FROM PHILADELPHIA 123 



Two miles beyond Germantown we came to Ches- 

 nut-hill and spent the night there. Chesnut-hill is 

 one of a range of hills, all dry and infertile, or at least, 

 if anything is to be got of them requiring more labor 

 and manure then is commonly given. The lower land 

 hereabouts brings three and four times as much as 

 these meagre limestone hills. But here and there a 

 beautiful prospect may be had from them, over the low- 

 land in the foreground and its jewel the city of Phila- 

 delphia. As yet one looks in vain for such prospects 

 in most parts of America. A Quaker, Mr. Elm, was 

 moved by the situation to build him a house in the form 

 of an ancient, high w r atch-tower. So extraordinary a 

 building astonished the country-people who with one 

 consent gave it the name of Elm's Folly; but they come 

 assiduously to make the Folly useful, for a small do- 

 native delighting the eyes from the roof of the building. 

 From there can be seen, some miles distant, the White- 

 marsh region where General Washington safe on the 

 heights, mocked at General Howe in the winter of 1778. 



In the woods by the road no remarkable plants were 

 to be found. These dry hills seem as if designed for 

 sheep walks. Nowhere in America are many large 

 flocks kept ; it is common for landowners to keep a few, 

 according to the acreage of their possessions. Com- 

 munity pastures are not the custom, but by means of 

 them in many places larger herds could be kept with 

 less trouble and oversight. What with the lack every- 

 where of manure (they give no attention to the mat- 

 ter), it is astonishing that pen-folds have not been 

 introduced here to a greater extent they are very 

 seldom seen. A farmer in Jersey found pen-folding 

 very profitable, since in that way he made a tract of 



