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Show 84- EMIGRANT'S Gl1ID£!' tbority to give it credence; but if it did need corrob?rativ~ proof: that proof is <~ffiJrded by the low temperature expenenced on the shores of the Mt'xican gulf. 'rh.,ug-h takeR as a whole. ~exas cannot be considered a fertile country, yet on so vast an extent there are many very fine tracts. Red river will no lioubt admit of settlement along its whole length. The same may be said of several of the other strPams ; and though thi population cannot be very compact, yet the inl.livitluals that compose it may l•e fref> and happy . The air of this region is, according to every account yet made public, pure, serene, and in the highest degree healthful. The pursuits of the people of the interior of the country wiU b~, it is most probable, for ever pastoraL The soil, the waut of wood m many places, and remoteness from largP commercial ports, will all combine to perpetuate the present order of things in that extensive, and in many r~spects delightful country. ln poiut of geological structure, Texas is remarkably regular. Resting upon the Rio grande del Norte as a base, the country lies in the f(nm of an immense triangle, all the rivers conforming to each other in an astonishing degree. Red river, and the Rio Grande on the two opposHe sides, have great resemblance to each other in their courses and particul;u bends. The intermediate streams. for some distance frc,m t!Jeir sources, flow soutbe<lst; when gradually turning south they pursue that course to the gulf of Mexico. In this manner flows the Nueces, Gaudaloupe, Colorado , Bra:;sos a Dios, Trinity, Sabiue, and Calcasiu. The sources of the Merrneutau being too far south to admit its conformity to thP. fort'going streams, its cour~e is s uth nearly. The Calcnsiu and Mermentau are neither in Texas · tbei~ names are mentioned here to afford exarnples of the regular for~ m ~:Ht?n of the country bordering on the north shore of the gulf of MPXICO. We will close this chaptP.r with a. review of the N. W. sPction of the s!ate of Loui .. .;iana. lt is within five or ix years past that r;nuch of H~·~. country Wds tli covereu. This may seem Almost incredible, but Jt IS reallJ a fact, that, in 18 I 1, co•Jsiderable ~treams that flow into Red .and Uu<~cbitt a rivers, ''vere unknowu 1 f'~:cer!t to a few hunters. If tllls .had been the case with river!-~ remote from the Miss is ippi, the chasm m. ge.ogr.•phy would not havP. excited surpris~; but it is cerl::tinly astorlls!Jtng that ;;urh WC!ter. courses shouiJ be unexploreJ, as the Dt"rh<.~ne, S<l1me of Ouachitta, Saline of 1-\.eJ ri\'er, Uach~et. Boucau, Bbck L.k~ river, ar1d tiH DugdmHini, r~ll in the flf'i~bbourbood of l~mg ,~l<~tJlrshetl l~osts. A gl:1nce Ctt La fun'~ map ol Louisiana, publJshed 1~1 ~ 805, Will tu·ahle auy person acquaintrd with the real featu• e: nf II:- cor~u ! ry , to perct'ive how utterly the country upon l{ed and Ouachnta nvers were unknown at the epoch of the publication of tht~ t'or.) ·Jo irP I'Y1ap '-' ..... .1.1 J • ia;fbe ~-:,·~,. ernrnem ~f t.lw. Uu.iteJ States co.mmenc~d sur~eys in Louis-' . . a west cJ f lhe ftli. .. sJ...,'-!ppt ~nd Atchafalaya nvers rn 1805,* but did not e4ltmd the operations of surveying to the north side of Red * Se& page 7. EMIGRANT'S GUTDE. 85' r-!1'er untH 181 a. The author of this treatise assisted in performing surv•~ys nn ~acl) sidt' of ReJ river under the authority of tbe Unired State.· i antl in audition. rnade extensive surveys, on his own account, of many plae<-:s not e r~ bracPtl by the work done hy oruer of the general government, and tr f! verseu H~ l· eatedly the hitherto most imperfectly knowr, part -. These circumstance are mentioned here in order to apprize the readPr of the means taken to prucUie correct information of this valuabiP cormtry .. The N W. section of the state of Loui::;iana, is bounded east by the Mississippi ; north by the northernmost part of the 3.3° N. Jat. north; by a mcriclirrn line due south from the 3~ 0 to 33° N. lat. west; by the Sabine river southwest ; and by thf> 31° N. lat. or Op~lousas, south . This secti(JO extends over 21. 70D- square miles, inc.luJing the parishes of N tchitoches, Ouachitta, Ocatahoola, Concordia, RaP.ide, and Avoyelles . Natural jelttw·es-.H.ivers-Lakes-and Mine,·al Product-ions. The principal rivers of theN. W. section of the state of Louisiana, are, Sabine, Red river, Ouachitta, and Mi ·sissippi. The Sabine is a small and unimportant stream where intersected by the 02° N. Jat. ; this place is eviJently witnin no very crreat distance from its source. Wher1 examined by the author in N~vem ber, 1812, the river was exq~ssively swollen by rain, and yet appeared smaJJ and narrow. As was the case in almost every othf'r in,c:;rancc:, no precise information could be obtained respecting this river excPpt by actuai observation. The author commenced a tra-verse at the town of Natchitoches on Red river, and measured the several cour~es between the Jatter and Sabine. From a wish to include the then vaguely known settlement of Bayou Pierre;the traverse was extended northwest along the overflown lands of Red river, ClS high as 32° 10' 21" N. lat, and then curved to the Sabine By thi~ means the creeks, lakes, and settlements, N . W. of Natchitoches were delinea· ted upon Darby's large map of Louisiana. After departing from N <ltchitoches towards Sabine, the country is found to be .hilly. The prevailing timber, pine, black oak, sweet gum; and various species of hickory. This de:cription of country contmues ten or twelve miles, where, in followiug the road to N acogdoches., pine becomes more abundant, and other timber Jess in quanti~y. After passing the western extremity of Spanish lake, the foregomg traverse was coni inued nearly N. W. as has bef:n observed, along. the margin of the ~verflown Jands of Red river. In this range the pme ceases almost entirely, and is followed by oak and hickory ~oods. The country is extremely broken, and often storiy. The hills are not very elevated, but steep. The bottoms are often fertiJe, though not very extensive. ' A number of streams of very limpid water Bow from the hiJis into the lakes of Red river; and, amongst others, is Bayou Pierre 1 so·ca1Jed from the settlement ·of that name. The streams are aJJ short in their courses· non~ exceeding twenty.five miles in length. Black hickory may b~ considered the prevailing timber. Some extensive tlars of post oak (quercus obtusiloba) exist, and where this tree prevails, the land i~ ,poor and we-t. .· |