[50] Josiah White, early interested in mechanics, purchased an estate on the Schuylkill, five miles above Philadelphia, constructed a dam across the river, and erected there a wire mill. Later, he sought a contract for furnishing Philadelphia with water by means of power generated at this dam. After long negotiations the city purchased the plant, belonging to White and Gillingham, his partner, and constructed the Fairmount water works. White, together with Erskine Hazard, then directed his activities to the Lehigh coal fields, and became the active promoter of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company. White resided at Mauch Chunk from 1818 to 1831, and then moved to Philadelphia where he died (1850) at the age of seventy. His name is inseparably connected with the ca.n.a.l system of Pennsylvania; see _History of the Counties of Lehigh and Carbon_ (Philadelphia, 1884), p. 670.--ED.
[51] Lehighton--a corruption of the Delaware, Lechauwekink, "where there are forks"--is a post borough in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, on the west bank of the Lehigh, twenty-five miles above Allentown. It was laid out in 1794 on the lands of Jacob Weiss and William Henry, and the population in 1900 is reported as 4,269.--ED.
[52] Loskiel, in his history of the Indian Missions (pp. 415 and 416), gives the following account of this affair. "On the 24th of November, 1755, the house of the Indian Missionaries in Gnadenhutten, on the Mahony, was attacked in the evening by hostile Indians, and burnt.
Eleven persons perished: _viz._, nine in the flames, one of the brethren was shot, and another cruelly butchered, and then scalped.
Three brethren, and one sister (the wife of one of them), and a boy, escaped by flight; the woman and the boy, by a fortunate leap from the burning roof. One of those who escaped, the Missionary Sensemann, who, at the beginning of the attack, had gone out of the back door to see what might be the cause of the violent barking of the dogs, and who of course was not able to return to those whom he had left in the house, had the affliction to see his wife perish in the flames."--MAXIMILIAN.
_Comment by Ed._ Gnadenhutten was a mission established (1746) by the Moravians for their converts among the Delaware Indians; it was placed under the charge of Martin Mack.
[53] Weissport is today a village of more than six hundred inhabitants, four miles southeast of Mauch Chunk. It was laid out by Colonel Jacob Weiss and his brother Francis.--ED.
[54] Allentown, the seat of Lehigh County, sixteen miles southwest of Easton, was laid out (1752) by William Allen, chief justice of Pennsylvania. In 1811 it was incorporated with the borough of Northampton, but in 1838 reverted to its old name. Allentown is today one of the chief seats of furniture-making in the United States, and second only to Paterson in production of American silk. Its population in 1900 was 35,416.--ED.
CHAPTER VI
JOURNEY FROM BETHLEHEM TO PITTSBURG, OVER THE ALLEGHANYS, FROM SEPTEMBER 17TH TO OCTOBER 7TH
Allentown--Reading--Lebanon--Harrisburg--Mexico--Mifflin Town--Valley of the Juniata--Huntington--Alexandria--Yellow Springs--The Summit--Ebensburg--Hunting parties--Wild Scenery of the Alleghanys--Laurel Hills--Conomaugh Valley--Blairsville--New Alexandria on the Loyalhanna--Pittsburg--Situation of the Town--Economy, Mr. Rapp"s Settlement on the Ohio--Remarkable natural productions of that river.
