48 University Geological Survey of Kansas. 
points named the Mississippian formation extends across the 
river and, therefore, the river has cut its channel into these 
rocks, leaving bluffs of equal height on each side. 
Drainage. 
The entire Joplin mining area is drained by the four 
streams already named and their tributaries. These four 
streams are approximately parallel and are, from the north, 
Spring river, Center creek, Turkey creek, and Shoal creek. 
As early as 1884 the writer called attention to the great simi- 
larity between these streams in direction and character, and 
suggested that the proper recognition would be to consider 
Spring river and North Fork as the principal streams fed by 
tributaries passing down the northwest side of the Ozark up- 
lift. By this consideration the Spring river at Carthage takes 
its place beside Center creek, Turkey creek, and Shoal creek, 
as it should, and does not swing around almost in a curve. 
The peculiar meanderings of Spring river are comparatively 
easily explained. At Lowell, where Shoal creek enters the 
river, the latter makes a turn at right angles and flows north 
of west for a mile and a half, and then suddenly makes a 
turn and flows back a little east of south. Throughout this 
entire distance the river flood plain rests directly on the upper 
surface of the Mississippian, which is exposed in the bottom 
of the stream. At the mouth of Turkey creek we find Spring 
river verging to the west and northwest, forming a loop nearly 
two miles long and one and one-half wide. The same is true 
about three miles above the mouth of Center creek. Here 
Spring river veers to the west a distance of nearly two miles 
and then comes back again to a more normal position above 
the mouth of Turkey creek. 
Throughout the entire distance above described Coal 
Measure shales either extend eastward to the river, or almost 
to it. In every instance where a bold curve to the west is 
made the river has glided westward on top of the Mississip- 
pian by cutting into the Coal Measure shales. It would seem 
that the extra current in Shoal and Turkey creeks may have 
assisted in this. But the third bold curve above the mouth 
of Center creek cannot claim any such assistance. It is to 
