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 BY H.HussEY Vivian M.P
 
 LIBRARY OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS 
 
 AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN 
 
 917.3 
 
 Sw242n 
 
 ILLINOIS Historical survey
 
 NOTES OF A TOUR IN AMERICA.

 
 NOTES OF A TOUR 
 
 IN AMERICA. 
 
 FROM AUGUST 7th TO NOVEMBER 17th, 1877, 
 
 BY 
 
 H. HUSSEY VIVIAN, M.P., F.G.S. 
 
 'Neque semper arcum tendit Apollo." — Horace. 
 
 LONDON : 
 EDWARD STANFORD, 55, CHARING CROSS, 
 
 1878. 
 
 [ALI, EI0HT8 EE8ERTED.]
 
 SWANSEA : 
 
 PRINTED AT "THE CAMBRIAN" OFriCE, 
 
 WIND-STREET.
 
 
 ^ Btikation. 
 
 :^ 
 
 I DEDICATE THESE NOTES TO MY TRAVELLING COMPANIONS, 
 TO THE 
 
 EIGHT HON. HUGH C. E. CHILDEKS, M.P., 
 
 TO WHOSE KINDNESS I OWE THE INCEPTION. 
 
 TO WHOSE FOBETHOUGHT I OWE THE SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION, 
 
 AND TO WHOSE INTELLIGENT COMPANIONSHIP I OWE SO MUCH OF THE 
 
 PLEASURE AND PROFIT OF MY TOUR ; 
 
 TO 
 
 MISS CHILDERS, 
 
 WHOSE PRESENCE EVER CHEERED AND CHARMED OUR JOURNEYING, 
 
 AND TO 
 
 MY WIFE, 
 
 WHO, UNDER ALL CIRCUMSTANCES, AND EVERYWHERE, SHED A 
 BRIGHT BEAM OF SUNSHINE ON OUR PATH. 
 
 H. HUSSEY VIVIAN. 
 
 192935
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 " The following Notes of a Tour in North America 
 will probably contain nothing new, and, it is to be 
 hoped, nothing in the nature of adventure. They 
 will pretend to no Hterary merit : they will be 
 written for their writer's amusement and future 
 reference. If the proprietor of The Cambrian 
 tliinks they will interest his readers, they are much 
 at their and his service." 
 
 Such was the prophetic preface despatched from 
 Canada with the fet of these Notes, and as I be- 
 heve the prophesy has been realized in all particu- 
 lars, a few words only of explanation to the general 
 reader need be added as to how and why they had 
 any existence, and are now reprinted almost ver- 
 batim. 
 
 It has been my custom, when travelling, to jot
 
 u PREFACE. 
 
 down what I saw, partly to fix it in my memory, 
 partly for reference. I began to write such, private 
 notes after landing in Canada. It then occurred to 
 me that it might interest my neighbours at home to 
 know how the New World looked to an old friend, 
 and the Notes were shpped into an envelope ad- 
 dressed to " The Cambrian Newspaper," a steady, 
 well-conducted journal estabhshed at Swansea in 
 1804. On my return I found that the Notes 
 had been read with interest, not alone by my 
 neighbours, but by many at a distance, and I 
 was much pressed to repubhsh them. My friends 
 probably take too partial a view, and thus over- 
 value the merit of this plain and homely tale of an 
 ordinary tour in a well-trodden land. However, the 
 kind appreciation of this sHght efibrt which I have 
 received has already repaid any trouble tenfold, and 
 the race is therefore won before the start. 
 
 One more sentence : Any profit arising from the 
 sale of this little work will go in aid of the Building 
 Fund of St. John's Church, Swansea, a Parish with- 
 out a church, but with nearly five thousand inhabit- 
 ants, in whose welfare I am deeply interested. The 
 Proprietor of The Cambrian has hberally under- 
 taken to do the printing at cost price in furtherance 
 of the good work. Perhaps some of my kind
 
 PREFACE. ui 
 
 readers may also be moved to give us a helping 
 hand. At any rate, if anyone buys my book and 
 thinks he has paid too much, he may comfort liim- 
 self by puttmg the "balance" down to charity. If 
 anyone buys it and thinks it worth more than he 
 paid for it he may quiet his conscience by remitting 
 the balance to the Building Committee of St. John s 
 Church, Swansea. 
 
 HENRY HUSSEY VIVIAN. 
 
 Pakkween, 
 15th August, 1878.
 
 C N T E N T S 
 
 v^HAP. 
 I. DKl'AItTlKE 
 
 II. — Qlebec 
 III- — Saratoga ... 
 IV. — IS'kw York 
 
 V. — PlTTSBURC 
 
 VI.—Sarxia 
 
 VII. — Chicago 
 
 ^ III.— Chicago to Salt Lake City 
 
 IX. — MOJIMOXI.SM 
 
 X. — Sax Fraxcisco ... 
 XI- — California 
 A'll.— Nevada Silvkr Mixes... 
 Xin.— St. Louis... 
 Xn . — AVasiiixgtox 
 '^V. — A.AiERicAX Hotels 
 
 PAGE. 
 1 
 
 ... 17 
 ... 32 
 ... 47 
 ... G2 
 77 
 
 ... 86 
 
 ... 98 
 
 ... 117 
 
 ... 133 
 
 ... 152 
 
 109 
 
 183 
 
 201 
 
 218 
 
 ^^^^■~"^^F.VVnLlCA\'" AXD " DilMoCHAT'" 238 
 
 XVII.— ^flXERAL IlESOlRCES .)-,,
 
 I^ O TE S 
 
 OF 
 
 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 DEPARTURE. 
 
 Eighteen hundred years ago or thereabout old 
 Horace, who was not cursed with penny postage or 
 shiUing telegrams, wrote, " Neque semper arcum 
 tendit Apollo" Our wise old saw changes Apollo 
 into Jack, and freely renders it that " All work and 
 no play makes Jack a dull boy." 
 
 Our instinct of self-preservation bids us obey these 
 old laws ; and as August approaches I hear, in the 
 particular portion of the House of Commons library 
 I usually inhabit in common with the majDS, the cHck 
 of their reeds constantly sounding, and the whispered 
 schemes of worn-out M.P.'s for the Autumn holiday. 
 
