NO EMIGRATION. 41 



There is a small island near called Gull Island, under which 

 is one of the few places on this Lake shipping can run into 

 in safety for anchorage in bad weather. A large tract of 

 rich land on the river is still in possession of the Mohawk 

 Indians ; saw a party of them to-day at camp under the 

 shade of some trees, making baskets ; they had plenty of 

 fish in their canoe, which they had speared. After leaving 

 Grand River, I passed through eight miles of Indian wood 

 land without a house, and came to Evans Tavern, one of 

 the best on the Lake banks I am told, though but indif 

 ferent; it is kept by an Irishman, a captain of militia, 

 where I stopped for the night. 



July 26. Arrive at Paterson s Creek, (small rivers and 

 brooks are in America improperly called creeks), the begin 

 ning of the Long Point Settlement. It is a dry sandy soil, 

 thinly wooded with low white oaks, and is what is here 

 termed plains. The land is not very rich, but will bear 

 good crops for several years, and if manured, and plaster 

 (gypsum) applied, of which there is great plenty at Grand 

 River, and is now beginning to be used, and a proper rota 

 tion of crops introduced, it would be some of the most use 

 ful and valuable land in the province : it is well watered 

 with constant spring streams. On the greater part of these 

 &quot;plains&quot; the settler has only to cut up here and there a 

 little under-brush or shrubs, and girdle the trees (chop a 

 ring round them through the bark to stop the rising of the 

 sap, when they die), when he may put in the plough ; it 

 will require a strong team to break it up the first time, but 

 afterwards can be ploughed with one yoke of oxen, or a 

 &quot; span&quot; of horses. The few trees, which stand twenty or 

 thirty or more yards apart, when killed by girdling, do not in 

 the least injure the crop, nor much inconvenience the 

 ploughing. There are some rather extensive farms here 

 abouts, which raise (grow) large quantities of rye, corn, and 

 buck-wheat, chiefly for distilling, and also wheat, since 

 clover, which it bears remarkably well, and gypsum have 

 been introduced. But it is evident their system of manage 

 ment is too deteriorating for this or any other soil. Rye, 

 corn, wheat, and oats continually, with only a few peas, and 

 a little clover intervening, and then but seldom; when clo 

 ver is sown, it is too often on the ground in a bad state, lying 

 two or three years and becoming full of grass and rubbish, 

 in which state it is, perhaps, ploughed up for wheat, &c. 



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