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worthipping affemblies in this town, and a large fociety of Quakers at Portsmouth at the other end of the island.

In 1730, the colony was filled with inhabitants; and chiefly by the natural increase of the firft fettlers. The number of fouls in the state at this time was 17,935; of which no more than 985 were Indians, and 1648 negroes.

In 1738, there were above one hundred fail of veffels belonging to Newport.

The colony of Rhode-Inland, from its local fituation, has ever been lefs expofed to the incurfions of the neighbouring Indians, and from the French from Canada, than their neighbours in Maffachusetts and Connecticut. Many of the colony have, from its firft establishment, profeffed the principles of the Quakers, which forbad them to fight. For these reafons, the colony has been very little concerned in the old wars with the French and Indians. In the expedition against Port Royal in 1710, and in the abortive attempt against Canada in 1711, they had fome forces. Towards the intended expedition against Canada in 1946, they raised 300 men, and equipped a floop of war with 100 feamen; but in their voyage to Nova-Scotia, they met with misfortunes and returned. Soon after the defign was dropped.

Through the whole of the late unnatural war with Great-Britain; the inhabitants of this ftate have manifefted a patriotic fpirit; their troops have behaved gallantly, and they are honoured in having produced the fecond general in the field.

The rage for paper-money in Rhode-Ifland is not peculiar to the prefent time. From 1710 to 1750, Dr. Douglass obferves that the moft beneficial business of the colony was, Banking or negociating a bafe, fraudulent, paper-money currency, which was fo contrived, that amongst themfelves it came out at about two and an half per cent. intereft, and they lent it to the neighbouring colonies at ten per cent, a moft bare-faced cheat. The intereft of thefe public iniquitous frauds went, one quarter to the feveral townships to defray their charges; the other three quarters were lodged in the treasury, to defray the government charges of the colony *. In 1744, there was an emiffion of £160,000 O. T. in paper bills of credit, under pretence of the Spanish and impending French war. But it was diftributed among the people by way of loan at four per cent. interest for the first ten years, after which the principal was to be paid off by degrees in ten years more without intereft. This foon depreciated.

In 1750, the current bills amounted to £.523,335 Ó. T. which in its depreciated state was then fuppofed, by the wife and honeft, fufficient for all the purposes of the colony; yet it was then meditated to emit £.200,000 O. T. more upon loan. This Dr. Douglass supposes could not have been defigned as a further medium of trade, but a knavish device of fraudulent debtors of the loan of money, to pay off their loans at a very depreciated value +.' He again obferves, Their defign is by quantity to depreciate the value of their bills; and lands mortgaged for public bills

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will be redeemed in these minorated bills, at a very confiderable real va lue.' Were this writer living, would he not now fpeak the fame language refpecting the prefent ftate of Rhode-Ifland?

*

But enough has already been faid upon the paper-money, injuftice, and political confufion which pervade this unhappy ftate. I will only obferve, that these measures have deprived the ftate of great numbers of its worthy and most refpectable inhabitants; they have had a moft pernicious influence upon the morals of the people, by legally depriving the widow and the orphan of their juft dues, and otherwife eftablishing iniquity by law, and have occafioned a ruinous ftagnation of trade. It is hoped the time is not far diftant, when a wife and efficient government will abolish these iniquitous laws, and restore tranquility to the ftate.

CONNECTICUT.

SITUATION and EXTENT.

Length 82
Breadth 57 S

Between

41° and 42° 2' North Latitude.
1° 50' and 3° 20' Eaft Longitude.

Boundaries.] BOUNDED north, by Maffachusetts; eaft, by Rhode
Ifland; fouth, by the found, which divides it from
Long-Ifland; weft, by the ftate of New-York.

The divifional line between Connecticut and Maffachusetts, as fettled in 1713, was found to be about feventy-two miles in length. The iine dividing Connecticut from Rhode Island, was fettled in 1728, and found to be about forty-five miles. The fea coaft, from the mouth of Paukatuk river, which forms a part of the eaftern boundary of Connecticut, in á direct fouthwestwardly line to the mouth of Byram river, is reckoned at about ninety miles. The line between Connecticut and New-York uns from latitude 410 to latitude 42° 2′; 72 miles f. Connecticut contains about 4,64 fquare miles; equal to about 2,960,000 acres.

