74. Hayes and Campbell—Appalachian Geomorphology. 
which remnants of its surface fall into a common plane of vision. This 
is the case whenever the observer stands upon the level of the old arena. 
He may then sweep with a glance the profile of a geographic condition 
which has long since passed away. 
Again, in speaking of its altitude and probable origin, he 
says: * 
We have recognized that dissected plain, the level of the Asheville 
amphitheater, now 2,400 feet above the sea. It was a surface produced 
by subaérial erosion, and as such it is evidence of the fact that the French 
Broad river and such of its tributaries as drain this area at one time com- 
pleted their work upon it, reached a baselevel. 
This baseleveled condition, as described by Willis on the 
French Broad, has been found to characterize nearly all the river 
valleys of the Great Smoky mountains and has been observed 
by the present writers on the Little Tennessee, Hiwassee and 
Ocoee rivers of the Tennessee system and on the Coosawattee 
and Etowah rivers of the Alabama system. The altitudes of 
the baseleveled valleys vary considerably, but on the whole 
show a gradual descent southwestward. Thus the altitude of 
the peneplain is 2,400 feet at Asheville, 2,200 feet on the Little 
Tennessee, 2,000 feet on the Hiwassee, 1,900 on the Ocoee and 
1,600 feet on the Coosawattee. The proportion of the surface 
which was reduced to baselevel also increases southwestward 
and in northern Georgia, in place of the baseleveled mountain 
valleys, most of the surface was reduced and adjacent river basins 
merge with low divides. Thus the upper basin of the Coosawat- 
tee and Etowah present to the eye the characteristic form of 
broad undulating plains partly enclosed by mountains and from 
which rise the gentle slopes of island-like monadnocks. In 
detail these plains are found to be deeply etched by the present 
streams, which flow in narrow recently-cut gorges several hun- 
dred feet below their general level. On the Etowah river and 
southward this enclosed valley type disappears and the pene- 
plain assumes a different form, which will be described later. 
Blue Ridge Type.—The writers are less familiar with the region 
northward from the French Broad river and the data for recon- 
structing the Cretaceous peneplain are less abundant. The 
topographic maps, however, show quite strong evidence of the 
existence of this peneplain in the region in question, though it 
“Op: (elt. ou 297. 
