Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1844-11-08
To he Editors Of The Enquirer:
MEN AND THINGS IN MICHIGAN.-N

"Wolrerines,' as participators in your Demo.
cratic creed. There is manly good sense show
Ing itsetin all their conduct-n their private de-
pertinent, and in their public nslilutons-whch
makes their concurrence just matter of conera-
tulation TO the holders OF any opinion. spoke
before of their good morals, their sobrietry, indus
try, and attention to physical comfort Never did
a people prove more clearly the moral usefulness
of this last mentioned virtue-attenlon TO physi-
cal comfort. Never can there be better exem-
plification Of Macaulay', remark, Gin his Essay
on Lord Bacon, that, in promoting the bodily
comforts OF mankind You do much towards
making them virtuous Dependency, ndo.
lence, dissipation, vice and crime follow in
the train Of discomfort. The inhabiant of
damp, cold ill-lighted dwelling, is not apt
to read-becomes disheartened; he knows not
why; works, perhaps, with spasmodic bu, in
effeclua industry; and in the intervals of his la
Dor (Which grow longer and longer) probably
takes 10 the bottle for consolation. How many
oh, how many such cases are there, in the hun
dreds Of cabins that have no plank floors, or glass
windows, within 60 miles Of Richmond The
people of Michigan, TO man, seem 10 have
found out, that the ordinary price OF drink Of
grog will glaze one pane in window: and with
about one-fourth OF the sum which many OF or
dwclers in unglazed and dirt-hoored houses year
~ expend in liquor, the g Wolverines" plank
floor and slass-window their houses; laying out
the other three fourhs in schooling their children
or improving their farms
For raising wheat, several counties of this
Stale vie with the famous GcncSsee eoint1v, in \.
York. Their produce is from Is TO 10 bushels
per acre Thanks no doubt 10 the Home
Market" which The Tariff furnishes rs, wheat is
worth, al Kalamazoo only lhir.y-hve or forty
cents bushel. Crops here are more varied than
in Virginia wheat, buckwheat, Indian corn, oats,
potatoes, turnips, ruta baga pumpkins and squash
es may all be considered staple crops. By poia-
tees, in all the Northern States, Irish potatoes
meant. Sweet ones are nearly unknown here.
The universal cry among the people OF Michigan
is that agriculture yields mel aLcre onc or ro per
cent-illst the estimate for Virginia Yet a.
passed through New York, saw ii announced in
Tariff paper, that manufacturing company
in Massachusetts. whose capital was 81 ,5oO.000,
he'd proclaimed dividend Of SEVEN Per cent Tor
half YEAR, Tariff champion, with whom
Lauled about the merits Of that system. stated
the profit, OF the manufacturers 10 be TWENTY per
cent year They are cutting out England nom
Foreign markets; Lay are competing with her
on her own soil So heg boast They comm"
the farmers and planters TO the h0n1 MARKET in
order 10 gain Tor themselves, The market OF the
world. That men nonorcd With the name oi
statesmen should, in THIS age, abuse legislation
10 promote such OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES thus make
one class thrive at :nch fatal expense TO anoiier-
should thus undertake Gin the strong language OF
Col John T:.ylor') 10 tattsh nan IN fecding hiR
on she's cut tram his orR bodu-slocks reason, and
would pass all pelei, if we did not sec and lcel
The grinding i:ct
The Horne MARKET am sure many OF the keen
spectators, themselves who talk Oft, see the deu-
sion they are playing of. They are calculating
people and must know, that ofthe surplus hundred
million bushels OF wheat raised for sale in the |.
States, Ohio alone affords THREE MILLION
more than all the protected manufacturers ANA
their dependents and families can consume
Young Michigan herself, over ard above feeding
her own 100000 people pleniiitlly, would come
near sIbsisiing every one of that favored class.
