The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1879-03-13
Hand Book Of Virginia.
SOME INTERESTING FACTS AND STATISTICS
OF THE STATE AND SECTION.

Hand Book OF Virginia
SOME INTERESTING FACTS AND STATISTICS
OF THE STATE AND SECTION.
The Commissioner of Agriculture, Thos.
Pollard, under the provisions of the act
establishing the department over which he
has control, has prepared "Hand BOOK OF
Virginia describing the geological formations
of the various counties of the State, with In
formation as to the general adaptation OF
the soil to the various products, &c. Inc
book, a copy of which is before us, IS made
up for the most part of extracts from Prof.
Rogers reports, Hotchkiss's "Summary OF
Virginia. and Commissioner Pollard's Tor
mer report, and the compilation affords a
valuable presentation of the resources and
| attractions of Virginia. 1t should be widely
distributed, and we think cannot fail TO
prove Of advantage to the State. All we
need is that the world shall know the induce
ments offered by this favored section, and
this work will go far toward that accom-
plishmeEt.
With reference to the Valley, the book
contains much that is interesting and in
structive, and in order that the advantages it
sets forth may have wider circulation and
in the hope that it may direct attention to
the opportunities here offered for the profit
able investment Of means, we shall in this
notice, give copious extracts.
After stating the general characteristics
and division OF the Valley the ''Hand Book"
says: 1t has population of twenty-six to
the square mile. The fertility OF ali this
| region is proyer bal, and to those who have
visited it, word in its commentator would
be unnecessary, and its beauty is equal to its
fertility. Nature has done as much for it
probably as any region in the world, and
the excellent farmers who inhabit it have
not been remiss in improving its advantages.
England is the country we are prone to set
up as the agricultural standard with which
to compare other favored regions. 1t has
been the writer's fortune to traverse Eng
land from the Tweed to Isle of Wight, and
from Holyhead to Dover and Harwich, and
to examine some Of the finest farms in this
favored country, and he is free to state, as
his opinion, that nature has favored no part
of England more highly than the Valley Of
Virginia, and, indeed it is probable, that the
natural fertility of this latter region is great
er than any portion of the former. Like
other portions of Virginia, it is traversed by
numerous streams, which, in many places,
gives it good water-power, affords abund-
ant supplies Of water for irrigation and fol
stock-raisng. 1t is an admirable grass coun-
try and eminently adapted to raising stock
OF all kinds, and we find grazing and stock
raising extensive and profitable in this sec
ton of the state, and that nowhere is finer
stock produced, Natural grasses spring up
all over these sections, and the ''blue grass
noted for its nutritious qualities, prevails
through the three regions we are speaking
of, as well as Piedmont region. The miner
ais of the regions we are considering
Ridge, the Falley, and Appazachia-are
very numerous and valuable. In the first
are copper, in large quantities, iron ores OF
all the varieties, and in abundant quantity.
greensboro, manganese, brick and fire clay.
In the second, limestone, to which is proba-
bly, due much of the fertility of the lands,
valuable marble S, states, brick and fire clay,
some anthracite coal, iron ores, large quan.
titles of lead and zinc, barytes, kaolin, sc.
In the third, limestones, marbles, states,
brick and fire clay, different valuable iron
ores, gypsum. and salt with all the varieti S
Of bisuminous coal in good quality. The
towns of the Valley are Salem, Wytheville,
Harrisonburg. Lexington, Winchester, Staun-
ton and I.eesburg-all fourishing places.
The access to market for these regions is by
the Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio railroad.
on south-side of James river, which strikes
the Valley twenty-four miles north OF Salem,
the James river and Kanawha canal, enter
ing at Buchanan, the Chesapeake and Ohio
railroad passing through Staunton, the VAL
ley railroad from Staunton to Harper's Fer
ry, designed to be carried to Salem. and Ma
nassas Gap, running from Virginia Midland
to Strasburg in Shenandoah county.
''The Valley has l,529,S73 acres improved,
against 1,S10,512 woodland. This re- ion is
rich in the best timbers, Of the best quality.
''rhe existence OF fossiliferous bands in
some of the limestone Of the Valley is an in
teresting geological fact. Near Strasburg,
on Cedar creek, and other points around,
the rock displays great number of impress
sions of encrine, &c., and some tribolites.
At Mt. Meridian Mills, in Augusta, this
organic limestone also occurs; and what is
most remarkable, as having heretofore es-
capped attention, the limestone of Weyer's
cave and vicinity occasionally exhibits SINH
lar impressions of a very interesting and Pc
culiar character. Further west, in the neigh
5orhood of Messy creek, fossils occur in a
more siiceous variety of limestone, and
Prof. Rogers speaks of having in his possess
sion a fine specimen of fucus "a genus of
alg@ or seaweed). Such bands of fossilfer-
Gus rocks are common in Botetourt and
Montgomery counties.
''The limestone of this region would be of
great benefit to the lands if properly burned
and applied. The impression has prevailed |
that the lands of this region must haye suffi-
Gent lime in their composition from the
abundance of the rock. Prof. Rogers says
that in great many instances the soils of
the Valley contain little or no calcareous
matter, even when taken from the immedi-
ate vicinity Of limestone rock. The same
fact has been observed in Pennsylvania and
New Jersey, and there tine lime has been of
the greatest benefit to the farmers. The |
lands of the former have been greatly i'm
proved, and in the latter, lands before con-
sidered almost worthless have been advanced
to state Of great fertility by the use of
lime. We learn that lime is being applied |
to the lands in some portions of the Valley.
By several analyses made of these lime
stones, the carbonate lime in most cases is
over so per cent. and in some over 90 per
cent. Of the whole mass.
1.-The iron ore Of the Valley constitutes
a valuable possession. This is manufactured
into iron at various places. The ores which
have been almost exclusively used are hem
attic OF various aspects, known as honey |