Geology of the Keytltorpe Estate. 



97 



by Mr. Austen in a communication to the Geological Society, 

 to the effect that the occupiers of soils near Guildford, resting 

 upon a subsoil of clay so furrowed, had found that drains across 

 the ridges and furrows dried a much larger area than drains 

 parallel to them. 



When these views were announced in a lecture before the 

 Royal Agricultural Society, it appeared that a system of draining 

 by drains transverse to these furrows and ridges, called in Lei- 

 cestershire " claybanks," had been practised for many years by 

 Lord Berners at Keythorpe, with great success, both as regards 

 efficacy and economy ; and that these results had been obtained 

 by the tentative process, without any reference to geological in- 

 vestigations, which they so beautifully confirm. Having recently 

 had an opportunity, through the kindness of Lord Berners, of 

 examining the Keythorpe estate, with the advantage of his Lord- 

 ship's explanations on the spot respecting the depth, distances, 

 and direction of the drains and of the trial holes by which those 

 points were determined, I propose in this communication to give 

 a slight sketch of the geology of the estate, and of the Keythorpe 

 system of draining. I give the latter in the hope that Lord 

 Berners may be induced to illustrate this part of the subject by 

 the publication of some of those details of which his Lordship 

 possesses the most minute and elaborate records, proving incon- 

 testably the economy of the system. Its efficiency must be evident 

 to all who have witnessed the present condition of the land. 



Geology of the Keythorpe Estate. — The whole of this property 

 which I have seen is on the lias, and principally on that part of 

 the lias called the marlstone ; the lias in this portion of its range 

 is less known to geologists than nearer its northern and southern 

 extremities ; the marlstone part of the series appears to consist 

 here chiefly of clay, w ith some alternating beds of sandstone ; 

 the former yields an excellent building stone, as the buildings 

 on the estate, including Keythorpe Hall, abundantly testify, A 

 stone approaching the character of the Uppingham stone (at the 

 junction of the lias and inferior oolite), and suitable for barn- 

 floors and for quoins, was found in digging a pond at Old Key- 

 thorpe. Though these beds of sandstone and limestone are only 

 worked at one or two points on the estate, there can be little 

 doubt that they might be found at accessible depths on other 

 parts of it and on the neighbouring properties, if it were deemed 

 desirable to search for them by boring along the strike of the 

 strata.* I have reason to believe that the Cleveland ironstone, 



* Witli men expert in the use of boring tools, and a judicious selection of the 

 points for boring, it is surprising how cheaply ground may be proved in this "sray to 

 the depth of 15 or^20 feet, in the absence of obstruction from beds of stone. Such 

 obstruction would in this case be the discovery of the thing sought. 

 VOL. XIV. H 



