THE AGE OF THE WYE. 
189 
an age of 316 years, which is a tolerable approximation to the 
former. The age of the tree without doubt, therefore, did not 
exceed 330 years. 
From Green’s survey, I found that, at the Wear End “bend,” 
the river appeared to have shifted its channel nearly 60 yards in 
the century ; but, as we have the means of testing the rate of 
wear for more than 300 years at the Ross “bend,” I have adopted 
the 52 yards in 100 years as the best average rate attainable. 
As, therefore, the “ bends ” of the river are 1690 yards in 
length, and that the river wears it channel downwards, through 
the alluvium, at the rate of 52 yards in a hundred years, a 
“bend” would occupy the position of the bend below in 3250 
years. That is to say,, that the alluvium now being worn away 
at any point is 3000 years old, and was deposited there, by the 
“ bend ” which is now nearly a mile below, that number of years 
ago. 
The process of wear from the outer side of the stream and 
of deposit on the inner, is very plain to the observer noiv, and is 
full of interest. It takes place only during freshes, and its 
amount at any place is in proportion to the curvature of the 
channel at that spot. In parts where the curvature is the 
sharpest the deposition on the inner side does not always keep 
pace with the w^earing away of the outer bank, and, in such 
places, the alluvium has time only to be deposited to a lower 
level ; from some cause the stream may then remain nearly 
stationary for a few years, and a peculiar ridge is formed 
near the water’s edge, where the greatest amount of deposit 
takes place, while the part further inshore remains at a 
lower level. A good instance of this is shown upon the 
wall map at Pencraig, where the river had worn away 
its banks very rapidly, and the opposite bank had not 
had time to become silted up to its proper level. A wall, 
to prevent the loss of his land, was then built by the proprietor 