 IMine were fixed before Easter at a quiet corner 
 table at the Athenaeum ; " Have you ever been in 
 
 B
 
 2 A TOVR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. i. 
 
 America ?" " No ; it is one of the unrealized dreams 
 of my life." " My daughter and myself are going 
 to make a tour there after the Session ; how chaiming 
 if you and your wife will join us ; you will be well 
 cared for, and all made easy ;" too tempting an offer 
 to dechne ; and so my Autumn holiday was ari'anged, 
 and berths taken in the Allan liner, " Caspian," for 
 the 7 th August. 
 
 The time arrives in spite of the Obstructives, and 
 we take leave of our bright home and lovely bay. 
 Shall we see aught so bright and lovely m our long 
 wanderings % I doubt it ; for Europe has few such 
 charming spots, and I expect none more beautiful m 
 the New World. 
 
 The London and North- Western Railway lands us 
 two hours late at Liverpool, which looks and smells 
 as murky and grimy as during the three years I spent 
 there tlurty-three years ago, reheved by nothing but 
 the great kindness of its inhabitants. The morning 
 broke darkly, smoke and drizzle combining to keep 
 up the character of its odious climate. After pad- 
 dHng about and making last purchases, we embarked 
 in heavy rain and half a gale on board the tender, 
 and thence scaled the sides of the " Caspian." Then 
 came the effort to squeeze one's traps and oneself 
 into one's " State-room," a cell 7 by 7 by 7^ feet. 
 
 The last goods hoisted on board, the tender leaves, 
 and we steam down Channel, drop our pilot, and head 
 for Queenstown. It looks dirty, the glass has fallen 
 nearly 8-lOths, and I know it must blow ; but at 
 present the water is smooth. We rem.ain on deck
 
 CHAP. I.] THE VOYAGE. 3 
 
 till darkness obscures the distant coasts of North 
 Wales ; light after light, now revolvmg, now glowing 
 red over the turbid waters, opens and fades, and 
 then we try to turn in ; but the mattress is some 
 inches narrower than our shoulders, and everything 
 seems to take ^vanton pleasure in hitting us on the 
 head. However, in spite of all discomforts, uncon- 
 sciousness supei*venes, and except that our cell begins 
 to perfonn most eccentric antics, one might beheve 
 oneself at rest. 
 
 The breakfast bell rings, and we attempt to dress. 
 Then, indeed, the full force of discomfort breaks upon 
 us. The breakfast looks uninviting, and we scramble 
 up the companion ; but the sea looks wild and 
 du'ty ; tlirough the mist we see the surf breaking 
 on the Tuska, the Hght-house just visible. It is 
 blowing a heavy gale, and everyone is " down," or 
 nearly so. Was it wise to leave one's bright and 
 happy home, with every comfort about one for such 
 " pleasure" as this ? Hope alone can justify it. 
 
 Queenstown is reached ; still blowing hard ; but 
 the glass is rising, and the gale will soon be over. 
 Our last letters written ; our last telegram flashed ; 
 the tender leaves ; the pilot is dropped, and then she 
 heads for the broad Atlantic. 
 
 Cape Clear Hght, called the " Fastenet," appears 
 and sinks over the taifrail. Our voyage is fairly and 
 irretrievably begun. 
 
 Soon our cell behaves better ; it has to some eltent 
 got over its state of intoxication, and stands up more 
 respectably, and, moreover, we become daily more 
 
 B 2
 
 4 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. i. 
 
 used to each other ; strange as it would at first have 
 seemed, in the end we quite get to like each other. 
 
 Breakfast looks excellent and justifies its appear- 
 ance ; ditto dinner and supper thenceforth. Day 
 after day the frailer passengers, male and female, 
 emerge. At last we are a united and happy family, 
 and all goes merrily. 
 
 It is true that on Saturday, the 11th August, the 
 glass fell 5-lOths, and a stiff breeze stiffened into 
 half a gale in the night; but by that time the 
 passengers had got their sea brains, and bravely 
 assembled at service on the Sunday morning. 
 
 Reading, pacing the fine flush deck, shuffle board, 
 ring quoits, &c., caused the time to pass pleasantly 
 enough. The "run" was eagerly watched as soon as 
 it was posted each afternoon : Liverpool to Queens- 
 town, 240 ; August 9, 181 ; August 10, 278 ; August 
 11, 295 ; August 12, 313 ; August 13, 300 ; August 
 14, 284; distant from St. John's, Newfoundland, 86 
 miles; total, 1977. It was evident that at twelve 
 knots j)er hour, we ought to make St. John's harbour 
 at 7 p.m., and about 4.30 we all began to congregate 
 forward and strain our eyes ahead. At last the 
 captain declared that land was in sight, and there it 
 was — a thin blue streak, an mch high, below the 
 fleecy white clouds. We gazed for the first tune on 
 that New World, which has developed itseff with 
 such giant strides, and is destined to exert so power- 
 ful an influence on the near and far future. That 
 man must indeed be possessed of a " dead soul" who 
 could so gaze without emotion.
 
 CHAP. T.] LAND HO! 5 
 
 The land rose rapidly as we hung over the bows, 
 and the vessel ploughed quickly through the calm 
 blue sea, myriads of star and jelly-fish floating 
 suspended like parachutes in the clear water. We 
 soon made out the narrow entrance to St. John's, 
 ■with its high cliffs, signal hill, and old battery. 
 We were indeed heading exactly for it before we 
 sighted land, so true had been our course, and at 
 7 p.m. w^e ran in tlirough the narrow entrance, 
 scarcely 100 yards mde, and opened out the fine 
 capacious basin which forms the harbour, perfectly 
 landlocked and sheltered from all wmds. 
 
 Very soon we were alongside the quay, and once 
 again on teDXt firma, just six days from Queens- 
 town, and really a most agreeable six days they 
 were. At this time of year, and in any of the first- 
 class liners, an Atlantic voyage need have no terrors 
 for the weakest nerves, and the only wonder is 
 that in the mtensely hackneyed and overcrowded 
 condition of the usual " outings," more people do 
 not " cross the ferry," as the Americans now call it, 
 instead of josthng through the beaten tomist tracks 
 of Em'ope. 
 
