No. 5.] SPENCER — SURFACE GEOLOGY. 297 



slight curve through the city of Hamilton until it abuts against 

 the foot of the mountain, near the head of John street. Again, 

 in the vicinity of the city reservoir (at the same height) it com- 

 mences its course again and extends eastward. Occasionally 

 where the older deposits are higher, or the escarpment sends out 

 jutting ridges this terrace suddenly stops, but beyond, where 

 the same contour line ,is met, the beach is found. A terrace 

 northward of Toronto also occurs at a heifjht of 108-114 feet 

 above the lake, and near Burlino-ton at 118 feet. This terrace 

 formed an old beach, as is shown by the sorted and stratified 

 sands and gravels everywhere in the localities mentioned except 

 on the northern side of Dundas, or on the south-western side of 

 the Burlington heights. The pebbles of this beach contain a few 

 Laureotian rocks, but with this exception the whole of the mass 

 is made up of ruins of the rock of the Hudson river epoch. 

 These pebbles are well rounded and usually not more than six 

 inches in diameter, although in some places there are large 

 rounded slabs from one to two feet long. I have closely exam- 

 ined these deposits and have never seen any pebbles that appeared 

 to be of the Niagara formation. Though all the stones are not 

 fossiliferous (some arenaceous and some calcareous), yet a very 

 large number show the characteristic Hudson river fossils. In 

 this terrace, at Burliniiton heiu-hts, remains of the mammoth 

 wapiti and beaver have been found. 



Terrace at the Level of 70 feet. — Our next terrace is most 

 apparent in the Dundas valley, although occurring on the north- 

 ern side of the lake, and less conspicuously or more gently sloping 

 in Hamilton and eastward. This terrace occupies most of the 

 country beneath the escarpment from Beasley's hollow, at Ham- 

 ilton, westward, to near Dundas. Its nortliern side slopes 

 abruptly to the southern margin of the Dundas marsh. There is 

 also a terrace on the northern side of the town of Dundas, at the 

 same height (in the region of Victoria street and the driving- 

 park). The central portion of the city of Hamilton is on the 

 same terrace which, however, more gradually slopes to the lake 

 level than at Dundas. The height of this terrace is 70 feet. It 

 is composed below (where exposed) of blue (Erie) stratified clay. 

 Above, it is composed of a yellowish brown clay (the Saugeen 

 equivalent) which is inconspicuously stratified, but in the cut- 

 tings of the Hamilton and Dundas railway, we have seen that 

 the sand washes out and shows the stratification. Along the 

 Vol. X. T No. 5. 



