86 Sezvell : Marine Erosion in the Whitby District. 



wall and to erect gfroins in order to protect the village and hig-h- 

 way. Again, the using of shingle as ballast by the Staithes 

 fishermen — the bags being constantly emptied into deep water- 

 in the writer's opinion is having very serious consequences. 

 When the sand from the west shore at Whitby accumulates at 

 the river mouth and by the action of a strong northerly gale is 

 deposited on the scaur to the east of the harbour and between 

 the pier and Saltwick, it never gets back to the north or west 

 of Whitby again but is washed into deep water southward. 

 Both here and at Staithes there is a sudden drop of 30 or 40 

 feet to the sea bottom just at the point of low water. 



This sand drift to the south and east has probably been 

 going on for hundreds of years. Why, then, is it only within 

 the last 20 years that the decrease of sand has been so marked 

 between W^hitby and Sandsend — a distance of 3 miles — unless 

 the Tees dredging and the non-working of the alum shale 

 are in some way responsible? 



It is only during the last three years that the sand has 

 covered the rocks at the cliff base on the east side of Whitby 

 harbour, the oldest resident not remembering a deposit continu- 

 ing so long at this place. Something has caused the sand to 

 deposit here. 



Deep water approaches to near the cliff in many places 

 along the shore. This is frequently caused by the sea wearing 

 a channel into the rock along the line of some fault in the shale 

 formations. These tongues of deep water drain the shore of 

 sand and of the debris that falls from the cliff. 



Whitby harbour has probably less sand in it than at any 

 time since 1765, wiien we read of 'the sand almost everywhere 

 being totally scoured away' consequent of the first lengthening 

 of the piers (Charlton). A few years later Scoresby writes that 

 the sand washing into the harbour lay along the west side from 

 the pier head to the other side of the bridge. 



The dredging operations of a few years ago removed an 

 immense quantity of spoil out of the harbour, depositing it into 

 deep water, and though the river bar is not improved, still the 

 mud and sand on the river banks have been decidedly lessened 

 since the dredging took place. 



At Staithes the harder nodules of limestone in the Lias shales 

 of the shore stand up like little tables from the flat scaur, not 

 unlike gigantic mushrooms. The softer portions of the horizon 

 have been washed away, and while this was taking place ever 

 recurring tides have washed the sandstones falling from the 



Naturalist, 



