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AMERICA,

HISTORICAL, STATISTIC, AND DESCRIPTIVE.

J. S. BUCKINGHAM, ESQ.

IN THREE VOLUMES.

VOL. I.

FISHER, S N, & CO.
NEWGATE ST. LONDON; RUE ST. HONOR^. PARIS.

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DEDICATION.

TO HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS PIUNCE ALBERT.

London, May 1, 1841.

Sir,

When I took the liberty to transmit
to Your Royal Highness, the announcement
of my proposed Work on America, You did
me the honour to assure me, that " it would
afford You much pleasure to give it Your
full sanction and patronage." Your Royal
Highness further condescended to observe,
that "the feelings of good-will towards the
American people, under which this Work
was undertaken, could not fail at the present
moment of producing a desirable effect."

While I am deeply sensible of this act of
kindness on the part of Your Royal Highness
toward myself personally — I feel yet more
strongly the value and importance, from their
future influence on the public weal, of the
generous sentiments to which Your Royal
Highness has been pleased to give expres-
sion.

UKDICATION.

A sense of gratitude on my own part, and a
still higher sentiment of duty towards the peo-
ple of England and America, thus encourage
me to make known to both, the noble and
enlightened views with which Your Royal
Highness desires to promote whatever can
strengthen the friendly relations between
their respective countries.

I cannot, therefore, commit my humble
labours to the press, under more appropriate
or more distinguished auspices than those of
Your Royal Highness, to whom I cheerfully
dedicate these Volumes ; in the confident hope
that they will awaken in other minds, the
same friendly and benevolent aspirations after
" peace on earth and good-will to man," which
beamed so generously and spontaneously from
Your own.

Your Royal Highness cannot be indifferent
to international friendships, as the illustrious
Consort of a Queen whose broad realm em-
braces such extended possessions, that the sun
never ceases to shine on some portion or other
of her vast dominions,— its evening rays still
lingering amid the shrines and domes that
stud the banks of the mighty Ganges— while
its morning beams are just beginning to gild
the spires and turrets scattered along the
margin of the still more magnificent St.
Lawrence.

DEDICATION.

; St.

To Her protection, multitudinous nations,
provinces, and tribes, of every hue and creed,
from " The gorgeous East" to those primeval
forests of the Western world

" Wliere the poor Indian, whose untutored mind
Sees God in clouds, or hears him in the wind,"

all look up with hope ; and think that while
the diadem of England sits on so fair a brow,
and its sceptre is wielded by so gentle a hand,
they may count on seeing Mercy,

" The brightest jewel that adorns the crown,"

SO tempering Justice in its administration, as
to make the condition of themselves and all
their children more happy than under any
previous reign.

It is, therefore, but a just compliment to
Your Royal Highness to believe, that every
portion of the globe which owns Her Majesty's
benignant sway, should enlist Your generous
sympathies, in its actual condition, as well
as in its future prospects : and as it has fallen
to my lot to visit nearly all the possessions
of Her Majesty's crown, in Europe, Asia,
Africa, and America, and thus to see for
myself the powerful claims they possess
to Royal favour and public support, I may
hope to be the more readily forgiven for
availing myself of every opportunity to
express my earnest and unabated interest in
their prosperity.

DEDICATION.

In the sincere hope that Your Royal
Highness may long be permitted to enjoy
the distinguished happiness with which You
are at present blessed ; and that Her Majesty
may be honoured of Heaven, to be the happy
instrument, in the hands of Divine Providence,
of conferring, by Her enlightened and pacific
rule, in the British dominions, at home and
abroad, a larger measure of prosperity, virtue,
piety, and justly-earned renown, than any of
Her predecessors on the imperial throne

I have the honour to be.

Your Royal Highness's obliged.
And devoted servant,

J.S. BUCKINGHAM.

4 Camden Terrace, West.

Camden New Town,

{ i

CONTENTS OF VOL. I.

CHAP. I.

Motives for visiting the United Stateu— Intercourie with varioufi classes of
society — Extensive geographical range of the country traversed — Names
of the several states and territories examined — Form of narrative adopted
in description — Historical and statistical sketches, blended with this —
General topics chicHy dwelt on, in cities and states — Pictures of manners
and customs, in public and private life 1

CHAP. 11.

Departure from England — Arrival at New York-' Address to the American
public issued on landing — Different courses of lectures delivered in the
city — Attendance at public meetings for benevolent objects — New York
State Temperance Society — New York Peace Society — Meeting on the
subject of public education — New York City Tract Society — Total
Abstinence Society — Ladies' Meeting for the Orphan Asylum — Meeting
of the Friends of Sailors' Homes — Visit to one of the establishments of
this Institution — Admirable arrangement for the comforts of seamen —
Political excursion to Newark with the Hon. Daniel Webster — Visit to
polling places at the time of election — Legal and clerical parties-
Intellectual soirees 12

CHAP. in.

History of New York from 1609 to 1838 — Topography and plan of the city
and its environs — Astonishing rapidity of the increase of population —
Comparison of its shipping at different periods — Augmentation of its
revenue and foreign commerce — Admirable situation chosen for the city
— Great advantage of extensive water-margin — Outline of the plan, and
general form of the city — Public squares and open spaces in New York
— Public buildings — City Hall, Custom House, Exchange — Churches and
style of architecture in general tise — Hotels and general accommodation
in them — Theatres and places of amusement of various kinds — Private
dwellings — interior — style —furniture — Streets and their peculiarities
compared with ours — .\ppearance of the principal shops or stores — Num-
ber of elegantly-dressed ladies in Broadway — Absence of the splendid
equipages of England 32

'•

if--

ir I

' f'ii

CONTENTS.

CHAP. IV.

Population of New York — Strangers, residents, merchants, traders — Public
conveyances, omnibuses, hackney coaches — Private equipages, carriages,
servants — Male and female society, differences between them — Private
parties, balls and suppers — Comparison between English and American
soirees — Expensive and profuse entertainments given — Condition of the
humbler classes in America — Political parties. Conservatives, Reformers*
Radicals, Americans, Whigs, Democrats, Loco-fucos — Politics of the
wealthy mercantile classes— Causes of the recent panic or embariassment
—Extravagant habits engendered by the credit system — Effects of this
on all classes of society — Loss of 20,000,000 by the great fire at New
York — Newspapers of New York — Organs of parties — Penny newspapers,
character and influence — Proceedings of the election for state legislature
— Public meetings to support candidates for office — State of political
parties — Deadly reciprocal hostility — Gross misrepresentations of the
motives and ends of each — Difficulty of extracting truth from such
conflicting statements^Attendance at the polls during the election —
Deficiency of a previous registration of voters — Vote by ballot, not secret
voting generally — Reasons why this is not necessary in America — Success
of the Whigs in the New York election— Intoxication of joy in the
triumphant party — Extravagant projects of political demonstration —

National character and taste exhibited in this 52

CHAP. V.

Deep-rooted prejudices on the subject of slavery — Murder of Mr. Lovejoy,
the abolitionist, at Alton — Conduct of the New York press and people
on this subject — Imperfect views of the value of a free press — Sentiments
of leading men in Congress on this act — Resolutions of Legislatures
refused reception by the Senate — Rejection of all petitions on the subject
by the House of Representatives — Deservedly bitter reproach of Thomas
Moore the poet— Contrast between democracy aud slavery in the United
States — Threats of senators to hang up abolitionists by law — State of
slavery and the slave trade at Washington — Resolutions of Episcopal-
Methodist clergy in Georgia — Meeting of democrats in favour of the
Canadian rebels— Mr. O' Council denounced at the meeting, as an aboli-
tionist — Letter complaining of coloured people sitting with white men —
Prejudice of colour not extended to Indian tribes — Mr. Catlin's Lectures

on the American Indians 78

CHAP. VI.

Mr. Catlin's Museum of Indian costumes, weapons, and paintings — Course
of lectures on the Indian tribes— Names of Indians in Mr. Catlin's
gallery of portraits — Hunting excursions among the Indians — Skilful
management of the horsu by them — Indian games of amusement — Dances
— Horid character of their war-dances — Scalp-dance of the Sioux tribe oi
Indians— Bloody scalps of their enemies suspended by women — Dog-
dance of the same tribe — Heart and flesh eaten raw — Flesh of dogs served
ih food, at tlicir greatest festivals 9-4

CONTENTS.

CHAP. VII.

Personal visit to some Indian chiefs at New York — The Sauks and Foxes,
Sioux and loway tribes — Anecdotes of conversation with the Indian chiefs
—Offering of presents to the wife and children of Kee-o-kuk— Stoical
indifference manifested by each — Black- Hawk, the celebrated warrior,
and his son — Pantomimic conversation of Mr. Vandenhoff with an Indian
— Invitation to visit their camps in the Far West — Anecdotes of life
among the Indians— Arrival of a third tribe of Indians in New York —
Reply of an Indian chief to General Fox — Anecdotes of Indians respecting
interest of money — Belief that the Indians are descended from the Jews
— Facts and arguments of Major Noah and others — Striking similarity of
many of their customs to Jewish rites — Retention of some of the identical
expressionfi of the Hebrews— Authority of Mr. Catlin in support of this
resemblance 106

CHAP. VIII.

Benevolent institutions of the Ame/'-ans— This a very prominent feature
of the national policy— Almshoutu for the poor at Bellevue — Dutch
fuim for charitable labour in Long Island — House of refuge for destitute
boys and girls — Asylum for the insane at Blooming Dale — Instances of
ferocious manners in the Western states — Indifference of the American
editors to such things — Murder of a member of the legislature by the
speaker — Institution for the deaf and dumb at New York— Visit of the
Indians to this institution — Benevolent institutions for seamen — Quaran-
tine hospital on Staten Island— Seaman's Retreat supported by the funds
of the state— Seaman's Snug Harbour, for the merchant service — Bene-
volent institutions for seamen continued — Asylum for the blind at Bellevue
— American Seaman's Friend Society, in foreign ports— Sailor's Magazine,
and sailor's library supplied— Seaman's savings bank, mariner's church.
Bethel society — Institution for the support and instruction of the bliiiu —
Origin, progress, and present condition of this establishment— Asylum for
lying-in women, and dispensary— Society for the reformation of juvenile
delinquents 128

CHAP. IX.

Misery and crime among the poorer classes — Levity of the public journals
in recording this — Bennett's slanderous paper, the Morning Herald —
Bodies of dead negroes salted for exportation — Deaths from want and
destitution — American importation of foreign grain— Reversion of the
order of nature in this — Causes which led to this singular state of things
— Instances of robbery, murder, and fraud — Occupations for the members
of the law — Highwaymen in the suburbs of New York — Depravity of
morals in the country — Intemperance and wretchedness in the towns —
Authentic proofs of this from public records — Opinions as to the cause
of so much depravity — Exposition of the progress of American embarrass-
ment — Effects of these causes on the general condition of society — Party

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CONTENTS.

misrepresentations of the public press — Taste of the populace for shows
and sights— Celebration of the anitiversary of Evacuation-day— Descrip-
tion of this festival from an American pen 153

CHAP. X.

The Courts of Law held in the City Hall — Chancery, Common Pleas,
Superior and Supreme Courts — Qualifications of barristers and attorneys
— Nomination or appointment of judges — Style of pleading and judg-
ment, official costume — Scale of remuneration for the bar and the bench
— Character of the medical profession in the city — Clergy and ministers
of religion in New York — Churches, interior arrangements, comfort —
Service, singing, absence of pulpits and clerks — Ge:ieral charaiterfor
learning and piety of the clergy — Benevolent efforts of the voluntary
system — Extensive field of missionary labour in foreign lands 182

CHAP. XI.

State of literature and the arts in the city — Common schools — Statistics of
education — Newspapers and periodical publications — The Knickerbocker
— Monthly Magazine — New York Review, by Dr. Hawkes — Superiority
of the Common- School Assistant — Model worthy of imitation in England
— Music and Painting — Mr. Cole's pictures — Architecture and the fine
arts — New York churches — University — Astor House — House of Deten-
tion — Building in Egyptian style — Columns of the portico, after a temple
at Philbe — Defect in the want of elevation for its site — Striking effect
of the massiveness of the whole 201

CHAP. XII.

Peculiarities in the manners and customs of New York — Visits between
residents and strangers — Carriages, servants, liveries, &c. — Want of lamps,
numbers of houses — Naming of streets — bell-hangers and locksmiths —
Song of chimney-sweeps in their rounds — Excellent mode of observing
new-year's day — Love of quaintness and singularity of expression —
Examples in announcements and editorial paragraphs — Visit to Newark
with Mr. Webster — Instances of wit, cheerfulness, and humour — Anecdote
of Mr. Webster and coloured people— Memorial of coloured people
against mixed races — Boarding-Iiouse life, its advantages and disadvantages
— Peculiarity of expression, phrases, &c 219

CHAP. XIII.

Climate, weather, snows, severe cold — Sleighing, private sleighs, omnibuses,
carts — Peculiarities of American winters — Supposed periods of ten years
for each series — Series of severe and series of mild winters — The present
winter of 1837, regarded as a mild one — Supposed commencement of a
mild series with this — Ships, packets, steam-boats, comparison with
English — Naval expedition destined for the Polar Seas — Environs of New
York, Brooklyn, Long Island— Staten Island, New Brighton — Asbestos

CONTENTS.

lace for shows
lay— Descrip.
153

mmon PJeas,
ind attorneys
'g and judg.
nd the bench
md ministers
s, comfort —
charav ler for
le voluntary
8 182

Statistics of
ickerbocker
Superiority
in England
id the fine
of Deten.
pr a temple
ting effect
201

s between
: of lamps,
csmiths—
observing

ression

) Newark
Anecdote
1 people
vantages
219

nibuses,
en years
present
jnt of a
•n with
of New
sbestos

quarries — Jersey ,. /, Hoboken Ferry, excellent boats — Passengers in
carriages conveyed wirhout alighting — Separate apartments for ladies and
gentlemen — Good fires and comfortable accommodations for all — Last
day of our stay in New York — Farewell lectures, and parting with friends
— Visit to the public school with the mayor — Proficiency of the 'pupils
in their exercises — Voluntary society for moral and mental improvement
— Preparations for leaving New York— Friendly parting with our fellow-
boarders — Mutually strong attachments, on solid grounds 239

CHAP. XIV.

Voyage from New York to Amboy, by steam-boat— Journey from Amboy
to Camden, by rail-road — Crossing the Delaware in ice-boat to Philadel-
phia — Visit to the Pennsylvanian convention, then sitting — Nature, object,
and proceedings of conventions — Temperance festival at the Arch Street
theatre, given as a public welcome to myself and family — Preparations
and arrangements for this entertainment — Opinions of the press on the
temperance festival — Departure from Philadelphia, by rail-road, for Bal-
timore — Halt at Wilmington — Deputation headed by Judge Hall — Passing
from the free into the slave States — Arrival at Baltimore — Temperance
meeting there — Journey by rail-road to Washington 256

CHAP. XV.

Stay at Washington — Funeral of a member of congress, who had been shot
in a duel — Visit to the house of representatives — Funeral service — Impres-
siveness of the scene — Effect on the auditors — Publication of an Address
to both houses, on duelling — State temperance meeting of members of
congress — Speech in the hall of representatives — Vote of thanks, and
resolution to publish the same — Commencement of lectures in Washing-
ton — Letter on the subject of slave abolition — Advertised rewards for
runaway slaves — Offer of purchase by slave-dealers — Prejudice of native
Americans against foreigners — Illustration of this in an editor at Wash-
ington — Visit to the first drawing-room of the president — Description
and character of that entertainment — All classes, without distinction,
freely admitted — Remarkable order and decorum of so mixed an assem-
blage 272

CHAP. XVL

History of the City of Washington — Forme ' .i of the district of Columbia
— Seat of government established there by law — Choice of the position
for the new city —Plan and design of General Washington — Topography
and details of the streets, &c. — Public buildings — the Capitol — Scale of
the edifice — Style of arcLitecture — Sculptured subjects in the Rotunda —
Historical pictures in the Rotunda — Description of the senate chamber —
Arrangement and mode of doing business — Description of the hall of
representatives — Regulation of taking seats by members — General order
and decorum of their proceedingSi — Great advantage of day-sittings over

CONTENTS.

; 'I

night-meetings — Hull of the supreme court of justice— Library of the
Capitol, history and present condition — The President's house, size, style,
and character — Public offices of government near the President's — State
department — Original Declaration of Independence— War department —
Portraits of Indian chief8---Trea8ury department — Standard weights and
measures — Arsenal — Navy-yard, and general post-office — Indian depart-
ment — Land department — Patent office — Destruction of models and
records — Places of public worship in Washington — Anecdote of the Con-
gressional chaplains — Colleges, banks, hotels, and boarding-houses —
Theatres — Mr. Forrest, the American actor — Anecdote of southern sensi-
tiveness on slavery— Play of Othello and of the Gladiator proscribed—
Exclusion of coloured persons from the representations — Private buildings
of the city, style and character— Population of Washington— City govern-
ment — Revenue, taxes, licenses, debt, and appropriation — Regulations
respecting the coloured population — Restrictions as to the heights of
houses in building 291

CHAP. XVIL
Diversity of character in the population — Proportion of the black to white
inhabitants — Residents, members, strangers, and visitors — Members of
the senate, appearance, manners — Great speeches of Mr. Calhoim, Clay,
and Preston— Opinions of the newspapers on these efforts — Two days'
speech of Mr. Webster on the treasury bill — Opinions of the press on
this great speech — Anecdote of Mr. Webster's physiognomy — Anecdote
of General Washington's temper — Character of the house of representa.
tives — Remarkable members — John Quincy Adams — Quorum of the
houses ; no counting out — Public funerals of the members of congress— -
Specimen of an oration on such occasions — Pay of the members —
Privilege of franking — State of the general and fashionable society at
Washington — Madame Caradori Allen's concert — Anecdote of Mr Wood
— Hotels of Washington — Boarding-houses — Inferiority of both to those
of New York — Domestic attendants — Style of apartments — Manner of
living — Hurry at meals — Inattention to comfort — Coarsenes.s of fare —
Coldness and selfishness of manners 924

CHAP. XVIII.

Private friends in Washington — Judge White — Quaker deputation from
Philadelphia — Attempted fraud on the Seifeca Indians — Practices of land-
speculators towards these people — Peculiar and remarkable personages in
Washington — Mr. Fox, relative of Lord Holland, the British minister —
Mrs. Madison, 'widow of the late ex-president — Privilege of franking
conferred on her by congress — English gentlemen arriving in Washington
— Practice of wearing arms — Recklessness of character — Instances of
profligacy — Women and gamblers — Influence of slavery in producing this
state of things — Anecdote of life on the western waters — Shameful
indifference and silence of the clergy — Demoralizing effect of slavery or
social life 351

En^

CONTENTS.

Library of the
ise, size, style,
ideiit's— State
department —
d weights and
ndian depart-
models and
te of the Con<
ling-houses —
mthem sensi-
proscribed —
rate buildings
-Citygovern-
-Regulations
e heights of
291

aek to white

Members of

Ihoun, Clay,

—Two days*

'he press on

' — Anecdote

representa.

"um of the

■ congress—.

members —

society at

Mr Wood

)th to those

Manner of

of fare —

324

ition from
es of land-
sonages in
minister —
franking
'ashington
stances of
ucing tiiis
Shameful
lavery or
351

CHAP. XIX.
Environs of Washington, scenery and views — Georgetown older i)i date
than Washington— Climate of Washington extremely variable— Captain
Smith's and Jefferson's account of the climate — Last survey of Washing,
ton in an excursion round it — Visit to the arsenal, and description of it —
Visit to the navy-yard of Washington— Description of its resources and
works— Return to the city of the Capitol— Battles of the giants and the
pigmies — Last Siuiday passed at the service in the Capitol — Admirable
sermon of the Rev. Dr. Fisk— Excursion to Alexandria across the Potomac
— Embryo city of Jackson, near Washington — Sale of lands for nonpay-
ment of taxes — Singular names of new.settled estates — History and
description of Alexandria — Museum, and relics of General Washington —
Mount Vernon, the family seat and tomb— Disinterment of General
Washington's corpse — Veneration for Washington and Lafayette — Native
Indians seen at Washington — Farewell visits on leaving the city 862

CHAP. XX.

Stay at Baltimore, and agreeable intercourse there — History of the first
foundation of Maryland — Character of Lord Baltimore, a Catholic peer —
Settlement of the colony by his son — Followed by Roman Catholics of
rank and fortune — Religious toleration the principle of these settlers —
Kind treatment and gratitude of the Indians — Foundation of St. Mary's
and Annapolis — Early existence of negro slavery in the colony — Origin
and cause of the first Indian war — Progressive prosperity of Maryland as
a State — Foundation of the town of Baltimore — Elevation to the dignity
of a city in 1796— Effects of the revolution on its prosperity 38A

CHAP. XXL

Topographical situation of Baltimore — Finest points of view in the panorama
— Form and plan of the city — Private residences and public buildings —
Exchange, custom-house, and city-hall — Court-house, jail, and peniten-
tiary — Separation of the sexes in the latter — Night-cells open to constant
supervision — Work-shops for the daily labour of the convicts — Produce
of their work sustains the institution — Plan of government, and internal
economy — Places of public worship in Baltimore — The Catholic cathedral,
its beauties and defects — Pictures of the interior, presented by France —
Unitarian church, exterior and interior — Episcopalian, Presbyterian, and
Baptist churches — Medical college for students — Benevolent institutions
of Baltimore — Asylum at Calverton, plan and condition — The hospital
under the Catholic sisters of charity— The Infirmary, illustration of
Catholic zeal — Dispensary, orphan asylum, marine society — Penitent
female refuge society, and others — Baltimore characterized as the
" monumental city " — Washington monument, column and statue — The
Battle monument, in Monument square — The Armistead monument, near
the City spring — Fountains or enclosed springs in Baltimore — The City
spring — The Western fountain — The Eastern fountain, the Centre foun-

ife

,:-A
Mi'*

CONTENTS.

tain — Places of public nmiiRcincnt — Theatre, circus, coucert and ball room
— Museum, public gardens, race-course — Municipal government, com-
merce, and shipping — Capacities for trade, banks, and insurance offices 398

CHAP. XXII.

Population of Baltimore, white and coloured races— Position of Maryland,
as a Slave-state — Maryland colonization society — Severity of the law
against rescuing slaves — Vigilance of the post-office on abolition publica-
tions — General liberality of sentiment — Education of coloured children —
Negro preachers — Religious sects, and their proportions — Benefits of the
voluntary system of support — Institutions for the promotion of education
— Death of the member of congress for Baltimore — Public funeral, and
marks of general respect — Eulogium on the character of the deceased
member — Newspapers in Baltimore — Party and neutral remarks on the
partisanship of political writers — Editorial taste for quaintness and singu-
larity — Literary institutions — Lectures and library 431

CHAP. XXIII.

Classification of the varied population of the city — General characteristics
— State of society and manners — Supposed causes of the refinement of
Baltimore — Co-existence of depraved and abandoned classes — Instances
of recent outrage and cruelty— More disorganized state of society in the
West — Retrospect of Baltimore society a century ago — Extensive use of
tobacco by the Marylanders — Evil effects of this pernicious and oifensive
practice— Injury to society by the waste of land and capital — Growing
opiiiion against the use of tobacco — Cultivation of this noxious weed by
Blaves — Exhaustion of the soil in Virginia and Maryland — Popular
appeal to southern men and slaveholders — Inconsistency of the demo-
cratic party on this subject — Public sale of. appropriated lands for arrears
of taxes — Singular names of many of these estates — Public labours of the
Maryland legislature — Registry law — Imprisonment for debt — Wearing
weapons 453

II il!

ILLUSTRATIONS.

\''-

VOL. I.

1 Portrait of the Author to face the Title.

NEW YORK.

2 Broadway, looking North from the Bowling Green,

3 Broadway, looking South from the American Museum

4 The City Hall, in the centre of the Park . . .
3 The new Custom- House — after the Parthenon .

6 The new Merchants' Exchange, in Wall-street .

7 St. Thomas's Church, upper part of Broadway

8 The Lunatic Asylum, at Blooming Dale . . .

9 Asylum for the Deaf and Dumb, Haarlem Road

10 New University, Washington Square ....

1 1 Hall of Justice, from an Egyptian Temple . .

12 Wharf and Shipping, East River, near Maiden Lane

13 Steam Ferry Boat and Dock for landing ....

WASHINGTON.

14 West Front of the Capitol, towards the Gardens . .

15 East Front of the Capitol, and principal Entrance . .

16 Interior of the Hall of Representatives — from Hinton

17 The White House — Official Mansion of the President .

BALTIMORE.

18 The Washington Monument, and part of the City . .

19 The Exchange and Rotunda, in Gay Street ....

20 The Roman Catholic Cathedral — as originally designed

21 The Battle Monument, in Monument Square . .

l.*^l

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205

217

242

250

295
29(5
304
310

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404

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423

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AMERICA,

IMSTOmCAL-STATISTICAL-AND DESCRIPTIVE

CHAP. I.

Motives for visiting the United States — Intercourse with vjirioua
classes of society — Extensive geographical range of the coi.atry
traversed — Names of the several states and territories cxanmieJ —
Form of narrative adopted in description — Historical and statis-
tical sketches, blended with this — General topics chiefly dwelt o\,
in cities and states — Pictures of manners and customs, in public
and private life.

After a long course of travels over a great por-
tion of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and of voyages
in the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, the Red Sea,
the Persian Gulf, and the Indian Ocean, spread-
ing over more than thirty years of a varied and
active life, I had a strong desire to add to the
knowledge thus acquired of the countries of the
Old World, by examining for myself the most
favoured portion of the New. I had once visited the
United States, about thirty years ago, just after the
period when the gifted poet, Thomas Moore, had
passed through the country j and I had the plea- *

VOL. h

INTRODUCTORY.

sure to mingle in many of the circles that he had
enlivened by his wit, and enchanted by his verse :
but from that period, 1808, up to 1837, all my
wanderings had been in the Eastern hemisphere,
and the Western had continued, to me at least, to
be "a sealed fountain," of whose waters I longed
the more ardently to drink.

At the close of my parliamentary labours, in
1837 — when the great object of my public life had
been successfully accomplished, by the abolition of
the East India Company's monopoly, and the open-
ing of the vast and populous regions of the East
to British enterprise — I availed myself of my
retirement, to make a second visit to America,
with the intention of devoting at least three years
to a careful examination of all the most prominent
and interesting objects of nature and art, that the
country contained, as well as investigating the nature
of its institutions, the structure of its society, and
the character and manners of its people.

In all the works I had hitherto read, in the shape
of travels through the United States, there appeared to
me defects, or omissions, which a more patient, more
diligent, and more impartial examination of the
country and its inhabitants might supply. In some
of the English writers there was an evident deter-
mination to seek only for blemishes, and to turn
even the virtues into ridicule. In others there was
a strong political bias, hostile to every thing con-
nected with the very name of a republic; causing
them to see every thing, therefore, through a jaun-
diced medium. In some again, there was an elabo-
ration of disquisition on a few prominent features of

INTRODUCTORY.

I ' I

ours, in
life had
tlition of
he open-
the East
of my
America,
ee years
pominent
that the
e nature
iety, and

he shape
)eared to
nt, more
of the
In some
at deter-
to turn
lere was
ing con-
causing
a jaun-
in elaho-
aturcs of

the national character and national institutions, with
a contemptuous neglect of minuter but not less im-
portant details ; and in others, a substitution of ficti-
tious and imaginary stories for facts, which, however
it might display the talent of the writers for inven-
tion, and broadly exaggerated humour, could only
mislead the reader as to the real state of society
among the people so unjustifiably misrepresented and
caricatured.

Without assuming to myself the possession of
greater abilities for this task than those who have
gone before me, I venture to believe that I have,
at least, enjoyed superior advantages to most of
my predecessors : and to these alone I am anxious
to draw the attention of the reader ; as he will see in
them abundant reasons why I should be likely to
escape many at least of the defects and omissions
pointed out in others. It is an advantage which the
latest traveller in any country enjoys, that the errors
of his pioneers serve as so many beacons and land-
marks, by which he may be at once warned and
guided in his path. But in addition to this, there
were several special privileges which I had the good
fortune to enjoy, and by which I endeavoured, at least
to profit, on every occasion, to acquire as extensive
and accurate information as I could, on all the sub-
jects of my inquiry.

Having designed, from the first, to make some
stay in all the principal cities and towns of the coun-
try, I proposed to occupy the mornings in active ex-
amination of all the objects accessible to my research ;
and to devote the evenings to the delivery of my
Courses of Lectures on the scriptural and classical

B 2

■ t

' ' ■ «

: 1. '

4 INTRODUCTORY.

regions of the East; so that the acquisition of
knowledge as to the New World, for my own de-
light, and the diffusion of information respecting the
Old World, for the gratification of others, blended
happily together; and the latter occupation assisted
the former in a greater degree than I could have
anticipated or thought possible. In every town, the
delivery of my Lectures brought around me, in the
shortest space of time, all the most intellectual portion
of society : and as these sought my acquaintance by
introduction, some for the purpose of extending their
inquiries as to the subjects described — and others, to
offer, by their hospitality, some return for the pleasure
they professed to have received — I was brought into
personal and intimate communion with the very
best portion of the community, whether tested by the
standards of learning, morality, manners, influence,
or wealth ; and nothing could exceed the frankness
and kindness with which all their resources of infor-
mation were placed at my disposal.

The interest which I had been known to take in
England, in the cause of temperance, education, the
condition of seamen, the improvement of the working
classes, unfettered commerce, and universal peace,
occasioned very early applications to be made to me
by the various philanthropic societies, with which the
United States happily abound, to take a part in the
proceedings of their public meetings, to examine the
working of their several institutions, and to offer my
unreserved opinion as to their merits or defects.
This of course gave me as frequent opportunities to
examine the condition of society among the middle
and inferior classes, as my Lectures afforded me of

INTRODUCTORY.

f .

mixing with the higher ; and taking both together, I
may safely affirm, that my Lectures were heard and
read by not less than a million of persons during my
stay in America ; from the elite of whom, I received
the most cordial attention, in private as well as in
public : and in assisting the various philanthropic
objects enumerated, there could be hardly less than a
milHon more, by whom my addresses at their public
meetings were heard and read, in every part of the
Union, from Maine to Louisiana, and from the Atlan-
tic shore to the regions beyond the Mississippi.

If the mingling so intimately with all classes in
the cities and towns be regarded as an advantage, the
extensive range of my track over the surface of the
interior of the country was scarcely less so. This
embraced, it is believed, a greater number of states
and territories than had ever before been traversed,
and a more thorough examination of each than had
yet been made, by any single traveller, European or
American; my journeys having carried me through
every state and territory in the Union except two,
and these the least settled and least interesting
in every point of view, namely, the state of Arkansas
and the territory of Florida. We were indeed close
on the borders of each ; but one was uninviting from
the unhealthiness of its climate in the season at
which we were near it, and the other was inaccessible
from the deadly and exterminating war still raging
over its swamps and everglades, between the Seminole
Indians and their pursuers. We visited, however,
and traversed in various directions, the states of Maine,
New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode

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INTRODUCTORY,

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Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Penn-
sylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Ca-
rolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisi-
ana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, In-
diana, Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Mi-
chigan ; navigating the great lakes Michigan, Huron,
Erie, and Ontario, embracing the whole country be-
tween New Orleans on the gulf of Mexico, to Quebec
on the gulf of St. Lawrence ; and terminating with
the British provinces of Upper and Lower Canada,
Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the disputed terri-
tory on the boundary line between the British and
American possessions.

In addition to the advantages which extensive in-
tercourse with all classes of society, and a wide range
of country traversed, but with frequent intervals of
halt, and careful examination in detail, may be sup-
posed to confer, I think I do not overrate the value
of a knowledge of other countries too highly, when I
say that it furnished me with more accurate standards
of comparison than could be applied by persons ac-
quainted only with their own. At the same time,
the very fact of my having thus lived for so many
years among various nations, differing from each
other in religion, government, language, morals, and
manners, could hardly fail to soften those national
prejudices by which the people of every country are
too much disposed to flatter their own institutions and
manners, as all perfection, and to denounce all such
as differ from them as worthless and contemptible. I
was thus, I venture to believe, enabled to view things
with a more catholic spirit of impartiality than it is

. f:

INTRODUCTORY. /

possible for those to do, who have not had their na-
tional prejudices corrected by extensive intercourse
with other lands.

I am aware, that in thus offering the reasons I
have enumerated, as the ground of my confidence
that this work on the United States has been pre-
pared under greater advantages than have been en-
joyed by most others, I am increasing the weight of
my responsibility to public opinion for its execution.
This is unavoidable, and I do not, therefore, shrink
from it ; but to enable those to whose judgment it
will be necessarily submitted, to form a more accu-
rate opinion as to whether it accomplishes the end it
proposes, I may be permitted to state briefly the plan
on which I have endeavoured to construct it.

In reading books of travels for myself, I have
always desired to be placed by the author, as much
as possible, in his own situation j to be brought, in
short, by his descriptions, as nearly as can be, to
the condition of being his travelling companion ; to
see things in the same order of succession as he him-
self saw them ; to be made acquainted with the mi-
nuter incidents of his life, as well as with the more
prominent ; to become familiar with the inconveniences
to which he was subjected, as well as with the plea-
sures he enjoyed ; to partake of his indignation at the
wrong, as fully as with his admiration of the right ; to
be, in short, continually present with him in all his
vicissitudes, and to sympathize with him in all his
joys and sorrows, by whatever cause produced. For
this reason, I have always preferred the form of the ac-
tual diary, in which the incidents and feelings are trans^
ferred to paper while fresh and new. But as I have

; f

if! ■

!',.

INTRODUCTORY.

myself, when residing in any country, state, or city,
a strong desire to know at least the prominent parts
of their liistory-and progress, as far as they can be
traced ; so I desire that others shall share the pleasure
of my investigations in this respect ; and such brief
historical sketches are accordingly introduced. But
as the actual condition of things is of far greater im-
portance than the past, especially in a new and rising
country like the United States, this portion of the
subject has been most elaborately treated in every
case, and will be found to embrace ample details of
the topography, public and private buildings, insti-
tutions, manufactures, commerce, population, man-
ners, customs, and peculiarities, of all the cities and
towns ; while in the provinces, the general character
of the soil and country, its scenery, climate, and
productions, statistics of area, comparative fertility,
population, resources, public works, and financial
condition, have the greatest share of attention be-
stowed on them.

Of general topics, belonging to every part of the
country equally, those of political institutions, reli-
gion, morals, education, literature, social intercourse,
and domestic relations, will be found to be most
frequently described and discussed ; and wherever
it has been practicable to corroborate my own views
by native authorities, whether among the popular
writers of the country, or from their public journals,
I have availed myself freely of these sources, partly
to satisfy the English reader of the probable sound-
ness of my conclusions, and partly to let the American
reader also see that it is not, as he might otherwise
suppose, the erroneous impressions of a foreigner,

III:

I '''
ii

iiili!

INTRODUCTORY.

of whose authority they are peculiarly jealous in
matters of national concern, but the deliberate con-
viction of some of the leading public writers of
their own country, against which no such objection
can be raised.

It will be inferred from this, that my views of
American institutions and manners are not always
of the most favourable kind : and this I am ready
to avow. I visited the country neither predisposed
to admire nor condemn ; but most sincerely desirous
of seeing the actual condition of things, and most
firmly resolved to describe them as they appeared to
me, whether for good or for evil. To suppose that
I may not in some cases have received imperfect
impressions, and in others have formed erroneous
conclusions, would be to suppose a freedom from the
ordinary frailty and fallibility of mortals. To such
an exemption, I hope I should be the last to make
any claim. But this at least I can assert with con-
fidence, that I have always endeavoured to investi-
gate carefully the facts placed within my reach ; that
I have been quite as anxious to form correct deduc-
tions from these when ascertained ; and never having
indulged the national antipathy towards foreigners,
which has always seemed so ofTensive to me in the
writings of too many of my own countrymen, I am not
conscious of having been influenced by such a feeling,
in any censures which I may have felt it right to
express. From the peculiarly quick sensitiveness of
the American people to the censures of foreigners,
and of English writers above all others, I have no
doubt I shall be condemned by many of the party
journals in that country, for some of the observations

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Ml <

INTRODUCTORY.

which I have felt it my duty to make, on subjects
connected with their institutions and manners;
while, on the other hand, I expect as little justice from
the party journals of my own country, who will con-
demn me perhaps as fiercely, for the eulogies I feel
bound to bestow, on the manifold advantages enjoyed
by the people of the United States, over most of the
countries of the Old World. Between these two
extremes, I shall, however, hope to find, in the mode-
rate and impartial judgment of those who love truth
wherever it is to be found, and who think it is as
much a duty to condemn what is evil as to praise
what is good, a sufficient counterbalance to the se-
verity of the criticisms on both sides of the Atlantic,
which I am prepared to expect.

On one other topic I may venture to say a word
or two in explanation. Throughout the United
States, the complaint is almost universal, that English
travellers, especially, have abused the hospitality of
some, and betrayed the confidence of others, by making
public what was never intended, or thought likely, to
be so exposed; and much bitterness of disappoint-
ment and anger of feeling has been occasioned thereby.
There is unfortunately too much of truth in the ac-
cusation — though the English are not more in fault
in this betrayal of confidence, and abuse of hos-
pitality, than some American travellers who have
visited and described England. But in both, it is
no doubt an offence that deserves to be punished
with public censure ; first, for its injustice and ingra-
titude ; and next, because it has a tendency to lessen
the disposition of even the most generous and high-
minded in each country to extend their hospitality

INTRODUCTORY.

and attentions to the citizens of the other. I hope
and helieve that I have avoided this evil ; I am sure
at least that I have earnestly endeavoured to do so ;
and rememhering, as I shall always he prompt and
proud to do, the many warm and affectionate friend-
ships I had the happiness to form among the Ame-
rican people, I should feel the deepest regret, if
any thing to which I gave publicity respecting their
country or themselves, should weaken our reciprocal
regard, or render my name and memory less revered
among them or their children, than it has hitherto
had the honour and good fortune to be.

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CHAP. II.

Departure from England — Arrival at New York — Address to the
American public issued on landing — Difterent courses of lec-
tures delivered in the city — Attendance at public meetings for
benevolent objects — New York State Temperance Society-
New York Peace Society — Meeting on the subject of Public
Education — New York City Tract Society — Total Abstinence So-
ciety — Ladies Meeting for the Orphan Asylum — Meeting of the
Friends of Sailors' Homes — Visit to one of the establishments of
this Institution — Admirable arrangement for the comforts of
seamen — Political excursion to Newark with the Hon. Daniel
Webster — Visit to polling places at the time of election- -Legal
tuid clerical parties — Intellectual soirees.

It was on the 7th of September, 1837, that we left
London for New York. The packet-ship, in which
we had engaged cabins, was the President, Captain
Chadwick ; and our party consisted of Mrs. Buck-
ingham, my youngest son, then about twelve years
of age, and myself. We were accompanied to the
ship by the other members of our family and friends ;
and the prospect of so long a separation, as that
which we contemplated, made our adieus more than
usually painful.

During our tedious passage down the British
Channel, the sight of the often-seen, and well-re-
membered " white cliffs of Albion," excited recol-
lections of the joy with which I hailed them on my
last return from exile, that contrasted powerfully
with the opposite emotions with which I now be-
held them fading from my viewj and this found
vent in some effusions, which sufficiently indicate
the frame of mind in which they were penned.*

* See Appendix, No. I. and II.

scene, i

Jiii

PICTUHESQl-E IlIVEIt SCENLRY.

There was nothing of sufficient interest or novelty
in the sea voyage across the Atlantic, notliing peculiar
in the ship or her equipment, nothing even in the
number or character of our fellow-passengers, to
require any special notice j and except in the enjoy-
ment of domestic society and books, so full of delight
everywhere, but especially when cut off from the
world in the comparative solitude of the ocean, there
was nothing beyond the common incidents or plea-
sures of an ordinary sea voyage.

Our passage was of more than usual length, occu-
pying forty-three days ; the general average of out-
ward voyages not exceeding thirty days. We had,
however, a great prevalence of contrary winds, and
much boisterous and unpleasant weather ; though
the season of the year is one in which this is not
very common.

It was on the 19th of October that we first saw
the American coast, a part of Long Island, to the
eastward of New York ; and soon after receiving on
board a pilot, we made all sail with a fine breeze for
the entrance of the harbour by Sandy Hook, which
we reached early in the afternoon. From thence we
proceeded up through the Narrows towards the city,
and anchored off the Battery about five o'clock.

It is difficult to speak without an air of exagge-
ration, of the beauties of this short trip, from the
entrance of the harbour to the anchorage ground.
They were, however, so numerous and so enchanting,
that my only regret was at the rapidity with which
we passed by the several objects that succeeded each
other. The time of the year was undoubtedly fa-
vourable, and added much to the splendour of the
scene, in the rich autumnal tints with which the

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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folia^ on all the surrounding hills was crowned ;
and the time of day was equally advantageous, as it
was just before the full glow of a western sun-set.
The Narrows, formed by the nearly approaching
cliffs of Staten Island on the west, and Long Island
on the east, is one of the most strikingly interesting
straits of entrance that can be conceived, to the more
expanded harbour into which it opens ; and its beauty
is much increased by the number of little villas scat-
tered over the surface of the hills on either side, con-
trasting their almost snowy whiteness with the rich
greens, and yellows, and scarlets, and browns, of the au-
tumnal foliage in which many of them are embosomed.
As we advanced upward, the variety of the scenery
presented continual charms, and the first sight of the
city of New York, with the lofty spires of its numer-
ous churches rising from the interior — the tall masts
of its crowded fleets fringing the outline of the entire
mass of houses, while distinctive signals were waving
from the greater number of the mast-heads — added to
ships of war forming the squadron now about to
sail on an exploring expedition — the opening views
of the East River, Long Island, and Brooklyn,
which lie to the right of New York, as you look
toward it from the south — and the still greater ex-
panse of the noble Hudson River, and the opposite
city of Jersey, which are seen to the left hand, or on
the west — produced a coup d*opil >\'hich few sea-ports
could parallel, and none that I have ever entered
could surpass.

Soon after anchoring, we took leave of our floating
residence ; and landing at the Battery, we were taken
to one of the principal hotels in the lower part of the
Broadway, called the Mansion House, or Bunker's,

AOUr.KAni.K 80CIRTY.

1.0

whore wo found accommodation for tho niglit ; but
l)oing unjiblo to make arrangements for our per-
manent stay there, for want of room, wo took up our
quarters at tlie adjoining house, whicli was what is
called a private boarding-house, and hero for the
present we made our home.

As we remained in New York for several months,
and as I availed myself of every opportunity that
presented itself during that period to see whatever the
city contained, and to mingle as much as possible with
the various classes of its inhabitants, I shall endea-
vour to condense my description of the whole into a
general and continuous picture, embracing all those
details which occupied many different days in col-
lecting, and most of which required and received that
subsequent revision, which time and re-examination
can alone secure.

Before entering on this, however, I may offer the
following short notice of my own labours, as those
which were most instrumental in bringing me in
contact with the most intelligent and respectable of
the inhabitants, and leading to many delightful
friendships, of which I shall long cherish a pleasing
and grateful remembrance.

Soon after my landing, I presented the numerous
letters of introduction with which I had been favoured
by friends in England to families of the greatest
influence here ; and this brought us at once into the
midst of a most extensive circle of agreeable ac-
quaintances. As considerable public curiosity had
begun to be awakened, however, by my visit to the
United States, from the notice taken of it by the
public journals, I thought it the shortest and most

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STATE OF NEW YORK,

effective method of correcting erroneous impressions,
and placing the motives and object of my visit in their
true light, to issue an Address on this subject.*

My courses of lectures, descriptive of Egypt and
Palestine, were soon afterwards announced ; and as
the great length of the city, as well as the difference
in the classes of society that reside in different quar-
ters rendered it desirable to have more than one place
for their delivery, an arrangement was made to give
one of the courses at Clinton Hall, near the centre,
for the mercantile classes ; and one at the Stuyvesant
Institute, at the northern extremity of Broadway,
for the more opulent and fashionable classes who
reside in that newly built and elegant quarter of the
town. Both these lecture rooms were well adapted
for their purpose, and capable of accommodating with
ease — the former about 700) and the latter about 500
auditors ; and each course was so well attended, that
while the Clinton Hall was usually filled, the Stuy-
vesant Institute became too crowded, and many indi-
viduals w^ere unable to obtain admission. This
obliged us to remove to the chapel of the University,
a beautiful gothic building, forming part of the
general edifice in Washington Square, which was
cheerfully granted to me by the president and chan-
cellor, and the remaining lectures of my course were
delivered there to very crowded audiences.

After the close of these two courses in New York,
I was invited by a requisition, signed by about 100
of the principal residents of Brooklyn, to visit
them, and deliver the same lectures at the Lyceum of
their city. In this duty I was agreeably occupied for

* See Appendix, No. III.

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VOL. ]

PUBLIC LFXTURES AND MEETINGS.

about a month, crossing over from New York to
Brooklyn on each evening in a carriage, which drives
into the steam ferry-boat, and is conveyed to the other
side across the East River, without the necessity of
the passenger leaving his vehicle ; and returning by
the same mode after the lecture was over. The lec-
ture room at the Brooklyn Lyceum, like that at the
Stuyvesant Institute in New York, is built in the
form of the old Greek theatre, semicircular, with the
ranges of seats rising in succession behind each other ;
but, though Brooklyn is by much the smaller place,
— the population of New York being about 300,000,
and that of Brooklyn 30,000 — ^its lecture room is
much larger, more lofty, better proportioned, and was
filled every night by a larger audience than had yet
attended any of the lectures in New York.

At the termination of the Brooklyn course, I was
still further detained for six weeks longer in New
York, to repeat my course on Egypt at the Stuyvesant
Institute ; to give a second course on Palestine at the
lecture room of St. Luke's church in Hudson Street :
and a third course on Egypt and Palestine combined
at the Chatham Street chapel, each in different quar-
ters of the city, and attended by different classes of
auditors — that at the Stuyvesant averaging 600 ;
that at St. Luke's, in Hudson Street, about 200 ; and
that in Chatham Street chapel not less than 2000 ;
each being up to the fullest capacity of the respective
places to contain.

Independently of these labours on my own account,
I had the pleasure to assist at the following public
meetings, which were fixed for those evenings on
which my own labours were suspended j and although

VOL. I. c

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

these intervening days were originally set aside for
rest, I was too happy in the appropriation of them to
the objects named, to regret for a moment the extra
labour they involved.

The first of these public meetings was held in the
Tabernacle, a large church or meeting-house in
Broadway, to advocate and promote the cause of
Temperance. The Tabernacle is one of the largest
places of worship in New York, and will contain
nearly 3000 persons. On this occasion it was filled
to overflowing, and large numbers were unable to
obtain admission. At half-past seven the chair was
taken by S. V. S. Wilder, Esq., and the meeting
was opened with prayer by the Rev. M. Duffield.
I was then introduced to the audience by a short
address from the chairman ; after which I spoke for
about two hours, giving the history of the temperance
reformation in England, the efforts made in the
House of Commons, the evidence procured by its
committee of inquiry, and the recent progress of the
question in the public mind in Britain, followed by
some general arguments in favour of the cause, as
applicable to this and every other country on the
globe. The audience, large as it was, evinced the
deepest interest in the subject; and the meeting
closed with a more than usual expression of enthu-
siasm.

The second of these public meetings was one held
by the New York Peace Society, which took place in
Chatham Street chapel This building, though not
so large as the Tabernacle, will comfortably accom-
modate 2000 persons seated ; and when the aisles
and all other standing places are filled, 2500 can be

NATIONAL EDUCAIiON ENCOrRAGED.

admitted. Every part of it was crowded on the present
occasion, and many went away for want of room. The
chair was taken at seven, and the meeting was opened
by sacred music, vocal and instrumental, beautifully
executed by a very numerous and well-trained choir.
Hfire also, as at the Tabernacle, the deepest attention
was manifested ; and during the two hours of my ad-
dress, — which was devoted to an exposition of the hor-
rors and miseries of War, its injustice, and the long
train of evils which it inflicted on mankind, the desi-
rability of its abolition, and the practicability of
establishing a Congress of Nations, to which, as to a
supreme tribunal, all those disputes between nations,
now settled by an appeal to the sword, might be
referred for adjudication, and war thus be averted, —
nothing could exceed the interest evinced by the
hearers, or the unanimity of the approbation with
which these statements and sentiments were received.
The meeting was closed, as it Was opened, by sacred
music, and the effect was altogether most impressive
as well as agreeable.

The third public meeting that I attended was to
advocate and promote the cause of National Education.
This was held in the Tabernacle, on Tuesday the
14<th of December, and attended by as many as the
building would contain. The meeting was called
by John Orville Taylor, Esq., a gentleman who has
taken a deep interest in the promotion of education
and the improvement of the common schools, and
who for some years past has given his time almost
exclusively to this object. At seven o'clock, on the
motion of Col. Stone, the editor of one of the prin-
cipal daily newspapers, Samuel Mott, Esq., a member

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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of the Society of Friends, and a gentleman who takes
a prominent part in the promotion of education, was
called to the chair. After this, Mr. Taylor addressed
the meeting for about an hour, detailing the defects
of the common schools in the country districts of the
several states; showing how these defects might
be remedied ; and proposing that, for the purpose of
carrying forward the requisite improvements, a so-
ciety should be formed, to be called " The Common
School Union," to act for the benefit of the common
schools of the country— as the "Sunday School Union"
does for the Sunday schools of the states — a proposi-
tion which was well received.

Mr. Taylor was followed by the Rev. M. Bracken-
ridge, of Princeton, one of the most eloquent of the
public men of the present day; who made a very
powerful speech in support of the general cause of
education, and urged the necessity of carefully ex-
cluding persons who were known to be infidels, from
all participation in the management or direction of
schools, either as teachers or assistants. At the
close of his speech, a remarkable scene occurred : a
well-dressed and middle-aged lady rose in front of the
gallery, and asked permission of the chairman to put
a question to the speaker who had just sat down.
She represented herself as a foreigner, and spoke with
the accent of a German, but used correct and appro-
priate language, and expressed herself with great
firmness and self-possession. Permission having been
granted from the chair, the question she proposed was
this, "Whether the reverend gentleman, who had
spoken so severely of infidels, was ready to accept her
challenge, and prepared to fight the infidels with

. I !

IMl'ORTANCE OF EDUCATION IN AMERICA.

their own weapons?" A scene of great excitement
followed — the indignation of the audience being loudly
and generally expressed ; and all the efforts of the
chairman and those on the platform to repress it were
for some time ineffectual. At length, silence being
restored, Mr. Brackenridge rose, and said that he was
quite prepared to answer the question proposed to
him ; and his reply was this, " That he had been taught
from his infancy, and Christianity has since confirmed
the propriety of the lesson, that it would be altoge-
ther unbecoming his character as a man, to take up
any kind of weapons to fight with a woman.'* The
lady appeared satisfied with the reply — or, seeing the
feeling of the meeting to be so strongly against her
interruption, made no further appeal — and order was,
therefore, speedily restored.

After this, I addressed the meeting, by the intro-
duction of the chairman, for about an hour and half,
on the subject of Education generally, its state and
condition in yarious countries of the world, and the
peculiar importance of this question to America, as
being the country in which the mass of the people
exercised a larger share of power than in any other
nation in the world ; it being therefore of the ut-
most consequence that this power should be directed
by intelligence, which could only be communicated,
generally and extensively, by a good system of Na-
tional Education. The meeting did not separate till
10 o'clock, and its proceedings were marked by great
animation and enthusiasm.

The fourth public meeting that I was called on to
attend, was that of the anniversary of the New York
City Tract Society, an extensive and useful body,

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

who employ sixteen paid missionaries, at regular an-
nual salaries, to devote their whole time to visiting
the most wretched and abandoned part of the popu-
lation in their own dwellings, and, by the use of
printed tracts, conversation, admonition, and persua-
sion, incline them to change their modes of life,
attend to the better management of their temporal
affairs, and devote some portion of their time to spi-
ritual ones. These missionaries are assisted in their
benevolent labours by the voluntary services of eleven
hundred male and female district visitors, who, day
by day, devote some portion of their time to the same
object, and are instrumental in rescuing large num-
bers every year from profligacy and dissipation ; pre-
vailing on hundreds to join the Temperance Society,
to become more economical and industrious, to attend
public worship, to send their children to the Sunday
schools, and so to amend their lives in industry, so-
briety, morals, and religion, as to become changed
beings — better husbands, better wives, better parents,
better children, and better members of the commu-
nitv.

At 7 o'clock the chair was taken by the president
of the Society, Zachariah Lewis, Esq., a venerable
old gentleman, above seventy years of age. Music was
then performed by the New York Academy of Sacred
Music, assisted by the choir of the Tabernacle, the
building in which we were assembled; and nothing
could be more chaste or perfect than its execution.
Prayer was then offered up by the Rev. Dr. Ferris,
of the Reformed Dutch church ; after which the an-
nual reports of the secretary and treasurer were read,
and speeches were delivered in support of the objects

iiii?^

1- •

THE TOTAL ABSTINENCE SOCIETY.

of the Society by the Rev. M. Remington, of the
Methodist church, the Rev. J. W. Cooke, of the
Episcopal church, the Rev. Silas Ilsley, of the Bap-
tist church, and the Rev. W. Adams, of the Pres-
byterian church; thus embracing ministers of the
principal religious bodies in the city. At intervals of
about an hour apart, two other pieces of sacred music
were performed by the members of the Academy
and the choir united, each with equal sweetness
and skill, adding greatly to the charm of the
proceedings. It was half-past nine before I was
called on by the chairman to terminate the business
of the evening by a closing address ; and though the
subject and the interest I felt in it drew me on be-
yond half-past ten, the attention was as profound and
unbroken at that late hour as in the earliest part of
the evening, A collection was made at the close of
the whole, for the funds of the Society, by which a
sum of 3,500 dollars was realized, a substantial proof
of the sincerity and zeal of those who contributed it.

The fifth public meeting that I attended was that
of the Total Abstinence Society, or that branch of
the Temperance Society which recommends the en-
tire abstinence from all intoxicating drinks as a
beverage, and avoids the use of wine, beer, or any
other drink that can produce intoxication, as much
as ardent spirits. This meeting was held in the
Methodist chapel in Green Street, which was filled
in every part ; and about twenty clergymen, minis-
ters, and members of the board or committee, were on
the platform. Several speeches were delivered on the
subject of temperance, and, in the intervals, appropriate
music was performed j and one or tw^o odes and hymns.

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

written for the occasion, were sung by the choir.
My own effort was reserved for the closing address, as
had been done on all the previous occasions of such
public meetings; and the effect of the whole was,
to add a very considerable number of members to
the Total Abstinence Society, by persons coming
forward, after the proceedings were over, to enter
their names, sign the pledge to abstain from all that
can intoxicate, and contribute to the funds of the
institution.

The sixth public meeting at which I assisted, was
the anniversary of the Half Orphan Asylum, which
was held at the Stuyvesant Institute, on Wednesday,
the 10th of January, 1838, at noon. There had
existed, previous to this, an orphan asylum for those
unhappy children who had lost both their parents ;
but many little objects of charity who had lost only
one, though that surviving parent should be helpless,
were shut out from admission by the terms of its
constitution. It was to meet such cases as these, that
this second institution was formed. Its projectors,
supporters, and managers, were ladies, and the good
they had already effected was sufficiently proved by
the exhibition of about a hundred little children, of
both sexes, who had been saved from certain want
and probaole vice and misery by their benevolent
exertions. The funds were supplied wholly by an-
nual subscriptions and voluntary donaticns ; and it
was impossible to hear the report read, and witness
the amount of benefit secured, without being de-
lighted to find how small an amount of money, judi-
ciously applied, will procure a large amount of good ;
and without being at the same time surprised, that

SAILORS HOMES.

mankind arc so slow in learning that the pleasures of
benevolence are at once the cheapest, the most exqui-
site, and the most endi;i''ig that man can enjoy.
The meeting was very numerous, though composed
almost wholly of ladies ; and the proceedings were
conducted, and addresses made, by the chairman, the
Rev. Dr. Peters, the secretary who read the report,
the Rev. Dr. Hawkes, and myself.

The seventh public meeting in which I took a part,
was held at the Tabernacle, on Tuesday, the l6th of
January, for the purpose of presenting to the commu-
nity of New York the claims which the Seamen of the
port had on their sympathy and aid, with a ^dew to
induce the public to assist in rescuing them from the
snares and temptations by which sailors are sur-
rounded and beset on landing, and providing for them
comfortable, orderly, and temperate boarding-houses,
to be called Sailors* Homes. From the interest I had
always taken in the welfare of this deserving but neg-
lected class of beings in my own country, my atten-
tion was naturally drawn to their condition here ; and
I found, on inspection and inquiry, that here, as in
England, the sailor is hardly permitted to tread the
shore, after his arrival from a long voyage, before he
is beset and surrounded with an unprincipled gang of
grog-shop keepers, pawnbrokers, procuresses, crimps,
and other "land-sharks," as they are most appro-
priately called, all anxious to make the unsuspecting
victim their prey. He is then decoyed by flattering
words, and the offer of money for his immediate wants
before his wages are paid, to some low boarding
house, attached to which, or near at hand, are all the
vicious allurements of intoxicating drink, gaming,danc-

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8TATK or NEW YORK.

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ing, women, and every thing that can draw his money
from his pocket *, so that by these joint influences lie
is often drained of the whole earnings of a year of
peril and hardship at sea, in the short space of a sin-
gle week, at the end of which he has to embark again
upon the ocean, without even the means of purchas-
ing sufficient clothes for his voyage, or leaving any
provision for his family or kindred behind him.

To remedy this evil, some benevolent ladies had
been prevailed on to set the example of establishing a
single Sailors* Home, which I went with my family to
visit on the morning of the day of our meeting. We
found it all that could be desired — a good kitchen,
well furnished with every requisite — a clean and airy
mess-room for eating — a large sitting-room, well pro-
vided with plain furniture — and useful and entertain-
ing books for reading — spacious and well- ventilated
dormitories, with clean and wholesome beds, and am-
ple room for the sailors* chests and hammocks — and,
above all, a " sick bay,** as it is called by sailors — a
large open room used as a hospital for the men.
The establishment was presided over by Captain
Gulson, a seaman of experience and good character,
assisted by his wife and sister, who managed all the
household supplies and arrangements, while he super-
intended the general discipline. A physician at-
tended the house weekly, or oftcner if required, to
prescribe for those who needed itj and a chaplain
read prayers, morning and evening, and conducted
public worship on Sundays. The food was simple,
but wholesome and ample. No spirits, wine, beer, or
any other stimulating drink, was permitted to enter
the establishment j nor was smoking, the great aux-

CULPABLE APATHY OF SHIP-OWNERS.

iliary and promoter of drinking, allowed within the
walls. The number of sailors at present boarding
here were forty, which was as many as the house
would comfortably accommodate; but more than a
hundred had been shipped from the house since its
establishment, only two months since, — captains of
ships preferring to take them from hence, as being
better assured of their sobriety, only one failure
in which had taken place since the house was
opened. The sum charged to each of the seamen
for board and lodging, with every thing in the most
comfortable abundance, was only three dollars, or
about twelve shillings sterling, per week ; and this
was found to be sufficient to cover all the expenses
of the establishment. Thus, economy was added to all
the other attractions of this Home ; as, for much worse
fare in the ordinary boarding-houses, from four to five
dollars are charged, independently of the constant
drain for drinking, and other vicious indulgences, of
all the men's surplus money ; while those who live in
the Sailors* Home are easily persuaded to put their
wages received into the Savings* Bank, and thus to
accumulate, instead of dissipating and destroying, their
hard-earned gains.

The object of this meeting was to present these
facts to the community, and appeal to them in sup-
port of such institutions, which, with their aid, it
would be easy to multiply, first in New York, and then
in every other port of the country. It was matter
of surprise and regret to me, to find that not a single
shipowner or merchant of note was present on the
platform of the meeting; though they who amass
their fortunes by the enterprise of sailors, ought un-
doubtedly to have taken the lead on such a subject.

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But the principal suppoi'tors of it wore the ladies of
the New York Bethel Union, and some ministers of
the gospel and philanthropic laymen, wholly uncon-
nected with shipping, commerce, or trade. The
meeting was very numerously attended, and addressed
by the Rev. Mr. Greenleaf, secretary, and editor ot
the Nautical Magazine ; the Rev. Mr. Elliott, who
had been himself a sailor in early life up to the ago
of thirty, and had afterwards entered the ministry ;
and by myself. Great sympathy was manifested and
expressed by the audience, which exceeded 3000 per-
sons, and a very liberal collection was made in aid of
the fund forming for the purpose of setting on foot
more such Homes as this, by paying the first cost of
their fitting up and furniture, and so keeping the
rate of expense to the seamen, below the standard
of ordinary boarding-houses, and yet sufficiently high
to maintain the establishment out of its own weekly
receipts, as soon as it had been set up in the manner
described.

When all the public institutions that solicited my
aid had been thus assisted, at the public meetings held
on their behalf, I had hoped to have enjoyed some
intervals of repose, between the days on which my
lectures were announced to be delivered, as I f^und
the labour of public speaking and private visiting
every day, to be a little more than was congenial to
health or comfort. But I was not permitted to enjoy
even these occasional intervals of repose, as I was
pressed into the service of individual and collective
charity, to give some public lectures, first, for the
benefit of a family of respectability, who had been
well off in England, came here, suffered losses and

TlIK HON. DANIKI. WKHSTRR.

'i\)

sickness, and were now in great distress ; and se-
(londly, for tlio lH)nefit of the poor in a district or
quarter of the town where the English and Irish
emigrants chiefly reside, heforo they are (h*ained oft'
to tlie Western states, and where tlie misery and
suffering, among these emigrants, seemed to mc to he
eijual to any thing that I liad seen at home.

In addition to those opportunities whicli my own
several courses of lectures, and the assisting at those
puhlic meetings, affx)rded mc of hecoming acc^uainted
with the most intelligent and benevolent members of
the community, wo visited, in company with the direc-
tors of the institution themselves, almost all the public
establishments of the city connected with moral or
social improvement, of each of which an account will
be given in its proper place.

I passed an entire day also with the Hon. Daniel
Webster, the eminent senator from Massachusetts, in
a public visit made by him to his political friends at
Newark, one of the principal cities of New Jersey,
about ten miles fr* u New York, during which 1
saw a great deal to admire in the picture which it
presented of the people among whom we were placed.

I was taken by several friends to the different
polling places of the wards, during the exciting election
of members for the legislature, which occurred within
the first month of our stay here, and which was
said to have agitated the whole country more than any
election for many years. In addition to all this,
we were invited to dine and pass the evening with
so many families in the first circles of society, that wo
had the opportunity of becoming personally acquainted
with all the leading members of the community, and

*»

'*•

STATE OF NEW YORK,

'mm

seeing the state of manners in every class, and in
every variety of aspect.

I was introduced also to the leading members of
the legal profession, by being invited to their club,
where about fifty of the principal gentlemen of the
bench and the bar meet every Saturday evening at
the houses of the members in rotation, and thus had
an opportunity of becoming acquainted with the
greatest number of the judges, the principal barris-
ters, and the most eminent of the attorneys, for some
of each class belonged to the club.

The great body of the clergy and ministers of the
gospel were among my most frequent visitors and
companions, our labours in assisting at the various
public meetings bringing us much together ; besides
which, they were among the most constant attendants
on my lectures. In addition to this, the chancellor
of the University, the Rev. Dr. Matthews, invited
several parties of the most eminent among the scien-
tific professors and literary men of New York, to
meet me at his official residence. These two
classes of soirees, the legal and the clerical, were
among the most intellectual and agreeable I ever
remember to have met with anvwhere, not even ex-
cepting the delightful literary soirees of London and
Paris ; for though, at these, the number and eminence
of the distinguished individuals present were always
greater than here ; yet, in the parties of the legal,
clerical, and literarv men in New York, there was a
simplicity of manners, and an intensity of interest in
the subjects that engaged their attention, which was
particularly charming.

At the most moderate calculation that can be

i;ij

OPPORTUNITIES OF INFORMATION.

made, I think that, during the four months of our
stay in New York, I became personally acquainted,
by introduction and interchange of calls and visits,
with nearly 500 individuals ; while those who
attended my courses of lectures, delivered in different
parts of the city, and formed the audiences of the
several public meetings at which I assisted, exceeded
20,000 in number ; so that I was as generally and
extensively known to the inhabitants, as any man
could well become in that space of time.

It was from such sources, and such opportunities
as these, that I drew the information, and made the
observations, which I have committed to paper, re-
specting the city, and the objects of interest it con-
tains. Having no preconceived notions to establish
or defend, no theory of society to maintain, nor any
interest whatever to serve, I believe that I brought
to the execution of this task as much of impartiality
as human nature will admit of one's exercising on
topics like these ; and, if to some, my estimate should
appear too high, or to others too low, my justifica-
tion is, that I have aimed at no standard but that of
truth ; and whether it made in favour of or against
the objects spoken of, I have been so intent on its
discovery, that I could not forego the pleasure of
freely expressing it, whether pxjceptable or otherwise.

The following, then, is the result of my inquiries
and observations on New York, during my residence
in that city.

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CHAP. III.

Histor;' of New York from 1609 to 1838 — Topography and plan
of the city and its environs — Astonishing rapidity of the increase
of population — Comparison of its shipping at different periods —
Augmentation of its revenue and foreign commerce — Admirable
situation chosen for the city — Great advantage of extensive
water-margin — Outline of the plan, and general form of the
city — Public squares and open spaces in New York — Public
buddings — City Hall, Custom House, Exchange — Churches and
style of architecture in general use — Hotels and general accom-
modation in them — Theatres and places of amusement of various
kinds — Private dwellings — interior — style — fiuiiiture — Streets
and their peculiarities compared with ours — Appearance of the
principal shops or stores — Number of elegantly -dressed ladies in
Broadway — Absence of the splendid equipages of England.

ing

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The spot on which the city of New York now stands,
was, little more than two centuries ago, a forest, inha-
bited by tribes of untutored Indians. It was in
1609 that the island of Manhattan was first disco-
vered by an English navigator, Henry Hudson, then
in the service of the Dutch West India Company ;
and he found the tribes inhabiting it so inhospitable,
that they refused to hold any intercourse with him
even for barter and trade. The Indians of the
continent, on tht opposite shore of New Jersey, were
more accessible ; and, encouraged by his friendly re-
lations with them, he sailed up the great North river

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NEW YORK TAKEN BY THE BRITISH.

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for 150 miles, aiid gave it the name which it now
bears — the Hudson. The Dutch availed themselves
ot this discovery, to make a settlement for trading
purposes, high up the river, on an island near the pre-
sent town of Albany, where furs were to be obtained
abundantly ; but the hostility of the tribes inhabit-
ino- the island near the sea, on which New York now
stands, was not overcome till three years afterwards ;
the first fort built there by the Dutch being in 1612.
It was not until 1623 that the Indians could be pre-
vailed upon to part with the land on which New
York is built ; and even then, the settlement formed
here was confined to an enlarged fort, where the
confluence of the two rivers, the North and the East,
swept ! rd the southern point of the island, and
made A. suitable place for a fortification to com-
mand the harbour, as the Battery of the present city,
which occupies the same locality, does at the pre-
sent time. From this point, as the population in-
creased, the town began to extend from the fort
northward, and it was then called New Amsterdam.
In 1664, the city was taken by the British, from
whom, however, it was rescued by the Dutch in
1673. After remaining in their possession for a
year only, it was restored again to the English ; and
being then granted by Charles the Second to his
brother James, the Duke of York, its name was
changed to New York. From this time onward, its
population and buildings seem to have made a slow
but steadily increasing progress ; and the state of the
municipal government, and the improved police of
the town, kept pace with its increase in size. It was
in 1684 that the first city- watch was appointed, the

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number of these heroes of the night being twelve,
and their pay a shilling each per night. In
1697» tT ^ lighting of the city was provided for by
an ordei , which compelled all persons to put lights in
their windows, under a penalty of ninepence for each
omission ; and every seventh house in each street
was, in addition to this, required to hang out a pole
with a lantern and candle suspended on it, to light
the street.

In 1725 the first newspaper was published in New
York, called the Weekly Gazette ; and in 17^9 a
large library, belonging to Dr. Millington, of Eng-
land, was presented, after his decease, to the city, by
the London Society for propagating the Gospel in
Foreign Parts. These two events gave an impetus to
the operations of the public mind ; and improvements
of every kind became more marked than before. It
was in I765 that the famous stamp-act, attempted to
be imposed on the American colonies by the British,
produced such excitement as to lead to the meeting o^
a congress at New York, composed of delegates from
other parts of the colonies. Early in I776 the Ame-
rican army entered New York, and, on the 8 th of
July ir that year. Independence was proclaimed ; when
the celebrated Declaration, signed at Philadelphia
only four days before, by the founders of the Ameri-
can republic, was read to the inhabitants, and at the
head of each brigade of the army. In the same year,
however, the British obtained a victory over the Ame-
rican troops in the battle of Long Island, and repos-
sessed themselves of New York. This was in August
1776 ; and in September of the same eventful year,
a, dreadful conflagration occurrod, which destroyed

FIRST AMERICAN CONGRESS.

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nearly 500 houses, the whole number being then only
4,000, and the inhabitants reckoned at 30,000 in
round numbers.

It was not until seven years after this, or in 1783,
that New York was finally evacuated by the British,
when the American army, led by General Washington,
entered and took possession of it ; and the anniversary
of this event is celebrated every year, with military
pomp and festivity, under the name of Evacuation
Day, which happens on the 25 th of November.

It was in this city that the first American congress
was held, when the members met after the revolution-
ary war, in the year 1785, in the old city-hall ; and
in Aprilj 1789> General Washington was inaugurated
in the gallery of the same building, as the first presi-
dent of the United States.

From this period, the most rapid progress of New
York may be fairly dated j as it was unquestionably
owing more to her freedom from foreign dominion,
and the right to develope and direct her energies in
the way that seemed best to her, without waiting for
directions from a distant quarter, than to all other
causes put together, that the amazing increase in size,
population, and opulence, which New York now ex-
hibits, muse be attributed. How great that differ-
ence is, can only be exhibited by the use of figures.

In 1786 the population was 23,614; in 1836 it
was 203,007 ; and at present it is nearly 300,000.

In 1791 the whole amount of the exports from New
York was 2,505,465 dollars; in I8I6, only twenty-five
years afterwards, the :inere duties on merchandise im-
ported, as paid by the port of New York alone into the
treasury of the United States, was 16,000,000 dollars ;

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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and in the year 1836 the amount of the exports was
128,663,040, and of the -mports 189,980,035 dollars.

At the period of General Washington's inaugura-
tion, the whole city of New York was not more than
half a mile long, its northern extremity terminating
south of the present city-hall j while at present, the
length of the city exceeds three miles, and streets are
paved and lighted, and avenues for buildings laid
out and prepared, a mile at least beyond that.

The value of the property in New York, in I786,
is estimated to have been about 12 millions of dol-
lars; in 1825 it was assessed by valuation at 98 mil-
lions of dollars; and in 1834 it was assessed at 218
millions of dollars.

In 1786 the whole shipping of the port did not
exceed 120 in number, measuring about 18,000 tons.
In 1836 they consisted of 2,293 vessels, of which
there were 599 ships, 197 barks, 1,073 brigs and
galleys, 412 schooners, and 4 sloops ; exceeding
350,000 tons. Such is the brief and encouraging
history of New York.

Of its topography, it will not be difficult to present
an intelligible description. The island of Manhat-
tan, on which the city of New York stands, is a long
and narrow slip, projecting southward, like a tongue,
from the point where it is separated from the main
land J its length from north to south being about four-
teen miles, and its average breadth not exceeding a
mile, the area containing about 14,000 acres. The
East river (as it is called, but in reality a narrow
strait, or arm of the sea,) flows dovm to the Atlan-
tic, along the eastern edge of this long and narrow
island, and the Hudson river flows down to the

ADVANTAGEOUS SITE OF NliW YORK.

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harbour of New York, fdong the western margin of the
same piece of land, so that throughout the whole of
the island the breadth is nowhere greater than two
miles across, and in many places it is not more than half
a mile, the average being about a mile throughout.

It is impossible to conceive, therefore, a more ad-
vantageous site for the foundation of a maritime citv
than this ; as it furnishes two lines of river frontage,
ono on the east and the one on the west, each of
fourteen miles in length ; and from the central parts
of the city, where the streets are open towards the
water, the two rivers may be seen, one on each side,
from the same point of view, with ships and smaller
v(;ssels sailing, or at anchor, in each. Along these
river fronts, east and west, as far as the town at pre-
sent extends, which is about four miles from north to
south, the shores are lined with wharves, for the ac-
commodation of vessels of every size and description,
from the sloop of 50 tons to the London or Liver-
pool packet of 1000 tons; ancj from the smallest
steam ferry-boat to the largest steam-vessels that sail
from New York to other ports north and south
of it.

Two other great advantages arise from this ar-
rangement of the streets in the plan of the city. The
first is the free and healthy ventilation of the whole,
let the wind come from whatever quarter it may, as
the full current of air is unimpeded in its course ;
and the second is, the easy drainage of all the central
parts, from the general declivity which proceeds from
the central ridge gradually downward to the water on
both sides of the city. These advantages are not vet
sufficiently appreciated, nor are they secured by he

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best practicable means ; but as wealth and popu-
lation increase, they will, no doubt, be more and more
valued, and carefully cherished and preserved.

The southern extremity of this long and narrow
island, where the Eastern and Western rivers have
their confluence, and mingle their waters with those
of the sea, is occupied by an open grassy plot (about
eleven acres,) planted with trees, and laid out in
gravel- walks, under the name of the Battery j pro-
jecting beyond which, is a castellated edifice, built
on a ledge of rocks, and now called the Castle Gar-
dens, from its containing within its limits a public
garden and promenade, and being a place where fire-
works are often exhibited for the gratification of the
visitors.

From this Battery, or from the Castle-Garden be-
yond it, as you look south, the view is varied and
interesting. Immediately in front of the spectator is
a small island, called Governor's Island, containing
several dwellings, planted around with trees, and
having at its western extremity a large circular fort,
pierced for a great number of cannon, commanding
the channel by which alone ships can approach the
inner harbour. Beyond this, to the south-west, is
another small island, called Bedloe*s Island ; and still
further on, in the same direction, the larger island,
called Staten Island, on which is the town of Rich-
mond, the more recent watering-place of New Brigh-
ton, and a number of pretty terraces and villas.
Through the opening between Staten Island on the
west, and Long Island on the east, constituting the
channel of the Narrows, the Atlantic ocean becomes
visible near the low projection of Sandy Hook.

1 '

TOi'OOUAPinCAL DESCRIPTION OF THE CITY.

While these varied objects present themselves in the
direction of the south, the view to the west includes
Jersey city, on the other side of the Hudson, here
about a mile across; and on the east, the city of
lirooklyn, seated on the heights of Long Island, on
the other side of the East river, at a distance of about
three-quarters of a mile.

It is from this point of the Battery, at the extre-
mity of the island, that the topography of the city
may be most clearly traced. Advancing from this
point northward, though strictly in about a N.N.K.
direction, the great avenue of Broadway extends
from the Battery where it begins, to Union Place
where it terminates, a distance of nearly three miles
in a direct line. Beyond this, two large roads conti-
nue the way onward in the same general direction,
the Haerlem road diverging a little to the east, and
the Bloomingdale road a little to the west, each
extending to the extremity of the island. For this
length, of three miles, the city may be said to be com-
pactly built ; and for two miles beyond this, the ave-
nues and streets are laid out, many of them paved and
lighted, and in several of them, houses are built on
each side. From Broadway, as from a common centre,
the lateral or cross streets lead out east and west, on
either side, terminating at one or other of the river
fronts, and enabling the passenger, as he goes up or
down this great thoroughfare, to see at almost every
opening, the ships at the wharfs, at anchor, or under
sail. Several great avenues, of nearly equal length
and breadth with the principal one of Broadway,
run nearly parallel to it on either side, or lengthwise
of the city, the principal of which are Greenwich

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

Street and Hudson Street on the west, near the North
river ; and the Bowery, which makes a slight curve
and intersects the most densely peopled part of the
town, on the east of Broadway, and these are each
crossed by streets at nearly right angles.

The plan of the city is generally regular — much
more regular than any of our old cities in Europ<3,
though not so regular as Philadelphia, in this coun-
try, or the new parts of Edinburgh and London, in
Britain. The irregularities are here, as elsewhere,
chiefly in the oldest parts of the town. From the
Battery, for about half a mile upward, or one-sixth the
length of the city, the irregularity is considerable,
though even here there are some fine separate man-
sions, noble hotels, and regular terraces of dwellings.

The great fire of 1835, which destroyed so large a
portion of the eastern part, comprehending all the
mercantile quarter near the river, and sweepmg away

DnriCIKNTY OF PUBLIC PARKS.

property worth twenty millions of dollars, has had the
effect of greatly improving the aspect of this section ;
as the new buildings, though occupying nearly the
same ground an the old ones, are more substantially
and more regularly constructed, and give to the
whole quarter an air of uniformity which it did not
before possess.

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Beyond this half mile of length, which extends
to the open space called the Park, the streets
become more regular, and the whole aspect of
the city more modem. As you advance higher up
towards the termination of Broadway, the improve-
ment becomes more and more manifest, and a consi-
derable degree of elegance as well as regularity reigns
in all the principal streets at the northern extremity
of the town.

Of the public places for air and exercise, with
which the continental cities of Europe are so abun-

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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dantly and agreeably furnished, and which London,
Bath, and some other of the larger cities of England,
contain, there is a marked deficiency in New York.
Kxcept the Battery, which is agreeable only in sum-
mer, the Bowling Green is a confined space of 200
feet long by 150 broad ; the Park, which is a compara-
tively small spot of land (about ten acres only) in the
heart of the city, and quite a public thoroughfare ;
Hudson Square, the prettiest of the whole, but small,
being only about four acres ; and the open space with-
in Washington Square, about nine acres, which is not
yet furnished with gravel-walks or shady trees — there
is no large place in the nature of a park, or public
garden, or public walk, where persons of all classes
may take air and exercise. This is a defect which,
it is hoped, will ere long be remedied, as there is no
country perhaps in which it would be more advan
tageous to the health and pleasure of the communitv
than this, to encourage, by every possible means, the
use of air and exercise to a much greater extent than
either is at present enjoyed.

The public buildings are neither so numerous nor
so striking as in the cities of older countries. The
principal edifice is the City-hall, which occupies a
commanding situation in the centre of the most po-
pulous part of the city, and surrounded by the open
space constituting the Park. It is 216 feet in length
by 105 in breadth. Its front, which is towards the
south, as well as its ends towards the east and west,
are built of fine white marble ; its foundation was
laid in 1803, and the building was completed in 1812,
at an expense exceeding half a million of dollars ; yet,
recently as this date seems, the reason universally

THE CITY HALL.

allcj^od here for its northeni front being built of
brown freestone, wliile the southern front is of pure
white marble, is, thnt the builders never expected
the city to extend beyond the City-hall, to the
north J this edifice being then at the northern extre-
mity of the town, and Now York being accordingly
about half a mile in length ; whereas now, this hall
has six times as many houses north of it as it has
south; the city having extended in that direction
from half a mile to three miles.

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To the houses, therefore, occupying half a mile
of length from the Battery to the City-hall, this
edifice presents its marble front, while to the
houses occupying three miles of length to the north
of it, its brown freestone front is alone presented ;
so that if such a process were practicable, the
civic authorities would be glad to turn it right
roimd, and place its fronts just in the very opposite

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

direction to that in which they now stand. The
building is much admired by the people of the city,
and its advantageous position occasions it at first to
make a favourable impression. But on a closer exa-
mination this impression is not sustained. The win-
dows are much too large and too numerous for exte-
rior architectural beauty, though they may be advan-
tageous for interior light and comfort. The central
tower and dome, surmounted by a figure of Justice,
is not of sufficient breadth and massiveness for the
size of the building ; but the interior is well disposed,
and possesses all the accommodation and convenience
which the business of the court and matters of civic
jurisdiction require.

The Custom House and the Merchants' Exchange,
both of which were destroyed by the late fire, are

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described as fine edifices. They are about to be
replaced by others, both of which are now in course

i ■

CHURCHES AND PLACES OF WORSHIP,

4.5

of erection, and rapidly advancing towards comple-
tion. The Custom House is to be an exact copy of
the celebrated Parthenon at Athens, and is con-
structing of fine white marble. It is to be 177 feet
long by 89 wide; and will have at each front a
splendid colonnade of the Doric order, the size of the
pillars 32 feet in height and 5 feet in diameter ; the
centre of the interior hall is to rise in a dome 62 feet
in diameter ; the floors will be supported on arches of
stone, to be fire-proof, and the cost is estimated at
about half a million of dollars. The Merchants'
Exchange is erecting not far from the Custom House ;
it promises also to be a very fine building, and not to
cost less than the sum above named, the estimate
indeed being somewhat higher.

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The churches and places of worship (of which there
are l62— only 24 of them built before 1800, and 138

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

since) are not so remarkable for the architectural
beauty of their exterior, in which they are generally

i*'

deficient, as for the elegance and comfort o^ 1 heir inte-
riors, in which they far surpass our churches in Eng-
land. The Episcopalian churches, and the chapels of
other Christian denominations, (though all are called
churches here,) are the same in this respect ; the ar-
rangement of the seats into separate pews, both below
and in the galleries, is the same as with us ; but every
seat is comfortably cushioned, and lined at the back,
furnished with warm carpets or rugs for the feet ; the
aisles are matted to prevent the noise of the foot ; and
the whole is well warmed with stoves in every part.
In many cases, the pews are of highly polished maho-
gany, and the seats are cushioned with damask, exhi-
biting great richness and elegance throughout. The
box or tub pulpit, so common in England, is every-
where discarded here j and instead of it, a platform,

HOTELS AND PLACES OF AMUSEMENT.

ascended to by a flight of steps on either side, and
containing a reading-desk, and seats for three or four
persons behind it, takes its place ; a substitution which
greatly improves the appearance.

The hotels are generally on a larger scale than
in England. The great Astor- House, which overlooks
the Park from the west side of Broadway, is much
larger in area than the largest hotel in London or
Paris ; it makes up COO beds, and has a propor-
tionate establishment to suit the scale of its general
operations. It is built wholly of granite, is chaste
in its syle of architecture, and is called after the rich
John Jacob Astor, its proprietor, who is now deemed
not only the wealthiest man in the city, but, since the
death of Stephen Girard of Philadelphia, is consi-
dered the richest individual in the United States ; his
income exceeding, it is said, a million of dollars an-
nually, or near £250,000 sterling, from land, houses,
stocks, and permanent sources, unconnected with the
risks of trade, from which he has long since retired,
having realized his immense wealth by a long life
industriously and successfully devoted to the fur trade.
The City Hotel is also very large. The Washington,
the Waverley, the Mansion House, the American,
the Carlton, the Clarendon, the Globe, and the
Athenaeum, are all spacious establishments of the same
nature ; and others of a smaller size abound in every
quarter.

Of places of public amusement there are a great
number, including six theatres, which are well filled
every night, though the majority of what would be
called the more respectable classes of society, the most
opulent, and the most religious members of the com-

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

munity, do not generally patronize, or approve of
theatrical exhibitions under their present management.
The large sums paid to English and other foreign
actors and actresses who visit America is made up
by the attendance of foreigners and persons not be-
longing to either of the classes before enumerated ;
and this will hardly be wondered at, when it is stated
that every one of these theatres was not only open,
but presented a combination of new and unusual
attractions, on the evenings of days kept by the classes
named as days of religious observance — the one, the
day set apart by the proclamation of the state go-
vernment as a day of public thanksgiving ; and the
other, Christmas day.

The private dwellings contain, as must be the
case in all large cities, a great variety of kinds and
descriptions. The older houses are small, and mostly
built of wood, painted yellow or white. These are
now confined to the residences of the poorer classes,
and are fast disappearing in every quarter ; their
places being occupied by substantial buildings of
brick, though here and there are a few with granite
fronts. The style of decoration, in the steps of
ascent, the area railings, and the doors, is more florid
and ornamental than in the best parts of London, and
the interior of the principal houses may be described
as spacious, handsome, and luxurious, with lofty
passages, good stair-cases, large rooms, and costly
and gorgeous furniture. There are many individual
houses of much greater splendour in London than
any to be seen in New York, especially in the man-
sions of the English nobility ; but, on the whole, the
number of large, commodious, and elegantly furnished

( 1

STREETS AND PAVEMENTS.

private dwellings in New York is much greater
in proportion to the whole population than those of
London, and approaches nearer to the ratio of
Edinburgh or Paris.

The streets are very unequal in their proportions
and condition. The great avenue of Broadway is
striking from its continuous and unbroken length of
three miles in a straight line : but its breadth, about
eighty feet, is not sufficiently ample for the due pro-
portion to its length. It is, moreover, wretchedly
paved, both in the centre and on the sides. Large
holes and deep pits are frequently seen in the former ;
and in the latter, while before some houses the
slabs of stone are large, uniform, and level, there is
often an immediate transition from these to broken
masses of loose stones, that require the greatest cau-
tion to pass over, especially in wet or frosty weather.
The lighting and cleansing of the streets is not
nearly so good as in the large towns of England,
the gas being scanty in quantity, the lamps too far
removed fi*om each other, and the body of scavengers
both weak in numbers and deficient in organization.
Some of the smaller streets are almost impa -ible in
times of rnin and snow ; and when not incommoded
by a profusion of mud or water, they are prolific in
their supply of dust. Many of the streets have trees
planted along the edge vi the foot pavement on
each side, which, in summer, afibrds an agreeable
shade, but in autumn it has the disagreeable effect
of strewing the path with falling leaves, and in
winter it makes the aspect more dreary.

A custom prevails, in the principal streets for
shops, of having wooden pillars planted along the

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STATE OF NEW YORK,

outer edge of the pavement, with horizontal beams
reaching from pillar to pillar, not unlike the stan-
chions and cross pieces of a rope-walk. On these
pillars, usually painted white, are pasted large printed
placards, announcing the articles sold in the shop
before wliich they stand ; and from the under side of
the horizontal beam are suspended, b} hooks or rings,
fehow-boards with printed bills of every colour. Thi?
h especially the case opposite the bookstores. An-
other purpose whicii these pillars and beams serve,
is that of suspetiding- awnings from the houses to tho
end of the ^ ayeiri!'''t in summer, which must make
the shade grateful to the foot-passenger ; but at all
other times those woodcin appendages, made as they
ara witiiout regard to regularity or uniformity, are a
great drawback to the otherwise good appearance of
the streets. Broadway, which is greatly disfigured
by these, is therefore much inferior to Regent Street
in London, in the general air of cleanliness, neatness,
lighti;, spaciousness, good pavement, and fine shops,
hy which the latter is characterized ; and although
the number of beautiful and gaily-dressed ladies,
who make Broadway their morning promenade, unit-
ing shopping, visiting, and walking at the same time,
gives it a very animated appearance on a fine day
between twelve and two o*clock ; yet the absence of
handsome equipages and fine horses, and the fewness
of well-dressed gentlemen who ha\e leisure to devote
to morning promenades of pleasure, occasions B"-oad-
way to be inferior in the general effect of br'' jmce
and elegance to the throng of Regent Stn<: i a
fine day in May, h • veeri three and four » « - \..
The civil or iniaixicipal government ol > iic 'own is

MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS.

,51

vested in a mayor, alderman, and common-council,
elected annually by universal suffrage and the ballot,
at the time when the election for the legislature of
the State takes place, which is annually. Political
or party considerations appear to weigh more with
the electors than mere fitness for the duties of office ;
and accordingly, Whig and Tory strive here, as they
do in England, to fill the municipal body with per-
sons of their own politics, as if it seemed to them
impossible that a good civic or municipal functionary
could be found, out of the ranks of their own political
party. Their jurisdiction extends over the city and
the surrounding waters. The offices are not largely
paid, nor accompanied by much patronage ; and the
candidates are rarely considered to be invested with
much additional dignity by their civic functions.

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CHAP. IV.

Population of New York — Strangers, residents, merchants, traders
— Public conveyances, omnibuses, hackney coaches — Private
equipages, carriages, servants — Male and female society, differ-
ences between them - — Private parties, balls and suppers —
Comparison between English and American soirees — Expensive
and profuse entertainments g^ven — Conditioii of the humbler
classes in America — Political parties, Conservatives, Reformers,
Radicals, Americans, Whigs, Democrats, Loco-focos — Politics of
the wealthy mercantile classes — Causes of the recent panic or em-
barrassment — Extravagant habits engendered by tlie credit sys-
tem — Effects of this on all classes of society — Loss of 20,000,000
by the great fire at New York — Newspapers of New York —
Organs of parties — Penny newspapers, character and influence —
Proceedings of the election for state legislature — Public meetings
to support candidates for office — State of political parties —
Deadly reciprocal hostility — Gross misrepresentations of the
motives and ends of each — Difficulty of extracting truth from
such conflicting statements — Attendance at the polls during the
election — Deficiency of a previous registration of voters — Vote
by ballot, not secret voting generally — Reasons why this is not
necessary in America — Success of the Whigs in the New Yoil«"
election — Intoxication of joy in the triumphant party — Extrava-
gant projects of political demonstr;:tion — National character and
taste exhibited in this.

The population of New York is estimated at present
lo be little short of 300,000. Of these perhaps there
are 20,000 forei^riers, including English and persons
from Canada and the British possessions, and 30,000
strangers from other states of the Union, making
therefore the fixed resident population ^.50,000,
and the floating population about 50,000 more, "^^'he
greatest number of th« .e are engaged in commer; i

DEVOTION TO BUSINESS.

or trade, with a clue admixture of professional men,
as clergy, physicians, and lawyers. But among
them all, there are fewer than perhaps in any other
community in the world, who live without any osten.
sible avocation. The richest capitalists still take a
part in the business-proceedings of the day ; and men
who have professedly retired, and have no counting-
house or mercantile establishment, still retain so
much of the relish for profitable occupation, that they
mingle freely with the merchants, and are constantly
found to be the buyers and sellers of stock, in funds,
or shares in companies, canals, rail-roads, banks, &c.
The result of all this is, to produce the busiest
community that any man could desire to live in. In
the streets, all is hurry and bustle ; the very carts,
instead of being drawn by horses at a walking-pace,
are often met at a gallop, and always in a brisk trot,
with the carter standing in the iront and driving by
reins. Omnibuses are as numerous as in London,
many of them drawn by four horses, though the car-
riages are inferior to the English ones. Hackney-
coaches are also abundant, and superior in every
respect to those of London. These, with private
carriages, which, however, are few and plain, gene-
rally with a black coachman and footman, without
display of livery or armorial bearings, added to gl<rs
and other vehicles, make up a crowd of conveyance ^
through the public streets, which, from their bad
pavement, occasions as much rattling noise as in the
most bustling parts of Piccadilly or Cheapside. The
whole of the populatron seen in the streets seem to
enjoy 'r bustle, and add to it by their own rapid
pace, as it ihoy were all going to some place of appoint-

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STATE OF NIJW YOKK.

ment, and were hurrying on, under the apprehension
of being too late.

Of the men thus seen in public, the greater part
are well dressed, pt d :«- nore fashionable among
them more expensively than the same classes in Eng-
land. Black cloth is the almost universal wear, and
for the finest description of this, the most extravagant
prices are paid. Full cloth-cloaks. ^«'^th velvet or
fur collars and linings, and rich iasseis, are more im-
merous than with us ; and the whole outer aspect of
the movjig crowd indicates greater gaiety, and much
more re^i.rd to personal appearance. The men are
not generally as handsome, however, as they are well
dressed. An almost universal paleness of counte-
nance is seen, without the least tinge of ruddiness or
colour; the luarks of care and anxiety are also
deeply furrowed on brows not yet bearing the impress
of age ; and a general gloom or sadness of counte-
nance is the rulo — and hilarity of aspect, or cheerful-
ness of appeyranco, the exception.

The women far exceed the men in the costliness of
their dresses, and in the gaiety of their walking appa-
rel. There is, perhaps, no city in the world in
which so many expensivdy-drc^sed ladies may bo
seen walking or shopping, as on a fine morning may
be met with in Broadway. Rich and bright-coloured
silks, satins, and other similarly costly materials,
with ermine-lined cloaks, and the most expensive
furs — white, pink, and blue, satn bonnets with ostrich
feathers and flowers of the fii^' quality — are worn by
all who assume to be genteel, •)r rank in the class of
lif^i'es, and the whole force of the wardrobe seems to
be exhausted in the walking costume. The women,

FEMALE BKAT^Y PREVALENT.

5.5

moreover, are much handsomer than the men. They
are almost uniformly good -lookin<^ — the greater num-
her are what would bo called in England ** pretty
women," which is something between good-looking
and handsome, in the nice distinctions of beauty.
This uniformity extends also to their figures, which
are almost universally slender, and of good symmetry.
Very few large or stout women are seen, and none
that we should call masculine. A more than usual
degree of feminine delicacy, enhanced by the general
paleness of complexion and slightness of figure, is
particularly characteristic of American females — and
the extreme respect and deference shown to them
every where by men, has a tendency to increase that
delicacy, by making them more dependent on tho
attention and assistance of others, than English ladies
of the same class usually arc.

It is in private society, however, that one can best
judge of both ; and the result of my observation,
after having seen much of them in domestic circles,
and in large and fashionable parties, was this — as
wives and mothers, the American women appear to
be exemplary in the extreme ; and while the interior
of their dwellings exhibits the greatest attention to
every thing that can give domestic comfort, an air of
propriety and decorum reigns over all their establish-
ments. In the private and social visits which we
were permitted to pay to some of the fatriilics with
whom we were on the most intimate footing, nothing
could surpass the general good sense, amiability, in-
telligence, and benevolence, which marked the con-
versation. The women were always equal to the
men, and often superior to them, in the extent of

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STATR OF NEW YOIIK.

their reading, ami the slirowchiess of their ohficTva-
tioiis ; and tliou^h there is every where, on the part
of American females, as far us we had seen them, a
shrinking away from any share in political conversa-
tion, (the notion studiously impressed on them Wy the
men, and not unwillinjj;ly cntertaintul by themselves,
being, that it is unbecoming the timid and retiring
delicacy of the female character to meddle with poli-
tical matters,) yet, Whenever they ventured to pass
this barrier, and indirectly develope their views on
public affairs, there seemed to me a clearness and a
soundness in their remarks, which sufficiently evinced
their thorough understanding of the subject. The
leading features of the female character here, how-
ever, in the best circles, are — domestic fidelity, social
cheerfulness, unostentatious hospitality, and moral
and religious benevolence. There are, perhaps, ten
times the number of women in good society in New
York, who interest themselves in the support and
direction of moral objects and benevolent institutions,
that could be found in any city of the same popula-
tion in Europe ; and while the husbands are busily
engaged in their mercantile or professional avoca-
tions, a good portion of the wealth they acquire is
directed by the benevolent influences of their wives
into useful and charitable channels.

In the gayer parties of fashionable soirees and
balls, the ladies do not appear to so much advantage
as in the sunny promenade, or in the private circle at
liomc. Their fashionable parties arc as injudiciously
crowded with more persons than the rooms will ac-
commodate, as in I.ondon — three or four hundred is
not an unusual number of guests ; and though the rooms

FASIIIONAIU-E PAnXinS.

«7

are spacious, yet the crowd is so uncomfortably great,
tliat the (lanciu'ti have scarcely room to make a small
circle in tlie middle of the dense mass ; while those
who do not dance, must be content to remain
we(l<rtHl into one compact and solid phalanx, from
which there is no moving, even for a change of posi-
tion, till the dance is over ; and even then it will some-
times take a quarter of an hour to elbow through the
crowd from one room to another. I was asked, at one
of these fashionable parties, by a lady, what there was
in the scene before us which characterized it as Ame-
rican, and wherein it diflfered from an English party
of the same number and description. My answer
was, that the chief points of difference observable to
mo were these — that there were a greater number
of pretty female forms and faces than were over to be
seen in an equal number of English persons, and
especially among the younger portion ; but there were
no such examples of striking and surpassing beauty
as one sometimes sees in one or two favoured indivi-
duals of a large party at home. There were no " fine
women" in the English sense of that term, compre-
hending the requisites of tall, full, and commanding
figures, bold and striking as well as beautiful features,
rosy colour, expressive eyes, and the noble air and
carriage of a lofty and dignified rank. On the other
hand, the American ladies were dressed more in the
extreme of fashion, both as to form and materiaLj ; but
there were no such splendid displays of jewels iis one
sees in an English party. The dancing was monoto-
nous and indifferent — partly from languor, and partly,
it is believed, from affectation of indifference, which

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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is considered to be more genteel than vulgar vivacity
— a weakness, no doubt, copied from the English.

The gentlemen, in these fashionable parties, ap-
peared far less handsome in person and less polished
in manners than the ladies ; and many whom we saw
were evidently very ill at ease, and had their thoughts
occupied by other subjects than those immediately
before them. The refreshments were all substantial,
as well as costly ; if there was a fault in them, it
was that they were generally too abundant, and the
pressure of the supper-rooms most frequently exceed-
ed that of the apartments of the dance. Cards are
rarely or never seen — the influence of the religious
bodies on public opinion having banished these from
general society ; and the propriety of language among
all classes of the me.; is remarkable, as not an oath, or
an imprecation, so often offending the ear in what
are deemed the best circles in England, anywhere
disturbs the general decorum of the scene. The
same late hours as are followed in England, unfortu-
nately prevail here ; and the most fashionable persons,
though invited for eight, rarely come till ten or eleven,
and parties of any extent in numbers are not often
broken up till two or three in the morning.

The condition of the more humble classes, as
tradesmen, shopkeepers, clerks, and artisans, is cer-
tainly more comfortable than that of the same classes
in England J and although they are all at present
more or less affected by the general depression of
trade, occasioned by the late pecuniary crisis in the
States, from which New York has suffered more ex-
tensively, perhaps, than any other city in the Union,

ABSENCE OF BEGGARS.

yet all seem to possess good dwellings, abundant
clothing, and an ample supply of food. You do not
see any where in the streets persons asking alms, or
labouring under any visible want of the necessaries
of life ; nor do the offensive and disgusting scenes so
often witnessed in the great thoroughfares of London
and the other large cities and towns of Britain, in
the persons of drunken men and women, with filthy
and ragged children, deprived of their due by the
intemperance of their parents, ever meet the eye in
the great public thoroughfares of the city, at least ;
any more than the painful spectacle of young and
miserable females earning a wretched and precarious
subsistence by the wages of prostitution. Th'st there
does exist both poverty and intemperance, and that
prostitution and crime accompany these, in the less
frequented quarters of this city, there can be no
doubt ; but they do not obtrude themselves on the
public eye in every part of the principal streets, as
they do in London ; and after residing in New York
for four months, being out almost every day, and visit-
ing nearly every part of the town in succession, we did
not, in the whole, see so many of either of the classes
named, during all that period, as one meets in a sin-
gle morning's walk from Charing Cross to Cornhill.

