are called the Brandywine mills, from the ftream on which they are erected. This ftream rifes near the Welch mountains in Pennfylvania, and after a winding course of thirty of forty miles through falls, which furnish numerous feats (one hundred and thirty of which are already occupied) for every fpecies of water works, empties into Chriftiana creek, near Wilmington. The quantity of wheat manufactured at thefe mills annually is not accurately afcertained: it is estimated, however, by the beft informed on the fubject, that thefe mils can grind four hundred thoufand bufhe's in a year. But although they are capable of manufacturing this quantity yearly, yet, from the difficulty of procuring a permanent fupply of grain, the inftability of the flour market, and other circumstances, there are not commonly more than from about two hundred and ninety to three hundred thousand bushels of wheat and corn manufactured here annually. In the fall of 1789, and fpring of 1790, there were made at the Brandywine mills fifty thoufand barrels of fuperfine flour, one thousand three hundred and fifty-four ditto of common, four hundred ditto middlings, as many of thip ftuff, and two thoufand ditto corn meal. The quantity of wheat and corn ground, from which this flour, &c. was made, was three hundred and eight thoufand bufhels, equal to the export in those articles from the port of Philadelphia for the fame year.

Thefe mills give employment to about two hundred perfons, viz. about forty to tend the mills, from fifty to feventy coopers, to make cafks for the flour, a fufficient number to man twelve floops, of about thirty tons each, which are employed in the transportation of the wheat and flour, the refl in various other occupations connected with the mills. The navigation quite to the fe mills is fuch, that a veffel carrying one thousand bufhels of wheat may be laid along fide of any of these mills; and befides fome of them the water is of fufficient depth to admit veffels of twice the above fize. The veffels are unloaded with aftonishing expedition. There have been inftances of one thoufand bufhels being carried to the height of four ftories in four hours. It is frequently the cafe, that veffels with one thousand bufhels of wheat come up with flood tide, unlade, and go away the fucceeding ebb, with three hundred barrels of flour on hoard. In confequence of the machines introduced by the ingenious Mr. Oliver Evans, three quarters of the manual labour before found neceffary is now fufficient for every purpose. By means of thefe machines, when made ufe of in the full extent propofed by the inventor, the wheat will be received on the fhallop's deck, thence carried to the upper loft of the mill, and a confiderable portion of the fame returned in flour on the lower floor, ready for packing, without the affiflance of manual labour but in a very fmall degree, in proportion to the bufinefs done. The tranfportation of flour from thefe miils to the port of Wilmington does not require half an hour; and it is frequently the cafe, that a cargo is taken from the mills and delivered at Philadelphia the fame day. The fituation of thefe mills is very pleafant and healthful. The firft mill was built here about fifty years fince. There is now a fmall town of forty houfes, principally flone and brick, which, together with the mills and the veffels loading and unloading befide them, furnish a charming profpect from the bridge, from whence they are all in full view.

Befides the wheat and flour trade, this State exports lumber and various other articles. The amount of exports for the year ending September 30, 1791, was one hundred and ninety-nine thoufand eight hundred and forty dollars.

JUST

PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS.

Bridges, Light-Houfe, &c.

UST before the commencement of the war, a work of confiderable importance was begun at Lewes, in the fouthern part of the State, viz. the erection of a bridge and caufeway from the town, over the creek and marsh to the appofite cape. This expenfive work was juft completed when the Britifh fhips first came into the road of Lewes. In order to prevent too eafy a communication, they partially removed it; and it being afterwards neglected, it was in complete ruins at the clofe of the war. A bridge, upon the fame plan, but upon a new foundation, has lately been erected at the fole expense of individuals; it extends about a quarter of a mile from the town to the beach, over a wide creek and marsh. The inhabitants are compenfated for their expenfe by the facility of the communication between the town and the cape. Several canals in different parts of this State are contemplated, one of which is down the waters of the Brandywine.

The light-house, near the town of Lewes, was burnt in 1777. Since the war it has been completed and handsomely repaired. It is a fine ftone flructure, eight flories high; the annual expence of which is ellimated at about fix hundred and fifty pounds currency.

Conflitution and Courts of Juftice.

THE conftitution of this fate delagates the legislative power to a ge

neral affembly, confifling of a fenate and a houfe of reprefentatives; and the executive, to a governor. The governor and fenators are chosen by the people for three years, and the reprefentatives for one year. The governor is commander in chief of the military force. The judicial power is vefted in a court of chancery, and feveral common law courts. The conftitution declares fome of the rights of the people, and enumerates nearly the fame that are mentioned in the declaration of rights of Pennfylvania.

