Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1913-02-14

THE high plateau gravels,' as much as 700 feet
above level The Oldest of all these grayels
is very possibly of Pliocene age, and is not re-
lated to the Thames valley or other existing
river valleys. which of later date than they
are. The gravel at Uckfeld (Piltdown) in which
the human jaw was found, is only 100 feet above
sea level, and not far from the River Ouse
which flows past Lewes. Probably a high pla-
teau gravel existed on the top of the chalk
which once 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 WeaIden beds contain
some material derived from these Oldest and
highest gravels, and also some of the gravel de-
posted In every successive age as the erosion
continued. So that this bottom gravel on the
Sussex plain, only 120 feet above sea level is
likely to contain a mixture and assortment of all
the preceding graveis.
Hence 1t .s very difficult to assign the bones
and the worked fints shaped by MANI found
In 1t to 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 or late Pliocene age, or may belong
to as late period as that of the actual deposit
of the gravel bed in which we now find it i'm
bedded
me gravel about Piltdown is so thin a layer
that 1t escaped attention from the officers of the
Geological Survey 1t became known to Mr.
Dawson by the fact that local farmers were dig.
only exists on slightly raised parts of the valley
of the Ouse. and its makeup" is very peculiar
IL contains iron-stone and coepy stained iron-sand
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 Ightham II Kent
Many of the hints In this PiItdown gravel have
been worked by early man into rough imple-
ments They are OF fiat shape, often triangular
IN area, and show coarse but unmistakable
taking" of human workmanship I and nv COM
panions picked up four from the surface of a
plowed field when | visited Piltdown. They are
rougher in workmanship than the Acheuiian or
even Chellean. implements of our better known
river terrace gravels 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.
PIGMENTS which can be rightly called Chellean.
Later and more finely worked flint implements
have not been found in this gravel
But the most remarkable thing about thi,
gravel is the discovery in it. by Dr. Smith Wood
ward and MIR. Dawson. of a fragment OF a tooth
OF mastodon and of fragments of teeth of the
Elephas neutrality-suspicious. which were az.
hibited to the Geological society
These two animals are known to occur in pI,o
Gene strata-and are not found as late as 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 forest-bed and in one or two
assures in the South Downs filled in BY an
cient sands The remains of this elephant
abound In the Phocene OF France and italy
rev nagmentary teeth OF hippopotamus
beaver and horse bit Of large deer's antler
ana the human jaw and skull fragment complete
the list OF animal remains, 1t is owing to the