222 A NEW METHOD OF ESTIMATING STREAM-FLOW 
ture because a rapid melting during a few hours must be offset by slow freezing 
during many night hours if the net melting is to be zero for the 24 hours. 
The belief, embodied in the theory that a large part of the travel of water is 
underground from where it originally fell to the spot where it is evaporated or 
delivered to a stream, was confirmed during the progress of the investigation by the 
constants as derived from the observations. Referring to Table 51, page 195, note 
that for Stream A the observations as embodied in the derived constants show that 
of any increase in storage which does not produce flood-flow, only 9.0 per cent 
appears as extra stream-flow in 257 days if during that period the storage is held 
constant. On Stream B, only 4.1 per cent appears as extra stream-flow in 257 days. 
Of that portion of an increase of storage which is above the limit produced by 
glutting, only 19.0 per cent appears as extra stream-flow in 33 days on Stream A, 
and 29.6 per cent on Stream B. These percentages would each necessarily be 
much higher if much of the travel of the water were on the surface. The phrase 
"extra stream-flow" is meant to specify that part of the flow which is an excess 
above the constant portion of the flow, S c . 
APPLICATIONS TO OTHER STREAMS 
SOME GENERAL CONCEPTIONS WITH REFERENCE TO SLOPE- THALWEG- AND STREAM-TRAVEL 
If the theory, the understanding so far developed, is correct it should apply to 
other streams, but the constants, S c , the R"s, the R'/s, G, and ^r should differ for 
hi to 
other streams from those derived on Streams A and B. Possibly C, F, M and T" 
would differ also, but this is not certain. The differences in the constants should 
be expressible in terms of topography, geology, surface conditions, drainage condi- 
tions, etc., that is, in terms of the constant characteristics of the drainage area, if 
one had complete knowledge. Some other streams besides Streams A and B have 
been partly studied. 1 Some slight progress has been made in interpreting the con- 
stants in terms of the characteristics of the drainage area. For example, from a 
study of the topographic map of Wagon Wheel Gap, Plate 7, the conclusion was 
reached from pure theory that the maximum R' for Stream B should be less than 
for Stream A and should come later. The computations later showed that con- 
clusion to be true. 2 
In order that the reader may have full advantage of the use of the ideas embod- 
ied in the theory just mentioned in enabling him to estimate the R"s on any stream, 
those ideas are herewith presented briefly. 
There are three parts to the travel of a given particle of water from its first 
contact with the ground as rain to its arrival at a point of measurement as stream- 
flow during which its performance is probably decidedly characteristic of each 
part as distinguished from the others, as follows: 
Travel underground, not under a well-defined thalweg. Call this slope travel. 
Travel underground, under a well-defined thalweg. Call this thalweg travel. 
Travel in a stream (temporary or permanent) flowing on the surface of the ground. 
Call this stream travel. 
The following general propositions with reference to the three paths of travel 
are believed to be true. 
1 Those arc indicated in Table 62, page 216. 
2 See Plate 8 and Table 51. 
