230 



NATURE 



{July 1 8, 1872 



in which the coal deposits are found, rises only to about 1,000 ft., 

 and resembles the Neocomian hills skirting tlie western Jura ; 

 while the second chain, rising to about 2,500 ft., may be com- 

 pared to Chaumont, or some other of the less elevated summits 

 of the same range. Even the ravine leading to the coal miae 

 brought back to me the gorges on Seyon, with its torrent ; 

 while the flats below stand in the same relation to the hills as 

 the alluvial Pointe du Biod and the tertiary plain of liere.x liolds 

 to the Jura. This resemblance Is not simply superficial ; it 

 actiially extends to the geological structure of the whole region. 

 The higher mountains to the south, thougli recalling the Alps, 

 should not be compared with the highest Swiss ranges, such as 

 Mont Blanc, Mont Rosi, or the Bernese Oberland ; they have 

 more the character of the Osmonds. Mont Jura, for instance, 

 when seen from tlie north, reminds one of the Niesen, or sonie 

 of the conical heights rising above Meilleiries, such as the Cor- 

 nette de lirise ; when seen from tlie east it may be likened to 

 the Untersberg, near Saltzburg. Mount Sarmiento, Mount Buck- 

 land, Mount Barney, and many others less known, have truly the 

 character of the highest Alps. Mount Buckland resembles the 

 Matterhorn very strikingly in form, except that its surface is 

 entirely shrouded in ice. 



It was not till we rounded Cape Froward that I felt confident 

 that the range of hills immediately in sight along the channel we 

 followed had assumed their present appearance in consecjuence 

 of abrasion by ice. Now, however, that I have seen the whole 

 length of the Straits of Magellan, have passed through Smyth's 

 Channel, and visited Chiloe, I am prepared to maintain that the 

 whole southern extremity of the American Continent has been 

 uniformly moulded by a continuous sheet of ice. Everywhere 

 we saw the rounded undulating forms so well known to the 

 students of glacial phenomena as roclics nioKtounies, combined 

 with the polished surfaces scored by grooves and furrows running 

 in one and the same direction ; while rocks of unequal hardness, 

 dykes traversing other rocks, slates on edges, were all cut to one 

 level. In short, all the surface features of the Straits of Magellan 

 have much the same aspect as the glaciated surfaces of the 

 Northern Hemisphere. Whenever the furrows and scratches 

 were well preserved their trend was northern. 



I have recorded carefullyevery locality having a special interest 

 in reference to those facts. I will here only mention a few of 

 the most characteristic ones. The fh'st unquestionable i-o:Jies 

 iHoiitoiinc^s I saw were upon the nearest coast opposite Cape 

 E'roward — as the English maps have it — where the rocks are 

 bent and twisted, as those of the Dent du Midi and the Dent dc 

 Morchi. Cape Frouart — for such is the French name given by 

 Frezier to the southernmost promontory of the continent — is 

 itself rounded and polished, most especially on its south-west 

 exposure, with rugged crests as above the Grimsel in the Nageli's 

 Grath. All the hills between Snug Harbor and Wood Bay arc 

 equally rounded and polished to their very top. Even the wooded 

 part of the slope shows the characteristic undulations of glaciated 

 liill-sides. Many liills and mountains east and west of Cape 

 Holland exhibited the same aspect. I was particularly struck 

 with the appearance of a gentle slope between Cape Holland 

 and Point Coventry, the surface of which exhibited some naked 

 knolls distinctly glaciated, while the wooded part of the hill had 

 the same form. All these mountains recall the Vor Alps, such 

 as the Moleson, the Faulhorn, the Rhigi, and the Pilates, raiher 

 than the Alps themselves, even when entirely covered with iici-c 

 or ice. These rounded knoUs and glaciated surfaces penetrate 

 frequently into the narrow coves which open into the main 

 channel, in a north-south direction, at right angles with the 

 Str.iits themselves — thus showing that the grinding agent mujt 

 have moved from the south northward or from the north south- 

 ward, and not from east to west or from west to east, as the 

 Strait; mainly trend. In Port Gallant, I saw large .and small 

 pebbles, and large boulders, many at least 6 ft. in diameter, and 

 one measuring 12 ft. by 6 ft. and 5 ft., well rounded, and more 

 or less polished, with rectilinear scratches in different direc- 

 tions .all over their surface — in fact, such as are only found in 

 genuine ground moraines. 



The whole of Fortescue Bay, with the exception of a snnll 

 land beach, on which we f:)unda Fuegian camp, is covered with 

 erratics. Even within high and low water mark many pebble; 

 still show glacial scratches, though they are constantly tossed to 

 and fro by the tides. Pourtales had the good fortune to be the 

 first to see genuine glacier scratches, above Port Gallant, upon 

 polished rocks in place. It was upon the surface of a quartz 

 dyke traversing talcose slate. The trend of the scratches was 



west-north-west. There are roches moulonitces all the way from 

 Fortescue Bay to Jerome Point, Cross Mountain included. 

