them is the Whitelow Rake,* which runs from a little south or Leadmines Farm to near Shothouse Spring. It has been worked both above, in, and below the toadstone. In the limestone above wad is being raised at the present time; near the high road a shaft was sunk in the toadstone to 25 fathoms depth, getting good ore in this rock. Three hundred yards south of the road, in a shaft at the termination of the Lousey Level, the toadstone was bottomed at 40 fathoms, and 150 yards further south at 12 fathoms. It would appear therefore that there must either be a very rapid thickening out of the toadstone here, or that a mass of it has fallen into the rake. The Lead-Mines Vein falls nearly into the line of the Whitelow Rake; it has been worked to a depth of 35 fathoms at Elton and to 40 fathoms at Lead-Mines Farm without reaching the toadstone. The Dirty Face Shaft, 200 yards to the south-east, was 50 fathoms deep, all in limestone. The series of parallel scrins, known as the Lick Penny Veins, bore ore in the toadstone.

The famous Portaway Vein was worked at its most southerly point at the Little England Shaft (6 fathoms deep) near the Winster and Newhaven road. At the Buckdale Shaft, near the bend in the Bakewell and Ashbourn road, it was worked to about 50 fathoms depth, or about 20 fathoms below the Lowsey Level, by the assistance of old-fashioned pumps. At the Hey Spot Shaft it yielded green ore and caulk. Next is the Portaway Mine, at which nothing can be seen now but the enormous hillocks, and the Elton or Coast Rake Mine, from which the vein was reached by a cross-cut, 40 fathoms in length. Farey refers to this vein as having yielded much lead and some wad, and as being 200 yards wide (op. cit. p. 265), and Pilkington in 1789 says of it, "I have been informed that the Portaway Mine near Winster lately produced ore to the value of 4,0007. in seven weeks." †

Will's Foundry Mine, on the Kevel ‡ Vein, reached the toadstone at 50 fathoms, and got to limestone again at 70 fathoms. The Placket Vein runs under Winster Church, and has been worked for some 300 yards northwards. Farey speaks of it as a pipe with much lead, and with great caverns, one 180 yards high (op. cit. p. 265). The Orchard pipe runs through the centre of Winster. The Orchard Shaft was 50 fathoms in depth, and an attempt was made to drive southwards from it through the toadstone, which dips north. Farey says of this pipe that it was 150 yards wide, and had caverns in it (op. cit., p. 265). Ủn the east skirts of Winster are some less important veins, known as the Horsebuttock (green and brown ore in kevel), and the Bark Vein.

The Yatestoop pipe ranges due north and south. The level runs at 100 fathoms depth under the north end of it. According to Farey (op. cit., p. 270) it was a crooked vein, but yielded much ore, and was worked to 115 fathoms depth. The principal shaft is 400 yards eastsouth-east of Upper Town.

Some of the Winster veins have been followed south-eastwards beyond the outcrop of the toadstone, and worked in the limestone below. The Whitelow Vein has been already described. The Lickpenny Veins (or some scrins associated with them) are yielding wad on the south side of the toadstone outcrop. A vein falling into a direct line with the Placket Vein has been worked at the top of the hill in the top limestone, while on Bonsal Moor in beds below the toadstone are found a number of scrins falling into the same line. Here there are also veins ranging

*Not the vein running E.N.E. across Bonsal Moor, alluded to by Farey as having yielded much calamine (op. cit. p. 269).

A View of the Present State of Derbyshire, p. 130.
"Kevel" or "kebble" is a miner's name for spar.

U 18863.

K

more nearly east and west. A thin bed of toadstone makes its appearance 500 yards east of Winster Moor Farm, but cannot be traced for many yards.

It is doubtful however whether any of these veins, excepting the Whitelow, can be said with certainty to run continuously through the toadstone. They are metalliferous joints and not faults, and though they abound in the limestones, disappear in a rock like toadstone, which does not lend itself to the formation of open joints.

Between Winster and Wensley are a vast number of old shallow workings, which seems to be chiefly on scrins ranging from N. 10°–45° W. The Davis Mine was one of the richest; it appears to have been on some scrins running about N.W. Boulders of siliceous and cherty rock occur here. The only vein now being worked is the Millclose, which has been very productive for many years.