 The " Caspian" w^as scarcely alongside when an 
 aide-de-camp from the Governor, Sir H. Glover, 
 came on board with a hospitable invitation to 
 Government House, where we were soon seated at a 
 regular English dinner table. The garden was full 
 of our English flowers, the temperature deHcious, and 
 we sat out after dinner in the fine warm night air, 
 fragrant with the perfume of mignionette, roses, &c.,
 
 6 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. i. 
 
 in strong and grateful contrast to the cabin of the 
 " Caspian." 
 
 It is probable that some who may read this are 
 as ignorant of Newfoundland as I was before I visited 
 it, and I may therefore mention that it is an Island 
 about as large as Ireland ; possesses an independent 
 Legislature (not yet being part of the Dominion of 
 Canada) ; that its Parliament sits in aU due form ; 
 and that a member is said to have once spoken for 
 18 hours. The Irish element is powerful among the 
 colonists ; the Scotch are also in force ; and England 
 has contributed her share. Religious feehng runs 
 high — Episcopalians, Nonconformists, and Roman 
 Catholics being nearly in equal proportions. The 
 education question has given as much trouble in 
 this remote spot as elsewhere, separate grants having 
 been forced on the Protestants, much to the deterio- 
 ration of the schools, as was explained to me by an 
 intelligent Wesleyan Minister, a fellow-passenger 
 from England. There are only about 60,000 in- 
 habitants in the whole island, and those are located 
 chiefly round the coast, and are engaged in the 
 fisheries. Most of the interior is in its primitive 
 condition, and some even unexplored and without 
 roads. Caraboo (the American reindeer), bears, 
 wolves, and smaller game, are abundant ; but it is 
 rough work to hunt them — impossible without 
 Indians, who are not easy to get. 
 
 The steamer was to leave at 9 a.m. We therefore 
 made an early start, and just as the day began to 
 dawn, at 5 a.m., were under weigh to see the town
 
 CHAP. I.] ST. JOHN'S, NEWFOUNDLAND. 7 
 
 and suburbs. We di'ove some miles to the westward, 
 and making a cii'cuit returned through the town, 
 passing through the northern suburbs, and returning 
 to oiu" ship just as she was getting imder weigh. 
 The country gave me the idea of a highlying district, 
 although little above the sea level, owuig, I presume, 
 to the length and severity of the mnter. The 
 vegetation was much what one sees at 2,000 feet 
 above the sea : stunted trees and backward crops of 
 oats and rye ; the hay not in, and coarse ; barley 
 and wheat do not succeed ; tiuiiips and potatoes 
 excellent; the forest trees are chiefly spruce, ash, 
 birch, alder, poplar, elm — much the same as with us. 
 Fishing, however, not agriculture, is the chief industry 
 of Newfomidland. It is difficult to exaggerate the 
 abundance of cod ; other fish, and even lobsters are 
 despised, cod being the staple of the deep, and alone 
 regarded as " fish," par excellence, by the New- 
 foundlander. 
 
 On the whole, St. John's, Newfoundland, did not 
 smile on me, and I was not sorry to be again on 
 board and heading for more genial climes. Five 
 hundred and thirteen miles to Halifax ! We run 
 along the iron-bound coast of Newfoundland, sight 
 and pass Cape Race, and shape our course across the 
 Gulf of St. Lawrence direct for Halifax, where, 
 barring fogs, we ought to be at 8 a.m. on Friday — 
 about 48 hours' run. Thanks to a stiff breeze, the 
 fog cleared, and at 5 a.m. on the second morning, I 
 found we were rapidly running in towards land, 
 glowing under a brilhant sunrise; the sea was studded
 
 8 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. i. 
 
 with smart fishing schooners, their well-cut white 
 cotton sails standing beautifully in the breeze, with 
 smaller craft, more like our Swansea pilot boats than 
 any craft I have ever seen elsewhere, filling up the 
 scene. The grand harbour of Halifax was just 
 opening as I got on deck. Its importance was soon 
 manifest, for as we sped swnftly on, Batteries seemed 
 to frown upon us from every point of vantage, and 
 a small island in mid-channel, heavily armed, looked 
 as if it could blow anything out of water. 
 
 Although the position of Halifax is most com- 
 manding when viewed from a distance, there is 
 nothing of interest in the town itself. The main 
 streets necessarily run along the steep hill side on 
 which it is built, but they are in the last degree 
 dirty and ill-kept ; the pavements partly wooden 
 and partly stone, are irregular, and frequently alto- 
 gether absent, while the roads are deep in mud ; the 
 houses are ill-built, except the most recent ; the 
 place has, in fact, no attractions per se, but its 
 surroundings are very charming. The outer har- 
 bour is magnificent — some five miles long by a 
 mile broad ; at its northern extremity it narrows to, 
 say 100 yards, and then opens out into an inner 
 harbour or sea Loch, called Bedford Basm, some ten 
 miles long and two to three mde, its shores rising 
 from 100 to 200 feet in beautifully wooded undula- 
 tions, covered with natural forests. The drive along 
 the shores of this basin is a constant pleasure to the 
 inhabitants, shaded as it is by maple, common and 
 hemlock spruce, pine, beech, and birch woods, while
 
 CHAP. I.] HALIFAX. 9 
 
 the fine expanse of Bedford Basin, with its clear 
 bhie waters, deep and broad enough for fleets to 
 manoeu\rre m, form an ever changing contrast to the 
 forest. Crossing the narrow neck of land from the 
 base of Bedford Basin to the south-west, we strike 
 the head of another land-locked arm of Halifax 
 Harbour, called the North- West Arm, along wliich 
 the wealtliier inliabitants have built their villas. 
 Their gay gardens and grounds stretch down to the 
 sea, and their boat-houses, bathing-houses, &c., give 
 evidence of happy home life. 
 
