13 



habiting the neighbouring continent may have been converted to 

 a more civilized mode of life. Thus it may not be impossible that 

 the ancient processes of manufacture, together with religious rites 

 and modes of interment, may have come down to a much later 

 date than even the Roman occupation of the adjoining continent. 

 We see instances in point now, amongst the barbarous tribes of 

 the Polynesian Islands, who, in spite of steam navigation, and 

 continual intercourse with more civilized nations, still cling to 

 their axes of jade and arrows tipt with bone ; and I have read, 

 that, within the last century, Pagan rites were celebrated upon 

 the Isle de Batz, and other islands upon the northern coast of 

 Brittany. 



The purpose served by these "Hand-bricks" would seem to be 

 explained in some measure by their association with the broken 

 pottery, which goes to substantiate the supposition that they 

 were in some way used in the process of its manufacture, possibly 

 as a sort of rude furnace, which would have afforded a means of 

 economising wood, which is, and always must have been, scarce 

 upon those rocky islets. 



Mr. Lukis informs me that similar substances, that is " Hand- 

 bricks" and " Pottery," have been found associated in Lincoln- 

 shire and in Romney Marsh in the former place, it is said in 

 company with Roman fictile vessels. In Herm, he states, that 

 one fragment of true Samian ware was discovered in 1841. All 

 this would seem to point to the Romano-British period, were it 

 not that these same " Hand-bricks" have been found within more 

 than one cromlech, associated only with stone implements of the 

 rudest description. One such is mentioned by Mr. Lukis in his 

 second paper on the Primaeval Antiquities of the Channel Islands, 

 in the 1st vol. of the Archaeological Journal. The cromlech re- 

 ferred to was opened by him on the plain of L'Ancresse, in the 

 northern part of Guernsey, in which he states, "He found many 

 pieces of clay, of a peculiar form, from three to six inches in 

 length, made by rolling a piece of clay in the hand, and striking 

 each end against a board, and still bearing the mark of the inside 

 of the fingers and impression of the skin of the maker." " With 

 these," he adds, " were found no vestiges of any metal," "and the 

 many rude stone implements found with them made it evident 

 there were none then in use." 



Hence arise doubts which can only be solved by further investi- 

 gation ; and when last I heard from Mr. Lukis, he informed me 

 that he was about shortly to undertake the exploration of a 

 hitherto undisturbed cromlech, in the hopes of finding further 

 evidences to elucidate this intricate subject. 



In conclusion, I have only to state that I am mainly indebted 

 to Mr. Lukis, and to his published Papers, for any information 

 I may have been able to lay before you this evening, which, under 

 ordinary circumstances, I should hardly have ventured to attempt ; 

 but, as we number amongst us many who are interested in 

 Archieological pursuits, I trust that the novel and peculiar nature 



