North Branch democrat. [volume] (Tunkhannock, Pa.) 1854-1867, 1867-06-05

Ill tnere De more D6aubHuf SPOT on
earth than that which the men, of Paxon
settled, we have not aseenuit. From its
source in Ostego Lake, where. the great
American novelist has described it in Ian
guage which will never cease to be read j;
along BY Its lovely winding, where the
Chelnung, intersects the North Branch,
whose beauties have been embalmed, by
one of our most graceful poets by the
Valley of Wyoming, which lives forever in
the imagination OF Campbell, but which is
fairer even than the semi-tropical fancy of
which he was enamored; on by the bold
scenery of the meetings of the waters at
Northumberland, to its broad glory, cele-
brated in the New Pastoral, and its mag
nifcent union with the Chesapeake, every
mile of the Susquehanna is beautiful
Other rivers have their points of lovliness
Or of grandeur; the Susquehanna has every
form of beauty or subGmity that belongs to
riyers.e We have seen them all /; Con-
necticut, Hudson, Delaware, Ohio, Missis-
sippi. Missouri. There is nothing like the
Susquehanna on this continent. Its pc
culiar character depends upon its origin
in the New York meadows, its passage
through the magnificent Pennsylvania
highlands and the mountains. Every
where its courseis detected; begins
wooded lake; it winds 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 its mid spring freshets, when
swollen by the melted SHOWS, rushes from
the hills with irresistible force, sometimes
causing frightful inundation, leaves, with
It's falls, islands in its channel, of the rich
est green, and most surprising beauty !;
while passes through the mountains af
ford points of scenery far finer than any
one would believe them to be from any
description, if he had not seen them.
The Susquehanna makes the grandest
ofthese passages, just below the mouth of
the Juniata. Its course there is several
miles long, before it entirely disengages
itself from the rapids, called Hunters falls,
which are the remains of the rocky barrier
which once resisted its way. Entirely
at liberty, it pours its stream, a mile wide,
along channel some fifty or sixty feet
beneath its bank. About seven miles be-
low the mountains, at a point where they
look blue in the distance, a sheltering well
from the northern blasts, flows in little
stream which the Indians called Paxetang,
Falkland, or Paxton. This mountain is
the northern boundary of the Blue Ridge
which, underlaid with blue limestone, COW
cred originally with the richest and noblest
forest growth, and including within it the
garden of adj the Atlantic .lope, extends
from Easton, on the Delaware, by Read,
ing, Lebanon and Lancaster, by Cham
bersburg, Haeerstown and Winchester, un-
til it loses in the North Carolina hills
The point of greatest beauty in all that
valley, is the1spot where it is cloven by
the Susquehanna. .,s. - .... .t
A hundred and forty years ago, an en-
terprising young man from Yorkshire, in
England, hy.Adescent, probably one of
those Scandinavlans, who, under the great
Canute, held possession of the North of
England, and gave its main character to
it, made his way to Philadelphia q He
|
welLknown Yorkshire family of this city.
Impelled by the same enterprising spirit
that brought him from the old world, and
using the inevitable eye that was charac-
teristic of him, he went toithe banks of
the Susquehanna. .go He settled for a brief
period at point above Columbia, - where
the village of Bainbridge now stands, a
place mnch frequented by the Conoy or
6awanese Indians. But he was not salts
fed with the location. Exploring up
wards along the eastern bank of the Shs.
quehanna, he advanced until, instead of
the. Conowega hill at his back and on the
opposite side of the river, he found the en-
trance opposite to him of that most beau
tiful valley, already described, with two
fine streams flowing into the river about
five miles apart, and ON the eastern side
an elevated plateau unsurpassed in lowell
ness in 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 en-
trance of the Cumberland Valley was
called after him. .r.h r.'a.. gt' l,
His son, the first white child born west
of the Conewaga hills, subsequently laid
out a town on the spot, and with singu-
lar forothought set apart six acres on no.
blehi!l whichrises on the northwest, which
he conveyed to theaState for public pur-
poses. The Capitol of Pennsylvania is
now built upon it and the city OF Harris
burg bears his name. @s..-1i' -
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