OBSERVATIONS, 81 
It is believed by many persons that the wa¬ 
ters of Lake Ontario not only rise and fall pe¬ 
riodically every seventh year, but that they are 
likewise influenced by a tide, which ebbs and 
flows frequently in the course of twenty-four 
hours» On board the vessel in which I crossed 
the lake there were several gentlemen of the 
country, who confidently assured me that a 
regular tide was observable at the Bay of 
Canti; that in order to satisfy themselves on 
the subject, they had stood for several hours 
together, on more than one occasion, at a mill 
at the head of the bay 3 and that they had ob¬ 
served the waters to ebb and flow regularly 
every four hours, rising to the height of four¬ 
teen inches, There can be no doubt,* hoWever> 
but that the frequent ebbing and flowing of the 
water at this place must be caused by the wind ; 
for no such regular fluctuation is observable at 
Niagara.* at Kingston, or on the open shores 
of the lake ; and owing to the formation of 
%he bay of Canti, the height of the water must 
necessarily vary there with every slight change 
of the wind. The Bay of Canti is a long crook¬ 
ed inlet, that grows narrower at the upper end, 
like a funnel; not only therefore, a change of 
wind up or down the bay w ould make a differ¬ 
ence in the height of the water at the upper¬ 
most extremity of it; but owing to the waters 
being concentrated there at one point, they 
VOL. II, G 