 Perhaps the most striking feature of Halifax is its 
 citadel, which crowns the hill, along the face of 
 which the town is built, and with its well-kept 
 glacis and 18-ton guns, seems capable of givuig a 
 good account of any invaders. But, alas, I fear 
 much good money must yet be spent before Halifax 
 becomes what it ought to be — "impregnable." It is 
 now the only fortified position held by Great Britain 
 in North America, and it may be said to command 
 the most unportant portion of the seaboard, if in the 
 hands of a Power possessing a strong Navy. As a 
 naval station, with an extensive coalfield at its back, 
 it is of the last importance to England, and the 
 necessary means should be found to place its defences 
 in a more satisfactory condition than I found them, 
 after closer investigation, to be in. 
 
 A very pleasant trip to every portion of the har- 
 bour in a steam launch brought our stay at HaUfax 
 to an end, and we made our way to the station of 
 the Intercolonial Bailwfiy, which has been recently 
 
 c
 
 10 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA. [chap. t. 
 
 constructed by the Dominion, assisted by our Govern- 
 ment, in order to open up the resources of Nova 
 Scotia and New Brunswick, and to give the Dominion 
 a winter harbour for its produce. In this respect' 
 also Halifax is now doubly important, and should be 
 made secure. The Intercolonial Railway intersects 
 both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, passsing the 
 Pictou Coalfield, which it opens both to Halifax and 
 Upper Canada. It traverses a wild and sparsely 
 settled country, and is not expected to pay, but it 
 must exercise a most unportant influence on the 
 provinces through wliich it passes, as well as on the 
 whole Dominion. 
 
 On reaching the station, we found our " Pulhnan," 
 or rather " Wagner" car, awaiting us, and perhaps 
 a short description of it may not be uninteresting 
 to those who are unacquainted with such' convey- 
 ances. Imagme a very minute church "svith nave 
 and lean-to aisles (mthout pillars) on wheels, and 
 you have a fair section of an American Pullman Car. 
 Close to the aisle windows are the pews or seats, 
 and a passage passes down the centre ; the seats are 
 meant to hold two in width, and face each other ; at 
 night they sHde down, meet, and make a capital bed, 
 far better than any berth on board ship, in fact all a 
 traveller could desu'e. Oiu^ car conductor teUs me 
 that at the tmie of the " Centemiial" they used to 
 have a queer lot of " outwesters," and that as many 
 as six have slept m one of these beds. Upon my 
 expressing my increduhty, he explained that they 
 consisted of " an old man and his wife and foiu"
 
 CHAP. I.] THE PULLMAN CAR. 11 
 
 children." He declared that three were quite " com- 
 monly" packed into one at that crowded time — two 
 one way and one the other. It might be possible, 
 but not pleasant. 
 
 So much for the lower berth. The upper one, 
 representing the slanting roof of the aisle, lets 
 down with a hinge, and forms an excellent berth, 
 quite as large as the lower one ; the roof above 
 it now appears domed or curved outwards, and 
 in this dome the bedding, mattresses, &c., are 
 stowed during the day ; the under portion of the 
 upper berth is finely panelled mahogany, inlaid and 
 ornamented, and when closed up, could not be sus- 
 pected of forming a bed ; the beds, being arranged, 
 fill the width of the aisle ; the nave remains, forming 
 the passage from end to end of the car, with clear story 
 wuidows and lofty roof. At the junction of the aisle 
 and nave roofs runs a strong bar, upon which heavy 
 curtains are hooked, which form a complete screen, 
 while ample means of ventilation exist above the bar. 
 Between each two berths, or "section" as it is called, a 
 strong mahogany panel is bolted, forming as efiectual 
 a separation as a bulkhead on board ship. 
 
 Ha\Tng now passed five nights in these cars, I 
 can safely say that I much prefer them to many 
 sleeping quarters it has been my lot to occupy. At 
 each end of the car there are excellent lavatory 
 arrangements. Our car has also a separate bed- 
 room for ladies. Some have drawing-rooms, 
 cooking stoves, &c. Untold sums are squan- 
 dered on some of these cars, but an average 
 
 c 2
 
 12 A TO UP, I A'' NORTH AMERICA. [chap, i, 
 
 Pullman costs 15,000 dols., or £3,000. For the im- 
 mense distances traversed on this Continent they are 
 indispensable ; but for England generally, I think 
 our system is preferable. A Pullman weighs from 
 20 to 30 tons, or about one ton of dead weight to 
 each passenger carried, — a fearful waste of loco- 
 motive power. They fit in well with the American 
 central passage system, but not with our side-door 
 carriages. I have been thus particular in describing 
 the " Pullman car," because they form an essential 
 portion of the railway life of America, and much of 
 my time will be passed both night and day in them. 
 Night closed in upon a wild unsettled, i.e., unin- 
 habited country. Low hills covered with natural 
 forest, chains of lakes following close upon each other, 
 here and there a clearing but mostly wearying forest ; 
 the trees not fine, but apparently stunted before they 
 came to maturity ; the ground is rocky and I fancy 
 not deep enough for fine trees. The scene reminded me 
 most vividly of Sweden, with its never ending lakes 
 and forests. Night passed away, and I woke with 
 the dawn, to find we were running through much the 
 same country ; but in the night we had passed the 
 Nova Scotian coal field, which I much regretted not to 
 have seen. There was no day train which I could 
 have taken. I hear there are five pits at work, but 
 none of them are making much money — neighbours' 
 fare. The coal I saw is hard and bituminous, but the 
 account the Allan hne ofiicers gave of it was any- 
 thing but satisfactory. I believe, however, that their 
 owners did not hit upon the best when they acquired
 
 CHAP. I.] COAL. FISHING. 13 
 
 their colliery, as I have an account before me of good 
 duty done by Nova Scotian coal. The veins are 
 thick ; I am told that one is 40 feet thick, and others 
 18 and 20 feet, but such thicknesses do not mean 
 easy and cheap working. The area of the coal fields 
 in this neighbourhood were stated before the Royal 
 Coal Commission to be 1,950 square miles, while 
 those of Great Britain are about 2,900 square miles, 
 so that the coal of the Dominion of Canada may play 
 a very important part m its futm^e history, especially 
 as they are on or close to its seaboard. 
 
