1884-1885.] 359 



wise, grinding to a smooth surface, so as to be fit to whet knives, 

 and never yet found with any wood continuous to them, and 

 commonly found in small pieces." This description of Barton's 

 applies to the smaller rolled pieces found scattered through the 

 soil or gravel, which have been rounded by attrition, and bleached 

 by exposure. " II. — Those that are large, harder, and more 

 weighty, black internally and externally, found lately in many 

 instances with much wood on the surface, and also with a good 

 deal of wood intermixt with the inward parts of the stone." 



I shall finish my quotations from the learned Doctor's work 

 by his description of the locality where the petrifactions were 

 found in greatest abundance. " Whereas former inquirers have 

 left upon record, that the mouth of the Blackwater and neigh- 

 bouring shores were particularly remarkable for productions of 

 these petrifactions, it was proper to examine those places ac- 

 curately, which was done, yet nothing curious found. And to 

 come directly to the purpose, the entire encompassing shore of 

 the lake was carefully searched, without success, from the former 

 point (Ardmore Point) to a point called Ahaness, in the County 

 Antrim." 



" This place seeming to be the forge where these materials 

 receive part of their form, deserves a particular and accurate 

 description ; because future reasoning concerning these pro- 

 ductions must in a great measure depend upon it." 



" Ahaness is half a mile south of the River Glenevy, and the 

 shore between them is sandy ; it is three miles north of Port- 

 more Park, and the shore between them is for the most part 

 rough, except in one place for five hundred paces it is sandy 

 and pretty deep. The part immediately adjoining upon Aha- 

 ness is a surface of yellow clay, covered roughly with stones." 

 " At Ahaness there has been raised, from time to time, above 

 two ton weight of stones, with wood continuous in them, one 

 of which, weighing 150 lb., is deposited in Trinity College, 

 Dublin ; and several fragments of extraordinary rarity, got by 

 breaking the large stones, are deposited in the University of 

 Cambridge, with the Woodwardian professor of the knowledge 

 of fossils. The bank at Ahaness is twelve feet high, between 



