﻿92 
  A. 
  C. 
  RAMSAY 
  ON 
  THE 
  PHYSICAL 
  HISTORY 
  

  

  river, 
  just 
  as 
  the 
  streams 
  that 
  issue 
  from 
  the 
  smaller 
  glaciers 
  of 
  

   to-day 
  attack 
  the 
  terminal 
  moraines 
  and 
  restrict 
  their 
  growth. 
  

  

  A 
  necessary 
  consequence 
  of 
  the 
  powerful 
  flow 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  large 
  

   body 
  of 
  glacier- 
  water 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  to 
  carry 
  the 
  waterworn 
  stones 
  

   onward 
  to 
  Basel 
  and 
  into 
  the 
  flats 
  beyond; 
  and 
  in 
  time, 
  as 
  the 
  river 
  

   changed 
  its 
  channel 
  and 
  wandered 
  hither 
  and 
  thither 
  across 
  the 
  

   plain, 
  the 
  gravels 
  got 
  scattered 
  over 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  its 
  area. 
  The 
  

   thick 
  strata 
  of 
  sand, 
  loam, 
  and 
  gravel 
  that 
  form 
  the 
  present 
  plain 
  of 
  

   the 
  Rhine 
  are 
  therefore 
  in 
  great 
  part 
  the 
  waterworn 
  debris 
  of 
  old 
  

   moraines, 
  just 
  as 
  the 
  gravels 
  of 
  the 
  plains 
  of 
  Piedmont 
  and 
  Lom- 
  

   bardy 
  are 
  relics 
  of 
  the 
  moraines 
  of 
  the 
  gigantic 
  glaciers 
  of 
  the 
  

   Italian 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  Alps. 
  This 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  origin 
  of 
  the 
  gravels 
  of 
  

   the 
  Rhine 
  was 
  pointed 
  out 
  to 
  me 
  thirteen 
  years 
  ago 
  by 
  Professor 
  

   Desor, 
  of 
  Neuchatel, 
  though 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  recollect 
  that 
  he 
  has 
  printed 
  

   any 
  thing 
  on 
  the 
  subject. 
  

  

  The 
  substance 
  of 
  the 
  foregoing 
  remarks 
  may 
  be 
  summed 
  up 
  as 
  

   follows 
  :— 
  

  

  1. 
  During 
  portions 
  of 
  the 
  Miocene 
  epoch 
  the 
  drainage 
  through 
  

   part 
  of 
  the 
  valley 
  that 
  lies 
  between 
  the 
  Schwarzwald 
  and 
  the 
  Vosges 
  

   was 
  in 
  great 
  part 
  from 
  north 
  to 
  south, 
  or, 
  in 
  other 
  words, 
  from 
  the 
  

   hills 
  north 
  of 
  Mainz 
  into 
  the 
  area 
  now 
  occupied 
  by 
  the 
  Miocene 
  rocks 
  

   of 
  Switzerland. 
  

  

  2. 
  After 
  those 
  physical 
  disturbances 
  and 
  elevations 
  that 
  closed 
  

   the 
  so-called 
  Miocene 
  epoch 
  in 
  these 
  regions, 
  the 
  direction 
  of 
  the 
  

   drainage 
  was 
  reversed, 
  and 
  thus 
  it 
  happened 
  that 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  3. 
  After 
  passing 
  through 
  the 
  hill-country 
  between 
  the 
  lake 
  of 
  

   Constance 
  and 
  the 
  place 
  where 
  Basel 
  now 
  stands, 
  the 
  Rhine 
  flowed 
  

   along 
  an 
  elevated 
  plain 
  formed 
  of 
  Miocene 
  rocks, 
  the 
  relics 
  of 
  which 
  

   still 
  exist 
  between 
  Basel 
  and 
  Mainz. 
  

  

  4. 
  At 
  the 
  same 
  time 
  the 
  Rhine 
  flowed 
  in 
  a 
  minor 
  valley 
  through 
  

   the 
  upland 
  country 
  formed 
  of 
  the 
  Devonian 
  rocks 
  that 
  now 
  con- 
  

   stitute 
  the 
  Taunus, 
  the 
  Hundsruck, 
  and 
  the 
  contiguous 
  high 
  land 
  

   lying 
  northerly 
  towards 
  Bonn. 
  

  

  5. 
  Then 
  by 
  the 
  ordinary 
  erosive 
  action 
  of 
  the 
  great 
  river 
  the 
  gorge 
  

   was 
  gradually 
  formed 
  and 
  deepened 
  to 
  its 
  present 
  level, 
  and 
  — 
  

  

  6. 
  Just 
  in 
  proportion 
  as 
  the 
  gorge 
  deepened, 
  so 
  the 
  gently 
  inclined 
  

   Miocene 
  strata 
  of 
  the 
  area 
  between 
  Mainz 
  and 
  Basel 
  were 
  also 
  in 
  

   great 
  part 
  worn 
  away, 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  leave 
  the 
  existing 
  plain, 
  which 
  to 
  

   the 
  uninstructed 
  eye 
  presents 
  the 
  deceptive 
  appearance 
  of 
  once 
  

   having 
  been 
  occupied 
  by 
  a 
  great 
  lake*. 
  

  

  * 
  Since 
  this 
  memoir 
  was 
  sent 
  to 
  the 
  Geological 
  Society 
  I 
  have 
  read 
  a 
  learned 
  

   paper 
  sent 
  to 
  me 
  by 
  Professor 
  Fridolin 
  Sandberger 
  " 
  On 
  the 
  Upper 
  Ehine 
  

   Valley 
  in 
  Tertiary 
  and 
  Diluvial 
  Times 
  " 
  (Das 
  Ausland, 
  No. 
  50, 
  Dec. 
  15, 
  1873). 
  

  

  This 
  memoir, 
  which 
  is 
  of 
  the 
  highest 
  value, 
  contains 
  a 
  great 
  amount 
  of 
  infor- 
  

   mation 
  on 
  the 
  relations, 
  stratigraphical 
  and 
  palfeontological, 
  of 
  all 
  the 
  formations 
  

   found 
  in 
  the 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  Ehine 
  from 
  the 
  Upper 
  Bunter 
  Sandstone 
  down 
  to 
  

   the 
  times 
  of 
  the 
  Loess 
  and 
  superficial 
  gravels. 
  

  

  Professor 
  Sandberger 
  only 
  here 
  and 
  there 
  incidentally 
  touches 
  upon 
  the 
  physi- 
  

   cal 
  questions 
  to 
  which 
  I 
  confine 
  myself, 
  and 
  apparently 
  had 
  no 
  intention 
  of 
  

   going 
  into 
  the 
  details 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  which 
  I 
  attempt 
  to 
  prove 
  what 
  I 
  conceive 
  to 
  be 
  

   the 
  physical 
  history 
  of 
  the 
  valley, 
  especially 
  in 
  its 
  later 
  stages. 
  Wherever 
  he 
  

   does 
  touch 
  on 
  these 
  subjects, 
  however, 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  discrepancy 
  in 
  our 
  views. 
  On 
  

  

  