summits in the northern parts are covered with evergreens; the southern division is more rugged and less lofty than the northern.

The third is a greenstone range, and is broken and precipitous on its western face, with gentle declivities on the eastern; this range divides into branches toward the S., which end in East Rock and West Rock, near New Haven: it abounds in minerals. The fourth range extends from Hartford to New Haven, and is of the same geological character with the preceding, but is not continuous. It is of only a moderate height, but has a few bold elevations, exhibiting the more prominent features of the greenstone range. This range is called the Middletown mountains, though its separate parts have several distinct appellations. Passing E. of the Connecticut river, we come to the fifth, called the Lyme Range, being the height of land which separates the waters of the Connecticut from those of the Thames; this range has also two branches toward the S., but in the N. is a distinct and continuous ridge, highest in the northern part. Bald Mountain, between Somers and Stafford, is the loftiest summit of this range.

3. VALLEYS. The Valley of the Connecticut begins at Middletown, and passes N. through the state, being from 10 to 16 miles in width, and extending within the limits of this state a length of 30 miles: this is the richest agricultural section in the state. The Farmington Valley, extending from N. Haven N. through the state, is 50 miles in length, and from three to 5 wide. The Valley of the Quinipiack, in Wallingford and North Haven, is 15 miles in length and from 2 to 5 in breadth, and is generally fertile. On the borders of the Housatonic are vales of considerable extent, from 1 to 5 miles in breadth, and of a rich soil.

4. RIVERS. The Connecticut enters this state from Massachusetts, and flows S. into Long Island Sound. Its mouth is barred with sand, but it admits of a sloop navigation to Hartford, 50 miles. Its general course after entering the state, is S., but at Middletown it bends to the S. E. and continues in that direction to its mouth. It receives no tributary in Connecticut of importance. The largest is Farmington river, which rises in Massachusetts, and joins the Connecticut on the western side, 5 miles above Hartford. The Housatonic rises in the western part of Massachusetts, and enters this state near the N. W. corner, after which it runs in a southerly and southeasterly course, to the sound, between Milford and Stratford. The first part of its course is broken by cataracts, and its entrance is barred against large vessels. It has a sloop navigation of 12 miles.

The Thames is formed of two branches, one consisting of the Shetucket, and the other of the Yantic and Quinebaug; the last rises in Massachusetts. These streams unite at Norwich, and flow 14 miles to New London, where they enter the Sound. It has a good ship navigation below the union of the head streams.

5. MARINE WATERS. The whole coast of the state lies upon Long Island Sound, which is, in fact, an extensive Gulf or Channel, being 140 miles in length, and 25 miles broad in the widest part. It is somewhat narrow at the eastern entrance, and expands in the middle. Toward the W. it contracts gradually till it joins the harbor of New York by a narrow and crooked strait. It admits of a free navigation throughout its whole extent, for the largest ships, but in the western strait is a dangerous whirlpool at a spot called Hell Gate, where the current is contracted by the rocky shores, and at certain seasons of the tide, the navigation is hazardous.

6. CLIMATE. Both the face of the country, and the local position of this state, correspond so nearly to the adjoining states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island, that the difference in the climate can be hardly sensible. The winters are perhaps a little more temperate, and the summer a few days earlier than in the western part of Massachusetts.

7. SOIL. The soil is generally good, but of various kinds; the valley of the Connecticut has generally a strong and fertile argillaceous loam, varying in different sections from a hard, stiff clay, to a light, sandy loam, according to the prevalence of aluminous, or silicious earth. The Quinipiack valley is generally fertile, but light and sandy in the southern part. In the eastern portion of the state the prevailing soil is warm, strong, fertile, and excellent for grazing. The northwestern part is in some places cold and sterile, but is generally a good grazing country. In the western part of the state are many fertile districts.

8. GEOLOGY. The first two ranges of mountains beginning at the W. are granitic, the next is a greenstone range, and its strata correspond with the trap or greenstone of the old continent. The next is also a greenstone range, and the fifth, and most easterly, is granitic.

