WE have crossed two rivers since we left Goldsboro'; and now we have arrived at a third, and the longest of the three. The Yadkin is a name of Indian origin; and the stream which bears it rises in the mountains. This is the first river we have yet seen, in our journey, that rises in a region so elevated; and we observe that it has some characteristics different from any we have passed. It has a clear, rapid current; and it is evident that it rolls along a vast volume of water. From its source, near the Blue Ridge, it receives, on both sides, a great number of creeks; and thus on its banks, for a considerable distance, is one of the bestwatered countries in the world. The whole region is fertile; indeed, only those who have seen it, and have travelled over other countries, can properly estimate its advantages. Towards the South-Carolina line, cotton grows luxuriantly; and as we go higher up, corn, wheat, tobacco, grass, and fruits of the finest qualities, can be produced in the greatest abundance. The water-power is immense, both on the Yadkin and its numerous tributaries; and it is impossible to estimate the amount of wealth and energy and happiness that will be some day seated through this country. It is in contemplation to make the Yadkin navigable; and here is every prospect that the object will be accomplished, and that at no distant day. The enterprising population which will fill this favoured section, must and will have an outlet for the vast and valuable surplus productions of its labour; and the construction of the Central Railroad will but increase the necessity of making the river also a highway for commerce. It is said that it can be rendered navigable as high up as Wilkesboro', in the county of Wilkes; and when this is done and the road finished, our Eastern friends can make very delightful summer excursions to the mountains. The cars will bring them to the river; and there they will enter a fine steamboat, and pass up through banks that become steeper and higher, till the occasional cliff and promontory are merged in a compact series of stupendous hills and craggy precipices. Lower down it is in contemplation to connect the Yadkin with the deep.river improvement, by means of what is called a portage railroad; that is, a road over which the freight boats taken from one river will be transported to the other. These improvements are sure to be made in the course of time; and just glance your eye over the country, and see what a land of promise it is! From the Yadkin we still continue our journey towards the south-west; and we begin to see vegetation and trees of a warmer climate than that through which we have recently passed. In a short time we arrive at Salisbury; and recollections of the past, with which it is associated, crowd upon our minds. It is a name that often occurs in the history of the Revolution; and even at that time it was a considerable place, and the centre of a well-peopled country. The old county of Rowan, of which it is the chief town, did good service in those trying times; and it was the theatre of many interesting transactions. This whole region was covered with a vigorous population: they combined, and still possess, those fine attributes which make an honest, intelligent, and successful nation.. Age sits lightly on the old town; and it manifests many indi cations of a second youth. It is growing in size and in trade; and its venerable trees and refined society endear it to the man of cultivated taste. Hence we go nearly south; and on each side, as far as the ye can see, waves a yellow sea of luxuriant wheat. The road is as old as the nation; and it has been a thoroughfare since before the Revolution. Hence reminiscences of the past are blended with the natural charms of the country; and these, and the signs of plenty and the total absence of want, make us almost forget that there are other matters of interest along our route. We are in the gold region; and if we had time, we might spend weeks in examining the mines. At Concord, in Cabarrus county, we hear much of this kind of business; and we find that the county needed not this source of wealth to make it a desirable place. The soil is universally good; and the people as thrifty, as public-spirited, kindly, and sociable as any in the world. Finally, we come to Charlotte, the south-western terminus of the Central Railroad; and we find ourselves again among the tropical fruits and the sandy plains that gave a strange interest to our journey in the counties south of the Cape-Fear River. These indications of a glowing sun are not so common where we now are; but they are visible signs of a change of soil and a change of climate. Charlotte is a very pleasant-looking place; and something more than the trees and flowers remind us that we are in a genial region. The hearts of the people are as warm as their climate; and their manners possess that peculiar charm which is found only among an impulsive and generous race, softened and refined by education. Here we are in a country scored and pitted with gold mines; and in Charlotte is a branch of the mint of the United States. We are in a country peculiar in another particular; it seems to be near the dividing line between the grain, cotton, and grazing regions, and to combine the advantages of all. It is, therefore, a place of wealth and plenty; and it is in the midst of a very productive and abundant country. Here begins another railroad that will soon be finished; and on it, and the roads with which it connects, we can be carried by steam to Charleston, South-Carolina. Now look back over the route of the Central Railroad! You observe that it is nearly a semicircle; and that it passes through a country which, when it gets a market, will be one continued garden. There is not a foot of land along it that cannot be cultivated and improved, up to the sills of the road; and it is capable of growing grains and fruits of all kinds, tobacco, cotton, and grapes. We have had a glimpse of the country along the line of the road; and let me tell you that this goodly section extends for a great distance on both sides. Like a great river, this road will have a continuous margin of green; and the margins will form a broad zone of beauty, encircling the waist of our fair Carolina. HARNESS me down with your iron bands, For I scorn the power of your puny hands As the tempest scorns a chain. How I laugh'd as I lay conceal'd from sight At the childish boast of human might When I saw an army upon the land, Creeping along a snail-like band, Or waiting the wayward breeze; As he feebly turn'd the tardy wheel, When I measured the panting courser's speed, As they bore the law a king decreed, Or the lines of impatient love; I could not but think how the world would feel, When I should be bound to the rushing keel, Ha ha ha! they have found me at last! And I rush'd to my throne with thunder-blast, Hurrah! hurrah! the waters o'er, The ocean pales where'er I sweep, I carry the wealth, and the lord of earth, In the darksome depths of the fathomless mine Where the rocks never saw the sun decline, I blow the bellows, I forge the steel I hammer the ore and turn the wheel, And all my doings I put into print |