GEOLOGY AND SCENERY OF NOETREAST COAST 127 



the old glacial floors. At the close of the Ice Period, how- 

 ever, the whole of the Labrador stood some hundreds of feet 

 lower than it now stands with respect to the level of the sea. 

 During the thousands of years which have since elapsed, 

 the land has been slowly upheaved to that amount. All 

 along the existing shore an irregular belt of land so emerged, 

 and now bears with marvellous distinctness the traces of wave- 

 action far above the present level of the Atlantic. Probably 

 nowhere in the world are there more beautifully preserved 

 relics of ancient shores. The absence of forest that might 

 cover the records and the recency of the uplift contribute 

 to the perfection of the display. We must add thereto 

 the fact that it is precisely in just such a coastal region, 

 exposed, as it was, to the full force of the ocean's swell 

 and the gales of a North Atlantic, that we should expect 

 old shore-lines to be well marked. With truly dramatic 

 force Nature has fulfilled the expectation and so afforded 

 every observer on the Labrador a never failing source of 

 interest and instruction. 



Again let it be called to mind that the study of any geo- 

 logical fact in Labrador has a twofold significance. Many 

 a stage in the physical evolution of the peninsula, or many 

 a striking element in the landscape or underground struc- 

 ture, is worthy of wonder and interpretation for its own 

 sake yet still more worthy if it be viewed as a sample 

 of the structure, scenery, or stage of development that 

 belongs to the earth's crust as a whole. Much of the rugged 

 beauty and charm of colour of the Labrador shore are due 

 to the thorough washing, wearing, and fretting of the rocky 

 hills as they emerged from beneath Atlantic waters in recent 

 times. The beauty and charm gain in meaning and power 



