a 
THE MOUNTAINS OF COLORADO. 75 
series of Austrian lakes, to say nothing of the innumerable 
pools of water which occur near the summits of the loftier ridges. 
The scenery of Sweden and Norway is diversified by these in- 
land enclosures of water, which become rare in the more temper- 
ate climates. 
If we consult a map of the northern portion of our own coun- 
try, we shall find that, leaving out the great chain of the Canadian 
Lakes, and such collections of water as Winnepeg, Athabasca, 
Slave Lake and Bear Lake, all the way from Minnesota to the 
Arctic Sea, there are innumerable smaller lakes which enable the 
voyageur in his canoe to penetrate to every portion of the country. 
In southern Wisconsin the lakes are few and in Ilinois they dis- 
appear almost altogether. 
n the plains there is not a permanent collection of water to 
which we attach the name of lake; and in the mountains they are 
rare. This is the more ‘surprising when we consider how actively 
the forces of elevation and subsidence have been exerted. The 
Great Basin, it is true, is characterized by numerous lakes, most 
of which are of a highly saline or brackish character, but in a re- 
gion where the streams are cut off from the sea, it is but natural 
that the waters should accumulate in the depressions. 
There may have been a time when the annual precipitation of 
rain was greater, and consequently the transporting power of the 
streams was increased beyond their present capacity, but there are 
few phenomena with regard to the distribution of the superficial 
materials which cannot be explained by a resort to causes now in 
operation. Professor Whitney has arrived at substantially the 
same results with regard to the Pacific slope. __ 
In concluding these observations, I may remark that the rail- 
road facilities are now so far developed that to an inhabitant of 
the Mississippi Valley, this region is as accessible as the White 
Mountains of New England. The ordinary observer is brought 
in contact with some of the grandest scenes in nature, whilst to 
the geologist and botanist are opened new spheres of observation 
— a constantly EN succession of the most interesting and 
varied phenomena. 
