YALE
UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

A GLIMPSE

AT

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC.

A GLIMPSE

GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC.

BY
LIEUT.-COL. ARTHUR CUNYNGHAME,
AUTHOR OF
'AN aide-de-camp's RECOLLECTIONS OF SERVICE IN CHINA.'

LONDON :
RICHARD BENTLEY.
Pwhligj^et in ©rttnarg ta fl^et iWajestg.
1851.

LONDON :
Printed by Schulze & Co., 13, Poland Street.

DIlDICATED

VISCOUNTESS HARDINUE,

WITH FEELINGS OF DUT-Jf AND DEVOTION,

BT HER AFFECTIONATE RELATIVE,

ARTHUR CUNYNGHAME.

MONTREAL: CANADA,
APRIL, 1851.

A GLIMPSE

AT

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC.

CHAPTER I.

Having obtained a few weeks' leave of absence.
from His Excellency the Commander of the Forces
in Canada, for the purpose of travelling in the
United States of America, I started from Montreal
on the evening ofthe 30th of September, 1850.
I took a new route towards Niagara and the
Western States of the Union, by proceeding
in the American line of steamers, which navigate
the southern shore of Lake Ontario, having already
seen the northern shore when on my way from
B

2 A GLIMPSE AT
Toronto to Kingston, in a steamer of the British
line. Before I started, I was frequently asked what
was my intended tour ; I may, therefore, as well
state what I proposed to effect, and the sequel will
show how far I was enabled to carry these plans
into execution.
Although I had travelled much in other countries,
yet I could form no just estimate, from my expe
rience of Canada, what the United States of Ame
rica really were like, and to what an extent of
civilization the Western portion of this great nation
had arrived ; and now that I am about to give
some account of my wanderings, I trust I may
impart something new to others of that which
certainly was novel to myself — for I will confess
myself to have been very ignorant of America and
Americans, prior to my tour; and my desire is to
give a hint to the Mother Country of the wonders
which her children are creating in the New.
My absence from Montreal was to be seven
weeks, and I proposed, in the first instance, to
travel about a thousand miles west, and to strike
the Mississippi well to the northward, in the State
of Iowa, to enjoy a few days' grouse shooting;
thence to travel about fifteen hundred miles down

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 3
the Mississippi to New Orleans, visiting any places
worthy of attention on the way ; passing through
the Southern States, to Savannah, Charleston, and
returning to Montreal through the most flourishing
cities of the Union — Washington, Baltimore, Phila
delphia, New York, and Boston.
The entire distance I calculated would not be
much less than five thousand miles, which, by the
aid of steam on lake, river, and railroad, would,
by due diligence, be accomplished within the given
time. Bidding adieu to my family, I took ray place in
the cars to Lachine, distant from Montreal about
eight miles ; there I arrived in about half an hour,
and finding a fine steamer, called the "British
Empire," awaiting her passengers, I obtained a
ticket in the office as far as Bufiklo, a distance of
nearly four hundred miles.
The first portion of this journey was to be per
formed against the rapid stream of the mighty
St. Lawrence, which would take two nights and
one day to accomplish, the latter portion through
Lake Ontario to the Niagara River, one day and
one night more. A large, roomy cabin during the
voyage was placed at my disposal, three substantial
meals being provided daily, my setter as well as
b2

4 A GLIMPSE AT
myself being fed and conveyed. For all this I
paid but nine dollars, or 1^. 16s. sterling, which
included every description of fee, to stewards, &c. ;
a favourable contrast to the expensive travelling in
our own little isle.
It was a still, but very dark night, when we
glided swiftly from the wharf at Lachine into Lake
St, Francis. In one hour and a half we reached
the Beauhariiois Canal — one of the many magni
ficent works created under the auspices of the
British Government, to connect the navigation of
the Lower with the Upper Lakes and waters of the
St. Lawrence, which otherwise would be rendered
impassable, by reason of the rapids, which obstruct
the navigation of this beautiful river.
The locks were so well managed that we scarcely
had any detention, although we passed them during
the night. The Beauharnois Canal is sixteen miles
in length and one hundred feet wide ; upon it
there are nine locks, all superbly executed in stone,
each two hundred feet long by fifty-six feet wide.
Steam-vessels are nowhere allowed to ply upon
the canal at a faster rate than three and a half
miles per hour, under a severe penalty, lest they
should impair the banks ; which penalty is by no
means nominal, but is invariably enforced, when-

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 5
ever an infringement of the law meets with
detection. While I was yet snug in my berth
we passed through Lake St. Louis, and entered
the Cornwall Canal, equally a magnificent structure
with the Beauharnois, It is only nine miles long,
has seven locks, but, in other respects, is equal in
its measurements to the former. It is the fashion
to imagine that Canada is far behind the United
States in every description of interior improvement,
but I am happy to be enabled to bear witness
that this is by no means the case, for in no part
of the Union did I at any time observe any
canal which could be compared with either of
these, and certainly not with the Welland Canal,
connecting Lake Erie with Lake Ontario. I am
afraid, however, that I cannot flatter the worthy
Canadians that it is owing to their enterprise that
these works have been constructed; for had not
the British Government, in her truly paternal
character, invariably been ready to assist the
enterprise of the colony, I should imagine that
the old system, adopted during the French Govern
ment, of transporting merchandize in bateaux, upon
the backs of the hardy Voyageurs, over the inces
sant Portages, which occur at the rugged banks
of the streams in all parts of this colony, would yet
be in practice.

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At nine o'clock, on the most lovely morning that
can be imagined, such as seldom falls to the lot
of any one to see, save during the autumnal season
in Canada, we emerged from the Cornwall Canal
into the main stream at Dixon's Landing.
The boundary line of the United States here
joins the river, the right bank of the St. Lawrence
now bearing allegiance to the star-spangled banner,
under whose free, independent folds I proposed to
wander for many weeks.
We now passed Croyle Island ; it contains about
eighteen hundred acres of laud, apparently very
fertile, and certainly very beautiful. It was pur
chased by the present proprietor, about seven years
since, for the sum of three thousand pounds. It
appears extraordinary that such a lovely property
could be obtained so cheaply ; one of the same
size, equally well situated, and with as good soil,
could scarcely be bought, in our own more crowded
country, for less than sixty thousand pounds.
About twenty miles east of Ogdensburgh, we
came to a beautifully situated village, on the
American bank, called Waddington. Near it there
is a handsome stone house, surrounded by an
extensive park, within an island, which belongs to
the family of the Ogdens. A fellow passenger told

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 7
me that this was the original family who had first
located the city of Ogdensburgh, to which we were
fast approaching. He added, "I calculate that
this family, with the exception of one, are pretty
well used up — eating, drinking, and high living have
nearly finished them." This reminds me of an
anecdote I heard in the West, where the land per
acre and champagne per bottle were ^equally sold
at five shillings each. A gentleman, who was
accustomed to indulge freely in the latter, was
suddenly convinced of his folly, when finishing the
last glass of his bottle, at hearing his uncle exclaim,
— "There goes an acre of land, trees and all!"
The story goes on to say, that the wine so stuck
in his throat that he never swallowed another
glass. The pleasure of our journey this day was some
what alloyed by an universalist preacher, who loudly
descanted the whole forenoon upon the doctrine of
charity towards all men, and forgiveness of injuries.
But I was informed that he had divorced his first
wife, and worried his second to death, — a plain
demonstration how widely apart are precept and
practice. A young collegian, like a second Gil
Bias, entered loudly into disputation with him,
which likewise caused us more inconvenience, as

8 A GLIMPSE AT
you will readily imagine that neither of them made
any progress in convincing his opponent.
Both the islands and the banks of the river were
truly lovely ; the contrasts in the varied hues of
the autumnal foliage is scarcely to be understood
by those who have not personally witnessed them.
There are tints, from the brightest green to Van
dyke brown, while the scarlet foliage of the syca
more gives, by its hectic tinge, a sure indication of
consumption and speedy death ; and the red stalks of
the buckwheat give an appearance of genial warmth
to the face of a considerable portion of the country.
At half-past one we arrived at Prescott, and
then, crossing over, landed at Ogdensburgh. Al
though Ogdensburgh is dignified by the name of a
city, it is not even a very large town, but has every
prospect of becoming so ere long. The railroad
connecting it with Boston and the New England
states, by Rouse's Point on Lake Champlain, has
just been completed, and this has already had a
considerable influence upon the town. The price of
building lots now averages between five and six
hundred dollars per acre, within half a mile of the
city. I walked a mile or two on the road towards
Rome. This town is distant from Ogdensburgh
about 120 miles, the road being planked all the

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 9
way. I visited also the new cemetery, which is
prettily situated on the borders of a small lake.
I also walked some distance up the Oswegatchie
River, from which I was informed an incredible
quantity of sturgeon is taken during the spring.
I made acquaintance with a Mr. Benedict, who
was a great sportsman, and had killed many deer
this season. He was anxious I should remain a
few days, for the purpose of killing black duck,
which he said abounded on a lake distant about five
miles from the town. He assured me that I might
kill from forty to fifty per day, adding, that there
were now but few sportsmen in the country, — eight
or nine of his friends who were very fond of
shooting, having last year emigrated to California.
I, however, would not be tempted to loiter, but
determined to make the best of my way to the
prairie grounds in the far west.
At six P.M. I embarked on board a fine steamer
called the " Northerner," and sailed from the rail
way wharf at eight. The upper saloon of this
boat was 215 feet long, the entire length of the
vessel being upwards of 250 feet. She could make
up 300 separate berths for her first-class passengers.
Although the night was exceedingly dark, we
threaded our way in safety through the intricate

10 A GLIMPSE AT
channel of the thousand isles, calling at various
landings by the way, and we arrived at Kingston
on the following morning at seven o'clock. Here
we remained for a brief period, during which time
I walked through the town. The market-house
and many other of the public buildings at Kingston
are worthy of admiration ; all of them are built of
weU-cut limestone. The harbour is defended by a
series of Martello towers, composed also of lime
stone. The fort is strong, and in a commanding
position. Trade, however, does not appear in so
flourishing a condition as in many other towns on
Lake Ontario. Kingston owes its greatness princi
pally to the war with the United States, and there
fore, now that peace has so long been enjoyed in
North America, it rather stands stiU, whilst others
advance. The buildings of the Royal Navy, which
are very considerable, are useless at the present
day, and it must have cost a considerable sum to
keep them in repair.
The weather was rough and stormy when we
steamed out into Lake Ontario ; but the size of the
vessel and the power of her engines bid fair to
overcome the elements. Of first-class passengers
we had not a very large number, but there were
many emigrants bound to the west. We also had

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 11
about a dozen horses of the Norman French breed,
and I entered into conversation with the owner of
one of them, a native of Michaelstown, county of
Cork. He stated that he arrived in this country
nineteen years since, and as usual without a cent ;
but he was now owner of 130 acres of land in the
rear of the town of Coburg, on the Canada side of
Lake Ontario : this farm, which was under very
partial cultivation, he had now sub-let for the small
sum of thirty dollars per annum ; — that at present
he resided at Rochester, in the state of New York,
and hired himself out as a day labourer. This
course he intended to pursue as long as his health
and strength were good ; aud eventually, with the
money he should have saved, to retire upon and
improve his own property. He told me that during
a portion of the summer he was in the receipt of
two dollars per day, in addition to his board, and
that at no portion of the year did he make less
than one dollar ; that these wages were invariably
paid in hard cash ; that he was now returning from
Montreal, where he had been upon a speculation which
he had undertaken entirely on his own account ; and
that from the proceeds of his savings he had paid
one hundred and thirty dollars, besides twenty
more for expenses for the stout, little, grey horse

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which he pointed out to me. With him he intended
to breed, — a lucrative business in the States;
whereas he mentioned that those of the English
blood, although faster and stronger, yet were not
so much esteemed as those of the Norman race,
because the latter were more hardy, and would
thrive well, and even get fat, where the former
would starve. How unaccountable and singular a
fact it is, that whereas the Irish in their own
country are the most improvident race on the face
of the globe, no sooner do they land in America
than almost in all instances they appear to undergo
a complete regeneration : they become thrifty,
active, and industrious ; and in point of agricultural
pursuits they even perhaps excel both the Enghsh
and the Scotch, who sometimes fail by commencing
upon too extensive a scale, or entering upon too
neat and expensive a method of agriculture, scarcely
suited to the primitive country in which they have
taken up their abode, and find to their cost and
utter mortification that none but rough farming will
as yet pay, except in the immediate neighbourhood
of some of the few large cities.
At half-past two we reached Sackets Harbour,
This town did not appear as thriving as I had
expected to have seen it. The harbour is celebrated

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 13
as the scene of frequent contests between portions
of the navies of Great Britain and the United States,
on Lake Ontario, during the last war. The only
evidence, however, now existing here of those trouble
some times, was that of a gigantic shed, in which I
was informed still reposed the hull of an eighty-gun
ship. She was laid down by the Americans prior
to the termination of the war, was never completed,
and now remains the best emblem, in her present
state, that can be produced of peace !
I had some conversation with a soldier whom I
saw upon the wharf, of the 4th Regiment of the
United States Army, respecting his service and con
dition. He told me that he enlisted in 1848, a few
weeks only prior to the termination of the Mexican
war. His term of enlistment was for five years,
and his bounty was twenty-one dollars, a hundred
and sixty acres of land (which by good fortune fell
to him in his own state, that of Pennsylvania) were
awarded to him as a war bounty, although he hadnever
marched out of his own country. His land unfor
tunately, to his present deep regret, he had imme
diately parted with, for a hundred and thirty
dollars. His pay was seven dollars per month, in addition
to his rations, and more clothes than he could

14 A GLIMPSE AT
possibly wear out ; that his duties were exceedingly
light, and upon the whole tlie service was a very
pleasant one.
He however added that no soldier received any
pension whatever on discharge, but that an old and
deserving man was always employed in some mihtary
capacity, when too infirm for his duties, but few, if
any, ever remained in the service for such a length
of time. I inquired if there were many deserters
from our service in his regiment. He said there
were only two in his company, but several in the
regiment ; that in no one instance had any of them
turned out worth anything. Where the pay of the
soldier, and the wages of the labourer are so high,
what inducements do they not hold out to the
thoughtless young recruit to desert his fealty to his
Queen and country ?

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 15

CHAPTER II.
At half-past eleven, on the morning of the second
of October, we steamed out of Sackets Harbour; the
weather, which had been lowering the early part of
the forenoon, now bore a better appearance, but ere
we had accomplished half the distance to Oswego, a
violent gale arose from the west, exactly contrary to
our course. I had been somewhat sceptical as to
the height to which the waves of these lakes would
rise during a storm, but I now had a good opportunity
of judging for myself; many of the passengers were
much alarmed, and nearly the whole sick. The
captain said that this was the most violent gale of
wind the "Northerner" had as yet experienced. Long
before dark we made the port of Oswego, the vessel
behaving manfully in the storm, many trading vessels
being equally fortunate with ourselves, in securing a
safe position within its somewhat contracted harbour,
before, what afterwards proved, a most tremendous
night. The light draught of water of these lake

16 A GLIMPSE AT
Steamers, in addition to their great top hamper, such
as a saloon with eighty or a hundred state cabins,
together with their narrow width and great length,
renders them by no means safe in a heavy sea.
The cheap rate at which they carry passengers, as
well as the competition on the lakes, would ruin
the proprietors unless they could accommodate this
large number comfortably, and as these gales of
wind are but rare events, they "calculate" ^^pon
running the risk, the insurance covering all losses.
Not knowing how long the vessel might be de
tained, ere the weather would allow her to proceed
to the westward, I here disembarked, taking the
railroad cars soon afterwards to Syracuse, a distance
of thirty-eight miles ; I arrived there the same
night. At the hotel at Syracuse I met with a gentleman
from the state of Pennsylvania, with whom I had an
interesting conversation, relative to the repudiation
of the debt of that state. He maintained that it
was nothing but a political movement, and that
the proprietors of the stock never had any real
intention of repudiating ; that it was absurd to
imagine that so rich a state" should even contem
plate, in the sequel, disavowing its debts. He more
over alleged that the Mississippi state debt had

THE GRE.IT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 17
been repudiated contrary to the wishes of the great
landed proprietors of that state, who themselves
were perfectly willing to be taxed, to pay both
principal and interest, but the democratic majority
over-ruled this procedure.
Where, therefore, the national faith of a state
rests upon no firmer basis than the fickle voice of a
democratic majority, much dependence can scarcely
be placed upon it by a capitalist, especially if he is
resident in a distant country. It is satisfactory,
however, to see that the state bonds of Pennsylvania,
which, at the time they were so severely com
mented upon by Sydney Smith, fell to fifty-five,
have now again risen to par, and that this state
has now honourably acquitted herself of any dis
honest intention, in the eyes of the whole world.
Early on the following morning I got into the
train to continue my journey to Buffalo. It was
dark, the weather very stormy, which, in some
measure, may account for the dreadful accident
which subsequently occurred. This road, as is usually
the case in the United States, had but one line of
rails, with occasional slidings, to allow trains to
pass one another.
In consequence of the vast number of emigrants
who travel, during the autumn, on this, the main
c

18 A GLIMPSE AT
artery to the Western World, there were, at this
season, an extra number of trains put on, and there
fore a greater amount of danger from collisions.
We were approaching the station at Seneca Falls,
at a moderate rate, when an engine, with its train,
approached in a contrary direction, at full speed,
and on the same line with ourselves. Fortunately
for us both engineers, perceiving the danger, simul
taneously reversed their engines, but so imminent
was the risk we ran that the locomotives actually
met and separated immediately. The concussion
on our carriage was not great ; it, however, broke
a part of the fore-railing, and cut ofl" a man's finger
who was standing on the platform. The engineer
of the opposing engine grew frightened, and after
having reversed his wheels, jumped ofi"; both engine
and train, at full speed, and now under no com
mand, flew back, and the switch of a sliding, into
which another train had entered, having been left
open, it ran with all its force into this, an unfortu
nate emigrants' train. Great and awful was the
crash, three of the carriages being smashed actually
into one another, and dovetailed like the slides of
a telescope. When I got up to the station, two
poor fellows lay groaning in the greatest agony,
and ere our departure we saw the lifeless remains

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 19
of a third conveyed away upon an old door. This
was the body of a fine, handsome young artisan,
who but a few moments previously was in the
pride of health and strength. How thankful then
was I to Providence for the narrow escape we had
had from this imminent peril ! We were delayed
by this accident for nearly two hours,: and did not
arrive in Rochester until nearly eight o'clock in the
morning. The railroad cars throughout the United States,
with the exception of what we should call a sort of
luggage van for emigrants, seldom or ever have
more than one class. These are built somewhat
after the fashion of a huge omnibus. They are
from forty to fifty feet long, a set of benches on
either side, each allotted for two persons, with an
avenue down the centre. The seats are generally
comfortably stufied, and covered with velveteen,
their backs being made to revolve on a pivot, so
that the passengers are enabled to place themselves
either " vis-^-vis " or " dos-^-dos " to their next
neighbours, at their own discretion.
Immediately after starting from Rochester the
ticket collector demanded the fare. I presented
him with two bank-notes, or " bills " as they are
invariably called in the States. After examining
c2

20 A GLIMPSE AT
one of them, he turned round to me and exclaimed,
" You're a smart fellow, you are ! " upon which I
assured him that I did not in the least doubt that
he also possessed the usual quickness of his coun-
tr-^nnen. He again repeated his former expression,
adding, " This won't come over me, this is a forged
bill." Forged or not, I replied, I received it
from the last ticket collector. Perceiving I was a
stranger, he became more civil, but he refused the
note ; I, of course, tendered him another, for I
have long since found out that it is far less trouble
to suffer the loss of a trifle, especially in a foreign
land, than enter into a dispute. Some of the
railway conductors are particularly coarse-minded
fellows, and placed, as they imagine, in some
authority, they occasionally assume the manners of
petty tyrants. It is scarcely possible to describe,
to a well-bred European, the style of contemptuous
insolence with which they sometimes treat the
passengers ; rare indeed is it if they vouchsafe an
answer to any question. Slavish civility I detest —
good, honest independence I am the first to admire ;
but insolence, especially to a stranger, is most
unwelcome, and very galling to submit to : but
when the traveller is subject to this sort of beha
viour for weeks together it becomes most annoying.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 21
It is by far the greatest drawback to the pleasure
of travelling in the United States ; a rough rail
road, or an ill-appointed steamboat, is a light and
trifling matter to endure, in comparison with this
serious evil, which cannot, however, be properly
understood until experienced. To give an instance
of the very disagreeable way in which this inde
pendence is displayed : In the civilest tone you
can assume you ask a question, sometimes to a bar
keeper, or the clerk of a steamboat, a railway con
ductor, or may-be a very unwashed waiter ; after
staring you in the face for a few seconds, he coolly
turns away without vouchsafing any reply what
ever ; certainly he cannot be accused of giving you
an uncourteous answer, but, I ask, can anything
be more unpleasant than independence of this
description ?
Again, however, iu justice to the more refined
States in the north-eastern portion of the Union, I
am ready to testify that the unpleasant behaviour
to which I allude, iu no instance there occurred to
me. At eleven o'clock we arrived at Buffalo, which
appeared to me in an extraordinary state of bustle ;
the streets being crowded with persons of every
description — the most numerous of which seemed

22 A GLIMPSE AT
to be emigrants, crowding the wharves, each with a
large quantity of baggage — giving to the city an
appearance as if it were besieged upon the land
side, and the inhabitants, with their property, were
escaping by water.
Buffalo lies in a direct road to the west, and it is
to the Ti-est to which the whole train of emigration,
with rare exceptions, now tends. All, therefore,'
except those who have determined to settle in the
northern part of Canada west, here congreg§,te, not
only those who have disembarked at New York, but
also those who entered America through the port of
Quebec ; and as, probably, there landed from
Europe, this year, no less than four hundred thou
sand emigrants — of which number, I should imagine,
nine out of ten were bound for the far west — this
circumstance will account for Buffalo assuming the
appearance, during the summer and the autumn of
the year, which I have described.
Buffalo is an astonishing city. In the year 1812,
every house and store was burnt to the ground by
the British. Now, this city contains about one
hundred thousand inhabitants, it extends over many
square miles of country, and would be considered a
large city, equal in size to some European capitals.
While speaking of Buffalo, I may here relate

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 23
what we should consider, at home at least, a singular
circumstance — that a daughter of the present Pre
sident of the United States is still a teacher here,
at an academy for young ladies. The gentleman
who related to me this circumstance, assured me
that the young lady in question felt herself in a more
honourable position when usefully employed in the
successful attainment of her own independence,
than surrounded by the statesmen of the republic,
in the saloons of the palace of the President at
Washington. In this instance, it is no doubt the efiect of genuine
independence of character ; but I must attribute to
a very different source — the pride of humility, the
fact that a man who is desirous of being returned
for a seat in the Legislature, is obliged in almost
every State in the Union to canvass his electors on
foot, and in humble attire, otherwise he would stand
no chance of being returned as their representative.
They would say that he considered himself above
them, and did not understand their wants or
feelings.

24 A GLIMPSL AT

CHAPTER III.
Being now so near the Falls of Niagara, I could
not resist the temptation of paying it a third and
perhaps a last visit, and enjoying a quiet day
amongst its grand and stupendous scenery, I did
not arrive there until after dark. That evening I
had no more time than to take a hasty view by
night of the Horse Shoe FaU from Goat Island,
It was almost pitch dark. I was accompanied
by an American gentleman ; and it required some
caution to prevent our falling into the cataract. It
being a starlight night, the scenery appeared more
awfuUy grand when viewed under these circum
stances than under any other that I had witnessed.
I have, however, no intention of attempting a lengthy
description of this world of waters ; few ought to
do so, and fewer still will succeed, after what has
emanated from the pen of that successful writer,
Sir F. B. Head, in the "Emigrant." I will add
that the four grandest and most magnificent natural
phenomena which it has been my lot to observe,

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 25
have been, Mount Etna in a state of eruption, the
glaciers of Switzerland, a thunderstorm in the Indian
Ocean, and the Falls of Niagara ; but in my opinion,
the last is, by many degrees, the most sublime and
awfully grand of all four.
On a previous occasion I had taken the usual
voyage in the "Maid of the Mist." This small
steamer was constructed under the directions of a
spirited Yankee, solely for the purpose of proceeding
under the Falls of Niagara ; and although she has
now been in use for three or more seasons, no acci
dent of a fatal character has as yet happened to
her. I embarked a little above the New Suspension
Bridge, which had been lately constructed below
the FaUs, and across the Niagara River. Suits of
Indian rubber were provided to keep the passen
gers dry, and squatting on the upper deck, in the
companionship of a single lady from England, the
only one of our party who, besides myself, would
consent to buffet the elements in that exposed posi
tion, we slowly pursued our way towards the Falls,
keeping close to the right bank of the river. Nearer
and nearer did we draw to the vast cataract, called
the American Fall, the wind from which increased
to a perfect hurricane as we approached it.
The little boat trembled violently under the agi-

26 A GLIMPSE AT
tation of the waters, and vast masses of spray
dashed over us. At one time we were apparently
entering the boiling cauldron ; at another, we were
repeUed by the force of the faUing water, and
gliding onwards approached the more terrible Horse
Shoe FaU. No words can express the sensations
of awe and of excitement which thoroughly en
grossed the imagination at that moment. The
deafening roar of the cataract defied the power of
speech, and almost paralysed the senses. Com
pletely submerged in the water, we were alone
upon the upper deck, and the lady, my only com
panion, underwent the ordeal with unflinching
nerve. This voyage is not altogether unattended
with danger, for during last year a circumstance
happened which might have ended in a fatal catas
trophe. The "Maid of the Mist," when in the
middle of the pool, beneath the Fall, managed either
to entangle or break her tiUer-ropes, I never could
discover which, but becoming altogether unmanage
able, was swiftly taken towards the whirlpool ; and
should she have entered even the rapids leading to
it, there was not a shadow of a doubt as to her
destruction. Fortunately, when in this awkward
predicament, suddenly, by an eddy in the current,
she was firmly fixed on a rock, at the British side

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 27
of the Falls. The passengers lost no time in
making the best of their way on shore, and the
damage being repaired, she proceeded the following
day on her accustomed voyage.
It was with great regret that I observed that a
large portion of Table Rock, which feU last summer,
had materiaUy injured the appearance of the
Cataract on the Canadian side ; but to those who
had not seen the Falls before this occurrence no
feeling of this kind could occur, as, being ignorant
of what it was like before, they would miss nothing
now. A canal boat, which had escaped from its
moorings at Chippewa, was firmly seated on a rock,
at the very edge, and towards the centre of the
precipice. It is singular enough that in descending
the stream it should have rested at the only spot
where its progress could have been arrested. No
doubt at the first rise of the water it would be
carried over, which probably occurred a few days
subsequently to my visit, as in crossing the Ferry
the boatman picked up some lake fish and wUd
ducks, nearly dead, which had been just cast over
the Falls. This, they said, was a sure indication of
approaching winter, and that the water would soon
rise.* * This canal boat has since been carried over the fall,

28 A GLIMPSE AT
The received opinion is, that a portion of the
waU of rock is each year worn away. The Cataract
of the Great or Horse Shoe FaU, is now so grand
because it is contracted into a narrow space, be
tween enormous rocks : should, however, but a few
more feet fall away the width of the stream would
be greatly extended, particularly towards the
Canadian shore, and its present beautifnl appearance,
no doubt, be seriously injured. Indeed, it appears
to me by no means impossible, ere long, that the
Horse Shoe Fall should assume the form of a rapid,
or cataract, rather than retain the regidar faU over
a ridge which it at present possesses ; but to
speculate upon what this may become is altogether
useless and visionary. What it is no pen can
rightly teU, scarce can imagination conceive.*
The influx of visitors to Niagara had been
greater this season than in any preceding one for
and is now twisting and turning in the whirlpool, spellbound
as it were, in the midst of this cauldron.
* Captain Basil Hall has remarked, that the two most
extraordinary places which it fell to his lot to see, but at the
same time the most utterly dissimilar, were the Falls of
Niagara and the Town of Canton.
Each of these curiosities — the one of nature, and the
other of art — I have visited, three separate times, and each
time I undoubtedly was the more impressed with the justice
of the remark.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 29
many years past ; the hotel-keepers, consequently,
had made a great harvest. The receipts of the
Ferry boat on the British side alone, the entire
expenses of which cannot much exceed three
hundred dollars, have been no less than seven
thousand dollars in one season, and the sums of
money which have been expended upon both
black and white guides have, this year, caused
what the Yankees call " a pretty smart business."
Endless have been the sketches taken of Niagara,
from every point, on either side of the FaUs, and
as endless are the criticisms upon them, — few,
indeed, coincide in opinion concerning their merits ;
but I have seen none that so justly convey the
ideal to the mind as the four lately published
by Mr. Maclean in the Haymarket, from draw
ings by Lieut. Colonel Davis, which display a
depth of feeling, in conjunction with the most
masterly execution. On the following morning, I
crossed over to the British, side, and was fortunate
enough to meet his Excellency Lord Elgin, the
Governor General, who had just returned from an
excursion into Lake Superior. Colonel and Mrs.
Bruce, as also Sir E. and Lady Head, Governor of
New Brunswick, were of Lord Elgin's party, and
were staying at the Clifton House. My pleasure

30 A GLIMPSE AT
was the greater in meeting them, as they would,
probably, be the last of my countrymen I should
see for many thousand mUes wandering in a
strange and somewhat unfrequented land.
The railway train, on which I intended to return
to Buffalo, took its departure from the station at
Niagara nearly a quarter of an hour before its
proper time, leaving about forty of its passengers
behind. From what we could learn, this appeared
to be a trick arranged by some of the innkeepers,
to keep the travellers another day in their hotels,
at least, so far from demonstrating any regret, or
endeavouring to assist us in our predicament, they
only laughed at us. After some persuasion, the
agent of the raUroad agreed to put on an extra
train ; we departed in about one hour afterwards,
and we had just proceeded half way, when we felt
a violent shock, — suddenly the train stopped. On
jumping out of the cars, we discovered that the
engine had run off" the rail, that both itself and its
tender were buried in the mud at the side of the
road, and that the baggage car had also followed
them some distance. I waited a considerable time,
during which the engineer, assisted by many work
people, made strenuous endeavours to put all to
rights, but without effect. Seeing a light waggon

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 31
passing by, and fearing I should be late for the
Mayflower steamer, which was to start at nine
o'clock the same evening for Detroit in the state of
Michigan, an American gentleman and myself
agreed for a conveyance in that vehicle to the city
of Bufi'alo.
I had now been in the United States but three
days, during which time I had undergone much
discomfort, if not danger, in a steamer, and had
already twice ran a serious risk of my life on the
railroads. I was about to travel in the far west,
probably nearly two thousand miles on the Missis
sippi, a river proverbial for accidents, such as snag
ging and blowing up of steamers, and, judging by
present appearances, if I got back to Montreal safe
and sound, I should be lucky.
Before leaving Buffalo, I took the precaution of
exchanging my Canada bank-notes, either for gold
or for notes of banks in the State of New York.
The notes of all banks in this state will pass more
readUy than those of any other in the Union; for,
by virtue of an enactment passed not long since,
no bank in the State of New York is aUowed a
charter, unless it can give ample security to govern
ment in case of failure. This is generally accom
plished by a large purchase of state stock, and

32 A GLIMPSE AT
thus a security is naturally felt, by those amongst
whom these notes are in circulation. Strangers
cannot be too cautious in accepting notes of doubt
ful banks, and will do well to remember that an
immense number of spurious "biUs" are constantly
in circulation, and will be readily tendered to
them.

THE GRE.4T WESTERN REPUBLIC. 33

CHAPTER IV,
At nine o'clock, p.m., on the 3rd of October, I
embarked on board the steamer "Mayflower," for
the purpose of proceeding to Detroit, at the ex
treme western end of Lake Erie. With the excep
tion of a steamer caUed the " New World," that
runs from New York to Albany, on the Hudson
River, the " Mayflower" was the finest boat I have
yet seen in America.
She measured 288 feet in length, her beam was
35|- feet, her tonnage was 1345 tons; her capacity
was for 800 passengers, including all classes. She
could make up 315 separate berths, and on this
voyage we had nearly that number of first-class
passengers on board, in addition to 300 of the
second class. On the preceding voyage she had
carried even a greater number of cabin passengers,
besides 410 of the second class.
The state-rooms were lofty and well furnished, D

34 A GLIMPSE AT
some of the ladies' apartments being fitted up
with taste.
These state-rooms were situated on either side of
a saloon, which ran her entire length, and from its
handsome furniture and finish had a most beautiful
appearance ; the ladies' portion being fitted up with
couches, sofas, piaffo-fortes, causeuses, aU of the
newest Paris fashions, and principally in the style
of Louis Quatorz6.
In the centre of the saloon was a compartmient
boarded up, to givfe more room for the free play of
her stupendous engine. The front of this was
filled up with an immense plate glass, through which
the most beautiful portions of the machinery were
exposed to view, and these being bright aM
pohshed, bore somewhat the appearance of the
works of a highly finished clock of .^gantic propor
tions, and had a singular and pleasing effect, par
ticularly when in motion. >
The state-rooms for the gentlemen were com
fortable and :plain, each containing three berths
placed one above the Other.
This fine vessel, considered the best upon the
Lakes, was named the " Mayflower," after that ship
in which the pilgrim fathers sailed to New Eng
land, and ztrrived in the month of December, 1620.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPJBLIC. 35
The anniversary of that day, as well as the 4th of
July, the latter being the day on which the Act of
Independence was signed, are both kept as holidays
in most places of the United States, and upon these
occasions the two national dishes of bean-soup and
pumpkin-pie are duly served up at aU their tables.
Before my retiring to rest, my fellow cabin
passengers had already done so, which prevented
my having an opportunity of making their ac
quaintance. On the foUowing morning one of these
gentlemen rose before me, saying, " I guess, with
your leave, sir, I'll fix myself first." I subse
quently considered myself very fortunate in having
become acquainted with this gentleman. He was a
person of great intelligence, and possessed a most
kind and amiable disposition, and not long after
showed me much attention, receiving me at his
house at Fort Maddison, on the Mississippi River.
Lake Erie is proverbial, beyond aU the other
Lakes, for disasters by fire, by tempests, and by the
blowing up of steamers. Many vessels have this
year been lost, through one or other of these causes,
and great sacrifice of life has been the result.
The "Commerce" steamer, while conveying a portion
of the 23rd Fusileers from Montreal to Port Stanley,
when just without the entrance ofthe Welland Canal,
d2

36 A GLIMPSE AT
was run into, near midnight, by another steamer, and
nearly forty of those on board perished, including
many soldiers, their wives and children.
The "Griffin," a fine new steamer, was burnt, near
Cleveland, and nearly all her passengers met with
an untimely end; also two other vessels, whose names
T do not now remember, were, at the commencement
of this season, blown up near Bufi'alo. These acci
dents were the topic of much conversation amongst
the passengers, and created a brisk sale of Indian
Rubber life preservers, which were handed about
by two vendors of those articles, before our start.
Certainly, many of the passengers of the "Griffin,"
would have escaped death, had they been provided
with them, as she sank while burning, on a perfectly
calm day, within half a mile of the shore. I -was
informed that the owners of the "Mayflower," had
taken the precaution that she should be provided,
in case of accident, with three hundred of these life
preservers, in addition to a large number of wooden
stools, with hermetically sealed tin cases fixed
underneath them. But provided I was placed in a
similarly awkward predicament, without one of
these useful articles at hand, I had been advised to
tear off one of the cabin doors, and to secure my
mattress on the top of it, if I had leisure so to do;

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 37
as on such a raft at least two individuals could
with safety float for a considerable time, and I have
no hesitation in recommending this plan to the
adoption of any party who may have the misfortune
to be placed in such a perilous position.
Three meals a day were provided on board the
"Mayflower," which were most abundant and excellent;
the attendance of the waiters, however, was by no
means perfect, — perhaps excusable, considering the
large number of passengers on board. I certainly did
not observe that the Americans swallowed their
dinner with that precipitation which is frequently
attributed to them ; and indeed, excepting at Saratoga
Springs, I never saw a dinner scrambled for, but on
the contrary have frequently observed many Ame
rican gentlemen wait so patiently as to obtain
scarcely any thing to eat, — indeed with much greater
patience than we should at home.
I was sorry that we did not touch at Cleveland,
as I had long been anxious to visit the natural
Spring (if it may be so called) of gas, which rises
from the ground, and, according to the information
I received, is so powerful that, pipes being laid on,
the light-house at the entrance of the harbour on
Lake Erie is brilliantly illuminated at no cost.
The distance from Bufi'alo to Detroit, in a straight

38 A GLIMPSE AT
line, which we took, is about three hundred and twenty
five mUes. We accompUshed this against a head
wind and rather heavy waves, in eighteen hours.
The latter portion of the way lay near the Canada
shore, where we observed countless acres of most
fertile land untilled. Why then, I asked myself, does
emigration pour its constant tide to the far West,
when there is to be obtained, and at a cheap rate,
so much land nearer to home, and under the pro
tection of the British Flag 1 I had soon after less
difficulty in solving this problem, when, a few days
subsequently, I found myself in the midst of the
prairies of the West.
There are many causes which tend towards setting
this tide of emigration to the far West ; the first is,
that when once a man is determined to leave his
own country, he frequently does so in disgust at
some disappointment in his circumstances. This,
too often occasioned by his own negUgence, he inva
riably attributes to other causes, and generaUy the
Government and the institutions of his country come
in for their share of the blame. He therefore deter
mines to throw off what he terms his yoke of bond
age, and fancies, or tries to fancy, at any rate he
asserts, that the land of true freedom over which
the stars and stripes wave, is the only soil on which

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 3S
a man can freely enjoy life, and pretends, at least,
to imagine that in the United States he will find a
panacea for all his troubles. He goes there : if he is
industrious, he is sure of his rew9,rd; if otherwise, he
speecjily becomes what is termed a " loafer " or idle
feUow, spends his time in bar rooms, and at biUiard
tables, and picks up his daUy sustenance without
much respect either how or from whom. Again,
another reason that deters an emigrant from settUng
in Canada, is the constant strife which is carried
on in the House of Assembly, and the political
excitement generally throughout the country; causing
alarm, and making him fear the recurrence of the
fearful scenes enacted during the rebellion of 1837,
and deterring him from feeling confidence and secu
rity, without which no one can apply himself with
the necessary zeal and assiduity to the improvement
of his property.
A third reason is, the apparently appalling diffi
culties which confront a Canadian settler on first
selecting a spot upon which to exert his energies.
Every acre of good fertUe land in Canada is
heavily encumbered with timber, and it undoubtedly
requires no small determination and mental forti
tude for one, perhg-ps tgtaUy unaccustomed to such
a life, to brave the battle with the wild woods, more

40 A GLIMPSE AT
especiaUy when he well knows that, ere any return
whatever can be secured for his labour, every stick
upon the face of the soil which he intends to
cultivate must be removed. The assurance which
he meets with, that, this once accompUshed, the
soil is most exuberant, is not so very cheering,
because the fact cannot be denied that many, very
many seasons must elapse ere it wiU in any way
resemble those smooth and glossy meads which he
has lately left in his own country; he moreover
is told tales of fertile prairies, which exist not
very far to the west, where in one season his toil
will be repaid by a bountiful produce, and having
travelled so far from home he imagines that a httle
more discomfort wUl more speedily repay his ex
ertions and secure his reward ; he then proceeds to
the prairies, and, whether successful or no, he has
advanced too far ever to retrace his steps towards
the backwoods of Canada.
A fourth reason of emigration not resting in
Canada, but one which the legislature have lately
found means greatly to counteract, is that of the enor
mous grants of land, formerly made both to private
individuals and to companies, who, however desirous
they might be of getting settlers to remain in the
country, would only consent to aUow them to be-

