The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1867-06-12
From the Monthly Report of the Agricultural Depart
ment Of the United States, for April, 1851
NORTH-CAROLINA.

Daniel II. GO0QiOe. ESqs oniSeu ceosSo
commissioner for North Carolina, communi-
Gates the following Il
Perhaps no State in the Union is so re-
markab.e for diversity OF climate, soil, and
productions as North Carolina, and no other
has such variety of productions. The breadth
of latitude covered by its territory is not
great, being only 2dg ADMIN; but In Its
length, from east to west, it stretches from
the sea-board to the highest submits OF the
Allegheny range of mountains, distance OF
five hundred miles, and embraces three zones,
greatly varied in character and temperature
BY differences of elevation. The lower zone
is mostly flat sandy region, in many places
covered with swamps or "pocoson, which,
however, are above the sealevel, and therefore
susceptible of easy drainage. These swamps
are all valuable for their timber, and some
of them for the fertility of their soils. The
dry land is covered with timber, for the
most part pine, which is highly valuable for
the yield OF turpentine rosin, and tar, as
well as lumber. The soil is generally light
or thin; but there are many exceptions to
this rule, while there are in many places in
exhaustible beds OF mari underlying this
region, which can be drawn upon with tacil-
ity for enriching the surface. This eastern
or lower zone extends to the foot of the first
range of hills, distance of eighty to one
prises about one-third Of the State. There
are few portions of the Union which offer
great inducements to the capital, enterprise
and skill of the people of the North than the
eastern portion of North Carolina. Its agri-
cultural productions are valuable. They
consist of Indian corn, wheat, oats, Irish and
sweet potatoes, cotton, rice, peas beans, sor-
ghum, grapes, and a variety of garden pro-
ducts. This region is the peculiar home of
the sweet potato, which is produced in no
other part of the world in such abundance,
and of such superior quality. The county
of Edgecombe, near the western boundary
of this immense plain, is famous for its cot
ton crops, which have been produced by the
use of mari, found under the SOIL The Roa-
noke bottoms are unsurpassed for fertility,
and are cultivated chiefly in grain. Some Of
the largest grain crops in the world are pro-
duced in this section of the State. We have
heard of crops amounting to one hundred
thousand bushels of corn. Great facilities
exist for transporting the grain of this re-
gion to the northern markets The vessels
approach the farms directly, and receive
their freight at first hand from the farm wa
CONS, which fact is of the greatest impor-
lance to the producer. The southeastern
counties, among other things, produce rice;
but this product belongs more peculiarly to
South Carolina.
1t is unnecessary to dwell upon the impor-
lance of the cotton crop. The Southern
planters grew rich by its production when
the price of the article was scarcely one
third what it is at present, after due allow
ance is made for the deprecated currency.
There is no danger of an excessive produc-
ton for some years to come; and whoever
employs capital with energy and skill in the
growth of cotton, in any proper soil south
Of the thirty sixth parallel of latitude, is
sure to be richly rewarded The true gold
field is the cotton field In the extraction
of turpentine, rosir, and tar from the pines
of North Carolina and in the saving of
lumber for the northern markets, there are
other inexhaustible fields of enterprise,
which are sure to reward those engaged in
them with liberal profits. This branch of
industry is peculiarly inviting to northern
capital and skill. The pine regions are
hOot1Ays AOithCiA loOolClS may UC
ced without risk, and the processes are of q
character to admit of improvement Yam
kee ingenuity could scarcely fail to invent
new and cheaper methods than those en-
ployed by the unskilled natives.
We must next notice the midland region,
extending from the district just described to
the mountains; in other words, from the
foot of the hills on the east to the foot IF the
mountains on the west. This zone is de-
scribed by Professor Emmons, the State
geologist, as table land, with an undula-
ting surface, but with an average elevation
of several hundred feet Raleigh is some
200 feet above the sea level; Greensborough
is S46 feet above tide water. The rivers
which rise in the mountains, and pass their
waters to the ocean through this elevated
district, nearly two hundred miles in width,
necessarily furnish great facilities for manu-
featuring. The falls of the streams are innu-
merable, and water power" without limit
is distributed over every part of its surface.
The surface, where not cleared for agricultu-
raj purposes by the sparse population. is
everywhere covered with forests of oak, pine
hickory, walnut, maple, beach, chestnut, and
other trees; and, in word, the traveller
nowhere perhaps in the United States sees so
much forest as in North Carolina The pro-
auctions of the middle region are Indian
corn, wheat, rye, oats, buckwheat, barley,
Irish and sweet potatoes, apples, peaches
pears, grapes of several indigenous varieties,
tobacco of the best quality in the northern
tier of counties, and cotton in all south Of
them, besides garden products of every kind
and many other articles. This midland re.
gion also has valuable mines of gold, coal
iron, and copper and no part of the world
is more blessed with health. The waite,
everywhere gushes pure and perennial from
the earth, in all this upland region, and q
majority of the inhabitants drink it from
springs, without being under the necessity
OF digging wells The country is at the
same time beautiful, and abounds in groves
of white oak which are scarcely equalled in
picturesque effect by any on the continent.-
The soil is generally good, though not equal
to that of the Mississippi valley but it ami oly
rewards the labors of the husbandman. Tht
climate is delightful mean between the x.
trcmes of cold and heat north and south.
and, on the wole, there is no part of tn G
world in which virtuous, intelligent, AM.
free people may enjoy greater happiness, or
more uninterrupted prosperity, than in the
middle region of North Carolina.
g The following meteorological observations
for a series of years, made at the university
at Chapel Hill, near the centre of the State,
will convey general idea of the climate
We find the statement in the North Carolina
Advertiser of recent date:
In 1S50-'51, Counting from June to
June,) the annual thermometrical mean (the
result of three daily observations) was 6O40
degrees The hottest day was July /, 1850
the mean temperature being 85 degrees !;
and the coolest, February 5, 1851 the mean