Violent thunder-storms, accompanied with heavy rains, had taken place during the night before I left Bethlehem, early in the morning of the 17th, with the stage from Easton to Reading. Mr. Bodmer remained behind for some days, on account of the injury done to his hand. At day-break we reached Allentown, where we changed both carriage and horses, and pa.s.sed the Cedar Creek, which was much swollen. The thunder-storm had not changed the temperature of the air. All this country was covered with plantations of maize, clover, and buckwheat, and detached farm-houses were numerous. The clover was often sown, as among us, with the corn. The ears of the maize were partly cut off, and the stalks tied up in bundles. The maize becomes ripe here in October. We halted very often at the post-houses, where the horses are always watered. As soon as the stage arrives, the large leather bag containing the letters is thrown down, and the correspondence for places further on the road is put in. We were here on a calcareous soil, and many limekilns were burning in the neighbourhood. Flocks of birds, of many kinds, appeared ready to depart; _Papilio plexippus_ flew about the hedges. The _Datura_, with purple blossoms, and the _Phytolacea_, with ripe black berries, dark red stems and branches, grow on the road-side, and about the houses.[55] The leaves of the sumach, and of some kinds of oak and maple, had already [pg. 55] changed to a beautiful red colour. The fallow fields were entirely covered with the yellow blossoms of the golden rod, or St. John"s wort, and beautiful asters, mostly with small white or purple flowers. The farm-houses in this part of the country are remarkably handsome. The barns are built of stone, very large, and have, in the lower part, the stables, with eight or twelve doors and windows, and over this is the barn, properly so called. At the end of the building there is a pa.s.sage where the wagons stand under cover; the windows, doors and roof are frequently painted of a reddish brown colour: cattle of all kinds surround these farms. The swine are very fat, have broad hanging ears, and are generally marked with small round black spots, and sometimes, but more rarely, they are reddish brown. We saw some fine forests of oak and walnut trees, among which is much hickory (_Juglans alba_), which, next to the white oak, and the black walnut tree, furnishes the best timber. In general this country resembles Germany: it is diversified and pleasant; wooded eminences on the sides, and bright green meadows, often kept in very good order, occur as in our country; but large, new habitations, built in rather a different style, the zigzag fences, and the more lofty and luxuriant growth of the trees, give, on the whole, another character to the scenery.
In Maxatawny township we addressed the inhabitants in the German language, who answered us at once in the same, and we heard German names all the way to Pittsburg. After pa.s.sing Sackoma Creek, we arrived at ten o"clock at Kutztown, eighteen miles from Bethlehem, where we breakfasted. The heat being very great, the dust was extremely annoying, for the thunder-storm, which had pa.s.sed over Bethlehem, had not extended to this part of the country. The cattle sought protection against the sun, in the shade of single trees, or in the orchards. Large stacks of corn, six, eight, or ten together, stood in rows by the fences. On the right hand ran the Oli Mountains, beautiful verdant wooded eminences, which are connected with the Lehigh Mountains. About noon we had travelled the thirty-six miles to Reading, where we were obliged to stop one day, because the stage had already left.
Reading is a very pretty town on the Schuylkill, with 6,000 or 7,000 inhabitants; it has seven churches, and a new one was just then building. There are about 400 negroes and people of colour. Some of the streets were not paved in the middle, but have on the sides a pavement of bricks for the foot pa.s.sengers, planted with acacias, planes, poplars, and other trees. All these towns are rapidly increasing. The cholera had already carried off many persons here, but the inhabitants would not confess this. We saw a funeral procession returning home, in which there were several women on horseback; the veils on their large fashionable hats fluttered in the wind, and gave this caravan of Amazons a singular appearance. Much fruit is grown in the neighbourhood, and the apples are good, but not the plums. Peaches thrive very well; we saw whole wagon-loads of them brought into Reading, around which the people crowded to buy, while the children stole them.
[pg. 56] On the 18th of September it was with very great difficulty that we got places in the stage, the travellers being very numerous. After we had pa.s.sed Kakusa Creek, we came to Womelsdorf, founded by Germans, fourteen miles from Reading, where we stopped to dine, and then proceeded over Dolpahaga Creek, to Lebanon County, which is in a tract diversified with eminences and wooded mountains. On this road we several times pa.s.sed the Union Ca.n.a.l, which goes from Baltimore to Pittsburg, is very nearly completed, and is said to have cost 18,000,000 of dollars. After we had pa.s.sed the River Swatara, which runs into the Susquehannah, we continued our journey in a dark but fine evening; the crickets and gra.s.shoppers chirped all around; but their note is by no means so loud as that of those in the Brazils. At length we perceived a number of lights before us, and came to Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania, the end of our journey to-day.
Harrisburg is a small town, with only 5,000 inhabitants, situated between the Susquehannah and the Union Ca.n.a.l. It has broad streets crossing each other at right angles; but many of the buildings are of wood, for which they are now, however, gradually subst.i.tuting better ones of brick. Rows of trees are planted in front of the houses. The inn at which we put up was in a square, which they were just covering with broken stones. Here, too, is the market-hall, a long roofed building supported by pillars, in which the productions of the country are exposed for sale, as in most of the towns in the United States.
