1848.] MURCHISON ON THE STRUCTURE OF THE ALPS. 263

the space of half a German mile, it there contains Grijphcea columba,Cardium Ilillanum, and in other places (Zips, Zglo, AVercizer) Pho-ladomya EsmarcJcii ; whilst plants referred by Goppert to the uppergreensand, including Salicites crassifolius, occur at Kluknawa andPetzoldtii.

It is thus manifest, that in the generic word Carpathian sandstone,as in the words “Wiener sandstein,” “flysch” and “macigno,” de-posits of lower greensand, upper greensand, and of supracretaceousor eocene greensand have been confounded. The value, therefore,of the section between Zagopane and Zafflary (fig. 31) is apparent,because the order of superposition there clearly establishes a parallelbetween the schists and sandstone overlying the nummulite rocksand the great mass of strata of that age in the Alps . On the otherhand, the fossil researches of M. Zeuschner afford clear evidence, thatother and large portions of this sandy argillaceous series are equiva-lents of members of the cretaceous system*. This is precisely whatI have indicated, where the mineral representatives of the whitechalk of Switzerland and Bavaria approach the Eastern Alps , andwhere the whole series between the neocomian limestone and themolasse or nagelflue assumes its arenaceous or northern type.

Part III.

On the chief Formations of the Apennines and Italy .

Although less complicated than the Alps , and not containing avestige of the older formations which have been detected in parts ofthat chain, the Apennines and their flanks offer many difficult pro-blems, which even at this day remain in some degree obscure. Thelabours of native geologists in the last few years have, it is true, donemuch to clear away these doubts, the proofs of which will be foundin the proceedings of the last three meetings of the men of science ofItaly *)*. After personal inspection of some of the tracts in which theleading questions have been agitated, I will now endeavour to pointout the extent to which the structure of the peninsula agrees withthat of the Alps . In the first place, then, the whole of the palaeozoicseries is wanting in the continent of Italy , nor are there sufficientgrounds for supposing that the trias has any existence in it. Foralthough the Marquess Pareto, one of the leaders of our science inItaly , has suggested, that the conglomerate called Verrucano (the

* Count Keyserling, to whom I am indebted for a clear and concise view of thelast researches of l’rof. Zeuschner, reminds me, that the curious body called aSphmrosiderites, and described by Professor Glocker of Breslau (Acta Acad. Cses.Leop. Carol. Nat. Curios, tom. xix. part 2. p. 073 and tab. 79), which M. vonBuch first proclaimed to be a Nautilus, has under the examination of M. vonHauer, jun., proved to be the Nautilus plicatns (Fitton) of the lower greensand,or N. requienianus (D’Orb.). This fossil occurs in Moravia near Frankstatt andTickau, in what is called by M. von Ilauer “ Wiener sandstein ! ” For a full accountof the secondary fossils of the Carpathians , see Zeuschner’s memoir on the struc-ture of the Tatra Verh. R.K. Miner. Gesr. St. Petersburgh, 1847, which I only re-ceived when this sheet was in print. So far as I have had time to study it, thismemoir would rather confirm my opinions.—June 25.

t See the volumes of the “ Riunione degli Scienziati Italiani ” of the Milan, Genoaand Venice meetings.