﻿84 
  A. 
  C. 
  RAMSAY 
  OJf 
  THE 
  PHYSICAL 
  HISTORY 
  

  

  the 
  alluvium, 
  all 
  the 
  way 
  from 
  Mulhausen 
  to 
  Mainz 
  and 
  the 
  neigh- 
  

   bourhood 
  of 
  Bingen. 
  Between 
  the 
  two 
  last-named 
  towns 
  and 
  the 
  

   country 
  west 
  of 
  Worms 
  they 
  form 
  broad 
  tablelands, 
  in 
  great 
  part 
  

   consisting 
  of 
  flat, 
  or 
  nearly 
  flat, 
  strata 
  of 
  limestone, 
  rising 
  in 
  places 
  

   from 
  300 
  to 
  about 
  450 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  plain 
  of 
  the 
  Rhine 
  (as 
  shown 
  

   in 
  fig. 
  3, 
  marked 
  a). 
  An 
  isolated 
  patch, 
  surrounded 
  by 
  alluvium, 
  

   according 
  to 
  Von 
  Dechen's 
  map, 
  rises 
  in 
  the 
  very 
  middle 
  of 
  the 
  

   great 
  plain 
  west 
  of 
  Carlsruhe, 
  rather 
  more 
  than 
  half 
  way 
  between 
  

   Basel 
  and 
  Mainz. 
  

  

  Taking 
  all 
  these 
  circumstances 
  into 
  account, 
  there 
  is 
  good 
  reason 
  

   for 
  the 
  belief 
  that 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  that 
  part 
  of 
  Germany 
  which 
  is 
  now 
  

   the 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  Rhine, 
  between 
  Basel 
  and 
  Mainz, 
  was 
  once 
  filled 
  

   with 
  Miocene 
  strata 
  (Map, 
  fig. 
  2), 
  the 
  precise 
  thickness 
  of 
  which 
  

   is 
  to 
  me 
  unknown. 
  If 
  we 
  consider 
  what 
  is 
  now 
  concealed 
  by 
  the 
  

   alluvium 
  (Map, 
  PI. 
  VIII.), 
  and 
  the 
  thickness 
  of 
  the 
  exposed 
  tabular 
  

   masses 
  irrespectively 
  of 
  the 
  removal 
  of 
  any 
  overlying 
  beds 
  by 
  denu- 
  

   dation, 
  then 
  the 
  original 
  plain 
  must 
  have 
  formed 
  the 
  surface 
  of 
  a 
  

   set 
  of 
  strata 
  from 
  300 
  to 
  500 
  feet 
  thick, 
  and 
  probably 
  more. 
  

  

  During 
  their 
  deposition, 
  and 
  when 
  completed, 
  these 
  strata, 
  to- 
  

   gether 
  with 
  those 
  of 
  Switzerland, 
  were 
  bounded 
  on 
  the 
  south 
  by 
  the 
  

   pre-Miocene 
  Alps, 
  on 
  the 
  east 
  by 
  the 
  mountains 
  of 
  the 
  Schwarzwald 
  

   and 
  the 
  Odenwald, 
  on 
  the 
  west 
  by 
  the 
  Vosges, 
  and 
  on 
  the 
  north 
  by 
  

   the 
  hilly 
  Devonian 
  plateau, 
  of 
  which 
  the 
  mountains 
  of 
  the 
  Taunus 
  

   form 
  part, 
  and 
  through 
  which 
  the 
  gorge 
  of 
  the 
  Rhine 
  now 
  passes 
  

   between 
  Bingen 
  and 
  Rolandseck 
  (see 
  Map, 
  fig. 
  2). 
  This 
  deep 
  gorge, 
  

   however, 
  had 
  then 
  no 
  existence 
  ; 
  and 
  at 
  that 
  time 
  the 
  Rhine 
  had 
  not 
  

   begun 
  to 
  flow 
  ; 
  for 
  the 
  drainage 
  of 
  the 
  area 
  under 
  review 
  was 
  partly 
  

   in 
  the 
  contrary 
  direction, 
  or 
  from 
  north 
  to 
  south, 
  during 
  the 
  deposi- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  Miocene 
  freshwater 
  strata 
  of 
  the 
  basin 
  of 
  Mainz 
  and 
  the 
  

   northern 
  part 
  of 
  Switzerland. 
  The 
  facts 
  as 
  understood 
  by 
  some 
  of 
  

   the 
  continental 
  geologists 
  are, 
  that 
  the 
  freshwater 
  Miocene 
  rocks 
  be- 
  

   tween 
  Mainz 
  and 
  Basel 
  were 
  altogether 
  deposited, 
  not 
  in 
  a 
  great 
  

   lake 
  or 
  lakes 
  which 
  were 
  sometimes 
  invaded 
  by 
  the 
  sea, 
  but 
  rather 
  

   in 
  the 
  alternating 
  freshwater 
  and 
  marine 
  beds 
  of 
  a 
  river 
  and 
  river- 
  

   mouth, 
  in 
  this 
  respect 
  resembling 
  the 
  estuarine 
  interstratifications 
  

   of 
  the 
  Purbeck, 
  Wealden, 
  and 
  fluvio-marine 
  Eocene 
  formations 
  of 
  

   the 
  Hampshire 
  basin. 
  In 
  certain 
  strata 
  the 
  pebbly 
  beds 
  of 
  this 
  

   Miocene 
  river 
  can 
  be 
  traced 
  all 
  the 
  way 
  from 
  a 
  northern 
  tract 
  formed 
  

   partly 
  by 
  the 
  present 
  strata 
  of 
  the 
  Kaiserstuhl, 
  whence 
  brooks 
  

   flowed 
  to 
  mingle 
  their 
  waters 
  with 
  tributary 
  streams 
  bearing 
  gravels 
  

   coming 
  from 
  those 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  Miocene 
  continent 
  now 
  called 
  the 
  

   Schwarzwald 
  and 
  the 
  Vosges. 
  These 
  conglomerate 
  beds, 
  with 
  dis- 
  

   tinctive 
  pebbles 
  showing 
  whence 
  they 
  came, 
  can 
  be 
  traced 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  

   Delsberg, 
  in 
  the 
  Bernese 
  Jura, 
  having 
  always 
  travelled 
  south. 
  

  

  The 
  foregoing 
  summary 
  of 
  events 
  of 
  the 
  Miocene 
  age 
  is 
  necessary, 
  

   otherwise 
  the 
  second 
  part 
  of 
  my 
  argument 
  would 
  not 
  be 
  clearly 
  

   intelligible. 
  

  

  The 
  upheaval 
  and 
  general 
  disturbance 
  of 
  the 
  Miocene 
  strata 
  over 
  

   large 
  European 
  areas* 
  altered 
  the 
  physical 
  geography 
  of 
  the 
  older 
  

   * 
  And 
  others 
  with 
  which 
  we 
  are 
  not 
  concerned 
  in 
  this 
  paper. 
  

  

  