Chapter XX: Appendix

JULY 3d, 1821. I have but little to add to my Journal, and but few alterations to make, except in the article of grasses. I have there mentioned yard-grass as a pasture-grass, I now find it is an annual plant, being killed by the first frosts, and coming up from seed in the spring: it blossoms almost as soon as it comes up, and produces a great deal of small seed. It appears to come upon land that has been much trodden. I spoke of blue-grass as unknown in England, but it much resembles the natural grass with you; with a light fluey seed. There are now several sorts of English and American grasses sown round us, but I have seen too little of them to give any account of them.

The distances in my Journal are computed miles, except on the great national road, over the Allegany Mountains; that is, from Mr. Carter's, at "The Traveller's Rest," to Union Town; which distance is measured miles.

July 16th. We are now harvesting, and in two days, I think, we shall cut all our grain. The wheat is very stout, but somewhat blighted. The oats are good; the barley tolerably so. Indian corn excellent; at the beginning of July some of {306} mine was nine feet high, without any appearance of its coming into ear. Should the weather continue fine, the wheat will be all harvested in a few days. As the summer has been wet, the harvest is ten or fifteen days later than last year. Peas, potatoes, and most garden-vegetables are good. We have no peaches this season, the bloom being all cut off by the severe frosts in the spring. I planted out thirty-two in the spring, and I have seventy or eighty more for next year. There are a few apples round us, and a good show for most kinds of wild fruits. Last year our pigs got in excellent condition on acorns, &c. Many of them remained out all the winter. I lost upwards of thirty, from October till May; when, except three, they all returned, and in exceeding good order. Our cattle were very poor early in the spring, but are now got lusty, as cattle thrive much faster here in the spring than in the best English pastures.

I have raised a number of hop-plants from seed, and think of planting a small hop-garden. I am also going to make a vineyard, on a small scale. I have had ten vines from Harmonie, and hope to procure a hundred more next year, as they will grow in the open fields, and make wine without sugar. This year some sugar has been made near us, from the white maple, and it appears to answer nearly as well as the sugar-maple. I suppose, another season, it will be made in considerable quantities.

{307} Our country is settling pretty fast, and our county was lately divided into two, when a part of Crawford county was added to the north part of Edwards' county, and called Laurance county. Our part still retains the name of Edwards. Albion is made the county town, since which it is much improved; and many English and American families are now settled at it.

There is a water-mill on the Little Wabash, six or seven miles to the south of my farms; and another is building on the same stream, at nearly an equal distance to the north of them. There is an ox-mill at Albion that commenced work in March. I have before mentioned one building at Wanborough. A Mr. Backhouse, an English gentleman, has a brewery there, and has brewed a considerable quantity of beer this season. As barley is not to be procured, he has made his malt of wheat. This beer is far preferable to the Harmonie beer.

Mr. Birkbeck has two dairies of about sixty cows, and makes a large quantity of cheese. Mr. Flowers is also going to establish one, on a large scale, so that cheese will soon be plentiful. Butter is so at 12½ cents, 6¾_d._ per lb. Most kinds of provisions are very cheap: beef, 4 cents per lb.; bacon, 6 to 8 cents per lb.; flour, 4_s._ 6_d._ to 5_s._ per bushel, English weight and money. A good cow and calf from 12 to 14 dollars. Sheep scarce; mutton, 5 to 6 cents per lb. Venison and game in general not so plentiful as last year; prices much the same.

{308} The weather was much milder last winter than the preceding one, with a great deal more rain. The spring backward, and sometimes very cold. May and June generally warm, with many thunder-storms,--I suppose near forty; but none of them very heavy, except one on the 9th of this month (July). The 10th of June, a particularly hot day: the thermometer 98 in the shade.

As the summer has been wet, the grass and weeds are much higher in the prairies than I have before seen them; in some places six feet or higher. We have, therefore, as much prairie hay as we choose to cut.

There was an assize or circuit court held at Albion, on the 7th, 8th, and 9th of June: there was not a great deal of business,--only two criminal causes. One for pig-stealing, found guilty: the sentence a fine of fifty dollars, and twenty-five lashes, which were immediately inflicted by the sheriff. The other was for stealing peach-trees, but was acquitted. Four or five counsellors attended: no particular dress worn by them or the judge. As the heat was great, one of the counsel, who had the most causes, took off his coat and pleaded without it. Although no wigs or black gowns are worn, there was no more want of quirks and quibbles than in Westminster Hall; nor were they deficient in eloquence; but not so much tied down to forms, nor perhaps quite so polite as with you.

W---- was of age in January, but his birth-day {309} was not kept till the middle of April, on account of the illness of Mr. S----. A party of about thirty young people sat down to supper: and suppose I give you a description of this Illinois entertainment: a round of beef, from an ox of 800 lbs. weight; a turkey that weighed 19 lbs.; a large ham, chickens, rabbits; peach, apple, and pumpkin pies, sweet cakes, &c. &c. As the night was wet, the dance was kept up till late in the morning.

The following is the return of the American militia laid before Congress, Feb. 26th, 1821, in which you will find the State of Illinois stands last, but it is too thin to muster in the greater part of it; and as 1820 was only the first year of its being mustered, it will probably be returned nearly treble another year.

1 State of New York 121,553 2 Pennsylvania 115,231 *3 Virginia 88,915 4 Ohio 83,247 *5 Kentucky 51,052 6 Massachusetts 48,140 *7 North Carolina 46,728 *8 Tennessee 36,146 9 New Jersey 33,240 *10 Maryland 32,189 11 Maine 30,990 *12 Georgia 29,661 13 New Hampshire 27,012 *14 South Carolina 23,729 15 State of Connecticut 22,109 {310} 16 Vermont 20,781 17 Indiana 14,990 *18 Missouri 12,080 *19 Alabama 11,261 *20 Louisiana 10,257 21 Rhode Island 8,665 22 Delaware 7,451 *23 Mississippi 5,292 24 Illinois 2,031 25 Michigan Territory 1,707 ------- Total 884,457 *26 Arkansaw territory No return. 27 North-west do. do. 28 Missouri do. do.

In most of the new States and territories the returns are very imperfect, and much short of the number liable to serve. Those marked thus * are slave States; but no slaves are liable to serve. The number of slaves calculated to be upwards of 2,000,000. Whites upwards of 8,000,000. Indians near 300,000. Total supposed to be about 11,000,000, of all colours. The Floridas are not included in this return.

THE END

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[Transcriber's note:

Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation are as in the original.

Page 227, "coal was substituted for wool" changed to read "coal was substituted for wood".

Page 283, "the Lincolnshire and Welch sheep" changed to read "the Lincolnshire and Welsh sheep".

Page 329, "Carslisle is a town" changed to read "Carlisle is a town".]