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inflammatory diforders, occafioned by fudden and violent colds, are confiderably common, and frequently fatal. Confumptions, epilepfies, cancers, palfies and appolexies, are not fo incident to the inhabitants of the fouthern as northern climates.

The winters in Georgia are very mild and pleasant. Snow is feldom or never feen. Vegetation is not frequently prevented by fevere froits. Cattle fubfift tolerably well through the winter, without any other food than what they obtain in the woods and favannahs *, and are fatter in that feafon than in any other. In the hilly country, which begins about 80 or 100 miles from the fea, the air is pure and falubrious, and the water plenty and good. In the flat country there is here and there a spring only, which is clear and pretty good. Neither is the air fo pure here as in the hilly country, being more confined, and lefs fubject to agitations from the winds, and withal impregnated with putrid vapours from the rice fwamps. In the fouth-eaft parts of this state, which lie within a few degrees of the torrid zone, the atmosphere is kept in motion by impreffions from the trade winds. This ferves to purify the air, and render it fit for refpiration; fo that it is found to have a very advantageous effect on perfons of confumptive habits.

Face of the Country.] The eastern part of the ftate, between the mountains and the ocean, and the rivers Savannah and St. Mary's, a tract of country more than 120 miles from north to south, and 40 or 50 east and weft, is entirely level, without a hill or a stone. At the distance of about 40 or 50 miles from the sea-board, or falt-marsh, the lands begin to be more or lefs uneven. The ridges gradually rife one above another into hills, and the hills fucceffively increafing in height, till they finally terminate in mountains. That vaft chain of mountains which commences with Katts Kill, near Hudson's river, in the state of New-York, known by the names of the Allegany and Apalachian mountains, terminate in this state, about 60 miles fouth of its northern boundary,-From the foot of this mountain spreads a wide extended plain, of the richest soil, and in a latitude and climate favourably adapted to the cultivation of most of the EastIndia productions.

Soil and Productions.] The foil and its fertility are various, according to fituation and different improvement. The iflands on the fea-board, in their natural state, are covered with a plentiful growth of pine, oak, and hiccory, live oak, and fome red cedar. The foil is a mixture of fand and black mould, making what is commonly called a grey foil. A confiderable part of it, particularly that whereon grow the oak, hiccory and live oak, is very fertile, and yields on cultivation good crops of indigo, cotton, corn and potatoes. These islands are furrounded by navigable creeks, between which and the main land is a large extent of falt marsh, fronting the whole ftate, not lefs, on an average, than four or five miles in breadth, interfected with creeks in various directions, admitting, through the whole, an inland navigation between the islands and main-land, from the northeattward to the fouth-eastward corners of the ftate. The foil of the mainland, adjoining the marshes and creeks, is nearly of the fame quality with

* A favannah is a tract of ground covered with grass, but without any trees or fhrubs. They are often to be found in pine lands on the fouthern States. that

that of the islands; except that which borders on those rivers and creeks which stretch far back into the country. On thefe, immediately after you leave the falts, begin the valuable rice fwamps, which on cultivation, afford the present principal staple of commerce. The most of the rice lands

lie on rivers, which, as far as the tide flows, are called Tide-lands, or on creeks and particular branches of water, flowing in fome deeper and lower parts of the lands, which are called inland-fwamps, and extend back in the country from 15 to 25 miles, beyond which very little rice is planted, though it will grow exceedingly well, as experiment has proved, 120 miles back from the fea. The intermediate lands, between thefe creeks and rivers, are of an inferior quality, being of a grey foil, covered chiefly with pine, and a fort of wild grafs and fmall reeds, which afford a large range of feeding ground for ftock both summer and winter. Here and there, are interfperfed oak and hiccory ridges, which are of a better foil, and produce good crops of corn and indigo, but these are very little elevated above the circumjacent lands.. The lands adjoining the rivers are nearly level, and, for a hundred miles in a direct line from the sea, continue a breadth from 2 to 3 or 4 miles, and wherever, in that distance, you find a piece of high land that extends to the bank of the river on one fide, you may expect to find the low or fwamp ground proportionably wide on the oppofite fide of the river. This feems to be an invariable rule till you come to that part where the river cuts the mountains.

