Excursion. 



79 



from a metallic furnace ; in other places it appears covered 

 with delicate tracery resembling lace work ; this appearance 

 seems to be caused by the action of water and the atmosphere 

 eating away certain constituents of the rock. To the left of 

 the descent are caves of no great depth but very picturesque, 

 for at the entrance of the deepest of them, a stream of water 

 precipitates itself in a mimic cascade on the rocks beneath, 

 being broken into spray, and reflecting all the tints of the 

 rainbow. 



Re-ascending the cliff, the party proceeded southwards, 

 passing La Bette, where a descent may be effected over steps 

 more dangerous than those at the Jaonnets, to a beach possess- 

 ing no special features. The next point gained was the Creux 

 aux Chiens, which is situated to the north-west of, and not far 

 from, Icart, in that arch-like opening so conspicuous from the 

 cliffs bordering on Petit Bot. This spot according to the guide 

 was once worked as a Gold Mine. The floor of the cave is at 

 present raised about fifteen feet above the boulders of which 

 the beach is formed : an immense mass of stones embedded in 

 earth and rubbish resting on the original rock. This detritus 

 has somewhat the appearance of a raised beach ; but all the 

 stones are angular. Two small patches of this detritus adher- 

 ing to the walls of the gully on each side further sea-ward 

 than the main mass, prove that it extended further forward, 

 but the sea has washed away a considerable portion. 



The face of this fallen rubbish and of the rock is so vertical 

 that the cave is somewhat difficult of access ; but Mr. Lukis 

 and others who entered, reported that they could see no indi- 

 cations of mining operations. The detritus is doubtless a 

 natural formation produced by landslips, evidence of which is 

 plainly seen on the face of the cliff above ; but whether the 

 floor has been levelled by human agency remains open to 

 question. The idea of gold seems to have been suggested by 

 small brilliant spots glittering with a metallic lustre here and 



