THE LUXURIANT LOWLAND FLORA. 151 



frozen landscape, the charm of which is beyond description. All of the 

 higher summits and ice-bound plateaus are above the upper limit of tree 

 growth, but the ice streams descend far into the forested region, and many 

 of the larger glaciers end in dense groves of spruce and hemlock. 



In the valley of the Taiya the timber line is sharply drawn along the bor- 

 dering cliffs at an elevation of about twenty -five hundred feet. Above that 

 height the mountain sides are stern and rugged ; below is a dense forest of 

 gigantic hemlocks, festooned with long streamers of moss, which grows even 

 more luxuriantly than on the oaks of Florida. The ground beneath the 

 trees and the fallen monarchs of the forest are densely covered with a soft, 

 feathery carpet of mosses, lichens, and ferns of all possible tints of brown 

 and green. The day I traversed this enchanted valley was bright and sunny 

 in the upper regions, but the valley was filled with drifting vapor. At one 

 minute nothing would be visible but the somber forest through which the 

 white mist was hurrying ; and the next, the veil would be swept aside, reveal- 

 ing with startling distinctness the towering mountain spires, snowy pinnacles, 

 and turquoise cliffs of ice towering heavenward. These views through the 

 cloud rifts seemed glimpses of another world-. Below was a sea of surging 

 branches that filled all the valley bottom and dashed high on the bordering 

 cliffs. Much space could be occupied with descriptions of the magnificent 

 scenery about Lynn canal, and of the wonderful atmospheric effects to be 

 seen there ; but the poetry of travel is foreign to these pages, and must be 

 left for more facile pens. 



Absence of Debris on the Glaciers. — One of the most noticeable features of 

 the glaciers about Lynn canal, and, in fact, of all of the glaciers that I have 

 seen in Alaska, is their general freedom from debris and the small size of the 

 moraines that are being formed about them. At times faint medial moraines 

 may be seen upon them, especially when viewed from a distance ; but in all 

 cases these are composed of small stones and dirt, and do not contribute to 

 the formation of conspicuous terminals at the extremities of the glaciers. 



The glaciers about Lynn canal are without the convexity of surface so 

 pronounced in many Swiss glaciers. This is seemingly accounted for by the 

 fact that they are remarkably free from debris, and hence equally exposed 

 in all parts to the heat of the sun. In some instances, where the glaciers 

 could be seen from below projected against the sky, they appeared even 

 slightly concave in cross profile. 



In continuing my journey down Lynn canal, I visited the Davidson gla- 

 cier, and also saw the Eagle, Lemon creek, and Juneau glaciers, and several 

 others scarcely less important but still unnamed. Many of these descend 

 practically to sea-level, although their extremities are commonly separated 

 from the water by morainal deposits half a mile or so in width. Their sur- 

 faces, like the surfaces of the glaciers examined near the head of the same 

 inlet, are remarkably free from debris, and terminate in a variety of ways. 



