on the islands and mainland, alternating with smooth sandy 
beaches. 'The land features arc diversified, the various forms 
comprising prominent hills and ridges, a low somewhat dissected 
plateau of marine sediments, a high coastal ridge of granite partly 
covered with the coastal limestone, and low swampy ground at the 
heads of the harbours and l)ehind the recent sand bars. The j)ic- 
turesque King and Kalgan Rivers are the two main streams of 
the area, the other streams being small and comparatively insigni- 
ficant. 
A study of the geology reveals granite as the fundamental 
rock iv-tersected by pegmatite veins and dolerite and basaltic dykes. 
In the eroded hollows of the granite lie an extensive series of 
marine beds known as the Idantagenet beds (which are ])robably of 
Miocene age); and aUnig the ocean coast, old sand dunes which 
originally spread over the old granite ridge there have been largely 
consolidated to form the coastal limestone. The most recent 
deposits inchidc the superficial fluviatile and lacustrine silts, sands 
and infusorial earths, together with the sands of the various sand 
liars and of the ])resent-forming dunes. 
At least three geologically recent displacements of the strand 
line have taken place, the earliest of these being the submergence 
following which the Plautageiiet marine beds were deposited. The 
second resulted in the uplift of the land upon which the King and 
Kalgan Rivers and other streams carved out their channels. The 
third movement drowned the lower ends of the valleys and the 
adjacent land. /ks a result of this movement the sea may have 
extended as a strait from King George’s Sound to Torbay Inlet. 
Since the last definitely known (positive) movement, land has 
been naturally reclaimed from the sea by silting up, the latter 
being hastened by the formation of lines of sand bars. The most 
l)rominent of these liars is that which has produced Middleton 
Beach. By such silting and building of bars, some old islands have 
been tied to the mainland 
The granite weathers into jirominent rounded masses, and the 
coastal limestone into serrated ridges. Landslips occur on the 
granite hills. 
The writers are indelited to their colleague, Mr. H. P. Wood- 
ward for various information relating to the Albany district. 
