of again finding some fathoms deep in the rock the same white loam, which 

 he regarded as a sure indication of the presence of lead. As the rock at this 

 spot is the Upper Ludlow, it seems scarely necessary to add that the search for 

 lead was a failure. Not that this speculative miner thinks so. He believes 

 fully that the lead is there, and would have gone on boring to this day pro- 

 bably, if the "supplies" had not very wisely been withheld. 



After visiting several quarries, the members made their way to Downfield, 

 the seat of Mrs. Miles, which they had been kindly invited to visit. In the 

 beautiful grounds of this residence they saw and admired a number of noble 

 specimens of Araucai'ia, Cryptomeria, and other exotic trees, which flourish 

 at Downfield to a degree almost unprecedented in a very wide district. One 

 fine luxuriant Araucaria was about 30 feet high, and on very few of them could 

 be discovered any brown stems or leaves, those marks of the severe frost of 

 1861, which destroyed so many of these trees throughout England, and sadly 

 disfigured almost all of them. They examined, too, a fine witch-elm (Ulmus 

 montana), which measures 20 feet in circumference at about 3 feet from the 

 ground. After spending some time in admiring the very beautiful view from 

 the terrace in front of the mansion, the party entered the house, and were 

 hospitably received by Mrs. Miles and her daughter. After partaking of a 

 lunch kindly set out for them, the members took leave of their considerate 

 entertainer, and proceeded to the summit of Stanner Hill, upon which the 

 scientific business of the day was to be transacted. 



The Rev. Thos. Hatchinson very kindly brought his Vasculum, well 

 supplied with specimens of the "Lesser Winter Green" (Pyrola minor), 

 gathered near Leominster, and which he freely distributed at this time. 



In the ascent of the V>il1, the botanical members of the party were 

 delighted with the spectacle, in many parts magnificent for the richness of 

 the colours, presented by the wild flowers. The golden yellow of two species 

 of Sedum (S. Festerianum and <Sf. reflexum), the purplish crimson of the 

 Oeranium sanguineum, and the paler hue of the Lychnis viscaria — all being 

 somewhat rare plants— seemed to clothe the rugged hill with beauty. The 

 scene, as viewed from the peak around, and upon which the members seated 

 themselves to hear Mr. Curley's paper on the geology of the district, was 

 striking for its wild grandeur, 



" Hills beyond hills in wild succession rising," 

 While the deep valleys were rich with waving woods, and here a mansion 

 and there a farm-house looked out over green corn-field or smooth lawn ; but 

 was also especially interesting to the geologist from the evidence it affords 

 of geological history. la the beautiful view from that hill the loftier hill 

 called Herrock (" Hercope" of Domesday Book, probably from Hir, long, and 

 cop, a hill), along the summit of which runs Offa's Dyke, distinguishable from 

 Stanner as a line of brighter green, is a conspicuous feature. The adjoining 

 parish of Knill (the "Chenille" of Domesday) is chiefly remarkable for the 



