' - ANOTII EH'S. =, - =
She has the most alluring eyei,
' A little Grecian nose ;
She wears the most bewitthing guise,
And parti-colored hose ! :'
Her touch can thrill onesrangely when
. One clasps her- in .the &nee ; ,
At least they•tell me so—but then
I never had thec.dian.ce.' =-' . ' ,
Her melting tones, so people say,
Intoificato the brain,
And Wive, when she has gone , away, )
A joy akin to pain. • • ,
Her voice is like sweet music when '
'lts strains are soft and low ;
So those who've heard it 84 7 —but then
Pnever did, you' know. 1
She makes the most superb, ifitgout--
Knits stockings by the score ; i I
Knows Latin, and Italian, too, .
Greek, French, and plenty m re \I ' •,
'She's just the girl to sweeten li e---
Adorable I---divine ! • .
In short, she is a perfect wife ! ' s
But then she isn't mine 1 '
HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
•
DeliOredat the County ICentenntal • Cde 7
bratiom at Montrose,SuSquehanna - Conn.,
ty, Pa., July 4th, 1876; 4 :Benjamin
Park, L.L. I)., of Parkvale. in complr,-
once with Resolution of Congress - and
ProelantatiOns • of • PreSideut and 'Gov'
color. • • •
. . .
FELLOW CITIZENS, -LADIES AND' GEN • •
TLEURN : Thii is indeed
.a.-proud and,
Glorious day to our Wholeicountry; a day,
to be remembered. • The pentennial'Aii—
niversary of . an ack and event, the mild
ence of which is seen. and felt in every
corner of the civilized. World,_ so evinent--
Ivowned and blessed by the CreatOr and.
Governor of the Universe daring: the
past 160 yetirs, in the.extention and dif
fusion . of light, liberty, intelligence, and .
genera; prosperity, that amay 'adopt
Ills language in delivering : lsrael- from :
bondage : "This day- keep it throtighont
3.)ur • genetathins." The Impulse of Re
puhl:can dovernMent started on that
.day and bv. that memorable declaration
of principles, a political gospel, bas,lBll4-.
ken every AoVeinment in the \World—e- .
cept ours-which is built upon ..• • •
in commemoration of that great act,
which was one hunsdred years ago thig day
cHnSammated in Independence Hall,. hi .
Phil , tdelphia,:not Only severauce frtm
England but •a- covenant of union among
tikuiselves, in grateful remembrance,
Pod as we trust: heartfelt giatitude• to'
/ God, for the blesings whichl - have
Oily and continumisly showered Upon*
. us es
. a nation ; the earnest hope and .
prayer that. this freedom arid. in m u nitieS
gained by the. virtue, the • wisdorn,.and
valcir of our 'evolutionary fathers-may be
• continued and transmitted to. - :tiie gene
rations yet to. come,the people of thiS
w,role• nation, it: is presumed, will on .this
by assemble in their respeCtive 'nigh,
•thiyhootls will sWell a gen , ?ral. odors of
iational.rejoicing, a telegi l aml of which
is even now on itsAyay. frorn the hand of
our President to every corner , of the
rarth.:
,Glory to God in the Highest—
on earth peace, good will toward men."
- LA us hope that this, the.proudeSt 4th
of Idy. since 1776, :may be - a revival sea.-;.i .
ton of public and political virtue and pa;
. tity ; of faith in each oth; , r es a true tia-.
6431 brotherhood, iind: faith in God, as
Ihe author and 13. , stower of all; 'and th us
do honor to the past, the- present, and
o f our land...
in this Switzerland of Penn'a,,
the Keystone and Centennial State of
our Union, the ,heitvens shine brightly
tpoi, and over us ;..peace- reSts . upon • all
landscape. - These . hills • and valleys.
