Cooper's Clarksburg register. [volume] (Clarksburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1851-1861, 1853-08-17
New York Correspondence of the
Register.

7 Register.
j British Giuana at the Worlds. Fair De-
seriiption Of The Country Pharnaacsntal
4 Products Arnouo--H Han arry-1dble
top Woods of Giuana-Speeimens of
i .Sugar-.Scareity of Laborers-Natipe
i Coaon-hadian Gniosaies-A gigantic
4 Com5-Bo,rs and Arrous-Buek- Pots
Aacquari Whips-A Funeral Dance
The Magical Gourd-Admission at The
i Palace-1iro month Ifckas--Depar-
sare of Messrs. buchanan and ,Soule-
Serenads 10 Mr., .soule-FfgM ON an
Ereursion Boat. dc.
New York. August 9, 1853.
Mr.. EDITOR: -Perhaps in visiting the
Crystal Palace to-day. we cannot do bet
ter than conine ourselves to one particu-
lar department.. carefully examining what
ever in it may be worthy of notice. We
will select British Guiana, this being the
only South American country represent
ed in the Fair the curiosities from this
State. respecting whose productions so
little is generally known, have been Sc
lected and managed by men of science,
and are not only numerous. but by reason
of their novelty peculiarly interesting.
OF the three Giuanas, that belonging
to the British is the most westerly. In
GLIDING the territory claimed by Brazil
and Venezuela, it embraces about To-
600 square miles, and a population ofnear-
ly 100000 of European descent, and
about $4,000 aboriginies. The soil is
not inferior to that of the most favored
regions in the world. Whenever at
tempts at agriculture have been made,
they have succeeded beyond all expecta-
ton. Were it not that labor is so dear,
in all parts of the colony. and that on
account of the lowness of the lands and
occasional breaks in the levees, inun-
dations take place, which for time make
the soil unfruitful. the planter would have
nothing to contend against. Care and
proper management, however, will reme-
dy these evils, and British Guiana may
yet become one of the most valuable ag-
ricultural countries in the world.
A collection of chemical and pharma-
ceutical products first claims our atten-
ton. Some fine specimens of laurel oil
and balsam OF copabia are here found, but
the principal articles in this collection are
equally unknown among us by both allo-
pathists and homopathists. and indeed
are generally ignored by our pharma-
copeia. Reeds. roots and barks used in
dyeing are particularly numerous. Among
the rest. we have several good samples
of arnotto. which grows wild in great
abundance on the banks of the Corentyn,
and is extensively used for coloring
cheese. None of these, however, are
more worthy of notice than the root of
the hai-arry, an indigenous papilionaceous
vine. which contains powerful narcotic,
employed by the Indians in poisining wa
tiers and thus capturing fish. They
beat the root with heavy sticks, till it is
in shreds like coarse hemp; they then in
fuse it and throw the infusion into the
river or pool selected. In about twenty
minutes, every fish within its influence
rises to the surface, and is either taken
by the hand or shot with arrows. A
cubic foot of the root will affect an acre of
water. The peculiarly of the root is that
it does not kill the fish, but seems mere
ly to intoxicate or stupefy them; their
flesh is not in the slightest degree poison
ed, or even deteriorated.
Next. we have a table top from Dem
Drama. exhibiting 1873 specimens of wood
grown in the colony. The virgin forests
of Guiana abound in magnificent trees.
unequalled for size and beauty, and of
varieties unknown in our more Northern
climate. Some of these are found
admirably adapted for ship building,
and for their strength and susceptible
bility of high polish. took prize at the
London Exhibition. OF the latter quail
ty we have further evidence in a number
Of picture frames made of different varie-
ties of native wood, and exhibiting illus
trations of Schomburg's "Views in British
Guiana" A number of sections of these
woods are also on exhibition. which gives
us an opportunity of Judging for ourselves
of their quality.
The next class of products fall under
the general head of Substances used as
food" Among these we have numerous
specimens of rice, cocoa, maze. coffee, pi-
geon pesse, plaintains. bread fruit and