05 



gl (SMa0irat ^§mnW U Mw^UUvm^lx. 



Having in former papers, given slight sketches of the Coal-measureg 

 and Millstone-grit, wc purpose in this paper, to give j'ou the result of a 

 ramble over the mountain limestone district of Craven. The great 

 Carboniferous system of Yorkshire consists of these three formations, 

 Halifax stands on the middle one, — the Millstone-grit. Now as all the 

 strata of Yorkshire have an almost uniform dip or inclination of about 

 3 degrees to the south-east, it follows, that the further we go to the south- 

 east and the higher we get in the geological scale, or in other words the 

 newer formations we meet with ; and vice versa the further we go the north- 

 west and the lower, or older formations we meet with. Hence in going 

 north-west from Halifax Ave walk over the Millstone-grit rocks imtil we 

 get to Skipton where in consequence of the rocks having been tilted up in 

 the form of an anticlinal axis, or in simpler words — like the arch of a 

 bridge, we meet with the limestone rocks. About ten miles further north 

 however we arrive at Malham, where the mountain limestone assumes its 

 true mountainous character, having been lifted up by the Craven Fault, 

 into a great plateau, and forming the great watershed from whence most of 

 the rivers of Yorkshire and Lancashire take their rise. In some places, n3 

 in the Settle Crags, and Malham Cove forming perpendicular clifEs of 

 limestone, nearly 300 feet in height and in others as at (Jordale Scar, 

 forming vast clefts, through whose awful chasms the mountain torrents 

 struggle, forming cataracts of great beauty, leaping fi'om ledges of lime- 

 stone rock, into the clear pools below and then rushing through their 

 rocky beds on their ways to the valleys. 



This district possesses charms independent of its geology or natural 

 history and if the account of oiu* ramble has the effect of inducing any o£ 

 our members to visit it, the little exertio.i it has cost to write it will not 

 have been in vain, for we should dearly like to see more of them, take 

 advantage of our summer excursions, to visit some of those beautiful and 

 interesting places. 



The lover of Nature, whether following the dictates of a blind 

 instinct or has his judgment and taste matured by reason and science, no 

 matter what his condition may be, — is never so hajjpy as when leaving the 