: but a few.years.siace an intiroken forest,.
pro , :trated..by the arm and industry of
Dnr ancestors, are 'now, clothed . with the
vadtireaf civilized ; *dui:grain waves
pith majesty
.in the fields, the air:is sweet
ao , lsends upwards - an aroma of . ejinlta- -
!I+IA and joy, as if to mingle with the
gret:ful emotions which should swell e'o=
tly heart aniongus.as we iead - and fecal'
he story of the dOjngs and:sufferings. Of,
titqltecollitiollttry fathers- 7 seriUnS,loAl-
frariiig . and God-loving men, Whn. - : ‘ aara r e
t , this western world enjoy the frec-; . ,
and, rights.' which, Godhas
mid to Omit the tree 'of, civil and'reliv
• i'ms bbertv,'"under . . -, .Whose :.shade,". said
itoz-r Williams , rfeverY.one:-.has,the right :
1 ,
.worship God according to the dictates .
his own- . conscience ."', . .",-There : Was :11 .
I l l'iliity which:directed. :their ,conrse and
'hapeci t he end. A dOpting,. the-motto of:ti l'hicifi~ , ld---«Never despair, .
While Christ
i' the Captain"--4aPy dared not i r only - to.
ditlare and publish thei7 ',Wiriings and, as
rl their rights, in the Clearest and most
Raring stamen* ever . - before - that time
forth by man :.' but with a' hindful : nt
utoraini-d inpn'fivin!.the farm, the Opp, :
al,d the forge, poorly: . •:arnied, and, eqUip.;
Tit without supplies' of . aniu . nitioti or
¶thing, to defyand . oonfrant-the might
empire in'the-.worldtheir
lat iii — invincibl# On, lan] 'andl . shpreme at,
N.. In the.proweit at that',Mightt
ltire as children. t•heV.felt gloW . 41:1)0dP-
hti(l reverenee-for ter - ,
s liccPs-tful : everywhere,: - girdiog,,jo.
with her victorieo. .= . 'BUt liberty, for ; which
they had left: that..
they . : 'Could,: not - . sulimit'
'g star ift:laves ;, they preferred . to brave' , the
- 4-: . :,: i _ . .:: : .0 . 1 5 i5eFt.,',:.
dangers iitid'end ire the privations .auiL
sufferings Of, open resistence. The..restilt.
under God's,
.bleaaltig, is,the immunities
we now..enjoy and this dityconimerhoilite..
Said John Matus -"We that] : make
this a gloilous,ik rnOrtal
. dayl
we are : in our
..graves children - will
hOliOr 'it: : 'Onits . . annual - :retain, , they,
Will shed tears, IcOpious,' - lashing,'„tears, ;
not- of -ati.bjectiOri. aid , slivery,: not .)Lag,
ony bat , - ‘ofA!xiiitation,.,6l
tratitude;and f oljoy. * Through
all. the gloom, ~11. Can. see,- . the . ravishing
rays. Of.:ligh ti an glory. Posterity
triumph:in -thia day's transacticu:."
: The Pail of the , CelebratiOn'.aSaigned
to me,-is the delivery' of the - Historical
Address in compliance, it - is . presumed
with a joint reaOlutiohof both Houses of
Congress' assen4 l .bled; approved March'
13th, 1876. - the' proclamation of the Pres
ident arit-also of the Governor of 'Penn..
ayiyanit 'of April 21st, 1876, commend-
ing its .obs.ervanee. s.`To . .,havo delivered
each, county:tor town,
.an
,- historical
sketbb _ : thereof from formation and
.staistics as can . e obtained .in , relation
_thereto,. to the -it tent that` , from- -them a
'
complete . record inay. be . obtained 'of. the
'progress 'of : oul industries- . ddring the
'first, centtini;l;( f their existauce.
The : dtity I have to discharge : is there:
fore . somewhat 'difficult. I may tax your
'patience,,farcithe trial .ia,..how. much or
how little to - ;say ;. keeping. in view his 7
torical faith fuln i ess and : a ,trhe regard to
statistical infortiation,calCulatd to, show
the development and estimating the ures
en t istate of , the country.
I.t preparing tnis.brief historical sketoit
.I will here state, that . many of the fact 4
-and iniorne. instances- the- language in
which trtey.are detailed, I have gathered
from theexcellent and *very - interesting
"liistori . .. r of • StiSqUehtinna county," by
.
.111iss Emily C. Blackman. of lifontrose, a
copy of. ivlitch :siould be in every .house
hold in ,the county, and of every one
born here, 'whe4iver-he may reside. My
labor in gathering these
,facts has been
thus, materially lessened, and the 'value
increased', by availing myself, net only .