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 41
come their tenants, and not bond fide owners of
the soil. This has caused vast tracts to remain
waste and barren, which otherwise would long since
have been in a high state of cultivation.
The means, however, which the legislature have
adopted to arrest this evil, have been taken from the
Americans, and are very eff'ectual. Formerly, no
taxes whatever were paid upon these wUd tracts;
but now they are charged per acre, a road, bridge,
and school tax. This is not very heavy, and goes solely
towards the internal improvement of the country.
Perhaps, indeed, it may not average two-pence the
acre, per annum; but when one proprietor possesses
a large extent of country, say ten thousand acres of
wild land, he considers it onerous to pay, perhaps
a hi idred pounds yearly, for any length of time,
and y4 obtain no return; and as a proof of the
benefit if this enactment, large tracts of land are
now brought into the market which formerly were
withheld from it.
While skirting the northern shore of Lake Erie,
my mind was forcibly recaUed to the many happy
days which I had passed at Port Talbot, now in the
distance, the property of the Honourable Col. Talbot ;
his nephew, Lieut. Colonel Airey, now residing
there. Such an immense extent of fertile property

42 A GLIMPSE AT
is seldom indeed found in the possession of one
individual in any country ; what must ere long be its
value is difficult to say, for even now it is enormous.
It consists of little less than one hundred thousand
acres, within a " ring-^fence," of as productive land
as any in the universe. It skirts Lake Erie for
twenty-seven or twenty-eight miles. Rivers and
ports exist at convenient distances, miUs and towns
are fast rising up, and although scarce one-tenth
perhaps of the whole estate is at this moment under
cultivation, yet the day cannot be far distant when
these wilds wiU give place to the foot of man ; and
the well-known energies of the present occupier of
Port Talbot once being fully caUed into action,
there is no saying how speedUy a great and won
derful change, equally beneficial to the owner and
cultivator, may not take place.
The entire country and district round about the
now flourishing town of London, Canada west, was
thirty years since a perfect wUderness. AU this
country was settled through the energies of Colonel
Talbot, and for these exertions he has certainly
received what now has proved to be a munificent
reward ; but even his detractors (of which I am
sorry to say there are a few) cannot deny the truth,
that this country presents an exaniple, and is

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 43
aUowed by every one to be the very best specimen of
a judiciously allotted settlement, either in Canada
or the United States of America.
At five, P.M., on the fourth of October, we landed
at Detroit. On ascending the river we had passed, a
few miles below the town, a new and strong fort,
which the Americans have lately caused to be
erected, and which has a perfect command both of
the adjacent country and the river itself
Having twice previously visited Detroit, I was
not now inclined to stay, as I had much before me
to perform, and my time was precious. The cars
for Chicago started within an hour after the arrival
of the " Mayflower," and I became one of many pas
sengers for New Bufialo, on Lake Michigan. In all
respects this western railroad resembles the Albany
and Bufi'alo lines. Many of the inmates ofthe cars,
however, appeared of a ruder race ; coarser in their
manners, and more commonly attired. It is, in my
opinion, extremely disagreeable for ladies to travel
in these conveyances, but more especially so in the
west ; they, however, have no choice, and in spite of
their finer feelings, they must submit to the laws
imposed upon all by the democratic majority, and
either travel in the same conveyance, or relinquish
travelhng entirely. " The spitting," in addition to

44 A GLIMPSE AT
other disagreeable nuisances, such as chewing tobacco,
appeared to me more lively than ever, and when in
the course of conversation I pointed this out to a
really gentlemanly man, he did not seem to under
stand me rightly. " Why," said he, " the con
ductors take care that nothing shaU go wrong ; you
hear no swearing, or impropriety of language." True,
but the uncouth manners of those who frequented
these carriages, their dirty habit of squirting tobacco
juice around them, and other peculiarities, to which
the ladies of the other hemisphere are unaccustomed,
did not strike him as even inconveniences, nor do 1
complain so much of habits which are not in them
selves vicious ; but if they are to enjoy these customs,
at least let a second carriage be provided where
people may congregate whose tastes do not assimi
late with their own. The conversation, however, of
most of the passengers was exceedingly instructive;
upon almost every topic, European and American,
they appeared to be remarkably weU-informed, and
deUvered their ideas in a sensible and straight-for
ward manner.
One circumstance particularly struck me, during
my travels in the United States, diffiering widely
from what I had seen in Europe; I scarcely ever
observed a decrepid traveller, or one suffering under

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 45
severe physical infirmity, either in the railroads or
steam-boats. Such, for instance, as elderly gentle
men, troubled with chronic rheumatism, gout, &c.,
cases which are so frequently seen at home; per
haps they think it wiser to remain in their own
residences, rather than encounter the fatigues of
their railroads or stages, I observed, however, a
much larger proportion of florid fat travellers.
At three, a.m., we stopped at Marshall for supper,
although it perhaps more properly might be called
breakfast. Here we were attended upon by four
black waiters, each wearing a handsome scarlet
velvet cap, with a band of sUver lace.
As day broke, we found ourselves at Kalamazoo,
situated in a fine undulating country, seventy-five
miles from New Bufi'alo, the point on Lake Michigan
to which the railroad extended. This country was
beautifully timbered with oak trees, and many set
tlers were here congregated. It was soon, however,
succeeded by thick tangled brushwood and wet
coppice, which frequently pervades the State of
Michigan. At ten o'clock on the morning of the 6th of
October, we arrived at New BuflTalo, a truly miser
able place it appeared. It is situated on the sandy
shore of the lake, which in all respects here resem-

46 A GLIMPSE AT
bles the open sea. New Buffalo contains but a few
wretched wooden houses, whose owners make a rich
harvest out of the emigrants and others, who are
detained on their passage, either by the inclemency
of the weather, or by want of sufficient steamers,
from crossing over to Chicago, or Milwa^l^e. There
is no harbour, nothing but a wooden pier, which
runs about one hundred yards into the lake ; it is
altogether without shelter, and consequently is a
most dangerous place to make when the wind blows
with the least violence, either from the north-east
or north-west. A northerly wind having prevailed
for some days before our arrival, steam-vessels
which had actuaUy approached within half a mile
of the pier, had been obliged to return to Chicago
without landing their passengers, or being able to
take away those who were anxious to proceed to the
west. At this wretched little viUage were congre
gated no less than eight hundred persons, waiting
to cross. But one small steamer now lay at the
pier, the wind being still very high, and the waves
breaking over it, and my voyage altogether assumed
by no means a pleasant prospect.
By next year the railroad from Detroit to Chi
cago will be completed, and the necessity of em
barking at New Buffalo will be avoided. This will

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 47
sufficiently account for the want of any improve
ment going on at this spot. After much difficulty
and delay in sorting the baggage, some three hun
dred persons crowded on a small steamer, called the
"Detroit," and amidst bustle and confusion of all
kinds, from crying of infants to the roaring of the
waves and wind, we made a fair start for Chicago.
The little boat behaved manfuUy; indeed we soon
discovered that, for bad weather, she was even pre
ferable to many of grander appearance, and by six
o'clock in the evening we were safely landed at
Chicago. There had lately been touch heavy wea
ther on Lake Michigan, and, amongst other catas
trophes, a small schooner, named the " Thornton,"
had been upset in a squall of wind. The captain
a/lone had been rescued by the steamer " Morton,"
after having floated on a spar for seven days in the
lake, during which time he described his sufferings
as very great.

48 A GLIMPSE AT

CHAPTER V.
At Chicago, a new hotel had just been opened
called the " Tremont House," to which I fortunately
went. I found it one of the most magnificent
establishments of the kind in the United States.
It is weU and handsomely built, and below the
principal rooms are shops and stores. Its entire
cost, I was informed, was more than a hundred and
forty thousand dollars. Besides a large number of
sitting-rooms, immense saloons, parlours, &c, &c., it
contained no less than two hundred and four sleep
ing apartments, and a beautiful bridal chamber,
fitted up with much elegance, which had been occu
pied for the first time on the previous day. Mr.
Crouch, the landlord of the hotel, who also owned
the whole property, was by trade a tailor ; he had
come to Chicago, about ten years since, without a
centime, and now not only had he nearly paid the
entire expenses of building, as well as furnishing it,
but also for the land upon which it stood, and was

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 49
moreover a considerable proprietor of real estate in
the city of Chicago. The great dining-room was
one hundred and thirty feet long by about forty
wide. The day before my departure, dinner had
been served to six hundred persons, in addition to the
usual daily complement, which amounted to upwards
of two hundred. The cooking apparatus was beau
tifully constructed, and worked almost entirely by
steam power.
No city, which I had at any time visited, created
in my mind so much astonishment as did Chicago,
or made me reflect more upon the wonderful ener
gies ofthe Saxon race. Chicago in 1832 consisted
of one solitary post, situated upon a small river, at
the margin of Lake Michigan. In eighteen short
years, it has grown into an imposing and magnificent
city, and is advancing with a rapidity which would
perfectly astonish "old-country people." But ten
years since, wolves nightly howled around the em
bryo city, and now fine long streets, with brick aud
stone buUdings, form the chief portion of it, with
exceUent shops or stores (as they are called), superb
hotels, livery stables, churches and chapels in abun
dance. A never-ceasing bustle and throng of people
seemed to pervade this capital of the prairies, and I
own I was totally unprepared, in this new city, to
E

50 A GLIMPSE AT
see handsome carriages, with hammer-cloths, con
taining well-dressed ladies, parading the streets.
Chicago can now boast of 22,000 inhabitants, and
five or six newspapers are there published daily.
Its rival, Milwaia|3,ie, a city about forty-five mUes to
the north, and also on the shores of Lake Michigan,
has had nearly equal success ; for I was told that she
counted 17,000 inhabitants, and was progressing in
all respects equally with her southern neighbour.
Many of the inhabitants of Chicago are rising to
great opulence. Amongst the foremost of them is
a Scotch gentleman, who, on his first arrival in that
city, not many years since, was reported to be in
possession of slender means, but a very clear head.
He commenced business by making small advances to
the neighbouring farmers and settlers. The common
rate of interest at which money is advanced upon
produce is one per cent, per month, the lender
appointing the agent in Buffalo, or some other
eastern city, to whom this produce is to be con
signed, and receiving a commission for his agency,
advancing, moreover, not bullion, but his own
paper, to the farmer, his name and general credit
giving vaUdity to it. His gain, therefore, of twelve
per cent, is without any risk, because the produce,
untU it is disposed of, is always within his own

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 51
grasp. The amount of commission upon his agency
well repays his trouble and expense, and as he has
advanced only his own paper, and no bullion, in
point of fact, his business is one entirely of profit,
and no risk. The interest of one per cent, a month,
in this country, is considered the very reverse of
excessive, and the benefit to the borrowers them
selves in enabling them to lay out capital in agri
cultural pursuits, which are here so profitable, is
even greater than to the banker himself, and so
numerous are the channels of lucrative investment,
that it is quite a favour for the producer to obtain
advances upon his stock, upon such easy terms as I
have before stated.
On the foUowing morning I inquired at the post-
office for my letters, and I may here speak of one
arrangement which deserves much commendation.
Through the centre of each of the deUvery offices
runs a large screen, behind which the clerks
officiate. This screen is fitted up with pigeon-holes,
glazed and legibly numbered on the outside. Each
resident of the town pays about one dollar per
annum for the use of his own box, into which all his
papers and letters are placed upon their arrival.
When, therefore, he goes or sends to the post-office,
which in this country is the daily custom for every
E 2

52 A GLIMPSE AT
one to do, he does not require needlessly to take up
the time of the post-office clerk, but casting his eyes
towards his own box, he at once perceives through
the glass front its contents. I must own this appears
to me a very excellent arrangement ; in some in
stances, perhaps, it may lead to frauds, but few
systems are free from the cunning devices of clever
knaves, and as the letters are placed with their
directions downwards, unless well acquainted with
the parties, some difficulty wUl be experienced in
inducing the clerk to deliver them up. The postal
arrangements throughout this great mercantile coun
try appear almost as perfect as our own; the rates
of postage are somewhat higher, but these are in a
gradual stage of reduction.
As one object which I had in view, in going to
the West, was that of sporting, I was anxious not
to delay in Chicago longer than was absolutely
necessary. I therefore caUed upon Mr. Richards,
formerly the landlord of the Sherman Hotel, who
kindly consented to accompany me himself, and
show me some of the best places in the neighbour
hood where I might find the prairie grouse, which,
he said, were very abundant a few miles distant
from the town.
On the following day, the 7th of October, having

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 53
hired a light waggon and a pair, or, as they are
always called in North America, a team or span
of horses, we left the town. The first ten miles of
our journey was over an even plain of prairie land,
as level as a smooth lake ; it was covered with long
coarse grass, a great quantity of which had been
stacked for winter use. Any one is at liberty to do
this, the value of wUd hay in this country consisting
only in the expense of its collection and conveyance.
MUes of this prairie were on fire, which had a
splendid appearance, more especially as the evening
closed in. I was surprised to observe the small
precaution which was considered requisite by the
farmer to prevent the fire from extending into the
cultivated land, the slight obstacle of three or four
furrows ploughed up being considered quite suffi
cient to arrest its progress ; around every farm,
therefore, this precaution had been taken, and it
is scarcely ever known to cross a road track, unless
a very high wind prevaUs.
The road over this prairie was a perfect bo-nding
green ; for miles we travelled on this springy turf —
indeed, almost the entire day's journey was of this
character, interrupted occasionally by a boggy piece
of ground, which is here called a slun. These
sloughs were seldom more than a hundred yards

54 A GLIMPSE AT
in width, and we did not meet them oftener than
once in about five miles, and over most of them a
rough bridge of planks had been placed. We
passed a large wood, with some adjoining culti
vation, which I was informed was the property of
an English gentleman, of the name of Morgan, and
had been purchased by him some years since at
the Government price of five shUUngs per acre. We
slept that night at a smaU public house at Thorn-
den ; our accommodation was miserable in the
extreme. I here met a rough-looking sportsman,
or hunter, as they are aU called, who told me that
he had killed more than two thousand chickens
(by which term they always designate " prairie
grouse,") this season, and that he had sold them
in the Chicago market, at one doUar per dozen.
Game is so plentiful in this country that it is
by no means esteemed. The deUcious quail, or
partridge, are frequently sold for about eight pence
or ten pence per dozen. An enormous number
of these birds, as well as prairie grouse, are sent
at the opening of the na-vigation to New York,
packed in ice ; one merchant dispatched last year
no less than seven thousand quaUs at one time.
The trapping and, in addition, burning the prairies,
has much diminished the game in the immediate

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 55
neighbourhood of the large towns ; but at the
distance of twenty or thirty miles from them, aU
game, but more especiaUy the grouse, are, in con
junction with the cultivation, increasing in the most
astonishing manner ; every fresh field of grain
which is gained from the wild prairie acting as an
additional source of sustenance to them.
Mr. Richards, who is passionately fond of field
sports, is a native of Deal, in Kent ; he came to
the United States many years since, and first
settled at Buffalo, but afterwards migrated further
west. He appears by no means to regret the
change, as endless opportunities are now afforded
to him of indulging in his favourite pursuit, which
neither the Old Country nor even the State of
New York could supply. He gave me some extra
ordinary accounts of his success in grouse shooting,
but he had always made his best bags at an
earUer period in the season ; for good prairie grouse
shooting can scarcely be expected after the latter
end of September. He said he once killed, in
company with an English gentleman, named Ward,
eighty brace in one day ; but, subsequently, at
Port Maddison, I heard that, this season, two
gentlemen had killed one hundred and seven brace
within one day. The snipe shooting Mr. Richards

56 A GLIMPSE AT
also represented as being first-rate in the neigh
bourhood of Chicago, himself and two others
having, in one afternoon, killed one hundred and
seventy- one snipes, and he added that he had not
unfrequently kUled from forty to fifty couple to his
own gun in a day. Mr. Richards, however, I con
sider a good shot and a good sportsman, and one
of the most enduring walkers I ever met with.
The American gentlemen are not naturally
sportsmen ; they are, by nature, men of business,
and making money, without loss of time, is the
constant occupation of both mind and body. A
few are occasionally induced to take example from
the English, and go " hunting," but they generally
prefer lounging in the bar-room of a public hotel,
and listening to the quotations of the last price of
wheat. Chicago is well situated for almost every sport,
and commands a beautiful lake for yachting and
fishing. I was informed that races were formerly
held in the neighbourhood, but they were chiefly
devoted to the pursuit of gambling, to which the
Americans, as a nation, are much addicted, and
which is more practised in the west, by its wilder
inhabitants, than in the more civilized societies of
New England.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 57
On the foUowing morning we rose early from
our uncomfortable couches, at Thornden, and
crossing the Illinois State line, entered Indiana.
Before our departure, the landlady told me that she
guessed " I was a-going hunting chickens, and cal
culated that I should obtain a dollar per dozen
for them in Chicago city." We arrived at about
eleven at the house of a farmer, named Butts,
where we were comfortably lodged, and treated
with the greatest civility. We saUied out as soon
as possible after our arrival, and without any great
amount of toil we had kUled fifty-eight birds one
hour before dark. For October this may be con
sidered as good sport ; generally speaking, so late
in the season, the grouse, as in Scotland, are
packed and very wild, and will only lie close
during a few hours in the middle of the day. The
foUowing morning was windy and dark, and after
some hours of extreme toil we only bagged fifteen
birds. One month earUer, on the same ground,
Mr. Richards, accompanied by Major E., had
bagged, on an average, from forty to fifty brace
per diem, for four or five successive days. I was,
however, in some measure rewarded by bringing
down a fine goose, with small shot, which had the
folly to attempt to pass over my head. Seeing

58 A GLIMPSE AT
the weather was unpropitious, we determined to
change our ground, and started the same evening
for Lochport, about forty mUes to the westward, in
the State of lUinois, where 1 had been given to
understand there were fine marshes, full of wild
fowl and snipes. The first thing that I observed
upon the road, after our departure, was a sign
post, and amongst other directions and distances
upon it, such as "forty miles to Chicago," &c.,
there was a finger denoting the way, and stating
that it was two thousand five hundred miles to
California. This alone wUl give a good idea of the
immense distances that may be traversed in this
one and undivided republic. There was scarcely
a single person with whom I conversed, some
members of whose famUy had not started for this
" El Dorado," all of them by the overland route ;
and from what I could learn, although this journey
is replete with hardships, there are by no means so
many difficulties or dangers to be encountered as is
generally supposed. The time consumed in this
journey, from St. Louis, in Missouri, to the dig
gings, with a waggon and horses, may be computed
at about five months, with a waggon and oxen
about six. We overtook a vast number of travel
lers, all going west, some to the Demoines VaUey

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 59
and other parts of Iowa, some to the Minesota
territory, the emigration for California itself being
over for this season. These families generally pur
chase their provisions as they proceed, sometimes
they camp out, or sleep in their waggons, at other
times they are admitted into farm-houses, where,
for the use of the house room and the cooking-
stove, they are charged for each famUy, great or
small in number, one quarter of a dollar.
Towards night-faU, we arrived at a farm-house,
in a thick wood, a complete oasis in the desert of
prairies, called also " Thornden," which appeUation
appears a favourite one in this country. The
landlord's name was M'Coy ; he had come from the
Eastern States, about fifteen years since, and
settled here, at that time in the midst of the
Indians. While at supper I was somewhat sur
prised to hear the wolves howling near the house.
M'Coy said that it was of common occurrence; he
added, that formerly the State gave half a doUar
for every wolf that was killed, but in consequence
of the large sum which this yearly amounted to
latterly, they had discontinued this reward. For
merly three or four were frequently trapped by
the same man, in a single day. M'Coy said that
these prairie wolves had, in considerable numbers.

60 A GLIMPSE AT
frequently followed his waggon on his return home
at night, but that they could scarcely be classed as
dangerous animals.
I had a very good supper of bread and milk, and
some of the finest potatoes I ever ate ; this distant
region, however, is not perfectly free from the
potatoe rot, which the settlers accuse the emigrant
Irish of having brought from the green island. I
afterwards obtained a neat bed, in a small room, to
myself, and slept soundly until early dawn ; my
slumbers, however, would not have been so serene
had I been aware, on retiring to rest, that four or
five members of this family, including two of the
daughters, were severely afflicted with the typhus
fever, and that by way of paying me an especial
compliment, I had been permitted to occupy the
young ladies' room, while they slept in the kitchen ;
I own, when I discovered this fact in the morning,
I was far from possessing comfortable feelings, more
particularly when I reflected that the clothes of
these beds are seldom aired, and the linen itself
frequently unchanged. Two of M'Coy's sons were
in California ; the two whom I saw at home ap
peared very sickly ; none of the family received any
medical attendance, their father being of opinion
that cold water was the best remedy. I here saw,

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 61
in the stables, a skewbald horse, which, in North
America, is invariably designated an Arabian. He
was a thick-set beast, that would do little honour,
in point of beauty, to Astley's stud ; and to judge
by his appearance, if he possessed any of the pure
Negheddy blood in his veins it must have been but
a very small drop. I also saw a handsome and
intelligent old Colly dog, which his master, who
was a pasturer of sheep, had brought, some seven
or eight years previously, from Ayrshire, in Scot
land, and for which he had refused, both in Ohio
and Indiana, one hundred dollars. This young
man had a fine fiock of sheep, which he had
brought from Ohio, pasturage in the prairies being
free to all ; for although a portion of the land may
have been purchased, aud even " located " or settled
upon, yet, until it is actuaUy fenced in, the land
lord himself cannot claim exclusive privilege over
it. He said that few in the west knew anything
about sheep farming, and consequently the gain
was proportionately large to those who did ; he
valued his flock of sheep, which were six hundred
and seventy-two in number, at about five dollars
each, and added, that they, on the average, each
annuaUy yielded two dollars' worth of wool, that
they were pastured for nothing, and that, after

62 A GLIMPSE AT
making a liberal deduction for his own time, and
other expenses, this flock would produce au annual
profit of about four hundred doUars.
Here then is an opening for a Wiltshire, Sussex,
or Hampshire sheep farmer, who, provided he
thoroughly understands his business, might, with
the small capital of lOOZ. realize without much risk
to himself a large profit. It is singular enough,
that although sheep are subject to so many diseases
in Europe, as yet they have been attacked with none
in this country. Our horses were here regaled upon
Timothy, or what is caUed tame hay in contra
distinction to the wUd hay of the prairies. This is
highly esteemed in the large cities, and is sent
immense distances wherever the convenience of
carriage wiU allow. It is even constantly trans
ported from Galena on the borders of the State of
Wisconsin to New Orleans at the very mouth of
the Mississippi, which distance is not very far short
of 1,800 mUes. At almost all the farm-houses 1
observed that the Chinese method of drawing water,
by means of the chain pump, was universaUy
adopted. It performs its work with pecuUar ease,
and it is pleasing to observe how every improve
ment or invention is readUy employed by this " go-
a-head" nation. This is the natural effect of a

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 63
paucity of labour, and a general diffusion of know
ledge through the means of free schools, a system
universaUy in use throughout the vast Republic,
indeed, made absolute by law, and the first in
troduction of which may be traced to the national
free schools in New England, instituted by the
pilgrim fathers themselves.
Manual labour is, in fact, so expensive in the
States that the mind is constantly alive to forestall
its use, and methods are introduced not only for
peeling and quartering apples, as well as a thousand
other homely matters, by steam, but lately an
invention has been patented for the milking of
cows, which, through the means of Indian rubber
tubes and other apparatus, has been found practi
cally to fulfil the intentions of its inventor.
At an early hour in the morning, we resumed
our journey to Lochport ; the weather, moreover,
had somewhat improved, rendering it more agree
able. The prairies gradually gave place to better
cultivation, and the want of trees had in some
degree been supplied by small plantations of the
sugar maple and locust, each some few yards in
extent within the enclosures. The locust tree I
remember many years since to have been urgently
recommended to the notice of the Hampshire
proprietors by the late Mr. Cobbett,

64 A GLIMPSE AT
In some of these wet prairies the cranberry
grows in great abundance, but differing materially
from the berry of the same name found in the
highlands of Scotland and other parts of Europe ;
of these a favourite and agreeable preserve is made,
They are gathered in the autumn, and after sifting
in a winnowing machine, they are sold in the large
cities at two or more dollars the bushel. The
Indians in the northern part of the Mississippi now
collect an immense quantity of this fruit, many
thousand of bushels being annuaUy sent from the
neighbourhood, and even beyond the FaUs of St.
Anthony, both to St. Louis and to New Orleans.
Before reaching Lochport we passed some fine
groves of timber, an agreeable sight after the naked
expanse to which we had been accustomed. These
woods were the property of an eminent lawyer who
possesses the very appropriate name of Blackstone.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 65

CHAPTER VI,
At one o'clock we arrived at Loc|iport, a clean '
town which derives its importance from being
situated on the great lUinois Canal. We put up at
a large and comfortable hotel. This afternoon we
spent in snipe shooting, in the bottoms immediately
below the town, and in the space of three hours
we brought home forty couple of these birds, in
addition to many ducks and teal.
In the hotel I met a sportsman, who told me that
in no part of the state was game more numerous
than at La Salle, about sixty mUes farther down
the Canal, and I had subsequently an opportunity
of proving that the account which he gave of that
part of the country was by no n^eans exagge
rated. On the succeeding day we again attacked the
snipes, when we bagged about fifty couple, I may
here mention that I followed strictly the advice
given by Colonel Hawker, in regard to snipe

66 A GLIMPSE AT
shooting, by invariably walking down wind; but it
is a singular circumstance, that throughout this
continent, these birds are more easily shot on a fine
bright still day than on a gusty and dark one.
While staying at this hotel I asked the landlady
to allow one of her domestics to clean my hoots;
she answered, in the most civil manner, that the
gentleman who generaUy fixed there was not at
present in the house, but added, " I guess you'll find
the fixings in the cupboard, and no one wiU hinder
you from doing it yourself." There was not aiiy-
thing like rudeness in her manner, indeed, she was
invariably attentive; I merely mention this as a
trait of the national equality preserved in this free
and independent soil; aud it is needless to a'dd,
that without scruple I at once followed the injunc
tions she gave me.
Young England is frequently accused of being
too precocious, but in this respect, what comparison
will she bear with young America ? At the public
table at Lochport, a boy, about thirteen years of age,
entered freely into conversation respecting the merits
of the different candidates who were about to stand
(or run, as it is here termed,) at the next election,
for some government offices at the neighbouring town.
This embryo politician was condemning one party for

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 67
coalescing with the Whigs, and another for too highly
favouring the democratic party. It would, more
over, astonish some of our respectable elderly men
of business, to observe with what an air of freedom
a young feUow, of fifteen or sixteen, wUl strut into
a counting-house, carefuUy remove his gloves, and
having placed his cane iu the corner, open his
pocket-book, and transact business to the amount of
many thousand dollars, then whistle an opera tune,
and ask your opinion, not forgetting first to give
his own, respecting the merits of Jenny Lind. I
received it, as the opinion of an inteUigent person
of New York, that most of the American youths
are really wonderful at business, their quickness
being perfectly surprising, in which they far surpass
any Europeans by many years their seniors, but
that after the age of twenty-five or thirty, they
were not superior to the sedate German, the more
modest Scot, or prudent Englishman. It is not
impossible that this precocity, in the development
of the intellect, may perhaps have the effect of
weakening its powers.
Early in the morning of the 12th of October we
started on our return to Chicago, where we arrived
at abour 2 p.m. During this expedition I was
greatly annoyed by the " prickly heat," but as it is
p2

68 A GLIMPSE AT
a sure indicator of health, I did my best to bear
patiently this troublesome companion, but I will
own that my mind was, for some days, disturbed
by visions of typhus fever, which, fortunately, were
never realized.
These hints to a stranger may not be altogether
unacceptable, and what I state I recommend only
for their consideration. If prairie grouse-shooting
is their object, their arrival at Chicago should not be
later than the 1st of September, at which season
the birds have not yet packed or become wild.
Provided they have brought dogs with them, I
should suggest that they have a waggon and a team
of horses, making their agreement to retain the
services both of the owner and his property, either
by the week or month. This person should, if
possible, be direct from the country and not the
resident of the town ; nor for this purpose should 1
employ any of the livery-stable keepers ; for although
their teams are of a more active character, no
advantage will thereby accrue to the sportsman, but
considerable additional expense be entailed. This
waggon and horses may generally be hired for two
doUars and a half per day, the owner agreeing to
meet every expense, both for himself and team, for
this sum. A good supply of powder and shot

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 69
should be laid in, sufficient for two sportsmen for
fourteen days' shooting. I should recommend not
less than twenty pounds of powder, some in half-
pound canisters, and 150 pounds of shot. It must
not be forgotten that, in the United States, each bag
of shot weighs only twenty-five pounds, whereas, in
England it weights twenty-eight, I should also add a
small quantity of B. shot, for heavy ducks and wild
geese, and a few dozen patent cartridges for wild
days at the grouse.
At Chicago there is an English gun-maker, of
the name of Kemp, formerly a foreman to Messrs.
Walker and Co., of Birmingham, where I was
enabled to procure aU these things. But as there
is occasionally a heavy run upon cartridges, and I
consider them most requisite adjuncts for the sports
man, I should suggest the propriety of bringing a
few with him on his excursion.
A carpet-bag, for nothing more cumbersome
should see the prairies, a good coat and blanket
one bottle of Cognac brandy, or more according to
the tastes of the sportsman, should accompany
him ; I need not enter into more minute details, for
one who is fond of field sports will understand
the rest.
My course would at first be due south from Chicago,

70 A GLIMPSE AT
not delaying until I had reached forty or fifty miles
from the city, and I should put up at the best-looking
house that I could find. It is impossible to make
a mistake in regard to the location of prairie grouse,
for they exist everywhere in the greatest abundance
, at this distance from the capital. While the season
is hot, which it frequently is until the end of Sep
tember, neither man nor dog can properly work in
the middle of the day, and if he could do so, he
would stand but a poor chance of finding the game.
The sportsman must, therefore, if he is desirous of
making a good bag, relinquish his English habits,
and rise with the sun, and at this early hour a cup
of coffee and a piece of bread will suffice him for
breakfast, as he should allow nothing to detain him
longer in the house than is absolutely necessary.
Both the waggon and its driver must accompany
him aU day, as the game that he shoots is far too
heavy, and in too large a quantity, to be carried any
long distance. The horses can feed on the prairie
grass, and rest themselves under the shade of a tree,
while the sportsman amuses himself He need
scarcely trouble himself to take a luncheon with
him, as he will be welcomed in every farm-house he
may be near to partake of that meal with the
family ; and he must never forget that, to have ,

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 71
sport, he must always remain in the vicinity of the
cultivated country. He should himself rest, and
allow his weary dogs to do the same, during the
three hottest hours of the day, seeking for game
only in the morning and the afternoon ; and thus
any good hand may easily bag from twenty-five to
forty brace of grouse a-day to his own gun.
If he finds he has made a good selection as to his
sleeping place, I should recommend him to be
cautious not to change it, provided the sport is
good for a few days, after which he may gradually
steer west, keeping forty qt fifty mUes distant from
the city of Chicago, to which he can return when
ever he feels an incUnation, in one long day's
drive. 4fter aU that can be said of prairie grouse
shooting, I do not think it can be compared to
grouse shooting in Scotland. The American bird
is larger, but of a tamer race — indped, I have occa-
sionaUy shot them rising from amongst the common
poultry at the barn-door ; and, moreover, the same
ness of the Indian corn-fields and the fiat prairie is
a poor contrast to the deUghtful exhil^ra|)ing scenery
in the north of Great Britain.
To any man who cannot in these excursions
" get along" without aU his comforts, I should re-

72 A GLIMPSE AT
commend him to stay at home. At the best of
times it is but a rough life, the conveniences of
civilisation, either in lodging or food, not being
procurable for love or money ; but I cannot recom
mend a cheaper or more certain cure for dyspepsia
or a maladie imaginaire than a few weeks roughing
it on the praiiies of the far west.
At the farm-houses, a charge wiU be made for
lodging and meals, but this wUl seldom exceed half
a dollar per day for each individual. The entire
expenses, therefore, of this expedition wiU scarcely
exceed four or five dollars a-day, which, when
divided by two sportsmen, is very moderate, and
will make a favourable contrast with the expense of
a highland moor, where instances constantly occur,
that after paying the hire of the manor, the keepers'
wages, and other extras, each grouse bagged has cost
the sportsman more than a guinea.
Those who are unwilling to take the trouble of
conveying dogs with them to the west, wUl find
three or four sportsmen in Chicago who have very
good ones of their own, and who are wiUing to
engage themselves and their dogs at the rate of one
dollar and a half a-day, which sum is generally
considered by them as a sufficient remuneration;
for, in addition, if attentive, they are presented

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 73
with all the game which the sportsman does not
want, who at this distance has no opportunity of
transmitting it to bis friends, and for the con
veyance of it to the market of Chicago there are
frequent opportunities, and thus an extra remune
ration is gained by the owner of the dogs.
I must here add that the trouble and annoyance
of conveying sporting dogs from the cities in the
east, a thousand or more miles distant, is perfectly
inconceivable to those who have not attempted it ;
and unless the dog is first-rate, or a great favourite
with the owner, I should on no account recommend
him to entail upon himself so much inconvenience.
There is a canal which I shaU hereafter speak of,
leading south-west from Chicago to La SaUe, on the
Illinois river. The sportsman may, if he prefers
this plan, take a passage in any of the canal-
boats, remaining at the small viUages near the
bank, or proceeding from one to the other by one of
three daily boats that ply upon it. Wherever he
may stop, he wiU be rewarded by grouse shooting
a discretion, but he wiU then have the trouble, of
either procuring a waggon at each station on the
canal, or aUow the birds to lie where he kUls
them ; for it would require the services of three
or four men to carry the game which he would

74 A GLIMPSE AT
kiU in as many hours' shooting. The towns upon
this canal which were recommended to me, as
affording opportunities of excellent sport, though it
is almost useless to particularise where the game is
so abundant, were Morris Town and Ottawa, at the
latter of which I was told that an Englishman of
the name of Delaware keeps the Fox tavern, an
exceedingly comfortable hotel, and that some of om'
countrymen had already this year made it then
head-=quarters for shooting, and not only had good
sport, but were comfortably lodged.
Ottawa is distant from Chicago about eighty
mUes, which is sixteen or seventeen hours' run in the
canal-boat. In Chicago, as in aU new towns, lodging and
house^rent are comparatively high, but the price of
provisions is quite the reverse. Game is, as I have
before shown, most abundant, and consequently to
be obtained at a low price. Beef, I was told, was
at an average price of 2 cents (Ijd.) per pound ;
mutton, 3 cents (Ifd) ; fine chickens, 8 cents,
(5d.) each; turkeys, about 20 cents. (10^.) each.
Groceries not much higher than in England. Such
priees, therefore, as the above are indeed a cheering
prospect to the industrious labourer or artisan, more
especiaUy should he have a numerous family,

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 75
which here proves his blessing, while at home it
not unfrequently is the reverse ; for labour of
every description is abundant, and labourers are
constantly in demand in this new and flourishing
country.

