Page:The plains of Long Island.djvu/4

 the island for nearly half a century; to Mr. Harold, the intelligent secretary of the Queens County Society, and to Mr. Bridger, of North Islip, who combines with careful observation much practical experience in the cultivation of the plains. I should violate my sense of justice, were I not to refer especially to the services and efforts of Doct. Edgar F. Peck, of Brooklyn. From this gentleman, who for fifteen years has strenuously combatted the deepest prejudices and the most unyielding opposition, in his labors for the development of these lands, I have received the most important aid and information. I do not hesitate, in this connection, to adopt the words of an eminent gentlemen, who remarked to me: "If these plain lands are reclaimed and brought into successful culture, the result must be attributed to the zeal and intelligence of Dr. Peck, more than to any other cause." The convictions of Dr. Peck, as to the qualities of these lands, were derived from personal investigation, commenced in 1841, and subsequent results have fully confirmed the views then formed.

Long Island combines, perhaps, more peculiar and decided advantages for residence, than any other district of our widely-extended territory. The Gulf stream, approaching near to its coast, imparts to the climate a delightful temperature, that exempts it from the rigors incident to a northern latitude; surrounded by the ocean, it rarely suffers from intense heat or droughts; it is almost under the shadow of the towers of New York, and enjoys every facility of access to its market. Under such circumstances, the Island should exhibit the aspect of one prolonged cultivated farm, and orchard, and garden, smiling throughout its whole area, in that exuberance of beauty and culture, which so eminently mark some sections of its territory. These great and marked advantages early attracted the attention of the emigrant, and hence, for more than two centuries, Long Island has been regarded, not only by the partiality of its own people, but by the public verdict and the voice of the traveler and historian, as "The garden of America." This reputation, however, attaches to the island from the aspect of a narrow margin along the north and south shore, and small districts upon the eastern and western extremities. A very large proportion of the interior has been abandoned to neglect, and is at this day in a more desolate state, than it presented in its primitive condition, for the stately native forest has given place to the scrubby oak and to coarse and worthless vegetation.

I can the most readily explain and illustrate my views, by presenting a rapid sketch of the physical arrangement of the island, its natural capacities, and its existing condition. The formation of Long Island, in its physical and geological arrangements, is remarkable, and without any parallel. It is about, one hundred miles in length, from east to west, with a general width ranging from eight to twelve miles. It is divided into nearly equal sections, by an elevated range of land, which traverses it longitudinally. This ridge subsides into the plain at the east, and in the vicinity of Brooklyn is broken into abrupt heights. Long Island presents no analogy to any adjacent territory, but in its natural arrangement is