The Portland daily press., 1868-03-30
DAILY PRESS.
Monday Morning, March 30, 1868,
The True Theory of Glacier so,;op.
PORTLAND.


Physicists now to agree that pressure is The
chlei agency In the motion Cf glaciers No doubt ali
the fac point that wav; but IL now becomes mat.
Ter ct philosophical interest to determine in what
dlrectlon 1t acts most powerfully, and upon this
point giaclalsfs are by no means agreed. The latest
eon iuslon seems to be that the weight OF the adj
vancmg mass is iself the eic ent cause of motion,
But while this is probably true in the MAN, other
eeoents tending to the same result, and generally
over 4oked oS estigtors-eught to be taken iuto
The weight of the glaciers as whole is about the
game an tne year round. II there ore pressure re-
ting from dead weight be the ali contrno aSnp-
cy, Its progress should be UNIFORM during the Whole
wear, or even greatest in winter, which by no
means the case By series of experiments have
ascertalned that the onward movement, whatever be
ts annual average. is accelerated in spring and ear
summer. The average annual Enhancement ot q
glacier beng al given rate at the rate of about
@ @.pur hundred feet, it, average summer advance at
.e s;ne i pomt WI be at the rate of two hundred
a nlty ieet while its average rate of movemt MT in
WIN er Will beone hundred AID fifty feet. This can
% accounted for only by the increased pressu due
iaIge accession of water tricklng in spring and
carry summer into the ine ior hrough the network
OF capillary assures pervading the VIII lie mas. The
uuueudHy large lLntratlon OF water at that season
| Is owing to the melting OIL the winter snow : =
mere, then, Is powerf cause of pressure and con-
segueIHt gIt m1lion quite distinct from the permanent
weght u the mass ITSELF since it operates at certain
Seasons Of the yelr The water thus intro
duced into tie glacier acts we have seen above in
cles oil snow through which il trckes and by ireez-
M anu consequent expansion, at least within the
lmlis and during the season at which the tempeIa-
| lure OF the glacier sinks below SO oeg Farenheit
Inc pie TACT that the glacier swels on an ave age
about nve ieet more than its usual level shows how
important the infiltraion must be. =. 1t Is
admitted b. all that The of glacier at its sur
lace, IN consequence of evaporation and melting
| anouals 70 about nine or ten feet year. .
The water supplied by militia on, no doubt repairs
te h ass great degree Indeed The lower part of
sonree since the anI oifny lnaintalned from this
cumulation of snow is let only above the snow line
below Which the yearly snow nelts awaJ aud disap'
peas, anw ,,,4 .,o
sures in ahe uacar ~ % tnls network OF MS
my experiments upon the glacier Aar have abmn1,,
anty proved and that the assures themselves exist
Know e n uepn ca tn Two & nun ired aid hy feet also
course take place even if the internal nrsraur m
OF the glacier should never fall below 81 degrees
re nnr fh tS f Ge:a that the tempera
and therf ire no phenomenal dep ~pon s",s Sra
9eSree i OF cold can take place beyond very super
posed to penerate nave Soweyer y eG Sup Sup
which seem to me irreconcllable with the assumn
ton.
En- IN tne absence OF dreet tnermometric obserya-
Of the glacier coud he Tetesmimed t
all its parts we are certainl iustified in "a nm;na no
that parti l o. waterloo found in the eiacier
the formation OF which cannot be astribed to The
auro oi % que 70 the !nnaence o. tempr-
idaton. The taet that he i,s consoi
has been proved by actual experiment to fall AZ low
as 2s degrees, that is, degrees below the freezing
snaw W e "epn 1t Tx est 6elow thick covering
temperature at greater de5tb is SereinIv ver ere
| significant. '
m. -. .,c
| .. Si'r, Ineleoio VI rIoiesSor ASaSslzs
;n.y " SIaei:l q hotlon 70 Tue inniIrailon OF
trea.;,,n.. any anu us eApansion iu CONSEQUENT on
1o. anu aiong Win tniS Iorce, THE ten
;r,Hr S,rc S 10y ooules W snue GOWN siop-
ms.s ;c sub;ootad Z nu LIZ PRESSURE 70 %nic4 the
A%oss;5 ba: tL,,s ~ ~ onwalu. Tro'
~ ~ oal JuuSuient, eolne near
Sf r1an;oI ,.t;o. .ta y, onls SIeaI prooieh
b. 'ns.n noSi1n n Inan an! oiner writer. he
Will AZ 81 ".a LIZ, 'Isen'sus ;aetS conhecteq
| tbinl, IN +ha 80 ~ ~, ,,a.a1;.; I oIeu'
- IN. - o,sa oaS - W "I.Ae'iUn ~. Vi .le". AZ
other wr;Iers 1'nS " 4uUSG sue oPinl1hs OF
;s reo,,;site =, .ne 'u?lec., anu al tnat
ha tonnS IN Trndoms nOM " Hpne siaGlerS may
W Az AJnN"'' o''ioi' Vi 'ue APPS
Ine SUBJECT OF the lnhltration OF water as
imagined by frof. Agasslz, IS totally INSULT
clent TO account for the swelling OF the gla- |
cler uurihS tne warmer season OF the year. |
as last as the waters form they are running |
OH, and escape without rendering the glacial |
mass any essential assistance towards ITS ex-
pan'ion. pa, Anc s neeAns at nlSnt cannot pc OF
10y . eas 81 tneleloie, as IL Is
lnoSIy oonnmeu " :ue surface oi the glacier;
anu wnat iaiS into IT'S INSURED deptns, mostly
ESCAPES celore IL can De camSht Oy the cry
Iahzlns ioIces OF 'roSt' Inc Professor also
says tnat ire weight OF the giscler IS nearl y |
n; LIE e1n De Ine oase W'n!er Is Ine season OF
ts s'Ioar I siomaa, anu ,loni lts Heve region 10
oncb mo donsar fron, 'Ie ;.s "asS muso De very
s ~ u1n'cl ioni no n9IVesc VI Winter
:. 70 .nen ooinpact, irozeu nlass,
omin5 ~ allS IunnnS MA.er upon its SURFACE.