 Being like John Gilpin " on pleasiue bent," I did 
 not devote a day to a superficial survey of this coal- 
 field. My hopes lay in a few casts on an American 
 salmon river, the electric shock of a good fish's first 
 dash, a " tight Hne," and gallant fight; so we pushed 
 on for the Nipisiquit river, which falls into the Bay 
 of Chalem^s, at a place called Bathm^st. Whatever 
 may be the temperature for six months in the year, 
 and it is Arctic, at this time we are able to appreciate 
 the fitness of the name given to this magnificent 
 Bay, " Chaleiu'," by its discover Jacques Cartier, in 
 July, 1534, for the heat is intense, 80 deg. to 85 deg. 
 in the shade, and not a breath of vdnd. 
 
 We whipped the Nipisiquit in vain, barring a few 
 5lb. grilse ; in fact, it is too late for large salmon, 
 which have all run up to the upper waters. In June 
 they say the fishing in these New Brunswick rivers 
 of the Bay of Chaleurs, the Bestigouche, Metapadiac, 
 Nipisiquit, &c., is wonderful, but Hke Norway it is 
 inconsistent with Parliamentary life. We, however.
 
 14 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA, [chap. i. 
 
 made the attempt. A drive of three miles from the 
 neat Httle settlement of Bathm'st brought us to the 
 " rough watere," where for a mile or more the Nipisi- 
 quit foams over rapids, formed by granite rocks 
 stretching across its course. We found a colony of 
 fishermen located close by, for the most part the 
 descendants of old French settlers, and still, among 
 themselves, talking their old language, but at the 
 same time speaking Enghsh without an accent. 
 There were Bouchers, Vmos, &c. ; among others 
 Joe Young, who spoke vdih an Lmmistakably broad 
 Cornish accent and looked the Comishman all over, 
 though speaking half his tune m French. He declared 
 he was not Cornish ; but on my asking "him where 
 his forefathers came from he said " from Cornwall," 
 but the word Cornish was unkno^\ni to him ; his 
 " grand grand father" had been captain of a vessel, 
 and had settled there 1 5 years before Wolfe took 
 Quebec. The old blood and tongue had come 
 dovni through three generations, and he was as 
 typical a Cornishman as any from the Landsend to 
 the Tamar. 
 
 These men are expert in managing the Indian 
 birch bark canoe, a dehghtful craft ; they poled it up 
 impracticable rapids even with my weight in it, and 
 guided it with paddles through broken dashmg falls, 
 where one would not believe so frail a thing could 
 live ; when the falls are too high they " portage" the 
 canoe as fast as one can follow them. 
 
 As we were fishing among the broken waters two 
 Mic-mac Indians floated gravely past in their canoe
 
 CHAP. I.] MICMACS. NIGGERS. 15 
 
 with all tlieii' worldly goods, moving camp, their 
 squaws meeting them below the " rough waters." 
 There was something very spectral in their silent 
 solemn gliding by, and it made one realize that one 
 was not in the old country. These Mic-mac Indians 
 are scattered over Nova Scotia and New Brunswdck. 
 Near Halifax we came upon one of then- settlements, 
 and here and there we saw them along the railroad. 
 They are an ugly coarse broad featured race, without 
 much to recommend them. I prefer the Niggers, 
 whom we saw in considerable numbers in the neigh- 
 bourhood of Dartmouth opposite Halifax, to whicli 
 place they had come with their farm produce to 
 market. We passed as many carts full of them 
 grinning, chattering, and full of fun as you would 
 pass on the Gower-road of a Saturday night. They 
 are I believe in part the descendants of slaves cap- 
 tured by our cruisers, and in part of runaway slaves 
 from the States. 
 
 After spending two very pleasant but very hot 
 days on the Nipisiquit our car was hooked on to tlie 
 express at 6 a.m., and we were again whirling away 
 through forest and clearmg in a due north line for 
 the St. Lawrence. Our route lay along the south 
 side of the beautiful Bay of Chaleurs : a fine range 
 of mountains bounds it on the north, covered with 
 I forest, and rising from 2,000 to 3,000 feet, reminding 
 me much of the Riviera, without however the high 
 tops of the Maritune Alps beyond. The cloudless 
 sky and deep blue waters were quite Italian ; indeed 
 our latitude is about the same as the Kiviera, although
 
 16 
 
 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. i. 
 
 we are too apt to tliink of Canada as Arctic rather 
 than Italian. At the head of the Bay of Chaleur, 
 the Restigouche debouches, and within a short dis- 
 tance is the month of the Metapidiac, up the narrow 
 gorge of which the Intercolonial is carried for 50 
 or 60 miles, till it reaches the Lake of the same 
 name. The gorge of the Metapidiac is a very fine 
 bold bit of mountain scenery ; hills probably attain- 
 ing 2,000 feet in height, terminating in sharp out- 
 Hnes and peaks, rise almost from the margin of the 
 clear waters of the river and virgin forests, which 
 have thus far escaped the Lumberer's axe, cling to 
 the steep sides and climb to the mountain tops. 
 From the Lake of Metapediac to the northern water- 
 shed is but a short run, and we then descend on the 
 gulf of St. Lawrence, and run along its southern 
 shores to the Station opposite Quebec. 
 
 At first the gulf is too wide to allow the opposite 
 shore to be seen, but mile by mile it narrows till at 
 Quebec we reach the mighty St. Lawrence River, 
 representing the water-shed of a million square miles, 
 the ofispring of the greatest chain of lakes of the 
 American Continent — Lakes Superior, Michigan, 
 Huron, Erie, and Ontario. The eye caiuiot measure 
 and guage these mighty rivers. Opposite Quebec the 
 St. Lawrence must be from a mile to a mile and a half 
 wide, with depth enough for large ships, over its 
 entire width. The Eng'lish Fleet of ironclads was 
 at anchor on its deep and ample bosom far beyond 
 the tidal influence, and dwarfed into almost insigni- 
 ficance by the grandeur of the scenery around them.
 
 CHAP. II.] QUEBEC. 17 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 QUEBEC. 
 
