Semi-weekly standard. [volume], October 03, 1857, Image 2

About Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??

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the NOKmmw
i i in ' ,i T'l'T i iVi 'ii'M'Hrfr.
THE BLACK
Asiieviixe, Sept. 12, 1857.
j jjr jtitin, -Etft'or of A Asheville Fern :
Sir Since my return home, two days ago, I have
een ft communication in the Raleigh Register of the
d instant, headed, "There are two Mt. Mitchells in
North-Carolina." It proceeds to state that the late
Prof. Mitchell in the year 1835 measured the high
est peak of the Black Mountain, under the guidance
of Mr. William Wilson and Mr. Adoniram Allen.
After "referring to Prof. Henry's statement of Prof.
Guypt's measurement of " Clinguvan'a Peak," it goes
on to say : " And if the name here suggested be ad
hered to with such ft meaning attached, there will
be ft most unjust and ungenerous filching of tie
honors of our own learned and pains-taking Pro
fessor." Though I do not always feel obliged to reply to
anonymous attacks, yet I prefer to do so in the pre
sent instance for two reasons. In the first place,
the censure applies not only to me, but to Prof.
Henry, Prof. Guyot, the authors of Cooke's Map of
North Carolina, Colton's and Mitchell's new A Class
es, Lippincott's Gazeteer, and such others as use
that name for the highest peak of the Black. In
the second place, there are marks about this article
in the Register which show it to have originated
from the same source whence came similar articles
recently sent to the National Intelligence, Fayette
Tille Observer, and other papers. There is a per
ceptible effort in a certain quarter to produce on the
public mind an impression which I regard as erro
neous, and which I fetl confident, with the evidence
in my possession, I can dispel.
Sincerely lamenting in common with the whole
State the sudden and melancholy death of the late
Prof. Mitchell, I would gladly have been relieved
from the necessity of recurring to this subject. Be
ing willing to let the former controversy rest where
it did at the close of Lis lire, I think his friends
might well have done so likewise, inasmuch as I had
left his last publication unanswered. As. however,
some of them persist in attacking me from time to
time, directly or directly, the responsibility of a
continuance of such a controversy must rest on
them. As the ground now taken by them is differ
ent, and in fact directly opposite, to the position oc
cupied by Prof. Mitchell in our controversy, it will
only be necessary for me to use his own statements
to overthrow the argument at present advanced.
The allegation made by this writer is, that in the
year 1835 Prof. Mitchell, in company with Mr. Win.
Wilson and Mr. Adoniram Allen, ascended and mea
sured the highest peak of the Black Mountain. Now
let us see what Pi of. Mitchell has said on the sub
ject Nine years afterwards, in the summer of 1844.
he was again on the Black, and in the latter part of
that year be addressed to me a letter, giving the re
sult of his examinations, which I published soon af
terwards. It appears in the Ashevilie Jwny-r of
Jan. 24th, 1845. In the earlier part of that commu
nication Prof. Mitchell said :
" Dr. Dickson having undertaken to observe the
barometer at Ashevillc, and knowing that in his
bands it would afford results in which confidence
could be placed, I determined to try the Black once
more, m which mountain 1 was satisncu tnat me
highest points are to be found, as I was also that I
bad never yet been upon the highest"
It here appears that nine years after his visit with
Mr. Wilson in 1835, Prof. Mitchell was " sa tinjied "
that he " had never yet been vpon the highest" point
of the Black. But his declarations do not stop here.
In bis letter to Prof. Henry, dated Nov. 20th, 1855,
as published in my pamphlet bearing date July 1st,
1856, he uses the following language referring to his
ascent with Mr. Wilson in 1835 :
On the following day, July 23th, I started with
two friends, one of whom had been of the party on
Yeat's Knob on the preceding day, for the prairie
mountain. I did not like the course they took, and
was not disappointed when I found they had led me
wrong, to a peak too far north, and covered all about
its summit with the balsam tir. We could not pen
etrate further south that day, and the vacation be
ing just about to close, I was obliged to return to
my duties at the University, knowing very well that
I had not set my foot on the highest point in the
Black Mountain. The results of the measurements
made at that time were given in the Raleigh Reg
ister." Here it appears that twenty years after this visit,
and after he bad read my description of the highest
peak as given to Professor Henry, Prof. Mitchell did
not pretend to have ascended it in 1835, but assert
ed that he well knew that he was not on it at that
time.
Where did be in fact go with Mr. Wilson in 1835 ?
In a letter to me, dated. Feb. 12th, 185G, a portion of
which was published In my pamphlet, of July 1856,
and the whole of which is still in my possession and
ready for the inspection of anyone who wishes to ex
amine it, be said :
" In 1835 1 went to Morganton, the Table Rock,
the Grandfather, the Roan, the North end of the
Black, near Young's, Yeat's Knob July 27th, and
from that day to this have never had any doubt as
to which was the highest peak of the Black Moun
tain. The difficulty wae to reach it. I sought to
do so on the next following day, July 28th, but fail
ed because the guides took me to a point near the
bead of the Cat-tail fork. I find an entry mode
that morniug at Wra. Wilson's on Cat-tail fork, im
mediately before the entry 23,807 at the top of the
Black. I knew perfectly well, though the weather
was cloudy and the mountain was covered with fog,
that the guides had taken me wrong."
It will be seen that Prof. Mitchell reiterates his
previous declarations that he was not then on the
highest peak of the Black, but only on one " near
the head of the Cat-tail fori." On Cooke's Map of
North-Carolina the outline of the Mountain is correct
ly presented, and the highest point, being there given
as " Clingman's Peak," the one immediately nonh
of it is Guyot's Peak, then Hairy Bear, next Sandoz
Knob, and last the Cat-tail Peak, near which heads
the Cat-tail fork. If Prof. Mitchell's statement is
correct, he was therefore in 1835 most probably on
this peak, but he might have been, perhaps, as the
weather was foggy, without knowing it, on one of
the three intermediate points between this and the
highest According to Prof. Guyot's measurements,
the difference in height between the highest and
lowest of the five is only one hundred and six feet,
(106.) I shall not attempt to show, however, which
of these points Prof. M. actually visited, but content
myself with making it appear from his own state
ments that he was not on the highest peak. But
f again, in a letter to me bearing date Feb. 21st 1856,
, he says:
! - You will recollect that I went upon the Black
1 ftt three points in 1835, viz: the northern extremity
! at Young's, Yeat's Knob, and the head of the Cat
tail; at two points in 1838, or somewhere therea
bouts, viz: the Bull's Head, above Dillingham's,
and at the southern extremity where the so called
Mt Mitchell, Mt Gibbes, and the rest are. And
yet I say in December, 1844, speaking of what had
occurred in the preceding summer, I determined
to try the Black once more, in which mountain I
was well satisfied that the highest peaks are to be
found, as I was also that I had never yet been upon
the highest.' " .
