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ALBERT R. MANi.
LIBRARY
AT
CORNELL UNIVERSIT
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NORTH AMERICA
ITS
AGRICULTURE AND CLIMATE
CONTAINING
OBSERVATIONS ON THE AGRICULTURE
AND CLIMATE OF CANADA, THE UNITED STATES,
AND THE ISLAND OF CUBA.
BY ROBERT RUSSELL,
KILWHISS..
cs
EDINBURGH
ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK.
MpccecL yi
"(The duthor retains the right of transiation.|
TO
PROFESSOR JAMES P; ESPY,
WASHINGTON.
—e—
MY DEAR SIR,
I take the liberty of dedicating this Volume
to you, in grateful remembrance of the kindness I received
from you while in Washington. During the many agree-
able hours I ‘spent in your company, the climate of North
America formed the chief topic of conversation. In the
last chapter of this Volume, I now give a fuller expo-
sition of the views sketched out in the Lectures I
delivered in the Smithsonian Institution, and which you
honoured with your presence. The explanation of tho
laws which regulate the climate of North America may not
meet with your entire approval; but I feel sure that your
zeal for the advancement of a science for which you have
already done so much, will induce you to give the facts and
opinions brought forward your careful consideration.
Believe me,
With feelings of great regard,
Ever faithfully yours,
ROBERT RUSSELL,
Kirwass, 10th June 1857,
CONTENTS.
Cuarres I. ........ Liverpool to Burlington, Vermont . .
Cuaptes II. ...... Burlington to Niagara. 1 1 2 wee
Cuarren IIL..,... UpperCannda . 2 2 1 1 we et
Cuaprer IV....... Lower Canada. . 2. 2. 2. 1. wee
Cuarrer V. .
«». Oswego to Cincinnati =. 1. ww ke
Cuarren VI. ...... Cincinnati to Chicago 2. 1 1 we
Cuarrer VII, ... Chicago to Baltimore. . 2. 2... 1. 1s
Cuarrer VIII. ... Baltimore to Washington . . . . ee
Cuarren IX,...... Washington to Charleston . . . . 2 se
Cuarten X. ...... Rice Culture . 2 1.
Cosmet XM, xine Torin 2 we OK
Cuarter XII. .. Climate and Agriculture of Cuba...
Cnarten XIII. ... The Inhabitants and Social State of Cuba
Cuarter XIV. ... Havannah to Natchez, Louisiana . .
Cuarren XV..... . Excursion on the Mississippi a8
x
Cuaptren XVI. ... New Orleans to Washington . . .
Cuarrer XVII... Climate of North America .
Meteorological Registers 5 6. 6 ee ee te
Index .
Yage
16
. 87
- 16
+ 110
« 133
- 168
. 204
. 224
. 243
. 262
. 281
. 303
. 880
. 381
NORTH AMERICA.
ITS AGRICULTURE AND CLIMATE.
ma -
—~—-
CHAPTER I.
LIVERPOOL TO BURLINGTON, VERMONT.
Tue triumphs of steam have, in a great measure, deprived a
voyage to America of its former tediousness and irregularity,
and given to it much of the character of a ferry passage.
This facility put it in my power to gratify a long-cherished
wish; and on the 5th August 1854, I sailed from Liverpool
on board the * America,” one of the Cunard line of steamers,
for Boston, via Halifax. In common with the majority of
landsmen, I experienced considerable discomfort during the
first few duys I was upon the restless ocean ; but the remainder
of the voyage was rendered exceedingly agreeable by inter-
course with a varied company of fellow passengers. The
weather was more stormy than it usually is at that season of the
year; and when we reached the lower latitudes of the American
coast, it was much colder than I expected to find it,
On the eleventh day after leaving Liverpool, the coast of
Nova Scotia became visible. The heated air from the. vast
continent cleared the atmosphere of the clouds which had
almost constantly obscured it during the voyage; and a glo-
rious afternoon it was when wo stecred into tho magnificent
harbour of Halifax. The coast hero is barron and rocky, and
covered with dwarf spruce trees. There are only small
patches fit for cultivation, and the grain crops were quite
green. B
2 MASSACIIUSETTS.
Another day and two nights’ sailing after leaving Hali-
fax brought us at sunrise within sight of tho heights of Boston ;
and in a short time, after threading her way among islands,
ships, and curiously shaped steamers, the “ America” reached
her landing at East Boston,
I soon found my way to the Revoro Ilotel, and was
greatly surprised at the extent and aplondour of its accom
modation, Tho town is built ono peninsula, Its closcly
packed brick houses, and its streets thickly crowded with
omnibuses, reminded me of London. The streets are narrow
and irregular, which makes it difficult for a stranger to find
his way. On the north side of the town there is a large and
fine common, which affords ample space for the recreation of
the inhabitants. Three sides of this common are occupied by
the dwellings of the most wealthy inhabitants, and in front of
the houses rows of American trees, consisting of the sumach,
maple, and acacia, beautify this quarter, and afford a grate-
ful shade in the sultry heats of summer.
In no town in America can 9 stranger gpend a fow days
more agrecably than in Boston, ero there is a numerous
class who are not engrossed with the all-absorbing pursuits
of commerce. Tho number of public institutions that are
easily accessible impress one favourably with tho progress
which our western brethren are making in the refinements of
modern civilization.
Tho great increase of Boston, and the limited extent of
the peninsula on which it is built, have forced many of the
wealthy merchants to reside in the country. For seven or
eight miles out of towa the country is thickly studded over
with handsome villas laid out in ornamental grounds and
gardens. Though the land is of the most sterile character,
consisting chiefly of sand and gravel, and frequently of bare
rocks, with polished surfuces, yet building sites, are worth
from £200 to £300 an acre, even at the distance vf ten miles
from town. /
On first landing in America, I was struck with the small
stature of the men and women, and also with the paleness of
their faces. The great extremes of temperature in the
United States scem to deprive the Anglo-Saxon of that
BOSTON. 3
freshness of comploxion which is so common in our own cool
and equable climate. Tho day after my arrival I attended a
“ fair,” held on the property of the late Daniel Webster, at
Marshfield, in the neighbourhood of Plymouth, the spot where
tho Puritans first landed. The inhabitants, from a wide
circlo of country, had assembled to spend a holiday, There
was @ bazaar for tho solo of ladics’ work, with a band of
music, which formed tho chicf amusement of the day. The
modest mansion where Daniel Webster was wont to reside
was thrown open to the public, and was so thronged with
visitors that I could hardly elbow my way through it. All
were well dressed, and many of the ladies were exceedingly
good looking. At Winslow, a short distance from Marshfield,
was buried the first white man born in New England, In .
the same retired spot are mouldering the ashes of Daniel
Webster, whose memory is fondly cherished by the people of
this district.
The country betwixt Marshficld and Boston, a distance of
thirty-six miles, is 80 miscrably poor that little of it is fit for
cultivation, From Winslow I walked down to the sca-shoro
through some ficlds which had been in pasture for several
years, Tho gross was so completely withered that it crisped
beneath my feet, while clouds of grasshoppers rose at every
step. Large boulders were thickly imbedded in it everywhere.
Yet I was told this was good land, and in good condition. At
first I was rather sceptical of my informant being in earnest,
but subsequently I discovered that, comparatively speaking,
this was not a bad soil for New England, where the granitic
rocks predominate. In the salt marshes I saw a farmer load-
ing a waggon with hay, which, though very coarse in quality,
cost on the spot £2: 2s. for a ton of 2000 lbs., and was to
bo conveyed thirteen miles into tho interior.
I paid a visit to B. French, Esq., at Braintree, about six
miles from Boston, where also the soil was poor. It is rather
wonderful, however, that it is 80 well adapted for orchards,
for the apple trees were bearing abundant crops. Crushed
bones are found to be a very beneficial application for fruit
trees. The agriculture of this part of America is by no
means interesting to one from the old country. The farms aro
4 MASSACHUSETTS.
small, and tho offices are usually under ono roof. At Brain-
tree they formed a high building of threo storeys, with tho
hay in tho upper, tho cattle in the middlo, and the manure in
the under. The foundations were dug out of a sloping bank,
and the floor of the upper storey was level with the ground
on tho outside. There is a great scarcity of straw in the
New England states, and the cattle and horses lie on boards
for the purpose of economising it.
I spent a day in the manufacturing town of Lowell,
which is twenty-six miles from. Boston. The intervening
country is still more barren, if anything could be so than what
Thad seen in my trip to Marshficld. ‘The only attempts
‘at cultivation were some crops of Indian corn and market
vegetables growing upon sand almost as loose as that
upon the sca shore. No rain had fallen for some time, and
the air felt most oppressive,—hot as if it had come from an
oven, and so opaque with dust that the horizon was black
all round, just as it often is before a thunder-storm.
To one newly arrived from the old country; the condition
‘of the Lowell factory opcratives is interesting, thero being
a great contrast in their appearance to that of the samo
class in our manufacturing towns. ‘The cotton mills at
Lowell belong to a corporation or joint-stock company, and
furnish employment to about 10,000 hands, of whom ‘2000
aro women earning from threo to four dollars a week.
Theso are goncrally the danghters of tho small furmers
of New England. After paying their board, they can
lay aside about one-half of thelr carnings, which In threo
or four years furnish thom with a little money, and it fs
seldom that they remain at the works for a longer poriod,
They board together in private honsea, built by the corpo-
ration, and Ict to widows and others. ach boarding-
house can accommodate about forty inmates, who are
most comfortably lodged. From all that I could learn,
the present condition of the Lowell operatives is quite
as favourable to a high state of morality as that of the
middle classes in Britain. The interest taken in the
welfare of the operatives in the New England factories is
highly creditable to the spirit of the corporation, and it is
LOWELL FACTORIES. 5
to be hoped that a system productive of auch favourable
results will not hereafter be broken in upon by the rude
neceasities of competition.
I wos informed by a commercial gentleman that one of
the main elements in the success of the factory system, both
at Lowell and at Lawrence, atoso from the provident wisdom
of the corporations buying the Jand in the neighbourhood of
the sites upon which they were to build their works, and
-afterwards selling it at high rates for building upon. Thus
new towns speedily arosc to accommodate the population
drawn together by the erection of the numerous mills, and:
imparted a high value to ground that was otherwise com-
paratively worthless,
Tho peninsula of Nahant forms o favourite retreat for
the Bostonians during the heats of summer. Tho hotel at
Nahant is still more splendid than the Revere at Boston.
One night while I was there, Professor Agassiz gave an
interesting lecture on the geology of tho peninsula to a
highly fashionable company in the large dining-room of the
hotel, Spending the Sunday at this delightful spot, I.
attended tho only church in the neighbourhood. To suit a
class of hearers so miscellaneous ag those who frequent the
hotel or havo villas in the vicinity, ministers of the various
Protestant denominations officiate alternately, A cominittee
of laymen make the necessary arrangements for obtaining
preachers from tho Episcupalian, Baptist, Methodist, Presby=
terlan, or Unitarian bodics, A preacher of the last-men-
tioned denomination It fell to my lot to hear, No doctrinal
peculiaritica could be detected in his sermon, which was prace
tical, and delivered with great carncstness.
It is vory diMcult to draw lines of distinction between
classes of socicty in New England. At the hotel I had
some conversation with a person who had all the appearance
and manners of a gentleman, but who was no other than a
working mechanic. He had driven down his wife and family
from a village thirteen miles inland to have a day’s recreation
at Nahant. This way of spending a little spare money
raises the moral and social condition of those who labour:
with their hands, and maintains a sense of self-respect. Tho
6 MASSACHUSETTS.
general diffusion of education among all classes in New Eng-
land has had the effect of raising them in a great measure
beyond the temptation of indulging in drinking habits, which
are more common where ignorance prevails, especially when
combined with a high rate of wages. A Sheffield manufac-
turer, carrying on business both in England and the United
States, informed me that in the majority of cases the high
wages which he paid to his workmen in Britain did not
improve their condition, as so much was squandered for
spirits, whereas the educated mechanics of New England
were in gencral a sobcr and industrious class of men.
After travelling for some time in Massachusetts, one is
‘impressed with the thorough diffusion of education among all
classes, and with the universal politeness mingled with inde-
pendence which prevails. Although American phrascs are
very common in ordinary conversation, yet in all the larger
towns of this State the English language is spoken with great
purity. The legislature is making efforts to give a free
education to every one who chooses to accept of it. Boston
and its environs contain a population of about 300,000, and
in 1853 they assessed themselves to the amount of £60,000
for educational purposes.
Leaving Boston, I took the cars to Brunswick in Maine.
The country is very poor all the way, and small patches only
aro in cultivation, Over largo portions the granitic rocks
protrudo, and gravels and sands are the common matorials
out of which the soils have been formed. Pines, elms, beech,
and birch, grow vigorously in this rocky country, and here,
as elsewhere in the northern parts of America, it was sur-
prising to see such abundant crops of apples on trees which
grow in the roughest gravels,
There is much similarity in the appearance of the New
England villages. There are no signs of poverty, and none
of great riches. The streets are very wide and unpaved, but
broad side-walke made of planks afford good walking in the
worst weather. Every house stands detached with a spot of
garden ground around it, which gives to the strects a
straggling appearance, while the acacia trees planted in front
impart a rural aspect in summer. ‘The houses _aro all made of
MAINE LIQUOR LAW. 7
boards painted white, and the interiors are kept remarkably
clean. The school-house is always the principal building
in the village, and neatly-built churches are never awanting.
Under the guidance of Dr. Hitchcock I visited the Con-
gregational college at Brunswick, Maine. This body in
America have a system of organisation similar to the Presby-
terian; but though they hold stated mectings for the purpose
of consultation and of giving advice, no dictation is used
towards any individual church. The students lodge in the
buildings which are attached to the university. One building
accommodates about thirty individuals, who liave cach a
separate room for tho half-yearly rent of twenty dollars.
This plan of boarding is similar to that which the young
women have at Lowell. ‘Tho system of living in boarding-
houses, so common in all parts of the United States, evi-
dently arises from the circumstance, that a better table and
better accommodation can by that means be got for less
money than by taking up house and keeping servants.
Might not this system of association, in an economical point
of view, be worthy of a trial in our own manufacturing
towns?
The Maine liquor law was still nominally ia force while
I was in that State, though in many parts it seemed to be in
abeyance. I asked the boy at tho bar of the hotel in Bruns-
wick if I might have a glass of brandy. “1 guess so,” was
the unhesitating reply. Professor Hitchcock seemed to regard
its advantages as problematical. The temperance party
were loud in its praise, but there were no data to show
that it bad much effect cither one way or other. At
first the law was very rigorously carried out, but afterwards
it was much relaxed. In some of the towns through which I
passed it was necessary to go to the cellar to obtain liquor, but
in others it was sold openly over tho bar with as much freedom
as if no such law was in existence. This open violation of
the luw I found in Newbury, Vermont, whcro I saw people
partaking at all hours, and where the good natured landlord
was laughing at the legal prohibition. There is, in truth, no
_ executive forco here to carry such a Jaw into operation. The
temperance party, therefore, had not only to make the law,
8 MAINE.
but also to become informers in order to have it put into
force. It is not to be wondered at that this state of matters
did not continue long. The informers soon relaxed in their
zeal after having drawn upon their own heads much ill-will,
and thus, in many places, the law fell completely into abey-
ance, which must have a bad moral effect, and tend to .
weaken the reverence for all laws. But how could any other
result be expected, seeing, as my worthy informant assured
me, one fourth of the population were opposed to the law and
were continually breaking it, Tt isin the other States, where
the temperance party are agitating for the adoption of the
liquor law, that its good effects in name are so highly extolled.
The New Englanders, on the whole, are a very temperate
people. But no doubt the temperate habits of the educated
and well-to-do classes, the lawyers, clergymen, and merchants,
have a more beneficial influence in promoting and diffusing
habits of temperance among those who are bencath them in
wealth than the much talked of Maine Law. In New Eng-
land there is little or no drinking for the sake of sociality as
is too much the case in Scotland. Indeed, it is not uncom-
mon to find neither wine nor spirits at dinner parties. Those,
on the other hand, who are addicted to drinking in America,
drink in earnest, for they. begin in the morning taking a little,
and continue repeating the dose at intervals throughout the
day. It is almost incredible the quantity of spirits which
some people consume who have habits of this kind, and who,
at the same time, never appear the worse of liquor.
Leaving Brunswick and returning south a few miles, I
took my seat in the Atlantic Railway (connecting Portland
and Montreal) as far as Gorham Station, which is within eight
miles of Mount Washington, the highest mountain in the
territories of the United States, east of the Mississippi. The
country was only partially cultivated for the first part of my
* journey. A good many small farms were seen, but the occu-
pants must certainly derive their subsistence from other
employments than that of cultivating the land. The soil
appeared almost destitute of vegetable mould. There was an
exceedingly small portion under cultivation, and the barn which
contained all the crop and stock was seldom larger than the
°
NEW ENGLAND FORESTS. 9
farm house. No fields were seen without numbers of granite
boulders sticking out in the withered pastures. The country
_ gradually becomes more rugged and hilly, and much of the
level land in the valleys is so thickly covered with boulders
as to defy all attempts at cultivation.
The soil and climate of New England, however, are par-
ticularly genial to the growth of timber. Fire seems to
destroy wide tracts of the forest almost every year during the
periods of dry weather; but the burnt surface soon renews
its covering. I was shown a spot which had been destroye¢
by fire the previous year, and which was already occupied with
young thriving birch saplings. However rocky and barren the
soil nay be, if it is not too precipitous, it is always covered
by a dense growth of timber; and every little crevice in the
rocks affords sufficient hold for some gnarled member of the
forest to fix its roots in and obtain a subsistence.
Before reaching Gorham Station, we entered the narrow
valley of the Androscoggin, The hills are quite precipitous
and thickly timbered. Ona few spots of the interval land
crops of Indian corn, oats, and potatoes were growing; yellow
pumpkins also, many of them a foot and a-half in length,
were lying thickly over the ground among the Indian corn,
which was parched and withered by the drought. It is rather
curious how the broad succulent leaves of the pumpkins obtain
sufficient moisture from their long trailing vines,.out of a soil
consisting of little else than loose sand.
When I arrived at Gorham Station, which is 800 feet
,above the level of the sea, I found the spacious and elegant
hotel newly erected there overcrowded with visitors. Luckily,
however, I immediately got a seat in a coach which was
just starting for Glen House, a distance of eight miles.
Six active little horses were soon dashing along a very
rough road recently cut out of the primeval forest. 1 was
struck with the wanton luxuriance of nature, not so much
shown in the size of the timber as in the number of trees
which the soil was supporting. In the lower valley the forest
was almost an impenetrable mass of trunks in all stages of
growth and decay, and under their dense shade not-a blade
of grass was seen.
10 NEW HAMPSHIRE.
Tt appears to be a peculiarity of the primary soils of the
New England States that the pine, the elm, the maple, the
beech, and the spruce, grow together in social equality. In
many places it would have been difficult to find out which of
these varicties predominated. In height, however, the pines
towered above all the others; and in all those parts of the
forest which had been somewhat recently cleared by the fires,
the birch was by far the most common. The birch is a rapid
grower, but it soon attains maturity or limit of growth, 80°
that, in the long run, it cannot compete with those which
ultimately rise to a greater height, and, overtopping it, shut
it out from the sun’s rays. Thus, in the older portions of ~
the forest, few birch trees are seen. It is the great variety
of trees in tho New England forests which affords such a
gorgeous spectacle when autumn tingces the leaves with so
many brilliant hues.
Glen House Hotel, 1600 feet above the level of the sea,
is closu at the base of Mount Washington, which is 6300
fect. At this hotel, no fewer than 350 persons can be accom-
modated with board and lodging. The morning after my
arrival I started with a party of fifteen ladies and gentlemen
to ascend to the top of the mountain. The party were
mounted on ponics, and though urged to follow their
example, I preferred to walk up at my leisure, and I was
afterwards convinced this was the more agreeable mode of
ascending.
Mount Washington is-densely covered with trees to the
height of 4500 feet. Tho usual varicties prevail at the,
base, but os you ascend there aro fewer, and by and by
nothing but pines are scen. Theso gradually diminish in
size till tho limit of their growth is attained, where there
are some curious specimens of dwarfs less than a foot in
height. The stones which afford them shelter from the
violent westerly winds regulate their height, as they cannot at
a certain clevation rear their heads above the level of their
protectors.
In the upper part of the mountain I walked over a con-
siderable space where the forest had been burnt down five
years ago. Every trace of vegetable matter had disappeared
MOUNT WASHINGTON. 1
from the surface, and the granite stones at a distance looked
nearly as white as chalk. There was no appearance of any
pines or vegetation coming up to cover what was wasted by
the fire. The reclothing of the ground at this great eleva-
tion will evidently be a slow process, How different from
what takes place below, where the fires seem actually to
invigorate the vegetable kingdom.
Like many other high mountains, the summit of Mount
Washington is covered with blocks of granite of great
dimensions. A roughly built house has been erected on the
top calculated to accommodate 100 visitors for a night. On
this occasion we met another party which had ascended from
the opposite side of the mountain. At dinner we numbered
about thirty; some had brought up a good supply of cham-
pagno, which was disposed very freely among those who had
made no such provision, and altogethor our party was @ very
happy one.
Tho view from the top was sadly marred by the quan-
tity of smoke which floated in the air, and which was caused
by the burning of some parts of the forest. Mount Wash-
ington has not the wild sublimity of Ben Nevis and some of
the other Scottish hills. It has, however, a grandeur of its
own; the high mountains surrounding it on all sides form
magnificent ravines all densely covered with timber. As far
as the eye could reach, not a spot was in sight under cultiva-
tion, a prospect that afforded me some idea of the appearance
which the whole country must have presented before the
white man set his foot on the western continent.
The blocks on tho top of the mountain were covered
with a light green lichen. A large lichen (Parmelia cen-
trifuga) was seen on some of the stoncs, many of the
specimens being upwards of a foot in diameter. In some
respects, the habits of this singular plant. resemble those of
the fungi, which form the fairy rings in our pastures, growing
in a circle, and enlarging every year. In the larger speci-
mens of this lichen, the vitality of the plant was confined
to the outer portions, while the inner was decaying and
rising from the stone; in many cases, the centre was per-
fectly bare and destitute of vegetable matter. The larger
12 NEW HAMPSHIRE.
lichens seem to Jive upon the smaller, and probably the
larger only have the necessary conditions of growth after
the smaller have taken root on the bare surface and arrived
at maturity.
This day (the 30th August) was remarkably warm in the
valley, but the thermometer was only 60° Fahrenheit on the
top of the mountain. The road to the top was simply a
rough footpath, but it was amazing how the ponies made
their way up, scrambling over stones and roots of trees. It
took me about three hours to ascend and one to descend.
The ponies were shockingly lean, and no wonder, as it was
close upon the end of the season, and some of them had made
their fifty-fifth ascent.
Next morning I tovk the coach to Crawford House, a
distance of thirty-five miles; the first eight miles lay over a
road made two years ago through the forest. There were
mere patches in cultivation, and that only for a small part
of the way. The Indian corn was quite parched by the
drought; but in the same fields pumpkins were in great
quantities, On looking into some of the small farm-houses
I was glad to sce so many signs of comfort. Before reach-
ing the hotel, I passed through the valley of the Saco. The
hills on both sides rose abruptly from the banks of the stream
to the height of more than 2000 feet, and were covered to
their summits with wood. The accommodation at Craw-
ford House is excellent, though it is situated in the. midst of
a wilderness.
1st Sept—Took the coach to St. Johnsburgh on the
Brunswick River, a branch of the Connecticut, a distance of
twenty-two miles. Very little is in cultivation, the sides
of the hills being densely and beautifully covered with the
original forest, in which the sugar maple is abundant...
Passed a few hop gardens. The vines appeared to have
fewer leaves and more fruit than those growing in England.
Numbers of men and women were busy gathering them.
However poor the soil might be, the orchards of apples were
bearing fruit in great abundance. Oxen are used here very
gencrally for the plough and the waggon.
NEWBURY, F 13
I was amused with two passengers on the coach who
used the word “guess” in almost every sentence. Both
were polite and well dressed. One had been netting
pigeons, which are found in great numbers in the woods
at this season. The previous day he had taken one hun-
dred and forty at one haul of the net. For these a ready
market is got in the towns of the low country at a dollar
a dozen. The other had been agent for the stage-coach at
Glen House, and as the scason for visiting the White
Mountains was now nearly over, he was on his way to
the low country to find out some other employment for
the winter. One grand speculation he had just entered
upon; he had bought a large bear for the sum of five dollars,
I happened to sce the brute the day before; it was black,
with the exception of a cream-coloured muzzle, and measured
when standing erect, as its exhibitor declared, five feet and
a half in height. It had been trapped in the woods, and
its former owner had cleared one hundred dollars by
exhibiting it during the tourist season. My travelling
companion was quite sanguine that he would make a larger
sum out of this speculation. He was to take it to the low
country and advertise a bear-hunt; every one bringing a dog
was to pay him half a dollar. He expected to obtain three
hundred subscribers. But in addition, he was at the same
time to advertise a horse-race, and offer fifty dollars as a
prize, which he was quite sure of winning himself and pocket-
ing the entry-money. There is a strong passion for horac-
racing and hunting among the Americans.
The railway from St. Johnsburgh runs due south, and
we soon got into thé valley of the Connecticut, but still
there was little land in cultivation, The upland pastures
were here, as every where, withered by the drought. Stopped
for a night at Newbury, a handsome little town of two
thousand inhabitants, where the valley widens out a little,
and the wooded hills are considerably lower. I went: over,
a farm which I had heard very much praised. Its owner
assured mo there was not a better in the valley of Connec-
ticut, or even in New England; and I believe this was not
very far from the truth. Yet it was no great affair after
14 VERMONT.
all. It consisted of 700 acres, 500 of which lay back on
the hills, and were wholly under pasture; of the 200 acres
in the valley some 25 acres were in Indian corn, 35 in oats,
and 10 in potatoes, the remainder in pasture and hay. It
seems to pay much better to graze the Jand than to
plough much of it. The richest meadows here are over-
flowed every spring when the snows melt.on the White
Mountains. These meadows yield about 3 tons of hay, and
are worth 100 dollars per acre. When tho original turf is
broken up, it is long until the grass becomes so good os
it was originally, According to the scason, from 50 to 95
bushels of Indian corn per acre are got from the best lands,
while the ordinary sandy or gravelly land in this valley does
not produce more than from 30 to 40. This crop is culti-
vated in ridges 3 feet wide; some 4 to 5 grains of corn are
planted on the ridges at a distance of 2 feet. Towards the
latter end of its growth it is slightly earthed up. The pro-
prictor conducted me through the farm-offices, which con-
sisted of a huge building 250 feet by 45, another 250 feet
by 20, and two 70 feet by 20. There were stalls for feed-
ing 70 cattle, and 150 could be wintered in the yards.
The cattle get an allowance of Indian corn meal when
feeding on hay. It is considered good payment if they
yield 10s. a month for their keep.
South from Newbury the hills again come closer together,
aud there is conscquently less land in cultivation. In the
cars 1 met a farmer who told me that he possessed 200 acres,
but he only had in cultivation 4 acres Indian corn, 7 acres oats,
and 4 acres potatoes; he kept 7 or 8 cattle, and 74 sheep
during the winter. The majority of farms in New Eng-
land have not, perhaps, a much larger proportion of land
in crop, for the soil is the poorest I could imagine capable
of being cultivated. It is nonsense to talk of the land
being exhausted, for evidently there never was anything
«to exhaust. Gravels and sands full of huge boulders
are the characteristics of what gocs under the name of
“improved lands” in the schedule of the census commis-
sioners. In my travels through New England I saw hun-
dreds of acres in cultivation, and Mr. Horace Greeley assured
NEW ENGLAND FARMS, 15
me he knew of thousands over which one might almost step
from one large boulder to another without ever touching the
soil. I did not sce a single farm which would be ranked
higher than a fourth-rate one either in the Lothians or in my
own county of Fife; yet after 1 had completed my tour,
I was told I had seen a fair average. The New England
farmers are active and industrious, and doubtless the soil
admits of vast improvement, but I suspect cultivation can
never be generally carried on upon the large farm system.
Granite and gneiss form the basis of the whole country, which
is covered with their debris, yielding tho poor soils that I
havo described. Volncy was so far justified in saying “ that
all North America above Long Island is a rock of granite.”
But the poverty of the soil for agricultural produce will be
afterwards better exhibited by comparison with other districts.
After reaching the White River, a branch of the railway
to Burlington turned up the valley in which it flows. Tho
country traversed was poor yet picturesque, and rendered
pleasing by the frequent villages and beautiful villas. As
we got near Burlington the land became more level, and was
laid out in grazing farms, some of which appeared to be
extensive.
<
CHAPTER II.
BURLINGTON TO NIAGARA. .
3d Sept. 1854.—Burlington has a population of 8000,
and is finely situated on the steep shore of Lake Champlain,
which is here neatly cight miles in breadth, Many of the
houses on the high ground of the suburbs are handsome, and
command a view of-the lake. This being Sunday, the
town was remarkably quiet, and the population turned out
well to church. I went to the Catholic chapel in the morning,
and found it pretty well filled with . congregation of about
600. The greater number of the audience were apparently
of Irish descent, and in general were remarkably well-dressed,
though a few of the men had still the long brown great-coat,
the peculiar garb of their native country. The bishop, a
Frenchman, preached a most eloquent sermon, and from its
tenor, it was evident that something more than the Maine
Law was required to keep people sober. He had been preach-
ing against intemperance on the previous Sunday, and now
recapitulated the heads of his former discourse, and enforced
his former exhortations. Ho told them it was a vico that
existed to a fearful and lamentable extent, that he had warned
them long, and remonstrated with them both publicly and
privately, and if they still persisted, ho would denounco the
guilty by nano in the church. Ono of the congregation hud
lately fullon a victiin to intemporance, and ho had felt it hin
duty to deny him the rites of Christian burial, Tho bishop
had no notes. [lis voice, with a little of the French accent,
was clear and musical; and as every sentence was toned with
deep earnestness, and he made long pauses now and then, as
if to allow his words to penetrate into their hearts, his
eloquence became most impressive, while breathless silence
LAKE CHAMPLAIN, 17
reigned among his audience. The latter part of his discourse
related to a different subject. Ho urged parents not to
sond their children to the free schouls, “whore their morals
would not be attended to, and divine scionce was not taught."
The following day a Catholic school was to be opened, and he
entreated them to support it. P
Walking olong the shore on Sunday aftornoon, I saw
somo small fariners of I’ronch descent dragging the lake with
anct for porch, This fish is very plentiful, but being worth
little at this season, was to be given to pigs, as the drought had
fendered Indian corn scarce and dear. The lakes throughout
America swarm with fish of various kinds,
During my stay at Burlington, I visited a factory organised
upon a plan new to me, but one that is common enough
in the United States. A company in town have erected a
large house 400 feet by 60, and of three storeys, A steam-
engine of 150 horse power is placed in it, and the rooms are
Ict at so much a foot, with a specified amount of power.
The chief work carried on is cabinet-making, and the number
of ingenious machines for cutting up timber was astonish-
ing, and no less so was the rapidity with which the work
was executed,
Left Burlington in one of the gay white painted steamers
that ply upon the lake. It was nearly as long as the ocean
steamer in which I had crossed the Atlantic. The fittings
wero superb, and the faro was excellent. On the west of
Lake Champlain, the country is hilly, the shores are often
precipitous, and chiefly covered with stunted pines and the
never-failing birch, On the cast sido, however, there are con-
siderable tracts of lovel Jand intervening between the lake
and the mountains, Tho svil is a light-coloured clay, and
similar in many of its qualitis to tho clay of tho flats of tho
St. Lawrence opposite Montroal, ‘There is only a small pore
tion of tho land in arable culture, the greater part being in
hay or pasture. Small forma provail in this district also,
though some farmers have as many as 4000 sheep grazing in
the woods and the low pastures.
Landed at the Fort of Ticonderoga, and drove about four
miles through a valley, the soil of which rests upon the Trenton
0
18 NEW YORK STATE.
limestong, a member of the Lower Silurian, The trees growing
upon this narrow strip of Imestono bounded by tho granite
rocks are chicfly ouk and walnut. Tho steamer was waiting
our arrival at Lake George, which is about 200 fect highor
than Lake Champlain, and considerably narrower. The phy-
sical features of the country on both sides of Lake George
reminded me of those at Loch Ness in Scotland ; only the hills
here are covered with a variety of broad-leaved trees. The
scenery of Lake George is rendered still more beautiful by
numbers of small wooded islands, and from the circumstance
of no cultivation being visible on its banks. In the woods of
this part of America, the rattle-snake is still very common.
Landed at Caldwell’s Hotel, at the south end of the lake,
where I found a highly fashionable company from all parts of
the Union. I remained here a day and ascended one of the
highest mountains in the neighbourhood, but the view from
its top only revealed a hilly and wood-clad country, where
there were only a few spots under cultivation, In every
direction fires were scen in the forests, and the air was
dimmed by smoke. None of the hills appeared to be above
3000 feet in height, and all were covered from top to bottom
with trees.
An afternoon's ride by coach and railway brought me to
the far-famed Saratoga Springs. The country, after leaving
Caldwell's, gradually opens out, and before reaching Saratoga
no mountains are visible in tho distance. A considerable
portion of the land hasbeen reclaimed, or what is termed
improved, but thcro is only o small breadth under crops.
Tho soils are sandy or gravelly, yet tho orchards of applo
trees were everywhere, yielding abundance of fruit. Sara-
toga is a town of hotels, for almost every house was one;
and the largest, the “ American,” can accommodate 1200
visitors. I lodged at the “ Congress Hall,” where the waiters
were all negroes, and dressed in black pants and snow-white
linen jackets. In performing certain parts of their duties,
such as setting down the dishes on the table, and lifting the
covers, they did so, at a given signal from the master of cere-
monies, with all the regularity of the movements of a regiment
of soldiers under drill.
SARATOGA, 19
The weather was excessively hot while 1 was at, Sara-
toga, though there blow a stiff breeze from the south, yetthe |
thormomoter stood at 960° in the shado. A thunder storm
camo on at night with heavy rains, which cooled tho air and
rendered it more pleasant. .
Saratoga is near the junction of the primary rocks of the
north-eastern sea-board and the secondary rocks which stretch
westwards far beyond the Mississippi. The primary forma-
tions north of Long Island and south of the St. Lawrence
have an area of about 100,000 square miles, or 64,000,000
acres. They embrace the north-east corner of the State of
New York, and nearly the whole of the New England States,
2. e., Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont,
New Hampshire, and Maine, besides the larger half of New
Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The soil, as has been stated,
is very poor throughout these primary formations, but this:
fact will be more clearly brought out when its productive
powers are compared with other soils.
After spending two days at Saratoga, I took the cars
for Albany on the Hudson. The country betwixt these
two towns undulates in long stretches, no hills forming
a feature in the landscape. No good Jand is passed, and
where sands disappear coarse clays take their place. The.
Erie Canal terminates at Albany, and as it is the great
channel through which the produce of the more fertilo lands’
of the Western States finds its way to the eastern ‘ports,
this town forms a connccting link of an immenso traffic,
both of grain and merchandise. Hugo stcamera line the
wharves, and flour barrels and piles of sawn wood cover
acres upon acres. The town was originally a Dutch settle-
ment, many of the houses aro old and the strects narrow,
and elegant mansions now crown the top of the sloping bank '
upon which it is built, ,
The chief formation in this part of the country is thé Old
Red Sandstone, which underlies an inferior class of soils.
My next stage was from Albany to Rochester, a distance of
260 miles. After crossing the Mohawk the railway skirted
along its narrow valley, which was the first stretch of good
land I saw in America, This narrow strip of alluvial land I
20 NEW YORK STATE.
always regard as tho inlet to the immense expanso of, com-
paratively speaking, good land in the North-Western States
and Canada West. Jor although I had often read of the
general inferiority of the soil on the Atlantic sca-board, I had
very indistinct ideas of its real character before I made a
personal inspection, At first there is only a narrow ribbon
of rich land along the Mohawk, bounded on both sides by
steep slopes covered with a shallow and stony soil. The
appearance of the country, however, is beautified by the
remains of the broad-leaved forest; tidy farm houses also,
surrounded by orchards, are thickly placed along the banks.
Wheat is sown very early on the light lands, and it was already
well brairded. The only crop on the rich land in the valley
is Indian corn, whose stalks rise to the height of eight or nine
fect. As tho river is ascended, tho valley widens, and there
is less under crop, while tho beautiful meadows support large
herds of cows.
Passed through the thriving towns of Rome, Utica, Syra-
cuse, Geneva. The railway is usually laid down the centre
of their wide streets. The engine, with its train of carriages
attached, moves slowly through the most crowded thorough-
fares, and a bell rings a death-knell to those who have not a
good eye or ear. The only security or warning which .the
lieges have at the level crossings and in the strects, is a
placard enjoining all to “ Look out while the bell rings.”
The-country now becomes level, though its surface is
undulating, and the trees of the forest attain a larger size.
Oak and hickory grow together on those descriptions of land
which are well suited to the growth of wheat. IT remained for
a short time at Canandaigua, where the sections of the railway
exhibit a great depth of boulder clay, which usually furnishes a
better soil in America than in Britain. The surface soil is not
rich in vegetable matter, but it has the fine healthy red tinge
that is usually so favourable to the higher class of vegetables,
Some of the soils which are esteemed the best for wheat did
not strike me at first as being of great natural fertility. ButI
soon came to understand that a good wheat soil in America
is often very opposite in its characters from a good wheat soil
in Scotland.. I shall afterwards show that the peculiarities
ROCHESTER, 21
of the climate in the two countries must modify our ideas on
this question.
The cars were crowded with passengers, and those who
did not keep their seats at the different stations were sure to
find them occupied on again entering, and would have to
stand for a stage or two. A farmer came in at one of the
stations, who had been attending a Methodist camp meeting,
at which about 3000 persons of both sexes had been engaged
in religious exercises for four days in the woods, living all
the while in tents. According to his account, these meet-
ings have a social as well as religious character. He had
enjoyed himsclf greatly, and was altogether a type of con-
tentment and good nature. Another of my fellow passen-
gers whom I sat beside was a Michigan farmer, upwards of
sixty years of age, who had Iecft home more than two years
ago, with a’ capital of 1300 dollars; 700 were invested in a
waggon and a pair of horses with which he crossed the coun-
try to Oregon. When the horses failed, he bought oxen,
and drove to California, subsisting during the latter part of
his journey on the game which he shot in the woods. After
visiting the gold-diggings he sailed to Panama and thence to
New York, and was now on his way home with scarcely a
cent in his pocket. Though he had suffered many privations,
he considered himself well rewarded by what he had seen.
Rochester is a fine city, more English in appearance than
any town J had seen since leaving Boston. Thirty years ago
it was scarcely worthy of the name of village, but now
it has a population of 40,000. The houses are principally
made of brick; the streets are wide, the elegant shops and
. large hotels indicate progress and the gencral diffusion of
a high scale of comfort. The mills for grinding wheat on
the Genesee River were the nucleus around which this busy
. and thriving town first formed and rose so rapidly, but now
various other manufactures have sprung up. The Erie Canal
also passes through the town, and affords the means of
transporting its commodities,
The soil is somewhat stiff and stony in the vicinity of
Rochester, but fruit trecs also thrive remarkably well. The
natural forest consists of beech, maple, walnut, and chestnut,
22 NEW YORK STATE.
Towards Lake Ontario, which is six miles north of the town,
the soil is of a light sand, not approaching by any means to
what would be called a loam in England. This kind of land
forms a belt extending along the Jake for some distance, and
is well adapted to the peach; indced it is said this tree
grows here as well as in any part of America. In going
through some of the orchards I was surprised at the crops
which trees only eight years old were bearing. They were
standards, and every branch was literally bent towards the
ground with its load of ripe peaches. The best peaches
of a delicious flavour were selling at four shillings a bushel,
while secondary kinds might be had for half this sum. About
120,000 bushels would be gathered this year in a narrow
strip along the banks of the river. An orchard of 25 acres
would realise the sum of £400, which appears rather small, inas-
much as tho same extent of land in potatoes would yield more,
for they were sclling at a dollar a bushel. A peach orchard
requires more attention than an apple orchard, as the ground
is usually cultivated by the plough between the rows of trees.
Tho ground, too, becomes sooncr exhausted by, or unfitted for,
‘the growth of peaches than of apples. It is a lovely und
novel sight to one from tho old country to seo a productive
peach orchard when the frult is ripe,
I visited Hope Nurserics, which are the largest, I believe,
in the world, extending over 250 acres of ground. Here one
obtains some idea of the enormous number of fruit trees that
are annually planted in the Northern States. America is a
better fruit than grain country, and horticulture is usually a
favourite pursuit among those who are engaged in agriculture.
The firm of Berry and Company, who own these nurseries,
frequently supply single orders for 100,000 apple trees to the
western nurserymen, who retail them in the newly-settled
districts. Apples grow upon a great variety of soils in
America, but those which are adapted to pears are not 80
common; the latter require a rich soil containing a consider-
able quantity of clay, but the former produce abundantly
on certain kinds of poor sands and gravels, though they
are by no means ungrateful for rich land. The Isabella
and Catawba grapes are the only kinds that ripen in ordinary
TOWNSHIP OF RIGA. 23
years in the north-western parts of the State of New York.
A plant fitted for forming good hedges is greatly needed in
America, as the zig-zag wooden fence is unsightly. I saw
the Osage orange growing in the nurseries as a beautiful
fence, but many still doubt whether it is adapted for this
climate. The English hawthorn does uot make a good fence
in America, as it grows too rapidly and shoots up without
thickening below. ,
The circulation of agricultural newspapers and periodicals
throughout the Northern States is remarkable, and exhibits
the effects of the diffusion of education among the agricul-
turists. The “Country Gentleman,” at Albany, bas a weckly
circulation of 20,000; the “ Rural New Yorker,” at Roches-
ter, 26,000; and in the same town, the “ Genesee Farmer,”
a monthly periodical, has a circulation of 20,000. Besides
these there are nearly a hundred agricultural and horticultural
papers in the Northern States.
In company with Mr. Harris, editor of the “ Rural New
Yorker,” from whom I received much kindness, I drove about
twelve miles to tho west of Rochester to visit somo farms in
tho township of Riga. Tho sowing of wheat was going. on
very briskly on many of tho furins that wo passed, and on
somo it was already fincly brairded, Wheat is put in very
early throughout Canada and the United States, and the
plants tiller and are well rooted before the winter sets in. In
this part of the country the farm horses are a superior class
of animals, having a good deal of breeding, and being
similar in figure ‘and size to our carriage horses. They
are very active, and a good team will sometimes plough 24
acres of light land ina day. It is common to put three
horses abreast in the plough, and to make a furrow from 8 to
10 inches in depth and from 14 to 18 inches in breadth.
The system of cultivation which is pursucd is interesting.
The land does not strike one as being particularly fertile, but
rather of middling quality. It consists of a light-coloured
sandy loam of considerable depth and having some boulders
strewed over it. But this soil seems to be as suitable to the
growth of red clover as the limestone gravels of Ireland are
to the growth of grasses, and hence its fertility is maintained
24 NEW YORK STATE.
by clover as our fields in Scotland used to be by grass. The
rotation that is followed is usually clover one year and wheat
the next. There are few or no soils in Britain upon which
clover would grow with vigour every second year; but were
it not for this property of many of the American soils, much
less wheat would be raised than at present. On the light
soils in this region, I was astonished at the fine healthy
plants of clover in the wheat stubbles. When the autumns
arc somewhat meist a considerable growth of clover takes place
before winter; but the farmers do not like to pasture it too close.
