﻿224 
  T. 
  M. 
  READE 
  ON 
  THE 
  CHALK-MASSES 
  

  

  paper 
  " 
  On 
  the 
  Boulder 
  Formation 
  of 
  Eastern 
  Norfolk 
  " 
  (Phil. 
  

   Mag. 
  1840, 
  p. 
  367), 
  or 
  to 
  the 
  2nd 
  edition 
  of 
  the 
  'Elements,' 
  

   vol. 
  i. 
  p. 
  231 
  (1841), 
  we 
  shall 
  see 
  a 
  sketch 
  of 
  an 
  " 
  included 
  pin- 
  

   nacle 
  of 
  chalk 
  " 
  resting 
  directly 
  upon 
  the 
  " 
  iron 
  pan," 
  at 
  Old 
  Hythe 
  

   Point, 
  west 
  of 
  Sherringham, 
  in 
  which 
  no 
  laminated 
  beds 
  are 
  shown 
  

   between 
  the 
  " 
  till" 
  and 
  the 
  " 
  pan 
  " 
  *. 
  

  

  Between 
  Sherringham 
  and 
  Cromer 
  the 
  Chalk, 
  with 
  the 
  iron 
  pan 
  

   above 
  it, 
  in 
  places 
  was 
  clearly 
  exposed 
  on 
  the 
  foreshore. 
  There 
  is 
  

   evidently, 
  as 
  described 
  by 
  Mr. 
  R. 
  C. 
  Taylor, 
  in 
  1827t> 
  a 
  general 
  

   dip 
  of 
  the 
  strata 
  to 
  the 
  south-east. 
  

  

  If 
  after 
  this 
  we 
  walk 
  from 
  Mundesley 
  northwestwards 
  towards 
  

   Cromer, 
  we 
  shall 
  find 
  the 
  Cromer 
  Till 
  here 
  very 
  chalky, 
  forming 
  the 
  

   base 
  of 
  the 
  cliffs, 
  north-west 
  of 
  and 
  close 
  to 
  the 
  section 
  of 
  the 
  

   famed 
  Post-glacial 
  river-channel. 
  

  

  Further 
  on 
  the 
  base 
  was 
  obscured 
  by 
  talus 
  ; 
  but 
  as 
  we 
  approached 
  

   the 
  " 
  Trimmingham 
  bluffs 
  " 
  the 
  Contorted 
  Drift 
  was 
  disclosed 
  at 
  the 
  

   shore-level 
  ; 
  and 
  if 
  we 
  refer 
  to 
  the 
  paper 
  of 
  Lyell's 
  already 
  quoted, 
  

   p. 
  358, 
  we 
  shall 
  see 
  a 
  sketch 
  showing 
  the 
  " 
  laminated 
  blue 
  clay 
  " 
  or 
  

   " 
  drift 
  " 
  actually 
  underlying 
  the 
  " 
  protuberance 
  of 
  chalk 
  " 
  at 
  its 
  right- 
  

   hand 
  extremity 
  (a, 
  fig. 
  1)J. 
  Beyond 
  this 
  point 
  and 
  near 
  to 
  Sidestrand 
  

   I 
  saw 
  clearly-exposed 
  beds 
  of 
  Hint 
  gravel 
  with 
  laminated 
  sand 
  and 
  

   clay, 
  yellow, 
  white, 
  and 
  blue 
  ; 
  and 
  still 
  further 
  on, 
  reaching 
  10 
  feet 
  

  

  * 
  In 
  1864 
  Sir 
  Charles 
  Lyell 
  writes 
  : 
  — 
  " 
  Leonard 
  and 
  I 
  have 
  just 
  returned 
  

   from 
  Sherringham, 
  where 
  I 
  find 
  that 
  the 
  splendid 
  Old 
  Hythe 
  pinnacle 
  of 
  chalk, 
  

   in 
  which 
  the 
  flints 
  were 
  vertical, 
  between 
  70 
  and 
  80 
  feet 
  high, 
  the 
  grandest 
  

   erratic 
  in 
  the 
  world, 
  of 
  which 
  I 
  gave 
  a 
  figure 
  in 
  the 
  first 
  edition 
  of 
  my 
  ' 
  Prin- 
  

   ciples,' 
  has 
  totally 
  disappeared." 
  — 
  Letter 
  to 
  Sir 
  Charles 
  Bunbury, 
  Life 
  of 
  Lyell, 
  

   vol. 
  ii. 
  p. 
  441. 
  

