REMARKABLE STRATA OP FLINT. ^45 



Larger mafles of the harder ftrata, defended by their flint obfervatlons on 

 coating, alfo ftand up in the bay as infulated rocks of different ^^^^^^^f^i^nt 

 (liapes, and much refembling the Needle Rocks, which are jn the IHeof 

 exadly of the materials and formed by the fame procefs. In Wight. 

 this part of the chalk flratum, I faw feveral foffils remain which 

 I had fought in vain in the pits 1 had vilited. One was lingu- 

 lar, it had the appearance of part of a very large (hell, regu- 

 larly flriated, and almoft flat, I have often feen fmall frag- 

 ments apparently of a limilarflieil in chalk, but never a large 

 piece. It was fo firmly fixed as not to be removed without a 

 chiffel, which I had not. 



To thefe obfervations on the chalk of the ifland, I mufl: add, 

 that this whole range, although really chalk, is much harder 

 than the chalk of the South-downs, infomuch that the carpen- 

 ters cannot ufe it for drawing lines, but import chalk for that 

 purpofe from Portfdown hill above Portfmouth. They alfo call 

 the ifland chalk by the name of marie, which is, however only 

 the Britifli name for chalk, and appears in many compound 

 names, fuch as Marl-borough on the Wiltfliire chalk hills, and 

 the very figni/icant one of Albemarle, or white chalk. 



As I have made fome further obfervations on the fouthern 

 range of hills which form the back of the ifland, I willtrefpafs 

 on your patience a little longer, particularly as they in fome 

 degree contradid, or rather corred, what I had advanced on 

 that fubjefl in my former letter. 



When the northern front of thofe hills is viewed from Afliley 

 down, the ftratura of ftone mentioned in my former letter as 

 lying diredly under the chalk of St. Catharine's and Dunnofe 

 hills, appears every where to maintain an horizontal pofition ; 

 and fo in its general pofition, particularly in its northern front, 

 it certainly does, but juft behind the village of Ventnor, the 

 ftratum entirely difappears, as if it had been ingulphed in a 

 great chafm, and a deep and narrow valley runs winding into 

 the chalk hill of St. Boniface, though it does not penetrate 

 through it, which feems the remains of the fifllire into which 

 the ftone had funk. 



The appearances of the .great ftone ftratum, from Niton 

 eaftward to Ventnor are noted as follows in the journal made 

 on the fpot. 



On an attentive Jnfpe6lion of the ftrajta of the under clifl^, 



it appears that the great ftratum of rugged and laminated ftone, 



I i ; which 



