466. Two considerable branches from Tennessee, unite with the Allegany Ridge; the Clinch Mountains on the south side of the Tennessee River, and the Cumberland on the north. The Cumberland Mountains commence near the River Ohio, and separate the Rivers Kentucky and Tennessee, through their whole course.

467. The Blue Ridge is a lower subordinate chain, which lies between the Allegany Ridge, and the Atlantic Ocean. It commences near the same spot with the Allegany Ridge, and traverses the Atlantic States, at the distance of 50 or 100 miles from the coast, until it terminates at West Point, on the Hudson River.

468. Here the Blue Ridge appears to be connected with the Taghonnuc Range; which passes through the western part of Connecticut and Massachusetts, and unites with the Green Mountains. Considerable branches also pass off, connecting the Green Mountains with the range of the White Mountains, which gradually diminish in height, and terminate near the Gulf of St. Lawrence, in the highlands that separate the waters of this gulf from those of the Atlantic, and form the northern boundary of the United States.

469. In Virginia and Pennsylvania there are a number of ridges, west of the Allegany, which occupy most of the western portions of these states. In Pennsylvania the two principal between the central ridge and Pittsburgh, are the Laurel Ridge, and Chesnut Ridge.

470. The general breadth of the Apalachian chain, is from 100 to 180 miles. Its course is nearly parallel to the coast. In point of height it is surpassed by most of the great moun- [71] tain chains of the globe. The loftiest summit is Mount Washington, the principal peak of the White Mountains, which rises 6,634 feet above the level of the sea.

The average height of the Apalachian chain south of NewYork, is from 1,000 to 2,000 feet. No portion attains the height necessary for perpetual snow, or the production of glaciers.

Moose Hillock, in New-Hampshire, is 4,636 feet in height; Mansfield Mountain and Camel's Rump, in Vermont, Saddle Mountain in Massachusetts, Round Top, among the Catskill Mountains, Otter Peak in Virginia, and Table Mountain in South Carolina, are about 4,000 feet high.

471. Although some parts of the range are primitive, there are few examples of the rugged, awful character exhibited by the Alps and the Andes. The summits are generally rounded, and the declivities accessible with comparative ease.

472. The White Mountains of New-Hampshire have more of

the rough, precipitous appearance of primitive mountains, than most others in the United States. They are diversified with deep chasms, numerous cascades descending from precipices, and forming some of the most sublime and romantic scenes which our country presents. They comprise a long range of proud eminences, of which Mount Washington is the commanding peak. During nine, ten, and sometimes eleven months of the year, their summits are covered with snow; and in clear weather, they are surrounded or capped with white fleecy clouds.*

These circumstances have given them their name, and render them visible to a great distance at sea in serene weather. They are surrounded with three zones, above the region of cultivation. The first is covered with a growth of stunted evergreens, a few inches in height; the second produces nothing but moss; and the upper region is a mass of naked rocks.

473. The northern primary region of the United States, or New-England, is traversed by a system of mountains, whose ranges generally follow the course of its rivers. The principal and central range is that of the Green Mountains, which commence in the precipitous bluff of West Rock, at New-Haven, in Connecticut, and pass through Litchfield, into Massachusetts and Vermont, declining in height as they approach 48 degrees of latitude, and thence forming the highlands between Maine and Lower Canada.

The principal peaks are Mt. Tom, in Litchfield county, Connecticut; Killington Peak, near Rutland; the Camel's Rump, 14 miles south-east of Burlington; and Mansfield Mountains, north-east of this place, in Vermont.

474. On the west of the Green Mountains is the Taghonnue Range, which commences near Norwalk, in Connecticut, and passing through the western parts of Massachusetts and Connecticut, unites with a low spur of the Green Mountains, south of Middlebury, in Vermont.

475. The principal eminences in this range, are Taghonnuc [72] Mountain in the western part of Massachusetts, and a spur, called from its form, Saddle Mountain, which passes off near the northern boundary of Massachusetts, through Williamstown.

Saddle Mountain is the highest point in Massachusetts, 4,000 feet above the level of the sea. Its length is about six miles, and it is visible at great distances, from the surrounding states.

476. On the east of the Green Mountains, is a range which commences at East Rock, near New-Haven; and forming in its course the peak of Mount Carmel, and the Farmington and Talcott Mountains, it passes the Connecticut River at Northampton, and leaves a channel for its waters between Mount Tom and

* Dwight's Travels, from which the account of New-England is chiefly taken:

Mount Holyoke. Not far from this place, it unites with a similar, but lower range, which runs from Lyme, near the mouth of the Connecticut River; and both proceed in a single range, which has been called the White Mountain Range, through Massachusetts and New-Hampshire, to the northern boundary of the United States.

