THE FARMER'S MONTHLY V1SI1X3R. 



121 



distunce of eight miles : — the cloud had passed 

 off aud the shining sun glistened upon the moun- 

 tain top. With a class we could distinctly per- 

 ceive that the rocks of the upper region oflVIount 

 Washington were gUized with ice. 



Ahove the surface of the pond, the pinnacle of 

 Mount Washington rises in majestic grandeur 

 about sixteen hundred feet and one thousand feet 

 at least higher than any other of the cluster 

 mountains around it. This pinnacle is composed 

 principally of rocks of granite and gneiss piled 

 together presenting a variety of colors aud forms, 

 The rocks lay sometimes loose as if promiscu- 

 ously thrown together, being clean and destitute 

 of the appearance of soil : in some places they 

 are in strata with as much regularity as if placed 

 there by human hands. Frequently the strata are 

 torn or rived from each other leaving marks of 

 their former connexion. Storm-beaten for many 

 ages, the rocks are wearing away : decayed with 

 age the surface of the rocks indicates the light- 

 ness and almost the consistence of dry timber 

 that had been for some years exposed to alternate 

 rain and sunshine. The pinnacle of Mount 

 Washington has lost from its steep sides, being 

 an angle of about forty-five degrees, neaily the 

 whole of its soil, aud the rock itself has for ages 

 been decomposing and passing off to the valley 

 below. The top of this pinnacle is a surface nearly 

 horizontal of three or four acres; aud very near 

 the outer eilge of the space is a never (ailing 

 spring of water oozing from the rocks. The 

 view Ironi this point in a clear day is wonderful- 

 ly grand and picturesque. Innumerable moun- 

 tains, lakes, ponds, rivers, towns and villages 

 meet the gratified eye, and the broad Atlantic 

 ocean stretches itself along the eastern horizon. 



The Crystal Hills of New Hampshire are deci- 

 dedly of primitive formation — they are more an- 

 cient probably than any mountains of the old 

 world whose geological formation has been as- 

 certained aud described. The range of Green 

 Mountains in Vermont which are divided from 

 them by the valley and waters of the Connecti- 

 cut are probably of more recent origin. It is said 

 to be remarkable that the eastern slope of the 

 Vermont range has a dip indicating that they 

 were thrown up in an oblique direction from un- 

 der the base of the mountain ridge of New 

 Hampshire ; while the western slope is obliqued 

 in the opposite direction showing the strata on 

 that side to come from Lake Chnm|>lain aud the 

 State of New York — the two dips meeting like 

 the roof of a house in the hack-bone of the 

 mountains which rim north aud south central in 

 the State nearly its whole length. It will not be 

 in my power to give you a full description of the 

 Mountain State which derives its name from the 

 character its splendid elevations have given to the 

 face of this country. It will suffice here to say 

 that there is no section of the United States more 

 beautifully fertile and productive, or more invi- 

 ting to those who would secure health and com- 

 petence by a life of industry and exercise, than 

 many parts of Vermont. Unlike some other sec- 

 tions of our country, travelling through the hill 

 towns of this Stale, we find th^ tops of the high 

 bills no less feasible and productive than the rich 

 alluvion of the valleys. 