- of her research; but in some. cases of her
graceful Style : iit the recital of them.
For all this she •s entitled to be credit
ed.
For statistics A am • indebted to the
I t
corn pendia m of the aensus of 1850-60,
and '7O, and. al;;'' the . Itiport. of the Bu
reau of. Statistic . of. our' State, for the
years 'l2-3. Frt m a codaparisim of these ,
..and'euch other information as. 1 . . have
been able to ga her, I have- made and
give my eStimak - for- the present . time:
4: 3
I . .. I The county' 0. Susghehutina is, scarce
ly middle aged latnotig the sister counties
'of Petinsyliania. It was set *off from
Luzerne 'by an. act of the
.I;igislaure pas
sed 'February 21st, 1.819. The south line
. of the county 'W i ns run by Trustees in
1811, 'and the fi st county officers *ere'
_
- elected byi tliC people - in:. 1812.'- •It ,is
lhounded on.the.nOrth,.. Dy . the State of
New York ; sontOby . the - counties of
\yorning - and Luz 'rue ; - east by • the
county of __Wayne ; west by the county of
'Bradford. - The nty contains . an area
1 1
of about 825 square miles. or nearly - 530,,
000 acres of , lan 4. The, population When
set off in 1810, could, not have exceed A .
7.004 L It. is.now estimated at ; 40,000. it
then,coniained : eight townships. It .. now
lis divided intoY2.7' townships and 7, bur
oughe.
- ' i'.‘The.coutity :derives its ,name; from'
-the faet that th ey Suiquehanna river first
ii:nters the. Stateiof Pennsylvania within
its limits;- - The name . is derived froin two
Indian words:.!
.7 .. ctiliza signifies. astreani
of water, - and Stisque is generallyrbeliev
-4 to. mean crooked. A. - .more -winding
and Crooked stream than. the SusqUetien
:na, astwits general coiirse, is not to be
found..
in the
,istate. In our own cOnlity
t varies. directly three times." ~-,---- • •
• •
It is. not probable that the.-Thilians,ever
had any fixed :residence,-:or dweltio - Our
eonlity. :1_ In: passing" from . - viryi•rning
Aiorthward,orlinJrefurning they.frequent=
ly crossed the-- - opcry, generally, it is sup
posed,',foll'iiwin the ..large -streams - , as
gi n
along these valle's arrow heads °and other
Indiari implitnei is haVe ibeen - found, and
several places ai.,, . marked, by - tradition
,as
l:.'tlie sites- of. Indian cabins.-- ... --- -
.- Th& earliest Wliite'and.civilized - settlers
,;. - -. -. I. - •
within what . Rolls ' Susquehanna county
- • • •4 .
„Catne..heiT,,it isipresuined i toon . after the
i,elote of 'the-11 c e,tiottitionitry War. Thet
, were mostly-. fiTai - ;New.,'England,, and
impression.-the,-iMpresSioti.that.the
lands -belonged ; to the state of; Con necti - .:
Cut Oder. the: . Charter of -1662 $ - and, the
purchase.. from
,the ;Indians in :1754 - .-.:,FOr,
although . the Jiiiit' COnventiOn,,,: which-
convened .at . Trent:'; . o . !1
.-in.,„l7B2;:hadf de. -
tided that ',the iliffri4dieiloa - bel6figed. - ,to,
Pennsylvania atideethfi.Chartek of 1681
!'and - their. purchase. of , the, Indian :title'M.'
1:768 . yet as' died Cotth. had before ' that
':decided. thit,_the, t right otisoil did...tiot:66Me
before ... 1
that :tribunal, it;, was ijiettritued .
that a title .deriii3O from Connecticut _Was
-. .gond' _an tf. yalidll'-.', - Many : - .01: the '..settlere,
either after theiileft' their . bortiet or after.
- arrivingliere; - invested all: - their available
1 ;00- 8 :.iiii. - ,.:,tio _ Otrohase . .',Of..title
.:titi':. : tite
land tti'or,.o6oo.lfrd.:- - ..This waia4eniarda,
: by'_the . begitilittdre . . and : - 'oOurts,..declatill:
t4:-66 - 4:ort,hleas. ll .. :They_ were,: • therefere
:•.::: •-•-:: •:.• , , ir.:.. - :-: • -.. • therefore, ..., '
MONTROSE, PA., JULY 26, 1876.
