AND SOME OF ITS EFFECTS. 257 
upon which the Glacial and_ post-Glacial beds repose. 
Mr. Morton gives the following details of the section at 
Ince Ferry :-- 
' ft. in. 
Recent Brown and Blue Clay...............eeeeeee 5 0 
Upper Peat and Forest-bed .......... 5 0 
Post-Glacial { Blue Clay........... Sheltie De cto Bacilns 10 0 
Lower Peat and Forest-bed ..... rho I 3 
Glacial —— White sand, on Boulder Clay.......... Io O 
31 3 
On referring to fig. 4, it will be seen that in the short distance 
between X’ and Y the Peat and Forest-bed bifurcates into 
Upper and Lower Peat and Forest-beds, with a wedge-shaped 
deposit of Blue Clay 10 feet in thickness at Y and rapidly thin- 
ning out towards X’. Along the whole line of section, at the 
points X! to X’, the Upper and Lower Peat and Forest-beds 
become united, and at these places, it should be noticed, they 
rest close upon the rock. 
Whatever, therefore, was the cause of the submergence of the 
Peat and Forest-beds between X! and X?, X* and X4, X> and X§%, 
X’ and Y, it did not disturb the continuous growth of the united 
Peat and Forest-beds at the points X'to X’. The conclusion to 
my mind is inevitable that, whatever caused the submergence of 
the Peat and Forest-beds in the hollows between the bosses of 
Bunter Sandstone could not have altered the level of the solid 
basement of rock on which the Peat and Forest-beds repose. 
That conclusion would require the abandonment of the generally- 
-accepted theory that post-Glacial submerged Peat and Forest- 
beds are evidences of changes of level due to a downward 
movement of the solid basement of rock upon which they rest. 
If no such movement has taken place, then the operative cause 
must be one that could act similarly, yet independently, within 
the limited area of each rock-basin between Ellesmere Port 
and Ince Ferry. 
It must be borne in mind that the Ship Canal along this line 
of section runs parallel with the Mersey and intercepts the 
drainage of the marshes into it. During the construction of this 
section of the Ship Canal serious landslips have occurred. They 
have been confined, so far as my observation extends, principally 
to the land side of the cutting, or that side which receives the 
drainage percolating from the higher ground towards the River 
Mersey. Powerful pumping-engines were stationed at short 
_ intervals and kept working day and night in order to keep the 
_ cutting clear of water. Have we not here a sufficient explanation 
of the submerged Peat and Forest-beds ? 
The mingled Peat and Forest-beds increase in thickness 
towards the centre of the rock-basins formed by the Bunter 
Sandstone bosses of Ellesmere Port, Stanlow Abbey, Ince, and 
Ince Ferry. Through these four channels the subterranean 
