A part of the country by Licking River is hilly, poor, and almost covered over with detached pieces of limestone. The clearing of this land waits for a more dense population than the present. In the spots where the woods are cut down, crops of Indian corn are repeated without intermission. Economical agriculture has no place here. The rude implements are left to rot in the field; and the scythe allowed to hang on a tree from one season to another. _December 25._ The coach stopped at Washington, from seven o’clock, last night, till three this morning. It overset on my way hither, and though I received no injury, I resolved upon going no further with that vehicle in the dark, and over such bad roads. About five o’clock I was awakened by the firing of guns and pistols, in celebration of Christmas day. I heard no one speak of the nature of the event that they were commemorating. So universal was the mirth and conviviality of the people, that I could not procure a person to carry my portmanteau to Limestone. It remained for me to stop all day at Washington, or sling my baggage over my own shoulders. I preferred the latter alternative, and proceeded on my way. At Limestone, negroes and boys continued their firing till late in the afternoon.--Every sort of labour without doors was suspended. A watermark on the beach showed that the Ohio had lately risen to the height of fourteen or fifteen feet. It had now subsided to half that quantity, and had more than a third part of its surface covered with ice, in brisk motion downwards. _December 26._ Two large family boats (tied end to end) were about to leave Limestone for Cincinnati. {123} I agreed to go with them, and moved off in the afternoon. Sailing amongst moving ice is not attended with much danger, except at the commencement of the flood, when the accumulation is sometimes very great. In other cases the boat acquires nearly the same velocity with the ice. The two boats contained upwards of forty New Englanders. Their activity in this (to them) new way of travelling, shewed a considerable degree of enterprise and ingenuity. In the evening we moored by the margin of the river. In this situation the craft were exposed to collision with the moving ice. The men were sagacious enough to know, that lying ashore was more unsafe than keeping in motion, but generously yielded to the mistaken timidity of the females, who were much averse to sailing in the night. _December 27._ The ice continued to float downward, and surrounded us so much, that we could derive but little facility from rowing. Passed Augusta, a neat village on the Kentucky side of the river.[69] Its court house denotes that it is a county town. _December 29._ This morning the frost was intense. A wild duck, frozen to a large mass of ice floated past our mooring. A young man, who accompanied me in a canoe in pursuit of it, had one of his hands wet; the part was slightly frostbit.