NIAGARA RIVER. 115 
mity of Lake Erie,, and after a course of thirty- 
six miles discharges itself into Lake Ontario, as 
has already been mentioned. For the first few 
miles from Lake Erie, the breadth of the ri ver is 
about three hundred yards and it is deep enough 
for vessels drawing nine or ten feet water ; but 
the current is so extremely rapid and irregular, 
and the channel so intricate, on account of the 
numberless large rocks in different places, that 
no other vessels than bateaux ever attempt to 
pass along it. As you proceed downward the 
river widens, no rocks are to he seen either 
along the shores or in the channel, and the wa¬ 
ters glide smoothly along, though the current 
continues very strong. The river runs thus 
evenly, and is navigable with safety for bateaux 
as far as Fort Chippeway, which is about three 
miles above the falls; but here the bed of it 
again becomes rocky, and the waters are vio¬ 
lently agitated by passing down successive ra¬ 
pids ; so much so indeed, that were a boat by 
any chance to be carried but a little way be¬ 
yond Chippewaj', where people usually stop, 
nothing could save it from being dashed to 
pieces long before it came to the falls. With 
such astonishing impetuosity do the waves 
break on the rocks in these rapids, that the 
mere sight of them from the top of the banks is 
.sufficient to make you shudder. I must in this 
place, however, observe, that it is only on each 
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