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diff --git a/43826-8.txt b/43826-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 716d4ee..0000000 --- a/43826-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,8310 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Story of the Hills, by H. N. Hutchinson - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: The Story of the Hills - A Book About Mountains for General Readers. - -Author: H. N. Hutchinson - -Release Date: September 27, 2013 [EBook #43826] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF THE HILLS *** - - - - -Produced by Chris Curnow, Mary Akers and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - -Transcriber's note: - Minor spelling inconsistencies, mainly hyphenated words, have been - harmonized. Italic text has been marked with _underscores_. - Obvious typos have been corrected. Please see the end of this book - for further notes. - - - - -THE STORY OF THE HILLS. - - - - - [Illustration] - - - - - [Illustration: NORHAM CASTLE. AFTER TURNER.] - - - - - THE - - STORY OF THE HILLS. - - A BOOK ABOUT MOUNTAINS - FOR GENERAL READERS. - - BY - - REV. H. N. HUTCHINSON, B.A., F.G.S. - - AUTHOR OF "THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF THE EARTH." - - With Sixteen Full-page Illustrations. - -They are as a great and noble architecture, first giving shelter, -comfort, and rest; and covered also with mighty sculpture and painted -legend.--RUSKIN. - - New York: - MACMILLAN AND CO. - AND LONDON. - - 1892. - - - - - _Copyright, 1891_, - BY MACMILLAN AND CO. - - - University Press: - JOHN WILSON AND SON, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A. - - - - -TO - -ALL WHO LOVE MOUNTAINS AND HILLS - -This little Book is Dedicated, - - IN THE HOPE THAT EVEN A SLIGHT KNOWLEDGE OF THEIR PLACE IN - NATURE, AND PREVIOUS HISTORY, MAY ADD TO THE WONDER AND DELIGHT - WITH WHICH WE LOOK UPON THESE NOBLE FEATURES OF THE SURFACE OF - THE EARTH. - - - -PREFACE. - - -Now that travelling is no longer a luxury for the rich, and thousands -of people go every summer to spend their holidays among the -mountains of Europe, and ladies climb Mont Blanc or ramble among the -Carpathians, there must be many who would like to know something of -the secret of the hills, their origin, their architecture, and the -forces that made them what they are. - -For such this book is chiefly written. Those will best understand it -who take it with them on their travels, and endeavour by its use to -interpret what they see among the mountains; and they will find that -a little observation goes a long way to help them to read mountain -history. - -It is hoped, however, that all, both young and old, who take an -intelligent interest in the world around, though they may never have -seen a mountain, may find these pages worth reading. - -If readers do not find here answers to all their questions, they -may be reminded that it is not possible within the present limits -to give more than a brief sketch of the subject, leaving the gaps -to be filled in by a study of the larger and more important works -on geology. The author, assuming that the reader knows nothing of -this fascinating science, has endeavoured to interpret into ordinary -language the story of the hills as it is written in the rocks of -which they are made. - -It can scarcely be denied that a little knowledge of natural objects -greatly adds to our appreciation of them, besides affording a deep -source of pleasure, in revealing the harmony, law, and order by which -all things in this wonderful world are governed. Mountains, when -once we begin to observe them, seem to become more than ever our -companions,--to take us into their counsels, and to teach us many a -lesson about the great part they play in the order of things. And -surely our admiration of their beauty is not lessened, but rather -increased, when we learn how much we and all living things owe to -the life-giving streams that flow continually from them. The writer -has, somewhat reluctantly, omitted certain parts of the subject -which, though very interesting to the geologist, can hardly be made -attractive to general readers. - -Thus, the cause of earth movements, by which mountains are pushed up -far above the plains that lie at their feet, is at present a matter -of speculation; and it is difficult to express in ordinary language -the ideas that have been put forward on this subject. Again, the -curious internal changes, which we find to have taken place in the -rocks of which mountains are composed, are very interesting to those -who know something of the minerals of which rocks are made up, and -their chemical composition; but it was found impossible to render -these matters sufficiently simple. - -So again with regard to the geological structure of mountain-chains. -This had to be very briefly treated, in order to avoid introducing -details which would be too complicated for a book of this kind. - -The author desires to acknowledge his obligations to the writings -of Sir A. Geikie; Professor Bonney, Professor Green, and Professor -Shaler, of Harvard University; the volumes of the "Alpine Journal;" -"The Earth," by Reclus; the "Encyclopædia Britannica." Canon Isaac -Taylor's "Words and Places," have also been made use of; and if in -every case the reference is not given, the writer hopes the omission -will be pardoned. A few passages from Mr. Ruskin's "Modern Painters" -have been quoted, in the hope that others may be led to read that -wonderful book, and to learn more about mountains and clouds, and -many other things, at the feet of one of the greatest teachers of the -century. - -Some of our engravings are taken from the justly celebrated -photographs of the High Alps,[1] by the late Mr. W. Donkin, whose -premature death among the Caucasus Mountains was deeply deplored -by all. Those reproduced were kindly lent by his brother, Mr. A. E. -Donkin, of Rugby. To Messrs. Valentine & Son of Dundee, Mr. Wilson -of Aberdeen, and to Messrs. Frith we are indebted for permission to -reproduce some of their admirable photographs; also to Messrs. James -How & Sons of Farringdon Street, for three excellent photographs of -rock-sections taken with the microscope. - - [1] Published by Messrs. Spooner, of the Strand. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - Part I. - - THE MOUNTAINS AS THEY ARE. - - CHAPTER PAGE - - I. MOUNTAINS AND MEN 3 - - II. THE USES OF MOUNTAINS 33 - - III. SUNSHINE AND STORM ON THE MOUNTAINS 70 - - IV. MOUNTAIN PLANTS AND ANIMALS 103 - - - Part II. - - CHAPTER PAGE - - HOW THE MOUNTAINS WERE MADE. - - V. HOW THE MATERIALS WERE BROUGHT TOGETHER 139 - - VI. HOW THE MOUNTAINS WERE UPHEAVED 174 - - VII. HOW THE MOUNTAINS WERE CARVED OUT 205 - - VIII. VOLCANIC MOUNTAINS 242 - - IX. MOUNTAIN ARCHITECTURE 282 - - X. THE AGES OF MOUNTAINS AND OTHER QUESTIONS 318 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS. - - - NORHAM CASTLE. After Turner _Frontispiece_ - - BEN LOMOND. From a Photograph by J. Valentine 16 - - CLOUDS ON BEN NEVIS 38 - - SNOW ON THE HIGH ALPS. From a Photograph by - Mr. Donkin 64 - - A STORM ON THE LAKE OF THUN. After Turner 86 - - THE MATTERHORN. From a Photograph by Mr. Donkin 98 - - ON A GLACIER. 116 - - RED DEER. After Ansdell 133 - - CHALK ROCKS, FLAMBOROUGH HEAD. From a Photograph by - G. W. Wilson 152 - - MICROPHOTOGRAPHS ILLUSTRATING ROCK FORMATION 172 - - THE SKAEGGEDALSFORS, NORWAY. From a Photograph by - J. Valentine 192 - - THE MER DE GLACE AND MONT BUET. From a Photograph - by Mr. Donkin 229 - - THE ERUPTION OF VESUVIUS IN 1872. From an - Instantaneous Photograph 250 - - COLUMNAR BASALT AT CLAMSHELL CAVE, STAFFA. From - a Photograph by J. Valentine 280 - - MONT BLANC, SNOWFIELDS, GLACIERS, AND STREAMS. 312 - - MOUNTAIN IN THE YOSEMITE VALLEY. 336 - - - - - ILLUSTRATIONS II. - - Fig. 1. SECTION ACROSS THE WEALD OF KENT AND SURREY. 237 - - Fig. 2. THE HIGHLANDS OF SCOTLAND ON A TRUE - SCALE (after Geikie.) 237 - - Fig. 1. THE RANGES OF THE GREAT BASIN, WESTERN - STATES OF NORTH AMERICA, SHOWING A SERIES OF - GREAT FRACTURES AND TILTED MASSES OF ROCK. 272 - - Fig. 2. SECTION THROUGH SNOWDON. 272 - - SECTIONS OF MOUNTAIN-RANGES, SHOWING THEIR - STRUCTURE AND THE AMOUNT OF ROCK WORN AWAY 306 - - - - -PART I. - -THE MOUNTAINS AS THEY ARE. - - - - -THE STORY OF THE HILLS. - -Part I. - -THE MOUNTAINS AS THEY ARE. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -MOUNTAINS AND MEN. - - "Happy, I said, whose home is here; - Fair fortunes to the Mountaineer." - - -In old times people looked with awe upon the mountains, and -regarded them with feelings akin to horror or dread. A very slight -acquaintance with the classical writers of antiquity will suffice -to convince any one that Greeks and Romans did so regard them. They -were not so familiar with mountains as we are; for there were no -roads through them, as now through the Alps, or the Highlands of -Scotland,--to say nothing of the all-pervading railway. It would, -however, be a great mistake to suppose that the ancients did not -observe and enjoy the beauties of Nature. The fair and fertile -plain, the vine-clad slopes of the lower hill-ranges, and the -"many-twinkling smile of ocean" were seen and loved by all who had -a mind to appreciate the beautiful. The poems of Homer and Virgil -would alone be sufficient to prove this. But the higher ranges, -untrodden by the foot of man, were gazed at, not with admiration, -but with religious awe; for men looked upon mountains as the abode -of the gods. They dwelt in the rich plain, which they cultivated, -and beside the sweet waters of some river; for food and drink are -the first necessities of life. But they left the high hills alone, -and in fancy peopled them with the "Immortals" who ruled their -destiny,--controlling also the winds and the lightning, the rain and -the clouds, which seem to have their home among the mountains. A -childlike fear of the unknown, coupled with religious awe, made them -avoid the lofty and barren hills, from which little was to be got -but wild honey and a scanty supply of game. There were also dangers -to be encountered from the fury of the storm and the avalanche; but -the safer ground of the plains below would reward their toil with an -ample supply of corn and other necessaries of life. - -In classical times, and also in the Middle Ages, the mountains, -as well as glens and rivers, were supposed to be peopled with -fairies, nymphs, elves, and all sorts of strange beings; and even -now travellers among the mountains of Switzerland, Norway, Wales, -or Scotland find that it is not long since the simple folk of these -regions believed in the existence of such beings, and attributed to -their agency many things which they could not otherwise explain. - -Of all the nations of antiquity the Jews seem to have shown the -greatest appreciation of mountain scenery; and in no ancient writings -do we find so many or so eloquent allusions to the hills as in the -Old Testament. But here again one cannot fail to trace the same -feelings of religious awe. The Law was given to their forefathers -in the desert amidst the thunders of Sinai. To them the earth was -literally Jehovah's footstool, and the clouds were His tabernacle. -"If He do but touch the hills, they shall smoke." - -But this awe was not unmixed with other and more comforting thoughts. -They felt that those cloud-capped towers were symbols of strength and -the abode of Him who would help them in their need. For so we find -the psalmists regarding them; and with our very different conceptions -of the earth's natural features, we can but dimly perceive and -realise the full force and meaning of the words, "I will lift up mine -eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help." - -To take another example from antiquity, we find that the Himalayas -and the source of the Ganges have from very early times been -considered as holy by the people of India. Thousands of pilgrims from -all parts of that vast country still continue to seek salvation in -the holy waters of the Ganges, and at its sacred sources in the snowy -Himalayas. And to those who know India the wondrous snowclad peaks of -the Himalayas still seem to be surrounded with somewhat of the same -halo of glory as of old. - -Mountains are intimately associated with the history of nations, and -have contributed much to the moulding of the human mind and the -character of those who dwell among them; they have alike inspired the -mind of the artist, the poet, the reformer, and the visionary seeking -repose for his soul, that, dwelling far from the strife and turmoil -of the world, he may contemplate alone the glory of the Eternal -Being. They have been the refuge of the afflicted and the persecuted; -they have braced the minds and bodies of heroes who have dwelt for a -time among them before descending once more to the plain that they -might play some noble part in the progress of the world. - -Moses, while leading the flock of his father-in-law to the back of -the wilderness, came to Mount Horeb and received the divine summons -to return to Egypt and lead Israel out of bondage. David, with his -six hundred followers, fleeing from the face of Saul, found a refuge -in the hill country; and the life of peril and adventure which he -led during these years of persecution was a part of his training for -the great future task of ruling Israel, which he performed so well. -Elijah summoned the false prophets of Baal and Asherah to Mount -Carmel and slew them at the brook Kishon; and a little later we find -him at Mount Horeb listening, not to the wind or to the earthquake -or to the fire, but to the "still small voice" telling him to return -and anoint Jehu to be king. - -Or, to take another example from a later age, we find that Mahomet's -favourite resort was a cave at the foot of Mount Hira, north of -Mecca; here in dark and wild surroundings his mind was wrought up to -rhapsodic enthusiasm. - -And many, like these leaders of men, have received in mountain -retreats a firmness and tenacity of purpose giving them the right -to be leaders, and the power to redress human wrongs; or, it may -be, a temper of mind and spirit enabling them to soar into regions -of thought and contemplation untrodden by the careless and more -luxurious multitudes who dwell on the plains below. Perhaps Mr. Lewis -Morris was unconsciously offering his testimony to the influence of -mountains when he wrote those words which he puts into the mouth of -poor Marsyas,-- - - "More it is than ease, - Palace and pomp, honours and luxuries, - To have seen white presences upon the hills, - To have heard the voices of the eternal gods."[2] - - [2] Epic of Hades. -The thunder and lightning, storm and cloud, as well as the soft -beauty of colour, and the harmony of mountain outline, have been a -part, and a very important part, of their training. The exhilarating -air, the struggle with the elements in their fierceness, the rugged -strength of granite, seem to have possessed the very souls of such -men, and made them like "the strong ones,"--the immortal beings to -whom in all previous ages the races of mankind have assigned their -abode in the hills, as the Greek gods were supposed to dwell on Mount -Olympus. On these heights such men seem to have gained something of -the strength of Him who dwells in the heavens far above their highest -peaks,--"the strength of the hills," which, as the Hebrew poet says, -"is His also." - -We have spoken of the attitude of the human mind towards mountains in -the past; let us now consider the light in which they are regarded -at the present time by all thoughtful and cultivated people. And it -does not require a moment's consideration to perceive that a very -great change has taken place. Instead of regarding them with horror -or aversion, we look upon them with wonder and delight; we watch -them hour by hour whenever for a brief season of holiday we take -up our abode near or among them. We come back to them year by year -to breathe once more the pure air which so frequently restores the -invalid to health and brings back the colour to faded cheeks. We love -to watch the ever-varying lights and shades upon them, as the day -goes by. But it is towards evening that the most enchanting scenes -are to be witnessed, when the sinking sun sheds its golden rays upon -their slopes, or tinges their summits with floods of crimson light; -and then presently, after the sun has gone down, pale mists begin -to rise, and the hills seem more majestic than ever. Later on, as -the full moon appears from behind a bank of cloud, those wonderful -moonlight effects may be seen which must be familiar to all who know -the mountains as they are in summer or autumn,--scenes such as the -writer has frequently witnessed in the Highlands of Scotland, but -which only the poet can adequately describe. - -There are few sights in Nature which more powerfully impress the mind -than a sunset among the mountains. General Sir Richard Strachey -concludes his description of the Himalayas with the following -striking passage: - - "Here may the eye, as it sweeps along the horizon, embrace a - line of snowclad mountains such as exist in no other part of - the world, stretching over one third of the entire circle, - at a distance of forty or fifty miles, their peaks towering - over a sea of intervening ranges piled one behind another, - whose extent on either hand is lost in the remote distance, - and of which the nearest rises from a gulf far down beneath - the spectator's feet, where may be seen the silver line that - marks a river's course, or crimson fields of amaranth and the - dwellings of man. Sole representative of animal life, some - great eagle floats high overhead in the pure dark-blue sky, - or, unused to man, fearlessly sweeps down within a few yards - to gaze at the stranger who intrudes among these solitudes of - Nature. As the sun sinks, the cold grey shadow of the summit - where we stand is thrown forward, slowly stealing over the - distant hills, and veiling their glowing purples as it goes, - carries the night up to the feet of the great snowy peaks, - which still rise radiant in the rosy light above the now - darkening world. From east to west in succession the splendour - fades away from one point after another, and the vast shadow of - the earth is rapidly drawn across the whole vault of heaven. - One more departing day is added to the countless series which - has silently witnessed the deathlike change that passes over - the eternal snows, as they are left raising their cold pale - fronts against the now leaden sky; till slowly with the - deepening night the world of mountains rises again, as it were, - to a new life, under the changed light of the thousand stars - which stud the firmament and shine with a brilliancy unknown - except in the clear rarefied air of these sublime heights." - -Year by year a larger number of busy workers from our great towns, -availing themselves of the increased facilities for travel, come to -the mountains to spend their summer holidays,--some to the Swiss -Alps, others to Wales, Cumberland, Norway, or the Highlands of -Scotland. There are few untrodden valleys in these regions, few of -the more important mountains which have not been climbed. - -Our knowledge of mountains, thanks to the labours of a zealous army -of workers, is now considerable. The professors of physical science -have been busy making important observations on the condition of -the atmosphere in the higher regions; geographers have noted their -heights and mapped their leading contours. Geologists have done a -vast amount of work in ascertaining the composition and arrangement -of the rocks of which mountain chains are composed, in observing -their peculiar structures, in recording the changes which are -continually effecting their waste and decay, and thus interpreting -the story of the hills as it is written in the very rocks of which -they are built up. - -Naturalists have collected and noted the peculiar plants and animals -which have their home among the hills, and so the forms of life, both -animal and vegetable, which inhabit the mountains of Europe, and some -other countries, are now fairly well known. - -The historian, the antiquary, and the student of languages have -made interesting discoveries with regard to the mountain races of -mankind. And only to mention this country, such writers as Scott, -Wordsworth, and Ruskin have given us in verse and prose descriptions -of mountain scenery which will take a permanent place in literature; -while Turner, our great landscape-painter, has expressed the glories -of mountain scenery in pictures which speak more eloquently than -many words. Thus we see that whatever line of inquiry be chosen, our -subject is full of varied interest. - -With regard to the characteristics of mountain races, it is not easy -to say to what extent people in different parts of the world who -live among mountains share the same virtues or the same failings; -but the most obvious traits in the character of the mountaineer -seem to be the result of his natural surroundings. Thus we find -mountaineers generally endowed with hardihood, strength, and bravery. -To spend one's days on the hillsides for a large part of the year, as -shepherds and others do in Scotland or Wales, and to walk some miles -every day in pure bracing air, must be healthy and tend to develop -the muscles of the body; and so we find the highlanders of all -countries are usually muscular, strong, and capable of endurance. And -there can be little doubt that mountain races are kept up to a high -standard of strength and endurance by a rigorous and constant weeding -out of the weakly ones, especially among children. And if only the -stronger live to grow up and become parents, the chances are that -their children will be strong too. Thus Nature exercises a kind of -"selection;" and we have consequently "the survival of the fittest." -This "selection," together with the healthy lives they lead, is -probably sufficient to account for their strength and hardiness. - -As might be expected, mountaineers are celebrated for their fighting -qualities. The fierce Afghans who have often faced a British army, -and sometimes victoriously; the brave Swiss peasantry, who have -more than once fought nobly for freedom; the Highlanders, who have -contributed so largely to the success of British arms in nearly -all parts of the world, and whose forefathers defied even the -all-conquering Roman in their mountain strongholds,--these and many -others all show the same valour and power of endurance. Etymologists, -whose learned researches into the meaning of words have thrown so -much light on the ages before history was written, tell us that the -Picts were so called from their fighting qualities, and that the -word "Pict" is derived from the Gaelic "peicta," a fighting man. And -Julius Cæsar says the chief god of the Britons was the god of war. - -In some countries--as, for instance, Greece, Italy, and Spain--the -mountains are infested with banditti and robbers, who often become a -terror to the neighbourhood. In more peaceful and orderly countries, -however, we find among mountaineers many noble qualities,--such -as patience, honesty, simplicity of life, thrift, a dignified -self-reliance, together with true courtesy and hospitality. This is -high praise; but who that knows mountain peasants would say it is -undeserved? How many a tired traveller among the hills of Scotland -or Wales has had reason to be grateful for welcome, food, and rest -in some little cottage in a far-away glen! How many friendships have -thus been formed! How many a pleasant talk has beguiled the time -during a storm or shower! The old feuds are forgotten now that the -Saxon stranger and invader is at peace with the Celtic people whom -his forefathers drove into the hills. The castles, once centres of -oppression or scenes of violence, lie in peaceful and picturesque -ruins, and add not a little to the interest of one's travels in the -North. What true courtesy and consideration one meets with at the -hands of these honest folk, among whom the old kindly usages have -not died out! Often too poor to be afflicted with the greed and -thirst for wealth, which frequently marks the man of the plain as -compared with the man of the hills,--the Lowlander as compared with -the Highlander,--they exhibit many of those simple virtues which -one hardly expects to meet with among busy townspeople, all bent on -making money, or as the phrase is, "getting on in life." - - [Illustration: BEN LOMOND. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH BY J. VALENTINE.] - - "The mountain cheer, the frosty skies, - Breed purer wits, inventive eyes; - And then the moral of the place - Hints summits of heroic grace. - Men in these crags a fastness find - To fight corruption of the mind; - The insanity of towns to stem - With simpleness for stratagem." - -Mr. Skene, the Scotch historian, records a touching case of the -devotion of Highlanders to their chief. He says,-- - - "There is perhaps no instance in which the attachment of the - clan to their chief was so strongly manifested as in the - case of the Macphersons of Cluny after the disaster of 'the - Forty-five.' The chief having been deeply engaged in that - insurrection, his life became of course forfeited to the laws; - but neither the hope of reward nor the fear of danger could - induce any one of his people to betray him. For nine years - he lived concealed in a cave a short distance from his own - house; it was situated in the front of a woody precipice of - which the trees and shelving rocks concealed the entrance. The - cave had been dug by his own people, who worked at night and - conveyed the stones and rubbish into a neighbouring lake, in - order that no vestige of their labour might appear and lead to - the discovery of the retreat. In this asylum he continued to - live secure, receiving by night the occasional visits of his - friends, and sometimes by day, when the soldiers had begun to - slacken the vigour of their pursuit. Upwards of one thousand - persons were privy to his concealment, and a reward of £1,000 - was offered to any one who should give information against - him.... But although the soldiers were animated by the hope - of reward, and their officers by promise of promotion for - the apprehension of this proscribed individual, yet so true - were his people, so inflexibly strict in their promise of - secrecy, and so dextrous in conveying to him the necessaries he - required in his long confinement, not a trace of him could be - discovered, nor an individual base enough to give a hint to his - detriment." - -The mountaineer is a true gentleman. However poor, however ignorant -or superstitious, one perceives in him a refinement of manner which -cannot fail to command admiration. His readiness to share his -best with the stranger and to render any service in his power are -pleasing traits in his character. But there is one sad feature about -mountaineers of the present day which one frequently notices in -districts where many tourists come,--especially English or American. -They are, we regret to say, losing their independence, their simple, -old-fashioned ways, and becoming servile and greedy,--at least in the -towns and villages. Such changes seem, alas! inevitable when rich -townspeople, bent on pleasure or sport, invade the recesses of the -hills where poverty usually reigns. On the one hand, we have people, -often with long purses, eager for enjoyment, waiting to be fed, -housed, or otherwise entertained; on the other hand, poor people, -anxious to "make hay while the sun shines" and to extract as much -money as possible from "the visitors," who often allow themselves -to be unmercifully fleeced. Then there are in the Highlands the -sportsmen, who require a large following of "gillies" to attend them -in their wanderings, pay them highly for their services, and dismiss -them at the end of the season; and so the men are in many cases left -without employment all the winter and spring. Is it, then, surprising -that they give way to a natural tendency to idleness, and fall into -other bad habits? Any visitor who spends a winter, or part of one, -in the Highlands will be better able to realise the extent of this -evil, which is by no means small; and one cannot help regretting that -the sportsmen's pleasure and the tourist's holiday should involve -results of such grave consequence. We are inclined to think that in -these days sport is overdone, and wish it could be followed without -taking the hillman away from the work he would otherwise find, and -which would render him a more useful member of society. With the -agitation going on in some parts against deer-forests we do not -feel much sympathy, because they are based on the erroneous idea -that "crofters" could make a living out of the land thus enclosed; -whereas those who know the land and its value for agricultural -purposes tell us that with the exception of a few small patches here -and there, hardly worth mentioning, it could not possibly be made to -produce enough to maintain crofters and their families. Nevertheless, -another way of looking at the matter is this: that the man who merely -ministers to the pleasure of others richer than himself loses some of -the self-respect and independence which he would acquire by working -in his own way for a living. - -The same changes for the worse are still more manifest in -Switzerland; and even in some parts of Norway the people are being -similarly spoiled. Mr. Ruskin, speaking of the former country, says: - - "I believe that every franc now spent by travellers among - the Alps tends more or less to the undermining of whatever - special greatness there is in the Swiss character; and the - persons I met in Switzerland whose position and modes of life - render them best able to give me true information respecting - the present state of their country, among many causes of - national deterioration, spoke with chief fear of the influx - of English wealth, gradually connecting all industry with the - wants of strangers, and inviting all idleness to depend upon - their casual help, thus resolving the ancient consistency and - pastoral simplicity of the mountain life into the two irregular - trades of the innkeeper and mendicant."[3] - - [3] Modern Painters, vol. iv. - -Mountain people have still their superstitions; since the -introduction of railways many of the old legends and popular myths -have died out, but even what is left is interesting to the student of -folk-lore,--indeed, we might say, to every one. - -Sir A. Geikie, speaking of Scotch mountain scenery says,-- - - "To the influence of scenery of this kind on the mind of a - people at once observant and imaginative, such legends as that - of the Titans should in all likelihood be ascribed. It would be - interesting to trace back these legends to their cradle, and to - mark how much they owe to the character of the scenery amongst - which they took their rise. Perhaps it would be found that the - rugged outlines of the Boeotian hills had no small share in - the framing of Hesiod's graphic story of that primeval warfare - wherein the combatants fought with huge rocks, which, darkening - the air as they flew, at last buried the discomfited Titans - deep beneath the surface of the land. Nor would it be difficult - to trace a close connection between the present scenery of our - own country and some of the time-honoured traditionary stories - of giants and hero kings, warlocks and witches, or between the - doings of the Scandinavian Hrimthursar, or Frost Giants, and - the more characteristic features of the landscapes and climate - of the North."[4] - - [4] Scenery of Scotland. - -The following passage from Ruskin brings out more strongly the -effects of mountains on men,--a subject to which he has given much -attention:-- - - "We shall find, on the one hand, the mountains of Greece and - Italy, forming all the loveliest dreams, first of Pagan, then - of Christian mythology, on the other, those of Scandinavia, to - be the first sources of whatever mental (as well as military) - power was brought by the Normans into Southern Europe. Normandy - itself is, to all intents and purposes, a hill country.... We - have thus one branch of the Northern religious imagination - rising among the Scandinavian fiords, tempered in France - by various encounters with elements of Arabian, Italian, - Provençal, or other Southern poetry, and then reacting upon - Southern England; while other forms of the same rude religious - imagination, resting like clouds upon the mountains of Scotland - and Wales, met and mingled with the Norman Christianity, - retaining even to the latest times some dark colour of - superstition, but giving all its poetical and military pathos - to Scottish poetry, and a peculiar sternness and wildness of - tone to the Reformed faith, in its manifestations among the - Scottish hills."[5] - - [5] Modern Painters, vol. iv. - -The Alps, like most other mountainous countries, have their fair -share of legends, some of which are very grotesque. We have selected -the following, as related by Professor Bonney.[6] The wild huntsman's -yell is still heard in many places by the shuddering peasants as his -phantom train sweeps by the châlet. There is also the wild goat-herd, -a wicked lad, who crucified an old he-goat and drove his flock to -worship it; lightning consumed him; and now he wanders forever over -the Alps, miserably wailing. - - [6] "The Alpine Regions of Switzerland" (Deighton, Bell, & Co.), - a most interesting book, especially for travellers. - -When the glacier of Gétroz burst, the Archfiend himself was seen -swimming down the Rhone, with a drawn sword in one hand and a golden -ball in the other; when opposite to Martigny he halted, and at his -bidding the waters rose and swept away part of the town. A vast -multitude of imps was seen about the same time on a mountain in the -Val de Bagnes by two mendicant friars from Sion, who, hearing of this -unlawful assembly, had gone out as detectives to learn what mischief -was hatching. - -Many places also have their spectral animals, the Valois, according -to Tschudi, being the headquarters of these legends. There are also -pygmies to be seen in the lonely mountains, like the Norwegian -trolls, and brownies who make or mar the house, according as the -goodwife is neat or a slattern. - -Many Alpine stories have reference to the sudden destruction of -pastures by the fall of rocks or ice. Here is one from the Clariden -Alps:-- - - Once upon a time these were fertile pastures, on which dwelt a - "senn." He grew rich, so that none could match him in wealth; - but at the same time he grew proud and haughty, and spurned - both the laws of Nature and the commandments of God. He was - so foolishly fond of his mistress that he paved the way from - the châlet to the byre with cheeses, lest she should soil her - feet, and cared so little for his mother that when she lay at - his door fainting with hunger, he offered her only milk to - drink in which he had thrown the foulest refuse. Righteously - indignant, she turned away, calling upon Heaven to punish such - an insult. Before she reached her home, the rocks and ice had - descended, crushing beneath them her wicked son, his mistress, - and possessions. - - In the neighbourhood of Monte Rosa there is a tradition that - a valley exists in the heart of that mountain the entrance to - which has been sealed up by impassable glaciers, though the - floor of the "cirque" within is still a rich pasturage. In a - certain valley they point out a spring which bursts from the - ground, as the outlet of the torrent by which it is watered. - Once, said they, a _chasseur_ found the bed of this stream dry, - and creeping up its subterranean channel, arrived on the floor - of the valley. It was a huntsman's paradise; chamois were there - in plenty, bears also, and even bouquetins, wandering over the - richest pastures. He retraced his steps to announce the good - news; but when he returned again, the waters had resumed their - course, and the place has ever since remained inaccessible. - -Mountains play a very important part in human history. In the first -place, they are natural barriers separating the nations of the -world from one another, and tending to keep them confined within -certain definite bounds; we say, tending to keep them thus confined, -because, as every one knows, these barriers have again and again been -surmounted by conquering armies. The rugged Alps could not ward off -Hannibal, who made his way through them to march upon the capital of -the Roman empire. In like manner Napoleon defied this great natural -rampart, made a road through it, and came to Italy. No mountains -would seem to be quite impassable; but although liable in the course -of ages to be occasionally overrun, they afford good protection and -produce a feeling of security. - -The Himalayas separate our great Indian empire from that of China; -and we do not at present apprehend an invasion from that quarter. -The Suliman Mountains divide us from the Afghans, and the great -Russian and Persian empires farther west. Still, we know that in the -eleventh century a great Mahometan invasion of India took place; -our own armies have more than once penetrated to Kabul. Perhaps the -common garden wall separating adjacent suburban residences furnishes -a suitable illustration of the great natural walls which divide, not -households or families, but much larger families than these,--the -nations of the world. - -Just as unruly boys sometimes climb over the neighbour's wall and -play games in a garden which is not their own; or as burglars may -surmount these obstacles to their progress, and finding a way -into the house by a back door or kitchen window, commence their -ravages,--so a neighbouring (but not neighbourly) nation, bent on -conquest, may invade some natural garden of the world, such as -India, by forcing their way through physical barriers which for -ordinary purposes serve to protect those within. - -The Thian Shan Mountains divide Russia from China's sphere of -influence. The Caucasus Mountains separate Russia from Asia Minor. -Austro-Hungary is bounded by the Carpathians, Spain by the Pyrenees. -The Alps of Switzerland separate four nations not very friendly -to each other; and lastly, in our own country the Cheviot Hills, -together with the Tweed, form the boundary between Scotland and -England. - -Where there are no mountains or hills, rivers sometimes serve as -boundaries, but of course they do not answer the purpose so well. -Sometimes a nation actually builds a wall for a boundary. Of this the -great wall of China and the Roman wall between the Cheviots and the -Solway Firth are familiar examples. - -In the second place, mountains have always been a refuge and shelter -for conquered races; and the primitive tribes who once lived in the -plains have been forced by adverse circumstances to take to the -hills. This has taken place over and over again. - -We know that the Celtic people now living in Brittany, Devonshire, -Cornwall, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, though now considerably -mixed, are the descendants of the old Celtic inhabitants of France -and Britain. But there is a great deal of unwritten history for which -we may look in vain to the ordinary sources of information, such as -books, and which is only to be read in quite different records,--in -antiquities buried up in peat-beds, in bogs, in ruins and ancient -forts, or camps; and last but not least, in the names of places, -rivers, or mountains. The hills, the valleys, the rivers, are the -only writing-tablets on which unlettered nations have been able to -inscribe their annals. For this kind of history we must go to the -antiquary, and, above all, to the philologist, who tells us the -meaning of the names of places, and who the people were who gave the -names that we see on our maps. The great advances which have of late -years been made in our knowledge of the primeval races of men, or -at least of nations but little known in the annals of history, are -largely due to the interpretation of the obscure records preserved in -local names. The Celtic, the Iberian, the Teutonic, the Scandinavian, -and Sclavonic races have thus for the most part made known to us -their migrations, conquests, and defeats. And so by studying the -names of places, rivers, and hills, as well as by careful collection -of works of art, implements, coins, such as may be seen in many a -museum, it has been possible to read a great deal of early history -which would otherwise have been lost. - -Those who have studied these matters say they can trace wave after -wave of population which has thus left its mark,--Gaelic, Cymric (or -Welsh), Saxon, Anglian, Norwegian, Danish, Norman, and Flemish. Thus -it can be proved from the names on the map that almost the whole of -England was once Celtic, whereas now the Celts are almost entirely -confined to the hills. The Peak of Derbyshire and the mountains of -Cumberland retain a greater number of Celtic names than the districts -surrounding them; and the hills of Devonshire long served as a -barrier to protect the Celts of Cornwall from Anglo-Saxon conquerors. - -But even mountain races are often a good deal mixed, and in the -Pyrenees we find the descendants of the Iberians, who, a very long -time ago, were driven from the lowlands of France and Spain. These -Iberians are a very interesting race, of short stature, with long -heads, and dark hair and eyes. This old type is to be met with in -Wales and the Highlands even in the present day. And so we learn--if -these conclusions are sound--that even the Celts in their early days -were invaders, and drove before them an older population. This race, -it seems, lived in Europe a very long time ago, before the discovery -of metals, when people made axes, hammers, and spear-heads out of -flints or other stones; and so they are said to belong to "the Stone -Age." Their remains are found in many of the caves which of late -years have been explored. Possibly the ancient people of Switzerland -who lived in wooden houses, erected on piles near the shores of lakes -(probably for safety), were also of the same stock. - -It is curious to find how people living in separate valleys among the -mountains of Switzerland have, in the course of time, become so much -unlike their neighbours that they can hardly understand each other's -speech, so effectually have the mountains kept them apart. In some -districts almost every valley has its separate dialect. Switzerland -is only twice the size of Wales, yet the local names are derived -from half a dozen different languages, three or four of which are -still spoken by the people. In the Alps, too, the same mixture of -Celtic with an older Iberian stock has been detected. - -A curious reversal of the usual order of things is noticed by the -late Dean Stanley in his "Sinai and Palestine." He points out that -the Jews took possession of many of the hills of Palestine soon after -the invasion under Joshua, but could not drive out the peoples of the -plains, because they were better armed, and had chariots of iron in -great number. The conquerors in this case kept to the hills; while -the Canaanites, Philistines, and other inhabitants of the country -retained for a long time their hold of the lower ground. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -THE USES OF MOUNTAINS. - - The valleys only feed; the mountains feed and guard and - strengthen us.--RUSKIN. - - -It is not an exaggeration to say that there are no physical -features of the surface of the earth which render such a variety of -services as mountains. The operations which they perform involve -such far-reaching consequences that it is difficult to say where -their effects cease. Indeed, it might almost be maintained that -they are the mainspring of the world,--as far as its surface is -concerned,--for it would fare ill with mankind if they were removed -or in some way destroyed. Things would then very soon come to a -standstill. The soil would become exhausted; streams would cease to -flow; and the world would become a kind of stagnant pool. - -The three main services of the hills are these:-- - - I. Mountains help to condense water-vapour from the atmosphere, - thus bringing back to the earth moisture which it loses - continually by evaporation. - - II. Mountains are elevated reservoirs of water in one form or - another, and thus not only feed the streams and rivers, but - give them force and direction as well. - - III. Mountains suffer themselves to be slowly worn away in - order that the face of the earth may be renewed; in other - words, they die that we, and all created things, may live. - - -I. _Mountains help to condense water-vapour from the atmosphere, thus -bringing back to the earth the moisture which it loses continually by -evaporation._ Every one knows that there is abundance of water-vapour -in the atmosphere, but the question arises, How does it get there? -The answer to this lies in the simple fact that every surface of -water exposed to the air undergoes loss by evaporation. If you wish -to satisfy yourself on this point, place a saucer of water in your -room, and in a few days it will all be gone. We hang clothes out to -dry, and so avail ourselves of this curious power that air has of -taking up water in the form of vapour. Steam, or water-vapour, is -really invisible, though we frequently talk of seeing the steam -issuing from a locomotive; but what we really see is a cloud of -condensed steam, and such clouds,[7] like those that we see floating -in the air, are really masses of little tiny particles of water which -can reflect or throw back the light which falls upon them, and thus -they become visible. Again, a kettle of water, if left too long on -the fire will entirely boil away. It is all turned into steam, and -the steam is somehow hidden away in the air, though a little of it -will be condensed into slight clouds by the colder air outside the -kettle. - - [7] It has lately been proved that clouds can only form in air - which contains dust, and that each little suspended particle of - water contains a speck of dust or a tiny germ of some sort for - its nucleus. - -But how can water stow itself away in the air without being seen or -felt? - -An illustration may help to explain this. Suppose you scatter a -spoonful of small shot over a carpet or a dark-coloured table-cloth; -you would probably not be able to see them at a little distance. -Now, gather them together in a heap, and you see them at once. The -heap of shot in some ways resembles a drop of water, for in a drop -of water the tiny particles (or molecules) of which it is composed -are close together; but by heating water you cause them to fly -asunder and scatter themselves in various directions. They are lost -to sight, and moreover have no power of attracting each other or of -acting in concert; each one then takes its own course, whereas in -the drop of water they were in some wonderful way bound together by -mutual attraction. They dance in groups; but the rude force of heat -will scatter these little dancing groups, and break them up into that -state which we call a state of vapour. - -The forces of heat and cohesion are directly at variance; and it -is just a question of degree whether the one or the other gets the -mastery in this "tug of war." The more you heat the water, the faster -the little groups of molecules break up and disappear in the air. -They must in some way go moving between the particles of air, and -collisions keep taking place with inconceivable rapidity. - -And now another question arises; namely, how much water-vapour can -the air take? That depends chiefly on its temperature. Air when -heated will take up a great deal of steam; and the more you heat air, -the more it can take up. When air at a given temperature can take up -no more, it is said to be saturated for that temperature; but if the -temperature be raised, it will immediately begin to take up more. For -each degree of temperature there is a certain amount of water-vapour -which can be absorbed, and no more. But suppose we take some air -which is already saturated and lower its temperature by giving it -a sudden chill, what will happen? It will immediately give up part -of its steam, or water-vapour; namely, the exact amount which it is -unable to contain at the lower temperature.