New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-07-14
rRICE FOUR CENTS.
THROUGH THE SOUTH.
THE CUMBERLAND TABLE LAM.

round that it excels for fruit and land was cheap:
in short that it was the most favored region in our
whole country and as The TRIBUNE had printed a
good deal to this effect thought it my duty to 90
thither. On arriving at Knoxville found few who
could inform me how should reach it, although the
Cumberland mountains were in sight bat theystretc
! through East Tennessee into Virginia distance Of
several hundred miles. At last met q land agent
who had been to Crossvie, the county seat of Cum
berland County, and found it necessary TO return
to Loudon. Having reached this place was to take
steamer down the Tennessee to Kingston some 20
miles, whence was TO find means for reaching tho
table land Getting of tho train / went foot with
half dozen other passengers HILL then came
to q gate, and passing through com-feld We
reached o small steamer ready to take aboard.
This boat had but recently been put on the route,
and it was the only passenger craft between Knox
vile and Chattanooga, distance of several hundred
miles, and yet during most of the year there are
about % feet Of water, even on shoals.
The Tennessee is a beautiful stream, and in some
respects resembles the Connecticut The scenery
along the banks is pleasing, hills varied with
level fields, but for the most part the view is Of
extensive valley which, in productiveness, is consd
cred equal to any other part of the South. During
the latter part of the Winter season much of this val
ley is OVERLOOKED when rich deposit is left, but
there are many elevations which the water never
TEACHES, anu dJ uO OlntI bcdSOu uOto lulS OfCIuOW
occur The only crops l saw growing were wheat
and corn, but the wheat did not seem heavy Corn
is said to yield an average Of 60 bushels to the
The price of these river farms ranges from $5 to 500
per acre. much depending on the amount Of hill
lands included
The size of the farms is from 400 TO 1900 acres,
sometimes as high as 1000 acres and the improve
ments, for the most part, consist of farm house.
which sometimes is frame and well built but gem
orally it is of logs with rough stable and no barn,
and Seeding orchard, which to a Northern man arc
no improvements at all. The houses, so far as APP
peared from the boat, were from three to six miles
apart but the beautiful building sites facing the
river seem never selected on the contrary the
houses are located not far from gully probably to
be near spring, and the general appearance of tho
region is similar to a devastated one, that is to
Northern eye. Why the land should be so dear
will surprise many readers but IN the grain region
of the South which extends well into Georgia. land
is always valued according to its ability to produce
corn which would say, as the result of many in
Quiries, sells on an average at 81 bushe, and in
general terms 1t may be stated that land will sell for
about cne-third more dollars per acre than it will
produce bushels of corn. We made several landings
IN the so miles, and few passengers and few
hundred pounds of freight. were transferred, and
after a run Of two hours we entered the beautiful
Before the railroad was built around the mountain
to Nashville, Kingston was place of importance for
it was the last town on the eastern side. 1t suffered
some during the war; and is now improving little
found that it was 80 miles 10 CrOssyille and that
neither buggy, saddle horse was to be had but
proposition was made TO take me in two-horse
vehicle to be over q day in getng,through for S25,
which was rejected. Finally, nice looking horse
was obtained, but as no one could say whether no
was easy to ride concluded he ahard customer,
and was correct. The Clinch River was crossed bya
ferry fare 10 cents and started late in the morning
fellow horseman, who Lad been in the Confederate
army and who had not dared TO return until lately,
was going few miles, beguiled the way by pointing
out places in the wood and near log houses where
men had been killed. Most Of the farms are poor.
having been cropped with corn until exhausted. The
soil is a clay loan, with large admiXture Of gravel
and flint which would call ebert well adapted to
fruit and wheat-growng if kept mp with clover or
other fertilizer, but otherwise soon made barren,
for the ebert decomposing. contains element Of
fertility for restoring the SOIL Around Post Oak
Springs blue limestone comes to the surface, the soils
rich most excellent wheat oats and corn were grow
ing East Tennessee nearly divided into these
two varieties of soils one of which is valued at from
g to So an acre. and the other from $40 to 500.
farm Astounding with ebert and run down is not worth
having, whatever the man who wants TO sell may
say and it is important for Northern men seeking
for farms to bear this distinction in mind
From the early settlement of East Tennessee, i'm
mense quantities of corn, wheat and bacon, have
been produced and shipped during the Fail and Win.
ter down the Holstein French Broad, aud Tennessee
TO points accessible to the cotton regions Kentucky
has contributed the same products and in addition
mules and thus these two States in a great degree
have furnished the means of existence to the cotton
sections lying southwark. The general system
adopted by the common farmers of East Tennes.
see was to grow corn year after year. with per.
haps few acres in wheat, aad when the land
could yield no more, it was abandoned. Latteriy
clover has been sown on limestone land, and now
there are fair stands but the inty farms 1t Crews
only on parts of fields having barren slopes aud hill
sides and often level fields themselves desolate, OF
where wheat and oats are sown, the barrenness IS
painfully apparent in the conviction that the seed
will scarcely be returned. Isaw several Ohio far
mers looking for farms who wondered why Wheat
even in good fields should look 50 well, when it was
evident that the blowing had been Of the most super
fetal kind.
Ten miles from Kingston found new enterprise
in the town of lockwood, grown around a blast-fw-
mace Organized and put in operation by Gen. Wilder,
who did notable service in the battle OF Chleka'
manga Fositerous and other kinds of ore are found
in abundance. running in veins parallel with the
mountain limestone is tho spot and also btumln'
ons coal of superior quality it contains no sulphur
Railway tracks or tramwaSs, lead directly from the
hobs nj these three minerals 10 the furnace, and in
addition is a track four miles long to the Tennessee
River where the iron is shipped. 1t is only about
year since tho first blow was struck. and now ihey
are in full operation and when was there sale ot
their iron had been made at Atlanta Of the value OF
$4,000. About One-half of the coal beng DUSTY
cooked while the coarse coal is deposited directly 10
The stack. They run night and day the year round
and their average production for "a hours Is !, tus
Having visited the works at Iron Mountain NO,
where are the most wonderful deposit OF ron IN she