130 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



winter, an old quarry that must have been vrorked Tvith iron tooU 

 prior to the accumulation of the sand-hills that existed there when 

 the Ordnance Survey was made). 



V Northward of Kilmichael Point , in the bay at the mearing of the 

 comities Wieklow and TTexford, the denudation of the sand-hills has 

 also been considerable within the last forty years (fig. 4, pi. 6\ more 

 than 20 acres in the townland of Cloon Lower and Upper having been 

 swept away." 



(p. 199.) — "It ought to be specially pointed out, that the storms 

 which cut out the beaches may not be the same as those which denude 

 away the marginal cliffs. A small storm, when the strand is empty, 

 may do great damage to the coast-line. 



" {Note.) — After very wet seasons great falls of cliffs often take 

 place. The natives will often tell you that so many yards are going 

 yearly, and, in proof of this assertion, will point to the waste of the 

 previous winter, they supposing the same happens every year. The 

 greatest falls occur at the highest cliffs, on which account the greatest 

 waste is supposed to be taking place in those localities; but, after 

 careful calculation, I find this not to be the case. Xone of the high 

 cliffs reach an average waste of 0'75 feet per annum, and generally 

 the loss is less than 0"50 feet per annum, while in places the low 

 cliSs have been denuded away as much as 2-5 feet per annum. The 

 greatest denudation on the whole line of coast between Hook and 

 Dalkey is at the low cliff near St. Patrick's Bridge, KUmore. 



" Extraordinary high tides, unaccompanied with wind, seem to 

 do little or no damage on an open seaboard. In March, 1867,^ there 

 was a remarkable high tide on the coast of Galway, the traces of 

 which were scarcely perceptible along the open coast, even on the 

 sand-hills ; but in the land-locked bays it did considerable damage to 

 the piers and sea-walls. 



'* On January 3rd, 1877, there was on the east coast a very high 

 tide, which along the "Wicklow coast was accompanied by a very 

 moderate wind. This did considerable damage to the Dublin and 

 Wicklow EaUway between Greystones and Wicklow ; not so much 

 by the direct force of the waves as by their height, they flowing over 

 the line, and the overflow cutting into the land side of the embankment, 

 thus gradually eating out the beaches. Between JTewcastle and 

 Wicklow Chemical Works it encroached in many places, as much as 

 3 yards into the ^Morrough {anglice, the plain)." 



1 1867. 2. Sunspot minimum. 