At New Haven, a region of secondary trap or greenstone commences, which completely intersects this state and Massachusetts, like a belt, passing into Vermont and New Hampshire. The Connecticut flows through the whole extent of this district, except below Middletown, where it passes through a barrier of primitive country, to the sea. The trap region passes off southwesterly from the river, and joins the primitive near New Haven. It is more than one hundred miles in length, and varies in breadth from three to 25 miles. Its basis is composed of stratified rocks inclined to the E. at a small angle with the horizon. Sandstone is the most conspicuous of these rocks, and it has every variety, from very fine grained, to coarse; sometimes it becomes a breccia or pudding stone, and again is a mere conglomerate. Under the sandstone are generally found slaty rocks, often with impressions of vegetables and fish, and containing small veins of jet and coal. Ridges of greenstone trap traverse this region lengthwise, from the sea to the northern part of Massachusetts. These repose almost universally upon sandstone, and consist of a dark green rock, whose constituent parts are hornblende and felspar. At Rocky Hill, near Hartford, in a quarry of building stone, the junction of sandstone and trap is conspicuously exhibited. Most of the

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ridges are parallel, and their western parts generally precipitous, so that in many places the country seems divided by stupendous walls. Immense masses of ruins are collected at their feet; these consist sometimes of entire cliffs and pillars of many tons weight, which are thrown off by the freezing

of water in the gullies, and often fall with a mighty concussion into the valleys. On the opposite side there is generally a gradual slope covered with

trees.

In Meriden, between Hartford and New Haven, is a Natural Ice House, in a narrow defile, between ridges of greenstone. The defile is choked up with the ruins of the rocks which have fallen from the ridges, and form a series of cavities overgrown with trees, and strewn with thick beds of leaves. The ice is formed in the cavities of these rocks, and remains the whole year. A portion of it melts during summer, causing a stream of cold water perpetually to flow from the spot. The space between the mountains is called Cat Hollow, and presents the most wild and picturesque scenery in the state.

9. MINERALS. Iron ore is found in various places, and mines of it have been wrought; but in common with most of the other mines of the state, they are now neglected. Copper is abundant in the greenstone mountains, and lead occurs on the Connecticut, two miles from Middletown: plumbago is found in New Milford and Marlborough; and cobalt in Chatham. Porcelain elay is found at New Milford and Cornwall, and limestone abounds in the western parts. Marble is obtained at New Milford, Washington, Brookfield and Milford, and quarries of freestone are numerous, especially upon the Connecticut. Small quantities of coal have also been found in different places. There are chalybeate springs at Stafford, which are the most celebrated in New England.

10. FACE OF THE COUNTRY. The surface of this state is diversified : there are few level tracts, and no very high mountains; hills of moderate size are scattered everywhere. The variety of aspect is striking; at the base of a rugged granitic ridge, a smooth, fertile plain is often spread out; the craggy cliff's sometimes approach the edge of a stream, which, is perhaps bordered on one side by a beautiful alluvial tract, and this alluvion is again bounded by a ridge of mountains in the distance.

POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY.

1. DIVISIONS. Connecticut is divided into 8 counties, New London, Middlesex, New Haven, Fairfield, Litchfield, Hartford, Tolland and Windham. The first four border on Long Island Sound. The number of towns and cities is 120. The population, 297,711.

2. CANALS, &c. The Farmington Canal crosses the state from New Haven to Westfield in Massachusetts. It is designed to extend to NorthampAbout four ton on the Connecticut, making its whole length about 90 miles.

fifths of this extent are already completed. It joins the sea by a large basin, at New Haven, and on leaving this, intersects several of the streets. The first part of it passes through a level country, but toward the N. the surface grows uneven, and considerable lockage is required. There is a large amount of transportation already upon the canal, but the expectations of the proprietors have not been fully realized.

Very extensive and valuable improvements have been made at Enfield Falls, on the Connecticut, by a chartered company whose general object is to remove the obstacles, and render the river navigable for boats and steam boats as far as White river in Vermont. Their operations have been thus far successful; steam boats now run daily in summer from Hartford to Springfield, and arrangements are made for a regular line to Windsor in Vermont.

