EX LIBRIS THE MOUNTAIN BY R. M. S. JACKSON, M.D., CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE ACADEMY OP NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA; MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE PROMOTION OF SCIENCE; MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION; MEMBER OF THE MEDICAL SOCIETY OF PENNSYLVANIA; MEMBER OF THE CORPS OF THE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF PENNSYLVANIA; CORRESPOND- ING MEMBER OF THE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES AND ARTS OF PITTSBURG ; MEMBER OF THE LYCEUM OF JEFFERSON COLLEGE, CANONSBURG, ETC. ETC. ETC. "Heaven shortens not the life of man: it is man that does it hy his own crimes. Thou mayest avoid the calamities that come from heaven ; but thou canst never escape those which thou drawest upon thyself hy thy crimes." CONFUCIUS. PHILADELPHIA I J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO. 1860. Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1860, by R. M. S. JACKSON, M.D., In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania \ i f A WOED TO THE SUBSCKIBEES OP THE MOUNTAIN. FRIEND SUBSCRIBER: Are you a country doctor? Do you "pull teeth?" Are you your own cupper, bleeder, leecher? Are you your own druggist, filling out in detail your own pre- scriptions? Are you surgeon, midwife, general practi- tioner ; and have you no time to get fame and money through any of the specialties of the profession dis- eases of eye, ear, lung, stomach and bowel, cerebro-spinal axis, women and children, because you are "boy of all work," and have to treat them all? Are you occa- sionally pig, cow, and horse doctor for the neighbors ? Are your, patients scattered over a large and diversified surface, which you must traverse on horseback, through swampy roads, wildernesses of fallen timber, traps, dead- falls of roots, and endless continuities of black forests; and do you really go in all sorts of weather? Are your patients so inaccessible that most of your time is con- sumed in merely destroying space to get to them ; and have you actually anything to do in your profession; and when you do your work, have you five times as much trouble to get your bills as to make them at first, your patients knowing better than you do, what you ought to charge, and just when they ought to pay ? Possibly, to get along, you may be trying to farm a little, endeavor- ing to scratch some hard patch of desolation into agri- cultural propriety, or bravely to make, like the hero of "Life in the Woods," some tough glebe "say beans!" This is all very well, and no doubt you will have your reward in heaven. But permit me to ask you a few more questions, absurd and ridiculous as such questions may appear to common sense and improbable as it may be SJ37S837 IV A WORD TO THE SUBSCRIBERS OF to expect any answer: Are you trying to write and pub- lish a book, in the midst of all this horror and distrac- tion nights of sleepless anguish, days of despair? Are you trying to repose and dream in a drum, or paint a picture seated with your easel on a log-sled hauled by a team of oxen over the rocks, roots, logs, and stumps of a spruce-pine clearing; in short, have you been trying to do in the broils of Bedlam that which, to do aright, you should have quiet, absolute repose from all care and anxiety, still nights of visions, golden mornings of ecstatic influx, and brave days of spiritual wrestling, in- spired by the gentle, heroic, and loving sympathy of the living, with solemn beckonings and greetings of grace and holiness from the dead? Then, did I understand you to say that you were two hundred and fifty miles from your publishers, two hundred and fifty miles from libraries of any extent, where you could have access to books of reference and quick facilities for correcting proof, and so on ? And you have really, under all these difficulties, been going through the torments of that ever- lasting stone-rolling of Sisyphus of 1700 ems in a page, i-dottings, t-crossings, commas stuck in by nineteen elab- orate rules, colons by five, semicolons by five, periods by five, etc.? These interrogations you answer all in the affirmative ? Well, then, on thy brow be written FOOL! for a "thou- sand years in heaven cannot recompense your miserable heart" for such a blunder, or "make you capable of one brief joy," after such a hideous folly! "Ah, me ! mis- erable! which way shall I fly?" Pardon the unfortunate author, then, benevolent sub- scriber! and, before sending him away from this court under conduct of proper officers, "to be hanged by the neck until dead, dead," (asking the Lord to have mercy on his soul,) allow him to offer for your reconsideration a few of the first explanatory words of the announcement to the subscribers, published in the part of the book printed some time since, as some apology for the pro- tracted tedium and delay in the delivery of the whole volume; for now the voice singing the song, the book heralding the claims of the Mountain, so long promised, is actually handed to you. It is, and from the surround- THE MOUNTAIN. V ings of the author could not be otherwise, a feeble effort withal, patched up from occasional scribblings of a trou- bled man, a tired soldier in the agonizing life-fight, or squeezed out of heart and brain in weary interludes of the roar and shock of that same battle. When the rash promise was made to write a Mountain book, the guardian angel of one soul was fast asleep ; and when the greater part of the subscription list was made, there was no book in existence. Then it was entirely unknown what kind of book it would be, or, if it had any existence, what sort of thing it was, and various surmises were risked.* * These surmises, as might be expected, were of a diversified char- acter and coloring, viz. : that it was a "Tragical Romance," a "Nar- rative," a "Poem," a " Hoax," particularly a God knows what! It was well known to all the friends of the author that years of "storm and pressure" had passed over his head during his labors on the Alle- ghany Mountain years of the most disastrous experiences bitter, mournful, and pointing to the grave as the only relief; torments such as men rarely suffer. At one time the active member of six firms, all of which proved infirm, with results of woe and despair, whether through Satan, .Fate, or Folly, it matters not, it was natural for these friends to expect that something of the order of "Sorrows of Werter," "Confessions of St. Augustine," possibly, "Living- stone's Adventures in Africa," "Border Life, or Wild Sports of the West," " Riley's Narrative," "Robinson Crusoe," " Sinbad the Sailor," or "Romance of the Black Forest," would come off, surely anything but a "Song to Joy." Think of a country doctor practicing medicine in two firms, making fire-brick in one, sawing lumber in another, cutting cross-ties for a railroad in another, selling drugs in another, and speculating in mountain lands and building Health In- stitutes on his own hook, all at one time! Old Father Adam had a good Paradise of a farm, and was no doubt a good farmer. It was ex- tremely foolish in him to try to get into other business, (endeavoring to know more than he, ought to know,) and deliberately take the chances of that tremendous Fall. No doubt he thought, like everybody else, "And set it down in his table of forces, That any one man equals any four horses." Results were inevitable immeasurable sorrow. In the Prolegom- enon some allusions are made to those days of wrath, experiences infernal, things, persons, and consequents, which the friends will understand, knowing all, but which to the stranger will be Greek and darkness. The stranger will kindly pardon and pass all that he does not understand in the category of local and personal allusions. They were merely a sort of chimney, through which escaped the smoke of the hell in which the unfortunate author was roasted, and have no essential connection with the Song of the Mountain. They legitimately belong, however, to the genesis of the book. 1* yi A WORD TO THE SUBSCRIBERS OF It was at first ignorantly and profanely considered a joke for u good fellows," who, as was supposed, had dis- ingenuously, and even feloniously, deluded the author into the vain and stupid conceit that he had something to say that the human race wanted or needed to hear. The real motive, it was further imagined, was a wicked experiment to ascertain the exact shade of verdancy afflicting the UNFORTUNATE, and the precise degree of his proclivity to a sell, and not a veritable delusion on their part, that he could say a word that ought not to be lost. Grandly transcended and forgiven are the sages, with whom "wisdom will no doubt die." A word upon what we have been about must suffice. The flight to the Mountain was always looked upon by those calling themselves sober, common-sense friends, as an absolute dementia, and constantly stuck, or rather dug, into the tender sensibilities of the unfortunate author of the Alleghany Mountain Sanitarium, as the prodigious blunder of his existence. Any account that might be given of the mountain, especially the unutterable folly of ANY BOOK about that plain old chain of pine-covered knobs and its true signi- ficance to men, must meet the unqualified disapprobation of this self-styled, sober, common-sense party; and any delay in the appearance of said book, hailed as a signal manifestation of the merciful interposition of a special Providence. Earnest in the belief that life in the country is nearest connate with man's organization, securing to him con- stantly the greatest of all blessings, perfect health and physical development, and standing with outstretched arms a great world of counter-forces or balance-sheet in favor of humanity, against the destructive influence of city life or the fatal results of the swarming instincts, founding the Sanitarium, and uttering a voice from the woods, have become a mission, solemn as a command from Heaven, and with the sternness and reality of life and death. Is it not time for the Philanthropist, whose highest form is the "healing man," to ask the significance and end of the action of the depraved and vitiated gregarious THE MOUNTAIN. Vll instincts which now impel this race to fix its hopes of earthly happiness on city life alone, and associate its dreams of man's perfection, and the highest ENDS of his existence, with anything but a rational culture, by the love and study of the laws of this beautiful world, and the obeying of the divine behest by executing the humble offices of an industrious and real life? Can the present tendency to agglomerate in swarms, or accumulate in masses and mobs, be designated by any such agreeable appellations as love of society, associa- tion for mutual refinement and exaltation, or Christian compact for the advancement and more perfect develop- ment of the social instincts of the soul? Inspect the present fruit of this wondrous human tree. It is called a composite race, having in it dribblings of all the bloods, but with two varieties of the typical Cau- casian form predominating; namely, the Celtic and Teu- tonic. The Celt, in the parlance of the ethnological savant, is said to be polytheistic, monarchical, despotic, sensuous, gregarious, frivolous, excitable, etc. ; while the Teuton is affirmed to be monotheistic, democratic, self-sufficient, solitary, intense in love of freedom, hating aristocracies, castes, and shams. Examine this composite fruit (the inhabitants of the United States) of the two tallest branches of the blood- tree, man, and say to which its destiny leans ? Its instincts seem to come from below, and struggle to drag it down still lower. If the commercial despotism which now holds the world in its grasp will develop warts and wens, cancers and dropsies, on the surface of the planet, in the shape of overcrowded cities, at the expense of the well-being and normal life of the whole race, and persist in catch- ing men, as trout are caught by artificial fancy flies, let it take the responsibility, and answer to the ages for the certain abridgment of the mean duration of human life, and the vitiated and perverted reign of the elements of anarchy and death. Why do the highest and lowest meet in city life in infernal fellowship? One class dissipates, flourishes, Vlii A WORD TO THE SUBSCRIBERS OF lives fast, sins fast, dies fast; while the other drudges, withers, sinks fast, suffers fast, and also dies fast. One class is vicious, proud, imperial; the other low, menial, degraded, both guilds forgetting humanity, forgetting God; swallowed by one common fate,- ingulfed in one common ruin. The beckoning from the mountain-top, the significance of the country life, the song of the hill and meadow, have assumed gravity and grandeur. Man in contact with the healthy real, man militant with rocks and trees, snakes and wolves, man ready and willing to work, to dig and to delve for his own blood, especially happy to do something, to advance and to grow, stands out in beautiful relief, the king of the planet, sceptred and crowned. Might not a friendly voice from the woods be heard in the hum and shock, or possibly reach the ear of some haggard sufferer, writhing in the folds and meshes of the artificial life, or flung out scathed and blasted by the wayside, and inspire him with hope that the blue hills and green fields, the cool sequestered forests, the lonely haunts by mountain springs in the stillness of evening or dewy freshness of the morning, might have life, health, and joy for him ? With sweet solicitude the kind earth woos him. Come, my feverish boy ! my poor, hot, sinful, sick, and poisoned child! fast horses and champagne, green turtle and ter- rapin, whisky and oysters, are not the a dream of life" realized. Come, troubled one, "Nature is medicinal;" there is salvation in exercise and honest labor. Come, "grow two blades of grass where one grew;" from the eye of the potato fill your eye and stomach, too; come, grow fruit and bread plants instead of poison weeds and brambles ; the rambo apple for the crab ; delicious pears instead of knotty haws ; the ox and horse in place of deer and elk ; but especially, come, regrow thyself, and, with thy body renewed, introduce thyself to the universe with a renewed soul ! "Pass thou through Mount Ephraim, and the land of Shalisha, the land of Shalim, the land of the Benjamites, into the land of Zuph," and there, like Saul, the son of THE MOUNTAIN. IX Kish, hunting his father's asses, thou slialt be "among the prophets," and find a kingdom. Rebellious transgressor! Science has long struggled for thee ; Nature has importuned thee, come, be a fact, do a thing, be saved ! The struggle has been to set the claims of the moun- tain to the music of science and nature. It was a pre- sumptuous effort, and much time, labor, suffering, and certain failure were inevitable. Hence, friend sub- scriber, somewhat annoying, even galling it must be acknowledged, had become your oft-repeated queries: Why don't you print that book we subscribed for ? What are you so long about? (as if a book were a "toby cigar," and its leaves could be rolled up in a minute!) What have you found on that old mountain to interest you? What can you say about it worth hearing? What scribblings about its old rocks and trees, its air and waters, can you make that any one will read? For Heaven's sake tell us, what is the book about? and, whatever it is, why don't you print it? True, they are plain old rocks and trees, plain old crystalline skies, limpid waters, and piny heights very plain to seared and bleared eyes; plain to benumbed brains and nauseated stomachs; plain as square acres of the old salt sea, monotonous as square miles of Lib- yan sand deserts. But reflect, profane interrogator, on this sublime fact : a wheelbarrow load of desert frag- ments, a pailful of ocean water, could not be exhausted by science in a thousand years ! Be patient, then; meditate; be considerate, subscriber! Any undue haste in the narration of the advantages of tlie rural life, so imposing and beautiful ; any undignified hurry in a dissertation on the sacred and sublime theme of the "Paradise regained" by man's physical redemp- tion from vice and disease, and his attainment of the healthy life, the painless death, and blissful transit to immortal joy, would be to ignominiously profane these subjects; and any indecorous precipitancy in the re- hearsal of the august oratorio of the mountain, would be almost impious and sacrilegious, certainly a crime indictable before the high court of Propriety. X A WORD TO TIIE SUBSCRIBERS OF In the treatment of these great subjects the solemn watchword throughout has been, EARNESTNESS; and the only desire, as the world's recognition and appreciation of an effort thus humble but sincere, is simply the intel- ligent and grave conviction, it is HONEST. The real desire has been to get something of the natu- ral science of that piece of the venerable spheroid (the earth) called the Alleghany Mountain, made more gen- erally known to men, also to try to introduce some of its metaphysical elements into the recorded soul of the world; but, above all, to assert its sanitary claims or powers to produce health and happiness. It will occur to the intelligent thinker, that such an undertaking was anything but a "joke" to a wretched slave of a country physician, trying to scratch his bread from a surface of naked sand-rocks; and weeks, even months of continuous arrestation of the work, and stand- ing still of all things, were, from the nature of his en- gagements, inevitable. The story of the mountain has in this manner, as already stated, been, FORCED to crawl slowly and lan- guidly out through a multitude of never-ceasing occu- pations. Torn by distractions, bewildered by complex functions, will you, subscriber, pardon the delay in the appearance of the book, when you are assured that something really useful has been attempted; some cata- logues of facts, even if they are fragmentary and unfin- ished, some suggestions, however crude and inelaborate, have been made; and that some earnest aspirations and prayers have been breathed (however untimely, un- comely, and ungrateful to averted ears) for the well- being, especially of diseased and suffering fellow-sin- ners? One thing you WILL accord, and have the justice to acknowledge, that WHATEVER the BOOK may be, a reality is in the Mountain and its Sanitarium, positive and alive, as the blood and heart of man are alive. Be it then what it may, "monstrum horrendum" or "ridiculous mouse," the book of "The Mountain" is now a fact on the stupid list of existing things. From the tyranny of the hour, and the inexorable des- THE MOUNTAIN. xi potism of circumstance, it could not be a finished closet production, sand-papered into extreme smoothness, pol- ished, varnished, and tortured into severest proprie- ties. Unfortunately, the felicities and graces of the word have not been consulted, nor refinement, finish, and ornamentation of style adhered to. The asperities of the mountain, that rugged, formless, semichaotic old pile of moss-covered rocks, had insinuated themselves into the brain, and overwhelmed, with the intoxication of enthu- siasm, the soul of the blundering scribe, and it could not be otherwise but that roughness must appear in and characterize the scripture. It is known of a number of popular lecturers that they have delivered their lecture's several hundred times, and afterwards published them in a book.* Think of a small patch of garden being weeded every five minutes over and over, all its walks scraped, trees clipped into primmest attitudes, every bush fixed up to be looked at, every grass spot shaped "so nicely' a perfect paradise of proprieties and gentili- ties elaborately dressed for great occasions!! These lectures, and their consequent books, were of course de- signed for, and generally delivered to, large, cultivated, and highly refined metropolitan audiences, where intel- lectually cormorantine men, having swallowed all litera- tures, arts, and sciences, have become dainty and fas- tidious; and the world of thought and sentiment, under the "refining suggestions of woman's brain," have been required to be mellowed into divine softness and sublima- tion, delicacy and grace. Such rasped and burnished production could not be expected from a rude fighter, a common private in the ranks of the sanguine order of knights of the lancet, who was required to be on per- petual duty in actual service, and at constant hand- gripes with the emissaries of death. Alas ! beloved sub- scriber and friend of the sentimental and delicate order, only disappointment awaits you. This rough mountain production is not a thing that could be printed on satin with gold, and that a hypercritical, over-cultivated, mor- bidly-intensated, intellectual virtuoso, or fastidious liter- * How charming to read Everett's Lecture on Washington in a book, after hearing it delivered one hundred and eleven times! xii A WORD TO THE SUBSCRIBERS. ary duenna, would read aloud to a bevy of youthful city blues, lounging on sofas in the regal city parlor ; but a story that a rugged man or sensible woman (mother of the Gracchi) might possibly find useful as a cicerone on the Alleghany Mountain, and "worry down" a page or two in the morning twilight, in some grove of God Almighty. It seems the fate of laboring men to be rough, and work makes not only the hands but the brain hard. It has also always been remarked that men who fight the ele- ments, and come in contact with naked realities, as mule and ox drivers, soldiers, sailors, blacksmiths, and coun- try doctors, are always uncouth, and have a disposition to swear a little. This being a part of the nature of things, nothing can be said on the question of refine- ment of language, and the general roughness of such men, or their productions. Their hearts are sometimes right, if their heads do occasionally require combing. Need an apology be offered for the rattle of the pill- box in the "Mountain," any more than for the repulsive presence of the quills of the porcupine ? A scraggy bramble-patch at best is this mountain book, troublesome and disagreeable to travel through; the benevolent hope is, however, that nobody's private views will be offended no petted crotchets scratched no pap-nursed opinions lacerated no spiritual skirts, with whatever elements dilated, shall be torn no cher- ished formulae, punctured and collapsed, or horn-lanterns fractured, for "No proposition should astonish, no belief should offend, however contrary it may be to any man's own, as there is no fancy so frivolous and extravagant that it does not seem to be a very suitable product of the human understanding." With grateful acknowledgments for patience and sym- pathy, kindly forbearance and friendly solicitude, will you, my dear subscriber, allow me, after offering greet- ings of affection, with a benediction, to make my best bow, and say farewell ! R. M. S. JACKSON. ALLEGHANY MOUNTAIN SPRINGS, ") Cresson, Cambria Co., Pa., v July, 18GO. J THE philosophy of spirit must develop itself out of the philosophy of Nature, as doth the flower out of the stem. For Nature is the spirit analyzed and at rest, which we can handle at our pleasure. It does not appear only for an instant, but, as stone, air, and such like entities, abideth alway, as if to solicit and preserve us for its investigation. OKEN: Biology. FOR us the winds do blow, The earth doth rest, heaven move, and fountains flow. Nothing we see but means our good, As our delight, or as our treasure : The whole is either our cupboard of food Or cabinet of pleasure. The stars have us to bed ; Night draws the curtain which the sun withdraws. Music and light aitend our head : All things unto our FLESH are kind, In their descent and being ; to our MINP, In their ASCENT and cause. More servants wait on man Than he'll take notice of. In every path He treads down that which doth befriend him When sickness makes him pale and wan. Oh, mighty love ! Man is one world, and hath Another to attend him I GEORGE HERBERT. WHERE one scale of the balance is quite empty, I let the other waver under the dreams of an old woman. Nonsense is a scurvy quality ; but not to be able to bear with it, and to fret and vex at it, is another sort of disease, altogether as troublesome Moreover, vulgar and casual opinions, considered in their weight, are indeed something more than nothing in nature. All such whimsies as are current about us deserve at least to be hearkened unto. As to me, they are all mere vanity ; and that is what they really import. As to every opposition, we don't consider whether it be just, but how we shall, right or wrong, disengage ourselves from it. Instead of extending our arms, we thrust out our claws. I could suffer myself to be roughly handled by my friends telling me I am a fool and a dreamer. I love to hear gentlemen speak as they think, with courage. We must fortify and harden our organ of hearing against this ceremonious sound of words. I love a strong and manly familiarity and conversation, a friendship that is pleased with the sharpness and vigor of its communications, as love is with biting and scratching. 'Tis not vigorous or generous enough if it be not quarrelsome, if it be civilized and artificial, if it treads gingerly and is afraid of a shock. Neque enim disputari sjne reprehensione potest. I incline towards him who contradicts and instructs me. I enter into a conference and dis- pute with great freedom and ease, forasmuch as opinion meets in me a soil very unfit for penetration, and too hard for it to take any deep root in. No proposition astonishes me, no belief offends me, how contrary soever it be to my own. There is no fancy so frivolous and extravagant that it does not seem to me to be a very suitable product of the human understanding. MICHAEL SEIGNEUR DE MONTAIGNE. THE Natural Science of a region is the natural language of that region as a habitat or medium of existence for animated beings. Life must de- velop itself under the absolute conditions of life, limited on one side by the brute immobility of ponderable bodies, and on the other held by the despotic power of the imponderables. As the special student of the phenomena of life, normal and abnormal, the Physician must be intimately acquainted with the science of the fragment of the planet upon which he operates, namely, its geology and soil, or mineral composition ; its hydrography, or geographic distribution of waters ; its hydrology, or the QUALITY, COMPOSITION, and PHENOMENA of its waters ; its meteorology, or constant climatal phenomena, as well as its botany or zoology, or life in the plant and animal. IGNORANT of the great volume whose leaves are open constantly around him and invite him to explore forever their meaning, and of which disease is but a chapter, he is unworthy of the respect and confidence of his brother man as high-priest in the great sanctuary of Nature. ROBERT SMITH. A MAN being contented with his own particular lot and duty obtaineth perfection. Hear how that perfection is to be accomplished. The man who maketh an offering of his own works to that being from whom the principles of all beings proceed, and by whom the whole universe was spread forth, by that means obtaineth perfection. The duties of a man's own peculiar calling, although not free from faults, are far preferable to the duty of another, let it be ever so well pursued. A man, by following the duties which are appointed by his birth, doeth no wrong. A man's own calling, with all its faults, ought not to be forsaken. EVERY UNDERTAKING is INVOLVED IN ITS FAULTS, AS THE FIRE IN ITS SMOKE. A disinterested mind and conquered spirit, who, in all things, is free from inordinate desires, obtaineth a perfection unconnected with works by that resignation and retirement which is called Sannyas ; and. having attained that perfection, learn from me, in brief, in what manner he obtaineth Brahm, and what is the foundation of wisdom. BHAGVAT-GEETA. LET every one mind his own business and endeavor to be what he was made. Why should we be in such desperate haste to succeed, and in such desperate enterprises ? If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away. It is not important that he should mature as soon as an apple-tree or an oak. There was an artist in the city of Kouroo who was disposed to strive after perfection. One day it came into his mind to make a staff. Having considered that in an imperfect work time is an ingredient, but into a per- fect work time does not enter, he said to himself, " It shall be perfect in all respects, though I should do nothing else in my life." He proceeded instantly to the forest for wood, being resolved that it should not be made of unsuitable material ; and, as he searched for and rejected stick after stick, his friends gradually deserted him, for they grew old in their works and died ; but he grew not older by a moment. His singleness of purpose and resolution, and his elevated piety, endowed him, without his know- ledge, with perennial youth. As he made no compromise with Time, Time kept out of his way, and only sighed at a distance because he could not overcome him. Before he had found a stock in all respects suitable, the city of Kouroo was a hoary ruin, and he sat on one of its mounds to peel the stick. Before he had given it the proper shape, the dynasty of the Candahars was at an end, and with the point of the stick he wrote the name of the last of that race in the sand, and then resumed his work. By the time he had smoothed and polished the staff, Kalpa was no longer the pole-star ; and, ere he had put on the ferule and the head adorned with precious stones, Brahma had awoke and slumbered many times. But why do I stay to mention these things ? When the finishing-stroke was put to his work, it suddenly expanded before the eyes of the asto- nished artist into the fairest of all creations of Brahma. He had made a new system in making a staff, a world with full and fair proportions : in which, though the old cities and dynasties had passed away, fairer and more glorious ones had taken their places. And now he saw, by the heap of shavings still fresh at his feet, that for him and his work the former lapse of time had been an illusion, and that no more time had elapsed than is required for a single scintillation from the brain of Brahma to fall on and inflame the tinder of a mortal brain. The material was pure, and his art was pure : how could the result be other than wonderful ? THOREAU. PROLEGOMENON. A PROLEGOMENON, Proem, or Preface to any production of the human mind is defined by lexicographers to be " preliminary observations to a book," " introductory re- marks or discourse prefixed to a book," or treatise inform- ing the reader or hearer of the "main design," or whatever is necessary to the understanding of the discourse, book, or essay. A Preface, then, ought to be an epitome, a con- densation, of the soul or substance of that which is to follow, a shadow cast before; at least a bird's-eye view of the field, or photograph under clearest light of the production itself. In the nature of things, is this possible ? Can a leaf preface a tree ? a tree preface a forest ? or a rock preface a mountain ? If the book, essay, or discourse told its own story, why a twice-told tale, in the shape of a preface, to give the " burden of its song," " main design," " introduc- tory remarks," or whatever is necessary to the understand- ing of the same ? To speak a word, to tell a fact, to articu- late any secret of the universe, truly and forever, seems to be the great trouble with all books, essays, and discourses. " To speak and to create are one to the Infinite :" for light to be, it is only necessary to say, "Let there be light;" but for man, the finite, poor man ! ! when he speaks, there is mumbling and confusion ; the idea and the symbol, the thought and its dress the word, can scarcely get together: his efforts to create light are generally followed by a pain- ful visibility of his own darkness. The flirtations of the word and the spirit have always been calamitous : witness the reign of horrors and barbarisms in the history of the soul in the past, and even in the present hour, with every 8 PROLEGOMENON. lantern and flambeau of the nineteenth century in full blaze of illumination. Here is ever the sad tragedy, " the pale realm of shade ;" here is the dim domain of doubt and fear. All literature seems but the record of blunders, more or less flagrant and pitiable, of the thought trying to get the fatal word. How, then, shall a preface tell the " main design" of a book, essay, or discourse, when most books, essays, and discourses fail to tell it themselves, or succeed but lamely ? A preface is often a simple Oyez ! to the world, admonishing all persons that there is something for sale in the shape of intellectual merchandise, of which it affects to be a more or less perfect invoice. More generally the preface appears a forlorn and scraggy creation, in the form of a supplication to the reader to have faith and go on, to screw up his courage to wade through the coming revelation, it may be of chaos and night, of heaviness and sleep; with a solemn assurance that his threshing shall not be of straw alone, but that the winnowing thereof will give some grains of wheat. Or, again, a preface appears a sheepish, stammering apology, a gawkish, blundering prayer for forgiveness for the impertinence and folly of asking a fellow-sinner to read something that the writer knows, and blushes to feel, is not worth his perusal. More frequently it comes in the shape of a mendicant address, a bow profound, an obsequious dis- play of flags of truce, or some show of the white feather, or acknowledgment of the presence of the carrion-crow, fear. "Authors in their prefaces generally speak in a concilia- tory, deprecating tone of the critics, whom they hate and fear; as of old the Greeks spoke of the Furies as the jEumenides, the Benign Goddesses." One other very import- ant fact about prefaces is, be they what they may, "pre- liminary discourses," "analytic synopses," camera-obscura pictures-iDEAL of the coming REAL, or precursors however luminous, elaborated, and useful, they are never read. It is sometimes said that the name of a book its title-page suggests what it is, or is redolent of its contents. This PROLEGOMENON. 9 can scarcely be true ; for an inspection of a catalogue of books is frequently a chapter of supremest affectations, and would carry the conviction that the names of books and their title-pages were meant to delude, and conceal the tenor of their discourses; that the genius of whim, as in many other departments, presides here also; and, that in the baptism of the crowd of intellectual infants that appear daily, rhyme and reason have seldom stood hand in hand. A happy title is a happy thing ; but most books are like backgammon -boards, with " Hume's History of England" or " Shakspeare" on their backs, or like the saintly dodge of that pious, heaven-inclined soul who had his handsomely done-up leather-cased whisky-bottle arranged with " Holy Bible" on its back. Still, they say there is "magic in a name," although the rose by any other, &c. &c. In the consideration of names, title-pages, &c., is not the "Moun- tain" as suggestive as a " Sofa," upon which an immortal poem has been written; or a " Tub," another imperishable tale; or the "Louse," which has been the theme of an eter- nal song? "If it were inquired of an ingenious writer what page of his work had occasioned him most perplexity, he would point to the title-page. That curiosity which we would excite is most fastidious to gratify; yet such is the perversity of man, that a modest simplicity will fail to attract : we are only to be allured by paint and patches, and yet we complain that we are duped ! It is too often with the titles of books as with those painted representa- tions exhibited by the keepers of wild beasts; where, in general, the picture itself is more curious and interesting than the enclosed animal." The name disposed of, and the title fixed, whilst the futility of all preface-writing is admitted, what of the production itself? what of the origin and contents of this book you call the "Mountain"? What excuse have YOU for imposing upon the world another calamity? Can there be any possible apology for dragging out of limbo another confusion of tongues, or attempting to make discordantly 10 PROLEGOMENON. vocal another moment of the harmonious and divine silences which hold the worlds in their spells ? This is the beginning and substance of the story, also something of its "to whom related" and by whom created, of the why of its appearance, the how it came about, and the what it is; or a word on the advent to the Moun- tain, its mission and motive, with a cursory notice of some of the beautiful experiences involved in that crusade against disease and death. A village Doctor the "fool of ideas," "poorly tied to a few thoughts," victimized by dreams discovers himself to be violently seized and carried irresistibly away by a number of despotic per- ceptions and intense convictions; among which the self- sufficiency of the universe shone forth, and ESPECIALLY the REMEDIAL FORCES of nature, and her perpetually divine conatus to restore and reproduce, as by the cura- tive powers and medicinal virtues of climates, changes of localities, with accompanying changes of whole habitat, of air, water, magnetism, heat, and light, of all earthly and heavenly influences upon the body, sanitary impressions of the world through the soul upon the body, of the aromal, the spiritual, as well as material and dynamic, powers of the earth, operating prophylactically and therapeutically upon that darling of Fate, man; nursing him maternally when sick, dandling him like a babe when well, and han- dling him like a toy perpetually; streaming through him like an^Eolian harp, rather playing upon him as "a STRING of the^Eolian harp of the universe." He pursues a halluci- nation of being an JEsculapian regenerator of his race to a distant mountain-top, the great summit-wave of the Appa- lachian chain, a hydrographic axis between the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, and more than two thousand feet above the level of the sea; where, near a group of springs, surrounded by unbroken masses of primi- tive forests, he locates, and founds by legal enactment of the Legislature of Pennsylvania, a sanitarium, under the name, style, and title of the " Alleghany Mountain Health PROLEGOMENON. 11 Institute ;" the object of the corporation thereby created being to purchase lands, to erect and furnish buildings, to ornament and improve grounds, for the treatment of in- valids and for the enjoyment and amusement of others seeking recreation and health; also, to found a museum, library, observatory, and other facilities for the study and promotion of the natural sciences. An institution thus embracing both elements of man, its end, the restoration and perpetuation of the soundness of his physical frame, and the culture, development, and sanity of his soul. Thus was the infirm mind as well as diseased body, the spiritual as well as the animal man, to be represented. Not for wine-bibbers, sensual and profane persons, not for the gross and godless, not for seekers and lovers of pleasure alone was it to be provided, but for the sick and the suffer- ing, the mournful wanderers in the dismal realms of the pain-world, and to whom is left only weariness of being, sorrow, and the bitter waiting for the great physician, Death. Also for the broken-hearted, the heavy-laden, the oppressed and overworked man, of whatever calling or election, the diseased, disabled, conscript brother, with "horny hands or wrinkled brow," who with heroic will has grandly accepted the curses of existence, and dared to fight the battle of life manfully. Also the privileged bro- ther, born with golden spoon on lip, to whom existence is a long, long summer day of delight, pleasure, pleasure only being the " chief end of man," but to whom also is there a ghastly compensation revealing itself, in the revenge of pound of pain for pound of pleasure, of pound of agony for pound of joy. A home also was it to be for the wise and the gentle, the cultivated and refined, those whose bodies long for more perfect health, and whose souls also hunger for knowledge; thus offering to the human family almost the whole cata- logue of good things left at the fall of man ; namely, the pure elements of nature, health and soundness, books, and the joys of wisdom, including the compensation of two 12 PROLEGOMENON. fruits of Paradise still growing on that "poison-tree, the world, sweet as the waters of life, love, or the society of beautiful souls, and poetry, whose taste is like the immor- tal juice of Yishnu." In the pursuit of which idea, he invites the race to new fountains of physical redemption, sings a doctorial song of joy to suffering humanity, asserts the claims of the mountain, tells the story of what it is, and what it CAN DO ; vindicates the ways of Providence to man in the shape of pure earth influences, pure water influences, and pure air influences ; proclaiming also the influence of all good things upon man, the high, the low, the simple, the complex, the commonplace, the recondite, every-day-by- the-roadside influences, also the power of the high and divine upon the soul, and, through the soul, upon the miraculous machinery of the body. Advocates likewise the combination of all these influences. To pure mountain air and absolute water would add constant exposure to said air, with boundless swallowings of said water, accompanied by arduous walks in pine-groves, heart and brain intonated and inspired by the many-voiced concerts of the forests, attuned to the " lays the wood-gods sing j" at the same time knowing surely that the catching of mountain trout must develop the capacity of eating and digesting mountain trout, that the hunting and shooting of squirrels must make the heart jump a-la-squirrel, that a gallop on horse- back through the woods will gallop the troubled soul out of the slough of indigestion and despair, and into the gates of light and hope, making the "juices to career through well- strained tubes," and, consequently, to have the Sirens sing. Thus, whilst the body should drink health and life from the charmed goblet of nature, could not the soul drink knowledge and wisdom from the fountains of thought ? "Would not the excursion of the botanist develop the capacity to digest more perfectly his flowers and mosses ? would not the journey of the geologist enable him to ASSIMILATE more absolutely his rocks and fossils ? would not the mind of the bird-student appropriate his game in H PROLEGOMENON. 13 higher and BETTER SENSE than his stomach could enjoy ita flesh, whilst the overworked artist's sickly face would bloom with the life and light of the picture his hand had wrestled for, and won from the world ? Concerning all of which it seemed necessary that something should be said. There is also another excuse or apology, an account that may be rendered, for the appearance of this rude, unkempt, un- combed story of the Mountain. Being a regular member of the Old School of medicine for many years, and thus a Priest in the sanctuary of healing, according to the unbroken apostolic descent from Hippocrates and Galen, the Hegira, or flight to the mountain, with the approaching advent of a Hospital or Health-Eesort for invalids, had, as supposed by many of the brethren in the faith, an anomalous appear- ance, an aspect eminently suspicious, even rendering the author thereof obnoxious to the charge of apocryphalness in his pretensions to professional soundness. They said, " It has a questionable shape: it looks like a hydropathic arrangement. Are you really a convert to the water-cure ? Have you left the regular profession, and have you ceased to practise secundum artem?" Being immaculate in the faith, and accepting with religious awe the venerable oracles of Delphi as the true and only fountain of medical inspiration, and having with zeal and piety sworn devoutly and constantly by the beard, dog, and snake of Esculapius, including, in the daily recitation of the calendar of true saints and con- servators of the world, the lancet, calomel, and quinine, Spanish flies, and ipecacuanha, it became painfully incumbent to utter some word of explanation, some rational account, if possible, for the appearance of an unhappy doctor of medicine in a wilderness where the original elements still reigned, and sand, rocks, trees, water, and air were ALL that Nature had left as implements in the art of healing. The afflux of hydropathic advertisements, pamphlets, and even patients, gave a serious coloring to the impression that some obliquity of position in regard to the infallibility of the ancient school of medicine existed; that the 14 PROLEGOMENON. ephemeral popularity among the innocent and gullible, the ignorant and frivolous, of some of the fashionable quackeries of the hour, might have warped and even seduced him from the original faith of his culture : hence, from the instinct of self-justification, self-preservation, and explication, a small flourish of trumpets, a recitation of the regular orthodox creed with upturned eyes and devout genu- flexions, in short, an explanation of his position, aims, and objects, was demanded, and lo ! the army of his haters (whose name is legion) have an answer to their prayers, "Oh that our enemy would write a book!" and thus is that same forlorn Medicus pinned to the wall to their hearts' content. The folly of thus exposing his unprotected flank, and even surrendering his pneumogastric and umbili- cus to the fingers of his enemies, can only be accounted for from the fact that there are innocent and devout men, the greater number of whose original snakes, or totally depraved faculties, are still fast asleep, and who, in the thick darkness that surrounds them, are as likely to blunder, and fall into the traps and snares of satanic men, as to stand erect, or walk with precision. Included in the foregoing motives and reflections there is another suggestion, which may have been instrumental in bringing about this blunder of the Mountain. There are erected to Priessnitz, (an igno- rant and unlettered serf,) in the United States, a large number of monuments, that is, establishments for the "water-cure." There are but FEW country sanitaria or health-establishments under the jurisdiction of the regular profession of medicine. What does this mean ? Do the gods nod ? Is Olympus asleep ? Is Apollo dethroned from the guardianship of the world, and has he retired again, in humility and sorrow, to watch the flocks of Admetus on the " flowery plains of Thessaly," or to wander disconsolate through the moonlight glades of Paphos" ? Have Hippo- crates and Galen failed ? Have the spirits who watch over the destiny of the earth become nauseated with the odor of drugs? Has the regular profession become fossilized PROLEGOMENON. 15 in dead vocables, with its " shops, pestle and mortar," " dried alligators' skins stuffed, and beggarly account of empty boxes" ? And is this living, fresh-budding, expand- ing, reproductive Nature, with her divine powers to regene- rate and save the bodies of men, to be surrendered to quacks and idiots, who shall place to the credit of humbuggery and charlatanery the power, wisdom, and loving kindness of Almighty God, who has provided for man's sustenance, healing, and ecstasy this "world of goodness, light, and endless love" ? Why shall not the regular profession, pos- sessing the knowledge and wisdom of Nature, and holding the only keys which can unlock her mysteries and scientifically exhaust her resources, profit by her system of goodness and mercy, her scale of rewards and punishments, reading, with veneration and love, the miraculous intelligence and morality that run hand-in-hand through all things, em- bracing solar systems as well as stomachs and bowels, and for whose rational elaboration and merciful administra- tion Science stands as gentle handmaid and ministering spirit ? Did not the divine Hippocrates, twenty-three hun- dred years ago, from the depths of his transcendent soul indite a treatise on " Airs, Waters, and Places," decided by a recent astute observer to be the " most philosophical of his wor^s, evincing extended observation, travel, and study"? And does not this wonderful creation, at that hour of the world's progress, evince in the father of medi- cine an instinct of the spirit bordering on the inspiration of prophecy ? "In it he inquires into the effects of the seasons, winds, and various kinds of waters, localities, nature of the soil, modes of life, and exercise, upon health, and the neces- sity of a physician making himself acquainted with all these matters. "He next points out the influence of climates, and the diseases depending on differences in them. He compares the people of Europe, and especially of Greece, with those of Asia, and shows how the uniformity of the climate and the fertility of the soil in the latter induce a monotonous 16 PROLEGOMENON. course of life and thought, and disinclination to exertion, in the inhabitants, who in consequence give themselves up to indolence and love of ease; whereas the Europeans, living on a poorer soil and in a climate of frequent vicis- situdes, are compelled for self-protection to exert them- selves in various ways, and thus acquire habits of self- reliance, and display greater courage. Hellenic pride, and consciousness of superior advantages, speak through the medical philosopher when he tells us, 'On this account the inhabitants of Europe are more warlike than the Asiatics ; and also owing to their institutions, because they are not governed by kings like the latter ; for where men are governed by kings there they must be very cowardly, as I have stated before, for their souls are enslaved, and they will not readily or willingly undergo dangers in order to promote the power of another. But those that are FREE undertake dangers on their own account, and not for the sake of others : they court hazard and go out to meet it ; for they themselves bear off the rewards of victory : and thus these institutions contribute not a little to their courage/ Ethno-climatic-MEDiCAL and political teachings of this nature ought to find willing disciples among the people of the United States." And here the observation might be recorded, that the profession of mq^icine could certainly profit by an occasional retrospective glance into the past, and even by return to, and some gleanings of, the ancient fields, if only to demonstrate that Priessnitz, Hobensack, Hahnemann, and the whole ravens army of quackdom, have all been surrounded, and the ground pre- occupied, by science and reason, both, it may be admitted, in a state of comparative infancy in those far-off ages, and walking with somewhat tottering and uncertain steps, i)at still under the influence of the great and healthy in- stincts of the soul, and under the direction of the great ORGANIC EYE which has progressively opened, and now drinks in the strongest sunlight of the mind of the present hour. PROLEGOMENON. 17 This is a subject of surprise: a treatise on "Airs, Waters, and Places" has been in existence twenty-three centuries, and a world of human creatures have been groping their way through life, bowed down by the curse of a host of diseases, existence darkened and imbittered by pain and suffering from infirmities which could have been cured by the magical power of "airs, waters, and places," whose jubilant song of physical redemption had been shouted more than four hundred years before the arrival of the Christian religion upon earth; before the Nazarene youth had ravished the ear of suffering man with the melodies of his voice upon the precious problems of the " blessed life" and the salvation of the soul. " Were man to live coeval with the sun, The patriarch-pupil would be learning still." Unhappy star-gazer ! he is looking to the heavens for succor, when it is under his feet; he goes through elaborate processes of medication under renowned wisdom, or vic- timizes himself by the mummeries of quackery, as in the multiplex soakings and pourings of hydropathy, or the delusive efforts at swallowing the fantastic shadows-of- shades of homoeopathic globules, whilst " in every path he treads down that which doth befriend him when sickness makes him pale and wan.' 1 Impressed with the conviction of the infinite wisdom and perfection of all things, that each object is " full of use and duty," that Nature is always man's obedient servant, and as a patient donkey will carry her liege-lord like a king, that she invites him forever to study and learn her ways, which are surely wisdom, and to obey her decalogue, which is always peace, and which is written in stars and grass-blades as well as blood-globules and palpitating viscera, and as clearly legible in the laws of health and disease as in sidereal systems and the soul; that man's apparent dislocation with Nature is purely accidental ; that he may become a "garden in a paradise/' growing with the milk of the corn, flowing with the blood of the grape ; that the gulf so deep and wide is not in Nature, but in man 18 PROLEGOMENON. himself; that when men are sensible and sound they shall affect the longevity of the patriarchs, and shoot the black stream as quietly and sweetly as now they " walk the waves of sleep/' instead of blundering through the grim valley in an agonizing and protracted death-struggle, slowly crushed by pain; and, finally, that the human family was not created solely for evil and suffering, or eternally fore- ordained to endure the curse of disease and pain ; that health is the birthright of every created thing, from the polypus to the man ; that the condition called normal which means perpendicular is blessed Nature's aim and end. "Heaven shortens not the life of man: it is man that does it, by his own crimes." Consumption and dyspepsia, neu- ralgia and gout, mumps and measles, bilious fever and small- pox, are certainly not angels from heaven; and the inevi- tability undodgable, and that forever inseparable connection of violation of laws of life and health with pain and disease, of the tax of suffering that must be paid for infraction of the law by vicious indulgence, are written in the experiences of every hour, in every gorged stomach, in every whisky- deranged liver and brandy-boiled brain, in the slabbering salivation of tobacco, or the reekings of its smoke from the human mouth and nostrils, in bread forever sour, in meat converted into indestructible sole-leather, in insane and barbarous habits of life, or wicked murdering of the body by the whole army of devils of Depravity and Vice under the despotic drill of that savage Monkey-Queen of absurdi- ties, Fashion, enthroned on her rocks of ages, " caste-keeping and guild-preserving," and, worst of all, the eternizing of dis- ease and defective development in the process of generation profane and ungodly, presided over by the genius of sin and death, true dust and ashes of the apples of Sodom, the words "hereditary taint" having attained a fearful significance. This i that sour curse of the "sins of the fathers" followed by teeth upon edge and heritages of woe in third and fourth generations. This is the true opening of the box of Pandora ; this is that " rash hand PROLEGOMENON. 19 that in evil hour" still stretches forth to pluck forbidden fruits and " unbar the gates of hell." Thou mayest avoid the calamities that come from heaven by publishing a sound and healthy existence, with temperance and virtue, through the laws of thy normal organization; but thou canst never escape those calamities which thou drawest upon thyself and thine offspring by the introduction of demons of disease and destruction into thine own body ; for the human form is either a Paradise for angels and temple of the Holy Ghost, a nest of unclean birds, or a den of venomous reptiles. And this brings the recognition of the wise significance of the uses and ends of all suffering ', that it is a schoolmaster's rod and an instrument of goodness and love, the end pro- posed being the regeneration and salvation of the culprit or criminal, the reformation of the offender against the law, and thus the creature of good, at the same time flouting the profane doctrine of disinterested malignity on the part of the Eternal, and clearly discerning that in the divine economy for each hurt there must be a heal, for each smart a salve, for every woe a balm. Profoundly impressed and overshadowed by the immense reality of this conviction, and held firmly bound by an abiding faith in the healing influences of the simplest and constantly present powers of the world, this dominant idea has been pursued, hunted, enthusiastically explored, and wrestled with, until the gos- pel of "Airs, Waters, and Places," and their power over the human body, has become the universe. Thus one ele- ment of success shines conspicuously forth : Faith, Faith ! the soul of every real conquest of the world. "The lover may Distrust the look that steals his soul away ; The babe may cease to think that it can play With heaven's rainbow ; alchymists may doubt The shining gold their crucible gives out ; But Faith, fanatic Faith, once wedded fast To some dear phantom, hugs it to the last." The Temple, or Place for the administration and dispen- 20 PROLEGOMENON. sation of the promises and blessings of this evangel, then, became the great desideratum. To get a " Place" with its "airs and waters" for the Sanitarium, or home of healing for all suffering and infirmity, has long been an absorbing effort, the tyrannous thought and constant fight for years, the only aim and motive of action and existence. Devoured by this vast and overpowering enthusiasm, caught up into the vortex of a celestial ardor, in this chivalric pursuit of an ideal so transcendent, of an end so apparently unattainable, it was inevitable that fearful battles with the hard actual, with the material and gross, with wicked and anarchic powers, in all the mournful and wearisome details of the real in this vulgar work-a-day world, even mingled with elements of the tragic and mar- vellous, must come. In short, there must inevitably ar- rive the bores and tortures inseparable from the unex- pected adventures of a village Leech leaving his doctorial puddle in search of benevolent and humane reformations and healing-institutions; involving also quixotic money- tilts with windmill issues, cowing of lions, blanketings, &c., not forgetting frequent collapses towards annihilation. It is a natural query, and has been often made: What could tempt a doctor to leave a bailiwick in which he enjoyed all a country practitioner could or should enjoy, or wish, or deserve to possess upon earth, namely, common comforts of life, occasionally some money, (every one knows it was semi-occasionally !) very much more reputation and professional ascendency than he deserved, all that a vil- lage, indeed, could give to any one who wished to be an honest worker in the ranks of the guild to which he be- longed, and go a Mazeppa-ride through wastes of hungry wolves and ravens, perhaps to eternal exile and ruin ? It might relieve the inquirer slightly if he should reflect for a moment upon the amount of tragic elements in the country physician's life at best, including the whole detail of human suffering to be seen, heard, and felt, with only the hope of some fruits of reward in the shape of credits in heaven; PROLEGOMENON. 21 not to speak of mere terrestrial results, in the form of growth and development from discipline and tuition of the conflict with adversity. Although it cannot be said that village life was at all an approach to Paradise, it must be admitted that it had much in it that sinners want on earth; and much more than they deserve, even much more than A COUNTRY DOCTOR DESERVES, which of COUrse, FINALLY, from all sources of conviction and belief, must be that same kingdom of everlasting blessedness. But there was a dream in that unhappily possessed doctor's head, a monomaniacal thought, a demon idea, which took final possession of the whole mind and heart of its victim. The vision, with its accompanying prayer, shaped itself in this form : Guardian spirits of the world ! grant the power to construct on some mountain-top, some tall " heaven-kissed hill," some Alpine height of the earth's surface, above the plain of perpetual malaria, a hospital, a sanitarium, a retreat for the sick, for those who struggle with disease in the heated plains below, or in the poisoned valleys : vouchsafe this power, and, with the remedial virtues of change of air, climate, water, and exercise, and the instru- mentality of the resources of the regular art of healing, there shall be results in the sphere of physical regeneration yet undreamed of in medical philosophies. Grant this power, answer this prayer, and judge of the tree by its fruit. It will be easily discernible that in this enterprise there w^ould be an enlarged sphere of professional power, a more extensive range of observation and influence than a village gave in the world of disease; with less expenditure of animal force, less exhaustion of the animal man, in the pro- cess of destroying space through the instrumentality of the horse to get to his business, which makes the laborious life and certain premature death of the country practitioner. This scheme of course included incidentally (and it must be acknowledged, with shame, that there was something of selfishness and sin, something of earthliness and cowardice, in this) an escape from the dismal array of tortures which 22 PROLEGOMENON. only the country doctor knows : midnight rides of dreary miles in snow and rain storms; lonely struggling with the disorganizing powers of the world; the mournful tragedy of "death life overtaking" in the woodman's lonely cabin, in the ploughman's lowly cot, and the beggar's filthy sty ; also, of course, the constant single-hand fight with the de- stroying angel, with none of the band of true brothers near, and the fearful responsibility of the contract to preserve life in all the details of the profession, repre- senting every department, as the country doctor must, and be veritable factotum in the profession, executing the insti- tutes of surgery, midwifery, and practice, including, at the same time, the arts of the druggist, dentist, and veterinary surgeon. With hard work, suffering, distractions, and ago- nies, and perhaps the worst of all experiences to bear, might be included the angry and averted face when asked for the " quid pro quo" for saving life, or the FEE for services money could never pay for executing, and which only a sense of duty could command any man to execute at all. To escape in some way the FULL MEASURE of suffering of a country practice, the extreme agonies and dreary wastes of horror of a country doctor's life, and at the same time to attain the clear mountain-top of a higher force professional, a larger range of power, a more extensive sphere in which to develop the heavenly functions of the art of healing; in short, from its inception the enterprise has been nothing but an enlarged projection of the country physician 's power in the relief of suffering, and the creation of health and happiness. A doctorial project in toto, nursed in the heart and brain for years of patient vigilance and solicitude, not unmingled (as has been adverted to and acknowledged, with a sense of shame) with the more terrestrial visions of a better way to the dollar, a clearer track than the thumb-screw or torture process of extract- ing cents by forceps from the pockets of patients, and presenting a more direct route, as was hoped, to compe- tency, (for here it must be acknowledged, with sorrow for PROLEGOMENON. 23 humanity, that the laborer in this department is not gene- rally considered worthy of his hire, but is held in profane estimation, fearful, fatal evidence of the barbarism of the hour ! as a vulgar pill-peddler, monkey -hunter, or swabber of intestines, who should find in the mere performance of the interesting details and duties of his profession a sufficient and exceeding great reward for his troubles,) than the forty-and-one swops of chips and whetstones in eiforts to touch the penny, in the truck-trade of a country doctor's bill- collecting ; practising his art, as supposed by his patients, under the employment of the commonwealth or Heaven, whilst making his bread by his wit in other lines of business- operations, as in the intellectual and refined manoeuvres of trafficking in the flesh of horses, or in the scarcely more rational efforts of making brick without straw, it might be, chimerical experiments in the fabrication of lumber by steam : in short, existing by the wit and tricks of common! trade or huckstering, and discharging, at the same time, the august duties of the medical profession for the pure, un- mixed love of the Father of all and his wretched children, the suffering human family. It will be pardoned, then, in the grand scheme of benevolence and love of the Moun- tain Sanatarium, if visions of some royal highroad to for- tune might have profanely mingled a little. Here the unhappy alas ! ! did and indeed could not foresee exactly ^ whither that hallucination might lead him, even into waste spaces and vast abysses of suffering of all orders and degrees, but, most of all, into heart-scaldings and sorrows, in this same line of the dollar, its treacheries and despot- isms. The devil seems not to have forgotten his ancient stratagem of trying experiments in the line of money-temp- tations on tops of mountains, or of attempting to get the dollar, (like the wedge of Achan,) a perpetual element of discord and death, into all the really good, benevolent, and heavenly operations of this lower world. The enterprise in itself involved the necessity of sundry and various rencounters with dangerous creatures of the financial deeps, 24 PROLEGOMENON. awful whales and sword-fish of those hottomless pits and maelstroms of the money-power, including, of course, inte- resting bouts with the shark, the beautiful shark, who is the purest and most perfect symbol and representative of the poetic and ecstatic lover of the dollar for its naked beauty. The whale is somewhat peculiar and dainty in his appetite and shape of food, (having a gourmand's taste for the "elio borealis,") as are also some other monsters of the deep; but that omnivorous glutton, the all-loving shark, swallows promiscuously like "Time, the hungry hyena!" every thing, including grossest elements, but is clearest and most emphatic in his appreciation and epicurean perception of the delicacy of human flesh, which, like that kingly rascal the lion, he always prefers. Very frequent contact with this individual all teeth andstomach was necessary in the finan- cial department of the Sanatarium, and also, of course, with his friend the pilot-fish, (scomber ductor.) This is a servile but faithful retainer, attendant, and slave of the shark, who is supposed to scent out for and report to him the secrets of the ocean on the subjects of garbage, carrion, and "grab-game" in general. He also seems to exercise a kind of guardianship over his sharkish excellency, (an extremely fallen form of the guardian angel,) attending him assiduously, protecting him from dangers of all kinds, fondling with him, and flattering him with devotion. Of this fidelity wonderful instances are recorded, as in the story of Captain Richards, of the Royal JSTavy. "A shark, attracted by a corpse that had been thrown overboard, fol- lowed the vessel. A hook was baited to catch him ; but, in the language of the captain, the shark, attended by four pilot-fish, repeatedly approached the bait, and every time that he did so one of the pilots preceding him was distinctly seen from the taffrail of the ship to run his snout against the side of the shark's head to turn it away. After some further play, the fish swam off in the wake of the vessel, his dorsal fin being long distinctly visible above the water. When he had gone a considerable distance, he suddenly PROLEGOMENON. 25 turned around and darted after the vessel, and, before the pilot-fish could overtake him and interpose, snapped at tho bait, and was taken. In hoisting him up, one of the pilots was observed to cling to his side until he was half above water, and then fall off. All the pilot-fish then swam about for a while, as if in search of their FRIEND, with every apparent mark of anxiety and distress, and afterwards darted suddenly down into the depths of the sea." Cu- VIER Pisces, p. 637. Wonderful fidelity and devotion of pilot-fish and sharks, far transcending the affections of men, clinging together even in death ! Many persons may know a few singed rats of pettifogging lawyers in the State of Pennsylvania who would here, with their usual affectation of infallible cat-smartness, and real cat cunningness, treachery, and unholdable eel-sli mi- ness, immediately raise the question, Was it real love that actuated that pilot-fish to hold on to the shark, pure, dis- interested personal affection, or did not the shark, from the evidence of some of the facts of the case, (that might have been adduced,) or presumption in the case, owe the pilot a fee? This individual the pilot-fish represents with miraculous and transcendent fidelity the legal profession, at least the small fry of scaly attorneys always found bumping their noses obsequiously around the shark, or money man. Abundant issues with this fish and his friend the shark were destined to come off, and in due course of time came; but all this was inscrutably hidden in the future from the vision of that unfortunate doctor lost in his dreams. Having faith larger than a bushel of mustard-seed in this scheme of a Sanitarium, moving a mountain seemed no difficult affair. Sequel inevitable, if the mountain would not move ********** And this, very unexpectedly certainly, brought also the great tragical issues of history among the pine-roots and rocks of the Alleghany Mountains, and gave solemnity and grandeur to the apparently contemptible events of the hour, 26 PROLEGOMENON. to wit: the man and his scheme of benevolence vs. some institution of earth under the genius of selfishness and sin; or, it might be, some consolidated power of darkness and death, of other ages, of other worlds, vs. light and truth, hope and mercy, progress and the soul. In connection with which, as a totally unpardonable episode, it may be remarked that, however interesting to the archaeologist the history of the Middle Ages may be in the organic develop- ment of the family of man as the unit or multiplex, conser- vative or radical, progressive or retrospective, to meet the Middle Ages, with its claws and scales, its tusks and bristles, in the lap of the nineteenth century, with the warm, genial, life-giving sun flashing beauty, fertility, and progress through the hard old rind of the earth, (the arrow-marks pointing forward !) is not so refreshing to the soul of the man whose eifort and sympathies are with the present hour, and whose hopes and aspirations are in the future. But it was the " previous discourse" to the forthcoming story of the Mountain, and some account of the " Sanitarium," that was being indited, and not a dissertation on the philo- sophy of history, or even tragical glimpses into the biography of obscure and insignificant personages, forever paltry and pitiable, forever flat and mean, stale and unprofitable, the mere record of earth-troubles, conflicts with evil spirits and vulturous men, and all the wearisome details of that same thrice painful, sober, and even ghastly, actual, but to which the philosopher or hero cannot allude, and of which much less complain, without signal loss of prestige and divinity. It scarcely remains to be determined, now, that the establishment of a Sanitarium on the summit of the Alleghany Mountains is not an impossible dream, delusion, or folly, but a glorious substance and reality, full of bless- ings for suffering man. Can it be said to be premature as a project, or insane as an idea? does it fill the needs of the hour, endorsed by common sense? and is it to be furthered, advanced, and published to the world, in the proportions of PROLEGOMENON. 27 the vision in the soul, as a success, or to drop, half developed, half made up, or even still-born, into the silence of oblivion? As a project, philanthropic, benevolent, and at first sight not having in it the bone and muscle of a common business- enterprise, must it share the fate of all efforts to bless, re- generate, and save the rebellious savage, man, from sin and degradation, disease and death? Will no enterprise live on earth for the good of humanity unconnected with the curse of gain? Will men endorse nothing but projects that have three per cent, a month in them secured by real es- tate? Will they engage heartily in nothing except the organization and creation of cunningly-devised institutions to catch each other, and by which the head-man the cun- ning, sharp man, whose symbol is the fox shall subjugate the hand-man, or innocent "creator in the finite," whose symbol is the patient ox bowing his neck to the yoke? And in a world that has been praying for long hundreds of years for the kingdom of heaven to come, that the Great Will might be done on earth as it is in those blissful abodes, and where philosophers and prophets, seers and saints, have heralded the advent of all orders of millenniums, with the reign of peace and good-will, of mercy and love, will it come at last that men and angels shall tremble to behold the Dollar "a solitary God, over ghastly ruin frowning forever from his throne" ? Will nothing that has the soul in it succeed on this planet ? Have men SWORN to propa- gate evil and disease only, viciously and insanely hazarding the permanent and eternal degradation of their race ? Will no human being try the experiment of publishing a clean and normal life of the body and heavenly life of the soul, with soundness of one, and some disinterested benevolence in the other? Is the element of mutual antagonism and self- ishness the wax that sticks and holds the world together, whilst the "love of the neighbor," the "self-denial and re- nunciation," the kingdom of heaven and its righteousness, which are always to be FIRST, are antediluvian fogyisms, too slow and simple for the rapidly-rushing (progressive, 28 PROLEGOMENON. as they are called!} man and social compact of the present hour? After a life of sorrowful struggling for his race, the me- lancholy Pestalozzi, whose formula of salvation for man was universal education, was forced to say, ".I learned that no man in God's wide earth is either willing or able to help another man." The good and honest Sandy Mackaye was equally unsuccessful, during his pilgrimage, in finding the heavenly man. He says, " Dinna spier what I believe in : I canna tell ye. I've been seventy years trying to believe in God, and to meet anither man that believed in him : so I am just like the Quaker o' the town o' Kedcross, that met by himsel' every first day in his ain hoose." The good * * * * also wails, "I have hunted in vain for forty years to find one man who really believed in God, and proved it by loving his neighbor half as well as himself; or who would, either from impulse or a sense of duty, do any thing for his brother man without the desire of being paid for it." Terrestrial croakers, whose abdomens are near the sod, say that no project that had in it either benevolence or love ever succeeded at all, or was ever enjoyed or realized by its author; that the wicked are sure to reap the crops and harvest the labor of the righteous; and that satanic spirits have still their ancient desire to crawl into paradises pre- pared for angels and men. Passing strange and inconceiv- able seem the decrees of the Eternal. Did it really require the martyrdom of the Divine Carpenter to found a "CHRIS- TENDOM," with safe and comfortable sea-room, in which money dragons alone could flourish, (the only order of creatures he hated whilst upon earth,) and has it veritably come to pass that "the sole bond between man and man is cash payment," that the highest achievements of civi- lization are the issues of money vs. love, money vs. virtue, money vs. blood, and money vs. the soul, and that money, as in the case of the thirty pieces of silver given to the only sharp business-man of the Twelve, always must win, whilst the noble endowments of generosity and faith in PROLEGOMENON. 29 man, and the divine instinct of self-sacrifice, necessarily become curses amidst the treacheries and villanies of men, and that the philanthropist must forever continue to bleed in the future, as he has done in the past, for the good of mankind ? The Mountain Sanitarium, with its overtures of healing and salvation, must not subtend this fatal angle, must not succumb to the evil genius of humanity, must not postpone its promises of joy to the reign of baleful en- chantments, or be profaned by vulgarity and sin to gross and common purposes. The faithful have trusted that this could never be; but sometimes, especially in the disastrous approach of the recent oscillations of the earthquake- wave which has shivered the crust of the financial world, some- what cracked and tottering, partially eclipsed, hid slightly in the signless Inane, were its fate and destiny. In the mean time, with great suffering, great results have been achieved, jostlings and difficulties have occurred and been transcended, rough and ugly places in the road have been passed, fierce battles have been fought with the sordid and benighted, especially in that howling wilderness of doleful things called " The Law." This, of course, necessitated occasional contact and companionship (followed, as ever, by somewhat disastrous results) with common publicans and sinners, also frequently the more agreeable communion with those inspirers of hope and solid rocks of anchorage for the troubled, the members of the legal profession, to be followed by vast but somewhat questionable spiritual ex- pansions, inseparable from intercourse with this order of beings, including numberless developments of the vulpine instincts and marauding faculties, (omitting, fortunately, to the great joy of the guardian angel of one soul, the horrors of euchre, cigars, and snuff, three of the highest intellectual indulgences and moral disciplines of this guild,) coming as fruit natural and inevitable of the tuition of renowned barristers carrying the culture and light, tlie sharpness and wisdom, of ages in their heads, as well as 80 PROLEGOMENON. with smaller fish of the same scale, who carry the still more enormous weight of their own self-sufficiency. Thus it has come that wheel-within-wheel-to-the-infinite difficulties of legal labyrinths have been threaded through ; gordian knots, twisted by legal quibblers, have been un- tied, or cut through, by legal gentlemen; crotchet within crotchet, dead fall below dead fall, of small-potato attorney- logic have been dissected to the light of day, and whole nests of vipers' eggs destroyed. Yerily, this entirely fas- cinating game of eels in the mud, of bore vs. boree, plucker vs. pluckee, in all its exquisite details, has been agonizingly squirmed and wriggled through. This involved frequent and ferocious skirmishes before that august potentate, the country justice of the peace, a gorgeous but fatal Jugger- naut, in whose presence, and compared with whose over- whelming consciousness of grandeur and assumption of power and self-importance, all forms of the tyrant man submerge instantly. Then came the more formidable array of the regular legal battle of saws, coming down from the ancients, from other men, under other forms of government, under other circumstances, and in other conditions of human society, but still with the solemnity and awful paraphernalia of obsolete abstractions and dusty rags of the graves of buried formulae, under the over- shadowing dignity of the presidency of courts and juries, in the assumption of the administration of that attribute of the Eternal called Justice. This sublime consummation upon earth is supposed to be fully attained and executed when twelve bean-bags that is, twelve drowsy men, rudimen- tary, unlettered, with half-born spiritual bodies, faculties still in chaos, but with their natural bodies stuffed with sour-crout, pork, and beans, ruminating upon tobacco- quids, and moping like melancholy owls over a frog-pond are squeezed into a jury-box, and are silently and grandly brooded over by a trinity of buzzards, also with gorged stomachs, sleeping profoundly on a roost called "the Judges' Bench," whilst the kennel of dogs, " hell-hounds PROLEGOMENON. 31 of justice," mongrel pups and "curs of low degree," are permitted to snarl, snap their teeth, and howl, the crowd of fascinated spectators around this kennel in the mean time being kept under abeyance by that magical wand, the pole of the tipstaff. This is salvation through tht* intellect and morale of the jury-box and bench, in legal par- lance yclept Courts of Judicatory, supposed to be a close adumbration to the modus operandi of the Divine Being in his jurisdiction of the Universe, and consequently the most infallible mode of adjusting difficulties between man and man, and the grandest achievement of that highest and last phasis of development or expansion of the human race called civilization, and of whose duration forever there is no doubt in any lawyer's head, or despair in his stomach. Through this dismal swamp of juridical solecisms years have been sadly and mournfully wandered away, the blind leading the blind an agonizing exodus through dreary wastes of deserts, in the vain and futile effort as potter in that wretched " quicksilver, human clay ;" also at squaring circles, making hills without hollows, and other impossi- bilities to God himself, including interesting endeavors at " shovelling sunshine into shade upon a rainy day " but, most absurd of all, the effort to get, by any earthly appli- ance or manoeuvre yet invented, a bona-fide dollar's worth of work for three actual dollars paid, out of any private or even commissioned officer of the rascally brigade of the army of refractory Caucasian men (no division of the more tractable African forces extending in that direction) operating in the wilderness which was to be made to blos- som as the rose. Add to these abortive efforts also " will- o'-the-wisp" hunts to get some solid points of fixity in the bottomless quagmires and quicksand-under-quicksand uncertainties of Alleghany Mountain land-titles, with fre- quent results in the highly-interesting neighborhood of ZERO, and also with occasional culminations truly astonish- ing to all rational beings, even decisions of Supreme Courts J2 PROLEGOMENON. and "venire de novos." To this classical gymnastics of the soul, " bleeding footprints to the temple of perfection/' all absolutely necessary to develop a "man of 'cute parts and polished understanding," called a "business-man," ADD wear and tear of heart, crucifixion of sensibility, dis- appointment and despair, making life a " galling load, a long, a rough, a weary road," from the enormous promises of friendship, the dwarfish and ignominious failure, the seductive ideal, the INFERNAL REAL, the cold water of the faithless perpetually dropping, the gross weight of sand- bags constantly dragging downwards, the brutal defama- tion of malignant and unprincipled enemies, venomous scorpions, poisoning the air and putting obstructions in the path, turning life's wine to vinegar, its milk to gall; whilst a crowd of infidels to the progressive expansion of the universe have appeared in the arena with averted faces, shrivelled hearts, and fists eternally shut upon the penny, wretches without faith or hope, but with the snout of a grovelling selfishness held fast in the mire of the earth. And then there came in due course of heavenly experiences the play of that lovely instinct which man possesses in common with inferior animals, with whom he still delights to " hold his bonds of ancient alliance/' and which is con- stantly observable in herds of buffalo and deer, more especi- ally in packs of wolves, that, with the first appearance of a limp in an unfortunate brother, the whole herd attack and destroy without mercy the wretch who dares to be lame. It is also said to be true that " in the woods the leopard knows his kind, the tiger preys not on the tiger's brood, and that man only is the uncompromising foe of man." "For our enemies God keeps a standing army: we can manage them : but may the merciful Heavens protect and defend us from our friends!" Was the glory or wretchedness, the majesty or meanness, of the universe to unveil itself to the soul ? was fate intent upon developing a misanthrope or unfolding a philan- thropist? was love or hate finally to prevail? Why the PROLEGOMENON. 83 Alleghany Mountain was to become a Golgotha or place oi skulls, to be wandered sadly through, instead of " a pleasant walk across the fields of barley;" why, the torments of death were given as a reward for pursuing benevolent aspirations ; why gall and wormwood were added in such profusion, and "mene tekel" was written over so much of human nature that appeared divine, so much that SEEMED AMBROSIAL AND ETERNAL; and why, with the threat- ened down-rushing of material interests, the spiritual should fail, and friendship, love, even common sym- pathy, should totter and pale, should fade away and perish, and despair would come to be the only comforter, must ever remain somewhat inexplicable to the purblind sinner charitably supposed to be still in the gall of bitter- ness and the bonds of iniquity. Have any of your friends, when you intimated the need of a favor, turned a cold shoulder to you and said, "No; it serves you right : you ought never to have tasted whisky" perhaps emphasizing some other peccadillo having exist- ence only in their imaginations, -justifying their brutal heartlessness by an agile dodge, the reference to your supposed infirmities being made with an evident chuckle of self-gratulation ? These, you will find, are of the orna- mental form of the genus amicus or friend; elegant fellows for sunshiny days, harvest-homes, and good times : they grow on every bough. The tough old human blood-and-soul form, sound through weal and woe, through good and bad report, to the bitter end loving and blessing, is not so abundant, but still extant, a rare bird, alas ! but on hand occasionally for the " tug and the tussle," thanks to the great God of the gods. "Is it in mere death that men die most?" Does it not come as bitterest mockery that " The beautiful seems right By force of beauty ; and the feeble wrong By cause of weakness," and that " Power is justified, Though arm'd against St. Michael" ? 3 34 PROLEGOMENON. It were vain, perhaps, to inquire just what ARE the ulti- mate moral expansions derived from the experiences of ingratitude, a savage axe to the root of the natural man, it seems, but hardest of all to bear, and without redress except the brute's joy of vindictiveness and revenge. " The world well known will give our hearts to God, Or make us devils, long before we die." Ingratitude is the crime of fiends, and stands alone, ab- horred by the meanest worm as well as angel and man. In the thirty-ninth Olympiad, Dracon the Athenian instituted a code of laws so exceedingly rigorous that Herodicus and Damades remarked that "his laws were not those of a man, but a dragon, [dpaxwv,'] and that they were not written in ink, but in blood." Nevertheless, this Dracon was a sensible man; and although his name is proverbially associated with laws considered vindictive and brutal, yet for the NEEDS of the age they were perfect, his laws being, in his own words, " instruments for appeasing the anger of the Gods, moral guilt being the sole rule of punishment/' Some of his enactments should be in all codes to this hour, and are certainly divine. He made the punishment of ingratitude death, feeling in his soul that eternal truth, " And still on the words of the bard keep a fix'd eye, "Ingratum si dixeris omnia dixti,'" knowing surely that the man who was capable of IN- GRATITUDE was capable of all crime, and, ipso facto, worthy of death. This is a verdict of the soul, and forever right. The laws of the present moment, in their blind and stupid groping after justice, scarcely knowing right hand from left, take fierce revenge for the stealing of the purse ; but for the stealthy stab of the GOOD NAME, or the treacherous, silent assassination of the trusting, sleeping heart, they have no prison or death. They make honorable restitution to the maltreated dollar, but for faith destroyed in a brother man's character have no atonement, " taking savage cognizance of PROLEGOMENON. 35 the dagger which slays the body, but having no retribution for the murder of the soul." The wise Dracon went behind the act, and saw in the fountain of the spirit the true causal force of all acts, the true origin of all crimes, the perverted elements of fallen humanity ; and, as the man who was capable of ingratitude was capable of any crime, he punished it with death. Sound ! The human family have suifered ever since the repeal of this code of Dracon. If virtue is really its own reward in the regular decrees of the Eternal, it would seem diabo- lical bribery and treachery to permit a crime so atrocious as ingratitude to escape condemnation and wrath ; and for the law-maker of this time to pass it over without some fearful penalty is to endorse the iniquity of Satan, the ene- mies of man, and the powers that struggle to destroy the world. From all of which conflicting chaoses and diabolical ex- periences came there no fruits, came there no achieve- ments, no results, and was it all suffering? Were there no sequestered spots by the dusty wayside in this struggle, no fresh and dewy meads of hope and consolation, no " fair Rosetta vales," with sparkling waters, where the soul could rest for a weary hour, "the world forgetting, by the world forgot" ? Have there been no progressive friends to encourage, no souls of " faith, hope, and charity" to inspire confidence, no lovers of the light and beauty of Na- ture to whisper the peace of sympathy? Have there been no BELIEVERS in the rationality and good sense of this heal- ing project, of this healing world ? Has the Mountain not told its story of fate already ? Have not the pale faces of suffering infants been made radiant ? have not the counte- nances of jaded and overworked men become bright and hopeful, whilst bleached and bloodless women have been made to bloom with life and strength from its health- founts, and the ends of the great u primary antagonism of the world," or that of "spirit and matter," of " centre and periphery," of that lofty and "heavenly irradiation" in 36 PROLEGOMENON. which the mystery of creation lies concealed, have been beautifully consummated ? In this protracted struggle to achieve a great and bene- ficent end has there been no support of the wise and generous, have there been no receivers of the truths of righteousness, sound men and good, spirits of faith and friendship, hearts of confidence and trust? To say so would be to ignore the majesty of man, the brightest and purest experiences of existence in genuine friendship and sympathy, and to perpetrate a libel upon the wisdom and goodness of the Infinite unpardonable forever. And here justice demands that a few statements shall be made, " contrary to all experience, and yet true," but so entirely incredible that some explanation might seem to be required, as all transcendental affirmations at first hear- ing are insane. Unutterably astonishing, then, and pass- ing all understanding, as it may appear, especially to small politicians of the "genus croaker," even a Corporation with a soul has been found, a colossal sea-serpent with human blood in its veins and a human heart beating beneath its scaly ribs. And, what may be equally nay, still more astounding, in the representative man, the very " figure- head" of this "monster monopoly," (favorite phrase in political bugbear-twaddle,) instead of the poison-fangs of the copper-head, the claws of the tiger, or the hide of the rhinoceros, there have been found firm and gentle man- hood, wisdom and rectitude, honor and friendship, philan- thropy, and world-wide, generous, humanitary sympathies. All of which would fix emphatically a new and significant sign of the times, an augury auspicious, carrying hope and inspiration to the humble and humane workers in the vineyard of the Lord, with the assurance that the dollar is not yet entirely under the influence of the devil. This cor- poration, which has been howled against by hungry and disappointed politicians as an immeasurable sponge, into whose interstices the commonwealth was to be suddenly absorbed, but the existence of which the historian and PROLEGOMENON. 37 statistician will record as a high-water mark of progress, and its achievements the crowning glory of the State, seems now to have become (strangely enough to the ravens who croaked) a steadfast anchor, a haven of safety, in the reign of financial chaos, amidst the down-rushing frag- ments of shivered commercial balloons, exploded paper simulacra, and moribund formulae of the dollar. This benefi- cent monopoly, surely with persistent energy and wisdom, has achieved one of the wonders of its age, perforating and cleaving mountains as by the fabled throes of the Titans, filling and bridging valleys as by the cosmical masonry of the Cyclops, making smooth the rough and straight the crooked ways, carrying that "magician-wand" the rail- road-bar, realized dream of the fires and forges of Yulcan, from the tide of the Atlantic Ocean into the great interior Valley of the Mississippi, by the labor of armies of men and horses and cost of millions of dollars, climbing an accumulated elevation of thousands of feet through an endless range of rugged hills and heights separated by deep- washed ravines and valleys, thus inviting the East and the West to foregather and unite hands in the commercial mar- riage of two sides of a continent on the great culminating- crest of the Appalachian chain. This power, directed by the far-reaching sagacity and transcendent business tact of a distinguished Chief, endorsed by the characteristic philanthropy of the City of Friends, with zeal forever alive and intelligent, has caught the significance of the Alleghany Mountain as the site of an Institution full of promise to suffering man, securing all points of interest and beauty, and representing all elements of life and health, as a great magazine of conservative power antago- nizing the destroying influences of the city and offering bodily renovation and soundness in opposition to disease and death, and promised, with open eye, heart, and hand, TO extend a generous help to the "Mountain Sanitarium," and say to the enemies of Heaven and humanity, in their 38 PROLEGOMENON. efforts to postpone forever the advent of the perfections and felicities, Thus far shalt tlwu go, and no farther. Having waved a charitable and tender farewell (after the cheap and accidental contracts of the hour) to the parasites who flattered and fawned, sucked blood, and then betrayed the confidence of friendship, to the knaves who crawled in to plunder, and, like the frozen viper of the fable, thawed to life, stung FIRST the breast that WARMED THEM, to the ignoble and cruel, upon whose heads rests the curse of ingratitude, to the oblique and sinister " slimy things that crawl with legs/' who have been guilty of treason to the amenities of life and assassination of the holiest instincts of humanity, not to speak of flagrant infractions of the laws of common honesty, consequently whose moral elements are chaos, treachery, and death, the consolation comes in the discovery of the angelic society in which sufferers and victims of the machinations of evil spirits are always found; that it is good to be hated by the mean and cowardly, that rats and reptiles by affinity love rats and reptiles, and bad men by attraction mix with bad men, good with good. Then it is WELL for the obscure and humble, the vilified and despitefully-used, to reflect that true benefactors and lovers of the race have always been the targets for the HATERS and the malignant; that all men cursed with the self-sacrificing impulses of the soul and zeal for realizing ideals must continue to suffer as the martyrs of faith, science, and sentiment of all ages have done. The great and good Linnaeus, in his scientific labors for the well-being of man, made the confession, "I must surely admit that, as I have wandered [in scientific pur- suits] through the forests of the world, the monkeys [meaning ignorant and wicked men] have constantly grinned, chattered their teeth, and laughed at my efforts, even throwing stones and clubs at me : still was I happy, knowing that I did a good thing, and that the world even would approve, when it LEARNED TO UNDERSTAND." PROLEGOMENON. 39 Aftei all, it would surely be a broken-hearted and mournful man who could say, All men are bad; I hate them all and distrust the world : I have fought for long years ferociously the doctrine of total depravity, but at last I sur- render. "There is none that doeth good, no, not one." " Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me." " There is no man of Nature's worth In the circle of the earth ; And to mine eye the vast skies fall, Dire and satirical, On clucking hens and prating fools, On thieves, on drudges, and on dolls. And I can say to the Most High, ' Godhead ! all this astronomy, And fate, and practice, and invention, Strong -art, and beautiful pretension, This radiant pomp of sun and star, Throes that were, and worlds that are, Behold ! are in vain, and in vain ; And Nature has miscarried wholly Into failure, into folly.' " Rather say to this disconsolate and hopeless soul, "Alas! THINE is the bankruptcy Blessed Nature so to see." Having no heroic determination on hand seriously to reinstitute the WHOLE code of Dracon, but only that enact- ment punishing ingratitude with death, having no essay to write on " original sin" or the refreshing and ambrosial doctrine of " eternal reprobation," no additions to offer to the Ten Commandments, (unless it might be that eleventh commandment suggested by the progress and NEEDS of the times, and which, critically considered, is the sum and sub- stance of all the rest, viz. : Thou shalt attend to thine own business and allow thy neighbor to attend to his; for the Lord thy God hath sometimes made rich those who were found attending to their own concerns, but will not bless 40 PROLEGOMENON. with prosperity, or even hold guiltless, sinners who give themselves exclusively to the affairs of their neighbors,) having no ambition to improve the " sayings of the Seven Wise Men of Greece" or " the similitudes of Demophilus," having no patent-extension reforms to suggest to the morals or maxims of Confucius, including the " eighteen sacred edicts of the Chinese" no hydrostatic force or ele- ments of gravity and decorum to offer to the oracles of Zoroaster, or special wrinkles of sanctity to impose upon the theology of the Phoenicians, or even scientific critiques to make on the "Cosmogony of Sanchoniatho," or poetical splurges on "the moral grandeur and sublimity of the Bhagvat-Geeta," and especially no additional wailings to affix to the "Lamentations of Jeremiah," much less " Odes to Dejection to compose," not to speak of alligators' eggs either to break or hatch, or rats to pet or poison, but only a few RESPONSIVE SHOUTS to make from the Alleghany Mountain top in answer to numerous inquiries : Where are you ? what are you about ? HOW did you GET THERE ? what ENDS do you propose? what have you DONE? what particular landing does the Infinite expect to make through YOUR manipulations on the Appalachians ? and how do you THINK, really, you are making out yourself? Let it be resolved that dogs, as it is their nature too, " shall delight to bark and bite;" that Satans shall howl their rages out; that because things are so they shall be so, and not otherwise; that ancient feminines shall continue to drink tea and say what they please about their neighbors; and that "little men with little souls shall still say, Little souls, let us try, try," not forgetting that, " till you hedge in the sky, starlings will fly, and evil tongues will not refrain from God himself." And, further, let it be resolved that there is a wide dif- ference between the heaven-intoxicated victim of a beauti- ful dream full of benign promises and good ends to man, and efforts to carry them out by the organization and con- struction of hospitals and institutions of learning, and PROLEGOMENON. 41 being the author of man-traps baited with whisky and fun, operating as a vulgar builder on the common prin- ciples of money speculations, of taverns, hotels, or summer resorts for brandy-suckers and hunters of good times, or bear-pens for the regular worship of the devil. And, further, that the space is infinitely extended between the physician, or healing man, set apart by the sacredness of his calling from the ordinary motives and pursuits of men, with his prayers for the suffering, and his aspirations to cure the sick and infirm, to save men from disease and death and give them comfort and health, and the profane stuffer of the human intestine with vulgar viands barba- rously tortured, and poisonous liquors villanously com- pounded, the whole system promulgated on the common tricks of the trade of the most profitable and economical feeding and swelling of swine for money alone ; and espe- cially must it be entirely obvious, even to a " wayfaring man, though a fool," that said physician, or projector of Hospitals or Healing Institutions as part of the special strategy of the regular profession of medicine in its efforts to surround the Author of evil and his "regiments of the line/' must be immeasurably removed from the shadow of suspicion of being implicated, or in any way compro- mised, as a stool-pigeon, or decoy-duck, for the seduction or inveiglement of friends particularly, and the world in general, into said whisky-traps or pigeon-nets, to be plucked by the vandal man-feeders of the same. Episode unpardonable No. 2. Have you ever approached, with burning throat and parched lips, a clear, cool, mountain- spring to take a drink, when bolt ! a bull-frog pitches into the spring, and kicks, squirms, and flounders round until the clear spring is a mud-puddle, and in your agonies you see nothing but muddy water to mock your thirst ? You ask, What is he after? why muddy the whole spring? Hia frogship is simply endeavoring to CONCEAL by the mud he stirs up his ugly form, and spoil the spring for your use, supposing, no doubt, that the spring belongs to him. The 42 PROLEGOMENON. man-feeders, or rather man-eaters, of the " Health Institute" have thus far followed the example of the frog, and been found quietly concealed in the imid they had kicked up for the purpose of concealing their own rascality, said mud and trouble to be charged to the general account of " Sun- dries" of the institution, and the blunders and misplaced confidences of its unhappy Author. And, still further, let it be resolved that, besides the issues of honesty and truth in making a fair pronunciamento and declaration of ends, motives, and designs in terrestrial operations, it is a laudable desire in human nature to set itself right on all questions, to escape the odium of the imputation of softness or verdancy, a veritable eifort of instinct to avoid the calamity of being misunderstood, or split on the rock of fools, or caught, like the hare in the race with the tortoise, sleeping, when the race could have been so easily won, and thus a natural aspiration toward common sense and reason, and in all things of being acquitted of the charge of absolute fatuity or mental obtuseness, not to speak of being made sound on the more delicate questions of justice and righteousness, of honor and manhood. And let it be still further resolved, in the mean time, that the prayers of the righteous shall ascend forever, that the kingdom of heaven shall descend in the shape of the per- fectly-published, exquisitely-arranged, and totally-appurte- nanced, Health Institute or Mountain Sanitarium. Taking all past troubles as innocent experiments on the quality of metal, practical jokes on the part of the supernals at the expense of the most amiable soul now working out its sad duration rapidly in the thongs of the flesh, permitting the sand-bags to repose, and "leaving the dead to bury the dead," it is well ever to grasp the hand of the true man, to progress and grow, to trust and fight, to fight and trust, and in the mean time the Mountain and its claims stand a clearly-pronounced excuse for their own appear- ance, a sufficiently patent manifestation of the grace and PROLEGOMENON. 43 grandeur of the Eternal, to be admitted to a hearing with- out special plea, and to fill the formula of the ends of Divine Love and Divine Wisdom in the universal economy. Which also being taken for granted and held in the clear light of a revelation, it is fully apparent that it is chiefly in its aspects of benignity, and its promises of good to humanity, that the Mountain asserts its claim to the con- sideration of men. Those rushing streams of purest water, those ever-green solitudes of piny forests fresh with the verdure of immortal youth, those mountain -heights bathed by the waves of an ocean of air unmingled with an earthly taint and pure as ether, are surely not meant to fade and pass away as the fantastically-arranged phenomenal, to vanish as useless visions and cloud-pictures in the sky, or shimmer as ornamental appendages for dramatic purposes, floating on the artist's easel only, in a world of soberest uses and savagest realities, with the single apology that " beauty is its own excuse for being. NOTHING WE SEE BUT MEANS OUR GOOD." Mingled ever with the radiant form of the beauti- ful is the earnest and sober dowdyism of the useful and necessary. Use, use in all things would seem in certain attitudes of Nature to be her only object; for "all the goods which exist are called uses, and by these uses are meant all things which appear upon the earth, as animals of every kind, vegetables of every kind, nourishment, clothing, habitation, recreation, delight, protection, and preservation." Under the despotism of this light, insignificant seem all other aspects of things : this is the fierce realization which all men and animals make of the world, and to whose tyrannizing instincts the earth has no other end. To the consciousness of most men, the homely mantle of utilita- rianism covers all things, and of other or higher purposes in existence there are simply none. But the globe is round, the atom is round, and Nature revels in spheres; and to take, as representative integers, arcs of her circles or segments of her orbs, is to lose the unity of her purpose, the totality of her end, to avert the 44 PROLEGOMENON. grandeur of her face and pervert the integrity and sym- metry of her meaning. Thus Nature exists for the health and rectitude of both body and soul, for the highest as well as the lowest, for time and forever. Mere utilitarianism, then, cannot be all. The world will not resolve itself into a chapter of economics alone. This organic globe, travel- ling through azure spaces, related with perfect harmony and eternal laws to solar and sidereal systems, is certainly too richly furnished with forms of beauty, with elements of grace and light, of joy and sweetness, to have been designed for a kitchen or barn, a warehouse or machine- shop. Ever in the din and clangor of its mechanisms, the monotonous homeliness of its utilities, steal in the far-off symphonies of aprofounder world of attractions, "a deeper music, whose tones are ideas," a world made aromatic and divine by the Beautiful as well as great and glorious by the Good and the True. Whilst the Mountain invigorates and regenerates the outward man by its healthful powers and restorative influences upon the body, it can also feed the inner man, and give vitality to the streams and currents of spiritual forces that descend from the Infinite to the soul, and by sanity and reason nourish and save them both. The influence of Nature, aside from economics, is to love and worship, through veneration of what is high and holy in the universe, as well as to bless by the affections through objects of sweetness and purity in the sphere of taste and beauty. As the world stands an exponent of the Eternal Mind, " whom Nature veils, clothes, and manifests," now " vocal in a tone, now visible in a gleam," the Mountain still must be the highest thought, the strongest will, the deepest love. Its promises, then, come a song of joy, with a voice of hope and a word of peace for all the children of men. Here the overworked artist and artisan from the con- fined air of the city, the care-eaten merchant, the charred and lacerated banker, the wan and feverish man of books PROLEGOMENON. 45 and thought, the exhausted professional slave, the hag- gard hunter of pleasure, can come, and in the depths of original forests, in the presence of the loveliest and grandest forms of Nature, and under the ecstasy and heal- ing of her divine wings, again fall into the "charmed circle" of life and health. In bountiful profusion the saving ele- ments are here poured forth; and the victim of disease and suffering, of care and pain, can drink healing and happi- ness, soundness and strength, from exhaustless fountains, and both body and soul be delivered from the tyranny of the "gloomy powers which reign in tainted sepulchres" and a sinful world. It is obvious, then, that some shape of Bill of Fare for this same soul and body was necessary to be rendered, some statement of the availables of the Mountain in all its aspects of use, health, beauty, and teaching, or worship, ecstasy, progress, and salvation. Thus, of course, there would be demanded a recitation of " what Heaven had done for that delicious land," what the Earth-spirit meant when that patch of the "garment thou readest" was woven, something of this "fragment of the broad crea- tion," "this divine improvization," some song of its what, its where, its wherefore. Clearly devolving, then, was some account of the Mountain, of its science or Natural History, of its final cause, or end for which created, or Supernatural History. Commencing at the foundation must come the book "Atlas," the great mountain, the great mountain-holder, the great heaven-holder, he "whose brawny back supports the starry skies, whose head with piny forests crowned." Hence the " Geology of the Mountain" was necessary, as the basis or substratum of its story, the skeleton, the great primordial framework, of its wondrous hody. Naturally upon this would come the enveloping mineral mass, earth-cloak, or integument of the same, that is, the Soil. Then the circulating fluids would attract attention, and the story of the Waters, mineral, thermal, and pure, 46 PROLEGOMENON. would appear in due order of sequence. In the chain of rational connection with this would follow the " Flora," the plant or vegetable life-clothing of the mountain, which is again dependent upon the soil, water, climate, &c. of the same, associated with all of which would arrive a chapter of its " Fauna/' or animal life. A catalogue of animals namely, mammals, birds, reptiles, and fishes which inhabit the mountain, or a hurried enu- meration of the different orders of creation in that depart- ment, would be required. Then would arrive the consideration of the ocean of air above, upon which all created things depend, the great medium of existence, the reservoir of vitality or life-cur- rents ; for, as " all life comes from the sea," so the sea itself, in the "nebular theories" of philosophers, came from the air. The story of this air-ocean, its MACHINERY, as they call it, its organization, or systematic order of movements, as vital to the planet, to animal, to vegetable, to all living things, would constitute the " Climatology of the Moun- tain/' Succeeding this would come the aspect of the same as a great SANITARY CREATION, an immeasurable deposi- tory of healing forces, curative agencies, acknowledged therapeutic powers in every shape, as the great exponent of all which elements of the world stands the son of Apollo and Coronis, the laurel-crowned god of physic and physicians, "jiEsculapius." It occurred that a book in his name, dedicated to him as a votive offering, would be the end fulfilled, would be appropriate and comely, would be an expression of the fit- ness and perfection of things. The fables of his life point to him as the "personification of the healing powers of Nature," in the formula of the God as physician, the func- tion and end of whose existence is health, physical regene- ration, and well-being, the God who uses the world as an hospital, and to whom all objects must classify themselves as medicinal or not-medicinal, plus or minus in the scale of healing properties, the world simply existing for the ends of PROLEGOMENON. 47 health and ecstasy, or soundness and the enjoyment thereof, and no other. Thus, a book dedicated to the God of medi- cine was necessary to a full expression of the attitudes of the Mountain to man, also as definitive of the position of the healing man, the truly honest, science-abiding, reason- directed Physician, using a II things to achieve his ends, nature, arty all substances, all forces, all matter, all spirit, ponderable elements, imponderable agents. It occurred as pertinent in the present apparently dis- astrous aspect of the medical world, split, as it seems to outside observers, into warring factions or squabbling schools, into orthodox and heterodox, regular and quack, to say, once for all, that there is but one school, one regular pro- fession, one orthodox church of science, and that is the old, which is also the new, embracing and surrounding all other pretences, ignoring all other affectations of knowledge, to wit : the regular scientific knowledge of man, commencing with the anatomy of the human body, which must be the " future grammar of every school which gives real instruction to mankind." Embracing also all existences surrounding it in the shape of the influences of the earth and its furniture, material and dynamic agencies, in short, all the related natural sciences, which, of course, comprise those elements of knowledge that have been grouped, from time imme- morial, under the head of Medical Science and practice as advocated by the ancient brotherhood, appropriately called the Regular Profession. The story of the Doctor, or representative healing man, and his connection with the Mountain, would naturally arrange itself in the form and substance of the chapter " ^Esculapius." Then there are fables of the primitive vigor of man, of the terrible strength of Samson and Hercules, of human lives almost indestructible, stretching into long hundreds of years, as in the proximate immortality of the body of Methuselah and the wellnigh invulnerability of the form of Achilles, all of which would typify a splendor and per- 48 PROLEGOMENON. fection of his physical nature now unknown and beyond belief or aspiration. Is the present squalor or walking catalogue of disease and infirmity to be superseded by a more perfect incarnation of the soul ? is the present loafer the u eat-all, do-nothing" to be succeeded by the normal and sound man, with erect body and determined will, whose works and labors shall shine as the acts of apostles and demigods of history ? There are hopes for humanity which have taken diiferent forms in prophetic souls, in different regenerators of the race, divine vaticinations of the advent of the new and more perfect splendor, vague articulations of the voice of the Destinies; all of which would herald the dawn of a new world and realize the prayer for the new and perfect man to be born. It is clearly apparent that the man dimly fore- shadowed is the perfect physical man, who must also be the perfect metaphysical man; for "to FORM man is predicated of the external man when made alive, or when he becomes celestial; and as the natural forms of things, both animate and inanimate, are representative of spiritual and celestial things in the Lord's kingdom," so the perfect natural man from divine correspondence will become the perfect super- natural man. What wisdom is in the fable of Antaeus I He was a Giant whose strength was invincible as long as his body was the perfect culmination of the somatic forces derived from Nature, or, as the fable deposeth, from his mother Earthy so long as he remained in contact with his mother. Now, man is that giant Antaeus bereaved of his strength and invincibility by the vicious habitudes of civilized life. He congregates in towns and cities, builds for himself an arti- ficial and morbid world, lives in marble palaces, breathes the mephitic gases and pestilential emanations inseparable from all concentrated accumulations of animal life, with their necessary accompaniments of gutters, sinks, and sewers, inhaling perpetually the dead and effete air of heat- ing-furnaces, mingled with reekings of rum and tobacco; PROLEGOMENON. 