•
compelled to abandon their improvel
ments-nr -pay fur their: lands.' a secou
time.- , ,(note -This - state of. thing
greatly. added to, and in, many , cases h
tenSifled, - , the hardshiPs and 81!Irojn,(Y'R'
inSepErably incident to,
.the settling anti
obtaining a liViihood in a new and . healir
ly timbered forest. They had 'tiiiother
Communication : .with places' .vittero..pra•
visions could „ be' obtained than by: foot
paths
:through the foreet,..ihdicated. by
marked trees. Until land chuld ne'clear
and grain raised, all bieii&Seutti 'were
brought from 15 to 20 miles On thesihoui
ders of men.. through. these :forest , foot.;
paths, across hills,: valleyB . , and streams;
for the
.making of even, a horse path, by
cutting., away the brushwood and logs,
was too tiresome : and Slow ',it task for the
very few who even own.ed- that'nseful:ati 7
The whole country was thicklY.timber 7
ed with hemlock, sugar and white maple,
birCh - , chestnut, white pine, poplar; iron-,
wood, elm, cherry, hickory, and litter-.
nut, proportionately much. as in :the; Or
der-here, given. .
; Tliere was a• great deal nf,
between the Connecticut -- Claimants and
those wbe came . to survey and take visa
'ession of the lands nthler the Pen niylva
ilia- title. Though not iresulting in open
'conflict, as in the Wyoinin& valley, there
were many warnings given, threats made,
and, guns ;d"i"scharged-bullets whistled°
too. near for safety. • '
The ill-feeling 7whiet 4 ..: grew. out of this
eonLroverey not only
.retarded - the:Settle
ment and . improvement of the coun
ty,. but engendered a doubt, Of all title as
claimed,. and -caused :several' long and
vexatious suits at.law to settle questions
raised—the more especially where con
siderable.bodies of land, had. been sold-by
the original paten.tees o: middlemen, and.
mortgages taken. to secure the payment.
But the mild and liberal of most.
of the large owners did much to banish
ill-feeling, heal .the :difficulty, and give
assurance to: such • as i were desirous or
willing to pay for the land.
Some thirty years after this . another
difficulty arose in 'relation to- several acres
of hind ; in: this cctinty tinder a claim de
rived from John ' Nicholson,- - who. wits
. Giniptioller of Pennsylvania . from 1782
tip 'B4.;' and d-uring that period he, be
came owner of nearly four million acres
a land in this state He . mortgag7
ed a portion of .lands in. this county to.
the "Widow's Fund
.corp.oratior„' of
Philadelphia,. died insolvent, leavingithe
inOrtgaze unpaid. It - is not deemed nec
essary here to detail the partteulars of
this unpleasant. conflict, Which r :for.:Over
twenty years :Caused _ great interest and
excitement - ; especially to those who :had
paid either in whole or part . for . :their
farms. Suffice it to. say that afteriever
zo.sults.at law, and some legislation, the
whole matter was settled by suit of CJlll
pr9mise. • Since then, for the past 30
years, our citizens have had peace' ui re,
gard to their land titles.
TheSedifticnltieS., as to laud titles, very
naturally interfered with the more - rapid
settlement of the county. But for them
it is probable the census Of 1840 might
have nearly doubled.
Prominent among the, claimants, arid
mpporters of the Perinsylvapla title.' was
Col. Timothy Pickering an officer ru the
Continen tat army at Salem and Marble.
head, Mass.. in 1%75, and afterwards a
member of the cabinet -of President
- Washinge.ori. Having removed to Penn
sylvania he became the agent of the gov
ernm-Art to endeavor io settle the - disputes
as to title and' possession of the lands in
Luzerne,connty. He was appointed the
first,lothonotary,, Clerk and Recorder
of - that county in 1186. A few years
'after, he came to this part cf Luzerne,
became a--landholder, built a cabin and
stayed one or more yt-ars.
