I24 Burton: Coast Erosion. 
other drift material, as in the estuary of the Humber and 
Holderness, and in many of our filled up ancient valleys which 
now form Bays in our coast line ; or (b) in the great Eocene 
basin on the south coast, especially amongst the Bagshot 
sands, gravels and clays of the Hampshire area. 
Vegetable growths, such as Marram grass on the sand 
dunes, by knitting the sand together by root fibres, arrest 
waste by wind and wave ; and so also seaweed growing on a 
rocky shore, by offering a soft cushion to the sand and pebbles, 
and lumps of rock thrown on it by the stormy sea, saves its 
host from being worn away by attrition. 
On the other hand it sometimes contributes to destruction 
when growing near or below low water level, as big billows 
tear it up along with some of the rock in which it has clung. 
Stormy seas carrying grit, pebbles or chunks of rock. break 
down by attrition, but it is in their lifting and carrying power 
that their influence is greatest. 
It is a true saying that the lowly and minute are im- 
portant, but who would imagine that the rock boring mollusc 
Pholas had anything to do with coast erosion, and yet 
it is proved that by their boring they have lowered the sea 
shore chalk beds in the neighbourhood of Cromer until they 
are now below sea level. 
The little limpet on the other hand protects the rocks 
to which it clings from abrasion and attrition. 
A last instance. Hard rocks by earth movements become 
broken up, fissured, faulted, or bent and weakened. In such 
condition they are an easy prey to a stormy Sea. 
Is England disappearing? No. Some parts are losing 
heavily, which is a pity. Others are gaining considerably, 
which is pleasing, but the gainer does not compensate the loser, 
and it is too often fertile land which goes and sterile land which 
is made. 
Protective works are of doubtful value. They often change 
the direction of currentsand arrest the travel of beach material, 
and cause a gain in one locality at the expense of erosion in 
another. 
Reclamation works on the other hand have added many 
valuable areas won from the waters. 
Doubtless the whole land area is being lowered, but the pro- 
cess, counted by lives, is too slow to be important, and before 
it becomes so, earth movement may have counteracted or 
accelerated it. We have no data for a forecast of events. 
In the meantime land is being lost here and gained there. 
There is everywhere change, but in the balance there is no loss. 
SCE 
Mr. Henry Coates has been appointed Curator of the Perthshire Museum 
in place of the late A. M. Roger. 
~ Naturalist. 
