Niagara Falls 



1787 it will bear to be exposed to the air, as some pieces which seem 



y * to have fallen longer than the rest are quite soft, while such as 



have lately fallen are of a much harder nature. 



Having again made our way back to the edge of the wood 

 where we were to reascend, we sat down to take some refresh- 

 ment, very well satisfied to have seen everything worth our notice 

 except the rainbow, which very often forms itself in the spray. 

 During the time we were lamenting the loss of this object, it made 

 its appearance in a most perfect state across the highest part of 

 the Fall, which made our sight of this place as complete as 

 possible. 



We now began our ascent and after again visiting Painter's 

 Point, in our way we came to the place where we had marked 

 the trees ; we found one or two of the first but had done it so very 

 ill that we could not trace our way back by them. We therefore 

 struck into the wood and endeavoured to keep the sound of the 

 Falls directly behind us, by which means we found our way by 

 a much nearer route than the one we had descended, from which 

 we again soon reached the house we had left our horses at, after 

 an absence of five hours and a half, from which time we had 

 been employed walking about the place. 



It may not be improper here to take notice of an opinion which 

 is held by some people of this place, who seem to think the 

 original situation of the Falls was at the landing, which as before 

 observed is seven miles from where they now are, and that 

 through a series of years the water has worn away the channel 

 that distance. Among those who favour this opinion is a Mr. 

 Hamilton, a merchant at Niagara and a man of very good under- 

 standing, who says also that he has examined the face of the 

 adjacent country, which has confirmed his opinion, and in par- 

 ticular conceives the place which has before been taken notice 

 of by the name of the Lion's Den, to have been made by a chan- 

 nel of the river formerly passing through it. How far this may 

 be true I do not know; I did not hear this opinion until after I 

 had seen the place, at which time no such idea ever entered my 



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