154 SUBTERRANEAN GEOLOGY OF SOUTH-EASTERN ENGLAND.
Devonian series, which crop out from beneath the coal-measures in
the neighbourhood of Mons in Belgium." And he feels that this
view receives confirmation from the finding of Devonian strata at
Meux's Brewery, only three miles south-east. Mr. Whitaker, on the
other hand, says that there is a strong reason against the classifica-
tion of the bottom beds at Kentish Town with the Old Red Sand-
stone, in the fact that as beds of the Devonian type are present at
Cheshunt and at Meux's, "it would be strange indeed were it to
occur in its wholly distinct Old Red type at Kentish Town between
those two places, and at Crossness not very many miles from the
latter of them." With reference to these opposing arguments, Mr.
H. B. Woodward, who has had much experience in Devonshire,
remarks that specimens at Jermyn Street from the Kentish Town
Well closely resemble rocks of the New Red series. But while he
supports Mr. Whitaker's view as regards the appearance of the
Kentish Town specimens, he thinks Mr. Whitaker's argument as to
the improbability of rocks of Devonian affinities at Meux's and others
of Old Red Sandstone type at Kentish Town is not so strong as
supposed, remarking that, near Torquay, rocks of the two types occur
near together, and adding, that "if the Middle Devonian division is
intermediate between the Upper and Lower Old Red Sandstone,
the argument loses weight."
Of the Crossness boring I need only say that while Prof. Prestwich
is of opinion that the red rocks in which it ends are probably Old
Red Sandstone or Devonian, Mr. Whitaker thinks they much resemble
beds of New Red Sandstone age. They consist of red marls and
sandstones.
Mr. Whitaker's opinion that it is exceedingly unlikely that we
should get rocks of Old Red Sandstone type at Kentish Town and
Crossness, and Devonian rocks at Meux's, between the two, as well
as at Cheshunt, is doubtless entitled to considerable weight, even
when we bear in mind Mr. Woodward's remark that the types occur
close together near Torquay. On the other hand, the fact that as
we traverse the country southward from Ware, we begin with Lower
Silurian at that place, then come to unquestionable Devonian at
Turnford, and to rock of the same age at Meux's, may seem to give
some presumption that at Kentish Town, between Turnford and
Meux's, beds of that age are more likely to be found than strata of
the Triassic period. But if the Lower Secondary and the Palaeozoic
rocks are thrown into a series of sharp east and west folds beneath