76 A GLIMPSE AT

CHAPTER VII.
On Saturday evening, the 12th October, about
five, P.M., I embarked on board the canal boat, the
" Queen of the Prairies," bound for La Salle, a town
situated south-west of Chicago, about 100 miles
distant, and at the head of the navigable portion
of the Illinois river. The cabin of this canal boat
was about 50 feet in length, 9 feet wide, and 7 high.
We numbered about ninety passengers in this con
fined space, in which we were to sleep, eat, and hve ;
the nominal duration of our passage was twenty
hours, but it eventually proved to be twenty-
five ; our baggage was secured on the roof of the
boat, and covered with canvass, to screen it from
the effects of the weather. A sort of divan sur
rounded the cabin, the portion appropriated to the
ladies being screened off during the night with a
curtain. For the first few miles we, in company with three
more canal boats, were towed by a small steamer,
but having passed the locks, not very distant from

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 77
Chicago, three horses were attached, which towed
us smoothly along at the rate of five miles an
hour. Soon after we had started, tea with its accom
paniments made its appearance, the never-failing
beef-steak being as tough as usual. As soon as this
was disposed of, all the male passengers were ordered
on deck, while the parlour should be transformed
into a bed room ; in less than half an hour we
received permission to return, in which short time
no less than fifty sleeping places in this small space
had been rigged up, and twenty more spread upon
the fioor ; the remainder of the passengers, about
twenty in number, for the most part children,
being detailed off to share their tenements with
their pa's and ma's. These sleeping places consisted
of shelves placed three deep, the entire length of
the cabin, on either side, with a height of two
feet between each. In consequence of my being a
stranger, I was politely offered the first choice ;
the selection was difficult indeed, where all ap
peared equally uncomfortable, but I am happy to
have the opportunity of acknowledging this atten
tion. Into these berths we were ordered to get ;
and after some difficulty, especially amongst those
to whom this mode Of traveUing was new, we

78 A GLIMPSE AT
obeyed ; the remainder of the passengers selecting
their locations in succession, according to the
number on their tickets.
I soon became insensible to the uncomfortable
position which I occupied, although, only six inches
above my face, a tremendous man threatened every
moment to burst through the sacking which sup
ported him ; and had the cords given way, I felt
I must have been squeezed as flat as a pancake.
With so many passengers in so confined a space,
no wonder that on the foUowing morning I should
awake with a severe headache, the effect of the
heated, nauseous vapours which surrounded us. Not
a window was permitted to be opened ; I made
various endeavours to break through this rule during
the night, but every window within my reach was
fastened down. This however may be considered
but a wise precaution ; for the malaria from the
surrounding marshy land, and especially from Mud
Lake, distant about fifteen miles from Chicago,
which we passed within a very short distance, is
very dangerous.
At early dawn I contrived to slide off my shelf,
and effected my ablutions in a bucket on deck,
before any of my feUow-passengers had taken
themselves down. I found that we had aheady

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 79
passed the town of Lochport. Soon after break
fast we came to the junction of the two rivers, the
Kaukaki and the La Plaine, which at this point form
the Illinois river.
The river La Plaine rises about twenty miles to
the north-west of the city of Chicago, shortly before
it reaches the town of Lochport ; the soil through
which it runs becomes rocky, and at an average
distance of half a mile from the banks of the stream,
which is here an inconsiderable one, on either side,
are high bluffs, presenting an unmistakeable assur
ance that at some former period this entire space
was the bed or channel of a mighty stream. These
high bluffs continue with scarcely any intermission
aU the way to La SaUe, increasing however in their
imposing appearance, and slightly in their relative
distances from each other.
It is amongst many the received opinion that this
channel formed the outlet towards the ocean of the
three mighty lakes — Superior, Huron, and Michigan,
— which thus discharged their superfluous waters
into the Mississippi, and thence into the Gulf of
Mexico ; and if so, what a magnificent river the
Mississippi must have been ! By some unaccountable
revolution of nature, a new channel was formed for
the waters of these lakes, via the St. Lawrence,

so A GLIMPSE AT
perhaps forming in their impetuous descent the
majestic cascade of Niagara.
As to the period when this change took place,
it is impossible to form any conjecture. It is
doubtful whether that portion of land now forming
the State of Michigan formerly was joined to
Canada west, and whether Lake Huron had no junc
tion with Lake Erie, as it has at present by the Lake
St. Croix. But that a mighty body of water flowed
through the rocky channel, from the direction of
Lake Michigan towards the Mississippi, fully equal
in quantity to that which is now carried into the
ocean by the St. Lawrence river, there cannot
be the least shadow of a doubt, and this water
could have come from no other source than these
mighty inland seas. The highest level, moreover,
of the fiat prairie, which extends between this
channel near Lochport and Lake Michigan, a dis
tance of only fifteen miles, is but ten feet above the
present level of the lake ; and however strange a
circumstance it may appear to the residents on the
lower lakes, it requires but a very slight effort of
Nature for the waters of these lakes to overflow or
wash away this dam, and once again to resume
what I conceive to have been their ancient egress,
swelling the already powerful stream of the Missis-

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 81
sippi ; and on a small scale this in high floods has
actually taken place. This by no means impossible
circumstance would reduce the St. Lawrence to a
fourth-rate river, and thus Niagara would probably
for some months in the year be nearly dry ; the
channel between Canada west and Michigan would
be closed up ; and an enormous area of land which
now lies beneath Lakes Erie and Ontario be laid
bare. Improbable as this may appear at first sight,
it wUl no longer be so to any one who will give
themselves the least trouble in inspecting that por
tion of the State of Illinois between Chicago and
La Salle ; should they do so, I am almost convinced
they wiU agree in thinking, how comparatively
sUght would be that effort in Nature which should
effect such a marveUous change, in the face of the
entire North American continent, and probably
restore it in a great degree to what it originally
was. At about nine, a.m., we reached the small town
to which I had previously alluded, caUed Morris, as
being a particularly good spot for " hunting prairie
chickens ;" and from the general appearance of this
settlement, I can readily believe that it abounded
in game. Morris is surrounded by fine prairies,
with quite enough grain to feed the game. There
G

82 A GLIMPSE AT
are few residents who give themselves the trouble
to carry a gun ; it is easy of access by means of the
canal, but too distant from the large cities to make
it profitable for the resort of sportsmen who hve by
the produce of their guns only. Towards the after
noon we arrived at Ottawa ; this town is situated
in a most beautiful portion of the valley, which is
formed by the high bluffs, which are here separated
from each other about two miles. The pasturage
looked green and pleasant, the town neat and
thriving. We remained but a few moments to land
some passengers, but this time was sufficient for me
to recognise the unmistakeable figures of two of my
own countrymen, Avhom I afterwards ascertained
were those who were making a brief stay at Ottawa
for the purpose of kiUing prairie grouse, &c. Prom
Ottawa to La Salle is a distance of about twenty
miles ; rocky islands occasionally present themselves,
now surrounded by fertUe prairie and corn-fields,
which were, no doubt, formerly encircled by the
stream. These islands in the plain much resembled
some which I had seen in China, within, the Yang-
tse-kiang river, which, in former days, stood out in
the sea, but which by the receding of water had
left them islands in the plain, occasionaUy even one
hundred miles distant from the salt water.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 83
At six, P.M., we reached La Salle ; here is the
termination of the Illinois Canal, and the navigable
portion of the Illinois River. We found excellent
accommodation at an hotel, scarcely completed,
caUed the Hardy House.
The landlord of this hotel had cleared more than
50,000 dollars in a contract upon the canal, but
entering upon aU sorts of subsequent speculations,
became bankrupt, and in a few weeks all his
goods were to be placed in the possession of others.
This circumstance, however, is, in the Western
States, of too common a nature even to raise a
comment. The Illinois Canal is a fine work, and will eventu-
aUy do wonders towards the settlement and wealth
of this state. The cost of this really great work
was more than three miUions of dollars ; the money
being borrowed upon the faith of the state. At
first, half of this money was voted towards this
undertaking — contracts were given to those who
found favour with the government, and the most
nefarious peculation of public money is said to have
resulted ; the million and half of doUars being spent
and the work being only half completed, the state,
already deeply involved, borrowed another miUion
and half, principally from British capitaHsts, and
g2

84 A GLIMPSE AT
eventually, about three years since, this work was
completed, thus connecting the Mississippi with the
St. Lawrence, and perfecting the inland navigation
from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico,
Since its completion, I was given to understand, that
it has paid six per cent, upon the second capital, which
was borrowed, besides producing a very large amount
towards liquidating the principal, and redeeming
the state debt. It has every appearance of great
prosperity, but I am inclined to think that this
account is somewhat exaggerated. It however does
not depend entirely upon its tolls, but also upon
the sale of a large amount of waste lands in its
neighbourhood, which was in the first instance
granted by the state, to assist in its formation;
the moneys accruing from the sale of which have
been very considerable, and which, are of course,
now immeasurably increased in value, since this
large portion of the country has been opened out
by means of the canal itself.
This work, however, has had two most opposite
effects upon the prosperity of the state of lUinois.
By opening out the country it has given it a better
chance of developing its agricultural resoiyrces. But
on the other hand, the state by entailing upon itself
so large a debt had no resource but to repudiate its

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 85
debt or increase its taxation. It chose the latter and
more honest course, and taxed its citizens proportion
ally. While therefore the work itself benefited the
state, the taxes frightened away emigration towards
the less prodigal, but neighbouring state of Iowa,
which in consequence has been on the increase, in a
ratio far exceeding that of the older state of Illinois.
It is contended by some, that had Illinois followed the
example of Pennsylvania and Mississippi, and repu
diated its obligations for a time, she could have paid
interest and compound interest, and have been more
prosperous than at present. I have no doubt that
" honesty is the best policy," and that ere long she
will reap her reward.
In addition to the large hotel, before mentioned,
La Salle does not now contain more than fifty or sixty
buUdings ; these are all of wood, but it is " bound
to be," as the Americans say, a grand city. Pem,
distant about one mile, is at present larger, but is
not so weU situated ; both wiU probably become ere
many years one town. La SaUe has peculiar ad
vantages, its situation at the head of the navi
gation of the lUinois River, and the termination
ofthe canal, alone would give it consequence, as the
place of transhipment of a vast amount of produce
from the interior towards the lakes, and of timber

86 A GLIMPSE AT
from the weU-wooded pine forests of Lake Michigan,
for the use of the agriculturist of the open prairies ;
but it has lately been chosen as the spot where three
great railroads are to concentrate, and bills for the
formation of the roads have already passed the
legislature. The first, a railroad from Galenas, a
rising town on the north-west corner of the state,
close to the Mississippi River ; the second, from
the state of Iowa, leaving the Mississippi at Black
Rock Island ; and the third, a railroad connecting
the two former with the south, probably by way of
Cairo, at the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi.
There is possibly, therefore, no town in the west
where a capitalist could invest with a better chance
of a favourable result, than at La SaUe. The value
of property is increasing daily, and ere long, hand
some brick edifices will take the place of the inflam
mable buildings which now exist there.
The morning after my arrival, I hired a waggon
and drove about six miles into the country; in
two hours I had bagged sixteen fine, heavy prairie
grouse. The birds were rather wUd, otherwise my
bag would have been stiU heavier ; as it was, the
boy who walked with me and carried the game
would rather I had been less successful. I saw
an immense number of birds ; in one field, in

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 87
particular, of about fifty acres, I flushed more than
one hundred grouse — but could only bag three of
them. On my return, I observed many of the posts of
the electric telegraph, which had been destroyed
by lightning ; this is constantly occurring in these
open prairies. Where there are no trees to attract
the electric fluid it expends itself upon the first,
indeed the only, object within its reach.
On the succeeding day I visited the south side
of the IlUnois River. I had but little sport with
my gun, owing to the wind being very high ; but
my principal object was to visit two very singular
natural curiosities — these were the Deer Park and
the Starve Rock. We crossed the Canal, and also
a wide ferry over the Illinois River ; the banks of
the river were here weU wooded. Where this ferry
now exists the site of a city had been determined
upon in 1837 — and laid out, on paper, that
famous year of speculation, and lots were actually
disposed of in New York, at a thousand dollars
each; but, to this day, aU that exists is one
saw-mill. Soon after crossing the river, and get
ting upon the summit of its high banks, we emerged
again upon an open prairie — this we skirted for
four miles, until we came to a precipitous descent,

88 A GLIMPSE AT
and crossed a stream called the Vermillion River,
whose banks, at this season, were gaily coloured
by the brilliant hues of the maple, which caused
the name to appear the more appropriate — we
immediately entered a narrow gorge in the rocky
hiU, the sides of which were perpendicular. After
following this avenue for 'about half a mile, the
wall on either side becoming higher, at length we
arrived at an abrupt termination to this extra
ordinary fissure, and found ourselves in a gigantic
stone bowl, which bore evidence of having formerly
been excavated by a cataract ; in the centre,
bubbling from the rock, was a most delicious
fountain ; but not a vestige of any water, upon a
more extended scale than this, presented itself.
This curious place was an additional reason for
supposing that, at some former period, an offshoot
from the mighty river, which I have stated as
probably taking its course through the neighbouring
vaUey, must once have worked its way through this
rocky channel. This circular rocky bowl is called
the Deer Park, tradition stating that the Indians
were accustomed to drive the deer from the neigh
bouring forest into this cul de sac, when they fell
an easy prey to the bow and arrow — the most
formidable weapons with which they were then

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 89
provided. The man who attended me as guide,
and who drove the waggon, was a most intelligent
fellow, and, for his station in life, well educated ;
his name was Davis, and his character appeared
singular ; he was very fond of change and adventure,
and, Uke many of all classes in the West, he had
travelled a great deal. The preceding year he had
paid a visit to London, and other portions of
England, solely for the purpose of visiting that
country ; he was then accompanied by a huge bear,
from the Rocky Mountains, which, he told me,
now occupied a den in the Zoological Gardens in
Regent's Park.
Having examined the singular place called the
Deer Park, and listened to the echoes of my
fowling-piece and that of a rifle fired by a tall
hunter, half Indian, who followed me in, we con
tinued our route to the Starve Rock. This is
situated about four miles farther up the river. The
scenery is very beautiful, the lofty and rocky pre
cipices on the banks of the glen being enhanced
by the many varied tints of the dying maple, and
other trees and shrubs.
In ascending the banks of the river, we passed
several small houses, in the neighbourhood of which
were coal-pits. The coal is very easily obtained

90 A GLIMPSE AT
by digging into the side of the mountain, and is of
a very good quality. Labour, however, is expen
sive ; but, ere many years, when the facilities of
working these mines wiU be greater, the profits
will be commensurately large to their owners.
After once more descending' the banks of the
stream, we had no difficulty in observing the
natural fortress, which overhangs the river, and is in
a very conimanding position, more especiaUy in times
when the use of artillery was unknown — and which
is now universally called the Starve Rock. Tra
dition affirms that the tribe of Illinois, being then
at war with the Potawatamies, and being closely
pressed by their powerful enemies, took refuge on
this rock. Already they had received severe chas
tisement, and now all that remained of this tribe —
the warriors, their squaws, and their chUdren— •
were coUected on this single spot.
To gain its summit there is but one narrow path
way, easily defended by a single warrior against
a host of assailants. They are reported to have
been weU supplied with grain, and most abundantly
so with the munitions of war — bushels of arrow
heads may, to this day, be coUected on every part
of the summit of the rock — but the only means
they had of obtaining water was by lowering a cup

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 91
into the stream, which flowed at the depth of 150
feet immediately beneath the rock. Matters con
tinued in this way for some days, untU at length
some of the Potawatamies found means to descend
the stream in a canoe, and stealthily severing the
rope by which the water cup was lowered and
drawn up, cut off the only chance which remained
to these wretched people of even prolonging a
miserable existence. Submission, however, was
synonymous with death — the horrid torture stakes
were already in preparation ; with Indian stoicism
this wretched tribe endured unheard-of misery, for
many days, until, at length, many having already
faUen victims to their sufferings, the remainder were
fain to submit to the cruel death imposed upon them
by their more successful enemies, and report says,
that thus the whole tribe of the lUinois miserably
perished. After having thoroughly examined every portion
of the rock, and admired the beautiful prospect
which spread itself out beneath, the plain being
divided by the shining, sparkling stream, I col
lected many specimens of flint arrow and spear
heads, and resuming the waggon, we crossed the
river at another ferry, and towards the evening
entered again the town of La SaUe.

92 A GLIMPSE AT
Having heard so much of the land in the
prairies, the ease with which it is cultivated, and
the enormous profits which are derived from it, I
determined not to let slip the favourable oppor
tunity which now presented itself of examining for
myself I therefore determined to enter into the
interior of the country, out of the track either of
travellers or emigrants. For this purpose I made
an agreement with my aforementioned conductor,
Mr. Davis, for the use of his waggon, and his
personal attendance to Rock Island city, situated
nearly one hundred miles due west of La Salle, on
the Mississippi river.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 93

CHAPTER VIII.
We left La Salle just before sun-down, a most
lovely evening, taking the road for Pem by the
side of the river. I here saw the first of what are
called stern wheel-boats, which I subsequently
found were very common on the western waters.
These boats, worked by steam, were propelled
through the water by a gigantic wheel attached to
the stern, which, when in motion, gave them much
the appearance of a moving water-mill. The
position of the wheel, however, enables these boats
to ply both in narrow places and in shallow
water, and of their great utiUty I became tho
roughly sensible before I left the Mississippi, having
had occasion to make use of them in situations
where no other description of boat could have moved.
We passed through Pem just before sunset : this,
in common with every other city in the west, is
fast progressing in importance. I observed some
very pretty houses on the hiU immediately above

94 A GLIMPSE AT
the town, and was told that the best belonged to
an ice merchant, which appears to be an extensive
and lucrative trade. This gentleman had fifty
hands employed during the whole year. The
system of his business was to purchase fir plank
from Lake Michigan in the autumn and summer,
which he converted into twenty or thirty large
flat boats, continuing to work at them until the
winter set in, and the river was hard frozen ; the
ice is then cut into blocks and firmly packed into
these boats, which work is scarcely completed ere
the spring sets in. No sooner is the navigation
open than they proceed down the stream, ten or
twelve being towed by one steamer. The cargoes
are disposed of at all the large cities on the
Mississippi^ down to New Orleans ; the boats as
soon as empty being sold and broken up for the
timber which they contain. The profit, I was
informed, was considerable, for this merchant is
reported last year to have unfortunately lost half
his boats on their way south, and yet to have
realized a large sum by the venture. The expenses
in this undertaking are also great; labour in this
country being estimated, at least, at one doUar per
diem for the services of each man, which, fre
quently, does not include his board.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 95
In no country that I have yet travelled in, have
I met with this luxury so plentiful as in the United
States, although it was late in the autumn ; yet,
even in towns of an inferior size and class, very
rarely was it wanting.
Night set in before we had proceeded very far
on our road. Some years since this was considered
a reaUy lawless country, but the march of civiliza
tion is rapid, and robberies, so frequent both in
unciviUzed and overcivilized communities, are now
rare in these half-civilized ones. At this time,
however, the whole community was aroused by a
horrid murder which had been committed at a
town caUed Peoria, not very distant. The supposed
perpetrators had been arrested, but the evidence
against them was only circumstantial, on which in
the United States a jury wUl rarely return a verdict
of guilty ; under these circumstances, the mass of
the people being convinced of their guilt, it was
currently reported that they were determined to
carry into execution lynch law, a party having
agreed amongst themselves to put these criminals
to death.
We had proceeded about eight miles on our jour
ney, when we halted at the house of a farmer of the
name of Miller. He was a native of the state of

96 A GLIMPSE AT
Vermont, a very intelligent man, and entered into
a most interesting account of his progress in
agricultural pursuits since his arrival in the western
country. He stated that he was now the owner of
600 acres of land, about 300 acres of which were
under cultivation ; that he had purchased this pro
perty from time to time with the accumulation of
his savings, at the Government price of one dollar
and a quarter per acre. From its contiguity to the
town, and the consequent command of a good
market, it had now risen to ten times its original
value. He then entered into various detailed
accounts of the profits arising from his agricultural
pursuits, which were truly marveUous, — but making
a due aUowance for exaggeration, augmented by
his desire to part with an outlying farm, too
distant to be profitably worked, — stiU there cannot
remain a doubt of his pursuing a most profitable
employment. Amongst other statements, he
affirmed that six acres of land had, this season,
produced him a crop of potatoes which he had
disposed of for 300 doUars, and that after making
every sort of deduction for the value of labour,
seed, &c., he had thus realized, from this field
alone, considerably more than 200 dollars. So large
a profit, equal in our money to about 40/. sterling,

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 97
must content even the most avaricious farmer.
His residence we must recollect, however, was but
a few miles distant from the town of Peru, on the
Illinois River, thus affording him a ready means by
which his produce could, within a few days, be
speedily introduced into the great markets of the
southern cities.
Moreover, it must be borne in mind, that ex
pensive methods of farming neither are required,
nor would they repay the agriculturist, were he to
adopt them here. When once the land is cleared
of the rank weeds and the stiff roots of the prairie
grass, and placed under what may be termed the
first stage of cultivation, two-thirds of the labour
are then completed. The far greater expense of ma
nuring, draining, &c., to which the English farmer
is obliged to resort, is altogether unknown in the
prairies, where, comparatively speaking, the greatest
labours are those of sowing and reaping. The wages
of workmen are certainly very high, but as less
labour per acre is required, the culture of the land
cannot be considered as more expensive. The
farmer has the advantage of light taxation, free
dom from poor and church rates, and in a great
measure the immunity from rent itself, together
with the small capital originally paid for the land ;
11

98 A GLIMPSE AT
on the other hand, the markets are distant
for the disposal of produce, and we cannot aUow
that the farmers on the prairies of the far West
have a better start in the race for wealth, than
those who are contented to foUow up their fortunes
at home.
I wUl here insert an extract, taken from an
American newspaper, showing the vast amount of
public land which yet remains at the disposal ofthe
State. " Public Lands. " The vast body of uncultivated
and unappropriated lands are scattered throughout
the several States and territories in the foUowing
proportions.

In the State of

Ohio
745
751
96
Indiana
12
731
524
0-1
Illinois
4
0-60
308
72
Missouri
29
216
173
29
Alabama
17
238
757
39
Mississippi
14
308
238
54
Louisiana
22
854
482
82
Michigan
24
864
963
11
Arkansas
27
402
991
86
Florida
31
810
576
48
Iowa
27
153
265
28
Wisconsin
26
327
679
60
THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC.

99

In the State of

Minnesota Territory

53

120

. .

North West „

376

0-40

960

Oregon „ .

218

536

320

Nebraska „

87

488

, ,

Indian „

119

789

440

State of California .

287

162

240

New Mexico Territory

49

527

680

TOTAI,

1,430

379

358

0-6

H 2

100 A GLIMPSE AT

CHAPTER IX,
As I have now spoken of the capabUities of this
fine agricultural district, I wiU put down a rough
calculation of the capital required to commence
farming on a small scale in the prairies, and the
manner in which it would be disbursed by an emi
grant, presupposing that he would rather purchase
land, at an advanced price in a tolerably good
situation, with the command of a market, and at
not too great a distance from a town, than
in an inconvenient situation, at the Government
price, of one and a quarter dollar per acre.
I wiU suppose the family of the intended emigrant
to consist of himself, his wife, and one or two small
children, and that he is in the possession of three
hundred pounds sterling; I should recommend him
to expend as small a sum as possible, before leaving
home ; indeed, I may add that the family had better
go with only the clothes upon their backs, than a

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 101
large assortment of things; and therefore the en
tire outfit of himself and family, I confine to the
smaU sum of ten pounds, the journey to the port of
embarkation, and the voyage out, I place at tiventy-
four pounds, the route by railroad, steam boat, &c.,
either to Illinois or Iowa, at twenty-four pounds
more, I should recommend him above all things to
purchase nothing, however much he may be per
suaded to do so, until he reaches the place of his
destination ; for although, I am well aware, that a
saving upon some articles might be effected, yet from
his ignorance of the country, he is apt to make mis
takes in the choice of his stock, so that on the whole,
I am convinced, he will not regret my counsel. I
would on no account advise him to retain more
money in his own possession than the difference of
the first hundred pounds, now reduced to about
forty ;.„for the remainder of his capital he should
have obtained good bills upon some house of hnown
respectability, in New York. Arrived at the sea port,
across the Atlantic, let him not listen to the advice
first of one man, then of another, but without loss
of time take the most speedy route to his destination,
which we will suppose to be the prairies. Whether
he has landed at New York or Quebec, his way will
then be through Buffalo; arrived there, he will

102 A GLIMPSE AT
find the steamer to Detroit, thence the raUroad to
Chicago. In the height of summer he may take the
longer route from Buffalo by Lake Huron and Ma-
ehinnan, and thence through Lake Michigan to
Chicago ; but I imagine it wiU not be less expensive,
and probably to an emigrant, not more agreeable,
and he would certainly add by this route four or
five days to the length of his journey. From Chicago,
let him proceed at once to Peru by canal, or to La
SaUe, at the head of the navigation of the Illinois
River. Arrived there, I should recommend his
leaving his family ; during which time he should take
a hasty survey of the prairies, between Peru and
the Mississippi, continuing down that river as far as
Keorkurk, and from thence he should visit the
Demoine Valley, the finest agricultural district in
the State of Iowa. He must be especiaUy careful
not to be tempted to establish himself too far from
the market, buy a cheap bargain, and never to forget
that in an inverse ratio from what it is at home,
here the first price of the land is by no means
the weightiest part of the investment. Having then
selected his position, he should return to his family,
and lose no time in removing them to a spot as
near as possible to that which he has decided upon.
He should next draw for the remainder of his

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 103
fortune, and complete his purchase, by paying for
the land he has bought in ready money. He wUl
now have to erect a house, to purchase stock, &c.,
probably according to a scale which I here in
troduce.Expended on outfit in England . £10
Journey to sea-port town, and voyage out . 24
Journey, after landing in America, to place of desti
nation ..... 24
Expended prior to settling . . , 12
Purchase of 80 acres of land, say at 3^ per acre . 50
Expense of erecting a farm house, 100$ . , 20
Team of horses, waggon, and harness, 200$ . 40
Fencing- in farm, 75$ . . . 15
Breaking up prairie, 75$ . . . 15
Farming materials and cow, 75$ . . 15
Expense of maintenance first year, 100$ . 20
Extras . . .15
Remains StiU in hand, 125$. . 25
£300
One mistake which is often committed, is that of
being persuaded to purchase too large a quantity of
land at first. A second is that of obtaining a lot,
because it is cheap, in a bad situation. The first
withdraws from the capital a sum which no manage
ment can replace. The second entails, too fre
quently, a disgust upon the emigrant by his wild
seclusion, more especially should he never have

104 A GLIMPSE AT
learned what it is to rough it in a new country.
By referring to my scale, he wiU observe that,
although I have placed the price of the land at
more than double the rate at which it is sold by
Government, yet for this item I have allowed but
one-sixth of his original capital: I have supposed
the purchase, therefore, to have been made in rather
a favourable position. I should advise him to be
very careful how he exceeds this ratio ; for should
he do so, he must either forego some other portion
of the expenditure I have recommended, or he will
be obliged to become a borrower, or purchase upon
credit. Should he resort to either of these latter
alternatives, all his industry, prudence, and eco
nomy will scarcely save him from eventual ruin.
I say again, let him avoid the money-lending attor
ney or petty shopkeeper as he would a pestilence.
There is scarcely any land, when cultivated, in
Illinois, that will not produce from eighteen to
twenty bushels of wheat per acre, which, at sixty
cents the bushel, wUl give a return of at least ten
dollars ; or it will yield from thirty-three to thirty-
six bushels of potatoes, which, at thirty-five cents,
will also nearly average ten dollars per acre. This,
therefore, will show a fair per centage upon the
capital and labour expended, and in this prairie

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 105
country, where cultivation may commence at once,
no trees, no large growth of timber, having to be
cleared away, the time is not lost in waiting for a
return. There are innumerable other advantages
in this country, such as the shortness of the winter
and the quantity of forage which can be ob
tained in the prairies for the trouble of cutting and
stacking it.
As a rule, almost all the farmers in the Western
States are more or less involved, not even the
money-lenders themselves being exceptions to it.
Although there are laws against usury, yet the
temptation of gaining immense interest is too
great to be resisted ; and therefore these laws
perhaps cause, rather than operate against, the
very system they are meant to check. Money re
quired upon good landed security is seldom to be
obtained under ten, and frequently not under fifteen,
per cent, per annum ; and many a farmer is only
too ready to obtain it at this high rate of interest,
when he clearly sees that he can by its judicious
outlay realise from twenty to sixty per cent.
It, however, may be very weU for the experienced
American, one who is thoroughly acquainted with
the country and the tricks of those by whom he is
surrounded — one who, being firmly established, can

106 A GLIMPSE AT
afford a loss, should any unforeseen or adverse cir
cumstances occur — to borrow even at such exorbitant
rates ; but for a stranger to put himself into the
power of the sharks, would be the height of madness.
Let him therefore beware, and on no account outstrip
his capital ; at all events until he has had the expe
rience of some years in the country, by which time,
if he has common sense, he will know a vast deal
more, about it and its inhabitants, than I can
possibly do.
I will describe a common method, resorted to by
small storekeepers, of lending money. A has saved
such a sum of money as he considers sufficient to stock
a small farm, but he lacks the capital to purchase
one. B, the storekeeper, agrees to redeem fifty
acres of wild prairie land from Government, by
paying one dollar and a quarter at the land office,
purchasing the property thus for sixty-two and a-
half dollars in B's own name. B then gives A a
bond, stating that in the course of three years he
wiU seU him this farm at two and a-half doUars
per acre. A then locates himself upon the land,
commences clearing and cultivating it, expending
upon it his small capital. If all goes well, no
iUness or bad luck, A may succeed, in which case
he repurchases the farm, at the expiration of three.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 107
years from B, at the sum of one hundred and twenty-
five dollars. B has thus realised upwards of thirty
per cent, interest upon his invested capital, neither
has he undergone a/ny rish whatever; for if A is
unable to redeem the farm at the expiration of the
time named, and at the price agreed, it becomes
naturally the property of B at the original govern
ment price ; all its improvements, buildings, &c.,
making a handsome offset for the three years' inte
rest of the money, and the moveable effects very
generally foUow the fixtures, being given up by the
unfortunate A for some temporary loan.
One of the greatest sources of pleasure in tra
veUing in the west, is that of the traveUer never
witnessing those distressing scenes of misery and
poverty, which so constantly obtrude themselves
upon his notice in the older countries. Here no
one begs, no one has occasion to do so. Throughout
my entire journey of more than five thousand miles
in the United States, I met but one beggar, and he
stated he had just landed from Ireland ; and I am
happy to add that this freedom from poverty exists
in Canada wpst, as I can exemplify by a circum
stance which happened to myself there.
I once attended an Episcopalian church near
Fingall, in Canada west. It was sacrament Sunday,

108 A GLIMPSE AT
but the customary oblation of the money at the
altar was omitted. After the service was ended, I
inquired the reason, and was told that as no poor
existed in the parish, there was no need of a coUec
tion. This great agricultural wealth, and the ease with
which it is obtained, produces one serious evil— it
renders the child so completely independent of his
parents, as to make him not unfrequently forget
that he owes to them any filial duties. Upon the
slightest reproof he is ready to be off, and " do for
himself," being conscious that by his own exertions
he can at any time obtain a competence for himself;
but this very feeling early in life gives them a habit
of placing a reliance upon their own exertions which
can be felt in no other country, and causes them
almost from childhood to look to resources within
their own limits, giving to mere youths an indepen
dence of action rarely witnessed in more densely
populated communities.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 109

CHAPTER X.
After this digression, I must now recal the
reader to Mr. Miller's farm, where we last parted, a
few miles from the town of Peru,
We were received by Mr. MUler with every mark
of hospitality and kindness. In this wild country,
where inns are few and far between, it is the custom
for travellers to ask for bed and board at whatever
house may most conveniently lie in their way during
their day's journey, should they either be overtaken
by the dusk of the evening or their horses be
fatigued. The accommodation of themselves and
horses is paid for as at an inn, being generally rated
according to the seeming wealth of the party enter
tained ; and it is with the greatest pleasure that I
can testify to the fair — indeed, moderate — rates
which were universally demanded, .Board and
lodging for myself, for the driver, in addition to the
feed of l^is horses, being seldom or ever charged

110 A GLIMPSE AT
for the entire party at a higher rate than from five
to seven shillings per day.
Master, guest, and domestic, all sat down at the
same board, and ate of the same fare. The only
distinction shown to the guest was that of his being
served first, and this with a liberal hand. The
supper generally consisted of one or two dishes of
meat, fried potatoes, bread, hot cakes, and one or
two different kinds of preserves, of which cranberry
appeared the most esteemed, in addition to hominy,
which is boiled Indian corn dressed with butter;
the beverage is invariably very strong green tea,
for scarcely in any part of the United States is
black tea in use.
I slept in an upper chamber, in company with an
itinerant Methodist preacher and two Germans
who were labouring on the farm. On the morning
of the 16th of October I rose early, and before
breakfast saw Mr. Miller make a beautiful shot with
his rifle through the head of a fine young buUock,
Immediately after a very early breakfast I again
started on my way.
Shortly after leaving the farm-house, prairie
grouse in large flocks, flying from the open plain,
where they roost during the night, passed over the
waggon to obtain their food in the neighbouring

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. Ill
corn fields. They were in such numbers, and their
flight so continuous, that I had no difficulty in
adding very many to my larder. The farther I
went west, the more plentiful did I find the game ;
and so common do they appear to be in these
prairies, that the country people would not step
over their fences to accept a portion of that which
I killed in such abundance as to be of no service to
me. It is by no means unusual for many of the
grouse, during the rapid morning and evening
flight of these large packs, to be maimed, and even
killed, by striking against the wires of the electric
telegraph. Mr. MUler said that he had frequently
picked them up near his own house, some quite
dead and others with their wings broken. When
frightened, it would appear, that, like a hare, they
cast their eyes behind them, and thus in their
endeavours to avoid one danger they met another.
Mr, Miller also bore witness to the great increase
of prairie grouse in that neighbourhood, and, as he
aUeged, in a proportionate degree to the increase
in the number of acres which were yearly rescued
from the prairies and brought under cultivation.
On leaving Mr. MiUer's we passed through Spring
Creek, Prince Town, BuUbonny Grove, Devil's Back
bone, and Hall Settlement — singular names and not

112 A GLIMPSE AT
very civiUzed places — and we arrived late at night
at the farm-house. The entire country which I
passed through was one extensive rolling or undu
lating prairie, as far as the eye could reach, from
twenty to thirty mUes on either side of the road.
Here and there was some cultivation, but tiny spots,
in an ocean of prairie land. The swells are not so
abrupt, but longer and more lofty than the sea of
the Atlantic Ocean ; but a fancied resemblance can
certainly be drawn between the face of this country
and the Bay of Biscay, during a long sweU after a
heavy gale. There were some, but very few, groves
of trees ; and in spots where there was an unusual
number, the ground was invariably located. None
of the towns which I passed through this day were
more than single settlements, with the exception of
Prince Town, in which there was a court-house,
some half a dozen stores, and three or four places
of worship ; but wherever I stopped, I found the
people exceedingly kind and attentive, and, I must
own, a great deal more so than those of the same
class in the more eastern states.
The landlord of the farm-house seemed to have a
real pleasure in teUing me I could have a room to my
self, for which accommodation, in addition to supper,
and breakfast on the following morning, he seemed in

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 113
doubt whether he had not overcharged me when he
demanded 2s. 6d. for the whole.
I here met with a clever, smart Irishman, who
said he was making a very thriving business as a
teamster. He vehemently abused everything at
home, as I have observed most of the Irish here do,
but ended his discourse by stating, that after all
there was no country like " ould Ireland ;" and that
if he had plenty of money, he would immediately
go back there. " Why," said he, " isn't Kilkenny
an ihgant place f Sure there you have fire without
smoke, water without mud, and the streets are
paved with marble."
On my journey this day I met with a number of
caravans of large tilted waggons, fiUed with persons
returning from the lead mines, in the State of
Wisconsin, and the Minnesota territory. This race
of miners are termed Suckers, and lead altogether a
migratory life. They are a wild-looking, ferocious,
uncouth set, and are accused of committing sad
depredations upon the farm-yards of the settlers
through whose property they pass. As soon as the
spring commences, their numerous waggons and
oxen dot the prairies of lUinois on their way to the
mines, in the neighbourhood of which they reside,
either in temporary huts or in the waggons them-
I

114 A GLIMPSE AT
selves, until the autumn sets in, when they again
may be observed returning by the same track to the
southern states of Kentucky and Tennessee, where
mostly they reside during the winter. They derive
the cognomen of Suckers from an exceedingly ugly
fish which passes up the river towards the north,
and returns again exactly at the same period with
themselves ; and both from its ungainly appearance
and unpleasant habits, in being by no means par
ticular in satisfying its appetite, it does not appear
to be a misnomer. I started, as usual, this day
shortly after daylight, and passed through Cam
bridge, La Grange, and Camden, each about ten
miles distant from one another. The country
round about Cambridge is appropriately named,
being very level, and indeed even that portion under
cultivation is not altogether inclosed. At La
Grange, I saw that a farmer had erected a sort of
observatory above his dwelling, which he occasion
aUy mounted upon to see if his own or any of his
neighbour's stray cattle from the prairie made free
with his corn. The want of timber for fencing
purposes, as weU as for firing, is here severely felt.
We this day passed within a few miles of an
extensive Swedish settlement, the natives of which
country are very numerous both in Iowa and

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 115
lUinois, I was informed that it was in a most fiourish-
ing condition, and that lately a handsome donation
from that amiable philanthopist, Jenny Lind, had
been devoted towards the erection of a church
within its precincts ; but I was told, with what
truth I know not, that a horrible catastrophe had
damped the ardour of the settlers — the aged bishop
of the fiock not long previously having been mur
dered by one of his parishioners.
After passing Camden we came to a beautiful
undulating and well-wooded country, parts of which
very much resemble the domain of a country gen
tleman, in the rural districts of England, and after
a gradual descent amongst the hills into the vaUey
beneath, and having crossed a wide but shallow
stream, about two o'clock in the afternoon, that
Father of Rivers, the noble Mississippi, came full
in view.
At three in the afternoon we arrived at Rock
Island city, rather a poor place and far less flourish
ing than its opposite neighbour, called Davenport,
in the state of Iowa. Iowa, as I before said, is in a
more healthy financial condition than Illinois, a
state law existing which altogether precludes her
from borrowing a larger sum than 150,000 dollars,
which, for so extensive and, as far as agriculture
I 2

116 A GLIMPSE AT
goes, so wealthy a state, is a mere bagatelle, I
inquired from one of her citizens, why they so
rigidly restricted themselves to this small amount,
when, by certain judicious outlays, the country
might be so immeasureably improved; — "Ah!" said
he, " have you not learned the old motto, ' give an
inch, take an ell ; ' we have been warned by the
debts of Illinois, and the repudiation of Pennsyl
vania and Mississippi States, and we are determined
not to give our legislators the power to place us in
the same condition. When we passed the act to
enable our state to borrow, as a maximum, the
150,000 doUars, would you believe it, they not
only borrowed but expended the whole sum during
the first few weeks of their first session!"
Nearly midway between the towns of Rock
Island city in lUinois, and Davenport, in Iowa, is
situated Black Rock Island. It is little more than
a solitary rock, but upon it there is a fort or block
house, a place of no great strength, but sufficient
to check the advance of a host of Indians unpro
vided with artiUery. This served as a rallying post
for the early settlers, during the first occupation of
this country.
It was on this little island that Black Hawk, the
Indian warrior, was imprisoned. According to the

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 117
treaty, which had been made by the United States
with Black Hawk and his tribe, it was arranged
that himself and his followers should retain pos
session of his country for a period of three years.
Poor Black Hawk, in his simplicity, confided in
this treaty, set out as usual, on the returning sum
mer, upon a hunting expedition with his tribe,
leaving only a portion of his old men behind at an
Indian village, which they inhabited on Rock
Island river. The pioneers of the west, thinking
this a good opportunity to possess themselves im
mediately of the entire country, pretended to think
that Black Hawk's intentions were hostile, and
quickly mustering and arming themselves followed
on his track. Black Hawk was sorely puzzled, but
sent a fiag of truce to explain his real intentions,
the bearer of which, the settlers, pretending to take
for a spy, cruelly put to death. The chief now
considered himself betrayed, and, with Indian for
titude, determined to defend himself to the last.
A war of extermination commenced, and, as usual,
the weakest went to the waU. After half the tribe
had been destroyed. Black Hawk conceived that
the only expedient to save the remnant was to sue
for peace. This was granted, but an exaggerated
account of atrocities was sent to the Government,

118 A GLIMPSE AT
which, if really perpetrated by the Indians, was
done so only in their own defence, and the decree
of the most powerful was, that the whole country
should be at once evacuated by the Indians, and
delivered over into the possession of the white man.
An Indian, of the name of Keokurk, an inferior of
the tribe, was, for convenience sake, regarded by
the government in the light of a chief, and accord
ingly they exchanged treaties with him, which
natm-aUy were by no means unfavourable to them
selves. The sequel was, that poor Black Hawk
was confined for a considerable time upon the httle
island; in the centre of the stream, and eventually
died in a smaU hut near Fort Maddison, his hfe
being shortened by the poignancy of his grief.
Keokurk made certain other grants, more espe
cially a large tract of land below the rapids of the
Mississippi, to what he designated half-castes, and
which was subsequently purchased from them by a
company of eastern citizens ; but from the nature of
the tenure it has been in litigation ever since, and
thus the conflicting claims have tended consider
ably towards impeding the settlement of the town,
which now bears his name.
I trust the Indian agents of the United States
Government are sadly belied, otherwise grievous

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 119
accounts are given of the way in which they have
defrauded those tribes which are by treaties tribu
tary to the state, — it being said that clothing and
blankets are charged to the unfortunate and igno
rant Indian, when they have really been never dis
bursed, and that they allow these improvident
people to run into debt, in order that they may
become an easy prey to their pretended friends, and
thus eventuaUy they are ruined and obUged to
relinquish the last remnant of their rights, in
consequence of such dishonest practices.
The information gained by a traveller, in a rapid
journey through a distant and unknown country,
cannot always be free from party statements and
exaggeration ; but where such stories exist, I fear
the whole is not altogether fiction.
The upper waters of the Mississippi at this season
of the year were so low, that none but steam-boats
of a very light draught of water could ply upon
the river, or pass over the rapids which exist for
some mUes immediately above Keokurk; conse
quently the chance of a passage was rendered most
doubtful, and I had been told that I might have to
wait two or three days, perhaps even more, ere an
opportunity presented itself. This would have been
very annoying, as I was desirous of making the

120 A GLIMPSE AT
best of my way, having no spare time upon my
hands. It was therefore with extreme satisfaction
that I observed a vessel lying at the wharf at
Davenport, blowing off her steam. I crossed the
river in a small wherry-boat, and bidding farewell
to Davis, the driver of my waggon, betook myself
with my baggage on board the high pressure
steamer, caUed the " Wisconsin."

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 121

CHAPTER XI.
All the steamers on the Mississippi and her
tributaries, are propelled by high-pressure engines;
not only are these more dangerous, but the noise
which they make, the loud snorting sound at each
stroke of the piston, is peculiarly disagreeable, I
frequently asked the reason why these engines
should alone be employed, and I always received
for answer, that the water on this river was so
muddy, that the boilers in a low-pressure engine
would soon be choked by it, I am, however,
incUned to think that this is somewhat exag
gerated, because I found the waters of the Hoogly,
io' Bengal, or the Yang-tse-Kiang, in China,
not more clear; and yet, although I have navi
gated both these rivers upon steamers on the
low pressure system, I never heard a complaint
on the score of muddy waters. Probably the real
truth Ues in the difference of the expense, taken
in conjunction with the want of speed ; for it

122 A GLIMPSE AT
is proverbial, on the Mississippi, that so long as a
good per centage, or handsome dividend, is the
result, loss of life and limb weighs too lightly in the
opposite scale, and that so long as this property on
the river can find underwriters to insure it, it is
considered aU that is requisite ; indeed I have often
received for answer, when alluding to this subject,
" Why, sir, there are plenty of Ufe insurance offices;
if you are the least alarmed, why not insure your
life?" as if the recompense of a few thousand
doUars, which a man would leave behind him, were
a sufficient expiatory oblation for the sacrifice of
his own life.
This reminds me of the story of an Irishman,
who heard that a steam-boat upon which he pro
posed taking a passage, was anything but safe ;
having however ascertained that she was insured,
"Ah!" exclaimed he, "sure then she is safe enough J"
and went on board with the utmost confidence.
The " Wisconsin " was a dirty freight vessel, and
upon examination, I found myself surrounded by a
set qf coarse low fellows. I had been led to expect
that I should meet with an odd set of passengers in
these smaU boats on the Upper Mississippi, and cei^
tainly, in this case, my expectations were verified.
When I made application for a sleeping berth, I was

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 123
told there was only one bed to spare, and that was
in a state room, fitted up for two passengers, near
the paddle-wheels. I was fain to put up with this,
although, upon examination, it proved hot, dark,
and dirty. I made inquiries respecting my cabin
companion, but all that I could learn was, that he
was registered under the name of Jones, and as far
as I could discover, he did not possess one particle
of baggage attached to this name.
In this free and independent country, it would be
considered the height of aristocratism, should there
be a first and second class on board these steamers;
all, therefore, fare alike, and however differently the
Americans live in private life, in public they obey
the law of democracy and appear on a par with
perfect good humour.
Being soon settled, I began to examine more at
leisure my feUow passengers, and one in particular
attracted my attention, as being a wilder looking
fellow than the rest. He was a tall, bony, ill-
favoured man, with long, lank, black hair ; he wore
a large dark coloured hat, or " wide-awake." His
black trowsers were patched with striped ticking,
and at no time did he wear a coat — whether this
was owing to his not possessing this article, or to
his own peculiar style of dress, I did not discover.

