Dec. 23, 1886] 



NATURE 



183 



Alps (wliose affinities were so closely Tasninnian) might safely 

 be centred in glacial movements since Miocene times (" Re- 

 marks on Flora of Australian Alps," Southern Science Record, 

 1SS5, p. 93^, provided geological evidences which would lend 

 support to the hypothesis could be obtained ; for, as remarked by 

 the ex-Pre>ident of theLinnean Society, Mr. Wilkinson, F.G.S., 

 F.L.S., in one of his admirable addresses to the Society (Pre- 

 sident's Address, Linn. Soc. N.S.W., vol. ix., p. 1236), the 

 existence of a semi-tropic flora in South-East Australia during 

 Pliocene times and its subsequent banishment from this region is 

 evidence of a great change of climate in Post-Pliocene times. 



In a paper which I have in preparation on the geographic 

 range of the flora of the ,\ustralian Alps, it « ill be shown that 

 many species found there between 2000 and 5000 feet have a 

 wide range, recent researches on the flora of Morocco in Africa, 

 and on that of Kurum Valley, Afghanistan, having disclosed 

 the presence of numerous species of plants common to the 

 Australian Alps ; and as Sir Joseph Hooker remarked many 

 years since in his splendid essay on the flora of Australia, "if 

 as complete evidence of such a proportionately cooled state of 

 the intertropical regions were forthcoming as there is of a glacial 

 condition of the temperate zones, it would amply suffice to 

 account for the presence of European and Arctic species in the 

 Antarctic and south temperate regions of both hemispheres on 

 the mountains of intermediate tropical latitudes." 



As early as 1882 I discovered many examples of what ap- 

 peared to be glaciated surfaces in the higher regions of the 

 .\ustralian Alps, notwithstanding that in some areas there were 

 strong evidences of powerful sub-aerial denudation and erosion 

 having taken place during Pleistocene times. En passant, I may 

 mention that these apparently glaciated surfaces were seen on 

 the quartz porphyries of Mount Cobboras at elevations between 

 4000 and 6000 feet ; on the metamorphic rocks of Mount 

 Pilot on the Pilot River Valley, down to 3000 feet ; and on the 

 granitic rocks of Mount Kosciusko, recently photographed by 

 Dr. von Lendenfeld. Partly, however, from inexperience of 

 glaciated surfaces elsewhere, I hesitated to pronounce authorita- 

 tively on them as glacier evidences until further opportunities 

 were aft'orded me of discovering moraines and erratics at the 

 lower levels. From the fact that my friend, Mr. \. W. Howitt, 

 F. G. S., had not observed any appearances which he could in 

 any way refer to a glacial period analogous with that of the 

 northern hemisphere, unless (as he further remarks) the old lake 

 basins near Omeo might suggest the action of ice (" Geology of 

 North Gippsland," Q.J. G.S. Land., vol. xxxv. p. 35), I thought 

 it very probable that any pre-existing evidences at the lower levels 

 might have been scoured away by a subsequent pluviatile period 

 (" On a Geological Sketch Section through the Australian Alps," 

 Trans. Roy. Soc. S..4., 1S84). 



The publication by my friend, Mr. G. S. Griffiths, of a 

 paper on evidences of a glacial epoch in Victoria during Post- 

 -Miocene times (Tians. Roy. Soc. Vict., 18S4), induced me to 

 re-examine the evidences at the higher altitudes, and to endeavour 

 to follow the traces to lower levels in the Indi and Mitta Mitta 

 Valleys, with the result that I felt justified in making the an- 

 nouncement previously referred to on December ir, 1884, even 

 though some of the phenomena therein ascribed to glacier action 

 might be found on closer scrutiny to have been produced by 

 other cause-. The ind'cations taken as a whole were sufficient 

 in my opinion to justify the hypothesis of glaciation, for on no 

 other conceivable theory, as it appeared to me, could the facts 

 .as a whole be accoimted for ; while refrigeration of the area, and 

 the consequent production of glaciers in the valleys of the 

 Australian .\Ips over wide areas, would harmonise with conclu- 

 sions deducible from an examination of the flora and fauna. In 

 the beginning of January 1885, Dr. von Lendenfeld ascended 

 Mount Kosciusko and photographed some glaciated surfaces. 