[8] - - [8] Pressure also has an important influence, but was omitted - above for the sake of simplicity. - -There are various ways in which you can test this matter for -yourself. For instance, take a hand-glass, and breathe on it. You -know what will happen: a film of moisture forms upon it; and you know -the reason why. It is simply that the cold glass gives a chill to -one's breath (which being warm is highly charged with water-vapour -from the lungs), and so some of the vapour is at once condensed. Now, -this serves very well to explain how mountains catch water-vapour, -and condense it. They are, as it were, a cold looking-glass; and -the hot breath of the plains, as it strikes their sides, receiving -a sudden chill, throws down part of the vapour it contains. On the -higher parts of mountain-ranges the cold is so great that the water -assumes the form of snow. - -Mountains, as every one knows, are colder than the plains below. -No one cares to stay very long on a mountain-top, for fear of -catching cold. It may be worth while to consider why they are cold. -Perhaps you answer, "Because they are so high." That is true, but -not a complete answer to our question. We must look at the matter a -little more closely. The earth is a warm body surrounded by space in -which the cold is inconceivably intense; but just as we protect our -bodies against cold with garments, so the earth is wrapped up in an -atmosphere which serves more or less to keep in the heat. All warm -bodies give out heat as luminous bodies give out light; but the rays -of heat, unlike those of light, are quite invisible to our eyes, so -that we are unaware of them. These "dark heat-rays," as they are -called, do not make any impression on the retina, because our eyes -are not capable of responding to them as they do to the ordinary rays -of light. But there is a delicate little instrument known as the -thermopile, which responds to, and so detects these invisible rays; -and if our eyes were sensitive to such vibrations as these, we should -see heat-rays (which like light and sound are due to vibrations) -streaming from every object, just as light does from a candle-flame. - -Those parts of the earth which are least covered or protected by the -atmosphere lose heat most rapidly,--in the same way that on a frosty -day one's fingers become cold unless covered up. Now, there is less -air over mountains; and in those higher regions above the peaks -what air there is, is more rarefied, and therefore less capable of -stopping the heat-rays coming from the earth. Professor Tyndall has -shown that water-vapour in the air has a great power of stopping dark -heat-rays; and the lower regions, which contain more vapour, stop or -absorb a good deal of heat which would otherwise escape into space. - -Look at a map of any continent, and you will see the rivers streaming -away from the mountains. All those vast quantities of water come -from the atmosphere; and mountains do a large share of the work of -condensing it from the state of vapour to that of water. Take the -map of India, and look at the great range of the Himalayas. At -their feet is the hot valley of the Ganges, which meets that of the -Brahmapootra River. An immense amount of evaporation takes place -from these mighty rivers, so that the air above them becomes laden -with water-vapour. Farther south is the tropical Indian Ocean, from -which the direct rays of the sun draw up still vaster quantities of -water. And so when south winds blow over India, they are full of -water-vapour; and presently they strike the flanks of the Himalayas, -and at once they are chilled, and consequently part with a large -amount of the vapour which they contained. This is best illustrated -by the case of the southwest monsoon wind of the summer season, which -sets in during the month of April, and continues to blow steadily -towards the northeast till October. After leaving the Bay of Bengal, -this warm wind, laden with vapour, meets ere long with the range -known as the Khasi Hills, and consequently throws down a large part -of its vapour in the form of rain. The rainfall here in the summer -season reaches the prodigious total of five hundred inches, or about -twenty times as much as falls in London during a whole year. After -passing over these hills, the monsoon wind presently reaches the -Himalayas; and another downpour then takes place, until by the time -it reaches the wide plains of Thibet, so much water has been given up -that it becomes a very dry wind instead of a moist one. - -It must not be supposed, however, that the condensation effected by -mountains is entirely due to this coldness. They have another simple -and effective way of compelling the winds to give up rain: their -sloping sides force the winds which strike them to ascend into higher -regions,--wedging them up as waves run up a sloping stony bank on the -seashore,--and when the winds reach higher regions of the atmosphere -they must (as explained above) suffer loss of heat, or in other -words, have their temperature lowered. They also expand considerably -as they rise into regions where the atmospheric pressure is less; -and as every gas or vapour loses heat in the act of expansion, they -undergo a further cooling from this cause also. - -We have now learned that the cooling process is brought about in -three different ways: (1) By contact with the cold body of the -mountains; (2) By giving out heat into space; (3) By expansion of -the air as it reaches into the higher regions of the atmosphere. -The "cloud-caps" on certain mountains and promontories are to be -explained by all these causes combined. - -The west coast of Great Britain illustrates the same thing on a -smaller scale. There the warm waters of the Gulf Stream, travelling -in a northeasterly direction straight away from the Gulf of Mexico, -strike the west coast of Ireland, England, and Scotland; and as most -people are aware, the mild climate of Great Britain is chiefly due -to this fact. If you contrast for a moment the east and west coasts -of Britain, you will see that the latter is much more rocky and -mountainous than the east coast. Mountains run down nearly all our -western coasts. Now, it is this elevated and rocky side of Britain -which catches most of the rain. Very instructive it is to compare the -annual rainfall in different parts of Britain. On Dartmoor about 86 -inches of rain fall every year, while in London only about 24 inches -fall annually; but then London has no range of mountains near, and is -far away from the west coast. Again, while people in Ambleside have -to put up with 78 inches of rain, in Norfolk they are content with -the modest allowance of 24 inches or so. At a place called Quoich on -the west coast of Scotland, about 117 inches fall every year. These -differences are chiefly due to the different contour of the land down -the west side of Britain, which is mountainous, while the east side -is flat, and also to the fact that while easterly winds, which have -come over the continent, are dry, our prevailing winds are from the -west and southwest, and are consequently heavily laden with vapour -from the Atlantic Ocean. These winds follow the direction of the Gulf -Stream, driving it along before them; and in so doing they take up -large quantities of vapour from its surface. When these warm winds -touch our western coasts, they receive a chill, and consequently are -no longer able to contain all the vapour which they bring with them, -and so down comes the rain. - - -II. _Mountains are elevated reservoirs of water in one form or -another, and thus not only feed the streams and rivers, but give them -force and direction as well._ It is very important that the mountains -should not allow the waters they collect to run away too fast. Try -to think for a moment what would happen if instead of being, as it -were, locked up in the form of snowfields and glaciers, the water -were all in the liquid form. It would soon run away, and for months -together the great river-valleys would be dry and desolate. When the -rain came, there would be tremendous floods; dire destruction would -be wrought in the valleys; and very soon the great rivers would -dwindle down to nothing. Vegetation too would suffer seriously for -want of water during the summer months; and the valleys generally -would cease to be the fertile sources of life which they are at -present. The earth would become for the most part like a stagnant -marsh. - -But in the higher mountain regions there is a beneficent process -going on which averts such an evil. The precious supplies of water -are stored up in the solid forms of snow and ice. Now, we all know -that snow and ice take a long time to melt; and thus Nature regulates -and like a prudent housewife economises her precious stores. The -rivers which she feeds continually, from silent snowfields and -glaciers among her mountain-peaks, are the very arteries and veins -of the earth; and as the blood in our bodies is forced to circulate -by pressure from the heart, so the rivers are compelled to flow by -pressure from the great heart of the hills,--slow, steady, continuous -pressure, not the quick pulses which the human heart sends through -the body. - -And again, as the blood, after circulating through the body in an -infinite number of life-giving streams, returns to the heart once -more on its journey, so the thousand streams which wander over the -plains find their way back to the heart of the mountains, for the -water is brought there in the form of vapour and clouds by the winds. - -When we build water-towers, and make reservoirs on high ground to -give pressure to the water in our pipes, and make it circulate -everywhere,--even to the tops of our houses,--we are only taking a -hint from Nature. The mountains are her water-towers, and from these -strong reservoirs, which never burst, she commands her streams, -forcing them along their courses in order that they may find their -way to the utmost bounds of continents. - -But there is another way in which mountains regulate the supply -of water, and prevent it from running away too fast,--one not so -effective as the freezing process, but still very useful, because it -applies to the lower hills below the line of perpetual snow. This may -be well illustrated by the state of some of the Scotch hills in the -middle of summer or autumn, when there is little if any snow resting -upon them. - -Any one familiar with these hills will have noticed how full of -water their sides are. Tiny threads of streams trickle slowly along -everywhere; peat-beds are saturated with dark-brown water; even the -grass and soil are generally more or less wet, especially under pine -forests. One can generally get a cup of water somewhere, except -after a long dry summer, which is exceptional. Then there is the dew -forming every night. Forests with their undergrowth of soil--moss -and fern--also help very considerably to check the flow of water. We -have often asked ourselves when watching some swift-flowing river, -"Where does all this water come from? Why does it not dry up in -hot weather?" The answer came fully after we had climbed several -mountains, and seen with our eyes the peat-beds among the hills, and -heard the trickling of the tiny rivulets hurrying along to feed -some neighbouring burn, or perhaps to run into some mountain tarn or -loch, and noticed the damp, spongy state of the soil everywhere,--not -to mention the little springs which here and there well up to the -surface, and so contribute their share. - -The rivers and streams of Scotland assume various tints of amber -and dark-brown, according to the amount of rain which has recently -fallen. These colours are due to organic matter from the peat. -Compare Scott's description of the Greta:-- - - "In yellow light her currents shone, - Matching in hue the favourite gem - Of Albion's mountain diadem." - -The waters of some Scotch rivers after heavy rain look as black as -pitch. - -Nor must we omit the lakes which abound in most mountain regions, -and serve as natural reservoirs for the rivers, besides giving a -wonderful charm to mountain scenery. - -The largest lakes in mountainous regions are found on the courses -of the rivers; and there is good reason to believe that they were -formed, not by any process of subsidence, but by the same operations -that carved out the valleys. In many cases they are due to the -damming up of a stream. But in some countries the streams dry up -during summer,--in Palestine or Sinai, where there is but little soil -on the hills, and consequently hardly any vegetation. Such barren -hills cannot hold the continual supplies which pour gently forth from -the mountains of higher latitudes. - -The Alps feed four of the principal rivers of Europe. We cannot do -better than quote Professor Bonney, whose writings on the Alps are -familiar to all geologists. In his "Alpine Regions of Switzerland" -the following passage occurs:-- - - "This mass of mountains, the great highlands of Europe, is - therefore of the utmost physical and geographical importance. - Rising in places to a height of more than fifteen thousand - feet above the sea, and covered for an extent of many thousand - square miles with perpetual snow, it is the chief feeder of - four of the principal rivers in Europe,--the Po, the Rhone, - the Rhine, and the Danube. But for those barren fields of ice, - high up among the silent crags, the seeming home of winter and - death, these great arteries of life would every summer dwindle - down to paltry streams, feebly wandering over stone-strewn - beds. Stand, for example, on some mountain-spur, and look down - on the Lombardy plain, all one rich carpet of wheat and maize, - of rice and vine; the life of those myriad threads of green - and gold is fed from these icy peaks, which stand out against - the northern sky in such strange and solemn contrast. As it is - with the Po, so it is with the Rhine and the Rhone, both of - which issue from the Alps as broad, swelling streams; so, too, - with the Danube, which, although it does not rise in them, yet - receives from the Inn and the Drave almost all the drainage of - the eastern districts." - -A very little reflection will serve to convince any one how vastly -important and beneficial is the slope of the mountains, and how it -gives force and direction to streams and rivers. Without this force, -due to universal gravitation, by which the waters seek continually -lower levels, the supplies in the hills would be useless. Mere lakes -on flat surfaces would not answer the purpose; and so the sources of -water are elevated in order that it may pour over the world below. - -No writer has given such fascinating descriptions of mountains as -Mr. Ruskin; and no one has more eloquently described the functions -they perform. In the fourth volume of his "Modern Painters," which -every one who cares for mountains should read, we find the following -beautiful passage:-- - - "Every fountain and river, from the inch-deep streamlet that - crosses the village lane in trembling clearness, to the massy - and silent march of the everlasting multitude of waters in - Amazon or Ganges, owe their play and purity and power to the - ordained elevations of the earth. Gentle or steep, extended - or abrupt, some determined slope of the earth's surface is of - course necessary before any wave can so much as overtake one - sedge in its pilgrimage; and how seldom do we enough consider, - as we walk beside the margins of our pleasant brooks, how - beautiful and wonderful is that ordinance, of which every - blade of grass that waves in their clear waters is a perpetual - sign,--that the dew and rain fallen on the face of the earth - shall find no resting-place; shall find, on the contrary, - fixed channels traced for them from the ravines of the central - crests down which they roar in sudden ranks of foam to the dark - hollows beneath the banks of lowland pasture, round which they - must circle slowly among the stems and beneath the leaves of - the lilies; paths prepared for them by which, at some appointed - rate of journey, they must evermore descend, sometimes slow, - and sometimes swift, but never pausing; the daily portion of - the earth they have to glide over marked for them at each - successive sunrise; the place which has known them knowing - them no more; and the gateways of guarding mountains opened for - them in cleft and chasm, none letting them in their pilgrimage, - and from afar off the great heart of the sea calling them to - itself: 'Deep calleth unto deep.'" - -Geologists, however, do not in these days teach that the present -paths of rivers were made for them, but rather that the rivers have -carved out their own valleys for themselves. The old teaching before -the days of Lyell and Hutton, the founders of modern geology, was -that valleys were rents in the rocks of the earth's crust formed -by some wonderful convulsion of Nature, whereby they were cracked, -torn asunder, and upheaved. But a careful study of rivers and their -valleys for many years has shown that there is no evidence of such -sudden convulsions. The world is very old indeed, and rivers have -been flowing much as we see them for ages and ages. A few thousand -years is to the geologist but a short space of time; and there can be -no doubt that a stream can in the course of time carve out for itself -a valley. The operations of Nature seem slow to us because our lives -are so short, and we can see so little change even in a generation; -but the effects of these changes mount up enormously when continued -through a long space of time. Nature works slowly; but then she has -unlimited time, and never seems in a hurry. It is like the old story -of the hare and the tortoise; and the river, working on steadily and -quietly for hundreds or thousands of years, accomplishes far more in -the end than sudden floods or violent catastrophes of any sort. - - -III. _Mountains suffer themselves to be slowly worn away in order -that the face of the earth may be renewed; in other words, they die -that we, and all created things, may live._ The reader will find a -full account of the methods by which these results are accomplished -in chapters v. and vii., and therefore we must not anticipate this -part of the subject. Let it suffice for the present to say that -this destruction of the hills is brought about by the action of -heat and cold, of rain and frost, of snow and ice, and the thousand -streams that flow down the mountain-sides. It is with soils that we -are chiefly concerned at present. Try to think for a moment of the -literally _vital_ consequences which follow from the presence of -good rich soils over different parts of the earth, and ask whether -it would be possible for civilised races of men to flourish and -multiply as they do if it were not for the great fertile valleys and -plains of the world. Mountain races are neither rich nor powerful. -Man exists mainly by cultivation of the soil; and among mountains -we only find here and there patches that are worthy of the labour -and expenditure of capital involved in cultivation. But in the great -plains, in the principal river-valleys of the world, and among the -lesser hill-ranges it is different. The _lowlands_ are the fertile -regions. All great and powerful nations of the world are children -of the plains. It was so in the past; it will be so in the future, -unless men learn to feed on something else than corn, milk, and -flesh, which is not very likely. - -The Egyptians, the earliest civilised race of which we have -satisfactory records, dwelt in the fertile valley and delta of -the Nile. They clearly perceived the value of this great river to -themselves, and worshipped it accordingly. They knew nothing of its -source in the far-away lakes of Central Africa; but they knew truly, -as Herodotus tells us, that Egypt was "the gift of the Nile," for the -alluvial soil of its delta has been formed by the yearly floods of -that great river, as its waters, laden with a fine rich mud, spread -over its banks, and for a time filled the valley with one sheet of -water. The Assyrians and Babylonians had their home in the valley of -the Euphrates and Tigris. The Chinese, too, have their great rivers. -Russia is well watered by powerful rivers. The most populous parts of -the United States of America are watered by the great Mississippi, -and the other rivers which flow into it. England, Germany, and France -are furnished with well-watered plains. - -Soils are the chief form of national wealth. Minerals, such as coal -and iron, are of course extremely valuable, and help to make an -industrious race rich; but the land is the main thing, after all, and -by land we mean soil. The two words are almost synonymous. But since -the soil is formed chiefly of débris brought from the mountains, it -would be more true to say that these are the real sources of wealth. -Soils contain besides a large amount of valuable organic matter (that -is, decayed matter which has once had animal or vegetable life) -different kinds of minerals, which are necessary to the support of -plant life: potash, soda, carbonate of lime, silica, magnesia, iron, -phosphorus, and manganese in their various compounds are all present -in the rocks of which mountains are composed. We must again fall back -upon "Modern Painters" for an effective description of the forming of -soil by destruction of the hills:-- - - "The higher mountains suffer their summits to be broken into - fragments and to be cast down in sheets of massy rock, full, as - we shall presently see, of every substance necessary for the - nourishment of plants; these fallen fragments are again broken - by frost, and ground by torrents into various conditions of - sand and clay,--materials which are distributed perpetually by - the streams farther and farther from the mountain's base. Every - shower that swells the rivulets enables their waters to carry - certain portions of earth into new positions, and exposes new - banks of ground to be moved in their turn.... The process is - continued more gently, but not less effectively, over all the - surface of the lower undulating country; and each filtering - thread of summer rain which trickles through the short turf of - the uplands is bearing its own appointed burden of earth down - on some new natural garden in the dingles beneath." - -It may be laid down as a simple economic truth, that no nation can be -powerful, rich, or prosperous, unless it possess in the first place -a good soil. Other conditions, such as large navigable rivers, a -good seaboard for harbouring ships, are also important; but unless -the land will yield plenty of food, the population cannot be very -great, for people must be fed. Foreign supplies of corn at a low -price, meat and provisions of various kinds, supplement what is -grown in England; but without a good soil we could not have become a -powerful nation. - -A high state of civilisation is in a large measure to be traced to -climate and soil. The sequence is somewhat as follows:-- - -Mountains collect rain. - -Rain fills the rivers. - -Rivers make rich alluvial plains. - -Agriculture follows; and food is produced. - -Abundant food maintains a large population. - -The population works to supply its various wants; such as roads, -railways, ships, houses, machinery, etc. Then follows exchange with -other countries. They send us what they can best produce, and we send -them what we can best and most easily produce, and so both parties -gain. - -Thus towns spring up. Education, refinement, learning, and the higher -arts follow from the active life of towns, where more brain-work is -required, and the standard of life is higher. - -And thus we may, in imagination, follow step by step the various -stages by which the highest phases of civilisation are brought to -pass, beginning at the mountains and ending with human beings of -the highest type,--the philosopher, artist, poet, or statesman, not -omitting the gentler sex, who are often said to rule the world. - -The following lines of Milton possess, in the light of these facts, a -deeper meaning than the poet probably intended to convey:-- - - "Straight mine eye hath caught new pleasures - Whilst the landscape round it measures: - Russet lawns and fallows grey, - Where the nibbling flocks do stray; - Mountains on whose barren breast - The labouring clouds do often rest; - Meadows trim with daisies pied, - Shallow brooks and rivers wide; - Flowers and battlements it sees - Bosomed high in tufted trees,-- - Where perhaps some beauty lies, - The cynosure of neighbouring eyes." - -With a little rearrangement of the lines, the sequence we have -indicated above would be well illustrated. The mountains must come -first; then the clouds, ready to bring forth their rain; then the -brooks and rivers, then "russet lawns and fallows grey,"--with their -"nibbling flocks." Then come the human elements in the scene,--the -"towers and battlements," containing armed warriors, well fed, no -doubt, and ready to do their master's bidding; lastly, the lady -who adorns the home of her lord, and, let us hope, makes it worth -fighting for. - -For commercial purposes, large navigable rivers are of great use. And -in spite of the modern railway, rivers still exert an influence in -determining the routes followed by trade. London, Liverpool, Glasgow, -and other busy centres of life owe their importance to the rivers -which flow through them, especially since they are tidal rivers. -Heavily laden barges may be seen from London Bridge going up and down -with the tide every day. - -Since the direction as well as the existence of large rivers is -regulated by mountains, it is clear that mountains have a very direct -influence on the trade of the world. - - -_Mountains supply many of our wants._ Besides water and soil, how -many useful things come from the hills! Their slopes, watered by -the clouds, frequently support an abundant growth of pine forest; -and thus we get wood for the shipwright and joiner. Again, mountains -are composed of harder rocks than we find in the plains, and that -is one reason why they stand out high above the rest of the world. -Their substance has been hardened to withstand for a longer time the -destruction to which all rocks are subjected. They have been greatly -compressed and generally more or less hardened by subterranean heat. -We bake clay and make it into hard bricks; so Nature has baked and -otherwise hardened the once soft strata of which mountains are -chiefly composed, converting them into slates, schist, gneiss, and -other kinds of rock called "metamorphic" by geologists, because they -have been altered or metamorphosed from their original condition (see -chapter viii., page 277). Again, granite, basalt, and other rocks -known as "igneous," which once existed in a molten condition, have -forced their way up from subterranean regions into the rocks forming -mountain-chains; and a good deal of the hardening just alluded to is -due to the presence of these fiery intruders, which have baked and -hardened the rocks around them to a considerable extent, altering -at the same time their mineral composition. The same causes which -led to the injection of granite, basalt, and other igneous rocks in -mountain-ranges brought other consequences in their train. Whatever -the causes, they were closely connected with volcanic eruptions, so -that highly heated water and steam found their way through cracks and -other fissures in the rocks; and in the course of time the chemical -actions thus set up led to the deposition of valuable metallic ores -within these fissures. In this way mineral veins were formed; and -volcanic action seems to be largely responsible for the production of -minerals. Thus we find around Vesuvius, and in fact in all volcanic -regions, large and varied supplies of minerals. Now, the geologist -discovers that many mountain-chains--such, for example, as the -Grampians, Alps, and Carpathians--have in past geological periods -been the seats of volcanic action on a grand scale; and so we need -not be surprised to learn that mountainous countries yield large -supplies of valuable gems and metallic ores (see chapter viii., -page 277). Even in the days of Solomon, the active and business-like -Phoenicians were carrying on trade with Great Britain; and the tin -came from Cornwall. Besides tin, gold, silver, lead, copper, zinc, -and other metals come from our hills. Now, however, we get our copper -mostly from the Andes, and our gold from Australia or South Africa, -because it can be got more cheaply from these countries, to which -many of our Cornish miners have emigrated. - -Precious stones also come chiefly from the hills, for the same -reason; for they were formed at the same time and by the same causes. -Cairngorms, agates, chalcedony, jasper, onyx, topaz, diamonds, and -many other gems are silent but certain witnesses to the action of -subterranean heat, acting long ago on the rocks which we now see -standing up high above the general surface of the ground, though -once they were buried deep down below the surface. Diamonds as well -as gold are often got from the beds of streams, but this is easily -accounted for; the streams have washed them out and brought them down -from the hills. - -The following words from the Book of Job (xxviii. 5) might well be -applied to the hills. - - "As for the earth, out of it cometh bread: - And underneath it is turned up as it were by fire. - The stones thereof are the place of sapphires, - And it hath dust of gold." - -We have thus explained the three principal services rendered by -mountains, but some others remain to be mentioned. - - -_Mountains have an important influence on climate._ The climate of -highlands everywhere has certain peculiarities which distinguish -it from that of adjacent lowlands. The air resting on mountains is -less dense than that of the lowlands, and hence has fewer molecules -to obstruct the entering sunbeams by day, or to stop the outward -radiation at night. Therefore mountain air must be cooler; and so we -find that on mountains the mean, or average, annual temperature is -lower. This rarity of the air causes the ground to become hotter by -day and colder by night than the ground of the plains; and so the -extremes of temperature are greater. These extremes are injurious to -vegetation in the higher regions, and the want of moisture still -more so. But mountain-slopes _up to a certain height_ usually have -a moist climate; that is, they have more clouds and rain than the -surrounding lowlands. Below the region of snow there is generally -a heavy growth of forest; and forests in their turn exercise an -important influence, helping to collect moisture, and in various ways -to prevent extremes either of heat or cold. - -The earth is divided into three well-marked zones or belts of -climate: (1) The torrid zone within the tropics, where the sun is -vertical twice a year, and days and nights are nearly equal; (2) -The temperate zones, where the sun's rays come more obliquely, -and so are less powerful, and where the length of day and night -varies considerably; and (3) The frigid zones, round each of the -poles, regions of intense cold, where for six months of the year -the sun is never seen. Now, these broad divisions, so familiar to -school children, are considerably interfered with by the height of -various districts above the sea-level, or, as geographers say, by -altitude. High ranges of mountains bring somewhat arctic conditions -with them, even in low latitudes, where one would expect great -heat. Thus the climate of the plains is very different from that -of their neighbouring mountain-ranges, although their latitudes are -practically the same. Travellers in Switzerland know how hot it can -be in the Rhone Valley or in the plain of Lombardy, and how much -cooler it is when you get up among the glaciers and the snowfields. -Or to take an illustration from Great Britain: a hot summer would be -somewhat trying in Edinburgh, Glasgow, or even Inverness, because -they lie low, while among the Grampians, on Speyside, or Braemar, it -would be very pleasant. - -Vegetation follows climate. The sultry plains of the Ganges show -a luxuriant tropical vegetation, while on the middle slopes of -the Himalayas the climate is temperate, like that of Europe, and -consequently the vegetation resembles that of a temperate region; and -the highest parts of this great range are like polar latitudes in -their climate, and partly also in their vegetation. - -The arctic character of the climate of high mountain regions shows -itself in the flora; for on the High Alps and the Highlands of -Scotland and Norway, we find no small number of truly arctic plants -whose home is much farther north. A very long time ago, when the -climate of the whole of Northern Europe was extremely severe, and -when great glaciers descended from the mountains into the plains, -so that the aspect of the country was somewhat similar to that of -Greenland at the present day, arctic plants and animals came down -from their northern home, and flourished abundantly. This was during -the _Great Ice Age_, which has left behind unmistakable evidences -which the geologist can interpret as if they were written records. -Then for some reason the climate became milder, the glaciers melted -away, in Great Britain at least; but these arctic plants were left -behind, and flourished still on the cool mountains, though they died -out on the warm plains (see chap. iv., pp. 123-124). - - [Illustration: SNOW ON THE HIGH ALPS. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH BY MR. - DONKIN.] - -_Mountains help to cause movement and change in the atmosphere._ -Let us see how this takes place. Mountains expose on one side their -masses of rock to the full heat of the sun. Rocks are capable of -becoming highly heated under a blazing sun: we have known stone -walls, even in England, to be almost too hot to touch; and perhaps -the reader may have often noticed the quivering of the hot air as -it rises from the ground on a summer day, especially over a road or -any piece of bare rocky ground. This quivering tells us that the air -is highly heated by the ground beneath, and is consequently rising. -You know how the pebbles look beneath a clear running stream; and -the things which we see through air in this state all seem to be -similarly moving or quivering. It is easy then to imagine how masses -of heated air would rise up from the side of a mountain-range which -faces the sun,--that is, the southern side,--while on the other, or -northern side they cast a soft shadow for leagues over the plains -at their feet. In this way mountains divide a district into two -different climates, with a light warm air on their southern slopes, -and colder air on the northern, and the rising of the warm air will -cause a certain amount of circulation and movement. Hence mountains -help to make currents in the atmosphere, and these currents produce -important consequences. - -When mountain-ranges trend more or less directly across the direction -of prevailing winds, they always have a moist side and a dry one. In -the torrid zone, where easterly winds prevail, the eastern slope is -usually the moist side; but in higher latitudes, as, for example, in -Europe, the western side of mountain-ranges receives the greatest -amount of rainfall, because westerly winds prevail there. - - -_Mountains are barriers dividing not only one nation from another, -but separating also various tribes of plants and animals._ It will -be readily understood that with the exception of birds, whose powers -of flight render them independent of physical barriers, most animals -find mountains more impassable than men do. We can make roads and -railways, but they cannot thus aid their powers of locomotion; hence -mountains put limits to their migrations. Still, climate and food -supplies have a greater influence in determining the boundaries of -zoölogical provinces (see chapter iv.). - - -_Mountains are the backbones of continents._ A glance at a map of -the world will show that there is evidently a close connection -between continents and great mountain-chains. This connection shows -itself both in the shapes and general direction of continents. -Thus, the long continuous line of mountain-chain which extends from -the southern spur of the Andes to the northern end of the Rocky -Mountains,--a distance of about nine thousand miles,--corresponds -with the general trend of the North American continent, and forms -the axis or backbone of that vast tract of land. It seems as if the -sea on its western side were kept at bay by this great rocky wall, -while on its eastern side the rivers have formed new land. A line of -mountains is often the coast line, for the sea cannot overcome it -unless subsidence takes place. The backbone of Asia and Europe runs -east and west, and the continental area of the Old World follows the -same general direction. - -These are the chief uses of mountains, and the facts which we have -brought forward will serve to show how indispensable they are. The -following eloquent passage from "Modern Painters" may form a fitting -close to the present chapter:-- - - "And thus those desolate and threatening ranges which in nearly - all ages of the world men have looked upon with aversion or - with horror, and shrunk back from as if they were haunted by - perpetual images of death, are in reality sources of life - and happiness, far fuller and more beneficent than all the - bright fruitfulness of the plain. The valleys only feed; the - mountains feed and guard and strengthen us. We take our ideas - of fearfulness and sublimity alternately from the mountains and - the sea; but we associate them unjustly. The sea-wave, with - all its beneficence, is yet devouring and terrible; but the - silent wave of the blue mountain is lifted towards heaven in a - stillness of perpetual mercy; and the one surge, unfathomable - in its darkness, the other unshaken in its faithfulness, for - ever bear the seal of their appointed symbolism:-- - - "'Thy _righteousness_ is like the great mountains, - Thy _judgements_ are a great deep.'" - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -SUNSHINE AND STORM ON THE MOUNTAINS. - - I would entreat your company - To see the wonders of the world. - - _Two Gentlemen of Verona._ - - -"The spirit of the hills is action, that of the lowlands repose."[9] -The plains, with their peaceful meadows and meandering streams, might -almost be said to be asleep; but the mountains are wide awake. They -are emphatically scenes of violent or rapid action. The wind blows -more fiercely among the mountain-peaks than over the plains below; -heat and cold are more extreme; and every process of change or decay -seems quickened. - - [9] Ruskin, "Modern Painters." - -Avalanches, falls of rock, earthquakes, storms, and floods exhibit -the more terrible aspects of the hills. Yet they have their gentler -moods: witness the brightness of the starry sky overhead, and its -intense blue by day, the wonderful sunrises and sunsets, the lovely -effects of light and shade, of cloud and mist, the stillness and -silence of the eternal snows in summer, and the beauty of the Alpine -flower. - -Let us see what those who know mountains best have to say about the -wonderful things they have seen there. To begin with sunset and -sunrise. Professor Bonney remarks,-- - - "Not the least interesting peculiarity of an Alpine sunset - is the frequency with which its most beautiful effects are - revealed quite unexpectedly. Often at the close of a rainy - afternoon, the clouds, just before the sun goes down, break, - roll up, sometimes disperse as if by magic, in the glory of - those crimson rays that come darting upon them and piercing - every rift. Many a time have I watched the vapours around a - mountain-peak curling lightly upwards, and melting away into - the sky, till at last the unclouded summit glowed with flushes - of orange and rose, ere it grew pale and dead in its shroud of - fresh-fallen snow."[10] - - [10] The Alpine Regions of Switzerland. - -Here is a description by Professor Tyndall of a sunset witnessed in -the neighbourhood of the Weisshorn:-- - - "As the day approached its end, the scene assumed the most - sublime aspect. All the lower portions of the mountains were - deeply shaded, while the loftiest peaks, ranged upon a - semicircle, were fully exposed to the sinking sun. They seemed - pyramids of solid fire; while here and there long stretches - of crimson light drawn over the higher snowfields linked the - glorified summits together. An intensely illuminated geranium - flower seems to swim in its own colour, which apparently - surrounds the petals like a layer, and defeats by its lustre - any attempt of the eye to seize upon the sharp outline of the - leaves. A similar effect has been observed upon the mountains; - the glory did not seem to come from them alone, but seemed also - effluent from the air around them. This gave them a certain - buoyancy which suggested entire detachment from the earth. - They swam in splendour which intoxicated the soul; and I will - not now repeat in my moments of soberness the extravagant - analogies which ran through my brain. As the evening advanced, - the eastern heavens low down assumed a deep purple hue, above - which, and blended with it by infinitesimal gradations, was a - belt of red, and over this again zones of orange and violet. I - walked round the corner of the mountain at sunset, and found - the western sky glowing with a more transparent crimson than - that which overspread the east. The crown of the Weisshorn was - embedded in this magnificent light. After sunset the purple - of the east changed to a deep neutral tint; and against the - faded red which spread above it, the sun-forsaken mountains - laid their cold and ghostly heads. The ruddy colour vanished - more and more; the stars strengthened in lustre, until finally - the moon and they held undisputed possession of the blue-grey - sky."[11] - - [11] Mountaineering in 1861 (Longman). - - -Marvellous sunsets are to be witnessed from the mountains of the New -World. The following is a short and graphic description of sunset -glories on the Sierra Nevada Mountains by Mr. Clarence King, whose -name is well known to geologists:-- - - "While I looked, the sun descended, shadows climbed the - Sierras, casting a gloom over foothill and pine, until at last - only the snow summits, reflecting the evening light, glowed - like red lamps along the mountain-wall for hundreds of miles. - The rest of the Sierra became invisible. The snow burned for a - moment in the violet sky, and at last went out." - -These marvellous effects appeal powerfully to our sense of beauty -and produce in most minds feelings of intense delight; but they also -appeal to the reasoning faculty in man, and an intelligent observer -naturally inquires, "Why are these things so? How are those glorious -colours of crimson, orange, and yellow produced?" A full explanation -cannot be attempted here; but this much may perhaps be said without -tiring the patience of the reader. White light, such as sunlight or -the light from an electric arc, is composed of all the colours of the -rainbow,--violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, and red. A ray -of sunlight on passing through a prism is split up into all these -colours in the above order, and we get them arranged in a band which -is known as the spectrum. Thus it is proved that white light is made -up of all colours (black is not a colour, but the absence of colour). -Now, when the sun is low down in the sky, as at sunset, only some of -these colour-rays are able to pass through the atmosphere and so to -reach our eyes, while others are stopped in passing through very many -miles of atmosphere (as they must obviously do when the sun is low). -Those which are stopped are the blue rays and others allied to blue, -such as purple and green; but the red and yellow rays are able to -pass on till they come to us. Hence red, yellow, and orange are the -prevailing sunset tints. - -What, then, becomes of the missing blue rays? They are caught by the -myriads of little floating particles in the air, and reflected away -from us. That is why we do not see them; their course is turned -back, just as waves breaking against a stone sea-wall are turned -back or reflected. A person situated _behind_ such a wall will not -see the waves which break against it; but suppose a _very_ big wave -came: it would come right over, and then we should soon become aware -of its presence. So it is with the little waves of light: some are -stopped and turned back as they break against the myriads of little -dust particles and the still more numerous particles of mist always -floating in the air; while others, which are larger, break over -them and travel on undisturbed until they reach our eyes. Now, the -larger waves of light are the red waves, while the smaller ones are -the blue waves; hence there is no difficulty in understanding why -the red waves (or vibrations) are seen at sunset and sunrise, to -the exclusion of the blue waves. But it must be borne in mind that -light-waves are of infinitesimal smallness, thousands and thousands -of them going to make up an inch. Sound also travels in waves, and -the phenomena of sound serve to illustrate those of light; but -sound-waves are very much larger. - -The reason why the sky overhead appears blue is that we see the blue -rays reflected down to the earth from myriads of tiny dust and water -particles, while the red rays pass on over our heads, which is just -the reverse of what happens at sunset. - -On the southern slopes of the Alps the blues of the sky are generally -very different from those on the northern side; and this is probably -due to the greater quantity of water-vapour in the air, for the moist -winds come from the south. Sunrises in the Alps are quite as glorious -to behold as sunsets; but comparatively few people rise early enough -to see them. Speaking generally, it may be said that in Alpine -sunrises the prevailing colours are orange and gold, in sunsets -crimson or violet-pink. After a cool night the atmospheric conditions -will obviously be different from those which exist after a warm day, -and more water-vapour will have been condensed into mist or cloud. -Hence we should expect a somewhat different effect. - -The snowfields on high ranges of mountains are of a dazzling -whiteness; and their bright glare is so great as to distress the -eyes of those who walk over them without blue glasses, and even -to cause inflammation. At these heights the traveller is not only -exposed to the direct rays of the sun, untempered save for a thin -veil of rarefied air, but also to an intense glare produced by the -little snow-crystals which scatter around the beams of light falling -upon them. Scientific men, who have studied these matters, say that -the scorching of the skin and "sun-burning" experienced by Alpine -travellers is not caused, as might be supposed, by the heat of the -sun, but by the rays of light darting and flashing on all sides from -myriads of tiny snow-crystals. - -Occasionally a soft lambent glow has been observed on snowfields -at night. This is a very curious phenomenon, to which the name of -"phosphorescence" has, rightly or wrongly, been given. A pale light -may often be seen on the sea during a summer night, when the water -is disturbed in any way; and if one is rowing in a boat, the oars -seem glowing with a faint and beautiful light. It is well known that -this is caused by myriads of little light-producing animalcules -in the sea-water. But we can hardly suppose that the glow above -referred to is produced by a similar cause. One observer says the -glow is "something like that produced by the flame of naphtha;" -and he goes on to say that at every step "an illuminated circle -or nimbus about two inches in breadth surrounded our feet, and we -seemed to be ploughing our way through fields of light, and raising -clods of it, if I may be allowed the expression, in our progress." -Another observer, also an Alpine traveller, says that at almost every -footstep the snowy particles, which his companion in front lifted -with his feet from the freshly fallen snow, fell in little luminous -showers. The exact cause which produces this strange effect at night -has not been ascertained. - -There is another curious phenomenon often seen just before sunset on -a mountain in Hungary. It is known as "The Spectre of the Brocken." -The Brocken is the highest summit of the Hartz Mountains. As you step -out upon the plateau upon the top of the hill, your shadow, grim and -gigantic, is apparently flung right out against the eastern sky, -where it flits from place to place, following your every movement. -The explanation is simply this: to the east of the Hartz Mountains -there is always a very dense and hazy atmosphere, so dense that it -presents a surface capable of receiving the impression of a shadow, -and of retaining it, as a wall does. The shadows are really close -at hand, not a long way off, as might at first sight be supposed. If -very far away, they would be too faint to be visible. - - -In all mountainous regions the permanent habitations of men cease -at a limit far below the most elevated points reached by the -mountain-climber. St. Veran and Gargl, the highest villages of France -and Germany, are situated at the respective heights of 6,591 and -6,197 feet; but the Hospice of St. Bernard, in Switzerland, built -centuries ago to shelter travellers when benumbed with the cold, is -much more elevated, its height being 8,110 feet above sea-level. The -most elevated cluster of houses in the world is the convent of Hanle, -inhabited by twenty Thibetan priests; its height is 14,976 feet. None -of the villages of the Andes, except perhaps that of Santa Anna, in -Bolivia, have been built at so great a height. - -Travellers who venture to ascend lofty mountains not only have to -suffer all the rigours of cold and run the risk of being frozen -on their route, but they may also experience painful sensations -owing to the rarefaction of the air. It would naturally be supposed -that at an elevation at which the pressure of the atmosphere is -reduced to one half, or even to one fourth that of the plains below, -a certain uneasiness should be caused by the change, the more so -since other conditions, such as warmth and moisture, are different. -Undaunted climbers, like Professor Tyndall, who have never felt the -effect of this "mountain-sickness" (_mal de montagne_), deny that -the sensations proceed from anything else than mere fatigue. In the -Himalayas, the traveller does not begin to suffer from the attacks of -this ailment until he has reached a height of 16,500 feet; while on -the Andes a large number of persons are affected by it at an altitude -of 10,700 feet. In the South American mountains, the symptoms are -much more serious: to the fatigue, head-ache, and want of breath are -added giddiness, sometimes fainting-fits, and bleeding from lips, -gums, and eyelids. The aeronaut, however, who is spared all the -fatigue of climbing, rarely suffers any inconvenience except from -cold, at such elevations. But on rising to greater heights, 30,000 or -40,000 feet, the malady shows itself; and if the balloon continued to -rise, the aerial voyager would infallibly perish. - -Professor Bonney says:-- - - "I have occasionally seen persons singularly affected on high - mountains; and as the barometer stands at about sixteen inches - on Mont Blanc, and at thirty at sea-level, one would expect - this great difference to be felt. Still, I do not think it easy - to separate the inconveniences due to atmosphere from those - caused by unwonted fatigue, and am inclined to attribute most - of them to the latter." - -But the fact that the aeronaut suffers seems conclusive. - - -The violent storms which break upon mountain districts often cause -floods of considerable magnitude, such as may be compared with the -memorable bursting of the Holmfirth reservoir. Hardly a year passes -without considerable damage being done: bridges are swept away; roads -are buried under torrents of mud, and fields overwhelmed with débris. -In August of the year 1860 a severe storm was witnessed by visitors -staying at Zermatt. It began with a thunder-storm; and rain fell for -about thirty-six hours, after which, as may be supposed, the torrents -were swollen far beyond their usual size. Lower down in the valleys -much harm was done, but there one bridge only was swept away. It -was, however, an awful sight to see the Visp roaring under one of the -bridges that remained, and to hear the heavy thuds of the boulders -that were being hurried on and dashed against one another by the -torrent. - -In September, 1556, the town of Locarno, in the Canton Ticino, was -visited by a destructive storm and flood. The day began by several -shocks of earthquake, followed, about five o'clock, by a terrific -gale from the south. Part of the old castle was blown down; the doors -of St. Victor's Church were burst open by a blast while the priest -was at the altar; and everything within was overturned. At midday the -clouds were so thick that it was almost as dark as night. A violent -thunder-storm and torrents of rain followed, lasting from two to six -o'clock in the evening. The rivulets all became torrents; the stream -flowing through the town was so choked by uprooted trees and rocks -that its water flooded the streets and almost buried them under mud -and gravel. Such a sight as this gives one a powerful impression of -the geological work of streams when greatly swollen; for all this -débris must have been brought down from the surrounding mountains. -Many lives were lost by this calamity, and a great deal of property -was destroyed. Late in the year, during unsettled weather, the -traveller often encounters on Alpine passes a sudden storm of snow, -accompanied by violent gusts of wind, which fill the air with drifted -flakes; so that becoming bewildered, he loses his way, and at last -sinks down benumbed with cold and dies. Many a frequented pass in -Switzerland has been the scene of death from this cause. Exhausted -with fatigue, and overcome with cold, the traveller sinks down by the -wayside, and the guides, after having in vain endeavoured to urge him -on, are compelled, in order to save their own lives, to leave him to -his fate and press forward. The name "Tourmente" is given to these -storms. - -On the tops of the highest mountains, even in very fine weather, -the wind often blows with great force; and the north wind, supposed -to be the mountaineer's best friend, is sometimes his enemy. It -not unfrequently happens that a gale renders the passage of some -exposed slope or ridge too dangerous, or the intense cold produces -frost-bites, so that an expedition has to be abandoned when success -is within reach, which naturally is very annoying. Professor Bonney, -speaking of such a gale which he experienced in 1864, says,-- - - "The cold was something horrible; the wind seemed to blow not - round, but through me, freezing my very marrow, and making my - teeth chatter like castanets; and if I stopped for a moment, I - shook as if in an ague-fit. It whisked up the small spiculæ of - frozen snow, and dashed them against my face with such violence - that it was hardly possible to look to windward. Thin sheets of - ice as large as my hand were whirled along the surface of the - glacier like paper.... When these gales are raging, the drifted - snow is blown far to leeward of the peaks in long streamers - like delicate cirrus-clouds; and on such occasions the mountain - is said by the guides _fumer sa pipe_ (to smoke his pipe). This - Mont Blanc was doing to some purpose the day that we were upon - him." - -It is a curious fact that these gales are often confined to the -crests of the mountains, so that the wind may be raging among the -peaks while a few hundred feet lower down there is comparative calm. - -The chief of the prevailing winds in the Alps is the Föhn. This is -a hot blast from the south which probably comes from the African -deserts. On its approach the air becomes close and stifling, the sky, -at first of unusual clearness, gradually thickens to a muddy and -murky hue, animals