FEBRUARY 22, 1884. ] 
face: and into this, our Indians reported, 
empties a large river. Rounding Point Perthes 
(after Justus Perthes of Gotha), nearly white 
with its covering of limestones, some of them 
almost true marble in their brilliancy, we enter 
Tahko Lake, eighteen miles in length by 
our measurement (forty-five, according to one 
guess on record). A well-deserved remark 
regarding conjectural geography in order to 
‘fill out’ maps, charts, or books, I hope will 
not be found amiss at this point. In one of 
these we were givcn to understand that from 
here the Indians make Fort Selkirk in a day 
and a halfin their birchbark canoes. There are 
no birchbark canoes used on the lakes, nor as 
far as Selkirk. The very few Indians living 
on the four hundred and thirty-three miles be- 
tween Tahko and Selkirk never stay in their 
cramped wooden canoes over six hours during 
a day, and would therefore have to paddle over 
each mile at the rate of one minute and thirty- 
five seconds. 
Tahko Lake receives a small stream on the 
south, which, followed up, leads to one of the 
mountain passes that debouch upon the waters 
of the Pacific, so said our Indians. The same 
authorities gave us to understand that it drains 
smaller lakes, and has a smaller bed than the 
rivers and lakes through which we had passed ; 
and its appearance, as we sailed by, seemed to 
confirm their opinions, thus showing that we 
had been on the main stream, or the Yukon 
proper. 
(To be continued.) 
FLOODS IN THE OHIO. 
No river of the same magnitude fluctuates 
in depth so much as the Ohio. Twice, or 
oftener, during most years, the river rises at 
Cincinnati to a stage of forty-five feet six inches 
by the gauge at the water-works, when the oc- 
cupants are compelled to vacate the premises 
at the foot of Commercial Row. A greater 
depth than this is a flood, and occasions more 
or less loss and suffering. Extreme low water 
is two feet, and extreme high water of Febru- 
ary, 1885, was sixty-six feet four inches, —a 
difference of sixty-four feet four inches. 
The gauge at the water-works was fixed in 
1858, and all observations since then are re- 
ferred to thatstandard. This gauge is intended 
to show the depth of water on two principal bars 
near Cincinnati, — Four-Mile bar above, and 
Rising-Sun bar below, the city. All observa- 
tions of the stage of water of which we shall 
speak have been reduced to this gauge. 
SCIENCE. 
227 
We may mention the noted floods preced- 
ing the establishment of the gauge in 1858. 
1774. — It is traditional that at about this 
year there was a great flood in the Ohio. Vol. 
i. p. 348, of the American pioneer, states that 
two white hunters were detained some time in 
March of this year at the mouth of the Big 
Kanawha by a remarkably high freshet, which, 
from fixed marks on Wheeling Creek, is sup- 
posed to have been equal to that of 1852. 
1789. — Various records show that there 
was a remarkable flood this year observed by 
the first white settlers, which must have been 
of much longer duration than any of later date. 
1792.— It is within the recollection of some 
now living, that four years after the settlement 
of Losantiville (Cincinnati) there was a flood 
that covered the land on which Columbia now 
stands. The stage of water must have been 
sixty feet or more. 
1815. — Another great flood occurred this 
year, but it was of less magnitude than that of 
17928 
1852. — There are several points in Cincin- 
nati where permanent high-water marks were 
made on Feb. 18, 1832; and they almost ex- 
actly agree in showing that the stage of water 
was then sixty-four feet three inches. The 
population of Cincinnati was then twenty-eight 
thousand ; and, as the city was situated upon 
the river-bank, nearly the whole of it was inun- 
dated by a flood, which increased continually 
for ten days. 
1847. — Cincinnati contained about ninety- 
six thousand people at this date. The river 
began to rise on Dec. 10, and on the 17th 
reached sixty-three feet seven inches. 
The following table records the highest stage 
of water at Cincinnati each year since 1858, as 
well as those just given for 1852 and 1847 : — 
l l 
Year. Date. Feet. | Inch. || Year. Date. Feet. | Inch. 
: : 
1832 | Feb. 18, | 64 3 || 1871 | May 13,] 40 | 6 
1847 | Dec. 17, | 63 Tit 18%2, | Aepriletsenl | 49 
1858 | June 16,| 43 | 10 || 1873 | Dec. 18,] 44 | 5 
1859 | Feb. 22, | 55 SPU IST (danse Tee are eat 
1860 | April 16, | 49 DiS io. | Annes Gs Heo) leet 
1861 | "April 19; | 49 | 5 || 1876 | Jan. 29,| 51 | 9 
1862\eyame- 24; )57 |. 4 || 1877 | Jan: 20, } 53 9 
1863 | March 12, | 42 9 || 1878] Dec. 15,| 41 5 
1864 | Dec. 23, | 45 1 || 1879 | Dec. 927,| 42 9 
1865 | March 7, | 56 3 || 1880 | Feb. 17,| 53 2 
1866 | Sept. 26, | 42 6 || 1881 | Feb. 16,] 50 7 
1867 | March 14, | 55 8 || 1882 | Feb. 21,] 58 7 
1868 | March 30, | 48 3) iiSes Rebs 05, | 66 | @ 
1869 | April 2,| 48 | 9 || 188f| Feb. 14,|] 71 | 3 
1870 | Jan. 18 | 55 3 | 
| | 
The flood-stage of 1875 was remarkable as 
occurring in summer, when the river is in most 
years low. 
