faced that it is seldom hard to detect them. Our wandering 

 dealers lack the manipulative skill of the celebrated '' Flint 

 Jack." Collectors tell me that when a man has brought them 

 some good things, and perhaps is likely to bring them more, 

 they sometimes take from him these forgeries, or duplicate 

 specimens, which they in no way require, in order to encourage 

 the ragman to come back, and also as a bribe to prevent him 

 taking his finds to some rival collector ; for I may tell you it is 

 one of the special peculiarities of collectors to be very jealous 

 of other collectors. A collector wants to have things that 

 no other collector has ; hence these forgeries and impostures 

 are winked at. 



Mr. Benn's collection was especially rich in stone implements, 

 and this is just what might be expected in a collection formed 

 in the County of Antrim. The County Antrim flint must 

 have- been of immense importance to the inhabitants of this 

 country, from the very earliest coming of primitive man down 

 to the discovery or introduction of metals ; and no doubt our 

 flint formed an article of barter with the inhabitants of other 

 districts of the country, because, with the exception of a part 

 of Derry, no flint is found elsewhere in Ireland. It has been 

 more than once pointed out by readers of papers here that 

 regular manufactories of flint implements existed in very old 

 times in different parts of Antrim, usually near places where 

 the chalk rocks came to the surface. 



I will now give an enumeration of the various objects that 

 compose the Benn collection as at present displayed : — Of 

 polished stone celts there are 94 ; flint celts, partly polished, 8 ; 

 finely worked flint arrow heads, lozenge-shaped, barbed and 

 stemmed, and lance heads, 228 ; flint flakes, worked, 34 ; thumb 

 flints, or scrapers, 18. Of the class of objects known as hammer 

 stones, some of which are oval, some oblong, some perforated, 

 and some not, there are, including some that may have been 

 spindle steps, about 100. Of small stone disks, perforated by a 

 central hole, which were probably worn as personal ornaments, 

 or as charms, or armlets, or which may have been spindle 

 whorls, and are called in some parts of Ireland " fairy mill- 



