Читать онлайн
Travels Through North America, During the Years 1825 and 1826. v. 1-2
Travels Through North America, During the Years 1825 and 1826. v. 1-2
EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA, to wit:
Be it remembered, that on the seventh day of October, in the fifty-third year of the independence of the United States of America, A. D. 1828, Carey, Lea and Carey of the said district, have deposited in this office the title of a book, the right whereof they claim as Proprietors, in the words following, to wit:
“Travels through North America, during the years 1825 and 1826. By his highness, Bernhard, Duke of Saxe-Weimar Eisenach. In two volumes.”
In conformity to the act of the Congress of the United States, entituled, “An act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies, during the times therein mentioned.” And also to the act, entitled, “An act supplementary to an act, entitled, ‘An act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies during the times therein mentioned,’ and extending the benefits thereof to the arts of designing, engraving, and etching historical and other prints.”
D. CALDWELL,Clerk of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
SKERRETT – NINTH STREET,
PHILADELPHIA.
PREFACE
The following journal was by no means originally designed for publication. I wrote it during my travels, partly to recall past incidents at a future period, partly to give, with more ease and certainty, information to my much-honoured parents, my relatives, and friends, on any subject, upon which inquiry might be made. After my return, the book was read by several, for whose perusal it had not been altogether intended. Many judicious persons imagined that it would be of interest to a larger number of readers, and variously and repeatedly requested its publication, in order to give it a more extensive circulation. As I could not easily withstand these solicitations, and besides met with an experienced and worthy person, Counsellor Luden, to whom, as editor, I might without hesitation entrust the whole manuscript, I yielded; whether with propriety or not, I cannot tell.
As to the voyage itself, I have nothing to say, either with regard to its cause or design. The idea of visiting America, occupied me, almost from my earliest years. Why this idea arose, or why it continued in my mind, is not a matter of much moment. The chief reason was, I wished to see the new world; the country; the people; their conditions and institutions; their customs and manners. The more I became acquainted with the old world, the more my desire to see the new increased.
The state and relations of the European countries, however, and the duties by which I deem myself bound, as a military man, to the country, to which I had dedicated my services, precluded the hope of an early accomplishment of my design. Still I made the necessary preparations as far as my situation and circumstances allowed, so that the voyage might not be made at a future time without some advantage. At last Europe appeared to have attained a degree of tranquillity which would permit an absence of a year or eighteen months, without a fear on my part that I should fail in any of my engagements. His majesty, the King of the Netherlands, whom I have the honour to serve, not only allowed me the requisite time, but also granted me a passage in the Pallas, a royal sloop of war, commanded by Captain-Lieutenant Ryk, a gallant, highly-esteemed, and experienced seaman.
Under which order of travellers I am to be ranked, according to poor Yorick’s classification, is submitted to the decision of the kind reader.
BERNHARD,Duke of Saxe-Weimar.
Ghent, May 20, 1827.
VOL. I
CHAPTER I
Departure from Ghent. – Sojourn at Hellevoetsluis – Arrival at Spithead
On the 4th of April, 1825, I set out from Ghent for Antwerp. This ancient and noble city is in every point of view interesting; to the admirers of the fine arts, on account of the unique treasures she possesses; to the military observer for her long defence against the army of the Duke of Parma, and for her military and maritime importance obtained in modern times through him who long guided the destiny of Europe; and to the philanthropist, who derives satisfaction from the increasing prosperity of mankind, for numerous reasons. Long the victim of politics and the jealousy of her neighbours, which kept the mighty Scheld, the harbour of Antwerp, blockaded, she now powerfully lifts her head above her rivals, and her commerce, nearly as flourishing as under the Hanseatic league, is annually becoming more extensive, thanks to the foresight of the wise prince whom Providence has placed at the head of our country’s government.
A government yacht received us at Antwerp, and with a fair wind and most delightful spring weather, conveyed us, by the evening of the 6th of April, to the road of Hellevoetsluis, where the corvette Pallas was lying at anchor, which had orders to sail on the following day. The first part of the voyage to Hellevoetsluis is down the Scheld; the beautiful steeple of the cathedral of Antwerp long remains in sight; the forts on both shores attract the attention of military men, and perhaps remind them of the remains of the great bridge between forts St. Mary and St. Philip, by which Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma, crossed the stream and forced the city to surrender.
At an hour’s sail below Antwerp, the Scheld forms a large basin, and divides into two arms the East and West Scheld, which are separated by the island of Zuid-Beveland. The West Scheld is the deepest, and flows into the North Sea: we sailed on the eastern branch to the place of our destination.
A century ago South Beveland was well cultivated, and contained a town and numerous villages: it was swallowed up by the water, and still remains overflowed. It may be reserved for the creative spirit peculiar to our existing government and its illustrious chief, to give employment to the plough of the industrious farmer on the spot where at present the poor fisherman protracts a wretched existence.
We afterwards left the East Scheld, and sailed past several well cultivated islands, protected against the violence of the stormy waves by artificial dams. We entered upon the stream formed by the confluence of the Maas and Rhine, and advanced immediately to Hellevoetsluis, whence in former times the victorious fleets of Holland frequently sailed to the remotest parts of the world, and dictated terms to her enemies. The ships which convey the treasures of the tropical regions to the rich city of Rotterdam, or carry the products of our own industry, as well as the defenders of our extensive possessions, are often obliged, by contrary winds, to remain here for various periods. Hence Hellevoetsluis is generally very lively.
The corvette Pallas, in which our government permitted me to sail for America, was a new vessel, fitted out as an instruction ship. A selection of young naval officers was made for this voyage, as midshipmen. To these were added a young naval architect named Tromp, a worthy descendant of historically renowned ancestors, whose deep knowledge, distinguished talents, and estimable character, I became acquainted with and cherished in the course of the voyage. These selected officers were entrusted to the direction of Captain Ryk, one of our most approved commanders,1 who had orders to visit some of the principal English and American naval depôts, in order to acquire whatever knowledge might best promote the interests of his country. On this account the corvette was fitted out rather as a packet ship than a man of war. She had no long guns on deck, except two long sixes in the bows as chase guns; her battery consisted of eighteen twenty-four pound carronades. I was established in the captain’s cabin, and a swinging cot was suspended at night for my sleeping place.
In consequence of contrary winds and other causes which it is needless to mention, the corvette could not sail as quickly as ordered. In the mean time I stayed at Hellevoetsluis, and employed my forced leisure in examining this small town and its vicinity.
Hellevoetsluis contains upwards of two thousand inhabitants, among whom there is scarcely a poor one to be found. The town properly consists of but one street, on both sides of the harbour, having walled quays, and united by a double drawbridge, built two years ago. Where the town terminates, the dock-yard commences, which contains most of the fortifications. Near the dock-yard are the barracks, which can, if necessary, contain two thousand men. The frigate Rhine lay in harbour as guard-ship. There was one ship repairing in the dock, none building. For the purpose of repairing there is, behind the basin of the dock-yard, a dry, terrace-shaped, walled basin, or dry dock, large enough for a ship. When the ship is brought into this dock, the gates are closed, and the water pumped out by a steam machine of thirty horse-power. This being done, the ship is dry, and may be examined on all sides. When the repairs are completed, the gates are again opened, the water admitted, and the ship floated out. A boat-gate is better adapted to this purpose: a boat-gate consists of a box which exactly enters the canal leading to the dry dock: when brought to the place where it is to be used, a quantity of water is admitted sufficient to sink it to the level of the shores, and then it forms a bridge. When it is necessary to open the gate, the water is pumped out, and the box is withdrawn from the canal. The frigate Kenau Hasselaar was in the basin getting ready for sea, and with the crew of the guard-ship under command of Captain Dibbetz, she was to sail for the East Indies. The frigates Scheld, Maas, Yssel, and Java, with the brig Havic, and about twenty gun-boats, were laid up in ordinary. One of the gun-boats was built after a Danish model, which allows the upper part of the rudder to be taken down and two ports to be opened, by which the stern can be used in battery. The magazines and smithies are not large, but are kept in very neat order.
The admiralty have a very large building here which is used as the residence of the marine commander in chief. From a belvidere of this house there is a fine view of the harbour and surrounding country. In the former, the frigate Amstel, corvette Pallas, brig De Gier, and transport-ship Zeemeeuw rode at anchor, the two latter bound to the Mediterranean. In the dock-yard we remarked a very large mast-crane, which may be seen far at sea, and serves mariners as a landmark. There is also a light-house upon one of the two dams which secure the harbour, also built two years ago.
[From the 11th to the 25th of April, contrary winds detained the corvette at Hellevoetsluis, during which time an excursion was made to Goedereede, Stellendam, &c. After various changes of winds, and a storm while lying at anchor, nothing of interest occurred until four P. M. of the 25th, when the ship weighed anchor and stood out to sea.]
Fair wind and good weather continued until the forenoon of the 27th. About four o’clock we saw the English coast, being the North Foreland, not far from Margate. Here we were obliged to steer to the left to enter the Channel, in order to reach Portsmouth and avoid the dangerous Goodwin Sands. At the same time the barometer had fallen, the air was thick and rainy, and a disagreeable south-west wind began to blow. The passage between these sand-banks was by no means pleasant; the wind was quite boisterous and almost stormy; we lost all hope of reaching the Channel during this day, and were forced to be content with beating about in our perilous situation. The motion of the ship became very vehement towards evening, and I became sea-sick; it was not so bad while I remained motionless in my cot. During the night the ship was in a very dangerous situation, and Captain Ryk remained all the time on deck. The lead was regularly thrown during the night. In attempting to get into my cot, which was very much inclined, and the ship giving a heavy lurch at the same time, I received a heavy fall on my head, which, however, was not productive of much injury. On the morning of the 28th the wind was somewhat lighter, and we discovered that during the night we had been in a situation of extreme danger, and had reason to be thankful to the great Creator for our safety. The weather gradually cleared up, and we enjoyed with great satisfaction the noble prospect of the English coast. Immediately ahead lay Margate with the southern shore of the Thames; farther to the left, Ramsgate, and still farther, Deal. We were moreover surrounded by shipping, and in the Downs we saw the English ship of the line, Ramilies, which cruised this year on this station, lying at anchor.
The wind was now westerly, and our commander having no wish to pass another night as dangerously as the preceding, resolved to cast anchor in the Downs. This determination led me to think of landing at Deal, going to London for a day, and then returning to Portsmouth. In the course of the day, however, an east wind sprung up, which changed all our resolutions. We passed the cape of South Foreland, and entered the Channel prosperously, where we saw the high chalk rock between Deal and Dover, with several castles, and Dover itself, with its ancient and strong castle, near the ruins, &c. We were also delighted with a beautiful view of the French coast, the white rocks of which were illumined by the sun. The wind, as we passed by Dover, was very light, the current was against us, and during the night it rained and blew. The anchor was consequently dropped, and we remained off Dover till one o’clock the following day. In the mean time the weather improved, though the wind continued to be very slight and unfavourable. I embraced this opportunity to visit Dover, in company with Captain Ryk, his nephew, and Mr. Tromp. We breakfasted at Wright’s hotel, in which, eighteen months before I had stayed with my family, and at that time took a walk to the fortified camp, that lies westwardly from the town, on an important height. To this place we ascended by stairs cut about twenty years ago. A subterranean passage leads from the town to the foot of these stairs. For a supply of water a well was dug through the rock to the depth of about two hundred feet, and to this well three stairs were cut of two hundred and sixty-eight steps each. These stairways are wide enough to allow two men to walk conveniently abreast. They terminate in a funnel-shaped excavation, whence a stone staircase leads towards four terrace-shaped barracks, built one above the other. Somewhat higher is a pentagonal redoubt, also employed as a barrack, in which at this time a detachment of artillery, the only garrison of Dover was quartered. The redoubt forms the right wing of the position. From this point an irregular line of masonry, partly hewed out of the rock, runs to the left wing, where there is an oblong quadrangular fort. In front of this fort is a tolerably deep valley, through which the London road passes. We were delighted with the view of this beautiful vale and the fresh green of the turf. Messrs. Tromp and Ryk made a sketch of the rocks and mountains, which would make a strong impression upon one who had not beheld them, even upon me who am familiar with their appearance, it produced a very agreeable feeling. From the left wing a line runs en crémaillère, beside which, at an entering angle, a casemated magazine is placed near a small fort that defends the harbour. From this line a door opens towards the high rock called Shakspeare’s Cliff, which we had not leisure to visit. The masonry of the fortification is of brick, with a half revêtement. The rock is throughout chalk, containing flint. These flints are much employed in paving roads and streets, to the great injury of the hoofs of horses; some houses in Dover are also built of them. We turned back again towards the corvette, highly gratified with our excursion. We saw two steam-boats arrive at Dover, one from Calais and the other from Boulogne. A water spout was pointed out to me at a distance. At one o’clock the wind began to blow fair, the anchor was weighed, and we stood onwards with fine weather, delighted with the continuous view of the English coast.
On the 30th of April with a fresh wind we made the eastern point of the Isle of Wight, where we hoisted a flag, and fired a gun for a pilot, who did not come on board immediately. We sailed cautiously onwards, came in sight of Portsmouth, and neared St. Helen’s point, Isle of Wight. The pilot then came on board, and steered us into Spithead road, off Portsmouth. This town, in which I was so much pleased two years before, has a very handsome appearance. Several ships of the line were lying in the harbour, among which was the Victory, on board of which Lord Nelson was killed. When we saw the admiral’s flag floating from her mainmast head, we saluted her with seventeen guns, which she returned with thirteen. We anchored in the road where we found two English corvettes, an East India company’s ship, and a Portuguese frigate, which had brought the Portuguese ambassador, the Marquis Palmella, to England.
CHAPTER II
Stay in England. – Portsmouth. – Plymouth. – Devonport. – Falmouth
As the corvette was to remain, for the instruction of the midshipmen, until all the naval establishments had been accurately examined, I resolved to go on shore and travel from Portsmouth to Plymouth and Falmouth, and then rejoin the corvette. On the 1st of May I went in the boat, accompanied by Captain Ryk and Lieutenant Lejeune, to Portsmouth. The sea ran very high, and the eight oarsmen made very little way against the swell. As we entered the harbour where the waves were exceedingly high, we turned so quickly that two seas struck our boat in the side, and made us more than once fear that she would be foundered. Nevertheless we arrived safely, though thoroughly wet.
I remained in Portsmouth three days, and as its situation and relations were already known to me, I spent the time in reading, writing, paying and receiving visits, and in strolling about in interesting society. For a similar reason I allowed myself to make desultory observations.
According to the navy list, there are at Portsmouth sixteen ships in actual service, mounting five hundred and eighteen guns; sixty-five dismantled, with four thousand one hundred and forty-three guns, and eighteen building, which are to carry seven hundred and fifty-six guns; making a total of five thousand four hundred and seventeen guns.
Some of the lowest class of people were masquerading in honour of the 1st of May. Most of them were dressed as Jack-puddings; others were ornamented with bladders: they marched through the streets to the sound of music, stopped and danced before some of the houses, and collected money. They also had a boxing match between two boys, which was conducted as a regular combat. As soon as one boy was down, his antagonist ceased to strike, and his second helped him up. One, however, did strike a blow while the other was down, whereupon several of the bystanders rushed upon the offender, held him fast, and gave him so many punches in the ribs that he was completely discomfited; and this terminated the fray. In the harbour about one hundred and fifty men were shipped as recruits for the 89th regiment, stationed in the East Indies. They came from the depôt at the Isle of Wight, and appeared to be very weak and miserable.
The Marquis Palmella, who resided in the same hotel with me, set out on the 3d of May with his family, a wife, eight children, and a numerous suite, for London. I paid him a visit, and was introduced to his lady, a very beautiful woman. The marquis, who is very generally esteemed, suffered considerably during the last Portuguese counter-revolution, and was kept prisoner for several days. During his stay at this place he has constantly had two honorary sentries, and an hour before his departure, a company of fifty marines, with three officers, and the band in full uniform, marched in front of the hotel, and remained as a guard of honour until he left Portsmouth. It was with real pleasure that I remarked the excellent condition of this corps.
The royal marines, whose barracks I visited, and saw the men defile, have an exceedingly fine appearance, and are highly esteemed. The officers are promoted according to seniority; but since the peace, the corps has been much reduced, and the officers are old in their grades. The officers also are mostly persons without influence, and enter the royal marines because unable to purchase rank in the army. The barracks for the soldiers did not altogether please me: they are better regulated and kept more cleanly in the Netherlands. It is a good regulation that the bedsteads are iron, and that every man lies alone; but it is very bad on the other hand, that they cook in the same room.
I visited, in company with Captain Ryk, the Ganges, a ship of the line of eighty-four guns, built a few years since by Indian workmen, entirely of Teak-wood. This hard and heavy timber is not only very lasting, but has also the great excellence of not cracking in a warm climate. We were received on board the ship with great attention, in the absence of Captain Campbell, by Lieutenant Wright, who did the honours in a very friendly manner. I cannot sufficiently admire the neatness observed in this ship. They have an excellent mode of taking care of the rings, bolts, weapons, and other iron, brass, and copper utensils, on board of English ships of war. The forepart of the gun-deck is an extraordinary apartment, the iron implements are varnished, and the others polished and arranged along the whitewashed sides, so as to form figures and inscriptions. When strangers visit the ship a sort of chandelier is lighted, which produces a very beautiful effect. When we left the ship, Lieutenant Wright had the politeness to take us in his barge to the inner harbour, where the ships are laid up in ordinary. As we left the Ganges, she saluted us with nineteen guns.
Ships in commission are painted black and white; when they go into ordinary this paint is scraped off, and they are then painted brownish yellow; if not again to be employed in active service they are painted entirely black. We went on board of the Nelson, of one hundred and twenty guns, in the harbour. She is a new ship, but lay in ordinary, having been already affected with the destructive dry-rot. The injured planks had been removed, and at present she is entirely sound. The Nelson, Ganges, and all the recently built ships of the line have round sterns. All of them have the wood work necessary for their equipment, as for gun-carriages, &c. on board. In order to preserve this and the deck from the influence of the weather, a large roof is built over them. From the Nelson we went on board the royal yacht, the Royal George, which I had already seen, but which I willingly examined once more, on account of her elegant construction and great luxury. The magnificence of the royal apartments, and those for the suite, are very strongly contrasted with the birth-deck for the crew, which is both dark and confined. We remarked here a patent iron camboose, which cooked all the food by means of steam.
Having purchased the necessary provisions, especially Gamble’s preserved meats, which keep fresh for a year, I went on the 4th of May, at 4 P. M. on board the steam ship, Sir Francis Drake, to go to Plymouth, distant one hundred and fifty miles. The engine is of seventy horse-power. The ship was not very comfortably arranged; the main cabin was so near the boiler that the heat was intolerable. Our passengers amounted to thirty persons, only eight of whom were cabin passengers. About five o’clock a gun was fired as a signal for sailing, and we stood out to sea. Spithead road with the shipping lay to the left, and our course was between the land and the Isle of Wight. Cowes with its beautiful gardens presented an agreeable sight, about a mile to the westward of which stands a castle called Egypt. It began to grow dark. We saw on the right hand the extremely bright lights of Hurst-castle, and on the left the light-house of the Needles, on the western extremity of the Isle of Wight, which I visited two years ago. The white rocks of the Needles were visible in the dark, and from the effects of frequent storms have an entirely peculiar appearance. As we passed this dangerous place, the wind increased, and the motion of the little ship, with the continual jarring of the steam-engine, became exceedingly disagreeable. As the birth allotted to me was too short, I was obliged to place my mattrass upon the floor. The heat and strokes of the adjacent steam-engine, the coughing of a catarrhous Irishman, and the squalling of a child in the next cabin, long prevented me from sleeping. It was not until near morning that I began to slumber, but was soon waked again by the insupportable heat. I sought refuge upon deck, where nearly all the company, without excepting the captain, were unwell.
The rocky English coast was in view in almost every direction; the town of Dartmouth appears to be very finely situated. After a rather long and unpleasant passage, we arrived in Plymouth Bay at 1 o’clock, P. M. We passed a little to the left of the breakwater, a dam intended to protect Plymouth road from the south-west storms, begun thirteen years ago, but not yet completed: we were gratified with the view of Mount Edgecumbe Park and Drake’s Island, on which is a small fort that forms a very beautiful view from the three towns, Plymouth, with the citadel; Stonehouse and Plymouth Dock, now called Devonport. This dock, with all the ships building and repairing there, furnishes a beautiful and imposing prospect.
After my arrival I paid a visit to the authorities of this place. The admiral in chief, Sir James Saumarez, a worthy man, seventy years of age, excited in me an extraordinary degree of interest. He has served England for fifty-six years, and during the last war commanded for five years in the Eastern Ocean. His actions are known to all the world, and caused him to be distinguished with the grand cross of the order of the Bath, which he has worn for twenty-four years.
Among the remarkable things of this place, is the court-house, which is a new, oblong building, having on one of its small sides a broad staircase leading to a portico, with four Ionic columns. The hall is large and very conveniently arranged with galleries for spectators. Beneath the dock for the prisoners is a trap-door, by which persons are brought from the prison on the ground floor, for trial, and carried back again, without being brought into contact with the public. The six cells for prisoners in the lower part of the house are all arched with stone, and furnished with iron bedsteads. The doors are of stout oak plank, studded with iron; a small opening allows air and light to enter, though very sparingly. The prisoners can walk daily for exercise in a corridor, twelve paces in length, by three in breadth: they have a miserable existence. We left this granite and marble abode of sorrow with very unpleasant impressions. Scarcely had we left it, when our eyes fell upon a monument, building upon a rock, which is to be a column one hundred and one feet high, commemorating the change of the name of the town, from Plymouth Dock to Devonport. This work did not dispel the disagreeable feeling caused by the prison. Not far distant from this monument stands a Gothic church, and near this a school-house, in the Egyptian style. The crowding together within so narrow a space of such various styles of architecture, exhibits a singular, I cannot say an agreeable sight. We also examined the market, which is furnished with numerous covered galleries, in which provisions, fish for instance, are displayed upon marble tables. But marble is so common here, that the foot-walks are paved with it: houses are also built therewith. The houses in Devonport are not handsome: some of the old ones are entirely covered with slate, which produces a disagreeable impression. In the court-house there is a fire-place made of slate.
On the 7th of May we examined the dock-yard; there are eight ships here in actual service, mounting three hundred and sixty-six guns; sixty-five in ordinary, with three thousand five hundred and twenty guns, and twenty-two building, which will mount upwards of seven hundred and twenty; making in all, four thousand six hundred and six guns.
The dock-yard, with its admirable regulation, is perfectly described by Dupin in his excellent travels in Great Britain. The work is known to most readers, and for an accurate description of the dock I refer them thereto. The entrance is really beautiful; you behold the greater part of the dock-yard, which is terrace-shaped, beneath you; on the right hand is the church and some offices, opposite to which are two cannon employed more for show than defence. The houses are built of the gray marble-like lime-stone, which is so common here. A new magazine is rendered entirely fire-proof by this stone and iron; the different store-rooms being separated by iron doors, so that in case of fire it can be insulated. The rope-walk is a building two stories high, with walks two hundred yards long. All the ships, as in other English docks, are built under roofs, which are sometimes covered with slate, though mostly with copper. To my surprise, the water is pumped out of the dry docks by a horse-mill instead of a steam-engine. In one of the dry docks we saw the unfortunate ship Fortitudo2 repairing. All her timbers were decayed; her copper destroyed, and she required three new masts; her repairs cost the house of Roelands of Antwerp eight thousand pounds. There is at this dock a huge iron kettle, in which ship timber is boiled in sea water in order to protect it from the dry rot. About two thousand two hundred men are daily employed in this yard, and some earn thirty-six shillings a week.
After a stay of about two hours at the dock-yard, I went in company with the admiral to Hamoaze, where the fleets in service and dismantled lay at anchor. We went on board the flag ship Britannia, and were received in a very friendly manner by Captain Pipon, who showed us the ship throughout: every thing was as admirable as in the ships at Portsmouth. From the Britannia, which saluted us with twenty-one guns, we went on board the St. Vincent, which in every respect resembled the Nelson at Portsmouth.
On the 6th of May, which was Sunday, and the town consequently very quiet, I went first to visit the marine barracks, and thence to Plymouth, which I had not yet seen. It is about a mile distant from Stonehouse. The entrance is agreeable, exhibiting several new houses, and a large quadrangular building, ornamented with columns, which contains the theatre and Royal Hotel. But as soon as one advances a little farther into the town the scene changes, the streets are all narrow and precipitous, badly paved, and without side-walks; the houses are badly built, and angular, and the sun cannot shine into the streets. The harbour that is forming at Catwater appears to be visited, and the bay presents a noble prospect. We passed by a road cut in the rock to the citadel, to visit the vice-governor, Major General Sir John Cameron; but he was sick. We walked round the ramparts of the citadel, and enjoyed at every point an admirable view, to which the fine weather contributed its full proportion. At noon we walked to Stoke, a village in which the inhabitants of Plymouth have country seats. At this place it is customary, as far as practicable, to bury the dead on Sunday; we therefore met funeral processions in most of the streets, which did not particularly raise our spirits.
On Monday I went with Sir James Saumarez in the Britannia’s barge to examine the breakwater. We first visited the stone quarries at Catwater, whence the stone for the breakwater is procured. The land where this quarry is situated was purchased from various proprietors. The rock, which is lime-stone, is blasted with gunpowder. Many of the blocks of stone weigh five tons and upwards. They are lifted by iron cranes, by which one workman is able to raise a ton and a half, and placed upon small four wheeled iron cars, which run on rail-roads to the quay where the vessels lay which are to convey them to the breakwater. These vessels, which are built expressly for this service, can carry eighteen of the heaviest of these blocks; the lighter stones are carried in hired vessels. At the quarry we were received by the secretary of Mr. Whitby, who planned the breakwater, and at present superintends the work. A cave was discovered in the rock containing rhinoceros bones in good preservation, and some time after, another cavern was found containing the bones and teeth of bears. From the mount above the quarry, there is an extensive and exceedingly beautiful prospect. From this place we went to Bovisand-bay, where, under the direction of Mr. Whitby, a quay and reservoir of fresh water is building for the navy. The water is collected from two springs into a reservoir twenty feet deep, situated between the hills. Thence it is to be conducted through iron pipes for nearly an English mile to the quay. These seventeen cocks will each deliver two and a half tuns of water a minute. The watering boats will land at the quay, and in a very short time return with their lading to the ships. In the valley near the reservoir is Mr. Whitby’s handsome dwelling, from which he can survey the whole work, and consequently may from his own chamber control the workmen.
The breakwater suffered exceedingly by the terrible storm of the 22d and 23d of November, 1824. It is now to be rendered more permanent in the following manner: – The stones most exposed to the waves are to be hewed and clamped together with iron. I fear, however, that this work will also be destroyed, unless a couple of perpendicular dams be built touching the principal dam, to break the force of the waves before they reach the latter. The old works are in so ruinous a condition that we were nearly wrecked upon them. On this account we stood farther off, and went on board of the Thetis frigate to pay a visit to Sir John Phillimore. Sir John, in honour of our presence, displayed all his flags. The marines, with their officers, stood near the mizen-mast, and with the crew marched round the deck; some of the latter were armed with pikes, some with sabres, and others with battle-axes. I was delighted with the perfect order and neatness which universally appeared. Both cabins were very elegantly arranged and ornamented with mahogany. As we took leave, the yards were manned, and a salute given. It was now high water, and we passed between Drake’s Island and Mount Edgecumbe through a passage called the Bridge, which is dangerous on account of rocks. We touched twice upon them without injury, as fortunately the wind was slight: we landed at the beautiful stone stairs of Mount Wise.
