OF DENISON UNIVERSITY. 33 



Stream has a fall of about 75 feet in its source to its gorge,the latter,Brush 

 creek, has a fall of about 121 feet from Cynthiana to its gorge. The 

 gorge of the former at E is 140 feet above the base of the drift at 

 Paint creek, and the gorge of Brush Creek is 85 feet above the base 

 of the drift at Paint creek. It it were possible to remove the drift from 

 these valleys it is evident that these streams would be reversed. The 

 fact is more striking when it is remembered that the bottom of the drift 

 at Paint creek is 150-200 feet above the preglacial bed of Paint valley. 



The conclusions which are drawn from the above facts are, that 

 prior to the advent of the ice, the present location of Beech Flats was 

 represented by a valley with numerous smaller tributary valleys, all 

 tributary to the valley of Paint Creek. The heads of these valleys 

 were at D, E, N, O, P, R, T, and V. At ail of these points were cols 

 connecting with adjacent drainage basins. As the ice advanced south- 

 ward, planing and filling, it made the great drift plain of northern 

 Ross and Highland counties and of Pickaway, Fayette, Franklin and 

 Madison and other counties to the northward as its comparatively 

 level ground moraine. It reached across the preglacial valley of Paint 

 creek west of Bainbridge and pushed a great tongue of ice into Beech 

 Flats valley. As this tongue advanced into this valley it divided 

 again and again sending fingers along the tributary valleys clear to 

 their head waters. Under these ice fingers was deposited the drift 

 of the Beech Flats as a ground moraine. The spur which first sepa- 

 rated from the main stream of ice crossed the col at D and probably 

 joined the main mass of the ice sheet beyond Barrett's Mills. The 

 next spur passes up the valley west of Cynthiana. The next spur 

 passed up the next tributary valley to M. The main axis of move- 

 ment continued beyond K to O, as shown by the till and boulders be- 

 yond the exit of Brush creek. 



Large volumes of water were formed from the melting of these 

 ice masses, for however much of rigor is attributed to the climate of 

 the glacial period to account for the ice age, yet it seems evident that 

 the margin of the ice extended beyond the line of perpetual snow and 

 mean annual temperature of 32° F. into a temperate climate. The 

 limit of the extent of the ice was determined by its rate of marginal melt- 

 ing as opposed to its rate of flow and supply of material by precipitation. 

 The waters formed in the Beech Flats valleys found two oudets. One 

 taking the water from the ice mass in the valley west of Cynthiana 

 developed the gorge by cutting down the col at E. The main 



