neg ee 
Botanical Excursion to the Mountains of North Carolina. 5 
Retracing his steps, he reached Charleston at the end of Decem- 
ber, with a large collection of living trees, roots, and seeds. The 
remainder of the winter Michaux passed in the Bahama Islands, 
returning to Charleston in the month of May. Early in June he 
set out upon a journey to a different portion of the mountains of 
North Carolina, by way of Camden, Charlotte, (the county seat 
of Mecklenburg, ) and Morganton, reaching the higher mountains 
at “ Turkey Cove, thirty miles from Burke Court House,” (prob- 
ably the head of Turkey Creek, a tributary of the Catawba,) on 
the 15th of June. From this place he made an excursion to the 
Black Mountain, in what is now Yancey County, and afterwards 
to the Yellow Mountain, which Michaux at that time considered 
to be the highest mountain in the United States. If the Roan be 
included in the latter appellation, as I believe it often has been, 
this opinion is not far from the truth; since the Black Mountain 
alone exceeds it, according to Prof. Mitchell’s recent measure- 
meuts. Descending this elevated range on the Tennessee side, 
and travelling for the most part through an unbroken wilderness, 
near the end of June he reached the Block House on the Hol- 
‘ston, famous in the annals of border warfare. Several persons 
had boon killed by the Indians during the preceding week, and 
general alarm prevailing, Michaux abandoned his intention of 
penetrating into Kentucky, and resolved to botanize for a time 
in the mountains of Virginia. He accordingly entered that State, 
— ‘on the first of July at “ Washington Court House, 
ville dans la Virginie que l’on trouve sur la cote occi- 
Beitales des montagnes, en sortant de Ja Carolinie Septentrio- 
nale.” To this he adds the following note: “ Premiere ville, 
si ’on peut nommer ville une Bourgade composée de douze mai- 
sons, (log-houses.) Dans cette ville on ne mange que des pain 
de Mays. Il n’y a viande fraiche, ni cidre, mais seulement du 
‘mauvais Rum.” Abingdon, the county seat of Washington 
County, is now a flourishing town; but Michaux’s remarks are 
still applicable to more than one premiere ville in this region. 
From this place he continued his course along the valley of Vir- 
ginia throughout its whole extent, crossing New River, the Roa- 
ae and. ‘passing by Natural Bridge, Lexington, Staunton, and 
‘; thence by way of Frederick in Maryland, and Lan- 
=} r, Pennsylvania, he arrived at Philadelphia on ine ‘2ist of 
ily, and at New York on the 30th. In August and Septembei 
