Middletown transcript., 1868-01-04
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rSTHe Dtsnnaf swamp -
"A correspondent Of the Ns,s 0y7sans
Picaymne, writing from Elizabeth City,
North CssolihhD says AOLaAq
The great Dismal Swamp lies betweenJ
the Ohcsapeaie Bay and Albemarle Sound,
partly IN Virginia and partly in North Ca
rolina, and extends about thirty miles from
north to south, and ten or twelve miles
broad. and itsHarea is supposed TO be about
$50, 900 acres. Its growth is principally
the jnniper, not dissmilar to the CEDAR
The wood is soft, very durable, and much
used in the manufacture of tubs, buckets
for posts and rails; but the principal part
of this timber is made into shingles, which
find a market through the canal, via Nor
folk tSz Raltimars and other places, and
has been a source of profit to those engag-
ed in H. The standing tiHlbes being pretsi
" much exhausted, ,, it has been obtained
-St. ..zt yesga only BY going several feet her.
low the surface, and disinterfing trees that
have fallen and been buried SO long that
another growth has sprung up and attainfd
considerable size above. them The only
access to this swamp ison roads made with,
logs..a The shingles and lumber for other
purposes are prepared in the swamp, and
hapfed out on these causeways, and it fakes
a mule trained to the work to do it, as if
they slip through the logs, which they Oft
en- DO. and miss the roots, they 60 to the
bottom. Il is said that in many places no
foundation has been fonnd with the longest
pole. The hands who work in the swhmp
take Their rations for "a month or longer,
and are tasked, all oyerwork being paid
for. II has for years previous to emanci-
patton been The resort of runaway slaves,
who, it has been said, took up their abode
in those Wilds, subsisting by working for
those sent there by their owners, ap1 rails
ing their Offspring In thisAwildefness. A
younE growth Of juniper has sprung up In
many places (which stand almost as thick
as a 'canebfake. gSome Of these have at
tanned sufheient sixe 10 be spseful They
are ns Straight as q line, and as round and
smooth as Il they had come frem q lathe,
They make splendid telegraph poles, andd
saw large quantities on the banks of the
canal, destined, I was told, for, Europe.
While in many parts there is thick un.
dergfoMth bound together by the tangled
vines-where the serpent feeds and MAJ
has never trod- there are various flowers
among, the most beautiful of which is. th,
ivy, with its rich clusters, and the searle
in these dismal abodes. Fire, sometimes
in along drouth, makes great havoc il
this swamp, not only laying waste it
growth, but absolutely burning for severa
feet below the surface, the earth, which i
deeomposed vegetable substance, leaving
the roots of the trees bare. A terribl
conflagration occurred year since, whicl
continued daring the months Of July, iAu
gust and September, and at one time near
ly or quite rendered both the road and ca
nal impassable. fa,bfiB u asiss5i 9i4vkI
A canal intersects this swamp, While
connects the waters Of Albemarle Soun
with those of the Chesapeake Bay. It
, twenty-five miles long, and, with the ez
ceptioh Of Z slight angle near~the niddlt
is an air line On Its banks there is a "
ry good road connecting this. place wit
Norfolk The canal empties into Pasqut
tank River in this State, and Elizubet
River In Virginia, about ten miles fro
Portsmouth. It was formerly navigab
for xessels of sixty and seventy tons, b,
has now not more than three feet of waite
Two small propellers ply regularly betwee
this and Norfolk, and there is, still consi,
cradle trade carried on through It. A pr
ject is on foot by the company to make
asship channel. A survey has been mad
and the estimated cost is 5000, 900, e Th
canal .is supplied with water from Lal
Drummond, through o feeder three mil
long, which enters about the centre al
heTb towards both ends. and is Ietainedsl
stone locks at convenient distances. T.
supply is likewise held in the lake by
lodfge 1t tAe fhr cad OF the Fake there
also canal TO- Sufolk.ssi s.al to
Lake Drummond is an oblong body,
water about fifteen miles in cireumferene
and it is said that bottom has not yet be
found in some parts of il. Here it lies
silence in the bosom of this interminal
swamp, while an around the primeyalf &
ests watch and ward are keeping. 1t seel
TO be the most elevated part of the swan
as its waters flow out at both ends to 81
ply the canals. There is, therefore,
mystery Mhafes It eetsl its supply Of wat
Some have supposed from subterr&ne
springs In my early days I visited Il
lake. In passing through the feeder I
oyerhanging trees and tangled vines sntii
ly shut out the rays Of the sun, and VIII
this beautiful and mysterious, sheet Of "