242 
THE GEOLOGIST. 
ON A RECENT FINDING OF FLINT-IMPLEMENTS AT 
BEDFORD. 
By James Wtatt, F.G.S. 
[Having knowledge of tlie important discovery of flint-implements 
in the Drift-gravel near Bedford by Mr. Wyatt, we requested that 
gentleman to furnish us with the details of the case, which he has 
kindly done, and which we have much pleasure in subjoining. 
Having ourselves seen the implements found, which are of the 
veritable fossil types, we shall append in a note to Mr. Wyatt's letter 
a figure of one of them, with some remarks of our own upon it. — 
Ed. Geol.] 
Sir, — I send you, as you request, an account of the discovery, by 
myself, of flint implements beneath thii^teen feet six inches of undis- 
turbed deposits, in drift-gravel, lying on Oolite limestone at Bedford. 
For several years past I have been a close observer of the Drift, fine 
sections of which in the neighbourhood of Bedford have been frequently 
displayed during the excavation for road material, and especially 
during the construction of the Leicester and Hitchin Railway. 
From the nature of these gravel beds, and from the number 
of bones and teeth of the extinct mammals which I have seen 
taken from them, I formed an opinion that they were the same 
kind of drift which had furnished the flint-implements at Amiens 
and Hoxne ; and this opinion was greatly strengthened by an 
examination of the pits in the valley of the Somme last year. I 
have observed amongst the fossil remains from the lower gravel in 
Bedfordshire bones and teeth of Elephas primigenius, E. antiquus, 
JEqum fossilis, Bos lorimigenius, Cervus, Rhinoceros tichorinus, and 
Hipjpojpotamus. From the sand veins of the same drift I have taken the 
following land and fresh- water shells : — Selix concimia, Velletialacustris, 
Cyclas palustris, Limneus pereger, L. auricularis, Plmiorhis marginatus, 
Paludinaiyjipura, Valvatapiscinalis, &c. The curious little fossil sponges 
Coscinojpora glohularis, both whole and perforated, are frequently 
found there also, thus showing many points of similarity with the 
drift in France. After recently finding flint-implements at 
Reculver, I renewed my investigations in Bedfordshire, but for a 
long time without success. It may be added here that the pits do 
not all display the same complete stratification : they are very vari- 
able, and in several places the lowest gravel is not excavated on 
account of the water coming in ; and, indeed, for road-material it is 
of no value, being principally sand. Such is the case at some of the 
pits at Kempston and Clapham : whilst those which have been worked 
at the centre of the latter parish, at Bletsoe, Radwell, Biddenham, 
Harrowden, and Bedford, have been excavated to the fuU depth of the 