 Quebec is certainly a most striking city and full 
 of interest ; it stands on a bold promontory at the 
 confluence of the small river St. Charles with the St. 
 Lawrence. Towards the latter, the rock rises in a 
 sheer precipice, about 500 feet, and is surmoimted by 
 the fine old Citadel, associated with so many ever 
 memorable events in our history. The citadel closely 
 resembles Elirenbreitstein, the great Gennan fortress 
 opposite Coblentz on the Rhine. All but externally, 
 however, the glory of Quebec has departed ; it no 
 longer embodies the might of Great Britain; its streets 
 no longer echo to the step of armed legions ; the British 
 ensign has been formally " hauled down"; the British 
 troops are withdrawn, the small but gallant staff 
 of the Canadian Artilleiy Militia are now its sole 
 occupants. 
 
 Since the withdrawal of the British troops the 
 city has sunk into greater dullness than ever ; its 
 want of active commerce was conspicuous even to us 
 casual travellers. It is, in fact, an old French town, 
 with its traditions and reHques, quaint old houses, 
 and steep narrow streets, dating from its foundation 
 in 1608, from which period till Wolfe's great victory 
 in 1759 it remained in the possession of the French. 
 
 D
 
 18 A TOUR IX NORTH A3f ERICA. [chap. ii. 
 
 The view in every direction from the citadel is 
 most magnificent, commanding, as it does, a panorama 
 of the whole surrounding coimtry and the reaches of 
 the St. Lawrence for many miles. To the north- 
 west are the plains of Abraham, nmning up to the 
 citadel, where the gallant Wolfe and Montcalm, 
 though both wounded early in the battle, fought out 
 the hve long day, and closed it only with their 
 deaths, — the one at the moment of victory, the 
 other at the moment of defeat. Wliat Enghshman 
 can contemplate that battle-field without feelings of 
 emotion ? To me it was indeed interestmg, for there 
 my great great uncle, Colonel Hussey, fell at the 
 head of his regiment — the last of his race. 
 
 The chief incidents of the battle were well ex- 
 plained to us by Colonel Strange, R.A., Inspector of 
 Canadian Artillery Mihtia, who kindly accompanied 
 us over the field, now desecrated by a huge prison, 
 villas, and the like, which have changed its face and 
 swept away the ancient landmarks, but the leadmg 
 features and glorious association must ever remam. 
 
 Before leaving Quebec we drove to the Falls of 
 Montmorency, some eight miles below the city, on 
 the north bank of the St. Lawrence. Our route lay 
 thi'ough an almost continuous street of small de- 
 tached houses and holdings, owned by the descendants 
 of the French settlers. On the other side of the 
 river, m approaching Quebec, we had passed through 
 200 miles of sunilarly mhabited country, the chief 
 seat of the old French colonists. The French law, 
 as to the division of property, has prevailed through
 
 CHAP. II.] DIVISION OF LAND. 19 
 
 many generations, and the result is that the holdings 
 have become smaller and smaller by constant division. 
 Frontage to the main road being all important, the 
 divisions have been made by separating the holdings, 
 from the road backwards, so that they have now 
 become almost the mathematical definition of straight 
 lines, narrow frontage, and great depth. Many of 
 the holdings seem to be 20 or 30 yards wide, and a 
 mile or more deep, most expensive and inconvenient 
 for cultivation. 
 
 If anyone wishes to study the law of the compul- 
 sory division of property upon each death, they will 
 be able to do so here to perfection ; and, by contrast- 
 ing the condition of the English, Scotch, and Irish 
 settlers with that of the French, they will soon, I 
 think, be convinced that such a law is not calculated 
 to advance the real interests of any community. 
 There can be no doubt that if the younger children 
 of these colonists had received sums of money, or 
 cattle and sheep, to enable them to occupy fresh 
 holdings, and to win fresh land from the forest, 
 both they and the community would have reaped 
 the benefit, just as our younger sons constitute the 
 vigorous life of our race, and whether in the law 
 court or the battle-field, in busy commerce or distant 
 colonization, win their way to fortune, and advance 
 their country's greatness. The fife of a young 
 Frenchman, heir to a few acres, is widely different, 
 devoted, as it too often is, to the dissipations of town 
 life. 
 
 The districts around Quebec are almost exclusively 
 
 D 2
 
 20 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. ii. 
 
 of French settlement. Substantial churches were 
 built by their first settlers, and remain to this day 
 the chief places of worship, the French population 
 continuing Roman Catholic. They are under the 
 strict control of their priests, and are orderly and 
 loyal to the British Crown. Their instincts are 
 monarchical, and they know full well that under no 
 other form of government would they enjoy such 
 complete rehgious liberty, combined with the tradi- 
 tional connection of King and Priest so dear to the 
 latter. In Quebec itself the Enghsh and French 
 languages are spoken, and used in notices, &c., 
 indiscriminately. 
 
 But I have forgotten the Falls of Montmorency, 
 and I have not much to say about them, for I have 
 seen many better worth an eight-mile drive. A 
 river, perhaps as large as the Tawe, falls over a nearly 
 precipitous cliff about 250 feet high. The Falls are 
 pretty, but not grand. 
 
 In the afternoon we steamed away from Quebec, 
 passing the Heights of Abraham, on our way to 
 Montreal, by the St. Lawrence. As we ghded by 
 in the fast steamer, the outlines illuminated by the 
 setting Sim, we said to ourselves — " It was in that 
 creek Wohe landed his army in the dead of night, 
 and there is the small wooded ravine up which they 
 silently crept, till they gained the heights." 
 
 We breasted the current of the St. Lawrence at 
 the rate of nearly 20 miles per hour, in one of the 
 floating castles in which Americans delight. These 
 river steamers are unique, and deserve a passing
 
 CHAP. II.] RIVER STEAMERS. 21 
 
 word. Their hulls are just like ordinary river boats, 
 long, with a flat floor, fine entry, and plenty of 
 beam ; but upon this are built tiers of decks, sur- 
 rounded with galleries far overhanging the ship's 
 sides. On the first deck are the baggage rooms, bar 
 (a most important American institution), second and 
 third-class, and sometimes first-class dining saloons, 
 cooking places, engines, &c. On the second deck is 
 a saloon running along the whole length of the ship, 
 perhaps 300 feet long, carpeted, and furnished with 
 ottomans, arm-chairs, tables, and every luxury of a 
 drawing-room, wliile along the sides are large and 
 most comfortable staterooms and bedrooms. The 
 third deck is also devoted to sleeping berths, with 
 external galleries. These steamers are propelled by 
 old-fashioned long-stroke beam engines, and paddles 
 of immense diameter. 
 