Harrisburg, being the capital of the state, is the residence of the Governor. The state-house is built on a gentle eminence on the ca.n.a.l, near the town, and with its two wings is a very considerable building, with a colonnade and a cupola supported by pillars. Another interesting point of the town is the view of the Susquehannah, which is very broad here, and forms an island. A long bridge, covered at top, and enclosed at the sides, is built over each arm of the river.
One of these bridges is about 600 paces in length. In the first there are twenty-three gla.s.s windows, and it has two pillars on sh.o.r.e, and five in the river. There are colossal bridges of this kind in the United States; and there is one further down the Susquehannah, which is one and a quarter mile and four rods in length, and has fifty-two pillars. The view from this bridge up the river is peculiarly beautiful. Verdant wooded islands adorn its surface, which is broad, but it was at this time very shallow. There are 500 negroes and people of colour. Germans are met with everywhere, and we were told that an able German physician lived here.
The defective arrangements of the post-houses obliged us to stop here three days, and it was not till the 21st of September, in the evening, that we could leave the town to continue our journey during the night.
We pa.s.sed the Susquehannah, and the Juniata, which comes from the Alleghany Mountains, and flows into it. On the 22nd, at day-break, we were at the little village of Mexico.
Mexico is in Mifflin County, forty miles from Harrisburg. Three miles further is the village of Mifflin Town, the capital of the county, where they were just building a new town-hall. The Union Ca.n.a.l, which connects Philadelphia and Baltimore with Pittsburg, in general follows the [pg. 57] same direction as the river Juniata, near which it often runs at a greater elevation, and sometimes is even carried over it.
The river is here about as broad as the Lehigh, but was at this time very shallow. Beyond Mifflin Town it receives the Los Creek. From this place we observed in the valley many robinias, which grow very high and vigorous, as well on the mountain, which is rather dry, as by the water-side; vines as thick as a man"s arm twine round the trunks, and frequently rise to the very summit. The nettle tree (_Celtis_) grew in great abundance, and the maples were just a.s.suming their red tinge.
The picturesque forest is intermingled with Canadian pines, many of which are quite blighted and withered. The valley now became wilder and more romantic; on the right hand rose a high precipice, covered with bolders, fragments of rock, mouldering trunks, and the finest trees of the country, forming a real wilderness. A very narrow part of the valley, where we watered our horses at an insulated house, bears the name of the Long Narrows; and the steep wooded mountain, on the south bank of the river, is called Blacklog Mountain; it is said to be the haunt of bears and stags. The cattle belonging to the log-houses were grazing among the rocks. After some time the valley grew more open, and at a wider spot, near the road, which descended towards the defile of James Creek, was a group of lofty and slender robinias, on which a flock of tame turkeys were sitting. These birds resemble in colour the wild ones which are common in this country; they often go into the forests, where they breed, and come home again with their young ones. After pa.s.sing Kishikokinas Creek, we reached, at a broad part of the valley, the village of Louis Town, in which there are some considerable houses. The country people were ploughing and harrowing their fields; and I may here observe, that, in all Pennsylvania, they never employ oxen in these operations, but horses only, of which they have great numbers. The plough is rather different from that of Germany.
Beyond Louis Town we saw a number of hors.e.m.e.n, a.s.sembled for the fox-chase. The fox was caught in a trap, then let loose at a certain spot, and hunted with many dogs, as in England. In a district diversified with forests and cultivated fields, we came to Waynesburg, a small town agreeably situated in a valley. The forests began to a.s.sume their autumnal tints; the maples, the dogwood (_Cornus Florida_), and the sumach, were partly red; the walnut trees, and the hickory, yellow, which gave great variety to the landscape. Near some habitations we observed weeping willows of extraordinary size. The surrounding mountains were covered with forests, into which we penetrated to ascend the first ridge of the Western Alleghanys. The road, which is, for the most part, in bad condition, rose obliquely on the side of a rude picturesque precipice. Except a pheasant, which flew past us, we saw but few living objects. Advancing into the valley we again came to the Juniata, over which the ca.n.a.l is here carried by an aqueduct, supported by four pillars. In this part of the river there are several dams, such as we had seen in the Lehigh, near Bethlehem, with this difference that here they are triple. For this purpose, rows [pg. 58] of stones, piled one upon another, are laid across the river, forming, in the direction of the stream, acute angles, where a basket is placed, in which the fish are collected.
