in the scientific journals. Up to the present time he who
has endeavored to get a clear idea of the geology of the whole
North American continent has found it necessary to devote more
time and means to the object, than most students can well afford.
In the important work, just issued by Professor Dana, this great
difficulty is removed. We have now in one compact and beauti-
fully illustrated book, not only a comprehensive and well-balanced
account of the elementary principles of the science, but also the
general results of what has been ascertained of the geology of
this continent, down to the present moment. We have not, just
now, leisure to give a full review of this excellent publication, and
must therefore content ourselves with a mere glance at its contents.
Prof. Dana has divided his subject into four parts, as follows. —

1. Physiographic Geology. — In this part of the work, are
described the forms of the earth's surface, as exhibited in the

* Manual of Geology : treating of the principles of the science with
special reference to American Geological History, for the use of Col-
leges, Academies, and Schools of Science. By James D. Dana, M. A.,
LL. D., Silliman Professor of Geology and Natural History in Yale
College, &c., &c. Hlustratedby a chart of the world, and over one
thousand figures, mostly from American sources. Philadelphia: pub-
lished by Theodore Bliss & Co. London: Triibner & Co. 1863. Small
8vo, pp. 812.

Review. 475

distribution of the land and water ; the directions of certain
physiographic lines, in conformity with which the boundaries of
the continents, the ranges of islands and chains of mountains are
arranoed ; the system in the rehefs or surface-forms of the con-
tinental lands ; the system of oceanic and atmospheric currents'
and the general laws of the distribution of forests, prairies and
deserts. All these phenomena are within the domain of physical
geography, but they can never be well understood unless investi-
gated through geology, as their origin dates far back in time.

2. LitholoctICal Geology. — Relating to the composition and
different kinds of rocks.

3. Historical Geology. — Under this title is discussed the main
portion of the subject; the description in their order, of all the
formations from the most ancient up to the most recent. Here we
have, for the first time, the science of geology elucidated by spe-
cial reference to the series of American rocks ; thus removing the
great diificulty we have pointed out in the first lines of this notice.
Full details of all the deposits, their lithological composition, their
characteristic organic remains and geographical distribution are
given. There appear to be about YOO figures of fossils, nearly
all of which were drawn on wood by Mr. F. B. Meek, an accom-
plished artist, and one of the best palaeontologists of the continent.
Most of the species figured are American, and several of them are
from the Decades of the Canadian Survey, representing peculiar
forms only possessed by the Provincial Collection of Canada. It is
not uncommon to find works on general geology illustrated bv
figures, which, for all natural-history purposes, are perfectly worth-
less. This must happen when neither the artist nor the author is
a naturalist. In the book before us, the illustrations are first-class
for the reason that all the parties engaged in their production, per-
fectly understood how to prepare them.

4. Dynamical Geology. — This division treats of the causes
of even sin the earth's geological progress. " These events include
the formation of all rocks, stratified and unstratified, with what-
ever they contain, from the earhest Azoic to the modern beds of
gravel, sand, clays, and lavas; the oscillations o' the earth's
crust ; the increase of dry land, elevation of mountains, and elimi-
nation of the surface features of the globe ; the changes of climate •
the changes of life."

The work concludes with an appendix and a copious index.
Geology is a science of such vast extent, and so largely com

476

Retici

posed of all others, that few m^ the almost universal

knowledge required to produce a .laal of its elementary

principles. The author of this wui oeing a profound geoloo^ist
mineralogist, zoologist, and physicisU one of the best qualified
for the tasL Ills book is a great en, and its publication will
mark the commencement of a new ;a in the progress of the
science. In conclusion we would st nglj recommend it to the
Canadian student. With the Gener. lie port on the Geology of
Canada, soon to be published by Sir \ E. Logan, the Decades o^
the Survey, and Dana's Manual, be ci enter the field unimpeded
by the crowd of diflBculties to whicl observers in this province,
have heretofore found themselves op)Hed at the very outset

E. B.

^

%

i

INDEX TO VOL. VII.

PAGE

Algsd, Kemp on the shore zones of. . ^

'' list of, at Peak'3 Island ^^

Asbestus, -|^Q2

Apple trees, * ' * ' „ ^q

Archbold on the failure of apple trees ^^^t |^°

jlbies alba ^og

jinthus spinoletta ^

Jmpelis siaiis ^34

jiphis avencB „q^

ArcypUra grarllis -

Mauda (i.lpesiris „

Alcedo alcijon ^j,

Ardea, species of described ' ^^

Jjias, species of described , . . . .

Aglaspis, figured • • -

Acton copper mine, Macfarlane on the ^^ '

Attraction, causes of

Barometer, observations of, during 1861 • • ; ; 35

Birds of the District of Montreal 44, 1^, 289, 344, 401

" of the McKenzie River District 14^

Betula papyracea ^

Bombycilla, species of described |*^

Bethuue, list of Entomologists in Canada 199

Billings, on Prof. Hall's contributions. ^ 389

" on pine-boring beetles 4dU

- "'^eology

note by 395

on the Report of the Geology of Wisconsin lot>

20

" on Dana's Manual of Geology J^J

" note by

" on the Report of the Geology of Wisconsin. . .

Botanical Society op Kingston. Papers read before
Kemp, on zones of marine plants

Canada, primitive formations of 1> 113, 161

" Robb, on the superficial deposits of. 38 J

Chromic Iron ore

Carpolih from Nova Scotia j"^

Chemical subjects, notes on 1^^

Cobalt extracted from Iron pyrites 1»^

Chemistry of the earth. Hunt on the ^^1

Couper on Saperda Candida 278

Caprimulgus, species of described j^'t

Corvus, species of described 308

Certhia familiaris ^1^

Clementi, Mr., letter from 317

Couper, on new birds ^^^

Cuculus, species of described ^4d

Columba, species of described 350

478 INDEX.

PAGff.

