RKl'OKTS OX TORONTO II AIIKHI 



place on Crono's farm, then onward towards Toronto, within a 

 mile or two of the commencement of Ashbridge's Bay, will enable 

 the observer t" comprehend the remarkable effeel which has been 

 produced by clearing the plateau of the lowesl terrace of it - I ?oi c I 

 growth, and thus laying bare the crests of the cliffs. The conso- 



1(111' (if till I complete IT Mil of till' | ll'otoct i \c nAI'fil^ '"I' 



timber is. that the cliffs luring uii|.rotc ( -tc.l for many years by 



fallen trees, have Inst their for c terraced and wooded character, 



and have become (by land slips) clean, bare and Hlielving, expos- 

 ing their loose and shifting materials to all the effects of rains anil 

 winds. When the lowest terrace was wooded, every tree which 

 fell from the crests of the cliffs either hung by its roots, or was 

 arrested in its fall down the sides of the cliff by underbrush and 

 small trees, and thus became a resting place for those annual 

 slips of earth, trees, pebbles, and even sand, which the thaws of 

 spring set in motion. By such means minor terraces were formed, 

 supported by the strata of blue clay before described, and on 

 these subordinate terraces, grass and shrubs grew and gave a 

 permanent character to the sides of the cliff In some of the 

 gullies, the retaining and conservative effect of underbrush is still 

 well marked, especially whore the forest growth has been per- 

 mitted to protect the crest ; there are, however, but few instances 

 now remaining on the cliffs, for miles have been cleared. Another 

 rather singular consequence is to be found in the quantities of 

 loose sand which are blown up by every gale of wind from the 

 South, South-east, and East, from the bare sides of the immense 

 crater-like gullies which have been formed during the last few 

 years. A gentle breeze suffices to transport the unstable sand of 

 the cliffs up the clean sides of the gullies on to the plateau above. 

 In several instances the writer measured four inches in depth of 

 coarse and fine sand, which had been blown up upon the stubble 

 of last year's wheat. The sand frequently penetrates into the 

 fields for a distance exceeding one hundred yards from the crests 

 of the cliffs, and in process of time will succeed in destroying, or 

 at least very materially deteriorating, considerable tracts of land 

 on the lowest plateau, if not checked in its march. When the 

 cliffs are denuded of their protecting fringe of trees, and, as a 

 natural consequence, of the underbrush which shields their sides, 

 the least streamlet of water rapidly loosens and sets in motion the 

 sand and gravel which form so large a portion of the lowest 

 terrace. The bed of clay arrests this process of destruction for a 

 while, but being itself underlaid by sand and gravel as unstable 

 as that by which it is super-imposed, its conservative influence is 

 of short duration, and in a thousand instances the bare and clean 

 sides of enormous gullies show how rapid is the present progress 

 of their formation and increase. 



It is important to mention that occasional traces of long con- 

 tinued persistence are observable in some of the gullies. Beds of 

 bulrushes of gigantic growth may be seen in some of those whose 

 sides are still partially protected with underbrush and small trees. 

 These occur on the lowest bed of blue clay. The blue clay itself 

 sometimes presents precipitous tower-like prominences, which 

 are best seen east of Gates' farm, where the forest still affords its 

 protection to the cliffs. It is not, however, only the plateau 

 and the cliffs which point to the destructive effects which have been 

 produced by clearing away the timber, the beach itself shows by 

 its encroachments how much its boundaries have been increased 

 by the absence of that annual supply of fallen trees which once 

 checked the inroads of the surges of the Lake. In many parts the 



I and shingle present the same features as those which distin- 

 guish the peninsula. Formerly the progress of the breaking 

 waves was arrested by multitudes of those natural groynes which 

 Mr. Fleming has so faithfully delineated and described. 



'I'lic pre 'lit high waters of the Lake have of course exerted 

 their influence in removing many of the trees which afforded long 

 resting places for shingle ami pebbles, but the absence of a continued 

 supply of these protective barriers has enabled the beach to attain 

 and the waves to wash the foot of the cliffs, thus accelerating their 

 downfall. It is also probable that the removal of the boulders 

 and larger pieces of shale washed out of cliff detritus, for building 

 and other purposes, has exerted its influence in assisting the en- 

 croachments of the breaking waves of the Lake. Sketch No. V 

 may afford an illustration of the appearance and power of these 

 breakers as they dash at an acute angle on the beach during the 

 continuance of easterly and south-easterly winds. 



A question of much interest and importance suggests itself with 

 respect to the first or lower terrace. It may be urged that a plateau 

 of the altitude of 100 feet, extending in gradual surface lines in the 

 form of a promonotory, would be a sufficient source of materials 

 and afford the necessary topographical conditions to produce mo- 

 difications of Mr. Fleming's hypothetical early development of 

 Toronto Harbour as shown by his diagrams No. 9, 10, 11, 12, and 

 13, and thus in part give countenance to his view of its remote his- 

 tory. Mr. Fleming says, "On the subsidence of Lake Ontario from 

 a high to its present level, the land fell in eas}' slopes to the water's 

 edge, and the gradual descending surface lines were continued 

 outward under water ; the abrupt terminations of the land along 

 the boundary of the Lake having been formed by its encroachment 

 through a long course of ages, the promontories which formerly 

 projected have been rounded off by the destructive influence of the 

 elements."— (Can. Jour., p. 220, Vol. II.) 



That an arm of the sea did occupy the region of Lake Ontario 

 and Lake Champlain during the Tertiary epoch there is little 

 reason to doubt. The occurrence of marine shells and skeletons 

 of marine fish (Mallotus Villosus) 540 feet above the sea or 310 feet 

 above Lake Ontario, at Montreal, in the valley of the Ottawa, near 

 Bytown, in the valley of Lake Champlain, and in many localities 

 in the valley of the St. Lawrence, afford ample proof of this vast 

 phenomenon. (Lyell's 1st voyage to the United States, page 119, 

 vol. 2, New York Edition. See also Provincial Geological Reports, 

 Ottawa valley). It has, however, been shown that the phenomena 

 of the highest terrace can have nothing to do with the formation 

 of Toronto Harbour, seeing that it has only been attacked to a 

 trifling extent and probably within the last 50 years. It becomes 

 necessary, therefore, to advert to the period when Lake Ontario, 

 probably as an arm of the sea or a fresh water estuary, stood at 

 an altitude of 100 feet above its present level, or in other words 

 washed the base of the second or highest terrace. There is every 

 probability that this event extended over a long period of time. 



Ridges corresponding to the plateau of the lowest terrace have 

 been described by Mr. Hall in the Geology of the fourth district of 

 New York: "One of the most interesting of the superficial de- 

 posits of the district is the Lake ridge, which from Sodus in 

 Mayne County with some trifling exceptions is a travelled highway, 

 nearly as far as the Niagara River. Beyond this it can be traced 

 quite to the head of Lake Ontario, and I have been informed that 

 it exists upon the northern side of the Lake." In a note attached 

 to the remarks of Mr. Hall on the Lake ridges we find the follow- 



