The mineral springs of Virginia : with remarks on their use, the diseases to which they are applicable, and in which they are contra-indicated ... A new work

Front matter

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Preface

It will be recollected by some of my readers, that several years ago (1842) a little work written by me, on " The Mineral Springs vf Western Virginia" issued from the press of Wiley and Putnam, New York. A second edition appeared in 1846. This having become exhausted, 1 determined to re-write it and bring it out as a new work. In course of the former publications, I became involved in controversies and personalities, a3 foreign from my taste and disposition as they were uninteresting to the public. These and other irrelevant matters I have discarded from the present work ; and although I have, perhaps, in the latter, indulged more in fanciful description, I trust the professional portion of the work has not been sacrificed.

A strictly professional work on such a subject as Mineral Waters would find few readers. I regret it has been out of my power to visit the Eastern group of Springs, as I intended when I commenced this work ; but I shall do so in the course of the present year, and shall, in a future edition, embody the results of my observations. The analyses are generally more meagre than I would wish, but this portion of the work will also, I trust, be greatly extended, when I again appear before the public. I am conscious that the little volume now presented is very imperfect, but still hope it may not be found altogether unprofitable to the reader, whatever may be the estimate placed upon its author.

WM. BURKE.

Richnondj Fa., April 14th, 1851.

Contents

Page.

Introductory Remarks, - - - 1

Mountain Scenery, - - - 5

Chapter I. Introductory Remarks

Man, made in the image and after the likeness of God, is nevertheless subject to more ailments, liable to more dangers and obnoxious to more enmities than all the inferior animals. But of all his enemies, he himself is the greatest and most formidable. He, to whom is given " dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowls of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth," is the veriest slave to the grossest vices, the most perverse passions, and the most debasing appetites. As these are almost infinite, so also the diseases consequent on them are multitudinous, complicated, and difficult to be understood. Did the consequences, in every instance, fall upon the culprit himself, sympathy were less merited ; but, alas ! he frequently imposes on his unhappy descendant — but too often his only inheritance — the heavy burden of his follies and his crimes, and thus, indeed, are the sins of the father visited upon the children to the third and fourth generation.

It is, however, no part of my duty, at present, to moralize on the vices or virtues of mankind. I take 1 them up as afflicted with numerous chronic diseases, and to the treatment of these, by the agency of Mineral Waters, I mean, in the following pages, to confine my attention.

The treatment of Acute diseases is the exclusive province of the physician. To his hands alone, where it is practicable, should be committed the important office, in the discharge of which the life of a human being is involved. The science of medicine has, fortunately, made such strides in improvement within the present century, that the physician has now under perfect control diseases, which, in former times, were always formidable, and generally fatal. Yet, perhaps, the average of human life is not increased, since the advancement of civilization and refinement seems to have introduced a large class of diseases unknown to our forefathers. It is when disease degenerates into a chronic form, that the skill of the physician is at fault and frequently powerless, and it is just here that nature, the most beneficent physician, presents from her generous bosom those pure streamlets that restore health and vigor, and elasticity to the afflicted invalid. It is in this condition that Mineral Springs are sought after, and in which it becomes desirable to the invalid to know whither he must direct his course to effect the object he has in view.

The Springs of Western Virginia form a group unrivalled in this, and perhaps in any other country,

INTRODUCTION. 3

as I think will be seen on perusal of the following chapters. Great and acknowledged, however, as is their power over disease, they would be shorn of much of their virtue, had nature placed them in less favorable situations. Had they all been congregated in a large city, it is doubtful whether they would maintain their present reputation. There is much truth in the following remarks of Sir Walter Scott : — " The invalid often finds relief from his complaints, less from the healing virtues of the Spa itself, than because his system of ordinary life undergoes an entire change ; in his being removed from his leger and account books — from his legal folios and progresses of title deeds — from his counters and shelves — from whatever else forms the main course of his constant anxiety at home, destroys his appetite, mars the custom of his exercise, deranges the digestive powers and clogs the springs of life." Who would look for a riddance from his ailments in the murky atmosphere and crowded streets of a city ? It is the sweet country alone that can invigorate the enervated constitution, raise the drooping spirits, calm the agitated mind, inspire the finer emotions of the heart, and impart elasticity and strength to the moral and physical powers. The citizen, like a boy let loose from school, rambles over the fields, ascends the hills, culls wild flowers, and is filled with admiration, pleasure and cheerfulness.

