66d Reports and Proceedings, 



ferous limestone whicli rises above the river Lesse, which flows into 

 the Mouse, near Dinant, in the south of Belgium. 



As my own notes are strictly confined to the geological phenomena 

 we observed, I will here quote from the daily journal kept by Sir 

 Wm, Guise, which he has kindly lent me, and in which descriptions 

 and details of the scenery, as well as the geology, are noted : — 



" In July we left Brussels for Namur, in company with our friend, 

 Mr. John Jones, formerly Hon. Sec. of the Cotteswold Club. From 

 Namur we proceeded to Dinant, accompanied by Mons. Dumont, 

 Engineer-in-chief of the province, to make the acquaintance of Dr. 

 Dupont, who has superintended the great cave excavations made under 

 the auspices and with funds supplied by the Belgian Government. 



" The Eiver Lesse flows into the Meuse at a distance of about one 

 and a quarter miles from Dinant. Our course lay up the valley of 

 the Lesse ; a narrow valley, bounded by rocks of Carboniferous 

 Limestone, frequently much contorted, while their jagged and angular 

 outlines tell of some other force than the mere erosion by water 

 having had to do with their present abrupt conflguration. The 

 slopes are richly clothed with wood, while the river winds through 

 a green pastoral valley, never, probably, much more than half a mile 

 in width, and for the most part far less. "We crossed the Lesse 

 three times at fords which were sufficiently deep to admit the water 

 into the carriage. About two and a half miles from Dinant the road 

 passes under the castle of Walzin, which stands on the summit of 

 a bold rock immediately above the stream, and presents a most 

 picturesque appearance. Thence to the village of Challeux is about 

 two and a half miles of execrable roads. Here we descended from 

 our caniage and made our way to the river, at this point deep and 

 still. A shout of recognition was exchanged, and presently a 

 narrow, flat-bottomed shallop was poled across to convey us to 

 the opposite side of the stream, where a long talus of broken earth 

 and stones showed where operations were being carried on. A 

 course of steps cut in the hill-side led up the slope, at the top of 

 which we found ourselves in front of a yawning cavern, and La the 

 presence of a young man in the dress of an excavator. The latter 

 was Dr. Dupont, and the cave that of 'Naulette,' in which was found 

 the now famous human jaw, associated with BJiinoceros tichorJiinus 

 and other extinct mammalia. Dr. Dupont welcomed us with cor- 

 diality. Armed with lights, we entered the cave, from which large 

 quantities of material had been removed. Dr. Dupont explained the 

 characteristics and relations of the so-called ' Lehm ' and ' Loess ; ' the 

 latter he considers to be marine, and shows that the jaw was found 

 under, at least, seven feet of ' Loess ' sands. The position of this jaw 

 has been disputed, but there were too many persons present at the 

 time of its discovery to admit of any doubts on the subject ; its exact 

 position is determined without room for cavil. We were a queer- 

 looking set, as, with wolf-skins over our shoulders to shield our coats 

 from the wet and clay, we emerged again into the light of day. 



" From ' Naulette ' we proceeded to the ' Trou du Frontal ' and the 

 ^Trou des Nutons.' By the way we halted at the little hamlet of 



