Extract

The fossiliferous beds which form the subject of the following paper occupy positions at some distance from each other. The first and most interesting of them is situated in the neighbourhood of Pondicherry. The silicified wood, found in the adjacent sandstones, has long been known to the inhabitants of that part of the country, from the fine polish which it admits of and its capability of being formed into ornaments; but the beds of limestone which have furnished the material for the pavement for the streets of Pondicherry, and which lie within seven miles of the French capital in India, have almost entirely escaped observation.

Pondicherry itself, as well as Madras, is situated on a very recent formation of loose sand, which extends for a considerable distance along the eastern coast of India, and which in many cases contains marine shells in such abundance that they are dug up and burnt for lime. I have obtained specimens from a spot about thirty miles from Pondicherry and ten from the coast. They are all shells such as now inhabit the Indian seas, and consist of—1. Pyrula vespertilio; 2. Purpura carinifera; 3. Cardita antiquata; 4. Pullastra; 5. an undescribed species of Cytherea; 6. Arca granosa; 7. Arca rhombea. This formation is usually bounded by granite, which comes to the surface at Sadras, Madras, and many other places along the coast. Immediately behind the town of Pondicherry, however, the recent beds rest upon some low hills of red sandstone, which encloses an