GEOLOGICAL SPECIMENS 249 



that some of the stones were so heavy that they must 

 certainly have contained metalHc ore of one kind or 

 another. On returning to camp that evening, we 

 tried them with the compass-needle, and it showed 

 very marked attraction in the case of one or two 

 of the specimens. These must, therefore, contain 

 iron-ore. 



This spur, which had been severely handled by ice- 

 pressure and the ravages of time, offered a poor chance 

 of finding what we coveted most — namely, fossils — and 

 the most diligent search proved unsuccessful in this 

 respect. From finds that have been made in other 

 parts of Antarctica it is known that in former geological 

 periods — the Jurassic epoch — even this desolate conti- 

 nent possessed a rich and luxurious vegetation. The 

 leader of the Swedish expedition to Graham Land, Dr. 

 Nordenskjold, and his companion, Gunnar Andersson, 

 were the first to make this exceedingly interesting and 

 important discovery. 



While it did not fall to our lot to furnish any proof 



of the existence of an earher flora in King Edward 



Land, we found living plants of the most primitive 



form. Even on that tiny islet in the ocean of snow 



the rock was in many places covered with thick moss. 



How did that moss come there? Its occurrence might, 



perhaps, be quoted in support of the hypothesis of the 



genesis of organic life from dead matter. This disputed 



question must here be left open, but it may be men- 

 voL. II. 42 