 There is little of interest on the St. Lawrence be- 
 tween Quebec and Montreal, and people desirous of 
 going from one to the other find it more convenient 
 to do the 180 miles by night in these fine steamers, 
 on board which they are as comfortable as in an hotel. 
 They are therefore the most popular mode of convey- 
 ance. We embarked in the evening, and found our- 
 selves at Montreal without the least fatigue next 
 morning. 
 
 Montreal is the most important city in the 
 Dominion, as well as its commercial centre. It has 
 a population of about 11 0,000, but its rate of increase 
 is and has been very rapid. Ships of large burden 
 can now ascend the St. Lawrence to Montreal, in-
 
 22 
 
 A TOUR IN NORTH A3IERICA. [chap. ii. 
 
 eluding Transatlantic steamers. The " lumber" {i.e. 
 timber) and grain trades are the staple trades of Mon- 
 treal, and are actively pushed. It has all the appear- 
 ance of one of our northern commercial towns, — broad 
 streets, and fine solid carved stone biiildings, both pub- 
 lic and private, religious, scientific, and commercial ; 
 but it has no special interest for the casual visitor. 
 
 It occupies a comparatively flat strip of land, 
 perhaps a mile wide, at the base of a remarkable 
 mountain, which protrudes through the alluvium, 
 and rears its almost perpendicular face 700 feet above 
 the town. From thence comes its name of the 
 '' Royal Mount," given to it in honom' of his master, 
 by Jacques Cartier, who discovered it in 1535. The 
 site of this now fine town was then occupied by an 
 Indian village. It was not until 100 years later that 
 it was settled by the French, after wliich it was 
 frequently attacked by the Indians. Montreal fell 
 into Enghsh hands in 1759, when its population 
 was only 4000. 
 
 The mob of Montreal is the worst in the Do- 
 minion, as was recently shown in the Orange riots. 
 Keligious sects are pretty equally divided. There 
 is a new Episcopal Cathedral, designed by Scott, 
 wliich cost £60,000 ; an immense Jesuit Church 
 and College, as well as the fine Roman Catholic 
 Parish Church of Notre Dame, and a group of 
 handsome Nonconformist churches of various de- 
 nominations, huddled close together. The feature 
 of the place, however, is the mountain, which is 
 beautifully v/ooded, and has been converted into a
 
 CHAP, ir.] CLIMATE. 23 
 
 park. Well-engineered roads are carried round it, 
 gradually ascending to the smnmit, from wliicli 
 the views are magnificent. The to^Yn hes spread 
 out for several miles along the banks of the St. 
 Lawrence, and being largely built of red brick, glows 
 in the glorious sunshuie wliich now prevails ; for it 
 must be borne in mind that the latitude of Montreal 
 is that of Venice, and, consequently, that the smi in 
 simmier has equal power ; that the skies are as blue 
 and the atmosphere as clear as that of Northern 
 Italy. Ever since we landed at HaHfax the heat has 
 been really overpowermg, rangmg from 80 to 90 
 deg. m the shade, but the clunate is nevertheless 
 exliilaratmg and enjoyable after one becomes a Httle 
 used to it. The cold in winter is excessive, owing 
 no doubt to the north and north-west winds, which, 
 I am told, prevail, and also to the absence of that 
 great hot water apparatus, the Gulf Stream, which so 
 completely modifies our climate. 
 
 Montreal is the commercial, but Ottawa is the 
 pohtical, capital of the Dominion, and, beuig only one 
 day from Montreal, we resolved to visit it. The 
 journey may be performed entu^ely by rail, or partly 
 by rail and partly by steamer up the Ottawa river. 
 We chose the latter, as we heard much of the beau- 
 ties of the scenery. Starting by an early train from 
 Montreal, after a short rim we found the steamer 
 waiting for us above the rapids of the St. Lawrence. 
 After half-an-hour's steam up the great river, w^e re- 
 marked a Hne of discolom-ed water on its northern 
 side, and soon found ourselves enterinsr the mouth of
 
 24 A TOUR IN NORTE AMERICA. [chap. ii. 
 
 the Ottawa, which, from not passing through the 
 decanting process of the Lakes, bears down with it 
 its full charge of mud gathered in its course of 500 
 miles. After steanmig up the Ottawa for an hour 
 or two, we again had to take the train in order to 
 avoid the Bapids — the "portage" of early days. A 
 short run by rail, and then an embarkation for a final 
 steam across the small Lake of "The Two Mountains," 
 and up the river to Ottawa. 
 
 I confess I was not impressed by the scenery; 
 wooded islands and distant but not lofty or rugged 
 hills, make up its complement. Pretty enough, but 
 not impressive. The river itself is large, larger pro- 
 bably than any three of our English rivers combined, 
 but it is generally shallow and devoid of attractive 
 features. It drains an extensive area, being nearly 500 
 miles in length, intersecting vast districts where the 
 lumberer's axe has never been heard, and bearing 
 annually a vast burthen of the primeval giants of the 
 forest down on its ample bosom to be dismembered 
 by the mighty power produced by its own waters, 
 where they boil and dash over a precipice forming 
 the beautiful "Chandiere," or "Cauldron" Falls, close 
 to the town of Ottawa. A hundred rutliless tools, 
 from the frame and circular saw to the minute 
 " plough and tongue," or still more minute match- 
 making machines (what would some of our mammas 
 give for such a machine !) are set in motion by its 
 .abundant waters, and yet the grandeur of the Falls 
 is in no way diminished. Doors, windows, and 
 every other " lumber fixing," down to matches from
 
 CHAP. II.] TIMBER INDUSTRY. 25 
 
 the slabs and refuse, are in fact now made at the 
 head-quarters, and in presence of the primeval forest, 
 not framed and fashioned by man's hand, but by 
 cunningly devised tools, set in motion by the costless 
 drainage of a wilderness. Let our craftsmen in wood 
 be warned, and beware how they pit their measured 
 hom^s against these simple but mighty combinations 
 of nature and art. I believe that no joinerwork, of 
 or belonging to a house, exists which could not be 
 ordered and sent from Ottawa, and many other places 
 in Canada, ready fitted and numbered for its place, 
 ahnost untouched by man's hand. It is hardly an 
 exaggeration to say that the log floats in at one end 
 of the estabhshment and leaves it in the form of 
 doors, windows, boards, roof parts, joists, and the 
 like, at the other end, without the sweat of man's 
 brow having fallen on it, all force having been sup- 
 plied by the simple gravitation of falling water. The 
 incidence of freight and charges is also on the net and 
 not on the gross weight, nor does the stufli" need to 
 pay toll to a dozen intermediaries. 
 