124 A GLIMPSE AT
Judge then my sensation, on beholding this very
man enter the state-room after supper, and finding
that this individual, my "compagnon de voyage,"
was the veritable Jones ; very, soon after my doubt
ful companion was snoring loudly in the bed under
neath mine.
Before entering upon my voyage down the
Mississippi, I had been cautioned against the
tricks and the desperate characters occasionally
to be met with on that river, and had been
especially warned against sharing a cabin with a
man who did not appear to possess any baggage,
lest during the night he might leave the boat at
one of the numerous landing-places, and take a
portion of my effects with him. It was laugh
able enough, that on my very first voyage on this
river, not only should I be forced to share a cabin
with a man without a coat, and dreadfully patched
lower garments, but also the possessor of as sinister
and forbidding an exterior as I weU could expect
to meet, and answering precisely to the description
of man that I had been cautioned to avoid. Mine,
however, was Hobson's choice, Jones as my com
panion, or no bed at all. I did not hesitate, and
found my companion perfectly honest.
On the following morning at breakfast, to my

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 125
surprise, I found myself seated next to a resident of
Fort Maddison, a gentleman whose acquaintance I
had made on board the " Mayflower," on Lake
Erie, and who had got on board the " Wisconsin "
at a landing-place, during the night.
About noon, we reached Fort Maddison, and it
was with the greatest pleasure that I accepted
Mr. K.'s kind invitation, and took up my abode in
his house for that evening, and I am happy to assure
my readers, that it was one of the pleasantest I
passed in the States. The refreshing rest which I
enjoyed, in a comfortable and clean bed, was doubly
appreciated, from my not having possessed this
luxury for many days.
Mr. K. is descended from an Irish family of
great antiquity, the genealogy of the family being
traced and published by one of its members, a
resident near Albany, who had no difficulty in
tracing it, although this branch had been settled in
the United States for some generations,
I was invited on the succeeding day, the 19 th, to
dine at the ordinary of Mr. Stripe, the landlord of
the Eagle, the principal hotel at Fort Maddison.
This I accordingly accepted ; Mr. Stripe was an
Englishman, and originally came from Liverpool, he
had settled in this town about eighteen years since ;

126 A GLIMPSE AT
he appeared an intelligent man, and seemed now
thoroughly to understand both the country and its
inhabitants. He said that he was now beginning
to do well, and to make his fortune, but that strictly
in accordance with the motto before quoted, he had
on his first arrival lost all he brought with him,
through improvident speculation. " Ah ! " said he,
" if I, in my speculations, had stuck only to real
estate, that is city lots, I should have been a rich
man now ; in that description of property there is
no risk, its rise is sure, and sometimes very rapid,
dependent somewhat upon good luck, but more upon
judicious selection."
The Eagle was a total abstinence house, that is
to say, no fermented Uquors were permitted to be
consumed within its doors. Hotels upon this plan
are becoming very common throughout the northern
states, and although a great decrease of profit must
be contingent upon the closing of the bar, from
which, in general, the chief source of emolument in
hotels in the United States is derived, yet perhaps
a commensurate advantage may accrue to these tem
perance houses, by attracting all those customers
who have taken the pledge, as well as those families
and boarders who are desirous of living quietly, and
less subjected to the noise and squabbhng so

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 127
frequently engendered by the unlimited sale of
spirits. Immediately before dinner, I asked a demure
looking man, who was in the coach-office, if he could
inform me what o'clock it was; pointing to the floor
with his cane, he said in a deep sounding voice, —
" Nature, sir, never errs. It is just mid-day." The
sun at this moment was brightly reflected through
the window, casting the shadow of its frame at right
angles to the front wall, and the house being built
to face due south, it acted like a sun-dial. The
manner and tone of the speaker gave quite a thea
trical expression to the words, which made the
whole scene rather ludicrous.
Soon after dinner I proceeded on my road to
Keokurk, by the stage coach ; I placed myself on
the outside, in order that I might have the better
opportunity of observing the surrounding country.
Both the towns of Fort Maddison and also
Keokurk, stand upon the right bank of the Mis
sissippi River, and are about twenty-five miles dis
tant from each other. The general features of the
country were very pretty and undulating, the banks
of the river being weU wooded. There was an
elevated ridge, stretching far into the interior of
the country, giving an appearance as if the river

128 A GLIMPSE AT
at some former date had been very much larger
than it is at present.
The driver of the stage, for the term coachman
is never used in America, seemed to possess a
tender interest in his team, and they in return
appeared famiUar with his voice, and were perfectly
acquainted with their own names. Commencing
with the wheel horses, and ending with the leaders,
he called them " MoUy, Toby, Rowdy, and Hank."
They were a good strong team, and did not seem
much distressed after the journey, although of five-
and-twenty miles, with a heavy coach fuU of pas
sengers, and well laden with luggage.
The driver stated that he had arrived two years
since at Keokurk, with the intention of proceeding
to the FaUs of St. Antony, but the winter coming
on he could not proceed. By way of passing that
dull season more agreeably he soon found a wife.
He was now the possessor of two city lots, and was
doing well in the world. During the heat of
summer and the cold of winter his was a very hard
service, but he felt that he had his reward in the
prospect of prosperity which now shone upon him,
I certainly derived no small pleasure, when tra
velling in the States, at seeing all my fellow crea
tures so prosperous, energetic, industrious, and
good-humoured.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 129
In conversations which I held with different
gentlemen in the Western States, they often said,
"From all we can learn, your country is as
free, in all respects, as our own, and indeed your
Queen does not appear to possess so much power
as our President ; but what is so contrary to our
notions is the idea of having a queen, dukes, and
lords at all, or that any one person should be con
sidered superior, or have power over another. You
may call yourselves free," added they, "but you
cannot reaUy be so as long as that lasts." It was in
vain for me to say, that in the United States there
were classes or gradations in society, as there were
in intelligence and wealth ; they invariably replied,
" That is aU very well, but you cannot be really
free as long as you have a queen and nobility."
Nor would they be convinced, although it could
be clearly demonstrated to them that they were
daily suffering under a real tyranny, that of the
multitude. To return to my journey to Keokurk. The road
was dreadful ; no one can imagine what a bad road
is until he has travelled in the Western States of
America. The coaches are so constructed that
they will ride easily over almost any obstacles, and
from their immense strength they will resist any
K

130 A GLIMPSE AT
shock, however severe. They somewhat resemble
the carriage used by the Lord Mayor of London,
deprived of course of its gilding and gaudy trap
pings. They are constructed to carry nine inside,
three on each seat ; those passengers on the centre
seat sitting between the two doors. When quite
fuU I cannot say that they are very agreeable,
and when nearly empty the unfortunate inmate is
thrown about Uke a parched pea on a drum. The
body is hung on very substantial leather straps,
and the baggage is stowed at the rear, in a sort of
rack or cradle, which is strapped over with a leather
covering, to defend it from the weather.
When about half way to Keokurk, we passed
through a smaU village immediately opposite to the
town of Nauvoo, until lately the principal settle
ment of the Mormons. Nauvoo is situated on the
left bank of the Mississippi, in a very pleasant and
rather commanding situation, at a bend of, the
river. The most prominent object in the centre of
the town is the Mormon temple, which was built
under the auspices of their well-known leader, Joe
Smith. It is surprising how people could have
been so easily duped by such an impostor, and that
fresh proselytes from home should be continually
added to their number, bringing with thena their

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. J 31
entire property, which almost immediately faUs
into the clutches of the greedy adherents of this
sect. Upon one occasion an Englishman of the
name of Cope joined the sect at Nauvoo, with his
famUy, bringing with him, from Lancashire, a for
tune of fifteen hundred doUars. No sooner had he
arrived than Joe Smith borrowed the whole sum,
stating that he was acquainted with far better
means of laying it out at interest than the pos
sessor. Shortly after, Mr. Cope, being desirous ¦
of purchasing a smaU estate, asked for a portion
of his money ; some excuse, however, was always
at hand, and he never could recover one farthing
from Joe Smith. This completely broke his heart,
and he shortly after died, leaving four helpless
orphans to the care of the Mormons. A gentleman
with whom I became acquainted, when passing a
miserable shanty, found these poor little children in
a starving state, and when Joe Smith, as head of
the sect, was applied to, he utterly disowned them.
This gentleman kindly took one girl into his own
famUy, and saw that the rest were provided with
the necessaries of life ; but the Mormons, becoming
jealous of his interference, shortly after kidnapped,
the girl, and it was only by the most strenuous
K 2

132 A GLIMPSE AT
remonstrances with their high priest, Joe Smith,
that he was enabled to recover the child,
Joe Smith pretended that he could perform
miracles, and actually gained the credence of a
large number of persons to the truth of his asser
tions. He pretended to walk over the waters of
the Illinois River ; it being, however, clearly ascer
tained after he had actually performed this pre
tended miracle, that planks had been fixed six
inches beneath the surface of the stream. Upon
another occasion, when about to perform some
extraordinary feat, he enquired of his audience if
they had perfect faith in his ability ; upon their
answering in the affirmative, this clever rogue then
added, " If your faith is perfect, the performance of
it is useless." The presents which he obtained as
Saint of this sect, of horses, carriages, cattle, and
wine, were quite incredible, and in short no man
in the Western States could vie with him in wealth,
or equal him in his luxurious life, the utter hcen-
tiousness and depravity of which was notoriously
conspicuous. The impudence of the impostor con
summated his own ruin. He had been assailed by
the editor of a newspaper, at Keokurk, and in re
turn, Joe Smith collected a large body of his fol
lowers, attacked the printing office, and utterly

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 133
destroyed the press. For this act, he was, after
much difficulty, arrested, and conveyed to the
county-jail ; the whole populace of the country,
collecting en masse, Inade an attack upon this
building, and obtained possession of the person of
Joe Smith, and by a process of lynch-law, without
further ceremony put him to death. This was a
great blow to the community of the Mormons, and
finding, as it is sometimes expressed, that the
country was now too hot to hold them, they soon after
sold all their property, — their town and temple, — to a
company of Frenchmen, and removed themselves into
the heart of the then unknown districts ofthe interior,
about 1,000 miles due west, to the borders of the
Salt Lake, where their race might remain, per
haps unvisited and forgotten. Since the gold-
mania in California, and the consequent rage for
emigration to that country, has infected every
portion of the globe, by a strange fatality, this set
tlement on the Salt Lake, lying, as it chanced to do,
precisely on the overland route, has brought this
strange sect more into contact with a large portion
of the inhabitants of this continent, than would pro
bably have been the case, had they remained in
their settlement on the banks of the Mississippi, and
the riches which they have lately gained by trading

134 A GLIMPSE AT
in cattle with the emigrants, and the heavy tolls
which they have imposed upon them for assisting
them to cross the inland rivers, and other difficulties
of this unknown country, have given them a fresh
impetus and much consideration. So large have
been the sums which they have thus made, that I
was assured one Mormon made ten thousand doUars
profit in the year 1849.
The entire territory, moreover, of Utah, has lately
been placed, by the President of the United Sates,
under the orders of Governor Young, chief of this
sect. The star of the Mormons is therefore decidedly
in the ascendant, and now bids fair to rise to greater
splendour than ever. The new settlements which
they have made towards the confines of the Rocky
Mountains have proved most prosperous, and if the
railroad is ever completed, which is now in contem
plation from the Missouri River into Oregon, it
wUl cut directly through the heart of their settle
ments. A community of wives appears to be one of the
leading features of their reUgious creed, and laying
aside a great deal for exaggeration, from what 1
have heard from eye-witnesses of their ceremonies, 1
am inclined to think their rites are highly immoral ;
and that the impUcit faith which they have been

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 135
accustomed to place in their chief, or high-priest, has
in too many instances been made subservient to his
own purposes. It was currently reported when I
was in the west, that the Governor had lately
ordered all the women of the sect to assume male
attire; and however improbable this story may
appear, from what I have afready heard of this
strange race, I am not altogether inclined to doubt
the truth of the assertion.
The Mormon temple at Nauvoo bears the appear
ance of having been both an extensive and solid
structure. When the company of Frenchmen pur
chased the property, their intention was to have
converted this edifice into a Roman Catholic Cathe
dral ; but scarcely bad they decided on this
measure, when to their astonishment, a terrific
noise resounded for many miles over the sur
rounding country, and they suddenly beheld the
destruction of the Mormon temple. No one could
discover how, or by whom, this circumstance was
brought about ; but it is supposed that some of the
sect, acting under the orders of their chief, had
introduced a mass of combustible materials into
some secret portion of the building, by the ignition
of which its destruction was insured, and to this
day it remains in the same dUapidated conditiop.

136 A GLIMPSE AT
Continuing our journey through a well- cultivated
country we arrived at Keokurk at six o'clock in the
evening, and were sufficiently fortunate to be in time
for the steamer about to descend the Mississippi,
Keokurk is already a large town, and would cer
tainly have been much larger, but for some imper
fection, either real or imaginary, in the title of
the property ; this is quite sufficient to deter im
provement, even in a country where every one is so
imbued with the "go-a-head" principle, as scarcely
to look beyond the present moment, Keokurk is
built at the foot of the rapids, above which steam-
vessels of a large class cannot pass during the
greater part of the year, but are obliged to tranship
both passengers and cargo into boats of the lightest
possible draught of water. Moreover, it is situated near
the confluence of the Demoine River and the Missis
sippi, the banks of the former of which streams are
now thickly located for some hundred miles into the
interior, and the neighbouring soil is reckoned the
most productive and best calculated for agricultural
purposes of any portion of the fertUe state of Iowa,
and the vaUey consequently is fast fiUing up with
settlers. With these advantages, Keokurk must become ere
long a spacious and populous city ; there is some

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 137
idea of constructing a canal, about eight or nine
miles in length, to avoid the rapids of the Missis
sippi ; but however advantageous this might prove
to the general navigation of the river, yet to the city
of Keokurk it would have an entirely opposite effect,
as it would thereby facilitate much merchandise to
pass it by, which now tarries a while in its tran
shipment to vessels of a lighter draught of water.
But what town or city is there upon the Missis
sippi, and more especially on its upper waters, that
is not only progressing, but most rapidly 1 Places
which were inhabited only by the wild Indian, or
shared by him with the denizens of the forest, but
a few short years since, are now transformed as if
by magic ; and the Minnesota territory, which con
tained the other day but a few half-caste French
men, now counts many thousand zealous citizens,
and has doubled her population within the last
year. To capitaUsts I cannot help saying, invest a por
tion of your surplus wealth in the Western States
of this great RepubUc ; and if you have the slightest
doubt of the advantages to be derived at some future
period from this outlay of your resources, undertake
a voyage to America, travel to the Western World,
visit yourself the Mississippi, the great Father of

138 A GLIMPSE AT
streams ; and even should you disagree with me, in
thinking that this country is not so extraordinary
a one in point of her resources, and the speed with
which she is developing them, and that she will
never realize the sanguine expectations that I have
formed, at; any rate the amusement and instruction
you wiU receive, and the store of health you will
gain, will repay the trouble, expense, and fatigue of
this expedition.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 139

CHAPTER XII.
Late in the evening I embarked on board the
steamer " Lucy Bertram," for a passage down the
Mississippi to Sti Louis. She was a fine boat, and
the contrast between her and the "Wisconsin" was
certainly very great. But, notwithstanding her
appearance, she lacked many comforts which most
Englishmen consider requisites : for instance, in the
cabins or state-rooms there were no basons, or other
washing apparatus. In lieu of this, there was one
common washing-place near the paddle-box, fitted
up with a sort of scullery sink. Three smaU tin
basons were placed in this wooden trough, and near
it were stretched upon roUers two jack-towels. Here
all the passengers, amounting to fifty or more, the
officers of the ship, the black stewards and waiters,
washed themselves slightly, and had the choice of
either of the two towels. Moreover, through the

140 a GLIMPSE AT
benevolent provision of the owners of the "Lucy
Bertram," a hair-brush and comb, and one tooth
brush also, were not omitted, and were daily in
frequent requisition by both passengers and crew
on board this vessel, and during the morning were
kindly passed from hand to hand. Nor did I escape
the glances of offended democracy for the aristo
cratic preference of my own towel, sponge, and
brushes, with which I came armed into the public
wash-room, keeping, however, a jealous eye amongst
the crowd upon these effects, lest a second Mr.
Jones should innocently imagine they were supplied
pro bono publico, and appropriate them to his own
use ; but not in one other soUtary instance did I
observe the adoption of this anti-federal plan. Nor
was this aforesaid small washing-room entirely de
voted to the purposes of ablution, but was shared
by the black barber, whose office was by no means
a sinecure, it being seldom the habit in the United
States for men to perform the operation of shaving
for themselves. The cabin and bar-room were gaily
decorated, but the essential cleanly customs of hfe
were much omitted and forgotten.
The dinner and other meals on board the " Lucy
Bertram" were dirtily served and scantily provided ;
the latter a rare fault on the Mississippi, where

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 141
abundance is usually proverbial, although scantiness
is often the source of complaint on the Ohio river.
I here observed, what I had previously remarked,
that although the Americans do not scruple to abuse
any bad arrangements of this kind, they do so
either in a secret manner or anonymously in the
newspapers, and leave to strangers the unpleasant
task of rating aU the authorities within their reach ;
for an Englishman will never hesitate to condemn
openly such practices, should he have occasion to
suffer from them.
In many parts of the river, the water was exceed
ingly shallow, occasionally not more than three and
a half feet deep ; yet, fortunately, we did not touch
the ground.
The snags, which presented themselves in a sort
of chevaux-de-frise to the ascending boats, were
sufficiently formidable, but nothing in comparison
with those that we met with about seven or eight
hundred miles lower down the stream.
Wild fowl of all description were very numerous,
from the lordly swan to the diminutive teal ; and
they were sometimes so tame as almost to allow the
vessel to cleave her way through their groups.
Early in the morning of the 21st of October we
passed Grafton, near which the Illinois effects its

142 A GLIMPSE AT
junction with the Mississippi. The scenery here is
very fine : on the opposite side, and not far distant,
the Missouri, which-— although caUed a tributary
stream— vies in importance with the Mississippi her
self, and conveys towards the ocean even a heavier
body of water.
Towards the afternoon a violent altercation arose,
in consequence of one of the stewards going— I
believe quite accidentally — into a lady's cabin.
The husband of this lady had just returned from
California ; and from the habit, probably, of con
stantly fighting his way in the world, had become
very pugnacious. He instantly attacked the clerk
of the ship, stated that he had a pair of pistols in
his portmanteau, and invited him to take one and
immediately to redress the insult offered on board the
" Lucy Bertram" to his wife. After much difficulty,
however, he was appeased, and the matter finally
ended by all parties adjourning to the bar, and
amicably settling their differences over gin sling and
mint julep.
On board the " Lucy Bertram," many ofthe waiters
and a large portion of the crew, including all'the
firemen, were slaves. These were the first of the
inhabitants of the United States whom I had seen
in this degraded position, unless I except some run-

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 143
aways, who in the State of New York are constantly
met with. These slaves appeared to be very valu
able property ; and I was informed that their owners
caUed every Saturday evening upon the clerk of the
vessel to obtain their wages, amounting to the sum
of one dollar per day for the services of each,
which was independent of the expense of their
board, which is found by the owners of the vessel.
This is the only boat above St. Louis in which slaves
are employed ; and I imagine that here they must
be treated with more consideration than lower down
the stream, although to me the general demeanour
of the chief mate appeared the reverse of bene
volent. The right bank of this part of the river was in
the State of Missouri, a slave state, but the left
was stiU the State of lUinQis, which was free, ara
as we constantly stopped to take in wood in the
latter, equally with the former, these slaves, had
they been so inclined:, might readily have run on
shore, and would have received the protection of
the residents. True, that to have it accorded to
them would have been contrary to the law, but such
is the feeling in the free states against slavery that,
there is no doubt, they would have been screened
and assisted through the state, and on to the

144 A GLIMPSE AT
British frontier, until they should be secure from
persecution. One of these men was almost as
white as an European, indeed, much more so than
many Portuguese whom it has been my lot to
encounter, and must have possessed a considerable
proportion of the freeborn citizen in bis veins.
I firmly believe the general treatment exercised
by masters towards their slaves is that of great
kindness. There are many reasons which would
prompt this treatment, amongst the foremost of
which, we hope, are motives of phUanthropy, There
are other reasons, however, which, although they do
not spring from so pure a source, are not the less
effectual. The slave is a very valuable piece of
property, costing his master from 500 to 2,000
doUars, and even more ; if he be iU-treated he may
abscond or die. Thefr value, therefore, is quite a
sufficient reason to induce their owners to be
mindful for their well-being, especiaUy in those
slave states which adjoin the free ones; but how
poor a satisfaction is it to say they are well-
treated, — are they not stiU slaves, and subject, not
only to the caprices of their owners, but to
undergo corporal punishment at their wiU and
pleasure ?
They can at any time be severed, and constantly

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 145
are so, from the tenderest affections of their
nature they can be placed in any servitude, how
ever unhealthy or disgusting, and however con
trary to their own desires. They must work in
the fields, or in the shambles, or act as firemen
in a steamer, under a tropical sun in an unsafe or
unwholesome vessel ; but, indeed, in whatever way
employed, to be at the beck and call of one of
the rude, coarse set whom I so frequently met
with, would be, indeed, the worst description of
slavery, even should it be no more burthensome
than to look up to them for direction or encourage
ment. I am, however, bound to believe that the
feelings of these unfortunate people are, in a large
degree, blunted and dormant ; for were it otherwise,
they would certainly find means to throw off their
yoke. Neither physically nor mentally can they
compete with their masters ; yet their very num
bers cause a wholesome dread of retaliation, and
urge the precautionary measures which are adopted
in aU the large towns of the Southern States
concerning them.
The Americans of the Southern States are very
anxious that all strangers should come to an
unfavourable conclusion respecting the mental
capabiUties of the black man, invariably stating

146 A GLIMPSE AT
that the race are susceptible of no improvement,
however much attention is lavished upon the culti
vation of their minds ; but that this cannot really
be their own impression is too clearly demonstrated
by the necessity, which these citizens have advo
cated, of passing laws in the Senate against all
instruction being granted to this race ; and if, m
their opinion, no harm could arise to their own
interest from increased knowledge in the slave, or
if he were utterly incapable of receiving useful
impressions, why adopt such vigorous measures
to preclude him only from eating of that fruit,
which they acknowledge, by thefr universal system
of education, to be so invaluable to themselves 1
That there are instances of masters lavishing
even paternal kindnesses upon their black depen
dants, there cannot be a shadow of a doubt ; but
then how often do we not see masters and mis
tresses, in Europe, bestowing their fondest attentions
upon a favourite horse or upon a dog? I am
afraid I may, without injustice, draw the same
analogy in the feelings of the master for his slave,
as that of the European for his quadruped.
This brings to my remembrance a circumstance,
which happened on board a steamer on the
Mississippi, called the "Atlantic." A gentleman was

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 147
descanting upon the general love of the slaves for
their masters, and instancing, as a case in point,
that of a southern planter, then on board, and of
his attached and favourite valet, whom he stated,
he was certain, would on no consideration leave
his service, or even accept his freedom, should it be
offered to him. He moreover begged me to put
the question myself to the slave. I complied, and
the answer was as foUows : " If my master would
seU me, and I had my choice of being purchased
by you, or no, I answer, 'that on no account
whatever do I wish to be bought by another ; he
has ever been kind to me, and I am satisfied
I could but change for the worse ; nor would I
run away from him, as I have shown by not
taking advantage of frequent opportunities which
have occurred, as he weU knows, with perfect safety ;
but if I am offered perfect, unrestricted freedom, to
become master of myself and my own actions, then
I accept the boon with gratitude and delight.' Is
there one that would not do sol" This answer may,
in my opinion, be taken as a genuine sample of their
feelings ; but I need not add it greatly discomfited
the line of argument pursued by the gentleman
with whom I was conversing. Is it not natural to
the human race to wish for freedom, however low
l2

148 A GLIMPSE AT
may be their state of mental and corporeal pros
tration ?
There are instances of slaves who, having
escaped, or been enticed away from their masters
while visiting the northern cities, have afterwards
repented, and returned of their own free wiU and
accord to their former home, but such instances
are so rare as almost to prove the rule of a desire
for freedom. The personal valet belonging to Mr,
Clay was enticed to leave him by the efforts,
it is said, of an Abolitionist Society, — a bribe, they
say of no less than 3,000 dollars being offered to
him ; the society considered that, should they be
enabled to produce such an example of dissatisfac
tion in the trusted domestic of so benevolent a
master, this large sum would be well worth its
outlay. The man accepted the terms, and fled,
Mr. Clay taking no notice whatever of the circum
stance ; soon after, the slave was so unhappy, that
of his own free will he returned, and sued for
pardon and restoration to his former situation.
Mr. Clay inquired into the circumstances, and im
mediately sent him back, accompanied by his bribe,
into the Northern states, with directions to restore
it to those from whom he had received it, teUing
him that he ^as at liberty to return again when

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 149
he had delivered the money to its former owners;
it is needless to add that the magnanimity of his
conduct was rewarded by the joyful return of his
repentant body slave.
For many years past, the excitement respecting
the slave question had not run so high as it did at
the period of my visit to the United States. The
Fugitive Slave BUI, which made such a noise
throughout the whole Union, had just passed the
legislature ; and by this it was enacted that should
a master discover his fugitive property in a
Northern or non-slaveholding state, the method of
recovering it was to have the runaway arrested,
and brought before a commissioner, who after due
examination of evidence upon oath, was bound to
order the slave to be given up to his rightful owner,
provided that he could clearly prove the individual
to be his lawful property. Formerly, the law
allowed the capture of runaway slaves equally in
the non-slaveholding states as in the others, but
the method of regaining possession of them was
more difficult and much more doubtful. The case
had to be brought before a jury, who returned their
verdict, which, in consequence of the antipathy to
slavery in the free States, was almost invariably in
favour of the prisoner. This rendered the law so

150 A GLIMPSE AT
dead a letter, that the owner seldom or never
deemed it worth his while to resort to it, feeling
certain that the recovery of his property by this
means was hopeless. In consequence, therefore, of
the lax way in which the law had been carried into
effect, vast numbers of fugitives resided without fear
in many of the Northern cities ; the new law,
therefore, caused a perfect terror among the black
population, but especiaUy along the British frontier,
in the State of New York, and at Detroit, in
Michigan, which were the particular haunts of the
runaway slaves ; vast numbers fled across the border
to seek protection under the monarchical flag of
Great Britain, from that of the free and inde
pendent banner under which they had lately been
enrolled. This has caused an inundation into
Canada West, of the most worthless, wretched, and
abandoned set that can be imagined, and is parti
cularly unfair towards that portion of the citizens
of our colony who reside principally in the towns,
as these wretched fugitives seldom like to go far
into the country, and crime has in consequence
already increased in those districts to which they
resorted three or four-fold ; nine-tenths of those
now under confinement for various offences being of
the black population.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 151
It is currently reported in Canada that the
United States are about to make a strenuous appeal
to the British government, that these fugitives
shoiUd be given up to the laws of their country ; it
would, however, be impossible that the real and
undisguised fi-eedom of Great Britain should be so
tampered with as no longer to grant an exile to their
persecuted feUow-creatures ; and as it is impossible
to distinguish the innocent from the guilty, unless
the runaways come over the border charged with
a felony, however unacceptable their presence may
be, and however desirous our government are to
return such worthless property upon the hands of
their former owners, yet to do so would be but to
sully, the heretofore unblemished banner which gives
protection, in deed as well as in word, to all who
©nter the British territory.
So loiig as slavery is a recognized portion of the
American constitution, the Southern States having
joined the Union under this distinct understanding,
the Fugitive Slave law can be considered in no other
light than as perfectly fair and just ; and the present
application of that law is only granting, vigour to
that which, although it has existed for many years,
has practicaUy been obsolete and a dead letter.
Property in slaves being fully recognized, it was a

152 A GLIMPSE AT
farce to allow that that property should be practi
cally or virtuaUy irrecoverable, whilst in any portion
of the Federal Union ; and before this last enact
ment, it certainly was so. In my opinion, this law
wUl soon be the means of setting the question at
rest. The fugitive slaves who were residents in the
Northern cities will soon altogether have quitted
the United States, and have repaired into Canada.
They have already done so in incredible numbers ;
for while at Niagara I was informed that no less
than 500 passed over in one day. The want of
safety in the free states will cause the slaves seri
ously to consider ere they fly, whether they wiU
receive their accustomed assistance from those of
their friends who with impunity preceded them ;
and these desertions will probably be mate
rially restricted. But the idea that slavery in
the Southern States will be aboUshed is, in
my opinion, utterly out of the question, and
indeed for many reasons is daily becoming more
unUkely. The increased value of labour, the increased price
of slaves, and the daily increasing cultivation of
the sugar-cane, together with the large amount of
mortgaged property, are the principal causes which
will prevent its abolition.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 153
Very early on the morning of the 21st of October,
we arrived at St. Louis, and hiring a small cart for
my portmanteau, it was with extreme delight that
1 transferred myself and my effects from the " Lucy
Bertram " to a most comfortable and airy room in
the Planter's Hotel, — one of the most celebrated
hotels, and justly so, in the United States of
America.

154 A GLIMPSE AT

CHAPTER XIII.
The city of St. Louis is the best example of the
astonishing progress and rapidity, as weU as the
wonderful development, of the resources of the
Western world. But a few years since, it consisted
of some poor huts, inhabited by the descendants of
the original French settlers. They were mostly
hunters and trappers, and simUar precisely in their
feelings and habits to the present population of
Lower Canada, living on from year to year, and
from generation to generation, without even the
thought, much less the desire, of bettering their
condition in life, or raising themselves to a higher
position in society, than that occupied by their fore
fathers. St. Louis now presents an array of handsome
streets, warehouses and stores, hotels, theatres,
public and private buildings, such as any city in

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 155
the world might be proud of, and the amount
of business daily carried on is enormous. St.
Louis commands an immense track of inland
country on both sides of the Mississippi, and
from this city aU the ramifications of this vast
internal continental trade emanate. The steam
boats which line her wharves are very numerous,
and most of them of great capacity; I counted
thirty-five lying, at one time, opposite the town,
and aU of them larger than the boats which
ply from the city of London to Ostend or
Antwerp. Real estate, or city property, has risen propor
tionately in value, and many of the original French
proprietors have benefited to such an extent, as
in some instances to raise themselves from poor
and needy trappers to perfect miUionaires, without
any exertion on their own parts. Thefr present
.wealth is very great, and provided the increase in
the size of this city should be commensurate with
its late progress, of which there can exist scarcely
the shadow of a doubt, the future prospect to their
riches is beyond calculation. The rapidity with
which they have gained their wealth exceeds aU
belief. Common land, situated at some distance
outside the city, for which one hundred dollars the

156 A GLIMPSE AT
acre was paid three years since, and considered
then an exorbitant price, is now thankfully ob
tained, or grudgingly sold, and frequently alto
gether refused, at two thousand dollars per acre.
In fact, it has become almost as difficult to pur
chase estate, in fee simple, and nearly as expensive
as it is in London.
The working of steam engines, the manufacturing
of boUers and other pieces of machinery for steam
vessels, the hammering of carpenters, and the
chipping of masons, resounded in aU directions,
while a thick smoke arose continuaUy into the bright,
clear air from countless furnaces, which, however,
the Goddess of the Indian summer, with her light
zephyr, soon drove away.
At first I was more puzzled at St. Louis, when
I asked my way, than if I had sought it for myself,
because I was constantly directed to some neigh
bouring square ; iu vain I sought these squares, no
such things appeared to me. I at length discovered
that square meant a block of houses. The shops
and stores were fiUed with merchandize, both
French and EngUsh ; the latter I was happy to see
much predominated, and trade in aU its branches
appeared very active.
Artisans of every caUing had no lack of em-

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 157
ployment, and were receiving handsome remune
rations. I found an excellent bookseUer's shop, imme
diately opposite the Planter's Hotel, where I pur
chased, for less than two sovereigns, eight different
new works, which had been published, within the
last six or eight months, in London at one guinea
each. The want of an international copyright,
especially between those countries where many of
the feelings, as weU as the language itself, are
reciprocal, cannot be considered otherwise than
unfair towards authors ; at a moderate rate, it
ought to exist. Why, if a man can secure a
patent for manual inventions, can he not also
protect the inventions of his brain 1 The with
holding of this privUege is unworthy of this great
republic. The French are already contemplating this act
of international justice, and I should be sorry to
see this younger repubUc taking the initiative whUe
her elder sister of the West holds back, reserving
the privUege because she imagines she is the gainer
thereby. After wandering for some hours through the
town of St. Louis, I returned to the Planter's
Hotel to dinner; I there met with a gentleman

158 A GLIMPSE AT
whose acquaintance I had made on Lake Michigan,
During dinner he expatiated largely upon the
wonders of America, but especially of the Western
States, and ended with this remark :—
" I calculate, sir, that your Queen must now be
tarnation mad that her grandfather did not leave
England at the time of our independence, that he
did not settle in this country, and annex Great
Britain to it ! Your little isle, sir, would make a
pretty addition to this fine country I"
I withheld my opinion, but I could not help
reflecting upon what would have been the feehngs
of the dear old King, or the British House of
Parliament, should such a project have been mooted
to him or them.
On the evening of my arrival I went to see a
Panorama of the Overland Route to Cahfornia,
painted by a gentleman who had just returned
from the expedition, having gone there with the
express purpose of pourtraying anything remark
able on the road. The painting itself was by no
means a work of art ; but the journey taken as we
did it, so comfortably and so swiftly, was very
agreeable and interesting, and the deafening shouts
of the audience at the finale, when we were led
straight into the " diggings," and were apparently

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 159
on aU sides surrounded by the precious ore, spoke
from the bottom of their hearts, the true feeling
whence they emanated. The fine scenery, the
hardships of the way, the separation from friends,
which had been depicted and expatiated upon,
were aU obliterated in the tumult which raged in
every breast for gold.
A singular circumstance happened at St. Louis,
at the early part of this summer. Two brothers,
Frenchmen, of good education, named Montesquieu,
were traveUing in the United States, and, on their
arrival here, put up at the City Hotel. Being
sportsmen, they were accompanied by their fowling-
pieces. About twelve o'clock one night, as Mr-
Barnum, the son of the proprietor of the hotel, and
his friend were retiring to rest in the same room,
they heard a noise in the corridor, into which a
window from their chamber opened. Ere they had
time even for consideration as to what was its
cause, shots were fired through this window into
their room. One of these young men was killed
upon the spot, the other severely wounded ; and
it was subsequently discovered that the actor of
this horrid tragedy was the elder of the two
Montesquieus. When I arrived at St. Louis, he
had just undergone his trial for murder, but a

160 A GLIMPSE AT
verdict of insanity, in addition to the pardon of
the Governor of the State, had saved the young
man's life. It was requisite, however, that he
should be smuggled quietly out of the town, or
he would probably have fallen a victim to the
indignation of Mr. Barnum's fellow-citizens. The
trial of the younger brother, who was accused of
being an accessory, had not yet taken place. This
singular circumstance had created the greatest
excitement, and very justly so, and the general
opinion which seemed to prevaU, which so many
persons in England seemed to coincide, was, that
if a man showed such determined vice as deliber
ately to take the life of his fellow creatures, his
own life should pay the penalty, even although he
might be partially insane ; otherwise, where is there
any security to society at large 1
Of aU the cities or towns in the United States,
St. Louis appeared to me to afford a good chance
of success to a young and enterprising stranger, of
whatever trade or profession he might be. The
size of the city is rapidly augmenting-. Salaries
and wages are extremely high, while provisions of
every kind, in an inverse proportion, are very low,
and labour, although so well rewarded, is by no
means overstocked.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 161
UnUke the eastern cities, every one but the old
French settler is comparatively a new comer, and,
therefore, in that respect a stranger, however recent
his arrival, stands on a level with his neighbours.
Let him but show an active and zealous deport
ment, and the road to wealth and prosperity is at
once gained, which never need be lost, but through
his own folly or want of energy.

M

162

A GLIMPSE AT

CHAPTER XIV.
At nine, a.m., on the 23rd of October, I em
barked on board the steamer "Atlantic;" she was
a fine vessel, but rather empty of passengers. I had
taken my passage the day previously, and had
secured a good state-room, both large and airy.
The river was now exceedingly low in water, and
consequently there was much danger, of sticking
on the banks, or striking the bottom, and also
of getting across the numerous snags with which
the navigation was impeded. The captain told me
that, on the previous voyage, he was four days on
a bank, but was determined to take in less freight,
and not get upon any this voyage. He was a
pleasant-spoken person, but, as I subsequently
found, had no intention whatever of proceeding
with the vessel himself, but had determined to
remain with his family at St. Louis, and to give
her in charge to the clerk. By trade he kept a

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 163
;e grocery store in New Orleans, from which,
without any previous nautical education, he had
taken upon himself to command this vessel.
The stated time of our departure having elapsed,
I inquired when we were about to start; I was
answered by one of the stewards, that we should
do so as soon as that batch of niggers were on
board, pointing to a set of poor feUows, who were
casting forlorn and wretched looks upon their
native place, which, in all probability, they were
to see for the last time in their lives.
On descending the river we had a fine view of
the town. Ten years since St. Louis could hardly
number 10,000 inhabitants, now it is said to con
tain between 80,000 and 90,000 souls; nor, from its
appearance, is this by any means improbable. Some
of the original possessors of what is now city pro
perty, have thus, as I have before observed, reaUzed
immense wealth, and their handsome palaces are
now conspicuous objects in the suburbs of the city.
Some few of the inhabitants live in princely style,
but the only enjoyment of the greater portion is
that of stiU increasing their wealth. The French
part of the city still retains its mean appearance, in
which it differs so widely from its more modern
neighbours, and its inhabitants, disliking all sorts
m2

164 A GLIMPSE AT
of labour, both mental and physical, live chiefly
by the proceeds of the enormous rents they receive
from the new and industrious settlers.
These half-breed Frenchmen amuse themselves in
fishing and hunting, while the women, to use a
Spanish phrase, are constantly to be observed
" a somandosi a la ventana," literally, sitting at
their windows gossiping, and the weariness of each
evening is reUeved by small parties, in which dancing
and music are continually introduced.
Those who are fond of the pleasures of the
chase, can enjoy it to any extent at St, Louis, im
mediately opposite to the city. In the State of
Illinois is a swampy, low country, intersected with
lakes, where wild fowl of every description abound
in immense quantities, which I was informed do
not appear to diminish, although so near to this
large city; but few here sport for pleasure alone,
and the regular supply of the market has no serious
effect upon their numbers, although they are brought
in such large quantities, that wild ducks can fre
quently be purchased at half a doUar the dozen.
Quails (or the American partridge) are so abundant,
that they may be constantly seen in the city itself;
and at the rear of these small lakes before men
tioned, is a tract of prairie land, where grouse

THE GREAT WI5STERN REPUBLIC, 165
abound, which bird I found but Utttle esteemed by
the residents, and by no means so much so as the
common chicken.
Pew of the new comers are sportsmen, being
more intent upon the chase for gold than for any
other game whatever.
St. Louis cannot be considered a healthy city ;
in the summer it is exceedingly hot, and for the
want of the fine sea breezes which are enjoyed at
New Orleans, the heat is perhaps felt more than at
the latter city. The autumn is clear and fine, but
the winter I was told was very disagreeable ; the
mornings rainy and misty, sometimes accompanied
by snow and sleet ; the noon-day hot, and in the
evenings there is generally a chilly blast with
drizzling rain.
We had not proceeded more than a couple of
miles when we saw two men, in a canoe, catch a
fine stag, which was making its way across the
river; throwing a rope over his head, they fastened
him to the boat and rowed towards the shore. Here
was an instance of how near even the larger game
approach the city.
Shortly after I was on board, I entered into con
versation with an intelUgent passenger. He com
menced by describing, with the utmost minuteness.

