It is not my intention, in these articles, to discuss a general theory
of the glaciers upon physical and mechanical principles. My special
studies, always limited to Natural History, have but indifferently
fitted me for such a task, and quite recently the subject has been
admirably treated from this point of view by Dr. Tyndall, in his
charming volume entitled "Glaciers of the Alps." I have worked upon the
glaciers as an amateur, devoting my summer vacations, with friends
desirous of sharing my leisure, to excursions in the Alps, for the sake
of relaxation from the closer application of my professional studies,
and have considered them especially in their connection with geological
phenomena, with a view of obtaining, by means of a thorough acquaintance
with glaciers as they exist now, some insight into the glacial phenomena
of past times, the distribution of drift, the transportation of
boulders, etc. It was, however, impossible to treat one series of facts
without some reference to the other; but such explanations as I have
given of the mechanism of the glacier, in connection with its structure,
are presented in the language of the unprofessional observer, without
any attempt at the technicalities of the physicist.
Pages:
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265