The manner of travelling, too, has much to do with the success of his efforts to recover health. Steamboats and railroads have, indeed, greatly expedited locomotion, but they are of little value to the invalid, except as means of rapid conveyance to a more salubrious climate. Suppose a dyspeptic to start from Boston for Winchester in Virginia, what possible advantage can he derive from those several hundred miles of travel ? He gains nothing from change of air, for he is all the time inhaling the unwholesome atmosphere of a crowded vehicle. The velocity of motion precludes his enjoying the successions of scenery, and he reaches the end of his journey, moody and discontented. But now, arrived in the garden spot of Virginia, and desirous to extend his journey to the Springs, let us transfer him, with five other congenial spirits, into an extra stage-coach. He rolls along the beautiful valley of the Shenandoah, on a fine macadamized road ; the pure air of early morning sharpens his appetite, and the novelty of the scenery, the raillery, fun and anecdote of the passengers, the landing at the tavern, the abusing of coffee and biscuits and longlegged chickens — these, and a thousand other charms of a stage-coach, make him forget his acid stomach, and are worth all the pills of the apothecary and the nostrums of empiricism. Now he winds up the ascent of the Warm Spring Mountain, amidst thousands of clusters of the splendid rhododendron, the gay blossoms of the laurestinus and

MOUNTAIN SCENERY. 5

ever-varying azalia; now he reaches the summit and sees the world beneath him — mountains and valleys and pastures, houses and men and cattle — all in miniature ; he is delighted and wrapt in meditation, and he inwardly adores the majesty of that Being who is enthroned in the heavens, and who looketh down on the high places of the earth. The inward man is now changed ; the feverish melancholy invalid, weaned from his own gloomy reflections and anticipations of evil, is once more converted into a social being, sympathizing in the feelings and pleasures of others and charmed out of fancied or real sufferings.

If there is a scene on this earth calculated to strike the mind with reverential awe, and to raise the soul from grovelling thoughts of self to the contemplation of the God of Nature, it is to stand on the highest top of the highest mountain, and to look down on pigmy man and his ant-hill habitations, and then to reflect on his vanities and his follies, and the end of all — his little resting-place. Never shall I forget the emotions produced by a visit to the summit of the Salt Pond mountain, in Giles county, some years ago, with a few friends. Our horizon was extended to upwards of a hundred miles in diameter, limited only by the azure arch of heaven, and presenting to the eye the most sublime spectacle which the human mind can conceive.

b MINERAL SPRINGS OF VIRGINIA.

" It was a hill

Of Paradise the highest, from whose top

The hemisphere of earth, in clearest view,

Stretched out to the amplest reach of prospect, lay.

Not higher that hill, nor wider looking round,

Whereon, for different cause, the tempter set

Our second Adam, in the wilderness,

To shew him all earth's kingdoms and their glory."

Similar is the view from the Blue Ridge at Rockfish Gap, with the additional advantage of overlooking a more cultivated and diversified country. In the morning (as from the celebrated Rock on the Warm Spring Mountain) you may see the glorious god of day emerging from his curtains of purple and gold, and shaking from his locks the dewy drops of ocean, and with a benign radiance illuming the welcoming features of his fruitful sister. Here, again, at mellow evening, you may see him descending in majestic dignity beneath the great Appalachian mountains, gilding in his descent the green forest and fleecy clouds, creating a thousand fanciful resemblances. But the view from the point designated is limited in comparison with those that may be obtained by ascending the conical peaks rising several hundred feet higher. That on the southwest was the one I ascended. At the highest cleared point was a cluster of disjointed sand-rocks, in the centre of which rose a sturdy oak, which seemed to bid defiance to the tempests ; yet the

MOUNTAIN SCENERY. 7

tempests came and shattered one of its arms, while the humble and shrinking shrubbery around it remained undamaged. So it is in human life : those who expose themselves to its tempestuous hurricanes, must indeed be clad in panoply, if they escape unscathed : while the gentle and retiring are sheltered from its frowns and its malice. The former may be greater benefactors of society, the latter are more happy within themselves.

