Pushing On Next Day, I Climbed To The Top Of The Glacier By Ice-Steps
And Along Its Side To The Grand Cataract Two Miles Wide Where The
Whole Majestic Flood Of The Glacier Pours Like A Mighty Surging
River Down A Steep Declivity In Its Channel.
After gazing a long time
on the glorious show, I discovered a place beneath the edge of the
cataract
Where it flows over a hard, resisting granite rib, into which
I crawled and enjoyed the novel and instructive view of a glacier
pouring over my head, showing not only its grinding, polishing action,
but how it breaks off large angular boulder-masses - a most telling
lesson in earth-sculpture, confirming many I had already learned in
the glacier basins of the High Sierra of California. I then crossed
to the south side, noting the forms of the huge blocks into which
the glacier was broken in passing over the brow of the cataract,
and how they were welded.
The weather was now clear, opening views according to my own heart
far into the high snowy fountains. I saw what seemed the farthest
mountains, perhaps thirty miles from the front, everywhere
winter-bound, but thick forested, however steep, for a distance of
at least fifteen miles from the front, the trees, hemlock and spruce,
clinging to the rock by root-holds among cleavage joints. The
greatest discovery was in methods of denudation displayed beneath
the glacier.
After a few more days of exhilarating study I returned to the
river-bank opposite Choquette's landing.
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