1806.] Obfervations made during a Tour in the United States, 333 



firft clafs of fettlers had retreated a few 

 miles, at leaft nothinif better than the fe- 

 cond could be expected. Your readers 

 will heitcv appreciate that focicty here- 

 after, rhe firll houfe we came to was 

 built by the proprietor of the ferry, and 

 is an excccduig good and convenient 

 brick houfe. This peribn, when the 

 country belonoed to tlie Indians, formed 

 with them a Aery advantageous connec- 

 tion, and at the treaty they infifted upon 

 putting this man in poUeilion of one liun- 

 dred acres of very line laud on the bor- 

 ders of the river, and the right of tht 

 ferry. Tliis gift, then Very valuable, 

 every day becomes more fo, and promilies 

 to his defcendants an innnenfe income. 



In purluin^iour route to Beevor-Town, 

 •we preferred, for the fake of the prof- 

 pe6ts, the road which winds along the 

 Ohio. This beautiful river is edged by 

 lofty clilfs, the upper rocks of which ap- 

 pear evidently watcr-woni. Indeed the 

 whole country exhibits ftronsi marks of 

 having once been covered with water. 

 .Along the road were fome piecipiccs, 

 which are liazardotis, and over wtiich 

 were ahorfe to ftunihle, himfclf and rider 

 would probably be dalhcd to pieces. In 

 palling one of them, a circuuiltance oc- 

 curred that gave me fome unpleafant 

 fenfations, for while all • < y care feemed 

 neceffary to prevent my hoife from 

 ftumbling, in the air I obfervcd, and ma- 

 king a circuit directly over my head, a 

 crow with a fuake in his mouth. Al- 

 thougli reliection might have convinced 

 me how fmall the hazard was that this 

 animal lliould let loofe its prey, and that 

 it iLould fall directly on my head, I ac- 

 knowledge my apprehcnUons divided my 

 attention between the rocks beneath my 

 feet and the fnake above my head, and I 

 was well pleafed when tlie bird perched 

 upon a tree, laid the fnalie on one of 

 its branches, and proceeded to devour 

 him. 



About half a mile below the junction 

 of the rivers Alleghany auii Mou()ni;ahe- 

 la, and in about the center of the Ohio, 

 commences a beautiful itUuid, which be- 

 longs to General Neville. It is about 

 nine miles long, and which, as it becomes 

 broader lus you dti'cend, divides the river 

 into two unequal llreajus. It is certainly 

 a beautiful place, but no advantage to 

 Pittlburgh, as fand-bars extend from the 

 illand along the channel, whiih fre- 

 quently render the pallage of (hips of 

 burthen ditlicult. This difadvuutage is 

 iniurious to the Jhip-buikiers in I'ittf- 

 fcuigh, and gives Ue^^ wv-To\vu a prefe- 



rence, which, though but twenty-eight 

 miles lower down the ftream, can fre- 

 rpiently fend velVels to fea which cannot 

 pafs the bar above it. An inftancc of 

 this kind we faw on our return. A vell'el 

 of about 300 tons burthen, built by JMr. 

 Lord, was launched from Pittlburgh in 

 May, ftruck on the fand as it defccuded 

 the Ohio, and had no profpcct of getting 

 oif until the fall. Indeed Mr. Lord was 

 fo feiifible of this dilkdvantage, that he 

 told me he regretted not liaving fixed 

 hiinfelf at Beevor. 



On this day's journey I firft faw the 

 fugar maple-tree, a tree which, like the 

 beech, never grows but on the richeft 

 lands. It is generally tall and beautiful, 

 extending its branches in every direction, 

 and forming a luxuriant (hade in hot 

 weather. The firft fugar-orchaid is about 

 nine miles from Pittlburgh. By orchard 

 is here meant a tratt of country naturally 

 covered with thefe trees. At the ibot of 

 each was a rudely-formed trough to re- 

 ceive the fap, in tiie feal'on of its afcent, 

 from a round hole in the tree, about 

 three feet troiri the ground. This hole 

 was generally loofely filled with a piece 

 of wood rounded for that purpofe ; but 

 this was fo carelefsly perfijiiued, that 

 many of the trees were dying in confe- 

 quence of the iap conftantly oozing there- 

 from. Each tree averages an annual 

 profit to its poflefTur of about 33 cents ; 

 yet thefe valuable gifts of nature are mi- 

 ferably neglected. The fap, when boil- 

 ed, makes a valuable fugar, which fells at 

 12^ cents, per pound. 



The fides of the road were every 

 where covered with wild-grapes, currants, 

 and goofeberries, as well as with a profu- 

 lioii of elegant flowers, which the cultur- 

 ed parterres of European elegance do not 

 equal. I regret ray iiiabiiity to defcribe 

 the Flora of Weftern America ; its beau-: 

 ties deferve the attention of the natural- 

 ift ; and fome future Smith will proba- 

 bly, ere long, be ufefully employed in 

 marking the qualities of lier botanic vari- 

 eties. 



The land on this fide the Alleghany 

 fells for ten dollars the acre ; or renters 

 hire it at one-third of the produce. — ■ 

 Twenty-fevcn acres, in the year 1801, 

 yielded eiijht hundred bufiiels of maize ; 

 and thirty bulliels of wheat is confidered 

 as an average cnjp |)er acre, though the 

 ftumps are no where out of the ground. 

 'J'he Ihumach is here a coniiderahle tree, 

 sind rifes at leaft twenty feet from tha 

 furface. 



Atioi^t twelve iniloj on the road to 

 Beevor 



