6 BULLETIN No. 82. 



level of less than 100 feet, and has a flat to gently rolling topography. 

 The extreme northern part of the State lies in the Piedmont Plateau 

 Region, with an elevation varying between 100 and 438 feet above sea 

 level, and in general may be understood as that portion north of the 

 tracks of the Pennsylvania Railroad from Newark to Wilmington and 

 Philadelphia. In the Coastal Plain the streams are tidal estuaries for 

 a considerable distance back from their mouths, and flow through a 

 flat country with a sluggish current, while in the Piedmont section the 

 streams have considerable current, and flow through deep and narrow 

 gorges which they have cut for themselves. The accompanying map 

 indicates how the State is drained by streams flowing eastward into the 

 Delaware River and Bay, and westward into the Chesapeake Bay, 

 crossing the eastern shore of Maryland. The Coastal Plain region in 

 the State was originally very poorly drained and a large part of it 

 formerly upland swamp which has been gradually drained and con- 

 verted into fertile agricultural land. The Coastal Plain is character- 

 ized by several extensive broad level stretches lying at different eleva- 

 tions above sea. The general elevation of different portions of the 

 State is indicated on the map. The Piedmont region may be consid- 

 ered as identical with the portion indicated as Archean formation on 

 the map, while the remaining part belongs to the Atlantic Coastal 

 Plain. 