It will be seen that he here makes the same quo
tation I have already given above, and goes on then
to describe his visit in 1844 with Mr. Riddle. Fi
nally, after there had been a long correspondence
between us on the subject, he said in a coinmunica-
turn published by him in the Asheville Spectator of
tiune iwiu, ioao, reiernng to the high
est peak: 6
"I attempted to reach that smmit on the next
SSldSor Ju,y 28th 1835' but "8 I was af
terwaros ied by my own observations, and not bv
the cnticisma of others to believe, I failed at that
time of getting upon it" . - . V
In a succeeding number nublisbed the week fol
lowing, in the Spectator of June 26th,1856, he says
, ato referring to his seeing the highest peak of the
Black Mountain from .Yeat's Knob on the 27th of
July 1885 as described in the Raleigh EeaUter of
Hot. 8d of that year : .."-.'
"I attempted to ascend this peak on the follow
!ng day, (July 27,) but failed. The reason whV I
was deceived in regard to the point that was reach
ed by me, supposing myself to be on the highest
peak when I was not, is distinctly given. ,At the
time of our visit,' it is said, 'the mountain is envel
oped in mist, which prevented our seeing more than
ttSh i h1undr1ed, yds.' Crawling as we did
through laurels and along bear trails, I was obliged
to trust implicitly to the guides. I have an indis
tinct recollection of a feeling of Uneasiness, treated
by the apprehension that we were not upon 'the
right spot, but at the distance of 21 years one is lia
ble to mix up and confound the impressions of one,
ascent with those of another. I had - not another
day to spare."
Later in tbii article he refers to his visit to the
mountain in 1838, and says:
" I then found myself not far from Yeat's Knob,
and now, il not sooner, was fully satisfied that I was
notj upon the highest point in the Black Mountain
ridge in 1835. When I came out of the cove, in
stead of - returning directly to Asheville I rode
around to theSwannanoa end of the mountain, was,
as they represented to me, upon what have since been
called Mts. Gibbes and Mitchell, one or both, and
took an observation there."
These positive assertions of Prof. Mitchell, perse
vered in for twenty years, ought to be sufficient to
negative the idea that he in 1835 could have been
on the highest point But the case docs not stop
even here. In the summer of 185C, or last year on
ly, he, in company with several pcrsonB, uid go to
the highest peak of the Black, along the pathway
that was cut out to it immediately after my meas
urement of 1855, and which many ladies had ridden
over on horseback. In his communication subse
quently, published in the Asheville Spec aim of Aug.
23. 1856,he does not pretend that he was on this peak
in 1835. On the contrary, he persisted in his form
er opinion that he must have been on this point with
Mr. Wm. Riddle in 1844, though he admitted that
he found the mountain in many respects to be dif
ferent from what he supposed it was before this as
cent. It will be recollected that after seeing this state
ment of his, I, October 20th, 1856, published Mr.
Riddle's statement, with other confirmatory evidc nee,
showing that in 1844 he was on Mt Uibbes, nearly
as far south of the highest peak as the Cat-tail one
is north of it
To this exposition of mine Prof. Mitchell replied
in a paper published in the Asheville Spectator of
Nov. 20th, 1856. In it he does not fall back upon
his ascent with Mr. Wilson, or even refer to him,
but insists on his foi mer position, as the following
extract will show :
"Even if Mr. Riddle's statement be taken to be strictly
true in every minute particular, it makes nothing
for Mr. Clingman, but against him. I may have
found and designated truly (as I did) the highest
point in the ridge in 1835, and published it as the
most elevated .summit in the United States east of
the Rocky Mountains, though I failed to reach its
top either on that or any following year. The very
paper here given by Mr. Clingman from the lips of
Mr. Riddle shows that I understood perfectly well
the position of the highest peak : somewhat be
tween the head of the Cat-tail and Mt. Gibbes, and
that I was endeavoring to reach it, though The gen
tleman who undertook to pilot me to it, as he here
very coolly testifies, led me wrong. I am not satis
fied with Mr. Riddle's account, for reasons that I
will presently give ; but I am not greatly concerned
either about its falsi hood or its truth "
It is due to Mr. Riddle that it should be stated
that on this occasion he carried Prof Mitchell to
what they at the time both regarded as the highest
peak of the Black ; nor did he or his ncighbois, as
far as I can learn, ever entertain a doubt as to its
being in fact the highest, until my uu asiii t tuent was
made known in 1855. In contiriiiatiii of this re
mark it may he stated that Prf. Mitchell in his pub
lication of June, 1856, expresses the o inion that
the higher pak as seen from Yeat's Knob bears
" S 55 east or thereabouts." This does well for llie
position of Gibbes, but the highest peak is but little
South of East, as seen from Yeates' Knob. It would
seem therefore that Prof. Mitchell was on what he
as well as Mr. Riddle regarded at that time as the
highest peak.
The communication of Nov. 20th, lSott, above
quoted, is the last thing ever published by Prof.
Mitchell on this subject, as far ns I know or believe.
