Great North American Lakes. 85 



of Michilimackinac, and mentions the fact, that in passing 

 that strait, his canoe was carried with the current against a 

 head wind.'''' In another place, in speaking of an apparent 

 flux and reflux of the lakes, he supposes that it was " owing 

 to the springs at the bottom of the lakes, and to the shock 

 of their currents, with those of the rivers, which fall into 

 them from all sides, and thus produce, those intermitting 

 motions."* 



"In 1819, Capt. Henry Whiting, of the United States army, 

 made a series of observation during seven or eight days, 

 upon these oceanic appearances, which serve to shew, that 

 the water at Green Bay, has a rise and tall daily, but that 

 it is irregular as to the precise period of flux and reflux, and 

 also as to the height it attams. 



" On reaching Green Bay, during the present expedition, 

 Gov. Cass, directed one of the men, to drive a stake at the 

 waters edge, upon the bank of Fox river, at the spot of our 

 encampment, which was a mile above its discharge into the 

 bay, and to mark the height of the water. It appeared from 

 frequently inspecting this gauge, during the period of our 

 stay, which was, however, but two days, that there was a 

 considerable rise and fall of the water — that there was a 

 difference as to the time consumed in passing from its mini- 

 mum to its maximum height, and that although it arose 

 against a strong wind blowing out of the river, the rise, un- 

 der these circumstances was less, than in ordinary cases. 



"From all these circumstances there is reason to conclude, 

 that a well conducted series of experiments, will prove, that 

 there are no regular tides in the lakes, at least, that they do 

 not ebb and flow twice in twenty-four hours, like those of 

 the ocean — the oscillating motion of the waters is not attrib- 

 utable to planetary attraction — that it is very variable as to 

 the periods of its flux and reflux, depending upon the levels 

 of the several lakes, their length, deplh, direction, and con- 

 formation — upon the prevalent winds and temperatures, and 

 upon other extraneous causes, which are in some measure 

 variable in their nature, and unsteady in their operation. 



" Lake Michigan, from its great depth of water — its bleak 

 and ungarded shores — and its singular length and direction, 

 which is about four hundred miles from north to south, ap- 

 pears, to be peculiarly exposed to the influence of the cur- 



^ Charlevoix's Journal, Vol, I. p. 314. 



