Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1860-10-20

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Leaving Tunnel Hill and its rather son,hro
associations, we started for Cashier Valley.
still Il miles distant, by the Kcowcc and
Tuckaseogcc turnpike This road is located
(and 1T is very well ocatcd) upon the Chmtuon
Ridge, spur from the Blue RIDGE diyidino
tho waters OF the Seneca and Chntuga rivers.
The turnpike grades are unusually favorable
Tor moutain country, but few months adj.
ditlonal use will be rcqircd to beat the track
for rapid travel The drive from Tunnel Hill
can then be made in five hours, and when tho
railroad reaches Walhala, in less than thirty
hours from Columbia The first nineteen
miles of this road to the North Carolina line
passes over an unimprovcd ridge country and
through an uubrokcn stretch of woodland
with beautiful vistas occasionally opening up
through the ravines upon either side Of the
rldge. But beyond the State line the country
becomes boldcr, and very rapidly assumes its
mountHin characteristics, with rugged and
prcc'pltous slopes and winding roads, ascend
ing stoadily upwards, and with q perceptible
chahging atmosphere. Three miles beyond
the State line, and about 5000 feet above the
sea, we enter the elevated glade lands of Cash
Ter Valley; and five miles on, atthe Mckinney
Gap, pass the Blue Ridge, so called, or rather
miss called, for tho more distinctive mountain
name OF the Great Allcghany, ,">is elsewhere
applied by topographers to the water shed be-
! tween the Eastern and Western waters.
The Blue Ridge proper Isl secondary or
Hank range, in its general direction parallel to
To the Allegheny, passing from PENNSYLVANIA
INTO Maryland and Virginia aud broken
through twice III its course by the Potomac
ana james rivers, finally unites with the main
AlIe8hany mountains near Christiamburg, Vir
gin'a Southwnrd and through North Caro-
ma, under the local name OF the Blue RIDGE.
the Great Allegheny itself becomes the cas-
tern front o. the mountains, and passing
through northern Georgia, finally disappears
IN Northeastern Alabama This mountain
is the scrratcd blue line which bounds thc
Northwestern horizon from elevated points
| IN Greehvllle, lhurcns, and Abbcvllc Dis
tfictS, and from all Of Anderson and Pickcns
Conspicuous in this blue line, aud standing
out us noted landmarks, are several peaks and
spur mountains, which may be best described
by their local names.
10 the extreme left, the Rubun Bald is dis
n!ngulshcd by beautifully symmetrical cut
iihc, and the acute point which crowns it's
broad summit. 1t stands as corncr.st )nc
IN the Northeastern angle of the boundary
lines OF Georgia. Its western slopes aud
spurs descend into the Tennessee Valley. and
to the Rnbun Gap; its northern slopes into
North Carolina and its eastern spurs run
down to the South Carolina line on the Chat
uga river. The elevation of the Bald Noun.
tam, the lo!ticst in Georgia, is 5,122 fee.
aboye the sea; of the Rabun Gap, :, Isl feet
he summit OF this mountain is visited by
irost usually nine months in the year, and, in
one Instance, during ten months
| Bctwecn the Rabun Bald and the White
side, there are several SUBMITS of consdera.
bly, less altitude, the principal Of which are
the ,Scaly Mountain, the Stooly, Fodder Stack
and Black Rock, ranging in height from 4
OOO feet at the Bald, to $50 feet at the BIZ,
IsFsanin: a conical point slightly to the right
OF Whitcsidc. The slopes OF these n:onn-
ta'ns are generally rugged and unottrvctivc :;
but between the Fodder Stack and Black Rock
there hes enclosed o beautiful little spot, so
quiet aud secluded, called by the Indians the
Sequllla Valley, but better known to South
Carolina visitors rs the Horse Cove, and tire
summer residence of Judge Whitner. Six
miles or more to the Nortll.castward, is the
western entrance of Cashier Valley, itself
enclosed by the Whiteside, Sheep Cliff, Chin
ney Top and Ier1pn Mountains The drain
age OF these vallies supplies the Chatuga head
waters OF the Savannah River
The w h'tesldc Mountain is literally named.
I'm enormous mural precipicc of at least
.JOO feet III height and over one-haIf milo in
length, crowns its Eastern front Weather
worn and clustering in the reflected lght of
tho morning sun, this rock can be clearly seen
and identified seventy miles off. In impo-
sing dimensions and wild grandeur, it prob
ably su'passes any similar natural object on
the continent East Of the Rocky AIountain.-
In fact the most striking characteristics of
the Southern Blue Ridge, are these immense
rock oscarpmcnts. They occur upon every
prominent eminoncc, and so uniformly upon
the Eastern face of the mountains as to suo-
gest connection of cause and effect with the
periodical storms of the region, which come
also from the eastward
The most noted of these rocks arc the
Nliteside, Table Rock and Caesars Head;
but there are many others which elsewhere
would be considered very remarkable. Thcir
prevailing mineral type is Gneiss rock, but it
is varied with the primary .,atcs and lime
stone, granular quartz rock and an imperfect
granite. The mountain slopes, especially
upon the Western side, abound in mctalic
veins and deposits, chiefly gold copper and
galena. Several Of these deposits are being
worked by many companies, the principal
OF which are tho Cherokee Company, of South
Carolina, aud the jackson County Companies.
of North Carolina, The height Of the White.
side mountain is 5,l50 feet above the sea of
the Yellow Mountain, 1920 feet; Chimney
Ton 1910 feet: and the UoUhooL K ooO e.