Pittsburg stands on the point of land formed by the confluence of the rivers Allegany and Monongahela. The flat ground on which the greater part of the buildings stand, is upwards of thirty feet above the level of the rivers at low water. Part of the land adjoining to the Allegany is only about twenty feet high, and liable to occasional inundations. The Allegany here runs south-west by west, and the Monongahela nearly due west, as does the Ohio in continuation. This, together {60} with the Monongahela being broader than the Allegany, gives to the former the appearance of being the principal river, and to the latter the character of a tributary stream. The Monongahela is muddy and sluggish opposite to the town; and though about 400 yards broad there, probably furnishes much less water to the Ohio than does the Allegany, which is only about half the width, but has a brisk current. The Allegany and the Monongahela have been described as being each about the size of the Tay; but the latter river is much inferior to either in magnitude; and the comparison must have been influenced by the Tay’s being the fittest river with which to compare it in Britain, and not by its actual parity with either. Between the rivers, there is a ridge of about 300 feet high, which terminates with a gentle slope in the most inland part of the town. This is the hill that a florid exaggerator has described as a solid mass of coal. The description was unnecessary, as the coal field in which the hills of Pittsburg lie, may be considered as the most extensive that are known, although the only bed here is no more than four and a half feet thick. The strata being horizontal, and the out-burst of the coal about the middle-steep of the hill, it is not necessary to make shafts, as it is level free, and may be quarried and carried out in wheel barrows, like road-metal. The hill on the west side of the Monongahela, is a craggy steep, almost close to the river. It is covered with trees to the summit, and tends, more than any other object, to give to Pittsburg a picturesque appearance. On the north-west side of the Allegany lies a beautiful plain, the site of the new town Allegany.[37] Beyond the plain lies another ridge corresponding {61} in elevation, and having a continuation of the same strata that compose the two heights formerly noticed. Thus Pittsburg is almost surrounded by high wooded grounds. The heavy showers of rain that occasionally fall in this country, form a great objection to the cultivation of steep lands. The torrents sweep away much of the loose soil, cut deep ruts, and carry down slate-clay, and spread it on the foot slopes, and on the flat grounds below. The following enumeration of the manufacturing people of Pittsburg was made last year. It gives some view of the nature and extent of the business carried on. Hands Employers Employed