MADISON COUNTY. 425 
The facts now enumerated will be seen, upon a little reflection, to lay 
the foundation for an excellent scope of country in an agricultural point 
of view. Generous and lasting soils and an abundant water-supply are 
certain to be provided from such modifications of the beds of glacial drift 
in central and western Ohio. In accordance with these probabilities, 
Madison county is found to be one of the finest agricultural districts of 
the State. There is scarely a foot of waste land in it and most of it, if 
not already highly productive, is easily susceptible of being made so. 
The surface clays are generally black, for at least one or two feet in depth. 
In land lying as nearly level as Madison county does, there would neces- 
sarily be enough detention of organic matter in the soil to produce this 
result. Even thelands underlain with gravel might have been swampy in 
their earliest history, but after a forest growth had established itself upon 
them and the roots had penetrated to the porous beds below, a natural 
drainage would be secured which would do much towards their ameliora- 
tion. 
The gravel washed out of the bowlder clay is largely limestone gravel. 
Whenever an insulated area of this gravel has been left uncovered by the 
finer clays, and has itself undergone atmospheric agencies by which it 
would be converted intosoil, we find the productive belts knownas ‘“‘mulatto 
lands.” The reddish soils thus designated certainly have just sucha history. 
The forest growths on these several sorts of areas, are, in every case, 
characteristic. The last named division is the warmest and most fertile 
land of the county. It is occupied quite largely by Black Walnut, Sugar 
Maple, etc., and is therefore, frequently styled “Black Walnut land.” 
It is confined to patches, and acres, and is nowhere extended in large 
tracts, or at least not in the central portion of the county. More of itis 
shown in the southern townships. 
The division last preceding this, viz., the clays underlain by gravel or 
sand, are quite generally covered with Burr Oak (Quercus macrocarpa). This 
tree marks very definitely all the better portions of the areas now under 
discussion, and as this kind of land constitutes the most important el- 
ement in the surface of the county, the Burr Oak may be said to charac- 
terize the county. 
The colder lands referred to the weathering of the bowlder clay are 
covered for their natural forest growth with swamp oak (Quercus 
palustris), post oak (Q. obtusiloba), and occasionally white oak (Q. alba.) 
The natural differences between these soils, as attested by their original 
forest growths, are clearly shown in their subsequent history under culti- 
vation. 
_ The swampy condition of the land before drains and ditches provided 
_ an easy way of escape for the surface water, is the probable cause of a 
