376 Peacock : Lincolnshire Naturalists at Scunthorpe. 



the unsettled state of the weather, the Lincolnshire men turned 

 out in goodly numbers and did a fair day's work, Grantham, 

 Lincoln, Boston, and Louth all providing - members. 



Mr. H. Preston, F.G.S., reported the geology shortly for 

 the time being" as follows : — This section, which in the unavoid- 

 able absence of Mr. F. M. Burton, F. G. S., was led by Mr. 

 Preston, made tracks for the ironstone quarries. The main 

 object of the visit was to examine the ironstone and its adjacent 

 clays, and to add to the recorded list of fossils made two years 

 ago from the Ironstone or Semicostatus Zone of the Lower 

 Lias ; and also to see the ' Stone Curtain,' which was not reached 

 on the previous occasion. Some length of time was spent in 

 the pits, where most of the old fossil types were noted, and some 

 good examples collected. A fine specimen of Hippopodium 

 ponderosum was found at the top of the ironstone bed. This 

 species, although recorded in the Geological memoir for the 

 district (sheet 86), had not been seen on our previous visits. 

 Rock specimens also were found showing the beautiful oolitic 

 structure occasionally seen in this ironstone. A good specimen 

 of an ammonite having the transversely plaited keel [Amaltheus 

 margaritatils ?) was obtained from a concretionary nodule lying" 

 in the clay immediately over the ironstone. The typical ammo- 

 nite for the Middle Lias (A. margaritatils) is particularly rare in 

 this district, and therefore has not been used as a zonal type by 

 the geological surveyors in assigning the upper limits of the 

 Lower Lias. After examining" some of the faults occurring in 

 these beds, and the fused appearance of the fault-rock, the party 

 proceeded to that most interesting of tufaceous deposits, the 

 ' Stone Curtain.' Some little time was spent here examining the 

 structure and discussing the probable origin of the gutter which 

 runs along the top of the mound. Mr. Charles S. Holgate, not the 

 least active member present, stated that he well remembered 

 the time when the spring issued above the top end of the mound 

 and formed a treacherous bog, when limewater almost invari- 

 ably flowed down the natural formed gutter on the top. Mr. 

 Holgate can remember it eighty years, long previous to the land 

 being drained and the spring being conducted down to its present 

 outlet over the cattle-trough, a little distance south of the ' cur- 

 tain.' Several of the party being greatly interested in ' Early 

 Man ' as well as Geology, the opportunity was taken to return 

 to the town by way of the sand moors, some of which have been 

 so prolific in their yield of flint and bronze implements of Neo- 

 lithic and the so-called Pigmy man age. Many flint flakes were 



Naturalist, 



