The Van Buren press., 1876-03-21

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fruit equal to any other valley in the
world,
The Valley Of Lees Creek contains
excellent land both bottom and high
land. these last are, for the most part
broken, rough and rocky. The Valley
of Lees Creek, with its tributaries, is
probably wider than that of any other
tributary running into tbs Arkansas. an
the north, within the SIale, but great
hills and high bluffs of the milstone-
grit saudstones everywhere intefseet it
and yet there are great bodies OF fertile
bottom and upland, and thousands ol
homes awaiting the immigrant and the
advent OF your road. As elsewhere and
repeatedly remarked, the railroad lands
pierce this valley from Little Rock to F.
Smith, and a general and swift 6esefip
ti"n of the country is general and swift
description Of them.
AT Dripping Springs and veinage, y.
%, I. 10, Il. 80, the shale is very thick,
and has an oily and gistening touch and
| look Limestone is found here iii mass
es protrudmg from the earth wide
tract Of fertile land surrounds it 1t IS
nine miles northward from Van Bnren.
At Mrs Forts, S. II, I |, L 81, Or
Lees Creek, coal is visible in its bed the
thickness Of this coal is INFESTED, and SO
is its quality Ponderous blocks, water.
worn, of carbonate iron are abundant,
there is some pine on the hills, which are
lofty.
At Natural Dam, S o T. Il, K 81,
D., ,.I he. t1,,
Fork Of Lees Creek, the cif or dam
is about thirteen feet high, Of dark,
water resisting, ferrnginous sandstone,
and is an etfectual and eternal barrier to
the volume of the stream t is a most
eligible natural mill site, aud an old mill
has been here run for many years RteA I
and wide bottom lands lie around it and T
its neighbolhood; springs are frequent
and the timber fine, coal shales are dis |
closed in many places; it is distant from
Van Buren eighteen miles hor!hwafd.
On Lees Creek, still nofthward from T
Van Buren, is fine coal bed. of the
thickness Of twentY.eght to thirty two
inches Coal has been tried by smiths |
and by them termed fine. 1t is easily t
quGrried and in quantity 1t is known T
as the Wooten bank This coal, like all
the coal in this field, improves in quality
and thickness as ii is penetrated.
Near Robert Sutherland's, ON Lees
Creek S Il, +. IL, r %, is Il coal bed
which has been worked its thickness we
do not know. The bottom and uplands
here are fertile. Grapes abound on the
hilsdes, as they do elsewhere in GraW
ford The water is abundant aud good
shales occur from this to Joseph Bry
ants, on Lees Creek, at the foot of Bas.
ton Mountains, 5, 20, L. u, r 81, with
occasional outerop Of lin stone. Great
bluffs Of sandstone rise up, and are full
of iron, and yield good building rock
The timber is excellent white oak being
among the prevalent oaks, and pine be.
ing absent \ short distance from Bry-
ants, from the Boston Mountain. runs T
the Blaekburn's Fork of Lees Creek, T
rich in coal banks, This is good, work T
able coal, exposed for thirty inches has T
been used by smiths for years, and into
which have been sunk fourteen pits This T
coal. like the great body Of the coal So
far used in this valley, is semi bitumin
Gus Goa! has also, for years, been quar-.
ried aud transported from pits on Cove |
Creek, q tributary of Lees Greek, IN the /.
northwest corner Of Crawford il has |
been hauled BY smiths forty miles. This |
coal is very good, its thickness is about
twenty seven inches Boston Mountain |
is famous for its very rich benches, Hill. /
slopes and table land, the soil being en-
~, I, al k.,F tho ls..,Ce4n.,, 4 81
ginous earths therein, it is covered with |
bottom growth of timber, such as ash, /
walnut, pawpaw, oak, rich underground, |
vines and shrubs, 1t is peculiarly adap- !
ted for grape, tobacco, and pastures, the /.
numerous springs airording plenty ofI
water In carly times cane (reeds grew
on their tops; itprodnces eXtraordinarj-
ly of all the grains, corn and grasses.
Pine is absent.
In the neighhorhood of Shannon 5
Mil, S. 10, Il. 10, r. 80, on Cedar Creek
which EN- ties into Frog Bayou, quartz
fragments have been discovered, and lead,
also, The water is sufficient for the sup
ply OF mills, and the lowlands rich. Coal
shales also display in this tact Of the
county
There is saline spring ia S 80, 7. II,
r. 80, from which the brine. many years
ago, was worked, and the yield OF salt
good, Boring, without doubt, would
bring stronger brine, and make its boil
ing profitable to the salt manufacturer,
even in this close proximity to the ex-
haustlcss saline waters, springs and de-
posits Of the east Cherokee country. IHI
sections 30 and "a are 'Heard's and Pen.
nywits sulphur springs FROM which
run health giving waters, and which sre
famous in their locality The ,,rccipi-
tates are white, and were they improved
by digging, cleansing them out and wall
ed, they would probably equal springs in
Virginia and Kentucky, and become q
resort for spring visitors. There are
other " sulphur and chaly springs
in this county.
On Frog Bayou, or Clear Creek, near
Frazicr's Gin, the land is fHe, as Frog
Bayo land always is.
The land is exceedingly fertile, the
timber most excellent, the range une-
qualed aud the water wholesome-sen
orally obtained for house use hy digging,
or Ia cisterns, and abundance Of aek
water pyprt tWhare There ia ma bst.a,.