Various conjectures have been hazarded respecting their use; the most probable is, that they were employed as tallies, the small beads representing units, the large, tens. In the inn at Glenwhelt are preserved a magnificent pair of stag’s horns, nearly perfect, which were found in the well of the station; each antler is a yard long. In the possession of the Society of Antiquaries, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, are several valuable inscribed stones derived from this station, which have been presented by Colonel Coulson of Blenkinsop Hall. _PLATE XIV._ [Illustration: Lamp, Fibula, Shears, and Compasses ] MAGNA, during the days of Roman occupation, must have been a place of considerable importance. Not only did the road which leads directly from CILURNUM, come up to it, but the Maiden-way, from Whitley Castle and the south, ran through it, as is supposed, to Bewcastle and the other stations north of the Wall, as shewn on the Map, Plate I. Rejoining the lines of the Barrier, we find them about to descend into the valley watered by the Tipalt, _insaniens flumen_, as Camden calls it. The moat of the Wall is peculiarly well developed, that of the Vallum, though less so, is still distinct; they are exactly parallel to each other. Before the traveller forsakes his present elevation, it will be well for him to mark the westward course of the objects of his study, lest he lose their track in the swampy ground fronting Thirlwall Castle. A valley of considerable extent stretches before him; on the north brow of it, at the distance of about three miles, Gilsland Spa is situated; the works of the Barrier stand upon its southern edge. The trough of the north fosse may easily be discerned where it is intersected by the railway. It has been suggested that one of the objects contemplated by the Romans in the construction of a double line of fortification, was the enclosure of a space of ground which might be cultivated by the garrison, and where their cattle might graze in security. If this had been the case, the Wall would have been drawn along the northern margin of the wide and fruitful valley of Gilsland, and the Vallum along its southern edge. [Sidenote: THIRLWALL CASTLE.]