66 



fresh water of the lake ; there are about 150 ket- 

 tles at work here : The shore of the lake & the 

 bottom near the shore consists entirely of a white 

 calcareous mud, which in some places is tolera- 

 ble hard ; this sediment is formed of disorganized 

 shells & snails & is the same process as, I sup- 

 pose, by which in times of old our present lime- 

 stone beds are formed : I sometimes thought it 

 would be more common to see petrifaction or im- 

 pressions on the limestone, as it really is, if it had 

 been formed this way, by the sediment of discom- 

 posed shells & snails ; but since I have seen nature 

 o-oing on here, in a manner demonstrative to the 

 eye, all my doubts are over : this sediment in 

 some places especially a little below the surface 

 is such a complete pap of lime or calcareous 

 earth that it wants nothing else, than the drain- 

 in"' of the lake, to form a very solid bed of lime 

 stone I 'think in a very little time.— Observed 

 nothing new in flower to day, except the Cimi- 

 cifuga serpentaria, a species of Helianthus, very 

 common & Ceanothus americanus. 



July 26. Spent the Sunday in the house having 

 only this morning returned from Salt point, very 

 much fatigued. 



27. Was bussy among the specimens I ex- 

 pected to day a letter from Dr B. but was disap- 

 pointed again. 



28. Having contemplated to go & visit Oswego 

 & the lake Ontario, as I dit not find it well, to 

 spent so much time without having some thing 

 more interesting than to see the same thing & 

 same places over & over again : but I was disap- 



