of the Chalk Downs. 19 ^ 



I think, however, many of my readers will have seen on the 

 slopes of our chalk or oolitic hills very similar terraces, which they 

 ^vill have no difficulty in referring to the agricultural operations ot 

 our forefathers, a view which will relieve us from the necessity ot 

 supposing our hills to have been very recently dipped a thousand 

 or fifteen hundred feet below the level of the ocean, and then raised 

 acain by a series of steps, in order to account for these insignificant 

 and very artificial-looking banks and terraces. It will be observed 

 ia the first and last examples that the banks which support the 

 terraces seem to have been obliterated at intervals, re-appeanng 

 a.ain at a little distance. This happens, probably, from the farmer 

 occasionally ploughing or digging down parts of these banks 

 which being composed, as I believe they are in nearly all cases, ot 

 .cod soil washed from above, would refresh the bare portions of the 

 terrace immediately beneath. Were they on the contrary shingly 

 sea-beaches, such a process would be evidently injurious, not benefi- 

 cial and would be avoided accordingly. But I have said enough, 

 probably, to explode this "sea-beach" theory. Let those readers 

 of the Wilts Magazine who are acquainted with the numerous 

 examples of terraces, or lynchets, which are to be seen in the 

 Bei-hbourhood of Mere, between Warminster and Salisbury, 

 around Market Lavington, and on many other downsides, (not to 

 travel out of our county) judge the question for themselves 



G. PoULETT SCROPE. 



Note. 



It may be interesting to know that the late Mr. Cunnington of 

 Heytesbury, who first directed attention to the remains of the 

 ^illaces of the ancient Britons, on the Wiltshire downs, entertained 

 the same opinions as those expressed by Mr. Scrope, as to the 

 origin of the lynchets. 



Amon- his MSS., I find the following remarks:-" In support 

 of the opinion that the Britons cultivated the high lands, I have 

 had the testimony of the late Mr. Davis of Longleat, Mr. William 

 Smith, (Dr. William Smith, the geologist) and several intelligent 



