CHAPTER XXVIII. NORTH CAROLINA. Area, 45,000 square miles. Population, 1,400,047. ALTHOUGH North Carolina (north kar-o-li'na) is one of the thirteen States which constituted the original American Union, the resources of the country are still comparatively undeveloped; and millions of acres of unimproved land may here be purchased at prices ranging from $1 per acre upward. The State stretches westward from the Atlantic for 500 miles, and for 100 miles beyond the Blue Ridge chain of the Alleghanies. It is divided into three sections of marked geographical features. The eastern division extends from the sea border nearly to Raleigh, the State capital, situated in the centre of the State. This belt is mostly level plain, covered by valuable pine forests. Along the sea coast the cypress and juniper, as well as the pine, are common. A large portion of this eastern section is very fertile land, producing corn, wheat, rice, cotton, sweet potatoes, as well as a good variety of fruit, upon its alluvial and light sandy soil. The western and smaller division of the State consists of high lands and mountains, covered with extensive forests of oak, black walnut, red cherry, and other hardwood trees. This section excels as a stock raising country. The grasses are rich and nutritious, while chestnuts and acorns—always in demand by hogs-abound in the vast forests of Western North Carolina. Gold, silver, copper, plumbago, and iron abound; while marble in abundance and of a fine quality, and soapstone also, are found in this mountainous region. The facilities for water powers are excellent. The central division occupies over a third of the State's area. The country is undulating and hilly, rising gradually from an elevation of 200 feet above the Atlantic, at the dividing line, near Raleigh, to 1,200 feet, at the base of the Blue Ridge. This district is interspersed by seven fine streams, which traverse the State from the Alleghanies to the Atlantic, affording many and abundant water powers for manufacturing purposes. Tobacco flourishes in the northern belt of this central division, while its southern region is well adapted for the growth of cotton. The cereals do well everywhere. The oak, and most of the hard-wood trees, are plentiful. Fruits, both wild and cultivated, grow to a fine state of perfection; while gold, plumbago, iron and coal, are found throughout Central North Carolina. Much of the soil of this State was exhausted under the old system of "cultivation." This is now being restored under a wiser plan of farming. Thousands of acres of this class of land may be bought for prices ranging from $1 per acre upward. There are also the Government lands, generally well covered with timber; and the swamp lands. The Government price is 12 cents per acre; and the swamp lands often involve a further outlay, equal to $5 per acre more, for drainage. The agricultural products of North Carolina are wheat, corn, oats, rye, sweet and Irish potatoes, pease, rice, cotton, tobacco, turpentine, and fruits. No part of the Atlantic slope is better adapted for the cultivation of apples, peaches, pears, and cherries, than the central and western divisions of this State. The Catawba, Isabella, Lincoln, and Scuppernong, are native grapes of this region: foreign varieties are also successfully cultivated. The chief products of the State for 1879, with their value, etc., were as follows: TABLE SHOWING THE PRODUCT OF EACH PRINCIPAL Tobacco, turpentine, honey, rice, and wool, are largely produced in this State. According to the census of 1880, the domestic animals of North Carolina were as follows: The minerals of the State include coal, iron, gold, copper, silver, lead, plumbago, limestone, marble, agalmatolite, soapstone, manganese, whetstones, grindstones, roofing-slates, porcelain clay, and fire-clay. Bituminous coal exists in two beds, situated respectively one hundred and two hundred miles from the coast, on Cape Fear River, and on Dan River. It is abundant, accessible, and of good quality. Iron ore of excellent quality abounds in all parts of the State; the principal seat of its manufacture being on the Cape Fear, Catawba, and Yadkin rivers. Gold is found in almost all parts of the State, but especially in the middle region; the annual product for many years has averaged $250,000 in value. Copper mines abound in the middle, northern, and western counties. Plumbago is found in great abundance near the capital, and again in the western region; marble in the middle and western divisions; and marl everywhere in the eastern section. A chain of silver and lead mines (containing gold also) traverses the central portion of the State." The gold and silver products of North Carolina, deposited in the Mints and Assay Office up to June 30th, 1877, were:-Gold, $10.527,691.53; silver, $45,202·15; total, $10,572,893.68. The make of pig-iron for the year 1877 is stated at 210 tons, showing a gradual decline since 1873, when the make was 1,432 tons. The manufactures of the State are chiefly cotton, wool, spirits of turpentine, lumber, flour, iron, and paper. The number of factories in 1870 were 3,642: number of hands employed, 13,622: capital invested, $8,140,473: wages paid, $2,195,711: annual value of products, $19,021,327. The direct foreign trade of North Carolina is comparatively unimportant. It is chiefly done through the towns of Beaufort, Washington, New Berne, and Wilmington. The exports for 1878 consisted of cotton and cotton goods, tar, pitch, oils, spirits of turpentine, breadstuffs, and provisions, and amounted to $5,062,784. The articles imported were salt, sugar, wines and spirits, etc., and the value was $84,169. Oysters, and a variety of fish abound in the sounds and rivers. The game embraces ducks, geese, and swans. The navigable rivers of the State, which include the Roanoke, Neuse, Cape Fear-running into the sounds formed by the capes and islets which fringe the Atlantic border of the State-the Great Pedee, which turns into South Carolina, together with the chain of sounds, afford the State about 900 miles of inland navigation. This, however, is much interfered with by shifting sand banks and rapids. Fourteen hundred miles of railway traverse the Commonwealth in all directions. The counties of North Carolina are 94 in number, viz.:— Alamance, Alexander, Alleghany, Anson, Ashe, Beaufort, Bertie, Bladen, Brunswick, Buncombe, Burke, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Camden, Carteret, Caswell, Catawba, Chatham, Cherokee, Chowan, Clay, Cleveland, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland, Currituck, Dare, Davison, Davie, Duplin, Edgecombe, Forsyth, Franklin, Gaston, Gates, Graham, Granville, Green, Guildford, Halifax, Harnett, Haywood, Henderson, Hertford, Hyde, Iredell, Jackson, Johnston, Jones, Lenoir, Lincoln, McDowell, Macon, Madison, Martin, Mecklenburg, Mitchell, Montgomery, Moore, Nash, New Hanover, Northampton, Onslow, Orange, Pamlico, Pasquotank, Pender, Perquimans, Person, Pitt, Polk, Randolph, Richmond, Robeson, Rockingham, Rowan, Rutherford, Sampson, Stanley, Stokes, Surry, Swain, Transylvania, Tyrrel, Union, Wake, Warren, Washington, Watauga, Wayne, Wilkes, Wilson, Yadkin, and Yancey. The principal towns and cities are Wilmington, the principal seaport, pop. 13,446; Raleigh, the capital, 7,790; New Berne, 5,849; Fayetteville, 4,660; Charlotte, 4,473; Washington, 2,094; Beaufort, 2430; Asheville, 1,400; Edenton, 1,243; Tarborough, 1,340; Kingston, 1,103; Plymouth, 1,389; Goldsborough, 1,134; and Wilson, 1,036. Skilled workmen can always find employment at good wages in the cities and towns of North Carolina. The climate, away from the swamps and marshes of the eastern section of the State, is salubrious and healthful. The winters are not severe, even in the western, or |