The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1877-08-28 00:00:00

'MANAGE.

Ore BRANCH of the Royal National Lifeboat Insti-
tution gave a concert—and a most successful one—on
Friday, at the Mowlem Institute, in aid of the funds
of the lifeboat. The hon. sec., Mr. IL I. Hickson,
who worked hard in the matter, may be congratulated
upon its having proved a real success, the very hand- I
some sum of about £I3 being handed over to the
treasurer. The following was the programme gone
through to an appreciative and crowded audience :
Duet (plat:tided-0, Mines Yeatinan ; glee, "Ye Gentle-
men of England," Swanage I horal Society: Pone, "The
Song of Fortune," Mr. Smith; song, Millie. Renard ;
rea ling, Mr. Morgan Yeatman ; song, Miss Yeattnan
song, "Nancy Lee," Mr. Lowidale ; song. Miss Burt ; sone
, and chorus, "A Life on the (teas Wave," The Rev. W.
11. start and the Swanage Choral Society. —Part 2. : Song
and chorus, " Hearts of 0 tic," Mr. Rowe and the Swanage
Choral Society; s ,no, Miss Yeatinan ; song, Mr. Barnes;
reading, the Rev. Lester Lester; song, "The Village
Blacksmith," Mr. Smith; song. Mdlle. Renard; song.
"The Mermaid... Mr. Lonsdale ; song and chorus, "Rule
Britannia," The Rev. W. H. Start and the Swanage
Choral Society; "God Save the Queen."
INTERMIX° ARCHEOLOGICAL DISCOVERT. —A correspon-
dent (.1. C. Robinsen) gives the following account in the
Times of the discovery of two antique cists, containing
human remains, which was recently brought to light by a
landslip in the face of the friable Weslilen Cliff which ,
bounds the centre of Swanage Bay :—The two fists are '
situated two or three feet apart, at the summit of the cliff ,
(at that spot about 100 feet high), and only about 18 inches
beneath the surface of the pasture hell above. They are
of the usual oblong shape, neatly cend recited of slabs of
Purbeck tile stme, a material still quarried in the im-
mediate neighbourhood, chiefly for rooting purposes, and
which is about an inch awl half thick. Etch cist is con-
structed with about eight slabs, the cover and too ends
being formed by single stones, the interior dimensions
of the larger riot being 3ft. tin, long, lit. 3in. wide, and
llt. lin. deep, while the other measures only about 21t. sin.
Inns, 10in, wide, and 15in. deep. The steelier List con-
tained a skull, which crumbled away on being handled,
awl a few fragments only of other bon it Several of the
teeth, however, remained in good preservation. Judging
from them and from the thinness of the cranium, the
remains were those of a child of about five or six yeses old.
In addition to the bones, four large wrought-iron nails
were also found; they were greatly oxydised, and more or
less broken; but were originally strong, scivare-cut nails
with a large flat head, measuring from four to five inches
long. The use or purpose of these caile seemed at first
quite inexplicable, but on making renewed and closer
examination of each of the chits, their use became, I
think apparent. The larger cleft, in the first instance,
yielded scanty vestagges of bones only. Neither
of the graves revelled any evidences of cremation,
nor where there any fragment, of charcoal, wood,
or any other organised substance except the lwines
and two or three fragments of pottery, of which more
anon. On returning a ,'ay or two later for a
further examination of the larger cist, I discovered on
clislodzing with a trowel the indurated soil which filled up
one of the corners, two more of the large nails, and these
were evidently in situ. Wben they were carefuliy
extracted and examined with a glass, fragments of wood,
app crently oak, were seen adhering to them, the iron rust
having seemingly c inverted the woody fibre into a semi-
fossil substanee. The nails from the smaller grave, on
re-examination, presented the same appearance. trout
the in ',item of the two nails last found they had evidently
formed the fastenin.: of one angle of an inner wooden
lining of the riot—e c-oniti, in fact, doubtlesss of massive
"at ',tat,., judging from the size of the naile, at least a
e mph: if inches thick. The modao loperamli of these
interments, then. was presumably as follows :—The bodies
being first enclosed in a wooden lex or coffin, a shallow
grave Was excavated ; on the bottom was laid one or two
slabs of kilo-stone; awl on this door the coffin was deposited.
I It was then enclosed or built round at the sides and ends
I with tilestme. awl covered in with a single sLib. Finally
a few inches of mould were filled in over it, and the
surface tort replaced. Ono or two minute fragments of
black pottery were found in one of the cists, one being a
portion of the moulded lip of an urn or cup-shaped
vessel, and from the peenli ir profile of the torn-over
Ming, I have no doubt it was 1:011aall or Romano-
British work. I should judge that these fragments were
only accidentally inserted at the time of the interment.
spot were these riots were found is very near the
ancient Linn or twiner-house at Whiteclitf, situated on
the Ulwell valley beneath the high chalk cic,wn which
runs out t, 11411ard llvid. This place is said to have been
formerly • limiting ground of the old Norman and
Plantagenet kings, and around the hone are vestiges of
earthwork probably of a much earlier date. I have
myself little doubt that a I; 111 l lan villa or a small seaside
colony once necupied this t beautif el site. The
neighbeurhoel abounds with tu 1111 l and other evidences
of ancient neenteitien, and (YrillA and fragments of
Roman inscribed isitiery have teen found not very far
away."