30 Historical Notes on the 



growing luxuriantly amongst the morainic accumulations, proving the- 

 comparatively slow progress of the ice, whilst several channels, of 

 which one in the centre was the most conspicuous, were running along 

 it in the direction of its advance. The debris in these channels had 

 lost its sharp angles, and exhibited the sub-angular form, so character- 

 istic of river shingle. It was thus clear that during and after heavy 

 rains quite large torrents were here flowing on the ice. Gradually the 

 ice became more conspicuous, standing as vertical steps, but mostly 

 parallel to the flow of the glacier amongst the moraines. In other spots 

 deep ponds descended 150 to 250 feet below the surface, being sur- 

 rounded by walls of ice and filled with water of a dirty white or pale 

 bluish colour. The vegetation also diminished step by step, and only here 

 and here a few stunted grasses still occurred amongst the thick stone 

 covering, which also in the channels retained now its angular character. 

 These moraines are thickest on both sides, and towards the centre 

 enormous blocks occur amongst them, and the character of the rocks 

 is generally similar in the same ridges. Crevasses also begin to appear 

 on the western side and in the centre, mostly running with the direction 

 of the glacier, thus giving proof of the enormous pressure from above. - 

 On the eastern side they run north-west and south-east. 



After two miles travelling in the central portion we followed a north- 

 east direction towards a large open valley, in which also a fine glacier, 

 which I named the Murchison, a few miles above the valley of the 

 Tasman glacier, reaches w r ith its terminal face from side to side. We 

 had to cross a number of crevasses which became now wider and deeper, 

 and gave us considerable trouble before we reached this lateral valley 

 about a mile broad. The Tasman glacier expands here consider- 

 ably, advancing a few hundred yards into this valley, below which it 

 narrows again to its former breadth, being washed by the large outlet 

 of the Murchison glacier, which now flows along its eastern side to its 

 termination, producing the same effects as I observed along the 

 terminal face of the Grodley glacier. Some five miles higher up 

 the glacier became now on a large portion of its surface clear 

 of morainic accumulations, which broke up into a number of 

 lateral and central ridges. The travelling on the ice appeared 

 to us now quite easy, and was real enjoyment after the heavy 

 work of climbing continually over huge blocks or jumping from boulder 

 to boulder, which very often were lying in an unsteady position. From 

 an erratic block of immense size lying here above all others, we 

 obtained a magnificent panoramic view all round. It is impossible for 