An intelligent farmer informed me that the common clover
would last for ten or fifteen years on these soils if it was cut
carly in the season and not allowed to sced. By the system
at present pursued, the farmers in this district cannot keep a
large herd of stock, and the clover fields are worth little
money, being chiefly of use in renovating the land.
The clover ficlds are prepared for wheat by being deeply
ploughed in June, and the surface being afterwards worked by
the harrow and the scarifier to destroy the weeds, Though
this system sacrifices a vast quantity of valuable forage, yet,
in the circumstances, it is perhaps the best that can be
followed, for it admits of the wheat crop being frequently
repeated, and involves but a small amount of manual labour,
which is the clement that determines the agricultural systems
of America.
The farmers in the Riga district sow about one-third of
the whole extent of their possessions with wheat every year.
It is the best paying crop, and every one endeavours to have
as great a breadth of it as possible. The ploughing up of
the clover sod and the cultivation of the surface is called
“fallowing,” which is a less expensive system than what gocs
under the same namo at home. The winters are very severe,
_ and field labour is then entircly interrupted; but the short
scason for labouring and cleaning the land is more than compen-
sated by the powerful influence which the hot summer weather
has in destroying the perennial. grasses and weeds. These aro
readily killed by being ploughed up at that season and having
their roots exposed to the heat and drought. In this way is
_ the land kept clean by the best farmers in the north-western
TOWNSHIP OF RIGA, 25
" part of the State of New York, which is perhaps the most
productive region for wheat in North America. No clean
fallows nor any expensive fallow crops, such as turnips, are
necessary to keep the land in good condition and free from
weeds.
On one of the Riga farms which we visited, extending to
230 acres, we found 80 acres in wheat, 114 in barley, 14 Indian
corn, 25 woods, the rest pasture and clover. In 1853, the
crops of wheat averaged 40 bushels to the acre; in 1854,
only 25 bushels. As indicating the natural capabilities of the
land, we were shown a ficld on which a heavy crop of Indian
corn had grown in 1852, it was sown next spring with
barley, which produced 50 bushels to the acre, then sown with .
wheat in autumn, and this year it had yielded 40 bushels per
acre. On this farm a ficld of clover was in course of being
ploughed up and sown with wheat; it had been in wheat
this year, but the farmer was complaining that the plant of
clover was bad, while in our opinion it was a most excellent
onc, Mr. Harris remarked that this was surely a mere
excuse for getting a little more sown with wheat, while the
prices were good: 100 sheep are kept on this farm, besides 10
or 15 cattle, which are reared and sold when two years old.
On another farm of 208 acres there were 40 in woods,
12 permanent pasture, 7 Indian corn, 12 oats, 10 pease,-65
wheat, the rest in clover. About 1000 bushels of wheat
were thrashed this year, 500 last, and 2000 the year before,
The seasons appear to influence tho yicld of wheat far more
than they do in Britain. The flock of sheep yielded 400
dollars last year. Leicester sheep do not seem to thrive
well where so much of the land is cleared, for frequently the
whole flock are secn during the heat of the day standing
crowded together with their heads all down.
Tt is almost the universal practice to sow clover among
the wheat in spring, and at the same timo to give ‘the ficld a *
dressing of 100 lbs. of gypsum, which has a wonderful effect
on some crops. The clover is benefited more than any other
plant; though pease, potatoes, and Indian corn have often new
life imparted to them by a light dressing of this substance,.
which is almost the only artificial manure used in the Western
26 NEW YORK STATE.
States. The manure of the farm is applied to Indian corn,
which is perhaps more grateful than any other crop for liberal
treatment.
12th September.—Took the stage-coach this morning for
Geneseo, a distance of thirty-three miles up the Genesee
river, over a rolling or undulating country, where the soil is
generally light and stony. This is the well-known Genesee
valley, which is one of the best districts for wheat in North
America.
Five members of the Silurian and Devonian formations crop
out betwixt Lake Ontario and a little to the south of Gencseo.
These consist of sandstone, limestone, and aluminous shales ;
and having been subjected to the denudating action of those
agencies which have transported and heaped up such eror-
mous quantitics of drift materials over this part of the coun-
try, there is often a complete mixture of the debris of these
different members in the surface soil. The wheat soils to
the south of Lake Ontario may be divided into three classes:
—lst, sandy loams ; 2d, gravel soils; 3d, soils resting on the
boulder clay.
The Riga soils which I have already described belong to
the sandy loams, The most of those over which I passed
from Rochester to Geneseo are derived from the decomposi-
tion of the drift gravel. They had the appearance of being
anything but rich ‘soils, for they are of no great depth, and
full of water-worn stones, In the township of Caledonia,
which is chiefly farmed by Scotchmen or theif descendants,
the soil is light and gravelly, and wide piles of stones lie
around the borders of many fields, monuments to the industry
of the owners. Notwithstanding appearances, I was told
that wheat and clover are as sure crops in that township as
in any other within the State; and I can bear testimony that
the young layers of clover were truly beautiful. The farmers
here, as in Scotland, have learned to judge of the character
and quality of the land by the kind of stones that are strewed
over it. In the Genesee country, hard and flinty stones
are regarded as indicating that the soil is well suited for the
production of wheat and clover. Soils which are derived
VALLEY OF THE GENESEE. 27
from the boulder clay are capable of growing the largest crops
of wheat and barley, but they require a great deal more labour
to cultivate them, These clay soils are by no means rich in
vegetable mould, but have a fine healthy red tinge derived
from the oxide of iron, which the eye of practical men look
upon as being associated with something that promotes the
healthy growth of every crop that is cultivated.
The valley of the Genesee, therefore, is not, as I had
imagined, a wide, level, and rich champaign, but an undulating
and rolling country, made up of hillocks of northern drift and
of boulder clay, covered with a soil of very moderate fertility,
but favourable in this climate to the growth of wheat and
clover. As I drove along the stage road I had a peep now
and then of the interval lands along the margin of the river,
which go under the name of the Genesee flats. This tract of
rich level land, varying from a few yards to a mile and a half in
breadth, is mostly in meadows, and when cropped is much
better adapted for Indian corn than wheat, owing to the
latter being liable to grow too strong or to rust on such rich
land.
I observed in my drive to-day that the wheat stubbles on
the light gravelly soils were almost invariably well planted
with clover, but in some of the clays it was otherwise, in
consequence of the drought in the early summer being unfa-
vouruble to. the germination and rooting of such small seeds
as clover. When the clover fails, another crop of wheat is
taken. There is still much fine wood left in this part of the
country, and it imparts a rich appearance to the landscape,
which is everywhere bounded by what appears in the distance
an unbroken forest. But the picture is generally marred in
the foreground by withered permanent pastures,
Geneseo is a neat little town of 1000 inhabitants, situated
on the east or right bank of the Genesce, and commands a
view of the rich flats and the finely wooded arable lands to the
westward. Mr. Wadsworth resides near Geneseo, and owns
about 30,000 acres, stretching from this town towards Rochester,
the most of which he lets to tenants on annual leases, but
some of it he cultivates on his own-account. The system of
cultivation which is adopted on the wheat soils of this region
28 NEW YORK STATE.
is the same as in the Riga district, where wheat and clover
are sown alternately.
The flats of the Genesee are very fertile, so much so that
crops of Indian corn can be planted upon them for twenty
years in succession. If such land is let for wheat crops, 12
bushels are given as rent, but the produco is uncertain, vary-
ing from 18 to 40 bushels to the acre. Large ploughs drawn
by four oxen were in a ficld of wheat stubble in the flats,
turning over a furrow 8 inches in depth by 14 in breadth. It
was to be again sown with wheat, though in other ficlds the
braird was already 3 inches in length. Early sowing is tho
most approved incans for guarding against rust and mildew.
Todian corn would not produce more than 50 bushels this
year owing to the great drought, but crops of 70 and 90
bushels to the acre are not uncommon,
The meadows yicld particularly fine pastures; a hundred
acres will graze seventy-five head of four-year-old cattle
from the 15th May to the Ist December. In one of Mr,
Wadsworth's ficlds I saw. a large herd of Durham cattle, the.
greater number of which were bred in Kentucky. Some of
them had travelled cight hundred miles by railway, at a cost
of twenty-nine shillings (seven dollars) each. They can bo
driven that distance at half the expense and in as good order,
but the railway has tho advantage of saving tie, Mr.
* Wadsworth’s manager brought somo salt with him in his
gig, and we were soon surrounded by the whole herd,
which licked it up with great avidity when it was thrown
. down upon the grass. Throughout the Western States and
Canada, cattle and sheep are very fond of salt, and though
they often run almost wild in the woods they return at in-
tervals for a supply. The week previous to the time of my
visit 120 cattle had been sold out of these pastures at £17 a
head. Among the natural grasses in the pastures, cocksfoot
and timothy were conspicuous, and seem to be the most
valuable grasses that have been imported from Europe. The
best meadows yicld threo tons of hay per acre. For this
land seven dollars por acre are charged when the crop is to be
cut, and five when pastured. ‘Tho valuo of theso meadows is
120 dollars per ucre, so the rental which they yield is but
GENESEE VALLEY. 29
a small return for interest in a country where six per cent
for money can be got on good security. Cattle are not housed
here during winter except those that are fattening. They run
about the meadows and find shelter among the woods. Store
cattle have hay, straw, and the stalks of Indian corn supplied
to them; while those that are fattening have Indian-corn
meal in addition, Six pounds of meal a day are at first
allowed to each beast, and the quantity is. gradually increased
until cightecn pounds are given. Such high feeding,
though often practised, docs not, it is said, pay. Cattle are
considered to remuncrate the grazier if ho has two guincas
(10 dollars) a head for pasturing them in the uplands during
the summer,
One farm that 1 visited in the neighbourhood of Genesco
was 207 acres in extent, of which a considerable portion was
rich interval, land. There were 50 acres in wheat; 50 in
Indian corn; 30 permanent pasture; remainder clover.
Another farm on the higher grounds, of 240 acres in extent,
had 75 in woods; 50 wheat; 50 clover; 5 Indian corn;
17 barley. The stock on the farm consisted of 11 cows;
10 calves; 6 year-olds and 11 two-year-olds. I was told by
the owner that red-clover was not sown in this district before
1829. Previous to that date no grasses were sown, but
then the white clover always came up naturally in tho
wheat stubbles, and the land was allowed to remain two
years in pasture. But since the practice of sowing red
clover has become so general, the white clover does not
come up 80 freely in the wheat stubbles when the red is not’
sown. The introduction of red clover has thus allowed
wheat to be raised on these shallow soils once in two years
instead of once in three.
Oak and hickory are the principal trees in the forest,
where the soil is most suitable for the growth of wheat.
The butternut and the walnut are only sparingly distributed
in the forests. In other parts of this region, again, where
the sub-soil is of a compact sand, the maplo and the beech
divido the land betwixt thei. Maplo and beech land is not
so good for wheat, as there is usually more accumulation of
vegetable matter, which rendors it too soft, so that the plants
30 NEW YORK STATE.
are more liable to be thrown out by the spring frosts, and
the crop on such land is also more subject to rust and
mildew. The beech and maple land, however, is well adapted
for spring or summer crops, such as barley, Indian corn, and
potatoes,
The adaptation of soils to the growth of various kinds of
trees is rather an interesting and curious question to which I
shall have frequent opportunities of directing the attention of
my readers. Dr. Lindley, I believe, was the first to suggest
that the distribution of forest trees over particular soils was
‘regulated more by the physical condition than by the chemical
composition of soils. In the general truth of this opinion I
quite concur, and it is amply borne out in the facts
which I have just stated regarding the oak and hickory, and
the beech and maple soils; inasmuch as the adaptation of the
first to winter wheat, and the last to spring crops, shows that
it is the physical condition that determines the fitness of the
soil for cultivated crops; for we have only to bear in mind
that winter wheat, barley, oats, and Indian corn, are identical
in chemical composition. In both varieties of -soil the
chemical constituents which are necessary to the growth of
beech, maple, oak, hickory, wheat, barley, maize, and potatoes,
are present, but the physical condition or mechanical texture
of the two is different. This difference in the texture of soils
seems to have a corresponding influence upon the healthy
functions of certain kinds of trees, with that which an undrained
and marshy soil is well known to have in this respect.
The universality of a system of cropping over a wide
tract of country affords a strong presumption that it is about
the best that can bo followed under all the circumstances,
.. Tho more I have thought of tho Genesee systom of cropping,
the moro have 1 scon cause to admire {ts economy in manual
labour—s dear and scarco commodity in America, It would
require one better versed than I am in the nature of tho soil,
climate, and markets, to suggest improvements upon it. It
ought to be borne in mind that a few years ago the prices of
cattle and sheep were low, and little encouragement was held
out to rear and feed stock. Now, however, the high rates of
butcher meat will probably have a tendency to restrict the
GENESEE VALLEY. 81
extent of land under wheat, by offering a premiam for allow-
ing the clovers to lie two years instead of one, and no doubt
better crops would be obtained ono smaller area, But
during the last few years the rise in the price of wheat
has been as great as in the price of animals, which in the
meantime serves to perpetuate the old rotation of clover and
wheat in alternate years, and thus comparatively little atten-
tion has been paid to the breeding of sheep and cattle on the
wheat soils; though I believe the best farmers are now
inclined to pursue a somewhat different course.
Notwithstanding the severe cropping to which the Genesee
soils have been subjected, I think that they are not so much
in need of extraneous manure as of proper cultivation. The
difference in the appearance of one farm from another, arising
from the manner in which the mere acts of culture had been
performed, was particularly marked. In the meantime,
properly cultivating and cleaning the soil seems to be a
yery obvious means of increasing the produce on many
farms, even although the land docs not impress one with its
productive capabilitics.
The rent of the best wheat land is from six to eight
bushels of wheat per acre, but rent is only paid for what
is under this crop. The wheat soils that are planted with
Indian corn usually let at one or two dollars an acre, but
more frequently no rent at all is charged. Indeed, Indian
corn on the common soils of the north-western parts of the
State. of New York is an expensive crop to raise, for it
requires much hand labour; but, on the other hand, the land
is cleaned and fallowed during its growth as our own ficlds
at home aro under turnips. On nono of the wheat farms
did I find it cultivated to any oxtont; and on my asking tho
reason of this at a farmor one day at Batavia, ho assured me
that one man and a boy would manage fifty acres of Indian
corn as casily in Ohio as they would ten acres-in this part of
the country. He could not give me reasons for this assertion,
and at first 1 thought it was much exaggerated, but after
getting to Southern Ohio I found that it was pretty near
the truth. This subject will be afterwards alluded to, for it
will serve to show how the systems of farming in America
32 NEW YORK STATE.
are regulated by tho question of labour and differences of
climate.
In the Genesee country, where from six to eight bushels
of wheat are got as rent for land sown with this crop, the
land in clover does not pay any rent. In one of Mr. Wads-
worth’s leascs which I saw, the tenant was restricted from
pasturing the clovers until the 1st June, that is, until it was
about the time that the tenant required to begin to plough
the land in order to prepare it by “‘fallowing” for wheat.
Thus no encouragement is given to pasture the land with
stock, and, indeed, so far as the principle of strict economy
in manuring is concerned, it is a sound one, for the more that
the clover grows, the more it must enrich the land when
ploughed under.
On the richest soils adapted for wheat in New York
State, Indian corn is often taken after the clover, and barley
is then sown; but, as already stated, Indian corn is only
raised to a small extent on the lighter wheat svils. Those
districts that are adapted tv the growth of wheat are not
economically adapted to Indian corn, though this crop is
cultivated both on the poorest and on the richest land. The
New England farmers find that it is more grateful for
Jabour and manure than wheat when their soils are not
genial to the growth of clover.
In many of the rich valleys of the State of New York,
such as the Mohawk, Indian corn is often cultivated on the
same land for many ycars in succession. On these soils it is
said to produce on the average of years double, or even triple
the number of bushels on an acre that wheat will do, for the
latter is a. most uncertain crop on all rich and loamy soils,
in consequence of its liability, in the hot and humid periods
of this summer climate, to rust and mildew, from which
diseases Indian corn is entirely exempt. Indeed, throughout
the American continent, wheat only grows well upon soils of
moderate fertility, and such as are rather deficient in vegetable
matter. This inferiority of the climate of America for the
growth of wheat upon rich soils, is counterbalanced, however,
by the superiority of its growth upon second-rate ones. I
am quite satisfied, that with the same treatment, the light
BROOM CORN. 83
gravelly soils of the Genesee valley would be much less pro-
ductive of wheat in England or Scotland; but then I doubt
if the resources of the American climate are so great as those
of the British, for raising the produce of wheat on the Genesee
light soils. The variations in the character of the seasons
in America, as already observed, influence. the produce of
wheat to a great extent. In some ycars the yield will be as
low as ten bushels an acre on the lighter lands, and in others
as high as thirty-two. The productive powers of the wheat
are no doubt more limited in America than Britain, for in the
former, stimulating manures cannot be applied go freely as
in the latter. In confirmation of this view, I may cite
the opinion of Mr. Coleman, who justly remarks that the
lower temperature of Britain is favourable to large yields of
wheat, in consequence of its growth being extended over a
longer period, on the same principle that turnips grow to a
larger size in a cool than in a hot climate.
Considerable quantities of an elegant variety of maize,
called broom corn, are cultivated in the rich valleys of the*
State of New York. The secds, instead of being large and
clustered around the cob, and protected by a sheath as in the
common varieties, are attached to the end of tough fibres.
nearly afoot in length. From the circumstance that hand-
some and useful brooms are made out of there fibres, it has
derived its distinguishing name. The seeds being too bitter
for making bread, are chiefly used for feeding pigs and poultry.
They have also been tried for distillery purposes, but the
essential oil imparts an acrid flavour to the spirit. More
hand labour is required for its cultivation; as in its early
stages it is more delicate, but during the warmth of July and
August it rushes up with great rapidity, and soon overtors
the other varieties,
To understand the spirit of American farming, the high
price of Jabour must be constantly borne in mind, In the
Genesee country, many of the farms have nearly one half of
their arable land in wheat every year; yet this large extent is
obtained at little expenditure of labour. I heard some farmers
maintain, that two men and six horses would, under this systein,
manage one hundred acres of wheat, that is, cultivate the land,
D
84 NEW YORK STATE.
thrash, and take the produce to market. This is certainly much
more than is usually done, but the small number of hands on
the Genesee farms is a characteristic feature of their manage-
ment. If it had been necessary to have one-fourth of the
land in turnips or any other equally expensive cattle crop, the
value of these soils would have been greatly less than what
it is, As already stated, the land is kept in good condition
by sowing red clover, and also free from weeds by ploughing
in summer, and afterwards scarifying the surface. By this
system no expensive manures, with the exception of a little
gypsum, aro required, and tho soil is kept almost as clean by
one ploughing in June or July as if it were bare-fallowed
for a whole summer in Britain. Tt is difficult to see how the
present system can bo greatly altered until the wages of
labour aro considerably diminished.
Our common thistle, called here the Canada thistle, is o
great pest in the arable lands, which, when overrun with it,
are bare-fallowed out and out fora summer. By a clause
in Mr. Wadsworth’s leases, his tenants incur a penalty of
a dollar for every thistlo allowed to run to sced ; but judging
from the numbers growing over his property, this is surely
never put in force. In tho Indian corn ficlds, an annual
gross called June grass grows up with great rapidity during
the hot season, which requires the hoo to be frequently used to
keep it in check. On tho whole, however, arable lands aro far
more easily kept free from weeds, perennial especially, than
they are in the moist climate of Britain.
The greater part of the State of New York is exceedingly
poor. The country immediately to the south of Geneseo gra-
dually becomes higher and more irregular in its surface, and by
no means fertile. Being deficient in calcareous matter, clovers
grow less frecly, and weeds are more difficult to eradicate.
The staple crops in that part of the State of New York, as in
New England, are Indian corn, barley, and oats, but the
land in tillage is limited, for dairy pastures are found to be
more profitable. The soil is also generally poor in the eastern
part of the State; a gentleman, well acquainted with’ the
agriculture there, assured me, that there was seldom more than
one-tenth of the arable land in cereals, and the crops entirely
SIZE OF FARMS, 35
fail when a much larger extent is kept in cultivation. If our
readers will take a glance at the map, they will at once see
how limited the wheat region is in the State of New York.
I was by no means impressed with the -fertility of the
soil in the township of Riga; yet in consequence of the
nature of the climate, and the adaptation of the soil for
clover, a large quantity of wheat is raised on a very limited
area. Though this township only contains 36 square miles,
or 23,040 acres, it produces more wheat than the State of
Massachusetts, which has 2,133,436 acres of what is termed
“improved lands.” The county of Monroo, of which.
Rochester is about the centre, with a total area of 720
iniles, or 460,800 acres, produced 1,441,653 bushels of wheat
in 1850, while the six New England States, Maine, New
Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode
Island, with a total area of 11,147,096 acres of “ improved
land,” only supplied 1,090,845 bushels. Indian corn luxuriates
on rich soils, but it is also more grateful than wheat for liberal
treatment on the poor. The preference given to the culture
of this crop on poor land is sufficiently indicated by tho fact,
that the New England States produced 10,175,865 bushels
of Indian corn, while the county of Monroe only produced
707,021 bushels,
In the wheat region sonth of Lako Ontario, tho: farms
are usually from 150 to 300 acres in extent, though many are
much larger. The farm houses are roomy and comfortable,
impressing one favourably with the condition of the occupants.
The female members of the family have ample employment
in the cleaning and cooking departments, and the table at
the different meals is loaded ‘with a profusion of dishes,
House servants are dispensed with as far as pussible. Butcher-
meat appears at breakfast, dinner, and supper. The Ameri-
cans no doubt eat a vast deal too much of such stimulating
food. Indeed, I do not think that any class in England con-
sumes so much butcher-meat as all classes do here.
It is a remarkable circumstance that farms have a ten-
, dency to decrease in size more rapidly where the land is poor,
than where itis rich. The explanation of this seems to be
that the families who are located on poor soils never attain
86 NEW YORK STATE.
to affluence however industrious they may be, and the value
of their property increases but little. Labour is better rewarded
on good land, which enables its owner to give his family
an education suitable for other trades or professions. Thus
the tendency to subdivide the land is so far counteracted in
productive districts, The average size of farms in the
poverty-stricken New England States is about sixty-seven
acres of “ improved land,” of which only a small proportion
is under cultivation. This tendency seems at length, how-
ever, to be arrested, for farms are now very seldom subdi-
vided in these States on the death of heads of families. In
the present condition of the country they seem to have nearly
reached their minimum size.
I took the stage-coach from Geneseo to Avon; the road
is on the east side of the river; the soil is stronger and not
so well cultivated as where it is lighter. Got the railway
cars at Batavia Station, and reached Niagara village late at
night.
TORONTO. 39
only objection to it was, the great amount of manual
labour that it requires to cultivate it and keep the land _
clean; aud really many of the fields were overgrown with
weeds.
Got the Peerless steamer in the afternoon from Queens-
town, and in little more than three hours we were alongside
of the wharves of Toronto, which is the finest city in Canada.
The wide strects, containing splendid shops, and numbers of
handsome churches, conspire to impress one with the thriving
character of the place. With a friend I went over the schools,
which rival those of the United States for efficiency. Tho
College, too, has been liberally endowed, and provides the
means of prosecuting more advanced studies than what tho
common schools afford.
‘Toronto has increased greatly within a few years, and it
now contains upwards of 45,000 inhabitants. ‘The removal
of the seat of government did not check its advancement, for
after all, the incre residence of a number of provincial members
of Parliament can do little to raiso up a town. In fact,
the progress of any of the towns along the Canadian shores of
the lakes depends upon the agricultural capabilities of the
surrounding country. Toronto is mercly the exporter of the
produce of the district that lies betwixt Ontario and Lake
Simcoe, and the importer of the neccssaries and luxuries that
the settlers require. Had the soil to the northwards been
no better than the greater part of Massachusetts, Toronto
would not have extended her wide streets so far into the
bush. ;
I started early one morning from Toronto, and went
by railway to Lake Simcoe, a distance of fifty-five miles,
and had a pleasant sail down the lake for another forty
miles. The low banks are wooded to the water's edge with
beech and maple, mixed with pine trees, the soil being in
general too stony to form any inducement for settlers to
clear it.
Betwixt Toronto and Lake Simcoe, the white pine pre-
dominates, which thrives upon a light sandy loam. The
clays, on the other hand, are covered with the beech, maple,
and birch, while cedars grow upon the marshy ground. The
40 UPPER CANADA.
regularity with which the various kinds of trees have got
possession of the different soils is remarkable.
The clearing of the forest was everywhere going on,
and was seen in all stages of improvement, from the black-
ened stumps, standing as thickly over the ground us the trees
had once done, to the well-ploughed wheat-field, To clear
land is not quite so furmidable an operation as at first sight
it appears to be; and the scttlers soon find out the easiest
methods for effecting this desired end. The trees are cut
down, and the stumps, three fect iu length, are left standing ;
as much of the brushwood is then burned og possible, aud
the larger logs aro afterwards piled into heaps and con-
sumed. A combination of labour is requinity for thin last
operation, and the settlers in a district turn out und assist
each other at this work, which goes under the name of “lug.
rolling.”
In this district Swedes or oats are sown on the charred
surface for a first crop, all the labour that they require being
merely to harrow in the seed with some bushes.
fuce is tou broken to bo generally aecttled. There is no great
extent of cultivated land geen until Paris is reached, where
42 UPPER CANADA,
a cOnsiderable tract is cleared in tho plains of Dumfries, and
forms the best district for wheat that I saw in Canada West.
This district, about eight miles in length by six in breadth,
is entirely covered with vast beds of gravel and sand, derived
from the primary rocks aud. the Silurian limestone. The
whole is covered with a light sandy loam, which seems to
have been formed by the decomposition of these materials.
The soil appeared fully as good as that of Caledonia in the
State of New York; but the clovers were rather inferior,
though some were beautifully planted. Gypsum is used suc-
cessfully here for clover and several other crops. Some of the
farming is particularly neat and tidy; indeed, I saw none
more so in America. On the farm of Dudingston, possessed
by Mr. Ballingal, better cultivated fields I could hardly
imagine. The farms are commonly about 200 acres in
extent, and the houses and orchards indicato that the occu-
pants are industrious and thriving.
The mode of culture is very similar to what is followed
in the Genesee country, but the wheat crops are not in gencral
taken so frequently. But here, also, alternate crops of wheat
and clover are often taken; the land, as in Genesee, is
deeply ploughed in June and July, and the weeds are
destroyed by scarifying the surface, thus avoiding the old
and less economical system of fallowing out and out for a
whole season. The crops on one farm of 140 acres arable
land were 50 acres wheat, 16 in pease, potatoes, turnips, and
Indian corn, Two men and four horses cultivate this extent
of land, with a little additional labour at harvesting. I saw
some excellent crops of Indian corn in this district; but here
again the complaint was, that it took too much labour, and
therefore it was only a small extent that farmers found con-
venient to cultivate.
It is the more general practice, however, to allow the land
to remain for two years in pasture (artificial grasses ond
clover), to break up in June, and sowin autumn. Below Paris
I inspected an excellent farm, consisting of 250 acres of clay
loam, on which a good deal of stock was kept, and there were
only from 30 to 40 acres usually in wheat. The land is
pastured for three ycars, and produces fine grasses that become
DUMFRIES PLAINS.
thick and strongly rooted. It is then prepared for whestby
ploughing in autumn, sowing with rape in May, and after
this last crop is eaten by sheep, it is fallowed and sown in
autumn. How far this system is preferable to the more
frequent cropping with wheat,.I do not pretend to decide.
An excellent flock of South-Down sheep was kept, and this
year the one-year-old wedders, weighing 22 lbs. per quarter,
brought two guineas on the farm, but realized £2: 88. in
the New York market-——another striking instance of the
advantage that Canada has derived from the opening of rail-
way communication.
Rust and mildew are the great enemies which the Cana-
dian farmer encounters in raising wheat, and these diseases
are far more common on new than old cultivated land.
In Canada, as well as throughout the United States, land
becomes better suited for raising wheat after the richness is
partly worn off. The best preventive of rust and mildew is
to sow early, for if the crop is late, the heats of July are apt
to ripen it prematurely at whatever stage of forwardness it
may be. Though it is only the 23d September, the sowing
of wheat is generally concluded in this district; the greater
part of it is already above ground, and in some fields the
plants are tillering and looking beautiful. The crops of
wheat on the best light soils vary from 18 to 30 bushels to-
the acre, and on the clay land 40 are sometimes got.
The value of land has advanced of late very considerably
in the plains of Dumfries. Seven years ago a farm, a few
milcs from Paris, consisting of 175 acres, long advertised at
£7:10s. per acre, was sold this year for £15. The usual
increase, however, of value in farms worth £7 per acre three
years ago, is that they are now worth £11; but of course
the rise in the neighbourhood of the towns has been enormous.
Large fortunes have been made by speculating in land in
Canada, but there are often disagreeable circumstances con-
uected with this business, for poor emigrants squat down
upon it, and great difficulties are experienced in removing
them. One of the wealthiest lawyers in Canada confessed
to me, that he had always found it advisuble to compound
with squatters.
44 UPPER CANADA.
# O5th September.—I visited some farms on the Grand
River, near Dunnsville, about four miles from Lake
Erie. The branch of the railway that connects Paris and
Dunnsville is one of the feeders of the Great Western
Railway of Canada, which forms the shortest route from
New York to Detroit and Chicago, Tho principal stream
of emigrants from Europe flows along this line towards
the western territories. The distance from Paris to Dunne-
ville is about forty miles, and the country for the most
part is still in the original forest, having considerable
tracts of swampy ground, upon which the tamarack and the
cedar grow. At Dunnsville the Grand River has been
dammed up to act as a reservoir for the Welland Canal. This
has had the effect of converting the lower part of the river
for more than twenty miles into a vast lake. The withered
tranks and larger bganches of the trees which grew on the
level Jand adjoining the river are still standing, and give a
forlorn appearance to the country. The town is very un-
healthy, the great majority of tho inhabitants having aguo
every year. . It was painful to see the pale and sallow com-
plexion so universal, and the ague invalids so numcrous.
Drove about six miles up the east bank of the river.
The country was by no means fertile, and little wheat was
seen; potatoes, oats, and buckwheat, being the staple crops.
Having occasion to cross the river, about three-fourths of a
mile in breadth, I prevailed upon an Indian, who was thrash-
ing grain with the flail in a barn, to row me over in his
canoe, which was cut out of the trunk of a tree. He was
about thirty years of age, dressed like an ordinary labourer ;
eyes and hair very dark, though his complexion was not more so
than that of many Spaniards or Italians. His features were
finely formed, and the expression of his face was soft and
pleasing; in fact he was, as many of the young Indian men
‘are, altogether good looking; but the women, old or young,
do not approach. by any means to our European notions of
beauty, at least all that I saw had rather repulsive features.
The canoe was not more than two feet in breadth, and with
a cargo of three persons it was heavily freighted; I was
glad when I reached the other side in safety, as little would
GRAND RIVER, ~~
have upset us. The south wind had once more rendered
the weather delightfully warm, and the evenings most
charming.
The country is more rolling on the south bank of Grand
River, and the soil is also better, consisting of a light sandy
loam, though having rather too much vegetable matter in it
to be good for wheat. Beech and maple predominate in the
forest, and the farmers have long ago found out here, as well
as in New York State, that such land is better suited for
spring and summer crops than for autumn-sown wheat.
On the more sandy descriptions, a system of cropping is
followed similar to that in the Dumfries district. Here, a
farm of 204 acres, of which 93 were cleared, had 25 acres in
wheat, 10 oats, 3 buck-wheat, 6 Indian corn; required four
horses to cultivate the land and drive the produce to market.
Its value was about £1800 sterling. Twenty head of cattle
were kept, besides thirty sheep.
I found the owner of this farm, Mr. Edie, a jovial.
hearty fellow, who had settled here in the bush sixteen years
ago, superintending and assisting his men at “log rolling,”
and burning the remains of a portion of the forest that had
been recently cut down. The land was to be sown with
wheat this season. I happened to remark that, before he
could get the land into a proper state to sow wheat, the
season would be too far gone, when he told me that wheat
could be sown much later upon new land than upon what
had been in cultivation for some time. The reason he gave
for this was, that the richness ofthe newly-cleared land forced
the wheat to grow rapidly and longer in the autumn, and
thus to make up for late sowing. This, I think, is a very —
rational explanation of a practice that scems well understood
among Canadian farmers; and it perhaps may serve to give
us some insight into the peculiaritics of wheat culture in
America, incident to the peculiarities of the climate.
Some days after this, I met a farmer who had emigrated
from Fifeshire nine years ago, and whom I formerly knew.
He had 100 acres of cleared land, most of which was a light
loam, resting upon gravel. Upon this extent he had 50
acres in wheat, his usual crop being 1000 bushels, He
46 UPPER CANADA,
informed mo that all his ideas respecting tho nature of the
soils best suited for wheat were completely changed since
he came to Canada, Whicat, he said, was not so exhaust-
ing a crop in Canada as in Scotland, as it could be so easily
raised on very light soils; and farther, he maintained that
farm-yatd manure had not so great an effect in increasing
the yield of wheat as it had at home. For this reason, many
farmers would not put themselves to the trouble of driving it
out, as the clover sod seemed perfectly sufficient for raising a
good crop. It would appear that the decaying matter which
the clover roots and herbage yield is best adapted in this
climate for supplying the wheat plants with the food that they
require from the soil. But in my opinion the practice of
sowing wheat carly in America has also the effect of rendering
less manure necessary.
Nor do I think that the explanation of the matter is at
all difficult, if we bear in mind the peculiarities of the climate
of the two countrics. In the first place, early sowing in
America is rendered necessary in consequence of the severity
of the winters, for the plants must be well rooted before the
frosts set in. In Scotland, wheat sowing is carried on
throughout the winter when it is mild, and if the crop has
been too early sown on light land, it becomes too thick,
which is not desirable, as it is well known that thick wheat
usually dwindles away during our Jong and cold springs, and
yields a small return.
In Canada, on the other hand, the comparatively high
temperature of the autumns, pushes forward the wheat
plants and produces a thick carpet of vegetation, yet vegeta-
tion is entirely suspended during the winter. The extra
growth which the wheat plant thereby obtains in the long
autumns of Canada is kept in reserve, in the shape of. sap-
stored roots and leaves, until the spring or rather the sum-
mer, for in this Siberian climate there is no spring. Within
certain limits, then, the more autumn growth that the wheat
gets in Canada, the less need has it of manure in the early
summer. In Scotland, we sce the application of a similar
principle in the growth of turnip seed. Bulbs of Jate summer
and autumn growth are first got, and then the nourishment
WHEAT CULTURE. 47
contained in the bulbs is drawn upon next season for the
development of the flowers and secds,
Moro than this, the tempcrature in Britain is low, and
the weather often arid during the early stages of the growth
of the wheat plant, conditions that demand a more abundant
supply of manure. But in Canada the weather remains cool,
and keeps vegetation dead until the first week of May, when
summer begins in earnest and incipient vegetation is vivified
by great heat and an adequate supply of moisture. When
these circumstances are duly considered, we need not wonder
at the peculiarities in the systems of wheat culturé adopted
at home and in the Western World.
One fact connected with wheat culture in America is
worthy of being noticed, as it shows the remarkable effect
of climate on the plant. In no part of North America which
I visited can the common varieties of wheat that are sown in
autumn be sown in spring and produce a crop of grain, for
they only grow leaves and stems, and do not form ears.
Wheat exhibits somewhat similar habits when sown in June
on rich land in Scotland. There is a great deal of spring wheat
sown in Amcrica, called the Black Sea variety, which appeared
to be very similar to what is known in this country as April
wheat, a red awny varicty. /
It is further worthy of observation, that it is of much
importance in America to have a thick and well tillered plant
of wheat in spring. Late tillering produces coarse and
vascular stems, which are particularly liable to be attacked .
by disease. “Sow carly to prevent rust and mildew,” I
heard repeated by the farmers in every part of America.
The most of the summer rains in Canada and the United
States fall in heavy thunder showers, attended with a high
temperature. Such climatic conditions favour rust and
mildew, indeed, actually rendering the crops grown on rich
land so liable to their ravages that the best soils for wheat in
America are those which would be considered inferior ones’
for the same crop in this country. The further south that I
went, the poorer did I find that. the soil required to be ta
produce a healthy crop; and although there is scarcely any
winter in Alabama, a well tillered plant seemed to be essential
48 UPPER CANADA,
‘to obtain a healthy ripening crop of wheat even on very poor
lands.
I saw some fine crops of Indian corn on inferior land in -
Canada, but the treatment had been liberal, and, from all
accounts, it is very grateful for tillage and manure. Indian
corn is planted in May, and ripens by the middle of Sep-
tember. Buckwheat is also sown in summer, but usually
only upon the poorest soils.
At Dunnsville I learned that insurance against fire is as
high as 3 per cent on the ordinary wooden stores, but only
4 per cent upon those made of bricks with fire-proof floors.
Fires seem to be still as common in Canada and all parts of
America as formerly. I was very much amused the day I
went up to Geneseo, when we stopped for a few minutes at
a small inn to change horses. A rough and unshaven fellow
came up and asked the news from one of the passengers.
“Nothing particular,” said a gentleman who sat near me,
“except that the railway company have met an immense
loss from a fire at the station, which has destroyed much
property besides locomotives.” “Oh,” said the fellow,
“that is some time ago.” “Not very long,” replied the
other, “it is only three days since it happened, but I sup-
pose you were already expecting something upon a much
grander scale.”
Returned to Paris, and thence in the afternoon to Lon-
don, fifty-six miles further west, on the Great Western Railway.
About three-fourths of the land is still in the natural forest,
but the process of clearing making progress wherever it is
dry. The soil is a sandy loam, formed from the decomposi-
tion of the drift gravels and sands that appear to cover the
whole country. It cannot. be said to be rich by any means,
but a large portion of it is well adapted for the growth of
wheat. Oak and hickory forests are rather common, but
the beech and maple predominate. Considerable tracts of
swamps are also seen, with their peculiar forest growth. The
cars were very crowded; more than half of the passengers
were standing, a good many of whom, like myself, left the
train at London, to attend tho exhibition of the Provincial «
Show of Canada West,
PROVINCIAL SHOW. 49
27th September.—This was the chief day of the show,
and about 40,000 persons were on the grounds, I was quite
surprised to see so many fine specimens of cattle, sheep,
horses, and pigs. Of the first class I admired the Short-
horned cattle, and their crosses with the common breeds.
The Leicester sheep, too, were remarkably good, and numbers
changed owners at high prices, as much as from ten to twenty
pounds sterling being given for lambs of the best stocks.
The rearing of sheep and cattle seems to be occupying fully
more attention in Canada West than in the north-western
parts of the State of New York. Among the implements
that were in great variety, the machines for mowing grass
attracted considerable attention, and many parties who -had
used them spoke favourably of them. Indeed, several of the
makers said the demand was greater than could in the mean-
time be.supplied. Two different machines were on the
ground for cutting, and at the same time planting, potatoes.
A machine for paring apples did its work amazingly well,
There was an endless variety of ploughs and scarifiers.
The display of fruit and vegetables was particularly fine,
while the apples and peaches were truly splendid. Carrots
and parsnips were of large size, the former especially thriving
well in Canada. The common yellow and red varieties of
mangold-wurtzel gave evidence of the capabilities of the
climate for their growth. I was told that there is little
tendency in the plants to flower in autumn, as they do in-the
cold climate of Scotland. There was a large number of
pumpkins, which were curious specimens of the vegetable:
tribe. Four.of them shown by one exhibitor weighed seve-
rally 180, 150, 148, and 112 Ibs. It is surprising how such
large and succulent plants can thrive in the torrid summer
heats of America, even where the soil is dry and arid. In
- the New England states, I sometimes observed the ground
almost covered with large yellow pumpkins, while the Indian
corn was completely withered by the drought. The pumpkin
is used for feeding cattle in autumn and early winter, but it
docs not keep long, and its seeds havo an injurious action on
the kidneys when cattle are fed long upon them. ‘The samples
. :
50 UPPER CANADA.
of Swedes were not large, but it was too early in the season
for them, and they had nearly another month to grow.
Besides the articles which have been enumerated, every-
thing that enters into the domestic economy of the Canadian
farmer has a premium awarded to it if tho judges think it
worthy of one. Numbers of booths were erected over the
grounds—in some were pictures, pianos, and needle-work in
great variety; in others, dogs, rabbits, and poultry. About
£2000 were expended in prizes; of this sum tho provincial
government gave about one half, and the other half was
subscribed by the local socicties, of which there are a great
number, also partly supported by grants of money from the
government.
Nothing can be better calculated to stimulate agricultural
improvement than the provincial shows. The best breeds of
cattle are brought together, aud all who attend have an oppor-
tunity of sceing first-class animals, which stirs up emulation.
New fruits and vegetables are rapidly diffused and their fitness
for the soil ascertained. The best implements are brought
together and their efficiency tested. Professor Buckland, the
secretary, is quite enthusiastic in the dutics of his office, and
has great merit in the admirable organisation and success of
the society. It is a great pleasure to mncet a man so well
informed in all that relates to the agriculture of Canada.
The appearance of the Canadian farmers with their wives
and daughters was somewhat different from the same class
that I saw at Marshficld, near Boston. There was more
colour in the faces of the Canadians, but there was much less
regularity in the cast of their features, and neither men, nor
women especially, were so good looking. The New Englanders
had the appearance of having undergone a complete social
levelling, they had a certain uniformity in development,
and besides, were all dressed much alike. Here many of
the farmers were untidy and carclessly dressed, though they
were possessed of considerable mcans! -1 have no doubt the
next gencration will be vastly improved in appearance and
substantial comforts, if the educational system is kept com-
mensurate with the prosperity which is sure to flow from the
resources of this fine district.
LONDON. - 51
London has now about 10,000 inhabitants, and, if I mis-
take not, its progress will be as rapid for many years to come
as that of any other city in Canada. Several elegant streets
are building, some of the stores are of an immense size,
and one of the finest hotels in Canada was nearly completed
at tho time of my visit, The soil in the vicinity of the
town is of a light sandy loam. It cannot be said to be very
fertile, but it is beautifully wooded, and the view from the
high bank to the west of the town over the fine forest in the
broad vale of the Thames is very commanding. The weather
was particularly fine while I was at London; the nights were
delightfully warm, and the days not too hot.
T left London.on the afternoon of the 28th September and
reached Mamilton at night; went on board the steamer for
Coburg next morning, which was nearly capsized, owing to the
carelessness of the man at the helm allowing the paddle-wheel to
run upon the side of the canal that connects the bay at Hamilton
with Ontario, By this collision the whcel was greatly
damaged. The steamer that left before us was signalled
back, and took us on board. The weather became stormy,
and the luke being rather rough, I soon experienced a sharp
attack from sea-sickness. Reached Coburg late at night.
Next morning I hired a buggy and drove six miles to the
westward to visit some farms in the neighbourhood. The
country is level for a mile or two inland along the shore
of the lake, though the soil, 1 could now see at a glance,
was not suited for growing autumn wheat in this climate.