Throughout the entire series of his statements it ap
pears that he not only does not pretend to have been
on the highest peak in 1835 with Mr. Win. Wilson,
but on the contrary with marked emphasis and con
sistency he asserts the opposite. If he was there in
fact at that time, then he must have labored ever af
terwards under the most extraordinary delusion on
the subject, a delusion so remarkable as to greatly
impair if not altogether to destroy all confidence in ;
his opinions and statements as to matters of this
kind. Ought it to be assumed that he was thus
mistaken, unless very strong evidence enn be adduc
ed against his reiterated statements Let us now
see upon what ground it is maintained, in opposition
to his positive opinions and statements for more than
twenty years, that he was upon this peak in lb35
After my publication of October last in which it
was made to appear that he had in 1844 gone with
Mr. Win. Riddle to Mount Gibbes instead of the
highest peak, as previously contended, it seems that
some persons in this vicinity w ho had been main
taining his side of the controversy, changed their
ground and began to assert that Prof. Mitchell had
ascended the highest peak in 1835, with a Mr. Wil
son. Accidentally hearing ot this last Spiing, I,
when at Uurnsville in April last, during the Court
there, saw Mr. Wm. Wilson, and for the first time in
my life conversed with him on the subject. He sta
ted he had in 1835, or somewhere about that time,
gone up with Prof. Mitchell to the top of the Black
at one point. He said that was the tirsl time that
he had ever been on its top, along anypait of its
ridge, and that he had never been on it since any
where. He also said that as they went up the side
they got into a cloud, and when on the top, on ac
count of the mist could not see any of the other
points of the mountain. He then did not know where
Mts. Mitchell, Gibbes, Clingman's Peak, &c.,.werc,
as he had never been on the mountain but upon that
one occasion, and at a time when he could not see any
point except the one he stood on the first time. Un
der these circumstances I did not regard his opinion
as to where he had been as amounting to anyihing
in the way of evidence. During the week of the
Special Court at this place, in July last, I heard by
chance that he had been induced by some persons
to make a written statement on the subject of his
trip to the Black, though I had no opportunity of
seeing it. I therefore requested Mr. Washington
Broyles of Burnsville, who happened to be here, to
see Mr. Wilson and get him to repeat his statement
in writing and send it to me. Some time afterwards
it came to me by mail from Mr. Broyles, and I pre
sent it as I received it, with a correction only of some
of the spelling:
Mr. T. L. Clingman :
Sir About twenty years ago I went with Prof.
Mitchell, the only trip I ever made to the top of the
Black Mountain. I went up by the Green ponds
and crossed the river, the left hand fork, kept up
the river about a mile above the next fork, then took
the little pine mountain and kept that ridge to the
top of the Black Mountain, to a small glade on the
top, and in the gap, then we turned to the right, 100
yards from the glade to the top. The fog and mist
was so thick that we could not see the other knobs.
There seemed to be a knob further to the tight and
larger at the top, when we was on Yeates' Knob the
day before, but I cannot say for certain that we got
on it I thought the right hand knob was the high
est, but Prof. Mitchell said the one he was on he
thought the highest
(Signed) WILLIAM WILSON.
July 27th, 1857.
Attest : YV. Broyles, W. Horton.
He says further that he will go and show the spot,
if any person will pay five dollars. Says he can
snow tne same place.
Respectfully, W. B.
Since I received the above I have not seen either
Mr. Broyles or Mr. Wilson, and can therefore only
give the statement as I have received it. It precise
ly accords with Prof. Mitchell's statements as to the
condition of the weather, fog, mist, &c. How much
is it worth in the way of proof? Suppose that Mr.
Wilson should now express the most posit' ve opm
thing. They may, as Prof. Mitchell said, nave gone
no tmr north to haves reached th JL'at Tail peak ;
! or ifhev ma have ascended SandoaT Knob south of
V it, o the Hairy Bear, jr GuyoVs Peak, or possibly
! the.highest, whien is ne iuwwjiiueriny oi me
five'. The weight of evidence is in favor of the Cat
Tail, but even this creates only a probability, not
withstanding the positive assertions of Prof. Mitch-
. ell, because be said he "was obliged to trust implie
dly to tire guides." The only guide who was with
him on Yeates' Knob and from whom we have any.
statement, appears to have beer, as much a stranger
on the top as Prof. Mitchell was himself, without
the benefit which the-latter subsequently derived
from several trips to other points of the mountain.
But if it shall now be assumed that Prof. Mitchell
was on the highest peak in 1835, then it is certain
that he remained profoundly ignorant of it for more
than twenty years. And if he was thus ignorant of
the fact, how was Prof. Henry, or Prof. Guyott, or
I, or the public generaally to know it? For any in
formation given to the scientific world, as to the
identity of the point thus reached, it would have
been the same if be had been led over it blindfold.
In such a case he could scarcely have been more ig
norant of his whereabouts.
But it is also argued in the article contained in the
Register, and likewise in that of the Intelligencer,
Fayctteville Observer, and some other papers, that as
Prof. Mitchell in 1835 represented the highest peak
of the Black as being 6476 feet high, or 5508 feet
above Morganton, and as Morganton has been f- und
by the Rail Road survey to be 1200 feet high in
stead of 968 as Prof. M. then estimated, that there
fore the correction of 6708 feet corresponds nearly
with the real height of the highest peak as ascer
tained by Prof. Guyot. These statements are mere
repetitions of what I published on page 14 of my pam
phlet of July, 1856, though the writers do not think
proper to give me credit for it. I presented this view
then in that spirit of fairness which especially should
characterize discussions on scientific subjects. But
when it was thus presented to Prof. Mitchell's con
sideration, he declined to adopt it or to contend that
in 1835 he was in fact on the highest peak. The
circumstance is entitled to ve.ry little weight for the
following reasons. In 1835 Prof. Mitchell estimated
the height of Morganton at "Jug feet, the Grandfa
ther 5556 feet, the Roan 6038 feet; and in 1844 he
published them Morganton 1031 feet or 63 feet
higher than his previous estimate, and added to the
height of the Grandfather 163 feet, and to that of
the Roan 149 feet. These changes were made many
years before any Rail Road survey reached the vi
cinity of Morganton, and yet show variances of 150
feet in these heights. If it shall be said that in 1S44
he had a barometer stationed at Ashevillc and that
he corrected his former estimate by means of the
report of the Rail Road survey made to the vicinity
of Asheville by the Charleston and Cincinnati compa
ny, then the reply is that if he took this as a basis
it would have given him the height of Morga ton
truly at about 1200 feet above the sea, or lG'.f more
than he then stated it. It would also have increased
nearly 100 feet the height of the Giomlfiitber and
It an Whv then did he add 103 feet tc ibe height
St
of the Grandfather, 149 to that of the Roan, and on
ly 63 to Morganton
Again, in his communication published in the
Spectator of the 20th of June, 1856, he has the fol
lowing :
" P. S. I give the heights of certain points on
Black Mountain as determined by nie :
1885. North end of the Black near Thos.
Young's. 6u38
1S35. Peak measured in the mist, head
of Cat Tail ? 6476
1S3S. Mt. Gibbes :.nd Mt. Mitchell, Swan-
nanoa end of the Mountain, 6581
1844. Highest point, head of Cany Ri
ver, 6672
The first two were measured with the same in
strument, a common Englefield. barometer ; the third
with a different Englefield, and the fourth with Gay
Lus-ae's mountain barometer."
