THE MALAYAN ARCHIPELAGO. 99 



II. Inner Eastern Archipelago. 



Within and to the immediate north of the great Malayan 

 curve, there are three k-shaped islands, in a line from ^Yest to 

 east under the equator, which have been regarded since the time 

 of L. Horner^*^^ as a good example of geographic homologies, 

 though it afterwards turned out that their resemblance is only 

 superficial, for their inner, geologic structure by no means con- 

 forms with their outward likeness. These islands, Halmahera 

 (Gilolo), Celebes, and Borneo represent old geologic blocks and 

 other relics of South-eastern Asia, left as giants among the 

 ruins of the long lost land, of which the former sea-board is 

 clearly marked by the Great and Small Sunda groups, and the 

 Banda Islands. 



Their geologic relation with the circumscril)ing Malayan 

 curve is not so clear, as might be looked for, though there exist 

 at several points faint indications of their connection to which 

 I may have occasion to refer in the sequel. But if we turn to 

 the other sides, it soon becomes evident that their affinity with 

 the Philippines is very close, being linked to them either by 

 chains of volcanic islands or series of shattered cordilleras; and 

 these geologic lines converge as we go northwards, presenting 

 the same feature of ' virgation ' as in Eastern Thibet. 



Borneo. 



Posewitz provides us with a concise description of the topo- 

 graphy and geology of Borneo, so far as it was known at that 



C6) Wiclimann, 'Die Binnenseen von Celebes', Pela-manns 3Iittheilungen, 1893, p. 1. Peschel, 

 ' Neue Probleme '. "Wallace, Jour. Eoy. Geogr. Soc., London. XXXIII. Vide also Wettstein, 

 ' Die Strömung des Festen, Flüssigen and Gasförmigen ', p. 49. 



