Her broad riband was entire and was worn afterwards by the dig. ger's daughter! Her nails were grown too. This relation is well established and fully agrees with some other facts of the enduring quality of silk-for instance, on disinterring the leaden coffins of Lord and Lady Bellemont at New York in 1787, the lead was found corroded, but the silk velvet on the lid was entire. At Boston, in 1824, they disinterred a British officer; the body and clothes were perished, but the silk military sash was sound in material and colour. Thomas Dixey, a pump-maker and well-digger, a man of seventy years of age, intelligent and respectable, a chief undertaker, in his way, for forty years in the city, having been requested to tell me all he had ever met with as curious under ground, told me, that he has often, in several places, at considerable depths, come across acorns, oyster shells, &c. He told me that in the neighbourhood of Carter's alley and Go-forth alley he dug twenty feet, and came to oyster shells and acorns. He found a great and excellent spring at twenty-eight feet depth, at the corner of Go-forth alley and Dock creek. When the house No. 72, south Fourth street, a little above Walnut street, west side, was built, they dug nine feet for their cellar, and there came to an old post and rail fence. Mr. Dixey in digging for a well on the north side of South street, near Third street, on the premises of Mr. Reed, silk dyer, he came, at the depth of 25 feet, across a pine limb of 3 inches thickness, having its bark on it. It had petrified, and he actually ground it into a good hone, and gave it to the said Mr. Reed. At No. 13, Dock street, the house of Thomas Shields, was found, in digging his cellar, a regular fire hearth, one and a half feet below the present springtide mark. Christian Witmeek, an old digger of wells in the Northern Liberties, mentioned some discoveries about Peggs run. In Lowber's tanyard at 13 feet depth cut across a small fallen tree-dug 38 feet; at 34 feet they came to wood; full as much as 24 feet was of black mud. In digging a well near there for Thomas Steel, No. 81, St. John street, he came, at 21 feet depth, to real turf of 10 feet thickness; at 26 feet depth they came to a crotch of a pine tree. The clay in the vicinity of the new prison in Arch street, by Centre Square, is the deepest in the city, being 28 feet deep. In digging 28 feet on Singer's lot near there, Mr. Groves came to gravel and dug up a limb of an oak tree of 5 inches thickness, and longer than the well across which it lay. Some oak leaves, and the impressions of several were marked on the clay. Mr. Grove found an Indian tomahawk at 5 feet depth in M'Crea's lot, in Chesnut street, vis a vis Dorsey's Gothic mansion. In digging a well for Thatcher, in Front near to Noble street. they came, at the depth of 28 feet, to an oak log of 18 inches thickness, quite across the pit. The whole was alluvial deposit in that neighbourhood. Turf was dug out and burnt,-in digging for the drain wells of 28 feet depth under the present Sansom's row in Second street, north of Pegg's run. In Race street, between Front and Second streets, in digging the foundation of the engine house now there, they dug up an Indian grave and found the bones. At the corner of Eighth and Cherry streets, in digging a well at the depth of 40 feet, (says Joseph Sansom) they found a fallen log. Other facts of sub-terrene discoveries will be found in other arts of this work connected with certain localities spoken of Ceverally. In 1707-8, there was much expectation, through the suggestions of Governor Evans, of a great discovery of valuable minerals in Pennsylvania. William Penn on hearing of it begged an explanaion, and hoped it might relieve him from his embarrassments! It proved, however, to be a deceit of one Mitchel, who had been a iner in England. He pretended he was led to the discovery by Shawnese king. Some of the "black sand," &c. was sent to Penn to assay it. In 1722, Mine land is spoken of as having been taken up for ir William Keith, at a place beyond Susquehanna. In 1728. James Logan writes of there being then four furnaces the colony, in blast. About the year 1790, John Nancarro, a Scotchman, had a furace under ground for converting iron into steel. It stood at the orth west corner of Ninth and Walnut streets. There a curious Act occurred which but for this record might puzzle the cognoscenti nd antiquaries, at some future day, such