Country South of YiDva. 281 



the foursf; of tlie 150 aiul 140 ft. contours, it will lie seen 

 that tlif little creek at Murruiiiheeiia takes the water from a long 

 liollow with a distinct north-wcsteily trend. This is the lower end 

 of valleys which head sonic distance lo the south-east, '^^riic pri'sent 

 outlet is a mile back from the north-west end, and is evidently 

 well able to cut deeper. It seems to 1)c clearly a new diversion of 

 the waters of a valley flowin<r noith-west. Immediately to the 

 south of this hollow is anotlu'r. also elongated in a north-westerly 

 direction, and making the down stream end of a valley from the 

 south-east. The present outlet is to the south-west, and again is a 

 mile back from the north-west end. The outlet is more developed 

 than in the other hollow. l)ut is still narrow compared with the 

 size of the liollow, and actually did not naturally drain it com- 

 pletely. Again it seems cleaily a new diversion. The ridge south- 

 west of this hollow, which is breached by the present otitlet. is a 

 well-defined ridge from the south end of Caulfield Racecourse to 

 the higher land east of Bentleigh. Nor does the country to the 

 Kouth-west further on show any sufficient evidence of an old valley 

 of Main Creek. There is indeed the southward tributary to the 

 Elsternwick Creek, but eventually a south-westerly sti-eam would 

 reach places where the north-west valleys and ridges run light aci'oss 

 its line. The idea of a south-wcst continuation of Main Creek wouhl 

 necessarily involve the suppositioTi that some character of the rocks 

 so strongly favoured easy excavation on the usual north-westerly 

 lines as to make an earlier south-west fall a matter of little conse- 

 quence, so that later valleys sometimes entered the old valley at an 

 acute angle, heading up stream. Nor does the general run of 

 the surface levels in Caulfield and Brighton favour the idea of an 

 old valley, even if a broad one. crossing this area. 



This argument evidently does not exclude the possibility of a 

 stream somewhere near .Main Creek before the emergence of the 

 land south of Gardiner's Creek, but this would be antecedent to 

 the development of the present topography. Such a streain may 

 possibly have had its mouth about this locality, but it might almost 

 equally have been anywhere else. 



It remains to find an explanation of the absence of any outlet to 

 these valleys to the north-west. They are not alone in this respect; 

 nn tlic same line are the flat \n Caulfield Racecourse, with a poor 

 outlet, and Paddy's Swamp. The most probable explanation seems 

 to be a continued or renewed warping of the surface subsequent to 

 the establishment of the present valley system. 



There is no doubt that the elevation was accompanied by defor- 

 mation of the surface. 



13 