49 walks upon carpets and pavements, consumes disease in the shape of poisonous and luxurious food, lifted into the air by the savage force of the giant Vice, a terrible Her- cules. Bruised and mangled, his only hope is to touch the bosom of his Mother and receive again his life and strength. Let him seek the regeneration and salvation of the country life; let him leave those seething caldrons of vice and death, towns and cities ; let him ignore that fatal gregarious instinct, old bond of veriest animality, ancient despotism of his brutehood, and return to the woods and fields still fresh with the fragrance and dews of the dawn of the world, re- touched with the sweetness of immortal youth each morn- ing of time; let him rush to the hills and mountains, " Where health -with health agrees, And the wise soul expels disease;" let him return to the wisdom, the reason, and the faith of Nature ; let him inhale the odor of the soil; let him walk the field and see how his blood grows in apple and potato, in wheat and Indian corn ; let him wash his feet in the running brook from the sordes and pollution, the sensuality and disease, of the pathway of the transgressor, and walk upon the sod with bared soles, a humiliated and mournful, but beloved and forgiven prodigal, knowing that his Mother the Earth is kind to her rebellious children, and always receives the penitent who returns from the swine-husks of sin, within the sphere of her benign influence, with fat things and bountiful benedictions. Thus it seemed that the chapter Antaeus might embrace the promises of the gospel of physical regeneration, and serve as a pivotal centre around which to rally some of the overtures of healing and bodily perfection held out by in- spired souls and Nature to her erring creatures. Symbol- izing all earthly influences, then, the Giant invincible, the terrible wrestler of Libya who slew all men who contended with him, stands the incarnation of the perpetually restora- tive power of the world, the genial, saving forces, which 4 50 PROLEGOMENON. circulate only through the Earth and are to be received only by coming in contact with the great Mother of all created beings. The blessing of the Mountain is, then, the prophecy not yet heard; the glory of the Mountain is the legend of poesy not yet sung ; for the Mountain is the golden age restored : it is the end of the journey of the Queen of Sheba to the King of the Jews, when she received "from his royal bounty all her desires." The Mountain is the great circle of health squared, the philosopher's stone at last found, the elixir of life surely bottled, more miraculous in its overtures of mercy and happiness than the Utopia of More, the Eepublic of Plato, or the Heaven of Mahomet. The perfect publication of the body of man in health and strength seems the highest achievement of all science, of all philosophy. It comes at last that sound digestion is the " golden key that opes the palace of felicity" sound digestion is Al- Sirat's bridge, sound digestion is the oyster whose shell is the world. Make existence a divine experiment, make the universe a perpetual enchantment, make thy body an instrument of celestial melodies, by looking through eyes that are not turned within upon a stomach that groans, like the Titan of old, "pain ever, forever." That cancer of the pylorus is a ghastly joke ; that mania from drink is a bitter mockery of the Lord, the tragedy of the soul lost ; inflammation and ulceration of mucous membranes are fear- ful accomplishments of the fire-eater. Alas that this should ever be ! for have not those evil days most surely come when love of money, love of eating and drinking, love of excitement from the nether flames, are the vultures that devour the liver of this fierce-rushing, fire-stealing, heaven- hating, God-defying, Yankee Prometheus ? Vicious and insane, long has he wandered far from Nature ; rebellious and ungrateful, he must return again to her charmed influence or perish. The woods and mountains have healing for him : let him flee from the wrath to come. The story of the god of the woods is no figment of the PROLEGOMENON. 51 imagination. It means the health and strength of man's own youth ; it means his life-power in contact with Nature, and stands a record of his force revealed by the immortal soundness of his unprofaned, unfallen organism. The God of the woods to the ignorant and uninitiated is a monster, savage in his attributes, hideous in his form and mien, the object of fear and detestation. This is superficial and pro- fane; for " PAN is a symbol of the world. In his upper part he resembles a man, in his lower part a beast, because the supreme and celestial part of the world is beautiful, radiant, and glorious, as is the face of this god, whose horns re- semble the rays of the sun and horns of the moon; the redness of his face is like the splendor of the sky; and the spotted skin that he wears is an image of the starry firma- ment. In his lower parts he is shagged and deformed, which represents the shrubs and wild beasts and the trees of the earth below; his goat's feet signify the solidity of the earth ; and his pipe of seven reeds that celestial har- mony which is made by the seven planets. He has a sheep, hook, crooked at the top, in his hand, which signifies the turning of the year into itself. "The nymphs dance to the music of the pipe, which in- strument he first invented ; and, as oft as he blows it, the dugs of the sheep are filled with milk, for he is the god of shepherds and hunters, the President of the Mountains and of the Country Life, and the guardian of flocks that graze upon the mountains." Withal, it is evident from this wondrous story that the great god Pan is a most excellent fellow. He lives in grottos, the shade of rocks, and sylvan solitudes, presiding as deity over forests, pastures, flocks, shepherds, and huntsmen, especially happy in the glories of the chase, frequenting tops of mountains, indulging in the ecstasies of drinking the blood of wolves and bears, with the unspeakable rap- tures of eating wild honey and dancing to the music of the syrinx with the nymphs of the woods. Given to snoring sullenly and drowsily when the sun is in the zenith, he is 52 PROLEGOMENON. clearly a \vake when the dews of evening or morning are on the grass. Filled with the loveliness of groves and the beauty of rural haunts, to utter the melodies of his heart he had to invent the shepherd's flute, and, being in his soul musical, performed upon it to perfection himself. As the favored lover of the nymph Echo, and permitted the honor of instructing Apollo in the art of divination, he must have possessed transcendent attractions: else how could he have become the sire of lynx, " the symbol of passionate and restless love," also deemed worthy of respect among the supernals? else why the teacher of a great god of Olympus in an art so important as prophecy ? Decidedly exquisite and charming he must be, then, with his " horns, beard, puck-nose, tail, goat's feet, and covering of hair," notwithstanding his own mother did flee from him with disgust and horror at his birth. The nymphs cared for him, nursed, and brought him up, which perhaps accounts for the fact of the nymphs liking such fellows ever since. Pan is good to the nymphs: they were very good to him. The fir-tree (hemlock) is sacred to him ; for reasons, ask "Pitys," the beautiful and beloved, whose spirit still sadly breathes through its boughs the moan of a suffocated, desolate, and broken heart. They say he is sensual and voluptuous, given much to dancing and revelry. Evidence, this, of health and soundness, no derangements local or general, acute or chronic, no tuberculous deposits, gouts, dyspepsias, or neuralgias, having the immortal vigor of the woods in his bones and in his blood, still the vitality of the crystalline air of Arcadia. A proper son of Uranus and Ge, (Heaven and Earth,) with the boundless self-suffi- ciency of health and strength, he could well afford to live in forests and be the god of shepherds and huntsmen. Weary of the degeneracy of his ancient habitations, where the haunts of divinities, "mid ruins old," are changed into poultry-roosts and shambles for the flesh of dogs, and a peculiar gout is given to the fat of turkeys by PROLEGOMENON. 58 feeding them upon olives, whilst cities of orators, poets, and demi-gods have become doleful dens of fallen races, " The servile offspring of the free, Greece being living Greece no more," he has retired to the Alleghany Mountains, where the splendor of his youth has been restored; and he invites, as in golden days of eld, to worship in his first temples, pro- mising his votaries that, if they devoutly seek, they shall be endowed with his attributes, in the form of health, toughness and vigor, of which the wolf-murderer and dancer to the music of reeds is the proper incarnation and veritable symbol. E. M. S. JACKSON. ALLEGHANY MOUNTAIN SPRINGS, Cresson, Cambria county, Pa. ERRATA. In the Natural History Catalogues of Book Atlas the capital letters to specific names should be lower case or common letters. Page 24 of Prolegomenon, 7th line, for elio read clio. Page 100, 31st line, for haven read heaven. Page 256, last line, for 2668 read 2928. Page 342, 3d line, for Comes south read Comes from the South. Page 355, 13th line, for are read is. Page 379, 8th line, for literal read littoral. Page 410, the star refers to note at bottom of page with double cross; the single cross to note star; and the double cross to the note single cross. Page 440, 21st line, for hundred read hundreds. Page 445, 31st line, for the second as read on. Page 494, 24th line, for in matter read in ponderable matter. Page 525, at bottom of page the Note should read Wilkinson. CONTENTS. BOOK ATLAS. NATURAL SCIENCE OF THE MOUNTAIN, OR WHAT THE MOUN- TAIN IS IN A CRITICAL INVENTORY OF THE PLANET, SKELE- TON, SKIN, APPENDAGES, AND CIRCULATING FLUIDS. CHAPTER I. GEOLOGY OF THE ALLEGHANY MOUNTAIN. PAGE Geography and topography of the Appalachian group ; separate Chains ; geographic nomenclature ; discrepancies ; geological and topographic continuities; topography of the Alleghany Mountain proper; Appalachian ranges east and west of the Alleghany Mountain ; general geology of the Appalachian group with intervening valleys ; general distribution and to- pography of the great sedimentary series of rocks; Appala- chian waves and wrinkles ; general style of fracture and dis- tribution, with law thereof; anticlinal and synclinal axes; mountains, valleys, denudation, crimping of strata, laws thereof; rending and crushing ; geological classification ; geo- logy of Old and New Worlds ; parallelism of rocks in Europe and America, or geological equivalence ; identity, etc. ; Eu- ropean and American geologists; theorists; geological sugges- tions; Silurian and Devonian groups; Americans geologists; recitation of the formations of Pennsylvania from below up- ward; numerical series; how it forms the surface of the State; whole contour of the surface ; geographic distribution ; frac- tures; topographic style of distribution of the rocks in different parts of the State; upper portion of the series of rocks; coal- fields and underlying formations, how arranged ; special geo- logy of the Alleghany Mountain ; mineral masses forming the body of the mountain; why the mountain is there; bituminous coal-fields ; scientific significance of the mountain as a frag- ment of the globe; how related; song of the rocks; whence, whither, and how related to the whole ; scenery of the moun- tain; elements of use and beauty; glory and grandeur of the mountain ; great depository of life-forces ; health ; disease ; final cause of the creation of the mountain 69 55 PAGE 103 56 CONTENTS. CHAPTER II. SOIL. Character ; composition ; origin of the mineral elements of the same / CHAPTER III. WATERS OF THE MOUNTAIN. General hydrography of Appalachian axes or water-sheds ; spe- cial hydrography of the Alleghany Mountain, its springs and streams; how distributed as to shedding surfaces; hydrology; character of waters mineral, thermal, and pure ; classification of waters ; special details of waters ; mineral springs of Penn- sylvania; hydrography of the same, or geographic distribu- tion ; classification ; analysis ; origin of mineralization ; asso- ciation of mineral springs with geological formations; medici- nal virtues of waters, whence derived ; individual springs of Pennsylvania; Bedford; Frankfort; Fayette; Blossburg; Bath ; York ; Perry County Springs ; Doubling Gap ; Yellow; Ephrata; Caledonia; Alleghany Mountain Springs; individual springs of this group; analysis ; characters of the same, their healing virtues ; Brady wine Springs. Catalogue of mineral springs of the United States and Terri- tories, Canada and New Mexico ; Dissertation on mineral and pure waters; prophylactic and therapeutic virtues, medical agents in the great chapter of uses; significance to mankind... 109 CHAPTER IV. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. Vegetable cell; the plant, its significance, and where in the Di- vine economy; laws; distribution; the tree, what is it? sig- nificance ; symbolical ; substantive ; the woods : man ; love ; worship; Tropical Flora; Arctic Flora; Flora of Temperate Zones ; Flora of Alleghany Mountain ; trees and forests ; spe- cial portraiture of trees ; style of growth of the forests of the Alleghanies ; style of forests peculiar to each species of tree ; character of mixed forests ; description, special, general, of the cone-bearing trees or great pine family; amentaceous or cat-kin bearing trees ; mixed woods ; laws of distribution ; soil, air, water, necessities of; succession of forests; vernal expression, sights and sounds ; Summer expression, sights and sounds; Autumnal enchantments; change of leaf; death of leaf-world; Fall; Winter; shrub or heath growth of moun- tain; plants forming the underwood; "heath," or bush, de- scription of the same ; beauty of flowering species ; peculiari- ties of the bush of the mountain ; herbaceous plants ; flowers of the mountain; crops of different seasons; extreme beauty of the same; cryptogamic plants; ferns; mosses, special home of; lichens; hepaticee; algse 208 CONTENTS. 57 CHAPTER V. ANIMAL LIFE OF THE MOUNTAIN. PAGE FIRST GREAT DIVISION OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. Animalia Vertebrata: Class 1, Mammalia; Mammals. Class 2, Ovipa- rous Vertebrata : Aves, or Birds. Class 3, Reptilia, or Rep- tiles. Class 4, Pisces, or Fishes 289 SECOND GREAT DIVISION OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. Anirnalia Mollusca; Soft Animals 390 THIRD GREAT DIVISION OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. Animalia Articulata 406 FOURTH GREAT DIVISION OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. Animalia Radiata 426 CHAPTER VI. CLIMATE OF THE MOUNTAIN. Meteorology; laws of atmospheric motions ; philosophy of ; me- tereology of North America compared with Old World ; cli- mate of coasts; climate of the interior valley of North America; climate of Atlantic and Pacific ranges of mountains; extreme fluctuations of temperature ; is of the class of excessive cli- mates of Buffon : magnetic intensities; variations; isothermal lines; climate of Alleghanies; low mean annual temperature of the same; thermometric ; magnetic vicissitudes; hygro- metric states; hygrometeors in general; rains of the moun- tain; whence the falling waters ; comparison with other por- tions of the world; quantities of rain in different ports of the planet; Alleghany Mountains atmospheric modifiers; quantity of rain on the Alleghanies; dew precipitations ; hygrometric and electric phenomena ; local special causes of the same on Alleghanies ; supposed moisture of the mountain surfaces, with its streams, deep forests, soaked soils, undried surfaces, etc. ; no undue humidity of the atmosphere of the mountain ; seasons on the mountain; cloud-forming; fogs; diurnal and nocturnal variations ; caloric, hygrometric, electric ; Indian summer; great problem, change of climate as a modifier of disease ; therapeutics of climates ; medicines of airs ; positive demonstrable laws of habitats 429 58 CONTENTS. BOOK II. JESCULAPIUS. CHAPTER I. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE ALLEGHANY MOUNTAINS AS THE SITE OF A SANITARIUM, OR RETREAT FOR THE SICK, ARRANGED BY INFINITE WISDOM DOCTORIAL USES OF THE MOUNTAIN. PAGE Who is the healing man ? origin of the medical profession ; critique on fixity and progress; reverence for the past; the word ; old medicine too material, too faithful to the prepon- derables; imponderables the movers, builders, and destroyers; veritable show-masters ; ponderables the puppets ; imponder- ables prophylactic and therapeutic, or disorganizing and lethi- ferous ; the vast realities of power sleep in the trace of the divine incubus of law UNDER the outward phenominal; hygienics and dynamics of imponderables ; efforts to attain the spiritu- alities of things through the imponderables ; medical spiritu- alities ; spirit manifestations ; medical theories of the same ; plagues of Egypt following regular profession ; homoeopathy ; fantastic tricks of infinitesimals; humbugability of the race; general formula of molecules ; philosophy of NOTHING ; oracu- lar bard of the sciences ; Hahnemann a new revelation ; his last formula; new modus operand! of vis medicatrix naturee ; homoeopathy; Croelius; hydropathy; Chaldean oracles; Preiss- nitz; mankind in darkness; arrival of the inspired one; glory of water; gods of waters in old mythology; Preissnitz knocks them all ; man clearly amphibious ; Maine liquor law ; chem- istry; water, cleanliness, godliness; water as cure-all; Ameri- cans grab worn-out crotchets of Old Word; trot them out Young America; hoaxes run through the mill again and again; after all Yankee easily sold ; the thing a little musty from age; must be foreign, however; portentous humbugs; Mes- mer, of Swabia; shoots a la Jonah's gourd, for a time in heaven with Barnum, Jo Miller, Jo Smith & Co.; disposition to glorify quacks ; nemesis; murdered kings of quackery; ex- ploded Barnum's; Yankee not a religious animal won't wor- ship monkeys, even God, long at a time ; tired of Barnum and the inspired Josephs ; did print Barnum's book, and inflict a nausea on the solar system; rap! shades of the dead, rise! or speak without getting up, if you prefer ; spiritual drummers ; healing media ; secrets of feloniously wormed out ; mira- cles to order ; rap ! the dead move beds are taken up, eyes are opened; cancers, avaunt! regular faculty flung: old medi- cine in trouble; hair dyes, artificial teeth, miracles among the dull catalogue of common things ; Hume nods ; interrup- tions of the laws of nature always on hand; peace no longer in the grave; stop singing Psalms in Heaven go to work, glorified spirits, no time for loafing; be useful; tell us about cancer and consumption; help us through with obstinate con- stipation; horn of Monker; issues in court; Plato and Zoro- aster, Hahnemann and Paracelsus, Rappers and Swedenborg ; CONTESTS. PAGE scald head, diarrhoea, oil of dead men ; infernal dream ; no rest in the grave must wake up and watch the table business worse, attend to Dennis O'Flaherty's bowels ; horrors of tish and whisky in the Irish intestine; new formula of Gehenna; new patent-rights of torments in Pandemonium ; "after death by bilious fever," rapper, won't you let us sleep well "a few days" ? other birds of prey owls and vultures some obscene, all villanous ; get your dictionary; kinesipathy; hypnotism; what of them? "Swedish gymnastics" theory of 2000 move- ments all diseases cured practiced for years in Sweden; hypnotism ; James Braid, of Manchester ; Wilkinson on Phre- nopathy; hypnotism sound on marriage of mud and spirit- pours physical salvation into the animal man through his soul, as follows: * * To list of horrors add Uroscopy and Thompsonianism same birds, sired by "Prince of the Air;" strong family resem- blance ; nostrums and nostrum makers ; new order of dragons; dukes of Sarsaparilla antediluvian saurians; coprolites; the evil spirit in the shape of quack medicines; Hobensack, Swain & Co. ; maggot in the head ; vermifuge ; fearful power to tap the streams of life; satanic issues; blood; money; transportation of granite; humanity; Choctaw wigwams; horrors of Dante's hell; assassination of fraternal instincts; Yankee vultures enthroned, oh weary earth; quack princes; goddess of revenge; nostrum makers and venders ; poisonous mixture of quack and felon; what of the doctors, the army of knights of the rueful countenance? is all uncertainty, both quack and regular? net results of systems of medication; Hahnemann; masterly inactivity; grand science of Laissez Faire ; nature illimitable, infallible; let things alone; gas away homoeopathy, one sell will do, let the patient dream; faith, immortal faith; slander of the druggists; old dragons not discarded by homoeopathy. Hydropathy, real merit, song of the waters as panacea, egre- gious humbug; certain conditions, real death power ; water a good thing in its place: good in a mug when thirsty; bad as a home for sharks when you are floating on a plank a thousand miles from shore; spirit rapping; unmitigated fraud upon the race; quackeries bet on strong will of conservation; delude man, sell forever; Swain's panacea; Hobensack; tickle the trout ; nature's wings are healing ; steals feathers of the regu- lar profession; tacit acknowledgment, of the corn. Sickening array of strategies of the devil ; where can the suf- ferer look? REGULAR PROFESSION Rock of Ages; true brazen serpent in the wilderness of life ; time honored ; the Greek; art of healing; god of medicine sound; regular pro- 'fession great maternal fount of science of man ; what it has done; what it can do; use medicinal of all things; regular pro- fession must not surrender the greatest powers of the world to quacks, who shall fiddle some delusion and put the sick man asleep, while nature cures him ; intelligent, use of the universe; therapeutics of all things; chemistry; drugs; habits of life ; change of habitat ; curative virtues of climates ; Hy- 60 CONTENT?. PAGE geia, daughter of JEsculapius, true to the teachings of her father ; regular profession only hope of humanity ; flee to the mountains their rocks will not cover thee ; tears of the last sick man dried 481 CHAPTER II. HTGEIA. ^Esculapius, the father of Hygeia; interpretations of classical writers ; is a personification of the healing powers of nature ; Hygeia, mild virgin, goddess of health and sound mind; sphere, preservation of health and prevention of disease; fields of labor presided over by her; art of prolonging life; laws of health; philosophy of living; great prophylactic; must not rob her father ; Mayo on Hygiene ; not original, new, or just in stricture; his dig at the profession; no rene- gade; faint praise; a word on Prof. Mayo's work, the "Phi- losophy of Living," and Mayo ; table of contents of his book ; Hufeland on the macrobiotic life; medical art, hygiene; mixed definitions; troublesome distinctions ; art of prolonging life; art of medicines, strictures on ; use of medicine and physi- cians ; Hufeland's table of contents ; state of science ; art of prolonging ; extent of literature of medicine in this depart- ment; professional books, books not professional -both sig- nificant; man and his surroundings; preventive elements sim- ple ; all the surroundings of man involved ; the bodies we have; what we eat; gastronomy; the stomach; universal con- sanguinity; only indispensable organ to all animals; all em- bracing affinities; its ills the full circle of torments; diseased, it is Pandora's box ; catalogue of fissures in base of pyramid ; Tantalus ; waters we drink ; pure water great hygienic water ; mineral waters; nonsense of promiscuous spring going; or- gans addressed by mineral waters; what can they do? great impression made first on digestive machinery ; real use great new impression; indiscriminate application to diseases absurd; great mineral water, rationally medicated pure water; Dr. Struve; factitious mineral waters; preferable to natural; fabulous powers of natural ; mysterious and inexplicable qualities suspicious; special pleading of particular advocates; how in bronchial diseases ; mucous surfaces, etc. ; in other diseases ; great water, pure water, assisted by all surround- ings; air we breathe; pure air greatest prophylactic ; sleep; heavenly force to cure and prevent ; mind and body both saved by sleep; what we wear; importance of philosophy of clothes; despotisms and follies of husk-man's instincts; clothes as preventives ; ignorance, if true philosophy of clothes; vice, crime of fashionable dressing; slavery to con- ventionalisms in dress ; sin ; when will we wake up ; what we do; hygiene of work; virtues of work; medicine of work; of all exercise, saving elements; varieties; active; passive; all have special ends; discriminate use of; on the side of the soul, great world of prophylactic powers; closes the circle CONTEXTS. 61 PAGE man on this subject ; involves all his surroundings of body and soul; extent of this one attribute of the god of medicine represented by his daughter; he represents all; medical pro- fession not confined to cobbling humanity; not restricted to pill-driving; it is great to prevent disease, greater to cure when in existence; ^Esculapius personification of all powers; Hy- geia must lean on him; all are parts of one great whole Anatomy, 'Physiology, Pathology, Hygiene; pillars of one grand temple ; equal in significance all ; unity, spirit of the world .. 537 BOOK ILL ANTAEUS THE GIANT. CHAPTER I. THE MOUNTAIN TELLING ITS WHOLE STORY OF FATE TO MAN, CREEP- ING IN HIS BONES, BOILING IN HI8 BLOOD, FLASHING IN HIS URAIN. The man of poetry and fable; man of present hour different; rather a failure; vulturous scavenger sinking toward annihila- tion; man primeval; Methuselah; man once tasted the life ever- lasting, is now a toad-stool; threescore and ten hold him; gone stomach and loins; some good men in modern times; anatomy and physiology of Methuselah; wisdom of myths; paradises and falls of the races; instincts of the soul; men still turn to those beautiful dreams; mournful Egypts; heavenly Canaans; vague longings have eternal radicles; fallen splendor; "me- mory will bring back the feeling;" have the doctrines of de- spair a necessary origin in the nature of things? sins, falls, sufferings; is he lost? sorrowful garden; age of gold de- parted; crushed giant; a broken-hearted Adam; will the wrathful sword flame on? is all gone? vain efforts of thou- sands of years; is this a correct rendering of the ways of Providence to men? where does disease come from ? catalogues of infirmities ; death's bill-of-fare ; best medical treatise ; best doctor; is man a likeness of the world? living soul; what is the world? dogmas of death ; dragon fights; mournful posi- tion; lives in tombs; sticks to the past; will he ever look into the future ? a small number of world-wide men ; only reform- ers, only true lovers of humanity; had no past; marched straight forward to future; inspired; shall they speak to the deal and dead always ? their words are seed ; from the pro- phets of regeneration turn to the now extant individual; is the man of the present hour plus, minus, or zero ? is he ful- filling the divine economy, or playing the fool ? at 2.17J where will he land? with greasy and hypertrophied liver, with can- cerous stomach, effete blood, gouty feet, and tuberculated lungs, hadn't he better stop under the first shade-tree and per- 62 CONTENTS. ; PAGE form a prayerful self-analysis? if there be no water near him, let him perform his ablutions with sand, in manner and form prescribed by the Koran; his Mother Nature, great benevolent cow, for him the rebel, has dry dugs, hollow horn, and wolf in the tail; grass, fresh grass, salvation through grass'; if a run at grass won't cure him, you need try nothing else, (see N. M. on diseased and worn-out horses) ; right about, face, oh dragon- torn sinner; must leave the cauldrons in which you boil, leave your hot-beds of vice and luxury, towns and cities ; dream no more of the flesh-pots of Egypt, or the delicious leeks of the Nile; with muffled drum and trailing arms, forward, march! TOWARD God; too long wandering from Paradise; flaming sword extinguished ; may re-enter the hallowed haunts of sound digestion and perennial youth ; longevity; golden rules of health; may stay in the body a hundred, possibly a thou- sand years "CERTAINLY A FEW BAYS ;" body of man a divine crucible; universe the ore of gold; fire up, but beware; modern physical degeneracy ; clear case ; comparative longevity of an- cient and modern man; Methuselah ; views of Haller and Buffbn on the long life ; their explanation ; Hufeland on Methuselah ; Hensler's views ; the extreme ancient year ; present, year of Eastern nations; the patriarchs; Methuselah reduced to near 200 years ; period of Abraham ; lives of patriarchs ; Hebrew record ; Hufeland's tables ; Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, etc ; Egyptians, ages of; Chinese; Greeks; Romans; catalogues of ancient worthies; of Roman women; actresses; records of Pliny; census, time of Vespasian; Ulpian bills of mortality; Rome compared with London ; duration of life the same in time of Moses, Greeks, and Romans ; probably men live as long as ever ; views of Flourens ; ordinary, extraordinary life ; Buffon's views life 100 years ; Mailer's views life 200 years ; Thomas Parr, Hufeland's account of him; Henry Jen- kins; Bacon and Hufeland's list of veterans; ages; vocations of the same ; facts of life of same ; habits of life ; Anglo- Americans, can they be acclimatized ? the negro race, Dungli- son and Prichard on ; Hnmboldt on Indians; Hufeland's con- clusions on duration of human life ; Haller's conclusions ; general formula; classes of mankind who live longest; em- perors, popes, monks, and hermits; doctors shortest livers; table of Wilson; countries most favorable to longevity; gen- eral conclusions synopsized ; who, how, when, where ? all facts of long life; longest livers always followers of nature; conditions of long life; country life; city and town life; tables of Haller and Hufeland ; Haller and Buffon on laws of longevity; formulae; Hufeland on same; life should be 200 years; Flourens on the physiological law; ages of animals; laws of growth; gestation; duration of; will live eight, or seven, or five times as long as they grow; why the rarity of patriarchs; death's regular harvest; is man the giant Antseus? the doctrine of attainability of great age demonstrable ; agree- able hope inspired ; everybody may live to be as old as Methu- selah ; historical side of subject; scientific and physiological side; live 200 years if you wish; history, science; means of CONTENTS. 63 PAGE attaining age of patriarchs ; gist and soul of the fable of An- tasus ; stick to Mother Nature; recitation of the records who lived longest, how, why, from Methuselah down: modern tables approach ancient; table of Easton of Salisbury, Eng- land; several lives 185; regular record of courts, and Har- vey's post-mortem ; habits of life all point in one direction ; nature ; open air ; fishing, swimming ; daily-labor ; digestive organs treated with consideration by them all; modern patri- archs, sailors, soldiers, workers-of some kind; hopeful record; only condition indispensable, touch the earth ; material side of question all in this ; soul, or spirit side of question through the sire of Antaeus. Poseidon, who was a " personification of the fertilizing power of water" a symbol of thought, spirit, genius creator of the horse, and great water-god ; on the side of spirit what comes of the fable ; same story from philosophers, saints, anatomists, poets, moralists, especially physicians ; tem- perance and virtue absolutely the only conditions of PHYSICAL REGENERATION ; perfect rectitude a preventive for smallpox and ague ; the life of man may become cleaner, brighter, sweeter, and certainly LONGER ; the sum total of all prophe- cies, of all philosophies, of all religions, all sciences, natural, supernatural, is the body of man a perfectly sound implement, absolutely plastic clay in the FINGERS of the PURE, INTELLI- GENT, LOVING SOUL; secret of the universe told; great problem of nature solved by the physical regeneration and salvation of the human race; the Mountain the first shore; the first LIFE- THEATRE ; the sun first kisses, dawn first bathes the Moun- tain; lo ! for the Son of Man, is it coming day? 567 CHAPTER II. ' PAN A SYMBOL OF THE UNIVERSE. Is nature a unit? ancient atomic theory; strange coincidence; modern atom ; what has the intellect done for the atom, from Leucippus to Dalton? souls of great dreamers identical in their instincts ; logic of nature ; primordial types ; fascination of the atom; temptation to brave spirits to exhaust ; struggles from Democritus to Schleiden ; ancient " atom impenetrable;" modern cell ; all organisms necessarily microscopic in struc- ture ; all organisms come from infusoria ; everything must flow; Descartes' vortices celestial; Cuvier's vortices terres- trial; perpetual motion of the cell: life and death dance; motion motion everywhere ; organic, inorganic, imponder- able; organs, functions ; metamorphoses; immaterial essence; naturel history; supernatural history; the atom, the soul; silent gliding ; heavenly soaring ; what is pain ? what is dis- ease ? of the sound cell ; diseased cell ; physiology, pathology ; atom sound; atom morbid and morbific; origin of evil; the cell and general pathology; great functions, great lesions; in nature all things united ; the cell the imponderable ; old actors in the tragedies of life and death ; the ether, the heat, the light; normal, abnormal life; jokes of nature; eternal 64 CONTENTS. PAGE change; death; body of man bag of water; vibrations; pon- derable and imponderable; health, disease; renovation; re- juvenescence, philosophy of; the cell the focus of all renewal ; the fountain of youth ; implements of renovation, all medical science and all nature; chronic disease; change of habitat: vicious despotisms of local causes ; voice of nature, come to me, come to the woods, frequent the haunts of Pan ; renova- tion, gospel of; "primordial utricle;" small details "no great, no small;" Malpighi, Ehrenberg, Brown, Mohl; Gali- leo, Kepler, Newton, Herschel; brain of Shakspeare; Monas termo ; Pan, the cell ; details of things cared for on Olympus ; the mean and vulgar represented as well as elegant and divine ; great forms of matter ; kingly and queenly deities ; lowly gods, big heads, small heads; Jupiter and Minerva, Pan and Vul- can: no comfort in the world without Pan and Vulcan; the god of "pastoral life" and god of furnaces indispensable; trumps of the hour ; iron and milk ; thanks and eternal honors due to the humble deities they superintend the drudgeries, and make earth comfortable; style of the god of the woods; not prepossessing, not beautiful ; uses, ends, ghastly needs ; represents the great kingdoms of man's both lower and higher nature ; significance of the clever ugly god ; cloven foot, ra- diant face, leopard's skin; Pan a symbol of the universe; grateful worship due to this god of the woods ; let him flourish, and the sacrifices of the seekers of renovation and youth shall burn forever on his altars ; god of the woods symbol of the cell, original germ, always perfect; represents the formative nutrient process of the organic world ; the great herald of the cell, the microscope, and the philosophy of rejuvenescence 607 ATLAS. Now sees the top of Atlas as he flies, Whose brawny back supports the starry skies ; Atlas, whose head with piny forests crowned, Is beaten by the wind, with foggy vapors bound. Snow hides his shoulders ; from beneath his chin The founts of rolling streams their race begin. VIEGIL. 6* 65 A potter, who understood neither Latin nor Greek, was the first, who, toward the end of the sixteenth century, dared to say at Paris, and in the face of all the learned doctors, that fossil shells were real shells, deposited formerly by the sea in the places where they were then found ; that animals, and especially fishes, had given to the figured stones all their diiferent figures; and he defied all the school of Aristotle to attack his proofs. Histoire de V Academic des Sciences, annee 1720, p. 5. FONTENELLE. This potter, who defied the school of Aristotle, was Bernard Pal- issy, "as great a philosopher as Nature alone can produce;" as was said by a writer of his own time, "a man of marvelously quick and acute mind." FLOURENS. I have never had any other book than heaven and earth, which is known to every one, and it is given to all to read this beautiful book. And because there are found stones filled with shells, even at the summits of the highest mountains, you must not think that these shells are formed, as every one says, by nature pleasing to do something new. When I have closely examined the forms of stones, I find that none of them could have taken the form of shells, or of any other animal, if the animal itself had not constructed its form. We must conclude that before these said shells were petrified, the fishes that formed them were living in the water; and that both the water and the fish were petrified at the same time, and of these there can be no doubt. CEuvREs DE BERNARD PALISSY. 1575. There are shapes in the earth unfinished; things that are the forms of life without ever having been the recipients of life. They are called fossils. Opera Philosophica et Mineralogica. 1721. EMANUEL SWEDENBORO. 66 554. The earth has without doubt originated according to the laws of the polyhedron, which represents in the nearest manner the globe. The polyhedron of the globe is the rhomboidal dodecahedron. 555. The land cannot therefore have an equal elevation every- 4 where above the water, because the crystal consists of edges, angles, and surfaces or sides. The mountain tops are probably the angles, the mountain ridges or chains the edges, the plains the lateral sur- faces of the crystal. 557. Although the earth may be regarded as originally a crystal, that consists of level surfaces, edges, and angles, wide fissures may still have originated between its laminae, such as we see in large crystals of felspar. These fissures or gaps are the primary valleys. 558.' There must be, therefore, valleys or parallel valleys, which probably extend for hundreds of miles, and are many miles deep longitudinal valleys. 559. The laminae of the earth had without doubt transverse fis- sures, which have been called hidden passages. These transverse fissures are the transverse valleys, which are consequently less long and deep. 560. The mountains originate of themselves. They do not prop- erly originate, but valleys only originate, and the ridges of the crys- tal laminae afford the mountains. The mountains have not been originally upheaved above the surface of the earth, nor the valleys depressed. A valley, which is several miles broad, must originally have been several miles deep, and the mountain wall consequently several miles high. The earth at its origin was a cloven and jagged polyhedron, a polyhedric star, such as the moon is still. 561. The mountains are not, therefore, large crystals, which crystallized above the surface of the earth. They are only crystal laminae, and may be as irregular as possible in form, for they are ruptured crystals. The constituent forms of the earth are consequently arranged in laminse. What in the crystal is called the cleavage of the laminae, is in the earth stratification. The strike of the strata combined with their dip determines the crystal nucleus of the earth. Physiophilo- sophy. OKEN. In his strivings, who arrived at, the clearest light, who came nearest the core or heart of the truth, the humble Potter, the pious Mystic, or the philosophical Poet? The true Naturalist should not possess in excess any spiritual endowment. With too much imagination and sensibility, he floats off into the region of Transcendental Idealism, intoxicated with the gorgeous ineffability of the "grotto of dreams;" or overwhelmed by the infinite suggestiveness of Nature which must remain forever unutter- able and incommunicable by words, he babbles like one mad. On the other hand, with too much of the senses and understanding, he congeals Creation into the "concrete" under the "wintry moonlight of the Intellect." and the profound necessities revealed in the inseparable connection of Life, Form, and Substance, are lost in a ghastly for- mula of Mechanism, Chemistry, and Death. The Naturalist must not be the bird that never alights on his feet, and sleeps on his wings, but rather the mole of the ground, or true creature of the earth, penetrated and held by earthly affinities. Let him, in the blackness that enshrouds him, creep like the humble caterpillar, measuring-worm, or serpent prone, touching Nature lov- ingly on all her points, rather than leap like the salient grasshopper into unknown spaces, or plunge like an eyeless fish through cavernous deeps of the world. EGBERT SMITH. 68 ALLEGHANY OR APPALACHIAN MOUNTAINS, CHAPTER I. GEOLOGY OF THE ALLEGHANY MOUNTAINS. THIS group of mountains of the North American Conti- nent, also called the Atlantic range, as described by some geographers, extends through eleven degrees of latitude, in a direction nearly parallel to, and from fifty to one hundred miles west of the Atlantic Ocean, comprising a belt of from fifty to one hundred and fifty miles wide.* Other geographers do not give so extensive a range to this chain, but describe it as extending from thirty-five to forty- one degrees north latitude, between the mouth of the St. Lawrence and the source of the Alabama ;f while others represent it as extending from thirty-three to fifty-three de- grees of north latitude. It is again stated that the Appa- lachian range "begins in the northern part of Alabama and terminates in the valley of the Hudson ;"J and also that it extends "from the Gulf of the St. Lawrence to middle Ala- bama, fifteen hundred miles in length, and from one hundred to two hundred miles broad. " The most recent and elabo- * Malte Brun. f Phys. Atlas. J Drake. % H. D. Rogers. 69 70 THE MOUNTAIN. rate Gazetteer describes it as "that vast mountain system in the southeastern part of North America, extending, under various names, from Maine southwestward to the northern part of Alabama. In New Hampshire, near the northern termination of this chain, it is less than one hundred miles from the Atlantic coast, but it gradually diverges as it ad- vances southward, so that toward its southern extremity it is about three hundred miles from the sea."* In these delineations there is a discrepancy in geographic and topographic description of the continuance of lines of elevation, necessarily involving also mooted questions as to the unbroken geological continuity of formations ; geological equivalency being affirmed by some, while it is alleged that the superficial geology is manifestly different, whatever the more profound and invisible ranges of telluric fracture, or folding together with geological metamorphosis, might reveal ; the statement being distinctly recorded, that "the different ridges are distinguished from each other not only in external features, but also in their geology." This fact alone, leaving out the manifest identity of formations as geological equiva- lents, would account for the disagreement in geographic no- menclature, and the apparent error of generalization; the separate portions of the ranges being considered dissimilar in mineralogical composition, or, at least, geological arrange- ment of elements, and topographic characters. Certain associated groups of mountains would be more correctly designated "geographical dependencies of the system." Thus, the Green Mountains of Yermout and the White Mountains of New Hampshire are described as belonging to this range. They are crystalline in structure, and some of their peaks attain the elevation of 6500 feet above the level of the ocean. At the southwest, where the group embraces the Alleghany, Blue Ridge, and Smoky mountains, they also attain a great * J. T. Hodge. THE MOUNTAIN. 71 height, their most considerable altitude being 6470 feet above the sea level. This is the height of Mount Mitchell, in North Carolina, which is also said by some geographers to be the "highest mountain summit east of the Mississippi River." Some of these mountain ranges, as the Blue Ridge, are also composed of the old metamorphic strata, gneiss, and altered slates, and sandstones, embracing even the formations char- acterized by the presence of fossils, or organic forms ; while the principal part of the belt of the Appalachian chain is composed exclusively of the sedimentary paleozoic division low in the geological series. And thus from geological mu- tation, and consequent topographic change, it comes that different members of the chain, in the same lines of continuity of elevation, are called by different names in the course of their range through the United States. Their height is from two thousand five hundred to six thousand feet, with an approximate average of three thousand feet, above the level of the sea. They form a range of hydro- graphic axes, which separate the waters that flow into the great interior valley of North America and Gulf of Mexico from those which flow over the Atlantic plain into that ocean : as the Rocky Mountains, on the west, separate those majestic streams which flow to the east and south through the trough of the Mississippi River, from the west or Pacific water-shed. In their middle and southwestern range, this group of mountains, with its large, rich, and fertile intervening valleys, in its transit through the States, presents a series of chains, or lines of elevation, with great regularity of crests and ac- clivities, and more or less uniformity of geographic features. That portion of the Appalachian group, the individual ranges of which are called by different names, east of the Alleghany proper, exhibits a series of sharp, symmetrical mountains, presenting long lines of parallelism, with crests as regularly defined in outline as the ridges of a well-plowed field, separated by valleys as regular as furrows in the same. Their crest-lines display regular and beautiful horizons, which are almost mathematical lines for miles; while the 72 THE MOUNTAIN. valleys between the mountains show somewhat diversified surfaces. The mountain ranges west of the proper Alleghany are not so regular and sharp in outline, and the valleys between are of a different character. These ridges, as they are gen- erally styled, are also called by different names in separate portions of their extent, even when there is no interruption of continuity of elevation. The whole group, with its characteristic scenery, its splen- did system of foldings of the surface, or waves of mountain and valley, upon minute exploration, is discovered to be in strict conformity with the rock structure beneath. The to- pography of a given portion of the earth's crust, with its contour of outlines and surfaces, is necessitated by its geo- logy, as absolutely as the form of an animal's body is fixed by its skeleton, or stony foundation. The sharp regular mountains east of the Alleghany itself are formed of different materials, and have a different char- acter from the western collateral parallel ridges. The former are made of the larger and more uniform members of the geological series, those masses which preserve homogeneous mineralogical composition through great extent of their thick- ness, also sameness of mechanical constitution, or strength of substance, over large geometric areas, and exhibit great uni- formity in the style of fracture and plication of the strata. Those west of the Alleghany are more irregular and indefi- nite in their outlines, from the more heterogeneous mineralo- gical constitution and mechanical properties of the rocks of that portion of the group of which they are formed. What is called especially the Alleghany Mountain (the term Appalachian indicating the whole eastern oceanic sys- tem) is the range of knobs, or irregularly serrated edge of the summit-line of that vast plateau, or elevated range of table lands, (much more correctly designated ranges of alpine hills,) which forms the chain of water-sheds of the eastern side of the continent. It is formed of a series of high out- standing geological watch-towers, which coalesce in a crest- THE MOUNTAIN. 73 line, irregular, undulating and zigzag, and when approached closely from the east, give the appearance of a chain of sepa- rate, short mountains, and knobs almost isolated, towering above the region at their bases ; but approached from a greater distance, or from the west, present horizons of straight lines or gentle undulations. The depressions between these knobs are called gaps of the mountain. They are of every shape and form, from simple flexures in the general line of trend, scooped out depressions, or notches cut into the side of the mountain mass, to short, abruptly terminating, or irregular, tortuous and divided valleys, the bottoms of which are the conduits, or rocky beds of the streams which flow southeast from the steep escarpment of the mountain. These gaps or gorges are sometimes cut into the mountain several miles, and even clear through the entire mountain mass, as in the gaps of some of the considerable creeks and rivers. They penetrate the coal-bearing rocks, giving to the eastern margin of the great bituminous coal-field a notched or irregular rim, as points of the coal-seams with accompanying rocks stretch out toward the knobs, forming the sinuous and jagged edge of the great basin. The knobs, or swells of the mountain themselves, are stra- tified piles of rocks left between the deep cuts or gorges of denudation made into the side of the elevated mass of broken heights called the Alleghany Mountains. The mineral masses forming the summits of the high buttresses or outstanding peaks of the mountain are constituted of the large group of silicious rocks at the base of the coal series, including the conglomerate, or its representative in coarse sandstone layers, forming the floor of the coal measures. The gaps referred to between these peaks are simply deep cuts, or sinuosities gouged by the denuding forces out of the groups of rocks which make the mountain, and which are here found with gentle dips, in some places approaching nearly to the horizontal position. Westward of this range of knobs and gaps, and between 7 74 THE MOUNTAIN. them and the next lines of elevation, forming ridges called by different names, the region presents the character of ele- vated broken and irregular valleys. The surfaces of these valleys (which, however, can scarcely with propriety be called valleys) is constituted of a series of hills, separated by deep- washed gulleys and ravines, of every conceivable shape and dimension, from steep and precipitous gorges to gentle and flowing vales. These hills have something of a mountainous character, and the whole surface between the highest ranges of the ridges and mountains is sometimes, though very incorrectly, called "the Mountains." The whole group of Appalachians, with its intervening valleys, has for its bone-structure or skeleton, that magnifi- cent system of paleozoic or fossiliferous rocks which are so largely developed in North America, and which have scarcely a parallel in any portion of the earth's crust yet subjected to geological scrutiny. To this immense mass of sedimentary deposits, embraced between the horizon of the crystalline, hypozoic, or gneissic rocks and the top of the coal series, the general term, "Ap- palachian," has been applied by some geologists. " This series of rocks, more than thirty-five thousand feet thick in some dis- tricts, is made up of a number of separate formations, cha- racterized by distinctive features in mineral composition and organic contents," revealing in majestic hieroglyphics the history of an immeasurable chain of phenomena occurring through unreckoned centuries of time, in an unbroken sequence of deposits, closely united by a continuous affiliation of or- ganic forms and general geological characters. " The whole pile is the demonstrable record of an immea- surable and continuous epoch, the deposit of one vast oceanic basin."* As the strata are in the main conformable, they constitute a series, divisible into a number of separate members, or for- * Rogers. THE MOUNTAIN. 75 mations, which preserve their nrineralogical and fossilifer- ous identity over extensive geographic surfaces. They vary from a few feet to several thousand feet in thick- ness, and generally show a uniformity of mineralogical elements through their entire thickness.* Thus in one formation the silicious element predominates, presenting a series of hard indestructible quartzose strata ; whilst, in another, the softer aluminous element forms a series of shaly, slaty, or argilla- ceous layers. Sometimes the calcareous or lime material alone predomi- nates, and is found in ponderously stratified masses. The coals, or fossil carbon formations, make (see vertical sec- tion) the upper portion of this series, and are mingled with all the other elements in a stratified group of rocks. The mode and style of distribution of this pile of rocks, (forming the sur- face of the geological tally-board of the ages,) where it extends over the different States, is a chapter of beauty and wonder. Being all of them mechanical sedimentary rocks, and depo- sited originally, with exception of the local undulatory and oblique lines of original deposit, in a horizontal position, constituting vast geological scales or Iamina3 on the surface of the globe, they are now found folded and wrinkled, the strata reposing at every angle of inclination, and presenting a system of gigantic waves or lines of elevation, running parallel and with great regularity for hundreds of miles. They present a topography of the most curious and inte- resting character in the middle and eastern portions of the range, forming long, narrow, keel-boat shaped valleys, with abrupt cul-de-sac terminations, surrounded by high, sharp mountains running like immense levees around them, and which are only broken by the gorges of the streams which flow through this region. This is the wild and picturesque scenery of the Appalachian mountains and valleys, the gaps of whose beautiful rivers are so celebrated by the Traveler, Artist, and Poet. * See vertical section and description of separate formations. 76 THE MOUNTAIN. These waves of rocks are called by geologists " anticlinal," and the troughs between are called "synclinal axes," and everywhere the connection between topography and geology is revealed. Where the rocks are soft and destructible we are presented with valleys of denudation, or washing, and where the rocks are harder and less destructible, mountains are left, monuments of the war of the elements. Where the stata are spread out with gentle inclinations, or horizontal, there are no mountain ranges, and the valleys are drains or washes cut through the strata, the hills between being simply piles of rocks left by the denuding forces. Where they are folded and wrinkled, the appearance and disappearance of the same formations, at different points, always show the same topography, as well as geology. Thus all the mountains in the eastern portion of the range are formed of two or three groups of rocks brought to the surface by frequent foldings of the strata, whilst the valleys between are also made of a few formations which are as con- stantly cut out and washed away.* Thus in this apparently much diversified range of moun- tains and valleys, we have a few rocks continually appearing and disappearing, the out-cropping edges of the different fractured foldings forming long, narrow, parallel belts, the less destructible masses projecting in mountain lines, the more destructible swept away out of the valleys. This remarkable folding or plication of the strata is the most distinguishing characteristic of the geology of the Ap- palachian group of rocks and mountains. Apparently a con- fusion of interminable waves, arches, and troughs, of anticlinal elevations and synclinal depressions, with continual bending and twisting of the strata, there is still a regularity and a system, an order of relative position which is never violated. The foldings of this portion of the skin of the world have but a few general formulae in their mode of development and distribution. They have a southwestern direction, with * See transverse section THE MOUNTAIN. 77 slightly deviating lines; some geologists having numbered and described specifically the alterations of the line of trend. They are from a few miles to several hundred long, and as a general fact show steeper dips on their western sides, while they decrease in abruptness of inclination on both sides of lines of fracture, from east to west, or in a line transverse to the line of fracture, thus demonstrating that the violence of the forces which have ruptured the strata diminishes most ob- viously proceeding westward toward the central line of the continent. This will be seen by contrasting the gentle arches of the bituminous coal-measures with the abrupt and, in some places, vertical and collapsed, even overturned and crushed axes of the lower part of the series, as exhibited in the eastern range of mountains approaching the great foci of volcanic or earthquake action. One region reveals violent crimping, wrinkling, or foldings, with steep dips, and great crushing of the strata from flexures and fractures, showing evidence of vast oscillations, followed by fissures and chasms, splitting and rending of rocks, with injections of trap and crystalline metamorphosis of sand layers and mud masses : the other showing increased respect for the law of gravitation, with preponderance of inertia, allowing the rocks to repose with gentle dips, or in horizontal position, comparative immobility or sleep of the elements predomi- nating over extensive ranges of quiet and undisturbed basins, the waves gradually subsiding from violent tossings to gen- tlest undulations, and dying away into absolute repose. It is a natural inquiry, Where do these rocks belong? what are they ? and, is the geological structure of this Con- tinent the same as that of the Old World ? Have we the same order of position of mineral masses, the same lithological characters, and organic remains ? Many American observers, struck with the beauty and perfection of the classification of the English geologists, have been explaining the geology of this country by reference to that classification. They seem to be successful in identifying species of organic 7* 78 THE MOUNTAIN. remains, and have satisfied themselves as to the parallelism of the formations of Europe and America, having, as they sup- pose, made out the geological equivalents on both continents. In this category are a number of the authors of the different geological surveys of the United States, two of whom,* after enumerating several species of fossils answering descriptions in the New York reports of what they call their " Clinton" group, and also in Murchison's silurian system, say, "If our fossils be really identical in species, of which we entertain no doubt, then the rocks in question may be referred to the upper part of the Lower Silurian system, and may be consi- dered the western representatives of the ' Clinton group of New York' and the ' Caradoc of England.'" This is arriv- ing quickly but surely at a sweeping generalization. They then proceed to describe their fossils, identifying many with the fossils of New York, and also of Europe, establishing as they think, without doubt their identity with the Silurian and Devonian groups, together with the Carboniferous limestone ; and this also appears to have been the opinion of M. De Yerneuil, after his visit to the localities mentioned. On the subject of the identity of American and European rocks, the list of species now accumulated is a most interest- ing achievement. Mr. Lyell constantly speaks of our rocks as referable to the classification of Europe. In his travels through this country, the terms " Silurian group of the Transition rocks," or the " Devonian," are as familiarly applied to our forma- tions, as if he were traveling and describing them in England. By examining the reports of the geological surveys of this country, it will be seen that many of our geologists endeavor to get our rocks classified after the formula of the European geologists. In the second annual report of the Geological Survey of New York, we are presented with their different groups of * Yandell and Shumard. THE MOUNTAIN. 79 rocks all bearing some particular name, generally of the locality where they are most largely developed. For ex- ample, Mohawk and Trenton limestone, Salmon River lime- stone and shales, Rochester shales, etc. etc. ; or they are again named from some striking character, as Pentamerus limestone, Gypseous shales, Gray Brachiopodous sandstone, Olive sandstone, etc. etc. These are again classified according to European nomen- clature, as different members of the Transition series, Cam- brian, or Silurian, etc. etc. Speaking of this classification, Mr. Lyell says, " Their grouping of the subordinate mem- bers of the Devonian and Silurian systems, has been based on sound principles, on mixed geographical, lithological, and paleontological considerations ; and the analogy of Eu- ropean Geology teaches us that minor subdivisions how- ever useful and important within certain limits are never applicable to countries extremely remote from each other, or to areas of indefinite extent. The thinning out and dis- appearance of the mud-stones and sandstones of the more Eastern States, causing limestones, such as the Helderberg and Niagara, so widely separated in New York, to unite and form single and indivisible masses in Ohio, affords no argu- ment against the classification of the New York geologists. " He then proceeds to enumerate the species of fossils which he had inspected that were common to the rocks of Ohio, Sweden, and Russia. These are a number of Trilobites, as the Isotelus gigas, Paradoxides, Trinucleus, Asaphus, etc. etc. Also of shells, as the Spirifer lynx, regarded by Murchison and De Yer- neuil as very characteristic of the Silurian beds of Sweden and Russia ; also others of the same order, Leptoena seri- cea, Orthis-striatula, Pterinea, Cypricardia, Orthoceras, and Bellerophon bilobatus. He also enumerates the Crinoideas or Stone Lilies, and then proceeds, " In regard to the pro- portion of the species common to the Silurian beds of Eu- rope and America, whether of the lower or upper divisions, I may confidently affirm that it is not greater, than would 80 THE MOUNTAIN. be expected from the analogy of the laws governing the distribution of living invertebrate animals. A contrary opinion has prevailed very widely, it being rashly assumed that at remote epochs the majority of species were far more cosmopolite than in modern times." He further proceeds, " The recent researches of Murchi- son and De Yerneuil, point to the conclusion that the fossil shells, corals, and trilobites of the Silurian system of Scan- dinavia and Russia greatly resemble those of the British Isles ; yet nearly half the species which they collected there were different from ours, and the departure from a common type was far more conspicuous in the lower Silurian fossils of Britain and Russia than in those of the upper division. "When the same fossils of Northern Europe were com- pared by De Yerneuil with those brought by me from Ame- rica, the distinctness was obviously much greater, although the representation of generic forms in the organic remains of the upper and lower Silurian strata, was not clear and satisfactory. " He then adduces the negative evidence which would tend to the conclusion of the identity of the ancient fossiliferous rocks of Europe and America, and seems to have no diffi- culty in demonstrating their parallelism. To the Onion-Peel formula there have been some dis- senters. They object to the classification now existing as "not possessing scientific elements of generalization suf- ficiently universal." That the out-cropping edges of groups of geological formations, such as appear in the British Islands, the mere rim of vast basins like the old continent, that an insignificant fragment, as England is, of so vast an area as the eastern hemisphere, should give a classification to the geology of whole continents, and the whole world, and this in a nomenclature derived from a purely geographic origin, without any elements of geologi- cal science at its foundation, they have objected to. Of course, this objection can also be made to any attempt to identify by name all the rocks of this country. The vertical section of Pennsvlvania rocks shows the THE MOUNTAIN. 81 number and something of the geological and mineralogical character of the separate masses called formations.* Some American geologists who object to old names and classes have attempted a new nomenclature of the pile. These efforts are somewhat fanciful and far-fetched, but at the same time contain suggestions founded in reason upon which to base its terminology, f In this hasty enumeration of the rocks of the mountain, it would not be desirable to dwell on points of purely theo- retical or scientific import, as an elaborate treatise in this department would require a volume or volumes, and then leave the subject unexhausted. The simple statement of what is actually there, the far- off hows, whys, and wherefores omitted, is all that can be required or be of interest to the general observer. Some account of the material fitting in and forming a certain part of the rocky circle of the globe, that segment of the great arch in the district called the Appalachian mountain-chain, is all that would be expected or demanded in a general schedule of the Mountain's effects. On far-reaching, world- wide geological theories, or all-embracing formulae of the organization of planets or primordial patterns of habitable globes, there is no excuse for dwelling in this recitation. The philosophy of the wrinkled and wonderfully-plicated, the waved and folded condition of the earth's crust in the region under consideration, whether from the result of "ac- tual billows in the fluid mass upon which the crust floated, excited by the sudden rupturing and instantaneous collaps- ing of the crust, rent by the tension of highly elastic vapors, etc.,"J or from the power of " earthquakes to raise perma- nent anticlinals," or "from the contortions produced by sub- sidence from the collapse of larger arcs upon smaller seg- ments of the sphere of the earth," belongs to the student's chapter of theories in geological dynamics. But a short and hurried recitation of the formations may be necessary * See vertical section. f For an attempt of this kind, see the Messrs. Rogers's Classifica- tion, page 101. J H. D. Rogers. 82 THE MOUNTAIN. to a proper understanding of the exact geological position of the Mountain. The whole mass of rocks has been separated into nine groups, by some observers ; again, from careful .analysis, into forty-eight formations, none of which are coextensive with the great palaeozoic or fossil-bearing basin in which they are found, and many of them of quite circumscribed range. The old number of thirteen formations, of the geological reports of Pennsylvania, will suit all purposes here, the nu- merical series commencing below and counting upward. In contact with the lower crystalline rocks, and to a cer- tain extent mingled therewith, is the formation at the base of the great sedimentary pile, designated in the annual reports of the Pennsylvania survey as No. 1. It is a sand-rock formation, composed of fine-grained, white quartzose strata, sometimes of a gray color, especially dark, loose-grained, and full of cherty concretions where it passes into the formation above. In other regions this is called Potsdam and Calciferous sand-rock. Thickness sometimes 1000 feet. No. 2. Reposing on No. 1 is a large mass of limestone, generally of a blue color, with layers of chert. Some parts of the formation are a light blue, or dove-color, even of a fawn tint, containing a quantity of magnesia. Where it passes into the formation above the layers are argillaceous and nearly black. When it mingles with the formation below it presents siliceous limestones and calcareous sandstones. The group is replete with fossil corals, encrinites, trilobites, nu- merous bivalves, and orthocerata, etc., of the Silurian rocks of England. This is the Trenton limestone of some geolo- gists, and forms the long, boat-shaped, limestone valleys of Pennsylvania, called also "coves." The largest caves or caverns of the State are in this formation. THE MOUNTAIN. 83 FORMATION 3. Upon 2 reposes a slate and shale formation. It is usually black, dark blue, sometimes gray, olive, and drab-colored. It is a valuable mass, in some places giving roofing-slate. It also contains sand layers, gray and white, occasionally conglomeritic. It is one of the mud-stones of the East, spoken of by Mr. Lyell. It gradually mingles with the formation above and below, in layers of calcareous slate and argillaceous sand- stone. It is filled with fossils in some parts of the mass. Thickness from 200 to 6000 feet. FORMATION 4. Succeeding the last formation is a sandstone group. It is made up of a series of layers, white and gray, sometimes fine-grained, compact; again coarse and conglomeritic. Many of its layers are full of fossil marine plants called " Fucoides." It is from 400 to 2000 feet thick. This is the formation which gives the belt of sharp, sym- metrical Appalachian mountains east of the Alleghany range and which are parallel with it. They run like majestic waves from northeast to southwest in lines as straight for miles, often, as they could be run by the compass. Where these mountains are entire anticlinal axes, they present broad, gentle slopes ; but where the axes are split or cracked open, and the two sides separate to surround valleys of the sub- jacent formations, as around the large limestone valleys of Formation 2, the mountains are narrow and abrupt, with steep and precipitous escarpments, covered with stone slides, and spaces of loose, massive fragments, in rugged confusion, with no vegetation except the lichen and moss. The material of this formation being hard and indestruc- tible, the mountains which it always forms run like immense dikes through the country, cut by numerous water-gaps, through which the streams and roads of the region pass from valley to valley. 84 THE MOUNTAIN. These mountains are often but a few yards wide at their summits, and resemble huge walls in ruin ; their sides the talus of long ages of gnawing by the teeth of time ; but their majestic cliffs, still imperial, proud, and defiant, offering battle, as if forever, to the elements that seek to destroy them. Where the rocks in them have a gentle inclination they are high, attaining the elevation of 1400 to 1600 feet above the waters in the gaps. Where the rocks are in a vertical position, the mountains are low. The cause of this is obvious ; the gently-inclined strata resisting like the slope of a dam, while the vertical rocks had to contend against the direct action of the denuding currents by co- hesion alone, the abrading force operating at right-angles to the resisting surfaces. Above, this formation passes by degrees into the super- incumbent formation, showing, as usual, a mingling of the characters of both. The philosophy of the structure of valleys of Formation 2 surrounded by this rock, will be understood by observing its relation to that Formation, and applying the common laws of natural philosophy. FORMATION 5 Is the next in the ascending order. It is composed of a series of variegated slates, shales, and sandstones of all colors, generally light, as olive, yellow, gray, and red In the lower part of the formation the sili- ceous element of the subjacent group mingles, presenting sand strata, which contain fossils, animal and vegetable, or trilobites and fucoides. This Formation is always found on the flanks of moun- tains of Formation 4; sometimes making gradual slopes high up the mountains; and again, partially denuded, it gives more precipitous declivities, and is covered by frag- ments of the sandstone of Formation 4. This is the formation which contains the celebrated fossil- iferous iron ore, upon which so many furnaces of the State THE MOUNTAIN. 85 are built. In the upper part of the group there is a mass of red shale and a series of yellow, bluish, olive, and choco- late slates with limy layers, which is the passage of this mass into the next Formation above, a limestone. These layers are full of fossil shells and encrinites, and it is one of these bands which has been altered into the prin- cipal stratum of ore, of which, however, there are several. In some places the Formation is 2000 feet thick ; at the bases of the mountains of Formation 4, it is from 600 to 900 feet thick. The Formation is especially interesting to the geologist, on account of the great abundance of fossils which it con- tains. It is nearly on the same horizon as the Niagara limestone of the New York survey. FORMATION 6. This is a limestone group, with some intermingling of other elements. It contains argillaceous, magnesian, and siliceous layers ; the former, where it passes into the rocks below, and the latter, where it mingles with the formation above, or No. 1, a sand group. It is full of fossils, pre- senting a great variety of corals, encrinites, and shells. Many of the strata appear to be almost entirely composed of organic remains. This is the equivalent of the cliff lime- stone of the Western geologists. It ranges through all the valleys of denudation, with FORMATION T Which is a sandstone mass, composed of coarse-grained, loosely-accreted, yellow and white sand layers. It is full of fine casts of shells, and also a variety of corals, among which are beautiful stone lilies. Where this Formation is exposed to gradual erosion and denudation, it washes away irregu- larly, leaving columns of the harder part of the rock stand- ing like strange and grotesque productions of art, called "Pulpit Rocks," etc. 86 THE MOUNTAIN. In some places it has attained the thickness of 600 feet, but in other places it is not more than 50 feet thick. FORMATION 8 Is a large mass of rocks, called the " olive slate group, or the Hamilton, Portage, and Chemung groups" of the New York reports. It is composed of a series of dark-gray and olive slates and sandstones, sometimes yellow, greenish, and brown. The sandstones are argillaceous and fine-grained, showing extensive and peculiar lines of cleavage. At the base of the mass it abounds in fossils ; but fossils are found through the whole formation, some localities giving several species of trilobites. There are also in it . shells and corals in abundance. It is from 5000 to 8000 feet thick, and, wherever distributed, presents a characteristic style of topography, with great sameness of soil, quality of surface, etc. etc. FORMATION 9 Reposes upon the last group described, and is a large mass of rocks composed of red slates and shales, red, gray, and brown argillaceous sandstones and slates. This is the group which forms the southeastern slopes of the Alleghany Mountain, and is extensively exposed in all the gaps or cuts of the mountain. It also forms the slopes of the mountains in the anthra- cite regions. Some of the northern counties have a con- siderable portion of their surfaces formed of this and asso- ciated masses, as Pike, Wayne, and Monroe counties. It contains fossil shells, and beautiful vegetable fucoidal forms in abundance, as cock's-comb fucus, etc. It is frequently 6000 feet thick, and sometimes more ; and is the Catskill group of the New York reports. The whole is a mass of sand and mud rocks, a bright-red being the predominating color. It also contains an iron ore of value, and some copper. THE MOUNTAIN. 87 FORMATION 10 Is a mass of gray, brownish, coarse, and fine-grained sandstones, with sometimes coarse, siliceous conglomerates. It also contains blackish, carbonaceous slates and coal shales, sometimes with one or two small coal-seams. It is a hard, indestructible group, and consequently forms mountains. It is the rock which makes up and caps the first range of Alleghany spurs. It also forms many other mountains, as Shickshinny, Nescopeck, Peter's, Berry's, and Mahantongo mountains in Pennsylvania. It contains fossils, both ani- mal and vegetable. In some localities the formation is 2000 feet thick; but generally, throughout Pennsylvania, it is not more than 300 feet thick. FORMATION 11. On No. 10 there is a mass of red shale and sandstone, also gray sandstone, sometimes compact, but generally soft and argillaceous; containing also some lime layers, with fossils, and a peculiar calcareous sand mass, which, from its style of weathering, is easily identified, and is always a key for fixing the position of masses above and below. Its weathered surfaces have a remarkable oblique-lined appear- ance, and the mass is full of water-worn cavities, enlarging, in some places, into considerable caverns. The Formation generally produces slight depressions behind the first peaks or butresses of the mountains of Formation 10, its soft shales being easily abraded and destroyed. It is sometimes, in the anthracite region, 2900 feet thick, but in the bituminous measures it is not more than 250 or 300 feet thick. It contains an iron ore of value in some places. It also contains, in certain parts of the bituminous coal-region, a thin seam or two of coal, and in the south, one or two large workable beds of coal, although its place is under the conglomerate, the proper floor of the coal. 88 THE MOUNTAIN. FORMATION 12. On the red shales of No. 11 repose the coarse sandstones and quartzose conglomerates, called generally, "the con- glomerate," as it is considered the floor of the coal measures proper. In the anthracite region it attains the thickness of 1400 feet, but in the bituminous region or Alleghany Moun- tain, it is generally not more than from 100 to 250 feet thick ; whilst occasionally, a few coarse-grained, massive strata, are all that stand as its representative. There are occasionally thin layers of dark carbonaceous slate and shale in this formation, the representatives of imperfect coal- seams, the formation being the inauguration of that splen- did group of which it forms the base. FORMATION 13 Is the true carboniferous division of the great sedimentary pile. Upon the conglomerate rests the series of sandstones of all colors, generally gray and white, slates of all colors, and shales of all colors, limestones, and coal-seams, called the coal series or " carboniferous group." In the anthra- cite region, as estimated on the vertical section, it is near 6000 feet thick. In the bituminous coal measures, the whole group gives a thickness of some 3000 or 3500 feet of sand- stones, shales and slates, limestones, iron ores, with beds of coal through the whole group. In the whole series there are about twenty coal-seams, many of which are workable ; together with a number of other insignificant layers, the aggregate of coal being about 55 feet in all. The true significance of this division of the series of rocks, the carboniferous group, in the great chapter of uses of the world and its connection with the progress and well- being of humanity, it is impossible to estimate. The patient toil of centuries has here accumulated reservoirs of power that seem exhaustless, and the genius of the hour having subdued the fire-king, having chained, tamed, and harnessed the most terrible of the brute forces THE MOUNTAIN. 89 of the earth to do his work, finds food and sustenance for the conquered dragon, for thousands of years. The scientific elaboration into well-fixed formulae of this one member of the great geological series, was well worth the effort and worthy of the ambition of a true and gifted student and lover of science, whose unique and beautiful Monograph on coal leaves little to be said for the present on that subject.* A short and hurried enumeration has been made of the thirteen separate formations or geological groups in the ascending series, its base boiled, burned, and crystallized by the long-exhausted primative central fires of the planet, and its summit regally crowded by a diadem of slumbering flames in endless depositories of fuel, or world-fires, heat and light for a globe, still untouched and inexhaustible in a buried flora, whose gorgeous forms scientifically restored, would be a " midsummer night's dream" of wonders. Nep- tune and Pluto are no longer fables ; they have become stereotyped symbols in the language of science, recording the past achievements of time. The imagination ("reason using the external world") striding forward over hundreds of years, her delicate instinct prophesying the inevitable, has at last hailed and united with the understanding in her conquest of the actual, in the stern demonstrations of the intellect. A glimpse at this majestic pile, whose whole thickness aggregated some six or seven miles of solid rocks, is all that has been or could be attempted here. But it is that por- tion of the group forming the Alleghany Mountain, in its transit of the State of Pennsylvania, that is the special sub- ject of consideration in this place. The Alleghany Mountain crosses the State from northeast to southwest, dividing it into two approximately equal dis- tricts. The region to the southeast of the line of eleva- tions called the Alleghany, with the exception of a small * Manual of Coal and its Topography, by J. P. Lesley, Topogra- phical Geologist. Published by J. B. Lippincott & Co. . 8* 90 THE MOUNTAIN. portion of the southeastern corner of the State, perhaps one- seventh of the entire surface of the State, and which is consti- tuted of the highly-crystallized metamorphic hypozoic rocks, is made of the middle and lower part of this vast pile of unaltered sedimentary strata which forms the elevated and wrinkled plateau of the eastern side of the continent. The manner in which the rocks are bent and contorted, forming this rugged but highly-interesting and wonderful mountain region of the middle and southeastern counties, is a subject of the highest scientific attraction and exhaustless intel- lectual speculation. It has already been adverted to a number of times, and will be readily understood by reference to the sections ; especially the transverse section showing the style of plication of the rocks. In some parts of this region the whole group of rocks from the crystalline to the coal measures inclusive, is presented for inspection. The series already described as constituted of thirteen easily- separable groups of strata, are recognizable and easily iden- tified over vast extents of geographic distribution by a wonderful homogeneity of mineralogical, geological, and pa- laozoic or fossilliferous characters. In the region west and northwest of the Alleghany Mountains, we are presented with but few of the members of this group of formations, the surface of the state being here made of the carbonifer- ous division and two or three of the underlying formations, the strata being in a different geological position from the southeastern division of the State, and consequently, it shows a different topography, and one which forms a strik- ing contrast with that portion of the State. This difference would strike the most superficial observer. The rolling sur- face of the northwestern region has through its extent only these uppermost formations stretching over the whole region, that tumultuous tossing of the strata with regular crest lines which characterizes the southeastern range of sharp mountains, and those deep-washed regular parallel valleys, here cease, the waves of that magnificent system of the regular Appalachian mountains and valleys gradually THE MOUNTAIN. 91 subsiding. The axes or arcs of the waves or wrinkles of the rocks flatten out, and the strata show a tendency to assume a horizontal position, approaching the quiet basin of the centre of the continent. These gentler undulations retain the general features of the abrupt eastern axes, that is, they run in lines northeast and southwest, and preserve their usual parallelism, and the relationship of the inclina- tion of strata on the different sides of the axes. The two great natural agents which give external geology and geo- graphy to a country, namely, the deep subterranean or up- heaving, and the superficial disintegrating and abrading forces, have very clearly acted with much less intensity in this region. The dips of the strata do not change often, and the inclination of the rocks is never great, whilst the fracturing and grinding of the strata and the sweeping force of currents appear to have acted with much less violence, and consequently, the destruction of the valuable contents of this region has been prevented, over any con- siderable extent, It is thus that the coal and iron of this highly-gifted portion of the earth has been saved from de- struction. Instead of wide-sweeping valleys of denudation, such as we are presented with in the southeastern part of the State, destroying and carrying to the rebuilding of new continents vast quantities of mineral matter, we have small narrow valleys and ravines, natural excavations as it were, designed to bring into man's power the immeasurable wealth of the rocks below. And here, in the small, as in the largest thing that is, the wisdom and perfection of the Universe is revealed. By this apparently accidental distribution of the* surface into hill and hollow there is the most perfect access to the mineral contents of the region ; and a large and com- prehensive view of the geological structure of the north- western half of the State presents an extensive basin, or rather, the termination of an immense basin which extends southwestwardly from the northern border of Pennsylvania, almost to the centre of Alabama. This coal field, re- markable for its vast extent, continues uninterruptedly from 92 THE MOUNTAIN. northeast to southwest, a distance of some seven hundred and forty miles, presenting a width of sometimes one hun- dred and eighty miles. One estimate of its superficial area gives sixty-three thousand square miles. Its original limits, as suggested by geologists, must have measured, before they were reduced by denudation, nine hundred miles in length, and two hundred miles in breadth. In the State of Pennsylvania, from its southern line in Somerset county, to the north branch of the Susquehanna River in Luzerne county, the Alleghany Mountain forms the eastern margin of this basin. Between that limit and the State of New York on the north, and Lake Erie on the northwest, all the rocks belong to three or four formations, as already described, including the carboniferous group. The two large formations that underlie the silicious masses under the coal series, the olive slate group, and the red sand- stone and slate group, run along with and form the south- eastern escarpment of the Alleghany Mountain and the range of hills at its base, between the points designated, and sweep in a wide curve around the northeastern termi- nations of the upper rocks in Susquehanna and Bradford counties, and are traceable, although thinning down, west- ward, in a long belt nearly parallel with the north line of the State from Towanda into the State of Ohio. Immediately within the belt thus traced, there is found a bold escarpment, formed of hard sandstones, conglomerates, and silicious slates, directly underlying and forming part of the carbon- iferous formation, which is the actual northeastern margin $f the great bituminous coal basin. The anthracite and semi-bituminous coals are found in the more disturbed and broken belt of the Appalachian range, east of the basin thus designated, but occupying the same geological position ; in other words, being true geological equivalents. The Alle- ghany Mountain, as an individual chain, is the rim, margin, or eastern escarpment of the crops of the sands, conglome- rates, and slates of this vast basin, presenting many flexures, but all with general southwest line of trend. The summits THE MOUNTAIN. 93 of its highest knobs, as already remarked, are formed of these rocks, which are all here found dipping in one general direction, exhibiting a vast monoclinal axis of gentle inclina- tions. The northern and western range of these silicious masses give a more broken, undulating, and irregular chain of heights, extending west from Towanda by Blossburg, in Tioga county, the northeastern limit of the bituminous coal, and north of Smithport, in McKean county, and Warren, in Warren county, from which it is slightly deflected, with greatly reduced altitude, somewhat to the south, in the re- gion of Meadville, in Crawford county, and crossing into Ohio through the county of Trumbull. Along the northern side of this basin all the formations, from the olive slate to the coal measures inclusive, have gentle southern dips, and the passage into the large basin is successively over higher and higher strata from the New York line, where the slates, shales, and argillaceous sandstones of the olive (Formation 8) slate formation are the predominating rocks. In Craw- ford and Mercer counties, where the lower strata crop out northwest of the coal, the general dip is southeast ; while on the southeastern margin, or in the range of the Alleghany, the prevailing inclination is north of west ; thus inward all round toward the centre of the great trough containing the coal. While this is true with regard to the edge of the large basin, within this boundary there are a number of arches or anticlinal axes, some of which are of great length and considerable elevation, others low, with slight inclina- tions, giving to the entire mass of the basin a series of more or less gentle undulations. Many of these lines of elevation lift the formations below the coal to the surface, sometimes causing the latter to be washed away over considerable ex- tents of country, thus dividing the region of the large basin into a number of subordinate coal basins. These anticlinal lines sometimes rise into the height of mountainous ridges, called by different names, as Elk Mountain, Chestnut Ridge, Laurel Hill, Negro Mountain, etc. The whole number of these anticlinal axes, or western parallel Appalachian ranges, 94 THE MOUNTAIN. which are large enough to impress any striking features on the topography of this region, or to have caused the coal to be removed from their lines of elevation, are not generally of any considerable size, further than forty miles into the basin across the strata. Between these higher ranges of ridges are the wide and irregular valleys, already described in the topographical part of this chapter, scarcely conveying the idea or impression of valleys, from their surfaces being perpetually broken up by hills of greater or less magnitude. Through these basins the crops of the coal-seams are found on the hill-sides and in the ravines, extending from hill to hill, and rising gradually toward the anticlinal axes, or plunging below the water- courses and levels of denudation, toward the invisible ranges of the synclinal troughs. The smaller valleys, or minor depressions, are generally the courses of the streams which drain this district, and are extremely irregular, presenting every imaginable variety of configuration of surface. This fact alone gives variety unequaled, and an element of surprise and enchantment to the landscapes of this inte- resting region. The coal series, designated and characterized as a separate formation, is made up, as has been already said, of a variety of sandstones, slates, and shales, with limestone and coal- seams, forming, as will be easily understood by reference to the vertical section, the upper part of that majestic pile of sedimentary rocks constituting almost the entire geological structure of Pennsylvania, as well as a considerable portion of the Atlantic and Middle United States. In Pennsylvania the region made of these coal rocks pre- sents throughout the broken and hilly surface already de- scribed; the higher lines, or chains of hills, showing the position of the geological masses below, and revealing the ranges of fracture, and of elevation, and depression; the system of drainage also showing the lines of washing, to- ward the larger valleys of denudation, in which the creeks THE MOUNTAIN. 95 and rivers continue to flow. Some of these streams cleave into the mountain ranges so deeply as to bring forth geological formations below the coal series. This is ap- parent in the gaps of the Susquehanna and its tributary streams through the Alleghany Mountains; also in the gaps of the Conemaugh, Youghiogheny, and other streams, through the collateral ranges of Laurel Hill and Chestnut Ridge. Stretching westward from the Alleghany, the re- gion between it and its parallel ridges presents a con- tinued series of undulating surfaces, or labyrinth of hills, with certain features of sameness, yet with a forever-renewed variety of landscape, surprising in its diversity, and exceed- ingly beautiful. The traveler, who has passed through this country, will not forget the continually-recurring delight with which there arose before him a perfectly new and heretofore unseen combination of hill and valley; each variety of soil exhibiting its characteristic clothing or vege- table dress, thus giving rise to an endless succession of the most exquisite and diversified pictures of nature. This is the general character of the Alleghany with the region west of it. It is the Alleghany Mountain itself, however, which pre- sents claims of the greatest interest in the world of uses and beauties for man. The great sweep of its eastern range of knobs, with steep southeastern declivities, overlooks, like a range of observatories, the region stretching for miles in front toward the sea; the picturesque gorges and ravines cut abruptly into the mass forming the mountain, are the courses of fresh, rushing mountain streams, with their craggy sides covered by forests of evergreen pines and laurels ; while westward it gradually mingles with an in- terminable extent of rolling hills. It is this wild and ma- jestic character that attracts and holds spell-bound with visions of beauty the lovers of nature, and makes the moun- tain and its groups of landscapes of every style of grandeur and beauty the glory of the world, a region of never-failing attraction and delight. 96 THE MOUNTAIN. Standing on its highest knobs, in the central part of Penn- sylvania, the beholder is presented with the most ex- quisite and sublime panoramas of the earth. North and south, the range of spurs stretches off into the .distance, the parallel chains east and west sweeping in majestic curves to unite apparently in vast circular mountains. To the west, the table-land valleys extend a rolling sur- face between the Alleghany and parallel ridges ; and suc- ceeding this are the western mountains, with slightly undu- lating crests rising in succession until lost in the distance. Looking east toward the Atlantic Ocean, the vision is one for the expression of whose beauty there is, as yet, no voice or word. Immediately below reposes the range of beautiful valleys at the southeastern base of the Alleghanies, their northwestern margins sloping up to the mountain in a range of round, soft, billowy hills, as it were, the gentle heavings of a sum- mer sea, breaking against the shore upon whose rocky heights the beholder stands. Rising from the southeast side of these valleys is the first chain of sharp, regular, Ap- palachian mountains, formed by the hard rocks in the lower part of the series. Succeeding this is another of the same kind of mountains, and beyond this others still of the same order, the spaces between the lines which are made of their crests becoming less and less, as the obliquity of the lines becomes greater and greater. It is also beautiful to perceive that, in the space between each of these lines which represents the distance between the mountain summits, the tint, from the increased dis- tance, becomes deeper and deeper, until lost in the clear blue of ether. As the eye follows the azure steps of this kingly portal to the skies, line rising above line, it can scarcely be realized that, within each of these tints of deeper blue, there reposes a range of the richest and loveliest lime- stone valleys of Pennsylvania. Often, with bars of clouds reposing on the horizon, it is impossible for the eye to dis- THE MOUNTAIN. 97 tinguish the distant lines, or fix where the earth ceases and the heavens commence. The poet and painter are here presented with a boundless field, as the element of beauty seems alone to have been re- cognized and consulted in its creation. Let the artist then bathe his soul forever in this river of enchantments and play like an exstatic child in this sea of heavenly forms. Descending from this ethereal element, the "dread power" of beauty, the economist or utilitarian finds immeasurable reservoirs of wealth and power in mineral resources ; whilst the savan finds also a field of endless study and contempla- tion, exhaustless depositories of organic forms, rocks teem- ing with fossils, leaves of the miraculous volume filled with the eventful history of a planet struggling into being, into peace, order, beauty, and light, from war, chaos, brutality, and darkness. The elaborate scientific details of the history of the geo- logical genesis and exodus of the mountain is not the chapter proposed to be indited here. To the sphere of the special geologist, whose end is the stern and severe induc- tions of science alone, this belongs, a world of rich and inspiring visions, a universe of grand and gorgeous sug- gestions, eloquent with the music of " starry spaces and long thousands of years." The mountain dissolved, like Cleopa- tra's pearl, would be a drink for a whole sanhedrim of geo- logical gods. It would seem, in one aspect, a very small page of a very vast volume, being an insignificant fragment or protuberance on a globe twenty-five thousand miles in circumference ; yet to comprehend it with clear intelligence, to illuminate it with perfect scientific precision, would be to read all the secrets of Nature, make vocal the silent and in- finite, give the key to open the mysteries of eternity, and explain the riddle of the Universe to the soul. Its true story would be the philosophy of creation, its true song the beatitude of humanity. A part is related to the whole, and to apprehend it fully, would be to apprehend the whole ; for " every natural part i) 98 THE MOUNTAIN. is an emanation, and that from which it emanates is also an emanation," the world of effects reflecting the world of causes, as "by the sea, reflected is the sun," too glorious to be gazed at, in their own sphere of, transcendent brightness. There is clear and perfect wisdom in the seeming chaos ; and although multiform and diverse, confused and irregular to the uninitiated the world and its fragments appear, still there is a system in them, a meaning that can be read ; the labyrinth has a clue and Daedalus has told the secret. " The wondrous maze is not without a plan." There is an organi- zation, an intelligible order in the arrangement of the mate- rials of the earth and its mountains, and this order is never violated ; for, being the first law of Heaven, it is the last of Earth. It would then be a pleasing, an enchanting task to follow the mountain in its progress through the dreams of fabulous geology, when it was a mystery and miracle, why " shells were found on mountain-tops, but not surprising why shells were found at all;" when it was the ceaseless wonder how those " forms," so like the recipient of life, should be where life could never be, the wondrous imagination, with its crea- tive power, having solved all things into strange mimic creatures, a "lusus naturae having sported herself with a useless creation of needless beings." What story has the mountain to tell of world-wide geolo- gical cataclysms, of immeasurable flourishings and sportings of earthquakes and volcanoes, long sleeping and silent, but still convenient and useful to geological theorists ? What has the mountain to say of Noah's grand water-spout, of floods of Deucalian, of Ptolemaic and Mosaic systems ? When did this veritable Alleghany actually crack the shell and protrude its spine from that mysterious mundane egg of Egyptian cosmogony ? It would surely be a glorious privilege to follow the moun- tain to the dizzy heights of bewildered speculations, of fiery pictures of whirling flame-worlds travelling through celes- THE MOUNTAIN. 99 tial spaces ; also to follow it through lofty visions of im- measurable times, of unreckoned centuries, of vast periods, contrasted with which the date of the first dawn of primeval history is as yesterday, or any assignable period for the origin of our race as to-day ! A great romance that would be, a pedigree of the mountain's rocks ; or the chronicles of the war of Pluto and Neptune, of water and fire, the congelation of primary crystalline masses, or the pulverizing, washing, and hardening of secondary sediments ! Then it would be curious to know what the mountain would say to the ambitious intel- lectual game-fowls, who are always so anxious to fight the battles of orthodoxy and heterodoxy, and settle the wondrous difficulties of the problem : was Omnipotent Power six actual days, or six millions of actual years building these hills and laying the foundation of these everlasting rocks ? Thank- ing the Infinite profoundly for the sacred vessels of thought turned off from the " marvellously quick and acute mind" of the divine potter, Bernard Palissy, whilst his hand fabri- cated the lowly implement of clay ; and accepting with deepest love and veneration the shining and immortal jewels chiseled from the soul of the miraculous stone-cutter, Hugh Miller, whilst his hand made plastic the humble rock, we can certainly with joy surrender theoretical fogs to be sliced by intellectual Quixotes, never ceasing to utter grati- tude and pa3ans of gladness to find that the mountain is really here, arranged as a structure for the ages, and clothed in everlasting beauty, standing an absolute and irrefragible fact, its significance in a system of goodness and love shin- ing beautifully and peacefully out upon the last and greatest achievement of time, the last most precious consummation of the world, "that crowning of creation's birth," man him- self. Grand and beneficent are the gifts Nature has pro- vided for him in the finish and furniture of this his glorious home. Long has been the pilgrimage of her tortured ele- ments, through fire and through water, to their present per- fection of arrangement for the comfort and exstacy of this, her darling child. A protracted warfare of the dragons, a 100 THE MOUNTAIN. long, a lonely, barren road, from fiery vapors to solid rocks, from the lichen and moss clinging to the naked lava or granite, to the corn-stalk and apple-tree in the prairie sod. Ages must struggle to feed the plant, ages again to nourish the animal, and ages upon ages to fill the streams which circulate through this wondrous creature, man. Incan- descent crystallines would have been a troublesome home for the cereals, and only decades of centuries of wear and tear could give nourishment to their roots. Where shall the elephant browse ? where shall the horse make his manger ? and wherewithal, especially, his rider be clothed and fed ? The gods were at work, primeval powers forged the re- fractory elements into propriety, and life and light flashed upon the world. The lichen stirred the stillness and was a fact ; the trilobite became an individual, and soon had bro- thers and cousins ; the saurian flourished an animated rock, the incarnation of the brute or dragon forces of the world, and made the deep to boil ; and the tread of the mastodon was heard in the forest. At last, with order and beauty a teeming earth, wrapt by a mantle of delicious crystalline air, wandered a docile and obedient satellite through ethereal spaces, and the hand of Praxiteles brought forth the im- perishable beauty slumbering in the marble's heart ; Plato talked, amidst the groves of Academus, of divine virtue and the immortal soul ; and Cuvier dreamed over that wondrous bone to the music of a galaxy of morning stars shouting together the great song of a reclaimed earth and the science of geology ! The divine end seems to have arrived. With quiet and majestic steps this system of illimitable goodness and unspeakable beauty has been approaching the haven of its perfection, and the lover of Nature is now left to con- template and admire forever the bountiful provision which has been made for his enjoyment and delight on "this green ball which floats him through the heavens." GEOLOGY. THE ROGERS' CLASSIFICATION OF PENNSYLVANIA ROCKS. IN " Second Visit" of Lyell, page 249, we are presented with the following startling utterance, (conveying despair to many an aspiring genius, no doubt, who had been imagining his direct connection, and blood and bone alliance, with the stock of Shakspeare and Milton,) viz. " Since experience has now proved that there is, in the Anglo-Saxon mind, an IN- HERENT POVERTY OF INVENTION IN MATTERS OP NOMENCLA- TURE, ETC." Taking up this glove, with the full determina- tion of wiping out so hideous a stain from the genius of the Anglo-American, or Yankee wing, at least, of this omniscient and omnipotent Anglo-Saxon race, the Rogers-brotherhood (Anglo-Saxons, of course,) have made a plunge into the chaos of " inherent poverty," with the following result, in the shape of a nomenclature of the palaeozoic rocks of the State of Pennsylvania. Primal series, No. 1. Auroral series, Matinal series, Nos. 2 and 3. Levant series, No. 4. Surgent series, No. 5. Scaleut series, Pre-Meridian series, No. 6. Meridian series, (or Medidial,) No. t. 9* 101 102 THE MOUNTAIN. Post-Meridian series, (or Post-Medidial,) No. 8. Cadent series, " " Yergent series, " " Ponent series, No. "9. Yespertine series, No. 10. Umbral series, No. 11. Serai series, Nos. 12 and 13. This symbolical category is predicated on the dream of the "deposits of a prodigious sea," and the intercalation, in the eternity a parte-ante, of an extraordinary day, com- puted to be seventeen millions of millions of years long, from morning until evening twilight. The poets are not all dead, and the "inherent poverty" of the Anglo-Saxon mind is not so positively "proved by experience," after all. There being a considerable row on hand, with regard to the appropriation of the glory of baptizing the great system of sedimentary rocks of North America, it has been thought best to wait for a subsidence of the mud stirred up by the fury (we mean, of course, scientific zeal ! !) of the intellectual Saurians, who are now contending for the honor of deposit- ing that shining and eternal coprolite in the sediment of the ocean of fame, to wit, the "NOMENCLATURE" of said illus- trious palaeozoic pile. After clear water has been esta- blished, and we can see through the turbid boil and battle of words, there will be substituted for the humble numbers, 1, 2, 3, etc., the elaborated French, Latin, Greek, Hebrew, or Sanscritism, finally arranged by the individual, or Con- gress of savans, to be THE THING, fixed and established for- ever. CHAPTER II. SOIL OF THE MOUNTAIN. THE term soil applies to the film forming the surface of the pulverulent mineral mass composed of, and covering the rock formations of the crust of the earth, and floating like a mantle, or folded like an outward integument around cer- tain portions of the body of the planet uncovered by water. The soil is the point of contact and union of two separate elements of creation, the worlds of organic and inorganic matter. In the soil, the rock, weary of its brute immobility and long, deep slumber, tries to awaken into the more de- lightful dance of the organic elements, and to introduce itself to the higher sphere of life ; " strives to become a different and attain the light." In the soil the ponderable and im- ponderable commence the mystic circulation of organic ex- istence. Soils derive their constituent principles from the earth and the air ; the plant, or special possessor thereof, being characterized as "organic water which is polarized upon two sides towards the earth and the air." From the earth comes the body, or mineral elements forming the sub- stance of soils; from the air certain chemical principles, without which plants could not grow. Given then, simpli- city and homogeneity in component elements of soils, there will follow simplicity and homogeneity of vegetable forms ; and, as a necessary corollary, with greatly diversified geo- logical, mineralogical, and chemical elements, will arrive complexity and exaltation in structure and composition of the plant world, existing as a medium within and upon the same. Thus, from thin barren cuticles of sand, forming the covering of mountain heights, to the deep loam, rich with chemical and organic elements, of the alluvial and diluvial 103 104 THE MOUNTAIN. deposits of plains and valleys, the growth of the plant marks the advancement of an eternal and divine progress. The soil of the Alleghany Mountain and its parallel ridges exhibits the characters, mineralogical and chemical, of the rock masses composing them. This may be asserted of almost every country, to a certain extent, but it is espe- cially true of mountain regions where there are no alluvial or diluvial deposits. The material which forms the inor- ganic mineral part of soils, comes, of necessity, originally from the disintegration or wearing away of rocks which have been previously fractured and crushed. The soil of valleys, of drift formations, alluvial deposits, and diluvial flats, show a more heterogeneous composition from the diversity of the materials composing them, as they exhibit the lithological characters of the regions through which the waters depositing them flow, or have flowed, and from which they have been derived. The superficial deposit of crushed rocks, of gravel and earth, supply these washings. They extend, with different depths, from a few inches to several hundred feet over the fractured surfaces of the rock-formations. From any given portion of country were this deposit removed, there would be presented the naked edges, jagged angles, and severed faces of the different varieties of stratified or amorphous rocks, from which the mass of superficial disintegration was origi- nally derived. Of course, the prevailing mineral and geological elements will give prevailing characters to this mass. If silicious rocks predominate, the soil will be silicious ; if argillaceous or calcareous rocks are in excess, the superficial deposits of soil and fragments will show the predominance, with all the characteristics, of these elements. The Alleghany and its associated ridges have, as their geology reveals, the sand or silicious element the great prevailing item ; the largest and most ponderous masses of the geological formations of these chains being silicious rock. This is especially true of the Alleghany Mountain itself, which has been formed, as has SOIL OP THE MOUNTAIN. 105 been shown, of the heavy sand group at the base, and in the lower part of the coal series. These rocks form the barren heights and precipitous gorges of its knobs and gaps. The surface, in many of the ravines, is formed almost exclusively of deposits of coarse fragments, and sometimes ranges of enormous boulders of these sand masses. This occurs on both sides of the mountain, very large extents of the surface being frequently strewed over with these fragments. They are often of great size, exhibiting the dimensions of 40 by 60 feet, and sometimes 30 feet in thickness. They are fre- quently found a considerable distance from the summit line, in chains or ranges of smaller fragments of the conglomerate and sand rocks, and generally correspond to the deeper notches in the crest line of the mountain. As these drifts are several miles from the original rocks from which they are derived, the precise history or mode of transportation affords subject-matter for contemplation, interesting to the geologist. The argillaceous or slate material is also abundant in the masses of the mountain, giving a clayey character to the soil of many districts, and a general intermixture of clay and sand to almost all the soils of the mountain. The extreme summits of the knobs and ridges are sometimes but slightly covered with a soil of almost pure sand. Proceeding from the southern line of the State to the northeastern termination of the Alleghany, there is a gradual increase of the silicious element, with an accompanying predominance of the same in the soils of the regions through which it ranges. This is shown in the wilderness counties, especially the region of the outcropping masses, forming the terminating ledges or rim of the great Bituminous Coal Basin. The limestone material is not found in great abundance in the rocks of the mountain. The layers of this rock are thin ; and those impure, from intermixture with iron, clay, and sand. Proceeding from the northern line of the State towards the southwest, where the valleys between the Alle- ghany and its collateral ridges are deeper, the limestone formations and softer shales and slates thicken, and become 106 THE MOUNTAIN. much more important, giving, as usual, an increase of value to the soils of those districts, and a corresponding change to the whole surface of the country. As a general thing, then, the soils of the mountain heights are sandy and clayey, but have, withal, a susceptibility of improvement through the application of the principles of scien- tific agriculture, which has not attracted sufficient attention and examination. On the highest knobs the sand soil prevails, and is bar- ren, except to plants which affect such soils ; but some dis- tance off these heights, the coal rocks of the western side give good soils, and the slates and shales of the eastern base of the mountain are also susceptible of successful cultivation. Of course, there is a gradual modification and amelioration of ALL these soils of the mountain and its slopes going on, as has been since the elevation of the rocks to the surface, and the fracturing, wearing, softening, and pulverizing of the same, with the gradual intermingling of the more com- plex pabulum of plants derived from the atmosphere, namely, water, carbonic acid, ammonia, with the mineral soil nourish- ment also of potash, soda, lime, magnesia, silica, alumina, iron, sulphuric acid, phosphoric acid, etc. This is shown by the natural succession of plants, the lichen, the moss, the fern, the conifers, and, lastly, catkin-bearing trees and Rosa- ceae. The gradual succession, change, and death of forests can now be seen, as parts are dying while other portions are green and flourishing, showing a gradual surrender of the pioneer forest-trees, and their supercession by trees with membraneous leaves, or those requiring a richer or more compound soil. Different parts of the mountain, then, show all the geological changes and soil metamorphoses from bare rocks with lichen and moss, to sand soil with pine-tree and huckleberry, or clay and loam with the oak, walnut, and apple-tree. It would seem to be a habitat adapted to a variety of the gramineae or grass family. These include nearly all of the common starch-bearing, introduced and naturalized plants or SOIL OF THE MOUNTAIN. 107 cereals, the ordinary food of men and animals. Of this class a number seem to have an obvious affinity for or adap- tation to the soil of the mountain ranges, as the oats, (Avena satwa;) timothy, (Phleum pratense;) barley, (Hordeum vulgare;) etc. The proper bread cereals, wheat, ( Triticum vulgdre,) and rye, (Secale cereale,) are grown with facility, especially among the coal-bearing rocks in the basins or elevated valleys, where limestone is found mingled with slates and shales. In the arenaceous soils of the heights, the crops of these grains are thin. The red clover ( Trifolium pratense) is found growing with the grasses ; but, as this plant con- tains lime, potash, soda, phosphoric acid, sulphuric acid, chlorine, silica, magnesia, and peroxide of iron, soils entirely destitute of these elements, especially lime and potash, are not well adapted to its growth. That superb and kingly grass, the Zea Mays, or Indian corn, does not flourish very well in the soils of the moun- tain. One or two varieties sometimes ripen well, but the sea- sons are too short for all those generally cultivated to attain perfection, some of them being invariably caught by the f rost before being fully matured. * The soil of many parts of this region seems particularly adapted to the growth of a number of indigenous and intro- duced pasture-grasses. It is to be deplored that this sub- ject, and the growing of stock adapted to such regions, has not as yet received the attention which it merits from the * It may not be amiss to notice another plant which seems to pos- sess a strong attraction to the soil of the mountain, viz. the Solanum tuberosum, commonly called potato. Notwithstanding the story of the botanists, that this plant was originally native or indigenous to Peru, South America, many in- habitants of certain districts of the mountain are fully and solemnly impressed with the conviction that it belongs to those particular re- gions from the Creation, having appeared there first, a primordial gift of love from the supernals to a heaven-favored race, which was finally to occupy that promised land. 108 THE MOUNTAIN. noble and hardy cultivators of the mountain ; and the tra- veller is impressed with pain to observe how few flocks and herds graze upon its grass-grown sides. Its perfect adaptation to the growth of one domestic animal, the sheep and its varieties, alone would secure to the mountain a precious specialty, and one of inestimable value. Leaving out the question of a wool crop, it is well known that the grasses of the mountain will, in a given time, de- velop more mutton-tallow than any other pasture upon which the sheep can feed. Sixty days of mountain grass converts the sheep from a skeleton covered with skin into a mass of the finest, newly-infiltrated mutton ; its hide, stretched over angular bones, metamorphosed into a round, distended sack of snow-white fat. In the vegetable world, however, and its soil affinities, its vital relations to earth, air, and water, the chapter on the Flora of the mountain will show the connection of cause and effect in this order of things. One other record must be made with emphasis, and that is, the entire FREEDOM of the surface of the mountain from morasses, swamps, and boggy soils, with large accumulations of vegetable matter in a state of decomposition, and the consequent immunity of the Alleghany heights, in Pennsyl- vania, from the WHOLE CLASS of malarial diseases. This star fact alone, reposing upon the mountain's brow, is a suffi- cient crown of glory. CHAPTER III. WATERS OF THE MOUNTAIN, ; Each thing is full of duty ; Waters united are our navigation ; Distinguished, our habitation ; Below, our drink ; above, our meat : Both are our cleanliness. Hath one such beauty ? Then how are all things neat!" HERBERT. 10 110 THE MOUNTAIN. The water of hills and mountains differs in quality, according as it niters through banks of pure rock, of schist, of quartz, or of sand, from all which substances it can scarcely derive any property what- ever; or as it flows over beds of potter's earth, which it neither draws along with it nor dissolves ; or, lastly, as it traverses ground which is calcareous, marly, gypseous, impregnated with magnesia, salt, or bitumen. Waters of the kind last mentioned are always very much mixed with heterogeneous substances, and for the greatest part of the year are hard, turbid, and unwholesome, at least if daily used. Hippocrates, Homer, and Plutarch have long ago condemned the use of them. Those waters which have clayey bottoms are most com- mon ; they unite those qualities which are essential to salubrity. Those which flow from the hard rock are still more pure and limpid, as they must undergo a process of filtration in wearing their way over a stony bed. MALTE-BRUN. HYDROGRAPHY. Ill HYDROGRAPHY. PREFATORY to the chapter on the waters of the mountain, it may not be irrelevant to take a cursory view of the gene- ral system of water-distributions, of which it forms a frac- tion. By consulting the maps and charts of physical geo- graphers, this will be found the most extraordinary feature of the Western Hemisphere. It will soon be discovered that the hydrography of the New World has been projected upon a scale of unparalleled magnitude, and in dimensions truly colossal. In its rivers, unequaled for length and vo- lume of waters on any other division of the earth, draining the richest and largest basins in the world, terminating in "bays and gulfs which are. more like wide arms of the ocean" than rivers ; in her broad, inland seas or lakes, chained to- gether, many of them, by equally remarkable streams and straits, the whole embosomed in a soil exhaustlessly produc- tive, and washing a geological and mineralogical crust of in- compatible wealth, there is presented a chart of distribution of bodies of water or system of mundane hydraulics, which exhibits a base line for the maritime and commercial de- partment of a social structure or pyramid, of which the ima- gination of man has as yet no dream. The large lake-chain itself presents features of great in- terest in every aspect of contemplation. Many of their beds extend hundreds of feet below the level of the sea, while their surfaces are several hundred feet above ; the whole containing an aggregated mass of " more than one-half 1 of all the fresh water on the surface of the globe."