SCIENTIFIC SURVEY. 335 



look there is not a cultivated spot nearer than the rail-carry at 

 Moosehead. This part of the county of Somerset deserves much 

 attention from those intending to purchase farms. The land, as I 

 have already remarked, is very good for agricultural purposes, and 

 is much nearer an available market than much of the better gtain 

 lands of the west. A person can start on one day from this part of 

 the river and reach Bangor or Skowhegan the next night. Since 

 then, to fertility is added accessibility, we can conscientiously re- 

 commend the land along this portion of the west branch, to the 

 careful consideration of farmers. 



The point where the dividing line between the towns of Seboo- 

 mook and Plymouth crosses the river, is marked by a whitened 

 pine stump on the northern bank. When we had reached this 

 bend of the river, we felt the large drops of an approaching thun- 

 der shower. We had hardly time to place our luggage under the 

 inverted canoes before the rain came down in torrents and drenched 

 us t© the skin. Some distance above this we arrived at an expan- 

 sion of the river into quite a bay. An island, or peninsula, in this 

 small bay is covered by elms of vigorous growth. Not far beyond 

 this we arrived at Gulliver's falls, by which we were obliged to 

 carry our birches and luggage. At the foot of these falls is a 

 brook five or six feet wide, called by the name of the man who 

 first conducted lumber operations upon the stream, Gulliver's 

 brook. Forty or fifty rods above the falls we come to other rapids 

 which Ve also carried by. The next five or six miles were over 

 rapid water, running between banks of hardwood growth inter- 

 mixed with conifers. It was near the end of this rapid water that 

 we saw a smoke some distance from the shore, and this we found 

 proceeded from the camp of the Masterman's, father and son. 

 They received us very hospitably, shared with us a quarter of moose- 

 meat, and gave us much information concerning the upper part of 

 the river. Their camp was located near a brook of good water 

 and in immediate proximity to a cedar swamp. Here the old man 

 John and his son Edward had camped since April, and had been 

 quite successful in hunting. 



The next carry after we passed the " Forks," was by Leadbet- 

 ter's falls. The water rushes over clay slate, dividing by an isl- 

 and in the middle of the river. The soil here begins to be less 

 fertile and the conifers more plenty. 



Up to this time we had seen very little high land since leaving 