On the day following, I visited the Marine Hospital, in company with Sir John Phillimore. This is an admirably managed and richly endowed institution.3 The building was begun during the seven years war. It can accommodate two thousand sick or wounded: we found but about seventy persons in the hospital, and among these some officers and midshipmen. It appeared to me that the plan of having eight separate buildings, each three stories high, was a very good one, as the spreading of contagious diseases, or of a conflagration, can be so much more easily prevented. Each ward contains sixteen bedsteads, all of iron; the bedsteads for the officers are of wood, and furnished with curtains. There are also beds in the wards for the nurses, which, in all the English marine hospitals, are females, whose attendance is preferred for its greater gentleness to that of male assistants. The sick are brought from the ships to the hospital by water, and go, or are carried up a wide stone stair to the receiving office. They are then stripped and bathed in the hospital to which they are sent, and their clothes are marked, and kept in a particular magazine. An iron crane is employed to land those who are badly wounded. In all the wards, as well as in the different store-rooms, and the apothecary room, the greatest order and cleanliness is observable.
The church does not appear to me to be arranged in correspondence with the rest of the establishment. It is small, and has a store-room on the first floor, so that the patients find it occasionally very troublesome to attend upon worship. A covered colonnade surrounds the quadrangular court-yard which encloses the building, under which the patients, in bad or hot weather, can exercise. The middle of the court-yard is a well-kept grass-plot.
For maniac patients there is a proper house, built remote from the others. The wash-house stands also aloof. In bad weather, the wash is dried by steam. The wash is hung upon frames, which fold together, and may be run in and out for the convenience of taking off the dried pieces and adding the wet. Eight of such frames may be folded together and occupy a very small space. There is also a very appropriately managed bathing-house for the use of the patients, in which they may not only have all sorts of baths, but with the greatest convenience. The superintendents, physicians, and officers, have their dwellings in front of the hospital, in a spacious place planted with trees. The commissioner at the head of the institution, is Captain Creyke, a pensioner, eighty years old, who first served at sea in 1759, and accompanied Commodore Wallis in his first voyage round the world. Before we left the hospital we took a glance at his beautifully situated and tastefully arranged house. We then visited the Plymouth Library, established by subscription about twenty years ago, which does not yet appear to be very rich. The establishment consists of three apartments, the book-room, the reading-room, and the director’s meeting-room. The library serves properly for a reading club, like our literary society at Ghent. On the 10th, I dined in company with Admiral Saumarez and Sir John Phillimore, with the officer’s mess of the twenty-fourth regiment of infantry, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Fleming.
On the ensuing day, the admiral accompanied us to Mount Edgecumbe Park; this is a truly noble situation, yet, in time of war, as this position is indispensable to the defence of the dock-yard, it is necessary to convert it into a fortification. The ground is very advantageously employed in the disposition and embellishment of the park: it is not encumbered with buildings; the green and bath-house are the principal, and in the construction of these the marble of the vicinity has been very happily used. The trees are chiefly beech, some of them apparently very old, sickly, and injured by the sea-air. There are also three great cedars of Lebanon, which do not thrive well in an English park. The Castle of Mount Edgecumbe is ancient, and externally resembles a state prison; we did not examine it internally. We saw the monument of Lady Mount Edgecumbe, who died in 1806, to whom the park is indebted for most of its improvements. It is told of her that she was twice buried; the first time she remained three days in a vault, lying in her coffin, and was aroused by a thief cutting off her finger to steal a ring: she left the grave, took refuge in a neighbouring house, made herself known, and was reconveyed to her castle, where she subsequently lived several years and gave birth to children. Relata refero. On the sea-shore, near the bridge that we passed two days since, Lord Mount Edgecumbe has erected a battery of twenty-one iron six pounders, which he fires upon all festival occasions. We embarked at this battery to visit the rock lying in front of Stonehouse, called Devil’s Point, which is to be partly levelled to make room for a new victualling office. The work is scarcely begun. A cellar was dug out of the rock and a wall built in the sea to support the foundation. This was effected by means of a diving-bell. The bell containing the workmen, remained while we were present, nearly four hours under water. Government intends to construct a new water-reservoir at this place, which will probably render that of Bovisand unnecessary. Drinking water is brought to Plymouth in iron pipes from Dartmouth, which is eighteen miles distant, so that in time of war the supply might readily be cut off.
Next day I went by land to visit the Castle of Saltroun, situated six English miles from Plymouth at the end of Catwater, and belonging to Lord Morlay, who resides in London. The road passes through a delightful valley; on the right is Catwater, to the left the ruins of castles on the heights: there are also here numerous terrace-shaped strawberry beds, the fruit of which is exceedingly good. Close to the entrance of the park we crossed the Catwater upon an old, very narrow, stone bridge of five arches. Through the park, a beautiful road leads from the valley to the loftily situated castle. It rained excessively, and as we could see nothing from the park, we restricted ourselves to the castle, which was built probably about sixty years ago, and has a very large apartment in the basement. A very spacious vestibule leads to the library, in which are a number of splendid family portraits and pictures of some once celebrated actresses. The best picture is a portrait of Sir Joshua Reynolds, painted by himself. Four plaster columns resembling verd-antique are excellent imitations. From the library a small apartment opens into the picture gallery. In both rooms are several paintings by Carlo Dolce, Andrea Del Sarto, Teniers, Wouvermans, Ostade, Kuyp, Vandermeulen, &c. I cannot assert that all these are original paintings. In the parlour, ball-room, and dining-hall, there are also numerous pictures. Some of these are attributed to Angelica Kauffman, others to Reubens, Van Dyke, Sassoferrato, Guido Rheni, Titian, Ruysdael, Parmegiano, &c. However, I have seen the originals of many of them at Antwerp and Ghent, and of one of the Parmegianos in Windsor Castle. Among the statues and busts, I especially remarked a copy of the Florentine Venus, by Canova, and a copy of Hebe by the same master. The staircase of the castle is fine, and adorned with pictures by Angelica Kauffman. The mantel-pieces, all of Italian marble, ornamented with bas-reliefs, are also very remarkable. The bad weather accompanied us throughout our return to Plymouth. On this occasion I remarked that the pavement was taken up in several streets, and Macadamized, which is much better for the horses and houses.
[Several succeeding days were spent in excursions to different places in the vicinity, in company with the Admiral and Sir John Phillimore; and one day on a water party accompanied by ladies.]
On the 19th of May, in a small boat belonging to the Fortitudo, I made, with great pleasure, an excursion to Trematon Castle, which I had formerly understood was once the residence of the ancient Princes of Cornwall. Sir John Phillimore had been so polite as to inform the proprietor, Mr. Tucker, chief director of the neighbouring mines, whose son is an officer on board the Thetis, of our coming. On landing, we found a carriage sent by Mr. Tucker to meet and convey us to the castle. I observed here a water-mill, behind which was a large walled basin that is filled by the flood tide, and closed by a gate. During the ebb tide the gate is opened and the mill set to work. It reminded me of the bassins de chasse, in some of our harbours.
Trematon Castle is situated upon a height. Besides the walls furnished with loop-holes which form a quadrangle, the castle consists of but two towers, one quadrangular, which forms the entrance, and the other a round one, somewhat higher. As Mr. Tucker holds this castle of the king, the royal arms are over the portal. In the court-yard of the castle, Mr. Tucker has built a tasteful house, and, by removing part of the adjacent wall, has obtained a beautiful prospect from his dwelling, comprising a view of most of the Hamoaze with the shipping, Anthony’s Park, Devonport, and part of Plymouth Sound. Mr. Tucker holds several important posts in the navy, and during Fox’s ministry he was secretary to the admiralty. At the overthrow of that administration, he retired to his native place with a pension of two thousand pounds per annum, and the office of secretary to the duchy of Cornwall; here he is highly esteemed, enjoys great influence, and has his property principally vested in the mines. After receiving us in a very friendly manner, and introducing his family, he took a seat in the carriage.
We went eight miles further to a silver mine, the only one in England. It belongs to a company of five stockholders, of which Mr. Tucker is the principal. The country is very hilly, the road sometimes narrow and steep, so that it was frequently necessary to lock the wheels. A part of the way was over the good road from Saltash to Callington; we also passed near to Pentilhe castle. The land is generally good, with the exception of a heath, of which England contains a number under the name of “commons.” The silver mine is situated in a deep valley of Fulliford common. The mine is named St. Vincent, in honour of the deceased admiral, who was a great patron of Mr. Tucker. The mine has been but five years in progress, and produces so little that it sinks two hundred pounds per month for the stockholders. The vein of silver, whose presence is judged of certainly by iron-stone, is cut at right angles by a vein of copper. This copper they are breaking through in hopes of greater success. The mine has five shafts; the deepest is rather more than three hundred feet deep, and serves as a working-shaft: two others are used for pumping out the water. One pump is worked by a steam-engine of seventy horse-power, the other is worked by a compound lever, which is about a quarter of a mile long, moved by a water-wheel of forty feet in diameter. The wheel is overshot, and the water for working it is obtained from a small brook, aided by the water pumped up by the steam machine, and conducted to it by a small canal. The lever is composed of long wooden beams, bound together with iron straps, and hangs by tripods placed at determinate distances.
The ore raised from the mine, is pounded, washed, and roasted in the usual manner. In order to separate the silver from the ore, the following mixture is added to an ounce of the powder; red lead, two ounces; red tartar, five pennyweights; nitre, nine pennyweights; borax, four pennyweights; lime, one-quarter of an ounce; common salt, two ounces; pounded fluor spar, one-quarter of an ounce. The whole is thrown into a red hot iron crucible, which is placed on a glowing coke fire for five minutes. The crucible is then taken off and the melted mass poured into a ladle, allowed to cool and the dross removed. Some copper still remains in the mass, so that the silver is again smelted with some lead, and poured into a small vessel made of bone ashes: the lead is oxydated and the silver remains pure. An ounce of ore produces one-fourth of an ounce of silver.
The mine is extremely damp, and as I had not felt entirely well for some days, I did not descend, neither did any of the company. We returned to Trematon, and in order to examine the noble spot to which we were going more thoroughly, I mounted the box, and enjoyed a great treat. To the left I looked down a deep valley upon the Tamer; farther off, upon the Hamoaze, and to the right, far over Cornwall. Falmouth is said also to be in sight. In his tastefully arranged house, Mr. Tucker has a very interesting collection of minerals and metals of the vicinity. He possesses a valuable library, and his wife has a remarkable collection of shells. In the quadrangular tower of the castle, he has fitted up a billiard room, and arranged on the walls numerous curiosities: ancient weapons, and implements from the South Sea Islands, the tatoed and dried head of a New Zealand chief, with his dress; pieces of worm-eaten ship-timber from the Indian Ocean, with one of the worms in spirits; Indian weapons; an American tomahawk; a human skull, found thirty feet under ground in Cornwall; a marble bullet, with which an English ship was struck in the Dardanelles, in 1807; articles from the field of Waterloo; and a weeping willow leaf from over Napoleon’s tomb! Above the clock in this tower, is placed the bell of the Spanish ship Salvador del Mundo, taken and burnt by Lord St. Vincent. The round tower, of which only the outward wall is standing, formerly served for a prison. The walls of this tower, as well as all the rest of the castle, are overgrown with ivy. A wooden staircase within, leads to a circular gallery, which affords a beautiful prospect. A narrow passage cut through the walls, leads to the garden, which contains numerous hot houses and a very fine orangery. From this spot Mr. Tucker accompanied us, by a very shady foot-path, back to our boat. I remarked near the Castle of Trematon, as about other English castles, and public walks, a vast flock of rooks, which roost there, making a great filth and noise. The rook is much esteemed, and I hear that the people foster them, and have their eggs hatched under pigeons, as they are thought to destroy vast numbers of injurious insects.
Amid all this friendly, agreeable, and learned society, these entertainments and excursions, my impatience became great, and augmented from day to day, from hour to hour. My time was precious, yet the greater part of it was lost here. I waited with increasing anxiety for the arrival of the Pallas, which still did not appear. More than once I resolved to leave behind all I had on board of the corvette, and go to the United States in a common packet. In the meanwhile various considerations deferred my departure from day to day, until finally on the 30th of May the Pallas arrived.
While waiting for the ship, I derived much pleasure from a visit made with Sir John Phillimore to the country seat of Colonel Ginnis, formerly of the army. He lives in a beautiful park, a charming situation, five miles from Plymouth, not far from the left bank of the Tamer, with five lovely and handsome daughters. His house is very tastefully arranged, and ornamented with paintings by himself. He has a peculiar talent for landscape painting, both in oil and water colours. He has thus preserved representations of the most beautiful situations visited in the course of his numerous journeys. He passed nine years in North America, and showed us views of wonders of nature, which I hope soon to admire myself. His view of the cataract of Niagara, and Falls of Montmorenci, gave me great pleasure.
Sir John Phillimore also accompanied me to see Mr. Harris, a surgeon, who has invented a new lightning conductor for ships. He has, for the sake of experiment, had the model of a frigate built, which he floats in a tub of water. There is a conductor to each mast, from which copper rods, secured close to each other, run down the mast to the keel, through which they pass into the water. Mr. Harris asserts, that the lightning passes down these rods without affecting any thing in the vicinity. To prove this, he wound around the mast a paper filled with fine gunpowder, through which the lightning was sent without exploding it. To prove farther, that the electricity can produce combustion after passing through water, he connected the conductor below the keel by a copper wire, with the touch-hole of a small cannon, which was floated in the tub. When the electricity strikes the conductor on the mast, the cannon is instantaneously fired. The cloud is represented by a frame stuffed with cotton, which hangs by a silk thread, and is connected with an electrical machine. Mr. Harris has a fine collection of philosophical apparatus; the lightning rod of his house communicates by conductors with a chime of bells, which are set to ringing whenever an electric cloud passes over the house; this happened during our visit. Mr. Harris has published a small pamphlet relative to his ship-conductor, of which he presented me with a copy. We were very much gratified with his experiments, and were grateful to him for his politeness.
The delay of the Pallas also afforded me an opportunity of seeing an East India ship launched. She was called the City of Rochester; was built in London, and had sailed on her first voyage last autumn, for Bengal, but off the heights of Plymouth was struck by a tremendous hurricane with so much power as to wreck her to a degree that required rebuilding. I had an opportunity of examining her while on the stocks, and was pleased with her construction. She is intended to carry passengers. On the quarter-deck she has a parlour and two state-rooms, like the captain’s quarters in a ship of the line, and below, the rooms are distributed, as in the wardroom of a ship of the line, with this difference, that in a transport ship the chambers are larger and neater than in a ship of war. In each state-room there is a toilette, with a water-closet, which is exceedingly good and comfortable. As I had never seen a ship launched before, I was much interested. She rested upon two ways, and was retained by two wedges; at a given signal these were knocked away, and then by her own weight she was slowly and majestically launched into the water, amid the acclamations of a great crowd of people.
The celebrated General Mina, a victim of the troubles which existed in unfortunate Spain, met with a hearty welcome in England. But the humid climate of this island did not agree with him, and he was afflicted with rheumatism. Plymouth has the reputation of enjoying a very fine climate, and together with the great medical skill of Dr. Hammick, who has charge of the Marine hospital, is very much praised. For both these reasons, General Mina had selected Plymouth as his residence. I cultivated his acquaintance, and was witness of a very interesting ceremony in honour of him. The Spanish committee in London had voted him a sword, and a member of this society, Mr. Bowring, the same person who in 1824 was arrested in France, on account of a pretended treasonable correspondence, and soon after liberated again, was commissioned to present this sword to the general in a solemn manner. It was on the 2d of June, when a numerous and selected company met at the Royal Hotel of Plymouth, to attend this ceremony. As the general was introduced to the company, Mr. Bowring informed the public of the object of the meeting, and praised the merits of the brave general. He then addressed the general in Spanish, informed him of the decision of the committee, and finally displayed the diploma which accompanied the sword: this was drawn up in English and Spanish with great calligraphic splendour. The diploma and sabre were then presented to the general. The sword has a gold hilt, with the general’s arms on it, and a richly gilt sheath, the sides of which were beautifully embossed with emblems of the general’s services. Mina returned an answer in Spanish, and gave it to Mr. Bowring. One of the company quickly translated it into English, for the benefit of the public, whose long-continued applauses expressed their admiration of the brave general. Mr. Bowring invited me to a friendly entertainment that was to be given to Mina; unfortunately I was obliged to decline it, as I had already made another engagement.
[The 5th of June was fixed upon for the sailing of the Pallas for Falmouth, but bad weather and high head winds detained her until the 7th. On the 9th, at 6 A. M. she arrived at Falmouth.]
This tolerably long town lay at the foot of a hill, on our left, and contains seven thousand inhabitants. It has by no means a brilliant appearance, as it is, like Devonport, built of grey limestone, and the roofs are slated. It is not visible from the sea, as a hill intervenes, upon which the citadel stands. On the right side of the bay there is an old castle, called St. Mawes, with about five houses, tenanted by poor fishermen; this castle is one of the often-mentioned rotten boroughs: it formerly was a town, and still sends two members to parliament.
The hills are mostly cultivated; some are employed as pastures. Trees are very rare, and few ships lay in the harbour. We anchored not far from the frigate Astrea, a guard-ship, and saluted her with eleven guns, which she returned. When we fired a salute on our arrival at Spithead, the oil was spilled from the sympisometer, and Captain Ryk was obliged to obtain a new one from London. To avoid a similar catastrophe, the sympisometer and chronometer were both kept in hands during this salute. The frigate Astrea, commanded by Captain King, serves as a depôt for all the packets, which sail hence to all parts of the world lying south and west of England, and are collectively under command of Captain King. The packets were formerly private property; the conveyance of the mail to foreign parts, was consequently not only very irregular, but a wide door was opened for smuggling. – On this account, the government, after having contracted with the former proprietors of the packets, assumed the sole direction. When a packet is no longer retained in service, a corvette or brig, commanded by a lieutenant of the navy, is substituted. At this time thirty-four packets were in service, of which fifteen were vessels of war, commanded by navy officers, the others were the old packets in charge of their former captains.
Soon after our arrival we were visited by the consul of the Netherlands, Mr. Lake, who brought me several letters. We afterwards received a visit from Captain King, a very entertaining old gentleman. At eleven o’clock, Captain Ryk and I went on shore, where we found a crowd assembled to witness our landing. We took lodgings in the Royal Hotel, a large, tastefully-arranged building, though in a very filthy street. We were much annoyed by the fish-market, which was immediately opposite to us; in this we saw very large and fine fish, as well as enormous shrimps, which are here very cheap. We repaired to the Custom House, where I made the necessary arrangements relative to the landing of my baggage, after which we visited Mr. Lake and Captain King. The latter lived without the limits of the city, near the bay, in a house, which, though old and small, is very handsomely situated in a garden, and commands a very fine prospect of the bay. The house is also historically remarkable: it was once inhabited by Oliver Cromwell.
The citadel, named Pendennis Castle, stands, as has been already remarked, on an eminence near the entrance of the bay, which it defends. It occupies the entire height, and is not overlooked by any other fortress. The soil consists of slate, and many of the works are cut out of the rock. It has six bastions, and on the water side, two batteries, each of about twenty pieces. A furnace for heating shot stands near the upper battery, and the lower, which lies close to the shore, is attached by its left wing to an old tower erected during the reign of Henry VIII. The fortress was built in Cromwell’s time. At the southern point stands an old tower, built of granite and surrounded by a ditch, which was erected in the reign of Henry VIII. This tower, the original fortress, serves at present as the dwelling of the commander. It may be compared with the French tours modelés. From the pinnacle, a tolerably extensive prospect of the surrounding country may be obtained. The day on which I visited the fortress with several officers from the Pallas, was very favourable, and yet a fog on the hills, descended into the vale between the fortress and the city of Falmouth, so that some time elapsed before we could see the rocky shore of the sea. These fogs are said to appear very frequently, even on the finest summer days. The fortress, which is capable of containing a garrison of two thousand men, was merely occupied by a detachment of veterans. There is an arsenal in it, where we saw nearly four thousand stands of arms for infantry and marines, besides a number of sabres, &c. all very handsomely arranged. I observed in this, as in other English fortresses, that even during peace, nearly all the cannon are suffered to remain mounted on the walls, and the fortresses are enclosed with palisades. Truly! many persons find the business of keeping the carriages in good order very profitable, and the palisades also serve instead of hedges!
The Dalcoath mines are about fourteen miles from Falmouth. The stockholders of these mines, held a meeting on the 13th of June, to settle their accounts. I rode thither with Mr. Lake, Captain Ryk, and some officers of the Pallas. But having already visited many mines, and learnt from experience that nothing is generally seen but small and low passages, that much inconvenience is experienced from dampness and filth, and my object being to visit America, I thought it by no means necessary to enter these subterraneous regions. Coals are not found in the province of Cornwall. The ore is therefore sold in heaps, at about seven pounds and a half sterling per ton, and conveyed by water to Wales, where, as is well known, stone-coal is found in abundance; it is there smelted. The Dalcoath mines occupy a large extent of ground, and have seven shafts, one of which is three hundred and forty fathoms deep. The pumps are worked by means of steam-engines, the cylinder of one of which is seventy-six inches in diameter. We were told of an engine in the neighbourhood, whose cylinder was one hundred inches in diameter. Nearly eight hundred people work daily in the Dalcoath mines, whose wages are proportioned to the product of their labour. The ridge consists of granite and schist. The metals are copper and tin. The veins of these metals lie close together, frequently cross each other, and are so rich, that in general it yields a third of its weight in pure metal. The stone is broken and washed, and the copper separated from the tin, after which the ore is collected into heaps for sale. The breaking of the stone into small pieces is performed by women, some of whom were very handsome. I remarked also, that the stone was drawn up the shaft in iron, and not in wooden buckets, as is customary in other countries. The company to which these mines belong is said to realize great sums; however a deficit occasionally occurs. This was the case at the present settlement of accounts, and for this reason the gentlemen, about twenty in number, with a permanent director, Mr. Rennel at their head, were not in the best humour. At the dinner, which naturally closed the transaction, many local concerns, which did not particularly interest us, were discussed. Many toasts, which all referred to localities, were drank. At last, it occurred to the gentlemen to drink the health of the king of the Netherlands, which I returned by drinking the health of the royal family of England. The dinner consisted, according to the English fashion, of very solid food – roast-beef, plumb-pudding, &c.
Our course led us through Penryn, a small place, about two miles from Falmouth, containing about three thousand inhabitants, and but poorly built. It has a harbour, and lies at one extremity of Falmouth Bay. Coal ships from Wales, and vessels with grain from Ireland, principally visit this port. Cornwall is too hilly to allow the necessary grain to be raised, and the mines occupy so much space, and withdraw so many poor people from farming, that by far the largest portion of grain must be brought from other quarters. The road, which, though hilly, was in a good state, led through many pastures which were enclosed with hedges.
The few trees which are seen, have not attained a great height. In the new plantations I observed some larches. The houses are built of stone, many of granite, here very common and cheap, and roofed with slate. Many new houses are erected on speculation, because the population rapidly increases. We also passed through Redruth, a hilly and angular town, of about three thousand inhabitants, who are principally miners. The town is surrounded by mines, whose general aspect is by no means pleasing. On an eminence not far from Redruth, we saw some ruins which are said to be the remains of a Druid temple. In the mines I observed a superstitious practice, which I find to prevail also in ships and farm houses; a horse-shoe is nailed over the door to keep off witches. When at Dalcoath, we found ourselves only a mile and a half distant from Bristol Channel, and saw St. Agnes’ Beacon, a high mountain in the neighbourhood. We at last arrived at Tehidy Park, belonging to Lord Dunstanville; this is principally a new settlement, which appears to great advantage in a region like this, which is not rich. We stopped at the dwelling house to view it. It is a tolerably large, square building with four porches, and contains several paintings by Van Dyk, Lely, Kneller, Hudson, and Sir Joshua Reynolds; however, I doubt whether the former be genuine. I was particularly pleased with a very good portrait of the celebrated Fox. We saw also several statues, copies of the best antiques and cameos of verd and jaune antique.
I had frequently seen sketches of St. Michael’s Mount in Cornwall, and had long wished to see the mount itself. I accordingly took advantage of my present leisure to visit it. The mount lies in Mountbay, opposite Marazion, twenty-three miles distant from Falmouth. I left this place June 14th, at noon, the weather being very warm. The road leads through Penryn, and then inclines to the left towards the ridges, constantly up and down hill, through heaths, where few traces of culture were observed; the houses stand detached, and have a miserable appearance. On the heights, however, we had occasionally a prospect towards the western ridges of Cornwall. Trees are few in number; we observed mines here and there. Thirteen miles from Falmouth lies Helstone, a little mining town of two thousand five hundred inhabitants, containing some neat houses, but miserable pavements. The court-house stands in the middle of the town, under which is the market. On the other side of Helstone we came to a beautiful valley, where we saw trees again, and by means of a stone bridge we passed over Looe, a small stream, which at a short distance empties into the sea. As far as Marazion the region is agreeable; hilly indeed, but better cultivated. We approached the sea on the left; on the right we had the ridges, among which we discovered some neat farms. As we approached Marazion, which lies on a descent towards the sea, we enjoyed the really fine view of Mountbay and of St. Michael’s Mount. In Marazion we stopped at the Star Inn, and immediately took a boat to reach the mountain, which is a short distance from the shore. The rock, which at low water joins the shore, consists of granite, is a mile in circumference at its base, and is two hundred and fifty feet high. At its foot there is a small fishing village of about thirty houses, with a harbour formed by two new piers. By means of very inconvenient steps which are cut out of the rock, we reached an old castle, standing at the highest point, and belonging to the family St. Aubyn. This is the same family, whose chief, Sir John St. Aubyn, owns almost all the houses in Devonport, and a large portion of the ground of the dock-yard. In former times, St. Michael’s Mount was a cloister. Adapted by its isolated situation for a fortress, art has contributed but little to its strength, and added merely a pair of bastions, and platforms, on which a few small cannon belonging to the owner of the mount, are at present standing. It sustained several sieges in former times. We were conducted to a Gothic chapel with ancient, painted window-glasses, after which we examined the castle. In this, however, we found nothing remarkable, except the old refectory of the cloister, called the chevy-chace-room, with strange bas-reliefs, representing ancient hunting scenes. In this hall are very old pieces of furniture; one chair is said to be three hundred, another five hundred years old.
The windows of the castle command a very fine prospect towards Mountbay and its shores, in which Marazion and Penzance, which are three miles distant from each other, appear to very great advantage. Not far from the latter place, the Thetis lay at anchor. I regretted extremely that my time would not allow me to visit my gallant friend, Sir John Phillimore. A steeple rises above the church of the castle, which I, however, did not ascend, being fatigued, and the steps in a neglected state. We rode back to Marazion, which was formerly called Marketzew, and has eleven hundred inhabitants, and passing by Helstone, we arrived about one o’clock at night, much fatigued, at Falmouth. Penryn, to which I made several excursions, contains a row of newly-built, elegant houses, with handsome gardens and a catholic church. The beautiful terrace on which the new houses stand with their gardens, is called the Green Bank, and is a very agreeable promenade.
CHAPTER III
Voyage from Falmouth to Boston
[The Pallas sailed from Falmouth Bay on the 18th of June, and arrived on the 26th of July. During the voyage a midshipman was lost overboard, and the American ship Schuylkill, in distress for water and provisions, was spoken and relieved. The other incidents of the voyage are not sufficiently interesting to need a particular description.
The following is the duke’s account of his landing at Boston: —
It was ten o’clock, on the morning of the 26th of July, when I first placed my foot in America, upon a broad piece of granite! It is impossible to describe what I felt at that instant. Heretofore, but two moments of my life had left a delightful remembrance; the first was, when at seventeen years of age, I received the Cross of the Legion of Honour, after the battle of Wagram – the second, when my son William was born. My landing in America, that country which, from my early youth, had been the object of my warmest wishes, will, throughout life, remain a subject of pleasing recollection!]
