The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1908-02-09
SMITHSONIAN EXPEDITION
To the Glaciers Of the Canadian Rockies and
.Selkirks.

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about q dozen short ice streams. each
OF which retains its Identity more or
less perfectly entirely ecross the
glacier, and maintains It's own nose
and motion Independently Of its
neighbors. To those who do not fully
appreciate all the factors OF the prob
lem IL Is frequently matter Of sur
prise that a glacier in one valley.
may be in retreat while that In an
adjacent valley may be Advancing. as
has Just been the case IN the Asv'kan
and NIllecillewaet valleys; but in the
case OF the wenkchemma there Is still
more varied behavior in streams that
are side by side almost throughout
their length.
Interesting facts as to just how g,a-
ciers flow are set forth. FLOW" Is o
good word to describe their motion
Glacial ice to all appearances solid. IL
under certain circumstances plastic
and II river of water can be con-
ceived that moves In inches instead OF
miles, such a river would resemble
very closely glacier. The experiment
of setting up eighteen metal plates
In a., direct line across the Victoria
glacier, third of a mile, showed a
total movement in 423 days varying
from seventy-six feet In mid stream
TO about an ich on the sides, an aver
| age of q little over two inches a day
near the center and dwindling to-
ward each bank. This means a flow
in the swiftest part OF about sixty-six
| feet a year.
on either side and in front OF each
| are the usual glacial moraines OF
| mounds OF broken rock and gravel
either pushed up or deposited by the
ice In melting. The constant race be
| tween the melting forces and the flow
| OF the Ice stream, to determines wheth-
/ err the great mass shall invade new
/ territory or be forced to give ground
/ IL not the least interesting. Mcclure.
/ ments in every case were made from
! stationary marks to the nose Of the
| glaciers, resulting In the conclusions
i above, stated, that some were advnnc
/ Ing and others receding.
i Complete surveys.
/ Complete surveys were obtained o
i each glacier from the highe nevo fields
4 where the snow, avalanched two thous
| and feet from the mountain peaks
4 first begins to compress into giacia
ice, along the compact mass itsei
several miles. to the rounded nose, ant
its drainage streams running dow
/ usually to lake and then off in
river. The term "ice waves seems
strange zone, yet that Is correct de
scription for the rolling masses or 10
that take from thirty-six to fort,
years for complete oscillation. Dat
interesting to biologists were obtaine'
in regard to the flowing of one 10
river into another. Likewise IN
| Significance of bands of dirt across tn
ice face, and OF zones and stripes les
regular in their formation was worke
out. The twistings and turnings
the ice strata, the Intrusion of dykes
the making of crevasses, and man
similar to the action Of the earth
crust itself were 'recorded and studied
NFmke-up and tssKfIOvvo of the Glaciers.
Particular Investigation made OF en-
structure Of glacial ice revealed micro
seopic granuleg not welded togethe
but closely locked. Each granule !
q tiny ice crystal belonging to tn
hexagonal system OF minerals and Il
quantity has rich blue color, b!
Transmitted light. Considering TN,
hexagonal shape OF the ice granules
the glacier can ''flow" In many direc
tions without breaking the crystals
and upon this DR.. Sherzer bases hi
conclusions as to the movement OF tn
glaciers. He says "that under certain
conditions and within certain limits ics
is capable Of behaving as plastic
body, that 10. capable OF yielding con
i tinuousIy to stress without rupture
but "the Elasticity OF fee. crystalline
substance. must be thought as essen
1 TALLY different from that manifested
| by such hfiorphous substances as wax
or asphaltum."
Causes Of ExquisIte Coloring.
The causes OF the exquisite richness
and variety Of coloring seen In glaciers
| and glacial lakes which can not be re-
produced in o colored photograph and
which eludes the brush Of the most
elk illed artist, are considered as q con-
eiusion to DIR. SherZer's memoir He
tried. by mixing solutions OF copper
and nickel sulphate with pure water,
to reproduce the blue-green Of Lake
Louise. the green of Emerald Lake, and
| the intense blue Of Moraine Lake.
| From experiments he, observed that
''the colors with the longer wave
| lengths, as yellow, orange and red. are
| absorbed IL passed through water OF
SUFFICIENT thickness. While OF the col
ors at the other end Of the spectrum
with the short wave-lengthss blue 10
| the one which water is chiefly able to
transmit, violet and green being also
| transmitted. but less perfectly. Bodies
| Of pure water of a volume SUFFICIENT to
absorb the longer waves Of light reflect
| ed from the bottom, but not so deep az
to absorb 1t all, will appear blue. This
blue is not reflected from the sky, al
though the. condition Of the sky will
| affect .the tint. Water in the form Of
| ice possesses still the same power "a
transmit the coIors with the shorter
wave lengths, violet. indigo, blue and
| green. with the preference for blue.
| II a mixture of these four colors, oil
| all Of the others which compound white
light, be passed through block OF pure
| ice Of sufficient thickness. none but this
blue will emerge. If no light whatever
| is being transmitted through either
| ice or water. 1t will look black, or Will
show whatever color Of light Is being
| reflected from its surface"
OF course, in the form of foam Of
snow. where many tiny surfaces act Al
refiectors all colors are seen, and gla
! ciRl drainage streams, loaded with sed
/ iment, generally appear a milky
creamy white or a dirty gray. But tn,
glacial lakes. deep and clear. maintain
a rich natural blue, which shades int
green only as foreign matter finds IT.
| vUav dnun from the lofty Dhaka