The Millclose Vein,* where worked by the "old men" on the south side of the valley, was composed of a number of parallel veins parted by riders or sometimes running into one vein, with a total width of 140 yards. "About the year 1743, the Quaker's Company, as it was then called, purchased the Mill Close Mine, in the Liberty of Wensley, upon which they not only erected a fire engine, to draw water out of the mine, but also built coes .; they likewise wrought a sough, or water-gate (without having a vein), into Birchover Lordship, and diverted a brook, or water course, down such, for the purpose of turning a water-wheel, which they had in this said mine (Mander's Mining Glossary). The sough referred to appears to be the Yatestoop Sough. The mine subsequently lay idle for about 100 years, but was reopened in 1859 by the late Mr. Wass. In 1861 ore began to be raised, and since that time up to date the minę has produced 144,341 loads (equal to about 36,085 tons) of lead-ore, with a gross value of between 340,000l. and 350,000.†

The working was at first confined to the limestone above the toadstone, except that a level was driven from the bottom of a shaft, 150 yards south of the brook, southwards as far as the Winster road. The level entered the toadstone a little south of the shaft, and passed through it (the beds dipping northwards) into the limestone below, but no ore was found. The depth to the toadstone at this shaft was about 25 fathoms. The Millclose Shaft, on the south side of Cowley Knowe, was sunk to about 80 fathoms depth, and a level driven at this depth along the vein to the Warren Car Shaft, 580 yards distant. The following measures were passed through :—

*For the information concerning this mine I am indebted to Mr. Greatorex, of Winster.

† For these figures I am indebted to Mr. A. M. Alsop, of Wirksworth, through whose hands, either as barmaster or as concerned for royalty owners, the whole of the ore has passed.

This section and figure were made by my colleagues in 1868. The mine was the property of the late Mr. E. M. Wass, who kindly gave them permission to go over it.--A.S.

The lode is of very irregular width; the veinstuff mostly semitransparent calcite, mixed with a good deal of chert, of a dull yellowish colour, and differing from the chert of the limestone in being soft and crumbly. The vein is occasionally split up by very large "riders" of limestone. Branching from the main vein are chambers or "pipes," often very large and almost entirely filled with ore; these follow in a general way the direction of the bedding. Thin layers of ore and spar also run out between the limestone beds.

The vein on reaching the toadstone is "pinched " into a "leader" a few inches broad, of white, opaque, imperfectly crystallized calcite, and even this soon thins away downwards.

Fig. 33 is a section across the lode at this point; the limestone wall on the east was most beautifully clean cut and slightly polished; the toadstone rather crushed and ground up against the fault. The throw is about three yards.

W.

Fig. 33.

Section across the Lode at the Mill Close Mine.

1. Limestone.

Scale, 5 feet to 1 inch.

2. Black bituminous unstratified clay.

3. Soft, crumbly, greenish toadstone.

4. Irregular masses of amygdaloidal toadstone, embedded in softer but similar

rock.

a. "Leader" of calcite.

b. Belt of toadstone crushed against the fault.

At the time of our visit a heading had been driven through the toadstone and traces of the vein found below, but they had not then gone far enough to be able to say how it would turn out.*

The Warren Car Shaft is about 50 fathoms deep, the depth of shale lying on top of the limestone being about 40 fathoms. At present the pumping and winding of ore is performed only at this shaft, the old engine being kept in reserve. Lees Shaft has lately been sunk on the vein, 290 yards north of Warren Car. It is 42 fathoms in depth, and reaches the limestone at 32 fathoms. The beds are therefore rising to the north, and are found to continue to do so as far as the workings extend, namely 200 yards north of Lees Shaft. Two ribs of ore are generally found, one on each side of the vein, and next the limestone, the veinstuff being caulk, mundic (iron pyrites) calc-spar, and chert, but not much fluor-spar. In the old hillock of the Millclose Shaft, however, are many specimens of Blue John associated with compact bitumen. Blende is found at the Millclose and Lees Shafts in sufficient quantities to be worth working.

The Slack Mines, sunk on some veins running west of north, were worked in the bed below the toadstone, and are referred to by Farey (op. cit. p. 267) as having yielded much lead-ore.

At the Oxclose Mine, near Snitterton, a level, as I was informed, was driven south into the 3rd limestone, in the hopes of finding a continuation of the veins which had been worked by the "old men " in limestone above the toadstone, but the attempt failed. An old sough runs from the mine to the Derwent. The section of the strata by Pilkington is quoted on p. 23.

Matlock.

