230 
felling the venerable individual of two centurie;Sj than in cutting the sap- 
ling of yesterday. 
CLINTON COUNTY. 
I shall not attempt to give in detail the geology of Clinton county 
in the present report, or present any thing like a full account of its na- 
tural resources. A large and interesting portion of it has not yet re- 
ceived that attention v^^hich it deserves or is entitled to, and the remain- 
der has not been examined at all. So imperfect are my own views, and 
unfinished my labors, that I prefer a delay of one season than to present 
what must be considered an imperfect view of so important a county. 
Whoever has travelled during the summer from Port-Kent to the 
Canada line, along the main road, cannot have failed to remark the ex- 
cellence of the soil and the favorable make of the country for agricul- 
tural purposes. Probably there is no better soil in the State than that 
of Peru, Chazy and Champlain. It is composed of a due intermixture 
of the tertiary clays and sands, which nature has sometimes mingled in 
the proper proportion to constitute the best for agriculture; in other 
cases, they are placed in juxta position, prepared to the hand of the hus- 
bandman to make that mixture which, in his judgment, shall best pro- 
mote his interests. Of the richness of the soil, and the favorable na- 
ture of the climate, we have an unfailing test, also in the thrifty growth 
and healthy state of the apple, and other fruit trees. In a cold soil and 
a windy district they are uniformly stinted and covered with parasites, 
which gives them really a gloomy aspect; but in a good soil and tem- 
perate climate they always look flourishing and green, and free from that 
sombre appearance they wear when their limbs and twigs are covered 
by a parasitic growth of lichens. 
Such is the case with the fruit trees of this region, and for aught I 
could discover, they appeared equally flourishing with the southern pro- 
ductions belonging to the same species. In regard to the general ferti- 
lity of the soil, and the favorable nature of the climate, the general 
productions of the settled portions of the county furnish ample evi- 
dence, and it w^ill not be considered as a disparagement to any other 
part of the State to say, that the soil is good enough. The general 
surface of that portion of the county bordering the lake, and extending 
west ten miles, is rather uneven, though interspersed frequently with le- 
vel tracts. 
The rock formation is a continuation of that of Essex, described in 
the report of last year. The transition is, however, wider and more 
perfectly developed. 
