Middletown transcript., 1871-07-01
From ne Vnr leri Tribune.
A MARYLAND RAMBLE.

PHYSICAL FEATURES or EASTERN SHORE
EARLY DRAW BACKS Swallowed PLACES
WHERE JEFFERSON FILLED MS BorrLs-
HOME or HICKS, vicKgRs. rEARcg-oLD
cuuRcmEs-RoyAL RgLics--pAsrIMEs or
THE PEOPLE.
CmEsrERrowx, April 26-Canada, says
The London Times. is ull frontier The
Eastern Shore of Maryland is all shore
The nine counties-Carolinc, Cecil, Dor
chester. Kent, Queen Anne's, Somerset,
Talbot, WicomiGa, and Worchcster, call
ed the Eastern Shore because they lie on
tho eastern side or shore of Chesapeake
Bay--s,om floating about between bays,
rivers and inlets, or insccurcly anchored
to the peninsula, which is itself bu, fccbly
fastened to. the continent No part Of the re-
public is SD well watcrcd, or SO abundant
" provided with natural lines Of commn.
nica,ion with the great Bay, and hence
with the ocean and the wide world. Eve
rs county contains or is bordcrcd ly nav
agable rivers, or is washed by deep iulcts
or broad buys. The great Chesa peakc,
from four to 10 miles wide and 300 long.
bears ships to the shores Of seven Of those
nine counties, and to every district or
township of the extreme southern counties
Of Accomnc and Northampton. which be-
long to Virginia, and form the tail Of the
beaver shaped peninsula. Of which Della
ware forms the back and the northern
county Of tha, State tue head There are
but two bnys on the coast of North and
South America which approach in extent
the Chesapeake: Delaware Bay and the
Bay Of Funday 1t is remarkable fact
that while Delaware Bay has but Two riv-
crs emptying into il and but one good
hnrbor, aud tho Bay Of Fundny but three
rivers and three harbors, Chesapeake Bay
has 80 navigable rivers and 50 harbors
which will float an shelter the largest
fleets The rivers Of the Eastern Shore
surprise one by their breadth aud plncid-
,y, aud seem more like cstuaries than riv-
ers. The Nan,icoke. Choptank and Ches.
ter, for upward Of Is miles from their
mouth, are from two and one. half to five
miles wide, and are navigablc from 80 to
10 miles, They are without pcrccptiblc
current. aud their waters seem MS quiet MS
a park pond. The waters Of the Eastern
Shore rivers. owing to their .ligh, fall and
the action Of the tides. are brackish or
salt. Thus We find, not river in the
ocean, like the Gulf Stream. but salt riv-
crs from the ocean. flowing far inland,
meet and imprcgna,ing the waters from
the creeks and springs so miles from tho
Bay. aud. in the ease Of the Chester Riy-
cf, 200 miles from the sea.
Notwithstanding the advantages Of nat.
ural canals, productive soil aud more pro-
ductive streams and bays, abounding in
fish, with beds Of oysters richer than beds
Of iron or coal, the progress Of the Eas-
tern Shore has been slow since the frs,
settlement Of Kent Island, almost two
centuries and half ago. The popula-
ton Of the nine counties, by the census Of
1870, Is but It's. .254: including the two
Eastern Shore counties Of Virginia. 1885,.
700 The entire peninsula formed by the
State Of Delaware and these counties con.
tnins population about equal to that Of
Chicago. The largest towns are barely
above the grade Of villages. She mag
name excuses or reasons beside a lack ol
Western energy for this slow growth
Except chrome and iron in very limited
quantities, the Eastern Shore has no min.
eral resources. Its timber 10 neither q,
bundaut nor ofsuperior quality. The firs'
settlers Of Maryland we're Roman Catho'
lies. who are not ordinarily over-sealoai
| friends Of education. They began BY cell.
ing white schoolmasters. brought from
| England, a. iudeutuved servants, and end.
cd. under that system Of African Slavery
BY selling their daughters and grand
daughters for purposes Of prostitution, af
tor leading them from tho common Jail II
chains 70 ths shsmblss. Msrylasd wal
.os sors.sats y Ne sOuudsrs. Broken