Nebraska advertiser., 1859-08-11
BrOWnViIIe.

LiOu1 OFeI Tit. signature Il AACO' VIII
ten from this city. "E. McC.," we pre-
sumo, is a gentleman from Ohio who spent
several months in this place and county.
He also visited nearly every portion of
Nebraska, and being a man Of sound
judgment, and close observer, his letter
is entitled to no ordinary consideration.
BrOrnvile, ". T., July II, 1859.
En-. EMP1RE:-Ata periodlik the pre-
sent, when the attention of a great many
persons IS directed to the West, the ques-
ton is frequently asked: Which is the
best locality in which to settle! The an
swer to this question is very often dictated
by the interest of the party 10 whom the
question is addressed, and the result in
many instances is, DISAPPOINTMENT and
loss. These reflections have been sug-
gested by many enquiries addressed d.
reCtly to the writer, and TO avoid the ne
cessity of answering numerous COrrespon-
dents, | have determined, with your per-
mission, and in as brief a manner as pos
sible through the medium Of your columns,
to give the required information to the
best of my ability promising, however,
that my %avocations mp TO this period have
not been of such a character as TO render
my descriptions satisfactory to the praCti-
cal farmer. / shall be obliged to deal in
g~eneraIities, at the same time / shall not
omit mentioning in detail either the ad-
vantages or disadvantages of those locali-
ties with which | am most familiar. With
this positive assurance to parties interest
ed in obtaining reliable informaticn-that
the writer has no a dollar of personal In
terest in the Territories, and cannot pos
sibly be actuated by any other motive than
that of keeping his friends who propose
moving westward, in the right direction
and he thinks the length of time he has
resided in the Territories, gave him ample
opportunities of becoming acquainted with
the most eligible locations, in which to in
vest money, or become an actual settler,
Southern Nebraska, therefore, is be-
yond all comparison the finest country /
have seen, and more particularly the four
counties on the river, viz: Richardson.
Nemaha, Otoe and Cass; but as each of
these counties is but a type of the others
| shall select Nemaha and her county
town, BrownvilIe, for description.
To attempt to do justice to this beauti-
full county of Nemaha, would be entirely
beyond my capacity. 1t would take the
descriptive pen of Byron to do its magni-
6cent qualities half Justice. | have seen
scenery more grand and majestic, but a
l%ovelier, natural landscape, l never be.
held. That part of the county which
fringes the river, presents to the eye a
bold, precipitous, and almost continuous
bluff, extending back from the river IL
some instances more than a mile. But
when you have fairly cleared this broken
upland, and get into a position enabling
you to take in with the eye q moderately
extensive view of the country behind, he
must be dead to all that is beautiful in ma,
ture who is not at once captivated by the
extraordinary beauty of the scene which
opens to his vision, its glorious undula.
tions, rising and falling with a regularity
which must astonish even the poorest Of
natures w~orshippers. The landscape
does not present to the eye a naked prai.
RE, but is finely diversified by wood and
stream. There flows the Little Nemaha
its banks thickly covered with walnut and
oak, and the graceful beauty of its wind.
ings as it makes its way to the Missouri
must convince even the most common OBJ.
server, that natures journeyman had nc
hand in the construction of a piece of work
so superlatively beautiful. And when
you connect this with a soil unequalled in
fertility, you have such a country for the
habitation of man as rarely falls to his
lot, even in this favored land. Nor must
it for a moment be supposed that this glo-
rious county Is isolated. Not so. II is
situated on n of the greatest thorough
fares in the world-the Missouri river,
and a constant succession of splendid
steamboats, brings it into daily communi-
cation with the great commercial cities OF
the continent, furnishing a ready market
for the various products of this teeming
garden.
The marked qualities of the landscape
are its gentle inequalities; not abrupt,
but regularly sloping; just enough to car
ry off the water. And between these
slopes there is almost invariably to be
found never failing springs of water. But
this question of water may be at once dis
posed of by stating that there is not a
quarter section of land in Nemaha county
that does not possess, on its surface, bufa-
10 holes, springs, or running streams. am
ply sufficient for stock and other purposes.
To speak of the fertility of the soil would
be superfous; it is capable of producing
wheat, corn, barley, rye, oats, potatoes,
Sc, &C., in such quantities to the acre,
as would seem fabulous were | to state
them here, and in addition to the above l
am enabled to state that Fall wheat has
proven to be a complete success. The ex-
pertinent was first tried last fall, and has
turned out 20 the satisfaction of all who
made the adventure. In concluding this
part Of my subject l feel perfectly safe in
making the assertion, that the four coun-
ties / have named will have a surplus of
produce this season, amounting to not less
than S350,O00.
Brownville is the county town of Ne
maha county. 1t has a most eligible situa-
ton, and has decidedly one of the finest
landings On the river; and it possesses one
feature, which is certainly worthy of a