COTTON. 
§15 
settling in that part of the country. The differ¬ 
ence indeed between the country on the east¬ 
ern and on the western side of the Blue Ridge,, 
in Bottetourt County, is astonishing, when it 
is considered that both are under the same lati¬ 
tude, and that this difference is perceptible 
within the short distance of thirty miles. 
On the eastern side of the Ridge, cotton 
grows extremely well; and in winter the snow 
scarcely ever remains more than a day or two 
upon the ground. On the other side,, cotton 
never comes to perfection ; the winter^ are se<- 
vere, and the fields covered with snow for 
weeks together. In every farm yard you see 
sleighs or sledges, carriages used to run upon 
the snow. Wherever these carriages are met 
with, it may be taken for granted that the win¬ 
ter lasts in that part of the country for a con¬ 
siderable length of time, for the people 
would never go to the expence of building 
them, without being tolerably certain that they 
would be useful. On the eastern side of the 
Blue Ridge, in Virginia, not one of these car¬ 
riages is to he met with. 
It has already been mentioned, that the 
predominant soil to the eastward of the Blue 
Ridge is a red earth, and that it is always a 
matter of some difficulty to lay down a piece 
pf land in grass, on account of the rains which 
