GIBB — ON CANADIAN CAVEBNS. 



131 



water origin), is covered by its ancient soil, mth the st«nis of the 

 trees erect as when they grew. This was the ancient land, first 

 transformed into a delta, into which the old mighty river poured its 

 flood. Here lived the gigantic Iguanodon ; here the Pterodactyles — 

 winged lizards — flitted in the dusky twihght ; birds waded in the 

 mud ; the hum of insects was heard in the air. All, all the strange 

 beings of those ancient days have perished, and two thousand feet at 

 least of solid earth is piled above their tomb. 



(To be continued.) 



ON CANADIAN CAVERNS. 



By George D. Gibe, M.D., M.A., F.G.S., Member of the Canadian 



Institute. 



The prominent feature of a large portion of the province of Canada 

 is the presence of various limestone rocks belonging to the Silurian 

 formations. Until lately, the existence of caverns in these rocks, as 

 well as in those lying subjacent — namely the Laurentian of Sir 

 William Logan, was almost unknown ; as, with the exception of an 

 isolated account here and there, no regular description of any cavern 

 had appeared. Owing to the labom^s of the Canadian Geological 

 Survey, and of several private individuals, a number of caverns have 

 been discovered at distances remote from one another ; some of these 

 have received but a passing notice in the publications of the Survey, 

 and are not, therefore, useful as a means of reference. The present 

 communication, it is hoped, will supply that deficiency, as in it I 

 purpose to embody short descriptive accounts of all the caverns of 

 Canada which are known up to the present time. The details of 

 some of them are not so fall as could be desu^ed ; nevertheless, with 

 all the available sources of information within my reach, together 

 with personal observation in some, on the whole the general descrip- 

 tions may be rehed upon as accurate, and as containing a correct 

 account of the particular geological formations in which they lie. 



Tor convenience of description, it may be here stated that the 

 boundaries of the province of Canada are at the present time as 

 follows : — North by the Hudson Bay Company's territories, and 

 shores of James' Bay; on the west by Lakes Huron, Superior, 

 Lake of the "Woods, Winnipeg, and Red River ; South by Lakes 

 Erie and Ontario, and the states of New York, Vermont, and New 

 Hampshire ; and to the eastward by the River and Gulf of St, Law^- 



