1916] FORSAITH—ALLOCTHONOUS PEAT 45 
lake is small in diameter, the water level is permanent and deep, 
thus affording excellent opportunity for the accumulation of alloc- 
thonous peat. The first series of samples were taken at a point 
about 100 yards from shore, where the deposit proved to be 10 
feet in depth and situated under 8 feet of water. The bottom sam- 
ples present a deep brown plastic appearance, in which there is 
no coarse material with the exception of a slight admixture of sand, 
which disappears a few inches from the floor. There occurs an 
exception to this uniformly fine plastic condition 2 feet from the 
base in the form of a light brown herbaceous peat 2 feet in depth. 
Apparently, when the character of the formation of the lake is 
considered, this sudden variation in the composition of the peat 
was caused by the opening of an underground outlet, which allowed 
the water to escape and rendered the lake sufficiently shallow to 
permit the growth of aquatic marsh plants. This is quite a common 
occurrence in this region, of which condition the Alachua .sink 
(locally known as Paynes Prairie) near Gainesville furnishes a good 
example. To quote directly (4, p. 27): 
The Alachua sink is important because it illustrates some of the changes 
which sink holes undergo. In the early days of the state this sink, which 
receives the drainage of a large stream crossing Paynes Prairie, appears to 
have been in about the same condition as it is today; later, owing to the closing 
of the outlet, perhaps by logs and other rubbish, a large lake was formed. 
About 1891 the sink reopened and the basin was drained, effectively ending 
the steamboat traffic there had developed on the lake. 
To return to the discussion of Lake Dot, it is apparent that 
after 2 feet of this herbaceous peat had been formed the outlet 
was closed (possibly through the amassing of the vegetable material 
to such an extent that the exit was filled, and the seepage and rain- 
water were prevented from escaping), and the level of the water 
was raised to its present position. This second transition killed 
out the herbaceous species, which are not able to exist in more 
than 10-12 feet of water (x). This condition is also emphasized 
by a return of the fine deep brown lake peat above this more 
fibrous stratum. 
Lake Eustis, a large deep lake just west of the town of the same 
name, furnishes some interesting features. The shores are gen- 
erally sandy with the exception of an occasional cypress swamp, 
