4. Cities and Towns. Charleston, the commercial metropolis, and formerly the seat of government, is built upon a point of land at the junction of Ashley and Cooper rivers. harbor is capacious, but difficult of entrance. The city is regularly built, and though the site is low, the approach to it by water is particularly fine. Many of the streets are very handsome, and most of the houses are furnished with piazzas to each story. In the outer parts of the city, the houses are surrounded with gardens, and ornamented by trees and shrubbery. Groves of orange and peach trees in bloom, present here a most inviting appearance to the traveler, who arrives from the North in the early season. The most remarkable edifices of this city, are the Orphan Asylum, and the Circular Church. In the former, 130 orphan children are maintained from the proceeds of an ample endowment for that purpose. The city hall, exchange, two arsenals, the citadel, marine hospital, academy of fine arts, &c., are the other public buildings. There are numerous other charitable institutions. The Charleston library contains 14,000 volumes. There is also a college in the city, and an excellent medical institution. During the winter, this city is much frequented by strangers, from different parts of the country. At this season, it is found a very agreeable residence. In the summer the neighborhood is unhealthy, yet the city is seldom visited by the common epidemics of the South. The commerce of Charleston consists chiefly in the export of cotton and rice. Population, 40,000, half of whom are blacks. Moultrieville, on Sullivan's Island at the mouth of the harbor, is a pleasant summer resort.

There is no other large town in the State.

Columbia is the seat of government.

It stands on the Congaree, near the centre of the State, and occupies an elevated plain, sloping gently on every side. The plan of the town is regular. It contains a college, and 4,000 inhabitants. Georgetown, at the head of Winyaw bay, formed by the junction of the Great Pedee, Waccamaw, and two or three other streams, is 13 miles from the sea, and has considerable commerce. Population, 2,000. Beaufort, on the island of Port Royal, is a pleasant town, with a healthy situation, and good harbor; but it has little commerce. Camden, on the Wateree, enjoys a portion of the interior trade, but is chiefly remarkable for the battles fought in its neighborhood during the Revolution. Population, 2,000. Cheraw, on the Pedee, has 1,500 inhabitants.

5. Agriculture. Cotton and rice occupy the chief attention of the planters. Some tobacco is raised, and indigo was once an important article of cultivation. Wheat, maize, and other grains thrive well, but are so much neglected, that supplies are sought in the neighboring States.

6. Commerce. The exports of cotton from this State form an important item in our national commerce, and amount to 200,000 or 250,000 bales yearly. The export of rice is also great. The commerce is carried on to a great extent by northern and foreign vessels, the shipping of South Carolina amounting to only 20,000 tons. The annual imports are about 2,000,000 dollars; the exports 10,000,000.

7. Government. The legislature is called the General Assembly, and consists of a Senate and House of Representatives. The senators are chosen for 4 years, according to the population and wealth of the districts. The representatives are chosen for 2 years, according to population. The Governor is chosen by the legislature for 2 years. The Lieutenant-Governor has no power or duty except on the death or removal of the Governor. The qualifications for voting amount nearly to universal suffrage. The clergy are ineligible to any civil office. This State sends 9 representatives to Congress.

8. Religion. The Methodists, Baptists, and Presbyterians, are the most numerous sects; the first number 37,500, and the second 36,300 communicants. The Presbyterians have 90 churches, the Episcopalians 50, the Lutherans 34, and the Roman Catholics 5, and there are some Unitarians, Friends, Universalists, and Jews.

9. Education. The College of South Carolina, at Columbia, was established in 1801. It has 9 instructers, and 150 students. The library has 7,000 volumes. Charleston College, in that city, founded in 1785, Zion College, and Beaufort College, are rather high schools. There are annually appropriated for free schools, about 37,000 dollars. There is a Medical School in Charleston. The Lutherans have a Theological Seminary at Lexington, the Presbyterians at Columbia, the Baptists near Statesburg, and the Roman Catholics at Charles

ton.

10. History. The first settlement within this State was made at Port Royal, in 1670. The next year, Charleston was founded. North Carolina was originally a part of this colony, and the constitution of Locke was in operation here. In the early times, the State was dis

turbed by many disagreements among the settlers, who were of different sects in religion. Episcopacy was at one time established by law, and dissenters were excluded from the legislature; but this regulation was annulled by Queen Anne. The separation from North Carolina has been already mentioned. For some time previous to the Revolution, the government was administered by officers appointed by the crown. After this, the colonial forms were adhered to, till 1790, when the present constitution was established. This has since been twice amended.

