208 PROCEEDINGS OF THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



the sea, and nearly that height above the river, which is tidal far 

 above Albany. The strike, both of the Silurian and Devonian rocks 

 of the lower hills, is nearly north and south ; and, after traversing a 

 broken country for ten or twelve miles, the Catskill Range itself rises 

 in a long north and south escarpment, nearly 3000 feet above the 

 hilly ground that lies between it and the river. At the town of 

 Catskill, striations on the smoothed surfaces run nearly north and 

 south, following the trend of the Hudson Yalley between the Catskill 

 and Green Mountains; and at other points between the river and the 

 mountains they run about N.N.E. I was anxious to discover if on 

 the Catskill Mountains themselves there were any signs of true 

 glacier-action, this range being much higher than any other eleva- 

 tions which I had an opportunity of ascending. The low country is 

 as much or even more glaciated than Anglesea ; and the mountains 

 are as high as Snowdon ; and — ^though in latitude 42° N., whereas 

 North Wales is in latitude 52° to 53° — other conditions seemed very 

 much the same. Observations also in this region were of more 

 importance, since I am not aware that evidences of any kind of 

 glaciation on these heights had previously been definitely recorded. 

 The accompanying sketch-map (fig. 3), constructed on the spot, will 

 give an idea of the topography of that part of the range which I 

 examined. 



I ascended from the mouth of the valley misnamed " Sleepy 

 Hollow," up the steep and winding road to Mountain House. The 

 mountain is almost everywhere covered by dense wood, so that, 

 except on the roadside, it is comparatively rare to find the rocks 

 uncovered. In " Sleepy HoUow" the road runs nearly east and west. 

 Occasionally local drift lies on its steep northern side ; and on the 

 smoothed surfaces of rock I observed a few striations from N. to S., 

 and others from E. to "W. The former ran up and down the hill 

 towards the brook ; and the latter were on the vertical faces of the 

 little cliffs, up and down the valley. 



Passing the bend where the road crosses the brook, striations 

 became frequent ; and I was surprised to find that all of them 

 ran nearly N. and S. along the flanks of the escarpment, and not 

 from W. to E. down the slope of the hill. For a time I thought 

 that as I ascended higher they would cease altogether ; but, so far 

 from this being the case, I was alike pleased and astonished to 

 find that they continued equally strong and frequent up to the 

 plateau on which the Hotel stands, 2850 feet above the sea ; and 

 all, hut a few of the last, ran not across, hut along the face of the 

 escarpment. 



By twenty compass-observations made on clearly defined stria- 

 tions, the chief grooves run between S. 22° E. and S. 55° "W. 

 Among these, one runs S. 22° E., two S. 10"^ E., two N. and S., one 

 S. 10° W., six S. 22° W., one S. 30° W., two S. 55° W., and one 

 W. 10° N. The variations seem somewhat connected with bends and 

 other irregularities in the face of the great escarpment. One of the 

 observations (S. 55° W.) was made on the weU-scratched plateau 

 on which the Hotel stands, about 120 feet above the lower part of 