The sequence of the beds of this neighbourhood has been already given on p. 22. The mines have been long abandoned, and are inaccessible with the exception of those which are shown to visitors as objects of curiosity. The Dimple Mine, at Matlock Bank, yielded, according to Farey (op. cit. p. 257), lead-ore associated with iron pyrites and fluorspar, and was the only mine in Derbyshire where a steam engine was in use in 1809. It was situated on the thin edge of the Yoredale Shale, and was the northernmost mine on the Seven Rakes. The Seven Rakes Mine was situated on the hill-side above the road from Matlock Bridge to Matlock Dale. It has already been alluded to as having yielded ore in the toadstone after the limestone, above and below this rock had been worked out, and the mine abandoned (p. 124). Calamine and blende were as abundant in this vein as lead-ore. The vein crosses the river in Matlock Dale. The Great Rake crosses the river at the Paint Mill, near which the workings were carried to a depth of 20 fathoms below the river by the aid of pumps worked by a water-wheel. Warm water was tapped in this rake. Old Nester's (or Nestus) Pipe, on Masson Hill, was reputedly one of the oldest mines in Derbyshire; yielded much lead-ore, with calamine and blende (Farey op. cit. p. 263). The Side Rake, at Starkholmes, on the east side of the river, also produced ore in the toadstone, and yellow ochre was raised from High Tor Rake in the same neighbourhood.

it

The Cumberland or Rutland Mine at Matlock Bath produced lead-ore, calamine, some copper, and carbonate of iron (Farey op. cit. 256). The

* This and the preceding notes accompanying figure 33 were made in 1868.

pipe is said to range towards the Moletrap Mine, near Cromford Station (p. 75). The Balls Eye Mine in the dale leading up to Bonsal has already been referred to as having yielded an argentiferous galena (p. 125). The pipe, where it comes out to day, was 100 yards above Bonsal Brook, but slopes down to a level with the brook. It was reached by a shaft 66 yards in depth, sunk through a loose limestone, about 12 to 14 yards thick, below which was some white and black clay (toadstone) 20 to 24 yards thick. The mass of lead-ore in one place was seven or eight fathoms high and twenty fathoms wide, and in a short time yielded 12,000l. proât. After three years, and when it had produced above 50,000l. worth of lead, the mine was drowned out.*

Wirksworth.

A great deal of work has been done in this neighbourhood, but, it is said, without a corresponding profit. Two old soughs are alluded to by Short (op. cit. p. 93), one on the east side of the town about a mile long, and one on the west side, made about 1693, beginning on the south side of the town, and carried close up the west side; both yielded warm water (p. 116). The last mentioned is probably the Hannage Sough which drains into the Ecclesbourne at Millhouses, a few hundred yards south of Wirksworth Station, and runs thence to the Ratchwood Mine, between Wirksworth and Middleton; this sough was finished about 1740 (Farey, p. 329). These were followed by Cromford Sough, which, starting near Cromford Market Place, runs up to the Gang Mine and others near Wirksworth. Farey states that it brought down much warm water, and cost 30,000l. (op. cit. p. 329).

The last driven was the Meerbrook Sough, which runs from the Derwent, three-quarters of a mile above Whatstandwell Bridge, to a shaft at Hag Wood, and thence by Bole Hill to Meerbrook Sough Mine, a distance of 24 miles. It was begun in 1773, was still driving in 1811, and is said to have cost more than 45,000l. Boats were used in it (Farey p. 330). It has since been driven to a point about 100 yards south of the church. The yield of lead in the Wapentake of Wirksworth in 1782 was 1,306 tons according to Pilkington (op. cit. p. 126).

The greater part of the mining of late years has been in the hollow north-east of Wirksworth, and in the limestone to the north of this hollow. It will be seen by the map that the shale, by which the hollow is occupied, is thrown down by a fault running from Wirksworth to Middleton. This fault is known as the Gulf-fault, and has had an important influence on the veins, the greater number of which are parallel to it, with the direction N. 10°-40° W.; the principal of these are the Rantor (or Raventor), the Bage, and the Wall Close. The Gang Vein, however, towards the north, and the Yokecliff Rake, on the south of Wirksworth, run nearly east and west. Each is a powerful vein, throwing the beds down to the south.

The Wall Close Vein,† running nearly south-east, gathers a number of scrins from the south under Bole Hill, the principal being the Bage, Walker's Vein, and the Flint Vein. These are worked in the Bage Mine, the shaft of which is 50 fathoms deep, or 17 fathoms short of the Meerbrook Sough. No toadstone has been seen in this mine. The galena occurs associated with caulk, and a little blende, very little

* The History of the Mineral Waters of Derbyshire, &c. by Thomas Short, M.D., 1734, p. 73. By lead-ore is probably meant spar with lead-ore in the account. For this information I am indebted to Mr. Alsop, of Wirksworth.