136 DUBLIN NATUEAL HISTOKY SOCIETY. 



tending a considerable distance ; that on the right, to which I shall draw atten- 

 tion, lies between Clonea and Dungarvan, and, 1 should suppose, is about half an 

 English mile in length, and is terminated by another projecting ledge of lime- 

 stone. About sixteen or eighteen years ago, the owner of the soil built a low 

 protecting wall between this space, to prevent the sand drifting on the land. 

 Shortly after this, a beach of pebbles was formed, which has gradually increased, 

 so that at present it appears, when walking alongside of it, to be the accumula- 

 tion of centuries, in some places measuring thirty or forty yards in breadth, and, 

 by estimation, ten to twelve feet in height. Its contents could only be calculated 

 by the hundreds of thousands of tons ; it is composed of fragments of conglome- 

 rate, sandstone, gray and red quartz, and slate, of all sizes. 1 have been parti- 

 cular in describing this very curious geological fact, as it greatly enhances the 

 interest attached to the incident I am about to narrate. Shortly after Christmas 

 heavy gales from the S.E. prevailed, and on going down to the strand I perceived 

 a large black mass in the distance, on the very top of the beach. Naturally sup- 

 posing it to be some part of the hull of an unfortunate wrecked vessel, 1 hastened 

 towards it. My surprise may easily be imagined when, instead of finding what 

 I had anticipated, I found a large block of turf, containing some cube yards. 

 On examination, I perceived that it was perforated like a honeycomb on its upper 

 surface, and on cutting down in the direction of the holes, I found the beautiful 

 shell, Pholas candidus, at the bottom of each — some dead, others alive. My at- 

 tention was further drawn to the circumstance of there being a great difference 

 in the size of the holes, and on examining the large-sized orifice, I found that 

 Pholas crispata was the occupant. On further examination I found Hiatella 

 rugosa (Venus perforans) in the cavities of the dead shells of Pholas crispata. 

 I remarked that Pholas candidus had invariably formed a tube of agglutinated 

 sand, reaching from the orifice of the hole to the animal, completely preventing 

 the contact of the turf-mould. This was not the case with P. crispata. In a few 

 days after, favoured by a remarkably low tide (that which threatened the over- 

 flowing of the cellars in Dublin), I again visited the strand, where, as far as the 

 eye could reach, a submerged bog presented itself to view, apparently of a 

 spongy texture, but really so hard as scarcely to take the pressure of the foot ; 

 the cellular appearance arising from the inBnitenumber of holes, each indicating 

 the habitation of a Pholas ; so numerous were they, that I found it impossible to 

 cut into the turf without destroying numbers of those beautiful shells — in fact, 

 tesselated pavement could not be more thickly set. Here, also, I obtained Hia- 

 tella perforans of large size in the dead valves of either Pholas, free from 

 wrinkles, and nearly of double size of any recorded specimen. But the most in- 

 teresting part of this necessarily short examination remains. On my striking 

 into the root of a fir, I found it densely populated by that enemy to the mariner, 

 the ship- worm. 1 have not as yet been able critically to determine the species, 

 whether Teredo Norvegica or Navalis, but of as large size and development as 

 any I have seen either on the bottom of ships or timber floating for any length 

 of time in the sea. This fact possesses in my mind great interest, as up to this 



Eeriod I have never found this mollusc in any locality, nor do I find it recorded 

 y others, save iu Forbes and Hanley's work on the British Mollusca, where 

 some port in the North of Ireland is given as a locality ; so that, although in 

 Mr. Thompson's " Fauna of Ireland" it is noted as being found on all the shores 

 of the island, still no defined locality is given. The timber which it inhabits is 

 driven on all our shores, and thus it is stated to be found wherever the timber is 

 beached. Now we have its position ascertained, and no doubt can exist as to its 

 being a "genuine native of our soil." The tide rapidly coming in, to my great 

 regret, prevented my making any further examination into this most interest- 

 ing spot, aud I shall close this brief notice by a few observations which vividly 

 present themselves to my mind. Must it not strike with wonder any person in 

 the habit of observing the operations of nature, how such an enormous beach as 

 I have described could have been accumulated in such a comparatively short pe- 

 riod; and must it not equally surprise him to find this huge mass passing over 



