HIWASSEE RIVER BASIN. 249 



Soil. Light, except on alluvial bottoms and deep, north coves. 



Humus and Utter. Scant, owing to repeated tires. 



Agricultural value. Slight. Twent}^ bushels of corn per acre is considered 

 a good crop, and hay and fruits do not thrive, except in the higher coves. 



Timher tree^. Oaks, 75 per cent; chestnut, 5 per cent; hickory, 3 per cent; 

 poplar, ash, cherry, cucumber, and linn, 10 per cent; others, 7 per cent. 



Yield. hog timber, 10,000 M feet B. M.; small wood, 7^2,960 cords. 



Demand. The best log timber brings only %\ per thousand feet on the stump, 

 and there is very little demand at that price. 



Accessibility. The land is not difficult of access, but the road to market is 

 long and rough, and on that account there is no profit in handling log timber 

 except that which has fancy grain. 



Cutting. Except figured woods, the only cutting has been for local use. 



Fire. Repeated light fires have greatly depleted the forest. 



Reproduction. There is too much fire and grazing for the reproduction 

 necessary to keep the forest in good condition. 



Second grmoth. Scant. There has been too much fire. 



Undergrowth. Reduced by fire and grazing. 



Mate of growth. The oaks usually add about 2 inches in diameter in ten 

 years. 



Water power. Limited. The stream during the low water in October was 

 15 feet wide and 6 inches deep, with moderate current. There are several 

 favorable locations for dams. 



Ownership. Most of the land is held in small tracts by residents of the 

 valley. 



Prices of land. The best timber lands are valued at $25 per acre, while the 

 mountain lands can be bought for about 50 cents per acre. 



HIGHTOWER CREEK DISTRICT (tOWNS COUNTY, A.). 



Boundaries. The divides, including the entire drainage of Hiwassee River 

 from the east between Hiwassee and a point about one-forth of a mile south of 

 the mouth of Hightower Creek, except the basin of Swallow Creek. 



Area. Total, 32 square miles; cleared 7 square miles; wooded, 25 square 

 miles. 



Surface. About 9 square miles of the lower portion of the valley are smooth 

 enough to be arable. The lower portions of the mountain slopes are moderate 

 but the upper portions are quite steep, often precipitous. 



Soil. The alluvial lands of the bottom are fertile, but the ridges have a 



