CAROLINA. 



literary institutions are the college of South Carolina 

 at Columbia, and Charleston college, in the city of 

 Charleston. The distinguishing virtues of the Caro- 

 linians are hospitality to strangers, and charity to the 

 indigent and distressed. The planters in the low 

 country, who, in general, have large incomes, live in 

 a luxurious and splendid style, devoting much of 

 their time to the pursuit of pleasure, and possessing 

 much of that pride and dignity of spirit, which char- 

 acterize an independent country gentleman. The 

 virtues of the farmers of the upper country are less 

 brilliant, but more substantial. They have fewer 

 vices, are of more frugal and industrious habits, and 

 exhibit greater fortitude in the reverses of fortune. 

 In the low or alluvial country, labour in the field is 

 performed almost wholly by slaves, who, in this part 

 of the slate, exceed the free inhabitants in the ratio 

 of more than three to one. This division, comprising 

 less tlian one-thjrd of the territory of South Carolina, 

 contains more than half of the slaves, and only about 

 one-fifth of the whites. The principal rivers are the 

 W r accamaw, Pedee, Black river, Santee, Cooper, 

 Ashley, Stono, Edisto, Asheppo, Cambahee, Coosaw, 

 Broad, and Savannah. 



South Carolina is divided by nature into two parts, 

 which, from their physical situation, have been called 

 Upper and Lower Carolina. The latter is supposed 

 to have once been under the ocean. Towards the 

 coast, the country is a level plain, extending more 

 tlian a hundred miles westward from the sea. Here 

 the eye finds no relief from the dull uniformity ol 

 boundless forests, swamps, and level fields. This 

 fatiguing plain is succeeded by a curious range of 

 fittle sand hills, resembling the waves of an agitated 

 sea. This singular country occupies an extent of 

 about sixty miles. It is extremely barren, enlivened 

 here and there by spots of verdure, or by some strag- 

 gling pines ; and its few inhabitants earn a scanty 

 subsistence by the cultivation of corn and sweet po- 

 tatoes. After passing these sand hills, we come next 

 to a remarkable tract of ground, called the Ridge, 

 which, on its approach from the sea, is lofty and bold, 

 but on the north-west is level from its summit. This 

 is a fine belt of land, extending from the Savannah 

 to Broad river, fertile, well cultivated, and watered 

 by considerable streams. The country beyond the 

 ridge resembles, in its scenery, the most interesting 

 of the Northern States. The traveller is gratified by 

 the pleasant alternation of hill and dale. The lively 

 verdure of the hills is contrasted with the deeper 

 tints of the extensive forests, which decorate their 

 sides; and, in the valleys, broad rivers roll their 

 streams through the varied beauties of luxuriant and 

 cultivated fields. From these delightful regions, the 

 ground still continues to rise, till we reach the wes- 

 tern limit of the state. Here seven or eight moun- 

 tains run in regular direction, the most distinguished 

 of which is Table mountain. Other mountains are 

 Oolenoy, Oconee, Paris's, Glassey, Hogback, and 

 King's. These are all in the districts of Pendleton, 

 Greenville, Spartanburg, and York. The soil of 

 South Carolina is divided into six classes: 1. tide 

 swamp ; 2. inland swamp ; 3. high river swamp, or 

 low grounds, distinguished by the name of second loio 

 grounds ; 4. salt marsh ; 5. oak and hickory high 

 Fand ; 6. pine barren. The first two classes are pe- 

 culiarly adapted to the culture of rice and hemp ; the 

 third is most favourable to the growth of hemp, corn, 

 and indigo. The salt marsh has Deen much neglected. 

 The oak and hickory land is remarkably fertile, and 

 well adapted to the culture of corn, as well as indigo 

 and cotton. The pine barren, though the least produc- 

 tive, is so much more salubrious than the other soils in 

 the low country, that a proportion of pine barren is an 

 appendage indispensable to every swamp plantation. 



The staple commodities of tins state are cotton and 

 rice, of which great quantities are annually exported. 

 These articles nave so engrossed the attention of the 

 planters, that the culture of wheat, barley, oats, and 

 other crops equally useful, but less profitable, has 

 been almost wholly neglected. So little wheat is 

 raised throughout the state, that considerable quan- 

 tities are annually imported. Cotton was not raised 

 in any considerable quantities till as late as 1795. 

 Before that period, indigo was, next to rice, the most 

 important article of produce ; but it is now neglected. 

 Tobacco thrives well. The fruits which flourish best 

 are pears, pomegranates, and water-melons : the lat- 

 ter, in particular, grow to an enormous size, and are 

 superior, perhaps, to any in the world. Other fruits 

 are figs, apricots, nectarines, apples, peaches, olives, 

 almonds, and oranges. The period of vegetation 

 comprehends, in favourable years, from seven to eight 

 months, commencing in January or February, and 

 terminating in October or November. The frosts, 

 generally, in the months of November, December, 

 January, and February, are too severe for the delicate 

 productions of more southern latitudes. The low 

 country is seldom covered with snow, but the moun- 

 tains near the western boundary often are. "Frost 

 sometimes binds up the earth, but seldom penetrates 

 deeper than two inches, or lasts longer than three or 

 four days. At some seasons, and particularly in Feb- 

 ruary, the weather is very variable. The tempera- 

 ture has been known to vary forty-six degrees in one 

 day. In Charleston, for seven years, the thermome- 

 ter was not known to rise above 93 or to fall below 

 17 above 0. The number of extremely hot days in 

 Charleston is seldom more than thirty in a year; and 

 there are about as many sultry nights, in which the 

 heat and closeness of the air are such as to prevent 

 the enjoyment of sound sleep. The low country is 

 infested with all the diseases which spring from a 

 warm, moist, and unelastic atmosphere. Of these the 

 most frequent are fevers, from which the inhabitants 

 suffer more than from any, or perhaps from all other 

 diseases together. The districts of the upper country 

 enjoy as salubrious a climate as any part of the United 

 States. In 1827, merchandise to the value of 

 1,434,106 dollars was imported into South Carolina, 

 and 8,322,561 dollars' worth exported. (For similar 

 accounts of preceding years, seeWatterson andZandt's 

 Tabular Statistical Views, Washington, Jan. 1829.) 



Historical Sketch of Smith Carolina. The first set- 

 tlement of South Carolina by the whites appears to 

 have been made at Port Royal, about 1670 ; but, 

 until 1680, no permanent establishment was formed, 

 when the few settlers then in the country fixed on 

 Oyster point, between Ashley and Cooper rivers, and 

 laid the foundation of the city of Charleston. A grant 

 had, however, been made, in 1662, previous to the 

 founding of Charleston, by Charles II., to lord Cla- 

 rendon and seven others, of all that zone of North 

 America from N. lat. 31 to 36 ; and, two years 

 afterwards, the boundaries were extended to N. lat. 

 36 30'. The proprietary government of Carolina 

 was, if possible, more complex than any other similar 

 government in the English colonies. This confusion 

 was augmented by Locke's scheme, and by religious 

 contention, and was terminated, in 1719, by a se- 

 paration of the two Carolinas, and the establish- 

 ment of a royal government. One of the events of 

 most importance in the history of South Carolina 

 was the cultivation of rice, introduced by governor 

 Smith, in 1695: that of cotton followed; and the 

 colony flourished until its progress was checked by 

 war with the Indians, and, subsequently, by the re- 

 volution. South Carolina suffered severely in the 

 latter contest, and was the theatre of some of the 

 most remarkable events which it produced. Th* 



