Jeffersonian Republican. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1840-1853, 1845-04-03


sor Drake, who visited these lakes last summer,
that they extend over nearly eight and half de-
grees of latitude in breadth and sixteen degrees of
longitude in length. The extent of their surfaces
is estimated at $4,000 square miles and the area
of country drained by them, is computed at 40O,-
900 square miles.
Their relative sizes are as follows:
Ontario, $500 square miles
Erie, $500 do
st. Clair, $50 do
Huron, 10000 do
Michigan, 24,400 do
Superior, $4,000 do
The average depth of water in the different
Lakes, is a question upon which there is no GER
tain information. Authorities differ. DR.. Drake
gives it as follows
St. Clair, 90 feet
Erie, --- S4
Ontario, 500 ''
Superior, 900 ''
Huron and Michigan, 1000 &c
In our standard works, Lake Erie is usually
stated to have depth of 100 feet The deepest
soundings have been taken in Lake Huron. Off
Saginaw Bay, 1900 feet of line have been sent
down without finding bottom.
The altitude of these lakes varies step by step
from Ontario to Superior. Lake Ontario is 232
feet above the tide-water of the ST. Lawrence
Erie is 333 feet above Ontario and SOS feet above
tide-water at Albany. ST. Clair is six feet higher
than Erie: Huron and Michigan are thirteen feet
above ST. Clair, and Superior hes A feet above
them.
This shows the curious fact. that while the sur
face of Huron is 604 feet above the level of the
ocean, its bottom at Saginaw Bay, is more than
100 feet below the same level.
The waters of those lakes, with the exception of
Erie and St. Clair, remarkable for their trans
parency and delicious flavor. Of Lake Huron,
Professor Drake ascertained that the water at the
surface and two hundred feet below at the same
place, indicated precisely the same temperature,
to wit fifty six degrees. His explanation of this
fact is, that the waters pure that the rays Of
arrest and retain the heat.
The writer adds:
"There is great curiosity connected with these
lakes about 30 miles from Kingston, near the out
let of the bay of Qunte, in Canada. The writer
of this visited it a few years ago, in company with
Professor Lyell of London, who pronounced it one
of the greatest curosiiies of the kind he ever saw
1t is what is called in Scotland "a Tarn' or noun
tain lake. 1t is situated upon conical hill about
$50 feet high. ltis crcular-about half mile in
diameter, and occupies nearly the whole surface
of the hill.
'The lake is consequently entirely without inlet;
small stream constantly escapes from one edge
of it, down the side of the hill turning the wheels
of Touring mill, which has been erected near the
summit. The level Of the water in the lake is
supposed to be about $50 feet above that of the
bay below. AS there are no high lands within
fifty or sixty miles. or perhaps greater distance,
the curious question arises, whence comes the
supply for this mountain lake
professor Lyell supposes it to occupy the cra-
ter of an extinct volcano, and to receive its waters
through hidden syphons, from great distance !;
but did not coincide with the popular belief in the
neighborhood, that the fountain head was Lake
Erie, although it is supposed that they occupy the
same level"