Onondago, a little above Ofwego, of a quarter of a mile ; from Wood creek to the Mohawks river two miles; at the little falls of the Mohawks river half a mile, and from Schenedady to Albany i6 miles. Befides the increafe of expence occafioned by frequent change of carriage, there is an increafed rifk of pillage pro- duced by committing merchandize to a greater number of hands fucceffively. The Patowmac offers itfelf under the fol- lowing circumftances. For the trade of the lakes and their waters weftward of Lake Erie, when it fliall have entered that lake, it muft coaft along its fouthern ftiore, on account of the number and ex- cellence of its harbours; the northren, though fhorteft, having few harbours, and thefe unfafe. Having reached Cayahoga;
to proceed on to New-York it will have 825 miles and five portages; whereas it is but 425 miles to Alexandria, its empo- rium on the Patowmac, if it turns into the Cayahoga, and paffes through that.
Big-beaver, Ohio, Yohoganey, (or Mo- nongahela and Cheat) and Patowmac, and there are but two portages; the firft of which between Cayahoga and Beaver may be removed by uniting the fources of thefe waters, which are lakes in the neigh- bourhood of each other, and in a cham- paign country; the other from the waters of Ohio to Patowmac will be from 15 to 40 miles, according to the trouble which ihall be taken to approach the two navigations. For the trade of the Ohio, or that which Ihall come into it from its own waters or the Miflifipi, it is nearer through the Patowmac to Alexandria than to New-York by 580 miles, and it is in- terrupted by one portage only. There is another circumftance of difference too. The lakes themfelves never freeze, but the communications between them freeze, and the Hudfon's river is itfelf Ihut-up by the ice three months in the year; where- as the channel to the Chefapeak leads di- reftly into a warmer climate. The fouth- crn parts of it very rarely freeze at all.
and whenever the northren do, it is fo near the fources of the rivers, that the frequent iflioods to which they are there liable, break up the ice