The White Mountains are more bare aud more 

 ragged than the mountains of Vermont; and this 

 difference characterizes the whole line of moun- 

 tains in the two States. There are several rivers 

 having their sources in the cluster of White 

 Mountains, in long and winding ravines deepen- 

 ing in their descent to the plains below : some 

 half a dozen of these ravines concentrate a num- 

 ber of streams into the Amonoosuck which takes 

 its course south-westerly, an important tributary 

 to the Connecticut. In the month of August 

 1826, a storm broke upon these mountains and 

 their vicinity, discharging in the space of a few 

 hoiu-8 an enormous amount of water, diif\ing 

 down rocks and trees and other obstructions, 

 damming up aud ovei-flowing and almost drown- 

 ing out the valleys of the rivers below. Several 

 avalanches from the mountains came down — at 

 one point several himdred acres came off from 

 the westerly angle of Mount Monroe. This ava- 

 lanche pressed down an immense mass of rocks, 

 earth and trees, covering deep at the foot a large 

 e.xtent of land with the mighty body of mountain 

 brought down. The track of mountain scaled off 

 at this point may be seen at the distance of many 

 miles. All about these mountains at that time 



there were avalanches. The Saco river has 

 main source on the north side of the celebrated 

 Notch or narrow defile extending two miles in 

 length between two huge cliffs which were either 

 rent asunder by some' great convulsion or else 

 worn out in the lapse of ages by the constant 

 ovei-flowing of the waters. The entrance of the 

 chasm on the north-west side is formed by two 

 rocks standing perpendicular at the distance of 

 twenty-two feet from each other. Through this 

 chasm fioiy towards the east the head waters of 

 the Saco river, this river and the Amonoosuck 

 having their sources at no great distance and 

 nearly interlocking each other before taking their 

 direct course. Within the notch, at a spot where 

 the mountains on either side fall away from each 

 other, stands a house erected and kept for the 

 piu-pose of entertaining and accommodating the 

 travellers passing over this road, especially in 

 winter. At the time of the outbreak of waters, 

 this house was owned and occupied by Mr. Sam- 

 uel Willey. An avalanche came dow"n from the 

 mountain directly in the rear of the house ; and 

 striking a rock above which was fixed too deep 

 to be removed, the current of rocks and earth 

 parted at a short distance from the house leaving 

 that untouched, but sweeping down at both ends, 

 taking the stable entirely off on the one hand and 

 filling up the road on both ends and covering the 

 land below. The family cousi.sting of Mr. Wil- 

 ley, his wife, a hired man and six children, were 

 all overwhelmed in this calamity, and not a living 

 soul remained to carry intelligence to the nearest 

 neighbor who resided at the distance of about six 

 miles. It was evident, if the family had all re- 

 mained in the house that none of them would 

 have been hurt. A slide had come down a few 

 days previous ; and Mr. Willey, alarmed at that, 

 had made some preparation to remove from the 

 place. The slide took place in the darkness of 

 the ui^ht ; and it is conjectured that, alarmed by 

 the noise of its first movement, the family left the 

 house expecting to retieat to a place of safety in 

 the open air. A considerable time elapsed, as the 

 road above and below was destroyed, before dis- 

 covery of the disaster was made : the bodies of 

 a portion of the sufferers were foimd at a dis- 

 tance trom each other : some of them were never 

 found. 



I had travelled over this road and visited the 

 Willey house, passing overall the triountaius from 

 the top of Mount Washington to the Notch, sev' 

 eial years before this disaster: I passed through 

 the Notch two or three years afterwartis, taking 

 particular notice of the mighty rents which the 

 sudden discharge of waters had made in the 

 mountains, the changes it had effected in the 

 course of the rivers, the washing away in some 

 places as well as the filling up of the road at oth- 

 er places. I paused and rested as I had been 

 at the VVilley house, which had never been 

 occupied by a family at the time of either of my 

 visits that always took place in the summer sea- 

 son. I marked at the first time after the slides 

 had come down that the road was filled with 

 rocks and that kind of gravel which we some- 

 titnes see in washed highways more sterile to ap- 

 pearance than pure white saud such as is com- 

 monly found on some pond or lakes or the shore 

 of the sea. The rocks had been cleared from the 

 carriage path, and the travelled track was in that 

 condition which left the wheel to bury itself in 

 the ground as it passed to the depth of the felloe. 

 I again visited this interesting si)Ot in the sum- 

 mer of 1838. The matter brought down from the 

 mountain by the avalanche remained in its posi- 

 tion ; but the change that had taken place sur 



sed me. There had been neither maniue nor 



cultivation applied here — no cattle ranged about 

 these premises. The light porous gravel upon 

 the road and its sides had changed into a black 

 vegetable mould ; the tall timothy or herdsgrass 

 was growing upon it — the natural white clover 

 was in luxuriant growth and bloom ; and most 

 magnificent raspberries had spontaneously sprimg 

 up upon the same ground. The soil upon which 

 this vegetation was growing had come out of the 

 very bosom of the sterile mountain. The action 

 of the atmosphere must have been the almost ex- 

 clusive agent to accomjilish this great work of 

 nature in the midst of the niounlains. After my 

 last visit to this spot, I conversed with Doct. 

