146 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



to the tradition of the villagers, the chasm marks 

 the site of a village, which in times past was 

 visited by Divine wrath. It is from this tradition 

 that the place takes its name {*). The explana- 

 tion for the phenomenon given by the geologist 

 is much more simple and convincing. Macluba 

 is one of several fine instances that the islands 

 afford of a collapsed cavern. It several times 

 occurred to me to start excavations in the bottom 

 of this depression, as the caverns in which the 

 late Professor Leith Adams made his discoveries 

 are but a few hundred yards away, but the oppor- 

 tunity never offered itself, so Macluba, with its 

 virgin ground and its possible stores of Malta's 

 extinct mammalia, still remains untouched. 



A pleasant walk of about two miles through San 

 Giorgio, Birzebuggia and Marsa Scirocco brings 

 the tower and creek of Benhisa into view. The 

 shores of the little creek are covered with an 

 agglomerate which is still crowded with the 

 remains of extinct dormice, swans, elephants and 

 land-tortoises. The deposits were originally dis- 

 covered and worked by Leith Adams, but they still 

 contain enough to stock a half-a-dozen museums. 

 The southern coastline of the island is much broken 

 up by ravines and gorges, in the greater number 

 of which the cave-hunter can find plenty to do. 

 Uied el Mistra, one of these, lies between II Mara 

 and the cavern of Ghar Hasan, and about three- 

 quarters of a mile distant from Benhisa. Unlike 

 most of the gorges that debouch on the southern 

 coastline, it is an arid gully, with scarcely a vestige 

 of plant life. From the roadway which traverses 

 its higher reaches it appears to be one of the last 

 places in the islands that would repay the trouble 

 of exploring. On its northern side there is, how- 

 ever, an interesting funnel-shaped cavity which 

 opens out frorn beneath a broad shelf of rock. Its 

 mouth is circular in shape, and it maintains an 

 uniform height of about six feet throughout its 

 length. Unlike most of the caves of this class it 

 does not contract towards its distal extremity, but 

 it breaks off abruptly and presents abroad, smooth, 

 semicircular wall, the face of which is covered 

 with a layer of stalagmite upwards of six inches in 

 thickness. The floor deposits consist of grey 

 plastic clay, in which were embedded bones of 

 birds, fragments of shells, pieces of a rude coarse 

 kind of pottery ; and at a depth of two feet from 

 the surface were the remains of a fire. The cave 

 has evidently been used by the islands' early 

 inhabitants, but how long ago it is not possible to 

 say. The deposits serve only as a rough index, 

 and do little more than demonstrate that the 

 interval of time that has elapsed since the first 

 occupation is one of considerable length. 



A mile away to the north-east is situated the 

 cavern known as Ghar Hasan. It consists of a 

 (■*) Macluba = overturned. 



funnel-shaped dilatation with several fissures and 

 smaller tunnels branching off from its extremities 

 and sides. Three of these branches are of a size 

 sufficient to allow of a person traversing them 

 comfortably, but progress through the others is 

 impracticable on account of their narrow dimen- 

 sions. The larger embranchments ramify in 

 various directions, and in several cases they 

 return upon the main branch, thus forming 

 circular and elliptical courses. The cavern has 

 three entrances, all of which abut on the cliff 

 face. Access to the interior can be made but by 

 one only. The others can be approached only by 

 making a detour of the branch fissures. 



The contours of the cave walls and the irregular 

 manner in which the projecting crags and bosses 

 of the cave have been worn, as also the character 

 of the heavy yellow clay which covers the bottom, 

 seem to indicate that the passages owe their origin 

 to the action of running water. Even in the 

 summer time a copious supply of dripping water 

 finds its way into the cave, while in winter a 

 miniature stream occasionally meanders onward 

 and precipitates itself over the cliff into the sea. 

 Most of the water finds its way into the cavern 

 through the numerous swallow-holes with which 

 the roof is perforated, and which are probably in 

 connection with the surface. The cave commands 

 a fine view of the Mediterranean ; but considering 

 the difficulty, not to say danger, that is attendant 

 on obtaining access to it, it is questionable whether 

 the pleasure that is to be derived from a visit is 

 commensurate with the trouble and risk that must 

 be incurred. Excavations have from time to time 

 been made within its precincts, but nothing of 

 interest has been forthcoming. Intermixed with 

 the clay that strews the bottom are considerable 

 quantities of bones referable to various species of 

 doves, gulls, bats, and rats, such as at present find 

 a shelter and a home within its recesses. Frag- 

 ments of pottery, too, are abundantly strewn about ; 

 but they are all of an apparently recent type. 

 The remoteness of its situation, and the evidences 

 which it exhibits of having had occupants are con- 

 sidered by the country people to be of sufiicient 

 importance to entitle the cave to a prominent 

 position in their legendary lore. In this instance 

 the reference is of an historical rather than of a 

 supernatural character. The cave is said to have 

 once served as a retreat for the notable Saracen 

 sea-pirate, Hasan, who continued to live in Malta 

 some time after his fellow-countrymen had been 

 expelled. 



Such, then, are some of the more interesting 

 of the numerous ossiferous beds which the Maltese 

 islands afford. There still remains much to be 

 done ; for the district offers unlimited sport to the 

 geologist and cave-hunter alike. 

 Battenhall Road, Worcester. 