  

  t 
  Phil. 
  Mag. 
  1827, 
  p. 
  286. 
  

  

  \ 
  These 
  "Bluffs" 
  are 
  usually 
  considered 
  to 
  be 
  connected 
  with 
  the 
  Chalk 
  

   below, 
  as 
  the 
  Chalk 
  is 
  exposed 
  on 
  the 
  foreshore 
  at 
  low 
  water 
  ; 
  and 
  much 
  inge- 
  

   nuity 
  has 
  been 
  expended 
  in 
  explaining 
  the 
  " 
  contortions 
  " 
  or 
  disturbance 
  they 
  

   have 
  undergone, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  their 
  exceptional 
  appearance 
  and 
  position. 
  I 
  have 
  

   searched 
  the 
  various 
  sections 
  in 
  vain 
  for 
  any 
  adequate 
  proof 
  that 
  these 
  Bluffs 
  

   are 
  connected 
  with 
  the 
  Chalk 
  below. 
  The 
  evidence 
  is 
  all 
  incomplete. 
  There 
  

   are 
  certain 
  facts 
  pointing 
  to 
  the 
  probability 
  of 
  the 
  Bluffs 
  being 
  boulders, 
  such 
  

   as 
  their 
  being, 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  we 
  can 
  see, 
  imbedded 
  in 
  Contorted 
  Drift 
  or 
  Till, 
  while 
  

   not 
  far 
  off 
  on 
  either 
  side 
  lie 
  undisturbed 
  preglacial 
  beds 
  rising 
  above 
  the 
  level 
  

   of 
  high 
  water. 
  Lyell 
  considered 
  that 
  the 
  Drift 
  and 
  the 
  Chalk 
  had 
  been 
  simul- 
  

   taneously 
  disturbed, 
  which 
  is 
  consistent 
  with 
  the 
  boulder 
  hypothesis, 
  but 
  

   difficult 
  otherwise 
  to 
  understand. 
  He 
  also 
  thought 
  that 
  they 
  formed 
  part 
  of 
  

   a 
  larger 
  central 
  nucleus 
  of 
  Chalk 
  under 
  Trimmingham 
  beacon, 
  and 
  that 
  as 
  the 
  

   sea 
  cut 
  the 
  cliffs 
  back 
  the 
  exposure 
  of 
  Chalk 
  would 
  increase 
  ; 
  instead 
  of 
  that, 
  

   the 
  northern 
  bluff 
  has, 
  since 
  his 
  observation 
  in 
  1839, 
  diminished 
  in 
  length 
  

   from 
  106 
  to 
  37 
  yards, 
  while 
  one 
  bluff 
  has 
  entirely 
  disappeared, 
  I 
  have 
  

   shown 
  in 
  dotted 
  lines 
  b 
  b, 
  in. 
  fig. 
  1, 
  the 
  size 
  of 
  the 
  northern 
  bluff 
  as 
  

   described 
  by 
  Lyell 
  in 
  1839, 
  and 
  its 
  present 
  size, 
  from 
  a 
  sketch 
  by 
  myself 
  in 
  1881, 
  

   in 
  the 
  same 
  figure, 
  c. 
  Fig. 
  2 
  is 
  the 
  cross 
  section 
  as 
  figured 
  by 
  Lyell 
  ; 
  figs. 
  3 
  

   and 
  4 
  the 
  end 
  views 
  as 
  seen 
  by 
  me. 
  Without 
  in 
  any 
  way 
  presuming 
  to 
  settle 
  

   a 
  matter 
  which 
  has 
  puzzled 
  such 
  trained 
  observers, 
  all 
  these 
  facts, 
  except 
  the 
  

   nearness 
  of 
  the 
  Chalk 
  on 
  the 
  foreshore, 
  are 
  to 
  me 
  more 
  reconcilable 
  with 
  the 
  

   boulder 
  hypothesis 
  than 
  with 
  any 
  other. 
  Those 
  interested 
  will 
  see 
  the 
  case 
  well 
  

   stated 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Jukes-Browne, 
  Ann. 
  & 
  Mag. 
  of 
  Nat. 
  Hist. 
  Mr. 
  Clement 
  Reid's 
  

   hypothesis 
  that 
  the 
  chalk 
  bluffs 
  have 
  been 
  pressed 
  up 
  by 
  an 
  ice-sheet 
  from 
  sea- 
  

   ward 
  seems 
  to 
  me 
  to 
  introduce 
  more 
  difficulties 
  than 
  it 
  explains. 
  

  

  