become restless and disquieted by the unnatural -dryness of the hot blast which now comes sweeping over the hills. In -some villages, it is said, all the fires are extinguished when this -wind begins to blow, for fear lest some chance spark should fall on -the dry wooden roofs and set the whole place in a blaze. Still the -Föhn is not altogether an "ill wind that blows nobody any good," -for under its warm touch the winter snows melt away with marvellous -rapidity. In the valley of Grindelwald it causes a snow-bed two -feet thick to disappear in about a couple of hours, and produces in -twenty-four hours a greater effect than the sun does in fifteen days. -There is a Swiss proverb which rather profanely says: "If the Föhn -does not blow, the golden sun and the good God can do nothing with -the snow." - -In summer-time, however, the south wind is never welcome, for the -vapour which it brings from the Italian plains is condensed by the -snows of the Alps, and streams down in torrents of rain. - - -A thunder-storm is always a grand spectacle. Among mountains such -storms are more frequent than on the plains, and also, as might be -expected, far more magnificent, especially at night. Flashes, or -rather sheets, of unutterable brilliancy light up the sky; distant -chains of mountains are revealed for a moment, only to be instantly -eclipsed by the pall of night. Says Professor Bonney,-- - - "No words can adequately express the awful grandeur of these - tempests when they burst among the mountains. I have often - been out in them,--in fact, far more frequently than was - pleasant; but perhaps the grandest of all was one that welcomed - me for the first time to Chamouni. As we entered the valley, - and caught sight of the white pinnacles of the _glacier des - Bossons_, a dark cloud came rolling up rapidly from the west. - Beneath it, just where two tall peaks towered up, the sky - glowed like a sheet of red-hot copper, and a lurid mist spread - over the neighbouring hills, wrapping them, as it seemed, in a - robe of flame. Onward rolled the cloud; the lightning began to - play; down the valley rushed a squall of wind, driving the dust - high in air before it, and followed by a torrent of rain. - Flash succeeded flash almost incessantly,--now darting from - cloud to cloud; now dividing itself into a number of separate - streaks of fire, and dancing all over the sky; now streaming - down upon the crags, and at times even leaping up from some - lofty peak into the air. The colours were often most beautiful, - and bright beyond description." - - [Illustration: A STORM ON THE LAKE OF THUN. AFTER TURNER.] - -The mountain traveller, when caught in a thunder-storm, undergoes a -strange experience, not unattended with danger. One observer[12] thus -describes his sensations:-- - - [12] Mr. R. S. Watson, in "The Alpine Journal," vol. i., p. 143. - - "A loud peal of thunder was heard; and shortly after I observed - that a strange singing sound, like that of a kettle, was - issuing from my alpenstock. We halted, and finding that all the - axes and stocks emitted the same sound, stuck them into the - snow. The guide from the hotel now pulled off his cap, shouting - that his head burned; and his hair was seen to have a similar - appearance to that which it would have presented had he been - on an insulated stool under a powerful electrical machine. We - all of us experienced the sensation of pricking and burning in - some part of the body, more especially in the head and face, - my hair also standing on end in an uncomfortable but very - amusing manner. The snow gave out a hissing sound, as though a - heavy shower of hail were falling; the veil on the wide-awake - of one of the party stood upright in the air; and on waving - our hands, the singing sound issued loudly from the fingers. - Whenever a peal of thunder was heard, the phenomenon ceased, to - be resumed before its echoes died away. At these times we felt - shocks, more or less violent, in those portions of the body - which were most affected. By one of these shocks my right arm - was paralysed so completely that I could neither use nor raise - it for several minutes, nor indeed until it had been severely - rubbed; and I suffered much pain in it at the shoulder-joint - for some hours." - -The successive layers of snow which fall on the mountains do not -remain there for ever. Unless got rid of in some way their thickness -would mount up to an enormous extent. It is reckoned that on the -Alps the average yearly fall of snow is thirty-three feet. In the -course of a century, therefore, the height of these mountains would -be increased by 3,300 feet, which we know is not the case. Various -causes prevent its accumulating, among which we may mention the -powerful influence of the sun's rays, the evaporation promoted by -the atmosphere, the thawing influence of rain and mist, avalanches, -and lastly, which is perhaps the most important, the fact that the -snow composing the snowfields, as they are called, of the high -regions slowly creeps down towards the valleys, where they move -along as glaciers, the ends of which are gradually melted away by -the warm air surrounding them, and thus the muddy glacier-streams -are originated. Few perils are more dreaded by the inhabitant of -the Alps than those of the avalanches. The particular way in which -each avalanche descends is varied according to the shape of the -mountain, the condition of the snow, and the time of the year. Hence -there are three different kinds of avalanche. First, there is the -ice-avalanche. The smaller glaciers, which, in the Alps, cling to the -upper slopes of the higher mountains, frequently terminate abruptly -on the edge of some precipice. Thus the ice, urged on by the pressure -of the masses above it, moves forward until it plunges over and -falls into the abyss below. Large portions break off; and these, as -they bound down the cliffs, are dashed into countless pieces, which -leap from crag to crag high into the air: now the falling mass, like -some swollen torrent, dashes with sullen roar through a gully, now, -emerging, crashes over a precipice, or spreads itself out like a fan, -as it hisses down a snow-slope. These avalanches expend their force -in the higher regions, and are harmless, unless any one happens to -be crossing their track at the time; but accidents from this source -can generally be avoided. In the distance the avalanches look like -waterfalls of the purest foam, but when approached are found to be -composed of fragments of ice of every size, from one, two, or more -cubic yards down to tiny little balls. In spring and summer, when the -white layers, softened by the heat, are falling away every hour from -the lofty summits of the Alps, the pedestrian, taking up a position -on some adjacent headland, may watch these sudden cataracts dashing -down into the gorges from the heights of the shining peaks. Year -after year travellers seated at their ease on the grassy banks of -the Wengern Alp have watched with pleasure the avalanches rolling to -the base of the silvery pyramid of the Jungfrau. First, the mass of -ice is seen to plunge forth like a cataract, and lose itself in the -lower parts of the mountain; whirlwinds of powdered snow, like clouds -of bright smoke, rise far and wide into the air; and then, when the -cloud has passed away, and the region has again assumed its solemn -calm, the thunder of the avalanche is suddenly heard reverberating -in deep echoes in the mountain gorges, as if it were the voice of the -mountain itself. - -The other two kinds of avalanche are composed of snow. The -dust-avalanche usually falls in winter-time, when the mountains are -covered deep with fresh-fallen snow. Such masses of snow, not yet -compacted into ice, rest insecurely upon the icy slopes, and hang -in festoons and curtains over the peaks, or lie on smooth banks of -pasture, until some accident, such as a gust of wind, breaks the -spell, and the whole mass slides down into the valley below. These -avalanches are accompanied by fearful blasts of wind which work dire -destruction. Almost the whole village of Leukerbad was destroyed by -one of these on the 14th of January, 1719, and fifty-five persons -perished. In 1749, more than one hundred persons were killed in the -village of Ruaras (Grisons), which during the night was overwhelmed -by an avalanche. So silently were some of the houses buried that the -inhabitants, on waking in the morning, could not conceive why the -day did not dawn. It is said, though it seems almost incredible, -that in the time of the Suabian War, in the year 1498, one of these -avalanches swept four hundred soldiers over a cliff, and they all -escaped without serious injury. - -The army of General Macdonald, in his celebrated passage of -the Splügen in December, 1800, suffered severely from these -dust-avalanches. A troupe of horse was completely cut through while -on the march; and thirty dragoons were precipitated into a gulf below -the road, where they all perished. And again, some days afterwards, -in descending a gorge, the columns were repeatedly severed by -avalanches; and more than one hundred soldiers, with a number of -horses and mules, were lost. On one of these occasions the drummer -of a regiment was carried away; and it is said that they heard him -beating his drum in the gorge below, in the hope that his comrades -would come to his rescue. Help, however, was out of the question. The -sounds gradually became fainter, and the poor lad must have perished -in the cold. - -The ground-avalanches are different from those just described, -consisting of dense and almost solid masses of snow which have lain -for a long time exposed to atmospheric influences. They are much -heavier than the dust-avalanches, and therefore more destructive; -so that the inhabitants take great pains to protect themselves from -this source of danger. Thickly planted trees are the best protection -against avalanches of every kind. Snow which has fallen in a wood -cannot very well shift its place; and when masses of snow descend -from the slopes above, they are unable to break through so strong -a barrier. Small shrubs, such as rhododendrons, or even heaths and -meadow-grass, are often sufficient to prevent the slipping of the -snow; and therefore it is very imprudent not to allow them to grow -freely on mountain-slopes. But it is still more dangerous to cut down -protecting forests, or even to do so partly. This was illustrated by -the case of a mountain in the Pyrenees, in the lofty valley of Neste; -after it had been partially cleared of trees, a tremendous avalanche -fell down in 1846, and in its fall swept away more than fifteen -thousand fir-trees. - -The Swiss records tell us what a terrible scourge the avalanche can -be in villages which in summer-time appear such calm and happy -scenes of pastoral life. M. Joanne, in the introduction to his -valuable "Itinéraire de la Suisse"[13] gives a list of twelve of -the most destructive avalanches that have fallen in Switzerland. In -old days they seem to have been as great a source of danger as in -modern times. Thus we find that in the year 1500, a caravan of six -hundred persons was swept away in crossing the Great St. Bernard; -three hundred were buried under an avalanche which fell from Monte -Cassedra (Ticino). Another one in the year 1720, at Obergestelen, -in the Rhone Valley, destroyed one hundred and twenty cottages, -four hundred head of cattle, and eighty-eight persons. The bodies -were buried in a large pit in the village cemetery, on the wall -of which was engraved the following pathetic inscription: "O God, -what sorrow!--eighty-eight in a single grave!" ("Gott, welche -Trauer!--acht und achtzig in einem Grab!") - - [13] Conservateur Suisse, xlvi. p. 478, vol. xii. - -It is a curious fact that animals have a wonderful power of -anticipating coming catastrophes. When human beings are unaware of -danger, they are often warned by the behaviour of animals. Country -people sometimes say that they can tell from the birds when the -weather is about to change; and there is little doubt but that -sea-gulls come inland before rough, stormy weather. But in the case -of earthquakes the behaviour of birds, beasts, and even fishes is -very striking. It is said that before an earthquake rats, mice, -moles, lizards, and serpents frequently come out of their holes, and -hasten hither and thither as if smitten with terror. At Naples, it -is said that the ants quitted their underground passages some hours -before the earthquake of July 26, 1805; that grasshoppers crossed -the town in order to reach the coast; and that the fish approached -the shore in shoals. Avalanches, it is well known, produce tremors -similar to those due to slight earthquake shocks; and there are many -stories in Switzerland of the behaviour of animals just before the -catastrophe takes place. Berlepsch relates that a pack-horse on the -Scaletta Pass, which was always most steady, became restive when -an avalanche was coming; so that he was valuable to his owners in -bad weather. One day, when near the summit of the pass, he suddenly -stopped. They foolishly took no notice of his warning this time; but -he presently darted off at full speed. In a few seconds the avalanche -came and buried the whole party. - -If these stories can be relied upon, it would seem that animals are -either more sensitive to very slight tremors of the earth, or else -that they are more on the lookout than human beings. Perhaps North -American Indians have learned from animals in this respect, for they -can tell of a coming enemy on the march by putting their ears to the -ground and listening. - -But there are worse dangers in the mountains than falls of snow and -ice, for sometimes masses of rock come hurtling down, or worse still, -the whole side of a mountain gives way and spreads ruin far and wide. -Perpendicular or overhanging rocks, which seem securely fastened, -suddenly become detached and rush headlong down the mountain-side. -In their rapid fall, they raise a cloud of dust like the ashes -vomited forth by a volcano; a horrible darkness is spread over a once -pleasant valley; and the unfortunate inhabitants, unable to see what -is taking place, are only aware of the trembling of the ground, and -the crashing din of the rocks as they strike together and shatter one -another in pieces. When the cloud of dust is cleared away, nothing -but heaps of stones and rubbish are to be seen where pastures once -grew, or the peasant ploughed his acres in peace. The stream flowing -down the valley is obstructed in its course, and changed into a -muddy lake; the rampart of rocks from which some débris still comes -crumbling down has lost its old form; the sharpened edges point out -the denuded cliff from which a large part of the mountain has broken -away. In the Pyrenees, Alps, and other important ranges there are but -few valleys where one cannot see the confused heaps of fallen rocks. - -Many of these catastrophes, known as the "Bergfall," have been -recorded; and the records tell of the fearful havoc and destruction -to life and property due to this cause. In Italy the ancient Roman -town of Velleja was buried, about the fourth century, by the downfall -of the mountain of Rovinazzo; and the large quantity of bones and -coins that have been found proves that the fall was so sudden that -the inhabitants had no time to escape. - -Taurentum, another Roman town, situated, it is said, on the banks -of Lake Geneva, at the base of one of the spurs of the Dent d'Oche, -was completely crushed in A. D. 563 by a downfall of rocks. The -sloping heap of débris thus formed may still be seen advancing like a -headland into the waters of the lake. A terrible flood-wave, produced -by the deluge of stones, reached the opposite shores of the lake and -swept away all the inhabitants. Every town and village on the banks, -from Morges to Vevay, was demolished, and they did not begin the work -of rebuilding till the following century. Some say, however, that the -disaster was caused by a landslip which fell from the Grammont or -Derochiaz across the valley of the Rhone, just above the spot where -it flows into the Lake of Geneva. Hundreds of such falls have taken -place within the Alps and neighbouring mountains within historic -times. - -Two out of the five peaks of the Diablerets fell down, one in 1714 -and the other in 1749, covering the pastures with a thick layer -of stones and earth more than three hundred feet thick, and by -obstructing the course of the stream of Lizerne, formed the three -lakes of Derborence. In like manner the Bernina, the Dent du Midi, -the Dent de Mayen, and the Righi have overspread with ruin vast -tracts of cultivated land. In Switzerland the most noted Bergfalls -are those from the Diablerets and the Rossberg. The former mountain -is a long flattish ridge with several small peaks, overhanging very -steep walls of rock on either side. These walls are composed of -alternating beds of limestone and shale. Hence it is easily perceived -that we have here conditions favourable for landslips, because if -anything weakens one of these beds of shale the overlying mass -might be inclined to break away. The fall in the year 1714, already -referred to, was a very destructive one. - - [Illustration: THE MATTERHORN. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH BY MR. DONKIN.] - - "For two whole days previously loud groaning had been heard to - issue from the mountain, as though some imprisoned spirit were - struggling to release himself, like Typhoeus from under Etna; - then a vast fragment of the upper part of the mountain broke - suddenly away and thundered down the precipices into the valley - beneath. In a few minutes fifty-five châlets, with sixteen - men and many head of cattle, were buried for ever under the - ruins. One remarkable escape has indeed been recorded, perhaps - the most marvellous ever known. A solitary herdsman from the - village of Avent occupied one of the châlets which were buried - under the fallen mass. Not a trace of it remained; his friends - in the valley below returned from their unsuccessful search, - and mourned him as dead. He was, however, still among the - living; a huge rock had fallen in such a manner as to protect - the roof of his châlet, which, as is often the case, rested - against a cliff. Above this, stones and earth had accumulated, - and the man was buried alive. Death would soon have released - him from his imprisonment, had not a little rill of water - forced its way through the débris and trickled into the châlet. - Supported by this and by his store of cheese, he lived three - months, labouring all the while incessantly to escape. Shortly - before Christmas he succeeded, after almost incredible toil, in - once more looking on the light of day, which his dazzled eyes, - so long accustomed to the murky darkness below, for a while - could scarcely support. He hastened down to his home in Avent, - and knocked at his own door; pale and haggard, he scarcely - seemed a being of this world. His relations would not believe - that one so long lost could yet be alive, and the door was shut - in his face. He turned to a friend's house; no better welcome - awaited him. Terror seized upon the village; the priest was - summoned to exorcise the supposed demon; and it was not till he - came that the unfortunate man could persuade them that he was - no spectre, but flesh and blood."[14] - - [14] Bonney. - -The valley is still a wild scene of desolation, owing to the -enormous masses of stones of every shape and size with which its bed -is filled. - -In September of the year 1806, the second fall of the mountain -Rossberg took place, after a wet summer. It is underlaid by beds of -clay which, when water penetrates, are apt to give way. The part -which fell was about three miles long and 350 yards wide and 33 yards -thick. In five minutes one of the most fertile valleys in Switzerland -was changed to a stony desert. Three whole villages, six churches, -120 houses, 200 stables or châlets, 225 head of cattle, and much land -were buried under the ruins of the Rossberg; 484 persons lost their -lives. Some remarkable escapes are recorded. - -In the year 1618 the downfall of Monte Conto buried 2,400 inhabitants -of the village of Pleurs, near Chiavenna. Excavation among the -ruins was subsequently attempted, but a few mangled corpses and a -church-bell were all that could be reached. - -Geologically these phenomena, appalling as they are from the human -point of view, possess a certain interest, and their effects deserve -to be studied. - -There is yet another danger to which dwellers in mountains are -occasionally exposed; namely, the earthquake. It seems to be an -established fact that earthquake shocks are more frequent in -mountainous than in flat countries. The origin of these dangerous -disturbances of the earth's crust has not yet been fully explained. -They are probably caused in various ways; and it is very likely -that the upheaval of mountain-chains is one of the causes at work. -Earthquakes have for many years been carefully studied by scientific -men, and some valuable discoveries have been made. Thus we find that -they are more frequent in winter than summer, and also happen more -often by night than by day. Day and night are like summer and winter -on a small scale, and so we need not be surprised at this discovery. -Some have maintained that there is a connection between earthquakes -and the position of the moon; while others consider that the state -of the atmosphere also exerts an influence, and that earthquakes -are connected with rainy seasons, storms, etc. Earthquakes are very -often due to volcanic eruptions, but this is not always the case (see -chapter vi., page 199). - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -MOUNTAIN PLANTS AND ANIMALS. - - The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats, and so are the - stony rocks for the conies.--_Psalm civ. 18._ - - -There must be few people who have neither seen nor heard of the -beauty and exquisite colours of Alpine[15] flowers. They are first -seen on the fringes of the stately woods above the cultivated -land; then in multitudes on the sloping pastures with which many -mountain-chains are robed, brightening the verdure with innumerable -colours; and higher up, where neither grass nor loose herbage can -exist, among the slopes of shattered fragments which roll down from -the mountain-tops,--nay, even amidst the glaciers,--they gladden the -eye of the traveller and seem to plead sweetly with the spirits of -destruction. Alpine plants fringe the vast hills of snow and ice of -the high hills, and sometimes have scarcely time to flower and ripen -a few seeds before being again covered by their snowy bed. When -the season is unfavourable, numbers of them remain under the snow -for more than a year; and here they safely rest, unharmed by the -alternations of frost and biting winds, with moist and springlike -days. They possess the great charm of endless variety of form and -colour, and represent widely separated divisions of the vegetable -kingdom; but they are all small and low-growing compared to their -relatives grown in the plains, where the soil is richer and the -climate milder. Among them are tiny orchids quite as interesting -in their way as those from the tropics; liliputian trees, and a -tree-like moss (_Lycopodium dendroideum_) branching into an erect -little pyramid as if in imitation of a mountain pine; ferns that peep -cautiously from narrow rocky crevices as if clinging to the rock -for shelter from the cold blasts; bulbous plants, from lilies to -bluebells; evergreen shrubs, perfect in leaf and blossom and fruit, -yet so small that one's hat will cover them; exquisite creeping -plants spreading freely along the ground, and when they creep over -the brows of rocks or stones, draping them with curtains of colour -as lovely as those we see in the forests; numberless minute plants -scarcely larger than mosses, mantling the earth with fresh green -carpets in the midst of winter; succulent plants in endless variety; -and lastly the ferns, mosses, and lichens which are such an endless -source of pleasure and delight to the traveller. In short, Alpine -vegetation presents us with nearly every type of plant life of -northern and temperate climes, chastened in tone and diminished in -size. - - [15] The word "Alpine" is used in a general sense to denote the - vegetation that grows naturally on the most elevated regions of - the earth; that is, on all high mountains, whether they rise up - in hot tropical plains or in cooler northern pastures. - -It is not difficult to account for the small size of these plants; -for in the first place we cannot expect a large or luxuriant growth -where the air is cold, the soil scanty, and the light of the sun -often obscured by clouds, and where the changes of temperature are -rapid,--which is very unfavourable to most plants. Again, in the -close struggle for existence which takes place on the plains and low -tree-clad hills, the smaller forms of plant life are often overrun by -trees, trailing plants, bushes, and vigorous herbs; but where these -cannot find a home, owing to the severity of the winter and other -causes, the little Alpine plants, covered up by snow in the winter, -can thrive abundantly. And lastly, like the older and conquered races -of men who have been driven to the hills (see chap. i., p. 28) and -find shelter there, so there are both plants and animals living in -the mountains which man will not suffer to live in the plain where -he grows his crops, pastures his cattle, or builds his cities. We -would also venture to suggest that possibly some plants have been -ousted from plains by newer and more aggressive types, which came and -took their place. If so, vegetable life would afford an illustration -of a process which has so often taken place in human history. This -is only a speculation, but still it might be worth following up. If -Alpine plants, or any considerable number of them, could be shown -to belong to more ancient types, such as flourished in the later -geological periods, that would afford some evidence in favour of -the idea. Whether this is so or not, plant life on the mountains is -almost entirely protected from the destroying hands of men with their -ploughs and scythes, as well as from many grazing animals. As Mr. -Ruskin quaintly says: - - "The flowers which on the arable plain fell before the plough - now find out for themselves unapproachable places, where year - by year they gather into happier fellowship and fear no evil." - -It is clear that the climate of a mountainous region determines the -character of the vegetation. Now, the climate will be different in -different parts of a mountain-range, and will depend upon the height -above the sea and other causes.[16] Some writers upon this subject -have attached too much importance to absolute height above the sea, -as though this were the only cause at work. It is a very important -cause, no doubt, but there are others which also have a great -influence, such as the position of each locality with respect to the -great mountain masses, the local conditions of exposure to the sun -and protection from cold winds, or the reverse. However, in spite of -local irregularities there are in the Alps certain broad zones or -belts of vegetation which may be briefly described as follows:-- - - [16] The following remarks are largely taken from the - Introduction to Ball's well-known "Alpine Guide." - -1. _The Olive region._--This region curiously illustrates what has -just been said about other causes besides height influencing the -climate and vegetation. For along the southern base of the Alps, the -lower slopes and the mouths of the valleys have a decidedly warmer -climate than the plains of Piedmont and Lombardy. Thus, while the -winter climate of Milan is colder than that of Edinburgh, the olive -can ripen its fruit along the skirts of the mountain region, and -penetrates to a certain distance towards the interior of the chain -along the lakes and the wider valleys of the Southern Alps. Even up -the shores of the Lake of Garda, where the evergreen oak grows, the -olive has become wild. The milder climate of the Borromean Islands, -and some points on the shores of the Lago Maggiore, will permit many -plants of the warmer temperate zone to grow; while at a distance of a -few miles, and close to the shores of the same lake, but in positions -exposed to the cold winds from the Alps, plants of the Alpine region -grow freely, and no delicate perennials can survive the winter. The -olive has been known to resist a temperature of about 16° F. (or -16° below the freezing point of water), but is generally destroyed -by a less degree of cold. It can only be successfully cultivated -where the winter frosts are neither long nor severe, where the mean -temperature of winter does not fall below 42° F., and a heat of 75° -F. during the day is continued through four or five months of the -summer and autumn. - -2. _The Vine region._--The vine, being more tolerant of cold than the -olive, can grow at a higher level; and so the next zone of vegetation -in the Alps may be called "the Vine region." But to give tolerable -wine it requires at the season of ripening of the grape almost as -much warmth as the olive needs. Vines can grow in the deeper valleys -throughout a great part of the Alpine chain, and in favourable -situations up to a considerable height on their northern slopes. -On the south side, although the limit of perpetual snow is lower, -the vine often reaches near to the foot of the greater peaks. But -the fitness of a particular spot for the production of wine depends -far more on the direction of the valley and of the prevailing winds -than on the height. And so it happens that in the Canton Valais, the -Valley of the Arc in Savoy, and some others on the north side of the -dividing range, tolerable wine is made at a higher level than in the -valleys of Lombardy, whose direction allows the free passage of the -keen northern blasts. It is a curious fact that in the Alps the vine -often resists a winter temperature which would kill it down to the -roots in the low country; and we must explain it by the protection -of the deep winter snow. Along with the vine many species of wild -plants, especially annuals, characteristic of the flora of the south -of Europe, show themselves in the valleys of the Alps. - -3. _The Mountain region, or region of deciduous trees._--Many writers -take the growth of corn as the characteristic of the colder temperate -zone, corresponding to what has been called the mountain region of -the Alps. But so many varieties, all with different requirements, -are in cultivation, that it is impossible to take the growth of -cereals in general as marking clearly any natural division of the -surface. A more natural limit is marked by the presence of deciduous -trees (trees which shed their leaves). Although the oak, beech, and -ash do not exactly reach the same height, and are not often seen -growing side by side in the Alps, yet their upper limit marks pretty -accurately the transition from a temperate to a colder climate that -is shown by a general change in the wild, herbaceous vegetation. The -lower limit of this zone is too irregular to be exactly defined, but -its upper boundary is about 4,000 feet on the cold north side of the -Alps, and often rises to 5,500 feet on the southern slopes, which of -course get more sunshine and warmth. The climate of this region is -favourable to the growth of such trees as the oak, beech, and ash, -but it does not follow that we should see them there in any great -numbers at the present time; for it is probable that at a very early -date they were extensively destroyed for building purposes, and to -clear space for meadow and pasture land, so that with the exception -of the beech forests of the Austrian Alps, there is scarcely a -considerable wood of deciduous trees to be seen anywhere in the -chain. In many districts where the population is not too dense, the -pine and Scotch fir have taken the place of the oak and beech, mainly -because the young plants are not so eagerly attacked by goats, the -great destroyers of trees. - -4. _The region of Coniferous trees._--Botanically this region is -best distinguished by the prevalence of coniferous trees, forming -vast forests, which if not kept down by man (and by goats) would -cover the slopes of the Alps. The prevailing species are the common -fir and the silver fir. In districts where granite abounds, the -larch flourishes and reaches a greater size than any other tree. -Less common are the Scotch fir and the arolla, or Siberian fir. -In the Eastern Alps the dwarf pine becomes conspicuous, forming -a distinct zone on the higher mountains above the level of other -firs. The pine forests play a most important part in the natural -economy of the Alps; and their preservation is a matter of very great -importance to the future inhabitants. But in some places they have -been considerably diminished by cutting. This has especially happened -in the neighbourhood of mines; and in consequence the people of the -unfrequented communes have become so alive to this that some jealousy -is felt of strangers wandering among the mountains, lest they should -discover metals and cause the destruction of the woods. Their fears -are not unreasonable; for the forests, besides exerting a good deal -of influence on rainfall and climate, form natural defences against -the rush of the spring avalanches (see chapter iii., page 93). It is -recorded that after the war of 1799, in which many of those near the -St. Gothard Pass were destroyed, the neighbouring villages suffered -terribly from this scourge. Hence the laws do not allow of timber -being cut in certain forests called "Bannwalde;" and in most places -the right of felling trees is strictly regulated, and the woods are -under the inspection of officials. - -In spots high up among the mountains, to which access is difficult, -the timber is converted into charcoal, which is then brought down -in sacks by horses and mules. There are two ways in which timber is -conveyed down from the forest: either it is cut up into logs some -five feet long, and thrown into a neighbouring torrent, which brings -it down over cliff and gorge to the valley below; or else trough-like -slides are constructed along the mountain-sides, down which the -trunks themselves are launched. - -It is this region of coniferous trees which mainly determines the -manner of life of the population of the Alps. In the month of May the -horned cattle, having been fed in houses during the winter (as they -are in the Scotch Highlands, where the cowsheds are called "byres"), -are led up to the lower pastures. The lower châlets, occupied in May -and part of June, generally stand at about the upper limit of the -mountain region. Towards the middle or end of June the cattle are -moved up to the chief pastures, towards the upper part of the region -of coniferous trees, where they usually remain for the next two or -three months. But there are some available pastures still higher up, -and hither some of the cattle are sent for a month or more. - -5. _The Alpine region._--This is the zone of vegetation extending -from the upper limit of trees to where permanent masses of snow first -make their appearance; so that where the trees cease, the peculiar -Alpine plants begin; but we still find shrubs, such as the common -rhododendron, Alpine willow, and the common juniper, which extend -up to, and the latter even beyond, the level of perpetual snow. The -limits of this interesting and delightful botanical region may be -fixed between 6,000 and 8,000 feet above the sea, and at least 1,000 -feet higher on the south slopes of the Alps, which get more sunshine. -It is used to some extent for pasture; and in Piedmont it is not -uncommon to find châlets at the height of 8,500 feet, and vegetation -often extends freely up to 9,500 feet. Here and there, at levels -below this zone, many Alpine species may be found, either transported -by accident from their natural home, or finding a permanent -refuge in some cool spot sheltered from the sun, and moistened by -streamlets descending from the snow region. But it is chiefly here -that those delightful flowers grow which make the Alps like a great -flower-garden,--great anemones, white and sulphur-coloured; gentians -of the deepest blue, like the sky overhead; campanulas, geums, Alpine -solanellas, and forget-me-nots; asters, ox-eyed daisies, pale pink -primulas, purple heartsease, edelweiss, saxifrages, yellow poppies, -Alpine toad-flax, monkshood, potentilla, and others too numerous to -mention. Says Professor Bonney,-- - - "Who cannot recall many a happy hour spent in rambling from - cluster to cluster on the side of some great Alp?--the scent of - sweet herbage or of sweeter daphne perfuming the invigorating - air, the melody of the cattle-bells borne up from some far-off - pasture, while the great blue vault of heaven above seems - reflected in the gentian clusters at his feet. The love of - flowers seems natural to almost every human being, however - forlorn his life may have been, however far it may have missed - its appointed mark. It may well be so; they at least are fresh - and untainted from their Maker's hand; the cry of 'Nature red - in tooth and claw' scarce breaks their calm repose. Side by - side they flourish without strife; none 'letteth or hindereth - another,' yet so tender and delicate, doomed to fade all too - soon, a touch of sadness is ever present to give a deeper - pathos to our love." - -6. _The Glacial region._--This comprehends all that portion of the -Alps that rises above the limit of perpetual snow. But a word of -explanation is necessary. The highest parts of the Alps are not -covered by one continuous sheet of snow; otherwise we should never -see any peaks or crags there. Some are too steep for the snow to -rest upon them, and therefore remain bare at heights much greater -than the so-called "limit of perpetual snow," and that limit varies -considerably. Still this term has a definite meaning when rightly -understood. Leaving out of account masses of snow that accumulate in -hollows shaded from the sun, the "snow-line" is fairly even, so that -on viewing an Alpine range from a distance, the larger patches and -fields of snow on adjoining mountains, with the same aspect, are seen -to maintain a pretty constant level. - - [Illustration: ON A GLACIER.] - -Vegetation becomes scarce in this region, not, as commonly supposed, -because Alpine plants do not here find the necessary conditions for -growth, but simply for want of soil. The intense heat of the direct -rays of the sun (see chapter iii., pages 76-77) compensates for the -cold of the night; and it is probable that the greater allowance of -light also stimulates vegetable life. But all the more level parts -are covered with ice or snow; and the higher we ascend, the less the -surface remains bare, with the exception of the projecting rocks -which usually undergo rapid destruction and breaking up from the -freezing of whatever water finds its way into their fissures. - -Nevertheless, many species of flowering plants have been found even -at the height of eleven thousand feet. - -It is in this region that plants are found whose true home is in the -arctic regions (see chapter ii., pages 64-65). - -For the sake of those who love ferns, lycopods, and other cryptogamic -or flowerless plants, a few words may be said here. Of the -polypodies, the beech fern and oak fern are generally common, so is -the limestone polypody in places where limestone occurs. Another -species (_P. alpestre_) very like the lady fern grows plentifully -in many places. The parsley fern, familiar to the botanist in Wales -and other parts of Great Britain, is common, especially on the -crystalline rocks, and ascends to above seven thousand feet. The -holly fern is perhaps the most characteristic one of the higher Alps. -It is abundant in almost every district from the Viso to the Tyrol, -ranging from about five thousand feet to nearly eight thousand feet. -The finest specimens are to be found in the limestone districts. -Nestling down in little channels worn out of the rock, it shoots out -great fronds, often more than eighteen inches long, which are giants -compared to the stunted specimens seen on rockwork in English gardens. - -_Asplenium septentrionale_ is very common in most of the districts -where crystalline rocks abound. The hart's tongue is hardly to be -called a mountain fern. The common brake is confined to the lower -slopes. - -_Cistopteris fragillis_ and _C. dentata_ are common, and the more -delicate _C. Alpina_ is not rare. The noble _Osmunda regalis_ keeps -to the warmer valleys. The moonwort abounds in the upper pastures. - -The club-mosses (_Lycopodium_), which are found in Great Britain, -are common in most parts of the Alps, especially the _L. selago_, -which grows almost up to the verge of the snows. Lower down is the -delicate _L. velveticum_, which creeps among the damp mosses under -the shade of the forest. Many of the smaller species stain with -spots of crimson, orange, and purple the rocks among the snowfields -and glaciers, and gain the summits of peaks more than eighteen -thousand feet above the sea, reaching even to the highest rocks in -the Alpine chain. For the sake of readers who are not familiar with -that wonderful book, "Modern Painters," we will quote some exquisite -passages on lichens and mosses, full of beautiful thoughts:-- - - "We have found beauty in the tree yielding fruit and in the herb - yielding seed. How of the herb yielding no seed,--the fruitless, - flowerless[17] lichen of the rock? - - [17] Flowerless in the ordinary, not the botanical sense. - - "Lichens and mosses (though these last in their luxuriance are deep - and rich as herbage, yet both for the most part humblest of the - green things that live),--how of these? Meek creatures!--the first - mercy of the earth, veiling with trusted softness its dintless rocks, - creatures full of pity, covering with strange and tender honour - the scarred disgrace of ruin, laying quiet finger on the trembling - stones to teach them rest. No words that I know of will say what - these mosses are; none are delicate enough, none perfect enough, none - rich enough. How is one to tell of the rounded bosses of furred and - beaming green; the starred divisions of rubied bloom, fine-filmed, as - if the Rock Spirits could spin porphyry as we do grass; the traceries - of intricate silver, and fringes of amber, lustrous, arborescent, - burnished through every fibre into fitful brightness and glossy - traverses of silken change, yet all subdued and pensive, and framed - for simplest, sweetest offices of grace? They will not be gathered, - like the flowers, for chaplet or love token; but of these the wild - bird will make its nest and the wearied child his pillow. - - "And as the earth's first mercy, so they are its last gift to us. - When all other service is vain, from plant and tree the soft mosses - and grey lichen take up their watch by the headstone. The woods, the - blossoms, the gift-bearing grasses, have done their parts for a time, - but these do service for ever. Tree for the builder's yard--flowers - for the bride's chamber--corn for the granary--moss for the grave. - - "Yet as in one sense the humblest, in another they are the most - honoured of the earth-children; unfading as motionless, the worm - frets them not and the autumn wastes not. Strong in lowliness, they - neither blanch in heat nor pine in frost. To them, slow-fingered, - constant-hearted, is entrusted the weaving of the dark, eternal - tapestries of the hills; to them, slow-pencilled, iris-dyed, the - tender framing of their endless imagery. Sharing the stillness of - the unimpassioned rock, they share also its endurance; and while the - winds of departing spring scatter the white hawthorn blossom like - drifted snow, and summer dims on the parched meadow the drooping - of its cowslip,--gold far above, among the mountains, the silver - lichen-spots rest, star-like, on the stone; and the gathering - orange-stain upon the edge of yonder western peak reflects the - sunsets of a thousand years." - -Alpine and arctic plants are met with in Great Britain, but Scotland -has a much more extensive arctic-Alpine flora than England, Wales, -or Ireland, the reason being the greater altitude of its mountains. -The combined flora of the United Kingdom contains only ninety-one -species of arctic-Alpine plants, and of these eighty-eight--that is, -all but three--are natives of Scotland. Of these three the first is -a gentian (_Gentiana verna_), which is to be found on the hills of -West Yorkshire, Durham, Westmoreland, and other parts. It comes from -the Alps. The second is _Lloydia serotina_,--a small bulbous plant -with white flowers, which is found on the hills of Carnarvonshire, -in Wales. The third, well known in English gardens, is London pride -(_Saxifraga umbrosa_), which is only to be found on the southwest -Irish hills. - -Of the ninety-one arctic-Alpine species, just about half are also -natives of England and Wales, but only twenty-five belong to Ireland. -If we examine the lists of the flora of Arctic Europe we find that -all these, except about six, are found in arctic regions; and if we -travel farther north till we come actually to polar regions, we find -nearly fifty of these species growing there near the sea-level. The -Grampian Mountains are the chief centre of the Scottish arctic-Alpine -flora. The two principal localities for such flowers in that range -are the Breadalbane Mountains in Perthshire, and the Cænlochan and -Clova Mountains of Forfarshire. There are also a goodly number on the -mountains of the Braemar district. - -The history of the arctic-Alpine flora of Europe is a very -interesting one. These plants, whose true home is in the arctic -regions, living high up on the mountains of Europe, give unmistakable -evidence of a time, very far back, when Northern Europe was overrun -by glaciers and snowfields so as to resemble in appearance and in -climate the Greenland of the present day. This period is known to -geologists as the "Great Ice Age." The moraines of glaciers, ice-worn -rock surfaces, and other unmistakable signs may be well seen in -many parts of Great Britain. How long ago this took place we cannot -say; but judging from the considerable changes in geography which -have undoubtedly taken place since then, we must conclude that many -thousands of years, perhaps two hundred thousand, have intervened -between this period and the present time. - -When arctic conditions prevailed over this wide area, the plants -and animals which now live in arctic latitudes flourished in Great -Britain; but as the climate gradually became more genial, and the -snow and ice melted, the plants and animals mostly retreated to -their northern home. A certain number doubtless became extinct; but -others took to the highest parts of the mountains, where snow and -ice abound; and there they remain to the present day, separated from -their fellows, but still enjoying the kind of climate to which they -have always been accustomed, and testifying to the wonderful changes -which have taken place since the mammoth, whose bones are found -embedded in our river-gravels, wandered over the plains of Northern -Europe. - - -_Animal Life._ - -The rocky fastnesses of the Alps still afford a home to some of the -larger wild animals which in other parts of Europe have gradually -disappeared with the advance of civilisation. During the latter part -of the "Stone Age," long before history was written, when men used -axes, hammers, arrow-heads, and other implements of stone, instead of -bronze or iron, Switzerland was inhabited by animals which are not to -be seen now. The gigantic urus (_Bos primigenius_), which flourished -in the forests of the interior during this prehistoric human period, -and gave its name to the canton of Uri, has become extinct. The marsh -hog was living during the period of the Swiss lake-dwellers. These -people made their houses on piles driven in near the shore, and were -acquainted with the use of bronze, and therefore later than the men -of the "Stone Age." The remains of these strange dwelling-places -have been discovered in several places, as well as many articles of -daily use. The marsh hog has disappeared; and its place is taken by -the wild boar and domestic hog, which afford sport and food to the -present population. But taking Switzerland as it now is, we will say -a few words about the more interesting forms of animal life dwelling -in the Alps, beginning with those which are highest in the animal -kingdom. Chief among these is the brown bear, still occasionally -found, but it is exceedingly rare, except in the Grisons and in the -districts of the Tyrol and Italy bordering on the canton, where it -still carries on its ravages.