778 ROLLIN D. SALISBURY 



Steep faces of glaciers. — Professor Chamberlin has repeatedly 

 called attention to the remarkably steep faces of the average 

 glacier in the high latitudes of the west coast of Greenland^ 

 (see Figs. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, and ii). I was fortunate enough to 

 see many glaciers which Professor Chamberlin did not, and his 

 generalization was confirmed by the facts gathered from other 

 sources. Steep, and even vertical, faces frequently affect both 

 the ends and the sides of the glaciers. It is not true, how- 

 ever, that the sides and ends of all glaciers in the high 

 latitudes of Greenland are vertical or approximately so, though 

 this is the general rule north of Cape York. In many cases, 

 instead of having vertical faces, the ends and sides of glaciers 

 slope down to the bed of the ice by steep convex curves 

 (Figs. 6 and 7). These slopes are usually so steep as to 

 make ascent or descent difficult, and often impossible. In a 

 few cases only, so few as to make them conspicuous, the slopes 

 both of ends and sides are so gentle as to allow ready ascent. 

 In some of these cases, if not in all, the low angle was due to 

 the exceptional accumulation of drifted snow (Fig. 8) about the 

 borders of the glacier proper. This drifted snow had become 

 consolidated into granular ice, so that the glacier proper had 

 really received an addition all around its margin, giving it 

 gentle slopes. 



The phenomena of the edges and ends of the glaciers are in 

 keeping with the phenomena of the edge of the ice-cap itself. 

 Where the latter lies on a plain surface, its edge is not usually 

 vertical, but its slope is so steep that ascent is difficult (Figs. 6, 

 8, 9). It will be seen from the figures that the angle of slope 

 near the edge is high, but becomes rapidly less with increasing 

 distance from the margin. Only where snow has drifted against 

 the edge of the ice-cap, as it has done in many places, forming 

 an extensive foot, (Fig. 8) is the slope of its edge gentle 

 enough to make ascent comfortable at any point where it was 

 seen. 



Overhanging layers of ice. — Not only are the edges and ends 



' Glacial Studies in Greenland, Vols. II, III, and IV, of this Journal. 