The foil between the rivers, after you leave the fea board and the edge of the fwamps, at the distance of 20 or 30 miles, changes from a grey to a red colour, on which grow plenty of oak and hiccory, with a confiderable intermixture of pine. In fome places it is gravelly, but fertile, and fo continues for a number of miles, gradually deepening the redish colour of the earth, till it changes into what is called the Mulatto foil, confifting of a black mould and red earth. The compofition is darker or lighter according as there is a larger or fmaller portion of the black or red earth in it. The mulatto lands are generally ftrong, and yield large crops of wheat, tobacco, corn, &c. To this kind of land fucceeds by turns a foil nearly black and very rich, on which grow large quantities of black walnut, mulberry &c. This fucceffion of different foils continues uniform and regular, though there are some large veins of all the different foils intermixed, and what is more remarkable, this fucceflion, in the order mentioned, ftretches across this ftate nearly parallel with the fea coaft, and extends through the feveral states, nearly in the fame direction, to the banks of Hudfon's river. In this ftate are produced by culture, rice, indigo, cotton, filk, (though not in large quantities) India corn, potatoes, oranges, figs, pomegranates, &c. Rice, at prefent, is the ftaple commodity; and as a small proportion only of the rice ground is under cultivation, the quantity raised in future must be much greater than at prefent. But the rapid increafe of the inhabitants, chiefly by emigrations, whofe attention is turned to the raifing of tobacco, and the vast extent of land, with a richness of foil fuited to the culture of that plant, renders it probable, that tobacco will shortly become the staple of this ftate.

The tobacco lands are equally well adapted to wheat, which may hereafter make an important article of commerce.

On

On the dry plains, grow large crops of fweet potatoes, which are found to afford a wholefome nourishment, and from which is made, by distillation, a kind of whifky, tolerably good, but inferior to that made from rye. It is by properly macerating and washing this root, that a sediment or ftarch is made, which has obtained the name of Sago, and answers all the purposes of the India fago.

Most of the tropical fruits would flourish in this ftate with proper attention. The rice plant has been, and the tea plant, of which fuch immenfe quantities are confumed in the United States, may undoubtedly be, tranfplanted with equal advantage. The latitude, the foil, and the temperature of climate, all invite to make the experiment.

From many confiderations, we may perhaps venture to predict, that the fouth-western part of this state, and the parts of East and West Florida, which lie adjoining, will, in a few years, become the vineyard of America.

Remarkable Springs.] In the county of Wilkes, within a mile and an half of the town of Washington, is a medicinal spring, which rifes from a hollow tree, four or five feet in length.-The infide of the tree is covered with a coat of nitre, an inch thick, and the leaves around the spring are incrusted with a substance as white as fnow.-It is faid to be a fovereign remedy for the fcurvy, fcrofulous disorders, confumptions, gouts, and every other disease arifing from humours in the blood.-A perfon, who had a fevere rheumatism in his right arm, having, in the space of ten minutes, drank two quarts of the water, experienced a momentary chill, and was then thrown into a perfpiration, which, in a few hours, left him entirely free from pain, and in perfect health.

This fpring, fituated in a fine, healthy part of the state, in the neighbourhood of Washington, where are excellent accommodations, will no doubt prove a pleasant and falutary place of refort for invalids from the maritime and unhealthy parts of this and the neighbouring states.

Curiofities.] About 90 miles from the fea, as you advance towards the mountains, is a very remarkable bank of oyster fhells, of an uncommon fize. They run in a direction nearly parallel with the fea coaft, in three diftinct ridges near each other, which together occupy a space of feven miles in breath. The ridges commence at Savannah river, and have been traced to the northern branches of the Alatamaha. This remarkable phenomenon has already been accounted for (page 49.) But by whatever means thefe fhells were placed there, they are an inexhaustible source of wealth and convenience to the neighbouring inhabitants, as from them they make their lime for building, and for the making of indigo, in which it is indifpenfibly necessary.

Commerce, manufactures and agriculture.] The chief articles of export from this ftate are rice, tobacco, indigo, fago, lumber of various kinds, naval ftores, leather, deer skins, fnake root, myrtle, bees wax, corn, live ftock, &c. The value of the exports from this ftate in 1772, was £.121,677 fterling. The number of veffels employed this year, was 217, whofe tonnage was 11,246, as will be feen in the following statement.

