These were also partly the result of an accident. The winter of 1853-4 happened to be particularly cold and dry, and in consequence tracts of the shores of the Swiss lakes, which were normally covered by water, stood bare and dry. The inhabitants of Ober Meilen, near Zürich, took advantage of this to enclose part of the foreshore, building walls, and filling the reclaimed space with mud. During the necessary excavations various remains came to light, stumps of piles, stone and horn implements, etc. Dr. Ferdinand Keller, President of the Antiquarian Society at Zürich, hearing of these discoveries, hastened to explore the newly-revealed area. Fishermen had long before reported on the existence of a submerged forest, the stumps of which caught their fishing nets and spoilt the fishing on the sloping shores. In 1829, during excavations, some piles were found, but, being attributed to the Romans, no further notice was taken of them. Dr. Keller discovered that the “submerged forest” was in reality of human origin, formed of sharpened and pointed piles, driven into the ground at regular intervals, and he recognised here evidences of prehistoric human occupation, corresponding with that recently proved for Denmark. Pile dwellings were subsequently discovered in the lakes of Biel, Sempach, Neufchatel, Geneva, and Wallenstad, though investigations were only carried out in Biel and Zürich. These yielded animal remains, numerous stone implements, pottery, a skull, parts of several skeletons, and one piece of bronze. At first the evidence was merely ignored, then it was listened to, but discredited, or various ingenious explanations were made to explain it away. But gradually the accumulated evidence became too insistent to be ignored, and was supported by too great names to be neglected. The caves of the Mendips, explored by Williams and Beard, of North and South Wales, explored by Stanley, of Yorkshire and of Devonshire, the crannogs of Ireland and the pile dwellings of Switzerland, all told the same tale. [Sidenote: =Brixham.=] The turning point was reached in 1858. During that year a new cave had been discovered while excavating for building foundations at Brixham, on the shores of Torbay, Mr. Pengelly persuaded the owner to grant him a refusal of the lease of the virgin site, and it was submitted to a most careful examination. Thirty-six rude flint implements were discovered in association with the remains of hyænas, cave, brown and grizzly bears, woolly rhinoceros and mammoth, in undisturbed red loam beneath a layer of stalagmite. This was conclusive evidence. A paper read by Mr. Pengelly at the meeting of the British Association at Leeds, 1858, and supported by such authorities as Charles Lyell, Ramsey, Prestwich,[93] Owen, and others, clinched the argument, and the contemporary existence of man with Pleistocene fauna was firmly established. Footnote 93: