110 
QUATERNARY DEPOSITS OF SHROPSHIRE. 
May, 1890 . 
wood of which the weapon is made ; the appreciation of which, 
suggesting that the effect might be intensified, requires but a 
very slight intellectual effort. 
Any natural peculiarity in the material used in the manu¬ 
facture of objects of every-day use would be sure to attract 
notice ; and possibly, in the first instance, would suggest 
itself as a convenient mark of ownership. That is, as a sign 
whereby to distinguish a particular object from other similar 
ones belonging to other people. 
From the mere appreciation of the uncommon to the 
artificial increasing of the effect, the step is, as I have said, 
but a slight one ; but we must always bear in mind that in a 
low state of culture, such as that of the lower savages, progress 
advances by extremely slow stages and not by sudden strides. 
We have, nevertheless, in the instance I have given, an 
example of the first stage in the development of decorative 
art, which may well be taken as an illustration of the “Dawn 
of Art” in the remotest ages. 
(To be continued.) 
NOTES ON THE QUATERNARY DEPOSITS OF 
SHROPSHIRE.* 
BY CH. CALLAWAY, D.SC., M.A. 
It is usual in annual addresses to refer to the work of the 
preceding year. In the present case, such reference is hardly 
necessary, as the Annual Report for 1889, issued to members 
late last year, describes the work of the Club with tolerable 
fulness. Without further preliminary, I will, therefore, 
direct your attention to what we may do in the future. 
In my last address, I indicated in a general way some of 
the advantages of a study of nature, and I pointed out the 
unrivalled opportunities for investigation supplied by this 
county. I now propose to confine myself to one particular 
line of enquiry, which I have selected for three reasons. It 
may be pursued in the absence of technical scientific know- 
ledge, it is a path which has hitherto been but slightly 
trodden, and it joins on to the more beaten tracks of archae¬ 
ology, anthropology, and history. I refer to the study of the 
superficial deposits, the gravels and boulder-clays, which 
form an irregular sheet, covering our central plain, running 
into our valleys, and creeping up the slopes of our hills and 
* Annual Address as President of the Severn Valley Field Club, 
delivered at Ironbridge, March 4th, 1890. 
