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town of El Paso takes its name, are cretaceous rocks abounding in fossils. I was guided to them by the Rev. Dr. Tays, of Franklin. Here are ostreas, exogyras, grypheas, and many others of well known cretaceous forms, such as are common in the northern and central portions of the cretaceous formation of the State-gryphea pitcheri, and its large form var. Tucumcarii, this last quite common, as also is Exogyra Texana, Natica Pedernalis, Ostrea Marshii, and carinata, etc. In cretaceous mountains near Antelope springs, about fourteen miles northeast of Fort Stockton, I found Gryphea Pitcherii, Exogyra Texana, Inoceramus problematicus, Nautilus Dekayii, Heteraster Texanus, Cyphosoni.a Texana, Toxaster elegans. This last is quite common west of the Pecos, and so is Trigonia Texana, Amonites Texanus, and A. Leonensis, and others. In short, the fossils of the cretaceous west of the Pecos are many of them of the same species as those at Comanche Peak in Johnson county, and also in the cretaceous rocks in the neighborhood of Austin. Their lithological characters also are similar.

TERTIARY.

Early last spring we passed through Guadalupe and Caldwell counties, the sandstones and limestones of which belong to the older tertiary. These rocks are rarely seen, except in the beds of streams and on their banks. These counties are well watered by many streams, have plenty of timber for fencing, and fire wood, oak, elm, pecan, box alder, hackberry, mesquite, etc. Soil mostly a dark, rich sandy loam. These are two of the finest agricultural counties in the State-equal to the best, and now easy of access by the nearly completed railroad from the cities of Galveston and Houston to San Antonio. These counties are moderately undulating, low hills, broad valleys and rich prairies, skirted by woodlands.

QUARTERNARY.

The valley of the Rio Grande, from where the El Paso road strikes the river, about six miles below Fort Quitman, northward to El Paso, has two and sometimes three terraces. The two upper terraces are composed of sand and gravel, the gravel often filled with large quartoze