Inflecting again to the south-east, the river line recrosses the intermediate valley, and extends south eastwardly from Laurel Hill to the Alleghany Moun tain. The latter chain becomes a real and unbroken dividing ridge of river source 250 miles, discharg ing in succession towards the Atlantic Ocean, the Juniata, the numercus branches of Potomac and James rivers, and into the valley of Ohio, Conne maugh. Youghiogany, Monongahela, and Green brier branch of Great Kenhawa. From the sources of the Tioga branch of Susquehannah, North Lat. 42° 40', to the point where the Alleghany Moun tain is pierced by New river, at North Lat. 20', or through 320 minutes of latitude, the dividing line of river source does not differ quite or 180 nutes of longitude, whilst the general course of the mountain chains is in the intermediate distance something to the east of north-east.
With the valley of New river, a change again takes place; as that stream rises in the north-west ern valleys of Blue Ridge, the dividing ridge of water source is carried to the south-east from the Alleghany to the Blue Ridge chain, discharging very short creeks into New river, on the south-west, and giving source to Roanoke river north-east. From the geographical point where North Lat. 37° is intersected by the third degree of longitude west from W.C., and where Black Water branch of Roan oke rises on the south-east, and Little river branch of New river on the north-west side of Blue Ridge, that chain becomes the dividing line of river source, and continues so about 300 miles, discharging to the north-west the branches of New river, Watan ga, Nolachucky, French Broad, Tennessee Proper, and Hiwassee, streams tributary to the Ohio; to the east the branches of Roanoke; to the south-east, the Yadkin, Catawba, Broad, Paco let, Saluda, and the numerous branches of Savan nah river; and to the south-westward the extreme higher and north-eastern sources of Chatahooche and Coosa rivers.
It may be premised, that the continuation of the Blue Ridge, westward from the sources of Chata hooche and Iliwassee, is drawn on our maps, so discordant to all the other parts of the-Appalachian system, as to excite a doubt of accurate discrimina tion of the chains. On Tanner's United States, the Blue Ridge is blended with the Unika or Iron Mountain, between the sources of Coosa and Hiwas see rivers, and represented as inflecting thence up wards of two hundred miles, separating the sources of Coosa, Black Warrior, and Tombigbee from those of the extreme southern confluents of Ten nessee, and in the intermediate distance receiving the termination of all the other chains of the Appa lachian system. If this geography is correct, the country it represents is an anomaly in the physical section to which it belongs.
Leaving the southern extremity of the Appala chian system to future and more scientific examina tion than it has yet obtained, we may proceed with our review. Sufficient well established data exist to
decide the truth of the important fact, that the mountain chains of the south-western section of the Appalachian system are only incidentally, or per haps more correctly only partially, demarcations between the sources of the Atlantic rivers and those of the great tributaries of the Ohio valley. Taking the Susquehannah at one extreme, and the Tennes see at the other, we find the former deriving its most remote western fountains from the extreme western chain, and the latter directly the reverse, or springing from the easternmost chain of the system; both rivers, in their course from source to recipient, traversing the gorges of the various chains.
It ought, however, to he noticed here, that a part of the physical appearance we have been noticing, as seen on our best maps, is deceptive. The Blue Ridge is usually marked as the outer south-eastern chain, which so far from being the fact, there are two lateral chains between it and the lower falls of the rivers. These. chains will be examined in the sequel of this head, and under the survey of the respective chains of the Appalachian system, to which we now proceed.
It has already been stated, that the tide valley of the Hudson occupied only a part, and did not ter minate the Appalachian system ; and it may be doubted whether a single chain of that system is confined to one side of that remarkable bay. The chains are, however, more distinctly defined and set apart from each other in the basins of Delaware and Susquehannah than towards either extreme; we may therefore take the head of tide water in the two latter rivers as our points of departure in examin ing the respective Appalachian chains.
It would be far from an unsupported theory, as I have already observed, to consider the lower falls of the rivers as the outer margin of the Appala chian system; but beside these falls, which we may observe, are not themselves marked on our best maps, there exists a distinct,though neglected chain, which is cut through by the Delaware, about five miles below the passage of the same stream through the Blue Ridge, at the influx of Lehigh river. This overlooked chain has been confounded with Blue Ridge between the Delaware and Hudson rivers, though in no one place are the two chains really blended, or even touch each other. In New Jersey, the narrow but fine valley of Musconecung river lies below the Blue Ridge, and above the South East Mountain. Preserving a relative distance of from four to seven or eight miles, the two chains range towards the Hudson, and make their nearest approach at the Highlands. In fait, where the Hud son traverses both chains, it demands a knowledge of their prolongation each way to determine that the apparently confused masses belong really to two, and not one chain of mountains.