During this time he introduced to our
county Dr. Robert H. Ross a literary
gentleman from Philadelphia. He was
so much pleased here that he purchaaed
100,000licres of land.. nearly one-fifth cf
the' county, and made his home thereon
at Silver Lake. Dr. Rose took an
_active,
part in the development and • improve
ment of the county, built an. elegant ree,
idence; encouraged the raising' of sieep
of ,which he at. one time owned 7,000.
He was-influential in fixing
_Montrose as
the site 'for the Court- House, and gave
it the name after a' town in Scotland..
When selected it 'con tained but two houses
one of which was at one time; tavern; -
store, postoffice, and' Court House.—
The first court was held in JanuarY,lB.l3,
Hon. John P. Gibson, President Judge
and Davis Dimock and William Thomp.
son. :Associates. Sinbe than We have
had PresidentJudges•:—Thomas - Burnside
Edward Herrick, John Conyngham,
William Jessup, David.. ‘ Wilmot, Darius
Bullock,Ulysses !demur, and Farris B.
Streeter, who now_ presides over all the
county conrte.
t can hardly stippnee it to be 'within
the domain of this address, as prescribed
in the 'resolution of Congress and the
proclamations of the President and Ooi 7
ergot., to (Wail the names and recite the
deeds and -privations of the worthy men
our fathers, the, pioneers, active in the
earlier settlernentof this county whoa an
. ,
, •
I Ul)trOtiti , 'll S. IA , so. I
soon Lilt C4ki4V fiopi the , Ittlblizillvd
Ii -
trry of Alies Rib. I trust
mot of you read, . its' • .1 ihaie,
with. great interest and -pleasUre.—
Reading that; you kbow, who they were,
an 4 have a glimpse of ,their-, privations,
sufferin,gs, and,labqrs, the .11-nits and re
sults of whichWe *ri`pw enjoy.' 'We cher
ish their memOry, heir patienee;"forti
tude, and enterpris6—we-.venerate their
piety and trust. They• have passed Llte
yond the Neil whichlseparates the unseen
world, from our vulgar gaze. As a elites
they Were noble, honest, trtithful, high
-
alluded, and pious tnen 'and women. It
ivmore•-than doubtlbl whether they have
ev , lr.been- . t-xcelled,! if equallid, in the
pioneer history of our Union. They
*era decnidants ofkhe Pilgrim fathers,
and brought with"! therm Many of the
Pilgrim and kurit4n • customs. They
misted in God and ho'nored His :Holy
Word. regarding the'rnselves as.co-worlie rs
with Him in subduing the wilderne and
preparing a home for 'their, fumtlses.
They felt the loss . of religions privileges
as one of their. greatest privations, and :
welcomed to
,their hospitality every, one
who came as God's' Minister. • .
.
.
Though Death, the krand ley..lier, and.
enemy of our race; has; laid - away their
mortal bodies in thelboorn of our m4thi.r
earth;' - :'earth to earth,', ashes• to ashes,
dust to dust.''' lie Cali nOt . :hide or destroy •
the light of their..4aracter. or the infirt
enCe of theii. ~ kample their. faing• • and
virtues, their Seltatiiiial,.• privatiOps,
labor, are our prOpertyi, zand should .be
cherished in onr m•lnories. More. valuable
than the fields --they clear d and. it Ergo?.
The m ,re we can ;brighten
•their ineinoriesi and impr ,, ve and beaatfty
these farms,. lialiciwW by the labdilthd
.toil spent in clearin them, the ini)re - We
add
.. to o r. iiiheritiinco. Let .us .honor
our ancestry, by be6rhing more worthy
as their' descendanti.
NO white men 'are knosn to. have
dwelt here during onr - Revolutionary war.
