Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1876-03-07
AvrsIr TO THE DISMAL SWAMI.

ANtshT To rhE DISMAL eWAvP.
Edtsor Sar,-Having lately made q visit to|
The Dismal swamp OF Virginia, I have
thought n brief description OF that unfinished
part Of creation might be interesting %
your readers. It's locality II 10 well Raovn|
that need not refer 10 that For dimen-
sions and statistics I give them a. told %
me. onI oe1eve them 70 be generally COR
rect The swamp IL about thirty miles long
and nom nfteen % twenty wide. IL IN Cow
cred with dense growth OF vegetation. CON-
sisting Of much valuable timber, such q
cypress, juniper, pine and gum. with On un-
dergrowth OF vild cane (Ar,.dsaa,sa o.
oopNt0l and q great variety OF other plnn,a.
In many places % dense that q squirrel
s s,s not SET thronsn. In otner plssss, par
very valuable timber, especially where grsas
duraoility II desired. In the central part Of
tnis swamp IL body OF fresh water known
LAKE DRuNnoxp,
Formerly said 20 be unfAthomable, out this
20 ffteen feet In depth. Possibly tbsre NAV
De places OF greater depth. II is oval In
shape and about seven miles long aud four
lakes. Cypress and juniper grow near ne
shore In water several feet In depth the
crown OF their roots two or three feet above
The water; You can step from Comparatively
well saturated with water may be callef
solid earth into deep water The shore ap-
pears 10 be gradually encrosching upon The
lake, and in time will doubtless absorb III
entirely. This whole swamp was once =
lake Of fresh water after the ocean retired 10
It's present limits. There IL unmistakable
evidence that this whole lower part of Mr.
ginia and North Carolina WAS once
THE BED OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN,
and that at no distant geologic period. Inn
mense beds OF mari, consisting OF partly de.
composed marine SHELLS, abound here, and
are used by farmers on land requiring lime.
IL Is singular fact that In these mari beds
are found shells unlike any found ON this
COAST now. But i am getting out Of the
swamp. The water OF this lake is very salu-
brious, and said TO be sure cure for chills
and fever. Before the late war a house was
and sportsmen. The lake abounds with nsh.
SUCH as pickerel, pike, perch, and some other
varieties, which afford nne sport the year
round for anglers. In the swamp are bears,
deer, rsccoons, wildcat, turkeys, aud In the
lake wild geese, ducks aud other aquatic
birds. Not unfreQuently the sportsman will
meet with wild cattle and hogs, wholive and
get faton
THE WILD CANE
That grows IN great abundance here. Farm
ers living on the borders OF the swamp turn
their cattle into the swamp IN The fan. aud
they remain there all winter and get fat
Beef fatted on this cane has an excellent
flavor. have eat IL and thought Il superior
10 any beef ever tasted. In my late visit
there eat butter made from the mil X of cows
that bad no other food than this wild cane,
made, too, by a Pennsylvania lady, who
knew good butter. She thought &c equal TO
a colony Of Pennsylvanisns who have bought
farms not far nom Suffolk, Nansemond
county, and In the neighborhood of the
swamp, many OF them including portion OF
IT. Some OF this land has been reclaimed,
and Is the richest part OF the farm. Last
summer ditch was dug on three sides of
two thirds OF an acre, which was grubbed,
burned over, ana planted with corn on the
from ten 10 fifteen feet In height and Welded
y0Tty gre bushels OF shelled corn. This whole
swamp is covered with
VEGETABLE MOLD,
the accumulation OF ages, OF from three 10
four feet IN thickness. IL IL not uncommon
10 md large trees OF cypress and juniper that
mold two or three feet below the surface,
that must have lain there for centuries and
yet when dug up are as sound as the day
Iney iell, except the sap OF the tree. These
are often dug up and split into shingles.
In digging the Dismal Swamp canal con-
Meeting the waters OF Albemar,e Sound with
those OF the Chesapeake bay, the boles OF
large trees were found ten feet below the sur
face. Trees more than two feet In diameter
had grown directly over them.
"MILLIoSs IN IT."
Many people suppose that this swamp IL a
worthless waste. IL is a mistake "There's
millions in it." The Dismal Swamp Land
Comnany own forty eigtf Thousand acres Of
IL 1t They hsve built marrow guage railroad
from the Nansemopd river. near Suffolk,
some eight or ten miles into the swamp.
have built steam saw mills there, and are
bringing out immense Quantities OF pine
wood, railroad ties, and lumber OF various
kinds. They employ hundreds OF men who
i've IN The swamp the year around. ChiHs
AMI yeueT ave tuliin0uTl among them. The
common opinion is that this exemption
fr1 m disease is owing 20 their drinking
the juniper water OF the lake. THIS water is
about the color OF brandy. Others are OF the
opinion that the immense amount OF dense
vegetation absorbs the malaria that may
arise from the decay Of so much vegetable
matter.
In the neighborhood Of this swamp, op the
Seaboard and Roanoke railroad, - miles
from Suffolk, is the magnolia Spring." toe
water OF which bids fair TO rival our most
popular medicinal waters. IL has effected,
II is claimed, some remarkable cures, par
ticularly in chronic cases OF dyspepsia AID
diseases of the kidneys and other urinary
organs. IL - said 10 contain a combination
of iodine, bromine and potassium, together
with several other ing gradients that make the
water very efficacious In the cure OF many
diseases that flesh is heir 10. The spring is
owned by Col w. p. Moore, who Is preparing
IL as place OF resort for invalids. IL will oe
under the supervision OF his son-in- law, Mr..
Rudolph King, late OF this city. II. A.