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THE GEOLOGIST. 



think that one page of The Geologist devoted to a list of such places within half- 

 an-hour's or an hour's run of London, with directions as to the exact spots, and 

 the beds to be found there, would be a great boon to those who, like myself, are 

 advocates for practice as well as theory. If you should consider this favourably, 



I am sure others as well as myself Avill feel gTeatly obliged for your kind assist- 

 ice. _ Yours very truly, A BEaiNNER." — We have for some time past contem- 

 plated giving occasional papers on the characters and features of the chief 

 geological localities, not only around London, but also by the sea-side, and in the 

 vicinity of larger and important towns. Our correspondent will find in vol. i. p. 208, 

 a list of the fossiliferous localities near London. — Ed. Geologist. 



Notice of the Occurrence of Mammalian Remains in the Valley 

 OF THE Soar, Leicestershire. — " Incompliance with the admirable suggestion 

 of Mr. Prestwich, the following notice of teeth and other elephantine remains 

 found in the valley of the river Soar may be of service. This valley, from its 

 commencement in the neighbourhood of Lutterworth, to its termination at Red 

 Hill, where it joins the great Trent Valley, has been formed by the denudation of 

 the Lower Lias, the Upper New Red Marls, and the Kenper Sandstone. The 

 denuded materials, ground and mixed together, are piled up on the sides of the 

 valley to a depth, in many places, of 120 feet and upwards. Bones and teeth of 

 ox, deer, horse, &c., are very frequently met with, whenever the alluvial soil of 

 the valley is excavated, especially near the present river-bed ; but the teeth of 

 elephants have all been found in the drift-clays and gravels that flank each side. 

 In the neighbourhood of Barrow the Lower Lias has been denuded to the extent of 

 from 160 to 200 feet, as shown by some remaining outliers of that formation. The 

 denuded materials, consisting of pieces of shales, blocks of limestone, bones of 

 saurians and shells, are scattered far and wide over the adjacent country, but more 

 particularly on the north-eastern side of the valley, the set of the current having 

 been, no doubt, determined in that direction by the old rocks of Charnwood Forest. 

 The altitude of the valley at BaiTOW above the sea-level is about 180 to 200 feet ; 

 and its width, from the escarpment of the Middle Lias (Marlstone) on the north- 

 east to the slopes of Charnwood on the south-west, is about 7 or 8 miles. Barrow 

 lies near the centre ; and in the neighbourhood of that place the drift-clays and 

 gravels immediately covering the Lower Lias vary from 6 feet to 20 or 30 feet. It 

 was here the remains of mammalia were found, according to the account of the 

 quarryman. When first uncovered, the entire skeleton of an ele])hant about 



I I feet long was seen lying upon its side, a few inches only above the denuded 

 beds of the Lower Lias, and about 6 feet from the surface. So perfect was it 

 at that time, that the integuments were plainly discernible, but exposure to the 

 atmosphere caused it to crumble into dust and small fragments ; and from the 

 whole skeleton it was only possible to preserve portions of the tusks, three teeth 

 (one very perfect, large, and but little worn on the grinding surface, the others in 

 fragments), part of a femur (thigh-bone), and a large fragment of the scapula 

 (shoulder-blade). The large tooth is from the lower jaw, left side ; and, from the 

 character of the grinding surface, would appear to belong to Dr. Falconer's genus 

 Elephas^ sub-genus Euelephas, species antiquus ; it measures seven inches deep on 

 the side at the middle part, and must have been eight or nine when perfect, the 

 end of the fangs being now broken ; it is thirteen inches long on the side ; the 

 grinding surface is seven and a half inches by three inches in the central part, 

 tapering off at each end to about one and a half inches ; there are twelve layers of 

 dentine divided by layers of cement of nearly equal width ; the cement splits readily, 

 and would admit of the tooth being divided into segments. Some yards from 

 the spot where these remains were found two other teeth were turned out of the 

 drift-clay, but no bones accompanied them ; they had evidently been rolled consider- 

 ably, the gTinding-surface of both being very much worn ; and, judging from the 

 character of the ridges and the thickness of the cement, they would appear to 

 belong to Dr. Falconer's genus Elephas, sub-genus Loxodon ; they are both 

 lower-jaw-teeth ; one from the right, the other from the left side, providing these 

 points can be fairly deduced from the wearing of the grin ding-surface. The largest 

 ot them measures on the grinding -surface ten inches long by four inches wide in 

 the centre, tapering off at each end to one inch and a quarter ; the gTeatest depth 

 insule at the middle part is six inches : it has ten layers of dentine. The other 