On examining the nlwve it is noticeable that the
height assigned to the Swannanoa peak is just inter
mediate between Prof. Guyot's estimate of Mt. Mitch
ell and Mt. Gibbs, and wilhiu 5 feet of either therefore,
as they differ but 10 feet in elevation. But the height
given to the North end at Young's is 3'7 feet lower
than Prof. Guyot's estimate, and that of the Cat Tail
is 225 feet lower than his measurement makes the
highest Again, Prof. Mitchell iu 1835 had pub
lished that the he ght of the North end of the Black
at Young's w as 5946, or 399 feet below Prof. Guyot's
figures. Remember that this measurement and that
of the highest point he ws then on, were both made
by the same instrument It is now said that the
point he then found the highest, and which he called
the Cat Tail peak in his publication of 1856, was in
fact the same with the Clingman's Peak of Prof.
Guyot. Why then should bis instrument have
made this point 225 feet below Guyot's measure
ment, and the North end at Young's 399 feet below
it, a variance of 174 feet ? Again, Jul-, 1835, he
was on the top of Yeates' Knob, and in that year he
published its height at 5895 feet, w hich is only 75
feet below the true height as given by Prof. Guyot.
This measurement was only a day or two after
that of the North end at Young's, and the very day
before that of the Cat Tail, with the very same in
struments, and with the stationary barometer at
Morganton. And yet while it makes the first peak
399 feet too low, and the second 225 feet too low, it
made Yeates' Knob only 75 feet below its real height.
If the instruments had been reliable they would
have made the several points equally below the true
elevation- But in fact making due allowances for
the heights of the points, the stationary barometer
remaining at Morganton all the while, the instru
ment then on Yeates' Knob diffeicd 324 feet from
what it was on the previous day at Young's point,
and 150 from what it declared when on the other or
Cat Tail peak. Can any height assigned to Morgan
ton or Asheville either reconcile such discrepancies
as I have thus pointed out? Prof. Mitchell had good
reason for saying as he did in his publication of June,
1856, after describing his journey to the south end
of the Mountain in 1838, when he measured Mt
Mitchell :
"I was less careful about ascei taininu from the
numbers now procured the height of this end of the
mountain, because I was not satisfied with the in
struments I had hitherto used. They were good
barometors of the common kind, but as there was
no arrangement in them for observing the level of
the mercury in the box wood cup or basin, there
was danger of error from more than one or two sour
ces." In the last publication made by Prof. Mitchell, on
the 20th of Nov., 1856, af'er referring to the discrep
ancies between his own measurement and Professor
Guyot's, he said, " But both of these numbers, or
either of them, may be, and pretty certainly is er
roneous: either may be. from one to two hundred
feet from the truth, for reasons that I will proceed
to state." He then argues at some length against
the general accuracy of barometic measurements.
Whether he was right in these views or not, it was
natural that in 1835 with his stationary barometer
40 miles off at Morganton, and more than five thou
sand feet below himhe should with the instruments
he used, have fallen into errors of more than one
hundred feet As there are five points including
the highest, near each other, of within about a hun
dred feet of the same elevation, nny one of them
might have given the result he obtained with such
an instrument doubtless, and therefore it cannot be.
assumed with any degree of plausibility that he was
on the highest, rather than on the Cat Tail where
he says he was. Since he has estimated points of
the Black Mountain as being at various heights from
5946 feet to 6672 feet it is not strange that some
one of them should coincide nearly, w ith the help of
subsequent corrections and additions, with the alti
tude of the highest peak.
It has been contended, however, that even though
Prof. Mitchell never measured or ascended the high
. est peak, he at least in 1835 recognized and des
cribed it This is denied with the utmost confi-
ion, that he was more than twenty two years ago for dence. There is nothing in his description then
the first and last time, on this point? He went through
-i e t i i i , , - i 1
uciiku luresus oi oaisam ana laurel, along Dear trans,
and enveloped in a thick fog, to a point covered by
balsam timber, just as a half a dozen others are in
its vicinity. No one familiar with mountain travelling
in cloudy weather will attach the least weight to
the opinion of a man, however honest be may be,
as to where he was in a forest under such circum
stances. If, therefore, Mr. Wilson's statement stood
alone, it would, hardly create a presumption as to
which point he did ascend. . But when weighed
against Prot Mitchell's reiterated and most positive
statements to the contrary, it in fact amouvts t no
ProL Mitchell. wif the aid of bis oh descriptions
as well aa hitf memory. Was atfver abletb find or sret .
$o this peak. Hei jailed to re-fc it hextdByi'f nd
I also in two attempts in' 1 838, and Iftgain finally in
4844 wnen nec went to aft Gibjies-'with TYcu. fud
dle." If his description did not enable him to ffndit,
'"ho would it enable any one else to identify it ? As
i . . ,
soon as my aescripiinn, on me contrary, was puo
lished, any one could find the point easily, and Prof.
Mitchell himself went up to it along a bridle path in
the summer of 1856, for-the first time.; Such are its
position and surroundings, that any one who was
ever on it on a clear day could have no difficulty in
describing it -" - -
Again, it is denied in some of these publications
to which I am replying that Professor Mitchell ever
measured the peak known as.Mt Mitchell ; wonder
is expressed as to how it ever got the name, and it
is said that he did not feel honored by it, &c. But I
have already shown that he did publish its height,
as ascertained in 1838, at 6581 feet, the only one of
his measurements in fact that is found to be near
the truth. In the same article, published June 26th,
1856, he said, referring to his visit to the mountain
in 1844: "People had already done me the honor
of naming the Knob near the Southern or Swan
nanoa end of the Black Mountain, Mount Mitchell,
though I was not aware till the publication of Mr.
Clingman's article in the Washington Spectator, that
it was so generally regarded as the highest summit"
It is now said, however, that for twenty-two years,
or from 1835, the high peak was called Mt. Mitchell.
