New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1856-02-16
THE CAYUGA MARSHES.

tirely surrounded by fields in the highest cutiva-
ton, are situated the Cayugs Marshes. vast
expaDse of flags and other swamp vegetation
standing in shallow wster-or on land just above
the wster-is spread out before the view of the
farmers who cultivate the highlands that surround
this great center of malaria. Here fevers and
aeues hold their court-though the islands and
shores Of this great marsh, form, perhaps, the only
district where the salow visaged denizen will adj
NIT it is really unhealthy where he iir,s.
Across the marshes are the great avenues OF
trade. The Erie Canal, until now has lowered Its
boats into the sluggish river that winds its tor'u-
GUS course through the vast fen. and by locks on
both sides, has discharged for some thirty years
its muddy waters among the weeds that choke the
channel. The waters of Lake Erie coming all
the way from Buffalo to feed the Canal, spill their
surplus over the banks into the marshes. The
Enlarged Canal is to remedy this and BY costly
embankment and aqueduct, carry its waters over
the marshes and river and discharge them at proper
points by waste-wers. The New-fork Central
Railroad, with both its old and new lines, also
crosses tho marshes-One line at the north end of
Cayuga Lake-the other some miles north of the
village Of Montezuma
The greatest length of the marshes, measured
from Cayuga Lake to Jacks Reef is about % miles
the greatest width about ten miles. Standing on
the highlands southeast of Montezuma, and look.
ing to the west the marsh is seen IN Its most i'm
posing and repulsive aspect desOiation itself,
surrounded BY the most valuable grain lands. In
April or May the marshes are one great lake, the
waters of which are slowly drained of by the river
or evaporated by the winds and sun. In high
water the Cayuga Lake may be said 10 extend to
Jacks Rect there being in tact not less than three
feet il the whole distance. In low water there are
some points where slight current Is perceptible,
but for most of the distance the stream can
hardly be- seen to For the greater part of the
course OF the river through the marshes it Is deep
and still. Where a tributary joins the main
stream, a bar of mud has been formed, but gem
orally the water is from twelve to forty feet deep.
At single point the river runs over gravel bot
tom.
Jacks Reef is the dam that holds this river so
nearly level. Here soft rock, known by the
biologists as the Green shales of tbs Olondaga
salt group" outcrops BY sudden bend in its strait
fcaiion, and presents barrier, which for the
whole lapse OF time that our present geological or
der of things has existed, has been slowly wearing
away under the action OF the water OF the river I'M
til the surface of the rock has become neary an in
clned plane of mile and halfn length-the up
per end of which is about six feet higher than the
lower end Long ago the fall at this reefmust have
bout faat hon LAX
cred all the marshes and great extent OF sur
rounding country and the cOnica hills north of the
canal and east OF Montezuma were islands; and the
beautiful valley in which Ithaca stands was lake.
surrounded by abrupt nights that came to the wa
ter's edge. During the period Of the entire aud
constant submergence Of the marshes, the waters
being highly charged with carbonate Of lime, de-
posted vast quantity of mari. In process of time
the rocks wore away at Jacks Rect, lowering the
surface of the water. Meanwhile, mari was being
piled up on the bottom, and thus by the action OF
these two causes the land gradually began 10 ap-
pear, and vegetation commenced. From the de-
cay of each years crop of aquatic plants, and from
the mud of high water, the marshes as they are
now seen were formed.
The general surface Of the marsh is level, with a
slight elevation at the banks Of the river, due 10
the fact that as the river only oyerfows the marshes
in high water, il deposits in the greatest abun-
dance along its channel the PARTICLES that float in
il. This levee on the marshes retains few inches
of water after the freshets have begun to subside,
which, having no outlet, must be evaporated.
The stratum of muck which forms the surface.
Of the marsh is very imperyious TO water, and,
being generally about three feet thck above the
mari, allows of no escape TO this stagnant water,
which thus remains seething under midsummers
sun, until the winds wait its poisoned PARTICLES far
and wide
The pure waters of the hills of steuben County,
of the Lakes Canandaigua, Crooked, Seneca and
Cayuga, whose blue surface is about 400 feet above
tide and whose bottom is below the oceans level,
from whose depths arise vast artesan springs,
and whose tributaries flow from the Hamilton
group of rocks that make its hill sdes-all these
waters so corrupted in the marshes that wher-
ever the river that flows through them is broken by
a dam or a rapid after it leaves them it gives OFF
pc thence. Many thriving village along this river
owes its reputation for fever and ague TO the
marshes. For all agricultural purposes these
marshes in their present condition are of no value.
Flags for chair-bottoms, bullhesds, and bullfrogs
and muskIats, they do produce. Occasionally
pickerel, pike and bass are taken there, but gen.
orally the best of these fish are wise enough TO get