There are here, as there are in England, three
political parties — conservatives, moderate reformers,
and radicals ; and, following after the bad example of
the mother country, each party seems determined to
see no virtue and no merit in either of the others.
The conservatives are here called Whigs ; the mo-
derate reformers are called Democrats ; and the radi-
cals are called Loco Focos, a recent name, bestowed

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

on them from this incident : a public meeting of the
Democrats was called at Tammany Hall, their usual
place of assembling ; and the Radicals, wishing to ob-
tain possession of the room, but not being strong
enough in numbers to effect this by force, resorted
to the following stratagem : — each member of the radi-
cal body was furnished with one of the small instan-
taneous light-matches, which are called loco focos —
and each taking a box of these in his pocket, they
contrived, by a preconcerted arrangement, to extin-
guish all the lights of the room, during the proceed-
ings of the evening. The whole of the audience
being thus left in utter darkness, the greater number
of them, who were not in the secret, went away; when
the radicals, taking advantage of their retirement,
lighted all their matches, and with these, rekindled
the lights in every part of the room at once, after which
they voted into the chair a member of their own body,
proposed and carried their own previously-prepared
rcsolufinns, and sent them out in the papers of
the following day, as the resolutions of the great De-
mocratic meeting, held by public advertisement at
Tammany Hall. This trick, as might be expected,
brought deserved discredit on the party practising it,
and has fixed upon them a name which unites oppro-
brium and ridicule in one.

The conservatives are here called Whigs ; and
they correspond in political character and Lentiment
with the Whigs of Englnnd ; being quite as loud in
their professions of libera: principles, bat quite as
unwilling to carry them out into practice. One of
their leading organs lately publiiihcd a very remark-
able essay, signed "Sidney," attributed to the pen of a

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POLITICAL PARTIES.

'^•

prominent leader of the Whig party, which, besides
advocating conservative principles generally, went
the length of saying, that " experience had shown
that there was as much chance of obtaining a
good chief magistrate by hereditary descent as by
popular election, and that consequently the monar-
chical principle was as favourable to liberty as the
republic m." This doctrine was so acceptable to the
greater number of the Whigs, that most of their
newspapers lauded it; until it was attacked with
such ability and force in the democratic prints, that
the young men among the Whigs felt it necessary to
hold a public meeting, to disavow their participation
in any such doctrine, and to declare themselves to be
uncompromising republicans.

As far, however, as I was able to discover, by
my intercourse with editors and political men of
all parties, and by comparison of their journals, I
found the American Whigs to be quite as conserva-
tive as their namesakes at home. They are nearly
all in favour of giving wealth a more open and direct
influence than it now possesses, in tli suffrage for
elections, and would be glad to exclude from the elec-
toral body all who have not some fixed amount of
property. They are against any changes that would
increase the power or influence of the people. They
are in favoui of monopolies in chartered or incorpo-
rated banks, and against free trade, except in their
own products and manufactures. They sympatiiize
almost universally with the Tory party in Englan<l ;
they think that even Lord Grey carried the princi-
ples of reform too fiir, and would be glad to see the
Duke of Wellington and Sir Robert Peel restored to

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STATE OF ISEW YOTIK.

office. They think Lord John Russell perfectly
right in refusing to accede to any proposition for
the extension of the suffrage, for shortening the
duration of parliament, or for granting the vote by
ballot. They are against the separation of the church
of England from the state, and against any alteration
in the constitution of the House of Lords. They
are averse to any discussion of the question of Slavery,
and are generally hostile to its abolition. They con-
.'erun the Canadians for their attempt to establish a
free government for themselves ; and, in short, they
think, and feel, and act, with reference to the other
classes of the community here, just as the Tories and
high-conservative Whigs do in England.

The numerical force of this party is very consi-
derable in New York, and it is still more remarkable
for the wealth and influence of its members than
even for their numbers. Nearly aU the rich capi-
talists and merchants belong to this party ; the more
wealthy tradesmen also adhere to it : while the clergy
of the Episcopal church, the ministers of other
Christian sects, the lawyers, and the medical profes-
sion, — in short, all who desire to rank with the aris-
tocratical or genteel portion of society, eithe? really
entertain, or find it convenient to profess, whig or
conservative principles, and prefer the latter name
to the former. What has contributed very much to
strengthen this |»arty mufmff the merchants of this
city, is the financial measures pursued by General
Jackson and Mr. Van Bunm, the last two presidents,
in refusing t/» renew the cfmrier of the United
States Bmikt ^nd ifii»i»tir»g on the payment of all
sums due to tlie governin*ftt, whether for the sale of

PECUNIARY EMBARRASSMENTS.

lands, duties on goods, or other sources of revenue,
in a metallic currency. That these measures had
the effect of hastening the commercial crisis which
lately affected this country from one end to the
other, there can be no doubt ; but the remota and
real cause of this crisis was, first, the habit which
all classes seem within the last few years to have
contracted, of speculating beyond their means, of
living beyond their income, of spending money
before it was acquired, and of keeping up the
appearance of men who had realized large fortunes,
while they were only in the act of accumulating
them. Extravagant expenditure in houses, in fur-
•eture, in entertainments, in equipages, in dress, in
servants, in short, in every branch of disbursement,
was characteristic of all the trading classes ; and so
long as the ei "^.dit system allowed them to import
largely ^om Eogland, and pay in notes or bills at
long dates, the evil day could be deferred by one
expedient succeeding another. In the midst of this
came the ic^eat fire at New York ui 1835, which
destroyed property to the amount of 20,000,000 of
dollars, and made nearly all :he insurance oflSces in
the city insolvent. Then came thf» drain of another
^0,000,000, or perhaps -30,000,000, to rebuild the
houses d*«troyed, Mod r«i|)4ace the goods consumed,
making aO,000,00(> lost, a»f^ 30,000,000 expended,
or 50,000/X)0 tak»^ from the fixed and floating
capital of t|«nis singl* city. Those who had specu-
lated largely m the purchase of lands, tried to with-
draw their capital fr'>m the investment ; but where
all were sellers, ami /.one buyers, pri(ies were ruin-
ously Ion : otliers who had large stocks of goods on

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

hand from the excessive importations of the preced-
ing year, tried to raise money by forced sales, but
there were no buyers ; and in the midst of all this, as
the debts due to England were so much larger than
could be paid in the produce of the country, for
which the markets at home were declining, the re-
mittance of specie became the only mode of sustain-
ino- the credit of the mercantile body, and this could
be obtained only by immense sacrifices of property.

My own conviction is, from all I have seen and
licard, that if the President of the United States had
never taken the steps he did, in refusing to renew the
charter of the United States* Bank, removing the
f^'^vernment deposits, and demanding payment of the
revenue in metallic currency, this commercial crisis
would nevertheless have still come, though not per-
haps so soon ; because its real causes were the im-
mense sacrifice of property by the fire ; the drain of
capital necessary to replace what was destroyed ; the
wild and almost mad speculations indulged in by the
people, merchants becoming purchasers of land in
provinces and places they had never seen, and giving
almost any price to-day, in the hope that they might
sell it for a better price to-morrow ; never intending to
occupy it, but to pass it on from hand to hand till
it found a purchaser whose payment was so extrava-
gant that he could get no one to take it from him.
In this public delirium, farmers abandoned the tillage
of their soil, and became speculators and traders
also ; LO that cultivation being neglected, the coun-
try, the best adapted in the world to supply all other
nations with its surplus grain, became so unpro-
ductive of this first necessary of life, as to be obliged

NEWSPAPERS.

to import grain from the Baltic ; several cargoes of
which arrived in this port during the last and the
preceding year. The government-measures, no
doubt, hastened the crisis onward, though it did not
create it ; and the natural unwillingness of all par-
ties to reproach themselves for their own folly and
extravagance, which were the real causes of the evil,
after all, made them the more ready to charge all
these evils on the government, so that General Jack-
son and Mr. Van Buren have been literally made
the scape-goats, by which the merchants, traders,
bankers, and speculators of all kinds, endeavoured
to get rid of the burden of their own sins, by pla-
cing them on the heads of the two presidents named.
As might be expected, the party of the rich have
the greatest number of newspapers arranged on their
side ; for it is by the rich that the newspapers are
everywhere chiefly supported. The mere sale of a
paper here, as in England, is wholly unproductive of
profit ; advertisements are the only source of gain :
the papers most read by the rich, will therefore be
the favoured channel for advertisements, and here,
the richest merchants as well as the smallest traders
advertise their goods. The gains thus acquired by
a newspaper enabling it to be more profuse in its
expenditure, it can command the earliest news, the
most correct reports of public proceedings, and in-
deed have all its departments conducted with more
talent, because it has more funds at its disposal to
pay for the unavoidable cost of all these aids. There
are thus no less than ten large daily papers, five
morning and five evening, devoted to the party of
the Whigs, with slight shades of characteristic dif-

VOL. I. F

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STATE OF ffEW YORK.

ferences between them ; while there are only two large
daily papers devoted to the party of the Democrats,
or that of the present administration ; and though
each of the Whig papers, taken chiefly by the rich,
not only supports itself, but yields a handsome annual
surplus income, the papers of the other party are
thought not to pay their expenses, but to require
every now and then pecuniary aid for their support.
The Evening Post, which is the leading paper of
the Democrats, is at present under the editorship of
one of the most celebrated poets of the country,
William Cullen Bryant, who may fairly rank with
our Campbell, the author of the Pleasures of Hope ;
and, like other great poets, Milton, Byron, Camp-
bell, and Moore, he is an extreme Liberal in his
politics. In talent, wit, taste, and, above all, in
gentlemanly fairness of argument, this paper appeared
to me to possess great superiority over most of its op-
ponents, though there are several of the Whig journals
conducted with great ability also ; but the vitupe-
rative style with which most of the public writers
denounce every one who thinks or feels differently
from themselves, shows how easy it is to combine
loud professions of liberal principles with the bitter-
est intolerance and most uncharitable bigotry.

Besides the largi>r newspapers, which are sold at
the price of about threepence English, there are
several daily papers published at a cent, or a half-
penny each. These are very small in size, and ineffi-
cient in management, their profits not admitting of
an adequate expenditure for great talent, though one
of them, the Sun, is said to circulate 30,0CnJ copies
daily. Their cheap price occasions them to be
taken chiefly by the humbler classes ; and therefore^

1 ^■>'

STATE ELIX .ION.

with only one exception, these cheap papers arc
democratic, and two or three of them what are
called loco-foco. >''hey have net talent enough em-
ployed on them, 'i wever, to give them much in-
fluence in political circles ; and their chief attraction
seems to lie, first, in the cheapness of their price,
and then in their containing those police reports of
crimes and quarrels, which, ui\h.*ipily, interest so
large a portion of mankind, and for which the con-
ductors of newspapers, as unhappily, find it to
their int .'est or profit to cater. The only very
clevei oaper of this class that I saw, was one that is
now extinct. It was called " The Plain Dealer,'*
and conducted by Mr. Leggat, one of the most
powerful political writers in the country. It was an
exact copy of the London Examiner, in shape, size,
typography, and arrangement, and was written in
the democratic tone and brilliant and witty style of
the model it had chosen, in its best days. But it
was too clever and too refined for the multitude ; it
wanted that charm for vulgar taster which the annals
of crime and vice can alone supp.iy ; ^and its very
purity and excellence were, therefore, the causes of
its failure. The rich, who might have relished its
talent and wit, if it had been employed in the advocacy
of their interests, would not pationize it because it
was democratic ; and the other cl Losses, though ap-
proving of its politics, found it dull, without their
accustomed stimulus ; and thus the paper fell, for
want of adequate support.

I had an excellent opportunity of se*. ing the work-
ing of the political machine, and the conflict of op-
posing parties, in a general election >i5pr ^^'^ State

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Legislature, whicL occurred, soon after my arrival in
New York, in the month of November. Heretofore,
the composition of the legislature for the State of
New York, including the two houses, the Assembly
and the Senate, as well as the Governor, was, like that
of the Congress or legislature of the general govern-
ment, democratic, or favourable to the existence of Mr.
Van Buren*s administration. The changes in public
opinion, wrought by the commercial disasters of
which I have previously spoken, had occasioned such
a feeling of hostility to the present cabinet — as the
supposed cause of those financial difficulties, from
which all classes were more or less suffering — that
the Whigs determined to avail themselves of this
change, to effect a complete renovation of their two
houses of State legislature, by making their own
party predominant. Accordingly, the note of pre-
paration wa-i ;<;iinded early, by all their organs of
the press j aud while committees were forming in
town and court! ry, and meetings held every night in
the week, by old and young, to organize and arrange
their plans of operation, pass strong resolutions,
print them in the newspapers, and distribute them
freely through every part of the city ; the editors
themselves were all busily engaged in aiding these
operations by their daily appeals. A stranger ar-
riving in the country, and not knowing any thing of
the state of parties beforehand, or of the mode of
warfare practised on such occasions, would have ima-
gined that the fate of the whole Union depended on
the issue of this single election ; that if it were
carried in favour of the Whigs, the nation would in-
stantly be restored to the highest degree of commer-

ELECTION ORATOK*.

*" r opponents, the
^hem atheists,
n who were

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result would be universal bankruptcy, total annihila-
tion of all the elements of prosperity, the dissolution
of the Union, the insurrection of the slave population,
and the destruction of all thnt wn worth preserving
in the country. There was n . m of opprobrium
too severe for them to apply
democratic republicans. Ti
infidels, agi'arians, inccndiu
without religion and without honeat), who desired to
pull down all that was venerable in the institutions
of the country, to seize the property of the rich and
divide it among the poor, to demolish the churches,
to destroy the courts of justice, to let loose all the
criminals from the jails, to abolish all government,
and to produce only a chaos of anarchy and confusion.
Some few who heard all this, seemed really to believe
it ; but the greater number knew it to be merely elec-
tioneering language, and disregarded it accordingly ;
though they had no objection whatever to its use,
provided it would attain the end they had in view.

To me it was at once both ludicrous and disgusting ;
ludicrous, because of the gravity with which it was
reiterated, day after day, in the face, not only of re-
peated contradictions and disavowals of any such
objects or such doctrines on the other side ; but in
spite of challenges, again and again repeated, to pro-
duce any well-authenticated speech or writing of any
of the democratic party, in which such doctrines were
avowed, or from which they could even be inferred ;
but which challenges were no more heeded than if
they had never been offered. It was ludicrous to
mc also, because it so constantly reminded me of the

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equally groundless imputations heaped on the libe-
ral party in India, by the advocates of the govern-
ment in that country, when the press first began to
call public attention to public abuses there; and of the
misrepresentations continually made in England by the
journals of each party, of the objects and intentions
of the other ; the radicals denouncing the tories as
wanting nothing but the restoration of absolute
tyranny and arbitrary power j the tories denouncing
the radicals as wishing for nothing but the destruc-
tion of all property, government, and religion ; and
the whigs denouncing both, and praising themselves
as the only body, that can either save the state,
or accompHsh any rational improvement in public
affairs.

The object of these meetings and appeals was to
select and recommend a list of candidates for
senators, representatives, sherifi; county-clerk, and
coroner ; the election for all these taking place at
the same time — though the state legislature, for which
the senators and representatives were required, holds
its sittings at Albany, the state metropolis, distant
150 miles up the river Hudson, while the municipal
body and its officers hold their sittings in New York.
The committees of the two opposing parties, having
both completed their lists, designating whom they
prefer and wish to see elected as senators, whom as
representatives, and so on — such lists are published in
their respective papers, and called the Whig ticket
and the Democratic ticket ; and every effort is made,
by placarding the walls with large bills, by the dis-
tribution of small ones, and by personal canvass car-
ried on with unremitting activity on both sides, to

ARRANGE»IENTS OF POLLING PLACES.

prevail on all whom they can influence, or persuade,
to adopt their views, and vote for " the whole ticket "
of the party they espouse, as it is printed. The
voting takes place by wards, there being fifteen or
sixteen wards in this city, and a voting place being
apportioned to each ward, the committee of each party
is thus able to canvass every male inhabitant of their
own ward ; and as there is no difficulty in obtaining
from the voters a previous declaration as to the ticket
for which they mean to vote, the numbers of each party
can be almost as accurately ascertained before as
after the election, though there is no want of zeal on
each side to exaggerate the number of their respec-
tive adherents, for the sake of deceiving or influen-
cing others to favour the strongest party.

A few days previous to the election, assessors are
chosen to superintend the voting ; and one from each
party attends at the polling places, in addition to the
oflicial superintendant appointed by the municipal
authorities. The voting places are open rooms, ge-
nerally on the ground-floor, furnished only with a
counter and a desk, inside which the superintendant
and a registering clerk take their places. On the
counter is a box sealed up, with an open slit on the
top, to drop in the printed ticket. The outer door is
usually surrounded with a few partisans of both sides,
who, on the approach of a voter, present him with
their respective tickets, or lists of the candidates for
which they wish him to vote. The voter enters the
room, and being always an inhabitant of the ward in
which he votes, both his person and his opinions are
well known, if he has been long a resident, and is in
what is called a respectable station of society. He
is greeted of course by those of his own party, and.

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

taking one of their printed papers, he drops it into
the box. In nine cases out of ten there is no secrecy
practised or desired, but the vote is as well known
as if it were proclaimed aloud. In the case of an
unknown or doubtful person coming to the poll,
various questions are asked him by each party, as to
his name, residence, citizenship, &c., but they have
no means whatever of telling whether he answers
truly or otherwise to their inquiries. The only qualifi-
cation for voting being that of mature age (twenty-one)
male sex, citizenship, and actual residence in the
ward — there being no property, or rental, orrate-and-
tax qualification, as in England — there are no difii-
culties to be got over. But one very manifest defect
in the system is this, that there is no previous regis-
tration of voters, nor any preliminary inquiry, so as
to ascertain even the points of name, citizenship, and
residence ; in consequence of which, if a person
presents himself under any name, the superintend-
ants have no means of ascertaining whether he is
really the person he pretends to be, or not ; if he
calls him ' a citizen, no proof of citizenship is de-
manded i,^j jnd his swearing to the fact ; and if he
declares himself a resident in the ward, no corrobo^
ration of this is asked from any other party.
In consequence of this defect, it is said that
in the densely - peopled wards, inhabited by the
labouring classes, and especially the emigrants, there
are repeated instances of the same man voting in
several wards under diiferent names ; many Irish
labourers, who have not been six months in the
country, and who have no legal claim whatever to
citizenship, voting as Americans \ and as almost all
these are additions to the democratic party, they

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VOTE BY BALLOT.

7i3

assist to alter the real balance of power between the
contending forces.

In all the instances that I witnessed of the busi-
ness of polling — and I visited many of the wards for
that purpose — the whole affair was conducted with
much more order and decorum than any contested
election that I had ever seen in England. There
were no party badges, in colours or ribbons, to excite
party animosity. There was no drunkenness, riot,
or abuse of any kind. Every man came freely to the
poll, and went away as freely from it ; and though in
the greatest number of cases it was well known
which way he would vote when he entered, and
which way he had voted when he left, none offered
him the slightest mobstation in word or deed, or
even in gesture. In some of the wards, where the
emigrants abound, it is said that this order and deco-
rum does not always prevail j but that between Irish
excitability and American rum and whiskey, there
are sometimes torn garments, and hard words ex-
changed ; but even here, violent outrage is seldom
committed. It is possible, therefore, that univer-
sal suffrage, annual elections, and vote by ballot,
may be much less productive of riot, drunkenness,
and disorder, than limited sufifrage, unfrequent elec-
tions, and open voting; for in England, Scotland,
and Ireland, where these prevail, the scenes of dissi-
pation and outrage are frequent ; and here, where
these opposites are practised, they are rare.

As respects the vote by ballot, the observation is
constantly made in England, that in America it is a
failure, since it does not secure its avowed desidera-
tum — secret votmg. This is perfectly true, but for

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

very different reasons from those usually assigned.
There is no imperfection in the machinery of the
ballot here. Any man who chooses to conceal
from committees or canvassers how he means to vote,
may do so with perfect safety j for, waiting till the
day of election, he may go to the polUng place, and
there deposit, in print or in writing, the list of the
candidates for whom he ^ves his vote, folded up, so
that no man can see it, and no one would venture
to molest him. It is perfectly easy, therefore, to
secure the utmost secrecy in voting by the present
system of the ballot as practised in America. But
there is no adequate motive to make a man desire
secrecy, while there are many powerful ones to make
him court publicity. There are here no dependent
farmers and forty-shilling freeholders, who must vote
as their great agricultural landlords or patrons wish,
or lose their friendship and protection. There are
no shopkeepers and traders, innkeepers and mer-
chants, so dependent on particular interests, or the
profits of particular customers, as to make them ap-
prehensive of their losing either the one or the other
by their manner of voting. There are no large
bodies of workmen so dependent on their employers,
as to make it a matter of interest to shape their votes
according to their masters* wishes ; and as no one
apprehends injury, or expects benefit from voting, one
way or the other, the full freedom of choice, or actual
preference, is indulged by them, and governs their
determination. There are, therefore, no motives to
vote otherwise than the inclination dictates ; and the
same absence of hope of benefit, or fear of evil, takes
away all grounds for desiring or affecting secrecy.

VOTE BY BALLOT.

On the other hand, there are many powerful motives
to induce a man to declare his vote ; it gives him a
claim to the sympathy and approbation of whichever
party he votes for, and admits him to be an open
participator of all their proceedings and their plea-
sures ; it relieves the mind from the painfulness of
an imposed restraint, and it indulges the feeling of
political independence. The ballot is, therefore, a
nonentity in America, and does not secure secret
voting, because no one desires or cares about secur-
ing secrecy. In England, the same machinery would
enable every man who had reason to apprehend in-
jury from the independent exercise of his franchise,
to give his vote in secret if he chose ; and mitil the
powerful influences, by which the independence of
voting is crushed in England, shall be neutralized or
removed by other counteracting causes, the ballot
would be the greatest security for the dependent
voter that could be introduced ; and none but those
who wish to preserve these evil influences in full
vigour, and who wish by their exercise to coerce the
votes of their dependents, could furnish any intelligi-
ble reason against the immediate adoption of this
security.

In the elections in question, which were carried
on in the city of New York, and which lasted for
four consecutive days, the Whigs were, as they had
anticipated, signally successful. The greater impor-
tance was attached to this success, first, because they
had not been in the majority before for many years,
so that the pleasure was altogether new to them;
secondly, Mr. Van Buren, the President, was a native
of this state, was long one of its representatives, and

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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relied more, it is said, upon its support lur mu con-
tinuance of his administration than on any other
three or four states in the Union ; and, thirdly, that
the state of New York, from its great extent (this
single state alone having an area or surface nearly
equal to that of England,) its vast wealth, its exten-
sive commerce, and its increasing population, is
called the " empire-state," and is supposed to exercise
a very powerful influence in its example over all the
other sections of the country. The Whigs were,
therefore, so intoxicated with their success, that they
were perfectly frantic with joy ; and exhibited what
might literally be called a paroxysm of delight in every
conceivable form. The newspapers came out, day
after day, with the most bombastically-ludicrous arti-
cles on this subject. One I remember had in large
type, at the head of its leading article, these words —
" A thousand guns for the city, and ten thousand for
the state ;" another insisted that the unusual splen-
dour of an aurora borealis which appeared about that
time, was " a display of the approbation of the hea-
vens on the triumph of the Whigs." " The nation,"
said a third, ** was rescued from the gulf of perdi-
tion," into which nothing could have prevented its
hurrying headlong, but the overthrow of their enemies
by the Whigs at the election. To this followed pub-
lic meetings, to determine in what manner the great
and glorious political victory should be celebrated.
Some were for ten thousand cannon being discharged
from point to point within hearing, all over the state ;
others were for the illumination of every city, town,
and village within its boundary. Some were for
dinners, others for balls, some for processions, and

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ELECTION TRIUMPHS,

some for all these united. It appears that in the
western states the intoxication of joy, produced by the
Whig victory, was not less extravagant than on the
sea-board in the east ; and the mode of demonstration
there chosen was peculiarly characteristic, if we may
judge from the following paragraph, which appeared
in the New York Sun, of Dec. 30, 1837 : —

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"the biggest nRE VET.

"The Springfield (Illinois) journal gives notice that on the eighth
day of January next — wind, weather, and snow permitting — the
Grand Prairie will be set on fire, in commemoration of the great
Whig victory in New York. The prairie is about 300 miles long,
with an average breadth of from ten to twenty miles. The fires to
be lighted at eight o'clock in the evening."

But the effervescence sobered down gradually as
the time for action approached, and as the costs of
all these operations came to be calculated ; and at last
it terminated in a day of festive entertainment, opened
by the discharge of cannon from the batteries, con-
tinued by minute-guns, and concluded by a great
Whi ; dinner at Niblo's Gardens, where deputies from
other towns, triumphing in the success of the same
principles, were hospitably received and cordially
entertained. In a week or two after this, the whole
seemed to have passed away like an unremembered
dream : so much are the people of this city the crear
tures of impulse — easily excited, and as easily calmed ;
and passing with amazing rapidity from the most
intense degree of earnest interest in any given sub-
ject, to its opposite state of entire indifference to the
samp-

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Deep-rootod prejudices on the subject of Slavery — Murder of Mr.
LK)vejoy, the aboUtionist, at Alton — Conduct of the New York
press and people on this subject — Imperfect views of the value of
a free press — Sentiments of leadinc^ men in Congress on this act —
Resolutions of Legislatures refused reception by the Senate — Re-
jection of all petitions on the subject by the House of Represen-
tatives — Deservedly bitter reproach of Thomas Moore the poet —
Contrast between democracy and slavery in the United States —
Threats of senators to hang up abolitionists by law — State of sla-
very and the slave trade at Washington-— Resolutions of Episcopal-
Methodist clergy in Georgia — Meeting of democrats in favour of
the Canadian rebels — Mr. O'Connell denounced at the meeting,
as an abolitionist — Letter complaining of coloured people sitting
with white men — Prejudice of coloiu* not extended to Indian tribes
— Mr. Catliu's Lectures on the American Indians.

Amidst the political anomalies which every day
struck me with surprise, there was none so remark-
able as the deep-rooted, and apparently almost un-
conquerable prejudice, so prevalent among persons of
all political parties on the subject of slavery. With
the conservatives, this question of slavery is regarded
as one of those domestic institutions, which it is not
desirable to disturb, and the greater number of them
are averse even to its discussion in any manner
whatever. With the democrats it is also regarded
as a domestic institution, over which each state has
sole jurisdiction ; and by them it is considered an
infringement of state-rights for any one state to
meddle with the question of slavery in any other. So
imperfect are their notions of freedom, as the " na-

SLAVERY ADVOCATED.

tural and inalienable right of every man," according
to the terms of their own declaration of independence,
that they scarcely consider it to be a blot on their
republican escutcheon, that the several states of the
Union in which slavery still exists, should hold so
many thousands of their fellow -men in unjust and
unwilling bondage. But what is perhaps most sur-
prising of all is, that so large a number of the clerg}-,
and especially those of the Episcopal church, includ-
ing those who call themselves Evangelical, should bo
not merely palliators of this state of slavery, but ad-
vocates for its continuance, and deprecators of all
public discussion or agitation on the subject ; so
that if the Republicans understand civil and political
liberty but imperfectly, the Christian professors seem
to understand the liberty of religion and justice still
less. Notwithstanding this, however, there is a
large, though not an influential body of abolitionists
in New York, who have a weekly newspaper, called
" The Emancipator," devoted to the advocacy of
their opinions ; another entitled " Human Rights,"
maintaining the same views; and another weekly
paper, called " The Coloured American," edited,
printed, and published wholly by free negroes, and
most respectably written and conducted. But these
are in great, though undeserved, odium with the
richer portions of the mercantile community, who
are afraid of ofiending their southern customers by
recognizing the abolitionists ; and as the newspapers
chiefly subsist by the profits derived from commercial
patronage, they are almost all against the abolition-
ists also, so that they have to encounter many diffi-
culties in propagating their views.

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A tra^cal occurrence took place during my stay
in New York, which brought this question very pro-
minently before the public. It was this : a minister of
'he gospel, the Rev. Elijah P. Lovejoy, was engaged
as the editor of a religious newspaper at the town of
St. Louis, and in the slave-state of Missouri. In
this state, the mob had burnt a coloured man alive,
for some offence for which he was never brought to
trial. Mr. Lovejoy condemned this act, and re-
proved the judge, whose name was Lawless, for ex-
cusing the mob, as he had done, for their unjustifiable
conduct. In consequence of this, the mob themselves
retaliated on Mr. Lovejoy, by attacking his house,
breaking up his press, and throwing it and the types
into the river, for which he could get no redress.
He then removed to the town of Alton, on the oppo-
site side of the Mississippi river, and in the free state
of Illinois. Even here, however, his advocacy of
abolition occasioned the mob to destroy his press a
second time ; another was procured to replace that,
and they broke this in pieces also. A third press
was purchased to replace this, but when it arrived at
Alton, and before it was ever used, the mob attacked
the store in which it was, with a view to destroy it,
and whatever else the store contained. They were
ancouraged to this outrage by the more wealthy
inhabitants of the place, who fancied they had an
interest in slavery being undisturbed ; but on this
occasion, Mr. Lovejoy and his friends determined to
defend the store, and went with fire-arms for this
purpose. While the mob were beating in the win-
dows with stones, and firing from the outside into the
store, they who were in the inside fired a gun also,

DEATH OF »i(l. I.OVEJOY.

bv which one of the mob was killed. At this, the
populace at first dispersed, but whisky being profusely
supplied to them by their abettors, and guns placed in
their hands, they returned in larger numbers to tho
store, determined to set it on fire, and bum alive all
who were in it. Mr. Lovejoy and four of his com-
panions went out to drive away those who were actu-
ally setting fire to the roof of the building, and he
was then shot through the body by one of the mob,
and died in a few minutes afterwards. They sub-
sequently wounded several others, took possession of
the press, broke it to pieces, and threw its fragments
into the river.

On such a transaction as this, it might be sup-
posed that there would bo scarcely a difference of
opinion, or that the whole press of tho country, in
the free states at least, would have condemned such
an outrage, and contended for the right of freedom
of discussion. But by far the greater majority of
the Whig papers, and some even of the Democratic,
in New York and elsewhere, condemned the perti-
nacity and obstinacy, as they called it, of Mr. Love-
joy, excused the conduct of the mob, and thought
that any man venturing to publish sentiments which
he knew to be obnoxious to the majority, deserved
to be put down by force. The New York American,
a Whig paper, and the Evening Post, a Democratic
paper, were the principal exceptions to this line of
conduct, and each spoke out boldly in condemnation
of the lawless conduct of the mob, and in defence of
the right of free discussion.

It is the more remarkable, that in the constitution
of the verj' state in which this outrage was perpe-

VOL. I. Q

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

trated, Illinois, thei^e is a clause declaring " that it
shall be unlawful to place any restraint on the entire
freedom of publication on all subjects, which is
claimed as the right of every citizen of the state."
In private society, however, the advocacy of the violent
conduct of the mob was far more general than with
the press. In the latter, some caution was necessary,
to keep up the appearance of a decent attachment to
liberty, while excusing this gross violation of it at
Alton J but in private circles, where no such neces-
sity for caution existed, no restraints were felt, and
it was quite common to hear persons priding them-
selves on their republican principles, declare, that
they thought Mr. Lovejoy's treatment such as he
fully deserved ; adding to it a wish that all abo-
litionists, who attempted to discuss the question in
any shape or form, might be treated in the same
manner. It was in vain to tell them that if their
principle — " that sentiments not approved of by the
majority ought not to be propagated by the mino-
rity'* — were fully carried out, no truth could make
progress, and no reform be effected ; that Christianity
itself originated with a very small minority, and was
centuries before it was generally received; that all
missionaries are sent abroad to preach doctrines
unacceptable to the majority of the nation to which
they address themselves ; and that every great poli-
tical, moral, or religious reform, began with the
minority. To all this they merely answered, that
" the question of slavery was a very different
affair ; and that while the whites of the south
thought their interests endangered by its mere dis-
cussion, the whites of the north had no right to

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CONGRESS OPPOSED TO EMANCIPATION.

»■»)■!

discuss it at all." This very doctrine, however, is in
direct violation of their own rule, as the whites of
the south are greatly in the minority, compared with
the whites of the north ; the proportion of their num-
bers being perhaps less than one-fourth of the whole.
But the prejudice of native-bom Americans on this
subject is so deep-rooted and so inveterate, that it is
altogether invincible to reason, aud cannot be moved
by any power of argument or demonstration.

In the Senate, as well as in the House of Repre-
sentatives, the legislators seem to be as full of this
prejudice as any of their constituents. Mr. Wall,
of New Jersey, presented some resolutions of the
legislature of Vermont, recommending the abolition
of slavery in the district of Columbia, in which the
city of Washington is placed, and over which district
the general Congress has exactly the same jurisdiction
and power as the State legislatures have over their
respective territorie?!. The reception of these reso-
lutions, as well as of the numerous petitions pre-
sented in favour of the abolition of slavery in the
district of Columbia, were equally rejected, in both
houses — ^by some, on the ground " that Congress had
no constitutional right or power to deal with the
question at all ;" and by others, on the ground "that
the mere agitation of the question in Congress was
full of danger to the Union." The representatives
of the southern states, in which slaveiy principally
exists, contended warmly for both these propositions ;
and yet, in the face of this, Mr. Calhoun, the senator
from South Carolina, himself introduced a long
series of resolutions, which embraced the whole
subject of slavery, defending it as an institution

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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favourable to the welfare of the country ami .i
people it embraced, denying the power of Congress to
interfere with it in any manner whatever, and de-
nouncing the abolitionists as enemies of the Union,
and foes to the best interests of the whole country,
from their mischievous attempts to obtain emancipa-
tion for the slaves. These resolutions, of course,
gave rise to the very discussion which Mr. Calhoun
and his supporters had so much deprecated when
brought on by others; and for several weeks in
succession, the Senate was chiefly occupied with debat-
ing them.

In the House of Representatives they disposed of the
question much more speedily, by resolving, by a large
majority, that the petitions of the people in favour of
the abolition of slavery in the district of Columbia
should not be received, and they were therefore all
laid on the table, without being either read, discussed,
or printed ; so that the right of petition was wholly
set aside, because it was thought to interfere with
the more sacred right of the slaveholder over the
slave. Since the days, therefore, when Thomas
Moore wrote his celebrated Epistle from Washing-
ton, the reproach which he uttered has not been
wiped away.

" "Who can with patience for a moment see
The medley mass of pride and misery,
Of whips and charters, manacles and rights,
Of slaving blacks and democratic whites,
And all the piebald polity that reigns
In free confusion o'er Columbia's plains ?
To think that man, thou just and gentle God,
Should stand before thee with a tyrant's rod,
O'er creatures like himself, with souls from thee,
Yet dare to boast of perfect liberty !"

CHARACTER OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE SENATE.

A short extract from one of the papers of the day,
describing a portion of the proceedings of the Senate,
the most dignified and important of the two houses
of the legislature, on Thursday the 4th of January,
1838, as given in an administration paper, the New
York Evening Post, will be sufficient to show the
tone and spirit of the leading men of that body.
Mr. Preston, in his defence of Mr. Calhoun's reso-
lutions, had said that " all that the south wanted
was to be let alone ; and therefore they cried * hands
off ' to all their northern brethren ; " upon which,
the following observations were made by the parties
named, as taken from the report of the speeches in
the government-paper of the day.

" Mr. Youngs of Illinois, said he was surprised to hear senators
from the south say ' hands off.' He thought that the strength
of the aboUtionists was so great, so extensive, and so much upon the
increase, that the south blinded itself by refusing to listen to the
evidence before her. In his opinion, the south could not protect
itself, without the protection of the general government.

" Mr. Preston replied. He thanked the gentleman for his sym-
pathy for the south. He wanted none of it — ^if he thought the
south was not able to take care of itself. The south was abundantly
able to protect itself. She wanted no interference, — nothing but
constitutional protection. She still cried * hands off, hands offy
hands oflF,' to all — to the states, to the 'general government, beyond
her defined constitutional powers of protection. She complained of
interference, and wanted none of it. The laws upon this subject
were many and highly penal, and Mr. Preston would say, that in
spite of the United States' laws, if any man interfered with slavery
in South Carolina, South Carolina would hang him, upon the
strength of her laws.

" The debate was continued up to nearly four o'clock.

** Mr. Wall, of New Jersey, made a strong speech in opposition
to the resolutions, and in favour of the amendment of Mr. Smith.

■M '

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STATE OP NEW YORK.

He was opposed to the whole discussion and the groundwork of the
whole discussion, because it was a subject Congress had no right to
Iiandle.

** Mr. Buchanan followed, and said that he should move an
adjournment. The Senate was in bad tempevy and he hoped sena-
tors would be better- natured to-morrow.

" The Senate then adjourned."

In the course of the present session of Congress,
while this most important topic was debated, on the
presentation of petitions from the legislature of
Vermont, and from many of the large cities of the
north, praying the Congress to abolish slavery in the
district of Columbia, as before described, the following
appeared in the New York Transcript, of December
20, 1837, as taken from a leading evening paper,
the Commercial Advertiser. It was repeated after-
wards, in most of the other papers of the city,
without being either contradicted or questioned, as
far as I could learn, and I made inquiries on this
subject in every accessible quarter. No one ven-
tured even to doubt the facts, very few thought them
at all discreditable, and almost all the Whig party
were against any effort to amend the evil it described.
The following is the paragraph : —

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

From a correspondent of the Commercial Advertiser, we derive
the following important information.

" It is notorious that the slave-trade is largely pursued in the
district of Columbia, to the disgust and molestation of a great
majority of its inhabitants, of every class and colour.

" A woman, a wife, a mother, esteemed or supposed to be free,
was, in form of law, claimed as a slave, confined as such, and sold
for exportation.

EPISCOPALIAN METHODISTS, ANTI-ABOLITIONISTS. 87

" Torn from her husband — in prison with four young children
about htr — frantic with wretchedness and grief — she cast her eyes
on her children, and, in a moment of frenzy, resolved that they, at
least, should not g^w up to be slaves, and proceeded to kill them
with her own hand. Two .he succeeded in killing, but the cries
and struggles of the others brought in succour, and they were
rescued from impending death.

" The mihappy mother was indicted for murder, tried by a jury
of the district, and acquitted on the groimd of insanity. It was
insanity — but the insanity of overpowering passion.

" She had been sold, warranted sound, mind and body; but,
on the happening of these facts, she was retiumed by the buyer
to the seller, for the legal cause of a breach of a warranty, by
reason of the latent vice of unsoundness of mind, to be resold without
warranty ; and she has been purchased by a benevolent individual,
that she, and her husband, and her children, may work out her
emancipation."

Perhaps the most striking contrast that could be
presented to this, the bare perusal of which must
make every English heart thrill with horror, is the
cool and deliberate resolutions of a body of ministers
of the gosi.iel in Georgia, which appeared soon after,
in the New York Evening Post, of January 5, 1838.
It is as follows : —

I-

GEORGIA CONFERENCE.

The following resolutions have been adopted by the Georgia
Conference of the Methodist- Episcopal Church, at its late meeting .
held in Athens : —

" Resolved, that it is the sense of the Georgia Annual Conference,
that slavery, as it exists in the United States, is not a moral evil.

" Resolved, that we view slavery as a civil and domestic institu-
tion, and one with which, as ministers of Christ, we have nothing
to do, further than to ameliorate the condition of the slave, by
endeavouring to impart to him and his master the benign influ-
ences of the religion of Christ, and aiding both on their way to
heaven."

STATE OF NEW YORK.

I'-' •

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One other illustration may be given of this moral
blindness, which is not peculiar to the Whigs, or the
ministers of the gospel who adopted the above reso-
lutions, but which infects all classes of society, and
all political and religious parties ; it is this : — On
the breaking out of the rebellion in Canada, a public
meeting was held by the democrats of New York in
a large open space, called Vauxhall Gardens, " to
express sympathy with the Canadian revolutionists,
and to consider of the best means of aiding them in
their resistance to the tyranny of their oppressors."
This meeting took place at the close of December,
1837 ; it was attended by an immense multitude,
many thousands at least. The proceedings were
orderly, the speeches very animated ; and the general
current of the whole was a fierce denunciation of
tyranny and oppression, a declaration of the right of
every man, and every body of men, to break their
chains, and demand their freedom, whenever they
saw fit ; and a general wish for the destruction
of all oppressors, and the speedy emancipation
from tyranny, of all mankind. These sentiments
were repeated by almost every speaker, and received
with the loudest marks of approbation fi'om all
present. At length, one of the Canadian revolution-
ists, who had escaped to New York, and for whose
capture the governor of Canada had offered, by
public proclamation, a reward of 2500 dollars, a Dr.
Callaghan, addressed the meeting, and was applauded
to the very echo for his democratic sentiments. In
the course of his speech, however, he instanced the
number of liberal and distinguished public men in
England, who had declared, in their places in the

OVONNELL DENOUNCED AS AN ABOLITIONIST. 89

House of Commons, that they considered the Cana-
dians to he most unjustly oppressed, and among the
number of these he named Daniel O'Connell, upon
which a scene of great uproar ensued, with cries of
"No O'Connelll No O'Connelll he's an aboli-
tionist I " " And so," exclaimed Mr. Callaghan, " am
I an abolitionist ; " upon which the uproar was
increased, and mingled with cries of " Turn him
out I turn him out I" Any comment on such a con-
trast as this — where men, met awowedly to applaud
the self-emancipation of those whose grievances were
at least comparatively light, condemned in the same
breath all attempts in favour of the emancipation of
others, whose grievances were of the heaviest kind —
must be wholly unnecessary ; and, but that this spirit
is unfortunately as common among the Whigs and
Conservatives of America as it is among the Demo-
crats, it would make one repudiate the very name
of democracy for ever. If this, however, were to be
deemed a sufficient reason, whiggism and conser-
vatism, and even religion itself, would have to be
repudiated also, as this inconsistency affects the pro-
fessors of each in an almost equal degree.

I must still offer another example of this all-per-
vading prejudice, though I thought I had done.
During my stay at New York I delivered a course of
lectures on Palestine at Chatham Street chapel, one
of four or five ** free churches," as they are called, in
this city, where the pews are not private property,
but where every one who presents himself at the door
is at liberty to take up his seat wherever he pleases ;
the churches and chapels so freed, being generally
built by subscription, and sustained by letting the

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buildings for public and religious meetings, and by
collections made on such occasions at the door. The
audience at this chapel in attendance on these lec-
tures were very numerous, exceeding 2000 persons ;
and among them were perhaps four or five negroes
extremely well dressed and well behaved ; and from
ten to twenty coloured persons, of different shades of
brown complexion, according to the greater or less
admixture of Anglo-American with their African
blood. These individuals, most of whom were en-
gaged in trade, behaved with the greatest humility and
propriety, and in several instances where they saw
white persons standing near them, they rose to offer
them their seats, and removed to a remoter part of the
building. In the course of the first week I received
a number of anonymous letters on this subject, but
none with real signatures ; they were all well written,
and were no doubt the productions of persons moving
in the sphere of gentlemen ; but one of these will
suflice as an example of the rest. It was addressed
to me in the following terms : —

" Sir, « New York, Jan. 16, 1838.

" In company with several friends, I attended your first lecture,
at Chatham Street chapel on "Wednesday evening last ; and al-
though, in common with the rest of the party, I came off highly
delighted and edified by the subject of the evening, I would beg
leave, in the spirit of courtesy, and with the most friendly feelings,
to suggest to you an evil which requires the most immediate cor-
rection. I allude to the practice of allowing coloured persons to
mix with the audience, and occupy the ground-floor of the chapel.
Their desire to appear at such a place, I admit, is highly commend-
able ; but a place apart fi'om the audience, in some part of the
gallery, should be assigned to them. The building being under

■•i I

PRESENCE OF COLOURED PEOPLE OFFENSIVE. 91

your control on the evening of your lecture, with you alone would
seem to rest the corrective power ; and without its immediate ap*
plication, you may rest assiu^d that your lectures will not only
lose tlieir present popularity, but also their entire usefulness and
respectability. This amalgamation of ' black spirits and white,'
you may rest assured will never be tolerated by a refined and intel-
ligent community ; but, on the contrary, is considered no less an
outrage on decency and decorum, than an insult to the feelings of
your audience."

Of course I took no public notice whatever of
these anonymous communications, though I had occa-
sion to know, verbally, from several quarters, that
very many persons had been deterred from attending
my lectures here, (and those absentees were mostly
persons professedly religious,) because the "coloured
people" were thus allowed to sit in the same part of
the chapel with the whites. What makes this
affected horror of " amalgamation" the more revolt-
ing is, that many of the very gentlemen who declare
themselves to be so insulted and degraded by being
placed so near the " coloured people" as to sit by
them, have no scruple whatever to keep coloured
women as mistresses, and have large families of chil-
dren by them. Without this actual amalgamation,
indeed, between the white races and the black, there
would be none of the mulatto or brown-coloured peo-
ple in existence. Yet in the northern states of
America these ** mixed races" are far more numerous
than the pure African black ; and, therefore, the
pretended horror of the slight amalgamation which
sitting together in the same chapel involves, while
the fruits of a much closer amalgamation meet you
at every step, in the highways and by-ways of the

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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country, is the very acm^ of hypocrisy and Pharisai-
cal deceit.

It is remarkable, that this prejudice, against dark
complexions, does not extend to the aboriginal In-
dians, who are, many of them, of a deep reddish
brown, almost as dark as the darkest mulattoes, and
considerably darker than many other shades of
the " coloured people" beyond the first remove from
the offspring of white fathers and negro mothers.
On the contrary, to have a mixture of dark Indian
blood is rather a matter of pride than reproach ; and
so far from its being attempted to be concealed, it is
occasionally the subject of public self-congratulation.
A remarkable instance of this occurred during
my stay in New York. The Rev. Dr. Hawkes,one of
the most popular and distinguished of the Episcopa-
lian clerg}' here, was invited to deliver a lecture
" On the History and Character of Pocahontas,"
the celebrated daughter of the Indian chief, Powhat-
tan, before the Historical Society of New York.
The Stuyvesant Institute, in which this discourse was
delivered, was crowded to excess ; the lecturer was
peculiarly eloquent, and his address deservedly
admired, for the beauty of its composition, and the
finished style of its delivery ; and when, at the close
of his discourse, he placed his hand upon his heart,
and apologized for the pride which he must naturally
feel in the recollection that some of the blood of
Pocahontas flowed in his own veins, the sympathy of
the audience manifested itself in marks of universal
approbation. This was even still more loudly ex-
pressed when he added, that though it had pleased
the Almighty to clothe the creatures of his creation

NO PREJUDICE AGAINST THE INDIAN HUK.

t".

with skins of different hues, yet the Scriptures had
emphatically declared that " God had made of one
flesh all nations of the earth ;" and that, therefore,
despite these external varieties, it was our duty to
regard all mankind as our brothers, being children
of one gi'eat Father, by whom all were brought into
being. But into this seemingly ** universal family"
the despised African race is not admitted, and could
not at the time have been included, either by the
speaker, or the great majority of his auditory at New
York. Their toleration was for the red races, or
reddish-blackish-brown coloured tribes, but not for
the blacks of Africa, or the mixed progeny of the
white and the negro amalgamations, because Dr.
Hawkes is himself an openly avowed anti-abolitionist,
and so were the greater number of those who formed
his admiring and sympathizing audience.

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CIIAP. VI.

Mr. Catlin's Museum of ludian coatumes, weapons, and imlntingi
— Course of lectures on the Indian tn'HJS- -Niniea ot Indians

11)^; excursions among
>r: 'y them — Indian

in Mr. Catlin's K*^Ilery of portraits — 11'

the Indians — Skilful nianua;ement oi < ■<

games of amusement — l)uncc. -Jli-rnd oharocter of their

war - dances — Scalp-dance of tUo .Sioux triuo of Indians —

Bloody scalps of their en< luif'S suspeiuicd by women — I^<>g-

dance of the same tribe — • ' )< ; .t ana flesh eaten raw — Flesh (»f

dogs served as food, at their greatest festivals.

«.*■

I HAD an opportunity of hearing much of the Indian
tribes during our residence in this city, from Mr.
Catlin, an American artist, who had travelled
extensively in the "Far West," as the territories
beyond the Mississippi are here called ; and after a
sojourn among the various tribes, from the eastern
borders of the United States to the foot of the Rocky
Mountains, near the shores of the Pacific, had re-
turned to New York, with a collection of more than
a hundred portraits of the most remarkable men and
women in each tribe, with paintings of their land-
scape scenery, encampments, villages, hunting par-
ties, wa^ dances, religious festivals, games, tortures,
and almof ?: ^vcrv occu'^'^^'on in which they tjngage;
added « v liica, he had amassed a large collection of
their dresses, weapons, and ornaments, which formed
altogether the most complete museum of Indian
curiosities that had ever, it was thought, been
brought together into one spot.

MR. CATi.lN S LECTUiiES.

Besides many pnvat«; interviews with Mr. Catlin,
in which ho was most agreeably communicativo, wo
attended a courisMj of his lectures, delivered in the
Stuyvesant Institute, where tho portraits and other
paintings were exhibited, and where tho dresses,
weapons, and ornaments W'n? also shown, accompa-
nied by a short explanation . - each. I select a few
of tho ni.)st strikin«( names ">f the warriors and
others, whoso portraits \v('»e ex l)vf*xl, each in his
peculiar costume ; and to t le ac uracy of \^ liich, in
person and dress, the festim* les \Aere abiKidant.

Mun-ne- i>u8-kee .
Wa-majjV< -ee-sherk
Shing-ga .var-sa .
Muck-a-tu ' i-mUh-o-kah-kaik
Kee-o-Kuk . .
Wali-pee-ki' -suk
Nah-se-un-kuk .
Jee-he-o-bo-shah
Chesh-oo-hon-ffa
Ee-shah-ko-nce .
Jah-wah-que-nir h
Kots-o-ko-no-ko .
Kots-a-to-ah .
Ush-ee-kitz .
Ah-no-je-nage .
Tali-zee-keh-da-cha
Chah-tee-wa-ne-ci ee

Mah-to-rah-rish-net -eeh-ee

Ee-hee-a-duck-chee-a .
Bi-eets-e-cure . . .
Ba-da-a-chon-du . . .
Un-ka-ha-hon-shee-k ou

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He wV>"
Theli
Theh
The ru.
The whi
The whir
IIo who
Manof g(
The Bow
Mountain

rah

ikes away.
.on»o Birtl.
Tla^ k.
iig Fox.

Clou.l (a Prophet.)
' Thunder.
:iot be tlirown down.
. nse.
.1 Quiver.
locks.

Hair of the ii '"'-^ neck.
The smoked Stii d.
He who fights with a Featlicr.
Ho who stands on both sides.
Tom Belly.
No heart.

{The Grisly Bear, that runs without
regard.

He who ties his hair before.

The very sweet Man.

He who leaps over every one.

Long Fbger Nails.

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

Ba-na-rah-kah-tah . . .
Au-nah-kwet-to-hau-pay-o
Auh-ka-nah-pau .
Chesh-ko-tong .
Lay-lau-she-kau
Ten-squat-a-way .
Cah-be-mub-bee .
Ohj-ka-tchee-kum
Gitch-ee-gau-ga-oslx
Wah-chee-hahs-ka (a Boxer)
Eeh-tou-wees-ka-zelt . .

The broken Pot.

The one sitting in the Clouds.

The Earth standing.

He who sings the War-song.

He who goes far up the river.

The open Door.

He who sits every where.

He who walks on the sea.

The point that remains for ever.

He who puts all out of doors.

He who has eyes behind him.

[) ■'/

These were all the names of males, and were ge-
nerally characteristic of some quality, achievement,
or hahit, of the persons bearing them ; this being, no
doubt, the origin of names in all countries, and in
none more than in England, where the Strongs and
the Swifts are very abundant ; the Riders and the
Walkers, not less so ; the Browns and the Blacks,
and the Whites and the Greens, scattered every-
where; the Swans and the Cocks, the Doves and
the Wrens, the Sparrows and the Nightingales, hap-
pily mingled and blended with the Foxes and Hares,
the Otters and Beavers, the Wolfs and the Bulls;
and these again varied with the Salmons, the Stur-
geons, the Cods, and the Herrings ; while there is
no end to the tribes of the Masons, the Tylers, the
Carpenters, the Painters, the Taylors, and the
Smiths; or to the Butchers, the Bakers, and the
Brewers, who follow in their train.

The names given to the female Indians, exhibited
in this collection of Mr. Catlin's portraits, were quite
as remarkable, and generally very expressive of femi-

^'*

NAMES OF INDIAN FEMALES.

nine softness, as well as of the admiration of the
stronger sex. These are a few : —

Hee-la-dee The pure Fountain.

Mong-shong-sha .... The bendmg Willow.

Eh-nis-kim The crystal Stone.

Lay-loo-ah-pce-ai-shee-kau . Grass, bush, and blossom.

*ris-se-woo-na-tis .... Shewho bathes her knees.

Pah-ta-coo-chee The shooting Cedar.

Pshan-shau The sweet-scented Grass.

Ha-das-ka-mon-me-nee . . The Pipe-of-peac Bird.

Seet-se-he-a The mid-day Su' .

Cos-pe-sau-que-te .... The indescribable Thing.

In the course of his lectures, Mr. Catlin related
to us many interesting particulars respecting the
manners and customs of the various Indian tribes
among whom he had sojourned ; and of most of these
he exhibited pictorial representations, of which the
following may be named as among the most remark-
able.

In their hunting excursions, where they pursue
the wild buffaloes, either singly or in herds, they
exhibit astonishing proofs of skill and horsemanship.
Their aim is so unerring with the arrow, that they
never fail to pierce their victim ; and such is the
force as well as skill with which the arrow is sent out
from the bow, that instances are not uncommon of
their shooting it right through the trunk of a buf-
falo, out on the other side — a fact testified to by many
witnesses. The buffaloes being in natural enmity
with the grisly bear, attack it wherever they meet ;
but the white wolves they permit to graze with
their herds unmolested. The Indians knowing this,
often co^^er themselves with skins of the white wolt^

VOL. I. H

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

previously prepared for the purpose, and under its
cover creep towards them on all-fours, without excit-
ing their suspicion, when, being within arrow-range,
they draw their bow, and shoot their unsuspecting
victim through the heart.

Another method of pursuing and decoying the
buffaloes to destruction, is thus related by Hinton,
and its accuracy was confirmed by Mr. Catlin in all
particulars. " The herds of buffaloes wander over
the country in search of food, usually led by a bull
most remarkable for strength and fierceness. While
feeding, they are often scattered over a great extent
of country ; but when they move in a mass, they
form a dense and almost impenetrable column, which,
once in motion, is scarcely to be impeded. Their
line of march is seldom interrupted even by consider-
able rivers, across which they swim without fear or
hesitation, nearly in the order in which they traverse
the plains. When flying before their pursuers, it
would be in vain for the foremost to halt, or to
attempt to obstruct the progress of the main body ;
as the throng in the rear still rush onward, the leaders
must advance, although destruction awaits the move-
ment. The Indians take advantage of this cir-
cumstance to destroy great quantities of this their
favourite game ; and certainly no mode could be
resorted to more effectually destructive, nor could a
more terrible devastation be produced, than by
forcing a numerous herd of these large animals to
leap together from the brink of a dreadful precipice
upon a rocky and broken surface, a hundred feet
below. When the Indians determine to destrov a
herd of buffaloes in this way, one of their swiftest-

BUFTALO HUNTING.

footed, and most active young men is selected, who
is disguised in a buffalo skin, having the head, ears,
and horns adjusted to his own head, so as to make
the deception very complete ; and thus accoutred, ho
stations himself between the buffalo herd and some
of the precipices, whicli often extend for several miles
along the rivers. The Indians surround the herd
as nearly as possible ; when, at a given signal, they
show themselves, and rush forward with loud
yells. The animals being alarmed, and seeing no
way open but in the direction of the disguised Indian,
run towards him, and he, taking flight, dashes on to
the precipice, where he suddenly secures himself in
some previously-ascertained crevice. The foremost
of the herd arrives at the brink j there is no possi-
bility of retreat, no chance of escape ; the foremost
may for an instant shrink with terror, but the crowd
behind, who are terrified by the approaching hunters,
rush forward with increasing impetuosity, and the
aggregated force hurls them successively from the
cliffs, where certain death awaits them."*

In the management of their horses, the Indians
seem to be as skilful as the Arabs, or the Mamelukes
of the East. Some pictures were shown to us, in which
were delineated Indians of the Camanche tribe,
hanging over one side of their horses, and shooting
their arrows over the saddle towards their enemies,
while they were themselves completely sheltered from
their attack, by the interposing body of the horse
covering their whole person, which was coiled or

* Hinton's Topography of the United States, 4to. vol. ii p. 147.

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100

STATE OF NEW ifORK.

gathered up so as to fill only the space hetween the
hanging stirrup and the upper part of the saddle.

Of their games, or amusements, the following were
the most striking. Playing with the hall for stakes,
or sums of money deposited on each side, is very
frequent ; and so much importance is attached to
this game, that on the night previous to its perform-
ance four conjurers sit up, to smoke to the Great
Spirit, at the point where the hall is to be started ;
and while the stakeholders also sit up to guard the
sums deposited, men and women dance around their
respective stakes at intervals during the night. At
some of these games, the bodies of the one party are
painted all over with white paint, while those of the
other remain of the natural reddish-brown colour, to
prevent their being mistaken or confoimded.

Besides horse-racing, foot-racing, and course-
racing, all of which are common, skill in archery is
much cultivated, and with great success. In this
they perhaps surpass all people in the world, bring-
ing down single birds while flying at a great height,
and shooting fish while darting with great rapidity in
their rivers and lakes. In one of these games, the
great object of the archers is to see who can accu-
mulate the greatest number of arrows in the air,
by the most rapid succession of shooting them,
before the first arrow reaches the ground ; and if the
parties playing at this are numerous, the air becomes
literally darkened with the showers of arrows that
are sent forth.

Of dances, they have a great variety. The "straw
dance,** among the tribe of the Sioux, consists in

INDIAN DANCES.

101

making young children dance naked, with burning
straws tied to their bodies, to make them tough and
brave. Another dance, among the tribes of the
Sauks and Foxes, is called ** the slave dance," and is
performed by a very singular society of Indians, who
volunteer to become slaves for two years, on the
condition that they may elect their chief or master.
Another dance among the tribe of Ojibbeways, is
called " the snow-shoe dance," from its taking place
at the first fall of snow in the winter, and being
danced in long snow-shoes, almost like small canoes,
worn by all the party. The tribe of the Minna-
tarrees have a dance called "the green-corn danc /*
where they make an offering of the first-fruits to the
Creator, by " sacrificing the first kettle-full," to use
their own language, " to the Great Spirit." The
" buffalo dance" of the Mandans, another tribe,
consists of men dressing themselves in the skins of
buffaloes, two men erect, generally sustaining the
skin of one buffalo placed horizontally above their
heads, the sides of the skin falling around them and
concealing their persons, and the head and horns
being sustained by the foremost person, so that as
they walk along or dance, they look at a distance
like real buffaloes ; and the object of this dance is to
attract the herd in the direction of the spot where
it takes place. The " scalp dance" of the Sioux, is
among the most revolting, where women, in the
centre of a large circle, suspend the bloody scalps
of their enemies, taken in war, on poles, while the
warriors of the tribe dance aroimd them brandishing
their weapons. This, however, is exceeded in fero-
city by " the dog dance" of the same tribe, at which

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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the heart and liver of a dog are taken, raw and
bleeding, and, cut into strips, placed on a stand
about the height of a man's face from the ground ;
to this each of the warriors advances in turn, and,
biting off a piece of the flesh, utters a yell of
exultation at having thus swallowed a piece of the
warm and bleeding heart of his enemy. It may
be added, that the flesh of the dog is accounted the
greatest delicacy among the Sioux j and at an
Indian feast, given in 1803 at a Sioux village about
1400 miles above St. Louis, to Mr. Sanford, Mr.
Choteau, Mr. M*Kenzie, and Mr. Catlin, a picture
of which was in the collection, dogs' flesh was the
only food served j and this was the highest honour
they could confer upon strangers.

Nothing is more remarkable, however, in the
character of the Indians, than their power of endur-
ing torture, and the strength of the religious super-
stitions which sustain them. In one of the ceremonies
of this description, represented in Mr. Catlin*s pic-
tures, several young candidates for fame were seen
undergoing the various processes of pain to which
they voluntarily and cheerfully submit themselves.
They first lacerate the flesh with a sharp-edged but
ragged flint-stone, by cutting open six or seven
gashes across the muscular part of each thigh and
each arm ; a splint of wood, like a skewer, is then
run transversely through the lips of each gash, and
there they are permitted to bleed and swell, while
the agonizing pain produces no sign of emotion on
their countenances. They are then dragged around
the circle of the tent on the inside, on the bare
ground, sometimes by the hair of the head, and

INDIAN MAGICIANS.

103

sometimes by the feet, the body trailing all the while
along the rough and broken soil, and getting new
lacerations at every turn. After this, the bodies of
the self-torturers are hung up by the splints in the
flesh, around which cords are twined, and they are
thus kept suspended for hours on a pole, without
food or drink, looking steadfastly on the sun, from his
rising to his setting, without an interval of rest.

Another remarkable form in which their super-
stition developes itself, is that of reverence for magic
and magicians. Attached to every tribe, and often
to every encampment and every village, is a person,
who is called "the medicine man" — the "magician"
would be the more appropriate term. It is believed
by the rest of the tribe that he is gifted with pro-
phetic knowledge and supernatural powers. He is
consulted in all expeditions of war, on all negociations
of peace j his oracles are indisputable, and his charms
are believed to be irresistible ; he collects together in
his wanderings all things supposed to possess any
superior virtue or property — the skin, feathers,
head, beak, and talons, of the eagle and the hawk ;
the skins of serpents, lizards, and toads ; the horns
and hair of the buffalo ; the skins of the grisly bear
and the wolf; besides various animal and mineral
compounds supposed to operate as charms. To each
of the warriors he dispenses his talismans, which are
worn with unlimited confidence in their virtues : and
when any one is ill or sick from any disease or
wounds, " the medicine man" is the only person
thought likely to afford relief. This he does, not
with medicine of any kind, for this is never attempted;
but by coining to the tent or hut where the sufferer

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may be lying, and performing certain mysterious
ceremonies, and administering certain charms — the
** medicine man" being himself on these occasions so
disfigured with the skins of various animals placed
over and around him, that he may be said to be as
remote as possible from " the likeness of any thing
that is in the heaven above, or in the earth beneath,
or in the waters under the earth j" and when Mr.
Catlin presented himself to his audience so arrayed, it
was difficult to suppose that any thing human could
be so disguised.

An additional interest was given to these lectures,
by the paintings and descriptions with which they
were illustrated, from their reminding me, so often
and so forcibly as they did, of the Hindoos. The
complexion of the Indians, generally resembles that
of the natives of Hindoostan, more than that of any
other people I had seen ; they have the same fond-
ness for gold and silver ornaments, and particularly for
large silver bangles on the feet, and armlets on the
arms ; they paint their bodies, and especially their fore-
heads and chins, with various coloured paints, Uke the
Bramins ; they load the ears with ornaments, and the
neck with chains ; they oil their bodies to soften the
skin ; they sit cross-legged on the ground, and are
excessively fond of smoking. The favourite colour
for the painting of their persons is a bright scarlet :
and in all the female portraits that I saw, the central
seam occasioned by the parting of the hair, which is
smoothed down on each side of the head, and oiled to
keep it flat and glossy, was invariably painted with a
bright scarlet paint, a custom almost universal among
the women of Hindoostan. But it is in the voluntary

SELF-TORTUUE.

105

infliction -^f self-torture, and the power of sustaining
pain without a murmur, that the resemblance between
the Indians of America and of Asia is most striking.
Whoever has witnessed the self-tortures of the Hin-
doos, in their religious ceremonies of the "chur-
ruck-poojah," or festival of the wheel — ^where a man
permits an iron hook to be passed through the fleshy
muscles of his loins, and is thus hoisted up to a
wheel, and whirled around in the air with extraordi-
nary velocity, as well as the many other descriptions
of self-imposed torture practised in Hindoostan — could
not fail to be struck with this feature of resemblance
between the tribes of Asia and America, who may
possibly have descended from one common stock.

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CHAP. VII.

Personal visit to some Indian chiefs at New York — The Sauks
and Foxes, Sioux and loway tribes — Anecdotes of con-
versation with the Indian chiefs — Offering of presents to the
wife and children of Kee-o-kuk — Stoical indifference mani-
fested by each -~ Black-Hawk, the celebrated warrior, and his
son — Pantomin-ic conversation of Mr. Vandenhoff with an
Indian — Invitation to visit their camps in the Far West —
Anecdotes of life among the Indians — Arrival of a third tribe
of Indians in New York — Reply of Indian chief to General
Fox — Anecdotes of Indians respecting interest of money — Belief
that the Indians are descended from the Jews — Facts and argu-
ments of Major Noah and others — Striking similarity of many
of their customs to Jewish rites — Retention of some of the iden-
tical expressions of the IIebrew»— Authority of Mr. Catliu iu
suj^port of this resemblance.

It was only a few weeks after hearing the lectures
and examining the collection of Mr. Catlin, that
several Indian chiefs of different trihes arrived at
New York from Washington, on a tour through the
United States, where, after they had concluded their
treaties at the Capitol, it was thought desirable they
should be taken to the principal towns, to impress
them with a strong idea of the power and resources
of the American people. Among them, were the
chiefs of the Sauks and Foxes, Kee-o-kuk and Black-
Hawk, with the wife and younger son of the former,
*' the roaring Thunder." There were about thirty
of these who took up their abode at the City-hotel, on

IUDI

COSTi V

107

the west-side of liroa ly ; wl le at another hotel,
the National, on the opjif* ite sile of the way, were the
chiefs of the Sioux and loways, the two latter being
in such deadly hostility to the two former, as to make
it unsafe to place them in the same building.

We went to see both parties, having the advantage
of a favourable introduction to each, and were accom-
panied in both our visits by a skilful interpreter,
who had lived among the Indians from his childhood.
The Sauks and Foxes were undoubtedly the finest
race of men ; they were as tall, stout, and muscular,
as the very best specimen of men that could be pro-
duced from the yeomanry of England, and they were
as hardy and robust as they were large and well
formed. Their costume was almost wholly made up
of skins, furs, and feathers, with the occasional addi-
tion of a woollen blanket, of a bright scarlet, satu-
rated with the vermilion paint with which they so
copiously bedaub the body. Their head-dresses were
mostly feathers, differently arranged. They all wore
leather coverings for the legs, like long gaiters, but
loose over the foot, and with innumerable strips of
leather trailing after them at considerable length be-
hind the heel, so as to make it difficult to follow them.
To these gaiters were attached a number of silver
bells, and whenever they moved or walked, it was an
evident delight to them, to hear the tinkling of these
bells, and the rattle of the various plates of metal
placed at different points about their garments. Their
weapons were the tomahawk, the heavy-headed and
spiked iron mace, and the bow and arrow ; their con-
duct was characterized by a dignified reserve ; and
their great aim seemed to be, not to manifest the least

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STATE OF NEW YORK,

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feeling of admiration or surprise at any thing they
saw. They were sufficiently communicative to an-
swer all our questions, but always briefly, and with-
out asking others in their turn. I had taken in,
as I was advised, some suitable presents for the prin-
cipal personages of the party ; but they were received
without the slightest symptom of satisfaction by those
to whom they were offered, excepting in one instance.
To thp wife of the chief Kee-o-kuk I presented a very
handsome string of large and beautiful beads, suitable
for a necklace of great richness and fulness ; but after
taking them from my hands, she placed them in her
bosom; and then rolling herself in a vermilioned
blanket, lay down at her husband's feet on the floor,
without mat or pillow, and sunk almost instantly to
sleep. I presented to her eldest son, " the whist-
ling Thunder," a handsome ivory case, containing a
knife, a looking-glass, and some other things ; which
he also received with the same indifference, and put
it by, as though the person presenting it was more
honoured than himself by receiving it. To the
younger son, a little fellow of about five years of
age, I gave a silver whistle and bells, such as are
commonly used by children in England, with a fine
piece of red coral at the end ; and this little creature,
not having yet been trained in the Indian art of
restraining the expression of his natural emotions,
burst out into a paroxysm of delight, sounding the
whistle, ringing the bells, shrieking with pleasure,
and dancing about the room, exclaiming every now
and then, " A-oo-A-ha-oo," good, very good— and
clasping my knees, and kissing my hand, to the
great chagrin of the men, who talked to him with

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VANDENIIOFF AND THE INDIAN CHIEF.

109

frowning countenances, but could not repress his
hilarity.

The Sioux and loways, whom we visited at the
National hotel, were not so fine a race of men as the
Sauks and Foxes, nor so well dressed, but they were
far more communicative. Some of them, indeed, talked
with us at great length. Mr. Vandenhoff, the English
actor, happened to be in the room at the time j
and being struck with the appearance of scars from
bums, running up the arm of one of the chiefs, from
the wrist to the shoulder, he wished to know how it
happened ; but the interpreter being in another part
of the room, and engaged, he was unable to commu-
nicate with the Indian, except through the language of
pantomime ; he accordingly pointed to the scars, and
then, by a variety of significant signs, intimated his
wish to know how they occurred ; upon which, the
chief performed these several motions : He first held
his left hand horizontally before his body, as if grasping
a cup or basin, while with his right he performed
the motion of lifting something from the ground, out
of which he poured liquid into the stationary vessel.
He then lifted this vessel to his mouth, and, turning
back his head, and gurgling his throat, made signs of
drinking copiously. His next action was to rise, and
reel about, as though growing gradually intoxicated,
until he became unable to stand ; when he described
a large heap of something, with flames ascending and
falling, on this h< began to roll about with agony,
and rub his rigl arm as the part chiefly affected.
Mr. Vandenhoff' exclaimed, "I see it — whisky,
whisky I" at which the old man nodded assent with
a smile. The fact was, as we afterwards learnt,

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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that the white people had mad** him drunk, as they too
often do, with ardent spirits, and he had fallen on a
large wood fire, and thus got dreadfully hurnt.

In the course of conversation with the chiefs of
this tribe, they expressed great admiration of my
wife's dress and ornaments, and were especially ena-
moured with the feathers which she happened then
to wear in her bonnet. With my younger son,
Leicester, they were even still more pleased ; and
were quite astonished that one so young should come
so far away from home, over ** the great sea," of
which they seem to have a most terrible idea. They
asked us, whether, in the course of our journey, we
intended to come so far west as their prairies and
forests ; and we answered that this was what we
intended, and hoped to accomplish ; but that our stay
would be short, as we should desire onlv to see their
country, and then return home, without settling in it.
This was no sooner interpreted to them, than seve-
ral Indian voices exclaimed, as we afterwards learnt,
" Does he say so ? does he say so? he is welcome, he
is welcome ?" And when this assurance was repeated,
the principal chief of the tribe advanced to me,
and grasping my hand firmly, he said with a grave
countenance, looking at me, but addressing himself
to the interpreter, " Tell this white man, that if he
comes to see us, and goes away again, leaving us in
possession of our lands undisturbed, we will bless his
name for ever. The white men come, they look at
our lands, they take them from us, they drive us
far off; we become settled, they disturb us, and drive
us farther off again, because they want our lands for
themselves J and, therefore, we like not their foot-

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ILL-TREATMENT BY THE WHITES.

Ill

steps ; but if he will come, and share our feasts, and
smoke our calumet, and then return to his own home,
we will give him a welcome such as white men do
not always receive." I repeated my assurance, and
even ventured to add my deep regret that all white
men could not be prevailed upon to leave them in
the quiet possession of the hunting-grounds and
graves of their fathers ; and the sentiment was one
that evidently touched all their sympathies.

It would be a long and a melancholy narrative to
relate the half of what it fell to my lot to hear, with-
out leaving New York, of the ill-treatment of the
Indians by the whites, who teach them all our vices,
but especially drunkenness, for the purpose of de-
frauding them while thus intoxicated, in the various
bargains of traffic and sale in which they are engaged.
In addition to this, still more deliberate and cold-
blooded injuries are practised by whites of compara-
tive opulence upon their unsuspecting females. The
following is abridged from a very interesting, but
little-known work, entitled " Dragoon Campaigns
to the Rocky Mountains," written by a young gentle-
man of New York, who presented me with a copy,
and who states that he had the facts from the mouth
of an old Indian in the Far West, who appeared to
be sinking under the weight of his years.

In 1814, an American trader, of considerable
influence, thinking he should strengthen his mer-
cantile connexions among the Missouri Indians,
succeeded in prevailing on one of the principal
families of the Omawha tribe of Indians, to permit
him to marry one of their daughters, who was remark-
ably beautiful. The marriage being consummated,

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

she soon bore him a son and a daughter, one of

which she permitted the father to take with him to

the country of the whites, and the other she retained

with her. On his return, however, to the Indian

territory, it was found that he had married a white

wife in his absence, and that he now demanded the

surrender of the second child, and the repudiation of

its mother. To this of course she refused her assent.

The trader then offered her a considerable present, if

she would go away and leave her child j upon which

she exclaimed, "Is my child a dog, that I should

sell him for merchandize ? You cannot drive me

away ; you may beat me, it is true, and otherwise

abuse me, but I will still remain with you. When

you married me, you promised to use me kindly as

long as I should be faithful to you. That I have

been so, no one can deny. Ours was not a marriage

contracted for a season ; no, it was to terminate only

with our lives. I was then a young girl, and might

have been united to an Omawha chief; but I am

now an old woman, having had two children, and

what Omawha will regard me ? Is not my right

paramount to that of your other wife ? She had not

heard of me before you possessed her. It is true, her

skin is whiter than mine, but her heart cannot be

more pure towards you, nor her fidelity more rigid."

Happily the infant was secured to its devoted mother,

but the heartless wretch of a trader abandoned her

for ever. Who can wonder, therefore, when the

Indians are continually receiving injuries, and rarely,

if ever, blessings from the hand of the white man,

that they should not " like his footsteps."

Soon after the visit of the Sauks and Foxes, and

INDIAN TRraES, AND CHIEFS.

lib

Sioux and loways, another party of Indians arrived
at New York, consisting of Pawnees, Omawhas, and
Otoes. We saw the whole of these also; but there
was nothing peculiar in them, to deserve a detailed
description. The following account of their visit,
with their names, is given in the New York Express,
of November 30, 1837 :—

" The delegation from several tribes of Indians, under charge of
Major Dougherty, left this city yesterday for Washington, where
they are to hold a coimcil with the Secretary of War.

" They appeared to he much pleased with their visit to the
city, having spent a week, and visited the navy-yard, theatres,
museumj, &c. On Saturday they visited Mr. Catlin at his exhi-
bition-room in Broadway, who has spent several years among them
and other tribes of Indians ; after viewing his splendid collection
of Indian- portraits, landscapes, and curiosities, he took them into
another room, where he had several of their own portraits, which
they discovered at once, and appeared to be much delighted at the
sight of their own faces on the canvass.

" They were received by the mayor and common-council at tho
City Hall, on Saturday, and a great variety of presents were made
them, consisting of red and blue broadcloths, knives, glasses,
beads, &c.

" During their visit at the navy -yard, one of them applied the
match to a loaded cannon on board the Hudson-i— the effect aston-
ished them : one of them said he thought the Great Spirit could
only produce thunder, but he had now seen it among the white
men — that for the future the Indian would avoid collision with his
white brethren, as he was convinced they were too powerful for
them.

" The following are the names of the tribes and chiefs : —

GRAND PAWNEE TRIBE.

Sh ouk-ka-ki-he-gah
La-char-e-ta-roox
La-do-ke-ah . . .
Ah-shaw-waw-zookste

Horse chief.
Fearless chief.
Buffalo bull.
Medicine horse.

VOL. I.

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

PAWNEE TAPAOE TRIBE.

fe'Hi!

La-kee-too-me-ra-sha . .
La-paw-koo-re-loo * . .
Loo-ra-we-re-coo . . .
Ta-Ia-coosh-ca-roo-mah-an

PAWNEE
Ah-shaw-Ia-coots-ah
La-shaw-le-straw-hix . ,
La-wee-re-coo-re-shaw-we
Se-ah-ke-ra-le-re-coo .

Little chief.
Chief partizan.
Bird that goes to war.
Partisan that sings.

REPUBLICAN TRIBE.
. . Mole in the face.

. Man chief.

. War chief.
, . The Chvenne.

PAWNEE LOUP TRIBE.

Le-shaw-loo-la-Ie-hoo . . .
Lo-lock-to-hoo-lah . . . .
La-wa-he-coots-la-sha-no . .
Shar-e-tar-reesh

OMAWHA
Ki-he-gah-waw-shu-she . .
Om-pah-tong-gah . . . .

Sha-dah-mon-ne

Nom-bah-mon-ne ....

Big chief.

Handsome pipe in his hand.

Brave chief.

Ill-natured man.

HACO TRIBE.
Brave chief.
Big elk.
There he goes.
Double-walker.

Maw-do-ne-sah . . .
No-way-ke-vug-ga . .
Raw-no-way-waw-krah .
We-ree-roo-ta . . .

OTOE TRIBE.

. . He who surroimds.

. . He who strikes two at once.

. . Loose pipe-handle.

. . He who exchanges.

MISSOURI TRIBE.
Haw-che-ri-sug-ga .... He who strikes in war.

During the stay of these Indians in New York, they
were as much objects of curiosity to the inhabitants
as they would have been to the residents of London.
Wherever they went, whether to the theatre or the
museum, the battery, or the steam -boat, crowds of
persons of both sexes, who had never before perhaps

REPLY OF AN INDIAN CHIEF.

115

seen so many Indians, and of such distant tribes, in
their lives, followed them in the streets, and their
hotels were crowded at all hours of the day. Such
are the revolutions of things, that the aboriginal
Indians, who less than two centuries ago were the
sole occupants of the very island on which New
York is built, are now strangers in the land of their
fathers.

The reply made by one of the Indian chiefs to
General Knox, who was entertaining, in the city of
New York, a deputation from the tribes, is full of
melancholy truth ; and, perhaps, it interested me
the more, from the resemblance of the fate of the
Indians of the West to those of the East, as both
have been dispossessed of their lands and dominions
by their white conquerors ; for the language used
by the Indian of America is precisely that which
might, with equal propriety, be used by a native
Indian of Malabar, of Coromandel, or of Bengal.

" What makes you so melancholy ?" said General
Knox to the Indian chief who was observed to be
very thoughtful, amidst the gaieties of the entertain-
tainment prepared for himself and his brethren of
the forest. " I will tell you, brother," was the chiefs
reply : "I have been looking at your beautiful city,
your great waters, full of ships, your fine country,
and I see how prosperous you all are. But, then, I
could not help thinking, that this fine country was
once ours. Our ancestors lived here. They enjoyed
it as their own, in peace. It was the gift of the
Great Spirit to them and to their children. At last,
white men came in a great canoe — they only asked
to let them tie it to a tree, lest the water should

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STATE OF NEW YOnK.

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carry it away. We consented. They then said,
some of their people were sick, and they asked per-
mission to land them, and put them under the shade
of the trees. The ice came, and they could not go
away. They then hegged a piece of land, to build
wigwams for the winter. We granted it to them.
They then asked com, to keep them from starving.
We furnished it out of our own scanty supply. They
promised to go away when the ice melted. When
this happened, instead of going away as they had
promised, they pointed to the big guns round the
wigwams, and they said, * We shall stay here.' Af-
terwards came more. They brought intoxicating
drinksjofwhich the Indians became fond. They per-
suaded them to sell them our land, and, finally, have
driven us back, from time to time, to the wilderness,
far from the water, the fish, and the oysters. They
have scared away our game. My people are wasting
away. We live in the want of all things, while you
are enjoying abundance in our fine and beautiful
country. This makes me sorry, brother, and I can-
not help it."

The following anecdote was related to me at
New York by an elderly gentleman, nearly seventy,
who had passed many years with the Indians, both
in the early and middle periods of his life. He was,
at one time, deputed to treat with the tribe of
Oneidas, west of Lake Erie, for the purchase of a
large tract of their land ; and the payment of 100,000
dollars was agreed to be given to them for it. The
Indians, who have no conception of numbers beyond
a hundred, could not be made to comprehend how
much this sum was ; until a number of kegs or bar-

■ ♦•

INDIANS IDEA OF A BANK.

117

rels were procured, and ranged along in line, and
the number of these kegs which 100,000 dollars
would fill, gave them some idea of their multiplicity ;
while a conception of their weight was conveyed, by
describing how many horses it would require to
carry them, if they were loaded on their backs. It
was then thought that this great sum was too large
to be divided among the Indians at one time, as it
would probably soon be all spent, and they would
then be destitute. To provide against this, it was
suggested, that the principal sum should be depo-
sited in the United States* bank ; that the govern-
ment for the time being should be made perpetual
trustees for its safe custody ; and that the interest of
this sum, at 7 per cent., or 7»000 dollars, should be
divided among them every year for ever.

This proposition was much approved of; but the
Indians could not be made to comprehend what a
bank was, or how 7>000 dollars could be paid to
them every year from this bank, and the 100,000
still remain undiminished. Among the various sup-
positions in which they indulged on this subject,
one was, that the bank was a place where, by some
extraordinary process, silver increased in bulk and
size by one-seventh in every year, and that the 7,000
dollars was to be made out of the yearly increase of
the metal by growth, when the surplus would be cut
off, and the remainder allowed to grow again. An-
other belief was, that when the dollars were put into
this mysterious bank, they propagated and increased
their kind; and that the 7>000 full-grown dol-
lars were taken out of the 100,000, and their
places left to be supplied by the little dollars grow-

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STATE OF NEW YOIIK.

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ing up to be big ones, like tbe rest. The more
general belief was, however, that the bank was a
place where a peculiar soil existed, in which the dol-
lars were sown, like grain, and every year produced
a crop, which was to furnish the 7»0(X) dollars of
annual interest. So general was this belief, that the
gentleman who made the purchase was often after-
wards asked whether the seasons were favourable,
and the crop promising at Philadelphia, so that they
might be certain of receiving their full share.

In the annual division of this sum, he said that
each father received a share proportioned to the
number of his children ; and that each person com-
ing to the place of division, brought his blanket,
which he spread on the ground, laying on it a
number of short sticks, indicating the number of his
family, and the youngest and the oldest of these had
an equal portion. They have no individual property,
except in their tents, horses, weapoiis, and apparel j
all else is held in communitv, and the chief and the
humbler Indians all share alike.

An opinion has often been expressed, that the
Indians of America are descendants of some of the
lost tribes of Israel ; but this opinion had never, per-
haps, been put forth with all the data on which it
was founded, until of late. So recently as the year
1837, Major Noah, the editor of the New York
Evening Star, and himself a Jew of some learning,
delivered a public lecture before the Mercantile Lite-
rary Association of New York, at Clinton Hall,
intended to establish this fact ; and the following are
among the most prominent points established in that
discourse.

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HEBREW ORIGIN OF INDIANA

119

The latest notice that is given of the dispersed
tribes of Israel in the sacred writings, is in the Book
of Esdras, where the following verses occur: —

** Whereas thou sawest another peaceable multi-
tude : these are the ten tribes which were carried
away prisoners out of their own land in the time of
Osea, whom Salmanazar, king of Assyria, led away
captive, and he carried them over the waters^ so that
they came unto another land."

" They took this counsel among themselves, that
they would leave the multitude of the heathen, and
go into a farther country, wherein mankind never
dwelt, that they might there keep their statutes,
which they never kept in their own land (Assyria) :
and there was a great way to go, namely, a year and
a half**

It is supposed that these tribes marched from the
banks of the Euphrates to the north-east of Asia,
some remaining by the way in Tartary and China ;
in proof of which, Benjamin, of Tudela, who travel-
led in the eleventh century through Persia, men-
tions, that in some of the provinces of that country,
at the time of the decree of Ahasuerus, there were
at least 300,000 Jews. Alvarez, in his history of
China, states, that there had been Jews living in that
kingdom for many hundreds of years. Some went
to India, as a Hebrew letter of the Jews of Cochin-
China, written to their brethren at Amsterdam,
gives, as the date of their coming into that country,
the period when the Romans first conquered the
Holy Land, and made Judea a province of the
Roman empire, which was some time before the
birth of Christ.

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From the various parts of Asia, it is believed
tliat the more enterprising and persevering went on
gradually advancing by degrees to its north-eastern
extremity, till they arrived at Behring's Straits,
where, during the winter, it would be perfectly easy
to cross over to the nearest part of the continent of
America, a distance of less than thirty miles, and
this rendered more easy by the existence of the Cop-
])er Islands in the way. Here, it is believed, that
during a course of two thousand years, they spread
themselves from this point northward to Labrador,
and southward to Cape Horn, multiplying as they
proceeded ; some settling in every part, but more
populously in the rich countries and agreeable climate
of central America, including California, Texas,
Mexico, and Peru.

On the first discovery of this continent by Colum-
bus, those races, now called Indians, were found in
very different stages of civilization. They were not all
either rude, or savage, or ferocious ; but, on the
contrary, the greater number of them were remark-
able for qualities that bespoke a noble origin. They
had simple, but sublime ideas of a Supreme Being,
unmixed with the least tincture of idolatry ; they
had courage, constancy, humanity, hospitality, elo-
quence, love of their families, and fidelity to
friends. It is, however, in the religious belief and
ceremonies of the Indians, more than in anything
else, that their resemblance to the people from whom
they are believed to have descended, is to be traced ;
and the chief points of these are thus enumerated —
1st, Their belief in one God — 2d, Their computa-
tion of time by the ceremonies of the new moon —

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JEWISH Fi:STIVALS OBSERVED.

1'21

3(1, Their division of the year into seasons corre-
sponding with the Jewish festivals, of the feast of
flowers, the day of atonement, the feast of the taber-
nacle, and other religious holidays. 4 th, The erec-
tion of a temple after the manner of the Jews, with
an ark of the covenant and altars. 5th, The division
of their nation into tribes, with a chief or grand
sachem at their head. 6th, Their laws of sacrifices,
ablutions, marriages, ceremonies in war and peace,
the prohibition of certain food, according to the
Mosiac rule, their traditions, history, character,
appearance, affinity of their language to the Hebrew,
and finally, by that everlasting covenant of heirship
exhibited in a perpetual transmission of its seal in
their flesh.

Such are the points enumerated by Major Noah
in his discourse ; and in the subsequent parts of it
he adduces proofs, strengthened by the opinions of
very eminent persons whose authorities he cites.
Among these are named Adair, Heckwelder, Char-
leveux, M'Kenzie, Bartram, Beltrami, Smith, Penn,
and Mr. Simon, the last of whom had written a
highly-interesting work on this subject. Major Noah
says, that all these writers were struck with resem-
blances among the customs of the Indians to those
with which they were acquainted as peculiar to the
Jews ; but the fact of Major Noah being a Jew
himself, gives him great advantage over even all
these, from his personal acquaintance with Jewish
opinions, ceremonies, and usages, in all the minutia;
of their details.

They call the Supreme Being, Lo-ak (Light) Ish-
ta-hoola-aba j which, says the writer, is distinctly

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Hebrew, and means, " The ^eat supremo beneficent
Holy Spirit of Fire, wlio resides above.'* Tbey have
another name for the deity, wliich like the Jews, they
never use in common speech, but only when perform-
ing' their most sacred religious rites, and then they
most solemnly divide it into syllables, with interme-
diate words, so us not to pronounce the ineffable name
at once. In the sacred dances, at the feast of the
first-fruits, they sing Alelujah and Meshehay from the
Hebrew of Mesheach, the Messiah,* "the anointed
one," exclaiming " Yb, mesheha." — " Hey mesheha,"
— " fVaht mesheha," thus making the Alelujah, the
Meshiah, the Jehovah. On some occasions they sing
** Shiluj/Oy Shilu-he, Shilu-wah" the three termina-
tions making up, in their order, the four-lettered
Divine Name in Hebrew, and Shilu being evidently
" Shiloth the messenger, the peace-maker." The
number of Hebrew words used in their religious
services, is, says Major Noah, incredible, and he gives
abundant instances, among which, the name of licrbt-
ning is Eloah, and the rumbling of thunder is ^ ailed
Rowah, from the Hebrew word liuach, or spirit.

The Indians divide the year into four seac^ons, with
festivals peculiar to each ; they calculate by moons and
celebrate, as the Jews do, the herachah helebana, " the
blessing for the new-moon." The chief priest wears a
breast-plate, of a white conch-shell, ornamented so as
to resemble the precious stones in the Urhrii and he
binds his brow with a wreath of swan's feathers, and
wears a tuft of white feathers which he calls Yatina.
The Indians have their ark, which they invariably
carry with them to battle, and never suffer it to rest on
the gi'ound, or to be unguarded j and they have as great

JKWISH LAWS AND CUSTOMS,

I'^'j

faith in tho power of their ark, ii8 the IsraeUtos over
had ill theirs. " No person," says Achiir, ** is ever per-
mitted to open all the coverings of this ark ; and tradi*
tion informs them that curiosity havinf^ induced three
different persons to examine the mysterious shell, they
were immediately punished for their profanation hy
hlindness, the very punishment threatened to tho
Jews for daring to look upon tho Holy of Holies."

Their observance of a great day of atonement,
about tho same period of the year at which it is ob-
served by the Jews, attended with many of the same
ceremonies, and for the same object, is extremely
remarkable ; and as it respects sacrifices, the resem-
blance is even still more striking. The bathings, ablu-
tions, and anointings, are Jewish in their character ; as
is also the abstaining from eating the blood of any
animal, from the use of swine's-flesh, of fish without
scales, and other animals and birds deemed by the
Mosaic law to be impure. Women caught in adul-
tery are stoned to death, as among the Jews of old ;
and, as in the Mosaical law, the brother is obliged
to marry the widow of his brother, if he die without
issue.

Of the authors who have written in support of
these views there is a very long catalogue, and some of
very early date. Manasseh Ben Israel, a learned
Jew, who flourished about 1650, wrote a treatise to
prove that the Indians were descended from the
Israelites ; this was soon after the discovery of Ame-
rica by Columbus. William Penn, the Quaker,
founder of Pennsylvania, though he does not appear to
have suspected this descent, says, in one of his letters
to his friends in England, of the Indians, " I found

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them with like countenances to the Hebrew races.
I consider these people as under a dark night, yet
they believe in God and immortality, without the
aid of metaphysics. They reckon by moons, they
offer their first-ripe fruits, they have a kind of feast
of tabernacles, they are said to lay their altars with
twelve stones ; they mourn a year, and observe the
Jewish law with respect to separation." The Rev.
Mr. Beatty, a missionary among the Indians, Emanuel
de Merazy, a Portuguese historian of the Brazils,
Monsieur de Guignes, the French historian of China,
Beltrami, the Italian traveller, who discovered the
sources of the Mississippi, all concur in this view :
and the Earl of Crawford and Lindsey, who pub-
lished his Travels in America in 1801, says, " It is
curious and pleasing to find how the customs of these
people comport with the laws of Moses." He after-
wards adds, " It is a sound truth that the Indians
are descended from the ten tribes ; and time and
investigation will more and more enforce its acknow-
ledgment."

Among the Indians of Mexico and Peru, who
were the most enlightened and civilized, though all
springing from the same stock, the resemblances
were more manifest. Montesini, who travelled in
South America, states, that " his Indian guide ad-
mitted to him that his God was called Adonai ; and
he acknowledged Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as his
ancestors, and claimed to be descended from the tribe
of Reuben. He was in short a perfect Jew ; immense
numbers like himself were said by him to live behind
the Cordilleras." Acoasta mentions that they have
a tradition relative to the great deluge ; that they

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INDIAN TEMPLE LIKE SOLOMON*S.

12.5

preserve the rite of circumcision ; and in Peru, they
eat the paschal lamb. He adds, that the Mexicans
point out the various stations by which their ances-
tors advanced into the country, and it is precisely the
route by which they must have come into America,
supposing them to have emigrated from Asia.
Manasseh-ben-Israel declares that the Indians of
Mexico had a tradition that their magnificent places
of worship had been built by a people who wore
their beards, and were more ancient than their Incas.
Escobartus affirms, that he frequently heard the
southern tribes repeat the sacred notes Hal4e-lu-
yah / and Malvenda states, that several tombstones
were found on St. Michael's, with ancient Hebrew
characters. When the Spaniards invaded Mexico, the
Cholula was considered a holy city by the natives, in
which the high-priest, Quetzacolt, preached "peace
to man," and would permit no other offerings to the
Master of Life than the first-fruits of the harvest.
" We know by our traditions," said the venerable
prince, Montezuma, to the Spanish general, Cortez,
"that we who inhabit the country are not the natives,
but strangers who came from a great distance."

As striking a resemblance as any of the preceding,
is presented between the great temple, founded in
Mexico by the Inca Yupanque, and the temple of
Solomon, of which many think it was a copy ; so
remarkable was it for its resemblance to this, in its
size, its plan, and its wealth. Clavagero and De
Vega, speaking of the Indian temple, say thus —
" The altar was on the east side of the temple ;
there were many doors to the building, all of which
were plated with gold ; and the four walls, the whole

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

way round, were crowned with a rich golden
garland, more than an ell in width. Round the
temple were five square pavilions, whose tops were
in the form of pyramids. The fifth was lined entirely
with gold, and was for the use of the royal high-
priest of sacrifices." Lord Kingshorough, in his Tra-
vels, not only declares that this temple at Palenque
was built by the Jews, but that he considers it to be
an exact copy of Solomon's temple, being precisely
after the model described by Ezekiel.

All this is so remarkable — and much more than is
here condensed, is adduced, in the form of evidence
in Major Noah's Discourse — that it is impossible not
to be struck with it ; and if the opinions of com-
petent authorities, the .nstomj ^* *he people still
preserved and now existing, a-^ tli as their own
traditions as to their origin, all tend to the same
conclusion, the inference is irresistible. Du Pratz,
in answer to the question which he put to the Natchez
tribe, " Whence come you ?'* says that they answered
him thus, — " All that we know is, that our fathers,
to come hither, followed the course of the sun, and
came from the place where he rises. They were
long in their journey, they were nearly perishing,
and were brought to this wilderness of the sun-
setting, without seeking it."

The latest, and in many respects the best autho-
rity, as to the appearance of the Indians, is Mr.
Catlin, who lived so many years among them, and
whom we so often saw in New York, with his exten-
sive and interesting collection of Indian portraits,
dresses, weapons, and curiosities. This gentleman,
while he enumerates very many of the customs and

JEWISH COUNTENANCES OF INDIANS.

usages of the Indians, which he thinks are clearly of
Jewish origin, says, " the first thing that strikes the
traveller in an Indian country as evidence of the
Indians heing of Jewish origin, (and it is certainly a
very forcible one,) is the close resemblance which
they generally bear, in certain expression of counte-
nance, to those people.**

This subject might be pursued to great length ;
but I purposely refrain, from the conviction that
enough has been adduced of fact, reasoning, and
authority, to prove at least the extreme probability
of the Indians of America being really the descend-
ants of the Israelites of old ; and I may add, that the
belief in their Asiatic origin was strongly impressed
on my own mind from all I raw of the Indians
here; while there appears tt me nothing in their
present state and condition which may not be easily
accounted for by the long lapse of ages which have
passed since their migrations first began.

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CHAP. VIII.

Benevolent institutions of the Americans— This a very prominent
feature of the national policy — -Alms-house for the poor at Belle-
vue — Dutch farm for charitable labour in Long Island — House
of refuge for destitute boys and girls — Asylum for the insane at
Blooming Dale — Instances of ferocious manners in the Western
states — Indifference of the Amsrican editors to such tilings —
Murder of a member of the legislature by the speaker — Institu-
tion for the deaf and dumb at New York — Visit of the Indians
to this institution — Benevolent institutions for seamen — Quaran-
tine hospital on Staten Island — Seaman's Retreat supported by
the funds of the state — Seaman's Snug Harbour, for the merchant
service — Benevolent institutions for seamen continued — Asylum
for the blind at Bellevue — American Seaman's Friend Society, in
foreign ports — Sailor's Magazine, and sailor's library supplied —
Seaman's savings bank, mariner's church. Bethel society — Institu-
tion for the support and instruction of the blind — Origin, pro-
gress, and present condition of this establishment — Asylum for
lying-in women, and dispensary — Society for the reformation of
juvenile delinquents.

I TURN to that which forms one of the most prominent
and praiseworthy features in the American character,
their steady and Hberal patronage of benevolent 'insti-
tutions, a great number of which we visited, and all
with much pleasure, from the excellence of their
management, the evident utility of the purposes for
which they were established, and the amount of the
good they effect.

The first of these is a spacious alms-house, situated
at a place called Bellevue, about three miles beyond

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ALMS HOUSE — DUTCH FARM.

12<)

New York, on the shore of the East river. Into
this asylum are received all persons who are destitute
of the means of subsistence, and the opportunity of
acquiring them, from whatever cause. Real and
undoubted want is the only qualification for admis-
sion. The expenses cf this establishment are thus
defrayed : — For such of the inmates as are citizens
of the city of New York, the municipal authorities
pay a stipulated sura per head, per day, out of the
municipal taxes ; for those who belong to particular
counties in the state of New York, the financial
authorities of such counties pay the same rate ;
those that belong to other states, are, after a given
period, transferred to the alms-houses of such states ;
and all foreigners, who are principally emigrants,
have their expenses paid by the general government
of the United States. In general, there are from
three to four hundred persons in this establishment ;
but the late pressure on the mercantile classes, having
led to a great stagnation of employment among the
labouring classes, the number is accordingly much
augmented.

Another excellent establishment exists in Long
Island, called the Dutch Farm, where a large area of
ground has been purchased, and buildings erected ;
and to which all boys taken up as vagrants, without
any visible means of subsistence, but who have not
been convicted of crime, are taken and put to labour
at various occupations, in which they nearly main-
tain themselves by their own industry, and are at the
same time subjected to the wholesome discipline
of mental culture and moral training", so that manv
of them become, in after life, worthy members of

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

society, and almost all acquire the power of main-
taining themselves in honesty and independence.

A third is the House of Refuge, to which all
youths of hoth sexes, under maturity, who have been
convicted of crime, are taken for reformation. When
we visited this establishment, we found there about
two hundred boys and fifty girls. They were kept in
separate apartments, each under superintendents of
their own sex ; and what struck us as remarkable
was, that though it might be supposed that the con-
viction of crime would level al distinctions, as they
were all convicted criminals alike, yet here the black
and coloured children were made to sit in one part
of the room, and the whites in another. Both were
subjected to a rigid discipline, and every hour of
their time was kept fully employed in some useful or
improving labour. They exhibited, as we thought,
the worst collection of countenances we had ever
seen ; and in their heads and faces, the phrenologist
and physiognomist would both have found abundant
proofs of the general truth of their theories, that
the shape of the cranium and the expression of
the features are often faithful indexes of the minds
within.

The Asylum for the Insane was another of the
benevolent institutions which we visited here. It is
siti ated at a beautiful spot called Blooming Dale,
about seven miles beyond the limits of the city of
New York to the northward, ithe House of Refuge
being only about two miles out of to^vn in the same
direction. The founder of this institution was a
Quaker, and the members of this exemplary and
benevolent body still take the warmest interest in

LUNATIC ASYLUM.