At a place where three valleys meet stands the village of Huntingdon,[56] ninety miles from Harrisburg, where we found a tolerably good inn, on an eminence above the banks of the Juniata.
From this inn we proceeded, during the night, through high rude tracts and forests, past Alexandria, and at midnight reached Yellow Springs, and then the highest points of this ridge, called the summit, between 2,400 and 3,000 feet above the level of the sea, in the vicinity of Blair"s Gap. This wild mountain region bears hemlock spruce firs of colossal magnitude, mixed with other timber. The night was clear and cool; towards morning fogs arose from the deep valleys, which at daybreak covered the pine forest through which we descended. We pa.s.sed the Conomaugh Creek, and then arrived at the little town of Ebensburg, on an open spot in the forest. We stopped here at a small inn to wait for our travelling companions.
Ebensburg, the capital of Cambria County, is an inconsiderable place, consisting of wooden buildings, forming not much more than one broad, unpaved street, but has a town-house and a pretty large church. The inhabitants, about 300 or 400 in number, are of English, Irish, and some of German extraction. The surrounding country is very mountainous and woody, and is said to abound in all sorts of game, as indeed the many skins of lynxes, rac.o.o.ns, martens, and minks, fastened against the houses, prove; bears, stags, and wolves, are said not to be uncommon, as lofty and dark forests surround the town within a couple of hundred paces. Ebensburg derives some profit from the numerous wagons, drawn by two, four, or six strong horses, that pa.s.s through it on the high road to Pittsburg.
Our hunting excursions in this rude country were very interesting. We proceeded first in a northern direction into the forest, which we found to be quite a primeval wilderness. The mountains rise peak above peak, with deep ravines, where pines, beeches, chestnuts, birches, maples, and walnut trees of various kinds, form a gloomy forest, and fallen and decayed trunks check your advance at every step; cool, sylvan brooks rushed foaming through all the defiles, and we had continually to cross them on natural bridges, formed by the fallen trunks of trees. Such old trunks are covered with a whole world of mosses, lichens, fungiwood, sorrel, ferns, &c.; nay, even young shoots of maple, beeches, and tulip trees, had taken root on them. We clambered over the trunks, went round the fallen giants of the forest, and found everywhere, on the ground, traces of the numerous squirrels (_Sciurus cinereus_), in the remains of fruit and sh.e.l.ls, especially, of the chestnut.
But there was also an interesting wilderness in the opposite direction. Here a very extensive fall of timber had been commenced--a gigantic labour, as in Brazil, where the wood is burnt afterwards, as soon as it is sufficiently dry. The st.u.r.dy woodcutters were of German extraction, and spoke German. From this place a dark narrow path led through an old pine forest, where [pg. 59] the little creeping _Mich.e.l.la repens_, here called ground berry, with its beautiful red berries, grew among the moss, and often covered the ground. Several small runs and muddy ditches crossed the forest, over which I walked or rode on trunks of trees that served as bridges; in doing which my clothes suffered not a little. Woodp.e.c.k.e.rs abounded here, especially the great black woodp.e.c.k.e.r (_P. pileatus_), which we had not seen before. It is nearly as large as a crow, and its splendid bright red tuft is conspicuous at a great distance. They were very shy; knocked and hammered on the dead pine trees, which stood like the ruins of a colonnade, and were pierced and bored by their strong bills. This fine large bird is called here, and in general, woodc.o.c.k. A young man who lived in the forest, some miles off, told me that bears, stags, and other wild animals, were very numerous, particularly the pheasant, or c.o.c.k of the wood (_Tetrao umbellus_), one of which we shot. There is a saw-mill here, among the lofty pines, on an arm of Conomaugh Creek, in a wild, lonely spot. The owner was not a little astonished at my double-barrelled percussion gun. After we had spent two days here in exploring the woods, our travelling companions, Dr. Saynisch and Mr.
