Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1833-06-12

mipion the neltt Dominion, aau o1'ng 'ne ''''
Plead Of sovereignty back.
The truth il Virgina-and am sorry to say
tie inst where her great men left hcr-eer
Washinp tons. her Jeff,rsons. her Henrys' het
Madisoes-snd there she will be. know no'
no ~ ons-at least as long as she wastes ner t.me
in talking political metaphysics. ohe " my
years behind the age. speak now OF STATE 'ees.
ing as manifested in her Legislature. and no. 81
individuals. Kentucky, her daughter Mse'ung
ahead Of her every hour. Ohio is an'ase 10 Az
vance, with better internal Improvements -thah
Virginia will have in two centuries win hef pre-
sent notions. Even Indiana will soon put the
old Dominion 10 shame-and her sons in Illinois
will reap there those reward. which her polili.
clans will never suffer them to reap at home
There seems to be a paralysis ON almost every
thing here. A noble people to whom l am at
tached more ADD more. and Of whom think
better the more see Of them, seem I" be letter
ed-to be bampered by sumethIng, they know
not what. |, pains ones eyes to see the mis-
management 10 every thing. II gr'eves ones
heart to see 50 much State pride SO wretchedly
humbIed wherever it draws contrast with the
old or the new Sta,es--in the north or the west.
VIII Virginia never open her eyes. and see the
causes Let her sons but step into Pennsylvania,
or cross Inc Oniu, anu HHu"S '"ot
makes the difference, aud they cannot be blind
enough not to see
But truce to politics, and on with my jour.
ney. The salt works in the vicinity of Charles.
ton are qutea curiosity. They are very many
in number, and are closely connected Tor six
miles above Charleston, often on buth sides OF
the river, but speak more particularly OF the
eastern bank. | am informed that the whOie ex'
tent up and down river, Of the salt region is l5
miles. Hence the quantity Of salt that can be
manufactured must be immense. The salt wa
ter is below the fresh water-under the bed OF
the Kanawha,-and is obtained by boring through
rock. and the introduction of copper or TIN tubes
into which the salt. water rises as high as the bed
of the river, from which it is drawn upward, by
a forcing pump, sometimes worked by horses, but
oftrncr by steam. Salt water is often f., ced
from the margin of the river, through the very
fresh water itself. The process Of sat-making
is by boiling as is well known. Fortunately
there is an abundance of bitumnous coal in the
hills aud mountains around. which is often drawn
10 the salt works by mule, on wooden rail
road, descending from tire hills.
The next curiosity we met with, was the
Burning Spring. few miles from Charleston. -
The stage stopped at shop on the road-and the
driver pointed to an old field, aud told US, there
we're the Burning Springs. | saw no springs,
but after hunting little while saw somethIng
resembling mud pnddle bnbbing as il boiled
with q great fire underneath. Ii was to me a
new AMI interesting spectacle. There was a.
round il a strong sulphurous odor. fellow
passenger touk out his cis ar match, aud kIndled
newspaper. which he threw with. great caution
into the spring. dodging it as il the world was to
be set on fire. The fame caught rapidly though
it VAS not very strong. nor very large, but every
bubble took fire and the ilame skipped over the
little waves, and danced from bubble 10 bubble.
could have looked at it for hours. but the stage
driver sounded his horn-it was evening. and
we were soon shut up, 10 our stage prison.
The next morning we were on the road by the
cliff called BY the stage drivers 1.-The Hawks
Nest but more classicalIy named "Marshali's
Pillar" We stepped from the road, over a
we'll beaten path, some sixty steps TO the right,
and then we moved on a precpce terrific in
height. add sublime in size beyond any thing |
lave ever seen. The precipice is said to be a
thousand feet of perpendicular descent. though I
should think this an exaggeraion. | crept OH
my hands and knees to the verge-and the scene
was indeed terrific. started back, and cared
not to try the experiment again. The River,
called the New River, now large from the fresh
ct, approached US in front, with the tops Of the
tallest trees ON its banks, far, far beneath u.s.
On meeting the precipce, it makes right angle
in its bend. It forms a splendid ravine, now
blooming with vegetation on its banks. and quick.
eneG and enlyened by the swilt.rushDg current.
| 1t was glorious sight. Ones blood qulckens,
and ones thoughts are elevated. Man feels
more than himseIf-and yet abashed and hum.
bIed befcre such display Of woodworking na-
| ture. 1t was sunrise when we were there, and
the rays of the morpIng sun were tinsing the tops
of the hills, but not ray pierced the deep ra-
yine Only the noon day sun can touch the We
cetation at its bottom. was enjoying all this
the more perhaps, for the time and the hour.
morning anu sunrise as j. was. when the stage
horn again called US. The driver. little an.
| noyed at our delay, told US "he never could get
passengers away from that place.; and in that
sentence, roughly and ungraciousIy as it was ex.
pressed, there was more Of description TO be felt
than tan give you in page.
By night Of the second day. we were at Louis.
n