Carefully observing there was no rattlesnake in juxtaposition, I seated myself upon the highest crag, and then viewed two-thirds of the horizon. Suffice it, now, to say, that if any xme shall think proper to follow in my footsteps, he will be amply repaid by the scene I witnessed. But let him go clone, and in the solitude of nature, after having surveyed all the magnificence of earth beneath his feet, let him direct his vision to the pure canopy of heaven and feel that no eye can look down upon him but that of his God.

Most men admire the setting sun., I like him when his course is run. From the god's parting orbit fly, Those rays that tinge the western sky, And sailing clouds in ether mould, To forms oft varied., grand and bold. Behold that frowning, threat'ning height, Crowned with soft hues of purple light, And see, beneath, the dread Bastile, Or Inquisition of Castile, With massive walls, and ponderous gates, And windows fenced with iron grates.

MINERAL SPRINGS OF VIRGINIA.

And ramparts guarded by a moat,

As at Ulloa or Perote.

See! mountains over mountains rise,

And pierce, in various hues, the skies.

The giants thus, as fables told,

With guilty pride, and daring bold,

To drive from heaven the mighty Jove.

Lo ! next a river gently glides,

And flows in blue and peaceful tides,

Then through great rapids foams its way,

And seems to fill the sky with spray.

There, Alpine hills with snow-drifts cold,

And on them lakes of molten gold.

Here some vast pile or ruined tower,

Such as display T d Baronial power

In feudal days; whose now decay

A thousand gorgeous clouds arise,

And clothe in varied robes the skies,

'Till eve advancing seeks to shroud

Her beauty in a fleecy cloud.

That should not, yet, her charms conceal,

But shew them tempered thro' a veil.

Just then in all her glory shone,

The queen of heaven — the full-orbed moon.

Her beams descend in silvery light,

Upon the forests still and bright,

Smooth as a blooming maiden's face,

On which no eye can wrinkle trace,

And like a good man's conscience clear,

That does not flood or tempest fear.

A cone, of purest, virgin white,

Reaching the zenith in its height,

About midway, an opening gave,

Like the vast entrance of a cave.

Adorned as for occasion great,

Was placed within a bed of state,

CLIMATE. 9

The curtains drawn the form displayed

Of a sweet blooming, blushing maid.

There, as she lay upon the bed,

Her arms thrown o'er her beauteous head;

Ariadne's form it seemed to be,

Or Venus rising from the sea.

I gazed, till dazzled at the sight;

The vision faded into night I

Within the range of the Virginia Springs, the climate is much more uniform than that of the Atlantic region, in the same latitudes. The severe northeasterly winds, which extend over the tide-water districts, are arrested in their westward career by the Blue Ridge mountains ; or, if they partially affect the Valley of Virginia, the Alleghanies oppose an insuperable barrier. The air, though keen, is always pure, bracing and exhilarating ; nor is there ever that alternation of a close, suffocating atmosphere, with intense cold, which is so well known on the Atlantic borders. Extremes of cold or heat are seldom felt, and may be considered exceptions to the p-eneral character of the climate.

o

During a residence of eight years west of the Alleghanies, I never saw the thermometer lower than 6° below zero, and used to consider 6° above as very cold weather. The greatest degree of heat I observed was 97°, but it seldom exceeded 86°, and but for a few hours about mid-day. The usual summer temperature is from 57 to 78°. The nights and mornings are almost always agreeably cool. It will be readily seen, that where there is often a difference of 20 to 30° in temperature of the morning and afternoon, it becomes necessary to adapt the clothing to the different conditions of the atmosphere ; it would therefore be imprudent to go abroad in the early morning thinly clothed. The fogs, always indices of fair weather, though perfectly free from miasma, are nevertheless humid, and render woollen clothing comfortable. With this precaution, there is nothing to prevent early rising and exercise.

The rainy season in the Virginia mountains sets in about the 15th of March, and sometimes extends into the month of June. The season for using the waters may be said to commence on the 1st of June, and terminate on the 1st of October. As all through the United States, the difference between the summers, both as regards moisture and temperature, is sometimes very marked, but in a series of years, the average climate is most agreeable, and the air buoyant and invigorating.

