G48 



FARMERS' R E G I S T E I'v . 



[No. 11 



A faithful description of the etiUe am! appearance 

 of the lanfl at this day vvill piT.ycni a picture ex- 

 actly lite reveit^e ol lliai skeulicd -iIjuvi!. There 

 are now no chaiiols ol iron nor of wuod, nor <'.ar- 

 rJaires of any description, noi even caris upon 

 wiieels, liii'ou^liuui the couiiiry. 'i'iiere is no such 

 thmtj eitiier ;is a carnage ro.ni, or any made road 

 at alT. In the inoutaauis and rocky disiiicis, the 

 marks of hors-es' hools worn into the suilace of 

 the hard stone alone point out to the traveller the 

 direction of liis rout; audio the phuns, the devi- 

 ous tracks and bridle-paths, exce|)l where the veg- 

 etation is strong and vigorous, are eniirely obine- 

 rated after liigli winds and heavy rains, and the 

 course of the traveller is then eniirely directed by 

 gome bold mountain or well-known eniinenc.e. 



Instead of the couniry covered with all sorts of 

 trees, and the irenial soil refresiied willi sweet wa- 

 ters, and clothed with an abundance of grasj, the 

 eye now wanders eiiher across wide and cheerless 

 plains, parched and dusty, and unrei'reslied by one 

 single soliuuy tree, or across rugued and desolate 

 districts of naked rock and loose shingle, where 

 neither a drop of water nor a blade of <rras3 is 

 found to relieve the monotony and nakednesss ol' 

 the surrounding desolation. The footsteps of the 

 traveller are ever and anon conducted across wide 

 and fertile plains, covered wirli a fine black mould 

 but except m ihe iuinu^diate nciirhfiorhood ol a 

 fcvv solitary hamlets, perched liy the side of a 

 scanty rivulet, at wide distances from eaidi oilier 

 the whole surface of the soil is lefi neglected and 

 totally uncuhivated. During six moiiilis in the 

 year it is covered with ihisiles ant! rank herbs ; the 

 earth is parched and cracked into wide, fissures, 

 and not a single drop of water can olien be Ibuiid 

 for hall a days journey, and yet the land vvas once 

 described as ''a land of brooks and of water, of 

 fountains and depths, that spring out of valleys 

 and hills." 



In the winterseason.when the rains fall and mois- 

 ten the dry seeds which have been scattereii in the 

 dustby the ripened vegelaiionoftheprecedin<!sum- 

 mer,these wide plainsl>egin to assume some appear- 

 ance ol' freshness and ofgieen ; but ere the young 

 and vigorous vegetation ol the new year has well 

 made way through tfie dead and rotting stalks of 

 the preceding season, it is in its turn brouirht to 

 maturity; and soon after killed and dried up by the 

 burning rays of the summer sun. A stream of 

 water in this thirsiy country in an almost invalua- 

 ble treasure, and wherever a brook refreslies the soil, 

 there a small hamlet is found to be perched, and 

 the water is exhausted in irrigating the adjacent 

 land, and supporting the few radishes, turnips and 

 other roots, which, with unleavened bread, or 

 roasted Indian corn, constitute the food of the in- 

 habitants. 



The milk of the goat, or of the dromedary, is 

 the only milk now procurable, and the eye search- 

 es in vain for the rich pastures, an.l the abun- 

 dance of catiie described by the old writers. The 

 ground in tlie neiirhhorhnod of the villages and 

 towns, with one or two solitary exceptions, is culti- 

 vated only for a mere subsistence; there is no valua- 

 ble produce growing on the soil, and no accumu- 

 lation of wealth and capital u[)on the surface of 

 The country. The vineyartls are all wasted and 

 destroyed, except here and there a vineyard be- 

 longing to the convents, and wine is nowhere 

 to be met with, except in the houses of some of 



the Christians, or in the cellars of the monks. 



The delightful groves of all sons of trees, so la- 

 v'lslily praised in times past, no lunger extend their 

 sliaile over ihe bald and naked countr); atui, ex- 

 cepdng tlie iruii lives in the gardetis ol the villa- 

 ges, and the few olives, which at ISauiana and ia 

 some other |)laces aliord an agreeable rebel to the 

 eye, the whole landscape is entirely tieeless. 



When we hear of the " slore cities" of times 

 past, of the " cities great and fenced u|) to heaven," 

 and of ihe strong and populous towns with glitter- 

 ing towers, ^Hurribus in calum nitcniibus,"* we 

 can scarcely believe that this tiiiiily peo[)le(l, poor, 

 and solitary country can be the one so celebiated 

 t)y ancient writers. Exi'epling ihe icy regio^is of 

 the north, the wild deseris of Syria, and the vast 

 stuiiy and saridy plains ot Alrica and Arabia, there 

 can scarcel}' be a more solitary, deserted, and po- 

 verty stricken couniry in the old world, tfian Pal- 

 estine as It now exists. From Damascus to Gaza, 

 a journey of a lortni<iht, Jerusalem, Naplous, and 

 Jiilia.can alone be said to main lain the rank of towns 

 Nazareth, Tiberias, and D'jenneen are no more 

 than large villages of nmd houses; and Tyre and 

 Sidon, and the sea-ports, destitute of wealth and 

 commerce cannot be placed in the same rank with 

 ihe most miserable fishing-town in the island 

 of Great Britain. 



Tlie country being unenclosed and unapprnpria- 

 led, ihe right of ownership, exists in the tflieikh or 

 chief of the nearest villaLre, as a sort of lord ol the 

 manor, who exacts a tiibuie, wlien he is strong 

 enough lo lio so, from the Bedouin Arabs and 

 wandering tribes of Turcomans, who, during their 

 migratory excuvsions, feed their dromedaries and 

 iloiils ujiun the rank herbs. In all the villages 

 and scattered hainlets, which here and there di- 

 versify the monotonous surface of the treeless 

 soliiude, the houses are alike destitute of furniture, 

 of even the commonest domestic utensils. The 

 people are clothed in tattered garments, and tiie 

 sickly children, with pale and bloated countenan- 

 ces, in many places, present a sad aspect of want 

 and misery. 



The present condition of this interesting country 

 is most remarkable, and well worthy ofileep 

 onsideration, when taken in connection with the 

 history of the Jews, and the language uf prophecy. 



CONSIDERATIONS ON BUYING AND BAISING 

 HOGS IN VIRGINIA. 



To the Editor of tlie Farmers' Register. 



If it is a fact, as some persons think, (and they 

 say the opinion is founded on actual expeiiment,) 

 " that oats do not injure land," it may be doubt- 

 ed with good reason, if that crop might not be 

 made more valuable through the whole region of 

 sandy or liglii lands, than the crop of wheat. It is 

 good Ibod tor hogs, cows and sheep, and when you 

 consider the gieat number of each, antiually 

 brought from the western part of Virginia, and 

 fromother slates any plan ibr home supply should 

 be well investigated before it is denounced as wild. 

 The place in which \ou live, (Petersburg,) con- 

 pumrs perhaps 15,000 hogs ol the average weigfit 

 of 150 lbs., at six dollars a hundred, or nine dollars 



. — ♦» 



• Rufus Aveniu9. 



