THE FARMERS* REGISTER. 



41 



moisture, with that depression of temperature that 

 60 ol'ten accompanies showery weather. Drouglue, 

 indeed, sometimes occur ; but jjenerally our driest 

 summers are the most productive. This result in 

 great pari, however, lias been ascribed to the libe- 

 ral supply of lime in our soil — not the carbonate, 

 as we miirht have called it, if the ' Essay on Cal- 

 careous Manures' had not taught us better. 



But an extract from 'Davy's Agricultural 

 Chemistry' may render my meaning plainer : 

 " The sandstone and limestone hills in Derby- 

 shire and North Wales may be easily distinguished 

 at a distance in summer by the diHerent tints of 

 vegetation. The grass on the sandstone hills 

 usually appears brown and burnt vp ; that on the 

 limestone hills, flourishing and green.^^ 



Our state geologists have considered this dis- 

 trict as belonging to the transition class ; and the 

 rock ihat occurs in place in this vicinity is Profes- 

 BorH. D. Rogers' Formation VIH., which extends 

 eo widely over the United States. It is in this 

 rock that all our parallel lakes, Irom the Otisco to 

 Jake Erie, are situated. 



When disintegrated it forms rather an inferior 

 soil ; but the soil and subsoil of this neighborhood 

 have been swept from the limestone Ibrmation 

 that crops out to the north of us ; and thus the 

 land has been ready limed to our hands by a con- 

 vulsion of nature. In many places, however, ad- 

 dition would be found useful and profitable for the 

 farmer. 



This soft and crumbling slate appears to have 

 been deeply and irregularly channeled previous to 

 the deposition of the diluvial formation. This is 

 evident from the wells which are dug. The slate 

 itself, so far as I have been able to observe, yields 

 no water; and all that the wells receive, is collected 

 above the solid rock. In some places, the rock is 

 near to the surface ; and the only advantage of 

 cutting into it is to make a reservoir. In other 

 places it is at unknown depths, covered up by di- 

 luvium ; and then a permanent supply of water 

 may be obtained. Two wells within half a mile 

 of this spot, are nearly filty leet deep, without 

 touching the rock, and the water is abundant. 



On account of the smoothness of the surface, 

 as well as the impenetrable nature of this rock to 

 water, very few springs break forth in this neigh- 

 borhood ; and the prospect of forming Artesian 

 wells is decidedly unfavorable. 



The surface of the country in general is so 

 smooth that travellers in passing from the village 

 of Aurora, eastward four miles, to Poplar ridge, 

 are seldom aware of the height they have gained. 

 One gentleman thought the land was too level to 

 be salubrious, and estimated the elevation of that 

 ridge above the lake at one hundred and twenty 

 feet ; yet it is known to be six hundred and 

 seventy by an actual admeasurement made at my 

 request. 



The general dip of the rocky strata is to the 

 south. In the disturbances which happened when 

 the basins of our lakes were cleared out, the slate, 

 from its softness, suffered much more than the 

 hmestone, so that the latter rock appears to have 

 regulated the depth of those basins, and now un- 

 derlays them. The lower end of the Cayuga 

 lake extends about six miles through a limestone 

 district, in which the water is probably not more 

 than thirty feet deep. The comparative shallow- 

 ness of Lake Erie is also ascribed to the same 

 Vol. IX.-3 1 



limestone formation, but Lake Ontario was form- 

 ed in the red shale that underlays liie limestone. 

 In sailing up the Cayuga lake, however, as 

 soon as we pass the limestone, and the elate ap- 

 pears on the shore, it deepens rapidly, su that the 

 eye in cal.Ti sunshine is no lunger able to difcern 

 the bottom. Opposite to Aurora, the greatest 

 depth was (bund to be two hundred and eighty, 

 two feet ; but I have no doubt of its being much 

 deeper further up the lake. At Aurora the vvidlli 

 is more than three miles. 



It is rather rarely that the lake freezes over at 

 this place, although we have known several in- 

 stances of the kind — only once, however, when iho 

 ice was strong enough lor persons to pass over to 

 the opposite shore. It is well known Ihat shallow 

 water freezes over much sooner than deep water ; 

 and this remark applies lo all our lakes. The 

 shallow part of the Cayuga lake is frozen over 

 every winter. 



This lake appears to have once extended (en 

 miles further to the north, of variable width, en- 

 croached on by islands, and averaging perhapa 

 nearly two miles. This tract is now one vast 

 bed of marl of unknown depth. A kind of fresh 

 water snail, (perhaps a Lymnea,) which may now 

 inhabit the lake, as its shells are found on tho 

 shore, continued to increase till the exuviae ap- 

 proached the surface of the water, and marsh 

 plants began to grow. Other shells, however, 

 probably form a part of this immense mas?, which 

 might supply a large portion of the district with 

 marl forages to come. The posts which support 

 the Cayuga bridge — one mile up (he lake and cne 

 mile in length across it, — were driven into (his 

 deposite, which is so pure that our first selllera 

 used it for white washing. 



I have mentioned that we are not indebted to 

 the rock that underlays us lor our soil?, but to the 

 country north. The flood that once swept over 

 this land, came from that direction, and brought 

 in its train, not only portions of all the rocky strata 

 that crop out on this side of Lake Ontario, but 

 many primitive rocks from the elevated lands be- 

 yond its northern shore in Upper Canada. Whe- 

 ther Xhcy forded or navigated that water, may be 

 a question for the curious ; but no doubt can exist 

 of their arrival from that quarter. All the whole 

 diluvial formation was southward in its course. 



Most of these stones or rocks, which are scat- 

 tered over all our fields, are rounded, though thia 

 is in some measure proportional to the distances 

 they have travelled, — those of this district not 

 more than a furlong or so, south of their old beds, 

 retaining their angles. 



The difi'erence in the size of these fragments, 

 is sometimes very great. I estimated one piece 

 of granite near Montezuma at 3000 cubic feet, 

 and it appeared to rest on a bed of sand. 



The course of this deluae was up an inclined plane, 

 rising over the highest hills, and passing into the 

 valley of the Susquehanna. That river at Owe- 

 go is 410 feet higher than the Cayuga lake ; and 

 ^he lowest opening in the hills between them is 

 594 leet ; yet fragments of our rocks have passed 

 into Pennsylvania, though much worn and re- 

 duced in size. In early limes, the gravel along the 

 shores of that river was picked over, and lime- 

 stone pebbles collected in sufficient quantities to 

 burn into lime for domestic purposes. These were 

 not found, however, more than twenty miles down 