* As ob- jects of admiration, they are unparalleled in beauty and grandeur. In the chapter of utilities, this system of waters exhibits illimitable resources and expansions in the whole * Johnston's Physical Atlas. 112 THE MOUNTAIN. sphere of uses to man, revealing worlds of economics, of which the present chapter of statistics gives no shadow of intimation. It would seem from the geological and geographic struc- ture of the continents, as parts of the architecture of the globe, and their connection with the oceans of water on both sides, together with their relationship to the meteoric elements and forces, or ocean of air above, that some pri- mordial contract must have existed on the question of water as one of the few original trustworthy elements of the world, and that an infinite supply as a planetary agent was re- quired to fill the bond for the honest pronunciation and real- ization of the destiny of this hemisphere. The prophet who has its special details to foretell, the political economist who has its tariffs to fix, or the statistician who has its tables of forces to establish, have each an exhaustless theme ; and the happy genius of the hydrography and hydrology of the Americas has the side of a planet upon which to project his diagrams. In this place there is only a verse to recite of the grand old poem of waters called Appalachian, it might be said still less, a single line to spell out, viz. the waters of the ALLEGHANY MOUNTAIN MINERAL AND PURE. The wrinkled swell on the Atlantic side of the continent, forming the Appalachian mountain range, as referred to in the chapter on geology, forms a series of hydrographic axis, to which the rivers on that side of North America owe their origin. And here the rock-skeleton of the globe shows its usual despotism in necessitating geographic features, style of topography, and consequently hydrography. As a result, we find that from certain points of elevation, or Appalachian centres, there are presented a series of water- sheds between the inclined plane which stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the highest range of Alleghany peaks, and the inclined plane which stretches westward and south- HYDROGRAPHY. 113 westward from that range of elevations to the bed of the Mississippi River, which is the great drain of the streams which flow over the southern declivity of the vast central basin, or the Mississippi and the Mackenzie plane of the in- terior valley. The Alleghany Mountain, as the dividing ridge in the midst of the eastern plateau, is the separating line or range of centres of the streams flowing through the planes above designated. In New York and Pennsylvania, we are pre- sented with the third of the five Appalachian hydrographi- cal centres on the eastern side of the continent, proceeding from the north, described by physical geographers. The water-systems of these axes, and their general connection with the hydrography of the continent, is a subject of ex- treme interest. Leaving the parallel Appalachian moun- tains and their groups of streams, the waters of the Alleghany demand a brief but special notice. The true fountains of the streams being the heavens, or in other words, the waters which they convey being all meteoric in their origin, as from the falling of rain and snow, with the precipitation of vapors, it follows that the higher in the mountain, and the nearer to their springs or points from which they emerge after percolating the soil and rocks, the freer and more perfect will be their waters from earthy elements, and the least changed will they be from their ori- ginal meteoric condition. After falling, the waters soon burst forth in springs on the heights of the ranges, and seek by the first declivity to flow east or west, as the lines of denuda- tion may necessitate. The first springs which rise near the summits in the gaps or gorges of the mountain, or in the valleys or washes from its sides, form swift and rushing streams which fall over rocky beds, broken by frequent rapids. It is often observed that these rivulets in the heights of the mountain, rising from the same spring, separate and flow in opposite directions, into the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean. 10* 114 THE MOUNTAIN. Separating at their cradle, the young streams part to tra- verse a whole continent, before they again unite in the great mother's bosom of the ocean from whence they came. The waters which flow east into the Atlantic, have generally steep and rocky beds from the mountain-summit to the first range of valleys, after which they take their courses with slower and more regular currents to the sea. Their channels are sometimes in the line of the valleys, and again cleave the groups of parallel mountains by a series of water gaps, forming that most extraordinary combination of the picturesque and grand found only in the startling land- scape pictures of this beautiful region. The cause of the greater rapidity of the currents of the eastern streams is obvious, as the eastern side of the moun- tain presents a bold and precipitous escarpment, a wall, as it were, rising above the valleys at its base. Through the notches, ravines, and gaps cut into this jut- ting buttress or rampart, rush the streams that flow directly east. It would be difficult to conceive anything more at- tractive, wild, and wonderful than these swift and arrowy streams pouring over falls and rapids, or rushing and boiling through their rocky channels. On the western side of the Alleghany Mountain the streams have slower and gentler currents, presenting irregu- lar courses, and with more winding and circuitous channels. As the high table-lands fall off more gradually from the Alleghany spurs westward to the Mississippi, the streams flow through the irregular washes of denudation which sepa- rate the labyrinth of hills more slowly. Many of these streams are quiet and sluggish, appearing as mere passive and dead drains of the surface. Their waters appear dif- ferent from those of the eastern shed, where they flow through the beds of the larger currents. Descending these streams the waters become turbid from the intermingling of the softer mineral elements which form this region. The larger bodies of water here show the well-known muddy and turbid character of western rivers. They form HYDROLOGY. 115 a striking contrast with the crystalline and limpid currents of the eastern drainage. In the heights of the mountains, however, both sets of brooks near their fontal springs pre- sent the same characters, frequently, as we have seen, flowing from the same rock. The western streams, from the above designated characters of tortuousness and sluggishness, are also more liable to dry up at a distance from their spring- heads in the mountains. The springs, themselves, are not generally very large, as there are not in the mountain any extensive limestone forma- tions or soluble rocks through which water can make subter- ranean caverns, consequently there are not any considerable bodies of water suddenly emerging from the earth in full- born creeks and rivers, as in the large limestone districts east and west. As might be expected in the rocky heights of the mountain, "From beneath whose chin The FOUNTS of rolling streams Their race begin," the waters are of exceeding purity. The rain and snows fall, and after short percolation through the different rock formations break out in fresh and beautiful springs. As to the mineralization of their waters they show the characters of the rocks through which they flow. If the mineral substances composing these formations are soluble, their waters will show their presence ; if insoluble, they will be more or less free of stony contents, the earth elements of waters being derived from the filters or rocks through which they pass, some of their gaseous substances being re- tained from the air. This point in the treatment of the subject introduces an- other division of the chapter on waters, namely, its HYDROLOGY, or the chemical character, therapeutic, virtues, and other properties of waters. For besides the purposes of irriga- 116 THE MOUNTAIN. tion, navigation, and other mere mechanical values of the vast and wonderful circulatory system of the Americas, (to which slight allusion has been made,) for the commodities of trade, and the perpetually expanding world of life, a full estimate of the uses of the waters of the New World present an- other phase of great significance. This is the consideration of the hygienic and therapeutic value of waters, pure, mine- ral, and thermal, in their relationship to human health, and consequently to human happiness. In this department we are presented with a rich and ex- tensive variety; and here also has Nature been lavish in her gifts of value. Almost every water that has been the subject of scientific analysis, and the catalogue comprises all that have been styled mineral waters, are here found in profusion. In some of the oldest inhabited points of the continent there are springs whose reputed virtues, descending by tradition from the aborigines of the country, science has discovered to contain quantities of mineral elements. Romance and imagination have had much to do in this de- partment, as the half-fabulous stories of the virtue of many springs, as recorded by their special historians, would am- ply testify : still the real virtues of a number are unde- niable, and their efficacy as remedial agents unquestionable. Throughout the United States this class of waters is abun- dant, sometimes characterized by the predominance of one element, sometimes by another. The leading items in the chemical inventory of their contents decides the character or class to which they belong. They are variously classified by different writers on the subject. That of Dr. Bell* in his recent work being perhaps the most sensible for practical purposes, will serve our purpose, being plain and simple and founded on obvious qualities addressing the senses of all. These are, first, acidulous or carbonated ; second, saline ; * Dr. Bell's excellent little book on "mineral springs" should be in the hands of every traveller, invalid, and especially every physician. HYDROLOGY. 117 third, sulphureous ; fourth, chalybeate. loduretted, Bromu- retted, and acid waters are by some writers added to these classes. Still further defined, they stand thus : FIRST. The acidulous waters contain and evolve gases, principally carbonic acid, making them pungent to the taste and spark- ling. They hold in solution saline substances, mostly car- bonates of lime, magnesia, soda, and iron, with common salt. SECOND. Saline waters abound in salts, sulphate of magnesia or Epsom salts, sulphate of soda or Glauber salts, the medi- cinal properties of which are well known to all. Chloride of sodium or common salt, and carbonic acid are sometimes found in them. THIRD. The sulphureous, which are characterized by a gas charged with sulphur, called sulphuretted hydrogen, or sulphohydric acid gas. The presence of this gas is recognized by well- known and familiar tests. This class is again subdivided into those waters which contain free sulphuretted hydrogen gas, those which contain carbonic acid or acidulo-sulphure- ous and those which contain carbonic acid and sulphuretted hydrogen, and those also which contain iron with other sulphureous combinations. FOURTH. This class embraces the chalybeate or ferruginous waters. The iron in most of these waters is in a state of a carbonate of protoxide dissolved in carbonic acid. They also contain the sulphate of iron, or common copperas. The medicinal qualities of these waters are of course the therapeutic properties of iron in general. There is another division of waters into cold, and thermal or heated. All the four classes of mineralized waters are found in either 118 THE MOUNTAIN. of these classes ; there being cold and thermal waters hold- ing all of the above chemical elements in solution. The mineral and gaseous contents of these waters are often in great quantities and in almost every conceivable proportion. Some of them have attained world-wide reputations in the modification, alleviation, and cure of different classes of dis- eases. Many of them are peculiar and rare in the combina- tion of their mineral contents ; whilst some of the thermal waters of the southern, interior, and western side of the con- tinent have scarcely a parallel for intensity of heat, in any other part of the world. The attempt to perpetrate any- thing like an elaborate treatise on mineral waters would of course be out of place here, but a hurried enumeration or catalogue of the most important mineral waters of Pennsyl- vania, and of the continent as far as analyzed by science and registered, may not be deemed so. The highest knobs of the Alleghany being composed of hard silicious and argillaceous masses, the materials of which are only slightly soluble at low temperatures, the waters which emerge from them are nearly in the same condition in which they fell from the clouds. Many of this class of springs are almost perfectly pure water with all the characters of rain-water, and a near approach to absolute or chemical water. This is the character of the higher or summit springs. The other members of the rock-group forming the mountain, have each their class of characteristic springs. Throughout the coal series we are presented with a variety of mineral elements in the waters. Common salt or the chloride of sodium abounds in great quantities in some of the rocks. Where they are depressed in the synclinal troughs further in the coal measures, salt is manufactured from them by perforating the masses containing it. Where they crop out, the rocks sometimes show the presence of salt by efflo- resence and sloughing on their surfaces. These formations also contain bromine and iodine, or the elements of sea-water, the water used at the salt-wells showing their presence in considerable proportions. HYDROLOGY. 119 The coal-seams and associated shales contain sulphur and iron in a state of chemical combination, called sulphuret of iron, or pyrites. The chemical decomposition of this mate- rial, in these rock masses, gives rise to several varieties of mineral waters. First, to waters containing the salts of iron, or proper chalybeate waters. Secondly, to acidulous waters, or those which contain free sulphuric acid; and thirdly, to proper sulphur waters, or those which contain sulphuretted hydrogen in a state of solution, constituting the celebrated sulphur waters of writers on mineral springs. From some of the calcareous and magnesian masses we have waters of another character, namely, waters containing salts of the alkaline bases, or the class of aperient waters. We are thus presented, in the spring system of the Alle- ghany, with an interesting group, showing almost every stage of mineralization, from the pure and limpid water of the sand-rock, to the highly-charged, earthy salt solutions of the coal-seam and its accompanying slates. The moun- tain, then, stands in the chapter of uses also as a great laboratory, in which a number of waters, mineral and pure, are produced ; and this alone would seem a sufficient end or final cause for its existence. The student of another order of values might pass its song of the waters with indifference, and find in its coal-seams those magazines of wealth and power to man, in its valuable forests and soil, its masses of iron, and useful rocks the only objects worthy of his atten- tion, and the only end for which it was desirable to create the mountain at all. 'Tis thus to the partial and one-sided, the narrow and utilitarian, that the world ever appears. But such is the order of things, that " each end is a begin- ning;" there are no private contracts, favoriteism and selfishness being unknown in nature. The worm borer in the stick of timber, and the human borer in the coal-seam; the sap-sucker penetrating the bark of the sugar-tree, and the salt-boiler perforating the brine-rock; the caterpillar eating the leaves of the linden for bread, and the painter sketching its foliage for beauty, may each suppose that the 120 THE MOUNTAIN. important individual has a universe to himself, "is unre- lated, unallied." "See, all things for MY use," especially this thing; but the worm's log must make the coal-digger a prop for the roof of his drift ; the sap-sucker'^ maple must make the salt-sucker a handle for his drill ; while the cater- pillar's linden-tree will make an excellent bowl, from which the hungry artist might eat his mush and milk. Need the brook-trout, sporting in the mossy rock-bed of the crystal torrent, quarrel with the pale valetudinarian who drinks new life from its pure waters?* "All things are kind to our flesh, in their descent and being," and of one wondrous web, although cut in different patterns, and apparently for different ends, are all the creatures of the earth. A scientific estimate of the intrinsic and perpetual worth of things will give to the pure freestone or soft water of the mountain the greatest consideration; this is its crowning blessing the true heal-all and specific for the maladies of men. Springing, as we have observed, from the large sili- cious formations which make the highest spurs of the moun- tain, the waters have the mean annual temperature of the rock from which they issue ; and they are frequently so pure that chemical tests give but traces of any foreign element whatever, thus demonstrating their constitution to be as nearly as can ever occur in nature, absolute or pure water, f * Provided always, of course, that said valetudinarian be not in fell purpose intent on predatory invasion of the sacred haunts of said trout, or be armed with cruel, barbed instruments of death, wickedly concealed by worm writhing in the tortures of longitudinal transfixa- tion, or seductively hidden within the treacherous folds of brilliant feathers, stolen from the neck of chicken-cock, styled, in Waltonian phrase, " The Fly." f Absolutely pure natural water does not exist. Water falling- from the clouds contains carbonic acid gas and ammonia. " Decom- position of silicious and other rocks occurs from the action of water holding in solution carbonic acid, and the organic acids arising from the decay of vegetable matter." Silica is never absent from natural water, and is greater in surface waters slightly impregnated with mineral ingredients. The analysis of Sterry Hunt, of the waters of HYDROLOGY. 121 It follows, from this, that for all the multifarious order of uses to which man applies this indispensable element, from the building up of his "heaven-labored form, erect, divine," to the humblest of domestic uses, pure water is the great and indispensable want; pure water is the best, under all conditions, to bathe in, consequently the best to wash the human integuments or skin in ; it is the best water to wash his outer covering or clothes in ; and emphatically the best to supply the perpetually wasting vital streams within, or blood currents of his body. The question of temperature or thermalism is one of in- terest and importance. As a general thing, the springs of the mountain have the general mean of their localities. Some of the waters which are highly mineralized, and which flow from the coal-bearing rocks, have a slight elevation of their temperature. This is, no doubt, attributable to the chemical changes of decomposition which occur within the masses, from which the water derives its mineral contents. Of this order is the well-known heat arising from the decom- position of pyrites, which has been known to ignite coal and other substances in contact with it. Of the class of warm and hot springs, or those having a temperature over one hundred degrees, there are no representatives in the moun- tain, as yet discovered in Pennsylvania. Farther southwest the Appalachian range of fractures and axes give some true thermal waters. See Moorman's book on Springs of Virginia, and Geological Reports. Of the individual springs of medicated waters of Penn- sylvania, a short notice will be in place. Some of these waters have been the subject of extravagant encomiums, and fictitious chemical analysis, purporting to possess fabulous and the Ottawa and St. Lawrence rivers, gives the presence of chloride of sodium and potassium, sulphate, carbonate, and bromate of soda, carbonate of lime and magnesia, silica, and a trace of alumina. The analysis of Schuylkill water, by Booth, Garrett, and Camac, gives the presence of silex, lime, soda, potash, magnesia, alumina, or oxide of iron, the acids being sulphuric and carbonic. 11 122 THE MOUNTAIN. impossible, because incompatible, elements, with extensive manifestoes or representations, in the ordinary mode of publi- cation of such things. Many have received no notice, or but slight and comparatively insignificant attention. The true worth of these unknown and neglected waters will soon be declared to the world, as their effects are being clearly pro- nounced by critical observation and experience. As the need of them shall be felt, they will attract attention and experi- mentation until their true character shall be demonstrated, and their great value declared. PENNSYLVANIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 123 PENNSYLVANIA MINERAL SPRINGS. SEVERAL members of the series of geological formations, constituting the surface of this State, give origin to valuable mineral springs. When a full, minute, and perfect explora- tion, such as has now been partially achieved by the geo- logical survey of the State, shall be made known to the world, it will be discovered that Pennsylvania, so munifi- cently provided with mineral resources of so great a variety, and so exhaustless in quantity, is also as richly furnished with a diversity of mineral waters. This would follow as a necessary consequence ; the source of all mineralization of water being, as we have seen, the rock formations of the earth, which are the medicated media or sieves, through which it passes after its descent from the clouds. Diversity of composition in mineral masses would then give, conse- quently, a variety of mineralized waters. This we find to be eminently the case throughout the State of Pennsylvania ; and thus it ultimately will be discovered that the State which persists with such obstinate pertinacity to call herself, and insists upon being called by everybody else, the EMPIRE STATE, with her large catalogue of mineral waters, will only have enjoyed her pre-eminence in this particular because the Yankee has been sharp enough to endeavor to ascertain the true character of things about him, and smart enough to tell it to the world when he did the splendid final report of the Geological Survey of New York, and its beautifully ela- borated division on the chemistry of her rocks and mineral springs, having long been before the world.* In this department it is to be deeply deplored that Penn- sylvania has so long remained in darkness, and her indus- * Mineralogy of New York, by Dr. Beck. 124 THE MOUNTAIN. trious, intelligent, and enterprising people, anxious to de- velop her mineral resources of every order, after the expenditure of immense sums of money, and the laborious efforts for years of some twenty gentlemen of highly respect- able intellectual endowments and undoubted scientific attain- ments, have been denied access to the results of the explora- tions of this corps, until the existence of such results was mythical, and they had come to be regarded as eternally forbidden fruits. The aggregated labors of the accomplished and indefati- gable men forming the corps of the Geological Survey of Pennsylvania, will soon appear in the form of the final report of that survey, which, with the original survey, has now, strange to say, been in progress nearly a quarter of a century. When this achievement, so long and ardently prayed for, shall have been fully realized and actually accomplished, by the finished, final report being handed at last to the people of Pennsylvania, it is to be hoped it will awaken a new spirit of inquiry with regard to her mineral resources, and repro- duce, in these times of despondency and industrial paralysis, a new tidal wave of healthy progress and sound expansion. Will it not also excite a new interest in, and impart a new impetus to, the practical application of the waters of the State, to the whole class of uses originally designed by nature ? Commencing below, and at the base of the group of palaeozoic formations, we are presented with a few valuable springs in the metamorphic rocks or gneissic group. The waters of these rocks have not attracted the attention they deserve, and have received, in some of the neighboring States, where they are found to be of a valuable character. Proceeding upward, in the rock series, we find in the first large limestone formation, (No. 2,) a number of springs. Some of these are of great volume ; the rocks being soluble, the waters which fall in the valleys gradually wear deep subterranean sewers and caves ; the springs are frequently PENNSYLVANIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 125 of immense size. These are generally common springs of limestone water, or holding in solution the salts of lime. There are some true mineral springs which have attracted attention in this group, both in Pennsylvania and Yirginia. In the transition between this formation and the one be- low, the waters are also frequently mineralized. In the passage into the formation above, the dark slate group, which contains a number of mineral elements, there have been noticed some valuable waters, as also in No. 3 itself. In the fourth formation, (No. 4,) which we have seen, is a large accumulation of silicious strata, there is but little variety in the water, as the quartzose elements, constituting almost the entire substance of the formation, are but slightly soluble in water at the temperature of the earth The waters of this formation are generally, then, soft and pure, containing few mineral or organic substances in solution or suspension. The next formation above, or fifth of the series, being a slate group with lime, magnesian, and iron-ore strata inter- mingling, the springs are consequently more diversified in their character than the preceding, and belong to the classes carbonated, saline, and chalybeate. The next forma- tion, sixth in the ascending series, is a limestone, (No. 6,) with a few interlayers of slate. Some valuable waters emerge from this formation. Succeeding this is a small sand group with some slate layers, too limited generally in its development to give character to the waters which pass through it. The next formation, olive slate, (No. 8,) of the series is an enormous mass of slate or argillaceous strata with silicious interminglings. There are also in the lower part of the formation some calcareous layers ; also a quan- tity of the carbonate and sulphuret of iron. That portion of the formation containing these substances is a soft black friable slate. As would be expected from the number of mineral elements above enumerated, most of which possess strong chemical affinity for decomposition, and of course the reproduction of new compounds, many of which are soluble in water, it would of course follow that the springs of this 11* 126 THE MOUNTAIN. mass would exhibit diversity in mineral characters. The next formation above, (No. 9,) is a slate and sand group of large extent with few soluble elements. In some portions of the State it contains iron in different forms, "and here of course mineral waters might be looked for. The formation succeeding this (No. 10 of the series) being constituted principally of coarse heavy silicious masses, almost insoluble, gives consequently common unmineralized springs. The next is the shale formation, (No. 11,) with lime layers, and succeeding this is the Conglomerate and Coal Series, consti- tuting the summit of the whole group. It is made up, as we have seen in the chapter on geology, of sandstone layers, slate and shale strata, limestone layers, and coal-seams. From this extensive range of mineral elements it would naturally be inferred that we would be presented with a cor- responding number of mineral waters. This we accordingly discover to be the fact. In the lower part of the carbonifer- ous group we find true saliferous or salt-bearing strata. In certain portions of the State these are perforated by bor- ing from a few hundred to many hundred feet in depth, and from these borings, or wells, as they are called, large quanti- ties of the finest common salt are manufactured. They are situated in the bituminous coal series upon the tributaries of the Alleghany and Monongahela rivers. Of these the Cone- maugh and Kiskiminetas and Sewickly are the most exten- sively worked. The water of these salt-wells also contains iodine and bromine, which have been made from them in small quantities, also salts of magnesia and lime in appreci- able quantities ; they are classified, however, among the pure brine or salt waters. The shales, limestones, and coal- seams give rise to other classes of waters containing mineral elements. We consequently find in this region, as has been remarked in the general observations on the hydrology of the mountain, representatives of most of the classes of medi- cated waters, the acidulous and carbonated occurring where the alkaline bases prevail, and the saline in the region where the rocks containing salt can be penetrated. It is, however, PENNSYLVANIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 127 the classes of sulphureous and chalybeate waters that this formation supplies most abundantly. The origin of these materials in the waters is obvious. Free sulphuric acid is found in many springs coming from coal-seams, forming true sour or acid waters. The association of mineral waters in Pennsylvania with fractures and dislocations of the rock strata, or axes and faults, shows the same law as observed by geologists in New York and Yirginia. The recent report of Sterry Hunt to Mr. William E. Logan, in the Geological Survey of Canada for 185T, presents an emphatic confirma- tion of the same law, all the mineral springs reported issuing from the palaeozoic formations of the Lower Silurian in the line of axes, fractures and dislocations, as at other places. Whether the suggestions of the geologists, many of which appear wise, are the real philosophy on the subject, may re- quire some more observation of facts to demonstrate. The suggestions have the highest plausibility to support them, and are ardently advocated by Forbes, Daubeny, and some American geologists. Although the mineral waters of Pennsylvania have not received the attention they deserve, still there are a number of springs which have acquired justly merited celebrity; they belong to the classes already enumerated. Some of them have been in use for many years, and have enjoyed a wide and extended reputation ; whilst others, more recently discovered, enjoy a more limited popularity, and have a more restricted and local faith attached to their virtues. Among those longest known and best established in their reputation are the BEDFORD SPRINGS. They are among the first-noticed springs of the State, and are situated near the town of Bedford, in the county of the same name. Their waters flow into one of the tributaries of the Juniata River. There are here several springs which are asserted to possess different characters, and all flow from 128 THE MOUNTAIN. the same geological formation. This is the limestone situ- ated between the large slate formations ; the Corniferous Limestone of the New York Geological Reports, and the sixth formation in the Pennsylvania group, (No. 6.) Above this formation is the thin porous sandstone of Formation 7 ; succeeded by the large slate and shale groups already spoken of. As we have seen, the lower part of Formation 8 con- tains quantities of sulphuret of iron, and the decomposition of this substance with the consequent liberation of sulphuric acid, (the limestone itself containing strata of a peculiar fetid rock, full of organic remains and magnesia,) is un- doubtedly the origin of the salts of the springs which issue from it. There are here several minor foldings or waves of the rocks between the large axes of the mountains surround- ing the valley in which the springs are situated. These form small anticlinal axes and synclinal troughs, some of which contain the black slate above alluded to in Formation 8, and it is here that the meteoric water is first impregnated and afterwards breaks out, after traversing the channels of the lime rock for some distance, in one of the anticlinal arches at the springs. The principle spring, "ANDERSON'S," Is designated a " Saline chalybeate." The substances which possess the active qualities which have given character to the spring are the sulphate of magnesia, the muriates of soda and lime, and carbonates of iron and lime. The quantity of carbonic acid gas in a quart of the water is stated by Dr. Church to be eighteen and a half cubic inches (///) the temperature of the spring being 55 Fahr. : somewhat higher than that of other springs in the neighborhood. Their reputation is, that they possess certain powers over diseases of the stomach and bowels, also over renal affec- tions ; and in chronic, cutaneous, gouty, and rheumatic de- rangements, they are said to be beneficial. A critical ana- lysis by Dr. Church gives in a quart of the water thirty-one PENNSYLVANIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 129 grains of residuum, of which Epsom salts is 20 grains, the balance being constituted of the already enumerated elements.* FLETCHER'S SPRING Is a short distance from Anderson's, and shows more iron and common salt, with less magnesia, but in other respects like the last-named spring. Quite a range of morbid states are supposed to be benefited by these waters ; especial ad- vocates of their virtues giving lengthy catalogues of the affections over which they exert their power, commencing with the stomach and including the whole range of the primes viae, with offended associated organs ; also of skin, with " secondary diseases of lungs originating from sym- pathy of those organs with the stomach and liver, over which conditions these waters, together with the bracing vigor of the mountain air, are said to effect most happy changes. " Sulphur Spring is also within a short distance of Anderson's. It is said to contain carbonic acid and sul- phuretted hydrogen gas, lime, magnesia, and common salt. | SWEET SPRING, Also near Anderson's, is pure water, containing very little mineral substance in any shape. Three miles from Anderson's and one and a half from Bedford, northeast, there is a chalybeate spring. This is a small spring exhaling the odor of sulphuretted hydrogen, said to contain carbonic acid, sulphuretted hydrogen, carbon- ate of iron, muriate of soda, and magnesia. The waters of Bedford have long enjoyed a deserved celebrity. The place, * The analysis of Dr. Chester J. Morris, of Philadelphia, shows a wide discrepancy, compared with this old analysis of Dr. Church, in quantity of chemical contents, in the proportion of the substances, and even in the existence of some items. They agree, however, on the pre- sence of some of the leading elements in the waters, in some shape and proportion. 130 THE MOUNTAIN. situated in a pleasant valley, among the mountains east of the Alleghany range, offers elements of attraction found at few summer retreats. HUNTINGDON SPRINGS. Five miles north of the town of Huntingdon, in Hunting- don County, are some springs called the "Warm Springs." They have been a place of resort for many years. Their exact temperature, whether really above the annual mean of the place or their chemical contents, have not yet been made the subject of scientific investigation. The waters of these springs issue from the base of a monoclinal axis with eastern dips of Formation T, which here forms the Warrior Ridge, on the summit of which are isolated shafts or needles of this formation, left by denudation, called Pulpit Rocks. FRANKFORT MINERAL SPRINGS Are situated in Beaver County, near the village of Frank- fort. They emerge from rocks which belong to the car- bogaferous group. CAVE SPRING, of this place, contains carbonic acid, car- bonate of iron, and magnesia, sulphuretted hydrogen, muri- ate of soda, and a minute portion of bitumen. This is the analysis of Dr. Church. LEIPER SPRING, near the above, contains more iron and soda, less magnesia, and about the same proportion of sulphuretted hydrogen and carbonic acid. These waters are prescribed in a variety of diseased condi- tions : dyspeptic derangements of the stomach, rheumatism and skin diseases, with general debility. There is a chalybeate spring a few miles from Pittsburg. Dr. Mead's analysis gives muriate of soda, muriate of mag- nesia, oxide of iron, sulphate of iron, sulphate of lime, car- bonic acid gas, 18 cubic inches to the quart 1 1 PENNSYLVANIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 131 FAYETTE SPRINGS Are in Fayette County, near the National Road's crossing of Laurel Hill. They emerge from shales and sand- stones, belonging to the carboniferous group a short dis- tance above the conglomerate. Coal and iron ore abound in the neighborhood ; the water is a pure, strong chalybeate, with the properties and virtues of iron waters generally. They are situated in the second bituminous coal-basin west of the Alleghany, in a mountainous region, surrounded by beautiful scenery, and with a most enchanting atmosphere. BLOSSBURG MINERAL SPRINGS Are in Tioga County, at the town named ; and, according to Dr. E. Hartshorne, the waters are acid. Besides the excess of sulphuric acid, they contain sulphates of iron and alumina, with sulphate of magnesia, and pos- sess the properties of these substances. BATH CHALYBEATE SPRINGS, near Bristol, on the Delaware River, were noticed as early as 1773, by Dr. B. Rush. The Artesian well of Petty's Island, opposite northern Philadelphia, is a chalybeate. Booth's analysis "gives bi- carbonate of iron, lime, magnesia, and soda, silica, organized matter, and carbonic acid." YORK SPRINGS Are in Adams County, within a few hours' travel of a num- ber of large towns. One of the springs contains sulphate of magnesia, sulphate of lime, and muriate of soda. There is also here an iron spring, possessing the usual properties of those springs. PERRY COUNTY SPRINGS. The waters of these springs are 70 F., and said to be aperient and diuretic. They are upon Sherman's Creek, eleven miles from Carlisle. 132 THE MOUNTAIN. CARLISLE SPRINGS. Near this town there is a sulphureous spring. There are also fine common springs here. DOUBLING GAP SPRINGS Are called sulphureous and chalybeate. They are situated in Cumberland County, eight miles from Newville. They contain sulphuretted hydrogen, carbonate of soda, and mag- nesia, Glauber salts, Epsom and common salt. The chaly- beate shows bicarbonate of iron as a principal ingredient, also Epsom salts, common salt, and carbonate of magnesia. Of course they possess the medicinal properties of elements contained. YELLOW SPRINGS, In Chester County, are not reputed to possess any medicinal properties, but are very pure, and the place attractive. EPHRATA SPRINGS, In Lancaster County, is also a place of considerable resort. Common spring water is supplied in every way to visitors, and the place extremely attractive. CALEDONIA SPRINGS Are within fifteen miles of Chambersburg, at the base of South Mountain. The delights as well as sanitary advan- tages of this retreat are eloquently advocated by Dr. Bell, although only a pure water, with a temperature 52 F. The springs have great reputation for the cure of divers grave maladies. Speaking of them, Dr. Bell has the follow- ing observations: " Without meaning to undervalue the efficacy of mineral waters, the writer can recommend in- valids, or the WEAK, who wish to become stronger, to make the regular drinking of the SINGULARLY PURE WATER of one of the springs before breakfast and before dinner, a part of the pleasant regimen of good eating, sound sleeping, and varied exercise, which he will enjoy at this favored spot." PENNSYLVANIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 133 Other springs of the world, not medicinal, have acquired the same reputation "for the cure of a large number of diseases." Of these are the Malvern springs, in England, alluded to by Dr. Bell and others. The Malvern, acknow- ledged to be of extreme purity, is said to "SOMETIMES PURGE," and be serviceable in "chronic cutaneous diseases, used externally and internally." The waters of Caledonia are recommended to be used both by bath and internally. THE ALLEGHANY MOUNTAIN SPRINGS Are situated near the summit of the Alleghany, in Cambria County, at the point of crossing of the great thoroughfare of the State, the road of the Central Rail-Road Company, Cresson Station, near the contemplated mountain village of Rhododendron. These springs are more than two thousand feet above the level of the sea, surrounded by original forests, amidst the range of vertebral knobs or spinous processes con- stituting the highest line of water shedding, and the true summit of the great Appalachian chain. There are here a number of springs, which rise and flow from a small moun- tain vale scooped out of the western side of the crest of the Alleghany. At this elevated spot the tributaries of two large rivers have their origin ; some of the rivulets flowing east into the Atlantic through the channel of the Susque- hanna and Chesapeake Bay, while others flow west through the Conemaugh and Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico. The springs of this new watering-place exhibit the general character of the waters of the Alleghany Mountain heights. The greatest point of interest and attraction, the truly in- valuable quality of a number of these springs, is their almost absolute purity. The geological position of the place, or the rock formations from which they flow, as already ex- plained, is among the silicious and argillaceous masses in the lower barren part of the bituminous coal series. Those which flow exclusively through sand masses and slate, are of course almost free from the presence of all earthy sub- stances, as these rocks are but slightly soluble in cold water. 12 134 THE MOUNTAIN. It occurs then, that by these vast and perfect niters of nature, all surface-washings of vegetable and other sub- stances are effectually arrested in the process of percolation. The greater number of the springs at this place- are of this character, some being so pure that chemical tests show only traces of any mineral substances whatever, or water as nearly absolute as possible. There are, however, some of the springs which are highly charged with chemical elements; these come from the calcareous layers and py- ritous shales associated with the lower group of coal- seams. Some of these are gently aperient, more of them tonic, from the intermingling of the salts which possess those powers. The true mineral waters of this place, which excel all others, are the chalybeates. This class of waters is found, as we have seen, in the greatest perfec- tion in the coal series. Of the individual springs which have received attention at this new establishment, chartered by the Legislature of Pennsylvania, in the name of the Alleghany Mountain Health Institute, a few may be selected as the subject of special notice. RHODODENDRON SPRING. This is a large, pure water spring, emerging in a con- siderable volume from a group of crushed strata, which is formed almost exclusively of silicious elements or sand. It is the drain of an extensive bench of this rock, and the spring is perhaps 1000 feet northeast of the large hotel. The volume of water is never changed much during the dryest season, and retains a mean temperature of 43 F. The water of this spring is limpid and sweet, and as near water in purity, or distilled water, as can occur naturally. It is used for all domestic purposes, and its extremely low temperature makes it a perfect luxury at the hottest seasons, without ice. This spring is invaluable as an absolute or nearly perfectly pure water. PENNSYLVANIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 135 A few hundred yards north of this spring there is a group called the "HEMLOCK SPRINGS." These springs emerge from slate strata, and contain some iron, with carbonate of lime. They have a temperature of 45 Fahr., and are situated in a dense forest of hemlock- trees. " CAKATION SPRING" Is five or six hundred yards east of "Hemlock Springs." It is higher up in the geological series, emerging from slate, and sandstone interlayers, does not contain appreciable quantities of any earthy salts, being a water of exceeding purity. West of Rhododendron Spring, perhaps one hundred rods, is QUEMAHONING SPRING, the water containing, ac- cording to Booth, Garrett, and Camac, a trace of sulphate of lime and magnesia. It is nearly a pure water, emerging from a group of slate rocks and sandstones. "MEADOW SPRING" Is still farther west than Quemahoning, and possesses the same general character, according to the tests of the labo- ratory. " DISCORD SPRING" Emerges from a mass of slate and shale, containing traces of salts of lime, and iron. "BRANDY SPRING." This spring derives its name from the generous flow of that beverage which occurred at the time of its discovery. It is a pure freestone water at the temperatute of 45 Fahr., and, according to Booth, Garrett, and Camac, contains only the smallest appreciable traces of lime and magnesia. It is a few hundred yards south of the Mountain House, supply- ing that house and its baths with water, and, according to 136 THE MOUNTAIN. the above chemists, who tested it, "may be termed a water of great purity." Of the class of proper chalybeate waters there are seve- ral springs in the neighborhood of the hotels, coming from slates and shales lower down in the series, the most distin- guished of which is "IGNATIUS' SPRING." This is a strong iron water, depositing, as it flows, quanti- ties of ochery precipitates of hydrated peroxide of iron, from escape of the carbonic acid gas. It has been named after the venerable huntsman (Ignatius Adams) who first dis- covered its life-preserving powers, and gave to the world, in his own person, a revelation of the secret of its true medicinal properties. By drinking this water, dwelling in the woods, and eating venison, he has lived to near the good old age of one hundred years. It seemed but a just tribute to his worth to give his name to the spring. It has, however, always been called the " SULPHUR SPRING," although chemical analysis has given the presence of no sul- phuretted hydrogen gas in its waters. It was supposed to be sulphureous from its depositing the bright-yellow ochery oxide of iron, imagined to be sulphur, and also from a tra- dition connected with Ignatius, as one of the intrepid Nim- rods of the Alleghany Mountain, and his well-known love for, and faith in gun-powder. The tradition of the origin of its sulphureous character has never been considered an idle tale, as it was generally believed by the natives that " Old Ig.," as he is sometimes profanely called by the boys, had, on some occasion of glory, spilled the contents of his powder-horn into the spring, and that it has tasted of gun- powder and been depositing sulphur ever since. If they had substituted INK-HORN for powder-horn, the association of its sensible properties with the tradition of their origin would have been very close to the fact as it now exists, possessing, as it does, the actual taste of ink, but it would not have fitted so appropriately the character of the old huntsman. PENNSYLVANIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 137 The analysis made in the laboratory of Booth, Garrett, and Camac, of Philadelphia, shows the presence of iron, lime, magnesia, carbonic and sulphuric acid. In their re- port of the examination of this water they say, " One gallon contains 144 grains of mineral matter, consisting of sul- phate of iron, sulphate of lime, carbonate of iron, and sul- phate of magnesia. It is, therefore, a CHALYBEATE or iron spring of GOOD QUALITY, and will exhibit decided medicinal properties when employed fresh from the spring." This water has fixed a well-established character in a range of cures of maladies requiring tone and exaltation of the life of tissues and organs. Its virtues have long been appreciated and appropriated by the inhabitants of the neighborhood and strangers who have visited the mountain springs. This spring is one half-mile south of the "Mountain House," the principle hotel of the Sanitarium or Health In- stitute Association. It arises from the earth near one of the lower group of coal-seams, and deposits its yellow sediment from precipitation of iron for some distance as it flows over the surface. The walk to this spring is through a forest of ancient hemlock, birch, and chestnut trees, woods called primeval, from whose cool, sequestered shades the weary invalid can absorb life and strength as he wanders to the charmed fountain of "Ignatius." There are other springs in this interesting locality ; they will, however, fall into the classes described under the head of the general notice of the waters of the mountain. There are many mineral springs in Pennsylvania but little known to the public, which it is hoped will soon be analyzed, and recorded in the list of regular medicated waters of the State. Pre-eminent in valuable minerals in the solid state, shall she not also be pre-eminent in the fluid, or springs of minerals possessing medicinal properties ? BRANDY WINE SPRINGS, in Delaware, are a few miles from Wilmington. They belong to the class of chalybeates. 12* 138 THE MOUNTAIN. MAINE SPRINGS. PASSING in rapid review the mineral springs of the con- tinent, those only which have been most frequently described, and whose contents have been the subject of more or less chemical investigation, will be catalogued ; and first those of the United States will be noticed, commencing at the north- east and pursuing, to a certain extent, the obvious geographic range, followed by Dr. Bell, in the work already alluded to, and from which frequent quotations will be made in this synopsis. MINERAL SPRINGS OP MAINE. In the first report of the Geological Survey of Maine, Dr. C. T. Jackson gives an account of " LUBECK SALINE SPRING:" water colorless; specific gravity 1*025 ; analysis of 100 grains of dried salt gives, in a pint of water, Chloride of sodium, 64'1 grs. Sulphate of lime, 3 '6 " Chloride of magnesium, 20 '2 " Sulphate of soda, 9'0 " Carbonate of iron, 0-8 " Carbonate of lime, 2'0 " Chloride of calcium, trace. Carbonic acid gas, At Dexter there is a chalybeate spring, described as an excellent iron water, by Dr. Jackson. It is said to be a good tonic in digestive disorders. SPRINGS OF VERMONT. 139 SPRINGS OF VERMONT. IN this State there are sulphureous springs within a few miles of St. Alban's Bay, called "HIGHGATE SPRINGS." East of Montpelier is the "NEWBURG SULPHUREOUS SPRING." The water of this spring is impregnated with sulphuretted hydrogen gas. ALBURGH SPRINGS are of the same character. Professor Hitchcock describes a spring called the " BEN- NINGTON THERMAL SPRING," containing nitrogen and oxy- gen gases (/ / /) "CLARENDON GASEOUS SPRINGS" give slightly acidulous waters. Dr. Hayes's analysis shows the presence of nitrogen, carbonic acid, and atmospheric air. MASSACHUSETTS MINERAL WATERS. OF these waters not much has yet reached the world at large. This is the more surprising, as the progressive Yankee State is given to finding things out; but on this subject we have very little, even under the overshadowing formula of the in- finite GUESS, of that peculiarly sharp and wide-awake people. As recorded, it stands thus : BERKSHIRE SODA SPRINGS are acidulous, containing carbonic acid, soda, chlorine, and alumina. Location near Great Barrington, Berkshire County, said to be in a region attractive for more than its water and air. 140 THE MOUNTAIN. HOPKINTON SPRINGS show, from Dr. Gorham's analysis, carbonates of lime, magnesia, and iron ; and another spring gives the presence of sulphur in its waters. Notwithstanding the suggestions of Professor Mather, that geological investigations would reveal in certain lines of dis- turbances and fracturing, or upheaval of strata, northeast of New York, mineral springs similar to those in that State, there have, as yet, however, been made no discoveries of such springs, either in Yermont, New Hampshire, or Massa- chusetts. This is all the more astonishing, bearing in mind the present received doctrines of geologists on continuity of original formations. MINERAL SPRINGS OF NEW YORK. 141 MINERAL SPRINGS OF NEW YORK. THAT same " Empire State," ambitious to be EMPIRE IN ALL THINGS, has certainly distinguished herself by her attention to her mineral springs, and by the invitation she has so long extended to the world to appreciate and enjoy the same. She is plentifully supplied with different kinds of mineral waters. Some of the mineral springs of New York are more celebrated than any others in the United States, and rival the far-famed springs of Europe. They are considered to possess more medicinal properties, and more rare and distin- guished endowments in the sphere of sanitary attractions, than any other springs in this country. The names of SARA- TOGA and BALLSTON alone suggest not only the memory of gunpowder, or sulphur, and victory, but of health, fashion, and splendor. The mineral springs of New York belong, as the list will show, to a number, or indeed all of the classes of waters, namely, carbonated, saline, sulphureous, and chalybeate. The geological position of the gaseous springs, the most celebrated of which are the Saratoga and Ballston range, according to Professor Mather, is in the transition of the Trenton limestone and superimposed slate, or Formations 2 and 3 of Pennsylvania. He also suggests, that the " source of the mineral qualities may be deeper than the junction of the Trenton limestone and slate, and even as far down in the series as the Calciferous Sandstone." (No. 1 of Pennsylvania.) The waters of the Saratoga group are carbonated saline. This class of waters is very numerous in a certain part of the State, restricted, it is alleged, however, by the geologists of N ew York, to a particular line of disturbance and faults of the geological formations, all of which possess the same general character of water, or at least a strong resemblance. The springs at Saratoga form the centre of this range. 142 THE MOUNTAIN. They have here a larger chain of distinctive features, and more clearly pronounced qualities, although the other springs possess the same chemical elements, differing only in quantity and proportion. A critical estimate of the whole range would show identity of character. Certain springs have, however, by common consent, been distinguished for superior qualities, and the Saratoga group is of that number. Of the origin of these waters, various geological theories have been suggested that scarcely concern us here, although the problem is intensely interesting to geologists, and one of paramount value in the final rendering of the natural history of these objects. The minute geology of the localities and surroundings decides the whole question; the waters, even of deep and thermal origin, deriving their mineral elements from the rock structures below the surface, and through which they flow. The reports of the Saratoga and Ballston springs exhibit almost perfect identity of chemi- cal composition, and the superiority of the former, especially of the celebrated " CONGRESS SPRING," is only based upon an accidental character, or notoriety, whose shade of color is extremely questionable. Of " Congress Spring," the analysis of Dana (Dr. Steel's being nearly the same) gives the following substances in a pint of the water : DANA. STEEL. Chloride of sodium, 54-30 grs. Hydriodate of soda, 0'44 Carbonate of soda, 2 '00 Bicarbonate of soda, 1-12 Carbonate of magnesia, 4*00 Bicarbonate of magnesia, ll'9t Carbonate of lime, 18 '00 Carbonate of iron, 0'68 Silica, trace, with iron, . Hydrobromate of potassa, trace, They also contain carbonic acid gas, nitrogen, and atmo- spheric air. Temperature, 50, Steel; 51, Daubeny. MINERAL SPRINGS OF NEW YORK. 143 The PAVILION SPRING exceeds it in carbonic acid. UNION SPRING shows greater quantity of saline elements, and carbonic acid less than in the last spring. The PUTNAM SPRING is said, by Dr. Bell, to be among the richest of the Saratoga springs in iron, but nearly the same as the rest in other elements. WALTON or IODINE SPRING contains hydriodate of soda, three grains to a gallon. Temperature, 47 F. A number of other springs, HIGH ROCK, FLAT ROCK, WASHINGTON, and COLUMBIAN, are like those already enu- merated, with the addition of iron. HIGH ROCK was the first spring discovered, according to Dr. Steel, and a sprink- ling of Indian tradition mingles with its history, which extends back nearly ninety years. There are also other springs enumerated as medicinal, as HAMILTON, JACKSON, ALEXANDER, RED, and SULPHUR SPRINGS, with temperatures from 4T to 51 F. Dr. Bell asserts that "all the mineral springs of the valley may be considered as, to a certain extent, thermal." BALLSTON SPRINGS are seven miles from Saratoga, and have been used since 118T. The springs are the FRANKLIN SULPHUR, FULTON CHALYBEATE, UNITED STATES, PARK, and Low's WELL. The water of the UNITED STATES, ac- cording to Dr. Beck's analysis, contains in the pint, Chloride of sodium, 53-12 grs. Carbonate of soda, 2'11 " Carbonate of lime, with iron, 3 '65 " Carbonate of magnesia, 0'T2 " Sulphate of soda, 0'22 " Silica, 1-00 " Carbonic acid, 30 '50 cubic inch. They contain less salt and gas than Saratoga. Some of the other springs contain iron in addition to the saline ele- ments. The Ballston and Saratoga waters have long been in use, 144 THE MOUNTAIN. and have been the subject of great experimentation ; also, the objects of a great amount of fabulous exaggeration; also worthy of attention as possessing positive merit as heal- ing agents. In certain diseases, the profession -is satisfied that their virtue is real, and their effects undoubted. The catalogue of their fancied and absolute healings would be a nosological table of almost the whole range of human infirmi- ties. The real powers of these waters are those usually as- cribed to all saline and aperient waters. A discriminating survey shows their chief force to be in their effects upon the organs contained in the cavity of the abdomen. This em- braces the stomach, liver, small and large intestines, kidneys, etc., a large number of whose functional, and even organic derangements, are said to be curable by these waters. The special advocates of their powers give extensive tables of diseases within their control. Omitting what is obviously false and fraudulent in these statements and suggestions, a critical reading of the testimony in favor of their powers, points out the great abdominal region, with enclosed viscera, as the special theatre of their action, and its extensive class of diseases as the legitimate subjects of trial with them. As these derangements are the horrors that hang, like the sword of Damocles, or the skull at the Egyptian ban- quet, over the classes of society diseased by luxurious indul- gences, that division of the human family to whom it has become fabulous and absurd that the chief end of man is self-sacrifice and crucifixion of the flesh, but that the more tangibly good ends, the stuffing the human bread-basket, and having a good time generally, are demonstrably sound as a religious creed and system of salvation ; it would follow, that any waters that have a tendency to swab out or deterge the great sacks and sewers of the body would be beneficial. It being the law, that swift and sure upon the heels of the indulgence comes the expiatory suffering, it would occur, even to the unthinking, that a clear navigation being effected in the tortuous canal of membranes that undoubtedly occu- pies the interior of the human body, (however beautiful and MINERAL SPRINGS OF NEW YORK. 145 angelic the expression of the outer husk may be,) by the purgative action of the Saratoga waters upon said intes- tines of the fashionable world that resort to its famed foun- tains, would be followed by the most brilliant results.* We accordingly find that it is thus that this great assimilative cavity, with its contained organs, are impressed; also, the long complicated chains of sympathetic connections with other parts of the system modified and rearranged health- fully, Epsom salts and common salt being the great sani- tary forces. Much is said of the alterative properties of these waters, as great reorganizers upon all the tissues and organs, by the use of those said to contain iodine and iron, in connection with those containing salts and gases. In all this catalogue of distinguished achievements of Congress and other waters, it might be desirable to know just the influence of certain excursions to Saratoga Lake, Long Lake, and Lake George, together with fishing excursions, and exercise of all kinds, assisted by the " balsamic and turpentine qualities of the air t impregnated with the pine and other forest-trees," in the assistance and furtherance of the action of said waters. There are still other acidulous waters, varying slightly in * On this subject, as involving literary and scientific issues in the great problem of the incarnation of the soul, it may be remarked that the effects of castor- oil upon the intellect and moral sentiments have long been known, at least to medical philosophers. How much of the heavens, in certain directions, could have been cleared up by the judicious application of vegetable or saline cathartics how much of the atra-bilious tint bleached out of the theologies by blue-mass and Seidlitz powders; and how many of the gases, of the offensive and poisonous order, at least, could have been kept from penetrating the philosophies, by the chewing of rhubarb or aloes, and securing the perfectly regulated function of the large intestine. This is a ghastly realm of human thought, carrying the mind into fearful abysses of speculation ; but, at the same time, immensely rich in its resources, startling in its suggestions, and portentous in its reve- lations and demonstrations, especially in the departments of Theo- logy, Metaphysics, and Poetry. 13 146 THE MOUNTAIN. the proportion of their chemical elements. Of these are the Albany Artesian Mineral Wells ; also Reed's Mineral Spring, in South Argyle, and Halleck's, in Oneida County, near Hampton. Of chalybeate waters, New York claims also to possess a number of springs ; of these are Sandlake Tillage Spring, in Rensselaer County, and others in Columbia, Dutchess, and Delaware counties. Of the class of sulphureous waters New York has a large supply, as, according to Dr. Bell, " There is scarcely a single county in the State in which the springs of this class, im- pregnated with sulphuretted hydrogen, are not found ;" and the geologists report a large number in some of the districts. Though widely separated, they have one common character with regard to temperature and mineral composition which would seem to point to a common geological origin. Be- sides sulphuretted hydrogen, these waters contain carbonic acid, carbonate and sulphate of lime, and some of them car- buretted hydrogen. SHARON and AVON are the most celebrated sulphur springs in New York. SHARON SPRINGS are near Leesville, Schoharie County. They are called the " White Sulphur," and "Magnesian ;" they come, according to Dr. Beck, " from the pyritous slates be- neath the Helderburg limestone series." Dr. Chilton reports White Sulphur to contain, in a pint of water, Sulphate of magnesia, 2 '65 grs. Sulphate of lime, 6 '68 " Chloride of sodium, 0*14 " Chloride of magnesium, 0*15 " Hydro-sulphuret of sodium and calcium, each 0'14 " With one cubic inch of sulphuretted hydrogen gas. Drs. Beck and North differ in this analysis. MAGNESIAN SPRING has a slightly different composition, containing, like the other, sulphuretted hydrogen, according to the analysis of Professor Reed, of New York. MINERAL SPRINGS OF NEW YORK. 147 The AVON SPRINGS are near the town of Avon, eastern branch of Genesee River, in Livingston County. These springs have been used for more than half a century ; they differ but slightly in chemical composition, and their general temperature is about 50 to 51 Fahr. The Avon New Spring contains, in a pint, Carbonate of lime, 3 '37 grs. Sulphate of lime, 0'44 " Magnesia, 1 - 01 " Soda, 4-84 " Chloride of sodium, O'U " Sulphuretted hydrogen, 3 '90 cubic inches. Another spring, according to Professor Hadley, contains, in a pint, Sulphuretted hydrogen, 12 '00 inches. Carbonic acid, 5 '00 cubic inches. Carbonate of lime, I'OO gr. Sulphate of lime, 10 '00 grs. Sulphate of magnesia, 1'25 " Sulphate of soda, 2 -00 " Chloride of sodium, 2'30 " The third spring is said to be richer in salts than the last noticed. The IODINE or SILVAN SPRINGS, according to the ana- lysis of Dr. Chilton, contain an appreciable quantity of iodine, with other of the more ordinary combinations of saline elements. Of the special virtues of the Avon and Sharon waters much has been said, both in separate treatises and also in works of a more general character. Their therapeutic quali- ties are those of sulphur waters generally. They are sup- posed to exert their force emphatically upon chronic dis- eases of the skin, mucous membranes, and rheumatism. Their claims are well set forth by Sallisbury, Francis, Bell, and others, whose detailed accounts of the waters used both 148 THE MOUNTAIN. internally and externally, qualities, modus operandi, etc., are certainly worthy of the greatest respect and most attentive consideration of all invalids and physicians who are de- sirous of being posted in the resources of their art. There are other sulphur springs in New York of considerable celebrity. CLIFTON SPRING, in Ontario County, is said to be " so im- pregnated with gas that the odor is perceptible for one- fourth of a mile." Temperature, 51 Fahr. CHITTENANGO SPRINGS are in Madison County ; they con- tain carbonate and sulphate of lime, sulphate of magnesia and chloride of sodium, sulphuretted hydrogen and carbonic acid gas ; temperature, 49 Fahr. One of the springs also contains sulphate of soda. Dr. Beck speaks highly of these springs. MANLIUS LAKE and SPRING, in Onondaga County, are charged with sulphuretted hydrogen. The SALINE SPRINGS, of Salina and Syracuse, are also charged with sulphuretted hydrogen. MESSINA SPRING also contains sulphur. Near Auburn, in Cayuga County, there are springs called " AUBURN SPRINGS." From Chilton's analysis they contain, in a pint, Sulphate of lime, 15*00 grs. Sulphate of magnesia, 3 '20 " Chloride of magnesium, 0'25 " Chloride of sodium, 0'75 " Sulphuretted hydrogen, 1'05 cubic inches. ROCHESTER SPRING contains, in a pint, Carbonate of lime and magnesia, 1-48 grs. Chloride of sodium, 6'52 " Sulphate of soda, 6 -97 " Sulphuretted hydrogen and carbonic acid, 2*16 cubic inches. Temperature, 52 Fahr. MINERAL SPRINGS OF NEW YORK. 149 There are a number of springs of the same character in Monroe County, whose waters have reputation as mineral. VERONA SPRING, in Oneida County, according to Pro- fessor Noyes, contains, in a pint, Chloride of lime and magnesia, 8-50 grs. Chloride of sodium, 90 '00 " Sulphate of lime, T50 " Sulphuretted hydrogen in large quantities. SAQUOIT SPRINGS, a few miles from TJtica, are represented to be highly charged with sulphuretted hydrogen, also car- buretted hydrogen, and chloride of sodium and magnesium, with sulphate of lime and iron. Niagara County contains a number of sulphur springs, as in the vicinity of Lewistown and Pendleton. SENECA SPRINGS contain quantities of gas, also saline substances. Northern New York has sulphur springs in the counties of Clinton and St. Lawrence. The valley of the Hudson contains, in the space of one hundred and fifty miles, a number of sulphur springs. There are, in other portions of the State, springs of this class, as HARROWGATE SPRINGS, in Rensselaer County, NEWBURG, in Orange County, CATSKILL, in Green County, also in Dutchess County, and NANTICOKE, in Broome County, and DRYDEN SPRINGS, in Tompkins County. There are sulphur springs in Chenango, Tioga, Stephen, and Cattaraugus counties. There are found in Chatauqua County a number of sulphur springs which evolve carburetted hydrogen. There is still another class of springs in New York, viz. acid springs. They contain sulphuric acid in excess, with sulphate of alumina or alum, and sulphate of iron. At Byron, G-enesee County, two of these springs are found, according to Dr. Beck, "containing nearly pure sulphuric 13* 150 THE MOUNTAIN. acid, and not a solution of acid salts." Other acid springs are found in this county. Near the village of Medina, in Genesee County, are the "OAKORCHARD ACID SPRINGS." Analyses by Chilton and Emmons give the presence of saline materials with the acid. Chilton's analysis gives free sulphuric acid in the proportions of 82 -96 grs. to the gallon; also, Sulphate of lime, 38-60 grs. Alumina, 9'68 " Magnesia, 8 '28 " Protosulphate of iron, 14 '32 " Emmons gives free sulphuric acid, to the pint, 31 '50 grs. ; also, sulphate of iron, lime, and magnesia. Other springs give 24 '25 grs. free acid in a pint, and some only 19 '30. The therapeutic properties of these springs are of course derived from their chemical contents. According to Drs. White and Spring, they are practically curative of quite a number of diseases, the catalogue of which they render. LEBANON SPRING, in Columbia County, is thermal, its waters being 70 Fahr. It also contains saline impregna- tions and nitrogen gas. Besides the springs already enumerated as medicinal waters, there are, in New York, a number of brine or salt springs. According to Dr. Beck, " they show a great same- ness of composition. They all contain chlorides of calcium and magnesium, with common salt. They also contain bro- mine and iron, and are of great value, the State deriving considerable revenue from the salt springs of Onondaga County." Springs containing nitrogen gas are found in Seneca, Rensselaer, and Franklin. The FREDONIA SPRINGS, as observed, are highly charged with carburetted hydrogen. This gas occurs in quantities, and is extensively used for ordinary purposes of illumi- nation. MINERAL SPRINGS OF NEW YORK. 151 Those who may wish fuller and more detailed accounts of the mineral springs of New York and their geological con- nections, may find them in Dr. Beck's " Mineralogy of New York;" Dr. Bell's "Mineral Springs;" also in Emmons, Hall, and geological reports, essays, and contributions. However interesting, really useful, and instructive it might be to dwell, especially upon their therapeutic pro- perties and the question of their real power over disease, it would be out of place in a mere catalogue. 152 THE MOUNTAIN. NEW JERSEY SPRINGS. THE principal mineral spring of New Jersey which has any reputation as medicinal, is SCHOOLEY'S MOUNTAIN SPRING. According to Dr. McNevin, the characteristic in- gredients are muriate and sulphate of lime, and carbonated oxide of iron. As a carbonated chalybeate this is a valu- able water, its indications being those which call for the use of iron generally ; temperature, 50 Fahr. Much is said of the delightful character of this retreat, and the power of its water; not enough of the power of exercise and pure air. OHIO MINERAL WATERS. THERE are many mineral springs in Ohio, according to Dr. Drake, but they have attracted little notice and been the subject of little scientific investigation. W. W. Mather, in the Geological Report of Ohio, asserts, " mineral springs may be found in almost every county." Those observed are of the classes of chalybeate, saline, and sulphureous waters. "YELLOW SPRING" is in Green County, on the Cincinnati and Sandusky Railroad, sixty-four miles north of Cincin- nati. It is described as proceeding from the same geolo- gical filter as the "chalybeate springs of the Olympian Yal- ley, in Kentucky." The water, possessing the temperature of the springs of the surrounding country, 52 Fahr., is clear, and has a "slight chalybeate taste." Drake asserts OHIO MINERAL WATERS. 153 it to be a tonic of "reputed powers in convalescent con- ditions from severe disease." "WESTPORT SPRING" is in Deer Creek. Its chemical elements are "sulphate of magnesia, iron, and carbonic acid, its properties being cathartic." There are mineral springs in Crawford County. CAREY'S SPRING contains sulphuretted hydrogen and com- mon salt. WYANDOT SULPHUR SPRING, two miles below Upper Sandusky, contains sulphuretted hydrogen, sulphuric and muriatic acids, lime, and magnesia. ANNAPOLIS SULPHUR SPRING contains sulphuretted hy- drogen. KNISLEY'S or CRAWFORD SULPHUR SPRING contains sul- phuretted hydrogen, sulphate of magnesia, and lime, and promises to be an attractive watering-place. DELAWARE SPRINGS, and springs at Cleveland and Me- dina, are mentioned by Mather, as also gas and petolium springs at several localities. Salt springs are numerous in Ohio, and . those of Mus- kingum County, Hocking and Sciota valleys, have long been known. Other springs are mentioned in the Geologi- cal Report, as CHALYBEATE SPRING, near Darrtown, SUL- PHUR SPRING, near Zoar, and NEW PHILADELPHIA, etc. 154 THE MOUNTAIN. ILLINOIS SPRINGS. OF the springs of this State there is an extremely meagre supply of facts. In a recent report, Dr. Norwood has given a number of analyses, but not of mineral waters. Dr. Bell enumerates a few, quoting from Professor Shepard. UPPER ILLINOIS SPRINGS contain carbonate of lime and soda, chlorides of sodium, calcium, and magnesium, sul- phate of lime, magnesia, and soda, carbonic acid and nitrogen gases. They possess a higher temperature than the sur- rounding springs. There is a sulphureous spring in the bank of the Illinois, said to contain " sulphuretted hydrogen and hydrosulphuret of sodium." Sulphur springs are also found in the bed of Yermilion River. IOWA SPRINGS. ABOVE the Raccoon Fork, on the Des Moines, associated with the carboniferous rocks of that region, there is a mine- ral water referred to by Owen in his Geological Report. It oozes from the argillaceous layers associated with the coal, and is described as " having a faint-brown tinge, acid reac- tion, and strong styptic taste." According to Mr. Owen, " chemical reagents show that it is an acid solution of sulphate of alumina, sulphate of pot- ash, and sulphate of protoxide of iron, and a little chloride of potassium and sodium. It is, in fact, a double alum of potash and protoxide of iron. The same kind of water was observed at several other localities on the Upper Des Moines." VIRGINIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 155 MISSOURI MINERAL SPRINGS. G. C. SWALLOW, the geologist of this State, has re- ported some mineral waters. "North River Lick," in Marion County, is a strong brine water. There are chaly- beate springs and sulphur waters also reported, as " SUL- PHUR SPRING," on Lick Creek, " CHELTENHAM SULPHUR SPRING," etc. VIRGINIA MINERAL SPRINGS. PROCEEDING south, the next springs which attract atten- tion are the mineral and thermal springs of Yirginia. This State has been peculiarly blessed in this order of gifts. These springs have long been known, and justly esteemed ; many of them belonging to the carbonated class of true ther- mal waters. And first on the subject of thermalism, the facts, and not the philosophy thereof, occupying the moment, a word on theories may be tolerated, nevertheless. "THE VALLEY," as it is called, between the Blue Ridge and the Alleghany Mountain, is the location of a number of the most celebrated of the Yirginia springs. They are quite numerous, and belong to several of the classes described. The region is delightful, possessing beauty of scenery and salubrity of atmosphere, and, as a spring region, has be- come celebrated ; the marked effects of its waters and cli- mate, as great hygienic and therapeutic powers of the world, having long been the subject of scientific interest to the medi- cal profession of the United States. 156 THE MOUNTAIN. In the geological theory of thermal springs, the observa- tions of Professor Forbes and Dr. Daubeney find some con- firmation in the position of the Yirginia springs, according to Dr. W. B. Rogers, the geologist of that State, who points out the association of thermal springs with anticlinal axes and faults, showing that of " fifty-six springs mentioned in twenty-five distinct localities within an area of 15,000 square miles, forty-six springs are on or near axes, seven on faults and inversions, and three the only group of this kind yet known in Virginia near point of contact of hypogene, or primitive with Appalachian rocks." The observations were made in the great limestone valley of Yirginia, upon springs decidedly thermal, according to ordinary acceptance, applying the term thermal, as Bischof does, to " springs with temperature above the atmospheric mean of the region in which they are situated." Professor W. B. Rogers considers that the "great propor- tion of the copious and constant springs of the vast belt of mountains occupied by the Appalachian range, especially those of the great limestone valley of Yirginia, are truly though slightly thermal, and that they owe to a deep sub- terranean source the remarkable uniformity they exhibit." This excludes the formula of volcanism, as there are " no volcanic or igneous rocks over the vast surface of the Ap- palachian region ;" the source of heat being "hot strata in the interior; the fractures and arches of the rocks being the mere appliances mechanical, by which the water is ad- mitted to the region of constant fires." Similar observations have been made by other geologists in different parts of the world. The views of the New York geologists on this subject have been already noticed, and Professor Mather's sugges- tions on the range of continued northeast disturbances alluded to. On the subject of the connection of mineral springs with axes, we have also some interesting facts in the recent re- port (for 1857) of Sterry Hunt to Sir William E. Logan, VIRGINIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 157 of the Geological Survey of Canada. He says : " There are few mineral springs in the undisturbed portion of the western basin of Canada. Almost all of the mineral springs issue from palaeozoic formations, and the greater part from the lower silurian rocks of Lower Canada. They are con- nected, as elsewhere, with disturbances, axes, dislocations, faults, and intrusive rocks." Of the springs of Virginia, of the class Thermal, a num- ber are quite celebrated. "WARM SPRINGS," in Bath County, are fifty miles from Staunton, and one hundred and seventy from Richmond. The temperature is 98-99 F. The solid contents are small in quantity, some twenty grains in the gallon. The water also contains nitrogen, carbonic acid, and sulphuretted hy- drogen gases. It is used both internally and externally, in a number of diseases, as in joint and skin-diseases, paralysis, scrofulous degenerations, and glandular obstructions. These waters are delightful in the extreme for bathing, also, truly medicinal in quality. They have been long in use, and have been much extolled by writers on this subject. They have reputation in an extensive catalogue of diseases, embracing that multifarious variety of conditions for which warm bathing is recommended. The gases of this water are nitrogen, sul- phuretted hydrogen, and carbonic acid ; and the saline con- tents, muriate of lime, sulphate of magnesia, carbonate and sulphate of lime, with soda. Temperature, 98 F. HOT SPRINGS are also in Bath County, five miles west of Warm Spring. The water is from 98 to 100 F. They are used in cases of disease alone, as gout, chronic rheumatism, debility positive, together with chronic derangements of stomach and intestine ; also, glandular obstructions, chronic ulcers, scrofulous swellings, diseases of skin, and paralytic cases. They are used internally also as excitants, in weak conditions of the stomach and bowels, chronic disease of bowels and stomach, also as diuretics and diaphoretics. According to Dr. Goode, the water of Hot Springs is not a simple, pure hot water, but contains sulphate and carbonate 14 158 THE MOUNTAIN. of lime, sulphate of soda and magnesia, muriate of iron, car- bonic acid, sulphuretted hydrogen, nitrogen, and are useful, internally administered.* BATH SPRING is situated in Berkley County, and has been styled a "mild, carbonated, thermal water." It con- tains salts of lime and magnesia, and has a temperature of 73 F. It is said to be useful in rheumatic affections, and in several chronic derangements. Virginia is furnished with a number of extremely valuable springs of the class of sulphureous waters. This group is one of much interest. The springs are called by different names, indicative of some noticeable fact about them, as White Sulphur, Blue Sulphur, Salt Sulphur, and Red Sul- phur. WHITE SULPHITE SPRINGS are in Greenbrier County, on Howard's Creek, in the midst of the famous region of springs. According to Augustus H. Hayes, of Roxbury, they contain nitrogen, oxygen, carbonic acid, and hydrosul- phuric acid gases, 16 inches to 231 inches or a gallon of the water. Of saline matter, they contain sulphate of lime in large quantity, sulphate of magnesia, chloride of magnesium, carbonate of lime, organic matter, with some silicates. This is of the order of saline sulphuretted waters. Much is said of a " certain organic substance" by the chemist, who also suggests that the " medical property of the waters are due to this substance." In the analysis of Professor W. B. Ro- gers, of Virginia, the list is a long one of the mineral con- tents, embracing, in 100 cubic inches of water, Sulphate of lime, 31*680 grs. Sulphate of magnesia, 8*241 " Sulphate of soda, 4*050 " Carbonate of lime, 1-530 " Carbonate of magnesia, 0*506 " Chloride of calcium, 0*010 " * Moormann's "Mineral Springs of Virginia." VIRGINIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 159 Chloride of magnesium, O'OTO grs. Chloride of sodium, 0-226 " Protosulphate of iron, 0-069 " Sulphate of alumina, 0*012 " Iodine, Azotized organic matter, 0*005 " Gases, sulphuretted hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, and carbonic acid. Of the special application of these waters to disease, or mode of operating, and the whole catalogue of infirmities curable thereby, also on manner of administration, see Dr. John J. Moormann's clever little book on the "Mineral Springs of Virginia." It is considered "the strongest water of the spring region." BLUE SULPHUR SPRING is twenty-two miles west of White Sulphur, on Muddy Creek, one of the waters of Greenbrier River. This spring has a fine reputation, and is prescribed in all diseases for which sulphur waters are used. Professor Rogers's analysis of 100 cubic inches of water gives the pre- sence of Sulphate of lime, 20150 grs. Sulphate of magnesia, 2 '7 60 " Sulphate of soda, 9*020 " Carbonate of lime, 2'180 " Carbonate of magnesia, 0*481 " Chloride of magnesium, 0*401 " Chloride of calcium, 0*005 " Chloride of sodium, 1*868 " Hydrosulphate of sodium and magnesium, Oxide of iron, existing as protosulphate, 0*015 " Iodine, Sulphur, organic matter, 3*000 " Dr. Moormann speaks very favorably of this spring as a remedial agent. Temperature variable, from 46 to 56 F. Drs. Hunter and Martin give favorable reports of this water. 160 THE MOUNTAIN. SALT SULPHUR. There are three of these springs in Monroe County, near Union, and twenty-four miles south of White Sulphur. They are, according to Dr Moormann, "encircled by mountains on every side, having Peters's Mountain on the south and east, Alleghany to the north, and Swope's Mountain to the west, near the base of which are the three springs." The waters of this place possess great and deserved notoriety as medicinal, and the place is extremely attractive. Professor Rogers's analysis gives, in 100 cubic inches of water, Sulphate of lime, 36*755 grs. Sulphate of magnesia, 7 '883 " Sulphate of soda, 9*682 " Carbonate of lime, 4*445 " Carbonate of magnesia, 1*434 " Chloride of sodium, 0*683 " Chloride of magnesium, 0*116 " Chloride of calcium, 0'025 " Oxide of iron, 0*042 " Iodine, Azotized organic matter, blended with sul- phur, 0*004 " Earthy phosphates, trace, Gases : Sulphuretted hydrogen, 1*50 cubic inches. Nitrogen, 2*05 " Oxygen, 0*21 " " Carbonic acid, 5*75 " One of the springs contains a larger quantity of iodine ; said to be useful in scrofula, goitre, and diseases of skin. Dr. Mutter speaks of the salt sulphur waters as efficient in a variety of diseases, as chronic affections of nervous centre, chronic kidney and bladder diseases, rheumatism, gout, and skin disease, chronic liver and bowel disorders. Dr. Moor- mann also speaks highly of the salt sulphur waters in a number of complaints. VIRGINIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 161 RED SULPHUR SPRINGS are in the southern part of Mon- roe County, south of White Sulphur forty-two miles. This has been a celebrated watering-place for many years. The temperature of the spring is 54 F. Professor Rogers's analysis gives sulphate of soda, lime, and magnesia, carbon- ate of lime, and muriate of soda. It also contains a " pecu- liar organic substance, mingled with sulphur." Gaseous contents are, Sulphuretted hydrogen, 4 '54 inches to gallon. Carbonic acid, 8 '15 " " " Nitrogen, 4 '25 " " " This is "the least stimulating of the sulphur waters," and represented as even sedative. It has a ''peculiar and dis- tinguished reputation for diseases of the thoracic viscera, INCLUDING CONFIRMED CONSUMPTION" (!!??) Has undoubted efficacy as a mineral water, but on the subject of its curing confirmed consumption?? see Moormann. SWEET SPRINGS, also in Monroe County, are twenty-two miles from Salt Sulphur Springs. These springs attracted attention early (1764) to their waters. They were analyzed by Bishop Madison, in 1714; said to be a tonic, "with just celebrity." Their temperature is 73 F. The analysis of Rowelle " gives saline substances, earthy salts, and iron, sulphate of magnesia, muriate of soda, and lime, with sili- cious earth." Sweet Spring is a popular and fashionable resort. The name is not appropriate, as the water has the usual taste of saline waters. It possesses excess of carbonic acid, and is said to be useful in a number of diseases, used both by bathing and internally. The water is especially lauded for bathing purposes, as a luxury, and for medicinal qualities. SWEET CHALYBEATE SPRING is in Alleghany County, west of Sweet Spring. One of the springs here has the same character as the last-named spring, and the other con- tains a larger quantity of iron. Rowelle gives, in one quart of water, 14* 162 THE MOUNTAIN. Carbonate of lime, 4 grs. Carbonate of magnesia, 3 " Carbonate of iron, 2 " Silex, 1 '.< Sulphate of magnesia, 1 " Muriate of soda, -J " Iron, combined with carbonic acid, 1 " Professor Rogers gives sulphate of lime, magnesia, and soda, carbonate of lime, chloride of magnesium, sodium, and calcium, oxide of iron, organic matter, and iodine. The iron, he says, is dissolved in the water as a carbonate. The gases in this water are nitrogen, oxygen, sulphuretted hy- drogen. The bubbles which rise from the spring are nitro- gen and carbonic acid ; temperature of the spring being TT to 80 F. Waters possess the same therapeutic properties as other springs of the class; as a tonic extremely cele- brated. Dr. Moormann is enthusiastic in his admiration of and belief in their efficacy. DIBRELL'S SPRING is in Botetourt County, nineteen miles from the Natural Bridge, and forty-four miles from the White Sulphur Springs, on the stage-road. Professor Rogers's analysis gives carbonate of soda, sul- phate of soda, chloride of sodium, carbonate of magnesia, peroxide of iron, silica dissolved, "organic matter, contain- ing chloride of potassium, nitrogen, carbonate of lime, and carbonate of ammonia. Gases : carbonic acid, oxygen, sul- phuretted hydrogen, nitrogen, this spring possessing the usual character of sulphur waters, and used medicinally the same way." RAWLEY'S SPRING is in Rockingham County, northwest of Harrisonsburg twelve miles ; water pure, chalybeate, and strong, good tonic. According to Dr. Moormann, " as a pure tonic, it deserves to stand at the very head of that class of medicines." No analysis of the water yet made. HEALING SPRINGS are, according to Dr. Burke, " in the gorge of the mountains, near the road to the celebrated VIRGINIA MINERAL SPRINGS. 163 Falling Spring, one of the curiosities of this region, and three and a half miles south of Hot Springs." In chemi- cal contents they are apparently very much like the " SWEET SPRINGS," or perhaps more like the Red Sweet, since the chalybeate taste is more distinct than in that of the former. Medical virtues transcendent ; curing scrofulous and skin affections, and fibrous diseases in the shape of "rheumatisms and sprains." Temperature of spring, 84 Fahr. As a luxury and real healthful operative, the bath waters of this spring are to be commended largely. HOLSTEIN SPRINGS are found in Scott County, southwest part of the State, and belong to the saline class. They are thermal, having a temperature of 68 Fahr., and 16 above the mean temperature of the springs about. The water is charged with sulphur, magnesia, and lime, to the extent of 41-14 grains to the gallon. Their action is directed to kid- neys and skin, and especially whole digestive tube. CHURCH HILL ALUM SPRING is in the city of Richmond. Mineral elements, Epsom salts, leading force also in large quantities of salts of iron and alumina. Thus the water is tonic from aluminous and ferruginous qualities of great value, consequently it is serviceable in a number of affec- tions as a giver of tone and a condenser of tissue. (See Bell.) Seventeen miles above Richmond, near James River, in Powhattan County, are the two HUGUENOT SPRINGS, one sulphureous, the other chaly- beate. The sulphur spring has the properties of others of the class, the chalybeate, also, possessing qualities of its class. WARRENTON WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS are near that town, in Farquier County. They are described as a mild sulphureous water, applicable to certain derangements of the stomach, and bowels, and rheumatism. CAPON SPRINGS are some thirty miles from Winchester. This place is represented as a charming retreat. No ana- 164 THE MOUNTAIN. lysis has been made of the waters, said to be useful in sto- mach derangements and glandular disorders. JORDAN'S WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS are near the Win. Chester and Harper's Ferry Railroad. They are said to possess curative properties over cutaneous diseases, chronic affections of the stomach and rheumatism. SHANNONDALE SALINE SPRINGS are near Charleston, Jefferson County, and near the banks of the Shenandoah River. They are said to possess diuretic and aperient properties. The BATH ALUM SPRINGS are at the eastern base of Warm Spring Mountain, on the road from Richmond to the Ohio River. Dr. Hayes's analysis of these springs give the presence of carbonic and sulphuric acids, with the salts of iron and alumina. They possess, of course, the medicinal properties of those substances, being tonic and astringent. They are used in various chronic affections, diseases of mu- cous surfaces, and general debility, also used in cutaneous diseases, scrofula, and chronic ulcerations. ROCKBRIDGE ALUM SPRINGS are situated between the North Mountain and Mill Mountain, seventeen miles from Lexington. Dr. Hayes's analysis gives an excess of free sul- phuric acid and sulphate of alumina. This is of the order of sour springs already spoken of, useful in diseases in which these chemical elements are usually applied. KENTUCKY SPRINGS. 165 KENTUCKY SPRINGS. IN the Second Report (185T) of the Geological Survey of this State, by David Dale Owen, thirty-eight mineral and other waters are stated to have been examined and ana- lyzed ; twenty-five qualitatively and thirteen quantitatively, by Dr. Peter. There is great sameness in the mineral con- tents of these springs, which are generally lime, magnesia, soda, with acids carbonic, sulphuric, iron, all of which are combined in endless proportions and quantities. YELVINGTON SPRING, in Daviess County, shows the pre- sence of these substances ; also, OLIVER SPRING, in same county. Owen quotes Professor J. Lawrence Smith's analysis of PAROQUET SPRING. This consists of nineteen substances, or different combinations, to wit, sodium, calcium, mag- nesium, potassium, with chlorine, these substances also in combination with sulphuric and carbonic acids, iodine, and bromine. It also contains organic matter, silica and sul- phuretted hydrogen. ALUM SPRING, at the base of Burdett Knob, contains sulphate of alumina and protoxide of iron, bicarbonates of lime and magnesia, with strong and deleterious properties, said to be poisonous. Near this, a well contains water of much the same character. Yates's mineral water contains lime, magnesia, soda, chlo- rine, sulphuric and carbonic acids. NEVIEN'S SULPHUR SPRING, in Lincoln County, at the sources of Salt River, contains the same ingredients, with sulphuretted hydrogen. ROCHESTER SPRINGS, in Boyl County, shows a large amount of sulphate of magnesia ; also, soda, lime, alumina, and iron. 166 THE MOUNTAIN. In Washington and Nelson counties are springs contain- ing the same ingredients. WHITE SULPHUR and MAMMOTH WELL contain the same items, in somewhat modified proportions. Mr. Owen recites the names and contents of a great many springs of Ken- tucky called mineral and sulphur waters. Their constituent principles are in the above-named substances repeated over again, with occasionally a new item or two. Dr. Peter's Table of the thirteen waters of Lincoln County shows, with slightly modified proportions, the following ma- terials : carbonate of iron, carbonate of manganese, car- bonate of lime, carbonate of magnesia, sulphates of lime, magnesia, potash, and soda, chlorides of magnesium and sodium, with silica. Of their connection with geological formations, Mr. Owen speaks of some having their " origin in the black shales of the Devonian Epoch," or rocks of the " Lower Silurian Period," whilst " Ho WELL MINERAL SPRING issues in a copious flow from the sub-carboniferous lime- stone of the 'Barrens' of Hardin County." Many of the sulphur and magnesian waters are associated with the rotten sandstone or silicious mudstone, and the Blue Limestone Formation. His analysis differs slightly from that of Dr. Raymond, procured by Dr. Drake, and gives sulphates of magnesia and lime, bicarbonates of magnesia and lime, with a trace of chlorides, and carbonate of iron in the " HAR- RODSBURG SALOON SPRING." The GREENVILLE SPRING, at Harrodsburg, has a trace of sulphuretted hydrogen and iron, otherwise like Saloon Spring. In the Third Geological Report of Kentucky (1851,) Owen notices twenty-six mineral waters : qualitative ana- lyses and testings at fountain-heads of many, and quanti- tative analyses of a few. This list includes some springs already examined and reported by Drake and others. From the great prevalence of mineral springs in Kentucky, it might occur to inquire, whether it may not be difficult to find any pure water in a region so crowded with " licks" and mineral fountains. In this Report (volume third) KENTUCKY SPRINGS. 167 the Harrodsburg group is again reviewed. The chemical contents nearly the same as already quoted for the Saloon and Greenville Springs, the latter retaining the trace of sul- phuretted hydrogen. It is stated that these " springs issue from the beds of blue limestone near its junction with the underlying marble rocks. " These springs of Kentucky, re- ported by Mr. Owen, have a stereotype resemblance, all containing the same salts of the same bases. Jones's Mineral Water, Washington County, contains lime, soda, magnesia, sulphur, with chlorine, carbonic and sulphuric acids. In Nelson County there are a number of mineral waters, as Grigsby's White Sulphur, Mammoth Well, Bell's Mineral Water, and others, their contents being common salt, lime, magnesia, iron, and sulphur, with great sameness in style of combination, In Shelby and Henry counties there are sulphur and chalybeate waters, and in Owen County, a weak saline. Some springs are quoted as poisonous to cattle from excess of the salts of magnesia. The waters of BLUE LICK, ESCULAPIAN, and ALUM SPRINGS, are reported with usual salts of lime, magnesia, soda, and sulphur. Qualitative analyses are also given of OLYMPIAN SPRINGS, in Bath County. They differ but little from the large number noticed, containing lime, magnesia, soda, with some sulphuretted hydrogen, and sulphate of magnesia in quantities. Sudduth Springs on Mud Lick, Sweet Lick Estill Springs, Irvine's Sulphur, Russell's Sulphur and Chaly- beate, in Russell County, are also reported. They contain the regular routine of ingredients characterizing KENTUCKY MINERAL SPRINGS. "A strong sulphuretted saline" is reported in Kettle Creek, Cumberland County; also, strong sulphur springs in Marion and Taylor counties. These springs are repre- sented to contain large amounts of sulphuretted hydrogen, in addition to the salts of lime, magnesia, and soda. Lindsey's Mineral Water, in Christian County, is also 168 THE MOUNTAIN. strongly impregnated with sulphuretted hydrogen. These waters are highly commended by Owen as medical waters, except those reputed to be poisonous, in connection with which he suggests the geological origin of the somewhat mysterious milk-sickness. The State of Kentucky owes, also, to the genius and labor of the illustrious Dr. Drake an elaborate and world- extended notice of her mineral springs. This indefatigable lover of, and worker for man, in his splendid critique on the Nosology, or Table of Diseases of the Mississippi Valley, has left no subject of science, connected with this depart- ment of human knowledge, untouched. His account of Kentucky Springs, scenery, and resources, whilst rigidly sci- entific, has all the charm of romance, even mounting to the sphere of poetry or the witchery of song. For particulars on mineral springs especially, and everything else, see one of the most interesting books printed in several hundred years, viz. " Principle Diseases of the Valley of North America," by Daniel Drake, M.D. According to Dr. Drake, HARRODSBURG SPRINGS are in "the basin of Salt River," near the town of Harrodsburg. This is an elevated spot near the origin of several veinlets of rivers. To use his own words, "it is not in a volcanic district. In every direction, for several miles round, the country is as free from drained lands, marshes, swales, and ponds, as any other equal area in the Ohio Basin." Ac- cording to Professor Yandell, they issue from the magnesian limestone " which rests upon the oldest formations known in the Ohio Basin." There are here two springs : first, GREEN- VILLE SPRING. Dr. Raymond, of Cincinnati, gives an ana- lysis of this spring, which, in the pint of water, contains, Bicarbonate of magnesia, 2*8*7 grs. " lime, 0-86 " Sulphate of magnnesia, crystallized, 16*16 " Sulphate of lime, 11*6 " Also a trace of chloride of sodium. KENTUCKY SPRINGS. 169 Of the other " SALOON" or CHALYBEATE SPRING, the same gentleman gives, in same quantity of water, Bicarbonate of lime, 4 -31 grs. Magnesia, 11-43 " Bicarbonate of iron, 0*50 " Sulphate of magnesia, crystallized, 21*92 " Sulphate of lime, 10-24 " Chloride of sodium, 1-20 " The predominating salts are those of lime and magnesia, containing neither free carbonic acid, nor sulphuretted hy- drogen gases.* These waters are prescribed in an extensive catalogue of diseases, including derangements of the contents of the large splanchnic cavities, abdomen, thorax, and head. Of the value of these waters hygienically, also of the delights of the place as a resort for luxury, Dr. Drake is eloquent in his praises. He thinks they will "compare advantageously with any to be found in Europe or America." Certainly, from his account, few places possess a tithe of the charms of this favored spot. Of the environs of Harrodsburg he speaks with extravagance, as possessing all elements of the roman- tic and beautiful, while its medicinal waters are represented as possessing healing powers over a large number of dis- eases, the whole locality having been favored by nature with a rare and wonderful combination of select and valuable things. ROCHESTER SPRING is situated one mile from Perrysville. From Dr. Drake's Report it is of the same character as the Harrodsburg in "sensible qualities, composition, and effects." The following group has been noticed by Owen, as already quoted. OLYMPIAN, or MUD LICK SPRINGS are in Bath County, * The analysis procured by Owen, as we have just seen, does con- tain some sulphuretted hydrogen. 15 170 THE MOUNTAIN. fifty miles from Lexington east, on Licking River. This, according to Dr. Drake, is " one of the oldest and most noted watering-places in Kentucky." There are several springs of different characters at this place, which are designated, by Drake, "salt sulphur, white sulphur, and chalybeate." The salt sulphur has a temperature of 58 F. It is a weak lime-water charged with sulphuretted hydrogen. The quan- tity of salt is smaller than many or most of the springs in tlie West. " It contains sulphuretted hydrogen, chloride of sodium, or common salt, muriate of lime, and carbonate of soda." The WHITE SULPHUR is half a mile from this, and "said to have made its first appearance in the earthquakes of 1811." Composition like the Salt Sulphur, with "differ- ence in proportion of elements." There is, in the SULPHUR, a much 'larger quantity of sulphuretted hydrogen, but less chloride of sodium, with some carbonate of soda. Tempera- ture, 59 F. The IRON SPRINGS are two in number, half a mile from the last, with temperature 52 F., and contain "carbonate of iron, with the proportion of muriates and carbonates which our common springs afford. " VITRIOL SPRING contains " muriates and carbonates only, and these in such moderate quantities that it is used for culinary purposes, although spoken of as medicinal." The medical properties of this spring are not lauded exceedingly, although the place is described as a broken surface, peculiar from irre- gular hills and ravines, and consequently attractive for its beauty of scenery and the wildness of its landscapes. Accord- ing to Dr. Peter, "there are six springs belonging to the Olympian group, three sulphuretted hydrogen, two iron saline, and one acidulous saline ; the contents not great in quantity. " Of the Olympian group, Bath County, Owen gives quali- tative testing of five springs. The first is a weak chalybeate, with salts of lime, magnesia, soda. The second contains more iron, with many of the same salts. The third is a good saline al- kaline chalybeate. The fourth contains a large list of salts of KENTUCKY SPRINGS. 171 lime, magnesia, soda, iron, with sulphuretted hydrogen and iodide of sodium. Owen suggests that this " is a very valuable mineral water, from the fact that it contains iodine." The fifth is described as a good alkaline sulphur water, containing also the ordinary salts of the waters of this region. At BLUE LICKS, Drake reports that there are several springs, all saline sulphur. They are on the Licking River, twenty-four miles from the Ohio. Salt was formerly made from these waters, but being weak, they were abandoned. In the Third Geological Report of this State, already quoted, Mr. Owen has an extended and valuable account of the "Lower Blue Lick Spring," Nicholas County. From a minute examination of the spring, it is discovered to have a temperature of 62 F., or seven degrees above the mean temperature of the region. A quantitative analysis has been made of this water by Mr. Owen, which is found to contain sulphuretted hydrogen and carbonic acid gases, car- bonate of lime and magnesia, alumina, phosphate of lime and oxide of iro,n, chloride of sodium, magnesium, and potas- sium, bromide of magnesium, iodide of magnesium, sul- phate of lime and potash, silicic acid, oxide of manganese, crenic and apocrenic acids. He enumerates a long list of diseases, "as chronic disorders of liver, dyspepsia, chronic cutaneous diseases, rheumatism, gout, scrofulous affections, and also speaks of the water as a nervous stimulant, dia- phoretic, and diuretic." The value of this water, as highly medicinal, is insisted upon by Mr. Owen. (See Third Geo- logical Report, from page 361 to page 368.) According to Peter, LOWER BLUE LICK SPRING is a sa- line sulphur. "It emerges from the Great Blue Limestone Formation of the West, a formation of great extent, com- posed of limestone layers of greater or less thickness, hardness, and purity, with beds of bluish, marly clay, presenting some- times a shaly structure ; all rich in the fossil remains of the inhabitants of the deep, primeval ocean, under which they were evidently deposited." The Spring of the Big Bone Lick is in this formation, and exhibits the same general 172 THE MOUNTAIN. character as the Blue Licks, that is, salt sulphur. A num- ber of salt springs are found in this formation, also salt wells. At the BLUE LICKS there are several springs, all of which are very similar in composition, according to Professor Peter. The salt wells or deep waters contain chlorides of sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium, sulphate and carbonate of lime, impregnated with sulphuretted hydrogen, while the surface springs are simply limestone water with little salt or gas. In Keene, Jessamine County, there is a well in the Lime- stone Formation containing a sulphureous salt water, with medicinal properties. Contents, sulphuretted hydrogen and carbonic acid gases, bicarbonates of lime, magnesia, and soda, chlorides of sodium, magnesium, calcium, with potas- sium, and some iron. The water is not so strong as BLUE LICK, containing 16 grains of salt in 1000 grains of water. (Peter.) In Scott County there is a well, in this Formation, 116 feet deep, the water of which contains chlorides of so- dium, calcium, and magnesium, with the odor of sulphuretted hydrogen. Another well, in Harrison County, also in the "Blue Limestone Formation," 105 feet deep, contains a water with sulphureous odor, and sixteen parts in a thousand of saline matter, chloride of sodium, calcium, magnesium, and potas- sium, sulphate of lime, bicarbonates of lime, magnesia, and iron, with some iodine. (Peter.) It resembles Blue Lick waters. Other wells, in the same formation, exhibit the same cha- racter of waters ; there being also a number in Lexington with the elements above enumerated. There are none of the waters of the Lime Formation so valuable as the " Lower Blue Lick." (Peter.) At this place the principal spring is near Licking River; temperature of water, 62 F. "The water is of a yellowish-green tint, depositing a yellowish- gray sediment. This color comes from the decomposition of the chemical elements of the water, the hydrogen, oxygen, KENTUCKY SPRINGS. 173 sulphur, iron, and carbon, undergoing certain changes of position from the original composition of the water." The water also contains nitrogen gas, with carbonic acid, and sulphuretted hydrogen. For saline contents, see analysis just quoted from the third volume of the Geological Survey of Kentucky. The medicinal properties are those of salt sulphur waters generally, and used in all chronic derangements to which sul- phur waters are prescribed, both internally and externally. (See Owen.) This water is distributed extensively by barrel- ing and bottling. Being, according to Dr. Drake, in a region of perpetual malaria, the place is thus doomed for certain seasons of the year. Of ESTILL SPRINGS, in Estill County, Kentucky, see also Report, page 245. Two springs, called "White and Eed Sulphur," give, in the first, carbonic acid and sulphuretted hydrogen gases, carbonates of soda, lime, magnesia, and iron, sulphates of lime, magnesia, and soda, chloride of so- dium, and hydrosulphate of soda; specific gravity, 1-001; saline contents, 0*09 per cent. The " RED SULPHUR" contains carbonic and sulphuretted hydrogen gases, carbonates of lime, magnesia, soda, and iron, sulphates of soda, lime, and magnesia, chlorides of sodium, calcium, and magnesium, and hydrosulphate of soda. The composition is similar to White, only differing in proportion of elements and specific gravity, 1*0002; saline contents 0'04 per cent. (Peter.) The Kentucky springs have each special advocates, who speak emphatically of the power of their waters. Some of these authorities are so high that the medicinal properties of the waters as represented, stand, with certain qualifications which apply to all springs, accredited by the profession at large ; as do those of the other States, which have been made the subject of special examination. When the Geo- logical Survey, now progressing under Professor Owen, shall have been finished, no doubt the mineral springs of Kentucky will appear with the last chemical details and geological 15* 174 THE MOUNTAIN. associations, perfected for the inspection of the world. This is a reasonable expectation, bearing in mind the high posi- tion of the principal of the Survey of that State, and his accomplished assistants. TENNESSEE SPRINGS. BUT few reports have been made of the mineral springs of Tennessee. Dr. Troost, the geologist of the State, gave an account, some time ago, of a number of them. These are mostly of the sulphureous class ; several of them are in Da- vidson County, French Lick, Sam's Creek, and White's Creek. In Franklin County are Winchester and Brown's springs ; Maysfield, in Williamson County; Terrie's, in Rutherford County. These waters contain sulphate of lime, chloride of sodium, and sulphuretted hydrogen. The sulphuretted hy- drogen is said to be in larger quantity than most of the sulphur waters of the United States. Twelve miles from the City of Nashville is WHITE'S CREEK SPRING, said to contain sulphates ,of iron, magnesia, and sulphur. This water has reputation in skin diseases and calculous derangements. Dr. Troost gives, to 20 ounces of this water, Sulphuretted hydrogen, 6 '25 cubic inches. Carbonic acid, 5-90 " " Solid matter, 16 grains, viz. Carbonate of lime, 5 '50 grs. Sulphate of lime, 3 '05 " Sulphate of soda, 2 '05 " Sulphate of magnesia, 3*00 " Hydrosulphate of soda, 1*01 " TENNESSEE SPRINGS. 175 Twenty miles from Nashville are ROBINSON'S SPRINGS, which are saline. At or near Nashville mineral springs are reported. Dr. Bell speaks of East Tennessee as exceedingly delightful, and recommends the climate and watering-places. LEE SPRINGS are twenty miles east of Knoxville, one of which is a strong iron water, the other two are sulphur. There are also sulphur springs in Granger County. In Franklin County, near Winchester, are the WINCHES- TER SPRINGS, some seventy miles from Nashville. There are several varieties of water here that have attained some cele- brity. They are pure iron and sulphur waters, and said to be actively medicinal ; some of the waters give 6 cubic inches of gas to 20 ounces ; situated in an interesting region and solidly attractive to invalids. Near these springs are ALLI- ANCE SPRINGS, which are reported to possess the same quali- ties as those last mentioned. Near Knoxville are MONTVALE SPRINGS. The spot is de- scribed as being very beautiful, and the waters truly medi- cinal. On French Broad River there are springs with a tem- perature of 96 Fahr. Troost notices a number of other springs. CASTILIAN SPRING, in Sumner County, contains sulphu- retted hydrogen, sulphate of magnesia and lime, and hydro- chlorate of soda. HAGER'S SPRING, in this county, contains sulphuretted hydrogen, carbonic acid, and sulphate of lime. SAM'S CREEK SPRINGS, Davidson County, contains, in 20 fluid ounces, Sulphuretted hydrogen, 8 '05 inches. Carbonic acid, 1'05 " Solid contents, 6 grains, composed of sulphate of lime and hydrochlorate of soda. MAYSFIELD SPRING, in Williamson County, contains, in 20 fluid ounces, 176 THE MOUNTAIN. Sulphuretted hydrogen, 6 cubic inches. Hydrochlorate of soda, 6 grs. Sulphate of lime, TERRIE'S SPRING, in Rutherford County, gives, in 20 fluid ounces, Sulphuretted hydrogen, 10 cubic inches. Sulphuric acid, 5*00 grs. Hydrochloric acid, 2 '21 " lime, 5-34 " DUNN'S SPRING, in Davidson County, gives sulphuretted hydrogen and hydrochlorate of soda. TYRE'S SPRING, in same county, contains, in 20 fluid ounces of water, Sulphuretted hydrogen, 3 cubic inches. Carbonic acid, 1 " inch. Solid matter, 30 grs. Sulphate of lime and magnesia, carbonate of lime and hydrochlorate of soda. FRENCH LICK, in same county, gives sulphuretted hydro- gen, carbonic acid, hydrochloric acid, sulphuric acid, mag- nesia, and hydrochlorate of soda. BROWN'S SPRING contains, in 20 fluid ounces, Sulphuretted hydrogen, 8 cubic inches. Solid matter, 3-25 grs. Composed of hydrochlorate of lime and soda. CAROLINA SPRINGS. 177 NORTH CAROLINA SPRINGS. EMMONS seems to carefully avoid the subject of mineral springs in his report on the Geology of North Carolina for 1856. There are, however, some springs in North Caro- lina which have been noticed. Of these, the most celebrated are the WARM and HOT SPRINGS, in Buncombe County. They are on French Broad River, and have a temperature from 94 to 104 Fahr. The region about these springs is said to be beautiful. Professor Smith's analysis gives the following substances in the water : muriates of magnesia and lime, sulphate of magnesia, sulphate of lime in larger proportions than any other element. The waters are used both internally and externally, and possess great importance as therapeutic agents; but, according to Dr. Bell, they should be used with discretion. They are applicable to cases of palsy and chronic rheumatism, rigidity of joints, etc. SOUTH CAROLINA SPRINGS. ACCORDING to Tuomey, "this State is not favorable to mineral springs," but some have attained notoriety. GLENN'S SPRING, in Spartanburg District, has waters charged with salts of lime. Professor Shepard gives, in these waters, chloride of calcium, supercarbonate of lime, sulphate of lime, and magnesia, alleging that "they are strongly impregnated with sulphur." 178 THE MOUNTAIN. WEST'S SPRING, near this, is chalybeate. CHICK'S SPRING, near Greenville, resembles Glenn's. In Laurens there " are three or four springs, sulphur and chalybeate, in hornblende slate." There is a spring at Estatoe Mountains, also in Abbiville District, and one near Parson's Mountain. MURRAY'S SPRING, near Pinson's Ford, is charged with salts of lime and iron. In " Flat Woods," are springs containing iron, lime, mag- nesia, and sulphur. M. Tuomey, the geologist of South Carolina, reports springs worthy of notice, as saline, sulphureous, and chaly- beate, which are "confined to certain geological formations." GEORGIA SPRINGS. NOT much is known of the mineral springs of this State. The INDIAN SPRINGS, in Butts County, are sulphureous. They have reputation, according to Professor Arnold, of Savannah, who reports to Dr. Bell all the noticed springs of Georgia, in the alleviation of rheumatic diseases, deranged conditions of stomach, liver, and intestines, of the order chronic. In Merriwether County are warm springs, which contain salts of magnesia, and have a temperature of 90 Fahr. The forte of their powers is over gout and rheumatism. In Madison County are the MADISON SPRINGS, which are pure iron waters, and useful as a tonic. The claims of these are warmly urged by Professor Arnold, for persons seeking a decidedly marked impression from change of climate, with mineral water action. In Cass County there is a chalybeate spring. In Murray County several springs are reported by Dr. Arnold, and reputed to possess medicinal powers. No ana- lysis yet published. ALABAMA SPRINGS. 179 ALABAMA SPRINGS. THE geology of Alabama is principally tertiary. There are several springs noticed by writers on the subject ; these are saline springs, also sulphuretted hydrogen. TALLAHATTA SPRING contains sulphur, salts of iron, lime, and magnesia. BAILEY'S SPRING is in Lauderdale County, nine miles from Florence. According to Dr. Currey, the water con- tains carbonic acid and sulphuretted hydrogen gases, car- bonates of soda and magnesia, oxide of iron, with carbonic acid, chloride of sodium, and carbonate of potash. Tuomey's analysis shows carbonates of iron and soda, chloride of sodium, and a trace of carbonate of potash and sulphur ; said to be curative in "dropsy, scrofula, and dyspepsia," as an alterative and gentle tonic. This acidulo sulphur -iron water is valuable. The most celebrated are "BLADON SPRINGS." The ana- lysis of their waters shows the presence of sulphuretted hy- drogen and carbonic acid gases, chloride of sodium, car- bonates of soda, lime, and magnesia, oxide of iron, sulphate of lime, silica, and alumina, crenic and apocrenic acid. The carbonate of soda is the leading element of this water. It has been examined by Professor Brumby, and has repu- tation in stomach and kidney derangements. These springs are in Clarke County, near Coffeeville. There are other mineral springs in this State reputed to possess medicinal items. 180 THE MOUNTAIN. MISSISSIPPI SPRINGS. IN the Geological Report of Mississippi for 185T, by L. Harper, we are presented with some facts with regard to the mineral springs of that State. First are the springs of the carboniferous formations. These are sulphur and chaly- beate, or waters containing sulphate of iron and sulphuretted hydrogen, and depositing yellow hydrated peroxide of iron. Other springs contain iron, lime, magnesia, alumina, and carbonic acid ; and one is reported in these formations con- taining sulphate of magnesia and iron, with chloride of so- dium. Near Warren's Mill, on Mackey's Creek, is a spring containing sulphate of iron and sulphuretted hydrogen. In Tishamingo, Itawamba, Chickasaw, and Tippah counties, there are springs which contain the salts of iron, lime, mag- nesia, alumina, and soda. "The Eocene formations of this State contain more mine- ral springs than any of the other rocks." At LAUDERDALE there are five or six sulphur and chalybeate springs. They are near the line of the Eocene and Miocene formations. These are copious founts, and, according to Mr. Harper, " create, morning and evening, in the surrounding region, a a sulphuric atmosphere."