662 TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION E. 



contour. With the exception of a small irrigation ditch and a tiny brook, which 

 carries off the rain-wash from the slopes of the valley towards its eastern end, the 

 valley is dry. The Dalhousie Burn cuts this valley at right-angles, but its 

 course is unaffected by the dry channel. The floor of the valley consists of 

 glacial deposits of sand and gravel, and all the evidence leads to the conclusion 

 that, like the valleys at St. Helen's Church, Deuchrie Dod, and the Chesters 

 Quarry ravine in East Lothian, these dry valleys were formed during the retreat 

 of the ice-sheet from the region and before the natural drainage system was 

 re-established. Towards the south-east corner of the region another well- 

 developed dry valley has been produced by different causes — namely, through 

 the action of the Gore Water in capturing the combined streams of North and 

 South Middleton Burn, which formerly flowed into the Tyne, but which now 

 empty their waters into the South Esk and have left their former channel, 

 extending for almost a mile to the north-east of Borthwick as a dry valley. The 

 influence of the ice-sheet is well marked in the Pentland passes, especially in 

 the valley of Glencorse Burn, with its hanging valley at Loganlee and its well- 

 developed corrie. The rivers of the Tegion present many other interesting 

 problems — e.g., the direction followed by Bavelaw Burn. The remarkable bend 

 in the course of Gogar Burn, which becomes a tributary of the Almond instead of 

 following the more natural direction towards the Water of Leith, and the bend 

 in the North Esk below Hawthornden. 



The climate of the region bears a close relation to its topography. The 

 prevalent west and south-west winds give rise to a mean annual rainfall of over 

 fifty inches in the highest slopes of the Pentlands; the area over 1,000 feet has a 

 rainfall of over forty inches; the isohyet of thirty inches roughly coincides 

 with the 250-foot contour, and in the vicinity of Edinburgh we find one of the 

 driest areas in the country. The city of Edinburgh has an annual range of 

 21° F., and throughout the greater part of the lowland area the July temperature 

 is two degrees higher than the minimum of 56° required for the ripening of 

 wheat and barley. In its yield per acre of these two cereals the region holds 

 the premier place in the kingdom, but more remarkable is its superiority in the 

 production of hay from clover and grasses under rotation. 



The mineral resources of the region are as great as its fertility. Over 98 per 

 cent, of the oil shale produced in the kingdom comes from Linlithgow and 

 Midlothian, and sulphate of ammonia, paraffin wax and oil form an important 

 part of the export trade of Leith and Grangemouth. The attempt being made 

 to work a thin seam of shale on south-east side of Pentlands, if successful, 

 will vitally affect a district at present devoid of population. The development of 

 the Midlothian coalfield is proceeding, and this basin, along with those in Fife 

 and Clackmannan, must become still more important as the western coalfields 

 become exhausted. The region is rich in building stone. Moreover, the abundant 

 supply of lime has favoured the building industry, besides meeting the demands 

 of the farmer for a fertilising agent and of the ironfounder for a flux. 



While the geographical advantages of the site favoured the rise and develop- 

 ment of Edinburgh, other factors have also played an important part. The 

 selection of Edinburgh as the seat of the law courts and of the university led 

 to a demand for printing, and since 1507 printing has been one of the most 

 important local industries. This gave rise to a demand for paper, and many 

 mills are found along the banks of the Esk and the Water of Leith. The proper- 

 ties of the water drawn from the calciferous sandstone in Edinburgh and its 

 neighbourhood have favoured the rise of the brewing industry. A large number 

 of bleaching fields have been established on the banks of the Water of Leith. 



4. The Underground Waters of the Castleton District of Derbyshire. 

 By Harold Brodrick, M.A. 



To the west of Castleton and 600 feet above it is a long valley, in the base 

 of which runs one of the transverse Pennine faults. This fault brings down the 

 carboniferous limestone, So that the streams to the north run over the Yoredale 

 rocks to sink into the limestone. There are several streams, but only one ends 

 in a cave of any size, the Giant's Hole. This has been explored for a distance 