166 A glimpse at
the dangers which we were about to encounter in
our descent of the Mississippi. The state of the
water was such he said, that few vessels, and those
only at high premiums, could find underwriters for
their insurance, that the snags at this season
were peculiarly dangerous, and that, that very
morning, information had been received that the
" Concordia," a fine and stately boat, had sunk
not far down the river. I afterwards discovered,
that most of the travellers at this season of low
water, took their passages as far as Memphis at
least, if not the entire distance, in one of the
smaUer boats. From drawing less water they were
not so liable to ground, and if they did so, were
more easily got off again than the larger ones.
This at once accounted to me for my finding so few
passengers on board the " Atlantic." Those who
are strangers, therefore, unless they have plenty of
of time on their hands, will do well to inquire not
for the largest and handsomest boat, but for the
lightest, and even the most crowded; for although
they wiU meet with worse accommodation, yet they
will be less Ukely to be detained. When there
are many passengers the owners take little freight,
lest by a heavier draught of water, they should
stick upon the banks of the river, and because the

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 167
expense that they would be put to of feeding a
large number of persons during thefr detention,
would thus outweigh any sum they might receive for
extra freight, and in a crowded vessel the greater
is the anxiety of the captain, speedily to accom
phsh his journey and get rid of his passengers.
From experience, moreover, I should particularly
recommend any future traveUer, who is not con
versant with the customs of this portion of the
Union, that before selecting his cabin, he should
make a bargain for his passage-money; for it is as
weU to state, that the price demanded on the Mis
sissippi is by no means the same which they are
ready to accept; for I subsequently found, that I
was charged on the " Atlantic" at the rate of one-
fourth more than any other passenger on board.
It is, moreover, as weU, before starting, to obtain at
the clerk's office the fare to most of the principal
intermediate ports, thereby reserving the power of
leaving the vessel, at a fixed price, at any period
diuing the journey that may be agreeable to do so ;
such, for instance, as the vessel sticking hopelessly
in the mud, or the manners of the passengers
proving distasteful. Should this be neglected, the
owners are at liberty to demand the fare for the
entire distance that the vessel may run, although

168 A GLIMPSE AT
the passenger may have proceeded but a few
miles, and for the payment of it redress could
scarcely be obtained. An instance of this occurred
within my own knowledge : a gentleman having
been obUged to pay the sum of forty-five doUars
for the passage of himself and family, although he
travelled on the steamer a distance of only fifty
miles. Soon after leaving the city of St, Louis the
water became very shallow, and the soundings were
constantly tried by the leadsman, aud shmy snags
of the stupendous cotton-tree showed their ugly
heads on all sides above the surface of the water.
A short way below this, we came to a small
town, where was a considerable Jesuit settlement;
it was nick-named Vuide Poche, or Empty Pockets;
this was principally inhabited by families of the
half-bred French, the men being employed, during
the summer, in collecting skins from the Indians in
the interior of the country.
About eight mUes below the town of St. Louis
we had a fine view of Fort Jefferson and the
barracks, the troops stationed there being under
the command of Colonel Bragg, who, as Captain
Bragg, distinguished himself so much at the battle
of Buena Vista, under his intrepid leader,
General Zachary Taylor. This is the head-quarter

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 169
station of the army for the Western States ; from
hence all orders are sent to the numerous bodies of
meu, who are scattered over their immense Western
frontier. Both to Oregon and California all orders
are sent, and reports received, through this station.
I was informed that a considerable force was at
present in Fort Jefferson ; and it had the appearance
to me of being a most delightful quarter. Besides
infantry there was also a proportion of cavalry and
artillery, and deep were the regrets of those when
ordered into the western wilds from so charming a
residence. I understood there were many deserters from the
British service, who made application to be received
into that of the United States ; but soldiers of the
British army would do well to pause ere they
exchanged their position for that of the American
service. By doing so, they undoubtedly obtain a
higher rate of pay, more food, and clothing, less
driU, and a much greater freedom, if they aspire to
such a thing, with their officers ; but with these,
they also obtain the contempt of every worthy
citizen of the United States. They are draughted
into smaU companies, who frequently spend years
on the frontiers, distant thousands of miles from
civihzation. They have no chance whatever of rising

170 A GLIMPSE AT
above the lowest grade, and at the expiration of
their service they are discharged without pay or
pension, and devoid of those sympathies which
they would meet with from their own paternal
Government. The officers of the United States army are a
most gentlemanly, pleasant set of men, especially
those lately appointed. AU of them, except by the
especial selection of the President of the United
States, which is rarely the case, must have been
educated at West Point. The nature of their
service inures them to hardships and dangers of
all kinds, for although the United States can
scarcely ever be said to be at war, yet the constant
activity in which their army is obliged- to be,
with Indians of all denominations, upon their far
extended frontiers, certainly does not aUow to any
portion of their small army, that lassitude and ease
which is frequently enjoyed by the troops of many
of the older countries. Their services seldom being
required in the Eastern States of this stupendous
nation, they are sent to Texas, California, and
Oregon, where, in fact, they become the pioneers of
civiUzation, and as soon as a frontier post becomes
settled by the white man, and civilization surrounds
it, it demonstrates clearly that the services of the

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. l7l
mihtary are beginning to be no longer required
there, and that it is time for them to move still
farther into the Western wilds. Nor can this state
of things cease untU the entire country, from the
Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans, becomes settled,
and the Indian race is either amalgamated with
the white man, or swept into the ocean by the
overwhelming strength of this advancing human
tide. When we had descended the Mississippi about
thirty miles, we came to a very shaUow bank, where
we were obUged to send the long boat a-head,
to sound the channel ; the pilot reporting that
he did not think there was sufficient water to float
us over. In about one hour the boat returned,
the pilot stating that we must lighten the vessel ;
we accordingly landed a drove of buUocks, and
at 2 p. M. made the attempt. As most of us
expected, we stuck about the centre of the bar,
and were obliged to exercise every species of in
genuity to get her off. In this we were assisted
by two other steamers, and finally about 4 a. m.
the following morning, we worked over and con
tinued our course.
During the time that we lay upon the bank, I
entered into conversation with the chief engineer.

172 A GLIMPSE AT
respecting the numerous accidents on the Mississippi
River. He said, there was no doubt that every one
of them which originated with the engine, might
properly be attributed to the neglect of the engineer,
and that, in almost every case, the bursting of a
boiler was in consequence of their neglecting to
replenish it with water. To most vessels on this
river, is attached a small engine, called the Doctor,
for the double purpose of filling the boiler and
acting as a fire engine in cases of ignition. There
were many steam-boats blown up this season, on
the rivers Mississippi and Ohio, In the "Kate
Kearney " were many Uves lost, and in the " Kate
Fleming " and the " Santa F^ " a few also perished.
In the " Kate Fleming," the captain was sleeping in
the same berth with his son when the bursting of
the boiler drove a large piece of iron through the
deck and killed the boy in his berth without injuring
the father. In the " Santa Fe," the entire steerage
room, containing the pilot and a friend, was thrown
into the air and fell upon the main-deck, strange to
say, without injury to either of them, I was subse
quently informed that the calculation of the number
of vessels lost yearly on the Mississippi River and its
tributaries, was about two per cent, per annum.
There are generally twelve hundred steam-vessels

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 173
employed, and the annual loss is about twenty-five
boats. This generally occurs amongst the oldest
and most worthless, such as the owners are fre
quently unable to obtain any underwriters for an
insurance upon. The rate of insurance on the
steamer "Atlantic" was twelve per cent, per annum
on her value, but she also effected an insurance
upon each trip. No company would insure any
vessel beyond three-fourths of her value, lest she
should be destroyed purposely with the connivance
of her owners.
About nine a.m. we passed Turkey Island, where
we saw a steamer aground, called the " St. Paul,"
she having passed during the night while we were
on the bank. The water continually shallowed,
and the heads of snags constantly protruded them
selves above the surface, demonstrating too clearly
to us that their pointed limbs were hid beneath.
The clerk of the vessel told me, that on a former
voyage one of them had caught the stern of the
vessel, and running directly through her guards,
had lifted more than twenty live hogs into the
river. On another occasion, when descending the
stream, the snags then facing the boat like a
chevaux de frise, a tall one rose and, forcing up
wards, tore the wheel-house completely off. He

174 A GLIMPSE AT
had also seen them run through some of the fore-
cabins and crush the passengers in their berths.
In short, the accidents of daUy occurrence on this
river require no exaggeration to enhance the dan
gers of the Mississippi to aU those who for the
first time navigate her waters. Numberless anec
dotes were related to us of such accidents ; as that
of the " Tennessee," which, with six hundred souls
on board, was snagged and sank, a hundred and
eighty being drowned, the rest having to remain
for thirty-six hours up to their middle in water,
under the momentary expectation of being carried
down the stream.
The state saloons on board the " Atlantic" were
large and commodious, and in consequence of there
being so few passengers on board I had one to
myself. It is seldom the custom, however, to fit
any of them up with washing apparatus, &c., and
all that they contained were two standing berths,
here caUed bunks. There was a washing-room near
the paddle-wheel, which contained the sink, the
little tin basons, and the large jack-towels, for the
use of all, the sailors here not being excepted, not
widely differing in this respect from the "Wis
consin." The hair-brush and comb were also pro
vided, but the tooth-brush, which I had seen occa-

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 175
sionally, in hotels and steamers, attached with a
brass chain to a nail above the sink, was here
wanting. The meals were exceedingly ample and
cleanly served, and the attendance of the stewards
most punctual. I may here observe, that the
domestics in the hotels and steam-boats in the
West I found far more obliging than in the Eastern
States. In the West they are principally Germans
or slaves, both of whom I found more obliging than
the native American, who considers himself above
any servUe occupation. Amongst other novelties
at breakfast I observed molasses or treacle, served
up in large claret decanters, which was eaten by
most of the company with peculiar relish, being
spread upon bread and butter, as some schoolboys
in England are accustomed to do.
About nine A.M., on the 25th of October, we
reached a smaU island, said to be half way between
St. Louis and Ohio River, having thus only accom-
phshed one hundred miles in forty-eight hours ;
although this was sad slow travelling, yet it was
preferable to remaining on a bank for four or five
days, a circumstance by no means unusual during
this stage of the water. Round about this island
the bed of the river appeared actually matted with
snags, and from the frequent disasters which here
occur, it is called the grave of the steamers.

176 A GLIMPSE AT
About five p.M, on the 24th, just when we had
made up our minds to reach Cairo that evening,
we found ourselves again firmly fixed, upon what
was called Sliding Island Bar. These provoking
interruptions owed their existence, in a great mea
sure, to the owners of the vessel. In order to gain
a higher profit they had caused her to be laden
with freight, deeper, by at least two feet, than she
ought to have been. The daily expenses of the
ship were calculated at two hundred dollars, and
the consequent loss on detention far exceeded what
this additional freight would liave brought, and by
no means compensated them for taking it, verifying
the old adage of people sometimes being " penny
wise and pound foolish."
On board the " Atlantic," the chief engineer and
carpenter of the vessel were particularly inteUigent
men, and of natural genius. The first had invented
a clever machine for showing the depth of water in
the steamer's boiler, as well as a new adaptation of
the paddle-wheel to steamers ; having described
them to a former passenger, he immediately
patented them as his own at Washington. The
carpenter had invented a machine by which he
stated a passage from New York to Liverpool
might be effected in three days ; and after his

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 177
explanation of it, I do not think it by any means
so extraordinary or visionary as the very ship we
were then in would have appeared to our grand-
sires a hundred years ago. The propelling power
was that of steam, but the adaptation, as well as
the Vessel itself, was totally different from anything
I had previously seen or read of.
At three p.m., after immense exertions, we got
off the bank at SUding Island, and ran above the
bar, to take in more wood. During this operation
one poor fellow slipped overboard, and getting
under the paddle-wheel, which was in motion, pro
bably was struck by it, — at all events, he never
more appeared on the surface of the water. I was
quite surprised to see how small a sensation this
circumstance had produced, which I attribute not
so much to a want of feeling as to the erratic life
which the inhabitants of this portion of the Union
lead; as also to the enormous influx of foreign
emigration, which blunts that brotherly feeUng
which exists among old estabUshed communities.
The constant struggle which is here going on, as to
whoshaU "go a-head" at the greatest speed, cer
tainly engenders an amount of selfishness.
While at this landing-place, the " Sultana " ar
rived ; she was a magnificent boat, and drew about
N

178 A GLIMPSE AT
the same amount of water as the " Atlantic." The
day previously she had run upon a large snag, near
the Steamers' Grave, by which she stove in one
hundred and two of her bottom timbers, seventy-
two of which were actuaUy broken in half. She
had contrived to reach the shore, although in a
sinking condition ; with extreme labour they had
contrived to patch her up with two thousand feet of
timber. They had telegraphed to the owners and
underwriters, who desired them to continue their
voyage of nine hundred miles, to New Orleans,
which they were accordingly doing, although in
this dangerous condition. We afterwards found
that the " Sultana " had taken in (in aU its senses)
sixty more passengers at Cairo, who were, of course,
ignorant of the state she was in ; the excuse being,
that the underwriters had agreed to stand by the
insurance, and that, therefore, if she was considered
safe for her freight she was equally so for her
passengers. We had scarcely again recommenced our voyage,
when we were once more ashore, but obtaining the
assistance of a flat boat we contrived, by transfer
ring to it a portion of our cargo, once more to get
under weigh. It is truly astonishing that such an
enterprising set of people as the Americans should

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 17.9
not place pUot-boats on each of these bars, with
signal-men to show the depth of water, and buoy
the channel. How small would this expense be in
comparison with the loss of time and money occa
sioned by these numerous detentions. While de
tained at SUding Island, a diving-beU steamer came
alongside. She had been buUt by an enterprising
young man, at the expense of one thousand seven
hundred doUars, but had already amply repaid her
owner, from the proceeds of the numerous wrecks,
which abound in this river. I saw on board her
a large number of pigs of lead, which her owner
and crew had just recovered from the bottom of the
Mississippi, from a steamer which was wrecked
about twenty-two years since ; and also they had
brought up a large assortment of EngUsh crockery-
ware.

N 2

180 A GLIMPSE AT

CHAPTER XV.
On the evening of the 26th, we at length arrived
at Cairo. Here I found several steamboats, bound
both up and down the river, waiting for cargo,
and for passengers. I was particularly struck
with the neat and cleanly appearance of the
" Lexington," and as she was advertised to sail on
the following day for New Orleans, and her
draught of water was considerably less than that
of the " Atlantic," of which I was by this time
heartily tired, I determined to engage a berth
on board her. The owner of the " Atlantic " was
exceedingly unwilling that I should do so, assuring
me that the " Lexington " would not leave Cairo
for some days, whereas the clerk of that vessel
stated that she would certainly depart the foUow
ing morning. Amongst all these contradictory
assertions I was somewhat puzzled, but determined
to abandon the "Atlantic;" I therefore sacrificed

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. ! 181
a few dollars, and obtained an exceedingly good
state-room in my new boat.
The site of the town of Cairo was purchased
many years since by an English company, of which,
I understand, the Rothschilds were to be the prin
cipal shareholders. Geographically speaking, there
is perhaps no position in the whole of the United
States which would promise better for the site of
a large city than that of Cairo. It is situated at
the fork of the Ohio and Mississippi. The navi^
gation for large boats during a low state of water
commences here. The mid-M'inter navigation, when
the upper waters of both these rivers are choked
with ice, is free to this point ; from its position, it
would naturally be the spot where the great rail
roads from north to south of the western parts of
the United States would traverse. These advan
tages have, however, been as yet paralysed, by the
fearful floods which annually lay all this country
under water, frequently rising much above an
embankment, here called a " levee," which some
years since has been thrown around the site of the
intended city. The enterprise of the west, however,
has now grown to such a pitch, as to overcome all
natural obstacles where any chance of gain exists ;
and this winter the whole site of Cairo city is to be

182 A GLIMPSE AT
placed iu the market, the company having deter
mined, as an inducement to purchasers, to build a
dike around it that wUl bid defiance even to this
mighty stream. No doubt, on the subsiding of the
waters, that is, during the summer, an unhealthy
miasma wiU invade its precincts. Yet this will not
deter thousands from occupying this position, nor
wiU there be any want of persons to supply the
places of those who may succumb to its effects; for
a species of Californian yellow fever, which rages
in parts of the United States, never abates in con
sequence of the innovations of any other ; and thus
Cairo, though now insignificant, may in a few years
excel, both in wealth and in size, as it speedily will
in inteUigence, its older namesake Cairo on the
Nile, whose propensities to overflow her banks are
the same as the Mississippi. Another cause, I was
informed, which has retarded Cairo, was, that the
company, following the English custom, declined
to sell the lots, and were only willing to let them
on long leases. When so much land and city lots
are in the market, property under these restrictions
will rarely attract purchasers ; but now that they
are to be for bond fide sale, no doubt they will find
purchasers. Notwithstanding the assertions of the clerk of

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 183
the " Lexington," we did not leave Cairo untU the
evening of the 28th ; but the speed of this vessel
was so great, and her draught of water so small,
that without risk we continued steaming nearly all
the night, and finally reached Memphis, a distance
of three hundred and forty mUes, by eight o'clock
on the following evening. We here passed the
"Atlantic," and heard that she had again been
more than once on a bar, which made me well
satisfied with having left her.
During the night we passed within a few miles of
Reel Lake, in the State of Tennessee. It derives its
name from a sudden bend in the shape of its waters,
resembhng that of a broken foot. This lake, which
is of considerable extent, was the effect of the great
earthquake of 1812. Before that period its site
was dry land ; now gigantic cotton and other trees
may be discovered, submerged many fathoms be
neath the surface of its clear waters* The lake, I
was told, was the haunt of innumerable wild fowl,
and teemed with every variety of aquatic birds.
They are so seldom disturbed, that they may be
destroyed by thousands, being apparently uncon
scious of the effect of a fowling-piece. On the
following morning we stopped for wood at a landing-
pla'co iu the state of Arkansas, pronounced by the

184 A GLIMPSE AT
inhabitants, who have the best right to know how
to do so, Arksinsaw. The shores of the Missis
sippi hold one uniform and rather uninteresting
character, an unbroken forest lining either bank of
the stream; sandy points were jutting into the
river, upon which innumerable ugly-looking snags
protruded their bleached heads and limbs in all
directions, through which we fortunately glided in
perfect safety under the skilful management of our
pilots. The situation of pilot on the Mississippi River
being one of great responsibility, is consequently
well paid. There are two on board every steamer,
who each receive a hundred and twenty-five
doUars a month in addition to their board, A
particularly active young man who was acting in
that capacity on board the " Lexington," told me,
that even with this high rate of wages he was unable
to save anything, the temptations open to young
men in the large cities being too strong to be
resisted. The wages of the captain were one hun
dred and twenty-five dollars per month, equal only
to that of the pUot ; the clerk received one hundred
dollars; the engineers, first class, seventy-five
dollars ; second class, fifty doUars ; and every com
mon sailor, twenty-five doUars per month, always

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 185
exclusive of their board. The cost, therefore, of
these boats was very considerable, and it required
at least one hundred passengers, or a very large
amount of freight, to return any profit to the
owners, which, with the amount of competition now
existing, some boats were unable to effect. But no
people on earth are so fond of travelling as the
Americans, and no other race but the Anglo-Saxons
would provide the numberless means of migration
that exist throughout this great continent. On
the following morning, after leaving Memphis, we
saw a vast number of turkey buzzards, the first I
had yet seen. They are as large as an eagle, and
feed upon carrion, the presence of which they
discover from a long distance.
While gliding swiftly down the stream, we saw a
handsome steamer, called the " Missouri," fast upon
a bank in the river.
The meals in the "Lexington" appeared quite
endless, one constant succession of laying out
the tables, eating, and then clearing away the
things. From seven to nine in the morning there
was breakfast, first for the passengers, then for the
nurses and chUdren, next for the officers of the ship,
and lastly for the coloured people, whether passen
gers or slaves ; for be it understood, that, however

186 A GLIMPSE At
wealthy a man may be, if there Can be proved the
least taint In his blood, he is at once banished from
the socioty of the white people ; being considered to
possess a Sort of contaminating influence. To such
aU eMtent, indeed, is this carried, that in parts of
the state of Tennessee, any white man who married
one of the coloured race woidd be driven out of the
country, lynched or mobbed, and some years since,
when law was less povverful than at present, his
life even would have been in danger.
No sooner Was breakfast fairly cleared away,
than luncheon was laid Upon the table. From one
to threOj dinner for passengers, childreUj officers of
the ship, and coloured people, then followed ; and
from five to seven, tea was arranged for each class
in suecession.
In no instance did I observe that greediness at
their meals of which the Americans have been
accused by many travellers, nor in quantity or
rapidity of eating did they exceed most English^
men, which I had been led to expect. There were
only two gentlemen who partook of luncheon ; one
was very short and fat, the othei* tall and thin.
As we could take but very little exercise, I felt at a
loss to conceive bow they could digest so many
meals iu the day ; for throughout the United States

THE GREAT WSgTERKT REPUBLIC. 18V
heavy dishes 6f weat, beefsteaks, &c., ate invari
ably placed upon the table at each recurring meal.
I did not however perceive any difference in the
plethoric looking passenger, but the tall and thin
one had a serious attack of indigestion before quit-
ticg us at Natches — a complaint which would be
less frequent if the Americans were less liberal in
their supply.
Throughout the United States watef is the
usual beverage of all persons at dinner ; oecasionally
wine may be caUed for, but seldom ; this does
not, however, imply that they are a nation of
water drinkers, although total abstinence has cer
tainly made rapid strides throughout the United
States. The bar is the great lounge, and during
every hOur of the day a brisk demand for all
descriptions of compounds is continually kept up.
On board the " Lexington" the bar-keeper told me
he had to pay fifteen hundred dollars a-^year
for the privilege of selling his liquors to the
passengers. I was surprised to observe amongst
a people of such general inteUigence, so few who
resorted to instructive intellectual amusements.
A great many passed their time iu reading
bad novels, scores of which issue Weekly from the
ibertine presses of New York, — many, as else-

188 A GLIMPSE AT
where, highly detrimental to the moraUty of the
community. In the struggle of these authors to gain celebrity,
and sale for their works, they pander to the demo
cratic feeUngs of the multitude, by teUing the most
extravagant falsehoods of the land of their fore
fathers, and at the expense of veracity they mis
represent everything which is ancient, or to be
reverenced, in order to please the tastes of their
vain readers.
The cabins, or state-rooms, although smaU, were
sufficiently comfortable, but the heat in the forward
ones was intolerable, as they were placed immedi
ately above the boUers. I afterwards discovered
that there was some art in selecting a state-room,
which any future traveller would do well remember.
The stern is appropriated to the ladies, and is by
far the most pleasant position in the ship, being
light, airy, cool, and quiet. The forepart is equally
light and airy, but is less safe, and frequently very
hot, being over the boilers. The state-rooms in
the centre are cool, but, unfortunately, there is
the great objection of being very dark ; receiving
what little light they possess from the main-cabin.
The state-room which I chose was in the forepart
of the ship, which I shared with a very pleasant

THE GRE.\T WESTERN REPUBLIC. 189
companion, an active-minded man, who had been in
Mexico during the late American war, from which he
had brought home large profits and many enter
taining anecdotes. He was particular in his caution
to lock the door on retiring to rest, stating that
during his last voyage on the Mississippi, he had
been robbed one night of two thousand doUars and
his gold watch, by some person entering his cabin
whflst he slept ; that he had fortunately detected
the individual and recovered his property; the man
being now in jail for the offence. He was rather
too soUcitous about my health, by frequently
greeting me with the salutation, "Well, sir, and
how do you feel jouvselinoivf"

190 A GLIMPSE AT

CHAPTER XVL
On the 30 th we touched at Napoleon, in the
state of Arkansas. A large hospital was here
erecting for the benefit of the sailors on the
Mississippi River, who were obUged, while in active
employment, to subscribe sixpence a week each,
to support it, and this no doubt wiU be a most
exceUent estabUshment.
I had been informed that the country below
Napoleon, and more especially within one hundred
miles of New Orleans, was most beautiful. The
same unbroken flat continued on either side,
showing symptoms, however, of better cultivation
and ere long we found ourselves in a constant

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 191
succession of sugar plantations, which occupied a
width of one or two miles on either side of the
margin of the river, but beyond this again, inland,
extended the same line of forest. The country
was rich, not in grandeur of scenery, but in dollars,
to which the minds of most of my fellow-travellers
were peculiarly alive and sensitive, The inhabi
tants appeared in great comfort ; at a short
distance were the boiling and storing-houses, flanked
by rows of smaU cottages, generaUy whitewashed,
in which I was informed the slaves resided, four
in each cottage.
Intersecting the country in various directions,
were deep cut channels to carry off the surplus water,
as the raius during the spring and autumn sometimes
faU in immense quantities. All these channels, and
the high levees built of mud to keep out the over
flow of the river, are executed by the emigrant
labourers from Ireland, who fiock to this country in
great numbers. This work is perhaps the most
laborious in the country, and is considered so severe
for the slaves that they are seldom employed
upon it. A large proprietor exclaimed in my
hearing, "What should we do without the Irish
emigrants ? " I immediately remarked that I had
been given to understand, that the chief arguments

192 A GLIMPSE AT
in favour of the continuance of slavery, was that
no European could do any hard work in this chmate.
" Ah," said he, after some hesitation, " true, sir,
but that applies to the sugar and cotton only ; in
fact, sir, white labour won't pay in this country, ex
cept as a resource on special occasions." From
this, and many other circumstances which I shall
hereafter have occasion to notice, it became quite
clear to me that the non-abolition of slavery
depended upon one solitary cause, "Sir, it wont
pay to abolish it ;" or rather that it pays much
better to retain it, and that as long as it does, so
long wiU it be maintained. In Missouri it is
dying out, and whyl let us hope from motives of
philanthropy, rather than from calculations of
profit. Amongst the passengers on board the "Lexington,"
were many gentlemanly, agreeable, and inteUigent
persons. I here had the good fortune to become
acquainted with Dr. Polk, Bishop of Louisiana.
He appeared to me not more than forty-seven or
forty-eight years of age, and was as active in body
as in mind. He was well informed respecting aU
European countries, but especially respecting Eng
land ; and it was most satisfactory and pleasing to
see the affection with which he regarded our Church

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 193
institutions — not that he believed them to be with
out fault, but he dreaded the present encroach
ments, lest, as he observed, in removing that which
was bad, much of the good might be swept away.
I was dehghted to converse with him ; amongst
the democrats so plentiful in the States, and par
ticularly in the Western ones, it is satisfactory to
find one who has a regard for the ancient insti
tutions of his forefathers. The bishop was kind
enough to invite me to his country estate, a few
miles inland from the Mississippi, and near to the
banks of another of those tributaries to this mighty
stream, called the Red River, being itself navi
gable by steam-vessels for nearly seven hundred
miles. The Red River, rising in the Rocky Moun
tains, flows first through the Indian territory, and
thence, through the State of Arkansas, into the
Mississippi. I much regretted that I was compelled
to decline the proffered hospitality of Dr. Polk, for,
independent of losing the opportunity of witness
ing the mode of life amongst the rich proprietors
of the South, I should have had a better oppor
tunity of cultivating an acquaintance from which
I had derived amusement and instruction.
The bishop of Louisiana described the life of au
o

194 A GLIMPSE AT
American bishop as very laborious. The annual
visitations through his diocese could scarcely be
completed under a period of five or six months,
during which time he was subject to very severe
traveUing in distant and uncivilized places; and
their salaries, in comparison to those of our Church,
were mere pittances. He denied that the volun
tary system of payment to the clergy made them
less independent ; on the contrary, he aUeged that
the severer a congregation was handled, provided
the doctrine was honest, the greater was their
opinion of their spiritual leader.
Dr. Polk is a large proprietor of sugar planta
tions, and the possessor of upwards of three hundred
and fifty slaves. He had been most unfortunate
during the summer of last year, more than seventy
of his slaves having died of cholera, which scourge
infested many districts in this country ; and as
each slave, on an average, can scarcely be estimated
at less than five hundred dollars, he had thus lost
property to the value of thirty-five thousand doUars.
That a bishop, and a most amiable man, should be a
slave owner, sounds to our notions rather a singular
circumstance ; and yet, if the possession of slaves
be wrong, let the wrong be wiped away from the

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 19S
Republic at large, for if it be a sin, it can be no
less so for a private individual than for a bishop.
A clergyman, who appeared to be the chaplain,
gave me a most interesting account of the numerous
schools which the bishop had instituted, teUing me
what marked improvement the negro children had
made in their studies. All instruction must be
given oraUy, it being, as I before observed, contrary
to the State laws to instruct them by books. The
amount of affection and reverence with which Dr.
Polk was regarded by all these poor people, the
chaplain stated to be most gratifying.
Where slavery is carried on with these truly
patriarchal feelings, it must be a benefit rather than
a curse towards those who live under such a really
benevolent sway ; and I am bound to believe that,
in the majority of cases, slaves are treated, as regards
the amount of labour exacted, with more conside
ration in the Southern States than in many of the
rural districts in our own country ; where, although
they claim to themselves the proud boast of being
free men, and are reaUy free in law, and are per
son aUy of a high spirit, resenting any injustice,
yet, in honest truth, are dependent for their daily
food on their employer, who, possessing no vested
0 2

196 A GLIMPSE AT
capital in his servant, as tlie master does in the
slave, has not the same interested regard for his
well-being; and, taking into consideration tlie heavy
taxes and rates, the employer naturally endeavours
to get the full value out of the labourer's services,
in the same manner that a hired horse is generally
harder worked than one which is the property of
the master.
Nevertheless, slavery is a great curse, however
mild in this Land of Liberty, for although the
slaves have very many kind masters, and indeed
the great majority are so, yet as a class, they are
subject to the caprices of their fellow-beings, who
can tyrannize most cruelly over them ; aud none
are harder task-masters than those of their own
race, who, once having been slaves, have become
free, and are now owners of their fellow-beings.
In some of the small country-inns, I have been
particularly struck by the arrogant manners of the
landlady towards her domestics ; and I have ob
served that this disdain is more frequently prac
tised by the lowest of our own countrymen, who,
in the exercise of a newly-acquired power, use it
with a forgetfulness of their former sufferings very
inexcusable.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 197
The most degrading fate to which a slave is
subject, is that of being bought and sold, and
although a man in prosperous circumstances may
never have occasion to part with his property, yet
at his death, or on the marriage of his children,
a part of his slaves are frequently alienated
from the family servitude. In this case the
wife is never separated from the husband, nor the
child of tender age from its parent ; but how fre
quently does it happen, in this land of speculation,
that a man of vast property is suddenly reduced to
such distress that aU his stock must be turned into
money for the benefit of his creditors. How then
can the tenderest of ties, amongst his slaves, be
respected 1 It then frequently happens that the
auctioneer severs them asunder, — the wife is sent
to Alabama to pick cotton, — the husband to a
sugar plantation in Texas, — and the children
to supply the fires of a high pressure engine, on
the Mississippi.
A gentleman from Massachussetts on board the
"Lexington," showed me his estate as we were
descending the river, and told me that when he
purchased the property, the buUdings, slaves, &c.,
there were forty men slaves on it, and only three

198 A GLIMPSE AT
women and children ; a disproportion which could
by no means tend to the happiness of this httle
community, and which he took immediate steps
to remedy.
I am inclined to believe that the excitement
consequent upon the Fugitive Slave BiU, has mate
rially benefited this servile class of the population,
The subject, being so much canvassed, naturally
causes inquiry into its merits, which ultimately
tends to their benefit. One peculiarly hard cir
cumstance connected with their position, is that no
sum of money can purchase their freedom contrary
to the wishes of their owners. Slaves, in the large
towns, are constantly aUowed to assume an inde
pendent position, keeping shops, &c. &c,, as though
they are free. They are, however, obliged to carry
weekly to their masters such a portion of their
gains as he thinks proper to demand, and are at
any time subject to the same corporeal penalties
as the meanest of this community.
In the Island of Cuba the law upon this head
stands differently. There, a slave has the right at
all times to claim his freedom upon the payment of
a fixed sum, — a much more just law than the entire
dependence of the slave on the wiU of the owner

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 199
to which he is subjected in the United States.
Industrious negroes are, not unfrequently, allowed
a portion of the day to labour on their own account.
This, of course, is at the option of their owners ;
some masters obUge their slaves to work fifteen
hours a day ; others oblige them to work only
ten or eleven, the remainder of their time being
available for their own purposes. But all are
obhged to undertake such work as it pleases their
master to dictate, such as sailors', tinkers', or tailors',
according to his directions.
I had frequent conversations with the free blacks,
who naturally take a most lively interest in a
subject which so materially affects their position,
and, as might have been expected, all of them
express an intense admiration of Great Britain
and her institutions, envying the position of our
free West Indian colonists ; for although, in the
event of slavery being aboUshed in the United
States, many of the coloured race possessing pro
perty would be considerable losers, yet the position
in society which the coloured people would thereby
obtain, of equal rights with the white man, would
immeasurably compensate them for any pecuniary
loss, and to this happy state they all look forward

200 A GLIMPSE AT
with the deepest anxiety. To extract their sen
timents upon this subject requires some caution,
unless they are assured that they are really con
versing with an EngUshman. The Southern slave
holder, however, will endeavour to persuade the
traveller that not only are the slaves delighted with
their happy position, but that the entire coloured
population are quite contented and free from care,
and that in case of any foreign invasion, the whole
would instantly enrol themselves, and defend with
patriotism the properties and lives of their masters
against the British nation ; and even if they believed
that the promise of liberty would be duly kept,
from the proofs placed before them in the eman
cipation of our own slaves throughout the whole
world. The great argument in favour of a continuance
of the system, is the difficulty, if not impossibility,
of cultivating the sugar cane by free labour. The
planters state that it requires a combination in
work, which, unless enforced with an autocratic
sway, would not be available in the production of
this valuable crop. There is no doubt that a great
difficulty would at first arise to ensure a command
of free labour, and this being the only resource

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 201
within the reach of the planter, would be withheld
at the option of the lower classes, and occasionally
at the most critical moment. There must be a
great increase in the population, and a change in
their habits before this could be remedied, and the
expense of the production being increased, a higher
sum must be asked for the commodity, and foreign
competition would be the result ; but all this is no
reason why steps should not be taken in the right
direction, and some method put in practice, whereby
this horrid and criminal usage may be gradually
obHterated, — and this stain on a free and noble
people be wiped out. The truth is, there exists a
difficulty in the manumission of the slaves, which
renders that measure very difficult. There are few
planters that are not deeply involved, and their
plantations therefore heavily mortgaged. This is
not owing so much to their extravagant habits, or
their carelessness, as to their excess of over-specu
lation. Money in this country can scarcely ever
be procured at a lower rate of interest than 12
per cent,, even upon landed security. It requires,
therefore, a large profit, where capital is bor
rowed, to secure a handsome remuneration for
their own risk and trouble ; but many a planter is

202 A GLIMPSE AT
anxious to borrow even at this high rate, the large
profits from past speculation assuring him that there
is no reason to fear but that a handsome reward
will accrue to him after he has paid the interest
and the capital of the borrowed money.
From a calculation which I made, and which
must, I am aware, be very imperfect, I assume
that no estate, provided it is burdened with the
usual amount of debt, could be considered as re
paying a fair interest for the invested capital,
in addition to the interest of its debt, unless it
would return at least twenty-five per cent, per
annum upon the outlay. This profit is considerably
diminished to the planter, provided he is an ab
sentee, in which case he is obliged to pay a large
sum for superintendence. All sugar plantations,
even those of a small class, require a large outlay of
capital, and indeed cannot be cultivated on a smaU
scale, with that proportion of profit which can be
secured from one of greater size, or indeed from
a farm of common agricultural produce.
A sugar plantation of five hundred acres must,
in addition, possess from one to two hundred acres,
for the production of grain to support its slaves and
cattle, and also have four or five hundred acres of

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 203
well timbered land, as an immense quantity of wood
is required for the purpose of keeping up the large
fires requisite in the boUing-houses. For working
this estate in a proper manner, one hundred negroes
may be considered sufficient, with about sixty horses
or mules.. If we take the original price paid for the
property, the purchase-money for the slaves, which
cannot be estimated at less than six hundred dol
lars each, the outlay for waggons, farming imple
ments, oil, knives, and machinery, the price of the
whole will nearly amount to one hundred thousand
dollars; and with a crop which requires vigilance
of no ordinary kind, and a press of labour, when
required, at command, Uterally to save it from de
struction, I can readily imagine that the planter is
loath to disband his troops, which are now obliged
instantly to do his bidding, and to replace them
by chance free labour, which, when most wanted,
would show great independence, and certainly exact
a price altogether inadequate to the return which
the planter naturaUy looks for to meet his engage
ments, and render him a profit.
The labour upon these estates is very constant ;
in the winter the land is cleared and tilled for the
crop which is planted out in the spring ; no sooner

204 A GLIMPSE AT
is this operation ended, than all hands are turned
to cut wood ready for the boUing-houses, and should
there be more cut than is required for this purpose,
it is sold on the banks of the river to the passing
steam-vessels. No sooner does the frost appear, at
the early commencement of the winter, which is
immediately recognised by the plant assuming a red
tinge, than labour is directed towards cutting and
carrying it to the boiling-houses, and the following
winter the process of the last is again repeated.