CHAPTER IV
Boston
On our arrival in Boston we took lodgings at the Exchange Coffee-house, where I received a visit from Mr. Andrew Ritchie, whose acquaintance I made in England two years ago. I was much pleased to see this worthy man again, who eighteen months since married the daughter of Mr. Otis, formerly a senator of the United States and leader of the federal party; both these gentlemen are highly esteemed here. I dined at the inn at two o’clock, according to the custom of the place; my seat was at the head of the table, by the side of the host, Mr. Hamilton. He had served in the last war as a volunteer colonel, and still retained his title. He exhibited much politeness, and indeed I cannot sufficiently praise the politeness of the guests, with many of whom I became acquainted. The dishes were very good, and even had this not been the case I should still have enjoyed them, having so long been without fresh provisions; this was the case with the fruit, which though small and bad, was still agreeable. On account of the excessive heat, which had been greater than at any time during the last twenty years, fruit in general had matured too early. Wine was served up in coolers with ice, and into every glass of beer, a piece of ice was thrown.
Adjoining the large dining room is a parlour and two sitting rooms, where strangers who have nothing to do pass the day. At a sideboard, wine, lemonade, soda water, &c. with ice, may be obtained. Eight newspapers were lying on a large table, all of which had the form of English papers, and were chiefly filled with mercantile and other advertisements. The house itself is arranged much like an English inn. The servants of both colours were civil and attentive. At four o’clock, Mr. Ritchie with his father-in-law, and the son of the latter, lately returned from a tour in Europe, came to show us the city.
There are many elegant stores in Cornhill, one of the principal streets. We saw a new building, intended as a branch of the United States Bank, the front of which is plain, with two Doric columns, each consisting of a single piece of granite, eighteen feet high, and almost five feet in diameter. The first popular assemblies at the commencement of the American revolution, were held in the old court-house. A large hall, in which the aldermen meet, contains a full length portrait of Washington, by Stuart, and also a bust of Adams, father of the present president. The bust is encircled by a wreath of stars. The names of all the citizens who distinguished themselves by great services during the revolution, are engraved on four columns. The beef and vegetable markets are under the court-house; but as this place was justly considered unsuitable for such a purpose, a new market was built not far from the water. The corporation began to fill up a ditch, and erect upon it a long building, the foundation of which is granite, and the three stories of brick, which was sold to the merchants as a warehouse. This sale was made on such favourable terms, that from the profits a new market was built, parallel with this warehouse, entirely of granite. It is five hundred and twenty-five feet long, fifty feet wide, and one story high. On the other side of this market, and parallel with it, a new row of warehouses, similar to the former are building. Mr. Ritchie led us through several wide and elegant streets to his house, one of the largest in Boston, and situated on Beacon-hill, a public promenade. Many frame houses are still to be observed; no new houses can be built of wood. Most of them are of brick; granite, which is found in abundance about twenty miles from Boston, is used frequently for foundations, particularly for those of stores. The mall, as it is called, consists of a large meadow, sparingly planted with trees, and extending down the hill to the water. On the highest part of the hill stands the state-house or capitol, with a large dome, covered with copper. The building is of brick, decorated with a façade of ten columns. These are of wood, and impart to the whole an air of weakness. Mr. Ritchie’s house is furnished with much splendour and taste, and decorated by some paintings which he obtained during his travels. Among these I remarked a very successful copy of Madonna della sedia of Raphael, another Madonna of Sassoferrato, and a scene from the deluge of Poussin. We spent the evening with Mr. Ritchie, and became acquainted with his lady, and also with the widow of General Humphreys, adjutant of General Washington, and formerly ambassador of the United States to Lisbon and Madrid. Mrs. Humphreys is descended from an English family, was born in Lisbon, and must have been very handsome in her youth. Mr. Otis and his son were also present. When we departed at nine o’clock, it was still very warm, and the full moon looked like a glowing coal in the heated atmosphere. The Pallas arrived at Boston towards evening, and cast anchor near Long-wharf. In passing she saluted Fort Independence with seventeen guns, and was answered by eighteen.
I had imagined that no one would take the least notice of me in America, but I soon found myself agreeably disappointed. The morning after my arrival I received an invitation to dine the next day with Mr. Otis, and was visited at the same time by several gentlemen. Captain Henderson and Mr. Dixon, among others, called upon me; the latter introduced me to his wife and his father-in-law, Mr. Homer. This gentleman inhabits a large and handsome house on Beacon-hill, and has two amiable daughters. I was much pleased with the arrangement of this house, and indeed the houses and chambers in general are larger and better adapted for convenience and ease than the English.
In company with Mr. Ritchie I paid a visit to Mrs. Humphreys, whose house is really splendidly furnished. In the evening I visited Mr. De Wallenstein, attached to the Russian embassy at Washington, who resides here during the summer, on account of his health. He is an agreeable and reflecting man. Afterwards I visited Mr. Edward Everett, professor of the Greek language in Harvard University. Mr. Everett had previously written me a German letter, and offered me his services in an extremely friendly manner. He has passed five years in Europe, during two of which he studied at Goettingen, and also visited Weimar. He remembered this with much pleasure, and was particularly pleased with the acquaintance of St. M. v. Goethe. Having been elected a member of congress he resigned his professorship.
Mr. Everett called for me the next day to take me to Harvard University, at Cambridge, three miles distant from Boston. At twelve o’clock we left Boston, though the heat was extreme, and rode over the wooden bridge which connects both towns, and is three thousand four hundred feet long. Cambridge is by no means compactly built, but occupies a large extent of ground. The houses are generally frame, a few of brick, and very few entirely of granite; they are however painted with bright colours and are very pleasing to the eye. Every house has a garden. Many meadows, like those in England, are enclosed with three rails, lying one above the other; Indian corn is cultivated in the fields; the grass was dry and withered.
Harvard University, one of the oldest colleges in the United States, was founded in 1638, by a clergyman named Harvard, who bequeathed it about eight hundred pounds sterling. By means of bequests made since that period, it has now a very large income. The state of Massachusetts supplies the deficiencies without however making any fixed contribution. The university has eight buildings, chiefly of brick, and only one of granite. The Unitarian chapel is in the latter, in which, besides the usual services on Sunday, morning and evening prayers are held, which all the students must attend. In front of the buildings is a large space, surrounded with trees, where the students may amuse themselves. The students are about three hundred and fifty in number, and principally board and lodge in the buildings of the university; a number, however, who cannot find room, or are recommended to families, live in private houses. They are in other respects, as in the universities of England, subjected to a very rigid discipline. The library, which occupies two halls, contains about eighteen thousand volumes. It contains the first edition of the large work on Egypt; a Polyglot bible from the collection of Lord Clarendon; a splendid edition of the Lusiad, by Camoens, with plates from the designs of Gerard, edited by the Marquis de Souza, and printed by Didot at Paris. Only two hundred and fifty copies of this edition were printed, and this copy was given to the university by the Marquis himself. Of manuscripts I saw but few, and these were Greek, which Mr. Everett bought at Constantinople during his travels, and another containing the aphorisms of Hippocrates, which an English schoolmaster copied with so much skill, that it appears to have been printed.4 In the mathematical lecture room I did not observe a very complete apparatus. They have also but few astronomical instruments, and in one observatory there are none. A new electrical machine with a glass globe had but lately arrived from England. The mineralogical collection is under obligations to Mr. Ritchie for most of its finest specimens, which he bought during his travels at Dresden, and presented to the university. A piece of basalt found under ground in this neighbourhood, bears some similarity to the profile of a human face. It is not known whether it be a lusus naturæ or the work of human hands. Does this belong to the remains of an earlier race of men which has vanished from the earth, but which has, not without reason, been supposed by many to have once existed? The other natural collections were of slight importance; there are no collections of insects and butterflies. I saw there also the antlers of two stags, which had become so completely entangled in fighting, that they could not be separated, and in this state they were killed. The chemical laboratory is arranged in a separate house, strongly resembling a chapel. The anatomical theatre has been removed for want of room, from Cambridge to Boston. In the former lecture room, however, there are still several handsome wax preparations made in Florence, among which are two fine full length figures, male and female. The latter represents a pregnant woman, and is separable. Near the chapel is the assembly room of the academical senate, where there are some very handsome engravings. I was surprised to find among these engravings the defence of Gibraltar, by Elliot, and one which represented Admiral Dewinter taken prisoner by Admiral Duncan. I gave the attendant who conducted us two dollars, and he seemed to be so much gratified by my generosity, that when we were in the chapel he whispered to the organist, who immediately played “God save the king,” at which I was much surprised. We were escorted through the botanic garden by Professor Nuttall, an Englishman, who has made several scientific journeys in the western parts of the United States. Among the green-house plants I observed a strelitzia, which had been raised from seed in this country, and also a blooming and handsome Inua gloriosa, and a Hedychium longifolium. The green-house and the garden are both small; in the latter I remarked no extraordinary shrubs or flowers, on the contrary, however, I saw many beetles, which were new to me, with bright colours, and extremely beautiful butterflies. A son of President Adams is one of the students of the university, and also Mr. Jerome Bonaparte, a legitimate son of the former king of Westphalia, by his marriage with Miss Patterson of Baltimore, which marriage, as is well known, was dissolved by the Emperor Napoleon. This young man, who is about twenty years old, bears an excellent character.
My acquaintances increased in number, and I received visits from many distinguished men. Among those who paid me this honour on the third day after my arrival, I must mention the Danish ambassador, Mr. Pedersen, who was travelling with his family in the northern parts of the United States, and was introduced to me by Mr. Ritchie; Mr. Josiah Quincy, mayor of the city, was also present, a worthy and extremely agreeable man, to whom I am under great obligations.
After the gentlemen had withdrawn, I visited the New England Museum, a very pompous description of which had fallen into my hands. This museum is a private establishment, and consists of a mixture of wax figures, musical clocks, stuffed animals, portraits, French caricatures, butterflies, &c. Two articles alone interested me, namely, two living rattlesnakes, and three Egyptian mummies. The snakes, caught near Lake Erie, were lying in a box covered with glass, and received no nourishment but water. They are ugly creatures, of a dark gray colour, with large sharp scales and yellow bellies. Large thick heads, prominent black eyes, and forked tongues. One of them, which was engaged in casting its skin, was for the time blind; it had four rattles, and was receiving a fifth. The attendant irritated it, but we did not hear it rattle. Spirit of hartshorn is said to be very effectual against their bite. The mummies were brought last year in an American vessel from Egypt. One was in the same condition in which it had been when in the coffin, except that the cloth had been taken from the face. The two others were more or less uncovered; their coffins were well preserved. I was astonished to see the fresh colours of the figures painted on them. One of the mummies had two coffins, whence it is inferred that she was a person of high rank. I saw also a Chinese painting, representing all the tortures and modes of death common in China; a shocking and disgusting sight. Finally, I observed a good model of the old bastile of Paris, made of a stone from this building.
The mayor, Mr. Quincy, had the politeness to show us the state prison. This is situated in Charlestown, is of granite, and was built about twenty years ago at the expense of the state of Massachusetts. It consists of a centre building, containing the dwelling and offices of the superintendant, as well as the watchroom, and of two wings, where the prisoners are lodged. Behind the building is a large yard where the prisoners work. It is enclosed by a high wall, with palisades, which is guarded day and night by several sentinels. The prisoners are chiefly employed in cutting and polishing blocks of granite, which are used in Boston and its vicinity. The punishment of every prisoner who is sufficiently robust, commences with this hard labour, which, however, is changed if his conduct merits it, or if he exhibits abilities for some other employment. As stone-cutter, a daily task is assigned to him, which, if not finished, or badly done, is followed by solitary confinement. If he performs more than his task, he is paid for the surplus. Of this sum he can dispose as he pleases when discharged. Newly-arrived prisoners, and those who have conducted themselves badly, are dressed in green and blue, when, however, they conduct themselves properly again, they are freed from this distinguishing habit. Other prisoners work at various trades; supplying at the same time their mutual wants, as shoes, &c. An engraver who was imprisoned for counterfeiting Nova Scotia bank notes, worked in a separate room, and engraved very neat maps. Four prisoners sleep in one cell, which are all tolerably well ventilated, and every prisoner has his own hammock. Black bread and soup constitute the food of the prisoners, who receive besides for breakfast and supper, a portion of syrup and flour, forming a kind of pudding. Besides the usual service on Sunday, they have prayers daily.
A report of the state of the prison from September 30, 1823, to September 30, 1824, which was published by the warden, Mr. Thomas Harris, contains the following results: —
The whole number of prisoners from 1805 to September 30, 1824, was one thousand eight hundred and sixteen; of these there were thirteen hundred and three dismissed, after the period of their punishment had expired; two hundred and ninety-eight were pardoned; fifteen escaped; one hundred and two died; two hundred and ninety-eight remained; of the thirteen hundred and three who were dismissed, two hundred and thirteen were a second time in prison for new crimes, and among these two hundred and thirteen there were twenty-four who had been pardoned.
On the 30th of September, 1823, there were three hundred and eight prisoners; of these eighty were dismissed, ten pardoned, six died, and, consequently, two hundred and twelve remained. To these eighty-six had been added, so that the number of prisoners amounted, September 30th, 1824, to two hundred and ninety-eight, as was mentioned above. Among these there were only three females.
Of these two hundred and ninety-eight, there were fifty-four black or coloured people, and fifty-nine white foreigners, viz. thirteen Englishmen, seventeen Irishmen, eight Scotchmen, four from Nova Scotia, two Canadians, one from the Cape of Good Hope, three West Indians, four Frenchmen, two Swedes, two Italians, one from Green Cape, one Portuguese, one German.
Two hundred and twenty-two were sentenced for stealing, twenty-six for passing counterfeit money, sixteen for burglary, seven for attempted rape, six for attempting to murder, five for being incendiaries, eleven for forgery, and five, among whom were the three females, for robbery.
The prisoners are employed in different occupations; one hundred and twenty-one were stone-cutters, twenty-seven for removing the stone, thirty joiners, eleven brush makers, eight weavers, six shoemakers, ten tailors, &c. There were eleven in the hospital, four in solitary confinement, and three invalids.
The expenses of the prison amounted to forty-one thousand six hundred and ninety-five dollars for the maintenance of the prisoners, clothes, beds, medicine, and materials employed in the labours of the prisoners; and fifteen thousand nine hundred and twenty-six dollars for the officers, &c. Total of expenses, fifty-seven thousand six hundred and twenty-two dollars.
The income derived from the labours of the prisoners amounted to fifty-eight thousand eight hundred and thirty-four dollars, and thus the prison was not only of no expense to the state, but produced a profit of twelve hundred and twelve dollars!
After leaving this remarkable building, the mayor accompanied us to Cambridge. A company of volunteers from Boston, the Washington Rangers, were training. The company were already departing when we arrived, but had the politeness to halt and repeat their exercise again. They exhibited much skill. They are somewhat fantastically dressed in green, and armed with long rifles. I became acquainted with the officers, who were all young men of the best families. I also spoke with several Cambridge students, some of whom were dressed in a uniform, belonging to a volunteer company, consisting of students alone.
We then went to Bunker’s Hill, near Charlestown. The space is small, but of great importance in American history. Connected with the main land by a bridge, this field of battle lies on a small island and has two hills, the higher and most northern of which is called Bunker’s Hill; the southern, Breed’s Hill, commands Charlestown and the Boston Roads. In the year 1775, the Americans occupied this hill, and with their artillery, which was placed in a redoubt hastily thrown up, harassed the English garrison in Boston, and the fleet. On the morning of the 17th of June, the English made a sally, left Boston, landed on a point east of the redoubt, where the Americans had left too weak a defence, formed their columns, whilst the artillery in Boston set Charlestown on fire, and attacked the redoubt. This was so well defended, that the English were twice obliged to retreat with very great loss. In one of these unsuccessful attacks, the English Major Pitcairn, who shortly before had commanded the English advance guard at the affair of Lexington, was shot by an American sharp shooter, who still lives, at the moment when he shouted to his soldiers not to be “afraid of these d – d rebels, which were nothing but a crowd of grasshoppers.”
But the English received reinforcements, and renewed the attack. The Americans, on the contrary, had expended their ammunition, and the shot sent to them from Cambridge, the headquarters of General Lee, were too large for the calibre of their pieces. They could obtain no assistance, as an English man of war kept up a fierce fire upon the bridge, the only means of communication with the main land. They determined, therefore, to evacuate the redoubt, and they effected it, though with great loss. At this time an English officer shot Dr. Warren, one of the most distinguished American patriots, who shortly before had been appointed general, by congress. The English did not pursue the Americans farther than Bunker’s Hill, but returned during the night to Boston. The remains of the redoubt are still seen, and on the 17th of June last, the corner stone of a monument was laid, which is to be an obelisk two hundred and ten feet high. One hundred and thirty veterans were present at this ceremony, the last of the seventeen hundred Americans who had participated in this affair.
Finally, Mr. Quincy introduced us, in Charlestown, to a major of militia, who devotes much of his attention to rural economy, and to the breeding of cattle and horses. His whole establishment was interesting. The major showed us, particularly, a noble English bull, from which he had raised very handsome and strong calves, and also a fine English stallion, ten years old.
In these peregrinations I made inquiries after Miss Wright, who, some years ago, published letters on America, which excited much attention in Europe, as well as in America. I was told that this lady with her sister, unattended by a male protector, had roved through the country, in steam-boats and stages, that she constantly tagged about after General La Fayette, and whenever the general arrived at any place, Miss Wright was sure to follow next day, as but little notice had been taken of this lady in Boston, a literary attack was expected from her pen. She is no longer young, and is of tall stature and masculine manners. In general, her letters are not much esteemed, and the flattering terms in which she speaks of Americans and all their institutions, are regarded as overstrained.5
On the 30th of July I went on board the Pallas to attend to the unloading of my baggage. I remained there a few hours, as I found it cooler on board than on shore. The vessel was as they said, full of visitors all day, for Captain Ryk, with his usual liberality, denied access to no one of genteel appearance. Citizens are by no means allowed to visit American vessels of war, unless they are known to an officer, and on this account the curiosity of the inhabitants of this place to see a foreign vessel of war is great.
When I returned to the city, I visited Mr. Quincy, who took me to the Court-house to see the arsenal of the thirteen volunteer companies of this place. One of these companies has been organized ever since 1638; all of these consist of young men of good families, who do not wish to serve in the same companies with the common crowd, but have united, and, in elegant uniforms, compose the flank companies of the battalions of militia. A large hall in the Court-house is appropriated for their exercises, when the weather is inclement. Every company consists of about sixty men. The greater number of the companies are armed like infantry, with bayonets according to the English mode, and the riflemen alone with rifles. Not only the arms of the company, but the swords of the officers are kept in the chambers of the Court-house.
From the Court-house, Mr. Quincy took me to the Athenæum, where the principal journals of the United States are found, and a library of about twenty thousand volumes, which were partly presented and partly purchased. A regular librarian showed us every thing; we noticed particularly several interesting medals, and the collection made by Thomasson in Birmingham, which represents the Elgin marbles. In the vestibule of the house, and in the large reading room, are plaster busts, which Lawyer Thorndike brought from Rome and presented to the Athenæum. The handsome house itself, which is valued at twenty thousand dollars, was given to the society by Mr. Perkins, a brother of the celebrated mechanician in London.
Some days later, August 2, Mr. Quincy had the politeness to show me several hospitals of the city.
The civil hospital was founded about twenty years ago, and is a massive building of granite, with ten Ionic columns of the same stone. The building, founded by voluntary subscriptions, and afterwards enriched by legacies, now supports itself by the interest of the capital and by fees which some patients pay. The administration of the hospitals and other benevolent institutions, is conducted, without charge, by the principal inhabitants, in a very correct and economical manner. The house has a cellar, two stories besides a ground floor, and may contain about eighty sick of both sexes, which are placed in different wings of the building. There were at that time fifty-six patients, under the care of six nurses and a matron. The house is under the direction of a steward, who is at the same time a physician. Those patients who pay ten dollars a week, occupy separate chambers, with separate attendants; others pay only three dollars a week, and many nothing at all. The latter are all in the same halls, which, however, are very light and well ventilated. The sick sleep on beds of hard wood, with good hair mattresses and very fine bed clothes. The steps are of granite, the halls and chambers are planked, and the floors are painted with oil colours. I have seen many hospitals, but none in which the sick were so conveniently and suitably lodged, and none in which cleanliness was so well observed. The kitchen and wash-house are in the cellar. In the former, the victuals are cooked by means of steam, and the latter is arranged like that in the Plymouth Marine Hospital, namely, with very large wooden frames to dry the clothes. The session room of the directors, the anatomical theatre, with some chambers for sick, are in the first story; the dwelling of the matron, and the remainder of the chambers for patients, are arranged in the second story. Two reservoirs of water, which may be raised by pumps, should a fire break out, are situated on the ground floor. Mr. Coolidge, one of the directors, accompanied us, and conducted us also to the lunatic asylum, which is under the same directors.
This building stands on an eminence between Cambridge and Charlestown. A farm-house has been purchased in the neighbourhood, which serves as the dwelling of the steward and head physician, as well as for a kitchen and wash-house. Behind this house two very solid wings have been built, three stories high, one for males, and the other for females. They somewhat resemble prisons, but are concealed by the farm-house, which has a very pleasing aspect, and thus prevents the unpleasant sensations which the institution would otherwise excite in the minds of the unhappy lunatics when they first approach it. A large garden, surrounded with a wall, is attached to each wing, serving as a place of recreation for the patients. A well-lighted corridor runs along each story, at each side of which are the doors of the cells; in these nothing is placed but a wooden bedstead, as in the hospital. Every story has an eating room, and a common hall; in the latter, in which the sick may pass the day, a table is placed with benches, which are nailed to the floor. The infuriated are placed in solitary cells, and when they cannot be subdued, are brought under a cold shower bath. The chambers are heated, as in the hospitals, by means of flues. In this asylum also, in which there were forty patients, the greatest cleanliness prevailed.
On the 3d of August, Mr. Quincy called for me at twelve o’clock, to introduce me, with Captain Ryk and Mr. Tromp, to the elder Mr. Adams, father of the present president. This worthy old man, who was ninety years old, and a signer of the Declaration of Independence, lives ten miles from Boston, on his farm at Quincy, revered by his family, and honoured by the whole nation, who regard him as their common father. I was much affected when, as I approached this venerable man who had so efficiently laboured in the cause of American independence, he extended to me his hand. He was still in full possession of his mental faculties, and remembered, not only the things which had occurred long ago, but knew also every thing which had recently taken place, or was now passing. His bodily strength, however, was diminishing, and he felt a weakness, particularly in his legs. He conversed with me about half an hour, especially concerning Holland, where he had been ambassador during the revolution, and the features of his ancient countenance revived again as he dwelt on the fact, that it was owing to him that Holland then declared war against England, and the English ambassador, notwithstanding all his intrigues, could effect nothing. When Mr. Tromp was introduced to him, he remembered his great ancestor, shook his hand in a friendly manner, was much affected, and said to him, “God bless you, Van Tromp!” We left this worthy old man in deep emotion, and congratulated each other on our good fortune in having been introduced to this departing veteran of a revolution, which may well be called salutary.
In his house we saw several good portraits and busts of him, portraits of his wife, who died seven years ago, of his son, the president, and of General Warren, who fell at Bunker’s Hill. We saw also a son of President J. Q. Adams, who is a lawyer at Boston, and with whom I became acquainted some days ago in the Athenæum.
From Boston to Quincy there is a good turnpike road. It runs over some hills, on which the traveller sees a handsome panorama; behind him the city, on the left the bay, in front a well-cultivated region with handsome farms, on the right the Blue Hills. We passed by several neat farm-houses; the grounds are separated by means of dry walls, the stones of which are partly hewn, and separated from each other, somewhat like those of Scotland. No old trees are found, because the first settlers very imprudently destroyed all the wood, and now it must be raised again with much trouble. Lombardy poplars, and plane trees are frequent. The inhabitants generally appear to be in good circumstances, at least the farmers seem to prosper, and the houses appear to great advantage, for instance, we remarked a common village blacksmith shop, which was built of massive granite. At the very neat village of Miltonbridge we passed over the river Neponset, which is navigable for small vessels.
Quincy contains about four thousand inhabitants, and has assumed this name in honour of the mayor’s family, which is here much beloved and esteemed. Mr. Quincy’s country seat, to which we repaired from the house of the ex-president, is about two miles distant from the latter, and lies in the neighbourhood of the sea on a small eminence, from which there is a very handsome prospect towards the bay. Mr. Quincy introduced us to his family, to his wife, two sons, and four daughters. The eldest daughter is very accomplished, and excels in painting landscapes in sepia. Some years ago she visited the Falls of Niagara with her family, and sketched several views. The other daughters are also very well educated, and have a talent for music. We met here several gentlemen from Boston, among others, Mr. Shepherd, Mr. Everett, and President Kirkland, from Cambridge, who was accompanied by an aged English teacher, Mr. Cooper, who fled from England with Priestley, thirty-five years ago, and now directs Columbia College in South Carolina. He appeared to be a gloomy, austere man, and very different in his address from the humane and friendly manner of Dr. Kirkland. Towards evening we returned to Boston by a shorter road, and passed the Neponset by means of a long wooden bridge, which Mr. Quincy built not far from the place where it empties into the sea. We then passed through Dorchester, and saw on an eminence to the right the remains of two redoubts, built by the English, which the great Washington took from them, strengthened, and thus principally contributed to the evacuation of Boston.
I accompanied, August 4th, a party to a Mr. Nathaniel Amory; we passed over the long mill-dam, which cuts off a part of the water surrounding Boston, and is to be filled up in time, and houses built on it. Six miles from the city is a wooden bridge over Charles river, which we crossed to see the arsenal on the opposite side. This establishment was built in 1816. A long yard, surrounded with a wall of granite, is attached to the chief arsenal, which is three stories high, with two wings, containing the offices and dwellings of the two directors, Major Craige and Lieutenant Van Nessen. The workshops of the different mechanics, belonging to the arsenal, are arranged behind this building, on each side of the yard; at a short distance from the arsenal stands the powder magazine, built of granite, and containing about fifty thousand pounds; thirty thousand stands of arms are contained in the arsenal in chests, each holding twenty pieces. I saw there a newly-invented machine for casting a hundred and sixty-two balls at once, giving them at the same time a perfectly round form. The arsenal is very pleasantly situated in Watertown.
We passed farther along the shore, through a romantic part of the country, towards Waltham. At this place a branch of a large cotton manufactory is situated, belonging to a company of twenty-five persons. It is under the direction of Mr. Jackson, who possesses a very handsome dwelling, where he appears to pass a happy life with his amiable family. About four hundred and fifty workmen are employed, who live in different buildings belonging to the factory, and form a particular colony; they have two schools, a church, and a clergyman. They appear to be in very good circumstances, as the dress, cleanly exterior, and healthy appearance of the workmen testify. In these buildings the cotton is spun and woven; but the colouring and printing are performed in another establishment. The machines are worked by water, which is said not to freeze in winter, but sometimes fails in dry summers. More simple machines than jennys are used for spinning, and the dressing machines are different from those in the Netherlands, though not better, I believe, as they have but one cylinder. The weaving machines are mostly of wood, which is very cheap, though I believe that our iron ones are better. The workmen of this factory are, as I have since learned, esteemed on account of their good manners, and their morality is universally praised. But one case of seduction occurred in ten years. After leaving this factory we passed by several very neat houses and parks; the latter are smaller than those in England, because in this country there are no rights of primogeniture, and the estate of parents at their death is divided into as many parts as there are children. On this account we do not find such great and powerful landholders here as in England. It is a subject of dispute, whether primogeniture or equal division be preferable; but it is certain that real prosperity is much more diffused through the nation in America, and the land is better cultivated.
Mr. Nathaniel Amory’s country seat lies on a small eminence in a tolerably large park, and affords an extensive prospect of the vicinity of Boston. Mr. Amory collected several good paintings of the Flemish school in his travels, and some handsome mosaic work in Rome, with which his house is decorated. In the afternoon we took a walk through the park to a cottage, which belongs to the English sea captain, Wormley, brother-in-law of Mr. Amory, and, though small, is very neatly arranged, and handsomely situated. A small lake, called the Fresh Pond, with its shady trees, affords a very picturesque view. After spending some time very agreeably with his friendly family, we returned at nine o’clock in the evening, by way of Cambridge to Boston.
