Page:Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, vol. 33.djvu/180

142 142 AMUND HELLAND ON THE FJORDS, LAKES,

9. On the Ice-Fjords of North Greenland, and on the Formation of Fjords, Lakes, and Cirques in Norway and Greenland. By Amund Hell and, Fellow of the University of Christiania. (Read June 21, 1876.)

(Communicated by Prof. Eamsay.)

The observations recorded in the following paper were made during two years of travel among the fjords and mountains of Norway, and during a visit to the ice-fjords of North Greenland in the summer of 1875. These travels were almost wholly undertaken with the view of seeing how far these countries confirmed the views entertained by Prof. Eamsay and other English and American geologists as to the origin of fjords and lakes.

"We will first examine the fjords of North Greenland, ascend to the Inland Ice which covers the whole country, so far as is known, then visit the glaciers which descend into the fjords, measure their rate of flow, and examine the other phenomena which they present. As these are, in many respects, of the greatest importance to geology* in general, they shall be described more fully than is necessary for ex- plaining the formation of fjords and lakes.

The tract over which I travelled in North Greenland extends from the colony of Egedesminde (60° 42' 9" N. lat., according to Norden- skjold) to the fjord of Kangerdlugssuak (about 71° 15' N. lat.) in the district of the Colony of Umanak*.

Of the great ice-fjords which produce bergs of large dimensions, the following were visited, viz. those of Jakobskavn and Torsukatak ; of the smaller, which produce only little bergs, those of Sarkardlek, of Alangordlek (in the district of Christianshaab), and of Kangerd- lugssuak. The ice-filled valley of Ilartdlek, by Pakitsok, was tra- versed, and the Inland Ice here ascended. A large number of glaciers in the district of Umanak were visited, many of which, though small compared with the gigantic ice-streams of the fjord, can yet compete with the largest of Europef.

A Norwegian geologist travelling in North Greenland will find much that is new to him, but perhaps still more that is familiar. The rocks of this country chiefly belong to the Azoic formation, gra- nites, gneiss of various kinds, mica schists, and hornblendic schists — on the whole, rocks well known in the Azoic formation of Norway. Disko Island, however, and Nugssuak peninsula are composed of newer rocks — sand, sandstones, and shales, with fossil plants and

Schmidt's Dictionary, wherever the signification was known.
 * In the orthography of Greenlandic names, I have followed that of Klean-

t Our present knowledge of the ice-fjords and of the Inland Ice is chiefly de- rived from Dr. Rink's ' Gronland geographisk og statistisk beskrevet,' and Pro- fessor IVordenskj old's ' En Expedition till Nordgronland.' By these travellers many of the phenomena mentioned in the following paper have been already described,