﻿4:20 
  A. 
  Gary 
  — 
  Geological 
  facts 
  on 
  Grand 
  River, 
  Labrador, 
  

  

  Lake 
  Melville 
  receives 
  at 
  its 
  head 
  three 
  large 
  rivers. 
  One 
  

   of 
  these, 
  the 
  Grand 
  or 
  Hamilton 
  river, 
  the 
  largest 
  in 
  the 
  

   peninsula, 
  prolongs 
  for 
  many 
  miles 
  the 
  general 
  westerly 
  trend 
  

   of 
  the 
  inlet. 
  Not 
  only 
  this, 
  but 
  the 
  valley 
  in 
  which 
  it 
  flows 
  is 
  

   a 
  continuation 
  of 
  the 
  basin 
  of 
  the 
  inlet, 
  largely 
  similar 
  in 
  char- 
  

   acter, 
  direction 
  and 
  width. 
  For 
  sixty 
  miles 
  the 
  river 
  flows 
  on 
  

   loose 
  sedimentary 
  material, 
  lying 
  again 
  between 
  steep 
  rocky 
  

   walls 
  nowhere 
  less 
  than 
  six 
  or 
  eight 
  miles 
  apart. 
  The 
  conti- 
  

   nuity 
  of 
  this 
  valley, 
  from 
  this 
  point 
  to 
  the 
  open 
  sea 
  seems 
  evi- 
  

   dent. 
  It 
  is 
  a 
  wide 
  trough, 
  200 
  miles 
  long, 
  cut 
  into 
  the 
  edge 
  

   of 
  the 
  Labrador 
  plateau 
  and 
  through 
  its 
  outlying 
  hills. 
  

  

  Seldom 
  does 
  the 
  river 
  in 
  this 
  region 
  touch 
  the 
  rocky 
  wall, 
  

   but 
  at 
  a 
  point 
  25 
  miles 
  from 
  the 
  mouth 
  it 
  has 
  dug 
  into 
  the 
  

   southern 
  wall, 
  and 
  a 
  remarkably 
  round 
  gneissic 
  hill 
  some 
  4.00 
  

   feet 
  high 
  has 
  been 
  formed. 
  Here 
  also 
  a 
  half 
  mile 
  of 
  fall 
  and 
  

   rapid 
  makes 
  a 
  drop 
  in 
  the 
  river 
  of 
  70 
  feet. 
  At 
  the 
  bottom 
  of 
  

   the 
  section 
  of 
  sedimentary 
  material 
  thus 
  exposed, 
  fossiliferous 
  

   Champlain 
  clays 
  were 
  found, 
  the 
  total 
  height 
  of 
  the 
  section 
  at 
  

   this 
  point 
  being 
  something 
  over 
  200 
  feet. 
  Toward 
  the 
  river 
  

   mouth, 
  it 
  gradually 
  drops 
  to 
  the 
  level 
  of 
  the 
  stream, 
  while 
  40 
  

   miles 
  farther 
  up 
  terraced 
  banks 
  of 
  sand 
  rise 
  to 
  a 
  height 
  of 
  400 
  

   or 
  500 
  feet. 
  

  

  At 
  a 
  point 
  between 
  60 
  and 
  70 
  miles 
  from 
  Lake 
  Melville 
  the 
  

   sides 
  of 
  the 
  rocky 
  valley 
  approach 
  till 
  they 
  are 
  but 
  about 
  a 
  

   mile 
  apart. 
  This 
  is 
  well 
  within 
  the 
  Labrador 
  plateau 
  which 
  

   in 
  this 
  region 
  is 
  tolerably 
  level, 
  so 
  that 
  from 
  the 
  deeply 
  sunk 
  

   river 
  bed 
  its 
  edges 
  have 
  the 
  appearance 
  of 
  high, 
  steeply 
  slop- 
  

   ing 
  ridges. 
  Parallel, 
  and 
  from 
  a 
  half 
  mile 
  to 
  three 
  miles 
  apart, 
  

   they 
  extend 
  for 
  more 
  than 
  200 
  miles, 
  their 
  regularity 
  broken 
  

   only 
  by 
  the 
  deep- 
  worn 
  valleys 
  of 
  the 
  largest 
  streams, 
  and 
  by 
  

   occasional 
  perpendicular 
  bluffs. 
  Changes 
  in 
  direction 
  are 
  

   generally 
  slow 
  and 
  easy. 
  

  

  Marks 
  of 
  former 
  deposit 
  and 
  wear 
  are 
  everywhere. 
  Sand 
  ter- 
  

   races 
  border 
  the 
  river 
  in 
  quiet 
  regions, 
  while 
  beaches 
  of 
  water- 
  

   worn 
  stones 
  mount 
  the 
  sides 
  of 
  the 
  valley 
  to 
  a 
  great 
  height. 
  

   Typical 
  potholes 
  were 
  noted 
  in 
  one 
  place 
  50 
  feet 
  or 
  more 
  above 
  

   the 
  present 
  river 
  level. 
  It 
  is 
  worth 
  remark 
  that 
  while 
  the 
  

   general 
  height 
  of 
  the 
  plateau, 
  as 
  set 
  by 
  a 
  former 
  traveler* 
  is 
  

   2000 
  feet 
  ; 
  this 
  altitude 
  is 
  not 
  generally 
  gained 
  by 
  a 
  single 
  slope. 
  

   At 
  many 
  places 
  when 
  the 
  bank 
  rises 
  by 
  a 
  steep 
  angle 
  or 
  a 
  bluff 
  

   to 
  a 
  height 
  of 
  500 
  or 
  600 
  feet, 
  the 
  remaining 
  height 
  is 
  gained 
  

   by 
  a 
  much 
  more 
  gradual 
  slope. 
  

  

  The 
  Grand 
  River 
  in 
  this 
  region 
  flows 
  through 
  one 
  large 
  lake 
  

   called 
  Waminikapou. 
  This 
  is 
  but 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  val- 
  

   ley 
  40 
  miles 
  long 
  from 
  which 
  the 
  loose 
  material 
  has 
  been 
  

  

  * 
  Holme, 
  Proc. 
  Roy. 
  Geog. 
  Soc, 
  April, 
  1888. 
  

  

  