I visited the navy-yard on the 5th August, in company with Major Wainwright, of the marines, and Lieutenant Gwynn. In the small barracks of the marines where we commenced, the rooms are not large; the beds stand on a platform, so that the rooms are very narrow and close. The appearance of the soldiers was not remarkable. The navy-yard was founded only twelve years ago, and not yet completed, but is very extensive. A dry dock has not yet been made, but will be advantageously placed. The two line of battle ships, Columbus and Independence, and the frigate Java, were in ordinary. Two line of battle-ships and a corvette were on the stocks, and not yet named. The two former, which were under sheds, were finished, so that they could leave the stocks as soon as government should order. But as no loss was incurred, the vessels were allowed to lie on the stocks, and under shelter as long as possible, that the wood may become still better seasoned. The sheds are larger than the English, and are actual houses. The two vessels are very modestly called seventy-fours, but have each three decks; the one pierced for one hundred and thirty thirty-two pounders, and the other for an hundred and thirty-six, of the same caliber. They are built of live oak, and to prevent the dry rot, salt is scattered among the timbers, which, as I was told, was of great advantage. The vessels are so high and roomy, that I could stand erect in the two lower batteries under the beams. Some methods which tend to strengthen and relieve vessels, used in other places, have not yet been adopted here; for instance, I did not observe the cruciform strengthening of the sides, and the diagonal deck, according to the plan of Sir Robert Seppings, from which two improvements the navies of England and the Netherlands derive the greatest advantage. The same system which prevails in England is observed here, namely, not to employ shipwrights for builders, as in the Netherlands and in France, but carpenters. Mr. Baker, the master shipwright of this place, with whom I became acquainted, is considered to be a very skilful man.
After we had seen the navy-yard, been much gratified with its good condition, and wishing it might soon be finished, we visited the lady of the commissioner, Captain Craine, who was absent. The commissioner’s house belongs to the government, and is placed on a height overlooking the navy-yard; the architect who planned it, worried the commissioner with continual questions relative to the form of the house, until finally he replied in great vexation, build it like my —. The architect took him at his word, and built it with two round projections standing close together, which have a very curious appearance from the navy-yard. We saw in the navy-yard sails of cotton canvass, which are preferred to hempen sails, both because they are more easily worked, and are peculiarly durable. They are not, however, liked in the navy, because they are too combustible, and on that account might be extremely dangerous to a vessel during an action; they are therefore used only for the higher sails.
On the next day Mr. Quincy very politely invited me to visit some of the public schools, which are under his direction. I accepted this invitation with much pleasure, for in a country like this, where the people govern themselves, without doubt the prevailing spirit may be best learnt from the institutions for public education. There are also at Boston, besides various private and two public schools, a Latin and a mathematical school, called high schools, which are both maintained at the expense of the city; boys of every class are admitted without paying for their tuition.6 Well-informed young men, who received good salaries, are selected as teachers. The first teacher of the high school receives yearly two thousand five hundred dollars. The study of the ancient languages, the Latin and Greek, forms the basis of public instruction. At the same time that these are taught, the attention, acuteness, and memory of the pupils, are variously exercised; if, for example, any one recites a line of the Eneid, and repeats the last letter, another immediately arises, and repeats from the same poem a line, beginning with this letter. The pupils do this with wonderful rapidity. The declamations took place during our presence. One of the scholars recited the speech of an English member of parliament, with so warm and correct a delivery, that the speech could scarcely have been better spoken in parliament. Another recited an oration, in which the advantages of a moderate above a despotic government, were also exhibited in a very good and distinct manner. Every evening the place of each scholar in the class for the next day, is appointed by the teacher, according to the industry which he may have shown during the day, and entered into a book. At the end of the month judgments are passed on all the pupils according to this list.
The mathematical and physical sciences are taught in the high school; it possesses a very good philosophical cabinet. We heard one class examined in arithmetic, and another in analytic geometry. In the former I saw that much attention was paid to mental calculation, and was surprised at the quick and correct solutions of difficult arithmetical questions. In the higher class the teacher proposed a question, and all those immediately arose who thought they could answer it. One was designated by the teacher to solve it, and if another thought the answer not exactly correct, he raised his hand, without interrupting the first, and corrected him when called upon. I was pleased both with the kind manners of the teachers, and the modest, correct, and easy deportment of the scholars. The boys generally had handsome faces, and were all of an animated physiognomy. With this they combine, as I was frequently convinced, the greatest respect for their parents and teachers. It appears to me impossible that young people, who receive so liberal an education, can grow up to be bad or malicious men. I was indeed affected when I left the schools, and could not but congratulate Mr. Quincy from the bottom of my heart, on such a rising generation! Captain Ryk, who accompanied us, participated in my views and feelings.
From the schools we went to the state-house or capitol, of the exterior of which I have already spoken, but the interior arrangement I had not yet seen. Besides the offices belonging to the state government, it contains the assembly rooms of the three bodies which govern the state, the council of the governor, the senate, and the representatives. These rooms are spacious; still, however, it is evident, that thirty-seven years ago, when this building was erected, every thing was done in haste, and that architecture had not then made the progress which it since has. All the steps are of wood. A trophy is erected in one of the chambers, composed of Brunswick arms, which were taken at the battle of Saratoga. One hundred and sixty-eight steps lead to the lantern of the cupola, which is of wood, and covered with copper. Notwithstanding the excessive heat, we went up, and our labour was richly recompensed by a splendid prospect. The dome is the highest point in the vicinity, and affords a view not only of the whole city and the bay, but also of a great extent of ground beyond, in every part of which a number of neat dwellings may be observed.
Thus passed almost fourteen days, in an uncommonly pleasing and instructive manner. In general my state of health allowed me to enjoy every new and interesting object with serenity of mind; I was indisposed but two days, and this was probably owing to the excessive heat. Even the intermediate hours, which could not be dedicated to the inspection of public institutions, generally afforded instructive amusements. I passed the morning in reading and writing, then received or paid visits, and at all times met with attention, courteousness, and kindness. I visited the churches on the Sundays I passed in Boston, which are still more quietly kept in America than in England. The first time I went to a Unitarian church, attended by a son of the mayor; a second time I went to an Episcopalian church, accompanied by Mr. Lloyd, a very distinguished man, and senator of the United States. I dined twice at the inn, but generally accepted some friendly invitation, and passed all my evenings very agreeably in company at musical parties and other entertainments. I also made some excursions into the country besides those already mentioned.
The society, especially when ladies are not present, is uncommonly fine and lively – both sexes are very well educated and accomplished. So much care is bestowed upon the education of the female sex, that it would perhaps be considered in other countries as superfluous. Young ladies even learn Latin and Greek, but then they also can speak of other things besides fashions and tea-table subjects; thus, for instance, I was at a party of Mrs. General Humphreys, which was entirely in the European style, without cards, dancing or music, and yet it was lively and agreeable. Thus I passed some delightful hours with Mr. Ritchie, Mr. Dixon, Mr. Homer, Mr. Otis, Mr. Shepherd, and Mr. Artiguenave, a Frenchman, formerly an actor in the Théâtre Français, at Paris, and now professor of the French language at Cambridge University. Many of those gentlemen who are met with in such society, have travelled in Europe, sometimes accompanied by their ladies; Europeans are frequently present, and thus there is no want of materials for conversation. The generality of the houses, moreover, offer something attractive in the fine arts; and in returning home on an evening, the city, the bridges, and the Mill-dam are very well lighted, not indeed with gas, but with reflecting lamps, and none of that disorderly conduct is observed in the streets, which so often shocks the mind in the cities of England.
We made an excursion on the 1st of August into the country with Mr. Dixon in his dearborn. A dearborn is a very light wagon, with two benches and four wheels, drawn by one horse. We rode over the neck which unites Boston with the main land, and was fortified by the English during the revolution; then in an ascending direction towards the heights of Roxbury, where, during the blockade, the right wing of the American lines stood. The ground is very rocky, and partly covered with fir trees; the trees which formerly stood here must have been entirely removed, as not one high tree can be seen. Passing farther on we saw very handsome country houses and gardens, the former generally two stories high, and surrounded with covered colonnades. At one of these we paid a visit to the owner, Mr. Rufus Amory. A walk, shaded by oak, elm, and maple trees, leads to the dwelling on a slight elevation, which commands an extended and beautiful view of Boston and the bay. We were received by the friendly owner in an extremely obliging and hospitable manner. We rode through a romantic part of the country to Dorchester, to visit General Sumner at his country seat, but did not find him at home. We then returned by another handsome road to Boston, and passed a large rope manufactory, the works of which were moved by steam.
At another excursion to Dorchester, in company with some young men, sons of the richest inhabitants of the place, a game of ten-pins was played. It is called ten-pins, because that number of pins is here used in the game.7
Finally, I cannot omit to mention one visit, which, in company with Mr. Ritchie, I made to Mr. Coolidge, jr. Mr. Coolidge had, three months ago, married a Miss Randolph, a granddaughter of Thomas Jefferson. His wife, about thirty years old, was brought up by her grandfather in the country in his library. She is said to be so learned that Jefferson often asked her advice. She had arrived a few days previous, and made known that she would receive visiters, and we therefore found the chamber filled with people. Every one at his departure took with him a piece of wedding cake. The young ladies, as it is said, place this cake under their pillows, and then dream of their future lovers.
CHAPTER V
Journey from Boston to Albany, by way of Worcester and Northampton. – Sojourn there, from the 8th to the 14th of August, 1825
Accompanied by Mr. Tromp, who had become endeared to me by his knowledge, his modest, honourable, and amiable deportment, I left Boston on the 9th of August, for Worcester, distant forty miles. The mail-coach, like the diligence stage, consists of a long calash with three benches, each capable of containing three persons. The top is fixed, though the curtains can be rolled up, so that a person may enjoy the fresh air and the prospect of the surrounding country, without being exposed to the sun.
We left the hospitable city of Boston with grateful hearts, and rode over the Mill-dam into the interior of the country. The horses were changed four times, generally in small villages; Farmingham and Westborough appeared to be the only ones of any importance. The country sometimes seemed wild, and but thinly settled, though the state of Massachusetts is said to be the most populous in North America. We saw no grain,8 though in some places we observed Indian corn, and now and then some millet. Apple orchards were abundant – the trees hung so full of fruit that many of the boughs were broken. The apples are small and yellow, and are employed in preparing the favourite beverage called cider. We gradually approached forests, consisting of oak, chesnut, and elm trees. Sumach also occurs in some places, the bark of which is said to be excellent for tanning leather. There are evidently no forest regulations here, and the timber is very much neglected. The road was for the greatest part a good turnpike, and made in the German manner. We crossed several small rivers and rivulets on wooden bridges, which are very slight, though they are built with a great waste of timber. The planks are not even nailed upon the beams, so that I began to be somewhat fearful, especially as the carriage drove rapidly over. About two miles from Worcester we crossed a lake called Guansiganog-pond, on a wooden bridge one-fourth of a mile in length. The banks of this lake are covered with wood, and present a very handsome appearance. On our way, we were overtaken by a considerable thunder-storm, which settled the dust, and procured us a pleasant evening. We arrived at Worcester about 7 o’clock, and alighted at an excellent tavern. This town contains about four thousand inhabitants, and consists of a principal street, with an avenue shaded with old elm trees, and of several bye-streets, which, like the preceding, are altogether unpaved. The houses, generally built of wood, and but few of brick, are all surrounded with gardens, and stand at a considerable distance from each other, so that the town appears like a village. It has four churches, a bank, and three printing-offices, each of which furnishes a newspaper. There are also printing-offices in many of the villages through which we passed, as well as a fire-engine in each. In the evening we paid a visit to the governor of Massachusetts, Mr. Levi Lincoln, who resides at this place. We found this worthy man, who is universally esteemed by his fellow-citizens, at home with his wife and sister-in-law, and were received by him in the most friendly manner. We spent a very agreeable evening in his company. A proof of the public esteem which he enjoys, is, that at the last election, there was not a single vote against him, an example almost unparalleled in the United States. The governor is styled “his excellency.” On the following morning the governor conducted us to a recently established museum, which is designed chiefly for the collection of American antiquities. It is yet in its infancy, and contains but few interesting specimens; the library also is of small extent, notwithstanding we must render full justice to the inhabitants for their laudable zeal in the cause of natural science. We rode around the town in company with the governor, passed the court-house and prison, which unfortunately we had not time to visit, and returned to our inn. The gardens we passed had rather a wild appearance. They cultivate kitchen vegetables, a few watermelons, and fruit; we saw no flowers excepting the sunflower.
At 10 o’clock we departed in the Worcester stage for Northampton, distant forty-seven miles. Our company in the stage-coach consisted of two gentlemen and ladies from the state of Mississippi, who had undertaken a tour to the northern states on account of the unhealthy climate in their own country, and who entertained us very agreeably with an account of their estates. The road was worse than yesterday, sometimes sandy, and the horses generally bad, so that on the whole, our progress was slow. The country is less populous, as well as less cultivated, though there is more timber, which, however, is also very much neglected. We observed the cypress and a few large cedars. As there are no grazing laws in force, they are obliged on account of the cattle, and particularly on account of the sheep which graze in these woods at large, to make fences of young chesnut trees which are split into four pieces. These fences generally consist of six rails placed upon each other, with an interspace of several inches. They are placed in an angular form, and at the point where the rails meet, they are placed one upon the other, and usually supported upon a large stone. Such a waste of timber and land is only pardonable in a country where the inhabitants are few, and where timber is abundant. A large extent of wood-land has been cleared only within a short time, and the trunks of the trees which remained have been destroyed by fire. The soil is not particularly fertile. We observed numerous blocks of granite, which may be hereafter usefully employed, the large for building, and the small upon the roads. The villages which we passed on our way are Leicester, seven, Spencer, five, Brookfield, seven, Ware, eight, Belchertown, nine, and Madley, ten miles. They are most of them small places, consisting generally of frame houses, standing at a distance from each other, which are very neat and comfortable; each village has a frame church and a school-house. Stores are observed in most of these places, and in Belchertown there is even a fashionable one. The churches are usually provided with long sheds, in which the carriages and horses of the members of the church are protected from the heat and weather during the service. Ware, situated on the river of the same name, which is crossed by a wooden bridge rather better built than usual, was laid out about three years since; it is a neat, flourishing place, and belongs to the Dexter family in Boston, who have established a woollen and cotton manufactory here, the workmen of which, above three hundred in number, form the inhabitants of the place. Mr. Dexter, of Boston, had entrusted me with an important packet of papers for his brother, who resides in Ware, which I delivered in person. We found Mr. Dexter with his beautiful wife, at his neat and well arranged cottage, situated in the centre of a garden, and received a friendly welcome. From his window he can overlook the whole village and manufactories. Heretofore, said Mr. Dexter, I have received the greatest part of my wool from Saxony, which is preferred here to the Spanish; but at present, we have sheep imported from Saxony, which are permitted to roam at large through the wood, as there are no wild animals in Massachusetts to destroy them; they yield a very superior kind of wool. Unfortunately we were not at leisure to accept of Mr. Dexter’s invitation to look at his establishments. At the tavern, which was perfectly clean and comfortable, we obtained a very good dinner, and continued our journey. The inhabitants of Ware are said to be distinguished for their strict morality. They have a common school, to which they are obliged by law to send their children, as is the case throughout Massachusetts, or pay a fine. In Ware there is but one physician, who has a handsome house, and keeps a well furnished apothecary store. The strict republicans are jealous of the large manufacturing establishments, because they are afraid that individual citizens, in consequence of their property, may have too great an influence upon a large mass of people; but I imagine that the republic has nothing to fear on this head, since the effect of individual influence is counterbalanced by the promotion of the welfare of the poorer classes.
About a mile from Northampton we passed the Connecticut river, five hundred yards wide, in a small ferry-boat, which, as the night had already set in, was not very agreeable. At Northampton we took lodgings at Warner’s Hotel, a large, clean, and convenient inn. In front of the house is a large porch, and in the first story a large balcony. The gentlemen sit below, and the ladies walk above. It is called a piazza, and has many conveniences. Elm trees stand in front of the house, and a large reflecting lamp illuminates the house and the yard. This, with the beautiful warm evening, and the great number of people, who reposed on the piazza, or went to and from the house, produced a very agreeable effect. The people here are exceedingly religious, and, besides going to church on Sundays, they go thrice during the week. When we arrived, the service had just ended, and we saw some very handsome ladies come out of the church. Each bed-chamber of our tavern was provided with a bible. To-day I observed also a new mode of delivering letters and newspapers. The driver of the mail-coach throws the letters and newspapers, with which he is entrusted, before the houses where they are to be left; he sometimes throws them even into open fields, along the lane leading from the main road to the house.
About two years ago, Messrs. Cogswell and Bancroft established a boarding-school at Northampton. The day after our arrival, 11th of August, Mr. Cogswell paid me a visit, and introduced one of his professors, Dr. Beck, of Heidelberg, a step-son of Dr. De Wette, of Weimar, who teaches the Latin and Greek languages. Another German professor, whom, however, I did not see, directs the gymnastic exercises. Both these gentlemen conducted us to the institute, which is situated on Round Hill, about a mile from Northampton.
Northampton contains about four thousand inhabitants, and its buildings are, apparently, very much like those of Worcester; it has one bank, a court-house, prison, and a printing-office. From Mr. Cogswell’s institute, you have a magnificent view of the fertile and well-cultivated valley of the Connecticut river, which, in this place, winds between two lofty mountains, Holyoake and Mounttoby. On the left, the lofty mountains of New Hampshire present a beautiful prospect. In 1824, this institution had but forty pupils, and in 1825, it numbered no less than seventy-four, so that Mr. Cogswell is obliged, although he has three large houses belonging to his establishment, to erect a fourth and larger one. The gymnastic exercises, for which a place is provided in the woods, with the necessary apparatus, form a principal part of the instructions of this seminary. The boys are entirely excluded from the world; but that they may not become too much estranged, Mr. Cogswell accompanies them annually in various pedestrian tours through the surrounding country. I visited Mr. Bancroft at his room. Both these gentlemen entertain the warmest enthusiasm for Germany and the German method of instruction, and are determined to regulate every thing according to that system. Mr. Bates, a lawyer introduced to us by Mr. Cogswell, returned with us to town, and showed us the church, court-house, and a collection of minerals, in the possession of Dr. Hunt, in which I admired particularly two specimens of American beryl and several specimens of rock-crystal. On our return to the tavern, I received a visit from a physician, Dr. Seeger, who was educated with Schiller in the military school at Wirtemberg. He wished to become acquainted with me on account of my father, for whom he expressed the highest veneration. I must acknowledge, that, in a country so far from my native land, this afforded me the most sincere gratification, and my acquaintance with the worthy Dr. Seeger, who has been an inhabitant of the United States during the last forty years, and who is universally esteemed as an honest man and a good physician, I shall always remember with pleasure and satisfaction.
At Springfield, twenty miles from Northampton down the Connecticut river, is the government armoury. We left Northampton, to visit this establishment, under the most oppressive heat, with five ladies and two gentlemen in the stage-coach, into which we were crowded, somewhat like those that were shut up in the Trojan horse. We arrived about 3 o’clock in the afternoon, and again found an excellent tavern, which was provided with a piazza. Our ride passed through a well-cultivated region of country, along the right bank of the Connecticut river; Indian corn, millet, and potatoes were observed in considerable abundance, in some places we also observed hemp, and sometimes, though seldom, hops.
Springfield is situated on the left bank of the Connecticut river, over which, close by the town, is a wooden bridge, five hundred yards long, and built in a very awkward style. Springfield has much more the appearance of a city than Worcester and Northampton, for there are at least some stone houses situated so closely together that they form a street. Colonel Lee had the goodness to take us in his carriage to the manufactory of arms, of which he is the director. It is situated about a mile from Springfield, in a very beautiful valley, on a rivulet. It employs daily two hundred and seventy-four workmen. These are settled in the vicinity of the manufactory, form a kind of colony, and have a school for their children. They are also obliged to distinguish themselves by their good moral deportment. The muskets for the American army are made on the improved French model of 1777, with the exception that they are somewhat shorter, while the bayonets are rather longer. The barrels and bayonets are browned, as Dupin has described at full length in Travels through Great Britain. We examined the works throughout. There are several houses, and the machines are propelled by water. They finish annually fifteen thousand muskets, each of which costs the government on an average eleven dollars. How much might be saved, if, as in other countries, muskets were made by private workmen! The arsenal in which these muskets are preserved and packed in chests, each containing twenty pieces, was destroyed by fire about a year and a half since, but having been rebuilt, it consists at present of a centre building for the offices, two isolated wings for the preservation of the different arms, and of several other adjacent buildings for the necessary workshops. These buildings form an oblong square, of which the proper armoury forms one of the short sides; on the other, oppositely to the centre building, is Colonel Lee’s neat and beautiful dwelling. The houses belonging to the arsenal are built of brick externally, while internally every thing is of wood; and as, during the winter season these buildings are heated with wood, there appeared to me to be much danger of fire. I remarked this to Colonel Lee, who appeared to participate in my apprehensions. After our return to the tavern, Mr. Calhoun, with whom we had become acquainted through Mr. Bates, introduced us to several gentlemen of the town, and took us in the evening to a musical party at the house of a Mr. Dwight, where we found the fashionable part of society assembled. The ladies sang very well, and played on the piano-forte several pieces from “Der Freischutz,” an opera which is at present a favourite in America.
We had determined to go on the 12th of August to New Lebanon, to visit the Springs and the Shaker’s village, but the Fates had decreed otherwise. We left Springfield at two o’clock in the morning in the stage, rode over the bridge, through Westfield, which, as far as we could judge in the dark, is a handsome village, and arrived at day break in a romantic valley, on Westfield river, whose waters fall over huge rocks. At Russel, which is situated in an uncultivated valley, seventeen miles from Springfield, we partook of an excellent breakfast at the stage-office, and were much pleased at the clean and comfortable appearance of the houses and inhabitants. It was so cold early in the morning, that a large fire which we found at this house, was quite comfortable. The road through the wild romantic valley, generally ascending, and along the river, was rather bad, and often very narrow; instead of a railing, there were only trunks of large trees, which were permitted to decay in a very unjustifiable manner. The bridges also were as badly built as those of which we have already complained. The forest trees were very handsome, but many of them are destroyed for the cabins of the new settlers. These dwellings, like the log-houses, are built of the trunks of large trees. Amongst the few settlers whom we observed there, were several negro and mulatto families. The villages of Chester, Bucket, and Lee, through which we passed, consist of but few houses; Lee, however, appears to be a flourishing village. At this place we left the mountains, and again entered upon a better cultivated region, in which we observed stubbles of wheat and rye.
Exceedingly fatigued in consequence of the great heat, and the number of passengers in the stage-coach, I was anxious to procure a carriage in order to visit New Lebanon, distant fourteen miles; but the person of whom I inquired was so extortionate as to ask ten dollars. I determined, in order to avoid a new yankee trick, to prosecute my journey in the stage-coach, direct for Albany. At Canaan, thirteen miles distant, we left the state of Massachusetts, and entered that of New York. The other villages which we passed after our departure from Canaan, were Chatham, six miles, Nassau, or Union Village, four miles, and Schoodie, five miles. The distance from Springfield to Albany is eighty-one miles. The above villages have a neat and comfortable appearance, and the fields were in a good state of cultivation. Upon our arrival at Schoodie the night was just setting in, but unfortunately we were lighted by a burning house upon an eminence not far off. At the village of Greenbush, near Albany, we crossed the Hudson or North river in a horse-boat, and upon our arrival in the city took lodgings at Cruttenden’s boarding-house, on an eminence near the capitol or state-house.
Albany contains about fifteen thousand inhabitants. It is situated upon the right bank of the Hudson, and extends westward upon an eminence. It was built by the Dutch in 1614, under the name of Fort Orange, and received its present name after it came into the possession of the English, in honour of the afterwards unfortunate King James II. who was then duke of York and Albany. Some of the Dutch houses are still standing, and several of the streets retain their original names.
At the tavern we met with a Mr. Jackson, from New York, who had arrived at the same time, and who was accompanied by his sister and his son, Columbus, a sensible lad about ten years of age. Mr. J. is a teacher. In consequence of the vicinity to the Ballston, Saratoga, and New Lebanon springs, and the fashionable season, the hotel was so full of strangers, that I was obliged to sleep with Mr. Tromp, in a small chamber. On the following morning, at the public breakfast, I again met with Mr. Jackson and Columbus, and as he was acquainted in Albany, I accepted of his invitation to take a walk through the city. It is old and in some parts appears to be in a state of decay. During the late war with England it was in a quite flourishing state; but since the peace it has suffered considerably, in consequence of some heavy failures and a great fire. Albany has received a new impulse, an increase of commerce, and expects to reap the most happy results from the Erie Canal, which has been lately established, and which commences here, and runs a distance of three hundred and sixty-two miles to Lake Erie, as well as from the canal from Lake Champlain. The pavements were so bad that I was obliged to complain immediately upon our arrival, and this I was subsequently forced to repeat; the streets were also very crooked. We visited several bookstores, which appeared to be well furnished, and then took a walk to the new basin, into which the canal empties. It is separated from the Hudson by a dam which runs parallel with the river, and is four thousand feet long, from three to four hundred wide, and ten feet deep. The dam is built of strong rafters, which form its two walls, the intervals of which are filled up with earth and stone. It is connected with the bank of the river by several high wooden bridges, in the centre of which there are drawbridges for the passage of boats. The building of this dam cost one hundred and thirty thousand dollars. It was divided into lots, and sold separately, on condition that store-houses should be erected upon it: in consequence of this they have realized the sum of one hundred and ninety thousand dollars. In my opinion, the managers of the canal, at whose expense the basin and the two canals have been built, would have done better, if they had kept the dam and rented it. Being built of wood, which is more or less subject to decay, as they are to erect nothing but store-houses upon it, it is to be feared that in the course of ten years it will tumble down in consequence of the pressure, or that they will be obliged to repair it in great measure, or perhaps completely rebuild it with stone. As stone is very cheap here, and sawed in the prisons, they should have originally built the dam of stone. The present one seems to me to have been but badly executed. In the basin we saw a travelling bookstore in one of the canal-boats. Mr. Wilcox, who established it about two years ago on the Erie Canal, travels backwards and forwards several times a year, and is said to do considerable business. He had just returned to get a new assortment of books. Most of the books which he sells at the villages in the neighbourhood of the canal are ancient authors, some medical and religious, and a few law books and novels. This gentleman, formerly a merchant in Albany, entirely supports his family, who reside with him in his boat, by this fortunate speculation. I purchased of him an excellent map of the state of New York.
A few hours after, we visited some of the steam-boats which ply between Albany and New York. The largest, called the Car of Commerce, is provided with excellent apartments, and makes her trip in nineteen hours. This vessel is extremely elegant, but my friend Tromp is of opinion that the English steam-boats are superior in machinery. In fact, in this country, the American steam-engines are not celebrated for the safety of their boilers; and several explosions which have occurred, serve to increase this evil report. From this reason, as well as on account of the disagreeable motion of the steam-engine, many persons were unwilling to risk their lives, so that they have attached a safety-barge to one of the steam-boats. This is a real floating hotel, furnished with the greatest luxury. In the ladies cabin there are even silk curtains. Besides this, the ladies have a separate toilette and parlour. The gentlemen assemble in the dining room. The whole boat is surrounded by a piazza, which, in warm weather, must be extremely pleasant. The name of this safety-barge which carries passengers at four dollars, is Lady Clinton, in honour of the wife of the governor of New York, De Witt Clinton. We also visited the Constellation, another beautiful steam-boat, which has no safety-barge. There are also steam-boats for the purpose of towing the common sloops, &c. up and down the river, called steam-tow-boats.
Finally, we examined the horse ferry-boats. These boats consist of two vessels joined together, have a common deck, and are of an elliptical form. Upon the centre of the deck is a round house, in which six horses work, turning a horizontal, which moves two common wheels between the boats, provided with paddles, as in the steam-boats. The carriage, and twenty-two two-horse carts crossed at the same time, standing on both sides of the round house. There are two rudders, one at the stern, the other at the bow.