 Jackson of Boston, who has been employed by 

 the States of Maine, Rhode Island and New 

 Hampshire, to make a geological examination and 



survey of those States. He did not readily fall 

 into my doctrine that the mountain, per se,"con- 

 tained the elements of fertility. But during the 

 past season he has visited and particularly obser- 

 ved the 8|>ot which I had pointed out, and he 

 concedes to it all the capability that I claim for 

 It. The rock of the mountain he says is Felspar ; 

 and this decomposed produces Silica, Alumina. 

 Potassium or Soda aud a portion of Lime. This 

 material he admits contains all the elements of 

 lertdity, and only requires that vegetable aid 

 which It will naturally derive from the surround- 

 ing forest to become productive. His facts and 

 reasoning have convinced me that the farmers 

 who occupy the beautiful alluvion grounds upon 

 the Connecticut, the Androscoggin and the Saco, 

 are much indebted to the magnificent mountains 

 1 have been describing for the richness of their 

 lands and for the excellent health which pervades 

 their valleys, coming down with the disintegrated 

 matter and the pure water which floats it onward 

 towards the ocean. 



Of the higher White Jlountains the scientific 

 gentleman who is engaged in their examination 

 informs me that no traces of the valuable and 

 useflil metals, as yet, have been discovered upon 

 their surface or in the beds excavated by the ava- 

 lanches ; the Indians had a tradition that there 

 were carbuncles and precious gems upon the 

 ojien grounds of the mountains above the region 

 of vegetation, which were kept from the posses- 

 sion of mortals by the enchantment which sur- 

 rounded them. The notion probably originated 

 in the fact that travelling in the sunshine the re- 

 flection of isolated rock crystal strikes upon the 

 eye at a distance with dazzling brightness, which 

 entirely disappears on change of position or on 

 approaching to the spot where it was first obser- 

 ved : these 'appearances are frequent upon the 

 open upper grounds of the.se mountains, and have 

 probably given them the name of the Criisial 

 Hills. 



But if the main mountains are destitute of 

 minerals the numerous spurs that grow our of 

 them on different sides will probably hereafter 

 present mineral riches of which the present in- 

 liabitauts have no conception. In the vicinity of 

 the Franconia mountains, seventeen to twenty 

 miles south-west of Mount Washington, the na- 

 tive iron ore yielding from 56 to 63 per cent, has 

 been smelted, wrought aud manufactured for 

 some forty years: it is said to he the richest ore 

 yet worked in the United States. On a spur of 

 the White Mountains in an opposite direction ad- 

 jacent to the State of Maine to the south-east 

 from Mount Washington is the isolated town of 

 Jackson containing fifty to sixty recently cleared 

 fjirnij. Doct. .lackson made this town among the 

 mountains which has only a single outlet down a 

 considerable stream uniting with the waters of 

 the Saco river, a place for reconnoisance, in 

 which he was assisted by the voluntary aid of the 

 intelligent farmers who accompanied him in 

 mass. He found there the first considerable mass 

 of tin ore known to exist within the United 

 States— an ore which is |)eculiar only to the old- 

 est coal formations in Europe: — he "found like- 

 ; in the same town abundance of rich iron 

 ore, yielding 85 per cent, a single vein of which 

 he ascertained to be thirty-seven feet in diameter ; 

 such a discovery as if found in Pennsylvania or 

 other places where iron ore has been extensively 

 smelted, would be prized as equal at least to the 

 best gold mine of the country. 



Looking to the north and east from Mount 

 Washington, the eye catches at the foot of the 

 mountain the buildings at first uearei in Randolph 

 aud beyond that in Shelburue, and over both the 

 Umbagog lake which furnishes the head waters 

 of Androscoggin river. Into the Umbagog lake 

 from above comes the Margallaway river. As 

 yet there are few or no permanent settlements 

 ujion this lake and the stream above it: they arc- 

 near the line north and south which divides the 

 States of Maine and New Hampshire. Still fur- 

 ther north-east stretch the ridge of mountain 

 highlands designated as the boundary between 

 Lower Canada and the United States by the trea- 

 ty with Great Britain of 1783: this mountain 

 ridge varies from fifteen hundred to three thou- 

 sand feet elevation above the ocean. The high- 

 est elevation at the extremis uorth-east forujing 

 that point in the highlands which intersects with 

 the ancient north-west angle of Nova Scolia is 

 about twenty-eight hundred feet higher than the 



