Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1867-05-16
igblands and tbe mountains. Every

highlands and the mountains. Every
where it's course is detected ; begins
a wooded lake ; it winds a limped
brook by meadows and over silver
pebbles makes its way through
mountains it loiters, restingly, by
their bases it sweeps in broad
courses by the valleys. Its vast
width, in it's mid spring freshets, when
swollen by the melted SHOWS, rushes
from the hills with irresistible force,
sometimes causing frightful inunda-
ton, leaves, with its falls, island
in it's channel, of the richest green
and most SURPRISING beauty while
those passes through the mountains
afford points of scenery far liner
than any one would believe them TO
be from any description, II he had
not seen them.
The Susquehanna makes the grand
est of these passages, just below the
mouth of the Juniata. Its course
there is several miles long, before 1t
entirely disengages itself from the
rapids, called Hunters Falls, which
are the remains of the rocky barrier
which once resisted its way. En-
tirely at liberty, it pours'its stream
mile wide, along a channel some
fifty or sixty feet beneath its bank.
About seven miles below the mount
aims, at a point where they look blue
in the distance, a sheltering wei!
from the northern blasts, flows IN
little stream which the Indians called
Paxetang, Paixtang, or Paxton
This mountain is the northern boun-
dairy of the Blue Ridge which, under
laid with blue limestone, covered
originally with the richest and no.
blest forest growth, and including
within it the garden of all the Allan
tic slope, extends from Easton, ON the
Delaware, by Reading, Lebanon and
Lancaster, by Harrisburg, York and
Carlisle, by Chambersburg, Hagers-
town and Winchester, until it loses
in the North Carolina hills. The
point of greatest beauty in all that
valley, is the spot where 1t IS cioven
by the Susquehanna.
A hundred and forty years ago, an
enterprising young man from York
shire, in England, by descent, proba-
bly,, one of those Scandinavians, who,
under the great Canute, held posses
sion of the North of England, and
gave its main chal acter to it, made
his way to Philadelphia. He mar
ried here lady who came over with
well-known Yorkshire family of
this city. Impelled by the same en-
terprising spirit that brought him
from the cid world, and using the IN
evitable eye that was characteristic
of him, he went to the banks of the
Susquehanna. He settled for brief
period at point above Columbia,
where the village Of cambridge now
stands, a place much frequented by
the Conoy or Gawanese Indians. But
he was not satisfied with the loca-
tion. Exploring upwards along the
eastern bank of the Susquehanna, he
advanced until, instead of the Cone
waga hill at his back and on the op.
posite side of the river, he found the
entrance opposite to him of that most
beautiful valley, already described,
with two fine streams flowing into
the river about five miles apart, and
on the eastern side an elevated pla-
teau unsurpassed in loveliness i'll the
wide world, with the little Paxton
flowing at the base of an elevated
slope Or ridge of land. Here he
settled, and the ferry across the river
to the entrance of the Cumberland
Valley was called after him.
His son, the first white child born
west of the Conewaga hills, subsc-
quently laid out town on the spot,
and with singular forethought set
apart six acres on a noble hill which
rises on the northwest, which he con
veyed to the State for public purpos-
es. The Capitol of Pennsylvania is
now built upon it and the city OF Har-
risburg bears his namd.