THE ESSEX FIELD CLUB.
209
left for another occasion. It was evident to everyone present at the meeting that
had time permitted the district so rapidly traversed would have furnished many
interesting specimens both to the entomologists and botanists. The New
London Road was reached at last, leading the party over Wintersleet Hill to
the ancient town of Maldon, already so well explored by the Club—but some
missed the train after all!
Geological Ramble around Chelmsford
(In conjunction with the Geologists' Association).
Saturday, July 11th, 1891.
Conductor— HORACE W. MONCKTON, F.G.S.
The party started from Chelmsford Station soon after 2.30 on Saturday afternoon,
and walked along the Roxwell Road to the water tower and reservoir of the
Chelmsford Waterworks, which were inspected under the guidance of Mr-
Chancellor. The spring, roofed over, from which the water is pumped, attracted
considerable notice. A gravel-pit in an adjoining field was then visited. It was
found to show a very good section of well-stratified sand and gravel, overlain in
two places by patches of Boulder Clay. One of these patches filled a great
hollow in the underlying gravel, and the manner in which this hollow had been
formed and the clay deposited in it became the subject of a most interesting
discussion, in which the Rev. E. Hill, F.G.S., the author of a paper on Boulder
Clay, read at the Geological Society on the 24th June last, and Mr. F. C. J.
Spurrell, a well-known authority on River Gravels, took part.
A short paper, "Notes on the Glacial Formation near Chelmsford," was here
read by Mr. Monckton (see pp. 191-193).
Leaving this pit the party crossed the River Can, and, passing through
Admiral's Park, walked to another gravel-pit close to the bridge over the River
Wid, at Writtle. Here, again, the section shows Glacial Gravel overlain by a
clayey bed, which is probably partly decomposed Boulder Clay, and partly
brick-earth of a more recent date. On a heap of gravel in the pit several large
blocks of white quartz were seen, and Mr. Thomas Leighton, F.G.S., found a
block of mica-schist containing garnets.
The party then passed through the picturesque village of Writtle (noticing
the two masses of pudding-stone at the gates of Writtle Brewery), and visited the
Rolstons pit, which, not having been worked lately, did not show as good a section
as usual. A considerable thickness of White Chalky Boulder Clay was seen to
rest on a somewhat uneven floor of Glacial Gravel (see Woodward's "Geology of
England and Wales," 2nd edition, 1887, p. 506, fig. 89). The Boulder Clay was
found to contain many small concretions of carbonate of lime termed "race." A
few remarks on the formation exhibited in this pit were made by the Rev. Edwin
Hill, F.G.S.
After thoroughly examining this section, the members assembled in a group,
and were photographed, after which they returned to Chelmsford along the edge
of Hylands Park and through Widford. On crossing the Wid, the party composed
of members of the Botanical Class of the Chelmsford Museum was overtaken.
The class, under the guidance of Mr. E. Durrant and J. E. Taylor, F.L.S., had
spent the afternoon in searching for wild flowers on Waterhouse Farm and the
back lane to Widford. On their return to Chelmsford, the united party found an