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PR.

 G. 
 J. 
 HINDE 
 ON 
 ARCHJEOCTATHUS 
 AND 
 OTHER 
 GENERA. 
 125 
 

8.

 On 
 ARCHiEOCYATHtrs, 
 Billing 
 s, 
 and 
 on 
 other 
 Genera, 
 allied 
 to 
 

or

 associated 
 ivith 
 it, 
 from 
 the 
 Cambrian 
 Strata 
 of 
 North 
 

America,

 Spain, 
 Sardinia, 
 and 
 Scotland. 
 By 
 George 
 Jennings 
 

Hinde,

 Ph.D., 
 F.G.S. 
 (Read 
 December 
 19, 
 1888.) 
 

.Plate

 V.. 
 

The

 real 
 characters 
 and 
 the 
 relations 
 of 
 the 
 group 
 of 
 fossils 
 known 
 

generally

 under 
 the 
 term 
 Archmocyathus 
 are 
 at 
 present 
 subjects 
 of 
 

discussion

 among 
 palaeontologists 
 ; 
 they 
 have 
 been 
 regarded 
 as 
 allied 
 

to

 Foraminifera, 
 Sponges, 
 and 
 Corals. 
 Many 
 of 
 the 
 forms 
 occur 
 

in

 the 
 lowest 
 fossiliferous 
 zones 
 of 
 the 
 Cambrian 
 rocks, 
 and 
 are 
 thus 
 

among

 the 
 earliest 
 known 
 forms 
 of 
 life, 
 a 
 fact 
 which 
 gives 
 addi- 
 

tional

 interest 
 to 
 their 
 study. 
 Since 
 Mr. 
 Billings 
 first 
 called 
 

attention

 to 
 them 
 in 
 1861, 
 they 
 have 
 been 
 investigated 
 by 
 several 
 

authors,

 more 
 particularly 
 by 
 Sir 
 J. 
 W. 
 Dawson, 
 Prof. 
 Ferd. 
 Homer, 
 

Mr.

 C. 
 D. 
 Walcott, 
 and, 
 more 
 recently, 
 by 
 Dr. 
 Bornemann 
 ; 
 but 
 it 
 

cannot

 be 
 said 
 that 
 the 
 obscurity 
 attaching 
 to 
 them 
 has 
 been 
 fully 
 

cleared

 up. 
 I 
 have 
 been 
 induced 
 by 
 Sir 
 J. 
 W. 
 Dawson 
 to 
 under- 
 

take

 an 
 independent 
 investigation 
 of 
 their 
 characters, 
 based 
 more 
 

particularly

 on 
 their 
 microscopic 
 structure, 
 and, 
 thanks 
 to 
 the 
 kind- 
 

ness

 of 
 the 
 above-named 
 authors, 
 I 
 have 
 been 
 supplied 
 with 
 material 
 

which

 has 
 enabled 
 me 
 to 
 ascertain 
 by 
 direct 
 comparison 
 the 
 nature 
 

of

 these 
 fossils 
 from 
 widely 
 separated 
 localities. 
 Thus 
 Sir 
 J. 
 W. 
 

Dawson

 sent 
 some 
 specimens 
 from 
 Labrador 
 belonging 
 to 
 McGill 
 

College

 Museum 
 ; 
 the 
 Geological 
 Survey 
 of 
 Canada, 
 through 
 Mr. 
 

J.

 F. 
 Whiteaves, 
 F.G 
 S., 
 supplied 
 me 
 with 
 the 
 type 
 forms 
 described 
 

by

 the 
 late 
 Mr. 
 Billings 
 ; 
 Prof. 
 Ferd. 
 Eomer 
 with 
 the 
 figured 
 speci- 
 

mens

 of 
 Archceocyathus 
 marianus 
 from 
 Spain 
 ; 
 and 
 to 
 Dr. 
 J. 
 G. 
 Bor- 
 

nemann

 I 
 am 
 indebted 
 for 
 fragments 
 of 
 rock 
 filled 
 with 
 these 
 fossils, 
 

which

 he 
 collected 
 in 
 the 
 Island 
 of 
 Sardinia 
 *. 
 

The

 microscopic 
 sections 
 which 
 I 
 have 
 prepared 
 from 
 these 
 speci- 
 

mens

 show 
 tha 
 tthe 
 organisms 
 originally 
 included 
 in 
 Archmocyathus 
 

vary

 considerably 
 in 
 structure, 
 and 
 cannot 
 properly 
 be 
 included 
 in 
 

a

 single 
 genus, 
 and 
 it 
 is 
 owing 
 to 
 this 
 fact 
 that 
 much 
 of 
 the 
 uncer- 
 

tainty

 respecting 
 the 
 real 
 nature 
 of 
 the 
 genus 
 has 
 arisen. 
 With 
 the 
 

view

 of 
 clearing 
 up 
 the 
 subject, 
 I 
 have 
 in 
 this 
 paper 
 described, 
 in 
 con- 
 

siderable

 detail, 
 the 
 microscopic 
 and 
 other 
 features 
 of 
 the 
 different 
 

species

 originally 
 referred 
 to 
 Archceocyathus, 
 as 
 well 
 as 
 of 
 other 
 

forms

 which 
 have 
 been 
 considered 
 to 
 be 
 allied 
 to 
 it 
 ; 
 I 
 have 
 removed 
 

from

 the 
 genus, 
 and 
 placed 
 in 
 other 
 genera, 
 the 
 forms 
 which 
 

do

 not 
 generically 
 correspond 
 in 
 structure 
 with 
 its 
 type 
 species, 
 and 
 I 
 

have

 discussed 
 the 
 relationship 
 of 
 these 
 different 
 fossils 
 to 
 Corals 
 and 
 

Sponges

 respectively. 
 

 Since 
 this 
 paper 
 was 
 read 
 before 
 the 
 Society, 
 Mr. 
 C. 
 D. 
 Walcott 
 has 
 kindly 
 

sent

 me 
 specimens 
 of 
 Ethnophyllum, 
 Meek, 
 from 
 Nevada, 
 and 
 of 
 Coscinocyathus 
 

Billingsi,

 Walcott, 
 from 
 Labrador. 
 — 
 (G-. 
 J. 
 H., 
 Jan. 
 24,