Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VI.djvu/747

 ESSEX 735 eats. Tahawus or Mt. Marcy, 5,337 ft. high, is the principal summit, and the highest in the state. The county is drained hy the head waters of Hudson river, and by Bouquet and Schroon rivers, which afford valuable water power, and has numerous small but pictu- resque lakes. The soil is well watered, and there are immense beds of magnetic iron ore. The chief productions in 1870 were 49,850 bushels of wheat, 100,662 of Indian corn, 317,- 790 of oats, 49,184 of buckwheat, 406,122 of potatoes, 60,211 tons of hay, 993,974 Ibs. of butter, 260,800 of wool, and 64,654 of maple sugar. There were 5,664 horses, 8,026 milch cows, 9,012 other cattle, 62,664 sheep, and 2,958 swine ; 12 manufactories of carriages and wagons, 6 of charcoal, 3 of furniture, 20 of iron in various forms, 1 of nails and spikes, 1 of marble and stone work, 2 of sashes, doors, and blinds, 3 of starch, 2 of woollen goods, 7 tan- neries, 17 saw mills, and 8 flour mills. Capi- tal, Elizabethtown. IV. A 1ST. E. county of j Jfew Jersey, bounded E. by Passaic river and Newark bay, and W. by Passaic river ; area, 1 200 sq. m.; pop. in 1870, 143,839. The sur- I face is generally level, but there are two ele- vated ridges in the W. part, known as First and Second mountains. Much of the soil is (highly fertile. It is traversed by the New [Jersey, the Newark, and Bloomfield, and the Morris and Essex railroads, and the Morris i canal. The chief productions in 1870 were 17,579 bushels of wheat, 6,249 of rye, 66,192 jof Indian corn, 22,107 of oats, 73,060 of po- tatoes, 11,328 tons of hay, and 125,232 Ibs. of i butter. There were 1,426 horses, 2,858 milch cows, 1,248 other cattle, and 1,164 swine. I There is a large number of manufacturing es- tablishments, chiefly in Newark, the capital. V. An E. county of Virginia, bounded N. E. by Rappahannock river ; area, about 300 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 9,927, of whom 6,650 were col- ored. It has an uneven surface in the W. part ; I the soil is generally sandy, of little natural marl, guano, and lime. The chief productions n 1870 were 47,577 bushels of wheat, 264,605 of Indian corn, and 14,757 of oats. There were 624 horses, 3,250 other cattle, and 3,055 swine. Capital, Tappahannock. ESSEX, a S. W. county of Ontario, Canada, comprising a peninsula between Lake Erie and Lake St. Clair; area, 700 sq. m. ; pop. in 1871, 32,697. It is separated from Michigan by the Detroit river, and is traversed by the Great Western railway. Capital, Sandwich. ESSEX, a county on the E. coast of England, bounded S. by the river Thames, and border- ing on Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Middlesex, and Kent ; greatest length from S. W. to N. E., 60 m. ; greatest breadth, 45 m. ; area, 1,657 sq. m. ; pop. in 1871, 466,427. Ex- cept in the N. W., where there is a continual succession of hill and dale, the surface is nearly level, and in the S. and E. is partly occupied by large marshes. The soil is fertile, and the 303 VOL. vi. 47 farms are accounted among the best in the king- dom. Wheat is the staple production. The county .is famous for its veal. Valuable fisher- ies and oyster beds furnish employment to the inhabitants of the coast and adjacent islands. Silk is manufactured, and straw plait is made for London use. The principal channels of communication are the Eastern Counties rail- way and its various connections, and the rivers Thames, Lea, Stort, Chelmer, Stour, and Colne. Chelmsford, the county town, Colchester, Har- wich, and Maldon are the chief towns. ESSEX, Earls of. I. See CROMWELL, THOMAS. II. Walter Deverenx, first earl of Essex of his name, born in Carmarthenshire, Wales, about 1540, died in Dublin, Sept. 22, 1576. He suc- ceeded his grandfather early in the title of Vis- count Hereford, and recommended himself to Queen Elizabeth by his bravery in suppressing the rebellion of the earls of Northumberland and Westmoreland in 1569. For this service he received the garter and the earldom of Essex. In 1573 he undertook an expedition, in company with other noblemen and gentle- men, for subduing and colonizing a portion of Ulster in Ireland ; but in its prosecution he was subjected to many trials and disappoint- ments. He was obliged to make peace with O'Neal, when, by continuing the war, he had the fairest prospects of driving him out of the country. He was also required to give up his command just as he had almost expelled the invading Scots from the western islands of his territory. Harassed with his difficulties, he retired to England, but was again induced to return, with the title of earl marshal of Ire- land and the promise of support and assistance. As these promises were but poorly kept, he was overcome with grief, and the agitation of his mind threw him into a fatal dysentery. There was suspicion of poison, which was not diminished by the marriage, soon after, of his countess to the earl of Leicester. III. Robert Deyerem, son of the preceding, second earl, born at Nether wood, Herefordshire, Nov. 10, 1567, executed Feb. 25, 1601. He succeeded to his title in his 10th year, and in 1577 was sent by his guardian Lord Burleigh to Trinity college, Cambridge, where he took the degree of master of arts. He appeared at court in his 17th year, and soon captivated Elizabeth. In 1585 he accompanied the earl of Leicester to Holland, and displayed his personal courage in the battle of Zutphen. In 1587 he was ap- pointed master of the horse, and in the follow- ing year the queen created him captain general of the cavalry, and conferred on him the honor of the garter. He succeeded Leicester as prime favorite, and his attendance was constantly re- quired at court. In 1589, when an expedition against Portugal was undertaken by Drake and Norris, Essex secretly followed the arma- ment, and joined it on the coast of Portugal. Though he had departed without the permission of the queen, he was quickly reconciled with her after his return, and at once assumed a
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