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Show tiS EMIGRANT'S GUlDE. cln e. rrh ere 1.s. a compa' 'ct /l·i ne of settlement extending Fth e Te ntire length uf Attac{lpas~ fror_n lle_n_vick1 ~ bay to the m~uth of 'us1 ter, a <.lisLtnce, fulluwi 11g the smuos1t1es of the stream: ~t one hundred and .r t , rf i'ere 1. s at this time, Uf)Wards of leU thousand per-lOr y m e!:l. • ' . · l . b k f sonf, iu Attacapas, one half of whom res_1de _on the ng 1t an _o T ~ ·h.o iuduct 111g the two town3 <,f St. Ma rtiiiSVJ!Ie anJ New 1 ben a. ~~h~1 soil aud '. uri'C1ce between the Vermiliou and Te~he present m3ny Vt .. ry :< !t·iking contrasts. 1~be most_ remarkable obJ,'~ cts a_re _the bill , of Cote Blanche , Grand Cote, Pet1te An~P, a~d Cote Carl1~e. ".fh y are all or' similar construction_; cov~rec.l w1tb tun be~ _of specie~ oifi(•rent from that found on the adpcenl marshes, an.d rtslllg ltO U~ wards of one hunJ red feet elevation out of the flat and mt.mdated prai-rie. Upon the Petite Anse the author enumerated upwards of forty do tucct "r<"!nt sprct0 es u f t rees. an d s hru. b":'1 , amorlna·s t the . most remarkable '{J of which were live oak w.tlnut, white and black htckory, and svL.et gum. Thi5 hil1 is natu;ally f>nvironed by an impa_ssabl ~ ma:sh, out. of which a slwHrish La you meanders to the sea. fbe mhabJtants ?f Attacapas nea~t-N ew l_beria, cut a c.anal into this bayou ~rom t~,e sohd prairie ; anJ on the stde next the 1sla?d threw up a causeway f~om the bayou to the high land, and by Hus means opened a communac~tion with the Petite Anse. Several r~rsons are settled up.on thiS island. T'he land is excellel'lt, and consi5ts of about three thousand acres of high productive soil. It is one of the most curious phenomena that the country ~ff~r.ds, lo 51ee these elevations rising out of the deep morass, and exln b1tmg features in common with the woods of the hiaher 'feche. The dogwood (comus florida,) iron wood, \1. carpinus ostrya,) and hombearn, (carpi' nus americana,) a~e, all rar~ upon the l?wer _'1' ec~.J e, b ut. ab· o un.d, upon the Petite Ause. J. he ent1re aspect ol the mten?r part of tlu:; island resembles the wood land of Opelousas upon the Teche, except the p;esence of live oak, which ·is wanting iu the latter, but is plentiful in the former. All the other islands on this coast of a simi lar nature, exhibit the same general features ; such as C~Hiines Cote, Grand Cote, Cote ]31anche, and Belle Is!e. These islands are considered the most healthy. parts of the country in which they are situateJ. T_his ":ill adlllit perhaps of some dL ubt : tbey are p leasau t places oi res1Jence, however, the musqueto excepted. Upon the Petit(:• Ame, a sa lt spring was di!->covered a few years past, and brought into active operation by the owner of the !an?· From its proximity, this spring has been consider(>J as merely a draJil of the sea; ,but on inspect ion , it has all the cornmoi-1 features of the sa lt springs of Louisiana found north of Red river. The water is nearJy as much saturated with the mineral as sea wafer, and yields excellent salt. The adjacent sett lemenls of Attacapas and even Opelous~s, have been, in !:lOme measure, supplied from this sp ring with salt, for six or seven years past. . . . From the dry and porous nature of their soil and their pos1t~on, there is no doubt but those islands would produce the most Juxunant vineyards. Though environed witlJ morass towards the interior, yet they are all accessible to the gulf by navigable