1847.] including Notices of Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula, fyc. 543 



along the southern coasts of Celebes and Borneo (Gaonong Ratos), 

 Billiton, Banda, the Malay Peninsula, &c. ; a third through the Philli- 

 pines, Formosa, Japan, &c. ; a fourth along the southern coast of New 

 Guinea, and through the Solomon Islands, New Hebrides, New Zealand, 

 &c. ; a fifth along the southern coast of New Guinea, across Torres 

 Straits and along the eastern coast of Australia, and a sixth perhaps 

 through the north-western division of Australia. Other principal lines 

 probably proceed across the Moluccas and Celebes, through Borneo 

 and the islands of the China sea (now a subsiding tract), and join 

 the mountain chains of Cochin China and Siam, but the geography of 

 Borneo is not sufficiently known to allow of our positively ranking these 

 as seventh and eighth lines. The intermediate areas may be occupied 

 by numerous other lines, but the subsidence of various tracts renders 

 it difficult or impossible, particularly to the eastward, to trace the ori- 

 ginal courses of vertical movement until the soundings of the Polyne- 

 sian seas are ascertained. Subsequent shifting subterranean action 

 would cause many other fractures in various directions, but it would not, 

 at least until the lapse of a long geological epoch, obliterate the primary 

 lines. It would often cause cross fractures, of which many instances 

 might be pointed out. It is no objection to this hypothesis that many 

 of the lines seem to proceed from the central table-land of x\sia. Because 

 if at the time these fissures were being extended southward, a great 

 local action took place at or near New Guinea, they would, according to 

 the mechanical laws examined by Mr. Hopkins, diverge from their origi- 

 nal direction towards that point, or to meet the lines radiating from it. 

 Thus we observe the two least broken lines to pursue a southerly 

 direction till they reach the parallel of 8° N L., when, at the Nicobars 

 in the one and at Junk-ceylon in the other, they are deflected to the 

 S. E. When they cross the meridian of 106° E. they make a more 

 decided bend to the eastward. If we follow these lines and the chains 

 of Siam and Cochin China northward we may trace them upwards to the 

 Bayan Khara mountains, and thence to the vast central mass of Kul- 

 kun, from whence great ranges are said to proceed towards all the points 

 of the compass. But in the north-western part of the province of 

 Yunnan and north-east of Burmah and Assam their continuity is inter- 

 rupted, and we seem to have ascertained another central region whence 

 radiate not only the lines which afterwards converge to New Gmrtea 3 



1 B 