oioa:a % 'ue Sno" lelts anu tne
,aI1er psa ssOeus' nov nov !. tae innltlatlng waters
Voc b1 aro hIu ~ Escape llo[l Ine
,naI, ah, Du' sie eon.eiteu @ inIo ice' tne glacier
ouShI w US HCdNICl JucIcuy, duu Tue
ur Ru1 iii al ~ tho oe uue sapy 70 tns cause.
cier "nn,,t;,,o - ,,i,." a'.e . y. .nS Sla
s,,,,.nr tIa " niuo vi 'Hn eeI uutin9
Tar,y, waathar Iasts III" ~ se,..; mnne ZIG
,nator oo.,'o. s., "a. i;.aj iu'laIion VI
&c oooo,n+ -. th;s ,oi,;,e D.'. nu 80
,rSa,, thara :. ,'a .h;o ;eI.Sa.. 81
Wn ny noue Vi tn,s mLitlation,
tne slacier mas motlon w reiatlve TO tnat oil
SUMMER sul as threc 70 i've. ms inotlon tnere
lore cannoI originate irom ihnitratlon ana
coIseialioh VI wafer.
Lei US suppose tnaG some OF tne Valieys OF
ueep lahe peus VI VIC country were in tne
p.oreoS =. oS VIC oopioas ,anS y,
snoM eseiy ,I uay II .ne year, anu, anu tmae at
NJ IT, s,1 Sin enPera'ure was au1ve % oeg'
-, ,,o f. fanio i y. .1e mass up
~ He ;t ~; poiuou moula siauuany eol-
s, sei1 s' ~ in.o iee' anu .slS pressure "oulu 20
VI III .,enIlo ISIS 'o"aius .o uppei ou'aeo
aaao-.;,,ss vns - tL.",' "S 80 pleseolS
3D. WSn w Sn1oly lu .ne eApetnenes VI
render 4 denser and denriva If Of ;ts ,,orroal
he at at 40 deo. In other words tbe ;ca
would oine ont heat which of conrse woniS
he converted into motion Its temneratnre
woud he Io,,ered. as nressnre Increased and
its heat. or elements Of motion. wonld he in
proportion. If this ice.bed law in a walled
valley. with an e1ress towards any point of
the COMPASS. the motion of EXPANSION
tbrouoh tha AGENCY of tbis heat xvould no al
rected to this polnt. The rocky rim of this
basin would resist the deep expansion in
eyery other direction- as a fulcrum. and il
would thus he converted into direct motion.
There would he mo infiItration throuohont
the mass to originate motion Inv freezin0 as
suggested by Prof Aeassiz. TvndalI,s "li1nid
LAYERS" would Weld up their heat as fast
as they were born, and would then return
back into the ice-mass by reconciliation.
The structure would be solid crystalline body.
until motion had existed ior sometime to
rend and sbatter the mass. Itis NOT neces-
sarv TO call in the agency of gravity acting
unon an inclined plane, nor coneealing wa
trrs diffused throuoheut the mass. The SIM
nIa vet wonderful bower of heat is quite sut |
tfcient for Glacier motion in this case: and it
;s evident that it must have originated in The |
Arst nlace. ere waters could have access 10 |
tbe unbroken body, after this manner in the |
GREAT Glacier that once covered so large a |
Sortion OF North America in ancient times. |
oo,,s;dor how +h;s ;,o- -hod ,,o,,d |
Loe US ~" SoA' ~ - . - - N