TUB GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 205

CHAPTER XVIL
No one can travel on the Mississippi without
hearing strange stories of the knavish tricks, which
rarely happen now, but which formerly were very
frequent, both in the boats on tho river, and at the
various towns on its banks. These are ascribed to
a set of men, called in the south. Gamblers, and in
the north of the Union, Loafers — an idle, dissipated
set, whose constant business it is to prey upon the
rest of the community. When arrested for their
peccadilloes, they seldom received a regular trial
and condemnation, but were subjected to the pro
cess of lynch law by the community at large. There
are endless accounts of the various punishments
to which these men were made liable ; such as
being placed on the paddle-wheel of the steamer,
and made to walk, as in a treadmUl, for hours ; in
other instances, of their ears having been nailed to

206 A GLIMPSE AT
the bulk-head of the ship — punishments which the
first settlers in this country deemed necessary for
their protection.
On the subject of lynch law, an American
related to me a circumstance which happened
not long since, in the Indian territory on the Red
River, only a few mUes beyond the State of Arkansas.
The story was as foUows : — "An industrious settler,
who resided at some little distance from other
people, retired, as usual, about nine o'clock at night,
to rest. At midnight the family were aroused, at
finding their house on fire ; the cries of his wife
and children were unavailing ; they endeavoured to
escape, but were confronted by three men : the father
was soon put to death, his wife and one or more of his
children shared the same fate. The buUding was
soon reduced to ashes, the murderous incendiaries,
imagining that every one of the family had perished,
conceived that no clue to their guilt would ever be
discovered. It so happened, however, that one little
boy, of tender age, escaped unseen in the confusion,
and running to the house of the nearest settler, he
gave the alarm, and also stated that he should have
no difficulty in identifying these midnight assassins.
On the succeeding day, the nearest settlers assem
bled, in great numbers, at the scene of this tragic

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 207
afi"air, and having empaneUed a jury amongst them
selves, and elected a judge, they seized the accused,
who unsuspectingly were amongst the crowd, and
having confronted them with the boy, they proceeded
to try them upon the spot, by lynch law. The sim
ple forms which they adopted were soon terminated,
and the verdict of guilty of murder and arson was
returned. The judge sentenced the condemned to
be hanged ; a party were desired to erect gibbets,
and before the sun had set on the succeeding day,
all three were swinging betwixt earth and heaven,
as they deserved.
Some passengers disembarking at Vicksburgh, I
took the opportunity of changing my state-room for
one in a cooler position of the vessel, and not imme
diately above the boilers. On looking behind the
door of my new apartment, I discovered the wall to
be literally black with tobacco juice. It is aston
ishing to what an extent this habit is carried in
the Southern States. The most elegantly dressed
dandy may be constantly seen ruminating a quid of
tobacco, regardless of furniture and carpets, or
the ladies.
Early on the morning of the 2nd of November,
we arrived at DonaldsonviUe, a very pretty place,
where a great many passengers took their depar-

208 A GLIMPSE AT
ture. The rest now appeared in the most fashionable
clothes they could command, in order that they
might make an entry worthy of themselves into the
metropoUs of the south . This morning tho assist
ance of the coloured barber was in great requisition,
and some truly wonderful transformations were the
result. It was near DonaldsonviUe that I first observed
the singular moss plant, which attaches itself in
such profusion to the trees on the banks of this
river. It assumes a most graceful appearance,
hanging in long festoons from their most lofty
branches; it is occasionally used for stuifing mat
tresses, but I was informed that lately a method
had been devised of weaving this moss into bags for
the transportation of cotton. Should this bo suc
cessful, it will be the means of saving a large expense
to the planters, and reader this plant, now almost
useless, a source of profit.
At one o'clock, I was summoned by the dinner
bell, and although this meal was at so early an
hour, I had now become quite reconciled to what,
at first, I considered by no means agreeable.
The Americans have a way of prououuciug many
of their words which sound to our ears peculiarly
strange. The clerk of the steamer they all call a

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 209
clurk ; the city of New Orleans — New Orleens.
The southern people, however, both in their manners
and their expressions, as well as in pronunciation,
seem to be more pohshed than their northern
brethren. In the afternoon we passed Jefferson CoUege, — a
very large and ugly building near to the bank of
the river, which much resembles a Manchester
cotton factory, and I perceived that additional
buildings were in process of erection in the same
style of architecture.
The Mississippi in its course is singularly tor
tuous, a distance of twenty miles by land being
frequently increased by the bends of the river to
fifty; but nevertheless this is more quickly per
formed by water, the steamers being swift,
whereas the roads are execrably bad. The
distance by water is, however, often shortened
by what are caUed " cuts off," or places where the
river, having overflowed its banks, had taken a
nearer and more direct channel. These have some
times received assistance by art, and the steamers
now take them in their regular route. The assist
ance which they have received, however, has indi
rectly proved the cause of great destruction to
property ; the same fall in the water in its flow
p

210 A GLIMPSE AT
towards the ocean, which by nature made the
distance seventy-five mUes, having thus by the
art of man been limited to twenty-five, has
caused the stream, during a sudden rise of the
river, to descend with an increased and undue
velocity, has caused the destruction of many levees
as well as plantations; and as I conceive this
damage to be clearly attributable to the reason
above mentioned, the authorities under govern
ment who sanction the proceeding would find it
exceedingly difficult to defend thefr position, in a
court of law, provided the proprietors were to
sue for damages. Iu one instance a "cut-off"
reduced the distance by the serpentine form of this
river from twenty-five miles to seven. The original
faU of water was seven feet in this distance, which
fall of course remained the same although the
distance was so considerably shortened, and a
large loss of property, by a sudden overflow during
last spring, was clearly attributable to the before-
mentioned cause.
On approaching New Orleans, the whole country
appeared on fire, which at first we imagined to
proceed from the city itself, but soon discovered
that it was caused by a large tract of prafrie
laud below the town being ignited. This probably

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 211
had been done purposely, in order to destroy
the old rotten grass, and aUow fresh vegetation to
spring up.
The trade on the Mississippi appeared very
great, more especially in steamers ; and in pro
portion to the increased settlement of the upper
country, it was daily augmenting. In this trade,
no foreign nation benefits more than Great Britain,
consuming as she does a great proportion of the
agricultural produce which descends these waters, and
in return supplying this vast district with a still
larger equivalent in manufactures. It was delightful
to me to hear the praises freely lavished upon our
late eminent statesman. Sir Robert Peel ; by every
American poUtical economist he was considered the
greatest man of his day, and his death was perhaps
deplored as much in the United States as in his own
country. The Americans consider that his master
mind, by adopting free trade principles, which he
alone had the power of carrying through the legis
lature of his country, not only at that time averted
a threatened revolution which had overran so many
of the continental European states, but that his
policy has since been the means of increasing our
commercial relations to an unprecedented extent,
besides granting to the lower classes the opportunity
P2

212 A GLIMPSE AT
of purchasing food at a price commensurate with
his wages, and has enabled the manufacturer success
fully to compete in foreign markets, even where
high duties are raised against British wares.
Free trade is gaining for us the goodwill and
reciprocal interest on the entire continent through
which the Mississippi flows, and which probably,
before many generations are passed, will be the
richest continent in the world, and I doubt not will
rule the destinies of the American Republic ; these
feelings towards us may originate from a reci
procity of interest alone, but still it is satisfactory
to know that the sores and wounds formerly
inflicted by the parent, and which rankled so
long in the bosom of the offspring, are now being
healed over, and ere long I hope that the
American and the English people, each descending
from the same stock, each imbued with the one
chivalrous spirit, will in reality consider themselves
a band of brothers, each amicably contending
that the government of his own country contains
the truest principles of freedom, and setting an
example to the worid at large, that the labours of
peace are far preferable to the honours of war.
About five o'clock in the evening of the 2nd of
November, we arrived at New Orieans, and I had

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 213
thus completed a voyage of above seventeen hun
dred mUes on the bosom of the Mississippi. During
my progress from St. Louis, and within, my own
cognizance, many sad catastrophes happened. One
steamer was blown up, one was burned, and two
were snagged, one of which sank, the, other, the
" Sultana," succeeded in reaching New Orleans, but
not without much risk. Almost all the passengers
in the " Lexington," I found were provided with
Indian rubber swimming belts, which in this country
they have no false pride in concealing ; frequently
instances arise of their being called into use by
those who travel much upon this and the neigh
bouring rivers.
I afterwards heard that the calculated annual
amount of loss of life on the Mississippi through
explosions, drowning, blowing up, burning, and other
violent deaths, has for some years past been about
two hundred lives, but I have reason to imagine
that this estimate is much below the truth.
I must not omit to mention, before quitting the
"Lexington," an absurd circumstance which hap
pened to me, from a misunderstanding of a very
common English expression. One morning I was
unable to find my coat, and caUing to the steward,
1 said, "Some one of the waiters has run off with

214 A GLIMPSE AT
my coat." Soon afterwards, three or four of them
came to me, mightUy offended, and expressed their
¦ indignation that I should imagine that any of them
were dishonest ; nor could all my assurances that 1
did not intend to accuse them of theft calm their
indignation, but they retfred protesting that no one
would deem it worth thefr whUe to run off with an
old coat.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 215

CHAPTER XVIII.
The appearance of the city of New Orleans
from the water is indeed very grand. If there is
one disappointment, it is in the size of the river.
Flowing as it does from such an immense distance in
the interior, and receiving so many gigantic tribu
taries, one would expect that near its mouth it
would be many miles broad, rather resembling a
sea than the mouth of so smaU a river as the Thames
at Greenwich ; but this feeling, however, is overcome
when we are made aware of its immense depth.
Although the wharves at the time of my landing
were lined with shipping, yet I was informed that
the great mass of vessels had not as yet arrived,
and that this year's cotton had only begun to make
its appearance in the market. I saw quite enough,
however, even in this hasty glance, to indicate with
certainty the immense trade and commerce existing

216 A GLIMPSE AT
at this port, and to excuse the seeming vanity of
the expression of an American gentleman who stood
near me, who for the first time saw this city. "Well,
what an almighty fine country is ours ! " The St,
Charles's Hotel, to which I proceeded, is a most
magnificent structure. It is surrounded by Corin
thian columns, and surmounted by a lofty dome,
from the summit of which may be gained a fine
view of the city. On my arrival I had a dehcious
bath, and next visited the barber's establishment,
with which all large hotels and steam-boats arc
provided. I here underwent the process of sham
pooing, which very refreshing operation I wiU
here describe. Seated on a curiously formed chair,
my feet higher than my head, a coloured barber
thoroughly brushed my hair, and then well-anointed
it with a perfumed mixture. I was next conducted
to a marble font, where I was played upon by a
miniature fountain of rose-water. Being thoroughly
drenched, the soapy mixture was next squeezed out
of my hair. I then resumed my former position,
and my head was carefully dried. The delicious
sensation of this shampooing operation, especially
upon a hot day, and after a long journey, cannot
be too highly extolled, and should the process be
well got up in London or Paris, I am persuaded it

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 217
woidd make a barber's fortune, and deserves the
attention of the profession during the Industrial
Exhibition of 1851, when so many foreigners, and
especially Americans, wiU be collected together in
the metropolis.
The baths at the St. Charles's Hotel were also
upon a magnificent scale, and were attended by a
good-humoured Irishwoman, who had formerly held
the situation of nurse in the estabUshment of Lady
Norbury, and evinced a most rapturous deUght on
finding that I was acquainted with the family to
which she was so much attached.
The hotel was provided with accommodation for
four or five hundred persons, and was altogether on
a far more extended scale than anything which I
had previously seen in Europe. Between three and
four hundred persons daily sat down to a most
sumptuous dinner, prepared under the direction of
a first-rate maitre de cuisine from Paris, the dishes
of which were almost numberless, and the bill of
fare, which was printed daily for the information of
the guests, bore resemblance to a miniature gazette.
Everything in this great estabUshment was con
ducted with celerity and perfect order.
I awoke from a most refreshing sleep on the
following morning, not only with the London cries

218 A GLIMPSE AT
in my ears, but also a dense fog fiUing the atmo
sphere ; but unlike England, where the fog fre
quently turns to rain, here it is considered as a sure
indication of fine weather. Immediately after break
fast, I sallied out to visit the crescent city, the
appropriate name which has been assigned to it,
from the circumstance of its lining the margin of
the river in the form of a young moon. The tur
moil of business and pleasure had already com
menced, carriages were running about in aU direc
tions, and although it was Sunday morning, yet the
shops, as in Paris, were open, and but small relaxa
tion was apparent. I attended the episcopal church,
a handsome buUding. The clergyman who preached
was a German, who unfortunately had but an indif
ferent knowledge of the English language ; it was
therefore almost impossible to understand what he
said, and as he used a gi-eat deal of broken Enghsh,
his discourse could scarcely be considered as very
dignified. The episcopal service in the United
States is very little altered from that of our own.
In the liturgy, in place of offering up prayers for
Her Majesty, they are offered up for aU christian
i,u]ers — a generous change of expression which
must be admired by every one.
The Jewish synagogue is a fine building. It was

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 219
formerly au episcopal church, but had been pur
chased by a wealthy Hebrew and presented to his
bretb'en. In the afternoon I took a long walk through the
city. I visited one of the Roman Catholic cemeteries,
which was prettily laid out, the tombs being orna
mented with flowers, in imitation of P^re la Chaise.
In New Orleans, however, the dead are always
buried, if I may so express myself, above ground ;
large marble tombs being raised not only to the
memory of the wealthy, but actually to contain their
remains — the poor having edifices of an humbler
description. They are obUged to adopt that mode of burial,
in consequence of the marshy and wet nature of
the soil ; for should they dig but a few inches
below the surface, water immediately fiUs the
vacuum. At the season in which I visited New Orleans,
the river was particularly low, and the soil therefore
comparatively dry ; but I w^as informed that, during
a large portion of the year, the neighbouring
country is continually under water, and even that
smaU schooners were, during the spring of last year,
navigating some of the principal streets. The small
drains or water-courses in the city, I observed, all

220 A GLIMPSE AT
flowed away from, rather than towards the river,
indicating that a large portion of the town lay
below the level of the Mississippi ; and proving that
that river could not carry off much of the super
abundant water which saturated the earth. The
sun, acting upon a soU so impregnated with moisture,
must naturaUy cause a great miasma and unhealthy
effluvia, which, during the summer season, must
probably be the cause of a vast amount of the
sickness which exists, and which gives to this city
the unenviable character of being the most un
healthy in the world. During the hot season, all
who can afford to do so fly from its precincts into
the country, and business at that time is almost at
a stand-still. The sheU roads which enter the city in various
directions, are certainly the most beautiful cause
ways I have ever seen. They are composed
of finely-powdered shells, which, uniting in a sohd
mass, form a perfectly even surface, and may be
considered one of the peculiarities of this town.
As I was returning to the hotel I saw a melancholy
breed of dogs, their skins being entirely devoid of
hair : this certainly did not improve their outward
appearance, though I have no doubt that, in the
Avarm weather, it might be a source of comfort to

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 221
them. Near the hotel I observed a negro's funeral.
It was a peculiarly mournful procession, the coun
tenances of the party being in such perfect keeping
both with their dress and the occasion. On
the whole, the town of New Orleans reminded me
much of Rio Janeiro, but the surrounding scenery
is exactly the reverse, being here one continued flat,
whereas Rio boasts of the most beautiful mountains
in the world. On my return to the hotel I met
Mr. Baring ; he was on his way home from the
Pacific Ocean, and had just crossed the Pampas of
South America. I was surprised that, during my
long journey, I should have met none of my coun
trymen traveUing purely for amusement and instruc
tion ; indeed, it is extraordinary how few EngUsh
traveUers visit this country purely for these pur
poses. On the following morning I rose early, and paid
my first visit before breakfast to the market. It
was well supplied with meat, vegetables, and poul
try, and particularly with fruit, which last was
offered for sale iu luxurious abundance. The gas
works also struck me as being on a very extended
scale. I walked towards the hotel by the bank of
the river, and perceived that a large space had been
left vacant in consequence of the receding of the

222 A GLIMPSE AT
water. Many men were actively employed in
clearing and smoothing it, and laying it out pre
paratory to buUding. Many streets have thus been
added to the town, by the gradual shifting of the
river; and houses which, but a few years since,
stood where its banks then were, are now far in the
rear, behind the spacious blocks of buildings which
have since been erected.
I hired a small four-wheeled carriage and drove
through the city, keeping upon the high lev^e on
the left bank of the river. In passing the esplanade,
I was reminded of the original French extraction of
the inhabitants, by seeing the lamps hung over the
centre of the street by a rope from either side. In
the suburbs of the city each house was provided
with a diminutive garden, in which were flourishing
the banana and other tropical plants, and the
orange-trees gracefully waved their golden fruit in
the sun. The ladies were mostly employed in
languidly rocking themselves in easy-chairs under
the shade of their verandahs, wearing out the day
in conversation. We passed the negro slave-
market and their barracks, where sat a vast herd of
this unfortunate "property," totally unconscious of
the degraded position which they occupied in the
scale of society. They were of all ages and both

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 223
sexes ; some were manacled, but the greater por
tion of them were unshackled. Their countenances
did not betray any unhappiness, but they eagerly
surveyed the stranger, endeavouring to read their
own fate, provided his attention appeared to be
directed towards the barracoons. Passing along a
square I observed a large party of French Creoles,
who were amusing themselves by playing a game
somewhat resembhng " Tennis ;" each player was
provided with a pair of small racquets, somewhat
resembling in size large salad spoons, and at either
end of the green was placed a paper screen or
target, through which the art appeared to be skill-
ftdly to drive a ball. This game much resembled
one which I had previously seen played by the
Mimseytown Indians, in the western part of Canada;
and I have no doubt that it had been adopted from
some of the Indian tribes. The Mint appeared a
handsome building, though generally the public
buildings at New Orleans have not much to boast
of, the hotel of St. Charles far eclipsing them all.
A custom-house of a superb design is in the course
of erection, of granite, which, when finished, will
probably equal any building in the United States.
It possibly might have been placed in a better posi-

2-24 A GLIMPSE AT
tion, as it is now in too inclosed a space to allow
its full proportions and architecture properly to be
admired. I determined to visit the battle-ground
where our arms, from various unfortunate circum
stances, had been unsuccessful, after a series of
victories in Europe and America which may allow
any Englishman to bear this reverse with equami-
nity. About a mUe from the city I passed the
artillery barracks ; aud I notice with sentiments
of pleasure the inteUigent civility of the soldiers
at the gate. These barracks appeared very com
fortable ; the men were clothed in blue cotton
jackets, which were of Ught texture, and well
suited to this hot cUmate. Having proceeded about
four mUes, we reached the scene of our former
strife, " the battle-ground," Very little indeed now
remained to enable me to discover the precise spot
where so much British blood was fruitlessly shed.
The ramparts erected by the Americans can scarcely
now be traced ; aud unless the spot were pointed
out, it would be a vain task to endeavour to do so.
Most accounts written by those who were present
appeared to think that we ought to have got
possession of New Orieans ; and no one attributes
the blame of our non-success to a want of bravery

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 225
in our troops, or of energy in our gallant com
mander, one of the most distinguished officers of
the Peninsular war.
The traces of the works thrown up are so oblite
rated, that I could not pretend to throw any new light
on the operations, which, on our part, were under
taken under circumstances of great local difficulty.
On my return towards the city I saw some
beautiful gardens and handsome country houses.
The Washington gardens, in particular, attracted
my attention, with their beautiful orange trees co
vered with fruit. The weeping-willows were finer
than any I had seen, and the live oak, festooned
with moss, added a novel and pleasing effect to the
general scenery. The prairies, which I had also
observed on fire the afternoon of my arrival, had
not yet burned out, and towards evening cast a
lurid glare over the southern horizon. I may here
mention that a steam-propeller, belonging to the
United States navy, did not escape my attention ;
her principal use being directed to the rapid
removal of troops upon an emergency, in case of
difficulties occurring amongst the Indians either in
Florida or Texas. It was evening by the time I
again reached the city. In Pouchatrain market-
house a long table was laid out, at which a number

^^^ A GLIMPSE AT
of persons were regaUng themselves upon a good
supper ; it was weU lighted up, which added to the
gaiety of the scene ; and in the neighbourhood
were numerous oyster saloons. These were divided
into smaU compartments, each fitted up with gaily
coloured curtains, red, blue, and yeUow ; and most
of these rooms were filled with an uncouth-looking
company, who had aU the appearance of being either
borderers from Texas or disappointed gold diggers
from California, of which latter there now began to
arrive a large number at the seaport towns. The
Americans, I may here mention, are far more
partial to oysters than any Europeans, and I have
frequently seen one gentleman dispatch a small
tureen full of stewed oysters for supper.
In the evening I attended a rural dance, at the
German " Garten," where many of the artisans, a
vast number of whom are foreigners, amused them
selves, after their own simple fashion, in waltzing
and drinking beer. I also observed an advertise
ment of a Quadroon baU, which was to take place
on the following evening, in which the public were
duly apprised, that a strong body of police would
be in attendance, and that gentlemen who carried
bowie knives and pistols would be disarmed prior
to their being allowed to enter the baU-room,

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 227
My time being circumscribed, I made my arrange
ments to leave the city of New Orleans on the
following day. I had seen most of the objects of
interest, and to have enjoyed the society of the
place, which is reckoned the most recherche in the
United States, I must have remained in it a con
siderable time ; but before I take my leave of New
Orieans I must say a few words respecting the
wonderful rise of city property, or real estate,
during the last fifty years, — since, in fact, the State
of Louisiana has been qeded to the Americans.
That part of the city which may now be considered
the most valuable, is where the hotel of St. Charles
now rears its lofty dome. Not many years since,
this spot and neighbourhood was all one dirty
swamp. This land was then considered so value
less, that at the appraisement of a bankrupt's effects
the creditors did not think it even worth their
while to enter a plot of ground which the debtor
possessed into the schedule of his assets. This
block of land, therefore, remaining in his hands,
eventually descended to his family, and to show its
increased value, they not long since parted with
it for the sum of three hundred thousand dollars.
Again, a gentleman told me that a block of land,
Vi'hich may now be estimated at a value of Uttle
q2

228 A GLIMPSE AT
less than half a million of doUars, was, about the
period to which I have alluded, offered to his
grandfather, and refused by him, for a case of
French boots ; but as New Orieans is the only
outlet to the sea of that vast aud valuable con
tinent, through which the Mississippi and its
mighty tributaries flow, it is quite evident that,
as this continent becomes settled and populous,
so must the sea-port flourish and increase ; and
so far, in my opinion, is this city from having
arrived at the zenith of its size and prosperity,
it may scarcely be considered at its commencement,
and speculation, therefore, in real estate, may be
looked upon as not only a safe but very profit
able investment. Although vast profits have almost
invariably been the result of speculations in real
estate, fewer competitors are in the market than
might have been expected ; in the first place,
because their gains are not immediate, and in the
second, few men, in the Southern states of the
Union, arc content to invest their money in any
way, however secure, that will not realize at least
twelve or fifteen per cent, per annum ; most look
for at least twenty or twenty-five per cent,, and
many seek, and actually obtain, fifty per cent, per
annum, and even more, upon the capital they

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 229
lay out. Many persons, I was informed, who had
purchased city lots, fenced them round, and con
verted them into kitchen gardens ; in this way
they were enabled to realize a present interest o
four or five per cent., and when the opportunity
offers itself, either to build upon the lots them
selves, or to dispose of them at the advanced price
of the day.
There is one feature in the United States which
gives a wonderful energy to the proceedings of this
mercantile community. Should any man make a
bad hit in one speculation, provided he is not
guilty of fraud, he will readily obtain fresh
credit, and, starting anew, may perhaps be more
fortunate another time. A man will thus one day
be a farmer, a short time after a merchant, then a
tavern-keeper. Colonel of Militia, and slave owner ;
he will oftentimes be all these things, not only in
succession, but at one and the same time, and he
will not himself frequently know whether he be in
the bond fide possession of one hundred thousand
dollars, or in debt that sum to others. It certainly,
however, surprises me that Englishmen should be
found ready to invest vast sums of money in Con
tinental securities and in foreign railroads, when a
larger per cent, of interest, and undoubtedly far

230 A GLIMPSE AT
better security, can be obtained in State bonds, &c,
in Ms great Republic. No doubt this is prin
cipally owing to a want of knowledge of the
vast resources of this rising country, or of the real
integrity which pervades the hearts of a majority
of her citizens. But there is no doubt that the
Americans have to blame themselves for the
short-sighted and dishonest pohcy, which the re
pudiating states practised, and which certainly has
had the effect of driving capital from her shores.
The American citizens, however, generally are
well aware of the vast injury which this system
of repudiation has brought upon their name in the
opinion of the world ; and I now believe that they
are ready to submit to any privations whatever
rather than deny their responsibilities, and that
the fundholder of any state may, for the future,
rest assured that his dividends wiU be paid to him,
unless some great catastrophe should occur, as un-
looked for as it is improbable.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 231

CHAPTER XIX.
At three o'clock in the afternoon of the 3rd of
November I took my leave of the Orescent City.
It gave me the utmost satisfaction to have visited
the great emporium of the southern and western
trade of so vast a continent, but I own that I had
no desire to become a resident of New Orleans.
The chmate during the winter is exceedingly plea
sant, and the town being thronged with rich
planters from the neighbourhood, and the heads of
all the mercantUe houses being there coUected toge
ther, one constant round of gaiety is the result,
but during a large portion of the year, as I have
before observed, all who can afford to do so fly
from this unhealthy spot.
There were two ways by which I was enabled to
reach New York; the first was, by embarking in
one of the large steam-vessels, of which there is a
regular line twice a month, from New Orleans to

232 A GLIMPSE AT
the Havana, and from thence to New York; the
second route was that of landing at Mobile, and
taking a hasty survey of the States of Alabama,
Georgia, the two Carolinas, and Virginia ; thus by
Washington, Baltimore, and PhUadelphia, to reach
New York, visiting on the way some of the prin
cipal towns in the south, such as Macon, Savannah,
and Charleston, as well as some of the earliest
settlements, and the capital of the great Republic
itself. By the former route I should have had an
opportunity of visiting Havana, as well as some of
the principal Spanish settlements in the Island of
Cuba, but, on the other hand, I felt that, if I
should miss this by taking the latter route, yet I
should be most amply repaid by the many interest
ing places I should have the opportunity of seeing,
in return for the loss of one.
Having, then, determined to deviate but little
from the direct mail route from New Orleans to
New York, I first proceeded by rail six miles to
Lake Pouchatrain, a very large sheet of water on
the eastern side of the former city. Myself and
fellow passengers here found that a steamer, called
the "Samuel Day," was ready to receive us; she
was the cleanest and best regulated steam-ship that
I had seen in the United States, since quitting the

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 233
" Mayflower" on Lake Erie ; her engines were on
the low pressure system, — a delightful change from
the roaring and snorting which I had been subject
to, during the long distance that I travelled in
steamers containing the high pressure ones on the
Mississippi. The captain was exceedingly atten
tive to those on board; in the course of conver
sation, he gave me a detailed account of the attack
upon New Orleans by the British, in 1814. He
said that he had often heard it related by the best
authority, namely, that of old Quare, the pilot,
who was taken prisoner by the British fieet, and
obliged to act contrary to his own desires, in giving
his assistance to the enemy against his own country.
Quare attributed the defeat of the British tO not
having waited patiently, at the upper end of Lake
Bourg, the place at which the army disembarked
from the boats of the British squadron, until the
whole of that army was collected together, ere they
proceeded forward to the banks of the Mississippi
River, and exposed themselves, as yet but a small
portion of the force, to a destructive fire from a
vessel in the river, as well as from a land force,
who, perfectly acquainted with the country, were
enabled to deliver upon them a cross-fire, both from
their front aud flauk.

234: A GLIMPSE AT
-Before retiring to rest, I had a long conversation
with one of the passengers relating to slavery. As
usual, he contended that the mind of the negro
was not susceptible of cultivation ; that the laws of
the state prohibiting education amongst them, was,
in fact, a nullity, because they were incapable of
properly receiving it when tendered to them, but
that they were fit for nought but work. He even
went so far as to say, that the least amount of
black blood so tainted the whole system, as to
render it equaUy impure, and that aU who possessed
it ought still to continue in slavery. I afterwards
made some allowance for his ultra notions on this
subject, from hearing that the bulk of his property
was invested in slaves. In addition to the laws
prohibiting education, there are enactments pre
venting a master from granting freedom to his
slave, without the especial sanction of the legisla
ture, which in no case will be granted unless
security is given that they shaU never become a
burthen upon their parish; and they pretend that
the interference of the northern people, in a question
which does not concern them, has rendered neces
sary many of these severe enactments.
Very early on the foUowing morning we were
roused by the large ship's bell. While dressing, I

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 235'
observed one of the black servants carefully ar
range the passengers' boots in a circle, in the centre
of which he placed a tray, putting a small silver
piece, caUed a dime, into it, a sufficiently inteUi-
gible hint, that the passengers were expected to
follow his example, and which I observed they all
did. In my travels in the United States, I observed
that the Americans were particularly generous in
rewarding attendants, although, in fact, they are
seldom obhged to do so ; but they undoubtedly are
a liberal race of people; this may perhaps be some
what owing to the ease and rapidity with which
they make their doUars, but also must, in a great
measure, be attributed to an inherent generosity
in thefr characters.
In all cases of distress they are every ready,
with a most profuse and Uberal hand, in relieving
their fellow men ; and as many, if not most, are
the founders of their own fortune, they can better
understand the heavy burdens which they lighten,
and privations which they assist in mitigating,
having themselves, perhaps, at some former period^
suffered under them. In this they show an ex
ample to the world at large; for even in Great
Britain, which has acquired so just a reputation
for its generosity, I have sometimes heard individual

236

A GLIMPSE AT

charity excused, upon the plea that to relieve it is
the peculiar privUege of the state.
Between eight and nine o'clock we entered the
Bay of MobUe ; about twenty large vessels, English
and American, were anchored in the roads distant
from the town of Mobile about thirty miles, the
water being too shallow to aUow them a nearer
approach. This shallowness of the water causes an
immense deal of inconvenience in the transaction
of business, but it is impossible to remedy it.
These vessels were awaiting their cargoes of cotton
aud timber, and great was the extra labour which
had to be undertaken in transhipping them to such a
great distance from the port.
The estuaries which lie adjacent to the mouths
of the Mississippi, are also shallow, the water in
them is brackish, though by no means so salt as
that of the open sea ; they contain a vast quantity
of fish, and abound in oysters of a very good quality.
The mouths of the Mississippi project in a singular
way into the Gulf of Mexico, resembhng the print
of a gigantic crow's foot ; a narrow embankment of
sand alone protecting each mouth of the river from
the encroachments of the ocean, which entirely
surrounds these outworks on all sides.
I arrived at Mobile about nine o'clock ou the

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 237
morning of the 4th November. My intention was
to have proceeded at once up the Alabama River
to Montgomery, distant about five hundred miles, in
one of the many steamers which ply upon its waters.
I however found that the channel at this season was
so nearly dry that this voyage would now take six
or eight days, and perhaps even more. I therefore
determined to take the mail line, by which, as the
greater portion was by land, the distance would be
much curtailed, although the roughness of the roads
made it unpleasant, even to contemplate. The mail
•road I knew to be little better than a track through
the wood, and I had already experienced what the
mail coaches in the states were like ; the distance
however by this route was considerably shorter,
being only forty miles by water aud one hundred
and eighty by land. I therefore secured a place at
the office on the quay, where I was desired to be in
/•eadiness to depart at one o'clock ; the interim I
determined to devote in visiting the city.
MobUe is a considerable town and commands a
great amount of trade, all the cotton grow^n upon
the fertile banks of the Alabama River being shipped
from this port, indeed to a certain degree it pre
tends to vie with New Orleans herself. It is situated

238 A GLIMPSE AT
at the head of an estuary twenty-eight miles from the
open sea.
Many of the streets are wide and spacious, and
much business was apparently being transacted ;
this, however, was the commencement of the busy
season, the cotton crop having already partially
arrived. I here observed a singular feature in many of
the buildings, namely, that of their not having been
erected at right angles to each other ; this,
although it might have saved some few inches of
ground, gave to their rooms a sad mishapen appear
ance, which greatly disfigured their proportions^
In the streets of Mobile a singular lingua Franpa
appeared to me the prevaUing dialect; a sprt of
mixture between French and Spanish, interlarded
throughout with English words. The original set
tlement of this country by natives of the two former
nations will easily account for this circumstance.
Oysters and oyster saloons here abounded to
such an extent, that one might have been led to
imagine them to be the sole food of the inhabitants,
although the sudden freshets of water, which occa
sionally descend from the interior of the country
during the spring season, I was informed, destroy
vast quantities of this fish.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 239
Before leaving Mobile, a pretty little dinner was
served up to me quite in the French style. The
cookery in the Southern is far superior to that in
the Northern states, in which latter, except in hotels
of first-rate note, the unfortunate traveller is obliged
to eat Uttle else than tough beef-steaks, varied by
"Despatch Cocks." The wines of Bordeaux are
almost as common in the Southern states as they
are in Prance, and are infinitely pleasanter than
those strong drinks which pervade the north.
Embarking, then, about two o'clock on board a
smaU and wretched steamer, the " Narcissa," we
first proceeded about' forty miles up the Kensas
River, arriving about six, p.m., at Stockton, where
the maU coach was awaiting us. The River Kensas
flowed through a low and thickly wooded country,
interspersed with cane brakes, where it Was said
that deer and bears abounded. I here observed,
for the first time, the marsh Cyprus tree, which has
a curious swelUng at its roots, from which peculi
arity many other trees which grow in this marshy
soU are not altogether exempt. The forest towards
the margin ofthe river was ofthe densest description,
and many of the interlacing trees festooned with
briUiant scarlet-leaved creepers, were hung with
weeping moss. Near the mouth of the Kensas

240 A GLIMPSE AT
River is situated the town of Blakeney; in many
respects this would have proved a far more eligible
site for a city than Mobile ; standing on a point of
land, it is within a few miles of the anchorage of
fleets of merchantmen. It also commands a greater
extent of river navigation, and in no one way did it
appear to me less convenient in point of situation ;
but Mobile having taken the lead, has steadily kept
it, and Blakeney will probably find it impossible to
surpass her.
A proprietor of large estates on the Kensas
River extolled most highly to me both climate and
soil of his native country. He said that such was
the fruitfulness of the soil, and its varied qualities,
that he was almost independent of the world ; that
he already grew his own tea, sugar, coffee, and
cotton, in addition to the common agricultural pro
duce, and that he was making preparations for the
culture of the vine, which he also felt certain would
repay his labours.
The stage proprietor, who travelled with us from
Stockton, told us marvellous tales of the rapidity
with which the government couriers carried their
despatches on this road, and stated that the one
with the news of the victory of Palo Alto, during
the Mexican war, which was carried by a black

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 241
boy, reached Montgomery, a hundred and eighty
miles distant, in thirteen hours, a great contrast
certainly to the very tedious pace at which we were
proceeding, for we scarcely performed more than
four miles an hour, nor could we beguile our journey
with a little sleep, as our heads were constantly
knocking against the sides and roof of the vehicle,
and we were altogether quite as uncomfortable as I
had made up my mind that we should be.
We stopped for supper, which consisted of tough
doughy cakes, with fried squirrel and weak coffee,
without milk, at about ten o'clock at night, at a
single house, called Weatherbourii's ; the mistress of
this house appeared to be a dreadfully cantankerous
woman. She employed herself during our half-
hour's stay in little else than scolding her slaves.
Weatherbourn was a son of the chief of the
Creek Indians, who was, for a series of years, a
violent opponent to the Americans, when they were
commanded by General Jackson ; whUe ten men
of the Creek tribe remained together, Weatherbourn
never would surrender, and at length he only did
so, when aU his foUowers had either been kiUed,
or deserted him. He then consented to receive a
grant of land, and ever after was faithful to the
Government, R

242 • A GLIMPSE AT
I had much conversation with a very entertain
ing person, a Mr. Carter, a large contractor on the
railroads, one of our fellow passengers ; he told
me that the principal portion of his workmen were
Irish, and that he found them a most attentive,
hard-working set, and generally very sober. This
was another proof to me how these people could
throw off their habits of idleness and drunkenness,
when a direct reward was clearly placed before
them. Nearly the whole journey we were threading our
way through one gigantic forest, sometimes of
magnificent pine, at others of different hard woods,
such as oak, maple, &c. Mr. Carter said that these
forests abounded in game ; so much so, that while
he had parties making the roads through them,
he found it worth his whUe to keep two Indians
in his pay, for the sole purpose of supplying his
men with venison. He also told us that beaver
dams were very numerous, some of which, indeed, we
saw, and that his men were generally obliged to
cut through two or three in each week, as they
lie upon the line of the railroad. Most of the
beavers themselves had been destroyed, but those that
remained were very laborious, making dams of thirty
feet wide in a single night.

THE GREAT WESTERN "REPUBLIC. 243
In one or two of the houses at which we stopped
I observed very handsome chimney pieces, which
had been cut out of a species of soap stone ; this,
when first manufactured, is very soft and easy to
work, but after exposure to the air soon hardens,
and has a good appearance. The houses were
invariably built of wood, but most of the chimneys
were composed of Adoba bricks, precisely similar
to those used in Mexico and Spanish America,
being composed of a sort of red clay baked in
the sun.
I had also many opportunities of seeing " dirt
eaters," or those who are constantly in the habit
of picking up and masticating pieces of earth, a
vicious and unhealthy habit, here common amongst
the chUdren of aU races, and, I believe, peculiar
to this part of the Southern States, Those that
are addicted to this propensity are easily detected,
from an unwholesome appearance in their coun
tenance, which assumes a pale, dirty, and Uvid look;
when once this habit is contracted, it is difficult,
and some assert impossible, for them to relinquish
it. It is supposed to proceed from a disordered
state of the digestive organs, the consequence of
eating an undue quantity of molasses and other
r2

244 A GLIMPSE AT
saccharine matter, which causes them to seek for
something which will destroy the acidity on their
stomachs. This I believe, to a certain degree, to
be effected by chewing the clay, the remedy, how
ever, being worse than the disease, and by its
constant indulgence they at length become con
firmed " dirt eaters."
The way-side inns, at which we obtained refresh
ments, were especially uncomfortable, and we were
charged most exorbitantly for our wretched fare.
Neither milk, eggs, nor bread, were to be obtained,
nothing but tough meat, dough cakes, and green
tea. At length I hit upon an expedient which
answered completely ; before I commenced my
meal, I asked for milk, &c., and when I was told
they had it not, I decUned taking anything. When
they saw that they would thus lose their money,
the slaves were quickly put in motion, and I was
offered the best they possessed — for the South
erners, although more insouciant, have as keen a
relish for their gains as any Yankee in the
Northern States.
We passed through many large plantations of
cotton, (sugar is, I beUeve, only cultivated in the
States of Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, and Texas),

THE GREAT WESTERN KEPUBLIO, 245
The houses of the planters were on a more con
tracted scale than I had expected to find them,
but this district is considered rather in the back
country. The planters appear to live very much
in the style of the Irish Squireens. A splendid
piano, that cost five hundred dollars, may be found
in a dilapidated tenement not weatherproof, or a
handsome carriage and harness in a cow-shed.
They wUl frequently haggle for fifty centimes for
half of one day, and on the next they will cast
down four or five hundred dollars at a single throw
of the dice.
They are very ignorant of the world ; many of
them had just been persuaded to take shares in
a railroad, which was proposed to run through
the line of country which we were travelling ; as
an instance of their simplicity, they had agreed
to pay a thousand dollars each, besides binding
themselves, every one, to complete four miles of
road, with the exception of laying the rails. They
imagined that the sum of five thousand dollars
a-piece would cover the outlay, whereas, by Mr.
Carter's calculation, it would equal, if not exceed,
fifty thousand ; which, from the undulations of the
country, the quantity of timber and brushwood to

246 A GLIMPSE AT
be cleared, and rivulets to be bridged over, ap
peared much nearer the mark. To their utter
dismay, he imparted this to some of them, who,
to judge from their fallen countenances, would pass
many a sleepless night.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 247"

CHAPTER XX.
We arrived at Montgomery, at the head of the
navigable waters of the Alabama River, about four
o'clock in the morning of our second day's journey.
Montgomery is evidently a very rising place, de
pending chiefly upon the cotton plantations, and
the great shipments that are made. During my
visit it happened to be court time, or, as we should
call it, the assizes, and the town was therefore
crowded. Law is not so costly in the United
States, and consequently it is resorted to much more
frequently, the cheap rate at which this luxury can
be enjoyed being a sad curse to the country.
We left Montgomery for Columbus and Macon
about nine o'clock in the morning, and passed
through many villages, all of them as usual in a
very thriving condition. One of them I remember
by no means inappropriately caUed Auburn, for it
certainly was the " loveUest village of the plain."

248 A GLIMPSE AT
On the side of this road to Columbus, I observed
that the telegraph wires were not supported as is
usual by posts, but simply fixed from one tree to
another through the forest. This method must
have caused a vast diminution in the expense of its
erection, whUe it did not diminish its utiUty. The
Americans justly pride themselves upon being a
most practical people : here, therefore, was an
instance where hundreds of miles of instantaneous
communication were perfected at almost as small a
cost as the line over which it ran would have been
surveyed in England. In this country, I saw
adopted the Portuguese and Spanish fashion of a
man riding one of the mules in the shafts of a
waggon, and driving eight or ten more. Mules are
very commonly used in many of the Southern States,
but especially in Alabama, and also in Tennessee,
where they work on the cotton plantations, a large
supply being bred in the former State, and sent to
the latter. Many of the gentlemen in this country
use nothing but mules in their carriages ; they are
not able to draw so great a weight as a horse, but
appear to stand the climate much better, and will
thrive upon worse food. I subsequently met a
gentleman at BarnsviUe, who was traveUing with a
light phaeton and four mules : three of these ani-

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 249:
mals, he told me, were not more than two years
old, and yet they performed the journey from
Columbus to BarnsviUe, a distance of seventy miles,
in less than one day, nor did they appear to me
distressed by the journey. He also mentioned a
curious system adopted in the Southern States, but
which I never previously heard of, which was that
of keeping a grey mare amongst a herd of them, as
it is positively asserted here, that her presence so
fascinates them that they will never stray so long
as she is in their company.
About two in the afternoon we arrived at
Opeleika, where we quitted the railroad, and again
betook ourselves to the stage. Our route lay through
Columbus, a large city in Georgia, situated on the
Chatapeochee River ; the distance was ninety-three
miles to BarnsviUe, where we were informed we
should again join a railroad which would conduct us
through Macon to Savannah. This stage was in all
respects much better than any I had yet seen, and
during a portion of the distance we travelled at
least eight and sometimes nine miles the hour.
In many parts of the South, the inhabitants were
taking up, with ¦ much vehemence, the opposition
shown in the Northern States to the fulfilment of the
enactments relative to the late Fugitive Slave Law.