It was too soft and black in the colour, wanting that peculiar
hardness of quality which is essential here for wheat. Spring
wheat, oats, barley, and potatoes are the chief crops. To
grow autumn wheat well, the land must be pastured for
three or four years to give it the necessary firmness, and then
fallowed out and out nearly a whole year before the wheat is
sown, Under this system the district cannot be a productive
one for wheat, even although spring ‘wheat is always sown
after the autumn wheat. The arable farns are rather small,
and are better adapted for the dairy than for growing much
grain. As I drove out I saw some small fields of good
turnips aud mangold-wurtzel. From what I learued, the
52 : UPPER CANADA.
soil and management are generally much the same for 4
considerable distance both to the cast and west of Coburg.
A few miles, however, to the northwards, the Trenton lime-
stone disappears, and the primary rocku with thoir poor soils
occupy the whole country.
If the occupants of the land here are not rapidly making
fortuncs, they are living in easy and comfortable circumstances,
and in the full enjoyment of the blessings of liberty and indepen-
dence. I was everywhere much pleased to find the Canadians
having so warm a sympathy towards the mother country,
which is always dignified with the title of “home.” They
are not a little jealous of their enterprising neighbours,
to whom.I must confess they stand so far indebted for the
superior accommodation which the Yankce boats and hotels
afford to all who travel on the lake region.
T made o run in tho afternoon by the railway to Rico
Luko, about sixteen miles north of Coburg, and found tho
intervening country poor and little of it in cultivation, ‘This
lako derives its nome from tho largo quantitics of wild rice
that grow in those parts of it where the water is shallow.
The stem of the rice is from six to eight fect in length, of
which two feet are out of the water, and bears small elongated
seeds which are gathered by the Indians, who have settle-
ments along its shores. At this season, immense flocks of
ducks and geese frequent the lake, attracted by the rice. The
surrounding country is poor and uninteresting, and, except a
few clearings upon which the Indians have erected cabins,
and raiso some crops, the original forest seemed untouched.
The frosts having been rather keen for a few nights, the
leaves of the dwarf oak wero now assuming a dirty purple
colour; those of the maple were changing to ycllow, while
the birch was still quite green. The railway is to cross the
lake by a wooden bridge, three miles in length. There were
very few passengers in the train, and the want of traffic
impressed me unfavourably with the prospects of this line
as a pecuniary undertaking. Returned to Coburg just in
time for the Kingston steamer.
2d October.—Having been so lately in Toronto and other
prosperuus towns in the western part of Upper Canada, I was
KINGSTON. 53
rather disappointed with the dull and comparatively stationary
appearance of Kingston. A few of tho strecta are good, and
the houses aro substantially built of blue limestone, but the
traffic in somo of tho wide streets is not sufficient to prevent
the grasscs from springing up. The appearance of the
town would at once Icad us to suspect that the agricultural
capabilities of the country are more limited to the north-
wards than they are at Toronto. Labour is better rewarded
on a rich soil than on a poor one, and hence the amazing
rapidity with which towns rise up in Amcrica in all those
parts that are moderately fertile. Settlers soon find out
what suits them best; and one can judge pretty accurately of
the fertility of a district by the state and appearance of its
chief importing and exporting town. A coarse clay rests
upon the limestone here, and affords better land for grazing
than cropping. Very little autumn wheat is sown.
Tho Tronton limestone occupica only a narrow strip of
land hero. A few miles to the north the granitic rocks pro-
vail. The limestone is often exposed over considerable arcas,
or only covered by so thin a crust of mould that nothing
grows upon it but a few juniper bushes that send their roots
into the crevices of the rocks. In the town of Kingston I
saw the surface of the limestone most beautifully polished
from the effects of ice or some other agent. About five fect
of stiff clay had been lately removed from the surface of the
rock to get the limestone quarried, so a considerable portion
was newly exposed. The surface was a little inclined, but very
even and almost as smooth to the touch as polished marble.
The groovings or scratches were from north-cast to south-
west, and ag straight and parallel to cach othor as if they had
been drawn with a ruler. In some of them you might have
laid in your finger, while others were as fine oa if they had
been made with the point of a knife. Afterwards, at
Montreal, Sir E. W. Logan gave me an interesting outline of
his researches on these perplexing phenomena. He has laid
down all the local variations in the directions of their groovings
on his geological map of Canada, which he is about to
publish at the expense of the government. ,
After the opportunities I had of becoming fully ac-
54 UPPER CANADA.
quainted with the geological formation of Upper Canada from
conversing with Sir E. W. Logan and others, and hearing
the accounts of the country from the settlers in various
parts, I must confess I was somewhat disappointed to find
that the region .adapted for wheat raising is comparatively
limited. In my agricultural map I have confined the wheat
region which lies to the north of Lakes Erie and Ontario,
south of a linc running from Kingston through Lake Simcoo
to Lake Huron. The boundary, 1 need hardly observe, is
not in this instance or in others by any means so well defined
as it is ropresented on the map, being moro scrrated in
reality, though it serves to show the regions that are best
suited for certain crops.
The line which I havo drawn as the boundary of the wheat
region in the Canadas corresponds pretty nearly to that which
divides the Trenton limestone from the primary or hypogeno
rock (granite, gneiss, ctc.), which occupies such an immense
area in the British possessions. From the accounts that I
got, the soil is very poor in the primary rocks, and the face
of the country similar to that of the New England States.
Squatters may obtain a subsistence in the granite districts,
and export some dairy produce, but it is not to be supposed
that, in the present circumstances of the country, they can
raise more wheat than they require for their own use.
Nor do I think the land which forms the wheat region of
Canada West is better adapted for this crop than the average
‘of the land which I have included in the wheat region of
the United States south and west of the lakes. Canada West
will no doubt produce considerably more wheat in a few
years, for large tracts aro still waiting for the axe of the
backwoodsman to convert them into good wheat lands; and
those which aro already cleared are capable of producing
more abundantly when the mero acts of culture are more
skilfully performed, and a rotation of crops adhered to.
However, the agricultural capabilities of Canada West will
be better scen when they are contrasted with those of Ohio
and the North-Western States of the American Union.
CHAPTER IV.
LOWER CANADA.
Kinaston, 2d October.—Travellers are often disappointed
with the sight of objecta of which they may havo either
heard or read exaggerated accounts, but the St. Lawrence
with its “thousand islands” went far beyond my expecta-
tions. Immediately below Kingston it is from six to eight
miles in breadth, and numbers of steamers and sailing vessels
were floating over its dark blue waters, which had more
resemblance to an arm of the sca than a freshwater stream,
The steamer threads its way among islands with precipitous
sides and deep water all around, so that we can approach
within a few yards of them. All are covered with broad-
leaved timber, the foliage of which is now putting on its
bright autumnal tints, and making a particularly gaudy scene.
In some parts the river narrows to a mile and a half in
breadth, and again swells out into broad lakes, and, as we
proceed onwards in our course, we are impressed with the
majesty of the mighty stream that forms the outlet to the
vast chain of lakes to the westward.
The rapids, too, of the St. Lawrence are a noble and
most exciting sight. When I saw the white crests and
waves of Niagara rapids above the Falls, I could not believe
that the breaking and foaming of the water wero consistent
with great depth, but this false notion was quickly dispelled
as the steamer dashed down the rapids of the St. Lawrence,
tossed by huge waves that wero worthy of the Atlantic, their
crests being broken into white foam where the current was
from thirty to forty foot in depth. As it is only o narrow
passage through which the atcamer has to bo stecred, consider+
5&6 LOWER CANADA.
able skill and dexterity are required to avoid the rocky shoals,
Four men were at the helm, and the vessel seemed to: be
completely under control amid the boiling and surging of the
current, which has a velocity in some places of fifteen miles
an hour.
The country, on either bank of the St. Lawrence, is
far from being rich. The Potsdam sandstone, the lowest
member of the Silurian series, excludes the Trenton lime-
stone. High mountains are scen in tho distance towards the
south, and gravels and boulder clay are strewed over an
immense area in the low country. In‘some parts a coarso
alluvial clay extends for a considerable distance from the river,
In the steamer I met a farmer who resides twenty-three
miles south from Ogdenburg, in the state of New York, who
gave the following account of his farm and the country. He
was a native of Perthshire, in Scotland, and had emigrated
to that part of the country twelve ycars ago, when he
bought a farm of 240 acres at £3 per acre. He has about
100 acres cleared, and very lately refused double the price
that he paid for it. All the land worth cultivating has been
long occupidd in that district, and the most stony land with
wood upon it now sells at 20s. per acre. Some of the low
land is a strong clay, and the usual practice is to let it lie
for three or four years in pasture, when it is ploughed up in
autumn and sown in spring with oats or peas, The oat or
pea stubble is then ploughed in autumn, and sown with wheat
in spring as soon as the weather permits, and usually pro-
duces from 18 to 25 busliels to the acre. Winter wheat
does not succeed well, owing to its being liable to the attacks
of wevil, as well as to be thrown out of the ground by spring
frosts. Spring wheat is sometimes sown as late as June,
producing good crops that ripen carly in August, while the
autumn wheat ripens in the last days of July. This farmer
complained of the severity of the winters and the quantity
of fodder required to keep cattle over that season, and as
an instance of this severity, he had crossed the St. Lawrence
with his horses on the ice as late as the 15th April. The
crops that he raised on his farm this year were 25 acres
wheat, 7 peas, 12 oats, 4 potatocs, 4 Indian corn; in winter
RAIN STORM. 57
he generally keeps 18 cows and 60 sheep. One pair of
horses do all the work of the farm. He told me that some
of his neighbours take many crops of wheat in succession,
and yet obtain very fair returns. This statement is in entire
accordance with the opinion I have formed, that the climate
of North America permits wheat to be raised on much poorer
soils than in Britain, owing to the high temperature of the
season in which it grows.
I stopped over the night at Brockville, a thriving little
town on the Canadian side, and got another steamer next
morning at eight o'clock. A bright and calm morning was
succeeded by a cloudy, squally, and rainy day, which caused
the lower part of tho river to be seen under disadvantageous
circumstances. To me, however, this disagreeable weather
had some points of great interest, as it was the first time
that I had observed a north-cast rainy storm in America,
Its action was very similar in many respects to the north-
east rainy storms of Britain. -At 7 a.m. cirrus clouds ata
great elevation were moving rapidly from the west with a
slight breath of wind from the north. At 8 o’clock, however,
a breeze set in from south by east, while a middle stratum of
air brought up a thick mass of blue clouds from the south-
west. The wind gradually veered round to east, then to
north-east, where it remained during the whole day, blowing
strong as we landed at Lachine, nine miles from Montreal.
The north-east wind was merely a thin stratum of air moving
along the earth’s surface, and was overlaid by a cloudy stratum
moving in an opposite direction. A range of high bills runs
south from Lake Francis, and from the shape and form of the
clouds that capped their summits, they were evidently under
the influence of the south-west middle current. There is,
however, the highest probability for believing that the west
upper current prevailed over and above the whole as before.
There is no doubt that the north-east wind often blows with
a clear sky as it does in Britain, but unless meteorological
observers analyse the conditions that determine the dry and
the rainy characters of the north-east winds, assuredly no
great benefits will accrue to science by merely recording
their force and frequency, and then making them components
58 LOWER CANADA.
in yearly or monthly averages. The action of the American
north-casters will be fully discussed in the latter part of this
work,
About Lake Francis, the settlers are chiefly French on
the Canadian side, whose farms run back from the river in
narrow strips ; consequently, the houses are thickly studded
along the river, but are trim and neat-looking in the distance.
Got the railway at Lachine, and arrived at Montreal late at
night. There are now upwards of 70,000 inhabitants in
Montreal, which has all the appearance of a European city.
Many of the houses are old but substantial, and none of the
streets are regular or have such magnificent stores as are to
be seen at Toronto. The fires, tov, have been numerous
over the town, and the naked walls are standing in many
cases just as the devouring element left them several years
ago. The majority of the inhabitants are of French extrac-
tion, a race who do not amalgamate with the more enterpris- .
ing Anglo-Saxons. The situation of the town is pleasing,
being built on the steep slope that rises from the river, while
the hill of Montreal, covered with wood, rises to about 600
feet immediately behind. The St. Lawrence here is about
two miles in breadth, and ships and steamers crowd the
wharves.
The Victoria Railway Bridge at Montreal is a stupen-
dous undertaking, and it is believed will cost about two
millions sterling to complete it. The total length of tho
bridge is a little less than two English miles. The rails
are to be laid in a series of tubes, as at the Menai Straits,
The centre span is to be 330 fect, and the others about 100
feet less. The under surface of the tubes to be about 60 feet
above the river. At present, commerce is suspended when
winter sets in and seals-up tke river; but this bridge will
connect the Atlantic Railway and the Great Trunk Line
of Upper Canada, and thus afford an uninterrupted line of
communication from Toronto to the Atlantic towns in the
depth of winter. That the bridge and Grand Trunk Line
will be of immense benefit to Canada no one can doubt, but
whether these great undertakings will ever yield an adequate
remuneration to the shareholders i. much debated, as the line
MONTREAL. 59
traverses an immense extent of poor country. It ought to
be borne in mind that the success of the Great Western
Railway of Upper Canada is, in a great measure, owing ‘to
its forming the nearest route by railway from New York to
Chicago and the North-Western States.
That the masses are not so well educated in Montreal i is
apparent from the scarcity of booksellers’ shops in town.
The nature of the works, too, lying for sale does not indicate
an intelligent and inquiring community. As for public
libraries or reading-rooms, where a stranger may spend an
hour if the weather is not favourable, you will probably ask
a dozen of persons before you will obtain the slightest
information where they may be found.
In company with Mr. Evans, secretary to the Bureau of
Agriculture, to whom I am under many obligations, I drove out
to the country to a sale of farm-stock, about six miles to the
north of Montreal. The stock belonged to a gentleman who
came from East Lothian many years ago, and as he had
imported some improved breeds of sheep and cattle from
Britain, he was disposing of the surplus stock. The auc-
tioncer spoke alternately in French and English. From the
appearance of those persons who were assembled, it was evi-
dent that they were chiefly small farmers, and could not afford
to pay high prices for the better kinds of stock, for the same
animals would have brought far more money in Upper
Canada. Cows of the Ayrshire breed sold from £4: 10s.
to £9 a head, and the sheep from £1: 10s. to £6: 10s.
The island of Montreal has been called “the garden of
Canada.” The soil, however, can only be regarded as of
secondary quality. On the farm that I visited, it is a dark-
coloured sandy loam. Timothy grass grows well upon it,
but the clovers only last one years The Trenton limestone
prevails over the whole island, as an isolated patch among
the surrounding primary rocks, rendering the soil genial to
the growth of grasses, though not of winter wheat. Oats,
barley, and potatoes are the staple crops, with small quan-
tities of turnips and mangold-wurtzel. The carrot seems
to thrive as well in this climate og any other green crop.
The winters are very severe, so all vegetables must be stored
60 LOWER CANADA.
in cellars to protect them from the intense frosts. The
extreme nature of the climate will be sufficiently exhibited
by glancing at the accurate observations of the weather of
1854, made near Montreal by Dr. Smallwood, who kindly
transmitted me an abstract as below.
MeanTem-| Depth of | Depthof |... . Rango
peratureof} Stow in | Rein‘in Snowing in| Raining in) of Tier.
Air. . Inches, Inches. © * | mometer.
17.98 1.067 75.55 6.10 78.8
23.96 0.150 79.50 2.00 U7
28.16 0.910 63,25 3,10 60.4
4.03 7.886 5,50 49.10 52.2
8.418 82.00 60.7
8.384 48.50 46.6
0.174 1.50 48.5
2.265 7.45 48.2
September... ! tes 6.167 ose 15.16 64.2
October... 48.40 8,10 4.844 6.10 83.55 55.5
1.10 5.130 7A5 29.40 50.6
18.67 0.110 44,31 4.80 78.1
Crossed the St. Lawrence, on the 5th October at sunset,
with Mr. Yule, who drove me to his residence at Chamblay,
a distance of fourteen miles, about nine of which were over the
flats of the St. Lawrence, a tract of level land extending for
a considerable distance down the south side of the river.
The soil consists of a coarse light coloured clay, and the
greater part of it appeared to be in timothy grass, which is
cut for hay. In the ferry steamer we crossed with about
forty small furmers, having horses and carts, who had been to
town with hay and other farm produce. The horses were
mere ponies; the carts were in proportion, with wooden
axles, and they only carried o, load of about 800 Ibs. Hay is
driven to town from a distance of sixteen miles. Indeed,
the whole system pursued here involyes an enormous waste
of labour. The produce of the best soils is 3000 Ibs. to the
acre, but much of the land is anything but fertile, and will
not yield half this quantity. The farm-houses are built
along both sides of the road, and are little more than from
forty to fifty yards apart, so that they form a continuous vil-
lage all the way to Chamblay. The farms extend from the
road in long narrow strips or ribbons, and were originally
ninety acres in extent, having three acres of road frontage.
CHAMBLAY, 61
These in numerous instances have been subdivided among the
members of families, by running a fence down the centre.
Notwithstanding the miserable system of cultivation that
prevails here, it is pleasant to observe that a considerable
amount of tidiness and comfort appears about the houses.
They are usually of good size, though principally of one
storey, with cellars below for storing vegetables in winter.
The windows are large, the walls nicely white-washed, aud
the roofs red-painted, imparting an air of ncatness to the
whole. The French farmers were as thriving here as in any
part of Lower Canada, and seemed to lead an easy and some-
what idle life. The road was a plank one nearly all the way,
but I suppose it will be the last of this sort that is made in
the district, as the wood is getting scarce and dear. Indeed,
a portion of the road is already macadamised. -
The country at Chamblay is rather woody, and slightly
raised above the flats of the St. Lawrence, which are almost
entirely destitute of timber. The Richelieu, flowing from
Lake Champlain, descends over ita rapids at Chamblay, and
might afford an immense power for driving machinery. The
surrounding country is very poor, being full of stones and
covered with small trees, for the original forest has been cut
down long ago. Property is usually divided according to the
French fashion. A farm of 300 acres that I looked at was
said to be worth £400; it extended back in a long strip into
the bush for three miles. As there was little of it in culti-
vation, to improve it would require an immense labour. Its
value must have been chiefly owing to the wood that was
on it.
Next day I drove along the south bank of the Richelieu
to St. Hilaire through a poor country, consisting of a light
coloured clay, not worth more than: £2 per acre, even where
there are tolerable houses and offices on the farms. Major
Campbell has erected an elegant mansion at St. Hilaire, on a
situation of great natural beauty. It is built a little south
of the river, where the bank has a considerable slope, and
about a mile further south the hill of St. Hilaire, finely
wooded, rises precipitously to the height of 1800 feet. This
mountain forms a somewhat abrupt termination to the primary
62 LOWER OANADA.
rocks which extend into New Brunswick and the New Eng-
land States. Here also the same classes of rocks have their
surface covered with the same mixture of forest trees, con-
sisting of beech, maple, birch, and clm, with a sprinkling
of pines. A few spots are occupied entirely by the maple,
from which sugar. is obtained by boiling the juice collected
in spring, when the sap begins to flow.
In the afternoon I walked to the top of the hill, to obtain
a view of the surrounding country. The weather was charm-
ing, for the south wind had once more brought a delightful
temperature, quite in contrast to that of yesterday, when
the cold north wind made it very uncomfortable. A beauti-
ful little snake, the second I had seen in America, glided
across our path, but, being pursued, it stood half erect and
waited our approach, when it was quickly dispatched with a
stone.
In ascending the flank of the hill, fine orchards of apple
trees were once more observed on the poor granitic gravels,
and many of the trees were loaded with fruit. The apple
does not thrive on the clay soils of the flats of the St. Law-
rence, in consequence, I suppose, of their tenacious nature,
while good orchards are met with throughout tho island of
Montreal, where the soil rests upon the limestone and is more
friable.
A complete bird’s-cye view is got of an immense stretch
of country from the top of the hill of St. IIilaire. The
Richelieu in its windings is lined on both banks with farm-
houses, which have the appearance of one long straggling
village. The country between the Richelieu and the St.
Lawrence is flat, and double rows of houses line the roads
that intersect the trecless tract; while the long narrow
strips of farms, with their wooden fences, look like ridges in
the distance. Towards the south the country is -mountain-
ous and covered with timber.
The autumn frosts were rapidly changing the colour of
the leaves. Indeed, in those parts where they were exposed
to tho winds they were withered, and many had already
dropped off. In looking down into the sheltered hollows,
however, where the leaves were only undergoing a mellowing
8T. HILAIRE. 63
from the effects of the sun and frosts, the brilliancy of the
colours was extraordinary. The tints from deep purple,shading
into fresh green and pale yellow, were altogether surpassing
belief or description. I was loath to leave so glorious a sight
which I had little prospect of ever beholding again.
Major Campbell is a most cnthusiastic agriculturist, and
is doing a vast deal to promote improved modes of farming
among his contented neighbours the French settlera, The
present generation are not likely to profit much by his
example, nor is it easy to see how their stationary condition
can be reached and rendered progressive, unless by educating
the rising generation, and instructing them in the principles
of agriculture. This course was recommended by the late
Professor Johnston, and seems the only hope of effecting a
general improvement in this miserably managed country.
The soil, however, it must be confessed, is not naturally
good, having too much clay in its composition, and being
unsuitable to the growth of grass. About St. Hilaire land
sells at from £2 to £2:10s. per acre, and lets at five
shillings per acre; its value has increased very little for the
last ten years,
Major Campbell’s property lics at a higher clevation on
the sloping bank, and ig not of good quality. He is an advo-
cate for sowing wheat in autumn, Lis ideas and those of the
late Professor Johuston coincide, that it is owing to the land
being so much exhausted that the wheat plant is weak and
predisposed to the attacks of fly during the flowering season.
How far this opinion is correct I cannot say, but I did not
see ten acres of autumn wheat in Lower Canada, and it never
was grown to any extent. Whatever may be the capabilities
of the climate for green crops, I saw few turnips or mangold-
wurtzel, and none that could be reckoned good.
7th October.—I Returned to Montreat by the railway
through a poor country, subdivided in the usual manner,
and drove out in the afternoon to St. Martins, Isle of Jesus,
a distance of twelve miles. The country is undulating, and
the soil often light and gravelly, though of a better description
than what I saw in the flats this morning. Many large
64 LOWER CANADA.
boulders are scattered over the arable land, but grasses grow
freely, and are still fresh on these limestone soils. The apple
" orchards are numerous, and relicve the country of the mono-
tonous aspect which prevails in the flats of the St. Lawrence,
where scarcely a tree is to be seen. The farmers have
in some places clustered together into villages, and go out
into the country to cultivate the land as they do in many
parts of France. Barley, oats, and a stnall quantity of spring
wheat aro the chief crops. Farming is not pursued with
any sort of energy.
Tho very changeable nature of the climate of Canada in
autumn may again be noticed. Two days ago the weather
was so cold that a thick great-coat was insufficient to make
one comfortable when exposed to the north wind; but to-day
the south wind, with a bright sun, sct up tho thermometer
to 74° in the shade, and this night is 60 warm that one might
dispense with a coat altogether, ‘l'ho warm and could periods,
or kpelly ax thoy call them in America, alternate with cach
other until the middlé of November, when tho frosts got
fully established,
A inedical gentleman, who is in extensive wastes in the
district that I visited to-day, described the peasantry os o
peaceable and kindly people, though much under the influence
of the priests. They are honest in their dealings, and make
it a matter of honour and conscience to pay their debts when
it is in their power. The smaller French cottages that I
saw in the country in my afternoon’s drive were kept very
clean and tidy. The glass in the windows was bright
and shining. The doors open at once into the rooms, which
must I think render the houses cold in winter, unless tho
joints are very tight. As I drove through the suburbs of
Montreal about dark, the cottage doors wero all standing
wide open, and the children almost naked were rolling about
outside.
Among the many pleasant reminiscences which I have of
my short sojourn in Canada, I retain a lively recollection of
the time that I spent in the company of Mr. W. E. Logan,
provincial geologist, who has since been knighted by the
Queen for tho eminent services that he has rendered to
FARMERS. 65
the cause of science in this colony. The labour and per-
severance with which he has pursued his investigations under
Gifficulties of no ordinary character, have at last met with a
suitable and well-earned acknowledgment. His intimate
acquaintance with the geology and physical features of the
country served to correct or confirm the information which
Thad proviously gathercd, from various sources, respecting
its agricultural capabilities.
On the night of the 9th October I went on board the
steamer at Montreal for Queboe, and though the distance is 180
miles, I was landed in tho morning, after a passage of twelve
hours, during which I had 8 most comfortable night's rest.
The breadth of alluvial soil along the banks of the St.
Lawrence varies much; indeed, for some miles west of
Quebcc little arable Jand is scen from the river. The banke
are rocky and precipitous, and covored with small timber.
A narrow strip of tho Silurian formation runs down both
banks, and sometiines tho Hinestone is covered by a moderately ,
fortilo soil, but in many parts tho rocka only present a
bare and polished surface. ‘The extent of good land in
Canada East is very limited, and has all been scttled long
ago. No doubt a large areca still remains to be appropriated
and cleared, yet from its inferior quality there is little prospect
of its yielding any grain for export. As in New England
dairy produce must afford the chief article for sending to
market in exchange for other articles needed by. the far-
mers, Even in the present day, there are a considerable
number of French settlers on the poorer lands of Lower
Canada who fare very miscrably. They usually ecll the
. Most of the spring crops soon after harvest, and rely
upon gathering sugar from the maple in apring, to afford
them the means of buying sccd-grain. If the supply of
sugar is scanty, as has happened in 1855, they are involved
in difficulties, and the land is left unsown. There is great
unwillingness among the French settlers to emigrate to the
west, where their labour would afford them an amount of the
good things of this life that would be luxury itsclf compared
\with their present condition, They will rather occupy the
most poverty-stricken soils that are only capable of furnishing
F
66 LOWER CANADA.
a scanty and precarious subsistence, than leave their friends -
behind,
The sugar thut is collected from the maple-tree over
‘Canada and the Northern States of America, amounts to a
large quantity in the aggregate. But it is almost entirely
consumed in the districts in which it is collected, and both
the Canadas import a considerable quantity of sugar from the
Weat India Islands. The sugar is obtained from the trees
in April by making incisions in the trunk. The sap being
collected in wooden troughs, is boiled down to a» certain
consistence, after which it crystallizes on cooling. It is
commonly used in a rough and unpurified state, and though
retaining the peculiar flavour of the maple, is far from
being disagreeable. During the collecting scason parties go
into the woods and camp out for several weeks, when the
processes of bleeding the trees and boiling down the sap are
jointly carried on. The maple is often scen growing on very
barren soils, but its trunk is seldom more than a foot und a
half in diameter. A single tree, on an average, yiclds about
one pound of sugar in a season.
At the junction of the St. Charles River with the St.
Lawrence, Quebec is built, on the stecp slopes and brow of a
high and sharp promontory that points down to the Isle of
Orleans, where the noble river begins to open out into a
baylike breadth. The streets leading from the wharves are
narrow and steep, and aro at this season all bustle and
activity. The St. Lawrence commonly freezes here by the
end of November, and busincss is in a manner suspended
until the following May. During tho close season the town
is deaurted by the labouring population, who then find
work in the country. In the town and neighbourhood thro
are many spots of great historical interest, and the view from
the fortifications is one of the most picturesque in Amcrica.
During the few days that I remained in Quebec, I made
some excursions into the country. One day I drove, in
company with the well-known traveller, Dr. Kohl of Berlin,
to tho falls of Montmorenci, about six miles down the north
bank of the St. Lawrence, The cultivated lund, entirely
free from wood, rises in a long and easy slope from the river
CANADIAN FARMERS. 67
towards the high grounds, which are covered with birch and
pine. Along this slope lay our road, which was almost as
thickly lined on both sides with farm-housca as the street of
a New Englund village. ‘The farms run north and south in
narrow ribbons, This village-like cluster, I was told, extends
about forty miles down the bank of the river.
The soil is comparatively good, and rests upon the Trenton
limestone which crops out to the surface in many places. It
was covered with as fine a carpet of grasscs as any that 1
had seen in Canada, on land so light. The red clover plants
also were retaining a pretty fair hold of the ground, where they
had evidently been pastured for several years. Some of the
crops of barley and oats were still outstanding.
We went into several of the houses, which are neatly built
with wood, and in all gota hearty welcome. One of the
largest and newest was sixty fect long by thirty three fect
wide, with a cottage roof and attic windows, and a verandah
extending the whole length in front. There were three large
windows on each side of the door. ‘The interior was divided
into two apartments: kitchen and parlour. There seemed to
be a great deal more accommodation than was necessary to the
circumstances of its occupants, for the rooms appeared empty
in consequence of the scarcity.of furniture. In fact, these .
simple and peaceable people seem to have as much vanity in
erecting large and stylish-looking houses, in which they have
little to put, as many display in other places in decorating
their rooms with costly furniture.
Tho furm buildings belonging to this family wero com-
uodious and well contrived, aud somo tayto was displayed in
their erection, Part of the farin, which contained 250 acres
in all, was unreclaimed. ‘The usual produce was 100 to 160
bushels of spring wheat; 50 barley ; 400 oats; 50 pease ; G00
potatocs ; stock, 3 horses and 6 cows. This was one of the
largest farms in the neighbourhood, the gencrality appear-
ing to be very small. Still, on going into the meanest-
looking houses, the inmates had the air of being ip circum-
stances far above the reach of want. Dr. Kohl, who is well
acquainted with the condition of the French peasantry in
thoso parts of their native lund from which the Canadians
68 LOWER OANADA,
emigrated, was pleused with the advancement they had made
in this country,
The fulls of Montmorenci aro well worthy of a visit; the
river containing a considerable body of water rushes over a
precipice 250 feet in height. Their situation is also fine,
for an immense semicircular area has been washed out of the
precipitous bank of the St. Lawrence. A large section of
the strata is exposed, exhibiting boulders of all sizes. Part
of the Montmorenci has been diverted to the westward, and
employed in driving machinery for cutting timber. The
quantity of wood which is sawn in the course of an hour
suffices. to give one an idea of the cnorinous trade in lumber
which is carried on in this part of the world.
We returned to Quebec, by way of the Indian village
of Lorette. Ags we leit the high road, we passed through a
poorer district nearer the hills, where there was much uncleared
ground. Numbers of women were lifting potatoes in the fields,
and, unless in the Slave States, this was the only instance in
which I saw women employed at ficld operations in America.
The Indians at Lorette have embraced the Catholic faith ;
and missionaries are stationed amongst them, both to teach
the children and dispense the ordinances of religion. We
visited the school, where upwards of thirty boys and girls
were taught. he boys had more pleasing features than the
girls. In all tho hair was particularly dark and glossy, and
the eyes were small, of a lustrous blackness, imparting an
expression of great quickness and untameable wildness. The
Indians in the village, however, are completely civilized, have
good houses, and are now acquiring habits of cleanliness,
and cultivating the land in the same manner as the French
settlers.
Our road from Lorette to Quebec lay down the valley of
the St. Charles River, in which the pastures were very fine.
Throughout our drive to-day we passcd numerous tall crosses,
which were erccted five years ago, when the most of the inhabi-
tants took upon them the vows of the tee-totallers. Irom vari-
ous sources I was gratified to learn tnat they had kept their
vows faithfully, and that a vast insprovement has since taken
place in their moral and physical condition, The weather was
‘
QUEBEC. 69
clear to-day, and though a brisk south wind had blown since
morning it was exccedingly cold, showing that the north wind
of the previous day had swept the country over an immense
area towards the south.
The effects of the higher latitude of Quebec are apparent
in the leafless state of the ash and the elm, while the other
broad-leaved trees will be also quite bare in the course of
aweek, The climate of this part of Canada, however, not-
withstanding its extreme nature, seems as favourable to health
ag any other part of America, for the inhabitants of Quebec
are generally robust, and have comparatively ruddy and fresh
complexions,
I visited the Catholic seminary at Quebec, where about
200 pupils were boarded and taught all the branches of edu-
cation that they choose to learn. The fees, with board, are
only £16 per annum. There are, besides another 200 pupils
who reside in town, and attend the classes. I found Professor
Horan a most hearty and sociable gentleman, enthusiastically
interested in agriculture, and the best means of promoting its
advancement in Canada. He was hopeful that Canada
would be more flourishing when the farmers were instructed
in the principles of their art. .He caricatured their igno-
rance, by mentioning that they frequently sold their hay for
six dollars a ton, and allowed their cattle to become so low
in condition in spring, that they looked upon the tail as a
useful appendage for lifting them on their feet, when they
could not rise through weakness.
The news of the loss of the “ Arctic,” one of the Collins’
European steamers, with most of her passengers, arrived the
last day I was in Quebec. Being long past due, scrious
apprehensions were entertained of her safety, but-her fate now
spread a gloom over the city. I was walking with Dr. Kohl
when I saw the telegraphic news posted on the wall, and I
well recollect his exclamation :—“ Oh, well, the City of Man-
chester was the right vessel after all.” The day previous,
when driving over the country he gave me an extraordinary
account of the disgraceful management on buard the “ Mane
chester,” during the voyage, and stated that before leaving
Liverpool he had hesitated whether he would sail by this
70 LOWER CANADA.
vessel or the “ Arctic.” His friends in America had urged
him strongly to take the latter, but the other sailing a few
days sooner, determined his choice.
I had frequent opportunities of conversing with Dr. Hall,
geologist to the state of New York, who has devoted con-
siderable attention to the relation of geology to agriculture.
Ife was then preparing a map of the geology of tho United
States, which he was so good as to show mo, and point out tho
relation botwoen the formations and the agricultural capabilities
of the country over which I was soon to travel, Tho parti-
cular nature of the soil, however, in Canada West and the
United States depends upon the accumulations of drift that
cover so large a portion of the surface. It will one day form
an interesting study for geologists to trace the extent of those
accumulations, and the sources from which their materials
have been derived.
Dr. Hall informed me that there are districts in the
neighbourhood of Albany which formerly exported considerable
quantities of wheat, but export little now. He admitted, how-
ever, that the soil was similar in character to that of the flats
of the St, Lawrence, and also to the flat lands along the east
shore of Lake Champlain. But none of these soils were
really good originally. I have no belief in land becoming
permanently exhausted by frequent crops of grain if the soil
was naturally good and has not been washed away. There
are few or no instances of territories, rich in ancient times,
being barren in the present day. A want of security to tho
peaceful occupation of a country may, indeed, convert it into
a wilderness, which state, instead of rendering it barren, restores
and husbands its native strength. By fertile soils, I mean
such as are found resting upon our trap forinations in Scot-
land. There are no soils that I saw in Canada at all to be
compared in natural fertility to what may be found in Fifo
or tho Lothians, The best qualities of our Scottish soils, how-
ever much they may be temporarily deteriorated by crops of
grain and weeds, are cleaned as well as enriched by lying for
a few years in pasturage. The coarse clays on the flats of
the St. Lawrence do-not support so good grasses for pasture
as the thin limestone soils in the island of Montreal, and
WHEAT CROPS. 1
thus their self-restoring powers are comparatively limited.
The vegetable deposit, found on the surface when the
land was first éleared, being much wasted, the soil has
become less friable and less permeable to the air, and all crops
now grow Jess vigorously. The railway embankments,
formed of the light coloured clay of the flats, support little
vegotation, and the unploughed banks of the rivers have but
a thin covering of poor natural grasses—all indicating that
the soil way not fortile originally,
At ono time the flats of the St, Lawrence produced
a considerable quantity of wheat, but in the present day
they produce little, About twenty years ago, the wheat-
midge attacked the crops when in flower to such an extent
that the farmers found it more profitable to sow oats. This
insect also .often destroys the wheat crops both in New
Brunswick and Nova Scotia, where spring varictics are only
sown. The later that wheat is sown in spring, or rather
summer, in Nova Scotia, the less liable is it to the attacks of
fly. From the 1st to the 5th June is the usual period of
sowing, but it is sometimes delayed until the 10th. 7
Previous to 1834, the common system that the Canadian
farmers followed on the flats of the St. Lawrence was to
sow wheat every other year on the same land, without any
other preparation than ploughing once in autumn and sowing
the seed in spring. No artificial grasses were sown for pas-
turage, and the cattle mercly picked up those grasses and
weeds that came up naturally. In many parts the same miser-
able “system is still pursued, only oats or barley is substituted
for wheat,
It is worth bearing in mind that autumn-sown wheat
was never raised with advantage on the clay loams of Lower
Canada, Nova Scotia, or New Brunswick. If the crop
withstood the frost in spring, it was generally destroyed with
rust and mildew in summer, I saw little or no autumn-
sown wheat around Coburg or Kingston, in the eastern
parts of Canada West, where the clay soils are richer than
those of the flats of the St. Lawrence; but in driving over
the country from Bytown, on the Ottawa, to Prescott, on
the St. Lawrence, wherever the soil was light and sandy,
72 LOWER CANADA.
autumn wheat was the principal crop. The soils of Lower
Canada seem to be unsuitable for autumn wheat, and the
same class of soils is so, to a greater or less extent, over
the most part of North America. Dr. Hall informed me that
there were districts in Ohio which would be better fitted for
growing wheat after they were cropped for some time with
Indian corn, In their present state they were too soft, in
consequence of the vegetable matter that they contain,
for wheat ripening upon them, without being liable to the
attacks of mildew. I had afterwards many opportunities of
verifying this opinion in Ohio os well as in other western
States. The hot and moist naturo of the summer climate of
North America renders the autumn varictics of wheat very
liable to disease, and purticularly so on soils that have any
tendency to encourage grossness in the plant. Hence the
physical nature of soils has a much greater influence in
America on the growth of wheat than it has in our own cool
and less forcing climate, in which it can be raised on all
varieties, with the exception, perhaps, of peaty soils.
I learned that the wheat soils only occupy a small area
in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, that even on the best
farms there is rarely more than one-tenth of the arable land
sown with this cereal, and almost every farm has a consider-
able extent of outfield that is allowed to remain in pasture.
There is little prospect, in the meantime, of these provinces
being able to supply themselves with wheat.
Lower Canada, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, on
the whole, have very poor soils. The lumber and mining
operations have contributed more to their wealth than their
agricultural produce. The immense rafts that are constantly
passed when sailing on the St. Lawrence or the Ottawa,
show the extent of the lumber trade, and what the coun-
try must owe to it. The lumber trade is carried on by capi-
talists, who send men and horses into the woods in winter.
The timber is hewn down and squared on the spot, and then
hauled over the snow to the bed of the nearest stream that
will afford as much water as float it down in single logs to
the river when the snow melts in spring. The men camp
out in the woods, and live in huts, which contain about
- OTTAWA. 73
twenty. One man is engaged as cook, and carries out the
victuals to the others when they are at work. The life of
the lumber-men is a very exciting one, and leads to roving
and unsettled habits. They live in the woods all winter,
float down the rivers during the summer on the rafts, which
require twenty or thirty persons to manage them, and often
fail to reach their destination before the winter again freezes
the river. ;
I had many inducements to prolong my stay at Quebec,
and it was with some reluctance that I bade adieu to so
many fricnds, and turned my face, on the night of tho 11th
October, towards a warmer region. Went by steamer up tho
Ottawa on the 14th, the fino scenery of which was marred by
cold and rainy weather. The water of the Ottawa is muddy,
and forms a great contrast to the deep blue of the St. Law-
rence. Some good farms and orchards are seen as we enter
the Ottawa on the east bank ; on the west the country is very
rough and full of stones; the limestone, however, sends up
sweet grasses wherever there is earth at all. The first ten
miles of the Ottawa are full of low islands, thickly wooded ;
afterwards the east bank becomes rocky and precipitous, and
covered with pine, birch, and maple. After a sail of forty
tiles in the steamer, and a drive of sixteen by coach to
L’Orignal, I had not seen a single ficld on the west bank
that could be ranked as medium land, and much of the poorest
quality was under the plough.
On the forenoon of the 16th October, Sheriff Tread-
well drove me to Caledonia Springs, through a considerable
extent of flat and wet clay land bordering on the Ottawa.
Its value is only about thirty-five shillings per acre, and
the settlers have not the appearance of being in a thriving
state. The Caledonia mineral waters were at one time
greatly frequented, but now are almost deserted. There
are about 800 acres attached to the hotel, and the whole
was now offered for £3000—a sum, I thought, too large,
as the land was worth little or nothing until taken up by
settlers. Weather rainy and cold, with the thermometer
‘near the freezing point. In the afternoon I left by the
steamer for Bytown, and found a large number of lumber-
74 UPPER CANADA.
men on board on their way to winter in the woods. It
was dark when the steamer reached the landing, and a rush
as usual took place to get first over the gangway that was
put out. to the pier. One pvor fellow, with o trunk on
his back, was pushed into the water and drowned. The
little concern produced by this event was shocking, for no
one disturbed himsclf about the matter until it was too late
to render assistance.
Bytown is the head-quarters of the lumber-men, and con-
tains a population of 10,000. It is a dirty and disagreeable
place, the streets were almost impassable to foot passengers,
the hotels were mean, and the bar-room full of rude drunken
fellows. I was informed there were 250 licensed spirit-
shops in town. Early in the morning I left, and drove south
about forty miles to Bellamy, where I had the railway train
to Prescott, on the St. Lawrence.
The country is undulating between Bytown and Prescott,
with no mountains in the distance. Many of the rocks that
crop out are limestone, but sand forms the chief ingredient
of the soils, which are poor and stony, and have often
numbers of boulders on the surface. To use a Yankee
expression, the exportable produce of this region “don’t
aiount to much.” Stopping at a small inn on the roadside
for a short time, I had some conversation with a farmer who
owned 165 acres, that seemed to be about the average quality -
in the district. The farm was about a mile and o quarter
in length, and the sum he asked for it was £450. I have
no doubt, however, he would have taken considerably
less, as he was anxious to sell it and go to Wisconsin.
His crops this year were—wheat, six acres; Indian corn,
four; potatocs, two; and his stock consisted of six cattle
and thirty sheep: the latter had just come from the woods
to obtain their allowance of salt. On the “meadow” of
this farm, the pine stumps were standing as thickly on the
ground as the trees stood in the original forest, and there
were great numbers of boulders. The soil is too poor
in this district for the farmers to make money. But, as
already noticed, I saw more autumn sown wheat on the light
sandy soils than I had scen anywhere east of Toronto.
LAKE STEAMERS. 15
Poor as they are, they possess the qualities which fit them
for this crop. Wheat being sown early, the plants had tillered
greatly, and the fields had the appearance of an English
meadow in early summer.
I got on board one of the Yankee steamboats for Ro-
chester at night, and found the accommodation first rate ;
everything was clean and tidy, which I much esteemed,
after having so lately experienced the discomfort of the inns
in the backwoods of Canada. A person going on board
pays, and is booked for his passage, and then has the key
of his bedroom handed to him, where all his impedimenta
can be securely locked up. On the morning of the 18th
October the weather became very threatening, and soon there
was a great swell on Ontario. Most of the passengers
were sick, but unless during meals I kept my berth and
enjoyed a good sleep after having been travelling constantly
for two days.
In the steamer I met a farmer from the north-eastern
part of the State of New York, on his way to the far west,
with his wife and three children; they were in the cabin, and
entered as three full-grown passengers. He had also two
horses, two waggons, and a buggy; the distance they were
to be carried on water was 1500 miles, yet he only paid sixty-
eight dollars as passage-money for the whole, and a fortnight
earlier it would have been fifteen dollars less. He complained
very much of the pastures and other vegetables being destroyed:
in the district that he had left by enormous numbers of grass-
hoppers. The lake boats are not built for rough weather;
so.our captain lay over the night in the harbour of Oswego.
The lake being still rough in the morning, and no appearance
of getting up the steam, I determined to proceed by railway.
CHAPTER V.
OSWEGO TO CINCINNATI.
