346 



The Chairman, in presenting the thanks of the meeting to Mr. 

 Earle, said he had made a step in the history of Bath, and had 

 thrown light upon a subject which was at all times dark. He very 

 much concurred in what Mr. Earle had said, and he thought there 

 was a strong presumption that the city must have been Bath and 

 none other, because there were no hot springs anywhere in England 

 except at Buxton, where apparently at that period thoy were 

 unknown ; and where, moreover, there was not any Roman 

 occupation. At Bath there were traces of Roman occupation 

 for a considerable period. It seemed probable that after the battle 

 of Dyrham the city was pillaged and left. The Saxons, Kemble 

 (Saxons in England) says, did not destroy the cities, but pillaged 

 them and then left them, and there was little doubt, Mr. Scarth 

 added, that wherever the Saxons came the British inhabitants 

 receded from them. The probability was that after the battle of 

 Dyrham the place was desolate for a hundi-ed years ; in fact the 

 Roman remains found showed that. They were at the depth of 

 eighteen or twenty feet from the surface, and there was a great 

 accumulation over them. Referring to the discoveries just made 

 at the baths, Mr. Scarth said they afforded another confirmation of 

 the truth of Mr. Earle's statement and of the plans that had been 

 laid down. Mr. Irvine had examined the place, planned it, and had 

 filled in on his large map that portion which had lately been opened. 

 There was also a later discovery made by Mr. Davis, who had 

 found, on the site of the new Coi'poration offices, an altar to the 

 Genius Loci, which was the first with that dedication that had ever 

 been found here. But the remains found tended very much to 

 show that the city was pillaged and destroyed, and to corroborate 

 what Mr. Earle had said. This ray of light from the manuscripts 

 at Exeter showed what really could be gleaned from the libraries 

 we possess if they were well examined. He had always felt it to be a 

 certain thing that in the nature of Providence all memorials should 

 not be lost, but that the truth would come bubbling up to the 

 surface. The Club were greatly indebted to Mr. Earle, because he 

 had contributed a really valuable paper. 



Mr. J. Goodwin thought that Mr. Earle had thoroughly made 

 out his case. If anything were wanted to complete his argument 