Exports

Exports of Georgia, of the year 1755, 1760, 1765, 1770, and 1772. 1760. 1765. 1770. 1772.

Barrels of rice,

1755.
2,399

Pounds of indigo,
Lbs deer-fkins,
Lbs beaver-fkins,
Lbs. raw filk,
Lbs. tanned leather,
M. feet of timber,

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3,283 4,508 11,746 49,995 65,765 120 2,298

12,224 22,129 23,540

16,019! 22,336 11,882 200,695 284,840 213,475

1,800

1,469 632

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485

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44,539

52,126

1,879

I, 806

2,163

Lbs. of tobacco,

13,447

176,732

M. ftaves,

203

80

661

466

188

M. fhingles,

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Lbs. of hemp,

Oars and handspikes,

1,112

528

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Bbls. turpentine,

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Barrels of pitch,

80

364

Barrels of tar,

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Barrels of pork,

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628

Barrels of beef,

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Hogs and fhoats,

761

1,360

605

574

Bushels of corn,

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Lbs of flour,

1,000

Bushels rough rice,

237

208

3,113

7,064

2,627

Bushels of peas,

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Lbs. fago-powder,

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Gals: orange-juice,

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Lbs. of tallow,

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Value in fterling money, of the exports of Georgia, for eighteen years.

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Statement of the number of veffels cleared out of Georgia, from 1755, to 1772

Square-rigged Sloops:

Square-rigged Sloops. tons.

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1,981

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1,799 1760,

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33

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1,604

17

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It is impoffible to tell, with accuracy, what has been the amount of exports in one year fince the peace, owing to the confufion into which 'affairs of this kind were thrown into by the late war. In return for the numerated exports are imported, Weft-India goods, teas, wines, various articles of clothing, and dry goods of all kinds.-From the northern states, cheese, fish, potatoes, apples, cyder and fhoes. The imports and exports of this ftate are to and from Savannah, which has a fine harbour, and is a place where the principal commercial business of the ftate is tranfacted. The manufactures of this ftate have hitherto been very inconfiderable, if we except indigo, filk, and fago. In 1765, 1084 lbs. of raw filk were exported. So large a quantity, however, has not been exported in any one year before or fince. The culture of filk and the manufacture of fago, are at present but little attended to. The people in the lower part of this state manufacture none of their own clothing for themselves ortheir negroes. For almost every article of their wearing apparel, as well as for their husbandry tools, they depend on their merchants, who import them from Great-Britain and the northern ftates. In the upper part of the country, however, the inhabitants manufacture the chief part of their clothing from cotton and from flax.

Military ftrength.] In Georgia there are fuppofed to be about 8000 fighting men, between fixteen and fifty years of age. Of these 2,340 are in Wilke's county, 600 in Chatham, and 424 in Liberty county.

Population, Charader, Manners, Sc.] No actual cenfus of the inhabitants of this state has been taken fince the war. Population, fince the peace of 1783, has increased with a furprising rapidity. It is conjectured that emigrations from Europe, the northern ftates, but principally from the back parts of Virginia, and the North and South Carolinas, have more than tripled the number of inhabitants in the laft fix years. From the moft probable calculations there are, exclufive of Indians, upwards of 40,000 inhabitants in Georgia, of whom one third part at least are slaves. In the grand convention at Philadelphia, in 1787, the inhabitants of this state were reckoned at 90,000, including three-fifths of 20,000 negroes. But from the number of militia, which has been afcertained with a confiderable degree of accuracy, there cannot be at moft, more than half that number.

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No general character will apply to the inhabitants at large. Collected from different parts of the world, as intereft, neceffity or inclination led them, their character and manners must of course partake of all the varieties, which distinguish the several states and kingdoms from whence they came. There is fo little uniformity, that it is difficult to trace any governing principles among them.An averfion to labour is too predominant, owing in part to the relaxing heat of the climate, and partly to the want of neceffity to excite industry. An open and friendly hofpitality, particularly to ftrangers, is an ornamental characteristic of a great part of this people.

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