[18] Some also believe that it still -lingers in the rocky fastnesses of the Jura Mountains, to the east of -the Alps. There is properly only one species of bear in Switzerland, -but the hunters generally speak of three,--the great black, the -great grey, and the small brown. The second of these is merely an -accidental variety of the first; but between the grey and the small -brown bears there is a good deal of difference. They assert that -the black bear is not only considerably larger than the brown, but -is also different in its habits. It is less ferocious and prefers a -vegetable diet,--feeding on herbs, corn, and vegetables, with the -roots and branches of trees. It has a way of plundering bee-hives and -also ants' nests; it delights in strawberries and all kinds of fruit, -plundering the orchards, and even making raids on the vineyards, -but always retreating before dawn. As a rule it does not attack -human beings. The brown bear is much more formidable, prowling by -night about the sheepfolds, and causing the sheep by their fright to -fall down precipices. Goats, when alarmed, leap on the roofs of the -châlets, and bleat, in order to arouse the shepherds; so that when -Bruin rears himself up against the wall he often meets his death. -There are many stories on record of fierce fights for life between -man and bear. The bear passes the winter in a torpid state, and eats -little or nothing then. - - [18] We are again indebted to Professor Bonney's "Alpine Regions - of Switzerland" for the information here given. - -The wolf, though still lingering in several lonely parts of the -Alps, is rapidly becoming rare. It is most frequent in the districts -about the Engadine and in the Jura Mountains. Only in winter-time, -when hard pressed by hunger, does it approach the haunts of man. It -takes almost any kind of prey it can get,--foxes, hares, rats, mice, -birds, lizards, frogs, and toads. Sheep and goats are its favourite -prey. The wolf is an affectionate parent, and takes his turn in -looking after the nurslings, which is a necessary precaution, as his -friends and relations have a way of eating up the babies. - -The fox is common in many parts of the Alps, but not often seen -by travellers. Instead of taking the trouble to burrow, he -frequently manages by various cunning devices to take possession -of a badger's hole. As Tschudi quaintly observes, "He has far too -much imagination and poetic sentiment to like so monotonous and -laborious an occupation as burrowing." Like the wolf, the mountain -fox eats whatever he can catch, even beetles, flies, and bees. Those -in the valleys live more luxuriously than their relations on the -mountains,--plundering bee-hives and robbing orchards. As it was in -Judæa in the days of Solomon, so it is now in Switzerland among the -vineyards; and a peasant might well say, "Take us the foxes, the -little foxes that spoil the vineyards." - -The lynx is only occasionally found in the Alps, which is fortunate -for the shepherds, for they can play terrible havoc with the sheep. - -Wild-cats still linger in the most unfrequented parts. Their fur is -valuable, and the flesh is sometimes eaten. The badger is far from -common, though rarely seen by day. It is very cunning in avoiding -traps, and so is generally either dug out of its hole drawn by -dogs, or pulled out by a pole with nippers or a hook at the end. -Passing on to less ferocious beasts, we find the otter common along -the borders of rivers and lakes. The polecat, weasel, and stoat -are often too abundant for keepers of poultry. The squirrel is -common enough in the forests, but varies greatly in colour. It is -doubtful whether the beaver still lingers by some lonely Alpine -stream. It is last mentioned in a list of Swiss mammals, published -in 1817, as found, though rarely, in some lonely spots. Rabbits are -common, but hares rather scarce; of these there are, as in Scotland, -two varieties,--the brown hare, which is seldom found at heights -greater than four thousand to five thousand feet, and the blue -hare, which ranges up to nine thousand feet. The latter changes -colour: its fur in summer is of a dull bluish-grey, and in winter it -becomes perfectly white, and so affords a striking illustration of -"protective mimicry," for with snow lying on the ground it would be -very hard to see the creature. - -The marmot is common in all the higher Alpine regions. These -interesting little creatures are very watchful, and easily scent -danger. When an intruder approaches, a sentinel marmot utters a -long shrill whistle, which is often repeated two or three times, -and then they all make for their burrows; but it is not easy to -distinguish them from the grey rocks among which they live. The fur -is a yellowish or brownish grey, with black on the head and face, -and a little white on the muzzle; the tail is short and bushy with a -tipping of black. They have different quarters for summer and winter. -The summer burrows are in the belt of rough pasture between the -upper limits of trees and the snows; towards the end of autumn they -come down to the pastures which the herdsmen have just abandoned -and there make their winter burrows, which are much larger than the -summer ones. Like rabbits, they frequently make a bolt-hole, by which -they may escape from an intruder. In winter the holes are plugged up, -and the marmots, rolling themselves up in a ball, go to sleep for six -months or more. Sometimes hunters dig them out; but so soundly do -they sleep that, according to De Saussure, they may often be taken -out, placed in the game-bag, and carried home without being aroused. -They wake up about April. - -The chamois, a very favourite subject with the wood-carvers, is the -only member of the antelope family in Western Europe; it is found -in almost every part of the Alps, but is now much rarer than it was -formerly. A full-grown chamois in good condition weighs about sixty -pounds. The hair is thick, and changes colour with the season, being -a red yellowish-brown in summer and almost black in winter. The -horns, which curve backwards, rise from the head above and between -the eyes to a height which rarely exceeds seven inches. When the -kid is about three months old, the horns make their appearance, and -at first are not nearly as hook-shaped as they afterwards become. -When full-grown, it stands at the shoulder about two feet from the -ground. The hind-legs being longer than the fore-legs, its gait is -awkward on level ground, but they are admirably suited for mountain -climbing. When at full speed, it can check itself almost instantly, -and can spring with wonderful agility. Its hoofs are not well adapted -for traversing the ice, and therefore it avoids glaciers as far as -possible. Having a great fear of concealed crevasses, it is very -shy of venturing on the upper part of a glacier; and the tracks -which it leaves in these places often show by their windings and -sudden turnings that the animal has exercised great caution. And so -travellers often use this as a useful clue to getting safely over -a glacier. Its agility is something extraordinary. It can spring -across chasms six or seven yards wide, and "with a sudden bound leap -up the face of a perpendicular rock, and merely touching it with its -hoofs, rebound again in an opposite direction to some higher crag, -and thus escape from a spot where, without wings, egress seemed -impossible. When reaching upwards on its hind-legs, the fore-legs -resting on some higher spot, it is able to stretch to a considerable -distance, and with a quick spring bring up its hind-quarters to a -level with the rest of the body, and with all four hoofs together, -stand poised on a point of rock not broader than your hand."[19] The -chamois feed on various mountain herbs, and on the buds and sprouts -of the rhododendron and latschen (a pine). At night they couch among -the broken rocks high upon the mountains, descending at daybreak -to pasture, and retreating, as the heat increases, towards their -fastnesses. When winter comes, they are forced down to the higher -forests, where they pick up a scanty subsistence from moss, dead -leaves, and the fibrous lichen which hangs in long yellowish-grey -tufts from the fir-trees and bears the name of "chamois-beard." -While browsing on this, they sometimes get their horns hooked in a -bough, and so, being unable to disentangle themselves, perish with -hunger. The senses of hearing, smell, and sight are exceedingly -acute; so that the hunter must exercise all his craft to approach -the animals. Pages might be filled with the hair-breadth escapes and -fearful accidents which have befallen hunters; and yet they find the -pursuit so fascinating that nothing will induce them to abandon it. A -young peasant told the famous De Saussure (the pioneer of Alpine -explorers) that though his father and grandfather before him had met -their death while out on the hunt, not even the offer of a fortune -would tempt him to change his vocation. The bag which he carried with -him he called his winding-sheet, because he felt sure he would never -have any other. Two years afterwards he was found dead at the foot of -a precipice. - - [19] Bonar on Chamois-hunting in Bavaria. - -The bouquetin, or steinbock, once abundant throughout the greater -part of the Alps, is now confined to certain parts where it is -preserved by the King of Italy. De Saussure observes that in his -time they had ceased to be found near Chamouni. Its whole build is -remarkably strong, giving it quite a different appearance from the -slender and graceful chamois. - - [Illustration: RED DEER. AFTER ANSDELL.] - -The roe, the fallow deer, and the red deer have, it is said, quite -disappeared from the French and Swiss Alps, but all of them occur in -the Bavarian and Austrian highlands. They frequent the forests which -clothe the lower slopes, and do not often wander into the more rocky -districts. The wild boar only now and then appears across the Rhine, -although it is common in the Subalpine forests farther east; but we -can hardly consider it a true Alpine quadruped. - -Passing on to the birds which frequent the Alps, we must first notice -the bearded vulture, the lämmergeier of the Germans, which once was -common, but now only holds its own here and there in some lonely -mountain fastness. Although preferring living prey to carrion, still -in many ways it is closely allied to the true vulture. The upper part -of the body is a greyish-brown hue, the under side white, tinged with -reddish brown. The nest, built on a high ledge of rock, consists of -straw and fern, resting on sticks, on which are placed branches lined -with moss and down. It is a rare thing for the traveller to obtain -a view of this monarch of the Alpine birds. Like the true vulture, -its digestive powers are marvellous. According to Tschudi ("Les -Alpes"), the stomach of one of these birds was found to contain five -fragments of a cow's rib, a mass of matted wool and hair, and the -leg of a kid perfect from the knee downwards. Another had bolted a -fox's rib fifteen inches long, as well as the brush, besides a number -of bones and other indigestible parts of smaller animals, which -were slowly being eaten away by the gastric juice. Sheep, goats, -full-grown chamois, and smaller quadrupeds are eagerly devoured by -this voracious bird. It is said to be bold enough to attack a man, -when it finds him asleep or climbing in any dangerous place. Tschudi, -in his book on the Alps, gives several instances of young children -being carried off. One of these happened in the Bernese Oberland, as -follows: Two peasants, making hay upon the pastures, had taken with -them their daughter Anna, a child about three years old. She quickly -fell asleep on the turf near the hay châlet; so the father put his -broad-brimmed hat over her face, and went to work some little way -off. On his return with a load of hay the child was gone; and a brief -search showed that she was nowhere near. Just at this time a peasant -walking along a rough path in the glen was startled by the cry of a -child, and going towards the place whence it came, saw a lämmergeier -rise from a neighbouring summit and hover for some time over a -precipice. On climbing thither in all haste, he found the child -lying on the very brink. She was but little injured; some scratches -were found on her hands and on the left arm, by which she had been -seized; and she had been carried more than three quarters of a mile -through the air. She lived to a good old age, and was always called -the Geier-Anna, or Vulture's Annie, in memory of her escape. The -particulars are inscribed in the registers of the parish of Habkeren. - -The golden eagle is not uncommon in most parts of the Alps, although -travellers rarely obtain a near view. It is said to be very fond -of hares, chasing and capturing them very cleverly. As in Great -Britain, it is accused of carrying off children; but this is at least -doubtful. The kite, buzzard and falcon are occasionally seen. There -are at least ten species of owls, among which is the magnificent -eagle-owl. The raven is found in the lonelier glens, and is often -tamed. Its thieving propensities are very amusing. Alpine birds -of prey correspond very closely with British. The jackdaw is also -common. It would be impossible within our short limits to give -a complete list of Swiss birds, but we may mention among others -the nutcracker, the jay, the white-breasted swift, the wheatear, -the common black redstart, the beautiful wall-creeper, and the -snow-finch, which mounts to the borders of the snow. Of game-birds -we may mention the capercailze, the black grouse, and the hazel -grouse, all of which are common in many of the forests. The ptarmigan -haunts the stony tracts on the borders of perpetual snow. In winter -it turns white, and in summer greyish-brown, though a good deal of -white remains. - -Pheasants and partridges cannot be said to be Alpine birds; but the -Greek partridge may be so considered. - -Numbers of the mountain streams and tarns contain excellent trout, -and most of the larger lakes are well stocked with fish. Some of the -trout of the Swiss and Italian lakes are of great size. The pike -frequently weigh twelve to fifteen pounds. - -Reptiles are not numerous. The common frog, which is said to be found -as high as ten thousand feet above the sea, swarms in some parts of -the Rhone Valley. Of true lizards, five species have been recognized. -The blind-worm (which is not a snake), so common on many of our -English heaths, is often met with. Among the true snakes we find the -English ringed snake--quite harmless--and two adders. The common -adder is found at a height of seven thousand feet above the sea. - -Lower forms of life not possessing a backbone (invertebrates) abound -in this region; but they are far too numerous to be considered here. -Butterflies and moths are abundant; and many of those which are rare -in England are common in the Alps, so that the entomologist finds -a happy hunting-ground. The beautiful swallowtail and the handsome -apollo, coppers, painted ladies, fritillaries, and many other -Lepidoptera thrive in these regions, and are less easily frightened -than at home in England. - - - - -PART II. - -HOW THE MOUNTAINS WERE MADE. - - - - -Part II. - -HOW THE MOUNTAINS WERE MADE. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -HOW THE MATERIALS WERE BROUGHT TOGETHER. - - These changes in the heavens, though slow, produce - Like change on sea and land. - - MILTON - - -Probably every mountain climber, resting for a brief space on a loose -boulder, or seeking the shade of some overhanging piece of rock, has -often asked himself, "How were all these rocks made?" The question -must occur again and again to any intelligent person on visiting a -mountain for the first time, or even on seeing a mountain-range in -the distance. He may well ask his companions how these great ramparts -of the earth were built up. But unless he possesses some knowledge -of the science of geology, which tells of the manifold changes which -in former ages have taken place on the earth, or unless, in the -absence of such knowledge, he chance to meet with a geologist, his -question probably remains unanswered. Such questions, however, can -be very satisfactorily answered,--thanks to the labours of zealous -seekers after truth, who have given the best part of their lives -to studying the rocks which are found everywhere on the surface of -the earth, and the changes they undergo. Geology is a truly English -science; and Englishmen may well cherish gratefully the memories of -its pioneers,--Hutton, Playfair, Lyell, and others, who have made the -way so clear for future explorers. - -The story of the hills as written on their own rocky tablets and on -the very boulders lying loose on their sloping sides, and interpreted -by geologists, is a long one; for it takes us far back into the dim -ages of the past, and like the fashionable novel, may be divided into -three parts, or volumes. To those who follow the stony science it -is quite as fascinating as a modern romance, and a great deal more -wonderful, thus illustrating the force of the old saying, "Truth is -stranger than fiction." - -The three parts of our story may be best expressed by the three -following inquiries: - - I. How were the materials of which mountains are built up - brought together and made into hard rock? - - II. How were they raised up into the elevated positions in - which we now find them? - - III. How were they carved out into all their wonderful and - beautiful features of crag and precipice, peaks and passes? - -A mountain group, with its central peak or spire, its long ridges, -steep walls, towers, buttresses, dark hollows, and carved pinnacles -standing out against the sky, has well been compared to a great -and stately building such as a cathedral or a temple. Mountains -are indeed "a great and noble architecture, giving first shelter, -comfort, and rest, but covered also with mighty sculpture and painted -legend;" and to many they are Nature's shrines, where men may offer -their humble praises and prayers to the great Architect who reared -them for His children. We have introduced this illustration because -it will help us in our inquiry. Suppose we were standing in front of -some great cathedral, such as Milan, with all its marble pinnacles, -or Notre Dame, with its stately towers, or the minsters of York or -Durham in our own country, and trying to picture to ourselves how -it was built. No one has lived long enough to watch the completion -of one of these great buildings; but for all that, we know pretty -well how it was made, even by watching the builder's operations for -a short time, or by following, as we often may, the various stages -in the construction of a small house. So it is with Nature's work. -We cannot, in our little lives, witness the rearing of a great -mountain-chain, or even the carving of a single hill; but we can -observe for ourselves the slow and continuous operations which in the -course of thousands and thousands of years produce such stupendous -results. We may learn how the building operations are conducted, -though the final results will only be manifested in the far-distant -future. - -But to return to our cathedral. If we try to picture to ourselves -the long years during which it was covered with scaffolding and -surrounded by a busy army of workers, we shall soon perceive that -the operations may be broadly divided into three heads. _First_, we -must inquire how the separate stones of which it is composed were -brought together into one place, and we shall at once picture to -ourselves groups of men working in stone-quarries,--perhaps a long -way off,--busy with their crowbars and hammers, breaking off large -blocks of stone, and following the natural divisions of the rock -that their rough labour may be lessened; for all rocks will split -more easily along certain lines than along others. Sometimes it is -easier to follow the "bedding," or natural layers in which the rock -was formed; at other times the "joints," or cracks subsequently -formed as the rocky materials hardened and contracted in bulk, afford -easier lines for the workmen to follow. Others are busily engaged in -placing the stony blocks on trollies drawn by horses, that they may -be borne along the roads leading from the quarry to the site of the -future cathedral. And so, taking a bird's-eye view, we seem to see -horses and carts slowly moving on from many a distant quarry, but -all converging like the branches of a river to one main channel, and -finally depositing their burdens in the stone-yard where the masons -are at work. Perhaps bricks are partly employed, in which case we can -easily picture to ourselves the brickyards, where some are digging -out the soft clay, others moulding it into bricks with wooden moulds, -while others again lay them down in rows on the ground to dry, before -they are baked in the ovens. And when the bricks are ready for -use, the same means of transportation are employed; and cart-loads -of them are borne along the country roads until they so reach their -destination. - -Now, all this may be summed up in the one word "transportation;" -and we shall presently inquire how the rocky matter of which the -mountains are built was transported. - -_Secondly._ We have to inquire how the bricks and stones were raised -up. The analogy is not quite perfect in this case; for the mountains -were raised up _en bloc_, not bit by bit and stone by stone, as in -the case of the cathedral. Still they have been raised somehow. -Analogies are seldom complete in every detail; but for all that, our -illustration serves well enough, and will help us in following the -various processes of mountain building. In these days, the raising of -the stones is mostly effected by steam-power applied to big cranes -and pulleys. In old days they used cranes and pulleys, but the ropes -were pulled by hand-power. In either case the work proceeds slowly; -and we can easily picture to ourselves the daily raising of the -stones of which the cathedral is composed. "What were the forces -at work which slowly raised the mountains?" This question we will -endeavour to answer later on (see next chapter). This work may be -included in the one word, "elevation." - -_And lastly._ We must inquire how the carving of the stately building -was effected, how its pinnacles received their shape, and how all -those lovely details received their final forms; how the intricate -traceries of its windows were made, and the statues carved which -adorn its solemn portals. This question is easily answered, for we -are all more or less familiar with what goes on in a stone-mason's -yard. Under those wooden sheds we see a number of skilled labourers -at work, busy with their chisels and mallets, cutting out, according -to the patterns made from the architect's detailed drawings, the -portions of tracery for windows, or the finials, crockets, and other -features of the future building. In another part of the yard may be -seen the stone-cutters, working in pairs and slowly pulling backwards -and forwards those long saws which, with the help of water and sand, -in time cut through the biggest blocks. All this work then may be -summed up under the one word, "ornamentation," for it includes the -cutting and carving of the stone. - -Our three lines of inquiry may now be summed up in these three words, -which are easily remembered:-- - - _Transportation_, - _Elevation_, - _Ornamentation_. - -Taking the first of these subjects for consideration in the present -chapter, we have now to inquire into the nature of the materials of -which mountains are composed and the means by which they have been -brought together and compacted into hard rock. - -First, with regard to the nature of the materials which Mother Earth -uses to build her rocky ramparts: they are the same as the ordinary -rocks of which the earth's crust is composed; and the greater part of -them have been formed by the action of water. These are the ordinary -"stratified" rocks, which in one form or another meet us almost -everywhere, and may be said to be aqueous deposits, or sediments -formed in seas and inland lakes. They are always arranged in layers, -known to geologists as "strata," because they have been gently laid -down, or strewn (Latin, _stratum_), at the bottom of some large body -of water. There were pauses in the deposition of the materials, -during which each layer had time to harden a little before the next -one was formed. This accounts for the stratification. In this way -great deposits of sandstone, clay, and limestone, with their numerous -varieties, have been in the course of ages gradually piled up, till -they have attained to enormous thickness, which at first sight seem -almost incredible; but the bed of the seas in which they formed was -probably undergoing a slow sinking process that kept pace with the -growth of these deposits, otherwise the sea might have been more or -less filled up. - -And these processes are still going on. In fact, it is entirely by -watching what goes on now that geologists are able to explain what -took place a very long time ago when there were no human beings on -the earth to record the events that took place. And so we argue -from the present to the past, from the known to the unknown. In -other words, geology is based upon physical geography, which tells -us of the changes now in progress on the earth. Thus, sandstone, -as frequently met with in different parts of Great Britain, and -largely used for building purposes, such as the familiar old red -sandstone[20] of South Wales, Hereford, and the north of England and -different parts of Scotland, was once soft sand in no way at all -different from the sand of the seashore at the present day, or of the -sandy bed of the North Sea. In process of time it became hardened, -and acquired its characteristic red colour, which is due to oxide of -iron. In some places numerous fossil fishes have been discovered in -this interesting formation, so intimately associated with the name -of Hugh Miller, who first thoroughly explored it; these and other -remains entombed therein tell us of the strange forms of life which -flourished on the earth during that very old-fashioned period of -the world's history; and by putting together all kinds of evidences -derived from the rock itself, geologists are able to form a very good -idea of the way in which this rock-deposit was accumulated, always, -however, basing their conclusions on a thorough knowledge of what -goes on at the present day in seas, rivers, and inland lakes. - - [20] The reader will find an account of the old red sandstone in - the writer's "Autobiography of the Earth" (Edward Stanford, 1890). - -In the great series of stratified rocks forming what is commonly -called the crust of the earth (an unfortunate term which has survived -from the time when the interior of the earth was generally believed -to be in a fiery molten condition, and covered by a thin coating of -solid rock at the surface), there are besides the sandstones, of -which we have just spoken, great deposits of dark-coloured clays, -shales, and slates. All these can be accounted for by the geologist. -They are simply different states of what was once soft mud. The -slates tell us that they have been subjected to very severe pressure, -which squeezed their particles till they were elongated and all -arranged in one direction, and this is the reason why they split up -into thin sheets. - -Others, again, represent vast deposits of carbonate of lime, -thousands of feet thick and now occupying hundreds of square miles -of the earth's surface. Limestone rocks are as abundant in our own -country as the sandstones, shales, or slates. The chalk of which -the North and South Downs are composed is a familiar example. It is -seen again forming Salisbury Plain, in Hampshire and the Isle of -Wight, and then it may be traced running up the country in a long -band through the counties of Oxford, Cambridge, Lincoln, until it -reaches the coast at Flamborough Head in Yorkshire. Then we have the -Bath Oölites so much used in building, for they form an admirable -"freestone" that can be easily carved and cut in any direction (hence -the term "freestone"); and lastly, the great mountain limestone so -well developed in South Wales, Yorkshire, and the Lake country. All -these were slowly built up at the bottom of the seas which existed -in past ages; great beds of gravel formed at the mouths of rivers, -and long banks of pebbles and rounded stones collected on the shore -of primeval seas, and were ground against each other as now by -the action of the waves, until all their corners were rubbed off. -Pebble-beds, called by geologists conglomerates, are met with among -the stratified rocks; and their story is easily read by studying -what takes place at the present day on our seashores. - - [Illustration: CHALK ROCKS, FLAMBOROUGH HEAD. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH - BY G. W. WILSON.] - -Now, the sandstones, clays, gravels, and pebble-beds all represent, -as will presently be explained, so much material worn away from the -surface of the land and swept into the ocean (or in some cases into -inland seas and lakes) by streams and rivers, which are the great -transporting agents of the world. Hence such deposits of débris, -supplied by the constant wear and tear of all rocks exposed to the -atmosphere, are truly sedimentary and have a purely mechanical -origin. But it is not so with the limestones. The latter were never -transported, but grew at the bottom of the sea in very wonderful -ways. They have nothing to do with the wear and tear of the land to -which the others owe their existence, but represent vast quantities -of carbonate of lime extracted from sea water. Sea water contains -a certain amount of this substance in a dissolved state, or "in -solution," as a chemist would say; and the way in which this is -extracted by the agency of various creatures, such as coral polypes -and little microscopic creatures that build their shells of -carbonate of lime, of great beauty, forms one of the most interesting -subjects presented to the student of physical geography. Hence, -since limestone can only be accounted for by the agency of living -organisms,[21] it is rightly termed an _organic deposit_, and the -others are said to be _mechanical deposits_. But both are called -"aqueous rocks," because they are formed under water. It is important -to distinguish clearly between these two very different methods of -rock-formation. - - [21] The flints usually found in limestone are also of organic - origin. - -But although water plays such a very important part in the making of -the common rocks around us, yet there are others which have quite a -different origin,--rocks which have come up from below the surface of -the earth in a heated and molten condition, such as the lavas that -flow from volcanoes in active eruptions and the showers of ashes -and fine volcanic dust which often attend such eruptions (see chap. -viii., pp. 271-272). Some highly heated rocks, though they never rise -to the surface to form lava-flows, are forced up with overwhelming -pressure from below, and wedge themselves into the sedimentary rocks -that overlie them, thus forming what are known as volcanic dykes, and -intrusive masses or sheets of once molten rock. In this category we -include such rocks as basalt, felstone, pitchstone, and other rocks -of fiery origin that have flowed from volcanoes as lava, as well as -those like granite, which have cooled and become solid _below_ the -surface, and are Plutonic, or deep-seated, igneous rocks. Granite -may be exposed to the surface of the earth when the rocks which once -overlaid it have been worn away or "denuded." It is frequently seen -in the central regions of mountain-chains, where a vast amount of -erosion has been effected. Thus we see that heat has played its part -in the making of rocks; and for this reason such rocks as we have -just mentioned are called _igneous_. Fire and water are therefore -very important geological agents; but we should say heat rather than -fire, because the latter word might convey a false impression. No -rocks can be burned except coal, which may be considered rather as a -mineral deposit than as a rock. Some rocks may be heated, and undergo -many and various changes in their mineral composition; but they are -not capable of combustion. - -So far, then, we have learned that the rocks exposed to view on -the surface of the earth may be divided into two classes; that is, -aqueous and igneous. There is yet a third class, which, though of -aqueous origin, has in course of time suffered considerable from -the internal heat of the earth and the enormous pressure due to the -weight of overlying rocks. Such rocks have been greatly changed -from their original condition, both in appearance and in mineral -composition, and are said to be "metamorphic," a word which implies -change. Thus chalk, or other limestone rock, has been metamorphosed -into marble; shales and slates into various kinds of "schists,"[22] -such as mica-schist, and even into gneiss, which closely resembles -granite. And it is quite possible that even granite may in some cases -be the result of the melting and consolidation under great pressure -of certain familiar stratified rocks. It is quite conceivable that -slate might be converted into granite, for their chemical composition -is similar, only the minerals of which it is composed would require -to be rearranged and grouped into new compounds. This would seem -quite possible; but at present we have no direct proof of such a -change having taken place. Even igneous rocks are found in some -places to have suffered very considerable change. - - [22] Schists are so named from their property of splitting into - thin layers. Their structure is crystalline; and the layers, or - folia, consist usually of two or more minerals, but sometimes - of only one. Thus mica-schist consists of quartz and mica, each - arranged in many folia, but it splits along the layers of mica. - -In some inland seas, like the Caspian Sea, deposits of rock salt and -gypsum may be formed by chemical precipitation, owing to evaporation -from the surface. - -The various kinds of rock known to geologists may be conveniently -arranged as follows: - - { { Clay, shale, slate, etc. - { I. Sedimentary. { Sandstones. - { { Conglomerates. - { - Rocks of { { Limestones. - aqueous { II. Organic. { Flint. - origin. { { Coal. - { - { III. Chemical. { Rock salt. - { { Gypsum, etc. - - { I. Volcanic. { Lavas. - Rocks of { { Volcanic ashes, etc. - igneous origin. { - { II. Plutonic. { Basalt. - { { Granite. - - Metamorphic rocks { Marbles. - of aqueous and { Various kinds of schists. - igneous origin. { Gneiss, etc. - -So far we have only attempted to state very briefly the different -kinds of rocks, and to point out that they were formed in various -ways. We must now consider the question of rock-making more closely, -and see what we can learn about the wonderful ways in which rocks are -made; and it may be instructive to glance at the conflicting opinions -on this subject which learned men held not very long ago. - -At the end of the last century a great controversy took place on -the question of the origin of rocks, and the learned men of the day -were divided into two parties. One of these parties, following the -teaching of Werner, professor of mining at Freyburg, who inspired -great enthusiasm among his disciples, declared that all rocks were -formed by the agency of water. This was a very sweeping and of course -rash conclusion. But whenever they examined rocks, they found so many -clear evidences of the action of water that a powerful impression -of the importance of this agency was naturally made on their minds. -They found rocks uniformly arranged in great layers which extended -for long distances, and containing the remains of animals which must -undoubtedly have lived in the seas or estuaries. These layers were -further divided into smaller layers, such as clearly were formed -by the slow settling down of sand and mud. Others again contained -gravels and rounded pebbles, testifying in no uncertain way to -the action of water. Even the little grains of sand are obviously -water-worn. This teaching was quite sound so long as they confined -their attention to clays, sandstones, and limestones; but when they -came to basalt and granite, a blind adherence to the views of their -master caused them to shut their eyes to the clear evidences of the -action of heat, presented by such rocks. The crystalline structure -of such rocks; their irregular arrangement, often so different -from the uniform disposition of the stratified rocks (although it -must be admitted that ancient lava-flows often lie very evenly -between aqueous rocks), and the way in which they burst through -overlying rocks, thus proving their former molten condition; the -signs of alteration exhibited in the aqueous rocks into which they -intruded themselves (changes which are obviously due to the action -of heat),--these and other evidences were entirely overlooked, and -Werner declared that basalt had been found as a sediment under water. - -This school of geologists, believing so strongly in the all-powerful -influence of Father Neptune, received the not inappropriate title of -"Neptunists." - -On the other hand, the party who happened to be in districts where -granite, basalt, and such igneous rocks abounded were equally -impressed with the importance of the powerful agency of heat. To -them nearly every rock they met with seemed to show some signs of -its action. And since Pluto was the classical deity of the lower -regions, and the earth shows evidences in places of greater heat -below the surface, this party received the title of "Plutonists;" -and so the battle raged hotly for some time between the Neptunists, -with their claims for cold water, and the fiery Plutonists of the -rival school of Edinburgh, with their subterranean heat. Fire and -water are never likely to agree; and they did not do so in this case. -But now that the battle is over, and both sides are found to have -been partly right and partly wrong,--though the Neptunists have the -advantage,--we can afford to smile at the fierceness of the contest, -and wonder how it was that each side thought they were so entirely in -the right. - -Let us now consider the aqueous rocks, and see if we can gain a clear -idea of the ways in which they were formed; and first, we will take -those of a purely sedimentary origin,--the sandstones, pebble-beds, -gravels, and clays. These, as the reader has already probably -guessed, have all been transported by means of streams and rivers, -and settled down quietly in seas at the mouths of rivers or in inland -lakes. There is no trace of the action of heat in the forming of -these rocks, though they often show signs of having suffered more or -less change from contact with highly heated igneous rocks of later -date which forcibly intruded themselves from below; and if the change -thus effected were considerable, we should call the rocks so altered -metamorphic. But we are now dealing with their original state and how -they were made; and of that there is no possible doubt whatever. So -for the time being we may call ourselves Neptunists. - -Streams and rivers are the great transporting agents whereby the -never-failing supply of débris from the waste of the land is -unceasingly brought down from the mountains and hills, through the -broad valleys and along the great plains, until finally it is flung -into the sea. The sea is the workshop where all the sedimentary -rocks are slowly manufactured from the raw material brought to it -by the rivers. But for the present we must confine our attention to -the question of transport. Referring back to our illustration of the -cathedral, we may say that streams and rivers play the part of cart -and horses. They bring the materials down from the quarry to the -scene of action,--the workshop where they are wanted. The quarries, -in this case, may be said to be almost everywhere. For wherever rocks -and soil are exposed to the action of wind and weather, there is -certain to be more or less decay and crumbling away. But it is among -the hills and in the higher parts of the mountains that the forces -of destruction are most active. How this is brought about will be -discussed in the seventh chapter, on the carving of the hills. The -frequent slopes covered with loose stones are sufficient evidence of -the continual destruction that takes place in these regions. - -The transporting powers of rivers are truly prodigious. Looking at -a stream or river after heavy rain, we see its waters heavily laden -with mud and sand; but it is difficult to realise from a casual -glance the vast amount of material that is thus brought down to lower -levels. If we could trace the sediment to its source, we must seek it -among the rocks of mountains far away. Step by step we may trace it -up along the higher courses of the river, then along mountain streams -rushing over their rocky beds, tumbling in cascades over broken -rocks, or leaping in waterfalls over higher projections of rock, -until we come to the deep furrows on the sides of mountains along -which loose fragments of rock come tumbling down with the cascades of -water that run along these steep channels after heavy rain, leaving -at the base of the mountain great fan-shaped heaps of stones. - - "Oft both slope and hill are torn - Where wintry torrents down have borne, - And heaped upon the cumbered land - Its wreck of gravel, rocks, and sand." - -These accumulations are gradually carried away by the larger mountain -streams, which in hurrying them along cause a vast amount of wear -and tear; so that their corners are worn off, and they get further -and further reduced in size, becoming mere round pebbles lining -the bed of the stream, and finally by the time they reach the large -slow-moving rivers of the plains are mainly reduced to tiny specks -of mud or grains of sand. So then the rivers and streams not only -transport sediment, but they manufacture it as they go along. And -thus they may be considered as great grinding-mills, where large -pieces of stone go in at one end, and only fine sand and mud come out -at the other. - -The amount of land débris thus transported depends partly on the -carrying power of rivers, which varies with the seasons and the -annual rainfall; partly on the size of the area drained by a river; -and again, partly on the nature of the rocks of which that area is -composed. - -A stream, moving along at the rate of about half a mile (880 yards) -an hour, which is a slow, rate, can carry along ordinary sandy soil -suspended in a cloud-like fashion in the water; when moving at the -rate of two thirds of a mile (about 1,173 yards) an hour, it can roll -fine gravel along its bed; but when the rate increases to a yard -in a second, or a little more than two miles an hour, it can sweep -along angular stones as large as an egg. But streams often flow much -faster than this, and so do rivers when swollen by heavy rain. - -A rapid torrent often flows at the rate of eighteen or twenty miles -an hour, and then we may hear the stones rattling against each other -as they are irresistibly rolled onward; and during very heavy floods, -huge masses of rock as large as a house have been known to be moved. - -These are the two principal ways in which streams and rivers act as -transporting agents: they carry the finer materials in a suspended -state (though partly drifting it along their beds); and they push -the coarser materials, such as gravel, bodily along. But there -is one other way in which they carry on the important work of -transportation, which, being unseen, might easily escape our notice. -Every spring is busily employed in bringing up to the surface mineral -substances which the water has dissolved out of the underground -rocks. This invisible material finds its way, as the springs do, to -the rivers, and so finally is brought into that great reservoir, the -sea. Rain and river water also dissolve a certain amount of mineral -matter from rocks lying on the surface of the earth. Now, the -material which is most easily dissolved is carbonate of lime. Hence -if you take a small quantity of spring or river water and boil it -until the whole is evaporated, you will find that it leaves behind -a certain amount of deposit. This, when analysed by the chemist, -proves to be chiefly carbonate of lime; but it also contains minute -quantities of other minerals, such as common salt, potash, soda, -oxide of iron, and silica, or flint. All these and other minerals are -found to be present in sea water. - -The waters of some of the great rivers of the world have been -carefully examined at different times, in order to form some idea of -the amount of solid matter which they contain, both dissolved and -suspended; and the results are extremely important and interesting, -for they enable us to form definite conclusions with regard to their -capacity for transport. This subject has been investigated with great -skill by eminent men of science. The problem is a very complicated -one; but it is easy to see that if we know roughly the number of -gallons of water annually discharged into the sea by a big river, -and the average amount of solid matter contained in such a gallon -of water, we have the means of calculating, by a simple process -of multiplication, the amount of solid matter annually brought -down to the sea by that river. But we must also add the amount of -sand, gravel, and stones pushed along its bed. This may be roughly -estimated and allowed for. These are some of the results: - -The amount of solid matter discharged every year by that great river, -the Mississippi, if piled up on a single square mile of the bed of -the sea,--say, in the Gulf of Mexico, where that river discharges -itself,--would make a great square-shaped pile 268 feet high. But the -Gulf Stream, sweeping through this gulf, carries the materials for -many and many a mile away; so that in course of time it gradually -sinks and spreads itself as a fine film or layer over part of the -great Atlantic Ocean. The mud brought down by the great river -Amazon spreads so far into the Atlantic Ocean as to discolour the -water even at a distance of three hundred miles. The Ganges and the -Brahmapootra, flowing into the Bay of Bengal, discharge every year -into that part of the Indian Ocean 6,368,000,000 cubic feet of solid -matter. This material would in one year raise a space of fifteen -square miles one foot in height. The weight of mud, etc., that these -rivers bring down is sixty times that of the Great Pyramid of Egypt, -or about six million tons. - -Or, to put the matter in another way, if a fleet of more than eighty -"Indiamen," each with a cargo of fourteen hundred tons of solid -matter, sailed down every hour, night and day, for four months, and -discharged their burdens into the waters of the Indian Ocean, they -would only do what the mighty Ganges does quietly and easily in the -four months of the flood season. - -It is probable that even the Thames, a small river compared to -those just mentioned, manages to bring down, in one way or another, -fourteen million cubic feet of solid matter. These few figures may -suffice to give the reader some idea of the enormous amount of -rock-forming materials brought down to the seas at the present day. - -Of course they are spread out far and wide by the numerous ocean -currents, some of which flow for hundreds of miles; and so the bed of -the sea can only be very slowly raised by their accumulation. Still -the geologist can allow plenty of time, for there is no doubt that -the world is immensely old; and if we allow thousands of years, we -may easily comprehend that deposits of very considerable thickness -may in this way accumulate on the floors of the oceans. Also the -coasts of continents and islands suffer continual wear and tear at -the hands of sea waves; and thus the supply of sediment is increased. - -When the geologist comes to study the great rock-masses--hundreds, -and even thousands, of feet in thickness--of which mountain-ranges -are composed, he finds all those kinds of rock which we have -just been considering,--sandstones, shales (or hardened clays), -pebble-beds, and limestones,--and endeavours to picture to himself -their gradual growth in the ways we have described. In so doing, he -is driven to the conclusion that many thousands of years must have -been occupied in their construction. - -We must now say a few words about those other aqueous rocks which -have an organic origin, of which limestone is the chief. It is indeed -a startling conclusion that deposits of great thickness, and ranging -for very many miles over the earth's surface, have been slowly built -up through the agency of marine animals extracting carbonate of lime -from the sea. Yet such is undoubtedly the case. Of this important -process of rock-building coral reefs are the most familiar example. -The great barrier reef along the northeast coast of Australia is -about 1,250 miles long, from ten to ninety miles in width, and rises -at its seaward edge from depths which in some places certainly exceed -eighteen hundred feet. It may be likened to a great submarine wall. -Now, all this solid masonry is the work of humble coral polypes (not -"insects"), building up their own internal framework or skeleton -by extracting carbonate of lime from sea water. Then the breakers -dashing against coral reefs produce, by their grinding action, a -great deal of fine "coral-sand" and calcareous mud, which covers the -surrounding bed of the sea for many miles. - -Now, geologists find that some limestone formations met with in the -stratified rocks have certainly been formed in this way; for example, -certain parts of the great "mountain limestone." This is proved by -the fossil corals it contains, and by tracing the old coral reefs; -but it is also largely formed by the remains of other graceful -calcareous creatures known as encrinites, or "sea-lilies," with long -branching arms that waved in the clear water. Such creatures still -exist in some deeper parts of the sea, and look more like plants -than animals. In former ages they existed in great abundance, and so -played an important part as rock-formers,--for their stems, branches, -and all are made of little plates of carbonate of lime, beautifully -fitting together like the separate bones, or vertebræ, composing -the backbone of a fish; and when the creatures died, these little -plates no longer held together, but were scattered on the floor -of the sea-bed. Shell-fish abounded too, and their shelly remains -accumulated into regular shell-beds in some places. But at times mud -and sand would come and cover over all these organic deposits. - -But of all rocks that have an organic origin, chalk is the most -interesting. Geologists were for a long time puzzled to know how this -rock could have been formed; but some soundings made in the Atlantic -Ocean previous to the laying of the first Atlantic cable led to a -very important discovery, which at once threw a flood of light on -the question. Samples of the mud lying on the bed of this ocean at -considerable distances from the European and American coasts, and -at depths varying from one thousand to three thousand fathoms, were -brought up by sounding apparatus. - -Little was it thought that the dull grey ooze covering a large part -of the Atlantic bed would bring a message from the depths of the sea, -and furnish the answer to a great geological problem. Yet such was -the case; for under the microscope this mud was seen to be chiefly -composed of very minute and very beautiful shells, now known as -_foraminifera_, and much prized by microscopists. These tiny shells -are found at or near the surface of the sea; and after the death of -the creatures that inhabit them (which are only lumps of protoplasm -with no organs of any kind), the shells slowly sink down to the bed -of the ocean. Now, these creatures multiply at so inconceivable a -rate that a continuous shower of dead shells seems to be taking -place, and the result is the slow accumulation over vast areas of the -Atlantic and Pacific oceans of a great deposit of calcareous ooze, -which if raised above the sea-level would harden into a rock very -similar to chalk. - - [Illustration: MICROPHOTOGRAPHS ILLUSTRATING ROCK FORMATION. - - I. Foraminifera. II. Section of Granite. III. Nummulitic - Limestone.] - -But this process only takes place in the deeper parts of our seas, -far removed from land, where the supply of land-derived materials -fails,--for even the finest mud supplied by rivers probably all -settles down before travelling two or three hundred miles from its -native shores. - -Thus we learn that when one agency fails, Nature makes use of another -to take up the important work of rock-building. How the other rocks -which we mentioned in our list were formed,--such as granite, basalt, -and the metamorphic rocks,--we must explain in a future chapter -dealing with volcanoes and their work. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -HOW THE MOUNTAINS WERE UPHEAVED. - - The notion that the ground is naturally steadfast is an - error,--an error which arises from the incapacity of our senses - to appreciate any but the most palpable, and at the same time - most exceptional, of its movements. The idea of _terra firma_ - belongs with the ancient belief that the earth was the centre - of the universe. It is, indeed, by their mobility that the - continents survive the increasing assaults of the ocean waves, - and the continuous down-wearing which the rivers and glaciers - bring about.