Oincinnatt, October 21, 1864.—-I loft Oswogo yesterday
morning, and my stages to tho westward were, to Ro-
chester, 90 miles; to Buffalo, 60; to Cleveland, 183; Belle-
fontaine, 140; Cincinnati, by Springfield, 117 miles. I
arrived here late at night, after a week's travelling. As a
general rule, few trains a day are run upon the American
railways, especially in the Western States, where the popula-
tion is thinly scattered. This is no doubt the most econo-
mica! system, but as the trains are by no means punctual in
arriving at tho stated time, passengers are often detained for
several hours at those towns where the lines of tho different
companics join, and thus there is frequently a good deal of
timo lost.
I travelled one night along the shores of Lake Eric, whero
all the carriages were so completely packed that many pas-
sengers had to stand. Thero are special trains which convey
the European immigrants at lower fares than the ordi-
nary trains, but the Americans do not mingle among these
foreigners. The Lake Shore Railway is one of the great lines
to the western settlements, and I found myself chicfly sur-
“rounded with farmers and their families who had sold out
“ down east,” and had bought land in the west.. The English
language is spoken with great purity in the Atlantic towns,
but some of the young women’ in the train made use of
a ridiculous number of Americanisms, and had so much
of the strong nasal twang, that at first one might have sup-
posed that they were caricaturing this comical habit. The
Americans are a good natured people, and fond of a joke.
A lively merchant that sat beside me threw in a few words
now and then to stir up the conversation, which in Scotland
BREOH FORESTS. a7
I am sure would have been taken amiss, and considered very
forward and impudent, but the young rural beauties to whom
they were addressed were never at a loss for a happy and
good-humoured rejoinder.
I remained for a night at Bellefontaine, as the train
by which I expected to get on to Cincinnati had run off the
rails. Several passengers were waiting patiently; none
of them complained of the delay, but comforted them-
solycs that thoy had got on safely, and that a little time lost
was not of much consequence, In fact, this was ‘sound
philosophy, with which I afterwards often consoled myself in
like circumstances, Certainly railway accidents are very
common in this part of America, for almost every paper
reported some casualty, and this same day I met two persons
in the train who had met with serious accidents on two diffe-
rent lines. It is no wonder that the engines often run off
the rails, for the roadway i is badly kept, and the jolting in
the carriages is excessive and most disagreeable when the
speed is considerable.
The soil is sandy along the shores of Lake Erio, and not
of very good quality. After reaching Cleveland, the railway
takes oa south-west direction through the Stato of Ohio.
For o fow miles south from tho town It ascends over a slightly
broken country, but it soon becoines very level with immense
stretches, whick have been cut as straight as an arrow through
the forest. After getting six miles out of Cleveland, I did
not see a railway cutting fifteen feet in depth as far as Belle-
fontaine.
For about one hundred miles south of Cleveland, the
greater part of the country was under wood, Beech and
elm were the principal trees, and their caves were still on,
ghowing a milder climate than I had left a week ago; but
their colours were neither so bright nor so varicd as upon the.
trees of the primary soils at St. Hilaire,
The soil on which the beech principally grows in this
part of Ohio is a crcam-coloured sandy clay of a close tex-
ture. It usually contains little vegetable matter a -few
inches below its surface; and it cannot be considered rich.
The roots of the trees only descended a very short way
73 OHIO,
into’ the ground, and seemed to run along near the sur-
fuce. In all probability, the shallow rooting habits of the
beech enable that tree to thrive on those compact soils,
which the deeper rooting oak and hickory cannot penetrate
in consequence of the air beiug so much excluded. In some
parts, however, the beech was growing where there was a
considerable layer of black vegetable matter, or what is called
“ muck,” that has no doubt accumulated from the yearly fall
of leaves. This mould was most abundant where the
soil was damp, and throughout Canada West and the north-
western parts of the State of New York I was always told
that the beech is the predominant tree un the soft surfuce-
soils that are rich in vegetable matter, a description of laud
better adapted for Indian corn than wheat. But so far as I
now recollect, the subsoils of the beech forests are generally
compact, and not favourable to the roots of trees descending.
From theso facts, F am inclined to think that it is the nature
of the subsoil which, in many instances, determines the growth
of particular kinds of trees, that the mucky mutter of the
beech forests is a subsequent accumulation, and that its
presence in quantity depends upon influences that retard its
‘ decomposition. The greater portion of the land south from
Cleveland, though the beech grows upon it, is not well
adapted for Indian corn, for it docs not contain much vegetable
matter, and therefore green wheat ficlds were comimon, having
many stuinps of trees in them.
At Bellefontaine the character of the land changes, and
the oak and hickory are the chief trees in the forest. In
some of the railway cuttings, the roots are scen thickly inter-
spersed through the ground to the depth of from two to three
feet. The soil upon which the oak and hickory grow is of a
dark hazel colour; in fact, very much resembling the colour of
the roots of these trecs, or of their withered leaves. It appears
to have been dyed during the lapse of ages by the decaying
roots and leaves of the trees that have grown upon it. Oak
and hickory forest covered large areas in Ohio, and where the
land is cleared is productive of grass, wheat, and Indian
corn. These soils, however, did not strike me as being particu-
larly fertile; they consist either of a light sandy loam resting
ROTATION OF TREES, , 79
upon limestone gravel, or of a friable drift clay, yet they are
capable of raising excellent crops of Indian corn, which are
often taken for several years in succession.
From the enquiries that I made, { learned that if the oak
and hickory forests are cut down or otherwise destroyed, the
sane trees again spring up and occupy the ground. ‘This
also holds when the beech forest is cut down, for the beech
again occupies the soil which seems to suit it, but on which
the decper rooted oak docs not find the conditions suitable to
its growth. It would thus appear there is no rotation of trees in
this part of Ohio. I was afterwards informed by Professor
Mather, Colurnbus, Ohio, that there are certain districts in
the south-eastern part of the State where the soil is a cold
clay and entirely under oaks, but on which pines at one time
must have grown, as their resinous knots are found in the
oak forests in such quantities that they arc collected and used
as fucl, TI regretted that I did not sce this soil upon which
this rotation of trecs had taken place.
Bellefontaine is a small village, and the accommodation
for travellers is by no cans first-rate, but everything being
clean, there was no cause for complaint. In this little
country place the levelling of class distinctions seemed to be
complete. One of the boarders in the inn, a polite fellow
and fully better dressed than any of our company, I found
was a sort of gentleman swine herd, who paid three dol-
lars a week for bed and board. After breakfust I took a
walk with him for a mile into the country, to see a lot of
300 pigs, which were enclosed in a field of about three acres
in extent. The forest had been latcly cut down, and the
stumps were standing thickly over the ground; the spot had
been sclected in consequence of a small stream of water
running ulong one of its sides. A wooden bin stood in the
centre containing Indian corn in the cob, which the feeder
filled into a basket, and then scattered over the surface of
the ground twice a day. The hogs were of good sorts,
lazy good tempered looking brutes, and getting into prime
condition; their average dead weight would be about 160
pounds, The usual allowance for one hundred pigs is cight
bushels of shelled curn aday. It costs about thirty-five cents
80 OHIO.
(1s. 6d.) a week to feed « pig. I was afterwards introduced
to the owner of this herd, a much rougher looking fellow than
his help, for his beard was of a weck's growth, his face
unwashed, and his pants a little tattered, He was a good
hearty fellow, however, and put upwards of 20,000 hogs
every year through his hands, He buys them from the farmers,
feeds with corn, and then exports them to the Atlantic towns.
The fact, however, of this hog merchant buying Indian
corn and fattening pigs with it, and at the sume time having
no regard to the manure, shows that the value of Indian corn
in Ohio is still regulated by the price which it is worth for
feeding. The manuring of land is not yet appreciated, or
rather, perhaps, a man’s labour is as yet more valuable in
clearing and cultivating land than in collecting and applying
manure to it.
The soil is comparatively good in the neighbourhood of
Bellefontaine, and rests upon drift gravel and clay. Oak is
the principal tree in the forest. The wild grape is growing
in great abundance, and throwing its vines over the tops of
some of the trees. The frost had scorched the leaves, some
of which had already dropped off. The south wind had once
more brought a delightful temperature; the thermometer was
as high as 60° at sunrise, and the day very warm. The first
snow that I saw this season was two days ago, as I travelled
south from Oswego, where all the windward sides of the trees
had a coating ; but the air was so dry and bracing that I had
no idea it was so near the freezing point.
South of Bellefontaine the country becomes more rolling
and covered with a sharp sandy loam, but in some parts it is
too clayey for Indian corn being cultivated with advantage.
To the eye of an agriculturist there can be few more pleasing
spots in America than the district around West Liberty.
The farms are from 200 to 300 acres in extent, and the
houses have every air of comfort about them. The ficlds are
of good size and well laid out, and tho cattle would not be
despised in the best breeding districts in Britain, The
principal crops are clover, Indian corn, and wheat; and a
short outline of the peculiarities of their culture in Southern
Ohio may be here given,
OULTURE OF INDIAN CORN. 81
If the physical conditions of tho soil determine the kinds
of trees which cover a country, the chemical conditions (over
and above the more presence of plant constituents) have much.
to do with the fitness of soils for the growth of clover and.
the grasses. The very genial nature of the soil and subsoil
in the district around West Liberty, for the growth of clover _
and grass, is strikingly exhibited on some of the limestone
gravels. On the railway embankments, amongst sand and
gravel, I noticed plants of red clover: which had from forty
to fifty stalks from one root, and among the same materials
tho beautiful Kentucky bine stem grass was growing most
luxuriantly. On the arable lands here the clovers were
remarkably well planted, while on the clay soils to the north
of Bellefontaine the pastures were generally miscrable, being
overgrown with annual weeds that were now withered, and
from two to five fect in height according to the’ richness of
the land. The Kentucky blue grass affords excellent pasture
on the more friable loams of Southern Ohio, and when the
fields are sceded down with it, the most of the noxious
weeds are kept under, and the fertility of the land is soon
restored after it has been reduced by cropping. Where
wheat and Indian corn lands produce good grasses for pastur-
ing, they may be considered as practically inexhaustible.
It is common in this part of Ohio to allow the land to
lie in pasture for several years, and then to sow wheat and
Indian corn alternately for a number of years, without any
manuring. I first saw this mode of cropping in the neigh-
bourhood of West Liberty. The causcs that lead to this
change in the system of farming are worthy of being inquired
into. Somewhat to the south of Lake Erie, the climate
admits of a different variety of Indian corn being cultivated.
The kind chiefly grown in Canada and the Northern States
is called Flint corn, and is extremely beautiful, its long
cobs being filled with large yellow plump grains. It is culti-
vated in rows, at intervals of thirty to thirty-six inches, and
the plants are from a foot and a half to two feet apart in the
rows. As already stated, the objection which the farmers in
the Northern States and Canada have to tho raising of Indian
corn, is the great amount of hand labour that is required to
a
82 OHIO.
keep the crop clean. But in Southern Ohio, the variety best
suited to the climate is the Dent corn, which is not so plump
as the Flint; indecd, the grain in the cob has the appearance
of having been shrivelled by ripening promaturely. Ilere,
however, and especially in Kentucky, it is the most productive
" yariety, and what is more important still, it requires little
hand labour in its cultivation. Tho habits of the Dent
corn admit of its being planted very wide, so that tbe horse
hoe and the plough can be frecly used to keep down weeds,
This, it appears to me, is the secret of the economical culti-
vation of Indian corn in Southern Ohio and Kentucky. The
Dent corn is planted in squares of three feet, or in what is
called “ check rows” by the Ohio farmers, This allows the
land to be ploughed and horse-hoed both ways, so that great
execution is done among the weeds, for all the ground is
stirred during the growth of the crop, except a small space
‘around each stalk. The few weeds that escape the plough
are readily extirpated by a touch of the hand-hoe.
The Dent varicty of Indian corn is cultivated in all those
States which export Indian corn or bacon to a great extent,
and the “check-row” system of cultivation is universally
followed. Tho farmer that I met at Batavia Station, after
all, was not so far wrung when he told me, that a man and
a boy would manage filty acres of Indian corn in Ohio as
easily as five acres on the wheat soils of New York State.
From twenty to twenty-five acres of Indian corn is the com-
mon quantity allotted to a man in Ohio, and he will do all
the work required in ten weeks. I have met with some Yankce
farmers, who boasted that they could cultivate forty acres of
maize on the prairies. In consequence of the finer climate
in Southern Ohio it is also highly probable that this crop
requires less manure to grow a given number of bushels than
it docs in the Northern States.
Indian corn’ is sown throughout the month of May in
Southern Ohio, and ripens in the early part of September.
Like the turnip, it thrives best in an easy loam, and frequent
ploughings during the summer promote its growth, for a well-
stirred soil absorbs moisture during the dewy nights. The
stronger clay soils are not so well adapted for Indian corn,
CULTURE OF INDIAN CORN. 83
for on these it is apt to suffer more when the drought is pro-
tracted, Indian corn yields from forty to seventy bushels to
the acre, on the sandy loams, in the vicinity of West Liberty.
The natural yield of wheat is not so large in Southern
Ohio as in Canada West and the Northern States, but the
smaller yield is obtained at less expense, I was quite astonished
at the easy way in which wheat is got in the neighbourhood
of West Liberty, and 1 afterwards learned that the same
system is followed in all those districts in which the Dent
corn is cultivated. The wheat which was sown after the
Indian corn was already beautifully green, though not quite
so forward as what had been sown after clover, but the crop
of Indian corn was still standing in round “shucks,” in the
field. The corn had been cut, and put up in rows in these
shucks, which were about three feet in diameter at the,
bottom, and tapering to the top, were tied with pieces of the
stalks. In this state, the Indian corn is secure from the
influence of the weather, and might stand uninjured till spring,
as the cob is completely protected by its sheath. In many
instances, the ficlds upon which the Indian corn was thus
standing had only got some harrowing to prepare it for
the wheat, which had been cither drilled or sown broad-
cast, and again harrowed to cover it, and the stubble of the
Indian corn was seen ovor the fields from six to cight inches
in height. By this system, the wheat is got early into the
ground in autumn—a condition essential to its successful
cultivation throughout America. The Indian corn is removed
from the wheat ficlds in winter, and the small spots of ground
upon which the “shucks” stood are sown with spring wheat. °
Largo herds of fine cattle were grazing on the meadows
along the rivers betwixt Bellefontaine and Cincinnati. The
railway runs through a portion of the rich Miami valley, where
Indian corn is the staple crop. I noticed a few sheds adjuin-
ing the farm houses for drying toliacco.
There are now upwards of 160,000 inhabitants in Cincinnati,
* the Queen of the West,” and the numbers are still rapidly
augmenting. The streets are wide, with rows of trees along
the side walks, and many of the private dwellings, shops, and
hotels, are built in a style of great magnificence. The streets,
84 . OHIO.
however, have been long noted for their filthiness, and are
still overrun with hungry pigs that feed upon the offal that
is thrown out of doors. These brutes act the part of
scavengers, and, belonging to no one, those who choose may
catch and kill, The most of them, however, are lean and
hungry looking, and do not tempt even the Irishmen who
abound in the city to reduce their numbers. Nothing shows
more strikingly the absence of an indigent class in the west,
than the existence of this herd of stray pigs which infest the
streets of Cincinnati.
I was considerably disappointed at the sight of the Ohio,
Tho strect by which I approached this river appeared to be
a continuation of another in Covington, a town of 20,000
inhabitants on the opposite or Kentucky side; and on first
looking across, I had no idea that the Ohio lay betwixt the
two; but there it was confined within a narrower bed than
usual, in consequence of the long continued drought. It did
not seem to be more than 250 yards across, and though it had
recently risen two feet, there was scarcely five feet of water
in its deepest parts. From the lowncess of the water, business
had been greatly suspended. The difference betwixt high
and low water is about sixty feet, and the houses along the
wharf are built about high water mark; thus there was now a
great extent of the muddy banks sloping down to the channel
left dry, a circumstance which rendered this part of the city
by no means prepossessing. The water of the Ohio is muddy,
and of a dirty cream colour.
I had no distinct idea of the physical peculiaritics of the
valley of tho Mississippi and its tributaries before visiting
Cincinnati. Tho States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and a
large portion of Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, Iowa, Wis-
consin, Michigan, and Upper Canada, may bo regarded as
forming a vast plateau from 700 to 900 feet above the level
of the sea. As the Ohio river at Cincinnati is 432 feet
above the level of the sea, it is therefore about 400 feet below
the general level of the vast plateau that forms the surface
of the States just mentioned. This table-land nearly cor-
responds with the regions traced on the map prefixed to
this volume as forming the wheat and Indian corn regions
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY. 85
west of the Alleghany range. The Ohio and Mississippi ,
have cut channels for themselves out of this table-land, the
strata of which are nearly horizontal, and consist of thin
beds of limestone alternating with soft aluminous shales.
At Cincinnati the formations belong to the Trenton limestone,
a member of the Lower Silurian, the softness of which has
favoured the Ohio in excavating a deep channel. The
escarpments on the Ohio and on the Kentucky side form steep
banks to the river of 400 feet in height. The action of the
side streams that flow into the Ohio has further served to
cut out the country, from two to four miles on both sides
of tho river, into an innumerable series of rounded hills and
valleys, covered with magnificent forests or fine pastures.
Cincinnati lies in a hollow of a semicircular shape, and is
sheltered on the north by the steep escarpment of the table-
land. To the east of the town the observatory is built on
an out-jutting portion of the plateau, which approaches the
river more closely than usual.
“In tracing the Ohio to its source,” says Mr. Elliot,
“we must regard the Alleghany river as its proper continua-
tion. This noble tributary rises on the borders of Lake Erie,
at an elevation of 1300 feet above the surface of the sea, and
nearly 700 feet above the level of the lake. This plain
along which the river flows is connected with no mountain
range at its northern extremity, but continues its rise with
great uniformity from the, mouth of the Ohio to the brim of
the basin which encloses Lake Erie. The sources of the
tributary streams are generally diminutive ponds distributed
along the cdgo of the basin of Lake Erie, but far above its
surfaco, but so slightly separated from it, that they may all
be drained with little labour down the steep slopes into that
inland sea. From these remote sources, a boat may start
with sufficient water within seven miles of Lake Erie, in sight
sometimes of the sails which whiten the approach to the ‘
_ harbour of Buffalo, and float securely down the Connewango
to the Alleghany, down the Alleghany to the Ohio, and thence
uninterruptedly to the Gulf of Mexico. In all this distance
of 2400 miles the descent is gentle.”
* Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge.
86 OHIO.
The distance in a direct line from the mouth of tho
Mississippi to the source of the Ohio near Buffalo is about
1250 miles, showing the slope of the country to be, on an
average, about a foot in a mile. But the river in its sinuous
course runs nearly double the distance. Its fall ia greatest
in its upper parts, ond from Cincinnati to the sea, nearly 1700
miles, the average is scarcely three inches to a mile. By
looking to the map it will be seen that the Alleghany river
flows through the higher land that forms the terminating
slope of the Alleghany mountains. On the other hand, the
country due north from Cincinnati is so level, that—as Pro-
fessor Twitchell, assistant at the observatory, assured me—
there was scarcely a rise of 100 feet from the ground on
which the observatory is built to the shore of Lake Erie;
while to the west, as fur as St. Louis, with the exception of
the broken land arising from the denudation of the side streams,
it is‘almost equally level. It is a characteristic feature of the
table-land adjoining the large rivers flowing into the Missis-
sippi, that it is everywhere broken into round hills by the
action of the side streams.
Nowhere in America was I more struck with the beauty
and magnificence of the country than from the brow of the
hill upon which the observatory is built. The Ohio itself,
a diminutive object, is soon lost sight of behind the broken
and steep banks which it has formed in hollowing out its
winding bed. The countless number of hills and dells on
both sides of the river are covered with a rich carpet of grass,
wherever the forest has been cleared. It is on the southern
slopes of these hills that the cultivation of the Catawba grapo
is so rapidly extending for making wine. The distant horizon
was everywhere bounded by the natural forest, the leaves of
which were fast fading, and the red, yellow, and green tints
were changing to the dull brown. ‘The richness of the country,
its apparently boundless extent, and tho soft beauty of the
landscape, lighted up by the setting sun, havo served to
render the view from the heights of Cincinnati one that is still
fresh in my memory.
The few days that I remained in Cincinnati were spent
among very agreeable company. I visited Mr. Longworth’s
VINEYARDS, 7 on
wiue vaults, which have become one of the sights of the town.
Great credit is due to this gentleman for his perseverance in
introducing and promoting the cultivation of the native grape
for the making of wine, which is now beginning to compete
with the wines of Europe. As I by no means pretend to be
a connoisseur, I cannot say how far the sparkling Catawba
falls short of good champagne. To my taste it seemed to
retain a little of the peculiar flavour which predominates to
a disagreeable extent in the wild grape that is so abundant
in the woods. The vineyards occupy the southern slopes of
the rounded hills on the banks of the river. The soil is a
tenacious Joam, and is usually trenched two feet before the
vines are planted. It only contains a moderate quantity of
vegetable mould, which is said to be more abundant on the
northern exposures of the hills than on the southern, in’
consequence of the accumulation being greater where the soil
is less directly exposed to the action of the sun’s rays.
It was reckoned that there were 1500 acres in Ohio ex-
clusively devoted to grape-growing in 1853, of which 300 to
400 acres are in the vicinity of Cincinnati. On the Kentucky
side a considerable quantity of land is likewise devoted to-
the grape, and its culture is also extending along the banks
of the rivers in Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri. Some of the
vineyards yield from 7000 to 8000 gallons. The culture of
the grape, however, rarely furnishes a profitable investment
for capital, if hired labour is wholly employed. The German
settlers realize a good income from this source, as their
families all assist. A piece of land from fifteen to twenty acres,
with a house on it, is given to a German family, on condition
that they plant a certain quantity of grapes every year, and
pay the proprietor one half of the proceeds of the vineyard.
The rounded hillocks to the north of Cincinnati afford
picturesque spots for residences, and many elegant villas
and substantial mansions crown these heights. Among
othors, Mr. Buchanan's may be mentioned as laid out with
great taste. Fine orchards of apples occupied the east-
ern and western slopes of a lengthened ridge running out
towards the Ohio, while the vineyard covered the rounded
bank in front, aud the elegant mansion overlooked the whole.
88 OHIO.
The apples were fine and: particularly large; some of the
varieties ripened in June, while others were not yet ready to
be gathered. This good clay loam bore the best grass that
I had seen in America, with the exception of the Genesee flats.
There is something very fertile in the most of the soils
that are formed from the decomposition of calcareous strata.
I was informed by many parties that there is a great extent of
land resting on the Trenton limestone in Kentucky, which
affords the best pastures in the United States. It ig rather re-
markable that the region which produces tho best grasses is also
best. adapted for Indian corn. Kentucky may bo considered
as the heart of the grass and maizo region. The Dent varicty
of Indian corn, which is the most productive and most casily
cultivated, appears to obtain in that State those conditions
which aro favourable to its yielding the greatest amount of
grain. It is said that no less than 166 bushels of this grain
have been raised upon an acre. No doubt tho climate deter-
mines tho productive powers of the maize, for its yicld rapidly
decreases og we go farther south, even on the richest soils of
the Mississippi. But the chemical propertics of the limestone
soils of Kentucky scem to bestow their grass-producing quali-
tics. Licut. Maury informed me that the fino grazing lands in
Ohio and Kentucky wero confined to the limestone moulds, and
ho attributes their fertility to the power which the calcarcous
matter has of absorbing and retaining moisture. The elder
Weld also, who travelled in America in the end of last cen-
tury, notices the bad grazing qualities of the land in Virginia,
unless upon the limestone. Indeed, the best land in the same
latitudes on the Atlantic coast .affords very poor pastures.
The fertility of all soils that grow good grasses is enduring,
for when temporarily exhausted, it is casily renewed and
recruited under pasturage.
The forests are magnificent on the Trenton limestone
formation of Southern Ohio and Kentucky. Where tho soil
is somewhat close in its texture, the becch predominates, but
where marly and more open, there is a mixture of trees.
The tulip-tree, the chestnut, the hickory, the beech, the oak,
the elm, the locust, and the maple, grow in social equality,
producing noble forests. Tho under-growth in these forests
was cane-break when the country was first settled, but the
PASTURES. 89
leaves of the cane furnished food much relished by cattle, and
the cropping of them in summer had the effect of extirpating
the cane. As it disappeared, fine grasses took possession of
the soil, and afford what is known in Kentucky as “ wood
pastures.” The powerful rays of the American sun render
the grasses under trees not only nutritious, but palatable to
cattle. I was also told by Lieut. Maury that the trampling
of the ground in pasturing it with cattle had tho effect of
extirpating somo kinds of trecs in the wood pastures, fur-
nishing an illustration of the influenco of the physical condi-
tions of soil in determining the growth of trees.
Cincinnati has increased its manufactures very much of lato
years. Thero are several cotton and tobacco factories, and
also of cloth and furniture upon a large scale, besides upwards
of forty iron foundries with machine shops. The curing
of bacon is also carried on to an enormous extent. . As
tho slaying or packing scason was just commencing when I
left town, the whole country in Southern Ohio seemed to
bo swarming with pigs, and long trains of trucks filled with
them were pouring into the “ Porkopolis,” where upwards. of
half a million oro slaughtered in tho autumn. The pork
trado is now a largo ono in almost every town in tho southern
part of the State.
When I was in Cincinnati thero was a run for gold on
several of the banks, and the excitement was great, os three
or four had already suspended payment. While a friend went
into one to draw some money, I intended to remain on the
steps of the door with another gentleman, until he should join
us. But one of the clerks of the establishment came and
told us to come in,.if we required any money, and get it, but
not to stand about the door, as one or two might be the means
of collecting a crowd, and causing a run upon them. This I
thought revealed a deal of weakness, and at once I left the steps
as if tho walls of tho houso were about to fall. A few days
after leaving town, I Icarned that all the banks in Cincinnati
had suspended payment. During the time I was in- Ohio,
I met several partics who had been severe sufferers from these
failures. Others, again, were rejoicing at the crisis, and blaming
the democracy for the disgraceful state of the currency laws.
CHAPTER VI.
OINCINNATI TO CHICAGO.
Lert Cincinnati, Ohio, on the afternoon of 24th October
1854, for Springfield, eighty miles to the north-east, where
the National Agricultural Suciety held its annual exhibition,
The country in the neighbourhood is moderately fertile, and
consists for the most part of a sandy loam, dyed into a
dark hazel tinge, which is peculiar to all those soils upon
which vak and hickory are the predominating trees in the
forests, The subsoil is usually gravelly, though often coutain-
ing clays Indian corn and wheat aro the principal crops
which are cultivated. ‘Lhe land is suitable to the growth
of clovers, and produces good pastures when seeded with those
grasses that are natural to the land.
Springfield contains a population of 7000 inhabitants, and
is in avery flourishing condition, Agriculturists were attend-
ing this meeting from all parts of the Union. The sceretary
had travelled from Boston, a distance of nine hundred miles,
by railway; other officials had come almost as far from the
south and from the west, and even some of the judges from
Canada. The greater number, however, were from the neigh-
bouring states of Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan.
Thero was nothing shown but cattle, and the great
majority were Short-horns, for which the soil and climate of
Southern Ohio and Kentucky seem admirably adapted. I
was surprised at the gencral excellence of the stock; indeed,
among the hundred and fifty Short-horns that were exhibited, .
there wero fow animals that could be considered second-rate.
I am not suro if the Short-horned stock was so uniformly
good at Windsor in 1851, though there might be some better
animals, One bull had been lately imported from England,
KENTUOKY FARMING. 91
and had cost the owner six thousand dollars. The animals
were kept beautifully clean, for great care was bestowed in
having them properly groomed. Shortly before a fine ox
was led into the ring, I saw three negroes rubbing him down
most vigorously with their hands, to put the last polish upon
his sleck skin. From the uppearance of the animals on the
show-ground, as well as of the large herds that 1 saw in the
meadows in Southern Ohio, I am led to believe that tho soil
and climate are well fitted for maintaining the shape and
qualities for which this breed is distinguished. Here there
is no evidence that it is deteriorating; though the extent of
land capable of yiclding fine pasture is comparatively restricted
in Canada and the United States.
During the few days that I remained at Springfield, I
had many opportunities of conversing with the farmers from
Kentucky, and obtaining a knowledge of their systems of
husbandry. Kentucky is a slave state, and the size of the
farms on the bert lands is larger than in Ohio. In the best
grazing districts the average being from 300 to 400 acres,
though frequently they are as large as 1000. There is not much
variation in the mode of cropping. One gentleman whom I
met possessed 360 acres, of which 100 were under thinly
timbered woods that afforded excellent pasture. The 260 acres
of arable land were allowed to remain for six years under
grass, then, after being cropped for another six years with
wheat or Indian corn, were sown out again for pasturing.
Six hands were required to manage this extent and attend to
the stock, and cight horses were required for cultivating it.
I was informed that a field, after it had been cropped
with Indian corn for eight years, would fill up in four years
with the fine blue grass which is so valuable for pasture in
Kentucky, although no sceds were sown. So natural is this
grass to-tho soil, that at the end of this period it would
extirpate all the weeds that infest the cultivated fields. But
by sowing grass-seeds with the last grain-crop, fine pasture
would be got the succeeding year. The Kentucky limestone
soils, that are e0 genial to the growth of the finer grasses, are,
comparatively speaking, like the same class of soils in Ireland,
inexhaustible.
92 O10.
Rearing mules for the southern markets is carried on to
@ great extent in Kentucky and Tennessee. The gentleman
who occupied the farm above described usually grazed forty
of these animals during summer. In winter it costs 16s. 8d.
(four dollars) a month for keeping a mule, which is allowed as
much Indian corn or oats as it can consume. An ox on
grass is kept for one dollar a month. Though often the cold
is so intense that the Ohio is frozen over in winter, the cattle
aro not stabled ; the wood-pastures affording good shelter from
the high winds. They are fed upon hay and Indian corn:
tho latter being given to them as it is cut from the ficlds, Ono
would be very apt to suppose that great loss would arise from
tho imperfect manner in which cattle would imasticate the
unground grain of Indian corn; but a lot of pigs are usually
wintered with the cattle, and act in the character of a save-all.
Some of the pasture-fields, too, are often allowed to grow after
the middle of July, and thus afford good winter grazing.
That the natural produce of wheat is much smaller in
the fine grazing lands in Kentucky than in the country
immediately to the south and north of Lakes Erie and Ontario,
was the testimony of all the farmers with whom I conversed,
The same lands which yield on an average 75 bushels of
Indian corn, would not yield more than 18 bushels of wheat.
In Southern Ohio and Kentucky, those conditions of climate
prevail which are favourable to producing the maximum
yield of Indian corn, but which are not equally well suited
for large crops of wheat.
* Clover and timothy succeed well in Kentucky, and the
_ latter is in great repute for hay. When the land is allowed
to remain in pasture, the blue-stem grass occupies the ground
and puts all the others out. Large quantities of hay are
made in the western parts of the State, pressed into bales,
and sent down the Mississippi to New Orleans; for this is a
scarce and high-priced article in all the States south of
Tennessee.
I could soon readily distinguish the Kentuckians from the
northern farmers. Some of the former that I saw here were
noble specimens of humanity. Excmption from severe
manual labour for several generations, it would seem, has not
AGRICULTURAL BANQUET. 93
been without its influence on the Anglo-Saxon constitution.
All that the Kentuckian usually wants is the fine fresh and
ruddy complexion to make him every inch an English country
gentleman. Had Buffon seen the produce of Kentucky at
the exhibition at Springfield, he would have qualified his
theory of the degencrating influences of the climate of North
America upon men and animals. The northern farmers,
on the other hand, are much smaller men, with a vast amount
of activity and energy. All who labour with their hands
upon the land in America lose that full habit of body which
our agricultura) labourcrs have at home. 105
better soils of the oak-openings. The climate of the Western
States is not nearly so propitious to the growth of trees as
that of the Atlantic sea-board, where the rains at certain
seasons of the year are more abundant.
Oak-openings, I believe, do not occur much farther to
the eastward than Paris in Upper Canada, where the soil is
somewhat similar to that of the oak-openings of Michigan,
It is generally supposed that the prairies and oak-openings
are the result of the Indians formerly having fired the country
every year for hunting-grounds. The blackened mould of
the prairies is no doubt partly owing to the charred vegetable
matter from fires which so frequently ran over them. But
in the oak-openings there is little evidence of fire being con-
cerned in their formation, for the colour of the vegetable
mould is of the same hazel tinge which prevails in the oak-
forests of Ohio. These gravelly soils, it would appear, can
only support a limited number of trees, and the waste of
vegetable matter from. decay has always been about equal to
the annual growth; so there is no accumulation. I have
no doubt that soils of similar quality to those in Michigan .
would produce dense forests in Vermont. It is worthy of
notice that the deficiency of rains occurs principally in winter,
which appears to be the most marked peculiarity of the climate
of the North-Western States. The following figures, taken
from the reduction of observations by the Smithsonian
Institution, may help to throw some light on this subject :—
Fall of rain at Gardner, in the State of Maine—average of sixteen years.
Spring. Summer, Autumn, Winter.
10.6 inches. 10.3 10.5 10.1
Fall at Fort Snelling, Minnesota Territory—fifteen yeara,
Spring. Summer. Autamn. Winter.
6.8 inches, 10.2 5.7 2.
The North-Western States are also more Itable to pro-
tracted periods of drought, which Dr. Henry suggested to me
might originally have destroyed the forests with the assistance
of fires; and when grasses and various plants had once got
possession of the land, they would prevent the seeds of the
forest-trecs springing up. The best prairie lands, so far as
106 MICHIGAN,
I could judge, had an unctuous clay in the subsoil, and such
is, no doubt, most conducive to the growth of grasses. On
the other hand, in the great western prairies there are usually
stunted oaks, with the scrub oak as undergrowth, of the same
character os in tho oak-openings, growing upon all the
gravelly eminences which are not favourable to the growth of
the grasses. Ono generation of trees after another maintain
their hold upon theso knolls, which appeur like islands rising
out of the wide grassy wastes. On the prairie knolla, as in
the oak-openings, there is no great accumulation of vegetable
matter from the growth of timber; but where the soil is
more propitious to the growth of grasses, an immense accu-
roulation has taken place. I have often wondered at the
enormous depth of mould even on some of the tops of the
rounded wave-like eminences that prevail in the prairie region.
The Swedish traveller Kalm relates that the prairies
were, even in his time, less productive of pasturage, in
consequence of the cattle having extirpated all the best grasses,
which ho tells us were aunuals. ‘Tho cattle, he remarked,
did not allow the sceds to come to maturity, and hence they
disappeared. I thought this was rather o curious statement
when I saw it, ag annual grasses do not predominate in
natural pastures; and Professor Warder, of Cincinnati,
assured me that the statement of Kalm was not correct.
But the perennial grasses of the natural prairies are rapidly
disappearing under pasturage, as well as the great variety of |
wild-flowers with which they were at one time adorned in’
early summer.
The prairie regions form a great feature in the natural
vegetation of the American continent. A line drawn from
the centre of Southern Michigan to St. Louis, and extending
to Texas, would form a rough boundary betwixt the wooded
and the treeless country. West of this line, the trees are
generally stunted, unless alung the margins of the rivers,
whereas the country eastward to the Atlantic coast was almost
everywhere denscly clothed with timber when discovered
by Europeans. The sketch will show the prairie regions
of North America with greater distinctness. The pheno-
mena connected with the smaller fall of rain west of the
CHICAGO. 107
Mississippi during the cold months will be afterwards ad-.
verted to.
Wen. eee RE
Mic. ite MR bo a
aS,
sa1siwig
=
Woods GcaheY
wy
&
Twenty miles before reaching Chicago the country
became a dead level, rising only a few feet above Lake
Michigan. It is damp and marshy, and covered with coarse
rank grass, which cattle do not touch in summer. It was
rather late before I arrived at the town, and the night was
very dark. The long withered grass was on fire in several
places, and the flames, from four to five fect in height,
advancing in a line several miles in length, formed a most
magnificent sight. On arriving at Chicago there were upwards
of twenty omnibuses waiting to convey the passengers to
different parts of the city, besides as many waggons for
luggage. The town apparently had risen so rapidly that there
had been no time to pave the streets, which were almost
impassable, except one broad street covered with planks.
The hotels are huge and elegant structures, and vie in their
management with the first-class establishments in the eastern
towns.
The wharves at Chicago were crowded with steamers,
108 ILLINOIS.
and the immense piles of goods around the railway stations
bespoke the general plethora in trade and commerce. Indian
corn, wheat, wool, beef, and bacon are the chief exports.
For some time in the autumn of 1855 one million of bushels
of wheat were delivered weckly in the town. Several vessels
have taken cargoes from this harbour and gone direct to
Liverpool. The greater part of the wheat is of secondary
quality, being nearly all sown in spring. I observed
small steamers having machinery fitted up for taking grain
out of one vessel and putting it into another. They were
also made uvailublo for Jifting it out of tho vessels and storing
it into granarics. The wages of common labourers, being
from 48. Od. to 5s. a day, act os a great stimulus to
economise manual labour.
One afternoon I had a drive into the country for a
few miles with a manufacturer of reaping-machines. He
went out to make a trial of one in cutting the withered
prairie grass, and it did its work remarkably well. He
informed me that he had manufactured 700 of these machines
last year, and would make as many this. The level prairies
are admirably suited for reaping by machinery; and where
labour’ is so scarce and high-priced, the reapers have been a
great boon to the large farmers.
On my way back to town I was surprised to notice so
many handsome villas in the suburbs along the shore of the
lake. The best houses are made of sandstone, which is the
finest I ever saw: being close in texture, and almost as white
as marble. The rise of property around the town has been
enormous within the last four years. Land two miles out
along the lake shore sells at £200 per acre, and some in the
suburbs as high as £2000. The progress of Chicago has
been remarkable; indeed, excepting San Francisco in Cali-
fornia, no town in America has risen so rapidly. It only
contained 4479 inhabitants in 1840, and now there are nearly
80,000, about double the population of Toronto: in Upper
Canada. This amazing growth has been stimulated by the
formation of railways and canals through the immense tract
of rich prairie country, which offers to be the. most productive
region for grain in North America. ‘The facilities which now
CHICAGO. 109
exist for transporting the produce of the interior have already.
tapped its agricultural capabilities; hence the commercial -
prosperity that has arisen in exporting that produce, and in.
importing and circulating the large supply of the necessaries and
luxuries of life, which the inhabitants of a rich and newly-settled
country invariably require. Thus in the free States which
possess a good soil and an easy outlet for the produce, thriving
towns rise up like mushrooms; all classes live well; the vast
majority dress well; and if countries ever have a golden
age, Upper Canada and the Western States are now enjoying -
theirs, :
CHAPTER VIL.
CHICAGO TO BALTIMORE.
4th November 1854.— Left Chicago this morning by the
Galena Railway, and came out of the train at Wheaton
Station, twelve miles to the west. The country continues
flat and marshy for six miles after leaving Chicago, and then
becomes undulating or rolling dry prairie. I drove south
in the coach from Wheaton to Napierville, a distance of six
miles. The prairies have a desolate appearance at this sca-
son, as the natural grasses are withered, and impart a some-
what barren aspect to the landscape. The air, however, is
usually dry and bracing at this late period, and serves to
.render a run over these waste-looking champaigns far from
being unpleasant, The scenery at first is novel and striking,
though it soon becomes monotonous; for the only changes
in its features are portions that have been under crop,
natural prairie, and thin oak plantations having the dwarf
oak as undergrowth on the tops of the ridges.
In some parts large fields were in oat-stubble, which was
more than a foot in height, ahd the crop was built up in
ricks without any thatching. The climate being so dry they
would not be thatched though thoy stood for scveral years,
I saw fow ficlds of autumn wheat on the prairics; and those
I saw were mero patches. Passed one sinall ficld that was
very thick on the ground, and nearly a foot long; .and
from tho fact of our driver “ guessing,” to a fellow-passenger
who sat next him, that it would be a good crop, it would
appear that forward wheat is preferred in this part of the
country. It is owing to the nature of the soil of the prairies,
and not to the climate, that so little wheat is sown in autumn.
PRAIRIES. lil
This appeared quite evident from the fact of autumn wheat
being sown on all the gravelly soils of the prairie knoll.
The high winds, attended with intense frosts in winter, often
destroy the wheat plants, and the spring frosts and: thaws
also are apt to throw them out of the loose and open prairie
soils. These agents, and the tendency of the wheat to
mildew, are the causes of so little being sown in autumn,
Wheat succeeds well as a first crop when the prairies are
broken up, for the plants obtain a firm hold among the
roots of the natural grasses and herbs, but as soon as the
turf becomes mouldered down into a loose and friable soil,
it is liable to suffer from the winter and spring frosts,
and js then far from being a sure crop. For theso reasons.
it is not probable that the prairies will ever produce much
fine winter wheat, but I am greatly mistaken if they do not
become the principal region for the growth of spring varieties,
which can be raised with great facility.
Since the natural grasses of the prairies have been pas-
tured by cattle and sheep, they are not nearly so vigorous, nor
were they ever so productive as is commonly believed, for
they aro late of growing in spring, and do not support stock
in this part of the country until the end of May, while they
again wither by the middle of August. It requires from five
to six acres of dry natural prairie to maintain an ox through-
out the year. The treading of cattle is unfavourable to the
healthy growth of the natural grasses, which, when closely
cropped throughout the year, become thin upon the ground, and
a small lcaved varicty of white clover springs up. When
the prairie grasses become thin from the effects of pastur-
ing, it is now the practice to sow timothy grass in spring,
after the surface of the ground has been opened by the
frosts. Timothy, whon once rooted, keeps its hold in the
prairica ; it romains groon from tho lat of May till Docomber,
affording moro pasturage than the natural grasses. But the
dry prairies are by no means productive of grass, for, after
many inquiries, I learned that their average produce would
scarcely amount to a ton of hay to the acre, even when sown
with timothy. In the hollows or the low parts of the wave-
like surface, where the land is moist enongh to maintain a
112 ILLENOI8.
vigorous growth during the heats of sunmer, from two to
three tons of hay may be. obtained.
The productive powers of the prairies are best brought
out under cultivation, which renders the light and open
mould absorbent of moisture. Indian corn and oats are
therefore relatively far more abundant in their produce than
grasses, or even trees. The dry prairie, which only yields
annually a ton of hay to the acre after it has been seeded
with timothy, will produce from six to seven quarters of
oats for twenty years in succession without manure, and
still show little falling off in quantity. The same land
when well cultivated will produce from forty to sixty
bushels of Indian corn, with upwards of two tons of stalks
and Ieaves. I do not know of any instance in which the
cultivated produce of the soil excecds that of the natural growth
to such an extent as it docs in tho prairics,
As illustrating the influence of climate on the growth of
trecs and other plants, it is worthy of remark that the banka
of the streams and rivers whicb run through the prairies are
invariably clothed with timber, and the surface of the ground
is comparatively destitute of the dark mould that is found
in the naked prairies, and forms their deep fertile ‘soil.
Like the larger river3, the smaller have also dug shallower
beds out of the soft plateau, and their banks afford more
moisture to the roots of trees. It is interesting to see
how trees clothe the sides of the streams over such im-
mense stretches of country in the prairie regions, furnishing
strong evidence in support of thé opinion that the prairies
arise from a deficiency of rains. Dr. Hooker’s remarks on
the climatic conditions which favour the growth of trees in
different parts of the Himalaya mountains are greatly in
favour of this, view. Indeed the Llanos and Pampas of
South America are but extreme instances of the effects of a
want of moisture at certain scasons of the year being adverse
to the growth of timber. The thinly timbered lands of the
oak openings in Canada West are the first symptoms as we
go westwards, of the climate becoming less favourable to the
growth of trees; and as we approach the. Mississippi, the
natural grasses that clothed the surface of the ground when
PRAIRIE FARMS. 113
the white man first took possession, indicate that their habits
are better suited than those of trees to a scanty and leas
regular distribution of rain.
