THE CLYDE SERIES OP SOILS. 25 



former existence of small glacial lakes, ponds, and succeeding swamps 

 within upland areas or associated with other glacial lake deposits. 

 In the chief occurrence along the terraces of the Kankakee River, 

 in northern Indiana, the Clyde fine sand has been formed as a sandy 

 deposit of the glacial predecessor of the present river, whose flood 

 plain was many miles in width and probably consisted of ponded 

 glacial waters at one or more stages of the development of the drain- 

 age way. It would be unusual to encounter such a large area of such 

 uniformly assorted sand in the channel of any very active stream 

 and it is more probable that the present channel represents stream 

 excavation followed by the ponding of water and the deposition of 

 the sand as sorted material derived from a variety of sources and 

 laid down to some extent by the tributary streams as well as by the 

 major stream which later occupied the valley. 



The Clyde fine sand, in Newton County, Ind., occupies a strip of 

 territory south of the Kankakee River, having a breadth of 10 to 12 

 miles. It extends across the boundaries of the county both to the 

 east and to the west and a similar strip of soil is found on the north 

 bank of the river. The area surveyed in Newton County comprises 

 only a small proportion of the total area of the type as it occurs 

 along the Kankakee River. 



Near the river the surface of the Clyde fine sand lies at elevations 

 of only 5 to 10 feet above the normal stream level. There is a gentle 

 rise away from the river which rarely amounts to more than 1 or 

 2 feet per mile and the appearance of the river terrace is that of a 

 very level plain which is only relieved through the irregular occur- 

 rence of sandy ridges, rising in the form of old shore lines or sand 

 dunes above the general level. These have altitudes of 10 to 30 feet 

 above the surrounding plain. It is along the flanks of these ridges 

 that the Clyde fine sand reaches its highest elevations above the 

 river and where it was best drained under natural conditions. Shal- 

 low depressions are also found in' the plain within which the swampy 

 conditions have so long persisted that accumulations of peat or muck 

 were formed, having a depth of a few inches to many feet. Other- 

 wise the broad, nearly level river terrace is occupied chiefly by the 

 Clyde fine sand. 



For a long period of time, during- the settlement of the region, 

 the plain occupied by the Clyde fine sand remained in a swampy and 

 almost impassable condition. More recently extensive ditches have 

 been opened by the counties involved and into these the local farm 

 drainage is led. In the majority of instances the drainage is still 

 accomplished by open ditch, but a beginning has been made in the 

 tile underdrainage of the land. This should be extended over the 

 entire area, since it is the only permanent and completely satisfactory 

 55812°— Bull. 141—14 1 