The chief eminences are Mount Tom, Mount Holyoke, and Mount Toby, near Sunderland, in Massachusetts; Monadnock, near the southern boundary of NewHampshire; Sunapee Mountain, near Fishersfield; Moose Hillock, eight miles from Haverhill; and the White Mountains. Ascutney, near Windsor, in Vermont, and Wachuset, in Princeton, in Massachusetts, are two detached mountains about 3,000 feet in height.

477. In New-Hampshire, there are several ranges which pass from east to west, uniting the White Mountain range with the Green Mountains.

478. Little is known of the mountains of Maine. Mount Katahdin is a lofty peak, which has not yet been examined or measured.

PHYSICAL DIVISIONS.

479. The great mountain chains of North America, divide it into four principal declivities: 1. The western declivity of the Chippewan Mountains; 2. The northern declivity, descending from the head waters of the great lakes, towards the Arctic Ocean; 3. The eastern declivity of the Apalachian Chain; and 4. The great southern declivity, or basin of the Mississippi, which may be considered as extending along the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, to the foot of the Cordilleras. The basin of the St. Lawrence forms another grand division of the Continent, lying between the northern and southern declivities.

480. The western declivity of the Chippewan Mountains is chiefly inhabited by Indian tribes, and has been very little exa mined. The southern portions forming a part of Mexico, arc well watered and fertile.

The great table-land of Mexico is a very productive region, so elevated that it enjoys the climate of the Temperate Zone, far within the tropics. The only defect is the want of water, which is sometimes destructive to their harvests.

481. The northern declivity, extending from the highlands bor dering on the lakes, to the Arctic Ocean, is also little known, From the discovery of coal and salt springs by Mackenzie, it is supposed to be a continuation of the great secondary region of [73] the Mississippi. It has numerous rivers and lakes; but it appears to resemble Siberia in its dreary aspect and inhospitable climate;

and affords a scanty subsistence to the Indians who wander through it in pursuit of game and furred animals.

482. The eastern, or Atlantic declivity, comprises the primary region east of the Hudson River; and the alluvial region thence extending south to the Gulf of Mexico.

The geological divisions of the United States will be most casily understood from an inspection of the following map.

The letters are the initials of the States. The figures refer to the places mentioned below. The formations are indicated by the various modes of shading, as explained on the map.

1 New-York.

2 Philadelphia.

3 Washington.

4 Richmond.

5 Raleigh.

6 Columbia.

7 Milledgeville.
8 Albany.

9 Williamsport.

483. The alluvion of the eastern declivity commences on the southern shore of Long Island, and extends between the Atlantic Ocean and the primary ridges of the Apalachian Chain, until it passes round the southern extremity of these mountains, and unites with the basin of the Mississippi on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico.

It is bounded on the interior by a line commencing a little below

Newark, in New-Jersey, extending north of Amboy to the River Raritan, and thence pursuing a south-west course to Trenton, [74] Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, nearly parallel to the coast, to Augusta, on the Savannah River, and thence to Natchez on the Mississippi, as exhibited on the map. 484. The shore is low and sandy. The elevation gradually increases in proceeding south. The tide extends through the whole alluvion, on all the rivers north of the Roanoke, but below this it does not reach the western boundary. Through the whole formation, there is very little that deserves the name of rock. The great mass below the soil is composed of sand, gravel, pebbles, shells, clay, and marl; the last of which sometimes forms extensive beds.

A bed of shells, sometimes cemented into shell-limestone, extends from Eutaw Springs, on the Santee River, to the Savannah River, and the Chickasaw Bluffs, on the Mississippi. It is 600 miles long, from 10 to 100 broad, and in some parts, 300 feet thick. In other parts, the gravel and sand are converted into a loose, friable sandstone. The whole tract is considered by some as belonging to the tertiary class. Remains of vegetables are found at the depth of 100 feet in various places.

485. The character of the alluvion varies, according to the nature of the countries lying at the head of its streams.

The streams north of the Rappahannock, flow chiefly from the transition and secondary formations, and render the alluvion on the bays, in a part of Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and NewJersey, very fertile.

The streams south of the Rappahannock, as far as the Alta maha, flow from the primitive portions of the Allegany Ridge, and bring down only sand, or gravel, or the hard materials of primitive rocks, which produce a more sterile soil in North and South Carolina, and a part of Georgia and Virginia. The region south and west of this, is chiefly an alluvion from secondary regions, and is extremely fertile.

486. In the states south of Maryland, those tracts which are low and moist are soon covered with vegetation, from the heat of the climate, and the accumulation of vegetable soil renders them fertile. The same heat renders the dry tracts more sterile; and there is a greater contrast between the rich and poor soils in this region, than in colder climates.

487. The primitive formation of the United States, rises into the most elevated ridge of the Apalachian Mountains, through the greater part of their length, separating the Atlantic declivity from the basin of the Mississippi.

It commences at Milledgeville, in Georgia, and is bounded on the east by the line of the alluvion just described, as far as the