250 A GLIMPSE AT
Many of the merchants and slave owners in the
South gave out that they would not employ in
shipping their cotton any vessel belonging to the
port of Boston, nor even would they seU this, the
staple produce of their country, to a merchant,
unless his views were registered as favourable to
slavery. Of one fact there can be no doubt, that
the Northern cities are beholden for much of their
wealth and prosperity to the Southern ones, who
are large consumers of their manufactures ; but the
Southern cities, on the contrary, feel themselves
under little or no obUgation to their Northern
brethren, because they are well aware that they
can readUy dispose, at least of their cotton crop,
to foreign nations, who are only too anxious to
obtain it, A large meeting was being held at
Columbus, respecting the slave question, during my
stay there, at which resolutions to counteract the
Northern agitation were carried. It appeared to
me, however, that there was no necessity for this
Gounter-agitation, in respect to so exciting a ques
tion. Upon the union of the States, one of the
first principles of the constitution was, that slavery
could only be abolished with the dissolution of that
union, unless with the fuU consent of the Southern
States, emanating from themselves.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 251
Early on the following morning I arrived at
BarnsviUe. On descending from the coach, I per
ceived a boy, about fourteen years of age, who was
standing at the door of the inn, and who had the
appearance of being a porter. I said to him, " Will
you help me, my boy, with this portmanteau into
the house 1" He turned towards me with a most
indignant look : " WeU," said he, " if I'm a boy,
what are men in your country 1" This will in
some measure show the feeUngs of independence
which the youths generally possess in the United
States ; in short, in a country where provisions are
so cheap, and labour so plentiful, they are soon
freed from a reUance upon parental assistance, and
thus little or no division of time exists betwixt
chUdhood and manhood. Before our departure
from BarnsviUe, there arrived at the station five or
six carriages, containing a number of elegantly
dressed ladies, attended by some fashionable young
men. The whole of this party evidently belonged
to the first famUies of Georgia, and I imagined
that a wedding was going forward ; upon inquiry,
however, I ascertained that these young ladies were
on their return to their studies at a ladies' college,
and that the gentlemen at present in their company
were relatives, who were bidding them adieu. At

252 ' A GLIMPSE AT
these institutions, it appears that most of the
young ladies in the South receive their education :
these colleges are frequently conducted by governors
and governantes of the Roman Catholic persuasion,
but this does not prevent Protestant parents from
allowing their children to receive an education
there. In a country where the government of the state
and the national religion are distinct, where no
rich ecclesiastical emoluments are at the disposition
of the ministry, the bitterness of feeling between
different sects may not be so manifest as in
England, where the Church and State are united.
In America, the results of a different system to be
shown by the advancement of true piety ani
morality, yet remain to be ascertained ; but with.
us the Protestant religion is so deeply identified
with our liberties, that any aggression of Popery
is resented by the whole people as an invasion of
our Free Constitution.
The entrance into Macon was very picturesque.
The country was pretty and undulating. Crowning
the eminences, and interspersed among the trees,
were the greatest number of gentlemen's residences
which I had yet seen either in Alabama or Georgia.
A few miles west of the town is a pretty village

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 253
called Vineville : a gentleman formerly made a
large plantation of vines at this spot, being under
the impression that the culture of that plant would
have there succeeded well, and that wine could have
been produced of a quality certainly superior to that
which is made near Cincinnati. Either the climate
or the soil disappointed all his expectations, for,
after great exertions, he found himself obliged to
relinquish the undertaking.
Immediately after my arrival at Macon, I walked
out to see the town : although so new a place, the
streets M'ere laid out very handsomely, rows of trees
lining the trottoirs, with one or more fountains in
the centre of these avenues, casting their bubbling
waters in the air. Those gentlemen's residences
not immediately in the town were surrounded by
pretty gardens, where both taste and expense had
been with judgment dispensed. In short, Macon
appeared to me by far the prettiest place I had yet
seen in the Union.
On descending the hill once more into the town,
I was attracted by a conspicuous sign over a wide
gateway, notifying in large letters that negroes were
there for sale. I proceeded towards the spot, and
found lounging about the yard a dozen or more

254 A GLIMPSE AT
black men and women, and the same number of
little chUdren. I made inquiry in regard to their
respective value, asking one of the guards at the
gate whether they were wiUing to part the families,
or whether it was a matter of necessity to purchase
all the members of each. The owner, who was
standing near, with a large stick in his hand, imme
diately answered that I was at liberty to take any
that I might choose.
" You may have them singly or by the lot, just
as you wish."
This answer clearly showed to me, that the stories
which I had heard of families being never separated
was not true; for here, without further trouble,
I could have picked them as I wished. I had
subsequently other opportunities of proving the
fact. No doubt the practice of not separating
families, and more especially the husband and
the wife, is not commonly departed from, and
never so by the really humane and phUanthropic^
but it is certainly by no means a rule without an
exception : indeed, I have heard it remarked, " Oh !
a slave can always find a wife on any plantation he
may go to ;" and although the sacred tie of marriage
is not dissoluble at the will and pleasure of the

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 255
owner, the compact, at aU events, is rendered nuga
tory by a forced separation, whenever his interests
shaU direct such to take place.
On returning to the hotel, and while questioning
the bar-keeper respecting the departure of the trains
for Savannah, a gentleman called for pen and ink
in order to make out a pass for his servant, as he
was desirous of sending him a message, from the
dehvery of which he could not return until after
sun-set. I then ascertained that all slaves who
are found out after dark without a proper pass,
are seized and detained by the police, proving that
their masters do not place that confidence in their
affection which they appear anxious to impress
upon strangers, that they do possess.
Before my departure from Macon, I supped in the
large room of the hotel. I had frequently observed
the singular mixtures which many of the Americans
make at their meals ; I here observed that a gen
tleman, after caUing for a glass of milk, deliberately
shook a portion of the contents of the pepper-box
into it, and having added a tea-spoonful of salt,
stirred the whole together, and drank it. There is
certainly no accounting for taste, but this, among
aU the strange compounds which I met with in the
United States, was the most extraordinary.

256 A GLIMPSE AT
In many of the rooms of the hotel at Macon, as iu
other places of the Southern States, I observed some
really good pictures. They were generally speaking
copies from the Italian and Spanish masters, the
principal part being after Titian and Correggio ;
Venus appeared the favourite subject. And it
was agreeable to observe this demonstration of a
love of the arts when contrasted with its total
absence in the Northern and Western States.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 257

CHAPTER XXI.
At dusk in the evening of the 8 th of Novem
ber, I started for Savannah by the railway. The
country as far as we could see was fiat and covered
with pine timber ; the evening was bitterly cold, but
in consequence of an immense fire kept up in the stove
in the carriage, we were nearly suffocated with heat.
I observed the conductor constantly opening the
door and looking out at the rear of the carriages.
I inquired the cause of his apparent uneasi
ness. He told me that frequent instances had
happened of slaves escaping from the plantations,
by getting up behind the cars ; and he added, " We
have to be very particular now, because we are held
responsible for them by law should they escape in
this manner."
We were detained upon the road longer than was
usual, in consequence of the difficulty of obtaining

258 A GLIMPSE AT
water for the engine ; the country is sandy and dry,
from which, at some seasons, as I was informed,
great inconvenience resulted.
After an unpleasant night's journey, about seven
o'clock on the morning of the 9th we arrived at
Savannah. The entrance to this town was not
unpleasing ; the streets were spacious and weU
shaded on either side by handsome trees, one
of which is called " the Pride of India," as weU as
a sort of dwarf palm.
I got down at the Pulaski House, which, although
a far inferior hotel to that which I had met with at
Macon, yet was by no means uncomfortable ; it
faces the square, in the centre of which stands a
monument erected to the memory of General
Pulaski, who fell in the great revolutionary struggle.
Savannah must, during the summer months, be a
very unhealthy place, in which opinion I was con
firmed by the accounts from many of the inhabi
tants. I entered into conversation with an Irish
emigrant, who was loud in his praises of aU in
Savannah, with the exception of the cUmate.
Wages, he said, were very high, work plentiful,
and provisions cheap ; but the climate was bad
in the summer, and the consequent sickness very
great. He was then suffering under a peculiarly

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 259
painful fever, the name of which I had previously
heard mentioned ; it is called " the broken bone
fever;" from the description, I presume, it is a
species of acute bilious rheumatism. It is danger
ous and painful, and accompanied by intense agony
in every bone in the body. During the raihy
season at the termination of the summer, there
must be much malaria, for this city appears to
be surrounded by low, wet land. There formerly
existed an extensive cultivation of rice close to the
city ; this within a distance of two miles has now been
prohibited. No doubt the non-cultivation of this
plant has diminished considerably the malaria, which
formerly was engendered by the evaporation from
so much moisture, without which it will not thrive.
The weather at this season of the year was agree
able ; warm without being hot, the sky unclouded,
and an elasticity in the air, which, if it lasted
throughout [ the year, would cause Savannah or
any other spot on the globe where it existed, to
be considered a perfect paradise. In the praiiries
I had seen two or three bad days, but, with that
exception, I had been fortunate in the enjoyment
of fine weather.
A great many cotton ships had already arrived,
and more were coming daily into the harbour. I
s 2

260 A GLIMPSE AT
witnessed the operation of a most perfect piece of
machinery for pressing cotton by steam ; it worked
with great rapidity and certainty, reducing in about
half a minute each bale to half its former size. It
was erected in a warehouse close to the water's
edge, and no sooner had its purpose been effected,
than the cotton was at once shipped on board the
vessel in attendance for its reception.
In my perambulations through the town, I found
myself in the old burying-ground. It was with
real pleasure that I inspected some of the most
ancient monuments, for that which is a hundred
years old may not improperly be styled ancient,
amongst all that is so new. I found one to the
memory of Sfr Patrick Houston, President of His
Majesty in Georgia.
There are two burial-places in Savannah, in
addition to the one I have already mentioned ; one
of these is devoted to strangers, the other, an
extensive one, for the black people, for as in life, so
in death, the white man refuses companionship with
the coloured race.
In Savannah I 'saw many very good shops, in
which were beautiful articles, the manufactures of
Germany, France, and England, cut Bohemian
glass, marqueterie work, and articles of every

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 261
description from Birmingham. The bookseller, Mr.
Cooper, possessed, also, a better shop than any
I had seen of that class, in New Orleans. The
hfre of horses and carriages was most exorbitant ;
but this cannot so much be wondered at, when it is
taken into consideration that every grain of oats
and pound of hay is brought from the Northern
States, which are distant nearly 1,000 miles.
While in Savannah and its neighbourhood I was
most anxious to have seen some of the alUgator
tribe, which abound in many of the rivers in the
vicinity of the town. The season was, however,
rather too far advanced to enable me to gratify
my curiosity. These aUigators, I was told, were
plentiful below the St. Mary's river, but especially
in Florida, at a large sheet of water, surrounded
by wild orange trees, called Orange Lake. Upon
the whole, I rather took a liking to Savannah,
but, possibly, this might have been owing to my
having seen it under very favourable circumstances
as to season and weather.
It was a most lovely evening, with a half moon
brightly shining, when I bade adieu to Savannah in
the steamer " General Clinch," for Charleston, in
South Carolina. Fortunately this steamer was not
so crowded as is usually the case, which majde our

262 A GLIMPSE AT
trip more agreeable. The distance to Charleston
from Savannah by the inner passage was 140 miles ;
by far the greater portion of this voyage we were
threading our way betwixt the islands and the
main Ig^nd. Many of these islands abound with
gaffle, and very extensive oyster-beds exist upon the
b^nks adjoiijing them. These islands are very
numerous, the shore being studded with them for
a yery considerable distance along this coast.
After calling at different towns by the way,
for the purpose of exchanging the mails, on the
following morning we found ourselves well out
at sea. The wind hourly increased, and the
passage became unpleasant ; we, moreover, had a
heavy head sea, which, setting right upon our
bows, retarded Qur arrival at Charleston until twelve
at noon. A few miles below the entrance of
the harhQur we passed an unfinished, though very
strongly situated fortress, caUed Fort Sump ter.
Here, appayeritly, could be mounted more than
fifty pieces of heavy artillery, and, as the only
deep channel runs close beneath its waUs, e\ery
ship, entering the harbour is obliged to steer weU
within range of its powerful battery. We also
passed a second fortress, called Port Johnson,
nearer to the town, as strongly situated, and as

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 263
weU defended with artiUery. Shortly after, we
moored abreast of the pier.
I soon found my way into a good hotel, but hav
ing so repeatedly suffered from the contemptuous
indifference shown by many of the domestics, and,
indeed, I may add bar-keepers, both in the large
hotels, and in the steam-boats in the Northern
portion of the Union, particularly in the State of
New York, I shaU, in future, better appreciate the
civihty so universaUy tendered in an English hotel ;
many of the American gentlemen, however, are so
unaccustomed to this conduct on the part of the
domestics, that they are often led to misconstrue
this civility as servile, and to imagine that it
bespeaks a want of independence, at the same time
they admit that it is agreeable in comparison with
what they meet with at home.
I then set off to see the city of Charleston. It
appeared to me to contain some handsome build
ings, but to be inferior to New Orleans. King-
street, in Charleston, reminded me very much of
High-street in Portsmouth, and I own I had infi
nite pleasure in recognizing the simUitude. It
struck me that an extraordinary proportion of the
inhabitants were in mourning, which would argue
a large biU of mortality ; but as a counterpoise

264 A GLIMPSE AT
to these sombre hues, worn by the M'hite popu
lation, the coloured race were decked out with
peculiar gaiety.
The military college appeared to be on an
extensive scale ; the dress of the boys was a light
Oxford mixture, both a sensible and a pleasing
colour. The city guards were actively patrohng
the streets day and night, for the purpose, as one
of them told me, of "keeping down the niggers,"
and if the sway of the Southern slaveholder is as
paternal as is represented, the coloured race must,
indeed, be ungrateful to require such restrictions
and surveiUance.
On the outskirts of the city, I here again observed
a large number of turkey buzzards ; they no doubt
are very useful animals, for as scavengers they
cleanse the streets of a vast quantity of impure
matter. At 3 o'clock P. M. I started in the mail packet
steamer "Wilmington," for the town of that name,
in North Carolina. As the wind blew from the
south east, we had a very rough and stormy passage. .
The navigation can scarcely be called dangerous to
those intimately acquainted with it, but it certainly
bears a most unpleasant appearance, both upon the
chart, and iu reality, by reason of the head lands

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 265
and shoals which here obtrude themselves far into
the Atlantic Ocean. Neither was the pleasure of
the trip increased by the exceedingly dirty and
uncomfortable state of the vessel, which was by
no means an honour to the United States, more
especially as it was the only direct line of mail
communication between the north and the south
of this vast and wealthy Republic.
At eight o'clock on the morning ofthe 11th, we
entered the river of Cape Fair, at the mouth of
which is situated a small town, with a battery and
block house, called Smithsville. This town, they said,
was resorted to by the inhabitants of Wilmington,
during the summer months, to enable them to
breathe the pure sea breezes, and to enjoy sea
bathing. Four field-pieces were mounted on the
remains of a fort which had been erected during
the revolutionary war, and was afterwards de
stroyed by the British forces. This fort seems to
have been composed of shells mixed with lime,
and formed into solid masses resembling hnge
blocks of stone, by having been placed, while in
a liquid state, in boxes or cases, and allowed gra
dually to harden. The foundation appears very
solid, but the structure itself is almost obliterated,
and nothing perhaps strikes a traveUer as more

266 A GLIMPSE AT
singular, because of its rarity, than anything like a
ruin in this country where all is so new. The
remnant therefore of an old building, however
insignificant, appears like an old friend.
Wilmington is a prettily situated and thriving
town. Brunswick, which was the name of the first
settlement in this district, was lower down the river,
but having been burned by the British, in the
revolutionary war, its site was abandoned for that
of the present city. There was a great number
of vessels lying at the different wharves on both
sides of the river at Wilmington. A vast amount
of pine timber is exported from thence, the whole
country surrounding it for leagues being one
continued pine forest.
Turpentine also forms a considerable article of
exportation ; the air of the whole town was, in fact,
very strongly impregnated with its odour.
As we daUy approached the North, the weather
gradually changed for the worse. Now no longer
did the orange-tree, the palm, or the Pride of
India, greet our path, or the lovely and clear
evenings follow a mild warm day ; but the tower
ing pine-tree, varied occasionally by a cyprus, was
almost the only one we now ever saw, and rain and
wind took the place of the more genial southern
clime.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 267
This appeared rather strange to me, for during
the last month, to the day of my arrival at
Rock Island city, on the upper waters of the
Mississippi, I had scarcely seen a shower of rain.
But this afternoon it poured ; and the wind having
veered round to the eastward and south, it blew a
perfect gale. I had cause, therefore, to congratu
late myself that I had left Charleston on the pre
ceding day, otherwise, in all probability, I should
•v.
that afternoon have been exposed to its fury. About
^ month subsequently to this period, great conster
nation was caused in the North, by the report that
Jenny Lind and all her suite had been lost in
this passage. Happily this report was not correct.

268 A GLIMPSE AT

CHAPTER XXIL
At Wilmington I found a railway, which, run
ning through North Carolina and Virginia, joins
the Potomac River at Aqua Creek, about forty
miles below Washington, thus connecting the link of
steam communication between New Orleans and
New York, with but the two exceptions of which
I have previously made mention, namely, from
Stockton to Montgomery, in Alabama, and from
Opeleika to BarnsviUe, in Georgia, by which I had
traveUed in the stage. The first portion of our
journey from Wilmington lay through an inter
minable pine forest; and for miles we passed
rapidly over the ground, but still surrounded by
pine trees, the sole variation was in their size, and
also in the strange appearance which thousands of
them bore, from having been scored for the purpose
of extracting the turpentine. This process is per
formed with a species of rake, which cuts deeply

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 26.9
into the tree, inflicting a large wound, about
eighteen inches long by six wide ; the turpentine,
which flows freely out, being collected in a vessel
placed beneath. Even this severe treatment does
not always kUl the tree, but indeed were it to do so,
it would not materially signify, for to destroy this
forest of pine would probably be the readiest
means of converting the land to more useful pur
poses. Those portions of the pine forest which
have already been destroyed, have been followed
by an indigenous growth of oak, which singu
larly enough, here as well as elsewhere, invariably
succeeds. The railroad, as we approached the great capital
of the Republic, was gradually improving, and in
stabiUty was quite equal to the Albany and Buffalo
hne, in the State of New York, and very far
superior to it in point of carriages, general attention
and civiUty to passengers, and also in respect to
the appearance of the travellers themselves.
The inhabitants of the country through which
we passed appeared sickly and pallid ; perhaps this
may in some measure be accounted for by the low,
swampy ground which occasionally interspersed the
sandy soil in which this pine forest almost uni
versally flourished. The diet of the inhabitants.

270 A GLIMPSE AT
moreover, was reported to me as being of a more
meagre description than the inhabitants of almost
any other portion of the Union. They were
said to exist almost entirely upon herrings, which
are caught in countless numbers on this coast, in
addition to the vegetable called the sweet potato.
At three p.m. we arrived at Godsborough ; we
here found dinner awaiting us. Whilst getting
into the cars I observed, standing near the door
of one of them, a gang, as they were termed,
of negroes. It consisted of three women and
two children. In a moment the steam-vessel
blew a shrill blast as usual, the signal foi" start
ing, and commenced its movement. At the same
time I observed two gentlemen at the door of
the car, in conversation. One appeared rather
well-dressed, the other was a short, stout, good-
natured-looking man. These, it appeared, were
slave-dealers. " Come," said the dandy-dealer, " I'll
give you twenty-one hundred and fifty for the lot."
" Say twenty-two hundred," said the stout man, in
a huge water-proof, " and they are yours." " WeU,
done," said the first ; " I hate not to do business."
" Get in, you niggers," exclaimed both ; and the
sale was completed between their white masters.
These five feUow-creatures were sold, nor did a

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 271
compact, embodying the happiness of five fellow
beings even take the same time to ratify that we
were employed at our repast, but actually was
consummated after the signal had been given for
the starting of the cars, and during the time indeed
that they were on the move. Seeing that these
slaves were all women, I inquired where their
husbands, the probable fathers of these little chil
dren, were. No one appeared, however, sufficiently
interested to vouchsafe even a thought, much less
a reply. Both of these slave merchants now fell
into a long conversation regarding their honourable
employment, but presently the one who had sold
the slaves came and seated himself near to me.
It being the first transaction of the kind that I had
witnessed, I felt the more interested, and made
immediate inquiries respecting the property he had
just disposed of. Great was his astonishment to
perceive that I should feel any interest whatever in
the matter. I said, by way of commencing our
conversation, that I considered the slaves dear at
the price he had sold them, " Oh, no," said he,
" niggers, sir, are regulated by the price of cotton ;
cotton is now high, and niggers are ris ! " He
added, that the slave merchant to whom he had
sold them was a dealer from the lower Southern

272 A GLIMPSE AT
States ; that he would now take them to Georgia or
Alabama, and sell them for three thousand dollars.
" Why," added he, " one little girl is a mulatto,
and, as you might have perceived, nearly white ; I
purchased her, only a few days since, from her
father, who is a planter, and resides not far from
hence. He was about to marry, and fearing a
disturbance with his future wife, he sold both his
chUd and her mother." " How do the slaves," I in
quired, " bear this change in their masters and loca
tion 1" " Why," answered he, " they take on dread-
fidly at first, but when they are well fed with pork,
corn-bread, and molasses, they soon forget their
former homes, and become reconciled to their new
masters; for in this country they are nearly starved,
being fed upon nothing but fish and sweet pota
toes, and many whom I have bought at the age of
fourteen or fifteen did not even know the taste of
meat." He then detailed an interesting account of his
professional avocations. " Oftentimes," said he, " the
residents of these Eastern swamps own more than
one hundred slaves ; they are of not much service
to them, but nevertheless they frequently can
scarcely be induced to part with them ; I, how
ever," added the slave-dealer, " get among them,

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 273
and after a hit or two at cards, I soon make them
turn some of the slaves over to me." " They some
times, then," said I, " separate families and even the
husband and wife 1" " Oh, yes, certainly," said he ;
" but a husband soon finds another wife, and the
woman, if she is likely, gets another husband."
" Do you often procure light-coloured slaves," I in
quired ; " and if so, are they in demand 1 " " Oh,
yes, some nearly white," he replied ; " and occa
sionally very intelligent and clever." This was the
spontaneous and voluntary account given to me of
his professional proceedings by the slave-dealer.
How, then, in the face of these facts, can we
believe, what so frequently is asserted, that families
are never separated, that such parental care is
evinced towards the slaves, that whenever, from
adverse and reduced circumstances, a slave-owner
is obliged to part with them, neither the other
planters, nor even the slave-dealers, will, from a
tender regard to the feelings of these poor crea
tures, purchase any portion of a family without the
whole ? So long as the purchase of slaves is per
mitted, so long as the traffic in human flesh and
blood is allowable, so long wUl the love of gain,
especially when sanctioned by law, break down
pHlanthropic feelings ; and so long as such large

274 A GLIMPSE AT
profits are the reward of this system, it wiU con
tinue to be protected.
In the States of Pennsylvania and Delaware I am
happy to learn that slavery is almost worn out ;
it is a great pity that the measure of that humane
and eminent statesman, Mr. H. Clay, instituting
means for the gradual aboUtion of the entire system,
should not have received the approbation of the
legislature, or that the Wilmot proviso regarding
the total abolition of slavery in the Territories of
the Republic, which have not yet been admitted
into the Union, should have shared the same fate.
Our night's journey between Wilmington and
Richmond on the railroad was far from agreeable.
All chance of sleep was denied to us by reason of
the frequent visits of the conductors, who at each
small stopping-place constantly made a request to
see our tickets, and also in consequence of our being
obliged to change four different times from one set
of cars into others ; once, indeed, during the
night we had to leave the railroad and pass through
a town in an omnibus. These changes cause much
personal inconvenience, which, by a little arrange
ment and agreement between different companies,
might readily be avoided. But I have observed that
in the United States the details of a perfect plan

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 275
are frequently slurred over, only looking to a gene
ral result ; in this new country, so long as any
gi-and measure is actually accomplished, the nicety
with which it is completed is of course a secondary
consideration. It is certainly more for the conve
nience of the people at large in this Republic of
gigantic distances to have a railway extending some
hundreds of miles, and thus connecting distant cities,
although perhaps it may lack those perfections of
detaU which may be found in a country where
wealth is more abundant.
I may here instance the practical utUity of the
electric telegraph in the United [States ; in conse
quence of the rude way in which they are erected,
the public are enabled to purchase their use at so
moderate a price : whereas in England, from the
gi'eat expense of the original undertaking, as well
as the expense of working it, its use is nullified
as regards the poorer portion of the community.
Early on the foUowing morning we reached
Richmond, the principal city in Virginia, which is
beautifully situated. Richmond is the oldest looking
town I had yet seen in the United States ; it is
built altogether of brick and stone, and from not
having even an admixture of frame buildings, has
altogether a different appearance from any in the
T 2

276 A GLIMPSE AT
North or West. It appeared to me to possess a
strong resemblance to one of our inland manufac
turing towns, both from the similarity in the
structure of the houses, and from their uniformity,
being composed of the same materials. Richmond is
particularly noted as possessing the largest tobacco
manufactures in the United States.
In Virginia I was struck by the feeling of anta
gonism between the Southern and Northern States,
far exceeding what I could have supposed to exist.
It is here, as it were, that the two tides met ; here
is the line of demarkation betwixt two conflicting
interests. Speaking of the Western States, a gentle
man observed to me, " Ah, the West is getting now
quite spoilt; not only are they overrun by French
and Dutch, (meaning German) but are cursed
with no end of Yankees." Before this visit to
the United States, I confess my ignorance was so
great as to imagine that all the citizens of the
RepubUc enjoyed the patronymic of Yankees, but I
subsequently learned that it belonged of right only
to the inhabitants of the New England States, after
the same privUege that the Londoners at home are
styled Cockneys.
Virginia, moreover, claims a peculiar aristocracy ;
the early settlers in this state having been composed
principally of ruined cavaliers, whereas those in

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 277
Pennsylvania, and farther North, were on the con
trary mostly Roundheads. By way of Ulustration to
my remark, I have made a Ust, which wiU take
but smaU space, and may be read or overstepped by
the reader at his own pleasure. Of course I cannot
vouch for the correctness of it, but give it as
received by myself
The New Englanders are called "Yankees" in
New Hampshire,
Vermont,
Massachussetts,
Connecticut, and
Maine :
In the State of New York, "Cockneys,"
„ Pennsylvania, "Flying Dutch."
Ohio, "Bucks' Eyes."
„ Indiana, "Hosiers."
„ lUinois, "Suckers."
„ Missouri, "Pukes."
„ Kentucky, "Corncrackers."
„ Tennessee, "Buckshins."
„ Arkansas, "Yahoos."
„ Mississippi, "Sharpshooters."
„ Virginia, "Tuckahoos."
CaroUna, South, "NuUifyers,"
„ „ North, "Ryp-van- Winkles,"
„ Michigan, "Wolverines,"

278 A GLIMPSE AT
After leaving Richmond, the country assumed a
particularly pleasant aspect ; indeed, I could scarcely
divest myself of the idea that I was not passing
through a part of England, Before reaching Aqua
Creek, on the Potomac, the surrounding scenery
much resembled parts of Berkshire, the fields being
neatly inclosed with hedges, interspersed with copses,
with wooded hiUs in the distance.
About mid-day we arrived at Aqua Creek,
where we found a small steamer, caUed the " Mount
Vernon," waiting to convey us to Washington,
It rained hard, and blew most fearfully, but we
managed notwithstanding to get on board without
being very wet, and when there, were most com
fortably entertained. This little boat, stemming
the rapid stream with unusual speed, in about three
hours brought us opposite Mount Vernon, the late
residence of the immortal Washington.
We had a fine view of both house and grounds,
neither of which appeared extensive. Such is my
unbounded admiration of this great man, that I
esteem it a privilege to have seen the spot where
he resided.
Almost immediately opposite to Mount Vernon,
and about ten mUes below the city, we passed an
extremely strong fortification, called Fort Wash
ington, completely commanding the river, and

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 279
about five, p.m., the steamer moored below the
capital of this great RepubUc. A black servant
on board the " Vernon" was particularly atten
tive to me, in handing out my baggage, from
which I afterwards discovered he had taken a pair
of boots for his own use. I put up at WiUand's
Hotel, which needs no encomiums on my part, its
excellence being known to all traveUers.

280 A GLIMPSE AT

CHAPTER XXIII.
Early on the following morning I was awoke by
a low chant at my door, such as I had heard long
since in the bogs of Allan. I recognised at once
this wild Irish lay, but never expected to have
heard it so far from home. The servants in this
house were, as usual, Irish, and many of them had
landed but a few months since from their native
country; the songstress, amongst the rest, was one
who had left, as she expressed it, the doomed
land. Although the city of Washington may, from
its somewhat unconnected buildings, as yet deserve
the name of the " city of magnificent distances," yet
each year shows what rapid strides its inhabitants
are making towards the filling up these gaps by
stately edifices, and, in my opinion, it is a city
which shows evidences of being weU worthy of
the Grand Republic.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 281
The great check to tho improvement of Wash
ington, may be traced to its not being an emporium
of commerce ; but it is a part of the very genius
of the constitution, that none of their senatorial
cities should be places devoted to mercantile pur
suits; for it is the received idea, and with much
reason, that otherwise these mercantile senators
would give an undue attention to their own affafrs,
to the detriment of the public weal.
Washington then is a city devoted to one object,
that of making laws for the government of the
Republic. Washington is a grand idea, and will
probably one day be realized, when it will become
what it now aspires to be, a magnificent city, which
it must do when the United States become rich,
settled, aristocratic, and luxurious. Each day
verges towards that state of things, and ere long
this wiU be effected. By-and-bye, as the present
race of poor, dependent legislators are succeeded by
wealthy and independent ones, the society of Wash
ington will become the most intellectual in the
Western Hemisphere, and will possess every sub
stantial benefit, conferred by a real aristocracy.
Her streets, instead of being filled by hotels and
boarding-houses, will possess a succession of beauti-
fulvpalaces. Republican senators wUl then assemble

282 A GLIMPSE AT
in a manner worthy of the Great Union which
has delegated them to perform its duties; and
senators and legislators, no longer seeking to obtain
these situations for the stipends attached to them,
will consider it the highest honour to serve their
country for their country's good, for the renown
their names will receive for so doing, and the
proud prospect alone, of their being handed down
to posterity as public benefactors. The electors
themselves, feeling a double assurance, that those
persons whom they have delegated to represent
their interests can have but the purest motives for
undertaking so honourable, but so arduous a task,
and feeling convinced, moreover, that this motive
alone can excite their ambition ; as there would be
neither pay nor emolument to reward them; and
from thefr being independent in principle as weU
as in fortune, even the highest offices of state,
with the moderate salaries attached to them, cannot
bold out the bait of lucre, the form of govern
ment under which they exist, having neither titles
nor decorations to bestow, nor any other induce
ment to tempt the vanity which might endanger
a weak mind. When that day arrives, which I
cannot believe is far distant, much as the Great
Republic is now to be admired, how much more

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 283
justly wUl it then call down the just applause of
the world !
Washington, although in some respects resemb
hng the suburbs of some grand city, really pos
sesses no suburbs at all. In distinct localities,
truly magnificent objects strike the eye; the Capitol,
the President's House, the Treasury, and the new
Patent Office, cause the smaUer buildings upon
which they look down, to appear insignificant ; and
from the commanding position of the town, over
looking the valley beneath, through which that
fine river the Potomac runs, a coup d'ceil is
afforded of which few cities can. boast. Of these
the Capitol is the finest building, and situated in the
most commanding position; unfortunately it is built
of sandstone, which is of so porous a nature, that
it has been deemed requisite to paint it, and they
are obliged to renew it every five years; the effect
of this at a distance is very good, causing it to
resemble marble.
On being rebuilt, after its destruction by the
British in 1814, it seems a pity that marble, which
in the neighbourhood of Baltimore, at a distance
only of forty miles, is so plentiful, had not been
used. The capitol, in its interior, is handsomely
fitted up, and neatly decorated throughout. The

284 A GLIMPSE AT
circular gaUery in its centre contains a series of
paintings, peculiarly interesting to the Americans,
representing scenes that were enacted by their prin
cipal heroes during the revolutionary war. The
Patent Office, with a museum attached to it, inte
rested me greatly.
The President's House is large and commodious;
the only apartments shown to strangers are the
suite of reception-rooms, which are handsomely
furnished. Asa palace, it is by no means' grand
enough for the chief magistrate of this great people
and nation ; but it is even on too great a scale for
the pitiful salary which they deem sufficient to
accord to the President, the salary being five thou
sand pounds sterling, to cover every public and
private expense, including the maintenance of his
estabUshment, servants, stables, &c. &c. &c. nothing
being found for him but the house and furniture.
Immediately below the President's House, and
about one mile distant from it, is the commence
ment of a fine monument to Washington. The
intention is to erect an obelisk, five hundred feet in
height, and entirely composed of white marble;
about eighty feet have already been completed,
and numerous workmen are employed in prose
cuting steadily their task. Already it has a fine

TJIE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 285
appearance, but when four hundred and twenty
more feet shall have been placed above what is now
erected, it will be one of the most imposing
structures of the kind in the world. The Egyptian
obelisks would appear like pigmies by its side, and
can boast of but one superior excellence, that of
being single blocks.
Between this monument and the Capitol, there is
a large building of red stone, called the Smithsonian
Institute. It is a sort of Gothic architecture, but
altogether a poor performance. This building is
not nearly completed, but what has already been
accomphshed is of so imperfect a nature, that a
large portion of the interior, I was informed, had
aheady faUen down. The Smithsonian Institute is
entirely devoted to scientific purposes, and is sup
ported by the interest of a large fortune, left by a
Mr. Smithson.
On the whole, Washington is a fine city, and if
the mind is allowed to wander into the future, it
is impossible to imagine the magnificence to which
she may not attain some years hence. The fore
thought of the Republican citizens has wisely given
space for everything, looking rather to the future
than to the present.
The site upon which Washington city stands is

286 A GLIMPSE AT
undulating and picturesque, the distant scenery
noble in the extreme.
One great disadvantage which the city of Wash
ington labours under, is that the district of Colum
bia, of which it is the centre, possesses no represen
tative in any legislature, being left to the charge of
all ; some of her citizens complain that she is cared
for by none, but I cannot help thinking that this
complaint is unfounded, because I was informed
that a large amount of money was annuaUy voted
by Congress towards the improvement of the city, a
favour which is bestowed upon no other capital
except herself, unless at the expense of its own
citizens. With regard to slavery in this, the chief city of
the Union, a sort of compromise has been arrived
at, that although slavery may continue to exist,
yet no slave can, in the district of Columbia,
become a marketable commodity. I presume that
this plan has been adopted to soothe the feeUngs
of the abolitionists, and the northern members of
Congress. The distinction, however, is rather
comical, and would oblige a man who wishes to
purchase another's slave, to make arrangements for
the whole party to take a day's jaunt out of the
district of Columbia, returning, when the bargain

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 287
was completed, in unrestricted convoy of his newly
acquired property.
From Washington to Baltimore is a distance of
only forty miles ; a very good raUroad joins the two
cities. This distance, however, occupied three and
a half hours, ere we arrived at the terminus within
the latter city.
In Baltimore, as in many cities in the United
States, the rails are laid through some of the prin
cipal streets, which enables both passengers and
baggage to enter the very heart of these towns,
without the inconvenience of shifting to other
carriages. The cars, however, are not propelled through the
town by a steam engine, but horses are attached to
them in the suburbs. Many accidents have, never
theless, occurred, from the weight of the carriages
and the impossibUity of arresting them quickly,
when once in motion. Although I arrived so late
in the evening, I had time to attend the performance
of Shakspeare's comedy, "As you like it," which
was most miserably performed at the Museum.
On my walk through the town on the following
morning, I was astonished to see the immense
amount of business here transacted. The quays
and avenues near the water side appeared as

288 A GLIMPSE AT
crowded with merchandise and drays containing
every description of goods, as those of Liverpool or
London. During my walk to Federal-hUl, which
commands a good view of the city and harbour, the
noise produced by the constant hammering at ship
building, and steam-boilers, &c. &c., was quite
deafening. I observed many pretty clippers in the
harbour, for which class of schooner this town is
celebrated. The city of Baltimore is very extensive, and a
portion of it contains some good-looking buUdings.
Near the Washington testimonial, which itself is
a very handsome column, I saw some fine houses.
I endeavoured to obtain admittance to one of
them not occupied, but without success, which I
regretted, as few things give so good an idea of the
refined state to which society has arrived, as a well
appointed house or establishment.
At Baltimore, I renewed my acquaintance with
Dr. Hintzer, a gentleman whom I had previously
met during his tour in the Canadas. He very
kindly received me into his house, and took much
pains in showing me the lions pf Baltimore. I
accompanied him in his carriage to Fort Henry,
distant from the city about two miles. We fortu
nately arrived on the plateau, immediately without

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 289
the fort, just at the commencement of a field-day,
ef a battery of the United States artillery. The
battery consisted of four brass six-pounders ; these
guns were heavier in point of metal than our own,
and on that account more cumbrous in movement,
and less serviceable, if, as with us, celerity in the
field be a great desideratum. They were kept
brightly polished, which looks well to the eye, hut
has some disadvantages. The men were principally
young soldiers, who, as yet, could scarcely be called
perfectly instructed. The term of enlistment being
only for five years, it is a very up-hill task for the
officers. No sooner is a soldier well and thoroughly
acquainted with his duties, than he returns into
civil life, and the same drudgeiry is to be recom
menced with another recruit ; but this is more espe
cially provoking in this particular branch of the
service, the entire term of his enlistment being
barely sufficient to make the artiUeryman thoroughly
acquainted with his various obligations, which are
somuch more difficult than those of the cavalry or
infantry soldier. The horses were, perhaps, equal
to those we possess in Canada, in one troop they
were superior, for they were generally younger ; but
they certainly lacked that smartness of appearance
upon which we pride ourselves, and I should say

290 A GLIMPSE AT
were not so completely at command of the gunner
and driver as our horses. The dress and accoutre
ments of the gunner were in very fair order ; the
movements were performed with more celerity and
precision than could have been expected from any
body of men who for the most part had been but a
short period under instruction.
I was particularly struck with the marked cour
tesy of the Commandant, as well as all the officers,
who displayed much cordiality and the utmost
readiness to give me a clear insight into all military
minutiae connected with their service. This feeling
should always be cultivated between great countries,
and especially between Great Britain and America,
both famed for their love of freedom, both proud
of the historical recoUections of thefr common coun
try, and both taking the deepest interest in its
literature, laws, and institutions. This feeling of
relationship, as springing from a common origin,
will increase with the power and civilization of the
United States ; but in the military profession
this courtesy is in all countries most desirable,
as tending to mitigate the horrors of war, and
elevate the defenders of their country to that
honourable position in which they ever should be
regarded by the chivalrous of all nations. The

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 291
chapel in the fort was a particularly neat edifice ;
it had been built by a united subscription of the
inhabitants of the city of Baltimore, and was alike
open to the religious instruction of aU Christian
pastors. In the evening I attended an oyster party, given
by a gentleman in one of the saloons which, in all
large towns in the United States, are fitted up
pecuharly for this purpose. The oysters were much
larger than those of the British Channel, and I never
tasted better fish, not excepting the far-famed
Muhahide, " Poldoodies of the right sort."
About nine in the evening of the 14th of
November, I started per rail for PhUadelphia, dis
tant ninety-nine miles. Shortly after quitting the
terminus at Baltimore, I left my seat for a few
moments to speak to the conductor, who was in an
adjoining car, but to my surprise, on my return I
found it occupied by two men ; upon my remon
strating, one of them flew into a most violent passion,
and said, I might walk over his dead body to my
seat. I calmly explained to him that for such a
trifle as any particular seat in a railway car I had
neither a wish to take his life, nor to lose my own
in such an absurd contest ; that there were plenty
of vacant seats, concerning which there appeared
u2

