12 MARYLAND.

miles further up--five miles above the Shenan-
doah, is Hoars Falls. Canals have been cons-
tructed round all these falls, to facilitate naviga-
tion. The distance from Washington to the
mouth of the Potomac is 300 miles, which is na-
vigable for large vessels. The soundings are 7
fathoms at the mouth; 5 ac St. George's Island,
diminish to three fathoms at Alexandria, and to
ten feet from thence to the little falls. This ri-
ver is 1 1/4 miles wide at Alexandria, and 71
miles wide where it enters the Chesapeake bay.

The Patuxant, the Patapsco, the Monocacy;
and many other rivers of considerable extent,
rising in the elevated grounds of the Western
Shore, and the numerous creeks leading into
them, afford by their fall, an immense aggre-
gate of water power, which is employed in pro-
pelling machinery for the most useful manufac-
tures, which more than compensates their
neighborhood for the want of the convenience
of that navigation which is so singularly enjoyed
by those resident on the Eastern Shore and
the Western borders of the Chesapeake.

The Patapsco heads near the northern
boundary of the state, and runs south and south-
east to ElkRidge Landing, eight miles from
Baltimore, where it tails down a moderate preci-
pice, and turning eastwardly, spreads by degrees
into a broad stream, like a bay. It is navi-
gable as far as Elk Ridge landing, a few miles
below which, it receives a stream, called
Gwinn's Falls, At Whetstone Point, on which