Bodmer, at length joined us, on the 26th, but as the latter still had need of rest, on account of his wound, we took their places, and set out immediately for Pittsburg.
Seven miles from Ebensburg is the place which is looked upon as the boundary of the Alleghanys, properly so called; here begins the ridge called the Laurel Hills, for these mountains consist of several parallel chains, many of which have distinct names. The forest now a.s.sumes a different character. Oaks of various species succeed the pines and beeches; the forest is not so high, rude, and thick, and from an elevated spot on the road there is a fine view as you look back on the long wooded chain of the Alleghanys.
The traveller soon sees before him a deep and wide valley in which the Conomaugh River flows, and beyond it a long ridge, covered with verdant woods, called the Chestnut Ridge, in which there is a gap, through which both the river and the ca.n.a.l pa.s.s. The eminences are uniformly wooded, and the chestnut and chestnut oak appear to predominate. We changed horses at Further Laurel Hill, and at Amagh, and then pa.s.sed the gap. In the meadows and fields, the stumps of the trees that had been cut down were still standing, for the whole country was formerly one unbroken forest. The habitations were few in number, and, at the same time, small and wretched. We were told that this part of the country is chiefly inhabited by Irish, who are bad managers, and addicted to drinking. A better character is given to the settlers of German origin, and they are said frequently to possess well cultivated farms.
In the woods of this district, we everywhere remarked that the tops of the branches, for about a foot or a foot and a half, were hanging down and withered, which is caused by a kind of cricket (locust, _Cicada septem decem_, Linn.). This insect, which, as is well known, appears only once in seventeen years, but then, like the c.o.c.kchafer with us, in prodigious numbers, had abounded [pg. 60] in Pennsylvania in 1832, and in many places was a real scourge; it does not, however, appear everywhere at the same time. But a few weeks before, they were so numerous in these forests, that the noise they made almost overpowered the human voice. On examining the withered twigs, we found the bark, as it were, ripped open in many places, the wood quite dry, and in the sap, a whitish substance, which consists of the eggs of the insect.
As we drove rapidly down the hills, we saw before us the extensive valley of the Conomaugh, for the most part covered with woods, and gently rising on all sides, in which, a little higher up, the small town of Indiana is situated. We stopped at a lonely inn by the road-side, watered our horses, and hastened forwards. On every side we saw extensive forests, and from the next eminence looked down into another valley, in which the Conomaugh runs by the town of Blairsville, a pretty little place, with many respectable houses, and a very good inn, in a broad main street, which runs directly across the valley. The country is hilly, or mountainous, well cultivated, and with neat farm-houses scattered around. From this place, it is ten miles to New Alexandria, a village with tolerably good wooden houses, many of which are painted. Beyond it runs the Loyalhanna, a small stream, which was at this time very shallow, with a covered bridge over it. At nightfall we reached New Salem, then Millersburg, and about midnight, Pittsburgh.[57]
Pittsburg is an old, large, but by no means handsome town, celebrated for its manufactories and brisk trade, and has been described by many travellers. The town itself has 12,000 inhabitants; but with the suburbs, its population is estimated at 24,000 souls, including many Germans, some of whom are respectable merchants. Coal mines in the immediate neighbourhood (a part of which is now on fire), afford an ample supply of fuel for the numerous steam-engines, stoves, &c. The style of building in the town is everything but uniform, neat brick houses being mixed with small wooden ones. The streets are ill-paved, dirty, and badly lighted; some of them, however, are modern and regular; and the new edifices are handsome and elegant. There are many iron works, nail manufactories, gla.s.shouses, cotton manufactories, &c., in many of which, steam-engines are employed, of which, as we were told, there are above 100 at work, which are likewise made here.
This town lies on the tongue of land between the rivers Monongahela and Alleghany, which, by their union, form the Ohio; this river is not very considerable here; yet, at certain seasons, when the water is high, it is navigable by steam-boats, of which I counted sixteen on the banks of the Monongahela. Over the Alleghany there is a covered bridge, 500 paces in length, which has, on each side, an additional covered footpath; and a covered aqueduct, of the same length, is likewise carried across the river. A similar long and colossal bridge is built over the Monongahela.
