Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1859-10-04

which cross out nearer the limestones. Where
the states are deficient in iron, the lands Lave
| light color, and are much less productive than
those that are more highly colored.
The lands of this belt are said to suffer less
from droughts, than do the more compact clays
of limestone origin. This is owing chiefly to the
peculiar structure of the underlying states. The
layers are so extremely thin as to give innumei'
able crevices of very minute size. These hole
water by the force of capillary attraction, like
sponge or any other porous body. whenever
the superintendent soil becomes dry, it absorb'
fresh supplies of moisture from the rocks below
These soils have also the quality of being easily
renewed When the plow is run little deeper
than usual, it turns up portions of the slaty mass
| which have become softened by the weather.
These are soon pulverized by frosts and moist
ure, and form g fresh portion of clay, which con
tains all its original ingredients.
Middle River runs obliquely across this belt,
living some of the most remarkable loops aud
windings to be found on any river in the State.
Many Of the lands lying in these loops are rich
alluvial deposites. Soon after the river enters
this formation, we find along its banks the fne
farms of Capt. Guy, Capt K. Harper, and others
lin the same neghborhood. Then lower down
we find bottom lands of high fertility, extending
from the vicinity of Major Walkers on the the
one side, and S. B. Finley's, Esq, on the other,
with variable width, entirely down to the farm
of James Craig, Esq, where this river passes in
to Rockingham, and unites with N. River.
In belt 4, we find the lands variable, and quite
similar, in most respects, to those OF 2. These
belts, in TACT as already stated, belong to the
same geological period, being connected beneath
the slate formation. The eastern side of this
belt has two general ranges of gravelly bills, al
ready described corresponding to those occupy.
ing The western part Of 2, but higher and more
extensive. The slopes of these bills are not gen.
orally we'll adapted to grain culture; but many
of them, especially on the s. E. sides, produce
find fruits of every kind suited to this latitude
see no reason why many of the FARMS now re-
garded as among the least valuable in the county.
may not be made as profitable as those lying in
more fertile sections, by being converted into
orchards and vineyards. The culture of the
grape is made very profitable in other States fur
Their north, and there is no good reason for its
being less so here.
A strip of land, variable, but in many places
of superior quality, lies between the ranges of
hills above mentioned Near the Rockbridge
line it is much obscured; but where it passes
from two to four miles West and North West of
Greenville, it embraces some superior wheat and
grass farms. 1t forms the valley in which the
Poor House is located; lies from two to FIVE
miles West of Staupton-c Middle River
below Spring Hill-runs into the Naked Greek
valley. where it includes some of the best wheat,
corn and grass lands of the county. Throughout
its whole extent it ls characterized by imestones
l,,o,a ohoupNino in tho foceil poipo IF
the more simple marine animals, of the earliest
periods of Geological History, such as the Coral,
the Encrinite, the Trobte and the Moluscs,
whose homes and burying grounds once occupied
! the bottom of vast ocean, beneath the waves
of which all our stratifed rocks were originally
deposited. Their relics, like those of the slaugh
tered thousands on the plains of Waterloo, serve
no other purpose now, than to fertilize the soil,
and give bread to the hungry thousands, who
have lived, and will live after them, and whose
"dust of death" will be ever miDgling with the
same mass of organic ruins, to be trodden down
and at last forgotten.
| Living amongst the more solid limestones of
this section, are vast beds of soft calcareous
shales, (called soap-stone) which give deep de-
posites of compact clay, making soils OF excel
lent quality.
The Middle River valley, nearly as far down
as Spring Hill, belongs TO the same geological
range, as the valleys of Long Glade and Messy
Creek, and that portion of N. River valley lying
within the limestone region in the northern cor.
ner of the county. Hence we find striking
similarity of soils throughout this extensive sec
tion 1t is true there's great diversity found here;
but in almost every neigborhood, and especially
| in the valleys, which have been worn down to
level below the general surface, we find the rich
M J,,ra nj - oil nj A
the lighter clays around them, good in quality,
but much less productive; and rising still higher
are the pebbly slopes OF isolated hills.
Along this as we'll as the opposite side of the
Great Valley the hill-sdes and alluvial bottoms
are strewed with water-worn pebbles and boul-
ders, wherever mountain gorge opens out upon
the valley. These have been brought down from
the mountain ridges and valleys above, by fresh
cts, formed, no doubt, by the sudden draining
of large collections of water, forming deep and
narrow lakes between the ridges. These freshets
have, evidently, been sufficiently extensive to
sweep over hills which rise far above any point
to which the water has attained for many CEN
turies for, on these drift deposites, large trees
are now growing trees with their hundreds of
rings of annual growth, recording with unerring
certainty the years which haye passed since their
roots took hold upon the soil where they now
stand.
The eastern margin of belt has been already
mentioned as belonging to the same slate forma-
ton as g. The soils here are like those near the
margin of that belt, being formed from the states
which lie contiguous to the limestones. The
slopes of the ridges, in this extensive section OF
the county, are generally strewed with fragments
of sandstone, frequently to such an extent as to
prevent cultivation. Where the slaty ridges are
protected against this impeachment, they are GOV
cred with clay soils, which are generally light,
easily washed, and not very fertile. The sluvsl
lands along the two Calfpasture Rivers present
the most attractive and valuable agricultural
feature of this, otherwise rugged and uneven
belt. But even these bottoms cannot be classed
with those of Middle or South River in point Of
fertility. The reason for this is obvious when
we reflect for moment upon the sources from
which these deposites of allugium respectively
originated There are partial exceptions in ia
vor of these Oalfpasture bottoms, where occasion.
al limestone ridges rise along the sides of the
valleys, and afford their disntegrated material
to the contiguous low-grounds, increasing both
their tenacity and fertility. j. L. CAMPBELL.
CovINaToN AND Ono RAILRoAp.-A conven.
ton of the friends of the Covington and Ohio
Railroad was held in Putnam county, Va. Ka-
nawha, Cabell, Mason, Putnam, Logan and
Wayne counties were represented. Col. Joab
Early, of Putnam, was elected President. In the
preamble adopted is set forth the Importance OF
finishing the road. The resolutions adopted as
sert it to be the true policy of the State that
such an appropriation should be made to this
road at the coming Legislature as will be suffi-
cient to complete the entire road; and that at
least 100000 of such appropriation should be
annually expended on the road until the same is