20 
THE MEDITERRANEAN NATURALIST 
Phosphate Beds around London. 
The news that reaches us from London of the 
recent discovery of valuable mineral deposits in the 
neighbourhood of Taplow, is but another example 
of the important part that scientific investigation 
plays in assisting to develope the internal resour- 
ces of a country. 
Deposits of phosphatic chalk have been found 
in the Thames Basin, and from the analyses 
that have been made, it would seen that they are 
as rich, if not richer in phosphoric acid than are 
the products of the French, and Belgian beds, that 
are so largely used in England for agricultural 
purposes. 
F urther investigations are now being made, and 
is no doubt but that the discovery will lead to the j 
establishment of a thriving industry in the 
district. 
It is estimated that upwards of 40,000 tons of 
the mineral are imported from Belgium into Eng- 
land every year. How far this discovery will 
affect the foreign markets remains to be seen. 
Discovery of Oaves in Corsica. 
At a distance of about miles from Ponte 
Lecchia, in Corsica, a series of cavernous grottoes 
has been discovered that extends underground 
for a distance that has been estimated to be not 
less than 37 miles. 
The entrance that leads to these subterranean 
galleries is very small, and difficult of access; but 
after entering, the galleries the passages widen out 
and assume magnificent proportions, some of the 
caves being as much as 25 yards high. It is 
supposed that the galleries abut on the cliff face 
on the coast of Ravellata near Calvi, as the party 
that, undertook the exploration of them, frequently 
heard the muffled roar of the waves in the distance. 
The exploring party was engaged for upwards of 
eight hours in the search for the farther extremi- 
ty; but were unable to find it. Arrangments are 
to be made for a complete investigation of the 
caves. 
The Gozo Pleistocene Bed. (1) 
Mr. E. A. Smith, the President of the Concholo- 
gical Society of Great Britain, has determined the 
shells found in the above bed (1) to be as follows. 
Pomatias 
melitensis 
(Sow). 
Helix 
pisana 
(Mull). 
Do. 
striata 
(Drap). 
Do. 
vermicularis 
(Mii 11). 
Do. 
virgata? 
(Montague). 
Do. 
caperata? 
o-OOOOOCCOO-* — 
NEWS OP THE MONTH 
An earthquake took place at 2. 5. a.m., on the 
seventh of June in Northern Italy, the greatest 
intensity appearing to have been a little to the 
north of Verona as a centre. 
The village which most suffered was Tregnago, 
situated a short distance to the N. E. of Verona. 
Here a large proportion of the houses were injured 
by fissures, to such an extent . as to have rendered 
them unsafe to live in. Some damage was also 
caused to several houses in other places, among 
j the rest at Verona, where it has been affirmed 
| that the floating wooden mills on the Adige were 
I momentarily stopped by the concussion produced 
by the shock. The earthquake region extended 
as far as Venice, Modena, Chiavari, Turin, Domo- 
dossola, etc. Beyond this the shokcs may have 
been sensible to very delicate seismicai instruments, 
though not sufficicieDtly strong to have been 
otherwise manifest; so that, as in the case of the 
West Alpine earthquake of 23rd. February, 1887, 
it is extremely problematic whether it had the 
remotest connection with any volcano. 
Up to the present moment we have no news 
relating to the shock in the Tyrol or Switzerland, 
where it must also have been felt. 
One person was killed and five others wounded 
by fall of houses. Two women died of fright — 
but that was not the fault of the earthquake. 
The movement was undulatory and subsultory; 
no accounts received specify tho vorticose move- 
ment, characteristic of the focus of violent earth- 
quakes, and which are so disastrous to buildings. 
(1) Med; Na,t; Vol. J. No, I pag. 10, 