* Quitman's Red Sulphur is valu- able, containing sulphuretted hydrogen, lime, magnesia, chlorine, and apocrenic acid. Mineral springs are also re- ported in the Miocene of Mississippi. * Harper gives a minute analysis of the Lauderdale Springs. He represents them as containing of volatile ingredients, sulphuretted hydrogen, carbonic acid, oxygen, nitrogen, carburetted hydrogen ; acids, sulphuric, carbonic, silicic, apocrenic, also, chlorine, iodine, bromine, inappreciable (!!!) bases, iron, lime, magnesia, potassa, alu- mina, soda, and ammonia. MISSISSIPPI SPRINGS. 181 In Yallabusha County, near Grenada, a spring is reported containing chlorine, sulphuric acid, iron, sulphate of alu- mina ; used in diseases of the bowels, etc In Winston and Nashoba counties there are chalybeate and sulphuretted hydrogen springs. In Yazoo County, near Yazoo City, there is said to be an "alkaline spring," and one containing sulphate of iron, carbonic acid, chlorine, alumina, lime, mag- nesia, and soda. In La Fayette, Panola, and Calhoun counties, chalybeates are said to exist. In Clarke County, near Chickasawhay River, and also near "Enterprise," there are springs containing sulphate of iron and sulphu- retted hydrogen. " COOPER'S WELL" is twelve miles from Jackson, in Hinds County. " It comes from an Artesian well, in sand rock, one hundred and seven feet deep, and is in a region attrac- tive and salubrious." It is described as a salt iron water, and contains oxygen, nitrogen, and carbonic acid gases, sulphate of lime, magnesia, soda, alumina, and potash, chloride of soda, lime, and magnesia, peroxide of iron, and crenate of lime and silica. Said to be useful as iron water, in abdomi- nal diseases of the chronic type, as chronic diarrhoea, dys- pepsia, renal and hepatic diseases. Dr. Bell notices another spring in Mississippi, which has acquired considerable reputation for medicinal qualities. This is " OCEAN SPRING," in Lynchburg, Jackson County, which contains carbonic acid and sulphuretted hydrogen gases, chlorides of calcium, sodium, and magnesium, protoxide of iron, iodine, organic matter, chloride of potassium a trace, and alumina a trace. Leading elements, chloride of sodium, sulphuretted hydrogen, and iron. " The iron is united with carbonic acid and sulphuretted hydrogen." The medical properties lean to the values of iron and sulphuretted hy- drogen, and may be useful in chronic derangements in which such elements are indicated ; and, on the authority of Dr. Austin, "they have been successful in the cure of dyspepsia, skin diseases, scrofula, and strumous ophthalmia." Accord- 16 182 THE MOUNTAIN. ing to Dr. Austin, "the springs are situated among pine hills, five miles from the town of Biloxi, and half a mile from the east shore of Biloxi Bay," and said, by its special advocates, to be attractive and beautiful. ARKANSAS SPRINGS. THE WASHITAW HOT SPRINGS are in Hot Spring County, fifty miles south of Arkansas River, near Washitaw River. The springs are at the foot of a mountain called Hot Moun- tain. The streams of hot water are numerous and of con- siderable volume. They have a temperature, according to " Schoolcraft," of 200 P. The water will vesicate the sur- face, and boil an egg in a few minutes, and is described as pure and clear. According to Judge Watts, the springs have a tempera- ture of 145 F. As might be inferred, the waters of these springs have much power as a therapeutic agent, adminis- tered both internally and externally. They are used in vapour, hot and warm baths, by cooling down the tempera- ture, and, from well-known laws of the economy, exert their influence as those classes of baths are known to do. They contain salts of lime and magnesia ; but a minute and criti- cal analysis is wanting. The special advocates of these waters as medicinal, re- present them as almost specifics in the cure of " the whole order of chronic diseases," including scrofula, gout, rheuma- tism, also the consequences or sequelae of acute diseases, vicious drugging, and affections of the skin. A few miles from Hot Springs there is an Iron Spring of reputed powers, and also some other springs, said to be of the carbonated class; but the springs of real significance ARKANSAS SPRINGS. 183 are the thermal or hot springs of this curious region. Mr. Featherstonehaugh, the geologist, reports these waters to emerge from a red sandstone formation, which he designates "OLD RED." The numerous springs flow into one stream, which retains its heat for a great distance from the heads of the springs. The waters, through the intelligent notices of Southern physicians and others, have attained great and just celebrity in a large class of diseases, waiving the question of their being "absolute specifics in the whole class of chronic diseases." They belong to the celebrated order of thermal waters of Europe; Carlsbad, Baden-Baden, Wisbaden, and Teplitz, in Bohemia. These have long enjoyed great reputation as bathing waters, also for internal use in a variety of diseases, skin and joint affections, chronic rheumatism, and gout, chronic skin diseases, chronic derangements of the glands, and certain nervous affections. The waters of Washitaw Springs contain an azotized or organic substance. This, as has been already noticed, is common with other hot springs in the United States. The vapor bathing of these springs is highly spoken of by Dr. Bell and others. FLORIDA SPRINGS. THE mineral springs of Florida are spoken of by some writers, but few authentic details given. Near Tampa there is a SULPHUR SPRING, said to be "white sulphur." There is also at the MAGNOLIA SPRINGS, which are said to be sulphureous, a winter retreat for the sick. A few more springs of the same class are mentioned in this region. 184 THE MOUNTAIN. CANADA SPRINGS. HAVING noticed the most prominent mineral springs of a number of the United States, it may be as well to finish here the record, as far as the Eastern side of the continent is concerned, by some account of the springs of Canada, be- longing to that class. In the Report of Sir William E. Logan, Provincial Geo- logist, and his assistant, Sterry Hunt, of the Survey of Ca- nada, (for 1857,) many mineral springs are registered and described. It appears that the great palaeozoic basin of Canada is divided into two secondary basins by an axis ex- tending from Daschambault, on the St. Lawrence, in a di- rection west to Lake Champlain. The eastern part is affected by undulations and different kinds of disturbances, and is the region already noticed as being the site of nearly all the mineral springs of Canada; the western or undis- turbed basin having but few medicated waters. Hunt arranges the waters in two classes, "neutral and alkaline; 11 the first with chlorides of magnesium, calcium, sodium ; and the second, all of these earthy bases in the form of carbon- ates and silicates, the water being alkaline from the pre- sence of carbonate of soda. The few waters of the "upper Silurian are all neutral, as also those from the limestone of lower part of lower silurian; while the alkaline waters characterize the schistose strata which constitute its upper portion." The schists of "Hudson River group 17 are "argillaceous, the analysis showing them to be of Feld- spathic rocks, containing 3 or 400ths of alkalies, which they slowly give up to the decomposing action of infiltrating waters. " In this way the neutral waters of the underlying limestone have their earthy chlorides decomposed, and are converted into alkaline waters, which are still strongly sa- CANADA SPRINGS. 185 line. Another class of alkaline waters, with alkaline car- bonates and silicates, have a small portion of common salt, derived from argillaceous strata, but no connection with limestone. Such are the springs of Ours, of the grand coteau of Chambly, and some of the waters of Nicolet. About this place, six springs issue from the schists of Hudson River group, along same line of disturbance, the whole within dis- tance of three or four leagues. Of these, two are strongly saline and neutral; two others saline, but alkaline; the other two characterized by predominance of alkaline car- bonates ; the last from schists, the former from limestone. There are two strong saline neutral waters in West Ca- nada. One is at "BOWMAN'S MILL," the spring being copious, with temperature of 50, which is perhaps above the mean. The waters are highly saline, very bitter, almost acrid when concentrated, depositing by boiling, carbonates of lime and magnesia, a little strontia, traces of iron, bro- mine, and iodine. Analysis of 1000 parts of this water: Chloride of sodium, 18-9158 Chloride of calcium, IT '5315 Chloride of magnesium, 9-5437 Bromide of sodium, '2482 Iodine, -0008 Carbonate of lime, -0411 Carbonate of magnesia, -0221 Salts of strontia, potash, and iron, traces, 46-3038 The spring at Whitley 's issues from Trenton limestone, (No. 2) in the Township of Hallo well. There are two salt wells on the land of Amos Hubbs, with chlorides, bromine, and iodine. At St. Genevieve, on Bastican River, there are several springs issuing from the lower limestone, strongly saline and neutral ; there being two quantitative analyses, the first on the land of Olivier Trudel, of Riviere Yeillethe. The 16* 186 THE MOUNTAIN. spring has abundance of water, with bubbles of sulphuretted hydrogen; also, strongly saline, containing quantities of earthy chlorides and carbonates, but no sulphates; 1000 parts of this water contain, Chloride of sodium, Chloride of potassium, Chloride of calcium, Chloride of magnesium, Bromide of sodium, Iodide of sodium, Carbonate of lime, Carbonate of magnesia, 20-9981 At the ferry, opposite the church of St. Genevieve, is a spring containing carburetted hydrogen, also, with largest amounts of iodides of any waters in the Province ; 1000 parts of this water contain, Chloride of sodium, Chloride of calcium, Chloride of magnesium, Bromide of sodium, Iodide of sodium, Carbonate of lime, Carbonate of magnesia, 13-1400 All these waters contain small portions of oxide of iron, silica, and alumina. "Any water with excess of hydro- chloric acid, gives precipitates of alumina, with oxide of iron, and phosphoric acid." Berthier, in Parish of Berthier, (Leinster,) is a copious saline spring, with bubbles of inflammable gas; waters neu- tral, with small portion of earthy chlorides ; bromine, (con- CANADA SPRINGS. 187 siderable,) iodine, not so much. Near this is a slightly chalybeate spring, which can scarcely be called a mineral water. In RAWDON TOWNSHIP there are two springs, both of which are alkaline, and the first a water containing earthy and alkaline carbonates, with alkaline chlorides, and small portions of sulphates, borates, and a trace of bromine, but no iodine. The second spring is strongly saline, and dis- tinctly alkaline to the taste. Plantagenet new saline springs, neutral, strongly saline, carbonates small, earthy chlorides strong, also iodine and bromine. In JOLY TOWNSHIP there is an interesting spring on the banks of the Pouisseau Magnea, giving three or four gallons a minute of water, with sulphur taste and smell, depositing a " white matter," and exhibiting the " purple vegetation generally met with in sulphur waters." Temperature, 46 F. ; air, 52 ; also strongly saline ; when concentrated, very alka- line and salt to the taste. Analysis of 1000 parts of this water give, Chloride of sodium, 0*3818 Chloride of potassium, '0067 Sulphate of soda, -0215 Carbonate and borate of soda, *2301 Carbonate of lime, *0620 Carbonate of magnesia, 025T Silica and alumina, traces, 0-1523 It contains, also, boracic acid, and sulphuretted hydrogen. Mineral springs are rare, as observed, in the undisturbed portion of the western basin of Canada. There are some springs of local reputation in the Township of Scarborough. They contain only a little sulphate of lime and traces of chlorides. In Toronto is also a well of similar composition ; also a 188 THE MOUNTAIN. spring at Spadina, remarkable for the quantity of lime de- posited. There is also a spring in the village of Brompton " regarded as mineral, with smoky taste ; the waters of which become putrid and sulphureous in closed bottles. " Another at Brompton contains a small quantity of chlo- ride and sulphate of lime, magnesia, and alkalies. Perhaps none of these springs rise from the "Lower Silurian," but "owe their mineral contents to clays and muds, covering the palaeozoic rocks." There are also a number more springs enumerated by Dr. Bell and others, in Canada, with analyses proximate and otherwise. The following are the most conspicuous and important noticed by writers on the subject. TUSCARORA ACID SPRINGS. These springs are in the Township of Tuscarora, twenty miles south of Pass Dover. They contain, according to Mr. Hunt, the sulphates of iron, lime, magnesia, alumina, and a large amount of free sul- phuric acid. It is asserted by geologists that " this spring is in the same geological relationship in which the same cha- racter of springs in New York are found." It has also the smell and taste of sulphuretted hydrogen, with an extremely acid and styptic taste. There are several smaller basins in the neighborhood with the same character of waters. They all contain sulphates of potash, soda, lime, magnesia, iron, and alumina, and sul- phuric acid in quantities. A few miles south of Port Dover, on Lake Erie, is CHAR- LOTTEVILLE SULPHUR SPRING. Temperature, 45 Fahr. The water is clear, with a sulphureous taste and a strong sulphur odor, and contains sulphates of soda, potash, lime, and magnesia, chlorides of magnesium, carbonate of lime, magnesia, and iron, sulphuretted hydrogen, and carbonic acid. The sulphuretted hydrogen is in the quantity of 26 '8 cubic inches to the gallon. (Hunt.) ANCASTER SPRING is near the village of Ancaster. It is a salt spring, with a temperature of 48 Fahr., the water containing chloride of sodium, chloride of potassium, chlo- CANADA SPRINGS. 189 rides of magnesium and calcium, bromide of magnesia, and sulphate of lime. The leading elements are chlorides of sodium, magnesium, and calcium. (Hunt.) The CALEDONIA SPRINGS are about forty miles from Mon- treal, near the Ottowa River. There are four founts, three known as Saline Spring, Gas Spring, and White Sulphur Spring. GAS SPRING has a temperature of 44 F., and is highly charged with carburetted hydrogen, also containing chlo- rides of sodium and potash, sulphates of potash, bromide of sodium, iodide of sodium, (??) carbonates of soda, lime, magnesia, iron, and manganese, with alumina, silica, and carbonic acid. This extensive catalogue of ingredients em- braces half the pharmacopoeia, and, like some of the more ancient formulae or medical prescriptions, contains a small touch of everything. A SAFE WATER under all circum- stances, as a widely scattering shot will certainly hit some- thing. This is Gas Spring, (certainly gaseous ! !) SALINE SPRING is said to be similar to the one last de- scribed in chemical composition ; temperature being 45 F. Differs from last in quantity of free carbonic acid, otherwise qualitative analysis same as above. SULPHUR SPRING. This spring is in the immediate vicinity of the last, and contains a smaller quantity of sulphur, " a trace of sulphur rather than a quantitative return." It also contains carbonates of soda and magnesia, with traces of iron, iodine, and silica. The leading element is the soda, the water being described as "strongly alkaline." There is an intermitting spring a few miles from the others mentioned. The water contains chlorine, bromine, and iodine, with po- tassium, sodium, calcium, and magnesium, some of these ex- isting as chlorides, with traces of iron and alumina. At ST. CATHARINES, Canada West, there is an Artesian well of most miraculous composition and consequent power. The water has more solid contents than fluid, and is mani- festly an extraordinary product of Nature. Its " table of 190 THE MOUNTAIN. forces is a little stronger than any four horses," and is bountifully brought out by the highly critical, scientific, and veracious author of Robinson Crusoe, endorsed by three Mud Angels. It is bottled, and can be had in places for sale, Said to contain chlorides of sodium, magnesium, calcium, protochloride of iron, sulphate of lime, carbonate of lime and magnesia, bromide and iodide of magnesia, silica and alumina; solid contents in 16 ounces of water, 10 J ounces of salts : chloride of calcium being present. For medical properties, see Paracelsus, on the virtue of chicken fat, and Bulgarius, on the final cause of the creation of soft soap. Seventeen miles from Montreal, on the St. Lawrence, are the VERENNES SPRINGS. " There are two springs, saline and gas, near together, both containing chloride, iodide, and bro- mide of soda, carbonates of soda, baryta, strontia, lime, mag- nesia, andiron." The Gas Spring evolves carburetted hy- hydrogen, with temperature of the water, 46 to 47 Fahr. CAXTON SPRING is in Caxton Township, on the Yanna- chicke River, near the same named village. It is a saline chalybeate water, with large quantities of carburetted hydro- gen gas escaping. ST. LEON SPRING is a salt iron spring also, with large quan- tities of carburetted hydrogen gas escaping from the water. SPRINGS OF THE INTERIOR. 191 MINERAL SPRINGS OF THE INTERIOR AND WESTERN SIDE OF THE CONTINENT OF NORTH AMERICA. THE vast region stretching from the Mississippi channel to the Pacific Ocean, from the reports of travelers, pos- sesses a large number of springs, mineral and thermal. These are of an extensive variety and interesting character, but the information with regard to them is meagre, there being but few analyses of contents, and the accounts of ex- plorers, who were intent upon other purposes, are necessa- rily vague and unspecified. The more recent Reports of the Pacific Ocean Railroad parties have given much additional information with regard to the geography, geology, and climatology of this part of the continent; but few of the mineral springs have attracted much attention, or been the subject of careful chemical tests or quantitative analyses. Enough, however, has been re- ported to stimulate inquiry, and warrant the conviction that we have as yet scarcely an intimation of the real extent of our resources in this department. For full details in this interesting field, see the valuable Reports of Fremont, Stans- bury, Gunnison, and others, which have been published for some time ; also, the splendidly-illustrated Reports of the Pacific Railroad Routes, which have recently been given to the world. On the Southern line, or the Pimas villages, Gila, and Rio Grande Route, near the thirty-second parallel of north latitude, Lieutenant Parke has reported mineral springs. On Buenaventura River there is a spring which deposits a large quantity of sulphur. It gave a temperature of 64 F., the air being 55 F. "Along with the spring is an over- 192 THE MOUNTAIN. flow of bitumen, covering the soil twenty feet around with a depth of two feet." " COOK'S SPRING, at foot of Picacho, is a pool of sulphur water forty feet wide." Aqua Caliente is a spring of remarkably warm water, its temperature being 130 F. The water is full of carbonic acid gas bubbles, and flows from the spring in a large body, depositing quantities of lime. According to Parke, "were it situated within the limits of civilization, it might be made invaluable for medical and economical uses." "The water at Vallicitas is hard and sulphureous." Other waters in this region are noticed, which contain mineral substances, as in the valley of Mimbres River, and neighborhood of San Diego and Fort Yuma. NEBRASKA AND OREGON SPRINGS. 193 NEBRASKA AND OREGON SPRINGS. NEAR Fort Laramie there is a thermal spring, described by Fremont and Stansbury. Its temperature is 14 F., but nothing is said of the mineral contents of its water. The spring is between the north fork of the Platte and Laramie rivers, in Nebraska Territory. Not far from the Oregon line of Nebraska, in Sweetwater River valley, there are ponds of saline water. This is the region of salt plains, the waters being highly charged with carbonate of soda, sulphate of soda, and chloride of sodium. SODA, or BEER SPRINGS, are in the northern part of Ore- gon Territory, on Bear River. The region is full of saline springs, Bear River finally discharging itself into Great Salt Lake. The temperature of the water is from 56 to 6*7 F. They are in 42 40' north latitude, 111 46' west longitude. According to Fremont, they contain sulphate of magnesia and lime, carbonate of magnesia and lime, chloride of sodium, lime and magnesia, with vegetable extractive matter. The leading chemical substance is sulphate of magnesia ; it also contains carbonic acid in large quantities. There is a large number of springs here of this character, and the region is described by Fremont as containing many curious and peculiar features, and the different springs show some strange forms and remarkable characters. Near the Beer Spring is Steamboat Spring. " This is a jet of water thrown from the surface, accompanied by a sub- terranean noise." The water is thermal, having a tempera- ture of 81 F. The "taste is pungent, disagreeable, and metallic, leaving a burning effect on the tongue." It contains carbonate of lime and magnesia, with oxide of iron, silica, and alumina. The rocks are not critically described by Fremont, who 194 THE MOUNTAIN. speaks in general terms of a "carbonate of lime and oxide of iron ; compact rocks of a dark-blue color, and strata of heavy, hard, micaceous basalt, having a bright metallic lustre when broken." The springs are represented by him as very numerous, and of a diversified character, but, as a general thing, thermal and saline. In the recent Reports of Railroad Surveys, there is a thermal spring spoken of in Des Chutes Yalley, Oregon Territory. The spring is said to "give a peculiar character to the region around for some miles in extent." The tem- perature of the water is 145 P. ; and the basin into which it flows is represented as "being filled with floating jelly- like masses of silica." At Pike's Peak are located the carbonated or boiling springs, which are 6350 feet above the level of the sea, in latitude 38 25', longitude 105 22' west. The springs here are large and beautiful, boiling and bubbling with the quantity of gas contained. They are acidulous and much impregnated ; have a temperature of 54 "3 P. ; others 57 P. ; and contain carbonate of lime and magnesia, sulphate of lime, chloride of calcium and magnesium, silica, and vege- table matter. Carbonate of lime is the leading element of the mineral substances. SALT LAKE REGION SPRINGS. 195 SALT LAKE REGION SPRINGS. UTAH, in its history, as far as science has yet recorded its wonders in the domain of nature, or common fame reported its political and spiritual phases of development, (only calcu- lable by the philosophy of the extreme ancients,) is to the illuminated side of the continent a region of perpetual fable. It would seem, in its geological relationship, from the heat of its rocks and waters, not far from the region of original fire ; still closer, in the estimation of the Christian world, to the region of original sin, from the ardency of its social code, and the anomalously distracted religion and morality which prevails in the only effort which this progressive American has as yet made to reclaim these wonderful deserts, humanize the wilderness, and assert the presence of man on a spot of the earth's surface apparently, from physical limitations and spiritual perversions, accursed of the living God. It is thus that the yarn of the tourist through this peculiar region, in the report of its natural history, seems Munchausen, roman- tic, and impossible ; while the historian of the present ver- sion of the social contract, or organization of society pa- triarchal, at that point of the globe, is as inconceivable and fanciful in his narrative as the story of the fictitious common- wealth of the "NEW ATLANTIS," or the wonders of the "ClTY OF THE SUN." It is to be regretted that a more critical exploration of the geology of this wonderful region has not been made. The precise substratum or rock-structure of the valleys, mountains, and deserts of the territory of Utah, has not been made the subject of scientific dissection. It is thus that the origin of the calorification and mineralization of the innumerable springs of this region, charged with all the salts of the pharmacopeia, is the subject of distant and sha- 196 THE MOUNTAIN. dowy speculation. A few meagre and fragmentary sections of its rocks, vaguely and unsatisfactorily described, a few specimens without intelligible association, with the general statement that the region is primitive and volcanic, is all that has been reached in the investigation of the mineral compo- sition of this part of the continent. Thus it is stated that the Hot Springs, near Bear River, issue from between " dif- ferent strata of conglomerate and limestone," which exceed- ingly precise description leaves the geologist free sea-room to imagine the origin of their heat and mineral contents ; again, "they gush out together beneath a conglomerate con- sisting principally of fragments of grayish-blue limestone, efflorescing a salt upon the surface, the rocks in the bed be- ing colored with a red deposit." Again, "the strata are here contorted, and in some places nearly perpendicular, whilst not far away there are piles of scoriaceous basalt." The philosophy of the predominance of volcanisms and other isms in this department is left in the interesting limbo of theory. One astonishing fact which stares out upon every traveler is, that here is a region in which there pre- vails a multitudinous class of the waters of the earth in a most extraordinary state of thermal and mineral combina- tion almost without a parallel on any other part of its surface. In the vicinity of Salt Lake City there are a number of thermal springs. WARM SULPHUR SPRING, near the city, contains sulphu- retted hydrogen, chloride of calcium, sulphate of soda, chlo- ride of sodium, carbonates of lime and magnesia. It is used by the inhabitants of Deseret, and reputed by them to pos- sess remarkable properties, almost the power of the restora- tion of perpetual youth. " They make a boast of their good health, and attribute it to bathing in those springs ; many that I saw declaring that they came to the Valley perfect cripples, and were restored to their health and agility by frequenting them. " One of the wonderful thermal springs of the valley is a SALT LAKE REGION SPRINGS. 197 white sulphur water of the temperature of 102 Fahr., with a volume " the thickness of a man's body, which has already been brought into the town for the purpose of bathing, and all have learned the habit of indulging in it." HOT SPRINGS, also in the neighborhood, have a very high temperature. Their water contains chlorides of sodium, mag- nesium, and calcium, sulphate and carbonate of lime, and have a temperature of 128 Fahr. The WARM FOUNTAINS are very numerous, and situated near the Lake. They contain chloride of sodium in excess, also sulphates of lime and magnesia ; and, according to Lieutenant G-unnison, "they deposit gypsum and other sul- phates, the waters being of a delightful temperature for bathing." Some miles north of Salt Lake City are the HOT IRON SPRINGS. They are called RED SPRINGS, from the iron which they deposit. There are a number of these springs at one place, some with a temperature of 136 Fahr. The chemi- cal contents of the waters are iron, lime, magnesia, sodium, and alumina. The predominating ingredients are peroxide of iron and carbonate of lime. At the northern end of the lake are a number of salt and sulphur springs, which are also strongly impregnated. The BEAR RIVER HOT SPRINGS, described by Gunnison, are near the river of that name. One of the springs is a salt spring ; the other a hot sulphur spring. The spring that contains salt is a strong solution, and deposits it upon the surface. The temperature of these springs is 134 Fahr., and, according to Fremont, they are in latitude 41 42' ; longitude 112 W. Salt springs are numerous around the northern end of this lake. WARM SALINE SPRINGS are described by Stansbury as possessing a temperature of 14 to 84 Fahr. " They break out of the mountain at the northern end of the Lake." The western shore of Salt Lake presents numerous springs of salt and sulphureous waters, together with springs of fresh pure water. 17* 198 THE MOUNTAIN. SPRING VALLEY derives its name from its abundance of springs, which are mostly thermal or saline ; many of them being a saturated solution of common salt, and having a temperature of 10 to 80 Fahr. Near the mouth of the river Jordan are the Warm Springs of Lake Utah. The water of the Great Salt Lake, according to Fremont, is a " saturated solution of common salt. " The water is perfectly limpid, and has a specific gravity of 1*110. It contains, besides chloride of sodium, sul- phate of soda, chloride of magnesium, and chloride of cal- cium. Northwest of BEER SPRING, and 230 miles from Fort Hall, there are a number of hot springs. They emerge from the rocks with considerable force, and have a temperature of 164 Fahr. They contain chloride of sodium, sulphates of soda and lime, magnesia, and oxide of iron. The rocks of the neighborhood seem to be volcanic. They are near lati- tude 42 10' N., and longitude 115 10' W. Northwest of Hot Springs, 120 miles, in latitude 44 11' N., and longitude 111 W., are the HOT SPRINGS OP MAL- HEUR RIVER. Their temperature is 193 Fahr. They are 1880 feet above the level of the sea, and are strongly charged with common salt. West of Malheur River, 200 miles, are the HOT AND WARM SPRINGS OF FALL RIVER. They are in latitude 44 40' N., and 121 5' W. Some of these springs are 89 F., others being 134 F. The region here, according to Fre- mont, exhibits " striking features of volcanic character." " The HOT SPRINGS OP PYRAMID LAKE," says Fremont, "are the most remarkable of all the western mountain region. The water boils up from some of these springs like immense caldrons, sometimes with smoke or gas escaping. The water is clear, and has a temperature of 208 Fahr. It is strongly impregnated with common salt." According to Dr. Bell, the temperature of some of these springs have scarcely a parallel in the world. They resemble, to a certain extent, the Great Geyser, the Stokkr, and Spouting Springs SALT LAKE REGION SPRINGS. 199 of Reikum, Reikeiavik, and the hot springs of Azores, New Zealand, and Fejee Islands, both in temperature and chemi- cal contents." These springs are near the western limits of Utah. Pyramid Lake is but a short distance from these boiling springs. CALIFORNIA SPRINGS. THE HOT SPRINGS OF SHASTY'S PEAK are in Tipper Cali- fornia, west of the foot of Shasty's Peak. The water is hot enough to boil an egg. The peak is 14,000 feet high, and the whole region volcanic, the peak itself being considered as an extinct volcano. The spring is at the foot of the peak, and boils up among the rocks to the height of two or three feet. Near this peak there is also an acid iron spring, containing a large quantity of carbonic acid and iron, having an agreeable acidulous taste, mixed with the taste of iron. In the desert of the Colorado, in Southern California, there are springs described by Dr. Bell, who quotes Dr. Le Conte, as VOLCANIC SPRINGS. " They are in a muddy plain, border- ing on a salt lake." Near this lake there are numerous hills, described as " volcanic mounds, composed of lava and pumice, with a number of circular caldrons containing boiling mud, exhaling vapor as steam, sulphur, and sal ammoniac, and throwing up jets of salt water. Some of them are surrounded by stalagmites and concretions of re- markable shape." " Near Vallecitas there are mounds of cinder and pumice, evidently volcanic. Near Fort Yama there are spouting springs. The region here has suffered from earthquake action." Near Warner's Rancheria, on the mountain west of a desert on the Colorado, in Southern California, there is a 200 THE MOUNTAIN. salt sulphur spring, with a temperature of 137 Fahr., which issues from a granite rock. Of the chemical compo- sition and character generally not much has been said or known. There are a number of mineral and thermal springs in New Mexico. Thermal and sulphureous waters are found near the river Del Norte, some miles from Santa Fe. MERE catalogues are, of course, always intolerable, and "dry details," even on mineral springs and waters in general, have just been abundantly demonstrated to be among the things possible. After the precipitant recitation of the water distribution of a portion of North America just attempted, will not the beholder, in a quiet retrospection of the field, be struck by a few obvious convictions, and among them will not these be prominent ? If water is a good thing, if it be one of the few primeval indispensables, if it has played an important part in the past experiences of the planet, and is to play a still more significant agency in the great future mundane programme of the drama of time and space, have not the sister continents been bountifully cared for, divinely apportioned ? What means this intense and immense com- munion of the land and the sea, this prodigious transporta- tion of water on the wings of the wind, these rivers of air which are rivers of water, those mighty Mississippis and Amazons pouring back the deposits of aerial currents into the great ocean reservoir from which they came ? A signifi- cant fact this 40-inch precipitation over so much of the ex- posed side of a world, so much of the earth's surface thus made alive by springs of water of every order, those won- derful basins of wonderful rivers, what means this array of "water, water everywhere"? Other divisions of the globe have one of the great original elements in excess, as, too THE MOUNTAIN. 201 much fire in burning deserts, too much air, monsoons, si- roccos, and tornadoes, too much earth in vast spaces of dead stone, the rugged bones of the world projecting, or too much water in paludal spaces unreclaimed. But on these wonderful Americas see the harmonious play of those great old creatures, earth, air, fire, and water ! By a closer inspec- tion, see also the list of medicated waters, fountains of healing forces, the earth, the water, and the air in strange commu- nion again.* Is this another cosmical contract on the ques- tion of health and soundness ? Quantity the Infinite cared not for, but quality, quality 1 ! must play a more refined and delicate part in the onward progression, ultimation, and per- fection of the world. Matter was great, but spirit was greater; organic life was great, but CONSCIOUS LIFE WAS GREATER. This HIGHER LIFE, then, seems the end for which the lower life exists, and health of body and soul, which is the harmonious marriage of the higher and the lower, is the condition of true ecstasy, the gorgeous beatitude, the abso- lute perfection, that which was originally pronounced by God himself to be the "all good, the all fair." For this triumphant attitude of health, for this strange normality, this miraculous equipoise, magazines of forces, reservoirs of power, were required ; and hence the play of waters mineral, thermal, and pure, forms an integral part of the machinery of the life of all things. Without, within organic bo- * It must be acknowledged and regretted that the medical pro- fession at large has given but little attention to the subject of mineral springs. Very few physicians know where to send their patients, or have detailed information sufficient to fill the indications of their cases in the momentous points of climate and water ; and especially what instructions to give them when the last prescription, in getting clear of troublesome cases, is made, "Go to the springs." Dr. Bell's valu- able little work, so often quoted, and from which so much important information has been derived in this synopsis, fills a need long felt by the profession. It is to be hoped that the work on the "Mineral Springs of the World," promised by this faithful laborer in the litera- ture and science of medicine, will soon appear, and be fully appre- ciated, at least by his professional brethren. 202 THE MOUNTAIN. dies, life plays beneath the surface or " moves upon the face of the waters." Hence the medicine of springs. The Americas have an immeasurable supply of all waters. * Great hint of Nature ; the laws of the physical world point out a fate for man commensurate with the force of water on earth. All that waters (steam, it must not be forgotten, is a union of the two old friends, fire and water) can do, is to be done for humanity on this theatre, and hence the true significance of the great water arrangements of the Americas to mankind. Ittifi f'Dfriloi WO;\L i: *{aiij jij;;i ! ! vjii;-;;,) .v: '.;,- * One might readily think, from observation of his habits, that the Yankee animal had failed to discover the meaning of the water arrangement, amidst which he lives, and had arrived at the conclu- sion that whisky was the greatest element of the world; and that if rum is not the true medium of his existence, his body is the true medium of rum, and hence, that the vast supplies of water prepared for him are an intimation pointing to the conclusion that corre- sponding quantities of rum {fire?} should thereby be quenched, to preserve the delicate state of parboiledness which he has come to re- gard as the proper condition, or true earthly blessedness. FLOKA; OB, VEGETABLE LIFE OF THE MOUNTAIN. "MANY such there are, Fair Ferns and Flowers, and chiefly that tall Fern So stately, of the Queen Osmunda named ; Plant lovelier in its own retired abode On Grasmere's beach, than Naiad by the side Of Grecian brook, or Lady of the Mere Sole sitting by the shores of Old Romance." WORDSWOBTH. : WHO hath the virtue to express the rare And curious virtues both of herbs and stones ? Is there an herb for that ? Oh that thy care Would show a root that gives expressions ! ( And if an herb hath power, what have the stars ? A rose, besides his beauty, is a cure. Doubtless our plagues and plenty, peace and wars, Are there much surer than our art is sure." ' Herbs gladly cure our flesh, because that they Find their acquaintance there." HERBERT. 204 THE plant may be characterized as organic water which is polar- ized upon two sides, towards the earth and the air. The vegetable vesicle must, therefore, maintain two poles. While it would re- present in itself the magnetic pole, it endeavors to identify itself, to obey gravity, and merge into the darkness toward the mediate point of the earth ; but that it may remain a galvanic pole it becomes ex- cited by the air, strives to become a Diiferent and to attain the light. Animals are entire heavenly bodies, satellites or moons, which cir- culate independently about the earth ; all plants, on the contrary, taken together, are only equivalent to one heavenly body. An ani- mal is an infinity of plants. PHYSIOPHILOSOPHY. 18 205 " As sunbeams stream through liberal space, And nothing jostle or displace, So waved the pine-tree through my thought, And fanned the dreams it never brought. " Who leaves the pine-tree, leaves his friend, Unnerves Ms strength, invites his end. ' ' Whether is better the gift or the donor ? Come to me, Quoth the pine-tree, I am the giver of honor : He is great who can live by me. The rough and bearded forester Is better than the lord ; God fills the scrip and canister, Sin piles the loaded board. " Whoso walketh in solitude, And inhabiteth the wood, Choosing light, wave, rock, and bird, Before the money-loving herd, Into that forester shall pass, From these companions, power and grace. Clean shall he be, without, within, From the old adhering sin." EMERSON. 206 CHAPTER IV. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN, To the Naturalist the tree stands the kingly record of the triumph of the vegetable life-principle. A transcen- dental cell, even the imagination can scarcely conceive that from the simplest vital monad such form of loveliness and majesty could ever arrive. The stately palm in solitary beauty, the gigantic sequoia and lofty pine spiring to the realms of the clouds, the sturdy "everlasting oak" and imperial magnolia, the banyan-fig- tree and mangrove, must acknowledge brotherhood with the humble lichen on their trunks, or the fragile parasite on their leaves, under the overshadowing unity and tyranny of the law of " organic vesicles." It is thus that the primordial formula of the tree appears to the eye of science, under the profane microscope, the ruthless knife, and that despotic law. But there are " Trees of Jehovah and Cedars of Lebanon," (Ps. civ. 16,) signifying the spiritual man. (A. C., Tt6.) " Tree also signifies man ; and as man is man by virtue of affection which is of the will, and perception which is of the understanding, therefore these also are signified by tree. There is also a correspondence between man and a tree ; wherefore, in heaven there appear paradises of trees, which correspond to the affections and consequent perceptions of the angels ; and in some places in hell there are also forests of trees, which bear evil fruits, correspondent with the con- 207 208 THE MOUNTAIN. cupiscences and consequent thoughts of those who are there." (A.K.,400.)* " The tree is man ; the effort to produce means is with man, from his will in his understanding ; the stem or stalk, with its branches and leaves, are in man its means, and are called the truths of faith ; the fruits, which are the ultimate effects of the effort in a tree to fructify, are in a man uses ; in these his will exists. (F. 16.) Man, who is re-born, in like manner as a tree, begins from seed ; wherefore, by seed in the Word, is signified the truth which is from good ; also, in like manner as a tree, he produces leaves, next blossoms, and finally fruit, for he produces such things as are of in- telligence, which also in the Word are signified by leaves ; next such things as are of wisdom, which are signified by blossoms; and finally, such things as are of life, namely, the goods of love and charity in act, which, in the Word, are signified by fruits. Such is the representative similitude between the fruit-bearing tree and the man who is regene- rated, insomuch that from a tree may be learned how the case is with regeneration, if so be, anything be pre- viously known concerning spiritual good and truth." (A. C., 5115.) " The tree of life signifies perception from the Lord, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil, perception from the world. (Ap. Ex., 739.) Trees of Eden (Ezek. xxxi.) signify scientifics, and knowledges collected from the Word profaned by reasonings." (A. C., 130.) "And the Tree of Knowledge signifies the pride of one's own intelligence." (D. P., 328.) The culmination of a vast vital series, the imperial or- ganism of that wondrous chain between death and life, between the organic and inorganic worlds, "man and no- thingness," profoundly significant as an emblem of expres- sion or symbol of utterance between the Finite and Infinite, for the tree also is a type of man, and there is a "corre- * Swedenborg. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 209 spondence between man and the tree ;" thus an indispensable element in that shining web of uses which is the universe, the mystical and scientific representations of the tree seem to be numberless. "All life is figured as a tree. Igdrasil, the Ash-tree of Existence, has its roots deep down in the kingdoms of Hela or Death ; its trunk reaches up heaven-high, spreads its branches over the whole Universe: it is the Tree of Ex- istence. At the foot of it, in the Death-Kingdom, sit three nornas, Fates, the Past, Present, and Future, watering its roots from the sacred Well. Its boughs, with their buddings and disleafings events, things suffered, things done, catas- trophes stretch through all lands and times. Is not every leaf of it a biography, every fibre there an act or word ? Its boughs are Histories of Nations. The rustle of it is the noise of Human Existence, onward as from of old. It grows there, the breath of human passion rustling through it; or storm-tossed, the storm-wind howling through it like the voice of all the gods. It is Igdrasil, the Tree of Existence. It is the Past, the Present, and the Future ; what was done, what is doing, what will be done ; the in- finite conjugation of the verb to do. Considering how hu- man things circulate, each inextricably in communion with all, how the word I speak to you to-day is borrowed, not from Ulfila the Maesogoth only, but from all men since the first man began to speak, I find no similitude so true as this of a Tree. Beautiful ; altogether beautiful and great. The Machine of the Universe; Alas ! ! do but think of that in contrast ! ! "* "The incorruptible being is likened unto the tree Az- wattha, whose root is ABOVE and whose branches are BELOW, and whose leaves are the veds. He who knoweth that, is acquainted with the veds. Its branches growing from the three Goon or qualities, whose lesser shoots are the objects of the organs of sense, spread forth some high and some * "Heroes in History;" Thomas Carlyle. IS* 210 THE MOUNTAIN. low. The roots which are spread abroad below, in the re- gions of mankind, are restrained by action. Its form is not to be found here, neither its beginning, nor its end, nor its likeness. When a man hath cut down this Azwattha, whose root is so firmly fixed, with the strong axe of disinterest, from that time that place is to be sought from whence there is no return for those who find it ; and I make manifest that first Pooroosh from whom is produced the ancient progression of all things."* Does not the oracular tree whisper to each ear the answer to the prayer it wants to hear ? To the shepherd boy in the raptures of love, love only, as when the "Milk-white thorn that scents the evening gale," breathes out for him his "tender tale ;" to the poet, dreaming, it speaks of beauty and ecstasy, a wave of that sea of glittering globules which plays forever before his soul, "a flash of light in the infinite and eternal night;" to the savant, armed with microscope, it gives an invitation, beckoning forward to explore and con- template forever ; and to the pious devotee, in the fervors of devotion, is it not a " stream of consecrated glory, which heaven ardent opens, and lets down on man in audience with the Deity "? It is thus that the Hebrew prophet's far-reaching adum- brations attain to final organic utterance in the transcendent soul of the Swedish seer through the spiritual interpretation of the Word ; and thus, also, that the Myths, of Scandina- vian Scalds, find soil for their roots in Scottish heads, and " Heimskringlas" and "Heroes in History" unite in the infinite beauty and significance of the tree. So, in far-off symbolisms and correspondences, in vague and shadowy but living and suggestive thoughts, does the tree stretch forth its roots, trunk, branches and leaves, flowers and fruit, into that more spiritual and ethereal world the consciousness of man. From ancient bibles and vedas, in inspirations of Hebrew and Hindoo bards, from mysterious Druidical sha- * Of Poorooshottama. B. V., page 111. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 211 dows, and the first mutterings of poetry and song, steals out the mysterious life-thought, as "Tree of Knowledge," "Tree of Jehovah," "Tree of Life," the essential celestial "and, in a supreme sense, the Lord himself," "Tree of Exist- ence," wonderful Igdrasil ! ! and the still more mystical and divine Tree Azwattha, Symbol of the "Incorruptible Be- ing." Even to the first opening intelligence of barbarous and semi-barbarous tribes, there was discovered that "occult relation between man and the vegetable," as from his earli- est history a reverence for trees and forests was a marked characteristic. The primitive home of the uncivilized man, they gave the first sense of protection and comfort ; the first temples of the gods, groves overwhelmed him with awe, and impressed upon him veneration for the supernals. " Who haunts the lonely coverts of the grove : To these, and these of all mankind alone, The gods are sure reveal'd, or sure unknown."* Old in story are the woods of the Druids ; old are the fables of Pan, and trees sacred to the deities of the forests ; and ancient are the groves of Silvanus and Dodona. The love of woods, then, comes as a revelation of the profoundest instincts of the soul ; for by no accident could appear this constant fidelity, this inevitable worship. The retreat of the SAVAGE, the home of the POET, the temple of the PRIEST, the ancient faith and primeval worship of NATURE, was a phasis of man's development stretching down to necessary and immortal affinities, rooted in inevit- able placental relationships, sacred as bonds of a divine maternity, and is still inseparable from the duration of his normal life, as air from his lung or blood from his heart. The forest must continue to be the heaven of ecstasy for contemplation and worship, and the haven of rest for the * Howe. 212 THE MOUNTAIN. wounded and wearied from the dusty roads and burning fields of the world ; and while the sacred retreat of the de- votee of religion and beauty, they invite the sick and suffer- ing in body and soul, the lacerated and riven in spirit and heart, to wander in their life-renewing shades. Why were the temples of ^Esculapius built in groves and on mountains outside of towns and cities ? A profound wisdom looms forth from the institutions and rites of the ancients, and dear perpetually to the gods is the soundness of the bodies and souls of mortals ; the classical dream of JEsculapius and his daughter Hygeia shining as the prophecy of the light of true science dawning and to beam forever. Leaving the poetry, symbolism, and far-off spiritual sig- nificance of the tree, turn to the tree itself. Botanists have distributed the trees that grow on the surface of the planet into a series of belts or zones ; as " certain climatal conditions are requisite for the growth of trees, there exist certain portions of the earth's surface destitute of woods, chiefly on account of cold. The tree-limit illustrates this.* At the north this limit is sometimes 71 north latitude, and in the " southern hemisphere it extends as far as the conti- nents, "f These zones are named, commencing at the north, 1st, The zone of conifers ; 2d, The zone of amentaceous or catkin-bearing trees ; 3d, The zone of multiform woods ; and 4th, The zone of the rigid-leaved woods. J These belts are again designated, by others, the zone of conifers, the zone of deciduous, and the zone of evergreen woods. By examining this highly interesting and attractive sub- ject, it will be discovered that with the geographic distribu- tion of plants is connected the whole destiny and progress of the human being, and if " necessity is (not) the mother of the world," she establishes eternal limitations to all things, and is at least that dread power that fixes the fates of men. * Schouw. f Idem. { Idem. % Schleidcn. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 213 Within the Tropics or Zone of Multiform Trees a bound- less exuberance of vegetative force, with endless diversity of structure, prevails. Rich and varied in color of inflorescence and foliage, the forests of the equatorial regions are masses of life and light. The closely-packed trunks of an extensive variety of eccentric and beautifully-formed trees are chained into continuities of woods by interwoven masses, or net- works of vines, which knot and rope the whole together, while their bodies, branches, and leaves are alive with parasitic plants clinging to their surfaces, or trailing in pendant festoons from stem to stem. From the disposi- tion of the leaves, and whole style and character of the foliage, a ghastly light permeates every recess of these forests, which are also filled with a corresponding multitude of animal forms, revelling in the heat and glare which con- stitute the horrors of the woods of the tropics. With this light and splendor, this flaunting array of fantastic figures and brilliant coloring, the forests of the temperate zone pre- sent a most entire and perfect contrast. Leaving the bril- liant but noxious display of the vegetation of the torrid spaces, the change to the cool recesses of the mixed woods of the temperate climates is one of the most striking phe- nomena of Nature. These forests are composed principally of deciduous trees, as the oak, beech, chestnut, maple, etc., with smaller trees mixed, and sometimes with different species of the coniferas. They have frequently a bush-underwood or heath-growth beneath the larger trees, which is composed of a number of interesting plants, but presents nothing like the labyrinth of vines and smaller shrubs that fill the inter- spaces of the forests of hot climates. This is explained by the deeply-shading foliage of these woods obstructing the light from their recesses, so that few plants can grow be- neath them for want of heat and light, the great life-elements of the tropics. With markedly distinguished features, this zone of plants is widely separated both from the belt of " rigid-leaved," the multiform, and the woods of the exclu- sive coniferee. It contains some of the most imposing and 214 THE MOUNTAIN. interesting forms within the tree-limit. Sometimes single species occupy extensive surfaces, almost to the exclu- sion of others, their groves stretching in dense and serried ranks over large spaces. Again, a number of species grow together, plants widely separated in botanical affinities, as, for example, the cone- bearers and deciduous tribes, thus giving all the elements of variety and graceful combination to this order of woods. These mixed growths of trees are of surpassing beauty, some of them exhibiting a grandeur and solemnity found only in the dark recesses of the magnificent forests of the temperate latitudes. They are the great woodlands, possess- ing so much value as reservoirs of timber, for all purposes, and whose importance to man, in every aspect, it is impossi- ble to compute. The Alleghany Mountain, in Pennsylvania, in its botani- cal developments through planetary affinities, falls, in its general relationship to the world of vegetable-life, into this belt or zone of geographic distribution of plants. The history of this life and its diversity of types, or the " Flora" of the mountain, especially in the department of trees, is one of extreme attraction. As the direct and necessary consequence of the geography and geology, or soil and climate of a region, as already shown, the vegetable world unfolds itself by its own fixed and un- alterable laws. Next to topographic distribution of surface, hill, valley, mountain, and stream, " the vegetable clothing makes the distinctive features of a country, the tree-world, or arborescent vegetation, being especially concerned in im- parting expression and character to surfaces."* The mixed soils of the different tracts of the Alleghany range, in Pennsylvania, and its mixed climate from elevation above the level of the sea and the medium latitudinal geo- graphic position in the temperate belt of the planet, marks the meeting of separate vegetable classes, and gives great diver- * Schouw. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 215 sity of phytological life. There is, in this region, the combi- nation of two zones of plants just described, namely, the Tere- binthinate trees, (coniferae,) or those possessing slender stems, of great height, and needle-shaped leaves which are evergreen, with the exception of a few species, and the zone of amenta- ceous trees, which are plants with spreading branches and diffuse spray, bearing wide, tender, and membranous leaves, which drop every year and leave the stems and branches bare through the frost months. The mingling of these two belts, which are representative worlds, and unite widely- separated chapters of the history of the planet, with laws of media, soil, and climate, distinct and peculiar, gives a special charm and interest to the forests of the Alleghany. A notice of some of the most striking trees composing these forests may not be found uninteresting. This reci- tation need not be made in the strictly scientific order of the botanist, but in the natural succession in which they might be supposed to attract the attention of the traveler. A catalogue of the most commonly observed and extensively distributed plants of the mountain, including the several de- partments of botany, will be appended to this chapter. The object of this must be obvious, especially to the physician, to whom the great laws of " Habitats," and the dread neces- sities which superintend the devevelopment and perpetuation of Life in all its forms, reveal themselves in the character, qualities, entire nature of the proper legitimate earth-chil- dren rooted in and united by bonds of parental affinity to special localities and in special media. The trees and woods of this range of mountains have some distinguishing features, all of which will be apparent after a special portraiture of them shall have been made. The mountain is clothed with an extensive and beautiful variety of trees. In their distribution upon the surface, these trees seek the most congenial localities, affecting the soil and exposure made healthful and agreeable by oldest affinities and home sympathies. Rocky height or rugged ravine, alpine table-land or sloping mountain vale, have each 216 THE MOUNTAIN. their primal clothing of vegetation. The southeastern slopes of the mountain, also its range of summit-knobs, are generally covered by a variety of oaks, chestnut, firs, and pines, and a number of other trees, those with deciduous leaves greatly predominating. In winter the aspect of this side of the mountain is stark and bare, the monotonous gray of the forests destitute of foliage, prevailing, with occa- sional spots of pines, their dark-green hue visible at all sea- sons of the year. Other parts of the mountain, especially the ranges of depressions of the western sides, on the con- trary, show great extents of evergreen forests. Its eastern slopes and summit in full summer costume present an un- rivaled array of verdure in an endless ocean of leaves, the foliage of the hardier members of the oak family, as the chestnut oaks, with white, red, and black oaks prevailing. To these may be added the chestnut, beech, and several varieties of birch and maple, with linden, poplar, cucumber, hickory, and walnut. As the forest is composed of an aggregate of individual trees, and the exact mode of growth of the individual giving at last a general character to the forest, some notice of the manner in which the different trees of the mountain grow may assist in the truthful rendering of its woods. This special portraiture of trees, or the study of the growth and mode of development of each kind of tree, properly belongs to the artistic department of natural science, and is espe- cially attractive to the naturalist who is not a mere catalogue- maker. Besides the exhaustless beauty of the variety of form, and the special attraction of specific styles of growth, this study of the individual tree reveals great laws of science in the necessities which superintend the unfolding of its structure. This style of growth is thus a theme of twofold attraction, interesting to botanical physiologists, and espe- cially interesting to the artist or student of form, for the different varieties of trees have forms and expressions as different and characteristic as the separate races of animals ; indeed, each individual tree, flower, or rock, is a unit as per- FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 217 feet as any other unit, whether animal or man. All men are more or less alike, so are all blades of grass ; all trees are more or less alike, so are the birds in their branches. But the artist who works from Nature had better forget his patterns or stereotype trees of different orders, his model men, birds, and plants; for in the living universe they are all, also, exceedingly unlike each other. Each man and grass-blade is an individual having all those modifications of external or secondary qualities which mark him or it from all other men and grass-blades, and makes it that individual, unlike all other men or grass- blades of the universe. So must the real artist paint the individual tree ; and thus is the world endless in opu- lence of resources, and each form of each new tree is a study, and its integrity and beauty renewed forever. Hence, also, is this worshiper in " God's first temple" envel- oped in a perpetually new atmosphere of light and loveliness ; and thus does he drink from fresh rivers of ethereal wine, and in the deep beatitude of the artist's love of beauty feels that he could be entranced for a thousand years. No contrast can be more striking than that which ex- ists between the evergreen trees and the deciduous, or those which assume only a summer dress, being arrayed for occasions. Their forms are as differently suggestive as the substances which constitute their bodies. Different members of the pine family affect the shape of the pyramid, yielding to the imagination the idea of duration, by giving a base which no storm can uproot or turn over, their tapering summits, at the same time, presenting the smallest surfaces for the at- tacking winds. The oak and the beech, very different from the pine, fling out their arms into wide, umbrageous, over- shadowing masses of limbs and twigs, which only seem to wish to grow on and cover the largest space. Thus the pine- tree sings its song and has its dance of joy in the war of the winds, and the tempest's roar is its frolic, while the branches of the oak and beech are whirled and twisted like withs in its fury, their leaves being torn to rags and scattered 19 218 THE MOUNTAIN. like dust in the tornado's path. One class represents the hardy pioneers of a world in a process of reclamation from chaos, for " My garden is the cloven rock, And my manure the snow, And drifting sand-heaps feed my stock, In summer's scorching glow." Thus a full-armed warrior, ready for battle at a mo- ment's warning, stands the pine-tree ; the other the repre- sentative, also the fruit of a riper time, belonging to a more progressed system, requiring richer soil and fatter provender, can only sport destructible leaves for a short time, soft and evanescent, and requires constant protection and care. Something of the individual tree or species, its style of development or architecture ; something of the fashion of tree-building on the Alleghanies, may introduce the inquirer to a clearer recognition of the laws of organic life under the despotism of physical conditions and the grave necessi- ties of habitats. In noticing the trees of the mountain, without reference to scientific classification or precedence, we commence with the white ash, as a representative of use and beauty. This is the FRAXINUS AMERICANA of the botanists, and is certainly a family connection of Igdrasil, the Ash-tree of Existence, but just where, in botanical, natural, or artificial systems, is not recorded, The books quote it as " a large tree, fifty or sixty feet high." This description will not apply to the tree as it grows on the mountain. It there frequently attains to five feet in diameter, with a height of 120 feet ; its close-ribbed, deeply and finely sulcated light-gray bark covering a trunk as straight as a granite shaft sometimes for eighty feet, and without a branch. At this height it separates into branches, forming a head of finely divided limbs and spray, its small, green pinnate leaves pubescent and glaucous beneath in 3-4 pairs, giving to its delicate foliage an expression strange and FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 219 unsuitable for a tree of such majestic proportions. One other less stately species of this genus grows on the mountain, the FRAXINUS PUBESCENS. MAGNOLIA ACUMINATA. This is the mountain magnolia, or cucumber-tree. Beck describes it as a "middle-sized tree, sometimes, however, attaining the height of seventy feet;" and Darlington represents it as a " majestic and sym- metrical species, sixty to eighty feet high," which would convey but a remote idea of the proportions assumed by this splendid plant on the Alleghanies. It frequently exhibits a diameter of four and a half feet, with a beautiful undivided stem of ninety feet, as straight as a plumb-line, covered by a laminated white bark, with narrow but not deep grooves, the whole tree attaining the height of 120 feet. The leaves of this tree are of exceeding beauty, dark-green and glossy above, and beneatn bluish and pubescent, often twelve inches long by six inches in width. The flowers are large and handsome, but not gayly colored, and are followed by a reddish fruit, like a small cucumber, possessing a highly aromatic taste and smell. It is found inconsiderable abund- ance in the depths of the forests on the western sides and table-lands of the mountain, and grows mixed with other trees. Its style of foliage and growth gives the tree a peculiar and distinguished cast, its large dark-green leaves attracting the eye, as if some majestic stranger had wan- dered into the forest ; so exotic and foreign in its aspect that the beholder is reminded of tropical palms and man- groves. The lumber of this tree classes in value with that of the poplar or tulip-tree. Gray suggests that, "possibly the Magnolia Fraseri (the long-leaved cucumber-tree) grows in the mountains of Pennsylvania." He also quotes the Mag- nolia umbrella as being found on the mountains of Pennsyl- vania. On the Alleghanies they have not yet been seen. ACER. This is the family of maples, several of which are found on the mountain. ACER SACCHARINUM, or the sugar maple, grows here into a large tree. Both varieties (the saccharinum and 220 THE MOUNTAIN. nigrum) are found growing sometimes five feet in diameter and 110 feet high. Its trunk is rough and twisted, with rugged, scaly bark, when it grows in open woods, but slender, straight, and smoother when it grows in deep forests with other trees, or in dense groves of its own species. The white silvery wood of this tree is much valued as fuel, also for cabinet purposes, especially when that freak, or "fantastic trick" of the woody fibre occurs, producing what is called "bird's-eye maple." Its well-known sugar- sap gives one of the staples of the mountain. ACER RUBRUM is also found here. This species is called "rock maple," and furnishes the variety of cabinet lumber called "curly maple." The ACER PENNSYLVANICUM, striped maple, moosewood, or striped dogwood, is a small, slender tree, with beauti- ful foliage, and dark-green, "handsomely-striped branches. It grows abundantly on the mountain, but has no value as timber, its trunk never attaining more than a few inches in diameter. "ACER SPICATUM " is a tall shrub which grows in clumps and thickets in the gorges and ravines of the mountain. This little plant is called "mountain maple," and, although only a bush, it bears a most striking resemblance to its im- perial brothers, the arborescent species. There are several indigenous cherry-trees on the moun- tain. These are of the genus CERASUS. CERASUS PENNSYLVANIA is a graceful little tree, quoted by the botanists at twenty to thirty feet high, but often twice that height. It bears snow-white blossoms on thin, bright- red, and purple branches and twigs, followed by a red, sour little cherry. CERASUS VIRGINIAN A is the choke-cherry. This is rather a bush, scarcely ever aspiring to the tree form, and grows along streams, bearing abundance of astringent fruit on short, close racemes. The CERASUS SEROTINA is the wild black-cherry, said to grow "thirty to sixty feet high." On the Alleghanies this FLOEA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 221 plant is a superb tree, often five feet in diameter and 125 feet high. It grows in groves or mingled with other tall trees, and rivals the tallest of them in height. When it grows in this manner it exhibits the peculiar shape of the mountain trees growing in dense woods. This form of trees has been brought about by the circumstance of their original growth. The mass of foliage rises in a plane forming the tops of the trees. As the lower limbs become shaded and atrophied, they die and drop off, and at last branch- buds cease to be developed and branches to grow, the trunks or stems extending upward as naked symmetrical shafts of mathematical regularity, the terminal branches forming a leafy summit or canopy, which continues to mount higher and higher as the mass of the forest rises in the air. In open woods and low-lands of the State, this tree grows in a widely-spreading umbrageous mass, the stem dividing into a number of branches, the whole tree scarcely attaining half the height of the same plant struggling in the depths of the mountain forests. A stem without a branch for ninety feet, and as straight as a gun-barrel, is a common form of the plant in these woods. This is the "cherry- lumber" tree, so much valued as cabinet material. Of the allied genus PRTJNUS, the mountain has one species, the "Americana." It has the ordinary characters of the tree elsewhere. BEECH-TREE. Of the genus FAGUS, the continent, and, consequently, the Alleghany, has but one species, and that is the FAGUS FERRUGINEA, or American beech. The mode of growth of this tree in the mountain forests is so entirely different from the shape of the tree elsewhere that it seems to have lost its identity. This is so markedly the case that common observers have made several beeches of the botani- cal one species, as "white" and "red," "mountain" and "water" beech.* These varieties are of course produced by * When the heart-wood, (duramen,} which is a flesh-red color, is large in proportion to the white, (alburnum,} or sap-wood, it is called 19* 222 THE MOUNTAIN. ; the circumstances of growth, as of the soil, air, moisture, and other special surroundings of the plant. As it grows on the mountain, the tree, an object of loveliness, is especially at- tractive, and it would seem that in the beech the spirit of grace and beauty had found its most appropriate image and symbol of perfection. It grows in extensive con- tinuous forests, the rugged web of interwoven roots forming almost a floor for miles, while the white symmetrical stems, uninterrupted by branches to a great height, present the appearance of Grecian columns, giving an expression of art to these vast and leafy sylvan temples. In striking contrast with the hemlock forests, the beech groves appear in gay and fanciful antagonism. They grow everywhere on, but seek the flatter slopes of the mountain, and seem to affect the gentle undulating surfaces of the table-land. These forests, with their series of white columnar trunks sporting long, thin, and graceful branches, covered with delicate, green, membranous leaves, half translucent, present an array always festive and beautiful. In the early spring, when the tender tissue-paper young leaves are unfolding, and present their soft and delicate surfaces to the air, it is hard to imagine anything more ethereal and exquisite than a waving grove of this lovely tree. In autumn, when the leaves have turned yellow, they appear almost to possess a self-luminous or phosphores- cent power, for, at this time, however dark the night may be, or dense the forests, the traveler sees his path illuminated by a mild, diffused light, each object integrated as by a hazy moon or snow. The effect of this mystic and peculiar light is enchanting. After being for a time in beech woods the contrast is fearful, if the pathway lies through a hemlock " red beech." This occurs when the tree is old, but with small dia- meter, the annual layers being very thin, and the limbs and foliage small in quantity and proportion. With a large amount of limbs and leaves the white wood predominates, and a tree of a given diameter may exhibit only half the number of concentric annual sheets, and be of only half the age, of a red or heart-wood tree of the same dimen- sion of trunk. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 223 forest. Almost perfect darkness seems at once to reign, and the journey must be groped through as in a region of absolute night. In mixed forests of these two trees the effect is always charming in the extreme, as they suggest different orders of associations and reveal different phases of the elements of life and beauty. Of the Cone-Bearers, or Pine Family, there are not many species on the mountain. A few pitch pines (Finns rigidia) and yellow pines (Pinus mitis) on the eastern declivities and summits, also an occasional spot on the western slopes, to- gether with the white pine and hemlock, which are very abundant on the whole range, constitute the representatives of the evergreen, or terebinthinate order of plants. Genus ABIES. On the Alleghany proper there is but one species of Spruce in great abundance. There are several species of this genus on the parallel Appalachian ridges and intervening elevated valleys of Pennsylvania. Asa Gray cites this State as the locality of several species of Abies, viz., the Fraseri, Nigra, Canade'nsis; and it is in the well- known botanical range of the "Balsamea" and "Alba." Some rare localities contain several of these beautiful species, with the Hackmatack. One of these localities is a delightful little "garden of the blest" among the "seven mountains" of Centre and Huntingdon counties, called the " Bear Mea- dows." It is a small, elevated synclinal trough, surrounded by high, sharp, white sandstone (Formation 4) mountains on all sides, with one outlet or gorge, through which flows the stream draining the valley. It is evidently the bed or rich bottom of a mountain tarn or lake, the waters of which have escaped by a rupture of the wall surrounding it. A wild, exquisite, and secluded spot, it would seem to be the fantastic Arcadia of some dreaming artist or lover of na- ture, hidden from the world's vulgar gaze, and consecrated to beauty. Fresh glimpses of green carpet-spots of prairie, with osier beds and clumps of stately, solemn evergreens, black, silver, and balsam firs, with pines, cedars, and laurels, open into vistas of tall, deciduous trees, artistic and surprising 224 THE MOUNTAIN. in their exclusiveness and grace. A dark amber-colored stream, the water stained from vegetable infusion, and exhibit- ing throughout the year the tint of the mountain waters during the fall of the leaf, wanders, with a thousand curves and foldings, through wastes of reeds, sedges, azaleas, alders, and andromedas, cardinal flowers, " vegetable satyrs," and the more imperial Orchis, with weird Sarracenias and gold- thread Coptis. An ancient and deserted garden of rare and lovely evergreens, varied shrubbery, and beautiful flowers, this little valley seems, in its isolation and seques- tered beauty, to be a fragment of Paradise left unprofaned, to remind us of the splendor of the pristine home and of glories departed. ABIES CANADENSIS. The Canadian fir-tree, familiarly known as the " hemlock" of the mountain, is a very abund- ant species. It delights in northern exposures, as if seeking to battle with the coldest winds, asking no sympathy from the more genial gales of the south. It forms large forests, thick and compact, taking a savage and exclusive possession of the surface, and destroying all other forms of vegetable life beneath them. These hemlock forests have a striking and unique appearance, unlike the forests of any other tree. Like the gloomy isles of dark, half-subterranean temples, enveloped in sepulchral gloom, the wanderer feels, as he treads their lonely and sequestered solitudes, that the darkness of night surrounds him at noonday. In sleepy silence, with hushed footsteps, he treads their labyrinths of majestic columns as if veritably in the "land of shades." In the winter they assume an extremely sombre aspect, appearing, in very cold weather, the ground being covered with snow, as if smoked or painted black. Like the forests of the " Inferno," gloomy and peculiar, the tree has a funereal hue, and chills while it invites and offers the protection of its shade. It seems exclusive, and holds its title to the surface by actual possession for hundreds of years. The hemlock of the mountain grows sometimes to an enor- mous size, frequently attaining the circumference of 20 feet, FLORA OP THE MOUNTAIN. 225 with a height of 130 feet. These vast towers of woody fibre are the records of ages of labor of the vegetable life-powers, reclaiming the carbon, earth, and water of the world from chaotic floating. They fill the observer with astonishment, their massive forms, "like pillared props of heaven," sug- gesting the limbs of "Atlas, whose brawny back supports the starry skies." Their scraggy and rugged trunks give more the idea of rocky shafts than trees, and, like granite needles or stone obelisks, they seem to say they will stand forever. The lumber of this tree is of great value. PINUS STROBUS. The white pine, like the hemlock, is scat- tered over the whole mountain in almost every position, rocky height, or ravine, but only prevails in extensive continuous groves along the valleys of the streams, or the cold undulating surfaces of the table-lands. It grows in dense close-set masses, which have an expression, sui generis, from the specific shape or style of the tree. It is the loftiest of our indigenous trees, quoted by some of the books at from 80 to 100 feet, but in primitive mountain forests its straight thin columns often attain a height of nearly 200 feet, with an exceedingly narrow diametric base. These small, tapering stems look like masts of ships or lightning-rods, their delicate hair-leaf foliage giving the appearance of green mist in their tallest boughs, the whole woods waving like a grove of colossal plumes in the wind. The sharp, tapering summits of these trees do not intercept the rays of light as occurs in the interlocked canopy of the hemlock forests, but give a green and airy lightness, diffused through their densest groves, with- out the oppressive sense of shade and darkness which pre- vail on surfaces covered by their more gloomy brother. When the white pine grows scattered in forests of other trees, it does not shoot up in single thin stems, but fre- quently forks or divides into groups of stems, which spring generally from a single, massive, knotty stump, or short trunk, which rises alone from the earth. The size of this basis or pedestal of the miniature forest above is often of enormous dimension and exceedingly irregular in contour, 226 THE MOUNTAIN. but it is evidently most generally the result of the germina- tion of single seeds, some of them exhibiting, however, the appearance of two or three seeds having germinated in contact. The philosophy of the growth of this particular form is, apparently, that the different species of trees form- ing these groves have started from the earth's surface at the same time, but somewhat scattered, and, when the first branches of the infant pine were developed, the sur- rounding growth prevented a lateral expansion of the limbs, each of the primitive branches afterwards becoming a separate trunk or tree, and projecting itself upward, as the pine does in other crowded forests. From the point of separation at the forks, the limbs, each a noble tree itself, spring together, frequently of one size, like an immense chandelier, and rise in the air, the whole bundle of stems being supported and nourished by one large root-base. Many of these forked-pine trees have quite a celebrity, and have attained the character of individuals, and are visited as curiosities of the mountain. The lumber of the white pine is of great value, and forms one of the chief staples of the mountain. ULMUS. Along the flats of some of the streams the elm often attains to a great size, sometimes dividing into regu- lar clumps of thin trunks, which bend outward from the centre, the whole summit being flat, and the tree of the shape of an inverted bell. Three species of the genus Ulmus grow on the mountain, viz., the "Americana," the "fulva," and "racemosa." They seek, as elsewhere, with their cha- racteristic instinct, the moist flats and neighborhood of streams. Many of these elms are of enormous size, and of exceedingly fantastic and eccentric forms, appearing to have, by some sylvan sorcery, been led to violate all sober and common-sense laws of tree-building, and to have grown by freaks of the vegetative forces into "monsters of such frightful mien," that, to be remembered, "need but to be seen."* To have introduced the photographic tran- * An exact and perfectly-elaborated portrait of an elm of rare and grotesque form and immense proportions Las been painted for the FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 227 scripts of some of these trees into ANY " Midsummer Night's Dream," would scarcely have been " to have stolen the im- pression of the fantasy" of Shakspeare's most ultra ima- ginative creations. Surely, in the presence of one of these fanciful forms, one would say, that the artist who should for- get or deny that a tree can be an individual, in its contour and lineaments as specific and unique as a statue of Phidias or a church of Michael Angelo, had better drop his pencil, or satisfy his aspirations by transcribing the stereotype trees of his first lesson-book, and by the transference to his can- vas of the pictures of fence-rails or timber-posts. With a sense of shame the forgiveness of the wood-gods must be implored for having neglected so long one of their special admirations, a true splendor of the vegetable world, the LYRIODENDRON - TULIPIFERA, or tulip -tree, sometimes also called the wild poplar. The mountain sports this plant in a state of greatest perfection, its trunk attaining the largest proportions by the species anywhere achieved. A proud and lofty monarch of the American woods, it is admired as a beauty of the earth by all who have seen it. With a broad, lobed, and truncated smooth leaf giving a spe- American Academy of Music of Philadelphia, by Russel Smith, the well-known American landscape-painter. Every limb, twig, and almost every leaf, of this remarkable tree has been fixed on a canvas forty feet square, by the wonderful power and genius of this gifted artist. The original of this picture stands on the "everglades," or what was originally the beaver-dams of one of the tributaries of Clear- field Creek, three miles northwest of the "Alleghany Health Insti- tute." It may not generally be known, even to Pennsylvanians, that many of the finest artistic combinations in the magnificent scenography of the Academy, the grandest histrionic temple in the world, were taken from the recesses of the Alleghany Moun- tain forests, in their native State, by the magical pencil of Russel Smith, a native artist. To more intimately and thoroughly study and work from the beautiful models of the mountain, Mr. Smith has secured a rural cabin and piece of land near the "Alleghany Springs" and Pennsylvania Railroad summit, where, in his own words, "some of the brightest and grandest moments of my"life have been passed." 228 THE MOUNTAIN. cial feature to its foliage, it bears a superb flower, as rich and varied almost, in its tints and style, as the tulip of the gar- dens. " Erect as a sunbeam" its stem sometimes shoots into a splendid shaft, almost a hundred feet in height without a limb, and then branches into a kingly diadem, or veritable CROWN of leaves and flowers. This shape has been frequently described already as peculiar to the trees growing in deep forests. In the tulip-tree it is perhaps the most striking of all. As its enormous trunk, fluted by a deeply-grooved bark of a silver-gray color, carries an almost unaltering thick- ness throughout its entire height, the imagination requires no assistance to behold its mass of verdure and beauty grow- ing from the summit of some majestic marble column " on Grecian wold." It is one of the valuable lumber-trees of the mountain. TILIA AMERICANA. This is the linden or bass-wood, "lime-tree," and "white wood," a beautiful and noble tree, attaining to over 100 feet in height. In deep groves it has also the characteristic form of mountain trees, that is, with tall, straight, branchless stem, terminating in a mass of boughs, spray, and leaves, which, together with its smooth, graceful trunk covered by white finely-ribbed bark, presents one of the most striking and beautiful denizens of the woods. The species " heterophylla" is also found on the mountain. The lumber of the linden sells under the name of " white- wood," with poplar and cucumber. BETULA. The Birch Family have several representatives here. These are the BETULA LENTA, "nigra," "excelsa," and "papyracea." Some of them grow into large trees, as the " lenla" and "nigra," which are often found ninety feet high. The wood of the well-known sweet, or cherry-birch, the " lenta," is valuable, giving a fine-grained red lumber, and good fuel. QUERCUS. Several of the oak group are found here, and among them the QUERCUS ALBA, or familiar and valuable white oak. It does not grow in these localities, as in the Appalachian valleys, in continuous groves, but is found FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 229 mixed in forests of other trees of the noblest proportions, which it ever assumes in any soil. QUERCUS MONTANA affects the eastern slopes and sum- mits, having a taste, as its common name indicates, (rock chestnut-oak,) for rugged and stony surfaces. Associated with the last species is the "castanea," and scattered in dif- ferent localities over the mountain are the "nigra," "tinc- toria," "coccinea," "rubra," and "falcata." From the size to which many of these species grow, it would seem that here must be a special home of the oaks.* CASTANEA. The chestnut has a special affinity for the mountain. The CASTANEA VESCA grows here to a pro- digious size, living ages. It bears the familiar well-known sweet nut, and has an extremely rugged bark, covering a coarse-grained, light wood, especially prized for its inde- structibility as a fencing material. The CASTANEA PUMILA or chinquepin, grows here also. NYSSA MULTIFLORA. The tupelo, black or sour gum, grows sparsely over the mountain, presenting its ordinary characters in other localities. PLATANUS OCCIDENTALIS. The American plane, syca- more, or buttonwood, is found on the streams at the base and on the table-lands of the Alleghanies, but not on its * In connection with oaks, a word on the progressive instincts of the Pennsy Iranians may be in place. It has arranged itself on the record that it required the lumber-men of Maine to come to Pennsyl- vania to show her mountaineers the value of their forests, the "Yankee stave-cutter" having been a pioneer in one of the most valuable lumber specialties of the mountain and the State. Tran- scendent Yankee!! his sharpness is past finding out; he cuts the "trees that twist with the sun," saying, that those which "twist against the sun will not hold molasses." Curious problem in the philosophy of kinks; it seems that the refractory saccharine principle of the South requires a special twist of a special Northern oak to hold it level, and this, too, by the special twist "with the sun," and not "against it." When will Pennsylvanians wake up to the special twists of Northern Fanatics and Southern Salamanders, both with and against the sun? 20 230 THE MOUNTAIN. summits. Its snow-white stems, mingled with the sombre hemlock, forms one of the finest and most striking contrasts in nature. Its lumber is valued for some purposes. The MORUS RUBRA, or " Mulberry-tree," grows in per- fection here. JUGLANS. The species cinerea (butternut) of this genus is found in great abundance along the streams in the gorges, also higher up the mountain. The "nigra," or "black walnut," is also found, but not in such quantity. GARY A. There are several species of hickory on the mountain. The "alba," or shell-bark, grows here with its usual characters, but is not abundant. The " sulcata" grows along the base of the mountain, and in the little valleys of the streams. The "tomentosa" and " microcarpa" are here, but not abundant. The species u glabra" is very common on the Alleghany and some of its parallel ridges, constituting quite an article of commerce, the young, tough sprouts being sold for hoop-poles in immense quantities. The "amara" is also found here. Several of this genus are but small and insignificant trees on the mountain. POPULUS. Of this genus there are several species, as the " tremuloides," or "aspen," the " grandidentata," or long- toothed aspen, the "candicans," and " heterophylla." These are graceful and attractive trees, generally with smooth stems and beautiful foliage, but do not grow in the deep forests with the large, rough, mountain trees. The ROBINIA PSEUDACACIA, or common locust, grows in profusion on the mountain. It frequently achieves the proportions of a considerable tree, and is valuable as an in- destructible timber.* SAUX. A number of willows have made their home on the mountain, both of the tree and bush form. Several of * On the question of its indestructibility, see Canal Commissioners' Reports generally of the Portage Railroad of the State, on the eternity of locust crossties, under the jurisdiction of the ship, the horses, and the plough, overshadowed by the protective wings of the American eagle Virtue, Liberty, and Independence. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 231 the trees are familiar and handsome, but more of the genus are plain unostentatious shrubs. These are the principal trees which are found in the forests of the Alleghany Mountains in Pennsylvania. The poet might make a book of biography, and the artist a gallery of paintings of these splendid trees alone. An enumeration of some of the most striking trees or larger forms of the vegetable world is all that has been produced as the living mantle or robes of life and organic appendage to the mountain, viewed individually, and in the concrete, or masses of woods. What fills with amazement the ex- plorer of these forests is the thickness or density of the growth, and enormous size of the trees. He is troubled to conceive how these huge and thickly-planted trunks, which seem to have scarcely room to stand, are nourished, or grow in the limited space allotted to each tree. Such pyramids of wood might be supposed to require some base to support them, but the trees are so crowded, that were not the surface of the earth the chained continuity of interlocked roots that it is, they could not stand. Where the axe commences to fell these forests, and trees are left standing alone, they soon fall to the earth for want of the support and protection of the surrounding mass. The woods are so dense as to be almost impenetrable, the under-growth frequently having disappeared entirely, the branchless and naked trunks, supporting, only on their summits, a canopy of leaf-bearing branches. In some of these forests the fallen stems of im- mense trees, that have died of old age, half cover the ground. Here, in deep shadows and silence, sleep the mo- narchs of the forest, silent and sequestered, the dark soli- tudes furnishing a suitable graveyard for these heroes of a thousand storms, each one reposing as he fell, for now " Low lies the plant to whose creation went Sweet influence from every element ; Whose living towers the years conspired to build, Whose giddy top the morning loved to gild." 232 THE MOUNTAIN. They sleep, while ever-busy Nature clothes each prostrate form with a shroud of verdant mosses, thus it is " Out of sleeping, awaking, Out of waking, asleep ; Life death overtaking ; Deep underneath deep /" The general aspect of these forests, with their different changes in the procession of the seasons, must strike the most careless observer. During the winter they are stark and stern, the evergreen forests affording but a gloomy contrast, their dark-green foliage scarcely suggesting the thought of life, while the ceaseless moan of the cold and naked stems speaks only of death to the wolfish winds. Occasionally, in the winter forests, a phenomenon occurs of surpassing wonder. This is the sudden transition or transmutation, frequently during the night, as if by some magical power, of the whole forest of trees into a forest of glass. The mists, rains, and air charged with moist- ure, invest the tree-trunks, branches, and twigs with a clothing of ice, clear as crystal, so that the woods seem invested with an unrivaled splendor. This glittering and phantasmal array must be seen to be appreciated or con- ceived. The phenomenon of the hoar-frost is allied to this glass metamorphosis. This is the investment of each finest fibre of the woods with a snowy, crystalline, and sparkling velvet of frost, the air being filled with floating and brilliant spangles, detached by the slightest breath of wind. The vernal change is most genial and striking. After the long death-sleep of the winter, as is the case in northern latitudes, the leaves and flowers, with the first sun-fires, flash out upon the air with an endless succession of tints, forms, and outlines. The shades of green of the young foliage are numerous, giving a different appear- ance to each newly-arrayed tree. Each plant is peculiar in the character of its new-born leaves ; sometimes, as in the case of the beech, dropping from the twig a soft and deli- FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 233 cate membrane that floats like a cobweb in the air ; again, as in the chestnut, hanging sullenly as if wilted ; or, again, as in the oak and maple family, obtruding their more angu- lar leaflets, which stick out rigidly from the terminal twigs. Each tree has a form or physiognomy for its new-born leaf, also for the perfect organ or full-grown leaf, and these dif- ferent aspects show trees as entirely unlike each other, in the different stages of unfolding, as the callow bird in the nest is unlike the full-plumed and perfect adult. Even the grave evergreens assume a new countenance in the spring from the protrusion of their annual growth of twigs which are covered with exceedingly delicate light-green leaves, giving to the tree, at this time, a gay and cheerful look. This fresh livery of the vernal forests forever inspires with joy and hopefulness ; for it is the time when the world and the soul are full of promise. With electrical enchantment the spirit of the woods reaches the spirit of the man, and he expands and vibrates with the budding and unfolding leaf, "for man is one world, and hath another to attend him." The vernal sounds of the woods are also striking and cha- racteristic, appropriate and fit, as are all the harmonies of the wild. The soft, young leaf has not yet arrived at firmness enough to rustle or creak, and the boiling, simmering, far- off storm and ocean-sound is not distinctly heard at this season. A soft, muffled whisper, a wavy, stifled murmur, is all that the wind can make, the delicate, drooping leaflet having no vibratory consistency, and consequently the ac- cumulated sound is a simple, monotonous breathing of the air through the moist, sappy lungs of the forest. As the foliage is perfected, and the summer change comes on, the whole leaf-garment assumes an entirely different expression. The monotonous dark-green of the fully-developed summer-dress of the trees gives the wood, with its different plants, a more uniform aspect. In full array the forest is certainly richer and grander in this display of the life-powers, but it lacks the variety of the vernal tints. The color of all the leaves gradually darkens in hue as 20* 234 THE MOUNTAIN. they are perfected for the execution of their work, the nourishment and re-creation of the tree. This darkened tint is gradually increased as the leaf hardens and ap- proaches its death-hour the arrival of the frost. Some time before this, however, the woods present, for an interval, a sameness of feature, as if the leaves were silently at work, and had no time to give to the phases of beauty, but were hurrying up the execution of their func- tion to pass away into the sleep of death. At this time the full-grown, hard, and stiffened leaves give to the woods the sounds or characteristic summer- voices, that seething and singing which is the result of infinite friction and vibra- tion of the hard, turgid, and perfectly developed foliage of all the trees. The roar of the woods, that great respi- ratory murmur, has now assumed a tone that cannot be mis- taken, and the storm-winds can "howl with the voices of all the gods." The hour of dissolution arrives as the autumn approaches. At this season a change occurs, the most ex- traordinary of all in the life of the leaf, and gives to the forests of the mountain a richness of expression, an end- lessness of variety unrivaled upon the earth. This first touch of the destroyer is, perhaps, the most extraordinary phenomenon of the whole vegetable-world, and, indeed, the most wonderful aspect which Nature reveals. " So fair, so calm, so softly seal'd, The first, last look by death reveal'd, Before Decay's effacing fingers Have swept the lines where beauty lingers." The pageantry of the American forest in autumn has ever been the theme of the poet's song and subject of the pain- ter's pencil. It is exhaustless, as beauty is ever that fresh- water jet, that divine halitus, that ever-living sap of ex- istence, circulating up "from the far-away centre of all things," and which each moment of time creates for the soul a rapture, brightly renewed forever. As this element of Nature is intangible, ethereal, and cannot be appro- priated, it is consequently, to the spirit of man, unattain- able, inexhaustible, divine. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 235 It is especially the Alleghany Mountain which reveals the perfect and perpetual wonder of the American autumn, a chapter of the beauty of the world for which the old con- tinents have no parallel, and the earth's surface but one such spectacle. This comes of the extensive variety and mixture of deciduous trees, also of the mingling of this nu- merous class with the evergreen trees, in the woods of the mountain. Each tree has a regular series of colors, or hues and shades of color, through which its leaf passes, after the death-stroke of the frost. These are of an end- less variety, and of the most extraordinary brilliancy. The solar spectrum is exhausted in this fantastic display of colors. A single tree sometimes stands a pillar of fire, or a glittering cloud of gold and purple, while again, the crimson blood-dye is succeeded by a tree which has taken its hue from the gaudy yellow of the nasturtion's cup, or the " dolphin's back of gold." Thus the brilliant and diversified phenomenal has taken its most gorgeous robes from the tints of the autumnal forest. These phantom-pictures, like the other multiform phases of the woods, are transitory, and soon pass away, this whole world, vivid and flashing, being remembered like the pomp and pageantry of some splendid dream. Once seen it can never be forgotten. To the bright coloring of the groves gradually but quickly succeeds the russet hue of the dead and withered leaf, the d&Yk-brown, in which it moulders away into dust. At length the death-dirge of the vanishing foliage is sung, and the monotonous gray of naked trees, relieved only by the dark-green of the pines, is the color of the woods, while the ceaseless whistle of the winter winds chills the heart with the thought of that cold- ness which shall know no warmth, and of that sleep which shall know no waking. The forests of the Alleghany, in utility and beauty, are as exhaustless as its rocks and coal, its ocean of air, and streams of water, and present a chapter of ceaseless and perfect attractions. 236 THE MOUNTAIN. THE UNDERWOOD, BUSH, OR HEATH-GROWTH OF THE MOUNTAIN. THE transition, from the regular forest-tree to the shrub or bush, is gradual. That portion of the forest which is called heath, or coppice, is composed of true woody plants that is, plants formed of woody fibre, with perennial roots and stems, and either evergreen or deciduous leaves. On the mountain the representatives of this department are numerous. Some of these plants have the dimensions of small trees, but never grow to what are called forest- trees, and many of them are of exceeding beauty, and some of value. Where the growth of other larger trees permits it, they form clusters highly ornamental, filling the mid-air spaces of the taller trees with an array of foliage sometimes in fine contrast with the leaves of the larger varieties. As a class, they are comely and attractive, and occupy spaces that seemed otherwise to be vacant. Many of them belong to classes of larger trees, and have been already enumerated among them, as the smaller species of Acer, Cerasus, but never grow beyond a few inches in diameter of stem. To them, in the descending scale, succeeds the order of true shrubs. Of this class of. small, woody plants there is an ex- tensive and diversified field. A perfect catalogue in this department would be an agreeable undertaking, but such a task could not be attempted in a running schedule. A few of the prominent species are all that can be enumerated now, and, to commence with some of the smaller plants connect- ing the bush of the mountain with the forest-tree, take the genus OSTRYA. This is the hop-hornbeam, or iron- wood. The species VIRGINICA grows here, often achieving forty-five feet in height. The hard, compact wood of this little tree is useful, and the tree graceful in its form. CARPINUS AMERICANA is an allied plant, smaller in dimen- FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 237 sions, and with smoother bark, but resembling the Ostrya in foliage, inflorescence, and fruit. CRAT^EGUS. Several of the hawthorns grow on the moun- tain. The shape of this hardy little scavenger family is uniform, whatever may be its locality. On the mountain it shows its usual noli-me-tangere roughness of thorns and scraggy branches, bright, beautiful blossoms with pleasant odors knotty, and blood-red fruit, etc. As they are not used for hedges or anything else, they seem, like many other objects, to exist for beauty and sweetness alone. The species here are coccinea, tomentosa, crus-galli, and punctata. CORNUS. Species "Florida" of this genus is found on the eastern slopes of the mountain, but not on the summits or western sides in any quantity. Its flashing white flowers are occasionally seen in the ravines, where the plant grows with other trees. It exhibits its usual characters. The " Sericea" and "circinata" are also found there. The " Canadensis," or "dwarf cornel," is found on the parallel Appalachian ridges. CERCIS CANADENSIS, or Judas-tree, is found sparingly dis- tributed, low on the slopes of the mountain. It is a small, handsome tree, showing its usual characters. ARALIA SPINOSA is a low, rough little tree, called some- times the "devil's club." It grows abundantly in a variety of localities on different parts of the mountain. Its large, prickly, pinnate leaves, and rugged spiniferous stem, has so strange an expression as to attract much attention and remark. ALNUS. Species " incctna," is a small tree, often twenty- five feet high. It is found along the streams of the table- lands. Leaving the small trees, and descending to the bushes proper, we are presented with a large number of interesting plants on the mountain. The most distinguished group of this smaller class of plants which does not exhibit the tree form, is the order ERICACEAE, or Heath Family. Some of the genera of this order are deciduous plants, but of ex- 238 THE MOUNTAIN. treme beauty and splendor of flowering. Others are ever- green, and give a characteristic expression to woods of which they are the undergrowth. Of the SUB-ORDER I. VACCINES, or Whortleberry Family, the mountain has a number of genera. GAYLUSSACIA. Of this genus there are three species, " resinosa," "frondosa," and "dumosa," on the Alleghany, the two first named being highly esteemed for their delight- ful fruit. In many of the mountain districts the huckleberry is con- sidered not only innocent as an article of food, but to be endowed with certain medicinal properties. Many of the bare knobs and barren heights of the mountain are covered by the whortleberry, giving varieties of fruit, which ripen in different seasons. The family is very hardy, requiring only the " drifting sand-heap" for a resting-place. YACCINIUM, or bilberry. Species " Macrocarpon," or American cranberry, is found on many of the parallel moun- tains, and in some localities on the Alleghany itself, (from re- port,) but is not abundant. The stamineum, Canadense, Pennsylvdnicum, pdllidum, fuscdtum, and corymbosom, grow there. Some of these species are tall, graceful bushes, twelve feet high, and bear large, black and blue berries. The large, delicious, " blue huckleberry p ," is obtained from the Pennsylvdnicum. The Vitis-Idcea bears a red, flesh- colored berry, but bitter and acid, without much flavor. Some of these "big huckleberries," as they are called, are found in moist places, others on dry hills and open woods. SUB-ORDER II. ERICINE^, or Proper Heath Family. Tribe, ANDROMEDE^E. Two genera of this tribe are small, creeping plants. They are the Gaultheria procumbens, creeping wintergreen or mountain-tea, and the Epigcea re- pens, ground-laurel. The genus ANDR6MEDA contains a number of handsome bushes, and one tree, arborea. The species on the mountain are the calyculdta, racemosa, Mariana, Ligustrina, several of which are tall and comely shrubs. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 239 Some of the Andromedas are found in moist, barren spaces or sandy tracts, and, like the whortleberries, seem to have strong affinities for desolate and unreclaimed wastes. Some of them are found in sphagnous swamps, and alto- gether realize, in the habits of growth of some of the species at least, the spirit of the poetry of the name they bear, "the fabled exposure of Andromeda the unhappy." Tribe RHODORE^E. Several genera of this noble tribe are found on the Alleghanies. AZALEA, False Honeysuckle. There are here several species of this plant, generally fine flowering bushes, with a brilliant array of colors in their inflorescence, and possessing delicate odors, which fill the air of the woods with a charm- ing perfume. They are extensively distributed over the mountain, and are frequently mingled in dense brakes or heaths of other bushes of the same natural order. AZALEA ARBORESCENS is a fine bush, twelve feet high, bearing large, red, fragrant blossoms. " VISCOSA," Clammy, or White Honeysuckle, is here. It is a beautiful shrub, ten feet high, with white rose-tinted flowers in large clusters, which are very fragrant. "NUDIFLORA," or Purple Azalea, is a bush five feet high, bearing a purple and showy flower. It is one of the hand- somest species, and has a great many varieties. The " CALENDULACEA," or Yellow Azalea, also grows on the mountain. It is a tall bush, twelve feet high, bearing orange-colored blossoms, and giving brilliancy and light to the copse where it grows. Of evergreen shrubs or bushy-plants of this order, the " KALMIA" and " RHODODENDRON" are the principal. The "KALMIA," or American Laurel, is a well-known plant, growing on all the mountains of the Middle and Northern States. It is much esteemed for its richly- varnished evergreen leaves, and its splendid array of deli- cately-tinted flowers. It frequently grows in dense brakes in cool, moist forests, forming what are called " laurel thickets." 240 THE MOUNTAIN. The KALMIA LATIFOLIA, or Mountain Laurel, abounds on the Alleghanies, and is the only species of the genus found here. In the dense thickets in which it grows it is frequently seen twenty feet high, with long, knotty roots and twisted stems. It grows abundantly on almost every part of the moun- tain, and is found in immense continuous brakes, frequently under dense masses of forest-trees, seeming not to be affected by the absence of light in such places. It bears a profusion of beautiful white and rose-colored flowers, which are much admired. The leaves and fruit of this plant are poisonous. But by far the most beautiful individual of this order, the real pride of the mountain, is the " RHODODENDRON," or Rose-Bay tree. This splendid plant, which is generally called "big laurel," is not a laurel, but closely allied to it. It belongs, with the laurel, as we have just seen, to the family of heaths, or natural order Ericaceae, sub-order Ericinese, and tribe Rhodorese. It differs from the laurel very essentially, forming a separate genus called Rhododendron, the proper botanical name of the laurel, as has just been stated, being Kalmia. Unlike the latter, it is not poisonous, and differs in its foliage and inflorescence, being a much more im- perial and distinguished plant. With the common laurel it covers considerable tracts of the mountain forests, and, like that plant, it seeks the cool, sequestered shades of the deepest wilds, preferring the banks of mountain streams and unfrequented places. A splendid savage, he lives upon the sand-soil in the roughest parts of the mountain, flourish- ing, like an imperial chief of his order, in unapproachable seclusion. Sometimes, with the common laurel, it forms dense groves, called " laurel swamps," very improperly, however, as they are not water plants, and will not grow in swamps. Together, they form thickets, so dense and inter- woven that it is almost impossible for man or animal to pass through them, thus making a wall as impenetrable as a Mexican chaparral. They have been, from time immemorial, the terror of the huntsman, as his life was in danger if he FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 241 attempted to penetrate their inextricable labyrinths.