268 EARLY MAN IN BRITAIN. [CHAP. vm. 



combs, six inches long, with short thick teeth and long 

 handles (Fig. 96), were used in weaving. A bone needle 

 with drilled eye implies sewing. Fragments of pottery, 

 not turned in the lathe, plain, or ornamented with incised 

 curves, right lines, or lines of dots, prove a knowledge 

 of the potter's art. They were also cultivators of the 

 ground ; for Dr. Blackmore discovered a cast of a grain 

 of wheat in the clay which had formed a portion of the 

 cover of one of the pits ; and two concave stone grain- 

 rubbers or " mealing-stones " for grinding corn show an 

 acquaintance with agriculture. 



The remains of the animals in the pits belong to wild 

 and domestic species : for on the one hand we have the 

 stag ; and, on the other, the dog, goat, short-horn (Bos 

 longifrons), horse, and pig, besides smaller animals and 

 fishes. We may, therefore, infer that the inhabitants 

 were also hunters, fishermen, and keepers of' flocks and 

 herds. 



The Neolithic age of these accumulations is proved by 

 a roughly clipped celt, besides large quantities of broken 

 flint and an arrow-head. No trace of metal was dis- 

 covered. 1 



This form of subterranean habitation is still used 

 by native tribes in the interior of Africa. The eminent 

 explorer Mr. H. M. Stanley describes " deep pits with 

 small circular mouths, which proved on examination to 

 lead to several passages from the mouth of the pit to 

 more roomy excavations like so many apartments," 2 

 which are used for dwellings in Southern Unyoro. 



1 Wiltshire County Mirror, June 20, 1866. 



2 Through the Dark Continent, i. p. 432. 