The trade in timber and boards is one of the capital branches of internal trade. We saw a great quantity of both on the wharves, and at the dam. At dinner we became acquainted with the Spanish consul of Boston, a worthy young man, who was educated in France. After dinner we took a view of the capitol, or state-house, situated upon a small eminence, and at a short distance from our inn. Albany is the seat of government and the capitol of the state of New York, but it is said to be the intention of the inhabitants shortly to remove the seat of government to Utica, which is situated farther to the west, and in a more central part of the state. The capitol is built of brown sand-stone, and in a quadrangular form; in front it is ornamented with large steps, and four Ionic columns of white marble. The halls of the different branches of the legislature are spacious, but exhibit nothing remarkable. In one of the halls is a full length portrait of Washington, and in another, that of the late Governor Clinton, an uncle of the present governor.9 On the top of the capitol is a cupola, from which there is a beautiful view of the city of Albany, and the valley of the Hudson, which is bounded on the right by the Catskill mountains, and on the left by the mountains of Vermont. On the dome is a wooden statue representing justice, to the back of which is secured a heavy lightning-rod, so that witlings remark that she is standing in the pillory.
At Albany are some remains of the feudal system. The Van Rensselaer family, one of the oldest of the Dutch emigrants, obtained the country around Albany at the time it was first settled, as a fief; it was divided into different portions, and some of these were leased to vassals who were obliged to pay a certain rent, and to render certain services to the owner. The eldest of the Van Rensselaer family has always borne the title of patroon, and enjoys certain feudal prerogatives, for which the family are indebted to the great popularity they have enjoyed ever since the revolution, though every recollection of the feudal system is repugnant to the genius of the American government. By the people in the neighbourhood, the house of the old General Van Rensselaer is always called the manor of the patroon.
CHAPTER VI
Journey from Albany to the Falls of Niagara. – Erie Canal. – Schenectady. – Utica. – Rochester. – Buffalo. – The Falls of Niagara, from the 14th to the 25th of August, 1825
On the morning of the 14th of August, we took passage on board the Albany, one of the canal packet-boats, for Lake Erie. This canal was built at an expense of $2,500,000, and will be completed in about four weeks: at present, they are at work only on the western part of it. During the preceding year, they received an income of $300,000, and they expect, during the present year, after the canal shall have been completed, an income of $500,000, so that the expenses will, in a very short time, be replaced, and the state realize an immense profit, unless it be necessary to make great repairs, which I have no doubt will be the case, and will consequently require a large share of this income. Hitherto the great canal system was unknown in the United States, and was rather unpopular. It might have been expected, therefore, that so great and rapid an undertaking, would have a tendency to astound, if we may so speak, the public mind; so that this canal was finished as soon as possible, without calling to aid the great experience possessed by other nations. Notwithstanding, this canal, which is three hundred and sixty-two miles in length, with eighty-three locks, between the Hudson and Lake Erie, which lies six hundred and eighty-eight feet above the level of the former river, does the greatest honour to the genius of its projector; though one who has seen the canals in France, Holland, and England, will readily perceive, that the water-works of this country afford much room for improvement. The canal is thirty-five feet wide on the surface, twenty-eight feet at the bottom, and four feet deep, so that none but flat vessels and rafts can sail on it. The packet-boat which took us to Schenectady, was seventy feet long, fourteen feet wide, and drew two feet water. It was covered, and contained a spacious cabin, with a kitchen, and was very neatly arranged. On account of the great number of locks, the progress of our journey was but slow: our packet-boat went only at the rate of three miles an hour, being detained at each lock, on an average, four minutes. The locks are fourteen feet wide above the surface, and have a fall from seven to twelve feet. The packet-boat was drawn by three horses, which walked upon a narrow tow-path leading along the canal, and beneath the numerous bridges which are thrown over it. These bridges, of which there are about three hundred between Albany and Utica, are all built of wood, and in a very awkward style; most of them belong to the farmers, and are intended to serve as a means of communication between their fields. The distance from Albany to Schenectady, by land, is only fifteen miles, and persons are enabled to travel it in a very short time in the stage-coach; but as we were anxious to see the canal, and get leisure to complete our journals, we preferred going by water, twenty-eight miles.
At Troy, five miles and a half from Albany, is the government arsenal, which appears to be a large establishment. As far as this place, the canal runs nearly parallel with the Hudson. Troy, which is very pleasantly situated on the left bank of the river, at the foot of several tolerably high mountains, one of which is called Mount Ida, appears, if we may be permitted to judge from the large store-houses and the good appearance of the dwellings, to be a wealthy place. Here is a branch canal which has two locks, and establishes a communication with Troy. Shortly after, we arrived at a place where there are no less than nine locks, with an ascent of seventy-eight feet. In front, and to the right of this, is another canal, which unites with the Hudson and the canal from Lake Champlain. At this place we left the Hudson and directed our course along the Mohawk river. During our ride we observed a covered wooden bridge, which extends over the latter river, a short distance from its mouth, and is about six hundred feet in length, supported by fifteen wooden piers. Here we saw the famous Cohoes Falls of the Mohawk river, seventy-eight feet in height and about four hundred feet wide. In the spring, when these falls extend over the entire bed of the Mohawk, they are said to be extremely magnificent; during the present dry weather, they presented a very handsome appearance, though they were very small. The river was almost completely dried up. I walked over its bed, which consists of slate rock, as far as its middle and near to the falls. In some places the rocks are excavated by the action of the water, and you may see holes which are full of water and are said to contain excellent fish. Finding great difficulty in continuing the canal on the right bank of the Mohawk, they were obliged here to carry it to the opposite side by means of an aqueduct-bridge, one thousand one hundred and eighty-eight feet in length. This bridge is of wood, and is supported by twenty-six stone columns, on account of which, they have placed a chevaux-de-frise, to keep off the ice in the river about one hundred yards off. The part of this wooden canal, which contains the water, is about twenty feet wide and has a tow-path eight feet wide on one side. These wooden aqueducts will probably soon require repairing, and there is no doubt but that they will ultimately be obliged to build them of iron. The canal is cut through the rocks, almost the whole distance, where it runs along the left bank of the Mohawk, and presents a very handsome appearance. Twelve miles farther on, it returns again to the right bank of the Mohawk by a similar aqueduct, seven hundred and forty-eight feet in length and supported by sixteen piers. Above this aqueduct, which is also protected by a chevaux-de-frise, there is a common wooden bridge thrown over the river, for wagons. Four miles farther on is Schenectady, where we arrived after sunset. Between this town and Albany, we passed no less than twenty-seven locks. These, though they are built of solid lime-stone, will soon require repairing, as the water passes through them in various places. The gates also lock badly, so that the water which percolates forms artificial cascades. The country through which we passed to-day was generally wild and hilly, and somewhat thinly settled.
Schenectady is an old town containing about five thousand inhabitants, and is intersected by the canal. At this place we left the packet-boat, in order to proceed to Utica next morning in another boat, and found excellent lodgings at Given’s hotel, which, after the great heat we had endured during the day, was exceedingly agreeable. Its inhabitants are, in part, descendants of the Lower Saxons, and some of them whom I saw at the tavern conversed with me in bad Dutch. Early on the next morning we walked through the town, and visited Union College, which consists of two large buildings situated a short distance from the town upon a little eminence. It was the time of vacation, and consequently it was perfectly silent. From its decaying appearance, I should judge the college was not in a very prosperous condition. From this building you have a beautiful view of the town, and of the Mohawk valley, which appears here to be well settled. In the town we observed a peculiar windmill, with a horizontal wheel, whose sails, about twenty in number, stand perpendicularly.
We left Schenectady early in the morning on board the packet-boat Samuel Young, which had engaged to take us to Utica, eighty miles distant, by an early hour the next day. It was a large boat, and, as the passengers are obliged to spend the night on board, is provided with separate apartments for the ladies. The canal again ran along the well-cultivated valley of the Mohawk, and the country, on account of the foliage of the trees upon the heights was beautiful. The village of Amsterdam consists of a few neat houses; and opposite, on the right bank of the Mohawk, is Rotterdam. On our way we passed several small aqueducts, the longest of which rest only upon three piers, and extend over small brooks, which, as well as the small rivulets, are distinguished by the Indian appellation of “creek.” The canal is carried over two rivers, called Schoharie and Canajoharie creeks, from which it receives the most of its water. At this place the horses are conveyed to the opposite side of the two rivers by means of ferry-boats. At the first ferry is a small village, called Fort Hunter, where, before the revolution, there had been a fort, or rather a redoubt of the same name. Towards evening we passed through a valley, which is formed by two rocky mountains, one of which is called Anthony’s Nose. The houses we saw on our route, had generally a handsome appearance; to-day and yesterday I observed also some saw-mills. There are twenty-six locks between Schenectady and Utica. The day was intolerably warm, and our company was very numerous. I confined myself to writing, the whole day, as much as possible; but, in consequence of the heat, I could not avoid sleeping. In the evening we fortunately had a thunder-storm, which cooled the air. During the night, as there was a want of births, the beds were placed upon benches, and, as I was the tallest person, mine was put in the centre upon the longest bench, with a chair as a supplement. It had the appearance of a hereditary sepulchre, in the centre of which I lay as father of the family. I spent an uncomfortable night, on account of my constrained posture, the insects which annoyed me, and the steersman, who always played an agreeable tune upon his bugle whenever he approached a lock. During the night we passed an aqueduct bridge, which stands over a solace, called Little Falls. Towards morning we passed through a well-cultivated region, with some neat houses, called German flats, and which was settled by some Germans during the time of Queen Anne. At about twelve o’clock at noon we arrived at Utica, nine miles from the place where we passed a lock, which is the last that occurs in the next seventy miles. The land appeared to be marshy, and consisted of sand and pebbles.
Utica, which is intersected by the canal, is a flourishing town, of about four thousand inhabitants, and stands upon the site where Fort Schuyler, a redoubt against the Indians, was formerly situated. In 1794, there was a small tavern here, which was the only dwelling house in this part of the country; but at present Utica is one of the most flourishing towns in the state of New York, and new houses are continually building. In fact, it is only here that a person begins to admire the great improvements in cultivation, and gets perfectly new ideas of the works of man, and of his enterprising genius! Utica, on the right bank of the Mohawk, has two banks, four churches, an academy, and large and convenient stores, a bookstore, and printing-office. It has also several ale-houses, and three fine taverns, at the largest of which, called Shepherd’s hotel, we found excellent accommodations. In this house there are always more than seventy beds for the accommodation of strangers; and these, on some occasions, are barely sufficient. The number of travellers this summer, is said to have been unusually great, especially from the southern states, where the heat is intolerable, and the summers generally unhealthy. In such an American tavern every thing is perfectly comfortable, and proportionably cheap. The price for board and lodging is a dollar a day. The bell for rising rings before seven o’clock in the morning. The bed-chambers are spacious, the beds wide and comfortable, and the linen fine and perfectly clean. The bed-chambers, moreover, are furnished with the necessary wash-stands, &c. After a person is dressed, he enters the bar-room, where he finds all kinds of strong and refreshing drinks; the desk of the head waiter is also here, who attends to the bill. The inn-keeper is generally a gentleman, who eats with the guests, and leads the conversation. Besides the entry, where the boots and shoes are left in the evening, and where they are found well cleaned in the morning, there are several sitting, reading, and writing parlours, &c. And if a person wishes a separate sitting-room, especially when he travels with ladies, it may be readily had at a separate charge. Half an hour after rising, they ring the bell for breakfast; and, upon going to the dining-room, you find upon a covered table, beef-steaks, mutton, broiled chicken, or other fowls, fish, and boiled potatoes, which are of a very superior quality. The waiters, or in many places, the servant-maids, hand the coffee and tea. As the Americans, in general, are a quiet people, such a breakfast, which is eaten in great haste, is attended with but little noise. Dinner is generally served at about two o’clock, and tea at seven in the evening. At tea, the table is again furnished as at breakfast, with the addition of ragouts and baker’s bread. Nobody is obliged to drink wine. There are usually water and whiskey on the table, which are mixed in the summer, as the most healthy drink. Every one must help himself as well as he can, for the victuals are not handed about. Napkins you do not get, and instead, you are obliged to make use of the table-cloth. With the exception of the spoons, there is no silver on the table; the forks have two steel prongs, and their handles, like those of the knives, are of buck’s horn. It is an excellent rule, that no one on departing is obliged to give money to the servants.
At Utica, seven of us for nine dollars hired a stage to visit the Falls of Trenton, distant fourteen miles. Our passengers were partly from New York, and partly from the state of North Carolina. We crossed the Mohawk upon a covered wooden bridge, built in a bad and awkward manner, on which I observed an advertisement, “that all persons who pass this bridge on horseback or wagon faster than a walk, shall be fined one dollar.” After this, our road gradually ascended to a forest, which was, however, in part cleared for new fields. The timber is so much neglected here, that they will very probably feel the want of it in less than fifty years. At a short distance from the falls of West Canada Creek is a new tavern, which is situated in a lately cleared forest, and is built entirely of wood. At this tavern we left the carriage, and went on foot through thick woods, from which a pair of stairs conduct to the falls. A new pair of wooden stairs of about eighty steps, built for the accommodation of strangers, leads to the bed of the river. This consists entirely of slate-rock, is about two hundred feet wide, and is enclosed between high rocky banks, which are lined by beautiful and lofty firs, arbor vitæ, the maple, the elm, and the cedar. This beautiful mass of green, the azure sky, the large and variegated rocks, and the three falls, produce a most happy effect. The rocks at these falls, which, on account of the great heat, scarcely extended over half the river, are so excavated by the water, that they have the form of a common kettle. The upper falls, which are about ninety feet high, are the grandest; and near them, under the shade of an arbor vitæ, an adventurer has established a small tavern, which presents a very picturesque appearance, and is said to yield considerable profit. The rocks contain handsome petrifactions of shells, plants, and animals; and we saw one specimen a foot and a half long, which resembled a young alligator; of the smaller ones we took several specimens. At the tavern where we had put up, we found a tolerably good dinner, and towards evening returned to Utica. The day was fine and pleasant. The thunder-storm of yesterday, had done some good. I regretted that it was too late upon our return to Utica, to visit a hydrostatic lock, designed to weigh the boats which pass on the canal.
Having seen enough of the canal, and being anxious to see the newly-settled country between this place and Niagara, we determined to continue our journey on the next day in the stage-coach. With this intention we left Utica at 4 o’clock in the morning of the 17th of August, and the same day arrived at Auburn, distant seventy-three miles. The stage-coaches in this country do not, as in England, travel ten miles an hour, but usually six; as the country is generally hilly, and the coach, when it carries the mail, stops at every village where there is a post-office, on account of the great number of newspapers; the letter-bag must be taken out, opened, again locked, and then returned; the coachmen also are not very punctual, so that travelling is not so rapid as it should be. The villages between Utica and Auburn were New Hartford, four miles, Manchester, five miles, Vernon, eight miles, Oneida, five miles, Lenox, four miles, Sullivan, eight miles, Manlius, six miles, Jamesville, five miles, Onandago Hollow, five miles, Onandago Hill, two miles, Marcellus, eight miles, and Skeneatelass, six miles.
Between Manchester and Vernon day dawned, and we found ourselves in a rather wild country, in the midst of a wilderness. Oneida is an Indian settlement, and was built by the remnant of the once mighty Oneida tribe, who, unlike their countrymen, unwilling to fly before the white settlers to the west, are at present a wretched people, despised and oppressed by their neighbours like a gang of gypsies. They have been obliged to learn trades, and to labour on farms; they have also been converted to Christianity by means of missionaries, and of whom the principal one is a Mr. Williams, a converted Indian, educated by the Quakers. On entering the village we observed on a little eminence to the left, a small, neat, frame church, where the Indians hold their service, and close by, an open plain, surrounded by butternut trees, called “Council Grove” where the elders of the tribe assemble to deliberate on their most important affairs. The houses of the Indians are scattered through the fields, are generally small, and built of logs. In the centre of the village are white settlers, mechanics and tavern-keepers; the latter of whom in particular make out well, as the Indians are fond of strong drink. The land belongs to the whole tribe, and each individual labours for the common good. We observed several Indians along the road. They had a tawny complexion, and black hair; the men appeared to be well built, and the women were stout, and resemble the pictures of Esquimaux women in Parry’s Travels. Some of them wore their hair down, which, if possible, increased their ugliness. Both the men and women wear trowsers, generally of blue, and ornamented with white lace; sometimes also of two colours, like the prisoners at Boston. The men wear shirts over their trowsers, and great-coats of cloth. The women dress in white or blue woollen mantles. At first, I thought myself in civilized Europe, for a great number of children came along the carriage to beg, a circumstance which had not occurred since my arrival in the United States. It was soon ascertained, however, that they were Indian children, dressed somewhat like their parents, and of the same complexion. The girls had brass buckles on their cloaks, which fastened in front, and most of them wore large bead necklaces.
Behind this village the road led along a considerable hill, from which we had a beautiful view of Oneida Lake, which presented the appearance of a large stream. Here you have a number of extensive prospects, which, however, as you see but little cultivated land and few houses, is rather uniform. Farther on we saw a small lake called Salt Lake, which is in the midst of a forest, and has on its banks three picturesquely situated towns, Liverpool, Salina, and Syracuse. At Salina are rich salt springs, the water of which is collected in reservoirs, and it is evaporated by the heat of the sun to procure the salt. Beyond Sullivan we passed through the village of Chitteningo. It contains several mills, a cotton factory, and a branch of the Erie Canal, which forms a kind of harbour, and serves as a landing place for articles manufactured here, and for the plaster and lime which are procured in the neighbourhood. This lime becomes hard under water, so that it is excellently adapted to waterworks. We dined at Manlius, a new village, containing two churches. Besides the usual stage-coach there were two others to-day, all full of passengers. In our own we had for a short distance a farmer, a descendant of a German emigrant, who spoke the language that was used in Germany about a hundred years ago. He thought my German was too high, and that I spoke it like a parson. From the canal which forms an angle here, we drove in a southerly direction, in order to keep on the plains, as the main road, which is nearer, leads over a hill. The two Onondago villages appear to be flourishing manufacturing places, and are pleasantly situated. Marcellus is also a new village and has two churches. Most of the small villages have two churches, an Episcopal and a Presbyterian. In each of them, and even at the Indian village, there is a school. In several of the villages also I had the pleasure of seeing bookstores. Beyond Marcellus the night unfortunately closed in, which prevented me from seeing Skeneatelass Lake, as well as the town of the same name, which is said to be extremely pleasantly situated on one of its banks. About nine o’clock in the evening we arrived at Auburn, and found good accommodations at one of the public houses. This town contains upwards of one hundred and fifty houses, a court-house and penitentiary, which is said to be managed in a very excellent manner. To my regret I saw none of them; for at four o’clock the next morning, 18th of August, we set out in the stage-coach for Rochester, distant sixty-nine miles. The villages which we passed on our route were, Cayuga, nine miles, Seneca Falls, three miles, Waterloo, five miles, Geneva, six miles, Canandaigua, sixteen miles, Mendon, fifteen miles, Pittsford, seven miles, from which latter it was yet eight miles to Rochester.
It was just daylight as we arrived in the vicinity of Cayuga, on the lake of the same name, which is about twenty miles long, and from one to three wide. This lake empties into the Seneca river, which afterwards unites with the Mohawk. We crossed the lake not far from its mouth, on a wooden bridge, one mile in length, eighteen yards wide, and built in a very rough and careless manner: the planks are loose and the chevaux-de-frise is in a bad condition. On the opposite side of the lake is a large toll-house. At a short distance from this we arrived at Seneca Falls, so called in consequence of the little falls of the Seneca river, which are close by, and are chiefly formed by a mill-dam. At the tavern we met an Indian and his wife, of the Oneida tribe, who were going on a visit to the Senecas. We conversed with the man, who had been at school, and understood English. He told us that he had been raised by a Quaker missionary, and that he was a farmer, and concluded by asking for a little money, which he probably spent with his ugly wife at the next grog-shop.
All the villages through which we passed are quite new, and in many places we passed through primitive forests, which, in some places, they are just beginning to clear. At Waterloo the first house was erected in 1816, and at present it has two churches and about three thousand inhabitants. Several of the houses are built of brick, and contain well furnished stores. At the tavern we saw a large, beautiful young eagle, which had been caught in his nest and tamed. The country beyond Waterloo was boggy, and the road in some places made of large logs, so that we were very disagreeably jolted. Geneva is situated at the north point of Seneca Lake, which is between fifty and sixty miles long and about five wide. The town derives its name from its similarity of situation to Geneva in Switzerland. It is also quite new, and contains about four thousand inhabitants. It has two churches and several large stone and brick houses, of which the Franklin Hotel, situated on the bank of the lake, is the most spacious and beautiful. I went into a bookstore to ascertain what kind of books were most sold in this part of the country, and was told that the ancient classics and religious books found the most ready sale; sometimes also novels, law and medical works. The college is said to have several hundred students. In front of the town along the lake, there are beautiful country seats and gardens. On the other side of the town the woods are but a short distance from the houses, and are as yet not much cleared. We saw, however, several tracts of timber on fire; the trees are burnt in order to clear the land.
Canandaigua, which lies on the north point of the lake of the same name, which is about twenty miles long, is an extremely beautiful and pleasant town, that has been but lately settled. The Duke de la Rochefoucault says, that during his travels in America, in 1790, there was but a single house on this lake, in which he spent the night, in a garret used as a store-room. Now it is a beautiful commercial town, having one bank, a court-house, and a very superior tavern. The court was sitting, and there was a large collection of people, so that the town exhibited a very lively appearance. At this place the road separates, the left goes through Batavia and several small villages to Buffalo on Lake Erie; the right, to Rochester, and thence to Lake Ontario and the Falls of Niagara: and as this road again approaches the Erie canal, it is said to be the most interesting. On this account we gave it the preference, although the longest route.
We left Canandaigua in the afternoon, and rode through Victor, Mendon, and Pittsford, to Rochester. On this route we observed nothing particularly interesting, excepting several new settlements; the inhabitants of which resided in log-houses, which had a peculiar, but by no means an unpleasant aspect. I was particularly pleased with the neat and decent appearance of the inhabitants.
We arrived at Rochester at half past eight o’clock in the evening, and took lodgings at the Eagle Tavern. We crossed the Genesee river, which divides Rochester into two parts, on a wooden bridge, the first that we had hitherto met in the United States that was built firmly and properly. It rests upon stone piers, and is made of solid beams, with thick and well fastened planks. The next morning we walked through the town, and were pleased with its rapid increase. In 1812, there was not a single house here; nothing but a wilderness; and the land could be purchased at one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre. At present, Rochester is one of the most flourishing towns in the state of New York. It contains four churches, one bank, a court-house, and about four thousand inhabitants. Many of the houses are built of blue limestone, and of brick. The town contains several mills and manufactories; and amongst others, a nail factory, in which the nails are made with a machine, as in Birmingham. They also manufacture rifle-guns, which are very long and heavy. On the right bank of the Genesee river, the houses are not so numerous as on the left, and there are yet many frame, and even some log-houses: in the place where, probably in a short time, handsome wharves will be built, there may yet be seen stumps of trees – a truly interesting sight to those who observe the progress of this country. The basements of the houses are generally built of rough sand-stone; their corners, doors, and windows, of a kind of white marble-like sand-stone, and the rest of brick. The white sand-stone is procured in the neighbourhood, and is cut into slabs at a saw-mill on the Genesee river. I saw three of these blocks sawed; and in one frame I observed no less than five saws. Several hundred yards below the bridge the Genesee river is about two hundred yards wide, and has a fall of ninety-five feet, which at present, however, did not appear to much advantage. Above the falls is a race which conducts the water to several mills, and it again flows into the river below the falls, where it forms three beautiful cascades, which reminded me of the Villa di Mäcen, at Tivoli.
At Rochester the Erie canal is carried over the Genesee river by a stone aqueduct bridge, and resembles that of the Bridgewater canal at Manchester, in England. This aqueduct, which is about one thousand yards above the falls, rests upon a base of slate rock, and is seven hundred and eighty feet long. A work which has been lately published, called the “Northern Tour,” gives the following description of it: “The aqueduct consists of eleven broad arches, built in the form of circular segments, the tops of which are raised eleven feet above the level of the arches, and fifteen feet above that of the water in the river. The two exterior arches have an extent of forty feet each, and beneath them are the streams which turn the mills; the other nine each fifty feet wide, &c.” Upon one of its sides is a tow-path secured by iron railings. The whole is a solid work, and does much credit to its architect, Benjamin Wright.
We left Rochester at nine o’clock, on board the canal packet-boat Ohio, Captain Storch. The canal, between Lockport and Rochester, runs a distance of sixty-three miles, through a tolerably level country, and north of the Rochester ridge. This ridge consists of a series of rocks, which form the chain of the mountains which commences north of Lake Erie, stretches eastward to the Niagara river, confines it, and forms its falls, then continues its course, and forms the different falls which are north of Lake Ontario, and is at length lost in the neighbourhood of the Hudson. It has only been within the last year that this part of the canal has been passable; its course is through dense sombre forests, in which are but few settlements, such as Spencer’s Basin, Bates, and Brickport. The bridges are better and higher than those we have mentioned in the preceding pages. Amongst our passengers, was a Mr. Bosch, a Dutch clergyman from Curaçao, and the Rev. Messrs. Sluiter and Wykoff, from New York. These gentlemen, being of Dutch descent, the conversation was generally carried on in their native tongue. Captain Storch also, who is a native of Amsterdam, and a Jew by birth, who has travelled extensively, made the time pass very pleasantly, by his lively disposition, and his agreeable conversation. Both before and after dinner, as well as at tea, the two clergymen from New York, asked a blessing; and before we retired to bed, one of them read several chapters in the Bible, and then made a long prayer.
We reached Lockport on the 20th of August, about 7 o’clock in the morning. At this place the canal is carried over the ridge by five large locks, through which the water is raised to the height of seventy-six feet. The locks are ten in number, being arranged in two parallel rows, so that while the boats ascend in one row, they may descend at the same time in the other. Through this arrangement the navigation is greatly facilitated, and the whole work, hewn through and surrounded by large rocks, presents an imposing aspect.
Lockport, to which we repaired, while the boat was left in the basin at the foot of the locks, is an extremely interesting place, and is situated just above the locks. In May, 1821, it consisted of two log-houses; at present it contains not less than six hundred, some of which are stone houses: it contains a post-office, one printing-office, which issues a weekly paper, and two churches. Though at present Lockport appears perfectly wild, yet this appearance will no doubt vanish in the course of four or five years, so that it will present as splendid an appearance as Canandaigua and Rochester. On our arrival, the canal was still unfinished for about five miles; but it was supposed that the whole would be completed before the close of the year. They were obliged to cut it through solid rock, generally about thirty feet deep, for a distance of more than three miles. This was mostly effected by blasting. Several hundred Irishmen were at work. They reside in log huts, built along the canal. They make much money; but they suffer also severely in consequence of the unhealthy climate, especially from fevers, which not unfrequently prove fatal. The stone, which is quarried, is employed in building houses, and in making turnpikes. In breaking the rocks they often find beautiful petrifactions, and other remarkable minerals; for example, strontian, and beautiful transparent gypsum. I saw a large petrified tree, and a handsome petrified sea-coral.