* They are also the horror of the husbandman who has the audacity to attempt to clear the surface where they grow ; but espe- cially are they the trouble of the surveyor, who, with transit and compass, axe and chain, intrudes upon them. Many a youthful engineer will remember the days of his chain- carrying and rod-fixing through these thickets, and how fre- quently he found himself enveloped to the chin by a net of iron thongs, which held him like the jaws of an insidious trap. The style of growth of the Rhododendron is peculiar. The stems writhe and twist themselves together in every conceivable shape of knots and tortuosities, and wherever the branches touch the ground they strike root, and the plant grows afresh from this point ; it is thus that an inter- laced web of stems, almost as stiff and hard as iron, is stretched over large extents, which are as impassable as cane- brakes. The traveler who attempts to traverse these thickets finds himself continually caught by loops and dead-falls. The lover of the beauty of the woods, however, will find in these sylvan labyrinths, these evergreen seas of living plants, an attractive department of the Mountain Flora. During the inflorescence of this plant it is impossible to con- ceive of anything more splendid than its mass of flowers, which are borne in large showy terminal corymbs or clus- ters. They are of a pale-rose color, and sometimes snow- white, the greenish throat of each blossom being spotted with yellow or red. Its large, thick, coriaceous leaves fre- quently attain the length of a foot. During winter and in intense cold, they fold or coil up longitudinally, each leaf showing a roll not much larger than a cigar, which drops down close along the terminal twigs of the plant. When a * The engineer corps who located the railroads across this moun- tain chain, discovered the skeletons of several men who had been lost and starved to death in these thickets of Laurel and Rhododen- dron. 21 242 THE MOUNTAIN. branch in this condition is carried into a heated chamber, the leaves may be seen expanding and rising from the close compact bunch, and assuming the flat or patent attitude, the points stretching upward as in the summer air. Under the influence of very severe frost, with the folded condition of the leaf described, the plant exhibits the same blackened, gloomy appearance, which characterizes the evergreen trees under the same conditions. In full foliage and inflorescence the Rhododendron stands the monarch of the American heath, and always impresses the beholder with emotions of delight, from its present- ing a striking contrast with the more homely and familiar forms of the other tribes of bushes. Of this less imposing, but graceful and beautiful department of the mountain forests, constituting the true underwood of the woodsman, there are many plants which are objects of attraction. The HYDRANGEA ARBORESCENS is a bush found in many parts of the mountain. This plant, like some of the ever- greens described, seeks the gloom of the depths of forests, its white flowers and dark-green leaves, in shady ravines and woody solitudes, effecting a perpetual surprise. HAMAMELIS YIRGINIOA, the "Witch Hazel," a tall shrub, is here, as elsewhere, a common plant. Late in the autumn its yellow flowers may be seen among the dead and withered leaves of other plants, affording a strange and startling con- trast with the surrounding forms, blooming, when their blos- soms and foliage are dead. This "weird" shrub stands the noblest symbol of the true and loving heart, blooming with promise and joy in the midst of desolation and death. CORYLUS AMERICANA and ROSTRATA are found in the mountain. They grow on its slopes and the vales at its base. This filbert group seem to have an affinity for the mountain. DIRCA PALUSTRIS. This plant grows abundantly along the streams in ravines and small vales. It is interesting on account of the peculiar kind of bark of the plant, FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 243 which is as tough as leather, consequently, called " leather- wood." EUONYMUS ATROPURPUREUS, or Spindle-tree, is found here. It is a showy shrub with waxy, crimson fruit hanging by long fruit-stalks. CEANOTHUS AMERICANUS grows on the mountain, in cer- tain districts quite abundantly. It affords excellent brows- ing for the deer, and is the plant used by the soldiers of the Revolution for tea. ROSA. Several wild roses abound, as the Lucida blanda and Carolina, with the introduced species Rubiginosa and Micrantha. RUBUS. Several species of this interesting genus flourish here. RUBUS ODORATUS, or Flowering Raspberry, grows in great abundance and in the finest proportions. It shows a pro- fusion of splendid purple flowers from June until August. These flowers often exhibit a disk of two inches in diameter, and are of great beauty. The Strigosus and Occidentalis are found with their usual characters. The YILLOSUS, or High Blackberry, is found in the great- est quantity. This hardy bramble flourishes wherever any kind, even the poorest and roughest soil, exists. Its fruit is produced in such abundance that it forms one of the crops of the mountain. Some varieties occur. Species CANADENSIS (Dewberry) grows profusely. Rnus. There are several species of this genus here, as the "typhina," or stag-horn sumach, "glabra," smooth sumach, "copallina," dwarf sumach, and "aromatica," or fragrant sumach. They are handsome shrubs with graceful, delicate foliage and acid crimson fruit. The poisonous spe- cies, Yenenata and Toxicodrendron, are rarely found on the mountain. TAXUS BACCATA, variety CANADENSIS, is the American Yew or Ground Hemlock. It is a prostrate trailing bush, found in the gorges and on shaded precipices of the mountain. It 244 THE MOUNTAIN. has handsome, shining evergreen leaves, and bears a berry- like fruit of a blood-red color. YITIS. The grape family has established itself on the mountain. The " labrusca" is found in moist places, de- veloping a large fruit with coarse and acrid qualities. This is said to be the parent stem of the Isabella grape, a variety much improved by cultivation. Species ^Estivalis grows in great profusion. Species Cordifolia, or Frost Grape, grows also well. AMPELOPSIS QUINQUEFOLIA, Virginian Creeper, is found here. Its crimson foliage in autumn, clinging around stumps and trees, gives a marked feature to the woods. CELASTRUS SCANDENS, or "wax-work," occurs, but is not abundant. Its yellow pods, displaying scarlet-covered seeds, are esteemed ornamental. AMELANCHIER CANADENSIS, or Shad Bush, grows pro- fusely on the mountain. Several of the varieties described prevail, as the " botryapium" and "oblongifolia." SAMBUCUS CANADENSIS, or Common Elder, abounds. Species Pubens, Red-berried Elder, is found in great quantities, especially on the eastern slopes of the moun- tain. Its bright-scarlet berries, ripening in June, are borne in great profusion, looking like bunches of blood-red coral, and mingling frequently with the array of plants in bloom at this season, the splendid Epilobium, Phlox, Lobelia, and Flowering Raspberry with broad purple petals, give variety and unrivaled splendor to these floral groups. PYRUS CORONARIA. The American Crab- Apple was omitted in the list of small trees. It sometimes grows to twenty-five feet in height, bearing rose-colored blossoms which possess a delightful fragrance. A variety, not so brambly and scraggy as the common crab, occurs here, with taller trunk, cleaner limbs, and much larger apple. The Sassafras and Benzoin are also found here, the latter growing profusely. PYRULARIA (Mich.) Oleifera, Oil Nut, is said to be found FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 245 on the "mountains of Pennsylvania, near the Alleghanies." (Mich., Gray.) The water-courses and humid tracts show large quantities of several small species of the genus SALIX, or Willow. They fringe the banks of mountain brooks and springs, and form close, compact waving masses, or osier beds, in swampy spots. The Common Alder (Alnus Serulata) is also found in some places covering the banks of streams and moist places, seeking with characteristic instinct the trails of springs and fountains. With the Willow, being essentially aquatic, or lovers of water in their propensities, their pre- sence is always the harbinger of the appearance of that element, their groves being thus the true haunts of the aquatic gods, or " Water-walkers." These plants form a beautiful and characteristic order of copse, or under-bush, their wand-like stems and peculiar foliage marking them dis- tinctly from the other species of bush. Thus variety, which seems to be Nature's perpetual trick to enchant her children with forms of beauty and elements of use, here finds a stripe of newness wherewithal to demand attention and admiration A descriptive catalogue of all the moun- tain copse would be an attractive chapter, but a glimpse at this beautiful department must satisfy us here. After dwelling on the lofty and imperial dendroid forms of the vegetable world, also its royal families of smaller shrubs, with their artistic beauty and almost regal pomp of orna- ment and extravagance of dress, another class of plants, still less imposing, but more graceful and lovely, press upon the attention of the wandererer in the mountain woods. This is the world of flowers, so called, as if perhaps they existed to flower alone, and had no account to render of themselves, but that they were revelations of the splendor and perfection of things, and brought messages of light and gladness to the soul. Of this numerous class many are found distributed over the Alleghany. They are the fairest, frailest, and most evanescent of all vegetable forms, spring- 21* 246 THE MOUNTAIN. ing from the earth each season, germinating, flowering, and seeding, then withering and dying, having but one short summer to publish their little lives, "sparkle, and expire." These many-painted forms rise as if by magic; endless variety in unity, and unity in endless variety, is the song they sing. In this world the graces and loves seem to reign, for of the grace and beauty of posies, and the posi- tive loves of flowers, who has not heard? Why this untold riches, why this infinite diversity of form, why this exhaustless profusion of dyes, only for beauty, only for thought and spirit ? So would sing the poet the secret of their spirit and life which "the ages have kept." "If I knew Only the herbs and simples of the wood, Kue, cinquefoil, gill, vervain, and agrimony, Blue-vetch, and trillium, hawkweed, sassafras, Milkweeds, and murky brakes, quaint pipes, sundew, And rare and virtuous roots, which in these woods Draw untold juices from the common earth, Untold, unknown, and I could surely spell Their fragrance, and their chemistry apply By sweet affinities to human flesh, Driving the foe and 'stablishing the friend, Oh, that were much ! and I could be a part Of the round day related to the sun And planted world, and full executor Of their imperfect functions." This "sweet affinity to human flesh" is the great fact of their being, and is quite a sufficient excuse for their existence. The mountain is rich in its array of flowering plants, some of which are Alpine in their characters. In the order of their appearance, the first that attract attention are the vernal flowers. These, as in all high mountain lo- calities, rush rapidly into life the moment the frost has liberated the surface from its power. They spring from the soil in a multitude of graceful forms. Some of them are peculiar, and belong exclusively to mountains, seem- FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 247 ing to find tlieir proper life -medium in the cool fresh air of elevated districts, and withering when removed from those regions. The vernal flowers are numerous in this range of heights, and to be known and enjoyed in all their sweetness, must be seen and studied in their native haunts. The snows have scarcely disappeared before the first plants put forth their leaves and delicate petals upon the cold, raw air, and are especially prized and hailed with joy by the botanist as the prophets of the coming world of life. And first in rocky nooks and dripping springs, creep out, as if fearful that the winter winds might return, the Saxifrages, Draba, Heuchera, Hepatica, and Caltha, or Marsh Marigold, in quick succession. Then follow the Wind Flowers, the Wake Robin, the Spring beauty, or Claytonia, Houstonia, and Columbine, Sanguinaria, Bellwort, Corydalis, and Erythro- niurn ; mingled with these are delicate violets of almost every hue, and of which numerous and petted family the mountain has many representatives. The little humble earth-gem " Mitchella," soon dots the green surface with its minute snow-white twin flowers, and the lovely Epigaea, with its graceful trailing stem, and foliage like painted parchment hiding clusters of delicate flowers with faint but delightful ordor, is soon found creeping among the dead and fallen leaves as if to conceal its beauty and sweetness, and give it all to the earth upon whose bosom it clings so closely. More showy plants soon flash out their light upon the air, as flaming Phloxes, Cardinal Lobelias, the Epilobium, or Great Willow Herb, with wand of showy flowers, the proud Lily, and fanciful Orchidea3, among which are the imperial purple-fringed Platanthera, with eccentric and anomalous Cypripedium, or Lady's Slipper, the bizarre form of which remarkable flower is the perpetual joke of the woods, a shape so odd, fantastic, and unexpected, that one asks if it were not created in derision. The mountain's show of summer and autumnal flowers is equally exten- sive and beautiful. As the summer, or sun months, are a short season on the mountain, this world of plants seem to 248 THE MOUNTAIN. hurry on to the full publication of their lives, and especially to render glorious a short and brilliant career, with ex- travagant demonstration of ornament and show. The scythe of the first frost finds a rich and abundant harvest. The summer plants bloom on and mingle with the autumnal flowers, which seem smiling and unconscious of their coming doom. Of the autumnal flowers the Composite, or com- pound flowers, are the most numerous. Rough and hardy, they appear at the close of the flower season, proud and defiant, as if they braved the hour of dissolution. A number of this class, after slumbering in the soil nearly through the summer, suddenly start and bloom, to be as quickly nipped and destroyed. These plants seem to defy the seasons and to have resolved that they will, at all hazards, bloom. This immense order has numerous genera* and species on the Alleghany as elsewhere. Many of them are large, showy plants, and strike the most careless ob- server by the brilliancy of the tints of their flowers, and janti- ness of their style of growth. Some of them are the largest and most conspicuous of annual plants, and are considered rough and intrusive weeds, possessing, however, rare and real beauties, as the Helianthus, Eupatorium, Actinomeris, Heliopsis, Yernonia, Lactuca, Hieracium, etc. Others of the order are more delicate and attractive in the style of their beauty, as the Asters, or star-flowers, which present a flashing array of shining faces, radiant as jewels, and of every dimension and tint of color, from white specks, minute and sparkling as snow-flakes, to broad dark-red and azure rays, until the far-famed star-flower of the celestial empire is rivaled in its perfections. Imperial and proud, the sun-flower (Helianthus) flaunts his colors, as if he were veritably " a son of the sun," and would shine as long as his sire. The Golden-rod, (solidago) its delicate wands studded with flowers, contributes to the "mute music," and makes gay the forest and mountain's * See catalogue of genera at end of chapter " Flora." FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 249 sides in those "bright September days." The Gnaphalium, Coreopsis, and Rudbeckia, mingle their silver and gold with the pageantry which heralds the advent of autumn and waves the first farewell to departing summer. Winter concludes the story of the flower, and its "little life is rounded with a sleep." Need the observation be made that the full and elaborate biography of the flowers of the mountain, with their special habits, phases of life-manifestation, and instincts, would be a labor of delight ? Here, again, the real lover of nature will find that she is ever true and faithful to her accredited devotees. Coy and cruel, with a face of adamant and steel to selfishness and profane intrusion, she is approachable, gentle, and pliant, to earnestness and love. Thus it will be found, that the life and habits of one plant, read and studied with devout and careful seeking, is a key to the history of earth and air, and a pass-word to the intellectual throne of the knowledge of the realms of organic life. SERIES II. PLANTS WITHOUT FLOWERS. Leaving the first great division of the vegetable king- dom, the series of Phsenogamous Botany, or those having definite and clearly marked organs for the reproduction of specific forms, and descending in this chain of organ- isms, we arrive at another order of plants with marked and distinctive features, called the Cryptogamous, or flower- less plants, or those the mechanism of whose reproduction was formerly supposed to be concealed, or even non-extant. The first division embraces the imperial forms, the great trees of the ages, the myriads of flowers which beautify the earth ; also the useful plants, the companions of man, the proper bread or human-flesh grasses, or cerealia, plants fur- nished with easily discoverable generative systems, and all propagated by definitely organized seeds. The other divi- sion (Cryptogarnic) is a more humble series, organizations 250 THE MOUNTAIN. of simpler and more homogeneous elements, revealing a less intricately complicated morphology, or, in other words, fewer of the wonder-workings of that same strange cytoblast, from "those minims of the vegetable world," single-cell plants, to the more complicated structure of tree ferns, but all propagated by spores, or simple reproductive cells. These CELLULARES, or cellular plants, are an inte- resting department of the vegetable world. Here com- mences the mysterious circulation of "organic water," and the protean power of that magical "protoplasm," with generative fiat, starts the whirl of the brute elements through the harmonious gyrations of Life. Here the formative forces of vitality assume their simplest attitudes of nutri- tion and reproduction; and here the "vegetable vesicle" stands the witness of the first erotic approach of the pon- derable and imponderable. This is also the realm in which the two great kingdoms, the vegetable and animal, ap- proximate and touch circles in a series of surprising analogies, in the first simple mechanisms of life, for the cell is the re- sult of the ultimate analysis of both. " The starting-point of both is the same ; for the embryo of the animal up to a certain grade of its development, con- sists, like that of a plant, of nothing else than an aggre- gate of cells. The lowest class of animals, the micro- scopical animalcula, or the invisible inhabitants of stagnant water, appear to be identical with the simple cellular plants, already referred to (Volvox globator.")* " Kutzing does not admit any essential distinction between animals and vegetables. f He maintains that the same being may, at various periods of its development, assume one na- ture or the other. The following is his theory in a few words : Every organic being is constituted of vegetable elements and animal elements, and, according as one or other prevails, the being becomes an animal or a vegetable ; * Go ad by. f See quotation from B,obert Smith, at end of catalogue. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 251 in the first stages of development of superior beings, and permanently in those of inferior rank, the two elements are equally balanced, and this is the case, in the author's opinion, with the Diatomese, which, on this account, cannot be ab- solutely referred either to one series or the other, but consti- tute the ring or circle which unites together all organic beings into one kingdom. Long controversies have sprung up between the supporters and opponents of this doctrine, who, to obtain victory, mutually accuse one another of logi- cal errors, of sophisms, and of paradoxes."* With the exception of the tree Ferns, (Tropical,) whose trunks sometimes attain to the height of forty feet, the cryp- to gamic plants are lowly structures, the feathers, hair, and microscopic down of the skin of the world. This division of plants is constituted of three classes, viz. : the ACROGENS, the ANOPHYTES, and THALLOPHYTES. The first of these classes" contains four orders, the Equisetacece, Filices, Lycopodiacees, and Hydropterides. The second two orders, the Musci and Hepaticse ; and the third four orders, the Lichenes, Fungi, Characea3, and Algee. ACROGENS. Of this class the mountain has the following representa- tives : ORDER EQUISETACE^J, (Horse-tail Family.) SPECIES. Kquisetum, (Horse-tail. Scouring Rush,) . . .2 ORDER FILICES, (Ferns.) Polypodiuui, (Polypody,) Tree Fern Family, ... 2 Allosorus, (Rock Brake,) . . . . . . .1 Pteris, (Brake. Bracken,) 1 Adlantum, (Maiden Hair,) 1 Cheilanthes, (Lip Fern,) ....... 1 * Meneghini, Botanical and Physiological Memoirs, Ray Society, 1853. 252 THE MOUNTAIN. SPECIES. Woodwardia, (Woodwardia,) . . . . . .1 Camptosorus, (Walking Leaf,) :,, . . . . . 1 Aspleniura, (Spleenwort,) 4 Bicksonia, (Dickson's Fern,) . "'f* .... 1 Woodsia, (Woodsia,) . '; : "v'y"" "' 1*' * . . . .1 Aspidium, (Shield Fern, Wood Fern,) .... 2 Onoclea, (Sensitive Fern,) . . . . . . .1 Osmunda, (Flowering Fern,) ...... 2 Botrychium, (Moonwort,) . ^ :J . . . .1 The ferns are the most showy, and generally attractive of the cryptogams. Many of them are tall feather-shaped plants, their broad spreading fronds, the ornamental and im- perial plumage of the earth, producing the perpetual impres- sion of beauty. Some of them are humble and lowly plants, but possessed of exceeding delicacy and grace. The more imposing species frequently occupy extensive spaces of the mountain heath, forming brakes, or matted continuities, which cover the surface sometimes to the entire exclusion of other small plants. These fern forests have frequently a striking and characteristic expression, from the large fronds all assuming one position, by that instinct which turns the leaves of plants to the sun. The tall plumes are marshaled in order, and stand with a gentle northern inclination, their spreading pinnae, or leaflets, looking to the south, or facing the sun, and held in file by the strong attraction of his rays. Some of the species are shy and retiring in their habits, and are rarely seen ; others are found almost as common as grass, occupying large spaces, growing in the woods and swamps, while others invest the rocks and cliffs, festooning their edges and surfaces with rare and picturesque fringes and wreaths. In most of this family of delicate and comely plants, the light and spiritual forms of the vegetable world, it would seem that beauty, or the transcendent element of taste was alone consulted ; while the " homely utilities" or economical rela- tionships, with a few exceptions, had been ignored. The ferns seem to be attracted to mountains, and, from FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 253 the shyness of their habits, their lonely, retired haunts, in rocky nook or "bosky dell," they speak constantly of se- questered solitudes, walks sacred to the wood-gods, of the isolation and self-sufficiency of nature, and of the mountain spirit, wild and indomitable in all its forms. The man who has no memory of fern islands mingled with his boyhood's dreams, has not yet drained all the enchanted goblets of the universe, and may have still the ecstasy of a new experience in the revelation of the delicacy and senti- ment of nature in her most touching attitudes of wildness, sweetness, and seclusion. By consulting the catalogue of genera, it will be seen that most of the prominent and interesting forms of the order Filices are represented on the Alleghanies. ORDER LYCOPODIACE^E, (Club-moss Family.) GENERA. SPECIES. Lycopodium, (Club-moss,) 5 The species of ground pines, or club-mosses, are found extensively distributed over the mountain in shaded woods and moist places. They are among the most beautiful and striking of the cryptogarnic plants. ANOPHYTES. ORDER Musci, (Mosses.) This interesting class of cryptogamic plants is extensively distributed over the world. The greater number require a certain humidity of atmosphere, and they are more numerous in temperate latitudes than the tropics. They are lowly and minute, but graceful and beautiful, and are among the first plants which take possession of rocks and sterile soils, appearing even on volcanic slags and lifeless earth-crusts. Many of them occupy extensive swampy tracts, (the Sphagna,) and form, by their accumulations of leaves and stems, large deposits of carbonaceous mould, (modern for- mula of the coal seam,) while others climb the highest 254 THE MOUNTAIN. mountains, and penetrate the coldest arctic spaces. Hardy cosmopolites ! they aro found wherever light and moisture can penetrate, and ornament by their graceful foliage the most forsaken nooks, crannies, and neglected places. In summer their vivid velvet-mantles and verdant cushions gleam through the forests, investing nearly every prostrate trunk or living tree, bank, rock, and bed of brook. In win- ter their fragile bright-green leaves may be found fresh and smiling beneath frost and ice, and their tiny fruit-bearing stems carrying fantastic caps on bursting spore-cases, are often seen penetrating the snow with a reproductive energy that defies the most intense cold. This is a floral chapter that seems perennial in its fascinations, and the bryologist is especially happy as even winter gives no interruption to his attractive labors. Mountains seem to be the special home of the moss family, as the valleys, cultivated lowlands, and prairies, do not appear to attract this little race of rock and desert-taming pioneers of the vegetable kingdom. The Pennsylvania Alleghany range is a rich and varied moss district, and has been examined, to a certain extent, by a number of crypto gamic botanists.* It seems to possess the condition of elements most favorable as a habitat of this class of plants. In its cool air, its widely extended forests with interminable shades, and quantities of fallen and decay- ing timber, its extents of surface covered with fragments of rock, its moist ravines and gorges with projecting cliffs, its sequestered dells and shady precipices, its swampy places and fresh running-streams, we are presented with a medium of special adaptation to the life-affinities of the Bryacea?. Embracing several geological formations with diversity of mineral composition, which gives origin to a variety of soils from disintegration, and to the exposure for moss-growing * Of the number who have visited the mountain for moss-gather- ing purposes, are the accomplished bryologists Leo Lesquereux and Thomas P. James, two indefatigable workers in this department of science, to whom the American student of botany owes much, and, it is to be hoped will owe more, before their labors are ended. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 255 surfaces of different kinds of rock, at the same time stretch- ing up through a considerable calorical scale, or height of climatal variations, it would be natural to expect that the mountain would reveal extensive botanical affinities in this and other departments. Here, to the common observer, the variety would appear to be infinite, but the drilled eye of the naturalist soon classifies and catalogues them all. Of the ORDER Musci, William S. Sullivant and his co- laborers in this department, have reported three hundred and ninety-four indigenous species, of which two hundred and fifty-five are common to Europe. No introduced European species are recorded. Some cursory observations of the mosses of the Alleghany give the following list of genera : Sphagnum, (Peat-moss.) Pogonatum, (Haircup-moss.) Phascum, (Earth-moss.) Polytrichum. Gymnostomum. Encalypta, (Extinguisher-moss.) Aphanorhegma. Orthotrichum, (Bristle-moss.) Physcomitrium, (Bladder-moss.) Diphyscium. Hedwigia, (Beardless-moss ) Bartramia, (Apple-moss.) Tetraphis, (Fourtooth-moss.) Aulacomnion, (Furrowcap-moss) Grimmia. Mnium, (Thymethread-moss.) Schistidium. Bryum, (Thread-moss.) Kacomitrium, (Shredeap-moss.) Fimaria, (Cord-moss.) Fissidens, (Splittooth-moss.) Leskea. Dicranum, (Fork-moss.) Thelia. Leucobryum, (Pallid-moss.) Neckera. Ceratodon. Cylmdrothecium, (Cylinder-moss) Campylopus, (Swanneck-moss.) Leucodon, (Whitetootli-moss.) Weisia. Leptodon, (Wing-moss.) Rkabdoweisia, (Streak-moss,) Anomodon Drummondia. Climacium, (Tree-moss.) Tetraplodon, (Collar-moss.) Homalothecium. Trichostomum, (Fringe-moss.) Hypnum, (Feather-moss.) Barbula, (Beard-moss.) Fontinalis, (Fountain Moss.) Atrichum, (Smoothcap-moss.) Zygodon, (Yoke-moss.) Dicranodontiurn, (Swanneck- Dichelyma. moss.) Pylaisa3a. Trematodon. Platygyrium. 256 THE MOUNTAIN. This imperfectly elaborated catalogue of genera embraces more than half of the described North American mosses. It will be increased, no doubt, largely by future and more critical explorations, as many of them are exceedingly mi- nute plants, with shy habits, and requiring great patience and vigilance to discover them. These genera contain a number of species, many of which are found on the moun- tain, thus giving an extensive list of mosses for that lo- cality. A number of them are of great beauty, and widely distributed. Sometimes they show matted masses resembling forests of miniature pines ; again, microscopic cane-brakes, or laurel thickets, investing with their delicate tree-shaped stems the rocks and ground. Considerable spaces of the surface are grown over by some of the spe- cies, as the earth is covered by grass. Others, again, are found on trees, covering their trunks and branches, while there are those that inhabit fountains and brooks, and occupy the surfaces of rocks and fallen timber, envelop- ing whole prostrate trunks with mantles of variously tinted plush, or robes of delicate light-green feathers. Thus, as objects of grace and beauty, they constitute an interest- ing field of investigation, dressing the myriad shapes of the woods with elaborate and fanciful decorations. Being very retentive of life, and hardy, they resist extremely low tem- peratures, many of them fructifying, as we have seen, in the snow, and exhibiting their bright foliage when other plants are sleeping or dead. The moss thus appears a silent wit- ness, in the slumber of winter, that life has not been extin- guished in the whole world of vegetation, or animation even suspended in all, but that in some forms it is imperishable, blooming with the freshness of evergreen youth through all times and seasons. Another point of interest in this class, as of other crypto- gamic plants, is their world-wide or cosmopolitan range. Thus we have seen that of 394 described species of indi- genous moss, 255 are common to Europe, while of the whole number of species, including Phsenogamous plants, enume- rated by Gray, 2C68, only 676 are common to Europe. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 257 ORDER HEPATIC^, (Liverworts.) This order of cryptogamic plants has many repre- sentatives on the Alleghany Mountain. They are small cellular plants, some of them resembling mosses, and pre- senting many points of similarity, in form and habits, with that order. They are diversified in their forms of vegeta- tion and reproduction, the quaint and peculiar style of which is striking, even to the ordinary observer, and possesses marked attractions for the botanist. In Gray's Manual, "William S. Sullivant has reported 38 genera, and 108 spe- cies. For the clever monograph, with beautifully elaborated figures of the genera of this order, by this distinguished cryptogamist, the student of American botany must feel under perpetual obligation. A heretofore comparatively closed book is now, unsealed, and the student can walk with open eyes into a new and enchanting region. The Alle- ghany, as already remarked, is a rich Hepatic field, and will give an abundant harvest to the laborer in this department. THALLOPHYTES. ORDER LICHENES, (Lichens.) The class of organic forms called THALLOPHYTES, are the simplest vegetable structures. They have no distinction into stems, roots, or leaves, as the higher cryptogamic plants ex- hibit, but are composed of a mass of cells accumulated in a parenchymous plane, called a Thallus or Frond. The order Lichenes is in this group. They are peculiar, both as to their nutrition and reproduction, and show a strong bearing toward that troublesome region of speculation in which com- mence the great questions of UNIVOCAL and EQUIVOCAL gene- ration. On SPONTANEOUS generation, or "matter assuming organization under the influence of water and light," the following observations of Lindley may seem to savor of an unorthodox philosophy to many who are given to intellectual 22* 258 THE MOUNTAIN. stampedings on the announcement of the great generaliza- tions of science : * " On this subject the investigations of Meyer are exceed- ingly interesting. By sowing Lichens he arrived at some curious conclusions, the chief of which are that, like other imperfect plants, they may owe their origin either to an elementary or a reproductive generating power, the latter capable of development like the plant by which they are borne : that decomposed vegetable and some inorganic matter, are equally capable of assuming organization under the influence of water and light ; and that the pulverulent matter of Lichens is that which is subject to this kind of indefinite propagation, while the spores lying in the shields are the only part that will really multiply the species. He further says, that he has ascertained, by means of experi- ments from seed, that supposed species, and even some genera of Acharius, are all forms of the same ; as, for instance, Lecanora cerina, Lecidea luteo-alba, and others, of the com- mon Parmelia parietina."f Of the character, habits of distribution, general nature of the Lichens, Lindley proceeds to observe : " Pulverulent Lichens are the first plants that clothe the bare rocks of newly-formed islands in the midst of the ocean ; foliaceous Lichens follow these, and then Mosses and Liverworts. (D'Urville, Ann. Sc. 6, 54.) They are found upon trees, rocks, stones, bricks, pales, and similar places ; and the same species seem to be found in many different parts of the world : thus the Lichens of North America differ little from those of Europe. They are not met with on decaying mat- * The mountain being a page of the venerable tome, perhaps a whole leaf of "that elder Scripture writ by God's own hand, Na- ture," would not desire to appear, except as witness or attorney for plaintiff in issues against those profane burglars, pick-locks, and spies, in the private workshop of the Almighty, called men of science, (wicked rogues of nescience! /) and the municipal corps, or regularly organized simon-pure orthodox police of Heaven. f Vegetable Kingdom, John Lindley, Lichenales. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 259 ter where they give way to fungi ; but they often occupy the surface of living plants, especially their bark. In the tropics they lay hold of evergreen leaves. Their chosen climate is one that is temperate and moist ; aspects to the north or west are also their favorite resort, for they shun the rays of the noon-day sun. No place seems to be a more constant haunt than the surface of sandstone rocks, and buildings in cool and moist countries. They are met with, in one place or other, from the equator to the pole, and from the sea-shore to the limits of eternal snow. The finest species are found near the equator; the most imperfect, such as the crustaceous genera, which can hardly be distinguished from the rocks they grow upon, are chiefly observed on mountain- tops, and near the pole. The Idiothalami are most abund- ant in tropical America." The Lichen appears, then, the pioneer of that splendid world of forms which seems, from its entire dissimilarity of structure, to ignore its affinity or alliance by any conceivable nexus with it, and as the first blundering effort of inorganic matter to enter the higher sphere of life. The mountain's rocks and forests present an extensive field of research in this department of botany, from the same causes which give exuberance of growth to the other orders of cryptogamic plants. From the lower varieties of pulverulent and crus- taceous lichens covering stones, fences, and walls, with white, gray, or yellow scurf, to the more complex structures of fronds, they are found picturing the surfaces of all fixed ob- jects with every conceivable shape of spots and markings, clinging to the bark of trees, investing their branches with fantastic scales and gelatinous skins, or floating festoons of hair ; destitute of roots, but eroding at last the hardest vitreous slags. Drawing their nourishment from the air, they adhere to the naked surfaces of everything, clothing the rock and tree with an endless variety of dress and orna- ment. In the class of uses, the order abounds in valuable ele- ments, nutritive, medicinal, and chemical coloring-principles. 260 THE MOUNTAIN. Something of the extent of the alliance as distributed over the earth, and enumerated by Lindley, may be inferred from the fact that the species, long since described, amounted to 2500. The ORDER FUNGI, of the class Thallophytes, is one of the most curious and interesting of the whole vegetable series. Viewed with reference to their complex structure, their strange and eccentric habits ; their peculiar economic function in the organic world ; their chemical composition and special relations, they constitute a wonderful order of plants. "A full account of the diversified modifications of struc- ture that Fungi display, and of the remarkable points of their economy, would require a volume. "* Something of this vastness of range in numbers and affinities may be imagined from the general enumeration of the "Vegetable King- dom, "f (Alliance 11 Fungales,) amounting to 598 genera and 4000 species. The forests of the Alleghany Mountain, with their extensive variety of decomposing vegetable mat- ter, give a large catalogue of mushrooms. The last, but not least wonderful of the THALLOGENS, is the ORDER ALG^S. It is a vast family, swarming in myriads through seas, rivers, brooks, and pools, and growing some- times on wet and humid earth. The Algals are of all dimen- sions, forms, and colors, from microscopic points floating in water as motes swim in the sunbeam, to trailing, leathery masses, hundreds of feet in length, and from transparent mucus scums, to brilliantly tinted sheets dyed with all the colors of the rainbow. This order and its subdivisions also occupy a singular and questionable position in the scale of organisms. Of this ambiguity Lindley observes : " It is here that the transition from animals to plants, whatever its true nature may be, occurs ; for it is incontestable, as the varying statements of original observers testify, that no man can certainly say whether many of the organic bodies * Asa Gray. f John Lindley. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 261 placed here belong to the one kingdom of nature or the other. Whatever errors of observation may have occurred, these very errors, to say nothing of the true ones, show the extreme difficulty, not to say the impossibility, of pointing out the exact frontier of either kingdom."* Whereupon the Rev. M. J. Berkeley, startled "by these astounding statements," remarks : " The same species may assume a vast variety of forms according to varying circumstances, and it is highly instructive to observe these changes ; but that the same spore should, under different circumstances, be capable of producing beings of almost entirely different nature, each capable of producing its species, is a matter which ought not to be admitted generally without the strictest proof." In the Zoogeny of Oken it is written, (paragraph 1715,) " Every organic originates from a mucus- point. If this mucus-point occur in the darkness, it thus becomes a terrestrial organism, a plant ; if it enter into the light, which is only possible in the water and in air, it thus becomes a solar organism, independent of the planet, self- moving around itself like the sun, an animal." "The ani- mal is a whole solar-system, the plant only a planet. The animal is, therefore, a whole universe, the plant only its half; the former is microcosm, the latter micro-planet." (Idem, paragraph 1180.) So sparkle the philosophers on the origin of things, particularly of plants and animals, and all this from the contemplation of the wonderful life-mani- festations of the Algals. The streams, pools, springs, and moist spots of the mountain, abound in numerous fresh- water genera and species of this widely-distributed order of plants. Thus endeth the story of the plant. In stately and ma- jestic repose the mountain folds about itself this many- tissued, many-tinted garment of living fibres, each microscopic alga, each imperial tree, quickened by that worker of per- petual miracles, life. For what ends exist this immea- * See observations of Menegliini and Goadby, p. 250. 262 THE MOUNTAIN. surable array of attractive objects ? First as a vast ex- panse of living, normal, and beautiful forms, it shall address the senses of the physical man, and by healing sympathies and recuperative vitalizing forces, invite him to a larger, more genial, and healthful world of sensuous emotion. Secondly, it shall, by a purer, more subtle, ethereal and Divine force, penetrate the depths of his spiritual nature, and by sentiment and thought, intelligence and love, magnify and ennoble his soul. The forest, the heath, the flower, the fern, the moss, the lichen, form thus for man a recipe of health, a concert of harmony, a lesson of wisdom, a transport of beauty. CATALOGUE OF FLOWERING PLANTS. A FULL or descriptive catalogue of all the species of flowering plants would occupy more space than can be allotted to this de- partment of the natural history of the mountain. An enumeration of the most prominent genera, or common families, with a number of the most prominent species, will indicate something of the pre- dominating influences grouped under the name of habitat of the region, as shown by the plant. With the plants already named in the text, we are presented with the following : * SERIES I. FLOWERING OR PHJENOGAMOUS PLANTS. CLASS L EXOGENOUS OR DICOTYLEDONOUS PLANTS. SUB-CLASS I. ANGIOSPERIOS. 1. ORDER RANTJNCULACEJE, (Crow-foot Family.) GENERA. SPECIES. Atriigene, (Atragene) 1 Clematis, (Virgin's-Bower) 1 Anemdne, ( Wind-Flo wer) 3 Hepatica, (Liver-Leaf) 2 Thalictrum, (Meadow-Rue) 2 Ranunculus, (Crow-foot Buttercup) 4 Caltha, (Marsh Marigold) 1 Aquilegia, (Columbine) 1 Zanthoriza, (Yellow-root) 1 * This enumeration is the order pursued by Professor A. Gray in his admirable and invaluable "Manual of Botany." Nearly all the plants of this catalogue are com- mon in the interior, middle, and western part of the State of Pennsylvania, as well as on the Alleghany range of mountains. (263) 264 THE MOUNTAIN. GENERA. SPECIES. Actsea, (Baneberry, Cohosh) 1 Cimicifuga, (Bugbane) 2 2. ORDER MAGNOLIACEJE, (Magnolia Family.) (Already enumerated.) 4. ORDER MENISPERMACEJE, (Moonseed Family.) Menispe'rminn, (Moonseed) 1 5. ORDER BERBERIDACE.E, (Barberry Family.) Caulophyllum, (Blue Cohosh) 1 Podophyjlum, (May-apple, Mandrake) 1 8 ORDER NYMPH^EACE^;. Nuphar 1 10. ORDER PAPAVERXCEJE, (Poppy Family.) Papaver, (Poppy,) from Europe 1 Chelidonium, (Celandine,) from Europe 1 Sanguinaria, (Blood-root) 1 11. ORDER FUMARIACECE, (Fumitory Family.) Adlumia, (Climbing Fumitory) 1 Dicentra, (Dutchman's Breeches) 3 Corydalis, (Corydalis) 1 12. ORDER CRUCIFER.E, (Mustard Family.) Nasturtium, (Watercress) 3 Dentaria, (Pepper-root, Toothwort) 2 Cardamine, (Bitter-cress) 2 Arabis, (Rock-cress) 3 Barbarea, (Winter-cress) 1 Erysimum, (Treacle-mustard) 1 Sisymbrium, (Hedge-mustard) 1 Sinapis, (Mustard) 2 Draba, (Whitlow-grass) 2 Lepidium, (Pepper-grass) 1 Caps611a, (Shepherd's Purse) 1 Raphanus, (Radish) 1 15. ORDER VIOLACE^E, (Violet Family.) Solea, (Green Violet) 1 Viola, (Violet Heartsease) 10 1C. ORDER CISTACE^E, (Rock Rose Family.) Lechea, (Pinweed) 1 FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 265 19. ORDER HYPERICACE.E, (St. John's-wort Family.) GENERA. SPECIES. Hype'ricum, (St. John's-wort) 4 Elodea 1 21. ORDER CARYOPHTLLACE^E, (Pink Family.) Dianthus, (Pink) introduced Saponaria, (Soapwort) from Europe 1 Silene, (Catchfly Campion) .' 3 Agrostemma, (Corn-cockle) from Europe 1 Stellaria, Chickweed, Starwort) 1 Cerastium, (Mouse-ear Chickweed) 2 Spergula, (Spurrey) from Europe 1 22. ORDER PORTULACACEJE, (Purslane Family.) Portulaca, (Purslane) from Europe 1 Claytonia, (Spring-Beauty) 2 23. ORDER MALVACE^:, (Mallow Family.) Althsea, introduced from Europe Malva, (Mallow) from Europe 2 24. ORDER TILIACEJS, (Linden Family.) (Enumerated.) 27. ORDER OXALIDXCEJE, (Wood-sorrel Family.) Oxalis, (Wood-sorrel) 3 28. ORDER GERANIACE^:, (Geranium Family.) Geranium, (Crane's Bill) 1 29. ORDER BALSAMINACE^;, (Balsam Family.) Impatiens, (Jewel-weed) 2 32. ORDER ANACARDIACEJE, (Cashew Family.) Rhus, (enumerated) 33. ORDER VITACE.E, (Vine Family.) Vitis, (enumerated) Ampelopsis, (enumerated) 34. ORDER RHAMNACE.E, (Buckthorn Family.) Ceanbthus, (enumerated) 35. ORER CELASTRACE^E, (Staff-tree Family.) Celastrus, (enumerated) Euonymus, " , 23 266 THE MOUNTAIN. 36. ORDER SAPIND\CE^;, (Soapberry Family.) GENERA. SPECIE Acer, (enumerated) 37. ORDER POLYGALACEJE, (Milk-wort Family.) Polygala, (Milkwort) 4 38. ORDER LEGUMINOSJE, (Pulse Family.) Lupinus, (Lupine) 1 Trif olium, (Clover) ....'. 3 Robinia, (enumerated) Tephrosia, (Hoary Pea) 1 Hedysarum, (Hedysarum) 1 Desmodium, (Tick Trefoil) Lespedeza, (Bush-Clover) Stylosanthes, (Pencil-Flower) Vicia, (Vetch) Lathyrus, (Vetchling) Phaseolus, Kidney Bean) Apios, (Ground-nut) 1 Baptisia, (False Indigo) 1 Cercis, (enumerated) Cassia, (Senna) 1 39. ORDER ROSACEJE, (Rose Family.)* Prunus, (enumerated) Cerasus, (enumerated) Spiraea, (Meadow-Sweet) 3 Gillenia, (Indian Physic) 2 Agrimbnia, (Agrimony) 1 Geum, (Avens) Potentilla, (Cinque-foil) 3 Fragaria, (Strawberry) 1 Dalibarda, " 1 Rubus, (enumerated) Rosa, " Crataegus, " Pyrus, (Pear Apple) 1 Amelanchier, (enumerated) 42. ORDER LYTHRACEJE, (Loosestrife Family.) Cuphea, (Cuphea) 1 43. ORDER ONAGRACE.E, (Evening Primrose Family.) Epilobium 2 * See end of catalogue. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 267 (Enothera, (Evening Primrose) 3 Gaura, (Gaura) 1 Ludwigia, (False Loosestrife) Circsea, (Enchanter's Nightshade) 2 46. ORDER GROSSTJLACE.E, (Currant Family.) Ribes, (Gooseberry) 4 48. ORDER CUCTJRBITACE.S:, (Gourd Family.) All the cultivated members of this family flourish here, except a few of the delicate melons, which never ripen, although they grow well. 49. ORDER GRASSULACEJE, (Orpine Family.) Sedum, (Stone Crop) Penthorum, (Ditch Stone-Crop) 50. ORDER SAXIFRAGE JE, (Saxifrage Family.) Saxifraga, (Saxifrage) Heuchera, (Alum-root)". 2 Mitella, (Bishop's Cap) 1 Tiarella, (False Mitre-wort) 1 Hydrangea, (Hydrangea) enumerated 1 61. ORDER HAMAMELACEJE, (Witch-Hazel Family.) Hamamelis, (Witch-Hazel,) enumerated 52. ORDER UMBELLIFERJE, (Parsley Family.) Hydrocotyle, (Marsh Pennywort) Sanicula, (Sanicle) Daucus, (from Europe) Angelica, (Angelica) Zizia Cicuta The cultivated species of this order grow well on the mountain, as the parsley, celery, dill, fennel, and cori- ander. 53. ORDER ARALIACE.E, (Ginseng Family.) Aralia 6 53. ORDER CORNACE^, (Dogwood Family.) Cornus, (enumerated) Nyssa, *< 268 THE MOUNTAIN. DIVISION II. MONOPETALOUS EXOGENS. 55. ORDER CAPRIFOLIACE^E, (Honeysuckle Family.) GENERA. SPECIES. Lonicera, (Woodbine) Triosteum, (Horse-gentian.) 1 Sambucus, (Elder,) enumerated 2 Viburnum, (Arrow-wood) 4 56. ORDER RUBIACE.E, (Madder Family. ) Galium, (Bed Straw) 5 Cephal&nthus, (Button-bush) 1 MitchSlla, (Partridge-berry) 1 Oldenlandia, (Bluets) 2 58. ORDER DIPSACEJE, (Teasel Family.) Dipsacus, (introduced) 1 59. ORDER COMPOSITE, (Composite Family.) Vernonia, (Ironweed) 1 Liatris, (Blazing Star) 2 Eupatorium, (Thoroughwort) 5 Aster, (Starwort) 12 Erigeron, (Fleabane) 4 Solidago, (Golden-rod) 13 Inula, (Elecampane) introduced 1 Ambrosia, (Ragweed) 2 Xanthium, (Clotbur) 1 Heliopsis, (Ox-eye) 1 Rudbeckia, (Cone-flower) 3 Helianthus, (Sunflower) 7 Actinomeris, (Actinomeris) 1 Coreopsis, (Trickseed) 1 Bidens, (Bur-marigold) 4 Helenium, (False Sunflower) 1 Maruta, (Mayweed,) introduced 1 Achillea, (Yarrow) 1 Leucanthemum, (Ox-eye Daisy) 1 Tanacetum, (Tansy,) introduced 1 Gnaplialium, (Cudweed) 3 Antennaria, (Everlasting) 1 Erechthites, (Fireweed) 1 Cacalia, (Indian Plantain) 1 FLORA. OP THE MOUNTAIN. 269 GENERA. SPECIES Senecio, (Groundsel) 1 Centaurea, (Star-thistle) from Europe 2 Cirsium, (Common Thistle) 3 Lappa, (Burdock,) from Europe 1 Krigia, (Dwarf Dandelion) 1 Hieracium, (Hawkweed) 4 Nabalus, (Rattlesnake-root) 2 Taraxacum, (Common Dandelion,) from Europe) 1 Lactuca, (Lettuce) 1 60. ORDER LOBELIACE.ZE, (Lobelia Family.) Lobelia, (Lobelia) 4 61. ORDER CAMPANULACEJE, (Campanula Family.) Campanula, (Bell-flower) 2 62. ORDER ERICACE^;, (Heath Family.) Gaylussacia, (enumerated) Vaccinium, " Epigaea, (Trailing Arbutus) 1 Gaultheria, (Wintergreen, or Mountain Tea) 1 Andromeda, (enumerated) Kalmia, (American Laurel,) enumerated Menziesia 1 Azalea, (enumerated) Rhododendron, (Rose Bay) enumerated Pyrola, (False Wintergreen) 3 Chimaphila, (Pipsissewa) 2 Monotropa, (Indian Pipe) 2 64. ORDER AQUIFOLIACE.E, (Holly Family.) Prinos, (Black-alder) 2 68. ORDER PLANTAGINACEJS, (Plantain Family.) Plantago, (Ribgrass) 3 70. ORDER PRIMULACE^E, (Primrose Family.) Lysimachia, (Loosestrife) 3 71. ORDER LENTIBULACE^E, (Bladderwort Family.) Utricularia 73. ORDER OROBANCHACE^;, (Broom-rape Family.) Epiphegus, (Cancer-root) 1 Conopholis, (Squaw-root) 1 Aphyllon 23* 270 THE MOUNTAIN. 74. ORDER SCROPHULARIACE.E, (Fig-wort Family.) GENERA. SPECIES. Varbascum, (Mullein) 2 Linaria, (Toad-flax) Scrophularia, (Fig-wort) Chelone, (Snake-head) Pentstemon, (Beard-tongue) Mimulus, (Monkey-flower) Gratiola, (Hedge-hyssop) 1 Veronica, (Speedwell) 5 Gerardia, (Gerardia) 3 Castilleia, (Painted-cup) 1 Pedicularis, (Louse-wort) 1 Melampyrum, (Cow-wheat) 1 76. ORDER VERBENACEJE, (Vervain Family.) Verbena, (Vervain) 2 Phryma, (Lopseed) 1 77. ORDER LABIATE, (Mint. Family.) Teucrium, (Wood-sage) 1 Isanthus, (False Pennyroyal) 1 Mentha, (Mint) 2 Lycopus, (Water Horehound) 1 Pycnanthemum, (Mountain Mint) 3 Thymus, (Thyme,) from Europe Hedeoma, (Mock Pennyroyal) 1 Collinsonia, (Horse-balm) 1 Monarda, (Horse-mint) 3 Nepeta, (Cat-mint,) from Europe 1 Brunella, (Self-heal) 1 Scutellaria, (Skull-cap) 4 Marrubium, (Horehound) from Europe 1 Stachys, (Hedge-nettle) , 2 Leonurus, (Motherwort) from Europe 1 78. ORDER BORRAGINACE^E, (Borage Family.) Echium 1 Mertensia, (Lungwort) 1 Myosotis, (Scorpion-grass) 2 Cynoglossum, ( Hound' s-tongue) 2 79. ORDER HYDROPHYLLACE^I, (Water-leaf Family.) Hydrophyllum, (Water-leaf) 2 FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 271 80. ORDER POLEMONIACEJE, (Polemonium Family.) GENERA. SPECIES. Phlox, (Phlox) 4 81. ORDER CONVOLVULACE^:, (Convolvulus Family.) Ipomoea, (Man-of-the-Earth) 1 Cuscuta, (Dodder) 1 82. ORDER SOLANACE^E, (Nightshade Family.) Solanum, (Nightshade,) from Europe 3 Physalis, (Ground Cherry) 1 Datura, (Thorn Apple) introduced 1 83. ORDER GENTIAN ACE^:, (Gentian Family.) Sabbatia,, (American Centaury) 1 Gentiana, (Gentian) 2 84. ORDER APOCYNACEJE, (Dogbane Family.) Apocynum, (Indian Hemp) 2 85. ORDER ASCLEPIADACE^:, (Milkweed Family.) Asclepias, (Silk-weed) 4 86. ORDER OLEXCEJE, (Olive Family.) Fraxinus, (enumerated) 87. ORDER ARISTOLOCHIACEJE, (Birthwort Family.) Asarum, (Wild Ginger) 1 Aristolochia, (Birthwort) 1 80. ORDER PHYTOLACCACEJJ;, Poke weed Family.) Phytolacca, (Pokeweed) 1 90. ORDER CHENOPODIACE.E, (Goosefoot Family.) Chenopodium, (from Europe) 3 91. ORDER AMARANTACEJE, (Amaranth Family.) Amarantus, (Amaranth,) introduced 3 92. ORDER POLYGONACE^:, (Buckwheat Family.) Polygonum, (Knotweed) * 7 Fagopyrum, (Buckwheat,) from Europe 1 Rumex, (Sorrel) 3 93. ORDER LAURACEJE, (Laurel Family.) Sassafras, (Sassafras) 1 Benzoin, (Wild Allspice) 1 272 THE MOUNTAIN. 94. ORDER THYMELEACE^E, (Mezereum Family.) GENERA. SPECIES. Dirca, (Leather-wood) enumerated 98. ORDER SAURURACE^E, (Lizard' s-tail Family.) Saururus, (Lizard's-tail) 1 100. ORDER CALLITRICHACE^E, (Water Star-wort Family.) Callitriche, 1 102. ORDER EUPHORBIACE^E, (Spurge Family.) Euphorbia, (Spurge) 2 Acalypha, 1 104. ORDER URTICACE.E, (Nettle Family.) Ulmus, (Elm) enumerated Morus, (Mulberry) enumerated Urtica, (Nettle) 1 (2 introduced.) Pilea, (Clear-weed) 1 Cannabis, (Hemp,) from Europe 1 Humulus, (Hop) 1 105. ORDER PLATANACEJE, (Plane-tree Family.) Platanus, (Button-wood,) enumerated 106. ORDER JUGLANDACEJE, (Walnut Family.) Juglans, (Walnut,) enumerated Gary a, (Hickory,) " , 107. ORDER CUPULIFER^, (Oak Family.) (Enumerated.) 108. ORDER MYRICACE^E, (Sweet-Gale Family.) Comptonia, (Sweet Fern) , , 109. ORDER BETULACEJE, (Birch Family. (Enumerated.) Alnus, (enumerated) 110. ORDER SALIC ACE^B, (Willow Family.) Salix, (enumerated) Populus, (Poplar, Aspen,) enumerated FLOKA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 273 SUB-CLASS II. GYMNOSPERMJE. 111. ORDER CONIFERS, (Pine Family.) GENERA. SPECIES. Pinus, (Pine,) enumerated Abies, (Spruce, Fir,) enumerated CuprSssus, (White Cedar) ? Juniperus, (Juniper) ? Taxus, (Yew,) enumerated CLASS II. ENDOGENOUS, OR MONOCOTYLE- DONOUS PLANTS. 112. ORDER ARACE^:, (Arum Family.) Arisseraa, (Indian Turnip) 2 Symplocarpus, (Skunk Cabbage) 1 Orontium, Golden-club) 1 113. ORDER TYPHACE.E, (Cat-tail Family.) Typha, (Cat-tail) 2 Sparganium, (Bur-reed) 2 114. ORDER LEMNACE^J, (Duckweed Family.) Lemna, (Duck's-meat) 1 115. ORDER NAIAD ACE^:, (Pondweed Family.) Potamogeton, (Pondweed) 5 116. ORDER ALISMACEJE, (Water-plantain Family.) Alisma, (Water- plantain) 1 Sagittaria, (Arrow-head) 2 119. ORDER ORCHIDACEJS, (Orchis Family.) Orchis, (Orchis) 1 Platanthera, (False Orchis) 7 Goodyera, (Rattlesnake-plantain) 2 Spiranthes, (Lady's Tresses) 1 Listera, 1 Arethusa, (Arethusa) 1 Microstylis 1 Corallorhiza, (Coral-root) 1 Cypripedium, (Lady's Slipper) 3 274 THE MOUNTAIN. 120. ORDER AMARYLLIDACE^E, (Amaryllis Family.) GENERA. SPECIES. Hypoxys, (Star-grass) 1 121. ORDER H^MODORACE^;, (Bloodwort Family.) Aletris, (Colic-root) 1 123. ORDER IRIDACE^E, (Iris Family.) Iris, (Flower-de-Luce) 1 SisyrincMum, (Blue-eyed Grass) 1 125. ORDER SMILACE.E, (Smilax Family.) Smilax, (Greenbrier) 4 Trillium, (Wake Robin) 3 Medeola, (Indian Cucumber-root) 1 126. ORDER LILIACE.E, (Lily Family.) Asparagus, (from Europe) 1 Polygonatum, (Solomon's Seal) 2 Smilacina, (False Solomon's Seal) 3 Clintonia, (Clintonia) 2 Allium, (Onion, Garlic) 2 Lilium, (Lily) 2 Erythronium, (Dog's-tooth Violet) 1 127. ORDER MELANTHACE^E, (Colchicum Family.) Uvularia, (Bellwort) 2 Streptopus, (Twisted-stalk) 1 Melanthium 1 Veratrum, (False Hellebore) 1 Helonias, (Helonias) 1 128. ORDER JUNCACEJJ, (Rush Family.) Juncus, (Bog Rush) , 7 129. ORDER PONTEDERIACE^, (Pickerel-weed Family.) Schollera, (Water Star-grass) 1 131. ORDER XYRIDACEJE, (Yellow-eyed Grass Family.) Xyris, (Yellow-eyed Grass) ? 133 ORDER CTPERACE^:, (Sedge Family.) Cyperus, (Galingale) ? Scirpus, (Bulrush) ? Eriophorum, (Cotton-grass) ? Rhynchospora FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 275 GENERA. SPECIES. Scleria ? Carex, (Sedges) 30 This extensive genus of obscure and intricately re- lated plants is largely represented on the mountain. In moist spots and along spring streams, pursuing the general habits of the genus, they are found in fringes and tufts, scattered almost ubiquitously over humid and other spaces. Of the 132 species contri- buted by John Carey to Gray's Manual, casual observa- tions have brought into notice some thirty species. 134. ORDER GRAMINEJE, (Grass Family.) Alopecurus, (Foxtail Grass) 2 Phleum, (Cat's-tail Grass, Timothy) from Europe 1 Sporobolus, (Drop-seed Grass) 1 Agrostis, (Bent-Grass) 1 Muhlenbe'rgia ? Calarnagrostis, (Reed Bent-Grass) 2 ? Stipa, (Feather-Grass) ? Tricuspis, (Tall-red-top) Kreleria, (Koeleria) Eatonia Glyceria, (Manna-Grass) 2 ? Poa, (Meadow-Grass, Spear-Grass) 6 Bromus, (Brome-Grass,) from Europe 3 Triticum, (Wheat) Hordeum, (Barley) Elymus, (Wild Rye) 1 Aira, (Hair-Grass) 2 Danthonia, (Wild Oats) Avena, (Oat) Holcus, (Meadow Soft-grass) from Europe 1 Phalaris, (Canary-Grass) Milium, (Millet-Grass) Panicum, (Panic-Grass) 7 Sorghum, (Broom Corn) 276 THE MOUNTAIN. (SEE ANTE, p. 250.) "Given, the head of Socrates, the wisest philosopher of Greece, and a Protococcus pluvialis, a microscopic single-cell plant, is there no 'essential distinction,' and to which does the word incompre- hensible most justly apply ? Of the creation and destiny (genesis, exodus) of a cell, or a limitless congeries of cells, (organic bodies,) of the how and why of their getting into special shapes or living forms from the sleep of inorganic matter, and staying there to circulate for a time within the 'ring' of natural affinities, then dropping out of that circulation into another apparently temporary sleep, called death, or of the creation and destiny (genesis, exodus) of a man or numberless congeries of men, (Humanity,) of the how and why of their assuming particular styles of existence and circulating for a time within the grasp of supernatural affinities (supersensuous, quondam spiritual, immaterial forces, will, intel- lection, sensation, and affection, entities, real as iron or stone, but not on the chemist's table, or naturalist's catalogue,) and also, get- ting out of that material and spiritual circulation, into an apparent sleep, called, likewise, death, what has the microscopic atom, the proud mote, the wise monad, man, the Philosopher, to say ? "Place the dry skulls of Plato and Shakspeare beside the rup- tured and effete cells of the Protococcus pluvialis and Volvox glo- bator, and say which are the most inconceivable existences, which are the everlasting wonder of wonders. Does not the cell stand the most imposing mystery, the most incomprehensible miracle? The two problems, vast towers ! ! loom up from the Infinite, their sum- mits and bases both hidden in darkness and unapproachable solitude. The broad gulf between them can only be passed upon the wings of a purer and nobler philosophy, and the deep abyss can only be fathomed by the plumb-line of a profounder and more earnest Faith." ROBERT SMITH, Philosophical and Religious Meditations, vol. vii. p. 472. FLORA OF THE MOUNTAIN. 277 FRUIT-TREES AND ESCULENT VEGETABLES. FRUIT-TREES. THAT the Alleghany could supply itself with fine fruit of almost every kind there is not the slightest doubt. The indifference of the mountain counties to this department of earth cultivation, as well as many other " cultures," is to be much regretted by all the friends of progress of that region. This indifference or carelessness is not con- fined, however, to the mountain districts of the State. The follow- ing observations of the venerable Dr. Darlington, the justly celebrated botanist of Chester County, are, it would seem, as applicable to his district as to the one here alluded to. Looking, as the inhabitants of the wilderness counties do, to the East for evidences of civili- zation and light, it was to be hoped that the cultivated county of Chester had passed the "thoughtlessness" at least, not to speak of the rudeness and barbarism deplored by the Doctor in one part of his observations on this subject. He says : " Indeed, it is melancholy to reflect how thoughtless and negligent mankind generally are with respect to providing fruit for themselves. There are few persons who do not own or occupy sufficient ground to admit of three or four choice fruit-trees and a grapevine ; such, for instance, as an apricot, a peach, a May-duke cherry, a Catharine pear, and a Catawba grape; yet the great majority seem never to think of planting such trees, while they are ready enough to invade the premises, and revel on the fruits of some more provident neighbor ! It is due to the minor morals of the community that such disreputable negligence and such marauding practices should cease to be tolerated." flora Cestrica, p. 72. PYRUS COMMUNIS, common Pyrus, or Pear-tree. This tree is a native of Europe. There are many varieties of this delightful fruit, which should be cultivated wherever it will grow. The mountain counties have not given the care they should to the cultivation of this tree. The seedling plant grows well on the Alleghany, and the improved varieties would of course flourish equally well. Some fine pears have been produced on the range, and it is to be hoped the subject will receive more attention. PYRUS MALUS, Apple Pyrus, common apple-tree. This species is also a native of Europe. Pomologists have produced and described almost innumerable varieties of this wholesome fruit. It will grow every place in Pennsylvania, both mountain-tops and valleys ; but 24 278 THE MOUNTAIN. little attention has been given to this interesting department on the Alleghany. Some fine apples have been produced, and every variety and quality of that fruit can be grown there, after a time of accli- mation of buds and shoots. CYDONIA VULGARIS, Quince-tree. This well-known tree is a native of Southern Europe. It grows well on the Alleghany. PERSICA VULQARIS, common Peach-tree. This member of the almond family is a native of Persia. It does not find on the Alle- ghany Mountain a very genial clime. Persia and the Alleghany are widely-sundered habitats, but as that mountain has a vital con- nection with the whole globe it must necessarily unite with Persia on some issue of fate and nature. The peach, it seems, is this happy bond, not to mention other equally interesting radicles of associa- tion ! ! ! The juices of the fruit, as grown on the mountain, are not exactly Persian, or even Jersey-an in their deliciousness of flavor, nevertheless, it produces a peach of respectable dimension, and decidedly agreeable character. It requires constant watching and renewing by planting, as the frost frequently kills it entirely to the ground. ARMENIACA VULGARIS, Apricot. This delicious fruit is a native of Armenia. Very little attention is given to its cultivation in the mountain region of Pennsylvania, and on the Alleghany none. PRUNUS DOMESTICA, common plum, Gage or Damascene. The cul- tivated plums are natives of Europe.* Several of the varieties might be cultivated here with success, if attention were given to them. Those that have been tried grow well. CERASUS, or Cherry genus. Professor de Candolle distributes the commonly cultivated cherry into four species ; Dr. Darlington and others into two. These are the Prunus (cerasus) avium, English, or heart cherry, (sweet;) and the Prunus cerasus (vulgaris,) sour red cherry, or Morello cherry. The heart cherry grows well on the Alle- ghany, and with a special luxuriance in the red shales of the eastern base and slope of the mountain. The Morello cherry also grows finely, the whole cherry family seeming to have the most friendly relations to the mountain. f KIBES. The current family are produced in quantities on the mountain. These are the Ribes Uva-crispa, or gooseberry, (Europe,) the Ribes rubrum, or red currant, (Europe, )J and Ribes nigrum, or black currant, (also Europe.) Like the native species of Ribes, the introduced species seem to flourish as if at home. * Prunus domestica, L., the cultivated plum, is now deemed by the best botanists to have sprung from the sloe. Cray's Manual, p. 113. f See wild cherry, or Serasus Serotina. now Prunus Serotina, p. 220. % Gray recites a " rubrum" which is found in New Hampshire as identical. FLORA OF TIIE*MOUNTAIN. . 279 ESCULENT VEGETABLES. Of the introduced esculent, garden, or kitchen vegetables, the mountain produces nearly all the ordinarily cultivated species and varieties. The season for growing pot-herbs, or edible plants, is short here, and also late, as the frosts of spring and fall come close together. They almost all, however, grow profusely with any care, and many varieties assume proportions which the same plant rarely attains in the lowlands. Between the valleys of the eastern and western parts of the Slate and the mountain heights, knobs, and table-lands, there is a difference in the time of growth and perfection of garden vegetables (this difference applying more or less to the whole vegetable world) of from two to four weeks. The results of forcing plants, as achieved in the east and west by hot- beds, hot-houses, and protected sites, is not considered in this gene- ral statement. By the use of artificial appliances, hot-beds, hot- houses, and the selection of sheltered situations in the mountain vegetables could be brought very much earlier to perfection, and grown there with the finest qualities and proportions. This sub- ject will receive more attention, in certain parts of the mountain, soon, and extensive experiments will be made. At the present time the farmers of that district have only small patches of a few yards in extent for kitchen-gardens, and cultivate only such plants as will grow without much care. The amount of vegetables produc.ed in many of these little gardens is quite extra- ordinary, and shows that the mountain's climate and soil, with any industry, are very favorable and friendly to the class of edible plants. One point of advantage possessed by this region is, that when the staple products of the garden have passed their season, and are withered and dried in the valleys and lowlands east and west, the mountain has them green and fresh, and in the highest perfection. The following vegetables grow well on the mountain : BRASS ICA OLERACEA, Cabbage. This is a native of Europe, and thrives here with several of its varieties or sub-species. These are the "acephala," or tree-cabbage, (leaves not forming heads,) the "bullata," or savoy cabbage, with finely crisped leaves, and the "capitata," or York cabbage, with dense head. The variety Caulo- rapa, (Kohl-Rabi,) bulked-stalked cabbage, grows finely, also variety " cauliflora." The BRASSICA RAPA, sub-species "depressa," or common turnip, grows well also. 280 THE MOUNTAIN. RAPHANUS SATIVUS, Garden Radish. This plant, a native of China, is hardy, and grows almost every place. There are several varieties or sub-species, as "radicula," "rotunda," "turnip radish," oblonga, common radish, also varieties of the "niger." HIBISCUS ESCULENTUS, Okra. This plant will grow here, but has not been cultivated much. It is a native of India. PISUM SATIVUM, Garden Pea, and its varieties, are produced in abundance. PHASEOLUS VULGAKIS, String Bean, common pole-bean, and Lu- nata or Lima Bean, grow well, but the latter will scarcely ripen on account of the shortness of the season. The APIUM GRAVEOLENS, Celery, PETROSELINUM SATIVUM, Parsley, CARUM and FCENICULUM, Caraway, and FENNEL, as already remarked in the catalogue, grow well. The DAUCUS CAROTA, Garden Car- rot, variety Sativa, and PASTINACA SATIVA, Garden Parsnip, also Umbelliferous plants, nourish equally well. CUCUMIS SATIVUS, Common Cucumber. This plant is a native of Asia. It grows well, but the CUCUMIS MELO, Musk Melon, will not ripen on the mountain. CUCURBITA PEPO, Pumpkin; varieties do well, also the CUCURBITA MELOPEPO and VERRUCOSA. TRAGOPOGON, Oyster Plant, grows well. LACTUCA SATIVA, Common Lettuce, Salad, a native of India, and HELIANTHUS TUBEROSUS, Jerusalem Artichoke, a Brazilian plant, also flourish. The BETA VULGARIS, Common Garden Beet, has several varieties, all of which, including the Mangel-wurzel, cultivated for cattle, grow well. SPINACIA OLERACE.E, Spinach, and ASPARAGUS OFFICINALIS, As- paragus, (from Europe,) grow well. ALLIUM. Several onions are easily produced, as ALLIUM CEPA, Garden Onion, PORIUM, Garden Leek, SATIVUM, Garlick, and SCCENO- PRASUM, or Chives. The LTCOPERSICUM ESCULENTUM, or Tomato, grows well, but the seasons are too short to produce or ripen the fruit without a hot- house to develop the plants largely before planting out. The SOLANUM MELONGENUM, or Egg Plant, might be cultivated if the same care were taken. The SOLANUM TUBEROSUM, or Common Potato, is particularly adapted to the soil of the mountain. RHEUM RHAPONTICUM, or Pie Rhubarb. This plant, a native of Scythia, grows luxuriantly. FAUNA; OE, ANIMAL LIFE OF THE MOUNTAIN. 24* "THE Animal Kingdom is only a dismemberment of the highest animal, i.e. of man." OKEN. "Few views of the relations existing in the organic world have received so much approbation as this : that the higher animal forms, in the several stages of development of the individual, from the be- ginning of its existence to its complete formation, correspond to the permanent forms in the animal series, and that the development of the several animals follows the same laws as those of the entire ani- mal series ; that, consequently, the more highly organized animal, in its individual development passes in all that is essential through the stages that are permanent below it, so that the periodical differences of the individual may be reduced to the differences of the permanent animal forms. The different animal forms do not present one uni- serial development, from the monad up to man." K. E. VON BAEB. "All these divisions blend into each other at their confines, and form a circle In this manner we proceed, beginning with the higher groups, and descending to the lower, until at length we descend to the genera, properly so called, and reach, at last, the species ; every group, whether large or small, forming a circle of its own. Thus, there are circles within circles, wheels within wheels, an infinite number of complicated relations ; but all regulated by one simple and uniform principle, that is, the circularity of every group." McLEAY. 282 "The attempt at representing graphically the complicated rela- tions which exist among animals has, however, had one good result : it has checked, more and more, the confidence in the uniserial ar- rangement of animals, and led to the construction of many valuable maps exhibiting the multifarious relations which natural groups, of any rank, bear to one another." AGASSIZ on MCLEAT. "Let it, therefore, never be supposed, that because one genus, or one family, is placed before another, we consider it more perfect or superior to the others in the system of beings. He alone could build up such a pretension, who would attempt to place animal nature on a single line ; such a project we have long since renounced as one of the most false that can be entertained in natural history. We should, on the contrary, consider each being, each group of beings, in itself and in the character it sustains by its properties and organization, and abstract none of its relations or connections with other beings, whether they be near or remote." HAMILTON SMITH on BAKON CUVIER. 283 "We are, indeed, free to admit that Swedenborg's tools have been handled and improved since his own time. The law of series, to which he attributed so much, has been set in a new light, and made into a machine of tenfold power, by Charles Fourier; and analogy has been only too prolific in the hands of the German Oken. The latter, we may remark, is all analogy, with no roots. The day of railroads has been preceded by railroads in thought, with all the excesses and expenses of their material types, and these mental iron- ways are the analogies between different provinces of nature, where- by sciences, incommunicable hitherto as Japan or China, are now running into each other for mere lust of travel." WILKINSON on FOURIER, OKEN, and SWEDENBORG. "Control your language or your language will control you." WASHINGTON MCCARTNEY on ROBERT SMITH. 284 "Now that the current is setting so strongly against everything which recalls the German physiophilosophers and their doings, and it has become fashionable to speak ill of them, it is an imperative duty for the impartial reviewer of the history of science to show how great and how beneficial the influence of Oken has been upon the progress of science in general and of Zoology in particular. It is, moreover, easier, while borrowing his ideas, to sneer at his style and his nomenclature than to discover the true meaning of what is left unexplained in his mostly paradoxical, sententious, or aphoristical expressions; but the man who has changed the whole method of illustrating comparative Osteology ; who has carefully investigated the embryology of the higher animals, at a time when few physio- logists were paying any attention to the subject; who has classified the three kingdoms of nature upon principles wholly his own ; who has perceived thousands of homologies and analogies among or- ganized beings entirely overlooked before; who has published an extensive treatise of natural history, containing a condensed account of all that was known at the time of its publication : who has con- ducted for twenty-five years the most extensive and most complete periodical review of the natural sciences ever published, in which every discovery made during a quarter of a century is faithfully re- corded ; the man who inspired every student with an ardent love for science, and with admiration for his teacher, that man will never be forgotten, nor can the services he has rendered to science be over- looked, so long as thinking is connected with investigation." AGASSIZ on OKEN. 285 " No animal, excepting man, inhabits every part of the surface of the earth. Each great geographical or climatal region is occupied by some species not found elsewhere ; and each animal dwells within certain limits, beyond which it does not range while left to its natural freedom, and within which it always inclines to return, when removed by accident or design. Man alone is a cosmopolite. His domain is the whole earth. For him, and with a view to him, it was created. His right to it is based upon his organization and his relation to Nature, and is maintained by his intelligence and the perfectibility of his social condition. "A group of animals which inhabits any particular region, em- bracing all the species, both aquatic and terrestrial, is called its Fauna ; in the same manner as the plants of a country are called its Flora. " There is an evident relation between the fauna of any locality and its temperature, although, as we shall hereafter see, similar climates are not always inhabited by similar animals. Hence, the faunas of the two hemispheres have been distributed into three principal divisions, namely, the arctic, the temperate, and the tropi- cal faunas ; in the same manner as we have arctic, temperate, and tropical floras. Hence, also, animals dwelling at high elevations upon mountains, where the temperature is much reduced, resemble the animals of colder latitudes rather than those of the surrounding plains." AGASSIZ and GOULD. 286 "The Rocky Mountains, rising through the level of vegetable barrenness to that of perpetual snow, are, at their highest eleva- tions, unsuitable to the existence and support of animal life ; and constitute a barrier impenetrable to nearly every class of animals. The country westward of those mountains is therefore separated, zoologically as well as geographically, from that eastward of them ; the species common in the more eastern divisions are there replaced by other and different forms ; and it is thus a distinct zoological region. "The Apalachian ranges, on the other hand, of moderate eleva- tion, covered for the most part to their summits with forests, and presenting no limit to the support of animal life, are easily pene- trated at many points through their defiles, and present but few obstacles to the extension of species. They constitute NO zoological barrier to the land mollusks, although they do to some other animals; and if, owing to their altitude and consequent diminution of tem- perature, individuals are less numerous on their summits than in the valleys, this effect is climatic alone." AMOS BINNET, Terrestrial Air-Breathing Mollusks of the United States, vol. i. p. 106. 28T CHAPTER Y. FAUNA OF THE MOUNTAIN, THE animal life of the mountains of Pennsylvania is em- braced within the division of temperate faunas of the globe, or that portion of the surface of the planet included be- tween the arctic and tropical parallels. The forms of this fauna are not much diversified, and present a medium va- riety between the region north of the tree limit or isothermal zero, the line of perpetual ground-frost, and the tropical zone of plants and animals. Extending from the vast desolate plains surrendered to the tyranny of the frost-power to the region of the sun's fires, with its arid extents of sand-deserts, this temperate region presents an interesting series of animal structures. A transition from the dreary monotony of one belt to the brilliant diversity of the other, the temperate regions are the theatre of life-manifestations, free from ex- cessive contrasts, the intensation of the action of pure physical forces, and the absolute despotism of the laws of matter, as shown by the multitudinous, eccentric, and pecu- liar forms of plant, bird, quadruped, fish, and reptile of the equatorial regions, and the excessive but somewhat mono- tonous animality of the maritime fauna of the arctic world. The predominance of the plain and useful types of the temperate region, as shown in the large, quiet mammals, the ox, the bison, the deer, the horse, the hog, the tribes that follow the bread cereals, must strike the most un- observant when contrasted with the enormous reptiles, the 288 MAN. 289 groups of quadrumana or monkeys, felines or cats, in the shape of tigers and lions, pachyderms, as elephants, hippopotami, and tapirs of the equatorial belts, or with the peculiar forms of the Arctic, as the Esquimaux man, with the reindeer and northern fox, or the vast whales, walruses, and seals of the frozen seas of polar spaces. It need scarcely be observed, that the great representative of all the kingdoms and of all the zones and- habitats of Nature, man himself, shows, in the temperate region, the supreme perfection of his organiza- tion, and the fullest development of his power as a physical, moral, and intellectual being, having attained in this golden mean of existence a shadowy approach to the ideal splendor of his destiny, free from the enervating and sensualizing flames of the tropics, and the deadening and paralyzing frosts of the Arctic circles. As already remarked, the moun- tain ranges of Pennsylvania are within this highly favored portion of the earth's surface, and its fauna has thus the com- mon characteristics of that region of Divine perfections. An extensive recitation of the natural history of its in- digenous races cannot be attempted, however interesting and valuable such a chapter might be, not only to the lover of nature, but to the student of the economical significance of things. A thorough exploration of this enchanted realm may be reserved for a future effort, to be elaborated in detail for its own attraction. FIRST GREAT DIVISION OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. CLASS I. MAMMALIA. ORDER BIMANA, (Man.) The original or indigenous man, as the head of this order, has disappeared some time since. In the scientific distribution of the races he belongs to a type somewhat down in the scale of classification of the varieties of man, and is included in the family of " American mongolidas." Of this type he is an evanescent and infirmly rooted race, 25 290 THE MOUNTAIN. peculiar in his instincts and habitudes, not juvenile but apparently senile, showing the tendency of some of his co- temporaries of the lower animal world to vanish from the earth ; unallied to other races, unprolific, unfitted to civili- zation and progress, he seems like the deer and the beaver, the elk and the wolf, destined to extermination. He has left scarcely any traces of himself in the mountains of Penn- sylvania, or any record that he has ever been there. The Indian graveyards, somewhat numerous in the valleys of the State, that are now rich agricultural districts, are scarcely met with on the mountain ranges at all. Perhaps these valleys were better original hunting-grounds, and more thickly peopled by the red man and the animals upon which he fed, which accounts for the greater number of relics of him being left in those localities than elsewhere. His pre- sent successor is a different order of man, coming from the mixed varieties of another style of immortals, the now domi- nant Anglo-American race becoming prominent in history for its energy, sharpness, lawlessness, go-a-headism, and general diabolism, He is the issue of numberless fusions or crosses of diver- sified varieties of the great typical Caucasian form, the pre- dominating mixture being that of Teutone and Celt. In the range of mountainous counties there is a variety in this mix- ture. In the southwestern part of the chain in the State of Pennsylvania there is a preponderance of the Teutonic ele- ment. The middle portion of the range shows an excess of Celt. The northeastern continuation brings in again the Teu- tone as the prevailing variety. A critical observation of the results brought about by human efforts in the reclamation of these mountain ranges from the dominion of savage nature, will discover the characteristic features of each variety, as revealed by the condition of the surface : roads and fields, ditches and fence-rows, houses and churches, bridges and barns, and demonstrate the prevailing material and spiritual forces at work in the industrial operations of those regions. As the mountains reveal an excess of the mineral ele- MONKEYS. 291 ments which form the deserts of the world, the great sand or silicious formations, the true skeleton material of the globe, and show smaller quantities of pulverulent slates, shales, and limestone, it follows that the soil is not so promising or inviting to the Teutone, with his instincts for growing wheat and Indian-corn. This would not deter the more reckless, romantic, erratic, and unthrifty Celt, with his native affinities for adventures, improvidence, hostility to cul- ture, clannish habitudes and gregarious instincts. These ele- ments have so impressed certain of the mountain counties as to be easily discoverable to the most careless observer. It is in these mountain regions, however, that some of the most perfectly developed specimens of men have been pro- duced, Herculean in form and strength, and who have lived, or are living, to be near a century old, and have shown cha- racters as manly and noble as their physical frames. . MOXKEYS. ORDER QUADRUMANA. Descending from man, as the great prince of mammals, the next order of creation is the quadrumana or monkeys. There are no indigenous monkeys on the Alleghany Moun- tain in Pennsylvania, but quite a number of animals bearing so strong a resemblance to that order that it might be em- barrassing to the future naturalist to include them in that order, and at the same time omit to mention the fact that they are generally supposed to belong to the order Bimana, genus Homo, or Man. Of the numerous order quadrumana, as described by Martin in his great work on "Man and Monkeys," the genus of anthropoid apes, to which this ani- mal is allied, is either the Pithecus satyrus (orang,) the Hylobates leucogenys (Gibbon,) or Troglodytes (chimpan- zee.) They have many points in common with the senii- terrestrial baboons, but their connection with the niam mams, or Ghilanes* is problematical, as they are of a differ- * For an account of this race, see the French traveler, C. L. du Couret's or Hadji-abd-el-Hained-Bay (as he called himself) 292 THE MOUNTAIN. ent color, and have rougher skins, and the caudal prolonga- tion of the vertebral column has been abraded by an obstinate indulgence in the sitting posture, the animal being given much to contemplation, and quietly beholding the flow of the river of time. The great predominance of the bones and muscles of the face, the protrusion and magnitude of the jaws, constituting the prognathous muzzle, or counte- nance which may be taken hold of, together with the ex- treme minuteness of the brain-box or skull, would point rather to the Hylobates. Its chief characteristics are love of potatoes and whisky, indolence and ease, being proverbi- ally improvident and disposed to let things alone, with the exception of an occasional affectionate surveillance of the neighboring hen-coops and sheep-pens.* BATS. FAMILY OF CHEIROPTERA, (Bats.) This is a peculiar group of animals, and one which would seem, at first sight, to belong to anything but the class of mammals. They are, however, in that class, and have not the organization of the bird. Their leathery wings are ex- pansions of the skin over the enormously elongated bones of the arm and fingers. Although in the order carnivora, some of the family are frugivorous, the others being in- sectivorous. Their habits of whirling through the air at twilight and night in pursuit of their insect prey, their description of a specimen lie saw in 1842, who was a slave of an Emir of Mecca, published in the Annual of Scientific Discovery for 1850, article Zoology, p. 318. Consult also the Lucubrations of the venerable Banks, of Indiana, on the influences which hold in arrested development the "unlettered" varieties of man. * The missionary who attempts to evangelize this "variety" ought to be provided with a goodly number of steel traps of sufficient strength to hold a bear ; also with a quantity of cat-o'-nine-tails, and commence the work of regeneration by a direct address, vigorously applied, to the skin of the back. BAT!?. 293 custom of long winter-sleeping; in caves, together with their singular and revolting forms, are familiar to all. There are a number of bats on the mountain. The venerable Le Conte, whose wonderful mind seems to have left no department of nature unexplored, has given the best descriptive catalogue of North American bats.* Of the fifteen species of the genus Yespertilio described by him, five are found on the Alle- ghanies in Pennsylvania. YESPERTILIO noveboracensis, (Linn.) This is a universally diffused and common member of the family. It is generally found about houses and other buildings, so that this bat is as familiar almost as the common rat. It is found from Canada to Florida, and numerous everywhere. YESPERTILIO cinereus, (Pal de B.) This is not so common a species here. " It is the largest of all the bats found in the United States," its length being six inches. YESPERTILIO fuscus, (Pal de B.) " This species is common in the Northern States." YESPERTILIO pulverulentus, (Tern.) " Inhabits from New York to Georgia." YESPERTILIO subulatus, (Say.) This is the common little brown bat, flapping about every place at night, even pur- suing its prey into houses. Where bats accumulate in caves for their winter lethargy their number is almost incredible. They seek the dry parts of the caverns, sticking to the walls and hanging in enormous bunches by their hooks to each other. They no doubt cling together for mutual comfort, thus preserving their natural temperature by contact with the furry and hairy covering of each other's bodies. These living, black, ghastly festoons, give quite an expression of infernalism to the caves in which they congregate ; and myriads thus collecting together and * See " Observations on the North American species of Bats," Pro- ceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, vol. vii. p. 431. 25* 294 THE MOUNTAIN. remaining in a torpid dozy state, fill the air of those caverns with a peculiar and offensive odor. The different species hybernate together. In the openings of the woods on the mountain during the summer, they are seen in numbers circling about in pursuit of their prey. They pass the day in the loose bark of, and hollows in, the trees. SHREWS. SUB-ORDER INSECTIVORA, (Family Soricidse.) Genus SOREX, (Linn.) Species Fimbripes, (Bach.) The fringed shrew is quoted by Baird* as being found on the Alleghany Mountain in Pennsylvania. The specimen referred to was sent by Professor Johnson to the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia. De Kay enumerates a list of several species of the genus Sorex, whose geographic range would include Pennsylvania. These are " Sorex de Kayi," to which he gives a range of "Atlantic States from Massachusetts to Yirginia," " Sorex brevicaudus," " Sorex parvus," "Sorex Carolinensis," (which he admits to be extremely doubtful,) and " Sorex Fosteri." The last named, or " Foster's shrew," is said to be found as far north as the sixty-seventh parallel, and was observed by Richardson where the thermometer descended to forty and fifty degrees below zero. It is an inhabitant of the moun- tain, and is the animal which makes tracks in the snow with a groove made by its tail between the foot-prints. It constructs tunnels through the snow on the surface of the ground, fre- quently several yards in length, which, when the snow is melted, remain icy tubes, curved and twisted in all direc- tions. An intrepid and hardy little Esquimaux, no intensity of cold prevents him from leaving his mark on every snow that falls. SOREX platyrhinus. Baird gives this species a Pennsyl- * Mammals of North America, by S. F. Baird, Smithsonian Insti- tute, Pacific report, vol. viii. MOLES. 295 vania range. Several of the shrews are inhabitants of the mountain. Genus BLARINA. Species Talpoides, (Sorex Talpoides, Gupper.) According to Baird, "this is the most abundant of North American shrews. For the present," he says, "I shall refer all the large shrews, with short tails, from the Atlantic States, to the Talpoides." He considers this shrew as identical perhaps with several species of Sorex referred to by authors, as De Kayi, brevicandus, Carolinensis, brachy sorex, etc. He gives it a range from Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Montreal to Columbus, Ohio, and west, also south to Georgia, and from "latitude 45'30 to 32-30; longitude 63-30 to 81-30." He also quotes the Blarina Cinerea, or ash-colored mole, as ranging geographically from South Pennsylvania to Florida. MOLES. Genus SCALOPS, (Cuvier.) Species Aquaticus. The common shrew mole has a wide range, said to be found from 50 north latitude to Carolina, and from the shores of the Atlantic to the Pacific. It is not abundant on the mountain, which may be accounted for by the roughness of the soil, stony and rugged surfaces not being favorable to its habits of life. It prefers to inhabit moist, loose earth occupied by multitudes of insects, worms, etc. It is a great annoyance to the gardener, turning up and tunneling his walks, and also (as is said) devouring the planted seeds. (?) Godman has made his biography an interesting chapter, in the Rambles of a Naturalist. SCALOPS Breweri. The hairy-tailed mole has a range from " Connecticut and New York to Cleveland, Ohio." Mr. John Cassin, the distinguished ornithologist, (who is also an accomplished naturalist in other departments of science,) observed this mole near the Chestnut Ridge, one of the western parallel ranges of the Alleghanies in West- moreland County. It is found in the table-land flats along streams, but not high upon the mountain. 296 THE MOUNTAIN. Genus CONDYLURA, (Illiger.) Species Cristata. The star-nosed mole is found in Pennsylvania, having a "range from Hudson's Bay to Virginia." D. K. It is an inhabit- ant of the mountain. CATS. ORDER RAPACIA, (Family FelidaB.) FELIS Maniculata, or domestic cat, abounds. FELIS Concolor, (Linn.,) panther, cougar, or northern catamount. The range of this powerful and beautiful feline is from "47 north latitude to 54 south." (?) It is still found in numbers in the wilderness part of the Alleghany range, in Pennsylvania. It is a very formidable animal, and the memories of the first inhabitants, many of whom survive, are full of thrilling adventures and incidents connected with their hunts of the panther, and close ungenial proximity with a forester for whom they entertained the most sincere hatred, and against whom they waged eternal war.* LYNX Rufus, (Felis Rufa, Temminck,) "Mountain cat," "American wild cat." This cat is found in considerable numbers on the Alleghanies. It has a wide range from the "Atlantic to the Pacific and from the waters of the Missis- sippi to the Gila river." * Felis Malta, (1. 0. S. M.) This species of cat is not abund- ant on the Alleghany. It is said to be a descendant of a regal and far-famed race, even the primeval pre-Adamite Cat of cats. The in- conceivably rapid propagation of this species in many places is one of the profoundest scientific problems of the hour, and seems to be a pei'petual and inscrutable mystery. Myriads are springing up in certain localities as if by some spontaneous and prolific teeming of the earth. Very little is known of their habits, except that their prowl- ings and caterwaulings are eminently nocturnal. They are said, by those who pretend to know something about them, to be like other felines, predatory, carnivorous, and somewhat diabolical ; but others who have observed their habits as closely as practicable, assert that where the soft foot of the "Maltese" falls, the celestial manna of charity is left, with the blessings of heavenly love. DOG FOX. 297 DOG. (Family Canidae.) CANIS Familiaris, domestic dog. Some thirty varieties of dog are said to be introduced. Of these the most com- mon are, Molossus, or bull-dog, Sagax, or hound, Avicularis, or pointer, Graius, or greyhound, several kinds, the Ex- trarius, or spaniel, the Aquaticus, or poodle, and the Danicus, or spotted carriage-dog. Most of these varieties are on the mountain, as man is generally accompanied by this domestic wolf wherever he goes. De Kay remarks : "Of those peculiar to North America, we find variety borealis, Esquimaux, lagopus, and terra-novae, Newfoundland, Canadensis, and novae- Caledoniae." CANIS Occidentalis, (Canis Lupus, Harlan,) variety Griseo-albus. This is the common gray wolf, the type of indigenous North American dogs, and has the range of the continent. A few still linger in the remote and deepest fastnesses of the Alleghanies, and indulge in their ancient love of mutton at the expense of the husbandman. As a victim of the hunt, he is still pursued with vindictive hatred by the new occupant of the soil. FOX. YULPES Fulvus, red fox. The common red fox is abundant on the mountain. He hides in inaccessible places, burrowing in caverns, rocks, hollow logs, and the darkest ravines. He is thus protected from his greatest enemy, man, as an object of diversion. The hound can still penetrate his retreats, but the horseman must arrest his pursuit in the rougher parts of the mountain. In other portions of the table-lands, or elevated valleys between the mountains, there is fine ground for fox-hunting. From the abundance of the red fox, he can be started at any time by hounds, and from his well-known habit of "circling" (as the hunters style the movement) about his native den or thicket, and running for a great length of time in circumscribed spaces, 298 THE MOUNTAIN. the richest and rarest sport may be enjoyed by those who love the excitement of that regal indulgence, the fox-hunt. The hunt being a " note in the gamut of ambition," and in- volving the extreme physical tension and culminating forces of four of the most wonderful animals of the earth, the man, the horse, the dog, and his brother the fox, has ever been the grand recreation of monarchs and princely men, and its achievements recorded as the true and only absolute criterion of the actual power of each. In this aspect, the "fox-hunt" ceases to be a vulgar and noisy nuisance, (as supposed by the ignorant and uninitiated !) engaging the lowest form of man and animal, and becomes a great dynamic revelation, involving the spiritual and physical capabilities of four of the highest organisms of the world. Dull must be the ear to which the voice of the hound in the freshness of the morning, with all nature flashing in the brilliancy of an autumn sunrise, is not music, and the " huntsman's horn," the " mellow, mellow horn," has nothing of that harmony which is the spirit and joy of life, existing in man as well as every object that surrounds him, and in another form " glitters in the wave, the rainbow, the light- ning, and the star." The red fox's range, Atlantic States to Missouri, Pennsylvania to Canada and south. YULPES Yirginianus, (Rich.) gray fox. This species does not abound, although it is found on the mountain. It is alleged by hunters that the gray and red fox will not inhabit the same woods, from some ancient spirit of antagonism. The probable cause is, that the gray fox, possessing neither the swiftness, wind, or lung, (foot and bottom, as the sports- men say !) nor the sharpness, cunning, and intellect of the red fox, leaves the field from a sense of inequality in compe- tition for game, notwithstanding De Kay's assertion that " it is bolder and more astute than the red fox." The light, swift, well-trained fox-hound will capture the gray fox often in an hour or two, while eight, twelve, or twenty-four agonizing hours of effort on the part of the best pack is required to fairly beat the red fox, ungorged and in MINKS OTTER SKUNK. 299 good condition, the surface being equally propitious to both dog and fox. Range of the gray fox, " Pennsylvania to the Southern States and from the Atlantic to the Pacific." MINK, WEASEL. (Family Mustelidse.) Genus PUTORIUS, (Cuvier.) Species Vison, (Syn. Mus- tela Yison, Linn.) The brown mink is a mischievous little animal, and quite abundant on the Alleghany. He is a fatal visitant of the hen-roost ; but is much esteemed for his fur. PUTORIUS Noveboracensis. Common weasel, white weasel, (Syn. Mustela erminea, Harlan.) Is occasionally seen on the Alleghany ; range, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois to Arkansas. OTTER. (Family LutridaB.) Genus LUTRA. Species Canadensis, common otter of Pennant, and Lutra Braziliensis of Harlan. The American otter has a range of North United States west to Rocky Mountains, or " from the Atlantic to the Pacific and from the Gulf of Mexico to the shores of the Arctic Sea." D. K. This sagacious and wary animal is occasionally found on the mountain, but is rare in Pennsylvania, and fast disappearing, on account of its valuable fur. From the shyness of its habits it is difficult to take ; sometimes, however, it is cap- tured when its foot-prints are discovered in the sands of the mountain streams. It feeds upon fish and aquatic animals. SKUNK. MEPHITIS Mephitica, skunk, pole-cat. This detestable creature is found on the mountain, but not abundant ; and being an offensive and ignominious thief, the less said about (in hearing of "ears polite" !) or done with him, the better. De Kay records the fact, that Dr. Wiley, of Black Island, 300 THE MOUNTAIN. "sraelled him twenty miles at sea." He also seems to regard him with considerable complacency, observing, "the flesh, when carefully prepared, is very sweet. A person in my neighborhood took nineteen from one burrow, and salted them down for family use during the winter."* The Alle- ghaniens in Pennsylvania do not seem to regard the pole- cat as a very great dainty; at least it is not found on the bills of fare of the hotels of that range. The skunk is generally regarded as the essence of all that is disgusting and abominable in nature, f The pole-cat is found all over the United States east of Missouri Plains and north of Texas. RACCOON. (Family Ursidae.) PKOCYON lotor, (Storr.) or common raccoon. This animal is found throughout the Apalachian range, in Pennsylvania. It abounds on the Alleghany, frequenting water courses and springs, hunting frogs, lizards, and fresh water shells. It is peculiar and interesting^ in its habits, and seems to have friendly feelings for man, enjoying much a visit to his grow- ing corn-fields, and being easily domesticated. Its flesh is esteemed a delicacy as an article of food in the wilder and more primitive regions, but like many other delicacies it re- quires a certain drill and conspiracy of circumstances to develop an appreciation of its qualities. Like the god Pan, the huntsman has a taste for the flesh of the woods, * New York Fauna, p. 30. f In the spiritual world there are men who assume the form of the skunk. These men on earth were skunkish men, that is, the loves or active principles within them were developed in the skunkish sphere, or in acts the odor of which for intensity of mean- ness, gave disgust forever to all manly men. "All that is deformed and foul in nature is already in the hells whose loves it effigies, and whose outward kingdom it is." % See note at end of catalogue of "Mammals." BEAR OPOSSUM. 301 and the vigor of digestion which comes from life in the forest, gives a sublime zest to anything, and thus the "coon," finely frosted and roasted, might, under certain cir- cumstances, for a moment abolish the nausea which comes with the thought (which it certainly inspires) of eating an animal so nearly human as the dog. * The coon night-hunt is among the established sports of the woods. Geographic range, from Massachusetts to Florida and west to Fort Kearny. BLACK BEAR. Of the UrsideB there is another representative, the Ursus Americanus, or black bear. This bear is frequently found in numbers on the Alleghanies, and in some portions of the more savage part of the range the species breeds. They sometimes migrate from one part of the mountain to an- other, directed in their journeyings by the instinct of self- preservation on the subject of food. The sport of taking this animal is greatly enjoyed by the huntsman, the danger of capture giving zest to the chase. The flesh is esteemed a great dainty by many persons, but its coarse fibre, bathed in grease of a peculiar flavor, must perpetually exclude it from the list of genuine luxuries, f The bear hybernates, passing three or four months in a state of torpidity ; range, United States generally. OPOSSUM. ORDER MARSTJPIATA, (Family Didelphidse. ) DIDELPHYS, (Linn.,) Yirginiana, opossum. This is a com- mon wild animal of Pennsylvania, and is found on the Alle- ghanies. Its habits are well known, and some of them peculiar. It is sometimes eaten, and considered a delicacy ; * " The coon's flesh, when young, is savory, not unlike pig, but in adults it is rank and disagreeable." De Kay. f " The flesh of the bear is savory, but rather luscious, and tastes not unlike pork," De Kay. 26 302 THE MOUNTAIN. abounding in grease, it is said by its lovers to possess a flavor strongly resembling a mixture of pig and rat, and is consequently one of the rarest combinations of sapors in- dulged in by omnivorous man. It is the only marsupial on the continent, and has a range from Southern United States to Hudson's River. SQUIRREL. ORDER RODENTIA, (Family Sciurida3.) SCIURTJS, species Cinereus, (Linn.) This is the large squirrel, called fox squirrel. It is not abundant, but some- times taken on the mountain. SCIURUS, (Gmelin.) Species Carolinensis, (Grodman.) This is the common gray and black squirrel. Possess- ing a geographic range of the whole United States to the Missouri River, it is of course on the mountain. This squirrel is very abundant during seasons when the mast of the mountain abounds. This abundance is sometimes in- creased to an enormous extent by immigration of large swarms from the districts where the supply of food has failed. It is a beautiful and interesting species. SCIURUS Hudsonius, (Pallas,) is the Chickaree Pine, or red squirrel of the woods. It has a range from Labrador (lat. 65) to Mississippi. This lively and noisy little squirrel has also quite a range of instincts and affinities. He lives in barns, deserted houses, and hollow trees, and is also found in the deepest and darkest forests, and in the most lonely and un- frequented places. He is familiar and almost impertinent, allowing a near approach, and assuming, with quick and jerking movements of body, all styles of fantastic atti- tudes sometimes sitting upright, with his tail over his back, in the crook of a pine limb, or hanging, head down- ward, by his hind claws ; again twirling spirally around the tree, or plunging fearlessly among its topmost boughs. GROUND-HOG. 303 During all this time there is kept up a perpetual chatter, and saucy querulous complaint. This characteristic bark and. rattle (a noise like the sound produced by a boy's small watchman's rattle) may be heard almost at any time during the daylight in the woods. He is a hardy, tireless, and self- sufficient little animal, full of fun, and, like all industrious busy persons, happy. He flashes about at all seasons, from midsummer to dead winter, leaving no nut untasted and no snow untracked. He has no disposition to hybernate, like the little striped squirrel of the ground, or even stay within doors, like the gray squirrel, in inclement weather. He is a special favorite of the woodsman, and his form and voice suggest perpetually pine groves and the beauties of the wilderness. PTEROMYS, (Cuv.) Sciurus Yolucella, (Gmelin.) Ptero- mys Yolucella, or flying squirrel. This curious little animal is found here. It has a range of the United States to the Mississippi River. It is not abundant, is shy, and found only in solitary places. TAMIAS, (Illiger.) Sciurus Striatus, (Linn.) Tamias striatus is the Chip Munk, or ground squirrel. This familiar little creature is found every place from Canada to Virginia and the Missouri River. Being earthy in his habits, and held by terrestrial affinities, like other proper earth animals, he hybernates, taking leave of absence during the deep win- ter months. He is a great favorite with children who fre- quent the woods and fields, his striped coat and lively motions being much admired. GROUND-HOG. ARCTOMYS, (Schreber.) Mus-monax, (Linn.) Arctomys monax, woodchuck, or ground-hog. Abundant ; range, Canada to Virginia and from Massachusetts to Wisconsin. He becomes very fat, is eaten, and said to be good, but sug- gests pup or cat to the imagination. 304 THE MOUNTAIN. BEAYER. CASTOR Fiber, (Linn.) Castor Canadensis, (Kuhl,) or American beaver. This animal is said still to be found in the wildest parts of the Alleghany in Pennsylvania. His history, habits, and the wisdom of his instincts are well known. He is fast disappearing. Original range, the con- tinent of North America. JACULUS. JACULUS, (Wagler.) Jaculus Hudsonius, or jumping mouse. This strange little animal is found from Nova Scotia, Labrador, to Southern Pennsylvania, and west to Pacific Ocean. MOUSE, RAT. Mus Musculus, common mouse. Range, every place on the continent. Introduced. Mus Decumanus, (Pallas,) or brown rat, has a continental range. It is an introduced species. Mus Rattus, or black rat, is found every place. Intro- duced. Arvicola Hirsutus and Arvicola Pennsylvanica have a Middle State range. "Hesperomys Leucopus, (Wagner,) white-footed mouse. Range, Nova Scotia and (Labrador) to Yirginia, and west to the Mississippi River. " Baird. "Hesperomys Nuttalia, red mouse. Range, Southern Pennsylvania to Georgia, and west to St. Louis." Idem. MUSK-RAT. FIBER, (Cuv.) Fiber Zibethicus, musk-rat. This rat has a continental range, and is said to increase in numbers as the country is improved, which is unlike the other fur tribes, which decrease with the advancement of man. It abounds. PORCUPINE RABBIT ELK. 305 PORCUPINE. (Family Hystricidee.) ERETHIZON, (Cuv.) Erethizon dorsatus, Hystrix Hud- sonius, Brisson, white-haired porcupine. This animal is found on the Alleghany. Its range is said, by Baird and Girard, to be Eastern United States to Mississippi River, and North Pennsylvania to Canada, (and 67 Rich.) RABBIT. (Family Leporidae.) LEPUS, (Linn.) Lepus Americanus, northern hare, or white rabbit, is said to range from Virginia to Labrador. It is found in the forests, laurel and rhododendron thickets, of the Alleghany in Pennsylvania. It is very shy, and rarely seen, from its vigilant habits and inaccessible retreats, although quite numerous in some places. Hunted with hounds it affords a rare and exciting sport, eluding the dogs like a "will-o'-the-wisp," and requiring sometimes hours to capture him. LEPUS Sylvaticus, (Bach.) The gray, or common rabbit, is found abundantly through all the States from Massa- chusetts to Texas and west to Missouri River. It abounds in numbers on the mountain where the red fox has been partially banished or exterminated. ELK. ORDER RUMINANTIA, (Family CervidaB.) CERVUS, (Linn.) Cervus Canadensis, American elk. The elk still lingers in the wildest recesses and fastnesses of Pennsylvania Alleghanies. Once abundant on this range, western table -lands, and valleys, it is now found only in the most inaccessible places. Occasionally perfect specimens are taken, but this splendid animal, one of the noblest of Ameri- 26* 306 THE MOUNTAIN. can mammals, is destined soon to disappear before advancing civilization, like the human representative or indigenous man of the continent. The huntsman may still hope, as he treads the mountain forests, to be startled by the presence of this superb king of stags. The range of the American elk is Northern United States to Upper Missouri, and west to the Pacific ; said also to extend to 51, north latitude, according to Richardson. DEER. CERVUS Yirginianus, Virginia, or common deer. This animal is still abundant on the Alleghanies, and said to have a range of the United States generally east of Missouri and north to Maine. Quantities of the flesh of the deer (veni- son) are sent from the Alleghanies to the cities of the State both east and west. OX. (Family Bovidae.) Bos, Bison, (Linn.) This native species has long disap- peared from the eastern side of the continent. Bos, Taurus, introduced. The common ox has many varieties, some of which are the most useful and interesting animals. The species is susceptible of extensive modifica- tion by careful cultivation ; and, as the constant friend of man, now almost necessary to his existence, this attention and cultivation seem a sure evidence of his progress. Whe- ther patiently bearing the yoke,* a helper in the field, as in * Although apparently the simplest and easiest of all operations, the driving and management of oxen perfectly is one of the most critical and triumphant of human achievements. They seem to think on the mountain, and they are right, that the real subduer of the ox must possess a special genius, or original influx of force in that direction. As no man, even with any amount or sum-total of ordi- nary human faculties, can be a poet, a painter, an orator, or a fisher- man, so certainly cannot any commonly endowed mortal become a driver of oxen. A special dodge of Fate is required to produce these ox. 307 the work ox, sacrificing his life for food and luxury, as in the fatted beef, or yielding daily tribute from the secretions of the blood in the shape of milk and cream, in the gentle, benefi- cent, and motherly cow, this great ruminant would appear results. A genius, a rage, a transcendent specialty of force in one sphere, is absolutely necessary. The thing must be born in a man. And then, is it not strange to reflect how rarely the great power is revealed, and how long the heavenly gift may remain without being discovered, even by the possessor himself? It would seem that the genius of occasion is also required to rouse the soul to recognition of itself. Poets have heard the echoes of the magic lyre, and been in- spired even in old age to sing immortal songs ; painters have caught the enchanting sheen, blind to its power through life, and touched the canvas with undying beauty ; and orators, whose youth had passed in silence, have startled a listening world with their elo- quence. So on the banks of the Kiskimineas, a foreordained fisher- man, who had never baited a hook or felt the nibble of a chub in all his life, was startled, at the age of eighty, into the discovery that he was a natural-born Waltonian priest, anointed from the beginning of all things, and with religious awe assumed the solemn functions of his calling, but died with the raptures of catching pike within sixty days of his ordination. Thus, also, was it that an ancient physician of the Alleghany Mountain, at an advanced age, accidentally dis- covered that his person was the residence of a beautiful but terrible demon, that he was in fact a poetically inspired, an enthusiastically inebriated ox driver. This strange passion, this wonderful power in a particular drift, had remained hidden deep down in the un- developed elements of his consciousness for long years, when a bright casualty revealed the faculty divine, and astonished himself and the world. Necessity, (maternal authoress of many things!) on an occasion, directed his attention to the subjugation (under-the- yoking) of two tremendous bulls. That accomplished, two others were added, and yet two others, until, grandly culminating, a team of eight horned monsters, dragging enormous logs, were guided with dexterity and ease through the labyrinths of an intricate forest. Thus, apparently accidental, his illumination came, and he discovered that an imperfectly developed country doctor, (who had committed violence against his organization bybeating the bars of his limita- tions in false directions, through a subversive torture, called regular education,} had been forced out of the mournful ruin of perverted elements of an original primordial king, whose indefeasible sceptre was the ox gad. 308 THE MOUNTAIN. to be one of "Heaven's best gifts to man." The mountain, with its good grass-growing surfaces, might produce the best varieties of cattle, but it is to be regretted that not much at- tention has been given to raising the finer stocks. This will apply to all the State, and it would certainly be of great advantage to the ambitious Pennsylvania agriculturist who imagines we are at the top of the ladder in all things, to visit, for instance, an annual fair of our sister State of Ohio. The common varieties alone are found on the moun- tain, which, however, sometimes produce milk-cows of ex- traordinary qualities. SHEEP. (Family Capridae.) Genus Ovis, (Linn.) Species Aries, common sheep. Few or none of the highly improved varieties of sheep are raised on the mountain. It is more favorable than any other part of the State to the growth of this domestic ani- mal, as has been stated in the chapter on soil and grasses. This is undoubtedly true with regard to both flesh and fleece. The common sheep is the only variety to which any attention has been given. It multiplies rapidly, and produces, as already remarked, a superior quality of mutton. A cross of the Southdown and common sheep is said, by an experi- enced shepherd,* to be the best animal to grow, both for wool and mutton, as it retains the hardiness of one, (the common,) and imparts the more delicately flavored fat and flesh-fibre of the other, (Southdown,) together with its finer * This allusion is to the renowned man-feeder, Robert Harmer, of Philadelphia. Mr. H. was formally an English shepherd, possessing great practical knowledge of the sheep, and much wisdom in the de- tails of breeding and management of that animal, Of the qualities of mutton there is not extant a better judge than Mr. H., as indeed of all other material used in the sublime art of cooking and feeding, (his new vocation,) since he left behind his dog and crook, and ceased "to watch his flocks by night, all seated on the ground." HOG JACKA.SS HORSE. 309 fleece. With some enterprise and attention, the mountain may become the mutton-growing region of the State. Will the mountaineers look at this subject a little ? HOG. PACHYDERMATA, (Family SuidaB.) Genus Sus. Species Scrofa, variety Domestica. Many varieties of the common hog exist, the most detestable of which is, perhaps, the mountain wood-hog. It is composed principally of bristles, gristles, legs, and snout,* producing indestructible pork, which is also destitute of lard. The form of the animal is that of a fish, with long legs, consti- tuting the true land-pike, to which no fence is impenetrable. A cross with the Berkshire and China modify the creature to a certain extent in his leading attributes, furnishing a pork that may be partially masticated by first-class natural grinders. This animal is undoubtedly a return (illustration of the fatal and eternal un alter ability of type) to the ori- ginal wild boar, Sus Scrofa. JACKASS. (Family Equidse.) Genus EQUUS, (Linn.) Species Asinus, Jackass. This is a native of the East, a hardy and useful animal, valuable for more purposes than the degradation of the horse by the production of monsters in the shape of mules. It thrives well on the mountain. HORSE. EQUUS Caballus, the horse. The present horse cultivated on the continent, as is well known, is not indigenous. It was long supposed that there was no American horse, and * This is a close connection of the Crawford County hog, a slab- sided brute, flat as a shingle, with large predominance of the above materials, particularly bristles and jaws, with the addition of an ex- cessively long, straight, characteristic tail. This is the variety well known to everybody as the hog which is prevented passing through fences by tying knots on his tail. 310 THE MOUNTAIN. never had been. There is no living native horse in America, the wild horse of the Southwest being the introduced European or Asiatic horse, which has run wild. Recent discoveries of Professor Leidy, through explorations of Messrs. Hayden and Holmes in the South and West, have brought to light a number of fossil horses belonging to the continent. They amount to five genera and seven species, cotemporary with the mastodon. When it is re- membered that all the different shaped horses which we see, from the Shetland pony, weighing three hundred pounds, to the massive Conestoga wagon-horse of a ton weight, and from the greyhound-shaped turf-horse, fleet as the wind, to the clumsy cob or lunk-head with globular car- cass, slow and unwieldy as a fatted hog, are all varieties of one species, E. caballus, the announcement will strike with surprise that there have been five different genera, and seven species of American horses. Many of them have been very peculiar animals, possessing interesting characters. For an account of fossil horses of America, see " Contributions to the Paleontology of North America," published through the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, by the distinguished comparative anatomist, Joseph Leidy. But few of the varieties, strains, or bloods of horses, have received any attention in the mountain districts of the State. This is to be deplored, as the commonest kinds of horses grown there have discovered remarkable qualities of action, speed, and endurance. This indifference, it must be ac- knowledged, however, characterizes the whole State of Penn- sylvania. Some of the Southern and Southwestern States have shown a laudable zeal in this department, and have produced horses possessing as noble qualities of the animal, in all vital and artistic points, as have been bred upon earth. Pennsylvania has never distinguished herself in this line, with the exception, perhaps, of having grown good draught- horses, and some fine trotters. Eminently utilitarian and common sense, the exclusive turf-horse has had but few HORSE. 311 patrons in that State, and the desperate fanciers of horses of special powers have not been numerous. Still the State can boast of many intelligent and spirited horsemen, not only as growers, breakers, and dealers, but men to whom the science of the horse, his varieties and functions, is a precious domain of knowledge. The general apathy and indifference to, and profound igno- rance of, this noble animal, from the blacksmith who carelessly nails a rim of iron around his wonderfully organized hoof,* crippling and deforming one of the most interesting vital mechanisms in the whole animal kingdom, to the quack farrier calling himself "veterinary surgeon," who maltreats and de- stroys him, having but one name (bots) for all his compli- cated catalogue of diseases ; or from the fool who drives him to death for want of knowledge of his capacity to destroy space and carry loads, to the Cockney who prostitutes his powers to uses never designed by Nature, and who murdersf him to gratify his pride or gambling lust, is a subject of sur- prise, and constitutes the lowest blunder and inappetency of the man and the hour. Let him reflect with earnestness and intelligence on the horse and his human associations, his significance and true meaning, his laws and his destiny, and he will no longer stand confused for his ignorance of, or con- demned for his crimes against him. To this splendid creature's majestic form, Nature seems to have affixed the high and distinguished marks of the per- fection of organic structures. Alone, in the style and gran- deur of his proportions, he stands the incarnation of the * See note at end of catalogue of "Mammals." f " The Mongolic nations eat horse-flesh. Wild horse meat, butchered for the market, is still sold daily in many parts of China." Hamilton Smith. Which is the most rational savage, Cockney or Mongole ? Mon- gole certainly, for he would give, no doubt, the excuse of the canni- bal for eating his grandmother, "she was very good.'" But the Cockney ! what has he to say why sentence of death shall not be pronounced upon him? Nothing; the verdict stands: "murder in the first degree." 312 THE MOUNTAIN. marriage of the soul of the dumb-brute forces of the uni- verse, with the shining and ethereal elements of grace and beauty. Almost human in his capacity of thought or do- cility and affection, his long-established companionship with man is no accident. The primitive huntsman,* with his bow and arrow, living by the spoils of the chase, or the wandering herdsman and shepherd, existing from the proceeds of their flocks, were feeble, impotent. The infant man developing the first phasis of his earthly career, seemed, by the limitations of his force as an animal, to be doomed to a state of per- petual childhood. When the happy idea arrived of sub- duing the horse to his uses, he had with that thought the key to an incomputable power. f The command "advance 1" was given, and the word Progress came into existence, and had significance. In this arm of strength he realized the meaning of the fable of the Centaur :{ his power to subdue * "With regard to mental qualifications, the nations of North America not having passed beyond the state of hunters, show, for want of the laboring ox and conquering horse, the characteristics of others in the same condition." Hamilton Smith. j- "It appears that the present Mongolia tribes were long igno- rant of the real use of the horse ; while, in the Arctic regions, the white wooly race of the Jakoutsk was not deemed serviceable except for food. "From the subaltaic Yuchi, who were the first rulers, they no doubt learned the art, and became conquerors, by the sole acquisi- tion which changes the relations of every people on earth accessible to this animal." Natural History of the Human Species, by Colonel Hamilton Smith. % "Cheiron was the wisest and justest of the Centaurs." (Horn. II., xi. 831.) "He was the instructor of Achilles, and had himself been instructed by Apollo and Artemis, and was renowned for his skill in hunting, medicine, music, gymnastics, and the art of pro- phecy." (Xen. Cyneg. ! !) "Cheiron is the noblest specimen of a combination of the human and animal forms in the ancient works of art ; for, while the Centaurs generally express the sensual and savage features of a man combined with the strength and swiftness of a horse, Cheiron, who possesses the latter likewise, combines with it a mild wisdom. He was represented on the Amyclsean throne of HORSB. 313 nature was multiplied by a miraculous implement, and the irresistible mythical monster, half horse half man, became the symbol of a disenthralled and advancing humanity.* The domesticated and educated horse, then, appears a standard achievement, his body a perfect concentration of the powers of the earth. Gentle, docile, and humble as a slave, his muscles have made the desert to blossom ; and the plow stands an everlasting record of man's escape from the horrors of barbarism, and his passage into the enjoyment of the blessings of civilization. "As in the art of poetry all arts have been blended, so in the art of war have all sciences and arts. The art of war is the highest and most exalted art ; the art of freedom and right, of the blessed condition of man and of humanity, the Principle of Peace." In this art of arts, in the grand achievements of this "Principle of Peace," the horse has been a primary instru- ment, f Gentle and loving as a pet and slave, he becomes Apollo, and on the chest of Cypselus." (Pausan, iii. 18.) "Some representations of him are still extant, in which young Achilles, or Erotes, is riding on his back." (Mus. Pio-Clement, i. 52.) * Thanks to Ixion and his magnesian mares ; many thanks to the "bull-killers of the mountains and forests of Thessaly;" thanks eternal to the cloud-begotten Centaurus, " hated by gods and men," for " benefactors shall be honored." f The worst doom of the horse is not his slaughter on the battle- field. Of the abuse and maltreatment of this invaluable domestic, too much animadversion cannot be expressed ; from his brutal op- pression for money in races against time and distance, his destruc- tion from abuse in the form of the hired hack, or the still more agonizing death by slow oozing of sweat (blood) from the jaded and worn-out body (rather tottering skeleton ! !) of the treadmill omnibus horse. The insane destruction of this noble animal is the vilest form, of lawless annihilation of value, and man, in his selfish perversion of the use, and diabolical abuse of him, is indirectly destroying himself. "Diomedes, the son of Ares and Gyrene, was king of the Bistones in Thrace, and was killed by Hercules on account of his mares, which he fed with human flesh." (Apollod. ii. 6, g 8.) The ninth 21 314 . THE MOUNTAIN. in the battle-field an object of terror. United as one with man, he "descends to the harvest of death;" terrible is his might, his "neck clothed with thunder." Imparting to his rider a demoniac force and aspect of grandeur, he too revels in the carnage, as if he had a taste for blood, and fed upon flesh, instead of being an innocent eater of herbs, building his tower of strength from the grass of the field. From the roar of the battle he quietly bows his proud neck and becomes a worker in the sod, and with the plow reproduces the blood "great and memorable action" or "labor" of Hercules was, "He overcame Diomedes, the most cruel tyrant, of Thrace, who fed his horses with the flesh of his guests. Hercules bound him, and threw him to be eaten by those horses to which the tyrant had exposed others." A lesson of wisdom this to profane and reckless handlers of the horse. "Is not each fast young man, With his costly span, A veriest tyrant Diomedan? Feeding his mares on human ham Spilling dollars as fast he can, And going to at 2.20, slam ! By the wrath of Hercules or the whisky ram, (dram?") Beware! if thou art born "seized" of a violent and wicked rage for horses, or mere lust of pleasure or gain in the horse, or fraudu- lent conquests through the horse, (glory of the turf!) thou art a King Diomedes, a "cruel tyrant of Thrace," and the revenge of the strong Hercules of justice and compensation shall surely be, that thou shalt be eaten up by thine own horses. (It is not distinctly stated that Diomedes ever swapped horses, or maintained at any one time a large number of stallions for the benefit of the farmers of Thrace, but certainly both issues are included in the gist of this Fable.)