140 



NATURE 



[June 6, 1895 



carritxl in the Icmcr layers of ice. Il was also a matter of 

 fre<juenl obser\'ation that debris lies under the ice. Apparently 

 the ice sometimes jiushes this along, and sometimes slides over 

 il. At the end of the glacier the debris within the ice is freed 

 by melting, and accumulates as a talus-slope. This sometimes 

 protects the basal layers from melting, and they l>ecome at 

 length incor|X)rated in the growing accumulation. 



It apiK-arc<l, from the st.igcs presented by the several glaciers, 

 that where the ice is slowly advancing, the talus-.slope gradually 

 grows forward and constitutes an cmliankment, u|xin which the 

 glacier advances. It thereby grades up its own pathway in 

 advance. On seeing this process, one is at no loss to understand 

 how ice can advance over fields of .sand or soil w ithout in any 

 way disrupting them. It buries them before it advances upon 

 iheni. 



Where the frontal material accumulates in a large mass, it 

 opposes such a degree of resistance to the ice that its layers are 

 curvetl upward <in the inner slo|ie: and if the glacier subsequently 

 advances, the ice rides up over the moraine. Several such in- 

 stances were observed, but none was seen where the ice showed 

 any competency to push even its own debris, in notable quantity, 

 in front of it. The ice is weaker than the moraine as a whole. 



tireiit quantities of snow are carried by winds from the region 

 of the great ice-cap, and this snow may lie lodged in immense 

 heaps in the lee of the terminal moraines. Such a border-drift 

 may have a breadth of from looo to 3000 feet. It becomes 

 .s<ilidified after the fashion of a glacier, and may serve to arrest 

 or deflect the main ice ; for it was observed that the Uvsal layers 

 of the ice in places curved upwards on encountering the resistance 

 of this wind-drifted accumulation. 



The rate of movement of the majority of the glaciers was found 

 to \k exceedingly slow , though a few which produce large icebergs 

 are notable exceptions. 



The anuHmt of drift on the territor)' once occupied, but now- 

 free from ice, was .scanty. At .some |Mints there are considerable 

 accumulations of drift w ithin a mile or tw o of the present ice- 

 front, but over nuich of the area no great moraines, nor any 

 thick mantles of drift, were l'-> be seen. There was but moderate 

 evidence of glacial action ; the land was gently rounded, but not 

 greatly moulded. In this area of Southern (ireenland tracts of 

 angular, unsuUlued to|)ography alternate with rounded, flowing 

 contours. The inference was drawn that the ice formerly so 

 extended it.self as to reach the present coast for alwut half its 

 extent, while in the remaining |xjrtion the ice fell short. Thus 

 the conclusion .seems imavoidable that the ice of tireenland, on 

 it^ western side, at least, has never advanced vcr)- greatly beyond 

 its present Inirdcr in recent geologic times. This carries with it 

 the dismis.s.il of the hy|xithesis that the glaciation of the mainland 

 of North America hail its source in Greenland. 



There is no ground to question the former elevation of Green- 

 land, but it would a|)iK-ar that this w.is not coincident with con- 

 ditions favouring gLiciation. H. B. W. 



UNIVERSIT J ■ A ND ED UCA TIONA J. 

 INTELLIGENCE. 



OxFORii. — Among the distinguished men upon whom it 

 n proposed to confer the honorary decree of U.C. L. , on June 

 26, are .Sir W. H. I'lower and Prof. Michael Fo.ster. 



In a Convocation held on Tuesday, the statute appointing 

 Dr. K. B. Tylor professor of .-Xnlhroixilogy during the tenure 



' '■ Reader in .\nlhro|iology was finally approved. 



• ■n. held on the same date, the .Statute on 

 - received the final approval of the hou.se, and 

 Il ■mi) ruiiiuiiis for it to Ije |ia.sscd by Convocation The pro- 

 ynj-A I-itial Honour .SchrMil of ,-\nthro|M>logy was ,tgain brought 

 tiinn, and excited some op|K)silion. On a divi- 

 I ^laliile w.as carried by a considerable m.tjorily, 

 ■ •. iiig: I'lacet, 47 : Non-pLicel, 28. The .statute 

 run the gaunllet of Convocation liefore il finally 

 liw. In the same Congregation, thedatesof the pre- 

 liminary exaniinalifjns in the Honour Schools of Natural Science 

 were fixed for ihc M-mdRV after the eighth week of I-'ull Term 

 in Hilary Term ) r. instead ol^ in the last week or last 



week but one, • '■> liven the custom; and the grant 



■' ' ' • i-al de|>artnient of the I'niver- 



I jteriiKl of five years. The 

 I'M the final ami preliminary 



NO. 1336. VOL. 52] 



examinations in Natural Science show that there are 44 candi- 

 dates in the final school and 64 candidates in the preliminary 

 school. These figures do not include women students. 