292 A GLIMPSE AT
no choice ; upon which he became as quickly
pacified, and desired his companion instantly to
quit his seat for mo. After a few moments' silence,
turning round to me, he said, " I would have lost
my life sooner than have given up that seat ; but
you talked so pretty-like, you quite conquered me."
At the first halting-place, he was extremely desirous
I should enjoy a glass of cocktail at his expense,
and on my declining, he appeared to have half a
mind to recommence his quarrelsome behaviour ;
but suddenly taking up his coat, he vanished from
the car. I mention this circumstance, because,
during my entire excursion of upwards of five
thousand miles in the United States, part of which
journey was through so wild a country, this was the
only instance in which I met with anything bor
dering on rudeness of a personal character.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 293

CHAPTER XXIV.
We reached PhUadelphia at an early hour, and
had sufficient time to enjoy a comfortable rest at a
very good hotel.
The time which I could allow myself to devote
to this city, one of the grandest and most opulent
of the Union, was but limited. I however lost
none. I first proceeded to the reservoir, which is
constructed in the most solid manner, and upon
the grandest scale : it is supplied by force pumps
fi'om the clear water of the beautiful Schuylkill
River. From thence I proceeded to Girard College.
On entering the grounds of this establishment, my
astonishment was boundless at beholding a building
at once so unique and beautiful as scarcely any
country in the world can boast its equal. It was
exactly after the same model as the Madeleine at
Paris, but much larger, aud entirely constructed of

291 A GLIMPSE AT
the purest white marble, even the roof being com
posed of the same material. The columns which
surround this buUding are fluted, and with capitals
of the Corinthian order ; the staircases, the door
posts, and the landing-places on each floor in
the interior of this structure are of beautiful
white marble. The different lecturing haUs
were simply and well furnished, and heated to a
pleasant temperature with warm air. On either
side of this magnificent centre buUding are two
immense structures, also entirely of white marble.
These are the sleeping apartments and dining haUs
of the students, who, if I hazard an opinion, are
treated more luxuriously than the sons of the
English nobility. Warm baths, drying closets,
hot-air fines, &c., being fitted up in these buildings,
things which at Eton never entered into our
philosophy. A sixth building has been recently
added, but in such bad taste and so utterly dis
similar in its architecture to the other five, that
Avere it possible, it would mar -their fine effect.
The grounds, which are very extensive, were well
laid out, a portion being set aside for the purpose
of instructing the youths of this institution in
gardening. ¦_ jThis college was founded by a Monsieur Girard,

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 293
a handsome statue of whom, in beautiful Florentine
marble, may be seen upon first entering the great
doorway, in the centre buUding. By birth this
gentleman was a Frenchman ; when first he arrived
in the United States, it was in the character of a
foriorn cabin boy. Without one dollar in his pocket.
By carefulness, good luck, and assiduity, or rather
by having invested his early gains in city property,
he amassed great wealth. The greater portion
of his fortune he bequeathed in charity. He
instituted the Girard College for the education
of three hundred and fifty orphans, natives of the
town of Philadelphia ; and to support it he
assigned property which now yields an annual
income of more than one hundred and twenty
thousand doUars. The property principally con
sists of real estate in Philadelphia, but there is
also considerable landed property on the Mississippi,
the trustees to this institution having determined
to bring into the market this spring no less than
one himdred and twenty thousand acres of coal
field that lie adjacent to that river.
I was much impressed with Girard College. I
had no expectation, in so new a country, and
where I had erroneously been taught to imagine
few, if any, fine pubUc buildings existed, to find

296 A GLIMPSE AT
embodied in a private charity a structure, which in
beauty of design, and skilfulness of architecture,
and in the size and magnificence of its proportion,
cannot be surpassed by any in the world. I should
be ungrateful if I were to quit this subject without
doing justice to the great attention I received from
those who showed me over the building. The
attendants, although interdicted from receiving the
slightest remuneration, nevertheless took far more
care in detaUing each interesting particular than
most cicerones do who are paid highly for their
services. I next visited the cemetery on the banks of
SchuylkUl river, a pretty little place, and evinces
far better judgment in the inhabitants of this fine
city, than the crowded burial-places for the dead
both in the metropolis and most large towns iu
England, where they are still confined within the
narrow limits and haunts of the living.
From thence I went to the model Penitentiary, a
prison whose system and merits have been canvassed
by the w^orld at large. The method of conducting
this prison has of late years undergone a great
amelioration. The silent system, at one time so
strictly enforced, has in a measure been relinquished,
and the prisoners are now allowed at stated periods

THE GRIfAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 297
to converse with those who are placed over them, to
instruct them for some hours daily in various trades,
of which the science of gardening forms a conspicu
ous part. Great care is however taken to prevent
these prisoners from having any conversation one
with another, as the desire is that they should only
learn what is useful and good, and receive no con
tamination from the mouth of crime. Before this
amelioration in their discipline, a very large propor
tion of those incarcerated went mad, and I was
informed that the relaxation which I have mentioned
bas been attended, both in this and other respects,
with the very best possible effects. Very cruel
punishments were formerly infiicted upon refractory
prisoners, such as screwing down their windows in
extremely hot weather, stopping their exercise, &c. ;
but now I was informed by the Governor of the
Penitentiary, that an unfailing means had been dis
covered for bringing all troublesome subjects to their
senses, which was nothing more than that of stopping
their allowance of chewing tobacco. The Governor
of the prison added, that through this simple
restriction, there was no prisoner he could not place
upon his kuces before him, and that no punishment
was half so effectual for the refractory as the loss of
his 'pigtail. The prisoners were exceedingly well

298 A GLIMPSE AT
fed, daily receiving a full ration of meat and bread.
In this Penitentiary the awards are principally for
capital offences; the sentences therefore are generally
for very long periods, for ten, twelve, or fourteen
years, and indeed sometimes for life.
I paid a visit to the painted chamber, which is
described so weU by Mr. Dickens, in his tour in the
United States, and which to this moment remains
precisely as it was at the period of his visit. It
reminded me most strikingly of one of the small
painted chambers in the ruins of Pompei, In many
of the ceUs I found the inmates busily employed
in weaving, which appeared to be the favourite
amusement of all. The amount accruing from the
sale of the produce of their labour is saved up
until they bid adieu to this establishment, and
the whole of it is left for their own benefit, and
acts as a wonderful stimulus to their industry, and,
provided they have really contracted moral and good
habits during their confinement, may serve as the
very best means of causing them eventually to
become useful citizens, feeling that they even possess
a stake in the welfare of the Republic, Instances
are recorded of an industrious prisoner having
received as large a sum at parting as one thousand
dollars, the proceeds, during a long incarceration, of

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 299
zealous industry. The great proportion of the
prisoners are coloured men, which race certainly
appear to possess far less control over their passions
than the white, and generally the crimes for which
they have been imprisoned are those of the deepest
die. Petty larceny, and such like misdemeanours,
are rare in the United States. The temptations to
which poor persons are subject in Europe are almost
unknown in this country, where labour can be com
manded by all who seek it, and good wages, with
cheap living, are the lot of the industrious. Here,
as usual, I conversed with the Irish emigrants who
had lately landed, and found that they were, almost
invariably, each in receipt of one dollar per diem ;
whereas the general amount of their expenditure,
commanding all they could desire, and far more than
they were accustomed to, was defi'ayed by less than
half their receipts.
The distance from Philadelphia to New York was
ninety mUes, twenty by water, the rest by railway.
Starting at half-past five, we reached New York at
eleven at night. The weather was extremely wet
and unpleasant, and the constant changes which we
had to undergo, from steamers to railway carriages
and ferry-boats, &c., did by no means improve the
pleasure of our trip.

300 A GLIMPSE AT
Arrived at New York, I put up at the New York
Hotel, in Broadway, which I beUeve, in all essential
respects, to be the best hotel there. Throughout
the Union, however, the rooms which they are
pleased to think good enough for bachelors, or
gentlemen travelling without their families, are
proverbially uncomfortable, whereas in all good
hotels the ladies' apartments are the reverse. The
parlours or sitting rooms at this hotel were fur
nished with every comfort and luxury, and the
respective families who were staying in the hotel
here congregated at pleasure, as if they were
one. In dress they are always the best Parisian
models, from which they rarely or never give
themselves the slightest relaxation, even in the
most minute details. The large dining hall was
most splendidly fitted up; the meals were excel
lent, and served in the French style, the servants
most attentive, which was the more agreeable from
its novelty iu New York.
It was certainly painful to my English notions
to see so many young men lounging about -the
bar-rooms of the hotels at New York, Avith appa
rently no employment whatever. The parents, how
ever, of these American youths reside invariably
iu cities ; they have no country seats to retire

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 301
to, at least in the English sense of that term, and
having been rather nurtured to look up to the
current prices in the market, and to look down
upon healthy pastimes as a waste of time, they
therefore neither properly understand or appreciate
them. Trotting matches and horse-racing, with an
occasional day's rifle shooting, are now" their only
country recreations; and as these afford no real hard
exercise, the healthy glow so general in England on
the countenances of all, from the plough boy to the
scion of nobility, is seldom or rarely met with
in any part of this great Republic, I visited Jenny
hind's new concert room, which is a fine building;
but although it can contain a vast number of guests,
yet I cannot speak in terms of high commendation
of its comfort, the seats being so close and narrow,
it is painful to sit long in them. Its decorations
are simple and very beautiful.
As most of the foregoing notes contain the
impressions of what I saw in the western wilds of
the Union, I have no intention of giving an account
Of the eastern cities, which have been so constantly
and ably described by many recent travellers. I
cannot, however, resist acknowledging how surprised
I was with the immense quantity of shipping which
I saw in the neighbourhood of the city of New

302 A GLIMPSE AT
York. No one thing can give a better idea of the
mercantile wealth and resources of the Union than
this; but when I review, in my mind, the large
amount of commercial enterprise which I saw,
taking it in the aggregate, at the different ports of
the Union, in conjunction with the vast agricul
tural resources of this country, as, also, with the
large amount of industry and talent which, each
year, is added to her already inteUigent citizens by
emigration from Europe, and consider that, after
aU, the United States are but, as yet, in their
infancy, my mind is deeply impressed with the
idea of the height to which this Republic must ere
long attain in the scale of nations.
On a previous occasion I much regretted my
inabUity to visit West Point; I therefore deter
mined not to let slip the present opportunity of so
doing. West Point is the military academy of the
United States, combining the instruction imparted
to young men in England, at the three estabUsh-
ments of Sandhurst, Woolwich, and Chatham. It
is situated about eighty miles up the Hudson River,
in a commanding and most salubrious position, and
is surrounded by as grand and lovely scenery as
the world can boast of, I had a most agreeable

THE GREAT WESTERN REepUBLIC, 303
journey on the railroad which runs on the verge of
the Hudson River, On my arrival at West Point
I was received by the Commandant with great
affability, and an officer of artillery was imme
diately requested to show me over the college, A
vast range of new buildings have lately been
constructed, to which the old ones, by being pulled
down, are gradually, as these are completed, made
to give place. They are situated on a plateau, or
broad step, on the lofty mountain side, by which
they are sheltered in winter, and which, in summer,
causes a cool draught of air constantly to circulate
around them. The cadets were very comfortably
lodged, two in each room ; but from the method in
which they were arranged they might, more appro
priately, be said to possess each a small sleeping
apartment, and one common sitting room for the
two. The library is a handsome edifice, and, in
the interior, very well fitted up. It was well
stored with books and decorated with numerous
trophies from the Republic at Mexico. The cadets
number about 250, the appointments resting in the
hands of the members of Congress, who each have
the opportunity of presenting about one military
candidate annually.
Although the United States' army is limited, yet

304 A GLIMPSE AT
from this source alone almost every vacancy is
filled up ; for, although the President possesses the
power of giving commissions, yet he very rarely
exercises it. Taking all branches of the service
collectively, there occur about fifty vacancies in the
army per annum, and should the usual period of
study at this college have elapsed prior to a
vacancy having occurred, to prevent any idle habits
being engendered, the young men are attached to
different corps, to do duty as supernumeraries, until
they can be regularly provided for. While at the
college they receive pay at the rate of twenty-
eight dollars a month, besides rations and clothing.
This sum is about equivalent to their expenses, and
as the pay of an officer is quite sufficient to support
him handsomely, and the system of purchasing
promotion is unknown, a military presentation to
West Point is tantamount to a provision for life.
The studies are very severe in the spring, autumn,
and winter ; but during the two summer months
all work within doors is laid aside, a camp, on the
plateau, is formed, and the students live in tents,
sleeping ou boards, — no bedding, beyond a soldier's
blanket, being allowed them. They are then in
structed, practically, in field fortifications, throwing
up entrenchments, and other field works, besides

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 30'5
practical gunnery, in all its branches, and a
thorough course of laboratory work, such as making
fusees, filling shells, &c. &c. The usefulness of
this practical instruction cannot be too highly
commended, and as every cadet who is about to enter
any branch of the service is obliged to undergo it,
each and every one of them must understand a
considerable portion of the rudiments, at least, of
all branches of the profession, and in this respect,
I make bold to observe, some Uttle improvement
might take place in the instruction of our military
cadets at home.
This system of universal military instruction has
many benefits ; it ensures that an officer, in what
soever branch of the profession he may be, must
have a certain knowledge of all the rest, and,
should he be placed in a critical position, it will
enable him to place a reliance on his own resources,
and enable him to judge for himself ; whereas, if he
were ignorant of all but the immediate branch of
the army in which he serves, he must be entirely
dependent, in respect to all the rest, upon those
who are about him.
A troop of sixty horses is kept for the use of
the cadets, who not only receive instruction in the
school, but certain classes of them, at stated periods,

306 A GLIMPSE AT
ride in the country. I may add, that I was much
gratified with my visit to the school of design,
drawing, fortification, &c.
There is no senior department at West Point,
but a certain number of officers are detaUed from
the duties of the regular army to overlook the
young cadets. These appointments are agreeable
to them, for the present service of the American
army cannot but be considered as arduous aud
unpleasant; whereas, few opportunities of distinc
tion are open to its officers, the army being univer
sally now detached on the frontiers of civilization
in New Mexico, California, Oregon, &c., in small
parties at such stations as Port Larami, which is a
thousand miles beyond St. Louis, or at the Salt
Lake, or over the passes in the Rocky Mountains, or
the territories of New Mexico, where they see few
but gold-seeking emigrants, Mormons, and the
wildest of citizens.
As in America there is no nobility, either here
ditary or for life, as in France before' the late
revolution, — no order of knighthood, or distinction
of this class, — neither officers nor citizens, however
zealously they perform their duty to their country,
can gain any title of distinction beyond the ap
probation of their fellow-men, which is generally

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 307
evinced in choosing them as their leaders in the
councils of their nation ; but although the spirit of
the constitution may be contrary to the European
method of granting rewards by distinguished appeUa-
tions, I can see no reason why a medal, in com
memoration of the services of her brave soldiery,
should be denied to them. Depend upon it, that
the great Republic will ere long find out that there
is no method so certain for calling forth the zeal of
her soldiery, and certainly none so cheap, as the
method which has been adopted by older nations,
of granting to their warriors an honourable memento
of their successful bravery.
I must here remark, that, before quitting New
York, I observed some encroachments upon demo
cracy ; liveried servants were occasionally to be
met with, and, notwithstanding universal equality,
the arrival of " distinguished individuals" was duly
noted in the newspapers of the day. I merely
mention these facts to show, in a country whose
republicanism is its boast, that aristocratic habits
wiU occasionally force themselves upon society, and
wealth place itself in antagonism to equality.
I could not help observing, that behind most of
the carriages, very handsome knotted cords are
placed, awaiting only the orders of "republican
X 2

308 A GLIMPSE AT
aristocrats" for their liveried footmen to lay hold
of them. As yet I did not obseiwe so bold an inva
sion upon the feelings of the independent citizens,
except in one instance, and that was of General
Tom Thumb, who was permitted to parade the
streets with all the paraphernalia of European
aristocracy.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 309

CHAPTER XXV.
The distance by railroad, vid Springfield, from
New York to Boston, was two hundred and thirty-
seven miles ; but, thanks to a good road, we accom
plished it in little better than eight hours ; in all
respects this road appeared as well conducted as
one of our best at home ; and the supper which was
provided for us at Springfield, where there is a
proverbially good hotel, really deserves mention.
I arrived at Boston in the middle of the night, and
put up at the Rivere House, an excellent hotel,
resembling in the comforts of its apartments an
Enghsh inn of the first class.
When I looked about me on the following morn
ing, I was quite delighted with Boston. It had the
appearance of being so thoroughly English, — all was
so clean and neat, that few, if any, English cities
can in this respect claim priority over it. The

310 A GLIMPSE AT
streets, moreover, are winding and serpentine, and
do not therefore possess the almost universal
American characteristic of rectangular sameness.
The Senate-house is a particularly fine building,
and an extensive view from the summit well repaid
my trouble in the ascent. In one of its chambers
I observed a drum, a soldier's pointed cap, and a
musket — trophies obtained from the British during
the ^Yar of independence at Bunker 's-hill ; and sub
sequently, in walking through the city, I saw a
twenty-four pound cannon shot sticking in the front
wall of Brattle-square Church, which I heard had
been fired during the battle of Charleston, which
suburb is situated on the north side of the city of
Boston. The reservoir directly in the rear of the
ScBate-house is a fine piece of architecture ; it is
built of masonry, and stands exactly in the centre
of the city, and could plentifully supply it with
water were its resoui-ces cut off from other quar
ters. The fountains in the gardens below gave a
most refreshing aspect to all around, and, if possible,
added to the cleanly appearance of ^\'hat already
looked so neat and elegant. I afterwards paid a
visit to the cemetery of Mount Auburn, which
was the prettiest place of the kind I had yet
visited, and much more so, in my opinion, than

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 311
"Pere la Chaise." I observed a notice, desirins"
persons to be careful lest they should be convicted
of having tortiously plucked the flowers, which
strange term certainly had one effect, namely, that
of calling my attention to the notice itself On the
road to Mount Auburn we passed a number of small
lakes, which are more valuable as water than they
would be as dry land. These lakes during the
winter season are frozen to a great depth beneath
their surface ; and when in that state, the ice is cut
out into solid blocks and stowed in large ware
houses built upon their banks. At the early spring
this is shipped and dispatched to all those ports
whose inhabitants can afford to purchase this luxury.
The waters of these little lakes consequently find
their way to China, to India, and the West
Indian Islands ; and at Calcutta, ice is to be had
from America at about one half of its cost in
London. The city of Boston in some respects has a pecu
liar characteristic ; for although it is not built, like
Venice, actually on the water, yet on all sides it is
surrounded by lagoons, some of which are suffi
ciently deep to float ships of a considerable size.
The communication with the country on either side
of the city are kept up by means of long wooden

312 A GLIMPSE AT
causeways, removeable at pleasure, and which, when
taken away, would place considerable difficulties in
the way of any attacking force.
At the Rivere Hotel, a most comfortable room
was fitted up in the style of an English drawing-
room ; this was called the " gent.'s " parlour. It
was fitted up with the most luxurious sofas and
lounging chairs, smoking being strictly prohibited
in it. I was delighted to observe that there ap
peared no use whatever for the spitoons, which in
the West aud South have become a most essential
but disagreeable article of furniture.
This room was crowded during the afternoon
with gentlemanly-looking men, amongst whom one
single theme pervaded their conversation.- — Dollars
and Cents formed not only the principal, but, as
it appeared to me, the sole subject of their discourse,
and upon this one gentleman expatiated so well
that it might have set the hair of an Israelite on
end in astonishment at the profitable investments
which he had made with his money, — thousands
and tens of thousands he had placed in various
locations ; and, according to his own account, he
possessed shares in every land and sea company
from St. Anthony's PaUs to Rio Grande,— from
New Yarmouth to Savannah,

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC, 313
For a nation or an individual to be utterly
devoid of vanity, would argue that he lacked self-
confidence, without which he would not possess
that energy and perseverance essential to prospe
rity; but, probably amongst no people on the
face of the globe is ambition to excel more strongly
developed than among the Americans ; far from
being ready to disclaim talent that may be imputed
to them, they are ever ready to speak frankly on
their affairs, and are open and without reserve.
Their English cousins are more discreet ; but our
silence, arising from shyness, is a very doubtful
merit, and in travelhng had better be dispensed
with. One peculiar feature of the New Englanders is
great astuteness in the performance of the various
avocations of life, and I was rather amused by a
sharp trick, for which the Bostonians got credit
last summer. Cheap excursion trains had been
arranged from Montreal to Boston city and back,
and as it is well known that those generally who
can best afford amusement are the first on these
occasions to avail themselves of it, a posse of
Bostonian creditors posted themselves at BurUngton,
on Lake Champlain ; no sooner did the mass of
travellers land from the steamer, preparatory to

314 A GLIMPSE AT
taking the railroad, than these Bostonians selected
their individual debtors, and no less than sixteen
fish were caught in the first haul. It was a cruel
fate, when bent upon pleasure to be arrested and
placed in jaU ; but the law was supreme, and until
some arrangement could be entered into with their
sharp-sighted creditors, they had no resource but to
submit to their fate.
I quitted Boston by raU on the 21st for Fitz-
burgh ; the first twenty mUes of our journey lay
through a weU cultivated country. Near Fitzburgh
it assumed a different aspect, more resembhng parts
of Ascot Heath, bordering on Windsor Forest;
the ground, however, was more undulating, some
what in the style of the country in the neighbour
hood of Shooter's Hill in Kent, but on a wilder
and more extended scale. The air was cold, and
as most of the small streams were coated with ice,
an unmistakable sign of approaching winter was
thus presented to me, proving also that the course
I had been traveUing was to the dreary north.
The country gradually bore that appearance pecu
liar to Scotland, or the north of Ireland, the fields
being divided by stone fences. The character of
the soil, also, was less generous, which led me to
understand the reason why so large a number of

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 315
the enterprising inhabitants part with their pos
sessions and remove to the distant prairies of Iowa
and Illinois, concerning which I hai'e written so
much at the commencement of these pages.
At tAvelve at noon we crossed the Connecticut
River, at a most romantically situated rapid in
this considerable stream, called Bellows Falls. We
&ooa after encountered a very heavy snow storm,
which was blown towards us from the Canadian
frontier by a strong northerly wind.
In less than fourteen days, what a wonderful
change in climate had I experienced, from the
orange groves in Georgia to the ice and snow of
a Canadian winter! As great a change had pre
viously occurred to me in Europe, when making a
voyage through Spain and Portugal to England.
Within one week of my lounging in the beautiful
groves of Seville, and drinking the wine of Colares,
in the valleys of Cintra, I landed on the snow-
covered shores of Cornwall ; but crossing over
such a large expanse of water as that portion
of the Atlantic Ocean, I was the better pre
pared for so great a change ; whereas, in the pre
sent instance, until stern reality convinced me,
I could scarcely credit that I had passed over so
many degrees of latitude, travelling so many hun-

316 A GLIMPSE AT
dred miles in so brief a period. In journeying so
rapidly, the changes of climate which I encountered
were both sudden and severe. At Savannah and
Charleston an Italian autumn surrounded me, in all
its warmth and glowing hues ; at Wilmington aud
Richmond, in North Carolina, this had given place
to an English autumn ; at New York I met with a
Parisian winter; and at Bellows Falls a severe
Canadian winter was evidently at hand. But how
singular is it to reflect, when surrounded by the icy
hand of mid-winter, in these severe latitudes, that a
few days' journey by the present mode of travelling
can again restore the climate and luxurious fruits
from which the traveller has so recently departed I
We were now passing over the Green Mount range
of hills ; under their present auspices they looked
rather bleak and desolate, but this added to their
grandeur; I was within one day of home, and I
need not add that in whatever guise the hills of
Vermont appeared to others, to me, in gladness of
heart, they seemed vertes montagnes.
Late in the evening I arrived at BurUngton, and
put up at a very tolerable hotel. At eight, a.m.,
on the following morning, I embarked on Lake
Champlain, in the " Francis Saltus" steamer. She
was bound for St. John's, on the Richelieu River.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 317
There were many steam-boats at the Avharf, and, as
my course lay north, I inquired for the boat bound
up. I was directed on board one whose direction I
by chance discovered was to the southward. I
expostulated with the porter for directing me wrong,
upon which he answered, " You asked me for the
boat up, and I showed you the southern boat ; is
not up south, and down north ? well, it is singu
lar, but none of the travelling folks seem to know
that." I remarked, that in Vermont thej^ certainly
appeared to me to turn things upside down. At
eleven, a.m,, on the 22nd, I reached Rouse's
Point. This is a commanding head-land, jutting out
into Lake Champlain, at the narrow part of its
northern end, upon which a strong fort has been
erected, completely enfilading the entrance to the
lake. This fort is the property of the Americans,
and when commenced by them, they stated that they
were under an impression that this point of land
was within their own boundaries, that is to say,
that it was south of the forty -fifth line of north
latitude, but ere they had progressed very far in
their works they w^ere undeceived by the British
authorities. Passing Rouse's Point I once again had the
happiness to feel myself within the British territories,

318 A GLIMPSE AT
which I had quitted seven weeks since at Niagara
Falls. At half-past two I got into the raUway
cars, for La Prairie. I found them less comfortable
than those in the States, being exceedingly cold,
from having no stoves ; I however scarcely felt
cold or discomfort, in the assurance that my journey
was so nearly terminated.
At four o'clock, the St. Lawrence burst upon my
view, at five I was at Montreal. And now at the
conclusion of my travels, I must own that I had not
seen a handsomer city than this, the capital of the
Canadas ; more especially when viewed from the
water — its stately cathedral, and other edifices of
stone, standing out in bold reUef from the dark hill
beyond; its handsome quays, crowded with ship
ping ; its busy market-place, giving the best proof
how unfounded is the Ubel respecting the modern
Hochelaga's premature decline. During this excur
sion I visited every State in the Union, with the
exception of six, I travelled over fifty- three hundred
miles of the Republic, by railway, by river, and by
road, and this my long journey was accomplished in
exactly fifty-three days, and my expenses amounted
to about the sum of fifty-three pounds sterling.
And now let me add, that if I had gained nothing
more on my tour, I certainly had made an addition

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 319
to my stock of health, physically and mentally ;
and a journey which might have proved more a
labour than a pleasure, — was accompUshed with
scarcely a moment's discomfort, greatly owing, I
am convinced, to a strict attention to the following
rule : — Early rising, hard exercise, and a very tem
perate diet ; and therefore, let me say, that the
best cure for the hypochondriacal, or dyspeptic,
is to follow this system, and attend to these rules.
If any of the above lines have caused offence, I
crave pardon of that great Republic whom I have
unintentionally offended. Those who are rich in
good quahties can afford to be generous ; and if
the United States men possess some faults, their
vfrtues are too numerous not to stand forth in
prominent relief. I have to acknowledge that, in
my character of a stranger, I was invariably re
ceived in all parts of the Union with hospitality,
and was constantly pressed to remain, and be a
partaker of the kindest proofs of friendship ; and
I should be wanting indeed in gratitude were I
not cordially to confess it. Many of the Americans
stiU retain a grudge against their parent country.
This proceeds from wrongs which their fathers suf
fered, and which are constantly detailed to them in
the various seminaries of education throughout the

320 A GLIMPSE AT
States, and also from the remembrance of the many
hitter passages in Ufe to which a large portion of
the emigrants were subjected before they left the
land of their nativity. Unfortunately we cannot
deny that, in many cases, this feeUng is not devoid
of reasonable foundation. It is rapidly giving way
to kindUer sentiments ; they know we admire their
wonderful energy of character, and they respect
ours. As thousands, perhaps tens of thousands,
amongst the most inteUigent of republican citizens
will, no doubt, during the ensuing summer visit
our shores, let us join in welcoming our bro
therhood with affection and esteem; and I am
convinced that a demonstration of this feeling, on
our part, wUl be met with a hearty reciprocity on
theirs, which will go far to eradicate the last
smouldering embers of ill feeling which may lurk in
the breasts of either party. Let us demonstrate
to them practically that we are in truth that frank,
open-hearted nation which is our boast, and that
our generosity not only consists in hospitality, and
in extending the hand of friendship to all nations,
but especially to those who, springing from the
same stock as ourselves, are verily our brethren.

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 321

CHAPTER XXVI.
I CANNOT close these pages without saying a
few words respecting the Canadas, its people, aud
country. The world does not contain a fairer land, a more
propitious clime, or better soil, taken as a whole,
than this portion of Her Majesty's dominions.
The inhabitants of Canada are as widely different
in their tastes and desires, as they are in language,
manners, and customs ; and to class them as one
people would be greatly misrepresenting them. I
am well aware that it is the fashion at home to
imagine, that because the Lower Canadians are
of French extraction, they are both inimical to
our institutions and our rule : that they would
prefer that their rulers should be composed of
persons speaking their own language, and of the
same religion with themselves, is very natural ;
but I am convinced there are but few, if any,
Y

322 A GLIMPSE AT
who would wiUingly now place themselves under
the present Republic of the French. The feel
ings of the lower province are in favour of the
ancien regime of France ; and knowing that a
return to this rule is utterly impossible, its revival
having for ever passed away, they very naturally
prefer the rule of a powerful monarchy, securing to
them their religion, with its emoluments to their
pastors, and assuring to them their ancient feudali
ties ; — they would deprecate any change by which
aU these should be swept away, receiving in their
place that which they by no means covet or believe
in, nominal democratic freedom. In my opinion,
it is the greatest mistake to imagine that the
population of Lower Canada are not content with
being under the British government. That they
have been often dissatisfied with the colonial
government and legislature is true enough, the
principal reason for their being so has been the
versatility of its policy, and the instability of its
measures ; but now that they feel more assured that
the system of responsible government is to be firmly
adhered to, and they can perceive that in sober
reality they govern themselves by the voice of their
delegates in parliament, they begin to be better
satisfied, that, look where they may, they never

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 323
could possess so much real freedom, or be so lightly
burthened with taxation, as under their present
rulers ; nor can they imagine, from searching the
pages of history, that they could ever find a govern
ment who would act up more honourably to the
treaties secured to them at the conquest, than the
generous sovereign to whom they have the happi
ness to be subject.
Travellers who have made a summer tour through
the United States and Canada West, frequently
remark upon, and with some reason, the want of
progress in Canada East. There is no denying
that the Canadians of French extraction are ex
ceedingly tardy and backward in improvement.
For much of this it is difficult to assign a satis
factory reason ; two circumstances militate against
an effective competition, either with the inha
bitants of the United States, or with the Western
Canadians. One of these is certainly under the
control of man ; the other is far beyond it. In
the first place, the seigneurial laws are a bar to all
improvement ; and until these laws are ameliorated
or abrogated, a really flourishing state of things
can scarcely be expected to commence. In the
second, during the long and severe winter which
throughout Lower Canada lasts for six, and in
Y 2

324 A GLIMPSE AT
some parts for seven, months in the year, no
agricultural pursuits can be carried on ; and the
poor farmer during these months is obliged to
consume almost all the fruits of his five months'
summer labour for the subsistence of himself and
family during the winter ; he has therefore no
produce for sale, and has great difficulty iu paying
for labour. Let any of the numerous summer tra
vellers visit this country in January, who have only
seen it in July, and they will scarcely believe their
sense of sight, so totally does it differ. This com
pulsory idleness during so many months, in addition
to a torpidity of temperament engendered by the
cold, greatly encourages slothful habits, which, once
acquired, are so difficult to shake off; in addition
to which, the inhabitants are generally well aware
that by the antiquated system of the above-named
seigneurial laws, although they may desire to be
active and industrious, eventually the greater por
tion of the proceeds of their labour will fiow into
the hands of their lords and masters. These, then,
in a few words, are the great drawbacks of Canada
East, which it is undoubtedly by no means the
interest of the Roman Catholic priesthood to assist
in modifying, although this priesthood is far too
wise to wish the Canadians to lapse from the firm

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 325
yet benevolent rule under which they now live ;
being well assured, that there is no other nation
on the face of the globe that would regard with
such scrupulous fidelity the privileges which she
granted to them by treaty, when they came by
right of conquest under her sway.
In Canada West, the population is of a more
enterprising character; and being perfectly free
from those laws and feudal institutions which
trammel the industry of the lower provinces, and
also chiefly springing from the Saxon race, they
are fast going a-head of those who, from their
earher settlement and greater original numbers,
have had many advantages over them. The climate
moreover, in the Western provinces is much more
favourable ; winter there does not last more than
five, seldom indeed more than four months, and is
therefore of service rather than inconvenience ;
indeed, by many it is considered of the greatest
benefit, enabling them to bring the produce of their
farms aud loads of wood into the neighbouring
towns for sale, before the returning spring again
calls them to their agricultural occupations. More
over, their light taxation, and immunity from many
burdens, which sit so heavily upon the inhabitants
of older countries, act as a counterpoise against the

326 A GLIMPSE AT
difficulty of occasionally wanting a market in which
to dispose of the redundant harvest which so con
stantly repays their labour.
From the position, however, of the Canadas,
its inhabitants have constant communication with
those of the United States ; they therefore become
tinged with the notions of republican freedom, and,
tickled with the sound, are too a,pt, in admiring
the shadow, to lose sight of the substance, forgetful
that that which they covet the possession of, is
positively within their grasp, whilst they imagine
it to be out of their reach; namely, a free elective
franchise, a responsible government, a perfect free
dom from taxation except for the support of their
local expenditure, and up to the present period
(though hastening to an end) a perfect indemnity
from any expense attending the defence of their
country, a voluntary maintenance of the ministers
of their religion, and their laws mild, yet effective,
— I challenge any one to dispute that they possess
these blessings and very many others, a repeti
tion of which would but exhaust the patience of
the reader if I were to detail them.
Some few of the inhabitants, who consist princi
paUy of those who follow mercantile pursuits and
reside in cities, are nevertheless dissatisfied with

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 327
the various benefits which I have already detailed.
Discontented with so many advantages, they look
for more ; and being rich in aU the reasonable
comforts of life, indeed commanding many of its
luxuries, their ambition is, moreover, to amass
rapid fortunes, forgetful or unmindful at whose
expense only this can be accomplished. Un
like the colonists of France, Germany, or Spain,
who, when they relinquish their native shores,
reconcUe themselves to the countries in which they
have cast their lot, our colonial aspirants only
think how soon they can make a fortune and
return to their own country, to vie with those
whom on their departure they so much envied ;
and whatever militates against the accomplishment
of this one engrossing object of their mind, whether
it be for the weal or the woe of the resident citizens
of the colony, so long as it is detrimental to their
supposed interests, is certain to meet with their
condemnation in no measured terms.
Prom whom, then, are these fortunes to be
acquired, — from their brother colonists ? It is out
ofthe question. From the Americans 1 Still more
difficult ; for they are all sharply engaged in this
game of acquisition. They must be gained, then,

328 A GLIMPSE AT
by means of enactments made in the mother
country such as will favour this class of colonists
beyond all foreign nations, and enable them to
dispose of their colonial produce on more advan
tageous terms than are allowed to foreigners, with
whom a reciprocity of trade is more advantageous
to the parent country. At the same time these
colonists would claim the right to supply their
wants in the cheapest market, forgetting that the
parent country has paid the entire expense of their
defence, &c. In fact, they can only be enriched by
the sweat of the brow of the British artisan and
labourer. This alone will satisfy a class of greedy
storekeepers, who are constantly spurring on the
foolish and unwise to be dissatisfied with that rule
under which all might live so happily and be so
prosperous. There is another party, who look with eager
eyes to any disruption of the union between Great
Britain and this colony. These arc political ad
venturers, who, with a bitter enmity, common to
that class, to all that is ancient, imagine that,
should a separation take place, they might, by loud
declamation and low intrigue, rise to power, and
gain for themselves a portion of the spoil ; aud that

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 329
even should Canada be annexed to the United
States, they have a hope that their services Avould
not be utterly disregarded.
I am persuaded that the Canadas, taken as a !
whole, were never more firmly attached to the I
British rule than they are at this moment, or more
sensible of the great advantages which they enjoy
thereby. The tumult which occurred in Montreal,
during the early part of 1849, in which the Par
hament House was burned, was an e'meute, sup
posed to have been got up for party purposes.
Many who promoted it were of opinion that the
threat of a fresh rebellion in the North American
provinces, would, in the hopes of averting so
unpleasant a circumstance, induce the British Par
hament to pass enactments more favourable to
this colony, but in their effects less just towards
her British subjects, already so highly burthened.
The promoters of this movement were short-sighted
politicians, or they might have foreseen the dis
cussion which immediately followed, in every
portion of the colony, enUghtening the people as
to the value of their franchise, the proper merits
of which they had never justly appreciated. It
convinced them unmistakably of the really free
free position in which they stood, and that, as

330 A GLIMPSE AT
the Rebel Indemnity BiU was carried by a majority
of their own delegates whom they had sent to
Parliament, whose votes had made it law, it fol
lowed that, if they had cause for discontent, the
blame must rest upon their own shoulders, and
that their remedy for the future depended upon
themselves in showing more discrimination in the
selection of their representatives.
The liberal policy which our home Government
has pursued towards our colonies, may have placed
our colonists upon a higher footing than they for
merly enjoyed.
This policy will, I hope, be as safe as it appears
to be just, and I trust be every day better appre
ciated by those who have been called upon to ex
ercise larger powers in the duty of self-government ;
but this advantage in managing their own internal
affairs, must entail upon the colonists correspond
ing responsibilities ; and no doubt they will feel
the first effects of the change in being required to
pay a larger share in the expenses of the province,
and the people of England a smaller share than
that hitherto borne. The adjustment of the quota
of the military force to be paid by the colonist, and
the proportion to be paid by Great Britain, will be
an important point to settle. Considering the

THE GREAT WESTERN REPUBLIC. 331
distance of North America from England, and the
River St, Lawrence closed in the winter months, a
portion of the general mUitary force of the empire
must be maintained by the Crown in North
America, and the remainder paid for by the colony.
But in all these important changes, affecting so
valuable a part of the British Empire, I trust that
no serious misunderstandings will arise in their
settlement, leading to the dismemberment of the
Empire, being convinced that the connexion be
tween British North America and the mother
country, cannot be dissolved without great injury
to both.

FINIS.

APPENDIX.

APPENDIX.

A Table of Dates, and Distances travelled during
the foregoing Excursion.
Miles.

Sept.

30.

Montreal - - -

-

Oct.

1.

Lachine _ - _

9

33

Ogdensburgh

- 90

33

Kingston - - -

- 63

3!

Sachet's Harbour -

- 43

2.
Oswego _ - -
- 44
3)
Syracuse - - -
- 38
33
Rochester - - -
- 87
3?
33
Buffalo
- 95
5J
3.
Niagara - - -
22
3J
4.
Buffalo
- 22
J)
5.
Detroit - - -
- 325
)>
6.
New Buffalo - - -
- 240
?)
33
Chicago _ - -
- 45
Carried over, 1,113
336

Nov.

APPENDIX.

Brought over -

- 1,113

12.

Environs, Chicago -

- 142

13.

La Salle

- 100

15.

Princetown - - -

- 22

16.

Cambridge - - -

- 43

17.

Rock Island City -

- 25

18.

Fort Maddison

- 102

19.

Keokurk _ - _

- 25

21.

St. Louis

- 178

26.

Cairo - ~ - -

- 172

29.

Memphis

239

30.

Napoleon - - .

- 181

31.

Natches - . -

- 307

2.

New Orleans

- 299

4.

MobUe - _ _

- ICl

5.

Stockton

- 40

7.

Montgomery

180

33

Opeleika

G5

53

Barnesville -

98

8.

Macon _ _ _

- 40

9.

Savannah

- 1.90

10.

Charleston - - -

- 140

Carried
up .3,862
APPENDIX,

337
Brought up
-
¦ 3,862
53
11.
Wilmington -
175
33
12.
Richmond
248
33
»
Washington -
-
121
33
13.
Baltimore
-
40
)J
15.
Philadelphia -
-
99
53
16.
New York -
-
90
33
18.
West Point and back
-
106
53
19.
Boston
237
33
21.
Burlington -
233
33
33
St. John's -
75
53
33
La Prairie -
15
35
33
Montreal
-
9
5,300
Memorandum.
Absent from Montreal
53
days.
Travelled
.
53
hundred mUes,
Expenses
amounted to - £ 53
sterUng.