Rivers. The principal rivers in this ftate are Connecticut, defcribed under New-England, Houfatonik, the Thames, and their branches. One branch of the Houfatonik § rifes in Lanefborough, the other in Windfor, both in Berkshire county in Maffachufetts. It paffes through a number

See Hift. of United States, p. 120, &c.
Douglass.
§ An Indian name, fignifying Over the Mountain.

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a number of pleasant towns, and empties into the found between Stratford and Milford. It is navigable twelve miles to Derby. A bar of fhells, at its mouth, obftructs its navigation for large veffels. In this river, between Salisbury and Canaan, is a cataract, where the water of the whole river, which is 150 yards wide, falls about fixty feet perpendicularly, in a perfectly white fheet. A copious mift arifes, in which floating rainbows are feen in various places at the fame time, exhibiting a scene exceedingly grand and beautiful.

Naugatuk is a small river which rifes in Torrington, and empties into the Houfatonik at Derby. Farmington river rifes in Becket, in Maffachusetts, and after a very crooked course, part of which is through the fire meadows of Farmington, it empties into Connecticut river in Wind

for.

The Thames empties into Long-Ifland found at New-London. It is navigable fourteen miles, to Norwich Landing. Here it lofes its name, and branches into Shetucket, on the east, and Norwich or Little river, on the west. The city of Norwick ftands on the tongue of land between thefe rivers. Little river, about a mile from its mouth, has a remarkable and very romantic cataract. A rock ten or twelve feet in perpendicular height, extends quite across the channel of the river. Over this the whole river pitches, in one entire sheet, upon a bed of rocks below. Here the river is compreffed into a very narrow channel between two craggy cliffs, one of which towers to a confiderable height. The channel defcends gradually, is very crooked and covered with pointed rocks. Upon these the water swiftly tumbles, foaming with the moft violent agitation, fifteen or twenty rods, into a broad bafon which fpreads before it. At the bottom of the perpendicular falls, the rocks are curiously excavated by the conftant pouring of the water. Some of the cavities, which are al of a circular form, are five or fix feet deep. The smoothness of the water above its defcent- the regularity and beauty of the perpendicular fall-the tremendous roughnefs of the other, and the craggy, towering cliff which impends the whole, prefent to the view of the fpectator a scene indefcribably delightful and majestic. On this river are fome of the fineft mill feats in New-England, and those immediately below the falls, occupied by Lathrop's mills, are perhaps not exceeded by any in the world. Acrofs the mouth of this river is a broad, commodious bridge, in the forin of a wharf, built at a great expence.

Shetucket river, the other branch of the Thames, four miles from its mouth, receives Quinnabog, which has its fource in Brimfield, in Maffachusetts; thence paffing through Sturbridge and Dudley in Maffachusetts, it croffes into Connecticut, and divides Pomfret from Killingly, Canterbury from Plainfield, and Lisbon from Preston, and then mingles with the Shetucket. In paffing through this hilly country, it tumbles over many falls, and affords a vaft number of mill feats. The fource of the Shetucket is not far from that of the Quinnabog. It has the name of Willamantik while paffing through Stafford, and between Tolland and Willington, Coventry and Mansfield. Below Windham it takes the name of Shetucket, and empties as above. These rivers are fed by numberlefs brooks from every part of the adjacent country. At the mouth of Shetucket, is a bridge of timber 124 feet in length, fupported

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at each end by pillars, and held up in the middle by braces on the in the nature of an arch.

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Eaft, or North Haven river rifes in Southington, not far from a bend in Farmington river, and paffing through Wallingford and North Haven, falls into New-Haven harbour. It has been meditated to connect the fource of this river with Farmington river.

Mill river and Weft river are inconfiderable ftreams, bounding the city of New-Haven on the east and weft.

Weft of the Houfatonik, are a number of small rivers which fall into the found. Among these is Byram river, noticeable as forming a part of the boundary between New-York and Connecticut. But neither this, nor any of the others, are confiderable enough to merit particular descriptions.

Harbours.] The two principal harbours are at New-London and NewHaven. The former opens to the fouth. From the light-house, which ftands at the mouth of the harbour, to the town, is about three miles the breadth is three quarters of a mile, and in fome places more. The harbour has from five to fix fathom water-a clear bottom-tough ooze, and as far as one mile above the town is entirely fecure, and commodious for large fhips.

New-Haven harbour is greatly inferior to that of New-London. It is a bay which fets up northerly from the found, about four miles. Its entrance is about half a mile wide. It has very good anchorage, and two and an half fathom at low water, and three fathom and four feet at common tides.

