PENSYLVANIA, late one of the principal British colonies in North America, had its name from the famous Quaker William Penn, son of Sir William, commander of the English fleet in Oliver Cromwell's time, and in the beginning of Charles II.'s reign, who obtained a grant of it in the year 1679; is bounded on the east by Delaware bay and river, and the Atlantic ocean; on the north by the country of the Iroquois, or five nations; and on the south and west by Maryland. Its extent from north to south is about 200 miles; but its breadth varies greatly, from 15, and even less, to near 200.
The air in Pennsylvania is sweet and clear. The fall, or autumn, begins about the 20th of October, and lasts till the beginning of December, when the winter sets in, which continues till March, and is sometimes extremely cold and severe; but the air is then generally dry and healthy. The river Delaware, though very broad, is often frozen over. From March to June, that is, in the spring, the weather is more inconsistent than in the other seasons. In the months of July, August, and September, the heats would be almost intolerable, if they were not mitigated by frequent cool breezes. The wind during the summer is generally south-west; but in the winter blows for the most part from the north-west, over the snowy frozen mountains and lakes of Canada, which occasions the excessive cold during that season. On the whole, the climate of this state differs not materially from that of Connecticut, except that on the west side of the mountains the weather is much more regular. The inhabitants never feel those quick transitions from cold to heat, by a change of the wind from north to south, as those so frequently experience who live eastward of the mountains and near the sea. The hot southwardly winds get chilled by passing over the long chain of Allegheny mountains.
Longevity, when tolerably ascertained, is doubtless the truest mark of the healthiness of any country; but this state, which has not been settled above 100 years, is not sufficiently old to determine from facts the state of longevity. Among the people called Quakers, who are the oldest settlers, there are instances of longevity, occasioned by their living in the old cultivated counties, and the temperance imposed on them by their religion. There are fewer long-lived people among the Germans than among other nations, occasioned by their excess of labour and low diet. They live chiefly upon vegetables and
Pennsylvania and watery food, that affords too little nourishment to repair the waste of their strength by hard labour. Nearly one half of the children born in Philadelphia die under two years of age, and chiefly with a disease in the stomach and bowels. Very few die at this age in the country.
As to the face of this country, towards the coast, like the adjacent colonies, it is flat, but rises gradually to the Apalachian mountains on the west. As much as nearly one third of this state may be called mountainous; particularly the counties of Bedford, Huntingdon, Cumberland, part of Franklin, Dauphin, and part of Bucks and Northampton, through which pass, under various names, the numerous ridges and spurs, which collectively form what we choose to call, for the sake of clearness, the great range of Alleghany mountains. There is a remarkable difference between the country on the east and west side of the range of mountains we have just been describing. Between these mountains and the lower falls of the rivers which run into the Atlantic, not only in this, but in all the southern states, are several ranges of stones, sand, earths, and minerals, which lie in the utmost confusion. Beds of stone, of vast extent, particularly of limestone, have their several layers broken in pieces, and the fragments thrown confusedly in every direction. Between these lower falls and the ocean is a very extensive collection of sand, clay, mud, and shells, partly thrown up by the waves of the sea, partly brought down by floods from the upper country, and partly produced by the decay of vegetable substances. The country westward of the Alleghany mountains, in these respects, is totally different. It is very irregular, broken, and variegated, but there are no mountains; and when viewed from the most western ridge of the Alleghany, it appears to be a vast extended plain. All the various strata of stone appear to have lain undisturbed in the situation wherein they were first formed. The layers of clay, sand, and coal, are nearly horizontal. Scarcely a single instance is to be found to the contrary. Every appearance, in short, tends to confirm the opinion, that the original crust, in which the stone was formed, has never been broken up on the west side of the mountains, as it evidently has been eastward of them.
The chief rivers are three, Delaware, Susquehanna, and Skookkil. The Delaware, rising in the country of the Iroquois, takes its course southward; and after dividing this province from that of New Jersey, falls into the Atlantic ocean between the promontories or capes May and Henlopen, forming at its mouth a large bay, called from the river Delaware Bay. This river is navigable above 200 miles. The Susquehanna rises also in the country of the Iroquois, and running south through the middle of the province, falls into the bay of Chesapeake, being navigable a great way for large ships. The Skookkil has its source in the same country as the other two, and also runs south, almost parallel to them; till at length, turning to the eastward, it falls into the Delaware at the city of Philadelphia. It is navigable for boats above 100 miles. These rivers, with the numerous creeks and harbours in Delaware bay, capable of containing the largest fleets, are extremely favourable to the trade of this province.
As to the soil, produce, and traffic of Pennsylvania, we refer the reader to the articles NEW-YORK and the