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ON THE DISCOVERY OF AN OSSIFEROUS CAVERN 
NEAR CAPPAGH, CO. WATERFORD. 
By Ricuarp J. Ussuer. 
THE discovery of a cave containing remains of man associated 
with those of Irish Elk and other animals, is an event of such 
interest to naturalists that no apology seems needed for bringing 
the particulars to the notice of the readers of ‘The Zoologist.’ 
In April last, during a visit of Professor Leith Adams, who 
had on two occasions explored the Shandon cave, about five miles 
off, I went prospecting with him for a fresh find in my more 
immediate neighbourhood. We selected what proved to be a well- 
worn tunnel running into the face of a limestone knoll that rises 
some thirty feet above the general level of the valley of the Finisk 
River. When we commenced our digging, this cave was nearly 
filled to the roof, but it has since turned out to be about eight feet 
high, and about eight or ten wide. The first deposit we came to was 
dark brown earth, in which we found a broken human skull and a 
profusion of broken bones representing the following animals :— 
Ox, Goat or Sheep, Red Deer, Pig, Horse, Dog, Cat, Fox, 
Marten, Hare, and Rabbit. It was not surprising to find any 
of these, but as it shewed that the cave had long been the abode 
of man, or of animals that brought the bones in, we dug deeper. 
All the animal remains we had yet met with looked fresh and 
yellow, but as we dug down we came upon a stratum of peculiar 
grey earth, containing much carbonate of lime. In this, bones of 
_a very different aspect turned up; blackened, ancient-looking 
bones, with dendritic markings, as if small snails had been 
coursing over them. Some of these Professor Leith Adams 
considered to be bones of the Irish Elk, which, he told me, had 
never been found in a cave in Ireland before. This was soon 
confirmed by our finding portions of the antlers of this animal, and 
subsequently more bones, unmistakably those of the Elk. But 
what had split these, especially the shin bone, which is the 
hardest in the skeleton and the most suitable for bone tool- 
makers? There it was, cleft in two, through joint and all, with 
flakes torn from it, and one long splinter left projecting from 
what remained. ‘There was enough of this bone to show that 
it could have belonged to the Irish Elk alone. But it was not 
the only instance. With it were a number of split bones, and 
one which was long and rounded. This latter is not of the 
