﻿250 
  Bucher 
  — 
  Origin 
  of 
  Ripples, 
  and 
  

  

  strata. 
  The 
  similar 
  character 
  of 
  this 
  sandstone-shale 
  

   series 
  (observations 
  (2) 
  and 
  (3)) 
  suggests 
  a 
  similar 
  

   origin. 
  In 
  fact, 
  the 
  absence 
  of 
  bottom 
  currents 
  practi- 
  

   cally 
  necessitates 
  such 
  a 
  process 
  of 
  constant 
  redistribu- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  sediments, 
  since 
  the 
  bedding 
  in 
  detail 
  is 
  not 
  

   regular 
  enough 
  to 
  be 
  interpreted 
  as 
  the 
  sole 
  result 
  of 
  

   undisturbed 
  sedimentation 
  from 
  above, 
  as, 
  for 
  instance, 
  

   off 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  a 
  large 
  river. 
  

  

  The 
  condition 
  outlined 
  on 
  page 
  246 
  explains 
  observa- 
  

   tion 
  (6), 
  that 
  is, 
  the 
  form 
  ratio 
  of 
  the 
  basin, 
  in 
  which 
  these 
  

   sediments 
  were 
  deposited, 
  was 
  such 
  as 
  to 
  allow 
  only 
  the 
  

   larger 
  waves 
  to 
  act 
  vigorously 
  on 
  the 
  bottom, 
  trending 
  

   NW. 
  — 
  SE. 
  Observation 
  (7) 
  proves 
  that 
  at 
  times 
  waves 
  

   did 
  form 
  even 
  at 
  right 
  angles 
  of 
  this 
  direction, 
  but 
  they 
  

   were 
  much 
  weaker 
  than 
  the 
  others. 
  The 
  question 
  then 
  

   remains: 
  Why 
  were 
  the 
  waves 
  trending 
  northwest 
  to 
  

   southeast 
  strongest 
  on 
  the 
  Bedford-Berea 
  waters! 
  

   Either 
  because 
  the 
  wind 
  blew 
  strongest 
  and 
  most 
  fre- 
  

   quently 
  from 
  that 
  direction, 
  or 
  because 
  it 
  had 
  by 
  far 
  the 
  

   greatest 
  fetch 
  in 
  that 
  direction. 
  

  

  Owing 
  to 
  the 
  great 
  difficulties 
  of 
  correlation 
  of 
  the 
  

   strata 
  involved, 
  no 
  reliable 
  conjectures 
  concerning 
  the 
  

   geography 
  of 
  that 
  time 
  can 
  be 
  made. 
  One 
  fact, 
  however, 
  

   will 
  permit 
  us 
  to 
  go 
  one 
  step 
  further 
  in 
  our 
  conclusions. 
  

   There 
  seems 
  little 
  doubt 
  that 
  a 
  distinct 
  change 
  in 
  the 
  dis- 
  

   tribution 
  of 
  land 
  and 
  water 
  took 
  place, 
  during 
  Bedford 
  

   and 
  Berea 
  time. 
  In 
  the 
  north, 
  in 
  Lorain 
  County, 
  Ohio, 
  

   channels 
  200 
  feet 
  deep 
  were 
  cut 
  into 
  the 
  Bedford 
  shale 
  

   before 
  the 
  Berea 
  sandstone 
  was 
  deposited. 
  22 
  Farther 
  

   south 
  the 
  effect 
  of 
  this 
  erosion 
  interval 
  rapidly 
  dimin- 
  

   ishes, 
  until 
  south 
  of 
  Fairfield 
  County 
  its 
  trace 
  is 
  lost 
  23 
  

   and 
  sedimentation 
  of 
  the 
  Bedford 
  and 
  Berea 
  formations 
  

   seems 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  continuous. 
  

  

  From 
  this 
  we 
  conclude 
  that, 
  if 
  the 
  constancy 
  of 
  the 
  

   orientation 
  of 
  the 
  largest 
  waves 
  was 
  due 
  to 
  topographic 
  

   causes, 
  the 
  fetch 
  of 
  the 
  wind 
  being 
  greatest 
  in 
  this 
  direc- 
  

   tion, 
  the 
  wind 
  could 
  have 
  come 
  from 
  the 
  southwest 
  only, 
  

   because 
  the 
  northeast 
  certainly 
  suffered 
  great 
  topo- 
  

   graphic 
  changes 
  which 
  would 
  necessarily 
  have 
  affected 
  

  

  22 
  W. 
  IT. 
  Burroughs, 
  The 
  Unconformity 
  between 
  the 
  Bedford 
  and 
  Berea 
  

   Formations 
  of 
  Northern 
  Ohio, 
  Jour. 
  Geol., 
  19, 
  pp. 
  655-659, 
  1911; 
  

  

  Jesse 
  E. 
  Hyde, 
  Stratigraphy 
  of 
  the 
  Waverly 
  Formations 
  of 
  Central 
  and 
  

   Southern 
  Ohio, 
  Jour. 
  Geol., 
  23, 
  p. 
  663, 
  1915. 
  Here 
  also 
  additional 
  refer- 
  

   ences 
  on 
  this 
  question. 
  

  

  