﻿NIAGARA 
  FALLS 
  AND 
  VICINITY 
  75 
  

  

  which 
  is 
  found 
  living 
  in 
  the 
  Niagara 
  river 
  today, 
  but 
  only 
  on 
  the 
  

   rocks 
  and 
  boulders 
  lying 
  in 
  the 
  constant 
  spray 
  of 
  the 
  modern 
  

   cataract. 
  

  

  After 
  passing 
  Foster's 
  flats, 
  the 
  scene 
  of 
  greatest 
  erosive 
  activity 
  

   seems 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  transferred 
  to 
  the 
  left 
  bank 
  of 
  the 
  river. 
  This 
  

   is 
  indicated 
  by 
  the 
  verticality 
  of 
  this 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  gorge 
  south 
  of 
  Fos- 
  

   ter's 
  flats, 
  which 
  suggests 
  active 
  erosion, 
  while 
  the 
  lowland 
  known 
  

   as 
  Ongiara 
  park 
  opposite 
  to 
  this 
  on 
  the 
  New 
  York 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  river, 
  

   with 
  its 
  enormous 
  boulders 
  scattered 
  about, 
  recalls 
  the 
  dry 
  chan- 
  

   nel 
  on 
  Fosters 
  flats 
  or 
  the 
  foot 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  American 
  fall, 
  and 
  

   suggests 
  an 
  amount 
  of 
  water 
  insufficient 
  to 
  remove 
  them. 
  This 
  

   may 
  be 
  accounted 
  for 
  by 
  assuming 
  that 
  the 
  nearness 
  of 
  the 
  fall 
  had 
  

  

  s. 
  

  

  r 
  

  

  

  R 
  

  

  w 
  

  

  Foster 
  

  

  

  

  

  t 
  H 
  

  

  Sirtirtl^V 
  

  

  .:::-iiiiMi^ 
  

  

  ^^ 
  

  

  m 
  

  

  g#jmp^:=:-.- 
  

  

  f 
  ' 
  '-^■-^'■^ 
  ....»»■■ 
  

  

  ■j^;jj^ 
  

  

  

  

  E::^^ 
  

  

  ir... 
  

  

  W;SS>V>:W>SS 
  

  

  

  

  

  ■- 
  

  

  mmmtm^^ 
  

  

  Fig 
  18 
  Longitudinal 
  section 
  of 
  the 
  Niagara 
  gorge 
  from 
  the 
  falls 
  F 
  to 
  Queenston 
  hights 
  E. 
  show- 
  

   ing 
  strata 
  of 
  west 
  bank 
  and 
  depth 
  of 
  channel. 
  (After 
  Gilbert) 
  R 
  railway 
  bridges. 
  W 
  whirlpool- 
  

   Foster 
  = 
  Foster's 
  flats. 
  Figures 
  indicate 
  miles. 
  

  

  given 
  the 
  river 
  itself 
  greater 
  momentum 
  above 
  the 
  fall, 
  and 
  that 
  

   hence 
  it 
  dug 
  deeper 
  into 
  the 
  old 
  drift-filled 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  St 
  Davids 
  

   at 
  the 
  whirlpool. 
  As 
  a 
  result, 
  the 
  deflection 
  of 
  the 
  current 
  to 
  the 
  

   right 
  bank 
  became 
  more 
  abrupt, 
  striking 
  the 
  New 
  York 
  bank 
  im- 
  

   mediately 
  south 
  of 
  where 
  Ongiara 
  park 
  now 
  is, 
  and, 
  being 
  again 
  de- 
  

   flected 
  toward 
  the 
  Canadian 
  side, 
  it 
  reached 
  this 
  just 
  at 
  the 
  southern 
  

   end 
  of 
  Foster's 
  flats, 
  thenceforth 
  for 
  a 
  time 
  causing 
  the 
  most 
  active 
  

   erosion 
  on 
  that 
  side. 
  The 
  washing 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  drift 
  from 
  the 
  old 
  

   St 
  David's 
  channel 
  furnished 
  the 
  river 
  with 
  tools 
  with 
  which 
  it 
  was 
  

   able 
  to 
  cut 
  down 
  into 
  its 
  bed, 
  so 
  that 
  in 
  this 
  portion 
  erosion 
  was 
  

   probably 
  both 
  by 
  backward 
  cutting 
  of 
  the 
  falls 
  and 
  downward 
  cut- 
  

   ting 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  above 
  the 
  falls. 
  

  

  We 
  have 
  so 
  far 
  considered 
  the 
  falls 
  as 
  of 
  simple 
  type, 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  «• 
  

   by 
  no 
  means 
  certain 
  that 
  such 
  was 
  the 
  case. 
  If 
  we 
  judged 
  from 
  

   analogy 
  with 
  other 
  streams 
  which 
  have 
  cut 
  gorges 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  strata 
  

   as 
  those 
  found 
  at 
  Niagara, 
  we 
  should 
  suppose 
  that, 
  as 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  

   of 
  these 
  streams, 
  a 
  separate 
  fall 
  was 
  caused 
  at 
  Niagara 
  by 
  each 
  re- 
  

   sistant 
  layer. 
  Thus 
  in 
  the 
  lower 
  Genesee 
  river, 
  at 
  Rochester, 
  one 
  

   fall 
  is 
  caused 
  by 
  the 
  upper 
  hard 
  bed 
  of 
  the 
  Medina 
  formation, 
  an- 
  

  

  