Between the 20th and 27th of August, it almost invariably happens that there are two or three days of rainy, blustering, cool weather, after which it clears away and becomes exceedingly pleasant, until the 10th to the 15th of September, when it is not uncommon to see a heavy rain succeeded by two or three cold nights and white frosts. The visitors, alarmed by this little equinoctial demon-

CLIMATE. 11

stration, disperse like migrating birds, and leave those beautiful valleys, lately the abodes of gaiety, solitary and silent as a deserted village. They have scarcely crossed the Blue Ridge, however, ere they find their apprehensions of a permanent change in the weather were premature, and now earnestly wish themselves back again among the friends from whom they separated, and the scenes from which they had just departed.

In truth, the most delightful period in the mountains, is that between the 20th of September and the 1st of November. It is the sweet season of Indian Summer, when the woods are clothed in their most gorgeous livery — when Nature seems to enjoy a calm repose, as if to prepare herself for the buffeting storms of approaching winter.

u Attempered suns arise Sweet beam'd, and shedding oft through lucid clouds A pleasing calm ; while broad, and brown below, Extensive harvests hang the heavy head. Rich, silent, deep, they stand ; for not a gale Rolls its light billows o'er the bending plain; A calm of plenty! "

CHAPTER IT-

NATURAL CURIOSITIES*

As I have been mentioning some of the advantages and inducements presented by Virginia, to invalids and others in pursuit of health or pleasure, it may not be amiss to glance at some of the natural curiosities to be met with in its mountain region.

Among the foremost of these is the passage of James river through the Blue Ridge mountain. I can fancy what Harper's Ferry was in the days of Jefferson ; but it is now most sadly marred by the bridges thrown across both rivers, the smoky furnaces, and the improvements of civilization. Wildness, height, evidence of a great convulsion of nature at some distant period, are also characteristics of the scene at James river. Magnificent as the Eastern mountain appenrs from the road opposite, it must be inconceivably more so from the bed of the river. It is through this gorge that the James river canal is to pass, and no doubt many will be attracted to it by this scene alone. A few miles west is the Natural Bridge. " This bridge is in the county of Rockbridge, to which it

NATURAL BRIDGE. 13

has given name, and affords a public and commodious passage over a valley, which cannot be crossed elsewhere, for a considerable distance. The stream passing under it is called Cedar creek. It is a water of James river, and sufficient in the diyest season to turn a grist-mill, though its fountain is not more than two miles above."*

The author visited this celebrated spot 27 years ago. At that time it was pretty much in the state described by Mr. Jefferson, the scene itself being rendered more enchanting by the stillness and wildness of surrounding Nature ; but the approach of cultivation and the squatting down of a tavern at one end, have divested it in my view, of some portion of its former interest. Loneliness is an important element in my estimate of the sublime, and I must confess, that the usual supply of white-haired little urchins, and woolly-headed darkies, the squealing of pigs, the shrieking of guinea-hens, and even the odor of ftying bacon and eggs, (the latter pleasant enough in its place,) destroyed much of my pleasure on a more recent occasion.

The recollections of my first visit have suggested the following lines, in which I have endeavored to express the only opinion I have ever entertained of the manner of its formation.

* Jefferson's Notes on Virginia.

14 MINERAL SPRINGS OP VIRGINIA.

THE NATURAL BRIDGE, VA.*

God said ; " Within these hills let there be light !" The heavens descend m floods, and shew his might. The rushing waters pierced the fissured rock ; It trembled, cracked and yielded to the shock. In masses huge it plunged into the wave, And in the billows found a boisterous grave. Successive surges lash the rigid sides, They fall and sink, beneath the rearing tides, Crash follows crash; the cavern fills below, The raging torrents swell and backwards flow, Until, at length, their pressing power and weight The mighty barrier bring to instant fate. One gurgling groan— the wildest and the last — The liquid mountain bears it far and fast The graceful arch, on its colossal piers, Thus stands unscathed by the lapse of years. All future ages on its dome will ga&e, Race after race its grandeur will amaze. Here Indian monarchs roamed in olden time, Viewed the vast span, and felt the true sublime. Mayhap, too, here his altar one had made, And in sad accents the Great Spirit prayed, To keep the Saxons from his father's grave, And from their deadly grasp his people save, Twas scenes like this that Jefferson had fired, And his great soul with liberty inspired, Methinks I see him on its convex stand, The chart of freedom waving in his hand, While o'er his head his country's eagle soars, And underneath the foaming torrent roars. Fit were the place to think of mighty deeds, Fruitful the soil to animate those seeds That genius planted in the patriot's mind, To grace the earth and elevate mankind.

