Foreig?i Notices : — North America. 73 



Dec. 31. 1831) hinted at some of the principal of these advantages; and 

 we entreat some of our American readers to call the attention of the 

 American legislature to a subject of so much interest to a road and canal 

 making nation. — Cond. 



Pkilipsburg, Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States, Aug. 1. 1831. 



Sir, . . . Placed, as I am, so remote from libraries, and from access to 

 European periodical works, such publications as yours are more interesting 

 to me now than ever. I have opened your Encyclopcedias, with much 

 interest, at the passages relating to North America, and can bear tes- 

 timony to the general accuracy of your authorities. I am happy to report 

 that the climate has agreed perfectly well with myself and family, and we 

 have now run nearly the entire circle of the seasons. Not the slightest 

 illness, not even a cold, has occurred, if I remember right, to any one of 

 us since our arrival. 



Our position here, near the base of the western slope of the Alleghany 

 mountain range, is one of the healthiest in the United States. The past 

 season has been delightful in temperature ; the thermometer averaging pro- 

 bably about 70° in the day, and the nights have been cool and refreshing. 

 We possess here an advantage somewhat remarkable, bul; which we prize 

 highly: at about nine or ten o'clock every morning, a refreshing breeze 

 springs up, and continues until three or four in the afternoon; and it is this, 

 perhaps, which makes our situation so healthy, and enables us, without 

 inconvenience, to bear the warmest days of summer. These delightful 

 breezes appear to proceed from the north or north-west, and remind us of 

 the sea breezes upon the never to be forgotten shores of dear old England. 



I shall not attempt, my dear Sir, to give you a lengthened description of 

 the place which is likely' to be the residence of myself and family for some 

 years, at least, if we live. My brother has, probably, had opportunities of 

 informing yoH generally on that point. I can now speak, from professional 

 observation, that we are situated about 1350 ft. above the sea, and about 

 800 to 1000 ft. below the main ridge or crest of the Alleghany Mountains. 

 There is one depression, or gap, as it is called, ten miles hence, which 

 I have found, by levelling, to be only 600 ft. above us ; and which 600 ft. are 

 distributed pretty gradually along the above base of ten miles. Conse- 

 quently, you will observe that it is possible to descend the Alleghanies, 

 westward, at a very small angle; not much more, indeed, than half a degree, 

 which is not a very alarming inclination, even for a railroad. The eastern 

 descent is more rapid ; perhaps at three degrees for the first three miles, 

 following the natural fall of the water-courses. I cannot but consider that 

 our climate is materially influenced by our proximity to this vast mountain 

 ridge, which is 1200 miles in length. I find ver}' little variation in the 

 barometer from 29 in. A fall always precedes wind from the north-west. 

 We never suffer much from the extreme heat of summer, nor are we mate- 

 rially colder in winter than is observed in the cities on the Atlantic coasts. 

 One of my friends here kept an accurate meteorological journal during 

 many years, and I brought out with me two of Jones's best mountain 

 barometers, which I amuse myself by frequently referring to. Our prevailing 

 winds are from the north-west ; which winds certainly bring a vast quantity 

 of rain. The present summer has been more wet than has occurred in the 

 memory of man. Rain has fallen, on an average, I should think, every 

 alternate day ; yet the, evaporation is so great, that but little inconvenience 

 has arisen, except of late, when steady dry weather is needed for the hay 

 and corn harvests, which occur at the same time. The farmers in the corn 

 districts are beginning to complain of the damage done to their crops by 

 the continued rains ; and serious injury has been sustained from floods. 

 This unusually moist state of the atmosphere has kept the air and the surface 

 of the earth unusually cool. We have had but one week of really hot 

 weather, and then not more than 1 have felt in England for much longer 