CHAPTER XXII. GEORGIA.

PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY.

1. Boundaries and Extent. This State is bounded N. by North Carolina and Tennessee; E. by South Carolina and the ocean; S. by Florida; W. by Alabama. It extends from 30° 30 to 35° N. lat. and from 80° 50' to 86° W. long., being 300 miles in length from north to south, and 250 broad, and containing 62,000 square miles.

tent.

2. Face of the Country. In the northwestern part of the State there are some mountainous ridges, belonging to the Blue Ridge and Kittatinny chains, but these are of no great exLike the Carolinas, Georgia consists of three zones or belts; the flat, maritime belt, 100 miles in breadth, much of which is daily flooded by the tides; the sand-hill belt, or pine barrens, extending inland to the lower falls of the rivers, and the hilly and mountainous tract. The latter is a broken, elevated region, rising from 1,200 to 2,000 feet above the level of the

sea.

3. Rivers. Georgia occupies a great inclined plane, sloping down from the Appalachian System to the Atlantic Ocean, and the Gulf of Mexico, and discharging its waters into those basins, the Savannah, the Alatamaha, and the Ogeechee into the former, and the Appalachicola into the latter. The Savannah forms the northeastern boundary, and empties itself into the Atlantic Ocean, after a course of about 600 miles. It is navigable for large vessels to Savannah, 15 miles from the sea, and to Augusta, 250 miles, for steamboats of 150 tons. Beyond this there is boat navigation 150 miles. The Ogeechee has a course of about 200 miles; sloops ascend 40 miles, and large boats to Louisville. The Alatamaha is formed by the junction of the Oconee and Ocmulgee. The tide flows up 25 miles, and large vessels go up to Darien, 12 miles. The Oconee and Ocmulgee have been ascended to Milledgeville and Macon, in steamboats, but the navigation of these rivers is chiefly carried on in large, flatbottomed boats, on account of the shoals and rapids. The Saint Mary's, which forms, in part, the boundary between Georgia and Florida, takes its rise in an extensive swamp, called Okefinokee Swamp, and pursues a winding course to the sea. The tide flows up the river 50 miles, and its mouth forms a commodious harbor. The Chattahoochee and Flint rivers, drain nearly all the western part of the State, and by their junction form the Appalachicola, which traverses Florida. The former rises in the Blue Ridge, and has a course of about 450 miles. Steamboats ascend to Columbus, 300 miles, and the produce of the upper counties is brought down stream in boats. Flint River has a course of 300 miles, and is navigable for steamboats, to Bainbridge, 50 miles.

4. Islands. Like the preceding State, Georgia is bordered toward the sea with a range of small islands and marshy tracts, intersected by channels and rivulets, which are navigable for small vessels. These islands consist of a rich grey soil, called hummock land. In their natu ral state, they are covered with forests of live oak, pine, and hickory; but under cultivation they produce the best cotton in the world, called Sea-island cotton.

5. Climate. There is little difference between the climate of this State, and that of South Carolina. The northern part is mountainous and healthy. In the swampy districts of the State, fevers are common in the warm season. The islands are the most salubrious spots in

this quarter.

6. Soil. The coast within the islands is a salt marsh, beyond which is a narrow belt of good land, similar to the islands. This is succeeded by the Pine Barrens, which are interspersed with swampy tracts. The borders of the rivers are low and marshy, and subject to inundations. These parts are applied to the cultivation of rice. The Pine Barrens extend from 50 to 100 miles from the sea, and are succeeded by a region of sand hills, 30 or 40 miles wide, diversified here and there with a verdant spot, and bounded on the north by the elevated

land, which, further onward, rises into mountains. Here the soil is various, but generally strong and productive. The greater part of the State is alluvial. Okefinokee Swamp lies in the southern part of this State, extending into Florida. It is a sort of marshy lake, about 180 miles in circumference, and during wet seasons has the appearance of an inland sea, with many islands. It abounds with alligators, snakes, and all sorts of reptiles.

7. Curiosity. In the northwestern extremity of the State, near the Tennessee River, is an eminence, called Raccoon Mountain. On one of the precipitous sides of this mountain, is a deep cavern, called Nicojack Cave. Its mouth is 50 feet high and 160 feet wide. It has been explored for several miles without coming to the end. The floor is covered with a stream of cool, limpid water through its whole extent, and the cavern is accessible only in a canoe. Three miles within, is a cataract, beyond which voyagers have not penetrated. The roof is a solid limestone rock, smooth and flat, and the cave is remarkably uniform in size throughout.

