﻿38 
  E. 
  D. 
  DARBISHIRE 
  ON 
  A 
  DEPOSIT 
  OP 
  

  

  7. 
  Note 
  on 
  a 
  Deposit 
  of 
  Middle 
  Pleistocene 
  Gravel 
  in 
  the 
  

   Worden-Hall 
  Pits, 
  near 
  Leyland, 
  Lancashire 
  ; 
  and 
  on 
  a 
  Col- 
  

   lection 
  of 
  Shells 
  and 
  Fragments 
  of 
  Shells 
  found 
  there 
  by 
  

   Miss 
  M. 
  H. 
  Fearington. 
  By 
  P. 
  D. 
  Darbishire, 
  Esq., 
  B.A., 
  

   F.G.S. 
  (Read 
  November 
  19, 
  1873.) 
  

  

  About 
  a" 
  mile 
  from 
  the 
  Leyland 
  station, 
  on 
  the 
  east 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  Bolton 
  

   and 
  Preston 
  railway, 
  there 
  is 
  an 
  extended 
  flat-topped 
  hill 
  of 
  small 
  

   elevation, 
  which 
  has 
  for 
  many 
  years 
  past 
  been 
  the 
  chief 
  or 
  only 
  

   source 
  of 
  supply 
  for 
  a 
  considerable 
  district, 
  of 
  coarse 
  and 
  fine 
  road- 
  

   gravel. 
  The 
  pits 
  from 
  which 
  the 
  gravel 
  is 
  got 
  have 
  been 
  worked 
  from 
  

   the 
  eastward. 
  The 
  material 
  is 
  screened 
  and 
  sorted 
  on 
  the 
  ground, 
  

   the 
  stones 
  and 
  gravel 
  carried 
  away, 
  and 
  the 
  refuse 
  left 
  to 
  fill 
  up 
  

   holes. 
  At 
  present 
  the 
  exposed 
  section 
  of 
  the 
  hill 
  is 
  seen 
  in 
  two 
  

   large 
  excavations 
  as 
  a 
  face 
  some 
  40 
  or 
  50 
  feet 
  in 
  height, 
  of 
  which 
  

   the 
  upper 
  10 
  feet 
  consists, 
  under 
  the 
  sward, 
  of 
  yellow 
  brick-clay. 
  

   The 
  remainder 
  of 
  the 
  face 
  exhibits 
  a 
  thick 
  bed, 
  30 
  to 
  40 
  feet 
  thick, 
  of 
  

   marine 
  gravel 
  (shingle) 
  and 
  sands, 
  very 
  rarely 
  showing 
  any 
  clayey 
  

   admixture. 
  The 
  gravel 
  consists 
  of 
  pebbles 
  of 
  a 
  very 
  large 
  variety 
  of 
  

   rocks, 
  ranging 
  in 
  size 
  from 
  that 
  of 
  a 
  cylindrical 
  mass 
  8" 
  by 
  18" 
  down 
  

   to 
  that 
  of 
  coarse 
  and 
  fine 
  shingle 
  and 
  sand. 
  There 
  are 
  occasionally 
  

   small 
  layers, 
  of 
  slight 
  extent 
  and 
  thickness, 
  of 
  fine 
  sea-sand 
  ; 
  and 
  the 
  

   whole 
  mass 
  rests 
  on 
  a 
  bed 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  sort 
  of 
  sand, 
  the 
  depth 
  of 
  

   which 
  has 
  not 
  yet 
  been 
  ascertained. 
  

  

  The 
  accumulation 
  of 
  stones 
  from 
  different 
  rocks 
  and 
  from 
  different 
  

   strata 
  is 
  remarkable, 
  and 
  will, 
  it 
  is 
  hoped, 
  be 
  worked 
  out 
  hereafter. 
  

   A 
  characteristic 
  fossil 
  of 
  this 
  bed 
  is 
  coral 
  from 
  the 
  Mountain 
  Lime- 
  

   stone. 
  This 
  occurs 
  not 
  unfrequently 
  — 
  masses, 
  of 
  several 
  species, 
  

   lying 
  amongst 
  the 
  gravel, 
  and, 
  having 
  had 
  the 
  matrix 
  dissolved 
  

   away, 
  exhibiting 
  the 
  polypidom 
  singularly 
  clean 
  and 
  perfect. 
  A 
  

   certain 
  small 
  proportion 
  of 
  the 
  larger 
  stones 
  exhibit 
  glacial 
  striation 
  ; 
  

   arid, 
  much 
  more 
  rarely, 
  small 
  much-worn 
  flints 
  occur, 
  of 
  a 
  grey 
  or 
  

   brown 
  colour 
  when 
  fractured. 
  

  

  Throughout 
  the 
  gravel 
  there 
  occur 
  very 
  sparsely 
  small 
  fragments 
  

   of 
  marine 
  shells 
  ; 
  but 
  near 
  the 
  bottom 
  of 
  the 
  bed 
  these, 
  with 
  whole 
  

   shells 
  occasionally, 
  occur 
  more 
  frequently, 
  immediately 
  above 
  the 
  

   underlying 
  mass 
  of 
  fine 
  sand. 
  

  

  The 
  elevation 
  of 
  this 
  lower 
  shell-bearing 
  layer 
  is 
  about 
  from 
  240 
  to 
  

   250 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  level 
  of 
  the 
  sea. 
  For 
  many 
  years 
  past 
  Miss 
  M. 
  H. 
  

   Ffarington, 
  of 
  "Worden 
  Hall, 
  has 
  carefully 
  collected 
  shells 
  and 
  frag- 
  

   ments 
  as 
  they 
  occurred 
  in 
  these 
  gravel-pits. 
  The 
  collection 
  which 
  

   she 
  has 
  made 
  is 
  remarkable 
  for 
  the 
  range 
  of 
  species, 
  for 
  the 
  abun- 
  

   dance 
  of 
  specimens, 
  and 
  for 
  its 
  clear 
  exhibition, 
  upon 
  the 
  result 
  

   of 
  years 
  of 
  collection, 
  of 
  the 
  comparative 
  frequency 
  of 
  occurrence 
  of 
  

   species. 
  

  

  