131

its superintendence and direction. It was in the
company of a worthy family, of the Society of Friends,
Mr. Samuel F. Mott, that we visited most of these
institutions, and we spent the entire day with them
at the Asylum in Blooming Dale.

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The house is pleasantly situated, in the centre of a
narrow part of the island of Manhattan, so that from
its terrace, the view is at once extensive and beau-
tiful ; the noble Hudson, with its lofty western cliffs,
appearing on the one side, and the East river on
the other. It is surrounded with pleasing grounds
and spacious buildings, all adapted to the general
purposes of the establishment, and is well placed for
health, beauty of prospect, and exercise. It is a
melancholy duty to visit those who are afflicted with
the loss of reason, and painful to narrate in detail the
peculiarities of each individual case. For myself, indeed,
after seeing and conversing with some of these unfor-

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

tunate beings, though I found them more happy than
I had expected, in their persons and minds — though
they were provided with every comfort, in space,
cleanliness, apparel, bedding, books, instruments,
music, flowers, and, indeed, everything that could
cheer and delight them, I was so overcome by the
strength of my feelings, as to be obliged to retire
for a period into a room alone, and seek relief
in tears j while the recollection of all that I heard
and saw made me dejected for several days. Mr.
Mott told me that this was the effect produced fre-
quently on him ; but that a sense of duty, and a fre-
quent repetition of his visits, had enabled him to
fortify himself in some degree for the discharge of
his functions, as a director and visitor, though never
without some pain.

It would be impossible to speak too highly of the
whole management of this establishment, as it
respects the arrangement of the building, the fur-
niture, the food, the ventilation, the anmsements and
recreations, and, indeed, all that can promote the
health and comfort of the inmates. They go out, in
parties, to take exercise, by walking or riding, in
the open air, every day, under the care of their re-
spective keepers, and behave with great propriety ;
once a month they are indulged with a ball, under
the inspection of the superintondant ; and it was
stated that all parties, but especially the females,
look forward to this monthly ball with the most
pleasing anticipations, prepare dresses for it with
great care, and are more frequently sobered down
from an approaching fit of anger or violence, by
being told, that if they do not behave well, they

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SANGUINARY OUTRAGES.

\S3

shall not go to the ball, than by almost any other means
that have yet been tried. The whole system of
treatment is conducted on the principle of exciting
all the good feelings, and repressing the bad — of
substituting the allurement of hope for the terror of
fear — of making affection and respect the leading
motives of action : and the success that has attended
this mode of treatment, justifies its permanent adop-
tion.

There are, undoubtedly, a number of persons in
the United States, many of them filling important and
distinguished stations in life, who might be more
appropriately placed as inmates of this Asylum than
suffered to remain at large, and commit the outrages
upon society of which they are guilty. The American
papers daily teem with proofs of this ; but, as speci-
mens of life and manners in the western and southern
states, the following may be deemed sufficient : —

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" A FATAL RENCONTRE.

" A fatal rencontre took place on the 18th inst. (Nov.) at the
Opelousas race-course, between Thomas Reeves and Samuel Fisher
— the former a young man of about twenty-tliree years of age, and
the latter an elderly gentleman of sixty.

" It appears that Reeves came armed to the place with a very
large bowie knife. By some means, his clothes were disarranged,
and the knife became visible to the surrounding spectators. Mr.
Fisher, noticing the appearance of the weapon, asked Mr. Reeves,
playfully and in jest, for what purpose he carried such a deadly
instrument. Reeves immediately answered, ' To kill you. God
d — ^n you :' whereupon he instantly drew the knife, and was in the
act of plunging it into the body of Fisher, when he was arrested in
the act, by a bystander, who, picking up a club that presented
itself, told Reeves that if he did not desist, he would strike him
down with the club. This afforded Fisher a moment for reflection,

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

after which he dosed with Roevos, and succeeded in taking the
knife from liim — having his hand cut severely during tlie struggle.
During the combat, both parties fell to the ground, Reeves falling
uppermost, who immediately commenced gouging his adversary.
Fisher then run him through the body with the knife. Reeves
arose, remarking that he was ' a dead man.' Fisher Immediately
gave himself up to the magistrate, who acquitted him. Public opi-
nion, it appears, fully justifies him in the act." — Planter's Intelli-
t/encer.

" TWO LIVES SACRIFICED IN A PRIVATE QUARREL.

" The following very extraordinary outrage, against the supre-
macy of the laws and the peace of society, we copy from a western
paper : —

' A very savage act of assassination occurred on the 7tli instant,
at Clinton, Hickman county, Kentucky, between Judge James, a
State senator, and Mr. Robert Binford, a candidate to fill a vacancy
in the House of Representatives.

* The parties had a preliminary quarrel near the residence of
Judge James a few days before, relative to some expression of the
Judge's, unfavourable to Binford's election. They met again, how-
ever, on this occasion, accidentally at Clinton. The particulars we
gather from the Louisville Advertiser.

' James asked Binford if he came to assassinate him on Sunday.
Binford answered — * What I came for, I came for.' Both drew,
and fired immediately. The ball from James's pistol kUled Bin-
ford, and Binford shot two balls into the head of Mr. Collins, a dis-
interested young gentleman, on a visit from Mississippi, who died
in thirty or forty minutes. Binford, it is said, after firing his pis-
tol, knocked James down with it, and commenced beating him
furiously, when a younger brother of the Judge's drew apistol, and
put the second ball into the body of Binford.

' Judge James was arrested, tried, and acquitted by an examin-
ing court, consisting of four highly respectable magistrates — tlie
killing of Binford being considered justifiable homicide." — New
Fork Transcript, Nov. 30, 1837.

*' THE MOST HORRIBLE YET.
" Of all the horrible tales from the West, which have yet reached
mc, one contained in the Louisville Kentucky Journal, of Saturday

SAVAGE BAHBAUITIES OF TIIK WEST.

135

lust, caps the climax. It is no less than the murder of II. S. Julian,
the treasurer, and Mr. Owen Pnrker, the clerk of the Mechanics'
Savings' Institution of that city, at 12 o'clock in the day, in the
banking-house, by Captain Clarendon E. Dix, for the purpose of
robbing the money-drawer; and he closed the dreadful tragedy by
blowing out liis own brains. Tlie death of Julian and Parker was
achieved by boating in their skulls with the cancelling hammer of
the bank. Dix had been esteemed generally as a respectable young
gentleman, and was but recently married ; his victims were of the
most unexceptionable character, and left dependent families."

■■^i

The American editor who prefixed to this last
paragraph the words " The most Horrible Yet," was
not aware of what was soon to succeed it ; for in less
than three weeks after this had appeared, an an-
nouncement was made of the following extraordinary
and unparalleled atrocity. The Speaker of the
House of Assembly, in Arkansas, having taken
offence at something said by one of the members of
that legislative body, instead of calling him to order,
or appealing to the sense of the House, went deli-
berately from his chair towards the member, and
then drawing a bowie knife, plunged it into his
bosom, and killed him on the spot.

For myself, much as I had heard and read of the
savage barbarities of the people of the West, I did
not believe this to be true. The gravity of a Legisla-
tive assembly — the dignity of a Speaker of such a
body — and the presence of a large number of col-
leagues — would, as it seemed to me, so operate as to
render such a scene impossible. But, a few days
brought full confirmation of this unprecedented out-
rage ; and my surprise at the fact itself was hardly
greater than my astonishment at the indifference

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with which such an atrocious affair was passed over
hoth hy the press and the people, all of whom seemed
too much engrossed in some present affair, to think
it worth their while to utter more than a passing
word upon it ; and this in many instances li;irdly
amounting to more than a very cold condemnation.
The following is the hrief manner in which the con-
firmation of the fact is given in the paper that first
announced the intelligence, the New York Sun, of
Dec. '29, 18^7:—

THE TRAGEDY IN ARKANSAS.

" We published on Monday a short paragraph, stating that a Mr.
Anthony, a member of the Arkansas legislature, had been killed
in a rencontre with Col. Wilson, the Speaker of the lower House.
It appears, from the particulars since received, that tliis murderous
outrage was actually committed on the floor of the House, while in
session — the Speaker, in consequence of some offensive remark
directed against him by the unfortunate member, liaving come
down from his aoat, armed with a howie knife! The member, it
is stated, was also armed with the same weapon, but the rencontre
lasted only for a moment, the latter having been left dead on the
floor, and the Speaker having had one hand nearly cut off, and the
other severely injured. Wilson was forthwith arrested by the civil
authorities, and Ins name stricken from the roll of the House, by
nearly a unanimous vote."

It was not entirely by an unanimous vote, it
would seem from this, that the murderous Speaker
was expelled from the house ; there were some of the
members who refused to join in this vote, thinking,
like the mob at Alton, who murdered Mr. Lovejoy,
and the magistrates who acquit murderers so often in
the West, that wilful spilling of blood is "justifiable

' ■'

INSTITI'TION roil nnAF AND Dt'MIl.

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homicide." It appeared from a subsequent para^apli,
that this Speaker had heeu released, on a bail of ^O(K)
ilollars, (about 4()0l. sterlin«r,) and it is thought that
even this atrocious murder will never bo judicially
I)unished.* Whether persons of such ungovernable
passions might not be advantageously lodged in
the Blooming-dale Asylum, rather than be permitted
to go at large, is a question which every one may easily
decide for themselves.

One of the most pleasing of the benevolent insti-
tutions that we visited while in New York, was the
EstalTishmert for the Instruction of the Deaf and
dumb, on th Haerlem road, at a distance of about
three miles t'lom the citv.

This institution, like that at Blooming-dale, is pleas-
ingly and advantageously situated, for good air, agree-
able scenery, and facility of pleasurable exercise. It
is presided over by Mr. Peet, a gentleman eminently
qualified for the office of Superintendent, by his great

* lie was subsequently acquitted.

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

skill in the art of teaching mutes, by his mildness,
urbanity, and piety, and by the earnest zeal which
he manifests in the progress of his pupils, and the
general welfare of the institution. At the period of
my first visit, a commission, appointed by the State,
was engaged in examining the pupils previous to
their drawing up the annual report of its condition j
and besides a great number of visitors, the mayor
and aldermen of the city attended in their official
capacity. The appearance of the pupils, in health,
apparel, and manners, was highly agreeable, and
the number of both sexes was nearly 200. The
teachers were numerous and competent ; and the
examination of the pupils in classes, evinced extra-
ordinary quickness and attainments in the majo-
rity of them. Without witnessing it, one could
scarcely believe that a person deaf and dumb from
birth, could be put so nearly on a par, by edu-
cation, with those who possess entire the faculties
of hearing and speaking. Among other persons who
visited this institution during my stay here, were the
Indian chiefs ; and as the account of their impres-
sions and observations, as well as of the proceedings
of the day generally, was very faithfully reported by
one of the party, for the Commercial Advertiser of
the following day, the 25 th of November, it is here
transcribed.

" VISIT OF THE INDIANS TO THE INSTITUTION FOR THE DEAF

AND DUMB.

" The Indian delegations now in this city, accompanied by the
United States' agent, and a committee of the Common Council, paid
a visit yesterday at 11 o'clock, to the Institution for the Deaf and
Dumb. Some circumstances connected with this incident, gave it

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INDIANS CONVERSE WITH DEAF AND DUMB.

139

more than ordinary Interest. The natural language of gestures, in
wliich deaf mutes converse, is quite familiar to all the savage tribes
of the West. The individual signs in some cases differ, but the
basis of the language is the same every where. It was quite inte-
resting to observe the pleased attention paid by these Sons of the
Forest to the various gesticulations employed by the pupils, as well
as to the wonder and unfeigned terror with which, on their first
arrival, they were in turn regarded by the mutes themselves.

" In the first instance, an intelligent lad belonging to the school
was brought forward, who described, by signs, the Indian processes
of hmiting and fishing. The tsyes of the whole circle were fixed
intently on him, and faces, at fii'st expressive of utter indifference,
lighted up with smiles of satisfaction as he proceeded. Occasionally
one would respond by a sign, signifying ' I know.' One of the
teachers then addressed them by signs, as follows : * You have
come from a coimtry very far to the West. You have travelled in
steam-boats and cars. You have visited great cities. You have
arrived here, and come to this building to visit the deaf and dumb.
We are pleased to see you. We are all aUke children of the Great
Spirit.' Emphatic signs of assent followed each proposition ; and
one of the chiefs interrupted the gesticulator, to describe the
fires in the steam-boats which had conveyed them. This individual
seemed to enter into the conversation with uncommon interest.
He told, by signs, on his own part, how they chased the deer and
buffalo, and how they skinned the slaughtered animals, and ate
their flesh. He told the number of his wives and children, mea-
suring the height of the latter with his hand. Various other com-
munications were made by different individuals, through the same
medium.

" In the mean time, however, some among them appeared dis-
posed to doubt the fact that all these children, amounting to some
hundred and fifty, were really deaf mutes. They expressed them-
selves in an amusing manner, intimating that they v/ere not to be
deceived in that sort of way. But shortly afterward, having been
conducted to one of the school-rooms, and having seen the perform-
ance of a class, under the direction of the principal, Mr. Peet, they
gave it up, and allowed that the thing was possible.

" They asserted, however, that they had never seen a deaf mute

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

among their own people. This is a remarkable fact ; for of the
existence of such among some tribes, there can be no doubt.

" After the assemblage had been collected in the chapel of the
institution, the delegation were addressed by Mr. Peet, as follows : —
" * Brothers — I am happy to see you here. The object of this
institution is to teach the deaf and dumb. These children, whom
you see ai'ound you, cannot hear or speak. They are assembled
liere from all parts of the country. We do not leave them on the
prairie or in the forest. We give them food and clothing. We
teach them to read and write, to make shoes, clothes, and furniture,
and to bind books, and raise vegetables. We also teach them con-
cerning the Great Spirit, who takes care of them, and g^ves them
every blessing ; so that when they leave this place, and return to
their friends, they may know how to work and support themselves,
and to be virtuous and happy. Brothers, I thank you for your
visit. I wish you prosperity and happiness. I have done.'

" This address having been communicated to the Indians, was
responded to by a chief of the Pawnees, in the following manner : —
" * My Father — We are glad to come here. When we saw these
children, we did not believe that they could not hear and speak ;
but since we have seen you make signs to them, and that they
write down what you say, we believe that they are deaf and dumb.
My father, I thank you, I thank you. When I go back to my
cO'mtry, 1 shall tell my people what I have seen. I shall remem-
ber what you have said. I shall innitate your good example.'

" The extreme fondness of these simple children of nature for
glittering ornaments, was manifested in a thousand ways diu-ing
their visit. Upon all beads, chains, and rings, they looked with
eager eyes. From many of the mutes, and others, they received
gifts of trifling value, with expressions of the highest gratification.

" The visit to the institution has not been without its use to the
pupils themselves. It lias served better than a thousand descriptive
lessons, to convey to them an adequate idea of the inhabitants of
our Western wilds. They have now clear ideas of a portion of the
human race, of whom they read and are told much. And as there
is no doubt that their uncivilized visitants will fvdfil their promise,
to remember what they have seen, so there is quite as little, that
the remembrance will be reciprocal.

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INSTITUTIONS FOR SEAMEN.

141

" It appears, from the nineteenth annual report of the institution,
that the whole number of pupils is 1 50, of whom 112 are supported
by the state, 14 by the institution, 3 by the corporation of this
city, 2 by the supervisors of Montf^omery County, 1 by the super-
visors of Dutchess County, 8 by tlie state of New Jersey, and 10
by their friends. The expenditure in 1837 amounted to 27,873
dollars. Receipts, 26,866 dollars, including 14,926 dollars from
the comptroller for state pupils, and 5,000 dollai's from ditto, under
the act of April 3, 1834."

The benevolent institutions for the benefit of Sea-
men are numerous and efficient ; and the condition
of the mariners of America is far more honourable
to it, as a maritime nation, than the condition of the
same classes in Great Britain. It is estimated that
there are in the United States about 200,000 sea-
men, of whom there are 50,000 in the foreign, and
50,000 in the coasting-trade and fisheries, and about
100,000 in the ships of war in commission at home
and abroad ; in addition to which, there are, at least,
50,000 more employed in navigating the large rivers
and lakes of the interior of the country. For these,
the following institutions provide the comforts and
advantages attached to each respectively.

The Quarantine Hospital is established in a
healthy and agreeable situation at Staten Island.
It is an institution of the United States, and, as such,
is under the control of the general government. It is
supported by a tax of 20 cents, or ..bout tenpencc
English, per month, on the wages of seamen, which
sum is paid by the captain of each ship that enters
at the custom-house, and deducted from the sea-
men's wages in his settlement. To this hospital
every seaman who has ever paid the hospital money at

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

any period of his life, has a right of admission, to
remain there as long as may be necessary for his
complete recovery. Duringall the time of his stay here,
he is fed and lodged comfortably, as well as provided
with medical attendance, all without charge.

The Seamen's Retreat is also situated at Staten
Island. This belongs to the local government of the
State of New York, by whom it was founded, and it
is supported by a State tax of one dollar per voyage,
long or short, from every foreign port, to which
ships entering ports in the state of New York are
subject. Masters of ships pay a dollar and half, mates
and seamen a dollar each, and all persons performing
trips coastwise, a quarter of a dollar per voyage.
This is collected at the custom-house like the former,
and is applied, in a similar manner, to the mainte-
nance of this State asylum, in aid of that of the general
government, which, but for this auxiliary, would be
insufTicient to receive all the applicants : the treat-
ment here is most liberal, and the care and attention
to the inmates deserving all praise.

The Sailors* Snug Harbour is also on Staten Island.
This was first established by a munificent bequest of
Mr. Randall. It is intended for the permanent
accommodation, for life, of a limited number of super-
annuated and worn-out seamen : and from the inte-
rest taken in this institution by the leading friends
of the seamen here, and the judicious managemnnt
of the property fi'om which its funds are derived, il
is one of the best and most efficient of all the mari-
time establishments of the country.

The American Seamen's Friend Society, has for
its great object the maintaining chaplains for Ame-

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INSTITUTIONS FOR SEAMEN,

143

rican seamen in foreign ports. It was first organized
in 1826, and has for nearly the whole of that time
supported chaplains in fifteen foreign ports. This
society publishes at New York, the Sailor's Magazine,
and furnishes vessels with libraries for the use of
seamen. It has been particularly instrumental in
forming the " Sailors' Homes," a name given to the
sober and orderly boarding-houses, established, under
the care of the society, to rescue the Sfch ipn from the
grasp of the harpies who usually surround him on
his landing, and never quit him till they 1 j-ve plun-
dered him of all he possesses. These Homes have
happily increased in all the principal ports, especially
in Boston, Portland, New York, and Charleston;
and lists of them, for the sailor's guidance, are pub-
lished monthly, on the cover of the Sailor's Magazine.

The Seamen's Savings' Bank is another excellent
institution, in which, under the superintendence of the
American Seamen's Friend Society, many mariners
are induced to deposit a good portion of their hard-
earned wages, so as to save it from dissipation ; and
the best effects have alre<?.dy been produced by this
and kindred institutions in the other ports of the
United States.

In addition to all these, there are several religious
associations, which confine their labours to the class
of Seamen only — such as the New York Port Society,
to sustain the Mariner's Church — the Bethel Union,
for promoting prayers and divine s -""Ice on board
ships lying ^r. the harbour and at th. viiarves — and
the Marine Jible Society, for the supply of the
Scriptures to such boamen as may Le ready audi' '1-

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

ing to reccivCj and are able and disposed to read
them,

OiiG of the most mteresting of the benevolent
instil otioiis of New York, is the Asylum for theBlhid.
This n ifiTC'tablv situated at a short distance from
Now Yc'-^, rt a ]At.cG called Belle vue, overlooking
the Hudson rivci and the Jersey shore, where a suit-
able building, with all the requisite auxiliaries for
the purposes of the institution, has been erected, on
ground worth 10,000 dollars, which was liberally
,'^iven for the purpose by Mr. James Boorman, a
iiierchiint ol New York. The society was first orga-
nized in 1831, and owes its origin to Dr. Samuel
Ackerly, a benevolent physician, and Mr. Samuel
Wood, a member of the Society of Friends, who were
afterwards joined by Dr. John Russ. These gentlemen
presented a petition to the legislature of th© State,
praying for the incorporation of the Society, which
was granted; and in March 183% the institution
was first opened, with three blind children from the
alms-houses of New York, who had lost their sight
by ophthalmia, to which three others were added in
May of the same year ; and with these six, the school
of instruction first began. In 1833, the directors
were engaged in obtaining- from Europe all the in-
formation they could collect respecting the best
method of tear/ning the blind ; and in 1838 they
had so far succeeded, as to be able to hold a public
exhibition of the proficiency of the pupils, in various
branches of manual labour, aa ^\ \ll as t^f me7ital exer-
chi\ in both of which 'here .e perfoi*merrt ^^carcely
u:t lor to those of youth ot the same age possessing

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INSTITUTION FOn THE BLIND.

145

sight.

In 1834, the numhcr of pupils had increased
to 26 ; in 1835, there were 41 ; in 1836, there were
58 ; and in 1837, there wer" 60 ; the increased
numbers being occasioned by the increased means of
the Institution to provide for their support and in-
struction, though still forming a very small proportion
of the whole number of blind in the state of New
York, which had been ascertained, by the census of
1830, to be more than 800 persons.

The funds by which this institution is supported
are contributed partly by voluntary contributions,
and partly by the State, according to a usage very
common in America, and well worthy of imitation
in other countries, namely, that whenever private
individuals raise, by voluntary contribution, a sum
for any given benevolent purpose, the State contri-
butes an equal or sometimes a larger sum ; in return
for which, it enjoys a share of the superintendence,
and the power of placing claimants, who are destitute
of other patronage, within the reach of its benefits.
Where individuals contribute the whole support to
such institutions, it is generally found that they
languish for want of funds ; and where the State
contributes the whole, it is as generally found that
they decline, for want of due vigilance in the super-
intendence. But both these evils are avoided by
this joint contribution of means, and joint interest
and responsibility, and the practical working of the
system shews its decided superiority to every other.
In the instance, of the Institution for the Blind, the
State agreec tliJil * '} soon as 8,000 dollars were raised
by volurtary contributions, and placed in a given
bank, the public funds should furnish 12,000 dollars.

VOL. I.

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to make the capital of the institution 20,000 ; and
the interest of this, with the annual subscriptions,
legacies, donations, collections at public meetings,
exhibitions of manufactures, and concerts of music
held by the blind p\ipils at stated periods of the
year, furnish ample funds for the support of the
Institution, and the gradual increase of its accommo-
dation for pupils.

The time of the pupils is divided into three parts,
and their instruction is arranged and organized into
three departments — intellectual, mechanical, and
musical. The superintendent has the entire direc-
tion of all the internal concerns of the Institution,
besides which, he gives daily lectures to the pupils on
various subjects of knowledge and science adapted
to their capacities, and occasionally takes part in the
instruction of a class.

The school is regularly opened twice a day for
instruction in reading, writing, grammar, geography,
arithmetic, and history. Reading is accomplished
by feeling the pages of a book with embossed or
raised letters. Perfection in this is readily acquired
by some of the blind, and with difficulty by others.
Children have a greater sensibility of feeling in the
extremity of the fingers than grown persons ; and
those whose hands have been hardened by work,
have this feeling blunted. Even those whose sensi-
bility of touch is so great as to enable them to read
with facility the books printed for the blind, have
this capacity greatly abated or destroyed when
the fingers are cold, dirty, wet with perspiration,
or rough with mechanical emplc . - nts. Hence At
;s, tb' ? all the pupils do not engage in this exei*-

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EDUCATION OF THK ULIND.

147

cise, and that the best class of readers is composed
of young females, and of male children not engaged
in the workshops.

Writing is best performed with a pencil, as a
blind person cannot see to the perfection of the pen,
or the flow of the ink, and its regular supply ; and
when the pen is raised, the place to recommence
cannot be correctly ascertained. Various contri-
vances have been suggested and tried for this pur-
pose ; but the simplest is that of a grooved pasteboard,
on which the paper is placed, and the grooves guide
the pencil of the writer in a straight line.

Much of the instruction conveyed to the blind is
oral. Their want of sight abstracts them from
external objects, and in many cases renders them
highly intellectual. Hence their memories are very
tenacious and retentive, and they acquire a perfect
knowledge of grammar, geography, and history, by
oral comuiuij'' ation with their teachers. Among
the pupils in the school of this Institution, the super-
intendent feels confident he can turn out a class (and
some of them quite young) equal ii. "ammar and
geography to any class of the same iiuiiiber in any
other school. The details of geography are also
conveyed by oral instruction, but maps and globes
with raised lines, grooves, prominences, points, &c.
have b> ei. prepared for the blind, and the pupils are
exercised upon them by feeling out rivers, lakes,
mountains, coasts, bays, towns, and other things
thereon delineated. A knowledge of history depends
altogether upon the tenacity of the memory in retain-
ing what the teachers read to them.

Arithmetic is acquired both mentally and mecha-

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

nically. Several have a remarkable capacity tor
this science, and in tliom the or^mn of numbers is
largely developed ; hence they find no difficulty in
calculating, mentally, problems in arithmetic involv-
ing many figures.

Music is also cultivated, both vocal and instru-
mental ; and considerable proficiency has been
attained in both, by the pupils, so that public con-
certs are occasionally given by them for the benefit
of the institution, at which none but the pupils
perform, and. this txiey do with great credit to them-
selves.

Many are thus taught, beyond their mere literary
attainments, the knov/ledge of some useful art, by
the practice of which they can maintain themselves
independently when they leave the Institution ; and
the only matter of regret is, that such asylums are
not sulrlciently num*^rous in all countries, to secure
to every person afflic >^d with blindness the enjoy-
ment and independence which study and the pursuit
of some useful occupation is cci'tain to secure, and
which might be thus easily brouii^ht within the reach
of all.

There is an Asylum for Lying-in Women, which
affords relief to poor but respectable females, whose
marriages arc capable of proof, and whose characters
are good. Some of these are taken to the Asylum
and attended there, and others receive medical aid
and other assistance at their own homes. It is
superintended chiefly by benevolent ladies, and
conducted by a matron with proper assistants ;
and during the fourteen years of its existence, 9^4
of the applicants to it have been safely and effec-

iiiiiiiiiiiii'

RKFOUMATION OF Jl'VKNILK DKI.lNtiUHNTS.

149

tually relieved, while only ei^lit deaths have occurred
in the whole period. It is supported entirely by volun-
tary subscription, and is the only similar institution
in the city.

A Dispensary also exists, for supplying medical
advice, as well as medicine, gratuitously to the poor,
which is supported by voluntary contributions. It
has subsisted for forty-six years, and, during that
period, 17,54 i persons have been relieved through
its instrumentality, at the moderate cost of about
8,000 dollars for the whole period.

One of the most valuable of the benevolent insti-
tutions in the city, is the Society for the Reformation
of Juvenile Delinquents. This institution was estab-
lished for the purpose of taking charge of the
youthful criminals and vagrants taken up by the
police in the streets and highways, and endeavouring
to effect these three great objects : first, of reforming
their bad habits, and giving them a moral, and,
if possible, a religious character ; next, of giving
them some mental acquirements by education ;
and thirdly, teaching them some honest trade or
calling, by which they might obtain a subsistence.
It has been in operation for twelve years, and has
hitherto produced the best results.

The number of the boys in this Institution is at
present 145, and of girls 69. The two sexes are
taught in different apartments, and exercised in
different sections of the building, and each is attended
by teachers of its ow n sex only. The coloured are
also separated from the white delinquents ; for even
among criminals, this distinction of colour is rigidly
observed.

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Wo were struck with the tcstimonv of the teai hers
and supfintendcnt, as to the large share which
inteniperanee had in producing the crimes of which
these very young persons were the victims, some of
them not more than seven or eight years of age, and
none ahove fifteen or sixteen ; and this was so
strongly impressed on the minds of the directors of
the Institution, that in their last annual report for
1837, they advert to it in the following terms :

** 111 emimerating a few of the chief causes of crime in tliis
country, na discovered in the experience of tlie managers, we liave
as usual to commence with that hydra-headed monster, intemper-
uncc ! Such is the general demand for labourers and mechanics in
every branch of business, and so remunerating are the wages to be
obtained by the industrious, that there would seem to be but little
incentive to crime, occasioned by want, as a person has only to be
sober and industrious to obtain the means of support. That mora-
lity and religion are practised and reverenced by thousands of the
labouring classes, is a fact evident to every person of observation ;
that such might be the case much more extensively in every class,
nobody will deny : what is done by some, can be done by others in
similar circumstances. But, alas! the never-failing supply of ardent
spirits, and at so cheap a price as to bring them within the com-
pass of every man's purse, is so direct and constant a temptation,
that it seems to require something more than human nature to
withstand it. When once the first feelings of propriety are over-
come, and the Rubicon passed, there is but little hope that any self-
control afterwards will be exercised to expel the tempter from his
new abode. The same indescribable fascination which binds the
ambitious man in the pursuit of his favourite object, whatever it
may be, exercises a similar or even more potent influence over the
drunkard. He first sacrifices himself, then his wife and children,
until all arc reduced to the lowest grade of human misery. Al-
though, in most cases, we are ready to believe that the unfortunate
wife will stem the torrent of alliictlon, without contamination, aiul
preserve her tender babes from the moral pollution which surromids

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th«ni, yet, alus! it soinotiinrs lup^ciia that she, too, horomci thu
victim, corrupted hy hur huHhand's example, uiid, M a neccitnnry
conHt'<nieuce, tlio poor children, until then iun<H'cnt, ore forced
into the paths of vice by their unnatural purentd ? This is nu 'fancy
ttketch }' it is an every -day truth ; and the rccordx oil th« House of
Rcfugo most distinctly prove, that by far tlie greater number of
its inmates have been brought to tliuir unfortunate condition by
the intemperance of a father or a mother, or both.

" The book which contains the histories of the children who
}iuve been admitted into the house, is a most instructive one to read,
and should not be beneath the notice of a legislator. Its pages may
almost bo called a ' succinct account of the rise and progress of
intempemnce.' The philanthropist who peruses its simple and
unpretending details, will exclaim, when he finished it, ' Could wo
but abolish drunkenness, where would we find candidates for
admission into our prisons ?'

" It* the effects of this dreadful plague be such as we describe,
(and wlio can call our statement into question ?) is it not an act of
duty on the part of the constituted authorities, to whom power is
given for the benefit of the whole community, to do all tliey can to
lessen, if they cannot eradicate, this vice?

*' There is another evil of serious magnitude in this city, which
we think requires correction — we allude to tliose petty pawn-
brokers' shops, which ■ to be found in many of our most public
streets.

" The facility wit'
whether new or "1'
strong temptations »u

" A pawnbroker who vcdd not knowingly receive stolen goods,
is still very liable to bo ifnposod upon ; whilst one of a different
chara»5ter haa numerous ways of encouraging thieves to con-
tinue their evil practices. Persons in distressed circumstances,
who are ashamed to beg, will thankfully take whatever sum, be it
ever so small, they can obtain in the pawnbroker's shop, and submit
to the loss of intorest, or to the sale of their gootls, if they cannot in
time redeem them. Those who steal, will also take whatever they
can get advanced, as a loan, because it is all clear gain to thcni.
Many a thief would steal on article worth ten shillings, and pawn it

money can be obtained on any article,
hii 01 great or little value, holds out

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STATE OF ^EW YOUK.

for ten cents. Fhuling the ease with which they succeed in obtaining
money, one petty theft follows another, until they become more
bold in their depredations, and rob on a larger scale.

" The system of loaning money to the poor can certainly be
improA'ed upon, and none calls more loudly for legislative interfer-
ence. We have our chartered banlis, and insurance companies, for
the benefit of the community ; as by these means, accommodation
and security can be furnished on better terms to the upper and
middle classes of society ; while for the poor and needy, little
provision has been made, so that they are left a prey to the arts
of those who take advantage of their necessities."

I have given these passages of the Report, in the
hope that they will meet the eyes of some of our
British legislators and philanthropists, having been
myself for years past convinced that public houses for
drinking, and pawnbrokers' shops for lending, are
two of the greatest curses that afflict our country ;
and that the entire extirpation of both would be the
greatest blessing that could be conferred upon our
land.

CHAP. IX.

'. V

Misery and crime among the poorer classes— Levity of the public
jom-nals in recording this — Bennett's slanderous paper, the
Morning Herald — Bodies of dead negroes salted for exportation
— Deachs from want and destitution — American importation of
foreign grain — Reversion of the order of nature in this — Causes
which led to this singular state of things — Instances of robbery,
murder, and fraud — Occupations for the members of the law —
Highwaymen in the suburbs of New York — Depravity of morals
in the country — Intemperance and wretchedness in the towns —
Authentic proofs of this from public records — Opinions as to
the causes of so much depravity — Exposition of the progress of
American embarrassment — Effects of these causes on the general
condition of society — Party misrepresentations of the public
press — Taste of the populace for shows and sights — Celebration
of the anniversary of Evacuation-day — Description of this festival
from an American pen.

Notwithstanding the number and efficiency of the
benevolent institutions of New York, there is still a
large amount of misery and crime, of destitution in
its most abject state, and of intemperance in its most
fearful forms, existing in that city. A very painful
part of this picture is the indifference, and even
levity, with which this subject is treated in the
public papers, where facts that ought to thrill the
heart with horror, or melt it with pity, are treated of
with all the flippancy of a jest, and their readers are
thus habituated to see crime and wretchedness made
subjects of amusement rather than of commiseration.
The manner in which most of the police cases arc
treated (and the London papers have had their per-

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iiicious example too closely followed in this respect)
is such as to take away all disgust at the crimes
committed, and destroy all sympathy for its unhappy
victims. Provided a laugh can be excited by the air
of the ludicrous with which the personages and
their offences are invested, the object of the reporter
appears to be answered ; and if the sale of the paper
is thereby increased, the gains of the editor are also
promoted; but the healthy feeling of indignation
against crime, and of sympathy for human suffering,
is by this means daily and hourly vitiated and destroy-
ed. I offer as examples of this, two paragraphs out
of fifty similar ones, at least, that fell under my eye
during my stay in this city.

" WELL FILLED.
" The Courier of this morning states that some police officers
had occasion to visit a house in Cross Street a few days since.
They found that it was tenanted by seventy-two women, sixty-five
men, and one hundred and thirty-five children, exclusive of the live
stock attendant upon such a family."

This paragraph, which was taken from the Com-
mercial Advertiser in December, one of the leading
Whig daily papers, was copied into nearly all the
others, with the heading of ** Well Filled," pre-
served in each ; and in no instance did 1 perceive
added to it the slightest expression of regret that
this opulent city should contain witliin its bosom
such a number of unhappy beings huddled together
in so confined a space, while hundreds were living
in palaces, and could feed, by the surplus of their
daily tables, the wretched inmates of these crowded
dwellings. The terms "well-filled," and "rive stock"
were the parts of the paragraph that excited a

EDITORIAL PROFLIGACY.

156

laugh ; while the amount of suffering indicated by
the excessive numbers and limited space, were passed
over without comment or observation. The follow-
ing is just as Leartless in its way. It is taken from
the New York Daily Whig :

" A HUSKING FROLIC IN KENTUCKY.

*' A fight came off at MaysvUle, Kentucky, on the 20th, in which a
Mr. Coulster was stabbed in the side, and is dead; a Mr. Gibson was
well hacked with a knife ; a Mr. Farrs was dangerously wounded
in the head, and another of the same name in the hip; a Mr. Shoe-
maker was severely beaten, and several others seriously hurt in
vai'ious ways. This entertainment was the winding up of a com
husking frolic, when all, doubtless, were right merry with good
whisky."

What must be the indifference to human life, the
contempt of morals, and the indulgent estimate of
drunkenness, in the mind of the editor who could
pen such a paragraph as this, (for this and its prede-
cessor was printed in large open type, like the leading
articles of the respective papers,) may be easily
inferred. How then is it possible, while such
heartless and unfeeling guides and teachers regulate
the public taste, and supply the public appetite with
mental food, that the communitv should not have
their taste corrupted, their moral perceptions dead-
ened, and their horror of crime frittered away to
indifference ? Thus it is that announcements of the
most revolting description are made with a coolness
and nonchalance which is almost incredible. In
the New York Transcript, of January 14, 1838, the
editor of which professes \/) be a religious man,
the following astounding assertion is made without
note or comment ; and whether the statement be

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true or false (and for the reputation of the city
named, I would hope for the latter,) yet the heartless-
ness of the editor who could make such a statement,
without the expression of the slightest mark either
of surprise or disapprobation, is the same. It is as
follows : —

" The business of supplying brothel-keepers with unsuspecting
victims, has been adopted by tlie Boston intelligence office-keepers
in Boston."

The demorahzing effect which the daily perusal
of such paragraphs a* rhese must produce on the
rising generation, is iiuipossible to be calculated, from
its familiarizing i- • with scenes of vice, of which
they would othe^ have remained ignorant ; but

still more, from Its makiiig crime and wretchedness
the subject of jest and ridicule, b which the m. ler-
standing b(;<om<!S blunted to the perception of evil,
and the heart rendered callous to hiiman smffering.

There is one daily newspaper in New York, how-
ever, which carries on such a trade of irfamy, in
pandering to the public appetite for slander and
obscenity, that it deserves to be held up to public
reprobation by name. It is called the Morning
Herald, it is written and published by its proprietor,
James Gordon Bennett, a native of Scotland by
birth, but long domiciled in New \ "irk ; it i« pub-
lished, in three editions — a morning, an evening, and
a weekly Herald — the two fo^-mer at d pennj , ^nd
the latter at three pence each. Its j^actice m to
employ persons to collect all the gossip and scandal
of the town, relating to private families and indivi-
duals ; and upon a gi*ain or two of truth, t/) heap up
a superstructure of falsehood, and tli n interlard thig

ABrSE OF THE PRESS.

157

with expressions or allusions of the grossest obscenity,
and send it forth for the gratification of the depraved.
Private dinner-parties, balls, and social meetings, arc
pretended to be reported in its pages — so )^ of them
having no existence, and others wholly misn;} "esent-
ed ; and the only way of securing exemption from
the attacks of his slanderous pen, is to advertise
largely in the paper, and, pay most extravagant
prices, or to send the editor presents, in money or
other direct bribes. Several individuals have had
letters addressed to them from the office of this
paper, saying, that communications were in their
possession which they would not like to see in print ;
but that the only way of preventing their appearance,
would be to pay the amount which had been offered
for their insertion ; and some timid persons have
been thus awed into the payment of the " hush-mo-
ney" required, though others have resisted it. The
following circumstance occurred to myself with this
paper : — On my arrival in New York, a gentleman,
whom I had known in England, offered to allow his
clerk to transact for me any business connected with
advertising in the newspapers, to save me the trou-
ble. I very gladly availed myself of this offer ; and
the clerk accordingly took round the first advertise-
ment of my lectures to each of the papers of the city,
as he was directed to have it inserted in all, without
distinction of party. At the offices generally, the
charge; varied between one and two dollars, but never
exceeded the latter, for one insertion. At the office
of the Morning Herald, ten dollars were demanded j
th« great disproportion of the charge induced the
clerk to decline leaving it there, till he had con-

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suited his employer ; and accordingly the excessive
charge denjanded was communicated to me. Being
then entirely ignorant of the characters of any of the
papers, as I had been in the country but a few days,
I asked whether there was any thing in the great
circulation )r high reputation of the Morning He-
rald, that could warrant its asking ten dollars for
what other papers charged but two ; and the answer
was ** No : on the contrary, the paper has the
worst reputation of any journal in the city — its cir-
culation is confined to the lovers of scandal rather
than of news ; and the editor is considered as a man
of the most abandoned and unprincipled character."
But, it was added, this is his method of asking, and
obtaining " hush-money ;" and J was strongly re-
commended to pay it, as the only method of escaping
from his lash. My reply was, "Never — I would
rather submit to any amount of vituperation that his
press could pour forth against me, than purchase his
silence by this degrading and demoralizing payment
of hush-money. I will neither advertise in his
paper, nor read it, while I remain in the city." I
was told what would happen — that I should be
abused daily ; and this was really the fact, as I learnt
from others, for I was true to my promise, of never
seeing it myself. I was told, also, that I should re-
pent the course I had taken ; but this prediction was
not fulfilled. Mr. Bennett was tired of his task, as
far as I was the subject of his abuse, in a very short
time, and soon gave it up ; and if this course, of nei-
ther paying for suppression, nor reading his vitupe-
rations, were more generally followed by the commu-
nity, it would extinguish his paper in a very short

LEVITY OF MANNERS.

159

■'d

period. Others have followed a different method,
but with a less favourable issue. By some, Mr. Ben-
nett has been publicly horsewhipped in the street ;
by others, he has been prosecuted at law ; but the
^•esult of both these modes of treatment has been to
give himself and his paper greater notoriety than
before, and thus to promote, rather than retard, the
farther extension of the mischief.

Another instance of the habit of treating with
levity, incidents which, in any other country, would
excite feelings of indignation and horror, may be
given. It had been discovered, that of late, it was a
common practice in New York, to ship off the bodies
of dead negroes, male and female, for various ports,
but especially the south, to the medical students, for
dissection ; and, to elude suspicion, these dead bodies
were put up in salt and brine, and packed in the
same kind of casks as those in which salted provi-
sions are exported from hence. A third or fourth
discovery of this description was made during the
month of January ; and the following is the manner
in which it is headed and described in the papers of
the day : —

MORE PORK FOR THE SOUTH.

" Yesterday morning it was discovered that a barrel, which had
been put into the office of the Charleston packet line — store of George
Buckley, No. 88, South Street — for the purpose r^ being shipped to
Charleston, contained the bodies of two dead negroes. The cask
and contents were sent up to the police office, and placed in the dead-
house for the Coroner's inspection ; but as he had no opportunity to
hold an inquest on them yesterday, the particulars of the affair have
not yet transpired."

The verdict of the inquest, subsequently given.

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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was, that the negroes had died of disease ; but no
further inquiry appears to have been made into the
matter, as if it were altogether beneath th- .otice of
the white men to trace out these traders in Tie dead
bodies of the blacks.

The instances of death, from destitution and want,
are much more numerous than I had thought pos-
sible in a country like this, where food of every
kind is abimdant and cheap ; and where labour of
every description is largely remunerated. Besides the
subscriptions raised in the differ >nt wards of tiiis
city to relieve the indigent ' 'id distressed classes,
who, under any proper arrangement of things, ought
not to exhibit instances of want, in large numbers, in
a land of plenty, the Philadelphia Commercial Herald,
of January, announces that "five hundred persons in
indigent circumstances in that city were daily sup-
plied with good soup, at the Western soup-house
there." This indigence, in a country where food can
be raised so cheap, where labour is in such demand,
and always paid so well, would seem unaccountable,
but for the fact, that in the late mania for specula-
tion, the cultivators of the soil, instead of following
up their agricultural pursuits, had left off farming,
to become speculators in stocks, buyers of shares in
rail-roads never begun, and canals never opened, as
well as purchasers of lots of land on which towns
were inteniled to be built; in which extravagant
schemes they spent all their time and money ; so that
agriculture, the great basis of the national wealth,
and the surest and steadiest security of individual
prosperity in these fertile States, was so neglected,
that the vountry was obliged to import grain for its

; ::;>:

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INORDINATE LOVE OF GAIN.

101

own consumption, instead of supplying, as it ought
to do, from its own surplus, the older countries of
Europe. From the vast amount of grain, grown in
America, suhjected to distillation — thus converting
what nature has bountifully supplied for whole-
some food, into the poisonous and crime-engender-
ing drink of ardent spirits — and from the deficiency
of the supply of grain from its own soil, for the rea-
sons before assigned — this finest grain-producing coun-
try on the globe was obliged to import its own food ;
and it is stated in the public journals of this city,
that in the year 1837, the single port of Baltimore
alone, received 800,000 bushels of wheat, and 140,000
bushels of rye, from Europe. The following is the
paragraph, verbatim: —

" The amount of foreign grain imported into Baltimore during
the year 1837, was not far from eight hundred thousand bushels
of wheat, and one himdred and forty thousand bushels of rye."

The inordinate love of gain, which has led to all
these perversions of things from their right and pro-
per channels, is working more mischief in this country,
and undermining the moral principle of its inhabit-
ants more powerfully than all other causes combined,
excep t, perhaps, intemperance, the giant-destroyer that
sweeps away thousands every year to a premature
grave, and hurries its victims from a life of compara-
tive virtue and honesty to a career of vice and infamy.
The newspapers, from all quarters of the Union, teem
with proofs of the recklessness with which this love
of gain is indulged ; and every barrier that stands in
the way of its acquisition seems to be broken down with-
out scruple. Not long since, a young man who had

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entered life with brilliant prospects, and jvas engaged
in ?. respectable house of business, acquired a taste
fvm card-playing in the steam-boats, where, it is said,
the passengers generally play for several hours a day
while on their voyage, and where professed gamblers
and sharpers are ready to profit by the occasion, at
first ruining, and then seducing into their own ranks,
the unguarded and the young. He soon became
infatuated with the passion, quitted his regular busi-
ness, played, lost, and betook himself to robbery :
when every new exploit making him more and more
desperate, he entered one of the banks at Nashville
in Tennessee, at a period of the day when the clerks
were absent at dinner, and finding there the cashier,
seized him, and killed him at a blow, by beating his
brains out with a hammer. The cries of the victim
brought a person from an adjoining room to his relief,
and he was despatched in a similar manner ; when
others soon after arriving, he was interrupted in his
plunder of the drawers of the bank, with which he
was proceeding ; till, seeing all hope of escape vain,
he drew a loaded pistol, with which he had fur-
nished himself, for the murder of another, and with it
blew out his own brains on the spot.

This had scarcely been communicated through the
papers, before the following paragraph appeared, in
the New York Sun, of January 29.

t i

THE ROBBERY OF THE MAIL, AND MURDER OF THE

DRIVER.

" The Mobile Advertiser of the 22d states, that on the previous
Friday night, within a mile and a half of Stockton, the mail bags
were ripped open and their contents rifled. The bags were found

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REMARKABLE CASE OF FRAL'D.

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next morning in the neighbourhoud. Tlie stage contained the
New Orleans mails of Wednesday and Thursday, and the mail of
Friday from Mobile. The driver had two balls shot through his
lu'iul. Suspicion rests upon two men who had been lurking about
Stockton for some days previously."

But to show that these rohberiea and frauds are
not confined to the south, iu. : h no doubt thoy arc
more abundant there th:a 1 J lb a north, the follow-
ing short summary may be given from the New
York Transcript of the same day, January 29, 1838.

** ATTEMPT AT EXTENSIVE FRAUD.

" A considerable excitement was produced in Wall-street circles
on Friday and Saturday, in consequence of the discovery of an
attempt to perpetrate extensive frauds by several persons, in this
city, some of whom have hitherto maintained characters highly
respectable for honour, honesty, and wealth. It appears, that by
forging a letter in the name of a bank in Kentucky, addressed to
the president or cashier of the Union Bank of this city, in which
the plates of the Kentucky bank were deposited, those plates were
obtained, taken to the printers, Messrs. Burton and Co., and
370,000 dollars of bills of the Kentucky bank struck off, ready for
signature. A man calling himself Scott, who came, as is stated,
from Cleveland, Ohio, and who brought the letter to the office of
the Union bank, having gone on to Boston while the bills were
printing off, returned at night, and, owing to the unseasonable hour
at which he called upon the printer, the latter suspected that there
was something wrong in the transaction, when going to the president
of the Union bank, and stating his suspicions, that officer, on look-
ing at the letter from the president of the Kentucky bank, ascer-
tained that it was a forgery.

" The 370,000 dollars of bills of Kentucky that had been struck
ofti were then handed over to the Union bank, and Scott, whose
real name is Pitcher, was arrested and imprisoned, as was also Mr.
Charles Steams of Waverley Place, in this city, who whilom figured
as the getter-up of some Illinois shinplasters which he advertised to
be redeemed in this city, at his own house in Waverley Place, and

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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many of which, though worthless, wore pushed into circulation.
Both these men are now in prison, and many others of no less note
are said to be implicated, whose names, when arrested, will be
g^ven to the public."

Two days after this, in the Sun, of January 31st,
another species of fraud was announced in the fol-
lowing paragraph.

" FALSE TOKENS.
. "Is there no way to reach the knaves who have flooded this city,
with checks, made in form of bills upon banks in which they have
not a dollar deposited? It is one of the most palpable descriptions
of knavery ever attempted, and fully equal in moral guilt to the
counterfeiting of baiik notes. In its piupose, and in its operation,
it is no less than counterfeiting ; and we recommend every citizen,
who receives a note of this description, to commence a prosecution
forthwith against the person of whom he received it. The laws
against small notes, and against the notes of other states, may be
improved for this purpose, if for no other.**

My apology for these quotations, if any indeed be
necessary, is the apprehension that if such statements
were made by me, of the condition of society here,
without an exhibition of the authorities for the facts,
it would be thought an exaggerated picture ; and I
should be open to the imputation of having over-
charged the colouring. But it is only necessary to
consult American authorities, and not English ones,
to show that recklessness and fraud are far more
prevalent in this community than in most others of a
mercantile character in Europe, and that an inordi-
nate thirst after gain, and a determination to acquire
it by any means that are practicable, is one of the
chief causes of this evil.

Another form in which this passion displays itself
is in the frequency of fires in this country. That, with

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FREQUENCY OF HUES.

165

the utmost degree of prudence, fires will occasionally
happen, and prove destructive, in spite of every pre-
caution, is undeniahle. But the extreme frequency
of fires in this city is so much greater than could be
accounted for by ordinary causes, that the almost uni-
versal belief here is, that the majority of them are inten-
tional; some being occasioned by persons desiring
to realize a large insurance, and thus defraud the
insurance offices ; some by persons wishing to furnish
an excuse for the destruction of papers, books, and
obligations, so as to defraud their creditors ; some
for the purpose of evading the payment of rent due,
by removal of furniture, so as to leave nothing to
seize; and some by wretches who desire only an
opportunity to plunder. The last fire that happened
during our stay in New York, and which occurred
on the 30th of January, was one originated by persons
of the latter description, who were traced out dis-
tinctly as the perpetrators of the act, and seen
afterwards engaged in carrying oflF some of the
effects as plunder. By this calamity, about sixty
houses were destroyed, the wind raging so high as to
defeat all the efforts of the firemen and engines to
subdue the flames, and more than one hundred
families were tlius thrown almost naked and house-
less into the streets, in a night of the severest cold we
had yet experienced for the winter.

The incQfference with which all this is regarded, is
almost as painful as the frequent occurrence of the
calamity itself, because it shows the utter want of
that most amiable of all social qualities, sympathy
in the sufferings of others, and a desire to relieve
them in their distressi It is a custom in this city.

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

when a fire breaks out, for the bell of the City-hall
to be rung m a particular manner, so as to indicate
the locality of the fire, while the other churches have
their bells rung in a difierent manner, merely to
apprise the town of the event. In any other city
than this, the ringing of these bells would excite
great tittention j but the very frequency with which
fires occur, is urged as an excuse for taking no
notice of them ; and it is a common saying, *< that
the only fit test of determining whether a person
should disturb himself on hearing the bells ringing
and engines rattling along the pavement is this : to
put his hand up to the wall at the head of his bed,
and if it be very hot, it is time for him to move ;
but if not, he had better remain where he is." That
fires produced by incendiaries are not confined to
New York, however, the following paragraph,
taken from the New York Sun of January 31, will
show.

WHOLESALE mCENDLARISM.
" On the morning '^^ the 22nd instant, no less than three of the
principal stahles in most thickly settled part of Somerset,

Pennsylvania, were sec nre to by incendiaries. That in the stable,
jrom which the most destruction would have spread, fortunately
went out ; the other two stables were consumed, together with nine
valuable horses, a number of cows, carriages, gnun, hay, &c. The
(atizens of Somerset have since held a meeting in reference to the
matter, and offer a reward of 500 dollars for the detection of the
incendiaries."

In such a state of society as this, it may be readily
imagined that there is abundant occupation for the
members of the legal profession ; and such is the
fact, as well as for the agents of the police. It may
be thought that the existence of highwaymen, not

INCENDIARISM AND HIGHWAY ROBBERY.

167

merely in the neighbourhood of New York, but
actually in the city itself, would be incredible ; but
in addition to several instances verbally related to me
of such desperate persons attacking individuals on
the road, and robbing them, the following announce-
ment from the New York Sun, of February 2, 1838,
puts the matter beyond doubt.

LOOK OUT FOR HIGHWAYMEN UP TOWN.
" A gentleman passing down Tenth Street, between fifth and
sixth avenues, about nine o'clock on Tuesday night, was violently
assaiilted by a villain who sprung over the fence, and, without pro-
vocation, aimed a heavy blow at his head, which he escaped by
stooping ; his hat only being knocked off, as his head would have
stood a strong chance of being, had it met the ruffian's club. A
watchman promptly answered the assailed gontleman's call for aid,
and the vagabond was secured at the upper police office ; but the
earnest «ntreaties of his wife, and the prospective trouble and
hinderance a prosecution would occasion him, induced the gentleman
not to proceed against the ruffian, and he was discharged. We
mention tlie circumstance, to put people on their g^ard while passing
through that part of the city after dark."

It may be thought that the vicious associations of
a crowded city, are chiefly, if not exclusively, the cause
of such crimes as these; but the accounts from
the country furnish too many melancholy instances
of a state of morals not at all less depraved than that
which prevails among the more degraded classes in
the towns. It would fill a large sheet daily to give
all the statements of crime and wretchedness that
are brought before the public eye every morning and
every evening of the week, in the journals of this
city alone ; but the three following extracts, taken from
two papers of the same date, the Evening Post and
the Transcript, of February 2, 1838, will be sufficient

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as specimens of the kind of depravity which unhap-
pily exists in a land blessed with a more abundant
production of the necessaries of life than almost any
country that can be named \ where labour is more
in demand, and better paid, than in any part of
Europe ; where millions of unoccupied tracts of land
invite the cultivation of the industrious ; where the
institutions of the state open to every man of intel-
ligence, industry, and integrity, the honours and
emoluments of the public service; where private
enterprise has an almost unlimited field for its
operations ; and where religious professors are more
numerous, religious publications more abundant, and
benevolent institutions more thickly planted, than
in any country under the sun ; yet, in spite of all
these advantages, the crime and misery that deface
the land are terrible to contemplate. Here are the
three paragraphs adverted to.

" HORRIBLE ATTEMPTS OF POISONING.

'< The Frankfort Ohio Argus gives a dreadful detail of three
successive poisonings by arsenic, of the entire family of Dr. Helm,
residing at Springbome. The writer foimd the doctor and his
nephew, also a physician, together with Mrs. Helm, and five of the
children, all su£Pering under the agonies of poison. The youngest
child was but four weeks old. The cause was using at supper
cream or milk in which arsenic had been put. The persons all reco-
vered, and the family now suspecting that some black-hearted wretch
intended to make away with them, interdicted any provisions being
brought into the house but what were brought from the country.
In a few days, however, they were all down again, with the burning
symptoms at the pit of the stomach, and vomitings ; — this time,
introduced in the coffee or water, and the attending physician, Dr.
Dubois, also one of the sufferers. They recovered : but, incredible
to relate, a third attempt was now made, and proved fatal to one of

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DEPLORABLE STATE OF MORALS.

1G9

the boys, by introducing the arsenic into some hominy. The post-
mortem examination by nine physicians proved that arsenic was the
cause, and the cream and milk above-mentioned contained large
quantities of it. The neighbours flocked in to offer their sym-
pathies, and ferret out the demon who could be guilty of such
atrocities. It is devoutly to be hoped that such a monster in
human shape may encounter the wrath of tieaven wherever he
may be."

" DEPLORABLE MORALS.
" On Wednesday evening, officer Driesback, of the first ward,
brought up to the police a woman, and a little girl about twelve
years of age — mother and daughter, whom he had picked up in
the street — both beastly drunk, the mother so much so that she
was past talking. The magistrate asked the girl how in the world
she came to be so drunk? to which she drawlingly answered, "Why,
mother is drunk too!" They were both sen^ over to BrideweU, to
get sober. Had they not been so fortunate m to be rescued from
the exposure to which their folly and helplessness had subjected
them, both would have inevitably perished in the street.**

A MISERABLE SCENE.
" The watchmen in Oak Street were called on Wednesday
evening to arrest a man who had been beating hb wife. On
entering the cellar, the men were startled by stumbling over a pine
coffin. This led to an examination of the premises, and the finding
a man dead on a bed, Iiis wife beastly drunk, and one child lying
by his side, and two children nearly frozen to death on the floor. ' ,
The man had died during the course of the day, from sickness and
misery. The living parties were all taken to the watch-house, and
discharged this morning, that they might bury the dead."

I had heard verhally a hundred cases, at least, of
crime the most revolting, and misery the most appal-
ling, during my stay in New York ; a large number,
it must be admitted, among the emigrant families
from England, Ireland, and Scotland, as well as other
foreigners with which this city abounds, though some
also among natives of the country j but though all

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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wore communicated to me by American gentlemen
long resident in the city, and of undoubted veracity,
I preferred selecting such instances as the public
journals of the day furnished ; because these, by their
very publicity, challenged contradiction, and in no
instances, as far as I could discover, was their
accuracy called in question. These cannot be con-
sidered, therefore, as the libels of a prejudiced
Englishman, uttered against the country in a fit of
disappointment or of spleen, but as the grave and
partial testimony of the American journals, conducted
by men who are generally disposed to put the most
favourable construction on every thing that belongs
to, or occurs within, their own country j and who
always seek to present the most favourable aspect of
their public afPairs, and private morals, to those who
sojourn among them.

As to the causes to which these evils may be
traced, I had listened to disquisition upon disqui*
sition, in private circles ; and from what I had
heard, and what I had seen, I had drawn my own
conclusions. Some of these I have ventured to
express in the preceding pages ^ and to others I shall
from time to time give utterance, as the occasion
may demand. But to answer, by anticipation, any
imputations of unfairness, or harshness of judgment,
which may be pronounced on such strictures by those
who might be disposed to think them overcharged,
I avail myself again of a native authority, of good
repute, and extensive circulation among the middle
classes of society, 30,000 copies daily being the
amount of its sale in New York alone, in which,
in a leading article of the Sun of February S, 1838,

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STATE OF SOCIETY.

171

is the following frank, and, I believe, perfectly ho-
nest review of the causes and consequences of the
present state of society in America : —

" Enterprise has long been spoken of as a characteristic of our
nation ; and in the way of enterprise, Uncle Sam* certainly de-
serves the credit of having outstripped his older neighbours.-^
No imdertaking, which promised any adequate return, has, in %ny
difficulty short of impossibility, found cause sufficient to deter us
Americans. Even impossibility must be demonstrated beyond a
question, by a score or two of abortive attempts, before it is admit-
ted. ' Try,' is the first word, the meaning of which is thoroughly
mastered. Boys are men before they are loosed from their leading
strings. They are educated in the belief that every man must be
the architect of his own fortime. There is, to be sure, a limited
class, who look forward to the arrival at majority, or to the decease
of parents, as the commencement of an era in which they will have
no duty to do but to enjoy the property bequeathed them. But as
a class, it is too small to be considered in the estimate of national
character. The great majority look forward to manhood as the
time to act, and anticipate it by juvenile participation in the events
of busy life. Boys argue upon polemics, political economy, party
politics, the mysteries of trade, the destinies of nations. Dreams of
ambition, or of wealth, nerve the arm which drives the hoop — the
foot, which gives the ball its impetus. Toys are stock in trade.
Barter is fallen into by iniiitinct, as a young duck takes to the water.

" There is scarcely a w'^ of any spirit who does not, from the
time tiiat he can connect the most simple ideas, picture to himself
some rapid road to wealtii — indefinite and obscure, it is true. But
he reads the history of Girard, and of others who have amassed
wealth. He sees the termini of the race— poverty at one end,
affluence at the other, and jumps the intermediate years. He fan-
cies that the course of amassing will be as easy as imagination.
He dreams of dashing into a fortune by some lucky speculation.

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* " Uncle Sam," is a national term for the American people; as "John
Bull," is for the English. It seems to have superseded the phrase, " Bro>
ther Jonathan."

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

Contentment with competence he learns to regard as a slothful vice.
To become rich, and, of course, respected — uifluential, great, pow-
erful — is his darling object. He contemns the honest labour, which
was considered the road to wealth before enterprise was so rife,
and, if he respects his father, he respects him as a good, honest old
drudge, with old-fashioned notions, but altogrether barbarous, and
behind the age. If maternal fondness, and juvenile pertinacity in
preferring requests, succeed, he is launched, at one-and-twenty, on
the sea of enterprize, with all his father's available capital embarked
with him. If the old gentleman is too stubborn to yield his opi-
nion, or if other circumstances make it imperative that he should,
for a while, be content with honest but sure gains, the result of
industry, he embraces the first opportimity to leave his emit for
speculation — to throw a bird in the hand away, and commence the
pursuit of those in the bush.

" One great cause of our present state is the almost universal
contempt into which industry, in producing, has fallen. The agricul-
tural States — those we mean which produce the direct necessaries
of life— are not half cultivated. The youthful energies, which
should be devoted to improving lands and the mode of culture, to
embracing and practising the lessons of experience, to blending and
testing the discoveries of agricultural theorists with practical culti-
vation, are devoted, instead, to speculating in the scanty product
which old lands yield, under partial improvement. Even the old
farmers themselves, men, one would think, clear enough of enter-
prise, betray that national characteristic in their grasping for terri-
tory. They measure the value of farms, not by their productive-
ness, but by their extent. They grasp territory, till the taxes on
its nominal value are, contrasted with its actual weath, a serious
burden. They pursue even a more foolish course than the hoarder
of inactive money, because, while the miser's gold pays him nothing,
it costs him nothing for keeping ; while the farmer's pride, in the
addition of acre to acre, is an expensive investment, even aside from
the purchase money.

'' In our cities, a natural consequence of this mania for specula-
tion was the increase of banks, and the distention of their issues.
Banking facilities were in every body's reach. Almost every body
was on some board of directors, or had a father, brother, cousin,

COMMERCIAL SPECULATION.

178

friend, or acquaintance there. Where that was not the ca«e, an
endorser could be had for a premium, or the money of banki could
be obtained through broker jackals.

" Now speculation in her glory walked. Joint-stock componiei
of every possible description started into existence. City lots,
town lots, highland lots, swamp lots, granite quarries, India-rubber
companies, rail-roads, canals, and every possible description of in-
vestment were offered, to absorb this redundancy of nominal currency.
Associations to extract sun-beams from cucumbers, a la Swift, and
moonshine from sunbeams ; Texas speculations, cotton speculations,
and fancy stock-gambling, drove out the legitimate business of the
merchant ; and even coaxed the mechanic, the student, and the pro-
fessional man, into the vortex — ^to be ruined.

** In the midst of this glare of fictitious business, luxiuy has been
appealed to, to evade thought of the future, as the gambler
drinks deep while his all is at stake. Luxiuy and extravagance
have been the curse of all classes, from the richest down almost to
the very poorest. European nobles and princes, with sure incomes
and immense, have been taken for models ; and, with tme Ameri-
can enterprise, the models have been outdone. Troops of servants
have taken the place of the cook, the chambermaid, and the boy
John. Three have been installed where one formerly served. High-
seasoned dishes and expensive knicknacks have driven out the plain
joint. Silver services have supplanted china, delft, and Britannia
ware. Expensive carriages have taken the pbce of the comfortable
old family coach ; and coaches and chaises have been set up by fami-
lies who are really puzzled to find a use for them. The fine arts, which
are capable of exerting a refining and excellent influence, have only
served to minister to the insolvency of those whose only standard of
value is price, and whose rules of taste are gradtiated by dollars.
Travelling in foreign countries has been abused. Once it was a
great means of improvement. Now our young men are returned
rogues and fops, with extravagant anti- American notions, and a
disposition to hug and imitate all the follies of European travellers
in this country. The heads of American wives and daughters are
turned, and infant children look forward to travel, to finish them.
Amusement has been eagerly sought at any cost ; and the more
extravagant its price, the more genteel. Frugality has been con-

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8TATB OP NBW YORK.

temned aa on old-fMhioned and dirty foible. Dreu hat been out*
rageouily expeniive— cott being the only criterion of ita quality.

" So much for a review of the paat In the preaent quiet, we
rejoice to believe a revolution if at work. Eyea have been opened
to the deatructive conaequencea of an over iaaue of bank promisea (
and the induatrioua body of the people have learned to watch banka
with a jealouay which will effectually bar, for many a year, any
return of the evila we have juat gone through.

" After all tho acenea of commercial diatreaa, and of auffering
among the operative and induatrioua, the conduaion yet remains,
that nothing haa been annihilated. The world atanda the
aame. We are not ao much poorer than we were, aa we have
thought. The only difference ia, that time and truth, thoae expe-
rienced appraiaera, have reatored the old and true valuation to
commoditiea which have been overvalued, and pronounced thoae
worthleaa which are ao. It may be that there is aome deprecia-
tion, but prudence and induatry will soon put thinga upon a atable
baaia. We are much richer in experience — much more humble-
much more frugal — much more prudent, already ; and if the refor-
mation provea permanent, then will even the preaaure have proved
a good speculation."

This was one of the most sensible expositions of
the true causes of the present state of affairs that I
remember to have met with in any of the public
prints that fell under my eye ; and it is to be regret-
ted, that such irank and instructive expositions are
not more frequently made. Instead of this, each
party organ endeavours to throw the whole blame of
the matter on the party to which it is opposed; and
to effect this, no sort of device is left untried. Mis-
representation, the most gross and ptupable, is re-
sorted to on the most common occasions, even on
those where detection of such misrepresentation is
certain; and the result is, that the public press
here, as in England, is fast losing what little influ-

TREASURIES AND SUB-TREASURIES.

175

ence it possessed over the public mind, by writing
itself down by its own extravagancies.

The great question now in debate between the
two conflicting parties of the State, for instance, is
this — whether the Government shall keep safe custody
of the surplus revenue in well-secured treasuries of
its own, under responsible officers, and with every
available guarantee for security,^r whether they
shall deposit it in a great bank, like the Bank of
England, such as was the United States bank, or in
smaller branches of such an institution. One would
think that the only question which would interest
the people in this affair, was, as to the relative degree
of safety and security, or oth«^rwise ; for as it is the
community who must pay all the taxes and duties
that compose the revenue, and make good any loss
accruing after its collection, it is clearly their interest
to prefer that mode of custody and safe keeping which
is most secure ; and the government treasuries would
seem, to most unprejudiced men, better for this purpose
than any private banks. But this plain question has
been so mystified by the Whig party — who are against
these treasuries and sub-treasuries, and who want
the Government to deposit this surplus in a great
bank, and let that bank trade upon it, so as to afford
credit and discounts to merchants and speculators —
that the whole community is divided into two hostile
parties upon this subject; as they are in Ireland upon
the tithe-question ; in Scotland, upon the voluntary
system ; and in England, upon church-rates and the
ballot.

There would be no great evil in this, if fairness
of dealing characterized their proceedings; but

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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every thing is distorted, to serve party views. If the
largest meeting is got up on one side, the opposite
party declares it to be a mere handful in numbers.
If the parties are ever so wealthy and respectable,
they are pronounced to be a set of needy vagabonds.
If the talent of the speeches should be of the
highest kind, they would call them mere drivellings ;
and if the order was undisturbed for a single moment,
they would describe it as a bear-garden — and in this,
too, the party-press of England has unhappily set
them an example. Sometimes, indeed, the fact of
the numbers is so notorious, that it cannot be safely
denied ; but then another course is taken — to admit
the numbers, but pretend that, after all, this matters
nothing, for other reasons which they assign. A
ludicrous instance of this occurred in the Evening
Star, of February 8, 1838, in which the editor. Major
Noah, himself very recently one of the democratic
party that he now denounces, writes thus : —

" The New Era and Evening Post, organs of the Locofoco
party, declare that there was an immense meeting at Tammany
Hall on Tuesday evening, full 2000 persons present. We believe
it, and what does it prove ? Why, that in a city of 300,000 inhabit-
ants, 2000 radicals, agrarians, Fanny- Wright men, and Locofocos
can be found, who, having no employment, no interest in society,
no means present or prospective, have thrown themselves on the
bounty of the Van Buren party, and in hopes of part of * the spoils,'
and a portion in a scramble for the people's money, have by invita-
tion met at Tammany Hall, and swallowed the whole dose pre-
pared by the office-holders. The appeal having been made by our
nders to men ' wanting principle and wanting bread,' to organize
against respectable American citizens having something at stake,
it was not surprising that they crowded to Tammany Hall to obey
orders. They will claim their pay shortly."

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HABITS OF EXAGGERATION.

177

> ...'-

"Agrarians" is the name here given to people who
meet to recommend the Government to keep the
revenue in safe custody in treasuries of their own,
instead of entrusting it to speculating hanks, at the
risk of losing it all; though in other countries
this term is usually, though erroneously, applied to
those who are supposed to desire that the public
lands and public wealth should be taken from the
rich and divided among the poor. Here, too, the
" scramblers for the share of the spoils of the people's
money" are not the bankers, who want it to trade
upon, with all the risk of gain or loss, but the people
themselves, who want their own money to be taken
care of, that it may not be scrambled for by any
body; and here also, "poverty and the want of bread,*'
which is falsely asserted to be the condition of those
who attended this meeting, is imputed or insinuated
as a crime, and as making the parties disreputable
by their mere poverty alone, a doctrine as current
among the Whigs in America as in England.

When a writer of thn Whig party has to describe
a meeting on their own side, however, he can find no
terms sufficiently swelling and lofty in which to
express himself. The 2000 who may attend it;
are not, as in the former case, taken to be the whole
body that can be mustered out of 300,000 inhabit-
ants, but, by a magic flourish of the editorial wand
they are made to be the representatives of many
millions that are absent, and every thing they do or
say is of the most pure, most disinterested, most
intelligent, most eloquent, and most dignified descrip-
tion. Their " thunder" is not like any other thunder
that was ever heard before ; and the very globe seems

VOL. I.

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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to be shaken to its centre by their gigantic powers.
As an illustration of this, the following is from the
Daily Whig of the morning succeeding that of the
Evening Star, namely, February 9» 1838 : —

" THE GREAT ANTI- SUB-TREASURY MEETING.

" We have heard the old temple of liberty, Masonic Hall, ring
till its rafters cracked with the shout of assembled thousands, that
drowned ths thimders of artillery on a great and patriotic triumph ;
but we never witnussed or heard any thing like the burst of Ameri-
can feeling which resounded there on Wednesday night. If the
sound does not make the White House* at Washington tremble,
and the Machiavelian Belshazzar'sf knees smite against each other
with ' fear of change, perplexing,' then there is rather strength-
giving than death, in the poisoned chalice, which, prepared by
himself for the people, he must drain to the very dregs of bitter-
ness.

" The limits of this paper will not allow us to afford even a
meagre outline of the powerful appeals ^'^hich were made to Ameri-
can pride, honour, and patriotism, on that occasion, in opposition
to the most impudent and tyraimical stretch of power that was ever
suggested by the drunken brain of ambition. Every thing was said,
by Chandler Starr, Esq., Alderman Paterson, Alderman Bruen,
Hugh Maxwell, Esq., and Hiram Ketchum, Esq., that love of
country could dictate or eloquence enforce ; and a response was
echoed back from the throng crowding every part of the hall, that
thrilled through every fibre of our body, as it did through the
whole assembled multitude. There was but one feeling with three
thousand American citizens there present, the representatives of
ten millions who were absent, — and that feeling was indignation
at the tyranny of our rulers. There was but one high resolve that
made three thousand hearts beat together loudly, and that was, Tiot
to bear the iron yoke which is forging for them. There is no
mistaking the spirit of 1776, wherever and whenever it shows

* The White House, at Washington, is the official residence of the presi-
dent of the United States for the time being,
f This is applied to Mr. Van Buren, the existing president.

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TASTE FOR PUBLIC SPECTACLES.

179

itself; and the free people of our United States will be themselves
incarcerated in the subterranean dungeons of the ' Independent
Treasury,' before they suffer the revenues of the country to be
converted to the base uses of political traitors."

Such are the distorted and exaggerated pictures,
drawn by the writers on each side, of the proceedings
of their own party, and of their opponents: but,
though this practice deserves the severest reproba-
tion, candour compels us to admit, that the English
press has shown them the example ; and they have
only made the copy more highly coloured than the
original, — I pass on, however, to other topics.

The taste of the populace in New York for shows
and sights is quite as strong as in any part of Eng-
land; and public celebrations of particular events
by anniversary days, appear to excite more general
attention. Two such days occurred during our stay
in this city ; the first was called " Evacuation
day," from the English troops having quitted the
city on that day, the 25th of November ; and the
second was the anniversary of the battle of New
Orleans, where General Jackson obtained so decided
a victory over the British. This last was chiefly
confined to the administration party, being tinged
with political associations ; but the first was more
general, though the weather was extremely unfavour-
able to public processions. The reports of the day's
prc^eedings in the newspapers were as varied as their
general character ; but there was o^ie that offered so
good a specimen of a kind of writing which is pecu-
liar to America, that I venture to transcribe it. Its
peculiarity consists in a strange mixture of the
serious and the sarcastic, the grave and the witty,

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180

STATE OF NEW YORK.

the sober and the ironical, with all the while an
under-current of self-gratulation at the exploits of
the country, and the privilege of being one of its
citizens. If a foreigner had written it, it would
have been thought contemptuous ; but from the
pen of a native American, it is meant to be at once
amusing and complimentary, and would be so regard-
ed even by the personages described. Here it is.

•• Your hero never shows white festher
Even to the very worst of weather.

" We could not but feel a stirring impulse of enthusiasm — a
thrill of patriotic pride and self-gratulation — ^at 7 o'clock this mom'
ing, at beholding the indomitable spirit of bravery and contempt of
danger exhibited by a detachment of our martial fellow-citizens,
returning up Broadway, in the very teeth of the snow-storm, from
the performance of their arduous duty at the Battery. " There,"
we soliloquized, "goes the palladium of our country's safety against
all the power of a world in arms — ^there go the dauntless heart, the
iron frame, the arm of might, and the soul of patriotic chivahy."
Who can entertain a doubt of American bravery, when he sees
those noble fellows — ^those unconquerable citizen -soldiers— trudg-
ing thus gallantly along, through mud and slush, and wind and
snow, bearing their heads erect, with unwinking eyes, and muskets
bravely shouldered, and looking as calm and resolute as though
the loveliest of spring-time were blooming joyously about them.

First came a band of youthful heroes, arrayed with cap and
plume, and braided coats, and knapsacks at their backs, unshrink-
ingly encountering the fury of the elements, without great coat or
cloak, or even worsted comforter to g^ard their throats against the
damp and cold : then followed the bold musicians, pouring the
martial strain from fife and drum, and trumpet — giving old winter
blast for blast ; then came the g^rim and frowning cannons — two of
them— each with its tumbril, charged with the fiery dust that emu-
lates the volleying thunder ; and last, though far fr^m least, the
sturdy veterans of the ancient corps, disdaining all the foppery of
Mars, and breasting the pitiless northern wind and driving sleet in

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PUBLIC PROCESSIONS.

181

their plain blue coats, round hats, and other every-day habiliments.
One cravea soul there was, whose right hand bore aloft no dreadful
sword, but in its stead a liirge, black, silk umbrella ; and another
had fortified his person with a Petersham. But these were excep-
tions, and did but show more bravely forth the courage of the rest.
There was one hero, marching by the side of the detachment, with
a cross-belt slung around him, and a long sword in hb red right
hand — ^we took him for a corporal, or perhaps a sergeant — whom
we could not behold without excess of admiration. Nature had
bounteously endowed his cheeks with a mighty crop of whisker;
and on these the snow had settled thick and deep, so that he
looked for all the world as though his barber had stuck a monstrous
powder-puff on either side, between his collar and his skin ; and
GO they marched along, unmindful of the storm, while the big drum,
vigorously pounded by a pair of stalwart arms, gave forth a
dumpish sound, and the shrill notes of the trumpet struggled
through the snow-encumbered air."

Many of the public processions in this country
are, however, admirably conducted; and some of
the volunteer companies, under arms, would be
thought highly of, even by military men, for their
appropriate dress, excelknt equipments, and steady
order of march.

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CHAP. X.

Tlie Courts of Law held in the City Uaii — Chancery, Common
Pletis, Superior and Supreme Courts — Qualifications of bar-
risters and attorneys — jNomination or appointment of judges
— Style of pleading and judgment, official costume — Scale of
remuneration for the bar and the bench — Character of the
medical profession in the city — Clergy and ministers of religion
in New York — Churches, interior arrangements, comfort —
Service, sin^g, absence of pulpits and clerks — General cha-
racter for learning and piety of the clergy — Benevolent efforts
of the voluntary system — Extensive field of missionary labour
in foreign lands.

-■;■••*.' !

¥m

The Courts of Law in New York are held in the City
Hall. They consist of a court of Chancery, a court
of Common Pleas, a Superior court, and a Supreme
court, each of which has its special judges, and pecu-
liar forms of proceeding. The court of Chancery,
like that of England, from which it derives its name,
is a court of equity, presided over hy a chancellor as
judge, who is guided in his decisions, partly hy prece-
dents, partly by statutes, and partly by the reason or
justice of the case. He is not a political officer, as
in England, having here no other functions to dis-
charge than those belonging to his office as judge.
He is not assisted by a jury ; the proceedings, as in
England, are rather written than verbal ; and deposi-
tions and interrogatories take the place of viva voce

TENURE OF JUDICIAL OFnCES.

183

examinations. As might be expected of a system so
closely resembling that of the parent country, the
same tree produces the same fruits ; and the charac-
teristics of a chancery- suit here, are precisely the
same as they are with us — endless delay, boundless
expense, and harassing uncertainty. The court of
Common Pleas resembles our court of the same name
in England ; and the common-law authorities and
common-law precedents are followed as in it, modified,
of course, by the statute law of the State ; while the
forms of proceeding are nearly the same, varied only
in a slight degree by local circumstances. The
Superior court is analogous to that of our court of
King's Bench, taking tjognizance of similar cases,
and having similar powers. The Supreme court is the
court of appeal from all the other tribunals of the city,
as well as from the county and circuit courts, in which
cases are tried; and the last resort, beyond the
Supreme court, is that which is called the Court of
Errors, composed of the three judges of the Supreme
court, a judge from each of the other three courts of the
city, and the Senate of the State, corresponding nearly
to the court of appeal, before whom writs of error are
tried in England, namely, the House of Lords.

The judges in each of the inferior courts are
appointed by the legislature of the State, for terms
of five years, and are usually reappointed, if the same
political party rules in the legislature; though, in
times of high party excitement, they are changed, if
changes in the state of parties occur either in the
senate, the house of assembly, or the governor, which
three bodies constitute the legislature of the State.
The congress of the United States, or the general
government of the whole Union, have nothing what-

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STATE OF NiiW YORK.

ever to do with theif appointment or removal, the
independence of the State government never hoing
interfered with in this respect. The chancellor,
and the judges of the Supreme court, including one
chief justice and two associate judges, are also
appointed by the legislature of the State, for life, or
till the age of sixty, which is fixed by law as the
period of their superannuation. The elective prin-
ciple is, therefore, not acted upon in the choice of
the judges in the State of New York, and they are
considered here to be as independent of the people,
as they are of the government, and enjoy quite as
large a share of popular estimation, for impartiality
and integrity, as our judges at home.

The number of persons belonging to the legal pro-
fession in New York alone, exceeds 7OO, of whom
about 50 only are judges, in all the courts together.
The remainder are barristers and attorneys, which are
here not separate professions, as in England, but
united in the same individuals. The qualification
for admission is a seven years* apprenticeship, or arti-
cled servitude, under a licensed legal practitioner :
or, if four years classical study, in any college or uni-
versity in the United States can be certified, the term
is then abridged to four years ; but, at the end of
either or both of these terms, a rigid examination
must be successfully sustained by the candidate, before
his license to practise will be granted by the court.
When thus qualified, he may act as attorney for pre-
paring cases to be tried in either of the courts, or he
may officiate as pleader or counsel. It is not usual,
however, for persons to undertake the latter duty
until they have acquired some standing as attorneys ;
and some, indeed, continue to practise as attorneys

LAW COUUT8.

18^

only without entering on the duties of counsel at all.
Others, again, commencing as attorneys, go on for
a few years, as such, when they unite with it the
business of pleaders, and then end in practising only
as barristers, leaving the duties of the attorneys
to be practised by those of less standing or inferior
eminence to themselves.

In the proceedings before the courts, no wigs or
gowns are worn by any of the parties officially engaged;
and although at first sight this seems to an English
observer as a defect, yet a very few attendances on
the courts, and a slight degree of interest in the pro-
ceedings, causes this impression to wear off, when one
becomes as readily accustomed to it, as to the loose,
disorderly, and undignified appearance of the House
of Commons in England, where members sit in every
variety of coloured clothes, boots, spurs, and whips,
with their hats on, in lounging attitudes, and an
appearance of the utmost indifference to what is
going on — a feature which is usually revolting to the
stranger from the country who visits the House of
Commons for the first time, but to which he gets as
speedily reconciled, as he would do to the unwigged
and ungowned judges and barristers here.

The style of speaking among the counsel, in their
addresses to the judge and jury, is less technical and
pedantic than in England, and less oratorical in
manner. Shrewdness, sagacity, wit, and tact, are
the chief characteristics of the addresses from the
bar J and plain deductions from established premises,
or clear and intelligible expositions of the law and
the facts of the case, are characteristic of the charges
and judgments from the bench.

The scale of remuneration to all classes of the

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

legal profession is liberal, without being absurdly
extravagant or profuse. The younger members, who
have any practice at all as attorneys, readily make
an income of 3,000 dollars, or from 600/. to 700/.
a year — rising from this minimum to as much as
10,000 dollars, or about 2,000/. sterling a year. The
smallest fee of a barrister of any standing, and in
almost any cause, is 100 dollars, or about 20/. The
greatest fee to the most distinguished barrister in
any regular cause, tried in the city-courts, is 5,000
dollars, or about 1,000/. But when a special cause
of importance arises, requiring great skill and
considerable application, especially if such cause
has to be tried at a distance from the residence of
the barrister, and he be a person of the first emi-
nence, it is said (and one of the profession was my
informant) that as large a sum as 25,000 dollars, or
5,000/. has been paid ; but this was admitted to be
a very rare and unusual occurrence. The judges
have fixed salaries, varying from 1,600 dollars, for
the youngest, to 3,000 dollars for the oldest, includ-
ing the chancellor and the chief justice of the
Supreme court, respectively.

In private society, the legal gentlemen are among
the most intelligent and agreeable of companions.
Like the lawyers in England, however, they do not
appear to mingle so much in general society, as to
congregate and herd together with the members of
their own profession, and especially to delight in the
society of clubs. I had the pleasure to attend two
or three of their meetings of this description, held
alternately at the houses of the members in rota-
tion, and the cordiality, intelligence, courtesy, cheer-
fulness, and kindness, which seemed to prevail,

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THE FACULTY OF MEDICINE.

187

made them some of the most agreeable evenings I
had ever passed, not merely in America, but in any
part of the world.

The medical body is also a very large, and very
interesting portion of the society of New York. They
have colleges of instruction, halls of dissection, dis-
pensaries, lectures, and all the machinery and appa-
ratus of medical instruction, in great abundance and
perfection. The number of medical practitioners in
the city is about GOO. The conditions to be ful-
filled by a young candidate for the profession, are the
following : — He must serve three years at least, as an
assistant to some licensed medical practitioner of the
State, and attend, at least, two courses of medical lec-
tures, under some recognized professor. For this he
will have to pay from 300 to 500 dollars for the three
years, according to the rank and standing of the
individual under whom he studies. He is then ob-
liged to undergo an examination before competent
examiners, appointed by the College or Faculty of
Medicine ; and is rarely deemed sufficiently accom-
plished to pass at the first time. Some are success-
ful at the second examination, after an interval of a
year, and the additional skill and practice obtained
by them in that period. Many more are remanded,
and pass at a third, and some only at a fourth exa-
mination — these being annual only.

On passing, the license of the College to practise
as a surgeon, is granted ; or, if required, and the
qualifications are deemed sufficient, the diploma of a
physician is added, and by far the greater number
receive both. Hence the business of surgeon and
physician is united in the same person, as in the

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188

8TATE OF NEW YORK.

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general practitioner in London ; and all are called
Doctor. It is the custom for each co have a surgery
and dispensary attached to his r^jsidence, usually in
the area, or ground-floor ; and while the name alone
is seen on the hrass-plate of the door of the private
residence entering from the street, the name, and
prefix of ** Doctor," with the word ** office," is seen
painted in yellow or white letters, on o '^Vuk japan-
ned tin plate, over the window or docv oi fit ^ n'gery
in the area helow.

There are here, as in Enplauil, all degrees of
excellence and estimation nmong the memhers of the
medical profession. It is thought to he sufficiently suc-
cessful, if young men hegin to realize enough to sup-
port themselves in the fourth or fifth year of their
practice. All the time up to this is one of expendi-
ture beyond receipt. From this point, however, with
ordinary ability and industry, and regular conduct,
their progress is almost certain, till they obtain the
middle rank, where incomes of from 5,000 to 10,000
dollars, or from 1,000/. to 2,000/ sterling, aie fre-
quently realized. In the highest branches of the
profession, when great reputation is obtained, from
20,000 to 25,000 dollars, or 4,000/. to 5,000/. a year,
is sometimes made. In general, they are men of good
education, and hnve the reputation of skill and atten-
tion in their pro: ■: ' "al dutio". They are also, as
a class, a mor« iir rai .tud religious body of men than
persons of the same profession in the old countries of
Europe ; though their dress, manners, and apjHjar-
ance is less polished and refined than one is accus-
tomed to observe in medical men at home.

The clergy and ministers of religion form a very

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RELIOIOirS DENOMINATIONH.

189

important and influential body in New York. There
are not lesn than 3(X) members of this b^^ly, of differ-
ent (1« I . >niination8 : the order of th«ir numbers bein^
— Presbyterian, y** '■> Kpiscopulian, 5(\ ; [baptist, 40 ;
Mel liodist, 88 j Reformed Dutch, 84 ; Homaii Catho-
lic, 25; Friends or Quakers, (i; Lutheran Univer-
salist, 5 ; Unitarian, 4 ; Independent, 4 ; Mor ian, 4 ;
Jews, 3 — besides several supernumeraries, i r the
services of these several denominations, ther '^ are ouf
150 places of worship, in nearly the same atii or
proportion. The Presbyterian miniy*' rs d not ase
gowns and bands, as in Scotland. Tho Epis^ opali n
and the Dutch Reformed are the only elwrpy thut
wear robes; the fom or, the surplice for \ ^n,
and the black stuff go vn for the pulpit, as ii '^inf-
land ; the latter, a blnck silk gown, with ca^^iock
and girdle of the same n. aterial.

In the service of the Episcopalian church ho
ritual and liturgy are i. early the same as in he
Church of England, whi**h they profess to fol v,
as a model. The few alterations in the prayers o
such as to adapt them to the country in which thev
are read ; substituting, in th? prayers for the King aaA
Royal Family, and for both Houses of Parliament,
the names of the President of the United States,
and the Houses of Congress. Some corrections
are also introduced in the tyle and composition ;
and some judicious curtailments of the frequent repe-
titions in the original service. One addition, how-
ever, is made, which appeared to me a great improve-
ment, and well worthy of adoption at home, which is
this : — after the reading of the Ten Commandments
in the Communion Service; at the close of the

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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whole, the minister reads aloud this sentence : —
•* Hear also what our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ saith on this subject. The first and greatest
commandment is — Thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart ; and the second is like unto
it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On
these two hang all the law and the prophets."

It is remarkable that neither in the Episcopalian
churches, nor any of the others in this city, is there
to be seen a pulpit of the old English form ; nor
is there any person who officiates as clerk, either
to read the responses, to say Amen, or to give out the
psalms or hymns. In lieu of the small circular pulpit
used in England, there are here two spacious plat-
forms, on one of which the minister reads the
prayers, and to the other he ascends to preach the ser-
mon. These are each well furnished with the requisite
cushions, drapery, and lights, and are usually much
more agreeable to the eye than the elevated and
isolated pulpit. The ear of the worshipper is never
offended by the mangling and bad reading of an
uneducated and vulgar clerk, as it is in half the
churches of England ; and it would be a great improve-
ment to have all the responses, now drawled out by
our illiterate clerks at home, read by young aspirants
for the clergy, either while students of divinity or
after taking orders, acting as curates or assistants to
the regular minister ; for if it be desirable to have
one part of the liturgy, psalms, and prayers, read
impressively, and in a dignified and devotional tone
as well as spirit, it must be equally desirable to
have the alternate verses and responses read in the
same manner ; and this could best be secured by

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f?UPERIORITY OF THE CLFttlCAL CHARACTER. 191

Tiaving two well-educated readers, instead of one
good and one bad one, as at present. In America,
the congregation perform this duty without a leader,
and the absence of the clerk is not felt to be any
inconvenience.

The choral service, both vocal and instrumental,
is uniformly superior to the average standard of
England. The organ is everywhere seen, and is
everywhere well played. The choirs are judiciously
proportioned, for the proper blending of the different
voices ; they are well trained, and frequently prac-
tised in rehearsals ; and as the congregation gene-
rally joins, though in subdued tones, in the singing,
this part of the service is more uniformly well
performed, in churches and chapels of every denomi-
nation here, than it is with us.

The arrangement and furniture of the pews are
more elegant and more comfortable than in England ;
ample provision is made for securing the most
agreeable temperature, in all kinds of weather ;
and the attendance is more numerous, as com-
pared with the whole population, than in any
country of Europe. The greatest respect and
decorum is manifested throughout the service by all
classes ; and there is less of wandering eyes, whis-
pering gossip, and general inattention, than is seen
elsewhere.

As a body, the clergy and ministers are more
generally well educated, and more uniformly of pure
morals and devout character, than in England.
With us, there are no doubt individuals of much
more extensive and profound learning than are to be
found in this country ; and among the clergy of the

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192

STATE OF NEW YORK.

Church of England for some years past, and among the
dissenters at all times, there has heen a high standard
of morals and piety. But taking the 300 ministers
of religior now in New York, it may be doubted
whether there is any city in Great Britain that could
furnish, from an equal number of the same class, so
large an amount of learning and piety as exist in
the aggregate of the religious teachers of this city.
An iUiterate, or an immoral man, could not hold his
place among them ; and both the eyes of their own
body, as well as those of the whole community, are
constantly upon them, in a state of unremitting
watchfulness.

The support of the churches and their ministers,
is wholly on the voluntary system ; and, as far as I
could learn, after many anxious inquiries, no one
among the clergy or laity wished it to be otherwise.
The Episcopalians have a bishop in each State of
the Union,* their salaries varying from 5,000 to
10,000 dollars, or from 1000/. to 2000/. sterling.
The Rev. Dr. Onderdonk, the bishop of the State
of New York, whose diocese is as large as that of six
English bishoprics, receives this last-named sum, and
his is the highest ecclesiastical salary in the country.
But his duties are onerous, laborious, and expensive.
He resides in the city during the six winter months,
and preaches once or twice every Sunday. The other
six months of summer he passes in travelling, visiting
the clergy of his diocese, and setting in order whatever
may need amendment. He is a gentleman of Dutch

* In the State of New York, wliich has since been divided into
two dioceses, there are now two bishops.

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BROOKLYN FERRY.

193

ided into

family, as his name will indicate, of great merit, and
universally respected ; but of the simplest and most
unostentatious manners. On one Sunday afternoon
I was going over, with my family, to hear the Rev.
Dr. Cutler at Brooklyn, and pass the evening with
some friends there. The ferry is crossed here by a
steam-boat, at which we arrived just in time to meet
the bishop, who had walked from his house to the
ferry, in his black gown, round hat, bands, and a bible
under his arm. As we entered the boat, he offered
a bank-note of a dollar for the fare, which the boat-
men returned, saying "they never took toll from
clergymen who were going on duty on the sabbath ;"
at which the bishop returned the money into his
purse, and said, smilingly, "It is not always that
they are so careful to grant us the benefit of clergy."
He was going to preach that afternoon at a church
in Brooklyn, and then to return and preach at New
York in the evening. On his reaching the Brooklyn
shore, a horse and gig was waiting for him at the
ferry ; and with the most unaffected humility he got
into it, though the equipage was one of the shabbiest
I had yet seen, and drove on, seated by the black
servant who came for him, with far less thought of
state and appearance, than any English bishop.

There is nothing perhaps that strikes the stranger,
from England, more forcibly, than the easy access
which is here obtained to personal intercourse with
the highest classes of society. The President of
the United States — the governors of the separate
States — the generals of the army — the commodores of
the navy — the judges of the county — the senators,
bishops, and all other persons filling high stations in

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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the country — are not hemmed around with so many
barriers of etiquette and ceremony as to make it a
matter of favour to obtain a personal interview with
them. The sending in a card, without previous
appointment, is sufficient to ensure immediate admis-
sion to their presence, if not at the moment engaged ;
and in casual meetings like the present, or in parties
of mixed society, the greatest degree of affability and
urbanity prevails.

The voluntary system of supporting churches and
ministers, which is universally adopted here, is found to
be a perfect security against the great inequalities in
the emoluments of the clergy at home, where bishops
have incomes of 10,0001. a year, and curates must
live on lOOl. ; while it equally guarantees to all a very
adequate and comfortable provision. No clergyman
or minister in New York receives less, as I was
assured by many who were competent and accurate
authorities, than 1,000 dollars or 2001. a year; many
receive 3,000 dollars, or 600l. a year ; but none more
than 4,000 dollars or 8001. a year. The usual mode
of raising the funds is this : — The church is first
built on the undertaking and guarantee of some few
wealthy individuals of the sect for whose use it is
intended. When completed, the pews are all sold at
high prices, in the order of choice, to the families
desiring to worship there ; and the amount paid for
these pews, which become the absolute property of
the purchasers, is generally sufficient to cover all the
cost of the building and furniture. The minister's
salary is then determined by the vestry, composed of
the chosen men of the congregation, and the pews are
all assessed, at a certain per centage on their value,

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THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM.

195

»-

to make up the annual salary fixed on for the minister,
which he therefore receives as a permanent income,
without trouble, anxiety, or delay, from the hands of
the treasurer, and without any of those unhappy
disputes and bickerings, so fruitfully engendered
by the tithes, annuity-taxes, church-rates, and other
imposts for the clergy in England.

They who assert, therefore, that the voluntary
system has been tried and failed in America, and
that it does not work well for either ministers or
people, must speak in ignorance of the real state of
the case ; or, what is worse, with wilful perversion of
the truth. And thev who add to this, that under
the voluntary system there is no guarantee for the
steady support and advancing progress of religion,
must be equally guilty of great ignorance or wilful
untruth ; because there is no city in the world that
I have ever visited, where so large a number of the
population attend public worship, where that wor-
ship is more devoutly entered into by the people, or
more efficiently conducted by their teachers, or where
the influence of morality and religion is more power-
fully exerted over the great mass of the community.

In addition to the large amount of funds thus
raised by the population of this city, for the support
of religion at home, their assistance to all kinds of
benevolent societies is munificent ; for by their
voluntary aid do they almost all subsist. But, far
beyond the immediate sphere of their own locality,
they extend their benevolence to the remotest parts
of the world. At the last anniversary of the Ameri-
can Tract Society, held in the city of New York in
April 1837, the large sum of 35,000 doUars was

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

appropriated to the printing and distributing of tracts
in different foreign languages abroad, in addition to
the great expense incurred for the support of Mission-
ary establishments in various remote quarters of the
earth, and their Sunday School Union, for the edu-
cation of the children of the poor at home. And
as it may give some idea of the extent of the field
over which their labours are spread, I transcribe an
abridgment of some of the principal items of that
appropriation from their official report.

To China, for the use of American Missionaries, Rev. Mr.
GutzlafF, Leang Afa, Keuh Agang, and others, and to aid in the
preparation of Chinese metal type, a work in progress both by
Rev. Mr. Dyer, at the east, and by M. Pauthier and others in
Paris, who find that 30,000 Cliinese characters, not obsolete, may
be printed fi*om 9,000 types separate and combmed ; the Chinese
being the written language of probably 300 millions; Chinese
printing conducted without interr«jption at Singapore, Malacca,
&c. ; many new Tracts prepared : and openings in the maritime
provinces, and among Chinese residing in other countries, for "as
many books as can be printed " — 4,000 dollars.

To Singapore and Indian Archipelago, probably embracing
50 millions, Chinese, Malay, Javanese, Bugis, &c. ; a large print-
ing establishment, with type in various languages, and a stereotype
foundery, being in active operation ; Leang Afa, Keuh Agang,
and several others, employed at Singapore in Chinese printing ;
great facilities of intercourse with all the neighbouring countries
and the ports of China ; a large mission having recently been sent
out by the reformed Dutch church, to be located at present in
Java — 3,000 dollars.

To Siam, where are two printing establishments, with access to
millions of Chinese, Malays, Peguans, Cambojans, Laos, &c.
Bankok alone containing 400,000 Chinese ; most of the adult
Siamese being able to read ; Rev. I. J. Roberts, from a new Mis-
sionary Society at the west having recently sailed for Siam, to
laboiu" mainly as a distributer — 2,000 dollars.

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EXTENSIVE BENEVOLENCE.

197

' For the Shnns, a great people, bordering on, and commingling
with the inhabitants of Burmah, Thibet, and China ; the American
Baptist board having recently established a mission and a presa at
Assam with Burmau and Shan type — 800 dollars.

To Burmah, for the Burmese, Talings, and Karens ; among
whom are 7 stations, Upwards of 30 Missionaries ; 600 converts,
a spirit of inquiry awakened ; large printing establishments with a
stereotype foundery : the whole Bible printed, and 24 tracts to
which the Society's funds may be applied ; two presses entirely
occupied with Tracts; many native distributers; frequent tours
made for distribution ; millions of readers, and God richly adding
his blessing — 4,000 dollars.

For Northern India, {or use of Missionaries of Western Foreign
Missionary Society at Lahore, who have two presses, and have
distributed extensively in journeys and tours ; the mission being
also about to be reinforced — 1,000 dollars.

To Orissa, for the use of English General Baptist and American
Baptist Missionaries ; this being the " Holy Land" of India, and
site of the temple of Juggernaut, annually visited by nearly half
a million pilgrims. " If Hindooism is ever to be subverted," says
a missionary at this station, " I believe tracts will occupy the
first place as the instrumental cause" — 1,000 dollars.

For the Telingas, 13 millions in a country between Orissa and
Madras, on the Coromandel coast, for a new mission of American
Baptist Board ; large portions of the Bible, Bunyan's Pilgrim's
Progress, and several tracts having been already printed at Madras
in the Telinga, or Teloogoo language — 500 dollars.

For Ceylon, Where are 7 mission stations ; 27 Missionaries ; 39
native assistants ; 122 free schools, and a seminary of young
men ; a press ; 30 tracts issued ; many native distributers and the
distributions much blessed — 2,000 dollars.