Is it not wonderfully strange thn that Prof. Mitch-,
ell, when in the neighborhood on Cany river in
1844, for the purpose of trying to get on it, never
heard of this name, which it is pretended had been
in use for nine years ! And is it not still more ex
traordinary that when he thus wrote in June of 1856
he had never heard of his greatest namesake 1 The
story that the name of Mt. .i itchcll was applied gen
erally to the highest peak by the citizens of Yancy
or of any other county in the State, is a sheer fabri
cation. Up to the time of my letter to Prof. Henry
in 1855, and in fact till within a few months past, I
never heard it suggested that it had been so applied
by a single human being. If the fact were "other
wise, it must have been so carefully whispered
among a few as to have been better kept thanecrets
usually are.
Again, it is contended that as Dr. Mitchell was
the first person who measured any point of the Black
Mountain, even if a higher peak should be found, his
nan e should be applied to that because of his great
er merit as an original explorer. Long's peak of the
Rocky Mountains was measured and made knojrn
many jears ago. Was it wrong in Col. Fremont
and others to ascend and measure other peaks of the
range, and if one of them should prove the highest
of all, must Long's name be transferred to that, be
cause, forsooth, at the time he went up it was more
difficult to reach the top of the Rocky Mountains
than it now is; ami are the publishers of maps, &c,
to be charged with filching his honors if they do not
change the names? The two cases are precisely
parallel, and the absurdity of the pretension is no
greater in the one case than the other.
There are many errors and misrepresentations in
these late articles which I might with propriety no
tice, but that I am already extending this communi
cation ton much. I think nothing will be found
above which is not material to the controversy, and
still I might have strengthened my positions by -further
remarks. I hope those editors w ho have pub
lished matter on the other side, will see the propri
ety of inserting this. Its publication is a matter not
merely of justice to indiviuiials, but also important
to the ascertainment of truth on a subject of consid
erable scientific interest. Even the particular friends
of the late Prof. Mitchell cannot fairly except to what
consists mainly of a repetition of his ow n statements,
presented fail ly, directly, and in accordance with
their obvious and intended signification. I have
neither done nor said anything to justify the persis
tent attacks that have been made on me in this con
nection. At tie time I first ascended the highest
peak of the Black neither I nor any one with whom
I ever conversed had the remotest idea that Prof. M.
claimed to have been on it. In detailing the result
of my examination, I co-nplitnented him as the dis
coverer of the fact that the Black Mountain excelled
Mt. Washington and all other elevations East of the
Mississippi, and was never in my life more aston
ished than when I learned that he claimed to have
been on this peak in the year 1844. Though much
surprised and perplexed, thinking there ought to be
no controversy about siieh a mere matter of fact, I
wrote to him and informed him that if he would re
examine the mountain I would acquiesce in his de
cision as to whether or not he had ever been on this
point, and offered in the meantime to request Prof.
Henry not to take any notice of my letter in the
forthcoming Report of the Smithsonian Institution.
My offer was not, however, accepted, and in the
course of the correspondence which ensued between
us I wrote out and laid before him in full my objec
tions to his views, just as I intended to publish them,
and in fact did afterwards publish them. This was
done in the hope hat if not satisfied, he might at
least see sufficient grounds for doubt to suspend the
controversy until he could look upon the mountain
again. He preferred a different course, and he re
sult is belore the public. In the course of our con
troversy it will be remembered that he, declaring
that he had failed in 1835 and 1838 to reach the
highest peak, insisted that in 1844 he did, in com
pany with Mr. Wm. Riddle and his son, ascend it
I, on the other hand, contended that as he had, ac
cording to his statements, been carried in 1835 too
far north to the Cat Tail peak, so in 1844 he had
gone too far south to Mt. Gibbes, and to prove this
referred to his own descriptions of the localities, and
to the statemencs of the Riddles, his guides, of Esq.
Blaekstock, &e. As I have no apprehension that
any one who has read the former part of the contro
versy will believe that in 1844 he was on the high
est peak, so will I submit with confidence the decis
ion upon this second issue, to the judgment of all
who may think it worth while to examine the state
ment I now make. In fact, to maintain the preten
sion now set up, it is necessary not only to reject
the entire weight of evidence, but to stultify Prof.
Mitchell not orly as a gentleman of science, but even
as a man of common sense.
It will be recollected that in my letter to Prof.
Henry I stated that, as in my examination I had no
one to assist me by making any simultaneous obser
vation of a barometer on Mt. Mitchell, with which I
compared the highest peak, I did not claim to have
ascertained its exact height, but only to have so ap
proximated it as to establish its superiority over any
poirt in the whole range.
But in conclusion it may be proper to state that
a measurement made by Maj. J. C. Tnrner within
the last two weeks, by running a line of levels from
the railroad suivey to the top of the highest peak,
furnishes all that can be demanded in relation to the
altitude of the Black Mountain. I may say without
impropriety, in advance of the publication of his re
port, that when given it will not shake the confi
dence of the scientific world in the fidelity of baro
metic measurements in general, nor especially in the
accuracy and precision of the observations made by
Prof. Arnold Guyot.
Respectfully, &c '
T. L. CLINGMAN.
r ft. .
. given which would enable any one to know which
" peak he referred to. He said it was at " the head
of the ridge between the north and middle forks of
Cany river." But the north fork of Cany river is
the Cat Tail, and of the. half a dozen other prongs,
no one is called the north fork or the middle one,
nor could any person identify the highest peak by
such a description. As to his memorandum repre
sented to hsve been made on Yeates' Knob in 1835,
.besides the objection to it formerly pointed out, it
in fact was never nublished or made known until af
ter the pub'ication in 185 of my letter to Professor.
Henry describing "the position of the highest "peak, i
Western Railkoo, The contract for grading the
track of the Western Railroad within the corporate
limits of this town has been awarded to Mr. William
Fooshee, who will commence the work during the
present week. Fay. Obs. '.
New York, Sept 29. Flour is dull : sales of Ohio
at $5 30 to 5 70 others aie unchanged. Wheat is
heavy and has declined 3 cts. on the high grades ;
sales of white at 1"25 to' 1 85, red 1 15 to 1' 22."
Corn is heavy ; sales of mixed at 70 cts. Stocks are
firmer.
, We neglected to mention last week, that Mr. Cal
vin E. Parish has been appointed Post Master at this
place, Maj. James M. Palmer, the former occupant,
having been appointed mail agent on the North Car
olina Railroad. Hillsborough Recorder.
