THE UPPER OR HERMAX BEACHES. 319 



half mile northwest, its I'avine beiug fully 40 feet below the general level 

 of the beach and the land westward. Again, in the southwest quarter of 

 section 26 the beach is cut by a dry channel, the outlet in rainy weather 

 from a small slough. 



Through the west half of section 23, Ekbed, the beach is a low, 

 smoothly rounded ridge of sand and tine gravel, about half of which is 

 limestone and the rest granite or other Archean rocks. As in the 3 miles 

 next southward, it is largely composed of fine gravel, and pebbles abound, 

 often covering half the surface of the knolls made by gophers. Most of the 

 pebbles are less than an inch in diameter, but some measure. 2 and a few 

 3 inches. The elevation of this beach ridge is 1,092 to 1,100 feet; on the 

 north line of this section its height is 1,099 feet. A broad depression 3 to 

 5 feet below the beach borders its west side. Toward the east there is a 

 descent of about 10 feet in 25 or 30 rods, and thence a gradual slope sinks 

 to 1,060 or 1,050 feet within 1 to IJ miles. 



Undulating till in sections 22 and 15, Eldi'ed, 1,095 to 1,110 feet; crests 

 of prominently rolling till in the west edge of section 11 and the south 

 part of section 10, 1,115 to 1,125 feet; thence northwestward lower undu- 

 lating till has an elevation of only 1,090 to 1,100 feet for nearly 2 miles, 

 and rises quite slowly beyond. This somewhat irregular contour has 

 caused considerable diversity in the development of the beach, so that its 

 deposits are massed in unusual amount in some places, while elsewhere 

 they are deficient or wholly wanting. In the southwest quarter of the 

 southwest quarter of section 14, Eldred, a swell of gravel, with pebbles up 

 to 2 inches or rarely 3 inches in diameter, rises to 1,105 feet, extending 

 about 40 rods from south to north; and similar gravel, at 1,095 to 1,105 

 feet, occurs in the west part of the northwest quarter of section 23, west of 

 the distinct beach ridge. The northwest part of section 14 is a nearly flat 

 tract, having a subsoil of sand and tine gravel, with an elevation of 1,090 

 to 1,095 feet. A beach ridge extending south from the east side of a prom- 

 inent swell of till in the southwest quarter of section 11, at 1,086 to 1,089 

 feet, has a continuous depression of about 5 feet on its west side and is bor- 

 dered eastward by land 6 to 10 feet below its crest. In the northwest part 

 of this section 11 and the southeast part of section 3 the shore of Lake 



