THE MUSEUM 



M3 



snow to a height equahng the tops of 

 tlie surrounding mountains. 



It has been noticed that icebergs in 

 the Antarctic continent, are almost 

 invariably, huge masses of ice, with 

 steep precipitous sides, and surmount- 

 ed by a flat plateau. Now very few 

 of the sources of the icebergs of the 

 Antarctic continent have been discov- 

 ered; but Arctic icebergs have been 

 studied very careful!}', and it is known 

 that they have their origin in glaciers 

 which push their way towards and in- 

 to the ocean. The progressive motion 

 is continued until the glacier has pro- 

 jected itself into the ocean so far that 

 the buoyant power of the water is suffi- 

 cient to lift and break off the end of 

 the glacier, which then floats off, and 

 is afterwards known as an iceberg. 

 Whenever the glacier pushes its way 

 over a precipice, it produces a corres- 

 ponding inequality in its own surface. 

 Inequality of surface is a character! - 

 tic feature of the Arctic icebergs. In.. 

 it is wanting in those of ihe .'\ntarcLic 

 ocean. Hence the inference that the 

 valleys in which the Antarctic glaciers 

 are formed are broad and level Such 

 valley? are formed in two wa)s: — first 

 by erosion and secondly by the erection 

 of that class of mountains which are 

 produced by folding. Theie are no 

 indications that the Antarctic contin- 

 ent ever possessed a soil in which ero- 

 sion could take place, or a climate suffi- 

 ciently mild for it, as erosion is caused 

 only by the action of running water, 

 consequently we are forced to the con- 

 clusion that these valleys are merely 

 mountain valleys, and that the moun 

 tains are of the class already named. 



Mountains of this class are those 

 which were elevated while the mater- 

 ial of which they were composed was in 



a plastic condition. The strata are 

 bent instead of being abruptly broken. 

 They present the appearance of undu- 

 lating elevations, while the transverse 

 valleys are broad, and smooth, with a 

 regular descent to the plain below. 

 Now if this conclusion, regarding these 

 valleys be correct, the assertion al- 

 ready made, that a range of low moun- 

 tains surrounds the interior of the con- 

 tinent, receives an important corrobor- 

 ation. In fact the two theories are 

 corroborative of each other. 



But the icebergs tell us more. Ice- 

 bergs do not break off from the parent 

 glacier until it has projected itself so 

 far into the ocean that the buoyant 

 force of the water overcomes the co- 

 hesion of the particles forming the 

 glacier. This can never be done so 

 long as the glacier rests upon the bed 

 of the ocean There can be no strain 

 'I til a portion of the glacier is lifted 

 cleitr from the bed and suspended in 

 the water. Then a leverage is created 

 ,ind the tension is greatest at the point 

 whtre the glacier enters the water. 

 Now the icebergs of the Antarctic 

 ocean are immense cakes of ice, many 

 times as large as those of the Arctic 

 ocean. This shows that the glaciers 

 entered the ocean upon a gently inclin- 

 ing plane, instead of over an abrupt 

 precipice as is the case in the Arctic 

 region. It proves that the ocean, near 

 the Antarctic continent is shallow, and 

 that the beach of that continent ex- 

 tends far out tosea. 



Now we natur&lly expect just such a 

 beach to a land mass of a circular 

 form. The Antarctic continent is cir- 

 cular in form. We expect to find such 

 beaches where folding mountains oc- 

 cur near and parallel to the shore. I 

 have shown that such mountains are 



