434 Proceedings of the Royal Physical Society. 



the pieces of pottery embedded in the elevated littoral silt of 

 Leith are of Roman origin." 



" Along with these remains occurred numerous fragments of 

 the bones of some ruminant, apparently a deer. With the ex- 

 ception of a broken tibia, all the pieces were of small size, 

 like little chips and splinters. There occurred also a number 

 of ferruginous pipes of irregular size and form, occasionally 

 branching. They arose probably from the decomposition of 

 ferruginous soil round the decaying stems of plants, though 

 they sometimes resemble annelide burrows. 



" I have just shown that the bed of silt in which these re- 

 mains occur, is a truly stratified deposit formed by water, 

 exactly as a similar silt is being laid down on the shores of 

 the Frith at the present day. The occurrence of stratified 

 shell-sand and shingle above this silt proves that it was a 

 littoral deposit ; and the inference is irresistible, that the land 

 here has risen about 25 feet since the deposition of these 

 littoral strata. Further, the existence of fragments of Roman 

 pottery in the silt shows us, that the deposition of these up- 

 raised strata was going on during the Roman occupation of 

 Britain, and therefore that this rise of the land has taken 

 place since the time of the Romans. This may seem, indeed, 

 a startling deduction, when we consider the comparatively 

 large increase of land which it demands, the short interval it 

 allows for the process of elevation, and the silence of histo- 

 rians as to any change of level. Rut these objections are only 

 negative, and cannot be entertained in the face of the clear, 

 positive evidence of the raised sea-beach itself." 



When this communication of Mr Geikie's appeared, Dr 

 M'Bain (who had previously studied the relation of the beds) 

 and I determined to make a careful investigation of the sand- 

 pit, more particularly bed No. 5 of Mr Geikie's section. We 

 were aided in our researches by the kindness of Mr Field, the 

 proprietor of the sand-pit, who placed his men at our service 

 for the purpose of excavating the stratum. The result of 

 many visits confirmed our belief, that there was no proof of 

 any rise of the shore at Leith within the human period, for 

 the following reasons, which I shall briefly state. 



First, as to bed No. 5, in which the so-called Roman pottery 



