254 



The Sixth General Meeting. 



by the permission of Lord Ailesbury, the company (about ninety in 

 number) took a pic-nic dinner in the Orangery. After which 

 Lord Ernest Bruce politely conducted his numerous visitors over 

 the House, and caused several very curious family relics to be ex- 

 hibited: among others, the celebrated Savernake Horn, and the 

 Seymour Pedigree. 



SECOND CONVERSAZIONE. 



In the evening at the Town-Hall, Mr. F. A. Carrington gave 

 some amusing particulars about the "Ancient State of Marlborough 

 and its inhabitants. " 



Mr. Poulett Scrope called the attention of the Society to the 

 curious discoveries recently made in France, of celts (stone axes) 

 in a stratum of gravel or drift, containing relics of extinct species 

 of animals, and suggested that search should be made for similar 

 objects in the gravels of this county. 



Mr. Edward B. Merriman read an account of a The Charity of 

 the Velvet Pall, and the Maces of the Town of Marlborough." 



THIRD DAY. THURSDAY, Sept. 29th. 



This day was spent on the western side of Marlborough. On 

 the way to the greater wonders of Silbury Hill and Avebury, the 

 newly restored Church at Preshute (Priest's Holt), and its cele- 

 brated black marble Font, said to have been used in the reign of 

 King John for Royal baptisms,, were shown by the Rev. T. W. 

 Dowding. 



The " Grey wethers" came next. The vast collection of these 

 remarkable blocks of stone, lying either imbedded, or on the sur- 

 face of the ground, in a combe on the right hand of the turnpike 

 road about four miles from Marlborough, though called " The Val- 

 ley of Stones," is in fact only one of several such vallies. This and 

 the great Cromlech called " The Devil's Den," having been ex- 

 amined, a diversion was next made from the road beyond West 

 Kennet to the "Long Barrow" on the brow of a hill south of Sil- 

 hury. This had been partty opened under the direction of Dr. 

 Thurnam of Devizes, who under the friendly roof of a cart-shed 



