311 



of the wharves havhig been severely injured, large quantities 

 of these nodules and masses of Sandstone were exposed. I 

 found the Sandstone abounding at the southern end of 

 " Shirley's" wharf, and the flint stones at most of the 

 wharves. I am informed that large quantities of this Sand- 

 stone was, in at least one instance, carted into the interior of 

 the town and used as fiUing-up material in low land ; I note 

 this fact to explain what might present itself as an anomoly 

 to future observers. 



I hardly feel free to close this somewhat extended article 

 without a single allusion to the wearing action of the ocean 

 on the land ; instances of this constantly meet the eye along 

 our coast ; every little bay and inlet, telling its tale of erosion 

 and being witness to great changes in the ancient coast-line. 

 Nor has this degrading action of the ocean yet reached its 

 limit ; not a storm of great violence occurs without leaving 

 its destructive mark along our shore line. Two prominent 

 illustrations of a probable change of the coast lino by ocean 

 agency may be seen in the great curve that sweeps in from 

 "Bartoll's" to Skinner's Heads", also in the great curve that 

 begins at " Bass Rock", in the northeasterly extremity of 

 the town and trends away to the south-west towards the en- 

 trance of Salem Harbor. 



Formed for the most part from the decomposition of her 

 primitive rocks the soil of Marblehead, though scanty, is 

 proverbially strong covering our pasture lands that have been 

 closely fed for over a century and a quarter without any 

 cultivation or manuring with a carpet of white clover during 

 the rainy season. The soil of our islands is so amazingly 

 productive of the grasses as to set all the attempts of the 

 chemist to explain the fact from the chemical composition of 

 the soil at defiance ; no one can realize it until they have visit 

 ed them during the growing season, (Baker's island is an in- 

 stance) and I challenge any one to explain it by any theory 

 that does not ascribe an influence far greater than has here- 

 tofore been customary to the qualities communicated to the 

 air from the surrounding ocean. 



The absorbing topic of the Atlantic Cable was introduced 

 by the presentation, on the part of Mr. Moses G. Farmer, of 

 a piece of that portion submerged in Yalentia Bay last year ; 