I visited several farms in the neighbourhood of Napier-
ville. Ordinary land, twenty-five miles from Chicago, with
suitable farm-houses, is worth from 25 to 32 dollars an acre.
I walked over one farm of 230 acres, which cost 25 dollars
an acre four years ago, but was now worth 32. I sawa
man ploughing a field of oat-stubble which had borne its
twelfth crop last year, and that was too heavy. The plough
was light, with a broad share, and cut a furrow eight
inches in depth and fully a foot in breadth, and did its
work remarkably well. I took hold of the implement, and
I certainly never before assisted in turning over such a depth
of fine friable randy mould of a dark colour, which was ne
doubt partly owing to the presence of particles of charcoal,
resulting from the repeated burming of the prairie grasa.’
There were no stones in it, and the plough-irons were almost
as sharp as a knife. From the fact of the subsoil containing -
clay, which can be turned up as soon as the surface soil
becomes wasted, the prairics may-be rendered productive for
many years, even though no manure is applied. The fertility
of the prairies, however, is not so great where the vegetable
matter is in excess, for in these cases they approach some-
what in their nature to peaty soils, which are too deficient
in earthy matter to be permanently productive. There are
few or no root weeds to be scen in the prairio lands, but
annuals grow up with great vigour in summer; and to keep.
them down, the frequent use of the plough among the Indian
corn is required.
Another farm I visited consisted of six hundred acres,
but there was not a great deal of it in crop. ‘Its owner had
lately visited California by driving right westward in his own
Waggon, a journey of three months’ duration. There were
only 70 acres Indian corn, 30 wheat, 50 barley, and 50
oats. Formerly he used to raise 300 acres of spring wheat,
but was now grazing more. There were 1000 sheep on the
farm, which were partly grazed on other lands. The greater
portion of the grain was given to pigs. A monster reaping-
I
114 ILLINOIS,
machine was standing near the buildings and going to decay ;
it required eight horses to work it, for it was not only intended
to cut the crop, but also to thrash and sack it.
I also paid a visit to a farmer who came out here from
Dumfries with his family fifteen years ago. He bought
1200 acres, for which he gave £300. Latterly, he divided
this property among his sons and sons-in-law, who cach
had about 140 acres. On this extent they each kept a
man-servant and two horses. ‘Tho master and servant,
without any assistance, mauaged the stock upon the farm,
cultivated, harvested, and thrashed 25 acres of Indian corn,
and 50 of oats and wheat, and took the produce to market.
The yield of spring wheat varied from 10 to 30 bushels to the
acre, and Indian corn from 40 to 60; uyerage about 50. The
cereals are chiefly cut by machinery, and mowing machines
for grass are also coming rapidly into use. On the best
managed furms little rotation is observed, the most approved
mode of cropping being Indian corn, autumn wheat, spring
wheat, oats. ‘Iho prairie farmers have the idea, that “ land
has new life put into it by cultivating Indian corn.” But no
other crop possesses greater capacities for expanding under
liberal treatinent, and giving a good return for manure. On
one of the farms of 140 acres, 30 cattle of different ages were
kept, which required to be foddered with hay for five months in
winter. The fact of two men managing so much arable land
shows how easily it can be cultivated. There is little manure,
and what is collected is not greatly cared for, asa man’s labour
is no doubt quite as weil applied here in cultivating land as in
manuring it. One of the implements which economises labour
to the prairie farmer is the railroad thrashing machine. The
whole apparatus is light and portable, and goes into so little
compass that it is the most handy machine imaginable. Two
ten can work it and attend to the horses. Where labour is
so high priced, this is a most invaluable machine. If ever horse
power be applicd in Britain to the cutting of roots for stock,
or other light work at present done by hand power, the rail-
road principle will undoubtedly be adopted. The same’
mode of applying horse power is greatly used in America
for sawing wood as well as for other purposes. There is
PRAIRIE FARMS, 115
still a large quantity of grain trodden out by horses in
Illinois.
The cereals are nearly all cut by horse power on the larger
farms in the prairies; but everywhere there seemed to have
been a great waste of grain in the harvesting. The oat
stubblea were overgrown with what had been shed out in
reaping, and were now affording pasturage nearly a foot
in length. All. the grain crops often ripen about the same
time, and unless they are quickly cut down, immense quanti-
ties are shed out. Indian corn, however, is not liable to
waste, though it is allowed to stand in the field long after it
is ripe. I went into a large field which was still untouched,
where the stalks were standing over the ground from ten
to eleven feet high. The owner told me that the grain
would not be injured though it was allowed to stand till
‘January. The cobs containing the grain are protected from
the rains, as they hang down from the centre of the stalks,
and are thickly covered by folds of sheath, The stalks of
Indian corn are not collected and used for manure; in spring,
aroller is usually put over them, when they are drawn together
-by a rake, and afterwards burned. On those ficlds on which
wheat was sown, it had just been harrowed in amongst thé
stalks of Indian corn, which would afford some protection in
‘winter,
From the proximity of this part of the prairie to tho
shipping port of Chicago, a portion of the grain raised
is every year sent to market, the quantity varying accord-
ing to the price. The farmer from Dumfries informed me
that, for the last fifteen years, the lowest price of Indian
corn at Chicago was 28 cents, or 1s. 2d. a bushel; the aver-
age price about 50 cents. Within the same period, winter
wheat had been as low as 50 cents; average about 80. The
distance to the town was 34 miles, and the roads were often
bad. Beyond this distance it is not so economical to send
large quantities of Indian corn to the shipping ports; and as
the centre of the State of Illinois is approached, the most of
this grain is consumed by cattle and pigs, by which means
the produce of the country is put into little compass, and
more easily exported,
116 ILLINOIS,
The mode of feeding hogs in the central parts of the State
of Illinois, where the most of the Indian corn is what is called
“hogged down,” will be learned from the statement of Mr.
Phelps of Peoria county, to the Commissioner of Patents at
Washington :—“ Hogs with us in the spring are turned into
a clover field, with plenty of salt,‘and light feeding of corn,
where they remain until about the 10th July, when they are
turned into a field of oats to keep themselves. These last
them a month or six weeks, when the feeding on corn com-
mences. First, and for a time, it is cut and hauled to them
when the stalk is green and juicy, and both stalk and car are
eaten with a high relish. During all this time the animal
has been growing thriftily, developing in size, bone, and
stamina, and is in the best condition, as the corn ripens and
hardens, to lay on fat with rapidity. The closing period of
feeding, in November and December, upon ripe grain, gives
to the flesh the purest and most desirable character, Thus,
with comparatively little labour, at a cost of about eight or
ten bushels of corn, or its equivalent in other food, for every
100 pounds, we produce pork in the open fields, with tem-
porary shelter towards the close, and find it remunerative
even at the lowest prices. Hogs properly cared for in this
way will weigh, at twenty months old, from 200 to 400
pounds.”
The economy of consuming the maize that is raised in
the central parts of the Western States, such as Illinois, by
pigs and cattle, will be obvious when we reflect on the
expenses of transportation. The average price of this grain
at Chicago is 50 cents a bushel; and according to Mr. Seaman,
the ordinary cost of transporting a bushel of wheat or Indian
corn by teams is 40 cents for a hundred miles. This state-
ment of the cost of transportation approximates very closely
to an estimate that I had formerly made. In the Western
States, the price of the labour of a man and a pair of horses
for a day is about nine shillings English money, or fully the
value of four bushels of Indian corn at Chicago. If we sup-
pose forty bushcls a sufficient load for two horses on the
prairio roads, the whole value of the load would be exhausted
in a journey of nine days’ duration—equivalent to a distance
COST OF TRANSPORTATION. 117
of ‘about 125 miles. Wheat, of course, would bear to be
transported double the distance. But it is estimated that
a bushel of Indian corn weighing about 55 Ibs, will, in fatten-
ing pigs, make 10 Ibs. of pork,* which, at 4 cents a pound,
the common price of bacon in the west, would leave 40 cents
for a bushel of Indian corn converted into bacon.
In some districts in Illinois of great fertility, the
quantity of grain that is produced is extraordinary. The
county of Sangamon in the centre of the State contains a
total area of 750 square miles, and had only a population of
19,228 in 1853, of whom 6500 were in Springfield, the capital
of the State, 230 miles from Chicago. The produce, by the
census returns of 1850, was 3,318,304 bushels of Indian corn;
104,126 of wheat; 335,008 of oats; 120,868 pounds of
wool; and 377,272 of butter. These figures must furnish a
very large return per head for those engaged in agriculture.
The greater part of the Indian corn and oat crops, however,
are not reaped, but consumed on the fields by hogs and
cattle,
More than three-fourths of the surface of Illinois con-
sists of prairie. In many parts, not a tree or sbrub is to
be seen in the distance, a circumstance which has prevented .
its being cultivated. Wood for fuel and fencing is one of
the first requisites to the working farmer, and he will rather
hew for himself a farm out of the forest, than sit down upon
the treeless prairies. Immense beds of coal extend through
the country, however, which will no doubt soon be made
available, as they are often very near the surface. The locust
tree also has been planted on many farms for shelter, and
with the view of obtaining wood for fencing and fuel. It has
been rapid in its growth, and holds-out the prospect of being of
great utility to the prairie farmer. Mr. Ellsworth of Napier-
ville informed me that apple trees thrive well upon the prairies,
but that they require to be well cultivated for six or seven
years when planted. Thus it seems that the fertility of the
© It ie curious that this is very nearly the wame incrcase that Mr. Huxtable
obtained in feeding pigs with bean and barley meal and a mixture of pollard
and bran, for 54,204 of thie mixture made 10,152 lbs. of meat,—" Present Prices,"
page 26,
118 ILLINOIS.
soil does not make up for its peculiar physical condition,
because if mere fertility had only to do with the matter, it is
altogether a mystery why the granites and sands of New
England are so productive under apple orchards which are
neither tilled nor manured, and yet are so unproductive under
grain crops. Peach trees do not bear well on the prairies.
The reason assigned is, that the blossom ‘comes out too
soon in spring, and is destroyed by the late frosts. One
farmer told me that they grew so rapidly that the winters
frequently killed them. I could also believe that the con-
stitution of all trees that grow upon the “ mucky” soil of
the prairies must be weaker, and therefore more liable to
suffer from intense frosts, than those that grow upon sounder
land. At home, many facts bearing out this principle are
observed in our cultivated crops, and doubtless somewhat
similar conditions are not without their influence in this
extreme climate.
Even at this immense distance from the ocean, the
weather is far from being steady in its character. Though
it never remains long damp, it undergoes great and sudden
changes of temperature. At this season, the air is much longer
in becoming warm than cold, or in other words the change from
heat to cold is much more rapid than from cold to heat. On
the morning of the 5th November there was a crust of ice an
inch thick on the running water at Napierville, and after
sunrise it blew a stiff breeze from the south all day, but not-
withstanding that the latitude is lower than that of Rome, it
continued cold the whole day, not a cloud was scen, and the
sun sct as red and fiery as it docs in Scotland when there is
hard frost in winter. This instance again served to impress
upon me the immense extent of territory over which-the
northerly winds of the previous two days had swept to the
southwards, and diffused their cold breath. I could readily
believe the statement of the prairie farmers, thet the south
winds are very cold in winter for the first day that they
blow. Mr. Ellsworth, who hag an extensive nuracry at
Napierville, said, that due west winds are the coldest in winter,
at which I was rather surprised, but I subsequently found that
this was the case over the United States, with the exception
NAPIERVILLE. 119
of those States bordering on the gulf of Mexico.‘ This
gentleman also maintained that the climate was more change-
able here than in New England, of which he was a native.
In summer he had known the thermometer sink in the shade
from 90° to 54° in half an hour.
Napierville, though a small place of 1000 inhabitants,
has already a good echool and two churches, one belonging
to the Baptist, the other to the Presbyterian denomination.
The hotel at which I put up for a day or two was kept by
a German, who had everything in good order, so that I did
not grudge, by any means, my Dill of a dollar a day for bed
aud board. The system of large numbers dining together,
gocs on in the villages as well as in the towns; for here,
about forty persons sat down to the different meals, The
company consisted of mechanics, shopkeepers, and hostlers,
and though homely dressed, and wanting the polish of the
sane class in the New England villages, they were civil and
obliging. An election by ballot occurred on one of the days
that I was here, but a very tame affair it was, for there was
no excitement. It is the Presidential elections that call out
the most voters; the choosing of the local politicians does
not create so deep an interest.
8th November.—Left Napierville this morning for Wheaton
Station, from which I took the cars to Galena, about 160 miles
west from Chicago. This line was recently opened, and the
carriages were fitted up. in a superior style. A large party
were in the train on their way to celebrate the opening of the
railway by a ball in Galena. The country through which
we passed is prairie throughout, with some groves of stunted
oak growing on light gravelly eminences. Frequently, how-
ever, there was no object visible but the wild waste of prairie;
no trees and no traces of cultivation. But before reaching
Galena, the road skirted along some valleys where the broken
table land is again covered with wood, and the thick vegetable
mould is awanting.
Galena, situated upon Fever river, owes its prosperity partly
to the rich lead mines in the neighbourhood; and contains a
population of 12,000, who support two daily papers. 1 was
120 ILLINOIS,
surprised to see such huge castellated structures of steamers
in the small river, which was only two and a balf feet deep
in the channel. It is spanned by a peculiar suspension rail-
- way bridge that moved on a pivot to allow vessels to pass.
Next morning I set out on foot to sce the Mississippi, five
miles distant, and to inspect the lead mines which are worked
in the magnesian limestone. The weather was remarkably
fine, indeed too warm for walking, for the south wind which
had been blowing for nearly two days, once more brought
up a high temperature. This, however, was the last in
this quarter of the really beautiful weather of the Ameri-
can autumns. A native predicted that this would not last
Jong, and that it would probably be very cold in a day or
two. A prediction that was soon verified. I also now
learned, that in consequence of many of the boats having
ceased to run on the river, there was little prospect of getting
down to St. Louis for a day or two, so I determined to return
to Chicago.
The lead ore is found in the veins of the limestone, at
no great depth from the surface, and contains about seventy
per cent of metal. The miner’s wages are from a dollar to a
dollar and a half a day of eight working hours. The rent of
the mines is from one-fourth’ to one-tenth of the produce ;
averaging about one-sixth. From the facility with which the
ore can be extracted, mining has been a very lucrative under-
taking.
At this distance from the sca the Mississippi is a noble
‘river, and worthy of its title—the father of waters. It is
three-fourths of a mile in breadth, with thirty fect of water
in its channel, and having a strong current. It is full of
wooded islands, and its cliffy limestone banks are also clothed
with trees. Here, too, the physical features of the country
are very similar to those in the vicinity of Cincinnati, the
river having excavated a bed for itself out of the plateau, and
the country on both banks being broken into hillocks. The
soil is destitute of the dark prairie mould, and consists of a
rich loam ; but from the irregularities of the surface it is only
the poorest settlers who occupy it.
I crossed over the river to the Towa side in a small boat
MISSISSIPPI, 121
propelled by paddle-wheels, each of which was driven by a
horse turning an endless web, as in the railroad thrashing
machines. The crew consisted of two boys, one about four-
teen years of age, and the other eight, who had all the airs of
old men, and acted their part remarkably well. It was a
frail vessel, however, and I was glad when I landed on the
other side. I walked about five miles up the river bank,
sometimes along the edge of the water, and sometimes through
fields and woods. The oak was common, and where it was
growing in the forest not too densely, the acorns that had
recently fallen literally covered the ground. In my notes
taken at the time, which referred to the trees growing along
the banks of the Mississippi, I find it stated:—* This rich
soil does not appear to be so propitious to the growth of
wood as the barren soils of New England, where the roots of
the trees have nothing but rocks and stones among which to
fix themselves.” This inferiority, as already stated, there is
every reason for supposing is owing to the drier climate of
the Western States.
There is also a great extent of prairie stretching firth
the State of Iowa; and thither vast crowds of emigrants from
the Eastern States have been flocking. I learned that no
fewer than 100,000 had gone this year. Indeed hundreds
of emigrants pass through Chicago daily, in summer, to the
western territories. The land has now risen so much in
Upper Canada and the States south of the Lakes, that it
ean seldom be purchased by European emigrants, who can
only become proprietors by going westward, to the confines
of the untouched forest or prairies. From the accounts that
T received, the prairies are not so extensive in Wisconsin as
in Illinois; but they are much better mixed with timbered
Jand, which circumstance renders them more tempting for
“settlements; and plenty of such land can still be had at ten
shillings an acre.
The water of the Mississippi is here very pure; it rises
about fifteen feet in spring, when the snows melt in the upper
country. The river freezes usually by the Ist December,
and remains closed till the 1st April. I crossed in a small .
steamer that only drew fifteen inches of water. The boiler
122 ILLINOIS.
was placed on one side and the engine on the other, It
was with some difficulty that we reached the opposite landing,
as the wind blew pretty strong from the south. I had hardly
got out of the boat before the weather changed very rapidly ;
clouds came from the west, and rain soon began to fall with
a damp and close atmosphere. Next morning (the 10th) the
sky was overcast while the wind was blowing from the west,
with the temperature only a little above the freezing point.
This change was very remarkable; and on going to Wash-
ington, I examined into the state of the weather prevailing over
the United ‘States during a few days about this time. I
found that if I had started from Galena on the afternoon of
. the 9th, and travelled due cast to the Atlantic coast, a thou-
sand miles distant, at the rate of ten miles-an hour, I would
have expericnccd hot and moist weather all the way. I
left for Chicago on the morning of the 10th, and the weather
was very cold all day, with hard frost at night.
Leaving Chicago early in the morning of the 11th for
Indianapolis, I had breakfast at Michigan city, a small
straggling town. Frost very hard at sunrise, and the’ sky
without a cloud the whole day; sun very powerful, though
cold in the shade.
The northern part of Tudiana is level, with a considerable
extent of marshy ground, One part of the railway south
of Michigan city ig a straight line, seventy miles in longth,
When there is not too much vegetable mould, autumn wheat
and Indian corn are sown alternately. ‘Tho corn stalks were
usually still standing, and the wheat had been mercly har-
rowed or grubbed in. ‘The southern part of this Stato is
well wooded; and the soil rests upon limestone gravel and
is productive. The distance from markets keeps down the
value of the land; and the greater part of the Indian.corn is
consumed by hogs. The bottom lands along the Wabash are
particularly fertile.
I was surprised on looking out of the window of the
hotel at Indianapolis on the morning of the 12th November
to find the ground covered with snow. It continued to fall
nearly all day, so that it lay four inches deep in the afternoon.
All parties said this would not last long, as mild weather
INDIANAPOLIS, 128
would soon return. Cattle are not stabled in winter in
this part of the country, and the cows were taking shelter from
the falling snow beneath the trees that lined the streets. - The
farmers also who came to town to church merely tied, or, as
they say here, “hitched on,” their horses to the railing, where
the animals stood exposed to the weather all the time that
their owners remained in town,
Took the cars from Indianapolis to Columbus, Ohio, on the
morning of the 13th, but from the irregularity of the trains,
I did not reach my destination till late at night, though the
distance is only 176 miles. I met a farmer and miller.in the
train, who resided in the southern part of Indiana. He
informed me that the wheat crop this year would not yield
more than eight or ten bushels to the acre. The average
produce of the best wheat soil in this part of the country.
was not more in ordinary years than eighteen bushels an
acre, as it produces too much straw, though not one farmer
in fifty applies any manure to his ficlds. However, Indian
corn averages seventy-five bushels to the acre. Four years
ago the price of this grain was only ten cents a bushel in _
Southern Indiana, and the ordinary prico was only about
fifteen cents before the railway was opened. Barley is more
productive than wheat, often giving fifty-five bushels an acre,
when tho crop is winter sown,
Farma of tho best land on the river bottoms that sold six
years ago at 17 dollars an acre, were now worth 80. A
man with two horscs will cultivate 30 acres of Indian corn
and 40 of wheat if he obtains the assistance of a boy to plant
the corn and to harvest the wheat. T was told of ono instance
in which man and two boys had planted and cultivated 125
acres of Indian corn and 50 of wheat, and saved besides 80
acres of meadow hay. ‘The ease with which these soils can
be kept free from weeds, and the fact of no manure being
applicd, render a given areca much casicr cultivated than in
the carly settled parts of tho country. In the cars I also
met a grazicr, who buys cattle and puts them upon the
prairie lands that have been taken up by speculators, but
upon which settlements have not been made, and no one looks
after them. He usually keeps 150 cattle, and is well pleased .
124 OHIO.
when their value is increased 10 dollars (£2) a head in twelve
months.
Columbus is the capital of Ohio, a thriving town of
25,000 inhabitants, The State House will be a very hand-
some building when completed; it is quadrangular, with
many Corinthian columns in front, and is estimated to cost
£400,000, The town is built on the east bank of the Scioto.
Theo general level of the country did not seem to be more
than 30 or 40 fect above the river. The surface undulates in
long waves and is covered with fine timber, but the soil is
rather stiff and clayey. The alluvial or “ bottom" lands of
the Scioto are about three miles in breadth at Columbus, and
extend about 190 miles from its junction with the Ohio, and
form the most fertile tract in the State.
In company with Professor Mather I paid a visit to a
gentleman who owns a largo extent of land, stretching cight
miles to the west of the city, and averaging about two miles in
width, Thero were about 5000 acres of this property cleared,
and sometimes ho faring it all himself, at others lets it out in
shares, This year he had 2300 acres in Indian corn, and
250 acres in wheat. More than one half of the property
was still under wood, which is thinned to allow the grasses
to come up and afford pasturage for stock. Herds of lean-
looking sheep were running in these wood pastures, and from
200 to 300 mules are reared every season. For several years
this description of stock had paid better than any other; a
mule colt being worth from 50 to 60 dollars. The best soils
yield two and a half tons of hay an acre, and three acres will
support a bullock throughout the year. Hay sells at ten
dollars (£2: 1:6), but is not worth more than five for feeding
purposes. It is considered good payment if an ox leaves the
feeder a dollar a month all the year round.
When the present proprietor of this land was at college,
his father, who was one of the first settlers here, got no more
than five cents (twopence halfpenny) for a bushel of Indian
corn, and this was the only way he had of raising money.
‘Five years ago beef was a cent and a half.a pound, but now
it ranges from six to ten cents. Yet this fine estate, in
this really beautiful part of the country, had little attraction
SCIOTO. , 125
to its possessor, for he was to let it to tenante and remove
to the bleak prairies of Illinois, where he had lately bought
a farm nine miles in length by six in breadth, which he
proposed to cultivate by hired labour. This prairie land
was purchased at the government price, one dollar and a
quarter an acre. He calculated that Indian corn would yield
30 bushels an acre for the two first years in that part of Illinois,
which would be worth about six dollars, to feed hogs -and
cattle, The prairie land becomes more productive of corn
after iit is cultivated for a few years,
The best land on the Scioto bottoms lets at 20 bushels of
Indian corn an acre, and only at seven bushels of wheat,
in the latter case the proprictor giving the sced. While on
these fertile lands tho average produce of wheat is not more
than from 15 to 18 bushels an acre, and 40 bushels are
scarcely ever heard of, 150 buslicls of Indian corn are some-
times got. I was shown a ficld that had borne Indian corn
for 56 ycara in succession, and yet did not show symptoma
of falling off. The Scioto bottoms is a dark-coloured ldam,
easily cultivated, and retentive of moisture when tilled in’
summer. It is worth about 50 dollars an acre, and the
heavily timbered land on the higher grounds from 20 to 40
dollars an acre. ,
A man with two horses will cultivate 25 acres of Indian
corn on the Scioto bottoms, and can do all the labour that
is required in ten weeks. So little is the crop injured by
the weather that it can be harvested in winter or even in
spring if not found convenient to do it sooner. Indian
corn is so easily raised in this part of the country, that a
bushel of it can be had in ordinary years for as little money
as @ bushel of potatocs. This iy not a good climate, however,
for potatocs, as it forces too many stems, and the tubera are
small and watery. Turnip and beet grow well, and the for-
mer may be raised, the same year, on land from which a crop
of wheat has been taken, for wheat ripena here by the 1st of
July. What a productive country this will become when
labour can be profitably applied in cultivating those cattle
crops which tend more surely to spare and husband the
resources of this grateful soil !
126 OHIO.
Ohio posscsses a large extent of sandy loams, which would
bo considered too Hylt fn Britain to rank as good wheat soils,
Tho clhinate ts warm and molvt In summer, and all tho Ightor
descriptions of soil are thus rendered fortile for wheat and
maize. With the exception of tho bottom lands of the Miami
and Scioto, I was not by any means struck with the natural
fertility of any land that I saw in this State. Indeed, tho
samo observation may bo made in regard to Canada and all
tho I'reo States, Tho prairies, no doubt, are capable of
producing very heavy crops of Indian corn and spring
wheat for many yoara to como, though no manure fs applied,
But still L saw no wide champaigns of rich soils in Ameriea
that, with respect to natural fertility, can be compared to
tho marly loams of tho north of Mrance, which, were they In
this climate, would, liko tho Scioto bottoms, be too rich for
wheat.
The ‘northern half of the State of Ohio and the eastern
borders are best suited for the growth of wheat: the southern
for Indian corn and for grass. There is comparatively little
alluvial land along the Ohio, as it has cut a deep channel out
of the table land, and, as already observed, the whole country
on both sides is broken into hillocks. A surface so irregular,
being less suited for cultivating on a large scale, naturally
becomes occupied with smaller proprietors, who usually plant
crops, such as tobacco and vines, which require more hand
labour than those that are more generally raised. The forms
are larger on the more fertile descriptions of land. The
county of Ross, having an area of 730 square miles, is inter-
sected by the Scioto, and has a large extent of rich bottom
lands, The relative quantity and kind of produce grown
upon rich level land, and on that which is more broken, is
not without interest. In 1850 the county of Ross produced—
Indian Corn ‘i ‘ » 2,840,443 bushels,
Wheat ‘ Z % Zi 141,131 a
Oate é . . 80,926 [S
The county of Brown has an area of 502 square miles,
and is bounded on the south by the Ohio. Its surface is
consequently very much broken in the vicinity of the river,
AGRICULTURAL PRODUOE. 127
whore the proportics are amallor than on the more level and
fortilo portions of the State. If tho soil fy aultablo, small
farmors raise tobacco, ‘The produco of this county in 1850
was as follows :—
Indian Corn . % i + 1,200,485 bushels, .
Wheat . , . A 192,065 5
Onta . im . . . 180,810 o
Tobacco : ‘ ‘ , 1,279,610 pounda,
‘Thoro is little unreclaimablo laud in Ohio, though a large
proportion is still in wood, This State Is about 200 miles
in length, and nearly as many In breadth, and covers an arca
of 89,064 square miles, or 25,576,060 acres, of which 9,851,498
were reclaimed in 1850. To show the particular direction
that agricultural production takes north and south of the
Lakes, the statistics of Ohio may be compared with those of
the Canadas. In 1850 there were 7,300,839 acres of re-
claimed land in the Canadas, out of 155,188,425 acres. The
population of the Canadas was then 1,842,265; of Ohio
‘1,980,427. The amount of their chief products were :—
Canapas. Onto, Camwapas. | Ouro,
|
Lh. | Lhe.
Ae res aueee 16,155,946] 14,487,351 |} Checao,.....sc00 2,737,790 20,819,542
Other Cereals, {25,613,467 34,449,379
OC. ssseesnene 28,052,301 /15,981,101 1,253,128! 10,455,449
Indian Corn ..... 2,029,644 ]59,073,695 4,130,740 10,196,371
Sheep..ecccrcseeee 1,597,849) 3,942,929 A a 4,588,209
The State of Ohio raises a greater amount of agricultural
produce than the whole of the British Possessions in North
America, and in all probability it will continue to do so for
many years to come. The grain exporting region in Canada
is limited to the soils that rest upon the secondary formations.
The soils of- the unoccupied lands of Canada rest upon the
primary rocks, and will only be slowly taken up by the poorest
settlers obtaining free grants of them.
The statistics indicate the prominent place that Indian
128 OHIO.
corn occupies in the productions of Ohio, and the small quantity
grown in the Canadas, As already remarked, I attribute this
to the small amount of labour involved in its culture in Ohio
in comparison to what it requires in the Canadas, or the
north-west portions of the State of New York,
The cultivated lands in the Canadas have the Lakes and
the St. Lawrence stretching along their whole extent, which
afford great facilities for transporting their produce. Ohio
possesses upwards of 700 miles of canals, and 2000 miles of
railways. The productive powers of Ohio for wheat cannot
be said to be fully tested, as the farmers are induced by the
expense of transport to cultivate more Indian corn and to
consume it by hogs, For were the comparatively high
prices of the Atlantic towns to be within reach of the Ohio
farmer, doubtless a very Jarge amount of wheat could be raised
on land which is now devoted to Indian corn.
I left Columbus on the 15th November, and stopped all
night at Pittsburg, having travelled 246 miles, It was late
before we arrived, as our train got off the rails, which de-
tained us for some time. Country very level until the
Ohio is approached at Pittsburg, where the surface is again
broken into hillocks, Passed over a large extent of a red-
coloured sandy soil, upon which wheat was the principal
crop. It was very forward, and much of it had been sown,
by drill.
Pittsburg is a dirty town, and for smoke may compete
with any in Lancashire. It is built on the steep banks of
the Ohio, and the strata here, through which the river has
dug, belong to the coal formation, which covers an area
almost as large as the whole of England. The coal beds are
horizontal, and the river has cut through many of the upper
beds, which are thus exposed along the banks, rendering
mining a comparatively simple operation.
Next day’s journey to Harrisburg, a distance of 248 miles,
Country broken after leaving Pittsburg, and about midday the
summit level of the railway, far up the flanks of the Alleghany
range, was reached. The tops of the hills are covered with pines,
and their sides, where the forest is not too dense, have a thick
undergrowth of rhododendrons. The scenery was very grand.
CROPS IN PENNSYLVANIA. 129
and in some parts the view from the carriages was terrific.
As the line wound round the highest peak that we passed,
the curves were very sharp, so much so that the sleepers were
sometimes laid at a high angle towards the hill, and thus the
lower sides were next the valley. The passengers instine-
tively rose and took the highest side of the carriage. The
gradicnts were steep, but the engines were powerful, and the
road was kept in good order and well managed.
The railway runs through deep valleys to Harrisburg, and
the land is poor and stony. The farms are small in Pennsyl-
vania, and the soil is by no means so productive as that of:
Ohio. It contains upwards of 29 millions of acres, but little
more than eight and a half millions have been reclaimed.
This State; however, produces as much wheat as any other
in the Union. The surface is much broken in the central
parts by the Alleghany range. Where the soil rests upon
the limestone rocks it is productive both for grass and grain.
It has upwards of 1100 miles of canals for transporting coal
and agricultural produce. It costs 20 cents (tenpence) a
bushel to carry wheat by canal from the towns in the centro
of Pennsylvania to Philadelphia, a distance of 200 miles, The
country is level along the Atlantic coast, but it is very poor
and sandy.
I met a Pennsylvania farmer who resided within twenty
mniles of Philadelphia. His land was worth 100 dollars or
£26 sterling an acre, and it would rent at 400 dollars a year.
He raised 10 acres of wheat, and 10 of Indian corn; the
average produce of the former is about 25 bushels an acre,
and of the latter 60 bushels. After Indian corn oats are
generally sown, then wheat, to which all the manure produced
in the farm is applied. The rest of the farm is in grass and
mwneadow, for when the land is sown down after the wheat
crop, it is allowed to lie for six or cight ycars, The timothy
grass is sown in autumn, and the clover in spring. The
pastures are ploughed in autumn or in spring, and maize is
planted in four fect squares, which permits of the crop being
thoroughly cultivated during summer, and little hand hocing
is required. Twenty cows were kept, and their produce is
made into butter and sold in Philadelphia. A cow, when the
kK
130 PENNSYLVANIA,
produce is disposed of in this way, will yicld 85 dollars 8 year,
and 55 when the milk is sold in town, but an ox will only
yield about 25 dollars when fed throughout the year. A ton
of hay with straw will winter a cow, and Indian corn meal is
allowed in spring when she is giving milk. Besides- himself,
he employed one man servant, and kept three horses, He
paid from 35 to 40 dollars in taxes every year,
Our agricultural map shows there is a small extent of
land adapted for wheat on the more denscly peopled seaboard
States, and consequently supplies are drawn from the interior.
In ordinary years the prices of wheat in the Atlantic towns
are double to what they are in the towns of many of the
western producing districts, and it is the only grain that will
bear the expense of being transported. Oats and maize are
mostly consumed in the districts in which they are grown.
The enterprise of Americans was carly directed towards the
formation of canals, of which a large number of miles have
already been completed. The following is a list of the prin-
cipal canals in the United States, now in use.
New York . . “ 7 . 896 miles.
New Jersey . : 5 ‘ ‘ 150
Pennsylvania . . . % » 1086 ,,
Delaware ‘ . . : . 4,
Maryland . r ‘ “ : 191,
Virginin 4 “ o . 219 ,,
South Carolina a 5 . . 22) y
Ohio . ‘ Fy ‘ 7 A 735
Indiana ‘ a) a ‘ : 635 ,,
Illinois . z . 100
The ordinary freight on the Erie Canal from Buffalo to
Albany, a distance of 363 miles, is, in June and October, 20
cents (tenpence) for a bushel of wheat, and in April, May,
and November, from 20 to 37 cents. From Detroit to
Buffalo cight to ten cents by vessels through Lake Erie.
The cost of transportation by railway is about two and ‘a half
times more than by canals. According to Mr. Seaman, a
gentleman well known for his essays on political economy,
Indian corm in the vicinity of St. Louis can be transported
to New Orleans, a distance of 1194 miles, in arks and steam- -
boats in a good stage of water for twelve and a half cents a
PRICES OF PRODUCE. 131
bushel, and twice as much from tho Wabash river in Hlinois,
which floats only boats and arks of light draft. I had the
pleasure of making the acquaintance of this gentleman when
I was at Ann Arbour in Michigan. He presented me with
a copy of his essays, in one of which he has drawn up an
estimate of the average price of wheat, Indian corn, oats, and
potatoes, per bushel, from 1840 to 1846, in cach of the United
States. The prices have no doubt materially altered since
that time, but the relative values of grain in the different
States are so far still maintained, though in some it has been
enhanced by the opening of canals and railways. The prices
stated are supposed to be those given at the nearest market
towns to the places of production, without any expense to
the producer except his own labour and the use of his teams.
Wheat. | Indian Corn.] Oats. _ Potatoes.
a d. s de a da aod.
New aig See a 48 29 14 010
jouthern istrict 4 8 29 14 1a
New York {Novthom i 37 | tu 13 010%
Sastern dist..| 4 8 29 14 1 0
Penneylvaniay Westen | 3 7 | 18 | 1.0 | 010
Os a we oe ka we ee 23 0 10 0 8 0 8
Tadiaus and Ilinoia 20 07 07 07
Michigan... 2 1s 23 1 0° @ 10 07
Wisconsin, . 2 1 2. e 2 0 0 10 07 07
Delaware and Maryland . .| 4 2 23 14 10
Virginia Eastern district 2] 4 2 21 14 10
BINA Western 4, 24 10 0 7 *| 010
Kentucky and Tenneasco . e 4 0 7 0 if 10
South Carolina, Georgia, and
Alabama. ¢ «6 & % 42 10 12 10
Louisiana and Mississippi .| 4 8 14 1 0 1 3
Missouri. . . ee ee 1 8 0 7h 0 7 0 10
. An attentive perusal of this table will show the effect of
distance from the best markets on the prices of particular
kinds of produce. The wages of labour are nearly the same
over the United States, but the cost of living varies considcr-
ably, As in Europe, the prices of grain havé risen greatly
within the last few years, which will no doubt give a great
stimulus to production, as wheat is now better able to bear
the cost of transportation. But the difficulties connected
with exporting an increased produce arc almost as great as
those connected with raising it, because it is some time before
132 FENNSYLVANIA.
the ordinary channels can be expected to meet the extra
traffic.
One rather curious fact brought out in these tables is the
relatively high price of potatoes in America compared with
that of grain. In Kentucky and Tennessee, potatoes are
actually higher per bushel than Indian corn, This arises
from the inferiority of the American climate for growing this
crop; and the farther that we go southwards the more strikingly
is this fact impressed upon us. And since the appearance of
the remarkable disease, the differences in the prices of grain ,
and potatoes have been enormously exaggerated. I found
potatoes in the autumn of 1854 selling at £16 an English
ton at Columbus in Ohio, and at the same price in New
York city in the spring of 1855, and at £25 in New Orleans.
CHAPTER VIIL
BALTIMORE TO WASHINGTON.
Baltimore, 20th Nov. 1854.—My feelings on entering a slave’
State for the first time were not easily described. In travel-
ling through the north and west, little incidents are now and
then occurring, which show an entire absence of the class-
feeling necessarily arising at home in our dense and more
stationary society. The equality which prevails among tra-
vellers who observe the ordinary courtesies is striking, and we
feel happy that the progressive condition of all classes admits
of such a state of things. A few days. ago I enjoyed the
company of the frank and lively farmers of Ohio; and to-day,
when at dinner, I learned that the gentleman on my left was
General Scott, the hero of the Mexican war, who was Teceiv-
ing no more attention than I. The abrupt line, therefore, that
is drawn betwixt different races appears more unreasonable ;
and we wonder why labour, so honourable in one State, should
in another become associated with a fecling of degradation.
That one class is stationary in Baltimore, the mean huts in
the suburbs bear sufficient testimony.
Keeping out of the suburbs and lower parts of the town,
Baltimore, so far as a-staid and aristocratic appearance goes,
has no rival in the Union. The exterior of the newer man-
sions vic with each other in tasteful ornament. The streets
are wide and kept in fine order, and rows of trees line the
side walks. Many clegant squarcs having gardens in the
centre occupy the high grounds, where numerous monu-
ments form conspicuous objects in the distance. The ladics
perhaps dress a little too gaudy, but the “ Baltimore Belles”
do not owe their well-merited fame to what art bas done
134 MARYLAND,
for thom, nor, indecd, ts it cosy to over-dress a fine
woman,
T called upon a gentleman in Baltimore who takes con-
siderable interest in the agriculture of Maryland. Hoe was an
earnest advocate for slavery, and maintained that it was no
drawback to tho cultivation of the land. He also spoke with
vehemence regarding the conduct of tho abolitionists in the
north, upon whom he laid the blame of having been the means
of putting a stop to the attempts which at one time were
made to concert incasures for the gradual extinction of slavery. .
Schemes having this end in view were at one time openly
discussed in Maryland; now, however, nothing is thought of
but such measures as are best calculated for making slave
property secure. But perhaps the truth of the matter is,
slaves have now become more valuable. Ie assured mo that
regular societies ckxisted in Pennsylvania to aid glaves in
making their escape from their owners in Maryland, who
were constantly mecting with great losses from this cause,
He also stated, however, that the value of land had of late
years risen ag much in Maryland as it had done in the adjoin-
ing free State of Pennsylvania. Guano has been applicd to
many of the worn-out lands in raising wheat, with highly
satisfactory results, The effects of the manure on this crop
are most certain when it is applied in autumn at the time
the seed is sown.
Maryland is a comparatively fertile State. Its agricul-
tural statistics show us that there is a vast difference in the
natural capabilities of land. Perhaps sono may have thought
that my descriptions of the gencral poverty of the soil in the
New England States is somewhat exaggerated ; but its truth
will be rendered apparent by comparing their produce with
that of Maryland. It is often said that slavery tends to
exhaust land and to check the development of its resources,
whilst free labour has effects precisely opposite. This
opinion is no doubt true to a certain extent; aud if it be
assumed as a fact that the effects of free and of slave labour
are such, it only shows more clearly that good land is not
easily exhausted, and poor is not casily enriched. From all
the information which I could gather, 1 do not think that the
FREE AND SLAVE LABOUR, 135
cultivated land of the State of Maryland is so naturally fers
tile as the cultivated Jand of Scotland; yot how much moro
productive in wheat and tobacco is that Slave Stato than tho
whole of tho Now England States, where there is no lack of
industry and activity. The agricultural statistics for 1850
put us in possession of the following figures :—~
Reclalmed Land. Wheat. Indlan Corm.} Tobacco,
, ‘Aeron, Bushels, Bushete, Lbs,
Maryland...ssecscseseses 2,797,905 4,194,640 | 11,104,681 | 21,407,407
New England States...) 14,147,096 1,000,845 } 10,170,060 | 1,485,510
Thus, although tho six Free States of New England have
about four times moro land reclaimed than Maryland, yet
their production of wheat is less than a-fourth, and of tobacco
less than a fourteenth, of this Slave State.
The comparative value of free and of slave labour is a
question upon which there has been much discussion, In
going into the Southern States, I was more anxious to inquire
into this question than into the physical and moral condition
of the slaves, a sulject upon which so much has already been
written. Indeed, it was one of the principal objects of my
curiosity in visiting the , United States, to make myself
acquainted with the circumstances which favour the institu-
tion of slavery, and give it so great a hold on the agricultural
and commercial systems of the country. I was amused with
the view taken by an influential paper in the north on the
comparative economy of free and slave labour, and as -a
pretty fair specimen of the way in which the merits of the
question are often discussed by the northern press, I shall
give the concluding paragraph. The article, after comment-
ing upon the recent fall of labour in the north, und its con-
tinued rise in the south, suns up :— Corn-field hands in the
south bring 125 to 150 dollars a year, cooks and house-ser-
vants 50 to 75 dollars. A woman, and a child cight months
old, sold the other day, brought 1310 dollars, which at 7 per
cent is 91.70; this, with life insurance at 3 per cent, 39.30.
Taxes, doctors’ bills, and clothing, with food, must sum up
the cost of such a negro to 225 dollars a year. Free women
136 "MARYLAND.
servants with us receive from 5-to 7 dollars a month, which
averages 72 a year. Children we would not have if they
were given to us, The south, then, cannot stand for any
length of time this competition of labour. Tho cost of
negroes must come down, decidedly down. Hence we give
the warning, stand from under.”
In Maryland, an able-bodied slave is hired out by his
master to work in the fields at from 120 to 150 dollars a year,
and of course the person who employs him gives board, which
is no doubt greatly inferior to what the free labourer receives.
A common Irish labourer employed on the railway near Boston,
had a dollar a day throughout the year. He paid 12 dollars
a month for board, but had coffee at breakfast, meat at dinner,
wheaten bread, butter, cheese, and tea at supper. Farm
servants at Burlington, Vermont, had 150 dollars a year, and
their meals at their master’s table. In the Genesee district,
the wages of farm servants were 16 dollars a month for eight
months, and 12 dollars a month for the other four. The
nominal hire of a slave engaged in agricultural operations is
therefore rather less than that of a freo labourer. The cost
of inaintaining the slave is also less than of boarding the freo-
man, a difference which will so fir axsint in compensating tho
planter for tho inferior work of the slave, These facts tend
to show that slave Iabour cannot be materially dearer than
free, even in those States where the two admit of being fairly
compared. ‘This opinion is further borne by the circumstance
that after many inquirics among the farmers of the Free State
of Ohio and the Slave State of Kentucky, I failed to satisfy
myself that there is any difference in the value of land adapted
for grazing and raising grain in the two States; for had slavo
labour been so much inferior to free, a8 is commonly supposed,
it should have Icssened the value of property in the Slave
State.
