RIVER DEVELOPMENT 



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valley floor are roughly S-shaped and are called meanders, 

 from the name of a river in Asia Minor which was, in very 

 ancient time, noted for having such swinging curves. The 

 size of these curves will be proportional to the size of the 

 river. 



Great rivers like the Mississippi have a swing of several 

 miles, while a small stream may have a swing of only a 



RlVER MEANDERING IN ITS FLOOD PLAIN. 



few feet or rods. These meanders are continually chang- 

 ing their shape, owing to the cutting and filling. Since 

 they strike the bank with the greatest force on the down- 

 stream side of the curve,, they also move downstream 

 themselves. This can be seen from maps of the Missis- 

 sippi taken at different times. 



The meanders sometimes become so tortuous that the 



