40 :SEA AND LAND 



shore currents necessarily import the larger part of the debris 

 they rend from the promontories into the recesses of these 

 bays. Places where a study of the results of these conditions 

 mav be made can be lound along almost any mile of -shore, 

 from Xew York city to (Greenland, where liard rocks face 

 the sea. It is rare, indeed, on ever)' clifi shore that we have 

 to search for as much as five miles along- the coast without 

 finding one of these pocketdjeaches, whereto the rocky mat- 

 ter from the neighboring precipices swifth' j()urne\s to 

 undergo the last stage of its destruction. 



To the naturalist's eye the most striking feature of the 

 pebble beaches is the symmetry of their form. This is so 

 characteristic that every one, however little trained in the 

 methods of interrogating nature, is sure to observe it, pro- 

 vided he follows the path whicli leads 1dm from the rude 

 clift shore to these more gracious outlines of the beaches. 

 On die steeps, where the sea is eating into the land, all the 

 outlines are ragged ; the scenery has the hard, irregular qual- 

 ity wliich belongs to all fields where the destructive influences 

 of nature; prepond(;rate o\er the forces which build up or 

 renew. On the; true beaches the gentle and harmonious 

 curves attest the constructive order of the actions. They 

 have the peculiar grace which marks all things which grow, 

 their form is truly vital. We note the delicate finish of the 

 curve of the line of contact between the water and the land, 

 and the equrd symmetr\' of that which extends from deep 

 water to the crest whereon stands the sea-wall and perhaps 

 the attendant dunes. However much the e)-e and the mind 

 may for a time enjoy the stern scenery of a rockdj>ound coast, 

 we turn with abiding satisfaction to the quiet beauty of these 

 more perfectly organized shores. They are like calm weather 