But it is generally belicved that tho chief profts of the
Kentticky or Maryland slave owners aviso from breeding slaves
and gelling thom to tho cotton and sugar plantors In tho
Southern States, It appears to me, however, that the breed-
ing of slaves could, under no concuivable circumstances, bo
profitable on its own account. We must remember that the
BREEDING SLAVES. . 104
natural increase of the slave population in the Northern States
is about 5 per cent per annum, This increase, therefore,
being scarcely equal to the ordinary rate of interest of money,
the mere breeding of slaves would not be profitable, though
their maintenance did not cost anything. The natural
increase of slaves is no doubt a considerable item in the‘ pro-
fits of the slave-owner in Maryland and Virginia; yet, except-
ing in the rice and sugar districts, it is a far larger item in
the profits of the slave-owners in the Southern States.
On a cotton plantation, the sum invested in slaves bears
a much larger proportion.to the gross amount of the capital’.
of the planter than where the land is only adapted for
wheat and maize. The climate also of the greater portion
of the States bordering on the Gulf of Mexico is quite as
favourable to the increase of the negroes as that of Kentucky
or Virginia, ;
The natural increase of the negroes on the grain-growing
plantations of Kentucky affords some compensation for the
inferior labour of the slave, and assists in defraying the
salary of an overscer. But were moro slaves to be kept than
were needed to cultivate the land economically, where no
crops aro rained except maize and wheat, the surplus hands
would detract as much from the profits of a plantation as
the keuping of extra hands on a farm in a Free State
would assuredly be unprofitable, Though the cost of main-
taining a slave is less than the cost of maintaining a
freeman, the former must yield an amount of ‘labour which
is worth his maintenance and the ordinary rate of interest
on his money value. The surplus labour of the northern
slave plantations finds a ready market in the Southern States,
which havo still so much unoccupied land. ence, at the
present time, tho institution of slavery exhibits no symptoms
of decay on the richest corn-growing Jands of tho Northern
Btatcn,
Boforo going to America, I was very much puzzled to undore
stand tho full meaning of tho following paragraph in tho
“Wealth of Nations,” It contains, I find, a great deal of
truth mingled with some errors regarding the advantages and
dixadvantages of slave labour :—
1338 MARYLAND.
“ Tho planting of sugar and tobacco can afford the exponso
of slave cultivation. ho raising of corn in the present times
cannot. In tho English colonics, of which the principal pro-
duce is corn, the far greater part of the work is done by frev-
men, The late resolution of the Quakers in Pennsylvania to
act at liberty all the negro slaves, may satisfy us that thelr
number cannot be very great. Wad they made any consider-
able part of their property, such a resolution could never have
been agreed to. In our sugar colonies, on the contrary, the
whole work is done by slaves; and in our tobacco colonics,
a very great part of it. The profits of a sugar plantation in
any of our West Indian colonies are generally much greater
than those of any other cultivation that is known either in
Europe or America. And the profits of a tobacco plantation,
though inferior to those of sugar, are superior to those of
corn, as has already been observed. Both can afford the
expense of slave cultivation, but sugar can afford it still better
than tobacco. The number of negroes accordingly is much
greater in proportion to that of whites in our sugar than in
our tobacco colonics.” Book iii. chap. 2.
The “ Wealth of Nations,” by Adam Smith, was pub-
lished in 1776, and the first census of the population in the
United States was taken in 1790. The comparatively small
number of slaves in Pennsylvania at that time is remarkable,
there being only one slave for every hundred and twenty of
the free population, At the same period in Virginia, how-
ever, there was one slave for every two and a half of the free
population, The exact numbers were :—
Pennsylvaulu, Virginia.
Slaves in 1790 . . . 8,737 203,427
Free ” . . . 430,636 544,981
Tho politicul institutions of Pennsylvania and Virginia
were very different on their sctileinent by the English;
and this difference in their original constitution had, no
doubt, much to do with the great disparity which existed
at the first census in the relative numbers of slaves and free-
men. Pennsylvania was colonised by Quakers and Puritans,
and there never was any right of primogeniture. The lands,
like movables; were divided equally among all the children
RIGHT OF PRIMOGENITURE. 139
‘ of the family, In the New England States, the: oldest had
only a double share. Up to the period of the revolution, the
right of primogeniture existed in Virginia and the other
Southern Slavo States, which wero scttled by wealthy mer-
chants and sons of our aristocrucy, Tho abolition of this
law had a tendency to uproot slavery. Tho obvious way by
which this is accomplished is, a8 soon as land reaches a cer-
tain state of subdivision, it cannot maintain both slaves and
freemen. The division of land among the children has,
without doubt, been the principal agent in extinguishing
slavery in the Northern States, wid it will be afterwards
shown that the same agent is at work in all the Southern
Slave States. But whilst the absence of the right of primo-
geniture favours the extinction of slavery, it at the same time
favours its extension and renders it more aggressive.
On the other hand, rich land is one of the elements that
retard the extinction of slavery. The poorer the soil, other
things being equal, the sooner does ‘slavery become unprofit-
able. In consequence of the natural sterility of the land in
the New England States, slavery could never become deeply
‘rooted, in cultivating the ordinary crops grown there. It
could not possibly be profitable now, for the average size of
farms is reduced to 67 acres of reclaimed land, of which but a
small extent is in culture. Many of the New England farms
are not sufficient to afford employment for their owners
throughout the year, and could not do go for slaves. Had
the Northern scaboard States been as fertile as Ohio, Ken-
tucky, Indiana, or Illinois, slavery would have been longer in
relaxing its hold.
The history of New York State exhibits the effects of the
division of property in uprooting slavery. The castern por-
tion of that State is poor, and the western was of little valuo
before the Eric Canal was made. In 1790 there were
21,324 slaves in the State, and in 1820 only 10,088. For °
twenty years previous to 1820, the decrease in the number
of slaves was about 500 a-year, and if this rate of decrease
continued till 1825, when slavery was abolished, there would
have been little more than 5000 slaves at this date, when the
free population numbered about 1,500,000.
140 MALYLAND,
Delaware, after Maryland, fs the most fertile State on
the seaboard. It is of small extent, and its soil is only
suited for growing the ordinary crops—wheat, maize and oat.
Through the subdivision of property, tho average size of
farms is reduced to 90 acres. In 1850 there were 6053
farms, and 2289 slaves, or scarcely one slave, reckoning old
and young, for every two farms. In 1790 there were 8887
slaves, but the numbers have since been gradually decreasing.
The owners of slaves in Delaware are therefore in a very
small minority, and if the majority willed, the institution
might be abolished. This fact shows, however, that the poli-
tical feeling is not very strong hero betwixt those who own
slaves and those who do not. The dread lest abolition would
only be a transferring of the slaves from the Northern to the
Southern States, serves to cheek the zeal of thosa who wish
to have the system uprooted, A good ficld negro is worth
at present about 1000 dollars, £208 : Gs., a price which would
subject slave-owners to a severe test were they put to the
alternative of manumitting or of selling their slaves. Jt is
affirmed that large numbers of slaves were sold to the southern
planters when tho legislatures of New York and Pennsylvania
set a period for the extinguishing of slavery.
Tho great upholder of slavery in the Northern States is
the cultivation of tobacco, and not the breeding of slaves,
Slavery possesses great advantages over free labour in the
cultivation and tending of this plant. This docs not ariso,
as Adam Smith supposed, from tho raising of tobacco being
more profitable than the raising of grain, for if it were so its
culture is as open to free as to slave labour, and it would
undoubtedly be preferred. Nevertheless, in the present cir-
cumstances of the country, free labour cannot successfully
compete with slave Jabour in the production of tobacco; for,
among other reasons, slave-owners can always command the
_ quantity as well as quality of labour that are required to raise
this crop economically.
On good land, a freeman or a slave can cultivate twenty
acres of Indian corn, and as many of wheat. The manage-
ment of a slave property on which nothing but wheat and
Indian corn are raised, is necessarily attended with great
DIVISION OF LABOUR, 141
disadvantages, because tho operations are diffused over a great
arco, and tho superintendence must be more imperfoct. But
in corn-growing districts, free labourers, or, more strictly
speaking, emall proprietors, have great advantages over
slave-owners. A large slave plantation which may have become
unprofitable through exhaustion, will not afford a profitable
investment for a capitalist to buy and to farm it by employing
free labourers. But such a plantation would only afford a
subject for free labour were it divided into small farms, whose
proprietors would cultivate them with their own hands. In
present circumstances, this is tha only process by which
slavery is uprooted, and it takes place more rapidly in poor
than in rich land.
Though a slave may, under very favourable circumstances,
cultivate twonty acres of wheat and twenty of Indian corn,
he cannot manage more than two acres of tobacco. The
culture of tobacco, therefore, admits of the concentration of
labour, and thus the superintendence and management of a
tobacco plantation will be more perfect and less expensive than
acornone. And while slavery can always command labour,
it likowiso posscascs the great advantage of organizing labour.
Tobacco cannot be cultivated in the Free States by hiring and
omploying lubourers; it is only cultivated there by small
farmers. These circumstances give slave labour great advan-
tages over freo in tho culturo of this crop.
But besides these advantages, slavery admits of having
an economical division of labour in the raising and preparing
of tobacco for market. Mr. Babbage points out the existence
of an important principle in the division of labour when
applied in manufactures, that is, “the master manufacturer,
by dividing the work to be executed into different processes,
each requiring different degrees of skill and force, can pur-
chase exactly that precise quantity of both which is necessary
for each process; whereas, if the work were executed by one
workman, that person must possess sufficient skill to perform
the most difficult, and sufficient strength to execute the most
laborious of: the operations into which the art is divided.” *
Tho same principle applics to the organization of slave labour
* Economy of Manufacturea, p. 138.
142 "MARYLAND,
for tobacco culture, though in a different way, inasmuch as
both young and old slaves can find suitable employment in
the culture and preparation of the crop for market. Worms
require to be picked off the plants during their growth, and
the leaves are gathered as they become ripe at different
periods of the season. These operations can be done as
well, and consequently as cheaply, by women or children, as
by full grown men. But often a small proprietor in the Free
States can command no other labour than his own, which
would be greatly misapplied in most of the manual operations
connected with tobacco culture ; because his team of horses
might sometimes be standing in the stable while he was
picking worms off the plants, which would render this very
costly work. Thus, through the organization and the divi-
sion of employment which slave labour admits of, it is
virtually cheaper than free.
In estimating the comparative productiveness of free and
of slave labour, one fact must be kept in view. Unless
among the French settlers in Lower Canada and among the
families of emigrants recently arrived from Europe, women do
not assist in ficld work in any of the Free States, or in
Canada. It is considered demeaning to the &cx to be so
engaged. On the other hand, negro women are ‘all employed
on the plantations, and at some operations as effectively as
men. Hence, in the United States, a given number of slave
population engaged in agriculture is actually more productive
than the same number of free.
To produce tobacco of good quality, the land must be of
a particular description. It las been already scen that tho
fertile summer climate of North America restricts the culture
of wheat to second-rate soils, and the same thing holds with
still more truth in regard to tobacco. When it is planted on
rich clay soils, the leaves grow coarse and are deficient in
aromatic qualities, which determine its value. On the scttle-
ment of the country, a large quantity of tobacco was raised
on the rich soils; but now fincr qualities of leaf being more
in request, the cultivation of the plant is confined to light
siliceous loams which are found to be best suited for pro-
ducing the finest qualities.
_ STRENGTH OF SLAVERY. 143
Wherever the land in the Northern Slave States is of.
secondary quality, and at the same time not suited to the
growth of tobacco, slavery never gains much footing. Slavery
tends to degrade free labour, but not to the extent perhaps -
that is commonly supposed ; for, unfortunately, the strength of
the institution rests upon a broader basis. It is nearer the
truth to say, that free labour cannot compete, in the cultiva-
tion of certain crops, with slave labour. Freemen no doubt
think it degrading to work in the ficlds among slaves; and
women in the south think it degrading to engage themselves
as domestic servants. But freemen in the Slave States think
it no more degrading to cultivate their small properties with
their own hands than they do in the Free States. The census
returns show that the Jand in the Slave State of Delaware
must be nearly all cultivated by freemen, seeing there is not
one slave, old or young, to every two farms; and a large
number of the slaves must be employed in the towns as
domestic servants.
The returns of the census commissioners bring out the
truth of the preceding proposition in a remarkable manner,
In 1850, the average size of farms in the Free State of Penn-
sylvania was only G8 acres of reclaimed land, and the quantity
of tobacco raised was no more than 912,651 Ibs, In the same
year, the number of slaves in Maryland was 90,368, and the
quantity of tobacco raised was 21,407,497 Ibs.; while the
average size of farms was 180 acres, or nearly double those
in Pennsylvania.
lf we compare, however, the countics in Maryland that
raise a large quantity of tobacco with those that raise little
or none, some interesting results are brought out regarding
the relative numbers of free and slave population which
particular descriptions of land can support. Prince George
county, in the south part of Maryland, having an area of 600
square miles, is bounded on the west by the Potomac, and
on east and north-cast by the Patuxent. Its soil is woll
suited to the growth of tobacco; so much so, indeed, that it
produces more than any county in the Union. The agricul-
tural statistics of 1850 give its: produce at 8,380,851 lbs. of
tobacco, 1,590,045 bushels of Indian corn, 231,687 of wheat,
144 MARYLAND.
and 100,947 Ibs. of butter. The population by the last two
censuses was as follows :—
1810. 1850,
Slaves 7 - 10,636 Py : 11,510
Free . - 8,903 ‘ . 10,039
On the other land, the county of Cecil, situated at the
head of Chesapeake Bay, having an area of 300 square miles,
is not suited to the growth of tobacco, Its chief produce in
1850 was 410,060 bushels of Indian corn, 168,112 of wheat,
208,380 of oats, and 9288 tons of hay. The population
during the same periods was—
1840. 1850.
Slaves A 1,352 3 . 814
Free 4 - 16880 . . 18,095
The county of Alleghany, also, forming the western ex-
tremity of Maryland, and bordering on Pennsylvania and
Virginia, has an area of 800 square miles. Being intersected
by the Alleghany mountains, its surface is broken and -irre-
gular. The soil in the valleys is represented to be fertile, and
well adapted for grazing. In 1850 it produced 101,773
bushels of Indian corn, 73,525 of wheat, 163,943 of oats,
231,038 lbs. of butter, and 10,896 tons of hay. The popu-
lation during the Jast two censuses was—
1840. 1850.
Slaves : 7 812 “ 724
Free S . 14,878 i " 22,045
Thus, in the tobacco-growing county of Prince George,
the number of slaves increased about 10 per cent from 1840
to 1850; but in the grain and pastoral counties of Cecil and
Alleghany, slavery appears to be undergoing a process of
gradual extinction.
The more recently settled State of Missouri, indicates
the operation of the same elements, where tobacco-raising
and slaves, in a sense, go together. or the purpose of
enabling my readers to estimate the result of introducing
slavery into Kansas, I shall exhibit the effects of local influ-
ence in determining the relative numbers of slaves and free-
men in Missouri. The following eight counties, forming the
southern boundary of the State, as indicated in the sketch,
SLAVERY IN MISSOURI, 145
are only adapted for pasture and raising grain, and where,
maw e sen ne sone nem emnenaresee
fas
NE OF MISSQUN] COMPROMISE 56. 80° LAT
ARKANSAS
consequently, slavery obtains little hold. In 1850, the nume
bers of free and slave population were :—
County. Square Miles. Free. Slaves.
620 2158 83
Barry « 703 3317 | 150
Tane 1540 4274 99
Ozark .. 1600 2279 15
Oregon... aes 1700 1414 18
Ripley. vane 990 2744 86 j
Butler,.... ence 560 1563 53 .
Stoddard..... eeee 900 4227 50
In reference to these counties, it may be borne in mind
that the facilities are not so great for exporting the produce
as along the large rivers. Slavery almost invariably gets
possession both of the most accessible and the most fertile
lands; but a slave population can never be dense where
nothing but grain is raised, In accordance with this prin-
ciple, we find the number of slaves in the following counties
L
146 MARYLAND,
on the north bank of the Missouri nearly in proportion to
the quantity of hemp and tobacco that is grown :—
Counties, Square Miles Free, Bloves, Tobacco. Temp.
Lbs, Tons.
095 1,618 80
470 8.830 127
425 8,471 G2
415 12,073 902
416 12,017 2708 one 4356
eee 415 7,690 2742 oo 1288
sens 560 8,859 1614 516,906 43!
: 700 4,820 621 289,869
740 5,736 1778 =| 2,667,908
432 9,079 4890 | 3,188,122
648 11,313 3666 584,949 51
Callaway TAZ 7,104 992 957,381
Montgomery........ 504 4,452 1037 353,865
Warren wcssscceeses 400 4,925 935 431,000
The plateau of the Mississippi valley, stretching through
the centre of the State of Missouri, is also broken, along the
banks of the Missouri river, into a series of hillocks. The
bottom lands along the river being very fertile, are adapted
for Indian corn and hemp. The latter requires a great deal
of manual labour to prepare it for market, and hence, like
tobacco, it is chiefly raised by slave labour. ‘The land, how-
ever, in the interior of the State, being less accessible, is
taken up by freeimen.
Tt is to be regretted that the ‘“ Missouri Compromise,”
which excluded slavery. from the territories of the United
States north of latitude 36° 30', has been set aside by tole-
rating tho holding of slaves in Kansas; although, at the same
time, it is not very probable that this territory can ever sup-
port many slaves upon the land—pcerhaps the number can
never excced a half-year’s natural increase of the slave popu-
lation of the Union, which is now close upon 60,000, ~
It should be remembered that tho plateau of tho Missis-
sippi valley extends but a short distance beyond the Missouri
into Kansas. o—> SIT B
Z
weargia
to the same law. Could wo find, therefore, the
cause uf tho barometer standing lower ut one
place than at another, and why it often remains
dow though the wind is blowing towards a certain
j| area, we should be able to explain nearly all the
phenomena of storms. We have seen that this
} same law holds in the ease of the belt of low baro-
meter at the cquator and in the. sea-breeze, and
we shall now trace it in the north-easter of North
America,
The north-casters of Britain and the United
States are precisely similar in their action to the
sea-breeze. At the surface of the ground, » lower
barometer exists to the south-west, which is the
cause of. the oir being put in inotion towards
that quarter. The could north-east wind flows
towards the warm svuth-west for the same reason
that the cold air resting upon the sca flows to-
>| wards the-land .heated by the rays of the sun.
{The large map of the weather of the morning
-of 10th November brings out this principle very
clearly. The figure, however, exhibits the action
of the north-caster in North Carolina.
Tho north-east wind docs not rise at any
particular spot ina body, but is gradually absorbed
into the upper current A B, and is then carried
tuwards the NE, The warm current that flowed
from the SW. raised the temperature along the
‘Atlantic coast on the 10th, for the air as a middle
current was tianslated from Florida, where its
temperature was 72°; towards Virginia, where the
temperature was little above the frvezing-point.
Need we wonder, then, that the thermometer rose
M from 35° at Thornbury in North Carolina on the
morning of the 10th, to 61° at 9 p.m, with a
1 porth-cast wind.
The north-easters which are developed along the
Atlantic sca-board are inere surface currents, which,
’
. NUKTU-EASTELS, : 345
thuugh blowing in tho direction of the Gulf of Mexico, do
not reach it, because they, are gradually. absorbed into tho
upper current, in the samo way ay the sea-breeze which
flows into the interior. By the figure, we perceive that the
great differenco in the temperature between the Atlantic coast
of North Carolina and the States of Georgia and Alabama
would be quite euflicient of itself to cause the could air at the
surface of the ground on the north to flow. southward.
' The barometer stood .absut two-tenths of au inch below
the meon for the month at Tuscalvosa in. Alabama, while
at the sume time it stood. about two-tenths.of an inch above
the mean.ot Thornbury in North ‘Carolina... The air at
the surface of the ground was thus, in accordance with the
universal law which propels the winds, furced to flow towards
the low buroincter.
. But while the sir at the surface of the ground: in north-
cast storins travels towards the south, the air at a certain
height travels towards the north-cast. Were the theory just
indicated correct, the barometer should stand higher at the
carth’s surface in: Nortli Carolina, aud lower at a certain
height in the atmosphere where the current was SW. (or
the reverse of. the under), than at the: same clevation in
Northern Georgia. This was no doubt the case, and, as it
will be shown, udmits of complete demonstration from the
well-kuown properties of sir.
But before discussing. the subject, I may again point out
tho placo which the north-casters of America vecupy in the
widely extended acrial disturbatices Which begin to the west:
of the Mississippi, and.are propagated to the Atlantic coast.
The south-west current that overlies the. north-east winds of
the north-easters is a modification of the south wind which
fluws from the Gulf of Mexico, Both the surface north-cast
wind and the south-west middle current are overlaid by the
upper current which flows so constantly fro the west of north-
west. In winter, the north-casters are invariably succeeded by
a strong west or north-west wind. The change of wind from
NE, to NW. is brought about in the same way as the change
of wind was effected west of the Mississippi in Lowa (see Plates
2 and 7) from SW. to NW. iu the morning of the 10th by
846 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA,
the lower and colder NW. wind flowing in below and raising
the south wind into the upper current, The north-west
wind enters below the north-cast wind, and thus often causes
the wind to change from NE. to NW..
As the southerly winds are propagated from west to cast
over the United States, they reach the Atlantic coast of the
Southera State of Georgia sooner than the Northern State of
Maine; but the former is more to the westward than the latter.
Hence the north-casters sometimes begin in the south, and
are propagated along the Atlantic coast from SW. to NE.;
and like the NW, wind is also first felt on the Atlantic coast
of Florida and Georgia, because that part of tho sea-buard is
farthest west.
T have already said that north-cast winds are much more
common in the New England States and Lower Canada
during the passage of storms from west to ca.t than they are
in the Southern States.* This circumstance I attribute to
the peculiar physical features of the country. The physical
features of ony country must be considered in accounting
for the minor and local courses of the winds on the ap-
proach of.storms, ‘The large map (Plate V1) of tho weather
of 10th November, ag already mentioned, shows that the ~
wind was north-east at Montreal, and blowing right towards
the south-west winds which were prevailing in tho Ohio
valley. The direction in which the clouds were moving at
Montreal is not-given, but in the north-western part of the
State of New York the clouds were coming from the south-
west, as represented by the naked arrow in the chart (Plate VI).
The rise of 23 degrees of temperature in twenty-four hours at
Montreal could only be accounted for by the warmth and
moisture brought from the south and west by the current
which overlaid the NE, wind. The figure (p. 347) is an ex-
agecrated section of the elevation of the country between the
mouth of the Mississippi and Montreal, The distance is about
1400 imiles in ao straight line, Tho direction of the winds
and the temperatures ag at 7 AM. of the 10th November
© Thin agrees with Eapy's 18th Generalization, ‘In the northern parts of
tho Uatted States, the whid generally tn great storms wots in from the north of
erst, wid Corminates fom the north of went.— Deport to the Navy, ,
NORTH-EASTELS,
are given, The height of the barometer at
Warrington Navy Yard, near the mouth of
the Mississippi, was 29.98 inches, while at i ___
Montreal, 118 feet above the level of the
sea, it was 30.11 inches; adding 1-10th of
an inch for this higher elevation to reduce
it to the sea level, the barometer would
stand at 30.2 inches at Montreal, and 29.98
at Warrington as in the woodcut.
The source of the Ohiv is only 1250
feet above the Gulf of Mexico, though about
1200 miles distant from it. The ascent of
the cotintry from the Gulf to the source
of the Ohio is, therefore, little more than
a foot toa mile. The wind was southerly
over this vast slope on the morning of the
10th November, and raising its tempera-
ture. The thermometer, as already stated,
rose 23 degrecs at Montreal in 24 hours, in
consequence of au upper current bringing a
higher temperature from the south, This
warmer and lighter air caused the baro-
meter to full a third of an inch in the same
time at Montreal.
Notwithstanding that the baromcter
stood fully two-tenths of an inch lower
on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico than at
Montreal on the St. Lawrence, the surface
winds are southerly along the Gulf and in
the Ohio valley. But this circumstance is
easily accounted for when it is recollected
that the temperature of the air was 51°
higher at the south station than at the
north. The air was thus 51--480ths denser
at Montreal than at West Florida, There-
fore, at the height of 10,000 feet the baro-
Incter must have stood 7-10the of an inch
of merenry lower at Montreal than on the
shores of tho Gulf of Mexico; or, as shown
°
¢
%
&
¥
at 10000 Feet
meter 20.98 inches
temperature
2
ry Ss
ca
1g
EB
(om
°
3)
vt
~
i
8
wo 4
a
&
‘ne
2
>
ms
by
se
oe
coy
:
a
5
Barometer50.2inches
~ 848 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA.
in the figure, the height of the barometer at 10,000 feet at
the two places will be 20.25 inches and 20.98 inches respee-
tively, The lower barometer at the higher clevation causes
the middle current to flow towards the NE., while the higher
barometer at the surface of the earth causes the air to‘rush
over the Jand towards the south. This is only the same
forces which are scen in the case of the sea-breeze,
The physical features of the country are favourable to the
oe of north-cast winds in Lower Canada and the
New England States during the passage of storms from west
to cast. The southerly winds from the Gulf of Mexico are
drawn over a vast slope of 1200 miles, in consequence of the
barometer in winter generally ‘standing higher at a certain
elevation in the Southern States than in the north, owing to
the difference of temperature. This has the effect of causing
the middle current to be southerly in Canada, while the lower
is reactionary, or from the riorth-cast. ‘The same reasoning
applies to the North Atlantic coast, where NE. winds are
very common in winter during the passage of storms from west,
to cast.
Though there had been no other forces in operation than
those arising from the difference in temperature at the two
places, West Florida and Montreal, on the 10th November,
there would have been sufficient to have produced the winds
that were prevailing betwixt them on that day. But thero
are other causes which give great local intensity to the action
of north-east winds, andl which will bo afterwards considered,
Many of the north-casters of America are the effects of
the lower winds rotating with the higher currents. The wind
at the surface of the earth docs net rise at any particular spot,
but gradually rises, and is carried away by the higher current.
Strictly speaking, there: is no’ focal arca, for the wind at the
surface of the earth probably rises over the whole extent over
which clouds form: in the higher current.
Not only does this gradual ascent of the lower wind into
the upper current take place in the case of “north-easters,” in
which the motion of the air above is diametrically opposite to
that below, but the same mode of action takes place at all
angles. On this principle, azne-tenths of the south-east winds
NORTI-EASTERS, 849
in Britain are overlaid by south-west currents, into which they
ascend, I shall soon come to notice the gradual rise of tho
southerly winds from the Gulf of Mexico into the cold and
dry current which constantly prevails from the west in the
higher strata of the atmosphere over the United States.
There is always a development of north-east winds in
some part of the Northern States in almost cvery winter
storm. Dr. Hare puts the query :—‘ Whether there is not
another distinct kind of storm known and recognized as the
‘north-easter, or ‘north-eastern gale,’ which has been
distinguished from the ‘south-caster,’. so called by its direc-
tion, its longer endurance, lesser vislence, and by its not
being usually followed after a brief lull by a north-wester, nor
any violent wind in a direction directly opposite to that in
which it blew at the beginning of the storm?”
It is highly probable that there is little or no santerial
difference in the action of the long continued north-easter and
‘the ordinary storms of winter, further than that as the north-
west or terminating wind of the American storms often travels
much more slowly, or, in other words, is less vivlent during the
warmer scason, and thus the action between th. NE. wind
and middle current from the SW. continues longer. Thus,
the NE. wind might have continned to rotate with the middlo
SW. currert from the morning of tho 10th November to the
morning of the 13th along the Atlantic coast, as the NW.
wind was only progressing from Fort Snelling, Minnesota, at
the rate of 10 miles an hour, whereas the NE. could not have
blown more than 30 hours in the January (1855) storm,
when the cold current progressed from the Western States at
the rate of considerably more than 30 miles an hour.
Indeed, I esteem it a most important fact to be kept in
mind, that storms are propagated from west to easé, with much
greater repidity in winter than in summer. To this 1 would
particularly call the attention of Espy, for F rather think it is
sufficient to show that there cught to be no distinction drawn
between the coursa which rains pursue in winter and in
summer. The north-west wind is almost invariably the ter-
minating wind in storms at all scasons in the Northern States,
but it rarely blows with violence in summer over a great area of
350 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA,
country as it docs in winter. This wind being warm and
elastic in summer, cannot violently overturn, 08 it does in
winter, the hot and invist winds from the Gulf of Mexico,
when it is denser, and when the difference betwixt its tem-
perature and that of the south winds is fur greater. ‘I'he
great difference in the temperature of theso two winds in
winter is the chief propelling power of the winds in tho
American storms, At this point of tho outline, wo shall
now glance at
The Thunder Storms and Tornadoes of the United States.
In summer, the west and north-west winds of the United
States are distinguished by a sky of dazzling brightness. Not
a speck of vapour is usually scen in the firmament; as Mrs. .
Stowe * with great poetic beauty writes :—" The sky of that
firm clear blue, the atinoxpherc of that crystalline clearness
which often gives to the American landacapo such a sharply-
defined outline, and to the human system such an intense cone
sciousness of life”’ The atmosphere retains its purity until
the south winds blow; when it first becomes more opaque,
then clouds form in the upper current, and drift from wese to
east. For this reason the thunder stonns and tornadoes of
the United States, north of the 35th parallel of latitude, have
a course from test to east ; in the Northern States and Canada
it is usually from the north of west to the south of east, as the
upper current has this course in these latitudes.
In summer, the differenco of the temperature of the south
and of the west winds being much less, it is more diflicult to
trace the atmospheric changes; but, in fact, there is much Jess
to trace, ag the atmosphere over the United States is not
disturbed in the same violent manner as in winter. No doubt,
some of the disturbances, such as the tornadocs, are of a very
violent character, but, like the “ white squalls” at sea, they
are very local.
The atmospheric phenomena vf the summer, however, are
deeply interesting to the meteorologist; and their study tends
* Dred, chap. xxiii.
FLUCTUATIONS OF BAROMETER. 351
to throw great light upon the conditions which impart the
peculiar features to the winter storms.
In the Southern Statce, the tcraperature varies little in
summer, as they are not subject to the craptiuns of northerly
winds at that season, ‘The barometer is also remarkably
steady. Professor Espy's charts show that the variation at
Key West is then only that of the four daily fluctuations which
take place with so much reguiarity within the tropics.*
In the Northern States, tha temperature and barometer
fluctuate much Jess in sumincr than in winter. We do not
find any such contrasts prevailing over the United States as
at lOth November 1854. But the fluctuations of. tempera-
ture and pressure are still very considerable in the north even
in summer. The facts bear out Dalton’s views of the fluctua-
tions of the barometer being caused by the fluctuations in the
temperature or density of the air at the carth’s surface. The
following statement of results of obecrvations for 1854, made
at St. Martin, Isle Joss, ncar Montreal, by Charles Small-
wood, M.D., brings out the law very strikingly +-—
Mean Mean | Range of Range of
Barometer. | Temp | 3 The
Tanuary voeccceseseees | 29516 | 10.922 1.519 78.5°
February... sees 520" | 12.20 1.148 V7
March... 024 25.84 3.076 60.4
April. 440 37.75 0.991 52.2
May... 731 57.17 0.708 60.7
dine ‘314 | Ga'a0 0536 46.6
July... i 216 | F620 0 6u5 48.5
August . 19 | 6831 0.482 48.2
_ Beptember, | 80.001 | b80t 0.847 64.2
~ Octobsr....,. | 29.949 1 48.10 1 162 65.5
November, ‘i 104 82.94 1.542 506
December ......eccseeee Bo | 7.35 1.534 78.1
As the range of the thermometer increases, that of the
* Espy accounte for the daily fluctsationa of tho barometer as follows :—
© When the sun rises, the air begins to expand by heat; this expansion of the air,
especially of that near the surface of the carth, lifts the strata of air above,
which producea a reaction, cansing the burometer to rise; and the greatest rise
of the barometer takea ploce when the increase of beat in the lower parts of the
atmosphere is most rapid—-that is about 9 or 10 aos, The barometer from that
time begins to fall; and at the moment of maximum heat, when the air is
neither expanding vor cvat-avting, tho barometer indicates the exact weight
852 CLIMATE OF NORTIT AMERICA.
barometer also increases. The mean height of the barometer
at Montreal during winter is also rather remarkable, for it is. .
nearly half an inch less at that season than in summer.
The upper current from the west prevails with great
constancy in summer. The south surface winds are also
much more common at that season. In fact, the great fer-
tility of the Mississippi valley, as already stated, is to be
ascribed to the trade winds being diverted northwards over
the United States and Canada. As in winter, the barometer
fells with a southerly and rises with a westerly’ wind. Ina
communication, dated 14th July 1855, Professor Henry writes
mo:— Wo have had a remarkable summer with the prevae
lenco of NW. wind, Tho wind from the south sets in at
Jutervala with a gradual dinduution of barometric column,
and an Inercase of motnture, a tottering equilibrium in proe
duced, A bouleversement then takes placo, and the whole
breaks up with a thundor-storm, ‘This state of things las
existed a number of times during the last two months,”
Thero aro somo curious facts connected with the meteoro-
logy of tho summer montha of the United States. According
to the passage from Mr. Phelps’ communication already given,
the clouds that: bring the rains on the Rio Grande are called
*« gulf clouds,” and float in the southerly wind. I also learned
from the planters in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabaina, that
the thunder clouds float in the south winds. This is quite
the aaine as occurs in Dritain; but the thunder clouds, as
already indicated, in tho latitude of Washington (38°), drift
from west to east at the very samo time that the southerly
wind is blowing at the carth’s surface. Mr. Peale, tho
of the atmosphere. Tho barometer continuca to descend on account of tho
diminishing tension of the air and consequent sinking upon itself as the evening
advances, and ita greatest depression in about 4 or Br. At this moment the
Uaromoter fulicates o leas presnure thin tho true weight of the atmoxphoro,
The whole unper parts of the atmonphera have now acquired a mdmen(uin downe
ward, which, na the motion dimiitahed, causes tho barometer to rise above the
mean. Thiwtakea placo at tho moment whon the dimimutton of tho motion
downwarda fa the most rapid, ‘Thia maxim of rive, which takes place about
10 rar, fe amall when compared with that at or LO aa An the barometer
now stands aleve the mean, {must necemmerlly dencend tow moan at tho
manent when the alr ty netthor Increasing nor dimlnishing in tumporature,
which ts Jurt before sunciie," + Lepore ta the Nang Department,
THUNDER-STORMS, 38538
naturalist at Washington, informed me that this phenomenon
is so constant, and the course of tho thunder-clouds is so
nearly from west to east, that in going out there to walk, ho
never thought of taking an umbrella, if the thunder-clouds
were a little to the south or to the north of duc west; but if
the clouds were duo west, he was sure to have rain. On
the other hand, in the New England States and Canada, the
thunder-clouds usually drift from a point or two north of west
to a point or two souik of east, at the same moment that
the southerly wind blows at the earth’s surface.
In the first thunder-storin that I encountered in tho
United States, I was rather struck with the phenomenon of
the clouds drifting in the upper current from tho west, while
the whid-blew from the south, ft occurred at Baratoga on
the Oth Septentber GiS4. At sunrixo tho temperature wos
70° with a dow polit of 69°; tho thermometer at 2 pM.
reached 90°, Notwithstanding the great heat, tho wind blow
strongly from south by west, bul thunder-clouds floated in tho
upper cnrrent from tho north of west. Thunder with much
rain occurred at night, and next day the wind changed to the
north of west, end the sky bevamo beautifully transparent,
with the thermometer at 82° at 2 p.m.
The cause of this peculiar action of tho thunder-clouds
floating at a higher clevation, at right angles to the warm
southerly wind, is casily explained. So long as the wind. is
west or north-woat in summer, the sky retains its transpa-
renuy; but when it changes to a southerly quarter, it doas
not blow moro then a day or two before clouds begin to
form. Tho clouds do not often float in the south wind, but
almost wlways in that upper current which prevails a0 con-
stuntly from the west. This clearly shows that the upper
enrrent rubs off a portion of the moist and hot wind from
the Gulf of Mexico, and forms clouds, for thoy only appear
after the southerly wind blows for some time, and these clouds
reveal tho existence of the upper current. his action of
tho upper current robbing the lower is constantly taking place,
both in simmer end. in wintor, when clouds form and drift
in tho upper curront.
Aa the heat and ravisture increase in the south winda
2A
854 OLIMATE OF NORTH: AMERICA,
below, tho clouds increase above, and at last produce thundor-
storms. Dr. Dwight, well known in this country from hie
theological writings, has given a most accurate description of
these storms in his “ ‘Travels in New England." On one occa-
sion, he says, “Tho meridional line upon which T stood was
crossed by the storm several miles to the south. During the
whole day the wind had blown from the south, and continued
to blow in the same dircction on the surface throughout the
afternoon, without a moment's intermission, But had tho
wind,” says ho, “which carried the cloud when it passed over
the meridian, swept the surface, the wind, for a time at least,
must have been. entirely stopped. This, however, was not
the fact, even for a moment.” On another occasion, 1809—
“a thunder-storm passed over New Haven, from the north-
west, with great rapidity. It continued, I judge, from.an hour
to an hour anda half. But though the clouds moved rapidly to
the south-east, a south-west wind blew the whole of that day,
and while the thunder-storm was overheard, with great violence.”
The increase in the strength of the south-west wind, as
the clouds drift overhead from the north-west, shows that
the lower and upper current inflnence each other on the
passage of the clouds. The increased strength of the south-
west wind docs not extend beyond the cloud. This clearly
indicates that part of the south-west wind ascends into the
cloud, and that the air had so far descended on the borders
of the cloud. The mode in which clouds, floating in the
upper current, influence the air at the surface of the earth,
must now be noticed. The mode also in which the winds
are driven in thunder-storms is peculiar; though in more
widely-extended storms, they are influenced by the same law.
Humboldt, in his celebrated voyage from Europe to South
Amcrica, relates, “In reaching the latitudes of the trades,
the wind fell gradually the farther we receded from the Afri-
can coast: it was sometimes smooth water for several hours,
and then short calins wero regularly interrupted. Black, thick
clouds, marked by strong outlines, rose in the cast, and it
seemed as if a squall would have forced us to haul our top-
sails; but the breezo freshened anew, there fell large drops of
rain, and the storm dispersed. Mcanwhile it was curious to
SQUALLS, 855
observe tho effects of sovoral black, isolated, and very low
clouds which passed the zenith, We felt the force of the
wind augmont or diminish progressively, according os small
bodies of vesicular vapour approached or receded, It is by
tho help of the squalls, which alternate with dead calms, that
the passage from the Canary Islands to the Antilles, or southern
coast of America, is made in tho raonths of June and July.”
In these squalls there was a calm both before and after
the passage of the cloud. The motion of tho air at tho sure
face of tho sea must havo been anuch the same as if the whole
air under the cloud were in a state of vertical rotation aroumd
a horizontal axis. There is a great resemblance between the
motion of the air under the cloud and that in the sea breeze.
Illustrations of the same principle are met with every day in
showery weather, os it is well known that a gust of wind and
a shower of rain or snow accompany cach other. The sea-
breeze is produced by the difference of temperature in the air
over the sca, and of that over the land. In squalls the dis-
turbance arises from the evolution of latent caloric, by the con-
densation of watery vapour expanding the air, and rendcring
it lighter. :
As the squall or thunder-clouds drift over the surface, they -
tend to draw up the air. The formation of clouds, and con-
sequent precipitation of moisture, are chiefly produced, as
Espy has demonstrated, by the ascent of comparatively moist
and warm air from below. Expansion from diminished pres-
sure lowers the temperature, and the watery vapour is preci-
pitated as clouds and rain. The condensation cf vapour
sets freo a large amount of latent heat, which expands the
air within the cloud, and thus produces an increased buoy-
ancy. The iempcrature of the air within the cloud being
higher than that on the outside, in consequence of the evolu-
tion of latent heat, the passage of a thunder-cloud over any
place almost invariably disturbs the air at the carth’s surface,
Tho oxtrication of heat is a motive power which constantly
cansces the air to ascend in the front of. the storm as the
clouds drift along in the upper current,
Unless thunder-clowds were constantly replenished by
vapour being condensed by the rise of air from below, it is
356 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA.
physically impossible that they could continue to throw down
such Jargo quan.ities of rain over extensive tracts of country,
as they aro sometimes known to do, At no time, even within
the tropics, is tho air over ono spot capable of precipitating
wore than three inches of rain,
I fad, from personal intercourse, that Espy, Gibbes, and
Redfield all admit that the oir beneath thunder-clouds has a
motion somewhat resembling a vertical rotation, with a hori-
zontal axis. And I think tho gradation is easy towards apply-
ing a modification of the same principle to tho action of the
eastern storms, Jt also must be regarded as a moving power
tn the case of the south winds of the United States, both in sum-
mer and winter, at every spot over which clouds are forming
in the upper current. That it is so in thunder-storms, when
the upper and lower currents are at right angles to each
other, Dr. Dwight’s observations incontestably prove.
The tornadocs of the United States seem to be a more
intense development of the same forces that produce the
thunder-storins, These terrific disturbances have long occu-
pied the attention of naturalists. They are usually confined
within a very limited areca; but their violence is such that they
uprovt all the trees in the paths they pursue through tho
American forests. Their breadth is not more than a few
hundred yards, and the air, except in that narrow track, is littlo
disturbed. In‘the Southern States, along the shore of the
Gulf of Mexico, the tornadocs have usually a course from
south-west to north-east; and in the Northern, from north-
west to south-east (Hare), These courses are the same as
the thunder-storms pursue in the same latitudes.
The tornadoes have been ably investigated by Hare,
Espy, Redfield, Henry, and Bache. Myr. Redfield con-
siders that the observations indicate a spiral, but, at same
time, tnward motion of the air, The others that the motion
is chiefly directly in-blowing. . But the rise of air in the cen-
tre is admitted by all, The condensation of moisture as the
air rises, and becomes cooled by diminished pressure, is held
by Espy to be sufficient to account for all the phenomena.
The violence of wind, as the tornado cloud passes over any
apot, is merely the intensified action of the agents that all
WEST INDIA HUBRIOANES, 857
partics admit come into play in thunder-storms, and which
have been so accurately described by Dr. Dwight.* The
ascending currents in these storms aro sufficiently demon-
strated by the large quantitics ‘of rain which fall over the
tracks which they pursue, Branches of trees have also been
sommctiines carried up to great heights in the atmorphcre, and
have descended to the ground covered with ico.
Hurricanes of the West India Islands,
A few weeks’ study of the meteorology of the American
contincut will satisfy one of the great arca over which atmos-
pheric disturbances are propagated at all scasons. Thun-
der-storms and tornadoes are mercly local mauifestations
of general disturbances of the equilibrium. The accounts
given in the newspapers of the violent thunder-storms
which occurred in the beginning of Septemlcr 1854, in the
United States, drew my attention, in the first place, to the
great arca over which they were manifested; and, in the
second, to the connection between the thunder-storms of the
Northern States and the hurricancs of the West India
Islands. In one of the lectures which I gave at Wash-
ington, I called the attention of the Americau men of scicnce
to this subject in the following terms :—
“During the first days of September (1854) the wind
was generally from the south; the weather became excessively
hot and oppressive ; and the newspapers in all parts of .ne
country were recording the high tempcratures, when, on the
6th, thunder-storms took place nearly simultaneously in Iowa,
INinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, New Eng-
* The same atmospheric conditions seemed to exiat before the occurrence of
the tornado which desolated part of the city of New Brunswick in New Jeracy,
in June 1835, as those described by Dr. Dwight a8 prevailing dur'ng thunder-
storins in New England. Professor Johnston, in his paper read before the
Avademy of Natural Sziznces, says, “The oir of the morning, and indeed tho
whole of the day, up to the time of the teinado, was unusually soliry, At four
o'clock the sun was still unobscured at Princetown; but within Lalf an hour, «
cloud from the north-west wad reached that place, and a shower cf rain, accom.
panied bya brisk wind from tw eouh-west, had conmenced, The ovening con-
tinued tranquil until ten o'clock, when ancther shower of rai fell, accompanied
with some wind."