'CHA P. XV.

NORTH-WESTERN TERRITORY.

Situation, Extent, Boundaries, Number of Inhabitants.

THIS territory, N. W. of the Ohio, is fruated between 37° and

50° north latitude, and between 81° 8′ and 98° 8' weft longitude.

This extenfive tract of country is bounded north, by part of the northern boundary line of the United States; eaft by the lakes and Pennfylvania; fouth, by the Ohio river; weft, by the Miffiffipi. Mr. Hutchins, the late geographer of the United States, eflimates, that this tract contains two hundred and fixty-three millions forty thoufand acres, of which forty-three millions forty-thousand are water; this deducted, there will remain two hundred and twenty millions of acres, belonging to the federal government, to be fold for the difcharge of the national debt; except a narrow ftrip of land bordering on the fouth of lake Erie, and ftretching an hundred and twenty miles weft of the western limit of Pennfylvania, which belongs to Connecticut.

But a small proportion of thele lands is yet purchafed of the natives, and to be difpofed of by Congrefs. Beginning on the meridian line, which forms the western boundary of Pennfylvania, feven ranges of townfhips have been furveyed and laid out by order of Congrefs. As a north and fouth line ftrikes the Ohio in an oblique direction, the termination of the feventh rangefalls upon that river, nine miles above the Muskingum, which is the first large river that falls into the Ohio. It forms the junction an hundred and feventytwo miles below Fort-Pitt, including the windings of the Ohio, though in a direct line is but ninety miles.

That part of the territory in which the Indian title is extinguished and which is fertling under the goverment of the United States, is divided into five counties, viz. Wafhington, Hamilton, St. Clair, Knox and Wayne.

The number of fouls in this large tract of country has not been exactly afcertained, but from the best accounts received, the population was in 1792, eitimated at 72,800, which number from the attractive fituation of the country muit fince have prodigiously encreased.

Several fettlements are commencing, one at Marietta, at the mouth of Muskingum, under the direction of the Ohio company: another between the Miami rivers, under the direction of Colonel Symmes; and a French seatement at Galliopolis.

Face of the Country, Soil and Productions.

"THE undiftinguifhed terms of admiration that are commonly

used in speaking of the natural fertility of the country on the weltein wateis of the United States, would render it difficult, without accurate attention in the furveys, to afcribe a preference to any particular part; or to give a juft defcription of the territory under confideration, without the hazard of being, fufpected of exageration but in this we have the united opinion of the geographer, the furveyors, and every traveller that has been intimately acquainted with the country, and marked every natural object with the moll fcrupulous exactness-that no part of the federal territory unites to many advantages,

in point of health, fertility, variety of productions, and foreign intercourfe, av that which firetches from the Muskingum to the Scioto and the Great Miami rivers.

"The prevailing growth of timber, and the more ufeful trees, are, maple or fugar tree, fycamore, black and white mulberry, black and white walnut, butternut, chefnut; white, black, Spanish and chefnut oaks, hiccory, cherry, buckwood or horfe chefnut, honey locuft, elm, cucumber tree, lyn tree, gum tree, iron wood, afh, afpin, faffafras, crape apple tree, paupaw or cuflard apple, a variety of plum trees, nine-bark, fpice, and leather-wood bufhes. General Parfons measured a black walnut tree near Muskingum, whose circumference, at five feet from the ground, was twenty-two feet. A fycamore, near the fame place, meafured forty-four feet in circumference, at fome diftance from the ground. White and black oak, and chefnut, with most of the above mentioned timbers, grow large and plenty upon the high grounds: both the high and low lands produce vaft quantities of natural grapes of various kinds, of which the fettlers univerfally make a fufficiency of rich red wine for their own confumption. It is afferted in the old fettlement of St. Vincent, where they have had opportunity to try it, that age will render this wine preferable to moll of the European wines.

Cotton is the natural production of this country, and grows in great per

fection.

:

"The fugar maple is a most valuable tree for an inland country any number of inhabitants may be forever fupplied with a fufficiency of fugar, by preferving a few trees for the use of each family a tree will yield about ten pounds of fugar a year, and the labour is very trifling: the fap is extracted in the months of February and March, and granulated by the fimple operation of boiling, to a fugar equal in flavour and whiteness to the best Mujcovado. "Springs of excellent water abound in every part of this territory; and fmall and large ftreams, for mills and other purposes, are actually interfperfed, as if by art, fo that there feems to be no defficiency in any of the neceffaries of life.

