TRAVELS IN 
philofophical difcuffion to the curious naturalifts, 
On the Georgia fide of the river, about fifteen miles 
below Silver Bluff, the high road crcffes a ridge of 
high fweliing hills of uncommon elevation, and 
perhaps feventy feet higher than the furface of the 
liver. Thefe hills, from three feet below the com- 
mon vegetative furface, to the depth of twenty or 
thirty feet, are compofed entirely of foffil oyfter 
fhells, internally of the colour and confiftency of 
clear white marble ; the fhells are of incredible 
magnitude, generally fifteen or twenty inches in 
length, from fix to eight wide, and two to four in 
thicknefs, and their hollows fufficient to receive an 
ordinary man's foot : they appear all to have been 
opened before the period of petrifaction, a tranfmu- 
tation they feem evidently to have fuffered ; they 
are undoubtedly very ancient or perhaps antidelu? 
vian. The adjacent inhabitants burn them to lime 
for building, for which purpofe they ferve very 
well ; and would undoubtedly afford an excellent 
manure when their lands require it, thefe hills be- 
ing now remarkably fertile. The heaps of (hells lie 
upon a ftratum of a yellowifh fand'y mould, of feve- 
raj feet in depth, upon a foundation of foft white 
rocks, that has the outward appearance of ffee-ftone, 
but on ftrict examination is really a tedaceous con- 
crete or composition of fand and pulverifed fea 
fhells : in fhort, this teftaceous rock approaches near 
in quality and appearance to the Bahama or Bermu- 
dian white rock. 
Thefe hills are fhaded with glorious Magnolia 
grandiflora, Morus rubra, Tilia 3 Quercus, Ulmus, 
jugians, he. with aromatic groves of fragrant 
Caliicanthus Floridus, Rhododendron ferrugineum, 
Lauras Indira, &c. JEl cuius pavia, Coruus Flo- 
rida, 