No for , igu army hhs . ever trodden •our
eoi Nor has disl4ality to our govern
ment or Union, ever fnurid ae!,ive_friendS
here. etivi ng no . nri.iiies.w . orked,.and but
a few tnanniiietures, we have had no
strikes or riots, no hnnsual Or thrilling .
events in. our lii,i4try. Outside of - . the
laud-title disputes, and tne
.PrivatiOne,
sufferings and inetlOvenietices,, incident
to the settling and ?Mbduing a -new and
: wild territory elinging.a howling . wilder
ness into such &Ide s and farms as cover
our hills and valleyd;rhe progress of this
county from its orig,)n tip to the present
time, has been generally gradual ( and en-.
tirely peaceful. 'rill: question, wkich
storms' have aitated the
.sea of public
Opinion io_other..patitkof -our Union haVe
spent their force beAOre their, waves reselt .
our outer borders. Weither the feeble
roar or Spray have left an impression here
worthy. of record. 'shall,
.-therefore, as
.to particulars; confide myself pretty much
to such factsand stattaticeas I have been
ah'e to gather, showling the . general char
ac ter and, gradual progi,ess of our
c
I have said! that 4ur.. County incitides
an'area of some
.825 -square miles, and
nearly 530,000 acree'pf land. It is almost
entirely agricultursil. At leash seven
eights of our land 'being. capable of •t(11 7
age Or. pasturige and -no.inineral deposits
of k 'flown •.and apPinved 'value or extent
or of - lime stone haNke as yet been develop
ed though in some places there have
been found Clear in + dicattons of iron ore
and slighter traces- of copper and . lime.
Some feeble salt springs hate _been - build
a. few explored; - !but -- none' as yet .have
proved worthy of working. Several
Medicinal Springs hate been discovered
and waters .tested; 1 Some of these" are
said to have proved ihighly beneficial in
many diseases.' At :one' of these in Rush
_township, cerninodi`pus buildings have
been erected; and gOod accommodations
provided for invalids and other visitors.
Our county occupies an- outlying - spur
of
,the Alleaheney Mouutains, a part of
the .great APpalachitin system. ;.This spur
is 'here ,somewhat Ilattewd- down and
spread out 410 seriesof' hills; which
rise'eenerally with' N gradual; but in some
cases with a stfeperlascer.t, from 100 'to
1,001 feet ahote the valleys.ot , the larger
streams—these -vallqe being. from 1,000.
to 1,200 feet aboy4.the level of tide.'
The average height 4f the County,ii from.
one 'to two thousand' feet "above the - tide
.water levet; an' :alti(nde securing , a.pure
and bracing atmosphere. favorable to
health and, tidivity l of both body and
.mind.. Lifted above:the regionsof miasma
and the dieeiies arising therefrom, shield
ed by our hills fro* the ' tornadoes 'and
hurricanes which sweep` through a leVel
country, our Sumtner or warm season is
somewhat shortenedi and we are subject
to later and earlier frosts than lower or
more level dietricti is the same latitude.
It is regarded by - all who kitow it as a
most delightful, healthy, and" - quiet sum
metresidence; pleasSnt and. healthful al
so even in winter all not affected with
pulMonary. Weakuese •
The valleys throughout then country tip;
Oar - to have,_been washed out bribe
streams' running through them, at some
period in_ the
.03 , 04 of the „past, !hen
VOL. 33-NO, 30
tne' - eurre'fiti , of Water-Were inimenSely
gr•u• • .
.• • .•
- than 'at the - present,: and the
.
st rata, 'if° w
.Ainitigil4 sedimentary bitiuly
rcck. must have been so soft as t.o. be cut
or Washed 'through without Moving the
mass.- ..• 'These rocks . .' ITOW. 'generally - ie
regularstrata ; -.or E layers : from
the bage to'khe tOpS.. of, the hills; unlike
the,position of.. the: rock strata :in the
southern parts of.' out . State, or near and.
around the-,CO,ali,ineasures,•; where they
are turned up, inclined, and bent. his
the theory of •SOme geOlogiets that the
country north. of the . anthracite coal
.fields, has by, some :Convulsion beAn. rais
ed - and the coal basins sunken, :and by
drift and - delnge filled witli4iiat.hecame .
coal. They say that, : the -series of rocks
which form or. rib our. hills, arethe same,
as anderliel and for the' floor of the coal
basins,ionie thousand: feet loWer than ,
our valleys ; and, therefore, , though iron
and Other minerals' 'may here be found,: :
there are` probably no coal -veins in our
hills worth 'working. ',As in Nom. 'rock
strata; there are no fossil
,:remains, and
very. few : if any traces of vegetable Or. in-
sebt life we 'are sujipoed to - be seated
up;li - crystallization of chaos
.
