Spencer.] '^'^^ [March 18. 



cial lakes that are formed are those where pre-existing valleys have been 

 closed by morainic matter, but the waters will soon reopen these dams by 

 running over them. 



Such are the deductions of the late Director of the Geological Survey of 

 California, a man who has had opportunities for studying the action of 

 glaciers better than most geologists in America. So far. Prof. Whitney's in- 

 vestigations are applicable to our great lakes, though I do not agree with 

 him that some of them occupy geological valleys (unless possibly Lake 

 Superior). 



Mr, George. J. Hinde, F. G. S., one of the few geologists who has writ- 

 ten from a Canadian standpoint, is an uncompromising glacialist. Because 

 he has seen scratches in the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, and also 

 others in a similar direction at the western end of the lake, therefore he 

 asserts that Lake Ontario was excavated by a glacier. Dr. Newberry ac- 

 cepts his statement as proof, but considers that a Preglacial valley deter- 

 mined the direction of the continental glacier. 



Mr. Hinde also asserts his belief that the buried valley of the Niagara 

 river (by way of St. David's) as also the valleys at Dundas and Owen sound, 

 are of glacier origin. We have proved in this paper incontrovertibly that 

 the Dundas valley is a buried river channel. Also it has been seen that 

 Owen Sound and the St. David's valley are both beds of Preglacial or In- 

 terglacial rivers. 



Let us analyze the direction ot the ice scratches in the neighborhood of 

 the western end of Lake Ontai'io. I have not seen any (out of very many 

 sets), that is parallel with the axis of either the Dundas valley (except possi- 

 bly one polished surface in the valley), or the axis of the lake, but always 

 at considerable angles. In the region of Kingston, the prevailing scratches 

 are S. 45° W. (Bell) and some others at S. 85° W, neither of which direc- 

 tions are parallel with the axis of the lake. Granted that Mr. Hinde 

 observed scratches that were parallel with the axis of the lake, they of 

 necessity would have been at an angle with the submerged escarpment. If 

 any glacier could have scooped out the basins of Lake Ontario, it left the 

 summit edges of tlie Niagara escarpment as sharp as possible, and not 

 planed off. Also, if it excavated the deep trough of the lake, it left a sum- 

 mit of soft Medina shales over the harder Hudson River rocks of the sub- 

 merged escarpment, beneath which are Utica shales. From Dundas to the 

 Georgian bay the face of the escarpment (Niagara) is less abrupt, but even 

 here, there has not been left more than 50 feet of drift at its foot, and this 

 mostly, if not altogether, stratified (excepting in channels now buried). 



The observations of Prof. Prof. H. Y. Hind, on the coast of Labrador, 

 are here interesting. He has shown that pan ice, at the present time, is 

 polishing the sides of cliffs, and li^s been continuing its action whilst the 

 coast has been rising several hundred feet. Even under the ledges of over- 

 hanging rocks the action is now going on (a phenomenon which, if in the 

 lake region, would be attributed to glaciers). Also, he has seen boulder 

 clay being formed at the present time by the action of pan ice (frozen sea- 