The whole of the fea coaft is indented with harbours, many of which are fafe and commodious, but are not fufficiently ufed to merit a defcription.

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Climate, Soil, and Productions.] Connec&icut, though fubject to the extremes of heat and cold in their feafons, and to frequent fudden changes, is very healthful. As many as one in forty fix of the inhabitants of Connecticut, who were living in 1774, were upwards of feventy years old. From accurate calculation it is found that about one in eight live to the age of feventy years and upwards, one in thirteen to the age of eighty years, and one in about thirty to the age of ninety +.

In the maritime towns the weather is variable, according as the wind blows from the fea or land. As you advance into the country, the fea breezes have lefs effect upon the air, and confequently the weather is lefs variable. The fhortest day is eight hours and fifty-eight minutes, and

the

+ The following was extracted from the minutes of the Rev. Dr. Wales, formerly minister of Milford, now profeffor of divinity in Yale College.

From January 1, 1771, to January 1, 1777, 339 per ns died at Milford; of which 33, or about one-feventh part, were upwards of 70 years old; and 84, or about one-third part of the whole, were under 10 years.

From January 1, 1771, to June 3, 1782, died at Milford, 417 perfons; of which 31, or about one-thirteenth part of the whole number, were 80 years old and upward,'

Other calculations of a fimilar kind, made in different parts of the ftate from the bills of mortality, confirm the juftnefs of the above proportion.

the longest fifteen hours. The northwest winds, in the winter season, are often extremely fevere and piercing, occafioned by the great body of fnow which lies concealed from the diffolving influence of the fun in the immenfe forefts north and northweft. The clear and ferene temperature of the fky, however, makes amends for the feverity of the weather, and is favourable to health and longevity. Connecticut is generally broken land, made up of mountains, hills, and vallies; and is exceedingly well watered. Some small parts of it are thin and barren. It lies in the fifth and fixth northern climates, and has a strong, fertile foil. Its principal productions are Indian corn, rye, wheat in many parts of the state, oats and barley, which are heavy and good, and of late buck-wheat-flax in large quantities-fome hemp, potatoes of feveral kinds, pumpkins. turnips, peas, beans, &c. &c. fruits of all kinds, which are common to the cliThe foil is very well calculated for pafture and mowing, which enables the farmers to feed large numbers of neat cattle and horfes. Actual calculation has evinced, that any given quantity of the best mowing land in Connecticut, produces about twice as much clear profit, as the fame quantity of the best wheat land in the state of New-York. Many farmers, in the eastern part of the state, have lately found their advantage in raifing mules, which are carried from the parts of Norwich and NewLondon, to the Weft-India islands, and yield a handfome profit. The beef, pork, butter, and cheese of Connecticut are equal to any in the world.

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Trade.] The trade of Connecticut is principally with the West India iflands, and is carried on in veffels from fixty to one hundred and forty tons. The exports confift of horses, mules, oxen, oak staves, hoops, pine boards, oak plank, beans, Indian corn, fish, beef, pork, &c. Horfes, live cattle and lumber, are permitted in the Dutch, Danish, and French ports. Beef and fish are liable to fuch heavy duties in the French iflands, as that little profit arises to the merchant who sends them to their ports. Pork and flour are prohibited. As the ordinance making free ports in the French West-India iflands extends to all foreigners, the price of molaffes and other articles, has been greatly enhanced by the English purchases for Canada and Nova-Scotia fo that the trade of Connecticut with the French Weft-India islands is not profitable. Cotton, cocoa, indigo, and fugars are not permitted to be brought away by Americans. The feverity with which these prohibitory laws are adminiftred is fuch, as that thefe articles cannot be smuggled.

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Connecticut has a large number of coafting veffels employed in carrying the produce of the ftate to other states.-To Rhode-lfland, Maffachusets, and New-Hampshire they carry pork, wheat, corn, and rye.-To North and South Carolinas and Georgia, butter, cheese, falted beef, cyder, apples, potatoes, hay, &c. and receive in return, rice, indigo, and money. But as New-York is nearer, and the ftate of the markets always well known, much of the produce of Connecticut, efpecially of the weftern parts, is carried there; particularly pot and pearl afhes, flax-feed, beef, pork, cheese, and butter, in large quantities. Moft of the produce of Connecticut river from the parts of Maffachusetts, New-Hampshire, and Vermont, as well as of Connecticut, which are adjacent, goes to the fame market. Confiderable quantities of the produce of the eastern parts of the state are marketted at Bofton and Providence.

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