332 Transactions. — Geology. 



Art. XXXVIII.— T/ie Alluvial Deposits of Otago. 



By L. O. Beal, sen. 



[Read before the Otago Institute, 11th July, 18S8.] 



Ik April, 1870, in the young days of this Institute, I had 

 the honour of addressing the members on the subject of the 

 " Alhivial Deposits of our Goldfields ; "'•- also since then, some 

 fourteen years back, without, however, writing a paper for 

 publication, on the same subject, especially in reference to a 

 change in the earth's polarity ; and I now, with your permis- 

 sion, beg to supplement my remarks. 



The " glacial epoch " is so thoroughly recognised as having 

 occurred in the earth's history that I need here but mention it 

 as a fact. It has been alluded to by many authorities. ■ The 

 explanation of the existence of this period I assume to be that 

 the polarity of the earth has, in the course of an extremely 

 long period, changed — i.e., the east and west of to-day were 

 once at north and south, thus allowing the earth's surface to 

 have become gradually and entirel} under the influence of the 

 polar climate, and equally so under the influence of the 

 equatorial climate, thus accounting for the remains of tropical 

 flora and short-haired animals near the north pole- — the 

 presence of the body of the megatherium mentioned by 

 Lieutenant Nordenskjold in the neighbourhood of the mouths 

 of the rivers Obi and Yennisei, and the large accunmlations of 

 ivory tusks at Nova Zembla, being notable illustrations; whilst 

 the appearance of ice on the equator, as noticed by Professor 

 Agassiz, in describing his holiday trip up the Amazon Eiver ; 

 and in our own home of New Zealand, — and, though I am 

 not conversant with Australian writings, I feel sure the same 

 features have been observed and described there, — amply bear 

 out the same theory. The subject is well described by Mr. 

 J. T. Campbell in his book "Frost and Fire," as applicable 

 also to the British Isles. 



Viewing the physical construction of the earth, as shown in 

 any map, we find its circumference at the poles and the equator 

 to differ by something like twenty-nine miles — a fact of such 

 great moment that we can scarcely embrace its importance, 

 as a very little of so great a difference would account for the 

 altitude necessary to bring about the climatic changes we are 

 considering. The subject of the action of ice at the present 

 day may be read of in any travellers' books, such as Eoss's 

 "Antarctic Expedition," Lord Dufferin's "Letters from High 

 Latitudes," E. Whymper's " Scrambles in the Alps," and 

 many others. The enormous time such events would occupy, 



* " Trans. N.Z. Inst.," vol. iii., p. 270. 



