Jahrbuch der kais kön geologischen Reichsanstalt

Abstract

IN the first of these numbers, perhaps the most interesting paper to an English geologist is one by von Theodor Fuchs, “On Peculiar disturbances in the Tertiary Formations of the Vienna Basin, and on a self-evident Movement of Unconsolidated Earth-masses,” which is accompanied by a number of illustrations and sketch sections, taken chiefly from the cuttings of the railway at Marchegg. The writer thinks that the contortions and displacements witnessed in superficial deposits, and which have been variously accounted for—some geologists supposing them to be due to subterranean action, others to glacial action, and so forth-have been induced by causes, which have hitherto been either overlooked or treated as insufficient. His studies have led him to conclude that these superficial confusions and displacements are brought about by a movement amongst the earth-masses themselves, which, as a rule, beginning with some local slip of the beds, becomes eventually converted into a movement of the whole. The motion of the earth-masses, now rolling, now gliding, can only be compared to the flow of a mud-stream or that of a glacier. After the author's paper was written, he became aware that he had been preceded in his general conclusions by Mr. R. Mallet, whose paper in the Journal of the Dublin Geological Society (“Some Remarks on the Movements of Post-tertiary and other discontinuous Masses,” vol. v. p. 121) will no doubt be known to many of our readers. It is not likely, however, that glacialists will ever be got to believe that their boulder-clays, &c., and scratched rock-surfaces have been produced by the continuous or intermittent slipping of loose material which is in daily progress around all the existing coasts. The other papers in this number are, “The Mountain-land of South Glina in Croatia,” by Dr. Emil Tietze, and “On the so-called gas-shales of Nyran and their flora,” by von Ouokar Feistmantel. Number 4 opens with the second part of Professor Hochstetter's interesting paper “On the Geology of the eastern parts of European Turkey.” This part is accompanied by a geological map of Central Turkey, which shows the distribution of the rock-masses, while several diagram sections scattered through the paper enable us to understand more clearly their succession and relative position. Amongst primary rocks the author enumerates gneiss, amphibolgneiss, mica-schist, talc-schist, phyllite, granite, syenite, amphibolite, serpentine, and crystalline limestone. Under the meso-zoic division, he gives red sandstone, quartzite, and conglomerate, which he considers to be of Triassic age, and compact limestone and dolomite, which may be either of Triassic or Jurassic age, or both. Above these come deposits of chalk and marl of middle cretaceous age. The tertiary and quaternary deposits consist of miocene lacustrine beds with lignites, post-miocene diluvium or fluviatile gravels, and alluvium. Amongst eruptive rocks he enumerates quartz-porphyry, augite-porphyry,pyroxenic tuff and conglomerate, trachyte, trachyte-conglomerate, pumaceous tuff, &c. The only other geological paper in this number is an explanation of Sheet iv. (East Car-pathia) of the Geological Survey's map of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Both numbers of the Jahrbuch are accompanied by the usual mineralogical communications, which contain anumber of papers, amongst them one by von Johann Rumpf upon “Kaluszite,” anew mineral, the chemical formula of which is given as CaK₂(SO₄)₂ + aq. or in another way as CaO, SO₃ + KO, SO₃ + aq. An illustrative plate accompanies the description.—Prof. Tschermak furnishs some account of the meteorites in the imperial mineralogical collection up to October 1872, giving a table that shows in a condensed form the names of the places where the meteorites were found, the hour of the day, the day of the month, and the year in which the stone fell, &c.—Special mention must also be made of a paper by Fuchs on the Island of Ischia, which is geological and historical, as well as petrological—a paper which will well repay perusal by those who are engaged in the study of igneous geology.

Jahrbuch der kais. kön. geologischen Reichsanstalt.

Band xxii. Nos. 3 and 4.