1 1 2 Sheppard : The Making of East Yorkshire. 



Leaving- the estuarine series, we pass over one or two 

 deposits, and then reach the Kellaways rock. This is evidently 

 a shallow-water formation. At South Cave an excellent section 

 is exposed in the railway cutting-, which is one of the best 

 collecting- grounds near Hull. It simply abounds in various 

 species of Ammonites and Belemnites, and shells of all descrip- 

 tions. At its base is a distinct oyster-bed, 7 or 8 inches in 

 thickness, crowded with thousands of Oysters, which weather 

 out from the face of the cutting' from their g-reater hardness than 

 the surrounding- sandstone. 



In Gristhorpe Bay this same rock forms a natural sea wall 

 at the base of one of the finest pieces of cliff on the whole of 

 the Yorkshire coast. Upon it are the soft lig-ht-blue shales 

 of the Oxford Clay, which even yet can be cut quite easily with 

 a penknife. These form the centre of the cliffs — the upper part 

 consisting- of a lig-ht-coloured rock — the Calcareous Grit. From 

 the hardness of this last-named material, as compared with the 

 Oxford Clay, it stands well out and with a straig-ht, steep 

 face. Viewing this cliff either from the beach or from the 

 top, one gets an admirable example of the effect of weathering 

 upon various rocks, which has so much influence upon 

 the scenery of the district. The russet-red Kellaways Rock 

 forms a prominent scar at the base of the cliffs, which is 

 sufficiently hard to withstand the waves fairly well, and wears 

 an abrupt perpendicular front. The Oxford Clay above this is 

 usually weathered by wind, frost, and rain, and recedes into the 

 cliff at a much quicker rate. Upon this is a grit of more 

 substantial material which overhangs the clay beneath. The 

 difference in colour in these rocks also adds to the charm of 

 the scene. 



This same Calcareous Grit, which forms such a prominent 

 feature at Gristhorpe, is that which has resulted in the formation 

 of the magnificent flat-topped Tabular Hills to the w^est of 

 Scarboroug-h. Originally the entire district was covered by this 

 hard grit ; the action of rain, w^ind, frost, and other natural 

 agencies gradually resulted in channels being cut through the 

 grit cap into the Oxford Clay below. This soft rock, once 

 penetrated, was quickly washed away. The overhanging grits 

 fell down and, slowly but surely, the channels were widened, 

 until eventually those beautiful dales so familiar in the Scar- 

 borough district were formed, the sides of which are composed 

 of the sloping shales of the Oxford Clay, surmounted by a 

 perpendicular summit ot Calcareous Grit. 



Naturalist, 



