﻿236 
  J. 
  Barrell 
  — 
  The 
  Piedmont 
  Terraces 
  

  

  Barrell 
  came 
  to 
  the 
  conclusion 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  of 
  marine 
  

   origin. 
  This 
  conclusion 
  led 
  Professor 
  Barrell 
  to 
  make 
  

   a 
  detailed 
  re-examination 
  of 
  the 
  topography 
  of 
  western 
  

   Connecticut 
  and 
  Massachusetts, 
  based 
  largely 
  on 
  maps 
  

   and 
  projected 
  profiles, 
  and 
  as 
  a 
  result 
  he 
  decided 
  that 
  it 
  

   was 
  possible 
  to 
  distinguish 
  eleven 
  benches, 
  all 
  of 
  marine 
  

   origin, 
  of 
  which 
  the 
  eight 
  lower 
  and 
  better 
  preserved 
  

   ones 
  were 
  assigned 
  a 
  Pliocene 
  and 
  Pleistocene 
  age. 
  

   That 
  Professor 
  Barrell 
  reached 
  this 
  general 
  conclusion 
  

   after 
  a 
  conscientious 
  effort 
  to 
  solve 
  the 
  problem 
  on 
  the 
  

   basis 
  of 
  the 
  fluvial 
  origin 
  of 
  the 
  erosion 
  surfaces 
  seems 
  

   to 
  me 
  particularly 
  interesting 
  and 
  as 
  reason 
  for 
  confi- 
  

   dence 
  in 
  the 
  general 
  correctness 
  of 
  it. 
  

  

  Professor 
  Barrell 
  's 
  deep 
  attention 
  to 
  the 
  problem 
  of 
  

   the 
  Piedmont 
  terraces 
  and 
  the 
  long 
  range 
  plans 
  he 
  had 
  

   made 
  for 
  its 
  completion 
  when 
  coupled 
  with 
  his 
  reputa- 
  

   tion 
  for 
  soundness 
  and 
  originality 
  of 
  thought 
  make 
  it 
  

   most 
  desirable 
  to 
  publish 
  the 
  manuscript 
  he 
  has 
  left, 
  even 
  

   though 
  it 
  be 
  fragmentary 
  and 
  incomplete, 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  line 
  

   of 
  thought 
  may 
  be 
  carried 
  forward 
  by 
  others. 
  The 
  prob- 
  

   lem 
  still 
  remains 
  to 
  be 
  worked 
  out 
  in 
  a 
  systematic 
  way 
  

   and 
  it 
  should 
  appeal 
  especially 
  to 
  the 
  younger 
  geologists 
  

   whose 
  minds 
  are 
  in 
  a 
  receptive 
  mood 
  toward 
  new 
  ideas. 
  

   But 
  it 
  is 
  also 
  evident 
  that 
  the 
  work 
  will 
  have 
  to 
  be 
  carried 
  

   on 
  by 
  mature 
  students, 
  trained 
  to 
  rigorous 
  thinking, 
  who 
  

   will 
  not 
  accept 
  the 
  ideas 
  here 
  presented 
  as 
  final 
  but 
  

   rather 
  as 
  suggestions 
  to 
  be 
  tested 
  in 
  the 
  field, 
  for 
  as 
  Pro- 
  

   fessor 
  Barrell's 
  notes 
  show, 
  this 
  had 
  been 
  his 
  own 
  atti- 
  

   tude 
  toward 
  them. 
  — 
  Editoe. 
  

  

  Introduction: 
  Difficulties 
  of 
  the 
  fluvial 
  peneplane 
  hypothesis. 
  

  

  The 
  attention 
  of 
  the 
  writer 
  was 
  first 
  drawn 
  to 
  the 
  sub- 
  

   ject 
  of 
  Appalachian 
  baselevels 
  in 
  1894 
  by 
  Davis' 
  inspir- 
  

   ing 
  article 
  on 
  "The 
  geologic 
  dates 
  of 
  origin 
  of 
  certain 
  

   topographic 
  forms 
  on 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  slope 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  

   States." 
  Employed 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  in 
  eastern 
  Pennsylva- 
  

   nia, 
  opportunity 
  was 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  next 
  two 
  years 
  for 
  

   studying 
  the 
  subject 
  in 
  a 
  fertile 
  field. 
  Certain 
  conclu- 
  

   sions 
  which 
  bear 
  on 
  the 
  present 
  problem 
  were 
  reached 
  

   in 
  1896 
  in 
  a 
  thesis 
  on 
  the 
  "Geological 
  history 
  of 
  the 
  

   Archean 
  highlands 
  of 
  New 
  Jersey," 
  presented 
  at 
  Lehigh 
  

   University 
  in 
  part 
  fulfillment 
  for 
  the 
  degree 
  of 
  Master 
  

  

  