* These lines were originally inscribed to my greatly esteemed young rriead Miss L. H. Bachnaan, of Charleston, South Carolina. W. B.

NATURAL BRIDGE. 15

Mark well that spot,* where o'er the beetling steep,

The statesman lay and looked into its deep—

Until his temples throbbed with aching pain,

And he was backwards forced to creep again.

Thought he not, then, of that fierce flood of strife,

On which he launched his fortune, honor, life 1

O'er its rough brow the Arbor Vita hung,

And to its shelving sides the cedars clung.

Upon its summit rose majestic pines,

And from its fissures sprung ambitious vines.

No voice he heard except the panther's howl,

Or perched upon some bough, the lonely owl.

Wild, as when first amid convulsive throes,

From earth's deep womb the heaving mountains rose.

Here gentle muse ! thy sweetest gift bestow,

That I in words may paint the scene below.

Above, if terror struck the mind with awe,

With pleasure, transport all the eye now saw.

Look to the East you see the mountains blue,

Turn to the West the Endless\ meet your view.

Here, on your left, you see the pine-crowned height,

But, on the right, the brow evades your sight.

Thus, at Aurora's birth, each morning flies

The lark, to meet his goddess in the skies ;

In warbling notes to cheer her with his song,

Unseen on earth and by the vulgar throng.

But now, dear Helen, with admiring eye,

Behold that half-ellipse, so light, so high,

Like the clear arch, of pure ethereal span,

That as His cov'nant God vouchsafed to man.

Here let our thoughts to heavenly regions soar,

And the great Maker in His works adore.

See at your feet in peaceful streamlets flow,

The limpid rills, while o'er them fire-flies glow,

* You involuntarily fall upon your hands and feet, creep to the parapet and peep over it. Looking down from thi.s height about a minute, gave me a violent headach. — Jefferson's Notes on Virginia.

t The ridge of mountains next beyond the Blue Ridge, called by us the North mountain, is of the greatest extent ; for which reason they were named by the Indians the Endless mountains.— Ibid.

At summer's eve, and liquid crystals light, Soft as the dew, and as the diamond bright. Look where the Hero* of illustrious fame, High on that pier inscribed his glorious name ; Where mortal man will never write again, And those who strive, will always strive in vain. Thou too, my muse, must be prepared to share The fate of all, beyond their powers who dare.

The Organ Cave, on, or rather under, the road from the White to the Salt Sulphur, is vastly imposing at its entrance, and is said to contain some admirable specimens of stalactitic formations. But the most wonderful of all curiosities of this class is Weijer^s Cave.

" Weyer's Cavef is the most remarkable cavern at present known. It is situated near the northeastern extremity of Augusta county, Virginia, seventeen miles from Staunton, sixteen miles from Waynesborough, eight from Mount Sidney, fourteen from Harrisonburg, and thirty-two from the University of Virginia.

Its entrance is in the eastern side of a ridge running parallel with the Blue Ridge, and four miles distant from it. The western declivity of the ridge is very gradual, and the visiter as he approaches from that direction, little imagines, from its appearance, that it embowels one of Nature's masterpieces. The eastern declivity is, however, quite

* In 1823, when the author first visited the Natural Bridge, there was shewn to him a point, quite high, on the right side, where Washington was said to have inscribed his name. The thing itself seemed impossible.

♦ Extract from a- pamphlet to be found at the Cave, precipitous. The guide's house is situated at the northern extremity of this ridge, and is distant eight hundred yards from the entrance of the cave.

In going from the house to the cave, you pass near Madison's Cave, which is in the same ridge, and only three hundred yards from it. Madison's Cave was known and visited as a curiosity long before the discovery of Weyer's, but is now passed by and neglected, as being unworthy of notice, compared with its more imposing rival, although it has had the pen of a Jefferson to describe its beauties.

The ascent from the base of the hill to the mouth of the cave is steep, but is rendered less fatiguing by the zigzag course of the path, which is one hundred and twenty yards in length.