* * For the fate of horse-breeders in Pennsylvania, and the carelessness and in- gratitude of farmers toward agricultural benefactors, see Robert Smith's work, (" Earth Culture and its Consequences," chap, x., " The Draught Horse," p. 311,) for the history of the cost, profit, and loss, of his four stallions, " Governor," " Common Sense," " Boanerges," and " Hellgrimite." It appears from this disastrous experience, that if the husbandmen of Thrace allowed their horse-loving king to be devoured by his own stud, the fanners of a certain part of Pennsylvania were equally cruel, un- grateful, and wicked toward Smith, in his benevolent efforts to improve their stock. HORSE. 315 and life he has assisted his infuriated master to destroy. Administering to all his wants, his most coveted luxury, bearing him upon his imperial form in pursuit of pleasure, he is the companion of princely gentlemen ; destroying space on the wings of the wind in the ardor of the hunt, or, humble and subdued, he carries the mill boy with the widow's corn to be ground ; wise, good, and humanly work- ing, like a creature of reason and thought. Thus, from the king to the serf, he has become an inseparable friend of man. The romance of the Arab's love for him seems ideal and exaggerated, a story of the fancy only ; but every genial and spirited boy who has wearied of his rocking- horse, and dreams of the gallant steed he aspires to ride, knows it to be true and real. The perfected splendor of the whole animal world, his place in the system of uses demon- strates him to be an indispensable element in the progressive development* of the races of men ; and in his ancient alli- ance, through bonds of fraternal love, with the perpetually dominant tribes and nations, he has come at last to be endowed, in imagination and affection, almost with the transcendent faculties of a human being. * Of the horse, as a sanitary resource, or of horseback exercise as a therapeutic agent, in the cure of many obstinate forms of disease, see chapter Hygieia. The records of medicine show that a number of physicians have been earnest and enthusiastic on the subject of exercise on horseback as a remedy for many morbid conditions. Its power is undoubtedly very great in some conditions, and specifically assistant in many more. 316 THE MOUNTAIN. (SEE ANTE, p. 811, at *) The horse's foot is an interesting anatomical structure. In the domesticated state, this living, elastic mass, is used as a sledge-ham- mer for pulverizing rocks, that is, the hoof is driven over, and jammed against stony surfaces, impelled by the enormous momentum of from seven to eighteen hundred pounds (the range of weights of the animal in general use) in rapid motion. This living mallet (foot) is composed of bones, ligaments, blood-vessels, nerves, and a lami- nated elastic fibro-cartilaginous structure, (with anatomical cha- racters peculiar to the solipeds,) in the form of plates, or blades, which coalesce or dovetail with a similarly laminated extension of the horny elements of the hoof, uniting the last bone of the extremity with the hoof, which is also alive or full of nerves and blood-vessels to a point called the "quick," all being enveloped in a dead insensi- ble, but still elastic crust, the outer layer of the foot, to which free expansion is given by a spongy cushion or hinge called the frog, also destitute of sensibility, uniting the sides of the sole of the foot, or point of contact of the animal, with the earth. This body receives all the vibrations of the crust, and is the centre of all contractions and expansions of the hoof. To prevent the destruction of the whole mallet, it is faced with a rim of iron, as a hammer is rendered inde- structible by a facing of steel. The elasticity of the hoof destroyed, the foot becomes lame, and is finally useless. To the reflecting mind, then, the arming of the horses foot with iron is no longer a mere me- chanical nailing of a curved bar of metal on a stick of timber. The shoeing of the horse is an art, requiring scientific knowledge and great mechanical skill, scarcely ever possessed by the common smith. Hence the wholesale destruction of the hoof and constantly fatal damaging of that noble animal. BIRDS. 317 CLASS IL-AVES. OVIPAROUS YERTEBRATA, (Birds.) VISIONS of sentiment and beauty come with the bird, for his life is embalmed in aroma and love, thoughts of glad- ness gleam from his pinions, for his motions are like the "swift-winged arrows of light;" but his voice! the wild, sweet voice of the bird, that song, heard through far- away deeps as a sacred trance of the soul, and delicious revery of the heart, as the memory of other days, and the joys of youth, touches with emotions " that chain the spirit to the gates of Paradise." " Yet has each, soul an inborn feeling Impelling it to mount and soar away, When, lost in heaven's blue depths, the lark is pealing High overhead her airy lay ; When o'er the mountain pine's black shadow With outspread wing the eagle sweeps, And, steering on o'er lake and meadow, The crane his homeward journey keeps." Swift gliding harbingers of lovely dreams, these frag- ments of the perfection of the world, come, a sweet and touching mediation between the dumb, inarticulate, uncom- municating animal, and the high speaking consciousness of man. As creatures of beauty their suggestions are exhaust- less in artistic intimations, as instruments of the miracles of instinct, they open abysses unfathomable by human thought, and as organs of musical ecstasy they speak of "that which, in all this mortal life, we have not seen, and never shall see." "The bird is thoroughly, or out-and-out, organized as an animal of song. In it nature attains unto a definite hearing and speech. The bird speaketh the language of 27* 318 THE MOUNTAIN. nature. With the bird, the voice, properly speaking, breaks forth for the first time, and that, too, in a high grade of per- fection, as melody." In the bird, nature seems to have ultimated her first most delicate and elaborate form of sensuous existence. Whether we contemplate the furnishing of its structure by special styles of organic mechanisms, adapting its body to existence, and motion in a gaseous medium, and a life of ethereal sus- pensions, or the wisdom of its wonderful instincts, far tran- scending the deductions of reason, or the intuitions of the intellect in executing migrations almost circum-mundane in their extents, or other extraordinary endowments, as of love and fidelity almost human, or of music, beyond all imitations of science in depth and touching compass, the bird appears the sure and ineffable consummation and earnest fruitage, of the whole lower or purely animal do- main. "In the bird, also, all the spiritual or mental faculties make their appearance for the first time, and suddenly, whereas, in the preceding classes, (Reptiles, Fishes, etc.,) but slight traces of them are observed. Such, for example, are their mechanical instincts, varied modes of nidification, powers of imitation, susceptibility to instruction, knowledge of their benefactors, sentiment of joy, wheedling or coax- ing manners, and so on. We have no example of fishes and reptiles having learned any artificial tricks." (?) Surely human are these revelations, certainly detached and individual, as endowed with organic will, comes this wonder- ful being, elevated and ennobled by the enchanting elements and specific attributes of character. Hence the enthusiasm of its lovers ; hence the devotion and life-long faithfulness of its scientific votaries, and the deep absorption of the true student of ornithology. The names of zealous worshipers come with the voice of the bird and the murmur of the woods, and Wil- son, Audubon, Bonaparte, and Cassin, are aptly associated in the imagination with musical groves, and the lives and habitudes of the light-winged denizens of the air. Of the BIRDS. 319 economical relationships of birds to man, of their friendly associations with him, making bright and cheerful his sur- roundings, of their intelligent and curious habits, presenting ceaseless objects of study and observation, the works of the bird biographers are beautiful records ; stories redolent of picturesque solitudes and the enchantments of the grove. This interesting class of animals is found from the Equa- tor to the Poles. Their forms and plumage are as widely different and as wonderfully diversified as their habits and habitats. There are arctic, temperate, and tropical birds, and they all strikingly reveal the influence of the medium in which they exist. Arctic ornithology, like arctic mamma- logy, is peculiar in style and color, being generally white or light colored, aquatic birds abounding. The temperate birds have not much variety of color generally, but the tropical birds exhaust every pigment of the chemist and painter, and sport all colors, not only of the rainbow, but every undescribed and indescribable tint, metallic sheen, or hue. It is, like- wise, one of the most extensive classes of animals. Some conception of the immensity of this department may be ob- tained by a visit to the invaluable museum of the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia. Of this collection, Dr. Ruschenberger, in his clever notice of the academy, says " It has grown to be the most extensive and the very best in the world." In 1852 there were 27,000 specimens in this col- lection. Mr. Cassin now alleges that this number has been largely increased, and is constantly being added to from all quarters. He supposes there may now be in the academy 7500 distinct species, which constitute most of the known birds of the world. After a walk through the galleries of this magnificent collection, the brain is absolutely dizzy, and the mind stunned and confused by the infinite array of every imaginable style, form, and color of bird obtained from every point of the surface of the planet. The Alleghany Mountain being the highest line of knobs, or range of Alpine points, of the Appalachian chain, sepa- 320 THE MOUNTAIN. rates, as by a comb, the inclined planes of the East Missis- sippi Yalley and Atlantic slope. In their migrations north and south, following the brush of the sun, many birds journey through the interior valley, as their track of travel, but perhaps a larger number take the Atlantic side, finding in both these regions milder climate, and more food than the mountain crests afford. This applies both to land and water birds, but especially the latter. The larger aquatic birds having oceanic affinities, of course take the Atlantic side, while the birds that have lacustrine and river habits prefer the interior valley in their transits. These points are arranged by the harmonious economics on the question of food and comfort. The bird that breeds on the shores of Hudson's Bay and passes the winter on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, will make the journeys between these points over the route on which he finds the best "bed and board." The rivulets of the Mississippi and Atlantic running from the mountain form but few bodies of water on those heights, consequently, the aquatic birds avoid these ranges in their journeyings. This is also the case with the land birds that breed far north, and consequently, the Alleghany is not visited by as large a number of birds, both land and water, as the other lines of surfaces above designated. To the thoughtful observer, one of the most imposing ex- periences of the deep forests of this range, is their unbroken silence from the absence of animal life in every shape, particu- larly birds. Frequently, for great extents, a stillness as of the grave reigns ; no life, no motion, but a solemn and op- pressive calm broods over the wilderness. If there is no wind, which always gives motion and the semblance of life, from creaking branches and rustling leaves, a fragment of bark, a limb, or a tree falling, startles as if the spirit-world were invaded and the seclusion and quiet of death pro- faned. At certain seasons this cheerlessness and solitude is more striking than at others. This scarcity of birds is, no doubt, accounted for by the want of the variety of food HAWK. 321 required by the different species in these woods, especially throughout the extents of pine and hemlock forests. A number of birds of far northern migratory range are found during the winter on the mountain, and the traveling crowds stop here on their passage north and south, spring and fall. In these instances, the mountain is of course only "a tent of the night," the birds being strangers and visitors merely. The catalogue of the birds of the mountain will include some notice of constant visitors, but particularly those spe- cies that remain there during the breeding season, or that pass the summer there, building their nests as regular homes, producing their young, and thus establishing permanet citi- zenship by actual settlement. Many of the shy solitary spe- cies seem to prefer the mountain fastnesses for their lines of migration and permanent homes, and make glad the most savage places. They will be noticed in the hasty catalogue which follows, with something occasionally of their habits and peculiarities. As already observed, the mountain is visited by many birds that remain there during the summer, and breed there, some in the forests and glens, others in open and cultivated parts, while others seek the most rugged knobs and inaccessible spots. The following list comprises many of the most commonly observed birds of the range, either as migrating travelers or regular inhabitants. RAPACIOUS BIRDS. HAWKS. (Family Falconidas.) FALCO Columbarius, (Linn.) Pigeon hawk. This is a shy and wary little hawk, very wild, watchful, and rarely seen. Nuttall states that it has been met as far north as 48, " even extending its migrations as far as Hudson's Bay," although chiefly an inhabitant of the Southern States, and 322 THE MOUNTAIN. rearing its young there ; color, dusky-brown, breast whitish, with blackish stripes longitudinal. Not at all abundant FALCO Sparverius, (Linn.) American sparrow-hawk. This is a less hawk than the Columbarius, and is the smallest of his tribe. He is a beautiful little bird, with striking marks, and gallant bearing, and sometimes gets as far north as 53. Color, rufous, beneath nearly white, spotted with brown ; seven black curved spots around head ; wing covers slate-blue, etc. Prey, mice, small birds, lizards, etc. It is common. HALIAETUS Leucocephalus, (Linn.) Bald eagle. This beautiful eagle has an extremely wide range, and is some- times seen on the knobs and in the water gaps of the moun- tain. As his general prey is fish, he haunts the larger streams. He is occasionally seen soaring around the spurs near the gaps of the important water -courses. "Color, dark-brown, head and tail white, feet, bill, and cere yellow." This eagle is a regular pirate, his mode of capturing his booty being a subject of interest.* PANDION Halisetus, (Linn.) Fish-hawk. This splendid hawk is rare. A short distance from the slopes of the Alleghany, along the streams, he is sometimes found. He is a regular fisher, and has an extensive range. Color, " dark-brown, beneath white, feet and cere blue." He is a great favorite with some of the old ornithologists, who give him high qualities, and mark his life with sentiment and romance. He is the constant victim of the marauding pro- pensities of the bald eagle. 'BUTEO Borealis, (Gmel.) Red-tailed hawk, American buzzard. This beautiful bird is found over the whole United States. It is a bold and predatory species, often invading the barn-yard, but generally finding his prey in the woods, devouring squirrels, birds, and occasionally condescending to feed upon mice, moles, and frogs. Color, " dark-brown above, white, with dark spots beneath, tail reddish, with * He is the far-famed "American Eagle." HAWK. 323 black terminal bands." "One of the most common and easily recognized of the North American species." Cassin. ARCHIBUTEO Sancti-johannis. Black hawk, rough-legged buzzard. This bird is not often seen on the mountain. Mr. Cassin remarks, " This is one of the most abundant birds of this family in all the Atlantic States, and is one of the most variable in plumage." Color, black, with brownish mottling ; length, twenty-two to twenty-four inches. ACCIPITER Fuscus, (Gmel.) Sharp-shinned hawk, chicken- hawk. This courageous hawk has an extensive range. He is interesting for his daring and reckless valor, following his prey any place without fear. Feeds upon birds, poultry, and squirrels. " Color, dark-slate, beneath white, barred with reddish." Nutt. "Upper part dark brownish-black, tinged with ashy, occiput mixed with white." Cas. Length, twelve to fourteen inches. Cassin observes that this little hawk is one of the most common North American species. ACCIPITER Cooperii, (Bon.) Cooper's hawk. This fine species, according to Cassin, has for a habitat the "entire territory of the United States." It visits the mountain, but is rare. It is larger than the sharp-shinned hawk. " Color, upper part dark ashy-brown, shafts of feathers brownish- black, an obscure rufous collar on neck behind, beneath rufous and white, transversely barred ; length, female, eighteen to twenty inches ; male, sixteen to seventeen." Cas. The females of predatory birds are larger and finer looking than the males, reversing the order of things with many other classes of birds and animals, where the male sports all the ornamental additions to the species.* BTJTEO Lineatus, (Gmel.) Red-shouldered hawk, winter falcon. This is a noble-looking bird, " some twenty-two to twenty-four inches in length," Cas. He has not a far * "The first spiritual want of the barbarous man being decora- tion,'" does he take the hint from the streamer of the chicken-cock and mane of the stallion ? The last spiritual want of the civilized wo- man being also, and only decoration, does she take the hint from the superior plumage of the feminine eagle and hawk ? 324 THE MOUNTAIN. northern range, and is very abundant in the winter at the South. He is frequently seen on the tall pines along water-courses, watching for frogs and small animals. Color, "brown, beneath white, tail red, with bands." "An abund- ant and very difficult species to the student." Cas. CIRCUS Hudsonius, (Linn.) Hen-harrier. This bird has a far northern range, traveling from Hudson's Bay to the southern part of the United States. Its prey consists of frogs, lizards, and small birds. Color, " bluish-gray, female brown ;" length, twenty inches. It is sometimes seen along the streams and marshy places of the mountain. Many of these rapacious birds are fine noble-looking crea- tures, but the imagination in endowing them with magnani- mous qualities, or estimable characters, commits a blunder unwarrantable by a critical study of their true natures. An accomplished observer of the bird world, and withal a re- flecting and philosophical naturalist, with an eye to the law and spirit which speaks the meaning of the deep soul under- lying the outward phenomenal, remarks, " It is, however, entirely erroneous to attribute a noble or generous character to any of the predatory animals, though from an early period of history several species have been so regarded. On the contrary, there is, in all these classes, whether of birds or of other animals, a marked absence of the very traits which are in some measure assigned to them, and even more unmis- takably so in some of the more celebrated, as the eagles and lions, than in the more humble species. They appear to personate a principle, if we may be allowed to use the ex- pression, involving one of the most momentous and mys- terious of problems, the existence of evil in the world. The prowling and treacherous lion, and the robber wolf, have unfortunately but too strong analogies in that race which is the head of the visible creation, and they and their kind everywhere present the same intrinsic meanness which is characteristic of violence and injustice, of vice and of crime among men." Cassin, Birds of America, p. 159. OWL. 325 OWLS. (Family Strigidse.) Nocturnal birds of prey. These are the cats of the bird tribe. Their whole structure is arranged for preying at night, ears to hear the cricket and mouse chirp, or bug un- der the leaf; eyes to see their minutest prey in the darkness; and soft downy feathers to glide like spectres in silence. There are but few species on the mountain. SCOPS Asio, (Linn.) Red owl. This is the little screech- owl found, according to Nuttall, from Greenland to Florida. It is friendly and familiar, approaching houses and sitting on apple-trees and bushes almost in contact with the dwell- ing. He preys only at night, feeding on mice and small birds, even beetles and moths. " Color, brown, ash, and rusty-red, mixed with black ; length, ten to eleven inches." Nuttall. BUBO Yirginianus, (Gm.) Great horned or cat owl. This large night-bird, "king of the nocturnal tribe of American birds, "is found on the mountain. His startling hoot, or strange and melancholy boo-heo, is heard at night in almost every wood of any extent, and being loud and sonorous, it is audible at a great distance. He is found from Hudson's Bay to Florida. Color, mixed, brownish and black ; he is twenty inches long. Prey, young rabbits, birds, squirrels, mice, etc. In a dark, silent night, nothing can be more ominous and unearthly than the notes of this gloomy bird. Mr. Cassin has described four varieties, showing quite a difference of plumage in the species, which has given rise to much trouble among ornithologists. OTUS Wilsonianus, (Lesson.) Long-eared owl. Nuttall represents this bird as " almost a denizen of the world, being found from Hudson's Bay to the West Indies, throughout Europe, in Africa, Asia, and China." Color, "mottled black and brown, ear-tufts long ; length, fourteen inches." Nuttall. Barely seen on the mountain. Cassin says, " This 28 326 THE MOUNTAIN. is one of the commonest species of owls in the Northern and Eastern States on the Atlantic." SYRNIUM Nebulosum, (Foster.) Barred owl. This owl has a continental range. Color, " grayish-brown, with trans- verse whitish spots, beneath whitish, with longitudinal spots of brown." Nut. Length, sixteen to twenty inches. This owl is sometimes seen in numbers on the mountain. OTUS Brachyotus, (Foster.) Short-eared owl. This is a northern bird, breeding at Hudson's Bay, where it goes in May. Between September and May it sometimes visits the mountain. Color, ochreous, blackish-brown spots ; length, thirteen to fifteen inches ; feeds on mice, and is a daring and courageous bird. STRIX Pratincola, (Linn.) White, or barn owl. This species, although a cosmopolite, is but rarely seen on the Alleghany. Color, "yellowish, with darkish zigzag lines, small spots of white, beneath whitish." Nut. Length, four- teen inches. This is the unhappy representative of his family so "hooted at," maligned, and bedeviled by superstitious poets and the small singing birds that he eats.* He devours mice, birds, rats, and moles, and, like the rest of his wise brotherhood, says very little, as all fellows do who have very little to say, and of consequence is reckoned very knowing and sharp by common consent. He is a poor prophet, and consequently, as a bird of either good or evil omen, is a hum- bug. Mice and rats he is after, but has not time to appear as herald of the angel of death, except at the death of his own victims. OMNIVOROUS BIRDS. LARK. STURNTJS Ludovicianus. This is the American meadow lark, and is a common bird, being found wherever the sur- * When the owl appears in daylight he is attacked by the whole crowd of the birds of the wood in concert, and most villainously maltreated by all. ROBIN ORIOLE BLACKBIRD. 327 face is cleared into fields, but having a special love for meadows. He is a summer visitor, although the snows sometimes catch him. Nuttall remarks, " Wilson even ob- served them in the month of February, during a deep snow among the heights of the Alleghanies, gleaning their scanty pittance on the road in company with the small snowbird." This is not unusual. He is familiar to all, is a beautiful bird, and has always been much admired for his thrilling notes, which he utters on the wing. ICTERUS Baltimore, golden robin, or hanging bird, passes its summers on the Alleghanies, and breeds there, but is not very abundant. He is seen occasionally in the forests, but seems to prefer a nearer approach to the residence of man. His bright and beautiful form, however, flashes through the denser woods, the golden sheen of his brilliant plumage startling the eye of the traveler. He is well known to all, and his melodious notes hailed as a voice of the spring. His pensile nest, .woven out of stolen thread, flax, hair, and feathers, and hanging like a bag from some pendent branch, is one of the most interesting objects in nature. His bio- graphers ecstasize over him, being seduced by his beauty and intelligence, and captivated by his song. He possesses powers of mimicking quite remarkable. ICTERUS Spurius, (Bon.) Orchard oriole. This is a much plainer species, and not so large as the golden robin. It comes to the mountain during the first part of May. This species has many of the interesting elements of character which mark the Baltimore oriole : the same deep bag-nest, same social instincts, etc. Of this bird, Nuttall remarks, " It appears to affect the elevated and airy regions of the Alleghany Mountains, where it is much more numerous than the Baltimore-" This will not apply to the Pennsylvania Alleghanies, where the other oriole is much more numerous certainly. ICTERUS Phoeniceus, (Daud.) The red-winged blackbird is a very common species of the genus. This oriole is found on the mountains, in every swamp and meadow, 328 THE MOUNTAIN. and the summer is made noisy by him wherever the surface is cleared of forests, and there is water, bushes, and tall grass. It is a familiar and much-admired bird, inhabiting North America from Nova Scotia to Mexico. They travel north with the purple grakle, ferruginous blackbird, and cowbird, in the latter part of April, leaving for the south in November. ICTERUS Icterocephalus, yellow-headed troopial. In cha- racter and habits much like the red-winged blackbird. This bird, Nuttall says, " ranges from Cayenne to Missouri, and is wholly confined to the west side of Mississippi, beyond which not even a straggler has yet been seen." A flock of this species appeared on the western side of the mountain in the fall of 1857, notwithstanding the statement of the illustrious Nuttall. On the eastern side of the mountain its appearance has been noticed but rarely. We must, conse- quently, catalogue the yellow-headed troopial as an occa- sional visitor of the mountain. ICTERUS Pecoris, (Temm.) This is the cow troopial, and is seen often here, but not in large numbers. In its migra- tions it takes the range of the valleys parallel to the moun- tain. It does not breed here, but passes along on his journey, being found accidentally with other birds in migra- tory troops. A thief and scavenger, parasite and outlaw, even as a traveler he cannot be concealed, but sneaks about the fields, sometimes approaching barns, and indulging in his fancy to associate with cattle. BIRDS RELATED TO THE CROWS. QUISCALUS Yersicolor. This is the common crow black- bird, an inhabitant of the whole continent. He is found here in his usual abundance as a regular resident, and in crowds or migrating parties as a visitor, fall and spring. He is a noisy and troublesome bird, and here, like every place else, is one of the commonest birds. It breeds from Nova Scotia to Louisiana. QUISCALUS Ferrugineus, occasionally stops for a time on CROW. 329 the mountains, in its hurried migrations, but does not breed here, and is rarely seen at all except en route for the north, where it nests and establishes "civic relationships." TRUE CROWS. CORVUS Corax, is the raven. It is not an abundant species, but its gaunt, ugly, black form may occasionally be seen perched on a tall hemlock, or his discordant croak heard, as he heavily wades his way through the air. In all regions a bird of ill omen, he is the special aversion of many " on ac- count of his indiscriminate voracity, sombre livery, discord- ant croaking, ignoble, wild, and funeral aspect." The raven is an interesting bird, from his long association in the imagination of man with superstitious fears and pro- phecies of disasters, and if his biographers the ornithologists do not romance, he is really quite wonderful in his instincts and habits. Nuttall remarks, "Though spread over the whole world, they are rarely ever birds of passage, enduring the winters even of the arctic circle, or the warmth of Mexico, St. Domingo, and Madagascar." The raven is patient and devoted in its attachment, and lives to be a hundred years old. CORVUS Americanus, crow. This rascally species occurs in numbers through the whole range of the mountain. He is found in flocks, at certain seasons of the year, more or less numerous, and sometimes in hundreds, almost darken- ing the air, and filling the region where he is either fly- ing or roosting, with his noisy cawing. A hardy wretch, he braves the fiercest storms of the Alleghanies, passing his winters in great numbers in the forests. Large flocks collect together and go through certain ranges of country, seeming to have favorite places for roosting. These are generally in dark woods of hemlock and pine, or in deep, sequestered ravines. Flocks are often seen pursuing their flight in the midst of the roughest storms, with the whole air full of fly- ing snow, their jet-black bodies spotting the clouds. They may often be seen stalking over the snow-drifts in search 28* 380 THE MOUNTAIN. of food, or strutting along roads, gleaning a miserable pit- tance. Like the raven, the crow is a bird of evil omen, and, like that bird, celebrated for "unrestrained natural affec- tion," accompanying, protecting, and succoring its young until grown to the adult stage. They are considered de- structive birds, and are condemned and destroyed in great numbers on that account. Great wit and wisdom is attri- buted to the crow, great cunning and wiliness. This is somewhat fabulous, for it is not so cunning or cautious even in the wildest parts of the mountains at any time but that it may be shot or taken by stratagem. The range of the crow is world-wide. It is found in Siberia, New Holland, the Philippine Islands, and United States. It breeds every place, and it is said the " conjugal union once formed, con- tinues for life. " CYANURUS Cristatus, or blue jay. This is a common spe- cies on the mountain. He is a brilliant, exquisite bird, impos- ing in his form, and with an extreme profusion of ornament in his dress. Sporting a fine erectile crest upon his head, and a graceful train of tail, his plumage mixed with azure, white, black, gray, and "vinaceous," all of the brightest tints and clearest hue, he would seem rather to belong to the tropics, the region of highly-colored birds, than to the cold mountains of the north, and would certainly never be suspected to be re- lated to the sombre brotherhood of crows. He is found in numbers at all seasons, with the exception of partial migra- tions or "predatory excursions," and bears, like the com- mon crow, often the coldest winter weather, seeming to delight in the wind and snow with " wild uproar." A noisy and garrulous chatterer, he soon announces his presence to all the inhabitants of the woods by a variety of discordant notes. His gay, bright form, gleams like a gem through the forest, and is sure to attract attention by his strange and foreign aspect. He has an extensive range of habitations and habits, and is a general favorite with lovers of birds, for his beauty of plumage, peculiarity of instincts, and style of movement, possessing a talent for mimicry, docility, and great cunning. PARUS CEDAR-BIRD. 331 ^EGITHALI. PARUS. The two species of Parus, bicolor and atricapillus, visit the mountain. The first of these species is not common, but the second, the black-capped titmouse, or chickadee, is found in greater numbers. This restless, hardy little bird is said to "winter around Hudson's Bay, and to have been met with at 62 on the northwest coast." Its pecu- liar notes, tshe-de-de, tshe-de-de-deait, may be heard almost at any time in the woods. SERICATI. BOMBYCILLA. Of this_genus the species Carolinensis, or cedar-bird, is common on the Alleghanies. A graceful and beautiful bird, it is seen in small flocks whirling around through the air, or sitting, quietly and sedately, in rows upon the branches. A lover of cherries and berries, he may be seen slily dodging about where these fruits are to be found. His biographers tell some interesting stories about him. BOMBYCILLA Garrula. Waxen chatterer. This is only a visitor of the mountain. INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS. LANIUS, butcher-birdf. The species of this genus, " sep- tentrionalis, or American shrike," is seen sometimes on the mountain. A bold little savage, he may occasionally be ob- served pursuing his depredations with his usual imperti- nence and temerity. Wilson remarked that it did not migrate farther south than Yirginia. In March and April he seeks the forests of the mountains of Pennsylvania, and goes as far as new England for a summer residence. This is a bird of interesting habits. FLY-CATCHERS. TYRANNUS Intrepidus. This species, the king-bird, is rather rare on the Alleghany, compared with other parts 332 THE MOUNTAIN. of the State, where he is common. A. quarrelsome, crusty, and pugnacious bird, he may be seen carrying on his usual sparrings with almost everything that flies. A type of the now fashionable fillibuster, his quarrels have generally some gain to himself in prospective, a fight of some kind, but would prefer one that he will be the gainer after the fight is over. A redeeming trait is his " courage and affection for his mate and young," dwelt upon by his biographers, who also delight to array this little tyrant with many wonderful attributes, which are generally supposed to belong to the human species alone. Geographic range, from Mexico to Canada. TYRANNUS Crinitus, (Linn.) This species is rarely seen on the mountains. TYRANULA Fusca. This is the well-known pe-wee, or pewit fly-catcher. It is as common as the chipping sparrow, and is found everywhere, near caves, barns, bridges, and rock-ledges along streams. Its few notes are known to all, and its habits familiar to every one. An innocent catcher of flies, he sits silently near his nest watching for his winged prey, which he catches by a sudden whirl in the air, then quietly resumes his perch. His few plaintive notes are always welcome as announcing spring. TYRANULA Virens, wood pe-wee. This species is found in the forests of the mountain, as also the species "acadica." They are shy, solitary birds, and may be seen sitting quietly in the dark woods watching for their prey, which they take with great dexterity by quick circles in the air, returning to the spot from which they started. The wood pe-wee has a few peculiarly plaintive notes of a tender, touching strain, which, in the silent woods, come upon the ear with a strange, unearthly charm, awaking thoughts and emotions that per- haps no other sound could bring to the soul. Plain in form, solitary in habits, it seems to brood, and the re- collection alone of its position on the dry branch of a tree, in the deep forest, brings pictures of cool retired shades, solitude, and silence. REDSTART ICTERIA VIREO. 333 SETOPHAGA Kuticilla, (Wil.) American Redstart. The redstart is an interesting and beautiful bird, appearing about the first of May, and retiring in October. It is a quick, active little creature, having some musical notes. ICTERIA Yiridis, (Bon.) Yellow-breasted icteria. This bird is said by Nuttall to be a " summer resident of the United States, and to pass the winter in Tropical America, being found in Guiana and Brazil." It is rare on the mountain. WARBLING FLY-CATCHERS. YIREOS. This genus is related to the orioles, in nidifi- cation, eggs, color of young, and females, song, and notes of the young. It is a peculiarly American group. They live on insects one part of the season, and mix berries with their food, as that kind of fruit ripens. They confine their hunting of insects to the branches of trees and bushes, rarely coming to the ground for that purpose. Of the vireos, an ancient friend has some interest- ing and clever remarks. " On account of their modest at- tire and sylvan habits, the birds of the group (vireos) to which the present species (vireo atricapillus) belongs, are seldom noticed by the general observer, though some of them are to be met with commonly during the summer in nearly all parts of the United States. But though incon- spicuous in appearance, they make ample compensation by the loudness of their notes, which, after the early love-songs of the thrushes, and others of our songsters of spring, have subsided into the more serious duties of parental responsi- bility, are to be heard above those of any other of our resident birds. They are active insect-catchers, and may be seen at nearly all hours of the day patiently searching among the leaves and branches of the trees in almost every wood- land, hopping from branch to branch, or sometimes making short sallies in pursuit of fugitive moths or butterflies, and occasionally pausing to refresh themselves with a rather 334 THE MOUNTAIN. quaint but very melodious warble, lengthened in the spring into a cheerful and agreeable song."* YIREO Flavifrons, yellow- throated vireo. This lively little bird is found in the forests of the mountain. He arrives in May, and is soon seen, a restless hunter, hurrying busily around the twigs of the trees in pursuit of his prey, which at this season is principally composed of insects and worms. His voice is soon heard, and his notes form one of the most pecu- liar and exquisite of the songs of the woods. In the words of one of his biographers : " In the warm weather, the lay of this bird is indeed peculiarly strong and lively; and his usually long-drawn, almost plaintive notes are now delivered in fine succession, with a peculiar echoing and highly-impres- sive musical cadence ; appearing like a romantic and tender reverie of delight." Toward the middle of September he leaves for the south. He is an exceedingly interesting little musician, and his song silenced, one of the sweetest at- tractions of the grove is gone. Their curious pendent nests, woven with great skill from the branch of some forest tree, may be seen in numbers when the leaves have fallen. The workmanship of these frail air-baskets or sacks is quite wonderful. "It is attached firmly all round the curving twigs by which it is supported ; the stoutest external ma- terials, or skeleton of the fabric, is formed of interlaced folds of thin strips of red cedar (any flexible) bark, connected very intimately by coarse threads and small masses of the silk of spider's nest, and of the cocoons of large moths ; these threads are moistened by the glutinous saliva of the bird. Among these external materials are also blended fine blades of dry grass. The inside is thickly bedded with this last material and fine root-fibres, but the finishing layer, as if to preserve elasticity, is of rather coarse grass stalks. Externally the nest is coated over with green lichens, at- tached very artfully by slender strings of caterpillar's silk, * Birds of America, Cassin. VIREO. 335 and the whole afterwards tied over by almost invisible threads of the same, so as to appear as if glued on ; and the entire fabric now resembles an accidental knot of the tree grown over with moss."* YIREO Solitarius, (Yieill.) Solitary vireo. This is a rare species, but is sometimes seen. It has been observed from Georgia to Pennsylvania, but has been regarded as a straggler in the latter State. YIREO Noveboracensis, (Bon.) White-eyed vireo, or fly-catcher. This agile, industrious, and interesting little songster visits the mountain regularly in the summer season. His plain, diminutive form would scarcely be observed or attract attention but for a series of striking notes to which he gives utterance. These are especially eccentric and whimsical in their character, changed with great quickness, and he is affirmed, by some of his biographers, to possess a range of imitative combination quite surprising. He arrives in April, and leaves in the latter part of September, often later. The pensile nests which seem to characterize the family of vireos is also constructed by him. His food is the same as the rest of the vireos, consisting of different kinds of berries and of insects, of which he is a most vigilant hunter. Of this species, Nuttall observes, " The present species re- tires no farther for winter quarters than the southern part of the United States, where many also breed, as would appear from the concomitant circumstance of their music." YIREO Gilvus, (Bon.) Warbling vireo. This is the most highly endowed musical genius of the family, indeed of the whole woods almost. As a songster, he is richly gifted with variety and compass of notes, and for melody and sweetness, touching tenderness, and exquisite delicacy of intonation, no vibration of art can offer a parallel. He arrives on the mountain from Tropical America about the first of May, leaving the last of September. He is like the rest of the genus in all his habits. Nuttall states that "he is * Nuttall. 336 THE MOUNTAIN. wholly confined to towns, and even cities." The warbling vireo is certainly found on the Alleghany Mountain. YIREO Olivaceus, (Bon.) Red-eyed vireo, or fly-catcher. This bird arrives on the mountain in April. It is a busy and tireless songster, possessed of a variety of beautiful notes, which have been attempted to be imitated in words by a number of enthusiastic bird observers. It is a common species, and has a range of towns as well as forests. It has also the general habits of the vireos. He leaves with the crowd of retiring songsters in October. Great admiration is shown for him as a singer. Of this species Cassin re- marks, " The red-eyed fly-catcher (Y. olivaceus) is the most numerous, and not only is constantly to be met with in the woods, but ventures confidently into the public squares or parks, and the yards and gardens of the cities. In many such localities in Philadelphia, several of which are in the densest parts of the city, this little warbler rears its young, and pipes out his sprightly song in entire security, and ap- parently feeling himself as much at home as if in the re- cesses of the most remote forest. The warbling fly-catcher (Y. gilvus) is another pleasing singer, though, in our opin- ion, but an indifferent performer compared with the pre- ceding." THRUSHES. This is an interesting family, some of which are the most familiar and universally admired of our birds. MIMUS Polyglottus, (Linn.) Mocking-bird. This bird is said to inhabit the "whole continent from the State of Rhode Island to equatorial regions." It is a plain bird, " cinerious, beneath white, with some white on wings and tail." His powers are wonderful. Although the Alleghany is within the geographic range given to this bird, it has not been seen there yet. MIMUS Rufus, (Linn.) Ferruginous Thrush. This is a large thrush of a light-brown or reddish color, beneath whitish, with black spots, tail feathers long. It is found CATBIRD ROBIN. 337 from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada, and breeds through all that region, coming north in April and May, and retiring in October to the Southern States. The Thrasher is a song- ster of rich and rare musical endowments. It is sometimes called the "mocking-bird," but does not seem to possess powers of imitation. Its musical faculties are very little inferior to those of the mocking-bird, and many of its com- binations for depth of pathos and emotion are even superior. Mounted on the topmost twig of a tree or bush, his "full heart laboring with instinctive feeling," he pours out his loud, clear notes, in sweet and trilling warbles, or mingled with low, plaintive, and tender tones. They arrive in pairs on the mountain, and their beautiful song is soon heard at the dawn of the morning. MIMUS Felivox, (Vieill. ) Catbird. This is a plain bird, of a dark-bluish, or slate color, paler beneath, with a black crown and tail. It is a very common and familiar species, having a migratory range from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada, and perhaps farther north. It arrives at the mountain early in April, and is soon actively engaged in nuptial preparations for the coming season of love. It is quick and restless, almost in perpetual motion, darting about the thickets and fences with ceaseless eagerness. It has many fine combina- tions in its song, occasionally getting up a strain of inimitable sweetness, whose enchantment is sometimes broken by its peculiar cat-squall, a noise which has given the bird its name. It possesses something of the faculty of mimicking other birds, and is often heard using notes of their songs mingled with its original lay. On this subject, Nuttall re- marks : "A very amusing individual, which I now describe, began his vocal powers by imitating the sweet and low warble of the song sparrow, as given in the autumn ; and from his love of imitation on other occasions, I am inclined to believe that he possesses no original note of his own, but acquires and modulates the songs of other birds." The catbird leaves the mountain early in September. MERTJLA Migratoria, (Linn.) American robin. This is 29 338 THE MOUNTAIN. a common bird, and a universally welcomed visitor. A grace- ful and comely creature, with kind and friendly affinities for man, he is almost domestic in his habits. He approaches frankly and fearlessly houses and barns, building his nest often in the most exposed situations, on a fence or in the fork of an apple-tree, seeming by a gallant confidence to appeal to the generosity and magnanimity of man for pro- tection. As a destroyer of noxious insects his services are invaluable, and the number of worms, slugs, and bugs de- voured by him is incredible, as he vigorously bolts enormous quantities from morning till night. He has a sweet and touching song, which, however, has not much variety. A delightful enchanter of the field, his name carries the dream- ing soul to sights and sounds of the country, the flowery meadow, the running brook, the blossoming orchard, all made divine by the song of the beautiful robin. His range is the "continent, from Hudson's Bay, in the fifty-third de- gree, to the table-land of Mexico." He is amoDg the first arrivals on the mountain, and appears often before the snows have gone, in flocks, with other birds, on the northward pas- sage. The young and old both return to the same summer haunts visited in previous migrations. MERULA Mustelina, (Gm.) Wood thrush. This is a plain little brown bird, beneath white, " spotted with black- ish." He is solitary and shy, retreating to the depths of wil- dernesses, far from human habitations and noise of towns. His song is one of the most attractive and melodious sounds of the forest, and is frequently the only voice heard in the deep, silent expanse of the woods. " The prelude to this song re- sembles almost the double-tonguing of the flute, blended with a tinkling shrill and solemn warble, which re-echoes from his solitary retreat like the dirge of some sad recluse who shuns the busy haunts of life." These strange, wild, liquid flutings, rising from the depths of leafy recesses, possess a pecu- liar power of exciting delicious and melancholy emotions which, once having thrilled the heart, leave forever the memory of solitudes sacred to thought and feeling, of re- THRUSH WARBLERS, 339 treats where beauty, overshadowed by gloom, inspires awe, and has become holy, while nature, from her tenderest depths, breathes a touching sob of that " melody which is the voice of the universe, whereby it proclaims its scheme and inmost essence." The wood thrush inhabits the con- tinent from Hudson's Bay to Florida. It arrives at the mountain early in April, and migrates in October. MERULA Minor, (Gm.) Little Hermit Thrush. The hermit is "olive-brown on back, with rufus tail, beneath brownish- white, with dusky spots," and is a shy, wild little bird, with some of the habits of the wood thrush, and full of sweetest music. It affects also dark, solitary places, where its melodious notes, in " silver cadence," often mingle with those of the wood thrush. Range, New Hampshire to Florida. It remains but a short time on the mountain. MERULA Wilsonii, (Bonap.) Wilson's thrush, or Veery. " Tawny -brown, beneath whitish, dusky spots on throat, tail short." This thrush has many habits in common with the wood and hermit thrushes, coming to the mountain the latter part of April, and leaving in October. His notes are singular and striking, monotonous and quaint, but frequently truly musical. SEIURUS Noveboracensis, (Nutt.) New York thrush. Rarely seen in Pennsylvania except as a wanderer to more northern or southern regions. This bird is peculiar and in- teresting in its habits, which are aquatic. SEIURUS Aurocapillus, (Wilson.) Golden-crowned thrush, or oven bird. This bird is remarkable for its oven-shaped nest and strange habits. WARBLERS. SYLVIA, (Lath.) This genus has many species widely ex- tended. They are small, sprightly birds, perpetually busy in pursuit of the insect prey on which they live. They ap- proach in their habits several other families of birds with which they are really allied. Some of them live almost entirely on 340 THE MOUNTAIN. berries part of the year, but their general food is insects. Of this genus, Cassin remarks : " Of the smaller birds of North America, no group exceeds that of the warblers, in variety and richness of color. It is, too, one of the largest of the groups of our birds, embracing not less than forty species, besides several which are South American " They are highly musical birds, and are somewhat allied to fly- catchers, vireos, thrushes, saxicolas, and wrens. The nightin- gale and robin red-breast of the Old World belong to this party of vocalists. SYLVICOLA Coronata, (Wilson.) Yellow-crowned warbler. This species arrives here in the end of April, proceeding north. SYLVICOLA (Estiva, (Lath.) Summer yellow-bird, or warbler. This is a handsome bird, ranging from the arctic circles to Florida. It arrives in Pennsylvania in April, and returns south at the end of September. SYLVICOLA Maculosa, (Lath.) The spotted warbler. Breeds far north at Hudson's Bay, and is only seen a short time as a traveler. SYLVICOLA Virens, (Lath.) Black-throated green war- bler. This sylvicola sometimes stays the season on the mountain, but is a rare bird. It comes in April and leaves in October. SYLVICOLA Blackburnia3. Blackburnian warbler. A rare species, and only a visitor, on its way to boreal regions. It is a beautiful bird. SYLVICOLA Icterocephala, (Lath.) Chestnut-sided war- bler. Only seen on the mountain for awhile, on its north- ern journey. It is said, however, by Nuttall, to rear young in the Northern States. SYLVICOLA Striata, (Lath.) Black-poll warbler. Some- times arrives in the middle of April, remaining but a short time. It extends its migrations to Newfoundland. MNIOTILTA Yaria, (Lath.) Black and white creeper. Perhaps only rests on its journey, as its nest has not been seen. It is a remarkable and interesting bird. WARBLERS WRENS. 341 SYLVICOLA Pinus, (Lath.) Pine warbler. Arrives at the mountain early in April ; color, bright-yellow, tinged with green beneath, yellow wings, with whitish bands. It is a quick, sprightly little eater of insects, is found in the pine forests, and is musical to a certain extent, withal an interest- ing bird. PARULA Americana, (Lath.) Parti-colored warbler. Perhaps only a visitor. It winters at St. Domingo and Porto Rico. TRICHAS Agilis, (Wilson.) Connecticut warbler. Only a visitor. TRICHAS Marilandica, (Lath.) Maryland yellow-throat. Comes to the mountain early in April and nests. It is a sprightly little yellow-olive bird, with black patch about eye and side of head. SYLVICOLA Canadensis, (Bon.) Pine-swamp warbler. Frequents hemlock swamps. SYLVICOLA Azurea, (Steph.) Ccerulean warbler. An occasional visitor. HELEN^A Solitaria, (Wilson.) Blue-winged yellow war- bler. Arrives on the mountain at end of April, retires to Tropical America in autumn ; remarkable for its peculiar nest. The following species of the old genus sylvia are fre- quently seen on the mountain, namely, Vermivora, Worm- eating Warbler; Wilsonii, Green Black-capped Warbler; Sphagnosa, Swamp Warbler; Philadelphia, or Mourning Warbler ; and Parus, or Hemlock Warbler. REGULTJS, CRESTED WRENS. These are small birds, hardy and active, enduring winter, but migrating as the cold increases. They penetrate the arctic spaces, living on insects, and having the style and ac- tion of the titmouse. They inhabit both continents, and are allied to the sylvias. REGULUS Calendulus, (Steph.) Ruby-crowned wren. A 29* 342 THE MOUNTAIN. handsome little bird ; only a visitor on his journey to Hud- son's Bay and Greenland. REGULUS Cristatus, (Yieill.) Gold-crested wren. Comes south early in April on its journey far north. Sometimes seen in winter along the sides of the mountain. WEENS, TROGLODYTES. These are small quick-motioned musical birds, hopping and darting about near the ground, through log heaps, brush piles, holes, and crannies, after their prey of spiders, worms, and bugs. They have rapid and agreeable note; and are general favorites. TROGLODYTES Fulvus, (Bon.) House wren. This per- petual-motion, this capricious atom of a bird, is well known to all. It has the general habits of the family, and may be seen darting about with such restless activity that the eye can scarcely follow its motions at all. Log piles, board piles, thick bushes, even stone heaps, he shoots through in every direction, his little saucily-cocked tail always in the same defiant attitude. Notes agreeable ; habits and spiritual demonstrations interesting. Comes to the mountain in May, and leaves in October. TROGLODYTES Bewickii, (Aud.) Bewick's wren. This comely little bird is found in the Central Alleghany in the summer. TROGLODYTES Hyemalis, (Yieill.) Common, or winter wren. This wren sometimes winters on the Alleghany, and, as Audubon has remarked, breeds in the pine forests. It is a sprightly little bird, with an agreeable warble. TROGLODYTES Palustris, (Bon.) Marsh wren. This spe- cies is found about sedgy and willowy marsh spots. It comes in April, and leaves the last of September. TROGLODYTES Ludovicianus, (Bon.) Great Carolina, or mocking wren. This is the most illustrious of the wrens. A musician, a mimic, a busy, courageous worker, he is a special favorite of all bird lovers. His powers are wonder- FINCHES. 343 ful beyond description, and there seems to be no end to the fanciful stories about him. He is an occasional visitor. SIALIA Wilsonii, (Swain.) Blue-bird. This universal favorite is continent wide in its range. He is a hardy bird, breeding from Labrador to Mexico. A constant friend of man, his presence is always hailed with delight, as he brings with him thoughts of the summer, butterflies, and flowers, and all the bright, vernal visions of country life. A beauti- ful, gentle creature, everybody loves the blue-bird. ANTHUS Spinoletta, (Bon.) Brown lark. This is a bird of passage in Pennsylvania, and rarely seen on the moun- tain. EMBERIZA Nivalis, (Linn.) The Snow-bunting is a bird of high arctic regions, and sometimes in his southern winter- rovings visits the mountain. EMBERIZA Americana, (Wilson.) Black-throated bunt- ing. This bunting sometimes comes to the mountain in May, leaving for Mexico in September. PYRANGA Rubra, (Linn.) Scarlet tanager. This brilliant blood-red bird, with black wings, frequently startles the ex- plorer of the mountain forests with the vivid flash of his crimson plumage. He passes his winters in Tropical America, coming to Pennsylvania the first part of May, and retiring south the first of September. A gaudy and distin- guished bird, he looks like a tropical product. His bio- graphers endow him with the rare and transcendent elements of tenderness in love, and fidelity in affection. FINCHES. This is a numerous family. They live on seeds and grain ; sometimes on insects. Many of the species are musical and easily domesticated. SPIZA Cyanea, (Wilson.) The Indigo-bird is a small but bright and beautiful species. He passes his winters in Tro- pical America, and visits the mountain in the middle of May, retiring in September. He is a regular charm, styled by the 344 THE MOUNTAIN. venerable Nuttall, "the azure celestial musician." As his name indicates, he is a fine blue color, with greenish tinges. ZONOTRICHIA Pennsylvanica, (Lath.) White - throated sparrow. This is a large and handsome sparrow, whose natal region is the north. He visits the Alleghany in the winter months, going sometimes a little farther south in very inclement weather. PASSERELLA Graminea, (Gm.) Grass finch. This is a plain gray and brownish bird, a regular inhabitant of the mountain. It is very common around orchards and fields. ZONOTRICHIA Melodia, (Wilson.) The song sparrow. The song sparrow is common, familiar, and generally numerous. It arrives with the blue-bird in March, and is soon heard piping his agreeable but somewhat peculiar strain. He leaves late in the season, only retiring when compelled by the storms of winter. PASSERCULUS Savanna, (Wilson.) Savanna sparrow. This is not so abundant as the melodia. It has some plea- sant notes, and the general habits of the sparrows. Times of migration, April and November. JUNCO Nivalis, (Linn.) Common snow-bird. This spe- cies is said to be common to both continents. It is a very hardy bird, braving the coldest Alleghany storms, large flocks appearing, with vivacious movements, in the midst of roaring winds and drifting snows. Large numbers nest and permanently occupy the mountain. S^IZELLA Canadensis, (Lath.) The tree sparrow is a winter bird, his natal home being in the region of Hudson's Bay. He comes to the mountain with the snow-bird, retiring to his far northern summer range early in the spring. SPIZELLA Socialis, (Wilson.) Chipping sparrow. This plain little bird is almost domestic, certainly social, as his name indicates. It is a great pet with children, who feed it on door-sills and porches. Wide geographic range. SPIZELLA Juncorum, (Nutt.) Field, or rush sparrow, is a small species like the chipping sparrow, but is wild and FINCHES. 345 shy. It comes to the mountain in April, and leaves in October. CHRYSOMITRIS Tristis, (Linn., Wilson.) Yellow-bird, or American goldfinch. The goldfinch inhabits the whole United States, and goes as far north as the forty-ninth parallel. It is common, and generally gregarious, being fre- quently found in migrating crowds of other sparrows. Its habits are rather peculiar, being a vagrant and wanderer, with erratic movements. PIPILO Erythrophthalma, (Linn.) The ground-robin, or Tow-wee finch, inhabits wild, dry, vacant spaces, especially barren tracts covered by bushes. He stays near the ground, hopping around, and scratching among the leaves, uttering all the time his monotonous notes, " tow-ee, tow-ee," or, as frequently pronounced, "che-wink, che-wink." CARDINALIS Yirginianus, (Bon.) This is the cardinal grosbeak, or red-bird, a royal prince of the finch family. His splendid form is sometimes seen, and his loud whistle heard for a time in the mountain woods. His general range is from New York to Florida, having a taste rather for the south. His visits to the mountain are short, although he remains nearly the entire year in the eastern and southern part of Pennsylvania. AMMODROMUS Palustris, (Lath.) Swamp sparrow. This bird, as its name indicates, is somewhat aquatic in its habits, living among reeds, rushes, and water-grasses. Not com- mon on the mountain. CHRYSOMITRIS Pinus, (Wilson.) Pine finch. This is a northern species, visiting the mountain late in autumn, and retiring north early in spring. PASSERELLA Iliaca, (Mer.) Ferruginous finch. This is a handsome finch, larger than most of his brethren, and breeding in the north. He is a cold-weather visitor of the mountain. GUIRACA Ludoviciana, (Bon.) Rose-breasted grosbeak. This is a large and beautiful finch, one of our noblest-look- ing birds, and a fine songster. He is a frequent visitor of 346 THE MOUNTAIN. the mountain, and may breed in the wilder parts, although Nuttall says " it is rare and accidental in the Atlantic States." He goes as far north as forty-nine degrees. CARPODACUS Purpureus, (Gm.) Purple finch, or Ameri- can linnet. This bright and sprightly singer is found in the evergreen woods of the mountain, coming in April and leaving for the south in September. CORYTHUS Enucleator, (Tern.) Bullfinch. This is a hardy species, dwelling in the arctic regions, and only coming as far south as the mountains of Pennsylvania in the most in- clement seasons. It is a fine bird, and is found on " north- west coast of North America, Lapland, Russia, Siberia, and Scottish Highlands." CROSS-BILLS. The cross-bills are northern birds, and have many habits of the bullfinches and grosbeaks. They frequent the forests of pines and firs, feeding on the seeds of those trees, and other trees and shrubs. LOXIA Americana, common cross-bill. This bird is found from Pennsylvania to Greenland, but inhabits and breeds generally in the arctic regions. It visits the pine woods of the Alleghany from September to April. LOXIA Leucoptera, white-winged cross-bill. This is a beautiful bird; habits same as Americana. Nuttall sug- gests that it may breed on the mountains of Pennsylvania. CUCKOOS. COCCYZUS Americanus, (Bon.) Yellow-billed cuckoo, or the rain-crow. The American cuckoo comes to the moun- tain in April, leaving for Louisiana and Mexico in Sep- tember. His strange notes may be heard often from the shady recesses and secluded thickets in which he delights to secrete himself. This bird is remarkable for certain peculiar parasitic habits. It is a constant resident in WOODPECKERS. 347 Southern States, but has a geographic range from Mexico to Labrador and Columbia River. COCCYZUS Erythrophthalmus, (Wilson.) Black -billed cuckoo. This species is closely related to the yellow-billed. It is permanent in the Southern States, having, however, a range from Texas to Labrador. It comes to the Alleghany in May and leaves in September. WOODPECKERS. Pious, (Linn.) This is a family of regular climbers, com- posed of shy, rough, unmusical birds, living on the larvae of insects, which they obtain from decayed bark and wood, also eating berries, etc. Some of them are peculiar birds, all are useful as destroyers of noxious worms and insects. COLAPTES Auratus, (Linn., Wil.) Flicker, or golden- winged woodpecker. This is a handsome and common spe- cies, found all over the continent, from 25 to 63 north latitude. It comes to the mountain in April and leaves in October. According to Dekay, " it sometimes remains in New York all the year." It is a useful bird, with very un- savory flesh, which fact leaves the fowler without excuse for the common practice of shooting it as a game bird. Pious Pileatus, (Linn., Wil.) Pileated woodpecker, or log-cock. This is the largest and most imposing of the woodpeckers that visit the mountain. Dekay gives him a range from Texas to the sixty-third parallel. He remains all the year in the "United States, and although said to be an annual resident of Pennsylvania, and really a common bird in the hidden forests of the mountain, he is not often visible in the winter. This is the large, well-known black wood- pecker, with red crest and mustache. MELANERPES Erythrocephalus, (Linn., Wil.) Red-headed woodpecker. The commonest of his tribe, he is found every place, from Mexico to the fiftieth parallel ; arriving on the mountain in May, and departing in September. He is so 348 THE MOUNTAIN. familiar and common that we have forgotten, or ceased to remark, that he is really a beautiful and interesting bird. Pious Carolinensis, (Linn., Wil.) The red-bellied wood- pecker is a fine, handsome bird. Range, Florida to Canada, and the Island of Jamaica, in all which regions it breeds, making partial migrations from the colder parts. It is a wild, roving species, living in the solitudes of the woods. It is a constant resident from Texas to South Carolina. Visible on the mountain from May until November, and occasionally seen in the winter. Pious Yarius, (Wilson.) Yellow-bellied woodpecker. This is a continental species, ranging from Mexico to sixty- first parallel, and a permanent resident from Maryland, south. Lives like the rest, on worms, insects, and berries, and is a frequent bird on the mountain. Pious Yillosus, (Wilson.) Hairy woodpecker. Range of this species, from Texas to sixty-third parallel, and said, by Dekay, to remain all the year in New York. It is corn- on the mountain, and may be seen pursuing his prey in snows and the storms of winter. These last two birds, with the fol- lowing, are called on the mountain "Spotted Flickers." Pious Pubescens, (Wilson.) Downy woodpecker. This is the smallest species, called also the sap-sucker; range, Texas to 58 north latitude ; said, by Dekay, to remain in New York all the year. May be seen in coldest weather on the mountain, busy in pursuit of food. Nests in May. The Three-toed Woodpecker (Picus tridactylus) was seen by Audubon on the Pokono Mountain, Pennsylvania. It has not been seen on the Central Alleghanies. TENUIROSTRES, (Slender-billed Birds.) This order is related to many of the woodpeckers or climbing zygodactili. NUT-HATCHES. SITTA Carolinensis, (Briss.) White-breasted American nut-hatch. This is a common little bird, seen creeping around the trees in all directions after insects and worms. CREEPER HUMMING-BIRD KING-FISHER. 349 He is a permanent resident from Hudson's Bay to Mexico. In the winter, hunger drives him from the woods into the neighborhood of barns and houses. SITTA Canadensis, (Linn., Wil.) The red-bellied nut-hatch comes to the mountain in April, returning south in October. It is a smaller bird than the white-breasted nut-hatch, and seems to be wild and shy, preferring the recesses of pine woods as a residence. CREEPERS. CERTHIA Americana, (Linn., Wil.) The brown creeper is related to the nut-hatchers, is a climber, nests in holes in trees, and feeds on insects. It is a rare bird on the moun- tain as elsewhere. He makes extensive wanderings, like the nut-hatch, in search of food. HUMMING-BIRDS. (Family Anthomyzi, Yieill, Bon.) TROCHILUS Colubris, (Linn.) Ruby-throated humming- bird. This is the only individual of the genus which comes north. It is an exclusively American family, and very extensive in numbers, there being some three hundred species within the tropics. Nature seems to have sported an infinite extravagance, and almost exhausted the element of variety, in this group of birds. Every shape, style, tint, and line, every conceivable form of dress and ornament, is found in this exquisite family of brilliant eaters of nectar. The ruby- throated humming-bird is the plainest of the genus, although he is considered a beautiful little bird. It comes to the mountain in May, leaving in September, breeding there in numbers. KING-FISHERS. HALCYON, (Alcyones, Tern.) CERYLE Halcyon, (Linn., Wil.) Belted king-fisher. This strange, eccentric-looking bird, a regular angler, comes 30 350 THE MOUNTAIN. to the mountain in April, departing in October. His range is the borders of fresh-water streams, from Hudson's Bay to the tropics. His style of capturing his finny prey is an in- teresting process, being altogether an exciting feat. SWALLOW TRIBE. (Chelidones, Vieill.) HIRTJNDO Purpurea, (L. Wilson.) Purple martin. The purple martin arrives about the middle of April, leaving in September. This beautiful and agile eater of insects is a great favorite, having almost domestic habits, and being as- sociated in the thoughts and affections of men with the pro- mises of spring and the enjoyments of summer. HIRUNDO Rufa, (Gm.) The barn swallow is a common species, arriving in numbers in the early part of April, leav- ing the first part of September. Range, from latitude 50 to tropics. They are skimmers of the wind, taking their food on the wing, the air being their proper medium of exist- ence, as of the whole family. HIRUNDO Lunifrons, (Vieill.) Cliff swallow. This spe- cies, formerly a Western bird, now extends his migrations over the Atlantic and Middle States. His peculiar jug-like nest is common on houses and barns on the Alleghany. He comes with the other swallows and leaves with them ; habits the same. HIRUNDO Bicolor, (Yieill.) White-bellied swallow. This is an extensive traveler, continuing his journeys from the tropics to latitude 53. Comes to the mountain about the middle of April It lives about houses, and is a familiar species. COTYLE Riparia, (Linn., Wil.) The sand martin is not a common species on the mountain. It is found, however, along the streams on both sides. Comes in April and leaves in October. SWIFT NIGHT-HAWK PIGEON. 351 SWIFTS. (Cypselus, Illig.) CYPSELUS Pelasgius, (Tern.) Chimney swallow. This bird comes in April, leaving in August. It is a common species, breeding in chimneys and hollow trees. They are seen in large numbers in the evening, whirling and circling through the air in pursuit of their prey, which consists of winged insects. NIGHT-HAWKS. ANTROSTOMUS Yociferus, (Wilson.) Whip-poor-will. The melancholy and peculiar voice of this bird of the night may be heard in all the wilder parts of the mountain. He comes in April and leaves in September, passing his winters in Tropical America. They are said to migrate as far north as 49. CHORDEILES Yirginianus, (Briss.) Night-hawk, or night- jar. Americanus, (Wilson.) This bird conies north in April, leaving the mountain in August. They breed from the Southern States to Hudson's Bay. Numbers may be seen floating around through the air, the spots of white on their wings being visible at a great height, and the whirring sound of their large, open, bristly mouths being heard at a great distance, as they dart after their prey of winged insects. PIGEON TRIBE. (Columbini, Illiger.) ECTOPISTES Carolinensis, (Linn., Wilson.) Turtle-dove, (Carolina pigeon.) The dove is a constant resident south of Pennsylvania, and remains on the mountain from April until October. It has a range from Mexico to Massachusetts, and along the Pacific to Columbia River. It is a sweet, gentle bird, beloved by all. ECTOPISTES Migratoria, (Linn., Wilson.) Passenger 352 THE MOUNTAIN. pigeon. Yast flocks of this pigeon stop on the mountain spring and fall. They are said to breed, from latitude 32 to 51, around Hudson's Bay. Their range is the continent, from latitude 25 to 62. Stragglers remain on the moun- tain through the summer season, but do not breed there. The supply of food seems to determine the movement of the myriads of these birds, which sometimes stream through the air, and not the ordinary migrating instinct which impels other birds to travel.* COLUMBIA Livia. This is the common domestic pigeon, an introduced species. GALLINACEOUS BIRDS. (Gallinas, Linn., etc.) MELEAGRIS Gallopavo, (Linn., Bon.) Wild turkey. This bird is rarely seen on the Alleghany, although abund- ant on the parallel chains of the Appalachian range. Its geographic distribution extends from Mexico to Canada. It is not migratory in its habits, only making foraging ex- peditions in search of food. This magnificent bird is pecu- liar to North America. Of the turkey tribe, Cassin remarks : " Of the turkeys, two species are known, the most numerous of which is the wild turkey of North America. The other, even more handsome in its plumage than the former, has as yet only been found in Central America, and is known as the Honduras Turkey. It is by no means well established that the Domestic Turkey is descended from the wild spe- cies of North America. Its origin probably has not yet been disco vered."f * " Birds essentially tropical are known to migrate to different dis- tances on either side of the equator, so essentially necessary is this wandering habit to almost all the feathered tribe." Nutt. f " Since the above was written, the distinguished English ornitho- logist, Mr. Gould, has introduced to the notice of naturalists what he considers a third species, under the name of Meleagris Mexicana, and which he regards as the parent stock of the domesticated turkey. PARTRIDGE GROUSE. 353 Of other gallinaceous birds, we have, PAVO Oistatus, (Linn.) Peacock. This is an intro- duced bird, and belongs originally to India. NUMIDA Meleagris, (Linn.) Guinea fowl. This is an African species, long introduced. GALLUS Domesticus, (Briss.) Common cock. The ori- ginal stock of this bird is supposed to be from Java. PARTRIDGES. (Perdix, Lath.) ORTYX Yirginiana, (Aud.) American partridge, or quail. The partridge is not abundant on the Alleghany. Having greater fondness for fields than forests, he does not find in that range an attractive residence. Geographic range, from Honduras to Massachusetts. GROUSE. (Tetrao, Linn.) TETRAO Umbellus, (Linn., Wilson ) Ruffed grouse. The pheasant, as this grouse is called in Pennsylvania, is abund- ant on the Alleghany, where it breeds, and is found at all seasons. It has a wide range, from Mexico to the fifty-sixth parallel, and across the continent to the Pacific. TETRAO Cupido, (Wilson.) Pinnated grouse. Of this species, Dekay remarks : " It is still found in a few districts of the State, (New York,) in a few islands on the coast of Massachusetts, and in the mountainous regions of Penn- sylvania." Said by Wilson to be found, in his day, on Po- cono Pine Hills, Northampton County, Pennsylvania. It has not been seen on the Alleghany recently, although its range is said to be from Texas to Maine. It differs, however, from the turkey of North America only in a few slight and apparently hardly sufficient characters for a distinct spe- cies, but may be, as supposed by Mr. Gould, the parent stock." Note from Cassin. 30* 354 THE MOUNTAIN. WATER BIRDS. IT has been already stated that but few water birds either visit or reside on the mountain. The reason of this is ob- vious, as the medium in which the aquatic species are con- stituted to exist is, to a great extent, wanting there. In the valleys east and west, through which the streams pass and their waters accumulate in pools, there are a number of birds of this division. GRALLATORES, (Tern.) Wading birds. These are birds with long, extremely thin legs, stilting them up in an ex- travagant and ridiculous manner from ludicrous dispropor- tions in length and extreme tenuity ; bills cunningly-devised and of mechanical structure fitted to capture their prey, and spiritual endowments relating them harmoniously to their habitats. CHARADRIUS Yociferus, (Linn.) Kill-deer plover. This is a noisy well-known bird, found every place between the twentieth and fifty-ninth parallels, breeding from Texas to Massachusetts, and extending his range as far west as the Rocky Mountains. He has nocturnal habits, feeding at twilight, and flying around on moonlight nights making great noise with his usual cry of kill-deer. CHARADRIUS Helveticus. Black-bellied, or Swiss plover. This plover breeds in Pennsylvania, but is not often seen on the Alleghany. Its geographic range is nearly the extent of the continent. It is seen on the eastern and western sides of the mountain in the cleared portions, and in neighbor- hood of the streams. It breeds, according to Nuttall, "from Pennsylvania to the very extremity of the arctic regions." HERON SANDPIPER. 355 CHARADRIUS Semipalmatus, (Bon.) The semipalmated ring plover breeds far north, being seen often in the icy re- gions of Greenland. It is a small species, but much esteemed as game, being well flavored, and generally fat. It passes along the mountain in April north, returning south in September. HERONS. ARDEA Herodius, (Linn.) Great blue heron. The great heron is occasionally seen on the mountain, but is rare. It is a traveler, and only seems to alight in the swampy spots and around the rnill-dams for temporary repose or food. It is a large bird, being four feet six inches in length, and is quite an imposing form, either on the wing or wading in the swamps, and are voracious and stupid, feeding on reptiles and fish. ARDEA Yirescens, (Linn.) Green bittern. This is the most common species in the United States. It comes to Pennsylvania early in April and leaves in October. Range, from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, visiting Hayti and Jamaica. It is an abundant species on the mountain along all the streams and marshy places. SANDPIPERS. (Tringa, Briss.) These are wandering and gregarious birds, frequenting marshes, rivers, lakes, and living on larvae, worms, insects, small shell-fish, etc. They migrate in mixed crowds, breed generally in the north, are wild in their habits, and found in every part of the world. TRINGA Alpina, (Linn.) Dunlin, red-backed sandpiper. The Dunlin has a wide range, even the northern hemisphere. It penetrates the arctic circle, and breeds, according to the ornithologists, " on the wintry shores of Melville Pen- insula." It is thus a regular hyperborean, only stopping 356 THE MOUNTAIN. rarely on the mountain in May and October, on its journeys from Greenland to Cayenne. TRINGA Wilsonii, (Nutt.) Wilson's sandpiper. The little " Peeps" is a northern bird, its breeding resorts being within the arctic circle. It passes through the State of Pennsylvania, north and south, in May and October, to and from its natal region. It is a well-known sandpiper, but its visits to the mountain are extremely brief, unless from strag- glers who have become loafers. TRINGA Solitaria. The green swamp tatler comes to the Alleghany early in May, retiring in September. According to JSTuttall, " it breeds in the marshy solitudes of the moun- tains of Virginia, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania, but a great part of the species proceeds to boreal regions, even as far as the extremity of the continent. " TRINGA Semipalmata. Semipalmated sandpiper. This species is spread over the continent from the arctic circle to the southern extremity and West Indies. It is recognized by its familiar notes of " to-weet, to-weet." It is found along the streams in the valleys at base of mountain. TOTANUS. This genus is close to the snipe, god- wit, tringa, some of the species having high northern range, even to the 69J of parallel. TOTANUS Semipalmatus, (Tern.) Willet. This is a large snipe, and said to inhabit " almost every part of the United States, from the coast of Florida to the distant shores and saline lakes in the vicinity of the Saskatchewan, up to the fifty-sixth parallel." It may breed on the moun- tain, but is rare. TOTANUS Flavipes, (Vieill, Bon.) Yellow-shanks tatler. This is said to be "the most common bird of the family in America, its summer residence, or breeding station, extend- ing from the Middle States to the northern extremity of the continent." It rarely appears on the mountain, notwith- standing this statement. This is no doubt accounted for from its preferring the rivers, marshes, and lakes near the TATLER SNIPE. 357 ocean. It has been seen in small migratory flocks of up- land plovers and peets. TOTANUS Macularius, (Tern.) Spotted tatler, or peet- weet. This is the most common and familiar species of the genus. In the middle of April it is found on all the shores of the rivers of Pennsylvania, leaving in October. It breeds in the " Middle States and to the confines of the St. Law- rence," and does not penetrate remote frigid regions. It wanders from the sea into the remotest interior, however. It is well known by the peculiar balancing of its body and tilting of its tail, and its notes of "weet, weet, weet." TOTANUS Bartramius, (Linn.) Bartram's tatler. It is called also upland plover, and "breeds from Pennsylvania to the fur countries of Upper Canada." It is not abundant on the mountain, although common in other places. It comes in May and goes in September. SCOLOPAX Wilsonii. The range of this snipe is from Hudson's Bay to Cayenne, numbers wintering in the South- ern States. It comes north in March and lingers until De- cember. As a game bird it has exquisite flavor, and is in great demand among sportsmen. It has nocturnal habits, is shy, wary, and not easily taken. Food, like others of this order of birds, worms, insects, larvae, which are obtained by boring in the mud with its long bill. This is the bird which is supposed by some ornithologists to make a strange and peculiar sound, sometimes heard late in the evening in the regions it frequents. This noise is variously represented by those who attempt to describe it, as a "whistling," "flicker- ing," "singular, tremulous murmuring," "humming, some- what wailing," "whirring, quailing" sound, and is produced by the bird as it mounts in gyratory ascent through the air in the approaching shades of the evening twilight. It is generally invisible when making the sound, which is sup- posed to be produced by the wings, also by an " undulatory motion of air in the throat," etc. From the circumstance that the bird is generally invisible when the sound is made, it has been enveloped in mystery, even mixed with supersti- 358 THE MOUNTAIN. tion. It is heard frequently on the mountain, although the bird is not abundant here, and is said to be made only during the pairing season. It is generally found in pairs or small parties, and is nearly allied to the European snipe. RUSTICOLA Minor, (Nutt) American woodcock. The lesser woodcock is confined to the south side of the St. Law- rence, breeding in the Middle States, which it leaves in the winter, although it is said to winter sometimes in Pennsyl- vania, where it arrives in March. It closely resembles the European woodcock, and has also, like Wilson's snipe, noc- turnal habits, and is much esteemed as a game bird, its flesh possessing extreme delicacy, and the finest flavor. It is said, by some of the ornithologists, to possess notes that are mu- sical, and has the same habit as Wilson's snipe during incu- bation, of mounting up in a spiral whirl through the air, and making the whistling or whirring noise generally attri- buted to Wilson's snipe. Do both birds produce this sound ? The woodcock most certainly does. It is not abundant on the mountain. PINNATIPEDES. (Lobe-footed Birds.) FULICA Americana, (Lath.) Coot. The American coot is said to " dwell and breed in every part of the North American continent, over a range of probably more than fifty degrees of latitude." It is occasionally seen on the mountain as a traveler in spring and fall, but does not re- main there during the summer. GREBES. (Podiceps, Lath.) PODICEPS Cornutus, (Lath.) The Dobchick, or dipper, like the rest of his family, is a far northern bird, breeding in the regions about Hudson's Bay. This grebe is some- times found resting for a time in the mill-dams and streams GEESE SWAN. 359 of the mountain in its journeys north and south. Common in Europe and Asia. PODICEPS Carolinensis, (Lath.) Pied-bill dobchick. This is an American species exclusively. It is said to be the "commonest species in the United States." It is only seen here on its journeys north and south, to and from its breed- ing region in the far north. PODICEPS Minor, (Lath.) Little grebe, or dobchick. This is the smallest of the grebes, and said to be " common to the colder parts of both continents, having been seen around Hudson's Bay, though hitherto unknown even as a visitor within the limits of the United States." This is cer- tainly a mistake, as stragglers have been seen on the Alle- ghany, and captured in ponds. GEESE. (Anser, Briss.) ANSER Canadensis, (Vieill.) Canada goose. This goose is a bird of passage only in the United States. It breeds between 50 and 67 north latitude. The breeding range of this goose is said to extend through thirty degrees. The great rallying regions of the north are the shores of Hudson's Bay. It sometimes alights on the ponds and dams of the mountain in its vernal and autumnal flights. ANSER Cinereus, (Meyer.) This is the common or do- mestic goose, introduced from Europe. SWAN. CYGNUS Americanus. -The Swan visits the arctic regions for the purpose of executing the great function of reproduc- tion, in " the short but brilliant summers which there pre- vail," passing over Pennsylvania early in spring and late in the fall, on its return south. It sometimes rests on ponds and streams for a short time on its journeys. THE MOUNTAIN. DUCKS. (Anas, Linn.) ANAS Boschas, (Rich.) Common duck, or mallard. This duck, the original of the domestic species, has a range from the Gulf of Mexico to the sixty-eighth parallel, and is said to breed as far south as Pennsylvania. It is found also in many parts of Europe. ANAS Discors, (Linn.) Blue-winged teal. This duck passes the mountains of Pennsylvania in April, northward bound, returning south late in September. Range, from Guiana and West Indies to fifty-eighth parallel. These ob- servations will also apply to the Buffel head. ANAS Sponsa, (Linn.) The Bride, or summer duck. A species peculiar to America, and a constant resident in the United States. Range, 45 north latitude to Mexico and Antilles. This is the most beautiful of the ducks ; indeed, few of the whole feathered tribe are so elaborately and ex- quisitely ornamented as this bird. COLYMBUS Glacialis, (Linn.) Loon. This large water bird has also a northern range. It stops on the mountain in its migrations, and sometimes remains for several days, slily slipping around the mill-dams and ponds. It is a hand- some bird, and has a voice which is one of the most remark- able sounds in nature. REPTILES. 361 CLASS III. BEPTILIA. ORDER I. TESTUDINATA, (Turtles.) THE order of Chelonian reptiles has been a troublesome chapter in the herpetology of North America. An elabo- rated synonymy of genera and species, with a history of the same in this, and many other departments of natural science, would be literary and scientific curiosities. Is the magnificent monograph of Louis Agassiz the ar- dently hoped for finality on this subject, and is the student of the testudinata henceforward to have cleared fields, and beaten paths, and to forget immediately agonizing columns of effete synonyms, monuments of the struggles of ambi- tious hunters of new species, and rejoice over the abso- lute fixation forever of generic and specific forms ? As the learned professor has brought the old " order into doubt," it is but reasonable to expect, that after a profound and laborious exploration of the whole ground, with an innumerable me- nagerie of living turtles, already drilled and catalogued by an illustrious group of scientific predecessors, together with the assistance of the whole contemporary lay or uncanonical world, he shall surely arrange it that " chaos shall never come again." The classification of the " Contributions" will no doubt be safe for cataloguing the few chelonians of the mountain for the present. The Alleghany in Pennsylvania is embraced within Agas- siz's northeastern division of the chelonian faunae of North America. This extends northeast beyond the forty-fifth isotherm, west to Lake Erie, and south to North Carolina, being protracted " along the Alleghanies even as far south as Georgia." According to Agassiz, the boundary of this 31 362 THE MOUNTAIN. turtle fauna is the range of the Chrysemys picta, and the characteristic genera are Nanemys, Glyptemys, Calemys, Ptychemys, Cistudo, Chelydra, Ozotheca, Thyrosternura, Malacoclemmys, Emys, and Grapterays, rare, also Aspido- nectes. Several families of testudinata are found on the mountain, some on the mountain proper, others in the streams cutting through the range and flowing from it. These are the Try ony chid ae, Chelydroidae, Cinosternoidae, Emydoideee. TRYONYCHIDJE. This family is aquatic in its habits, and called soft- shell fresh-water turtles. They inhabit muddy-bottomed streams, and not much is known of their habits. They live upon shell-fish, the larva? of insects, and other substances which they find in the mud. In mill-dams and stagnant pools their sharp-pointed snouts may be seen above the surface of the water, mere dots, the animal being suspended below. These turtles are found rarely on the eastern side of the mountain, but are regular inhabitants of the slow, tortuous, and sluggish streams which descend from the broken plateau of the western side of the range. According to Holbrook, "the flesh of some of these turtles is the most delicate food, surpassing that even of the green turtle." Agassiz enume- rates two genera of Tryonichidse that are found in the waters of Western Pennsylvania. * * " The soft-shelled tortoise was not generally known as an in- habitant of New York until after the completion of the Erie Canal, connecting the great lakes with the ocean. Previous to that period, it was supposed to belong exclusively to Southern and Western waters. The description given above was taken, several years since, from a specimen obtained in the Mohawk River. Subsequently, several in- dividuals, as I understand, have been taken from the Hudson River, near Albany." DEKAY, New York Fauna, According to Holbrook, " it abounds in the great chain of Northern lakes, both above and below Niagara Falls, and is common in the Mohawk, a tributary of the Hudson River, but is not found in any other Atlantic streams for a distance of nearly eight hundred miles." TURTLE. 363 The first, AMYDA Mutica, (Fitz.,) was obtained by Baird from the Alleghany River. ASPIDONECTES Spinifer, is the other soft-shelled turtle, which is said to be " common in the western part of New York and Pennsylvania." These turtles are not abundant high up the mountain streams, but in the Ohio Tributaries of Western Pennsyl- vania, where there are large dams and pools, they abound, and are sometimes of larger size than represented by Family CHELYDROID^E. CHELYDRA Serpentina, (Schw.) The Suapping-turtle fol- lows the streams of the mountain to a great height. In saw-mill dams, even on small runs, he grows to his largest dimensions. These large individuals are very old, as, ac- cording to Agassiz, "specimens, 12 inches long by 9J wide, are thirty-eight years old, and a specimen, marked forty- five years old r only increased an inch in that time." High up in the range they are frequently much larger than this, and, consequently, must be patriarchs of the race whose longevity no doubt has been insured by the salubrity of their alpine home. They are hideous in their form, savage in their habits, like other carnivorous animals, and from the ferocity of their style of defence, mode of attacking their prey, their ugly heads, with powerful jaws like the edges of a sharp-cutting vice, protruding from the shield of a rough, rocky shell, and accompanied by a long spinous tail like that of the alligator, they present an appearance to the last degree revolting.* They feed upon fish and water- rats, young ducks and geese, attacking even full-grown ducks " Tliis originally Western species passed from St. Peter's Kiver through Red River to Lake Winnipeg, giving a passage for the Trionyx feror to Lake of the Woods ; also, the Upper Illinois communicates with the waters of Lake Michigan, and thus reaches the chain of lakes that open into the St. Lawrence River." * The fights of these reptiles are fierce and deadly, often pro- tracted for hours. 364 THE MOUNTAIN. and geese. Instances are known of their seizing upon the noses of mules and horses that stooped to drink where they were concealed watching for their prey. They are extremely tenacious of life, and are endowed with such intense organic or vegetative vitality that the heart, dissected from the body and laid upon a plate, will pulsate for a day and a half, and the decapitated head will bite for several hours after being separated entirely from the body. This reptile is eaten, and considered a delicacy. Its range is the eastern side of the continent from Maine to Florida and Louisiana, and west to the Missouri River. Family CINOSTERNOIDJE. This is an exclusively aquatic family. They are small turtles, according to Agassiz, "the average size of the representatives of this family being smaller than in any other family of the testudinata." They are fierce and wild, living upon animal food. Two genera are found on the mountain. Sub-Family of OZOTHECOIDJE. OZOTHECA Odorata, (Ag.) Range, from New England to South Carolina, Georgia, West Florida, Missouri, and Louisiana. Occurs on the mountain. Sub-Family of CINOSTERNOID^E. THYROSTERNUM Pennsylvanicum, (Ag.) This species " occurs from Pennsylvania to Florida, and westward to Mississippi Yalley." Sometimes seen at base of mountain. Family This is an extensive family, including, according to Agassiz, " sixty well-known species, and presenting the broadest ranges of differences in habits, size, and structure." This varied or- ganization gives a wide habitat. Most of them live in or near water in pools or marshes, or on the edges of streams, being part of the time in the water and part on land. One TURTLES. 365 genus is exclusively terrestrial in its habits. The size of the different species of this group varies from fifteen to four inches in length, the largest species being aquatic. In this family the "terrapenes," so much esteemed as articles of food and luxury, are embraced. Inoffensive and harmless, they do not capture their prey, and only show combative elements when attacked. They live on animal and vegetable food, the terrestrial species feeding on vegetables alone. " They lay their eggs upon dry land like all other turtles, the terrestrial laying the fewest eggs." PTYCHEMYS Rugosus. Found at eastern base of moun- tain. Sub-Family of NECTEMYDOID^E. GRAPTEMYS Geographica, (Ag.) Not common on the mountain, but is found along its eastern base, and is said to be " common from Pennsylvania and New York to Michigan, Tennessee, and- Arkansas." CHRYSEMYS Picta, (Gray.) This is the old Emys picta, painted terrapene. It is described as a common species in every part of the geographic fauna of which its range is the limit. It is not common on the Alleghany, but very abund- ant near it. It is a beautiful turtle, and generally attracts attention by its ornamental box. Sub-Family of CLEMMYDOID^E. NANEMYS Guttata, (Ag.) This species is represented to occur in New England, New York, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina. Not abundant on the Alleghany. CALEMYS Muhlenbergii. Muhlenberg's terrapene is said to be " entirely limited to New Jersey and the eastern part of Pennsylvania." (?) Sub-Family of CISTUDININ^E. CISTUDO Yirginea. North American box-turtle. This species of box-turtle is found on the highest parts of the mountain, and is as common on the lower part of the range 31* 366 THE MOUNTAIN. as elsewhere. " Range, New England, west to Michigan, south to Carolinas."* ORDER II. SAURIA. Family AG AMIDES. TROPIDOLEPIS IJndulatus. The brown swift is the only representative of this order on the mountain, f It is a gray- ish-brown lizard, beneath greenish and white ; from five to eight inches long, and has the power to change its color. It lives on insects, frequenting pine woods ; called sometimes pine lizard, and brown scorpion. It is quick in its motions, moving with incredible celerity, and is an ugly creature, but not venomous. Range, from Gulf of Mexico to 43 north latitude. ORDER III. OPHIDIA, (Serpents.) The Ophidian, or snake tribe, have a number of genera and species on the mountain. In Baird and Girard's cata- logue of well-ascertained North American serpents in the Smithsonian Institution, thirteen genera and eighteen spe- cies are recorded as belonging to Pennsylvania. Many of * Agassiz states that a map showing the geographical distribution of North American turtles would exhibit '-the whole table-land be- tween the Sierra Nevada of California and the Rocky Mountains, as well as the eastern slope of the latter, down to the great American desert, without a single species of turtle over this extensive tract." He continues : " It would be a mistake, however, to infer, from this fact, that these animals are excluded from mountainous regions. In the range of the Alleghanies there are many species which ascend to the height of several thousand feet, and among those that reach the greatest height are Cistudo Virginea, Chelydra serpentina, and a species of Aspidonectes, probably Asp. nuchalis, (Com., p. 406;) but I regret that I am unable to give the absolute height with any degree of accuracy." Contributions, vol. i. p. 452. The great Central Railroad of Pennsylvania perforates the Alle- ghany 2200 feet above tide-water level. Several species are found above this line on the mountain, as the Snapper, the Virginia Box- turtle, Ozotheca odorata, and Chrysemys picta. f This is a numerous order of reptiles in the torrid zone, there being found some three hundred species. SNAKES. 367 these snakes are found either on the Alleghany, or near the eastern and western bases of that mountain within the State. Family I. CROTALID^E. Serpents "with poison fangs in front, which are erectile, and few teeth in upper jaw. A deep pit between the eye and nostril ; tail with a rattle."* CROTALUS Horridus.f This is the banded, or common rattlesnake of the mountain. It is exceedingly venomous and malignant, and found of large dimensions on that range. It is somewhat numerous on the highest knobs and ridges, espe- cially on their southern and southeastern slopes. On the northwestern side and northern slopes it is not often seen. It appears to avoid the cool shades and moist places of the deep forests of the western declivity and table-lands, even the dense laurel thickets in which it is so much dreaded. On the summits of the highest knobs and their southern slopes, where the rocks and earth are heated by the sun, and where the huckleberry, blackberry, and grape abound, which attract birds and other small animals, their regular prey, it makes its haunts, and lives to a great age. Length, fre- quently, more than four feet. AGKISTRODON Contortix. Copperhead. Tail without a rattle. This is a poisonous serpent, possessing extremely dangerous habits and qualities. The rattlesnake is a regu- lar fiend, occasionally, perhaps for his own protection, giving a peculiar style J of warning on the approach of any animal except its legitimate prey, a caveat which generally secures perfect freedom from all molesta- tion. The copperhead, on the contrary, is silent, com- bative, and vicious, and where he frequents must be looked * Baird and Girard. f Major Le Conte has clearly determined this to be the Crotalus horridus, and not, durissus. (Vide Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences, vol. vi., 1852-53, p. 415.) J The sound of his rattle, once sprung between the feet of the huntsman, will be remembered with a thrill of horror for the rest of his life. 368 THE MOUNTAIN. for with extreme vigilance, or his death stroke may be the first notice of his presence. But few individuals of this species are found on the mountain, fortunately for its inhabitants. Like the rattlesnake, he obtains possession of his prey by striking it with his erectile poison fangs, waiting until the unfortunate squirrel or bird drops dead, which is generally but a few moments, then slowly swallowing it. The bite of these two serpents is generally fatal, " a com- plete solution of the blood in the whole body being the im- mediate cause of death." Length, sometimes attaining to thirty-four inches. Family II. CoLUBRnxas. " Both jaws provided with teeth fully. No anal appendages."* EUTAINIA Sirtalis, (B. and Gr.) The striped, or garter snake, is abundant. It preys on toads and frogs, which it seizes and swallows entire. These frogs, when recently swallowed, may be liberated alive by killing and opening the snake soon after the frog has been bolted. When this is done, the frogs generally hop off with as much viva- city as they exhibited before their capture and abdominal imprisonment; no doubt to be ever afterwards delighted by the same order of beautiful reminiscences which enter- tained Jonah after a like experience. This snake, accord- ing to Dekay, is found in the northern part of New York at the height of 2000 feet above the level of the sea. In Pennsylvania it is found on the highest spurs of the Alle- ghany, near 3000 feet above tide level. Dekay quotes the EUTAINIA Ordinata as a New York species. NERODIA Sipedon, (B. and G.) Vernacular "water-snake." As its name indicates, its habits are aquatic. It is an abund- ant species throughout the State, but not so common on the mountain. Length, generally two feet ; preys upon fish and frogs. REGINA Leberis. (?) * Baird and Girard. SNAKES. 369 HETERODON Platyrhinos. This is the snake commonly called "blowing viper." When approached it makes a hissing sound, swells its head, and flattens out its body, and assumes altogether a threatening aspect, but is harmless. Length, two feet. HETERODON Niger, (Troost.) This is the "black viper," a snake frequently found on the mountain. It has the same habit of spreading and swelling when approached or at- tacked, as the blowing viper, making up what it wants in venom by threatening attitudes and ugliness of expression. General length, from two feet to thirty inches. Major Le Conte thinks this a variety of platyrhinos, having seen speci- mens showing the transition to the black color. It seems to attain to greater dimensions than the light-colored viper assumes. SCOTOPHIS Alleghaniensis, (B. and Gr.) COLUBER Alle- ghaniensis, (Holbr.) This is the common " big black snake" of the mountain, the slim Bascaaion being called "racer." On the subject of its common name, Dekay remarks : "It is manifestly the snake which has been frequently described to me of great length and prodigious velocity, and to which they gave the name of ' Racer,' or ' Pilot.' As these names are frequently applied to the black snake, I had supposed that species to have been intended by their description."* In Pennsylvania it does not receive this name, both species being abundant, and generally recognized as different ; the Bascanion, from its greater thinness and delicacy of style and more marked celerity of action, being exclusively styled the "Racer." The "big black snake" grows to a great size, as its com- mon name indicates ; sometimes attaining to the length of eight feet, and is strong, quick, and violent in its motions, frequently presenting a truly formidable appearance. It is said to be tamable, and to become familiar and friendly. OPHIBOLUS Eximius, (B. and G.) COLUBER Eximius, * Fauna of New York. 370 THE MOUNTAIN. (Dekay.) This is the milk, house, and chicken snake. Not abundant high up in the mountain. It frequents out-houses, and is said to drink milk from the farmer's pans in his spring house. BASCANION Constrictor, (B. and G.) (?) COLUBER Con- strictor, (Linn., Syst. Nat.) This is the black snake, or "racer." It is a very long, thin snake, graceful and comely, but exceedingly wild and unapproachable. It is quick and swift in its motions, gliding over the surface more rapidly than any other snake. CHLOROSOMA Yernalis, (Wagl., B. and G.) COLUBER Yernalis of Dekay, Holbrook, Storer, etc. Yulgo, green snake. This handsome little snake is common on the Alle- ghanies. It is a harmless species, and can be handled with impunity. DIADOPHIS Punctatus, (B. and G.) Ring-necked snake. COLUBER Punctatus of Linn., Gm., Harl., Holb., Stor. This is rather a common species on the Alleghany. "Body bluish-black above ; yellowish-orange beneath ; a yellowish- white occipital ring." It is a comely little reptile, harmless and innocent, but, like the rest of his family, continues to suffer from the heel of the great tyrannical " seed of the woman."* CELUTA Amcena, (B. and G.) COLUBER Amoenus, (Say.) BRACHYORRHOS Amoenus, (Holb.) etc. "Above, chestnut- brown uniform; opalescent, bright salmon-color beneath." This little creature is positively pretty, (incarnations of evil frequently are !) and has nothing of the repulsive characters of the " snake" about it. It frequently occurs on the Alle- ghany. STORERIA Dekayi, (B. andG.) This species is rare, but is found occasionally at the eastern and western base of the mountain. * The killing of inoffensive, harmless animals, even if they are serpents, is no very noble or exalting business. It seems rather an outlet (popular and right, of course !) to certain old instincts of pre- judice and infernalism belonging to the domain of total depravity. FROGS. 371 STORERIA Occipito-maculata, (B. and G.) Occurs on the mountain, but is rare. ORDER IY. AMPHIBIA. This is a division of the old class Reptilia adopted by some naturalists. BATRACHIANS. (Family Ranina.) There are several species of frog on the mountain. In the seventh volume of the Proceedings of the Academy of Natu- ral Sciences of Philadelphia, 1855, Major Le Conte has given a corrected catalogue of this genus. In this he asserts the identity of several of Holbrookes different species, and rearranges the group, discarding certain variable characters, (" frogs changing their color at will,") and establishing others that are constant. RANA Catesbiana, (Linn.) This is the common bullfrog, or blood-an'-owns. It has an extensive geographic range, the tadpoles, or undeveloped young, being found in almost every stream, and the full-grown frog in numbers in every pool of water of any size. It grows large, and is much esteemed by many as an article of food. This frog-taste is of Gallic origin, and was imported no doubt with some other etherially sublimated nonsense of the race that seems de- termined to rule the world, not only in ribbons and flummery, but in the department of powder and ball. The sound of the voices of ancient individuals of this species partakes of the sublime, and heard at twilight or night in the deep pools of the gorges of the mountain, constitutes the thorough-bass of nature's thousand-toned orchestra. RANA Fontinalis. This is the Horiconensis and Fonti- nalis of Holbrook, the first of which he confines to Lake George, while he gives to the latter a range common from Maine to Virginia. Major Le Conte says " it inhabits from one end of the country to another." In the streams of the mountain. 372 THE MOUNTAIN. RANA Pipiens, (Halicina of Holbrook,) water-frog. This frog abounds in the streams, ditches, and pools of the moun- tain. It makes a well-known piping noise, and is one of the harbingers of spring, waking up from his muddy doze, and adding his voice to the concert which announces the vernal resurrection. The accumulated piping of multitudes of this frog is sometimes deafening. RANA Palustris. Range, according to Holbrook, "Atlan- tic States from Maine to Virginia." Found on the moun- tain. RANA Conspersa. Ponds and ditches of the State. This species is common. RANA Sylvatica. Wood-frog. Harlan's Pennsylvania. Holbrook gives a range to this frog from New Hampshire to Virginia, Ohio, and Michigan. The wood-frog is found in all the forests of the mountain. It is a beautiful and ex- ceedingly agile species, making long leaps when disturbed, and quickly concealing itself in the leaves and moss. BUFO Americanus. Common American toad. This rep- tile is well known to all, although its habits, which are in- teresting, are known to few. It first grows like the frog, a tadpole in water, and afterwards assumes terrestrial relation- ships. It has nocturnal habits, destroying many noxious insects, is harmless and wise, and said to be susceptible of domestication. Its beautiful eyes and style of capturing its insect prey are much admired.* It has a wide geographic range. HYLA Versicolor, (Le Conte.) Tree-frog. This is an * The family Ranina feed on flies, worms, and the larvae of in- sects, and will only take their prey when alive. They hybernate, bury- ing themselves in the mud during winter. On an occasion, in mid- winter, a bushel of torpid frogs were taken out of one hole under a mass of roots beside a spring, near the summit of the mountain. The water of the spring having the mean temperature of the earth here, which is far above the freezing point, kept them from being de- stroyed. They gave no signs of life when exhumed and thrown into the snow. SALAMANDERS. 373 interesting animal, with peculiar habits and organization, possessing, like his brotherhood, the powers of the chameleon to a certain extent. It has a wide range, and is common on the mountain. HYLA Pickeringia. Pickering's tree-frog. This frog is found from Massachusetts to Pennsylvania. These batrachians live^upon trees, which they climb with great facility by a special structure of the toes, which termi- nate by adhesive balls, enabling them to stick to any surface, even the most polished. They can adhere to glass upside- down, suspending themselves like flies to the ceiling of a room. They feed on insects, and their croaking voices are well known to all. TAILED BATRACHIANS. LAND SALAMANDERS. (Family Salamandridae.) In the Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, October, 1849, Spencer F. Baird has given a revision of the North American Tailed Batrachians. In this he suggests the identity of several species described by other authors, and changes the arrangement of the group. His synonyms will be given in the following catalogue : SALAMANDRA, (Brong.) They are sometimes in water, all at first being aquatic, and breathing by external gills. SALAMANDRA Salmonea, (Storer.) PSEUDOTRITON Sal- moneus, (Baird.) Salmon-colored salamander. Localities, quoted by herpetologists, Vermont, New York, South Caro- lina, and Pennsylvania. (?) Color, brownish-red, sides sal- mon-colored, with bright salmon-colored stripe from eye to snout. Length, six to seven inches. SALAMANDRA Rubra, (Baud.) PSEUDOTRITON Ruber, (Tsch.) The red salamander. This is a beautiful sala- mander of a red or crimson color, with minute spots of black. It is a common species, living under decayed logs, 374 THE MOUNTAIN. piles of leaves, etc. Holbrook gives it a range of the At- lantic States from Massachusetts to Florida, but not west of the Alleghany. It is certainly an abundant species on the Alleghany and the western slope of that mountain. Length, four to six inches. SALAMANDRA Coccinea. The scarlet salamander. " Scar- let, with two or more ocellated spots on the sides. Length, two to six inches." This vermilion-colored species is com- mon ; said to be " most abundant after showers," of course because it comes out, and is more easily observed at that time. SALAMANDRA Glutinosa, (Green.) Blue-spotted sala- mander. This species is " bluish-black, with minute white spots on the back and tail." It is a widely-distributed spe- cies, one of the most common of the family of North Ameri- can salamanders, being found from 43 north latitude (Hol- brook) to the Gulf of Mexico. It abounds on the mountain, frequenting moist places, under decaying timber and loose flat stones. Length, six inches. SALAMANDRA Erythronata, (Green.) PLETHODON Ery- thronata, (Bd.) Red-backed salamander. This is a com- mon "wood-lizard," said to be the most abundant in the Northern States. Color, " head brownish above, white below, sides dull-white with brownish spots, a broad red stripe from snout to end of tail, on the young crimson. Length, 3 to 3-5 inches ; range, from 44 to 39 north latitude." SALAMANDRA Quadrimaculata, (Hoi.) DESMOGNATHUS Fuscus, (Bd.) This is a handsome species, but rare on the Alleghany. Holbrook gives it a range of the Atlantic States. He obtained specimens from Pennsylvania. SALAMANDRA Jeffersoniana, (Green.) AMBYSTOMA Jef- fersoniana. First locality, Chartiers Creek, Washington County. (Holbrook, Green.) Dekay suspects this species to be a variety of Glutinosa. Found on Western Appa- lachian range. Habits, terrestrial, ''feeds on insects, earth, worms," etc. SALAMANDRA Biliueata, (Green.) SP:ELERPES Bilineata, SALAMANDERS. 375 (Bd.) Striped-backed salamander. This is a small, smart species, of a brownish-yellow color, with two or three black lines on its back. Length, three inches. " Found in shallow water, beneath stones, and moist places." Dekay. Wide range, Massachusetts, Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, North and South Carolina. SALAMANDRA Symmetrica, (Harlan.) NOTOPTHALMUS Miniatus, (Bd.) Yellow-bellied salamander. This is a beau- tiful species of " brownish-red" and bright pink and salmon color, with " brilliant vermilion spots" in two rows on the back. This species is common on the mountain, and has a wide geographic range. It is represented as being found from the Green Mountains of New Hampshire to Virginia, Carolina, Florida, and Alabama. SALAMANDRA Longicauda, (Green.) SPELERPES Longi- cauda, (Bd.) Long- tailed salamander. Characteristics, "yellow, with handsome black spots and bars ; body half as long as tail; length, six inches; aquatic habits." Dekay. Range, Eastern Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Pittsburg, west of Alleghany. SALAMANDRA Subviolacea, (Bar.) AMBYSTOMA Punc- tata, (Bd.) Yiolet salamander. "Bluish-black, with yel- low spots." Range, Northern United States, Yermont, Massachusetts, Ohio, Maryland, Pennsylvania. Length, five to seven inches. SALAMANDRA Fasciata, (Green.) AMBYSTOMA Opaca, (Bd.) The blotched salamander. Color, gray, with black- ish blotches. Length, five inches. Range, Jersey, Massa- chusetts, Ohio, and South Carolina. AQUATIC SALAMANDERS. TRITONS, Water-Newts. This division of the salamander family is aquatic in its habits, soon dying when taken from the water, although it cannot breathe under water, coming up for air. A re- 376 THE MOUNTAIN. markable fact concerning this animal is its power to restore destroyed and removed limbs in a year ; the leg being re- stored again and again if destroyed. Even in the case of an entirely extirpated eye, the whole organ, with all its multiplexity and delicacy of anatomical structure, is repro- duced in less than eighteen months. Palatine teeth, trans- verse series, tongue adherent, tail compressed, fingers four, toes five, more or less palmated at root. TRITON Dorsalis, (Harlan.) NOTOPTHALMUS Yirides- cens, (Bd.) Millipunctatus of Dekay. Crimson - spotted triton. This is a hardy newt, "full of life in winter, even swimming under ice as lively as in summer, and only torpid in extremely cold weather." (Holbrook.) It is found in almost every pool, spring, and stream of water in its range, which "extends from one end of the Atlantic States to the other." It feeds on insects, and casts its skin in June, (Storer.) Color, olive, with crimson spots bordered with black ; length, three to four inches. TRITON Nigra, (Hoi.) DESMOGNATHUS Niger, (Bd.) The dusky triton is entirely aquatic in its habits. Color, blackish, with small white spots on sides, tail much com- pressed, (the tails of all the tritons are compressed.) Length, four to six inches ; range, Atlantic States from latitude 43 to Gulf of Mexico. A rare species in the waters of the mountain. TRITON Porphyriticus, (Green.) PLETHODON Glutino- sum, (Tsch.) The gray-spotted triton. Black, with grayish spots ; length, seven inches. Only locality Western Penn- sylvania. (?) The gelatinous ropes and coiled globular bunches of the spawn, containing the eggs and young of the salamanders, are found in all pools, puddles, or spots containing water, and which have no fish in them. Where there are fish, the eggs and young, with their enveloping mass, are destroyed. The precaution of the salamander is so great on this point that its eggs are frequently deposited in the drains and ruts, or wheel-tracks of roads, or any accidental puddle which may SALAMANDERS. 377 for the time contain water, but inaccessible to the regular inhabitants of water. These places drying up, millions are destroyed. Their reproductive power, however, seems in- computable. Tribe Immutabilia. The Crypto Branchiadae have no gills, but breathe by exposed spiracles or branchial orifices at the neck. PROTONOPSIS Gigantea, (Barton.) This is commonly called the Alleghany Hell-bender. It is the large water- newt of Western Pennsylvania, the Ohio, and Missis- sippi. It is "slate-colored, mottled with dusky." This enormous newt, which sometimes attains to thirty inches or nearly three feet, lives entirely in the water, eating fish, worms, shell -fish, etc. It is one of the most re- volting creatures in existence, resembling Milton's sin, its sprawling, flabby, slimy, and almost amorphic outlines sug- gesting some "fortuitous concourse of atoms," presided over by the genius of deformity and disgust, rather than the clearly demarked structure of a regularly-organized animal. The euphonious name of hell-bender, which is commonly applied to this newt, seems exceedingly appropriate. It is constantly seizing the boy-angler's hook, and when landed with gaping mouth and wicked gestures, is generally left in the quiet possession of rod, line, hook, and all, the terror- stricken lad retreating with precipitation and fear from what he calls the "poison alligator." The Protonopsis fol- lows the streams of the western side of the mountain as high up as there are any considerable volumes of water. It is almost confined to Western waters ;* abounding in streams which contain the soft-shelled turtles, (Tryonix,) and seem- ing, like that animal, to have an original natural affinity for that region, f The Alleghany, being the eastern line of the great cen- * It has been found in the Susquehanna, near Columbia. Baird. f See Dekay, Holbrook, etc., on Eastern appearance of the Tryonix. 32* 378 THE MOUNTAIN. tral North American zoological region, would seem, not- withstanding Dr. Binney's suggestion that it presents no barrier to the spreading of species, (see one of the leading extracts,) to exhibit some actual limits to the general diffu- sion of some of the reptiles and fishes at least. MENOBRANCHUS Maculatus, (Harlan. ) The spotted water- newt is a striking and interesting form of reptile. It has a handsomely-mottled body, with pleasant colors, and breathes by a group of fimbriated persistent branchise or spiracles, which project from the sides of the neck like a blood-red fringe. This lung of the animal is kept moving backward and forward in the process of oxygination of its blood. It is found in the Alleghany River, but does not get up high into the mountain. MENOBRANCHUS Lateralis, (Say.) This species was found by Say at Pittsburg. It does not pursue the waters of the Alleghany to great heights. These two animals are also Western species. FISHES. 379 CLASS IV.