8. Mineral Productions. Copper and iron ore have been found, and gold is obtained in considerable quantities. There are sulphureous springs in Butts county, called the Indian Springs, much resorted to for their efficacy in rheumatic and cutaneous disorders. The Madison Springs, 25 miles northwest of Athens, are chalybeate waters.

POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY.

1. Divisions and Population. Georgia is divided into 93 counties.*

2. Cities and Towns. Savannah, the largest city in the State, is situated on the western bank of the river of that name, 17 miles from the sea, with a good ship navigation for that distance. The site of Savannah is elevated and pleasant. The streets are wide and regular, with spacious squares and many handsome edifices. It contains 10 churches, a theatre, an exchange, a city hall, a hospital, and a public library. It is an unhealthy place in summer, yet enjoys considerable commerce, and is the great mart for the cotton planters of the whole State. The whole value of the exports exceeds 15,000,000 dollars, annually. Population, 12,000.

Augusta, on the Savannah, 240 miles above Savannah, by the river, but only 127 in a straight line, enjoys most of the interior trade of this quarter. It is regularly laid out with spacious streets, and is handsomely built, containing several tasteful public buildings and elegant

dwelling-houses. Its trade and importance have been much increased by the Charleston Railroad. Population, 8,000.

Brunswick is an embryo city on the coast, remarkable for its excellent harbor, a rare advantage in this section of the country. Darien is a neat little town in the same quarter, with some business.

Milledgeville is the seat of government. It stands on the Oconee, near the centre of the State. The river is navigable to this place for boats of 25 tons, and the town has considerable trade. Population, 2,500. The town is in a pleasant and productive region, and contains the capitol, penitentiary, arsenal, and several churches. Dahlonega, to the north, is the seat of one of the branches of the United States mint. Macon, on the Ocmulgee, has an extensive trade, being the depot of a populous and fertile country. Population, 3,500. Forsyth, in the vicinity, is also a thriving town. Columbus, on the Chattahoochee, has sprung up within a few years, in the midst of the wilderness. The site is beautiful, and the streets are spacious and regular. Population, 4,000.

3. Agriculture. The great agricultural staples of Georgia, at present, are cotton and rice;

Cotton Plantation.

some tobacco is raised in the central and northern parts, and a few hundred hogsheads of sugar are made in the southern section, where the cane is found to thrive in suitable soils. The founders of the colony designed to make it a great wine and silk country, and in 1760, 10,000 pounds of raw silk were exported; but rice and indigo early attracted the attention of the settlers, and became the most important crops, until the introduction of the cottonplant turned nearly the whole industry of the planters to cotton. The cotton crop at present exceeds 300,000 bales, of the value of 14,000,000 dollars, and is increasing in amount; the cotton is of two sorts, the upland or green-seed, and the sea-island, black-seed or long-staple. The

latter is raised only in the islands on the coast and the neighboring mainland, and being highly prized for the fineness of its fibre, brings twice as much as the inferior kinds in the market. In the latter part of August or beginning of September, the pods open or blow, and the worl is gathered; after having been dried in the open air, it is separated from the seeds, by passing it between two cylindrical rollers, which do not admit the passage of seeds; it is then moted, or freed from specks, winnowed, and is ready for packing.

4. Commerce. The exports of Georgia, in addition to cotton and rice, are tar, pitch, turpentine, and some lumber, the products of the vast pine forests, but the quantity of these is inconsiderable, compared with the amount which they might be made to yield. Almost every article of necessity and luxury is imported, so exclusively has the industry of the planters been devoted to cotton; cattle, horses, hogs, and cotton bagging are brought in from the Western States; clothing, furniture, carriages, harnesses, agricultural implements and machines, and almost every other manufactured article, foreign and domestic, wines, groceries, &c., come from the Northern States. The annual value of the direct imports from foreign countries, exceeds 800,000 dollars; that of exports to foreign countries is about 8,000,000 dollars.

