﻿480 
  MESSES. 
  E. 
  T. 
  NEWTON 
  AND 
  J. 
  J. 
  H. 
  TEALL 
  ON 
  [Dec. 
  1 
  89 
  7, 
  

  

  the 
  reading 
  of 
  the 
  paper, 
  Mr. 
  Etheridge 
  referred 
  to 
  the 
  widespread 
  

   distribution 
  of 
  the 
  basalts, 
  which 
  he 
  regarded 
  as 
  being 
  probably 
  of 
  

   the 
  same 
  age 
  as 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Giants' 
  Causeway. 
  

  

  During 
  the 
  second 
  voyage 
  of 
  the 
  Eira 
  in 
  1881, 
  which 
  unfor- 
  

   tunately 
  terminated 
  in 
  the 
  loss 
  of 
  the 
  ship, 
  a 
  raised 
  beach, 
  90 
  feet 
  

   above 
  sea-level, 
  was 
  found 
  in 
  Gray 
  Bay, 
  and 
  cliffs 
  of 
  columnar 
  

   basalt, 
  800 
  feet 
  in 
  height, 
  were 
  observed 
  at 
  the 
  same 
  locality. 
  1 
  

   Fossil 
  wood 
  was 
  found 
  on 
  David 
  Island. 
  

  

  Dr. 
  Hansen's 
  book, 
  ' 
  Farthest 
  North/ 
  contains 
  many 
  references 
  

   to 
  the 
  geology 
  of 
  the 
  parts 
  of 
  Franz 
  Josef 
  Land 
  visited 
  by 
  him. 
  

   The 
  first 
  rock 
  touched 
  in 
  his 
  memorable 
  journey 
  towards 
  the 
  south 
  

   is 
  described 
  as 
  a 
  coarse-grained 
  basalt, 
  2 
  and 
  he 
  refers 
  to 
  the 
  

   occurrence 
  of 
  basalt 
  on 
  the 
  western 
  coasts 
  of 
  Karl 
  Alexander 
  Land 
  

   and 
  Frederick 
  Jackson 
  Island 
  ; 
  also 
  at 
  Capes 
  McClintock, 
  Fisher, 
  

   and 
  Richthofen. 
  In 
  justice 
  to 
  Mr. 
  Jackson 
  it 
  should 
  be 
  remem- 
  

   bered 
  that 
  he 
  had 
  visited 
  most 
  of 
  these 
  localities 
  in 
  1895, 
  and 
  had 
  

   observed 
  the 
  occurrence 
  of 
  basalt. 
  

  

  In 
  many 
  places 
  the 
  rock 
  exhibited 
  the 
  characteristic 
  columnar 
  

   structure 
  in 
  the 
  most 
  perfect 
  manner. 
  While 
  staying 
  with 
  Jackson 
  

   at 
  Cape 
  Flora, 
  Dr. 
  Nansen 
  examined 
  the 
  geological 
  structure 
  of 
  the 
  

   neighbourhood 
  of 
  that 
  cape, 
  the 
  points 
  of 
  interest 
  being 
  shown 
  to 
  him 
  

   by 
  Dr. 
  Koettlitz, 
  the 
  doctor 
  and 
  geologist 
  of 
  the 
  English 
  expedition. 
  

   The 
  basalt 
  appears 
  at 
  a 
  height 
  of 
  500 
  or 
  600 
  feet, 
  and 
  below 
  this 
  

   is 
  a 
  soft 
  clay 
  containing 
  lumps 
  of 
  an 
  argillaceous 
  sandstone, 
  in 
  

   which 
  fossils 
  occur. 
  At 
  first 
  Dr. 
  ISTansen 
  held 
  the 
  view 
  that 
  the 
  

   stratified 
  deposits 
  belonged 
  to 
  a 
  late 
  beach-formation, 
  but 
  Dr. 
  

   Koettlitz 
  showed 
  him 
  that 
  these 
  deposits 
  actually 
  passed 
  under- 
  

   neath 
  the 
  basalt. 
  Dr. 
  Nansen 
  also 
  observed 
  thin 
  strata 
  of 
  basalt 
  

   in 
  the 
  clay, 
  below 
  the 
  main 
  mass. 
  The 
  fossils 
  were 
  mainly 
  

   ammonites 
  and 
  belemnites, 
  and 
  these 
  convinced 
  him 
  that 
  they 
  

   belonged 
  to 
  the 
  Jurassic 
  period. 
  The 
  main 
  mass 
  of 
  basalt 
  was 
  

   coarser 
  in 
  grain 
  than 
  ordinary 
  basalt, 
  and 
  resembled 
  the 
  so-called 
  

   ' 
  diabases 
  ' 
  of 
  Spitsbergen. 
  

  

  Dr. 
  Nansen 
  points 
  out 
  that 
  the 
  situation 
  of 
  the 
  basalt 
  on 
  

   Northbrook 
  Island 
  is 
  different 
  from 
  that 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  observed 
  

   farther 
  north. 
  Here 
  it 
  was 
  found 
  at 
  a 
  height 
  of 
  500 
  or 
  600 
  feet, 
  

   whereas 
  north 
  of 
  lat. 
  81°, 
  at 
  Capes 
  Fisher, 
  McClintock, 
  Clements 
  

   Markham, 
  and 
  many 
  other 
  localities, 
  it 
  descended 
  to 
  the 
  sea-level. 
  

   He 
  regards 
  the 
  basalt 
  as 
  in 
  great 
  part 
  of 
  Jurassic 
  age. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Jackson 
  and 
  Dr. 
  Koettlitz 
  discovered 
  innumerable 
  fragments 
  

   of 
  rock, 
  containing 
  plant-remains, 
  resting 
  on 
  a 
  mass 
  of 
  basalt 
  which, 
  

   at 
  a 
  height 
  of 
  more 
  than 
  700 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  sea, 
  projected 
  through 
  

   the 
  glacier 
  on 
  the 
  north 
  of 
  Cape 
  Flora. 
  Dr. 
  Nansen 
  was 
  taken 
  to 
  

   this 
  spot 
  by 
  Dr. 
  Koettlitz, 
  and 
  they 
  brought 
  away 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  

   specimens, 
  some 
  of 
  which 
  were 
  submitted 
  to 
  Dr. 
  Nathorst, 
  and 
  

  

  1 
  See 
  the 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  voyage 
  by 
  C. 
  E. 
  Markham, 
  Proc. 
  Roy. 
  Geogr. 
  Soc. 
  

   n. 
  s. 
  vol. 
  v. 
  (1883) 
  p. 
  204. 
  

  

  2 
  Vol. 
  ii. 
  p. 
  306. 
  In 
  his 
  diary 
  the 
  rock 
  is 
  called 
  a 
  granite, 
  but 
  in 
  a 
  footnote 
  

   he 
  adds 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  a 
  coarse-grained 
  basalt. 
  

  

  