For Southern India, for use of Missionaries of American board
of commissioners for Foreign Missions ; station at Madura, among
the Tamul people, a strong hold of Paganism, and other stations
about to be established — 1,500 dollars.

For the Mahrattas, where are presses, with a stereotype foun-
dery ; one or more missionaries wholly devoted to the pi'epjiriitii)n

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

and distribution of tracts and books, which are found an indispen-
sable auxiliary— 1,000 dollars.

For the Sandwich Islands, where 3,420 pages of Hawaiian
have been prepared ; 3 presses issue from 6 to 10 million pages
annually ; and the missionaries have at no time been able to
meet the immediate, pressing demand for books — 1,000 dollars.

For Persia, for use of exploring mission of the Protestant Epis-
copal church — 500 dollars.

For Nestorians in Persia, who retain much of the simplicity of
the Gospel, and express great anxiety to receive christian books :
mission station at Tabreez — 500 dollars.

For Asia Minor, for use of missions of A. B. C. F. M. at
Smyrna, Scio, Brooso, and Trebizond; there being at Smyrna a
large printing establishment with type for various languages, a
stereotype foimdery, and numerous publications issued — 1,500
dollars.

To Smyrna, for the use of Mission of Western Foreign Mis-
sionary Society, who have a press and extensive openings for dis-
tribution, especially in modem Greek — 1,000 dollars.

To Greece, For use of mission of Protestant Episcopal church,
who have an efficient press at Syra ; printed last year at the
Society's expense 1,714,000 pages; have a harmony of the Gos-
pels and other valuable works in preparation, and wide openings for
distribution. New mission recently sailed for the island of Crete —
1,500 dollars.

To Greece, for Missionaries of A. B. C. F M. ; 28,000 publi-
cations distributed from Athens the last year, and many more might
have been given, had supplies been furnished ; "people have ap-
plied for books from all parts of the coimtry" — 500 dollars.

To Constantinople, cliiefly for the Armenians, who " seem to
be waking up en masse," including Jews in Turkey, Greeks, &c. —
1,000 dollars.

To Russia, for use of tract friends in St. Petersbiurgh, who
labour for 60 millions ; have issued 50 tracts in Russ, Finnish, Esto-
nian, Swedish, Mongolian, &c. all of which have the cordial sanc-
tion of the censor ; some volumes in preparation. Tracts to the
value of 600 dollars, were sok^ by one individual in one extensive

RELIGIOUS SOCIETIES.

199

tour ; many are piirchased by t^ nobility for distribution ; parcel$
Hcnt to friends at various points tw-oughout the empire, with many
evidences of the Divine blessing — 3,000 dollars.

For Hungary, embracing 2 million Protestants, and for tracts
in Bohemian and Wendish, to be committed to Mr. Samuel Elsne
of Berlin, and Rev. Dr. Paterson, at the earnest solicitation of
Rev. Dr. Paterson — 300 dollars.

Prussian Tract Society at Berlin^ for the Poles, by urgent
request of Rev. Dr. Paterson, many of whom are crying for help,
both within and beyond the limits of Prussia — 300 dollars.

Germany, Lower Saxony Tract Society, Hamburg, Tracts being
a prominent medium for diffusing evangelical truth ; and wide
doors open, in the midst of opposition — 300 dollars.

Hamburg, for Missionary of American Baptbt Board, who makes
extensive tours for distribution, and a colporteur who is devoting
Iiimself to the work — 300 dollars.

To France, embracing 32 millions, for use of Missionaries of
American Baptist board — 500 dollars.

For South Africa, to the South African Female Tract Society at
Cape Town, in connection with Rev. Dr. Philip ; the Pilgrim's Pro-
gress and 6 American Tracts being already printed in Dutch,
with many active distributers. Rev. Dr. Philip says, " There is
nothing within the range of human means that we more need than
money to assist us in printing" — 500 dollars.

To the Moravian Brethren, for aid at their respective mission
stations, especially in the West Indies and Canada — 700 dollars.

For North American Indians, for missions of American Baptist-
Board, especially at their press in Shawanoe — 200 dollars.

In addition to the funds raised for these extended
operations, and the personal labours which the clergy
and ministers undergo, in carrying them out, there is
a degree of zeal, energy, and untiring activity
among them, for the promotion of benevolent and
religious objects, which is deserving of all praise ; it
mjiy, indeed, be doubted whether in any country in

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

the world there is so much of purely gratuitous and
disinterested labour devoted to the temporal and
spiritual interests of the whole community, and espe-
cially the most friendless and destitute portions of it,
as in America, if New York be regarded as a fair
specimen of the Union, and it is asserted that New
England is in this respect still its superior.

t '.

CHAP. XL

State of literature and the arts in the citv—- Common schools—
Stotistics of Education — Newspapers and, periodical publications
— The Knickerbocker — Monthly Magazine — New York Review,
by Dr. Hawkes — Superiority of the Common- School Assistant
— Model worthy of imitation in England — Music and Painting
— Mr. Cole's pictures — Architecture and the fine arts — New York
churches — University— Astor House — House of Detention —
— Building in Egyptian style — Columns of the portico, after a
temple at Philiie — Defect m the want of elevation for its site —
Striking effect of the massiveness of the whole.

The common schools of New York are objects of
great interest to those who feel the full importance of
the value of general education. A great eflfort has
been lately made to increase the number and improve
the eflficiency of these schools, not merely in this
State, but throughout the whole Union. The gen-
tleman who has taken the most active and practical
part in this valuable labour, is Mr. John Orville
Taylor ; and his qualifications for the task may be
judged of from the fact of his filling a professorship
of the Science of Education in the New York Uni-
versity, and his being publicly recommended for that
offiee by some of the most eminently learned and
distinguished men in the country. At the begin-
ning of 1836, a monthly periodical was commenced
by him, under the title of " The Common School
Assistant ;" its avowed object being to awaken the
public feeling as to the importance of education, and
to collect and diflPuse all kinds of information calcu-

If'

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■TATE OF NEW YORK.

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latcd to improve tho modes of teaching, and stimu-
late the public to adopt the best plans for the exten-
sion of knowledge generally. This was first pub-
lished at Albany, tho seat of tho legislature of ttiis
State, but it has been since removed to New York,
as the better central point of general communication.
Tho paper is admirably conducted ; it is full of the
most interesting and valuable information ; its pages
are honoured with contributions from tho first pens
in America ; and it is furnished at the cheap rate of
fifty cents, or about two shillings English, per annum.
The circulation is, accordingly, immense — approach-
ing 50,000 monthly.

During my stay in New York, a public meeting
of the Friends of Education was held at the Ta-
bernacle, in Broadway, for the purpose of forming a
" Common School Union," on tho principle of the
Sunday School Union, or the British and Foreign
School Society. To effect this, the sum of 5,000
dollars, or about 1000/. sterling, was required ; and
such was the effect of the appeals made at this meet-
ing, that the whole sum was raised in a few days.
This Union is now in full operation, with an office, an
establishment for correspondence, and all the neces-
sary elements for securing complete efficiency. It
has already awakened the spirit of the neighbouring
States ; and State conventions are following each
other, in various parts of the country, to consider of
the best means of improving the modes of education in
the common schools of their respective districts. I
had the good fortune to enjoy much of the society of
Mr. Taylor, as we lived under the same roof; and
from his conversation, and the perusal of his journals

\\Mi

SCHOOL FUNDS.

203

and papers, I derived all the information I wished
respecting the statistics of education hero; though
I relied only on my own personal examination of the
schools of New York, for the knowledge of their
actual present condition.

In the State of New York the whole population
is 2,17'^>(^^ ; ond the number of children, between
five and fifteen years of age, taught in the common
schools, is 537,398 ; or about one in four of the
whole population. The number of school districts,
in each of which there is a common school, is 10,207 ;
and the annual expenditure on these is 1,235,25()
dollars. The amount of the school-fund, belonging
to the State, is 1,917.494 dollars, from which an
income of 110,000 dollars is annually distributed
among the common schools, and the rest is made up
by local rates and individual payments. This state-
ment does not include the city of New York, which
alone gives gratuitous education to 14,105 children
in daily common schools, at an expense of nearly
100,000 dollars a year.

In my examination of several of these schools in
the city, I was much pleased with the plan and ar-
rangement of every department, from the infant-
school to the more advanced ; and I thought the
teachers, male and female, of a higher order of
intellect and manners than are usually employed
in the National and Lancasterian Schools in Eng-
land ; and the proficiency of the t pils, in general,
superior.

In all these common schools, whether in country
or town, the pupils pay nothing for their instruction.
They are open day-schools, to which any one, desir-

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204

STATE OF NEW YORK.

'■' I

ing it, may send their children daily for tree educa-
tion. They are maintained, partly by the school-
fund of the State, partly by local rates of townships,
and partly by municipal grants and city taxes. They
are everywhere of late improving ; and are already
sufficiently numerous to educate all the children of the
country, though many poor families, from different
motives, are unwilling to send their children there :
some because they are not impressed with the value
of education ; and some because they wish to retain
the services of their children for profitable purposes.
The effects of the Common School Union, and the
monthly circulation of 50,000 copies of its publi-
cation, added to the frequent public meetings, lec-
tures, and travelling agencies in motion, will, how-
ever, gradually remove all existing obstacles, so that
education will become more and more general, and
more and more perfect, every year.

In addition to the common schools of the city and
the State, there are a great number of excellent
boarding schools, for both sexes, in New York, to
which the more opulent families, who do not desire
a free education for their children, send them to be
taught. It is believed that nearly 10,000 young per-
sons of both sexes are under this kind of education
in New York alone at the present moment.

The colleges for professional education, in theo-
logy, law, and medicine, are also abundant ; and the
University is well furnished with competent professors
in almost every branch of learning, so that the means
of cheap and excellent education are within the reach
of all who choose to avail themselves of that advan-
tage.

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UNIVERSITY.

Q05

' ■*,]

The literature of New York is but ill represented
by its newspapers, of which I had occasion to speak
before ; and I need say no more here than that, from
various causes, and for various reasons, they are
almost all below the standard which the intellect
and the taste of the community would seem to
require. Among the daily papers, the American,
and the Evening Post, the first conducted by Mr.
Charles King, and the second by Mr. Bryant, the
American poet, are marked by the greatest atten-
tion to literary subjects. Among the weekly papers,
the Albion and the Mirror rank the highest ; the
former a political paper, devoted chiefly to English
and colonial interests, and much read by the British
in Canada as well as in the States ; and the latter a
literary paper, but wanting vigour and energy in
thought and style. The religious newspapers of
New York form an exception to the general character
of the newspaper press. They are conducted with

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206

STATE OF NEW YORK.

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ability, are strictly moral and religious, and, though
representing different sects and classes, are tolerant,
mild, and impartial. Of these, the Observer, the
Evangelist, the Christian Advocate and Journal, the
Christian Intelligencer, and the Churchman, are the
most prominent. There are, ,. -^ides these, two
French newspapers, political and literary ; one German
paper ; some few devoted to Roman Catholic inter-
ests ; and a number of obscure prints, that live their
little day of transient popularity, and then disappear.
Of monthly periodicals there are two, the Knicker-
bocker, edited by Mr. Clarke and Mr. Edson, and
the American Monthly Magazine, edited by Mr.
Park Benjamin. They are quite on a par of excel-
lence with the best of our English magazines ; have
more of the serious and useful, and less of the frivolous
and fleeting, than any of them ; and many of the
contributions to each would be highly estimated in
any country. A new Review, published quarterly,
has just been started, under the editorship of the
Rev. Dr. Hawkes, of the Episcopal church, and is
likely to be very popular. It is conducted with
great ability, beyond doubt ; but there is a fierceness
of conservative wrath, and a bitterness of political
scorn, in some of its articles, which were meant
to be poured out as vials of indignation against
democracy in general; but while they fall harm-
less on the heads of those intended to be the chief
objects of its attack here, they will excite only a
smile at their folly in the politicians of other countries,
to whatever party they may belong ; for it is difficult
to imagine any thing more grotesque, than to see the
avowed admirers of republicanism, which all the Whig

y>n

COMMON SCHOOL UNION.

207

editors here acknowledge themselves to be, raising
an outcry against democracy as the greatest of evils.
For myself, I think the cheap little paper of the
" Common School Union" of far more value and
importance to the formation of the public mind and
public morals of the rising generation of the United
States, than all the other newspapers, magazines,
and reviews put together. These last aim more at
amusement than instruction ; and nearly all are
more deeply interested in promoting the triumph of
a party, than in seeking out truth, or, when discovered,
in defending it at all hazards, and proclaiming it far
and near. While, therefore, political disquisitions,
party politics, and acrimonious controversies, occupy
a prominent portion of the pages of the larger papers
and publications adverted to, with a great admixture,
in too many of them, of the frivolous and vitiating,
this little bark " pursues the even tenour of its way,"
freighted with the rich ores of the most useful and
important information that children can possibly
possess, and best adapted to fit them for the due
discharge of their d«ities as men.

Here are the heads of the subjects treated of in
detail, in a single number of this paper. 1. News
of the day, in which the principal events are briefly,
clearly, and pleasingly told. 2. Education, embra-
cing facts and opinions of the highest value on this
important subject. 3. Social morals — essays on
duties and obligations in life, and reasons on which
they are founded. 4. Science of government, unfold-
ing all the great principles of state policy in the
diff*urent forms of monarchies, aristocracies, and
republics, with brief comments on each. 5. Duties

208

STATE OF NEW YORK.

of public officers defined according to the constitution,
with the advantages and disadvantages of particular
appointments, and deficiencies yet requiring to be
supplied. 6. Domestic economy, embracing the
whole art of housewifery, and the best management of
a family in every department. 7. Political economy,
discussion and elucidation of the questions — What
makes things cheap ? and what makes them dear ?
What labour is productive, and what is unproduc-
tive ? What are the uses of money ? What are
the laws that should regulate trade? and so on.
8. Agriculture, containing every new fact and pro-
cess connected with this important branch of know-
ledge, including horticulture and botany, useful and
ornamental. 9. Mechanics, the science and prac-
tice of all that belongs to the labours of artisans, in
every branch of manufacture. 10. Practical chemistry,
in so far as it is applicable to the various processes
of every-day business in ordinary life, with occasional
descriptions of new and important discoveries.
11. Natural philosophy, in its most comprehensive
sense ; but, like all the others, explained in the most
familiar terms, and illustrated by facts and the results
of experiments.

Such is an epitome of the contents of a single
number of one of these interesting sheets ; and the
result is, that it is perhaps the only newspaper
published in the world, of which persons of pure
taste could read everi/ line^ from beginning to end,
without weariness or displeasure ; for there is no
space occupied by advertisements ; no penny-a-line
paragraphs ; no births, deaths, marriages, prices of
stocks, or any other kind of information, suited only

DUTY ON ROOKS.

Q09

for particular classes. It is all good, all useful, all
interesting ; and I can conceive no greater benefit con-
ferred on a community than the introduction and ex-
tensive circulation of such a paper as this. The sin-
cerity of this opinion may be tested by the fact, that I
became a subscriber for 200 copies of the paper while
in New York, which were sent to England by the post,
addressed to such of the members of both houses of
parliament, and private friends of mine throughout
the country, as I thought most likely to approve such a
publication ; urging them, by the best arguments I
could use, to do their utmost to increase and multipy
such papers in every county and city of Great Britain.
One of the greatest obstacles which at present
impede the free course of literature, and retard its
improvement in America, is the absurd legislative
enactment, by which all imported books, with few and
unimportant exceptions, are subjected to heavy duties,
amounting to from thirty to fifty per cent, according to
the size and style of the work, as the duty is not esti-
mated by the price or value of the books, but by
their weight avoirdupois ; the impost by the tariff
being thirty cents, per lb. The consequence of this
prohibitory duty is, that very few of the best English
books are imported into the country ; their original
high price, from our own equally absurd duties
upon paper, with the additional price which this
impost occasions, rendering it unsafe for booksellers
to import English works at their own risk ; and
therefore hundreds of our very best productions
are never seen on the west of the Atlantic. The
only books imported are those of a transient, but
at the same time a popular interest j and these are

VOL. I. p

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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not imported for sale in their original shape, but for
the purpose of reprinting, for which a single copy is
enough. The protection of English copyright not ex-
tending to America, all our popular reviews and maga-
zines are here reprinted, including the Edinburgh,
Quarterly, London, Westminster, and British and
Foreign Reviews, Blackwood's, Bentley's, Tait*s,
the Metropolitan, and other magazines ; and as the
publisher here has nothing to pay for the contribu-
tions or articles, the heaviest item in the European
cost, he reprints them at the mere charge of printing
and paper, and sells them at a large profit. The
Pickwick papers, Mr. Bulwer's novels, and every
other work of mere entertainment, is thus reprinted,
and sold for one-half, and sometimes for one-fourth,
their English price ; and thus an extensive sale is
secured. The people having but little leisure, every
one being engaged in some way of business or other,
and few books of solid instruction or ueoful learning
being presented to them, while a host of light and
frivolous works are amply offered to their choice ;
the only reading in which the bulk of the community
indulge, is that of the newspapers, the reviews, and
the novels of the day. These, instead of being
the occasional occupation of a portion of the time
spared from severer studies, form the whole circle
of their reading, and the result is just what might
have been anticipated ; first, that the reading of
graver and more important works, in their complete
state, even when these are attainable, which is but
rarely, is thought too great a labour for any but
professors and heads of colleges to undertake ;
secondly, that a vitiated appetite for the stimulating

FREE THADE IN LITERATURE.

^211

and absorbing, is created and fed, becoming at
length so pampered, that it can relish no other kind
of food : and, thirdly, that the newspapers and reviews
give such party views, of the topics on which they
treat, and the books they profess to analyze, that few
who confine their reading to these sources have any
accurate conceptions of the true merits of either.
Thus the most erroneous ideas are engendered
and propagated respecting men and things, which
strengthen into prejudices, and take such deep root
as to defy all logic, reason, and experience.

The first step to the amendment of this condi-
tion of the public taste in literature, would be to
repeal all duties on imported books, in whatever
language, or on whatever subject ; the next, to
enact a mutual and reciprocal law for the inter-
national protection of copyright for a limited period j
and then to let the inter-communication of thought
between nation and nation be as free as the air.*

V-

* In Prescott's History of Ferdinand and Isabella, published at
Boston, a work which does the highest honour to American litera-
ture, and which may take rank with the most elaborate ard perfect
productions of the first historians of Europe, the following passage
and note deserves the serious attention of the legislators of Great
Britain as well as of America, both of whom are yet behind, not
merely the spirit of the present ag^, but even the example of the
Spanish monarchs in the fifteenth century, for both still sanction
the barbarous impost of a heavy duty on the importation of foreign
books. Of these monarchs, Mr. Prescott says —

" Foreign books of every description, by a law of 1480, were
allowed to be imported into the kingdom, free of all duty what-
ever; an enlightened provision, which might furnish a useful hint
to legislators of the nineteenth century."

" Ordenan9as Reales, lib. 4. tit. 4. leg. 22. The preamble of this

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212

STATK OF NEW VOHK.

There are some hopes that these steps may soon be
taken, and a greater good could scarcely be accom-
plished for both countries than this.

In the fine arts, it were unreasonable to expect
that the Americans should have made much progi^ess ;
considering first, the infancy of their country as an
independent nation ; and next, the almost universal
absence of leisure in any extensive class. Notwith-
standing this, there are already indications that the
arts are relished and enjoyed by many, and that they
will, ere long, be successfully cultivated by more.

Of music, it is remarked that the Americans are
great admirers j though it is very unusual to meet
with any lady or gentleman who sings or plays in a
manner that would be called "well" in England;
and it is certain that they have not yet produced a
single individual of their nation who has enjoyed any
reputation as a public singer, instrumental perfoi mer,
or composer of music in any form. Nevertheless,
in the simple execution of sacred music in the choirs
of public worship, there is an accuracy and a sweet-
ness of harmony which is very striking to the ear of
a stranger ; and even in the oratorios that are now
and then got up, the chorusses are well sustained by
American voices. But to the higher branches of

statute is expressed in the following enlightened terms : — " Consi-
derando los Reyes de gloriosa memoria, quanto era provechoso y
honroso, que a esto3 sus reynos se truxessen libros de otras partes,
para que con ellos se hi::iessen los hombres letrados, quisieron y

ordenaron, que de los libros no se pagasse el alcavala Lo

quel parcce que redunda en provecho universal de todos, y en
ennoblecimiento de neustros Reynos." — Prescotfs Ferdinand and
Isabella, vol^ ii. chap. 19, p. 207. Boston, 1839.

MUSIC AND PAINTING.

213

the art they have never reached. Their patronage,
!*owever, of foreign singers, is extremely liberal.
Mr. and Mrs. Wood, but especially the latter, were
greeted with large audiences throughout the Union ;
and Madame Caradori Allen has still more recently
been attended, in all the large cities, with overflowing
numbers, and honoured, most deservedly, with uni-
versal admiration.

In painting, some progress has been made. The
number of American gentlemen of fortune, who have
travelled through Europe, and brought back with them
fine pictures of the ancient masters, for their private
collections, are considerable ; and every fresh acces-
sion to the number and variety of such pictures,
serves to familiarize those who see them with the
best models, and thus to form a correct taste. Of
native American painters, there are now several
rising into reputation. One of these, Mr. Cole, I
had the pleasure to meet in New York ; he is not
more than thirty years of age ; yet he has already
attained to an excellence that would give him a very
high rank in England. The two first of his pictures
that I saw were landscape compositions, " Morning"
and ** Evening," painted for Mr. Van Raussalaer,
the patroon of Albany, at a thousand dollars each ;
and for beauty of composition, harmony of parts, ac-
curacy of drawing, and force of effect, I have never
seen any modern pictures that surpassed them.

His greatest work, however, is a series of Five
Paintings, now in the possession of a wealthy citizen
of New York, Mr. Reed ; who has a very interesting
gallery, which he opens to all persons properly intro-
duced, on Thursday in each week, and to whom wo

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had the pleasure of being presented by Miss Sedg-
wick, the authoress. These pictures are intended
to represent the Course of Empires ; and the five
divisions are thus characterized.

The first exhibits the savage state, in which a
noble composition of mountain, bay, and forest is
exhibited in all the wildness of primeval disorder.
The few figures that are seen, are hunters, occupied
in the chase. Nothing can exceed the truth to
nature of this beautiful picture.

The second, though not so grand, is more beau-
tiful. It represents the pastoral condition of man-
kind — the plough is in use, drawn by a yoke of oxen,
and shepherds are attending their flocks ; a village
is built on the shore of the bay — boats are construct-
ing on the beach, and some are in motion on the
water ; while a druidical temple, with altars of sacri-
fice, crowns the summit of one of the hills. The ver-
dure is more rich, and less encumbered with weeds,
than in the former picture. The trees are more open,
and in the space between them, on the lawn and in the
shadows, a rustic party are enjoying the dance, to
the shepherd's reed. The tranquillity of the sky,
the clearness of the atmosphere, and the brilliancy of
the tints, all harmonize with the representation of
innocence and happiness, and make it delightful to
gaze on these associated objects for a great length of
time.

The third picture of the series is a representa-
tion of the meridian glory of a great empire, in the
Very zenith of its prosperity and fame ; and it is
impossible to conceive a more gorgeous picture than
this. The bay, seen fn its wild and savage state, in

COURSE OF EMPIRES.

^215

the first of the series, and in the pastoral condition
in the second, is here lined on each side with a nohlc
city, adorned with the most splendid architecture, in
palaces, temples, hridges, aqueducts, and fountains.
A vast and crowded procession is passing over the
hridge that connects these two divisions of the city,
accompanying a hero, who is drawn in an elevated
car by elephants, and attended by squadrons of horse
and foot, as he passes beneath a triumphal arch,
on which incense is burning, and from whence banners
and armorial ensigns float. Countless myriads of
human beings throng every part of the edifices,
pediments, galleries, and roofs. The sea is covered
with galleys of the most beautiful forms and richest
decorations ; and every thing indicates the triumph
of art and the zenith of civilization.

The fourth picture introduces the elements of
destruction and decay — a storm is raging on the sea,
and consigning to wreck the numerous ships and
boats that before were seen riding at anchor in
safety, or floating in gallant trim and gay security.
The horrors of war are depicted with all the force
that the most poetical imagination could give to it.
A battle rages in the city. The bridge, so recently
the scene of the triumphal procession, is now the
seat of carnage, havoc, and slaughter. Every variety
of attitude and of weapon, every form of ferocity
and vengeance, are depicted with terror-thrilling
truth ; and fire, tempest, and murder, rage with un-
bridled fury all around.

The last picture shows the same beautiful bay, in
all the solitude of .ruin and desolation. The frag-
ments that remain of the vast and gorgeous city, like

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tho ruins of Thelwa, of Palmyra, of Athens, and of
Homo, form a melancholy skeleton of tho fi^lorious
iii^uro which they each exhibited when in perfection.
The single solitary column, of vast proportions, grey
in aspect, worn in surface, overgrown with ivy and
moss, rising from tho ruined bndgo on which the
triumphal procession and the battle-scene were pre-
viously depicted, is one of the most impressive objects
that can be seen upon canvass ; while the surround-
ing fragments of noble edifices crumbling into dust,
the second wilderness of nature restored, in the tan-
gled thicket and entwined verdure of the soil, and
the pale light of the moon shed over the whole, are
all calculated to produce a train of melancholy feelings
in any beholder of the least degree of sensibility.

On myself, perhaps, the effect of this beautiful
series of pictures, representing the Course of Empires,
was stronger than it might have been on many others,
from its rekindling in my bosom tho feelings I had
so powerfully experienced, when standing amid the
ruins of ancient grandeur, at Alexandria, Memphis,
and Thebes — at Tyre, Sidon, and Jerusalem — and
at Nineveh, Babylon, and Persepolis ; the course of
these gi'eat cities and empires having been exactly
that which was here so beautifully and so pathetically
pourtrayed ; and this feeling was still further strength-
ened, perhaps, by the apprehension, that the same
fate might, probably, be maturing in the womb of
time, for the great cities and nations that now rule tho
earth.

In the architecture of New York, a great improve-
ment of taste is visible. The older buildings of the
town are rude in design, mean in materials, and

EGYPTIAN BUILDING.

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wretched in execution ; but every successive period
o/ twenty years, exhibits a manifest advance towards
a better state of things. The more modern churches
are in a chaste Grecian style, some of the Doric, and
some of the Ionic order. The University in Wash-
ington Square is a fine specimen of the Gothic ; and
the great hotel of Astor House has all the massive-
ness, simplicity, and chastoness of design adapted to
such an edifice.

One of the most remarkable of the public build-
ings of New York is a new House of Detention, or
Bridewell, sometimes called the Hall of Justice, in
Centre-Street, not far from the centre of Broadway.

'■Stir

It is intended for a prison, for the detention of
accused criminals before trial ; and attached to the
same building are all the requisite conveniences for
the business of the city magistrates, and the criminal
courts held by them. This edifice is built in the
Egyptian style of architecture j and though it has

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

many defects, yet, as a whole, it is very imposing.
The front and portico, which covers a fa9ade of
about 100 feet, is striking, from its novelty. The
columns, which are modelled after some of the pillars
in the temple of Philoe, are well sculptured, and
produce a very solemn and stately effect. The
whole edifice, however, wants elevation ; and would
have looked to much greater advantage, if it had
been raised ten or twelve feet above the ground.
The high interior walls of the prison-department
appearing over the lower and outer walls of the tem-
ple model, by which it is surrounded, is a violation of
propriety and good taste ; and the small space allowed
for the steps in front of the portico, with the steep-
ness of their angle of ascent, are also great defor-
mities. Notwithstanding these defects, however, the
massiveness of the style, added to its novelty, when
compared with surrounding edifices, will always
cause it to be a very remarkable building.

Wf^ii-

CHAP. XII.

Peculiarities in the manners and customs of New York — Visits be-
tween residents and strangers — Carriages, servants, liveries,
&c. — Want of lamps, numbers of houses — Naming of streets,
bell-hangers and locksmiths — Song of chimney-sweeps in their
rounds — Excellent mode of observing new year's day — Love of
quaintness and singularity of expression — Examples in announce-
ments and editorial parag^phs — Visit to Newark with Mr.
Webster — Instances of wit, cheerfulness, and humour — Anecdote
of Mr. Webster and coloured people — Memorial of coloured
people against mixed races — Boarding-house life, its advantages
and disadvantages — Peculiarity of expression, phrases, &c.

Among the peculiarities of New York, and traits of
manners not common to other places, the following
may deserve mention. It is usual here, as in other
parts of the country, for the residents to call first upon
the stranger who arrives j and this visit is expected
to he returned before an invitation to the house takes
place. It would, of course, greatly facilitate the per-
formance of the visit, if the resident who makes the
call, or leaves his card, were to place his address on
it, so as to let the stranger know where he might
call ; but out of more than 200 cards that were left
for us by persons calling, there were not more than
ten on which the address, or place of residence, was
added to the name. To every one to whom I men-
tioned this defect, it was admitted to be a source of
great inconvenience ; but the excuse was, that it was
not the custom in New York to put the residence on

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the cards, and many valuable hours are thus lost by
the consequent uncertainty of this, and the inq'iiries
to which it leads, since the Directory confines its in-
formation chiefly to places of business. The hours of
morning visiting are earlier here than in England ;
from eleven till two, is the most usual period, as many
families dine at three, and few later than four or five.
An excellent custom, worthy of all imitation, prevails
here, which is, for ladies who may be at home when
called on, but not prepared or disposed to see com-
pany, to leave word with the servant, that " they are
engaged," instead of saying, as in England, " not at
home ;" and as this answer is given without their
knowing who the parties are that call, a*id to all
without distinction, no oflence can be justly taken ; v
it. A great improvement might be made on this, hov -
ever, and a great deal of time saved that is now lost to
both parties by calls made on persons who are either
not at home, or, being at home, are engaged ; namely,
that ladies and gentlemen should, if they received
morning visits at all, have one or more fixed days in
tlie week, on which they would be at home within
certain prescribed hours, and have these stated in a
comer of their cards, so that visitors might know when
to call with a certainty of finding the person of whom
they were in search. For the want of some such
aiTangement as this, many valuable hours are lost
every day, in unsuccessful calls on persons who are
really out, and the evil seems to be on the increase.

Ill the equipages and dresses of the servants, male
and female, there is much greater plainness here
than in England. The domestics are mostly black or
coloured people j and the greatest number of the coach-

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MASTERS AND SERVANTS.

221

men and footmen are of the came race. With these,
there is no difficulty in getting them to wear a laced
hat, and an approach towards something like livery
in their dress j hut with a white coachman or footman,
this would be impossible ; such is their aversion to
wear any badge of servitude. This arises, no doubt,
from the fact, that in the early history of America
nearly all the domestic servants were slaves. In the
southern states, this is still the case ; and even in
the northern, where slavery no longer exists, the pre-
judice against the coloured races is as strong as ever ;
so that while the blacks chiefly fill the places of
domestic servants, the whites of this coxmtry will
always look on servitude as a degradation, and not
suffer the term of "servant," to be applied to them,
nor call any man " master," because these term? are
only known to them as designating owner and slave.

A curious anecdote was related to me by a person
who witnessed the fact. An English minister hap-
pened not long since to be in New York on his way
to Washington ; and behind his carriage there were
two footmen dressed in livery. Their appearance first
excited the attention, and then gradually increased
the numbers, of the crowd ; till, at length, shouts
and hurras were set up by the boys, who cried out,
** Hurrah for the Englishmen! hurrah for the
Englishmen I It takes two Englishmen to make one
Nigger I" meaning that two English footmen were
thought necessary to do the duty which they had
been always accustomed to see one Negro perform.

A gTcat defect in the municipal arrangement is,
the want of sufficient light in the streets by night.
The lamps are so far apart, and so scantily supplied

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with gas, that it is impossible to distinguish names or
numbers on the doors from the carriages, or even on
foot, Avithout useending the steps to examine ; and
as no uniform plan seems to be laid down for the
order in which the numbering of the houses shall
be made, the difficulties and delavs are vexatious to
the most patient. A very simple remedy would re-
move it all, which would be, to have the numbers
placed on the glass of the lamps, corresponding to
that of the doors nearest to them, which could be
seen by all in passing ; an arrangement which in the
best lighted cities might be worthy of adoption, but
in badly lighted ones would be of the greatest
utility.

In naming any particular streets, either in writing
or in conversation, it is usual to drop the word street
altogether, and to give the address of the person as
" 54 Pine" instead of 54 Pine street, and to say,
" comer of Wall and Pearl" or ** comer of Spruce
and Cedar," or " Broadway and Fulton," leaving
" street" to be inferred in each case as a matter of
course.

The public markets in New York, are large,
open, airy, and well supplied with every thing requi-
site for the table. Meat, poultry, fish, vegetables,
fruits, are all F=old in these open markets, of which
Fulton is one of the principal ones. There is an
entire absence here of the butchers*, poulterers*, and
fishmongers* shops, so common in London ; and the
caterers from the hotels, boarding-houses, and pri-
vate dwellings, are all obliged to go v^ry early to
market, generally at daylight, to secure a good choice :
but at that hour they always find an abundant supply.

In New York, as in London, there are chimney

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SWEEPS AND LOCKSMITHS.

223

sweepers in great numbers ; but instead of tbe sbrill
cry of " sweep, sweep," from little tiny voices as in
England, the men who walk the streets here have a
peculiar song or tune without words, which they
sing, always agreeably, and sometimes melodiously,
so as to waken ideas of cheerfulness and content,
instead of the painful associations inseparable from
the piercing cry of the climbing-boy at home.

Locksmiths and bell-hangers are a class of work-
men that also go their rounds, and call at houses to
know if there is any thing to do in their art or pro-
fession. They have no signal, or cry, that I could
discover, but are known by the coils of bell-wire car-
ried over their shoulders, and bunches of keys carried
in their hands ; and there is no doubt but that in
consequence of their periodical calls, bells are put
in order, and locks repaired more frequently, than
they would be, if these artisans remained at home
until they were sent for. An engraver of brass-
plates for doors improved upon this idea, and got
into an excellent business by the following plan.
Instead of losing his time by going round to solicit
orders, he noted, in his walks, the houses that had
brass plates on them v/ith the name of the resident,
especially those that were badly done, as well as the
houses where no plates existed ; and adapting his
style of size and character in the letters and plate to
the doorway which needed it, he engraved the requi-
site name without an order, took it to the house, saw
the occupier, told him he did it by way of experi-
ment or speculation, and generally so pleased the
party, that he had his plate fixed on the door before
he left, though, without this step, years might have

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

passed away before the person would have thought
of ordering one.

Among the peculiarities in the customs of New
York, none is more worthy of imitation than the
manner in which itc inhabitants observe the first day
of the new year. The custom is derived from the
old Dutch settlers who first founded the city, and is
thus observed. The day is made a complete holiday,
and the stores and shops are almost as /generally
closed as on the Sunday. All the ladies of the
family rise early, dress for the day, and immediately
after breakfast repair to the drawing-room, to receive
the visits of their male friends. Not a lady moves
out, either for business or pleasure, health or exer-
cise ; and it is the only day in the year, perhaps, in
which no lady is seen out, either in carriage or on
foot, for none but " friendless ladies" could be spared
from home. As early as nine o'clock the visits of
the gentlemen commence; and as these are all
dressed in their best, the streets and squares present
a most animated appearance, by groups of friends
ascending and descending the steps of the private
houses, while carriages are waiting at the diflerent
points for the conveyance of those who require this
assistance, though the greater number of the young
gentlemen perform their visits on foot.

The new year's day of 1838 happened to be a day
of the finest possible weather — a sharp, but not a
cold air, a bright sun, and a perfect calm ; and as
it is expected of foreigners that they who approve of
the custom should adopt it with their particular
friends, I took a carriage for the day, though in conse-
quence of the increased demand, this was only to be had

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VISITS OF CEREMONY.

2-25

at about five times the ordinary charge ; and taking
my son with me, while Mrs. Buckingham remained
at home with the ladies of the house in which wo
lived, to receive the visits of the gentlemen to whom
we had been introduced, I made the circuit of
Brooklyn and New York, in each of which we had
some agreeable acquaintances, and between ten
and five o'clock we called on fifty-two families, and
drove over about ten miles of ground. We met in
every house witli a most cordial reception ; the ladies
put forth all tlieir attractions, were well dressed,
affable, cheerful, and communicative. In an adjoining
room, refreshments were provided, of which some
of the gentlemen partook ; but as it is thought
important by those who have a very or*jnsive circle
of acquaintance that they should visit them all in
the course of the day — we heard of some young men
who had nearly a hundred on their list — the great
majority were only able to shake hands, wish health
and the joys of the season to their fair entertainers,
and then retire to pursue their course. Our number
being more limited, it afforded us the opportunity of
remaining some little time at each house, so that we
saw as much of the gentlemen as of the ladies, and
met a large number of acquaintances among those
who were visitors like ourst iv^es. The clergy and
ministers of religion also remain at home, and receive
the visits of the members of their congregations ;
and as we waited on several of these, we found all
the Episcopalian clergy dressed in full canonicals,
and receiving their guests with great courtesy and
hospitality.

The beneficial efiects of this custom are numerous

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

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anil important. It is a day saved from the toils and
cares of business, and given to innocent and social
pleasure ; and this, in such a busy and over-wrought
community, is a great advantage. It enables those
who have long neglected their visits to bring up
their arrears, and begin a new account ; and it
furnishes those who have been grooving cold by
absence, or indifferent from some slight or embryo
quarrel, to renew their intercourse without conces-
sion or .without offence. It serves to increase the
respect for women, by the homage thus paid to
female influence ; and it brings the ministers of the
gospel and their congregations into happy and agree-
able communication. It has all these advantages,
and many more, without a single evil that I could dis-
cover ; for though some might think it would have too
democratic a tendency, by bringing persons of different
ranks too nearly on a level, yet, since no gentleman
ever presumes to visit a family on new year's day
who has not been previously introduced to them, and
his introduction sanctioned by some reciprocal inter-
course, none of the parties who meet arc strangers
to each other, and no liberties are taken of which
the most fastidious could disapprove.

Among the most striking peculiarities of Ameri-
can taste, is a love of quaintness and singularity in
their expressions. Many ludicrous instances of this
will arrest the attention of the observant stranger
every day in his intercourse with society ; but this
is not confined to conversation in private circles, it
extends also to their printed documents, announce-
ments, and paragraphs prepared for the press. The
following are two only out of some twenty or thirty

EDITORIAL WITTICISMS.

227

announcements that met my eye in the public papers
of the day, inserted among the advertisements. The
first relates to a convivial society, of Dutch origin,
which celebrates its anniversary by a feast of sour
krout ; and it carries one back to the age of Deidrick
Knickerbocker and Rip Van Winkle, vjrith the
legend of " the sleepy hollow ; " and the second
belongs to a political society, taking the name of an
Indian Saint, Tammany, for its patron, and preserv-
ing the Indian imagery, phraseology, and dates.

" GREAT AND IMPORTANT NEWS.
" Owing to the recent disturbances in Canada, his august Majesty,
the Grand Krout, has been awakened from his annual nap, which
he takes immediately after the holiday feasts — ^Ixis Majesty opened
his peepers in the sixteenth hour of his nap, after rubbing, gaping,
and stretching for three hom-s, and eating seven plates of krout,
five links of Bologna sausages, drinking foiu: bottles of old hock, and
smoking seventeen pipes of tobacco, he was seen to nod, which
signifies approbation.

" Now I, the Arch Chancellor, in virtue of my authority, com-
mand all the liege krouts in creation, to appear at Krout Von
Nowland's, unwilted, to partake of the annual feast, on Tuesday,
January 16th, 1838. By order,

" Nicholas Rulef Pompernacle,

" Arch Counsellor.
" Peter Harmanus Klotterloff,

" Secretary.
" For tickets apply to

" Krout Von Davis, 45, Pine Street.
" Krout Delavan, 489, Broadway.
" Krout Meserole, 19, Nassau Street,
" Krout Foote, 204, Front Street.
" Krout Bendernagle, 179, Division Street.
*' Krout Cruttenden, City Hotel.
" Krout Knowland, Prospect Hall."
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" TAMMANY SOCIETY, OR COLUMBIAN ORDER.
" Brothers. — A regular meeting of the Institution will be held in
the Council Chamber of the Great Wigwam, on Monday evening,
Feb. 5 th, at half an hour after the setting of the sun. General
and punctual attendance is particularly desired.
" By order of the Grand Sachem

" John J. Bedient, Secretary.
•* Manhattan, Season of Snows, Second Moon, Year of Discovery
346, of Independence 62, and of the Institution the 49th."

The editorial witticisms of this kind are without
end ; and the straining after effect in oddities and
quaintness, to serve the purpose of the moment,
seems to have engendered a permanent relish
for such extravagancies, as readers appear to
enjoy them very heartily ; and so long as this is the
case, there will he no want of writers to furnish that
description of gratification. The following are
three specimens out of many : —

" A western editor has plax;ed over his marriages a cut represent-
ing a large trap, sprung, with this motto — ' The trap down, another
fool caught.*

" Query. — Haa not the editor been caught in a marriage trap
himself which, like the clenched teeth of the steel trap, has pinched
him most confoundedly. There is another kind of trap, which is
usually placed under a gallows, with a candidate for immortality,
with a rope round his neck upon it, which the galled editor miyht
employ, and which he would find very pertinent to his purpose.
Hang it, man, why don't you just try it once ?"

** A CATASTROPHE.

** The Boston Post says, that an editor down east, in speaking of
his own merits thus concludes : —

" I'm a real catastrophe — a small creation ; Mount Vesuvius at
the top, with red hot lava pouring out of the crater, and routing
nations — my fists are rocky mountains — arms Whig-Ubei-ty poles,

AGREEABLE PUBLIC DINNER.

22Q

with iron springs. Every step I take Is an earthquake— «very blow
I Htrike is a clnp of thunder — and every breath I breatlie tn a tor-
nado^my disposition is Dupont's best, and goes off at a flash — when
I blast, there'll be nothing left but a hole three feet in circumference,
and no end to its depth."

((

A STRONG APPEAL TO SUBSCRIBERS.
<* An editor in North Carolina calls loudly on his subscribers to
pay up their dues, as his wife has furnished him wjth three babies
to feed. If this appeal be not successful, we advise the editor to quit
printing, and buy him a farm."

I had an excellent opportunity of witnessing the
full exhibition of this taste for overstrained wit
and extravagant expression, in a pleasant excursion
made soon after my arrival in New York, in which
I was invited to accompany Mr. Daniel Webster, the
celebrated senator of Massachusetts, and one of the
first orators of the day, in a visit to Newark, a town
in New Jersey, about ten miles from New York,
on the other side of the Hudson. Mr. Caleb
Cushing, another northern member of Congress, was
of the paity, as well as Mr. Pennington, the Governor-
elect of New Jersey ; Mr. Peet, the superintendent
r . the Deaf and Dumb Asylum ; and the editors
of two daily papers in the city, — Mr. Charles iving,
of the American, and Colonel Stone, of the Commer-
cial Advertiser. Our journey was performed by
steam-boat and rail-road ; the day was remarkably
favourable ; and every one was in high spirits. The
morning was devoted to the delivery of political
addresses, by Mr. Webster and Mr. Cushing, to the
inhabitants of Newark, on the present aspect of the
times J and after a procession through the town, we

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all sat down to a public dinner, under the presidency
of Mr. Freclinghuysen, the mayor.

It was one of the merriest and wittiest of public
dinners at which I was ever present. Every speech
was a series of epigrams and jokes, and brought up
some of the parties alluded to, who repaid the debt with
full interest in rapid volleys of the sharpest repartees.
Though there was scarcely a dozen bottles of wine
drank among 200 persons — the worthy mayor who pre-
sided being a member of the Temperance Society, and,
like myself^ drinking only water, and more than half
the company doing the same — yet the table was kept
literally in a roar, by the continual excitement of
new matter for merriment, furnished by almost every
one who spoke.

On our return about four o'clock, we found the
rail-road blocked up by one of the cars being upset,
and stretched across the rails ; and as we were then
about midway between Newark and Jersey city, there
was no alternative but that of our waiting where we
were, until a new train could be brought, from the
point to which we were bound, as far as the spot
where the impediment occurred, and take us onward
to our destination. In England, such a detention
as this, to a numerous party, would have created
great dissatisfaction, which would have shown itself
in every variety of mode, according to the tempera-
ment of the different individuals. Here, on the
contrary, everybody made the best of the mishap,
cheerfully awaited the arrival oi the remedy ; and
during the interval, which occupied nearly two hours,
we all sat in the omnibus car in which wc had

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ANECDOTE OF MR. WEnSTER.

«.'31

set out, to the number of twenty-five or thirty at
least ; while various imiividuals in succession saii^
droll son^s, and told still droller stories, with the
utmost glee, so that not a symptom of weariness
was evinced by any one of the party. Indeed,
I never witnessed such uniform good temper ami
forbearance, among a similar number of jieople, on
any occasion within my recollection.

Among the anecdotes of the day, the following
was related by J Ir. Cushing, iho representative from
Massachusetts, and it was told in the presence of
Mr. Webster himself, wiio laughed as heartily as
any one at its recitid. Mr Webster, though a
handsome man, with fine largo expressive eyes,
beautiful tooth, and a -ommanding r^nd intellectual
countenance, has a lomirkably brown complexion,
as much so as a native of the south of Italy, or
Spain. During the dinner, and while Mr. Webster
was speaking, the servants of tie hotel at which wo
dined, had the fullest opportunity of noticing the
peculiarity of his complexion, and it evidently made
an impression on them ; for when Mr. Cushing went
into the kitchen after dinner, to light his cigar, the
coloured servants were surrounding the fire, with
their bacL- towards him, and not perceiving his
approach, they continued their conversation; till
one of tliem addressing herself to her fellow-servant,
excjlnimed, " Well, Betsy, we coloured people may
begin to hold up our heads now ; for they say that
Mr. Webster is to be the next president, and
surely he'll be in our favour, for he's as dark as any
of us, and is a coloured man himself." This was
followed by a loud laugh, which rung through the

232

STATE OF NEW YORK.

kitchen, till the discovery of Mr. Cusliing*s approach
to the fire rather disconcerted the parties, and stifled
the further discussion of the suhject.

It is worthy of remark, that there are some of the
coloured people who are not very anxious for the
amalgamation of the races, which seems to he so
much dreaded by the whites (though this dread must
rather be pretended than real, since all the varieties
of mulattoes, -^^ different shades, the natural finiits of
such amalgamation, are far more numerous in the
north than the blacks ;) for a memorial was recently
presented to the State legislature of Massachusetts
on this subject, of which the following is a copy, with
the introductory paragraph : —

" mXED MARRIAGES.

" The following memorial, signed by a nmnber of persons of
colom*, was presented the other day in the Massachusetts legisla-
ture: —

* To the Honoxu*able Senate and House of Representatives—
The undersigned, people of colour, in the city of Boston, have
learned with deep regret and mortification, that Charlotte F.
Thompson and fifteen other ladies of Rehobeth, have petitioned
your honourable body for a repeal of the law, which interdicts
marriage between white people and persons of colour. Now your
memorialists, regarding this as a very wise and salutary law, calcu-
lated to preserve the purity of our race^ and to prevent the evils
resulting from a mixed breed, do respectfully, but earnestly, remon-
strate and protest against a repeal of the law referred to— and, as
in duty bound, will ever pray."

The peculiarity of living in boarding-houses, in-
stead of keeping house, or occupying private lodg-
ings, is one of the most distinguishing features of
society in New York. There are many causes that

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EXORBITANT RENTS.

233

have had their share in contributing to this. One,
no doubt, is the too large scale on which houses are
usually built, and the difficulty of finding a small one
adapted to the purse of a family with moderate
means. The house in which we resided, next to
Bunker's Hotel, 37f Broadway, was one which would
be considered dear in any part of London at 300/. a
year, and might be had in a country town for 100/.
at the utmost. The present rent paid by its tenant
was 3,500 dollars, or 700/. a year ; and the owner
asked the exorbitant price of 5,000 dollars, or 1,000/.
after the expiration of the year, just about to close.
In addition to the exorbitant rents, the difficulty of
procuring and keeping good domestic servants is
another cause which leads to the living in boarding-
houses ; and a third, no doubt, is the frequent change
of occupation and habitation, which is common to all
classes in America.

The advantages derived from this mode of life to
unmarried men are unquestionable, relieving them
from the necessity of great expenditure and care ; but
the disadvantages are also great ; for the habit of find-
ing all that they need without much cost or trouble, and
the enjoyment of female society besides, lessens the
necessity of marriage ; and, like the clubs in London,
boarding-houses in America indispose men to form
attachments, or to contemplate a more permanent set-
tlement. To the young married couple it is also a
convenience, for the reasons already alleged ; but its
disadvantage is much greater to them in the end ; for
when they become parents, and separate establishments
are more necessary — the wife has acquired no expe-
rience in housekeeping, and both her husband and

534

STATE OF NEW YORK,

herself are averse to the trouble, care, and anxiety of
a separate house and separate servants ; besides find-
ing it less exciting and agreeable to sit down to
breakfast and dine alone, and pass the evening
without companions, to which they were accustomed
while living at the boarding-house. Many accord-
ingly seek refuge from this married solitude, by
going out to parties, paying morning visits, laying
themselves out for invitations, and giving expensive
routs and balls themselves at great cost and great in-
convenience, while the progressive vitiation of the taste
which this brings, fed with stimulants and excite-
ment, never allows them, perhaps, to return with plea-
sure to the sober and wholesome tranquillity of a
well-ordered domestic home.

The boarding-house life was to us, however, ex-
tremely disagreeable from the beginning ; and we
did not get at all more reconciled to it at the end.
The early hour nt 'vhich all are rung out of bed by
the sound of a groat bell, as if at school — the rapi-
dity with which persons rush to the table exactly at
eight o'clock — the certainty that if you are five mi-
nutes after this, the breakfast will be half-consumed,
and what remains will be cold and unpalatable — the
haste with which every thing is despatched, and the
air of indifference with which parties rise up and
go away to business when they have done — the ear-
liness of the dinner-hour, three o'clock, with a repe-
tition of the same hurry and bustle over again — the
unskilfulness and indifference of the servants, mostly
coloured people — the utter want of sympathy or con-
sideration on the part of the boarding-house keepers,
as to whether their inmates are provided with all

AMERICAN PHRASEOLOGY.

235

they need or not — the absence of the many little
nameless conveniences with which English houses are
furnished — the imperfect hanging of the bells, and
difficulty of getting them answered — and the prefer-
ence of showy appearances to cleanliness — are but a
part of the many evils of a boarding-house life, as they
appeared to us at least. The contrast of all this is
seen in the private dwellings of the opulent which
we had the opportunity of visiting, where every com-
fort and luxury that the most fastidious could desire,
were united ; and where the only objection to the
style of living was its great expense.

Of peculiarities in expression, I did not meet with
nearly so many as I had been led to expect. A few
words only are used in good society here, that arc
not well known, or common with us, though some
others convey a different sense from that in which
we are accustomed to hear them. The word sparse
is constantly used, in speaking of population, as
opposed to densBy as " the western states are but yet
sparsely peopled.*' The word understandingly is
used for advisedly^ as in the phrase " I should
have replied to your question earlier, but I wished to
do it understandingly." A loafer is a term applied
to an idler who troubles himself abouf other men's
business, and who is a lounger about places of public
or private amusements ; and also to a low thief and
vagabond. In the different applicaiions of words
well known to us, the following arc examples. A
person who is ill, or indisposed, from whatever cause,
or of whatever disease, is always said to be sick. The
word storm does not, as with us, mean a high wind,
but merely rain or snow, with or without wind. No

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230

STATE OF NEW YORK.

force of wind alone, however, is called r storm,
though rain or snow in a perfect calm is invariably
so denominated ; and the phrase " stormy weather"
is used, when rain or snow are descending without a
breath of wind in the heavens. The term ugly is
rarely or ever applied to the person, but to the qua-
lities of mind, and an ugly man, or an ugly woman,
means a person of angry temper, or petulant, or tm-
principled, or disagreeable in mind and manners.
On the other hand, the term lovely man, is as fre-
quent as that of lovely woman, and neither of them
have the least relation to personal beauty, but mean
always a combination of talent, virtue, and affability,
in the person to whom it is applied. A clever per-
son is a phrase used to denote a lesser degree of ex-
cellence than lovely, and applies chiefly to sweetness
or amiability of disposition, meaning good-nature
rather than talent. Speaking of a lady, who was of
very plain exterior, but who possessed high qualities
of mind and heart, I once heard this description given,
** She is undoubtedly a very lovely woman, but it
cannot be denied that she is bitter homely." The
term right away is in constant use to indicate imme-
diately. Pretty smarts and pretty miserable, are
phrases that bespeak good health and spirits^ or the
reverse ; and on asking a lady or gentleman how they
do, one or other of these answers is not uncommon.
When a person is greatly alTocted by disease, or
when excessively fatigued, either by physical labour,
mental study, or gay dissipation, ho is said to be
pretty much used up.

In the adoption of French words, the English pro-
nunciation is usually given ; and persons speak of

* ;

tii^^

ABUSE OF WORDS.

237

the rout they intend to take in a journey, instead of
route. When persons are addressed in conversation,
and do do not hear at first what is said to them, they
usually make the interrogatory how ? which is cer-
tainly less abrupt than our what ? among the vulgar,
and more brief and appropriate than the phrase I beg
your pardon, among the more refined, which would
be the expressions used in similar cases in England.
In answering a question when distinctly understood,
as for instance, " Where are you going to-day ?" or
" What think you of the present prospect of affairs ?'*
or even the simple question of " What o'clock is it ?"
the party answering usually begin, by saying, " Well,"
and, after a short pause, gives you the answer required.
To " get along," is the phrase equivalent to ours of
to " get on," that is, to make progress in a journey,
or to advance in life. To " guess" is not applied to
the future exclusively, nor even to the present, but to
the past, and to the certain. For instance, a person
will say, " I presume," or " I reckon," or " I guess
that the dinner-bell has rung ;" and if you ask him,
on what ground he so presumes, or reckons, or
guesses, he will tell you that he heard it ; and if a
servant, he would say, perhaps, " Well ! 1 rung it
myself." It often occurs that an individual is ad-
dressed in convocation as the third person, as in
Italy : and a lady will frequently be heard saying to
a gentleman, whom she is addressing face to face.
" I hope we shall soon ha^, e the pleasure of seeing
Mr. Buckiii^ham again j if, indeed, Mr. Bucking-
ham's engagements are not ■ :»' numerous to permit
us to indulge that hope :" or, a person would ask me
sometimes, " Can you tell me who; e Mr. Buckbg

1 1

Viiii^ >a\

9.tm

STATE OF NEW YORK.

ham delivers his lecture this evening," the parties
knowing all the while that it was myself that they
were addressing.

On the whole, how< ver« there is much less of
variety in dialect, pronunciation, add expression
among the people of Arricrica, ds (.r ;i:^ ^ve had yet
seon them, than there is ii'* Great Britain, where not
only the Eriolish, Scotch, Irish, and Welch, have
their marked and hroad accents and ] peculiarities,
hut whore the different counties of ea<:h, produce such
varieties, as to make the peasar ' of the one nearly
unintelligible to the peasant of the other. Here,
the frequent intercourse between State and State,
wears oiF whatever peculiarities may be acquired in
early life in any one locality ; and thus, there is a
general level, or standard, observable among the
whole. The only universal characteristic that I
could observe to distinguish American conversation,
preaching, or speaking, from English, was a clearly
perceptible, but at the same time almost indescriba-
ble sort of whining tone, not quite nasal, nor yet far
from it, but mingled with a thin wiry sound, which
is common to both sexes, but more marked in females,
and in both it takes much from the fulness, dignity,
and richness of tone, which is so great a charm in
well-sustained conversation, and still more so in efforts
of eloquence made from the pulpit, the bar, or the
platform.

i: ■ ' \

CHAP. XIII.

Climate, weather, snows, severe cokl— Sleighing, private sleiglis,
omnibuses, carts — Peculiarities of American winters — Supposed
periods of ten years for each series — Series of severe and series
of mild winters — The present winter of 1837, regarded as a
mild one — Supposed commencement of a mild series with this —
Ships, packets, steam-boats, comparison with English — Naval
expedition destined for the Polar Seas — Environs of New
York, Brooklyn, Long Island — Staten island. New Brighton —
Asbestos quarries — Jersey city, Hoboken Ferry, excellent boats
— Passengers in carriages conveyed without alighting — Separate
apartments for ladies and gentlemen — Good fires and comfortable
accommodations for all — Last day of our stay in New York —
Farewell lectures, and parting with friends — Visit to the public
school with the mayor — Proficiency of the pupils in their exer-
cises — Voluntary society for moral and mental improvement-
Preparations for leaving New York — Friendly parting with our
fellow-boarders — Mutually strong attachments, on solid groimds.

The weather during our stay in New York, from
October to February, was on the whole more agree-
able than I ever remember to have experienced with-
in the same period in England. The two first of
these months were delightful, it being a sort of second
autumn, which is here called " the Indian summer."
The sky was always bright, the atmosphere clear, and
the air soft and balmy. In December it began to feel
cold ; but throughout the whole of that month and
January, there were not more than three or four days
of snow or rain. The frost vvas sometimes severe,
but the bright and warm jun, a^id the fresh and
healthy atmosphere, made one sustain it better than

J^;Ji.

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240

STATE OF NEW YORK.

the same amount of cold could be borne in England.
The coldest days were early in February, when the
thermometer was, on one occasion, as low as 7 dog.
below zero — the rivers were both nearly frozen over,
and the harbour was full of floating ice ; but even
then, we did not suffer any great inconvenience from
the cold, as the houses are well warmed with stoves,
and great coats and cloaks were found sufficient pro-
tection on going out. We suffered some little
derangement in health at first from change of climate,
change of diet, much occupation, and sometimes late
hours, having frequently to dine with one party before
delivsring my lecture, and then going out to spend
the evening with another party, after it was concluded.
But we soon got acclimated, and, with due rest, and
well-proportioned intervals of occupation and repose,
were perfectly restored to the enjoyment of our
usual vigour and spirits.

There is a description of coal burnt here, called
anthracite, which is very hard, scarcely at all bitu-
minous, producing therefore but little flame, yet
giving out great heat and a sulphuric gas, the effect
of which is very injurious to some constitutions. It
affected me with intense head-ache, of which I was
some time before I discovered the cause. It has the
effect of making the atmosphere of the room in which
it is burnt, so dry, that the skin begins to feel
uncomfortnble, and the hair to grow wiry and stand
on end. ►Some persons counteract these effects by
placing a pan of boiling water on a place beside? the
fire, so that its steam shall ascend in the room,
and gradually diffuf-o the vapour throughout its
atmosphere j but we pr ' ♦•ed discontinuing the use

SLEIGHING.

Qli

of it in our apartment altogether, and substituting
I*inglish coal, called here Liverpool coal : the effect
of the change was perceptible in a few days ; the
sensations of dryness of the skin and hair, as well
as the head-ache, disappearing entirely, and never
returning again.

Towards the end of February, the snow became
sufficiently deep to admit of the use of sleighs instead
of carriages, and the effect of the change was agree-
able to the eye and the ear of the stranger. The
sleigh being drawn along upon the smooth surface
of the snow, makes no noise in its progress, and this
was an agreeable substitute for the ceaseless rattle of
omnibus, cart, and carriage wheels. To give due
warning, however, of its approach, the horses have
collars of bells, which tinkle merrily as they trot,
and give apparent pleasure to the animal itself, as well
as to those who are drawn by it. The private sleighs
are o^ rery light and el >gant forms, and ar« not
elevated more than two or i\\:f feet above the snow.
They are open to the air, but are warmly lined with
large buffalo skins, the furs of which serve to
enwrap the parties seated in the sleighs ; and this
mode of taldng the air is more frequently adopted by
the ladies, with whom " sleighing** is a very favourite
amusement, than with gentlemen. In addition to
the private sleighs, the omnibuses and carts are taken
off their wheels, and p'^icod on slides or runners;
and the noiseless progress of all these, passing and
repassing each other, without the rumbling sound of
bad pavements and reckless driving, with the musical
jingle of the bells, produces altogether a most agi*ee-
able effect.

VOL. I.

I' '>

STATE OF NEW YORK.

.«■'

■w

It is said by many, that the winters of America
are observed to alternate after periods of ten years —
^ha*, there are ten years, for instance, during which
tile/ are severe, and go on getting mr/e and more
severe from the first of these decades to the last —
that they are then succeeded by a series of ten mild
winters, growing milder and milder as they proceed,
till the lot" of the severe period again. The
celebrated Dr. Dwight, of New England, was the
first to observe this peculiarity : and his son, from
whom I heard this, stated, that, from very close
observation of the climate for the last thirty years,
he had found this to be the fact. The present, he
regarded as the first of the mild series of ten winters,
and he congratulated us on our arrival at so oppor-
tune a commencement.

To a maritime eye, one of the most agreeable sights
in New York, is its busy wharves, ample writers, and
crowds of shipping, always entering, or L iving, or
loading at its port.

INTKUNAL NAVKiATlON.

QIS

The maritime eminence of New York, however,
is owing, not so much to its excellent shelter for
ships, as to its position as the most commodious point
of entrance into the great body of the Union for all
foreign commerce. Boston, Philadelphia, and Balti-
more, have each in their day enjoyed their periods of
maritime prosperity ; but since the opening of the
great canal from the Hudson river to Lake Erie, which
makes a water-line of navigation from New York to
the lakes of the interior — and since the other outlets
formed from these lakes to the great rivers, Ohio,
Missouri, and Mississippi, by which goods can be
conveyed from hence as far south as New Orleans
in the Gulf of Mexico, and as far west as the foot of
the Rocky Mountains, — New York has acquired, and
will long retain, the character of being the great
emporium of commerce for all the Western States.
The greater portion of the native produce of those
states, in cotton, flour, and other provisions, is
brought here by these water channels for shipment ;
and the greater portion of the British manufactures
consumed in America, are imported into Yew York
from London or Liverpool — while many vessels also
arrive here vnth French goods from Havre.

In addition to the constantly increasing tonnage
of New York, for the foreign and the coasting trade,
which branches; off from this point, there are regular
lines of some of the most beautiful packets in the
world, sailing with the punctuality of the mail, from
hence to the three great ports named, at intervals
of only a few days apart. Some of these ships, of
recent construction, are 800 and 1000 tons ; and are
as beautiful specimens of naval architecture as ever

■ >

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244

STATE OF NEV. \ORj;.

came from the hand of the builder. Their forma
combine, in the highest degree ever yet united, the
requisites of strength, capacity or burthen, speed,
safety, and beauty. Their equipments are as perfect
as their hulls ; and their cabin-accommodations for
passengers are all that can be required ; they are,
in short, elegant maritime hotels, and are funiished
with every thing that can render a sea voyage agree-
able. The President, in which we came out from
London, was inferior in size and comfort to all the
others that we saw, being one of the oldest class ;
but the builders go on improving so rapidly, in the
construction and fitting up of their vessels, that each
new one launched, is superior to all her predecessors ;
and is visited, to be admired by hundreds of inspec-
tors, before she sails on her first voyage.

The steam-boats of America differ very much
from those of England, both in external appearance,
and in internal arrangement. Instead of having, as
with us, the engines below, and the cabins for pas-
sengers beneath the main-deck; it is the custom
here to devote the lower part of the vessel to the
stowage of cargo ; and on the main-deck are placed the
engines, one on each side, with a large chimney rising
from each, so that the operations of the machinery
are visible above the deck. The after part is laid out
in sleeping-cabins for passengers ; and above this, on
another deck, is generally the dining-room in the
centre ; besides this there is usually a separate saloon
for ladies, and one for gentlemen, as drawing-rooms.
In some of the larger steam-boats, there is yet
another deck placed above this, called the hurri-
cane deck, because of the wind being more felt there

Hi:i>LHlOR STEAM UOATS.

215

than below. This mukos the fourth dci i fr<;m tho
keel, uiid is generally a mere elevutcd platform, sup-
ported by stanchions, or wooden pillars, from the deck
below ; being perfectly unobstructed above, and out
of tho way of all the operations of the crew, so that
passengers seated along its sides, or walking in its
centre, may enjoy undisturbed the most extensive
prospects on all sides around, and the fulness of the
sea and river breeze.

In consequence of these several decks rising one
above another, the external appearance of an Ameri-
can steam-boat is much less elegant and graceful than
that of an English one ; and her whole bulk seems
cumbrous and overladen ; but in the interior arrange-
ments, for the comfort of the passengers, the
American boats have a decided superiority, as well as
in the speed with which they perform their voyages,
under the high-pressure engines, averaging at the
rate of fifteen miles an hour on the rivers, and twelve
miles an hour on the sea. The finest of the ocean
steam-boats that we saw, was the N' *^une, of Charles-
ton, sailing as a packet betweei. .18 md Carolina;
she was worked by engines of 2'
about 600 tons; and could {«i»,
accommodate, with separate bed an«
200 passengers ; and carry as man} more, who did
not need separate beds, on her deckj. The interior
arrangement of this steam-packet was superior even
to the best of the London and Liverpool ships ; the
beds were everything that could be desired ; the
furniture of every part sumptuous ; the dining-room,
and separate drawing-rooms, were of the most elegant
description ; and the kitchen, store-rooms, pantries.

UKj

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ard, more than

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STATE OF NEW YORK.

and every other part of the ship, as perfect as art
and order could make them. The engines were in
the highest order ; nothing indeed seemed wanting,
that skill or capital could supply. She had already
performed one voyage by sea, from hence to Charles-
ton ; and the captain was anxious to have her tried
in a trip across the Atlantic, for which she seemed in
every way admirably adapted.

A naval expedition, for a voyage of exploration in
the South Seas, had been long lying in the harbour,
in a state of uncertainty, as to whether it should
proceed to sea or not. It is understood to have
originated with the late president. General Jackson,
who took a great interest in it ; and, under his aus-
pices, the formation and equipment of the squadron
was begun. It was to consist of a frigate, the
Macedonian, two sloops, and two store-ships j and
the object of the expedition was to make new geo-
graphical discoveries in the South- Polar Seas. From
the cessation of General Jackson's authority as presi-
dent, however, the interest of the government in the
expedition seems to have declined ; and it had been
upwards of a year in port, nearly all that time ready
for sea, with a succession of several commanders, and
a removal of several of the ships, with dissatisfaction
among the officers, impatience among the seamen,
and indifference at the sources of naval authority.
It has since sailed, however, and is now in the
southern hemisphere.

The environs of New York are extremely interest-
ing, and might well engage the attention of the
traveller for a longer period than woulc be generally
imagined. Long Island, which preserves a continued

,...i,-

BROOKLYN.

247

parallelism with the front of the eastern part of the
city, and extends its length in a north-east direction
for many miles — interposing as a harrier between the
Atlantic and the fine navigable somid that lies between
the island and the continent — is well worth visiting in
every part ; and during the summer, it is much fre-
quented, especially on the south-eastern edge, for the
excellent sea-bathing which is there enjoyed. Baby-
lon and Jericho are among the names of the towns it
possesses; and to me, who had visited the ancient
and ruined cities of the East, from which both of
these were called, it was a strange sight to see their
names on a directing sign-post, as included among the
places to which you can be conveyed by rail-road I

Brooklyn is the chief town on Long Island. Less
than twenty years ago, there were but a few country
houses here ; and now, there is a regularly planned
and legally incorporated city, containing 30,000
inhabitants. Its situation, on the opposite side of
the East River, and on more elevated ground than
that on which New York is seated, gives it great
advantages, in the purity of its air, and the extent of
its prospect. The elevation of that part of the island
of Manhattan, on which New York is built, nowhere
exceeds 50 feet above the surface of the water on
either side ; while the elevation of the upper part of
Brooklyn exceeds 300 feet. In the island of Man-
hattan, there were originally great inequalities of
surface, in the elevations of masses of the grey or
bluish granite, of which that island is chiefly com-
posed, and intervening depressions between them, such
as are still to be seen indeed in those parts of the
island beyond the present city, a'^d which arc not yet

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248

STATE OF NEW YORK.

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built upon. But in the laying out the streets and
squares of the present town, these inequalities were
all levelled ; so that there are few cities in the world,
at all approaching to New York in size, that have so
few elevations or depressions as it exhibits throughout
its whole extent.

Brooklyn, therefore, being generally elevated far
.above the city of New York, enjoys a much purer
atmosphere, and is esteemed particularly agreeable as
a summer residence, from its coolness ; and the
view of New York, as you look down upon it from
the heights of Brooklyn, is as fine a prospect as the
eye can dwell upon. The houses in Brooklyn are on
the same general plan as those of New York. They
are, however, less ostentatious in their decorations ;
and more of them are built of wood. The great
bulk of the inhabitants of Brooklyn are the families
of persons who have business-establishments in New
York, as merchants, traders, and store-keepers ; but
who reside on this side the water, for economy and
quiet J and, certainly, the contrast between the sere-
nity and tranquillity of Washington-street in Brook-
lyn, and the noise and rattle of Broadway in New
York, is striking to a stranger, and must be grateful
and refreshing to persons engaged in business, when
they cross over the river, to return home after the
heat and the bustle of a busy summer's day.

Brooklyn has an excellent Lyceum, to which is
attached a spacious and elegant theatre, for lectures ;
superior in size and general arrangement to either
the Stuyvesant Institution, or Clinton Hall, in New
York. In this theatre I delivered my two courses
of lectures on Egj'pt end Palestine, twelve in number ;

STATEN ISLAND.

249

and they were attended by audiences of about 600
persons every evening The churches are numerous,
and well attended; and a perfect solitude reigns
throughout the streets in Brooklyn during the hours
of divine service, every place of worship being
filled. It is pleasing to witness, at the close of the
services on the Sabbath, the crowds of young and old,
all neatly and comfortably dressed^ that issue from
every street, and throng every avenue of the town.

The state of society in Brooklyn, as contrasted
with that of New York, is like that of a small
country-town in England, compared with London.
It is more domestic, more simple, more hearty,
social, frank, and hospitable. Some of the plea-
santest evenings we passed were in the family circles
of Brooklyn ; and we found them as well-informed
and intellectual, as they were generous, friendly, and
agreeable.

Staten Island is another pleasant spot in the
environs of New York. Being situated at the
Narrows, as the entrance to the harbour is called,
and near the open sea, it is a favourite spot for
health and recreation. The three Seamen's Institu-
tions, already described, are here ; and a watering-
place, called New Brighton, has recently been built
on St.Ai n Island, where an excellent hotel, called
the Colonnade, is much frequented in the summer
months. Some quarries of asbestos are worked on
Staten Island, and their produce is brought up to
New York for manufacture and sale.

Jersey City, which is opposite to New York, on
the west, as Brooklyn is on the east — the former
having the Hudson river flowing between it and

M 1

. t

250

STATE OF NEW YORK.

New York, and the latter having the East river
running between it and the city — is also in the
environs; but it is not much frequented, except for
business, and in the route to various places in the
state of New Jersey. It is chiefly occupied with
trade, and is a busy and thriving city.

Hoboken is another and a very favourite spot, a
litlle further up the Hudson river, to the north ; but
my engagements were so incessant in New York, that
I had not an opportunity of seeing its beauties, which
are, however, very highly spoken of.

From New York to all these places, thsFv are
steam ferry-boats going every hour of *^«* day, and

iimttK are as comfortable as bridges, for persons in
c«rriagt;s need not alight, but may drive into ihe
boflMt, aiwl remain there undisturbed to the end of the
fWiiiH^e, and then drive on shore again ; while pas-
tsengors not riding or driving, are accommodated with
^Ui'dbsmt cabins and warm and comfortable Arcs.

COMMON SCHOOLS.

251

On the last day of my stay in New York, I had
hoped to have enjoyed an entire day of rest pre-
paratory to our journey south, especially as we had
in the preceding week taken leave of all our very
numerous personal friends. But my repose was
broken in upon by a pressing invitation which
I could not resist. I had been invited by letter to
attend the public exhibition and examination of the
pupils at one of the common schools. No. 15, in
Twenty-seventh Street ; and had already expressed
my inability to attend, from the near approach of our
departure, and the necessity of completing many
arrangements for which the time would be required.
The directors, however, to overrule this objection,
deputed some of their body, headed by the mayor of
New York, Mr. Aaron Clark, who came himself
with a carriage for our conveyance, and I was thus
compelled to accompany him to the exhibition at
7 o'clock, and remain there till 10, though having
a hundred things to do, and to start with my family
at 6 the next morning for Philadelphia.

I was amply rewarded, however for my attend-
ance. The school-room was spacious, airy, and well
arranged in every respect. The boys and girls,
in separate classes, were well dressed, and in the
best possible order; and while these occupied the
upper end of the room, and came on the platform
for examination in detachments, the examiners
occupied an elevation at the lower end of the room ;
and between these two extremes, the body of the
lichool wa^ filled with upwards of 600 of the parents
of the scholars, with about 300 visitors, relatives,
and friends.

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252

THE STATE OF NEW YORK.

The examination of each class was conducted by
its respective teacher, assisted occasionally by an
incidental question from some of the visitors on the
platform, and the proficiency of the pupils was
extraordinary. In mathematics, astronomy, history,
and geography, their knowledge was surprising, both
for its extent and accura-cy. In recitation they were
not so good, though perhaps this was less perceptible
to the American portion of the auditory than to
myself, on whose ear the nasal and drawling tones of
the ordinary pronunciation of all classes here, fell
disagreeably, and must so, I should think, to every
person recently from Enghmd ; though a long resi-
dence might perhaps reconcile one to it, as it does to
provincialisms at home.

What delighted me more, however, than even the
proficiency of the pupils in the several branches of
learning in which they were examined, was the
delivery of an address to the Society for Mental and
Moral Improvement, by one of the senior boys, who
had been its first-elected president, but who had since
been succeeded by another in rotation of office. This
society was composed entirely of the pupils of the
public school. No. 15, and was first founded by them,
as their own voluntary act, on the 17th of May,
1836, with a president, vice-president, secretary, and
three directors, all elected annually by the mem-
bers themselves. A copy of the constitution of this
young society of moral and mental reformers was
presented to me at the school, and from it I trans-
scribe some few of its articles.

" 1. To become a member of this society, the scholar must sign
tills constitution, and thereby pledge himself to avoid the following

JUVENILE SOCIETY.

Q53

vices, viz. — Ist. Profane swearing ; 2d. Falsehood; 3d. Fighting
and quarrelling ; 4th. Dishonesty, gambling, andthefib; 5th. Ungen-
tlemanly conduct at all times and places.

" 2. The practice of smoking or of using tobacco in any of the
common modes of indulgence, being in itself ungentlemanUke, and
moreover tending to produce habits of intemperance, is forbidden
by the pledge involved in joining this society.

" 3. The amusement o{ playing at marbles being at best a filthy
one, it is important to consider whether it has not also more
important evil consequences. It frequently leads to fighting and
quarrelling, and is moreover a low species of gambling, which, in
time, may lead to gambling of a more serious kind. It is therefore
forbidden by the pledge of this society.

" 4. No scholar shall become a member of this society who is
irreg^ar in his attendance at school, who is frequently deficient in
his school-exercises, or who appears iudiiferent to his moral respecta-
bility or mental improvement.

" 5. The election of the president and other ofilcers is re-
stricted to a choice from the highest classes of the pupils, and
this choice must be approved by the teacher, before it can become
valid.

" 6. The board of directors have alone power to expel or suspend
members for misconduct.

" 7. No member shall be capable of holding any office within
two months after having been found by the board of directors
guilty of any offence a/yainst the rules of the society. Any officer
so convicted shall immediately be degraded from his office, and a
successor shall be appointed by the board of directors, to supply his
place until the next regular election.

" 8. A faithful report of the proceedings of the Society, and a
register of the conduct and proficiency of its members, kept by
the secretary, shall be presented to the patrons, at ev^ery visit
which they shall make at the school.

"9. The scholars, whose names are signed hereto, agree to
support this constitution, and to contbrm to all t\v& pledges herein
contained, and generally to exert all their moral influence to

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STATE OF NEW YOIIK.

improve the intellectual character of each other, and to elevate that
of the school."

The names of about fifty pupils were signed to
this document, and, from inquiry made in several
quarters, I ascertained that during the two years
that this Society had been established, it had been
productive of the best eiFects, having never interfered
with the studies of the boys, while it stimulated
them to increased exertions for superiority of charac-
ter as well as attainments ; in this sense it had
been productive of a double good ; and had received
the approbation of the teachers and parents, as well
as that of the boys themselves.

The meeting lasted till near midnight; yet it
continued to be animated and orderly to the end. I
had always felt a deep interest in the success of every
plan for spreading the blessings of Education more
extensively among all ranks of society ; from a con-
viction that to ignorance, the greatest proportion of
vice and misery existing in the world is to be attri-
buted ; and that the most effectual means of lessening
the amount of both, is to increase the extent of
education, and add virtue to intelligence, so as to
incorporate morals with instruction, by precept and by
example. But my intercourse with American schools
and American patrons of education had greatly
strengthened this ft oling; and accordingly, overpress-
ed as I already felt myself to be with occupation, I
could not refrain from acceding to the solicitation of
the friends of education here, that I should write for
them a series of articles " On the principles, means,
and end of Education," and thus assist towards the
support of the mosi important v^bject that can engage

i '

LAST DAY AT NEW YORK.

^2r>5

the thoughts, the pen, or the tongue of man, tlio
proper cultivation of those faculties with which the
great Author of our being has created and endo^Ved
us, so as to make the exercise of them redound most
to his honour, to our own enjoyment, and to the
general happiness of our fellow-creatures.*

On our return home from the school, late as it
was, we found nearly the whole family of our fellow-
boarders waiting to receive us, and bid us fare-
well bfcibre they retired to rest, as we purposed
leaving before daylight in the mornhig by the steam-
bou,t for Philadelphia. This mark of attention and
respc ^t was extremely grateful to our feelings ; and,
indeea, we found ourselves, after a fear months*
residence at New York, much more at home and in
the bosom of friends than we had thought possible in
a strange land. There were many, however, in this
circle, with whom we sympathized so cordially in
Sentiment and feeling, that it was impossible not to
experience deep regret at parting with them ; and
even with those in whose opinions we did not always
coinc-'.'y, there was so friendly an understanding, and
so muc H good nature and forbearance, that we found
it a >,drd matter to say " Adieu."

* These essays will prjbably form the subject of a separate
volume.

■*■''- ,

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I-

»■

CHAP. XIV.

Voyage from New York to Amboy, by steam-boat — Joumey from
Amboy to Canuien, by rail-road — Crossing tlio Delaware in ice-
boat to Philiulelphia — Visit to tJie Pennsylvanian convention, then
sitting — Nature, object, and proceedings of conventions — Tem-
perance festival at the Arch Street theatre, given as n public wel-
come to myself and family — Preparations and arrangements for
this entertainment — Opinions of the press on the temperance fes-
tival — Departure from Philadelphia, by rail-road, for Daltimoro
•^Halt at Wilmington — Deputation headed by Judge Hall^
Passing from tlie free into the slave States — Arrival at Baltimore
— Temperance meeting there — Journey by rail -road to Wash-
ington.

I ■:

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Early on the morning of Wednesday, the 21st of
Fehruary, we left New York for Phihidelphia. The
air was intensely cold, the thermometer heing 8" he-
low zero ; and the East River was filled with float-
ing ice, while many of the larger vessels and smaller
craft at the wharves, were completely imhedded in
thick masses of it. The steam-hoat in which we
started, was large and commodious— the passengers
numerous, but not inconveniently so ; and we break-
fasted in the large cabin below, more satisfactorily
than we had done for many days past on shore.

Our passage down the harbour was very interest-
ing ; and as the rising sun lighted up the spires and
public buildings of New York, and the forest of
masts that fringed the shores of the island on either
side, began to display their numerous flags, the pic-
ture became as lively and interesting as it was at our

jf;

SOITTII AMIIOY.

23^

first npproacli to the city, in October last. A tour
montlis* rosi(lcn((5 had made us accjuaititod, however,
with SI) many aji^reeable, intclli|ifont, and benevolent
individuals, with whom intimacy had ^rown into
iriendsliip, that we found our partinjof look upon the
scene of so much sympathy and pleasure, less joyous
than our 'Irst view of it — and wo left behind us sin-
cere and .tfrvent wishes for the peace and pr >is}). rJty
oft) '.

1 ^ 80 thick and impassable in the iimer

chani. .mboy, that wo were obliged to go by

the outer channel, nearer the sea j and, sweeping
round the shore of Staten Island, we reached the
landing place of South Amboy about ten o'clock ;
the ice being so thick as to make it difficult to ap-
proach near enough to the wharves for landing.

Here we found the commencement of the rail-
road to Philadelphia j and embarking in the cars
provided for that purpose, we set forward on our
journey. These cars are not so comfortable in their
arrangements as the carriages on our English rail-
roads. They are very long omnibuses, sufficiently
broad to admit a passage up the middle, on each
side of which is a range of seats going across the
breadth, each capable of accommodating two persons,
who sit with their faces towards the engine, and not
facing each other, as in omnibuses generally. The
car in which we sat had twenty such cross-seats on
each side the central passage, and therefore con-
tained eighty passengers. In the centre of the car
was a stove, well supplied with fuel, which warmed
the whole interior, and rendered the atmosphere
agreeable.

VOL. I. s

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23 WiST MAIN STRf ET

WEBSTER, N.Y. MSSO

(716) 873-4503

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258

STATE OF NEW JERSEY.

m'Ai

The rate at which we travelled was ahout sixteen
miles an hour ; the road was good, but the scenery
was very monotonous and uninteresting ; being
mostly uncultivated land, covered with small trees
and brushwood J and the few villages through
which we passed, were neither picturesque nor beau-
tiful. The dreary season of winter would account
for much of this, it is true ; but even in summer, the
route must be regarded as monotonous.

About two o'clock we reached the small town of
Camden, on the Delaware, nearly opposite the city
of Philadelphia, and embarking there in a steam-
boat of a peculiar construction, with iron stem and
keel, called an ice-boat, we literally cut our way
through the solid masses of ice in some places, and
broken pieces in others, some of them from twelve to
fifteen inches thick, and, safely reaching the other
side of the river, we landed at Philadelphia before
three. Apartments were provided for us at the
United States hotel, where we were met by a large
party of friends, to welcome our arrival in the city,
and to offer their services during our stay.

On the following morning, Feb. 22, I was taken
to the State Convention, then sitting in Philadelphia,
at the close of a very long session, and I was much
gratified by the sight. Conventions in America are
public assemblies of the delegates of the whole peo-
ple, called together for the express purpose of consi-
dering some great question of public interest. Such
a one as this occurs but rarely, * and it was there-
fore regarded with the greater interest, and clothed
with the greater importance. No Convention for the
revision of the constitution had sat in Philadelphia

►efore
the
large
city,

PHILADELPHIA CONVENTION.

259

since the signing of the Declaration of Indepen-
dence; and nothing hut what was considered an
urgent and general desire, would have led to the
organizing such an assemhly at all. The present
Convention was called to consider the propriety of
revising the constitution of Pennsylvania ; and the
majority of the inhahitants of the State being in favour
of some revision, the Convention was a popular mea-
sure. The general government of the country has
nothing to do with its formation. It originates with,
and is conducted wholly by, the people of the State,
who, through its machinery, exercise this revising
power. The delegates are elected by the inhabitants
of each county, who send a number proportioned to
their respective population. The delegates chosen
are generally the most intelligent and influential
men of the district from whence they come. They
are armed with full powers of deliberation and deci-
sion, and their expenses are paid out of the State or
county funds. On assembling, they elect their own
president, fix their own order of proceedings and
times of sitting, and every disputed position is set-
tled by the votes of the majority.

This Convention had been sitting for several
months, from day to day, though its only business
was to examine the constitution of Pennsylvania, de-
bate each provision of it in detail, propose and dis-
cuss amendments, and come to conclusions by votes
on the propositions made. This was the last day of
its sitting, and its proceedings were very animated,
yet at the same time dignified and orderly in a high
degree. The room in which they sat was the Mu-
sical Fund Hall, occupying an area of about the same

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STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA.

length, but at least twice the breadth, of the British
House of Commons (that which has been used as
such since the old house was burnt) ; an area, capa-
ble of seating comfortably a thousand persons. This
room was neatly fitted up for the business of the
Convention, by an elevated station for the Presi-
dent, who could overlook and command the whole
chamber, by a competent number of desks, and ap-
propriate seats for the members, and a gallery and
corridors for visitors and strangers. Several gentle-
men spoke on various amendments then before the
Convention, and did so always with much good sense
and often with great ability. There was a quiet
earnestness about the whole proceedings, which was
calculated to make the most favourable impression
on a stranger ; and in the Hall itself, the costume of
the grave and elderly members, the tables and papers,
and the object of the assembly, strikingly resembled
the celebrated picture of " The Declaration of
Independence," the great historical record of the
political birth of the United States. Toward ?* *he
close of the day, the revised constitution was i>^ jd
by all the delegates present, the will of the majority
being the law binding on all ; and in this altered
state, it would have to be submitted tn the people at
large, whose votes would be taken upon it at a future
period ; when, if the majority approved of the amend-
ments made, it would become the lawful constitution
of the State of Pennsylvania, and, as such, would be
recognized by all the other States of the Union.

By such a proceeding as this, the sovereignty of
the people is not merely acknowledged as a consti-
tutional principle, but this principle is carried out so

,*4 > if!

WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS.

201

fully in practice, that by this sovereignty alone it is
determined what shall and what shall not be the con-
stitution itself. Yet, so far from turbulence and dis-
order being, as some would pretend, the unavoidable
result of purely democratic assemblies, I may state,
that I never saw any proceedings more grave, more
solemn, or more dignified than the last day's sitting
of the Convention of Philadelphia.

The contrast which this certainty and definiteness
of constitutions in America offers, to the vagueness
of every thing connected with the constitution in
England, is strikingly in favour of the former.
Having no written constitution for our guide, like
these States of the Union, there is nothing fixed or
tangible for us to refer to ; and accordingly every man
makes of our unwritten and undefined constitution
whatever he pleases. Hence it happens, that in
almost every great change proposed in our laws, one
party contends that the change is unconstitutional,
while the other as warmly insists that it is in per-
fect harmony with constitutional principles. Twenty
times at least, within the last twenty years, i*-
has been solemnly asserted, that if certain acts of
parliament were passed into laws, they would be the
grossest violations of the British constitution, which,
after such laws, would indeed be utterly annihilated
and gone I Yet though such acts have become laws,
our often-destroyed constitution still survives them
all. In the same manner, when changes are proposed,
in the nature of a revision of this constitution, as far
as one can understand it, the whig and conservative
legislators, as guardians of this "glorious uncertainty,"
unite their voices against all ** organic change," and

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26j2

STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA.

indulge in predictions, that if once the principle
be admitted, that organic changes are either desir-
able or practicable, a revolution is begun, and
anarchy and destruction must inevitably follow I
To all this, the most complete answer is, the tran-
quil history of an American convention, called by
the people, conducted by the people, its proceedings
ratified by the people, its avowed and sanctioned
object being to eflect organic changes in the consti-
tution, not such as the rust of ages, and the accumu-
lated errors of centuries, may have occasioned, as
with us, but such as the experience of a few years
only may have shown to be necessary ; and all this
carried on, from its opening to its close, without a
tenth part of the excitement or disorder which occurs
in some single nights in the organic-change-resisting
House of Commons of England.

In the evening we attended a very splendid enter-
tainment, called a Temperance Festival, got up in
honour of my arrival in Philadelphia, and intended
to give me a public welcome in America. I pass
over the flattering correspondence, resolutions, and
invitations which preceded this meeting. But I see
no reason why some account should not be given of
the festival itself, which, though avowedly held to do
honour to myself, and thus to recognize and reward
my labours in the cause of Temperance Reform, was
also intended to effect the double object, of advo-
cating its great principles, and giving a public proof
to the world, that it is really practicable to entertain
a large assembly, not merely agreeably, but in a
merry, joyous, and convivial manner, without the
least use of stimulating drinks — a fact which many

|!l!

TEMPEUANCE FESTIVAL.

2f)3

see

had declared to be impossible, and which few would
believe without such a demonstration as this.

To combine ample accommodation with elegance,
the Arch Street theatre was taken for this occasion.
The stage was thrown open, and tastefully decorated
on all sides ; the pit was boarded over on a level
with the stage ; and the boxes and galleries were
left in their usual condition. An excellent band
of music was in attendance ; ample refreshments, of
great elegance and variety, were provided ; and every
preparation was made for an imposing as well as
agreeable fete. Before we arrived indeed, the popu-
larity of the entertainment had reached so high, that
though the price of admission was a dollar each,
2000 tickets were freely sold, and on the last day
the tickets went up to a premium of ten dollars
each, and even at that price none at last could be
obtained, so that many hundreds were excluded for
want of room. Of the meeting itself, as I was the
prominent object of it, and principal speaker of the
evening, I shall not give a description, but I will
transfer from the columns of the three leading papers
of Philadelphia, the opinions entertained by their
conductors, whose partialities would have no pro-
bable bias in our favour. The following is from
the United States Gazette, of February 23d.

■J

//.

" The demonstration in favour of the cause of Temperance last
evening, was far more extensive and imposing than its most san-
guine friends had ventured to anticipate. The whole extent of
the theatre in Arch Street, where the Festival was held, was
crowded in every part. The pit, floored over, as on the occasion of
the firemen's ball, was thronged with a dense mass, filling the
entire area between the dress circle, and extending back to the

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STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA.

extreme extent of the stage, which was tastefully adorned with
ii])prupriato scenery. The boxes were also crowded in every direc-
tion ; and it is estimated that there were not less than two thousand
pei-sons assembled witliin the wdlsof the buildhig.

" The exercises of the evening wore commenced with music, from
a superior band ; after whicli prayer vas mode by the Rev. Mr.
Chambers. Then followed the rea»..i>g of letters from different
distinguished individuals, wlio, though ardent friends of the cause,
were unable to grace it with their presence upon this interesting
occasion. When these were completed, Mr. Buckingham, an ex-
member of the British parliament, and the great advocate of tem-
perance principles, was introduced to the audience, by whom ho
wiis received with the most decided demonstrations of a hearty and
cordial welcome.

<' Mr. Buckingham addressed the audience in a strain of sur-
passing eloquence, such as we have rarely heard equalled, for nearly
two hoiu^, and was listened to throughout with the most flattering
attention. He dwelt with much emphasis on the importance of
temperance in promoting the prosperity and happmessof mankind ;
adverting to the crime and misery, the beggared victims and ruined
families, resulting from intemperance ; and bringing forward, in
the course of his address, an immense amount and vaiiety of statis-
tical evidence, going to furnish strong, if not conclusive data, on
which to form some estimate of the loss sustained by the fires, ship-
wrecks, and other casualties, originatuig in the use of intoxicating
liquors.

" Mr. Buckingham mentioned, in support of this portion of his
argument, that while officiating as chairman of a committee ap-
pointed by the House of Commons in England, to make investiga-
tions on this subject, he had estimated the loss positively sus-
tained by the people of Great Britain at one-sixth part of its entire
productive industry, which one-sixth portion would amount to
50,000,000 pounds sterUng, or 250,000,000 of dollars. But the
loss in time, health, and in other causes not enumerated, but pro-
ceeding and arising directly from intemperance, would swell this
amount to a much more enormous extent. In conclusion, he ad-
verted in pointed terms to the exceedingly beneficial effects of tem-
perance, speaking, he said, from his own actual experience and the

TEMPERANCE FESTIVAL.

ill'}:

Riiiplti testimony of his friends. His allusions to Washington, upon
whose birthday this great festival was held, was received with tho
most deafening and enthusiastic applause.

** A number of resolutions were offered in the course of the
evening, supported in able addresses from several gentlemen, among
whom we noticed Edward C. Delavon, Esq. of New York, and
Christian Keener, Esq. of Baltimore. Other resolutions and addresses
were deUvered by several of our own townsmen, which the lateness of
the hour to which the exercises extended, prevents our making any
particular mention of. A variety of music was interspersed
throughout the evening, and the ladies were served with refresh-
ments, of which the supply was abundant. Altogether, this great
festival was one which the friends of Temperance will have reason
to congratidutc themselves upon."

This was the testimony borne to the character of
the meeting, on the morning after it was held.
It was apprehended, however, that, on the succeed-
ing day, something of a different nature might appear ;
for here, as everywhere else, large interests are at
war with the Temperance reformation ; and all who
make, or sell, or consume intoxicating drinks, may
be looked upon as the natural enemies of Temperance
Societies ; and their influence over the press, might,
we thought, be sufficient to enlist at least one pri j)er
in their cause. But no champion appeared for tiicrn.
On the following day, February 24th, this was the
editorial article of the Pennsylvanian.

" The Temperance Festival at the Arch Street theatre, on Thursday
evening, was truly a brilliant affair, and we should think must have
far exceeded even the expectations of those who were most active in
getting up an entertainment in every respect so novel. At lea.st
we can say for our own part, that on entering, we were much sur-
prised at observing the appearance presented by the theatre, which
was never before graced by the presence of so large an audience.

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STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA.

Not only were the first and second rows of boxes completely filled
with ladies and gentlemen, but the numerous benches upon the ex-
tensive area obtained by flooring over the pit and the stage, were
likewise literally crowded, from the front to the buck of the house,
and many were obliged to content themselves with the standing-
i-oom of the avenues left for entering and retiring. The concourse
uf ladies was very g^at ; and altogether, independent of the pur-
pose of the assemblage, it was well worth the visit to see the unu-
sual and elegant aspect offered by the theatre on the occasion.

" The officers of the meeting occupied an elevated stand mider the
proscenium, from which position Mr. Buckingham, the celebrated
lecturer, addressed the company. He spoke upwards of two hours,
and it has rarely been our fortune to hear an address which gave
more satisfaction, or more completely rivetted the attention. As a
speaker, he possesses remarkable ease, fluency, and readiness, com-
bined with a graceful, unaffected manner, which invests hia sub-
ject with additional interest, and immediately enlists the feelings
of the hearer. His address was characterized by great variety.
The occasional statistical detail, was relieved by the fervent appeal
and the pertinent anecdote, and again the speaker would indulge
in a humorous delineation of the difficulties which beset his path,
especially in the British House of Commons, when setting forth as
a pioneer in the cause of total abstinence. The sketches of scenes
of this nature were dashed off with a vividness and a graphic force,
and at the same time with a freedom from all appearance of strain-
ing at effect, which rendered them truly delightful, and elicited, as
indeed the speech did throughout, the most enthusiastic applause.
It is a difficult matter to fix the attention of a large and mixed
audience for any length of time, especially when, as in a theatre,
their restlessness does not subject them to observation ; and it must
have been truly gratifying to Mr. Buckingham to see his perfect
success in this respect. The only feeding among his hearers, when
he had concluded, was that of regret that his remarks were not
extended to a greater length. "With such advocates, the cause he
has espoused cannot fail in making rapid progress.

'* At the conclusion of Mr. Buckingham's speech, refreshments
were served from the long table, which extended the whole length
of the theatre, and at intervals afterwards, ice-creams, &c., con-

•• 'r.

TEMPERANCE FESTIVAL.

'207

tinued to be handed round. Several other speeches were likewiae
delivered, which, however, coming so late in the evening, might
have been curtailed with advantage, especially in those instances
where tlio zeal of the speaker was his only title to attention.

" It was about eleven o'clock when the Festival was brought to a
conclusion, the adjournment being preceded by a few words from
Mr. Bucldngham -, and all who were present seemed to leave the
house highly gratified with the occurrences of the evening. Mr.
Buckingham, at least, has every reason to felicitate himself upon
the effect of his first public appearance among the Philadel-
phians."

A third paper, the Pennsylvania Herald, contained
a still longer article than any of its contemporaries.
The following, which is hut a small portion of the
whole, will show the concurrent opinions of the Phi-
ladelphia press.

" The Temperance Festival at the Arch Street theatre, on Thurs-
day evening last, must have surpassed the expectations, even of
the most sanguine friends of the cause. Never did the theatre
present a more imposing, more brilliant, or more gratifying ap-
pearance. The pit, which had been floored over, was completely
occupied by the vast assemblage. The boxes were also thronged,
and the tout ensemble was calculated to send a thrill of delight
to every bosom, and re-animate the energies of every friend of the
cause. It is ebtimated that not less than 2000 persons could have
been present. Among these, citizens of every class and condition
of life, and a large proportion of the fairer and gentler sex, who,
by their presence, gave an additional charm, and lent a more
refined sanction to the scene. The dress circle was particularly
brilllttnt. Head-dresses of the most tasteful character, gave effect
to youth and beauty of no common mould, while mother and
daughter, father and son, sat beside each other, all apparently gra-
tified, and deeply Interested In the progress of the exercises. As
early as seven o'clock In the evening, the whole company had
assembled ; and while order, decorum, and propriety reigned through-
out, no spectator could have gazed coldly upon the animated scene,

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or havo rofltwtcd with other than benevolent feelings, upon the
clovatod objects of tliat festival.

<* Mr. Buckingham concluded his most eloquent, diversiHod,
powerful, and convincing address, by expressing in warm and
ulluctionato tcnns, his grateful and heartfelt acknowledgments for
tlio high honour which had been conferred upon him in this 'City
of Brotherly Love.' Mr. B. sat down amidst the warmest demon-
strations of applause.

" The company were then addressed by Mr. E. C. Delevun, of
New York, Mr. C. Keener, of Baltimore, Matthew Carey, Esq., of
Philadelphia, the Rev. Mr. Chambers, and the Rev. Mr. Hunt.
Their remarks were characteristic and appropriate, and frequently
elicited the liveliest acclamations. The Festival throughout cannot
but Ik) considered 08 one of the most gratifying expositions of
public sentiment, and one in which every philanthropist must feel
no ordinary degree of interest."

We remained over the next day at Philadelphia,
to rest after our labours, and to see the very numer-
ous friends who called to pay us visits of respect.
We saw but little of the city now, however, as it was
our intention to return here, and pass the month of
May.

On the morning of Saturday, the 24th, we set out
on our journey to Baltimore ; and, being taken by
four-horse omnibuses to the station of the rail-road,
about three miles out of Philadelphia, we there got
into large cars, similar to those in which we came
from Amboy, and proceeded at about the same rate,
of fifteen or sixteen miles per hour, on our way.

The country was still covered with snow, and still
presented the same dreary and monotonous aspect of
uncultivated soil, and small brushwood surface.
When we arrived opposite to Wilmington, a pretty
large town, of from eight to ten thousand inhabitants,
a deputation came out to meet me, headed by the

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Tlin SLAVE STATEM.

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venerable Jud^ro Hall, to iiitreat, that, on my return
from the South, I would pass an evening with them,
and devote it to a temperance meeting j which I rea-
dily promise<l to do, if practicable.

From hence we proceeded on our way, and soon
after passed over the boundary-lino between the fret)
and the slave states, passing out of the last of thu
former, Pennsylvania, and entering the first of the
latter, in going south, Delaware. From thence wo
soon after entered Maryland ; and in both of these
it seemed to all our party that we could perceive a
marked difference, in the wretchedness of the huts
or dwellings, the bad state of the fences, and tho
slovenly and neglected appearance of tho whole coun-
try, from the free states, through which wo had ap-
proached the slave-holding territory.

