in the Vicinity of Lyme Regis, Dorset, and Beer, Devon. 117 



worked for ages, as old buildings and the state of the quarries testify. When 

 first quarried, it is somewhat soft and easily worked, but becomes harder by 

 exposure to the air ; it is nearly white, and principally composed of carbonate 

 of lime, with small brilliant facets, which also appear to consist of carbonate 

 of lime partially disseminated through it : it contains also some argillaceous 

 and siliceous matter, and very thinly sprinkled specks of green-earth*. 



The quarry itself is interesting as a cavern, and affords a miniature repre- 

 sentation of the Maestricht quarries ; the roof, which is nearly even and paral- 

 lel to the floor, being supported by large square pillars. The depth of this 

 cavernous quarry from the entrance is about 170 yards. The workmen enu- 

 merate the following beds, beneath 18 feet of indurated chalk without flints, 

 which they call Skull. 



1. Upper bed, — eighteen inches thick, rather hard. 



2. Eighteen inches thick, soft. 



3. Two feet thick, rather soft. 



4. Two feet thick, rather soft. 



5. Sixteen inches thick, hard. 



6. Sixteen inches thick, mixture of hard and soft. 



7. Eight inches thick, very hard. 



8. Two feet thick, very hard. 



Beneath these are about 5 or 6 feet of a hard white calcareous rock, which 

 burns into good lime, but is not quarried as the others are. Beneath this tiie 

 sandstones commence. 



From what has been above stated, it appears that considerable changes take 

 place in rock-formations even in short distances : as for instance, the remark- 

 able bed with quartz-grains, though so conspicuous at Pinhay, Whitelands, 

 and Dovvlands, fines olf at White Cliff", near Beer, and is no longer visible at 

 Branscombe : on the other hand, the Beer stone of Branscombe and the quar- 

 ries is not found even at so short a distance as White Cliff; and therefore we 

 ought not to be surprised at not finding it at Dovvlands, Whitelands, &c. The 

 chalk at the latter places contains quartz-grains in its lowest part; whereas at 

 Beer the same part of the chalk contains none, if we except the remarkable 

 bed above mentioned. The Fox mould near Lyme Regis, does not contain so 

 much green-earth as at Beer, and few, if any, nodules of chert. The sand- 



* It seems to mc probable, that the Beer stone is the equivalent of the Malm-rock of 

 Western Sussex and the South-east of Hampshire, described by Mr. Murchison, and of the 

 Merstham Firestone of Mr. Webster. 