 From the absence of any reference to my previous announce- 

 ments save a mere reference from the Soidhirn Science Record to 

 the snow p.atches at the higher regions of the Australian .\lps, I 

 inferred that Dr. von Lendenfeld was unaware of my previous 

 writings and discoveries, or he would not have stated in his 

 interesting paper "On the Glacial Period in Australia," read 

 before the Linnean Society of N.S.W. during January 1885, 

 that the glacial area was limited to 100 square miles above 5800 

 feet .altitude. On July 9 I published in the Transactions of 

 the Royal Society of Victoria the first of an intended series of 

 papers "On the Evidences of Glaciation in the Australian 

 Alps,' detailing certain phenomena in the Livingstone Creek 

 and Victoria River Valleys. During the same month a 



paper, by Captain, now Professor, Hutton, F.G. S. , of New 

 Zealand, was read before the Linnean Society of N.S. W., 

 "On the Supposed Glacial Epoch in Australia," being 

 in part a reply to Dr. von Lendenfeld's previous writings 

 concerning a very recent glacier epoch in the southern hemi- 

 sphere, based upon New Zealand experiences and explorations, 

 and partly an endeavour to show that the roc/ies moutonnecs and 

 smoothed surfaces on Mount Kosciusko by no means imply, or, 

 to use the actual words of the learned Professor, "it by no 

 means follows,'that they were caused by a glacial epoch, because 

 they might equally well be due to greater elevation, combined 

 with greater atmospheric moisture. We are also advi^etl to 

 " distrust an attempt to explain an isolated phcHomenon by means 

 of a wide-spread cause. " Now it appears to me that Captain 

 Hutton would not have assumed the isolation of the phenomena 

 if he had been fully acquainted with the literature of the subject, 

 and especially my announcement previously referred to. I do 

 not propose to join issue with him in respect to the distinction 

 he seeks to draw between a " glacier epoch " and a "glacial 

 epoch," but merely to show that the phenomena of glaciation 

 are not so isolated as his remarks would lead one to suppose he 

 believes them to be. I am led to make these remarks because 

 as a student of ph) siography I feel very much indebted to Prof. 

 Hutton for the valuable information supplied by his writings con- 

 cerning the geological structure, flora, fauna, and climatology 

 of New Zealand, and I should be sorry to know that he 

 laboured under any misapprehension as to the nature and extent 

 of the evidences of glaciation in the .\ustralian .\lps. Following 

 the publication of the papers of myself and Prof. Hutton we 

 have one by Prof. Tate, F.G.S., of South Australia (" On Post- 

 Miocene Climate in South Australia," Trans. Roy. Soc. S..4., 

 1885), read before the Royal Society of that colony, in which 

 are stated very clearly the evidences in favour of a glacial period 

 in South Australia. The objections by Mr. Scoullar, Cor. Mem., 

 as to the origin of the glaciated surfaces near Adelaide, viz. that 

 they were caused "by the attrition of blown sand," are also con- 

 troverted. I have seen some photographs of these glaciated sur- 

 faces (sent to me for inspection by Prof. Tate), and they resemble 

 very strongly the glaciated surfaces on Mounts Cobboras and 

 Bogong, to be hereinafter referred to. Dr. von Lendenfeld has 

 also seen some photographs of polished rocks from South 

 Australia, and has no doubt as to the glacier origin of the 

 polishing ("Note on the Glacial Period in Australia," Proc. 

 Linn. Soc. N.S. IV., vol. x. p. 330), although he doubts whether 

 the strice referred to are isochronal with the glacial traces he dis- 

 covered on Mount Kosciusko. In consequence of a very inter- 

 esting correspondence on the subject of glacier evidences between 

 Dr. von Lendenfeld and myself, it was arranged that we should 

 make a joint trip to the highest mountain in Victoria, Mount 

 Bogong, and, if time and circumstances permitted, explore the 

 Bogong High Plains to the south, and proceed thence along the 

 main dividing range towards Mount Kosciusko, so that his exten- 

 sive European .Alpine experience and my local geological know- 

 ledge might be utilised, and the features discussed on the ground. 

 On Jauu.iry 3, 1886, we met at Snowy Creek junction, a 

 tributary of the Mitta, and on the following three days made 

 the ascent of Mount Bogong from the north, an arduous journey, 

 but still of great interest. Dr. von Lendenfeld has already 

 described our journey in the publications of the Mining Depart- 

 ment of Victoria (Mining Registrar's Retttrns for Quarter ended 

 March), so that it is unnecessary for me to repeat the narrative. 

 Suffice it to say that the evidences of glaciation discovered by 

 us are : — 



(1) Erratics in the Reewa River and Snowy Creek Valleys. 



(2) Biocs paries and smoothed surfaces on Mount Bogong. _ 



(3) Moraines at base of Mount Bogong, Mountain Creek in 

 Reewa River Valley. 



The first-n.amed' are abundant in the Pleistocene drifts at 

 Snowy Creek, consisting of huge basaltic boulders, &c., in linear 

 extension for miles, as at Gr.anite Flat ; the nearest basaltic 

 outliers being fully twenty miles distant on Bogong High 

 Plains, &c. 



The second, or what I have called ilocs perches, are large 

 semi-rounded or sub-angular masses of igneous or rather plutonic 

 rock — hornblende porphyrites — occupying the crests of spurs au'l 

 sidelings in a regular descending series from near the summit of 

 Mount Bogong, 6508 feet, towards the Reewa Valley, many of 

 them resting upon smoothed surfaces of pegmatite at lower 

 levels. (Mount Bogong is gneissic.) 



The last-named are huge masses of angular and sub-angular 