After crossing several streams, by long, low bridges,
and one by a magnificent floating-house propelled
by steam, we entered Baltimore about half-past two ;
having thus performed the journey from New York
to Philadelphia, a distance of ninety-six miles, in
seven hours ; and from Philadelphia to Baltimore,
about the same distance, in six hours and a half, at
the very low rates of three dollars each for the first
journey, and four dollars each for the second.

At Baltimore we were met by a party of gentle-
men, who had prepared apartments for our reception,
and provided a handsome dinner for our refresh-
ment. After partaking this with them, and enjoying
some rest, wo attended a temperance meeting in the
Methodist chapel, where, after an opening prayer by
the Methodist bishop (for these were Episcopal Me-
thodists,) and a speech from the Rev. Robert Brac-

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270

STATE OF MARYLAND.

kenridge, of Baltimore, I was occupied for about two
hours in addressing the auditory on the temperance
question, and advocating the principles of total absti-
nence from all that can intoxicate, as the only basis
on which any great reform can be effected among
the masses of the people generally.

We remained at Baltimore during the Sunday,
attending the Methodist chapel in the morning, and
the Episcopal church in the afternoon ; and the con-
trast between the worship in these was very striking
indeed. In the former, all was simplicity, earnest-
ness, and warmth of devotion ; in the latter, all was
ostentatious, cold, formal, and unimpressive. Yet
the Episcopal church was attended by a large con-
gregation of gay and fashionable visitors ; while in
the Methodist church, the poor and the humble
formed the majority of the worshippers. Each were,
no doubt, suited according to their tastes ; for while
in the Methodist service there was everything adapted
to give consolation to the truly devout ; in the
Episcopal, there was nothing that could offend the
most fastidious taste, or disturb the self-complacence
of those who needed only a pastime, without much
thought or feeling, and who found what they sought.

On Monday, Feb. 26, we left Baltimore for Wash-
ington, by the rail-road, starting at nine o'clock ; and
after traversing as dreary and uninteresting a tract
of country, as that over which we had passed on the
two preceding journeys, we reached Washington, a
distance of thirtj-six miles, in three hours, arriving
there about twelve o'clock.

It may be remarked, as a striking proof of the
prevalence of fires in all the great cities of this coun-

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PREVALENCE OF FIRES.

271

try, that on the morning of our leaving New York,
there was a very large fire ; on the first night of our
sleeping in Philadelphia, there was also a great fire ;
on the night of oui arrival in Baltimore, there was a
fire that consumed several houses within a few doors
of the inn where we slept ; and on the day of our
reaching Washington, there was also a great fire.
Such a succession of fires as these could hardly he
found to be in the track of a traveller in any part of
the world except this ; at least, I remember nothing
like it in all my travels in other countries.

!i.i

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CHAP. XV.

Stay at Washington — Funeral of a member of congress, wlio
liad been shot in a duel — Visit to the house of representatives
— Funeral service — Impressiveness of tlie scene-^Effect on the
auditors — Publication of an Address to both houses, on duelling
— State temperance meeting of members of congress — Speech
in the hall of representatives — Vote of thanks, and resolution to
publish the same — Commencement of lectures in Washington
— Letter on the subject of slave abolition — Advertised rewards
for runaway slaves — Offer of purchase by slave-dealers — Preju-
dice of native Americans against foreigners — illustration of this
in an editor at Washington — Visit to the first drawing-room of
the president — Description and character of that entertainment
— All classes, without distinction, freely admitted — Remarkable
order and decorum of so mixed an assemblage.

On the day after our reaching Washington, (February
27,) we were present at a very melancholy and im-
posing ceremony, in the hall of representatives in the
Capitol, the funeral of one of the members of the
legislature, who had been shot dead in a duel, by
a brother member, on the preceding Saturday.
The circumstances of this affair were briefly these :
Mr. Jonathan Cilley, member of the house of repre-
sentatives, from the State of Maine, had used some
language in debate, which gave offence to Colonel
James Watson Webb, the editor of the New York
Courier and Enquirer ; on which. Colonel Webb came
on to Washington, and sent a message by his friend
Mr. William Graves, representative from Kentucky,
demanding to know of Mr. Cilley, whether he had used

FATAL DUEL.

273

the words repc»' ■. to be said by him, and, if so, caUing
on him to give satisfaction. Mr. Cilley declined
acknowledging his accountability to any man out of
the house, for words spoken under the privilege of
a member of the legislature in debate ; and added
also, that he was determined not to get into a con-
troversy with Colonel Webb. Mr. Graves insisted
on it, that his was an insinuation against the honour
of his friend, and he demanded that Mr. Cilley should
acknowledge Colonel Webb to be a man of honour
and a gentleman. This Mr. Cilley declined to do,
saying, he would express no opinion either way, as
to the character of Colonel Webb, as he did not
regard himself as in any degree responsible to him or
to any other man for his conduct as a member of the
house. Upon this, Mr. Graves, who had no previous
quarrel with Mr. Cilley on his own account, thought
it his duty to challenge Mr. Cilley to the field, to wipe
out the insinuation against the character of Colonel
Webb. Mr. Cilley at first hesitated, saying he had
the highest respect for Mr. Graves, and should
regret exceedingly any difference between them ; but
he was left no alternative, and unfortunately yielded
to the demand. They accordingly went out, pro-
vided with the weapons agreed upon, rifles, and under
the direction of their respective seconds, were placed
at eighty yards* distance. After the first shot,
instead of being withdrawn bv the seconds, which
would certainly have been doa<d in Europe, there was
a deliberation between the parties, and, after a pause
of more than one hour, it is said, they were made to
fire a second time, each of course taking deliberate
aim. Neither ot the combatants being hurt by the

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WASHINGTON.

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second fire, a second parley was held, which lasted
even longer than the former, and at the close of which
the gentleman who acted as second to Mr. Graves,
proposed, and the second of Mr. Cilley acceded to
the proposal, that if neither party were killed or
wounded after the third shot, the distance between
the combatants should be shortened. The third
shot, however, produced the death of Mr. Cilley, who
receiving his antagonist's ball through the body, was
a lifeless corpse in five minutes after he fell, leaving
a wife and four young children to mourn his loss.

This duel had excited a great sensation among
all classes ; and the funeral of the deceased being
fixed to take place this morning, the ceremony to
commence in the house of representatives, the hall
was filled at a very early hour. We went there with
a party of friends as early as ten o'clock, and before
eleven every part of the building was filled — the lower
part of the hall by members, and persons connected
with the public establishments j the galleries around
with ladies and gentlemen, residents of the city, and
strangers or visitors ; and the profound silence that
everywhere prevailed, produced a solemnity that was
deeply affecting. At twelve o'clock the chair was
taken by the Speaker of the house, when the corpse
of the deceased was brought in, and deposited on a
bier, in front of the Speaker's chair. The members
of the Senate then entered, and took their stations in
front of the representatives. After these came the
judges of the Supreme court, then the heads of depart-
ments and secretaries of state, and, lastly, the Pre-
sident and Vice-president of the United States,
who were seated on each side of the coffin, while

.> I

FUNERAL CEREMONIES.

275

the chief mourners, consistingof the colleagues and per-
sonal friends of the deceased, stood hehind the corpse
with scarfs, in full costume of mourning. All the
members of both houses, and all the public officers,
wore crape bands on their left arms, and the great
majority of the vast assembly were dressed in black.

The proceedings were opened by an extempora^
neous prayer from the chaplain of the senate, which
was solemn and appropriate. After this, followed
a funeral address, by the chaplain of the house of
representatives, who, with great feeling, adverted to
the melancholy spectacle, animadverted upon its
cause, and deprecated, with great boldness and force,
the false sentiment of honour, and the vitiated state
of public opinion, out of which this fatal duel had
arisen ; and it appeared to me, that so entirely was
the feeling of the house, and general auditory, in
favour of the Reverend Doctor's views, that if a pro-
position could have been submitted at that moment in
favour of the legal suppression of this cruel practice,
under any penalties that could be affixed, it would
have met with the unanimous assent of all present.

About one o'clock, the mournful procession moved
off from the hall of representatives, to convey the
unfortunate victim of this false code of honour to the
silent tomb j and at this point of the proceedings there
was scarcely a dry eye beneath the spacious dome.
For myself, I was so deeply impressed with the duty
of contributing, by every means, within my power, to
the cherishing and keeping alive the sentiment of
repugnance to duelling which this tragical occurrence
had awakened, that, on retiring to my room,
I addressed notes to several of the leading members

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276

WASHINGTON.

of both houses, enclosing a copy of an address, which
I had caused to be presented to the members of both
houses of the British parliament, during the last
session of my being a member, entitled "Reasons for
legislative interference, to prevent the practice of
duelling," preparatory to a bill, which I had
announced my intention to bring into the House of
Commons to effect this end, and which, had circum-
diances enabled me to continue longer a member of
that assembly, 1 should have presented to the house
for its consideration.

By some of my friends, to whom this address was
shown, it was strongly recommended to publish it at
once ; but by others it was thought that the intrusion
of the sentiments of a stranger and a foreigner at
such a moment as this, would be thought an inter-
ference, and be regarded with jealousy by many.
These differences were happily compromised, however,
by my friend Mr. Delevan, of Albany, addressing me
a letter, asking my permission for him to publish it,
as an American citizen, he feeling it his duty to his
country to call their attention to the subject at this
particular moment ; and I was of course too happy
to comply with this request. It was accordingly
arranged, that this address on duelling should be
printed in as many newspapers of the country as could
be prevailed upon to insert it, preceded by the cor-
respondence between Mr. Delevan and myself, to
account for its re-issue at the present moment ; and,
a certain number of copies were agreed to be furnished
to each member of both Houses of Congress, to frank
onward to his constituents, so that by this means the
address would find its way to all quarters of the

III m

CONGRESSIONAL TEMPERANCE SOCIETY.

277

Union, and thus lead to the expression of public
opinion, which, acting on the legislators here, might
lead to the passing of some effective law, for the
supression, at once and for ever, of a custom, barbar-
ous in its origin, absurd in its practice, but fearfully
calamitous in the consequences which it entails.*

In the evening of this same day, a large meeting
was held in the hall of representatives, where the
solemn funeral service was performed in the morning,
of the Congressional State Temperance Society, at
which I was invited to take a part, and for the pur-
pose of which, indeed, my journey to Washington was
undertaken at this particular period. The society
named above, is composed wholly of members of botli
Houses of Congress ; and the anniversary of its
formation is always held in one or other of the legis-
lative chambers. This of course gives great interest
and importance to their proceedings, and induces
the country generally to watch their movements with
more than ordinary anxiety. On the present occa^
the Honourable Felix Grundy, a member of

sion.

the Senate, from Tennessee, presided in the chair ;
and though the meeting was held in the Hall of
Representatives, as being larger and more commo-
dious than the Senate Chamber, yet Senators, as well
as Representatives, took part in the proceedings, by
moving and seconding the resolutions submitted to
the assembly. The attendance of members was unu-
sually large, notwithstanding the absorption of every
feeling in the mournful funeral ceremonies of the
day. Ladies of the principal families in Washing-

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WASHINGTON.

ton, with many of the cahinet, and public officers,
were also among the auditory, which, including those
in the galleries, could hardly have been less than a
thousand persons. As it was purposely arranged
that I should occupy the greater part of the evening
with my address, the speeches of the various mem-
bers who preceded me were very short, shorter indeed
than I wished* because I should have been glad to
have heard the testimony and arguments of others,
especially members of the American Congress, on this
subject. Unfortunately, I laboured under so severe
a hoarseness, from cold, and much speaking, that I
doubted whether I should be heard at all. I was
placed, however, in the most favourable position for
being heard, as I occupied an elevation immediately
in front of the Speaker^s chair ; and as the members*
seats are arranged semicircularly above and behind
each other, as in a lecture-room, while the galleries,
which were filled with strangers, extended all around
the circumference at the base of the dome, all could
see and hear nearly equally well ; and my voice
getting stronger and clearer as I proceeded, my
address extended to nearly two hours in length. It
was listened to throughout with an earnestness of
attention, which bespoke the deepest interest on the
part of the hearers — and was honoured with a formal
vote of thanks, communicated to me by the President
in the most flattering terms, accompanied by a reso-
lution that the speech, as taken down by the official
reporter of the House, who was in attendance for
that purpose, should be printed and circulated as
widely as possible over all the United States.

On the Tuesday following, March 6, I com-

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HORROR OF ABOLITIONISTS.

279

com-

menced my course of lectures on the Scriptural and
Classical Countries of the East, in the first Presby-
terian church, in Four-and-a-Half Street, in that
part of Washington, near the" Pennsylvania avenue,
where the residences of members of Congress chiefly
lie ; and I was much gratified by the very large
attendance of that class, as well as of the cabinet
ministers, of foreign ambassadors, and of most of the
leading families, at this legislative capital of the
Union. This was the more agreeable from its being
wholly unexpected. As we were now in the greatest
slave-mart of the country, where it was certain that
my opinions respecting slavery would be well known —
and as great alarm is felt here at the very name of
abolition, arising out of the attempts lately made to
prevail on Congress to exercise their power in abol-
ishing slavery in the district of Columbia, in which
Washington is situated — I was prepared to expect
both open and covert attacks on this subject, and
was equally ready to meet the consequences. Among <
other indications of the private hostility I was
likely to experience on this head, I received the
following letter, which confirmed all I had anti-
cipated ; and of public hostility, in addition to the
share I was sure to encounter in common with
native abolitionists, the fact of my being a foreigner
was here prominently put forward, as an objection to
the favourable reception of my labours. But first of
the letter, which was as follows :

"District of Columbia, March 5, 1838.

" Sib — The writer of this note has not the pleasure of an acquaint-
ance with you, but takes the liberty to address you on a subject,
respectbg which, it becomes you as a foreigner to conduct yoiu:self

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380

WASHINGTON.

with great circumspection. While reading your (mnounocment to-
day in the city of Washington, the writer asked a gentleman
present—' Will you attend Mr. B.'s lectures ?' The answer was
emphatically, ' No. It is said, Mr. Buckingham b an abolitionist ;
and if so, he will not meet with a good reception.'

" You are probably Uttle aware, Sir, of the ideas associated with
the term abolitioniat in the slave-holding states of our country, and
of the suspicion with which a person is looked upon, who is known
to entertain the views which the people of the South (among whom
you now are) attach to the word. Unhappily, our country is in a
state of feverish excitement on this deeply-interesting subject, and
even a Northern man could not defend abolition sentiments south
of Pennsylvania, without hazarding his personal safety. You, Sir,
will probably bo regarded with more jealousy, as an Englishman.

" The writer expresses no opinion on the subject of slavery, and
cannot presume to dictate to you. Sir. He merely suggests the
propriety of circumspection in conversing on the subject, leaving to
your own good sense, and the dictates of conscience and a sowtd
judgment, the course you should pursue.

" For the honour of his own beloved country, the writer would
exceedingly regret any occurrence, which should inflict even a
woimd on the feelings of foreigners of respectability, and thus tend
to dishonour the American name among Em^pean nations. But
you have seen enough of the world. Sir, to know that in all coun-
tries foreigners are regarded with jealousy, who in any way
animadvert upon their peculiar institutions. In this great and
free coimtry, what is orthodoxy in New York, may be rank hetero-
doxy in Washington.

" Pardon this hasty note from a stranger. In writing it, the
undersigned has only done what he would regard as an act of
friendship, if done for him among a people three thoiisaud miles
from the land of hb fathers.

" For abimdant success in your laudable enterprise, and for your
own personal happiness,

" Accept the best wishes of

" An Ameeican."

" J. S. Buckmgham, Esq."

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RUNAWAY SLAVES.

281

On inquiry in such quarters as were open to
me, I found this statement confirmed ; and though
it formed no part of my puhlic labours to discuss the
question of abolition, however much I wished it suc-
cess, in this country as well as in all others, this
letter may be offered as a proof of the inveterate hos-
tility of slave-holding states to all persons known even
to entertain opinions favourable to negro emancipa-
tion, whether they give utterance to them, or not.
The defenders of slavery in this country profess,
indeed, that their only reason for opposing the doc-
trines of abolition is a belief that their slaves
are more happy in their bondage than they would
be if free — that they therefore do not wish, for
the sake of the slaves themselves, that their hap-
piness should be disturbed — though they add, they
are perfectly sure that the slaves do not desire free-
dom, and would not accept it if it were offered to
them.

The best answer to such assertions as these is to be
found in the fact, that the slaves would not only take
their freedom gladly if offered them, but that they often
take it without, and at the risk of incurring severe
punishment; as the following advertisements, all
taken from the Washington National Intelligencer, of
March 5th, 1838, will show.

" 200 Dollars Reward— catch him where you can — ^will be
^ven by the Subscriber, for the apprehension and delivery to me, or
secured in jail, so that I get him again, of a negro man, Henry,
commonly called Henry Carroll ; formerly belonging to the estate
of the late Mrs. Beersheba Lanham. Henry left the farm of Mr.
M'Cormick near Mr. John Palmer's tavern, Prince George's comity,
Maryland, on or about the 6th of January, where he has been

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282

WASHINGTON.

hired for tho lost year. Ilonry i» about 26 years of ago ; apare-
built; of a ilark copper colour ; 5 feet 8 or 10 inches high; huii a
dowu-luuk when spoken to; nomarkr recollected ; and his clotliing
not known. Henry has relations and friends in Washington city
and Georgetown, some of them free, and Ukely he has free papers ;
he is well acquainted in Alexandria. As ho went off witliout the
least provocation, he is likely trying to make liis escape to some
free state." « j£88£ Taluubtt."

" 50 Dollars Reward will be giren for Delia, a mulatto
woman about 48 years of age, if apprehended north of tho State of
Maryland, and so secured that I may get her again ; or 30 dollars if
taken in Virginia, Maryland, or the district of Columbia, and secured
OS above. She was raised by the late Mrs. Hannah Brent of
Fauquier county, Virginia, and piuxshased of the executor of the late
Eppa Huuton, deceased. It is believed tliat she is still in some of
the numerous hiding-placed of Alexandria, Georgetown, or Wash-
ington, and tliat she was conveyed hitlier by a negro waggoner,
with whom she was seen in February lojst, prior to the removal of
the midersigned to tills city." "Th. R. Hampton."

Washington, indeed, the seat of legislation for this
free republic, is a well known tuid well frequented
mart for the purchase of slaves ; and slave dea-
lers for the Southern and Western states come up to
Washington for the purpose of securing supplies.
Here is the advertisement of one of these dealers,
taken from the same paper as that which contained
the two preceding offers of reward.

"200 Slaves wanted. — The subscriber will give higher r icos. in
cash, for likely young slaves, of both sexes, than any othr' r)^'r---'
in this market, or who may come. lean be foimd at . ' '../ge
yellow house on 7th street, or at Alexander Lee's Lotteiy and Ex-
change offii?e. All communications will be promptly attended to.

" N.B, I will pay at all times liberal conmiissiona for information."

"Thomas N. Davis.

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JEALOUSY UF FOUEI0NCR8.

283

No wonder, Uioroforo, that in such a hot-bod of
Hluvory and the slave tra«le as this, the fact of my
being an abolitionist, even in opinion, i^hould operate
prejudicially against mv. Nevoi liiploss, the public
and private attentions which I had already received
from public men of all parties, iu spite of this preju-
dice, was the more remarkable j and the large attco'
dprtc*' on the lectures particularly so.

''Jii <of the strongest of the national prejudices of
the mass of the people in America, embracing all
(lassos except the highest and most intelligent, is a
dislike to any thing bordering on what they consider
to be the interference of foreigners in any matfor
which they conceive they are able to determine t(»r
themselves; and of all such foreigners, they aio
apparently most jealous of Englishmen. It is true
that the jealousy of the English docs not prevent
them from receiving the benefit of our trade, selling
us their cotton, and taking our payments, whether in
goods or money, in return ; nor does it prevent them
reading our books, and republishing at a cheap rate
whatever English publications they may think most
likely to produce a profit by their sale. But they do
object most strenuously to any personal efforts, made
by Englishmen in their own country, to correct any
evil, of which they may be supposed to be competent
judges themsolves. Hence, in almost every State of
the Union, there are to bo found one or more news-
papers, embodying this national sentiment in their
very titles, and in the mottoes appended to them. The
paper of this description at Washington, and a fair
specimen of its class, is called, "The Native
American," and its motto is, ** Our country — always

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right : — but, 7'ight or wrong, our country." True,
therefore, to its title and its motto, its conductor
avows it to be his object to denounce everything
foreign, for the reason that it is not " native Ame-
rican j" and in pursuance of this duty, a long article
appeared in his paper of the 10th of March, of which
the foUoving are a few extracts.

**We hope Mr. Buckingham will take our advice iu kindness.
We do not mean him injury ; but he must be aware that there is
a feeling of native pride in every land. Thousands he has visited,
and even in India, where he spent so great a portion of his time,
there may have been occasions when he saw the glorious flame of
natal indignation rise above the surface of British oppression.
Could he not take a lesson from that great and mighty province,
where men have been brought under the yoke of British dominion,
and where queens have been reduced to beggary by the Warren
Hastingses, who have lorded it over them, since English cunning,
villiany, and cupidity, dethroned the native princes, and established
their own governors in their stead ?

"Personally, we wish Mr. Buckingham all prosperity in life.
This wish springs from a personal knowledge of his personal merits,
which are very great : but he certainly cannot blame our rough
manners in inviting him to cease from his process of lecturing upon
temperance, dictating to the American people their course of action.
There is nothing bad, but a great deal of good in temperance ; but
we do not like these precedents : we know that we utter the sen-
timents of native Americans, when we solemnly declare that we not
only do not need these foreign teachers, but that ere long we will
not tolerate their audacious presence. We are a nation of men, and
not of old women. We are sturdy inhabitants, bom to the soil, and
the soil to us ; and there are enough moralists in cm* borders to tell
us the word of heaven, and direct our wandering propensities
towards the divine Master, who shapes our destinies with the same
hand that binds the earth to its centre, controls the ebbing^ of the
ocean, and permits the burning sun to stand a fixture and a bless-
ing among his works. We are a temperate people, remarkably so.

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LIBERALITY OF THE EDUCATED.

285

We do not take time to drink. We do not create roads in order
to build taverns. We are all, more or less water-drinkers ; and yet
Mr. Buckingham is hallooing in our ears his impudent insinuations.
We loathe the abject spirit of our countrymen, that forces them
to bow before his path, as if he waa some god, fit for their
worship."

I must do the editor the justice to say, that I
believe he only expresses publicly the sentiment of
dislike to foreigners, and jealousy of their influence,
which is privately entertained by large numbers, in
the humbler classes of life especially. But justice to
the other classes requires it to be stated, that this
prejudice is strong in proportion to the contracted
nature of the minds, and the limited sphere of intelli-
gence, in the parties entertaining it. The better
educated, and, above all, the travelled American,
despises this feeling as much as any well-informed
European can do ; and, therefore, in the more intel-
lectual and influential circles of American society,
the prejudice can hardly be said to exist, or, if exist-
ing at all, it does not develope itself in word or deed,
or operate in the slightest degree against the exercise
of the utmost courtesy and hospitality towards per-
sons of merit, from whatever country they may come,
or against the cordial reception of any proposition
for the amelioration of mankind, in whatever quarter
it may originate.

On Thursday, the 8th of March, we had an op-
portunity of attending the first drawing-room held
by the President since his accession to office. I
had been previously introduced to him by the Rev.
Dr. Hawley, an Episcopalian clergyman, of whose
congregation the President is a member ; and I had

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WASHINGTON.

also brought letters of introduction to him from New
York, so that I had been favoured with a long pri-
vate interview, and a very cordial and friendly re-
ception, some days before j and Mrs. Buckingham
and my son were invited, as well as myself, to the
party of the evening.

We went, about nine o'clock, with the family of
Colonel Gardiner, who is attached to the public ser-
vice here, and found the company already assembled
in great numbers. The official residence of the
President is a large and substantial mansion, on the
scale of many of the country-seats of our English
gentry, but greatly inferior in size and splendour
to the country residences of most of our nobility ; and
the furniture, though sufficiently commodious and
appropriate, is far from being elegant or costly. The
whole air of the mansion and its accompaniments, is
that of unostentatious comfort, without parade or
display, and therefore well adapted to the simplicity
and economy which is characteristic of the republican
institutions of the country.

The President received his visitors standing, in the
centre of a small oval room, the entrance to which
was directly from the hall on the ground-floor. The
introductions were made by the City-marshal, who
announced the names of the parties ; and each,
after shaking hands with the President, and ex-
changing a few words of courtesy, passed into
the adjoining rooms, to make way for others. The
President, Mr. Van Buren, is about 60 years
of age, is a little below the middle stature, and
of very bland and courteous manners ; he was
dressed in a plain suit of black j the marshal was

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PRESroENT S LW.VEE.

287

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habited also in a plain suit : and there were neither
guards without the gate or sentries within, nor a
single servant or attendant in livery anywhere
visible. Among the company we saw the English
minister, Mr. Fox, a nephew of Lord Holland, and
the French minister. Monsieur Pontoi, both of whom
were also in plain clothes ; and the only uniforms, in
the whole party, were those of three or four officers
of the American navy, officially attached to the navy-
yard, at Washington j and half a dozen officers of the
American army, on active service. The dresses of
the ladies, were some of them elegant, but generally
characterized by simplicity, and jewels were scarcely
at all worn. The party, therefore, though consisting
of not less than 2000 persons, was much less brilliant
than a drawing-room in England, or than a fashion-
able soiree in Paris ; but it was far more orderly and
agreeable than any party of an equal number that
I ever remember to have attended in Europe.

There being no rank, (for the President himself
is but a simple citizen, filling a certain office, for a
certain term), there was no question of precedence,
and no thought, as far as I could discover, of com-
parison as to superiority. Every one present acted
as though he felt himself to be on a perfect
footing of equality with every other person ; and if
claims of preference were ever thought of at all,
they were tested only by the standard of personal
services, or personal merits. Amidst the whole party,
therefore, whether in the small receiving-room, and
around the person of the President, or in the larger
room of promenade, where 500 persons at least were
walking in groups, or in the small adjoining rooms

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WASHINGTON.

to which parties retired for seats and conversation,
nothing approaching to superciliousness or rudeness
was seen. The humhler classes — for of these there
were many, since the only qualitlcation for admis-
sion to the morning levee, or the evening drawing-
room, is that of being a citizen of the United
States — behaved with the greatest propriety ; and
though the pressure was at one time excessive, when
it was thought that there were nearly 3000 persons
in the different apartments, yet we never heard a
rude word, or saw a rude look, but everything indi-
cated respect, forbearance, and perfect contentment ;
and when the parties retired, which was between
eleven and twelve o'clock, there was not half so much
bustle in getting up the carriages, which were very
numerous, as is exhibited at a comparatively small
party in England ; nor was any angry word, as far as
we could discover, exchanged between the drivers
and servants in attendance.

This drawing-room, from which we retired about
midnight, as we were among the last that remained,
impressed us altogether with a very favourable opinion
of the social character of the American people.
Members of the opposition, most hostile to the
President in his official capacity, were present, and
interchanged their civilities with him in the most
cordial manner, laying aside their characters as
senators and representatives, and here meeting the
chief magistrate of the republic as citizens only.
The citizens, themselves, of every other class, exhibited
no symptom of any other feeling, than that of respect
and satisfaction ; and as this could only be accounted
for on the principle that the absence of all artificial

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PRESIDENT AT CHURCH,

289

distinctions in society — except those which personal
merit may create, and which may he called natural
and just — leads to the ahsence of all envy and
discontent ; and therefore a democratic crowd of
2000 persons were, from the operation of this prin-
ciple, seen to conduct themselves in a more respectful,
suhdued, and orderly manner, than the same
number of persons, especially if of very different
conditions in life, would he likely to do in any of the
older countries of Europe, where such distinctions of
rank exist, and where the consequences are, envj%
feuds, and discontent.

We had subsequently another opportunity of
witnessing the extreme simplicity of the President's
manners, and the entire absence of all form and
state in his movements. On Sunday the 11th of
March, we attended the Episcopalian Church of
Dr. Hawley, where the service is performed as in
the Established Church of England. It being near
the President's house, and most of the public offices,
a large portion of the congregation is composed of
the families of members of the cabinet, and heads of
departments. The President walked into the church,
unattended by a single servant, took his place in a
pew in which others were sitting besides himself,
and retired in the same manner as he came, without
being noticed in any greater degree than any other
member of the congregation, and walking home alone,
until joined by one or two personal friends, like any
other private gentleman. In taking exercise, he
usually rides out on horseback, and is generally
unattended, or if accompanied by a servant, never
by more than one. Everywhere that he passes.

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VOL. I.

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290

president's authority.

■ti

he is treated with just the same notice as any other
respectable inhabitant of the city would be, but no
more. Yet this is so far from lessening, as might by
some be supposed, the influence or authority of the
President in his official capacity, that no one pre-
sumes to show less reverence for, or less obedience to
the laws on this account ; and thus the compatibility
of extreme simplicity in manners, with perfect
respect to authority, is practically demonstrated.

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CHAP. XVI.

History of the City of Washington — Formation of the district of
Columbia — Seat of government established there by law — Choice
of the position for the new city — Plan and design of General
Washington — Topography and details of the streets, &c. —
Public buildings — the Capitol — Scale of the edifice — Style of
architecture — Sculptured subjects in the Rotunda — Historical
pictures in the Rotunda — Description of the senate chamber —
Arrangement and modes of doing business — Description of the
hall of representatives — Regulation of taking seats by members
— General order and decorum of their proceedings — Great advan-
tage of day-sittings over night-meetings — Hall of the supreme
court of justice — Library of the Capitol, history and present con-
dition — The President's house, size, style, and character — Public
offices of government near the President's — State department^
original Declaration of Independence — War department — Por-
traits of Indian chiefs — Treasury department — Standard weights
and measures — Arsenal — Navy-yard, and general post-office — In-
dian department — Land department — Patent office — Destruction
of models and records — Places of public worship in Washington
— Anecdote of the Congressional chaplains — Colleges, banks,
hotels, and boarding-houses — Theatres — Mr. Forrest, the Ame-
rican actor — Anecdote of southern sensitiveness on slavery —
Play of Othello and of the Gladiator proscribed — Exclusion of
coloured persons from the representations — Private buildings of
the city, style and character — Population of Washington — City
government — Revenue, taxes, licenses, debt, and appropriation —
Regulations respecting the coloured population — Restrictions as
to the heights of houses in building.

.^-.■'t

■i-t'lfld

The history of the City of Washington is so recent,
that it may be very briefly told. In the year 1790,
when General Washington was President of the
United States, he first conceived the idea of fixing

292

WASHINGTON.

the seat of government, which was then at Philadel-
phia, at some central position, so as to he equally
accessible to the members of Congress coming from
all parts of the Union. This design was embodied
in a bill, which originated in the Senate on the 1st
of June, passed the House of Representatives on
the 9th of the same month, and received the sanction
of the President on the iGth of July following. The
votes taken on this occasion, however, were not
unanimous ; the division in the Senate being fourteen
to twelve ; and in the House of Representatives
thirty-two to twenty-nine. This bill authorized the
setting apart of a territory, not exceeding ten miles
square, on each side the river Potomac, to be taken
with consent from the States of Maryland and Virgi-
nia, between which the Potomac was the then
existing boundary-line, to be called " the district of
Columbia," and to be made the permanent seat of
government. Such a territory having been marked
out by commissioners appointed for that purpose,
and the arrangements with the two States from
which it was taken being satisfactorily completed,
the district was formally recognized by law, and
made subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of Con-
gress.

General Washington next planned and designed
the city which was to bear his name, as the legisla-
tive capital of the Union j and in 1793, the Capitol
or great hall for the meeting of the two houses of
Congress, was commenced. In 1800, the seat of
government was removed from Philadelphia to
Washington, during the presidency of John Adams ;

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PLAN OF THE CITY.

293

since which it has always continued here without
interruption.

The situation of the city is well chosen, lying as
it does between the main stream of the river Potomac,
by which it is bounded on the west and south-west,
and the river Annacosta, sometimes called the Eastern
branch, by which it is bounded on the east and south-
east ; while the broad stream of the Potomac,
after the junction of these two rivers, flows onward
beyond it to the south, till, after a navigable course
of about eighty miles, it empties itself into the
Chesapeake, and thus communicates readily with the
sea.

The city is mapped out upon an extensive scale,
being about fourteen English miles in circumference,
of an irregular shape, approaching to an oblong
square, about five miles long from east to west, and
four miles broad from north to south. The plan is
not so remarkable for its symmetry as those of many
American cities ; for though there are three great
avenues running the whole length of Washington from
east to west, — each therefore nearly five miles long, and
150 feet broad, and these again are crossed by four
similar avenues at right angles running nearly north
and south, — yet these are intersected by so many
diagonal lines, and the smaller streets are made to
run at angles so oblique to the general design, that
amidst much that is straight and regular, there is
also much that is crooked and confused.

The greatest defect of the city, however, is this,
that very few portions of it are built up in continuity ;
the dwellings are so scattered over it in detached

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294

WASHINGTON,

groups, fragments of streets, and isolated buildings,
that it has all the appearance of a town rising into
existence, but gradually arrested in its progress, and
now stationary in its condition. The Capitol, which
is placed on a rising ground in the centre of the plan,
was intended to he the centre of the city ; and if
measures had been taken, when this edifice was
erected, to let off only those lots of laiid which were
around the Capitol, so as to confine the buildings to
its immediate vicinity before any others were erected
beyond it, and thus progressively to have spread from
the centre to the extremities, it would even now have
been a handsome city. But, from the distant lots of
land having been sold as freely as those near the
centre, the purchasers have built up their mansions and
planted their gardens around the extremities, so that
Washington has been truly called '• a city of magnifi-
cent distances j" and it might have been added,
" with barren tracts and swampy morasses between
them."

The public buildings of Washington form its only
ornament, and without these, the a«pect of the city
would be mean in the extreme. The first and most
important of these buildings is the Capitol, the edifice
expressly erected to contain the halls of legislature
for the general Congress of the United States. Its
situation is admirably chosen, being on the summit
of a rising ground which overlooks the city to the
west and north-west; while on the east and south-
east, it is on a level with the general soil. The
building is so placed as to have its principal front to
the east, where it is seen on the same level as the

THE CAPITOL.

20.

other buildings east of it. The other front is to the
west, and overlooks the western portion of the city
below it, the slope of the western declivity being
ornamented with terraces, walks, and shrubbery.

The area of the public groimds thus laid out, and
in the centre of which, or nearly so, the Capitol
stands, is about thirty acres ; the whole of this is
enclosed by a low wall of stone with good iron
railings, and is entered by well-built gateways, oppo-
site to the different avenues leading to and from it
as a general centre.

The Capitol, as a whole, has a front of 352 feet
towards the east and west, and a depth of 121 feet
for the main body of the building, in addition to
65 feet of projection for the portico and steps
of the eastern fagade, and 83 feet for a similar pro-
jection on the western part, making therefore the
whole length of the fa9ade 352 feet, and the whole
breadth 269 feet, covering nearly an acre and three
quarters of ground. The height of the two wings,

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206

1VA8HIN0T0N.

to tho balustrades of their respective lanterns or
(lome-li<rhts, is 70 feet ; and the height of the
centre to the summit of tho great dome is 115
feet. Tho dimensions are therefore on a grand
scale, and the effect of tho whole is harmonious and
imposing. At tho first view, the central dome looks
too massive and heavy, and seems to want the relief
of a more spiral termination, or a surmounting
statue ; but more frequent examinations of the
pile from different points of view, and at differ-
ent hours of the day, especially at sun-rise and sun-
set, reconciles the eye to the present proportions,
which harmonize well with the surrounding objects,
and produce a grave and imposing effect as a whole.
The east front is chaste and beautiful. After
passing over a lawn, within the iron railings that

enclose the public grounds, on each side of which is
a sweeping carriage-road, you advance up a noble
flight of steps, thirty-six in number, and extending
over a breadth of about forty feet. This brings

THE CAIMTOL,

207

you on a level with the central floor of the huildin^'-,
the one helow being occupied with public offices,
und the one above in each wing with committee-
rooms belonging to the two Houses of Congress.
The portico on which you now stand, is formed of
twentv-four Corintliian columns, well executed, and
of noble dimensions, being four feet in diameter, and
thirty feet in height. In the pediment is a finti
sculptured group, composed of the Genius of America
supported by figures of Hope and Justice, and sur-
rounded with appropriate emblems, of which the
national bird, the Eagle, is one of the most promi-
nent, and is very beautifully executed. The figures
are colossal, being about seven feet and a half in
height. On the platform of the portico itself, are
two colossal statues in marble, finely executed by
Penslco : one representing War, in the figure of a
Roman general armed for conflict ; and the other
representing Peace in a female figure holding an
olive branch ; while above, is a bas-relief, represent-
ing Washington crowned by Fame. The entrance
from this leads into the Rotunda, the centre of the
whole edifice, which is crowned by a lofty dome, the
effect of which is very imposing, the diameter of the
circular area, or platform, being ninety-six feet, and
the height from the pavement to the skylight ninety-
six feet also. The upper interior of the dome is
ornamented with caissons, like the dome of the
Pantheon at Rome : and the lower part of the circu-
lar wall is divided into compartments for the recep-
tion of sculpture and painting, on subjects of national
history.

Of the sculptures, which already occupy some of

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298

WASHINGTON.

the panels, the following may be mentioned, in the
order of their dates. The first represents the well-
known incident of the humane intervention of the
Indian princess, Pocahontas, the daughter of the
chief Powhatan, to save the life of Captain Smith,
which took place in 1606. The group has five
figures, and appears to be well executed — the artist
being a Signor Cupellano, an Italian, and pupil of
the great Canova. The second piece is a represen-
tation, by his fellow-countryman and fellow-pupil,
Causici, of the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers on the
rock at Plymouth, in Massachusetts, which occurred
in 1620. In this group are four figures, a pilgrim,
his wife, his child, and an Indian, who, as the pilgrim
steps from the boat to the rock, receives him kneel-
ing, and presents to him an ear of com. The third
subject is the treaty of William Penn with the
Indians of Pennsylvania, which occurred in 1682.
In this group are three figures under the spreading
elm-tree, near Philadelphia, where this treaty was
made. Penn is represented in the formal Quaker
garb of that day, with a curled wig and cocked hat,
a costume most unfavourable to the display of grace
by the sculptor ; and the two others are Indians, one
a chief, holding the calumet, or pipe of peace, and
the other a younger Indian of the same tribe, who
was a party to the treaty. This was executed by a
French artist, Mons. Gevelot. The last subject in
point of date, is a conflict between Daniel Boon, the
celebrated American backwoodsman, one of the early
pioneers or settlers in the western wilds, who made a
most intrepid defence, single-handed, against the
attack of some hostile Indians in 177^. The space

HISTOUICAL SCULPTURES.

299

being extremely contracted for this representation,
the figure of the dead Indian is placed coiled up and
contracted beneath the feet of the two other figures
of the group, who are standing on it, while they are
engaged in mortal combat.

It is said that an Indian chief, forming one of the
numerous deputations from the tribes that visit this
city every year, on some business connected with
their settlements, on visiting the Capitol, was much
struck with these sculptures in the Rotunda ; and
observed that they represented in succession, but too
faithful a history of the intercourse of the white men
with the red, from the first discovery of the continent
by Europeans up to the present hour. " In the
first piece of sculpture," said he, " you see an Indian
woman, the daughter of a chief in the South, inter-
ceding for, and effectually preserving, a white man's
life. In the second picture, you see the Indian of
the North giving a welcome reception to the pilgrim-
father on his coast, and presenting him with com for
his subsistence. In the third, vou see the Indian
of the Eastern shore, giving up his land by treaty
for the settlement of Pennsylvania, by which the
white man got a firm footing on his territory. And
in the last picture, you see the backwoodsman
encroaching upon our most distant hunting-grounds
in the far West — and after shooting down the Indian
who is beneath his feet, giving a perfect picture of
the actual condition of his whole race, by scarcely
leaving him soil enough to die upon !"

This Indian version is unhappily but too true,
according to the testimony of almost all the intelli-
gent and humane among the whites themselves, who

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WASHINGTON.

frankly express their own unbiassed opinions on the
subject.

In the centres of the wreaths and festoons in the
other panels devoted to sculpture, are medallion
portraits of Columbus, Raleigh, La Sale, and Cabot,
the great navigators of early days, whose names are
associated with the discovery and settlement of the
various portions of the North American continent.

Of the larger panels devoted to the reception
of historical paintings, some are already filled by
large and excellent pictures, executed by Colonel
Trumbull, one of the veterans of the revolutionary
war, who is still alive, and whom I saw in New York,
though he served as an aid-de-camp of General
Washington in IJJS, Tho first of these pictures
represents the Declaration of Independence, as signed
on the 4th of July, I766. The picture is very large,
about 15 feet by 10. It is full of figures, not less than
fifty, and the whole of them are portraits of the
actual signers of that celebrated document, in the
costume of the day ; while the picture gives a perfect
representation of the room in which the signatures
were affixed. The figures of Benjamin Franklin,
John Hancock, Thomas Jefierson, and John Adams,
are readily recognized ; as an historical picture, it is
a fine composition, and one of the most appropriate
for the place it occupies. The second picture
represents the surrender of the British troops under
General Burgoyne, to the American revolutionists,
under command of General Gates, at Saratoga,
in October 1777* The figures are in the mili-
tary costume worn by the respective armies at
the time; and the bodies of cavalry and infantry,

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1NATI0NAL PICTURES.

301

the general's tent, the tender of the officer's
sword, and the other incidents of the piece, are all
well told. The third picture represents the sur-
render of the British army, under Lord Comwallis,
which took place at Yorktown, in Virginia, in
October, I78I, to the united forces of America and
France, the first commanded by General Washington,
the second by General Rochambeaii. In this also,
faithful portraits of the principal officers of each
army are introduced ; while the variety of the military
dresses, and the skilful arrangement of the figures,
make it an interesting composition. The last picture
of the series represents the resignation of his mili-
tary commission, as Commander-in-chief of the
American army, by General Washington, which
took place at Annapolis, on the 23rd of December,
1733, where the Congress was then sitting. This ap-
peared to me the most interesting picture of the
whole, as well from the moral dignity of the subject —
the voluntary resignation of power at the period of
its highest popularity — as from the admirable
treatment of it by the artist. All these pictures are
the same size, tibout 15 feet by 10, and several va-
cant panels of the same dimensions, yet remain to
be filled up. If these shall be occupied with pictures
as interesting in their subjects, and as well executed
in their details, as those described, they will do honour
to the national taste.

Leading off from this Rotunda are passages on
the north and south, to the Senate and the Hall of
Representatives ; the passages on the east and west
being the respective entrances, by these fronts, to
the building. The Senate chamber is in the north

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WASHINGTON,

wing, and is the smallest of the two. It is semicir-
cular in shape, is 75 feet in breadth, for the radius
of the semicircle, and about 35 feet in depth, from
the centre of the radius to the extreme projection of
the curve. Its height from the floor to the highest
part of the ceiling is 4.5 feet. The President of the
Senate occupies an elevated chair in the centre of
the radius line, with his face towards the semicircle;
and beneath him, at a semicircular desk, elevated
from the floor, sit the Secretary of the Senate and his
assistants. Before and beyond these, the senators,
52 in number, are arranged in these semicircular
rows, each receding behind, and rising a little above
the preceding one. Each senator has a commodious
arm-chair for his seat, and before him is a mahogany
desk, furnished with a deep receptacle for printed
papers below, and all the requisite conveniences for
writing above. Each desk is separated from the one
nearest to it by a distance of at least two feet, so
that besides the great central passage through the
semicircle, the senators can pass easily between the
desks, and there is thus ample space for ventilation
as well as comfort.

Of these three semicircular rows of seats and
desks, there are fourteen in the front row, eighteen
in the central, and twenty in the outer one. Behind
the outer room, and separated from it by a semicir-
cular screen of about three feet in height, is a
commodious range of sofas along the semicircular
wall ; these are appropriated to the accommodation
of visitors who have the privilege of the entree^ includ-
ing members of the house of representatives, heads
of public departments, foreign ministers, and mem .

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303

bers of the legislatures of foreign countries ; and this
space will accommodate nearly one hundred persons.
Behind the President's chair, is an open corridor, or
loggia, about fifty feet in length and ten in breadth,
which is also accessible to all the classes named
above ; and this will accommodate fifty seated, or
one hundred standing, at least.

This corridor is separated from the body of the
Senate chamber, by a colonnade of very beautiful pil-
lars, formed of a highly variegated and richly colour-
ed breccia, found on the banks of the Potomac, and
called, from this, Potomac marble. These columns
are of the Ionic order, and are crowned with white
marble capitals, after those of the temple of Minerva
Polias. They support a straight gallery above the
corridor, which is appropriated to strangers, and
which will accommodate at least one hundred and fifty
persons, who look down from thence towards the sena-
tors, seated in front of the President's chair. Around
the semicircular wall, and above the space named
before as appropriated for those who have the privi-
lege of the entree behind the senators, is another and
more spacious gallery for strangers, which is supported
by small cast-iron pillars from the floor, and which
will hold from two hundred to two hundred and fifty
persons more ; so that though the senators are only fifty-
two in number, there is accommodation in the corri-
dors below, and galleries above, for at least four hun-
dred spectators and auditors ; and as no written orders
are necessary for admission into these, it often hap-
pens, on attractive occasions, that the full number
I have mentioned are actually present in the Senate
chamber, to hear the debates. The walls are lined

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all around with plaited draperies of a stone-coloured
and figured damask, between pilasters of Potomac
marble ; and the draperies of the galleries, and win-
dows above, arc of crimson damask, tastefully
arranged. Over of the chair of the President is a
fine portrait of General Washington ; and the semi-
domed roof or ceiling is richly ornamented with square
caissons, in full and florid style, of stucco ; while
from the centre of the ceiling is suspended a large
ormolu chandelier, the whole prodjcing a chastened
richness of effect, well comporting with the dignity
of a Senace chamber ; and the impression created
by the building and its accompaniments appears to
be not without its influence on the members and
visitors.

The Hall of Representatives, which is in the south-
ern wing of the Capitol, differs but little, except in
size, from the Senate chamber. It is of the same

HOUSE OF CONGRESS.

805

semicircular form, but is larger : the radius line of
the semicircle being 96 feet, the extreme depth in the
middle of the arc about 50, ai<d the height of the lof-
tiest part of the ceiling, 60 feet.

The hall is surrounded by twenty-four columns of
the variegated breccia, or Potomac marble, crowned,
like those of the Senate-chamber, with capitals of
white marble, carved after a specimen of the Corinth-
ian order found at Athens. These columns sup-
port a gallery, which runs around the entire Hall,
one portion being straight, as running with the radius
line of the semicircle — and this is usually devoted to
ladies — while the other is semicircular, encompassing
the whole of the remaining space, and this is usually
occupied by gentlemen ; both galleries being sup-
posed capable of containing together at least six
hundred persons. To these galleries strangers are
admitted without the least restraint, as in the Senate ;
while in the corridors and recesses below, there is
room for another two hundred at least, who may
have the privilege of the entree on the floor. Here
the Speaker of the House is seated on an elevated
chair ; and beneath him in front, a few feet above
the floor, are the clerks and assistants, with the
sergeant-at-arms. Fronting these are the seats
and desks of the members, arranged in semicircular
rows, each receding behind, and gently rising above
the one in front of it. As, however, there are two
hundred and fifty members to accommodate, greater
compactness is requisite ; the desks are, therefore,
here arranged in lengths sufiicient to admit of two,
three, and sometimes five members sitting at one, leav-
ing a separate compartment and separate chair for

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each member. The sculptured decorations, tlie domed
ceiling", and the draperies, are all in keeping with
each other ; and the full-length portraits of General
Washington on the one side, and General Lafayette
on the other side of the Hall, arc striking and
appropriate objects of veneration and regard to the
American people.

As none of the cabinet ministers are permitted
to hold a seat in either house, and no persons
holding any office under the government are
admitted among the Representatives of the people ;
there is no place corresponding to our Treasury
bench, either in the Senate or the House of Repre-
sentatives. Neither is there any ministerial or
opposition side of the House, as the members of
both parties sit indiscriminately mingled with each
other. The rule respecting the occupation of seats,
I learnt to be this. At the beginning of a new Con-
gress, as soon as the respective members are elected,
those who live near to Washington, or those who,
living more distant, endeavour to get to Washington a
few days before the session opens, repair to the House,
and take such desks as they may prefer, if not pre-
viously appropriated. Here they inscribe their own
name on s small tablet of ivory, let into each desk
for the purpose j and this secured it to them, as their
personal seat, during all the session. Any one desir-
ing, however, to occupy a more advantageous position
than his own, for the purpose of bringing forward a
motion which requires to be introduced by a long
speech, may readily obtain the use of any raeniber's seat
for that particular occasion, and, therefore, no difficul-
ties about seats ever occur. The accommodation for

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HOUSES OF CONGRESS.

307

reporters is ample and excellent ; and in each House
there are a number of messengers, generally youths
from ten to fourteen, who convey papers or notes, bring
water to those who are sptdKing, and carry messages
from one member to the other; but the floors of both
Houses being well carpeted throughout, not the slight-
est inconvenience, or the least perceptible noise, is
made by their movements.

The order of proceedings in both Houses is, in its
most essential parts, like that followed in England ;
but there being much fewer members, and much less
business to do — as the separate State Legislatures
transact all their local aflairs, and leave to Congress
only the general business of the whole — there is
much more order and decorum in their conduct.
The President or Speaker of each House sits without
wig or gown, and the clerks and officers are equally
without any distinguishing dress. No cries of ** hear,
hear," or cheers, whether ironical or otherwise, are
ever heard ; — no coughing, or exclamations of " oh,
oh," or cries of " question, question," " divide, di-
vide," disturb the gravity of their debates ; and one
chief cause of this is, no doubt, that their hours of
doing business are more rational, as they sit by day,
and not by night as in England. The members of
committees attend their respective committee-rooms
at ten in the forenoon ; at twelve both Houses meet
for business ; and though a clear majority of each
House is requisite to form a quorum, this is rarely or
ever wanting ; while in England, where forty mem-
bers, or one-sixteenth only of the whole number, are
sufficient to form a quorum, the House is often not
formed at all at four o'clock, or " counted out" at

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seven o'clock, because even this small number of the
people's representatives cannot be got to attend to
the duty of their constituents.

The members continue to sit, ordinarily, from
twelve to four; and, on particular occasions only,
extend their sittings to five or six o'clock ; adjourn-
ing always before dinner, except when the pres-
sure of business towards the end of the session
compels, for a short period, a few evening sittings,
but these are rare, and not long protracted. These
early hours, and comparatively short sittings, are,
no doubt, highly favourable to order and decorum ;
and if ever the time shall arrive in England, when
diurnal sittings shall be substituted for nocturnal
ones, this change alone would effect a great reform-
ation in the tone and temper with which the de-
bates would be conducted. If to this should be
added a transfer of all the local business to the coun-
ties, a reduction of the number of members, and a
limitation to the length of the speeches, nearly all
the causes of those violent ebullitions which dis-
grace the British House of Commons, would be re-
moved. Of the principal orators in each house, and
their style of speaking, I shall offer an opinion at
some future time.

In the basement story of the Capitol is a circular
crypt, occupying the centre, where forty pillars sup-
port the grooved arches that sustain the whole floor
of the Rotunda above. Another portion of this base-
ment is occupied as the Supreme Court of the United
States, where the chief justice, with six associate
judges, sit to hear appeals from the circuits and other
courts of the different States in the Union, and to

LIBRARY OF THE CAPITOL.

30<)

try such causes as fall within the limits of their ori-
ginal jurisdiction. This room is beautifully adapted
for the purpose to which it is applied, being well
lighted, remarkably quiet, and furnished with all the
requisite accommodation for the judges, counsel, and
auditors.

The library of the Capitol is a fine apartment,
about 92 feet in length, 34> feet in breadth, and 36
feet high. It is well furnished, not only with
volumes of all the public documents and proceedings
of Congress, but with books in general literature,
for the purchase of which an annual sum is voted by
Congi'ess, averaging about 5,000 dollars a year, and
this is laid out under the superintendence of a library-
committee, composed of members of both houses.
The library already contains about 25,000 volumes ;
and the annual expenditure, judiciously directed, will
progressively increase it, so that time alone is wanting
to make it a valuable national collection. The first
Congressional library, which consisted of about 3,000
volumes, was destroyed by the British at the close of
the last war, when, with a ferocity more characteristic
of barbarians than of civilised warriors, they set fire to
the Capitol, and destroyed the library and many of the
most valuable of the public records. On the occurrence
of this calamity, the ex-president, Thomas Jefferson,
who was then alive, made an offer of his valuable
private collection of books to Congress, as the founda-
tion of a new library for the Capitol. These were
accepted, and have been since gradually augmented
by the appropriations and purchases referred to, till
they have arrived at their present number ; and as
access to the library is just as free from all restraint

310

WASHINUiUN.

as access to tlie halls of Confess in the galleries set
apart for strangers, or to the President's levees and
drawing-rooms ; so this library is a very valuable
resource, both to residents and visitors at the city.
If our English authorities could but learn the
important truth, that freedom of access to public
institutions is not necessarily attended with rudeness
of behaviour or injury to their contents, a vast benefit,
and a most softening and refining influence, would be
obtained for the British population, by familiarizing
them, through the medium of such institutions, with
the pleasures of literature, science, and art ; and the
whole nation, nay, the whole world, would be directly
or indirectly benefited by the change.

The President's house, which is next in importance
to the Capitol amon^ the public buildings of Washing-
ton, is situated at a distance of about a mile and a
half from that edifice, at the western extremity of
Pennsylvania avenue, of which these two buildings
form the apparent termini at opposite points.

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This rosidenco iu about tlie hizc and cliaractcr of
many of the country-scats of our niiddle-chiss gentry,
baroiu'ts,os(|uirc8, and wealthy commoners, who live in
HL()nifortal)le, but unostentatious stylo. It has lyofeet
of front, and is 8() feet deep, with a good Ionic
portico, a sweeping (uirriage-road up to the entrance,
and a small lawn railed in before it ; while behind is a
semicircular projection and portico, which looks out on
the river Potomac and the opposite shore of Virginia.
The rooms of reception, and those for the President's
personal accommodation, are moderate in size, and
simple in decoration. The largest apartment in the
whole building is that called the East room, which
is 80 feet by 40, and 22 feet high ; and as this is
used for the general promenade of the visitors on
public occasions, it is not at all too spacious for the
company.

The public offices of the government are situated
in the immediate neighbourhood of the President's
dwelling. They include the department of state,
the war-office, the treasury, and similar establish-
ments. These an jil spacious, neat, and well-built
edifices, suitably <n lap ted to their respective purposes,
but with nothing superfluous. As each occupies the
centre of an open piece of ground, with lawn in front,
railed off on all sides, they have a commanding
appearance, from the ample space and air by which
they are surrounded.

In the state department, we were shown, carefully
preserved in a glass-case, with folding doors, the
original Declaration of Independence, with all
the autograph signatures ; and above it, the first
commission of General Washington, as commander-

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WASHINGTON.

in-chief of the American forces, signed hy John
Hancock, which Washington, after the close of
his military career, resigned into the hands of the
Congress at Annapolis. In the same room were ori-
ginal treaties, bearing the autograph signatures of^
George III. and George IV. of England, Louis XVI.
and Napoleon of France, Prince Charles John
(Bemadotte) of Sweden, Ferdinand of Spain, and
Alexander of Russia, with a very recent one, in
Arabic, of the Sultan of Constantinople ; and added
to all these, a lithographic fac-simile of the Magna
Charta of King John, taken from the original in the
British Museum. Here also are kept the various
presents made by foreign courts and potentates to
American ministers or other public officers, who are
not allowed to retain such presents as personal gifts,
lest it might open the door to bribery and corruption j
but are bound to forward them to the department of
state, where they are preserved as national property.
Among these were Damascus-blade swords, cashmere
shawls, a diamond snuff-box, and other valuable
gifts.

In the war department we saw a large collection
of the portraits of Indian chiefs, who from time to
time had visited Washington at the head of deputa-
tions ; and in the treasury department, the original
standards of the weights and measures fixed by
Congress for use in all the States.

There is an arsenal at the eastern extremity of
the city, on the point of confluence between the
Potomac and Anacosta, occupying about a quarter
of a mile square ; in which is a repository of arms, a
collection of materials for their manufacture, a maga-

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NAVY YARD.

313

zine and laboratories, a model-office for patterns of all
improvements in military weapons or engines, a
foundry, and a steam-engine of twelve-horse power.
The average number of workmen constantly employed
here is about a hundred. The stores comprehend
about 800 pieces of cannon of large calibre, and
about 40,000 stand of arms, with requisite accommo-
dation in quarters for the officers and men.

There is also an excellent navy-yard, which is
seated on the Anacosta, a little above the point of
land where it meets the Potomac, and where the
arsenal is planted. This yard occupies about thirty
acres of area in space ; it is walled-in toward the
land, and is open towards the Anacosta river, or, as
it is more generally called here, the Eastern branch.
It was first projected by the President Jefferson, and
during his administration was well sustained. It is
fitted with every requisite for the building, rigging,
and equipping of ships of war, of any size : the vessels
already built here, are among the finest which the
navy of the United States contains j besides several
sloops of war, the frigates Essex, Potomac, Brandy-
wine, and Columbia, each of forty-four guns, are
well known ; and the Columbus of seventy-four guns,
which was also built here, is one of the noblest
vessels of her class.

At this city is established also the department of
the General Post Office — the Indian department for
the adjustment of Indian treaties, payment of Indian
pensions, and settlement of Indian disputes — the
department for the sale of public lands — the depart-
ment for the preservation of patents — and the depart-
ment for registering the copyrights of authors in the

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WASHINGTON.

United States. The first has nothing remarkable in it,
as the actual post-office business of Washington is far
less in extent than that of any of the great commer-
cial cities on the coast ; and its administration is
regulated by the post - master - general, who is a
member of the cabinet. The second, occasions
Indians to be continually coming to and fro from the
interior to Washington, and returning home ; and
from all that I could learn, a great deal of hardship
and injustice t'^ these helpless tribes, goes unredressed.
The department for the sale of the public lands is
reputed to be a fertile source of jobbing and corrupt
patronage, of which so many proofs were given to
me, as to remove all doubt in my own mind as to
the fact. The millions of acres yet for sale — the
number of land -offices opened, and land-agents
employed, in different parts of the Western terri-
tory, — and the difficulty of bringing to constant pub-
licity the multiplied transactions of purchase and
sale which are continually occurring, — open a wide
field for corrupt practices. The patent office was
a most valuable and interesting repository of all
the ingenious inventions of the country, for which
patents had been granted, and of which the models
and specifications were here preserved. The reason
why this office is no longer what it was, is, that
in the Vandal attack of the English upon Wash-
ington at the close of the last war, they not only
burnt a great portion of the Capitol, destroyed the
library of the Congress, and set fire to the President's
dwelling, but they burnt down the patent office, by
which, in addition to the many other valuable books
and records lost, there were consigned to the flames

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31.1

Upwards of 10,000 various inventions, with the
models and drawings belonging to them, as well as
the correspondence of the accomplished Dr. Thornton,
tiio director of this department, with the most cele-
brated of the scientific men of America and Europe,
for a period of more than twenty years. Well may
the name of " Englishman" sound harshly in the ears
of the rising as well as of the departing generation of
Washington, who have reason to regard those of the
English at least who formed the destroying armament
of incendiaries that laid their public buildings in
ashes, as a set of ruthless marauders, neither entitled
to pity nor to praise.

Of places of public worship, there are four-
teen in number; two Episcopalian, three Catholic,
three ; \>^yterian, two Methodist, two Baptist, one
Units ^', and one Quaker. Neither of these is
larger than will contain a congregation of about a
thousand persons, and most of them are smaller than
this. They are all served by able and zealous
ministers, and these live in great harmony with each
other. The Episcopal churches appear to be most fully
attended by the fashionable and official part of the
population ; but, in addition to these, there is public
service in the Hall of Representatives, at which the
chaplains of the Senate, and of the House, who are
both Methodists, and obtain their appointment by
election of the members, alternately officiate.

I was told a remarkable anecdote by a member
of Congress on this subject of alternate duty, which
I had an opportunity of testing and ascertaining to be
true. The hour fixed by law and regulation for the
opening of both Houses is twelve o'clock at noon :

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WASHINGTON.

and it is tlie duty of the chaplain of ?ach House to be
in attendance in his place, to commence the proceed-
ings with prayer. It was thought by these gentle-
men, however, that a slight acceleration or retardation
of time in ^he opening of the respective Houses,
would enab' , one of them to do the duty of both for
a given period, during which the other might be
relieved from duty, and enjoy his holiday ; at the
expiration of which he could return, and releace his
friend ; so that the burden and the pleasure might
be alternately the lot of each in equal proportions.
Accordingly the clock of the Senate was put seven
minutes and a half in advance of the real time, and
the clock of the House of Representatives seven
minutes and a half in arrear: so as to keep them at a
uniform rate of fifteen minutes' difference from each
other. This done, the one chaplain perfonned this
double duty, by first opening the Senate with prayer,
for which fifteen minutes was ample time ; and then
stepping across the Rotunda into the other House,
he there repeated the same formality : so that each
was served punctually by the same man, according
to the clocks of the respective Houses.

In Washington there are two colleges cf theclc-
gical education, one Protestant, the other Catholic ;
there are a few benevolent institutions on a very
small scale, three banks, a fire insurance company, a
small glass-manufactor}', five large hotel and a great
number of boarding-houses for strangers, as nearly
all the members of Congress reside in these during
the session, and keep no house-establishment. There
are two daily papers, one in support of the Demo-
cratic party, the Globe, and one of the Whigs, the

PLAY OF OTHELLO.

317

National Intelligencer, two tri-weekly, the Madison ian
and tl ? Chronicle, each representing a separate poli-
tical party ; and two weekly papers, the Native
American, founded on national prejudices, and another
the Huntress, conducted by a female, sold for a cent,
and living, like the slanderous Morning Herald of
New York, on abuse, ridicule, and private history
of private individuals. Here are four market-houses
for provisions, a slave-market for the sale of human
beings, a jail, and two theatres — the latter open
only while the Congress is in session.

During our stay at Washington, Mr. Forrest, the
great American actor, was engaged at the principal
theatre; and, as connected with his performances,
some anecdotes came to my knowledge, which, as
they are strikingly illustrative of the state of feeling
in the slave states, on all matters touching negroes
and slavery, deserve to be mentioned. After
his representation of Othello, the editor of the
*' Native American," published here, denounced the
play, as one wholly unfit to be permitted in any South-
em state, where it was revolting, as he thought, to
represent the dark Moor, Othello, paying his suit
to the fair Desdemona. This was an outrage which he
deemed it the duty of every white man to resent ; and
he shadowed forth the sort of resentment which he
thought ought to be put in practice, by saying that
" even if Shakespeare, the writer of the play, were to
be caught in any Southern state, he ought to be
* lynched,* (that is, summarily punished by being
tarred and feathered,) for having written it!'* In
strict harmony with this sentiment, was the other
incident that occurred, Mr. Forrest had performed

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the part of Spartacus, in the play of the Gladiator ;
and in this is represented, first, the sale of a wife and
child away from her hushand, all Thracian captives,
at which great horror is expressed by the characters
of the plfiy themselves ; and next, the Gladiators,
who are all slaves, are incited by Spartacus to revolt
against their masters, which they do successfully,
and obtain their freedom. On the day following
this, Mr. Forrest's benefit was attended by the
President and his cabinet, as well as members of
both Houses of Congress, and a full share of residents
and strangers. But the manager of the theatre re-
ceived many anonymous and threatening letters,
warning him against ever permitting this play to be
acted in Washington again ; and one letter from a
member of Congress, told him that if he dared
to announce it for repetition, a card would be addressed
to the public on the subject, which the manager
would repent.* Such is the feverishness of alarm,
among a population whose constant objection to any
efforts for the quiet and legal emancipation of the
slaves, is, that they are so happy and contented that
there is no need of change ! and that they are so
satisfied with their present condition that they would

* This matter was subsequently compromised, by the exclusion
of all the coloured population, whether slave or free, from the
theatre, into which they are admitted on ordinary occasions,
on condition of sitting in a separate gallery, apart from the whites.
On this occasion, however, they were not to be admitted at all ;
and accordingly, in the National Intelligencer of March 15th, over
the announcement of the play of the Gladiator, to be performed that
evening, was placed conspicuously the following lin&— " On this
occasion, the coloured persons cannot be admitted to the gallery."

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319

not accept of their freedom if it were offered to
them!

The private buildings in Washmgton are, with
very few exceptions, small and mean ; and offer a
striking contrast to the gieat public edifices of the
Capitol and other structures. The number of
wooden houses in the whole area of the city is much
greater than those of brick ; these, too, are so
scattered in detached groups, and single isolated
dwellings, as to look more miserable than if they were
in continuous streets. The portions of the city which
are luilt up with any regularity, such as Pennsylvania
avenue, the most perfect of them all, have houses of
such dimiimtive size, and such constantly differing
heights, styles, orders, and description, that hetero-
geneousness is the rule, and uniformity the excep-
tion. The shops are also small, scantily furnished,
and everything seems to be on a temporary and tran-
sitory footing.

The population of Washington is estimated at
present at 20,000 persons ; of whom about 15,000
are supposed to be permanent residents, and the
remaining 5,000, strangers, visiting the city on busi-
ness or pleasure, including members of both Houses
of Congress.

The whole of this population is subject to the
local jurisdiction of a municipal body, incorporated
by act of Congress as the corporation of Washington,
with a mayor and aldermen, elected by the freeholders of
property within the town, and chosen annually. These
have the power to raise the city revenue, by an annual
assessment of the real and personal property of each
householder within its limits, and the fixing a rate of

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impost per cent, on the assessed value ; in addition
to this, several occupations are subjected to the
necessity of a license for carrying them on ; and the
sale of these licenses furnishes another considerable
branch of revenue. From the following selections
from the abstract of the city laws, some idea may be
formed of the nature of the whole.

Auctioneers must take out a license, for which
100 dollars are charged, and security is required in
5,000, dollars for payment of the city dues. They are
authorized to charge commissions, varying from one
to five per cent., and the corporation is entitled to
receive duties on such sales, varying from one to five
per cent. also. Brick-kilns are also required to be
licensed, and all carts and waggons of every kind.
For billiard-tables, the cost of the license is 100
dollars annually. Confectioners only pay ten dol-
lars a year. Taxes are payable on dogs, two
dollars per annum for males, and five dollars per
annum for females ; and any untaxed or uncoUared
dog may be killed by the constables, who have a fee
of a dollar for its burial. No geese are allowed to
go at large in the city, except in certain prescribed
quarters j and any found straying may be seized by
the police, and handed over to the trustees of the
poor, on the payment of twenty-five cents, about a
shilling English, for their delivery. Hackney-coaches
pay ten dollars a year each for their licenses, and their
fares are fixed by law. Tavern-keepers pay sixty
dollars a year, and money-changers fifty dollars.
Hawkers and pedlars pay fifty dollars for a license
to sell small wares. Lottery-oflice keepers are charged
300 dollars for a license, and pawnbrokers 200

COLOURED l»i:OPLE.

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dollars. Bread, flour, meat, fish, coals, and many
other necessaries, are all subject to assize, regulation,
and inspection, and every thing, almost, is subjected
to rule.

Notwithstanding all these sources of revenue, the
city is largely in debt, the amount being at present
799,824 dollars, or about 160,000/. sterling. The
salary of the mayor, which is 1000 dollars per annum,
and the pay of all the aldermen and other officers, is
punctually discharged, whether any progress be made
in the redemption of the debt or not ; but many
things languish for want of funds. Among these
are the street-lights : gas is as yet nowhere in use in
Washington, and oil is very scantily supplied, as
one of the recent publications at Washington has this
expressive paragraph on the subject — " The mayor
is authorized to have the streets and avenues lighted,
and to pay for the same ; but poverty has extinguished
the lights of the city, and the citizens are wont to
cry out, * Give us of your oil, our lamps have gone
out.* " The revenue of the last year, arising from
the city assessment of one per cent, on the
real and personal property of the inhabitants, was
about 60,000 dollars ; and from the sale of licenses
and other sources, 20,000 dollars more. The inter-
est payable on the city debt was about 50,000 dollars,
and the expenses of the corporation were 150,000
dollars annually ; so that a surplus of 15,000 dollars
remained.

The mayor and aldermen have the power of regu-
lating by law all the movements and intercourse of
the negroes or blacks — or, as they are invariably called
in America, " the coloured people" — whether slaves

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or free ; and some portions of the regulations now
in force on that subject, may not be without their
interest and utility.

If any free coloured person is found playing at
cards, dice, or any other game of an " immoral tefi-
dencf/" or is even present as one of the company,
though not engaged in playing himself, he may be
fined ten dollars. No free blacks or mulattos can have
a dance at their houses without a special license
from the mayor, specifying the place and time of
meeting, number of guests, and hour of breaking up,
under a penalty of ten dollars. No coloured person
can go at large in the city of Washington after ten
o'clock, without a pass from a justice of the peace.
Any free black found under this act refusing or
being unable to pay, may be committed to the work-
house for six months for each offence ; and if any
slave subjects himself to the same penalties, and
cannot pay, then "he or she may be sentenced to
receive any number of stripes on his or her bare back,
not exceeding thirty-nine !" Such is the condition of
those ** happy and contented beings," as they are
here commonly called, " who would not," according
to the statement of the white residents, ** have their
freedom if you would offer it to them ;" but who
are, nevertheless, not permitted to go into the gallery
of the theatre to see the play of the Gladiator, lest
the revolt of Spartacus and his fellow-slaves against
their Roman masters, should induce them to follow
their example I

In the building-regulations for the city, there is
a very singular condition imposed on the builders of
houses, expressed in the following terms : — " The

IRREGULAR BUILDINGS.

3'23

walls of no house to be higher than forty feet to tlie
roof, in any part of the city ; nor shall any be lower
than thirty-five in any of the avenues." This is
extracted from a series of " terms and conditions for
regulating the materials and manner of the buildings
in the city of Washington/' bearing date October I7,
1791, and signed by the then President, General
Washington, as his own act and deed. This maximum
height for the houses may account for the stunted
and pigmy style of building that is generally charac-
teristic of the city, and which looks the more dimi-
nutive from the great width of (lie avenues; but
though the maximum has been rarely exceeded, the
minimum is constantly violated, as there are many
small wooden houses not twenty feet high in different
parts of the town ; and in passing through the prin-
cipal avenues, which were originally intended, no
doubt, to look imposing, the lover of uniformity and
good taste is perpetually shocked by the succession
of a dozen buildings on each side, following in
" most admired disorder," no two of which are
alike in height, in breadth, in design, in style, or in
dimensions.

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CHAP. XVII.

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Diversity of chamcter in tlio population — Proportion of tlie black
to white inhabitants — Residents, members, strangers, and
visitors — Members of the senate, appearance, manners —
Great speeches of Mr. Calhoun, Clay, and Preston — Opinions
of the newspapers on these efforts — Two days' speech of Mr.
Webster on the treasury bill — Opinions of the press on this
great speech — Opinions of Mr. Webster's ffreat speech — Anec-
dote of Mr. Webster's physiognomy — Anecdote of General
Washington's temper — Cnaracter of the house of representatives
— Remarkable members — John Quincey Adams — Quorum of the
houses — No counting out — Public funerals of the members of
congress — Specimen of an oration on such occasions — Pay of
the members — Privilege of franking — State of the general and
fashionable society at Washington — Madame Caradori Allen's
concert — Anecdote of Mr. Wood — Hotels of Washington —
Boarding-houses — Inferiority of both to those of New York —
Domestic o,ttendants — Style of apartments — Manner of living
— Hurry at meals — Inattention to conifort — Coarseness of
fare — Coldness and selfishness of manners.

The population of Washington is of a more motley
complexion than that of any of the cities or towns
we had yet seen in the United States. Of the 15,000
settled residents, most of whom have come from all
parts of the Union, it may be said, that their chief
characteristic is variety ; and among the strangers
and visitors, this distinction is even still more marked.
The members of Congress, for instance, come, of
necessity, from every State in the Union, as fixed
residence, and property in the State represented, are

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necessary qualifications. With many of the members,
it is usual to bring their families for the session.
These attract visitors, for pleasure, who desire to see
the Capitol, hear the public debates, and enjoy the
pleasures and parties of the Washington world of
fashion : so that hcie, perhaps, more than in any
other city of the Union, may all the different races
of its population be seen. The fierce and impetuous
Southernery the rough and unpolished Western-man^
and the more cautious and prudent Northernery all
mingle together ; while Indians of different tribes,
coming and going on deputations, lawful trader?,
land speculators, gamblers, and adventurer^; help 'o
make up the variety, and give a tone of carelessness
and recklessness to the general exterior of the
moving crowd, such as none of the Northern c' tkn
exhibit. The proportion of the black and muUtto
people is also very great : equal, it is thought,
including the free and the enslaved, to the whole
number of the whites : as all the domestics, nearly
all the drivers of vehicles, and most of the labouring
classes, are of the coloured race ; this gives an
unpleasant aspect to the streets, and the groups that
occupy them, from the associations of degradation
and inferiority which the presence <S the whites
among the blacks must necessarily coiiiiect with the
condition of the latter.

Of the members of the Senate, fifty-two in number,
two being elected by the legislature of each of the
separate States of the Union, to represent them in
this body, the greater number are undoubtedly
men of information and ability, and some of very
distinguished talents j they are generally persons

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above the middle age, of competent fortunes, posses-
sors of freehold property in the State in which
they reside ; and they add to knowledge, experience,
gravity, and sober judgment.

I attended the Senate often, having admission to
the floor among the members themselves ; and on two
occasions I had the opportunity of hearing, under the
greatest advantages, the speeches of some of their
most eminent orators : John C. Calhou^ from South
Carolina; Henry Clay from Kentucky; Colonel
Preston, from South Carolina ; and Daniel Webster,
from Massachusetts. To show that these were
thought most highly of, and that the particular occa-
sion of their speeches was an important one, I subjoin
the notices of the Washington papers on the occa-
sion, and will then add an observation on them of
my own. The following is from the Washington
Chronicle, of March 13, 1838, a paper advocating
the inviolability of State-rights, and generally repre-
senting the extensive Southern interests, of which
Mr. Calhoun is the great leader. The editor says,

" We presume that on no past occasion was there so much
interest felt in the Senate as on Saturday last. It was the promised
** dai/ of settlement" between the Senator from South Carolina
and his assailant, Mr. Clay. At a very early hour in the morning
the galleries, the ante-chamber, the doors and entrances, every
vacant spot — were crowded to the last inch of space. Hundreds were
unable to get within hearuig, though the doors that led to the
Senate chamber were thrown open, to allow those who could not
see, to hear. The House, too, adjourned at an early hour, (a quo-
rum not being obtainable,) and the Hall poured out its popula-
tion on the floor of the Senate. A still, earnest, and dense mass
filled every portion of tenable space,

MR. CALHOUN.

327

every

" At one o'clock Mr. Calhoun rose, with that calm dignity which
so eminently distmguishes him, and with that coolness and con-
fidence which belong only to conscious innocence. He commenced
by briefly reviewing the perversions, omissions, and mis-statements
which characterized the late criminating speech of Mr. Clay. This
taak he performed in a brief, clear, and pointed manner. He then
took up the particular charges of inconsistency, one by one ; went
back to the commencement of his political life, and traced with
wonderful force and precision the great questions in which he had
taken part, from 1813 up to the present time. He adverted to
the rise, progress, and termination of the great questions of a
National Bank, the Protective Tariff, Internal Improvements,
State Interposition, and the more recent measures connected with
the currency, and the connection of the government with the banks.
He read copious extracts from his speeches delivered in the Senate
since he was a member of the body, mid referred to documents
drawn up by himself, while in other situations, to prove the con-
sistency of his course, and the groundlessness of the chai'ges
brought against him by the passionate Senator from Kentucky.
The whole of this retrospect was made in a manner so dignified, so
eloquent and conclusive, as to carry conviction +,o every mind not
filed against the influence of truth. A more triumphant vindication
of innocence, and sublime statesmanship, never was made in any
assembly. The trite, testy, fugitive charges of his assailant
vanished before it as the thistle-beard driven by the tornado. He
wrested from his adversary even the pretexts upon which he had
based his accusation, and exposed him naked before the Senate, as
one whose passions, personal and political, had made him to play
with shadows.

"He then responded to the remarks of his assailant having
a personal bearing; and while he vindicated his motives from the
malignant aspersions of his adversary, he applied the experimen-
tum crucis, and stretched his own limbs on the wheel. For keen,
piercing, epigramatic sarcasm, we have never heard any thing
that we could compare with it. And yet there was not the
slightest departure from that dignity and self-respect which mark
his character and conduct on all occasions. Sternly, yet without
the least appearance of bully ism in phrase or gesture, he trampled

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the insinuations of his atagonist under his feet, and hurled back hia
pointless darts in scorn upon him. — Maintaining only, and strictly,
a position of defence, he left his assailant to pursue his remedy in
the mode best suited to his purposes or inclinations. His remarks
occupied about two hours in the delivery, — during which time the
most profound silence reigned throughout the immense crowd of
listeners. Every eye was fixed on him, with a stirless and absorbing
attention. He stood like Demosthenes, on a very similar occasion,
in the Areopagus — poming forth the precepts of an elevated patri-
otism, and hurling the shafts of indignant innocence against
iEschines, his accuser. Perhaps there is no other example in
ancient or modern history more aptly illustrative of the scene in the
Senate chamber, whether we regard the vindictive malignity of the
accuser, or the triumphant vindication of the accused. The scene
will be long remembered by all who witnessed it ; and we trust' it
will convince party leaders that the aspirations of personal ambition
are not to be advanced by menace, nor measures of policy carried
by malignant invective and empty declamation."

This was the opinion of a partizan it is true : but
even with all allowance for the high colouring in
which partizanship too often indulges, this svTpassed
all my previous experience in matters of t\m 'iescrip-
tion. I went to the Senate strongly impressed with
the most favourable expectations from Mr. Calhoun ;
and, agreeing much more nearly in his general views
about the impolicy of protecting duties for trade, and
the mischievous influence of irresponsible banks,
than with his opponents, who were advocates of high
tariffs, and an almost unlimited issue of paper-money,
my prepossessions would assist, rather than retard, a
favourable opinion. But with all these appliances,
truth compels me to say, that I was grievously dis-
appointed. Mr. Calhoun's style of speaking, is
what would be called in England, clear, self-possessed,

MR. CLAV.

329

and firm ; but with nothing approaching to eloquence,
and the entire absence of all action, however gentle,
the monotony of tone, and the continual succession
of emphasis on every sentence, made it tiresome to
the ear after the first half hour. By the monotonous
voice and perpetual emphasis, I was reminded
strongly of Mr. Matthias Attwood, the member for
Whitehaven: and bv the motionless attitude and
passionless expression, I was equally reminded of
Mr. Grote, the member for London. As far as
persuasion may be considered a test of success,
I could not learn, in any quarter, of this being the
effect of Mr. Calhoun's speech on any single indivi-
dual — and I do not wonder at it.

Mr. Clay followed Mr. Calhoun, and spoke at
still greater length — about three hours. He pro-
fessed to labour under indisposition ; and his
admirers said he was not in good voice ; but making
all allowance for these drawbacks, his effort appeared
to me hardly more successful than Mr. Calhoun's.
He had the advantage, no doubt, of more graceful
elocution, more varied intonation, and more easy and
unconstrained action. But with all this, it was
what would be thought in England a third or
fourth rate speech, such as might be delivered by Sir
James Graham, Mr. Poulett Thomson, or Mr.
Clay, of London, clear and intelligible, and some-
times impressive ; but having nothing of the higher
characteristics of oratory in it. And yet, by Mr.
Clay's partizans, this speech was said "to have sur-
passed all that was ever delivered, in ancient or
modern times, in any age or in any country!" So

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WASHINGTON.

excessive is the exaggeration in which all parties
seem here to indulge.

Colonel Preston of South Carolina, rose at the
close of Mr. Clay*s speech, to reply to some unjust
aspersions, as he considered them, on the political
conduct of the NuUifiers, as they were called, of the
state he represented. He spoke for about half an
hour, with his arm in a sling ; and still suffering
from a recent accident by which he had been hurt.
His language, emphasis, gesture, and action, were
more elegant than either of those who preceded him ;
and his speech was, to my judgment, by far the
most eloquent and impressive of the day, and might
be compared with a speech of Mr. Canning, I^ord
Holland, or any other of the more impassioned
speakers of the old English school.

Mr. Webster having moved the adjournment of
the House, had the possession of the floor, as it is
called, for the next day, on which he spoke for four
hours, from one to five, but without concluding ; and
resuming his argument on the following day, at one,
he closed about four ; thus making a speech of seven
hours, on the main question in debate, namely the
merits and defects of the sub-treasury bill, from which
the speeches of the others were merely episodes, or
digressions, for the settlement of personal disputes.
A speech of seven hours would be deemed of intol-
erable length in England; but here it is not at all
unusual for a speaker to occupy the floor for three
days in the session, speaking four hours in each ; for
no sort of restraint seems to be placed on the orator,
who may wander over every topic that his mind sug-
gests, and no one rises to call him to order, or bring

MR. WEBSTER.

S3\

him back to the question, however far he may
wander from it. An instance was mentioned to me
of the late John Randolph, a senator from Virginia,
speaking for twelve hours in succession, from one in
the afternoon to one on the following morning. By
the constitution, the Congress must expire on the 3d
of March, at midnight, in the second year after its being
elected ; and as some measure was before the Senate
which wanted only the third reading, and which
Mr. Randolph desired to defeat, he spoke against
time, and continued on his legs till the Congress had
expired by law, at one in the morning of the 4th of
March ; by which the measure was of course extin-
guished.

Mr. Webster is, and I thinkly justly, considered
10 be the most powerful orator, the best reasoner,
and the most sound-judging of all the senatorial or
representative body ; yet even he, I think, is greatly
over-rf.ted. The doctrine of high duties, tariffs, and
protection for domestic manufactures, so long exploded
by all the best writers on political economy in
Europe, (French, Italian, and German, as well as
English) is dear to Mr. Webster, and he lauds it as
the keystone of the American system. Bank mono-
polies, and the possession of the immense power over
prices and exchanges, which such monopoliv^- give
to those \» lio enjoy them, appear to him wholesome
and beneficial to trade. He is what in England
would be called truly Conservative ; and if he were
in the English House of Commons, hpi would act
with Mr. Matthias Attwood, Mr. Alderman Thomp-
son, Mr. George Robinson, Mr. Aaron Chapman,
and Mr. George Frederick Young, on all questions
of protection for shipping and trade. He is, no

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WASHINGTON.

doubt, a more able man than any of these, and a
far better speaker. Indeed, he may be justly called
a statesman and an orator, and in both these capa
cities he seemed to me ikr superior to Mr. Clay or
Mr. Calhoun ; the former of whom entertains rIa
Mr. Webster's contracted views about the tariff and
bank monopolies ; while the latter is the gentleman
who declared "that the slavery of the blackb was die
most perfect guarantee of freedom for the whites ;"
and who had such just conceptions of this freedom^ as to
declore, that " if the whites of South Car'»lioa could
but (iitch an abr-iitionist within their borders, they
would hang )um up without judge or jury." But
that the pai'tiiaRi^i of Mr. Webster might not be
behind those of Mr. Calhoun and Mr. Clay, the fol-
lowing ivere the euiogiums of the two Washington
papers of the day following, March 14th. The
Washington Chronicle says :

"Mr. Webster concluded his speech on Tuesday iv opposition to
tlie sub-treasury. It is regarded as one of the greatest eflforts of
his life — portions of it, certainly surpassed any thing we have heard
or read. The battery he opened upon Mr. Calhoun, it must be
adiiiitted, was overichelming."

The National Intelligencer of the same date,
which is generally one of the most subdued of the
public journals in its tone of praise or censure,
says,

" Mr. Webster concluded yesterday, in the Senate, his great
speech — we may saj' the greatest of aU his speeches — on the Con-
stitution and the Union, their origin, powers, and obligation^ . Tlie
solemnity and eloquence of his close were as impressive soul-

stirring as his argumc" had been transcendent and uv'j c cable.
In saying thus much -lia extraordinary speech, :: . r i not one
of the crowded auuUory which heard liini, wl .i' deem tlie

MR. WEBSTEK.

833

praise too high ; nor one of his distinguished peers, however emi-
nent, who will consider it as derogating from his own just claims to
distinction as a statesman or an orator."

Now, although this great effort of Mr. Webster's
would have been thought a good speech in either
house of Parliament, or at any public meeting in
England, it certainly would not be described in terms
of such extreme eulogy as is here bestowed upon it.
It was far inferior to speeches delivered in every
session in England, by such speakers as Lord Lynd-
hurst and Lord Brougham in the upper house, and by
Sir Robert Peel, Mr. O'Connell, Lord Stanley, and
Mr. Shiel in the lower house ; and the only way in
which I could account for this extravagant praise of it,
was to attribute it partly to the bias which partisan-
ship gives to all opinions, and partly to the want of
familiarity with higher models of excellence than
those by whom they are surrounded.

In personal appearance, Mr. Webster is rather
above the middle size, and presents the figure of a
powerfully athletic man. His complexion is very
dark, as much so as that of the darkest Spaniard, and
his full hair is jet black. His countenance is strik-
ing ; but from his large dark eyes, full overhanging
eye-brows, and curl of the lip, the expression is not
that of kindness or benevolence. It is said, that a
friend once remarked to him, the impression which
his countenance had conveyed to a skilful physiog-
nomist ; and his answer was, " He is right — there
is hardly a man breathing, perhaps, who by nature is
more (Vsposed to the indulgence of strong passions
tht'i.. iiyself ; and h r:;quires the constant exercise of a
strong moral restraint, and tl e greatest vigilance, to

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prevent these passions getting the mastery over me."
So much the greater merit and honour in the victory
which he thus obtains over his nature.

A similar story to this is told of General Washing-
ton, with whom Mr. Webster will not be ashamed
of being compared. With all his great qualities as
a soldier and statesman, and with the undoubted
purity of his conduct in public and private life, in
which he was equally free from every thing that was
either corrupt, sordid, or mean. General Washington
was, nevertheless, extremely subject to violent ebulli-
tions of anger, though he almost instantly struggled
to subdue them ; and when an English painter who
took his portrait, Gilbert Stuart, remarked to him
that his head and countenance indicated the posses-
sion of strong passions, he made an answer similar
to that of Mr. Webster, and lamented its truth.

In the House of Representatives, though the
numbers are greater than in the Senate — there
being 2'H members instead of ,52 — each State sending
a number proportioned to its population, in the ratio
of one member to every 47,000 persons, according to
the last census — yet the prominent speakers are fewer
in number, and less eminent in reputation. The laore
distinguished members of the House of Representa-
tives are, indeed, almost sure to become members of
the Senate, which thus distils, as it were, the essence
of the elected body, and absorbs it into itself. There
are, however, in the lower house a number of men
of fair talents, and respectable powers of oratory,
especially among the legal members, who form,
perliaps, a majority of the whole number. Mr.
John Quincey Adams, the ex-President, and son of

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the third President of the United States, is the most,
eminent and remarkable man in the House of Repre-
sentatives at present ; and it is something new to
see an individual taking his seat among the represen-
tatives of the people, who had occupied the highest
post of power, as President, but who, in descending
from that high office, was content to merge himsejf
into the great body of citizens, and to become again
their member. Mr. Adams has been in public
life since he was fifteen, being then secretary to his
father. He has filled the office of ambassador at several
foreign courts of Europe ; at home he has been Secre-
tary of State, Senator, President ; and he is now a
Representative, at the age of seventy. He is admitted
to be the most learned of all the public men of America;
adding, however, to his book-iearning, an extensive
knowledge of the world, and experience in public
affairs ; but the noble stand he has always taken
against Slavery, causes him to be an object of distrust,
if not of hatred, to those member vho desire to per-
petuate that degrading institution ; and therefore he is
more frequently annoyed and interrupted in his pro-
ceedings than he would be if less firm and less consis-
tent in his course. His habits are peculiar : he has
risen every morning of his life for t iie last forty
years, it is said, at four o'clock in the morning,
lighting his own fire in the winter at that hour, and
in the summer taking an early daylight walk ; anc'
before the hour of the meeting of Congress arrives,
which is noon, he has usually performed a good day's
work. He has kept a full record, it is asserted, of
all the most interesting events of the times, and
especial] , hose of whicl-, though relating to public

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affairs, he may be said to know the secret history
and working" ; and it is added that he has no less
than seventy-five folio manuscript volumes of this
description, written witl ^lis own hand. I had the
pleasure of seeing hin' ten, in interchanges of
visits during my stay at Washington, and can testify
to the great extent of his general information, his
humane and liberal principles, his fine clear intellect
and vigorous mental power, and hv^ very cheerful
and agreeable manners.

The absorption of the public interest by the
proceed iTigs of the Senate — in consequence of the
Sub-treusury bill, the great measure of the session,
being now before that body — prevented any business
of importance being done in the House of Repre-
sentatives beyond mere matters of course ; and it
often happened, while the great speakers were engaged
in the Senate, that the members of the other house
crowded to hear them, so that their own assembly
became deserted. No public business can be
legally transacted by either House unless there is a
quorum ; but that quorum, instead of being, as it is
with us, forty for the Commons and five for the
Lords, must consist of an actual majority of the
whole number of the assembl) , namely, 27 out of
52 senators, and 123 out of the 244 representatives.
If in any counting of the members, however, that
number does not appear, the house is not therefore of
necessity adjourned as with us ; but the Speaker is
required to wait until, by tV addition of other mem-
bers, the quorum may be (ompL ted ; as there are
persons in attendance, or noar at hand, who may be
summoned for the purpose. The trick, therefore,

I'l IILU; FUNEllALS.

3^7

of *• counting out the houso" — so often and so unwor-
thily resorted to hy the ministers in England, to get
rid of disagreeable motions, which they are either
ashamed or afraid to oppose openly, and desire to
" burke," as it is called, by a inaniinuro — is not
therefore resorted to here.

The most solemn of the proceedings that we wit-
nessed in the House of Representatives, were the
funeral ceremonies attending the death of two of its
members ; one, the late Mr. Cilley, killed by Mr.
Graves in a duel, which has been already adverted
to ; and the other, a member from the same State,
who died from natural illness, just three weeks
afterwards. It is a rule of both Houses, that when
any member of either dies, he shall be honoured
with a public interment : and the custom is to
adjourn both Houses for two days, when they meet
to attend the funeral, in an united bodv, accom-
panied by the President and all his cabinet, with heads
of deparments. The sum of 2,000 dollars is appro-
priated, in every such case, from the public funds, to
defray the expenses : one item of which is, to engage
all the hackney-coaches of the city, to convey, free of
cost, whoever chooses to attend the procession from
the Capitol to the place of interment : and long as
this train of carriages always is, they arc sure to be
well filled with gratuitous occupants. It is also uRual
for some friend in each House to make a formal
announcement of the death, and the occasion is then
taken to pronounce an eulogy on the deceased. As
an illustration of the manners of the counti'y, and a
fair sample of the taste of such compositions, I
subjoin the one pronounced in the House of Repre-

.' ii

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VOL. I.

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338

WASHINCiTON.

sentatives on this occassion, taken from the National
Intelligencer of March 16, under the ordinary head
of " l*ro<;eedings in Congress," to which are appended
the resolutions which are invariably adopted on the
death of every member, without distinction.

" HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

" As soon 08 the IIouso was organized this morning-—

" Mr. Evans, of Maine, addressed the Chair in the following
words :

" Mr. Speaker : These badges of mourning, which wo still wear,

denote that death has lately been in the midst of us. Again his
arrow has flown ; and again has the fatal shaft been sent, with
unerring aim, into a small, and already broken rank. It is my
meltmcholy office to announce that, since the last adjournment of
the House of Representatives, Timothy Jarvis Carter, then one of
its members, from the State of Maine, has surrendered up to the
Being who gave it, n life upon which many anxious hopes depended,
and for whose preservation many an ardent prayer had gone up to
the Father of all Spirits. He died last evening, at 10 o'clock, at
his lodgings in this city, after a sickness of not very protracted
duration, but of great and excruciating intensity of suffering and
agony. The ways of a righteous Providence are inscrutable ; and
while we bow in submission, we are yet oppressed with deep and
solemn awe.

" Our deceased friend and colleague was a native of the State
and the district, which, so lately, he represented in this branch of
Congress ; and he, therefore, brouglit with him the confidence,
largely bestowed, of those who had known him from his earliest
years. Well did he deserve it. His character for probity, integiity,
uprightness, morality, was free from spot or blemish. His princi-
ples were well founded. Loving the country of his birth, and its
institutions, with all hia heart, he pursued with fidelity such mea-
sures as his judgment deemed best calculated to promote the
welfare of the one, and the durability of the other. He was a
lawyer by profession — faithful, just, discriminating, attentive, humane
in its practice.

;:ii!:

FrNi:nAL oiiAiioN.

.339

" (K inannera, mild, courteous, alTablc, nud a temper kind, con-
ciliating, patient, ho won respect and attachment, even from those
who differed with hinj in matters of opinion ; and probably there
lives not a human bein^^ who has a single resentment, or one unkind
recollection, to bury in his grave. lie has gone, in the strength
of his manhood, and tlio maturity of Iiis intellect, the road that ail

must once pass.

' — calranda, semel, via lethi.'

" The ties that bound him to life are severed for ever, as all human
ties must be severed.

' Linquenda tellus, et doniu!i, et iimans
Uxor ; nuque hurum, qiiuH culis, arburum
Te, pneter inviHas ciipressos
Ulia, brevcin doininum sequetur.'

** Although, when his eyes opened for the last time upon the earth
and the sky, they fell not upon his own native hills ; though the
sod which shall cover him will not freshen in the same influences
which clothe them in verdure and beauty ; though he died far from
his home, the companions and the brothers of his childhood were
with him ; the sharer of his joys, the solace of his g^ofs, stood by
him ; and the hand which could best do it, assuaged the bitter
pains of parting life. The last earthly sounds which fell upon his
ear were tones of sympathy, and kindness, and affection, and sup-
port — tones which ceased not, even when they vainly strove to
pierce the cold and leaden ear of death. Tears shaU flow copiously,
and deep sighs be heaved over his lifeless form ; tears not more
sealding, sighs not deeper drawn, because mingled with any bitter
recollections, any unavailing regrets.

" If human means could have availed — if devoted fraternal sym-
pathy and care— if constant, abiding, self-sacrificing affection,
triumphing over exhausted natiire, and bearing up a feeble frame,
unconscious of weariness, through long and painful vigils, could
have saved his life, he would long have been spared to the friends
who now deplore his death, and to the State and to the country
which he served. To that stricken bosom we proffer — alas ! how
little will it avail ! — oiu* sincere sympathy and condolence. He
has gone from this place of earthly honours and human di&tinctions,
to a seat in that ' house which is not made with hands, eternal in
the heavens.*

v.y

W-

5«ii'; ■

■':'.>

i/. *

'.|: -.!, ^

■■.;:••*

SIO

WASHINGTON.

" A8 a token of our regard for hia many virtues, and of our respect
for his memory, I move the adoption of the resolutions which I
now submit.

" Resolved, That the members and officers of this House will attend
the funeral of Timothy J. Carter, deceased, late a member of this
House, from the State of Maine, at 12 o'clock, on Saturday, the
17th inst.

" Resolved, That a committee be appointed to take order for
superintending the fimeral of Timothy J. Carter, deceased.

" Resolved, That the members and officers of this House will
testify their respect for the memory of Timothy J. Carter, by wear-
ing crape on the left arm for thirty days.

" Resolved, That when this House adjourn to-day, it will adjourn
to meet on Saturday, the 17th inst.

" These resolutions were unanimously agreed to."

The members of both Houses are paid at the rate
of eight dollars per day for their cxttendance during
the session ; and a certain amount per mile for their
journeys to and from their homes to Washington ; a
remuneration which is not sufficiently large to tempt
persons to become Representatives or Senators for the
salary of the office ; yet large enough to defray the
actual cost of their living, and not to make the dis-
charge of the public business a pecuniary burden to
themselves ; and as the pay and travelling expenses
of the members is defrayed out of the general revenue,
no constituent body feels it to bear heavily on them.
There is no privilege enjoyed by them, as far as I
could learn, but that of franking ; but this is carried
to a much greater extent than in England. The
number of the letters they may send out or receive,
in any day, is unlimited ; the weight of letters must
not exceed two ounces ; but public documents and
printed papers are sent and received without refer-

p.t

FASHIONABLE PARTIES.

341

for

*t3

their
a

ence to weight or numher. The member is not
obliged to write the whole of the directions in his
own hand, as with us ; nor to put any date at all
upon the cover; but if any number of letters are
taken to him, under two ounces each, and addressed
by any other person, all that is required is that he
should write the word " free," and add his 3ignature
on any part of the cover, and this ensures its free
transit by post to every part of the country.

Of the general society at Washington, in the
morning visits and evening parties of the most
fashionable circles, we had a good opportunity of
judging, during our stay among them. With more
of ostentation, there is less of hospitality and less of
elegance than in New York ; and a sort of aristo-
cratic air is strangely mingled with manners far from
polished or refined. The taste for parties of pleasure
is so gen»^ral, however, that dissipation may be said to
be the leading characteristic of Washington society ;
and one sees this fearfully exhibited in the paleness
and languor of the young ladies, who are brought
here from their homes to be introduced into fashion-
able life. The&e are seen in a state of feebleness
and exhaustion, from late hours and continued excite-
ment, long before their forms are fully developed, or
their constitutions perfectly formed ; and while these
ravages are committed on their bodies, their minds
are neither cultivated nor strengthened, as the gossip
and talk of the morning ib usually but a recapitula-
tion of the adventures and occupations of the even-
ing. During all our stay, in all our visits, I do not
remember a single instance in which any literary or
scientific subject was the topic of conversation ; or

^Vi

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34^

WASHINGTON.

the merits of any book, or any author, the subject of
discussion. There seemed, in short, united in the
circles of Washington, all the pretensions of a metro-
polis, with all the frivolity of a watering place j and
the union was anything but agreeable.

Besides the opportunities we possessed of seeing
the largest assemblages at the President's drawing-
room and at private parties, we attended a concert
given by Madame Caradori Allan, at Carusi*s Saloon,
where, it was said, all the beauty and fashion of
Washington were present ; and being advantageously
seated, we had the best opportunity of observation. The
female beauty was not to be compared, in number or
degree, to that which we had seen in similar assem-
blages nt New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore ;
nor was there nearly as much elegance of dress, or
gracefulness and propriety of manner. The ladies
were noisy and almost vociferous in their conver-
sation, which is contrary to the general habit of
Aniericttn ladies, who are more tranquil and retiring
in mixed society than the English ; and the men
were in general boisterous in their manners, with a
greater attempt at playing the dandy or beau, than we
had before observed in our journey through the
country. The concert-room was very large, and
the ladies were intermingled in all parts with the
gentlemen ; yet the greater number of these last
stood up, even during the performance, while the
ladies were seated behind and beside them ; many
kept their hats on, and a great number came with
stout walking-sticks ; so that when any part of the
music was applauded, it was done by the loudest
knocking of these sticks against the floor, instead of

4)'>'

PUBLIC CONCERT.