At Lockport we took a dearborn for Buffalo, where we were anxious to go, in order to see the union of the canal with Lake Erie. Though a good stage runs between Lockport and the Falls of Niagara, we went in this bad vehicle five miles, to the navigable part of the canal. The road led through the forest, the trees of which had been felled along the canal, and passed over the stumps, so that it was uncommonly rough, especially as it had rained the day before. Arrived at length at the navigable part of the canal, we took passage on board a rather bad boat, where nothing was to be had but the common cordial, whiskey. The village where we went on board, is called Cottensburgh, and is quite a new settlement. At this place also the canal is cut through rocks to the depth of about thirty feet. About two or three miles farther on, it terminates in the Tonnawanta Creek, which serves as a canal for twelve miles. This creek has scarcely any outlet, so that when it rises much, they are obliged to protect the canal by means of safety-locks near its union with the creek. At the outlet of the creek into the Niagara is a sluice for the purpose of keeping the water always at a certain height. The creek itself is about fifty yards wide, and runs through a dense and beautiful forest, which has never been touched by the axe, except along the canal, where they have been obliged to make a tow-path. I sat in the bow of the boat during the whole passage. Nothing interrupted the solemn silence, except the chattering of the boatmen’s teeth, who are often severely affected in this unhealthy part of the country, with the intermittent fever. Another small river, called Eleven-mile Creek, unites with the main river, and not far from this junction was the site for the new town of Tonnawanta. A few small houses and a saw-mill were already erected; the inhabitants appeared also to suffer much from the intermittent fever. Here the Tonnawanta Creek, unites with the Niagara, where the sluice which we have just mentioned leads off. At this place also we had the first view of the Niagara river, which conveys the waters of Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, from the other extremity of which flows the St. Lawrence. In the river we observed Grand Island, which contains about one thousand one hundred acres, is overgrown with timber, and belongs to a New York editor, Moses Mordecai Noah, a Jew, who purchased it for the purpose of establishing a Jewish colony. The soil is very good; during the late war between England and the United States, the Niagara, it is well known, formed the boundary line between them and the British provinces of Upper Canada, and this island bore testimony of the bloody conflict. From this place, the canal runs along the bank of the Niagara, from which it is separated only by a small bank, built rather carelessly, and several feet above the level of the river, which is already somewhat rapid on account of its vicinity to the falls. On the Tonnawanta Creek we saw several canoes which were made by excavating the trunks of trees. From Tonnawanta to Buffalo it is eight miles, five of which we travelled on the canal as far as Black Rock. A basin is formed here by means of a dam situated near Squaw Island, on which is a lock communicating with the Niagara. The whole of this work is of wood, and cannot therefore be expected to be very durable. In the basin lay the new steam-boat Henry Clay, of three hundred tons, intended for running on Lake Erie. We had here the first view of the lake, whose shore appeared to be overgrown with wood. The other shore of course we could not see, and it seemed therefore as though we were looking into an expanded sea. The canal to Buffalo not being completed, we again took stage at Black Rock, and rode three miles to the former town, where we arrived at about 5 o’clock at evening, and took lodgings at the Mansion House, pleasantly situated on a little eminence in the lake.
Buffalo was burnt during the late war, by the British, but it has arisen from its ashes with increased beauty. The town contains about five thousand inhabitants, and will, in consequence of its situation near the mouth of the canal and its harbour, at which they are hard at work, soon become an important place. At the entrance of the harbour is a light-house, and on the lake we observed several schooners of about three hundred tons. A steam-boat, called the Superior, was ready to start with fifty passengers to Erie, and thence to Detroit. In the streets, we saw some tolerably well-dressed Indians of the Seneca tribe, who have their wigwam three miles distant. Amongst them were several women, who indeed, but for their complexion, might have been considered handsome. We also had an amusing military spectacle. It consisted of a militia parade, consisting of thirty men, including seven officers and two cornets. They were formed, like a battalion, into six divisions, and performed a number of manœuvres. The members were not all provided with muskets, but had ramrods instead. Only the officers and the rifle-company, four men strong, were in uniform. The band consisted of sixteen men, and was commanded by an officer with a colonel’s epaulets and drawn sword!
On the following day, 21st of August, we left Buffalo for the small village of Manchester, twenty-three miles distant, and situated on the right bank of the Niagara, near the falls. As far as the village of Tonnawanta the road passed along the canal. It was in a very bad condition, cut through the forest, and no pains have been taken to remove the trees, which are thrown on the road side, and the most beautiful trunks are permitted to spoil in a pitiable manner. On the left we had a view of the river and of Grand-Island, thickly studded with timber. The river is more than one mile wide below the island. On the Canada side is the village of Chippewa. From this place, a distance of three miles, we could already see the rising vapours of the falls. The water, however, indicated no signs of the approach to the precipice. It is only a short distance from Manchester, where you perceive the lofty trees on Goat-Island with its heights, situated in the midst of the falls, that the river becomes rocky, and the rapids commence; these form a number of small falls, which are nearly a mile long and the same in breadth, running as far as where the two great falls are separated by Goat-Island.
At Manchester, we took lodgings at the Eagle Tavern, and hastened immediately to the Falls: our steps were guided by their mighty roaring. In a few moments we stood near the precipice, and saw before us the immense mass of water which rushes with a tremendous noise into the frightful abyss below. It is impossible to describe the scene, and the pen is too feeble to delineate the simultaneous feelings of insignificance and grandeur which agitate the human breast at the sight of this stupendous work of nature! We can only gaze, admire, and adore. The rocks on both sides are perpendicular, but there is a wooden staircase which leads to the bed of the river. We descended, but in consequence of the drizzly rain which is produced by the foam of the water, we had by no means so fine a prospect from below as we anticipated. On this account, therefore, we soon ascended and satisfied ourselves by looking from above upon this sublime and majestic sight. As we returned, full of these mighty impressions, to the Eagle Tavern we found to our great joy a fine opportunity of speaking of the grandeur and magnificence we had just beheld. Lieutenants De Goer and Van Vloten, of the Pallas, had just arrived to render homage to this great natural curiosity.
In company with these gentlemen we took a walk to Goat-Island, by a convenient wooden bridge, thrown over the rapids about seven years since. The first bridge leads to a small island called Bath-Island, which contains a bath-house and billiard-room: the second to Goat-Island, which is about one mile in circumference, and overgrown with old and beautiful trees. The Indians who formerly resided in this part of the country, considered the island as sacred. They used to say that the Great Manito or Great Spirit inhabited it. And in fact, how could the Great Spirit manifest himself more irresistibly than in the destructive might of the tremendous Falls?
On Bath-Island a person may approach so near to the American falls as to look into the abyss below. The animals in the neighbourhood are so careless of this, that the cows and horses go into the river to drink within five yards of the brink of the precipice. From the foot of the falls you can see nothing of the abyss, inasmuch as every thing is concealed by the foam and vapour. On Goat-Island a person may in the same manner approach the Canadian falls, in the centre of which is a semicircular hollow, called the Horse-shoe, and here the noise is still more tremendous than on the other side. The vapour which rises from the Horse-shoe forms a thick mist, which may be seen at a great distance. To look into the Horse-shoe is awful and horrible. Nor can this be done but at the instant when the vapour is somewhat dissipated. You stand like a petrified being. The level of Lake Erie is said to be five hundred and sixty-four feet above that of the sea, and three hundred and thirty-four feet above the waters of Lake Ontario. Lake Ontario is consequently two hundred and thirty feet above the level of the sea. From Lake Erie to the rapids the water has a fall of fifteen feet, in the rapids fifty-seven feet, and according to a recent measurement, the falls on the American side are one hundred and sixty-two feet high. From this place to Lewistown the river has a fall of one hundred and four feet, and thence to Lake Ontario, of two feet.
The next morning, 22d of August, we made another visit to Goat-Island. We afterwards descended the stairs to the river, which we crossed in a small boat, at a short distance from both falls. The bed of the river is said to be here two hundred and forty-six feet deep. The current passes beneath the surface of the water, and does not again become visible till after a distance of three miles. On the Canada side you have a much better view of the falls than on the American, for you see both falls at the same time. There is on the Canada side a covered wooden staircase, which we ascended, and approached the falls, amidst a constant drizzling caused by the falling water. The sun threw his rays upon the thick mist and formed a beautiful rainbow. Another winding staircase leads down the rocks near the falls, under which you may walk to the distance of one hundred and twenty feet; several of the gentlemen present went in, but according to their report they could not see any thing. I was contented therefore to behold the falls from Table rock, which almost overhangs them. A part of this rock gave way several years ago and fell down the precipice, and the remaining part is so much undermined by the water that it will probably soon follow. The whole distance from the American to the British shore is fourteen hundred yards, of which three hundred and eighty belong to the American falls, three hundred and thirty to Goat-Island, and seven hundred yards to the Canada or Horse-shoe falls. On the British side, opposite to the falls are two taverns, in the larger of which, Forsyth’s Hotel, we took lodgings until the next day, when we intended to pay a visit to the governor of Upper Canada, Sir Peregrine Maitland, who resides at his country seat within a few miles of the falls. During the late war a bridge was thrown over the river about one mile above this tavern, which, together with a mill, was burnt by the Americans on their retreat from the battle of Lundy’s Lane. A few years ago a burning spring was discovered here, several of which are said to occur in different parts of the United States. It is surrounded by a cask, and contains a cold water of a blackish, slimy appearance, and of a sulphurous taste. Within this cask is a small vessel which is open at the bottom, and has a pipe at its upper end. If a lighted candle be held within a foot of the mouth of this pipe, it will instantly produce a strong flame, similar to a gas-light. If the vessel be taken out, and the candle be held over the surface of the water, it will produce the same effect, but the flame will soon disappear. In the neighbourhood of Forsyth’s Hotel is the only point from which you have a full view of both falls at the same time, which, however, is often interrupted by the ascending vapour.
On our return to the American shore, we examined a camera obscura which is situated at the head of the American staircase, and was built by a Swiss. This gives a tolerably good view of the falls. Afterwards we took a ride to the Whirlpool, which is three miles down the Niagara, and is formed by a kind of rocky basin where the river runs between narrow rocky banks. It is singular to see this confusion of the water, whose appearance cannot be better described than by comparing it with the flowing of melted lead. The lofty rocks which form the banks of this river, are beautifully covered with wood and present a stately, majestic appearance. In the evening I again went to Goat-Island in order to view the falls by bright moonlight: in this light they produce a very peculiarly beautiful effect, which is greatly heightened by a moon-rainbow.
The following day, 23d August, all our company departed; my friend Tromp and myself alone remained. We went to the other side of the river, and took lodgings at Forsyth’s Hotel, where we found Sir Michael and Lady Clare, from Jamaica, where Sir Michael is a member of parliament: he was making a tour of pleasure, with his lady, through the United States. I also became acquainted with a Mr. Grymes, of Virginia, who was formerly attorney general of the state of Louisiana, and is married to the widow of the late Governor Claiborne, a beautiful and wealthy creole. As this family were also going on a tour to Canada, I hoped to travel with them. Mrs. Grymes spoke French, a circumstance which was exceedingly agreeable on account of the facility with which I could converse with her. I also found the son and adjutant of the governor, Sir Peregrine Maitland, who had been sent by his father, to await my arrival. In a short time after, this worthy general came himself to pay me a visit, and offer me a room in his cottage, four miles off. This I refused, but on the evening of the following day, I rode to Sir Peregrine’s in company with Sir Michael and Lady Clare. The road went over the battle-ground at Lundy’s Lane, (25th July, 1814,) which is situated upon a gentle eminence, and through the beautiful village of Stamford. The fields here are much better cultivated than in the United States, and there is not so much waste of timber. The clearing is done with much more order and regularity. Sir Peregrine resides at his cottage, in summer, which was built by his father-in-law, the Duke of Richmond, and surrounded by a park. His winter residence is at York, on the northern shore of Lake Ontario, the seat of the parliament of Upper Canada.
CHAPTER VII
Journey from the Falls of Niagara to Montreal. – The Battle-ground at Queenstown. – Newark. – Kingston. – Montreal
On Thursday, the 25th of August, we took our final leave of the falls, in the forenoon, in company with the Grymes and Clare families, for the town of Newark, which is situated at the junction of the Niagara with Lake Ontario, on the Canada shore, about fourteen miles distant. At first our road passed over small hills, until we reached the battle-ground at Queenstown, a steep hill, which is situated behind Queenstown, and commands a view of the whole surrounding country. From this, the country as far as Lake Ontario, is more level. Opposite to Queenstown, on the American shore, is Lewistown.
The battle of Queenstown took place on the 13th of October, 1812. The English, under the command of General Brock, occupied the heights, whose right wing borders on the Niagara, having a deep ravine in front, and whose left wing gradually slopes towards other no less considerable eminences, which they had slightly fortified. General Solomon Van Rensselaer, the present post-master in Albany, and cousin of General Van Rensselaer, the patroon, encamped with the American troops, consisting of regulars and militia, on the opposite shore, near Lewistown. General Van Rensselaer was apprised that General Brock, with the greatest part of his corps, had marched towards the west, and that there were but few troops left on the heights. He determined therefore to cross the river, to make himself master of so important a position. During the night he conveyed his regulars, about one thousand four hundred men, over the river, and gave orders that the militia should follow on the return of the boats, and form a reserve in the rear. These troops gained the heights, and nearly surprised the British, who, notwithstanding, made a bold resistance. The Americans would, however, have remained masters of the field, had not General Brock returned with his detachment. Brock was a brave soldier, and hearing that the troops whom he had left behind, were in a dangerous position, he immediately attacked the Americans with but a single company. In this attack he found a glorious and memorable death. The Americans kept the heights as long as possible; their ammunition, however, being nearly exhausted, General Van Rensselaer sent orders to the militia to advance. The general himself hastened to the opposite shore to accelerate their movements; he was answered that they were ready to defend the borders of the United States, but it was contrary to the laws of the country to take them out of it. The troops of the line in the meanwhile, having exhausted their ammunition, were obliged to retreat; they expected to embark, but not finding any boats, they were compelled, after a heroic defence to surrender as prisoners of war. On the place where General Brock fell, the parliament of Canada has erected a monument to the memory of that brave and intrepid soldier. It consists of a lofty column, which may be observed from every part of the adjacent country. It was not yet completed, and wanted the inscription.
We expected to meet the steam-boat Queenstown at Newark, in order to proceed to Kingston, on the eastern extremity of Lake Ontario. We missed it, however, and were afterwards informed that it had been obliged to put in at another harbour on account of repairs. We were compelled, therefore, to remain three days at Newark. Newark is a regularly built town, with several handsome houses; it is situated at the outlet of the Niagara into Lake Ontario, between Fort George and Missagua. Fort Missagua is near the lake; Fort George lies south of Newark, and is in ruins. During the last war, both these forts were occupied by the Americans, and from Fort George towards the town, they had raised a bulwark so as to form a kind of intrenchment. After they had evacuated this position, and were obliged to retreat to the right shore of the Niagara, the commander, General M‘Clure, burnt the town of Newark, an act for which he has been severely censured by his country. Since this occurred, the village has never properly recovered, and its future increase will also be slow, especially as government is digging a canal to the west of Newark, which is to connect Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario, which will probably hereafter withdraw all the transitory commerce. Our time passed very agreeably in this town, particularly through the attention of the worthy Sir Peregrine Maitland, who had come hither; the politeness of Major Cob, and the gallant officers of the seventy-sixth regiment, of which four companies were at Newark, as well as the delightful singing of Mrs. Grymes, who remained with her husband, while many others, with whom we had expected to sail, went away.
We visited Fort Niagara, which is situated on the American shore, and which, in consequence of its white houses, and its waving flag, presents a very handsome appearance. The fort lies on a neck of land; it was erected by the French in the middle of the last century, and was shortly after taken by the British. After the peace of Versailles in 1783, it fell into the possession of the United States, was retaken during the late war by the British, and at the peace of Ghent, was again obtained by the United States. We saw all that was to be seen, and found every thing clean and comfortable. I will only further remark on the present occasion, that the uniform of the United States’ Infantry is very simple, and consists of dark blue cloth, with one row of white buttons, blue lace collars and cuffs of the same, white cord, and leather caps.
We also visited the village of the Tuscarora tribe of Indians, who reside within the limits of the United States, about three miles from Lewistown. The village consists of single houses, or wigwams, and is handsomely situated in a valley surrounded by forests. It contains a frame church, in which the service is performed by a methodist missionary, who also, during the winter, keeps school for their children. Most of the houses are surrounded by gardens and orchards; and the fields, in which they mostly cultivate Indian corn, appeared to be in a very good condition. We were conducted into the house of an Indian, about forty years of age, who had been educated in one of the schools in New York, who speaks and writes English fluently. We found him in his bed suffering from an attack of rheumatism. He inquired after our native countries, and was pretty well acquainted with their geography. We examined his library, and found that it consisted chiefly of methodist religious books, with a history of the United States. He also had a collection of Indian implements of war, consisting of a club of hickory wood, a battle-axe of stone, bows and arrows, the points of which are flint, very artificially made; an oblong stone, a kind of serpentine, which the savages wear on their breasts during an engagement, and ornaments of glass beads and shells, which they wear around their waists in time of battle. All these articles I wished to buy; but the Indian told me that he kept them for the inspection of strangers, and that they were not for sale. Instead of them, he sold me some mocassins, a kind of soft leather shoe, made of buckskin, which are ornamented with silk and beads, and a small basket. Amongst the Indians, the women are obliged to do all the work, even of the most degrading kind. Mr. Tromp, in order to see several articles more conveniently, had placed his hat on the floor, which was scarcely observed by the Indian, before he desired Mrs. Grymes to put it upon a chair. His grandson, a boy of eleven years, shot very expertly at an apple with his bow and arrow.
The steam-boat Frontenac, arrived in the evening after our return, and was to sail on the following day for Kingston. We went on board and examined her cabin. Around the dining-cabin there are six chambers, each containing four births. I was shown into one of these, in which I could lie at full length. In the ladies cabin are fourteen births. A great part of the deck was covered by an awning, so that passengers could enjoy the fresh air at the same time that they were protected from the sun or bad weather. The boat carries seven hundred and fifty tons, and has an engine made by Bolton and Watt, at Soho, near Birmingham, of twenty-seven horse-power. Sir Peregrine Maitland conveyed me to this vessel in his carriage. She lay at anchor off Fort George. Sir Peregrine had the great politeness to station one of the companies of the seventy-sixth regiment with a flag, to fire a salute of twenty-one guns; and his attention was still farther shown in sending his son along, that I might have no difficulty in seeing the navy-yard, at Kingston. The Frontenac sailed at half past five o’clock. In a few moments we were on the lake, and in a short time lost sight of land, and were apparently in the open sea. There was but little wind, and the vessel, in consequence of its great size, produced no disagreeable rocking. During the whole evening we were entertained by Mrs. Grymes, by her delightful performance on the guitar, and by her singing French and Spanish songs. The night passed quietly; but it was otherwise at break of day. It rained repeatedly; the wind grew stronger; the vessel pitched, and several persons became sea-sick. Lake Ontario is of an elliptical form, is about two hundred miles long, and fifty-five miles at its widest part. It is everywhere very deep, in some places five hundred feet, and never freezes completely over. It contains several good harbours, and the boundary line between Canada and the United States, divides it into two nearly equal parts.
In the afternoon we saw a small peninsula towards the west, called Prince Edward’s Island, and passed between a cluster of small islands, called the Ducks. About nine o’clock in the evening we reached Kingston, the British harbour on Lake Ontario. We cast anchor close by the town. I spent the night on board, and in the morning, as I awoke, I found one of the companies of the thirty-seventh regiment, who are here in garrison, marching along the quay, near the vessel, as a guard of honour, accompanied by a band of music. I dismissed them of course immediately, and after having received the visits of a few officers, we rode over the bay to the dock-yard, which lies opposite to Kingston, surrounded by a high wall and protected by a strong guard. By the navy-list I ascertained that there are ten ships here, with three hundred and six guns, in ordinary. It appeared to me, however, that the number of guns was greater, for the St. Lawrence, one of these vessels, carried one hundred and twenty guns, and two which are yet on the stocks, the Montreal and Wolf, have three decks, and ports for one hundred and thirty guns each. According to the stipulation of the treaty of Ghent, they are not permitted to build any ships here during time of peace; so that the soldiers at the arsenal consisted merely of the necessary officers, besides twelve carpenters, who had scarcely any thing to do, but to work at an elegant little schooner, which was shortly to be launched to serve as a yacht. The large vessels on the stocks were uncovered, and appeared to have suffered much from the weather. The St. Lawrence was the largest vessel in the river, and is said also to be in a state of decay; her bottom especially has suffered from the effects of the fresh water and worms. The wharves of the dock-yard are built of wood, and bear marks of the haste in which they were erected; they were in a bad condition. Within a few years they have erected a magazine, three stories high and one hundred and ninety-two feet long, with iron doors and shutters, for the preservation of the sails and cordage. The partitions in the inside are made of wood. Immediately on our entrance into the magazine the large iron door was locked and kept so, inasmuch as they greatly mistrust the Americans. Beneath the building is a cellar, which is also occupied as a magazine, and the floor of which consists of limestone, which serves for the foundation of the whole building. The stairs are of stone, and are built into a tower; they intend also at some future period, to make the different floors fire-proof, like the magazine at Plymouth, by covering them with iron. In a distinct massy building are the forges, and in a third the offices. By the side of the offices is a large room, which contains the different articles used in ship-building. Opposite to the dock-yard, on a neck of land, is Fort Frederick, which I had not time to visit. Behind the dock-yard, upon a small height, stood a number of tents. We were informed that about four hundred Irish emigrants had encamped there, who had been sent to this country at the expense of the English government, to settle a piece of land on the north-western bank of Lake Ontario, whither they were soon to go. The town of Kingston contains about two thousand inhabitants, and is built in the usual style.
We left Kingston after eleven o’clock, on board the steam-boat Lady Dalhousie, for Prescott, sixty-eight miles from Kingston, on the left bank of the St. Lawrence. Adjutant Maitland left us at Kingston, but the rest of the company remained. We had scarcely left this place before we sailed round a promontory on which stands Fort Henry, into the St. Lawrence. This river is here very wide, and forms an archipelago about fifty miles in length, called the thousand islands. The English and American commissioners for determining the boundary line, took the pains to count these islands, and found that they amounted to sixteen hundred and ninety-two; in this calculation, however, they have included every projecting rock, even if it had but a single tree. This archipelago presents a beautiful prospect; most of the islands are rocky, and are overgrown with trees, generally cedars. Here and there a fir reared his lofty head, which, generally growing upon the bare rocks, where the trees are less numerous, presents a picturesque appearance. We observed something similar to the picture of Frederick, of which we were often reminded in descending the St. Lawrence. Eighteen miles from Kingston our vessel stopped at the village of Gananoqui, on the Canada shore, to take in wood. I went for a moment ashore and found an insignificant village, in the neighbourhood of which the river of the same name falls into the St. Lawrence. The Gananoqui river has a rocky bed, and is crossed by a wooden bridge, beyond which, upon a small eminence, is a square two story log-house, the upper story of which was formerly occupied as a garrison by about forty men. During the late war the Americans got possession here of an English post and a magazine, in consequence of which they built this block-house. At the extremity of the archipelago of the thousands islands is a similar block-house for the protection of the navigation of the river.
On the Canada shore, about fifty miles below Kingston, where the archipelago terminates, is the small village of Brockville, where there are some fine magazines near the river. At this place the night set in, which was warm and moonlight. We found two taverns in the village, but they were so full of people, and had such a dirty appearance, that I preferred spending the night on board the steam-boat, and my example was followed by the families of Messrs. Clare and Grymes. The steam-boat carried one hundred tons, and was of twenty-five horse power, but she was by no means so convenient and comfortable as the Frontenac.
At this place commence the rapids of the St. Lawrence. They are formed by rocks, which extend obliquely across the river, over which the water rushes with tremendous force, so that between this place and Montreal, a distance of one hundred and thirteen miles, the steam-boats can run only a part of the way. On this account, therefore, there is a line of stage-coaches and steam-boats between Prescott and Montreal, which take the passengers alternately, and produce much vexation in consequence of the baggage. The rapids may be descended in bateaux, or Durham-boats, which are small, flat vessels of about forty tons, have but half deck, and draw eighteen inches of water. The Durham-boats have a mast and two sails, and carry large cargoes of goods. We were anxious to undertake the passage, in order to see the rapids, and to ascertain the danger of which so much has been spoken. We therefore went on board a Durham-boat, the Flying Dutchman, paid two dollars for each passenger, and were assured by the captain, that, if the wind should be good, we should be at Montreal in a day. Sir Michael resolved to attempt the enterprise, and his lady accompanied him, in spite of her fears. Mrs. Grymes, however, was so much afraid, that she preferred travelling partly in the stage and partly by steam-boat.
We embarked on board the Flying Dutchman, at about 6 o’clock, early in the morning of the 30th August. The morning was delightful, and as we were much pleased with the beautiful prospect of Prescott, in the neighbourhood of which is Fort Wellington, a redoubt, which was built during the late war.
On the American shore we saw the town of Ogdensburgh, which was fortified by the Americans during the late war, but soon fell into the hands of the British. The comforts of our vessel were not, as we have remarked, very great. It was open, a few barrels of potash served us as a floor; and boards laid across our trunks as seats. Six miles below Prescott we arrived at a few islands called the Gallop Islands, and the first rapids. As we approached, the water appeared to be boiling, and high foaming billows arose, over which our boat passed rapidly. They are not so high as the swells at sea, but they are very short and rapid in their movements. As our Durham-boat, however, was remarkably long, it divided them without producing any disagreeable motion. Scarcely had we passed the rapids before the river became again smooth, and as we had scarcely any wind, our progress was but slow. Another set of rapids, nine miles long, were passed in an hour, and with no more danger than the preceding. We were assured, however, that a branch of these rapids, from which we were separated by an island, are very dangerous. It is called the least channel; and Duncan, in his Journal, gives a beautiful description of a shipwreck that occurred here, in which many lives were lost. Our vessel was not only flat at the bottom, like all the others that pass these rapids, but had also an ingenious false keel, which could be lowered and raised as the water was either shallow or deep. Our passengers were principally of the lower class of Canadians, who spoke bad French, somewhat like the Walloon. There was also a lively young black bear, three months old, on board.
About twenty miles below Longsault, we reached the village of Cornwall, on the Canada shore. The wind was so feeble that we had no hopes of reaching a good tavern before dark, we determined, therefore, to stay here all night. Towards evening, Mr. Grymes’ family also arrived by land, and took lodgings at the same tavern. The village is small, but the streets intersect each other at right angles, and contain several new stone houses. It appears to be a place of little business. The country is pretty flat, and the plain near the village is used by the British as a race-ground. A race was to take place in a few days, horses had already arrived and lodgings were bespoken. The British government sends many Scotch emigrants into this part of the country.
Our departure on the following morning was delayed two hours by the ladies; and it was not until about 7 o’clock that we left Cornwall in our Durham-boat. The morning was very pleasant, and in consequence of a rather strong southerly wind, we glided rapidly along. Five miles below Cornwall, on the right shore, we saw the village of St. Regis, the last belonging to the United States. The American line here leaves the St. Lawrence, both shores of which belong to Canada as far as its outlet into the sea. On the left bank of the river we descried a new Scotch village, called Glengary Settlement. Farther on, you reach a lake, called Lac St. François, through which the St. Lawrence flows, and through which the boundary line between Upper and Lower Canada is drawn. This lake, which is about forty miles long, and six broad, contains a number of islands. Not far from St. Regis we passed one of these islands, which is inhabited by some Indians, who have been baptized by a Catholic missionary, and have their island in a good state of cultivation. One of the Indians, with his wife, came along side of us in a canoe, and sold us some fish. At the point where Lac St. François terminates, and where the St. Lawrence again commences, is the village of Coteau de Lac, on the left bank of the river. At this village is a pretty strong rapid, stronger than those we passed yesterday. In order that this rapid may be avoided, and that vessels may ascend with more ease, the government has had a canal dug along the river, which has two locks, and is covered by a small fort, Fort du Coteau.
