OOLITE. 65 



thence to Malton, dipping north, while they also have a declivity to 

 the east, in the direction of the Wolds. The middle of the vale of 

 Pickering- may therefore be considered as the centre of a basin, 

 formed by the oolite hills, which dip into it from all sides, except on 

 the south-east, where the chalk and shale make a sweep into it. In 

 a part of the east end of the valley, however, towards Filey bay, the 

 oolite is entirely gone, and its place is occupied by a deep alluvium. 



It will be seen, from the description now given, that the bend of 

 the oolite hills does not run parallel to that of the chalk hills, but 

 makes a much greater sweep to the west; at the same time the one 

 bears a resemblance to the other, particularly in this respect, that 

 the highest part of each range is towards the north-west, and that 

 each after arriving at that point makes a sudden turn to the south- 

 east. To this we may add, that as the chalk rises again in some 

 places, after it has sunk under the great alluvial bed in its bosom, so 

 the oolite presents the same undulations, and to a greater extent, 

 rising in hummocks in various parts of the vale of Pickering, especi- 

 ally towards its western termination. 



As it is om- design, in this part of our Work, to state facts, Avith- 

 out proposing theories, we do not mean at present to inquire particu- 

 larly into the causes of the phenomena here exhibited : yet we can 

 scarcely avoid remarking, that they cannot well be accounted for, 

 without supposing that a great subsidence of the strata has taken 

 place in the vale of Pickering. If we suppose the strata in that 

 valley, especially on the south and south-east sides of it, to havts 

 sunk down, and a washing away of the upper part of the strata to- 

 wards the sea to have also taken place, before the deposition of the 

 alluvium, we can easily conceive why the oolite has disappeared at 

 Filey bay; and why the oolite hills, encircling the valley, 'generally 

 dip towards it, as well as towards the chalk. The same supposition 

 ivill also explain, why the oolite between Settrington and Malton 