"Very little wafte land is to be found in any part of this tract of country: there are no fwamps but fuch as may be drained, and made into arable and meadow land; and though the hills are frequent, they are gentle and fwelling, no where high and incapable of tillage; they are of a deep, rich foil, covered with a heavy growth of timber, and well adapted to the production of wheat, rye, indigo, &c.

"The communications between this country and the fea will be principally in the four following directions :

"The route through the Scioto and Muskingum, to lake Erie, and fo to the river Hudfon, which has been already defcr.bed.

"The paffage up the Ohio and Monongahela to the portage above mentioned, which leads to the navigable waters of the Potomack; this portage is thirty miles, and will probably be rer dered much lefs by the execution of the plans now on foot for opening the navigation of those waters.

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3. The great Kanhaway, which falls into the Ohio from the Virginia fhore, between the Hockhocking and the Scioto, opens an extenfive navigation from the fouth-caft, and leaves but eighteen miles portage from the navigable waters of James river in Virginia. This communication for the country between Muskingum and Scioto, will probably be more used than any other for the exportation of manufactures and other light and valuable articles, and fpecially for the imperiation of foreign commodities, which may be brought

from the Chefapeak to the Ohio much cheaper than they are now carried from Philadelphia and Carlifle, and the other thick-fettled back counties of Pennfylvania.*

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4. But the current down the Ohio and Miffiffipfi, for heavy articles that fuit the Florida and West India markets, fuch as corn, flour, beef, lunber, &c. will be more frequently loaded than any ftreams on earth. The diftance from the Scioto to the Miffiffippi is eight hundred miles, from thence to the fea is nine hundred. This whole courfe is easily run in fifteen days and the paffage up thofe rivers is not fo difficult as has ufually been reprefented. It is found, by late experiments, that fails are ufed to great advantage against the current of the Ohio; and is worthy of obfervation, that in all probability fteam boats will be found to do infinite fervice in all our extenfive river navigation.

"The defign of Congrefs and of the Ohio company is, that the fettlements fhall proceed regularly down the Ohio, and northward of lake Erie; and it is probable, that not many years will clapfe, before the whole country above Miami will be brought to that degree of cultivation, which will exhibit all its latent beauties, and juftify thofe defcriptions of travellers which have fo often made it the garden of the world, the feat of wealth, and the centre of a great empire.

"No country is better flocked with wild game of every kind; innumerable herds of deer and wild cattle are fheltered in the groves, and fed in the extensive bottoms that every where abound; an unquestionable proof of the great fertility of the foil: turkies, geefe, ducks, fwans, teal, pheasants, partridges, &c. are, from obfervation, believed to be in greater plenty here, than the tame poultry are in any part of the old fettlements in America.

"The rivers are well ftored with fish of various kinds, and many of them of an excellent quality: they are generally large, though of different fizes; the cat fish, which is the largeft, and of a delicious flavour, weighs from fix to eight pounds."

The Mufkingum is a gentle river, confined by banks fo high as to prevent its overflowing. It is two hundred and fifty yards wide at its confluence with the Ohio, and navigable by large batteaux and barges to the Three Legs; and by fmall ones to the lake at its head. From thence, by a portage of about one mile, a communication is open to lake Erie, through the Cayahoga, which is a ftream of great utility, navigable the whole length without any obftruction from falls. From lake Erie the avenue is well known to the Hudfon, in the State of New-York.

The Hockhocking refembles the Muskingum, though fomewhat inferior in fize. It is navigable for large boats about feventy miles, and for matt much further. On the banks of this very ufeful ftream are found incxbauflible quraries of free-flone, large beds of iron ore, and fome rich mines of lead. Coal mines and falt fprings are frequently in the neighbourhood of this ftream, as they are in every part of the western territory. The falt shat may be obtained from thofe fprings will afford an inexhauftible ftore of that neceffary article. Beds of white and blue clay, of an excellent quality, are likewife found here, fuitable for the manufactures of glats, crockery, and other earthen wares. Red bole and many other useful fofils have been

obferved on the branches of this river.

We think it right to notice that a gentleman of much obfervation, and a great traveller in this country, is of opinion, that this communication or toutz is chimerical.