FROM CARLISLE TO THE OHIO 229 



land than they themselves can use in a small way. 

 The Juniata may contribute somewhat to a better trade 

 in future. Boats of 12-15 tons can almost nine months 

 in the year come up to within a mile or two of Bedford. 

 Four men can with no great trouble push such a boat 

 against the stream. 



There was mentioned to me a man who had smelted 

 silver from stone found on Stoney Creek. He lived 

 in the woods a mile from the town in a miserable 

 smoky cabin, quite alone, with neither human nor 

 animal society. It so happened, but not without the 

 persuasions of my landlord who accompanied me, that 

 be brought out a small piece of his silver, which he 

 pretended had been melted out at a forge, and showed 

 me a large sack full of roasted and powdered ore, but 

 no crude ore. Like all people of this stamp he was 

 very mysterious, and notwithstanding his find ex- 

 tremely poor. The next morning he came and offered 

 to sell me his sack of powdered stone. The owner of 

 the land, whence he fetches his supposed wealth, does 

 not hinder him from taking all he wants. This same 

 man told me of a blue stone, full of muscles, which he 

 had seen three miles from here at a certain Henry 

 White's mill, but that was several years ago. I prom- 

 ised to reward him for his trouble if he brought me 

 some of it ; he went away and came back with the 

 excuse that he could not find the place now. In the 

 sand-stone of the mountain near-by I knew from my 

 own observations that impressions of muscles are to 

 be found, but I should have been curious to know 

 whether those mentioned by this man occur likewise 

 in the limestone common hereabouts for I have never 

 observed even the slightest trace of petrifaction in 

 the limestone. 



