Some Salient Points in the Science of the EarthDawson, John William, Sir
Science
Some Salient Points in the Science of the Earth
Dawson, John William, Sir
Geology; Paleontology
In many parts of the skeleton of Eozoon, and even in the best
infiltrated serpentine specimens, there are portions of the cell wall
and canal system which have been filled with calcareous spar or with
dolomite, so similar to the skeleton that it can be detected only under
the most favourable lights and with great care (Fig. 15, _supra_). It
is further to be remarked that in all the specimens of true Eozoon,
as well as in many other calcareous fossils preserved in ancient
rocks, the calcareous matter, even when its minute structures are not
preserved, or are obscured, presents a minutely granular or curdled
appearance, arising, no doubt, from the original presence of organic
matter, and not recognised in purely inorganic calcite.
Other specimens of fragmental Eozoon from the Petite Nation localities
have their canals filled with dolomite, which probably penetrated them
after they were broken up and imbedded in the rock. I have ascertained,
with respect to these fragments of Eozoon, that they occur abundantly
in certain layers of the Laurentian limestone, beds of some thickness
being in great part made up of them, and coarse and fine fragments
occur in alternate layers, like the broken corals in some Silurian
limestones.
Finally, on this part of the subject, careful observation of many
specimens of Laurentian limestone which present no trace of Eozoon
when viewed by the naked eye, and no evidence of structure when acted
on with acids, are nevertheless organic, and consist of fragments
of Eozoon, and possibly of other organisms, not infiltrated with
silicates, but only with carbonate of lime, and consequently revealing
only obscure indications of their minute structure. I have satisfied
myself of this by long and patient investigations, which scarcely admit
of any adequate representation, either by words or figures.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account