360 



ILLINOIS. 



Boats of 5 tons' burden have passed through from the Illinois to the lake. The rocky shores 

 of the lake everywhere exhibit evidence that its waters have considerably lowered, and there is 

 little doubt that it was formerly drained by the branches of the Illinois. Rock River rises be- 

 yond the northern limit of the State, and flows southwest to the Mississippi ; it is 300 miles 

 in length. The Kaskaskia rises a little east of the interior of the State, and flows southwest 

 into the Mississippi ; it is 250 miles in length, and is navigable for boats. The Wabash forms 

 a part of the eastern boundary, and receives from this State the Litlle Wabash 130 miles in 

 length. 



3. Climate. The winters are severe over the whole State ; the rivers are frozen over foi 

 several months in the year, and the winds from the northerly points, coming from the lakes 

 or from the great central table-land of North America, are very cold. The air is in general 

 dry, pure, and healthy, but there are many spots which are rendered sickly by pestilential ex- 

 halations. 



4. Soil. Three different quahties of soil may be distinguished in a general description. 

 First, the alluvial borders of the rivers, which are from 1 to 8 miles wide, sometimes elevated, 

 and at others low and subject to inundation. These consist of alternations of wood and prairie, 

 and have almost always a fertile soil. Second, between the alluvion and the bluffs which bound 

 them, are level tracts from 50 to 100 feet high. These consist mostly of prairie, either dry 

 or marshy, and are less fertile than the alluvions, but are commonly preferied by emigrants. 

 Third, the interior, which consists of an intermixture of woods and prairies ; here the soil is 

 various, and the surface waving or broken. One sixth of the bottom or alluvial land, is over- 

 flowed for a longer or shorter lime by the rivers, and is thereby rendered unfit for cultivation, 

 although it is productive in timber. There is a tract called the American Bottom, beginning 

 at the mouth of the Kaskaskia, and extending along the Mississippi, to the bluffs at Alton ; it 

 is 90 miles in length, and 5 in average width, and consists of soil 25 feet deep, as rich as can 

 be found in the world. About the French towns it has been cultivated, and produced maize 

 every year without manuring, for above a century. In the north there are tracts somewhat 

 stony, yet in every other part the plough may pass over millions of acres without meeting so 

 much as a pebble to impede its course. 



5. JMinerals. Iron is found in different parts of the State. Native copper, in small quanti- 

 ties, has also been met with. The chief mineral production, however, is lead. Here are the 

 richest lead mines in the world. The district which furnishes the ore, lies in the northwest 

 part, and extends beyond the limits of the State. It comprises a tract of above 200 miles in 

 extent. The ore is inexhaustible. It lies in beds or horizontal strata, varying in thickness 

 from 1 inch to several feet, and yields 75 per cent of pure lead. For many years the Indians 

 and hunters were accustomed to dig for the metal ; they never penetrated much below the sur- 

 face, but obtained great quantities of the ore, which they sold to the traders. The public atten- 

 tion was drawn to this quarter, and from 1S26 to 1828, the country was filled with miners, smelt- 

 ers, merchants, speculators, and adventurers. Vast quantities of lead were manufactured, the 

 business w^as overdone, and the markets nearly destroyed. The business has since revived, and 

 from 8 to 10 million pounds of lead are annually made at the mines. The principal mines are 

 in the neighborhood of Galena. The whole State abounds in coal. It appears above the 

 surface in the ravines and gullies, and in the points of bluffs. There is scarcely a county in 

 the State, unable to furnish it in large quantities. Limestone and sandstone occur m every 

 part. Salt springs are common, but they are generally neglected. 



6. Face of the Country. This is one of the most level States in the Union. The greater 

 part consists of vast plains, or barrens, gently undulating. One may travel across immense 

 prairies for many days, without meeting with an eminence worthy to be called a hill. The 

 banks of the Mississippi exhibit I'lfty bluffs, and near the Ohio, is a range of hills of moderate 

 height. 



POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY. 

 1. Divisions. This State is divided into 87 counties.* 



Adams 



Alexander 



Bond 



Boone 



Brown 



Bureau 

 Calhoun 

 Carrnll 

 Cass 



Cliatnpaign 



Clark 



Clay 



Clinton 



Coles 



Cook 



Crawford 



Dane 



Dekalb 



Dewitt 



Dupnge 



