Indian chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1882-1902, 1897-08-12

TO the Action Of Zee.
When the western country was first
settled the newcomers, unaccastomed
to the glacial lakes of the west, were
astonlshed to find many Of them walled
along parts OF the shore and some
completely about their borders, says
the Milwaukee (Wis.) Journal These
walls are constructed Of the powders
so common everywhere, laid dry or
bedded with earth, of more or less reg
ularity, with no regard to the size or
shape OF the stones, except that they
fit well and are 80 placed as to main
tain their equllibrium-thst Is. stand
firm. Several lakes are known whose
shores are thus walled all around with
the mechanical perfection belonging to
the cyclopean period. The walls gem
orally have a slope from the lake and
are banked up with earth on the land
side This bank frequently has trees
growing on II. All this Is very wonder
full and excited the keenest curiosity
among the early travellers. This curlos-
ity is not yet dead. Only recently It
I
Of Elkhart lake and the subject has
got into the local papers with q brief
proper explanation. In early univer-
sity days, when the t0vs went in swim
milg, instead OF bathing, in lake Mem
dota. there were certain large bowlders
from which they were wont to spring
into the water. Some Of these were OF
tons weight some projected above the
water and some were under. The place
Of every one was known to the SWIM
mers. II was found the next season
that they had to be located over again,
having changed position during the
winter Weight made no difference;
they all had to move. II was plain to
see that the ice did II, crowding them
shoreward whenever II could reach
them. But as the bank there was steep.
at the foot of the blum, they slid or
worked back more or less. In places,
however, they we're piled on the shore,
as where university drive comes to the
beach. When the Milwaukee and Wa
tertown plank road was made II skirt
ed Oconomowoo lake near what is now
/ Gifford's. There was lake wall there
of modest pretensions and this was
made part OF the bank holding the
| roadbed. The next season II was found
the wall had been showed under the
roadbed, so as 10 set the plank away
from the lake. To boy OF an inquir-
ing turn OF mind the whole operation
was plain. The expansion OF the ice
had done t. The bank there was slop-
| ing, quite so-it was easy for this great
force to slide the wall along. At Madi-
son. however much II might slide the
bowlders against the bluff, they fell
back into the water. Now suppose the
slope to be Just the right angle between
these two so that the force would lift
the stones by sliding one under the
1 other, and yet not let them fall back
you will have the conditions for lake
wall. The stones in this process not
rightly balanced will fall one side or
the other-those balances will retain
their places. Those falling into the wa
ter viii have to try again till they are
rightly placed and remain. Meanwhile
| the whole structure has been pushed
back till the force and resistance are
equalized. making the bank OF earth
behind, which in turn helps to sus-
tain the wall. The water should shoal
slowly, 80 as to bring many rocks
within reach 1.-The ice. Time, then,
only is necessary to build the wall and
the operation will cease when all the
! rocLe hava haau Unrlad into tba ,..att
and the increased shoaling provides
friction enough 10 check the ice. Tho
wall then becomes permanent and tho
forest covers the strange work with It's
glory.