Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1913-02-14

the high plateau gravels" as much as 700 feet
above level. The oldest of all these gravels
Is very possibly of Pliocene age, and is not re-
lated to the Thames valley or other existing
river valleys, which are of later date than they
The gravel at Uckfield lPiltdoWn) in which
the human jaw found, is only 100 feet above
sea level, and not far from the River Ouse,
which flows past Lewes. Probably high pla-
teau gravel existed on the top of the chalk
which stretched across the Sussex Weald,
and the gravels deposited much later at low
levels after the wearing away of the great mass
of chalk lying over the Weaden beds contain
some material derived from these oldest and
highest gravels, and also some of the gravel de-
posted in every successive age the erosion
continued. So that this bottom gravel the
Sussex plain, only 100 feet above level is
likely to contain mixture and assortment of all
the preceding gravels.
Hence it ,. very difficult to assign the bones
and the worked tiints (shaped by man) found
in it to a definite age Any fragment we pick
up may be as old as the plateau gravels which
lay on the top of the chalk in the very early
Pleistocene late Pliocene age may belong
to as late period that of the actual deposit
of the gravel bed in which find it i'm
bedded.
The gravel about Piltdown is thin a layer
that it escaped attention from the officers of the
Geological Survey. 1t became known to Mr.
Dawson by the fact that local farmers were dig
ging 1t and sitting it for mending roads 1t
only exists on slightly raised parts of the valley
of the Ouse, and it's makeup" is very peculiar.
It contains iron-stone and doeply stained ironsand
from the Wealden strata on which it rests, and
peculiar ruddy-brown broken fints not very
numerous, which are nearly all bits of "tabu-
lar" flint recalling those OF the high plateau
gravel at Ighthan. in Kent
Many of the fints IN this Piltdown gravel have
been worked by early into rough imple-
ments. They are of fat shape. often triangular
in area, and show but unmistakable
taking" of human workmanship. and my COM
panons picked up four from the surface OF
plowed field when visited Piltdown. They are
rougher in workmanship than the Acheuillian. or
even Chellean. implements of our better known
river terrace graves. 1t Is impossible to asso-
ciate them with those from any other locality
known to me; and / should merely say to them
that they seem to be earlier than any flint i'm
plements which be rightly called Chellean.
Later and more finely worked flint implements
have not been found in this gravel
But the most remarkable thing about this
gravel is the discovery in it. by DIR. Smith Wood
ward and Mr. Dawson. of fragment of tooth
of mastodon and of fragments of teeth of the
Elephas neutrality-suspicious. which
hibited to the Geological society.
These two animals are known to occur in PHO
strata-and are not found late the
Pleistocene Tin this part OF the world. The
teeth OF the elephant In question are very differ
ent from those of the mammoth. They are found
also In the Norfolk ferest-bed and in one or two
assures" in the South Downs filed In by an
cient sands The remains of this elephant
abound in the Pliocene of France and Italy.
A few fragmentary teeth OF hippopotamus a
beaver. and horse. bit of large deers antler
and the human jaw and skull fragment complete
the lis. Of animal remains. 1t is owing to the