3. CITIES AND TOWNS. The seat of government is divided between the cities of Hartford and New Haven. Hartford is seated upon the Connecticut a little N. of the centre of the state, at the head of sloop navigation, and is surrounded by a fertile and beautiful country. The town is substantially

built, and enjoys a flourishing trade with Boston, New York, the West Indies, and other places. Great quantities of lumber and other productions are received here from New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts, by way of the river. The city contains a state house, and several valuable seminaries, besides a college, a deaf and dumb asylum, a retreat for the insane, a museum, an arsenal, 9 churches, and 4 banks, including a branch of the United States bank. Among the public edifices, the new Episcopal church deserves notice for its architectural beauty. This is a plain Gothic building, and is the more worthy of commendation as few examples of good taste in church architecture are found in the country. The Retreat for the Insane has enjoyed the superintendence of a man of distinguished genius and philanthropy, and has justly acquired the highest reputation. In the S. part of the city is an oak tree, which is venerable for its age, and interesting on account of its connexion with the history of ancient times. When Governor Andros came to wrest the charter from the colony, in 1686, it was secretly deposited in a cleft of this tree, where it remained in safety till the deposition of the governor, on the accession of William III. A bridge across the Connecticut,

unites this city with the town of East Hartford. The Legislature of the state meets here every second year. Pop. 9,789.

New London, in the southeastern part of the state, has a fine harbor near the mouth of the Thames. It is irregularly built, principally at the foot of a hill, facing the E. There are many pleasant sites in the higher parts of the town, and several of the buildings are handsome; but the general appearance of the place is not flourishing. The neighboring region is rocky and sterile, and there are no great channels of communication with the interior. The recent attention of the merchants to the whale fisheries, has given a considerable impulse to the place, and promises to restore it to its former importance as a commercial city. Fort Trumbull is situated at the S. of the town, and to the east, on the opposite side of the river, are the remains of Fort Griswold, which during the revolution was the scene of a well remembered and fearful tragedy. Pop. 4,356.

New Haven is situated at the bottom of a small bay, opening into Long Island Sound. The city is built in squares, with straight and wide streets, and its regularity and neatness are much admired. Its site is low, but the

elevated grounds in the neighborhood, make the approach to the city exceedingly pleasant. One of the squares is occupied by the state house, the college buildings, several churches, and other edifices, which with rows of elms surrounding the spot, render it one of the most beautiful public places in the country.

There is an air of elegance about the city which strikes the

attention of every observer, and justifies the encomiums uniformly bestowed upon it by strangers. Several of the churches are handsome, and the new state house, which is built upon a Grecian model, is one of the most chaste specimens of architecture in New England. The commerce of New Haven is considerable, and the Farmington canal makes it the channel of an extensive trade with New York. Pop. 10,678.

Middletown, on the Connecticut, 15 miles below Hartford, is seated upon a beautiful spot on the western bank of the river, where the stream suddenly expands and makes a bend in its course, so as to present the appearance of a small lake, with high, sloping and cultivated shores. The town has manufactories of cotton, woollen, swords, rifles, &c. and there are quarries of freestone on the opposite bank. On the hill, and commanding a splendid prospect, are the buildings formerly occupied by Captain Partridge, for his military and scientific academy, since removed to Norwich in Vermont. Pop. of Middletown 6,876.

Norwich is on the Thames, 14 miles above New London. It contains three villages, the largest of which is called Chelsea Landing. In this town are many flourishing manufactories of cotton, flannel, carpeting, paper, iron, linseed oil, &c. The Burying Ground of the Uncases is here pointed out to travellers, where many of the ancient Indian sachems are interred. The plain in this town was the principal summer residence of the Mohegans. Pop. 5,169.

Wethersfield, 4 miles from Hartford, is a pleasant town. The state prison which has been recently erected, is situated here. Pop. 3,862.

Windsor, 6 miles above Hartford, on Connecticut River, is also a pleasant village, and deserves notice as having been the first settlement made by the English, in Connecticut. Pop. 3,220. Saybrook and Guilford are resorted to during summer, for sea bathing. Berlin and Meriden are celebrated for the manufacture of tin ware. Watertown, Bristol and Waterbury, for the making of wooden clocks, and Danbury for the manufacture of hats. Litchfield is a beautiful town, situated in the midst of a fertile and hilly country, and is well known for the excellent law school, estab