64 TRAVELS THROUGH NORTH AMERICA : 
way up tbe country. Charleston has un- 
fortunately been almost totally destroyed 
by fire of late, but it is rebuilding very fast, 
and will most probably in a few years be lar¬ 
ger than ever. 
The view that has been taken so far is suffi¬ 
cient to demonstrate, that the prosperity of 
the towns in the United States is dependant 
upon their trade, and principally upon that 
which is carried on with the interior parts of 
the country; and also, that those towns which 
are most conveniently situated for the pur¬ 
pose of carrying* on this inland trade, are those 
which enjoy the greatest share of it. It is 
now time to examine more particularly how 
far the situation of the federal city is favour¬ 
able, or otherwise, for commerce: to do so, 
it will be necessary, in the first place, to trace 
the course of the Patowraac River, on which 
it stands, and also tliat of the rivers with which 
it is connected. 
The Patowmac takes its rise on the north¬ 
west side of Alleghany Mountains, and after 
running in a meandering direction for upwards 
of four hundred miles, falls into the Chesapeak 
Bay. At its confluence with the bay it is 
seven miles and a half wide ; about thirty 
miles higher, at Nominy Bay, four and a half; 
at A quia, three ; at Hallowing Point, one and 
a half; and at Alexandria, and from thence to 
