263 
23; avenue, 12; circle, 8; and the Quoit and 3 other stones 
make the total 62. 
The questions which now occur to one, and they are not easily 
answered, are—For what reasons were these prodigious stones 
placed in this particular neighbourhood and by whom? The 
labour of bringing them to their present position and putting 
them by others in a form complete enough for the purpose to 
which they were intended to be applied must have been enormous. 
Some it is calculated weigh from 15 to 30 tons; and for people 
whose work was done by their own muscular exertions alone, it must 
certainly have been a long and heavy task. Various suggestions 
have been made amongst others that they were a monument to 
some great victory ; and as Collinson says that blood was freely 
poured on the Wansdyke, future historians may record them as 
memorials to important fights; or, according to Fergusson, to 
the eleventh battle of the problematical King Arthur ; and others 
that they were for scientific and astronomical purposes. I am 
not satisfied with either of these conclusions. Fighting was in- 
dulged in by our forefathers to a considerable extent, feuds were 
rife, each man depending on his sword and his strong arm; and 
a battle was of so frequent an occurrence that it would not be 
likely that such a monument as this would be raised to celebrate 
even an important victory, and why should such a memorial take 
this form. This latter is sufficient reason to negative such an 
idea, and that it was put up to obtain observations from the stars, 
or in any way for scientific purposes does not appear a sufficient 
explanation of it. More of a national purpose must have been 
intended by it, and what more popular to these rough and un- 
cultivated denizens of Somerset than a religious or national purpose. 
From the earliest times people have spent a great deal of their 
substance in rearing temples for their worship, money and trouble 
were both lightly considered in such a case, and only for some 
purpose likely to be popular in the eyes of the people would 
such buildings be erected. It has been considered by some that 