New Cottom The first bale of new cotton which -
has been received at. Norfolk, was sold on Montjay
at 17 cet per, pound.' It was. grown by. Mr. Eli"
Cherry, of Martin. , J . . . , v .'
Subscription Aittrorizeo At the election in
.Wilmington, on Monday, last, a subscription. of $25,-.
uuu to me cape tear ana ueep Kiver Stock was au
thorized, by a vote of 223 to 28. - - v :
' 8. SWAN & CO., Managers,
GEORGIA LOTTERIES,
FOR OCTOBER, W3T, -; a t i - '
OF
date
tub drawing.
Thursday, October 1st
Friday, - 2d
Saturday " Sd
Mondax, " 5th
Tuesday, - - 6thx
Wednesday, " 7th
Thursday, 8th
Friday, 9th
Saturday, " 10th
Mouday, - 12ih
Tuesday, 13th
Wednesday, " 14th
Thursday, 15th
Friday, 16th
Saturday, - 17th
Monday, - 19th
Tuesday, " 20th
Wednesday, 21st
Thursday, " 22d
Friday, 23d
Saturday, 24th
Monday, " 26th
Tuesday, ' 27th
Wednesday, " 28th
Thursday, 2titb
Friday, SOth
Saturday, - 31st
Address orders fur Tickets to
October 1st, 1857.
NAME AND CLASS OF THE - 1 , 3k o
LOTTERY. ' SI & a
- - - - " fcQ
. Sparta Academy, Extra, ' ' 49 TS 12
Sparta Aeadfm'y, SO 78 18
Sparta Academy, Extra, , 51 78, 13
Sparta Academy, 52 75 12
Fort 6Mnca.Aeademj, I 56
HAVANA PLAN, J .'-. - i
Sparta Academy, , . 53 78 14
Sparta Academy, Extra, 54 75 13
Sparta Academy,' ' 55 75 13
Sparta Academy, Extra, 56 78 13
Sparta Academy, 57 75 12
Sparta Academy, Extra, 58 . 78 16
Sparta Aeademy, 69 78 12
Sparta Academy, Extra, 60 ' 75 12
Sparta Academy, 61 75 12
Sparta Academy, Extra, 62 75 12
Sparta Academy, ' 63 78 13
Fort Gaines Academy, - 57
' HAVANA PLAN, f
Sparta Academy, , 64 75 12
Sparta Academy, Extra, 65 78 14
Sparta Academy, 66 7R 14
Spa.-ta Academy, Extra, 67 78 12
Sparta Academy, 68 79 12
Spnrta Academy, Extra, 69 75 13
Sparta Academy, 70 75 13
Sparta Academy, Extra, 71 75 13
Sparta Academy, 72 78 13
Sparta Academy, Extra, 73 78 12
Sparta Academy, 74 75 12
Fort Gaines Academy, ) " 58
HAVANA PLAN, J
Sparta Academy, 75 78 13
Sparta Academy, Extra, 76 75 15
Sparta Academy. 77 75 14
Sparta Academy, Extra, '78 78 14
Sparta Acade y, 79 75 12
Sparta Academy, Extra, 80 78 14
Sparta Academy, 81 78 12
Sparta Academy, Extra, 82 75 5
Sparta Academy, 83 75 . 13
Sparta Academy, Extra, 84 78 13
Sparta Academy, 8.r, 78 12
Fort Gaines Academy, ) 59
HAVANA PLAN, J
Sparta Academy, 66 75 12
Sparta Academy, Extra, ' 87 7" 13
Sparta Academy, 83 78 12
Sparta Academy, Extra, . 89 , 78 11
Spartk Academy, 90 75 11
Sparta Academy, Extra, 91 78 13
Sparta Academy, 92 75 13
Sparta Academy, Extra, 93 75 14
Sparta Academy, 94 78 10
Sparta Academy, Extra, 95 75 13
Sparta Academy, 96 75 13
- Fort Gaines Academy, ) 60
HAVANA PLAN, J
Sparta Acadimy, 97 78 13
Price of
Whole
Tickets.
t 1 00
5 00
2 50
5 mi
10 00
10 00
2 50
5 00
1 0i)
5 00
2 50
10 00
1 00
5 no
2 00
5 00
10 00
10 00
2 50
5 00
1 00
5 fx)
2 50
10 no
1 00
5 no
8 50
5 Oft
10 00
10 00
2 50
5 00
1 00
5 00
2 50
10 00
1 00
5 no
2 no
5 no
10 00
10 00
2 50
5 00
1 00
5 00
2 r.O
10 no
1 INI
5 no
2 50
5 no
10 00
20 00
Capital
"He,.
JTnio
?ttl,ll()
"0,000
12,000
-5,iioo
s-Voo
l2,0oo
t-lil.in.iO
:"VJ0
fai,iui0
lO.INK)
'i'VUH)
t'tyXlO
50,000
1000
Hoco
t'i.iinO
"V'0
--V"io
tU,iji)
U'll,MIfl
S'ViOO
50,1100
tlO.'ViO
-"',""0
1-11,'KlO
!l.ini
".""3
?-4,'J0
U,"iH)
-",")
I'i'V'JO
t"iO,o.in
'..Vi"0
H Ml:.)
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8:'Vii0
fcV..-.5
fvV''K)
J7i,.)
D. M SMITH & CO., Portsmouth. Ya.
W-lm.
GLEN ANNA FE.HALE SEMINARY,
Thomasville, Davidson Co., N. C.
THE FALL SESSION OF THIS INSTITUTION
will commeuce on the second Wednesday of Septem
ber. The managers are now making arrangements for a
corps of Teachers which will be interior to uoue south of
Philadelphia.
Board in the Institution, exclusive of washing and lights,
$ii per month. Tuition per Session for Eneliu oraches' s
to I5. Music on Piauo Forte or Guitar, f-jo, including use
of instrument French, $s. l'aiutmg iu Oil, $15. Paint
ing in Water colors, $s. All other oruamentul wore in pro
portion, ai per Session for incidentals. As the charges
are very low one half must be paid in advance. the balance
at the end of the session, or interest will be charged.
This Institution is located in one of the niosi healthy,
moral and industrious villages on the North Carolina Rail
Road. There are the present Session, between 7o and So
pupils, representing six branches of the Christian Church ;
all worshipping the Most High together in Christian love.
