88 The American Geologist. February, \mi 
north of Wilmurt. Both hikes are very small, measured by rods, 
rather than miles; and lie in sharpl}' defined basins, enclosed by 
high hills. Both are partially surrounded 1)3' strips of meadow 
of varying width, through which the inlets flow in winding 
courses. As at Big Bock, the meadows lie a. little above the 
ordinary water level ; and their origin is equall}' clear. But here the 
process has gone farther, resulting in a reduction in the size of 
the lakes amounting to one-quarter or one-third of their original 
area. 
Further illustrations of the process are afforded in a large num- 
ber of nameless lakes lying from two to ten miles north and west 
of Big Rock in a region unmapped and without trails. Here are 
lakes wholly, instead of partially, surrounded b}' meadow. In 
some cases the width of meadow is small as compared with the 
area of the lake; in other cases, very large. In the latter event, 
the lakes are sometimes so shallow that water lilies cover the 
entire surface. Of lakes in this stage there are many examples. 
Tracing the process still farther, instances are found where the 
meadow has grown at the expense of the lake till the latter is re- 
duced to a tiny pond ; and finally, when this has been filled, there 
is left a level meadow, through which flows a winding, sluggish 
stream. 
These meadows or vlies, of course, vary as greatly in size and 
shape as do the lakes from which they are derived. A large one 
lies less than a mile east of Wilmurt lake nearly equaling the 
latter in size. It is covered with tall grass and around the edges 
a few trees are scattered. A small stream, in its upper part, 
consisting of two branches, winds through the vl^^ and runs into 
Big Bock lake, a mile distant. After heavy rains the stream 
floods the entire vly to the depth of a foot or more, spreading 
over it a greater or less amount of sediment. In every respect, 
except its completeness, this vl}', which may be taken as a type 
of the class, is identical with the small meadows at the mouths of 
inlets of the various lakes. It is clearly the last stage in the 
process by which these meadows are now growing. Other vlies 
contain islands, rising above the general level, and covered 
with a forest growth, precisely like the islands in existing 
lakes. 
While there can be no doubt that the deposition of sediment is 
the chief factor in the conversion of lakes into vlies, the growth 