 Jerome Point itself is well polished, especia'ly on the south side. 

 York River Valley, which trends northward, is also well polished 

 on both sides. Between the last two ranges of Jerome Point, 

 westward, there is a cove trending northward, in which the 

 roches inoulonih'ts are as characteristic as upon the sides and fice 

 of the whole Point. The gorge opposite is equally ni^nitoiinlc 

 on both sides, showing that the denudation has not yet been the 

 work of an agent moving east-west or west-east through the 

 main channel. The two heads of the narrowest part of the 

 straits (El Morion and Cape Gnod) are beautifully p jlished and 

 rounded. The last range of Jerome Point seems to .show that 

 the abrading cause acted from S.S.W. toN.N. E. lu Borgia 

 liay the ground is covered with large pebbles and boulders, S3me 

 of the largest of which are rounded, pol'shed, and scratched. 

 Pourtales and Kennedy ascended the peak markel 1,923 upon 

 the Admiralty map of Borgia Bry, and found roches lujutcnnccs 

 to the height of about 1,500ft., while higher up the rocks were 

 broken into rugged ridges. The whole scenery remiuded me of 

 the Abschwartz, above the glacier of the Aar. Some of the 

 polished surfaces resembled, in the most surprising manner, 

 places represented in my works upon the glaciers, and might 

 have served as models for the illustrations I published of the 

 glacial phenomena in Switzerland more than thirty years ago. 

 No promontory in the whole extent of the straits, seen from 

 either its eastern or its western side, shows a; probable a strike- 

 side of the polishing agent as the north and south exposures ; 

 leading to the presumption that the planing-machine has moved 

 north and south, even though every surface seems almost equally 

 well polished. Nothing indica'es the fitful action of icebergs. 

 Glacier Bay has also been for me a most fraitful field of study ; 

 but of this more in detail later. In the harbour of Sholl Bay 

 there are several concentric moraines marked by boulders and 

 kelp, which may have been deposited by the great glacier on the 

 opposite side ol the channel. 



\Vith all the evidences of glacier action constantly before our 

 eyes, the journey from Cape Frouart to Cape Tamar was never- 

 theless tantalising to me, because it gave no opportunity for 

 tracing the facts in unbroken continuity. The course of the 

 Straits of Magellan bearing m.ainly in an east- westerly direction 

 cuts everywhere at right angles, the effects produced by the 

 southern ice-shoes upon the solid foundation of the whole track. 

 Only after we had rounded Cape Tamar and passed Sholl Bay 

 did we enter a channel bearing in the same direction with the 

 glacial erosion, and thus affording an opportunity of following 

 connectedly on the opposite side; of the whole channel, as far as 

 the Gulf of Pennas, the traces left by glaciers upon the surface 

 of the rocks. Here, as in reference to the Straits of Magellan, 

 I shall describe only such locaUties as have a marked interest, 

 reserving more details for another occasion. The facts spoke so 

 plainly that even those not familiar with them were struck by 

 their distinctness. Following the inside route through Smyth's 

 Ch.annel to the Gulf of Pennas, we were all the way within 

 touching distance of the rocky walls of those narrow passages, 

 so that nothing could escape us, and as the intricacy of the chan- 

 nels forebade travelling by night, we lost nothing in that way. 



The Andes proper begin at Cape Providence, within the 

 Straits of Magellan, but their alpine character is not strikingly 

 developed south of Union Sound, even though at the bottom of 

 Glacier Sound very high mountains with large glaciers may be 

 seen. Mount Burncy may be compared to Mount Sarmiento ; 

 still, throughout Smyth's Channel, until coming into CoUin^wood 

 Strait, through Victory Pass, the scenery is very much like that 

 of the Straits. In the southern parts of Smyth's Channel, I for 

 the first time noticed un unmistakable difference between the 

 southern and northern exposures of the nearer ranges trending 

 N.S. Here it became every hour more plain that the strike-side 

 of the glacial agency i.\as upon the southern slope, and the lee 

 side upon the northern. As soon as the Cordillera of Sarmieuto 

 opens into view the grandeur of the range is fully displayed. 

 From the highest mountains glaciers depend to the sea level, 

 which may lie fairly compared to ihe most impressive glaciers of 

 Switzerland. Throughout this region, as well as in other parts 

 of the Straits, the nomenclature of the islands and mountains, as 

 adopted upon the Admiralty chart, has a character very pleasing 

 to a scientific man, and very creditable to those who have wishetl 

 to connect the memory of their distinguished contemporaries and 

 friends with their own investigations. Indeed, the names of all 

 the prominent men of Enghnd, distinguished for their devotion 



