MIDDLE STATES.
THE PATTERSON VIADUCT.
The Middle States are so called from their relative situation. The distinguishing characteristic of this section of country is the extensive system of internal improvement by means of canals and railroads, by which the prosperity of those States is much promoted. Railroads are laid down on the most level routes between the places to be connected. They are formed by rails of iron laid on a foundation of stone or wood. The wheels of the carriages are made to run upon these rails, which being smooth offer little resistance, and make it easy for a small force to move an immense weight. All the hills which occur in the route of these roads are levelled and the valleys filled up. Railroads pass over rivers by means of bridges, or, as they are more generally called in these States, viaducts. The Baltimore and Ohio railroad passes over a river, about seven miles from the city, by means of one of these, called the Patterson viaduct, a view of which is given in the cut.
The climate of the Middle States embraces almost all the varieties that are found on the face of the earth; and, with the exception of the northern part of the State of New York, the soil is more fertile than that of New England. Wheat is produced in great abundance, and forms the chief object of agriculture.