eeqiiently ascertained, into the Nile sj's- 

 tem. it is noteworthy that all the 

 tarns, or pools, on the plateau are shal- 

 low, owing to the floor of the valleys 

 ootnsisting of diabase boulders, lying im- 

 mediately beneath the vegetation, their 

 iutersticee and irregularities being filled 

 with plant-humus and the rock-weatheir- 

 ing of countless ages, on which the alpine 

 vegetation thrives; consequently, the de- 

 pressions which happe.n to hold the 

 drainage from springs around them miist 

 of necesBity be shallow. 



On crossing the head of the dividing 

 valley near its eastern outlet the coun- 

 try rose gradually to the group of hills 

 in the centre of the moorland, noticed 

 above, and which the writer named the 

 "Giblin Fells." We passed up a talus- 

 floored valley till a low water-parting was 

 reached at the back of the great preci- 

 pices overlooking the Tyne valley, and 

 which was named "Ossian's Throne." 

 Here is situated another tarn, fed by 

 springs from the Giblin Fells, -which has 

 scarcely any outlet, but the drainage 

 from which, in wet weather and at the 

 time of the snow melting, .naturally forms 

 a burn iiiiuiing to the north. This re- 

 ceives streamlets on its left bank from 

 the high fells, and develops into a creek 

 issuing through a deep gorge towards 

 the Ros'c'g Tier divide, and flowing either 

 into the Ford Eiver or the Tyne, becom- 

 ing, therefore, the true alpine source of 

 either the North or the South Eek. 



In this vale, which is well clothed 

 with poa and other grasses, a halt was 

 miade for lu.uch, and the spot named 

 "Meadow vale." The height of Oesdan's 

 Throne was found by aneroid to be ap- 

 proximately 4,90Oft., the successive emi- 

 nences of the escarpment all round to 

 the north being, apparently, on a level 

 with it, and consequently all higher than 

 ■Hie southern bluffs of the mural 

 boundary. 



In the afternoon an ascent of the hills 

 was made by Mr. Giblin and the writer, 

 the former proceeding to what appeared 

 the highest ridge, and the latter taking 

 a lower cresitline for investigation. At 

 a point further north than our re'sting- 

 place two depressions pass into this cen- 

 tral group of hills from Meadow val- 

 ley to the west, and divide the high land 

 into two ridges, the northernmost of 

 which is the higher. Dowoi these hollows 

 the little tributaries of the aforemen- 

 tioned creek descend, rising in springs, 

 which are, perhaps, the highest in all 

 Tasmania. Much grass, ajid an absence 

 of the thick clothing of alpine bushee 

 met with over the southern area, are 

 noticeable in ascending these vales. At 

 the foot of tlie higher ridge ascended by 

 Mr. Giblin, the diabase formation crops 

 out in columnar masses facing Meadow 

 Vale, at the foot of which, as is seen 



i 



all over the plateau, are ^small fields 

 talus descending to the main valley. 



The summit of the ridge, which 

 reached in about three-quarters of a 

 mile from its foot, is composed of rocky 

 knolls or tors, flanied by slopes of talus, 

 below which, as Mr. Giblin reported, 

 the sides of the hill were grassy. 

 The ridge ascended by myself was 

 very rugged, broken on its crest 

 into small, though precipitous, tors, 

 with intervening areas of very rough 

 talus. The ascent of this ridge took, 

 approximately, the same time as oc- 

 cupied by Mr. Giblin in surmounting 

 the ridge to the north, which Avas made 

 by aneroid reading to be about 50ft. 

 higher. On his return from his climb 

 he reported his reading to be 160ft. plus 

 or minus 40ft. higher thaji that given by 

 the ascent of the trig, station the pre- 

 vioTis day. 



As a good view of the northern end of 

 the plateau was obtained from Mr. Gib- 

 lin's position, he found that the escarp- 

 ment there was as high, if not highcir, 

 than the point, Ossian's Thixme, mention- 

 ed above, and that the north-western cor- 

 ner consisted of a tableland holding so'me 

 pools, or tarns, within its area. The 

 stream passing down Meadow Vale was 

 found, as already stated, to issue through 

 a deep gorge to the north. The high 

 group of fells (the name given, as above 

 quoted, to this higliland was in memory 

 of Mr. Giblin's father, the judge, and in. 

 honour to himself as making the chief 

 ascent of the day) occupies the major 

 part of the northern area, which is, on 

 the whole, different from the southern 

 one in topographical features. The gen- 

 eral conformation, conforming to a high- 

 er level, and the valley running north 

 and flanking the group on the west, pre- 

 cludes the existence of the shallow trough 

 valleys characteristic of the southern 

 division of the moorland. Further ex- 

 plorations will probably discover inter- 

 esrting featuresf* in the physiography of 

 this little known tract of the great pla- 

 teau. 



Mr. Piesse also read a paper by Mr. 

 L. F. Giblin. B.A., and himself on "The 

 Height of Mount Legge (the name sug- 

 gested for the tor forming the summit 

 of the Giblin Fells at the northern, end 

 of Ben Lomond), with remarks on the 

 Trigonometrical Survey of Tasmania." 



Discussion. 



Mr. A. 0. Green, Mr. Johnston, and 

 Dr. Noetling offered a few observations 

 on the foregoing papers. 



On the motion of Mr. Green, seconded 

 by Mr. B. Shaw, it was decided to ask 

 the Minister of Lands to adopt the nam* 

 of Mount Legge for the northern peak 

 of Ben Lomond. 



