Heatures of the Earth’s Surface. 467 
In this connection, I will throw out a suggestion. Attention 
has been often directed to the truly wonderful submarine 
ridges and hollows brought to light by the U. S. Coast Survey, 
as occurring in the course of the Gulf stream, and extending all 
along the coast from the point of Florida to the coast of 
New England.* These ridges are truly submarine mountain 
ranges running parallel with the coast, and to the Appalachian. 
g Wim £ s- 
as the Appalachian was formed on the interior basin margin of 
they have 
we may suppose f 
become submerged in the partial subsidence of this continental 
tamorphism of Jenc 
thus far brought forward, I think it almost certain that moun- 
tain chains are formed by the squeezing together and up- 
swelling of lines of off-shore deposit. ut the question 
naturally arises: Why does the yielding to horizontal pressure 
place along these lines in preference to any other? I believe that 
the answer to this question is to be found in the recent views 
+ Prof, Bache, Proc. Am. Assoc., 1854, p. 140. 