358 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA.
land States, and Canada. Large quantities of rain fell iu
various parts of the country. ‘[he storms were in several
places somewhat locally developed. At some places the
north-west upper current reached the surface of the earth
for a time, but the south-west again blew as before, until a
general change of the wind to the north-west took place, and
caused a great fall of temperature, At Saratoga the ther-
mometer stood at 96° in the shade on the afternoon of the
Gth, and at 46° on the morning of the 9th at Rochester. It is
a fact worthy of attention, that a severe storm, amounting to
a hurricane, swept the north-eastern coast of the United
States just about the time that this great change was taking
place in the north and west. Jt ts certainly well worthy of
the investigation of American meteorologists to ascertain whether
any coniection exists between the weather in the North-Western
States und the hurvicanes of the West India Islands, for tn
this instanec the coincidence was remarkable.”
T was led to suspect that the hurricanes of the. West
India Islands were but the autumnal varicty of the same dis-
turbances which take place in the winter storins. Professor
fspy was then inclined to draw oa distinction betwixt tho
manner in Which the autumnal and winter storms were propa-
gated. I had occasion to express my doubts to him on this
subject more than once, from the facts which I gathered con-
cerning the hurricane that occurred at Charleston on the 8th
September 1854.
On reaching Charleston, Professor Gibbes put into my
hands a printed memoir, containing his investigations of the
hurricane, which had deluged a large extent of rice-grounds* in
that neighbourhood. He and Mr. W. C. Redfield, New York,
had arrived at the conclusion that this was a rotatory storm,
and that the course of its axis was along the coast from
Florida to Newfoundland, Bat from my observations of
the weather at that time, in tho Northern States and
Canada, J was led to infer that these autuinnal West India
hurricanes are Hike the winter sturms consequent on certain
changes which tale place in the north-western territories of
‘the United States, With all deference to Espy, for whose
* Seo Chupter X.
CUBA HURRICANE. 3859
profound knowledge of the physics of meteorology I enter-
tein the greatest respect, I still believe thut the modus oper-
andi of the two is similar. This opinion has been con-
firmed since I have had un opportunity of examining the
valuable observations ccllected by Mr. Redfield on the cele-
brated Cuba hurricane of from 4th to 7th October 1844. I
am inuch indebted to this gentleinan for presenting me with
the interesting results of his investigations of this widely-
extended atmospheric disturbance, although I do not think that
the facts, by any means, support his particular views. It
appears to me, after further investigation und reflection, that
the chief difference betwixt the winter and autumnal storms
consists in the propagation of certain of the attendant pheno-
mena, from west to east, being from three to four times more
rapid in the winter than in the autumn storms. The deve-
lopment of certain of the phenomena is also more intense in
the low latitudes.
Both Espy and Redficld have collected a vast number of
observations relating to the particular phenomena of tlie
Cuba hurricane of 1844. According to the observations
which Mr. Redfield has furnished, a “norther” set in at Vera
Cruz at 4 pat, of the 2d October, and continued til! the 6th.
Now, it is well worthy of remark, that the “norther” did not
sect in at Western Yueatan until the 3d, @ fact which demon-
strates that tt was propagated from west to east in that low lati-
tude, The other observations which have been given by Mr.
Redfield also indicate that the “ norther” was propagated over
the Gulf of Mexico from west to cast, as in the winter storms,
Tn the Cuba hurricane, Mr. Redfield supposes that the
centre of a vast whirlwind of 1000 miles in diameter, passed
froin the Tloudyras coast in a straight line over Cuba, and
along the coast of the United States, But there are innu-
werable chjcctious to such a sapposition ; and even the obser-
vations which he las furnished are entirely against it. Tho
obec vations are easily reconciled with the views we have
indicated in discussing the atmospheric changes from the 9th
to t4th November 1854.
The northerly winds which were observed by Mr. Red-
field, and which he iniagines were the left-hand side of a vast
_ 860 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA,
rotating gale, wero merely a continuation of the cold winds
prevailing at the same moment west of the Mississippi, froin
the shore of tho Gulf of Mexico to Lake Superior. On the
other hand, the southerly and casterly winds that prevailed in
tho eastern parts of the Gulf of Mexico were merely those
constituting the trade drift current, which was diverted by
the “norther” in the west of the Gulf, in the sume man-
ner as on the 12th November 1854, (See Plate 3.) We find
similar contrasts existing during the time that the hurricane
was raging in Cuba, betwixt the temperature of tho air to
the west of the Mississippi and on the Atlantic coast. The
following temperatures at sunrise of tho 4th October are
taken from Mr. Redficld’s collection of observations :—
WEST OF MISSIBSIFPI. ATLANTIC COAST,
Fort Snelling ‘ . 34 |- Halifax, Nova Scotia . . tf
Fort Crawfork . . 43 MNampden, Maine . . 64
Fort Smith - 49 Boston, Masanchusctts . . 59
Fort Towson : » 45 New York - + 60
Fort Jessup ‘ - 62 oe $. Caroling > | 67
St. Augustine, Horde - + 70
i Key West. 76
On looking at Professor Espy’s chart of the weather for
4th October, 1844, I was somewhat surprised to find a black
line drawn through the Western forts, to show that the
barometer stood high there at that time; and a red fine on
the north-castern coast of the United States, to show that the
barometer stood low there. As in the weather of November
1854, the cold air in the west caused the barometer to rise,
aud the warm air causcd it to fall, below the mean.
The warm and moist weather which prevailed on the At-
Jantic coast on the 4th October 1844, was first felt west of
the Mississippi, and was subsequently propagated from west
to cast over the-continent, as in the weather from 9th to 14th
November 1854. Thus, at the Western forts the temperature
was comparatively high on the 2d October, and at the same time
comparatively low on the Atlantic coast, At Fort Snelling,
Minnesota, the temperature on that day was 48° at sunrise,
and at Fort Brady, on the south-east end of Lake Superior,
it was 50°; but it was no more than 21° at Hanover, New
Hampshire; and 27° at Hampden in Maine. At the two last-
CUBA HURRICANE. 861
mentioned places, a rise of temperature and fall of barometer
took placo as the warm current from the south was esta-
blished on the Eastern States.
But the observations which. have been collected jointly
by Espy and Redfield, further show that the low temperature
with the high barometer first took place west of the Mis-
sissippi, in a long line from north to sorth, and travelled
from west to east. Thus, at Fort Snelling, the temperature”
fell from 44° at sunrise of the 3d to 34° at sunrise of the 4th
October; but at Fort Brady, on the Lakes, which is consi-
derably farther east, the temperatures were 46° and 45° at
sunrise on the 4th and Sth respectively. The temperature
was exactly the same at Detroit, Michigan, on these days,
and still stood at 46° at sunrise of the 6th, when it had fallen
to 34° at Fort Brady. The temperature was 33° on the morn-
ing of 7th at Detroit, being later in falling, as the station is
more easterly. At Toronto, Canada West, the thermometer
indicated 44° on the 4th, 48° on the 5th, 48° on the 6th, and
33° on the 7th. Indeed, all. these observations show that the
cold weather travelled from zest to east. Mr. Redfield bas
not given any observations of temperature beyond the 7th
October, and therefore I am unable to trace the time at which
the low temperatures occurred at Halifax, Nova Scotia, The
eurves of high barometer, as traced both by Espy and Red-
field, establish the fact that a long line of high barometric
pressure, extending from north to south, travelled from west
to east, and kept pace with the low teinperature.
It also shows the parallelism between certain of the pheno-
mena of the winter storms and of the autumnal hurricanes, that
the temperature in the Cuba hurricane of 1844 fell sooner
at Charleston, South Carolina, than at Boston, Massachusetts,
At the former, the temperature was 60° at sunrise of the
5th October, and only one degree lower at Boston, which
is 800 miies to the north-east. In fact, Espy’s chart* of the
5th Ocicber indicates that the north-west wind had cut off
the south-west wind as far north as New York,. while tho
south-west wind was thon blowing in Maino and in Nova
Scotia. The action seemed to bo precisely similar to that
* Espy's Report to the Scerctary of the Navy Department.
362 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA.
which took place on tho 12th Movember 1854 in Florida,
Alabama, and Gcorgia.
In tho lectures I delivered at Washington, I threw out
the hint, that as “striking changes in the temperature of the
weather are produced in autumn by the colder wind from
the west descending and bearing the moister stream before
it; when this hot stream is extended along the Atlantic
coast, v in all probability becomes the vehicle of the hurri-
canes which proceed from the West India Islands.” On exa-
mining the plencmena of the Cuba hurricane of October 1844,
T find they entirely bear out this view, inastnuch as the cold
north-west wind, as has been stated, made its appearance at
Fort Snelling, Minnesota, on the 4th, while the hurricane
began to blow with fury at Key West in the afternoon, and a
high range of temperature prevailed along the Atlantic coast.
Coincident with the low temperatures to the west of tho
Mississippi, a “norther,” according to Redficld’s observa-
tions, prevailed on the west coast of the Gulf of Mexico,
This cold air from the continent displaced the warm air rest-
ing on the Gulf of Mexico, and produced the “ norther " at
Tampico and Vera Cruz, Vera Cruz is 2000 miles south of
Fort Brady; Michigan, and the winds seemed to have been
westerly or uortherly over this immense area on the morning
of the 4th October. Opposite conditions with respect to
temperaturo and moisture extended from Key West Reef,
south of Florida, to Ualifax, in Nova Scotia, a distance of
1700 miles,
The parallelism, indeed, in the outlines of the general
phenomena of the Cuba hurricane of October 1844, and
the weather from the 9th to 14th November 1854, is ap-
parently so close, that the alterations of a few figures in
the small charts which I have given of the weather | of 11th
and 12th November (Plate 3), would represent with great
truth the atmospheric conditions for the 4th, 5th, and 6th
October 1844, The hurricane was developed in its: greatest
intensity when the cold westerly wind reached the Atlantic
coast. This is a point that now requires consideration,
No doubt tho intense action of the West India hurri-
canes has a progression from south-east to north-west over the
CUBA BUBRICANE. 363
Lesser Antilles, The intense action of these disturbances is
confined to a comparatively limited area. The thunder-clouds
and storins, as well os the hurricanes, drift in this direction
over the West India Islands. Their course in these low lati-
tudes is owing to the abnormal nature of the tropical winds, .
as represented in Piate 1, and which was first pointed out by
Yolney. It will be remembered also that, the thunder-storms
and tornadocs of Texas, Louisiana, and Florida bave a course
from south to nurth, because the clouds float in the southerly
wind, and propagate the disturbances in that direction. In the
Middle and Northern States, on the other hand, the thunder
and tornado clouds float in the westerly upper current, and
hence they propagate the disturbances from west to east.
The hurricane clouds of 5th and 6th October 1844, drifted
in the lower latitudes in the southerly current which prevailed
off the Atlantic coast from Florida to Nova Scotia. But it
must be observed that this warm and light current caused
the barometer to attain its minimum depression ‘along
the Atlantic coast before the great depression occurred on
the Sth at Key West, Florida Reefs. Irom Espy's reduc-
tion of the barometer, it appears that the pressure was
below tho ican ino straight line from Koy West to the
Stato of Maing. ‘This Hie wan ovidently near the wextern
odyo of the warm current from tho troples, ‘This current
floating tha huvrleane clouds In the Jow latitudes uf Cuba
and the Florida coast, caused the intense action of the
hurricane to have o course to the north-cast after passing
Key West, os is apparent in Plate 8, the charts of which aro
cupied from Expy's report,
On the 6th October a stormy condition of the atmosphere
extended from latitude 28° to 42°, and from the Florida
coast to Bermuda. The great extension of the storm on
that day evidently arose from local manifestations of the
disturbed equilibrium arising frum the diminished pressure
caused by the current from the tropic. The storm was
propagated to tho cast of Key West aswell as to the north-
east. The manner in which this propagation takes place in
this and in the winter storms will be afterwards considered.
The terrific hurricane that occurred in Cuba and: at
364 CLIMATE OF NORTIL AMERICA,
Koy Weat on tho 5th October must bo regarded as a local
development of disturbed equilibrium, which was consequent
on a descent of the dry and cold upper current in the
Western States, displacing the warm in the western parts of
the Gulf of Mexico. The upper current is also westerly in
the Gulf of Mexico, and the heating of this current by tho
ascent of air warmed by the extrication of latent caloric must
tend to lower the barometer in the castern parts of the Gulf
and draw the air from the Caribbean Sea.
In regard to the interior phenomena of the West India
hurricanes, I think that Espy’s theory of their action is con-
sistent with all the facts. Violent winds are often obscrved
to blow right towards each other, as the winds eumctimes do
in north-cast and other storms. It is evident that these con-
trary winds, Jike the south-cast and north-cast trade-winds in
the belt of low baroincter, must ascend over the space which
intervenes betwixt then. Ag they ascend, the cold arising
from expansion of the air froin the pressure being diminished,
causes a precipitation of moisture, and a conscquent extrica-
tion of latent caloric. By this means the air is heated in the
region of clouds, and ascending, stretches ‘out above as fast as
it rushes in below. The power of o hurricano is thus main-
tained and propagated from ono part to another,
Professor Expy ineintaing that the wholo force of the
winds generated during hurricanes can bo accounted for by
tho cffeets duo to the extrication of latent calorie, while Pro-
fessor Haro holds that part is due to clectrical agency. In
the caso of the sca-breeze, a considerable body of air is put
and kept in motion by slight differences in the weights of
adjoining columns of air which are unequally heated. Were
such differences in the atmospheric conditions to arise withh.
a short distance of cach other, as on the 10th November
1854 at the mouth of the Mississippi and at Montreal, tre-
mendougs disturbances would ensue. When the distance is
great, the force is diffused in moving the whole body of air
betwixt the stations, The expenditure of power in this
diffused manner may be compared to the flow of the Mississippi
over the lust 1400 miles of its course, whero the descent is
less than threo inches to the mile. On the other hand, when
LATENT CALORIC. 365
the Niagara tumbles over ite great preciptos, ft expends much
powor at once. ‘Tho hurricane may be regarded os an acrial
cataract, only the air is forced upwards, Since a slight fall of
rain often produces such a remerkable diaturbanco as is
noticed on the passage of the squall cloud, what must be
the power evoked by the evolution of latent calorie in hurri-
canes? Six inches of rein bave been known ¢o fail during
the passage of the hurricane clouds. The caloric set free by
the condensation of this amount of water over every squaro
mile is equa! te that which would be generated in the burning
of 2,620,000 tons of coal, allowing 1 Ib. of coal to evapo-
rate 13 Ibs. of water. The clouds of the hurricane thus often
interrupt the omincns calm as suddculy as the smooth flow of
the stream is changed at tae brink of the csacade. .
The grand excepticn te Dalton’s law, that the fluctuations
of tho barometer are cecastoned by fluctuations in the tempera-
ture or density of the air at the surface of the ecrth, occars in
the West India and tropical }:urricancs. In thesc atmospheric
disturbances a depression of two inches of mercury is some-
times observed «vhen the temperature at the earth’s surface is
not increased but rather lowered. Espy’s theory, however,
of this depression of the barometer being due to the heating
and consequent expansion of the air in tho higher beds of the
atmouphere, as all must admit in the caso in the belt of low
barometor at the equater, afi daa ready oud simple oxplanae
tion of it, and the only one that lis been proposed, which fs
consietent with all the facts,
Jt would be inconsistent with this outline of the laws
which regulate the atmospheric disturbances of North
America to enter minutely into the interior phenomena of
the Cuba hurricane of October 1844. It may be observed,
however, that the arrows as laid down on tho small charts of
the weather for 5th and 6th October 1844 (see Plate 8) do
not indicate that the winds were revolving round a centre
where the barometer stood lowest, as has been contended by
Mr. Redfield. lic has supposed that the winds were revolving
round a spot near A at 3 rat. of the 6th Octobcr,-but accord-
ing to spy, the hurricane was most scvere st B, and tho
barometer stood lowest at C. In many instances, however,
366 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA.
the arrows indicate that the winds were blowing towards cach
other, and as at the belt of coristant rains at the equator, still
maintained a low barometer. The minimum barometer had
not reached the 30th parallel of latitude on the afternoon of
the Gth, nor docs it appear to have progressed much farther ..
in a northerly direction, The intense action of the hurricane
was somewhat local, jike the tornadoes of the summer months,
which are only developed after the southerly winds have
blown for some time and disturbed the general equilibrium,
In like inanner the general disturbance which took place on
the Atlantic from Bermuda to the State of Maine seems to
have so far restored the disturbed conditions, that’ the intense
action observed along the Florida coast could not be propa-
gated into higher latitudes, The formation and the drifting
of the thunder and the hurricane clouds in low latitudes in tho
enrrent from the tropics arise from the abnorinal course of the
tropical winds in the Caribbean Seca and Gulf of Mexico.
On looking at the small chart of the weather of 6th
October 1844, in Plate 8, westerly and northerly winds aro
seen prevailing on the land at D; and, indeed, from Florida
to Maine, . Those were the concluding dry winds, which, us
in the winter’ storms, were reducing the temperature over
the whole continent from west to east. This cold current
sweeping the whole States, but with less violence than in
winter,- and causing the barometer. to rise, reached the
coast, while the warm current stretching from the tropics to
Nova Scotia prevailed in the Atlantic. Tn this warm current
was the hurricane developed as well as the high winds which
blew en the Atlantic on the Gth as fur as tho 42d parallel of
latitude. The area over which the stormy conditions existed,
extended from north to south in a long and broad belt, in a
mauner exactly similar as they did on the 10th November
1854.
Mode in which Storms are propagated from West to East
over the United States and Canada.
In tracing the temperature of the air from the 9th to 14th
November 1854, I left out the day temperatures. This was
HYGROMETRY,. 867
done for the purpose of obtaining an estimate of the quantity
of moisture in the air. The Smithsonian meteorological obser-
vations are made throughout the different States, at 7 a.s.-
2 P.M, and 9 p.m; those taken at the’Military Forts, at sunrise,
7AM. and 9pm. Now, it ought to be kept in mind, that Dr,
Anderson, St. Andrews, showed that the temperature of the air
at sunrise is in gencral a close approximation to the dew-point
of the vapour of the atr during the day." Tho observations
which Mr. Redfield has given connected with the Cuba hurri-
cane of October 1844, show the close connection betwixt the
dew-poiut and temperature of the air at sunrise, for at the
Northern Forts the wet and the dry bulb thermometer often
indicate the same degree of heat, showing that the air was at
the time saturated with moisture. Wherefore tt 1a the amount:
of moisture ta the air which determincs the temperature of
the nights. Tn showing the connection between the zise of
temperature and fall of the barometer, and vice versa, 1 have
left out the day temperatures altogether, and taken those at 7
AM.and 9 ¥.a. The amount of moisture in the air being the
chief clement which regulates the morning and night tempera-
tures, is actually the clement which causes the riso and fall
of the barometer, as scen in Plate 5. The hygrometer, and
thermometer have been too little studied when treating of
atmospheric disturbances, as they often indicate the course in
which the great bedy of the air is moving, however irregular
the winds may be at the carth’s surface. Jt may here be
kept in mind, that the air is capable of containing double the
quantity of moisture with every increase of 20 degrees of
heat. On the 10th Nevember 1854, fur example, when tho
temperature of the air at sunrise (7 A.s.) was 51° in Indiana
and Michigan, it contained 4.68 grains of water; while in
some parts of New England, where the temperature was 11°,
it could not contain more than 1.25 grains. ‘There was little:
moisture in the air in Michigan and Indiana a few days before
this date, for the teraperature was low, and consequently we
would have had little hesitation in inferring that the south
wind must have been blowing, for it is well known that mois-
ture does not increase with a north or a west wind, and it
* Edinburgh Philosophical Transactions, vol. xi. p. 161.
868 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA,
could not possibly have come from the Atlantic, for the air
remained cold and dry on the coast,
In this case we are not left to conjecturo, for all tho
arrows on the largo map (Plate 6) show that tho winds
throughout the eastern portions of tho Missiesippi valley wero
southerly on the morning of the 10th November, ‘This south
wind being hot and moist, and consequently light, caused
the mercury in the barometer to stand lower than on the
Atlantic coast, whcre the air was dry, cold, and heavy. Thus
there is an intimate relation subsisting betwixt the winds,
temperature, moisture, and weight of the air, Let us keep
this relation in mind.
Before storms and hurricanes occur on the Atlantic coast
of the United States, the wind secms invariably to Llow from
tho south over Texas and the country drained by tho western
tributaries of tho Mississippi. (Seo Plate 2, representing the
tropical trade drift for Oth November.) ‘Tho south wind can
only be supplied from the western part of the Gulf of Mexico,
which agait must be supplied from the Caribbean Sea. When
the southerly wind blows immediately after the cold westerly
and northerly winds have swept the territories of the United
States, a great rise of temperature ensues; for the warm air
from Yucatan and Vera Cruz will reach Texas in a day or
two, and the air which rested on Texas will in the same time
be carricd os far north as Lake Superior, and the air to the
north of the Lakes might be translated to the confines of the
Arctic circle. The barometer will fall over the whole extent
swept by the warm south winds. Wo need not spcculato
abont the cause of the south winds blowing to the west of the
Mississippi, as no hypothesis can be verified before obser-
vations are extended much further to the north. It is
sufficient for our present purpose that observations prove the
fact. ‘Che existence of this warm and light current affords a
simple explanation of the long line of low barometer which
was first traced by Espy as occurring west of the Mississippi
before the winter storms on the Atlantic coast.
If the slight difference of temperature, and consequently
of the weight of the air over the sca and over the Jand, is
sufficient to create brisk winds on our coast during summer,
CHANGE OF WIND. 809
known as sea-breezes ; and if the slightly lighter air existing
at the equatorial belt of low barometer, calms and rains (seo |
Plate J.), forma the moving power of the trade winds of both
tropics, we should naturally expect,.when the barometer falls
about threo-fourths of an inch of mercury lower in tho Mis-
sissippi valley than on the Atlantic coast, as it did on the 9th”
November (and, according to Espy, in every winter storm),”
that the air should flow from the high barometer on the coast
to the low barometer in the Mississippi valley. Now, it is
a remarkable fact, that as the line of low barometer, with its
attendant storm, is propagated from the Mississippi to the
Atlantic, the winds in the Eastern States begin to blow from
an easterly direction. Though the winds usually spring up
from the east, they vary from south-cast, east, and north-
east, according to locality and other circumstances, of which
wo shall now give a short outline.
According to: Mr. Phelps, it appears that the chango in
the direction of the wind on tho passage of winter storins is
more regular in Texas than in any other part of the con-
tinent. The south wind which causes the-long line of low
barometer west of the Mississippi, and supplies moisture for
the snows and rains, is displaced by the cold winds from the
nerth or north-west. Thue the change of wind is almost
invariably from south to north in Texas,
In the eastern part of the Gulf of Mexico the wind during
storms usually begins to blow from east or south-east, as in
the Nevember storm which we traced, and gradually veers
round to south and south-west, with the temperature increasing
and barometer falling. The wind then changes to north-west,
when the temperature’ falls, and the barometer rises.
Tt appeara very extraordinary that Lieut. Maury, in his “ Physical Geo-
graphy of the Sca," bas taken no notice of the discovery of Espy, a discovery
which baa been verified by: Hare and Loomis, and which must form the starting
point of all discussions on the climatology of North America,
+ Espy’s Second Report to the Secretary of the Navy,
¢ Profeesor Espy, in hie second report, says :—"* In the southern noe of the
United States the wind generally scts in from the south of east, and terminates
from the south of west.” We eo fur agreo with the’ first part of this generaliza-
tion, though we have qualificd it in drawi ing a distinction between the western
and casturn purts of the Gulf of Moxico, The latter part of the gencralization
28
370 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA.
This particular veering of the wind is easily accounted for.
By turuing back to Plate 2, it will be seen that the wiud was
south-cast at Key West on the morning of the 9th Novem-
ber. The air was then flowing towards the line of low baro-
meter, west of the Mississippi. Indeed, the wind at Key
West only formed part of the vast aerial current which was
raising the temperature, and lowering the barometer frum the
Gulf of Mexico to Lake Superior. It has been shown that
a warm southerly current was propagated from west to east
over the United States in November. In accordance with
this fact, we find the wind at Key West gradually veering
round from the south-east on the 9th, to south on the 11th
and 12th (sce Plate 3), when the hot and moist wind from
the tropic was sweeping the coast of the United States. The
wind changed to north or north-west at Key West, shortly after
the cold west current cleared the State of Florida of the
warm southerly winds (see Plate 4).
In the centre of the Gulf of Mexico the temperature
and pressure of the air in winter vary comparatively little.
The warm and moist south winds of the United States, being
supplicd from the trade or tropical winds, create great dis-
turbanccs in winter. Thus, after they raise the temperature,
and cause a dituinished pressure-to the west of the Missis-
sippi, the air to the cast of the Mississippi will be forced
westwards, as south-east winds, in obedience to the law that
air dows from a high towards a low barometer.
When the south-cast wind blows from the Gulf of Mexico
over the South-Eastern States, it becomes warmer, and as soon
as tt becomes as warm as the south wind, which at the same
moment is to the westward, it will have no farther tendency
to blow in that direction, and will naturally become a south
wind. It is for this reason, that after the south-cast wind
blows for some time it veers round to the south or south-
west, and becomes a part of the southerly current, which,
by being lighter, in its turn draws the air on its castern bank
towards it from the south-east. lence the manner in which
is evidently erroneous, for the terminating cold wind in the winter storms is
more northerly aloug the shores of the Gulf of Mexico than in any other part of
the United States,
SOUTH WINDS. 871
the winds are propagated, and veer along the north-eastern
shore of the Gulf of Mexico during storms. :
The southerly wind does not blow Jong before manifesting
that it contains within itself elements which increase its
motion. Clouds form by the ascent of a portion of the air
of the lower moist wind into the upper current, which prevails
almost constantly from the west. The upper westerly cur-
rent, therefore, is constantly rubbing off a part of the warm
surface wind from the Gulf of Mexice. There are good
grounds for believing that this process is carried on over
the whole breadth and length of the southerly winds, and
forms a powerful motive force, which is vastly increased as
soon as rain or snow begins to fall. The more it snows
and rains, the more is the air heated by the extrication
of latent caloric, and the lower the barometer falls. The
southerly winds blow with great fury in winter, as they rapidly
loso their moisture, and have a portion of their upper surface
continually swept off by the prevailing westerly upper cur-
rent.
The southerly winds, it should be remembered, do not blow
toa focal area, and rise in a body into the upper current, but, like
the sea-breeze, rise gradually over the whole area in which they
prevail. In fact, the gusty and irregular manner in which
winds blow at the ecarth’s surface shows that the cause of
propulsion in part is locally developed. As Dr. Dwight has
so well described tho violence of the south winds of sum-
mer when thunder-clouds drift across them from the north-
west, so when tho sky is overcast, as it usually is after the
south winds blow for some time, it is only a manifestation of
the action which is going on in the region of the clouds, and
propelling the winds below. By the condensation of the
watery vapour of the south winds heating the air in the
upper beds of the atmosphere, these winds carry the material
—the clastic vapour—which creates a comparatively rarified
space, into which they are violently forced, on the eame prin-
ciple that cold air rushes into a chimney where a fire has been
lighted,
Tho veerings of the wind during storms are more irre-
gular in Canada and the Northern States; but the mode in
372
Westerly upper Current
FT
HighBorometer
E.
an
SK SUT
HighBarometer
SS
Cold & Cala
24
24°
SE.
Low Barometer
J5E*
59°
46"
2°
Za"
g
R
3
S
Alleghanies
Western Jervitories
Valley of Ohio
CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA.
which the southerly current, supplying the
copious rains and snows that fall during winter,
is propagated, is somewhat similar to that
which takes place along the Gulf of Mexico.
Indecd, west of tho Alleghanics, the action
appears to be quite similar. Owing to tho
circumstance, however, of the southerly cur-
rent often being a middle one (which is again
overlaid by the west upper current), the sur-
face wind is often from the north-east, for
reasons already given when illustrating Plate
VI. The following figure, representing a sec-
tion of the storm of 10th November 1854, iu
the Northern States, will exhibit .nore clearly
the vecring of the wind as storms progress
from west to cast:—
A B represents the cold wind which had
just crossed the Mississippi on the morning
of the 10th November. The cold air there
causes the barometer to rise, because it is
heavier. B C the space occupied by the
southerly winds, at that time about 700 miles
in breadth, which being warm, are light, aud
cause the barometer to stand low.
The cold and heavy air AB is forced
towards the lighter and warmer air BC, for
the same reason, that the colder and heavier
air, resting on the sca, is forced towards the
land in the sca breeze. The difference in the
temperature and weight of the westerly and
of the southerly winds, forins the propelling
power of the westerly winds,
The gradual .mauner in which the temper-
ature decreases from the western to the castern
edge of aerial Gulf Stream BC is remarkable.
On the Atlantic coast the southerly winds
havo just sct in, and the air is still cold and
dry; whereas, in the eastern parts of Illinois, °
the temperature and moisture have attained
VEERING OF THE WIND. 878
their maximum, in consequence of tho southerly wind
having Llown there for some time. But in looking back
to the chart and figures of the 12th, the southerly winds,
it will be scen, have raised the temperature, and increased the
quantity of moisture in the air, even to a greater extent on
the Atlantic coast than they did in the same latitude in the
valley of the Ohio on the 10th, ‘The southerly current con-
tinued longer on the Atlantic coast; and thus, notwithstand-
ing the immense quantity of rain which fell from the 11th to
the 13th, the air became not only warmer but moister. This
fact, viewed in connection with the progress of the cold air,
is sufficient of itself to show that the diverted trade wind from
the Curtbbean Sea was propagated from west to east across
the continent.
Tnnuediately to the east of the southerly current, as at
CD, the air is cold, dry, and nearly calm. The barometer
also stands high. This was the case in the November storm;
and, according to Professor Mspy, it is a choracteristic of the
storms which visit the Atlantic coast in the cold season, At
D, where the line of minimum temperature and high baro-
meter exists, the air at the surface of the ground ‘noves both
towards the west and east.* I concur with Espy in holding
that the air which supplies these outward winds is derived
from the upper current.
On the approach of winter storms from the west, the
wind in the Atlantic States often begins to blow from the
north-cast, as represented in the last figure. A south-west
middle current overlics the north-easter as formerly described.
The north-casters are partly owing to the physical pecu-
Jiaritics of the Atlantic coast, and partly to the existence of
the cold air on tho cast causing the warm southerly current
tu flow above while the wind below becomes reactionary
(see page 344). So long as the air below is relatively colder
for its height than the middle current above, the north-caster
continues; but as it Lecomes moistened and warmed by the
current above trom the eouth, it tends to vecr round to east,
* “Tn the northern parte of the United States, the wind generally, in great
storms, sets in from the north of erst, and terminutcs from the north of west!
Espy's Second Report,
3874 ULIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA,
south-cast, south, and south-west. when it fa ralaed {nto the
upper curcent by the cold westerly wind flowing beneath ft
and causing the sudden changes of temperature.
In this way, then, is the warm and moist current from the
Gulf of Mexico propagated from west to east (a litle to north
of test to south of cast according to Espy) over the United
States and Canada. That a browl southerly current of about
700 miles in breadth was maintained in the November storm,
notwithstanding the variations of the wind at the earth's
surface, is evident from the fact, that an immense quantity of
rain was precipitated over the whole territory north of the Gulf
of Mexico as the storm progressed from west to cast. In tho
first place, the air in tho Mississippi valley became warm and
moist, while tho air on the Atlantic coust remained cold and
dry. And notwithstanding that the fall of rain ag the storm
travelled from west to cast was copious, the moisture of the air,
iudicated by the temperature at sunrise, increased. ‘This fact
of itsclf is sufficient to demonstrate that there is a constant
translation of comparatively warm ond moist air from the
south towards the north, because, on any other suppe.itton,
it is physically impossible that condensation of anvisture
could také place, and the air become still more charged ‘vith
moisture. ‘Lhe increase of moisture as the November storm
travelled castwards was evident; and I beliove this takes
place in all the Aterican stormy, at lenst such is the ease fn all
that T lave oxatmined. ‘This fact 40 far beara out one which
has Deon stated by Expy, that tho storms of winter have often
a slower rate of progression from west to cast when they
reach the Atlantic coast. The southerly winds continue
longer, aud thus not only furnish more moisture and rains, but
cause greater fluctuations in the temperature and density of
the air, and consequenily of its weight. This explains one
of Espy's gencratizations, that “the fluctuations of the baro-
* Though f,do not agree with rome of the views of Professor Loomia
regarding the storm of December 1836, in his interesting paper in the “ Travis-
actions of the Amvsican Philosophical Society for 1841,” I am pleared to think
that our exph-stiva of the veerings of tho wind just given in in entire accord.
ance with his observations, Ilo writes :—" At a cérlain distance from the line
of minimum, pressure, the courses of the winds ate anifornily youth-cast. Ae this
line is approached, thy wind veers to the 1th, south-went, weat, and north-west.
NECAMTULATION, 8765
incter in whiter aro generally greater in the castorn than
in the western parts of tho United States." This also explains
why lesa rain and snow fall in the north-wertern territories in
winter, a circumstance to which the-prairies, or treeless regiona,
probably owe their origin. But why southerly winds blow
longer on the Atlantic coast than in the western territories is
a phenomenon which I am not prepared to explain.
In the United States, then, the winds may all be regarded
as modifications of the south and of the west wind. The modi-
fications of the south are tho north-cast, east, south-east,
and south-west, which, after blowing for somo time, are
characterised by a rising temperature and a falling barometer.
The modifications of tho west wind aro tho rerth-west and
north, which are characterised by a low temperature and high
barometer.
Indeed, tho difference of temperature betwixt tho cold
Arctic current which flows down Baffin's Bay and along the
Labrador coast, and the Gulf Stream as they meet off the
coast of Newfoundland, is not nearly so great as the difference
of temperature betwixt the west winds of the United
States and the south from the Gulf of Mexico. It is some-
what curious that, while the aqueous current or Gulf Stream
has been so ably investigated, the acrial current, which thas
produced ao grand a result, has been comparatively overlooked ;
at least, the connection between the tropical winds of the
Cartht ena Sea, and the south winds of the United States, has
rucuived hittle attention since Volney wrote.
Recapitulation.
The calms of Cancer, with belt of high barometer and
rainless regions, under the 30th latitude, do not exist in the
proximity of the American continent.
'Yne rainy and stormy character of the Gulf of Mexico
and Southern States of America, is owing to the abnormal
course of the tropical winds in thore regions.
The southerly winds of the United States aro moro pre-
valent during summer, as the heated continent draws the air
376 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA.
from the Gulf of Mexico in the same manner as the sea-breezo
or monsoon occurs during the hot season.
The winds of the West India Islands being often from
the south-east, the thunder and hurricane clouds fluat in them,
and the atmospheric disturbances have thua a progression
froin soutit-east to north-west. At the same time, however,
it must be borne in mind that the hurricane clouds could not
drift in suck a current before it was established over tho
United States, and before the disturbed equilibrium took place
as far as the south wind prevailed.
The thunder and tornado clouds drift in the south wind
over the States bordering on the Gulf of Mexico, and thus
propagate the disturbances from south to north.
On the other hand, in the Northern States and Canada,
the thunder and tornado clouds drift in the westerly upper
current which prevails constantly from tho west in the Middle
States and-froin tho north of west in the Northern States end
Canade. Hence the rains during thunder and tornadoes
travel from west to east at the same time that the south wind,
which supplies the moisture, is blowing at the surface of tho
earth.
In the United States, rains only occur in summer after
the south winds have blown for some time and furnished
moisture. The rains are thus chiefly derived from the Gulf
of Mexico. :
The winter rains are produced by the south wind first
hlowing over Texas and the country west of the Mississippi.
The south wind occasions a great rise of temperature, and
consequently a rarefaction of the air which causes the baro-
meter to stand low in a long line from north to south.
The existence of the long line of low baromncter west of the
Mississippi causes the south wind to blow with greater strength
tho Jouger It blows, ax the air flowing ay an under current is
alwaya becoming warner, and causing w greater fall of tho
barometer,
The temperature and pressure of the air vary compara-
tively little in the Caribbean Sea in winter; and as the baro-
meter ig constantly higher there than in the States swept
RECAPITULATION. 877
by the south wind, this is the power which propels the air from
the high towards tho low barometer,
The existence of the line of low barometer west of the
Mississippi causes the air to the eastward to flow towards it
as cast winds, and the comparatively high pressure of the
moist air in the Caribbean Sea gives rise to south-east winds
in the lower latitudes of the United States.
From the fact of the south winds first blowing in a broad
current west uf the Mississippi in winter, and being rapidly
propagated from west to east, the rains may be said with
Espy “to travel from west. to east," at the same time that
the moisture supplying them comes from the south.
The southerly and easterly winds of the United States
gradually rise into the uppcr current over the whole space
throughout which they prevail.
The winter storma aro virtually a rapid propagation of
the southerly winds from the tropics over the eastern continent
of Amcrica,
The west and north-west winds of the United States
being derived from the dry upper current, the sky is of
dazzling brightness so Jong as they prevail.
In summer, the north-west wind seldom blows with vio-
lence, becanse, being then warm and light, it docs not rush
into the sovtherly wind with much force, for the difference of
their temperatures is small.
The difference of tcirperature between the two winds,
the sonth and west, being less in summer than in winter,
the fluctuations of the barometer are also less in summer.
In winter, the north-west winds of the United States
clear the whole country of the warm south winds by flowing
underneath them and raising them into the westerly upper
current. In this way the cold wenther and rising barometer
aro flrnt observed In the north-western territorica, and these
phenomena are propagated from west to cant.
In winter, the storms aro often propeyeted from west to
east at the rate of thirty-five miles an hour; while in the
warmer season in autumn, the rate, as in the November
storm of 1854, is sometimes not more than ten miles an hour.
It is also probable that the rate of progression is often less
378 CLIMATE OF NORTH AMERICA.
when storms reach the Atlantic coast, a circumstance which
caures the southerly winds to blow longer, to produce more
rain or snow, and to causo greater fluctuations of tempera-
ture and of weight of the atmosphere.
The atinospheric disturbances are sooner observed in
Ficrida than in Maine, owing to the former being more to the
westward.
The “northers” of the Gulf of Mexico only blow during
the cold season when the westerly winds sweep the United
States,
The “northers” are merely the west winds drawn into
the Gulf by the comparatively warm south winds, which they
displace by flowing beneath them, and raising them into
tho westerly upper current.
The “northers,” like the cold winds of the United States,
are propagated from west to cast,
The “ northers” gradually lose their.force when the conti-
nent to the north becomes heated aud draws the winds from
the Gulf of Mexico,
The extraordinary lowering of the temperature which
ensues when the north wind displaces the south wind in
winter, in the Gulf of Mexico, is totally inconsistent with the
supposition that the northerly and southerly winds form
opposite sides of rotatory gales.
‘The northerly winds sometimes prevailing in the western
parts of the Gulf-of Mexico, and the southerly in the eastern,
have some rescinblance to the parallel currents of Dove, but
there is no evidence of rotation. ;
The cold westerly winds in the Northern States have no
resemblauce to the parallel currents of Dove, as they blow
at right angles to the south wind, and corresponding changes
of phenomena take place at the same moment on the same
meridians at stations more than 1000 miles apart.
The winter storms on the Atlantic coast of the United
States are preceded by a cold atmosphere and a high baro-
meter; and as they are invariably preceded by the south winds
flowing west of the Mississippi, they may now be anticipated
hy electric telegraph.
As the cold air which displaces the warm south winds
RECAPITULATION. 379
that begin first to blow west of the Mississippi, move slower
in autumn, the hurricanes of the West India Islands might
be anticipated by telegraph, when the cold winds are observed
in the west, for they appear to be. developed under conditions
similar to those of the winter storms,
The long line of low barometer, with its attendant atmo-
spheric disturbances, is often, no doubt, propagated from west
to east, during winter, across the Atlantic to Europe.
At the present moment we have no means of. anticipat-
ing the approach of some of the winter storms of Britain,
beyond twelve hours befure they burst upon our coasts; but
as soon as the telegraph is laid down across the Atlantic, it is
probable that the sudden irruptions of our high winds in
winter may be known for three days or more before they
occur,
Such, then, is an outline of the more important features
of the climate of North America, I have endcavoured to
give my explanation of certain well-marked phenomena as
conciscly and as clearly as possible. These views further
observation and reflection may lead me to modify; but
whatever may be the change in this respect, I shall always
retain a lively and constant impression of the kindness, the
hospitality, and the liberality which I experienced, in the
course of my researches, from the American men of science
who have devoted attenticn to this branch of study.
The meteorological observations which enabled me to
examine into the climate of North America were, through
the politeness of Dr. Henry, obtained from the Registers of
the Smithsonian Institution. A few were obtained from the
registers kept at the military forts, and on the next page are
given those relating to the weather from 9th to 14th No-
vember 1854.
METEOROLOGICAL REGISTERS.
Rey West Barracks, Florida, Lat.24°82” N, Long.81°47'80" W, Alt, of bar. above sea 10 ft,
1854] Barometer, pane Wind. Clouds. 2
% ee Remaxus,
Nov | Sunrise.| 9 ra. Sua | Suorise.| 9 vac. |Sunrise,! 9 pias,
9 | 30.107 | 80.205 | 72) 75] _E 2 ES 0 | SE 2 | Meteor from N W to Sat 6 p.m,
10 | S0tKO | 80.145 uA 77 | ESE2) 8E2) 8h 1 | SE ft | Lightning ot SW ot & pw.
Al | 90.475 | 30.434 | BE2 | SE4 |W3SW2! BB {A light shower at 12} Pou.
Rqually during the myit,
12 | 30.126] 30.193 | 78/70] 84 8E 1 |Wsws O | Distune Hhunder and lightning
: . caster sunuct.aud during uight
13) 30.205 | 36.201.) 77 | 71 |NNEBINNEO) NE 4] NE 4 | Rain, began Of A.M, ended 7g
AM. Quantity
14 | 80.253 | 90.217 | 63 | 04 |NNEQINNES| NEB 0 | Meteor trans tN Fat} rm.
Fort Brown, 20°10" N. Long,
Of ain m(WKi | Wt | ot |ewiy re
10} oo8 m9) BE aig ut he
Mt] wv | wos} mii) wil wel wa
O | Rain, beyon 114 au, ended 12
™ Quantity 27, — Heavy
12; 30.42 3042 | 45/50| NWS) Wt |NWIINW1 showers, pecan eanted hy
13] 8045 | 3047 | 44)57|/ NWI SSE 1) NWO ° thunder and Ligh’ ting.
14) Sudt | 3046 151) 65) Nt | NEL| NO | NE O |Ctoudsstationary on the horizon
at sunrise, ond during day.
Fort Smith, Arkansas. Lat. 85° 80” N. Long. 17° 80” W.
