ears past,
much incroach'd upon the land, undermining, and subverting by degrees, a
great deal of high-ground; so as by ancient writings it appears, a whole
wood of more than a mile and half, at present is so far within the sea:
Now if in succeeding ages (as probable it is enough) the sea shall by
degrees be fill'd up, either by its own working, or by earth brought
down by land-floods, still subsiding to the bottom, and surmounting the
tops of these trees, and so the space again added to the firm-land; the
men that shall then live in those parts, will, it's likely, dig-up these
trees, and as much wonder how they came there, as we do at present those
we have been speaking of.

In the mean time, to put an end to the various conjectures, concerning
the causes of so many trees being found submerg'd, for the most part
attributed to the destruction made by the Noatick inundation; after all
has been said of what was found in the level of Hatfield, (drain'd at
the never to be forgotten charge and industry of Sir Cornelius
Vermuiden) I think there will need no more enquiry: For there was
discover'd trees not only of fir and pitch, but of very goodly oaks,
even to the length of 100 foot, which were sold at 15 l. the tree,
black and hard as ebony; all their roots remaining in the soil, and
their natural posture, with their bodies prostrate by them, pointing for
the most part north-east: And of such there seem'd to be millions, of
all the usual species natural to this countrey, sound and firm ash only
excepted, which were become so rotten, and soft, as to be frequently cut
through with the spade only; whereas willows and other tender woods,
continu'd very sound and entire: Many of these subterranean trees of all
sorts, were found to have been cut and burnt down, squar'd and converted
for several uses, into boards, bales, stakes, piles, barrs, &c. some
trees half riven, with the wedges sticking in them; broken axe-heads in
shape of sacrificing instruments, and frequently several coins of the
emperor Vespasian, &c. There was among others, one prodigious oak of 120
foot in length, and 12 in diameter, 10 foot in the middle, and 6 at the
small end; so as by computation, this monster must have been a great
deal longer, and for this tree was offered 20 l. The truth and history
of all this is so perfectly describ'd by Mr. Alan. de la Pryme (inserted
among the _Transactions_ of the R. Society) that there needs no more to
be said of it to ev