GEOLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS IN ANTARC- 

 TICA BY THE BRITISH ANTARCTIC 

 EXPEDITION 1907-1909 



By Professob T. W. EDGEWORTH DAVID, B.A., F.R.S. 



AND 



RAYMOND E. PRIESTLEY, Geologist to the Expedition 



Introductory. 



^T^HE conclusions provisionally adopted in these notes 

 are based on the geological collections and observa- 

 tions obtained by the Southern Party, the Western Party, 

 and the Northern Party of our expedition as well as by 

 the whole party, when in winter quarters at Cape Royds. 



The only determinable fossil as yet found in the great 

 Beacon sandstone formation of Antarctica, the piece of 

 coniferous wood, figured in these notes, was obtained from 

 the collection made by the Southern Party. 



As a result of the explorations, chiefly by Nordensk- 

 jold, Larsen, Gunnar Andersson, Bruce, Charcot and 

 Ar9towski, we now know the following about the portion 

 of Antarctica south of America. 



In parts of Graham Land there must be a foundation 

 platform of gneiss and gneissic granite, as boulders of 

 these rocks, several metres in diameter, are found deposited 

 on the plateau of Seymour Island, to the east of Graham 

 Land, as recorded by Gunnar Andersson. 



In 1903 the French Antarctic expedition, under the 

 command of Dr. Charcot, landed on the South Shetland 



276 



