26 REPORT— 1870. 



hill-side, which, from the ground-plan of the work and the contour of the 

 hill itself, was obviously nearly reached. This was confirmed by the appear- 

 ance of very fine rootlets, not through the roof, but horizontally in the de- 

 posit, which, as the work advanced, grew larger and larger until they became 

 roots two inches in diameter. The deposit had always been bounded by 

 limestone walls on each side, and by a roof of the same material, between 

 which and the cave-earth the interspace, where any existed, never exceeded 

 a few inches in height. On July the 19th, 1870, the workmen suddenly ceased 

 to be able to find a wall on the right or outside, or a limestone roof above 

 them ; and at the same time, and as suddenly, they were imable to reach the 

 upper surface of the deposit, which had also undergone a change of characters. 

 The materials through which they had uow to drive were, first, or lowest, a 

 variety of the cave-earth, with remains of the ordinary Cave-mammals, above 

 which was an accumulation of small angular pieces of limestone, with but 

 little earth and no fossils, and more or less cemented into a very loose con- 

 crete with stalagmitic matter ; and the roof, or that which supplied its place, 

 was of the same character — materials, in short, which are found everywhere 

 in the upper portions of the numerous limestone fissures of the district. At 

 that moment they were, according to their measurements, in the same vertical 

 plane as the Arched Entrance of the cavern, at a level of about 18 feet below 

 it, and 10 feet outside. In other words, they had dug their way through the 

 cavern into a talus of earth and stones lining the hill-side, and which, from 

 its upper surface to that on which they stood, was 18 feet deep. 



Two reasons prevented their attempting to break through this mass to the 

 open day : — first, it would probably destroy the only road to the cavern ; and 

 second, the attempt seemed somewhat hazardous, as the material showed a 

 great tendency to " cave in." It being necessary, however, to confirm or 

 disprove the conclusion that they had found a new entrance, a tunnel was dug 

 through the talus 12 feet long, varying from 4 to 8 feet wide, and having the 

 limestone rock for its inner or left boundary. The result was the same 

 throughout : the floor and lower portion of the right or outer wall was a 

 variety of the cave-earth with the common Cavern specimens ; and the upper 

 portions of this waU, as well as the ceiling, consisted of the loose concrete 

 ah-eady described, and which contained no fossils. 



As there was nothing further to be gained, and the work seemed unsafe, 

 the tunnel was discontinued, and no doubt remained that the workmen had 

 emerged from the cavern, and, in cutting the tunnel, had been lajdng bare a 

 portion of the limestone hill on the left. It may be of interest to remark that 

 this limestone overhung about 2 feet, so as to aff'ord a " shelter " to that extent. 

 _ The lower portion of the external talus has been spoken of above as a va- 

 riety of the cave-eartli. It was in fact a fine silt with scarcely a trace of the 

 common red colour, and closely resembled material which, from time to time, 

 had been found within the cavern. Amongst the remains found in it were 

 11 teeth of Bear, 7 of Horse, 5 of Hyaena, and 4 of Rhinoceros. The bones, 

 of which there was a considerable number, were frequently broken, decayed, 

 and discoloured. 



"With the animal-remains two implements and one flake of flint were found. 

 Both of the former are of the usual white colour. One of them (No. .5236) is 

 little more than the point of what was probably once a good implement ; the 

 other (No. 5222) is a good lanceolate implement, 2-5 inches long, 1 inch broad 

 at the butt end, and -2 inch in greatest thickness. It is strongly cariuated 

 on the outside, and has three longitudinal facets. It was found July 28, 1870. 

 The flake (No. 5226) is yellowish, and apparently discoloured. 



