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I*.?*	aokhti/iti:*!, UKPOKT.	[• 814, 845, 846
itself. But ab<»\e :«11. tlie .soil must he thoroughly drained (an operation which at Mr. Brown’s mill offered n<> dillieulty, l>y tin- aid of a levee) and protected :irmt overflow. and then followed for ii season, at least, alter thorough tillage.
Soils \ cry similar to thi, occur in tho marsh of the liayou Delisle, and Wolf lliver; also. pvolubly, on the Bayou Bernard, and on •Jourdan’s River, both of which tr ivei s,- the same strata of heavy gray clays from which, no doubt, these lea'V marsh soils arc derived.
- 1 have not as yet ascertained, how fir from the main stream this kind of soil extends. I >n the Mulatto Bayou, near t.'ol. ( laiborno’s and Maj. A. Jackson’s Sea Island Cotton plantations (* Mil), the soil of the marsh, in which the "cutting’’ ami the “ round-nish ” alternate, the soil* is extremely sandy, so as to resemble, in specimens taken near the landing, the soil of the “ pine meadows”. There, also, sally spots, overgrown with samphire, are common. Situated as ;!ii~ mardi is, on the verge of a \cry sandy hummock, this circumstance cannot !.'• sin prising : it r*J<omble-, in fact, the Pascagoula marsh.
"II. As lor the latter, the analysis shows it to contain average amounts of most of the ingredients of a good soil, but rather an excess of soda, and of \cL'etablo matte r, in an acid condition, and likewise, quite a small amount of lime. Here too, therefore, the application of lime is indicated. It is true that in Mr. Lewis’ experiment, the shell lime appeared to have no obvious effect; but this is probably attributable to the lack of proper drainage, inasmuch as tho little isiand of thrown-up soil was surrounded by the undrained marsh, the w aters of which, percolating through the loose soil, would be likely to render :’u lime ineffectual in a short time ; and the want of proper aeration of the
! and root- at the depth of a few inches, consequent upon impcrfect drainage «"ii] 1 lie likely to produce the effects noted. In all cases, tirainayf and fallow-;:r_r are the first conditions of the reclamation of a marsh soil and where drainage > impracticable, in consequence of the low position, or too great permeability of the soil, it is doubtful whether it can be applied to any better use, than the improvement of the higher lands.—After the pit ’jsiccd faults have been remedied, the	defects are easily righted.
> I ’i. There can Ik* no doubt, that tlie addition of clay to these .■sandy marsh soils would be a great improvement, and ought to be cflccted whenever practicable—as for instance, in the marsh near the new residence ol’Maj. Jaokson, where clay crops out on tlie Tieach. Hauling oTclay a? an improvement to land, is in general too expensive to be resorted to,but on the sca-coast land is so valuable. that ina.-iy modes of improvement can be madeto“ pay ”, which would be impracticable elsewhere. There is not in the marsh -oils analvzi'd. anv lai'U1* amount of phosphoric acid : so that the ;i»•!•licali<*!i i'!'.-nper -phosphate of lime, ground bone-', or Columbian ■.I'M.inn, v. ■ ■ n 111 probably pnne beneficial.
'*!»!. As to the best ,-nurce from which to obtain the lime !nv.*'sary in the reclamation of tlie marshes, it may be observed, ti:;ii i!ie shell banks of the coast may supply the demand for some-, time lo comp. I!u! when these are exhausted. it is to be hoped
I	in I the lini marl bed <■; iYnrl and Pascagoula Kivers, and not ’he limestone fjtinrrits o:’ Maine, will lie l’esortcd to. It were 'tiaiige indeed, if a tract of counlry situated al the mouth of two : ivers navbjabb' diuii.u' a large pan o! the year, and traversing
II	io richest marl beds nf the Slate, -honld fail to avail itself ol those natural advantages.
i’'ilcareous nnils. a- has been stated ai the Ccological Report, are found as
" 847, SIS., 84!) | fossil .shells xkau tiik sk.w oast.
low down as X. Marion, on Pearl Kiver. These, however, might not bear transportation to any great distance, being rather poor in lime as compared with the marls cropping out on Tearl ltiver below Jackson ; e. 7., at liyram Station, or Cook’s ferry. These marls, when burrtt, would lie far preferable to Northern lime, for the improvement of lands; for the analyses show that besides the lime, they contain notable amounts of other useful ingredients. Tlie .same is true of the marls of the Chickasawhay River, in N. Wayne county; and I have little doubt, that whenever these marls shall become properly known and appreciated, they will call into life a regular system of shipment during the proper season. What would be too expensive for any one to undertake, single-handed, at the present time, will assume a very different aspect when once the channel has licen opened and the path marked out. We may then hope that the lands of the Pascagoula and lower Pearl will no longer lie neglected; and that the extensive plains now covered with marsh rushes, will lie made to bear lucrative crops of Sea Island Cotton, or at least, Rice.
SIT. It has already been stated (iA the Geological I’qiort, (*T	),	that	deposits
of fossil shells have been found to exist on the liayou Bernard, and 011 Wolf River ; and have been struck in wells at West Pascagoula and on the llabolo-chitto, in Hancock county.—There can be little doubt therefore, that such depo: :ts underlie a notable portion of the sea-coast counties ; and if a more special Survey should show them to exist within convenient reach, they may prove highly valuable to the agriculturist of the coast. The calcareous clay in which these shells are found imbedded, would of itself be a great improvement to the sandy marsh soils and hommocks ; and in places where, as at Pass Christian, the gray clays are found at a moderate depth (8 to 10 feet) they might be made to serve for the improvement of the gardens, which at the present time will not produce a number of vegetables, for which there would be an excellent market on the spot. It is always advisable, however, before applying these clays to the soils, to allow them to “ cure ” or disintegrate in the air for sometime. They sometimes contain iron pyrites, copperas, etc., which are noxious to plants, but are destroyed by exposure to the atmosphere, especially if some burnt lime ba added to the pile. In composting manure, they might be made very serviceable, inasmuch as the manure does not require transportation to any great distance.
848. In traveling from West Pascagoula to Ocean Springs, we pass almost entirely, thTough wet Pine Meadows of the character heretofore described. Occasionally, where a stouter growth of pine occurs, coal-burning is carried on, 011 a considerable scale. Approaching Ocean Springs, the soil changes; instead of the usual yellow sand, the subsoil consists of a pale yellow loam which also forms the bank at the beach. The growth likewise, differs from that of the “ sand hommocks ” ; oaks are very scarce, and the ‘ pitch pine " prevails almost exclusively, near to the beach.
Bellcfontaine Island, which forms the promontoiy lietween Biloxi an 1 Pascagoula Bays, possesses considerable tracts of very fertile hommocks, and several plantations are situated on it. I have not, however, visited the region as yet. Fine “shell hommocks” are also found at the upper portion (“Back Hay "j <■:’ Biloxi Bay ; with these, also, I am not as yet personally acquainted, bavin.: passed from Ocean Sprinss to MississippiCity (Teguden’s) by water.
SI'.*. Between Biloxi Bay and Bay St. Louis, the pine meadow lands do not. as a general thiirj, approach so closely to the lieach as is the case further J. lietween the two, there intervenes a tract of level pine woods, the soil of which is very sandy, and the undergrowth intermediate in character between that o! the “ Meadow” and the “ Pine Hills’’. The soil of the sea-shore hommocks also is extremely sandy ; close to the beach, the “ pitch pine ’’ invariably prevails.