Our captain had business at the custom-house; he stopped therefore for an hour, during which I had time to look at the fort; after which we continued our course in a strong wind which was brought on by a thunder-storm. The shores and islands of the river are generally covered with cedar trees, and amongst them we observed some neat houses and churches, with bright tin roofs. At the village of Coteau des Cèdres, we were obliged to encounter the last and most dangerous rapid, called the Cascades. The waves were uncommonly high, and our vessel passed over the dangerous parts with incredible velocity. Along these rapids there is also a canal provided with locks, and intended to facilitate the ascent of vessels. If these rapids are viewed from the shore, it appears incredible that a canoe should venture in without being swallowed up. Such a misfortune, however, does not happen, as we had just proved. Below this rapid the river, where it receives the Ottawa, again spreads out so as to form another lake called Lac St. Louis. North of this lake, and at the place where the Ottawa unites with the St. Lawrence, it forms another lake, Lac des deux Montagnes, which is separated from Lac St. Louis by three islands, called Jesus, Perrot, and Montreal. The thunder-storm passed close by us; the wind blew heavy, but favourably. We met a steam-boat, having a corpse on board, and her flag at half-mast; this was a bad omen! Another steam-boat got ahead of us as we were passing towards La Chine, and excited our desire to sail faster; but suddenly we saw a terrible storm approaching. In an instant every hand was endeavouring to take down the sails, and the small one was fortunately drawn in before the arrival of the squall, but the large one, in consequence of its bad cordage, was only half way down when it struck us. Near us we observed a sound, with a dangerous cliff, which it was necessary to avoid by steering to the left, but we were driven directly towards it. Six men could scarcely manage the helm. Half of the sail floated in the water, and our destruction appeared inevitable. No one knew who commanded; the sailors thought themselves better qualified than the captain, and every thing was hurry and confusion. I deemed it best to remain silent, and commit myself to the care of Providence, who guides the destinies of man. At length a sailor climbed the mast and cut the cord, so that the sail could be taken down, by which time we had fortunately passed the sound. The storm also, which altogether did not last much longer than five minutes, began to abate. The steam-boat ahead had been in the same dangerous situation, and would have been cast upon the rocks in the sound, had she not speedily returned into the lake, where she cast anchor. Immediately after the storm, during which it had rained, we observed a remarkable phenomenon, viz. a fall of white-winged insects, of which a great quantity fell upon our boat. It continued during five minutes. These insects had in all probability been driven from the neighbouring forests. The storm, though unpleasant, had the effect of propelling us swiftly forwards. After 6 o’clock in the evening, we reached without any other unpleasant occurrence La Chine, a village, which has a harbour situated upon the island of Montreal.
La Chine appears to be an insignificant village, though in consequence of its favourable situation, it is said to do considerable business. The French was spoken so badly here, that I thought myself transported to our provinces of Hennegau or Namur. The village is said to have obtained its name from the circumstance that during the time the country was occupied by the French colony, they believed they could pass to China by way of the St. Lawrence; and with this object, an expedition had been fitted out, which embarked at La Chine.
Between La Chine and Montreal, the river has a very dangerous rapid, on account of which the government has built a canal as far as this place, which is nine miles long, has several locks, and is said to be of much importance to the trade. As we preferred going by land we hired a stage-coach, and started about eight o’clock in the evening during a violent thunder-storm. Lady Clare, who was scarcely recovered from the fear which she experienced on the water, would willingly have spent the night here in a tavern, as she was much afraid to travel during a thunder-storm at night. It soon turned out that her fears were not unfounded. We had scarcely passed three miles over a good turnpike road, before we came in contact with several carts that stood in front of a tavern, loaded with iron bars. The drivers had gone into the tavern, and left their carts in the middle of the road, and as the night was dark we approached one of them so suddenly that three of the iron bars entered the breast of our shaft-horse, which immediately fell and expired. After much dispute between the coachman and the carters, we rode on with three horses, and arrived at Montreal about ten o’clock at night. We stopt at the Masonic Hall, a hotel which has been established within the last year. It is a very large, convenient, massy building, four stories high, and built of blue stone. It affords a fine view of the St. Lawrence, which is upwards of twelve hundred yards wide here. At our arrival, I became immediately acquainted with Captain Mellish, of the engineers, who was sent from England on a scientific expedition into the interior of the colony.
We remained at Montreal nearly three days. The city, which I examined in company with Lieutenant Colonel Evans of the seventieth regiment, in garrison here, contains about twenty-five thousand inhabitants. It extends upon a hill to a considerable distance, between the St. Lawrence and Le Mont Réal, which is about seven hundred feet high, and is lined with timber. It has two principal streets, which run parallel with the river, and are intersected by a third, that runs along the ditch of the demolished fortresses. The houses are generally built of blue stone, and covered with bright tin, have iron doors and shutters to protect them against the fire, which give the city a very dismal appearance. In our walk we passed a number of young men who wore belts, and were dressed in blue coats, the seams of which were covered with white cord. We were informed that they were the pupils of the Catholic ecclesiastical school. It is well known that most of the Canadians, and four-fifth of the inhabitants of Montreal, are Catholics; they are bigotted, and the lower classes are exceedingly ignorant. There is a very broad street, which unites the two principal streets, and in the centre is the market-house. At one of the extremities of this street, are the court-house and prison; behind which is the place where the old forts stood, since converted into a parade. Montreal has several hospitals, which are superintended by nurses. These hospitals, however, are not sufficient, especially as the nuns do not admit any fever patients. In consequence of this, some of the most wealthy citizens have joined, and selected a healthy spot, on which they have erected a new hospital, three stories high, capable of containing seventy patients of both sexes. In this hospital, the sick, fifty in number, receive cheap and excellent accommodations. They are under the care of nurses, and are attended gratis, by the best physicians of the city. The arrangement is similar to that of the hospital at Boston, but there is less of luxury here in their management.
The public library is as yet small, though it is rapidly increasing. It has united with it a cabinet of natural history. We also observed the foundation for a large cathedral, which is to be built by private contributions. At the barracks of the subalterns, I was much pleased with the mess-room, which has a library connected with it; I was also much gratified with the school for the education of the soldiers, and their children. The barracks were formerly occupied as the Jesuit college, which stood in the old French citadel, of which not a vestige remains. Not far from the barracks is a steam-engine, which conveys the water from the river into the city, at the same time that it moves a mill. At the market-house stands a monument erected by the colony in honour of Lord Nelson. It consists of a statue resting upon a single column. On one side of the pedestal is an inscription; two others contain representations of naval engagements; and the fourth, a representation of the capitulation of Copenhagen.
The next day, Lieutenant-colonel Mac Gregor conducted me to the parade, where a part of his regiment was assembled. They formed a battalion of six divisions. The battalion exercises were not performed, but the manœuvres, which were very complicated, and only adapted to the place, were executed with much precision and admirable celerity. I learned a new mode of making ready. At the command “ready,” the soldiers levelled their muskets, cocked them in this position; at the command “fire,” they brought them slowly to their cheeks. The infantry were divided into two bodies, but in making a flank march, they formed into three, by passing through the files. The platoons were divided into sections, containing from four to six files, in consequence of which the oblique march was easily executed.
After this manœuvre was completed, we took a boat, in company with the officers, for the island of St. Helen, oppositely to Montreal, in the middle of the St. Lawrence. This island contains a large artillery depôt, under the direction of Major Wallace. Upon landing we were saluted with a discharge of twenty-one guns from the battery on the neck of the island. This battery is of a crescent shape, and serves as a training-place for the company of artillery stationed here. The gunners were just practising with one nine, and one six pounder, and a seven-inch howitzer, each of which was charged with grenades. The mark stood in the river, and their dexterity was such that the grenade never exploded before reaching it. The skill consists chiefly in the proper calculation of the fuse, so that the powder of the grenade may explode the moment it is over the mark.
St. Helen was the only point that the French retained after all Canada had submitted to the British power. It is about two miles in circumference, and is covered with fine elms and different kinds of nut trees, particularly the hickory. The soldiers have made excellent paths through and around the island. A botanic garden was established here a few years ago by the government, in which all the North American plants are collected, for the purpose of furnishing gardens in England. On the north side of the island you have some beautiful views of the shores of the river, and Montreal, with her numerous churches, and situation at the foot of the green mountain, presents a very imposing appearance. Here are also the arsenal and barracks, new massy buildings, which are protected against a coup de main by a breast-work, as well as by embrasures in the walls. The interior of the island is hilly, and in a really romantic valley is a powder-magazine, containing four thousand barrels of powder. Through Major Wallace, who resides in a very beautiful house at the barracks, we became acquainted with his wife and daughter, who pass their time very pleasantly at their solitary habitation in music and drawing. During the winter, the people who are obliged to stay on the island are sometimes prevented from going to Montreal for six weeks, in consequence of the ice.
After our return to Montreal we took another ramble through the city, and observed some very large stores. As Montreal carries on some fur trade through the Ottawa river, with the Hudson Bay and North-west Company, I had supposed I should be able to procure some cheap fur; but I found little that was good, and this was valued at an enormous price. In the evening we went to the Royal Circus, whose pompous advertisement had promised a large company of riders and a good play. The riders, four grown persons and two boys, performed some tolerably good feats; but the play was so badly managed that we soon returned to the house. The theatre is in other respects handsomely arranged: it has two tiers of boxes, and a circle for the horses, which, during the play, forms the pit.
CHAPTER VIII
Journey from Montreal to Quebec. – Stay at Quebec. – Return to Montreal – from the 3d to the 9th of September, 1825
About 8 o’clock in the evening of the 3d of September, in company with Messrs. Grymes and Clare’s families, we embarked on board the steam-boat Lady Sherbrook for Quebec, one hundred and eighty miles from Montreal. Montreal wants good wharves, a circumstance which we felt sensibly on going on board the steam-boat, as we were obliged to walk in the dark through the mire, which was particularly disagreeable to the ladies. We had taken state-rooms on board the vessel, so that the ladies could live alone, and not be obliged to sleep in the common ladies cabin. To me it was also pleasant to have a small room to myself. At Montreal I met Captain King, of the English artillery, with whom I had become acquainted at Boston, and who likewise travelled to Quebec. The other passengers were not numerous.
The steam-boat was one hundred and fifty feet long, carried eight hundred tons, and her engine was of sixty horse-power, much too little for such a large and heavy vessel. It started after 9 o’clock in the evening. During the night it stopt an hour at the outlet of the river Sorel into the St. Lawrence, at William Henry, a small town, so called in honour of the Duke of Clarence. They were obliged to take in wood; for the American and Canada steam-boats are not, like the European, heated with stone coal, but with wood, which takes up much room on the vessel, and much time in loading.
The next morning we stopt on the left bank of the little town Les Trois Rivières, which contains two thousand five hundred inhabitants, is eighty miles distant from Montreal, and situated where the St. Maurice empties itself into the St. Lawrence. Before we came to this place, we had to go through Lake St. Pierre, which is formed by the widening of the river St. Lawrence. The banks of this river are thickly inhabited on both sides, and are also said to be cultivated and productive. The river is throughout from one to two miles wide, but fifty-two miles below Trois Rivières, at the village of Richelieu, it becomes narrower, and here are the last rapids, called Rapids de Richelieu. The banks, which as far as this place are pretty low, become higher and more rocky, particularly on the left side. The neighbourhood is remarkably handsome and picturesque. The majestic stream with its pleasant banks and the view of the distant blue mountains near Quebec, produce an indescribable effect. The weather was favourable, a clear sunny day, and not very warm; in this northern latitude you can already perceive the approaching autumn by the coolness of the nights and mornings.
We reached Quebec at 10 o’clock in the evening. This city consists of two parts, the upper town, which is built on a rock, and the lower, which is pressed in between the river and the rock. The lights in the lower town and the fortifications, had an elegant appearance, when contrasted with the dark rock. The first coup d’œil, which was by night, reminded me of Namur, as it is seen from the right bank of the Maas. In the river were many vessels, mostly used for carrying wood. It was already late, and we should have found difficulty in transporting our baggage by night, besides other inconveniences in finding lodgings for the ladies, so we spent this night also on board the steam-boat, where we were very comfortable and found it cleanly.
The next morning, after dismissing the guard which the governor had appointed to escort us, we went to our lodgings, in the upper part of the town. The lower town is very narrow, and has a filthy appearance. The streets are not paved, and badly provided with side-walks. The road which leads to the upper part of the town is very steep. It stands on a rocky ground, and its fortifications are elevated three hundred and fifty feet from the level of the ocean. The upper is separated from the lower town by a stone wall, which has the form of a horn-work. Through this wall is a gate, which has a guard, the guard-room is opposite the gate, and by means of a portcullis defends the entrance. For the convenience of foot-passengers, there is a door near the gate, with wooden stairs, by ascending which you reach the upper town. On the right side of the gate is a building which resembles a chapel, and serves for the house of commons of Canada. In order to get home, we were obliged to go round part of the walls of the town. Even here you have an indescribably beautiful view of the Bay of Quebec and the right bank of the river, which has the appearance of a cape called Point Levi.
Shortly after our arrival, I received a visit from Colonel Duchesnay, first adjutant of the governor-general, and from Colonel Darnford, director of engineers. The first gentleman came to bid me welcome, in the name of the governor, and the latter begged to show me the fortifications. Lord Dalhousie, governor-general of all the British possessions in North America, was at that time in England, but was expected daily. During his absence, the government was under the direction of the lieutenant-governor, Sir Francis Burton, brother of Lord Conyngham. He is a civilian, but is said to fill his high post with credit. The good spirits the inhabitants are in, and the harmony that exists in the colony, is mostly owing to his good management, and his humane and friendly deportment towards them. It is said of Lord Dalhousie, that he has estranged the hearts of the people from himself and the government, through his haughty and absolute deportment, and the opposition party in the Canadian parliament has thereby been strengthened.
With the above-mentioned public officers, we wandered through the city, and first of all visited the government house, which is a large old building, vacant during the absence of Lord Dalhousie. The rooms are not large, and were not as richly furnished as I expected to see the mansion of an English governor-general. At the back of the house, over the vault, is a large balcony, from which one can see part of the town, the harbour, and the surrounding neighbourhood. The citadel is a new work, and not quite finished. The English speak with a kind of exultation of the fortifications of Quebec, and compare it to Gibraltar. I also expected something extraordinary, but cannot say that my expectations were gratified. The heights near the town are the well-known plains of Abraham, or more correctly heights of Abraham, upon which, on the 12th of September, 1759, the battle between the English general, Wolfe, and the French general, Marquis Montcalm, took place; a battle which cost the lives of both generals, and in which the French were defeated with the loss of the town and colony.
General Wolfe took possession of the Isle d’Orleans, and made himself master of Point Levi. The Marquis de Montcalm, upon the heights by the falls of Montmorency, with his army in a fortified position, heroically received the attack of General Wolfe and drove him back, with great loss to the English army. On this occasion, General Wolfe embarked his men in the night, took advantage of the darkness to pass the town, sailed up the St. Lawrence, and disembarked at the place that is now called Wolfe’s cove. He mounted the rock with a great deal of difficulty, and then put his army at the break of day in order of battle on the Heights of Abraham. To assist the town, and drive the English from the heights of Abraham, the Marquis de Montcalm found it necessary to leave his impregnable position at Montmorency, and to cross, by a bridge secured by double piers, over the river St. Charles. He now, with Quebec in his rear, drew up his army upon the heights in good order and gave battle, the result of which was unfortunate to him and his government.
The English engineers make use of bricks which are burned in England, for building the casemates of the fortification. A thousand of these bricks cost the government, including transportation, two pounds ten shillings! The reason they give is, that the bricks burned here, crack in the winter. I rather believe that the preference of these foreign bricks has some other reason.
The arsenal is a large, yet not bomb-proof building, in which there are more than twenty thousand muskets, and some useful pistols. We also saw here several very handsomely ornamented single and double-barrel guns, which are kept for the purpose of making presents to Indian chiefs.
The upper part of the town is very old and angular, the streets are muddy, and many not paved. Both towns contain about twenty-five thousand inhabitants. The Catholic cathedral is quite a handsome building; it has three altars, and paintings of but little value. On account of the coldness of the climate the church is floored. The inside of the church is divided like English churches, into aisles. It is near the seminary, an old French building, with massive walls, having four corners like a bastion. In this seminary resides the Bishop of Quebec. We had already been introduced to Bishop Plessis, in the house of Sir Francis Burton, and found him a very agreeable and well-informed man. He is the son of a butcher of Montreal, and has elevated himself by his own merit. A few years ago he travelled through England, France, and Italy, where he received the title of Archbishop of Canada, from the pope. The English government in the mean time, took into consideration, whether they would recognise his title, because he would, as archbishop, rank in the Canadian parliament before the English episcopal bishop. We paid our respects to this worthy man. He received us kindly, surrounded by many young priests. His secretary showed us the building and the garden. The scholars had a vacation, and the house was deserted. They are not all destined for the priesthood; the most respectable people of this country have their sons brought up in this institution, in which they receive a very good education. The Catholic clergy are very much respected here, and they are said to deserve it, on account of the information they possess, and the benefactions they bestow. The English government left them all the emoluments and prerogatives which they possessed before the colony was conquered. On this account, the clergy are obedient to the government, and exert their best influence over the people in favour of the government. In the seminary is a small philosophical apparatus. The natural history cabinet is not very rich; the best part of it is a collection of East India shells. The garden of the seminary is rather large, and serves as a fruit and vegetable garden, &c.
Nine miles from Quebec is the waterfall of Montmorency, to which we travelled, escorted by Colonel Duchesnay. The road passed through the palace gate. This is the gate where General Arnold made his attack, when he stormed the place in December, 1775, and was wounded in the leg. His column had already pressed into the city, and would certainly have taken the town, if General Montgomery, who attacked the lower town from the side of the St. Lawrence, had met him at the same time. This, however, was impossible, as General Montgomery fell, and after his death his division fell into confusion, and retreated. An English artillerist, returning to the only cannon placed there, which had already been deserted, set a match to it, killed this hero with twelve men, and thus saved the town.
We crossed the river St. Charles over a long well built wooden bridge, and continued our journey partly on a road cut through the rock, having the St. Lawrence always in view. The neighbourhood is well cultivated; several farm-houses have a very ancient appearance. The handsomest of them belongs to the seminary at Quebec, and serves the priests as a pleasure ground. About the middle of the road is the village Beaufort, where one has a very good prospect of the city, the right bank of the St. Lawrence, the Isle d’Orleans, and down the stream. We left the carriage at the river Montmorency, over which a wooden bridge is thrown, and walked nearly to where the Montmorency empties itself into the St. Lawrence. At that place are the falls, two hundred and seventy-five feet high. The surrounding country is extraordinarily beautiful. Near the waterfall is a cave, where the soil is either sunk, or washed away by the water; it is a narrow deep crack in the earth, which you cannot behold without shuddering. When the water is high, there are three falls. The middle one precipitates directly down, the two others cross over the middle one. The drought, however, of the summer of 1825, and a canal, which drains the water from the river to drive saw and other mills, has lessened the quantity of water in the river, so that only one of the three falls has water, and instead of seeing the other two, you perceive the bare rock. This rock is slate. At Quebec and Point Levi, it is limestone; in Quebec it is interspersed with silicious crystals, hence its name Cape Diamond. The stones of Point Levi are used for building houses and fortifications; all copings are made of this stone. Most of the trees in this neighbourhood are cedar. Below the falls of St. Lawrence they have constructed a little harbour by means of two piers, whence they trade in boards on account of its nearness to the sawmills. About a mile and a half above the great falls, in the same river, are others. The channel at these falls is very narrow between the rocks, and formed like stairs; on this account, they are called the natural stairs; resembling very much, though in miniature, the falls of Trenton, near Utica, and are situated in a thick forest of fir, pine, and cedar trees. The road from the bridge to this place, and hence to the turnpike, is a very obscure footpath through the woods.
On the second and last day of my sojourn at Quebec, I went to the parade, escorted by Colonels Durnford and Duchesnay. I was pleasantly taken by surprise, when I found the whole garrison under arms. The commanding officers wished to show me their corps. On the right wing stood two companies of artillery, then a company of sappers and miners, after this, the sixty-eighth, and lastly, the seventy-first regiment of infantry. The last is a light regiment, and consists of Scotch Highlanders; it appeared to be in particularly good condition. This regiment is not dressed in the Highland uniform, which was only worn by some of the buglemen. It has a very good band of buglemen, who wear curious caps, made of blue woollen, bordered below with red and white stripes. The troops defiled twice before me.
On the 6th of September we sat out in the steam-boat for Montreal. Sir Francis sent us his carriage, which was very useful to the ladies. On the dock stood a company of the sixty-eighth regiment, with their flag displayed as a guard of honour, which I immediately dismissed. The fortification saluted us with twenty-one guns; this caused a very fine echo from the mountains. Night soon set in, but we had sufficient light to take leave of the magnificent vicinity of Quebec.
The journey, of course, was more tedious in ascending than in descending the river. Fortunately the tide was in our favour during the night, until we passed the rapids of Richelieu. In the morning we stopt at Trois Rivières to take in wood; we then went slowly on. I employed this leisure in writing, but was often interrupted. In this boat they have four meals daily, and at every repast they drove me from my writing place. In the morning at seven o’clock, they ring the bell for the passengers to rise and dress; at eight o’clock breakfast is served, which consists of tea, coffee, sausages, ham, beefsteak, and eggs; at twelve, they take luncheon; at four, dine; at eight, take tea; and an hour before every meal they set the table. The weather was cloudy nearly the whole day; it began to rain towards evening, and continued raining through the night.
At Sorel, or William Henry, we came to, in order to land some passengers, and take in wood. This place is situated on the right bank of both rivers, at the confluence of the Sorel or Richelieu, (the only outlet of Lake Champlain,) with the St. Lawrence. The French built a fort here, which stands yet, if such bad palisades, barracks, and arsenals, deserve that name. The town itself was built in the year 1785, by the so called American tories and discharged soldiers. It contains two churches, about one hundred houses, and six hundred inhabitants, whose houses are mostly of wood, and stand separately in the streets, which are arranged in squares, and occupy a great space. It is built on a sandy soil, and has a poor aspect. Generally speaking, the towns in Canada bear a very poor comparison with those of the United States, and will never arrive at the same point, because the settlers in Canada are mostly poor Scotchmen and Irishmen, who come out at the expense of the government; they receive land, and are oppressed by the feudal system, which opposes all prosperity; emigrants, however, who possess some property, and have an ambitious spirit, settle themselves in the United States, where nobody is oppressed; on the contrary, where all the laws are in their favour.
At Fort Sorel is stationed a garrison, a detachment of the seventieth regiment, commanded by a sergeant; an artillery detachment which was moving to Montreal, tied its sloop to our steam-boat, and came on board; the artillerymen mostly intoxicated. Towards evening, we learned that the sloop contained three boxes of gunpowder, which caused us a great deal of uneasiness. The danger was so much the greater, as the sparks were continually flying from the pipe of the steam-boat, which the wind drove towards the sloop. I was one of the first who received the information, and immediately gave the alarm. All the passengers agreed in persuading the captain during this rainy and stormy night to remove the sloop some distance from our boat, and place in it an officer and three of the least intoxicated artillerymen. The night was dark, and we were compelled to cast anchor and remain till morning.
The next morning the weather was still cloudy and rainy; the storm was particularly strong, and the wind ahead. The machinery was too weak to make any progress. We therefore saw Montreal three hours before we could reach it; the current particularly was so strong between Montreal and the Isle of St. Helen, that in spite of the machinery we were driven backwards. At last we were obliged to draw up the boat by aid of six oxen, two horses, and ten men. The Lady Sherbrook, however, is one of the oldest steam-boats on the St. Lawrence, and the captain himself confessed that she was so rotten that she was not worth repairing, and will soon be condemned. About 4 o’clock in the afternoon, after we had been forty-six hours on our journey, which took but twenty-six hours going down, we were landed at Montreal. The battery on the Island of St. Helen saluted us with twenty-one guns. The first information we received was, that fifty houses were burned down yesterday in the suburbs of the town, and that this misfortune fell mostly upon the poorer class, whose houses were not insured.
Mr. Bingham, from Philadelphia, who married a rich heiress here, and turned Catholic to get possession of her estate, gave a ball to-day, in honour of the first birth-day of his only daughter, and politely invited our company. We accepted the invitation, and rode to the ball at 9 o’clock. He was twenty-four years of age, and his wife nineteen; has many friends, because his cellar is well filled, and has the talent to spend his money liberally among the people. We found assembled in his rich and tastefully furnished halls the whole fashionable world of Montreal. They mostly dance French contra dances, commonly called Spanish dances. To the contra dances, in honour of the officers of the seventieth regiment, who are the favourite young gentlemen, they have adopted tedious Scotch melodies; to the Spanish dances they played German waltzes. The native ladies conversed in very soft Canadian bad French, not even excepting our handsome landlady. I took particular notice of a Miss Ermatinger, the daughter of a Swiss, and an Indian woman, on account of her singular but very beautiful Indian countenance. She was dressed in the best taste of all, and danced very well. Indeed there was a great deal of animation at this ball, as well as a great deal of luxury, particularly a profusion of silver plate and glass in the house of Mr. Bingham, whose sister is the wife of the banker, Baring, of London.
CHAPTER IX
Journey from Montreal to New York. – Isle Aux Noix. – Lake Champlain. – Lake George. – Falls of Hudson. – Glenn’s Falls. – Saratoga Springs. – Saratoga Battleground. – Shaker Settlement at New Lebanon. – Military School at West Point
As the season was so far advanced, I wished to reach New York without delay. We therefore concluded to travel soon, and visit Lake Champlain to its southern extremity, then to Saratoga, Albany, and further down the Hudson to New York, taking the Catskill mountains by the way, and inspecting the famous military school of West Point. With this view, on Friday, the 9th of September, we went on board the steam-boat Montreal, which runs between Montreal and the right bank of the river. Lieutenant-Colonel M‘Gregor and Major Loring escorted us to the boat. In half an hour we found ourselves on the other side of the river. We landed near the village Longueuil, where stage-coaches awaited us, which carried us and our baggage to St. John, situated on the river Richelieu, about twenty-seven miles from Longueuil. The road lies several miles along the banks of the river St. Lawrence, till you arrive to the village of La Prairie. In this village we took our leave of this noble neighbourhood and majestic stream, on whose banks we had tarried so agreeably. The road led through a plain, which was very little cultivated, and containing few trees. We only met with a single village called Lavane. Here and there we observed some larch trees. About half past one in the afternoon, we reached the village of St. John, having arrived a mile from the above-named village, at the river Richelieu. Here we went on board the American steam-boat Phœnix, in order to sail for Whitehall. This vessel deserves the name, because the boat, whose place it supplies, was of the same name, and burned some years ago on Lake Champlain. The new Phœnix is commodious and clean, one hundred and twenty feet long, having machinery of forty-six horse-power. Both banks of the river were thickly timbered. Ten miles above St. John we reached an island called Isle Aux Noix, the last English strong post on Lake Champlain. The captain had the politeness to tarry here a short time, in order that I might survey the island and its fortifications.
Isle Aux Noix contains about ninety acres, and is very flat and swampy. The fort is called Fort Lenox, in honour of the late duke of Richmond; it consists of a regular square, with four bastions and two ravelins, and is built according to the system of Vaubans. On account of the swampy ground, the fortification which anciently stood here, is almost sunk. The revêtement is a half one, and formed of wood, as well as the scarp and counterscarp. The whole lower wall consists of roots of trees, mostly cedar, placed horizontally crosswise, and only those roots which constitute the revêtement stand upright. On the horizontal roots earth is thrown and rammed. The engineers believe that this costly work will stand thirty years. I however believe it would have been better if they had rammed the roots into the ground and put a grate upon that, and then a strong stone revêtement, or still better if they had arched it en décharge. The two ravelins, whose basis is also of wood, lie before the northern and southern front. Under the curtain of the eastern front, they have built casemates for the garrison. Near the gate in the wall are small arsenals, and on the inside of the fort stands the guard-house, which also contains the prison. The base of this fortification, as well as the few buildings which stand within, are bomb-proof. The houses are built of blue limestone which comes from the state of Vermont. A road covered with palisades surrounds the fort. I observed here palisades which can be knocked down backwards, and might be advantageous in case of accident, whilst I took a survey of this work, accompanied by Captain Reed of the seventieth regiment, who is commandant, and has already been in garrison here one year with his company, also by the two engineer officers. Northward of the fort stands the navy-yard, which is in the same situation as it was at the period of the treaty of Ghent. There were about twelve gun-boats under cover, and a frigate of thirty-six guns on the stocks, whose keel and skeleton has rotted ever since. A naval magazine, and the dwellings of the officers, overseers, and workmen of the wharf, stand behind the navy-yard. The two branches of the stream separating the island from the main land are tolerably small, and the shores are covered with trees.
