From Harper's Ferry to the head of tide water, or to where the Potomac quits the plimitive and enters the alluvial sea border formation, is 50 miles, and thence continuing by a general course south-east, and by com parative courses 100 miles, that river is lost in the Chesa peake bay at North Lat. 38°, having regained exactly the latitude of the sources of Shenandoah. The entire length or the Potomac valley, as it is, is 300 miles, presenting a very remarkable navigable channel. Alany of its minor valleys are composed of I, ely productive soil, and already an immense amount of produce is reared within, and transported to the Atlantic ports from, this valley.
It may be rematked that tobacco, as a staple commo dity in large quantities, may be considered as limited by this valley, whilst wheat, rye, and the apple, as staples, :nay he viewed as commeocing. From the peculiar form of the valley, alid fiorn tl.e very great difference of ele vation of its parts, it presents a greater variety of cli mate than could be, at a first glance upon its extent and position on a map, believed probable. If climate and the features of nature are both taken into the ac 001111t, I113 Potomac presents the most favorable facilities of any river in the Susquehanna basin to effect a water communication bemeen the Atlantic ocean and the val ley of Ohio.
The Potomac. in its natural state, is the most naviga ble branch of the Susquehanna. Ships of any burthen can be brought up to the Navy yard at Washington, five miles below the extreme head Of tide water. Washing ington is upwards of 100 miles in a direct line ; and fol lowing the Chesapeake hay and Pototnac river, about 200 miles distant from the Atlantic ocean. Washington is therefore the point in the United States, to which the largest vessels can be navigated the farthest into the interior of the continent.
This subject will be more particularly noticed, when we come to examine the subject of canals.
The next stream flowing into Chesapeake bay, after the Potomac, is the Patuxent, affording however too few navigable facilities to merit particular notice. Patapsco bay and river follows the Patuxent. At the head of Pa tapsco bay, 12 miles above Chesapeake bay, and at the foot of the primitive ledge, stands the city of Baltimore. To the lower part of this city or Fell's Point, vessels of 500 and 600 tons ascend. Between the mouth of the Potomac and that of Susquehanna are several indentings of the right shore of Chesapeake bay besides Patuxent and Patapsco, but, except the two latter, the others are of too little moment to be correctly included in a gene ral view. l'he Maryland part of the eastern or left shore of Chesapeake is also much broken by small rivers and hays; the principal of which are the Pocomoke river from Worcester county ; Manekin and Wicomico from Somer; set county; Nanticoke river in the state of Delaware, flowing into ;Maryland, dividing Dorchester and Somer set counties; Choptank, the longest river of the pen insula between the Atlantic ocean and Chesapeake bay, rising also io Delaware, and enteiing Maryland in Caro line county, enters Chesapeake, separating Talbot and Dorchester counties; St. Michael's bay, separating Tal
bot and Queen Ann counties ; Chester river, separating Kent and Queen Ann ; Sassafras, separating Kent and Coccil counties, and, finally, Elk river in Ccecil county. These latter bays, rivers, and creeks, have more or less water, and admit vessels suitable to the commerce of the country they drain. The three latter, Chester, Sas safras, and Elk rivers, are the channels through which projected canals, and other improvements, have at dif ferent times designed to unite the Chesapeake and De laware bays.
The Susquehanna loses its name at the foot of its falls, at North Lat. 39° 33', exactly one degree East from Washington. From its magnitude, and from the western origin of its sources, the Susquehanna seems to form a natural chain of water communication between the Atlantic ocean and Ohio valley ; and the curious fact, that all its great tributaries flow from the right and completely pierce the Appalachian chain, renders this observation still more striking. If We turn our atten tion to the general physiognomy of the Susquehanna, We find its extreme northern source in Madison county, New-York, within 16 miles of Oneida lake, and 15 from the line of the Great Canal, and in the angle between the sources of the Mohawk and Seneca rivers. This is the Chenango river, afterwards augmented by the East branch. The latter originates in the northern spine of the Catsbergs, in the angle between the heads of the Coquago branch of Delaware, the Chenango, and oppo site to the Mohawk river, reaching within less than ten miles from the line of the Great Canal of New-York. The East branch is correctly so called, as its sources are in fact the most eastern tributary waters of the Sus quehanna. The East branch and Chenango unite in Broome county in New-York ; the former having by an abrubt curve entered and retreated from Pennsylva nia. Below their junction the united waters flow a little south of west, enter Tioga county in New-York, and turning nearly south into Bradford county in Pennsylva nia, receive the Tioga branch from the north-west, at Tioga Point.