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destruction ; and says, " The line of this subterranean 

 fire runs north west and south east, affecting strongly 

 the direction of the sea and lake Ontario." The lat- 

 ter of which, to cap the climax, he considers, on ac- 

 count of its great depth, as bearing the most indubita- 

 ble criteria of its having been the great focus of a 

 volcano ; for he observes, " From these circumstances, 

 the inference is clear, that the bed of the lake (Onta- 

 rio,) is the crater of an extinguished volcano." And 

 as a confirmation of this he further observes, " This 

 conclusion is strengthened by the many volcanick sub- 

 stances found upon its shores, and of which skilful 

 eyes, would, no doubt, discover many other speci- 

 mens."* 



What the nature and character of the substances are, 

 of which the shores of Ontario abound, and which are 

 said to bear the marks of volcanick origin, no one that 

 1 know of, has, as yet, undertaken to give a descrip- 

 tion ; neither are we better informed of the " numerous 

 remains" of volcanoes, that are said, by the same au- 

 thor, to exist on the Alleghany mountains. f 



If the lapis suillis or foeted carbonate of lime con- 

 stituted the numerous remains, of which Mr. Volney 

 speaks, he doubtless may have seen, on this ridge, the 

 greatest abundance ; and which, it is believed, bears as 

 close a resemblance to volcanick products, as that of 

 any other that can be found there, since the whole 



* Volney's View of America, p. 99. t Do. page 100. 



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