The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1897-06-21

a.
brought me to Beverly. In the middle o.
Tygart Valley.
me features OF this valley arc very
nueh like those Of the iuc hIlnoh
valley: but the surrounding -niia a'e
higher and more rugged, rislaS ~
distance into InountainF This region y
well back IN the plateau OF West Eir-
ginin, which has It's elimination IN the
high country or POcahontns ana rem
dlcion counties The streams nave cur
deep, but the hills have not yet Dech
worn down 10 the graceful roundeo
forms OF those about BuclShannon. Inc
valleys have been widened. and the SOL
Is deep, The same condition prevails
both above and below Beverly. At thn
town OF E.llins, seven miles below. the
level lands are wide. The valley o.
Leading Creek. which IS q tributary %
the Tygart river, shows this feature "a
4 remarkable degree.
The question is, will those broad val
lees share the fate OF similar valleys
which once held the waters Of the MO-
nongahela? The answer must be, yes.
Agents are at work which must ulil-
mately cut through the iloors OF the
Buckhannon and the Tyg1rts valley
and saw deep rnvines far below Ine
present level OF the river bottoms. The
sluggish rivers are not cutting last now
as they now quietly down the level yai-
ieys: but the work Is being done else
where. II Is far down stream. the
falls in the river eight miles below
Grafton will some time reach Beverly
and Ruckhannon Fails. catarncts ana
rapids always travel up stream. They
wear thetr way back through che rock.
are after age, and finally reach the
sources Of the streams. The valley
Falls We're no doubt once below Nor
gantown. They are now whiting Few
miles OF Grafton. This Is true, at least,
OF the perpendicular which they repre-
sent: but the characters OF the ledses
change, and the form Of the catATact3
changes also NOW being vertical now
being long and turbulent rapids. But
the water IS constantly doing Its work
and cutting q deep channel up toward
the source OF the stream. The river Is
nearly an rapids for many miles above
Grafton. These rapids all mo7e up
stream. They came up the Mononga-
helh past MurEantuwn ages ago ana
lowered that stream from us ancient
yAlley-noor 10 its present raNine' they
will reach the upper valleys at Beverly
ana Buckhauuon and viii work the
snme destruction there The attitudes
OF those present broad valleys VIII chen
be shown hy fragments Of terrace here
and there. along the face OF the hills as
the remnants OF ancient valley-noors
are now shown by the terraces along
the faces OF the Monorgalla hills.
What the FHtRrs May see.
Macaulay's vision OF the South Sea Is
lander sitting in far future dime, on one
OF the broken and haif-burled arches
Of London Bridge and wondering what
ancien. people lived there. might be
made use OF. with Sigh; change. to NJ q
case nearer home, In vague and future
ages. when the Tyglrt river flows IN
narrow gorge hundreds OF feet below
IT'S present bed. a traveller may elmo
the preclpit0us hills above the stream
and reach fragment OF terrace.
where the town u Elkins now stands:
and when he discovers In the bottom OF
a CuIlv OF the rain-washed slope, heavy
stone foundations OF mans handicrait.
he may wonder what ancient race OF
"clln jewellers" resided there, ana may
admire the civilization" OF the forgot.
ten people. II the forest leaves found
by Professor White in the clay on one
OF the MononEahela terraces have sur
ylyed from the long ago until the pres
eut, Il is no more than practical reason
10 conclude that the more substantial
creations OF mans civilization VIII en-
dure an equal length or time.
The eastern tributary OF the Aonon-
gaheln In this state Is Cheat river. IL
flows through a country topoErahicallP
different from that through which the
more westerly tributaries How. ana
consequently the same conditions are
not met with. The Cheat breaks across
higher and more Tugged mountains
and. while. In It's upper parts, II mas not
cut down as nearly to sea level as the
other streams. It has, nevertheless cut
Itself much deeper channel than any
other tributary OF the Monongahela. X
has Ind more work TO do in reaching is
preseut level While the MOnongahela
md rs western tributaries flOw almost
exclusively through rocks OF the Car.
boniferous age. Cheat has sawed
through the Carboniferous rocks and
far down into the Devonian. II prob
nbly has never had wider or more near
Is level valleys than at present. IL has
always flowed through GorEes with
here and there n local broadening. Yet.
II has is terraces as clearly marked as
any on the Monongahela. The best pre-
served OF these terraces which l nave
seen "a at Holly Meadows. three miles
below the town OF Parsons, IN Tucker
county. II Is more than two hundred
yards wide. and lies sixty or seventy
feet above the present bed OF the river.
The strata OF neck are tilted at 4 SHARP
angle, and the edges, over which the
river once flowed. are planned on. and
on top OF this solid rock rest water
worn powders and sand from Ten TO
twenty feet deep. Fragments OF ter,
race, at about the same level. are found
elsewhere along the river within few
miles. hu MA" ILL