﻿74 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  tainly 
  favorable 
  for 
  extensive 
  fracturing 
  of 
  the 
  strata. 
  The 
  dis- 
  

   turbance 
  of 
  the 
  early 
  Mesozoic, 
  which 
  caused 
  the 
  fracturing 
  of 
  the 
  

   Newark 
  (Triassic) 
  rocks 
  along 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  slope, 
  quite 
  certainly 
  

   did 
  not 
  affect 
  the 
  Adirondacks 
  because 
  those 
  faults 
  are 
  of 
  a 
  differ- 
  

   ent 
  type 
  and 
  closely 
  confined 
  to 
  the 
  Triassic 
  basins. 
  

  

  If 
  the 
  major 
  faulting 
  occurred 
  at 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  the 
  Paleozoic, 
  then 
  

   the 
  Mesozoic 
  must 
  have 
  opened 
  with 
  the 
  northeastern 
  portion 
  of 
  

   the 
  newly 
  upraised 
  New 
  York 
  State 
  area 
  cut 
  by 
  a 
  great 
  series 
  of 
  

   faults 
  which 
  caused 
  the 
  edges 
  of 
  the 
  upturned 
  earth 
  blocks 
  to 
  stand 
  

   out 
  prominently 
  as 
  ridges. 
  However 
  this 
  may 
  have 
  been, 
  we 
  are 
  

   certain 
  that 
  by 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  the 
  long 
  period 
  of 
  Mesozoic 
  erosion 
  the 
  

   old 
  fault 
  scarps 
  or 
  ridges 
  were 
  practically 
  obliterated. 
  If 
  so, 
  how 
  

   do 
  we 
  account 
  for 
  the 
  present 
  Adirondack 
  ridges 
  which 
  follow 
  the 
  

   fault 
  lines 
  ? 
  As 
  a 
  result 
  of 
  the 
  uplift 
  of 
  the 
  Cretacic 
  peneplain 
  one 
  

   or 
  both 
  of 
  the 
  following 
  things 
  happened, 
  either 
  there 
  was 
  renewed 
  

   faulting, 
  or 
  that 
  as 
  a 
  result 
  of 
  unequal 
  erosion 
  (due 
  to 
  differences 
  

   in 
  rock 
  character) 
  on 
  opposite 
  sides 
  of 
  the 
  faults, 
  the 
  old 
  fault 
  

   scarps 
  were 
  renewed. 
  It 
  is 
  quite 
  certain 
  that 
  both 
  things 
  occurred, 
  

   and 
  thus 
  the 
  surface 
  of 
  the 
  newly 
  elevated 
  Cretacic 
  peneplain 
  in 
  

   northeastern 
  New 
  York 
  was 
  made 
  irregular 
  by 
  freshly 
  formed 
  fault 
  

   scarps. 
  This, 
  together 
  with 
  the 
  later 
  (Cenozoic) 
  erosion 
  along 
  the 
  

   old 
  fault 
  lines 
  and 
  belts 
  of 
  weaker 
  rocks, 
  accounts 
  for 
  the 
  existing 
  

   Adirondack 
  ridges. 
  That 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  faulting 
  actually 
  dates 
  from 
  

   this 
  time, 
  or 
  possibly 
  even 
  later, 
  is. 
  proved 
  by 
  the 
  present 
  existence 
  

   of 
  certain 
  steep 
  fault 
  cliffs 
  in 
  perfectly 
  homogeneous 
  rock 
  masses, 
  

   and 
  by 
  the 
  fault 
  blocks 
  which 
  have 
  been 
  scarcely 
  modified 
  by 
  erosion 
  

   since 
  their 
  formation. 
  

  

  DRAINAGE 
  OF 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  IN 
  THE 
  MESOZOIC 
  

  

  Thus 
  far 
  we 
  have 
  said 
  very 
  little 
  about 
  the 
  early 
  drainage 
  

   features 
  of 
  New 
  York 
  State. 
  In 
  fact 
  we 
  must 
  admit 
  that 
  prior 
  to 
  

   the 
  Cenozoic 
  era, 
  we 
  have 
  practically 
  no 
  knowledge 
  concerning 
  the 
  

   positions 
  of 
  even 
  the 
  major 
  drainage 
  lines 
  of 
  the 
  State. 
  From 
  our 
  

   knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  land 
  and 
  water 
  relations 
  during 
  the 
  Paleozoic 
  era, 
  

   we 
  can 
  form 
  only 
  the 
  most 
  general 
  ideas 
  regarding 
  the 
  drainage. 
  

   The 
  Mesozoic 
  physiography 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  is 
  better 
  known 
  and 
  hence 
  

   the 
  drainage 
  is 
  perhaps 
  better 
  known, 
  but 
  even 
  here 
  positive 
  knowl- 
  

   edge 
  is 
  almost 
  wholly 
  lacking. 
  The 
  whole 
  subject 
  of 
  the 
  Pre- 
  

   cenozoic 
  drainage 
  of 
  New 
  York 
  is 
  one 
  which 
  demands 
  thorough 
  

   study 
  before 
  anything 
  like 
  satisfactory 
  conclusions 
  can 
  be 
  reached, 
  

   and 
  the 
  following 
  very 
  brief 
  discussion 
  is 
  intended 
  to 
  be 
  merely 
  sug- 
  

   gestive 
  of 
  the 
  problems 
  involved. 
  

  

  