Mississippi Democrat. (Carrollton, Miss.) 1844-18??, 1845-08-20

this billy country, another level or gent
' undulailng region extends northward Il
. words the Red river. This section is
x oout one hundred miles broad, on the M
rld'an Of Austin, and gradually wider
eastward, and contracts westward Of tn
! line. 1t encloses the Great Salt Lake
> the BIasos. Il is bounded on the noriI
,, west by range of mountains which fu
nlsh the sources Of the Red river, the Bri
! ses, Colorado, and other streams on IN
east, and the Rio Puerco and other tribr
iaries Of The Rio Grande on the west.
The prairies of Texas form an impor
tant feature of its surface. They com
prise about four-fifihs of the level, am
nearly one-half Of the indicating region
They vary in dimensions from five mile
TO one hundred in lengih-breadth a6ou
one-fourth the length. The size is pro
porlloned TO the distances between The
principal streams. In the western co,ln.
ties, the prairies, are beautifully diversified
with small groves Of timber; those of the
level region, however, are entirely open.
The soil Of the prairies is remarkably uni
form in its character throughout the whole
country, consisting generally of a black
vegetable mould, varying from four inches
10 tour feet in depth, resting upon beds of
sandy or cayey loan. This soil differs
but little in fertility from that of the bot.
tom lands-it is covered with an abund.
ance OF nutritious grass, a1ordng an mex
hausilble supply Of pasturage. There is,
probably, no class of men upon the globe
who can live more independently, or with
less care and labor, than The herdsmen of
Texas. The cattle feed out upon the pra.
tries or in the wooded bottoms the whole
year, and require almost as little attention
as the wild deer or the bounding buffalo.
The scenery Of the prairies which lie
east Of the Colorado valley, Is TOO mo-
nolonous to be agreeable. The larger
pralries may, from their immensity, aston.
ish and surprise the behoder,like The broad
UNMARRIED expanse of The ocean. The
smaller ones, with their even, uniform chr.
pet OF verdurc, walled IN with tall forest
trees on every side. must please the eve.
and wrap the senses for moment: hui
they fail to enchain attention, TO command
10 excite wonder, and make
lasting impressions upon the mind. They
possess none OF that constantly VARYING
harm of novelty, peculiar to hlly or
scenery and the tourist soon
becomes iatigued in noting the remarka.
he uniformity and resemblance Of feature
hat characterize them. The landscapes
lre bun continued series OF prairics
krted by forests, from the banks of the
San Jacinto to the Colorado.
This country, as its surface Indicates.
lords almost every variety Of soil. In
he level and undulating regions, il is ex.
eedingly fertile, consisting, in many
laces, of rich, deep, calcareous loan,
a which sandy and clayey particles are
combined with carbonaceous !
egetable mould. On the banks of Sc.
eral of the streams The soil assumes 8
sddish-yellow color, from The abundance
lerruginous earth mingled with It,
his is peculiarly Characteristic of the vi. ;
nifty of the Red river, and level country E
the Brosos, the Caney, and the Colora. a
}. On these streams the soils seem 10
,ntain all the elements Of fertility, and
g probably unsurpassed by any on the Z
ODE. Those Of the level and unduIatinr Y
gions differ but little in their chemical 2
nstlluents, and evince that they have Z
ZEN formed from common sedimcn,ary =
poslte The undulating sections are @
morally regarded as more fertile than r
level country. This may be owing a.
the fact, that the constituents Of the soil le
there more intimately blended than in IL
level country; consequently, The fer q.
zIng influence is more generally diffus- d
. The. soil of the billy region differs ~
dely. In the valleys, the alIuvial accu ar
ilatlons are generally very deep, and Sc
soil Is similar 10 that of the unduIating
,lon: it consists chiefly Of friable, sandy, to-
careous. loan, remarkably fertile &c
ar the Colorado, il encloses many hlnty, w
led pebbles, which arc gradually de- w
nposing and imparing siliceous char We
er. The hills have generally very t'o
II thin soil, consisting chiefly Of layer y
vegetable mould only aiew inches deep Lh'
ting upon horizontal strata Of lime 10y
ne. The productions Of Texas are on
iilar to those oil the middle and south. sal
States Of the Union, with the addition 'eF
tropical frniIs-cverything yielding i'm tne
nsely abundant returns Tor The little IA. lro
bestowed. The forests furnish vast an
niities of valuable timber, consisting cot
i've oak, pine, cedar, mesquii, (which wh
rly resembles mahogany.) bois dare, The
other timber highly priced for cabinet In
Iture. Il has been estimated that The pee
sts Of Texas would alone furnish Tor
ply Of live oak, sunicient for oil The
les Of the world. The mesquii grass,