5. Canals and Railroads. A canal from Savannah to the Ogeechee, 4 miles above the mouth of the Canoochee, 13 miles in length, and a similar work from Brunswick to the Alatamaha, of the same length, are the only artificial channels of navigation in this State; but something has been done towards removing obstructions to navigation in the Alatamaha, Oconee, Ocmulgee, and Flint. Several important railroads are in progress. The Central Railroad from Savannah to Macon, a distance of about 190 miles, is in a state of forwardness; the Monroe Railroad, from Macon to Forsyth, 25 miles, is a continuation of that work, which is to be further extended to Decatur, 60 miles; the Georgia Railroad, extends from Augusta to Decatur, 160 miles; the Main Trunk of the Western and Atlantic Railroad, extending from Decatur, across the Chattahoochee, to the Tennessee, near Rossville, about 120 miles, is designed to

form a common junction of the Central and Georgia Railroads with the Tennessee Valley. The Brunswick and Florida Railroad, from Brunswick to the head of Appalachicola River, is in progress. The Franklin Railroad, from West Point to Franklin, is 30 miles long. 6. Government. The legislature is called the General Assembly, and consists of a Senate and House of Representatives. The members of both Houses are chosen annually. Each county has one senator. Representatives are chosen according to population, including three fifths of the slaves. The Governor is chosen by the people for 2 years. All residents who pay taxes are voters. Georgia sends 9 representatives to Congress.

7. Religion. The Baptists and Methodists are the most numerous. The former number above 40,000, and the latter about 30,000 communicants, including slaves. The Presbyterians have about 5,000 communicants, and there are many Christians and Protestant Methodists. The Episcopalians, Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Friends, Unitarians, and Jews, are less numerous; the number of the latter is stated to be about 400.

8. Education. The University of Georgia, at Athens, was first established in 1785, but has not been in operation for the whole of that period. It has 10 instructers, and 160 students. Its libraries have 4,250 volumes. There are about 90 academies in the State, and there is a fund for their support, of 500,000 dollars.

9. History. Georgia was the latest settled of all the Atlantic States. In 1732, a body of 113 emigrants, under James Oglethorpe, founded Savannah; and 3 years afterwards many Scotch, Swiss, and Germans, formed settlements upon the coast. Wesley, the celebrated founder of the Methodist sect, visited Georgia in 1736, but quitted the colony when about to be brought to trial for what was esteemed misbehavior. George Whitefield also paid this colony a visit shortly after, and assisted in building up the sect of Methodists. The colony was involved in wars with the Spaniards of Florida, who invaded the coast, and established themselves for a short time upon the Alatamaha, but were driven off after a vigorous campaign. The charter was afterwards surrendered to the crown, and a royal government was established in 1754. The first constitution was formed in 1777; another in 1785; and the present one in 1798.

CHAPTER XXIII. TERRITORY OF FLORIDA.

PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY.

1. Boundaries and Extent. The territory of Florida is bounded north by Alabama and Georgia; east by the Atlantic Ocean; south by the Florida Stream, which separates it from Cuba, and west by the Gulf of Mexico, and the River Perdido, which separates it from Alabama. It lies between lat. 25° and 31° north, and long. 80° and 87° 44′ west, and has an area of 56,000 square miles. The southern portion forms a peninsula, 350 miles in length by 150 in breadth, which separates the Gulf of Mexico from the Atlantic Ocean.

2. Rivers. The St. John's rises in the centre of the peninsula, and flows northwest, nearly parallel to the Atlantic, presenting more the appearance of a sound than a river. Its sources are in an extensive marsh very little above the level of the ocean, and as its course is about 300 miles, its current must be sluggish. It is navigable about two thirds of its course for vessels of 6 feet draft. The Appalachicola, formed by the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochee, flows south into the Gulf of Mexico, after a course of 100 miles, through the whole of which it is navigable for sea vessels. All the rivers of this region have sand-bars at their mouths. The other principal rivers are the Escambia, Suwanee, Oscilla, Withlacooche, Ockloconnee, and Tolopchopko.

3. Lakes. The lakes are numerous, and some of them are of considerable dimensions; they are in general remarkable for the transparency of their waters, and often present scenes of great beauty. Lakes Orange, George, and Monroe, which discharge their waters by the St. John, Kissimmee and Okeechobee, further south, lakes Jackson, Yamong, and Mickasookie in the west, are among the principal.

4. Islands. The shore is lined with small, low islands, separated from each other, and from the main land, by narrow and shallow inlets and channels. Amelia Island and Anastatia, on the Atlantic coast, are low, sandy strips, about 15 miles in length, by 1 in breadth. To the southwest is a chain of islets called Keys, (from the Spanish cayo, a rocky islet,) among which is Key West, or Thompson's Island, 20 leagues from the shore. It contains a military