343

the clapping of hands. In the remote part of the
room, some of the ladies stood, and the gentlemen,
still desirous of being above them, then left the floor,
and stood on the benches ; while behind these again,
and near to the door, were two gentlemen seated on
the top of the elevated steps by which the candles
were lighted. Among the persons standing on the
benches, the figure of Mr. Clay, the great orator of
the Senate, and leader of the Whig - conservative
party, was conspicuous ; yet it attracted no particular
attention, as if it were nothing unusual. The same
sort of rudeness, disorder, and noise often occurs
in the theatre, where, it is said, the beating of the
walking-sticks of the audience on the partitions is
sometimes so violent, that the house seems to be in
danger of coming to pieces, if a minute or two
more should elapse than the audience may think
proper between the acts ; but in a concert-room, we
had not expected such displays as this. The excuse
given for it was, that it was occasioned by the large
admixture of southern and western people, who arc
less refined than those from the north and the east ;
and also that the members, idle strangers, and
visitors, who make up such assemblages, come to
them, rather as a rendezvous, than for the sake of
the performance, and therefore vvi-h to be at their
ease.

As the company, though numerous, was composed
of persons of the least personal beauty, the plainest
dresses, and the rudest manners, that we had before
remembered to have seen congregated any where in
America, I had imagined that it was not a fair
specimen of a Washington fashionable assembly j

«ifi

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344

WASHINGTON.

but all to whom I ventured to express this opinion,
corrected me by the assurance that they had never
before seen so brilliant an audience collected at a
concert here ; and the leading journal of the follow-
ing day, the National Intelligencer of March 22,
which spoke, it was believed, the general sense of
those present, expressed its opinion in this short
paragraph : —

" The concert given by Madame Caradori Allan in this city on
Tuesday, was attended by an audience never exceeded, either in
brilliance or in numbers, on any such occasion in this city. To
those who know the vocal power and musical talent of this accom-
plished lady, W8 need not say thux her performance gave the highest
gratification to all present."

Madame Caradori's own performance gave, un-
doubtedly, the highest gratification to all who heard it ;
for, so accomplished a singer and musician as she is
could scarcely sing anything that would not give delight
to an ear having the slightest taste for sweet sounds ;
but to those who, like ourselves, had often heard
this charming lady at the opera, or in the concert-
rooms of England, sustained by powerful orchestras,
worthy of her own distinguished reputation, it was
painful to witness the meagreness of the musical
assistance received by her here ; the only instrument
being a piano -forte, and the only singer, except
^lerself, being Hli^nor Fal^jj, who would scarcely
have ventured Xnf appear m any concert-room in
Europe. Thft perforniawi^i of the evening were
therefore all ti*A*Ki by Madam*; (.'aradori and Signer
Fabj, in alf^rrjate »«iWcession. Madame Caradori's
songs were these: •* ["n# v^kp [Kk.o fa," "Angels

MADAME CARADORI ALLAN.

345

ever bright and fair," " Ouvrez, c'est nous," " Steh
nur auf," "lo I'udia," and "I'm over young to
marry yet." Signor Fabj, who could not take even
so high a range as this, contented himself with sing-
ing " Viraviso," " Qui riposai beato,** " Ah I perche
non posso odiarti," and "Amor di patria;" from
Bellini, Bagioli, and Generali. The good-nature
of the audience was certainly evinced in this, that
they applauded heartily at the end of every piece ;
and to prevent all envy or jealousy among the parties
applauded, they gave an equal measure of praise to
each. The whole performance was over in about
aci hour from the time of its commencement. What
surprised me at first, I own, was this, that Madame
Caradori Allan, a lady known and honoured by all
the courts of Europe, should have been so unjust to her
own high reputation, a& not to desire to leave a better
impression behirM? her, by singing at least some of the
many excel 'ent and beautiful pieces with which she has
deligfhted the hearts as well as ears of the first circles
in Europe, and which her own recollection would
have readily supplied : but she had probably dis-
covered, by experience, that th** standard of musical
taste, in this portion of the United States, was such
af» would be best pleased with the productions she
had presented to them ; and the audience appeared
to be so isatisfied, m to leave no doubt that she
had judged correctly in thi« r 'aspect; what slie did
sing, was ex^i^uted v^ > h all the sweetness, grace,
and expressi^>^s for vii^kA she is so deservedly and
universally admired.

A remarkable insumce of " impressment," prac-
tised on Mrs. Wood, the popular singer, who had

1 .

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346

WASHINGTON.

U^'

rlfSSS"

i.. '

.» ;

preceded Madame Caradori Allan in her visit to
America, was mentioned to me here, by one who was
present at the party. A General living in the neigh-
bourhood of Philadelphia, who had become suddenly
rich, furnished a house in a costly manner, and gave gay
parties. He had little else but his wealth, however, to
render them attractive ; his wife being especially
untutored and unpolished, as he had married before
he became rich, and both were elevated to their pre-
sent importance without the requisite personal qualifi-
cations to sustain it. To render one of their parties
more than usually popular, they invited Mr. and
Mrs. Wood among their guests ; these at first respect-
fully declined, on the ground of fatigue ; but they
vvcre pressed with so much earnestness, that they at
length were subdued into consent. When the enter-
tainments of the evening were fairly commenced, and
several ladies among the visitors had sung, the hostess
invited Mrs. Wood to seat herself at the piano, as the
company would be delighted to hear her beautiful
voice ; but Mrs. Wood begged, with a very serious
countenance, to be excused. At first the astonish-
ment created by this refusal was evinced by a dead
silence, and a fixed stare ; but at length, the disap-
pointed hostess l)roke forth : " What I not sing I
Mrs. Wood ; why, it was for this that I invited you
to my party. I should not have thought of asking
you but for this ; and I told all my guests that you
were coming, and that they would hear you sing I"
" Ob I" replied Mrs. Wood, with great readiness,
*'that quite alters the case ; I was not at all aware of
this, or I should not have refused ; but since you
have invited me professionally, I shall of course sing

ANECDOTE OF MRS. WOOD.

317

immediately 1" " That's a good creature," rejoined
the hostess, " I thought you could not persist in
refusing me." So Mrs. Wood seated herself at the
piano, sang delightfully, and, to the entire gratifica-
tion of hostess and guests, gave, without hesitation,
every song she was asked for, and some were encored.
On the following day, however, when the host and
hostess were counting up the cost of their entertain-
ment, (for, rich as they were, they had not lost their
former regard for economy,) to their utter conster-
nation there came in a bill from Mr. Wood of 200
dollars for Mrs. Wood's " professional services " at
the party of the preceding evening, accompanied by
a note, couched in terms which made it quite certain
that the demand would be legally enforced if attempted
to be resisted ; and, however much they were morti-
fied by this unexpected demand, they deemed it most
prudent to pay it, and hold their tongues.

The hotels of Washington — at which strangers
usually reside for a few days before they get into a
boarding-house, if they intend a long residence in the
city, or where they remain entirely if their visit is a
short one — are greatly inferior to those of New York,
Philadelphia, or Baltimore ; and the boarding-houses
are still worse. In both, the domestics are all ne-
groes ; and in the latter, mostly slaves. They are
generally dirty in their persons, slovenly in their appa-
rel, and unskilful and inattentive in their duties. In
the boarding-houses, the members of Congress, and
other inmates who use them, occupy a separate bed-
room, whicb they use for office, bureau, receiving-
room, and all ; and on passing by these, when the door
is open, one sees a four-post bed without canopy or

;H^

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348

WASHINGTON.

■->

furniture, the upper extremities of the posts not being
even connected by any frame work ; and the bed pushed
close up against the wall by the side, to leave the
larger space in the rest of the room. A table covered
with papers occupies the middle of the apartment,
often with a single chair only, and that frequently
a broken one ; and around on the floor are strewed,
in the greatest disorder aw} confusion, heaps of con-
gressional documents, large logs of firewood piled up
in pyramids, the wash-bason and ewer, printed books,
and a litter of unfolded and unbrushed clothes.

The drawing-room of the hotel or boarding house
is used by all equally, and is usually in better condition
than the private apartments, though, even in these, the
dust of the wood fires (universal in Washington,) the
multiplicity of newspapers and other tilings scattered
about, take away all appearance of cleanliness or ele-
gance. The eating-room is used for breakfast, din-
ner, tea, and supper ; and a long table, spread
out the whole length of the room, is kept always
laid, throughout the entire day and night. The
process is this : the table is first laid over night, for
breakfast ; when this meal is over, however, the
table is merely swept, so as to remove the crumbs,
and the cloth, not being taken ofl', even to be shaken
or folded up, is suff'ered to continue on for dinner,
the only precaution used, partaking at all of cleanli-
ness, being that of laying the dinner-piaies, which
are put on the moment breakfast is over, with their
fajces downward, so that they may not receive the
dust.

Dinner is brought on at the appointed hiwr ; but so
unacquainted with comfort, or so iiidifl^rent to it, are

UNCOMFORTABLE B0ARDIN0-1KV8ES.

349

the parties furnishing it, that '^o warm plates are
provided — iron forks alone are used — the earthenware
and glass arc of the commonest description, and often
broken — indeed, articles that would be thrown away as
worn out in Englai m, ■continue to be used here, broken
as they are, and no . nc seems to think of repairing
or mending — while the provisions are of the poorest
kind, and most wretchedly cooked and prepared.
The dishes are all brought to table without covers,
and are consequently cold before th' (parties are seated,
and, with the exception of now and then, but very
rarely, a good fish, (rock-fish and perch) from the
river Potomac, we never partook of any good dish of
meat, ^ oultry, or vegetables, duilng all our stay in
Washington, though not at all fastidious in our
taste, or difficult to please in this respect, preferring
always the plain and simple in food, as well as
drink. The table-cloth used for breakfast and dinner
remains on for tea, which is taken pt the same long
table, from common earthenware teapots, broken and
smoked by long standing before the fire ; and after
supper, the same cloth still remains on for break-
fast the next morning, which is hivl over-night as soon
as the supper is done.

The same hurry in eating was observable here as
in all the other cities we had visited. The boarders
are rung out of bed by a large and noisy hand bell,
at half-past seven, and at eight the breakfast is
begun. Many persons seemed t:" us to finish in five
minutes, but none exceeded a quarter of an hour ; and
the instant that any one had done, he rose up, quitted
the table, and went into the drawing-room to read

,: -i-l

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It': . >

3.00

WASHINGTON.

the newspapers ; so that it sometimes happened, tliat
at a quarter past ci^ht we came down and found
everybody gone, leaving us in exclusive possessi •;. of
the breakfast table. At dinner it was the saiae ;
and the whole style and manner of living had a
coldness and selfishness about it, which we could not
approve.

:■:■%

that
buiul
m of
liiie ;
lad a
d not

CHAP. XVIII.

Private friends m Washington — Judge
tion from Philadelphia — Attempt
Indians — Practices of land-speculat'
Peculiar and remarkahle personag^c
relative of Lord Holland, the liritisi
widow of the late ex-president — PrivM

on her by congress — English gentlemen arnviug in Washington
— Practice of wearing arms — Recklessness of character —
Instances of profligacy — Women and gamblers — Influence of
slavery in producing this state of things — Anecdote of life on
the western waters — Shameful indifference and silence of the
clergy — Demoralizing effect of slavery on social life.

«? — Quaker deputa-

Mi'^ on the Seneca

Is these people —

1on — Mr. Fox,

-Mrs. Madison,

king conferred

Among the individuals whose private friendship wc
had the good fortune to cultivate and enjoy, while
we were at Washington, none delighted us more by
their intelligence, urbanity, and perfect freedom from
that overweening assumption of national superiority
and exclusiveness, which we had too often occasion
to observe in others, than Judge White and his lady.
These were fortunately inmates of the same house
with us, so that our opportunities of communication
were frequent and acceptable. They were both
from Tennessee, of which the judge is one of the
senators. At the last contest, he was one of the
candidates put in nomination for the presidency ;
for though upwards of seventy years of age, the
universal appreciation of the justness of his charac-
ter was such as to overcome this objection, and ho

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352

WASHINGTON.

was thus very extensively supported, in the States
in which he was hest known. This reputation
for integrity still occasions him to be the senator
most frequently appealed to against acts of oppres-
sion and injustice, whether committed by the govern-
ment or by private individuals.* Several instances
of this became known to me, as the deputations that
waited upon him were often received in the drawing-
room, so that we had an opportunity of hearing their
statements.

One of these, a deputation from Philadelphia, came
to seek his counsel in the following case. They said,
that about fifty years ago, some members of their
body, the Society of Friends, living at Philadelphia,
considered, that as they were occupying the lands
that once belonged to the Seneca tribe of Indians —
though these lands were ceded by voluntary treaty,
and fairly and fully paid for — ^yet, as they, the
Quakers, had, many of them, grown rich by the occu-
pation of the territory, through the improved condi-
tion of it by themselves, they felt it to be their
duty to take the Seneca nation under their especial
protection, and do all they could to advance them in
comfort and civilization. They had accordingly
sent agents among them, prevailed on them to hold
lands in severaltv, and to follow the arts of cultiva-
tion } and had so improved the adults, and so trained
the children of the tribe, that the greater portion of
them were now fixed as permanent occupiers of the

* This venerable and upright man is since deceased, but his
name is held in universal estimation throughout the countiy ; and
as these remarks were written during my stay at Washington,
I suffer them to remain unaltered.

i&.

L\ . .

UNPRINCIPLED LAND-SPECULATORS.

353

,»l

soil in the Western country, and were slowly, though
steadily, advancing onward in the same career.

A fraudulent attempt to remove these Indians still
farther west, beyond the Mississippi, had recently
been made known to them, and they had come on to
Washington to stop its further progress if they could.
Some unprincipled land-speculators, white men and
Americans, had been among them, and tried all
their arts to persuade them to part with their lands
for a given sum of purchase-money, quite insignificant
as compared with the real value of the territory : but
neither misrepresentations, blandishments, nor threats,
could prevail on the Indians to assent Failing there-
fore in this, these speculators drew off. one by one, a
few of the most ignorant of the tribe, and, by false
representations and false promises, got a very few to
come with them here, as a deputation from the Indian
tribe, bearing a treaty, assigning their whole ten'itory
to the speculators in question ; which treaty was
signed by the said Indians, for and on behalf of the
tribe, who, it was pretended, had deputed them. The
Quakers, however, who suspected this story from the
beginning, sent some of their own members to the
west, and ascertained from the mouths of the chiefs
that they had never delegated their power to treat, to
any persons whatever ; — when they returned, bearing
a protest against the alienation of their lands, and
declaring their entire dissent from the pretended
treaty in question.

As all treaties are of necessity sent by the Presi-
dent to the Senate for their approval, it would fall
within the power of Judge White, as one of that
body, to give due exposure to this nefarious transac-

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tion, and thus the benevolent mission of these worthy
Quakers — always engaged, in this country, as the
memhers of their society are in every other in which
they exist, in doing good — would be crowned with
success ; though, for want of similar interventions
of friendly parties, the poor Indians are often plun-
dered and pillaged by unprincipled and cunning
speculators, who grow rich by the spoil, and pass
from the completion of one successful aggression to
the commencement of another and a greater one, till
death, or exposure, puts an end to their wicked
career.

Among the remarkable persons to be seen in
Washington, besides the President, heads of depart-
ments, and members of both Houses of Congress,
the British minister, Mr. Fox, deserves mention.
This gentleman, a near relative of Lord Holland, is
upwards of sixty years of age : he has the reputation
of being amiable, and learned ; but he is so rarely
seen, either in his own house or out of it, that it is
regarded as quite an event, to have t with him.
His appearance indicates feeble h , . ji ; and his
habits are quite sufficient to account for this. Instead
of rising at four in the momiflg, like the ex-presi-
dent, John Quincey Adams, he goes to the opposite
extreme, of not quitting his bed till one or two in the
afternoon ; and he avoids mingling with society,
either at home or elsewhere, as if it were naturally
distasteful to him. Book-auctions, which are fre-
quent here, sometimes tempt him, but scarcely any-
thing else can draw him out. He has the reputation
of being a great entoiAologist, and it is said that his
greatest happiness consists in the frequent receipt of

MR. FOX. MRS. MADISON.

355

him.
d his
istead
presi-
►posite
in the
ociety,
turally
re fre-
ly any-
utation
hat his
ceipt of

cases of insects from the various parts of the world
in which he has either travelled or resided, or where
he has friends or correspondents. His life is there-
fore probably as happy, in the solitude to which he
seems voluntarily to have devoted himself, as that of
men who seek their pleasure from other sources :
but his influence upon society is absolutely nothing.
This furnishes a striking contrast to his predecessor.
Sir Charles Vaughan, who is regretted by most of
the residents here, as he is described to have been
one of the most social, affable, familiar, accessible,
and agreeable ministers ever sent to Washington from
the court of St. James's, and, as such, his good quali-
ties drew everybody constantly around him.

Mrs. Madison, the widow of the ex-president
Madison, is also one of the remarkable personages
of the city. Though past eighty years of age, she is
tall, erect, clear of sight, hearing, and intellect,
most agreeable in manners, well dressed, and still
really good-looking. She has resided in Washing-
ton almost ever since it was first begun to be built ;
and by her extremely affable temper, and her kind-
heartedness, has won the esteem of all parties. Every
stranger who comes to Washington is sure to be told
of Mrs. Madison, and informed that it is his duty to
call, and pay her his respects ; so that her drawing-
room is almost an open levee, from twelve to two on
every fine day, and between the morning and after-
noon service of Sunday. As a personal compliment
to herself, and as a mark of the high estimation in
which she was held by the Congress, both Houses of
that body conferred on her, by a joint resolution, the
only privilege within their power to bestow, namely,

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WASHINGTON.

the right of frankiDg, or sending and receiving all
her letters free of postage ; she being probably the
only individual, and especially the only female, upon
whom such a privilege was ever personally conferred
by an act of the legislature of any country.

During our stay in Washington, two Englishmen
of some distinction arrived here, but their stay was
very short ; one was Lord Clarence Paget, a son of
the Marquis of Anglesea, who came to Norfolk in
the Pearl sloop of war from Bermuda, with despatches,
which he brought on from thence *, and the other was
Lord Gosford, the late governor of Lower Canada,
who had come here to confer with the American
government previous to his going to England.

The longer we remained in Washington, the more
we saw and heard of the recklessness and profligacy
which characterize the manners both of its resident
and fluctuating population. In addition to the fact
of all the parties to the late duel going at large,
and being unaccountable to any tribunal of law for
their conduct in that transaction — of itself a suffi-
cient proof of the laxity of morals and the weakness
of magisterial power — it was matter of notoriety,
that a resident of the city, who kept a boarding-
house, and who entertained a strong feeling of resent-
ment towards Mr. Wise, one of the members for Vir-
ginia, went constantly armed with loaded pistols and a
long bowie-knife, watching his opportunity to assas-
sinate him. He had been foiled in the attempt, on
two or three occasions, by finding this gentleman
armed also, and generally accompanied by friends;
but though the magistrates of the city were wanied
of this intended assassination, they were either afraid

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PROFLIGACY OF MANNERS.

357

to apprehend the individual, or from some other
motive, declined or neglected to do so ; and he accord-
ingly walked abroad armed as usual.

Mr. Wise himself, as well as many others of the
members from the South and West, go habitually
armed into the House of Representatives and Senate;
concealed pistols and dirks being the usual instru-
ments worn bv them beneath their clothes. On his
recent examination before a committee of the House,
he was asked by the chairman of the committee
whether he had arms on his person, or not ; and,
answering that he always carried them, he was
requested to give them up while the committee was
sitting — which he did ; but on their rising, he. was
presented with his arms, and he continued constantly
to wear them as before.

This practice of carrying arms on the person is, no
doubt, one of the reasons why so many atrocious acts
are done under the immediate influence of passion ;
which, were no arms at hand, would waste itself in
words, or blows at the utmost ; but now too often
results in death. A medical gentleman, resident in
the city, told me he was recently called in to see a
young girl who had been shot at with a pistol by one
of her paramours, the ball grazing her cheek with a
deep wound, and disfiguring her for life; and yet
nothing whatever was done to the individual, who
had only failed by accident, in his intention to destroy
her life. In this city are many establishments where
young girls are collected by procuresses, and one of
these was said to be kept by a young man who had
persuaded or coerced all his sisters into prostitution,
and lived on the wages of their infamy. These houses

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358

WASHINGTON.

arc frequented in open clay ; and hackney-coaches
may be seen almost constantly before their doors.
In fact, the total absence of all restraint upon the
actions of men here, either legal or moral, occasions
such open and unl^ushing displays of recklessness
and profligacy as would hardly be credited if men-
tioned in detail. Unhappily, too, the influence of
this is more or less felt in the deteriorated characters
of almost all persons who come often to Washington,
or live for a long period there. Gentlemen from the
northern and eastern states, who before they left their
homes were accounted moral, and even pious men,
undergo such a change at Washington, by a removal
of all restraint, that they very often come back quite
altered characters, and, while they are at Washington
contract habits, the very mention of which is quite
revolting to chaste and unpolluted ears.

There can be no doubt that the existence of
slavery in this district has much to do with creating
such a state of things as this ; and as Washington is
one of the great slave marts of the country, where
buyers and sellers of their fellow-creatures come to
traflfic in human flesh ; and where men, women, and
children are put up to auction, and sold to the high-
est bidder, like so many head of cattle ; this brings
together such a collection of speculators, slave-dealers,
gamblers, and adventurers, as to taint the whole
social atmosphere with their vices. All this is freely
acknowledged in private conversation ; but when
people talk of it they speak in whispers, and look
around to see that no one is listening ; for it is at
the peril of life that such things are ventured to be
spoken of publicly at all.

DAGGERS AND ASSASSINATION.

350

;lies

An instance of this occurred not long since, in
one of the steam-boats navigating the Western rivers.
A gentleman who had been to the South, was
describing to another, in confidential conversation,
his impressions as to the state of society there, and
happened to express his great abhorrence of gamblers,
when a fashionably-dressed person in the same boat,
who had overheard this conversation, came up to
the individual who had used these expressions, and
said, " Sir, you have been speaking disparagingly of
gamblers; I am a gambler by profession, and I
insist upon your apologizing, and retracting all you
have said." The person thus addressed replied, that
as the conversation was confidential, and addressed
only to his friend, without being intended for any other
ear, he could not have meant any personal offenc*? j
but as what he had said was perfectly true, he
could neither apologize nor retract ; whereupon the
gambler drew the concealed dagger, which almost
every one in the South carries about his person, and
stabbed this individual to the heart. His death was
the immediate consequence, and yet no further notice
was taken of this aifair, by the captain or any other
of the passengers, except to land the ^jurderer at the
next town, where he passed unmolested, and ready
no doubt, to repeat a similar atrocity.

Even the clergy maintain a profound silence on
the subject of these enormities, and never mention
the subject of slavery, in the States where it exists,
except to apologize for it, or to uphold it; and to
deprecate all the " schemes," as they call them, of
the abolitionists, for hastening the period of its anni-
hilation. So tolerant are the clergy of the South on

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this subject, that, as was shown in the resolutions of
the Episcopal- Methodist Conference in Georgia, they
publicly declare their belief "that slavery, as it exists
in the United States, is not a moral evil ;" and if so,
of course Ihey are not called upon to remove it. As
a specimen, however, of one of the many modes in
which it does operate as a moral evil (notwithstanding
these Episcopalian-Methodist resolutions to the con-
trary,) this single fact may be stated : A planter of
Virginia had, among his slaves, a coloured female, of
handsome figure and agreeable person, who acted as
a household attendant : having been present at some
religious meetings of the Methodists, she became
piously disposed, and at length attached herself
to their church as a member — for members are
admitted from the coloured population, though they
sit apart in the gallery at public worship, and have a
separate table when they receive the sacrament in
communion I — ^how the Divine Institutor of this solemn
and endearing observance would regard such a sepa-
ration, has not perhaps been often thought of. A
short time after this female had joined herself to the
church as a communicant, the son of the planter
returned home from completing his studies at college,
and, as is usual with sons of that age, communicated
to his father the necessity of his having a mistress I
The handsome Christian slave was accordingly
selected for this purpose, and made a present to the
son I She was horror-struck, and at first resisted ;
but as there was no law that could protect her, no
tribunal that could help her, her entire person being
the property of her master, to do with her whatsoever
he pleased, and to strip and flog her into compliance

•"^

SHAMEFUL CLERICAL PERVERSION. ' 3()1

if she refused — there was no alternative but conces-
sion and patient resignation. She communicated this
fact, however, to her religious teacher, the minister
of the church she had joined, expressed the deepest
repugnance at the committal of the sin, and asked
him what was her duty. He replied, that her duty,
as a slave, was clearly passive submission ; and that
resistance or refusal could not be countenanced by
him I And yet, the Methodist-Episcopal Conference
of Georgia, met in solemn conclave, publicly proclaim
their belief to the world, in a resolution formally put
and unanimously adopted, that " Slavery, as it exists
in the United States, is not a moral evil." Such is
the perversion of Christianity by some of its pro-
fessed ministers, in the slave-holding States of
America I

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CHAP. XIX.

Environs of Washington, scenery and views — Georgetown older in
date than Washington — Climate of Washington extremely vari-
able — Captain Smith's and Jefferson's account of the climate —
Last survey of Washington in an excm-sion round it — Visit to
the arsenal, and description of it — Visit to the navy-yard of
Washington — Description of its resources and works — Return
to the city of the Capitol — Battles of the giants and the pig-
mies — Last Sunday passed at the service in the Capitol — Admi-
rable sermon of the Rev. Dr. Fisk — Excursion to Alexandria
across the Potomac — Embryo city of Jackson, near Washington
— Sale of lands for nonpayment of taxes — Singular names of
new-settled estates — History and description of Alexandria —
Museum and relics of General Washington — Mount Vernon,
the family seat and tomb— Disinterment of General Washing-
ton's corpse — Veneration for Washington and Lafayette — Native
Indians seen at Washington — Farewell visits on leaving the
city.

The environs of Washington, though not inviting in
winter, must he agreeahle in the spring and autumn.
The hroad Potomac, a mile and a half across where
it receives the tributary Anacosta, and still widen-
ing below their confluence, is a very noble object, from
every elevated point of view. The long bridge
across it, exceeding a mile, though at the higher part
of the river, has a very picturesque efiect. The
hills on the other side of the Potomac, within the
district of Columbia, arc well wooded ; and those in
Maryland, on the other side of the Anacosta are
really beautiful. The small town of Alexandria, on
the Virginian side of the Potomac, is visible from
Washington, the distance being six miles only ; and

GEORGE TOWN.

363

George-Town, which may be called a suburb of
Washington, though a separate city, is but a con-
tinuation of the latter, there being an almost unbro-
ken line of houses connecting the two. George-Town
is older than Washington, having its name from the
king of England, long before the revolution, and
that name being still retained. It is compactly
built, and not straggling like the younger city. Its
population is estimated at about 10,000, but it is
diminishing in opulence and consideration. It once
enjoyed a direct trade with the West Indies ; and
many ships came to its port, as well as to Alexan-
dria, from various parts. But both these places have
suffered by a diversion of their trade into other
channels, especially since rail-roads, opened from the
interior of the Maryland and Virginia direct to Bal-
timore, have made that place the great emporium of
commerce for this part of the South. At George-
Town is a large Catholic college, under the direction
of very learned and skilful Jesuits ; as well as a
monastery and a nunnery, both well filled ; the pro-
fessors of the Catholic faith abounding in this quar-
ter, from Baltimore having been originally founded
by a Catholic nobleman, and the religion having there
taken root, and spread extensively all around.

The line of separation between Washington and
George-Town, is a stream called Rock Creek, into
which a smaller stream called Goose Creek, enters.
Mr. Thomas Moore, in one of his epistles from Wash-
ington, takes a poetic license with this latter stream,

when he says —

" And what was Goose Creek once, is Tiber now,"

because, though it answered his purpose to turn the

364

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sharp and pointed satire conveyed in this line, it does
not happen to be correct. Goose Creek is still Goose
Creek, as it ever has been : Tiber is another stream
altogether, and is found under that name, in the
old maps of Maryland, before Columbia was made a
district, or the city of Washington was laid out.
It is very insignificant, it is true, (though even the
Tiber of Rome, by the way, is an insignificant
stream when compared with the Potomac of Wash-
ington.) It rises in the hills of Maryland, just be-
yond the boundaries of Washington, flows nearly
through the centre of the city in a small rill, which
runs underneath the Pennsylvania avenue, and
comes out of an arched conduit a little to the west of
the Capitol, where it joins a branch of the Chesa-
peake and Ohio canal, and empties itself with it into
the Eastern River.

The climate of Washington is complained of by
all parties. In the winter the cold is as severe as it
is at Boston, though the winter is of shorter duration ;
and in the summer the heat is as great as it is in the
West Indies ; while in the spring and autumn the
sudden oscillations from one extreme to the other are
most trying to the constitution. There is a piercing
quality in the cold winds sweeping across the rivers
and marshes, which is most disagreeable to encoun-
ter ; and from which we suffered severely ; for when
we arrived from Baltimore on the 2()th of February,
the ground was covered with snow ; and the pavements
of brick, or the side-causeways, were, on the shady
side of the streets, literally sheeted with smooth ice.
Yet before we left, on the 26th of March, we had
had such heavy rains, as to make the streets impass-

'■ 1-11

EXTREMES OF TEMPERATURE.

365

able puddles ; such excessive heat as to make cloth
clothing disagreeable ; and such clouds of white
dust in the badly macadamized roads of the avenue,
as to blind and choke one at the same time ; while,
to make the variety complete, we had on some days
fogs as dense as in England.

Captain Smith, in his account of the Chesapeake
bay, which was drawn up and presented to Queen
Anne, says, *• In this country the summer is as hot
as in Spain, and the winter as cold as in France or
England;" and he adds, "In the year I607 was an
extraordinary frost in most parts of Europe; and
this frost was found as extreme in Virginia. But
the next year, foi eight or ten days of ill weather,
other fourteen days would be as summer." And
Mr. Jefferson, in his " Notes on Virginia," says,
•• The extremes of heat and cold, of 6" below
zero, and 98° above, are distressing." He adds,
that "in the year I78O the Chesapeake bay wns
solid from its head to the mouth of the Potomac.
At Annapolis, where it is five miles an 1 a quarter
over between the nearest points of land, the ice was
from five to seven inches thick quite across, so that
loaded waggons went over it." Severe colds, rheum-
atism, intermittent fevers, and agues, arc the natural
consequences of such extremes as these.

Our last survey of Washington was made in a
carriage -drive around its whole extent during a
dehghtful day, the 22d of March, in which we tra-
versed nearly every part of it ; and closed our excur-
sion with a visit to the Arsenal and the Navy-yard.
The aspect of the city is certainly unlike that of any
other in the world. In some places new houses are

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WASHINGTON.

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building, as if it were a place just rising into being;
while in others, there are whole terraces and groups
of houses completely in ruins, as if it w ere a place
that had long been abandoned to decay. One group
of these was so conspicuous, that the facetious friend,
in whose carriage we made the excursion, had long
since called it " The Ruins of Baalbec ;" and at
a distance, the range of buildings in this group
was sufficiently dilapidated to look ruinously pic-
turesque. The cause of this singular contrast of
a rising and a falling city existing on the same spot,
and at the same time, is this : the lots or parcels of
ground for building on, having been most injudici-
ously sold by the government to different speculators
at different times, without any condition of building
up first the grounds near the Capitol, before the
remoter parts wert> built upon — each speculator has
made an attempt to draw the population towards the
particular quarter in which his lots were situated.
Some thus built up fine terraces near the river, and
these were let cheap, to draw inhabitants ; but a
counteraction was soon produced by some rival specu-
lator, who built another group in some other quarter
of the space laid out for the city. Each of these have
been therefore successively inhabited and abandoned ;
and many are now, not merely without tenants, even
of the poorest kind, but falling to pieces for want of
repair, the owners not thinking them worth that
sxpensc, as they have no hope of receiving any rent
for them. Add to this, that between these distant
groups the way is often over marshy and always over
miserably barren and broken ground, and some
idea may be formed of the sort of living wilderness

THE ARSENAL.

S67

whic}> many parts of Washington exhibit, though
from many points of view it looks less scattered, than,
in traversing it, one finds it to be.

Ever since the days of Moore, who described
Washington as

" The famed metropolis, where fancy sees
Squares in morasses — obelisks in trees,"

this strange intermixture of city and wilderness has
been the most characteristic feature of the place ; and
for many years to come, it will still continue to be " the
city of magnificent distances," as it is facetiously
called by its inhabitants. If AVashington should
ever be made either a commercial or manufacturing
city, its outlines would soon be filled up ; but of this
there is no immediate prospect : though in half a
century hence it may become the seat of both ; and
the banks of the Potomac be as thickly peopled as
those of the Clyde or the Mersey.

The Arsenal of Washington is an interesting spot.
Placed at the confluence of the two rivers, Potomac
and Anacosta, it has an open and extensive view,
both up the two separate rivers and down their united
stream. The interior, which is like a garrison, is
remarkably neat and commodious, and all the work-
shops and storehouses are in the best condition.
Through the polite attention of the superintendent.
Captain Ramsay, who accompanied us, we had an
opportunity of injecting every thing at leisure ; and
saw enough to satisfy us that the Americans are not
behind any nation in Europe in their ready adoption
of all improvements that are introduced in the found-
ing G*^ large pieces of ordnance, the making of small
arms, or the manufacture of the other munitions of

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WASHINGTON.

war. The artisans employed are among the most
skilful that can be procured j many of them are paid as
high as five dollars, or about a guinea, a day, these being
occupied in constructing models ; and their work-
manship surpassed, in skill and beauty, any that I
remember to have seen in this line.

It may show the extent of patronage bestowed by
the government of the United States on inventions
which they deem valuable for warlike operations, to
mention the fact, that a Captain Bell, of their service,
was recently paid 20,000 dollars out of the public
funds for a very simple and almost obvious improve-
ment, by substituting a vertical worm or screw, to
elevate and depress heavy pieces of artillery with
greater ease and precision than could be effected by
the wooden quoins formerly used for that purpose ;
the effect of which improvement is to enable the
person firing the cannon to take his deadly aim with
greater precision.

How liberally the arts of destruction are rewarded,
compared with the arts of preservation, one need not
visit America to learn. All Europe furnishes many
striking examples of the same kind; but while
such is the perverted taste and judgment of mankind,
that the warrior, whose life is devoted to the slaughter
of his fellow-men, shall be crowned with honours and
rewards — while the schoolmaster who instructs them,
shall pine in neglect and obscurity — who can wonder
that it is deemed less honourable to save than to
destroy f

The Navy Yard is a much larger establishment
than the Arsenal. It is higher up on the Eastern
branch, or Anacosta river, and is under the superin-

NAVY-YARD.

369

tendence of Commodore Patterson. No ships were
building in it at the time of our visit : but the large
shed, or ship-house, under which the Columbus 74
was built, was still standing, and perfect in its kind.
The most interesting processes we saw here, were
the forging of the large anchors for line-of-battle
ships ; the welding the links of the great chain-cable
for the first-rate ship of war, the Pennsylvania, of
130 guns ; and the manufacture of the cooking-
houses, or cabooses, and iron tanks for water, all for
ships of war, as well as the machinery for making
blocks. Although the dock-yards of England are
more extensive than this at Washington, and employ
a greater number of men, (the number employed
here being about 200 at present) j yet the works
executed here, in every department, appeared to me
as perfect as at Portsmouth, or any other of our
great naval ports. Many of the leading workmen,
indeed, were English ; and the person who conducted
us through the different departments was a native of
Devonport, and had served his apprenticeship in the
dock-yard there : but he said, the wages paid to able
workmen here were so much higher than the same
class could obtain in England, that he considered
himself to be twice as well off here as if he had
remained at home, and was very happy at having
made the change.

On our return by the Capitol, we heard that the
Senate was still in debate upon the never-ending
topic of the Sub-treasury Bill ; but conceiving that
all that could be said on either side had been already
exhausted — for the measuie had been under debate
in the Senate for a greater number of days than there

VOL. I.

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are members of that body, and these are fifty-two —
we did not stop, though, according to the National
Intelligencer of the following morning, March 23,
the contest was severe ; for it is thus characteristi-
cally described :

" The War of the Giants. — The debate among the great
men of the Senate still continues, and continues to be distinguished
by passages of arms, of unexcelled skill and ability. Yesterday,
Mr. Calhoun and Mr. Webster encountered, and held a large
audience wrapt in ad;airing attention to the conflict for several
hours."

We had learnt to estimate at its proper value,
however, this exaggerated style of description, and
bore our disappointment meekly ; as well as the loss
of a scene which contrasts well with the former, and
which, by way of appendage, might be called " the
battle of the pigmies." This scene took place on
the same day in the House of Representatives, and
is thus described by the same paper.

" Mr. Boon commented with very great severity on Mr. Halsted's
speech of yesterday, and avowed his intention " to skin" that gentle-
man. He said his speech evinced the advantage of being high-
bom and college-bred ; characterized its strain of language as low
and viJgar, and every way imworthy of a representative ; referred
to Mr. Halsted's consumption of pens and paper, as being ten times
greater than his own ; he remarked upon his dress, as being that
of a dandy, &c. ; and concluded by comparing the whole speech to
butter churned without a cover, which splashed on all around," &c.

We passed our last Sunday in Washington, in
attending divine service in the House of Represen-
tatives at the Capitol. It had been announced that
the Rev. Dr. Fisk, president of the Wesleyan Con-

RELIGIOUS SERVICES.

371

on, in
presen-
jd that
n Con-

ference of Connecticut, was to preach there to-day,
and the weather being beautifully fine, the preacher
eminent, and the place very popular, a crowded
audience was assembled, and the scene was impres-
sive and imposing. It was curious to see nearly all
the representatives* seats occupied by ladies ; while
members of both Houses crowded around in the
passages and avenues, and the galleries were filled
with strangers. The preacher occupied the chair of
the Speaker or president of the assembly ; and the
service consisted of the usual succession of the hymn,
the extempore prayer, the lessons, and the sermon.
This last was a very able and beautiful discourse, on
the words of the psalmist, " The Lord reigneth ;
let the earth rejoice ; let the multitude of the isles
be glad thereof," in which the reign of the Almighty
over the material and the moral world was impress-
ively explained ; and a deep attention was bestowed
on every part of it by the audience.

On returning from the Capitol, we lingered for a
long while on the terrace that sweeps its western
front, from whence the view over Washington below
it to the westward, as well as over the broad Potomac
and the distant hills, is one of the most pleasing that
the city affords. The day was as bright and sunny
as our finest days of Jui?e in England ; and though
all vegetation was still clothed in the brown and
leafless garb of winter, it was full-blown summer all
around and overhead.

Our last excursion from Washington was to pay a
visit to Alexandria, to which place we accompanied
a young Virginian, who was returning to her home
there, after a visit to our amiable and excellent friend,

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WASHINGTON.

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the lady of Judge White, in whose carriage we per-
formed the journey. The position of Alexandria
being on the Virginia side of the Potomac, as Wash-
ington is on the Maryland side, (though both are
now in the district of Columbia,) we had to cross the
long bridge over the Potomac, which exceeds a mile
from bank to bank, with a small drawbridge over
the navigable channel, for the passage of vessels up
and down the stream. The views from this bridge
are very charming ; and as we were fortunate enough
to arrive at the drawbridge when it was open, we
had to alight, and enjoy the sight of a beautiful
schooner cutting her way with a fine breeze, against
the descending stream, and steering under full sail
right through.

On the opposite side of the river to Washington,
at the point where the bridge terminates, we were
shown the foundations of a new town, intended to
have been built as a rival to Washington, and to be
called Jackson, after the late President of the United
States. The history of this little spot is worth
giving, because it is a specimen of similar acts of
folly committed in many other parts of the United
States within the last ten years, and within the last
five especially, originating partly in the vanity, and
partly in the cupidity, of the people, and resulting in
their bankruptcy and ruin. An idea was conceived
by some real admirer or sycophantic flatterer of
General Jackson (it is not certain which, for there
were many of both), that it would be well to set up
a rival city on the south of the Potomac, to eclipse
Washington on the north, and to call it by the name
of the rival chief. This idea was at once acted on

PROJECTED CITY.

373

by the immediate survey of the spot, where the bridge
touches the shore, and, being a perfect level, a city
was soon mapped and planned on paper, with squares,
avenues, markets, an exchange, churches, and all
the usual accompaniments of a large emporium;
General Jackson was applied to, for his patronage to
the undertaking, which was readily granted; and,
thus provided, the individual, who got up the whole,
sent on to New York, where the rage for speculating
in lands and city-lots was at its highest ; and forthwith
a number of those gentlemen came here, to purchase.
When they had bought their lots, at high prices,
they repaired back to New York, to sell them to other
speculators at still higher; and General Jackson
having, at the request of the founder, attended the
ceremony of laying the foundation of the Exchange of
Jackson City, before a single dwelling of any kind
was erected, and delivered a long oration on the
occasion, the lots rose in value, because the city had
been actually begun ; and buyer after buyer continued
to give a higher and a higher price. At length,
however, the sums per foot given for this waste land
were so extravagant, that no further advances could
be had upon it, and the last buyer consequently found
himself stuck fast, and could only get out of his diffi-
culty at an immense sacrifice. After this, a retrograde
movement took place, when prices went down even
more rapidly than they h&d risen ; and the lots are
now worth absolutely nothing, since no one would be
at the expense of clearing them. In fact, the whole
space is covered with a marsh, over which it has been
difficult to construct an ordinary road; and the
auctioneer who sold the last lots that were brought

374

WASHINGTON.

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to the hammer, very accurately characterized its fer-
tility by describing it as being "so rich that it pro-
duced sixty bushels of frogs to the acre ;" to which
he facetiously added, that " there was no need of
incurring expense for fencing, as there were alligators
enough on the spot to form an excellent fence, if you
could catch therriy by planting them with their heads
downward and their tails in the air.*' The croaking
of these frogs was loud and discordant, as we went
over the road that crosses this marsh early in the
afternoon ; and when we returned after sun-set in the
evening, it was absolutely deafening.

The remainder of the way to Alexandria was
over a tolerably level road, with well-filled cedar
plantations on either side, the greenness of which
was an agreeable relief to the brownness of every-
thing else. These public roads are kept in repair
by a general assessment on the landed property of
the district ; but this, though considered a good
road for America, would be called a very bad one in
any part of England, from being so full of ruts and
pits, and its surface so uneven. There was only one
turnpike in the way, at which half a dollar was paid
for the carriage ; but this we learnt was over the
private property of an individual, to whom alone the
receipts went, and no part of it was expended in the
repair of the road.

A great portion of the land in the district of
Columbia is so poor as to be not worth paying the
taxes on ; and it is therefore often sold for the unpaid
dues upon it, though these are very trifling indeed.
In the National Intelligencer of March 27, are no
less than three columns of specified estates and

SINGULAR NAMES.

375

plots of ground advertised for sale, by the commis-
sioners of taxes, in Columbia and Maryland, for
nonpayment of these dues ; though their amount
seems insignificant compared with the size of the
estates on which they are due. For instance, on an
estate in St. Mary's county, called " Scotland," con-
sisting of 2,273 acres, the sum due was only 6 dollars
and 43 cents. ; and in an estate in Alleghany county,
called " Western Connexion," consisting of 8,808
acres, the sum due was 19 dollars and JO cents. ;
and this last belonged to the United States* Bank.
On looking over the names of these tracts and appro-
priations of lands advertised for sale, it was impossible
not to be struck with the singularity of them j of
which the following are only a few examples :

" Hard Struggle," 1,554 acres — " Isaac's Bless-
ing," 48 acres — " Rights of Man," 189 acres—
"Paradise Regained," 1,500 acres — "Now or
Never," 6OO acres — " Myself," 61 acres — " Com-
monwealth," 3,817 acres — " Canaan," 3,648 acres —
" Hornet's Nest," 208 acres—" Honest Miller,"
50 acres — " Hard Bargain, re-surveyed," 329 aeres —
" Last Shift," 100 acres — " Hope," 6,638 acres —
" What you Please," 73 acres — and " Blue-eyed
Mary," 987 acres.

When all these tracts become settled and occupied,
as in time they are sure to be, their names will mingle
oddly with those of Nineveh, Babylon, and Troy ; of
M'?mphis and Thebes ; of Athens, Corinth, Sparta,
and Utica ; of Rome, and Syracuse ; of Jerusalem,
Joppa, and Lebanon ; and the many other classical
and scriptural cities, whose names are adopted by
humble villages in America.

iM.

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375

ALEXANDRIA.

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Alexandria itself is a small, but well-planned and
neatly-built town, occupying a favourable position on
a projecting point of land, on the southern bank of
the Potomac, at a distance of about six miles below
Washington. It was originally a village, first inha-
bited by a native of Scotland, and called by him
Belhaven. Its name was subsequently changed to
Alexandria, which it still retains. At one period
of its history it enjoyed a considerable commerce, as
a point of shipment for tobacco, the chief product of
Virginia, in which state it was situated previous lo
its being included in the cession of the district of ten
miles square, to form the present Columbia, as well as
a point of import for goods for internal consump-
tion in the country behind it, to which it is an inlet.
The beginning of its decay may be traced to the
attack made upon it by the marauding squadron of
the British, under Sir John Cockburn, in their
expedition up to ^Yashington. Not content with
burning some parts of the town and sacking others,
they wantonly destroyed a large quantity of goods of
various kinds, then at Alexandria, belonging to the
exporters and importers in the interior ; and without
benefiting themselves by such destruction in any
way. The owners of the goods so destroyed, demanded
payment of their value by the Alexandnans, as they
were uninsured, and Iield at the risk of ?'<!) nersons
in whose custody they were. Thei ■' ::.aii<^s could
not be complied with, for want of means, as the
Alexandrians themselves had been impoverished by
tho general plunder of the British. The owners of
the goods therefore refused to export or import any
more through Alexandria till their old accounts were

PLAN OF THE TOWN.

877

settled ; and this bein^^ impossible, the trade of the
place was crippicd at a blow . Soon after this, the
finishing strok*^ was i)ut to its decline, by the
construction ot the rail-road from the interior of
Maryland and Virginia to Baltimore, by which
imports and exports could be more advantageously
made through that port ; so that unless some new
causes arise, to produce new sources of prosperity,
Alexandria seems doomed to decay.

The plan of the town is extremely regular, and
its whole aspect pleasing ; but amidst all its beauty
of situation and regularity of design, it wears an
aspect of melancholy and gloom. Gra?s is growing
in most of the streets, and even the grea' thorough-
fares seem altogether deserted. The number of
houses to let are as great as those occupied ; and its
population of ten thousand, has dwindled down to
less than half that amount. Closed windows and
shutters, and broken panes of glass, give an aspect of
dilapidation, quite unlike the generally thriving
appearance of towns in America ; and there was one
sight which reminded me of the Liberties of Dublin.
A large and handsome mansion, built as a family
residence, by an English gentleman named Carlisle,
is now occupied by a number of poor familie;-, two
or three living in each of the separate floors ; and the
whole building exterior and interior, is going gradu-
ally to ruin, for the want of occasional repairs.

Among the public buildings in Alexandria, there
is a Court House, a large Theatre, and a Theological
College, besides six good Churches. There is also a
Museum, which is enriched by some highly-prized
relics belonging to that universal object of homage

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378

ALEXANDRIA.

and veneration in every part of America — General
Washington. Among these are the satin robe,
scarlet lined with white, in which the infant George
Washington was baptized ; a penknife, which was
given to him by his mother when he was only twelve
years of age, and which he kept for fifty-six years of
his life, amidst all its vicissitudes and dangers ; a
pearl button taken from the coat which he wore when
first inaugurated as President of the United States,
at New York ; a masonic apron and gloves, worn
by him at a lodge-meeting ; a black glove, part of
the suit of morning which he wore at the death of
his mother ; a fragment of the last stick of sealing
wax that he ever used to seal his letters ; and the
original of the last letter ever penned by his hand,
written, to decline, on his own behalf and that of his
wife, a joint invitation, which they had received to
attend a ball at Alexandria, in which, while politely
apologizing for this refusal, he says, "Alas I our
dancing days are over."

In the museum of the Capitol, at Washington, we
had previously seen a military suit of the general's,
which he had worn in the revolutionary campaign ;
and all these are looked upon by every American,
of whatever age, sex, or condition, with a personal
regard and veneration, such as no relics of any
other national hero excites, I think, in any other
quarter of the world. People not only admire, but
they seem to love the name of Washington, and hold
sacred everything that ever belonged to him ; con-
sequently there is scarcely a single dwelling in
all America, however splendid or however humble,
and few public buildings of any kind, except perhaps

';.' 4

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MOUNT VERNON.

379

places of religious worship, in which a portrait of
Washington is not to be found. All parties claim
him for their own ; and the expression of any doubt
as to the wisdom, courage, virtue, or excellence of
Washington, would be a treason that few would be
disposed to forgive.

Mount Vernon, the country-seat of the Washing-
ton family, and the spot that contains the ashes of
the general himself, is not more than ten miles from
Alexandria ; but though we had several times plan-
ned an excursion to visit it from W^ashington, one
obstacle after another intervened, to prevent it.
Sometimes it was some great speech in the Senate, or
House of Representatives^ the expectation of which
kept us in either house, and prevented our leaving
the Capitol; and sometimes it was the detention there,
not by the expectation, but the reality, of the speeches
delivered. Sometimes it was a party in Washington
that prevented our leaving the city. And when these
or other causes did not prevent, the terrible state of
the weather and the impassable condition of the roads
beyond Alexandria, from the snow or rain, as
eflPectually defeated our intentions.

We regretted this, because, though there is
nothing of unusual grandeur or beauty in the house or
grounds, both of which have been neglected by the
present occupiers, who are distant relatives of the
illustrious chief, yefc it would have given us great
pleasure to have looked upon the tomb that contains
his earthly remains; and thus have paid to his
memory that homage which all admirers of freedom
and justice must delight to show to the last resting-
place of one who was so distinguished a friend of
both.

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380

WASHINGTON.

Not long since, in December last, the body of the
general was taken from the coffin in which it was
originally deposited, at Mount Vernon, and placed
in a marble sarcophagus; and this event is thus
described in the Philadelphia Gazette of that
date.

* General Washington. — The remains of this illustrious man,
the Father and Saviour of his country, were recently placed in the
sarcophagus made by Mr. Struthers of this city, £rom whom we
learn, that when the vault and coffin were opened, * where they had
lain him,' the sacred form of Washington waa discovered in a
wonderful state of preservation. The high pale brow wore a calm
and serene expression ; and the lips pressed stiU together, had a
grave and solemn smile, such as they doubtless wore, when the first
President gave up his blameless mortal life, for an immortal exist-
ence, —

' When his soft breath, with pain,
Was yielded to the elements again.'

The impressive aspect of the great departed, overpowered the
man whose lot it was to transfer the hallowed dust to its last tene-
ment, and he was unable to conceal his emotions. He placed his
hand upon the ample forehead, once highest in the ranks of battle,
or throbbing with the cares of an infant empire, and he lamented,
we doubt not, that the voice of fame could not provoke that silent
clay to lite again, or pour its tones of revival into the dull cold ear of
death. The last acts of patriotic sepulture were thus consummated ;
and the figure, which we can scarcely dissociate from an apotheosis,
consigned to its low, dim mansion, to be seen no more until mortal
shall put on inmiortality, and the bright garments of endless incor-
ruption."

Next to General Washington, Lafayette ranks
higher than any other public man in the general
estimation of Americans. About Jefferson and
Madison, Monroe and Adams, there are still differ-
ences of opinion ; and still greater differences re-

V A..

GENERAL LAFAYETTE.

381

specting General Jackson and Mr. Van Buren. But
Lafayette, like Washington, seems to unite all suf-
frages ; and accordingly the portrait of this venerable
Friend of Liberty is generally to be found accompa-
nying that of his hardly more illustrious companion in
arms, and partner in glory. Besides the full-length
picture of Lafayette, which is suspended on the walls
of the Hall of Representatives, opposite to that of
General Washington, there is a beautiful marble bust
of him in the library of Congress, an admirable like-
ness, and on the side of the bust are inscribed the
two following short extracts. The first is from the
words of his speech, delivered at Washington in the
Hall of Representatives on the 10th of December

1824, when he said, "What better pledge can be
given of a persevering national love of liberty, than
when those blessings are evidently the result of a
virtuous resistance to oppression, and of institutions
founded on the rights of man, and the republican
principle of self-government ?'* The second is the
closing sentence of his answer to the President's fare-
well speech, delivered in Washington, September 7»

1825, when he said, " God bless you. Sir, and all who
surround you. God bless the American people,
each of their statesmen, and the Federal government.
Accept the patriotic farewell of an overflowing heart.
Such will be its last throb, when it ceases to
beat."

In my inquiries respecting the Indians, during
our stay at Washington, I learnt many new particu-
lars, and from extremely favourable sources. The
venerable Judge White, who was an inmate
of the boarding-house in which we lived, was

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382

WASHINGTON.

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chairman of the Committee of the Senate on Indian
afPairs ; and we, therefore, saw many Indians and
Indian agents, who came to see him on business.
I became acquainted also with other Indians then at
Washington, vhrough other sources, and particularly
with some of the Cherokees, one of whose tribe in-
vented an alphabet, printed books, and gave to
the whole body an impulse of advancement, of con-
siderable force. I had leisure also to read Cap-
tain Carver's remarkable Travels among the Indians
in the Wisconsin Territory, with occasional comments
and explanations by the experienced judge, who was
so competent to the task. The result of all this was,
to convince me that the task of civilizing and instruct-
ing the Indians, if it be practicable at all, must be
directed chiefly to the younger portion of the tribes ;
as the whole career of an Indian, from his cradle to
manhood, is calculated to fix his habits and prejudices
deeper and deeper with every succeeding year, so as
to make the civilization of the adults almost hope-
less.

We had a missionary and his wife staying with
us, from New England, on their way to the Rocky
Mountains, where some tribes exist who have had no
intercourse whatever with white men : and even these
acknowledged the extreme difficulty of bringing them
into any state of civilization. Some of them, how-
ever, become nominal Christians, and evince all out-
ward respect to Christianity. But any progress
beyond that, seems very doubtful. From one of
these, our venerable friend. Judge White, received an
Indian version of the Prayer Book used by the Pro-
testant Episcopal Church of America, printed in

-i..., ^ f

LAST DAY AT vV^ASHINQTON.

383

English characters, hut in Indian words ; and
having, on the leaf preceding the title, the following
inscription : " To the Hon. Judge White, of Tennes-
see, a distinguished chief, now sitting by the great
council-fire of the American nation, in the City of
Washington; from Daniel Bread, Chief of the
Oneidas, who has the honour of sitting by the small
councj] fire of his nation, at Dutch Creek, in the
Territory of Wisconsin; Feb. 28, 1838."

It has been remarked of the Indians, that though
they have all the ferocity which is characteristic of
savage life, their feelings of generosity and gratitude
towards those whom they esteem and respect, are
much more powerful than among civilized people ;
and therefore it is that all who have lived longest
among them, and know them most intimately, appear
to entertain the most favourable opinion of their
characters, which, according to the testimony of all
parties, is never improved, but continually deteriorated
by their intercourse with the more civilized race,
because they rarely adopt their virtues, while they
speedily acquire their vices, that of drinking to
intoxication especially ; and this soon leads to the
indulgence of all the evil passions, since drunkenness,
besides being a vice in itself, is the prolific source of
almost every other.

Our last day at Washington was passed in paying
and receiving farewell visits to the friends whose
kindness we had experienced during our stay there,
many of whom we hoped we might meet again in
some other portion of the Union, where more leisure
and less dissipation might admit of our enjoying,
what Washington will rarely admit, a quiet and

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WASHINOTONc

social intercourse, suited to the tranquillity of intel-
lectual enjoyment ; and with several there was not
only the hope but almost the assurance of such meetings
in the various States in which they resided when at
home, and through which it was our intention to
travel before we should leave the country.

On the evening of Monday, the 26th of March, we
left Washington for Baltimore, by the rail-road cars,
passing over the viaduct, which forms a picturesque
object in the way ; the whole country looking better
than when we last traversed it, from the entire disap-
pearance of the snow, and the approach of spring: —
and after an agreeable ride of about two hours and a
half, over a distance of thirty-eight miles, we reached
Baltimore before eight in the evening, and found
excellent accommodation in the Eutaw House Hotel,
one of the most comfortable and commodious that we
had yet met with since our landing in the country.

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CHAP. XX.

Stay at Baltimore, and agreeable intercourse there — History of the
first foundation of Maryland — Character of Lord Baltimore, a
Catholic peer — Settlement of the colony by his son — Followed
by Roman Catholics of rank and fortune — Religious toleration
the principle of these settlers — Kind treatment and gratitude of
the Indians — Foundation of St. Mary's and Annapolis — Early
existence of neg^o slavery in the colony — Origin and cause of
the first Indian war — Progressive prosperity of Maryland as a
State — First foundation of the town of Baltimore — Elevation to
the dignity of a city in 1796 — Effects of the revolution on its
prosperity.

Our stay at Baltimore, which extended to a month,
was unusually favourable in every point of view.
The families with whom we had the good fortune to
be acquainted, were as hospitable and generous as
they were intelligent and agreeable; and carriages
were daily placed at our disposal for any excursions
we designed to make. The weather was beautiful
throughout the whole period, and scarcely a day
passed without our being taken, by one friend or
another, to some point of view in the city or its
environs, from which the most extensive and advan-
tageous prospect of the surrounding scene could be
enjoyed. We visited in succession all its public
institutions ; attended its principal churches ; were
entertained both by social and by brilliant parties ; and
had every source of information and pleasure thrown
open to us without reserve. I gladly availed myself,
VOL. 1. 2 c

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BALTIMORE.

therefore, of these valuahle advantages, to acquire
as full and accurate an account of Baltimore as was
practicable ; and to add to that which was necessarily
gleaned from other sources, the observations which
our stay here enabled me to make for myself;
the result of which will be found embodied in the
following sketch.

In describing Baltimore, it is necessary to go a
little farther back than the historj^ of the city itself,
for the purpose of showing how the influence of the
first founders of society here, continues to operate on
the taste and habits of their descendants, and to
make Baltimore essentially different from any of the
cities of the Union which we had vet visited.

It was as early as the year 1620, that the first
Lord Baltimore (then Sir Charles Calvert) obtained
from James the First, to whom he was at that
period secretary of state, a grant of land in America ;
but this being far north, in Newfoundland, the colony
he founded there did not prosper. His visit to
Virginia, eight years afterwards, inspired him with
the first idea of settling there, if possible, instead, but
being obliged to quit that country by the persecu-
tion of the Protestants, who hated and feared him
because he was a Roman Catholic, he subsequently
formed the design of obtaining a royal grant of the
lands norih of the Potomac, and at the head of the
Chesapeake, for the purpose of founding a colony of
refuge fc^ the persecuted of his own sect in Europe.
He succeeded in obtaining the grant he desired
from the next sovereign, Charles the First ; but did
not live to carry his plans into execution. His son,
however, Cecilius, the second Lord Baltimore, took

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LEONARD CALVERT.

887

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His son,
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up his father's project, and had the chartered grant
confirmed to him, with the rest of the c >tes and
title of his parent.

It was in 1632 that this charter hegan first to be
acted on. A younger hrother of Lord Baltimore,
Leonard Calvert, was appointed governor of the
province; and from the great numher of Roman
Catholics then suffering in England from the severity
of the laws against them there, the materials of the
new colony were easily obtained. But what was
extremely favourable to the future character of the
settlement, and its inhabitants, was this; that the
most intelligent as well as the most moderate of
the Catholic body in Britain, were among the
first to embark for this new land of liberty : and
as if they were determined, on their first entry
into the sanctuary themselves, to make it a place of
refuge also, for all others, they established their
colony on the liberal principles of perfect freedom
of conscience, and tolerated the open profession and
undisturbed practice of all forms of worship, and
tenets of doctrine, at the very period when the Puritan
fathers of New England, who, like themselves, had fled
from the religious persecutions of the mother-coun-
try, were acting so unworthily, as to proscribe and
persecute persons of all other faiths than their own,
and Roman Catholics especially.

The number of persons who embarked in the
first expedition with Leonard Calvert, did not
exceed 200 : but these were almost all gentlemen of
rank and fortime, accompanied by about an equal
number of adherents and attendants, all of the Roman
Catholic church. They took possession of the terri-

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tory by landing near the mouth of the Potomac in
the Chesapeake, planting there a Cross, and claim-
ing the soil " for our Saviour, and our Sovereign
Lord, the King of England." But that justice should
be done to the aboriginal possessors of the region,
a negociation was opened with the Indian chief, who
was then sovereign of these wilds: and the price
demanded for the land having been amicably adjusted,
and fairly paid, the generosity of the settlers so won
the hearts of their new Indian friends, that the chief
expressed his confidence in them in the following
striking language. " I love the English," said he,
" so well, that if they should go about to kill me, if
I had so much breath as to speak, I would command
my people not to revenge my death ; for I know that
they would not do such p. thing, except it were through
my own fault."

The town which ^hey first occupied stood on the
north point of the Potomac, at its entry into the
Chesapeake, about half way up that bay on the left ;
they called it St. Mary*s, and the whole district was
called Maryland : and so rapidly did they increase
in prosperity, in their new abode, that in the short
period of two years after their first landing, they
exported 10,000 bushels of Indian com to New
England, in exchange for the articles which they
required from thence. The intelligence of their
safety and success soon spread to England; and many,
who were not bold enough to risk the first adventure,
soon flocked around them, when all danger was past.
Lord Baltimore, too, aided the transport of all who
desired to go, by munificent grants from his own
purse J so much so, that in two years he had expended

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NEGRO SLAVERY.

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his own
xpended

£40,000 ; and in addition to this, he gave to every
settler who came out, a present of fifty acres of land,
in absolute right of fee— still adhering to the origi-
nal principle of tolerating all religious opinions, and
not assuming supremacy for any mode of faith or
worship.

In 1639, the first representative assembly was
formed in Maryland, and the persons elected by the
votes of others to sit as members of this assembly
were called burgesses. But one of the most striking
singularities of the law prescribing this election of
representatives was this, that it enacted, that if any
freemen refrained from giving their votes to any
representative at the time of election, they should
have liberty to sit in the assembly in person them-
selves ; the principle being probably this — that if a
man did not vote for any one of the persons put
before him as a candidate, it was because he had no
confidence in him as his representative ; and there-
fore, not having delegated his rights to any one to
represent them for him, he should go and represent
them for himself.

It is remarkable, however, that notwithstanding
the extreme liberality which characterized the con-
duct of Lord Baltimore, and the early settlers, on
religious matters, they were not superior to their
neighbours in their respect for civil liberty, as
negroes were held in slavery by them from the begin-
ning ; and in an act of the Maryland assembly, as
early as 1639» the " people" are declared to consist
of *' all Christian inhabitants, slaves only excepted."
This is the more remarkable, inasmuch as the Catho-
lics of those days had shown more abhorrence in

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390

BALTUIORE.

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general than Protestants, to the state of slavery;
for while Sir John Hawkins was tolerated by the
Protestant Queen Elizabeth, in the slave-trade which
he first originated on the coast of Africa, the Roman
Pontiff, Leo X. had declared, when a controversy on
this subject had been submitted to him for his deci-
sion, that ** not only the Christian religion, but
Nature herself, cried out against slavery."

Not long after this, in 1641, the great accumula-
tion of settlers led to enroachments on the rights of
the aboriginal Indians, by persons less scrupulous
than their predecessors ; and by the agency of ardent
spirits, which they first introduced to the knowledge
and use of these unhappy people, they so defrauded
them, as to excite universal indignation among the
tribes, and provoke an Indian war. This lasted for
two years, with losses on both sides, and advantages
to neither ; and when peace was happily restored, a
law was enacted by the Maryland assembly, which
made it illegal to obtain grants of lands from Indians
without the consent of the legislature ; which consti-
tuted it felony to sell or kidnap any friendly Indians ;
and made it a high misdemeanour to put them in
possession of arms and ammunition, or to supply
them with spirituous liquors — then, as now, the
most prolific source of crime and misery to all who
used them excessively themselves, or administered
them to others.

In 1649, the principles of religious toleration
which Lord Baltimore had been the first to estab-
lish by his individual authority in the Western
world, was embodied in " an act concerning reli-
gion," passed by the Maryland assembly, composed

• i

RELIGIOUS FR£EDOM.

391

ivery;
by the
which
loman
jrsy on
s deci-
le but

iimula-
ghts of
ipulous
ardent
wledge
rauded
3ng the
sted for
antages
;ored, a
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them in
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all who
uistered

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ng reli-
jmposed

almost wholly of Roman Catholic members. In this
act, the preamble asserted the dangerous conse-
quences of attempting to enforce the conscience, and
the benefits of leaving it free ; and the enactments
imposed penalties of different degrees on all who
should molest individuals on account of their reli-
gious worship, or who should apply opprobrious
names or epithets to persons on account of their
faith. What is the more remarkable is, that while
the Catholics of Maryland act^d with so much liberality
to their Protestant brethren, these last, who had
many of them come to seek refuge from Protestant
persecution in the north, returned this liberality with
the basest ingratitude, and sought by every means to
crush those by whom they had been so hospitably
received.

In 1661, at the period of the Restoration, the
colony of Maryland contained about 12,000 inhabit-
ants ; and in I666 these had increased to 16,000.
The number of vessels trading from England to this
province was estimated at more than 100. Labour-
ers of every kind were so amply employed, and so
liberally paid, that want was unknown ; and many
persons who had been unfortunate in business at
home, repaired here for a few years, to retrieve their
misfortunes, and were almost uniformly successful.

In 1676, the venerable founder of this colony,
Cecilius Lord Baltimore, died full of age and honours;
and the very maxim which he is represented as con-
stantly expressing and enforcing, and on which h'
policy was founded, gives him a high claim to distinc-
tion, as a man of a sound head and generous heart.
It was a favourite saying with him "that by concord.

I' y-

392

BALTIMORE.

a small colony may grow into a great and renowned
nation ; but that by dissension, miglity and glorious
kingdoms have declined and fallen into nothing ;" and
all history testifies to its truth. The colony suffered
no reverse, however, from the death of its first
patron, as the son, by whom he was succeeded in his
titles and estates, Charles, the third Lord Baltimore,
inherited all his father's enlarged views and generous
principles, A very happy allusion is made by one
of our English poets (Burroughs) to the virtues of
Calvert and Penn, the two most just and liberal of
all the founders of colonies in modern times, when
he thus adverts especially to their legal provisions for
religious toleration —

" Laws formed to harmonize contrarlous creeds,
And heal the wounds through which a nation bleeds ;
Laws, mild, impartial, tolerant, and fixed,
A bond of union for a people mixed ;
Such as good Calvert framed for Baltimore,
And Penn, the Nmna of the Atlantic shore."

After various vicissitudes, the intolerant spirit of
the Protestants at home so gained the ascendancy,
that in 1692, under William and Mary, the proprietary
government of Lord Baltimore was taken from him,
for no other reason than that he was a Roman
Catholic, after it had been exercised with the greatest
justice and mildness for a period of fifty-six years.
In 1695, the Church of England was declared, by
law, to be the constitution of the State of Maryland.
Catholics were prohibited under the severest penalties
from all acts of public worship, and even from exer-
cising the profession of teachers in education.

In spite of all this re-action, the colony went on

TOBACCO CURRENCY.

393

Dwned
orious
;" and
iffered
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in his
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nerous
by one
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when
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m exer-

went on

advancing in prosperity and population. In IG90
the province contained 30,000 persons, and ex-
ported as much of its principal produce, tobacco,
as the much older and far more extensive province
of Virginia. In I669, the town of Annapolis, higher
up the Chesapeake, was substituted for St. Mary's as
the capital ; and this still continues to be the seat of
legislation for the State, its central position giving it
the preference over all other places for this purpose.

It was not until I7II that the town of Baltimore
began to be laid out and built upon, the first sale
of land for that purpose being made at that period,
consisting of 31 acres, and subsequently augmented
by other sales of adjoining tracts, amounting to 550
acres. In 1729, an act of assembly was passed,
authorizing the erection of a town on the north side
of the river Patapsco. The ground selected for it
was sold by the proprietors at the rate of forty
shillings an acre for the absolute fee, and the com-
missioners, authorized to conduct the purchase,
bargained to pay this amount in tobacco at the rate
of a penny per pound ; for at this period, and long
before, tobacco may be said to have formed the com-
mon currency of Maryland : — purchases were made
by it, and salaries were paid in it ; even the revenue
was often collected in it; besides being used for
remittances to England, as well as for the payment of
local dues — for then, gold and silver money was very
scarce, and paper currency was not then substituted,
though it was soon after abundantly used.

The progress of the town under the old colonial
system was slow, compared with its more rapid pro-
gress since. In 175*2, the number of houses were

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394

BALTIMORE.

twenty-five, only four of which were of brick, and
all the rest of wood. In 1752, a brig and a sloop
were the only vessels actually belonging to the port ;
and about the same period, the only newspaper
published in Maryland, was issued at Annapolis,
under the title of the " Maryland Gazette," one of
the numbers of which for the year 1752 contains ai
advertisement for a schoolmaster, of " a good and sober
character, who understands teaching English, writ-
ing, and arithmetic," and who, it is added, "will meet
with very good encouragement from the inhabitants
of Baltimore town, if well recommended." In 1767»
Baltimore had sufficiently increased in importance
to be made the county-town, instead of Joppa, which
formerly enjoyed that distinction. The removal of
the county-court to this spot, added at once much to
the importance of Baltimore; and in 177^, the first
newspaper was established in the town, by Mr.
Goddard, of Rhode Island, who came down from
Philadelphia for this purpose ; but an attempt to
establish a circulating library at the same time by a
Mr. Joseph Rathel, failed for want of adequate
support I

The revolution, which achieved the independence
of the United States of America, did for Baltimore
what it effected for every other town and city in the
country — gave it a greater impetus of advancing and
accelerating prosperity than all previous causes put
together. Baltimore soon became the seat of an exten-
sive foreign commerce, by the exportation of tobacco
to Europe, of flour to the West Indies, and of the
produce of the fisheries of the Chesapeake to places
nearer at hand. Ship-building began to be practised

FAST-SAILING SHIPS.

395

on an extensive scale ; the carrying trade of Europe
was shared largely by the Baltimore ship-owners ;
and in 1790, some of her vessels went round the
Cape of Good Hope, to the Isle of France.

In 1793 a new impulse was given to the prosperity
of Baltimore by an unlooked-for cause. The revo-
lution in St. Domingo, which followed almost
immediately that of the mother-country, France,
caused a great number of the French colonists to
seek an asylum in Baltimore. Many rich families
having succeeded in escaping with their wealth,
brought it to Baltimore with them; and, in addi<
tion to the substantial capital thus added to the
means of the city, there was an importation also of
talent, ingenuity, gentlemanly manners, and generous
hospitality, which harmonized well with the spirit
that still prevailed among the descendants of the
high rank and gentle breeding of the first founders
of the colony.

It was in 1796 that Baltimore received the dig-
nity of a city, by a charter of incorporation for a
mayor and city council ; and about this period, its
prosperity was higher than at any previous time ; as
its superiority in the fast-sailing qualities of its ships
and schooners, known by the name of the " Balti-
more clippers," gave it the advantage of effecting
quicker voyages than the vessels of any other port
could accomplish ; and in cases of war between rival
nations, they were enabled, by means of these swift-
sailing vessels, to break almost every naval blockade ;
to carry on with great success the various contraband
trades of the West India Islands, and the continental
ports of the Spanish dominions in Mexico and South

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396

BALTIMORE.

America. The supplies of imported goods from
Europe for the newly-settled territories in the great
valley of the Mississippi, came also chiefly through
Baltimore, and were transported from thence across
the Alleghany mountains, as the opening of the
channel by New Orleans, and the use of steam-boats
on the great western rivers, had not then begun.

In 1812 the war with Great Britain affected Bal-
timore in common with all the sea-ports of the
United States ; but Baltimore suffered less than any
other, because nearly all her large ships were abroad
engaged in the carrying trade between nations at
peace with each other, while their fast-sailing " clip-
pers" eluded the blockade of the Chesapeake by the
British squadron, not a vessel of which could ever
overtake them.

In 1814 the British forces landed at the mouth of
the Patapsco, close to Baltimore, when a battle was
fought between the British and Americans, which
ended in the repulse of the former, and the death of
their commander. General Ross ; after which the
British retreated to their ships, and did not again
renew the attack.

When the peace of 1815 came, the change ope-
rated most favourably on Baltimore ; and for the
few years next immediately succeeding to this, its
shipping and its population greatly increased. Its
commercial operations abroad were extended to
India, Batavia, and China, in the east — and to the
Islands of the Pacific, in the south and west ; while
to almost every large port of Europe vessels from
Baltimore found their way. Imports of British and
Erench, as well as German manufactures, increased

^■r

■t i

PROGRESS OF PROSPERITY.

397

■ ? i I

in an equal degree ; the value of land and houses
rose in each succeeding year ; and this state of con-
stantly accumulating wealth has gone on, with slight
and occasional reverses, till the present time, when,
instead of twenty-five houses and a population of
about one hundred persons, which it possessed in the
year 1752, it has now nearly 10,000 houses, and a
population of 100,000 souls ; and, instead of the
brig and the schooner, which were then the only two
vessels belonging to the port, it has now about 1,500
vessels of various kinds, amounting at least to
100,000 tons. Such is the brief but instructive
history of Baltimore — a history which, like that of
New York, shows what can be achieved by the indus-
try and energy of man, when placed under the protec-
tion of equal laws and free and liberal institutions.

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CHAP. XXT.

Topographical situation of Baltimore — Finest points of view
in the panorama — Form and plan of the city — Private resi-
dences and public buildings — Exchange, custom-house, and
city -hall — Court-house, jail, and penitentiary — Separation
of the sexes in the latter — Night-cells open to constant
supervision- -Work-shops for the daily labour of the convicts
— Produce of their work sustains the institution — Plan of go-
vernment, and internal economy — Places of public worship in
Baltimore — The Catholic cathedral, beauties and defects — Pic-
tures of the interior, presented by France — Unitarian church, ex-
terior and interior — Episcopalian, Presbyterian, and Baptist
churches — Medical college for students — Benevolent institutions
of Baltimore — Asylum at Calverton, plan and condition — The
hospital under the Catholic sisters of charity — The Infirmary,
illustration of Catholic zeal — Dispensary, orphan asylum, marine
society — Penitent female refuge society, and others — Baltimore
characterized as the " monumental city" — Washington monu-
ment, column and statue — The Battle momunent, in Monument
square — The Armistead monument, near the city spring — Foun-
tains or enclosed springs in Baltimore — The city spring — The
Western fountain — The Eastern fountain, the Centre fountain
— Places of public amusement — Theatre, circus, concert and
ball-room — Museum, public gardens, race course — Municipal
government, commerce, and shipping — Capacities for trade,
banks, and insurance offices.

»,r> '•>

Th7. topographical situation of Baltimore is, like that
of all the American cities we had yet seen, extremely
well chosen and advantageous. The town is built
around the skirts of an inlet on the north side of the
Patapsco river, which discharges itself into the Che-
sapeake, at a distance of about fifty miles from the

FINEST VIEWS OF THE CITY.

399

north-eastern extremity of that long gulf or bay,
and about 120 miles above the entrance to it, between
the Capes of Virginia, as Cape Henry and Cape
Charles are called. A finer situation for a sea-port,
it is therefore difficult to imagine ; and the number
and size of the various rivers that flow from the east
and west, but especially from the latter quarter, into
this great estuary, give it the advantage of water
communication with extensive tracts of country in the
interior ; while the path for its ships from their docks
to the Atlantic Ocean is perfectly clear, and unob-
structed by any impediment in the way of navigation.
The finest views of the city are obtained from the
following points, each of which we visited in succes-
sion. The first is from the Federal Hill, which lies
to the south of the city, and across an arm of the
water which runs up like an inlet, or creek, below
the hill and the town. This hill is about 100 feet in
elevation, and on its summit are a station-house for
look-out down the Chesapeake bay, and a telegraph
for communicating the arrival of ships while they are
yet at a distance in the offing. From it the view is
extensive and beautiful. To the north, the whole
city is spread out like a picture, and every one of the
principal buildings can be seen ; but the view em-
braces too many objects for any picture except a
panorama. To the south and south-east, the eye
extends down the Patapsco into the Chesapeake, the
distant horizon being the long level line of the sea ;
and in the same direction, but nearer at hand, are
the projecting points by which the entry to the har-
bour of Baltimore are guarded, and on one of which
stands Fort M*Henry.

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400

BALTIMORE.

Between the Federal Hill and the city, and at the
foot of the spectator on the north, is the Basin, as
this inlet of water is called, in which 20 or SO steam-
boats of various forms and sizes, with a large nmn-
ber of schooners and other small-craft are crowded
along the wharves ; while at Fell's Point on the east,
and the city-dock in the same direction, the larger
vessels are moored in tiers and groups in great
numbers.

The second view is from the gallery at the top
of Washington's Monument, which gives you a
complete map of the city laid out at your feet,
and enables you to see the direction of almost every
street, and the position of all the public buildings, '
with Federal Hill, Fort M*Henry, and the Chesa^
peake in the distance to the south and south-east,
this monument being on the northern extremity of
the citv.

The third view is from the Medical College and
from the hill beyond it, which being on the east,
gives you a new and equally interesting view in the
opposite direction, and thus completes the series.

The form of Baltimore is irregular ; but approaches
nearer to a square than to any other shape. As
now built upon, it is about two miles in length from
east to west, and a mile and half from north to south,
but the ground is marked off for lew buildings, and
streets are mapped and planned for a considerable
distance in each direction beyond these limits. The
site is not level, like that of New York or Phila-
delphia, but the ground has many risings and decli-
vities, which give it a picturesque appearance. The
number of the elevations and depressions exceeds

PLAN OF THE CITY.

401

it the
in, as
[team-

num-
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e east,
larger

great

be top
you a
r feet,
t every
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ries.
roaches
le. As
th from
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igs, and
iderahle
ts. The
)T Phila^
d decli-
e. The
exceeds

fifty ; and the highest of the former, on which the
monument of Washington is placed, is at least 150
feet above the i^drbour.

This inequality of surface is favourable to the
cleanliness of the streets, and to the exercise and
health of the population. It gives also great
variety of view to the several openings through the
streets towards the surrounding country, and affords
many charming prospects of the distance, as well as
of the immediate environs.

The plan, or laying out of the city, is characterized
by the same uniformity and regularity which mark the
other cities of the United States. The streets are
generally broad, few being under 50 feet, and some
80 and 100. These cross each other mostly at right
angles ; the few deviations that here and there appear.

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BALTIMORE.

being but exceptions to the general rule. The centres
of all the streets are paved, strongly though roughly,
and are kept remarkably clean. There are side-
pavements to each, mostly made of red bricks placed
in a diagonal interlacing, which is agreeable to the
eye, and dry and comfortable to the feet.

The business part of the city is in the neighbour-
hood of the water, along the wharves, from Light
Street, at the head of the basin, west, to Thames
Street, at the extremity of Fells' Point to the east.
The north end of the town is the fashionable quarter,
in the vicinity of the Washington Monument, and all
around it east and west ; and the principal prome-
nade of the gay pedestrians is Baltimore Street,
which runs nearly east and west through the centre
of the city, having about an equal portion of it north
and south. This being the great thoroughfare and
place for stores, was originally called Market Street,
but it is now called Baltimore Street. It is at
least two miles in length, and corresponds to the
Broadway of New York, the Pennsylvania Avenue of
Washington, and the Regent Street of London ;
though in length, breadth, and general style or cha-
racter, it is more like Oxford Street in London than
either.

A small muddy stream, called Jones's Falls, runs
from north to south through the eastern part of the
city, but, instead of contributing either to its beauty
or its advantage, it is a source of considerable expense
and vexation, from the great quantities of alluvial
mud which it brings down every year from the rich
lands of the Patapsco, over which it flows, and which
requires the constant use of many expensive machines

PRIVATE RESIDENCES.

403

ntrea
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side-
laced
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to prevent its filling up the harbour into which it
runs.

The private residences of the more wealthy inha-
bitants of Baltimore are handsome and commodious,
without being imposing or ostentatious. There are
no great squares that can compare with Washington
Square in New York ; nor any terraces or rows of
houses equal to those of Lafayette Street, or Waverley
Place in that city, or some of the large old private
mansions near the Battery at the lower end of the
Broadway : but, taken as a whole, there is a greater
uniformity of neatness, taste, and substantial comfort
in the dwellings of the first class in Baltimore, than in
New York.

Of the residences of the middle classes, the greater
number are also excellent ; and even those of the
mechanics and artisans are such as in England would
be deemed comfortable abodes for persons far above
that condition. There is not nearly so large an
admixture of mean wooden houses with the better
kind of brick and stone dwellings, as in Washington
and New York ; and the whole air and aspect of
Baltimore is that of a city of substantial wealth and
general prosperity, without the least semblance of
ostentation or attempt at display.

The houses are chiefly built of fine red bricks,
which are manufactured of excellent quality, and
beautifully worked here ; and as in the neighbourhood
of the town there are fine quarries of granite and
marble, these two materials are used for surbase-
ments and flights of steps, and both are of \\\q finest
colour and quality.

Of the public buildings of Baltimore, it may be

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said that they are fully equal to the size and wants
of the city, and are each well adapted to the purposes
for which they were designed.

The first, in order of importance, is perhaps the
Exchange, which is situated nearly in the centre of

' b ^<

the business-part of the city, in Gay Street, near the
water. It 'was built in 1815, by an incorporated
company, from the design and under the superinten-
dence of the city architect, Mr. B. H. Latrobe. The
front of this building, in Gay Street, is 255 feet, and
its depth is 141 feet. It is four stories in height,
including the basement, which is vaulted throughout,
and the whole is crowned by a dome, which rises to
the height of 115 feet above the pavement. There
are three separate entrances into this great build-
ing, from the streets to which its several fronts are
presented; namely, from Gay Street, Water Street,
and Second Street j and on the fourth side, under a

'.( ■■ill.'

PUBLIC BUILDINGS.

40.')

colonnade, is another entrance to the Exchange read-
ing-rooms.

The interior hall used as the " Change," for the
assemblage of merchants from one to two o'clock in
the day, is 53 feet square ; and east and west of this
are colonnades composed of six Ionic colunms each,
the shafts of which are single blocks of fine Italian
marble, and the style and proportions according to
the best Greek models. The several compartments
of the building are furnished with every requisite for
the information of men of business, and with news-
papers from all parts of the world ; and the edifice
itself is a great ornament to that quarter of the city
in which it stands.

The Custom House offices are now in a wing of the
Exchange ; but there is a noble edifice in progress
of erection on the opposite side of Gay Street, to form
the new Custom House of Baltimore, which was
begun under General Jackson's administration : it
is now nearly roofed in ; and when completed, it will
be a gT' H ornament to this quarter of the town.

The City Hall, which is used as the seat of the
municipal government, and as the depository of the
public records, is greatly inferior, in size and beauty,
to the City Hall of New York ; yet it is a substantial
and convenient building, and adequate to all the
purposes for which it is required.

The Court House, in wh* h the courts of justice
hold their sittings, is a large and stately edifice in
Monument Square and Lexington Street. Its archi-
tect, Mr. George Milliman, is said to have been a
self-educated man ; and it is a proof of the absence
of a well-regulated taste, that he should have placed
the principal front of his building on the declivity

1 1

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406

BALTIMORE.

of a steep hill in Lexington Street, and the end
of the building on the level platform of Monument
Square, where the front certainly ought to be. The
consequence of this is, that the edifice does not look
half so commanding, in an architectural point of view,
as it would have done by the other arrangement. Its
front is 145 feet in length, and it is 65 feet deep.
It rises to the height of five or six stories, is built
of brick, with Ionic pilasters of marble running up
the whole height of the building from the base to the
cornice, and has a small circular tower, or cupola,
crowning its roof. Its interior arrangements are so
spacious and commodious, as to give it the reputation
of being the most perfect court-house in the United
States.

The County Jail of Baltimore is another of its
public buildings, that may be spoken of with praise.
It was built by Mr. R. C. Long, an architect of
great taste. It stands in the eastern quarter of the
city, near Madison Street, but being encompassed
with high walls, is not so ornamental in its immediate
vicinity, as when seen from one of the commanding
eminences in other parts of the town. It is spacious,
airy, fire-proof, clean, and well-regulated under the
superintendence of a board of visitors.

The Penitentiary is another of the public buildings
coimected with the administration of justice, which is
of essential benefit to the town. It was completed
in 1811 ; previous to which time, the criminals were
sentenced to labour on the high roads, but since then
they have been sent to this establishment. It is in
the same quarter of the city as the jail, but farther
to the north-east, being seated on a gentle eminence
to the north of Madison Street, in an airy and healthy

PENITENTIARY.

407

le end
lumen t
. The
3t look
f view,
it. Its
t deep.
s built
ing up .
J to the
cupola,
J are so
utation
United

r of its
praise,
itect of
r of the
npassed
mediate
[landing
pacious,
ider the

uildings
which is
impleted
als were
ice then
It is in
t farther
sminencc
1 healthy

spot. It is composed of a centre building and two
wings, the basement of which is of stone, and the
upper parts of brick. The centre building has a
southern aspect, and is used by the keeper's family,
the officers, and guards.

The wings are appropriated to the prisoners.
The sexes are separated, and there are cells for
solitary confinement of all the convicts at night, so
arranged, that while there is light and air for each,
the guards can see the interior of every cell, and
exercise a constant vigilance of supervision. There
are also ranges of workshops for the occupation
of every individual in labour of some descrip-
tion or other during the day, which extend over a
space of 250 feet in length and 25 in width, some of
them having two stories in height, but the greater
number being only one.

Here all are obliged to labour while they have
health and strength ; and the tasks assigned to them
are rigidly exacted, under penalties sufficiently severe
to enforce their performance. The principal kind
of labour is weaving, which all understand, or can
soon be taught ; and the produce of their labour has
not only paid the whole expense of the institution,
but in some years left a surplus, which keeps a fund
in hand for meeting deficiencies, or carrying forward
improvements, as may be thought best.

The government of the prison is vested in twelve
directors resident in Baltimore, who are appointed
annually by the executive council of the State ; and
these appoint a resident keeper, sixteen deputy
keepers and guard, a book-keeper, a clerk, and a
physician. The directors meet at the jail in a body

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408

METROPOLITAN CATHOLIC CATHEDRAL.

once a month ; and two of their number, as a visiting
committee, meet at the prison every week, so that the
management is vigilant and complete.

Of public edifices for religious worship, there are
a great number in Baltimore ; and these, generally,
above the average of such buildings for architectural
beauty.

The first, in size and importance, is the Metropo-
litan Catholic Cathedral, which occupies a com-
manding situation on one of the most elevated sum-
mits of the town, at the comer of Cathedral and
Mulberry Streets. It was designed by Mr. Latrobe,

but his original plans, which were very beautiful,
were obliged to be abandoned for less expensive
ones, the restriction in funds obliging him to reduce
his building, in size and decoration, to a much hum-
bler standard than was at first intended. This is
necessary to be stated, to account for many of the
discrepancies it exhibits. It was begun in 1800,

CATHOLIC CATHEDRAL.

409

IJItllrnifiP

and completed up to its present condition in 1821,
since which it has remained stationary, though it is
still wanting in its chief ornament, the fine Ionic
portico, which ought to adorn its west front, and
the absence of which is a deformity that completely
mars the general effect of the building.*

Its form is that of a long cross ; the length of the
whole, from the altar to the portico of entrance, be-
ing 190 feet ; and its breadth, at the arms of the
cross, 177 feet ; while its height, from the pavement
to the top of the cross that surmomits the dome, is
127 feet. The walls of the exterior are perfectly
plain, excepting only the tablets left by the archi-
tect, for sculpture, but which have been strangely
disfigured, in an architectural point of view, by the
long passages from Scripture inscribed on their
surfaces — a most unusual practice on the exteriors of
religious buildings. The dome is extremely flat,
representing a section of about one-fourth of a globe
downward from the pole ; while, at the west end,
where the absent Ionic portico should be, rise two
tall towers, like minarets, crovvned with Saracenic
cupolas, such as are commonly seen in Constantino-
ple and the larger cities of the East ; and these
towers are loftier than the dome, which they thus
over-top, and leave below in the shade. If the
Ionic portico were built, its fine fluted columns, and
noble pediment, with sculptured tympanum and
tablets, would eclipse these incongruities in the
building, and give a Greek character to it, notwith-

* The portico is given in the engraving accompanying this,
which was takeu from Mi-. Latrobe's original drawing of the build-
ing.

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410

BALTIMORE.

standing its defects; but as it stands, with grey
stone walls, perfectly plain in the exterior, the abrupt
termination of the westcTi front, in a dead high
'lank wall, surmounted with a brick screen, and
Hanked by the two Saracenic towers, it looks much
more like a Turkish mosque than a Catholic cathe-
dral ; and if Arabic inscriptions occupied the tablets
of the exterior, instead of those in Roman cha-
racters, which now fill it, the resemblance would be
perfect.

It is in the interior of this edifice, however, that
its principal beauties are to be seen. The dome,
which crowns the centre of the cathedral, is 231 feet
in circumference externally, and 207 feet internally,
and it is so relieved on the inside with panels and
rosettes, as to take off the appearance of the size,
and give great richness to the whole. The light
from above is also skilfully managed, so as to combine
great effulgence with sufficient softness and general
diffusion of the rays.

The high altar is very imposing, both in its archi-
tecture and decorations. The organ in this cathe-
dral is the largest in the United States, having
6,000 pipes and 36 stops.

There are two fine pictures here also — one, a pro-
sent from Louis the Sixteenth of France, to the arch-
bishop of that day j and t' other, a present from
Charles the Tenth to the present metropolitan. The
first is the Descent from the Cross, painted by Pau-
lin Guerin ; and the second is a representation of
St. Louis burying his officers and soldiers slain
before Tunis. It is by the celebrated Steuben ; and
the subject of the picture is thus narrated : — " St.

■■( ,•'

PAINTINGS.

411

h grey
abrupt
d high
Ti, and
s much
} cathe-
tablets
n cha-
)uld be

er, that
B dome,
231 feet
;ernally,
els and
he size,
lie light
combine
general

ts archi-
is cathe-
, having

le, a prc-
the arch-
ent from
w. The
I by Pau-
itation of
ers slain
ben ; and
i :— " St.

Louis could find no one to bury the dead of his army,
for fear of contagion ; but this heroic prince could
not bear to see the bodies of so many brave men
exposed to be devoured by hyaenas and birds of prey.
To encourage his army, he began the work of cha-
rity, accompanied by his armour-bearer and chaplain.
He is represented as holding the corpse of an officer,
who is his relative, which he is depositing in a rude
grave made in the sands." The picture is very
beautiful, and harmonizes well with the surrounding
architectural ornaments.

Amidst the splendour of this cathedral, with its
grand altar, lofty crucifix, and over-shadowing
domes, there is a peculiarity which is never witnessed
in the Catholic countries of Spain, Portugal, or Italy,
namely, the arrangement of pews for separate fami-
lies, instead of the broad and open pavement, where
all the worshippers are placed on the same level be-
fore their Maker, in the building dedicated to his
worship. This innovation the Catholics of Balti-
more, no doubt, borrowed from the Protestants, with
whom it is universal. There is another arrange-
ment, however, to which both Protestants and Ca-
tholics appear to me to have given too ready an as-
sent, and that is, the separation of the coloured races
from the whites, even in the worship of their com-
mon Deity.

There is a separate gallery for the coloured people
at Baltimore, in this, and in most other of the
Christian places of worship ; a distinction which
could not be made in any cathedral of the usual
Catholic construction in Europe, and which no Mo-
hammedan community would permit for a moment in

m^ iit

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I, ■»"»/■

412

BALTIMORE.

any mosque of their dominions ; yet the Preshyte-
rians and Episcopalians at Washington constantly
enforced this separation of the coloured and the white
races in their worship ; as if the same Saviour had
not died for the redemption of both ; as if salvation
was not attainable by both on equal terms ; and as if
the distinction of colour was to be preserved here-
after, in the assignment of their stations in a future
worldj as well as in the present.

In the immediate neighbourhood of the Catholic
Cathedral, is the Unitarian place of worship, which,
in its general style of architecture, has some resem-
blance to the former, and it is justly accounted one
of the handsomest religious edifices of the city. The
building is 108 feet long and 78 feet broad. The
portico is of the Tuscan order, with three arched
entrances ; and in the centre of the pediment which
it supports, is a sculptured figure, intended to repre-
sent the "Angel of Truth/* surrounded by rays of
light, and holding a scroll on which is inscribed
TQ MQNQGEQS " To the Only God." From this
portico, five bronze doors, in imitation of those of the
Vatican at Rome, open into the building, three
leading to the body of the edifice, and two to the
galleries.

The interior of the church is a square, formed by
four equal arches of 33 feet span, which support a
dome of 55 feet diameter. The summit of the cupola,
which is flattened like that of the Catholic cathedral,
is 80 feet high, and is terminated by a star of light
through the glass that crowns the summit, the whole
of the dome being an Imitation of that of the Pan-
theon at Rome. The pulpit stands upon a double

MEDICAL COLLEGE.

413

resbyte-
iistaiitly
le white
)ur had
alvation
iid as if
d here-
future

ZJatholic
, which,

resem-
ited one
The
L The

arched
it which
to repre-
r rays of
nscribed
rom this
se of the
g, three
o to the

►rmed by
ipport a
e cupola,
athedral,
' of light
he whole
the Pan-
a double

pedestal, the lowest of which is of a fine green varie-
gated marble, from Connecticut, like the verd antique
of the ancient buildings ; and the upper pedestal is of
fine white marble. The pulpit itself is of the wood
called bird*s-eye maple. The organ in this church is
very singular in shape, but appropriate and beautiful.
It has the external form of the ancient lyre, the per-
pendiouLir pipes representing the strings — the
instrument being about 23 feet high, and I7 feet
wide, and containing 1,400 pipes and 22 stops. It
was designed and built under the superintendence of
Maximilian Godefiroy, and opened in 1818.

Of the other churches of Baltimore, numerous as
they are, there are none remarkable for the beauty of
their architecture ; St. Paul's, which may be called
the aristocratic or fashionable church of the Episco-
palians, is a brick building, cast into the shade by
the disproportionate heaviness and height of its tower
and steeple. The first Presbyterian church, with its
pair of towers and cupolas, is a large and substantial
building ; and the first Baptist church, with its Ionic
portico, and circular dome, is also a fine edifice ; but
these are all that possess any claim to notice on archi-
tectural grounds, among the forty or fifty places of
worship, of different denominations, which the city
contains.

Among the other public buildings of Baltimore
may be mentioned the Medical College, on the eastern
extremity of the city, which, though a substantial
and commodious edifice, and well adapted, in all it«
interior arrangements, to the purpose for which it is
designed, is really a deformity instead of an orna-
ment to the view, from the absurdly lofty and narrow

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4.14

BALTIMORE.

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front which it presents to the west ; and the effect
of this absurdity is greatly increased by the
planting of four white pyramids on the summit of
the roof, which attract the attention of the observer,
and excite pity for the taste that could design any-
thing so incongruous as these appear.

The benevolent institutions of Baltimore are
numerous, and well sustained. The first that we
visited was the Asylum, at Calverton, a distance of
about a mile and a half from the city, towards the
west. This building occupies a fine airy position,
commanding most extensive and agreeable views of
the country. It extends over a frontage of 375 feet,
and a depth of about 50 feet. The central build-
ing was originally the private residence of a Balti-
more banker : but on its being vacated by him, it
was taken for an asylum, and two wings added to it,
one on each side, east and west. Attached to the
estate, are about 500 acres of land, with a stream of
water running through it, and the cultivation of
this land yields a large part of the revenue of the
institution.

The building and estate are the property of the
State government of Maryland, and therefore no rent
is payable for either. To it, the poor of the city and
county of Baltimore, who have fallen into distress,
either from their own imprudence or any other
cause, are sent, as to an alms-house, and here they
receive food, shelter, and clothing, as long as they
remain. They are charged, however, on account,
twenty cents, or about tenpence English, per day,
for their subsistence, while they do not work ; but
the moment they are able to labour in any branch of

ALMS-HOUSE.

415

I eflFect
fy the
imit of
server,
^ any-

►re are
lat we
,iice of
•ds the
Qsition,
Lews of
75 feet,

build-

Balti-
him, it
id to it,

to the
ream of
ition of

of the

y of the
no rent
city and
iistress,
y other
?re they
as they
Lccount,
per day,
rk; but
ranch of

occupation that can be found for them there, thev
begin to receive their food, clothing, and shelter free :
and have seven cents per day allowed them, besides
this, for their labour, by which the industrious soon
pay off their account j and some accumulate a little
sum, with which to go out into the world again.
This constant occupation is favourable to health
and morality, and preserves habits of industry, all of
which are of great value to the paupers themselves,
while at the same time the institution is benefited by
the profits arising from their labour, over and above
the sums paid for it.

The average number of persons in this institution
is about five hundred ; at present there were nearly
eight hundred ; the commercial pressure in Baltimore
having produced the same effects as elsewhere, in
throwing labourers out of employment. But the
medical gentleman who accompanied us over the
institution, assured us, that, in nine cases out of ten,
intemperate drinking was the cause of persons finding
their way into the Asylum ; and he expressed his
belief, that if, by legislative enactment, the distillation
and sale of ardent spirits could be positively pro-
hibited under the severest penalties, that nine-tenths
of the disease, poverty, and crime of the country
would be swept away at a blow. The central part
of the edifice is occupied by the superintendent and
officers of the establishment.

The wings are divided into wards, in which there
is a separation of the males from the females ;
of the latter who have children, from those who have
not ; and also of the coloured, from the white in-
mates. Of the whites, the women seemed the most

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BALTIMORE.

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abandoned, and most difficult to keep in order, or
reclaim ; and of the two races, the coloured were by
far the most obedient, decent, and industrious ; and
their wards were in every respect better kept by
themselves, than the wards of the whites by their
occupants, although they laboured under the dis-
advantage of being more crowded, and of occupying
the least commodious part of the building.

The revenue produced by the working of the
the farm, and by the labour and production of the
inmates, is nearly equal to the entire maintenance of
the whole establishment, though they have often
many unproductive occupants, as young children —
extremely aged or decrepit persons — some blind —
others diseased — and some insane — all of whom are
taken great care of. Whenever a deficiency occurs
in the funds, the representation of this to the city-
council of Baltimore obtains the requisite relief.
Each ward of the city elects a manager for the poor,
and these appoint four trustees, by the joint superin-
tendence of which the whole is well conducted.