CharadriuSj species of described 352

Cattskill group of N. Y., Hall on 377

" " " Jewett on 395

Colymbus^ species of described 401

Copper mine, History of the Acton 447

Dawson, J. W., on the flora of the White Mountains 8l

" on a Sigillaria and a Carpoiile 106

" Review of Geological Reports 213

" " of catalogue of Canadian minerals 216

" on the land flora of the Deronian period 223

" on the footprints of iimM^Ms 271

" Review of Hooker's Arctic Botany 334

" on zoological classification 438

Dana's Manual of Geology reviewed 474

Entomologists in Canada, list of 199

Enaliosaurian, Marsh on a new 205

E/nberiza, species of described 297

Entomological grave-digger 319

Entomologists, meeting of, at Toronto 396

Falco, species of described 54

Flora of the White Mountains • . . . . 81

Force, Prof. Tyndal's lecture on 241

Fringilla, species of described 298

Fulica Americana 376

Green, on the sub-kingdom Ccdenterata 158

Guiraca ccerulea 319

Gold fields of Nova Scotia 320

Geology of Newfoundland 321

Hunt, T. Sterry, note on gabbro by 17

" " on the Taconic System 78

" " on the Chemistry of the Earth 201

" " note on Metamorphism by 262

Hall, Dr., on the Birds of the district of Montreal, 44, 171, 289, 344, 401

Hiru7ido, species of described 292

Honeyman, on the Gold-fields of Nova Scotia 320

Hooker's outlines of Arctic Botany reviewed 334

Hall, Professor James, on the Cattskill Group. 277

" " on a new Crustacean 443

Indians, substances useful to 133

Icterus, species of described 306

Jewett, on the Cattskill Group

Kemp on the Shore Zones of Marine Plants 20

Lepidoptera, list of 130

Lanius, species of described 191

Lawson on Aphis avence 264

Limulus footprints compared with Protichnites 271

Larusj species of described 409

INDEX. 479

PAGE.

Macfarlane, on Primitive formations Ij 113, 161

" on the extraction of Cobalt 194

" translation from Naumann 254

" on the Acton copper mine - 447

Marine Plants, Kemp on the shore zones of 20

Meteorology of the year 1861 34

Mammals of the McKenzie River District 137

Minerals useful to the Chipewyans 133

McKenzie Pdver District, animals of the 137

Muscicapa, species of described 172

Muscipeta, species of described 174

Marsh on a new Enaliosaurian 205

McGill University, Natural History collection of 221

Metamorphism, Hunt on 262

Microscopic organisms 283

Mer^us, species of described 428

Monohammus, species of described 431 43 2

Natural History Society, Papers read before

Macfarlane on Primitive Formations 1

Dawson on the flora of the White Mountains 81

Archbold on the failure of the apple tree 102

Saunder's list of Lepidoptera 130

Ross on Minerals used by Indians 133

Couper on Saperda Candida 2 78

Professor Hall on the Cattskill group 377

Robb on the superficial deposits of Canada 382

Billings on the genus i^onohammus 430

Macfarlane on the Acton Mine 447

Professor Hall on a new Crustacean 443

Annual report of 224

Proceedings of 399

Norway, Primitive formations of 1, 113, 161

Naumaun on Primitive formations 254

Newfoundland, Perley on physical characteristics of 321

(Edipoda aqualis - 287

Oriolus Baltimorus 282

Orthoptera, Scudder's list of 283

Primitive formations in Canada 1. 113, 161

Primitive formations, Naumann on 254

Pratt on Scripture and Science 159

Protichnites compared with Limulus footprints 271

Phancroptera curvicauda 285

Pezotettix borealis 286

Parus palustris 296

Pyrrhula enucleator 305

Picus, species of described 314, 344

Porzana Noveboracensis 320

Perley on the Geology of Newfoundland 321

Pine-boring beetles 43 1

Pyramids of Egypt, age of 472

QuiscaluSj species of described • 291

480 INDEX.

PAGE.

Kain during 1861 39

Bobbins on Spectrum discoveries 129

" notes on chemical subjects 155

Ross on substances useful to the Chipewyans 133

" on birds the North West 137

Eegulus, species of described 186

Rallus, species of described 373

Robb on the superficial deposits of Canada 382

Smallwood's Meteorology of 1861 34

Strix, species of described 67

Sigillarisi, Dawson on an erect 106

" Brownii 109

Spectrum discoveries 129

Saunder's list of Lepidoptera 130

Setophaga, species of described 175

Sylvia, species of described 178

Saperda Candida 278

Scudder's list of Orthoptera 283

Sturnus Ludovicianus 308

Sitta, species of described 310

Saxicola (Bnanthe 358

Scolopax, species of described 358

Sterna, species of described 407

Thermometer, readings of, for 1861 36

Taconic System, Hunt on the 78

Trigonocarpum Hookeri Ill

Troglotides, species of described 187

Turdus, species of described 289, 191

Tyndal on Force, 241

Tides, on the power involved in rise and fall of the 253

Tanagra, species of described 289

Trochilus colubris 312

Tetrao, species of described 348

Udeoptylla nigra 284

Vireo, species of described 176

Vanellus helveticus 354

White Mountains, Flora of the 82

White, M. 0., on microscopic organisms 281

Xiphidium, species of described 285

Zoological classification 438

3 2044

i:'i||iii|!i!iilifiii'i'lll|1il

ililllLllliillllillil

072 225 543

^-yCi"^!* «.

#«•♦

'-m^

mm

M