DB] we owe |62 Gt] ES $8 81 $4 [At -sunsct clearness of sky, 0.
At 8 p.m, silent lightning N
ond W, At 10 P.M. clearness
of sky, From 10 a.x. to 8
P.M. high winds from the 5,
Clonda moving all duy from 8,
10 ae ove 44,45) NG | SW1i/NWe eo [Rain, began 1 ala, ended 130
aM, Quantity 30—-At lam.
storm of rain. Thander and
Malitecing ind Menyy wind from
.
|
} from 9 vm. of Sth to.sune
rise of 10th. Therm, fell 21%,
: | At 0 pa. too durk to perceive
course of clouds,
il as «a [89 87] ES No | EE2 | NW6 [Rain, icgan 1.5 v.08, ended 6
PM. Quuntity 24.—First ico
of scason. Light fug on river
{ atch ea. Course of clouds
| thonged frow SE to NW,
IZ] ose ae 26 29! NS | WO | NWS] Haze. [Ground frozen—ice.
13 org nee 22 39 El El Ni O Heavy honr frost.
4 ae an 31, 60} EO EO | NW1] Woze, [Frost —Hriin sunrise of 19th to
4 3 p.m. of 1-tth therm. ruse 45°,
Fort Brady, Michigan. Lat. 46° 89'N. Long. 84° 43' W. Alt. of bur. above De St.
Marie River, 22 feet.
9| 20429 | 2410}ea!e7| 82 | E4 0 0 .
10 | 20.150 | 2005 | 37} 37) E4 E38 9 O {Rain begin 9 aw
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INDEX.
oo ‘
Aborigines of Cuba, 224,
Absenteeism of planters, 289, 200.
Agricultural banquet at Springfield, 03.
Agricultural exhibition, London, Canada
Vest, 49, 50.
Agricultural exhibition, Springfield, 90.
Agricultural implementa, 49,
Agricultural Juformation, diffusion of,
Agricultural newspapers, 23,
Agricultural produce, prices of, 131,
Agr'cu’ ural produce of Olio, 127,
Ague, caves of, 250.
Ague, prevalence of, at Dinnaville, 44.
Alabama, 241-302,
Alabama, geotogy of, 298,
Alabama river, wh2.
Alabama river, scenery on, 282,
Alabama, soils, 24:3, 207,
Albany, 19.
Allegh any cowaty, 144.
1. shasy nountaing, 128,
Alleplaay river, 85.
Allizators, 104,
Aloe, the, 193,
Americanisms, use of, 76,
Androscogizin, valley of, 9,
Ann Asbeur, 101,
Apple orcharsta, 18, 62, 64, 87,
Appic-paring machine, 49.
Appl trees, growth of, un the prairies,
# Arctic” stenincr, 128 of, 69,
Atmospheric moisture of Cuba, 209.
Babinges Bir., on the divistun of labour,
Lxco1., impo. iation of, into the Southern
States, 264,
Baltimore, 143.
Haltimore, neighbourhood of, 148.
Baltimore to Washington, 1641-149.
Biusaa, cultuce of, in Cuba, 220,
Banks in Cincinnati, 89,
Banquet, agricultural, at Springfield, 03,
Barley, 5%, 64.
Barley in Indians, 128
Barometer, fluctuations of, 825-828.
Barracoona, 220.
Baton Rouge, 257.
Beans, culture of, 208, 200, 371.
Beech forests, 77, 78
Beet-root, 125,
Beggars in Cuba, 193.
Belize, 245.
Bellefontaine, 78-80,
Belt of high barometer, 807-909,
Bermuda grasa, 269, 276.
Litter or Liack coco grass, 270. *
Bearding-houses, Lowell factory, 4.
Bosten, Massachusetts, 2.
Boston to Brunswick, Maine, 6,
Boulder clay, 20, 56.
Bozal elaves, 227.
Hraintree, 3,
Brock, General, 38,
Brockville, 57,
Broom corn, 33,
ach Maine, Congregational Col-
lege, 7.
Buchanan's, Mr., mansion, Cincinnatl,87.
Buchland, Professor, 50.
Bickwheat, 48,
Bull-fights, 199,
Burtington, 16.
Hurlington, Catholic Chapel, 16,
Burlington, factory at, 17.
Bytown, 74.
Bytown to Preacott, 74.
Cafés, Havannah, 191.
Cuitweil 6 hotel, 18,°
Caltonia springa, Canada, 78,
Caledonia township, 26,
Camellias, 160.
Campayna, eflect of drainage of, 252.
Campbell's, Major, agriculturs! ‘mprovee
Inents, 63.
Campbell, Major, mansion ef, at St. Hil.
aire, 61.
382
Camp meetings, Methodist, 2t.
Canada, climate of, 64.
Canada soils, 70, 71.
Cunada wheat 8 a.
Canada, Lower, 65-73, See also under
“Lower Canada,” —-
Canada, Upper, 37-04, 74,78. See ulso
under “ Upper Canada.”
Canadian farmers described, 50),
Canals, 129, 130,
Canal, Erle, 130,
Canal, Welland, 44.
Canandaizua, 20.
Cane brakes, 4%, 89, 283.
Canves, 44,
Cape Fear River, 160.
Cardenas, 196. .
Carolina, North, 157-161,
Carolina, South, 162-167.
Carolinas, education in, 802,
Carolinas, xeological steucture of, 169,
Carrots, 4, 59,
Catawha prrane, KU, 87.
Cathotic Chapel, Burlington, 16.
Catholic Semlnury at Quebse, 69,
Cattle, 24, 83,
Cuttle in the cotton reious, 270.
Cattle of Cuba, 222.
Cattle, Durham, 101,
Cattle, feeding of, in winter, 92.
Cattle, shorthorned, 49, 90.
Cecil, county of, 144.
Chamblay, 60, 61,
Champtain, Lake, 17,
Charleston, 162,
Charleston, exports, 162, 163,
Charleston, Sunday at, 162,
Charleston to Havannah, 136.
Cherokee ruse, 263,
Chicayo, 107.
Chicago, exports, 108.
Chicago, lavourers’ wages, 108.
Chicago, prices of grain, 115.
Chicage, progress of, 108.
Chicayo, value of land, 108.
Chicago to Baltimore, 110,
Chinese in Cuba, 194, 197, 198, 232.
Church be,syars in Cuba, 193.
Churches in Mayannah, 109.
Cincinnati, 43.
Cincinnsti, bake ia, 89,
Cincinnati factories, 49.
Cincinnati heights, view from, 66.
Cincinnati Observatory, 85, 86,
Cineiunati, pork trude of, 89.
Cincinnati, acavenger pigs, B4,
Cinginnati, - wine vaults, Myr, Long-
worth’s, 86,
Cincinnati to Chisago, 90-109.
Clay, a'luvial, 56,
Clearinys of the fere:t, 40,
Cleyeland, 77.
Climate of Canada, 64.
Climate of Cuba, 204.
Climate of Georgia, 185,
(Climate of Montreal, €),
INDEX.
Climate, influence of, on the growth of
treea and plants, 112.
Climate of North America, 803,
Barometer, fluctuations of, 325-328,
Belt of high barometer, 807-309.
Espy’s theory of the trade winds, 305,
Hare's, Dr, queries as to the
course of storms, 321,
MWurrlcane in Cuba, 1844, 859-363,
Tyeeleanes In the West Indies, 357,
2-366,
Low barometer, cause of the long
line of, 323,
Metcoroloyical registers, 380.
North-easters, 338-349,
“ Norther” of the Gulf of Mexico,
336-338; displacement of south
winds by, 313.
Rains in the United States, 311-912,
Reeapitutation, 375,
Sea-breeze, 312, 343,
Serth wind, 315-317,
South-cast winds, diyappearauce of,
oo,
Southerly winds, 371,
Squalty, 355,
Storms, propagation of, from west
to cast, BOU-375.
‘Thunder-Storms and tornadoes of
the United States, 350-854.
Temperature, general reduction of,
BAY, B20,
Tepeestts sudden changes of,
1d,
Trade winds, 305.
Tropical winds, 303,
Veering of the wind, 373,
Volney on trade winds, 310,
Westerly winds, 32!
Wind, change of, 36.
Winda, warm and cold, 335,
Cloud, Dr., editor of the“ Cotton Plint,”
297, 299, 300,
Clover, 23, 25, 27, 67, 81, 92, 100, 103,
270, 276.
Coal, 117, 128.
Coburg, 51.
Coburg, farms in the vicinits: of, 51.
Cock-lighting in Cuba, 194, 238,
Cocoa-nut trevs, 189, 192,196, 268,
Coco grass, 276
Coftee, county of, Alabama, 247,
Coffee culture in Cuba, 218,
Coffve trees, 196,
College, Congregational,
Maina, 7,
Columbus, Ohio, 124.
Columbus, farm to the west of, deseribed,
124.
Connecticut, valley of the, 13,
Connewango River, 83.
Cooking stoves, 104.
Cotton, cultivation of, by free labour,
2a, 285,
Cotton culture, 164, 165.
Cotton culture in Florida, 187,
Brunswick,
INDEX.
Cotton factories, 152. |
Cotton ginning, 267.
Cotton picking, 266.
Cotton plantaions, 164, 263-272,
Cotton plantations, value of, on Natchez
uplands, 271.
Cottun plants, effect of trust on, 267.
Cotton, preparation of, 166,
Cotton, price of, hii.
Cotton, produce of, in Louisiana, 268, 276.
Cotton, scn-island, $63, 166, 107,
Cotton secds, 268..
Cotton, trorsporacion of, 292.
Cow-milkiny at Lavannah, 223.
Cow-pea, 271.
Crawford House, 12.
Creeles in Cuba, 237,
Cretaceous furmation, 283, 207.
Crimes in Cuba, 202,
Crops in Pennsylvania, 129.
Cuba, tXc-242.
Cuba, uborigines of, 224.
Cuba, atinospherke mobture, 64,
Cuba, cattle vl, 222.
Cuba, Chinese labourers, 202.
Cuba, climate of, 204,
Cuba, cock-fihting, 194, 238.
Cuba, coffee culture in, 218,
Cuba, cost of inachinery in, 215,
Cuba, Creoles, 237,
Cuba, cngine-drivers, 194.
Cuba, filibustering expeditions, 241.
Cuba, fruits of, 193.
Cuba, Government offices, 239,
Cuba, Governor-Genere, 200.
Cuba, hurricane of i844, 359-363,
Cuba, Indian corn, 219,
Cuba, marnsycinent cf herses in, 223,
Cuba, manumitted slavea, 257.
Cuba, negross in, 224.
Cuba, plantain cutture, 220,
Cube, ploughing in, 10.
Cuba, price of fuwls, 222.
Cnba, price of land, 241,
Cnba, price of provisions, 222.
Cuba, price of slaves, 223,
Cuba, produce of slave labour, 237,
Cuba, railways, £
” of, 2at.
i ec ature, 200,
Cubs, robbers
Cuba, Roman Catholic Charch, 242,
Cuba, San Martin ex.ate, 197, 209-212,
241
Cuba, Sante Rosa estate, 197, 222.
Cuba, slaves in, 224-232.
Cuba, soi's of, 195, 106,
Cuba, Spaniords, 239, 2.10,
Cuba, sug ir- cane, 29-216,
Cuba, sugar estates, 195-107.
Cubs, taxation, 210,
Coha, tobacen culture, 216,
Cuba, town houses of planters, 238.
Cuba, transportation of produce, 225,
Cuha, vegetables, 198, 268,
Cuba, vegetation -f, 101, 192, Ue.
383
a
Cuba, wayes, 215.
Cuba, wax and honey, 219.
Cuba, wheat culture in, 219,
Cuba, winter in, 208.
Cubana, the, described, 192.
Dairy produce, 129,
Delaware, Liu.
Delaware, number of slaves ta, 140,
Deita of the Mirsissippl, 245,
Dest corn, 82, 88, 00.
Detroit, “7,
Detroit, Sunday fn, 97.
Devonian formations, 26.
Dismal Swamp, Great. 250, 261.
Dismal Swamp, Lirtle, 161,
Division of labour, Mr. Bubbage on, 141,
Division of jabour in slave Statea, 141.
Division of land, tendency of, to extine
guish slavery, 159,
Drainae in Lavisiuna, 272,
Drift-wood, 270,
Diatrios Plalna, 42, 45,
Dumfries Vicing, mode of culture, 42, 4d
Duwnfries Plains, value of lund, 4a,
Dunusville, 44.
Durham cattle, 101,
Duty on provisions imported into Cuba,
225,
Education iu the Carolinas, 2,
Education, provision for, in Michigan,
101,
Education in Virgvnis, 126.
Egyptian cats, culture of, 271.
Emancipation of staves, effects of,
25-057,
Embankments of the Mississippi, 247.
Fmigrants, influx of, 06,
Engine-drivers, Cuba, 194,
Frie Cana), 18, 21, 180,
Espy's theory of the trade winds, 305,
Everzreen oak, 149.
Exports of Churleston, 162.
Exports of Chicago, 108.
Exports of Savennah, 148,
Exports and imports of the Northern
States, 291, 202.
Exyorts and “‘aports of the Southera
States, 290, 291.
Factories at Cincinnuti, 89.
Factories, cotton, 152.
Factorivs, slave tabour, 205, 200.
Factory at Burlington, 17.
Factory at Lowell, 4.
Fan palins, 247.
Farm buildings, 153.
Farm ear Colinbus, 124,
Farm near Opdenbury, 56.
Farm near Qucbze, 67.
Farmers, Canadian, their appearance, 60,
Farsnerg, northern, G3.
Faris in Rentacky, 01, 92.
{ Farosing ia Maecaican, 100,
Farming in Virginia, 138,
884
INDEX.
Farms near Coburg, 51. : Grasses, 91, 270, 200.
Farme near the Grand River, 45, Grasses, natur , 28, 111, 150,
Farma in New England, 13-15,
Farme in Pennsylvania, 129,
Farms, size of, 35, 36.
Farm-stock, sale of, near Montreal, 69,
Fillibustering expeditions, 241,
Fire insurance in Canada, 48,
Fish, 04,
Flats of the Gonesco, 23,
Flint corn, 81,
Florida, 187,
Florkta, cotton produce of, 187,
Florita, Indian corn, 187,
Florida reefs, 188, 189.
Florida, sugar-cane, 187.
Fly, Hessian, 100, 101,
Forvsts, autumual appearance of, 62.
Forests of Canada, 3.
Forcats, hickory and oak, 78, 79.
Forests of New England, 9, 10.
Forests of New York State, 29.
Forests of Ohio, 8.
Fort Jackson, 247,
Fowls, price of, in Cuba, 222.
Francis, Lake, 58.
Free and slave population, 286.
French cottages wer Canada, 04, 67.
French ‘settlers in Lower Canada, 58, 61,
Frosts, effect of, on cotton plants, 267,
Frosts, effect of, on sugar-cane, 2U9, 273,
Galena, 119.
Galena lead mines, 119, 120.
Genesee flats, 23
Gencsee valley, 27-54. .
Geneseo valley, culture of Indian corn,
31
Gencsec valley, rent of wheat land, 31.
Genesco, 27, 29.
Geneva, New York State, 20,
Geviogy of the Carolinas, 109.
Geoloyry of Georgia, 169, 298,
George, Lake, 18.
Georgia, 1638-185,
Georyia, climate of, 185.
Georgia, gevlozy of, 169, 2°8,
German settlers in the South, 284, 285.
Gilmer county, 288.
Clen House, 9,
131.0 House otel, 10.
Gorham Station, 8, 9.
Government offices in Cuba, 289.
Governor-Gererul of Cuba, powers of,
239.
Grain, prices of, at Chicago, 115.
Grand River, 48.
Grand River, farms in the neighbour-
bood of, 45.
Grand Trunk Kuilway, 58,
Granitic ravka, 63,
Grape, Catawba, 86.
Grass, Beanuds, 269,
Gruss, bitter or black coco, 270.
Grasa, Kentucky bluc-stem, 81, 02..
Grasses, Southern, 209.
Grasshoppers, depredations of, 75.
Gravels, 56,
Great Western Railway, 59.
Guano, 134, 165.
Guines, 192.
Guines, plain of, 198,
Gulf of Mexteo, currents of, 248, .
Gulf of Mexico, “ northera” of, 996-888,
Gulf Stream, 147,
aya, uso of, a8 a manure, 25, 42, 100,
270,
Halifax, Nova Scotia, 1.
Hall, Dr., geologist to the State of New
York, 70, 72.
Hamilton, Canada West, 41.
Hancock county, 287.
Hare's, Dr., queries a3 to the course of
sturms, 321.
Harrisburg, 128.
Harvesting on the praltte farms, 115.
Havannah, 190-192, 198-203,
Havannah, American hotela in, 190,
Havannah, cafés, 191.
Havannah, churches, 199.
Havannah, country to the south of, 193,
Havannah, cow-milking, 223,
Havunnah, insecurity of life and pro-
perty in, 202, 203,
Havannah, interest on Joana, 215.
Havannah, lotteries, 202,
Havannah, Paseo of Isabel, 191,
Navannah, posers, 192,
Havannah, Plaza de Armas, 191,
Havannah, restaurants, 191,
Havannab, spics in, 203,
Havannah, Sunday in, 198,
Havannah, theatre, 202.
Havannah to Natchez, Loulsiana, 243,
Hay, 28, 60, 92, 111, 124.
Ilay, value of, in the Southern States, 271.
Hemp, 146.
Herd of pigs, 79.
Hessian fly, 100.
Hickory and oak forests, 78, 79.
Tlogs, fattening of, in Illinois, 116.
Hogs, fattening of, in Ohio, 79, 80.
Hooker, Dr., on the influence of swamps,
251.
Hope nurseries, 22.
Horan, Professor, 69.
Horizontal cultivation, 268, 300.
Horses, Cuban, 238.
Horses, Cuban, management of, 228,
Horses in New York State, 23.
Hotels, American, Havannah, 190.
Hurricane in Cuba in 1844, 359-363,
Hurricane in Georgia and Curolina, 181.
Munsnes ia the West Indies, 357, 862
366.
Mitnojs, 107-122.
Mlnois, fattening of hoga, 116,
INDEX.
Iiinols, prafrfes, 110-112,
Iitinols, temperature of, 118. :
ieee transportation of produce, 116,
Immigrant alaveholders, 284,
Immigrant trains, 76.
Indiana, 122, 123,
Indiana, grain produce of, 123.
Indiana, value of land, 123.
Indiana, whoat produce, 123,
Indinnapolia, 122.
Todian corn, 31, 32, 85, 209,
Indian corn, consumption of, by cattle
and pie, 20, 115-117.
Tndian corn, culture of, 8£-83, 100, 103,
Indian corn, culture of, in Cuba, 209.
Indian corn, culture of, in Florida, 187.
Indian corn, culture of, in Genesee val-
ley, 31.
Indian corn, culture of, in “pine bar-
rena,” 161,
Indian corn, price of, at Chicago, 115,
Indian corn, prices of, 131.
Indian corn, pro‘luce of, in Indiana, 123.
Indian corn, produce of, in Kentucky, 02.
Indian corn, produce of, iu Louisians,
268, 276.
Indian corn, produce of, in New York
. State, 20,
Ladian corn, produce of, in Pennsylvania,
129
Indian corn, produce of, in Southern
States, 178.
Indian corn, produce of, in Virginia,
1453.
Tu. lians, 44, 62, 68
Indian summer, 95.
Indian village of Lorette, 68.
Intemperance, attempts to check, 158.
Interest, rate of, in Llavannah, 215.
Towa State, 121.
Irrigation, 252,
Irrigation in Cuba, 193,
Irrigation of rice plantations, 178.
Irwin county, 288,
Jackson, Fort, 247.
James River, 152, 153.
Jchnaton, the late Professor, 63.
Jones county, 288,
Kalamazoo, 102,
Kalm, the Swedish ¢raveller, 106.
Kansas, slavery in, 147,
Kentuckians, 92, 93.
Kentucky, 91-93,
Kentucky blue-stem grass, 81.
Kentucky farming, 91, 92.
Kentucky, Indian corn, 92.
Kentucky, wheat produce, 92.
Key West, 187, 189,
Kingston, 63,
Kohl, Dr., iu traveller, 66, 67, 69.
Labourcrs on board of steamers, 272.
Labourora, wages of, ut Chicago, 108.
385
a Irleh, wages of, in Loulstana,
Lachine, 57,
Lake Chenuplaies 1%
Lake Francis, 68
Lake George, 18,
Lake Ontario, 75.
Lake Shore Railway, 76.
Lake Simcoe, 39.
Lake steamera, 17, 75,
Lund, price of, in Cuba, 941.
Lang, price of, in Indiana, 193,
Land, value of, at Chicago, 108,
Land, value of, on Duinfrles Platas, 43.
Land, valuo of, in indiana, 123,
Land, value of, in Louisiana, 274,
Land, value of, in Pennsylvania, 129.
Lead mines at Galena, 119, 120.
Leicester shcep, 49.
Lettuce, 208,
Lichen, (Parmelia centrifuga), 11.
Liebiz’s theory of malaria, 250.
Limestone, 96, 149, 193.
Limestone, magnesian, 120,
Limestone, Trenton, 17, 52, 53, 59, 67,
&5, 8&8.
Liverpool te Burlington, Vermont, 1.
Locust-tree, 117.
Loyan, Sir E. W., 63, 54, 64.
Londen, Canada West, 61.
Done eeMe wine vaults, Cincin-
nati, 86.
Lopez, ee expedition of, 242.
Lorette, Indian village, 68.
Lotteries in Havannah, 202.
Louisiana, 244-280, ‘
Loui-iana, Indian corn culture, 269, 276.
* Louisiana, plantations, 274-276,
Louisiana, rice culture, 248.
Louisiana, sugar cane, 273-276,
Louisiana, value of land, 274.
Louisiana, value of negroes, 274,
Louisiana, wages of lubourere, 272,
J ‘a herometet, cause of the long line of,
Lowell, 4.
Lowell boarding houses, 4.
Lowell factory, 4.
Lower Canada, 45.73.
Lower Canoda, French cotta, 64, 67.
Lower Canada, Freoch scttlors, 68, 61,
G4, 65, 67.
Lower Canada, teetotaliam, 68.
Lumber trate, 72.
| Lynch, Judge, prevalence of tho spirit
of, in the South, 279,
Lyell, Siz C., on the geology of Georgia
“ind Alabama, 29%, 208,
Machinery, ecat of, in Cuba, 218.
Machinery on snirac catates, 214,
Magnvaian limestone, 120,
Maine liquor law, 7.
Maive liquor law in the South, 261,
Maing, State of, 6-8.
Malaria, 250-252,
2c
886
INDEX,
Mangold-wurtzel, 49, 59. Natchez to Washington, 260,
Manuring of land, negicet of, 80, Newbury, 13,
Maple sugar, manufucturo of, 45, 66.
perenne county, Alabaina, 283, 287.
Marshfield, 3.
Maryland, 184-149,
Massachusetts, 2-6,
Matanzas, 192, 194.
Matanzas, Sunday at, 104,
Matanzas to Cardenas, 196,
Mather, Professor, Columbus, Olilo, 79,
Meadows, value of, as pasture, 2).
Mechanics of New Engtand, 5,
Meteorclogical registers, #0,
Meihosiot camp mvetingas, 3h
Mian vatley, Bi,
Micsdyan, Wi Lt,
Michigan city, 122,
Michigan, educacion.in, Lot,
Michigan farming, 100,
Michigan University, 101,
Michizayn wheat culture, 101, 103.
Miners, ways of, 120,
MissIssippi bottoms, 272,
Mississippi river, 46, 120, 121, 258.
Mississippl river, deltu of, 245.
Mississippi river, embankments of, 247,
Mississippi river, excursion on, 263,
alent river, thy lower, scenery of,
Mississippi river, mouth of, 244.
Misai.:.ippi river, physical peculiarities of,
246,
Mississippi State, wheat culture, 271,
Mississippl State, Yazoo county, 244
Minsiasippl veiley, physleal peculiarities
of, 84. es
Misnonri, Ptb-f 40,
# Missoarh Comproniine,” 146,
Miasourd, slavery fn, 144-116,
Missouri, tubneco-rulalng in, 144,
Mobile, 281.
Mobile, Sunday at, 281.
Mohawk valley, 19, 20.
Molasses, 244.
Montgomery, Alabama, 296, 297.
Montmorenci Falls, 68,
Montreal, 58, 53.
Montreal, climate of, 60,
Montreal, istand of, 59.
Montreal, Victoria raitway bridge, 63.
Morning plery, the, 193.
Moro Castle, Havannah, 189,
Mosquitows, 162.
Mount Washington, 10, 11,
Mowsag machines, Pld.
Moles, rearing of, 124,
Ar ten, ratlig of, jn Ohto, 92.
Baw -vado sugar, 214,
Nahect. peotnsuta of, 5.
Napiers ile, 110, 119,
Natchez, 207, 22.3,
Natchez uplands, 259,
Nat hez v7: tinds, value of cotton planta-
tions on, 271.
New Vugland farms, 13-15.
New England farms, size of, 36.
New England forests, 9, 10.
New England, mechanics of, 5, 6
New Enyland, villages of, 6.
New Hampshire, 10-12,
New Orleans, 253-256,
New Orleuns, St. Charles Hotel, 264.
New Orleans, St. Louis Hotel, 255.
New Orleans, sale of slaves, 266,
New Orleans, yellow fover, 263,
Now Orleans to Natchez, 256,
New Ocleaom ty Woodilagtot, 288,
Rownpapern sigelenituiead, 25,
Naw York State, 16 40.
New York State, forests af, 20,
New York State, produce of Jadlan corn,
20,
New York State, svils of, 34, 35.
New York State, Mr, Wadsworth's
estate, 27, 28, 32, 34.
Ningava Falls, 37, 413; river, 38,
Nictragua, probable effects of Walker's
Buccers In, 204.
Normal School, Ypsilantt, 98, 99.
North Carolina, 307-161.
North-casters, 338-49,
Northern farsners, 93,
Northern States, experts and imports of,
291, 292.
“Northers,” 188, 189, 205-207.
“ Northery,” di-placement of south winda
by, 313.
“Northora” of the Gulf of Mexico, 836-
WIR,
Nova Neotla, coant of, t.
Oak, evergreen, 159.
Onk and hickory forenta, 78, 79.
Ouk openings,” 19, 105,
Oaks in Iowa, 121,
Oats, 59, 64, 110, 112,
Oats, culture of, 175.
Oats, Egyptian, culture of, 271.
Oata, prices of, 131.
Observatory, Ciucinnati, 85, 86,
Oxdenbury, farm to the south of, 66.
Ohio, 76-96, 124-128,
Ohio, agricultural produce of, 126, 127.
Ohio, pastures, 89,
Ohio, rearing of mules, 92.
Ohio river, 4.
Ohio vineyards, 87.
Ohio, West Liberty, 80, 81, 63.
Obio, wheat culture, 83,
Old red sandatone, 19.
Ontarlo, lite, 75.
Orange groves, 207,
Orange Uees, 146, 247,
Oranye trees, wild, 193,
Oswego to Cincinnatl, 76."
Ottawa river, 73.
Overseers of picasa ny 258.
Oxen, draught, 222.
INDEX.
Palme, fan, 247.
Palm trees, 192, 106, 208.
Paris, Canady West, 41.
Parsnips, $9.
Paseo of Isabel, Has unnah, 191.
Passpurts, diileulty of procuring, st
Uavannah, 192,
Pastures of Ohto, 89.
Pastures in Viayinia, 163,
Poach orchards, 22.
Peach trees, growth of, oa the prairies,
118,
Peaso, 164, 166, 20:
Pense and beans, cultura of, 271,
Penlnada of Nobant, b.
Vontiylvanta, bay bbe,
Ponnny lvania, produca of bidlan cor,
Lah
Pennsylvania, produc of wheat, 129,
Vennaylyanta, value of land, rab.
Pigeons, wild, U4.
Pigs, herd of. 79,
Pigs, scavenper, of Cincinnati, t4.
“ ae See 167, 158, 161, 163, 169,
$2, 280, 204.
Pitch-iathering, 169, 160,
Pittstourg, aos.
Plantain or banana, cwlture of, ia Cuba,
eiu.
Tlant.in tree, V2.
Plawtatien management, 268, 280.
Planiotiana, cotton, 164, 263-272.
Plantations of Louisiana, 274-276,
Planinvue of Lousiana, mortgages on,
277,
Vhintasions, overaeera of, 268.
Phadters, alacntecian of, 250, 2410,
Dinutora, Coebun, tawn-hotaca of, 24
Phanters, hoonva of, 100, 20,
Pine do Armas, davannuh, 191.
Mouchling ip Cuba, 198,
PYyieuib, 3
Pour a! ites, ia the Southern States, 156,
YOK, buy GURL
Poor whiics, dwellings of, 161.
Pork trade of Cincinnati, 89.
Post-tertiary formation, 158,
Potatoes, 58, 12%, 08. 200.
Potstoes, culture of, 760.
Potators, prices of, 141, 132.
Potato, swe t, 27-5, 208,
Pots?arm sandctone, 66.
Prairie f rms, 113-125
Prairie forma, harvesting en, 115.
Prairie re-sions of Nusjth America, 196.
Prairie Rend. £02,
Proteies, cttace of peaches, 118,
Prairies, wheat eustire, ui.
Prngelee at PE ote DUD
Prive of ay rieultural produce
fons, extont oft
104,
Ww.
y, 143,
‘shay of Canada Weat, 49, 30.
stpperted inte Cuba, duty on, »
887
en
Provistons, price of, In Cabs, 222,
Puvopkias, 9, 49,
Puritans, landing of, 8. é
Quebec, 68.
Que'ee, Catholic seminary at, 69.
Quebec, climate of, 69,
Quebec, furm in the neighbourhood of, 67.
Queenston heights, 38
Radishes, 208;
Railway bridge, Montreal, 58.
Ratiway, Grand. Trunk, 68.
Railway, Great Western, 60.
Raltway, Dako Shinra, 70.
Raliwaya, 76, 77, 00, FEO,
Hallwryedn Cuba, 104,
Raln, averse fall of, 106, 148,
Kata, falt of, 259.
Rain storm in Canada, 57,
Rains in tho United States, S11, 312.
Rattleanskes, UR,
ue z-machines, 108,
Reefs of Florida, 188, 189.
Religious feeling in the United Statea, 99.
no of wheat Jans in Genesee valley,
vl
Restaurants, Havannah, 192.
Rhodelendrona, 123,
Rice enlture, 160, 172-188,
Rice culture in Cuba, 229,
Rice culture in Louisiana, 248,
Rice, culture of, on “ pine barrens,” 161,
Rice, culture of,.on tidal swamps, 177.
hier eniture on upland roila, 178,
Klea culture, eftuct of, on relative nume
Lees of free an Ealuve popeladon, 18d
hen grounds, Inaadabelty of, UD.
Kis: grounds, value of, 171, 177,
Ries Lata, fo.
Ttice milly, 183,
Rlee plastatcns, ireigadon of, 173,
Rice planters, 189,
Live plants, effect of trosts on, 177,
Rice produce, 175.
Rice swamps, 170,
“ Rice, volunteer,” 175, 176.
Rice, wild, 62,
Richel uu river, G1,
Ri-bmond, Virginia, lot, 157.
Richmena, slave-bi
Richmond, slave-sel ing, 167.
iWeb send, tolacco manufactory, 154.
He poly to Weluington, North Caro-
inu, 157,
Riga district, wheat culture, 24, 26,
Ria toaistip, 2, 25, 55.
Hewur mavigatien, 2u2.
Liver steamers, 268, 256, 257,
Rebisien, sequcuy of, ia Cuba, 202,
Nochester, 21.
Roce, ovau.ctic, 63,
Rocks, primary, $2.
Rovio Cubors church in Cuba, 942,
Rome, New York State, 20.
Rook, the American, 191.
388
ae
Rose, Cherokee, 263.,
Rotation of crops in Louisiana, 268.
Rotation of crops in Virginia, 153,
Rotation of trees, 79, 158, 260.
Rust and mildew in wheat, 43, 71, 72.
St. Charles Hotel, New Orleans, 264,
St. Charles Kiver, valley of, 68,
St. Wilaire, 61.
St. Hilaire, hill of, 62.
oo ire, Major Campbell's mansion,
St. Jobnsburgh, 12, 13.
St. Lawrence, 65, 58.
St. Lawrence, banks of the, 65.
St. Lawrence, flats of, GU, 61, 62, 71,
St. Lawrence rapids, 65,
St. Louls Hotel, New Orleans, 266,
Bt. Martics, Tale of Jesus, 0,
Sule of farin-stock news Montreal, 69,
Sale of alaves, 255,
Salt given ty cattle, 24,
Ben artin estate, Cuba, 107, 200-252,
24
Mandatone, 108,
Marotetune, Ob Mort, 1,
Baidatow, Votetam, 60,
Bundusky, 06,
Sangamon, cosaty of, 17,
Santa iovw estate, Cuba, 107, 222,
Saratoga springs, 14,
Saratoga to Albany, 19.
Savannah, 164,
Savannah, exput ts, 168,
Savannah river, 170, 172,
Suvannah swamps, rice produce of, 176.
Savannuh, temperature of, 183.
Savannah, vegetation in vichulty of, 14.
Saw-mills,.08,
Scloto, 124. .
Scloto “ Lottoms,” 124, 126,
Sea breeze, 342, 345,
Sea-isluud cotton, 165, 166, 167.
Sheep, 17, 44, 124,
Sheep, Laiceoter, 49
Shorthorned cattle, 90,
Bilurian formation, 20, 65,
Blinvos, Lala, 1,
Ktave booths, 207,
Blave dealers, 009, Hod,
Hluve “drlyarn,” 20d, 287.
Hlave Jaboce in Cactorles, 294, 206,
Slave laboer, produce uf, EK2,
Shive dalear, produce of, ja Cuba, 237,
Hlave tol- ur, Pr, A. Sunltt on, 137.
Slave later, culturouf wheat and Indian
corte hy, Urs, 164,
Slave and free lobour, 196, 147, 165,
Slave aml Free Mtates contrasted, 280.
gol,
Pleve Matas, aLatlenary condition of, 290,
Slave true, 97, 224, 220,
Hluve trade, opinion In tho South as to
the opening, of, 102.
Bleveryg burckrs tu the extonnlon of,
as,
INDEX.
4,
Slavery, causes tending to the extinction
of, 189, 156,
Slavery in Delaware, 140,
Slavery In Kansas, 147,
Slavery io Missouri, 144-146,
Slavery, prospect of abolition of, 298, 204.
Bissery) separation of husband and wife,
1s
Slavery, strength of, 143.
Bintery spel by tobacco cultivation,
Slaves, breeding of, 136.
Slaves in Cuba, 224-252,
Slaves in Cubs, mortality of, 228..
Slaves in Delaware, 149,
Slaves, dwellings ot, 163, 264, 273,
Slaves, emancipation of, 23 287.
blaves, expense of maintaining, 180.
Slaves, health of, on rics grounds, 179,
Slaven, hiring of, 161.
Slaves, hours of labour, 225,
Slaven, increase of, 157, 164, 155, 200,
Blaves, Instruction of, 262,
Haven, manumitted, 247,
Shaves, price of, 1, 149, 162, 140, 188,
224, Zinb, 27K,
Moves, price of, ln Paulslana, 274,
Hlavon, rations of, 162, 100, 140, 205, 273,
blhaves, aule of, 24h,
Slaven, nalling apleits to, 164,
Slaves, treatineat of, 226-250, 204, 266,
Slaves, treatment of, in Cuba, 215,
Blaves, treatment of, in Loule! a, 273,
Slaves, treataent of, ov rice plantations,
1KU,
Slaves, treatment of, how regulated, 279,
Slaves, value (osygregute) of, fu the
United Staten, 205,
Slaves, hired, wages of, 136,
Slaves, hired, wayes of, in cotton face
tories, 152.
Smith, Adam, on slave Jabour, 158,
Smith, Adain, on slavery, 231,
Smith, Capt, on Italian irelyation, 262,
Anuakey GL
* Huap-ntone,” 196.
Nolladn Alutwia, 285, 207.
Soils of Craneli, (027).
Holle of Cuba, 1h, 16,
Holts of New York Mtata, Ut, 0),
Koil, phynfeat condithon of, 20,
Noldlers, Spaubih, (00,
South Carolina, 162-107,
South wind, bt6-317.
Kouth-cast winds, disnppearance of, B03.
Koutherly winds, O71,
Mouthern gran, 200.
Houthe sn Stalos, oxporte and hnports of,
200, 2a,
Southern Stutes, produce of Indian corn,
78,
Spantards in Cuba, 230, 240,
Spanish sabdiers, LOY,
Spica in Havuannal, 203,
Byirits, rentrictions on the sale of, 16%.
Spirits, sulling of, to slaves, 168,
.
Sorreeald, net Mural exhibition at,
ring tie! cu.tural ex' LON A!
Pea » 88 :
Squalls, 355.
Squatters, 43,
Steamers, labourers on boerd of, 272.
Steamers on the Lakes, 17.
Steamers on the rivers, 265, 256, 287.
Storms, propagation of, frum west to
east, UO8-Uid.
Stoves, cooking, 104.
Sugnr-cane, culture of, in Cuba, 193,
209-216,
Sugar-cane, culture of, in Florida, 187.
Suyar-cane, culture of, in Louisiana,
273-275.
Sugar-cane, eff ct of froets on, 273.
Su) parenie, produce ut, Ju Loolsiana,
274-270.
Bugar catates bi Cuia, fbb
ie
Suyur exstuter, «ache eA
Beyer heures, 108, 2t
Susar, wanude nea be ct
Suparua +.
Boyar a fa el
Huyar, Mi. ath
Bandiy ate cet oton, 162.
Hunday in Dn trot, 97,
Bunday ju Savane, Bas,
Bunday ut Matan, 4,
Sunday at Mebile, 441,
Swamps, 160,
Seaaps their (nfluence on heaith, 250,
26
fave of (i Senislana, 276.
Swamps, tidal, rice culture on, 177.
Swamps, vegetation of, 170.
Swedish turnips, 50,
Sweet potato, 176, 208,
Syracuse, Now York State, 20,
Taxation in Cuba, 240,
Tectatalista in Lower Canada, 68,
Te nprrature, pencral reduction of, 819, -
eeu,
Tena ratuce, auton changes of, 813,
Tertiary formation, 160, 170,
‘Thon, veo ob Canada Weat, 61,
‘bh cowda Tavsanab, fue,
Thistea, Bt,
Phere usd ttanday” fh,
Vheo ddag machio.s, portable, 14
Thunder storm, 197,
Thunder store and toinadeca af the
Unlted States, 050-364,
Vicon der co fort, Vi.
Thaotuy grasa, 69, 00, 92, 111,
Tobacco, cultivation of, 140, 142,
"Tobacco fur chewiny, aanufacture of, 162,
Tobacco culture ba Caoha, 210.
‘Tobacco culture hie Missourl, 144,
Tobeceo manufactory, 161,
Tobacco, produce of, Vis tua, 154.
‘Tobacco, statiotles of, ln Free States, 148,
Tobacco, st tisth of, In Slave States, 148,
‘Tomatoes , 208.
Tor sduen, 260-354,
INDEX. |
380
Toronto, 39. _ oe
Trade winds, 186, 805, ~
‘Traie winds, Eapy's theory of, 905.
Trade winds, Volney’s ee 810,
T Fansporeations coat of, in Ulinole, 116,
Transportation of entton, 292.
*Transportutin> of produce in Cuba, 223,
‘Transportation of wheat, 29%.
Trees, influcnce of climate on, 112,
Trees, rotation of 79, 148, 260,
sa al limestone, 17, 52, 53, 50, 67, 85,
83.
Tropical winsts, 293,
Turkey -buzzaets, 121,
Turning, 4, 125,
‘Kuenipa, Swedish, GO,
Turtles, 181.
UM, Me., agricultarist, 99, 100, 101,
“ Unele Tom,” Influence of, 276, 270.
Ualversiiy of Mich yen, 101,
Upper Canada, 07-54, 74, 75,
ise Canada, clearing of the (orest,
D
(0.
Upper Canada, prices of shesp and
enttle, 41,
Upper Canada, wheat culture, ¢3, 40, 47,
Upiee Canada, wheat reyglen, 54,
also under ¢ Canada.”
Utica, New York State, 20,
Veering of the wind, 873.
Vegcetubles of Cuba, 198, 208,
Vegetables, cultivation of, Io Southern
tates, 185.
Vermont, 13, 14.
Victoria Railway Bridge, Montreal, 68,
Villages of New England, 6,
Vill aje3, paucity of, ia Slave Statea, 280,
wn
Virw-, 12,
Vines, wild, 80.
Viney ards of Ohlo, 87.
Nirgiala, 161-157,
Virgina, edueatlon In, 160.
Virginia, farming fe, 433,
Virginia, peodace of Tudlan corn, 158,
Viryitin, slave and freo populatloa of,
164, 105,
Virglula, toluicco prodace, 154,
Virghila, produce of wheat, 158,
Volury on trade winds, 910,
“Voluoteer rico,” 176, 176,
Wadsworth, Mr. estate of, New York
Stute, ay 2h, 32, 34,
Wager at Chicago, 108,
Wages ln Cuba, 214.
Wages of nilners, 120,
Wares of ulaves, 146, 15%,
Walken Ge probable effects of the
Bucer 9 of,
Washington, 149,
Washi gan to Charlestun, 160.
Wash! 4. county, Missisel ppl, 286,
a df,
'.
390
Washington, Mount, 10, 11.
were honey, production of, in Cuba,
Webster, the igte Danlel, grave of, 3.
Webster, the late Daniel, mansion of, 3.
Welland Canal, 44.
Weat India hurricanes, 362-366,
Weat Liberty, Ohiv, 80, 81, 83.
Weaterly winds of North America, 320,
Wheat crops ia Canada, 71.
Wheat culture, 32, 33, 35, 71.
Wheat culture In Cubu, 219.
Wheat culs:ire in Michigan, 101, 103,
Wheat culture in Missisalppi, 274.
Wheat culture In Olifo, 65,
Wheat culture on tho prairies, 111,
Wheat culture in Higa district, 24, 25,
Wheat culture In Upper Cunuda, 43, 46,
7.
Whieat-midge, the, 71,
Wheat, prive of, LOL.
Wheat, price of, at Chica 115.
Wheat produce in Indi 123,
Wheat produce in Kentusy, 92.
Wheat, produce cf, ia Pennsylvania, 129.
Wheat, produce of, in Virginia, 163.
Wheat rezien of Caaada West, 54.
Wheat soils to the south of Lake Onta-
rio, 26.
. INDEX.
Whoat-sowing, 28.. .
‘Wheat, transportation of, 202.
Wheaton station, 110.
White River, valley of the, 15.
Whitney's eaw sin, 267.
Wilmington, 1
Wilmington, country to the north of,
described, 159. rs
Wilmington, selling of spirits in, 158.
Wilmington, social condition of the in-
habitants, 169,
Wind, chanjo of, 369,
Wind, south, 315-317,
Wind, south-east, 043,
Wlada, southerly, 371.
Winda, tropleal, 803,
Wind, veerlny of. 373,
Winks, warns ard cold, 835,
Wiuds, westerly, 820,
Wine vaults, Mtr. Longworth's, Cincin-
nati, 86,
Winslow, 8.
Winter in Cuba, 208, ‘
Wreckers of Florida Reefs, 188.
Yazoo county, Mississippi, 284.
Yellow fever, 185, 263, 265.
Ypsilanti, 98.
Ypsilanti Normal School, 98, 09.
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