346 
ICE- CLIFFS ON THE KOWAK RIVER 
undermining the cliffs. Both of these destructive agents caused 
great masses of soil and tree-laden ice to become detached and 
fall into the stream. Where the retreating waters of spring had 
left these masses of detached ice stranded on the adjacent beaches 
or bars, piles of soft dust almost entirely free from any gritty 
substance would be left as a monument to mark the spot where 
the ice had been melted by the summer sun. These small dust 
heaps are a characteristic feature' of the region where the ice- 
cliffs are found and are entirely different in appearance from the 
gravel and sand heaps deposited in the same wa}'^ by ice floated 
down from the upper river. 
An examination of the to])s of the ice-cliffs was very difficult 
on account of the dense undergrowth and the thick carpet of 
mo.ss, but on one we discovered a lake about a mile in diameter 
and situated some 500 yards from the face of the cliff. The water 
in this lake was fresh and clear, but upon being disturbed became 
exceedingly turbid, owing to the presence of a large quantity of 
fine, decayed vegetable matter on the bottom. A 2 )iece of the 
ice melted showed a residuum of fine, im{)alpable dust, which 
under a lens ]'>roved to be composed mainly of vegetable matter 
and, while fresh, emitted a very pungent, disagreeable odor. 
The countiy in this region is mostly rolling tundra plains, 
with innumerable small lakes and streams, all of which are tribu- 
tary to the larger river. There is no evidence of glacial action 
whatever, and it is not until the first mountain range is reached, 
a hundred miles further upstream, that any rocks in situ are seen. 
Here and further inland more plainly are to be found beds of 
trai>, which an examination shows to be a pronounced olivine 
diabase, with such minerals as hornblende, mica, feldspar, augite, 
etc, present. Other rock forms show unmistakable evidence of 
the eruptive agencies that have been at work in the formation of 
the upper river region. The formation of the remarkable ice- 
cliffs in the lower country is, however, a geological nut which 
the writer admits his inability to crack. 
General A. W. Greely discusses the Nansen Polar Expedi- 
tion at considerable length in Harper’s Weekly of September 19, 
eulogizing Dr Nansen’s courage and self-reliance, but taking 
strong exception to his leaving the Fram. 
