62 Major saiiiaae on the Rise and Fall of the Lakes. 
clusion that there was still much room for further — 
as all the Lakes did not appear to be always governed by simul- 
taneous influences ;* and therefore, that the only chance oy ar- 
riving at a correct ‘knowledge of the state of the whole matter, 
would be the adoption of some such course of long continued 
meteorological and tidal observations throughout the country, as 
that which I ventured to propose in my las st 
servations, as the more important branch of the great object in 
contemplation, I propose to confine myself, on the present occa- 
sion, to the no less interesting, though minor, part of the under- 
takin embieine at the institution of a simultaneous record of the 
daily variations in the level of the great Lakes, with the view of , 
throwing light on, and, if possible, deciding, the three following 
doubtful points: 1st, How far there is any foundation for the tra- 
ditional report, that there is a septennial rise and fall in the wa- 
ters of the Lakes, and if so, to what height; and whether such 
phenomenon takes place in all the Lakes simultaneously or oth- 
erwise. 2d, The amount of the better known annual variations 
in the level of the different Lakes; and how far these changes 
occur in each at the same time; and whether they are solely due 
to the annual amount of the rain and snow in the surroundiug 
country, compared with that of the evaporation during the sum- 
, How far the daily or other more frequent oscillations, or. 
irregular tides, observable in the different Lakes, are general, and 
arise from the temporary force and direction of winds passing 
over their surface, or are peculiar only to certain localities ; and 
whether they are in any sensible degree influenced by atmos- 
pheric pressure, or lunar attraction, or “otherwise. All which, it 
is hoped, would in the course of time be satisfactorily decided, 
by a daily record of the actual level of the Lakes, combined 
with that of the prevailing winds and weather, at a fixed number 
of stations, at hours simultaneous with the other meteorological 
observations. 
aking it, at all events, for granted that such will be the case, 
I proceed, as an indispensable preliminary step, to take a diseur- 
sive view of a yet debateable state of the question, as brought 
home to my mind by a comparison of the casual observations 
made by myself on Lake Erie, compared with the recorded opin- 
ions expressed by others, possessing either greater ability, or 
more leisure and better opportunities, for proseenting such an en- 
quiry,—as far as the very miscellaneous and disjointed memo- 
randa lated by me will enable me to do so. 
or i ml be vena Ramtninnet es tabular view of the Rise and Fall 
t 
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