NOTES ON ESSEX GEOLOGY. 281
the Red Crag shell with an incised face from Walton to which
I refer readers who wish to enter into the controversy.38
1913.
In his Presidential Address Dr. A. Strahan dealt with the
Palaeozoic platform beneath the Secondary rocks39 and Essex
is in evidence on two maps, the first of which shows contour-
lines of the Palaeozoic Platform, only that for 1,000 feet below
Ordnance Datum being drawn in our county at the south
western and north-eastern parts : the second shows the contour-
line of the base of the Gault, which is practically the same in
Essex.
And now, having taken you along what I fear is a somewhat
wearisome road, let us see if there are any general conclusions
to be got from our journey.
In the first place we may congratulate ourselves that Essex
geology has not been neglected by outside authorities ; for
in the 24 years treated of, 1890-1913, only three times do we
draw a blank (1893, 1895, 1899), and that perhaps is owing to
some omission on my part. Were it not for the intentional
neglect of certain matters (see above), there would certainly
be an unbroken record.
Secondly if we roughly classify the subjects of the works
noticed above we find about a dozen of a general or miscellaneous
character. Our Chalk has but three short notices to its credit,
and our Eocene beds only one little note. The Red Crag, of
which we have but a small quantity, is dealt with in five papers.
Coming, however, to the top of the geologic scale, the Drifts and
the Recent beds are dealt with in twenty five papers, etc., some
of considerable length, besides being referred to in general
works.
Why is this ? It seems to me that there are five good reasons,
and perhaps some of you can suggest more : 1. The wide-spread
occurrence of the various deposits of late geologic age. Essex
is essentially a Drift County, with a fair allowance of Alluvial
marshes. 2. The fact that the study of the Drift was not
taken up seriously until long after the earlier Tertiary beds,
38 Geol. Mag., dec. v., vol. ix., pp., 95, 141 285, 334.
39 Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc., Vol. lxix, p. lxx., etc.