THE SEINE, THE MEUSE, AND THE MOSELLE 
233 
about in the most random manner, quite unable to continue the 
widening of the meanders and the narrowing of the necks of the 
spurs by running S3^stematically against the outer side of tlie 
valley curves. The meadow-like (piality of the flat valle}' floor 
suggests that the Bar has aggraded its course since the greater 
volume of Avater was AvithdraAvn at the Grand Pre ell)OW, thus re- 
peating the features of the Meuse about Commercy. FolloAving 
up the Bar, the breadth of the valley and the radius of its large 
meanders are slowly diminished for a long distance ; but the little 
Bar winding through the meadow floor, rapidly diminishes, and 
near Buzanc}’’ the meadow is left without more drainage than is 
given by such ditches as the farmers have cut here and there for 
the better drying of their flat, marshy fields. Passing further to 
the southeast along the meandering valley, we soon find a small 
stream, successively called the Moulin, Briquenay, and Agron, 
flowing soutliAvard for seven miles in a trench cut along the val- 
ley-trough to the elbow of capture above Grand Pre. This is 
the back-handed stream by Avhose growth from the elbow of cap- 
ture the beheaded Bar has been progressively more and more 
shortened. 
Whether the divide at present existing beGveen the obsequent 
Briquenay-Agron and the beheaded Bar has been determined in 
this case by the accumulation of detritus washed in from the 
valley slopes, as it apparentl}'’ was in the case of the Pagny, I 
cannot surely say; but there does not appear to be much dis- 
]>arity between the time required for the amount of widening 
that the gorge of the Aire has received at the elbow of capture and 
for the headward growth of the back-handed Bri(iuenay-Agron. 
As in the case of the Toul (upper Moselle), so with the Aire ; its 
old valley floor, occupied at a time Avhen it still ran down the 
valley now occupied by the Bar, is easily recognized in the flat, 
terrace-like benches in either direction from the elbow of caj)- 
ture; but these benches now overlook the widened trench of the 
diverted Aire and the narrower trench of the reversed Bri<pie- 
nay-Agron. A considerable dei)th is maintained l>y the trench 
of tlie Aire for some distance U[) the stream from the elbow of 
capture, and, of course, also through the former valley' Ibjor of 
the diverter on the way to ,\isne; but on going iq> the reversed 
stream its trench rapidl}' decreases in dei)th, and near Buzancy 
it makes but a slight deju’ession in the meadows. 
One of the most interesting p(flnts of view for the appreciation 
of this exani[)le of river arrangement is on the flat fields of the 