-FISHES. "ALL life is from the sea, none from the continent. All mucus is endowed with life. The whole sea is alive. It is a fluctuating, ever self-elevating and ever self-depressing or- ganism. Where the sea-organism by self-elevation succeeds in attaining unto form, there issues forth from it a higher organism. Love arose out of the sea-foam. The first or- ganic forms, whether plants or animals, emerged from the shallow parts of the sea. The first men were the literal and mountainous inhabitants of warmer countries, and found, therefore, at once reptiles, fishes, fruit, and game for food. " PhysiopMlosopliy. The ripple-marked sand-rock of the mountain's brow, a miniature sea embossed in original stucco, a miraculous me- dallion of a most antique regime, the agitated waters chiseled in stone by the artistic sculptor of the globe, now high in the air, " plays glad with the breezes as once with the waves : " " old play -fellows meet." So the cloud stoops and nods to his brother, has the Old friend the ocean along with him, and can- not be severed, must meet in the great waltz again, "by one music enchanted ;" thus by ancient affinity they approach : down comes the rain, and the sand and the wave meet. Strange ! but here is the sea, and here is its ever-accompany- ing life, for all "life is from the sea." Under the shadow of that rock, poised in the crystal me- dium that has just sprung from its heart, hangs the moun- tain trout, true brother of the illustrious sailor of the seas, the navigator of the ocean, the grand salmon, (Salmo salar,) whose armies, by a wondrous instinct, as true as the needle to the pole, traversed weary wastes of water, silent, sure, and steadfast as the planets in their starry spaces. " Born in 380 THE MOUNTAIN. the fresh water, it grows in the sea ; during winter takes refuge in the ocean; it passes the summer in rivers, and ascends to their sources. It traverses with facility the whole extent of the longest rivers." "As soon as a river is freed of ice, the salmon enter it, and always seem by nature impelled to enter those streams in which they were born ; an invisible power traces the route they are to follow, brings them back exactly to the place of their birth, and all of them, reassembled without tumult, appear to follow its guidance with implicit respect, just as we see the swallows every spring return to the nest of the preceding year." The season of fresh-water festivi- ties passed, the pilgrimage to the original shrine of love, and the scenes of youth, rock, waterfall and tree, performed, the enchantment of his birth-place in the far-off hill and mountain river-bed realized, the summer ended, this great fish, attenuated and exhausted, quietly returns for a season of repose to the caverns of the sea. So his smaller brother of the distant rivulet, the brook-trout, born in the dance and roar of the rocky torrent, or in the play over pebbly bed of rush- ing spring-flows, has still an inextinguishable longing to go to the sea again, and will go when he can, forming new characters and affinities, almost to the loss of his identity. Mighty sounding Sea ! Venerable Mother of life ! ancient abyss of organic mucus ! thou wrappest the world as a mantle ; " an ever-fluctuating, ever self-elevating, ever self - depressing organism," like the infinite Brahma, thou givest life forever, but will not be defrauded ; thy children still long to go to thee, still pray to be absorbed again, and the trout of the mountain-top, whose home is made by the droppings of the cloud, and the wandering salmon of the deep, " The seeds of land and sea Are atoms of thy body bright, And thy behest obey." PERCH. 381 Fishes are distributed into two great divisions, Bony and Cartilaginous, the first group containing very much the largest number of species. It is a numerous class of ani- mals, supposed to consist of between eight and nine thou- sand species. The streams which take their rise in the Alle- ghanies and flow east and west, present a variety of fishes, a few only of which can be named here. BONY FISH, (Spine-rayed.) Family PercidaB. PERCA Flavescens, (Mitch.) The yellow perch is a widely- distributed species. The almost universally-diffused "Ameri- can yellow perch" is found in the larger streams flowing from the mountain. Small young ones occasionally pene- trate the higher streams, rarely if ever the extreme spring- run or last rivulet. Being a rough, savage eater, bold and tough, he takes an extensive range. PERCA Nebulosa, and Minima of Haldeman are inhabit- ants of the Susquehanna River, whose tributaries flow from the Alleghany Mountain. These species are found sometimes high up those streams. LUCIOPERCA Americana, (Cuv. et Yal.) Yellow pike- perch. This fish is extensively distributed both east and west. It has many names in different parts of the country, and is called salmon in the Western waters. It sometimes ascends the streams into the mountain range, and is esteemed an excellent fish for the table, and being voracious, is easily taken. POMOTIS Yulgaris, (Cuv. etYal.) Pond-fish, sun-fish. The genus Pomotis is American, and composed of fresh- water fish. The vulgaris has a wide range, as Eastern States to North Carolina, and west to Lake Huron. This brilliant little gem of a fish is found in the moun- tain waters. It abounds, especially in the larger creeks and rivers, lower down, and does not seem to be much of 382 THE MOUNTAIN. a climber or mountaineer. Rarely seen in the extremely high runs, it prefers the deeper streams with pools and eddies. Here he may be seen poised under the floating water-plants, splatter-docks, and potomogotons, near the edge of the stream, looking up familiarly as if he wished, for variety, to leave his watery medium for a time and make a still more flashy display of the rays he has stolen from the sun. Thus, with quivering fin ; motionless body, and great staring eyes, he fills the fisher-boy with the deli- cious perturbation that Campbell or Gerhard might feel in the presence of the king of the desert, the lion. POMOTIS Appendix. Black-eared sun-fish. This species is found in the ponds at eastern base of the mountain. Family TRIGLID^E. COTTUS Gracilis, (Heck.) URANIDEA Quiescens, (Dekay.) Little star-gazer, Miller's thumb. This strange little fish attains only to the length of a few inches. It lies still on the bottom of the streams, under stones, moving quickly when disturbed, and darting off to a new hiding-place. COTTUS Yiscosus, (Hald.) This species penetrates the mountain streams. " West of the Alleghany we know of the existence of two species, one C. Bairdii, in the northern, the other, C. Wil- sonii, in the eastern tributaries of the Ohio." (Girard.) Do these species penetrate high into the Alleghany range ? SOFT-BAYED FISHES. (Family Siluridae.) PIMELODUS Catus. The common cat-fish has a wide range, New Hampshire to Florida. Two or three species of the genus Pimelodus are found in the waters flowing from the mountain. Only the smaller species penetrate the higher streams, and these never get very near the spring- heads. CAT-FISH SUCKER. 383 With regard to the fish called by Dekay Pimelodus catus, Girard remarks, in Proceedings of Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia for 1859, p. 160, " The true Pime- lodus catus is a Southern species, widely distinct from the above." He suggests that "it might be called the Dekai." He proposes the name of Pimelodus lynx for a species "fur- nished by the hydrographic basin of the Chesapeake." This fish is found in the streams, and ponds communicating with them, up to the eastern base of the Alleghany Mountain. PIMELODUS Furcatus, (Cuv. et Val.) This fish grows in the Ohio to the enormous length of 4J to 5 feet. Large individuals are never found high up the streams among the mountains. PIMELODUS. (?) A little cat-fish, called the stinger, or stony-batter, is found in the waters at the eastern base of the mountain. It is a quick-motioned fish which inflicts quite a severe wound by a spine concealed in the pectoral fin. Hence its name of "stinger." It lives much under stones in the streams it frequents, and never attains more than a few inches in length. Family CYPRINHLE. CATOSTOMUS. Of the sucker family a number of species are found in the mountain streams. They are the most common fishes, and found in nearly all waters.* It is said by the icthyologists to be an exclusively North Ameri- can group. f Descending from the mountain into the rivers, the old sucker attains to respectable dimensions, sometimes becoming a large and powerful fish. In the small and shallow runs higher up, they swarm in numbers, but are of diminutive size. The flesh of these fish is not much esteemed as an article of food, as it is soft, insipid, and at certain seasons entirely unpalatable. They abound * Wherever water exists, except in dead puddles, this numerous family assume the privilege of going. f M. Lesueur long since described seventeen species of American suckers, and figured nine of them. (See Cuvier, Pisces, p. 380.) 384 THE MOUNTAIN. in bones, which are sharp and hard, and, altogether, the eating of this fish is not much unlike the mastication of a pincushion. CATOSTOMTJS Communis, (Les.) Common sucker. This species abounds in the larger streams. It has a wide geo- graphic range. CATOSTOMUS Tuberculatus, (Les.) The horned sucker is said to be found in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Con- necticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. (?) CATOSTOMTJS Maculosus, (Les.) This fish is commonly called the "mall head sucker" from its large, angular, and peculiar head. It climbs in the smallest streams high up on the mountain. It is the spotted sucker which lies still and motionless on the bottoms of the streams, clinging closely to the stones. CATOSTOMUS Duquesnii, (Les.) White, or Pittsburg sucker. This is a handsome fish, and in the larger rivers grows to a great size. CATOSTOMUS Elongatus. Long sucker. This species is commonly called the "winter sucker," and follows the runs to their springs in the mountain. Both the last species have a wide range. HYLOMYSON Nigricans. Black sucker. (?) STILBE Crysoleucus. New York shiner. There are a number of synonyms for this fish, as Cyprinus crysoleucus, Leuciscus Crysoleucus, Leucomosus Americanus, etc. It is a beautiful little bright silvery fish, sometimes attaining to five inches in length, and looks like a miniature shad. It is in all the streams of Pennsylvania, and has also a wide ex- tralimital range. Said to be " found all over the temperate regions of North America." LEUCISCUS Cornutus. The Plargyrus cornutus, red fin horn chub, abounds in all clear streams with trout and other species of the genus. It is a beautiful fish, and easily taken, being voracious, and biting at everything. Length, six to seven inches. LEUCISCUS Pulchellus. Roach dace, cousin trout. This DACE KOACH MINNOW. 385 species is sometimes found fourteen inches long. It is found in the Susquehanna, but not high up the mountain streams. LEUCISCUS atronasus. ARGYREUS atronasus. Black-nosed dace. (?) Dace, running chub, is common all over the State. Length, 3J inches. LEUCISCUS argenteus. Silvery dace. (?) LEUCISCUS nitidus. White dace, shiner. (?) LEUCISCUS pygmseus. Pigmy shiner. This is said to be the smallest of the American cyprinidse, its length being only one inch. LEUCISCUS rutilus. Roach. This beautiful, familiar, almost friendly and domestic little fish, is common in all the runs of the mountain. It infests every brook, playing in their smallest beds without shyness, and darting and seizing as food almost anything that falls into the water. Every boy will remember him as his first trophy with string and pin-hook, his first Waltonian dream, when "Sauntering 'long and listless,' as Tennyson has it, Long and listless strolling, ungainly in hobbadiboyhood." Length, four or five inches. HYDRARGYRA. Minnow. This, and some of the pre- ceding genera, are extensively distributed. They crowd the streams, and are the "shiners" of the boys' sport, being small, graceful fish, with a variety of metallic reflections. The mountain waters abound with them up to the spot where the springs boil up from the sand. Every little rivulet is alive with them, of every dimension, from the almost invisible fish-shaped atom, to individuals of three or four inches in length. They are tame and fearless, and can be seen at all times in shoals through the transparent ice, even in the coldest weather as lively as in August or July. Their bright-polished sides, tinged with silver and bronze, flash in every pool, and their delicate forms glide from every grass- tuft and overhanging bank of the mountain brooks. They are very prolific. Dekay enumerates three species belonging to New York. 33 386 THE MOUNTAIN. SEMOTILUS atro-maculatus. The spotted shiner is one of the commonest " chubs." He flourishes every place on the mountain range. EDOGLOSSUM masilingua. The wry-mouth dace is abund- ant on the mountain. ETHEOSTOMA. (?) Darter. One species of this genus is found on the mountain. Family ESOCID^E. Esox estor, (Les.) Pike, pickerel, muskellunge. Length, one to three, or nearly four feet. Esox reticulatus, (Les.) Common pike. Length, one to two feet. Range, Eastern and Middle States, "being abundant in the waters of the Ohio River." Of the pike or pickerel family, the streams which flow from the mountain are supposed to have but this one species. It is rarely found high in the mountains, and never in the small spring-runs near their summits. Lower down, on both sides of the Alleghany range, where the streams are larger and there are natural and artificial pools, it is found of a large size. This seems to be one of the causes of the brook-trout pushing its residence to the smaller streams and springs, rather than remain in the lower larger waters to be devoured by pikes and perches. This is the species said to be common " through- out the United States except in extreme Western and Southern waters," extending from New England to the western limits of Pennsylvania, and found in every river, pond, and streamlet. It is represented not to grow larger than from six to seven pounds, although it is at the same time alleged that individuals have been taken weighing sixteen pounds. It has been also stated that the two large species, the Esox estor and Esox lucioides, are not found in any other part of the continent except the great lakes and waters of the St. Lawrence Basin. These fish, especially the Esox estor, grow to an immense size ; by Dr. Richard- son said to be often twenty-eight pounds. From the dimen- sions of some described by Dr. Dekay, more than four feet BROOK-TROUT. 387 long, it has been suggested that this species may sometimes attain the weight of fifty pounds. The other species, the northern pickerel (Esox lucioides) sometimes attains the weight of seventeen pounds. The reticulatus being re- stricted to six or seven pounds, the range of the larger species must be more extensive than that assigned to it by some writers for the following reason : in the dams or slack- water pools of the Conemaugh River on the western side, and within the Appalachian range, a pike is often taken weighing thirty pounds, and very frequently twenty and twenty-eight pounds. The head is enormous, and the fish is considered the greatest delicacy, and not like the common pickerel, "coarse, watery, and of small value for the table." Is this the great St. Lawrence Basin Muskellange Esox estor or another Esox ? Family SALMONID^. SALMO fontinalis, (Mitch.) Brook-trout. Range, all clear running streams in the Northern and Middle States. Length, said to be eight inches, but often much larger.* Far up in the mountain rivulets, even to the spring as it escapes through the fissures of the rock, this species climbs. Wherever fresh water, especially cold spring-water, is found in sufficient quantity to immerse their bodies, they abound in hole and eddy, in pool and rapid, and it is wonderful how they thread their way up the mountain side through the swift-rushing streams, over falls boiling through rocks, roots, and drifts. Where the smallest rill or little spring re- mains permanently fresh throughout the year, this species, in some shape of growth, is found in proportion to the quantity of the water, either as smallest troutlet or adult fish. The latter, or full-grown trout, is generally found in the larger waters some distance from the mountains, while the young fry in quantities find their way up to the springs, and live and * "A trout, measuring fifteen inches in length, and weighing two pounds two ounces, was caught in Piney Creek, near the base of the Alleghany, July, 1859." M. 388 THE MOUNTAIN. grow in spaces that would not conceal the body of the full- grown trout. Off the mountain, where the springs form creeks and rivers, the trout attains frequently a very large size, even the fullest dimensions attributed to him by the na- turalist. These large individuals are supposed to be ex- tremely old. It has been suggested that there is a smaller form of the adult brook-trout adapted to the smaller streams which they inhabit, and that he is susceptible of still greater development under conditions more favorable to an enlarge- ment of his body. In the clear, bright spring-runs of the mountain, the trout is generally thought to attain his greatest perfection of coloring, sporting his handsome figures and brilliant tints in perfection. Although he is spawned, lives, and dies in the mountain streamlet, it is maintained that he still retains his migratory instinct, and has a tendency to return to the sea, and that individuals do succeed in returning again through the larger rivers to the main, where, under the new conditions of the new medium, he develops new and altered attributes, to the perplexity and confusion of the fish-fancier, and even of the scientific ob- server. The flesh of this exquisite fish is considered one of the greatest luxuries of the gourmand. Another member of the family of salmons is said to be found in the larger streams which flow from both sides of the Appalachian chain. This is commonly called the white salmon, and is a plain fish with a graceful form, but with- out brilliant coloring, and the clear prominent characters of the salmon. It is found in both branches of the Susquehanna and Juniata rivers in the East, and the Alleghany, Cone- maugh, and Youghiogheny rivers in the West. The flesh of this fish is much esteemed. Family ANQUILLID^. ANQUILLA vulgaris, (Mitch.) Common eel. The eel is found in the streams both sides of the mountain, but not abundantly, high up. The Western waters are especially destitute of this fish, although it is said to be common, and LAMPREY. 389 a cosmopolite. The common eel is very abundant in the eastern waters, particularly low down in the larger streams or rivers, but it also ascends the mountains to a great height, small ones being occasionally found in the last rivulets of the springs. They say the eel 7 spawns in the ocean, and never in lakes and rivers. The journeys from the estuaries of the ocean to the summits of the mountains must be full of adventure, and the biography of an eel would, no doubt, be the record of a varied experience. Leaving the "salt and slimy sea," however, for the pure and limpid streams of the mountain, is certainly excel- lent taste in the eel family, and the philosophy of the migrations of the Anadrom is a revelation of the infallible wisdom of instinct In the clear, cold fresh waters of the large streams, this fish grows to an enormous size ; the flesh is white, fat, and of delicious flavor. The habits of the family are well known. Family SUCTORII, or PETROMYZONID^E.. PETROMYZON fluvialis, (?) Americanus. The lamprey is rather a rare fish, living in the larger streams, and never found high up in the mountain. It is peculiar, and its habits and organization are an interesting subject to the naturalist. Dekay enumerates three species of Petromyzon, two small, one large, which he calls the sea lamprey. The lamprey of the Juniata River is a large eel, and would fill his descrip- tion of the sea lamprey or Americanus. 33* 390 THE MOUNTAIN. INVERTEBEATA; OK, SECOND, THIRD, AND FOURTH GREAT DIVISIONS OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. THE limits of the present work on the mountain being fixed quite in disproportion to the magnitude of the subject- matter, painful restraints, distressing hobbles, and trouble- some bars, have hedged in the field of labor. Pause and ponder over this " daring of the impossible," creation to be squeezed into a nut-shell ; the world precipitated into a thimble ; still more insane, the mountain concentrated and preserved in a gallipot ? Painful reflection ! unheard of audacity ! immeasurable folly ! May the disgust and indig- nation of the gods be averted. This shadow of the "bill of fare;" this inkling of the opulence of the ineifable promises of blessedness to body and soul from the mountain as a habitat, would be still more meagre, imperfect, and vain, without some representa- tion from the invertebrates ; for here is the region where the mysterious bond of animality commences ; here is an or- ganic realm of wonder and fable ; here is a world of eccen- tric and anomalous FORMS ; and here is the tragic union of the ponderable and imponderable in the lowest media, and under every possible condition of time and space, and in the most doleful and repulsive domains of absolute brutism. "Life is a vortex more or less rapid, more or less compli- cated, the direction of which is invariable, and which always carries along molecules of similar kinds, but into which in- dividual molecules are continually entering, and from which INVERTEBEAT^. 391 they are continually departing ; so that the form of a liv- ing body is more essential to it than its matter." Perfection being the end proposed, all bottles were to be filled, all nooks and crannies of nature occupied, all things were to live, and "work in endless motion ;" that celestial loaferdom, that far-off paradise of all men's dreams and prayers, where there is eternal repose and nothing to be done, having no prototype in the plan of the universe. Hence the tyrannic law of form must be revealed, its instrumentality was inevitable, the adaptation to the condition, for a purpose, and hence this endless variety, this countless diversity of organic beings. But this is a strange relationship, vertebrata, inverte- brata brain and no brain. Still stranger is the no-brain's relationship to the no-brain. What possible nexus can exist between this huge mollusk* with his fleshy body, and house of rock, and that epheme- ral insect, with winged, etherial, and transparent body? What element of sameness could ever be found between the infernal arachnida, or spider, full of poison, in his trap-den of insidious ropes, and that winged, floating gem, the butter- fly, innocent eater of nectar and lover of flowers ? What bond of organic affinity could come between that hideous crustacean, with sprawling legs, satanic claws, spines, and bristles, and that strange protozoon, whose " simple organi- zation is reducable to the type of a cell ?" Only from the bond of that essential law, only from the resistless despotism of the powers which reign in the world of matter and the primordial necessities of "life, substance, and form." The element of generalization is, they are animals without vertebral columns, brains, or spinal cords. Wondrous vortex ! miracu- lous cell ! With symmetry and beauty, the circulation through the imperial structure of mammal, bird, reptile, and fish being accomplished, we arrive in a descending grade at the consideration of an anomalous and peculiar series of "vortices," real fantastic tricks, no back bone, no brain * Chama gigas. " Specimens have been taken that weighed up- ward of three hundred pounds." CUVIER. 392 THE MOUNTAIN. or spinal cord, but mantles of stone, wings of purple and gold, gauze and silk, indurated skin-skeletons outside, crusty hides of lime and leather, with strange articulations, hardest shells, or mucous films, in short, of mollusk, lobster, butterfly, and polypus. Is there no end to this whirl ? where do these animal vortices stop ? On dances the enchanted cell, down, down through crawling worm and writhing zoophyte, to the incon- ceivable protozoa, " organization, type of a cell,"* where the animal shakes hands with the vegetable, and it is asked, which is the plant and which is the animal, while the microscope stands aghast over a hideous simplicity, a fearful unity, and that bridge, sharper a thousand times than the finest sword, is passed between "man and nothingness," and creation stands her last trick detected, her last joke confessed, "in- finitude within, infinitude without." Siebold remarks : " The invertebrate animals are organ- ized after various types, the limits of which are not always clearly defined. There is, therefore, a greater number of classes among them than among the vertebrates. But, as the details of their organization are yet but imperfectly known, they have not been satisfactorily classified in a natu- ral manner." The arrangement of the invertebrates in the Animal Kingdom of Baron Cuvier, is the classification which has been in general use, and is familiar to all. This is the distribution into divisions of Animalia mollusca, or soft animals, Animalia articulata, or articulated animals, and Animalia radiata, or radiated animals. This generalization has been used by the greater number of writers on the subject, and its clever nomenclature has become mingled with most of the literature of that depart- ment. The microscope, and more recent scientific observers, have given more elaborate generalizations in this division * "Siebold, Kolliker, and others, have taken the ground that in- dividual animal forms may be unicellular ; or, in other words, that an animal may be composed of only a single cell." Burnett's Intro- ductory Note to the Infusoria. INVERTEBRATA. 393 of science. This instrument (the microscope) is destined to realize the dream of the naturalist, in the registering of organic forms, and now stands the great sub-soil plough in the realms of knowledge intelligible to the senses of man. The following classification of invertebrate animals is used by Yon Siebold and Stannius in their " Comparative Anatomy of the Invertebrata," translated from the German by Waldo I. Burnett, of Boston. ANIMALIA EVERTEBRATA. INVERTEBRATE ANIMALS. Brain, spinal cord, and vertebral column, absent. FIRST GROUP. PROTOZOA. Animals in which the different systems of organs are not distinctly separated, and whose irregular form and simple organization is reducible to the type of a cell. CLASS I. INFUSORIA. CLASS II. RHIZOPODA. SECOND GROUP. ZOOPHYTA. Animals of regular form, and whose organs are arranged in a ray-like manner around a centre, or a longitudinal axis ; the central masses of the nervous system forming a ring, which encircles the oesophagus. CLASS III. POLYPI. CLASS IV. ACALEPH^S. CLASS V. ECHINODERMATA. THIRD GROUP. VERMES. Animals with an elongated, symmetrical body, and whose organs are arranged along a longitudinal axis ; so that right and left, dorsal and ventral aspects may be indicated. 394 THE MOUNTAIN. The central nervous mass consists of a cervical ganglion, with or without a chain of abdominal ganglia. CLASS VI. HELMINTHES. CLASS VII. TURBELLARII. CLASS VIII. ROTATORII. CLASS IX. ANNULATI. FOURTH GROUP. MOLLUSCA. Animals of a varied form, and whose bodies are sur- rounded by a fleshy mantle. The central nervous masses consist of ganglia, some of which surround the oesophagus, and others, connected by nervous filaments, are scattered through the body. CLASS X. ACEPHALA. CLASS XI. CEPHALOPHOEA. CLASS XII. CEPHALOPODA. FIFTH GROUP. ARTHROPODA. Animals having a perfectly symmetrical form, and articu- lated organs of locomotion. The central masses of the nervous system consist of a ring of ganglia surrounding the oesophagus, from which proceeds a chain of abdominal ganglia. CLASS XIII. CRUSTACEA. CLASS XIV. ARACHNIDA. CLASS XV. INSECTA. By inspecting the above classification some conception may be had of the extent of this division of the animal kingdom. From Infusoria to Insect is a vast range of or- ganization, and all possible modification of type and form would seem to have been called into requisition. INVERTEBRATA. 395 The very imperfect catalogue of the first great division of the animal kingdom, the Anamalia vertebrata, or verte- brated animals, having occupied so much space, it has be- come necessary to postpone, for the present, any recitation of the Invertebrata. This is to be regretted, as it is a most interesting department of nature, full of suggestions to the contemplative mind, and fraught with never-failing attrac- tions to the scientific observer. The mountain is furnished with a goodly array of species of invertebrates, the cata- logue of which will be published in another form at an- other time. A few words on each separate department of this great division of animals must suffice for the present. And first, of Malacology, and the relationship of the Mollusca to the preceding division of vertebrates, and the world. Condensed from the illustrious Cuvier, the Mollusk stands, anatomically, thus, No articulated skeleton, or vertebral canal ; nervous system not united in brain and cord, but in nervous masses in different parts of the body, principal of which called brain, surrounds the oesophagus ; organs of sensation and motion not uniform as in vertebrates ; viscera more irregular, even in structure, as heart and respiratory organs ; some respire air, others water, salt and fresh ; ex- ternal and locomotive organs generally on two sides of an axis ; circulation double ; blood white or bluish, with little fibrine ; veins are absorbents ; muscles attached to skin, result- ing in harder tissues ; motions, contractions, inflexions, are " prolongations of different parts" thus, creeping, swimming, seizing ; no levers, or articulations in limbs ; move slowly, and never per saltum ; irritability great, even when di- vided ; skin naked, covered with secretion ; no olfactories. Acephala, Brachiopoda, Cirrhopoda, some Gasteropoda and Pteropoda have no eyes. Cephalopoda have them, also or- gans of hearing, and something like brain in a cartilaginous box ; most have a folding of skin, i.e. mantle, sometimes a disk, pipe, sac, fin. Naked mollusks have mantles, mem- branous or fleshy, most have laminae of harder substances in 396 THE MOUNTAIN. them, increasing in extent. This substance, which is concealed in mantles in the animal, styled naked mollusk, when it goes on to form a shell for use and protection, is called Testaceous. The " variety in form, color, substance, bril- liancy of shells, is endless." All styles of mastication and deglutition exist in mollusks ; stomachs simple, multiple, or provided with special instrumentalities. As animals, they are but slightly developed, have little industry, and only pre- served from annihilation by "fecundity and vital tenacity." By referring to the classification of Siebold, it will be seen that he distributes the Mollusks into three classes, namely, Acephala, Cephalophora, and Cephalopoda. Cuvier separated the Mollusca into six classes, namely, the Cephalopoda, Pteropoda, Gasteropoda, Acephala, Bra- chiopoda, and Cirropoda. CLASSES I. and II., or Cephalopoda and Pteropoda, exist only in the sea. CLASS III. Gasteropoda. ORDER I. Pulmonea. Some of this order are terrestrial, others aquatic, the latter of " which are required to come to the surface of the water they inhabit to breathe." Of the terrestrial Pulmonea the mountain has many representatives. By consulting the beautifully -elaborated monograph of Dr. Binney, on the " Terrestrial Air-Breathing Mollusks of the United States," in three volumes, and still not finished,* some conception may be formed of the extent of this group of animals. The following is his tabular classification of the Pneumo- branchiate Mollusca : * It will give the naturalists of the United States much pleasure to be assured that this splendid work is to be continued, and it is hoped finished, by the industrious and accomplished son of Dr, Bin- ney, "Win. G. Binney, of Burlington, New Jersey. INVEBTEBRATA. 397 Pneumobranchiate Mollusca. SECT. I. Terrestrial. Living upon the land. FAMILIES. GENERA. f Vaginulus. , T . . , J Tebennophorus. ^ Limax. fVitrina. Succinea. Helix. Bulimus. [_ Glandina. {Cylindrella. Pupa. Vertigo. TLimnea. SECT. n. f Limneacte L the waters. Auriculadse . Auricu i a . TERRESTRIAL MOLLUSKS. The Alleghany in Pennsylvania is within Dr. Binney's geographic distribution, Section No. 4, or the " northern in- terior section," which ''includes the country between the Ohio River and the Great Lakes, and between North Caro- lina and New York and Vermont. It extends west of the Mississippi River." This region, from its geology, climate, soil, and vegetation, would seem to be extremely favorable to the existence and increase of terrestrial mollusks. Dr. Binney says, volume first, page 124, of this section, "Va- ginulus, Glandina, Helicina, the larger species of Bulimus, and Cyclostoma, restrained by climatal influences, have dis- appeared ; but the majority of the species of Helix, Suc- cinea, Pepa, and Yertigo, flourish in great numbers, and all 34 398 THE MOUNTAIN. the naked slugs, both native and introduced, with the excep- tion of Yaginulus, are found. It would seem to be the great central focus of all these genera, from which they radiate into the other sections." Some of the Helices are universally diffused, as labyrin- thica, from Florida to Maine, also Helix minuscula, and Pupa contracta, rupicola, and exigua. In the distribution of the genera and species of this geo- graphic section, page 129, Dr. Binney gives the following synopsis, the foreign species being printed in italics : " Tebennophorus carolinensis. " Arion hortensis. " Limax agrestis, campestris, variegatus. " Succinea avara, aurea, obliqua, ovalis, putris. " Bulimus lubricus, fallax, exiguus. " Helix albolabris, alternata, appressa, arborea, cellaria, chersina, clausa, concava, demissa, dentifera, electrina, ele- vata, exoleta, fallax, fuliginosa, hirsuta, hortensis, indentata, inflecta, inornata, interna, intertexta, labyrinthica, ligera, lirnatula, lineata, lucida, minuscula, monodon, multidentata, multilineata, palliata, pennsylvanica, perspectiva, profunda, pulchella, sayi, solitaria, striatella, suppressa, thyroidus, tridentata. " Pupa armifera, badia, corticaria, contracta, rupicola. "Vertigo decora, gouldii, milium, ovata, pentodon." Most of these animals are inhabitants of forests ; some of gardens and houses, even towns and cities. Family I. LIMACID^E. Slugs. These are the slugs, or snails without shells, as they are commonly called. They do not go very far north or south, but abound in the tem- perate latitudes. Their slimy trails are found over logs, stones, walls, fences, etc. Many of them are injurious and destructive in gardens, having nocturnal habits, and being extremely difficult of detection in their devastations. They endure much cold, but do not hybernate like the snails. Wonderful stories are told of slugs and snails, of their varied qualities and strange powers of instinct. They have been INVERTEBRATA. 399 used as food, medicine, agents of telegraphic communication, and stand as the general symbols of utter beastiality in the doleful region of . Of the family of Lamacidae, Binney makes four genera, namely, Yaginulus, Tebennophorus, Arion, and Limax, and affirms, "we have, then, not even one genus which is un- questionably indigenous to our territory." The mountain has the following genera and species : TEBENNOPHORUS caroliniensis, (Bosc.) This is a very common slug in the deep forests on decayed wood and bark, where it is often four inches long. LIMAX campestris, (Bin.) Found in the forests and among rocks and logs. Binney remarks : " From its wide distribution, it would seem to be indigenous." Family HELICID^. Snails. The animals of this group have shells, are herbivorous and carnivorous, and are found within the tropics, as well as temperate regions, but are more abundant in hot climates, decreasing in frequency in tem- perate and frigid regions. Some of the genera are north- ern, some southern exclusively. The family incline to forest residences, domiciliating on fallen leaves, trunks, branches, and rocks. SUCCINEA. Small shells like snails, but shorter, " ovate conic, generally amber-colored, thin, translucent," and they are found over every part of the temperate zone. Habits, like the genus Helix. Succinea obliqua, (Say.) Wide range. S. avara, (Say.) Common. S. ovalis, (Gould.) (?) HELIX. These animals have been called cosmopolite, from the universality of their diffusion. They occupy every part of the United States, and are abundant in Pennsyl- vania. They inhabit the forests of the mountain in great numbers ; live on vegetables, hiding under logs, bark, leaves, stones, and grass, and affecting darkness and dampness. The following species are found in Pennsylvania, and many of them on the Alleghany, including its eastern and western bases : 400 THE MOUNTAIN. Helix albolabris, multilineata, (not east of Alleghany,) pennsylvanica, thyroidus, dentifera, palliata, appressa, mono- don, hirsuta, concava, pulchella, profunda, sayi, tridentata, labyrinthica, intertexta, alternata, fuliginosa, inonata, cel- laria, arborea, indentata, interna, suppressa, lineata. BULIMUS. General character, like Helix. Most of them belong to the tropics. BULIMUS lubricus, (Mul.) Of this shell Binney remarks : " This little species, which is hardly larger than a grain of wheat, is certainly identical with the European shell. It has a vast range, being found on the bark and leaves of decay- ing trees in forests and groves." It is recognized by its "peculiarly brilliant reflections." BULIMUS exiguus, (Say.) The " length of this species is one-fifteenth, breadth, one-fortieth of an inch." This ex- ceedingly minute shell has a wide range, "being common in all the Northern and Middle States." "Found under stones, wood, and moss, in damp places." BULIMUS fallax, (Gould.) A very small shell; "length, one-fifth, diameter, one-fifteenth of an inch." Wide range. These are the only species noticed on the Alleghany. PUPA. " Shells elongated, cylindrical or accuminate with numerous whorls," etc. This genus is widely distributed over the globe. Many of these little shells are very beau- tiful when examined closely, but from their minuteness, re- quire great care to find or examine them. They live under fallen leaves, branches, and bark that is decaying, also on stumps and logs in forests ; others on moss, stones, etc. in fields ; others about water and swamps, seeming to require much moisture for their comfort. " They feed on decaying vegetables, keeping in the shade and hidden." "In winter they bury themselves in the earth or under the leaves." PUPA armifera, (Say.) "Length, three-sixteenths of an inch ; diameter, half of the length. " This the largest spe- cies, though a small shell, and common. PUPA contracta, (Say.) "Length, one-tenth, diameter, INVERTEBRATA. 401 one-twentieth of an inch." This is the commonest species of Pupa. PUPA pentodon, (Say.) Length, one-twelfth of an inch. This is a widely-distributed shell. It lives in woods, under leaves, and on the roots of trees. These three species in- habit the mountain. YERTIGO ovata, (Say.) "Length, three-fortieths, trans- verse diameter, one-twenty-fifth of an inch." Wide range. "It is somewhat aquatic in its habits." PUPA corticaria, (Say.) Length, one-tenth, diameter, one-twentieth of an inch. These minute shells are found on the Alleghany, and its eastern and western slopes. FRESH WATER PULMONATA. (Family Limniadae.) This family is wholly fluviatile. PLANORBIS, (Lamarck.) " Shell discoidal sinistral ; spire depressed or concave, exhibiting the whorls above and be- low;" fresh water. Dekay reports, as belonging to New York, and probably Northern and Middle States, the fol- lowing list of species : Planorbis trivolvis, bicarinatus, len- tus, megastoma, (thin, delicate shell,) parvus, corpulentus, deflectus, dilatatus, which " occurs from Massachusetts to Maryland and Ohio." Several of this genus are on the mountain. - LIMNEA, (Lam.) "Animal spiral, elongated, or oval." Dekay has catalogued the following species : Limnea catas- copia, ("from Massachusetts to Delaware and West,") fra- gilis, umbrosa, caperata, pallida, megasoma, gracilis, humilis, reflexa, columella, emarginata, (a boreal species extending South,) desidiosa, juglaris, appressa. PHYSA, (Drap.) "Animal oval, more or less spiral." Of this genus Dekay reports species heterostropha, planor- bula, cylindrica, elliptica, plicata, obesa, ancillaria, glabra, aurea; elongata. 34* 402 THE MOUNTAIN. In the monograph of S. S. Haldeman on the Limniadas and other fresh-water univalve shells, we have the following mollusks registered as belonging to the geographic range of Pennsylvania, some quoted only in the eastern part of the State. PHYSA heterostropha, (Say.) Range, from latitude 31 to St. Lawrence and Great Lakes. LIMNEA desidiosa, (Say.) Range, latitude 35 to 45, and from New England to Mississippi River. In fresh- water streams and lakes. LIMNEA carperata, (Say.) Eastern Pennsylvania. LIMNEA columella, (Say.) Pennsylvania. PLANORBIS bicarinatus, (Say.) New England to Georgia and Tennessee. PLANORBIS parvus, (Say.) Eastern, Middle, and Western States. PLANORBIS armigerus, (Say.) Eastern, Middle, and Western States. AMNICOLA decisa, (Hald.) In "streams connected with the Susquehanna." AMNICOLA limosa, (Say.) Maine to Pennsylvania and Ohio. AMNTCOLA lapidaria, (Say.) East and west of Alleghany Mountain. YALVATA tricarinata, (Say.) New England and Middle States. Many of these species are found on the mountain, or in the waters at the eastern or western base, as already re- marked. Dekay's catalogue of the Limniadae of New York is a much more extensive list than Haldeman has given to Pennsyl- vania. It should be borne in mind, however, that the mono- graph of Haldeman was published in 1840, and Dekay's in 1843. The next order of Gasteropoda is the PECTINIBRAN- CHIA. INVERTEBRATA. 403 Family TURBINID^E. PALUDINA disscisa. Dekay quotes this as "the com- monest species in New York;" and extra-limital species lapidaria, subcarinata, as belonging to Pennsylvania. MELANIA. This genus abounds in Western and Southern States. Dekay recites ninety-two extra-limital species, and but few Northern species. A few of this family exist in the waters of the mountain. This ends the list of Gastero- poda. CLASS IV. ACEPHALA. (No head.) This class are all aquatic. ORDER I. ACEPHALA TESTACEA. Embraces all bivalves and some multivalves. Family I. OSTRACEA. Marine.* Family II. MYTILACEA. Muscles. ANODENTA, (Brug.) Inhabit fresh water. UNIO, (Brug.) Inhabit fresh water. Now belonging to the Family Naiades, (Lamark.) This family, in the details of its organization, has been elaborated with wonder- ful perseverance and zeal by Mr. Isaac Lea, President of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. His synopsis of the Family of Naiades is one of the most per- fect monographs, on natural science, in existence, and like all products of enthusiasm, bears upon it the stamp of de- votion and love to the subject. His extensive catalogues illustrate the results of the confusion of interminable syn- * Some eighty species of oysters have been described. Lamark gives three species, borealis, virginica, and canadensis, to the Amer- ican coast, and Dekay " confesses his inability to find more than one, and that, under certain forms, cannot distinguish from the common oyster of Europe." The oyster flourishes best (Dekay) be- tween the 36 and 42 of north latitude. It is said to live "twelve or fifteen years, and to be in best condition from the fourth to the sixth year." 404 THE MOUNTAIN. onomies, and the endless propagation of names by natural- ists ambitious to pile up new species. The gauntlet which one shell (the Anodonta cygnea) has run, is a curious com- ment upon this subject. This single species has been de- scribed and catalogued under five different genera, with seventy-five specific names, by seventy-six different authors. The following table will show the present disposition of the family as arranged with great labor by Mr. Lea : FAMILY NAIADES. I. GENUS MARGARON : 1. Subgenus Triquetra, Having a cardinal and lateral tooth, and furnished with two siphons. 2. Subgenus Prisodon, Having a cardinal and lateral tooth transversely striate, and furnished with tAvo siphons. 3. Subgenous Unio, Having a cardinal and lateral tooth. 4. Subgenus Margaritana, Having one tooth (cardinal.) 5. Subgenus Monocondyloea, Having a simple callus. 6. Subgenus Dipsas, Having a linear tooth under the dorsal margin. t. Subgenus Anodonta, Having no teeth. II. GENUS PLATIRIS : 1. Subgenus Iridina, Having a granulate dorsal margin, and furnished with two siphons. 2. Subgenus Spatha, Having a dorsal margin non-crenulate, and furnished with two siphons. 3. Subgenus Mycetopus, Having a straight, smooth, dorsal margin, and furnish^ with a long extensile foot. INVERTEBRATA. 405 Some conception of the extent of this group of shells may be formed, when the statement is made, that one of the subgenera, Unio, has nearly four hundred species on the continent of North America.* Many species of this sub- genus are found in the fresh waters of the mountain slopes, but they do not ascend to the highest runs near the summit. Subgenus Anodonta has forty -three North American species, and subgenus Margaritana sixteen North Ameri- can species. These have representatives in the mountain streams. Family CYCLAD^E. CYCLAS, (Lam.) Dekay enumerates several species of Cyclas as belonging to New York. The similis is found in ponds and streams of every part of the State of New York, also dubia. The Partumeia in swamps and sluggish streams, also in every part of the State. He enumerates the rhom- boides, elegans, and edentula. CLASS Y. BRACHIOPODA. This class contains but few shells, all of which are marine. CLASS VI. CIRROPODA. This last division of the mollusks contains the smallest number of species. They belong to the ocean. * These facts are taken from Mr. Lea's Synopsis, third edition, 1852. Since then he has described over one hundred species of Unionidse indigenous to our country, and added greatly to the foreign synonomy, all of which he will publish in the fourth edition, now in preparation. 406 THE MOUNTAIN. THIRD GREAT DIVISION OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM; OR, ANIMALIA ARTICULATA. OP this division Cuvier observes : " This third general form is as well characterized as that of the Vertebrata ; the skeleton is not internal as in the latter, neither is it annihi- lated as in the Mollusca, the articulated rings which encircle the body, and frequently the limbs, supply the place of it, and as they are usually hard, they furnish to the powers of motion all requisite points of support, so that here, as among the vertebrata, we find the walk, the run, the leap, natation, and flight." The Articulata are distributed into four classes. These are the Annulata, Crustacea, Arachnides, and Insecta. CLASS I. ANNULATA. Only Invertebrates with red blood. Nearly all inhabit water, the earth-worms excepted. This class is divided into three orders, based on organs of respiration. ORDER I. TUBICOLA. Mostly inhabit tubes. Breathing arrangement, tufts or arbusculae attached to head. These sea-worms are numer- ous, living in mud or sand, and making tubes of lime and other substances. ORDER II. DORSIBRANCHTATA. Branchiae or breathing organs distributed along the body, arborescent, or tuft-like in shape, "ramified in laminae or INVERTEBRATA. 407 tubercles." They swim in the ocean or live in the mud, rarely with tubes. This is an extensive order, and has many genera over the world. ORDER III. ABRANCHIATA. No visible branchiae, respire " by the surface of skin or in- ternal cavities." Live in water, mud, and moist earth. This order has two families. The first embraces the com- mon earth-worm, Lumbicus terrestris, known to all ; and the second, the genus Hirudo, or Leeches. One species of Hirudo is found in the waters of the mountain. The next three classes of animals, form the fifth division of Siebold, or Arihropoda. CLASS II. CRUSTACEA. This class is separated into two sections, the Malacostraca and Entomostraca,. FIRST DIVISION. MALACOSTRACA, group a, " eyes placed on a movable and articulated pedicle." ORDER I. DECAPODA, (Ten-footed.) This order embraces the large, and some of them useful crustaceans. They usually inhabit water, and are carnivorous and voracious. Family I. BRACHYURA, short tailed. This family em- braces but one genus of crabs. Family II. MACROURA, long tailed. Cuvier, with De Geer and Gronovius, fixes this group into a single genus, Astacus. There are several subgenera, which contain the common hermit crab, (Cancer bernhardus, Linn.,) the com- mon lobster, (Astacus marinus,) Homerus Americanus, and the fresh-water crabs, or craw-fish. ASTACUS bartonii. Fresh- water lobster, craw-fish. This crustacean is common in all the streams of the mountain. It is said to have " nocturnal habits, concealing itself by day," etc. This does not seem to be exclusively his habit ; 408 THE MOUNTAIN. he, as may be seen at almost any time, groping around on the bottom of runs, or sliding, head or tail first, as best suits him, along the edges of stones and roots, or in the mud. He is rather pugnacious, and very quickly seizes on anything that falls in the water. It has a wide geographic range, and is exclusively fluviatile. Length, 3J inches. ORDER II. STOMAPODA. This is divided into two families, Unipeltata, Bipeltata, and into genera and species, all of which are marine. MALACOSTRACA, group 6, eyes sessile and immovable. This division of crustaceans is small. They inhabit the sea-coast, also fresh water, and some are terrestrial and parasitical. ORDER III. AMPHIPODA. Most of this order inhabit salt water ; some, however, are found in springs and rivulets. Some of this group, be- longing to the sea, are the most ferocious and ravenous of the crustaceans. GAMMARUS minus. Fresh-water shrimp. This is a com- mon animal in fresh-water streams under stones and roots. " It is quick and lively in its motions, and altogether an interesting creature. " GAMMARUS fasciatus is quoted as a Pennsylvania species. ORDER IY. LOSMIPODA, (Throat-footed.) This order is exclusively marine. ORDER Y. ISOPODA, (Equal-footed.) Most of this order are aquatic, some terrestrial, and some are parasitical. Among the terrestrial are the species of the genus Oniscus, or wood-lice. ASELLTJS communis. This is a little fresh-water crus- tacean, common in runs and found under stones. ONISCUS asellus. The sow-bug, or, as it is commonly INVERTEBRATA. 409 called, the wood-louse, is found every place, in cellars and gardens, under stones, logs, etc. Its food is decomposing vegetable matter. " The female carries her eggs in an oval sack beneath, where they are hatched " PORCELLIO spinicornis. This is also called the sow-bug. It has the same habits as the Oniscus. SECOND DIVISION. ENTOMOSTRACA, called by the older naturalists, insects with shells. This group of animals is aquatic, inhabiting fresh water, and is generally micro- scopic. They have peculiar organizations, and sometimes possess a hundred feet. ORDER I. BRANCHIOPODA, (Gill-footed.) Mostly microscopical. The old genus Monoculus, Linn., belongs here. ORDER II. PCECILOPODA, (Yarious-footed.) Their habitat is said to be on aquatic animals, and gene- rally on fishes. This order is divided into two families First, Xiphosura, in which is the genus Limulus ; and second, Siphonostoma. There are two genera of this order, and they are parasitical ; one, the Caligus, is called the Fish- louse. This is the old Cuvierian arrangement of the crustaceans. The area of knowledge in this department has been im- mensely enlarged since this classification was made. More recent classifications of the crustaceans place a new group between Brachyura and Macrura of the first order Decapoda, called Anomura ; also, next to Po3cilopoda, an order Fhyllopoda, Lophyropa, Branchiopoda, (old,) which contains Branchipus stagnalis, " common in most stagnant pools of fresh water," and lastly, order Ostrapoda, many of which are also found in fresh water pools. New and vigorous laborers are now in the field with the enthusiasm of youth,* with culture and genius, and the hope of the science of the hour is, that this wonderful world of * The accomplished and ingenuous youth, Wm. Stimpson, is doing good work in this department. Long arid successfully may he labor. 35 410 THE MOUNTAIN. curious and extraordinary animals will be finally explored, and rendered accessible to all students of nature. The mountain has but few crustaceans. They are, however, of great interest, and their story will hereafter be told.* CLASS IILARACHNIDA. " This class includes the various articulate forms known as spiders, mites, and scorpions, the characters of which place them between the Crustacea and Insecta. In general, the head is not distinct from the thorax, but intimately con- nected with it, forming a large segment named the cephalo thorax, which is followed by the abdomen, and this is either distinct or united in a single piece with the former. These animals are not subject to a perfect metamorphosis, but they have, in some cases, a partial one. They have neither wings, antennae, nor upper lip ; feet, eight, affixed to the sternum ; mouth provided with a pair of mandibles or chelicera ; eyes simple, two to eight, position and number much used as generic characters. Most of the Arachnida feed upon fresh animal food, as insects, which they take alive either in nets, or by running or suddenly leaping upon them. Some are parasitic, others live in meat, cheese, figs, and flour. They are mostly oviparous, and, like the Crustacea, moult or change their integument from time to time."f The class Arachnida is divided into two orders, Pulmo- narise and Trachearioa.J The first is characterized as hav- ing "pulmonary sacks, and six or eight simple eyes." The second respire by " tracheae, have no organs of circulation, or incomplete ones ; the tracheae divide into branches, which, unlike the insect, do not run parallel to each other, the whole body receiving air from various points by stigmata ; ocelli four at most." * Heck, pp. 118, 119, vol. ii. f According to Heck, the class is divisible into three sections, Aporobranchia, Trachearia, and Pulmonaria. The ancient, order of fossil crustaceans, called Trilobites, belong here. Many localities of this interesting fossil are found near the eastern base of the Alleghany Mountain. INVERTEBRATA, 411 Family I. ARANEIDES. ORDER Y. DIMEROSOMATA. (Heck.) This is the family of spiders, or the genus Aranea of Linnaeus. In their anatomy, their natural association with other animals, their physiological peculiarities, and special characteristics, no division of zoology is more attractive, scientifically. Devilish, for they possess venom ; ugly, for who does not hate a spider, (except the true naturalist or lover of God ?) and repulsive from their habits, for who does not abhor the idea of a trap, and of the keeper of a trap, whe- ther baited with jewelry or rags, brandy or green turtle, corsets or crinoline, satin or the slimy silk of the spider's web ? still, as filling " a yawning need of nature," to the eye of science, the Araneides are as wonderful and attractive as the animals over whose structure taste and beauty preside. They have "two cords of a nervous system, and ganglions which distribute nerves to the various organs." Their eyes, simple ocelli, according to Dufour, "shine in darkness like those of the cat, and most probably enjoy the faculty of both nocturnal and diurnal vision." There maybe some large economy in giving to spiders the control of both worlds, " night and morning," but to possess them also of the fiend- ish and cowardly element of venom, in poisoned swords and spears, and supply them with argus eyes having nocturnal and diurnal vision, together with the power of weaving invisible snares for capturing the innocent, unsuspecting inhabitants of the air, must trouble much the dreams of the optimist, whose solution of obscure points comes from the plane of the natural alone. Cuvier remarks: "I have as- certained that a single wound from a moderate-sized spider will kill the common fly in a few minutes. It is also certain that the bite of those large ones of South America, which are there called crab-spiders, and are placed by us in the genus Mygale, kills the smaller vertebrated animals, such as humming-birds, pigeons, etc., and produce a violent fever in man ; the sting of some species in the south of France has 412 THE MOUNTAIN. even occasionally proved fatal. We may, therefore, with- out believing all the fabulous stories of Baglivi and others respecting the bite of Tarantula, mistrust spiders, and par- ticularly the larger ones." Various animals in turn prey on spiders as part of their food, as birds, wasps, etc. Their cocoons, or the sacks which contain their eggs, are familiar to all. "The texture and form of these sacks are variously modified, according to the habits of the race. They are usually spheroidal ; some of them resemble a cap or tymbal, some of them are claviform. They are sometimes partially enveloped with foreign bodies, such as earth, leaves, etc. ; a finer material, a sort of tow or down, frequently surrounds the eggs in their interior, where they are free or aggluti- nated, and more or less numerous." Spiders generally die in winter, but some survive several years, as the Mygales, Lycosse, etc. Notwithstanding the revolting and ferocious character of the spider as generally estimated, touching illustrations of the action of the most sacred of all in- stincts, the maternal, have been observed and described by naturalists. * The family Araneides is divided into a number of genera: the Mygale, Crab-spiders, the Aranea, including the recti- grade and sedentary spiders ; the Clotho, a peculiar group ; the Tetragnatha, Uloborus, Linyphia, and Epeira, with Ly- cosa, the common field or ground spider, familiar to all among the clods. There are a number of this family on the moun- tain. The species that weave their websf on the trees and bushes abound, as may be experienced always by passing through the woods where their invisible ropes, stretching across large spaces, constantly tickle the face of the traveler. The Lycosa are abundant in field and forest. * For example, see observations of Bonnet, on the Lycosa saccata, referred to by Kirby and Spence, p. 204. j- "Leuwenhoeck has calculated that it would require four mil- lions of the strands of the spider's web to form a thread as thick as hair of his beard." INVEBTEBRATA. 413 Family II. PEDIPALPI. This group is composed, according to Cuvier, of two satanic genera, Tarantula and Scorpio. The species of these genera are described as malignant and venomous; but they do not exist in temperate or northern latitudes. ORDER II. TRACHEARIJE. This order differs in organs of respiration and circulation from the foregoing. It is divided into those "furnished with chelicera, two fingers of which are movable," and into those in which "these organs are replaced by simple laminae, or lancets, which, with the ligula, constitute a sucker." These animals are very small. First family of Cuvier, Pseudo-Scorpiones, is terrestrial, and composed of two genera, Galeodes and Chelifer. Second family, Pycnogonides. These are marine animals. "They are found among marine plants, sometimes under stones near the beach, and occasionally also on the cetacea." Third family, Holetra. This consists of two tribes, the Phalangium and the Acarus. The first "live on the ground at the foot of trees, and on plants, and are very active; others conceal themselves under stones and moss." The second, Acarides, is composed of genera Acarus, Trom- bidium, and Ixodes. The first, small microscopical, includes the itch insect,* the " arcari of the human psora," and the mites, which are "excessively prolific." The second, Trombidium, contains the subgenera Erythrseus, Gamasus, Cheyletus, Ori- bata, Uropoda, etc. This is the group to which the common Tick belongs, or the subgenus Ixodes. Of the Ixodes, Cuvier remarks : " They are found in thick woods, abounding in brush, briars, etc. They hook themselves to low plants by the hind legs, keeping the others extended, and fasten to dogs, oxen, horses, and other quadrupeds, and even on the tortoise, burying their suckers so completely in their flesh that they can only be detached by force." * Sarcoptes scabiei. "Itch is caused probably by different spe- cies of Sarcoptes." H. 35* 414 THE MOUNTAIN. The Arachnides are repulsive creatures, but interesting to the naturalist.* CLASS MYRIAPODA. This class of articulata is extensively distributed, and has many representatives on the mountain. They are commonly called centipedes and millipedes, or hundred and million footed worms. The real number of feet is from " twelve to upwards of three hundred pairs." The class contains two orders : Chilognatha, (lip formed from jaws,) and Chilopoda, (lip formed from feet,) the first order containing twenty-one, and the latter sixteen genera. The first order contains six families, Glomeridse, Polyxenidse, Polydesmidae, lulidae, Polyzonidae, and Siphonophoridae. The genus lulus is the type of the order, and is widely distributed, f The second order includes four families, Scutigeridae, Lithobiida3, Scolo- pendridae, and Geophilidae. Some of these are large and poisonous, one being a foot long, but they are only found in warm latitudes. The myriapoda are terrestrial, living in dark, damp places, among moss, or under bark and stones, some feeding upon animal food, and others upon fungi, fruits or decaying vegetable matter. Some of the species are luminous at night at certain seasons, and some secrete a pungent, penetrating, and disagreeable material, with acid scent, but with neither acid nor alkaline qualities. J CLASS IV. INSECTA. It has been asserted that more than one hundred thou- sand species of insects exist. This fact suggests a range of natural affinities that would appear endless, between this class and the surrounding world, and reveals an order of final causes that would seem infinite in its complexity. Are * For spiders of the United States, see Professor N. M. Hentz's papers in the Boston Journal of Natural Sciences. f See Say, Journal of Academy of Natural Sciences, vol. ii., 1821. J Heck, p. 130. INVEKTEBRATA. 415 all, indeed, "but parts of one great whole ?" Each form being an indispensable integer, amazement unspeakable is the only emotion which seizes the mind upon contem- plating this endless chain of organisms. The patterns of Plato's cave were surely exhausted here ; mechanism in every possible form was certainly made bankrupt in this series of structures. All the elements are inhabited by them ; old earth, and air, and water are full of them. They infest all plants, all animals, and each other. As the ancient herb-eating monster had a flesh-eating brother to devour him in turn, so has the microscopic insect a sure and stead- fast friend sticking closer than a brother a microscopic dragon that is certain at last to swallow him. This compen- sative system is a happy one for man, who is so often the victim of the depredation of insects in various ways, as they divide the world with him, being carnivorous, herbivorous, and omnivorous. Thus is it, that this eternal devouring throughout nature is rendered harmonious in the silent clock-work of the world ; by a Divine equation each open mouth has something to fill it, and is sure to know what has been arranged for it ; and thus comes the terrific formula of all existence, that the universe is a stomach and intestine, in which circulate peristaltically palpitating particles, still crushed and consumed, and whose destiny in the system of uses is to serve a purpose, fill an end, in short, eat and be eaten. On what may be styled the personal relationship of in- sects to man there are many curious chapters, most of which are troublesome and offensive, from fleas and itch-insects to the pediculus humanus and the inhabitants of unclean beds. Many bite venomously ; others inflict poisonous wounds by stings ; while others revel in his blood, con- stituting the most execrable torments of existence. Of these are hornets, yellow-jackets, and "infernal furies;" also wasps, gnats, and flies, not forgetting that beauti- ful and musical friend of man, the charming mosquito, a word upon whom will illustrate the most interesting re- 416 THE MOUNTAIN. lationship of insect and man, or of "insects which make man their food." This universally-admired and beloved insect belongs, ac- cording to entomologists, to the family Culicidse and genus Culex ; order Diptera ; the numerous species of which are said to "cover the globe from pole to pole, and from east to west, through both hemispheres." The Culex pipiens is the common mosquito of America. He derives his specific name from the music he makes, (particularly attractive in serenade ;) which piping is produced by vibra- tions of his "immaculate wings," executed at the rate, according to Baron C. de Latour, of three thousand per minute. This is a great fact to meditate upon at mid- night, when his touching song is performed, with all its variations, simply for one's amusement. The mosquito was noticed early by naturalists : by Aristotle and Pliny, who, according to Kirby, " distinguishes well between Hy- rnenoptera and Diptera, when he says the former have their stings in the tail, and the latter in their mouth ; and that to one this weapon is given as the instrument of vengeance, and to the other of avidity." The interesting sting in the mouth of this sweet singer is said to be of exceeding in- genuity as a mechanical implement, not to speak of certain venomous qualities beside. " The instrument of avidity is even more terrible than that of vengeance in most insects thus armed with it ; like the latter, also, as appears from the consequent inflammation and tumor, it instills into its wounds a poison ; the principal use of which, however, is to render the blood more fluid and fitter for suction. This weapon, which is more complex than the sting of hymenopterous in- sects, consists of five* pieces besides the exterior sheath, some of which seem simply lancets, while others are barbed like the spicula of a bee's sting, is at once calculated for piercing the flesh and forming a siphon adapted to imbibe the blood, "f * The rostrum is very long and slender, apparently simple, but composed of seven organs." IT. f Kirby and Spence. INVERTEBRATA. 417 Again, this mouth-sting and its possessor are described : " They (the mosquitos) are provided with a long, horny, stiff, and perpendicular proboscis, with antennae consisting of fourteen joints, feathered on the males, and with two wings covered with small scales. Every part of this insect, when magnified, presents not only a beautiful and wonderful appearance, but cannot fail of exciting contemplation of the most serious (certainly) kind. Indeed, one has no idea of the amazing beauty of these diminutive creatures until he has observed them through a microscope."* The micro- scope is not required to discover the " amazing beauty" of this lovely little creature ; when he soars off, upon his " im- maculate wings," filled with your blood, it is visible to the naked eye. The biographers of the Culex, and travelers, generally tell wonderful and hideous stories of him, from the tropics where he flourishes vastly, to the region " where the polar winter extends its icy reign." In the Crimea, Russian soldiers are required to sleep in sacks ; the " case-hardened cuticle of the Laplander" is re- quired to be daubed with unguents of tar, fish-grease, or cream, " or wear nets steeped in fetid birch-oil to protect him from bites of these blood-suckers." Travelers in warm countries represent them as "demons," that the sound they make is "fearful," that "men die of mortification of the skin" from their bites, or if they recover, look as if they had had the small-pox. Among Cossack herdsmen they are veritable plagues, "thousands of these insatiate monsters entering the nostrils, ears, eyes, and mouth of the cattle, who shortly after die of convulsions, or of secondary inflamma- tion, or from absolute suffocation." In certain countries men are required to travel with their heads in bags and hands in leather gloves. Weld relates the fact from Washington himself, " that at one place the mosquitos were so powerful as to pierce through his boots ;" and Humboldt informs us "that between the little harbor of Higeurote and * Jaeger. 418 THE MOUNTAIN. the mouth of the Rio Unare the wretched inhabitants are required to stretch themselves on the ground, and pass the night buried in the sand three or four inches deep, leav- ing out the head only, which they cover with a handker- chief." It appears the female mosquitos are the fiercest depre- dators (only,)* "attacking with most avidity the softer sex, and trying their temper by disfiguring their beauty !"f The Culex deposits its eggs in stagnant water, and is most numerous in wet seasons. It is said that " six or seven generations take place in one season, each female depositing about three hundred eggs, which, in three or four weeks, be- come perfect flies, which again deposit eggs," etc. From the eggs the larvae come out in two days and swim around, coming to the surface to breathe. " In two weeks they change into the pupa, which still remains on the surface of the water, and, after a week, bursts open, and the perfect mosquito flies out as if shot from under the water." Trees generally harbor gnats and mosquitos, but it is said the horse-chestnut, planted about a house, will drive them away. * " The male, which does not sting, can be readily distinguished by the feathery antennae." HECK. f Kirby and Spence. Wonderful is this unity in the midst of diversity : fearful is this law of identity in the domain of instinct. What now of the doctrines of the "Feminine Soul," of the angelic instrumentality of "Femini- city" as the refining and saving influence of the world? It appears that woman, and the female mosquito, are under the dominion of the same barbarous necessities, and held by the same terrible stinging proclivities, " attacking with avidity and disfiguring the softer sex, trying their temper and beauty." There is one vast difference: mos- quito never stings mosquito ; and of course it was no form of the play of this instinct that Byron divined, " Gayer insects fluttering by, Ne'er droop the wing o'er those that die, And lovlier things have mercy shown To every failing but their own, And every woe a tear may claim, Except ." INVERTEBRATA. 419 The mountain districts, of temperate latitudes, are not so obnoxious to the infliction of mosquitos as flat or low countries abounding in water. There are but few species of the genus Culex on the mountains of Pennsylvania. The Midge, or Tipulidse family, is also an interesting group of diminutive insects who have friendly leanings to- ward man.* Of the spiritual manifestation or the play of the facul- ties of instinct of insects, many astonishing records are made by entomologists, under the chapters of "Affection of insects for their young ;" " Stratagems employed by insects in pro- curing food ;" "Habitations of insects for their young and for their own use;" "Habitations of insects living in so- ciety;" "Perfect and imperfect societies of insects," etc. These seem heads of chapters, not of insects, but of men. To read the chapters is to doubt and wonder, for the fancy seems alone to have created them ; and yet, these great facts are now the common property of science, and natural- ists assert them as the most familiar things. An example is found in the wonderfully-organized kingdom of the honey- bee, known to all, but however familiar, seeming forever an incredible romance, for human society has thus far failed in any comparative organization. Was it not a vain and short- sighted flash of the poet, that the " only study of mankind is man"? The fact that Tumble Beetles will leave their work and go and help a brother in trouble to roll his ball when his hill is too steep for him to do it alone, was no doubt the origin of the clever custom of log-rolling among Congressmen. Many of the family Formicas, or Ants, live in societies, or commonwealths, in burrows of their own con- struction, or mounds, f or regular nests on trees and rushes. * The Hessian fly belongs to this group. f The large mounds of the yellow American ant abound on the highest summits of the Alleghany. They seem to be filled by great numbers of ants, and are sometimes three or four feet in diameter, 420 THE MOUNTAIN. From the observations of Dr. T. Savage, there are three or four grades of ants, namely, " neuters, soldiers, workers, and carriers." " The genus Polyergus make predatory excursions to the nests of other species and take young workmen in the pupa state. These captives assume their perfect state in the domiciles of their captors, and become the slaves of the community. All labor of building, collecting food, and taking care of the young falls upon them."* St. Forgeau thinks the Polyergus (ant) exhibits the "perfection of in- stinct, being capable of laboring, but preferring idleness;" while Huber asserts they have no talent but for war, and that they would starve to death but for the working formica. This " perfection of instinct" in the ant has a terrible ana- logue in a larger ant called man, on a larger ant-hill called the earth, and who is supposed to be its arbiter and king, under the divine endowments of intellect, morality, and re- ligion. Insects are also related to man through friendly qualities, as luxuries, necessaries, and in the arts, medicine, and econo- mies. Witness cantharides and cochineal, honey, the em- blem of luxury and plenty, and silk, the badge of wealth, ex- travagance, and, unhappily, of pride and folly. The biography and morphology of insects is a depart- ment of perfect enchantment in nature, so entirely wonder- ful that it seems incredible, and even absurd. In many, the change of entire organization, justly called metamorphosis, is one of the order of perpetual miracles, and is without parallel in any other department of organic bodies. A wise prophecy it would appear to the uninitiated, that that loath- some, crawling worm, formless and disgusting, in mud and slime eating filth and corruption, should ever soar through and two or three feet high. This ant is said by Heck to "make slaves of the black ant, both being true Formica, and both work- ing." * See Iconographic Encyclopedia of Science, Literature, and Art, by J. G. Heck, translated by Baird, p. 174. INVERTEBRATA. 421 the ether an object of absolute beauty, a form in which all excesses of ornamentation seem perfected, and whose dainty appetite can feed only upon the nectar of flowers. The recitations of interesting and strange things in this depart- ment would be endless. Reflect 1 Science has recognized more than one hundred thousand insects ; patient natural- ists have watched and worked, and the microscope has lifted the veil of mystery from their private lives, organization, and habits, and entomology stands one of the most exten- sive and curious dominions of knowledge possessed by man. Of the classification or manner in which this knowledge is arranged, a number of systems have been adopted by dif- ferent entomologists. The general observations of Heck on the anatomical elements of the Articulata embrace, of course, the structure of the insect. He says : " The Articulata are named from having the various parts of the body and limbs articulated to each other. The nervous system is composed of ganglions united by a double cord, and there is usually a kind of outside skeleton composed of a series of rings pro- tecting the interior parts, and serving as points of attach- ment for muscles. In some classes respiration is affected by means of branchia3, and in others by tracheae, or air tubes. When limbs are present, they are never fewer than six." Cuvier, after an extended dissertation on the anatomy and physiology of insects, remarks, on their classification : "All general systems or methods, relative to insects, are reduced essentially to three. Swammerdam based his on their me- tamorphoses ; that of Linnaaus was founded on the presence or absence of wings, their number, consistence, superposi- tion, the nature of their surface, and on the deficiency or presence of a sting. Fabricius had recourse to the parts of the mouth alone. In all these arrangements the Crustacea and Arachnides are placed among the Insects, and in that of Linna3us, the one generally adopted, they are even the last. " He then proceeds with his own classification : 36 422 THE MOUNTAIN. "I divide this class into twelve orders, the three first of which are composed of Apterous Insects, undergoing no essential change of form or habits, merely subject to simple changes of tegument, or to a kind of a metamorphosis, which increases the number of legs, and that of the annuli of the body. The organ of sight in these animals is usually a mere (more or less considerable) assemblage of ocelli resembling granules. "Certain English naturalists have formed new orders, based upon the wings ; I see no necessity, however, for admitting them, that of the Strepsipter excepted, the name of which appears to me to be erroneous,* and which I call Rhipiptera.f "In the first order, or the MYRIAPODA, there are more than six feet twenty-four and upwards arranged along the whole length pf the body, on a suite of annuli, each of which bears one or two pairs, and of which the first, and in several, even the second, seem to form a part of the mouth. They are Apterous. J "In the second, or the THYSANOURA, there are six legs, and the abdomen is furnished on its sides with movable parts, in the form of false feet, or terminated by appendages fitted for leaping. " In the third, or the PARASITA, we find six legs, no wings, and no other organs of sight than ocelli ; the mouth, in a great measure, is internal, and consists of a snout containing a retractile sucker, or in a slit between two lips, with two hooked mandibles. " In the fourth, or the SUCTORIA, there are six legs, but no wings ; the mouth is composed of a sucker inclosed in a cylindrical sheath, formed of two articulated portions. "In the fifth, or the COLEOPTERA, there are six legs and four wings, the two superior of which have the form of cases, and mandi- bles and maxillae for mastication : the inferior wings are simply folded crosswise, and the cases, always horizontal, are crustaceous. They experience a complete metamorphosis. "In the sixth, or the ORTHOPTERA, there are six legs, four wings, the two superior in the form of cases, and mandibles and jaws for mastication, covered at the extremity by a galea; the inferior wings are folded in two directions, or simply in their length, and the inner margins of the cases, usually coriaceous, are crossed. They only experience a semi- metamorphosis. "In the seventh, or the HEMIPTERA, there are six legs, four wings, the two superior in the form of crustaceous cases, with membranous extremities, or similar to the inferior, but larger and firmer; the * Twisted wings. The parts taken for elztra are not so. See this order. t Wings folded like a fan. J Destitute of wings and scutellum. INVERTEBRATA. 423 mandibles and jaws are replaced by setae forming a sucker, inclosed in a sheath composed of one articulated, cylindrical, or conical piece, in the form of a rostrum. "In the eighth, or the NEUROPTERA, there are six legs, four mem- branous or naked wings, and mandibles and jaws for mastication ; the wings are finely reticulated, and the inferior are usually as large as the superior, or more extended in one of their diameters. "In the ninth, or the HYMENOPTERA, there are six feet, and four membranous and naked wings, and mandibles and jaws for masti- cation ; the inferior wings are smaller than the others, and the ab- domen of the female is almost always terminated by a terebra or sting. "In the tenth, or the LEPIDOPTERA, there are six legs, four mem- branous wings, covered with small, colored scales resembling dust ; a horny production in the form of an epaulette, and directed back- ward, is inserted before each upper wing, and the jaws are replaced by two united tubular filaments, forming a kind of spirally-convo- luted tongue. "In the eleventh, or RHIPIPTERA, there are six legs, two mem- branous wings folded like a fan, and two crustaceous movable bodies, resembling little elytra, situated at the anterior extremity of the thorax; the organs of manducation are simple, setaceous jaws, with two palpi. "In the twelfth, or DIPTEEA, there are six legs, two membranous extended wings, accompanied, in most of them, by two movable bodies or halteres, placed behind them ; the organs of manducation are a sucker composed of a variable number of setae inclosed in an inarticulated sheath, most frequently in the form of a proboscis ter- minated by two lips." The following is the Linnaean arrangement, as rendered by Jaeger in his Life of North American Insects : I. Coleoptera. Beetles or Chafers. All Insects with horny bodies, six legs, and four wings, of which the upper ones are horny, and the lower ones parchment-like, as the Stag-beetle, May- beetle, etc. II. Hemiptera. Bugs. All Insects with four parchment - like wings, six legs, and who obtain their nourishment by suck- ing with a movable proboscis, as the Cicadar, Plant-lice, Bed-bugs, etc. III. Orthoptera. Straight-winged Insects. Insects with four parch- ment-like wings, of which the upper ones overlap on the 424 THE MOUNTAIN. back, and the two under ones are thin and folded together like a fan. They differ from those of the preceding order in that they have strong jaws instead of a movable pro- bocis, as, e.g., the Grasshopper, Cricket, and many others. IV. Lepidoptera. Butterflies, Hawk-moths, and Moths. Insects with four expanded wings, covered with colored farinaceous scales. V. Neuroptera. Net-winged Insects. Those which have four trans- parent, net-woven, or lattice-like wings, as the Dragon-fly, etc. VI. Hymenoptera. Vein-winged Insects. With four transparent, veined wings, and generally provided with a venomous sting, as Bees, Wasps, etc. VII. Diptera. Two-winged Insects. As Flies and Mosquitos. Following are two other systems used by entomolo- gists : CLASSIFICATION OF STEPHENS. His first general division of insects is into two sub-classes. First Sub-class. Mandibulata. Order 1. Strepsiptera. Order 4. Dermaptera. " 2. Orthoptera. " 5. Trichoptera. " 3. Neuroptera. " 6. Hymenoptera. Second Sub-class. Haustellata. Order 1. Hemiptera. Order 5. Homaloptera. " 2. Homoptera. " 6. Aphaniptera. " 3. Lepidoptera. " 7. Aptera. " 4. Diptera. WESTWOOD'S CLASSIFICATION. First Sub-class. Dacnostomata. (Mouth with Jaws.) Order 1. Hymenoptera. (?) Osculant Order, Strepsiptera. Order 2. Coleoptera. Osculant Order, Euplexoptera. INVERTEBEATA. 425 Order 3. Orthoptera. (?) Strepsiptera. (?) Order 4. Neuroptera. (?) Order 5. Trichoptera. (Phryganea alone.) Second Sub-class. Anthostomala. (Mouth with a Sucker.) Order 1. Diptera. Osculant Order, Homaloptera. Osculant Order, Aphaniptera. Order 2. Heteroptera, (including the water-bugs.) " 3. Homoptera. " 4. Lepidoptera. For reasons already stated, the catalogue of insects of the mountain, with some notices of their habits, cannot be admitted here. 36* 426 THE MOUNTAIN. FOURTH GREAT DIVISION OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM; OR, RADIATED ANIMALS. THIS division embraces animals of simple or uncomplicated organization, not the less wonderful on that account, rather the more so, as executing complex functions with the most rudi- mentary instrumentalities ; and is the region of trouble, sur- prise, and doubt, where the plant and animal contest their re- spective fields, and the naturalist has attempted a compromise by calling the forms Zoophytes, which means animal-plants. It includes a vast range of structures and "variety of degrees," all of which, however, agree on one point, namely, " their parts are arranged around an axis, and on one or several radii, or on one or several lines extending from one pole to the other," and, with a few exceptions, affecting the radiat- ing form, however shadowy or far off. It is a world of crea- tures that seem doomed on the question of cunningly-devised mechanisms eliminating thought through material organs alone, for the "nervous system is never very evident," there is never any true circulating system," and "in the great number of Zoophytes there are no vessels whatever." Some Zoophytes have regular stomachs and the rudiments of an intestinal canal ; others have a mere intestinal sack without any opening, and in others there is a " mere exca- vation in their substance without any opening," and there are those which " can only be nourished by porous absorp- tion. " Sex is sometimes distinguishable ; and they are said to be oviparous, while others are " reproduced by divisions or buds." The Radiata are divided into five classes, namely: Echino- INVERTEBRATA. 427 dermata, Entozoa, Acalepha, (or sea-nettle,) Polypi, includ- ing the sponges and Infusoria, or the "microscopic inhabitants of stagnant waters." Among this group are the single-cell animals, to which allusion has been made as the simplest form of animal. The mountain has many representatives of this great division of the animal kingdom, from the order Nematoidea, of more complicated structure, to the simple Infusorial orders, Rotifera and Homogenea. CLIMATE; OK, METEOROLOGY OF THE MOUNTAIN, "Add to this a fickle and variable sky, an atmosphere alternately very moist and very dry, very misty and very clear, Tery hot and very cold, and a temperature so changeable, that in the same day you frill have spring, summer, autumn, and irinter, Norwegian frost and an African sun. Figure to yourself these, and you will have a concise physical sketch of the [climatology of the] United States." VOLJET/S "View," 1800. "The influence of climate on animal life constitutes the end for which a physician studies the meteorology of the country in which he labors. To understand this influence, it is not sufficient to con- sult his thermometer, hygrometer, and other instruments of science, but he must also look at the species and habitudes of animals which live on its surface, or in its seas, lakes, rivers, and atmosphere. In doing this he will find that climate, in addition to its direct, has an indirect effect on the distribution of animal forms ; through its in- fluence on the growth and dissemination of plants, which constitutes the food of the greater number of animals, especially those which are the prey of the carnivorous." DAJTL. DBAKE, M.D. 430 "The whole of organic nature if found to be in dependence upon meteorological phenomena. The influence of climate if very power- ver the exiftence and development of vegetable* and animate ," M. CK, "The air alfo changcf the electricitlef while it roamf over the earth, Tbif wandering motion if a contact of different polarized tract* of the earth* Every mountain, valley, and river, every mea- dow if differently polarized; from each the air derive* another elec- ffa >i,if ceaatleff alternation of polar exchange, itf 'roraef fo elevated, that at lart the electricity makef itf appearance in a manner cognizable by the feofef* The production ty by frictum admitf of a imiUr explanation i, in miniature, what the fweep of air if over the earth. Were the level, and composed of homogeneouf matter, the air t*eome electrical by motion/' " To be bathed in the light and heat of a new sun, and washed with the winds of a fresh sky, to feel the steam of an unwonted sur- face of earth and the tension of a different magnestism and electri- city to that to which we are accustomed, are important elements in the recovery of health, particularly where moral circumstances also are favorable. The hygienic map of countries gathered, as it might be, from the physical character of the inhabitants, or from suscepti- ble temperaments on the spot, would be a guide worth having in the directions of patients to localities of specific benefit. In this respect, we require something more precise than the guide-books which have been written by the climatic physicians." WILKINSON. "Marvelous are the offices, and wonderful is the constitution of the atmosphere. Indeed, I know of no subject more fit for profitable thought on the part of the truth-loving, knowledge-seeking student, be he seaman or landsman, than that afforded by the atmosphere and its offices. Of all parts of the physical machinery, of all the con- trivances in the mechanism of the universe, the atmosphere, with its offices and its adaptations, appears to me to be the most wonderful, sublime, and beautiful." M. F. MAURY. 432 CHAPTER VI. CLIMATE OF THE MOUNTAIN. " Do not all charms fly At the mere touch of cold philosophy ? There was an awful rainbow once in heaven : We know her woof, her texture ; she is given In the dull catalogue of common things. Philosophy would clip an angel's wings, Conquer aH mysteries by rule and line, Empty the haunted air, and gnomed mine Unweave a rainbow, as it erewhile made The tender-personed Lamia melt into shade." ONCE, men talked of the mysteries of the deep, of the " dark, unfathomed caves of ocean," and thought that the blue water was as bottomless as the blue ether ; while the poet even dreamed of ' ' Where the isles of perfume are, Many a fathom down in the sea, To the south of sun-bright Araby ; Where ocean spreads O'er coral rocks and amber beds ;" indulging also in visions of "Dark, green solitudes, Where shades, beautiful and bright, Amid sweet sounds across the deep would sweep, Like swift and lovely dreams, that walk the waves of sleep." 37 433 434 THE MOUNTAIN. Now it has come, that Maury's head and Brooke's lead Have changed the "isle" and "amber bed" To doleful caverns of the dead ; "cemeteries for families of living creatures that outnumber the sands of the sea-shore for multitude," and have arranged it that the " physical geography of the sea" is almost as familiar as the physical geography of the land. So, once, men spoke of the mysteries of the air- ocean above, and beheld with awe the wondrous meteor of the storm, and the motions of the winds were secrets of the heavens ; for " the wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh and whither it goeth;"* and "the wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north ; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits." A special Providence was supposed to hold the wings of the whirlwind in his fingers, and man bowed to an inexorable death as to the wrath of an avenging Deity. It was a natural instinct of the barbarous man to personify the winds, and endow them with attributes profoundly allied, either in friendly attachment to him, or with anarchic and destructive force, against him. The air-currents of the spring hours were supposed to inspire hope, and carry with them the promises of the coming world of life ; having to * What follows is not meant as an impiety, or a fling even at John, because he was not a meteorologist, for undoubtedly he has expressed and fixed, in the above beautiful words, the limitation of his knowl- edge in that department of physics, but merely an intimation that the science of meteorology was not cultivated much in those days. Neither is ignorance by any means imputed to the more ancient and venerable author of Ecclesiastes, for in the next verse to the one above quoted, (viz., verse 7 of chap. i. Eccles.,) we have recorded what is now a familiar stereotyped formula of science. Thus, "All the rivers run into the sea ; yet the sea is not full ; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again." The face of na- ture is veiled until science lifts that veil, and beholds her eye to eye. CLIMATE. 435 sow the earth with flowers. The summer wind was said to be genial, kind, and maternal, nursing and perfecting a growing and expanding world. The autumnal wind was thought beneficent and good, when it showered down the ripened fruits of the globe in plenty upon all creatures, as from the hand of a loving parent. Pierce and stern the winter winds rushed from their homes in the cloud-chasms, hurrying the life-forms to silent sleep, and giving the earnest of a temporary death to nature, again to be relieved by the promises of resurrection and life by the returning airs of spring. The fabulous cave of ^Eolus was not a mere crea- tion of the poet, but a significant symbol in the minds of men that there were laws for the winds, and that intelligent and intelligible forces determined the phenomena of the air. This was all beautiful and well before the arrival on the planet of the systematic meteorologist, and before the scis- sors of philosophy had commenced " clipping the wings of angels," and it had come to pass that the poet's talk about the " waste airs pathless blue" was more poetical than true, and the secrets of the "viewless winds" were fixed "among the dull catalogue of common things." Ruthless science, with her army of explorers, has navi- gated, as it were, and sounded, this air-ocean of fifty miles depth ; has penetrated its mysterious phenomena ; has wrestled with and exhausted its secrets. She now under- stands and has fixed its currents and motions ; has arranged its cataracts, and defined its eddies and roaring maelstroms; its death-trails of the tornados ; its circling arena of the trade-winds ; its fiery tracks of the monsoon, harmattan, and sirocco ; its chimneys of aspiration, and vortices of gyratory respiration ; its dances of electricity and magnetism, and its boilings and surgings of caloric. The beautifully-systematized and harmoniously-arranged machinery of the atmospheric sea has been made the sub- ject of scientific analysis, and its laws announced and been demonstrated to the understanding of man, as plainly as the school-boy's rule of three. 436 THE MOUNTAIN. Meteorologists have discovered that there are regular and irregular winds, regular and irregular rains, regular and irregular storms and electrical phenomena. Of this cate- gory of movements the regular winds, rains, and storms, with accompanying electrical manifestations, are those most generally found in activity. In other words, there is a sys- tem in the action of all these meteoric elements, the con- stant operation of which produces a series of constant results. These have been made the subject of scientific observation for some time by different meteorologists. The great causal forces at work, of all atmospheric movements, are differently designated and explained by different theorists and observ- ers, but the general results, the catalogue of visible outward facts, are accredited and acknowledged by all. Thus the details and facts of the trails of the storms which have integrated themselves as great individual meteors, wor- thy of separate histories, and which have been followed for thousands of miles and traced out as minutely as the move- ments of armies of men, and their operations as critically analyzed, are generally admitted by all ; and thus the regis- tration of visible phenomena is nearly identical, as given by Kamtz, Dove, Espy, Loomis, Redfield, Reid, Butler, and Blodget. What the primum mobile may be, whether caloric or electricity, whether those same gyratory aspirations, or heat respirations, whether magnetic stratifications and trans- fusions with positive attractions and negative repulsions, the disputants each arranges the facts, and marshals them under the order and drill of the polarity of his theory. In the mean time, the great facts that are obvious to all of the movements of air-currents, clouds, and electrical manifesta- tions, which occur within the distance of a few miles of the surface of the earth, have been ascertained and recorded, and now stand the material and rudiments of what will soon be a beautiful, wonderful, and, it is to be hoped, an abso- lutely positive science. Of the movements of the atmosphere in the mountain ranges of Pennsylvania, the general laws of the climatology WINDS AND STORMS. . 437 of the eastern side of the continent must of course prevail, while their special influences are markedly visible. WINDS AND STORMS. Of the class to which the winds of the mountain belong, we are presented with the following universally admitted general statement of facts and laws of action : " Beyond the limits of the trade-winds in the temperate climates of both hemispheres are the regions of the southwest and northwest currents, called Prevalent Winds." JOHNSTON. "The mean direction of the prevailing currents of air or winds for North America, is south. 86 west." KAMTZ. "The counter-trade, after leaving the northern limit of the sur- face-trades, curves to the eastward, and gradually assumes an E.N.E. course, and becomes a W.S.W. current where it crosses the line of no variation, and continues on until it passes over the Atlantic ; and this course and curve is analogous to what may be found true of the counter-trade everywhere. It is best illustrated by the course of all the :4orms (in the American sense of the word, as distinguished from thunder showers and other brief rains) which have been traced north or south of the limits of the trades. It was found by Mr. Redfield in most of the storms investigated by him, which originated within or north of the tropics. Doubtless it was the actual course of the others, and that the investigation was imperfect. All the great autumnal, winter, or spring storms which have traversed the whole or any considerable portion of the territory of the United States, east of New Mexico, which have been investigated by Professors Espy, Loomis, Redfield, or others, have been found to follow this course. " Messrs. Espy and Redfield, recognizing the existence of a 'pre- vailing' S.W. current, but considering the surface-winds beneath it as the principal actors in producing the atmospherical conditions and changes, have attributed no office to that current, except that of giv- ing direction and progression to our storms. This is their great mistake. It plays no such unimportant part in the philosophy of the weather, as we have already incidentally seen, and will proceed still further to consider. " All our storms originate in it. This we may know from analogy. " Where there is no counter-trade, outside of the equatorial belt of rains, and within influential distance of the earth, there are neither storms nor rains." BUTLER. 31* 438 THE MOUNTAIN. These prevalent winds blow with constantly varying strength and velocity, the register of the normal and abnor- mal month range is very extensive, and in certain seasons they are quite tempestuous in their transit of the Alleghany range. This occurs even when there is no storm in existence, and comes from the mountain heights stretching up through the surface- winds, and catching the regular streams of the S.W. winds unbroken by the local interference of the surface. This journeying of the higher strata of air, or streams and currents of regular winds, is clearly declared by the roar of the forests on the higher mountain peaks and ridges. This sound for hours, sometimes days, precedes the large regular storms, and is heard for miles, like the regular boom of the ocean in a tempest. This far-resounding boil or roar of the mountain-tops is one of the grandest phenomena of the atmosphere in the mountainous regions. It is well known even to common observers : "a storm is coming, the mountain roars," being a fixed fact of general apprehension. The greatly predominating, or regular winds of the mountain summits, belong to the western segments of the horizon, while those from the eastern side of the circle are only found to prevail in great atmospheric perturbations, such as ac- company the larger storms, and are vastly the exception. During regular storms, and even when no storm prevails, the higher cirrus-stratus clouds are often seen careering aloft, borne swiftly on by these air-streams, while below, the surface-winds are shifting about to almost every point of the compass, and frequently are found traveling rapidly in a direction opposite to that of higher currents. These higher currents are the channels through which are borne the constant supply of waters which form what are called the zones of regular extra-tropical rains, or that belt which is perpetually liable to precipitation, consequently this re- gion is the best watered part of the earth. This is clearly shown by the splendid system of rivers or conduits for the meteoric waters back to the ocean whence they came ; for as " all the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full, WINDS AND STORMS. 439 so unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again." "Tliis constitutes one vast, -wonderful, connected, and regular system, coextensive with the globe, necessary to the return of mois- ture from the oceans upon the most inconsiderable portion of it, and to the condensation of the local moisture of evaporation ; and by it the waters are returned from the oceans, as regularly and bountifully upon the far interior of the great continents in the same latitudes as upon the 'isles which rest in their bosoms.' "From what ocean and by what machinery do our rivers return? Not wholly or mainly from the North Atlantic, although it lies ad- jacent to us, and they often seem to do so ; for, first, all storms, showers, and clouds, which furnish, independently, any appreciable quantity of rain to the United States, and even adjacent to the At- lantic itself, come from a westerly point and pass to the eastward. This is a general, uniform, and invariable law, although there is in different places, and in the same place at different times, some varia- tion in their direction; ranging in storms from W. by S. to S.S. W., and in showers between S. W. and N. W. to the opposite easterly points of the compass; the most general direction, east of the Alleghanies being from W.S. W. to E.N.E." BUTLER. The rush of N.N.E. winds to meet the S.W. storms, car- ried on by the higher currents to the N.E., are said by some meteorologists to be most observable on the S.E. side of the Alleghanies, on the Atlantic plane. There are also S.E. and southern winds, which flow under the larger storms, if the axes of the storms are some distance north of the place of observation, or if the axes are south of the ob- server these winds will be even N.N.W., flowing into the same. On the Alleghany range these winds have as much violence as on the S.E. side of the mountain barrier, and are accompanied by nearly the same order of phenomena. These winds are sometimes of long duration, and have great force and velocity; striking the sides of the mountains, they produce something of the ocean sound or roar of the higher rushing currents. They also carry clouds, sometimes full, dark, and heavy, in the strata of the storm-fog and storm- scud, in the region within a mile and a half of the earth's 440 THE MOUNTAIN. surface, and have all the characteristics of the principal ac- tors of the storm performance. It is easily perceived that the Huttonian, or caloric school, can, in these phenomena, get a visible and almost tangible confirmation of their views. These rushing streams of air, carrying fogs or scuds, or low clouds, in volumes toward the centre of the annulus, or the mid-axis of the storm that is coming from the southwest, present all the appearance of regular water-carriers to the advancing chimney or vortex of suction or uprushing. It would seem, from the statements of observers, that approaching the warmer Atlantic Ocean coast this scud- mass is greater, and loses much of its water, as sug- gested by Butler and Blodget, before it arrives at the Alle- ghanies; the lofty cirrus and stratus clouds still floating onward, as can easily be observed in the line of the regular counter-trade, and dropping or pouring out their water, as may be, through these terrestrial fogs and vapors There is nothing especially peculiar in the phenomena of the transit of the great storms over the Alleghany range. The largest storms, or those having axes of several hundred of miles in extent, with corresponding annuli, are perhaps more violent, and exhibit the whirling, twisting, and com- bating of the irregular under-currents in a more exagger- ated manner than the eastern or western planes ever witness. The winds from the eastern segment, on the approach of the vast vortices of the continental storms, are extremely violent, and their arrival and persistent blowing is the sure precursor of a great meteor striding over the continent from the west- ern segment. In the winter, these eastern winds, sometimes heavily charged with moisture, clothe the forests on the highest knobs or summits of the mountain with a mantle of ice or hoar-frost, while a few hundred feet below, on the east and west sides, there is no such appearance. The mountain reveals its highest expression of grandeur and sublimity when seized and in full possession of one of these magnificent storms. The tornados march across the mountains, as elsewhere, CALORIC. 441 mowing their swathes of death. The tracks of many of them are visible for years in the form of narrow avenues of fallen and crushed timber (called fallen-timbers) torn through the dense forests. They observe the same laws of progress in their passage of the mountains, and occur at the same periods of the year, as at other places. The smaller storms, or circumscribed meteors, from a single cloud, dropping its contents, to the regular thunder storms several miles in circumference, are accompanied by winds from all quarters, more or less violent, from moderate breezes to almost the tornado's force. In the mountains these small storms show their usual character, as elsewhere, perhaps a little more noisy from their battling with the forests. There is nothing peculiar except that the low scud or fog-clouds often envelop the whole mountain-top in a silver mantle, while the region below is clear CALORIC. It would appear, as the result of the concurrent evidence of meteorologists, physical geographers, and writers on climate in general, that the climate of the continent of North America is peculiar in its caloric developments, and has characters quite its own, being separated widely in its lead- ing features from that of the Old World. This is soon visible by comparing the American climate with that of Europe and Africa. It will be seen that the range of the thermometer is more extensive, that the changes are quicker and greater, that the heat in summer is more excessive, and the cold in winter more intense, in the same parallels of lati- tude, on the shores of America than in those of Europe. It is also stated that the Western Atlantic is much more stormy than the Eastern. Buffon placed the climate of North America in the class of " excessive climates" ex- cessively hot in summer, and excessively cold in winter, thus exhibiting a great extent of the annual range of tern- 442 THE MOUNTAIN. perature.* In Clarke, " On the Sanative Influence of Cli- mate," we have the following table of comparison of mean annual temperature of a number of places nearly the same on the eastern and western hemispheres, and of the differ- ence of this ran ore : PLACES. Mean Annual Temp. Temp, of Summer. Temp, of Winter. Dif. of Win- ter and Summer. Paris 51-4 66-0 38-0 28-0 Cambridge America/ .. .. 50-4 70-5 34-0 36 St Maloes 54-5 60-0 42-0 24-0 Cincinnati 53-7 72-9 32-9 40 Nantes . 55-6 70-7 42-2 28-4 New York 53-8 79-2 29 8 40-0 Bourdeaux 56-5 70-7 4 9 -l 28-G Philadelphia 54-9 73.90 32 2 41-70 A number of causes have been assigned for this, and a number of explanations and suggestions made of the ra- tionale of the universally acceded facts in this department. In the Physical Atlas of Johnston, we have this sug- gestion : "The permanent and drifting ice of the arctic regions essentially contributes to depress the isothermal lines on the east coast of North America to such low latitudes, and to increase the difference of the seasons ; for, while on the European side of the Atlantic Ocean, be- tween the isothermal lines of 40 and 32, the difference between winter and summer amounts to 36 and 40, on the other side, on the coasts of the New World, it amounts to 52 and 54. There is here 14 and 16 difference on the different sides of the Atlantic under some lines of latitude." Dr. Drake remarks : "On the western side of the continent the high range of the Sierra Nevada cuts off the genial influence of the Pacific Ocean." Thus, he supposes the equalizing influence of large bodies of water is prevented from reaching the eastern side of the * See one of the leading quotations from Volney ; a rather sharp observation for sixty years ago. CALORIC. 443 continent, as borne by the prevalent winds, by the wall of mountains. Lorin Blodget describes the climate approaching the west- ern side, and far interior of the continent, as " singularly mild and warm," compared with the range of the eastern coast. " On the Tipper Missouri an extensive region was as mild in climate as St. Pauls in Minnesota." Wheat grows on Mackenzie's River nearly to the sixty-fifth parallel. "The comparison of climates for the United States shows a rapid increase of heat in going westward, on any line of latitude from points in Minnesota, and this even when the elevation increases. It is warmer at Fort Benton on the Missouri, in longitude 110^ west, and latitude 472 during every season, than at St. Pauls, Minnesota. The isothermal lines, even for winter, curve very largely northward over this space, indeed they curve most for this season, making there more difference in the temperature than in any other part of the year. At Sitka, on the Pacific coast, in Kussian America, at 57 north, the winter temperature is 33-^, which is as warm as at St. Louis, Washington City, and Philadelphia. Beginning at the coldest side of the continent, we have not yet ascertained the value of the west side. If the mountains were removed, the whole area would cor- respond in climate to the west of Europe, very nearly at least; at the latitude of St. Petersburg it would be as habitable as that part of Russia is," etc. etc. From all of which statements of Mr. Blodget it appears that the isothermals on the east side of the continent make a most singular and rapid declension southward. On the subject of the causes of fluctuations of tempera- ture on the eastern side of the continent, Mr. Butler has the following suggestions as to the magnetic causes of the same phenomena : "To the difference in the magnetic intensity of the eastern portion of this continent, compared with Europe and our western coast, very much of the difference of climate, so far as temperature is in- volved, may be attributed. We have seen in what manner the isothermal lines surround these areas of intensity. So the most excessive climate, that is, the climate where the greatest extremes alternate, other things being equal, is upon, or near, the line of area of greatest magnetic intensity. I say other things being equal, be- 444 THE MOUNTAIN. cause large bodies of water modify climates by equalizing the sea- sons, making the summers cooler and the winters warmer than the mean of the parallel. " Thus, our great interior lakes modify the climate in relation to temperature in their vicinity. Their summers are cooler and their winters warmer ; but westward of them the same line of equal sum- mer temperature, or isothermal line, rises with considerable abrupt- ness ; and the winter, or isocheimal line of equal temperature, falls in a similar manner; thus, the range of the thermometer, from the highest elevation to the lowest depression, for the year, is very great, while in the tropics the range is comparatively small. "From observations made at the military posts of the United States, I>r. Forrey deduced summer and winter lines of equal tem- perature, starting from the vicinity of Boston and running west, which showed most remarkably the rise of the summer lines as in- tensity increased, and the fall of the winter lines in like manner. The influence of the lakes was also most obvious. The elevation of the earth increases, going west, to about 700 feet at the surface of the lakes, and to nearly 4000 feet at the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains, and, although temperature does not decrease to as great a degree when the elevation above the level of the sea is gradual, yet some allowance should doubtless be made for that elevation on this line. When that allowance is made, the ascent of the summer line to the north, over the area of the greatest intensity, is strikingly apparent." He farther remarks : "The effect of this difference of magnetic intensity upon the cli- mate of Europe is marked. There, the excessive summer heat, which our greater magnetic intensity and larger volume of counter-trade give us, is unknown. Hence, while we can grow Indian corn (which requires the excessive summer heat) over all the Eastern States, up to 45, and in some localities, east of the lakes, to 47 30', and to 50 west of them, to the base of the Rocky Mountains, and, notwith- standing the increase of elevation, they cannot grow it except over a limited area, and with limited success."* Magnetism and Thermalism it would seem, then, are intimately associated in the phenomena of the surface of the earth ; and, on the point now under consideration, the former exerts, according to Mr. Butler, great influence in * In thermometric range, the western side of the eastern continent is the same as the western side of the western continent. CALORIC. 445 depressing the temperature of the eastern side of the con- tinent. Whatever may be the cause, whether from topo- graphic agency in modifying atmospheric movements, or deeper geological and magnetic forces, or the "permanent and drifting ice of the arctic region," etc., the great fact is universally acceded. Speaking of the arctic fauna, Agassiz observes : "It has already been said that the arctic fauna of the three con- tinents is the same ; its southern limit, however, is not a regular line. It does not correspond precisely with the polar circle, but rather to the isothermal zero; that is, the line where the average temperature of the year is at 32 Fahrenheit. The course of this line presents numerous undulations. In general, it may be said to coincide with the northern limits of trees, so that it terminates where forest vege- tation succeeds the vast arid plains; the barrens of North America are the tundras of the Samoyides. The uniformity of these planes in- volves a corresponding uniformity of plants and animals. On the North American continent it extends much farther southward on the east- ern shore than on the western. From the peninsula of Alaska, it bends northward toward the Mackenzie, then descends again to- ward the Bear Lake, and comes down nearly to the northern shore of Newfoundland." On this subject Butler makes also the following state- ment : " Take the isothermal line of or zero, that is, the line where the mean or average height of the thermometer for the year is at zero. At Behring's Straits this line is a little below the arctic circle, or the parallel of 66 30 X north latitude. Passing east over North America, it descends into Canada, almost to Lake Superior, and to about the fiftieth parallel; that is to say, it is on an average during the year as cold as our continent at the fiftieth parallel as it is at Behring's Straits at the sixty-fifth parallel. Passing east, the line of zero rises again over the Atlantic Ocean until, in the meridian of Spitsbergen, it reaches, within the arctic circle, up almost to the seventy-fifth parallel. So, too, the isothermal of 5 below zero, which is below the sixtieth parallel in Siberia, rises in the North Sea, above Beh- ring's Straits, to the parallel of 75, descending on the continent in North America to the fifty-fifth parallel, and rising again almost to the pole at Spitzbergen, to descend again in Siberia, while the iso- thermals of 10 and 15 below zero, which in North America are but 38 446 THE MOUNTAIN. just above the latitude of 60 and 75 respectively, ascend abruptly surrounding the magnetic pole, and falling short of the geographical one." Of the isothermal curves in the interior valley, Dr. Drake indites : "The curves of equal mean temperature, which traverse the In- terior Valley, cannot yet be delineated, for the want of a sufficient number of observations. In the west, from the cooling influence of the Cordilleras of Mexico, and the Rocky Mountains, extending into the polar circle, and to the east from a similar though smaller influ- ence of the same kind exerted by the Appalachian chain, from the lati- tude of 33 to 48 or 50 north we know that the curves of equal mean temperature cannot lie parallel to the lines of latitude, except for a certain distance in the middle of the valley. East of the Mis- sissippi, as they approach the Appalachian Mountains, they must bend to the south ; west of that river, as they ascend the great in- clined plane, they must come in the same direction, and, on reaching the Rocky Mountains, must of necessity extend along their slopes, rising gradually as the latitude lessens, but not attaining the sum- mits of these mountains until we come within the tropics. It results from these data that the isothermal lines of the valley are nearly parallel to those of one side of a compressed ellipsis or long oval with their eastern curved extremities much shorter than their western. Where they intersect the trough of the Mississippi they have their highest latitude." It has been clearly demonstrated that the climate of the State of Pennsylvania, in its thermometric oscillations, is the most equable of the whole Atlantic range. This comes from its mediate latitudinal position, also its being saddled over the two planes of the Atlantic and Ohio water-sheds, and over the Appalachian range, its territory extending from the lakes to the arms of the ocean ; one cause of its dis- tinctive climate thus being the well-known equalizing influ- ences of large bodies of water. A region of agreeable equilibrium of climate, that happily-located State enjoys a most desirable temperature ; removed from the chilling north- ern and northeastern Atlantic and lake sweep of currents, also from the hotter southwestern and southeastern streams of air, it exhibits less of the excessiveness of climate de- CALORIC. 447 scribed by meteorologists than any other of the United States. Its mean temperature is 47, or nearly the same as that of Great Britain, whose mean latitude is about 54, ivhile that of Pennsylvania is not 41. Mr. Blodget gives the mean average temperature of the spring months of the whole State as 41, or its mean annual temperature.