This is a plain leather brown notebook which contains notes for the 2nd volume of Principles of Geology, on a multitude of subjects and referencing work by other emininent geologists, Lamarck and Cuvier. The first few pages have been cut out. Lyell's notes are mostly in pen, many drafts with slashes, and a few sketches.

The following table of contents is Lyell's own words, copied from Lyell's own "Index", found at the beginning and end of the notebook, transcribed from digital surrogates using the platform Transkribus. When known, Lyell's abbreviations and contractions have been expanded using brackets []. When writing is unclear, and transcription is not possible, this is denoted using [...]. Quotation marks are Lyell's own notation for ditto, as is the abbreviation "d'o". The inclusion of [sic] indicates the misspelling of a word is deliberate and taken from the notebook.

p. 10,12,16, Val d'Arno
p. 11, Canary form[ations]
p. 11, Desnoyers Paper
p. 14, Elev[ations] of Subap[...]
p. 16, Nummulites
p. 17, Adhering shells sometimes detach themselves
p. 19, Hoff on Earths[uake]
p. 19, Patella, not f'd fossil
p. 19, Hipponix genus
p. 21, Ancylus + Patella, shells the same but animals very diff[erent]
p. 21, Prevost, on Paris basin
p. 22, Bahamas, aggregate of shells like Dax [et cetera]
p. 22, Glue for shells
p. 23, Fossil shells
p. 24, Fossil shells lists of, Paris
p. 33, Belmnites, works on
p. 32, Sowerby's plates
p. 18, 37, 44, German books
p. 53, Dragon flies taken at sea, Capt[ain] King
p. 53, Creole frigante covered with insects
p. 53, Guanacos dung in Port St. Helena
p. 57, Tides in S[aint]s of Magellan
p. 57, Climate, Voluta ancilla in St. of Magellan
p. 58, Capt[ain] Vidal, testacea found at great depths by
p. 67, Moss floating
p. 69, Solway Moss
p. 72, Mr. Cruckshanks on Valparaiso [et cetera]
p. 74, Lime made from shells in alluv[ium] at d[itt]o
p. 76, Calao, subsidence at
p. 78, Lima valley full of rolled stones - no rain
p. 79, Earths[uake] S[out] America
p. 80, S[outh] America ships plough up fine mude in sailing out of sight of land
p. 81, Chili, marine form[ation]s
p. 83, No wave during earths[uake]
p. 88, Craig leith Tree
p. 91, Forth, ripp[le] marks
p. 91, Shells thrown up by storm
p. 94, Terrage, Riggin [et cetera] terms
p. 97, Malaga, tertiary strata
p. 97, Earthq[uake] at Dover, 1831
p. 98, Section of Malaga tert[iary]
p. 100, Blatta orientalis
p. 115, Earthq[uake] at Messina, from Paris paper
p. 121, Blainville, Cuvier [et cetera speak of anterior + posterior, this contrary to Lamarck.