XXXII. 



On the physiography of Northeastern Australia. 



By Dr. J. V. Daneš. 



(Presented Nov. 24th. 1911.) 



The. history of the scientifical exploration of the coast of North- 

 eastern australia together with the Great Barrier Reef opens to stu- 

 dents of the development of scientific methods in geology and geo- 

 graphy a most interesting and instructive field. 



We must not go back to the early explorers, whose rather de- 

 scriptive way of writiDg does not give much space to theoretising, 

 -but can start with Jukes 1 ) and proceed to Sa ville-Kent '*) and Agas- 

 siz 3 ), the most important explorers of the Great Barrier Reef area. 

 Darwin's theory of the formation and origin of the coral reefs has 

 been a leading idea to ail three investigators and they endeavoured 

 to bring the results of their own observations into a definitive, po- 

 sitive or negative, relation to that theory. They ail succeeded only 

 partly ; Jukes and Kent became adhérents of the theory of subsidence 

 although Ihey were not able to explain some facts which in their own 

 opinion were rather opposed to it ; Agassiz, on the other side, became 

 a decided adversary of that theory, but became involved in a chaos 

 of contradictory facts and opinions. 



Especially Agassiz as the last and undoubtedly greatest scientist 

 of ail three principal Barrier Reef investigators shows in his expia- 

 nations and conclusions on the origin of the Reef and its geological 



x ) Narrative of the Surveying Voyage of H. M. S. Fly. 



2 ) The Great Barrier Reef of Australia; its products and potentialités. 



3 ) A visit to the Great Barrier Reef of Australia in the steamer „Croydon". 

 Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. Harward Col. XXVIII1. 4. 



Věstník král. české spol. nauk. Třída II. -*• 