as whether the aboriines had not understood the art of fusing iron, &c. The fact was is: The great mass of five tons of iron bars which were in the rnace, was suddenly converted into a great rock of steel, by reaon of a fissure in the furnace which let in the air, and consumed e charcoal, whereby the whole run into steel, equal to 4 to 5 tons. ome houses of very shallow cellars have been since erected over e place, and all are quite unconscious of the treasure which rests eneath them. It was an open lot when so used by Nancarro. There is a curious and unaccountable vault far under ground, the back premises of Messrs. John and C. J. Wister,-say, No. 39, High street, north side, and between Third and Fourth streets. t 14 feet depth is a regular arched work of stone, of 16 feet long, d without any visible outlet. In breaking into its top to know s contents, they found nothing therein, save a log laying along e whole length. They sealed it up again, and the privy wall now sts upon it. There is no conjecture formed concerning what it ay have been constructed for, nor at what time it may have been ade. Dr. Franklin once lived in the adjoining house, No. 141; oth houses belonged to Wister) whether the vault could have had y connection with his philosophy, may be a question. In 1738, it is announced in the Gazette, that they have the pleasure to acquaint the world, that the famous Chinese plant Gin Seng, is now discovered in the province, near Susquehanna. It appears from the specimens sent home that it agrees with Du Haldes' account, and with Chambers' Dictionary exactly. STATISTIC FACTS. AN attention to the following facts may serve to show the progress of society, by marking its increase in population, houses, exports, &c. at successive periods, to wit: 1683.-William Penn's letter of that year, says, "I mentioned in my last account, that from my arrival in 1682 to the date hereof, being ten months, we have got up fourscore houses at our town, and that some villages were settled about it. From that time to my coming away, which was a year within a few weeks, the town advanced to 357 houses, divers of them large, well built, with good cellars, three stories, and some balconies." Thus setting the fact that they built 357 houses in the first year! 1685.-Robert Turner, in his letter to William Penn of this year, says, "The town goes on in planting and building to admiration, both in the front and backward, and there are about 600 houses in #hree years time." 1707.-Isaac Norris, in a letter to William Penn, says, "The province consumes annually of produce and merchandize of Engand, 14 to 15,000£. sterling. The direct returns were in tobacco, furs and skins; the indirect in provisions and produce, via he West Indies, and southern colonies. In 1706, about 800 hhds. obacco went from Philadelphia, and about 25 to 30 tons of skins nd furs." 1720. The taxables are stated by Proud at 1195 persons, in ity and county. 1723.-The imports from England was 15,992£. sterling. 1728-9.-There were frozen up in the docks this winter, about he city, 14 ships, 3 snows, 8 brigantines, 9 sloops, 2 schooners esides shallops, &c. The whole number of churches then were ut six. 1730. The imports from England was 48,595£. sterling. 1727 to '39.-From an account of the highest and lowest number f votes given at the elections, and known by the return of memers of Assembly, we ascertain the votes for the county of Phila elphia to haye been as follows, to wit: Election-1727-highest number, 787,-lowest number, 482 1728, do. 971, 622, do. do. 487 365 Election-1732,-highest number, 904,-lowest number, 559 1737. The imports from England was, this year 58,690£. sterling. Vide Proud. 1740. The taxables are stated by Proud at 4850 persons, in city and county. 1741. We are indebted to a friend for the subsequent statement of the number of taxable inhabitants of the city and county of Philadelphia, for this year. They have been copied from the books of his venerable ancestor, who was Assessor, &c. for several years. Statement of the number of Taxable Inhabitants of the City and County of Philadelphia, in the year 1741. [The city was then divided into ten wards, and the county then extended to the southern limits of Berks county, and embraced the whole of the county of Montgomery.] Number of Taxables in the City in 1741. Number of Taxable Inhabitants in the County in 1741. [The County then contained 47 Townships.] Bristol, 64 Franconia, 59 |