In one of the late reports of this institution, the
following passage occurs : ** The trustees have fre-
quently adverted to the fruitful source of nearly all
the pauperism that comes under their notice, the
intemperate use of ardent spirits. They have now
the satisfaction, however, to say, that the rule of the
institution, forbidding the use of any vinous, spirituous,
or fermented liquor, as an article of diet, has been
strictly enforced; and the late harvest at the farm,
which employed several hands, was secured without
anv such allowance. "

It is to be hoped that the frequent reiteration of

■¥ i

HOSPITAL.

417

ler, or
ere by
[s; and
ept by
y their
he dis-
upying

of the
of the
lance of
e often
idren —
blind—
loni are
r occurs
he city-
relief,
le poor,
superin-
jd.

ion, the
ave fre-
early all
dee, the
ave now
le of the
(irituous,
tias been
he farm,
1 without

Tation of

convictions like these will at length awaken the
attention of governments, generally, to the duty of
banishing, by legislative prohibition, the manufacture
of and traffic in this deadly poison — the source of no
one earthly good, to counterbalance the countless
miseries which it carries in its train.

The next of the benevolent institutions which we
visited in Baltimore was the Hospital. This stands
on the opposite side of the city, being on the east,
while the Alms House is on the west ; like it, how-
ever, it is some distance from the town, and is seated
on a fine eminence, commanding a most extensive and
beautiful view of the entire city below it, the harbour,
the river, and the far-surrounding country. Indeed,
the view from this Hospital, especially from the
cupola on the summit of the roof, to which we
ascended, is quite equal to that from Federal Hill,
and as extensive as that from the gallery of the
Washington Monument.

It is about thirty years since the Hospital was
begun to be built, at the expense of the State ; and
by donations and loans from private individuals, and
the proceeds of Ic teries, specially drawn for this pur-
pose, it was completed to its present state. It is a
fine brick building, 184 feet in length, by 56 feet
deep in the centre, and 36 in the wings ; it is four
stories in height, the cupola of the central dome being
about 100 feet from the foundation ; and its erection
cost from time to time about 150,000 dollars.

The interior is admirably arranged ; in the base-
ment are all the requisite offices of the domestic
establishment, and in each of the other stories are ^vards
for the sick, private apartments for the convalescent.

«(i'

VOL. I.

><>'« ,

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^-••■•^

418

BALTIMORE.

and separate chambers for the insane. The rooms
were all in the nicest order ; clean, airy, and well-
furnished ; and nothing seemed wanting for the com-
fort of every class.

The superintendence of this institution is under
the Catholics of Baltimore ; twelve nuns, called
Sisters of Charity, are always in the house, subject to
a superintending Sister of their own order. They
all wear the black dress of the convent, with their
hair cut off, and an ill-looking black-leather cap over
their heads in summer and winter. The Sister-
superintendent conducted us over the building, and
answered all our inquiries with great affability. It
appears that these Sisters give their labours gra-
tuitously, and go through them with the greatest
cheerfulness ; they are occasionally relieved in rota-
tion, but many remain here for several years, and
account themselves happy in being able to do good.
A small Catholic chapel is fitted up in the building,
to which the patients of that religious persuasion go ;
but the utmost liberty of conscience is allowed to all
the inmates, and no attempt is made to coerce any in
their choice of the worship they may prefer.

This institution, like the Alms House or Asylum,
is the property of the State, and there has been recently
granted to it a considerable addition of surrounding
land, for walks and gardens, and 30,000 dollars in
money, to make additions and improvements to the
building. The annual current expenses, however,
are amply provided for by the receipts of the sums
paid by the inmates for their accommodation. Those
who live in the wards pay three dollars a week for
board, medicine, and attendance, including washing;

INFIRMARY.

419

'ooms
well-
coin -

under
called
ject to
They
L their
ip over
Sister-
r, and
y. It
s gra-
jTeatest
n rota-
's, and
o good,
lilding,
ion go ;
d to all
J any in

Asylum,
recently
ounding
ollars in
ts to the
lowever,
he sums
Those
week for
washing:

and the occupiers of private apartments pay increased
rates, varying from five up to as high as ten dollars
per week ; while those who are destitute, and unable
to pay, have all the requisite accommodation free of
cost, but the number of these is comparatively few.

The Baltimore Infirmary is another institution,
attached to the Medical College ; this, also, is super-
intended in all its domestic arrangements by the
Catholic "Sisters of Charity;" and we heard it
admitted by a Protestant lady, - ho lamented the fact
while she described it, that when this institution was
under the management of Protestant superintendents,
it was not half so well conducted, as the mar ^gers
were deficient in that zeal, self-denial, and dt voted
attention to their duties, by which t^v»se Catholic
Sisters are so constantly characterize* < . There are
three physicians and four surgeons regularly attached
to the Infirmary, and all the students of the Medical
College use it as their school of practice. The rate
of payment for board, medicine, and attendance, by
the patients, is three dollars per week.

Besides these, there are the following excellent
institutions, all well supported and well conducted,
iu different parts of the city. A general Dispensary,
for supplying medicine er:! advice to the poor
gratuitously, supported by voluntary contributions
amounting to about 1,000 dollars annually. A Catho-
lic Orphan Asylum, foi the education and support of
Catholic orphans, under the management of the
Sisters of Charity. A Benevolent Society, for edu-
cating and supporting destitute female children,
whether orphans or otherwise, conducted and main-
tained by the Episcopalians. A Society for the

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420

BALTIMORE.

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relief of the poor of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
A Charitable Marine Society. A Female Penitent's
Refuge fSociety. A Humane Impartial Society, for
bettering the condition of the large class of females
who live by needlework, and whose inadequate
wages often leave them in a state of want, and
exposed to many temptations. An Indigent Sick
Society, composed of Protestant ladies, who undertake
to visit personally the iri^lgent sick in the several
districts of the town, of which each takes charge of a
separate one, and to supply them with food, clothing,
and other comforts needed by the sick, while the dis-
pensaries supply them with medicine. A Mary-and-
Martha Society, of the same description, conducted by
Catholic ladies ; and a Dorcas Society, who prepare
clothing and materials for the necessitous poor, and
by bazars or fairs, by subscriptions and donations,
as well as by the labours of their own hands, greatly
contribute to relieve the sufferings of their fellow-
beings.

Baltimore is often called " The Monumental Citv,"
from the fact of its containing a greater number
of public monuments — though these are still very
few — than the cities of the Union generally, in which
the practice of erecting public monuments has hardly
begun to receive mucli popular support.

The most important of these is the " Washington
Monument," which was first proposed to be erected,
in 1809, and for defraying the expenses of which a
lottery was permitted by the State, to raise the sum
of 100,000 dollars, or about 20,000*. This amount
being thus secured, the place selected for it was an
elevated part of the northern edge of the city, where

WASHINGTON MONUMENT.

421

urch.
tent's
for
males
quate

and

Sick
3rtake
everal
re of a
ithing,
16 dis-
y-and-
;ted by
»repare
)r, and
ations,
greatly
fellow-

L City,"
lumber
ill very
1 which
3 hardly

hington
erected,
which a
the sum
1 amount
t was an
y, where

the requisite area of ground was given for this pur-
pose by Colonel Howard ; and on the 4th of July,
1815, the foundation-stone was laid, on the anni-
versary of the Declaration of Independence by the
United States of America. This monument is a
noble Doric column of marble, rising from a base of
ample dimensions, 50 feet square and 20 feet high.
The shaft of the column is 160 feet, its diameter
about 20 feet, and the statr^o of Washington, which
stands on its summit, is 13 feet in height. The base
and pedestal are of pure white marble; the shaft, which
is built like the Monument of London, is hollow,
with a winding staircase up the inside ; it is of a
whitish marble also, here and there slightly veined
with blue streaks. The gallery at the termination of
the capital, to which visitors ascend, is also of pure
white marble ; and the colossal figure on the summit,
which represents Washington after he had resigned
his commission, as commander-in-chief of the Ameri-
can forces, at Annapolis, is of the same material.

Though every part of the successful career of
Washington is reverted to by the American people
with great satisfaction, there is none on which they
dwell with greater admiration than on this last great
act of his military life, when, having attained to a
power as great as that of any of the warriors of
other countries, with more of the affection as well as
admiration of his adherents and followers than per-
haps any hero that ever lived ; he did not use this
power as an Alexander, a Cromwell, or a Napoleon,
would have done, but cheerfully and voluntarily
resigned it into the hands of those from whom he
received it, and for whom he held it but in trust.

ill

.-.if

422

BALTIMORE.

\ ,:

:; 4

This act of virtuous self-denial, and conscientious
discharge of duty, has therefore endeared his memory
to the wise and the good of all countries, but espe-
cially of his own.

The workmanship of this column is of the first order,
and the monument, as a whole, both from the chaste-
ness and good taste of its design, its size, and its com-
manding position, is equal in beauty to any similar
column in London or Paris. It has a general resem-
blance to the Duke of York's monument itf Waterloo
Place, overlooking St. James's Park ; but it is greatly
superior in size, materials, and execution, and forms
a prominent object in all the distant views of Baltimore.

The prospects of the city from this gallery, with the
extensive sea-view down the Patapsco to the Chesa-
peake on the one hand, and the distant land-view
over the northern and western boundaries of Balti-
more on the other, richly reward the visitor for the
trouble of his ascent.

The second of the monument? of Baltimore is
that called " The Battle Monument," which stands
on what was once the site of the old court-house
of the town, but is now an open space, called Monu-
ment Square, nearly in the centre of the city. It isr
intended to commemorate the battle of North Point,
when the British attacked Baltimore in 1814, at
the period of their burning and destroying ex-
pedition up the Potomac to Washington. The
British were in this instance successfully repulsed,
and this monument was erected by the American sur-
vivors of the battle, to the memory of their comrades
who fell in defending their hearths and their homes.
It was designed by the architect Maximilian Gode-

THE BATTLE MONUMENT.

423

atious

emory

espe-

order,
ihaste-
3 com-
limilar
resem-
iterloo
greatly
[ forms
timore.
ith the
Chesa-
id-view
Balti-
for the

nore is

stands
t-house

Monu-
Itij

Point,
814, at
ing ex-
The
epulsed,
can sur-
omrades

homes.
n Gode-

froy, who built the Unitarian church, and the Gothic
chapel of St. Mary's for the Catholics of Baltimore.

The effect of the monument is striking, though the
design is somewhat incongruous. The base is
Egyptian, rising to the height of about 20 feet from
the ground, characterized by the lessening breadth of
the square mass as it ascends, the outline showing
the inclined lines within the perpendicular. On each
front is an Egyptian doorway, of the same form, anl
the whole is surmounted by a deep overhanging cor-
nice, with the winged globe, and other Egyptian sym-
bols. Above this base rises the column, which
represents a Roman fasces, on the bands of which are
inscribed, in bronze letters, the names of those who
fell in the battle which it commemorates.

At the angles of the square base on which this
column is erected, are four figures called griiRns,
which seem to unite the body of the lion with the

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424

BALTIMORE.

head and wings of the eagle ; and on the summit of
the fasces which forms the circular column, is a
figure meant to be, and called, " the Statue of the
City," holding a wreathed garland or crown, for the
honoured dead, in her hand, and having the American
eagle at her feet.

The monument is composed of fine white marble,
its entire height is 52 feet, and its auxiliary decora-
tions are rich and ornamental. Separate inscrip-
tions on the north and south front record the erection
of the monument, to commemorate the battle of
Sept. 12, 1814; and the recollections it cherishes are
such as the inhabitants of Baltimore have no reason
to be otherwise than proud of; as their defence of
their homes was as gallant and patriotic, as the attack
upon them was unprovoked and unsuccessful.

The third monument of Baltimore is that called
" the Armistead Monument," which is erected in the
Gothic niche of a building near the City spring, and
was set apart to the memory of the brave Colonel
Armistead, who conducted the defence of Fort
M*Henry at the entrance of the harbour, against the
bombardment of the British on the 13th of September,
the day following the battle of North Point. He was
not killed in the engagement, but died about four
years afterwards, in April 1818, at the age of thirty-
nine ; and his defence of the fort at which he com-
manded, being still fresh in the recollection of his
grateful townsmen, they honoured themselves as
much as him by erecting this monument to his
memory.

There are several springs or fountains in differeiit
parts of the city, which add to its beauty and conve-

•m

PUBLIC AMUSEMENTS.

4*25

nience. The City Spring is enclosed by an iron
railing, and covered by a dome supported by pillars ;
it is surrounded by trees and foliage, and has a very
pleasing effect. The Western fountain, in another
quarter of the town, is also covered with a dome
supported by columns, and is used for the supply of
ships in the harbour of Baltimore with water. The
Eastern fountain is much larger, and adorned with
more of architectural beauty. It has an Ionic
colonnade, open all around, supporting a roof over
the spring, which is enclosed within iron railings.
The Centre fountain, in front of the market, is also
an ornament to the spot. The markets are excellent
structures, and well adapted to their several uses.

It is to be regretted that the introduction of foun-
tains is not more frequent in the cities of Engl and and
America. Whoever has travelled much in Turkey,
Greece, Italy, Spain, and Portugal, cannot fail to have
admired the many beautiful fountains adorning the
open places and public squares of the ancient cities of
these countries. The refreshing coolness of the atmo-
sphere, the sparkling brilliance of the waters, the
soothing murmur of their falling sounds, and the
air of freshness, luxury, and repose, which are all
sources of enjoyment, are in triamselves sufficient
recommendation. It seems astonishing that London,
Edinburgh, and Dublin, sa well as New York, Phila-
delphia, and ^'^^shington, should be so deficient as
they are in these combinatinr?s of beauty and utility.

Of places of public amusement, there • 3 not
many, and these are but little frequented, i here is
a large theatre, but the taste for dramatic exliibitl .t> ?
is everywhere on the decline in America : for it is

il-,

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5 IV.

l+.-l

426

BALTIMORE.

only on occasions when some very great attraction,
or some new or distinguished performer ?s presented,
that an audience can be collected. There is a smaller
theatre which, however, is entirely abaiiflntned :, arid
there was recently a large cirnus for the fxhiMticii
of horsemanship, but It was destroyed by fire, aiid
nearly all the valuable shid of horses perished in the
flames. There is a good concert-room in the Law-
buildings, and another over the assembly-rooni, ;*nd
music appears to be well ciiUivated and enjoj^d.
The '^uitt: of dancing and refreslimciit rooms, in which
i)'3d regular winter balls are held, are not surpassed
in b^aid y by any in Europe. There are many much
larger ;, but ibr richness, taste, and effective decora-
tion, nothing can be more chastely beautiful than
these. The Baltimore museum, which is well
furnished with collections of various natural produc-
tions, a skeleton of the great mammoth, and other
curiosities in nature and art, has also a minor theatre
attached to it, in which farces and vaudevilles are
performed, but to very thin audiences.

There are some public gardens in Baltimore, the
Columbian, Vauxhall, and the Citizen's Retreat ;
and public baths have been lately introduced on a
good scale. The sports of the turfare much patronized
here ; and in Maryland the horses are considered to
be better trained than in any other state of the Union.
Ac a place called Canton, a few miles from Baltimore,
down the river, a large training establishment exists,
and horses arc kept there during ihr i.itvTvals between
the racing seasons, at which time [ ' ons interested
in this -usementcome hero I; ; at numbers from
the noi^tis and the south. A^ >ic ilent rule prevails

action,
rented,

i \ mid
nhiiki.
e, aiid
[ ill the
e Law-
Ill, ind
injo)«d.
1 whiclii
rpassed
y much
decora-
al than
is well
produc-
other
theatre
lies are

)re, the
.etreat ;

d on a
Tonized
lerecJ to

Union.
Itimorc,
t exists,
between
terested
ers from

prevails

HOTELS.

427

in the race-club, that no gambling of any kind is
allowed ; and gamesters, whenever known as such,
are excluded from membership.

Of hotels, there are a great number : and the
three principal ones, the Exchange, Bamum's, and
the Eutaw House, are perhaps equal to those
of any town of a similar size to Baltimore in
England. The last indeed, which is a new establish-
ment erected by a company, is equal to any in the
Union, and combines more of cleanUness, comfort,
and adequate attendance, than any hotel we had yet
visited in the country. The boarding-houses are
not nearly so numerous, in proportion to the popula-
tion, as in New York: and such as we inspected,
previous to our fixing on our abode, were very inferior
in almost every requisite. We were fortunate, how-
ever, in getting admission to one in Gay Street, kept
by Mr. West, where the apartments, table, and
society were all agreeable, and where we passed our
time most happily.

The municipal government of Baltimore is vested
in a mayor and city-council, the elections for which
take place every two years : in most of the other
cities of America, the election is annual. The city is
divided into 12 wards ; the inhabitants of each ward
elect an elector; and these 12 electors choose the
mayor. The salary of his office is 2,000 dollars, or
about X400. per annum. His quaUfications must be,
h have been ten years a citizen of the United States,
to be 9 'J years of age, lO have resided in thu city
jtive years, and to have property assessed in the city o
the extent of 500 dollars. His power, ana patronage
in appointments, are considerable : and his election

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4^8

BALTIMORE.

is almost always made with reference to his party
politics.

The city-council is composed of two branches:
the first consists of two members from each ward,
who are chosen by the inhabitants directly, and
elected annually ; the second branch consists of one
member firom each ward, chosen also directly, but
elected every two years, with the mayor. The quali-
fications for a member of the first branch, or lower
house, are, a residence in the city of three years,
and to be assessed in property to the amount of 300
dollars, also to be 21 years of age. The qualifica-
tions for the second branch, or upper house, are, to
have been a resident of the city for four years, to be
assessed to the value of 500 dollars, and to be 25
years of age.

The two branches of the council sit in separate
chambers, and, together with the mayor, form the
city parliament. Each has a negative on the pro-
ceedings of the other, and the concurrence of all
these is necessary to the validity of their ordinances.
If the mayor exercise his veto, howover, and, on a
reconsideration of the subject, three-fourths of both
branches of the council concur in its adoption, it may
become law without the assent of the mayor. Their
duties are strictly confined to municipal government :
and the salary of the councillors is a dollar and half
per day.

The commerce of J^altimore is varied and exten-
sive, though inferior to Boston, New York, Philadel-
phia, or New Orleans, but sujjcrior to any other city
or port. The exports are cliiefiy ' obacco, the staple
produce of Maryland, flour, salted i^ '4ons, staves

SHIPPING AND COMMERCE.

429

and heading for casks and barrels, and turpentine.
The imports are chiefly from England, the West
Indies, South America, and China, in the various
productions and manufactures of each. In the last
year, the amount of exports exceeded 4,000,000 of
dollars, and the imports exceeded 6,000,000 of dollars.
In the exports, the largest amounts were — to England,
882,000 dollars — to the Hanse-Towns, 682,000—
to the ports of Chili, 620,000 — and to the ports of
Brazil, 407,000. Of the imports, the largest amounts
were — from England, 1 ,822,000 dollars — ^from Brazil,
564,000 — from Peru, 54,000 — and from the Hanse-
Towns, 265,000.

The shipping of Baltimore are not so numerous at
present in the larger classes, as they were some years
since : but the smaller ones have jjreatly increased,
so that the tonnage has not at all diminished. The
waters of the various rivers that flow into the Chesa-
peake, are covered wit L Baltimore sloops aiid schoon-
ers ; many also are employed in the coasting traJe ;
and a few larger shipa sail regularly to England
and other parts of Europe, as well as to India and
China. In the last year, out of 115 vessels built
here, nearly 100 were schooners : the whole tonnage
built in that year exceeding 10,000 tons. The repu-
tation of the Baltimore builders for constructing the
finest models of beauty, and the finest bottoms for
speed, in their unrivalled small-craft, is still un-
diminished: and a "Baltimore clipper" may be
matched against the world, for fast sailing, and keep-
ing close to the wind.

The coniii orcial capacities of Baltimore, however,
3TQ yet far from being developed to their fullest

I -A

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•it I :

■.4t^.'.

I. *'■

430

BALTIMORE.

extent. The presence of no less than eiglit rapid
streams, with considerable descents, in the immedi-
ate neigh^o '1j< od of Baltimore, are highly favour-
able t(» the application of machinery, by water-power,
to man afacturing purposes, and this has recently been
made available to the erection of some powerful mills
for grinding flour. No less than five rail-roads, now
lead from Baltimore ■• IlfFerent directions; the
principal ones, to Philadelphia, to Washington, and
to Harper's Ferry, on the way to the Ohio river,
being already the channels of great and increasing
intercourse : and when this last is completed on to
the western river, a distance of 350 miles, it is
more than probable that Baltimore will be as much
frequented by purchasers and sellers from the South-
ern and Western States, as New York and Philadelphia
are at present.

As connected with its commerce, the banks here
are as abundant as in any city of the same size ; they
are all in good credit at present ; and the insurance
companies, and other establishments of this descrip-
tion, are both numerous and well-conducted.

i rapid
nmedi-
Favour-
power,
lybeen
111 mills
ds, now
s ; the
Dn, and
) river.
Teasing
d on to
s, it is
IS much
J South-
idelphia

ks here
56 ; they
isurance
descrip-

CHAP. XXII.

Population of Baltimore, white and coloured races — Position of
Maryland, as a slave-state — Maryland colonization society —
Severity of the law against rescuing slaves — Vigilance of the post-
office on abolition publications — General liberality of sentiment-
Education of coloured children — Negro preachers — Religious sects
and their jnroportions — Benefits of the voluntary system of sup-
port — Institutions for the promotion of education — Death of the
member of congress for Baltimore — Public funeral, and marks of
general respect — Eulogium on the character of the deceased
member — Newspapers in Baltimore — Party and neutral remarks
on the partisanship of pohtical writers — Editorial taste for quaint-
ness and singularity — Literary institutions — Lectures and library.

The population of the city of Baltimore, by the
census of 1830, was as foUows: whites 61,710;
free-coloured persons, 14,790; slaves 4,120; making
a total of 80,620. The rate of increase has been
such as to create a belief, that the population is at
present a total of about 100,000 persons, just equal
to the population of Sheffield in England. This pro-
portion of the free-coloured and slave population to
the whites, as exhibited in the census of the city, is
very different from the proportions of the same classes
to each other in the census of the State of Maryland,
which at the same period was as follows : whites
291,108; free coloured persons 52,938; slaves 1 02,994.
In the city, therefore, it will be perceived that the
slaves were not one-fourth of the numbers of the free-
coloured people ; and both these together were not
more than one-fourth of the whole population ; while

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432

BALTDIORE.

in the State the slaves are twice as numerous as the
free-coloured persons, and both together arc equal to
more than half the white population.

The position which Maryland occupies as a slave-
state is peculiar, and has become a source of jealousy
and alarm to some of the people of the more southern
states, especially those on the sea-board. The feeling
of the great body of the whites in Maryland, as well
as in Virginia, is in favour of abolition ; and if
they did not apprehend danger to their connections
with the more southern and western states, it is pro-
bable that each would, before this, have made a
commencement in the good work.

But Maryland has made at least one step in ad-
vance of her neighbours. There has existed for many
years, a general Society for removing the surplus free
blacks from America to Africa, called the American
Colonization Society ; and the colony of Liberia in
Africa, is their place of settlement. Mr. Henry
Clay, the popular senator, from Kentucky, and Whig
candidate for the presidency, is at the head of
this ; and nearly if not all the southern states are in
favour of it, because it keeps up the semblance of a
wish to advance the question of emancipation gra-
dually and by slow degrees, and thus enlists the sym-
pathies and soothes the consciences of the scrupulous
and religious ; while at the same time it removes
only those free blacks whose presence in the southern
States is thought to be dangerous, as likely to excite
the envy, and stimulate the dissatisfaction, of the
slaves.

The abolitionists of the Northern States are there-
fore almost all hostile to this Colonization Society,

COLONIZATION SOCIETY.

433

as tlio
qual to

, slave-
ealousy
)uthem

feeling
as well

and if
lections
; is pro-
[nade a

\ in ad-
[)r many
plus free
merican
beria in

Henry
id Whig
head of
BS are in
Qce of a
ion gra-
the sym-
rupulous

removes
southern
to excite
n, of the

ire there-
[ Society,

because they believe that while the slaves increase in
the southern parts of the Union at the rate of 60,000
a year, and the utmost eflForts of the Colonization
Society can get off no more than 2 or 3,000 by
emigration in the same period, the tortoise might as
soon hope to overtake the hare, as the Colonization
Society to overtake the surplus population of the
slaves, or at all lessen the number of the whole bodv.
In Maryland, however, a great step has been taken,
which is this ; that instead of joining the general body
of the slave States in supporting only one society
and one colony for the whole Union, they have estab-
Hshed a State Colonization Society for Maryland
only, and founded a separate colony for the settle-
ment of free negroes and people of colour from this
State alone; thus setting an example to the other
States, which if each were to follow out in good
faith, might effect all that Colonization is ever likely
to accomplish for the negro race of America.

But a still stronger objection than that of the
inefficiencv of colonization to reduce the number of
slaves to any great extent, is this ; that the whites
possess no moral right to expatriate those born on tli'
same soil as themselves, from the country of tht;:r
nativity ; and that it is an injustice to the coloured
races, to use even indirect coercion to drive them from
what is as much their home, as it is that of the
whites J since both are strangers in the land, and in-
terlopers on the soil, of their red brethren, the
Indians. This practice of forcing the Indians to go
farther west beyond the Mississippi, and the Afri-
cans to go farther east beyond the Atlantic, to make
room for the greater spread of the white race on the

VOL. I. 2 V

i%'

•I

1':

<ii'

434

BALTIMORE.

territory on which the red and black races are
found to be an incumbrance, can only be justified, if
justified at all, on the principle, that the strongest
have a right to do what they please with the weakest.
This is the only intelligible principle indeed, in which
either war, or slavery, or extirpation, can be main-
tained ; though the same principle will equally sustain
the right of the robber, the incendiary, or the mur-
derer ; and when Christianitv and reason shall over-
come selfishness and prejudice, this will be perceived
and admitted.

As an illustration of the severity with which any
attempt at assisting slaves in their escape, is still
visited in the States -^f Virginia and Maryland — for in
both the law is the same — the following, taken from
the Baltimore Patriot, of April 4th, may be given :

" Serious Charge — On Saturday last, as we leam from the
Norfolk Herald, a breach of the laws of Virginia, involving the
severest penalty in her whole criminal code, short of capital punish-
ment, was charged against Captain Charles Hubert, of the British
brig Charity. This was no other than an attempt to abduct, or a
permission of tlie attempt by others to abduct, a slave, the pro-
perty of a citizen of Norfolk, in the hold of the vessel under his
command. It appears that the brig had taken in a cargo of staves,
and was on the eve of departure for Barbadoes, when some deten-
tion was suffered in consequence of the desertion of several of the
crew. In the effort to reclaim these, the captain brought himself
under the penalties of the law, by making a forcible entry into a
sailor's lodging-house. An action of damages was the consequence
of this illegal step, which the captain compromised by the payment
of 1 12 dollars. Meantime the police officers succeeded in capturing
one of the sailors who had deserted ; and this man, on being *;'ken,
gave information that a nuiaway slave was secreted on board the
brig. The same information had been in)parted to the pilot of
the vcdsel by the cook, (a free-coloured man) ' .o pointed out his

. f'

ices are
stified, if
strongest
weakest,
in which
be main-
ly sustain
the mur-
hall over-
perceived

vhich anv
e, is still
nd — ^forin
aken from
be given :

im from the
nvolving the
ipital punish-
)f the British

ahduct, or a
ave, the pro-
se! under his
rgo of staves,

some deten-
several of the
)ught himself

entry into a
B consequence
f the payment
id in capturing
1 heing *;^Uen,

on board the
the pilot of
jointed out his

SLAVERY.

435

hiding-place, which was among the staves in the hold, and in which
the fugitive was found. The negro was taken thence, and the
captain of the brig was taken into custody, and committed to the
county jail, to stand his trial. The penalties against this act are
particularly severe, being, as stated by the Herald, * 1. a fine of
five hundred dollars, recoverable by any person who will sue for
the same; 2. the value of the slave, on the action of the
which action the vessel is liable to attachment.

owner — in

to answer the verdict of the jury, no matter to whom she
belongs ; 3. a fine of one hundred and fifty dollars, for the benefit
of the Literary Fund ; and, lastly, the master of such vessel is
liable to a prosecution and three years' imprisonment, if the slave
shall be found on board after the vessel leaves the port, whether
he knew the slave was on board or not.* The brig had been
placed under attachment, to await the resuL of a judicial decision."

Another instance may be mentioned, which is
quite as striking. — There resides at Baltimore a
Presbyterian minister, the Rev. Robert Brecken-
ridge, who has been for many years a warm advo-
cate and supporter of the American Colonization
Society, and, as such, has been much cherished and
esteemed by the people of the South. Recently,
however, either from some change in his views, or
from the more frank and full expression of them, he
has attracted gi'oat notice, and inspired very opposite
sentiments. In a religious periodical, edited and
published by him in this city, he issued an article
entitled, " A Presbyterian, on the Bible Doctrine of
Slavery." This article led to the following corre-
spondence, which has been recently published in the
Petersburgh Intelligencer, a newspaper published in
the adjoining state of Virginia.

" The following is the correspondence between Mr. Shore, our
post-master, and General Pegram, the chairman of the committee
of vigilance.

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436

BALTmORE.

"Post-office, Petersburgli, Feb. 8th, 1838.

" Dear Sir. — At your leisure will you have the kindness to peruse
the article of ' A Presbyterian on Bible Slavery,' contained in three
numbers of areligious periodical, published in Baltimore by Brecken-
ridge, &c. I am satisfied in my own mind that the article and
magazine are of that class of incendiari/ productions, which the act
of Assembly was designed to suppress, and that it is my duty to hand
them over to the magistracy to be publicly burned. Your opinion
is respectfully solicited, as an experienced lawyer, touching the
character of this article, as well as the organ of a committee, raised
by this commonwealth, soon after that awful tragedy was acted
called the Southampton insurrection, in which about sixty men,
women, and helpless infants were cruelly butchered by their savage
slaves.

" It does seem to me. Sir, that I should subserve the cause of the
abolitionists, and be instrumental in getting up the second act of
this tragedy, by circulating the wild speculations of this mad incen-
diary. Let me ask you. Sir, would it be safe to disseminate amongst
our slaves the doctrine which * A Presbyterian' would establish, and
which is so fully endorsed by the ' disclaimer' of the editors ?

" If the doctrines of this writer be true, who will venture to
condenm the conduct of the abolitionists ? He attempts to draw
arguments from the Bible, to show that slavery is a crying and
damning sin. Vain is the attempt ! for not one condemnatory
sentence can be found, from Genesis to Revelation, tliat touches
slavery as it exists in this country.

" Excuse the trouble 1 have imposed upon you. My apology is
to be found in the grave importance of the subject upon which your
opinion is asked. From the elevated station you occupy in the
confidence and esteem of your fellow - citizens, throughout our
State, any opinion expressed by you \vill have weight, and will decide
my ultimate course. I am, &c.

" THOMAS SHORE, P. M."

** Petersburgh, February, 9, 1838.
" Dear Sir. — I have carefully examined the article of ' A Presby-
terian on the Bible Doctrine of Slavery,' contained in the January
and February numbers of the ' Baltimore Literary and Religious

SLAVERY.

4.37

1838.
to peruse
1 in three
Bracken -
rticle and
ch the act
ty to hand
ir opinion
?hmg the
tee, raised
was acted
sixty men,
leir savage

luse of the
ond act of
nad inccn-
te amongst
;ablish, and
ors?

venture to
ts to draw
Tying and
idcninatory
lat touches

apology is

tvhich your

upy in tlie

ghout our

will decide

r. M."

9, 1838.
A Presby-
he January
d Religious

Magazine,' to which my attention has been invited by your note of
yesterday.

" The act of assembly, passed March 23d, 1836, provides:
' That if any person shall hereafter write, print, or cause to be
written or printed, any book, pamphlet, or other writing, with
intent of advising, entreating, or persuading persons of colour
within this commonwealth to make insurrection, or to rebel, cr
denying the right of masters to property in their slaves, or incul-
cating the duty of resistance to such right, or shall, with intent to
aid the pui*po3es aforesaid of such book, pamphlet, or other writing,
knowingly circulate, or cause to be circulated, any such book, &c.'
such person shall be deemed guilty of felony, &c. And the next
section of the same act further provides : ' That if any post-master»
or deputy post -master, within this commonwealth, shall give notice
to any justice of the peace, that any book, pamphlet, or other
writing, hath been received at his office through the medium of the
mail, of the character and description mentioned in the section of
this act, immediately preceding, it should be the duty of such
justice of the peace to inquire into the circumstances of the case,
and to have such book, pamphlet, or other writing, burned in his
presence,' Sec. Any post-master, or deputy post-master, knowingly
violating the provisions of tliis act, shall forfeit and pay a sum not
less than fifty dollars, nor more than two hundred dollar^, to be
recovered with costs,' &e.

" I have read the two articles in the magazine referred to, without
prejudice, to discover if they contain anything offensive to any
part of the provisions of the act I have quoted. Wliatever may have
been the motives of the write. . *hcre cannot be a doubt that he has
assumed positions, and ad\anced arguments, antagonist to ' the
rl^lit of masters to property in their slaves.' And this right he
has assailed in the mo?t iuip.wing of all otht.'r modes — by undcr-
tal'ing to prove that it is denied by the laws of God ; that not only
* the Scriptures of the Old Testament give no countennnce to the
syscem of slavery establislied in this land> but, on the contrary,
they decidedly condenni it as oppressive ond unjust ;' but also, that
our Saviour ' clearly condonnis the system of slavery which prevails
in oiu'land.' And after thus establishing his position, as he confi-
dently supposes, that masters have no right of property In their

. i

438

BALTIMORE.

Blaves; and by consequence, that the invasion and resistance of
such claimed right, would be sanctioned by the same high authority,
he concl-ades with this dangerous suggestion : * The people of the
South may take their choice, either to rid themselves of the sin of
slavery peaceably and righteously, or, by persevering in their present
course, leave a legacy of blood to their children.'

" I am of the opinion, that such a publication is clearly * of the
character and description mentioned' in our act of assembly ; and
that you would be subject to its penalties if you? knowingly, eause
to be circulated the numbers containing the articles referred to.
In examining this subject, I have carefully discarded the sensitive
jealousy which may be supposed to influence the mind of a slave-
holder ; and have considered it, as I presume you presented it t ••
me, merely as a legal question, arising under our statute.
" Yours, most respectfully,

" J. W. PEGRAM."

It is worthy of remark, liowever, that in all our
intercourse with the people of Baltimore*, and
we were continually out in society, we heard less
about slaves and slavery than in any town we had
yet visited; and we never heard the institution of
slaverv defended or excused, as we had so often heard
it done, by the merchants of New York. All parties
here seem to admit it to be a great national evil ; all
appear anxious to see it abolished ; and all with
whom we conversed were more willing to listen to
and coiijjider any proposition for hastening the period
(4 efnanripa*i'/r», than we had found to be the case
elsewhere, except among the professed abolitionists.

It seemed remarkable to us, and was not less
^r<5«»ble ti.:«ti un,;xpectcd, that we should thus meet,
in the p'^piilous capital of a slave-state, more tolera-
tion of opini»/ii (/;i tlie subject of slavery, and a more
general -tympathy *ith efforts for its removal, than

.an

RELIGIOUS SECTS.

439

with a large number of those residing in the free
state and populous city of New York. For this
reason there are many schools opened for coloured
children, and many benevolent persons, ladies espe-
cially, assist personally in teaching them: so that
here, at least, there is no dread of their becoming
too intelligent. There are also five African churches
in the city, where the service is performed by
coloured preachers to coloured congregations ; two
of these being Methodists, and one a Protestant
Episcopal church.

Of the religious sects, into which the 100,000
inhabitants of Baltimore are divided, the following
is believed to be the order, and predominance, of
extent and influence.

First come the Roman Catholics, who far out-
strip any other separate sect, in numbers and in zeal.
Besides their large and imposing Cathedral, by far
the most prominent of all the public buildings of the
city, in eve^-y view of Baltimore, they have churches
and chapels scattered over all parts of the town, and
others rising up in every direction. The last new
OTR* »^hat we saw, just opened, has inscribed in large
letters on the o«it»ide, " The Church of Mount
Carriiel and the Sacred Heart." The Catholic arch-
bishop, and all the subordinate priesthood, are
learned, pious, and clever men; the Sisters of
Charity i«rtrtre among their number many intelligent
smd devrj»U!>d women ; and these, with the seminary
for the edw^tion of ('atholic youth, secure not
merelv th*»' permanence of the present supremacy of
Catlioli' numbers and Catho^i^"- influence, but its still
further au d4\\ and progressive increase.

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410

BALTIIVIORE.

Next to the Catholics, the Methodists are most
numerous ; and one branch of these are called Epis-
copal Methodists, from having bishops, but resem-
bling the Wesleyan Methodists in all things else,
whether in doctrine, mode of worship, discipline, or
government. The Presbyterians follow next in or-
der, and have several large places of worship, and
excellent preachers.

The Episcopalians come next, following the ritual
of the Church of England ; and this being the reli-
gion of the more fashionable and aristocratical por-
tion of the community, they have handsome churches,
and highly educated and eloquent preachers. Dr.
Wiatt, at St. Paul's ; Dr. Johns, at Christ Church ;
and Dr. Henshaw, at St. Peter*s, are all accom-
plished gentlemen, and highly popular preachers ;
and their congregations are among the most elegant
and distinguished.

The Baptists and Lutherans are also numerous,
the latter mostly Germans ; and, in addition to
these, the Quakers, Unitarians, Swedenborgians, and
Dunkers, have each places of worship for their seve-
ral congregations.

As no one among all these varied sects has any
connection with the State, or possesses any privilege
over any other, there is no ground for envy or jear
lousy among them. There is, therefore, a generally
tolerant and indulgent spirit pervading their common
intercourse ; and in all matters in which their co-
operation is necessary, religious distinctions are dis-
regarded. The voluntary system is found to be
abundantly adequate to the support of religious
teachers, without forced tax or impost of any kind ; and

'&;•

■'lift

EDUCATION.

441

re most
3d Epis-
resem-
igs else,
ili.ae, or
t in or-
lip, and

le ritual
the reli-
Lcal por-
hurches,
:s. Dr.
Ilhurcli ;
accom-
jachers ;
: elegant

imerous,
ition to
ans, and
eir seve-

has any
privilege
f or jea-
jenerallv
common
their co-
are dis-
d to he
religious
jnd J and

while there is no clergyman who is thought to re-
ceive more than 2,500 dollars, or about 500/. ster-
ling per annum, there is not one who has less than
1,000 dollars, or 200/. per annum ; and from 300/.
to 400/. may be taken to be the average of their sala-
ries. The clergy of each of the denominations are
of a higher order, on the whole, than the same classes
in England ; not, perhaps, in learning, but in unex-
ceptionable morality, in gentlemanly manners, and
in zealous and exclusive devotion to their duties ;
and the best understanding appears to exist between
them and their followers.

Of institutions for education, and for the promo-
tion of literature and science, there are several. As .
long ago as I696, funds were appropriated by the
province of Maryland, when a colony of Great Bri-
tain, for the support of a college and free-schools.
In 1782, Washington College, at Chestertown, was
established. In 1784, St. John's College, at Anna-
polis, was founded ; and these two were then united
into a University, In I8O7 the State appropriated
1^2,000 dollars per annum for its support; and in
1813 a tax was laid upon Bank stock, which pro-
duced about 10,000 dollars a year, and which is
expended in the support of free-schools. By an act
of Assembly, the personal estate of all individuals
who die intestate in Maryland, and leave no rela-
tions within the fifth degree, is appropriated to this
object, unless they are seamen ; and in that case, the
effects go to the funds of the Charitable Marine
Society. Throughout the whole State, Sunday-
schools are very nimierous, and all are well attended
by teachers as well as pupils.

.,-.,.,,••4..

■r

%).

442

BALTIMORE.

It was in 1807, after much difficulty, that the
State legislature succeeded in founding, in the city
of Baltimore, the institution called The University
of Maryland. The money for building it was raised
by lottery, and it was incorporated in 1812. The
Professors of I nw. Physic, Anatomy, Chemistry,
and Mineralogy, are all eminent in reputation ; the
apparatus is excellent, and the collection valuable.
The State has made liberal grants for the support of
the institution ; and the fees of the students, though
moderate in amount, are productive by numbers.
The Roman Catholic College of St. Mary's is consi-
dered to be an excellent seminary of education for
pupils of that faith; and the Protestant establish-
ment of Baltimore College, is equally so. There are
private academies for both sexes, in great abundance ;
and one of the most classical edifices in the town,
architecturally considered, is a free-school, built in
the form of a Doric temple, and liberally endowed
by the late representative of Baltimore, Mr. Isaac
M*Kim.

The death of this gentleman happened just after
we had left Washington for this place, he being the
third member of Congress that had died within the
period of about a month ; and each was honoured
with a public funeral at the public expense ; this
being the custom observed towards all the members
of both Houses who may die during the sitting of
Congress. It may servo to convey to the reader an
idea of the respect shown to the oftice of a legisla-
tor, though in this instance enhanced by much per-
sonal respect for the man, to give the order of pro-
ceedings at the funeral of Mr. M'Kim, as it was

vi-t'

FU*,T?.AL CEREMONIES.

443

it the

citv
^ersity
raised

The
nistry,

the
uable.
port of
though
mbers.
5 consi-
ion for
tablish-
lere are
idance j
e town,
built in
jndowed
r. Isaac

ist after
eing the
thin the
lonoured
se; this
nembers
itting of
eader an
II legisla-
luch per-
r of pro-
as it was

observed at Washington, of which the following is
the official report : —

"Th., tj mtnittee of arrangements, and pall-bearers, attended at
the late re.;l.'3nce of the deceased, r.c Gadsby's Hotel, on Pennsyl-
vania Avenue, at ten o'clock, a.m., at which time the remains were
removed, in charge of the committee of arrangements, attended by
the sergeant-at-arms of the House of Representatives, to the hall of
the House.

" At eleven o'clock, funei-i service was performed in the hall of
the House of Representatives, by Mr. Slicer, the chaplain of the
Senate; who, having made an impressive prayer, and read the
twelfth chapter of Ecclesiastes, " Remember thy Creator in the
days of thy youth," deli\ . red an appropriate discourse upon the
occasion, from Ecclesiastes, chap. ix. 5, " For the living know that
they must die."

" After these services, the procession moved to the rail-road depot,
on Pennsylvania avenue in the following order ; —

The Chaplains of both Houses.

Physician? who attended the deceased.

Committee of arrangements, viz :

The Family and Friends of the deceased.

The Members of the House of Representatives and

Senators fi" :n Maryland as mourners.

The Sergeant-at-ar>M- oi the House of Representatives.

The House of E*^prosentatives, preceded by their

Speaker and Clerk.

The other Officers of the House.

The Sergeant-at-arms of the Senate.

The Senate of the United States, preceded by the

Vice-president and their Secretary.

The other. Officers of the Senate.

The President of the United States.

The heads of departments.

Fo>i;ign Ministers.

Citizens and Strangers.

" The corpse was plr-ced in the car provided for the purpose, and

carried to Baltimore, attended by the chaplains and physicians, the

•:\

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414

BALTBIORE.

V '

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...it'

comniittpe of arrangements, the pall-bearers, the delegation from
Mainland as mourners, and some of the n- 's: b^rs of the two
Houses of Congress, for whom cars were provided."

In this order the procession came over to Balti-
more, where it was met by a great concourse of the
inhabitants, who accompanied it to the place of inter-
ment, and the following is the official report of the
proceedings here.

** FUNERAL OF MR. M*KIM.
" The body of Mr. McKim arrived at the Mount Clare depot
yesterday afternoon at about four o'clock. It was attended by a
committee of members of Congress.

" It was met at the depot by an immense concourse of people, who
attended it in procession to the burial-ground belonging to the con-
gregation attached to St. Paul's Church, where it was interred.
The bells of the several churches were tolled during the procession,
and t]^c flags of the shipping and at various public places displayed
at, !i;tlf>-i;aast during the day. The following was the order observed
iji the procession.

Mayor and City-council of Baltimore.

Officers of the Corporation.

Reverend Clergy.

Members of the State Legislature.

Judges and officers of circuit court, U. S.

Judges and officers of Baltimore county court.

Judges and officers of Baltimore city court.

Judges and officers of the orphan's court.

Members of the bar.

Gentlemen of the fticulty.

Officers of the army and navy.

(^Ivil officers of the United States.

Civil Officers of the State of Maryland.

Foreign consuls.

Strangers.

Masters of vessels and seamen.

Citizens.

PUBLIC CHARACTER.

445

on from
;he two

Balti-
of the
■ inter-
of the

xe depot
ded by a

ople, who
the con-
interred,
rocession,
displayed
: observed

" On arriving at the depot, the procession halted and formed a line
on each side of the road, facing inwards. The committee of Con-
gress and other members of the government, who accompanied the
corpse, with the relatives of the deceased, passed through the pro-
cession, which immediately followed them, in reversed order.

" At the conclusion of the ot-remonies, an invitation was g^ven
from the mayor to the mem' . >f Congress, to remain and partake
of some refreshments, wl ' 'eclined by Mr. Adams on behalf

of the committee of arr.'i in consequence of their desire to

return immediately to AN

Though Mr. M'kii.. .vas a supporter of the pre-
sent administration, and therefore called a Jackson
or Van-Buren man — and as such opposed by all the
Whigs, who here, as elsewhere throughout America,
include nearly all the wealthy mercantile classes —
yet all parties joined in showing respect for his cha-
racter, in this last act of consigning his remains to
the tomb. I never remember to have seen, in any
country, more general or apparently more sincere
sorrow evinced at the loss of any public man, than in
the present instance of the unaffected mourning for
Mr. M'Kim. The worth of his character — though
he was denounced by his political opponents, while
living, as a "Loco-Foco," a term equivalent to
" Ultra- Radical " in England — and the real nature of
his services, may be judged of by the following testi-
mony given by one of the most influential of the Whig
papers, which constantly opposed his politics. It is
from the " Baltimore American," of April 3, 1838.

"the death of MR. M'KIM.

" Our form was opened on Sunday night, after the arrival of the
cars from Washington, for the purpose of announcing to our readers,
in yesterday morning's paper, the melancholy intelligence of the
death of our late representative in Congress, the Hon. Isaac

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BALTIMORE.

M'Kim. In referring to the demise of this valued citizen and
estimable man, we feel that something far beyond the ordinary
expression of regret is due to the memory of one who, while living,
discharged the duties devolving upon him with a propriety and cor-
rectness that must long be remembered. Whether we regard him
iu the relations of social life, or observe his course throughout his
business transactions, as one of the most enterprbing and wealthy
merchants of our city, we find him alike distinguished for kindness
and urbanity of deportment, and liberality of spirit. > 'U <?"■::. ^ •

" Unlike many men— who after having acquired riches by per-
severance and activity, withdraw themselves from the busy pursuits
of the world, and are contented to spend the residue of their lives
in ease and quiet — Mr. M*Kim continued to make his immense
fortune the means of affording support, in an extended degree, to
honest industry. When, so far as he was personally concerned, all
motive for active exertion must have been taken away, this valuable
citizen persevered in his praiseworthy course of furnishing employ-*
ment to hundreds of his townsmen, through the various operations
of manufactures and commerce, kept in steady motion by his
capital.

« As a ship-owner, the commercial marine of Baltimore is par-
ticularly indebted to him for the liberality displayed in engaging
the services of those among her naval architects who were con-
spicuous for talent, and by suggesting to them such judicious
improvements as were the results of his own experience, enabling
them to produce some of the most perfect models in ship-building
ot which oxur city can boast. As a manufacturer, his services have
not been less important, through the facilities afforded by his
ample means, in introducing the preparation of articles for which
we otherwise would have remained tributary to other places.

" In point of active beneficence and open-handed charity, few
persons have surpassed Mr. M'Kim. As an instance of his well-
directed munificence, we would point to the beautifully classic
building for a free-school, erected on East fialtimore-Street, at his
own expense, and, it is believed, liberally endowed by him. It is
by this and similar acts, that Mr. M'Kim has left behind him a
fond and lasting estimation among his fellow-citizens, many of
whom, at present young, will, when their heads shall have been

^•4

NEWSPAPERS.

447

, citizen and
the ordinary
while living,
iety and cor-
ire regard him
iroughout his
; and wealthy
1 for kindness

riches by per-
I busy pursuits
J of their lives
i lus immense
led degree, t9
concerned, all
y, this valuable
ishing employ'
ious operations
motion by his

iltimore is par-
id in engaging
who were con-
such judicious
ience, enabling
n ship-building
lis services have
ifForded by his
rticles for which
ler places,
led charity, few
,nce of his well-
jautifully classic
re-Street, at his

by him. It is
jft behind him a
jitizens, mai»y of

shall have been

silvered over by the frosts of age, remember with heartfelt grati-
tude the philanthropist whose kindness bestowed upon them the
lights of education.

" For many years past, Mr. M'Kim represented the city of
Baltimore in Congress, and to the extent of his ability exerted
himself in the promotion of what he conceived to be the best
interests of this metropolis. Whatever feelings may have been
produced by party asperity in reference to his views of national
measures, those sentiments were never permitted to invade the
sanctity of the private relations in which, to the end of his life, he
continued to possess the warm affection and unlimited confidence of
all who enjoyed his friendship.

'* As a token of respect and indication of the regret of liis fellow-
citizens generally, and particularly the commercial portion of them,
the flags of the shipping in port, and all the public places, were
during yesterday displayed at half-mast, and will, it is understood,
continue to be so throughout this day."

The two opposing candidates, named by the
respective parties, to fill the vacancy in the represen-
tation occasioned by the death of Mr. M*Kim, were,
for the whigs, Mr. John P. Kennedy, a lawyer, well
known in England as the author of " Swallow Bam"
and " Horse-Shoe Robinson ;" and on the part of
the democrats. General W. H. Marriott, both men
of good talents and high respectability ; for universal
suffrage does not lead here, any more ihan it would
do elsewhere, to the selection of representatives from
any other class than that which the voters believe
to be a much higher one than the average of their
own.

Of newspapers in Baltimore there is no deficiency.
There are four morning daily papers — the American
and Chronicle, whig ; the Republican, democrat ; and
the Sun (a paper selling at one cent, or about a half-
penny English, per copy, and issuing 12,000 daily,)

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448

BALTIMORE.

neutral ; and two evening daily papers, the Patriot,
whig ; and the Transcript, neutral. In addition
to this, there are three weekly papers, chiefly lite-
rary — the Athenaeum and Visitor, the Kaleidoscope,
and the Monument. These last supply the place
of larger periodicals ; and in the Athenaeum of
April, the whole of the February Number of Black-
wood's Edinburgh Magazine was published entire,
and sold for six cents and a half, or about three-
pence sterling ; a competition against which no Eng-
lish periodical could stand.

The character of the newspapers of Baltimore ,
does not difler much from those of New York. The
neutral papers appear to give, honestly, fair and im-
partial reports of what really happens ; but they are
too impartial to please any party in politics, and their
circulation is not so extensive as it would be by em-
bracing either side. The party-papers, on the other
hand, can neither of them be relied on. As an in-
stance, it may be mentioned, that durini? '^ur stay
here, a public meeting was held in mment

Square, of those who were opposed to the Registry
Law. It was attended by 300 or 400 persons, and
the proceeding was a manifest failure, as more than
as many thousands usually attend such meetings ;
and the evening was fine, and every thing in favour
of a large assemblage. All the Whig papers passed
it by in entire silence, which was a dishonest sup-
pression of a fact that ought to be known, namely,
that some, at least, were opposed to the registry law,
and that it was not approved by all parties. The
Republican, on the other hand, came out next day,
with a most exaggerated statement of the triumphant

1^ "^

PARTY-BIAS.

449

5 Patriot,
addition
lefly lite-
lidoscope,
the place
nsBum of
of Black-
id entire,
)ut three-
1 no Eng-

Baltimore
)rk. The^
T and im-
Lt they are
and their
he by em-

the other
As an in-
y <^\iY stay
lument
e Registry
rsons, and
more than
meetings ;

in favour
3ers passed
lonest sup-
^n, namely,
igistry law,
ties. The
next day,
triumphant

success which attended the meeting, and would lead
its readers to infer, that the registry law was exe-
crated by the whole community. On looking over
what I had previously written on this subject, of the
New York papers, I had sometimes hoped that I
should find it true only of them, or at least that the
journals of other cities would not be so extremely
partial and one-sided in their statements. But I
find, in an article which has just appeared in a New
York paper, and has been transferred to the columns
of the neutral journal here, that this truth is beginning
to make an impression even in the city where the
evil is most conspicuous. Whether the calm expo-
sure of this practice, in the candid spirit in which it
is done, will lead to a correction of the evil, time alone
will show ; but it is an evil of great magnitude, and
one that needs speedy and effective correction. The
following is the article referred to : —

The following sensible remarks on the practice of Washington
Letter Writers, of eulogizing, without disuriinination, their political
fiiends, and heaping anathemas upon their opponents, are from the
New York Commercial Advertiser. The practice is In the highest
degree reprehensible, and we are glad to see that the political press
is begriming to think so.

** The greatest fault on the part of the correspondents of the
press at Washington, in our opinion, is to be found in the practice
of bestowing universal praise and univenial disparagement, upon
their political friends on one hand, and their opponents on the other.
We have inveighed against this practice of indiscriminate eulogy
or praise, in our private correspondence, and in conve'.sations with
vai'ious writers for the press ; but the evil exists — to a much less
degree, however, in regard to our own correspondence, than in
relation to that of most other journals, on either side of the House.

" The natural consequence of these partial reports is, to shake the
confidence of the public in the general accmacy and tone of the

2 G

'It

^ii

VOL. I.

.1'

in-' -

450

BALTIMORE.

hi'

1 5.1;

i*;;r, r*

•^^ «M

[» i4 »

1 ' •- ',
- ^" -.-'-

/ 'I •

* 4

s M

J. . . I."

Washington letter-writers. Not, in our opinion, that they wilfully
misrepresent ; but they allow their feelings, their partialities, and
their animosities, too frequently to mislead their judgments. Hence,
whenever a leading Whig member of either House lays himself out
in a set speech, upon a great subject, we are quite sure of hearing
Uiat it is the ablest and most eloquent speech ever delivered. All
his opponents who have spoken before him, have been of course
overthrown, used up, and annihilated. And all who attempt to
answer him, come off with miserable failures. On the other hand,
— ^to judge from the correspondents of the Evening Post, and of the
other Post erected in Boston, the editorials of the Globe, and the
general correspondence of 'the party' ^ there is neither statesman
nor orator at Washington, save those in the ranks of the adminis-
tration. Messrs Wright, Niles, and Benton, according to thesQ
authorities, are the most able and profound men in the Senate ;
and Mr. Cambreleng the most eloquent and sagacious statesman in
the House.

** We might illustrate these positions by examples at length, were
it necessary. For instance, Mr. Clay's speech in reply to Mr.
Calhoun, the other day, was extolled by om* friends as almost tran-
scending human effort ; and by the unanimous vote of the Whig
letter-writers, Mr. Calhoim was utterly prostrated— overthrown —
torn to tatters — and used entirely up. Now, we know the great
powers of Mr. Clay, as a clear logician, and as a most eloquent
rhetorician. He had, moreover, the right side of the question, and
we doubt not that he ivaa victorious in the argument. But — Mr.
Calhoun used up ! We know that gentleman too well to believe it.
He may use himself up, politically, by his waywardness, and by
pursuing the winding mazes of metaphysical abstractions. But a
man of his splendid intellectual faculties, of his vast and varied
learning, of his vigour of mind, acuteness and power in debate, is
not so easily ' used up,' even by such a man as Henry Clay.

" These things ought not so to be. The correspondents of the
press at the seat of government should exhibit more of candour, on
both sides, than we are accustomed to see. They should speak
truly and justly, both of men and tilings ; avoiding the infliction
of unnecessary pain upon the feelings of any one ; and also refrain-
ing from the bestowment of unmerited praise.

mi:

"*^

---•^it..

EDITORIAL QUAINTNESS.

451

they wilfully
irtialities, and
ents. Hence,
^s himself out
ire of hearing
jlivered. All
een of course
tio attempt to
\ie other hand,
ost, and of the
3rlobe, and the
ther statesman
f the adminis-
■ding to these
1 the Senate;'
la statesman in

at length, were
reply to Mr.
as almost tran-
e of the Whig
-overthrown —
now the great
most eloquent
e question, and
it. But — Mr.
b11 to believe it.
irdness, and by
ictions. But a
vast and varied
'CT in debate, is
ry Clay,
jondents of the
of candour, on
y should speak
ig the infliction
nd also refrain-

" But this habit of indiscriminate eulogy or condemnation, is not
confined to letter-writers. It is but too common among the con-
ductors of the press themselves. How strikingly is it evinced in
the notices of orators at public meetings, whereby a foreigner at a
distance might well suppose us to be a nation of Hamiltons, Sheri-
dans, and Ciceros — a people bom in the possession of universal
knowledge, every tongue tipped with the oil of eloquence, and every
lip dropping with the honey of persuasion."

In the Baltimore papers, as in all the others that
I had yet seen, there is the same taste for odd and
quaint displays of editorial singularity, and especially
respecting the difficulties of getting their distant sub-
scribers to pay up their arrears, an evil under which
most of the newspapers seem to labour, and which
they evidently feel to be a serious one, notwithstand-
ing all their good-humoured jests about it. The
following are three specimens taken from the Baltimore
papers of April 1838.

" Lumber, Sour Krout, 8ec. — The editor of the Mohawk
Courier — ^adjudged to be a bachelor — ^hangs out the following novel
advertisement in his paper : — * For sale, at this ofEce, six hundred
feet of hemlock boards, one thousand shingles, a quantity of leather,
line keg of sour krout, four yards of red flannel, nine bushels of
potatoes, one barrel of vinegar, two bushels of corn, a few pounds
of rusty pork, one patent screw bedstead, and one — Crib/ — all of
which having been taken in payment for the Courier, will be sold
* dog cheap.' "

" One in a Thousand. — The Cincinnati Whig has one subscri-
ber, of which it has good reason to be particularly proud. The
case is such a singular one that we must give it publicity. It says,
< He has taken the Whig ever since its commencement, and has
invariably paid his subscription in advance, without waiting to be
called upon.' "

"Too Bad. — The Mobile Mercantile Advertiser bestows a just
meed of virtuous indignation upon a 'patron' of whom the editor
heard that he had been seen laughing heartily over a paragraph

2 g2

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452

BALTIMORE.

in the paper of a previous morning, but wlio had not paid his sub*
acription for two years ! How could any man enjoy a joke with such
a weight upon his conscience ?**

The literary taste of Baltimore is quit€ equal
to that of New York , and its institutions as nume-
rous and as well supported, in proportion to the
respective numbers of their inhabitants. Several
literary and scientific societies, which existed under
separate names, have recently associated themselves
under one direction ; and at the introductory address
delivered before this body, in the saloon of the Law
buildings, during our stay here, at which I was
present, a very large and attentive audience testified^
their deep interest in its prosperity. My own courses
of lectures were also extremely well attended, and as
highly appreciated and enjoyed by the audience, as
in any place in which they had yet been delivered.
There is an excellent public library, containing up-
wards of 10,000 volumes, well selected, especially in
historical subjects; and its books are in constant
use by the numerous and intelligent frequenters of
this institution.

r5*

md his sub'
ike with such

»'^..f

lite equal
1 as nume-
jn to the
Several
ited under
themselves
>ry address
f the Law
ich I was
ce testified
wn courses
led, and as
adience, as
I delivered,
taining up-
specially in
in constant
iquenters of

CHAP. XXIII.

Classification of the varied population of the dty— General charac-
teristics — State of society and manners — Supposed causes of the
refinement of Baltimore^ — Co-existence of depraved and aban-
doned classes — Instances of recent outrage and cruelty — More
disorganized state of society in the West — Retrospect of Balti-
more society a centiuy ago^Extensive use of tobacco by the
Marylanders — Evil effects of this pernicious and offensive prac-
tice — Injury to society by the waste of land and capital — Grow-
ing opinion agunst the use of tobacco— Cultivation of this nox-
ious weed by slaves — Exhaustion of the soil in Virginia and
Maryland — Popular appeal to southern men and slaveholders —
Inconsistency of the democratic party on this subject — Public
sal6 of appropriated lands for arrears of taxes — Singular names
of many of these estates — Public labours of the Maryland
legislature — Registry law — Imprisonment for debt — Wearing
weapons.

Of the 100,000 inhahitants now occupying the city
of Baltimore, it is estimated that there nre ahout
75,000 whites, and 25,000 coloured persous ^ these
last heing in the proportion of ahout 5,000 slaves
and 20,000 free. The slaves are mostly in the
class of domestic servants, and labourers for hire;
and their condition is consequently more comfortable
than that of field slaves employed in cultivation.
They are among the least favourable in countenance
and person of any that I had yet seen in the United
States ; but they are admitted to be orderly and un-
offending, though considered to be deficient in capa-
city, and, therefore, no one appears to apprehend

454

BALTIMORE.

any danger from them. There are two extensive,
and several smaller slave-dealers in the city, the two
principal ones having amassed large fortunes in the
traffic. One of them has the singularly appropriate
name of Woolfolk, it heing the woolly-headed race,
or wool-folk, in whicli he deals. I did not hear, how-
ever, of acts of cruelty heing attributed to any of
the dealers here, beyond those inseparable from the
coerced imprisonment to which they subject their
victims, to secure them from their escape to that
liberty, which it is so constantly asserted they neither
value nor desire, but which, nevertheless, it is never
deemed prudent to place within their reach. \

The free-people of colour are so far above the con-
dition of the slaves, in their appearance, dress, man-
ners, and intelligence, that it must strike the most
careless observer ; it is indeed surprising that, in
the face of such powerful evidence to the contrary,
the whites should still insist, as many do here, that
if the slaves were made free, they would become dete-
riorated in condition, and be among the most indo-
lent and vicious of their race. In Baltimore there
are many coloured men engaged in trade, as small
merchants, shop-keepers, traders, and dealers ; while
the coloured women, who are to be met with in
great numbers in every street, are well dressed,
orderly, and respectable, both in appearance and
behaviour. Schools for coloured children abound ;
there are several coloured preachers ; and in no
instance, that I could learn, were the free-coloured
people implicated in any of the riots and mobs
by which Baltimore has been so often agitated ;
these being invariably begun and carried on,

K*.

CLASSES OF SOCIETY.

465

txtensive,
the two
es in the
propriate
led race,
ear, how-
to any of
from the
iject their
e to that
ev neither
t is never
1. 1

7e thecon-
ress, man-
» the most
g that, in
3 contrary,
I here, that
icome dete-
most indo-
more there
e, as small
lers ; while
et with in
$11 dressed,
irance and
m abound;
and in no
•ee-coloured
and mobs
1 agitated ;
carried on,

exclusively, by the "more intelligent," and "more
improveable" whites I

In the white population, there is a great admix-
ture, both of races, occupations, and conditions.
The great bulk of the labouring classes are Irish or
German, originally imported as emigrants, with a
union of Americans, and the descendants of all
three. They are in general mieducated, intempe-
rate, and turbulent ; and furnish the largest number
of subjects for the asylum, the hospitals, and the
jails.

The class next above these, are the small shop-
keepers, native mechanics, and tradesmen, who ap-
pear to be better informed, more industrious, and in
better condition as to circumstances than the same
class of persons in England ; labour of every kind
being more in demand, and better paid, and provi-
sions of all descriptions being more abundant and
more cheap.

The large shop-keepers, or store-keepers, as they
are here called, are many of them opulent, almost all
intelligent, and of good manners ; and intercourse
with them on matters of business is extremely agree-
able, from the frankness, cordiality, and perfect free-
dom from anythi'iig like over-reaching, or hard bar-
gaining, which too often characterises this class in
all countries.

The merchants, the bankers, the medical and
legal professions, and the clergy, constitute here, as
elsewhere, the most intelligent and the most polished
portion of society. We had the best opportunities of
seeing and enjoying this, in the various parties to
which we were invited during our stay, and we

«>

i '

456

BALTIMORE.

Hi:

,V(»4

'■4

■■

were uniformly impressed, after leaving them, with
the feeling that they were amongst the most agree-
able that we had experienced in the countr}*.

The ladies of Baltimore enjoy a high reputation
throughout the Union for their personal beauty ; and
this reputation is well founded. There are few if
any cities in Europe that could produce so many
handsome women, out of such a population as this —
pleasing in person, graceful in carriage, intelligent,
well-bred, cordial in manners ; and in every sense
of the term, "lady-like" in accomplishments and
behaviour. The men, too, struck us as much more
generally well-informed than the same class of per- \
sons we had seen elsewhere in the country ; of hand-
some countenances, better dressed, and more " gen-
tlemanlike" in their whole deportment.

This is accounted for in different ways, by diffe-
rent individuals ; but here, the observation generally
is, that this superiority of appearance, intelligence, and
manners, is characteristic of the south, in contrast
to the north ; and that Baltimore, from its position
and its trade, belongs to the south, and has an affinity
with it in its interest and its tastes. But this in
reality leaves the question just where it was, and the
inquiry still presents itself. Why is it that the south
possesses this superiority ?

For my own part, I am inclined to attribute the
elegance and refinement which characterizes the
society of the higher circles of Baltimore, to the
influences shed upon the existing generation by
the character and condition of those who were its
founders.

The two hundred of the Catholic nobility and

EARLY INFLUENCES.

457

[lem, with
>st agree-

eputation
luty ; and
are few if
so many
as this —
ntelligent,
very sense
nents and
luch more
iss of per- \
; of hand-
le "gen-

I, hy diffe-
i generally
gence, and
in contrast
ts position
; an affinity
lut this in
s, and the
; the south

;trihute the
terizes the
are, to the
eration by
ho were its

obilitv and

gentry who came out under the patronage of Cecilius,
the second Lord Baltimore, under the personal pro-
tection of his brother Leonard Calvert, — and the
number of persons of rank, fortune, and education,
of the same faith, who subsequently joined them in
their refuge from religious persecution at home, —
sowed the first seeds of the fruit which their posterity
now bears ; and the easy circumstances in which the
early settlers were soon placed, rendering it unneces-
sary either to toil very hard, or to struggle against
many difficulties, both of which were the lot of the
pilgrim fathers of the north, would contribute largely
to preserve that grace and urbanity, which affluence
and even competency, is sure to generate and pre-
serve. Add to this, instead of the rigid asperity by
which the Puritans of the north were characterized,
the first Catholic settlers of Maryland were liberal
in their notions both of religion and politics, were
free and easy in their own mode of living, and tolerant
towards the opinions and manners of others.

The influx of the wealthy and accomplished colo-
nists of St. Domingo, who took refuge here at the
time of the revolution in that island, and who
brought with them the generosity of colonial hospi-
tality, and the ease and grace of French manners,
served, no doubt, to give a new infusion of these
qualities into the society of Baltimore ; and the joint
influences of these two causes, being again strengthened
by the efiect of the Catholic religion, and the exist-
ence of slavery — both of these having a tendency to
make men less anxious about the future, and more
disposed to enjoy the present — accounts sufficiently, to
my mind at least, for the elegance, ease, and agreeable

'(»

[iO^jv .

:^i^l!ll

>„ >..

I', 5"'' ,

458

baItimore.

manners, which characterize the best society of Balti-
more ; and make their social parties the most cor-
dial, and their gayer soirees the most agreeable that
can be enjoyed.

It must not be supposed, however, that Baltimore
is entirely free from that admixture of evil which
seems, in all communities, to be infused, in greater or
lesser degrees, with the good. Here, as elsewhere, are
men of abandoned characters and dissipated habits,
who obtain their subsistence by preying on their more
industrious fellow citizens, and who squander what
they obtain in the most vicious indulgences; as
well as others, who are guilty of the grossest cruelty
and tyranny towards those who are in their power.
The following instances are selected from many
reported in the Baltimore papers of April, 1838.

" Brutal Outrage. — Our city is infested, disgraced, by a gang
of ruiBans, who, in defiance of every sense of shame, promenade the
streets in company with the most abandoned of the other sex, and
at night prowl about, insulting decent females, and, like assassins,
waylaying and beating peaceable citizens. They are dressed like
gentlemen, and profess to be men of honour; but a chimney-sweep
has more gentility, and a footpad is a better man. Three scoun.
drels, who, if they are not of this class, are fully entitled to rank
among their number, rushed into the store of a highly respectable
citizen, in Market-ctreet, on Wednesday night, and, without cause
or provocation, one of them struck him a severe blow in the face.
The gallant youths then ran off, we presume to some of their haunts,
to entertain their companions in iniquity with a description of their
exploits. Measures have been taken for the arrest of these mis-
creants, when we hope our citizens will be shown that their lives
and property will be protected by the law, without having recourse
to those means of defence which heaven and the laws of nature
authorize them to use, when the ministers of the law fail to do
their duty*

OUTRAGES.

459

of Balii-
nost cor-
able that

Baltimore
sdl which
rreater or
(There, are
d habits,
aeir more
ider what
3nces J as
st cruelty
eir power,
•om many
ril, 1838.

ed, by a gang
tFomenade the
other sex, and
like assassins,
e dressed like
himney-sweep
Three scoun-
titled to rank
tily respectable
without cause
)W in the face.
)f their haunts,
jription of their
t of these mis-
that their lives
baving recourse
laws of nature
,e law fail to do

" Impudent Villains. — One day last week three well-dressed
fellows went into a hat-store in Pratt-street, and pretended to bar-
gain with the proprietor for a hat for each of them. They were
soon suited with those of the latest fashion, and one of them was
also fitted with a cap. But no money was forthcoming ; two of the
gentry deliberately walked out of the store with the new castors on
their heads, while the thir.d intimated the probability of his paying
for the hats by putting a ball through the head of the shopman, if
he attempted to follow them ; and then taking out a fifty-cent note,
tendered it to him, as he said, for the time he had lost in talking to
them. Before the hatter had recovered from his astonishment at
their effrontery, the worthy trio were out of sight. — Another rob-
bery, similar to the above, occurred the same day in Market-street.
Two men, fashionably dressed, walked into an umbrella store, where
there was no one but a laiy in attendance, bade the lady g^ood
morning, selected two umbrellas, bade her farewell, and took their
departure, but never mentioned anything about the price, or else
took it for granted that umbrellas are public property, and so made
off with them."

But even these cases are as nothing, when
compared with the accounts that are published
almost daily, of atrocities committed in the newly-
settled states of the South and the West, -"here
the insecurity of person seems much greater than
the insecurity of property, and where outrages are
committed with impunity. The following are all
from the Baltimore newspapers of the same day,
April 10, 1838 :—

"Infamous Outrage in Michigan. — The Ann Arbor State
Journal, of March 15th, states that on the night of the 12th, the
Presbyterian church in that village, was forcibly entered, and
numerous depredations were committed, such as breaking lamps,
destroying the hangings of the pulpit, and some other acts of too
brutal and revolting a character to be publicly mentioned. The
trustees of the church have offered a reward of one hundred dollars,
and the town-council another hundred, for the apprehension and
conviction of the perpetrators of these infamous acts. The next

r- /

''.«■■ . -A

f.Vt,' '<i.„

Mi''

■>. ■■

Ft' ' •• •

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460

BALTIMORE.

day, the excitement was so great that a public meeting was held,
and the act unanimously denounced as execrable. Yet it is boldly
added, that there is a class of destructives in that town capable of
being g^ty of any atrocity."

" There was an encounter a few days ago at Warrington, Dallas
county, Ala, between two brothers named Womack, in which one
of them was killed. The cUfficulty arose out of an election of
justice of the peace. Wm. Womack gave his brother Henry
several severe blows with a club, when the latter drew s pistol, anJ
shot him dead. Henry has been examined, and discharged."

"A bloody af&ay took place in the principal street of the town
of Montgomery, Alabama, on the 28th ult. The persons engaged
were Wm. J. Moouey and Kenyon Mooney his son, Edward Bell
and Bushrod Bell, jun. The first received a wound in the
abdomen, made by that fatal instrument the bowie-knife, which
caused his death in about fifteen hours. The second was shot in
the side, and would doubtless have been killed, had not the ball
partly lost its force by first striking his arm. The third received a
shot in the neck, and now lies without hope of recovery. The
foiuth escaped unhurt."

'' The Louisville Journal haf^ also the following relation of a
murderous affair which occurred In the southern part of Kentucky :
* We learn that two fatal encounters took place at Milb's Point, on
the Mississippi, in this State, on Friday last. At first there was a
fight between Mr. Rivers, a lawyer, and Mr. Ferguson, a physician,
in which the latter was worsted. Shortly afterwards, Ferguson,
burning with the mortification of defeat, procured a rifle, and shot
Rivers dead ; and thereupon a brother of Rivers armed himself
with another rifle, sought Ferguson out, and, after wounding him
severely with a rifle-shot, rushed upon him with a pistol, and
despatched him at once. We do not learn whether any judicial
proceedings have been instituted in consequence of these bloody
transactions."

" The St. Louis Bulletin furnishes another addition to this bloody
catalogue : * Assassination. — We regret to learn from a traveller,
that a murder was recently committed at Knoxville, Illinois, under
the following mysterious circumstances. Two citizens of the place
— Mr. Osborne and Dr. Daiton-- were conversing in the street

BORDER CRIMES.

461

ig was held,
; it is boldly
n capable of

igton, Dallas
n which one
a election of
rother Henry

8 pistol, anu
arged."
it of the tovra
rsons engaged

fidward BeU
>ound in the
3-knife, which
id was shot in
d not the ball
bird received a
Bcovery. The

relation of a
of Kentucky :
[ills's Point, on
rst there was a
on, a physician,
rds, Ferguson,
rifle, and shot
armed himself
wounding him
, a pistol, and
er any judicial
of these bloody

an to this bloody
from a traveller,
(, Illinois, under
sens of the place
g in the street

opposite the tavern, when a gun was discharged from a window of
the building, and two balls entered Dalton's back below the
shoulder. He exclaimed ' I am dead,' and immediately expired.
No one witnessed the discharge of the gun ; but suspicion rests
upon a young man, who came running from the tavern immediately
after the occurrence; he has been apprehended. Report says,
that the murdered man had some time previous, offered an indignity
to a sister of the suspected individual. There was a strong sensa-
tion in the village upon the subject."

These are the crimes of border countries, and
unsettled territories ; and will, it is hoped, gradually
diminish before the influence of numbers, of law, and
of public opinion ; but as the cities of the sea-coast
have all passed through this state of preparation and
transition, and have now been under the influence
of law and order for many years, it is not just to
institute a comparison between them, without taking
this difference of their circumstances into consider-
ation. As it respects Baltimore, however, it appears
from the very first to have been peopled, by a race that
never had this transition-state to pass through, having
been settled by gentlemen originally, and continuing
always to have a large infusion of elegant and even
courtly manners and usages among its inhabitants.
In a retrospect, taken by one of the octageharians of
the city, who retains a vivid recollection of his
younger days, and carries about, in his costume and
appearance, the relics i "the olden time," there is
a striking picture of the society of Baltimore in its
halcyon days of fashion, which is worth repeating.
The writer is speaking of the avenue of Market
Street, ju«^t at the termination of the war of Inde-
pendence, about sixty years ago — the same avenue
that is now called Baltimore Street, and now, as well

» i

i?!-^'/
4-''

W^"

I1i,''i -.i-

'^^■MM

462

BALTIMORE.

as then the Bond Street or Mall of its day. He
says :

** This avenue was enlivened with apparitions of grave matrons
and stirring damsels, moving erect in stately transit, lili.e the
wooden and pasteboard fig^es of a puppet show— our present
gprandmothers, arrayed in gorgeous brocade and taffetta, luxuriantly
displayed over hoops, with comely bodices, laced around that
ancient piece of armour, the stays, disclosing most perilous waists ;
and with sleeves that clung to the arm as far as the elbow, where
they took a graceful leave in ruffles that stood off like the feathers
of a bantam. And such faces as they bore along with them! so
rosy, so spirited and sharp ! with the hair all drawn back over a
cushion — until it lifted the eye-brows, giving an amazingly fierce and
supercilious tone to the countenance — and falling in cataracts upon
the shoulders. Then they stepped away with such a mincing gait, in
shoes of many colours, with formidable points to the toes, and high
and tottering heels, fancifully cut in wood ; their tower-built hats,
garnished with tall feathers that waved aristocratically backward at
each step, as if they took a pride in the slow paces of the wearer.

" In the train of these goodly groups came the beaux and gal-
lants, who upheld the chivalry of the age ; cavaliers of the old
school, full of starch and powder : most of them the iron gentlemen
of the revolution, with leather faces, — old campaigners renowned
for long-stories, fresh from the camp, with their military erectness
and dare-devil swagger ; — ^proper, roystering blades, who had just
got out of the harness, and begun to affect the manners of civil
life. Who but they ! jolly fellows, fiery and loud, — with stem
glances of the eye, and a brisk turn of the head, and a swash-buckler
strut of defiance, Uke game-cocks ; all in tliree-cornered hats, and
wigs, and Ught coloured coats with narrow capes and marvellous
long backs, with the pockets on each hip, and small-clothes that
hardly reached the knee, and striped stockings, >vith great buckles
in their shoes, and their long steel chains that hung conceitedly
half-way to the knee, with seals in the shape of a sounding-board
to a pulpit. And they walked with such a stir, striking their canes
so hard upon the pavement as to make the little town ring again.
I defy all modern coxcombry to produce any thing like it. There

..V'

FASHIONABLE PROMENADE.

4G3

day. He

rrave matrong
nsit, like the
—our present
ta, luxuriantly
, around that
erilous waists ;
I elbow, where
ce the feathers
nth them! so
I back over a
ingly fierce and
cataracts upon
nincing gait, in
toes, and high
>wer-bxult hats,
ly backward at
)f the wearer.
)eaux and gal-
ers of the old
iron gentlemen
rners renowned
ilitary erectness
8, who had just
lanners of civil
A, — with stem
a swash-buckler
nered hats, and
and marvellous
lall-clothes that
h great buckles
ing conceitedly
sounding-board
king their canes
own ring again,
f like it. There

was such a relish about it, and particularly when one of these
weather-beaten gallants accosted a lady in the street with a bow
that required a whole side pavement to make it in, with the scrape
of his foot, and his cane thrust with a flourish, under his left nrni,
till it projected behind, along with his cue, like the palisades of a
chevaux de/rize : and nothing could be more piquante than the
lady, as she reciprocated the salutation with a curtsy that seemed
to carry her into the earth, and her chin bridled to her breast — such
a volume of dignity!"

Baltimore Street is still the fashionable promenade
between the hours of four and seven, the dinner-hour
varying here from two to three o'clock. At this
period of the afternoon, when the weather is fine,
the ladies of Baltimore may be seen in as great num-
bers as the ladies of New York in the Broadway of
that city between twelve and two. The street is
neither so long, nor so broad, nor are the shops so
elegantly furnished, nor the ladies so gaily and ex-
pensively apparelled in the fashionable promenade of
Baltimore, as in the great capital of the Empire state,
as New York is called ; but there is much more
beauty, and more also of what in England would be
called " quiet elegance," unconscious and unobtrusive
grace and ease, which is peculiarly winning and
agreeable. After dark, the streets are nearly deserted,
and at no portion of the night or day are the eyes
offended, the ear revolted, or the heart saddened, by
those scenes of profligacy and dissipation among
women, which unhappily characterize nearly all
the large towns of England, but from which those of
America seem almost entirely free.

As the State of Maryland is, next to Virginia, the
greatest tobacco-growing State in the Union, the ex-
ports from Baltimore exceeding in quantity those

' '4 '

464

BALTIMORE.

l*^

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from any other part, might be expected as the use
of this weed is very general among its male inha-
bitants. This was the only drawback that we per-
ceived to the gentlemanly appearance and polished
manners of the more respectable classes ; but a great
drawback it is. In England, none chew tobacco but
sailors and hardworking labourers, who use it, as beer
and spirits are used, under the delusive notion that it
enables men to sustain labour better, to resist
the changes of climate, and the cravings of hunger
and thirst ; all of which they would no doubt sustain
better without these stimulants than with them.
Chewing tobacco is, however, regarded in England
as a vulgar habit, while smoking the same weed, if in
the form of segars, is deemed perfectly genteel. Here
however, smoking is more confined to the labouring
classes, and chewing is more frequent than smoking
among the gentry, though both are said to have
declined greatly within the last twenty years.

Of the two, I confess it has always seemed to me,
that chewing is the least offensive to others, because
the smell of the tobacco does not fill the surrounding
atmosphere, and hang about the garments of those
who are in the same company, as the fumes of smoking
do. The effect of chewing is, I believe, less inju-
rious to the parties thus using tobacco, than smoking,
which, moreover is much less compatible with other
occupations than chewing, producing the double effect
of making men more indisposed to labour, and leading
to a great waste of time, and causing them also to be
more inclined to drink, so that it more frequently
engenders habits of intemperance and dissipation.

Every mode, however, in which tobacco is used,

1 '• i"

♦.•rV.

*»

USE OF TOBACCO.

40,5

as the use
nale inha-
at we per-
il polished
3ut a great
ohacco hut
J it, as heer
►tion that it
, to resist
of hunger
►ubt sustain
with them,
in England
e weed, if in
iteel. Here
e lahouring
an smoking
aid to have
jars.

smed to me,
lers, because
surrounding
ents of those
js of smoking
re, less inju-
lan smoking,
e with other
double effect
•, and leading
em also to be
re frequently
issipation.
acco is used,

appears to me injurious to the parties using it, and
offensive to those around them who do not. The
snuff-taker, no doubt, injures the stomach, obstructs
the organs of smell, and destroys the clearness and
intonation of the voice, besides presenting very often
most disagreeable appearances to the person. The
chewer of tobacco also injures his stomach, by the
unavoidable escape into it of some portion of its acrid
poison ; and though his voice is not affected by it, yet
the rolling quid, passing from side to side, the ejection
of the copious fluid, and the replenishing the exhausted
portion of the weed with a new supply, are all most
offensive to others. The smoker of tobacco, on the
other hand, makes his own person and clothes smell so
disagreeably, and so taints the whole atmosphere of
the house in which he indulges, that it is disagreeable
to approach him, or to enter his dwelling •, while the
injury done to his healthy appetite and digestion, and
the bad habits of indolence and drinking contracted
by smoking, make this practice, I think, the most in-
jurious to individuals and to society, of all the three
modes in which tobacco is consumed.

It is melancholy indeed to reflect on the misappro-
priation of millions of acres of valuable soil, of the mis-*
application of millions of caj^ital, and the perfect
waste of millions of labour, on the cultivation of a
weed which does no one any good, but is either use-
less or mischievous as an article of human consump-
tion in every form ; and it would be a great blessing
to see all this soil, capital, and labour devoted to the
production of wholesome food and raiment for man,
or such other articles of growth as would at least
have utility and innocence to recommend them.

VOL. I. 2 H

y- :^

466

BALTLMORE.

''-i

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There seems a growing feeling among the higher
classes of the population against the use of tohacco
in any shape, and the ladies especially express this
feeling without reserve. The interests involved m
the culture and traffic are too great to be easily
destroyed at once, but there will, no doubt, be a
gradual decline in the trade, as public opinion pro-
duces a gradual diminution in the use. Now and
then, attention is indirectly drawn to the subject, in
articles published in the newspapers; and the fol-
lowing, which originally appeared in the Alexandria
Gazette — (Alexandria being a port of Virginia, the
^rst of the tobacco-growing States, and was theti
copied into a Baltimore paper, the second of the
tobacco-growing States,) — is worth transcribing, for
the allusions it contains on this subject.

" THE GENTLEMAN AT CHURCH
" May be known by the following marks.

1. Comes in good season, so as neither to inteiTupt the pastor or
the congregation by a late arrival.

2. Does not stop upon the steps or in the portico, either to gaze
at the ladies, salute friends, or display his colloquial powers.

3. Opens and shuts the door gently, and walks deliberately and
lightly up the aisle, or gallery stairs, and gets his seat as quietly,
and by making as few people remove, as possible.

4. Takes his place either in the back part of the seat, or steps
out into the aisle when any oi;te wishes to pass in, and never thinks
of such a thing as making people crowd past him while keeping
his place in the seat.

5. Is always attentive to strangers, and gives up his seat to such ;
seeking another for himself.

6. Never thinks of defiling the house of God with tohacco
spittle, or annoying those who sit near him by chewing that
nauseous weed in church.

7. Never, unless in case of illness, gets up or goes out during the

'/ ^

SMOKING PROHIBITED.

467

the higher
of tobacco
tpress this
nvolved m
► be easily
oubt, be a
pinion pro-
Now and
subject, in
nd the fol-
Alexandria
irginia, the
i was theti
:ond of the
jcribing, for

)t the pastor or

, either to gaze

powers,
ieliberately and

seat as qmetly,

le seat, or steps
ind never thinks
ft while keeping

his seat to such;

odwith tobacco
/ chewing that

es out during the

time of service. But if neccessity compels him to do so, goes
so quickly that his very manner is an apologpy for the act.

8. Does not engage m conversation before the commencement
of service.

9. Does not whisper, or laugh, or eat fruit in the house of God, or
lounge in that holy place.

10. Does not rush out of the church like a trampling horse, the
moment the benediction is pronounced, but retires slowly in a
noiseless, quiet manner.

1 1 . Does all he can, by precept and example, to promote decorum
in others, and is ever ready to lend his aid to discountenance all
indecorum in the house of God."

In the Northern states, however, the subject of
tobacco-chewing has been taken up in a more direct
manner than this ; and though it would seem to be
a most unpoetical theme, it has been made the topic
of a serious though not a very elegant poem, if one
may judge from the following brief notice of it in a
Baltimore paper, the only one I have seen.

" Tobacco-chewing. — The Rev. Charles S. Adams, of Boston,
has published a poem, on Chewing and Spitting. The following
couplet is a specimen.

' If you would know the deeds of him that chews,
Enter the house of God, and see the pews.'

I do not know how far it would be deemed an
interference with personal liberty to prohibit the
chewing of tobacco in public worship. But smoking
would not be tolerated in any church, any more than
in concert-rooms or theatres ; and at present, in the
rail-road cars from Philadelphia to Baltimore, and
from hence to Washington, there is a printed
announcement, prohibiting all passengers from smok-
ing within the cars j a proof that public opinion

2h2

ill.

4'^

4 *„

!*4 'tf;- '

468

BALTIMORE.

^ll' ■■■»'■;

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pronounces smoking to be more offensive toothers than
chewing, or both would have been alike forbidden.

The cultivation of tobacco, which has nearly worn
out the best soils of Virginia and Maryland, from
its exhausting power over the earth, is almost wholly
carried on by slaves : and as it is believed here, that
the same men, if free, would not consent to such
laborious occupation, unless highly paid, — and as the
operation is thought to be too severe for the whites, —
there is a great indisposition on the part of the mass
of the people to hear any thing about abolition.
What, however, is as inconsistent as it is remarkable,
is this : that the democratic portion of the popu-
lace, they who ought, if they acted on their professed
principles, to be the most ardent friends of free-
dom and equal rights for the blacks, which they so
strenuously demand for themselves, are most strongly
opposed to slave emancipation. Their organs accord-
ingly seize every opportunity to impute the crime of
advocating negro freedom — for they consider it as
great a crime to ask freedom for others, as to with-
hold it from themselves — to the Whigs. The follow-
ing instance of this occurred in the Baltimore Repub-
lican, of April 19, 1838, on the eve of the election
for a member of Congress, when a whig and a
democratic candidate were presented to the choice of
the electors, to fill the vacancy occasioned by the
recent death of the late member Mr. M*Kim.

" Southern Men, and Slaveholders — look at this !

" The following resolutions have passed the Massachusetts Senate
unanimously/. Read them as a specimen of Webster whiggery.
There is not a democrat in the Massachusetts Senate. Whiggery
has the whole of the honour, may it have all the profit !

I* . ''

» ;

ABOLITIONISTS.

469

ithers than
rbidden.
early worn
land, from
lost wholly

here, that
it to such
-and as the
3 whites, —
of the mass
; abolition,
•emarkable,

the popu-
lir professed
ids of free-
lich they so
ost strongly
rans accord-
the crime of
[isider it as

as to with-

The foUow-
nore Repub-

the election
whig and a
the choice of
oned by the

Kim.

achusetts Senate

sbster whiggenj.

late. Whiggery

)rofitl

** Resolves relating to slavery and the slave-trade in the district
of Columbia, and territories of the United States.

1. Resolved, That Congress has, by the constitution, power to
abolish slavery and the slave-trade in the district of Columbia ; and
that there is nothing in the terms or circumstances of the acts of
cession by Virginia and Maryland, or otherwise, imposing any
legal or moral restraint upon its exercise.

2. Resolved, That Congress ought to take measures for the abo-
lition of slavery in the district of Columbia.

3. Resolved, That the rights of justice, the claims of hiunanity,
and the common good, alike demand the entire suppression of the
slave-trade now carried on in the district of Colmnbia.

4. Resolved, That Congress has, by the constitution, power to
abolish slavery in the territories of the United States.

5. Resolved, That Congress has, by the constitution, power to
abolish the traffic in slaves between different States of the Union.

6. Resolved, That the exercise of this power is demanded by the
principles of humanity and justice.

7. Resolved, That no new State should hereafter be admitted in
the Union, whose constitution of government, shall permit the
existence of domestic slavery."

During our stay at Baltimore, an announcement
was made in the public papers, " by the levy court
of St. Mai7*s County," of various estates and tracts
of land in this part of the State, on which arrears of
taxes, the most of very .small amounts, were due ;
and notifying that unless paid within thirty days after
the date of the advertisement, the lands would be
sold for the payment of such arrears. The names
of the estates and tracts of land were as curious as
those in Alleghany county in Virginia, advertised at
Washington, of which the following specimens will
serve as a proof.

" The Flowers of the Forest," 100 acres, due one
dollar 81 cents.— *' Tit for Tat," 50 acres, duo

470

BALTLMORE.

n ^--'r

-■■)■•. .i. ' -■

1 rf. 2 c. — ** Truth and Trust," 85 acres, due 1 d,

18 c " Good Luck," 75 acres, due 2 d. 30 c

" Resurrection Manor," 37 acres, due 1 d, 32 c. —
" Forest of Harvey found by Chance," 140 acres,
due 2 d, 63 c. — " America Felix," 15 acres, due

I d. 20. c. — " America Felix Secundus," 541 acres,
due 40 d. — " Bachelor's Comfort," 225 acres, due
4 d. 30 c. — " Wathen's Disappointment," I67 acres,
due 5 d. QS c, — " Heart's DeUght," 433 acres, due

II c?. 6 c "Poverty Knoll," 118 acres, due 2 d.

20 c. — " Chance's Conclusion with Amendment,"

1032 acres, due 28 d, 99 c " Wit and Folly," 279

acres, due 6 d. 40 c " Peace and Quietness," 258

acres, due 2 d. 69 c. — " Long looked-for Come-at-
last," 50 acres, due 2 c?. 18 c. — " Love's Adventure,"
215 acres, due 5 d. 81 c."*

These names, which were all conferred by the first
purchasers of the estates so designated, had no doubt
a reference to the several circumstances as well as
moods of mind of the buyers : and their variety is a
fair sample of the diversified motives and changing
fortunes which bring emigrants from Europe to
America, and which lead men from the town to the
country in search of subsistence. As these places
will most probably, however, retain their original
names when towns are built around thcui — a??, in the
course of years, is almost sure to happ-?a- - tit .^men-
clature of America, already disfigured with odd and
fanciful designations, and rendered confused by end-
iess repetitions, will be still worse than at present.
Here, in tiie immediate neighbourhood of Baltimore,
is a Rome, a Joppa, and a Havre de Grace ; in Long

* la this account, d means dollars, and c cents.

■:!-'K

FOLL.VG AT ELECTIONS.

471

i, due 1 d,
l 30 c —

d. 32 c —
140 acres,
icres, due
541 acres,
acres, due

167 acres,
acres, due

, due 2 d.
lendment,"

bUy," 279
tness," 258

' Come-at-

dventure,"

[ by the first
ad no doubt
3 as well as
variety is a
id changing

Europe to

town to the

these places

leir original

i — ijF?, in the

ti •: 1 jmen-
ith odd and
used by end-

at present.
>f Baltimore,
ce; in Long
cents.

Island, close to New York, Babylon and Jericho may
be visited by the same rail-road ; and the cities of Troy,
Memphis, Athens, and Palmyra, with Jerusalem,
Nazareth, and Bethlehem, have all had their names,
at least, transferred from the Old to the New world.

While we were in Baltimore, the State legislature
r)f Maryland was assembled at the legislative capital,
/mnapolis, but had closed their labours before we
left. It appears from a report of their proceedings
during the session of about four months, that they
passed 363 laws and 79 resolutions ; so that there
would seem to be the same taste for excessive legisla-
tion here as at home. Among the really good laws
which they passed, was one for the legal registration
of voters previous to an election ; but though this
law is so just in itself, and must be so unobjectionable
to all men who desire only an honest exercise of the
elective franchise, it has been denounced b\ the
democratic party here, as though it were the greatest
infringement of liberty ever heard of.

The truth is, that in this city, as well as at New
York, and all along the sea-border, emigrants from
Europe, German and Irish, are brought up to vote
at the polls for the election of members of Congress
and municipal officers, within a few days after their
landing, though they declare themselves to be citizens,
swear to a residence of the requisite number of year ^,
get vouched for by abandoned men of their own party,
and not only vote without the least title to such a pri-
vilege, but often vote in several wards in succession,
the very circumstance of their being entire strangers
rondering it impossible for any resident to detect
them. A registry-law will, no doubt, put an end to

■ I

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472

BALTLMORE.

this, and hence the anger of the party who denounce
it ; but as such a law cannot possibly deprive any
man who has a right to vote, of his power to exercise
it — since the suffrage, among real and bona-fide citi-
zens, is universal — it seems impossible that any truly
honest politician should have any real objection to it.

In the Maryland legislature, during the present
session, a bill for abolishing imprisonment for debt
was passed, with large majorities, through the House
of Delegates ; but it was rejected in the Senate or
upper house, where only three members voted in its
favour. This was the fate of the first English bill on
the same subject ; and it exhibits a painful view of
human nature, when the rich, who are not exposed
to the infliction of the punishment which imprison-
ment for debt brings on misfortune, as well as fraud,
oppose every attempt to soften the rigour of a prac-
tice, which is unjust and injurious to all parties.

A bill to prevent the carrying of concealed wea-
pons, was passed by the legislature of Virginia during
our stay here, by a majority of 85 to 17 ; and the
same object was pressed upon the attention of the
Maryland legislature, as concealed weapons arc
worn by some of the people of this as well as of the
neighbouring State. The bill for the suppression
of duelling in the District of Columbia, received also,
while we were here the final assent of both Houses of
Congress and the President, so that it has become a
law ; and this, coupled with the gradual disuse of
secret arms, will no doubt have the effect of lessening
the number of sanguinary conflicts.

The environs of Baltimore are extremely agree-
able, abounding with hill and valley, wood and

PARTING VISITS.

473

► denounce
jprive any
to exercise
la-fide citi-
t any truly
iction to it.
;he present
it for debt
the House

Senate or
^oted in its
jlish bill on
iful view of
lot exposed
I imprison-
A\ as fraud,
: of a prac-
parties.
icealed wea-
vinia during
7 ; and the
ition of the
eapons are
ell as of the
suppression
eceived also,
h Houses of
as become a
al disuse of

of lessening

emely agree-
. wood and

water. A number of pretty and commodious
villas, and several larger seats or mansions, are
scattered about the neighbourhood of the city, within
a distance of fi-om one to five miles, and the views
from the elevated points are extensive and beautiful.
We enjoyed, with friends, some most agreeable drives
in excursions to the country, and saw new beauties
every day.

The weather, during our stay in Baltimore, was
pleasant on the whole, though marked by the usual
uncertainty and vicissitude of the American climate.
On some days we had the warmth of a summer sun,
and found light clothing acceptable ; at other times
it was piercingly cold, and the north-east wind
most disagreeable; rain was not frequent, but fell
very copiously once or twice ; and after one of the
warmest and finest mornings that could be imagined,
there was a sudden overcast of the sky, and a heavy
fall of snow before noon. The vegetation, amidst
all this, was extremely backward ; and up to the
20th of April, scarcely a bud was to be seen on any
of the larger trees.

On the 20th, the last day of our stay in this city,
we were engaged during the whole of the day, in
receiving and paying parting visits to our friends,
who were more numerous than we could have sup-
posed it possible to make in so short a time. It was
scarcely more than three weeks since we had arrived
at Baltimore from Washington ; and we had become
acquainted with almost all the principal families of
the place. It would be impossible to speak too
highly of their kindness, hospitality, and friendly
attentions to us. If we had known them for years

'I -f^

■■"■ i;. .' '

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N }^i-

•'h :

■'J:^

474

BALTIMORE.

instead of weeks, they could not have been more cor-
dial ; in many of the families of whom we took leave,
the evident regret at parting was like that which is
felt at the separation of kindred relatives or nearest
and dearest friends ; and of the sincerity of these
manifestations there could be no reasonable ground
of doubt.

On the evening of the 20th, at the urgent request
of the greater portion of the large auditory that had
attended my courses on Egypt and Palestine through-
out, as well as of many who had attended my public
addresses on Temperance in Baltimore, where large
numbers were added to those who pledged themselves
to abstain from the use of all intoxicating drinks ;
I gave a farewell lecture, in the costume of the East,
descriptive principally of Oriental life and manners.
This was crowded to excess ; and for nearly an hour
after the close of the lecture, I was detained in
shaking hands with those who came to give me the
personal assurances of their good wishes, and urge
their solicitations that I would not think of leaving
America without returning to visit Baltimore again.

On the morning of the 21st we left Baltimore, by
the rail-road, for Philadelphia, where we arrived at
four o'clock ; and being met by several friends at the
station, were comfortably accommodated in a good
boarding-house, at 188, Chesnut Street, opposite the
Masonic Hall.

.' '"1

more cor-
3ok leave,
t which is
or nearest
y of these
lie ground

nt request
r that had
e through-
my public
here large
themselves
g drinks ;
f the East,
i manners,
rly an hour
ietained in
ive me the
i, and urge

of leaving
lore again,
iltimore, by

arrived at
lends at the

in a good
)pposite the

APPENDIX— VOL. I.

No. I.

The following lines are those referred to at page 12. They
were written on my return from India, in 1823, after being exiled
by the Authorities of the East India Company in Bengal, without
trial, hearing, or any other legal process of inquiry, for exercising
the now admitted right of British subjects, in every possession of
the British crown, to comment on the measures of the governing
body, subject to the fullest responsibility to the laws of England,
and the verdict of a court and jury — and for advocating, in the
exercise of this right, the measures which have subsequently been
adopted by the legislature of England, in the improved admini-
stration of our Indian empire, and have long since become the
established law of the land.

