38 SURFACE GEOLOGY. 



entrance of Glencoe, I noticed strise upon the ledges running nearly N. W. and 

 S. E. At Oban, on the western shore of Scotland, I observed similar markings, 

 having a direction N. 50° to 60° W., and S. 50° to 60° E. A good example, also, 

 I observed upon the railway track at the Rath station, between Glasgow and Edin- 

 burgh — to say nothing of the examples pointed out around the latter city by her 

 eminent geologists. 



Perhaps it may be superfluous to mention that, on the hill lying directly east of 

 the village of Oban (where I was detained by ill health), Mrs. Hitchcock found 

 detrital accumulations of recent shells from 200 to 250 feet above the ocean. 

 Prof. James Nicol, in his Guide to the Geology of Scotland, mentions that a raised 

 beach occurs not far from Oban, but only some 30 feet above the sea. Others, 

 however, may have described the higher beach to which I allude. I noticed among 

 the shells those of Ostrea, Mytilus, Mya, &c. 



Valley of the Rhine. 



In travelling through Belgium, the most of which appears as if recently reclaimed 

 from the sea, and is, in fact, probably a not very ancient sea-bottom, I saw no terraces 

 nor beaches till I reached its northeast part. In the vicinity of Liege, beds of gravel 

 appear which I regard as beaches; and, as we approach the Rhine, the railroad is 

 tunnelled through a high deposit of this material. Emerging into the broad valley 

 of the Rhine, we find distinct, though not high, terraces. They are such as are 

 sometimes produced by the slow alteration of a river's bed, by the wearing away 

 of one of its banks and depositing a lower bank on the opposite side. Such a 

 terrace, some miles long and 15 to 20 feet high, I saw on the right side of the rail- 

 way between Cologne and Bonn, near the latter city. The beaches are composed 

 of sorted gravel and sand, but I observed no genuine drift in passing through the 

 Ai'dennes mountains. A little above Bonn, is one very distinct terrace, on the 

 south side of the river, above the meadow, with deposits like beaches above. 

 Before reaching the Siebengebirge, or seven mountains, are remains of terraces, 

 some of which have a rapid slope down the stream. But possibly these are rocky 

 platforms covered by detritus. Between the Siebengebirge and Aldernach, we 

 pass occasionally narrow meadows, on one side or the other, with terraces, and 

 sometimes beaches, higher up. Generally there are only two terraces besides the 

 meadow. The lower ones at least are composed, as I was told, mainly of Loess. 

 One of these terraced basins I noticed opposite Linz, at the mouth of the Ahr; 

 another opposite Niederbreisig. But I think it useless to particularize, as the 

 terraces all have the same general characters. They are usually of rather mode- 

 rate height and not wide. 



Above Aldernach the valley expands, with at least one terrace above the mea- 

 dows. Erom Coblentz to Bingen, the river is crooked, and the banks crowd so 

 closely upon it that terraces hardly exist. Above Bingen, terraces appear, espe- 

 cially on the- north side. The Chateau of Johannisberg, the property, as I was 

 told, of Prince Metternich, stands upon one of these, not less than 100 feet above 

 the river. Above this place, the mountains recede far from the river, and the 