The situation of Pittsburg itself is not very pleasing, but there are interesting points in the environs. As I was furnished with very good letters of recommendation, several of the inhabitants of Pittsburg endeavoured to make my stay there agreeable. Messrs. Volz and Von Bonnhorst [pg. 61] (the latter of whom had been an officer in the Prussian army) were extremely kind to me. Mr. Lambdin, possessor of a museum which was yet in its infancy, likewise gave useful recommendations and instructions.[58] Mr. Volz had the goodness to accompany me to Economy, the remarkable and interesting colony of Mr.
Rapp. For this purpose we left Pittsburg on the 29th, pa.s.sed the great Alleghany bridge, and the suburb, and drove by the large new House of Correction, towards the Ohio.[59] On the eminence to the right of the town is the convent of Flanders nuns, who have established a school, in which they receive children of all religious denominations. We proceeded on the right bank of the Ohio, eighteen miles, to Economy.
Economy has been described, in its leading features, by Duke Bernard of Saxe Weimar;[60] but it has become much more flourishing since that time. It is well known that old Mr. Rapp, with a company of between 600 and 700 Swabian emigrants, came to America, and had, at that time, but very limited resources. He founded, with his people, successively three settlements; first, Old Harmony, near the Ohio; then, New Harmony, on the Wabash, in the State of Indiana; and then, Economy, near Pittsburg. This last settlement has now about 150 houses, which at first were slightly built of wood, but are now succeeded by better ones of brick; they are two stories high, and neatly painted. The church is s.p.a.cious and plain, built of brick, with a pretty steeple, and a good bell.
The rapidity with which these settlements sprung up, amidst thick forests, proves the judgment and prudence of their founder. The order introduced at Economy is admirable; n.o.body is seen in the streets during the day; all the inhabitants are usefully employed; young men and women, and also the children, are distributed among the several manufactories, where they work and receive no wages, but all their wants are amply provided for, free of cost. They are cleanly and neatly dressed in their Swabian costume, and nothing but German is spoken amongst them. The possessions and the revenues of the whole establishment are the joint property of the community, every inhabitant having placed his property in the common fund. Mr. Rapp and his adopted son are the directors, and the only complaint is, that no account is given of the management, and that the government of the inst.i.tution is rather too dictatorial. Be this as it may, it cannot be denied that the arrangement and direction of this artificial society are admirable, and do honour to the founder. Mr. Rapp has established several important manufactories with steam-engines; even silks are manufactured from silk produced on the spot. The mulberry plantations and the management of the silk-worms are under the especial care of Mr. Rapp"s grand-daughter. The manufactories alone are said now to yield an annual profit of 20,000 dollars. Several large buildings have been erected for a cotton and a woollen cloth manufactory, a mill, an inn, where the accommodations are very good and reasonable, &c.
Everything they want is raised or made by themselves. They have extensive corn fields and vineyards, and breed great numbers of [pg. 62]
cattle. Mr. Rapp has erected a large building, with a great saloon in the upper story, where the inhabitants meet on festive occasions, and where they have musical entertainments. In the lower story of this building, a cabinet of natural history has been commenced, in three rooms, which already contains some very interesting specimens.
After we had viewed all these objects, and had been led by Mr. Rapp, jun., through the manufactories, we went to the dwelling-house of the director of the establishment, and met with a very friendly reception from his family, who were dressed entirely in the manner of the country people of Wurtemberg. They told us they would never deviate from their old national manners, and would always remain Germans, which we were very glad to hear. Soon afterwards, the founder of the establishment, Mr. Rapp, came in. He was a vigorous old man, of venerable appearance, with white hair and a long beard. We supped with him, drank very good wine produced here, and, in conclusion, were entertained by six or seven girls and a young man, who is the schoolmaster, and is said to be well informed, with singing and playing on the piano. We here became acquainted with Mr. Ehrmann of Mannheim, an agreeable, well-educated man, whose wife is likewise a very interesting person, and who was engaged in establishing a manufactory near Economy.