ON BEHOLDING THE SHORES OF ENGLAND,

AFTER AN ABSENCE OF MANT YEAKS.
( Written on board the Ship Sir Edward Paget. )

Hail ! loveliest gem that studs the sea,
Isle of the brave, the just, the free I
Whose surge-lashed cliffs at length arise
To greet once more my longing eyes :
Though time my brow has silvered o'er
Since last I trod thy happy shore,
And every change of weal or woe.
That heart can feel or man can know,
Has chequer'd thick the devious way
Through which my wear^ wanderings lay :
Yet, while by fortune dnv'n to roam.
My bosom knew one only home,
And ever, as my coui-se might range.
Still turned to thee, and knew no change.

Fair Lusitania's hills embro\yn'd.

And Spain's proud peaks, with deep snow crown'd,

Sicilia, breathing love and smiles,

And Greece, witli all her sea of isles.

Have seen my bark's progressive way,

Along their coasts, by cape and bay.

Old Egypt next, and Nile's great stream,
"Whose wonders yet appear a dream,
Where Cleopatra's 'witching power
Still seems to haunt each grove and bower,

«i

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'4 '
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'i j; ■ -'I.

, f- r

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47^ APPENDIX.

Where Pyramids and Temples rise
To mock the earth and brave the skies.
Allured nty hopes of promised gain,
By visions, like its glories, vain.

Then Palestine's more sacred vales,

And Lebar on's soft balmy gales,

Jordan's clear stream — dew'd Hermon's mountain,

Zion's high hill, and Siloa's fountain,

With scenes revered in every age.

Repaid my weary pilgrimage ;

Till Syria's fertile regions came.

Watered by fair Orontes' stream ;

And Tigris and Euphrates flow'd

Along the various paths I trod ;

Where Nineveh of old was placed.

And Babylon's ruin'd heaps are traced,

Where Bagdad's minarets still show

The Crescent — of the Cross the foe.

From thence, through Persia's land of song,

I led my lengthened way along.

Where Ispahaun's imperial halls

Her verdant bowers, and mirror'd walls,

And gay Shirauz, where Hafiz strung

His " orient pearls," and sweetly sung :

Arabia's gum-distilling trees,

And Sercndib's rich spicy breeze.

With golden India's ample field

Of wealth, and all that wealth can yield,

Charm'd every sense, and would have won

Less ardent bosoms than my own ;

But that dear Albion's freer sky

Rose ever to my memory,

And bade me turn from lands enslaved,

To that loved rock, by ocean laved,

Where, though by storms and tempests riven,

Man can erect liia front to heaven,

And where the Monarch, on the throne.

Rules tor the many — not for one.

Hail ! then, again, bless'd Island, hail I
Speed, speed our flight, propitious gale !
Bid lazy Time's slow lagging wheel
Fly like the lightning with our keel.
Till I shall totich my native earth,
And tread the land that gave me birth ;
Escaped from Slavery's tainted air,
To plead the wrongs of Freedom there.
( For there, at least, her holy cause
May claim an ear) till equal laws
Extend o'er Asia's vast domains,
Now fettered with degrading chains,
Where Britons, elsewhere free and brave,
Must tremble like the abject slave,
E'esert their country's dearest pride,
And lick the dust when Tyrants chide.

APPENDIX.

477

in,

Oh ! never, never, while the glow
Of health around my heart shall flow,
While my warm pulses freely beat.
And Reason still retains her seat,
Never shall that blest gift of Heaven,
Which God to man has freely given
For nobler cause than war or strife.
Be yielded up — but with my life.
A willing victim then I come,
Though to a less luxurious home ;
And ever, when the choice shall be.
For Exile, Death, or Slavery,
O God ! do thou the firmness give.
Still to be free — or not to live.

British Oiannel, June 25, 1823.

J. S. Buckingham.

No. II.

The opposite feelings of hope and despair were felt by me in
all their contrasted force, on the two occasions of my first arriving
in sight of England in 1823, and on my losing sight of its white
cliffs again in 1837. The intervening period of fourteen years
was passed in fruitless iJorts to obtain redress for the unjust —
and as many even of the actors in the scene now admit — unneces-
sary destruction of my property in India, to the extent of £40,000
sterling, with the refusal of the East India Company to grant me
even permission to return to that country foi a few months, to
collect in the scattered debts due to me, and realize the small
amount which might be saved from the general wreck of my con-
cerns.

In the mean time, discussions had taken place at the India
House, in which Sir Charles Forbes, Sir Henry Strachey, Sir
John Doyle, Colonel Leicester Stanhope, Mr. Hume, Mr. John
Smith, the Chairman of the London Bankers, Mr. Douglas Kin-
naird, and other large Proprietors of East India Stock, advocated
my claims to redress for tlie injuries I had received. After this,
my case was brought before the House of Commons, on two suc-
cessive occasions ; and a Committee of the House, after a patient
examination of the facts, and hearing evidence on both sides —
with the Minister for Indian Affairs, Lord Glenelg, at their head
—drew up, and passed unanimously, a series of resolutions, decla-
ring it to be the duty of the East India Company to grant me
compensation for the destruction of my property in Bengal.

I"!

fff^,:

i;^ '.

?i.

««

478

APPENDIX.

The Parliamentary and public proceedings on this case would fill
a large volume, if given in detail : but it will be sufficient for the
present purpose, to select — from the multiplied testimonies that
are on record on this subject — the few given by persons enjoying the
best possible opportunities of knowing the facts : namely, Lord
Durham, who first introduced the case to the House of Commons,
as Mr. Lambton ; Lord Denman, and Lord Abinger, both then
members of the House, though since elevated to the Bench and
the Peerage ; Mr. J. B. Lewin, formerly advocate-general in India,
and intimately acquainted with its laws ; Mr. Douglas Kinnaird.
who first brought the case before the proprietors of East India
Stock, at the India House ; Lord John Russell, as Chairman of
the first Parliamentary Committee, by whose hands, as a minis-
ter of the crown, the resolutions of the second Parliamentary Com-
mittee were drawn up, declaring that compensation ought to be
granted by the East India Company ; and lastly Lord William
Bentinck, the Governor-general of India, than whom it was impos-
sible to select a more competent or more impartial judge. These
are brief extracts from their respective speeches.

Mr. Lambton, — ^late Lord Durham.

" Mr. Buckingham has been the victim of the most cruel oppression, not
warranted by sound policy or expediency, but arising from a wanton and
agp;ravated spirit of despotism. If such things are allowed to go unredressed,
it 18 idle to talk of the responsibility of the Indian Government. I do main,
tain that Mr. Buckingham has suffered from the grossest tyranny, and that
to suffer the repetition of such practices is to endanger the very existence
of the empire.'

Mr. Denman, — now Lord Denman.

" Mr. Buckingham had been torn from his business, from bis friends, from
all his hopes, and had been sent to a distant country, where he was ruined, and
was, perhaps, on the very verge of beggary. It was horrible to hear of such
things. It was horrible to see any thing like an attempt to introduce into
this country that Indian atmosphere, which he for one was not prepared to
breathe. He considered this to be one of the most cruel, oppressive, and
unj ustifiable acts, which he had ever known to have been committed by a
British Governor, in the history of the Colonies, bad as they were."

Mr. Scarlett, — now Lord Abinger.

" Mr. Scarlett observed, that no action could be brought against the
Government of India for the exercise of that prerogative, and the only mode
of redress therefore left was that stated by the noble lord, a Select Com-
mittee of Inquiry. He was surprised that the House, who were said to be
the guardians of the lives, the liberties, and properties of the people, could
hear one clause of the petition read without instantly affording the petitioner
the means of redress. The petitioner stated that he was banished from
India himself, and that the license or copyright of his Journal was taken
from him and co-proprietors, without compensation, and presented as a gift
to the son-in-law of one of the members of the government. Could the
House endure this statement without endeavouring to ascertain its truth f
Not only was he banished, but the most valuable part of the property he
left behind him was also taken from him without consideration. If these

APPENDIX.

479

ase would fill
icient for the
:imonies that
I enjoying the
lamely, Lord
)f Commons,
r, both then
le Bench and
eral in India,
las Kinnaird.
if East India
Chairman of
I, as a minis-
lentary Com-
1 ought to be
Lord William
it was impos-
iidge. These

I oppresnon, not
n a wanton and
go unredressed,
ent. I do main-
rranny, and that
e very existence

his friends, from
I was ruined, and
! to bear of such
o introduce into
not prepared to
oppressive, and
committed by a
y were."

a;ht against the
d the only mode

a Select Com-

were said to be
he people, could
ng the petitioner

banished from
iirnal was taken
esented as a gift
lent. Could the
lertain its truth ?

the property he
:ation. If tnese

statements were proved, the Government of India deserved the reprehension
of the House and the country, for punishing a man without trial."

Ma. J. B. Lewin.
" On the private and public merits of Mr. Buckingham we are all agreed.
The only difference between us is, whether any public man could have braved
better than he has braved the particular difficulties of his situation. Do
you not yearn with sympathy towards a man, whose private conduct has
been admitted on all hands to be free from reproach, and whose public con-
duct, though open and manly in the extreme, has been productive to him of
nothing but suffering and disappointment ? Mr. Buckingham has done well,
and suffered well, for your sakes. Be it yours to provide that he is also
indemnified well for the losses he has sustained. If ever a man deserved
the support of his fellow-countrymen, it is Mr. Buckingham."

The Honoubable Douglas Kinnaibd.

" Mr. Buckingham is entitled to sympathy, as a gentleman of unimpeached
character, who is suffering under a great calamity, without being in any
degree the author of his own misfortunes. There is not a single India
Director who would not, with all his heart, make some compensation, but
for this reason, that they dare not censure any of the acts of their servants
abroad. There is not an individual director with whom I have ever con-
versed on the subject, who did not say that Mr. Buckingham's was one of
the hardest cases he had ever heard of They all acknowledge that they
have not a word to say against him as a man and a gentleman ; they would
willingly meet him on friendly terms in a private room ; but they say, if we
afford him redress, if we save him from destruction, we pass censure upon
the despotic power existing ten thousand miles off, and that we dare not do.

" It has been said that Lord Hastings, if he had remained in India, would
have found it necessary to banish Mr. Buckingham, as had been done by his
successor. But I have it under Lord Hastings's own hand, that Mr. Bucking-
ham never wrote anything, and he, Lord Hastings, believed that he never
would have written any thing, which could induce him to resort to so severe
a measure. For my own part, hdving had frequent and almost uninter-
rupted personal intercourse with Mr. Buckingham, from the moment of his
arrival m this coimtry up to the present period, I can declare that I never
met with a gentleman, who, under the difficulties and distresses with which
he has had to contend, behaved with more consistency and uprightness— or
showed a greater disposition to behave in a fair and conciliatory manner.
It is not a little to his credit, that, after standing before the public eye for
so long a period, with the most searching scrutiny applied to every incident
of his public and private life, no man can put his hand upon his heart and
point out any one of his acts as dishonourable.'*

LoBD John Russell, — Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee.

" I am of course in possession of all the facts which were laid before the
Committee, and I am prepared to state, that having listened attentively to
all that transpired in the Committee, my opinion of the hardships suffered
■ by Mr. Buckingham is, instead of being weakened, materially strengthened,
by the experience and knowledge I have thus acquired. What we have met
here to consider is, the great hardships and grievous losses sustained by
Mr, Buckingham, in consequence of conduct, which, so far from attaching
any blame to him, is in my opinion, highly honourable and praiseworthy,
and perfectly conformable to those rules of^ conduct and those examples of
freedom, which we are accustomed to admire and hold up for imitation by
others of our own countrymen.

" For my own part, having had an opportunity of reading all those articles
j>ublished in Mr. Buckingham's Journal, which were particularly found fault

• <i )

ill

"€

... .1

■T-, ;»

■"'■ i'

^■|-

1 * V"

.- If.

480

APPENDIX.

with by the Indian government, I can undertake to say that there is not one
of these articles, although they must all have been written and inserted in
the hurry inncparable from the publication of a daily paper, which not only
does not reflect the slightest stain on the character of the writer, but are
such as would do honour to any man possessing an honest zeal for the wel-
fare of the community in which he lived, and such as there is every reason
to believe were written and published with a perfect conviction, on the part
of the author and publisher, that he was serving the cause of truth, and was
therefore entitled to the thanks of his fellow-sulrjects, and the ArrROBATiON of a
WISE and benevolent government "

Lord William Bentinck.
" Lord William Bentinck, on taking the chair, said ; — In accepting the
office to which I have been appointed, as chairman of the present meeting,
it will not be necessary for me to address you at any length on the subject
of Mr. Buckingham's claims, because I shall be followed by many gentlemen,
fully competent to discharge this duty. But there is one point of some
importance to the question, on which no one present can speak with the
same knowledge or authority, perhaps, as myself — ( Hear, hear). The situa-
tion which I have recently hlled,as Govenior-General of India, enables me
to speak from personal experience as to the state of feeling in Calcutta, on
Mr, Buckingham's case. I did not arrive in India until some time after
Mr. Buckingham's departure ; and at that period all the excitement pro*
dueed by the measures of Govemment towards that gentleman was over,
and public feeling had been calmed down so as to enable the Indian com-
munity to form as just and impartial an opinion on the whole case as on
any matter of past history. I can assure you, then, that even at this period,
and under those most favourable circumstances for forming an accurate
j udgment, a deep feeling pervaded the public mind generally, as to the
injustice with which Mr. Buckingham was treated — (Hear, hear) ; and, with
very few exceptions — such as must indeed occur in almost every case — the
people of India generally were of opinion that Mr. Buckingham's was a case
of great and unexampled hardship (cheers. ) In bearing this testimony to
an important truth, I do not do so as the p-irtisan of Mr. Buckingham, whose
acquamtance I have but very recently made. But I do so as tlie Friend of
Justice, my attachment to which alone brings me here this day. ( Hear, hear,
hear.) An appeal has been made elsewhere on Mr. Buckingham's behalf,
which I deeply regret has not met with the reception which the case justly
deserved. I trust, therefore, that the British public, to whom this meeting
will address itself, will render to Mr. Buckingham that justice which, after
all his efforts in other quarters, has been so long withheld from him. (Loud
cheers. )"

This meeting was attended bj' a large number of members of
parliament, and by Pir Charles Forbes, Colonel Leicester, Stan-
hope, and other Indian friends : and the speeches and resolutions
were unanimously in condemnation of the oppression and cruelty
of the measures [ irsued towards myself and my property in India,
as well as of the inconsistency and bad faith of the ministers of
the crown in England, who, when the opportunity psesented itself
for giving legal effect to their own resolutions, shrunk back from
the task, abandoned the object they had so solemnly pledged
themselves to protect, and presented an example of moral coward-
ice, of which the annals of England present few parallels. No
one will therefore wonder at the feelings of indignant disappoint-
juent, which dictated the following effusion.

! . ■■■* ■. -
t, \".

APPENDIX.

481

are is not one
nd inserted in
hich not only
vriter, but are
1 for the wel-
! every reason
n. on the part
;rulh, and was
[lOBATION of a

accepting the
ssent meeting,
on the subject
my gentlemen,
point of some
)eak with the
t). The situa-
[ja, enables me
in Calcutta, on
me time after
xcitement pro-
nan was over,
le Indian com-
liole case as on
1 at this period,
ig an accurate
ally, as to the
;ar) ; and, with
;very case — the
im's was a case
is testimony to
:ingham, whose
the Friend of
ly. ( Hear, hear,
iigham's behalf,
the case justly
m this meeting
ice which, after
am him. (Loud

f members of
icester, Stan-
id resolutions
n and cruelty
lerty in India,
e ministers of
sesented itself
ink back from
mnly pledged
moral coward-
)arallels. No
nt disappoint-

ON LEAVING THE SHORES OF ENGLAND,

FOR AN ABSENCE OF SOME YEARS.

( Written on board the Ship, President. )

Dear England 1 while slowly thy shores are receding,

And the trace of thy white cliffs grows dim to the view,
Some cheering presentiment whispers I'm bidding

The Land of my Fathers a short-lived Adieu I
That the Home of my Childhood, whose green hills and vales

Have gladden'd my heart when most burthen'd with pain,
Will soon welcome me back, when with favouring gales

I return to enjoy all its pleasures again.

Oh 1 Fate ! — in l^ncertainty's dark womb concealing
The events of the Future — with Ignorance blest.

Still prolong the delusion, nor blast, by revealing.
The first ray of Hope that irradiates my breast.

Though faintly it glimmer, I'll cherish it there,
Till Time shall its embryo expand into flame —

Till again I embrace the few Fnends that are dear-
Yes I dearer than riches, than power, or fame.

While from the tall mast the blue signal's still waving,

And the breeze fills the sails that the morn saw unfurl'd,
A pang — half indignant — swells my bosom while leaving

Thy shores — once so famed as the Hope of the World ;
For though to the Slave thou canst Liberty give,

And mediate for Justice when Nations demand.
Thine own Children, when plunder'd, oppress'd, and deceived,

Find nor Justice, nor Mercy, nor Truth at thy hand.

Believe me, ye faithful and fondly-loved few !

That wherever my track, at the Line or the Pole,
The Pleasures of Hope, like the Spring's early dew.

Will cheer, and refresh, and invig'rate my soul.
Yes 1 though driven from Justice, though exiled from Friends,

My heart spurns with scorn base Subserviency's chain ;
And where'er my dark course through this banishment bends,

It will bound with the hope of our meeting again.

Yet it shall not be always thus heartless and cold

That thy Rulers shall falsely and faithletisly sway ;
The Spirit of Freedom, which fill'd thee of old.

Shall csJl to thy Councils men nobler than they.
Then Party and Faction, together cast down.

Shall fall before Knowledge and Justice combined,
And coronet mitre, and ermine, and crown.

Shall yield to the influence of Virtue and Mind.

Oh I hasten the day, thou omnipotent Judge,

Which thy prophets and Peers have so clearly portray'd,
When the world, now so fiU'd with injustice and fraud,

Shall be purged of the dross vhich Corruption has made ;
When the Earth shall be fill'd witi the knowledge of Thee,

And the sword shall give place to the press and the pen ;
When Truth shall encompass the Globe, like the Sea,

And Justice establish her throne amongst men.

British Channel, J. S. BUCKINGHAM.

Sept. 11, 1837.

'^i

\OL. I.

482

APPENDIX.

No. III.

MR. BUCKINGHAM'S ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE OP THE

UNITED STATES.

'-<» '.

* >.i

i% :■ :

New York, October 25, 1837.
Men, Brethren, and Fellow- Christians :

The numbers of human beings that avery day approach your shores from
all parts of the old world, must so familiarize you with the arrival of stnm-
gers from every quarter of the globe, as to justify your indifference towsird
all who do not ask your attention on some special account, since it would
be impossible for you to show it to every individual of so countless a mul-
titude, and without some grounds on which to establish exceptions, none
could be fairly expected to be made. This consideration, while it v/ill fortify
me in the propriety of the step I am taking, will also, I trust, dispose you
to lend a favourable attention to a short statement of the ciru.mstance<4
which have driven me to your shores, of the motives which i/nyel me to
the course I am pursuing, and of the objects which I hop a, under the
blessing of Providence, and with your aid and protection, to accomplish.

A train of events, much too numerous to be narrated in detail, occasioned
me very early in life to leave my native country, England, and to visit most
of the nations in Europe — still more of the interior of Asia — many parts
of the continent of Africa — and some portions also of the two Americas.
It was after an active life of s me twenty years thus devoted, in which it
fell to my lot to traverse, I beJ .eve, a larger portion of the earth's surface,
and to visit a greater number ■*. id variety of couatrits, than almost any man
living of my age, that I setiler. as a resident in cne capital of the British
possessions in India, where I remained for several years.

During the voyages and travels I was permitted to make along the shores
of the Mediterranean, amidst the Isles of Greece, in Asia Minor, Egypt,
Nubia, Palestine, Syria, Arabia, Mesopotamia, Chaldea, Assyria, Babylonia,
Media, Persia, and India, I had an upiicrtunity of personally inspecting
almost all the remarkable cities and monuments of ancient greatness in the
8e\ oral countries named ; including the gigantic pyramids, colossr^l temples,
stately obelisks, majestic statues, and gloomy catacombs and sepulchres,
which stud the classic banks of the Nile, from Alexandria and Grand Cairo
to the cataracts of Syene ; the hoary mountains of Horeb and Sinai, and the
Desert of Wandering, across which the children of Israel were led from out of
the land of Egypt to the promised Canaan ; the plains of Moab and Amnion,
with Mount Pisguh, the valley of Jordan, and the Dead Sea ; the ruined cities
of Tyre and Sidon ; the ports of Joppa, Acre, and Cesarea ; the villages of
Nazareth and Cana of Galilee ; the cities of Sechem, Samaria, and Bethle-
hem ; the mountains of Lebanon, Hermon, Tabor, and Carmel ; the Mount
of Olives and Mount Zion ; the holy city of Jerusalem, with all its sacred
localities, from the pools of Siloam and Bethesda, near the brook Kedron,
in the valley of Jehoshaphat, to the more touching and endearing spots of
the Garden of Gethsemane, the Rock of Calvary, and the Sepulchre in which
the body of our Lord was laid.

While these were the objects of my inspection in Egypt, Arabia,
and Palestine, the Scriptural countries of Syria and Mesopotamia were
scarcely less prolific in the abundance of the materials which they presented
to my view. In the former, were the sea-ports of Berytus, Byblus, Tripolis,
and Laodicea, with the great interior cities of Antioch on the verdant banks

OPLE OP THR

, October 25, ISiil.

ih your shores from
he arrival of strim-
indifference townrd
)unt, since it would
so countless a mul-
sh exceptions, none
while it r/ill fortify
[ trust, dispose you
' the ciri i instances
which impel me to
I hop a, ynder the
1, to accomplish.

n detail, occasioned
d, and to visit most
f Asia — many parts
the two Americas,
levoted, in which it
the earth's surface,
lan almost any man
pital of the British

ike along the shores
Asia Minor, Egypt,

Assyria, Babylonia,
jrsonally inspecting
ent greatness in the
Is, colossr.1 temples,
lbs and sepulchres,
■ia and Grand Cairo
) and Sinai, and the
were led from out of

Moab and Amnion,
ea ; the ruined cities
rea ; the villages of
imaria, and Bethle-
Carmel ; the Mount

with all its sacred
• the brook Kedron,

endearing spots of
! Sepulchre in which

in Egypt, Arabia,
Mesopotamia were
hich they presented
us, Byblus, Tripolis,
n the verdant bunks

APPENDIX.

4Sf3

of the Orontes, Aleppo on the plains, and the enchanting city of Damascus,
whose loveliness has been the theme of univerhal admiration, from the days
of Abraham and Eliezer to those of Naaman the Syrian, and the great
Apostle of the Gentiles, and from thence to the present hour : while the
great Temple of the Sun at Bualbcck, the gorgeous monuments of ancient
splendor in the Roman settlements of the Decapolis, and the still earlier
monuments of those who reigned before either Greek or Iloman, in Bashun
and Gilead, and the regions beyond Jordan, added splendour to beauty, and
combined all that the traveller or antiquary coidd desire.

Mesopotamia, including the ancient empires of Chalt'Ca, Assyria, and
Babylonia, into which I passed from Palestine, largely rewarded my
researches. In the former, the celebrated city of Ur of the Cbaldees
received me within its gates, and I passed many days in this ancient birtli.
place and abode of the patriarch Abraham. The extensive ruins of Nineveh,
spread in silent desolation along the banks of the Tigris ; and the fallen
Babylon, stretching its solitary heaps on either side of the great river
Euphrates, were also objects oi patient and careful exuinination ; as well as
the Oriental capital of the Caliphs, Bagdad the renowned ; and the remains
of the great Tower of Babel, on the plain of Shinar, of which a consider-
able portion still exists to attest the arrogance and folly uf its builders.

Media and Persia came next in the order of my wanderings ; and there,
also, the ruins of the ancient Ecbatana, the tomb of Cyrus at Pasagiirda,
and the splendid remains of the great temple at Persepolis, gratified in ^
high degree the monumentnl and antiquarian taste ; while the populous cities
of Kermanshah, Ispahan, and Shiraz, with the lovely valleys of Persian
landscape, amply fed my love of the beautiful and the picturesque.

In India, as the field was more extended, and the time devoted longer by
several years, far more was seen, experienced, and felt. It may suffice,
however, to say, that all the outlines of that magnificent ' Empire of the
Sun,' from the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf on the west, to the Bay of
Bengal on the east, M'ere traced by my voyages along its shores ; for after
navigating, and accurately surveying both the seas named, from Suez to
Bab-el-mandeb in the one, and from the mouth of the Euphrates to the port
of Muscat in the other, I visited Bombay, and all the ports upon the const
of Malabar; from thence to Colombo and Point de Galle in the Island of
Ceylon ; afterwards anchored at Madras, end entered the ports of Bimlipatum
and Vizagapatam, on the coast of Coroniandel and Orissa, in the region of
the Idol temple of Juggernaut ; and ultimately reached the British capital of
India, Calcutta, on the banks of the Ganges.

It may readily be conceived that in so extensive and varied a track as
this, the personal adventures I experierieed were as varied as they were
numerous ; and I may assert, with coniidence, that while privation and
suffering had been endured by me in almost every form — in hunger, thirst,
nakedness, imprisonment, shipwreck, buttle, and disease — so also, every
pomp and pleasure that man could enjoy, from honours bestowed, and
hospitalities received, agreeably relieved the tedium of my way ; so that
although my course was not invariably on a bed of roses, neither was it
always across a path of thorns.

Amid all these changes, however, there was one thing which, in me at
least, remained happily the same. No length of travel, no amount of sufiVr-
ing, no blandishments of pleasure, no intimidations of tyranny, no debilitation
of climate, no variety oi institutions, had been sufficient to abate in me, in
the slightest degree, that ardour of attachment to Liberty, civil, political, and
religious, which God and Nature implanted in my breast from the cradle —
which experience fanned into maturity with manhood — and which Provi-
dence, I trust, will keep alive in my heart to the latest period of iny

2i2

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48'i

Al'PENDIX.

aclvaiicing age. Animated by this love of Liberty, which you, the people
of America, as you know how to cherish among yourselves, will not be
disposed to condemn in others, I continued, even under the burning clime
and despotic rule of an Eastern tyranny, to think, to feel, and to speak, as
every Englishman, proud of his country, his ancestors, and his laws, ought
to do, so long as he bears that honoured name. For thus presuming to
carry with me from the land of my fathers that spirit, which made England
for so many years the hope of the world, and which, infused into the early
settlers of your own still freer country, and continued in their proud poster-
ity, makes it now the Asylum and the Home of the Oppressed ; for this, and
for this alone, I was banished by a summary and arbitrary decree, without
trlfJ, hearing, or defence ; my property destroyed, to the extent of not less
than two hundred thousand dollars, and the prospective certainty of an equal
sum, at least, cut off, and annihilated at a smgle blow.

With the details of this atrocity it is not my purpose or intention to
trouble you ; but while I record the fact, us one which forms an important
link in the chain of circumstances that impel me hither, 1 may add, that the
almost universal indignation of the people of England has been expressed
against this gross injustice — that a Parliamentary Committee, composed of
men of all parties in politics, unanimously pronounced its condenumtion —
atid that the highest authorities among our public men have expressed their
abhorrence of the deed ; but from the impunity enjoyed by the East India
Company in their oppressions abroad, and the impossibility of making them
subject to our legal jurisdiction at home, no redress has, to this hour, been
obtained, nor, according to all probability, is any ever likely to be procured.

From the period of my arbitranr and unjust banishment from India, up to
the reform of our Parliament in England, I was incessantly and successfully
engaged in directing the attention of my countrymen to the evils of the
East India Monopoly, and enlisting their interests and their sympathies in
demanding its extinction. With this view I was occupied about six years in
addressing the British public through the pages of the ' Oriental Herald,'
and four years in a patriotic pilgrimage through England, Scotland, and
Ireland, on a crusade against the abominations of the East ; in the course of
which I traversed all parts of the three divisions of our kingdom, visited
almost every town of the least importance in each, and addressed, in public
speeches, lectures, and discourses, on this important subject, not less than
a million of my assembled countrymen, in audiences varying from five
liuiulred to two thousand each, including persons of all ranks, from the
])easant to the peer, of both sexes, of every age, and of every political and
religious persuasion.

The result of all this was the kindling a flame throughout the entire nation,
which burnt brighter and brighter as the hour of consummation approached,
and at length became perfectly irresistible. More than an hundred provincial
associations were formed, among which Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds,
Glasgow and Birmingham took the lead, to demand the abolition of the
East India Company's commercial monopoly, and the amelioration of its
civil government ; and not less than 10,000/, was raised and expended in
the legitimate promotion of this object, through public meetings, deputa-
tions, and the powerful agency of the press.

The reform of Parliament being accomplished, I was invited, under cir-
cumstances of the most flattering nature to myself, but on which I will not
dwell, to become the representative of the town of Sheffield, in which, and
to which, I was then personally an entire stranger, but its invitation was
founded on a knowledge of my public life and labours alone. I was success,
fully returned to the first reformed Parliament as its member, and had the
happiness to advocate, in my place, in the British House of Commons, the

fjfc

AITENDIX.

485

'hich you, the people
lurfielves, will not be
iT the burning clime
Feel, and to speak, bh
, and his laws, ought
or thus presuming to
which made England
nfused into the early
n their proud poster-
pressed ; for this, and
trary decree, without
:ie extent of not less
certainty of an equal

pose or intention to
h forms an important
', 1 may add, that the
i has been expressed
nmittee, composed of
i its condemnation —
have expressed their
'ed by the East India
ility of making them
las, to this hour, been
likely to be procured.

ent from India, up to
intly and successfully
to the evils of the
i their sympathies in
ied about six years in
he ' Oriental Herald,'
gland, Scotland, and
last ; in the course of
our kingdom, visited
d addressed, in public
iubject, not less than
!s varying from five
■ all ranks, from the
)f every political and

iout the entire nation,
mmation approached,
an hundred provincial
Manchester, Leeds,
the abolition of the
e amelioration of its
ised and expended in
lie meetings, deputa-

is invited, imder cir-
it on which I will not
leffield, in which, and
ut its invitation was
alone. I was success-
member, and had the
use of Commons, the

views I h^td maintained in India — fur maintuining which, indued, I was
banished 1 1 urn that country — and which I hud since, by the exercise of my
pen and tongue, for teii years, spread so extensively in England. The
triumph of these principles was at length completed by the accomplishment
of all my views. The India monopo y was abolished, and free trade to India
and China s. cured. The liberty of the press in India was established, and
trial by jury guaranteed The political as well as the commercial powers of
the East India Company were curtailed. The horrid and murderous pnio-
tice of burning the widows of India alive on the funeral piles of their
husbands, was put down by law. The blood-stained revenue derived from
the idolatrous worship of Juggernaut was suppressed. The foumlation of
schools — the promotion of missions— the administration of justice — were all
more amply provided for than before —and to me, the sufferuigs and anxieties
of many years of peril, and labour combined, were amply rewarded by the
legal and constitutional accomplishment of almost every object for which I
had contended, and the gratification of all the wishes I had so long indulged.

In addition to my ordinary share in the duties of the Senate, I had the
happiness to be the favoured instrument of first bringing before it the great
question of Temperance ; and through the investigations of a Committee,
I had the satisfaction of presenting to the world such a body of evidence and
so demonstrative a report, as to convince a large portion of the British nation,
that it was their solemn duty to God and man, to follow their American
brethren in the noble example which they were the first to set in this most
important branch of Moral and Social Reform.

Of the remainder of my labours as a member of the British Legislature,
it is not necessary that I should speak: but I may perhaps, without presump.
tion, be permitted to add — and there are happily now in the city of New
York some of the most intimate and influential of my constituents among
the merchants and manufacturers of Sheffield, who can confirm the statement
— that I had the happiness to sit as the representative of that large and
opulent town for a period of five years, in the enjoyment of as much of the
confidence and approbation of its inhabitants as it was possible for any repre-
sentative to be honoured with ; and that in every annual visit made to my
constituents, for the purpose of giving them an account of my stewardship
in Parliament, and surrendering up my trust to the hands of those who first
bestowed it on me, I was uniformly crowned with the testimony of their
unanimous approbation, and sent back to the Hou$e of Commons as their
Representative, with still more unlimited confidence than before.

The period came, however, in which it was necessary, for the interests of
those who are dear to me by blood and family ties, and for whom it is my
duty, as it is my happiness, to provide, that I should quit my senatorial duties,
and, after nearly thirty years devoted to the service of the public, devote the
few remaining years of health and activity, that might be spared me, before
old age should render exertion impracticable, to providing a retreat for the
winter of life, and acquiring the means of making that retreat independent
as well as honourable. I accordingly announced this intention, and the
reasons on which it was grounded, and at the close of the last session of
Parliament in July, 1837, I paid a farewell visit to my constituents at Shef-
field, where, though all our previous meetings had been cordial, hearty, and
affectionate in the extreme, this was more cordial, more affectionate — though
tinged with a new element of sorrow and regret — than any that had gone
before.

These, then, are the circumstances, and I have narrated them withs a
much brevity as possible, which have led me to quit the land of my nativity,
and go, with my family, to other shores. The motives which have induced
nie to prefer those of the United States, as the first, at least, to be visited

48G

APPENDIX.

/t;

'f ',

■ . r

'■••P .:.

in tn^ course, and the objects which I hope to accomplish among you, still
require to be explained.

It is an opinion, not now professed by me for the first time, but long
entertained, and frequently avowed that America is destined, in the course
of time, to be the great centre of Freedom, Civilization, and Religion, and
thus to be the Regenerator of the World. In the ages that are passed, we
have seen the rays of science and the beams of truth first illumining the
countries of the East, and then passing onward, like the light of heaven
itself, progressively toward the West : — Chaldea giving knowledge to Egypt
— Egypt to Greece — Greece to Rome— Rome to Iberia, Gaul, and Britain —
and these three in succession to their respective settlements in America ; —
till these last, shaking off their dependence, and rising in the full dignity of
tlieir united strength, asserted and secured their freedom, and took their
place among the most enlightened and most honoured nations of the earth.

From that moment you have gone on, rejoicing like the sun in his course,
increasing in population, in commerce, in liberty, in wealth, in intelligence,
in happiness, till your people have penetrated the primeval forests, and
spread themselves as cultivators of the soil from the Atlautic almost to the
Pacific, till your ships cover every sea, and till the Message of your President
inifolding the measures of the past, and developing the prospects of the
future, is looked for with interest at every court in Europe, and read with
eager and intense attention by the humblest lover of freedom in every coun*
t)-y in which it is made public.

Commanding, therefore, as you now do, a position the most favourable to
national greatness, to useful influence, and to honourable renown — the vast
interior of your extensive surface embracing every variety of climate, soil,
and production, and your extended sea-coasts furnishing ports of attraction
to all the world ; with the Atlantic Ocean for your highway to Europe, and
the Pacific for your approach to Asia; your mighty rivers, rising cities,
populous villages, increasing colleges, temples of public worship, and adult
and infant schools — what is wanting, but time, to place you at the head of
those nations of the old world, who, less than a century ago, derided your
intelligence and your strength, to both of which you have long since com-
pelled them to pay the homage that was justly due ?

While others, therefore, visit your shores, charged either with merchandise
to sell, or gold and silver to buy, I venture to come among you, freighted
with no cargo of goods for your consumption, or with the precious metals
for purchase or exchange. In the midst, however, of all the bustle and
animation that fills your crowded marts, there will be room, I hope, for one
who brings only the knowledge and experience acquired by years of travel
in the Scriptural and Classical countries of the East, to communicate to
those who may have leisure and disposition to hear, and taste and education
to enjoy, whatever can illustrate the history and poetry of early days, and,
above all, whatever can tend to unfold the beauties, confirm the prophecies,
and give strength and force to the sublime and important truths contained in
the Sacred Volume of our common faith.

This is the first object which I hope to accomplish by my sojourn among
you, and this alone would well justify my visit to your shores. If, at the
same time, there be others not incompatible with this prominent one, but
auxiliary and subordinate to it, that I may be permitted to pursue — such as
a careful and impartial examination of your own resources, institutions, lite-
rature, and manners— so that while diffusing information for the gratification
of others, I may be adding to my stores of knowledge for my own delight, I
doubt not that I shall find among you all the kindness of aid for which you
have so long been renowned.

The mode that I have chosen for the communication of the interesting

^1.:

ish among you, ttill

first time, but long
itined, in the course
II, and Religion, and
I that are passed, we
first illumining the
the light of heaven
knowledge to Egypt
Guul, and Britain —
lents in America ; —
n the full dignity of
dom, and took their
ations of the earth.

16 sun in his course,
alth, in intelligence,
rimeval forests, and
tlautic almost to the
ge of your President
he prospects of the
irope, and read with
edom in every coun*

e most favourable to
e renown — the vast
ety of climate, soil,
g ports of attraction
iiway to Europe, and
rivers, rising cities,
I worship, and adult
; you at the head of
iry ago, derided your
ave long since corn-
ier with merchandise
imong you, freighted
the precious metals
f all the bustle and
oom, I hope, for one
ed by years of travel
, to communicate to
i taste and education
•y of early days, and,
nfirm the prophecies.
It truths contained in

ly my sojourn among
ur shores. If, at the
I prominent one, but
1 to pursue — such as
rces, institutions, lite-
)n for the gratilication
for my own delight, I
of aid for which you

un of the intcresthig

APPENDIX.

487

details with which the past history and actual condition of the Scriptural
and Classical countries of the East abound, namely, that of oral discourses,
or extemporaneous lectures, may appear to some to be less dignified, as it is
undoubtedly less usual, than the diffusion of this class of information
through printed books. But it may be defended, first, on the ground of its
greater practical utility, being at once more attractive and more efficient ;
and secondly, on the ground of its high antiquity, and of the sacred and
classical, as well as noble and historical precedents in its favour.

As to the ground of its attractiveness, it has been found, in Britain at
least, that thousands have been induced to assemble to hear a traveller per-
sonally narrate his adventures and describe the objects he has seen, where it
would have been difficult to get even hundreds to bestow the time and labour
of reading the same things in printed books; and when I add, that in
London, Edinburgh, Dublin, Glasgow, Belfast, Liverpool, Manchester,
Leeds, Birmingham, Sheffield, Hull, Bristol, Bath, and others of our largest
and most intellectual cities, audiences increasing from five hundred to two
thousand persons have been attracted for six successive nights, without appa-
rent inconvenience or fatigue — the proof of the superior attractiveness of
spoken discourses over printed books may be considered as complete. Of
their superior efficiency there is even still less doubt ; for the very fact of so
many persons being assembled together at the same time, and hearing the
sainQ observations at the same moment, excites an animation, sympathy, and
enthusiasm, which is contagious in its effects on both speaker and hearers,
till their feelings flow in one common current; the facts sink deeper into
the memory at the time, and the subsequent conversation, criticism, compa<
rison, and reflection, to which this gives rise among those who attend,
imprint them with a firmness that no amount of reading could accomplish.

For precedents or authorities it is not necessary to go far in sea^h — so
profusely do they abound in ancient and in modern annals. In Scriptural
ages, the oral mode of communication was almost the only one in use, from
the days of Abmham, who, according to the testimony of Josephus, thus
taught the Chaldean science of astronomy to the Egyptians, down to the time
of Solomon, who discoursed so eloquently of the productions of nature in
the animal and vegetable kingdoms, and from whose lips the profoundest
maxims of wisdom were poured into charmed ears ; and from thence again
to the days of Paul, who stood before Festus, Felix, and Agrippa, at Cesarea,
and who, clothed in all the majesty of truth, addressed assembled thousands
at Antioch, at Ephesus, at Athens, at Corinth, and in Rome.

In classical countries the custom was universal, and there are many who
conceive, with the great Lord Bacon, that one of the causes of the superior
intellect of the Greeks, was the method in use amon^ them of communicat-
ing knowledge by oral discourses, rather than by ^vntten books ; when the
pupils or disciples of Socrates, of Plato, and of Epicurus, received their
information from these great masters, in the gardens and the porticos of
Athens, or when the hearers of Demosthenes, of Eschylus, of Sophocles,
or Euripides, hung with rapture on their glowing sentences, as pronounced
in the Areopagus — the theatre — the gymnasium — or the grove.

Of classical authorities, the memorable instance of Herodotus will occur
to every mind. This venerable Father of History, as he is often called,
having been first banished from his native country, Halicarnassus, under the
tyranny of Lygdamis, travelled, during his exile, through Egypt, Palestine,
Syria, and Mesopotamia, to the borders of Media and Persia, in which he
was engaged for several years. On his return from his travels, he was
instrumental in uprooting and destroying the very tyranny under which his
biinishment took place ; but this patriotic deed, instead of gaining for him
the esteem and admiration of the populace, who had so largely benefited

Wi' .

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■

■'' '■

, l'

■, ■'

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-ki '

t''

.;: .:,. "! •■ 'S 1

488

APPENDIX.

by his labours, excited their envy and ill-will ; «o that he a second time left
his native land, and then visited Greece. It was there, at the great festival
of the Olympic Games, about five hundred years before the Christian era,
being then in the fortieth year of his age, that he stood up among assembled
myriads of the most intellectual auditors of the ancient worid, to narrate,
in oral discourses, drawn from the recollection of his personal travels, the
subject-matter of his interesting history and description of the countries of
the East ; and such was its effect upon the generous hearts and brilliant
intellects of his accomplished hearers, that while the celebrated Thucydides
then among them as a boy, shed tears at the recital of the events of tht
Persian war, and his young bosom was perhaps then first fired with the
ambition which made him afterwards one of the most accomplished historians
of Greece, the people received Herodotus with such universal applause, that
as an honour of the highest kind, the names of the nine muses were
bestowed upon the nine books or subdivisions of his interesting narrative,
which they continue to bear to the present hour in every language into
which they have been translated.

Pythagoras, of Samos, is another striking instance of a similar career.
Disgusted with the tyranny of Polycrates, he retired from his native island,
and having previously travelled extensively in Chaldea and Egypt, and pro-
bably in India, he also appeared at the Olympic games of Greece, and tra-
velled through Italy and Magna Grecia, delivering, in the several towns that
he visited, oral discourse' on the history, religion, manners, and philosophy
of the countries of the East ; and their general effect was not less happy
than that produced by the narrations of Herodotus — for it is said that
" these animated harangues were attended with rapid success, and a reforma-
tion soon took place in the life and morals of the people."

I might go on to enlarge the catalogue of precedents, for both ancient
and modern history is full of them — Marco Polo, Columbus, Camoens,
Raleigh, and Bruce (all, too, treated with the deepest injustice by their
countrymen) will occur to every one— but it is unnecessary. May I only
venture to hope, that as some similarity exists between my own history,
in sufferings from tyranny and the ingratitude of contemporaries, and that
which marked the career of those great men whose names I have cited —
Herodotus and Pythagoras — as well as in the countries we each traversed,
and the mode of diffusing the information thus acquired by oral discourses
among the people of other lands — the similarity may be happily continued
— ^if not in the honours to be acquired, at least in the amount of the good
to be done ; and that in this last respect, the Olympia and Magna Grecia of
the East may fairly yield the palm to the more free and more generally
intelligent Columbia of the West, is my most earnest hope and desire — my
most sincere and fervent prayer.

I will say no more, except to add, that should my humble labours among
you be crowned with the success which I venture to anticipate, and should
Providence spare me life and health to follow out the plan I have long
meditated and designed, it is my intention, after visiting every part of the
United States of America, to extend my tour through the British Posses-
sions of Canada, New B: unswick. Nova Scotia, and the West Indies ; to
visit from thence the Isthmus of Darien, for the purpose of investigating
this barrier between the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean ; to make an excursion
through Mexico, and from thence pass onward by the South Sea Islands to
China, visit the Philippines and the Moluccas, go onward to Australia and
Van Diemen's Land ; continue from thence through the Indian Archipelago,
by Borneo, Java, Sumatra, and Malacca, to India ; traverse the Peninsula of
Hindoo.stan, from the Ganges to the Indus, and return to Europe by the
lU'd Seu and the Mediterranean.

^•«B!v.i til

APPENDIX.

489

a second time left
t the great festival
the Christian era,
I among assembled
world, to narrate,
rsonal travels, the
>f the countries of
!arts and brilliant
)rated Thucydides
the events of tht
rst fired with the
nplished historians
irsal applause, that
nine muses were
:eresting narrative,
rery language into

if a similar career,
n his native island,
id Egypt, and pro-
if Greece, and tra-
several towns that
;r8, and philosophy
vas not less happy
For it is said that
:ess, and a reforma-

i, for both ancient
)lumbus, Camoens,
; injustice by their
isary. May I only
jn my own history,
nporaries, and that
imes I have cited —
we each traversed,
by oral discourses
happily continued
mount of the good
rid Magna Grecia of
and more generally
ope and desire — my

nble labours among
ticipate, and should
lie plan I have long
g every part of the

the British Posses-
he West Indies ; to
ose of investigatiiip;
) make an excursion
louth Sea Islands to
ird to Australia and

Indian Archipelago,
irse the Peninsula of
rn to Europe by tbo

Throughout the whole of this long and varied route, there are a few
prominent and important objects, which, as they have been long favourite
subjects of study, and have engaged a large share of my attention in the
paiit, I shall hope to keep steadily m view, and do all within my power to
advance in the future. It has long been my conviction, that among the
most prolific causes of vice and misery in the world, those of Intemperance,
Ignorance, Cnielty, and War, are productive of the greatest evils ; and that
the best service which man can render to his fellow-beings is therefore to
promote, by every means within his reach, the principles and practice of
Temperance, Education, Benevolence, and Peace. My belief is, that more
of sympathy and cordiality in favour of these great objects will be found in
the United States of America, than in any other country on the globe.
Already, indeed, has she done more than any other country that can be
named for the advancement of Temperance, the spread of Education, the
amelioration of the Criminal code, the improvement of prisons and peniten-
tiaries, and the practical illustrations of the blessings of Peace. And placed
as she now is, between the two great Seas that divide the Old from the New
world, and separate the ancient empires of the East from the modern
nations of the West— so that with her face towar ' the regions of the sun,
she can stretch out her right hand to Asia, and her left hand to Europe, and
cause her moral influence to be felt from Constantinople to Canton — she
has the means within her reach, as well as the disposition to use those
means, for the still further propagation and promotion of her benevolent
designs. It is this which encourages me to believe that my ulterior pro-
jects and intentions, which I thus freely avow, will not lessen the cordiality
with which the first and more immediate object of my mission to your
shores will be received. The land now covered with the descendants of
the Pilgrim Fathers, and the offspring of those noble and unyielding spirits,
who, fleeing to the uncleared wilderness as a refuge from tyranny and per-
secution, found in its primeval forests the liberty they in vain sought for
in their native homes — and whose posterity, while filling these forests with
cities, and covering the wilds with civilization and religion, have never
forgotten those lessuns of Freedom which their ancestors first taught by
their practical privations and sufferings, and then sealed and cemented by
their blood — such a land is not likely to refuse its shelter to one whose pai^t
history may give him some claim to the sympathy of its possessors, whose
present labours may be productive of intellectual gratification to them-
selves, ani^ whose future undertakings, if blessed by Divine Providence,
may sow the seeds, at least, of benefit to other widely-scatcered regions of
the earth.

To you, then, the People of America, I frankly submit this appeal ; and
at your hands I doubt not I shall experience that cordial and friendly recep-
tion which may smooth the ruggedness of a Pilgrim's path, and soothe the
pillow of an Exile's repose.

J. S. Buckingham.

No. IV.

It has been recorded in the text (p. 84, )thA^ ^^^ petitions to abolish
Slavery in the district of Columbia, and the resolutions sent from
Massachusetts, and the other Northern States belonging to the
thirteen United Colonies that formed the original compact of the

•

1 '

490

APPENDIX.

»1

first Republican Union, were, by certain resolutions of Mr. Patton,
of Virginia, received in silence ; and so far stifled or suppressed.
This excited a strong feeling of indignation among the Abolition-
ists of the North ; from the pen of one of whom, the following
spirited lines appeared in the public journals of the Free States :

MASSACHUSETTS.

Written on learning that the Resolutions of the Legislature of Massachu-
eetta on the subject of Slavery, presented by Hon. C, Gushing to the House
of Representatives of the United States have been laid on the table unread,
and unreferred, under the infamous rule of " Patton's Resolution."

And have they spumed thy word,

Thou of the old Thirteen I
Whose soil, where Freedom's blood first poured,

Hath yet a darker green ?
Tread the weak Southron's pride and lust
Thy name and counsels in the dust ?

And, have they closed thy mouth

And fix'd the padlock fast —
Slave of the mean and tyrant South —

Is this thy fate at last?
Old Massachusetts I can it be
That thus thy sons must speak of thee ?

'■■■ I

Call from the Capitol —
Thy chosen ones again,

Unmeet for them the base control
Of slavery's curbing rein ! —

Unmeet for necks like theirs to feel

The chafing of the despot's heel I

Call back to Quincy's shade

That steadfast son of tliine—

Go — if thy homage must be paid
To Slavery's pagod-shrine,

Seek out some meaner offering, than

The free-born soul of that old man I

J'f

Call that true spirit back

So eloqiient and young—
In his own vale of Merrimack

No chains are on his tongue I
Better to breathe its cold, keen air
Than wear the Southron's shackle there.

Aye, let them hasten home,
And render up their trust —

Through them the Pilgrim state is dum
Her proud lip in tlie dust I

Her counsels and her gentlest word

Of warning spumed aside, unheard I

dii

of Mr. Patton,
or suppressed,
the Abolition-
, the following
le Free States :

tare of Massachu-
ling to the House
the table unread,
olution."

;d.

APPENDIX.

Let them come back, and shake
The base dust from their feet ;

And, with their tale of outrage wake
The freeJiearts whom they meet i

And show before indignant men

The scars, where Slavery's chain hath been.

Back from the Capitol —

It is no place for thee I
Beneath the arch of heaven's blue wall

Thy voice may still be free !
What power shall chain thy spirit there.
In God's free sun and freer air?

A voice is calling thee.

From all the martyr-graves —
Of those stern men, in death made free,

Who could not live as slaves —
The slumberings of thy honoured dead
Are for thy sake disquieted I

The curse of Slavery comes

Still nearer, day by day ;
Shall thy pure altars and thy homes

Become the spoiler's prey ? —
Shall the dull tread of fettered slaves
Sound o'er thy old and holy graves !

Pride of the old Thirteen !

That curse may yet be stayed —
Stand thou, in Freedom's strength, between

The living and the dead —
Stand forth, for God and Liberty —
tn one strong effort, worthy thee !

Once more let Fanueil Hall

By freemen's feet be trod.
And give the echoes of its wall

Once more to Freedom's God !
And in the midst, unseen, shall stand
The mighty fathers of thy land.

Thy gathered sons shall feel

The soul of Adams near,
And Otis with his fiery zeal

And Warren's onward cheer : —
And heart to heart shall thrill, as wlien
They moved and spake as living men.

Fling from thy Capitol

Thy banner to the light.
And, o'er thy Charter's sacred scroll,

For Freedom and the Right,
Breathe once again thy vows, unbroken^
Speak once again as thou hast spoken.

On thy bleak hills speak out !

A world thy words shall hear— .
And they who listen round about,

In friendship, or in fear.
Shall know thee still, when sorest tried
" Unshaken, and unterrified."

41)1

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APPENDIX.

No. V.

The following is the correspondence and paper on Duelling
referred to, in the chapter on Washington, at page 277, and it is
given here, partly for the purpose of showing the effects produced
by it in the United States ; but also in the hope, that as a noble
Peer, the Earl of Mountcashell, has at this moment, a notice
before the House of Lords for a Committee to enquire into the best
mode of suppressing Duelling in England, it may be productive uf
some good here.

(From the New York An.-'.ncan, March 6, 1838.^

Duelling. — The recent occurrence at Washington seems to have turned
all minds to the consideration of some mode by which the barbarous practice
of Dueliinj^ should, if possible, be prevented. In this view, and in aid of
such an object — in which all men, whatever their private opinion or practice,
outwardly concur, and in which all men ought in truth, in spirit, and in
deed, heartily to co-operate — the following correspondence and essay have
been sent to us for publication. We commend them heartily to the attention
of all readers. The essay, it will be seen, was addressed by the author to
the British Parliament, of which he was at the time a member. It is
elaborate, able, and, occasionally, eloquent.

To J. S. Buckingham, Esq. Washington, Feb. 27th, 1838.

My dear Sir, — On my arrival yesterday, I found this city clothed in sack-
cloth and mourning. A member of Congress had been shot dead in a Duel
by a brother member, and in a manner that cannot but shock the moral ecusc
of the inhabitants of this vast Republic.

You were so kind as to send to me, previous to your leavir<g England, a
paper on the subject of Duelling, which I perused with deep interest; and
the thought has occurred to me, that its publication at this time might be
appropriate, and assist in correcting public sentiment on a most important
subject. With your permission I should like to give publicity to the docu-
ment. Truly and respectfully your friend,

E. C. Delavan.

To E. C. Delavan, Esq. Washington, Feb. 27th. 1838.

My dear Sir, — Having been myself as deeply affected by the painful
occurrence of the Duel to which you allude, as any member of this sorrowing
community, among whom I have so recently arrived, the first impulse
of my heart was to contribute, if possible, towards the correction of the
false sentiment of honour which countenances so barbarous a practice. I
accordingly sought among my papers for the document to which you
refer ; and as this was originally presented to the members of both houses
of the British Parliament during the period in which I had the honour of
being a member of that body, I thought it would not be unbecoming or
disrespectful in me to offer it to the consideration of both houses of Con-
gress, at the close of those funeral solemnities, in the midst of which one of
their lamented members was about to be consigned to an untimely grave.

From your hands, however, as an American citizen, this document will
he more acceptable than from mine. I therefore transmit it to you, in the
hope that through your instrumentality the public press of America will

APPENDIX.

493

r on Duelling
277, and it is
Fects produced
liat as a noble
lent, a notice
re into the best
! productive of

s to have turned
arbarous practice
w, and in aid of
linion or practice,

in spirit, and in
e and essay have
y to the attention

by the author to
, member. It is

eb. 27th, 1838.
r clothed in sack-
)t dead in a Duel
k the moral sciisc

avirig England, a
ep interest ; and
is time might be
i most important
icity to the docu-
nd,
Delavan.

eb. 27th. 1838.

i by the painful
of this sorrowing
the first impulse
correction of the
ous a practice. I
tit to which you
rs of both houses
lad the honour of
)e unbecoming or
h houses of Con-
st of which one of
untimely grave.

lis document will
it to you, in the
s of America will

convey it on the wings of the wind to the remotest verge of their extensive
country, and that the reverberation of public opinion, re-echoed from these
extremities to the Capitol, v/ill influence the general legislature to pass
some law for the correction of this great .evil at the fountain-head — a law
which would be approved by the vast majoritjr of this moral and intellectual
nation, and give the United States a new claim to the gratitude and admi-
ration of the world. I am, my dear sir, yours respectfully,

J. S. Buckingham.

REASONS FOR LEGISLATIVE kNTERFERENCE TO PREVENT
THE PRACTICE OF DUELLING.

Addressed to the Members of both Houses of Parliament in 1836,
by J. S. Buckingham, Esq. M. P.

At an early period of the present Session I placed a Notice on the Order
Book of the House of Commons, announcing my intention to ask leave to
bring in a Bill to prevent the unchristian and barbarous Practice of Duelling.
From a variety of causes, wholly beyond my power to control, this motion
was delayed and postponed, from time to time, always against my wishes,
as I desired its discussion at the earliest possible period, until there was
evidently so strong a disinclination to listen to any thing on the subject,
under the existing pressure of other public business, that the motion was
ultimately withdrawn.

As I am persuaded that the unwillingness to listen to any proposition for
abolition of this murderous practice, arises chiefly from the thick n.ist of pre-
judice by which the question is surrounded, and the habitual, but unieflecting
veneration in which this custom is held ; I think it but just to subnnt the
principal facts and reasonings which have induced me — who at one period
of my life saw so little objectionable in Duelling, as to hazard my owi life
at a moment the most critical and painful in all my history — to come to the
conclusion that it is as inefficient for all good purposes, as it is powerful ibr
evil.

There is one reason that has hitherto prevented gentlemen from denounc-
ing Duelling in the senate, and seeking to effect its abolition by law ; ana
this has been, the fear of being thought wanting in courage or spirit, and'
seeking to shelter their personal timidity under a legal prohibition. ThisV
want of moral courage is far more frequent than the absence of animal
bravery. There are many men who would boldly face the cannon's mouth,)
though they could not stand up against an absurd and revolting custom of
society, if Fashion had stamped it with its approbation ; while the fear p<f
man is more powerful in its operation on the great bulk of the communit^y
than the fear of God, there will be always found men weak enough to yielijl
up their judgments to those fears, and violate what they know to be tlie
injunctions of religion, the duties of morality, and the ties of parental a'ad
domestic affection, because they cannot summon courage enough to wii,th-
stand the reproaches of the world. i

Notwithstanding all these difficulties, I shall endeavour to show that the
practice of Duelling is unchristian, unjust, ineffectual, and absurd; that 'the
present state of the law respecting it is inefficient, and inoperative ; /and
that it is perfectly practicable to devise a remedy, which will admit off the
amicable and pacific adjustment of all those differences now madej the
subject of appeal to arms, and settled often in the shedding of inn i)cent
blood. J

To show that it is unchristian, requires, perhaps, butlittle proof A hiiiidred
texts of Scripture might be quoted to establish the utter irreconcilabiljity of

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494

APPENDIX.

such a practice, with the Christian code; but I content myself with merely
Raying, that as suicide, or self-destruction, is, by the common consent of
Christians of eveiy denomination, held to be a crime of the deepest die, the
practice of Duelhng, which places both the combatants in the position of
men voluntarily risking their lives in private quarrel, and permitting a
reciprocal suicide to be perpetrated, for the satisfaction of private vengeance
alone, must be deemed contrary to the very essence and spirit of Christian'
ity, which teaches forgiveness of injuries, and the return of good for evil,
as the sacred duty of every man professing the Christian faith. Upon what
other ground, than its utter repugnance to the dictates of religion, is it that
the clergy are exempt from amenability to its bloody and barbarous code ?
For no chaplain, even when serving on M'arlike expeditions, could dare to
countenance a private Duel, nor is he ever expected, however gross the
insult he may receive, to resent or to avenge it by such unchristian means.

That it is unjust, is quite as susceptible of proof; and that it is ineffectual
and absurd, very few, irdeed, presume to deny. Whatsoever is just, manly,
and honest, men are g'ijnerally proud to do openly, that they may enjoy the
applause and commer.dation of the world. But the Duelli&t shrinks away
from the public ga? , and tacitly confesses the injustice of his proceeding,
by shrouding it froi i the public eye in a mean and evasive secrecy. That it
is ineffectual is ju jt as clear, as a Duel never yet proved who was right and
who was wrong \a the quarrel out of which it arose, but left the merit and
demerit of the parties in the dispute just where it was before. And that it
is absurd, musi, be admitted from the fact, that instead of its accomplishing
the end at which it aims, namely, to rectify some evil, or afford satisfaction
to some wrunded feeling, it often adds murder to the insult sought to be
atoned fr,r, and leaves the innocent and injured party seeking redress, to
measure an untimely grave at the foot of the wanton and unprovoked
aggressor.

Le; us take a very ordinary case. A gentleman makes an assertion, which
is supposed by one hearing it to be incorrect. He at first denies its
accuracy. The original assertor, jealous of his reputation, protests against
the contradiction ; and after a few irritating expressions on either side, the
o ne pronounces that what the other has said is false. A challenge ensues,
f nd the matter is referred to seconds. To do what ? To ascertain whether
.;he assertion made is true or false ? Not at all — for that is left untouched,
'.\a though it were a matter of the utmost indifference. But to see which of
the two are the most wrongheaded and the most obstinate : the seconds
usually conceiving it to be their duty to preserve their own reputation for
c, irage, by not permitting the respective principals to give way to each
t tner by any admission that can be interpreted into a symptom of fear ;
a id thus, from the dread of being thought to be afraid, by making mutual
concessions, both parties meet in the field, and the life of one or the other
11- sacrificed.

The earliest Duels that were fought were to save lives. They were
sii gle combats, and trials of strength and skill, between eminent and
distinguished individuals, to settle national differences by the sacrifice
of one life instead of many, and to spare the too copious effusion of
hu nan blood. Such was the combat between Diomtdes and .^neas,
in tne war between the Greeks and the Trojans ; such the combat of
the Horatii and Curiatii, in the war between the Romans and tho
Albi\ns; and such the going out of David to meet Goliath the Philis-
tine, as recorded in Holy Writ. These were Duels for national victory,
and to spare the lives of thousands, by making the issue of the single com-
bat d efinitive of the question in dispute. They were, therefore, conducted
with Jill due pomp and ceremony — were fought in the presence of assembled
hoste . and were crowned with all the sanction which public authority could

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APPENDIX.

495

yself with merely
mmon consent of
e deepest die, the
in the position of
and permitting a
private vengeance
pirit of Chnstian-
of good for evil,
faith. Upon what
religion, is it that
[ barbarous code ?
ion8, could dare to
dowever gross the
ichristion means.

lat it is ineffectual
vet is just, manly,
hey may enjoy the
i;lli&t shrinks uway
of his proceeding,
! secrecy. That it
who was right and
left the merit and
fore. And that it
f its accomplishing
afford satisfaction
iisult sought to be
seeking redress, to
n and unprovoked

an assertion, which
at first denies its
on, protests against
s on either side, the
^ challenge ensues,
ascertain whether
It is left untouched.
But to see which of
iiiate : the seconds
own rej)Utation for
) give way to each
a symptom of fear ;
[, by making mutual
of one or the other

lives. They were
;ween eminent and
es by the sacrifice
copious effusion of
imtdes and iEneas,
uch the combat of
• Romans and tho

Goliath the Philis-
for national victory,
le of the single coni-
therefore, conducted
resence of assembled
ublic authority could

give to them. Even in still later times than those adverted to, the Duel
was fought with the same pi' Mc view; and among other instances may be
mentioned, the combat bet\<een Edmund Ironside and Canute the Dane,
for the dominion of England -, the offer of Richard the First, of Edward
the Third, and of Richard the Second, to try their right with the King of
France. At the period of the Norman conquest, William the First sent a
message to Harold, on the day before the battle of Hastings, offering to
spare the effusion of blood, which must follow from the meeting of the
armies, by deciding the fate of the kingdom in single combat ; which Harold,
however, refused. If the modem Duel were, like this, only entered on
for national purposes, and to spare human blood, the objection to it wouhl
be greatly lessened.

A second cause of Duel sprung up when the Goths and Vandals overran
the declining empire of Rome, and brought with them, from their northern
abodes, a mixture of blind superstition and ferocious courage, out of wliich
arose the Trial by Ordeal, by which the parties iji dispute consented to
refer the decision of their guilt or innocence to the arbitration of some
unseen Power, who, they professed to believe, would interfere in behalf of
the innocent, and make the guilt of the guilty appear on the spot. The mo-
dem Duel no more resembles this, than it does the preceding one described.

A third kind of Duel was engendered by the feudiil institutions of our
ancestors, in those chivalrous encounters which fill the pages of romance.
In this single combat, the parties never professed to fight for themselves,
but to avenge the cause of some other. The baron fouglu to redress the
wrong of some feudal dependent among his vassals. The knight, or cavalier,
defended his lady's reputation at the point of the lance ; and the weak and
the oppressed were sometimes rescued from the grasp of some petty despot,
when an encounter at arms followed as the adjustment of the dispute. In
all these combats, however, there were these redeeniing traits ; they were
more generous than selfish ; they exhibited prowess, agility, skill, and manly
bearing; they were open, public, avowed, legal, authorized, and even honoured
by the existing feelings and manners of the age. It is unnecessary to add,
that the modern duel has hut very slight traces of resemblance to this.

There were very early perceptions, however, of the injustice of such
appeals to arms for the settlement of private quarrels ; and many instances
of punishments inflicted on parties resorting to them are on record. One
of these may be sufPcient to mention. It is this :— In the reign of Richard
the Second, a quarrel happened between the Dukes of Norfolk and Hereford,
which was to be settled by single combat, in the usual way of those times,
bu< in public and open encounter, under the notion of Heaven interposing
to preserve the innocent. At the moment, however, of their being about to
engage, each being mounted, the King interposed his authority, and both
were banished from the kingdom, the one for ten yeais, the other for life.

As an illustration of the errors of preceding legislators on this subject, by
whose mistakes we may profit, and be directed into a better course, I may
perhaps be permitted to state the following facts. At the close of the I6tli
century, Henry the Second and Philip the Fair, each published edicts against
Duelling; the first prohibiting it altogether, and the second placing it under
certain restraints. These, however, were ineffectual, for this reason only,
namely, the great facility with which pardons were obtained by those who
disobeyed the law. It is said that in the course of ten years, there have
been granted upwards of six thousand discharges or pardons to those who
had violated the laws. This is exactly the state of things in England at the
present moment. The law pronounces killing in a Duel to be murder, and
as such it is legally punishable with death ; but the facility with which
acquittals are obtained, nay, the certainty that no jury will convict — because
they cannot, without doing violence to their consciences, put the midnight

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496

APPENDIX.

murderer and voluntary combatant on the same level — is such, that no man
is deterred from risking his own life, or taking that of another, in single
combat, from any fear of the penalties of the law, which he knows will
never be enforced. In the same manner Henry the Fourth of France, in
the five first years of whose reign, we are told, no less than four thousand
gentlemen perished in single combat, yielding to the persuasions of his able
minister, the Duke de Sully, held a council of his nobilitv and ofScers at
Blois, in 1602 ; at which edicts were published, inflicting the severest penal-
ties on duellists. But here again, as \n the former case, the law was wholly
inoperative ; as pardons were so easily obtained by those who offended it,
that none of the penalties were ever enforced. The conduct pursued by
Gustavus Adolphus, king of Sweden, was more prompt and decisive. During
one of his campaigns in Russia, the practice of Duelling had reached such a
height in his own army, that he denounced death against any who should
engage in it. Two officers in high command, nevertheless, subsequently
quarrelled, and, knowing the king to be inflexible, they did not dare to fight
without asking his permission. It was granted ; but on condition that the
king himself should be an eye-witness of the combat. The time and place
being appointed, the combatants appeared ; when they found the king,
accompanied by a small body of infantry, which he drew in a circle round
them : and calling the provost-marshal to attend as executioner, he said,
" Let the combatants continue until one is slain ; and the instant that occurs,
do you behead the other before my eyes." The generals (for the ofiicers
were of that high rank) pausing at the inflexible determination of their
sovereign, mutually embraced, and forgave each other in the presence of
their monarch — solicited, and received his pardon, and promised to be, as
they continued, till death, firm and faithful friends. Joseph the Second,
the Emperor of Germany, in a letter written with his own aand, to one of
his general officers, dated Vienna, August, 1722, says :

" I will not suffer Duelling in my army. I despise the maxims of those
who pretend to justify it, and to kill eacn other in cold blood. I feel high
esteem for officers who courageously expose themselves to the enemy. The
indifference with which they brave death in battle is useful to their country ;
but there are among them men ready to sacrifice every thin^ to revenge, and
to the hatred which they bear to their enemies. I despise them. Such
men are, in my opinion, no better than the Roman gladiators. Call a court-
martial to try the two officers, who have given and received challenges to
fight. Examine the subject of their quarrel with the impartiality which I
require from every man who is invested with the office of rendering justice ;
and let him who is guilty submit to his fate, and to the rigour of the laws.
I am resolved that this barbarous custom, worthy only of the times of
Tamerlane and Bajazet, and which has so often thrown families into mourn-
ing, shall be repressed, should it even cost me the half of my officers to effect
it. There are still men who know how to unite bravery with the duties
of a faithful subject. It is they who respect the laws of the state."

In the reign of Louis the Thirteenth, the successor of Henry the Fourth,
and surnamed the Just, the law against Duellists was so rigorously put in
force, that men who were mortally wounded in the combat were dragged to
the gibbet, and there hung up by the hands of the public executioner, before
they died of their wounds. In the reign of Louis the Fourteenth, in the
year 1609, a Court of Honour was established, for considering and deciding
on all points theretofore settled by appeals to arms ; and from that period,
the number of duels began greatly to decline ; as undoubtedly they would
do in any country where so much more just and satisfactoiy a method than
the barbarous one at present in use, should be adopted for the settling of all
personal matters of dispute. In 1712, Augustus, king of Poland, prohibited
Duelling in his kingdom by severe edicts. Even Christophe, the late

•' i

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APPENDIX.

497

8 such, that no man
f another, in single
ich he knows will
burth of France, in
I than four thousand
rsuasions of his able
ility and officers at
g the severest penal-
, the law was wholly
9se who offended it,
conduct pursued by
nd decisive. During
; had reached such a
nst any who should
heless, subsequently
did not dare to fight
>n condition that the

The time and place
ley found the king,
-ew in a circle round
executioner, he said,
e instant that occurs,
:rals (for the officers
termination of their

in the presence of
1 promised to be, as

Joseph the Second,
own hand, to one of

:he maxims of those
i blood. I feel high
to the enemy. The
ful to their country ;
hing to revenge, and
espise them. Such
ators. Call a court-
ceived challenges to
impartiality which I
jf rendering justice ;
! rigour of the laws,
ily of the times of
families into mourn-
f my officers to effect
i^ery with the duties
' the state."

f Henry the Fourth,
so rigorously put in
ibat were dragged to
c executioner, before
s Fourteenth, in the
idering and deciding
und from that period,
oubtedly they would
ictory a method than
for the settling of all
>f Poland, prohibited
Christophe, the late

president of Hayti, decreed thut any individual engaged in a duel, either us
principal or accessory, should be shot as a rebel against the state, a violator
of justice, and a disturber of the public peace ; with a just reservation, how-
ever, that if in the course of the legal investigation, it should appear that
only one person was to blame, as the original aggressor, the punishment
should fall on him alone.

In turning from foreign states to our own country, I find high names and
great authorities in favour of legislative attempts to denounce and punish
the practice of Duelling. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and that of her
successor, James the First, the practice having much prevailed, the great
Lord Verulam, then Sir Francis Bacon, as Attorney- General for the Crown,
instituted an information against two persons, the one of whom sent, and
the other accepted a challenge ; on which occasion he delivered an oration
against the practice, in the Star Chamber, following up his address by n
statement of. the laws which he meant to propose for its suppression ; but
the court and the nobility were unfavourable to their prosecution, and uU
the efforts of the reforming philosopher were unavailing against such intiu-
ence. In the time of Cromwell, the Parliament issued, in 1654, an ordinance
against Duelling : and after the Restoration, Charles the Second issued a
proclamation against it. But, the reason why these decrees were unavailing
was, that the punishment, being death, was too severe to be ever inflicted ;
and the certainty with which acquittals or pardons could be obtained, gave
impunity to offenders, and caused the law to be contemned and despised.

In the year 1712, however, when Queen Anne had ascended the throne,
and in the same year in which Augustus, the king of Poland, issued his
eC'Ct against Duelling, a fatal duel was fought in England, between the
Duke of Hamilton and Lord Mohun, in which both the combatants were
killed. This event made so deep an impression upon the public mind, that
under the impulse of the moment, a bill was brought into the House of
Commons, by Mr. Hungerford, which was read a first time in April, 1712,
a second time in May of the same year, and referred to a Committee in the
month of June following. It was entitled "A Bill to prohibit Tryall by
single Combat, and to suppress the impious practice of Duelling;" and it
was introduced under the highest auspices, having been expressly recom-
mended to the attention of the legislature, by a speech from the Queen on
the throne. I have taken some pains to trace the progress of this bill
through all its various stages ; and by the aid of the manuscript Index in the
Journal Office, I was enabled to ibllosv it through its first and second
readings into the Committee, where it appears to have lingered for several
weeks, and after many successive postponements was dropped, without any
reason being assigned, but it was not defeated or thrown out.

From that period to the present, no attempt has been made, that I am
aware of, to legislate against the evil ; though the practice is so far from
being extinct, that it has acquired perhaps more open sanction, and more
daring publicity, than any other infraction of the law that can be named.
The occurrence is so much a matter of course, that in announcing such
combats, the reporters of the public journals hardly deem it necessary to
say how the quarrel arose, or whether the cause of^ the fight was adequate
or otherwise. It is generally announced as though it were one of the most
lawful and innocent customs of the age. Duelling pistols are also openly
and publicly exposed for sale, and labelled as such in the shops ; as though
to shoot a human being was as lawful and as innocent an affair as bringing
down a pheasant or a partridge.

There are many persons who will read this, perhaps, and still think,
that, after all, the number of Duels fought in England at present are
few, and their effects unimportant, and on that ground they may depre-
cate legislative interference, because they think the evil insignificant in

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APPENDIX.

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magnitude. Dut the catalogue is longer and more fearful than many would
BuppoNe. It appears, also, tliat this barbarous practice bus ingulphcd within
its vortex, noblemen, statesmen, orators, and warriors, tor in this list will
be found the names of the Dukes of York, Norfolk, and Richmond, Lords
Shelburne, Macartney, Townsend, Hellamont, Exmouth, Talbot, Lauderdale,
Lonsdale, Cnmelford, Paget, Castlereagh, IJelgrave, and Petersham — as well
as of Pitt, Fox, Sheridan, Canning, Tierney, and even Wellington.

Mr. Joseph Hamilton, of Dublin, state:: that a Captain Keman had li illed
or wounded 14 persons in Duels: — that Major Spread challenged 8 officers,
and wounded 4 of them upon a single day ; and that George Robert Fitz-
gerald was introduced to the King of France as an IriNhman who had
previously fought 26 fatal duels ! An officer who collected the reports of
172 cases, found 63 individuals were killed, and 96 wounded. He says that
constituted as society at present is, the noblemen and gentlemen of the
United Kingdom have no adequate security against a challenge ot an offence.
Thus every officer in the army or navy is placed in painful difficulty, between
the existing military code, and the disrepute which is attendant on its strict
observance ; for, while he is punishable bjr the criminal law for slaying a
fellow-subject in a Duel, he is at the same time compelled, by the despotic
and unwritten code of military honour, not to endure an insult, nor refuse a
challenge. Several British officers indeed have been so spurned by their
associates, that they were compelled to retire from the public service,
because they acted in obedience to the articles of war, and the injunctions
of their sovereign, in refusing to iight Duels for the most trifling causes of
quarrel.

I would ask whether such a state of things as this ought to be suffered to
continue for a single moment longer; — the religion of the country denounc-
ing a practice which is, nevertheless, followed by the highest personages in
the state — the civil laws of the country denouncing a practice which is,
nevertheless, followed by the legislators, the judges, and the legal profession
at large — the militaiy law denouncing a practice which must, nevertheless,
be followed by naval and military officers, or their society be shunned, and
their prosperity in the service for ever destroyed. What must be the inevi-
table effects of all this, but to bring the authority of religion, law, and
discipline, equally into contempt, and to set up the fickle goddess of Fashion
as the supreme power in the state ?

As the legal authorities upon the subject may not be familiar to all
readers, I will venture to quote only a few. Judge Blackstone, in his Com-
mentaries, says : " Deliberate Duelling is contrary to the laws of God and
man ; and therefore the law has justly fixed the crime and punishment of
murder on principals, and seconds also." Judge Foster, in his Discourse on
Crown Law, says ; " Deliberate Duelling, if death ensue, is, in the eye of
the law, murder." .Sir Edward Coke, in his Institutes, says : " Single com-
bats, between any of the king's subjects, is strictly prohibited by the laws
of this realm, and on this principle, that in states governed by law, no man,
in consequence of any injury whatever, ought to indulge the principle of
private revenge." Sir Matthew Hale says : " This is a plain case, and with-
out any question. If one kill another in fight, even upon the provocation
of him that is killed, this is murder." Mr. Justice Grose, Mr. Justice
Duller, and others of great eminence, might be also cited, all concurring as
they do in the same view ; nanicly. that no amount of provocation — no sense
of wounded honour — no feeling of personal insult — no extent of private wrong
—can ever justify, or even palliate, so false a method of seeking redress.

The remedy that I shall venture to propose for this evil, will be found
to be very simple, perfectly practicable, justified by jirecedent, warranted
by analogy, and sanctioned by experience and success. It is founded on
these two single principles. 1st. That there shall be competent tribunala.

APPENDIX.

4f)y

than many woiiUl
^ ingulphed within
or in this list will

Richmond, Lords
'albot, Lauderdale,
etersham— as well
Ellington.

Keman had V illed
allenged 8 officers,
'orgc Robert Fitz-
rishman who hud
ted the reports of
led. He says that
gentlemen of the
Icnge or an offence,
difficulty, between
i^ndant on its strict
il law for slaying a
id, by the despotic
insult, nor refuse a
} spurned by their
the public service,
uid the injunctions
St trifling causes of

ht to be suffered to
e country denounc-
ijhest personages in

practice which is,
the legal profession
must, nevertheless,
ty be shunned, and

must be the inevi-
f religion, law, and
goddess of Fashion

be familiar to all
Lstone, ill his Com-
le laws of God and
and punishment of
in his Discourse on
le, is, in the eye of
;ays : " Single com-
libited by the laws
ed by law, no man,
ge the principle of
ain case, and with-
on the provocation
Grose, Mr. Justice
id, all concurring as
(vocation — no sense
cut of private wrong
seeking redress.

evil, will be found
ecedent, warranted
It is founded on
competent tribunals^

established to take cognizHiice of all offences, so as to leave no man without u
remedy for wrong, and by this means to deprive him of all motive for taking
the law into his own hands. 2dly. That for all contempt or infruction of
the authority of such tribunals, the punishments should be no more severe
than public opinion would approve, so as to ensure their luing enforced;
by enlisting public sympathy always in favour of therespi'fteraMd«)h8ervt'rof
the law, rather than with its enemies and violators. The provisions which I
should suggest as the substance of any legislative enactment would be these :

1. That Courts of Honour shall be established, with full powers to tJike
cognizance of, hear, and determine, all ciises referred to them for adjiidiL-a-
tion, by parties conceiving themselves to be insidted or aggrieved ; and that
the decisions of such Courts shall be binding on both appellants, under
penalties to be hereafter specified.

2. That these Courts shall be constituted of not less than three, nor more
than seven individuals, of a rank as nearly as may be attainable, to that of
the parties making the appeal ; and that tlie selection and nomination of
such individuals to form the Courts of Honour prescribed, shall be vested in
the following authorities: — For the adjudication of all cases of dispute
between the servants of his Majesty, whether Civil, Naval, or Military, the
principal officer in that department of the public service to which the a|)peal-
ing parties may belong, at the nearest station to the spot where the dis))ute
may have arisen. And for gentlemen not belo:iging to any branch of lite
public service, the senior magistrate, or the sheriff, of the county, in which
the points of difference may occur.

3. That persons having any cause of quarrel, not cognizable by civil or
military law, but such as is usuidly determined among gentlemen, by refer-
ence to private friends, or by appeal to arms, shall select, as at present, each
a second, or representative, who shall have power and authority to draw uj)
a statement of the cases of their respective principals in writing, copies of
which shall be interchanged between each, and signed by both parties.

4. That the statements thus drawn up shall be laid before titv proper
authority, indicated '<■ a pr. i-eding clause, with a request that he will sum-
mon the requisiti ndividuals of the rank and number required, to form the
Court of Honoui, whether Civil, Naval, Military, or otherwise, within a
period of not ! I'ss than three, nor more than seven days from the date of
such appeal, whio^ individuals shall be bound to attend at the time and place
appointed, as jurors of our Lord the King.

5. Tlu«i the Court being assembled, shall proceed to elect the senior
member in age, as its president ; and after hearing the seconds, as advocates
on either side, shall call before them such witnesses as tliey may deem
necessary, and receive such oral or written testimony as they may consider
fairly applicable to the case in dispute; after which, the President shall sum
up the evidence, and the jurors or members of the Court of Honour shall
each deliver their opinions and decision on the .i>e, beginning with the
youngest member, and going upwards with the remainder by seniority of
age: when the President, as Judge, shall pronounce his verdict: which, if
concurred in by the majority of the Court, himself included, shall be held
binding on all parties, and without appeal.

6. That the expense of such proceedings before Courts of Honour thus
constituted, shall be confined to the payment of the advocates, witnesses,
and costs of evidence on either side ; — the service of the jurors or members
of the Court of Honour being gratuitous, as in Grand Juries and Courts
Martial at present; but that in all cases, the party proved to be the aggressor
in the dispute, and condemned by the verdict of the Court as being in the
wrong, shall be held liable to the payment of all the costs, on both ides,
and be subject to be detained in custody until su«h costs are discharged.

»;'/■'■

500

APPENDIX.

, f r^

■■t-.^'

\!»'

,rO.;

7. That the refusal, on the part uf any individual giving or taking offence,
to refer his case to the adjudication of a Court of Honour, constituted as
above described, shall be taken to be an acquittal of the party consenting
to such an appeal ; and such refusal of any one party, when communicated
by the other who consents, to the Court, shall, when duly authenticated, be
published under their authority as a judicial settlement of the case.

8. That in the event of both parties in any quarrel holding the authority
of such Court of Honour in contempt, and still appealing to arms, and
engaging in a Duel with deadly weapons — whether actual injury be inflicted
by the combat or not — the following penalties shall be imposed on the con-
victed offenders, whether principals, seconds, or accessories before or after
the fact. If in the Civil, Naval, or Military service of his Majesty, the
offenders shall be dismissed from their public employment, and deprived of
all rank and pay, for a period of not less than three, nor exceeding seven
years. If not in any branch of tlie public service, the offenders shall be
declared to be outlaws, deprived of all rank in society, and of all civil and
political privileges, as Kritish subjects, and be placed for a like period with-
out the protection of the law,

9. That in the event of any wound being inflicted on, or death ensuing
to, one or both of the parties engaged in any Duel, the property of the other
parties, including principal, seconds, and accessories, shall be held liable for
pecuniary reparation to all who may be injured, either directly or indirectly,
by such wounds or death, to the extent of maintaining, as far as the joint
property of all the parties will admit, the families and dependents thus
deprived of their natural protectors and supporters, in the same state and
condition as they would have been maintained, had no such death occurred.

These are the only provisions I should deem necessary, and these, I believe,
would be found fully and completely effectual to meet every case. As to
the practicability of the remedy, and the justice of the penalties proposed,
many authorities may be cited in support of both. Judge Blackstone says,
" Could a method be devised, of compelling the aggressor to miike some
other satisfaction to the affronted party, M'hich the world would esteem
equally reputable as that which is now given at the hazard of life and
fortune, as well of the person insulted, as of he who hath given the insult,
a probability of the discontinuance of this practice might be held out." Here
then, we have shadowed forth, and that not dimly, but in lines so clear and
distinct that they cannot be mistaken, that very Court of Honour or tribunal
which can give " some other satisfaction which the world would esteem,"
that the learned judge deems so desirable. Mr. Hamilton, whom I quoted
before, says, that when his late Majesty, George the Fourth, was offended by
the Duke of Brunswick, a Court of Honour, formed of all the neighbouring
princes, dictated and enforced a becoming reparation ; and he states that
Prussia, Bavaria, and other continental states, have established Courts of
Honour for the peaceable adjustment of personal disputes. Even in England,
a British Court of Chivalry was formerly in existence, having power to
enforce full reparation for those grievances which were of too delicate a
nature for the cognizance of common law; and being able to compel the
defendant to take promptly on himself the lie which he had rashly or
inijustly given, or to make such other submission as the laws of honour
might require. This Court was held before the Lord High Constable and
the Earl Marshal jointly ; but there having been no permanent High Con-
stable since the execution of Stafford, Duke of Buckingham, that Court
has unfortunately fallen into entire disuse.

The most striking cases that can be cited as to the practicability of such
a Court, are two mentioned by Mr. Samuel, in his " History of the
British Army," bo^h hai)pening in the reign of George the Third. -The one
was in the case of a dispute between Lieutenant-General Murray and Sir

.1 ■,

APPENDIX.

501

)r taking offenre,
ir, constituted as
party consenting
in communicated
authenticated, be
the case.

ing the authority
ing to arms, and
njury be inflicted
losed on the con-
es before or after
his Majesty, the
;, and deprived of
exceeding seven
tffenders shall be
id of all civil and
like period with-

or death ensuing
perty of the other
be held liable for
ctly or indirectly,
as far as the joint

dependents thus
te same state and
h death occurred.

id these, I believe,
very case. As to
jnalties proposed,
! Blackstone says,
)r to make some
Id would esteem
azard of life and
I given the insult,
; held out." Here
lines so clear and
lonour or tribunal
d would esteem,"
n, whom I quoted
1, was offended by
the neighbouring
iiid he states that
jlished Courts of
Even in England,
having power to
of too delicate a
>le to compel the
le had rashly or
laws of honour
gh Constable and
anent High Con>
hum, that Court

;ticability of such

' History of the

Third. The one

Murray und Sir

William Draper, in 1783; the other related to certain differences which
arose out of the trial of Major John Browne, of the 67th regiment, and
Captain Hedges, at Antigua. In both cases, His Majesty constituted the
Courts>martial at their respective regiments into a Court of Honour, for
mediating between the parties. The grounds of quarrel were there minutely
investigated, and the submissions due by the party which was convicted of
giving the offence were dictated. The proposed terms were complied with,
and all concerned pledged their honour, by requisition of the Court, to allow
their differences there to terminate, and to have no further consequences.
His Majesty's commission to the Court-martial in the second instance
contained specific directions, which ran in these words : " If, upon the
representation of any of the parties, it shall appear, that in respect of any
unguarded or intemperate expression, which may have been heretofore
used, an acknowledgment, apology, or concession, may be necessary, or
proper, the Court will prescribe the terms in which the same shall be con-
ceived ; and will cause it to be made in their presence. And for the better
effectuating these purposes, the Court-martial have His Majesty's permission
to make use of his royal name, authority, and injunction ; and, if they shall
see occasion, to impose a strict arrest upon any of the parties, until a report
shall be made to His Majesty."

Here then, is experience of the perfect practicabilit}[, as well as the effi-
cacy of such a Court of Honour, made permanent, which might be armed
with full powera, instead of being merely temporary, and founded on royal
commissions issued for every separate occasion. I may add, that the late
revered and lamented Mr. Wilberforce, in his admirable " View of Christian-
ity," says, " There can be little doubt of the efficacy of what has been more
than once suggested, as a substitute for Duelling, namely, a Court of
Honour, to take cognizance of such offences as would naturally fall within
its province : but," he adds, " the effects of this establishment would doubtless
require to be enforced by legislative provisions, directly punishing the
practice, and by discouraging at court, and in the naval and military circles,
all who should, directly or indirectly, be guilty of it." And Mr. Samuel,
with all that high feeling of respect for military honour, which his examina-
tion of the materials for his work on the British Army naturally inspired,
after condemning the practice of Duelling in the strongest terms, and
recommending in the most forcible manner the substitution of Courts of
Honour instead, concludes by saying : " This conquest over deep-rooted,
but ill-founded prejudices, if difficult in attainment, will be most admirable
in its consequences ; since it cannot fail to abolish, in the end, a senseless
and horrid practice, not less reproachful to the military character, than
shocking to humanity itself."

As to the arguments u''gcu in favour of Duelling, there is but one that is
at all relied on, which is this : that " it is indispensable for the preservation
of order in polite society ; for, were it not for the fear of being called out
to the field, the greatest rudeness and incivility would prevail." To this it
is enough to say, that the most polished nations of antiquity, the Egyptians,
the Babylonians, the Persians, and the Giveks, knew nothing of^^ such it
practice as the modern Duel ; yet they all preserved the greatest refinement
of manners without the influence of fear. The rudest and most barbarous
of modern nations, the Goths, the Vandals, and the Teutonic tribes, are
those among whom it most prevailed ; and yet with all its influence, their
manners were harsh and ferocious in the extreme. The most polite and
well-bred individuals in all countries are so from courteoiisness of dis])osi-
tion, and by force of example, rather than from ^ear,- and professed Duellists
are often the rudest and most boisterous of men. The traits, therefore, of
private and of national character, are wholly against such a theory as that
set up in defence of Duelling. Besides which, I ask, can there be any
groijBtr inconsistency ihuii this : 1st, to say, that bravery, truth, and polished

^«^' '''

502

APPENDIX.

mi ■', -'A-

'f ::■'■■

.t'l

<•. »>

h-'f ; '^

manners, arc virtues so indispensable to a gentleman, and are possessed in
such perfection by the gentry of EnglMul, thut the slightest insiiiuHtiuik
against any man's courage, veracity, or gentlemanly manners, is an offeiine
which can be expiated only by mortal combat ; and 'idly, to atlirm that they
are of such ruffianly dispositions, such hypocrites, such pretenders to bravery,
and such base cowards at the same time - so continually disposed to hehave
ill, but so continually crouching under the operation of /ear, that if you will
only hold over them in terror, the dread of the whip or the pistol, they will
be the most civil and polite persons in the world. Now both of these posi-
tions cannot be true. If they be really brave — no dread of being called to
account for their conduct by others will ever deter them fVom doing what
they deem right. It is only on the supposition of their being arrant cowards,
that the fear of a Duel can ever make them polite, by professing a respect
which ♦hey do not feel ; and therefore, the very apology set up for Duelling,
is the bitterest censure ever passed on the character of the nation in which
it prevails. '

Let me sum up the whole by a brief glance at the nature and extent of
the penalties proposed to be enforced, and especially their suitableness to
the nature of the offence. I contend, then, that death is altogether an
excessive, as well as an unsuitable punishment for Duelling ; since, to put
the man who voluntarily risks his life against that of another, and combats
fairly and openly, on the same footing with the secret murderer and midnight
assassin, is to confound all notions of right and justice, and defeat the very end
of law, by revolting every man against its injunctions. It is to avoid being
scorned and shunned by their equals, rather than to take vengeance, or even
to prove their courage, that men go to the field. This degradation then, of
which they stand in so much dread, is the proper punishment to be inflicted
on those who shall l)e proved to be in the wrong ; and the fear of being so
proved guilty, and so scorned and shunned, will operate more powerfully
than any fear of death, to deter men from giving others offence.

The fittest punishment for this, when tribuiuils are founded for the
adjustment of every dispute, will undoubtedly be, to condemn the parties,
not to physical, but to political and civil death — to annihilate, or suspend for
a time, their rights and privileges as citizens — to exclude them from society
—to make them outlaws — to withdraw from thein the protection of the laws
—since they themselves, by setting those laws aside, have nhown that they
will not yield them obedience ; — and, failing to observe this, they are no longer
entitled to their protection.

If it be thought that naval and military men may claim exemption from
this reciprocal obligation of obedience and protection, I answer it is precisely
to tho. e classes that the practice of Duelling is most derogatory. What is
its admitted principle ? To coerce men into respectful behaviour towards
each other, by the operation of ^eur. Gracious Heaven ! and is this the ruling
motive we would apply to the conduct of the heroic defenders of their
country? Shall they, who never yet shrunk from the cannon of the enemy,
be terrified into civility, by the fear of the pistol-balls of their own country-
men and friends ? Is this the base material of which our fleets and armies
are composed ? But it is said, their feelings must be respected I Undoubtedly
— to all honourable er'tent ; but men in whose hands the national defence is
placed, are bound above all things to show their respect for the laws ; and
whenever they set their own selfish feelings and fancies above that solcnni
obligation, they prove themselves unworthy of their trust. It has been
well said, indeed, that naval and military men have even loss excuse than
any other class for resorting to this barbarous practice. The country places
weapons in their liiuuls, and gives them the privilege and the honour of
wearing arms, for the defence, of the State ; and if they pervert thc-^c
instruments of guoil to e\ il uses, and ihalleiige each other, to spill tlie
iiatiun's blood, they are guilty of as great u crime as the cashier of a national

APPENDIX.

\re possessed in
test insinuation
;rs, is an offenre
aliirm that they
iders to bravery,
posed to hehave
, that if you will
pistol, they will
th of these posi-
f being called to
lYoni doing what
; arrant cowards,
lissing a respect
up for Duelling,
nation in which

ire and extent of
r suitableness to
is altogether an
ig ; since, to put
her, and combats
■rer and midnight
efeat the very end
is to avoid being
jngeance, or even
;radation then, of
!nt to be inflicted
! fear of being so
more powerfully
ence.

founded for the
lemn the parties,
te, or suspend for
lem from society
ction of the laws
nhown that they
hey are no longer

exemption from

ver it IS precisely

gatory. What is

ehaviour towards

lis this the ruling

fenders of their

on of the enemy,

leir own country-

tleets and armies

•dt Undoubtedly

itional defence is

jr the laws ; and

)(jve that solemn

St. it has been

less excuse than

le com 1 try places

id the honour of

cy pervert th( -^c

tlier, to spill tiie

hicr of u national

bank, who, entrusted with funds for his country's u«e, applies them to his
own selfish purposes, and squanders a treasure not his own.

If we desire to maintain the refinementa of civilized society, let us supply
refined and noble motives, as stimulants to action — let the fear of public
degradation, and the horror of merited shame, be substituted for the tear of
wounds, or chastisement, or death. To serfs and slaves — to savages and
brutes — the terror of the whip or the pistol may be fitly enough applied ;
but by free and enlightened men — the only fear that ought to be felt, is the
fear of offending the Supreme Being, and the dread of being justly con-
demned in the opinion of the virtuous and the just. To defend his liberties
and the laws, let no man hesitate to hazard his life. It is a trust given by
heaven, not to be lightly wantoned with — it is a sacred gift, deposited in
every man's keeping, to be made the source of rational enjoyment to himself,
and the beings whom he finds around him, or brings into existence. If the
ruffian or the braggart invade its peace, or attempt to sully its honour, let
the united power of the law, based on the firm foundation of public opinion,
crush them with its mighty power, and drive them from that society of
which they are the bane. But let the brave and patriotic citizen reserve his
life, which is not his own to sacrifice at will, for those high and noble deeds,
which his country may one day demand at his hands ; and if it then be
offered up upon the mtar of justice, in defence of liberty and truth— he
nay fall as honoured, and his memory be as justly revered, as those who, in
spartan band, left their bodies in the Straits of Thermopylae, and had
i ;«.: ined on the impending rock, the ever memorable epitaph — " Stranger,
^^ ai>d report at Sparta, that we lie dead here, in vindication of the laws."
It is to kindle and keep alive this noble sentiment, that I desire to see the
laws made worthy of our respect and obedience; and with the conviction
that the measure I have humbly recommended, will conduce to this desirable
end, I trust some legislative measure, founded on the principles I have
explained, will be introduced and carried, to prevent the barbarous and san-
guinary practice of Duelling.

P. S. May Queen Victoria, who now sways the sceptre of England,
encouraged by the example of her illustrioas predecessor, (}ueen Anne, have
the humanity and moral courage to recommend, like Iier, the abolition of
Duelling, in a speech from the throne. And may the Liords and Commons of
her realm so sustain this virtuous effort of their youthful sovereign, as that
all the wives, the mothers, and the sisters of her vast dominions, may have
occasion to hail her majesty as the first emancipator of their husbands, sons,
and brothers, from the barbarous and bloody custom to which the tyranny
of fashion has so long subjected them I No single act that could emanate
from royal authority, would be more honourable to a female heart and
mind, than tiiis, or shed a brighter lustre on her majesty's crown.

No. VI.

It is pleasing to be able to follow this appeal, by a record of the
interesting and important fact — that witliin the Session of the
American Congress in wliich it was issued, and in less tiiau
three montlis after its first publication, an Act was passed through-
out botii houses, at Washington, and received tlie President's
assent, so as to become law, in the following terms : —

i r

'>r ■*

'■•^5

504

APPENDIX.

Anti- Duelling Law — A,i Act to prohibit the giving or accepting, within
the District of Columbia, of a chiiUenge to fight a Duel, and fur the
punishment thereof.

Bf* it enacted, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
St a of America, in Congress assembled. That if any person shall, in the
D jtrict of Columbia, challenge another to fight a duel, or shall send or
deliver any written or verbal message purporting or intending to be such
challenge, or shall accept any such chullcnge or message, or shall, knowingly,
carry or deliver any such challenge or message, or shall, knowingly, carry
or deliver an acceptatice of such challenge or message to fight a duel in or
out of said District, and such duel shall be fought in or out of said District,
and either of the parties thereto shall be slain, or mortally wounded in such
duel, the surviving party to such duel, and every person carrying or deliver-
ing such challenge or message, or acceptance of such challenge or message
as aforesaid, and all others aidmg or abetting therein, shall be deemed guilty
of felony, and upon conviction thereof, in any court competent to the trial
thereof in the said District, shall be punished by imprisonment and confine-
ment to hard labour in the penitentiary, for a term not exceeding ten years,
nor less than five years, in the discretion of the court.

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted. That if any person shall give or send,
or cause to be given or sent, to any person in the District of Columbia, any
challenge to fight a duel, or to engage in single combat with any deadly or
dangerous instrument or weapon whatever, or if any person in said District
shall accept any challenge to fight a duel, or to engage in single combat
with any deadly or dangerous instrument or weapon, whatever, or shall be
the bearer of any such challenge, every person so giving or sending, or
causing to be given or sent, or accepting such challenge or being the bearer
thereof, and every person aiding or abetting in the giving, sending, or
accepting such challenge, shall hn deemed guilty of high crime and misde-
meanour, and on conviction thereof in any cotirt competent to try the same
in the said District, shall be punished by imprisonment and confinement to
hard labour in the penitentiary, for a term not exceeding ten years, nor less
than five years, in the discretion of the court.

Sec. 3. And be it further enacted. That if any person shall assault, strike,
beat, or wound, or cause to be assaulted, stricken, beaten, or wounded, any
person in the District of Columbia, for declining or refusing to accept any
challenge to fight a duel, or to engage in single combat with any deadly or
dangerous instrument or weapon whatever, or shall post or publish, or cause
to be posted or published, any writing charging any such person, so decli-
ning or refusing to accept any such challenge, to be a coward, or using any
other opprobrious or injurious language therein, tending to degrade and-
disgrace such person for so offending, on conviction thereof in any court
competent to trial thereof, in said District, ill be punished by confine-
raent to hard labour in the penitentiary, for a term not exceeding sevefk
years, nor less than three years, in the discretion of the court.

Sec. 4. And be it further enacted, that in addition to the oath now to be
prescribed by law to be administered to the grand jury in the District of
Columbia, they shall be sworn faithfully and impartially to inquire into, and
true presentment make of, all offences against this act.

END OF VOL. I.

LONDON: FISHER, SON. AND CO., PRINTERS.

I i

f or accepting, within
a Duel, and for the

atives of the United
' person shall, in the
lel, or shall send or
ntending to be such
or shall, knowingly,
11, knowingly, carry
to fight a duel in or
out of said District,
Uy wounded in such
carrying or deliver-
:hallenge or message
all be deemed guilty
mpetent to the trial
)nment and confine-
exceeding ten years,

n shall give or send,
ct of Columbia, any

with any deadly or
rson in said District
ge in single combat
vhatever, or shall be
ving or sending, or

or being the bearer

giving, sending, or
;h crime and misde-
tent to tr^ the same

and connnement to
g ten years, nor less

shall assault, strike,
in, or wounded, any
using to accept any
; with any deadly or
or publish, or cause
ch person, so decli-
oward, or using any
ng to degrade and-
lereof in any court
unished by confine-
ot exceeding seven
court.

the oath now to be
Y in the District of
to inquire into, and

ERS.