--PROFESSOR SHALER. - - -We have found out the quarries which supplied the rocky framework of -mountains, and have learned how the work of transporting these vast -quantities of stone was accomplished by the agency of ever-flowing -glaciers, rivers, and streams. - -We must now consider the second stage of the work, and inquire how -the mountains were raised up. Referring back to our illustration -of the cathedral (see pages 143-147), it will be remembered that -this work was included under the head of _Elevation_. But perhaps -some one might ask: "How do you know that the mountains have been -elevated or upheaved? Is it not enough to suppose that they owe their -height entirely to the fact that they are composed of harder rock, -and so have been more successful in resisting the universal decay and -destruction?" Now, such an objection contains a good deal of truth, -for mountains _are_ formed of hard rocks; but at the same time we -know that the agents of denudation are more active among them than on -the plains below, so that, in the higher mountain regions at least, -the work of demolition may actually proceed faster than it does on -low ground. - -Mountains are higher than the rest of the world, not merely because -they are built of more lasting material, but also because they have -been uplifted for thousands of feet above the level of the sea; and -the evidence of their upheaval is so plain as to be entirely beyond -doubt. - -Let us inquire into the nature of this evidence. We have seen that -the rocks of which mountains are composed were for the most part -formed at the bottom of the sea. When the geologist finds, as he -frequently does, buried in mountain rocks the fossil remains of -creatures that must have lived in the sea (and often very similar to -those living there now), he is compelled to think of the gigantic -upheavals that must have taken place before those remains could -arrive at their present elevated position. - -Numerous examples might be given; but we will only mention three. In -the Alps marine fossils have been detected at a height of 10,000 feet -above sea-level, in the Himalayas at a height of 16,500 feet, and in -the Rocky Mountains at a height of 11,000 feet. - -Again we must take it for granted that all the stratified or -sedimentary rocks (see pages 148-149) with some trivial exceptions, -such as beds of shingle and conglomerates, have been formed in -horizontal layers. This is one of the simple axioms of geology to -which every one must assent. - -Now, if we find in various parts of the continents, and especially -among the mountains, such strata sloping or "dipping" in -various directions, sometimes only slightly, but sometimes very -steeply,--nay, even standing up on end,--the conclusion that they -have been upheaved and pushed or squeezed into these various -positions by some subsequent process is irresistible. But this is -not all; for in every mountain region we find that the rocks have -been crumpled, twisted, and folded in a most marvellous manner. Solid -sheets of limestone may be seen, as it were, to writhe from the -base to the summit of a mountain; yet they present everywhere their -truncated ends to the air, and from their incompleteness it is easy -to see what a vast amount of material has been worn away, leaving, -as it were, mere fragments behind. The whole geological aspect of -the Alps (for example) is suggestive of intense commotion; and they -remain a marvellous monument of stupendous earth-throes, followed by -prolonged and gigantic denudation (see diagrams, chap. ix., p. 307). - -There are certain features found in all mountain-chains which must -be carefully borne in mind, especially when we are considering the -explanations that have been suggested with regard to their upheaval. -These may be briefly stated as follows:-- - - 1. Mountain-chains tend to run in straight or gently curving - lines. - - 2. Their breadth is small compared to their length, and their - height smaller still. - - 3. They rise sharply and are clearly marked off from the - country on either side. - - 4. They form the backbones of continents. - - 5. The rocks of which they are composed have been greatly - disturbed, folded, and contorted. - - 6. There is often a band of crystalline rocks (granite, gneiss, - etc.) running along the centre of a high range. - - 7. They are connected with lines of volcanoes. - - 8. They are frequently affected by earthquakes. - -Having arrived at the conclusion that the mountains show evident -signs of upheaval, let us proceed to inquire whether any movements, -either upward or downward, are taking place now on the earth, or can -be proved to have done so within comparatively recent times. On this -question there is ample evidence at our disposal. - -More than one hundred and thirty years ago, Celsius, the Swedish -astronomer, was aware, from the unanimous testimony of the -inhabitants of the sea-coasts, that the Gulf of Bothnia was -constantly diminishing both in depth and extent. He resorted to -measurements in order to prove (as he thought) that the waters of -the Baltic were changing their level. This was a mistaken idea; and -we now understand that the level of the sea does not change, except -under the influence of the daily rise and fall of the tide, which is -easily allowed for. However, that was the idea then; and it survived -for some time. But if the sea-level were continually sinking, the -water, which, owing to the influence of gravitation, must always -remain horizontal, would equally retreat all round the Scandinavian -peninsula and on all our seashores. But this is not the case. Again, -it would be impossible on this theory to explain the curious fact -that in some parts of the world the sea is gaining on the land, while -in other places it is as surely retreating; for we cannot believe -that in one part the sea-level is rising, while in another (not far -off in some cases) it is sinking. No body of water could behave in -this irregular fashion; and the sea could not possibly be rising and -falling at the same time. - -Hence we may take it for granted that any change that we may notice -in the relative level of land and sea _must_ be due to upward or -downward movements in the land. - -But to return to Celsius. Old men pointed out to him various points -on the coast, over which during their childhood the sea was wont to -flow, and besides, showed him the water-lines which the waves had -once traced out farther inland. And besides this, the names of places -which implied a position on the shore, former harbours or ports now -abandoned and situated inland, the remains of boats found far from -the sea, and lastly, the written records and popular songs, left no -doubt that the sea had retreated; and it seemed both to themselves -and to the astronomer that the waters were sinking. In the year 1730 -Celsius, after comparing all the evidence he had collected, announced -that the Baltic had sunk three feet, four inches, every hundred -years. In the course of the following year, in company with Linnæus, -the naturalist, he made a mark at the base of a rock in the island -of Leoffgrund, not far from Jelfe, and thirteen years afterwards was -able to prove, as he thought, that the waters were still subsiding -at the same rate, or a little faster. In reality, he had proved, not -that the sea was sinking, but that the land was rising. - -Similar observations show that nearly the whole of Scandinavia is -slowly rising out of the sea. At the northern end of the Gulf of -Bothnia the land is emerging at the rate of five feet, three inches, -in a century; but by the side of the Aland Isles it only rises three -and one quarter feet in the same time. South of this archipelago it -rises still more slowly; and farther down, the line of shore does not -alter as compared with the level of the sea. - -But it is a curious fact that the extreme southern end of this -peninsula is subsiding, as proved by the forests that have been -submerged. Several streets of some towns there have already -disappeared, and the coast has lost on the average a belt of land -thirty-two yards in breadth. - -The upward movement of the Scandinavian peninsula must have been -going on for a long time, if we assume that it was always at the same -rate as at present; for we find beds of seashells of living species -at heights of six or seven hundred feet above the level of the sea. -Great dead branches of a certain pink coral, found in the sea at a -depth of over one hundred and fifty to three hundred fathoms, are -now seen in water only ten or fifteen fathoms deep. It must have -been killed as it was brought up into the upper and warmer layers of -water. This is striking testimony. - -The pine woods too, which clothe the hills, are continually being -upheaved towards the lower limit of snow, and are gradually withering -away in the cooler atmosphere; and wide belts of forest are composed -of nothing but dead trees, although some of them have stood for -centuries. - -Geologists have proved that the Baltic Sea formerly communicated -by a wide channel with the North Sea, the deepest depressions of -which are now occupied by lakes in the southern part of Sweden; for -considerable heaps of oyster-shells are now found in several places -on the heights commanding these great lakes. Then we have in Denmark -the celebrated "kitchen-middens," heaps of rubbish also largely -composed of oyster-shells which the inhabitants, in the "Stone -Age," collected from the bottoms of the neighbouring bays. At the -present day the waters of the Baltic, into which rivers bring large -quantities of fresh water, do not contain enough salt for oysters to -grow there; but the oyster-shells prove that the Baltic Sea and these -inland lakes were once as salt as the North Sea is now. This can only -be explained by supposing that the Baltic was not so shut in then as -it is in these days. The bed of the old wide channel has risen, and -what once was sea is now land. - -Again, it is very probable that the great lakes and innumerable -sheets of water which fill all the granite basins of Finland have -taken the place of an arm of the sea which once united the waters of -the Baltic to those of the great Polar Ocean. And so there must have -been upheaval here as well. - -The old sea-beaches, now above the level of the highest tides, that -are found in many parts of the Scandinavian, Scottish, and other -coasts, furnish plain evidence of upheaval. - -At the present day, between the lines of high tide and low tide, the -sea is constantly engaged in producing sand and shingle, spreading -them out upon the beach, mingling them with the remains of shells -and other marine animals, and sometimes piling them up, sometimes -sweeping them away. In this way a beach often resembles a terrace. -When the land is upheaved rapidly enough to carry up this line -of beach-deposits before they are washed away by the waves, they -form a flat terrace, or what is known as a "raised beach." The old -high-water mark is then inland; its sea-worn caves become in time -coated with ferns and mosses; the old beach forms an admirable -platform on which meadows, fields, villages, and towns spring up; and -the sea goes on forming a new beach below and beyond the margin of -the old one. - -The Scottish coast-line, on both sides, is fringed with raised -beaches, sometimes four or five occurring above each other, at -heights of from twenty-five to seventy-five feet above the present -high-water mark. Each of these lines of terrace marks a former lower -level at which the land stood with regard to the sea; and the spaces -between them represent the amount of each successive rise of the -land. Each terrace was formed during a pause, or interval, in the -upward movement, during which the waves had time to make a terrace, -whereas, while the land kept on rising, they had no time to do so. -Thus we learn that the upheaval of the country was interrupted by -considerable pauses. - -Sometimes old ports and harbours furnish evidence of upheaval. Thus, -the former Roman port of Alaterva (Cramond) in Scotland, the quays of -which are still visible, is now situated at some distance from the -sea, and the ground on which it stands has risen at least twenty-four -feet. In other places the scattered débris shows that the coast has -risen twenty-six feet. And by a remarkable coincidence, the ancient -wall of Antoninus, which in the time of the Romans stretched from sea -to sea, and served as a barrier against the Picts, comes to an end at -a point twenty-six feet above the level of high tides. In the estuary -of the Clyde there are deposits of mud, containing rude canoes and -other relics of human workmanship, several feet above the present -high-water mark. - -Raised beaches are found on many parts of the coast of Great Britain. -Excellent examples occur on the coasts of Devon and Cornwall. On the -sides of the mountainous fiords of Norway similar terraces are found -up to more than six hundred feet above the sea; and as some of these -rise to a greater height at a distance of fifty miles inland, it -seems that there was a greater upward movement towards the interior -of Norway than on the coasts. - -There is a celebrated raised beach on the side of a mountain in -North Wales, known as Moel Tryfaen, where the writer gathered a -number of marine shells at a height of 1,357 feet. - -But Scandinavia and Great Britain are not the only parts of Europe -where an upward movement has taken place, for the islands of Nova -Zembla and Spitzbergen show evidence of the same kind; and the coast -of Siberia, for six hundred miles to the east of the river Lena, has -also been upraised. On the banks of the Dwina and the Vega, 250 miles -to the south of the White Sea, Murchison found beds of sand and mud -with shells similar to those which inhabit the neighbouring seas, so -well preserved that they had not lost their colours. - -Again, the ground of the Siberian _toundras_ is to a large extent -covered with a thin coating of sand and fine clay, exactly similar -to that which is now deposited on the shores of the Frozen Ocean. -In this clay, the remains of the mammoth, or woolly elephant, now -extinct, are preserved in great numbers. - -Parts of Northern Greenland have also risen; while at the southern -end of this frozen land a downward movement is still taking place. - -The best-known example of these slow movements within historic times -is the so-called Temple of Serapis in the Bay of Baie, near Naples. -The ruins of this building, which was probably a Roman bath, consist -of a square floor paved with marble, showing that it possessed a -magnificent central court. This court, when perfect, was covered with -a roof supported by forty-six fine columns, some of marble, others -of granite. There is still a hot spring behind, from which water was -conducted through a marble channel. All the columns but three were -nearly buried in the soil which covered the whole court, when the -ruins were first discovered. Now, each of the three marble columns -that are still standing shows clear evidence of having been depressed -below the sea-level, for they all exhibit a circular row of little -holes bored by a certain marine shell-fish, known as _Lithodomus -dactylus_, at a height of twelve feet from the floor; each row is -about eight feet broad. The shells may still be seen inside the -little pear-shaped holes which the shell-fish bored for themselves; -and the same shell-fish still live in the waters of the Mediterranean -and bore holes in the limestone rocks. - -It is therefore quite clear that these columns must have been under -water to a depth of twenty feet or so, and also that they must have -remained under water for some considerable time, during which the -shell-fish made these borings. Then an upheaval took place whereby -the whole building was elevated to its present level. But underneath -the present floor, at a depth of five feet, were discovered the -remains of an older floor. This probably belonged to an earlier -building which had in like manner been depressed below sea-level. We -thus learn that the land in this spot had been sinking for a long -time, and that at some subsequent time it rose. The fallen columns -suggest the idea that they were thrown down by earthquakes. At the -present time the land here is again sinking at the rate of one inch -in three or four years. - -But the first example of upheaval within comparatively recent times, -and one which is instructive as throwing some light on the subject of -the present chapter,--namely, the upheaval of mountain-chains,--is to -be found along the western mountainous coast of South America. Here -we have the magnificent ranges of the Andes running along the whole -length of this continent. The illustrious Charles Darwin, during -his famous trip in the "Beagle," discovered numerous raised beaches -along this coast, and at once perceived their importance to the -geologist. The terraces are not quite horizontal, but rise towards -the south. On the frontier of Bolivia, they are seen at heights of -from sixty-five to eighty feet above sea-level; but nearer the higher -mass of the Chilian Andes they are found at one thousand feet, and -near Valparaiso, in Chili, at thirteen hundred feet above the sea. -Darwin also discovered that some of the upheavals thus indicated took -place during the human period; for he found in one of the terraces -opposite Callao, in Peru, at a height of eighty feet, shells with -bones of birds, ears of wheat, plaited reeds, and cotton thread, -showing that men had lived on the terrace. These relics of human -industry are exactly similar to those that are found in the _huacas_, -or burial-places, of the ancient Peruvians. There can be no doubt -that the island of San Lorenzo, and probably the whole of the coast -in its neighbourhood, have risen eighty feet or more since the Red -Man inhabited the country. - -Callao probably forms the northern limit of the long strip of coast -that has been upheaved, and the island of Chiloe the southern limit; -but even thus the region of elevation has a length from north to -south of about 2,480 miles. - -We noticed in the case of Scandinavia that the upward movement is -greater in the interior of the mountain-range than at or near the -coast; and it is interesting to find that the same difference has -been observed in the case of the Andes. The upheaving force, whatever -its nature, acts with more energy under the Chilian Andes than under -the rocks of the adjacent coast. - -In New Zealand we have also evidences of upheaval; and if we trace -out on the map a long line from the Friendly Isles and Fiji, through -the Eastern Archipelago, and then on through the Philippine Islands, -and finally to Japan and the Kurile Islands, we shall find scattered -regions of elevation all along this great line, which is probably a -mountain-chain, partly submerged, and along which numerous active -volcanoes are situated. - -Putting together all the evidence that has been gathered on this -subject, of which only a very small part is here given, we are -warranted in concluding that taking the world generally, regions -where active volcanoes exist are generally regions where upheaval is -taking place. There is also a very interesting connection between -mountain-chains and lines of volcanic action. From this it seems to -follow, if lines of volcanic action are also lines of upheaval, that -mountain-chains are undergoing upheaval at the present time. This -is a conclusion in favour of which a good deal may be said. It is -certainly true in the cases of the Scandinavian range, and also of a -very large part of the Andes, to which we have already referred. The -Highlands of Scotland and Scandinavia form the northern end of an old -line of volcanic action running down the Atlantic Ocean through the -Azores, Madeira, Cape Verde Islands, Ascension, St. Helena, right -down to Tristan d'Acunha. - -In many other parts of the world we have evidences from submerged -forests, the positions of certain landmarks with regard to the sea, -and in some cases submerged towns, that movements of a downward -nature are taking place. - -It is important to distinguish from these evidences the changes that -take place where the waves of the sea are rapidly washing away the -coast-line. Putting aside these cases, however, it has been clearly -proved that in many regions a slow sinking of the land is going on. - -The eastern side of South America has not been so thoroughly observed -as its western side; but there is still good reason to believe that -a large part of this coast is sinking. So it appears that a see-saw -movement is affecting South America, and that while one side is going -up, the other is going down; and it is interesting to observe other -examples of the same thing,--such as are afforded by Greenland and -Norway. - - [Illustration: THE SKAEGGDALFORS, NORWAY. - - FROM A PHOTOGRAPH BY J. VALENTINE.] - -Again, while part of Labrador is rising, parts of the eastern coast -of North America, as far down as Florida, are slowly sinking. Thus -along the New England coast between New York and Maine, and again -along the Gulf of St. Lawrence, we find numerous submerged forests -with quantities of trees standing upright with their roots in old -forest-beds, but with the tops of their stumps some feet below the -level of high tide. In the case of New Jersey the subsidence is -probably taking place at the rate of two feet in a hundred years. - -Before passing on to consider upward movements of a more rapid -nature, such as are frequently caused by earthquakes, we may pause -for a few moments to consider certain very slight, but nevertheless -very interesting little movements, such as _slight pulsations_ and -tremors, which have been observed to take place in the earth's crust -(as it is called), and which of late years have been carefully -studied. - -Professor Milne, a great authority on earthquakes, has noticed slight -swayings of the earth, which though occupying a short time--from a -few seconds to a few hours--are still too slow to produce a shock of -any kind. These he calls "earth pulsations." They have been observed -by means of delicate spirit-levels, the bubbles of which move with -very slight changes of level at either end of the instrument. At -present only a few experiments of this kind have been made; but they -tell us that the surface of the earth (which is apparently so firm -and immovable) is subject to slight but frequent oscillations. Some -think that they depend upon changes in the weight of the atmosphere. -If this is so, the balance between the forces at work below the -earth's surface and those that operate on its surface must be -very easily disturbed. Still we cannot see that this is a serious -objection; on the contrary, there is much reason to think that any -slight extra weight on the surface, such as might be caused by an -increase of the pressure of the atmosphere, and still more by the -accumulation of vast sedimentary deposits on the floor of the ocean, -may be quite sufficient to cause a movement to take place. Moreover, -Mr. G. H. Darwin has shown that the earth's crust daily heaves up and -down under the attraction of the moon in the same kind of way that -the ocean does; so that we must give up all idea of the solid earth -being fixed and immovable, and must look upon it as a flexible body, -like a ball of india-rubber (see chap. ix., pp. 314-315). - -Slight movements of rather a different kind have been noticed, to -which the name of "earth-tremors" has been given. These are very -slight jarrings or quiverings of the earth, too slight to be observed -by our unaided senses, but rendered visible by means of very delicate -pendulums and other contrivances. Now wherever such observations -have been made it has been discovered that the earth is constantly -quivering as if it were a lump of jelly. In Italy, where this subject -has been very carefully studied, the tremors that are continually -going on are found to vary considerably in strength; for instance, -when the weather is very disturbed and unsettled, the movements of -the pendulum are often much greater. Again, before an earthquake the -instrument shows that the tremors are more frequent and violent. - -Another way of observing these curious little movements is by burying -microphones in the ground. The microphone is a little instrument -invented of late years which is capable of enormously magnifying the -very slightest sounds, such as our ears will not detect. By its means -one can hear, as some one said, "the tramp of a fly's foot," if he -will be so obliging as to walk over it. It has thus been proved in -Italy that the earth sends forth a confused medley of sounds caused -by little crackings and snappings in the rocks below our feet. - -In this way it will be possible to predict a serious earthquake, -because it will give warning some days before, by the increase of the -little tremors and sounds; and it is to be hoped that by this simple -means human lives may be saved. - -Now, these disturbances are of precisely the same nature as -earthquakes,--in fact, we may call them microscopic earthquakes. To -the geologist they are of great interest, as they seem to afford -some little insight into the difficult question of the upheaval of -mountains, and to show us something of the constant _working_ of -those wonderful forces below the surface of the earth by means of -which continents are raised up out of the sea, and mountain-chains -are elevated thousands of feet. It is probable that both are due to -the working of the same forces, and are accomplished by the same -machinery. - -We now pass on to consider those more violent movements of the solid -land known as earthquakes. This kind of disturbance is such as might -be produced by a sudden shock or blow given below the ground, from -which waves travel in all directions. First comes a rumbling noise -like the roar of distant artillery; then come the earthquake waves -one after another, causing the ground to rise and fall as a ship does -on the waves of the sea; the ground is frequently rent asunder, so -that chasms are formed, into which in some cases men and animals -have been hurled alive. In the case of a very violent earthquake -the waves travel long distances. Thus the great earthquake by which -Lisbon was destroyed in the year 1755 disturbed the waters of Loch -Lomond in Scotland. In this fearful catastrophe sixty thousand human -beings perished. If the disturbance takes place near the sea, great -sea waves are formed, which cause fearful destruction to life and -property. This happened in the case of the Lisbon earthquake; and -in the year 1868, when Ecuador and Peru were visited by a fearful -earthquake, a great sea wave swept over the port of Arica, and in a -few minutes every vessel in the harbour was either driven ashore or -wrecked, and a man-of-war was swept inland for a quarter of a mile. - -Earthquakes bring about many changes on the surface of the earth. For -example, on mountain-slopes forests are shattered, and large masses -of soil and débris are shaken loose from the rock on which they -rested, and hurled into the valleys; streams are thus choked up, and -sometimes lakes formed, either by the damming up of a river or by -the subsidence of the ground. - -It is frequently found after an earthquake that the level of -the ground has been permanently altered; and this effect of -earthquakes is important in connection with the subject we are now -considering,--namely, how mountains are upheaved. Sometimes, it is -true, the movement is a downward one; but more generally it takes -place in an upward direction. As an example of this, we may mention -the Chilian earthquake of 1835, which was very violent, and destroyed -several towns on that coast, from Copiapo to Chile. It was afterwards -found that the land in the Bay of Conception had been raised four or -five feet. At the island of Santa Maria, to the southwest of this -bay, the land was raised eight feet, and in one part ten feet; for -beds of dead mussels were seen at that height above high water, and -a considerable rocky flat that formerly was covered by the sea now -became dry land. It was also proved by means of soundings that the -sea round the island was shallower by about nine feet. - -Now the question arises, "How are earthquakes caused?" Various -suggestions have been made; but it is pretty clear that all -earthquakes are not produced in the same way. For instance, volcanic -eruptions are frequently attended by earthquakes. Violent shocks of -this nature generally precede and accompany a great eruption, as is -frequently the case before an eruption of Mount Vesuvius. - -Steam plays a very important part in all volcanic eruptions; and -these earthquakes are probably caused by great quantities of pent-up -steam at a high pressure struggling to escape. It is also possible -that when molten rock is forcibly injected into the crevices and -joints of overlying rocks earthquake shocks may be produced by -the concussion. The old Roman poet and philosopher, Lucretius, -endeavoured to solve this problem, and concluded that "the shakings -of the surface of the globe are occasioned by the falling in of -enormous caverns which time has succeeded in destroying." But -though the explanation might possibly apply to a few cases of small -earthquakes, it is not a satisfactory one, for it is not at all -likely that many large cavities exist below the earth's surface, -because the great weight of the overlying rock would inevitably crush -them in. - -We have already pointed out that earthquakes frequently happen in -mountainous regions; and this fact alone suggests that perhaps the -same causes which upheave mountains may have something to do with -earthquakes. But there are other reasons for believing that the same -force which causes earthquakes also upheaves mountain-chains. The -reader will remember the case of the Chilian earthquake that raised -part of the Andes a few feet in height. - -Now, it is quite clear that the rocks of which mountains are composed -have suffered a great deal of disturbance. We have only to look at -the crumbled and contorted strata to see that they have been forced -into all kinds of positions, sometimes standing bolt upright (see -diagrams, chap. ix., p. 307). And as we cannot believe, for many -reasons, that these movements were of a very sudden or violent kind, -we must consider that they took place slowly on the whole; but -besides being folded and twisted, the rocks of mountains frequently -exhibit clear signs of having been split and cracked. The fractures -are of all sizes, from an inch or more up to hundreds or even -thousands of feet. They tell us plainly that the rocks were once -slowly bent, and that after a certain amount of bending had taken -place, the strain put upon them became greater than they could bear, -and consequently they snapped and split along certain lines. This is -just what might be expected. For instance, ice on a pond will bend a -good deal, but only up to a certain amount; after that, it cracks in -long lines with a remarkably sharp and smooth fracture. But suppose -the pressure came from below instead of from above, as when a number -of people are skating on a pond. Should we not see the ice forced -up in some places, so that some sheets stood up above the others -after sliding past their broken edges? This is just what the rocks -in different places have frequently done. After a fracture has taken -place the rock on one side has slid up over the other, and the two -surfaces made by the fracture--like two long walls--are no longer -seen at the same level. One has been pushed up, while the other has -gone down (see diagram of the ranges of the Great Basin, chap. viii., -p. 273). - -Now, it is almost impossible to conceive of these tremendous -fractures taking place in the rocks below our feet without causing -sudden jars or shocks. Here, then, we seem to have a clue to the -problem. Even if the movements took place only a few inches or a few -feet at a time, that does not spoil our theory, but rather favours -it; for in that case the upheaval of a mountain-chain will have -taken a very long time (which is almost certain), and may have been -accomplished bit by bit. Hundreds and thousands of earthquake shocks, -some slight, and others severe, may have attended the upheaval of a -mountain-range. - -This explanation is accepted by many authorities. It does not exactly -imply that mountains were upheaved by earthquakes; but it means that -the same forces that elevate continents, heaving them up out of the -sea into ridges and very low arches, have been at work to crumple and -fold their rocks in some places into stupendous folds, such as we now -find form part of the general structure of mountains; and that in so -doing they caused fearful strains, too great for the rocks to bear, -so that they split over and over again, and in so doing produced jars -and shocks that must have been very similar to, if not identical -with, earthquake shocks as we know them at the present day. - -Such an explanation is in striking harmony with what we have -already learned about the operations of Nature. It was from the -long-continued operation of rain and rivers that the materials now -forming mountains were transported to the seas in which they were -slowly formed. It was also by the ordinary operations of frost, -heat and cold, snow and ice, streams, rain, and rivers that the -mountains received their present shapes (see chapters v. and vii.). -And now we learn that the gigantic work of upheaval took place in a -tolerably quiet and uniform manner,--with perhaps only an occasional -catastrophe of a more violent kind, but still according to the same -law of uniformity which is the very basis of modern geology, and by -means of which so much can be explained. - -We could give other proofs of the gradual elevation of mountains -if they were wanted. But at least enough has been said to give -the reader a glimpse into the methods employed by geologists in -endeavouring to explain how mountains were upheaved; and to show that -it is only by a careful study of all that is taking place now on the -earth that we can ever hope to solve the difficult questions that -present themselves to all who study those stony records on which the -earth has written for our enlightenment the chapters of her ancient -history. - -In conclusion, it may be asked what is the nature of the force that -accomplishes all this titanic work of upheaval. Although the question -has been much discussed, and some very ingenious suggestions brought -forward, we cannot say that any of them are entirely satisfactory. -But we know that the earth is a cooling body which loses so much heat -every year; and it may be that the shrinking that takes place as it -cools, by leaving the crust of the earth in some places unsupported, -causes it to settle down, to adapt itself to a smaller surface below, -and in so doing it would inevitably throw itself into a series of -folds, or wrinkles, like those on the skin of a dried apple. Many -think that mountain-ranges may be explained in this way. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -HOW THE MOUNTAINS WERE CARVED OUT. - - And surely the mountain fadeth away, - And the rock is removed out of its place, - The waters wear away the stones: - The overflowings thereof wash away the dust of the earth. - - _Job xiv. 18._ - - -The mighty fortresses of the earth, which seem so imperishable, so -majestic in their strength, and have from time immemorial received -their title of "the everlasting hills," are nevertheless undergoing -constant change and decay. They cannot abide for ever. Those waste -leagues around their feet are loaded with the wrecks of what once -belonged to them; they are witnesses to the victory of the hostile -forces that are for ever contending with them, and pledges of a final -triumph. To those who will read their story, mountains stand like old -dismantled castles, mere wrecks of ruined masonry, that have nearly -crumbled away, telling us of a time when all their separate peaks -and crags were one solid mass, perhaps an elevated smooth plateau -untouched by the rude hand of time. - -Let us now inquire how the work of destruction is accomplished. -Referring back to our illustration of the cathedral, given in chap. -v., pp. 143-147, the question we have now to consider is, how the -mountains were carved out into all these wonderful features of crag -and precipice, peak and pass, which are such a source of delight -to all who care for scenery. This work we included in the one word -"ornamentation." What, then, are the tools which Nature uses in this -work of carving out the hills? What are her axes and hammers, her -chisels and saws? - -This question, like many others, must be answered by observing what -takes place at the present day. It is scarcely necessary to say that -mountains and mountain-ranges are not simply the result of upheaval, -though they have been upheaved. If that were so, they would probably -appear as long smooth, monotonous ridges, with no separate mountain -masses, no peaks, no glens or valleys; in some cases they might -appear as simply elevated and smooth plateaux. Such mountains, if -we may so call them, would be almost as uninteresting as the roof -of a gabled house down which the rain finds its way in one smooth -continuous sheet. - -Mountains, reaching as they do into the higher regions of the -atmosphere, where the winds blow more fiercely than on the plains -below, storms rage more violently, and the extremes of heat and cold -are more severe,--in fact, where every process of change and decay -seems quickened,--suffer continually at the hands of the elements. - - "Death must be upon the hills, and the cruelty of the tempests - smite them, and the thorn and the briar spring up upon them; - but they so smite as to bring their rocks into the fairest - forms, and so spring as to make the very desert blossom as the - rose."[23] - - [23] Modern Painters. - -Nature never leaves them alone, never gives them a brief armistice in -the long war that she wages against them. She is a relentless enemy, -ever on the move, and ever varying her methods of attack. Now she -assails them openly with her storm-clouds, and pelts them furiously -with driving rain; now we hear the thunder of her artillery, as she -pierces their crests with strange electric darts of fire; now she -secretly undermines their sides with her hidden sources of water, -till whole villages are destroyed by some fearful fall of overhanging -rocks (see chapter iii., pages 96-101). Her winds and gentle breezes -are for ever at work on their surfaces, causing them to crumble into -dust much in the same way as iron turns to rust. - -Again, she heats them by day and then chills them suddenly at night, -under the cold starry sky, so that they crack under the strain of -expanding and contracting. Now she splits them with her ice-wedges; -now she furrows their sides with the dashing torrents and running -streams; and yet again she wears them gently down with her glaciers, -and carries away their débris--the token of her triumph--on those icy -streams, as conquering armies carry the spoils in procession. - -This is, briefly, her mode of warfare; these are some of her tools, -_wind_, _rain_, _frost_, _snow_, _heat_ and _cold_, _streams_, -_rivers_, and _glaciers_. Lightning does occasionally break off -portions of a cliff or a mountain-peak; but compared to the others, -this agent is not very important. - -Let us first inquire into the effects produced by the atmosphere. -The air around us is composed mainly of two well-known gases; -namely, oxygen and nitrogen. There is also a small proportion (about -one in ten thousand) of carbonic acid gas; a variable quantity of -water-vapour, and in the neighbourhood of towns, traces of other -noxious gases, such as sulphurous acid and chlorine. - -Now, the nitrogen plays a very unimportant part, as it merely -serves to dilute the powerful gas, oxygen, which has such important -life-sustaining properties. We live by breathing oxygen; so do all -animals; and the more pure air we can contrive to get into our -lungs, the better. But undiluted oxygen would be too strong for us, -and so its strength is diminished by being mixed with four parts of -nitrogen; that is to say, the air only contains about one fifth by -volume, or bulk, of oxygen and four fifths of nitrogen. - -Now, oxygen, being always ready to combine chemically with some other -element, is a great agent of change and decay. It attacks all the -metals except gold and platinum. Iron, we all know, oxidises, or -rusts, only too quickly; but copper, lead, silver, and other metals -are more or less attacked by it. So it is with all the rocks exposed -at or near the surface of the earth. Oxygen will, if it can, pick -out something to combine with and so bring about chemical changes -which lead to decay. But a much more powerful agent is the carbonic -acid gas in the atmosphere; although there is so little of it, there -is enough to play a very important part in causing rocks to crumble -away, and in some cases to dissolve them entirely. The supply of this -gas is continually being renewed, for all living animals breathe out -carbonic acid, and plants give it out by night. Under the influence -of sunlight plants give out oxygen, so that gas is supplied to the -air by day. - -Both oxygen and carbonic acid gas are dissolved by rain as it falls -through the air; and so we cannot separate the effects of the dry -air by itself from those of rain and mist, which are more important -agents. The action of rain is partly mechanical, partly chemical, for -it not only beats against them, but it dissolves out certain mineral -substances that they contain. - -All rocks are mixtures of two or more kinds of minerals, the -particles of each being often invisible to the naked eye. Thus -granites are essentially mixtures of felspar, quartz, and mica; -ordinary volcanic rocks ("trap-rocks") of felspar and augite; -sandstones consist mainly of particles of silica; limestones of -carbonate of lime; shales and slates of silicate of alumina, the -principal substance in clay. These grains are usually joined together -by a cement of some mineral differing more or less from the other -particles. Lime is found in many of the rocks as the cement that -binds their particles together; while oxide of iron and silica serve -this purpose in many other instances. Now, if the lime or iron or -silica is dissolved by water, the rock must tend to crumble away. Any -old building shows more or less manifold signs of such decay, and -this process is called "weathering." All this applies merely to the -surfaces of rocks; and if there were no other forces at work, their -rate of decay would be very slow. - -But there are other forces at work. In the first place, sudden -changes of temperature have a destructive influence. If the sun -shines brightly by day, the rocks--especially in higher mountain -regions--are considerably expanded by the heat they receive; and if -a hot day is followed by a clear sky at night, the free radiation of -heat into space (see chap. ii., p. 39) causes them to become very -cold, and in cooling down they contract. In this way an internal -strain is set up which is often greater than they can bear, and so -they split and crack. Thus small pieces of rock are detached from a -mountain-side. An Alpine traveller told the writer that one night -when sleeping on a mountain-side, he heard stones rattling down at -frequent intervals. Livingstone records in his journal that when -in the desert he frequently heard stones splitting at night with a -report like that of a pistol. But sometimes the expansion by day is -sufficient to cause fragments of rock to be broken off. - -Frost, however, is responsible for a vast amount of destruction among -rocks. When water freezes, it expands with tremendous force; and this -is the reason why water-pipes so frequently burst during a frost, -though we don't find it out until the thaw comes,--followed by long -plumbers' bills. Rocks, being traversed in several directions by -cracks, allow the water to get into them, and this in freezing acts -like a very powerful wedge; and so the rocks on the higher parts of -the mountains are continually being split up by Nature's ice-wedge. - -The amount of rock broken up in this way every year is enormous. -Stone walls and buildings often suffer greatly from this cause during -a long frost, especially if the stone be of a more than usually -porous kind, that can take up a good deal of rain water. - -Where trees, shrubs, etc., grow on rocks, the roots find their way -into its natural divisions, widened by the action of rain soaking -down into them; and as they grow, they slowly widen them, and in time -portions are actually detached in this manner. Moreover, the roots -and rootlets guide the rain water down into the cracks, or joints, as -they are called. Even the ivy that creeps over old ruined walls has a -decidedly destructive effect. - -At the base of every steep mountain may be seen heaps of loose -angular stones; sometimes these are covered with soil, and form long -slopes on which trees and shrubs grow. Every one of the numerous -little gullies that furrow the mountain-sides has at its lower -end a similar little heap of stones. Sometimes a valley among the -mountains seems half choked with rocky fragments; and if these were -all removed, the valley would be deeper than it is. In some hot -countries, where the streams only flow in winter, this is especially -the case; for example, every valley, or "wady," in the region of -Mount Sinai and Mount Horeb is more or less choked up with boulders -and stones of every size, because the stones come down faster than -they can be carried away. - -But the main work of carving out the hills and mountains of the -world is done by streams, rivers, and glaciers; and so we now pass -on to consider how they perform their tasks. Water by itself, even -when flowing fast, would be powerless to carve gorges and valleys -in the solid rock; but the stones which torrents and streams carry -along give them a marvellous grinding power, for with such material -a stream continually wears away its rocky bed. Moreover, the stones -themselves are all the while being rubbed down by each other, until -finally they are ground down to fine sand and mud, which help in the -work of erosion. - -Every mountain stream or torrent runs in a ravine or valley of some -sort; and any traveller who will take the trouble to watch what goes -on there may easily convince himself that the ravine, gorge, or -valley has been carved out by the stream, aided by the atmospheric -influences to which we have already alluded. - -But perhaps some may be inclined to look upon the ravine as a chasm -produced by some violent disturbance from below, whereby the rocks -were rent asunder, and that the stream somehow found its way into the -rent. A little inquiry will dispel this idea. In the first place, -such catastrophes are quite unknown at the present day; and as we -have more than once pointed out, the geologist's method is to apply -a knowledge of processes now in operation to the phenomena of the -rocks, in order to read their history. Secondly, no conclusion can be -accepted which is not supported strongly by evidence. - -If such a rending of the rocks had taken place, there would assuredly -be some evidence of the fact. We should expect to find a great crack -running all along the bed of the stream; but of this there is no -sign. Go down in any weather when the stream is low, and look at -the rocks over which it flows, and you will search in vain for such -evidence. Instead of being broken, the rocks extend continually -across. You would also expect to find the strata "dipping," or -sloping away from the stream on each side, if they had been rent -by such an upheaval; but here again we are met by a total want of -evidence. Thirdly, a crack might be expected to run along more or -less evenly in one direction. But look at the ravine, follow it -up for some miles, and you will see that it winds along in a very -devious course, not in a straight line. - -For these reasons, then, we must conclude that the ravine or -valley has been carved out by the stream; but perhaps the most -convincing arguments are afforded by the furrows and miniature -ravines so frequently met with on the sides of all mountains; and -it is impossible to examine these without concluding that they have -in every case been cut out of the solid rock by the little rapid -torrents that run along them after heavy rain. If we are fortunate -enough to see them on a thoroughly rainy day, we may derive much -instruction from watching the little torrents at work as they run -down the mountain-side, here and there dashing over the rocks in -little cascades, and bringing down to the base of the hill much of -the débris that forms higher up. In this way Nature gives us an -"object lesson," and seems to say: "Watch me at work here, and learn -from such little operations how I work on a larger scale, and carve -out my ravines and big valleys. Only give me plenty of time, and I -can accomplish much greater feats than this." - -The question of time is no longer disputed; and all geologists are -willing to grant almost unlimited time, at least periods of time that -seem to us unlimited. Most streams have been flowing for thousands -of years; and when once we grant that, we find no difficulty in -believing that all valleys are the work of rain and rivers. Surely -no one would argue that the furrows on a mountain-side are all rents -which have been widened by the action of water; for if they were -rents, each must have been caused by some disturbance of the rocks -composing the mountain, and we should of course be able to see the -cracks for ourselves, and to find that the rocks had in some way been -disturbed and rent open. - -Even the rain which falls on the road in a heavy shower teaches the -same simple but important lesson, as it runs off into the gutters -on each side; and we may often find the road furrowed by little -miniature rivers, that carve out for themselves tiny valleys as they -run off into the gutter, bringing with them much débris in the form -of mud and sand. - -Sometimes a stream encounters in its course a layer of rock that is -harder than the rock underlying it. In this case the softer rock -is worn away faster, and the hard layer forms a kind of ridge at a -higher level; the result is a waterfall. Waterfalls are frequently -found in mountain streams. In this case, it is easy to trace the -ridge of harder rock running unbroken across the path of the stream, -showing clearly that it has not been rent in any way. First it showed -merely as a kind of step, but gradually the force of the falling -water told with greater effect on the softer rock below, wearing it -away more rapidly than that above, and so the depth of the waterfall -went on increasing year by year; and at the same time the hard layer -was slowly worn away until the stream sawed its way through. - -Some river valleys are steep and narrow; others are broad, with -gently sloping sides. A careful study of the different valleys in -any large country such as Great Britain, shows that their forms vary -according to the nature of the rocks through which rivers flow. Where -hard rocks abound, the valleys are steep and narrow; where soft rocks -occur, the valleys are broad and low. This is only what might be -expected, for hard rocks are not easily worn away; a river must cut -its way through them, leaving cliffs on either side that cannot be -wasted away by rain. But in a district where clay or soft sandstone -occurs, the rain, as it finds its way to the valley, will wash them -away and give a smooth gentle slope to the sides of the valley. - -It is very instructive to notice how the scenery of any district -depends on the nature of its prevailing rocks. Hard rocks give bold -scenery with steep hills and rocky defiles; while soft rocks make the -landscape comparatively flat and tame, though often very beautiful -in its way, especially where a rich soil abounds, so that we see -pleasant woods, rich pasture-land, and heavy crops in the fields. - -Compare, for instance, the scenery of Kent or Surrey with that -of the Lake District or the west of Yorkshire. The difference -is due chiefly to the fact that in Kent and Surrey we have rocks -that succumb more easily to the action of rain and rivers, and -consequently are worn away more rapidly than the harder rocks in the -north country. Geologists have a word to express the effects of this -wear and tear; namely, "denudation," which means a stripping off, or -laying bare. - -In Kent and Surrey the agents of denudation (rain and rivers, aided -by the effects of the air, of heat and cold, and so on) wear away the -whole surface of the county in a tolerably even and uniform manner, -because there are no hard rocks for them to contend with. In this -case rain washes away the sides of the valleys faster than the river -can carve its bed, consequently the valleys are shallow compared to -their width. And so the streams have broad valleys, while the hills -are smooth and gently rounded. Chalk, clay, and soft sandstone abound -there. The two latter rocks are washed away with comparative ease, -and the chalk is dissolved; whereas in the Lake District we have very -much harder and older rocks, that require to be split up and broken -by the action of frost, while every stream carves out for itself a -steep valley, and great masses of hard rock stand out as bold hills -or mountains, that seem to defy all the agents of denudation. Here -the opposite is the case, and the valleys are deepened faster than -they are widened. But for all that, a vast amount of solid rock has -been removed from the surface there, of which the mountains are, as -it were, but fragments that have escaped the general destruction. -Moreover, the rocks in this region have been greatly disturbed and -crumpled since they were first formed, and thereby thrown into -various shapes that give certain peculiar structures more or less -capable of resisting denudation. - -Very effective illustrations of the power of rain by itself are -afforded by the "earth pillars" of the Tyrol, and "cañons" of -Colorado. The material of which they consist is called conglomerate, -because it is composed of stones and large blocks of rock with stiff -earth or clay between. All the taller ones have a big stone on the -top which protects the softer material below from being washed away -by heavy rains; and it is easily perceived that each pillar owes its -existence to the stone on the top, which prevents the soft materials -below it from being washed away. When, after a time, the weathering -of the soft strata diminishes the support of the capping boulders, -these at last topple over, and the pillar, thus left unprotected, -becomes an easy prey to the rain, and is rapidly washed away. Some -of the pillars are over a hundred feet in height. But it is only in -places where heavy rains fall that these interesting monuments of -denudation are to be seen. - -By way of contrast we may turn now to a district in which very little -rain falls, but where the streams have a considerable slope, and so -can wear away, or erode, their valleys much faster than rain and -frost, etc., can bring down the rocks of which the sides are composed. - -The river Colorado of the West, which runs from the Rocky Mountains -to the Gulf of California, flows for nearly three hundred miles at -the bottom of a profound chasm, or cañon, being hemmed in by vertical -walls which in some places are more than a mile in depth. The -tributary streams flowing into the river run through smaller ravines -forming side cañons; and there is no doubt that these wonderful -chasms have been, in the course of ages, slowly carved out by the -river Colorado and its numerous tributary streams. Sometimes the -walls of the cañon are not more than fifty yards apart, and in height -they vary from three thousand to six thousand feet. - -Far above the level of the highest floods patches of gravel are found -here and there on the sides, which must have been left there by the -river when it had not cut its way so far down. These cañons afford -striking testimony to the erosive power of running water, of which -they are the most wonderful illustration in the world. - -But water, even when in the form of ice, has more or less power to -wear away solid rock; and the glaciers that we see in Switzerland, -Norway, and other countries must slightly deepen the rocky valleys -down which they flow. Let us see how this can be accomplished. - -The snow that falls in the High Alps, impelled by the weight of fresh -layers of snow overlying it, and by the slope of the mountain-sides, -gradually creeps down into the valleys. Owing to the pressure thus -put upon it, and partly to the melting power of the sun's rays, it -assumes the form of ice; and glaciers are composed of solid ice. The -downward motion is so slow that a glacier appears quite stationary; -and it is only by putting in stakes and watching them change their -positions that it can be shown to be moving. - -In all respects except speed, glaciers flow like rivers, for ice is -a viscous body, behaving partly like a fluid and yet partly like -a solid substance; but it will not endure a sharp bend without -snapping. Hence, a glacier in traversing a valley frequently gets -split. The cracks thus formed widen by degrees until they expand -into chasms, or "crevasses." Like rivers, glaciers transport a large -amount of rocky matter to lower levels, and at the same time wear -away and deepen their rocky channels. - -Let us see how they do this twofold work of transportation and -erosion. In the first place, a large amount of débris falls onto the -sides of a glacier from the peaks, precipices, and mountain-side -along which it flows. Some stones, however, fall down crevasses, and -so reach the bottom, where they become cemented in the ice. In this -way they are slowly carried down over the rocky floor of the valley, -until at last they reach the end of the glacier, where in the warmer -air the ice melts just as fast as it creeps down; and there they will -be left to form a heap of stones, sand, and mud. - -Large blocks of stone, quite different from the rocks on which they -lie, are very numerous, and are called "erratics," since they are -evidently wanderers from a distance. Sometimes such blocks can be -proved to have been brought many miles from their home among the -higher peaks. The long lines of stones and mud seen on the sides of -a glacier are called "moraines," and at the end of every glacier we -find a big heap known as a "terminal moraine." But the stones of -which they are composed are probably not to be entirely accounted -for in this way. Can we not conceive that the weight and pressure of -a descending glacier may be sufficient to break off many protruding -portions of the rocky bed over which it flows, and then to drag them -along with it? This seems reasonable. Let us therefore consider -the materials of which moraines are composed to be derived partly -from the rocks beneath and partly from those above the glacier. But -whatever their origin, such materials must inevitably find their way -to the end of the glacier and be added to the big heap there. The -work of transportation is then taken up by the stream which always -flows from the end of a glacier. Such streams are in summer-time -laden with fine sediment, which gives them a milky and turbid -appearance. - -Thus a glacier wears away the rocks over which it flows; rock -fragments become embedded in the ice, and these are the tools with -which a glacier does its work. It must be granted that the downward -movement of a great mass of ice is irresistible, and consequently -that as the moving glacier slowly creeps along, it must inevitably -cause the stones which it thus holds to grind over the surface of -the rock. It is easy to imagine the effects of this grinding action. -If sand-paper, rubbed for a minute or two over wood, wears down and -smooths its surface, what must be the result of all these stones, -together with sand and mud, grinding over the rocky bed? - -The answer to this question is found in examining the rocks over -which glaciers once flowed. Now, the Swiss glaciers once extended -far beyond their present limits; and the rocks in the lower parts of -their present valleys, now free from ice, show unmistakable signs -of having been considerably worn down. The corners and angles of -projecting pieces of rock have been worn away until the once rugged -outline has become wavy and round, so much so as to produce more or -less resemblance to the backs of sheep lying down. Hence the name -_roches moutonnées_, by which rocks of this shape are known. They -frequently retain on their surface peculiar markings, such as long -scratches and grooves which must have been made as the old glacier, -with its embedded angular fragments of rock, slowly ground over -their surfaces. Such markings are called "striæ." But besides these -glacial records graven on the rocks, we have other evidence, in the -form of great moraines in some of the valleys of Switzerland, and -especially at those places where side valleys open out into a main -valley. Any one may learn by a little observation to recognise these -peculiar heaps of stones, mud, and sand, deposited long ago by the -old glaciers of Switzerland. - -It will be perceived that the evidence for the erosive power of -glaciers is of two kinds,--first, there is the testimony of the -smoothed and striated rocks, which is very convincing; secondly, -the equally strong proofs from the moraines, both great and small. -These old rubbish heaps give us a very fair idea of the amount of -wear and tear that goes on under a glacier, for there we see the rock -fragments that tumbled down the mountain-side onto the surface of the -glacier (together with those which the glacier tore off its rocky -bed), all considerably smoothed, worn down, and striated. But a still -better idea of the work done is afforded by the gravel, mud, and sand -in which these stones are embedded. All this finer material must have -been the result of wear and tear. This kind of action may well be -compared to what takes place on a grindstone as one sharpens an axe -on it. The water poured on the stone soon becomes muddy, owing to the -presence of countless little grains of sand worn off the grindstone. -But a good deal of the mud thus formed is carried away by the little -stream that runs out from the end of every glacier; so that there is -more formed than we see in the moraine. - - [Illustration: THE MER DE GLACE AND MONT BUET. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH - BY MR. DONKIN.] - -We have already alluded in former chapters to the "Ice Age" in -Britain, when great glaciers covered all our high mountains, and -descended far and wide over the plains. Now, the evidence for the -former existence of these glaciers is of the same kind as that which -we have just described. In Wales and Scotland we may soon learn -to recognise the _roches moutonnées_, the old moraine heaps, and -the erratic boulders brought down by these old glaciers. Besides -these proofs, there is also the evidence of the arctic plants now -flourishing in the highlands (see chapter iv., pages 123-124). - -There can be no doubt, then, that glaciers have an erosive action, -and therefore must be regarded as agents of denudation. But it is -important to bear in mind that their powers in this direction are -limited; for it is manifest that a mountain stream is a much more -powerful agent, and will deepen its little valley much more rapidly, -than a cumbrous, slow-moving glacier, advancing at the rate of a -few inches a day. It has been found by careful measurements that -the Mer de Glace of Chamouni moves during summer and autumn at the -average daily rate of twenty to twenty-seven inches in the centre, -and thirteen to nineteen and one half inches near the side, where -friction somewhat impedes its course. This seems very slow compared -to the rapid movement of a mountain stream; but then, a glacier -partly makes up for this by its great weight. - -In considering a glacier as an agent of erosion, we must not forget -that probably a good deal of water circulates beneath glaciers. If -this is so, the water must have a considerable share in producing the -effects to which we have already alluded. It would be extremely rash -to conclude, as some students of glaciers have done, that valleys -can be carved out _entirely_ by glaciers; and we must be content -with believing that they have been somewhat deepened by ice-action, -and their features more or less altered, but no more. The valleys of -Switzerland, of Wales, and Scotland, were probably all in existence -before the period of the "Ice Age," having been carved out by streams -in the usual way; but the glaciers, as it were, put the final touches -and smoothed their surfaces. - -Having learned how the three agents of denudation--namely, rain, -rivers, and glaciers--accomplish their work, let us now take a wider -view of the subject and consider the results of their united efforts -both in the present and in the past. - -We have already alluded to the enormous amount of solid matter -brought down to the sea every year by rivers (see chap. v., pp. -166-168), and we pointed out that all this represents so much débris -swept off the land through which the rivers flow; also that it comes -down in three ways, one part being suspended in the water as fine -mud, another part being pushed along the river-bed as gravel, etc., -while a third part is the carbonate of lime and other mineral matter -in a dissolved state, and therefore invisible. - -Now, it is quite plain that rain and rivers, in sweeping away so much -solid matter from the surface of the land, must tend in the course -of time to lower its general level; and it therefore seems to follow -that after the lapse of ages any given continent or large island -might be entirely washed away, or in other words, reduced to the -level of the sea. This would certainly happen were it not that the -lands of the world seem to be slowly rising, so that the denudation -going on at the surface appears to be counterbalanced by continued -upheaval. - -But, supposing no upheaval took place, how long would it take for -rain and rivers to wear away a whole continent? Let us see if there -is any way of answering this difficult question, for if it can be -even partially solved, it will help us to realise the enormous length -of time that must have been required to bring about the results of -denudation that we see all around us. - -Although the calculations that have been made on this subject are -very complicated, yet the principle on which they are based is quite -simple. For an answer to our question we must go to the rivers again, -and measure the work they do in transporting solid matter down to -the sea. Let us take the Mississippi as a typical big river, for -it has been more carefully studied than any other, and it drains a -very extensive area, embracing many varieties of climate, rock, and -soil. As the result of many observations carried on continuously at -different parts of the river for months together, the engineers who -conducted the investigation found that the annual discharge of water -by this river is about nineteen thousand millions of cubic feet, -and that on the average the amount of sediment it contains is about -a 1/1500th part by weight. But besides the matter in suspension, -they observed that a large amount of sand, gravel, and stones is -being constantly pushed along the bottom of the river. This they -estimated at over seven hundred and fifty millions of cubic feet. -They also calculated that the Mississippi brings down every year -more than eight hundred thousand million pounds of mud. Putting the -two together, they found (as before stated) that the amount of solid -matter thus transported down to the Gulf of Mexico may be represented -by a layer 268 feet high, covering a space of one square mile; that -is, without allowing for what is brought down dissolved in the water, -which may be neglected in order to prevent any exaggeration. - -Now, it is quite clear that all this débris must have come from the -immense area that is drained by the Mississippi. It could not have -been supplied by any rivers except those that are its tributaries. -And so if we can find out what is the extent of this area, it is not -difficult to calculate how much its general surface must have been -lowered, or in other words, how much must have been worn away from -it in order to supply all the material. This area is reckoned at -1,147,000 square miles; and a very simple calculation tells us that -the general surface would thus be lowered to the extent of 1/6000th -part of a foot. That of course means that one foot would be worn away -in six thousand years. On high ground and among mountains the rate of -denudation would of course be much greater; but we are now dealing -with an average for the whole surface. - -The next thing we require to finish this calculation is the average -or mean height of the American continent. This was reckoned by the -celebrated Humboldt at 748 feet. Now if we may assume that all this -continent is being worn down at the same rate of one foot in six -thousand years (which is a reasonable assumption), we find, by a -simple process of multiplication, that it would require about four -and a half millions of years for rain and rivers to wash it all away -until its surface was all at the sea-level (with perhaps a few little -islands projecting here and there as relics of its vast denudation). -This is a very interesting result; and if the above measurements are -reliable, they afford us some idea of the rate at which denudation -takes place at the present time. - -By a similar process it has been calculated the British Isles might -be levelled in about five and a half millions of years. Geologists -do not pretend to have solved this problem accurately; that is -impossible with our present knowledge. But even as rough estimates -these results are very valuable, especially when we come to study -the structure of the land in different countries, and to find out -therefrom, by actual measurement, how much solid rock has been -removed. We will now give some examples of this; but perhaps a simple -illustration will make our meaning clearer. - -Suppose we picked up an old pair of boots, and found the soles worn -away in the centre. It would be easy to find out how much had been -worn away over the holes by simply measuring the thickness of leather -at the sides, where we will suppose that they were protected by -strong nails. Geologists apply a very similar kind of method in order -to find out how much rock has been removed from a certain region of -the earth. One of the simplest cases of this kind is that of the area -known as the Weald of Kent, Surrey, and Sussex (see illustration, -Fig. 1). A great deal of denudation has taken place here, because -there is ample evidence to prove that the great "formation" known -as the Chalk (now seen in the North and South Downs) once stretched -right across; and below this came the lower greensand and Weald clay. -They spread over this area in a low arch of which we now only see the -ruins. - - [Illustration: Fig. 1. SECTION ACROSS THE WEALD OF KENT AND - SURREY.] - - [Illustration: Fig. 2. THE HIGHLANDS OF SCOTLAND ON A TRUE SCALE - (after GEIKIE).] - -The dotted lines in the figure show us their former extent; but -the vertical height is exaggerated, for otherwise the hills would -scarcely be seen. - -These lines simply follow out the curves taken by the strata at each -end of the denuded arch, and therefore rightly indicate its former -height. By making such a drawing on a true scale, geologists can -easily measure the former height of the surface of this old arch, -or "anticline," of chalk, greensand, and other strata, just as an -architect might restore the outlines of an old traceried window from -a few portions left at the sides. - -This very useful and instructive method is much employed in drawing -sections through mountain-chains, in order to gain some idea of the -amount of denudation which they have suffered. - -Let us see how much has been removed from the present surface of -the Weald. First there is the chalk, which we may put down at six -hundred feet at least; then there is the lower greensand, say, eight -hundred feet; and below that, and forming the lowest ground in the -Weald, is the Weald clay, which is one thousand feet thick, and being -softer, was more rapidly borne away. Along the centre runs a ridge -of Hastings sand, forming higher ground on account of its greater -hardness, but this formation is not much denuded. However, adding -together the thicknesses of the others, we arrive at the conclusion -that about twenty-four hundred feet of chalk and other strata has -been removed from the present surface of the Weald. And all this -denudation has probably been effected by rain and rivers, for it is -very doubtful whether the sea had any share in this work. - -But in other parts of our own country we find proofs of denudation -on a much grander scale than this; for example, in North Wales there -are rocks now lying exposed at the surface which are of a very much -greater antiquity than any that may be seen in the Wealden area, -belonging to the very ancient periods known as the Cambrian and -Silurian. These have evidently been exposed for a much longer time -to the action of denuding forces; and the Welsh hills, as we now -see them, are but fragments of what they once were. After carefully -mapping out the rocks in the neighbourhood of Snowdon, noting their -thickness, the directions in which they slope, or "dip," so that -the structure of this region might be ascertained, as in the case -of the Weald, it was found, on drawing sections of the rocks there, -and putting in dotted lines to continue the curves and slopes of the -strata as known at or near the surface, that from fifteen thousand -to twenty thousand feet of solid rock must have been removed (see -diagrams, chapter ix., p. 307). Applying the same method to the Lake -District, it has been calculated that the amount of denudation which -that beautiful country has suffered may be represented by twenty-six -thousand feet. Turning to the other side of the Atlantic, we find -the American geologists estimate that a thickness of five miles has -been removed from a large part of the Appalachian chain of mountains -(near their east coast), and that at least one mile has been eroded -from the entire region between the Rocky and Wahsatch Mountains (see -chapter ix.). - -In conclusion, we must bear in mind that mountains, in spite of the -enormous erosion they have suffered, are more capable of resisting -the ever active agents of denudation than the softer rocks that form -the plains and lowlands, and consequently stand out in bold relief -from other features of the earth's surface. This truth has been -beautifully expressed in the following passage:-- - - " ... In order to bring the world into the form which it now - bears, it was not mere sculpture that was needed; the mountains - could not stand for a day unless they were formed of materials - altogether different from those which constitute the lower - hills and the surfaces of the valleys. A harder substance had - to be prepared for every mountain-chain, yet not so hard but - that it might be capable of crumbling down into earth, fit to - nourish the Alpine forest and the Alpine flowers; not so hard - but that in the midst of the utmost majesty of its enthroned - strength there should be seen on it the seal of death, and the - writing of the same sentence that had gone forth against the - human frame, 'Dust thou art and unto dust thou shalt return.' - And with this perishable substance the most majestic forms were - to be framed that were consistent with the safety of man, and - the peak was to be lifted and the cliff rent as high and as - steeply as was possible, in order yet to permit the shepherd - to feed his flocks upon the slope, and the cottage to nestle - beneath their shadow."[24] - - [24] Modern Painters. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -VOLCANIC MOUNTAINS. - - 'Tis said Enceladus' huge frame, - Heart-stricken by the avenging flame, - Is prisoned here, and underneath - Gasps through each vent his sulphurous breath; - And still as his tired side shifts round, - Trinacia echoes to the sound - Through all its length, while clouds of smoke - The living soul of ether choke. - - VIRGIL: _Æneid iii._ - - -In some parts of the world we meet with mountains of a very different -kind from any we have yet considered,--mountains that are known -at times to send forth fiery streams of glowing lava, and to emit -with terrific force great clouds of steam. Such mountains have -long been known, in popular but unscientific language, as "burning -mountains,"[25]--a term which is unfortunate, because they do not -burn in the proper sense of the word, like candles or gas-jets. They -are better known as volcanoes. There are about three hundred and -fifty known active volcanoes; and if we include all mountains that -once were in that state, the number is about one thousand. - - [25] See papers by the writer on Volcanoes and Volcanic Action - in "Knowledge" for May and June, 1891, on which this chapter is - partly based. - -Such mountains are connected in a curious way with those upheaved -ridges of the world known as mountain-chains (see chap. vi., p. -191). And not only are many mountains more or less penetrated and -intersected by rocks of an igneous origin (see chap. v., p. 155), -but some have been largely formed by the action of old volcanoes. -In fact, there are hills in Great Britain and parts of Europe, in -America, and other countries, that once were actual volcanoes (see -page 277). - -We must briefly consider these strange mountains so different from -others, and see what we can find out about them. Let us first inquire -how a volcano is made, then consider what a volcano does; that is, we -must view it as a geological agent that has a certain definite part -to play in the economy of the world. And lastly, we may glance at -some of the old volcanoes, and see what they were doing in those long -ages of the world during which the great series of the stratified -rocks were formed,--which rocks are, as it were, the book in which -the earth has written her autobiography. - -In old days volcanoes were regarded with superstitious awe; and any -investigation of their actions would have been considered rash and -impious in the highest degree. Mount Etna, as Virgil tells us, was -supposed to mark the spot where the angry gods had buried Enceladus, -one of the rebellious giants. Volcano, a certain "burning mountain" -in the Lipa Islands, was likewise called the forge, or workshop, -of Vulcan (or Volcan), the god of fire. And so it comes about that -all "burning mountains" take their name from this one Mediterranean -island, and at the same time tell us of the mythological origin of -the word. It has been said that words are "fossil thoughts;" and we -have here an old and very much fossilised thought,--a kind of thought -long since extinct among civilised peoples, and one which is never -likely to come to life again. - -A volcanic mountain consists of alternating sheets of lava and -volcanic ashes, mantling over each other in an irregular way, -and all sloping away from the centre. In the centre is a pit or -chimney, widening out towards the top so as to resemble a funnel or -cup; hence the name "crater," which means a cup. In the centre of -this crater a very small cone ("minor cone") is frequently found; -and it is interesting to find that many of the moon's volcanic -craters possess these "minor cones." A number of cracks or fissures -intersect the volcano. These frequently spread out from the centre -of the mountain in all directions, like the spokes of a wheel. -They generally get filled with lava that wells up from below, thus -forming "dykes," which may be regarded as so many sheets of igneous -rock, such as basalt, that have forced their way while still liquid -in among the layers of lava and ashes. The word "ash" is used by -geologists in a special sense; and volcanic ash is not, as might -be supposed, a deposit of cinders, but mostly of dust of various -degrees of fineness, and sometimes it is very fine indeed. Pieces -of pumice-stone may be embedded in a layer of volcanic ash, and -sometimes great blocks of stone that have been shot out of the -volcano as from a big gun, but these only form a small part of the -layer. Dykes strengthen the mountain, and tend to hold it together -when violently shaken during an eruption. - -The shape and steepness of a volcano depend on the nature of the -materials ejected. The finer the volcanic ash, the steeper and more -conical is the mountain. The building up of a volcano may be fairly -illustrated by the little cone of sand formed in an hourglass as the -sand-grains fall. These settle down at a certain slope, or angle, -at which they can remain, instead of falling down to the bottom, as -they do directly this slope is exceeded. Some volcanoes are built up -almost entirely of volcanic ash and its embedded blocks. Vesuvius, -Teneriffe, Jorullo, in Mexico, and Cotopaxi, in the Andes, are -examples of steep volcanic cones built up in this way. Others, less -steep and more irregular in shape, are chiefly formed of successive -lava-flows. Little minor cones are frequently formed on the side of -a volcano; and these during an eruption give rise to small outbursts -of their own. They are easily accounted for by the dykes which are -mentioned just now; for when molten rock forces its way through -fissures, it sometimes finds an outlet at the surface, and being full -of steam, as soda-water is full of gas, it gives rise to an eruption. -The great opening in the centre of a volcano, with its molten lava, -is like a very big dyke that has reached the surface and so succeeded -in producing an eruption. - -The opening of a soda-water bottle not infrequently illustrates a -volcanic eruption; for when the pent-up carbonic acid cannot escape -fast enough, it forces out some of the water, even when the bottle is -held upright. - -Every volcano has been built up on a platform of ordinary stratified -rocks; and at some period _after_ these had been laid down in water -and raised up into dry land, molten rock found its way through them, -and so the volcano was built up by successive eruptions during many -years. It is probable that earthquake shocks, preceding the first -eruption, cracked up these strata, and so made a way for the lava to -come up. - -The main point we wish to emphasize is that _volcanoes are never -formed by upheaval_. In this way they differ from all other -mountains. They have not been made by the heaving up of strata, but -have been gradually piled up, something like rubbish heaps that -accumulate in the Thames barges as the dustmen empty their carts into -them, only in the case of volcanoes the "rubbish" comes from below. -It is not necessary to suppose that the reservoir down below, from -which the molten rock is supplied, exists at any very great depth -below the original land surface on which the volcano grows up. - -The old "upheaval theory" of volcanoes, once advocated by certain -authorities, instead of being based on actual evidence or on -reasoning from facts, was a mere guess. Moreover, if the explanation -we have given should not be sufficiently convincing, there is good -proof furnished by the case of a small volcano near Vesuvius, the -building of which was actually witnessed. It is called Monte Nuovo, -or the New Mountain. It is a little cone 430 feet high, on the bank -of Lake Averno, with a crater more than a mile and a half wide at the -base. It was almost entirely formed during a single night in the year -1538, A. D. We have two accounts of the eruption to which it owes -its existence; and each writer says distinctly that the mountain was -formed by the falling of stones and ashes. - - -One witness says,-- - - "Stones and ashes were thrown up with a noise like the - discharge of great artillery, in quantities which seemed as if - they would cover the whole earth; and in four days their fall - had formed a mountain in the valley between Monte Barbaro and - Lake Averno, of not less than three miles in circumference, and - almost as high as Monte Barbaro itself,--a thing incredible - to those who have not seen it, that in so short a time so - considerable a mountain should have been formed." - - -Another says,-- - - "Some of the stones were larger than an ox. The mud (ashes - mixed with water) was at first very liquid, then less so, and - in such quantities that with the help of the afore-mentioned - stones a mountain was raised one thousand paces in height." - -(The writer's astonishment led him greatly to exaggerate the height.) - -These accounts are important as showing how in a much longer time -a big volcano may be built up. From such small operations we learn -how Nature works on a large scale. The great volcano in Mexico known -as Jorullo was probably built up in a very similar way. There is a -tradition among the natives that it was made in two or three days; -but we can hardly believe that. Volcanoes, as they get older, tend -to grow taller and bigger; but every now and then a large portion may -be blown away by some great eruption, and they have, as it were, to -begin again. - - [Illustration: THE ERUPTION OF VESUVIUS IN 1872. FROM AN - INSTANTANEOUS PHOTOGRAPH.] - -Let us now consider volcanoes as geological agents, and see what -they do. A volcanic eruption may be described in a general way -as follows: Its advent is heralded by earthquakes affecting the -mountain and the whole country round; loud underground explosions -are heard, resembling the fire of distant artillery. The vibrations -are chiefly transmitted through the ground; the mountain seems -convulsed by internal throes, due, no doubt, to the efforts of the -imprisoned steam and liquid rock to find an opening. These signs are -accompanied by the drying up of wells and disappearance of springs, -since the water finds its way down new cracks in the rocks, caused -by the frequent shocks and quiverings. When at last an opening has -been made, the eruption begins,--generally with one tremendous -burst that shakes the whole mountain down to its foundations. After -this, frequent explosions follow with great rapidity and increasing -violence, generally from the crater. These are indicated by the -globular masses of steam which are to be seen rising up in a tall -column like that which issues from the funnel of a locomotive. But -sometimes the whole mountain seems to be more or less engaged in -giving out steam, and thus to be partly enveloped in it. This is -illustrated by our engraving from an instantaneous photograph of -Vesuvius in eruption in the year 1872. The steam and other gases, in -their violent ascent, hurl up into the air a great deal of solid rock -from the sides of the central opening, after first blowing out the -stones which previously stopped up the orifice. - -Blocks of stone falling down meet with others coming up; and so a -tremendous pounding action takes place, the result of which is that -great quantities of volcanic dust and ashes are produced, generally -of extreme fineness. Winds and ocean currents transport these light -materials for long distances. The observations made during the -famous and fruitful voyage of H. M. S. "Challenger" showed that -fine volcanic dust is carried by wind and marine currents to almost -all parts of the oceans. The darkness so frequently mentioned in -accounts of eruptions--sometimes at a very great distance from the -volcano--is entirely caused by clouds of volcanic dust hiding the -light of the sun. Perhaps the best example of this is the case of the -eruption of Krakatoa (in the Strait of Sunda, between Sumatra and -Java) in 1883. Its explosions were heard in all directions for two -thousand miles, and a perceptible layer of volcanic dust fell at all -places within one thousand miles; while the finest dust and vapour, -shot up fifteen or twenty miles high, were spread all over the globe, -causing, while still suspended in the atmosphere, the peculiar red -sunsets noticed in all parts of the world for some months after the -eruption. - -Again, those very curious deposits of "red clay" found in the very -deepest parts of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans (at depths of about -four thousand fathoms, or twenty-four thousand feet) have been shown -to be chiefly composed of volcanic dust, their red colour being due -to oxidised iron. - -But there is another way in which a good deal of fine volcanic dust -is made; and it is this: the lava is so full of steam intimately -mixed up with it that the steam, in its violent effort to escape, -often blows the lava into mere dust. - -Another interesting phenomenon may be thus described: Portions of -liquid, or half liquid, lava are caught up by the steam and hurled -into the air. These assume a more or less round form, and are known -as "bombs." At a distance they give rise to the appearance of -flames. And here we may remark that the flaring, coloured pictures -of Etna or Vesuvius in eruption, which frequently may be seen, are -by no means correct. The huge flames shooting up into the air are -quite imaginary, but are probably suggested by the glare and bright -reflection from glowing molten lava down in the crater. - -So great is the force of the pent-up steam trying to escape that it -frequently blows a large part of the volcano bodily away; and in some -cases a whole mountain has been blown to pieces. - -Finally, torrents of rain follow and accompany an eruption,--a result -which clearly follows from the condensation of large volumes of -steam expanding and rising up into the higher and cooler layers of -the atmosphere. Vast quantities of volcanic ash are caught up by the -rain, and in this way very large quantities of mud are washed down -the sides of the mountain. - -Sometimes the mud-flows are on a large scale, and descending with -great force, bury a whole town. It was mostly in this way that the -ancient cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii were buried by the great -eruption of Vesuvius in the year 79 A. D., in which the elder Pliny -lost his life. The discoveries made during excavations at Pompeii are -of very great interest as illustrating old Roman life. The Italians -give the name _lava d'acqua_, or water-lava, to flows of this kind, -and they are greatly dreaded on account of their great rapidity. An -ordinary lava-stream creeps slowly along, so that people have time -to get out of the way; but in the case of mud-flows there is often -no time to escape. No lava-stream has ever reached Pompeii since it -was first built, although the foundations of the town stand upon an -old lava-flood. Herculaneum is nearer to Vesuvius, and has at times -been visited by lava-streams. Mud-lavas, ashes, and lava-streams have -accumulated over this city to a depth of over seventy feet. - -Lava-streams vary greatly in size; in some cases the lava, escaping -from craters, comes to rest before reaching the base of the slopes of -the volcano; in other cases a lava-flow not only reaches the plains -below, but extends for many miles over the surrounding country. -Hence lava-streams are important geological agents. Let us look at -some famous instances. The most stupendous flow on record was that -which took place from Skaptar Jökull in Iceland, in the year 1783. -In this case a number of streams issued from the volcano, flooding -the country far and wide, filling up river gorges which were in some -cases six hundred feet deep and two hundred and fifty feet broad, and -advancing into the alluvial plains in lakes of molten rock twelve to -fifteen miles wide and one hundred feet deep. Two currents of lava -which flowed in nearly opposite directions spread out with varying -thickness according to the nature of the ground for forty and fifty -miles respectively. Had this great eruption taken place in the south -of England, all the country from the neighbourhood of London to -that of Gloucester might have been covered by a flood of basalt of -considerable thickness. - -Sometimes, when the lava can only escape at a point low down on the -mountain, a fountain of molten rock will spout high into the air. -This has happened on Vesuvius and Etna. But in an eruption of Mauna -Loa, in the Sandwich Islands, an unbroken fountain of lava, from two -hundred to seven hundred feet high and one thousand feet broad, burst -out at the base of the mountain; and again in April, 1888, the same -thing happened on a still grander scale. In this case four fiery -fountains continued to play for several weeks, sometimes throwing -the glowing lava to a height of one thousand feet in the air. Surely -there can be no more wonderful or awful sight than this in the world. - -The volcanoes of Hawaii, the principal island in the Sandwich -Islands, often send forth lava-streams covering an area of over -one hundred square miles to a depth of one hundred feet or more; -but they are discharged quite quietly, like water welling out of a -spring. Repeated flows of this kind, however, have in the course of -ages built up a great flat cone six miles high from the floor of the -ocean, to form this lofty island, which is larger than Surrey; and -it is calculated that the great volcanic mountain must contain enough -material to cover the whole of the United States with a layer of rock -fifty feet deep. - -But it is not only on the surface of the land that volcanic eruptions -take place; for in some cases the outbreak of a submarine eruption -has been witnessed, and it is highly probable that in past geological -ages many large eruptions of this nature have taken place. In the -year 1783, an eruption took place about thirty miles off the west -coast of Iceland. An island was built up from which glowing vapour -and smoke came forth; but in a year or less the waves had washed -everything away, leaving only a submerged reef. The island of -Santorin, in the Greek Archipelago, is a partly submerged volcano. - -But in some cases enormous outpourings of lava have taken place, -not from volcanoes, but from openings of the ground here and there, -and more usually from long fissures or cracks in the rocks lying at -the surface. In many cases so much lava has quietly welled out in -this way that the old features of the landscape have been completely -buried up, and wide plains and plateaux formed over them. Sir A. -Geikie says,-- - - "Some of the most remarkable examples of this type of volcanic - structure occur in western North America. Among these that of - the Snake River plain in Idaho may be briefly described. - - "Surrounded on the north and east by lofty mountains, it - stretches westward as an apparently boundless desert of sand - and bare sheets of black basalt. A few streams descending into - the plain from the hills are soon swallowed up and lost. The - Snake River, however, flows across it, and has cut out of its - lava bed a series of picturesque gorges and rapids. - - "The extent of country which has been flooded with basalt in - this and adjoining regions of Oregon and Washington has not - yet been accurately surveyed, but has been estimated to cover - a larger area than France and Great Britain combined. Looked - at from any point on its surface, one of these lava plains - appears as a vast level surface, like that of a lake bottom. - This uniformity has been produced either by the lava rolling - over a plain or lake bottom, or by the complete effacement of - an original, undulating contour of the ground under hundreds of - feet of lava in successive sheets. The lava, rolling up to the - base of the mountains, has followed the sinuosities of their - margin, as the waters of a lake follow its promontories and - bays." - -A few further examples of mud-lavas may be mentioned here. Cotopaxi, -a great volcano in Ecuador, South America, with a height of 17,900 -feet, reaches so high into the atmosphere that the higher parts are -capped with snow. In June, 1877, a great eruption took place, during -which the melting of snow and ice gave rise to torrents of mud and -water, which rushed down the steep sides of the mountain, so that -large blocks of ice were hurried along. The villages around to a -distance of about seventy miles were buried under a deposit of mud, -mixed with blocks of lava, ashes, pieces of wood, etc. - -Sometimes a volcano discharges large quantities of mud directly -from the crater. In this case the mud is not manufactured by the -volcano itself, but finds its way through fissures and cracks from -the bed of the neighbouring sea or rivers to the crater. Thus, in -the year 1691, Imbaburu, one of the Andes of Quito, sent out floods -of mud containing dead fish, the decay of which caused fever in the -neighbourhood. In the same way the volcanoes of Java have often -buried large tracts of fertile country under a covering of volcanic -mud, thus causing great devastation. - -Vast quantities of dust are produced, as already explained, by the -pounding action that takes place during an eruption, as portions -of rock in falling down meet others that are being hurled into the -air. Striking instances of this have occurred not far from Great -Britain. Thus in the year 1783, during an eruption of Skaptar Jökull, -so great was the amount of dust thus created that the atmosphere in -Iceland was loaded with it for several months. Carried by winds, it -even reached the northern parts of Scotland, and in Caithness so -much of it fell that the crops were destroyed. This is remarkable, -considering that the distance was six hundred miles. Even in Holland -and Norway there are traces of this great shower of dust from the -Icelandic volcano. - -During the fearful eruption of Tomboro, a volcano in the island of -Sumbawa, in the Eastern Archipelago, in 1815, the abundance of ashes -and dust ejected caused darkness at midday at Java, three hundred -miles away, and even there the ground was covered to a depth of -several inches. In Sumbawa itself the part of the island joining -the mountain was entirely desolated, and all the houses destroyed, -together with twelve thousand inhabitants. Trees and herbage were -overwhelmed with pumice and volcanic dust. The floating pumice on the -sea around formed a layer two feet, six inches thick, through which -vessels forced their way with difficulty. From such facts as these -it is clear that if in past ages volcanoes have been so powerfully -active as they are now, we should expect to find lava-flows, dykes, -and great deposits of volcanic ash deposited in water among the -stratified rocks; and such is the case. Many large masses of rock -familiar to the geologist, and often forming parts of existing -mountains, are to be accounted for either as great lava-flows, or -dykes that have forced their way in among the strata, or as extensive -deposits of volcanic ash. - -But perhaps the reader would like to know what the inside of a -volcanic crater is like during an eruption. Let us, then, take a peep -into that fearful crater of Kilauea, in the Sandwich Islands. For -this purpose we cannot do better than follow Miss Bird's admirable -description of her adventurous expedition to this crater:-- - - "The abyss, which really is at a height of four thousand feet, - on the flank of Mauna Loa, has the appearance of a pit on - a rolling plain. But such a pit! It is quite nine miles in - circumference, and at its lowest area--which not long ago fell - about three hundred feet, just as ice on a pond falls when - the water below is withdrawn--covers six square miles. The - depth of the crater varies from eight hundred to one thousand - feet, according as the molten sea below is at flood or ebb. - Signs of volcanic activity are present more or less throughout - its whole depth, and for some distance round its margin, in - the form of steam-cracks, jets of sulphurous vapour, blowing - cones, accumulating deposits of acicular crystals of sulphur, - etc., and the pit itself is constantly rent and shaken by - earthquakes. Grand eruptions occurred with circumstances - of indescribable terror and dignity; but Kilauea does not - limit its activity to these outbursts, but has exhibited its - marvellous phenomena through all known time in a lake or lakes - on the southern part of the crater three miles from this side. - - "This lake--the _Hale-mau-mau_, or 'House of Everlasting Fire,' - of the Hawaiian mythology, the abode of the dreaded goddess - Pele--is approachable with safety, except during an eruption. - The spectacle, however, varies almost daily; and at times the - level of the lava in the pit within a pit is so low, and the - suffocating gases are evolved in such enormous quantities, that - travellers are unable to see anything. There had been no news - from it for a week; and as nothing was to be seen but a very - faint bluish vapour hanging round its margin, the prospect was - not encouraging.... After more than an hour of very difficult - climbing, we reached the lowest level of the crater, pretty - nearly a mile across, presenting from above the appearance - of a sea at rest; but on crossing it, we found it to be an - expanse of waves and convolutions of ashy-coloured lava, with - huge cracks filled up with black iridescent rolls of lava only - a few weeks old. Parts of it are very rough and ridgy, jammed - together like field-ice, or compacted by rolls of lava, which - may have swelled up from beneath; but the largest part of the - area presents the appearance of huge coiled hawsers, the ropy - formation of the lava rendering the illusion almost perfect. - These are riven by deep cracks, which emit hot sulphurous - vapours.... - - "As we ascended, the flow became hotter under our feet, as well - as more porous and glistening. It was so hot that a shower of - rain hissed as it fell upon it. The crust became increasingly - insecure, and necessitated our walking in single file with the - guide in front, to test the security of the footing. I fell - through several times, and always into holes full of sulphurous - steam so malignantly acid that my strong dogskin gloves were - burned through as I raised myself on my hands. - - "We had followed the lava-flow for thirty miles up to the - crater's brink, and now we had toiled over recent lava for - three hours, and by all calculation were close to the pit; yet - there was no smoke or sign of fire, and I felt sure that the - volcano had died out for once for our special disappointment.... - - "Suddenly, just above, and in front of us, gory drops were - tossed in the air, and springing forwards we stood on the brink - of _Hale-mau-mau_, which was about thirty-five feet below - us. I think we all screamed. I know we all wept; but we were - speechless, for a new glory and terror had been added to the - earth. It is the most unutterable of wonderful things. The - words of common speech are quite useless. It is unimaginable, - indescribable; a sight to remember for ever; a sight which - at once took possession of every faculty of sense and soul, - removing one altogether out of the range of ordinary life. - Here was the real 'bottomless pit,' 'the fire which is not - quenched,' 'the place of Hell,' 'the lake which burneth with - fire and brimstone,' 'the everlasting burnings,' 'the fiery - sea whose waves are never weary.'[26] There were groanings, - rumblings, and detonations, rushings, hissings, splashings, - and the crashing sound of breakers on the coast; but it was - the surging of fiery waves upon a fiery shore. But what can - I write? Such words as jets, fountains, waves, spray, convey - some idea of order and regularity, but here there was none. - The inner lake, while we stood there, formed a sort of crater - within itself; the whole lava sea rose about three feet; a - blowing cone about eight feet high was formed; it was never the - same two minutes together. And what we saw had no existence - a month ago, and probably will be changed in every essential - feature a month hence.... The prominent object was fire in - motion; but the surface of the double lake was continually - skimming over for a second or two with a cooled crust of a - lustrous grey-white, like frosted silver, broken by jagged - cracks of a bright rose-colour. The movement was nearly always - from the sides to the centre; but the movement of the centre - itself appeared independent, and always took a southerly - direction. Before each outburst of agitation there was much - hissing and throbbing, internal roaring, as of imprisoned - gases. Now it seemed furious, demoniacal, as if no power on - earth could bind it, then playful and sportive, then for a - second languid, but only because it was accumulating fresh - force.... Sometimes the whole lake ... took the form of mighty - waves, and surging heavily against the partial barrier with - a sound like the Pacific surf, lashed, tore, covered it, and - threw itself over it in clots of living fire. It was all - confusion, commotion, forces, terror, glory, majesty, mystery, - and even beauty. And the colour, 'eye hath not seen' it! Molten - metal hath not that crimson gleam, nor blood that living - light."