By the Rev. T. Perkins, M.A. 181 



upper oolite and Purbeck beds shows that after the deposition of 

 these a tilting of these strata took place, giving them an easterly- 

 dip, then, by the action of water, these strata were shaved across, 

 and the gault laid down upon them, then, as I have already described, 

 greensand and chalk were deposited further and further to the west 

 as the land subsided and the western shore of the sea retreated 

 westward, then on these the eocene beds were laid. Subsequently 

 to this, possibly in miocene times, when along the line of the Alps 

 a similar elevation took place, a ridge or anticlinal was formed, 

 running east and west. This was probably caused by the gradual 

 shrinking of the earth, due to the loss of heat, which naturally 

 produces folds and crumpling of the surface, similar to the wrinkling 

 of the skin of an apple which is laid by after it has been gathered ; 

 though, of course, not to anything like the same extent, when the 

 comparative size of the earth and apple are taken into account. 

 This crumpling was a gradual process, and possibly along the axis 

 of the anticlinal, the strata were strained and weakened, denudation 

 then commenced, the ridge of the anticlinal was first shaved off, in 

 the eastern part of England the eocene clays disappeared between 

 the London and Hampshire basins, leaving rocks of the cretaceous 

 system at the surface, while in Sussex and Kent in places the 

 cretaceous rocks also were removed, and the weald sands and clays 

 laid bare, here, in the Vale of "Wardour, denudation advanced still 

 further, and as we have seen its Purbeck and Portland beds have 

 been cut through, and at the western end of the valley the Kimeridge 

 clay is exposed. Of course this work is still going on here, as well 

 as everywhere, where land rises above the sea, and water, in its 

 various forms, and other disintegrating agents are at work, gradually 

 lowering all the land, but lowering it irregularly as they meet with, 

 rocks of different degrees of hardness. Hence is brought about the 

 great variety of contour in our landscape, and we who live at 

 Shaftesbury have every reason to be thankful to these disintegrating 

 agents for the way in which they have done their work ', for, which- 

 ever way we turn our eyes, as we stand upon any of the high ground 

 here, whether it be east or west, north or south, a landscape of sur- 

 passing loveliness is spread out before us. 



VOL. XX.II. — NO. LXV. O 



