J: 
TRAVELS IN’ 
feveral miles led us near the Alabama, within two 
or three miles of its banks : the furface of the 
land is broken into hills and vales, fome of 
them of confiderable elevation, covered with fo- 
re fts of {lately trees, fuch as already mentioned, 
but they are of a much larger growth than thofe of 
the fame kind which grow in the Southern or inha- 
bited parts of Georgia and Carolina. We now 
left the river at a good diftance, the Alabama 
bearing away Southerly, and entered a vafl open 
fore ft which continued above feventy miles, Eaft 
and Weft, without any confiderable variation, gene- 
rally a level plain, except near the banks of creeks 
that courfe through: the foil on the furface is a duf- 
ky hrownifh mould or fandy loam, on a foundation - 
offtiff clay; and the furface,pebbles or gravel mix- 
ed with clay on the fummits of the ridges : the fo- 
refts confift chiefly of Oak, Hiccory, Afh, Sour 
Gum (Nyflfa fylvatica), Sweet Gum (Liquidambar 
ftyraciflua). Beech, Mulberry, Scarlet maple. Black 
walnut. Dog wood, Cornus Florida, iEfculus pa- 
via, Prunus Indica, Ptelea, and an abundance of 
Chefnut (Fag. caftanea) on the hills, with Pinustae- 
da and Pinus lutea. During our progrefs over this 
vail high foreft, we crofted extenflve open plains, 
the foil gravelly, producing a few trees and fhrubs 
or undergrowth, which were entangled with Grape 
vines (Yitis campeftris) of a peculiar fpecies ; the 
bunches (racemes) of fruit were very large, as were 
the grapes that compofed them, though yet green 
and not fully grown, but when ripe they are of va- 
rious colours, and their juice fweet and rich. The 
Indians gather great quantities of them, which they 
prepare for keeping, by firft fweating them on hur- 
dles over a gentle fire, and afterwards drying them 
on their bunches in the fup and air, and £ or e them 
