TRANSPORTATION AND MARKETING. 45 



ers, both large and small, suitaljle for coasting vessels. 

 These tidewater farmers, or truckers, plant and raise 

 largely, not only Sweet Potatoes, but other vegetables and 

 also fruits, in great abundance, for which then- climate 

 and soil are so well adapted ; these are shipped to north- 

 ern markets, with moderate or reduced freight expenses 

 and commissions, or they are sold upon the spot. The 

 county of Nansemond, Va., has a light and friable 

 soil, abounding in the richest and most accessible de- 

 posits of shell and marl, with water navigation which 

 gives every man a wharf and a market on his own farm ; 

 yet these lands, with all these advantages, and after 

 they have been well-limed, can frequently be bo.ight at 

 low prices, and, in many instances, with good buildings. 

 Nothing can be finer than the water prospect from some 

 of the old settlements on the Nansemond river. A broad 

 sheet of water at one's feet, gradually expands into the 

 ■ magnificent Hampton Roads of historic fame, whilst, as 

 far as the eye can reach, the trading craft may be seen 

 looking for truck in the Nansemond and neighboring 

 creeks. So accessible are these situations, that the 

 northern hucksters float their warehouses, in the shape 

 of sloops and schooners, to the point of production, and 

 hang out their signs from the mast-head : *' Potatoes 

 "Wanted;" "Peaches Wanted ;" "The Highest Prices 

 Given for Watermelons, Fruits, Vegetables, etc." Such 

 are the cries of Nansemond. 



But the tidewater sections of Virginia are not the only 

 accessible points that abound with the delightful pros- 

 pect of oysters, crabs, and Sweet Potatoes. Like advan- 

 tages are to be found on the coast as far as New Jersey, 

 and South to the capes of Florida. All up the Lower 

 Mississippi and the Ohio Valleys, the potato is grown to 

 perfection, and shipped to market by means of river and 

 railroad transpoxtation, with the other products of the 

 country. 