This new building is large and well ventilated.
Pupils will be received at any time and charged from the
time of entrance; but it is very desirable that ail should
be present on thetirat day of the Session.
The Seminary is six uiiles from Normal College, and a
daiiy stage runs both ways. Parents can send (heir sons
and daughters to Thomasville; the sous go onto Norauil
College.
No pupil allowed to make accounts without the consent
of parent or guardian
For further particulars address
J. W. THOMAS, Pres. Board of Trustees.
July 24, 1857. Ily5-wly.
250 Reward.
A PROCLAMATION,
jf Sis JSxeeUeucy, Thomas Bbagc. Governor o tU State
vf Aorth Carolina.
"Wjy"HEBEAS. IT HAS BEEN REPRESENTED TO
me that one William Emory, late of the Countr ot
Granville, stands charged iu the Superior Ciurl of said
County with the murder of one Charles Alleu, on or about
the th day of December last ; and that the said William
Emory is a fugitive from justice, and has escaped bcyoud
the limits of this Siaie.
SOW, to the end that the said William Emory may be
arrested and brought to trial for his said offence, I do issue
this, my Proclamation, ofleriug a reward of Two Hundred
and Fifty Dollars for his apprehension and delivery to the
Sheriff of Granville County.
Description :
Wm. Emory is said to be about . feet 6 or 8 inches high,
spare made, thin narrow face, pale complexion, yellowish
frev eyes, dark hair, usually worn long, walks wide between
is knees, is quick spoken, about thirty-two or three years ol
age, and weighs about 14o or l.o pounds.
Uis wife, a tall, round-shouldered woman, and their son,
about eight years old, are supposed to be with him.
Given under my h.md and the Great Seal of the
l. a. State of North-Carolina, at the City of Raleigh,
on the Kith day of September, A. I)., 1857.
By the Governor :
THOMAS BRAGG.
Pcla8ki Cowber, Pr. Secretary.
1203 w4w. -
&1TATE OF NORTH-CAROLINA, WILSON
9 County, Curt of Pleas and Quarter Session, William
Pope, Henry Pope, John Pope, and B. H. Bawden, as as- :
signees of J no. I'ope.and as assignees and trustees of Henry -
i'ope vs. .Marina i'ope, .Lizzie repe, the ueirs 01 Surah
Hamilton and the heirs of Mary Dickerson. Petition for
partition of land.
It appearing to the satisfaction of the Court, that the
heirs oi Sarah Hamilton and the heirs of Mary Dickerson,
defendants in this case, are non-residents of the State, it
is therefore ordered that publication be made in the N. C.
Standard for 6 weeks, notifying the said defendants to appear
before the worshipful justices of said court ,at the court Douse
in Wilson, on the 4th Monday of October next, then and
there to plead, answer or demur to the said petition, or it
will be heard txparte, and judgment reudered tiro coufesto
as to. them.
Witness: T. C. Davis, Clerk of Raid Court, at office, the
4th Monday of July, A. D.. 1857.
T. C. DAVIS, Clerk.
August 15, 1857. 1202 wOw.
FASHIONABLE CLOTHING EMPORIUM.
CHARLOTTE, N. C.
THE SUBSCRIBER BEGS RESPECTFULLY TO 1N
form the citizens ot Charlotte and surrounding coun
try, that he has JUST OPENED a NEW CLOTHING
STORE, on the premises recently occupied by Mr. Lowrie
as a Book Store, one door above Carr's Hotel, where will
always be found a large stock of GENTLEMKN'S READY
MADE CLOTHING, put up in the best style and WAR
RANTED in every respect. His business will be conduc
ted strictly on the CASH principle, thereby saving pur
chasers fully 20 per cent. Suits made to order ou the
shortest notice.
J. W. COLE, Agent.
May 26, 1857. 1 186 wtf. .
' " NOTICE. . '
WILL BE SOLDrO THE HIGHEST BIDDER, ON
Thursday loth day of October next, at the late res
idence of Robert W. Palmer, deed, in Chatham county, ae
mile south of the Gulph on Deep River, the tract of land
on which the said Palmer lived at the time of his death,
containing 5W acres, more or less. Said lauds are very
valuable tor farming purposes, there being a large quantity
of them the best Deep River low grounds, and situated im
mediately in the coal region of Deep River. A large por
tion of them is supposed to be underlaid with coal. Those
wishing to buy a good farm, or to engage in the coal busi
ness, would do well to attend the sale. ' ' '
Tebms: Six and twelve months -credit, interest from
date. Bond with two approved securities will be required.
G. W. GOLDSTON, AdWr.
Sept. 8, 1857. 1201 wtd.
BEEDE A MENDENHALL, ,
... Land Agents,
WILL SELECT AND ENTER GOVERNMENT
land with cash or warrants Will make . invest
ments, loan money at western rates, and transact a general
real estate business throughout the Northwest. Refer to
Gov. Bragg, Col. Walter Gwynn, the Editors of the Stand
ard, Ex-Governor Morehead, Ex-Governor Graham, North
Carolina, and E. C Mowry, Esq., Charleston, S. C. ' ...
Address Beede it Mendmbalf, Minneapolis, Minnesota. "
April 14, 167; - - ; 'll-wtMpd. ,
"PAJOTICE.-THE UNDERSIGNED HAVING. AT
IM. August Term, 1857, of the Court of Pleas and Quar
ter Sessions for Wake cotnrty, qualified as Adrntnistvator
of Jams y. Newsom. deceased, hereby rives antic to aU
indebted to the estate of the said Newaom, to fall u poo the
andersigned and pay up; and to those having claims or de
' mands against said estate, to present them within the time
prescribed by-law, of this notice will be ptsad in bar-of
AAgust 81, 1867. ' W wow?
The Portis Uold Mine and 20 to 30 Negroes
for Sale.
BEING DESIROUS OF CHANGING MY MAXXKR
of living, an having arrived at a period f w,.n
relaxation from laborious efforts would be ugreeubli', I
offer for sale tlie entire proper! v, so well knmru as ihe
PORTIS GOLD MINE, conlainmg IHio acres of l.ai.d,
together with a lot of Negroes, a number nf iliem uccns
turned to work in the mine and gm.d practical miners; all
oiy crop of Corn, Fodder, Wheat and Oals. stock of Horses,
Mules, Cattle, Hogs, Plantation and Mining Tools. Ac.
