The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-11-05
THE GREAT LAKES LING.
Natural Causes Thr sate1 T3eir Exist
ence as lnlaad Seas.

ff0M ne AetC oTE Ainicf.
OTTAWA, ONT, Oct. a6.-serious COM
plants are being made by Montreal ship
pers that their boats are being delayed in
transit through the canals owing TO the
lowneSs Of water, and that this lowness is
owing 10 the falling Of the level OF the
lakes. 10 is said a at the water level in the
lakes has sunk gradually for READY wears.
aud that il has now cached level ~ & o
government must do something 70 remedy
10 or undertake such works as shall secure
a constant and stesdy SUPPLY Of water in
the canals. The changes in the / wer lakes
were first noticed in lS3S. Since then q
great change has been Observed the
draught of water steadily. though slowly.
decreasing. Prof. Selwyn being inter
viewed. said:
There is no doubt that the lakes ere fill
ing up, very gradually perhaps and it may
be millions Of year. before any serious
change may take pace in the larger lakes
but in the shallowest, Lake Erie, which is
only l20 feet average depth, the effect
might be much more serious At an earlier
date. The reason of the lake filling up is
quite obvious. When first l went uD Into
the est In 1873, found that the process of
filling up had commenced, and IN my report
drew the attention of the government TO
the fact. In NV interviews with the In
tanned traces of their knowledge Of the fact
that the lakes were filling up, and not only
50, but found. going back into their leg
ends TO time immemorial, that some time or
other, perhaps many generations ago, some
of our great valleys we're lakes, which have
been filled up. In this legendary story l
have every reason to believe, as my own
geological researches tend % confirm it,
and in my own personal experience have
known many large water holes completely
filled up.
"On my sons fern in the west there was
pond, with a stream running through il,
of several acres, which, I'm 1851, was some
three feet deep, and off which this year be
took magnificent crop Of hay. This fill
ing in is increasing rapidly. and while much
more rapid now than in former years, will
continue TO increase more rapidly yet You
ask the reason of this. 1t is self-evident
that while the mass of the territory drained
by the myriad streams of the west, all run
ming into these ponds and lakes, was thickly
wooded, the trees served not only TO hold
the water. but to prevent the washing away
OF the soil by meaps of their numerous
roots. As the country becomes cleared, So
these safeguards ara removed, and after
heavy rains the waters pour down I'M
checked off these lands and, percolating
through them as well as running over them,
carry with the streams immense and ever
increasing volumes Of silt or soil. Az long
as this is borne along by the velocity OF the
streams IL has no chance to settle. but when
the rivers fall into the deep still lakes the
law of gravitation makes the silt sink to
the bottom and gather there The same
thing has been seen in many parts of
Europe, where rapid and impetuous streams
run into the sea, aud thus come the curious
natural phenomena which are now affecting
our lakes. When you take the thousands
of miles OF watershed drained by countless
streams, all coming into the great lakes,
you can form some small idea of what the
proportion Of silt, increasing yearly with
increased cultivation, being deposited in
these lakes must be-