70 THE DENUDANTS, OR CARVERS OF THE 



denudation does not affect the whole area, as miles 

 are covered with jungle and forest, sure protectors of 

 the surface. In alpine and arctic regions the ever- 

 lasting snow and ice act in a similar manner, and it 

 is questionable if, in the temperate regions, meteoric 

 abrasion is able to gradually denude even half the 

 surface exposed; for in damp districts, undoubtedly, 

 it would naturally act more as a preserver than a 

 destroyer. This is well exemplified in many moun- 

 tainous mining districts ; for in such localities fuel 

 is often scarce, and the miners cut, for firing, the 

 peaty surface soil that has clothed the mountain and 

 preserved it from denudation ; consequently the rain 

 and other agencies act upon it for a season, cutting 

 the surface into small ridges and hollows. Never- 

 theless this does not last long, as the dampness of 

 the climate soon clothes it afresh with a peaty gar- 

 ment, and thereby effectually preserves it. In a 

 district occupied by miners, all the different stages 

 can be observed : the places from which turf has 

 not yet been cut, where there has been no denudation ; 

 the spots newly bereft of turf, where denudation is at 

 work; and the old turf- bogs where the mountain is 

 again covered with a thin coat of peat. 



A group of table-topped hills, capped by peat and 

 bounded by steep escarpments, is a good illustration, 

 showing the contrast between the destroying and 

 preserving powers of meteoric influences. First the 