On the following day we viewed the park, in which there were seventeen Virginian deer. Most of them had already got their winter coat; some were still a little red: they cast their horns in March. As it was Sunday, the people a.s.sembled, at nine in the morning, in the church, which has neither pulpit nor organ. The men sat on the right hand of the preacher, the women on the left; the older persons in front, the young people a little way back. Mr. Rapp"s family had the first place.
When the congregation were a.s.sembled, old Mr. Rapp entered with a firm step, seated himself at a table which was on a raised platform, and gave out a hymn, which was sung in rather quick time. After a prayer delivered standing, he preached on a text from the bible, in a bold, figurative style, well suited to country people, and with very animated gesticulation. After the sermon some verses were sung, and Mr. Rapp delivered a prayer, which the congregation repeated after him, sitting. The word Amen was always repeated by the whole congregation. In the afternoon we took a very cordial farewell of the worthy family of Mr. Rapp, and set out on our return.
The country about Pittsburg has some zoological rarities, specimens of which my travelling companions had collected during my absence. Among them are, in particular, many interesting fresh water sh.e.l.ls of the Ohio. Several American naturalists have written on these Bivalve testacea; and there is, probably, no other country so rich in beautiful and manifold productions of this kind. On their excursions in the neighbouring islands in the Ohio, they met with trees of colossal size, and especially a maple, that measured twenty French feet in circ.u.mference at the height of twelve feet from the ground, where it divided into four thick parallel stems, from which [pg. 63] the branches issued. Among the remarkable and interesting natural productions of these rivers, we must mention the soft sh.e.l.l turtles of the Americans (_Trionyx_, _Aspidonectes_, Wagl.), of which there are two or three species. They grow to a great size, and are often seen in the markets. Another very remarkable animal, which is very numerous here, is the great Alleghany salamander (_Menopoma_, Harlan), which is here called alligator, and of which I obtained many specimens alive, so that Mr. Bodmer was able to make an accurate drawing from the life.
Then there is the _Triton lateralis_, Say., or _Men.o.branchus lateralis_, Harlan, which differs from the preceding by the tufts at the gills, which remain even in old age. America is well known to abound in these singular enigmatical animal forms, which are nearly akin to the European _Proteus_, or _Hypochthon_.
FOOTNOTES:
[55] This plant, called by the Americans the poke plant, is used, in many parts, as a vegetable for the table. When the plant is young, and not above six inches high, of a whitish, and not dark green colour, the leaves are tender, and very delicate. It is thought that it might be very advisable to cultivate it in the kitchen gardens.--MAXIMILIAN.
[56] Huntingdon, seat of the county of the same name, was settled about 1760 on the site of a famous Indian council ground, and named for Selena, Countess of Huntingdon. It was incorporated in 1760, and had a population at the last federal census of 6,053.--ED.
[57] New Alexandria is a small village in Westmoreland County, on Loyalhanna Creek, thirty-three miles east of Pittsburg.
New Salem (or Salem), in the same county, twenty-five miles east of Pittsburg, was laid out in 1833.
Many early western travellers give descriptions and historical accounts of Pittsburg. See particularly c.u.ming"s _Tour_, in our volume iv, pp. 242-255.--ED.
[58] James R. Lambdin was born in Pittsburg (1807), studied under Thomas Sully, of Philadelphia (1823-25), and began painting in his native town. Later he made professional visits to the chief towns between Pittsburg and Mobile, and started a museum of art and antiquities at Louisville, Kentucky, where he lived several years.
From 1837 until his death in 1889 he resided princ.i.p.ally in Philadelphia, but painted much at Washington, executing portraits of all the presidents from John Q. Adams to James A. Garfield. Lambdin was appointed by President Buchanan (May 15, 1859) as one of the three members of the Art Commission provided for by acts of Congress on June 12, 1858, and March 3, 1859, for the purpose of a survey of the public buildings at Washington and submitting a report on the system of decorations. .h.i.therto used, and recommending plans to secure a harmonious effect in the future. For this report, dated February 22, 1860, see _Executive Doc.u.ments, 36 Cong., 1 sess., No. 43_.--ED.