Michigan has her coaiMoS-scHooL system, or
ganzed essenla; like those oil New York and
the New England States. Fer population in ma
nv parts is verv sparse much spaTscr than ours.
any where Eas! Of the Blue Ridge: yet she has
Sc, her school system going; and 1t is banishing
ignorance and excluding vice as proper educa
ZION ALWAYS will dc. In one al my excursions
last week, was invited 10 assist IL meeting Of
The Inspectors Of schools for one township. 10 frame
81, OF bylaws for Tic Library which is TO be fur
nished 10 each township and so had an oppCr-
tunity of inspecting the books chosen. Most OF
them are excellent, though regretted some omis-
sions, such as Sanford and Merton, several
volumes Of Miss Edgewouh, and several OF Miss
Selgewick's. | was sorry TOO 10 see "Story on the
Constitution" among the collection II will i'm
plant wrong views in myriads OF Young minds.
as Goodrich's History OF the United States has
done, BY telling It's readers that the Constitution
authorizes Congress TO make all laws necessar;
and proper "ior the general welfare" The Mi
chisan law, respecting the books 10 be provided
for these Common Schools, requires them TO be
tendency Those which have been distributed,
are exactly lhose oi the Massachusetts Common
School Library.
viii my honored native State forgive ne, if
have made no secret here OF the astounding fact,
that more than $500 of her white men and wo-
men cannot read or write. Ies-l have stated
il al least once, in large company of persons,
from different States And il opportunity offer
ed | would proclaim il trumpel-.ongued oeer the
whole Union in hope that The truth, 50 diScredit
able 10 her, might by lis reverbcra,ions from
abroad, at length alfonso her 10 the efforts ncces-
Sary 10 rid her OF the shame
The face and formation OF Michigan are very
The highest ground in il is said TO be
moi more than $50 or 800 feet above Lake Erie.
The railroad. which is to connect Detroit with
Lake Michigan, Drumming due East aud West
across The peninsula,) has already gone far be-
vond the summit level. without any excavations
deeper than Is or Is feet. or establishments higher
than to match them VIVA, strikes an observer
is tina; in the deepest oil these cuts no
fixed or s,ralded rock is found II Is all loose.
light sandy earth. with iMEunciabe pebbles OF
various sizes generally rounded and smooth, as
by the action oi water II Is Just the same IN all
the wells tina, have been dug. Some of them
Weld excellent water at II or Is feet. heard Of
one however, 9G lets deep. and another more than
a hundred Bul every one OF them 10 Tie very
bottom. exhibited ony sand, earth and pebbles or
sometimes shells; no siratilied rock. Abundant
beds OF mari, Of very rich quality, are found IN
Kalamazoo and Serctal adjoining counties.
The country is every where ovef-sirewn win /!
what GeolagiSS call hon|GeS, or last rac:S, from (
the size oil a mans head 10 ,ha. oil Il Sky gallon (
cass Some oi them aIe sand-s,onc-Some are +
of the oroin OF argilaceous sia.e, though without (
The cie0saccs Of siate-olle!S seem 70 ne ch!Ori-
tic sa;c-an at others are that SORT ol granite cali
cd s;cn,tc They are nearly all rounded. and (
smooth. as il they had been rolled ever and over |
in water Tor countless years. Many Of hem, /
and of the pebbles found here, are said 10 bc I
manitcstly OF the same kind, with the picturesque
precipiceS tina. lie Oil he North side Of Lake Sn !
perior How they got hiiher, is not for me 10 /
say, though believe in the theory oil Professor
Rogers on the subject.
On the map ol Michigan, You soc in is +
Southern countries, (kalamanao &c. "a number .
Of small lakes. | have uaveIsed the shores OF
many. They are commonly :cali'iG shoes OF I
water. Round Lake, (or Grarci Lake. III Van
Buren, county, is the rlos; beautiful lhal have !
seen 1t is nearly circular, more than mile in I
diameter so cltlI, That you Nag see III" bottom,
where il !; weE,y fee deep, and SO deep. ia a
line, two hundred feet .ong has failed 10 reach inc
bottom Ii has bold Otter banks, rising len, III /
teen. OF twel:y fee, and firm sandy beach, upon
which mimic b:llcws, fre or six inches high, !
in moderate breeze, are perpctually rolling and
breaking. In hard winds. the wares arc severGi
feet in hesa. Imagine such a lake, boTdered BY
a handsome house ard tasteful Improvements
and graced by pleasure boats, scudding over its
surface. They ,rN be seen there some d.. |
never bcheld Z scene which the hand OF taste |
nigh, 3eau,ity So exquisittly. =. '--'-.
In his "Araior," Col Taylor ays that the
attempt 10 make na,ion prosper by lrSIslaiin2 I
for one Glass or portion al the expense OF another,