PENNSYLVANIA 



4566 



PENNSYLVANIA 



it furnishes power for many factories. Its larg- 

 est tributaries are the Juniata, noted for its 

 beautiful valley, and the West Branch. The 

 Delaware is navigable for seagoing vessels as 

 far as Philadelphia and for small boats up to 

 Trenton, N. J. It is fed by the Lehigh and the 

 Schuylkill and many smaller streams. The 

 Ohio, the Allegheny and the Monongahela 

 are of great importance in the industrial devel- 

 opment of the western part of the state. The 

 two latter rivers have been deepened, and by 

 means of a series of locks and canals have been 

 made navigable for many miles. In the "pools" 

 formed by their dams, great fleets of coal boats 

 find harbor, and hundreds of these freighters 

 carry coal from Pittsburgh and other points to 

 the Gulf by way of the Ohio and the Missis- 

 sippi rivers. 



Many beautiful waterfalls descend over rocky 

 ledges and boulders in the glaciated region, and 

 are a source of water power. 



Climate. In the southeastern section, which 

 is protected by the mountain ridges and swept 

 by ocean winds, the climate is mild and equable. 

 In the interior mountain valleys the winters 

 are cold, and the summers are intensely hot. 

 The mountains, however, are delightfully cool 

 in the summer, and in them are many summer 

 homes and hotels. The annual temperature de- 

 creases toward the northwest, but in the Erie 

 plain the moderating influence of the lakes is 

 felt. At Philadelphia the winter temperature 

 averages 34, and the mean summer tempera- 

 ture is 74. 



The annual rainfall averages forty-four 

 inches. Rains are plentiful in all parts of the 

 state, ranging from fifty inches in the southeast 

 to forty inches in the northeast and southwest 

 sections. Northwest of the Blue Mountains 

 there are heavy snows, which sometimes cover 

 the ground the entire winter and flood the 

 streams in the spring. 



Sources of Pennsylvania's Wealth 



Agriculture. Pennsylvania is generally more 

 fertile than the other North Atlantic states, 

 and in its rich valleys are some of the most 

 prosperous farms in the East. Over one-half 

 of the area of the state is in farms, and more 

 than two-thirds of the farmlands are improved. 

 Cereals and hay are the most valuable crops. 

 The annual output of the latter is worth over 

 $67,000,000, an amount which is exceeded only 

 by New York. The rolling fields of the south- 

 eastern part of the state are particularly well 

 adapted to the growing of cereals, the value of 

 which constitutes about forty per cent of the 

 total income from crops. Of these, corn is 

 most important, the value of the annual pro- 

 duction exceeding $40,000,000. Wheat, oats and 

 rye are also harvested in large quantities, and 

 in the raising of buckwheat Pennsylvania leads 

 all of the states except New York. There are 

 about 280,000 acres devoted tp this last crop, 

 and the annual production is over 5,000,000 

 bushels. 



Pennsylvania raises more potatoes than any 

 of the other Eastern states except Maine and 

 New York, and in the growing of vegetables for 

 the market, which is important especially near 

 Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, the state is out- 

 ranked only by New York and Ohio. Small 

 fruits are also extensively cultivated near the 

 large cities. The largest orchards are in the 

 mild southeastern section; apples, peaches and 

 pears are the principal fruits, though cherries, 



plums, prunes and apricots are also grown. 

 Most of the grapes are cultivated in the Lake 

 Erie region. In 1910 Pennsylvania ranked thir- 

 teenth among the states in the Union and sec- 

 ond among the Eastern states in the total 

 value of crops. A state commission of agri- 

 culture was created in 1915, and experiment 

 stations had previously been established. 



Pennsylvania leads all of the Eastern states 

 in the value of poultry, and in the income from 

 dairy products the Keystone State ranks third 

 among the states in the Union. In 1910, Penn- 

 sylvania led all of the states in the value of 

 the cheese and butter product, although the 

 amount produced was exceeded in Wisconsin, 

 Iowa and Minnesota. Including horses, milch 

 cows and other cattle, swine, mules and sheep, 

 the- value of the live stock in the state exceeds 

 $180,000,000. 



Forests. When first settled, Pennsylvania 

 was covered with primeval forests of white pine, 

 hemlock and other timber, but the axe of the 

 lumberman has sadly changed the great tim- 

 berlands of "Penn's Woods." About one-half 

 of the area of the state is forested land, but the 

 virgin growth and the greater part of the mer- 

 chantable timber have been cut. Many of the 

 mountain slopes' are covered with white and 

 yellow pines and hemlocks, and in the valleys 

 are forests of hickory, elm, maple, beech, wal- 

 nut and chestnut and groves of cedar, holly, 

 tulip and magnolia trees, 



