THE PHYSICAL HISTORY OP THE NOKWEGIAN FJORDS. 139 



4. Sea-lochs and Rock-hasins of Scotland. 



Amongst the most striking examples in Scotland of 

 sea-lochs which are also rock-basins as shown by the 

 ;Sounclings, may be mentioned Loch Broom, which at Ullapool 

 is only 9 fathoms deep, but higher up at Lacmelm 

 descends to 26 fathoms; Little Loch Broom at the entrance 

 is 18 fathoms, but towards the centre descends to 57 fathoms. 

 The inner sound. of Ramsay, which reaches a depth of 

 138 fathoms, but which would be converted into a lake were 

 the region elevated to the extent of 100 fathoms. More 

 fjord-like still is L. Etive, 20 miles in length and generally 

 less than a mile in breadth, which at its entrance at Connel 

 Sound is very narroAv, and at half-tide the water rushes over 

 the reef of rock with the roar of a cataract ; yet half way 

 lip it descends to depths of over 70 fathoms. And, lastly, 

 Ave have the case of one of the largest lakes in Scotland, 

 L. Lomond,* which at its outlet is only a few feet above the 

 sea-level, yet under Ben Lomond, where the ice must have 

 been of enormous thickness, it descends to 90 and 101 fathoms 

 in depth. 



It is unnecessary to quote further examples to show that 

 the fjords (or sea-lochs) of Scotland are like those of Norway, 

 true rock-basins, and that in both cases the origin of these 

 i-emarkable hollows in the solid rock must be attributed to 

 the action of glacial ice during the Great Ice Age. 



5. Views of Scandinavian geologists on glacial erosion. 

 The effects of glacial erosion in Norway are strongly 

 insisted on by Scandinavian geologists.! To it is attributed 

 the formation of that remarkable channel (" the Norwegian 

 Channel") which curves round the northern margin of the 

 ♦Skagerak and the southern extremity of the Scandinavian 

 peninsula, reaching a depth of 2,500 feet, and the origin of 

 which is indicated by the direction of the glacial groovings 

 and stria) of the adjoining coast. To glacier erosion is also 



* Ramsay considered L. Lomond and L. Katrine as "large cases of 

 ^dacier-erosion," Quart. Jonrn. Geo. Soc, vol. xviii, p. 203. Geikie concurs 

 in this view, luc. cit., p. 295. 



t Noruxty, article "Topography," by A. M. Hansan, pp. 18, 25. It is 

 a remarkable fact first noticed by Horbye that between lat. 62° and 

 €82° the erosive agent moved from the comparatively lower ground of 



