58 WAITING IN THE WILDERNESS 



Often a stream cuts or works along behind a 

 rocky ridge as though keeping out of sight while 

 hunting for an easy way through the hill. Many 

 a time it does find a break and speedily cuts 

 through. 



I told the geologist I had been among the 

 seven hills of Rome. He said these were of 

 one watershed which had been cut in pieces by 

 streams. He did not recall any piracy there. 

 After a long day with him I crossed over into 

 Virginia to have a look at a few water gaps. 



Stream piracy is common. Only a few miles 

 from my home a pirate did recent beheading. 

 In several places I have seen where only a thin 

 ridge separated the heads of two streams and 

 each was digging away after the other with all 

 its might. In rambling over the country I have 

 frequently found that the present drainage sys- 

 tem has largely been made by piracy of the past. 

 Many of the big rivers of to-day have grown 

 large by having been pirate river robbers in their 

 early days. In camping on the headwaters of 

 the Delaware and the Potomac rivers I found 

 unusually interesting cases of piracy and be- 

 headings. Originally these rivers were wholly 

 on the front side of the Appalachian Mountains, 

 but they found breaks, worked through and on 

 the back side of the mountains, and captured 

 the headwaters of I know not how many streams; 