[27] - - [26] Perhaps these Scripture phrases were suggested long before - the Bible was written, by the sight of some crater in active - eruption. - - [27] The Hawaiian Archipelago. - -Continued observation of volcanoes, together with evidence derived -from history, teaches that there are different stages of volcanic -action. There are three pretty well-marked phases. First, the state -of permanent eruption; this is not a dangerous state, because the -steam keeps escaping all the time: the safety-valve is at work, and -all goes smoothly. The second state is one of moderate activity, with -more or less violent eruptions at brief intervals; this is rather -dangerous, because at times the safety-valve does not work. - -And thirdly, we have paroxysms of intense energy, alternating with -long periods of repose sometimes lasting for centuries. These -eruptions are extremely violent, and cause widespread destruction; -the safety-valve has got jammed, and so the boiler bursts. - -No volcano has been so carefully watched for a long time as Vesuvius. -Its history illustrates the phases we have just mentioned. The first -recorded eruption is that of A. D. 79, a very severe one of the -violent type, by which Herculaneum, Pompeii, and Stabiæ were buried. -We have an interesting account by the younger Pliny. Before this -great eruption took place, Vesuvius had been in a state of repose -for eight hundred years, and if we may judge from the Greek and Roman -writings, was not even suspected of being a volcano. Then followed -an interval of rest until the reign of Severus, the second eruption -taking place in the year 203. In the year 472, says Procopius, all -Europe was covered more or less with volcanic ashes. Other eruptions -followed at intervals, but there was complete repose for two -centuries; that is, until the year 1306. In 1500 it was again active, -then quiet again for one hundred and thirty years. In 1631 there took -place another terrific outburst. After this many eruptions followed, -and they have been frequent ever since. Vesuvius is therefore now in -the second stage of moderate activity. - -But geologists can take a wider view than this. They can sum up the -history of a volcanic region of the earth; and the result is somewhat -as follows: Volcanoes, like living creatures, go through different -periods or phases, corresponding roughly to youth, middle age, old -age, and finally decay. The invasion of any particular area of the -earth's surface by the volcanic forces is heralded by underground -shocks, or earthquakes. A little later on cracks are formed, as -indicated by the rise of saline and hot springs, and the issuing of -carbonic acid and other gases at the surface of the earth. As the -underground activity becomes greater, the temperature of the springs -and emitted gases increases; and at last a visible rent is formed, -exposing highly heated and glowing rock below. From the fissure thus -formed, the gas and vapours imprisoned in the molten rocks escape -with such violence as to disperse the latter in the form of pumice -and volcanic ash, or to cause them to pour out as lava-streams. - -The action generally becomes confined to one or more points along the -line of action (which is a line of fissures and cracks). In this way -a chain of volcanoes is formed, which may become the seat of volcanic -action for a long time. - -When the volcanic energies have become somewhat exhausted, so that -they cannot raise up the lava and expel it from the volcanic crater, -nor rend the sides of the volcano and cause minor cones to grow up -on their flanks, small cones may be formed at a lower level in the -plains around the great central chain. These likewise are fed from -fissures. - -Later on, as the heated rock below cools down, the fissures are -sealed up by lava that has become solid; and then the volcanoes -fall, as it were, into the "sere and yellow leaf," and remain in a -peaceful, quiet state befitting their old age. - -After this they begin to suffer from long exposure to the atmospheric -influences of decay, and rain and rivers wash them away more or less -completely. - -But still the presence of heated rocky matter at no great depth -below is proved by the outbursts of gases and vapours, the forming -of geysers and ordinary hot springs. Gradually, however, even these -signs of heat below disappear; and the cycle of volcanic phases is at -an end. Such a series of changes may require millions of years; but -by the study of volcanoes in every stage of their growth and decline -it is possible thus to sketch out an outline of their history. - -It must be confessed that in the present state of scientific -knowledge no full and complete explanation of volcanic action is -possible. Geologists and others are as yet but feeling their way -cautiously towards the light which, perhaps before long, will -illumine the dark recesses of this mysterious subject. Many theories -and ideas have been put forward, but in the opinion of the writer the -most promising explanation is one that may be briefly expressed as -follows: - -There are below the crust of the earth large masses of highly -heated rock that are _kept solid_ by the enormous pressure of the -overlying rocks, or otherwise they would melt,--for it is a known -fact that pressure tends to prevent the melting of a solid body. But -when earth-movements taking place within the earth's crust--such -as the upheaving of mountain-chains--take off some of the weight, -the balance between internal heat and the pressure from above is no -longer maintained; and so these highly heated rocks run off into -the liquid state, and finding their way to the surface through the -fissures mentioned above, give rise to volcanic action. There is -much to be said in favour of this view. It rightly connects volcanic -action with movements of upheaval, with mountain-chains and lines of -weakness in the earth's crust. - -There is very good reason to believe that the earth was once in a -highly heated state, and has been slowly cooling down for ages. The -increase of temperature observed in penetrating mines tells us that -it still retains below the surface some of its old heat. We need not -therefore be surprised at the existence of heated masses of rock down -below, or seek, as some have done, an entirely different source for -the origin of volcanic heat than that which remains from the earth's -once molten condition. It would take too long to state the reasons -on which this idea of the former state of our planet is based, and -moreover, it would bring us into the region of astronomy, with which -we are not concerned at present. - -In various parts of Great Britain and Ireland we meet with old -volcanic rocks,--lavas, intrusive dykes, and sheets of basalt, etc., -together with vast deposits of volcanic ash, which, sinking into -the old neighbouring seas, became stratified, or arranged in layers -like the ordinary sedimentary rocks. In some cases we see embedded -in these layers the very "bombs" that were thrown out by the old -volcanoes (see page 253). And besides these purely volcanic rocks, we -often meet in these areas with great bosses of granite, which must -have been in some way connected with the old volcanoes, and probably -were in many cases the source from which much of the volcanic rock -was derived. But more than this, in a few instances we have the site -of the old volcano itself marked out by a kind of pipe, or "neck," -now filled with some of its volcanic débris in the shape of coarse, -rounded fragments (see page 277). - -During a very ancient period, known to geologists as the Silurian -Period, great lava-flows took place from volcanoes situated where -North and South Wales and the Lake District now are; and by their -eruptions a vast amount of volcanic ash was made, which fell into -the sea and slowly sank to the bottom, so that the shell-fish living -there were buried in the strata thus formed, and may now be seen in a -fossilised condition. - - [Illustration: Fig. 1. THE RANGES OF THE GREAT BASIN, WESTERN - STATES OF NORTH AMERICA, SHOWING A SERIES OF GREAT FRACTURES AND - TILTED MASSES OF ROCK.] - - [Illustration: Fig. 2. SECTION THROUGH SNOWDON.] - -Thus Snowdon, Cader Idris, the Arans, Arenig Mountain, and others, -are very largely made up of these ancient volcanic materials. The -writer has picked up specimens of fossil shell-fish near the summit -of Snowdon from a bed of fine volcanic ash that forms the summit. -Fig. 2 represents a section through Snowdon, from which it will be -seen that we have first a few sedimentary strata, _S_, then a great -lava-flow, _L_; and that volcanic ashes accumulated on the top of -this, of which _A A_ are patches still left. _B_ is an intrusive dyke -of a basaltic rock that forced its way through afterwards. Again, in -the Lake District there is a well-known volcanic series of stratified -rocks of the same age, consisting mostly of lavas and ashes, the -total thickness of which is about twelve thousand feet (known as the -"Green Slates and Porphyries"), so that a large part of some of the -mountains there have also been built up by volcanic action; but no -traces of the old volcanoes remain. - -Going farther north we find abundant proof that volcanic action on -a prodigious scale took place in Scotland during the very ancient -period of the Old Red Sandstone, with which the name of Hugh Miller -will always be associated. In Central Scotland we see lava-flows and -strata formed of volcanic ash, with a thickness of more than six -thousand feet, fragments of which, having escaped the destructive -agents of denudation, now form important chains of hills, such -as the Pentland, Ochil, and Sidlaw ranges. Nor was the volcanic -action confined to this region. In the district of the Cheviot -Hills similar volcanic rocks are to be seen. But here again the old -volcanoes have long since been swept away, leaving us only portions -of their outpourings buried in the hills. - -There can be no doubt that the present area of the Grampian Hills was -once the site of a considerable number of volcanoes, only at a much -higher level than their present surface, elevated though that is to -the region of the clouds; but in this case subsequent denudation has -been so enormous that the old mountain surface has been planed away -until all we can now see is a series of separate patches of granite, -that were once in a fused and highly heated state far below the -surface, and formed part of the subterranean reservoirs from which -the volcanoes derived their great supplies of lava and steam. It is -indeed difficult to imagine the enormous amount of denudation which -has taken place in the Highlands of Scotland, and to realise that the -magnificent range of the Cairngorms, for instance, has been for ages -worn down until now they are but a remnant of what they once were. - -In this region we see the once boiling and seething masses of -rock which fed the old volcanoes, now no longer endowed with -life-like power by the force of steam, but lying in deathlike cold -and stiffness, with their beautiful crystals of mica and felspar -sparkling in the sun. The volcanic fires have died out; but the -traces of their work are unmistakable, among which we must not forget -to reckon the beautiful minerals made by the action of heated water -upon the surrounding rocks. - -The beautiful cairngorm stones are still sometimes found on the -mountain from which they take their name, and in all volcanic regions -minerals are plentiful. - -The well-known hill called Arthur's Seat, close to Edinburgh, marks -the site of an old volcano. The "neck," or central opening, may be -seen at the top of the hill, but choked up with volcanic rocks and -débris. The crater has long since disappeared, but Salisbury Craigs -and St. Leonard's Craigs are formed of a great sheet of basalt that -intruded itself among the stratified rocks that had been formed -there, and so belong really to a great intrusive dyke. In the Castle -Rock we see the same basalt again. - -During a much later age, known as the Miocene Period (see chap. x., -p. 324), enormous outpourings of lava took place in Western Europe, -covering hundreds of square miles. Of these the most important is -that which occupies a large part of the northeast of Ireland, and -extends in patches through the Inner Hebrides and the Faröe Islands -into Iceland. These eruptive rocks, unlike those above referred to, -must have poured out at the surface, and have taken the form of -successive sheets, such as we now see in the terraced plateaux of -Skye, Eigg, Canna, Muck, Mull, and Morven. These, then, are patches -of what once formed a great plain of basalt. During later times -this volcanic platform has been so greatly cut up by the agents of -denudation that it has been reduced to mere scattered fragments; -thousands of feet of basalt have been worn away from it; deep and -wide valleys have been carved out of it; and in many cases it has -been almost entirely stripped off from the wide areas it once -covered. Where, as in the Isle of Eigg, the lava has been piled up -in successive sheets, with some layers of volcanic ash between, the -latter has been worn away rather faster than the hard layers of -basalt, and each lava-flow is clearly marked by a terrace. These -volcanic eruptions have thus had a great influence in moulding the -scenery of this region. In Ireland the old basalts are well seen at -the Giant's Causeway, and on the Scottish coast we see them again at -the well-known Fingal's cave at Staffa. This island, like the others, -is just a patch of the old lava-streams. - -Its curious six-sided columns illustrate a fact with regard to the -subsequent cooling of lava-flows. Some internal forces, analogous to -that which regulates the shapes of crystals, have caused it to crack -along three sets of lines, so placed with regard to each other as to -produce six-sided columns. - -In Ireland the basalts attain a thickness of nine hundred feet; in -Mull they are about three thousand feet thick. It has been clearly -proved that Mull is the site of one of the old volcanoes of this -period, but very few others have as yet been detected. Perhaps the -eruptions took place mainly from large fissures, instead of from -volcanic cones, for it is known that the ground below the lava-sheets -has been rent by earthquakes into innumerable fissures, into which -the basalt was injected from below. - -In this way a vast number of "dykes" were formed. These have been -traced by hundreds eastwards from this region across Scotland, -and even the north of England. In this case the molten rock was -struggling to get through the overlying rocks and escape at the -surface; but apparently it did not succeed in so doing, for we do not -find lava-flows to the east and south. These basalt dykes are found -as far south as Yorkshire, and can be traced over an area of one -hundred thousand square miles. - -It is thus evident that in the Miocene Period a great and extensive -mass of molten basalt was underlying a large part of the British -Isles, and probably the weight of the thick rocks overlying it was -sufficient to prevent its escape to the surface. If it had succeeded -in so escaping and overflowing, how different the scenery of much of -Scotland and Northern England might have been! - - [Illustration: COLUMNAR BASALT AT CLAMSHELL CAVE, STAFFA. FROM A - PHOTOGRAPH BY J. VALENTINE.] - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -MOUNTAIN ARCHITECTURE. - - The splendour falls on castle walls - And snowy summits old in story; - The long light shakes across the lakes, - And the wild cataract leaps in glory. - Blow, bugle, blow, set the wild echoes flying; - Blow, bugle; answer, echoes, dying, dying, dying. - - TENNYSON. - - -The dying splendours of the sun slowly sinking and entering the -"gates of the West" may well serve as a fitting emblem of the -mountains in their beautiful old age, awaiting in silent and calm -dignity the time when they also must be brought low, and sink in the -waters of the ocean, as the sun appears daily to do. Yes, they too -have their day. They too had their rising, when mighty forces brought -them up out of their watery bed. Many of them have passed their -hey-day of youth, and their midday; while others, far advanced in old -age, are nearing the end of their course. - -But as the sun rises once more over eastern seas to begin another -day, so will the substance of the mountains be again heaved up after -a long, long rest under the sea, and here and there will rise up from -the plains to form the lofty mountain-ranges of a distant future. - -Everywhere we read the same story, the same circle of changes. The -Alpine peak that proudly rears its head to the clouds must surely -be brought low, and finally come back to the same ocean from which -those clouds arose. It is in this way that the balance between land -and water is preserved. In passing through such a great circle of -changes, the mountains assume various forms and shapes which are -determined by:-- - - 1. Their different ages and states of decay. - - 2. The different kinds of rocks of which they are composed, and - especially by their "joints," or natural divisions. - - 3. The different positions into which these rocky layers have - been squeezed, pushed, and crumpled by those stupendous forces - of upheaval of which we spoke in chapter vi. - -Let us therefore glance at some of these external forms, and then -look at the internal structure of mountains. - -In so doing we shall find that we have yet a good deal more to learn -about mountains and how they were made; and also we shall then be in -a better position to realise not only how very much denudation they -have suffered, but also how greatly they have been disturbed since -their rocks were first made. - -Every one who knows mountains must have observed how some are smooth -and rounded, others sharp and jagged, with peaks and pinnacles -standing out clearly against the sky; some square and massive, with -steep walls forming precipices; others again spread out widely at -their base, but the sloping sides end in a sharp point at the top, -giving to the mountain the appearance of a cone. Their diversities of -shape are so endless that we cannot attempt to describe them all. - -First, with regard to the general features of mountains. Looked -at broadly, a mountain-range is not a mere line of hills or -mountains rising straight up from a plain on each side, such as -school-boys often draw in their maps; very far from it. Take the -Rocky Mountains, for instance. "It has been truly said of the Rocky -Mountains that the word 'range' does not express it at all. It is a -whole country populous with mountains. It is as if an ocean of molten -granite had been caught by instant petrifaction when its billows were -rolling heaven high."[28] - - [28] "The Crest of the Continent," by Ernest Ingersoll, Chicago, - 1885. - -It has often been observed by mountain climbers that when they get -to the top of a high mountain, and take a bird's-eye view of the -country, all the mountain-tops seem to reach to about the same -height, so that a line joining them would be almost level. For this -reason, perhaps, writers so often compare them to the waves of an -ocean. This feature is very conspicuous in the case of the Scotch -Highlands. - -Sir A. Geikie has well described what he saw from the top of Ben -Nevis:-- - - "Much has been said and written about the wild, tumbled sea of - the Highland Hills. But as he sits on his high perch, does it - not strike the observer that there is after all a wonderful - orderliness, and even monotony, in the waves of that wide - sea? And when he has followed their undulations from north to - south, all round the horizon, does it not seem to him that - these mountain-tops and ridges tend somehow to rise to a - general level; that, in short, there is not only on the great - scale a marked similarity of contour about them, but a still - more definite uniformity of average height? To many who have - contented themselves with the bottom of the glen, and have - looked with awe at the array of peaks and crags overhead, this - statement will doubtless appear incredible. But let any one get - fairly up to the summits and look along them, and he will not - fail to see that the statement is nevertheless true. From the - top of Ben Nevis this feature is impressively seen. Along the - sky-line, the wide sweep of summits undulates up to a common - level, varied here by a cone and there by the line of some - strath or glen, but yet wonderfully persistent round the whole - panorama. If, as sometimes happens in these airy regions, a - bank of cloud with a level under-surface should descend upon - the mountains, it will be seen to touch summit after summit, - the long line of the cloud defining, like a great parallel - ruler, the long level line of the ridges below. I have seen - this feature brought out with picturesque vividness over the - mountains of Knoydart and Glen Garry. Wreaths of filmy mist had - been hovering in the upper air during the forenoon. Towards - evening, under the influence of a cool breeze from the north, - they gathered together into one long band that stretched for - several miles straight as the sky-line of the distant sea, - touching merely the higher summits and giving a horizon by - which the general uniformity of level among the hills could be - signally tested. Once or twice in a season one may be fortunate - enough to get on the mountains above such a stratum of mist, - which then seems to fill up the irregularities of the general - platform of hill-tops, and to stretch out as a white phantom - sea, from which the highest eminences rise up as little islets - into the clear air of the morning.... Still more striking - is the example furnished by the great central mass of the - Grampians, comprising the Cairngorm Mountains and the great - corries and precipices round the head of the Dee. This tract - of rugged ground, when looked at from a distance, is found to - present the character of a high, undulating plateau."[29] - - [29] Scenery of Scotland page 130, new edition. - -This long level line of the Highland mountain-tops may be seen very -well from the lower country outside; for example, from the isles of -Skye and Eigg, where one may see the panorama between the heights of -Applecross and the Point of Ardnamurchan showing very clearly the -traces of the old table-land. - -How are we to explain this curious fact, so opposed to our first -impressions of a mountain region? It is quite clear that the -old plateau thus marked out cannot be caused by the arrangement -or position of the rocks of which the Highlands are composed. If -these rocks were found to be lying pretty evenly in flat layers, -or strata, undisturbed by great earth-movements, we could readily -understand that they would form a plateau. But the reverse is the -case: the rocks are everywhere thrown into folds, and frequently -greatly displaced by "faults;" yet these important geological -features have little or no connection with the external aspect of the -country. It is therefore useless to look to internal structure for -an explanation. We must look outside, and consider what has been for -ages and ages taking place here. - -As already pointed out, an enormous amount of solid rock has been -removed from this region--thousands and thousands of feet. It was -long ago planed down by the action of water, so that a table-land -once existed of which the tops of the present mountains are isolated -fragments. No other conclusion is possible. To the geologist every -hill and valley throughout the whole length and breadth of the -Highlands bears striking testimony to this enormous erosion. The -explanation we are seeking may therefore be summed up in one word, -"denudation." The valleys that now intersect the table-land have been -carved out of it. If we could in imagination put back again onto -the present surface what has been removed, we should have a mental -picture of the Highlands as a wide, undulating table-land; and this -rolling plain would suggest the bottom of the sea. The long flat -surfaces of the Highland ridges, cut across the edges of inclined -or even upright strata, are the fragments of a former base-line of -erosion; that is, they represent the general submarine level to which -the Highlands were reduced after exposure to the action of "rain and -rivers," and finally of the sea. As the sea gradually spread over it, -it planed down everything that had not been previously worn away, and -so reduced the whole surface to one general level like the sea-bed of -the present day. But it is not necessary to suppose that the whole -region was under water at the same time, and it is probable that -there were separate inland seas or lakes. In these the rocks of the -Old Red Sandstone were formed; and they in their turn have suffered -so much denudation that only patches and long strips of them are left -on the borders of the Highlands. - -Before we speak of individual mountains and their shapes, it is -important to bear in mind another fact about mountain-chains; -namely, that they are very low in proportion to their breadth and -length. The great heights reached by some mountains produce such a -powerful impression on our senses that we hardly realise how very -insignificant they really are. It is only by drawing them on a true -scale that we can realise this. The surface of the earth is so vast -that even the highest mountains are in proportion but as the little -roughnesses on the skin of an orange. Fig. 2 (see chap, vii., p. 236) -represents a section through the Highlands, drawn on the same scale -for height as for length. - - -What has been said about the Highland plateau applies equally well -to many other mountain-ranges. Mr. Ruskin observed something rather -similar in the Alps. He says,-- - - "The longer I stayed in the Alps, and the more closely I - examined them, the more I was struck by the one broad fact of - there being a vast Alpine plateau, or mass of elevated land, - upon which nearly all the highest peaks stood like children set - upon a table, removed, in most cases, far back from the edge - of the plateau, as if for fear of their falling; ... and for - the most part the great peaks are not allowed to come to the - edge of it, but remain like the keeps of castles, withdrawn, - surrounded league beyond league by comparatively level fields - of mountains, over which the lapping sheets of glaciers writhe - and flow, foaming about the feet of the dark central crests - like the surf of an enormous sea-breaker hurled over a rounded - rock and islanding some fragment of it in the midst. And the - result of this arrangement is a kind of division of the whole - of Switzerland into an upper and a lower mountain world,--the - lower world consisting of rich valleys, bordered by steep but - easily accessible, wooded banks of mountain, more or less - divided by ravines, through which glimpses are caught of the - higher Alps; the upper world, reached after the first steep - banks of three thousand or four thousand feet in height have - been surmounted, consisting of comparatively level but most - desolate tracts of moor and rock, half covered by glacier, and - stretching to the feet of the true pinnacles of the chain." - -He then points out the wisdom of this arrangement, and shows how it -protects the inhabitants from falling blocks and avalanches; and -moreover, the masses of snow, if cast down at once into the warmer -air, would melt too fast and cause furious inundations. - -All the various kinds of rocks are differently affected by the -atmospheric influences of decay, and so present different external -appearances and shapes, so that after a little experience the -geologist can recognize the presence of certain rocks by the kind -of scenery they produce; and this knowledge is often of great use -in helping him to unravel the geological structure of a difficult -region. Thus granite, crystalline schists, slates, sandstones, and -limestones, all "weather" in their own ways, and moreover split up -differently, because their joints and other natural lines of division -run in different ways. - -Thus granite is jointed very regularly, some of the joints running -straight down and others running horizontally, so that the rain and -atmosphere seize on these lines and widen them very considerably; and -thus the granite is weathered out either in tall upright columns, -like those seen at Land's End, or else into great square-shaped -blocks with their corners rounded off, presenting the appearance -of a number of knapsacks lying one over the other. In this way -we can account for the well-known "Tors" of Devonshire, and the -"Rocking Stones." Granite weathers rapidly along its joints, and -its surfaces crumble away more rapidly than might be expected, -considering how hard a rock it is; but the felspar which is its chief -mineral constituent is readily decomposed by rain water, which acts -chemically upon it. The deposits of China clay in Devonshire are -the result of the decomposition and washing away of the granite of -Dartmoor. - -Granite mountains are generally rounded and "bossy," breaking now -and then into cliffs, the faces of which are riven by huge joints, -and present a very different appearance from those composed of -crystalline schists with their sharp crests and peaks. Ben Nevis and -the Cairngorms are partly composed of granite. - -Gneiss is a rock composed of the same minerals as granite; namely, -mica, quartz, and felspar. And yet mountains composed of this rock -have quite a different aspect, and sometimes, as in the Alps, produce -very sharp and jagged pinnacles. The reason of this is that gneiss -splits in a different way from granite, because its minerals are -arranged in layers, and so it is more like a crystalline schist. - -Mica-schist is another rock very abundant in mountain regions. This -rock is composed of quartz and mica arranged in wavy layers. The -mica, which is very conspicuous, lies in thin plates, sometimes -so dovetailed into each other as to form long continuous layers -separating it from those of the quartz; and it readily splits along -the layers of mica. This mineral is easily recognised by its bright, -shiny surface. There are, however, two varieties,--one of a light -colour and the other black. - -Mica-schist and gneiss are often found in the same region, and are -the materials of which most of the highest peaks in Europe are -composed. We find them abounding in the district of Mont Blanc; and -all the monarch's attendant _aiguilles_, with the splintered ridges -enclosing the great snowfields in the heart of the chain, consist -mostly of these two rocks. The Matterhorn, Weisshorn, Monte Viso, the -Grand Paradis, the Aiguille Verte and Aiguille du Dru are examples of -the wonderful forms produced by the breaking up and decay of these -two rocks. - -The different varieties of slate split in a very marked way. Slates -are often associated with the schists, and exert their influence in -modifying the scenery. - -Limestone ranges, though less striking in the outlines of their -crests than those composed of slates and crystalline schists, and not -reaching to such heights, are nevertheless not at all inferior in the -grandeur of their cliffs, which frequently extend for miles along the -side of a valley in vast terraces, whose precipitous walls are often -absolutely inaccessible. The beauty of limestone mountains is often -enhanced by the rich pastures and forests which clothe their lower -slopes. The dolomitic limestone of the Italian Tyrol, being gashed by -enormous vertical joints and at the same time having been formed in -rather thin layers which break up into small blocks, produces some -very striking scenery. But wild as these mountainous ridges may be, -their forms can never be confounded with those of the crystalline -schists; for however sharp their pinnacles may appear at first sight, -careful examination will always show that their outline is that -of ruined masonry, suggesting crumbling battlements and tottering -turrets, and not the curving, flame-like crests and splintered peaks -of the crystalline schists.[30] - - [30] Bonney. - -It has already been explained that all sedimentary rocks have been -formed under water in layers or strata, and it must be obvious -that the stratification of such rocks has an important influence -on scenery; and very much depends on whether the strata have been -left undisturbed, with perhaps just a slight slope, or whether they -have been folded and crumpled; for the position of the strata, or -"bedding," as it is called,--whether flat, inclined, vertical, or -contorted,--largely determines the nature of the surface. Undoubtedly -the most characteristic scenery formed by stratified rocks is to be -seen in those places where the "bedding" is horizontal, or nearly so, -and the strata are massive. A mountain constructed of such materials -appears as a colossal pyramid, the level lines of stratification -looking like great courses of masonry. The joints that cut across the -strata allow it to be cleft into great blocks and deep chasms; so -that, as in the case of the dolomitic limestone above mentioned, we -find a resemblance to ruined buildings. - -We cannot find a better example of this in our own country than the -mountains of sandstone and conglomerate (of the Cambrian age) that -here and there lie on the great platform of old gneiss in the west of -Sutherland and Ross. Sir A. Geikie says,-- - - "The bleak, bare gneiss, with its monotonous undulations, - tarns, and bogs, is surmounted by groups of cones, which for - individuality of form and independence of position better - deserve to be called mountains than most of the eminences to - which that name is given in Scotland. These huge pyramids, - rising to heights of between two thousand and four thousand - feet, consist of dark red strata, so little inclined that - their edges can be traced by the eye in long, level bars on - the steeper hillsides and precipices, like lines of masonry. - Here and there the hand of time has rent them into deep rifts, - from which long 'screes' (slopes of loose stones) descend into - the plains below, as stones are detached from the shivered - walls of an ancient battlement. Down their sides, which have in - places the steepness of a bastion, vegetation finds but scanty - room along the projecting ledges of the sandstone beds, where - the heath and grass and wildflowers cluster over the rock in - straggling lines and tufts of green; and yet, though nearly as - bare as the gneiss below them, these lofty mountains are far - from presenting the same aspect of barrenness. The prevailing - colour of their component strata gives them a warm red hue, - which even at noon contrasts strongly with the grey of the - platform of older rock.... These huge isolated cones are among - the most striking memorials of denudation anywhere to be seen - in the British Isles. Quinag, Canisp, Suilven, Coulmore, and - the hills of Coygoch, Dundonald, Loch Maree, and Torridon are - merely detached patches of a formation not less than seven - thousand or eight thousand feet thick, which once spread - over the northwest of Scotland. The spaces between them were - once occupied by the same dull red sandstone; the horizontal - stratification of one hill, indeed, is plainly continuous with - that of the others, though deep and wide valleys, or miles - of low moorland, may now lie between. While the valleys have - been worn down through the sandstone, these strange pyramidal - mountains that form so singular a feature in the landscapes of - the northwest highlands have been left standing, like lonely - sea-stacks, as monuments of long ages of waste."[31] - - [31] Scenery of Scotland, page 201, new edition. - -Again, the vast table-lands of the Colorado region illustrate on -a truly magnificent scale, to which there is no parallel in the -Old World, the effects of atmospheric erosion on undisturbed and -nearly level strata. Here we find valleys and river gorges deeper -and longer than any others in the world; great winding lines of -escarpment, like ranges of sea cliffs; terraced slopes rising at -various levels; huge buttresses and solitary monuments, standing like -islands out of the plains; and lastly, great mountain masses carved -out into the most striking and picturesque shapes, yet with their -lines of "bedding" clearly marked out. - -On the other hand, where, as is almost always the case in -mountain-ranges, the stratified rocks have been folded, crumpled, -twisted, and fractured by great "faults," we find a very different -result. In these cases the rocks have generally been very much -altered by the action of heat. For here we find crystalline schists, -gneiss, granite, and other rocks in the formation of which heat has -played an important part; and very often the igneous rocks have -forced their way through those of sedimentary origin and altered them -into what are called metamorphic rocks (see chapter v., page 156). -Thus they have lost much of their original character and structure. - -The repeated uplifts and subsidences of the earth's crust, by which -the continents of the world have been raised up out of the sea -to form dry land, have, broadly speaking, thrown the rocky strata -into a series of wave-like undulations. In some extensive regions -these undulations are so broad and low that the curvature is quite -imperceptible, and the strata appear to lie in horizontal layers, or -to slope very slightly in a certain direction. This is, in a general -way, the position of the strata of which plains and plateaux are -composed. - -But in the longer and comparatively narrow mountain regions that -traverse each of the great continents, forming, as it were, backbones -to them, the undulations are very much more frequent, narrower, and -higher. Sometimes the rocks have been thrown into huge open waves, or -the folds are closely crowded together, so that the strata stand on -their ends, or are even completely overturned, and thus their proper -order of succession is reversed, and the older ones actually lie on -the top of the newer ones. - -As we approach a great mountain-chain we observe many minor ridges -and smaller chains running roughly parallel with it, and, as it -were, foreshadowing the great folds met with in the centre of the -chain and among its highest peaks. These small folds become sharper -and closer the nearer we get to the main chain, and evidently were -formed by the same movements that uplifted the higher ranges beyond; -but the force was not so great. Thus we find the great Alpine chain -flanked to the north by the smaller ranges of the Jura Mountains; and -on the south, side of the Himalayas we find similar smaller ranges of -hills. - -Ruskin thus describes his impression of the Jura ranges, which he -very aptly compares with a swell on the sea far away from a storm, -the storm being represented by the wild sea of Alpine mountains:-- - - "Among the hours of his life to which the writer looks back - with peculiar gratitude, as having been marked with more - than ordinary fulness of joy or clearness of teaching, is - one passed, now some years ago, near time of sunset, among - the masses of pine forest which skirt the course of the Ain, - above the village of Champagnole, in the Jura. It is a spot - which has all the solemnity, with none of the savageness, of - the Alps; where there is a sense of a great power beginning - to be manifested in the earth, and of a deep and majestic - concord in the rise of the long low lines of piny hills,--the - first utterance of those mighty mountain symphonies, soon to - be more loudly lifted and wildly broken along the battlements - of the Alps. But their strength is as yet restrained; and the - far-reaching ridges of pastoral mountain succeed each other, - like the long and sighing swell which moves over quiet waters - from some far-off stormy sea. - - "And there is a deep tenderness pervading that vast monotony. - The destructive forces and the stern expression of the central - ranges are alike withdrawn. No frost-ploughed, dust-encumbered - paths of ancient glacier fret the soft Jura pastures; no - splintered heaps of ruin break the fair ranks of her forests; - no pale, defiled, or furious rivers rend their rude and - changeful ways among her rocks. Patiently, eddy by eddy, the - clear green streams wind along their well-known beds; and under - the dark quietness of the undisturbed pines there spring up, - year by year, such company of joyful flowers as I know not the - like among all the blessings of the earth." - -Long faults, or fractures, where the strata have been first bent -and then broken, and afterwards have been forced up or have slid -down hundreds or even thousands of feet, are very numerous in -mountain-ranges; and by suddenly bringing quite a different set of -rocks to the surface, these faults cause considerable difficulty to -the geologist, as he goes over the ground and endeavours to trace the -positions of the different rocks. - -In these vast folds it sometimes happens that portions of older (and -lower) strata are caught up and so embedded among those of newer -rocks. It will therefore be readily perceived that to unravel the -geological structure of a great mountain-chain is no easy task. -We need not then be surprised if in some cases the arrangement of -the rocks of mountains is not thoroughly understood. The wonder -is, when we think of the numerous difficulties which the geologist -encounters,--the arduous ascents, the precipices, glaciers, -snowfields obscuring the rocks from his view, the overlying soil -of the lower parts, and the steep crests and dangerous ridges that -separate the snowfields,--that so much has already been discovered in -this difficult branch of geology. - -However, the general arrangement of the rocks of which many -mountain-chains are composed has been satisfactorily made out in not -a few cases. Let us look into some of these and see what has been -discovered. - -You will remember the structure of the Weald, described in chap. -vii., pp. 235-238, and how we showed that a great low arch of chalk -strata has been entirely removed over that area, so that at the -present time only its ends are seen forming the escarpments of the -North and South Downs. This area, then, is now a great open valley, -or rather a gently undulating plain enclosed by low chalk hills. Now, -an arch of this kind is called an "anticline," and it might have been -expected that it would have remained more or less unbroken to the -present day. Why, then, has it suffered destruction? - -In the first place, chalk is a soft rock, and one that rain water can -dissolve; but more than that, its arch-like structure was against it, -and its chance of preservation was decidedly small. In architecture -the arch is the most firm and stable structure that can be made; but -not so with strata, and this is the reason. Such an arch was not made -of separate blocks, closely fitting and firmly cemented together; -on the contrary, the arch was stretched and heaved up from below. -It therefore must have been more or less cracked up; for rocks are -apt to split when bent, although when deeply buried under a great -thickness of overlying rocks, they will bend very considerably -without snapping. But this was not the case here. And so the forces -of denudation set to work upon an already somewhat broken mass of -rock. Try to picture to yourself this old low arch of chalk as it was -when it first appeared as dry land. Probably some of it had already -been planed away by the waves of the sea, and what was left was by -no means well calculated to withstand the action of the agents of -denudation. If you look back to the figure, you will see the dotted -lines showing the former outline of this anticline, or arch, and you -perceive at once that the strata must have been sloping outwards away -from the middle. Now, this one fact greatly influenced its fate, for -an anticline cannot be regarded as a strong or stable arrangement -of strata. It is easy to see why; suppose a little portion were cut -away on one side at its base by some stream. It is clear that a kind -of overhanging cliff would be left, and blocks of chalk would sooner -or later come rolling down into the valley of the little stream. -When these had fallen, they would leave an inclined plane down which -others would follow; and this would continue to take place until the -top of the arch was reached. The same reasoning applies to the other -side. It is very seldom that arches, or anticlines, can last for a -long time. The outward slope of the strata and their broken condition -are against them. - -But when the rocks dip _inwards_, to form a kind of trough or basin, -it is just the opposite. Such basins are known as "synclines;" and -a structure of this kind can be shown to be much more stable and -permanent than an anticline. The strata, instead of being stretched -out and cracked open, have been squeezed together. - -It is very important to bear this in mind, and to remember how -differently anticlines and synclines are affected; for this simple -rule is illustrated over and over again in mountain-ranges:-- - - Anticlines, being unstable, are worn away until they become - valleys. - - Synclines, being stable, are left and frequently form mountains. - -Now look at the section through the Appalachian chain (see Fig. -1), and you will see that each hill is a syncline, and the valleys -between them are anticlines. This happens so frequently that almost -every range of mountains furnishes examples; but as every rule has -its exceptions, so this one has, and we may find an example in the -case of the Jura Mountains outside the Alps. - -It will be seen from the section that the ridges are formed by -anticlines, and the valleys by synclines. But on looking a little -more closely, we see that the tops of the former have suffered a -considerable amount of erosion (as indicated by the dotted lines). -Now, the reason why they have not been completely worn down into -valleys is that these rocks were once covered by others overlying -them, so that this outer covering of rocks had first to be removed -before they could be attacked by rain and rivers. These wave-like -ridges of the Jura are being slowly worn down; and the time must -come when they will be carved out into valleys, while the synclines -between them will stand out as hills. It is simply a question of -time. But many mountain-chains have a far more complicated structure -than that of the Appalachians, and consist of violently crumpled and -folded strata (see section of Mont Blanc, Fig. 3). - - [Illustration: SECTIONS OF MOUNTAIN-RANGES, SHOWING THEIR - STRUCTURE AND THE AMOUNT OF ROCK WORN AWAY.] - -It might naturally be asked how such sections are made, considering -that we cannot cut through mountains in order to find out their -structure; but Nature cuts them up for us, gashing their sides with -ravines and valleys carved out by streams and rivers, and in steep -cliffs and precipices we find great natural sections that serve our -purpose almost equally well. Sometimes, however, we get considerable -help from quarries and railway-cuttings. - -Take, for example, one of the synclinal folds in the Appalachian -chain. Its structure is ascertained somewhat as follows. Suppose you -began to ascend the hill, armed with a good map, a pocket-compass, a -clinometer,--a little instrument for measuring the angles at which -strata dip or slope,--and with a bag on your back for specimens -of rocks and fossils. At the base of the hill you might notice at -starting a certain layer of rock--say a limestone--exposed by the -side of the stream. It will be so many feet thick, and will contain -such-and-such fossils, by means of which you can identify it; and -it will dip into the interior of the hill at a certain angle, as -measured by the clinometer. As you rise higher, this rock may be -succeeded by sandstone of a certain thickness, and likewise dipping -into the hill; and so with the other rocks that follow, until you -reach the summit. - -By the time you have reached the top of the hill, you know the nature -of all the rocks up that side, and the way they dip; and all your -observations are carefully recorded in a notebook. Then you begin -to descend on the other side, and in so doing you find the same set -of rocks coming out at the surface all in the same order; only this -order is now reversed, because you are following them downwards -instead of upwards. Of course they are hidden in many places by soil -and loose stones; but that does not matter, because at other places -they are exposed to view, especially along ravines, carved out of -the mountain-side. Also rocks "weather" so differently that they can -often be distinguished even at a distance. - -In this kind of way you can find out the structure of a mountain, -and draw a section of it when you get home, by following out and -completing the curves of the strata as indicated at or near the -surface; and you find they fit in nicely together. - -Fig. 3 (see page 307) represents what is believed to be the general -arrangement of the rocks of Mont Blanc. The section is greatly -simplified, because many minor folds and all the faults, or -dislocations, are omitted. Now, in this case we have an example of -what is known as the "fan-structure." It will be seen at once that -the folds have been considerably squeezed together; and the big fold -in the centre indicated by dotted lines has been so much compressed -in the lower part--that is, in what is now Mont Blanc--that its sides -were brought near to each other until they actually sloped inwards -instead of outwards. - -You may easily imitate this structure by taking a sheet of paper, -laying it on the table, and then, putting one hand on each side of -it, cause it to rise up in a central fold by pressing your hands -towards each other. Notice carefully what happens. First, you get a -low arch, or anticline, like that of the Weald. Then as you press it -more, the upward fold becomes sharper and narrower; then continue -pressing it, and you will find the fold bulging out at the top, but -narrowing in below until you get this fan-structure. - -This is just what has happened in the case of the Alps. A tremendous -lateral pressure applied to the rocks heaved them up and down -into great and small folds, and in some places, as in Mont Blanc, -fan-structure was produced. Imagine the top of the fan removed, and -you get what looks like a syncline, but is really the lower part of a -very much compressed anticline. - -Now, it is believed that all mountain-ranges have been enormously -squeezed by lateral pressure; and the little experiment with the -sheet of paper furnishes a good illustration of what has happened. A -table-cloth lying on a smooth table will serve equally well. You can -easily push it into a series of folds; notice how they come nearer -as you continue pushing. You see also that in this way you get long -narrow ridges with valleys between. These represent the original -anticlines and synclines of mountain-ranges, which in course of time -are carved out, as explained above, until the synclines become hills -and the anticlines valleys. - -Every mountain-chain must originally have had long ridges like these, -which in some cases determined the original directions of the streams -and valleys; and it is easy to see now why mountain-chains are long -and narrow, why their strata have been so greatly folded, and why -we get in every mountain-chain long ranges of hills roughly parallel -with each other (see chapter vi., pages 177-178). - -The reason why granite, gneiss, and crystalline schists are -frequently found in the central and highest peaks of mountain-ranges -is that we have the oldest and lowest rocks exposed to the surface, -on account of the enormous amount of denudation that has taken place. -There may be great masses of granite underlying all mountain-chains; -but it is only exposed to view when a very great deal of overlying -rock has been removed. - -It was thought at one time that granite was the oldest of all rocks, -and that mountain-chains had been upheaved by masses of granite -pushing them up from below; but we know now that both these ideas -are mistaken. Some granites are certainly old geologically, but -others are of later date; and it is certain that granite was not the -upheaving agent, but more likely it followed the overlying rocks as -they were heaved up by lateral pressure, because the upward bending -of the rocks would tend to relieve the enormous pressure down below, -and so the granite would rise up. - - [Illustration: MONT BLANC. SNOWFIELDS, GLACIERS. AND STREAMS.] - -We now pass on to a very different example, where mountains are the -result of huge fractures and displacements; namely, the numerous -and nearly parallel ranges of the Great Basin, of Western Arizona, -and Northern Mexico. The region between the Sierra Nevada and the -Wahsatch Mountains, extending from Idaho to Mexico, is composed -of very gently folded rocks deeply buried in places by extensive -outflows of lava. - -Now, in this case the earth-movements caused great cracks, or splits, -doubtless attended by fearful earthquakes. We find here a series of -nearly parallel fractures, hundreds of miles long, and fifteen to -thirty miles apart. These traverse the entire region, dividing the -rocks into long narrow blocks. There is evidence to show that the -whole region was once much more elevated than it is now, and has -subsided thousands of feet. During the subsidence along these lines -of fracture, or faults, the blocks were tilted sideways; and the -uptilted blocks, carved by denudation, form the isolated ranges of -this very interesting region (see illustration, chap. viii., p. 273, -Fig. 1). The faults are indicated by arrows pointing downwards; and -the dotted lines indicate the erosion of the uptilted blocks. - -But this must be regarded as a very exceptional case, for we do not -know of any other mountain-range formed quite in the same way. Why -the strata, although only slightly bent, should have snapped so -violently in this case, while in other mountain-ranges they have -suffered much more bending without so much fracture and displacement, -we cannot tell, but can only suggest that possibly it was because -they were not buried up under an enormous thickness of overlying -rocks, which would exert an enormous downward pressure, and so tend -to prevent fracturing. - -There are many other deeply interesting questions with regard to the -upheaval of mountains which at present cannot be answered. - -We have already learned to alter our preconceived ideas about the -stability and immovable nature of the earth's crust, and have seen -that it is in reality most unstable, and is undergoing continual -movements, both great and small. But here we have an equally -startling discovery, which quite upsets all our former ideas of the -hard and unyielding nature of the rocks composing the earth's crust; -for we find that not only can they be bent into innumerable folds -and little puckerings, but that in some cases they have been drawn -out and squeezed as if they were so much soft putty. The imagination -almost fails to grasp such facts as these. - -Of late years geologists in Switzerland and in Great Britain have -discovered that in some parts of mountains rocks have been enormously -distorted and crushed, so that they have assumed very different -states from those in which they were made, and curious mineral -changes have taken place under the influence of this crushing. - -In the very complicated region of the Northwest Highlands of -Sutherland and Ross, the structure of which has only lately been -explained, some wonderful discoveries of this nature have been -made. Certain of the crystalline schists found there have been -formed by the crushing down and rearrangement of older rocks that -once presented a very different appearance. In this district, -where the rocks have been squeezed by enormous lateral pressure, -the dislocations sometimes have assumed the form of inclined or -undulating planes, the rocks above which have been actually pushed -over those below, and in some cases the horizontal displacement -amounts to many miles. - -Not only have the rocks been ruptured, and older, deep-seated masses -been torn up and driven bodily over younger strata (that once were -_above_ them), but there has been at the same time such an amount -of internal shearing as to crush the rocks into a finely divided -material, and to give rise to a streaky arrangement of the broken -particles, closely resembling the flow-structure of a lava. In the -crushed material new minerals have been sometimes so developed as to -produce a true schist.