Formation and General Features of liuwenzori. 



To-day the glaciers are of small extent and diminishing. 

 This is proved at some points by the presence of moraines 

 recently abandoned only a few hundred yards from the actual 

 glacier snout, and from the freshness of the marks of polishing 

 by ice on the rocks close to nearly all the glaciers. Tliere 

 are no glaciers of the first degree in tlie principal valleys, but 

 only secondary glaciers in tlie upper part of the moimtains 

 and in the main gorges, not, however, in the nature of mere 

 hanging glaciers, but true glaciers. Unlike our own Alps, 

 there are no real basins, Ijut merely a sort of glacier caps from 

 which ice digitations flow down at divers points. In other 

 words, we have on the higher groups of Ruwenzori glacier 

 formations which remind us of the Scandinavian tvpe and 

 which liave been called tropical glaciers. 



The Moore and Semper Glaciers flow fin-ther down than 

 any — the former as low as 13,690 feet, and the latter as far 

 as 14,000 feet. The largest glaciers are on tlie Stanley, Speke 

 and Baker groups, and on the eastern sides of the Gessi group. 

 The smaller ones are upon the Emin and tlie Lnigi di Savoia 

 groups, unless these latter have important glaciers to the north 

 of the one and the south of the otlier ^\■here thev were not 

 explored by the expedition. 



A characteristic feature of the high ridges, and more 

 especially of the snowy ridges around Alexandra and Margherita 

 Peaks, are the enormous cornices, wliich from a distance 

 appear to be inaccessible, and have a totally diflerent appear- 

 ance to those of the Alps and of the Caucasus. Rapid and 

 frequent changes in temperatin-e, falling from se\-eral degrees 

 above to several degrees below the freezing point, create an 

 incessant alternation of frost and thaw, and give rise to the 

 formation of an innuense number of stalactites imder these 



22.5 Q 