our rook. strata a deposit • o
years:before'God , called , thelight day and
darkness.night ; when. there was no eye
•to see. or - heart to,feel, - ,or intelligence to ..'
register His awful plan, of creation:-
The soil of. our county, from :our fak
leys to the tops of our highest •hills, is a •
rich ~slaty gravely intermingled'
'with •some clay, and disintegrated rock
..and shale. This soil from twelie inches
:to - three feet in ':lepth, .is underlaid by a
of: tenacious clay
,and gravel,call
ed hard-Pan ; which being in most cases
lnipervious• to waterrpreserves ithemois
ture of the• soil, • defends ..it in a . great
- measure from the effects,.of &might, and
preitentS trie leaching: down and 'waste Of
the manure and' cithr fertilizers 'spread' .
upon- the surface. When well tillea and
(minuted, our soil yields all 'the 'common - •
grains and -v,egetables—as fine,.crops of
wheat, rye, . corn,
.buCkwbeat, potatoes .
&e., as any land in the state—although
the . tillage is somewhat more toilso.nit
than the sandy valleys, or limestone' .
lands of our southern counties. Being
watered by the purest springs and streams
it is . pre-eminently . ' ailapted• to raising
grass and stock, furnishing abundanbe of •
hay-sod pasturage. • -
Ne4l;-:d-tiancing,,. our hills and, - higher
valleys ,of our. county, are fifty
lakes and ponds of varied size and beau
ty ; led by springs from . the higher
ground. Fringed. with and bur..
dere . cl with . undergrowth, they :are gems •
of lorlinesS,-set in the landscape along
the footpath
. of Nature. In most . of .
these. are found- the - ettamon
...fish, such.,
as pickerel, perch, sun and Catfish, in•
more or less abundance. In some have '
been lately introduced the black baes.—*:.
SPeckled trout in considerable* quantity
are fi)und_in the :mountain streams and
ponds where there are no pickerel:.
,Lying within thirty miles : of the AVy•
()ming coal region—?a ready marketwith
which we..,are now' connected by ..three'.
•
railroads,: the farms. •of • Sa t squehanna
County are not - as yet . estimated, at half
their real value ; for what they may be
made to yield with proper tillage aud.cul
tore. From forty - 10 . -fifty oushels Of
wheat have been . gathered from- an acre,
and the records of our State Agricultural:
Sciciety show , tbeproof of. overl.so bush
els Of Ccern harvestts r d from an acre. For-
ty years ago, before-the -. potato crop had
become subject to .disease and vermitie,.
trim) four to Ave: hundred bOshels of po.
, totoes-*ere, e T ipected : and, often gathered
product : the . uct. of an acre of melt.
tilled .-
land: •.' • —.
Foe dairy farthing, the - land of this .
county Is probably equal to" that of auy.
section of our Union. No better or rich
er quality of butter, is made anywhere.
than is now
,supplied by some of our
careful and painstaking dairy. farmers,.' .
and the . quantity has 'rapidly increased
within' the : past few Years.' The nuthber
of cows in this enunty as reported in 1873:
to our State Bureau, of,. Statistics, was
about 25,000,. producing some
_two and a
hnif - million pounds of butter - , nearly a
milliOn pounds of cheese besides selling.' 1
140,000 , galkns milk.: Taking: the.
lost. census and , the . report as
.furnished,
the Bureau in 1873 ~as basis, esti
mate the number of inilch cows ,
in our •
county at this time to be not less that
30,000; and calculating the butter at the
very low estimate of 'lOO pounds per cow,
.we have at least three million pounds . of ,
butter as the product of this year,iin
damn to cheese: wade and milk, sold.
Nationale statisticsplace the number of
milch cows in the United States at thir—
teen millions and credit them with. sk
product of in .round numbers, 1,400,000,-
000 pounds of butter.
The product of •hay in 1873, was about.
100,000. tons. Our farms ate generally
improving in production and •as the
present season so far is highly favoritble,
the hay as well as 'other products may be
estimated considerably in avanae i1f1873.
At that 'time the number ofdo,mestie
animala'Or
live stock horses, cattle ehOp e ,
and swine_ were. about 88,000- of ,sheep
[Coulintiod on egg* pp]