305 



poore fisher Townes adjoininge." There can be no doubt that 

 these hills are artificial, some of them were excavated a few 

 years ago, and a cutting was driven right through one of them. 

 I inspected these at the time, and I noticed in one place a piece 

 of cinder or scoriae in the perpendicular side of the cutting, four 

 or five feet below the surface, and some broken earthenware was 

 found in them. 



On the top of some that were excavated were found a series 

 of trenches and a large quantity of scoriae and clinkers. The salt 

 was made by evaporating sea water, but how the heat had been 

 applied was not very clear. 



What seemed the most puzzling thing about these salt-works 

 was the quantity of scoriae or clinker that was dug up, (it was 

 evident that coals and not charcoal or wood had been used) and 

 the question that presented itself was where this coal had been 

 obtained. The reference in the Cott., MS, however, clears up this 

 question, and coals are washed up on the Coatham Sands to this 

 day, and are gathered by the poor people for fuel, as they were 

 in those ancient times. 



The tail piece is from a sketch made at the Decoy in 

 January, 1887. 