Eleven miles above Isle Aux Noix we left Canada and again reached the territories of the United States. At the point where the river Sorel leaves Lake Champlain, and where we entered into the latter, the American government has erected a fort called Rous’ Point, consisting of a defensive tower with casemates, which, as well as I could judge in passing, appeared to have been located with much judgment and erected at a small expense. This tower completely commands the communication between the lake and the Sorel, and as the guns are all under cover, the garrison has but little to fear from the vertical fire of the enemy’s infantry. The fort stands on a cape. According to the treaty of Ghent, the forty-fifth degree of north latitude, between the state of Maine and the St. Lawrence, between the United States and Canada, were fixed as boundaries; and as to fulfil the terms of the treaty, the commissioners determined the latitude of several places astronomically, it has been discovered that this fort lies somewhat north of forty-five degrees, and consequently is on the Canadian side.
The greatest breadth of Lake Champlain, which contains several large islands, is six miles. The shore on our right, belonging to the state of New York, is low and covered with trees; the other belongs to Vermont, and is more mountainous. As night approached, we were prevented from enjoying this beautiful part of the country; I was also with regret prevented from seeing the battle ground of Plattsburgh, at which town the vessel made a short stay during the night. Some American custom-house officers came on board, without, however, inquiring after our baggage, and this was a new and not disagreeable circumstance.
The same night we stopped at Burlington in Vermont, and the Grymes’ family left us here to go to Boston. I expected to meet this interesting family again in New York in fourteen days. Towards morning we passed the ruins of Fort Crownpoint, which lie on a hill. At this place the lake is very narrow and resembles a river. The shores are generally covered with bushes and pine trees, are hilly, and afford a pleasing prospect. At the village of Shoreham, twelve miles above Crownpoint, on the eastern shore of Vermont, we left the Phœnix, which went twenty miles further to Whitehall, the southern point of Lake Champlain, and landed to see Lake George, which is celebrated for its romantic situation and shores. Sir Michael and Lady Clare continued with us, and resolved not to part from us till we arrived at Albany, after which they would travel to Boston. As a slight recompense for the loss of the Grymes’ family, Mr. Shoemaker, and his wife, from Philadelphia, bore us company hence to Albany. They were Quakers, but had laid aside the striking costume of their sect.
At the inn of Shoreham is a place for loading and unloading vessels, which transport much plaster of Paris and blue limestone for building, to Canada. Among the stones on the shore we found some which appeared to be rich iron ore, said to be common in Vermont. At the inn we met with an elderly lady of the middle rank, who was smoking tobacco; this custom is said to be prevalent here among elderly women. We passed over the lake, scarcely half a mile wide, in a wherry, and landed on the other shore, not far from the ruins of Fort Ticonderoga. This in an old French fort, lying on an elevated cape, which commands the navigation of the lake. From the ruins we saw that it was a square with four small bastions and three ravelins, the scarp, and the counterscarp being covered with strong stone-work; the bastion contains casemates as well as the curtain of the eastern front. Several massive buildings stood in the fort so that it must have had but little room. About three hundred paces east of the fort, on the extremity of the cape, stands a small pentagonal redoubt, which communicated with the fort by means of a covered way. The cape is connected with the main land of New York by means of a neck of land, which was cut off by a crownwork, consisting of earth. The eminence on which this crownwork lies, in some measure commands the fort, and an entrenched camp seems to have been located here. Between the fort and crownwork we remarked the remains of two square redoubts. On the same shore, south of the fort, but separated from it by an inlet of the lake, lies Mount Defiance, which commands the fort in a great degree, and from which, in July, 1777, the English, under General Burgoyne, bombarded the fort, which was too quickly evacuated by the Americans, under General St. Clair. On the eastern shore of the lake, opposite Ticonderoga, lies another hill, Mount Independence, of the same height as the fort on which the Americans had formed their works at that time, under the protection of which they passed the lake after the evacuation of the fort. This was afterwards destroyed by the English. In July, 1758, when the fort still belonged to the French, the English attacked it, but were repulsed with a loss of eighteen hundred men.
From Ticonderoga we went in a stage three miles further to Lake George, through a very hilly country. The level of this lake is about three hundred feet higher than that of Lake Champlain; the stream which flows from the former into the latter lake, forms a succession of small cascades, and turns several saw-mills. We arrived at the northern point of Lake George, and entered the steam-boat Mountaineer, which was ready to depart; it was ninety feet long with a machine of sixteen horse-power.
Lake George resembles the Scottish lakes. It is thirty-six miles long, and never more than five miles broad. The shores are very hilly, the heights are all covered with trees, and are not, as it seems to me, above eight hundred feet high. There are several islands in the lake, generally covered with wood. A single one, called Diamond Island, on account of the handsome crystals which are found in it, is inhabited. The inhabitants consist of an Indian family, which lives in a small house, and maintains itself by selling these crystals. About five o’clock in the evening, we arrived at the southern point of the lake. The scenery is very handsome. One of the highest mountains, which rises perpendicularly out of the lake, is called Rodgers’ rock, after an American Captain Rodgers, who being hunted by the Indians, during the revolution, fled to the top of this rock, and in extremely cold weather, being urged by danger, glided on the smooth surface down to the frozen lake. Towns are not seen; but few single houses stand along the shore. At the southern extremity, however, lies the village of Caldwell, founded about twenty years ago, which, besides a very good and large inn, where we took lodgings, contains several neat houses. In former times, an English fort, William Henry, stood here, which, to judge from its few remains, must have been a square redoubt of earth. It was built in the year 1755, by order of Sir William Johnstone, who commanded the English army in the then colony of New York, after having completely routed, on September the 8th, 1755, a French corps which had come from Ticonderoga to attack him. In this rencontre, Baron Dieskau, a French general lost his life. In the following year, however, Marquis de Montcalm arrived with a stronger force and captured the fort. A capitulation was allowed to the English garrison, but they were attacked after leaving the fort, by the Indians, in a disgraceful manner, and the greater part cut to pieces. After the fort was taken, the Marquis de Montcalm ordered it to be destroyed. Not far from this place, in a higher station and on a rocky ground, the English erected afterwards a new fort, called Fort George, which, at the unsuccessful expedition of General Burgoyne, in 1777, served his army as a depôt and magazine, till he moved too far forward and was cut off from the fort. Remains of it are still plainly seen. It was a strongly-built square redoubt, the entrance being protected by a fleche. It lies in an advantageous situation, commands the whole southern shore of the lake, with a large part of the vicinity, stands, as was said before, on a strong ground, and is covered on one side by a morass. On the eastern side alone, it is commanded by a high mountain, which, however, is at some distance. If the American government should resolve to restore Crownpoint and Ticonderoga, the latter particularly would be adapted, after fortifying the two mountains, Defiance and Independence, for an arsenal of a superior kind; it might contain large depôts, serve as a fortified camp, and be successfully defended by a small garrison. Here fleets might be completed to command Lake Champlain, and an expedition against Isle Aux Noix and Canada organized. However, a good road would be necessary, leading from Ticonderoga to the northern point of Lake George, three miles distant, and here it would be necessary to protect the place of embarkation by a fort. A new fort on the same spot where Fort George was erected, would be necessary. There is a good locality between this fort and Fort William Henry to found a dock-yard. The communication between Ticonderoga and the United States would be well and doubly protected by the southern point of Lake Champlain, towards Whitehall, and by Lake George. If the English should attack the United States on this side, they would undoubtedly waste much strength, and not advance a step, unless they had seized Ticonderoga.
We left Caldwell at eight o’clock the next day, September 11, in two inconvenient carriages, and passed through a very uninteresting, deep, sandy road, in a hilly country, covered with thorny trees, on our route to Saratoga springs, to which the whole fashionable world of the United States repairs in summer, for the fashionables have here the same mania which prevails in other countries, to visit the baths in summer, whether sick or well. The distance is twenty-seven miles. On our passage, we saw but one interesting object – the Hudson falls, which river we had left at Albany, and reached again nine miles from Caldwell, coming from the west.
These falls are known under the name of Glenn’s Falls. A village of the same name is built in their vicinity, on the rocky shores of the river. The river is crossed by means of a pendant wooden bridge. The arches rest on pillars, consisting of large beams, which lie across each other, as tit-mouse traps are constructed in my native country; the bridge might therefore be called bird-cage bridge. These cages rest on a foundation of limestone, cut through by the Hudson in its course. This river is really a remarkable sight in this sandy country. Above the bridge it is one hundred and sixty yards broad, and crossed by a dam, which conducts the water to the saw-mills along the banks. A single rock, on which, also, a saw-mill stands, divides into two parts, the principal fall, which is forty feet high. But there are, both above and below the principal falls, a number of smaller falls, which we could approach with ease, as the water was very low. These falls are not indeed to be numbered among the largest, but among the handsomest falls which I have seen. A constant mist arises from them, and, as the sun shone very brilliantly, we saw several rainbows at the same time. In the rock, as at Niagara, we observed some remarkable and deep cavities. They arise from the flintstones which are scattered throughout the limestone, and are washed away by the violence of the water. When these flintstones meet with resistance, or fall into a small cavity, they are constantly agitated by the falling water, and moving in a circular direction, form by degrees deep cavities in the soft limestone. At the base of the small island, which divides the chief fall into two parts, a remarkable cave appears below the falls, leading to the other side of the rock; this was also undoubtedly made by the washing of the water. The saw-mills, all of wood, occupy a bold position over the falls, and appear besides, to be in such a state of decay, that a fear arises, lest they should soon fall into the abyss. The Hudson is partly navigable above Glenn’s Falls, and two miles further up, feeds a navigable canal, with thirteen locks, which runs seven miles north of the Hudson, and then joins Champlain canal.
We arrived at Saratoga at two o’clock in the afternoon, and stopped at Congress Hall. The greater part of the company had already departed, so that but forty persons remained; among these was the governor of the state of New York, the celebrated De Witt Clinton.10 I was immediately introduced to his excellency, and very well received by this great statesman.
The water of the springs is cold, of a somewhat salt taste, and stronger than the mineral water of Eger. It is said to act very beneficially as a tonic. When this region was yet covered with forests, inhabited principally by Indians, and by few white people, the Indians were acquainted with the virtues of this water; only one spring, however, High Rock Spring, was discovered. They led to it the above-mentioned Sir William Johnstone, who was much beloved by the Indians, and in a bad state of health. By drinking this water he regained his health, and thus this spring became known. It is not above twelve years since a beginning was made to clear the ground, and build houses; at present, more than a hundred, principally of wood, form a street. They are generally arranged to receive strangers. The four largest hotels are Congress Hall, Union Hall, the Pavilion, and the United States Hotel, the last of brick, the three former of wood. Congress Hall alone, was yet open, the others had closed since September 1st, on account of the frost. The hotel can accommodate two hundred strangers. In the evening the company assembles in the large halls in the lower story, at this season, alas! by the fire, and pass the time in music, dancing, or conversation. Games of chance are strictly forbidden by the laws of the state, and in general, public opinion in the United States is much against gaming. I was told that at a watering-place in Pennsylvania, three genteel young men once arrived from different parts of the United States. They were at first very well received, but afterwards were found to be gamblers. All communication with them was immediately broken off in so striking a manner that they were soon obliged to leave the place.
The different springs, which do not lie far from each other in a swampy ground in the same valley, are called Hamilton, Congress, Columbia, Flat Rock, Munroe, High Rock, President, and Red Spring. The water is generally drank, but baths are also erected. High Rock Spring flows from a white conical limestone rock, five feet high, in which there is a round aperture above, about nine inches in diameter, through which the water in the spring is seen in a state of constant agitation. So much fixed air escapes from it, that an animal held over it, as in the Grotto del Cane, near Naples, cannot live above half a minute. Mr. Shoemaker held his head over the opening, and though he had covered it with a handkerchief, immediately fainted away; he retained besides, during several days after this experiment, a bad dry cough. The vicinity of Saratoga Springs possesses no attraction. Promenades are not yet constructed. The only pleasure which can be enjoyed must be sought in company. A large piazza is built before Congress Hall, to the pillars of which wild vines are attached, which almost reach the roof. I passed the evening in the lower parlour by the fire, with the governor and Mr. Schley, from Maryland, in very agreeable and instructive conversation. The ladies did not entertain us with music, because it was Sunday.
The governor had the kindness to give me some letters for New York, and a letter of introduction to the Shakers of New Lebanon. Furnished with these, we left Saratoga Springs, September 12th, at 9 o’clock, in a convenient stage to go to Albany, thirty-six miles distant. We passed through a disagreeable and sandy country. The uniformity was, however, very pleasingly interrupted by Saratoga lake, which is eight miles long. At Stillwater village, we reached the Hudson. Not far from this, runs the new Champlain Canal, which was commenced at the same time with the Erie Canal, but is not yet completed, and which I mentioned on my passage from Albany to Schenectady. At Stillwater we visited the two battle-grounds, Freeman’s Farm and Bernis’s Heights, which became celebrated September 19th, and October 7th, 1777. These actions, as is known, took place during the expedition of Burgoyne. They closed with taking the whole corps of this general, to which also the Brunswick troops, under General Von Riedesel belonged, at Saratoga.
Our guide to both battle-grounds, which are adjacent, was an octogenarian farmer, called by his neighbours Major Buel, because he had been the guide of the American army during the campaign. The ground has since greatly changed; wood has grown again, so that with the exception of some remains of the English lines, nothing is to be seen. Not far from the river, on an eminence, are the remains of a very small work, called the great English redoubt. Here lies General Fraser, of whose burial Madam Von Riedesel gives a description so attractive, and yet so terrific. I broke off, near his grave, a small branch of a pine tree to present it to Baron Von Riedesel, Land-marshal of the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar. I inquired after the house in which the mother of the latter had lived, and in which General Fraser died. This house stands no longer on the original spot, as the canal passed through its site; in other respects it is said to be arranged now, as it was then. The place in the bar-room, where General Frazer died, and a small room behind this, in which Madam Von Riedesel lived with her children, were shown me.
At the small town of Waterford we passed along the left shore of the Hudson on a long wooden bridge, to avoid a bad bridge over the Mohawk. We proceeded on our route in the night on a very good road, and passed through Lansingburg and Troy. The latter is very handsomely built, and many stores are very well lighted up in the evening. Here we returned to the right shore of the Hudson, and reached Albany at 10 o’clock at night.
On the 13th of September I went with Mr. Tromp in a stage-coach to New Lebanon, twenty-eight miles from Albany to see the settlement of Shakers. We passed through Greenbush, (where the team-boat put us on the left side of the Hudson,) Schodack, Union, Stephentown, and Canaan. The country about New Lebanon is extremely handsome; the tops of the mountains are covered with trees, and the lower parts well cultivated. The valley is wide, with very neat houses, and resembles a garden. Fruit is particularly cultivated. On a slight eminence at the foot of a mountain, the Shaker village is very beautifully situated, and is about one mile long. The houses stand in groups at a distance from each other, in general large, built of wood, and painted yellow; the church alone, or rather the meeting-house, is wide, with an arched roof of slate.
The Shakers are a religious sect, originally from England. It was founded by Ann Lee, the daughter of a Manchester blacksmith, and wife of the blacksmith Stanley, of the same city. Her chief doctrines are, community of goods, a perfect continence with regard to the sexes and adoration of the Deity by dancing. Ann Lee pretended to higher inspiration, performed miracles, announced the speedy reappearance of Christ on earth, spoke of the millennium, and of similar glories. She commenced in England, by making proselytes among the lowest classes, who followed her when she preached in public, held noisy prayer, or rather, dancing meetings, and thus disturbed the public peace. This worthy prophetess was therefore, with her friends, at different times imprisoned; the impatient and unbelieving public even began once to stone her. The good soul, whose convulsions were said by the wicked world to be the effect of ardent spirits, wandered therefore, in 1774, with her family, and several of her friends, to New York, where she settled. But her husband was wearied with the sisterly connexion in which he lived with her, and resolved to divorce his sisterly wife, and marry another. Whereupon the repudiated wife wandered towards Albany, settled first at Watervliet, and held meetings. These meetings, however, appeared to the Americans so suspicious, (it was during the time of the revolution,) that the good lady was arrested at Albany with several of her friends, and transported to the neighbourhood of New York, in order to give her in charge to the English, who then held the city. But she soon returned again to Watervliet, and her faithful adherents bought land near Niskayuna, between Albany and Schenectady, and settled there. A large part of this people, those particularly who had joined the sect in America, founded the colony of New Lebanon. Ann Lee died in Niskayuna, in 1784. As this sect conducted itself very quietly, and gave no public offence, the government allowed them to live in peace. The colony numbers about six hundred members, who are divided into families, some of which contain above one hundred individuals of both sexes. Each lives in a group of houses with an elder at their head. The elders of all the families form a counsel, which watches for the public good. They have for divine service a sort of preachers, two of each sex, who hold forth on Sundays. The greatest cleanliness prevails in the houses, equalled perhaps only by the hospital of Boston; the brethren live on one side, and the sisters on the other. They have a common eating-room, in which again each sex has its own side, but different working places. Both the brethren and the sisters live, generally, two individuals in one room, and two also sleep in the same bed. Many of the sisters, however, notwithstanding their good food, were pale and wan.
When a family wishes to join the Shakers, the relation of brother and sister, must immediately take place between husband and wife. The children are then brought up in Shaker principles. Orphans also find a home with them; still, however, unfavourable reports are circulated about the origin of these orphans. Of course, if the principles of these people should prevail, which, however, may heaven prevent, the world would soon be depopulated. In countries, however, with too great population, it might perhaps be of service to receive missionaries of this sect and promote proselytism.
Every family possesses a shop, where all things made by the family are laid out for sale. These articles generally consist of wooden utensils, sieves, brushes, harness, table-linen, somewhat coarse silver writing pens, very good rose water, &c. Besides, they sell books, exposing the doctrines of their sect, and containing the life of their founder, Ann Lee, whom they call mother Ann. They pay also much attention to the breeding of cattle, make good butter, and particularly good cheese, great quantities of which they sell. Their hogs are remarkably handsome, and cleanliness is also extended to them. It is a rare pleasure to walk about in a Shaker pig-sty! They have a large kitchen garden behind the church, where they raise vegetables, principally for the sake of seed, which is said to be here of a remarkably good kind. Medicinal herbs, roots, and berries, which they cultivate very carefully in a separate garden, and which, as I heard in Albany, are of a remarkably good quality, form a principal part of their commerce.
The governor’s letter every where procured me a good reception, as they generally lead strangers about the settlement with reluctance. The few men with whom I spoke, and who accompanied me, were elderly people, and had long ago become Shakers with their parents. An old man told me, that he had been one of the first adherents of mother Ann at her arrival in America. They were very polite to me, and appear to be somewhat monkish. They showed me also their church, which they do not generally do, Sundays excepted, as every body can attend their worship. My travelling plan did not allow me to pass a Sunday with them. The hall, which serves as their church, is about eighty feet long, and above fifty broad. On one side stand benches in form of an amphitheatre, for spectators and old members, to whom the dancing has become difficult. The floor consists of handsome cedar wood, which is well polished; the boards are attached to each other without nails. Service commences, as I was told, with a speech, which the congregation hear in a standing position, the sexes being again divided. Occasionally the spirit comes upon one or the other; they are so moved by the speech, that they begin to shake, and to make strange contortions. Then begin the prayers, which are sung, and during which, they dance. Every member has a spot about four feet square for jumping, and I was assured this service was done with such a zeal, that the vaulters sometimes fainted away.
We delayed too long with the Shakers to follow our plan of previously visiting Lebanon springs, and reach Albany the same day. We consequently gave up this design and returned to Albany; we were overtaken by the night, and a storm. It was so dark, that the driver could scarcely find the way; he therefore took a lantern against my advice. This was extinguished, and we were in a still worse situation. Two miles from Greenbush the driver left the road, went to the right towards a slope, and almost threw the stage entirely over; it fell on the right side, and my head and arm were injured, though but slightly. On my right side I was much more hurt, and one of my ribs was actually broken, as it was afterwards discovered. Mr. Tromp had his head and one of his hands injured. As we had no baggage, and were but two miles from Greenbush, we resolved to leave the stage where it was, and walked to Greenbush. At about eleven o’clock we reached the river. Not a soul was in the street; the lights were all extinguished, and the ferry boats were on the other side of the river. Our shouting was of no avail; the pain in my side also prevented me from calling. In about half an hour, however, the stage arrived, which the driver had raised with the help of some farmers; and he made such a terrible noise, that at last, after waiting an hour, the ferry boats came to take us to Albany. In riding through the city the jolting of the stage gave me much pain. On leaving the stage at twelve o’clock I could scarcely speak or walk on account of my side, which I had also injured two years previously, on my passage from Ostend to London, and since that time it had constantly retained a painful sensation.
The next morning I awoke with such dreadful pain in my right side, that I could scarcely move in bed. The obliging Sir Michael Clare gave me every assistance. He opened a vein in my arm, took sixteen ounces of blood, gave me a purgative, and ordered embrocations to the side, by which treatment the pain had so much abated in the afternoon, that I could move with more ease. I was, however, confined the whole day to my bed. The Van Rensselaer family showed me much attention. On the second day I could indeed leave the bed, but still not continue my journey. On the third day, September 16th, Sir Michael and Lady Clare left Albany for Boston, whence they were going to New York. My pains had not much abated, but I nevertheless resolved to proceed to New York, as I had read in the papers that the Pallas had arrived there, and as I wished to receive the attendance of Dr. Schilett. I was indeed obliged to relinquish my design of seeing Catskill Mountains, but thought of stopping at West Point to visit the military school.
At ten o’clock we embarked on board the steam-boat Richmond. The banks of the Hudson are very handsome, and here and there well cultivated. From Albany to New York it is one hundred and forty-four miles, and to West Point ninety-six. Hudson, a place twenty-seven and a half miles from Albany, which we reached at noon, seems to be very handsome and lively. We remarked in the harbour several sloops, and on shore some brick stores, five stories high. On the opposite side of the river lies Athens, between which and Hudson there seems to be much communication kept up by a team-boat. A very low island in the middle of the stream between the two places rendered this communication somewhat difficult at first, as vessels were obliged to make a great circuit. To avoid this inconvenience, a canal was cut through the island, through which the team-boat now passes with ease and rapidity. This place affords a very fine view of the lofty Catskill Mountains.
About eleven o’clock at night we arrived at West Point, on the right side of the Hudson, and landed at a wharf furnished with a sentry-box. An artillerist, who stood sentinel, examined us. I afterwards discovered that this rule was made on account of the visits which the cadets receive. We were obliged to ascend a somewhat steep road in order to reach the house, which is prepared for the reception of strangers. A small but very clean room was prepared for us. The building belongs to the government, and is designed for the mess-room of the officers and cadets. The purveyor for this table is bound by contract with government to keep several chambers with beds in order, for the reception of the relations of the cadets, and thus a kind of inn arose.
The morning after our arrival we paid an early visit to lieutenant-colonel Thayer, superintendent of the military school, and were received in a very friendly manner. He has presided over this school eight years. It was founded in 1802, during the presidency of Jefferson. Colonel Thayer has entirely remodelled this institution. During his travels in Europe he visited the French military schools, and has endeavoured to make this resemble the polytechnic school. But he will find it difficult to equal this once celebrated school, as with the best will in the world he cannot find in this country such excellent professors as were assembled in that institution. The cadets, whose number may amount to two hundred and fifty, but at the last examination consisted of two hundred and twenty-one, are divided into four classes for the purposes of instruction. They are received between the ages of fourteen and twenty, undergo an examination before they enter, and must then pass a probationary term of half a year, during which time the mathematics are chiefly studied. After six months the young men are examined on the instruction which they have received, and those only who pass this ordeal continue in the school; the others are dismissed.
Instruction is communicated gratuitously to the cadets, each of whom receives monthly eight dollars from government as wages. A public examination of the cadets takes place every year at the end of June, by a commission, appointed by the secretary of war. This commission consists of staff-officers from the army and navy, members of congress, governors of states, learned men, and other distinguished citizens. After this examination, the best among those who have finished their course are appointed as officers in the army; the very best may choose the corps in which they wish to serve. The others receive stations, according to their capacity, in the following order: engineers, artillerists, infantry, marines. Should even these corps have the necessary number of officers, these young men as supernumeraries, receive full pay. At the examinations also, the cadets advance from one class to another. The names of the five best in each class are made known in the newspapers, and also printed in the army list, which appears every year. This is certainly an encouraging arrangement, and worthy of imitation.
The discipline of the cadets is very rigid; they leave the school only as officers, on which account their noviciate in the corps of cadets serves as a practical school of passive obedience. The punishments consist of arrest, which, however, does not interrupt the course of instruction; but when a case occurs that a cadet is to be punished a second time for the same fault, he is dismissed. The same takes place when after two public examinations he has not learned enough to advance into a higher class.
The day is thus divided in this school: —
From day-break till sunrise.– Reveillé at day-break – roll-call after reveillé – cleaning of rooms, arms and dress – half an hour after roll-call, inspection of the rooms.
From sunrise till seven o’clock.– First class, military engineering. – Second, natural and experimental philosophy. – Third and fourth, mathematics.
From seven till eight o’clock.– Breakfast at seven o’clock. – Parade at half past seven. – Class parade at eight o’clock.
From eight till eleven o’clock.– First class, recitations and engineer and military drawing. – Second, natural and experimental philosophy. – Third and fourth, mathematical recitations.
From eleven till twelve o’clock.– First class, lectures on engineer and military sciences. – Second, lectures on natural and experimental philosophy. – Third and fourth, mathematical studies.
From twelve till one o’clock.– First class, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, lectures on chemistry applied to mechanics and the arts, or mineralogy and geology. – Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, studies on the same subjects. – Second, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, lectures on chemistry. – Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, studies on the same subject. – Third, French recitations. – Fourth, French studies and recitations.
From one till two o’clock.– Dinner very plain and frugal at one o’clock – recreation after dinner till two o’clock.
From two till four o’clock.– First class, studies and recitations in geography, history, belles lettres and national laws. – Second, landscape and topographical drawing. – Third, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, drawing of the human figure. – Tuesday and Thursday, studies of the French language. – Fourth, French studies and recitations.
From four o’clock till sunset.– Military exercises – inspection of the dress and roll-call at sunset.
From sunset till half an hour later.– Supper immediately after parade – signal to go to the rooms immediately after the supper.
Half an hour after sunset till half past nine.– First class, studies on engineer and military sciences. – Second, studies on natural and experimental philosophy. – Third and fourth, mathematical studies.
From half past nine till ten o’clock.– Retreat beat at half past nine – roll-call immediately after – signal to extinguish the lights and inspection of the rooms at ten o’clock.
TABLE
Of the Sciences taught and the Books used at West Point.
I was surprised to learn that the young men clean their rooms and clothes themselves, as well as make their own beds: only the cleaning of shoes and boots, and carrying of wood may be done by servants. But Colonel Thayer thinks, that if too many servants were in the school, the cadets would have too great an opportunity of remaining in connexion with the world, without the knowledge of the officers. The cadets are divided in four companies, and live in two large massive buildings, three stories high. In the older of the two buildings, two occupy one room; in the other, three are placed in one room. They sleep on mattresses, which are spread out on the floor in the evening, and have always two chambers, one for sleeping and the other for study. – This opens upon a long corridor. The cadets keep their arms also in their rooms. Their uniform consists of a grey jacket, with three rows of yellow buttons, bound with black cords; in winter, grey, in summer, white pantaloons; white leather equipments, as worn by the army, and, for fatigue service, leather caps. The officers wear the uniform of the artillery corps, to which they belong. Notwithstanding the extraordinarily fine situation of the school, the cadets have not a healthy appearance, perhaps because they have too little recreation.
After having seen the rich private library of Colonel Thayer, he took us to the school. We met with a class which was engaged in descriptive geometry. Several cadets, who stood at the board, demonstrated some problems of this science very correctly, and answered with great ease and accuracy some questions and objections, which Professor Davies made to them. We then attended a physical lecture of Lieutenant Prescott, which, however, appeared to be elementary; he explained the principles of the doctrine of heat, and then related the theory and history of the thermometer.