i Fe ne 
VOL. XV. (3) EXCURSION—WICKWAR & HAWKESBURY I9I 
district. During a considerable part of the Keuper Epoch an inland 
sea extended over the greater part of England, but rising from amid 
the waters in the Bristol area were a number of islands. Between 
Chipping Sodbury and Bitton were one or two, but north of the latter 
place a continuous ridge, which curved round westwards to the south 
of Tortworth, expanded in a south-westerly direction to the south of 
Thornbury, and ended in a much indented coast-line by Olveston. 
Wrapping round these ancient shore-lines and running up many of the 
creeks, was an extensive beach-deposit—the now well-known ‘* Dolo- 
mitic Conglomerate.”” Such a deposit was visible by the brook-side, but 
mention was made of a far more instructive section on the western 
slope of the ridge at Bury Hill, some two miles south of Wickwar 
(fig. 1), where the ‘‘ Dolomitic Conglomerate ” (C and B) is to be 
seen overlying the Carboniferous Limestone. The surface deposit 
(A) is sandy, and contains occasionally pieces of sandstone which 
may be of Rhetic Age. 
Flg. 1.—SECTION AT BURY HILL SHOWING THE LITTORAL KEUPER 
RESTING UPON THE CARBONIFEROUS LIMESTONE. 
Ascending Chase-Hill Lane, the Red and ‘‘ Tea-green” Keuper 
Marls were examined, and indications of a very fossiliferous develop- 
ment of the Rhztic Bone-Bed were observed." 
Mr Richardson here remarked that the valley the Members were 
leaving had been entirely excavated by the stream. Once the Rhetic 
Beds were continuous westwards, overstepping on to the Paleozoic 
Rocks. They did not extend across the ridge, as is shown farther to 
the south by the Rhetic being overstepped by the Lower Lias, which 
at Wickwar and Yate Commons rests directly upon the Carboniferous 
Limestone. 
At the head of the little valley, and after the breaks? had passed 
through the gate on to the extensive Inglestone Common, Mr Richardson 
pointed out the place in the bed of the brook at the back of the 
I Geol. Mag., dec. 5, vol. i., pp. 532-535. 
2 It may be of interest to record why.this word is thus spelt, and not “brake.” Ina 
letter (June 2oth, 1899) to Mr S. S. Buckman, when Secretary of the Club, the late H. G. 
Madan wrote “ May I suggest that ‘break’ is the correct way of spelling the name of the 
conveyance in which we take our drives. It is simply a ‘carriage body’ put on the back- 
bone of the machine used for ‘ breaking in’ horses, and has nothing to do with the brake 
of a train.” 