[32] - - [32] Geikie. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -THE AGES OF MOUNTAINS, AND OTHER QUESTIONS. - - O Earth, what changes hast thou seen! - - TENNYSON. - - -It might naturally be asked at what period in the world's primeval -or geological history some particular mountain-range was upheaved; -whether it is younger or older than another one perhaps not very -far away; and again, whether the mountain-chains of the world have -been uplifted all at once, or whether the process of elevation was -prolonged and gradual? - -Questions such as these are deeply interesting, and present to the -geologist some of the most fascinating problems to be met with in the -whole range of this science. And though at first sight they might -seem hopelessly beyond our reach, yet even here the prospect is by no -means unpromising; and it is quite possible to show that they can be -answered to some extent. Here we shall find our illustration of the -cathedral (see chapter v., pages 143-147) holds good once more. - -It is perhaps hardly necessary to explain that by looking at a -Gothic cathedral one can say at what period or periods it was built. -Perhaps it has a Norman nave, with great pillars and rounded arches. -Then the chancel might be Early English, with pointed windows and -deep mouldings, and other features that serve to mark the style of -the building, and therefore its date,--because different styles -prevailed at different periods. Other parts might contain work easily -recognised as belonging to the "Perpendicular" period. - -Now, as there have been periods in the history of architecture and -art, so there have been periods in the history of our earth. What -these periods were, and how we have learned to recognise them, we -must first very briefly describe.[33] - - [33] For a fuller account see the writer's "Autobiography of the - Earth." - -There are two simple rules by which the age of an ordinary -sedimentary rock may be ascertained. This is fixed (1) By its -position with regard to others; (2) By the nature of its embedded -animal or vegetable remains, known as fossils. - -These rules may easily be illustrated by a reference to the methods -of the antiquary. For instance, suppose you were going to build -a house, and the foundations had just been dug out; you might on -examining them find several old layers of soil, showing that the site -or neighbourhood had been formerly occupied. You might find in one -layer stone implements, in another Roman or early British pottery, -and yet again portions of brick or stonework, together with tools -or articles of domestic use, belonging, say, to the time of Queen -Elizabeth. Now, which of these layers would be the oldest? It is -quite clear that the lowest layers must have been there the longest, -because the others accumulated on the top of them. - -The explorations made of late years under Jerusalem have led to the -interesting discovery that the modern city is built up on the remains -of thirteen former cities of Jerusalem, all of which have been -destroyed in one way or another. Here, again, it is quite clear that -the oldest layer of débris must be that which lies at the bottom, and -the newest will be the one on the top. - -Again, you know that the "Stone Age" in Britain came before the Roman -occupation. Those old stone implements were made by a barbarous race, -who knew very little of agriculture or the arts of civilisation. Then -in succeeding centuries various arts were introduced, many relics of -which are found buried in the soil; and hence, since different styles -of art and architecture prevailed at different periods, the works of -art or industry embedded in any old layers of soil serve to fix the -date of those layers. - -These layers of soil and débris correspond to the layers or strata of -the sedimentary rocks, in which the different chapters of the world's -history are recorded. Geology is only another kind of history; and -the same principles which guide the archæologist searching buried -cities also guide the geologist in reading the stony record. As the -illustrious Hutton said, "The ruins of an older world are visible -in the present state of our planet." The successive layers of ruin -in this case are to be seen in the great series of the stratified -rocks; and we may lay it down as an axiom that the lowest strata are -the oldest, unless by some subsequent disturbance the order should -have been reversed, which, fortunately, is a rare occurrence, though -examples are to be found in some mountain-chains with violent -foldings. - -But it often happens that neither the strata which should come -above nor those that lie below can be seen. Then our second rule -comes in: We can determine the age of the rock in question by its -fossils. The reason of this has perhaps already been guessed by the -reader. It is that as different kinds of plants and animals have -prevailed at different periods of the world's history, so there have -been "styles," or fashions, in creation, as well as in art. At one -geological period certain curious types of fishes flourished which -are now almost extinct, only a few old-fashioned survivals being -found in one or two out-of-the-way places. At another period certain -types of reptiles flourished vigorously, and were the leaders in -their day; but they have altogether vanished and become extinct. So -one type after another has appeared on the scene, played its humble -part in the great drama of life; and then--"exit!" another takes its -place. - -In the oldest and lowest of the series of rocks we find no certain -trace of life at all. In the next series we find only lowly -creatures, such as shell-fish, corals, and crab-like animals that -have no backbone. In a higher group of rocks fishes appear for the -first time. Later on, we come across the remains of amphibious -creatures for the first time. Then follows (after a long unrecorded -interval) an era when reptiles and birds existed in great numbers. -After another long interval we come to strata containing many and -diverse remains of mammals or quadrupeds. So we have an "Age of -Fishes," an "Age of Reptiles," and an "Age of Mammals." Some tribes -of these creatures died out, but others lived on to the present day. -Thus we see that there has been a continuous progress in life as the -world grew older, for higher types kept coming in. - -To the geologist fossils are of the greatest possible use, since they -help him to determine the age of a particular set of strata, for -certain kinds of fossils belong to certain rocks, and to them only. - -But the classification of the stratified rocks has been carried -farther than this. Practical geologists, working in the field, use -fossils as their chief guide in working out the subdivisions of a -group of rocks, for certain genera and species of old plants and -animals are found to belong to certain small groups of strata. In -this way a definite order of succession has been established once -for all; and, except in the case of inverted strata already alluded -to, this order is invariably found to hold good. - -This great discovery of the order of succession of the British -stratified rocks, established by their fossil contents, is due to -William Smith, the father of English geology. After exploring the -whole of England, he published in 1815 a geological map, the result -of his extraordinary labours. Before then people had no idea of a -definite and regular succession of rocks extending over the country, -capable of being recognised to some extent by the nature of the -rocks themselves,--whether sandstones, clays, or limestones, etc., -but chiefly by their own fossils. They thought the different kinds -of rocks were scattered promiscuously up and down the face of the -country; but _now_ we know that they do not show themselves in this -haphazard way, but have definite relations to each other, like the -many volumes of one large book. - -By combining the two principles referred to above, geologists have -arranged the great series of British stratified rocks into certain -groups, each indicating a long period of time. First, they are -roughly divided into three large groups, marking the three great eras -into which geological time is divided. Secondly, these eras are -further divided into certain periods. These periods are again divided -into epochs, indicated by local divisions of their rocks. In this way -we have something like a historical table. Omitting the small epochs -of time, this table is as follows, in descending order:-- - -_Table of the British Stratified Rocks._ - - ERA. PERIOD. PREVAILING TYPE. - - { Recent. - Cainozoic, { Pleistocene, - or { or - Tertiary. { Quaternary. Mammals. - { Pliocene. - { Miocene. - { Eocene. - - { Cretaceous. - Mesozoic, { Neocomian. - or { Jurassic. Reptiles. - Secondary. { Triassic. - { Permian. - - { Carboniferous. Fishes. - { Devonian, and - Palæozoic, { Old Red Sandstone. - or { Silurian. Creatures without - Primary. { Cambrian. a backbone - { Archæan,[34] (invertebrates). - { or - { Pre-Cambrian. - - [34] The Archæan rocks are frequently placed in a separate group - below the Palæozoic. - -The total thickness of all these rocks has been estimated at about -one hundred thousand feet, or not far from twenty miles. These -names have been given partly from the region in which the rocks -occur, partly from the nature of the rocks themselves, and partly -for other reasons. Thus the Old Red Sandstone is so called, because -it generally, though not always, appears as a dark red sandstone. -But the Silurian rocks, which we find in North Wales, receive -their name from the Silures, an ancient Welsh tribe; the Cambrian -rocks take theirs from Cambria, the old name for North Wales. The -Cretaceous rocks are partly composed of chalk, for which the Latin -word is _creta_; and so on. The terms "Palæozoic," "Mesozoic," and -"Cainozoic" mean "ancient life," "middle life," and "recent or new -life," thus indicating that as time went on the various types of -life that flourished on the earth became less old-fashioned, and -more like those prevailing at the present time. These used to be -called "Primary," "Secondary," and "Tertiary;" but the terms were -unfortunate, because the primary rocks, as then known, were not the -first, or oldest. We have therefore included the Archæan rocks, -since discovered, in this primary group. Only one fossil has been -found in these rocks, and that is a doubtful one; hence they are -sometimes called "Azoic," that is, "without life." The Mesozoic rocks -are, as it were, the records of the "middle ages" in the world's -history; while the Palæozoic take us back to a truly primeval time. - -We have now learned how the geological age of any group of rocks -may be determined. Thus, if a series of rocks of unknown age can be -shown to rest on undoubtedly Silurian rocks in one place, and in -another place to be overlaid or covered by undoubtedly Carboniferous -rocks, they will probably belong to the Old Red Sandstone Period. If -afterwards we find that they contain some of the well-known fossils -of that period, the question of their age is settled at once. But we -want more evidence than this. Suppose, now, we find somewhere on the -flanks of a mountain-range a series of Permian and Triassic rocks, -resting almost horizontally on disturbed and folded Carboniferous -strata. Does not that at once prove that the upheaval took place -before the Permian Period? Clearly it does, because the Permian rocks -have evidently _not_ been disturbed thereby. So now we can fix the -date of our range of hills; namely, after the Carboniferous Period -and before the Permian Period. - -It is by such reasoning that the age of our Pennine range of hills, -extending from the north of England into Derbyshire, has been fixed; -for the Permian and Triassic strata lie undisturbed on the upheaved -arch of Carboniferous rocks of which this chain is composed. Its -structure is that of a broken and much denuded anticline, which -stands up to form a line of hills only because the Carboniferous -limestone is so much harder than the "coal measures," or coal-bearing -rocks, on each side of it, that it has not been worn away so fast. In -time, this great anticline will be entirely worn away like that of -the Weald. It is called the Great Mountain Limestone, because it so -often rises up to form high ground. The Mendip Hills in Somersetshire -are of about the same date, and they too are largely composed of this -great limestone formation. - -Of course, a certain amount of up and down movement took place after -the hills were upheaved, otherwise the Permian and Triassic rocks -could not have been deposited on their sides; but these movements -were slight and of a more general kind than those by which strata are -thrown into folds. - -The main upheaval, by which the rocks now forming the Highlands of -Scotland were lifted up and contorted, took place after the Lower -Silurian Period, and before that of the Old Red Sandstone; and there -is clear evidence that even before the latter period they had not -only been greatly altered, or "metamorphosed," by subterranean heat, -but that they had suffered enormous denudation. And the work of -carving out these mountains has gone on ever since; for even in Old -Red Sandstone times they were probably not entirely covered by water. -The Highland Mountains are therefore older than the Pennine range. - -Geologically Scotland belongs in great part to Scandinavia; and -the long line of Scandinavian Mountains is a continuation of the -Highlands, and so is of the same age. - -Mountain-chains and hill-ranges have been upheaved at various -geological periods; and some are very old, while others are much -younger. - -Turning to the southeast of England, we find the ranges of chalk -hills forming the North and South Downs (see page 237). As explained -previously, these owe their existence to the upheaval and subsequent -denudation of the low arch, or anticline, of the Weald. They are -called "escarpments," because they are like lines of cliffs that are -being gradually cut back. Now, it is clear that these hills are much -newer than either of those we have just considered. Look at the table -on page 324, and you will see that the Cretaceous rocks (chalk, etc.) -belong to the Mesozoic era. The chalk was the last rock formed during -the Cretaceous Period. - -So the Wealden arch must have been heaved up after the chalk was -formed; that is, ages and ages later than the date of the Pennine -range or the Scotch Highlands. From other evidences it has been shown -that this anticline was heaved up in the early part of the Cainozoic -Era, perhaps during the Miocene Period. - -Let us now take the case of the Alps. And here we have an instructive -example of a great mountain system formed by repeated movements -during a long succession of geological periods. We cannot say -that they were entirely raised up at any one time in the world's -past history. In the centre of this great range we find a series -of igneous and metamorphic rocks, such as granite, gneiss, and -crystalline schists. Some of these may belong to the very oldest -period,--namely, the Archæan; others are probably Palæozoic and -Cainozoic deposits greatly altered by heat and pressure. - -The ground from Savoy to Austria began to be an area of disturbance -and upheaval towards the close of the Palæozoic Era, if not before; -so that crystalline schists and Carboniferous strata were raised -up to form elevated land around which Permian conglomerates and -shingle-beds were formed,--as on the seashore at the present day. - -During the early part of the Mesozoic Era local fractures and certain -up and down movements occurred. After this there was a long period -of subsidence, during which a series of strata known as Oölites and -Cretaceous were deposited on the floor of an old sea. - -Towards the close of this long era, a fresh upheaval took place along -the present line of the Alps,--an upheaval that was prolonged into -the Eocene Period. It was during this latter period that a very -extensive formation known as the "Nummulitic limestone" was formed in -a sea that covered a large part of Europe and Asia. We have already -referred (see chap. v., pp. 169-171) to the way in which limestones -have been formed. Nummulites are little shells that were formed by -tiny shell-fish. - -But after this, the greatest upheaval and disturbance took place,--an -upheaval to which the Alps as we now see them are chiefly due. By -this means the older Cainozoic strata, once lying horizontally on the -floor of the sea, were raised up, together with older rocks, to form -dry land, and not only raised up, but crumpled, dislocated, and in -some cases turned upside down. - -So intense was the compression to which the Eocene rocks were -subjected that they were converted into a hard and even crystalline -state. It seems almost incredible that these highly altered rocks -which look so ancient are of the same date as our London clay and -the soft Eocene deposits of the south of England; but in our country -the movement that raised up those strata was of the most feeble and -gentle kind compared to the violent disturbances that took place in -Switzerland. - -And here we may point out that the Alps are only a portion of a -vast chain of mountains stretching right across Europe and Asia in -a general east and west direction, beginning with the Pyrenees and -passing through the Alps, the Carpathians, the Caucasus, and the -range of Elbruz to the Hindoo-Koosh and the high plateau of Pamir, -called "the roof of the world," which stands like a huge fortress, -fifteen thousand feet high. Thence it passes to the still higher -tracts of Thibet, great plains exceeding in height the highest -summits of the Alps, being enclosed between the lofty ramparts of -the Himalayas on the south and the Kuen-Lun Mountains on the north; -and thence the mountain wall is prolonged in the Yuen-Ling, In-Shan, -Khin-Gan, and other ranges till it finally passes to the Pacific -Ocean at Behring's Strait. - -All these ranges are, as it were, the backbone of the great -continental plateau of the Old World, and doubtless are chiefly due -to those earth-movements by means of which the Alps were upheaved. -The last grand movement, which raised the Mont Blanc range, was -probably rather later, and seems to have taken place as late as the -Pliocene Period. - -At the present day no great movements are taking place in the Alps; -but now and then earthquakes visit this region, and serve to remind -us that the process of mountain-making is still slowly going on. - -Probably there have been times in the history of all these -mountain-ranges when movements took place of a more violent and -convulsive kind than anything with which we are familiar at the -present day; and the age we live in may be one of comparative -repose. This is of course somewhat a matter of speculation; and we -only allude to it because there has been a tendency on the part of -some to carry the theory of uniformity in all geological operations -much farther than Hutton or Lyell ever intended. But at the same -time there is no need to go back to the old teaching of sudden -catastrophes and violent revolutions. We only wish to avoid either of -these two extremes and to take a safe middle course. - -How rapidly some of these great earth-movements took place it is -impossible at present to say; but in several cases it can be shown -that they were quite slow, as indicated by the testimony of the -rivers. Thus, the rise of the great Uintah Mountains of the Western -States was so slow and gradual that the Green River, which flowed -across the site of the range, so far from being turned aside as they -rose up, has actually been able to deepen its cañon as fast as the -mountains were upheaved. So that the two processes, as it were, kept -pace with each other, and the river went on cutting out its gorges -at the same time that the ground over which it flowed was gently -upheaved; and as the land rose the river flowed faster, and therefore -acquired more power to cut and deepen its channel. This is a valuable -piece of evidence; but in this case we have only a few big broad -folds, instead of the violent folding seen in the Alps. However, -certain Pliocene strata lying on the southern flanks of the Himalayas -show that the rivers still run in the same lines as they occupied -before the last great upheaval took place. - -We have seen how the substance of the mountains was slowly -manufactured by means of such quiet and gentle operations as may -be witnessed at the present day; how the rivers of old brought -down their burdens as they do now, and flung them into the sea; how -the sea spread them out very slowly and compacted them into level -layers, to form, in process of time, the hard rocky framework of -the plateaux, hills, and mountains of the world; how vast marine -accumulations were also slowly manufactured through the agency of -countless generations of humble organisms, subtracting carbonate of -lime from sea water to form the limestones of future ages; how by -slow earth-movements these marine deposits were reared up into dry -land; how they have frequently been penetrated by molten rocky matter -from below, which occasionally forced its way up to the surface -and gave rise to various volcanic eruptions, by means of which the -sedimentary rocks were often considerably baked and hardened, and new -fissures filled up with valuable metallic ores and precious stones; -how lava-flows and great deposits of volcanic ash were mingled with -these sedimentary rocks. - -Then we endeavoured to follow the history of these rocky layers after -their upheaval, and learn how they are affected by the ceaseless -operations of rain and rivers and other agents of destruction, so -that finally the upheaved ridges of the lands are carved out into all -those wonderful features of crag and pinnacle and precipice that give -the mountains their present shapes and outlines. All this we were -able to account for, without the aid of any imaginary or unnatural -causes. - -And, lastly, we have seen that even where such causes might seem -at first almost indispensable,--when mountains tell us of mighty -internal forces crumpling, folding, and fracturing their rocky -framework,--yet even there we can account for what we see without -supposing them to have been torn and tossed about by any very violent -convulsions. - - [Illustration: MOUNTAIN IN THE YOSEMITE VALLEY.] - -Although the question of the cause, or causes, of earth-movements, -whereby continents are upheaved, and the contorting, folding, and -crumpling of the rocks of mountains produced, is not at present -thoroughly explained, it may perhaps be worth our while to consider -briefly some of the views that have been put forward on this -difficult subject. The words "upheaval" and "elevation," in reference -to movements of the earth's surface, are somewhat misleading, but are -used for want of better terms. They would seem to imply that the -force which produced mountains was a kind of upward push; whereas, in -most cases, and perhaps in all, the force, whatever it was, did not -act in an upward direction. So it should be understood that we employ -these terms only to indicate that the rocks have somehow been carried -up to a higher level, and not as suggesting _how_ the force acted by -which they were raised. - -It seems pretty clear that in the case of mountain-chains, at least, -the force acted in a horizontal direction, as a kind of side-thrust. - -This we endeavoured to illustrate in chapter ix. by means of a simple -experiment with a sheet of paper; and it was shown how folds similar -to those of which Mont Blanc is composed could be imitated by simply -pressing the sides of a sheet of paper inwards with one's two hands -as it lies on a table. Such lateral pressure, it is thought by many, -must be caused by the shrinking of the lower and hotter parts of the -earth's crust as they cool, leaving the outer crust unsupported, so -that it gradually settles down onto a smaller surface below, and in -so doing must inevitably be wrinkled and throw itself into a series -of folds (see chapter vi., page 204). - -The interior of the earth is hotter than the outside; and since there -is good reason to think that the whole earth was once upon a time in -a highly heated and perhaps half molten condition, we are compelled -to believe that it always has been, and still is, a cooling globe. -Now, almost all known substances are found to contract more or less -on cooling; and so if the materials of which the earth is mainly -composed are at all similar in their nature and properties to those -which we find on its surface, it follows that the earth must be -contracting at the same time that it is cooling, just as a red-hot -poker will contract on being taken out of the fire. - -Moreover, we find that hot bodies contract faster than those that are -merely warm, so that a red-hot poker contracts more during the first -few minutes after it is taken out of the fire than it does after -it has passed the red-hot stage. Hence it is easy to see that the -interior portions of the earth, which are hotter, must be contracting -at a greater rate than its external parts, for they evidently have -very little heat to lose. This may seem rather puzzling to the reader -at first; for it might be argued that the heat from below _must_ pass -through the external layers, or crust, as it is often called. But it -should be remembered that this is not the only way in which the earth -loses heat. Think of the vast amount of heat given out from the earth -every year by volcanic eruptions, and you will see at once that much -of the cooling takes place in this way, and not as a direct flow of -heat from the interior, as in the case of the poker. A single big -lava-stream flowing out from a volcano, and cooling on the surface -of the earth, represents so much heat lost forever; and so do the -clouds of steam emitted during every eruption; so, again, do even the -hot springs that are continually bringing up warm water. If, then, -the lower portions of the earth are slowly contracting, they must -tend to leave the outer portions of the crust unsupported, so that -they would be compelled by their own enormous weight to settle down. -Now, we know that something like this happens in coal mines; and as -long passages are hollowed out below, the ground begins to "creep," -or slowly sink. Think what would be the effect of a slow sinking of -any portion of the earth down towards the centre; it would inevitably -be curved up and down into numerous folds, as it endeavoured to get -itself onto a smaller space, much in the same way that a table-cloth, -when thrown onto a table in a kind of arch, settles down in a series -of waves, or folds. And this, it is thought, is the way in which -it happens that the pressure comes, as we said just now, sideways, -instead of from below upwards. It is on this theory that many -geologists account for the enormous side-pressure to which rocks have -in many cases been subjected. - -The evidences of such pressure are many. In some cases fossils -have been thereby pulled out of shape and appear considerably -distorted; in others, even hard quartz pebbles have been considerably -elongated (see chap. ix., pp. 315-316). Then again, we have the -little crumplings of all sizes so frequently seen in mica-schists. -And lastly, the peculiar property that slates possess of splitting -up into thin sheets is found to be due to the same cause; namely, -lateral pressure. Slates were originally formed of soft dark mud, and -on being subsequently squeezed, by earth-movements, have assumed -a structure known as "cleavage," whereby their tiny mud-particles -were elongated, and all assumed the same direction, thus giving to -the rock this peculiar property of splitting. It can be proved that -the pressure came in a direction opposite to that of the planes -of cleavage; and it is found that the direction of the cleavage -corresponds in a general way with the direction, or trend, of a -mountain-chain which is composed partly of slates, as in North Wales. -And this discovery helps and harmonises with what we have already -said about the cause of the folds in mountain-chains, for the same -force, acting sideways, produced the cleavage and the folding, etc. - -It has been already stated that in a large number of cases a -mountain-range has a central axis, or band, of granite or other -crystalline rock. This led some people to suppose that the granite -had been driven up from below, and in so doing had thrust up the -overlying rocks seen on either flank of the chain; in other words, -they believed granite to have been the upheaving agent. And even now -we often find unscientific writers speaking of the volcanic forces of -upheaval. - -Having very little idea of the true structure of mountains, they -believed them to consist of a kind of core, or axis, of this igneous -rock, with sedimentary rocks sloping away from it on each side. -This was a very simple theory of mountain-chains, but unfortunately -it will not bear examination. It takes no notice of the folding -which is so characteristic of mountain strata, and is quite out of -agreement with the facts of the case; so it must be buried among the -archives of the past. Mountain-chains are now known to have a much -more complicated structure than this,--thanks to the labours of many -subsequent observers. - -That illustrious astronomer, the late Sir John Herschel, threw out -a bold suggestion on this subject, which in the light of recent -discoveries with regard to the delicate adjustment between the -internal and external forces affecting the earth's surface, is -worthy of careful consideration. His idea was that the mere weight -of a thick mass of sediment resting on any portion of the earth's -crust might cause a certain amount of sinking; and that this would -cause portions on either side to swell up. It is certain that as -great deposits of sedimentary materials accumulate on the floor of -an ocean, that floor slowly sinks, otherwise the sea would become -choked up, and dry land would take its place. Now, it is found that -every great mountain-chain consists of many thousands of feet of -strata thus formed; and more than this: it turns out that a greater -thickness of such materials has been formed in regions where we -now see mountain-chains than in those continental regions that lie -farther away from them. This is an important fact, which was not -known in Sir John Herschel's time. One striking example may be -mentioned here. In the complicated region of the Appalachian chain -the strata are estimated to have a total thickness of eight miles; -while in Indiana, where the same strata are nearly horizontal, they -are less than one mile thick. Hence it is not impossible that in the -mere accumulation, through long periods of time, of vast masses of -strata many thousands of feet thick, we may find a potent cause of -earth-movements. - -The marginal regions of oceans, where most deposition takes place, -seem to undergo slow subsidence, while the continents seem in most -places to be as slowly rising. Modern geologists are inclined to -think that as denudation wears down a continental surface, removing -from it a great quantity of solid rocky matter (see chap. v., pp. -161-163), the pressure below is somewhat lessened, or in other words, -so much weight is taken off; but that, on the other hand, as this -extra amount of material accumulates on the bed of a neighbouring -ocean the pressure is increased by a corresponding amount, and so the -balance between internal and external forces is upset, and movements -consequently take place. We have already seen that the external parts -of the earth are much more subject to movements than might have been -expected; and for our part, we are willing to believe that in this -simple way upheaving forces might be called into play sufficient to -account for even the elevation of mountain-chains. For suppose a -great mass of strata to continue sinking as they were formed, for -long periods of time; what seems to follow? The downward movement -would go on until a time would come when the strata, in endeavouring -to settle down at a lower level, would (as by the contraction -theory above explained) be forced to fold themselves into ridges, -and in this way long strips of them might even be elevated into -mountain-ranges. - -Another ingenious idea was suggested by the late Mr. Scrope, whose -work on volcanoes is well known. His idea was that when a large -amount of sedimentary material has accumulated on any large area -of the bed of the ocean, it somewhat checks the flow of heat from -within, and therefore the temperature of the rocks forming part of -the earth's crust below will be increased, much in the same manner as -a glove checks the escape of heat from the hand and keeps it warm. -The consequence of this would be expansion; and as such expansion -would be chiefly in a horizontal direction, the area would bulge -upwards and cause elevation of the strata resting on it. But there -are several difficulties which this theory fails to explain. - -And lastly, Professor Le Conte, holding that the contraction theory -is unsatisfactory, accounts for earth-movements of all kinds by -supposing that some internal parts of the earth cool and contract -faster than others. Those parts that cool fastest, according to this -theory, are those that underlie the oceanic basins or troughs; while -the continental areas, not cooling so rapidly, are left standing up -in relief. This theory, which does not seem very satisfactory, is -based upon the idea that some parts of the earth's interior may be -capable of conducting heat faster than others. We know that some -substances, like iron, are good conductors of heat, while others are -bad conductors; and it is therefore conceivable that heat may be -flowing faster along some parts of the earth than along others; and -if so, there would be differences in the rate of contraction. - - -There are various theories with regard to the nature of the earth's -interior. One of these already referred to, but now antiquated, -supposes our planet to consist of a thin, solid crust lying on a -molten interior, so that the world would be something like an egg -with its thin shell and liquid, or semi-liquid, interior. Now, there -are grave reasons for refusing to accept this idea. In the first -place, a certain slow movement of the earth known as "precession," -because it causes the precession of the equinoctial points on the -earth's orbit, could not possibly take place as it does if the -earth's interior were in this loose and molten condition. That is -a matter decided by mathematical calculation, on which we will not -dwell further. Secondly, we obtain some very valuable evidence on -this abstruse subject from the well-known daily phenomenon of the -tides, caused, as the reader is probably aware, by the attractions of -the sun and moon; but much more by the moon, because she is nearer, -and so exerts a greater pull on the ocean as each part of the world -is brought directly under her by the earth's daily rotation on its -axis. The waters of our oceans rise up twice each day as they get -in a line with the moon, and then begin to fall again. Thus we get -that daily ebb and flow seen on our shores. Now, it has been clearly -proved by Sir William Thomson, and others, that if any considerable -portion of the interior of the earth were in a fluid condition, it -too would rise and fall every day as the ocean does. So we should in -that case have a tide _below_ the earth as well as on its surface, -and the one would tend to neutralise the other, and the ocean tide -ought to appear less than it actually is. Even if the earth's crust -were made of solid steel, and several hundreds of miles thick, it -would yield so much to the enormous pulls exerted by both the sun -and moon that it would simply carry the waters of the ocean up and -down with it, and we should therefore see no appreciable rise and -fall of the water relatively to the land. As a matter of fact, there -_is_ a very slight tide in the solid earth below our feet, but so -slight that it does not practically affect the tide which we see -every day in the ocean. But we wish to show that were the interior of -the earth in anything approaching, to a fluid or molten condition, -the phenomena of the tides would be very different from what they -actually are. - -All geologists are therefore agreed that we must consider our earth -as a more or less solid body, and not as being something like an -india-rubber ball filled with water. - -The only question is whether it is entirely solid throughout. Some -authorities consider this to be the case. But others venture to think -that while the great mass of the globe is solid, there may be a thin -liquid layer lying somewhere below the surface. Sir William Thomson -calculates that there must be a solid crust at least two thousand or -twenty-five hundred miles thick (the diameter of the earth is about -eight thousand miles) and that the mass of the earth "is on the whole -more rigid certainly than a continuous solid globe of glass of the -same diameter." - - -One other question with regard to the earth's interior may be -mentioned in conclusion. Astronomers have calculated the weight of -our planet, and the result is curious; for it turns out to be _at -least twice as heavy as the heaviest rocks that are found on or near -the surface_. It is about five and a half times as heavy as a globe -of water of the same size would be, whereas most rocks with which -we are acquainted are about two and a half, or at most three times -heavier than water. This fact seems to open out curious consequences; -for instance, it is quite possible that metals (which are of course -much heavier than water) may exist in the earth's interior in -considerable quantities. The imagination at once conjures up vast -quantities of gold and silver. What is the source of the gold and -silver, and other metals found in mineral veins? This question cannot -as yet be fully answered. Very small quantities of various metals -have been detected in sea-water; and so some geologists look upon the -sea as the source from which metals came. But it is possible that -they were introduced from below,--perhaps by the action of steam and -highly heated water during periods of volcanic activity,--and that -their source is far down below in the depths of the earth. - -But perhaps we have already wandered too far into the regions of -speculation. - -Such are some of the interesting problems suggested by the study of -mountains, and they add no small charm to the science of geology. - -And as we leave the mountains behind us, refreshed by their bracing -air, and strengthened for another season of toil and labour by -a brief sojourn among their peaks and passes, we come away with -a renewed sense of the almost unlimited power of the unhasting -operations of Nature, and the wisdom and beneficence of the Great -Architect of the Universe, who made and planned those snowcapped -temples as symbols of His strength, who was working millions of years -ago as He is working to-day, and to whom a thousand years are as one -day. - - - - -INDEX. - - - Agents of transportation, 161. - - Ages of strata, how determined, 317-333. - - Air, composition of, 209. - - Alpine animals, 124. plants, 103, 114. - - Alps, the history of, 330. - (See also Ruskin.) - - Ancients, the, their dread of the mountains, 3. - - Andes, the, elevation of, 189. - - Animals, behaviour of, before an avalanche or earthquake, 95. - - "Anticline," 237, 303, 327. - - Appalachian Mountains, denudation of the, 239, 305-309. - - Aqueous rocks, 154. - - Archæan Era, 324. - - Arctic flora, 121. - - "Arthur's Seat," 277. - - Ashes, volcanic, 245, 251, 260. - - Atlantic ooze, 172. - - Atmosphere, effects produced by the, 209. - rarefaction of, 79. - - Avalanches, 89. - - - Badger, the, in Alps, 128. - - Baltic Sea, changes in, 182. - - Barrier reef, of Australia, 170. - - Basalt, of Hebrides, 278. - of Snowdon, 272. - - Basin, the Great, of United States, 313. - - Bear, brown, 125. - black, 126. - - Beaver, the, in Alps, 128. - - Bergfalls, 97. - - Bernina, the, fall of rocks from, 98. - - Bird, Miss (Mrs. Bishop), on eruption of Kilauea, 262. - - Birds, of Alps, 134. - - Blueness of the sky, 75. - - Bombs, volcanic, 253. - - Bonney, Prof., on mountain legends, 23. - on effects of the Alps in Europe, 48. - on wind on mountain-tops, 84. - on Alpine plants, 115. - on forms of mountains, 294. - - Boulders, erratic, 225. - - Bouquetin, the, in Alps, 133. - - Britain, Great, rainfall of, 42. - - Building up of mountains, 174. - - Butterflies, in Alps, 138. - - Buzzard, the, in Alps, 136. - - - Cader Idris, volcano rocks of, 272. - - Cainozoic Era, 324. - - Callao, 189. - - Cambrian rocks, 296, 324. - - Canisp Mountain, 297. - - Cañons of Colorado, 221. - - Carbonic acid in atmosphere, 210. - - Carboniferous Period, 324. - - Catastrophes, 215. - - Caves, human remains, etc., in, 31. - - Celsius, on elevation of Gulf of Bothnia, 178. - - Chalk, Cretaceous rocks composed of, 325. - origin of. See Limestones. - - Challenger, H. M. S., expedition of, 251. - - Chamois, the, in Alps, 130. - - Characteristics of mountain races, 14. - - China clay, 292. - - Classification of rocks, 157. - - Cleavage of slates, 151, 340. - - Coniferous trees, region of, 111. - - Contortions in strata, 298, 311. - - Contraction and expansion of rocks, 208. - - Contraction theory of earth-movements, 338. - - Coral reefs, 170. - - Cotopaxi, 259. - - Crystalline schists, 312. - - - Darwin, Charles, on elevation of the Andes, 189. - - Deciduous trees, mountain region of, 110. - - Dent de Mayen, 99. - - Dent du Midi, fall of rock from, 98. - - Denudation, 220, 229, 288, 312. - - Devonian rocks, 324. - - Diablerets, fall of rock from, 98. - - Dislocations of mountain rocks, 313, 315. - - Dust, volcanic, 245, 260. - - Dykes, 245. - - - Eagle, the golden, 136. - - Earth-pillars in Tyrol, 221. - - Earthquakes, 95, 102, 196. - effects of, 198, 336. - causes of, 198, 200. - Lucretius on, 199. - - Earth-tremors, 194. - - Elevation of mountains, 146, 200, 202, 299, 336. - continents, 298-299. - - Encrinites, 171. - - Eocene Period, 324. - - Equador and Peru, earthquake of, 197. - - Eras, geological, 324. - - Eruptions, volcanic, 247. - - - Fairies, 5. - - Falcon, the, in Alps, 136. - - "Fan-structure," 310. - - "Faults" and fractures, 200, 313. - - Features characteristic of mountains, 177. - - Ferns, 118. - - Fishes, Age of, 322. - - Fissures, 268. - - Föhn, the, 84. - - Foraminifera, 172. - - Fox, the, in Alps, 127. - - Frog, the, in Alps, 137. - - Frost, effects of, on mountain rocks, 212. - - - Game-birds, in Alps, 137. - - Ganges and Brahmapootra, 167. - - Geikie, Sir A., on influence of Scottish scenery, 21. - on the Highland plateau, 284. - on the mountains of West Sutherland, 296. - - Giant's Causeway, basalt of, 279. - - Glace, Mer de, 229. - - Glacial drifts, 227. - - Glacial region of vegetation in Alps, 116. - - Glaciers, erosive power of, 228. - - Glare from snow in Alps, 76. - - Gneiss, 156, 292. - - Gold and silver in mountains, 61. - in the earth, 350. - - Grampians, 276. - - Granite, 210. - weathering of, 291. - in mountain-chains, 312. - - Greenland, elevation of, 186. - - Green slates and porphyries, 275. - - Gulf Stream, 42. - - - Hare, the, in Alps, 128. - - Hawaii, 256. - - Heat, effects of, on rocks, 154, 156, 160. - underground, of the earth, 338, 345. - - Hebrides, former volcanic action in, 278. - - Height, influence of, on vegetation, 107. - - Herculaneum, 254. - - Highest cluster of houses in the world, 79. - - Highlands of Scotland, 284. - - Himalayas, description of, 6. - - Hutton, 142, 320. - - - Iberian, or pre-Celtic race, 30. - - Ice Age, the, 65, 123. - - Ice, as a geological agent, 223. - - Igneous rocks, 155. - - Imbaburu, eruption of mud from, 259. - - Implements of stone, 31. - - - Jackdaw, the, in Alps, 136. - - Jura Mountains, 300, 306. - - Jurassic rocks, 324. - - - Kilauea, eruption of. (See Bird, Miss.) - - Kite, the, in Alps, 136. - - Krakatoa, 252. - - - Labrador, elevation of, 192. - - Lake District, denudation of, 220. - volcanic rocks of, 275. - - Lakes, origin of, 47. - - Lateral pressure, applied to mountains, 310, 315, 337. - - Lichens and mosses. (See Ruskin.) - - Limestones, origin of, 151, 153, 169. - - Lisbon, earthquake at, 197. - - Livingstone, on splitting of rocks, 212. - - Lizard, the, in Alps, 137. - - Lyell, Sir Charles, 333. - - Lynx, the, in Alps, 128. - - - Mal de montagne, 80. - - Mammals, age of, 322. - - Marmot, the, in Alps, 129. - - Mauna Loa, eruption of, 256. - - Mendip Hills, 327. - - Mer de Glace. (See Glace.) - - Metals, precious, 60. - in the earth, 349. - - Metamorphic rocks, 156, 157, 298, 330. - - Mica-schist, 156, 293. - - Miller, Hugh, 150. - - Milne, Prof., on earth-pulsations, 193. - - Minor cones of volcanoes, 246. - - Miocene Period, 278, 324. - - Mississippi, denudation by the, 232. - - Moel Tryfaen, raised beach in, 186. - - Mont Blanc, 310. - - Monte Conto, downfall of, in 1618, 101. - - Monte Nuovo, 248. - - Moraines, 225. - - Mountain limestone, 152. - - Mountains, as barriers between nations, 26. - as reservoirs of water, 43. - human wants supplied by, 58. - influence of, on climate, 62. - causing movements in the atmosphere, 65. - as backbones of continents, 67. - floras of, 103-124. - forms of, how determined, 282. - general features of, 177, 283. - structure of, how determined, 308. - elevation of, 174, 313. - formed by huge dislocations, 313. - Ruskin on uses of, 68. - " on a scene on the Jura, 300. - " on flowers of, 107. - - Mud-flows from volcanoes, 259. - - - "Needles," the, of Colorado, 221. - - Neptunists and Plutonists, 160. - - New England, elevation of, 192. - - New Zealand, elevation of, 190. - - Nummulites, 331. - - - Old Red Sandstone, 150, 324. - - Olive region, the, 107. - - Organically formed rocks, 157. - - Ornamentation of mountains, 147. - - Oxygen, in air, 209. - - - Palæozoic Era, 324. - - Permian rocks, 324. - - Pleistocene rocks, 324. - - Pliocene, 324. - - Plutonists, 160. - - Pompeii, buried up, 254. - - Precious stones in mountains, 277. - - Primary Era, 324. - - Pulsations of the earth. (See Milne.) - - - Quinag, 297. - - - Rabbit, the, in Alps, 128. - - Raised beaches, 185. - - Raven, the, in Alps, 136. - - Red clay, of Atlantic Ocean, 252. - - Reptiles, Age of, 323. - - Righi Mountain, fall of rock from, 99. - - Rivers, transporting power of, 161-168. - - Roches Moutonnées, 227. - - "Rocking Stones," 292. - - Ross and Sutherland, mountains of, 315. - - Rossberg, the, fall of rock from, 99-101. - - Ruskin, on effect of tourists in Switzerland, 21. - on effects of scenery on mythology, 22. - on uses of mountains, 50. - on formation of soil, 55. - on lichens and mosses, 119. - on the Alps, 289. - on a scene in the Jura Mountains, 300. - - - Santorin, island of, 257. - - Scandinavia, elevation of, 180. - - Scenery, influence of rocks on, 219. - - Schists. (See Mica-schist.) - - Scotland, former volcanic action in, 275. - - Sea-beaches, 183. - - Sea-level, constancy of, 179. - - Secondary Era, 324. - - Serapis, Temple of, 187. - - Silurian Period, 324. - volcanic rocks of, 272. - - Shearing of rocks in mountains, 316. - - Skaptar Jökull, lava-flow from, 255, 260. - - Smith, William, 323. - - Snake River Plain, 258. - - Snow, lambent glow of, 77. - - Snowdon, volcanic rocks of, 272. - denudation of, 239. - - Spectre of the Brocken, the, 78. - - Stability of the earth, 174, 314. - - Stanley, Dean, on capture of Canaan, 32. - - Stone Age, 31. - - Storms on mountains, 81. - - Stratified rocks, table of, 324. - how formed, 148, 176. - - Striæ, glacial, 227. - - Submerged forests, 192. - - Suilven Mountain, 297. - - Sunsets, 71. - - Sutherland, West, mountains of, 296. - - - Taurentum, destroyed by downfall of rocks, 97. - - Thames, solid matter transported by, 168. - - Thunder-storms, in Alps, 86. - - Tomboro, eruption at, 260. - - "Tors," 292. - - Tourmente, the, 83. - - Transportation by rivers, 161, 166-169. - by glaciers, 224. - - Triassic Period, 324. - - Types of plants and animals at different periods, 106. - - - Upheaval theory of mountains, 247. - - Uses of mountains, 33. - - - "Valleys, how carved out, 214-230. - - Vesuvius, history of, 250. - - Vines, the region of, in Alps, 109. - - Volcanoes, number of active, 242. - old ideas about, 244. - structure of, described, 244. - volcanic rocks of Great Britain, 271. - - Vulture, the bearded, 134. - - - Wall of Antoninus, 185. - - Waterfalls, origin of, 218. - - Water-vapour, in air, 34. - condensation of, by mountains, 34. - - Waves of population, 30. - - Weald, the denudation of, 235-239. - structure of, 303. - - Werner, 158. - - Wild-cat, in Alps, 128. - - Wolf, the, in Alps, 126. - - - Zones of climate on the earth, 63. - -Transcriber's note: - A "List of Illustrations II" has been added to the text, for the - convenience of the reader, to display Illustrations that were - not included in the original "Illustrations" section. 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