BIG SPRING PRAIRIE. we 
Lobelia Kalmii—(Kalm’s Lobelia, or Brook Lo- 
belia); 
Lobelia syphylitica—(Blue Lobelia, or Great Lo- 
belia); 
Lobelia cardinalis—(Cardinal flower); 
The following plants were more rarely found upon 
it than in later years 
Rosa carolina—(Swamp rose); 
Salix (various species)——-(Willows); 
Urtica gracilis—(Slender Nettle). 
Ordinary weeds from cultivated ground were not 
found growing upon it. 
Trees were much less common on prairie in 1833 
than in later years. ‘They occurred only on the old 
clay islands, the sand dunes, and along the margin of 
the prairie where muck was quite thin. On the por- 
tions covered with sedges and grasses, no seedling trees 
made their appearance. 
The first trees to make their appearance were the 
Willows, Poplars, Eln:s, and Soft Maples. On the sand- 
dunes oaks had already made their appearance in 1833. 
DRAINAGE OF THE PRAIRIE-PAST AND PRESENT. 
From the configuration of the territory embraced 
in area represented in accompanying map, and from 
the arrangement and depth of the drift material in the 
various portions, one would be justified in inferring 
that the preglacial drainage of this section differed ma- 
terially from the one in post-glacial times. 
The portion of Big Spring Prairie between Carey 
.and Springville, and included between North Ridge 
and West Ridge, presents a striking resemblance to an 
old river valley, which might repay investigation by 
the geologists of the state, who have made extensive 
investigations along this line in other portions of the 
state. If this surmise in regard to old river bed is cor- 
rect, as the evidences seem to indicate, the drift mater- 
