Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1904-10-21

rocky banks have directed the current of
the stream against the yielding drift it
has cut back into this until the repellent
rock has again changed its course. The
same thing was proved true with ref
erence to the Connecticut during the long
drive over Wantastiquet on the east
ern side the river has SIMPLIFY fretted it
self against the mountains rock barrier,
while on the west it has several times
carried its bed across the valley to be re-
turned to the mountain by the encircling
Lodges there. Thus a succession Of ter
races border the river on the side oppo-
site Wantastiquet while the river meets
the mountain without any deposit. In
the evening discussion Miss Fisher spoke
of the curious restraining of the Nolga
river at one point by a rock barrier while
the bed above and below had been car
ried far across the valley thus forming
a long. sharp bend in the streams course.
At this time Professor Barton spoke of n
hitherto unnoticed terrace feature which
he had discovered I'm his trip to Hawaii
this summer. On the side of the island
Of Alaiu opposite Heleakala the erosion
resembles the cutting of slices out of the
mountain. In the gorges thus formed
parallel terraces We're found made up of
consolidated c~onglomerate composed of
water-worn pebbles varying in size from
gravel-stones to those weighing tons. No
cause for such a formation appeared in
the sections studied.
There is a pecunar charm about the
West river as 1t escapes between the
notches of the foothills and comes laugh
ing out into the valley. There is an in
expressible delight in traversing its tangle
of woodland roads where the ove%rhanging
arch of leaves merges downward into the
carpet of leaves forming long tunnels all
aglow with living yellow. Reached by one
of these roads that follows the cascading
Balastier brook is 'Naulaka," the Amer
lean home Of Kipling, High up on one
Of the cone-shaped hills ii stands, over
looking the wide valley far below. It
must have given him a pang to leave 1t.
Mary f. wilkins spent her early days
In n simple old-fashioned house on one
of the terraces just above n pretty
church and an ancient hui. ing as quaint
as any of her characters. The family of
President Hayes belongs to Brattleboro,
so also, curiously, that of Jim Fisk. The
artists, William Morris Hunt and Robert
Gordon Hardie. as also the sculptor Lar
kin G. Mead drew their first inspiration
here. while innumerable noted people have
found ii a temporary home.
Across the Connecticut into Hinsdale,
along Wantastiquet in Chesterfield. over
the Connecticut again into Dummerston,
one finally reaches Black Mountain east
of the West river. This is one of those
peculiar granite bosses which ate its
way up into the overIying mica schists
and cooled there as Rollstone Hin at
Fitchburg did. 1t EXHIBITS the same con-
centric ~iointing moreover as the Roll
stone, The rock is of a light fresh color
in high contrast to the dark schists, and
one could only say that the mountain
must nave been dubbed Black through
the nomaly of its dark weathered sur
face to which but scanty verdure clings.
1t serves to remind us by its name,
however, that mountains rise above the
foothills. Ascutney, Monadnock, Wachu-
sett, shadowy blue forms in the distance,
that have overlooked this valley for ages
before the terraces were formed and may
perhaps be grimly smiling at our efforts
to ferret out the mysteries at their feet.