* The mean temperature of summer is thus stated by observers : from tide to mountain range, 12-2- ; mountain belt, 67 ; western end of State, TO , or 2J of dif- ference between the east and west plains. The climate of the mountains, then, it seems, gives an average summer temperature of 67. On the heights of the Alleghanies it is much less. The autumnal mean of the State is 50, the Atlantic side 54, and the western slope 52. The winter mean of the mountain group is 24, the western slope 28, and the eastern 30. The maximum summer tempera- ture of the whole State is 74, the summer minimum 65. The low mean summer temperature of 67 gives a delightful climate to the mountain district of the State, and constitutes it one of the most attractive regions on the con- tinent. That belt of mountains, as will be seen from the above data, has a calorical range, from mean winter to mean summer temperatures, of 42. The climatal vibrations of the State exhibit of course the general extremes of temperature which characterize the eastern side of the continent. This statement applies to annual, monthly, and diurnal changes, also to those depend- ent upon accidental atmospheric vicissitudes, which often amount in a short time to enormous thermometric ranges. The regular diurnal changes are, perhaps, the most con- siderable in the mountain regions, the surfaces of the moun- tains being more covered with forests, thus preventing uni- form and extensive heating of the surface by the direct rays of the sun. This range of protected surfaces has over it a stratum of cold air, which, as soon as the sun declines * "Pittsburg has a summer mean of 71-4, and Marietta, Ohio, 71-3, while Philadelphia is 72-5 to 73-7." BLODGET. 448 THE MOUNTAIN. beneath the horizon, pours out into cleared spaces, ravines, and valleys, rivers of cold air. This strikes all travelers through the mountains, especially among the higher ranges, and is the cause of the sudden diurnal change of those re- gions. The extremes, monthly and annual, above alluded to are, however, from all authorities, less in Pennsylvania than any other State of the Union, thus giving that State, as already remarked, a more equable and salubrious climate than is exhibited in any other part of North America. Speak- ing of the great general uniformity of the Eastern United States, Lorin Blodget remarks, in his admirable work, the " Climatology of the United States," p. 128 : "The district embraced by this uniform climate is very large. Excepting the points of local influence at the coasts and near the great lakes, it may be said to include all the continent east of the one-hundredth meridian ; at which line the arid and extreme charac- ter of the plains sets in. Of this district nearly the whole surface may be practically regarded as level, and very little elevated. The mountains which occur do not break in upon the climate except by reduction of temperature simply, or by changes caused by altitude alone. They do not shelter or expose either side, nor cause any con- trasts in the character of productions respecting them. Western and Eastern Virginia diifer little, and probably not at all, from the influ- ence of the intervening range of mountains. It is still more de- cisively so in Pennsylvania, and at the southern extremity of the Alleghany ranges, where Tennessee may be contrasted with North and South Carolina and Upper Georgia. This absence of interruptions of the general condition, even where mountains of considerable height occur, is one of the most distinguishing features of the North Ameri- can climate, and that which, more than any other, requires it to be treated as a separate district for the area east of the plains." Still, as has been observed, there is a difference between the climate of the Atlantic slope and the Appalachian range of mountains, and the western or great valley slope, which constitutes the basin of drainage of the Alleghany and Monongahela Rivers. This gives three minor shades of climate in Pennsylvania, each with its distinctive charac- teristics. The climate of the Alleghany Mountain range through CALORIC. 449 the State presents the same general laws, as already stated, and characteristic features of the climate of the eastern side of the continent. Through this portion of their range they are embraced between the isothermal lines of 50 and 45. At this point the lines correspond with the lines of latitude of 39 40' and 42. By following these isothermal lines around the globe, as we have already seen, we will discover, that after leaving the Alleghany summits and making the transit of the Atlantic plain, and leaving the continent to cross the ocean, there is a great deflexion north approaching the eastern shore or continent of Europe. It has been suggested that the lines in the Atlantic Ocean are carried north by the vast river of hot water, whose liberated caloric modifies to so great an extent the rivers of air of the ocean above. This flowing sea is the Gulf Stream rushing north through the bed of the Atlantic from the boiling heats of the tropics. It will be seen that the lines of latitude which correspond with these isothermals are, on the west of Europe, 50 and 60 ; thus showing the difference of 10 to 18 of latitude between the two continents. As a direct conclusion from this, it is evident that this range of mountains through the State of Pennsylvania has an extremely low mean an- nual temperature, lower than any other corresponding lati- tudinal point, with a few exceptions, on the surface of the globe ; in other words, is cooler than any other correspond- ing point on the earth. The range of the thermometer must not necessarily, from this fact, exhibit the exaggerated extremes or excesses of the special climates of the continent. There may be, in uncultivated wilderness extents, some difference in the thermometric changes from the same parallels of the lower surfaces of cultivated districts, or spots of particular local influences. Observation will prove this, no doubt, and establish the places. The elevation of the mountain, and its parallel collateral ridges above the level of the sea, gives also a greater range of caloric depression. As there is 38* 450 THE MOUNTAIN. a fall of one degree for every three hundred feet (Espy) of ascent into the air, and, under certain circumstances, very much less than that, as, according to Drake,* it is two hundred feet in steep ascents, and four hundred on gentle acclivity as on the Rocky Mountain plains, this cause alone would give diminished temperature on the same line of latitude, as many of the peaks of the range are from three thousand to six thousand feet above the ocean. These high knobs or ranges of elevations, extending as we have seen into the higher currents of air, and catching the counter-trade as it pours down from the heights from which it is deflected from over the tropics, must of necessity be subject to vicissitudes from sudden changes, also extremes of depression from local causes. These are the causes of the great coolness of the mountain and its winds, also the short- ness of its seasons, there being sometimes, in latitude 40, at an elevation of 2000 feet, frost in all months of the year. At Cresson, on the Alleghany Mountain, latitude 40 30' I" north, longitude west 1 30' 6", and 2000 feet above the sea, there was frost in every month of the year 1859. This is rather a rare occurrence on the central Pennsylvania range. An absence of frost for two or three months is the most general character of summer. f Thus the Indian corn, whose range is to the sixty-fifth degree of mean temperature for the three months of summer, approaches its limit of cul- tivation here, only one or two varieties being at all sure crops, as already noticed. RAIN. Among hydrometeors, rain forms the most important cli- matic element, hence an inquiry into the different quantities * " So peculiar is the vertical distribution of heat, that an eleva- tion of 4000 feet, in some parts of the Rocky Mountain plateau, does not reduce the temperature even one degree." BLODGET. f The mean duration of winter at New York, according to Dekay, "is five months, while in the interior northern counties there is frost nearly every month." RAIN. 451 precipitated in different parts of the globe, and its distribu- tions among the different seasons, has an important bearing on many departments of physical science. The life of plants and animals depends as much on moisture as on tempera- ture, and their development is greatly modified by the dry- ness or humidity of the atmosphere. Rain is very unequally distributed over the different regions of the globe. It is generally most abundant in those latitudes where evapora- tion takes place most rapidly; yet there are exceptions to this rule. In many parts of the earth it almost never rains, because, as Kamtz remarks, the greatly heated atmosphere does not contain sufficient moisture to admit of precipitation even during the greatest decrement of temperature. The temperate zone of the New World gives an annual amount of thirty-seven inches in the United States, according to Johnston, and forty inches according to Butler and Blodget. Rain is most abundant at the equator, and decreases to- ward the poles, in some lines of observation, from 150 to 13 inches. The amount of rain decreases, ascending from low plains to elevated table-lands ; on the contrary, increases from plains and slopes of mountains, if those are steep and rugged, as shown by the annual fall at Paris being twenty inches, while at great St. Bernard it is 36*13 inches. Steep and rugged mountains promote, through partial currents of air, the formation and increase of clouds, such mountains being more cloudy than those with uniform summits and smooth slopes. The quantity of rain decreases, receding from coasts to the interior of continents, from the greater amount of evaporation on sea than land, and because of greater interchange of heat between land and sea, conse- quently greater movement of arial currents than between different parts of a continent. This rule is apparent in the interior of the United States of North America, in the cen- tre of the plains of Orinoco, in the Steppes of Siberia, and in the interior of Australia. There are exceptions to this rule from the geographic position of countries in relation to regions of winds, and the direction of mountain chains, 452 THE MOUNTAIN. which produce moisture in one country and drought in an- other in its vicinity, the former, when the country is on the side of the mountain against which the rain- winds blow, and the latter, when the country is on the opposite side of those mountains. In Johnston's Hyetographic, or Rain Map of the World,* we are presented with a division into the three important zones of precipitation. The first is the zone of the peri- odical rains, extending both sides of the equator to the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. This includes the sub- ordinate zone of " frequent, almost constant, precipitation, always accompanied by electrical explosions." This is a narrow belt of from 5 or 6 width, near the equator. The greatest precipitation occurs in this belt, amounting, according to Johnston, at one point on the western coast of Africa, to "upwards of 300 inches, or twenty-five feet, which frequently falls during one season alone." The other two are the northern and southern zones of constant precipitation. "The zones of constant precipitation are so named in order to dis- tinguish them from those of periodical rains. In the former, it does or may rain during every day in the year, whereas, in the latter, during many months, not a drop of rain falls." JOHNSTON. These northern and southern zones of constant precipi- tation extend to the arctic and antarctic circles. There are rainless districts in all these zones ; stretching around the earth in different latitudes, they are generally, however, within or near the tropics. Within these zones of precipi- tation there are, as suggested in the quotations from John- ston's Physical Atlas, various causes for irregular distribu- tion of the quantities of rain in different parts of the earth's surface. On this subject, Schouw, of the University of Copen- hagen, has the following remarks : "Another principal cause of the increased quantity of rain, lies in the inequalities of the earth's surface. Mountains increase the * Johnston's Map is VERT far from correct for the American continent. RAIN. 453 amount of rain; it increases in proportion as we approach toward them, and the higher and steeper they are. The reason is obvious here also: the strata of air over the mountains are colder than those over plains, and a constant reaction takes place between these differ- ent strata. Sometimes the warm air of the plains rises up the sides of the mountains, or through the valleys, sometimes the masses of cold air flow down from the mountains into the plains ; these strata, possessing different temperatures, meet above and below ; cooling is thus caused, and the vapors are precipitated as rain. When we in- quire into the amounts of rain upon the great plain which is bounded on the north by the xVlps, and toward the south by the Apennines, we find that they increase toward the Alps. Southward of the Po, the annual quantity of rain amounts, on an average, to twenty-six inches; northward of the river, to thirty-eight inches ; immediately at the foot of the Alps to sixty inches. There are particular places in the southern part of the plain where the quantity of rain amounts only to twenty-one inches, and isolated points in the Alps where it amounts to one hundred inches. We meet with similar conditions when we follow the Rhine or the Rhone upward, or when we compare the quantities of rain in the mountains of Germany and France with those presented by the plains." Again, he observes, that the " Influence of mountain chains, in the increase of rain, is greater than that of the ocean ; where, however, a range sinks down pre- cipitously toward the sea, the increase of the rain is especially strik- ing. This is seen on the east and west side of Scandinavia, on the mountains on the west side of England, and of the south side of the Northern Apennines, which extend down to the Mediterranean, where there is sometimes a hundred inches of rain. The relation of the various winds to rain is just as simply and readily explained. In North America the east wind is the principal source of rain ; it comes from the Atlantic Ocean." From which last opinion, and some others, many Ameri- can meteorologists entirely dissent. On the subject of the amount of rain which falls on the summits of the Alleghany Mountains, there have been but few observations made by actual measurement of the aggre- gate of precipitation.* The observations made would point * It is with extreme regret that the statement must be made, that the Observatory of the Alleghany Mountain Health Institute has not yet been completed and furnished 454 THE MOUNTAIN. to a confirmation of Blodget's views, given in an important communication to the Scientific Association, in 1853, on the annual fall of rain in the United States. The showing on this point now stands with the following conclusions : The amount of absolute moisture or water in the air diminishes, leaving the surface of the Atlantic at the foot of that plain, and ascending the Appalachian steps or waves until the summit range of crests is reached, where there is great demonstrable decrement of humidity. After passing that range, and descending into the Yalley of the Mississippi, the moisture increases, until the surface of the Mississippi River is reached, where the greatest amount of moisture is found. A diagram of the great atmospheric sponge would thus show increased and intensified shading or regular in- crease of the quantity of moisture from the summit of the Alleghany to the surface of both waters.* In Butler's " Philosophy of the Weather"f we have the fol- lowing statements, made from facts furnished by Blodget : " The northern portion of the continent lies beneath the zone of extra-tropical rains, and north of the northern limit of the northeast trades is never uncovered from it, and has no distinct rainy or dry season, although more rain falls at certain periods, and in certain localities, than at others. The climate of that part of Oregon which lies upon the Pacific, and the character of its rains, resemble those of Northwestern Europe, and will be further explained hereafter. " Coming to the portion of the continent which we occupy, the United States, we find it diiferent, still a most favored region. Por- tions of it, Eastern Texas, for instance, are upon the same parallels with a regular set of meteorological instruments. It is hoped, however, that this much-desired object will soon be achieved, when results of the highest interest and significance may be expected. Located on the rim, or eastern margin of the great continental basin, and some 2000 feet above the sea, it is inevitable that results highly important to science must be accomplished. * One cause of the general impression that more water falls on the Alleghany than east or west is, that during the winter months the mountain summits are generally white with snow, while there is no snow at eastern or western base or the sides of the mountain. Of course, the height of the mountain, stretching up into colder spaces, and preventing the melting of the snow, will explain this, without any increase in the quantity of water falling in the form of snow. f This is an interesting and suggestive book, and one of the best contributions made recently to the science of meteorology. RAIN. 455 of latitude as the rainless regions of Northern Mexico, etc. Eastern Texas, however, is not rainless. Other portions are upon the same parallels as California, etc., yet have no distinct rainy and dry sea- son. We repeat, this section is a most favored region, without a parallel upon any portion of the earth's surface, except in degree, in China and some other portions of Eastern Asia. " It is not only without a distinct rainy and dry season, but it is watered by an average, annually, of more than forty inches of rain, while Europe, although bounded on three sides by seas and oceans, and apparently much more favorably situated, receives annually an average of only about twenty-five inches, if we except Norway and one or two other places, where the fall is excessive. The distribu- tion of this supply of moisture over the United States is, in other respects, wonderful. Iowa, in the interior of the continent, far away from the great oceans, on the east or west, or the Gulf of Mexico on the south, receives fif'y inches some ten or fifteen inches more than fall upon the slopes east of the Alleghanies, and contigu- ous to the great Atlantic, (from which all our storms are, ERRONEOUSLY, supposed to be derived!) and the average over the entire great interior valley is about forty-five inches, falling at all seasons of the year." On the views of the combating theorists as to the particu- lar oceanic origin of the waters falling on these mountains, there might be an interesting critique. While Maury and Redfield contend that our southwest currents, with their freight of moisture, come from the Pa- cific Ocean, Butler assumes that they come from the South Atlantic, and Espy and the school of Huttonians generally talk of the warm streams of moisture from the North and East Atlantic Ocean, the forty-five annual inches of water do actually fall upon the United States, minus ten inches on the Alleghany heights, on the authority of Mr. Blodget. At the same time we have seen, from the authority of other meteorologists, that mountain ranges catch, condense, and precipitate, controlling and modifying the whole supply of water to those portions of the earth. From Butler we have the following statements : "Everywhere currents passing from the ocean, over mountain ranges, part with a large share of their moisture." 456 THE MOUNTAIN. Again, "The influence of mountains in extracting the water from the at- mospheric currents which pass over them is well known and readily explainable." Blodget, however, found that whatever might be the source of our rains, when the water-carriers reached the Alleghanies they were so far exhausted of their moisture that those mountains extracted less from them than fell to the westward, by some five or ten inches annually ; and that the fall of rain upon them was less than upon the Atlantic slope eastward of them to the ocean. This last announce- ment does not accord with observations elsewhere made, but is easily explained. As the storm approaches the ocean, it attracts in under it the surface atmosphere of the ocean, loaded with vapor, con- densing in the form of fog and scud as it becomes subject to the increasing influence of the storm. Although the scud or fog would not of itself make rain, it aids materially in increasing the quantity of that which falls through it. " The drops, by attraction and contact, enlarge themselves as they pass through, in the same manner as a drop of water will do in running down a pane of glass which is covered with mois- ture. The small drop which starts from the upper portion of a fifteen-inch pane will sometimes more than double its size before it reaches the bottom." It is by this power of attracting the surface atmosphere, which contains the mois- ture of evaporation under it, and inducing condensation in it, that the moisture of evaporation, which rarely rises very far in the atmosphere, is made to fall again during storms and showers. This attraction of a moist atmosphere from the ocean, accounts for the excess of rain on the east of the Alle- ghanies compared with its fall upon them. So the great Yalley of the Mississippi is comparatively level, and less of its water runs off than of that which falls upon the Allegha- nies, and there is, therefore, more moisture of evaporation in the atmosphere of the former to be thus precipitated and RAIN. 457 add to the annual supply of rain upon that valley, and it therefore exceeds that which falls upon the Alleghanies. Those mountains, too, are elevated but about 1500 feet above the table-lands at their base, and do not exert great influence on the counter-trade. If they were 6000 or 8000 feet high, a different state of things would exist. Again, Mr. Blodget found the quantity of rain which fell in Iowa, and to the south and west of the lake region, to be greater than fell over the lake region itself. This, he thinks, is doubtless in part owing to the same cause. The counter-trade, in a stormy state, attracts the surface at- mosphere from the lake region, with its evaporated moisture, before it arrives over it, and, therefore, more rain falls south- west of the lake region than upon it. This power of at- tracting the surface-wind of the ocean in under it, produces the heavy gales which affect our coast, and which are rarely felt west of the Alleghanies to any considerable degree ; and a storm coming from the W.S.W., extending a thousand miles or more from S.S.E. to N.N.W., may have the wind set in violently at southeast on the southern coast first, and at later periods, successively at points farther north, and thus induce the belief that the storm traveled from south to north. Of the influence of the Alleghanies, as atmospheric modi- fiers, Dr. Drake records : "The mountains bounding the Mississippi Valley on either side deserve great consideration. To the east, or rather southeast, the Appalachian's stretch, in many parallel or coalescing ridges, from Alabama to the region north of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, rising from 2000 to 5000 feet above the sea. They no doubt contribute to some extent to give direction to certain winds. When an easterly wind prevails, they deprive it by condensation (?) of a portion of the moisture with which the warm Atlantic Ocean had imbued it, and reduced its temperature, and hence, on the banks of the Ohio, and in other cen- tral portions of the valley, a southeast wind never raises the tempera- ture as high as a southwest." Aside from the general laws of atmospheric phenomena on the Appalachian Mountains of Pennsylvania, there are 39 458 THE MOUNTAIN. local and special causes of meteoric manifestations. The higher ridges, and especially the great culminating range called the Alleghany Mountain, show this in an eminent de- gree. Their height alone above the level of the sea would give a modified meteorology. Another cause of special character in the surface or local influences, is the condition of that surface, its soil, rocks, etc. We have already seen, in the chapter on the soil of the mountain, that it is com- posed principally of sand and clay, the sand predominating, and without much superficial detritus. From the rocky heights, terraced slopes, and precipitous ravines, the meteoric waters flow off quickly by surface con- duits and subterranean drainage through the fissured strata. Thus, there is no intense or protracted soaking of the soils, as occurs in regions of extensive diluvial deposits, or flats without natural drainage, and in the composition of which the clay element is the predominating ingredient. There are few* ponds of water, but the very few lakes or tarns that do exist near the mountain proper, are of a highly in- teresting character. They are small, limpid bodies of water, inclosed within folds of the ridges and hills, gleaming jewels upon the bosom of the landscape. Of this character are Lewis and Hunter's Lakes, in Lycoming County. They have been, till within a few years, surrounded by native forests, and are pools of perfectly pure water, and of exceed- ing beauty. As would be expected, there are but few bogs, morasses, or swales of any extent, and very rarely pools of stagnant water. Thus, from evaporating surfaces of bodies of water, there is * In the northeastern and northwestern corners of Pennsylvania there are many interesting lakes and ponds, forming striking features in the landscapes of those parts of the State, so long celebrated for the beauty of their scenery. Southwest of the waters of the West Branch of the Susquehanna there are no lakes on the Alleghany range, or either side of it, for long spaces extending through the Southern States. There is a geological solution of this fact which is an interesting scientific deduction. RAIN. 459 but little supply of moisture to the atmosphere. Dense, na- tive forests, and extensive wastes of shrub and bush-growth, cover the greater part of the surfaces of the higher ranges of knobs and slopes. This, of course, prevents the sun's rays and winds from acting on the water of the soil, and therefore quick surface evaporation, to the extent which oc- curs in cleared and cultivated regions, cannot here take place. The springs and streams of the mountain show this by their volume and freshness, the creeks and rivers, in the cultivated portion, drying up in the summer months. The constant prevalence of the regular air-currents, always of some degree of intensity, from gentle breezes to rush- ing streams, carry off to the northeast most of the mois- ture which they drink up from the surface of the moun- tain. This occurs almost constantly, except during the prevalence of regular storms of precipitation, or local cloud- falls. The meeting streams from the northeast, running as under-currents in a direction opposite to the regular marching of the storm, then, of course, drop their local additions or feedings from local evaporation. In fact, the air-currents, from far distant spaces of the air-ocean, are the regular water-carriers of the Alleghany Mountains ; while constantly prevalent winds, or gentle air-streams take up the moisture of the surfaces, to be precipitated in distant spaces of the earth or ocean of water again. The presence of any undue humidity in the atmosphere of the mountain heights is proved, moreover, by recorded observation, not to exist. From this whole condition of things it follows that the exact hygrometric range of the mountain's atmosphere is nearly the same as at corresponding latitudinal points at its base below, with the unexpected difference only that the air is dryer ; leaving to be explained by the local influence already described of large forests in a state of nature, re- ceiving and retaining in their cool shades the water sup- plied by the clouds, uninfluenced by the evaporating power of the sun and winds coming in contact with the earth's 460 THE MOUNTAIN. surface tne appearance of excessive dampness beneath the canopy of branches and leaves. There are really upon the mountain no special local phe- nomena on this point visible or demonstrable except those di- rectly dependent upon this " boundless contiguity of shades." To the influence of this cause is due the growth of the vast number of lichens and mosses, which are here found investing, as parasites, the bodies of trees, logs, and rocks, through the deeper and more protected parts of the forests, seem- ing to indicate an undue amount of moisture, while, as al- ready remarked, experiments demonstrate it not to be the case. The dew and rain precipitations, which, falling upon a cleared and open soil permanently heated by the direct rays of the sun, are speedily driven off, remain, on the con- trary, in these impenetrable shades, prevented from exhaling by the mantle of trees and bushes, ferns and mosses, and pass off by slower evaporation, but principally underneath, giving origin to the numerous springs with which the moun- tain abounds. As a direct consequence of this, the formation of large bodies of low fog is unusual, and the dense masses of vapor, resting for hours in the valleys aad lowlands, is of unfre- quent occurrence in the mountain ranges. Occasionally a silver veil of snow-white fog is seen overhanging the deeper valleys, ravines, or gorges, but it is as evanescent as a wan- dering cloud, and looks often, in the distance, like a sheet of water or mountain lake sleeping in repose among the hills. Like the mirage of the desert, these white clouds, settling in the depressions of the mountain, simulate, to absolute perfec- tion, bodies of water reflecting the light of the sky, and the pictures are so artistically elaborated that the captivated be- holder cannot disenchant himself from the beautiful illusion. Preceding and following the storms, low fog often envelops the spurs of the mountain ; as also the regular storm-scud, occasionally, when the overhanging mass, heavy and low, sinks down to the stratum of the storm, or high-fog, em- braced within a half mile of the surface. INDIAN-SUMMER. 461 The connection of electricity with the hygrometric state of the air is a subject of interest, and exhibits sanitary rela- tions of vital moment. Local electrical phenomena also occur on the mountain ranges. The higher currents, with differently charged clouds, or masses of air holding water in a state of suspension, in passing through the mountain heights, bristling with forests, which are constantly-acting conductors, as might be ex- pected, give rise to varied electrical demonstrations. The volumes of air in the forest spaces are constantly more or less highly charged with electricity from the friction of the rolling masses above. This explains the vivid and etherial nervous exaltation always experienced upon enter- ing a mountain wood, and which is as real and tangible, even to an unimpressible person, as the earth on which he walks. INDIAN-SUMMER. The meteor of the Indian-summer is of exceeding beauty and interest on the mountain. The causes of this peculiar condition of the atmosphere have been variously estimated and rendered by different writers on the subject. The phe- nomenon is most striking on the high range of knobs of the summit. They seem to repose in the light of a new heaven, and to be arrayed by the genii for the advent of some rare and unexpected pageantry. The air is pervaded by a generally diffused haze of an azure or smoky hue, resting upon the earth like a translucent fleece, imparting to the sunlight, as illuminating objects, a variety of tints, violet and gold. At times, the setting sun, half veiled with ruddy glow, descends a globe of fire, while the landscape assumes the strange, dis- astrous aspect of the surface under the shadows of the eclipse. The charm of the still, hushed, almost perpetual twilight of the Indian-summer days, brings the world into the finest pictures of quietness and sweetness, contrast and surprise. A dreamy opium-trance steals upon the 39* 462 THE MOUNTAIN. senses; the atmosphere is no longer an invisible element of power, the terrible stream of a viewless river, or even a gently flowing current of azure air, but the crystalline wave is now visible and tangible in a new sense and atti- tude, and lies against the hill a glowing cloud of purple light, or bends over the mountain-top like a regal mantle that you could lift, as the "babe thinks it can play with heaven's rainbow." The enchantment is permeating, dis- solving, and ecstatic ; that invisible and wonderful air is visible; the great storm-king, from uprooting forests, de- stroying cities and navies, lies down upon the mountain slope, like a weary lion, to sleep. Nature, glad with his repose, and sympathizing with the drowsy giant, hushes all her voices, and he dreams, "Als still is his luke, and als still is his e'e, Als the stillnesse that lay on the emerant lee, Or the myst that sleips on ane ^aveless sea." CLIMATE SANITARY RELATIONS. 463 SANITARY RELATIONS. " IT would be no new thing to insist on the influence which climate exerts upon the health ; but the continually increasing facilities for traveling, and the locomotive spirit of the present age, invest the subject, every day, with a fresh interest. Along with this, we find the enlightened views of modern medical practice, enlarging the basis of its curative means, and putting its trust not in the employment of drugs only often, indeed, assigning to them but an ancillary value but calling in the aid, without regard to its nature, of any adjuvant that reasonably promises relief. And so it has recognized in the change of air and scene, and in those moral and social influ- ences which go along with them, to a degree far beyond what our more immediate ancestors would have been prepared to admit, a most powerful agent in the treatment of actual disease, and of those nu- merous lesser ailments, the diffusion of which seems to advance with the advance of civilization. To this end the admirable work of Sir James Clark, the first, I believe, in which anything like a system of sound principles was advanced for our guidance in the selection of localities, has very much contributed."* "Physical causes-lie at the bottom of whatever differences the mal- adies of different portions of the earth may present; and hence the region which a medical historian selects, should have well-defined, natural, and not merely conventional boundaries."! "These hydrographical facts (viz. of the Basin of the Alleghany River) show that Chestnut Ridge and Laurel Hill are not boundary mountains of our great valley, but are really included in it. Its true limits are, in fact, the Alleghany Ridge in Pennsylvania and Northern Virginia, while, in the southern part of the latter State, and in North Carolina, the Blue Ridge is its actual terminus or rim. The medical etiologist of the Interior Valley has, then, within his own jurisdic- tion, a broad, alpine region, running through eight degrees of lati- tude, with a mean elevation of fifteen hundred feet above the bed and banks of the Mississippi, to which it is parallel ; and the time will come when a comparison of the two belts, in the physiology and Francis, " Change of Climate." t Doike. 464 THE MOUNTAIN. diseases of their inhabitants, will be regarded as a work of deep in terest. "Unable to visit any part of the region lying between the Alle- ghany River and Alleghany Mountain-crest, or to meet with publi- cations illustrating its medical topography or diseases, I must content myself, at this time, with indicating it to others, as a field compara- tively unexplored by the physician."* In the invaluable work of Dr. Drake, on the "Diseases of the Interior Yalley of North America," from which so many quotations have been made, we are presented with the fol- lowing general views on " Climatic Etiology :" "CLIMATE OCCASIONS DISEASE. As no fact in etiology is more universally admitted, than the influence of climate in the produc- tion of disease, it follows that he who would understand the origin and modifications of the diseases of a country must study its meteor- ology. The effects of climate are both predisposing and exciting. Thus, the long-continued action of a particular kind or condition of climate may bring about such changes in our physiology as to incline us to some particular form of disease ; while sudden changes often act as exciting causes to other diseases, to which we may be inclined, from agencies not connected with climate. Again, the influences of climate are both direct and indirect. The former results from the immediate action of the atmosphere on our systems ; the latter from its action on the matters which are accumulated on the surface of the earth, which are thus made to send forth agents of an insalubrious character. Thus, the same state of the earth's surface which in one climate may prove highly pernicious, in another may be altogether harmless. " CLIMATE CURES DISEASE. But climate must not be studied with a reference to etiology only ; for it can cure as well as occasion dis- ease. It modifies the effects of blood-letting, medicines, and regimen; and, although it maintains some diseases against the united powers of the most active and appropriate articles of the materia medica, it cures others in the absence of the whole. Considered as a therapeutic agent, it is, when skillfully ordered, entitled to great confidence. Its action is not often speedy, but the certainty of its salutary effects, in general, compensates for their slow development. "DEFINITIONS OF CLIMATE. In physical geography, the word cli- mate expresses a zone of the earth, running parallel to the equator, of such width that the longest day at its northern limit is half an * Drake, pp. 275, 276. CLIMATE SANITARY RELATIONS. 465 hour longer than that of its southern limit, supposing we are in the northern hemisphere ; but, in etiology and therapeutics, the term is used in a different sense, and simply expresses states of the atmo- sphere. These states involve, or consist in varying quantities or qualities of certain elements of the air itself its caloric, light, and electricity ; its aqueous vapor, fogs, mists, and clouds ; its dews, rain, hail, frost, and snow ; its weight and density ; its movements or winds ; its factitious gases and mechanical impurities ; all of which may be very different in different times or places of the same geo- graphical climate, and nearly the same in different zones. "ELEMENTS OF CLIMATE ON THE GLOBE. The crust of the earth is not uniform in chemical composition or surface ; it abounds in- moun- tains, plains, and valleys, distributed in a very irregular manner ; portions of it are densely overshadowed, while others are destitute of forests ; the larger part is covered with oceans, lakes, rivers, and swamps ; an elastic atmosphere rests upon the whole ; and every part solid, fluid, or aeriform is permeated by electricity. Were the earth, with this surface removed from the influence of the sun, the phenomena of climate would be annihilated ; in that luminary, then, reside the dynamics on which they depend ; and the rays of light and heat are the efficient agents by which its quickening influence is exerted on the earth. "THE ELEMENTS -OF CLIMATE NOT THE SAME IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE EARTH. It results from what has been said, that the ele- ments of climate are not precisely the same in any two regions of the globe ; and, therefore, that the climate of every region, even in the same latitude, must possess some peculiarities ; the causes of which are to be sought in the physical geography and hydrography of the region itself, and of those by which it is immediately surrounded."* This brings us to the therapeutics of climates, special and general. . On climatic therapeutics we have the following univer- sally-accredited statements and opinions of one* fully recog- nized as uttering the voice of the science of the times : "The influence of climate over disease has long been established as a matter of fact, and physicians have, from a very early period, considered change of climate and change of air as remedial agents of great efficacy. This opinion is supported both by reason and ex- perience : it is reasonable, for example, to believe that a change of * Drake, "Diseases of the Interior Valley." f Sir James Clark, ' Sanative Influence of Climate." 466 THE MOUNTAIN. residence from a crowded city to the open country, or from a cold, exposed part of the country to a warmer and more sheltered situa- tion ; from a confined, humid valley to a dry, elevated district, or the reverse, would produce very sensible effects upon the human body ; and we find by daily experience that such is the case. " The marked improvement of the general health, effected by the transition from the city to the country, even for a short period, is matter of daily remark ; and the suspension, or even cure, of various diseases by a removal from one part of the country to another, is an occurrence that must have come within the observation of every one. It may suffice to mention here, in reference to this fact, intermittent fevers, 'asthma, catarrhal affections, hooping-cough, dyspepsia, and various nervous disorders. These diseases are often benefited, and not unfrequently cured, by simple change of situation, after having long resisted medical treatment ; or they are found to yield, under the influence of such a change, to remedies which previously made little or no impression upon them. If such marked effects result from a change of so limited a nature as has just been noticed, it might be expected that a complete change of climate, together with the circumstances necessarily connected with it, should produce still more important results in the improvement of the general health, and in the alleviation and cure of disease. In this expectation we are also borne out by experience. "My own experience has been sufficient to satisfy me, that, for the prevention and cure of a numerous class of chronic diseases, we possess, in change of climate, and even in the more limited measure of change of air in the same climate, one of our most efficient remedial agents ; and one, too, for which, in many cases, we have no adequate substitute. Again, in dyspepsia, and disorders of the digestive or- gans generally, and in the nervous affections and distressing mental feelings which so often accompany these ; in asthma, in bronchial diseases, in scrofula, and in rheumatism, the beneficial effects of cli- mate are far more strongly evinced than in consumption. In cases also of general delicacy of constitution and derangement of the sys- tem in childhood and in youth, which cannot be strictly classed un- der any of these diseases ; and in that disordered state of the general health which so often occurs at a certain period of advanced life, climacteric disease, in which the powers of tlie constitution, both mental and bodily, fail, and the system lapses into a state of prema- ture decay, change of climate becomes a most invaluable remedial agent." This comes indorsed by the wisdom of ages. Hippocrates and Galen are here, and much that the tireless efforts of CLIMATE SANITARY RELATIONS. 467 men, for hundreds of years, have established as to the influ- ence of climate on disease, is here, simply and with common sense, stated. The profession has, from time immemorial, been satis- fied on this point, and catalogued a multitude of phenomena by careful analysis, grouping together a series of influences under the names of sanitary powers of climate, alterative influence of change of air, etc. What are they? They must embrace the whole order of existences that surround and impress the animal economy, as ponderable or im- ponderable. Man walks upon the earth like a locomotive plant, sucking his blood from its surface. The rock, the soil, the vegetable, the river, the animal, build up the temple of his soul ; for, is he not " a complex of all that surrounds him, namely, of ele- ment, mineral, plant, and animal ?" The computation of all the influences which surround man in this medium of his ex- istence, is a large field of labor, and necessarily involves the science of every object which he touches, or which in any way comes in contact with the great vital surfaces through which his body is sustained in existence. Extensive and learned volumes have been written on cli- mate as a remedial agent. In the first dawn of the intellect of the profession we have seen that the attention of its most gifted mind, Hippocrates, was directed to its investigations, and the great problem of climate, as a physiological and pathological modifier, received a splendid thesis on "Airs, Waters, and Places," from the hand of the Father of Medi- cine. Since those ancient days, the profession has never lost sight of this rich and beneficently fruitful subject, nor ceased to give assiduous attention to this department of knowledge, so important to the vital and all-absorbing in- terest of health to mankind. Traveling physicians have constantly made their observations on the influence of the different climates, localities, springs, and health retreats, in all places with all peoples. Surgeons of the armies and navies of the different nations have been registering, by go- 468 THE MOUNTAIN. vernment authority, all facts observed of value for the pro- fession. The accounts of common travelers have been col- lected, and sifted severely for any elements of the science of sanitary climatology which they might contain in their col- lected facts. Faith in the change of air, as a sanative influ- ence, has become extra-professional, and is now the ground of ordinary experience, so that it is constantly suggested to the valetudinarian by his friends, to visit foreign countries, to take a sea voyage for sea air, to go to the mountains for mountain air, or even to go a few miles into the country for country air. So general a series of conclusions must have its origin in the natural constitution of things, and the great problem of change of air, as a curative resource, stands with the verdict of approval from the human race. This general faith is valuable, as enabling the profession to apply its science and skill to vast ranges of diseases amenable to the power of change of locality and the therapeutics of special habitats. From the gross, glaring facts of the wonderful power of even a few miles, to change and cure extensive chains of morbid symptoms, the conviction was forced upon the mind, that the medicine, and poison of airs and places, was an important region of knowledge demanding rigid scrutiny, patient investigation, and vigilant observation. The regular profession, ever awake to the highest interests of humanity, has labored hard in this field, and with results, as ever, signal and honorable, significant and wise. The literature of medicine, in this department, has expanded largely, and the well-educated physician's library now con- tains volumes and essays, learned and precise, on the " Sana- tive Influence of Climate, 7 '* " Change of Climate Considered as a Remedy in Dyspeptic, Pulmonary, and other Chronic Affections,"! " Geography of Health and Disease, "J " Sys- tematic Treatise, Historical, Etiological, and Practical, on the Principal Diseases of the Interior Yalley of North America, " "General Sanitary Relations of the United * Sir James Clark, Bart., M.D. f D. J. T. Francis, M.D. % A. K. Johnston. g Daniel Drake, M.D. CLIMATE SANITARY RELATIONS. 469 States Climate," etc.,* "Influence of Tropical Climates on European Constitutions, "f " Change of Air, or the Philoso- phy of Traveling,"! " Mountain Climate Considered in a Medical Point of View," "Diseases of Heights,"|| "Mor- bid Affections among the Alps,"^ "Meteorological Charac- teristics of Mountain Climates,"** " Dissertations and Sug- gestions on Alpestine Pathology,"ff with numerous treatises on the climate of places, hygienic maps and charts of the distribution of disease, and reports on the specific powers of localities. This great question of the Geography of Health and Disease introduces the mind into a prolific arena of medi- cal dynamics. " Man is a cosmopolite." He modifies the agency of the elements upon himself, but those agencies modify him. They have rendered him, in his organization, different in different regions, physiologically, pathologically. The great physical formula of natural elements, called "cli- mate," is, as far as man is concerned, only the generalized synthesis of the great librations or internecine warfare of ponderable and imponderable. Reflect on the vastness of the problem the indigenous diseases of climates ! It embraces the physiology and pa- thology of geographic zones : as, the calorical boilings and roastings of organs and tissues, of malarial poisons of such intensity that they destroy tigers and snakes, and produce congestive and quickly-destructive diseases in man, meta- morphosing healthy organs into pools of disorganized and dissolved blood, followed by infectious emanations, which characterize the tropics ; also of plastic inflamma- * Lorin Blodget. f James Johnson, M.D., and James Ronald Martin, Esq. J James Johnson, M.D. g H. C. Lombard, M.D., of Geneva. || Dr. Von Tschudi. f Dr. Albert, of Briancon. ** Professor Plantamour. ff Professor Bertrand, of Grenoble, Dr. Meyer, of Zurich, Dr. Michaux, of Chamounix. 40 470 THE MOUNTAIN. tions of temperate zones, strange equipoise in the contest of conservating and dissolving powers, life, tough, tena- cious life, in the tissue and organ slowly eaten and con- sumed by the death of the molecule, the furor of combustion being the agonizing surrender of the painfully worried and exhausted cell. Add to this the morbid galvanics of frigid zones, frosty rheumatisms, writhing neuralgies, with the deadening arrestation of development of electrical and vital organs, etc. etc., in short, diseases of continents, dis- eases of islands, diseases of heights or mountains, diseases of depths or valleys, diseases from heat, diseases from cold, from dryness, from moisture, from light, from darkness, and all the powers and qualities of localities alone. This is a wide field for scientific zeal and benevolence to exhaust. That there are positive and demonstrable laws of habitats with reference to this climatal and specific power, is proved by numberless observations. An example of special climatal influence is seen and felt in the effects of certain winds. These, in different regions, have their names sirocco, solano, autun, monsoon, mistral, northeaster, norther associated in common parlance with positive states and conditions of the body, and are well known to produce most characteristic physiological and pathological effects. In this connection, many localities of specific poisons, also sites of hygienic and therapeutic powers, might be mentioned. As the natural history of the special powers of climate has been ascertained, more specific results have accrued in rendering the catalogues of diseases of which they are curative or to which deleteri- ous in other words, of conditions of media, either hygienic, therapeutic, or lethiferous. Leaving out these specific ele- ments, the points fixed and established have been geographic, or relationship to latitude ; topographic, or to the place or site as related to oceans and continents, lakes and moun- tains, as in the question of altitude and mere vertical eleva- tion above the sea ; also, of relationships purely meteoric, as in the motions of bodies of air, their electrical and hygro- metric states, with calorical conditions, revealing the force of the imponderables, as of heat, the great life element, the CLIMATE SANITARY RELATIONS. 471 great vitalizer, the great creator and destroyer of organisms ; of light, the incomputable, the illimitable power, " offspring of heaven, first-born," and electricity, his brother, rather himself again, dread, wonderful agent, all of which belong to the kingdom of the air, and are represented in the cli- mates of places, and of which record has been made. The relationship of purely mechanical or physical conditions of the air, its rarity and density, and barometric vicissitudes ; as also of its medical constitution, with sanative power or seeds of death, are more or less pre-established by geo- graphy, topography, and geology. The influence of surface, of valley, mountain, gentle slope, or precipitous declivity, sheltered or exposed situations, characters and composi- tion of soils, with vegetable covering, as of trees, shrubs, grass of savanna, or naked sands of the desert, winds or calms thereon, with annual and diurnal thermometric and hy- grometric changes, also their relationships to gastronomies, aesthetics, including morals and religions, have all been cog- nized and united, more or less accurately, with physiological states and conditions, and their consequent pathological and psychological infirmities. The connection of health and disease with all these elements, the state and condition of original diathesis of bodies subjected to them, of organs and tissues submitted to them, of form or type of disease, style and stage of development brought under their influence, have, to a certain extent, been established. Other more recondite researches- have been made into the existence and nature, or specific qualities of a certain principle in the air, called ozone, discovered by Schonbein. It is said to be an "irritant principle," a "powerful oyxdizer, at once de- stroying those poisonous gases composed of hydrogen united with sulphur and phosphorus, and the presence of which ren- ders the air irrespirable. The various gaseous products of the decomposition of animal and vegetable matters which are being incessantly evolved, especially in great towns, seem, according to the experiments of Schonbein, to yield no less completely to the destructive influence of ozone. Hence it 472 THE MOUNTAIN. is viewed as the great purifier of the atmosphere."* This principle in the air has been the subject of much specula- tion, but its laws of action and special sanitary qualities are still conjectural, and " although the constant existence of the principle in the open air of the country and the sea is ascertained, the proportions in which it exists in different localities is found to be subject to great varia- tion, "f Dr. Charles Srnallwood, of St. Martin, Isle Jesus, Canada East, the accomplished professor of meteorology in the Uni- versity of McGill College, Montreal, has been making con- stant observations on ozone for twelve years. His contri- butions in this department of science are of a most interesting character, and as he is one of the extremely few observers on the continent, his labor possesses great value. His publi- cations may be found in the " Transactions of the American Association," for 185*7, also in numbers of the "Canadian Naturalist and Geologist," 1859. In a letter recently re- ceived from Dr. Srnallwood, he says : "I use the formula of Schonbein; but instead of paper I find calico or fine muslin, soaked in the solution of starch and iodide of potassium, better than paper, and I am now observing the constant variations of the amount by an instrument that is worked by clock- work, and keeps constantly moving the prepared test one inch per hour. I wish to ascertain the connection of ozone with the usual barometric fluctuations, and also with the humidity of the atmo- sphere. I have also subjected the tests to different colored rays of light, and also to polarized light ; and I have also investigated the effects of vegetation on its amount. "The daily continued observations are taken at ten P.M. and six A.M., at the height of five feet from the surface of the soil ; besides this, I have observed at an altitude of eighty feet above the ground, and in all possible situations on the ground, between the rows of vegetables, potatoes, Indian corn, etc. "I would very concisely sum up thus : "Ozone does exist in the atmosphere; varies in quantity ; moist weather favors its development ; northeast and southeast winds favor its development ; snow and rain also increase its amount ; and *.British and Foreign Medico-Chirurgical Review, 1852. t Francis, " Change of Air." CLIMATE SANITARY RELATIONS. 473 I am led to believe that the amount attains two maxima and two minima, in twenty-four hours corresponding to the barometric oscillations, and also to the degrees of humidity. It has been largely developed for some years during the potato rot, the weather being moist, and with a hot sun, a state peculiarly fitted to show ozone present. I do not find it at all connected in amount with the electri- cal state of the atmosphere; sea breezes seem to favor its develop- ment, such as a northeast wind. I have noted its presence, with a thermometer, 36 below zero, and as high as 90 above. Tempera- ture does not seem to influence the amount so much as the humidity of the atmosphere." In the " Canadian Naturalist and Geologist" for Decem- ber, 1859, he further remarks : " The psychrometer always indicates presence or absence of ozone; it is never in dry air ; is decomposed by heat when formed by means of phosphorus ; light has, in its development, not much influence upon ozonized paper; polarized light has least influence; influenced by luminous, heating, and actinic rays ; the influence of colored media are proportioned, having a grade of power from orange, maximum, to green, minimum ; east and south winds ozonic ; westerly and northerly not ; rain and snow, large amount ; northeast land wind not ozonic; sea breezes, with moisture, ozonic; dry northeast wind, with high barometer, no ozone. Its effects on animals and man will require a system of registration. "During cholera, amount diminished, but humidity was also di- minished; it is highly deleterious to lower class of animals, its well- known poisonous properties being turned to advantage, when pro- duced by slow combustion of phosphorus. As a therapeutic agent, it can scarcely be said to have been administered. Oil of turpentine, exposed to light, has acquired a pungent taste like peppermint, owing to formation of ozone, and proved poisonous to small animals. It has been advised as a local application in rheumatism, and internally in chronic discharges from mucous membranes of man. He (the doctor) is prosecuting investigations of effects of vegetation on amount of ozone; also effects from germination of plants. The con- tinent of Europe is full of observers, but on the continent of North America but little attention has been given to it. A constant, syste- matic form of observation is necessary, and it is hoped soon to take its proper place in the annals of true science, and become alike in- teresting to the chemist,* physician, and meteorologist." * " The chemical composition of ozone is defined to be a compound of oxygen, anal- ogous to the peroxide of hydrogen, or that it is oxygen in an allotropic state, that is, 40* 474 THE MOUNTAIN. Medical climatologists have given classifications of cli- mates from their effects upon the human body ; as " Tonic" or dry, bracing and exhilarating, possessing the qualities of tonic medicines; "Atonic," moist, relaxing, even sedative, indicated in conditions requiring those influences. There are also "Irritant Climates," etc.* Nosological tables, or catalogues of diseases curable by climates have also been given, with the connection of places and their airs, with organs and their conditions. These de- tails belong to the special domain of the physician, and are much too extensive to attempt to recite them here. They will be more fully discussed in the " Supplement to the Moun- tain," which will contain an extended treatise on climate as a remedy for disease, as also the special claims of the Alle- ghany Mountain as a locality of great power in the cure of a long list of maladies. It may not be amiss, in this connection, to quote a few conclusions of the illustrious Drake, whose authority is un- questioned. Following the declension of the malarial plain north, toward the geographic line of perpetual exemption from malarial diseases, he says : "We find, then, that in the latitude of 42 north, the topographi- cal conditions which originate autumnal fevers, are nearly overcome by a mean altitude of 1400 feet ; but we have previously seen that, in the basin of the Kenawha, among the mountains of Virginia, at an elevation of 1800 feet, Professor Rogers saw many cases of in- termittent fever. This is to be ascribed to the difference of latitude, that locality being about 4 farther south than the table-land in the vicinity of Chautauque Lake." This lake is in Chautauque County, tfew York, the ex- treme southwest corner of the State, bounded on the north by Lake Erie, and on the south by Pennsylvania. It is a with the capability of immediate and ready action impressed upon it. It is a great oxydizer and destroyer of the miasma arising from the decomposition of animal and vegetable substances. It is colorless, possesses a peculiar odor resembling chlorine, and, when diluted, cannot be distinguished from the electrical smell. Its density ia said to be four times that of oxygen." SMALLWOOD. * Francis, " Change of Air." CLIMATE SANITARY RELATIONS. 475 few miles from the northern line of Pennsylvania. Of this region as an alpine summer residence for invalids, Dr. Drake remarks : "When describing the sources of the Alleghany River, including Chautauque Lake, we were brought, by a southern route, upon the water-shed which we have now ascended from the north. It may be regarded as the great salient terrace, or projecting table-land of the Appalachian Mountains; that portion which advances farthest to the northwest, from the central axis of the chain, that which ap- proaches nearest to the great lakes. Its tabular yet undulating or hilly surface results from its resting on a broad outcrop of Devonian shale or sandstone, in which the former greatly predominates." Then follows a description of the region ; after which, he thus proceeds : "Here, then, are all the requisites for a comfortable and curative summer residence. I will mention a few classes of patients to whom it would be likely to prove beneficial. "First. Those who are inclined to* tubercular consumption, or in whom the disease, although fatally established, is not so far advanced as to confine them to the house. To which may be added, children affected with scrofula in the external lymphatic ganglia, the skin, and the eyes. "Second. Those who have had their livers and spleens deranged in structure or function, or their constitutions otherwise shattered, by repeated attacks of autumnal fever, in low and hot situations. "Third. Dyspeptics, from any and all causes; hypochondriacs, and those subject to chronic hysteria, or any other form of morbid sensibility." Then follows a flash on the fallibility of drugs, and the immense power of "simple diet," "new scenery," "active exercise," and the " disuse of medicine," with kindly guide- book information as to comfortable localities. To this suc- ceeds some indications of the summer climate of the re- gion : fires at night acceptable in July and August ; Indian corn frost bitten in August ; peaches ill at ease ; " wheat and hay harvest in August." He then adds : "It may be said that the Virginia springs are more elevated, and, therefore, better fitted for summer sojourn. But their greater eleva- tion of five hundred feet, would, in the reduction of temperature, 476 THE MOUNTAIN. only equal a degree of latitude, while this region is four degrees farther north. Nor can Saratoga be compared, in its summer cli- mate, with this mountain platform ; for, although a degree farther north, it lies twelve hundred feet nearer the level of the sea. The celebrated springs of Virginia and New York are, moreover, places of amusement for the healthy, not rural retreats for the infirm ; to some of whom, it is true, the mineral waters might prove beneficial; but all other circumstances would combine to counteract their salutary influence. The enlightened physician* who conscientiously desires to redeem his patient, for three months of the year, from the deleterious agency of heat and malaria, or to countervail the debilitating effects of a pro- tracted summer in others, in whose lungs the fatal work of tubercu- lar excavation is going on, will, I trust, not regard the business-like details which I have been giving, with disfavor; but patiently read on until he qualifies himself for overcoming the scruples of such vale- tudinarians as may fear or fancy that, in going to the mountain terrace for the summer, they would languish for want of scenes and objects of interest. These are quite as numerous, diversified, and striking as in almost any other portion of the Interior Valley ; and I will briefly enumerate the most important." The benign and indefatigable Drake then proceeds : First. "This region comprehends the great pine forests of the Alleghany Mountain," etc. etc. He continues to describe, with sentiment and cleverness, the resources of the region, sanitary and pleasurable. This poetical doctor, f with rhubarb and lancet in his pocket, re- cites routes to famous shrines, enchanting journeys, excur- * "It is not sufficient for the physician to advise his patient, laboring under a chronic infirmity, to leave off medicine and depend on travel. When he prescribes the former, he directs where it can be obtained; and, in like manner, when he recommends the latter, he should be able to lay down the appropriate and practicable route ; in doing which, he should draw his information from the books of the profes- sion, and convince his patient that he is familiar with what he re- commends, or but little confidence will be reposed in his advice." DRAKE. f Why should doctors not sometimes be poets ? In constant scientific and sympathetic contact with the great realities and tra- gicalities of the world, and the human body, no man is so real and alive, if earnest and spiritual, as the true and manly physi- CLIMATE SANITARY RELATIONS. 477 sions innumerable and beautiful to "falls of rivers" and "minor cascades," "pleasant roads," "romantic paths," "hunting grounds," "trout streams," "grouse roosts;" in short, all that men want or pray for, sick or well, including, as climax, the great Falls of Niagara. In that beautiful region of extreme Western New York and Northwestern Pennsylvania he discovers a desideratum long sought, a great alpine sanitary resort for the sick, above the malarial plain, and possessed of all desirable physical prerequisites and climatal elements for the transformation and rejuven- escence of the diseased, exhausted, and weary laden. And here the statement may be made, that the whole range of knobs of the Alleghany Mountain in Central Pennsyl- vania is several hundred feet above this line of malaria, as indicated by Dr. Drake, and possesses all the advantages enumerated as belonging to the Chautauque Lake region, which he indeed affirms is but a " salient terrace, or pro- jecting table-land of the Appalachian Mountains." Being a degree farther south, and a thousand feet higher, the Penn- sylvania Alleghany combines all the physical elements, and greater sanitary advantages, than the plateau described by Dr. Drake. It also extends above the line of "alpine cli- , mate," as established by Dr. Lombard, which, at latitude 40 north, is 2000 feet above the level of the sea. Thus the illustrious Drake, who had studied with zeal and genius for thirty years the whole climatal relations of the great valley and its elevated boundary lines, or geographical rim, and had hunted a healing (asylum) retreat for its sick, cian. As there is "poetry in man and every object that surrounds him," and as the chief end of the doctor is to study man and cure him perpetually, who of the elect of heaven has a better right, with star-woven toga, to walk the heights of Parnassus? Dr. Camillo Brunori, the " Physician a Poet," under the divine afflatus, indited lovely idyls on purgatives, celestial rhymes on blisters, and "one hundred and seventy-two sonnets on all Diseases, Drugs, and Parts of the Body, Functions, and curative means." Honor to the doctor- poet ! all honor to Camillo the brave ! 478 THE MOUNTAIN. discovered, and appears an ardent advocate for, and enthu- siastic indorser of, the Alleghany Mountain plateau as a place with " all the requisites for a comfortable and cura- tive summer residence," and a "rural retreat for the in- firm," far " from the deleterious agency of heat and ma- laria," and possessing more essential elements of a perfect summer resort than any other part of the continent of North America. Hence the solemn import of the words, on the streamer of the flag-staff of the next book of the " Mountain," JEscu- lapius, namely, The significance of the Alleghany Moun- tain as the site of a Sanitarium, or retreat for the sick, arranged by Infinite Wisdom. And hence, also, arrives the grand corollary from all the foregoing arguments and demon- strations, the inevitable "Doctorial uses of the Mountain 1" END OF BOOK ATLAS. This ends the Book Atlas, or Natural Science of the Mountain. Why dive so deep in rocks, or soar so high in air ? Only to make good the promise to try to dovetail some knowledge of the mountain, a protuberance of the venerable spheroid, into universal science. The natural objects (sci- ences) of a spot are its furniture as a medium of existence or habitat for living creatures. A hurried invoice has been made of some of these effects, exhibiting so much for the body. Natural history contains supernatural history, for "Nature is the spirit analyzed and at rest," and the final cause of any existence being the object or end for which created, much has also been indicated for the soul, who, with queenly power, will make out her own case. But who was Atlas, and what of him ? The brawny-backed Titan was, according to Hesiod, (Theog., 50T, etc.) "a son of Japetus and Clymene, and a brother of Menoetius, Pro- END OF BOOK ATLAS. 479 metheus, and Epimetheus ; according to Apollodorus, his mother's name was Asia ; and, according to Hyginus, he was a son of Aether and Gaea." Other accounts are given of his genealogy. Hesiod says " he bore heaven with his head and hands." From the Homeric poems: " Atlas knows the depth of the sea, and bears the long columns which keep asunder, or carry all around, earth and heaven ; or of the columns which keep asunder heaven and earth, which co- lumns are the mountains." The Homeric description was a " superhuman or divine being, with a personal existence, and blended with the idea of a mountain." " The idea of heaven-bearing Atlas is, according to Le- tronne, a mere personification of a cosmographic notion, which arose from the views entertained by the ancients respect- ing the nature of heaven and its relation to earth." (L. S.) Again, he led the Titans in their fight with Zeus, and " being conquered, he was condemned to the labor of bear- ing heaven on his head and hands." Another version is, "he was a man who was metamorphosed into a mountain." Again, Perseus, by the " Medusa's head, changed him into Mount Atlas, on which rested heaven and all its stars." This mythico-cosmical origin of mountains, embracing every imaginable formulae, gives a sure and steadfast base- line for the chapters on the natural science of the mountain, by getting as near to the bones or skeleton of the old struc- ture as possible ; or, in other words, of what is under, in, and on the mountain, namely, its geology, upon which must repose its soil, its organized bodies, its waters, and downy- ocean of air above. J1SCULAPIUS. 41 "JSscuLAPius, (Affxfy-ios,) the god of the medical art, in the Homeric poems, not considered a divinity, and without descent, is mentioned as the father of Machaon and Podaleirius. (II., ii. 731, iv. 194, xi. 518.) . But Homer also calls those who practice the heal- ing art descendants of Paeeon, and, as Podaleirius and Machaon are called the sons of JSsculapius, it has been inferred that ^Esculapius and Paee'on are the same being, and consequently a divinity. As in Homer's opinion all physicians were descended from Paee'on, he pro- bably considered JEsculapius in the same light. This is corroborated in later times by the fact that Paee'on was identified with Apollo, -(Esculapius being universally described as a descendant of Apollo. The two sons of JEsculapius, in the Iliad, were the physicians in the Greek army, and ruled over Tricca, Ithome, and Oechalia. The more common tradition was that the god himself was a son of Apollo and Coronis, the daughter of Phlegyas, a descendant of Lapithes." (Apol- lod., iii. 10, g 3; Pind. Pyth., iii. 14, with the Schol.) For the story of the babe JSsculapius, saved from the flames by Hermes, of the vengeance of Apollo, and the tragical death of his mother Coronis, and her lover, see Pind., Ov., Horn., Paus., Hygin., Apol., Strab., etc Hermes gave the boy to Cheiron, (the Centaur,) who instructed him in the art of healing and in hunting. The shep- herd Aresthanes saw the boy surrounded by a lustre like that of lightning, and from his dazzling splendor, or from his having been rescued from the flames, he was called, by the Dorians, atyhar/p. Of his youth and the wonderful power of his manhood, until the full- developed divinity assumed the proper functions of his sphere, saving life and raising the dead, many astonishing traditions fill the records of classical history, from the gift of Athena in the blood of Gorgo, to the secret of the serpents in the house of Glaucus. " These legends, about one of the most important and interesting divinities of antiquity, are full of significance. Various hypotheses have been brought forward to explain the origin of his worship in Greece ; and, while some consider JEsculapius to have been origin- ally a real personage, whom tradition had connected with various marvelous stories, others have explained all the legends about him as mere personifications of certain ideas. The serpent, the perpetual symbol of ^Esculapius, has given rise to the opinion that the worship was derived from Egypt, and that ^Esculapius was identical with the serpent Cnuph, worshiped in Egypt, or with the Phoenician Esmun. (Euseb. Praep. Evang., i. 10; comp. Paus., vii. 23, $ 6.) But it does not seem necessary to have recourse to foreign countries in order to explain the worship of this god." 482 " JSsculapius was worshiped all over Greece, and many towns claimed the honor of his birth. His temples were usually built in healthy places, on hills outside of towns and cities, and near wells or springs, which were believed to have healing powers. These temples were not only places of worship, but were frequented by great numbers of sick persons, and may, therefore, be compared to modern hospitals. (Plut. Quaest. Rom., p. 286., D.) " The principal seat of his worship in Greece was Epidaurus, where he had a temple, surrounded with an extensive grove, within which no one was allowed to die, and no woman to give birth to a child. His sanctuary contained a magnificent statue of ivory and gold, the work of Thrasymedes, in which he was represented as a handsome and manly figure, resembling that of Zeus. (Paus., ii. 26.) " He was seated on a throne, holding in one hand a staff, and with the other resting upon the head of a dragon, (serpent,) and by his side lay a dog. (Paus., ii. 27, 2.) " Serpents were everywhere connected with the worship of .ZEscu- lapius, probably because they were a symbol of prudence and reno- vation, and were "believed to possess the power of discovering herbs of wondrous powers, as is indicated in the story of ^Esculapius and the serpents in the house of Glaucus. (Paus.) " After jEsculapius had grown up, reports spread over all countries that he not only cured all the sick, but called the dead to life again. Several persons, whom JEsculapius was believed to have restored to life, are mentioned by the Scholiast on Pindar, (Pyth., iii. 96,) and by Apollodorus, (C. 6.) When he was exercising this art upon Glau- cus, Zeus killed JEsculapius with a flash of lightning, as he feared lest men might gradually contrive to escape death altogether, (Apol., iii. 10, $ 4 ;) or, according to others, because Pluto had complained of jEsculapius diminishing the number of the dead too much. (Diod., iv. 71 ; comp. Schol. Pind., Pyth., iii. 102.) But, on the request of Apollo, Zeus placed ^Esculapius among the stars." (Hygin. Poet. Astr., ii. 14.) From Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. 483 1. " Honor a physician with the honor due unto him for the uses which ye may have of him : for the Lord hath created him. 2. "For of the Most High cometh healing, and he shall receive honor of the king. 3. " The skill of the physician shall lift up his head, and in the sight of great men he shall be in admiration. 4. " The Lord has created medicines out of the earth, and he that is wise will not abhor them. 5. "Was not the water made sweet with wood, that the virtue thereof might be known ? 6. " And he has given men skill that he might be honored in his marvelous works. 7. " With such doth he heal men, and taketh away their pains. 12. "Then give place to the physician, for the Lord hath created him: let him not go from thee, for thou hast need of him." ECCL. "The intelligence denoted by the leaf, which shall be for the use of the celestial man, is called Medicine. A.C. 57." SWEDENBORQ. 484 BOOK II. CHAPTER I. ESCULAPIUS, "Man is God wholly manifested. God has become Man, zero has become -\ . Man is the whole of arithmetic, compacted, however, out of all numbers ; he can therefore produce numbers out of him- self. Man is a complex of all that surrounds him, namely, of ele- ment, mineral, plant, and animal." OKEN. THE regular profession of medicine, called the "Faculty," " Hippocratic," or " Old School," boasts a genealogy time- honored and ancient as the earth. From its present noon- day splendor of light and science it goes into the obscurity of the past for more than two thousand years of authentic history, and still on through realms of myths and dreams, until, in the mists and shadows of primeval worlds, it mingles its exegesis with the fables of the gods. These stories of the ages, these legends of the sages, have nothing in them accidental, arbitrary, or factitious; for myths are but sha- dows of more transcendent facts, having necessary and im- mortal existence in the depths of nature and the soul. The profession of the healing art, divine in its origin, grave and grand in its scientific evolution, sacred and sub- lime in its ultimate functions, stands as a necessary part of the order of things, old as humanity, and inseparable from its existence upon earth ; for when did not man suffer, and when did not his brother try to relieve him ? Synchronous with man's advent upon the planet, the chronicles of this 41* 485 486 THE MOUNTAIN. art, inaugurated by the oracles of Fate, are as absolutely a part of the inevitable, and as genuine a fragment of the universe, as the beautiful "song of the stars." As the creation of the human body is the first significant fact of its history, its protection and preservation from the agencies of change and destruction about it must certainly be the second consideration of importance, scarcely less in its grandeur, surely equally solemn in its end. The soul, in- carnated once, demands immortality as a right of its own being, and would ask it, also, for the body. What art so grand, then, as the art of preserving and prolonging life, and what so godlike in aspiration as the effort to restore man to the splendor of his unfallen youth, and save him from the tortures of pain and suffering, of disease and death ? All the races of men, but especially the cultivated and dominant, have ever had a clear perception of this great fact ; and through the darkness and ignorance of barbarous tribes, and the light, culture, and science of the illuminated and progressive nations, the professor of the art of healing has ever been regarded as the possessor of the secrets of life and death, and held in veneration and love, allied to the worship of the supernals.* The scriptures of the races, sacred and profane, record his achievements, and the history of his miracles is embalmed in ejaculations of ceaseless wonder and admiration. Their monuments of art have registered the highest tidal waves of the progress and intellectual growth of man, by associating his entire spiritual unfold- ing, the advancement and perfection of his nature, with the deities which preside over the fate and destiny of the material world, and the physical salvation of humanity. The wondrous intellect of the Greek has filled the horizon of human vision for hundreds of years. With a physical conformation perfect, and rendered godlike by a habitat in * Priest and physician were originally united in one functionary, and should still be one. " The Asclepiadee were also regarded as an order or caste of priests, and for a long period the practice of medi- cine was intimately connected with religion." JESCULAPIUS. 487 which the perfection and splendor of nature were revealed and the beauty of the world exhausted, he has, in all his creations, made the ideal real, by an eternal production of himself, "his body absolutely expressing his soul." In his highest efforts, forever captivated by truth and beauty, he became the prophet, priest, and king of nature, making his artistic or reproduced world bright with the immortal stars of thought, redolent of Olympian airs, aromatic shades, haunts and bowers of the gods. The muses, the heavenly nine, hover around his path of progress, and the glory of an unde- bauched, unfallen world is shadowed forth in "shapes whose beauty is truest and rarest, in visions, in soul, the grandest that crowd on the tear-dimmed eye," in the prophetic oracles of Delphi, in the whispering of the groves of Dodona. In all his intellectual manifestations true ; true in the symbol- ism of the world embodied in his poetical mythology ; true in the instincts of his mind in the path of science ; perfect in the world of the senses and understanding, his genesis of the healing art is the embodiment of wisdom. What but a Grecian hand could chisel an Apollo of Belvidere, the ideal physical ? and what but a Grecian head could create the magical romance of the son of Zeus and Leto, the ideal spiritual? both worlds united in the form of the God of Medicine, Divination, and Poetry. "Mine is the invention of the charming lyre; Sweet notes and heavenly numbers I inspire. Medicine is mine ; what herbs and simples grow In fields, in forests, all their powers I know, And, am the great physician called below." Thus muses the charmer of high Olympus, and thus the ethereal god of the gods announces the duties of his trans- cendent sphere, and prefers the sympathies of heaven to sufferers in the gloomy realms of pain, uniting, in his blessed form, the spirituality of thought and intellect, with the bene- ficence and grandeur of love and mercy. " Whatever we may think of the modes of explaining the 488 THE MOUNTAIN. origin and nature of Apollo, one point is certain, and at- tested by thousands of facts, that Apollo and his worship, his festivals and oracles, had more influence upon the Greeks than any other god. It may be safely asserted, that the Greeks would never have become what they were, without the worship of Apollo ; in him the brightest side of the Grecian mind is reflected." This radiant Olympian, proud- est in his power of the supernals, the proper creator of Gre- cian thought and art, was accounted the father of JEscu- lapius, the special God of Medicine. That his temple, at Delphi in Phocis, should be situated on the hill Parnassus, " umbilicus orbis terrarum,' r the centre of the world, at once reveals the fact, "that deep wisdom lies under these fables of time," that the ancient poet was a seer, and, in giving a supernatural origin to an art the most honored and useful of the callings of men, he but uttered the voice of that "necessity which is the mother of the world." Let all honor be given to the ancients ; all veneration to the gods of Olympus. From this proud height of thought and art ; from this ancient Eden of Grecian poetry and philosophy, itself stretching into still more venerable and primeval soli- tudes of time, comes the regular profession of medicine of this hour. Down to this moment it has struggled through ages of the soul's travail ; through time-honored battlings with worlds of night and chaos, ignorance and darkness ; through dawnings of light ; through manifold tribulations and difficulties ; through the ceaseless efforts of the best brains and hearts the races have ever produced ; still on, until, in the blaze and splendor of the inductive pro- cess of reasoning, the absolute of medical science was re- vealed, and now stands, with its granite peaks of " positive philosophy," in the light and glory of an everlasting day. Still, while we gaze with awe into the past, and reverence with filial veneration the old following that magical river into the charmed land, where fact and fable dance in the dawn of thought and reason, and men and gods interact AESCULAPIUS. 489 we must not forget that the " past is death's," the present only is our own ; that progress and growth are written on all things; that a flowing river, a seed-filled field, is this time ; that there are no ends or beginnings, but only arres- tations and continuations ; that there is nothing erect or fixed, but only leanings and slidings everywhere no rest even for the rock,* which will be a plant ; the plant, " struggling to become a different and to attain the light," must be an animal, while the animal stirs in its somnambu- lism and dreams, and would fain be a man. Let us accredit this revelation of the growth and development of the uni- verse revealed by science, and, while with sentiments of gratitude and joy we celebrate the achievements of the mind in the past, and glorify its wonderful power, recorded in the written word, or books of the world, " its monuments more enduring than brass," we must not forget that " in all scrip- tures, the letter kills," the spirit alone is alive, growing, reproductive, immortal. With sadness, then, we must also arrive at the conclusion that a painfully servile subjugation of the soul has been achieved ; that the old, with dogmatism and tyranny, has always demanded an agonizing humility and worship, because it is old; that the lessons of the ancient schools, assuming the overwhelming prestige of an- * The ordinary apprehension that the rock reposes in eternal still- ness in its geological fastness, is erroneous. (See note at end of chapter ^sculapius, page 534.) One extravagant dreamer, Evan Hopkins, (on connection of geology with terrestrial magnetism and the general polarity of matter,) has made it out clearly (he thinks) that the epidermis, or stone mantle of the globe, is in perpetual motion, creeping north, and turning within itself by a stupen- dous galvanic devouring, and has also fixed the rates of its pro- gression by lines in thousands of years. As the continents and most of the bodies of land visible above the watery envelope of the planet have their heads or larger extremities north and their tails or terminating points south, it comes that the tadpole-theory of develop- ment holds good in the movements of worlds as well as the growth of frogs. Onward toward the north star crawl the continents and islands, and onward to the north is progress and the watchword of development. Advance, Hopkins, with your rhinoceros hide of the world ! 490 THE MOUNTAIN. tiquity and the "past," have robbed, and dispossessed us of aboriginal and filial consort with the fountains of influx from the equally divine present. This wretched tribute is ex- torted at the fearful cost of the total integrity of man, and the emasculation of the profoundest attributes of his being. Why pay the word by an unqualified surrender of its own life ? Why capitulate on the fatal condition of the annihi- lation of the spirit ? The book or word is only a bridge over a yawning gulf of the past ; a floating raft of logs it may have been, or a rainbow-arch sublimely spanning the heavens, but still a bridge. Shall we dwell perpetually on the bridge ? The word is a ladder ; when the height is achieved, shall we stay to glorify the ladder alone ? The word is a scaffold. When the spiritual edifice is constructed in symmetrical proportions, shall the scaffold, once essential, now useless, stand a persistent deformity ? The word is a fountain of inspiration. If the waters have shrunken away, of what value is the fountain ? But the total record or word of the world, it may be affirmed, is the greatest fact of the world's history. As an exponent of the world it stands, then, a tropical mountain, stretching through all depths and heights, all times and spaces, revealing the spiritual growths of the ages, the Andes of the soul. At its base, warm, genial, intense, a world of light and life, exhaustless in its fullness, illimit- able in its profusion, stunning and bewildering in its excessive brilliancy, blooms a sempiternal youth. Here sport and babble the babes of the senses ; here glow with warmth and ardor the first fiery thoughts of the chil- dren of the sun. Higher upon the mountain is the belt of umbrageous (deciduous) woods, with foliage waving in the winds of temperate climes, and whose cool, sequestered shades invite to contemplation and dreams. Here, in " aca- demic groves," have wandered the men of thought and re- flection, the philosophers of the intellect, the seekers of truth, and talked to unborn millions. Still higher, the solemn evergreen forest stands, cold and dark ; and here the JESCULAP1US. 491 brave preachers of righteousness, the grave reformers of truth, the earnest seekers of holiness, have chiseled their stern edicts on stone ; and here, also, amid deepening sha- dows, have sung the " pensive muses, whom dismal scenes delight, frequent at tombs, and in the realms of night." And yet still higher, looms the snow-capped summit, lofty and lonely, cold and silent as eternity, where the inspired few have spoken the words of life. Here, in "infinite but incomprehensible solitude, yet in the boundless self-suffi- ciency of their blessed natures," the martyrs and prophets have uttered their oracles, and, in love and worship, brooded in loneliness, with the silent stars, over the depths of God. Endless seem the attractions of the word, and beautiful continually are the first songs of joy when the soul has found its symbol. Is it strange that myriads of thoughtful, cultivated human spirits, should thus cling to the word, and, like happy children, play with the toy when its meaning was long forgotten ? Touching, sadly touching is this awe and veneration for the garments and bones of the saints, this worship of the wood of the true cross ; and melancholy is this reverential retrospection into the past, the dreary domain of night and silence. Still sadder is the backward longing, and still more fatal is the backward looking, as the only rest of the spirit. Especially is this reliance on the past alone, in science, fatal to future growth and development ; this back- ward looking alone is bad, and worse than it seems, in all departments of thought and knowledge. An ingenuous criticism of the regular profession of medicine of this hour is, that it demands a deeper philosophy, and needs a higher faith. It asks a philosophy that has come into the world unembarrassed by mortgages to the thought and intellect of the dead, and uncumbered by the mouldy formulae of de- parted generations, and without the oppressive details of a too painful genealogy. The Faith which it deeply needs is not a blind, indiscriminate worship of traditional power ; no veneration for the "word of the master;" no uninquiring acceptance of the imaginative fables of other days, or the 492 THE MOUNTAIN. waning fancies of departed races, but a living and abiding conviction and trust, that the world is still in the rosy light of its dawn ; that the "days of inspiration" are not passed; that the wise man who exclaimed, in anguish, "I have lost a day!" was a "king without a crown;" that the world is really not faded, spent, and gone into dotage, and near its final deliration. This flimsy garment of a theory is only a fact, so far as nature indorses it, and no farther. In medicine, as in other departments of knowledge, it is, and ever has been, that " Genius is always sufficiently the enemy of genius by over-influence." The word of the in- spired man, instead of becoming warm life-blood in the veins, or growing seed in the soil, has always hardened into a fossil, and made a stumbling-stone for long ages to come. Shakspeare is born, and having scaled the heavens of poetry, henceforward, the riders of Pegassus must hobble the celes- tial steed with his yoke, having first constituted him the great ideal artist in the realms of imagination and fairie. Hunter, Stahl, and Broussais are born, and the human race bleed rivers of blood for ages, the world having resolved itself into a hospital for the cure of inflammations alone phlogiston (koYiaroq) being their sole morbific power under the plenary inspiration of the " Fundamental Principles of Inflammation," and the divine aegis of " Physiological Medi- cine." Each age, in superstitious veneration, turns its eyes to the past, and being sorrowfully indigent in the possessions of the present, it contents itself by magnifying the claims of the dead, and reciting with veneration the record of their achievements. Each of its new books is but a votive leaf on the altar of the "worship of genius." Still lingering around the fires of departed worlds, it would " roast its eggs with the cinders of extinct volcanoes." With its eye fixed on the distant mountain-tops of the past, it hopes for the dawn there " when it is really sunset, and night is coming fast." With mournful assiduity it stirs the dead embers of lights gone by, having hopes of illumination and heat, when life has departed and death has come. It hangs with devo- .ESCULAPIUS. 493 tion and love over the dust of departed greatness, and delights to glorify the voices of antiquity by building monuments of wonder and admiration to their greatness. It writes endless commentaries upon what has been done in the past, but has no hopes or aspirations for the future, or what may be done in the hour that now is, or that is to come. In the shade and darkness of long and mournful eclipses the races have wandered. Some colossal man came upon earth and scored the surface of the planet with his name, attributes, and works, and, for hundreds of years, his form arises, darkening the sun of truth and casting a baleful shadow, in the deep darkness of whose night whole races have reposed and slept. They have ever said, " in the shadow of this rock in the wilderness we will rest." The sleepless vigilance, the never-tiring exertion essential to growth, the travail of thought, they will not endure. The search for truth de- mands toughness of fibre of heart and brain, and few men have either will or power to work in the rugged ways lead- ing to the mountain-top, whose head is in the light of the day of knowledge and thought. In medicine, as in other departments of human knowl- edge, the past has hobbled and chained the human mind, and postponed the revelation of the future or time to come by a superstitious veneration for the "old." Too much faith in tradition, too much reliance on the au- thority of other days, is the sickness of the schools of medical science, as of all other schools whose history goes into the past. The " word of the master" has always been the oath, and inertia and torpidity of spirit prevailed, the last ripple-mark of the advancing wave rising and harden- ing into a mountain of rock, and constituting for the time the horizon or visible line of union of earth and heaven. And this perception brings at once the staring fact to the mind that the medical science of this hour, through drowsiness and inappetency, through indolence and want of courage to investigate, is too grossly material in its philosophy. With eye and scalpel constantly groping after material processes 42 494 THE MOUNTAIN. and functions only, it reveals facts of the senses and under- standing alone, giving an interpretation of nature which leaves the mind in the mire. Gravity and the affinities of chemistry, pathology or the gross outward results of dis- ease, it recognizes with sufficient precision. It does not believe that the fall of an apple could introduce the mind of man to the mysteries of the mechanism of the heavens, and reveal the miraculous dance of the worlds in time and space ; it does not believe that a flash of the soul in the darkness of the night called life, may illume the celestial mountain- tops of undiscovered continents of knowledge ; that gleams or great intuitions of the mind, may let us as deeply into the laws of nature as the anatomist's knife or chemist's crucible. It forgets that nature is but a name for an effect, whose cause is the absolute and infinite spirit; assiduously and devoutly acquainting itself with external results, material phenomena merely, it does not reflect that the " visible is but the terminus of the invisible;" that what we see and touch is dead; that "the body is itself but the drowsy brute that the Eternal hath yoked to the chariot of life to urge man across the finite." The constantly recurring mistake of the profession, in its phantasmal dance of theories, has always been infinite faith in matter. From earliest dreams of atomists, humeralists, and solidists, mechanical laws, and powers of polarity, with elixirs of life and philosophers' stones, to the modern swarm of drugs whose name is legion, the profession has been blundering over its mountains of matter, and had its faith only in heroic doses of heroic remedies, and in the most absolute of "material aids." Its theory of nature is gross and mechanical, an hypothesis accounting for the universe on the purely physical laws of natural philosophy, architecture, and chemistry. Thus, in its conception of diseases also, it is like the medicine-man of the Thibetans ; believing and calling the destroying powers material devils, it would scare them into cages with gourds and calabashes, and destroy them with the sword. JESCULAPIUS. 495 This is mournful, and profanely closes the avenues to higher and better light; for, although "matter may be one of the grandest facts that a finite intelligence can know," yet can it also cognize with true spiritual precision and absolute knowledge, other existences, powers, and forces of the world. " The business of philosophy is to discover truths which, as first principles, are to give intelligibility, and which, therefore, cannot be deduced from the facts of experience which they are intended to explain, and to which they are to give unity and connection; they are truths supersensuous. We demand, and the rational mind cannot be satisfied with less, that the facts, phenomena, and changes which form the sphere of our sensible experience, and, collectively, are called nature, shall be rendered intelli- gible to, and rationally accounted for, by our mind. The instincts of reason lead us to investigate what the realities are of which the phenomena are but the outward signs." What are the true moving forces of the universe ? through what miraculous causes does this multiform phenomenal per- form the dramaturgy of nature ? Around us is a fullness of life and power, and the endless procession goes forward with ceaseless regularity, pointing to the net of golden threads of living connection in all things, and asserting through all the kingdoms of being the tyranny of law. We arrive at last, in our investigations, in the dread presence of a range of forces in whose fingers the material universe, or matter with gravity and attraction, is as clay in the potter's hands. They have nothing in common with the sixty ponderable, elementary bodies, recognized and catalogued by chemistry, or any of their combinations, constituting the multifarious forms of outward existences, but antagonize in every single attribute this world of matter with sensible qualities. One class seeking, as if by the instincts of a blind and drowsy soul, to rest and, sleep, holding globes and atoms safely to- gether in concreted masses and revolving spheres ; the other, essentially active, alive, and quick, without an element of sameness or affinity with ponderable bodies, but dissolving, rending asunder, and separating all things as by a fearful in- 496 THE MOUNTAIN. stinct of dissolution, having neither weight, form, nor any quality, primary or secondary,* appreciable to the senses, making iron fluid as water, and, with irresistible energy, me- tamorphosing the granite into grass and ether. These agents or invisible powers of existence have ever attracted the at- tention of men, and invited to investigation, and theories of the imponderables and of life have long been recorded. The imponderables and vital powers are the true moving forces, the real dynamic agents of existence. In the plastic fingers of these dread creatures all matter reels and dances. Nature seems but a masquerade of these miraculous wonder-working powers, now dreadful in the thunder-storm, now beautiful in the gentle wind, now majes- tic in the animal and tree, now magical and lovely in the flower, insect, and bird, and without whose perpetual play the organic world would soon become a reeking corpse. How long shall it be before the atomic philosopher, with his system of dead particles performing the pantomime of life as fatal machinery, shall be superseded by a real philosophy of the dynamics of the world ? The hour demands a rational philosophy of the imponderables ; also a more searching and critical recognition of the laws and action of the vital forces. It likewise asks the true hygienic and therapeutic powers of the imponderables, as of all influences that bear upon the phenomena of life in health and disease. This will surely come. Chemistry has, with a precision that seems wonderful, told the story of the sixty ponderables, and left a catalogue of elemental bodies and their laws of relationship, or powers of combination, which promises, at last, that, by vigilance and patience, absolute knowledge will be attained, and nature reduced to a familiar laboratory. That this is demonstrable, can easily be seen by comparing the present precise and profound works on chemistry with even the comparatively recent dreams of the alchemists and the older chemists. The vitalist, or student of organized * Primary, extension and divisibility. Secondary, color, taste, smell, etc. -&SCULAPIUS. 497 matter, has also expanded his domain immensely, and the microscope appears in triumph with its beautifully-exhausted and subjugated cell, whose last phantastic phase it has dis- covered, whose deepest secret of structure and combination it has told. For the expansions in the department of organ- ized bodies, consult the works of the physiologists and anat- omists, vegetable and animal. For profound and rational dissertations on the vital powers, see the extensive literature of the medical profession, the philosophers, and physiophi- losophers. Surely in the wake of all this light must follow the exhaustive analysis, and true philosophy of the impon- derables, and their connection with the ponderables, both in the worlds of organic and inorganic matter 1 Then, also, must come the greatest consummation, the true end of sci- ence, the answer to the long and agonizing prayer of the intellect, the philosophy and practical application of the imponderables as protective and curative agents, or real hygienic and therapeutic powers of the world. In the mean time there are not wanting systems full of pretenses and impertinent affectations of philosophies of all things, and, multitudinous as the world is in many things, it is not least productive in dreams of vital poioers, theories of imponderables, " philosophies of spiritual manifesta- tions," "mesmerisms," and nothingisms, mushrooms of the night, with medical theories built thereon, that affect to have unlocked the secrets of Nature, and hold the keys to the "realms of shade." And here, as ever, in the thick dark- ness, " birds of evil omen are upon the wing ; the dead walk, the living dream." The problem to solve for the genius of the history of medical science of the present time, is the true significance, the positively philosophical exposition of the pompous pretenses that have assumed the names of new medical systems or theories, and new philosophies of spirit and matter. The regular profession, coming from antiquity, hoary-headed with years, wise according to the ancients, and having the intellect and conservative forces of the whole past to indorse it, is now beset by legions of parasites, 42* 498 THE MOUNTAIN. monsters of night and chaos ; " mumblements from the lake of eternal sleep." This swarm of gad-flies, like the plagues of Egypt, the curses of Pharaoh, are ceaseless in their efforts to scare the college from its proprieties, and to alarm the toga and tripod in their sanctity. In steep and sour antagonism to the ancient formulae of medical philosophy, the fruit of that highly respectable old tree rooted in the actual, with all nature to defend her, comes this party of innovators, constituting the category of fashion- able and impertinent quackeries of the hour. Some of these, ignoring matter as matter with fixed and unalterable laws, addressing the senses and intellect of man, try to make it spirit with omnipotent power by dilution and trituration ; others, profanely setting aside the time-honored division, that venerable classification of all things into the four sensi- ble old elements, namely, earth, air, fire, and water, aver that man is a fish, and requires only one of them for his medium of existence, and that he ought to live, move, and have his being in water ; while others, dropping entirely the sensible universe, appeal directly to the supernals, and, through heaven-directed influxes and divinely-inspired me- dia, summon the spirits from the "vasty deep" to reveal the hidden secrets of disease, to dispatch the dirty chores of the body, and abolish its nasty obstructions. Of these heterodox and belligerent schisms, (for schools, their crude, heterogeneous, and inconceivable agglomeration of dreams cannot be called,) some are quite hydra-headed and formidable, armed with the true poison-fangs of the serpent Error, and thus, being real agencies of death, and clearly belonging to the deviVs department of strategies, lies, and baleful enchantments, eternizing evil, legitimating murder, and forming true vampirisms on earth. Others wane away into the confines of inanition and stupidity, con- stituting the lowest systems of vulgar and fraudulent deceits and old-womanish delusions, until, in the limbo of absolute fatuity, they terminate in the " sound and fury of the idiot's story, signifying nothing," noise and smoke overclouding AESCULAPIUS. 499 the splendors of the heaven of human reason and common sense. In the van of this army of innovators, comes the Ger- man dreamer and mystic, Hahnemann. From the land of visions and seers, from the charmed realm of metaphysical figments and poetical fables, the true home-world of spiritual sea-serpents, mermaids, "gorgons, hydras, and chimeras dire," comes this portentous shape, "form of the formless," this inconceivable being. "The shadow came! a tall, thin, gray-haired figure, That looked as it had been a shade on earth ; Quick in its motions, and with an air of vigor, But naught to mark its breeding or its birth. Now it waxed little, and again grew bigger, With now an air of gloom or savage mirth ; But, as you gazed upon its features, they Changed every instant to what none could say. The more intently the ghosts gazed, the less Could they distinguish whose the features were ; The devil himself seemed puzzled even to guess ; They varied like a dream now here, now there ; And several people swore, from out the press, They knew him perfectly ; and one could swear He was his father, upon which another Was sure he was his mothers cousin's brother ; Another that he was a duke, or knight, An orator, a lawyer, or a priest, A nabob, a man-midwife ; but the wight Mysterious, changed his countenance at least As oft as they their minds : though in full sight He stood, the puzzle was increased ; The man ivas a phantasmagoria in Himself, he was so volatile and thin." This shadow, like the heroes of Ossian, cloudy, vague, and indefinite, comes surrounded by mists and inarticulate mut- terings, a true son of the realm of transcendental ecstasy and dreamy philosophy. With Thor-hammer in hand he tried to crush the skulls of the past, essayed to pulverize to infinitesi- mal powder the labors of the intellect of man for six thousand years, to dissipate and dilute into an ocean of nothingness 500 THE MOUNTAIN. . the records and monuments of his honest work, and cease- less spiritual growth for ages of vigilance and effort, to re- verse the poles of the world, and, riding supreme upon "the wings of blarney," and the virtue and omnipotence of the infinite divisibility of matter, and the medical virtues thereof, to be carried on the trumpet-blast of common fame, that "always most impudently lies," within the sphere of imagin- ative women and sickly-souled men. Wonderful Germany ! thou art turning the heads of the human race with thy deep-musing professors ! " For strange is it, nay, not without some touches of awfulness, to reflect on what is every day achieved in those dim chambers in high attics of learned Jena, Heidelberg, (Meissen,) and the rest, by those skin-dried anatomies who inhabit the same, to outward appearance not without some vague resemblance to humanity, especially such of them as occasionally shave, but, in fact, not being men at all, except in their faint out- line and similitude, but actually intellectual or full-brained spiders, weaving ingenious webs, intricate, almost invisible in their separate lines, but forming altogether a reticulated mesh- work, (say rather cloud-grating,) through which but dim and indistinct glimpses can be caught by eyes of hiero- glyphic deciphering Champollions, but darker than mid- night Erebus to the great mass of mankind." A desperate sportsman was this Hahnemann. Like the swallow-fishers on the towers of the Alhambra, flinging their flies to the wind for winged prey, he cast his lines into the vacuities of infinitude, flung out his world-wide nets of spiritual cobwebs, and, after divers hopeless rakings of the seas of space, returns with his basket crowded with shining prey; the world's riddles read, the sphinx's story told, mankind physically redeemed by spiritualized sugar- molecules under the divine guidance of a newly-invented force of the universe called "similia similibus curanter." Hail, thou blessed wing-power of the imagination, creating epics and idyls, dreams and fables, long hast thou troubled the waters of theologies and histories, philosophies and ^SCULAPIUS. 501 literatures ; thou hast now at last gotten thy tail into the mush-pots of science, and henceforward the bread of the understanding must be eaten with the " cud of sweet and bitter fancies," while the spectacles of demonstration must be taken from the learned nose, and their place supplied by thine infernal kaleidoscope ! With all deference and love for the order of poetical minds, " misled by fancy's meteor ray," whom this seductive system has warped from the nor- mality and light of reason, and seduced by the rainbow-tints of its "sailing foam-bells," or swallowed by the inarticulate and hazy infinitude of its suggestiveness, an enlightened criti- cism brings the fatal verdict : " thou hast been weighed in the scales, and found wanting." Lacking the positive in science, wandering in the wilderness of distractions belong- ing to the metaphysical or transition period, or phases of development of the human mind, and lacking every single element of the fatal and absolute, constituting true science with eternally fixed and definitive laws ; lacking the one thing needful for the life of a theory, or system, thou lackest all things, and hast failed. The Ajax of this hallucination, a poet by the ordinance of Nature, and true son of the morn- ing, winged and heaven-aspiring, but sadly cut loose from the moorings of sound sense and the ballast of logical reason- ing, has the following set of oracular utterances : " I sup- pose it impossible to overrate the consequences of Hahne- mann's life. Even the negative results are vast for our future well-being. I think of medicines now as curative personali- ties who take upon them to battle in us with our ills. He made the true experiment of doing relatively nothing in medicine, and found it abundantly successful and humane. Purgatives were one nasty superstition which he banished. Bleeding was another of these vampires," etc.* A man and a system who make the awfully-daring and significant ex- * "Negatives tend to annihilation; affirmations are precious; negative results might be affirmative consequences, and medicines, as curative personalities, might have a good time battling in the bowels of a man ; but ' ex nihil nihil fit.' " ROBERT SMITH. 502 THE MOUNTAIN. periment of "doing nothing" in medicine, and discover it to be abundantly successful and humane, are, of course, both divine, and, although the results are "negative," yet is it "im- possible to overestimate the consequences of such a life." Hahnemann being the great zero in medical philosophy, plus and minus must necessarily spring from his bosom. The historic muse of science must chuckle vastly over this nut for the sages to crack, and be rejoiced to find this only ab- solutely pure spiritual intelligence of the ages, through whom God's ray shines without smut or varnish, at last saddling himself upon the meek and assinine formula, the mournful skeleton of a theory of an infinite fountain of all diseases, a ghastly " mother of dead dogs," incarnated in three diabolical forms : syphilis, sycosis, and psora, which last, being vernacularized, means common itch, or Scotch fiddle. Unspeakably grand is this explanation and solution of the whole multifarious world of diseases > at the same time simple and sublime. This old-fashioned, dirty, school-boy itch, is the great sin-fountain of seven- eighths of all the diseases of man. Let us thank God it was not the first of his eternal, all-embracing crotchets that was selected as the last, and that each innocent tooth- ache pang, or harmless scab, must necessarily come from that infamous French . . Beneficent itch, all hail ! a good mother art thou, and Pandora's box held thee almost alone. And here the sinner, fallen in soul and broken in body, is left with a gleam of hope and consolation inspir- ing and unexpected. This itch, being the veritable origin of evil, perhaps the ancient devil himself, has a magical specific, a " similia similibus curantur," and hell is left full of comfort and glory, for there disease cannot enter, as it is destroyed in the egg by a divine specific, brimstone. Shade of Aureolus Philip Theophrastus Bombast de Ho- henheim Paracelsus, with thine immortal " two hundred and fourteen secrets," rise ! What now of the infinite Archimedes' lever of all the world of diseases, the powder of the boar's tusk taken in the act of , the irresistible virtue JESCULAPIUS. 503 of "pigeon's" and "virgin's" milk, of the perfectly infallible " calcined hen's feather's," which will " mundify, mollify, cica- trize, and incarnate any ulcer whatsomever ?" What of all the divine revelations concerning the Eose-Solis and the "herb- Robert" ? Like "baseless fabrics" swept into the dust of the past, the splendor of thine escutcheon is tarnished by thine illustrious followers, Crollius and Hahnemann, the sage of Meissen. The vis-medicatrix having made up her mind that her golden key is " similia similibus," henceforward there is to be no more " swilling down of whole beakers full of gross and filthy drinks," her favorite formula being, " the conditions on which the remedy which produced the disease in the healthy body, already sick, are the following : first, the sick person must adhere to the most rigid diet, so that the effect of harmful food may not disturb that of the medicine ; second, the medicine itself must be entirely simple, or mixed only with perfectly indifferent substances, such as water, sugar of milk, etc. ; third, the medicine must be taken in the smallest, infinitesimally-microscopic portions, because the operation, in virtue of its quality, increases in the same proportion that its mass diminishes in quantity. This is all the magic of homeopathy expressed in a few words. There is nothing unintelligible, nothing unseemly, nothing mysterious, nothing extraordinary," Simply, O profound and erudite sage, because its nett result is simply zero, is simply nothing! Nothing from nothing and nothing remains. Go on registering the eternal chapter of "post hoes," and pass them for sun-clear lt propter hoes," and no- thing is extraordinary, nothing is impossible. And here it is refreshing to reflect, that this party of ethereals have bored no new artesian-wells, have struck no new leads of gold, undreamed of in the philosophies. Crollius holds tlfe absurd idea that those remedies that externally resemble the symptoms of disease, in color, form, and smell, are the safest: saffron for jaundice, quaking asp for ague, and tea of the skin of a toad's back for small-pox. But, ridiculous as this is, it is but a short step from this theory to homeopathy. 504 THE MOUNTAIN. "External resemblance" would only have to be new-christened " internal. " " But it is remarkable that his physiognomical remedies are often, in fact, really homeopathic, where ex- ternal resemblance actually accompanies an internal one." Thus mutters a homeopathic oracle. Thus it is that the new is ever old; the old ever new. Hence everybody un- derstands the matter, and is struck by its simplicity and probability ; and hence everybody is a philosopher and doc- tor, and knows as much, or more than everybody else, whe- ther philosopher or doctor. Progress, thou insane crab of a world 1 (head or tail foremost) where men with entrails (slimy tubes thirty or forty feet long) and solid viscera, (livers three and a half pounds normal, to twenty abnormal,) with bodies hundreds of weight avoirdupois, do nothing, think of nothing, believe in nothing, trust in nothing, get sick on nothing, and, "similia similibus curantur," take no- thing, and get well on nothing. In the Chaldean oracles of Zoroaster we find the follow- ing sublime saws. The unlettered may find obscurity and smoke in these flashes of the primitive soul, but to the initiated they are as the splendor of the noonday sun. ORACLE 75. " Irrational demons derive their subsistence from the aerial rulers ; wherefore, the oracle says, being the charioteer of the aerial, ter- restrial, and aquatic dogs." ORACLE 76. "The aquatic, when applied to the divine natures, signifies a government inseparable from water, and hence the oracle calls the aquatic gods water- walkers." ORACLE 80. "The paternal mind has sowed symbols in the souls." ORACLE 93. " Moisture is a symbol of life, hence Plato and the gods before AESCULAPIUS, 505 Plato call it (the soul) at one time