THE DALES OF DERBYSHIRE. 55 
river Bradford, like the river Manifold, many years before, 
forsook its course, and disappeared into a cavern, to appear 
again in the valley of the Wye, after traversing the grey 
rock beds underlying the Limestone Shades. If this con- 
dition of affairs had been allowed to remain, in time a 
tunnel would have been worn in the underlying grey rock, 
the limestone shales would have gradually fallen in, and we 
should have had a steep and picturesque dale. The farmers 
in the district, however, had need of the water, so a 
channel was cut round the cave mouth, and the water was 
caused to return to its original course, and thus the 
formation of a new dale was cut short in its infancy. 
From Rowsley, towards Millers Dale, and passing Bakewell, 
we soon come to the valleys in the grey rock again. To 
the right there are long narrow gorges cut out of this 
material, with sides like fallen in sewers. These dales are 
still in process of formation, the excavator, water, being 
yet present. Monsal Dale in this district provides an 
excellent example of the new and forming dale in the 
valley, with older ones on the hill sides; Litton Dale also 
is a young dale which is still slowly forming, the rate of 
its formation being considerably diminished owing to the 
fact that there is no longer a great pressure of water 
behind. Cressbrook Dale is an old formation. On 
returning to the Valley of the Wye, Miller’s Dale is 
entered, and, as before, the grey rock forces itself upon our 
notice at every step, but there is no feature sufficiently 
interesting until we reach Chee Tor, the boldness and per- 
pendicularity of whose grey rock walls are most striking. 
When last I had the pleasure of making this excursion, I 
had to do some climbing on rather slippery ground, and the 
footing, after a rainy morning, was anything but secure. 
Farther on past this point is Wye Dale, where the same 
condition of things as heretofore still obtains, and beyond 
this the masses of grey rock are being excavated and worn 
