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further borings being carried out by Mr Taunton, were for the 
purpose of obtaining an increased supply. The proprietorship 
of the well had, I believe, changed hands, and was now vested 
in the Cirencester Water Works Company. In 1885 Mr Taunton 
published in our Proceedings (Vol. IX.) his paper on the 
Hydrology of the Cotteswolds. Although this paper is mainly 
occupied with a valuable and careful record of observations on 
the varied problems embraced rather by a hydrological than a 
geological aspect of the question, I acknowledge my great 
indebtedness to it for assistance in attempting to unravel the 
geological clue which the case presents, and desire to testify 
to its very great interest and value as a work of reference. 
It contains the section at the Barton, “ Trial-boring, 1872,” 
already referred to (p. 52), and also the new and important 
section at Lewis Lane, the chisel boring from which the clays 
I had examined, were obtained. 
A reference to this section shows beneath the surface sand 
and gravel, 120 ft. of alternating blue clay and rock before a 
white rock is reached. I believe Mr Taunton, quite naturally 
following Buckman and his successors, took this to be all 
Forest Marble. I could not, however, regard it as resembling 
any development of those beds of which our district furnished 
examples, and it tended to confirm the view that the “valley 
of depression”? meant something more than the faulting-down 
shown in Buckman’s section. Mr Taunton told me he had kept 
some fossils taken from a new shaft which he had sunk near the 
old boring, and about June, 1890, I paid him a visit, mainly for 
the purpose of examining them. In my diary of that date I find 
this observation on these fossils :—“‘ Struck at once by the fact 
“that these fossils are Kellaway’s Rock and Oxford Clay, and 
“not Forest Marble at all. Jf this be correct, then the town of 
““ Cirencester is situated on an extensive down-throw of the Oxford 
“ Clay.” 
This quite unexpected discovery, if such it should turn out 
to be, would, I saw at once, explain all the difficulties, and 
would also harmonize with Buckman’s views, his “valley of 
depression” only being some 60ft. to 100 ft. deeper than he 
