285 
It is noticeable that the extent of the denudation here appears to have 
been greater in the past than at present, as the valleys were scooped 
out more deeply, and a greater depth of drift accumulated in Newer 
Pliocene times than in the Post-Pliocene period, and greater in the latter 
period than in Recent times. 
The obvious reason is that the mountains were formerly higher and 
therefore condensation Of moisture was greater and the slopes steeper, 
hence denudation was greater in the valley, and the hillside furnished 
more material again to fill up the valley when the period of subsidence took 
place. As the relative heights of the hills and valleys diminished, so did 
the work of excavation and of filling up of the valleys become less, and 
this may be expected to continue. Apparently the oscillations caused by 
uplifts and subsidences have correspondingly diminished. 
Possibly the cause is that the oscillations of level are becoming less 
marked, and this has influenced the power of the water to excavate during 
periods of uplift and also its power to fill up the valleys during 
subsidences. 
[5.10.09.] 
The Buckland Valley. 
The Buckland River rises on the northern slope of the Divide, between 
Mt. Selwyn and Mt. St. Bernard. From its source it flows in a northerly 
direction for a length of about 23 miles to where it joins the Ovens River. 
Throughout its course it runs over Ordovician rocks (beds of slate and 
sandstone), but on its western side and within its watershed is a portion 
of the granite mass which forms the Buffalo Mountains. At 16 miles above 
its junction with the Ovens River, the Buckland divides into east and west 
branches, the eastern branch being the principal one. On the spur between 
these branches some of the reefs have proved to be auriferous. 
At the lower end the valley is over a mile wide, but it contracts as the 
stream is followed up, and above the junction there are no wide flats. The 
mountains on each side of the valley rise to 1,500 or 2,000 feet above the 
river-level, and, in the case of the Buffalo Mountains, to as much as 
4,500 feet above that level. The most striking feature of the valley is 
the vast amount of rock material that has been removed by the stream. 
The remaining mountains enable this to be gauged. Only by continuous 
action through cycles of time could such a work be accomplished by such 
means. 
At the period of greatest erosion the Buckland Valley was bared right 
down to the rocky bottom that underlies the present terraces and flats of 
alluvial material. Then a period of accumulation set in, and gravel, sand, 
and soil covered the bare rocky floor of the valley, and richly auriferous 
gravel was deposited along the course of the stream; it must have been at 
this stage and previous to it that the rocks highly productive of gold were 
being denuded and their gold concentrated in the stream bed. associated 
with pebbles of those rocks which were seamed with gold-bearing veins. 
Alluvial material accumulated to the height of the top of the terraces, 
which are in places over too feet higher than the present river-level. 
Another epoch of erosion set in after the terraces were deposited, and 
since that period they have been deeply cut- into and the Recent alluvial 
flats have since been formed. 
