Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1846-09-30
uARpER,S FERRY.

HARPER'S fFERh1.
The scenery around the village OF Har-
per's Ferry on the Virginia Shore OF
The Potomac River, is among the most
wild and grand we have. ever seen not
excepting the Niagara Falls. The great
cataract is not there, but all the other e'e-
ments of stupendous and terrific grandeur
present themselves on every hard. MIR.
Jefferson thought it was worth a voyage
from Europe to view this scenery. Cecil
ogists number this place among The many
in our country where an immense lake
has broken through its mountain barrier,
and found an outlet 10 the ocean. The
great Blue Ridge, 10 which the gap has
been made for the passage of the waters.
corresponds in its geolgicai formation on
the opposite shores osfhe Potomac. The
rock is The same. and the jaeger Projee.
tions, from the base to the summit, indi-
cate the violence Of The disruption by
which they have been separated. The
altitude OF the peaks also correspond,
though the ascen, is more precipilous on
the Virginia than the Maryland side.
The actual heigh, Of the mountain, mea
sured from the river, we do NOT know;
but it makes ones head dizzy 10 look up
TO the top of its brow on the Virginia side,
from The point Of rocks" on the other
side Of the Potomac {; through which
passage has been cut, or rather blown, for
the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad" and
the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, which
run side by side at this place, until they
reach point nearly opposite the village
Of Harper's Ferry, where the railway
crosses the river, and pursues its way
through Virginia until within Few miles
of Cumberland. its present eastern termi.
nus, it crosses the stream again, into Ma
ryland,
llarper's Ferry is thriving place, moi
only from lis situation on the canal and
railway, but from the immense armory
which the General Government had es-
tablished there long before either f'kese
great enterprises had been thought of.
| Tho waller power is immense and unfail-
1 ing, and the manufacturing of arms is
/ carried on 10 a great q q monaI aud aeail. tbe
almost limos ndefi0iteIy extended. We are moi
aware that ahv cannon are cast at ,lh's
7 iiice; though our stay was TOO s!crI 10
allow any particular observations. On
one occasion we were kindly conducted
through ihe various an mighty establish
meu,s, but rerollect no foundery fnr cas-
ting those engines Of slaughter. which
have become, in modern times, the Prn'
cipal reliance of armies.
The Shenandoah River, having cc!lec-
ted irs tribute from the innunerable
streams by which the pine country On the
western side of the Blue Ridge, in Virgin
ia, is drained, disembngues its waters into
The Potomac al Harper's Ferry; but
neither the principal nor tributary stream
is navigable, except for rafIs in time Of
freshe,s. Both rivers have rapid decent
from their sources in the mountains. aud
moreover flow over rncky beds. But q
fiue canal, from tidewaer at Georfge'own'
and Alexandria in 'he District Of olun.
ola, has nearly reached Cumberland. al
the foo, oflhe Allegheny Mountains, and
will soon be completed to that place te
which town the railway has already
reached. and has also a stem stretching
away TO The town Of Winchester i'll Yves
tern Virginia. and another to FredericA
CITY in MARYLAND. Both canal and rail
way are designed ultimately to connec
The Atlantic Ocean with the waters Of The
"Greast West"
The great Cumberland Valley, whicI
stretches itself out from The Potomac
River. nor,hward through the states o
Maryland and Pennsylvania, and south
ward through the stale Of Virginia, ant
living between :he Blue Ridge aud lh'
Allegheny Mountains, commences at TIT
junction of the Shenandoah aud the Poto
} mac. 1t abounds with limestone, ant
; forms one OF the most fertile regions of ou
. country. II is. undoubtedly, exceeded ii
depth Of soil by some districts west Of tn
Alleghanies, but no part OF the Unlle'
States produces larger crops OF wheat, or
: in some parl of it. of Indian corn, ant
: grass. Wheat, however. is the great sta
Pile, and the average product, per acre, i
! not, perhaps, equaled in any portion o
the Western States. The great labor ant
expense of transportation to market for
, merly lessoned the value Of lands in tb'
Virginian portion flhis valley. bu, now |
. branch of the Baltimore and Ohio Rail
way offers a ready conveyance for; all il
rich productions 10 the Monumental City
or 10 the canal, by which it is sent I
Georgetown and Alexandria while III
immense mines of iron and coal in tn
mountains near Cumberland already be
gin to pour their treasures into these cite
BY the same couveyances. The ore is rich
!. and the bituminous coal is said to equa
the fines, specimens in Eng giand..
) From tie Ns,,, Orleans Pieasune.
, SNAKE JOHNSON. h.'a.. =, :.
Whether the subject Of this story &C
quired the appelation Of Snake" by;,k