As my object in selling is to secure ciu and rest, nnd
not particularly to raise money, I would sell the entire
properly on a credit if desired, preferrinj:, however, In re
ceive some t5,iHio or $10,000 in cash, the balance being
well secured, either by personal security or a lien uynn the
property.
I would prefer, however, selling half of my mining prop
erty, and retaining my servants, to a genileumn who wnnul
be willing to live upon Ihe property, or at leas!, divide the
labors and attention necessary to be bestowed in the
management of the business, and who would be able to
put an equal force with me in the mine, and upon the farm.
ily object in selling is not speculalion, nor would 1 associ
ate with a speculator merely. The mine and farm will pay
well as a perniauent investment. I have cleared within
the last four or five years, a large fresh plantation now in a
tine state of cultivation, and there are some SW) acres of
f'ood bottom land on the tract, and a large portion of the
and is in original forest and well adapted to the cultivation
of Tobacco, Wheat, Corn, Hay, Ac.
There are some 2o0 or Sou acres of rich mining land, that
I believe to be inexhaustible, at least for many generations,
which have never been worked, or only partially so, be
cause of the want of water. In a short time I expect to
have my Artesian weil completed, which will no dotib! give
me an abundant supply of water to every part of the mine.
Frcm 50 to 100 hands might be employed on the property
with advantage.
I would associate myself with no person whose circum
stances are at all embarrassed, nor would I entertain a
proposition for association witb any one, without satisfac
tory references as to habits, means, character, Ac. I wi.l
give any details that may be wished by persons desirous to
purchase.
I will sell half of the property at a much lower figure, in
the proportion, than I would sell all ; indeed, to a penile
man laoorious and practical in his habits, I am prepared to
give a bargain in half.
THOS. K. THOMAS.
Sept 29, 1857. 1204-3tw.
Land and Negro Sale in Caswell Co., N. C.
ON FRIDAY, tTH OF NOVEMBER, 1857, I SHALL
sell a valuable Tract of Land in Caswell Cnunty, at
the late residence of Robert Swift, dee'd. containing M
acres, more or less. This Land is desirable in every re
spect, and well waiered and timbered. The improvements
on the land are fery good. The Dwelling House is new
and not quite finished. . Out houses good. This land lies
about two and a half, miles South of Camp springs and
adjoins tbe lands of Moses Simpson, John Simpson and 'be
widow of Jos. Simpson, on the waters of Stony Creek. It
is fine Tobacco Land. Planters I now is the time for yon
to look to your interest. The land is in half a mile of 1
Gist rate Merchant Mill. .
On the same day, I shall sell ten or twelve valuaU
Negioes, and all the Horses, Cows, Sheep, Hogs ,1(l '
the other property belonging to the estate of the said
Robert Swift.
Terms liberal and made kuown on day of sale.
JAMES M. GARRETT.
Sept, 29, 1857. liut-lmw.
NOTICE.
Valuable Land Sale in Caswell County, N. C.
ON TUESDAY, SRD NOVEMBER, m:, WE SHALL
offer for sale the Land of Thomas Garrett, dec d, one
of the most valuable Tracts in the country, containing
some 6Wl acres, more or less. This Land is situated 00
tbe public road leading from High Rock to Yancej yille,
one mile from Camp Spring Meeiing House, 6 miles Imm
Neal's Store, and 13 miles from Yai.ceyville. It is one ot
the most desirable locutious in Caswell county, well water
ed,.aud about half heavily timbered, with the best uk wio
Poplar, and within halt a mile of a ft"d Saw Mill.
is also one of the best Orchards on the premises m "
County The said Land adjoins the Lauds of Hie mie
Thomas Williamson, dee'd, and the Land formerly iiea
bv Thomas Reid, Esq , on the uouniy one, . -
Simpson and John Henry Simpson. It is not often &
such valuable Tobacco Land as this can be bought in
Coumv. Planters look out for yourselves. Mr. J"
Henry Simpson will show the Land to parties wu-lwig w
On the same day, all the property that the said Thorn"
Garrett died iu possession of. will be sold- A .ot 01 -groes,
Horses. Cows. Sheep, Hogs, Corn, Wheat, and n.au.T
other articles tio tedious to mention. Terms liberal "
made known on day of sals.
Sept 29, 1857.
4 F. GARRETT.
T
LOUISBURG FEMALE COLLEGE
HE DIRECTORY 'OF THIS INSTITUTION" TAa
pleasure tu announcing to tbe public 1,at ' "! in
opened tor tbe reception of pupils on me isi wj j
August next, under the management .of Prof Jas. r. - e
assisted by a corps of competent Teachers. , 1
This Institution is handsomely located in a beautno'
spacious grove in the Northern part of tbe town.
Louisburg has beeu long aud favorably known
cel'.ent female schools; and in point of healthfulness .
cation, the intelligence, refinement and morality 01
sens, it is not surpassed by any village in the State.
v ' TUBUS:
Board per session of five months,
Washing, Fuel and Lights,
Tuition in Primary Department,
-." 4 T College
Ancient Languages,
French, Spanish ana Italian, each
Musie oa Piano and Guitar, ,
Use of Instrument, - -
Drawing, . .e:t.t.
Heads, Crayon and Pastille,
Oil Painting,
Wax, Fftrit sod Flowers, each ""
Needle Work and Hair Flowers,
For circulars containing all necessary iiBra"
dress any one of the following members of the Direcw ;
. -.' j DIRECTORS:
BEY. JAS: REID, President of tbe Board,
WILLIAM F. -GREEN, Secretary.
Das'lJS. Hiu, Esq- .: .-D- P- S. Fostbb,
dTwTrM; . . S-f liffiSEl
T. T. f,Liro!C, Esq., ' Maj J. H. Yabbboi
T. K .Taw Esq., D.W. C Sto,
Joa. J. Davis. Esq . Petto I. Bbow, tsu-
i By order of tbe Board; -
$55 M
10 00
10 I
1 00
5 00
ID 00
20 no
2 SO
. 5 00
10O0
20 00
500
8 00
5 00
so-
--v" , . jrvrt -r -
Wm. F. Garat, Secretary.
July 24, 1857.
JAS. REID, President,
1195 wt