Prehistoric Fields. 31 



ising hill-sides. Such traces may be discovered at in- 

 tervals all along the slope, on the summit, and near 

 the foot of the down at the rear of the entrenchment. 



It is easy to pass almost over them without ob- 

 serving the nearly obliterated marks the faint 

 lines left on the surface by the implements of men in 

 the daj's when the first Caesar was yet a living mem- 

 ory. These marks are like some of the little used 

 paths which traverse the hills : if you look a long 

 vra.y in front you can see them tolerably distinctly, 

 but under your feet they are invisible, the turf being 

 only so slightly worn by wayfarers. So, to find the 

 signs of ancient fields, look for them from a distance 

 as you approach along the slope ; then you will see 

 squares and parallelograms dimly defined upon the 

 sward by slightly raised and narrow banks, green 

 with the grass that has grown over them for so many 

 centuries. 



They have the appearance sometimes of shallow 

 terraces raised one above the other, rising with the 

 slope of the down. This terrace formation is perhaps 

 occasionally artificial ; but in some cases, I think, the 

 natural conformation of the ground has been taken 

 advantage of, having seen terraces where not the 

 faintest trace of cultivation was visible. It is not 

 always easy either to distinguish between the genuine 

 enclosures of ancient days and the trenches left after 

 the decay of comparatively modern fir-plantations, 

 which it is usual to surround with a low mound and 

 ditch. Long after the fir trees have died out the 

 green mound remains ; but there are rules by which 

 the two, with a little care, may be distinguished. 



The ancient field, in the first place, is generally 