bayous. EMiGRANT'S GUIDE. PRAIRTE GRAND CHEVREUI L stretches alo6g the east bank of Tf>che, from eight mile~ southeast of Opelousa5 church, to about seven southeast of New lberi a, and is llfty-two miles lorw with a meuiutn width of two. All the border of this prairie near tl1e Tecbe is high ~nd fertile soil; lht-~ surface d~cline s in receding towards the opposite woods, but even there, much . of the land is sufficiently high fo r culture. Indeed all the land in Prai rie Grand Cbevreuil with but li _tt le exception, is capable of being cultivated. 'The st>ttl~mcnts that I me the woods o~ both sides of the prairie are numerous,-and we m~et with Ulany extensive farms. Cottoll and maize are the ge.neral 'Objects of culture; and are both proJuced in larue quantitir.s anJ of excellent quai_ity .. Th~ local position of this prai~ie gives many advantages to Jts 1tlbab1tants ;-their proximity to all in e xhaustible source of all_ kinds of timber th<it the exigencies of their farms can de:[! and, and. the convenience of navigation, coufer a value on their lan~s, that ra1se tl1~rn above those of other more remote but equally fertile tracts. Bes1Jes :he entra~1~e by tLe mouth of Tecbe, there are a_s ~a.ny a'S five outlets from l~r::ur~e Grand Cbevreui I to Atchaf:.daya nvcr, the most remarkable ol wh1ch are those of Faus e point Gue-dry's, and Durald's, all of which have been noticed. ' PRAIJ{fE L.AUI~E~_T; e_ncloscd between the Teche, Bayou Dourbee, aud B~you. l• us1ller, l1es Prairie Laure11t, <r.bout eleven miles l:nng and thr_ee w1de. All _rhe J~?d of this prairie, sufficiently elevated ior culture, IS exce llent ~oil. 1 here are some very fine f:ums in this pra1ne. Cott_o~ and ma1ze are the common objects of cultivatron. Ab~ve Prame Laurent and. ~rairie ~rand <?hevreuil, L:mging along the Teche, are the small prames, Pettte Bots aud H.omaine . upon tbc Courtableau, are the prairies Bare Alabama Wicl\.o£1 .. 1s c' . '. 1 M ·1 ' ' ' ' ' . , an on s ~ el e s, an_d m~e or two more. None ofthese, except WickofT's: <.xceeds two_ mdes 1~ len~th, most of them about one ; but all are extremely fertile. W1ckoff's prairie is tlte termination to the northeast of ?pe~ousas of_ these natural meadows. BeyonJ this latter prairie '~h1ch Js f~ur mile~ long and one and a half wiJe, commences a heav ' Jorest, wluch c_ontwues to the Atchafalaya; many parts of which ar~ also covered wtth au almost impenetrable brake of cane. A It may be expressed iu few words, that the bigh arable plains of ttacapas and Opel?usas are bounded south by an imp3 j;sa ble morass t~ the west by couttnuous prairies, to the northwest by open dry pin~ : oods, and to the nortbea. t by an aunually inundated expanse iuter: ected .by bayous, chequereJ uy lakes, or covered with an almo<~t Hl)pervJOus forest, with C<iue and palmetto brakes. ~ fif Betwe~n t?e set.t_lements vf Opelousas and those of Avoyelles, about B~een miles tn a d1r~ct line f!om each, occur the biiJ and prairie of d. JO>U Rouge. Th1s place Js a real curiosity. At a considerable tstance from Opelousas, tbe timber, soiJ, and surface have a reat .re:embl.ance to the wood lands in many places within four 0~ five mdes of ~he chur~h of the latter ; whilst an annually inundated swamp totBal ly dJtf(>rent fro.m ei. ther ' intervenes . ' ~ ayou Rouge ~til nses abruptly from low lands, covered with cy-pre~, swamp, whtte-oak, and other trees, indicative of and bearino· mar s of deep oy~rfiow. The surface of tue hill is perhaps forty fee~ I , |
