On the Glaciers of the Himdloya. 115 



everywhere assumes a more or less undulating form, from the 

 action of the water that drains from it as it melts ; and the 

 small streams into v/hich the drainage collects, end, as in the 

 glacier of the Alps, by falling into some of the crevasses. The 

 remains of the last winter's snow was hardly perceptible on 

 any part of the glacier. 



The occurrence of stones standing up on bases of ice (gla- 

 cier tables) above the general surface of the glacier, is com- 

 mon ; but all that I saw were small. I also observed what 

 appeared to be imperfect glacier cones, or the remains of 

 them, but these also wei*e small. 



I examined the effect the glacier produced upon the rocks : 

 I found it covered with grooves or scratches, sloping in about 

 the same direction as the surface of the ice at the spot. These 

 grooves extend to 20 or 30 feet above^the present level of the 

 glacier. I also observed, that almost everywhere a space was 

 left between the rock and the ice, the latter appearing to 

 shrink from contact with the former. This was, of course, the 

 effect of the heat of the rock melting the ice. I regret that 

 an attempt that I made to measure the actual motion of this 

 glacier proved ineffectual, owing to circumstances which it is 

 not necessai-y to detail. 



The valley of the Kuphinee, for a mile or two below the 

 end of the glacier, has much the same general character as 

 that of the Pindur, but is more rugged and desolate in ap- 

 pearance. A fine peak of pure snow (probably Nunda Kot) 

 is seen from below the glacier, but is lost sight of behind an 

 intermediate point, on a nearer approach. 



The direction of the glacier is almost due north and south, 

 and the whole breadth of the valley, in its upper part, about 

 3 of a mile, is occupied by it. It commences about two miles 

 above the river's source, in a very precipitous fall of ice. We 

 went up about 200 feet, by the lower part of this, much be- 

 yond which it would probably have been impossible to ascend, 

 ov.'ing to the excessive steepness above. A cliff of ice about 

 60 or 70 feet high, rose immediately above the point which we 

 reached. The ice was perfect, with the ribbon structure quite 

 visible ; the bands were very highly inclined, and I think 

 further apart than in the lower parts of the glacier. The 



