314 GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF NEW JERSEY. 



undulating, but the northern edge sinks down abruptly so that 

 when viewed from afar it resembles a range of low hills. This 

 is a part of the great North German Plain, which extends from 

 the Ural mountains to the coast, consisting mainly of heath and 

 moor, planted in places with Scotch-pine. It consists of loam, 

 sand, clay, gravel and marl. Here and there are erratic boulders 

 which have been deposited, no doubt, by glaciers. Where the 

 soil is loamy and marly the beech is abundant. "The sand," 

 says Salfeld, u forms scattered hills or great sandy plains from 

 which the clay has been washed by the rains." 



In many places the primeval forest consisted of oak and pine. 

 In other regions beds of " ortstein," a sandstone similar to the 

 "alios" of the Landes, prevents drainage and the growth of trees. 

 On such places the heather holds full sway. These are natural 

 steppes and probably have never been covered with trees. 



In the Luneburger Heath there are many small streams, 

 although the region is at times quite dry and parched. The 

 water quickly runs away and the region is exposed to the dry- 

 ing effects of the winds. "A trip across this heath in winter," 

 says Salfeld, " is dreary enough." One meets here and there 

 natives digging up the sods for litter. This exposes the soil to 

 the wind so that it shifts more or less from place to place. Here 

 and there are bee-stands which are used only in blossoming time 

 when the keeper moves from place to place with his hives in search 

 of fresh pastures. Here and there are sheep corrals. The shep- 

 herd even in winter may be seen alone with his flock of hardy, 

 small black sheep called " snucken." As with the shepherds of 

 the Landes he knits while his sheep crop the scanty herbage. 

 These sheep live out of doors in winter, even in the snow, and 

 when the lambs come many are killed by the shepherd, because 

 one lamb must suck several mothers on account of the scarcity 

 of food. 



Here and there are streams with irrigated and fertilized 

 meadows. Along their banks are alders and on the ridges of 

 sand fringing the meadows are strips of pine to break the force 

 of the wind. 



At last we reach a farm. Attached to the straw-thatched 

 house is a yard surrounded by a granite wall. Granite seems 

 out of place here. The origin of the granite boulders from 



