224 THE ESSEX FIELD CLUB.
of it, and all who knew anything of that kind of work would agree that the
explorers had earned a good title to the thanks of the Club. He would remark
that in his opinion little reliance could be placed on fragments of pottery found
in the pits as evidence of date; it was so easy for such things to fall down
the shafts from above after the pits had been abandoned by their original
makers.
Mr. F. W. Elliott said, that when staying in the neighbourhood of Burnham
Beeches, Buckinghamshire, in 1884, he visited some tile-works near the "Yew
Tree" inn, on the road to Beaconsfield, about midway between that town
and Farnham Royal. The tile-yard was situated on the slope of a hill, which
had been cut away to quarry soil for the purposes of the trade. In the level
space thus formed were sunk five or six shafts, four to six feet in diameter,
and lined with brick. Over one of the shafts a windlass was fixed; the others
were deserted and overgrown with brambles, etc., but otherwise uncovered.
The sound of falling water in some of the pits was audible. He could not get
down any of the shafts, as the tackle had been removed when work had been
suspended some weeks previously, in consequence of a sufficient stock of chalk
having been accumulated. A workman said that each shaft was about 70 feet
deep, that it penetrated about two yards into the chalk, and then opened out
into a single bell-shaped cavity, wherein one man worked at filling the bucket
with chalk, and then swung it into the centre to be drawn up to the surface.
When the cavity got to be inconveniently large for one man to work, it was
abandoned, and another shaft sunk. Mr. Elliott understood that in one or more
instances water had come into the chamber, and forced the workmen to begin
afresh. The chalk was, he understood, used for making lime, and was stated
to be better than that to be obtained within two or three miles where it came
close to the surface. Mr. Elliott argued that the existence of such pits as those
he had described afforded some ground for the supposition that the Essex
Deneholes had also been made for the purpose of getting chalk.
Mr. T. V, Holmes and Mr. Cole pointed out some of the many points
of difference between the true Deneholes and the pits referred to by Mr.
Elliott.2
Further remarks were made by Mr. Royle, Mr. Walter Crouch, Mr. White,
Mr. E. A. Fitch, and others ; and the thanks of the meeting were given to
the reporters and to Mr. Bennett for their papers. Tea and coffee, etc., were
served as usual at the close of the meeting.
[The Report with the appendices, including Mr. Bennett's paper, with
illustrations, map, and plans, will be published in the December part of the
Essex Naturalist.]
Badgers in the Essex Islands.—With regard to the occurrence in recent
times of this now almost extinct Essex animal, I find the following in Benton's
"History of Rochford Hundred" (i. 197):—" In 1841, a badger was found in the
sea-wall of White House Farm (Foulness), and one made his appearance in New
England about the same time."—Edward A. Fitch, Maldon.
2 We have been favoured by Mr. Elliott with a statement of his arguments, but it would be
manifestly inconvenient to print these before our readers have had an opportunity of perusing the 
report itself. A statement of the facts, and the conclusions to be drawn from them, in the opinion
of the Reporters, will be appended in the Denehole Report; after the appearance of which any
discussion of the subject will be permissible.—Ed.