LITTLE TENNESSEE RIVER BASIN. 225 



demand. The distance to the nearest shipping point on the railroad is too great 

 for any but the very best timber to be handled. 



AGcessihility. Bryson City, on the Asheville and Murphy Branch of the South- 

 ern Railway, is the nearest shipping point, and is reached by a rough road. 



Gutting. The best timber has been cut, though there is some good oak yet 

 to be found in small groves. 



Second growth. The second growth is largely confined to the woodland 

 adjoining the farming lands, and consists chiefly of oak and chestnut sprouts. 



Undergrovjth. There is very little undergrowth, with the exception of a few 

 Kalmia thickets and brush which have followed fires. 



Reproduction. Reproduction is generally thorough, though much young 

 growth is suppressed by frequently occurring fires. 



Rate of growth. Accretion is good, except on steep and drv south slopes. 



Water power. The stream is too small to yield any but a very limited power. 



Ownership. The forest is divided into many small holdings held by 

 residents. 



Occupancy. The upper part of the basin is thickly settled; the lower part 

 is less settled. There are about 15 families on the creek. 



Prices of land. Farming land sells at $3 to $20 per acre; woodland, at 

 II to 13. 



BIG CREEK BASIN (mACON COUNTY, N. c). 



Area. Total, 8 square miles; cleared, 1 square mile; w^ooded, 7 square miles; 

 severelj^ burned, none. 



Surface. The topography is ver}^ rough and rugged, especially toward the 

 head of the creek. There is some rolling land on the lower part of the stream, 

 but the amount of level alluvial land is limited. 



Soil. The greater portion of the area has a coarse gray, sandy, or gravelly 

 soil, derived from the weathering of coarse granite. This soil is often shallow 

 and in many places, especially on the upper part of the stream, it is very 

 rocky. Over limited areas the soils are stiffer and fairly productive. The sandy 

 soils are so porous that where shallow they dry out rapidly so that the effects 

 of long droughts are severe on the forests and on crops which mature late in 

 the season. 



Humus and litter. Repeated fires have robbed the soil of accumulated litter 

 and brush, except in damp hollows or on steep north slopes. 



Agricultural value. Most of the soil is thin and poor, though there are 

 limited areas of very good soil in the lower part of the basin. Potatoes, cabbage, 

 J0336 No. 3705 15 



