Abandoned Shore Lines of Lake Superior. — Taylor. 381 
at 587 and 607 feet above lake Superior. This single case 
seems to indicate that the rule of the northward rise of shore 
lines holds good. But it is hardly evidence enough for a final 
test. To the west, the altitude of the Herman beach of lake 
Agassiz near Milnor, N. D. ( lat. 46° 15 ' ), according to Mr. Up- 
ham's observations, is 1084 feet above the sea, being 482 feet 
above lake Superior. It is not supposed by him that this 
beach has any direct connection with the highest beach in the 
Superior basin. Between the Red river and lake Winnipeg 
basin and that of lake Superior, a wide area of central and 
northern Minnesota rises 200 to 300 feet or more above these 
highest shore lines in the basins on each side; yet it would 
appear that the mountainous region of the south coast of lake 
Superior is one of considerable relative elevation, compared 
with the adjoining region on the west, as well as on the south 
and east of it. From Maple Ridge a southward descent of a 
little over four feet per mile would carry the beach over the 
St. Croix pass at Upper St. Croix lake, 468 feet above lake 
Superior. There can hardly be a doubt that the highest beach 
is up to that level. But it does not follow that the pass was 
an outlet of the water that filled the Superior basin at that 
time. 
While there is no question of the accuracy and high value 
of Prof. Lawson's observations on the abandoned strands of 
the north coast, I think it is a little unfortunate that his work 
was not prosecuted from a different point of view. He finds 
in substance, that the shore lines there do not indicate any 
deformation since they were made. After a careful perusal 
of his work I fail to see any safe basis for this inference. 
We should not expect much deformation of the lower lines, 
for they are the youngest of the scries. The place to look 
for marked deformation is in the higher, older lines, and par- 
ticularly the highest line. On this point Prof. Law son's work 
affords us almost no information. Judging by my own ex- 
perience in the highlands of the south coast, however, it is 
probable that, on account of the roughness of the higher 
country, it was impossible to gather much information as to 
the upper limit of submergence without the expenditure of 
more time than seemed justifiable. 
There are only four places where it seems probable thai 
