Coombe rock,—a provincial term,—which greatly abounds in and about the eastern part of the town, is geologically known as the Elephant bed; and, according to the same authority, “is composed of broken chalk, with angular fragments of flint, imbedded in a calcareous mass of a yellowish colour, constituting a very hard and coarse conglomerate. It is not stratified, but is merely a confused heap of alluvial materials; where it forms a junction with the shingle bed, a layer of broken shells generally occurs: they are too fragile to extract whole: they appear to belong to the genera modiola, mytilus, nerita, &c. It varies considerably in its appearance and composition, in different parts of its course. In the inferior portion of the mass, the chalk is reduced to very small pieces, which gradually become larger in proportion to their height in the cliff: at length fragments of flint appear; and these increase in size and number as they approach the upper part of the bed, of which they constitute the most considerable portion. These flints are more or less broken, and resemble those of our ploughed lands that have been long exposed to the action of the atmosphere. In some parts of the cliff, irregular masses occur of an extraordinary hardness; these have been produced by an infiltration of crystallised carbonate of lime. Large blocks of this variety may be seen on the shore, opposite to the New Steine, where they have for years resisted the action of the waves. This bed also contains water-worn blocks of siliceous sandstone, and ferruginous breccia. Small nodular masses, composed of carbonate of iron in lenticular crystals, interspersed with brown calcareous spar, have occasionally been found at the depth of ten or twelve feet from the summit of the cliff. The organic remains discovered in this deposit are the bones and teeth of the ox, deer, horse, and of the Asiatic elephant; {6} these occur but seldom, and are generally more or less waterworn; {7a} but, in some instances, they are quite entire, and cannot have been subject to the action of the waves. The wells in the less elevated parts of the town pass through the calcareous bed, shingle, and sand, in succession; upon reaching the chalk, springs of good water burst forth, and these are said to be influenced by the tides.” {7b}