Cambridiie. — The following is the speech delivered by the 

 Public Orator. Dr. Sandys, on May 30. in presenting for the 

 honorary degree of Doctor in Science, Dr. John .Murray, editor 

 of the ChalUngii- publicatiiins. 



Meministis omnes jxietae nostri niaximi locum insignem, iibi 

 Northumbriae l^ucis filius acerrimus non recusavit gloriam aut 

 ex ip.sa luna audacter deducere. aut maris in profumlo demersam 

 extrahere. nicxlo snlus sine rivali laudem omnem sibi vindicaret. 

 (Juanto pulchrius auteni lerum naturae iienetialia intima assidue 

 perscnilari, eque oceani altitudine immensa laudem cum sociis 

 optimis participatam re]Kirtare. Adest unusex illis qui, plusquam 

 tribus annis in oceano explorando fortiter toleralis, ut poetae 

 antiqui verbis sensii novo utar, 



'' referet>aiu navibus nltis 

 occulta spolia. cl plure.s de pace triunipho>." 



Una saltern nominis bene ominati navis velut ipsam rerunr 

 naturain ad certamen provocavit, ipsamque veritatem in profundu 

 abstnisam orbi terrarum patefecit. Tanti autem itineris 

 monumenta, quinquaginta voluminum in serie ingenti a collegis 

 plurimis parata, viri huiusce praesertim industria infinita nun 

 modo adaucta el summalim liescripta setl etiam ad lerminum 

 felicem perducta el diei in lucem prolata sunt. l^>uid non potuit 

 reruin naturae. (|uid non potuit veritalis amor ? 

 " Merses profundo ; pulclirior cvcnit."' 

 Diico ad vos L'niversitatis Edinensis alumnum, oceani in- 

 dagatorem indefessum. virum etiam in posterum sine dubio 

 laudem indies maiorem meriturum, lo.^NNKM Mt■RR.^Y. 



The -Master of Downing (Dr. Hill) and Dr. Haiclay-Smilh 

 will give a course of instruction in Practical Histology during the 

 Long \'ac.ation. beginning un July 6. 



The State Medicine Syndicate propose to make a grant of ^50- 

 to the Department of Pathology, in aid of the course of 

 laboratorj' instruction in Kacteriologj- therein provided for 

 candidates for the diploma in Public Healtli. 



Prof. Kwing's serious illness has made it necessary to appoint 

 Mr. Dalby, Demonstrator in the Kngineeiing Laboratory, to act 

 as Examiner for him in the Mechanical Sciences Tripos. 



The Smiths Prizes in Natural I'hilosojihy have been awarded 

 (I) to G. T. .Manley, of Christ's College, for his essiiy on 

 "The Conformal Representation of a (Juadrilateral on a Half 

 Plane,'" and (2) to G. H.J. Hurst, of King's College, for his 

 essay on " I'-lectro-magnelism and Magneto-ciplic Rotation."' 

 .Mr. .Manley and .Mr. Ilursl were respectively Senior and Second 

 Wrangler in 1S93. The essays of II. E. .\lkins, of Petcrhou.sc, 

 and P. K. Bateman, of Jesus College, are declared worthy of 

 honourable mention. Mr. .\tkins was bracketed Tenth Wrangler, 

 and Mr. Hateinan bracketeil Kifleenlh Wrangler in the s.ame 

 Tripos. 



.Mr. S. S. Hough, of St. John's College, has been elected 

 Isaitc Newton Student in Astronomy for the three years ending 

 June 15, 1898. 



Mr. Charles Chree, Director of the Ke» Observatory, has 

 been approved for the degree of Doctor of .Science. 



.Mr. W. N. Shaw has been appoinletl Chairman of the 

 Examiners for the Mechanical Sciences Tripos, in the room of 

 Prof. Ewing, who has resigned on the ground of illness. 



.Mr. Charles Smith, .Master of Sidney Su.ssex College, has 

 been elected Vice-Chancellor for the ensuing ac.tdemical year, 



Cla.sses in Osteology, in General Chemistry, in Geology, and 

 in Experimental Physics, are announced t(i be held in the Long 

 Vacation. 



Mr. .\. E. Shipley, Cniversiiy I^'Cturer in Invertebrate 

 Morphology, h.as been appointed a member of the University 

 Press .Synilicalc, 



Prof. W. T. A. Emtaiik, of University College, Nottingham, 

 has been elected I'rincipal of the Technical Inslituli., 

 Wandsworth. 



HuNoKARY degrees were conferred, by Ihc Chaiicellor of 

 Victoria University, la.st week, upon Lord Kelvin and Sir Henry 

 Ko.scoe, among others, for distinguished services rendered to the 

 University. 



TlIK twelfth annual rejiort of the .Mitchell Library, Glasgow, 

 is before us. The library is open 1m the public, and is a<Imini>- 



