83 



occupied by grass-fields, and frequently by orchards. The 

 Inferior Oolite beds commonly present such an inclined face as 

 to forbid the operations of the plough ; and formerly this zone 

 of these hill-sides was occupied by beech woods, excejpt where 

 the rock had been covered up by Clay slipped from the beds of 

 the Fullers Earth. That argillaceous deposit usually exists as 

 a nearly level band of arable land, and is succeeded by an abrupt 

 cliff-like bank of Great Oolite. The forms of the present 

 surfaces have directly resulted from the nature of the strata on 

 which the denuding forces have acted. 



A study of the Physical Geography of this district would 

 embrace a variety of interesting topics, as, for instance, the 

 manner in which the volume of waters of the streams are affected 

 by the nature of the strata over which they pass, suffering loss 

 of volume in some places, and in others, as where the streams 

 first cut the sands, receiving great accessions, examples of 

 which occur at Chalford, Longfords, &c. This, and other topics, 

 must be passed by, but there are one or two Physical features 

 to which I will call attention. 



The line of my second section crosses at the Femie Hills,* 

 near Woodchester Park, a combe on the hill-side, a sketch-plan 

 of which is here given. It would occupy far too much time to 

 describe this spot in detail — suffice it to say that here can be seen 



* This locality well deserves this name^ which it has borne for upwards of 

 sixty years. Thirteen species of ferns are found on these hills, and seven 

 other species in their immediate neighbourhood. Formerly, when high 

 trees grew here, not only were the ferns remarkable by the number of their 

 species, but by the abundance of plants of some species with which the banks 

 were clothed. Blechnum Boreale especially attracted attention, with its deep 

 green barren fronds spreading on all sides, and the graceftil forms of its fertile 

 fronds rising from the crowns of the plants. Occasionally, but rarely, half- 

 fructified fronds occurred ; and these, it was interesting to observe, inclined in 

 a position intermediate to the wholly barren and the wholly fertile fronds. 



The botanical changes which have occiuTed on this spot since the felling of the 

 high- wood, have afforded much of interest. The surfaces of many parts of these 

 steep banks having been denuded of all vegetation in the processes of felling 

 and removing the timber, the Mosses had full scope for their office of renewing 

 vegetation. On the clay banks appeared patches of the beautiful Dicranum 

 bryoides, with its deUeate yew-like branchleta ; on the sandy banks the minute 



