THE BEDSHIEL KAIMS 305 



Meanwhile, the whole of the precipitation taking place in 

 the Scandinavian Peninsula (which, like Britain, then stood 

 much higher above the sea than it does now) had also given 

 rise to similar geographical conditions as obtained here. 

 But, as the quantity of aqueous vapour carried forward with 

 the Gulf Stream to the coast of Norway was then much the 

 same as it is now, and, furthermore, as the mountains were 

 higher, a correspondingly larger quantity of glacier-ice was 

 formed. For a considerable time this glacier-ice extended 

 far over what is now the North Sea, and, meeting on 

 our coasts the ice of local origin, turned it out of its 

 first direction into a different one, which in Berwickshire 

 followed the coast-line instead of its original direction radial 

 to the mountain centres. 



That the influence of this Scandinavian ice upon the 

 direction of movement of the ice of local origin was by no 

 means unimportant, and that its influence continued for a 

 long time, is well shown by the fact that an extensive series 

 of deep grooves, excavated in the solid rock, traverses the 

 maritime parts of Berwickshire from end to end. These 

 grooves are especially well seen about Cockburnspath, and 

 were referred to, as far back as the early "sixties," by Sir 

 Archibald Geikie, as in some way due to glacial action. 

 They trend north and south, and are of such a nature as 

 could have been produced only by glacial causes operating 

 under such conditions as those described. 



In this connection I must again digress for a short space, 

 in order to explain how I suppose these features were 

 shaped. There are many reasons for believing that the 

 views until lately current regarding the physics of glacier 

 movement will have to be very considerably modified. So 

 far as field evidence is concerned, nothing can be clearer 

 than the fact that there has been, quite recently, some very 

 important modifications of the surface of the land. Old 

 valleys, shaped by rivers in pre-glacial times, have been 

 enlarged, and irregularly deepened, to a very important 

 extent ; mountain sides have been sculptured in a fashion 

 entirely different from what could possibly result from the 

 action of either the sea or the ordinary forces which are at 

 work in moulding the surface of the land ; and wide and 



