Page:Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, vol. 33.djvu/687

Rh where the upper cave-earth (No. 3) was immediately succeeded by a bed of red sandy earth (fig. 15).

6. The Red Sand.—This red sand (No. 5) was present everywhere in the cavern, below the previously described beds: it averaged from 3 feet to 4 feet in thickness, and contained many bones and teeth of various animals, amongst them those of the Hyæna, Wolf, Bear, R. tichorhinus, Mammoth, Horse, Bison, Reindeer, &c. One fragment of Rhinoceros-jaw consisted of the anterior portion of both rami, with two premolars in situ on either side; there was also a nearly perfect lower jaw of the Hyæna, one incisor alone being absent. A few quartzite implements were found in the red sand, and also a fragment of a bone which has some scratches, apparently made by a flint.

This bed, at a depth of about 8 feet from the surface, was not above one foot wide, the cave at that depth being contracted to a mere fissure, the lowermost stratum consisting merely of the decomposed limestone rock, forming a non-fossiliferous bed of white sand similar to the corresponding bed in the Robin-Hood Cave.

At about 120 feet from the door a small fissure was found opening out of Chamber A to the right, below the original level of the floor. As in the case of the fissure at the extremity of Chamber F in the Robin-Hood Cave, this was filled with red sand nearly but not quite in contact with the roof. The surface of the sand was also dry and powdery, and it was destitute of fossil contents. The digging has not been carried on beyond this point in Chamber A, the few remaining feet giving little promise of having any thing of sufficient value to repay the work of exploration.

7. Chamber B.—Turning to Chamber B, which opens out from the main chamber of the cavern near the entrance, a few words will suffice to describe its contents. The greater portion of it was examined in 1875, and similar remains of the Mammalia obtained from this floor to those found in the main passage. At the back of Chamber B a fissure was found, running parallel to Chamber A; the entrance to this was blocked up by a mass of stalagmitic breccia, 5 feet thick, containing bones and teeth of R. tichorhinus and of other animals (fig. 16). Below this we found a bed of red sand, filling a narrow but deep pothole-like fissure, running apparently in two directions, viz. S. and W. This fissure was not above 1 foot wide, but was at least 11 feet deep from the top of the breccia. The sand contained the bones and teeth of Mammoth, Horse, Bison, Rhinoceros, &c. Very few bones, however, were found in its lower portion; and it was not thought worth while to dig it out completely.

The Church Hole, as well as the Robin-Hood Cave, may now be considered to have been worked out sufficiently for all practical purposes. A detailed account of the valuable remains found in them will be given, as has been stated, in the accompanying paper by