, 1861-01-11
Are The American Deserts IIabllabIei

. Are The American Deserts IIabitabIei
I In book lately published, called THE
Central Gold Region" the author, William
Gilpin, who has spent twenty years in the
wilderness, presents view Of what is com.
monty called "the desert widely differing
from the popular notions. He says:
I There is a radical Misrepresentation in the
popular miad as to the true character Of
the Great Plains of America" as com.
plete as that which pervaded Europe res
pecting the Atlantic ocean duriig the
whole historic period prior to Columbus
These plains are not deserts, bot the oppol
site, aud are the cardinal basis of the 70.
ture empire Of commerce and industry now
erecting itself upon the North American
continent. They arc caleareouS, and form
the pastoral garden of the world, Their,
position and area may be understood. The
meridian line which terminates the states
Of Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri and Ohio
on the west, forms their eastern limit, and
the Rocky mountain crest their western
limit Between these limits they occBpy
Longitudinal parallelogram of less than one
thousand miles in width, extending from
the Texan to the Arctic coast. 4. 49,.
There is no timber upon them, and sin,
gle trees are scarce. They have gentle
slope from the west to the east. and abound
in rivers. They are clad thick with nptri-
tious grasses, and swarm with animal life.
The soil is not silieious or sandy, but Is q
fine cplcareons mould They run smoothly
out to the navigabe rivers, the Misso1ri,
Mississippi and st. Lawrence, and 70 the
Texan coast The nlountaia masses, to-
ward the Pacific form no serious barrier
between them and that ocean. No por-
tion Of their whole sweep Of surface Is
more than one thousand miles from The
best navigation. The prospect is svSrys
where gently nndulating and graceful, bS-
ing bounded, as on the ocean, by the HOT,
lion. Storms are rare, except during the
melting Of the SHOWS upon tile crest OF tho
Rocky mountains. TIE climate Is CON-
paratiyely raihless; the rivers serve, like
the Nile, TO irrigate rather than drain. The
neighborlng surface, and have few ailments.
They all rnu from west 70 east, having beds
shallow and broad, and the basins through
which they Aow are fat, long and narrow.
The area Of the great laahS,iE eqhilhs
lent to the surface OF the tweaty,iour states
between the Mississippi and The AtlaBtic
sea, but they are Que homogeneous fofma-
ton, smooth, uniform, and couthuonS
without single abrupt uiountain, timBsrtd
space, desert or lake. Iron their smple
dimensions and position they define tbem-
selves 70 be the Pasfuye feds ef nc ,rorid
TT,,on fhon, ,,oc9o.oIH aI-.fa,.lf, ,...l .tlf Al
come q separate grand departmental nal
tloual Industry. .g78a1o3.7ai baa bln
The pastoral chdrdcteristic. being n6ea
to ouppgopln; needs a. minaie explanailon
In lraFersiBg the continent fIom abe Az
lanic Beach 70 the South Pass, the point
Of greatest altitude and remoteness from
the sea, We ecross successfully the sihbered
region, the Praifie region, ths sofa sod aud
long annual grasses, aaHd finally the ercat
plains. The Two frst are irrigated by the
rains coming from the sea, aud are arahle.
The last is rainiess, Of . compact sol. re-
sisting the ploa, andia, therefore pastoral
The herbage Is peculiarly adapted % the
climate and drypess qf the soil and atmos-
Lpbere, and IS perennial. Its edible aud
nutritious throughout the year. This 4
"grammaS OF "Bndaio grass.n II covers
The ground one inch ID heighlh has Ibe ap-
poareiice Of delicate NOS, aud is LEAF
has the iineness and spiral texture of ane-
gros hair. During tho melting Of The
SHOWS ia the immense monntain masses at
the back Of the great plains, ihc rivers
swell like the Nile, and yield . coplous
evaporation in their long, sinuous courses
across the plains; storm-cloods gather on
the summits, roll down the mouniaih nanks,
and discharge themselves ia vernal show
ers. During this temporary prevalence Of
moist atmosphere, these delicate grasses
grow. seed in the root. aud are cured into
bay upon tie ground BY the gradnaI ~
turning drouth. IL Is IN this longitudinal
belt Of perennial pasture upon which the
buffalo 6nds bis winter food, dwelling upon
it without regard to latitude, aud here are
the infinite herds Of aboriginal cattle pe-
culiar TO North America -bandlo, wild
horses, elk, antelope, White and black
tailed deer mopntAin-sheep, the grizzly
bear, wolves, the hare, badger. poFcnpine,
and smaller animals innumerable. Tie az
gregate number Of this cattle, BY calculh-
ton from sound data, exceeds one hundred
million. No annual fires ever sweep Ovar
the great plains; these are confined 10 the
Prairie region. .5,---