98 MR. G. NEVILL ON THE [Feb. 17, 



as the preceding ; but more or less mixed up witb them are others 

 of a much more recent period, such as Rumina decollata, Xerophila 

 terveri 1 (n. sp. ?), &c, I was not able thoroughly to examine this 

 locality, now much restricted by the works of the adjoining quarry ; 

 1 found the work of extracting these subfossils too hard, a task 

 which required hammer and chisel ; an intelligent old man who 

 serves as guide for the caves, however, extracted a good many for me. 

 F. Deposit, at one of the angles of the entry to the first cave, that 

 nearest to Menton, southern aspect, and probably of somewhat less 

 ancient age than all of the preceding. We were lucky enough to 

 discover this narrow and very restricted deposit, containing sub- 

 fossils, which we thoroughly explored, to the left as one enters 

 within the first cave. I am consequently able to establish the fact 

 that the (unfortunately only few) species we discovered here existed 

 at the same time as some of the large mammals whose bones have 

 been dug out of the interior of the cave in great quantities, and 

 debris of which I found above, or mixed up with, these shells. 

 We were unsuccessful in our efforts to discover any similar deposit 

 round, or at, the other caves ; possibly any one prepared to go to the 

 expense of employing a few workmen might succeed in so doing. The 

 earth in which they are preserved here is an ordinary-looking humus, 

 similar to that in the interior of the cave, and without any trace of 

 the red colour so characteristic of all the preceding. The moUusks 

 most undoubtedly were living here in situ, doubtless sometimes climb- 

 ing on the almost perpendicular rock in which the cave is excavated, 

 at times hiding themselves beneath the large blocks of stone and in 

 the crevasses at its base, where we found them. This spot, I am 

 convinced, has not been affected by glacial action, as I take to be the 

 case with all the preceding, which is easily explained by its being com- 

 pletely protected by the steep and lofty cliff immediately behind. 

 These land-shells present a very different aspect from all the preceding, 

 even in cases where the species appear to be identical, sucli as Helix 

 niciensis and P%ipa quinquedentata ; several species have not been 

 found elsewhere at Menton, Helix ramoriniana especially. I take 

 all the preceding deposits to belong probably to the phase eozoiqne 

 of Bourguignat, whilst this, together with most of the mammals dis- 

 covered in the caves by M. Riviere, a list of which is given by Dr. 

 Bennet {loc. cit. p. 56), would fall naturally into his phase dizoTque. 

 I am inclined to think, too, that these shells of deposit F. were un- 

 doubtedly contemporaneous with the well-known fossil Man, found in 

 one of these caves. In proof of this, I may mention that, besides the 

 de'bris of bones of large mammals {Cervus elaphus &c.), but not of any 

 Carnivora, I found immediately associated with them certain marine 

 shells {Patella, Trochus, and Cyclonassa), all of which were also found 

 with the fossil Man, a necklace, indeed, of the Ci/clonassa being round 

 his neck ; these debris of marine shells were probably washed out of 

 the interior of the cave by the small streams which then, as even 

 now, doubtless trickled down the cave. I should mention that this 

 small deposit was virgin soil, that it had not been disturbed or 

 affected by the explorations of M. Riviere and others within the 



