﻿J. 
  F. 
  CAMPBELL 
  ON 
  POLAR 
  GLACIATION 
  ETC. 
  461 
  

  

  glacial 
  hypothesis, 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  rudely 
  shaken 
  before 
  between 
  

   Petrovsk 
  and 
  Vladikavkas. 
  

  

  October 
  4th. 
  We 
  drove 
  up 
  a 
  beautiful 
  gorge 
  with 
  well-marked 
  

   terraces 
  of 
  rolled 
  stones 
  at 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  it, 
  and 
  with 
  many 
  very 
  

   large 
  stones 
  scattered 
  about 
  ; 
  but 
  I 
  saw 
  nothing 
  glacial 
  in 
  the 
  

   gorge. 
  The 
  rocks 
  at 
  first 
  were 
  limestone, 
  with 
  springs 
  of 
  clear 
  

   water. 
  The 
  limestone, 
  which 
  is 
  much 
  bent, 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  I 
  could 
  make 
  

   out 
  from 
  the 
  carriage, 
  overlies 
  unconformably 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  beds 
  

   dipping 
  northwards 
  at 
  a 
  high 
  angle. 
  

  

  I 
  noted 
  in 
  succession 
  " 
  shales," 
  " 
  flags," 
  " 
  slates," 
  " 
  mica-schist." 
  

   Through 
  all 
  these 
  beds 
  the 
  river 
  has 
  cut 
  narrow 
  gates 
  of 
  the 
  usual 
  

   square 
  pattern, 
  while 
  the 
  side 
  streams 
  have 
  cut 
  the 
  usual 
  V-shaped 
  

   furrows. 
  Up 
  to 
  750 
  feet 
  the 
  road 
  went 
  over 
  river-pebbles 
  and 
  gravels, 
  

   with 
  an 
  occasional 
  fallen 
  stone, 
  as 
  big 
  as 
  a 
  house, 
  near 
  cliffs. 
  

  

  Then 
  we 
  got 
  to 
  igneous 
  rock 
  and 
  to 
  strata 
  dipping 
  north 
  as 
  

   before. 
  At 
  Kasbeg 
  Station, 
  2620 
  feet 
  above 
  Vladikavkas, 
  we 
  

   stopped, 
  and 
  I 
  sketched 
  a 
  high 
  mountain-glen 
  without 
  a 
  single 
  

   glacial 
  mark 
  in 
  it 
  that 
  I 
  could 
  recognize. 
  The 
  water 
  in 
  the 
  

   river 
  was 
  cold, 
  but 
  certainly 
  not 
  a 
  glacier-stream 
  like 
  those 
  which 
  

   I 
  have 
  seen 
  in 
  the 
  Alps, 
  in 
  Iceland, 
  and 
  in 
  Norway. 
  

  

  October 
  5th. 
  I 
  sketched 
  Kasbeg, 
  which 
  is 
  a 
  tall 
  pyramid 
  of 
  rock 
  

   on 
  which 
  a 
  considerable 
  quantity 
  of 
  new 
  snow 
  lay, 
  but 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  

   show 
  the 
  rock 
  and 
  its 
  structure. 
  I 
  saw 
  nothing 
  like 
  a 
  glacier 
  from 
  

   below. 
  "We 
  drove 
  past 
  Sionski 
  Gori, 
  which 
  is 
  all 
  spires 
  and 
  pinnacles 
  

   like 
  the 
  rocks 
  above 
  Romsdal 
  in 
  Norway. 
  At 
  one 
  place 
  near 
  the 
  

   station 
  of 
  Kobi 
  is 
  a 
  bed 
  of 
  basalt 
  (fig. 
  3, 
  a) 
  with 
  bent 
  pillars 
  ; 
  it 
  is 
  

   nearly 
  horizontal 
  and 
  unconformable 
  to 
  the 
  rest 
  of 
  the 
  strata, 
  which 
  

   have 
  the 
  same 
  northern 
  dip. 
  Rock-crystal 
  is 
  found 
  and 
  sold 
  to 
  

   travellers. 
  Near 
  the 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  pass 
  water 
  is 
  coloured 
  red 
  and 
  

   yellow 
  by 
  mineral 
  springs. 
  Close 
  to 
  the 
  top 
  is 
  a 
  bed 
  of 
  lime- 
  

   stone 
  unconformable 
  and 
  nearly 
  horizontal. 
  From 
  this 
  runs 
  a 
  

   spring 
  which 
  deposits 
  a 
  yellow 
  stuff 
  which 
  I 
  took 
  for 
  a 
  wreath 
  of 
  

   old 
  snow. 
  It 
  is 
  like 
  the 
  Sprudel 
  deposit, 
  and 
  forms 
  on 
  grass 
  and 
  

   stones 
  and 
  every 
  thing, 
  in 
  layers 
  like 
  the 
  stuff 
  which 
  forms 
  about 
  

   the 
  Geysirs 
  in 
  Iceland. 
  At 
  the 
  summit 
  my 
  aneroid 
  marked 
  22-800, 
  

   7*700 
  lower 
  than 
  at 
  the 
  Caspian, 
  which 
  gives 
  about 
  6930 
  feet. 
  

   The 
  height 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  be 
  8000 
  feet. 
  From 
  the 
  top 
  we 
  trotted 
  

   merrily 
  down 
  into 
  Asia, 
  passing 
  quartz-flags 
  much 
  shattered, 
  and 
  

   got 
  into 
  a 
  different 
  climate 
  and 
  country. 
  It 
  was 
  green, 
  with 
  lots 
  

   of 
  hay. 
  A 
  plant 
  with 
  red 
  leaves 
  grew 
  in 
  clumps 
  and 
  made 
  the 
  

   hill- 
  side 
  like 
  a 
  garden 
  on 
  a 
  lawn. 
  The 
  rivers 
  ran 
  clear. 
  

  

  We 
  had 
  got 
  from 
  the 
  arid 
  rainless 
  country 
  to 
  a 
  watered 
  land. 
  

   We 
  trotted 
  rapidly 
  down 
  to 
  24-700, 
  where 
  we 
  reached 
  a 
  village 
  and 
  

   a 
  clear 
  river, 
  and 
  stopped. 
  For 
  some 
  distance 
  down 
  the 
  first 
  pitch 
  

   the 
  rocks 
  have 
  the 
  same 
  northerly 
  dip. 
  Near 
  the 
  river 
  is 
  a 
  bed 
  of 
  

   basalt 
  (fig. 
  3, 
  b) 
  which 
  crops 
  out 
  along 
  the 
  hill-side. 
  The 
  pillars 
  are 
  

   very 
  large 
  and 
  crossed 
  by 
  joints 
  or 
  flows 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  lava. 
  Near 
  this 
  

   are 
  beds 
  of 
  stone 
  like 
  the 
  rock 
  of 
  Gulbrandsdal 
  in 
  Norway 
  (Silurian?). 
  

   Pebbles 
  in 
  the 
  river 
  are 
  blue, 
  with 
  white 
  crossing 
  veins. 
  The 
  basalt 
  

   seems 
  horizontal 
  and 
  unconformable. 
  

  

  