In the year 1804, one Bernard Weyer ranged these hills as a hunter. While pursuing his daily vocation, he found his match in a lawless groundhog, which not only eluded his efforts, but eventually succeeded in carrying off a trap which had been set for his capture. Prompted by the loss of his trap, Weyer made an assault upon the domicil of the depredator with spade and mattock. A few moments labor brought him to the ante-chamber of this stupendous cavern, where he found his trap deposited.

The entrance was originally small and difficult of access, but the enterprise of the proprietor has obviated these inconveniences, It is now enclosed by a wooden wall, having a door in its centre which admits you into the ante-chamber."

The following lines suggested by a visit to Weyer's Cave, on the 17th of September 1850, and presented to his estimable friend Mrs. E. Bartlett of Richmond, by W. B., are now, with some alterations and additions, respectfully submitted to the reader.

Beauteous art thou, O earth* thy bosom fair. Green are thy valleys, pure thy mountain air. Bright are thy dews, the gems of early morn. Rich are thy fields, in crops of waving corn. Clear are thy rivers, tranquilly that glide, To bless the swains, and woo the ocean tide. Silent thy woods, and grand that Alpine height Fearful those clefts, where reigns eternal night. Sublime that Bridge, which with colossal span, O'er a deep gulf conducts poor sinful man. Beneath whose arch he may behold a rock, Unscathed by ages and the lightning^s shock. Emblem of that on which his Saviour stood, Planted his Church, and nourished with his blood. But most sublime is vast Niagara's roar, As rushing, bounding, madd'ning, tumbling o'er, The mighty cataract descends in foam, Then mounts to heaven, and gems its concave dome. Now leave, my friend, the balmy, buoyant air, That God has spread around this earthly sphere.

Confiding, came, forsake ethereal light, And plunge with me, to depths of darkest night. Seek Terra's womb, in JVeyer^s gorgeous Cave, And stand undaunted, in great Nature's grave. Though dank the air, within this vast profound, Though darkness drear invest us all around ;

Yet God is here ; He watches by our side, His arm protects, His light will be our guide. Each room to tell, each object to define, Would task the talents of the tuneful Nine, How then may I, in pleasing verse array Those roofs that sparkle like the milky way ? O ! how express my wonder and delight, The shell-room when I saw in blaze of light? 'Twas heaven supported by columnar spars, Its arch bespangled with coruscant stars !

Now look, Eliza ! mark bright Eden's bower, Where Nature stands revealed in magic power. Behind those curtains lies the crystal bed, To which fair Eve our primal father led. But 'twere pollution by a taper's light, This Holy to expose to mortal sight.

The Senate Cliamber next attracts the eye, And Conscript Fathers met in conclave high. Then pause awhile, and let us here survey These scenes impervious to the god of day. Behold that crystal, horizontal plain, Stretched out immense, yet which no props sustain. To say how formed conjecture does not dare, Or how it hangs suspended in mid air. So steady, unsustained, stands over head, MahomeVs coffin and its mighty dead. From its cold bed festooning curtains rise, As sailing clouds invest the starry skies. But turn to objects of another kind, And view the emblems of immortal mind. Who sits majestic in that curule chair, In patriot pride, but with a brow of care ? Methinks 'tis Tidly, from his lips divine, That lightning poured on wicked Catiline. Ambitious Julius there dissembling stands, And sues for mercy for the robber bands; While virtuous Cato, in his country's cause, Sustains the consul and supports the laws.

Perhaps, proud Albion! you the council claim, Memento of your glory and your shame ! What culprit stands indicted at thy bar, Polluted, stained by plunder spoils and war? "Tis Hastings vile, who played with kings as toys, And wealth amassed by crushing human joys. Indignant Fox — who never winked at wrong, But for the right took part against the strong ; From his deep mind enriched with varied stores, Upon the wretch his thundering volleys pours. Sheridan — wonder of that glorious age — The poet, wit, the orator and sage ! See how the victim writhes beneath his lash, Behold those eyes with wrath and frenzy flash. Beneath their glance see crouching Hastings quail — His weight to bear his tottering members fail. He sinks affrighted at his monstrous guilt, And feels the dagger pierce him to the hilt.