 But I have nm ahead of my day's march. We 
 steamed up the Ottawa River between pleasantly 
 wooded banks, and past numerous islets until at 
 last the new-born Capital came in sight, crowning 
 a bluiF on its southern shore. 
 
 The position of the Legislative Buildings is most 
 happily chosen. For some distance below Ottawa 
 a plateau, ending in a steep escarpment, is seen on 
 the right or southern shore, and parallel with it. This 
 escarpment suddenly bends to the north, cuts the 
 
 E
 
 26 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. ii. 
 
 Kiver at right angles, and forms the heights on which 
 the City is built. The River leaping over the 
 precipitous face of this escarpment, gives rise to the 
 beautiful Chandiere Fall. The view from the terrace 
 outside the building is very striking, and reminded 
 me of the \aews from Windsor Castle, minus, how- 
 ever, the " distant spires and antique towers" of 
 dear old Eton. 
 
 The Legislative Buildings are handsome and really 
 creditable to the pubhc spmt of the community : 
 they are indeed a block of buildings not unworthy 
 of any country. I am told that £600,000 has been 
 expended on them. Their style is somewhat com- 
 plex, but perhaps I shall not err in describing it as 
 " renaissance Gothic." The two Chambers are well 
 adapted to their ends. Each member has his desk, 
 and may vtrite his letters or whatever he pleases 
 during debates — this shocks my feelings ; but custom 
 is everything, and it may be the young ones are 
 right. 
 
 All the Government offices are imder one roof 
 with the Chambers, which must be a convenient 
 arrangement ; the Supreme Court is also within the 
 area of the building. The Library demands special 
 notice. It is a richly ornamented circular structm^e 
 about 150 feet in diameter, with a lofty dome ; 
 galleries run round it, and at eight points transverse 
 galleries project from the main galleries, thus affording 
 a greatly increased space for books. The Legislature 
 was unfortunately not in Session when we visited 
 Ottawa.
 
 CHAP. 11.] THE REBELLION. 27 
 
 A railroad journey of seven hours brought us 
 again to Montreal, from whence we embarked in our 
 Pulhnan at 3.30 p.m., and at 8.30 next morning 
 fomid ourselves at Boston, as fresh as if we had 
 slept the sleep of four-posters. So long as dayhght 
 lasted we were passmg through a faMy-cultivated 
 country, much forest still standing, and many stumps 
 appearing in the cidtivated fields. Even as we 
 approached Boston I was sm^prised to see such a 
 lai'ge proportion of comitry still in its primitive 
 condition ; but it was rough stony land, and I called 
 to mind Cobham, Ascot Heath, Woking, and the 
 SmTey Downs, within a few miles of London, and 
 wondered no longer. 
 
 Boston ! How many liistorical recollections that 
 name calls up ! The first outbreaks of that rebellion 
 which created a self-governing nation of Anglo-Saxons 
 already as powerful as any nation in the old world, 
 and probably destined far to exceed all other nations, 
 took their rise here. The old church which was the 
 resort of the conspu-ators, and was afterwards used 
 as a stable by the British troops, is still standing. 
 The spot is shown where the tea was thrown into 
 the harbour to escape a duty which would now be 
 thought hght ; the church tower from a window of 
 which Bevere and his wife showed the signal light 
 to let their countrymen known that the British sol- 
 diers were crossing the creek ; Bmiker's Hill, a low 
 hillock now built round in all directions, and sur- 
 mounted by a fine granite obelisk. All these call 
 up recollections politically painful to an Ene'lishman, 
 
 E 2
 
 28 A TOUR m NORTH AMERICA, [chap. ii. 
 
 although the gallant deeds of Howe and CHnton on 
 that 17th of June, 1775, must ever be remembered 
 with pride by us. Why the Americans have erected 
 that obehsk to commemorate their defeat I know 
 not ! ! Our troops took then- entrenched work, cap- 
 tured five out of six guns, and drove them out of 
 their positions with a loss of 450 killed and wounded. 
 It is true they fought gallantly, and inflicted on us a 
 loss of somewhat more than double that number, 
 which however only proves the bravery of our troops 
 in attacking and carrying their entrenched positions. 
 We can also look with pride at the entrance of 
 Boston harbour, close to which that gallant deed of 
 arms was done, when- two evenly-matched frigates, 
 the Chesapeake and Shannon, closed dehberately 
 in theu" deadly strife ; and then, when an old pilot 
 (not long dead) saw the thick smoke which hid them 
 clear away, a sight was revealed wliich he declared 
 haunted him nightly for long years after, for he saw 
 the British ensign floating proudly over the stars 
 and stripes. Boston involuntarily recalls these recol- 
 lections of painful events brought about by the bhnd 
 illiberality of a dark political age, and which, if pos- 
 sible, should be now forgotten. 
 
 The Bostonians are proud of theii' resemblance to 
 the Old Country, and, in truth, their "city" (all 
 places over 5,000 or so are " cities" here) bears much 
 resemblance to an old Enghsh -town, with its 
 irregailar narrow streets and substantial red brick 
 houses, with bow windows. The test of respectability 
 and the object of ambition in Boston is the possession
 
 CHAP. II.] BOSTON. 29 
 
 of " a brown stone swell front," and wlien a man has 
 attained to that he is what they call " at the top of 
 the heap." 
 
 They are very proud also of their literary and 
 scientific position, and boast that " theu^ city is the 
 'Hub' of the Universe" (a "hub" is the nave of a 
 wheel). A young Bostonian thus described their 
 position to me : — " The Americans think we are an 
 old and slow-going set, and we have certainly lost 
 our influence entirely. When you are 'out West' you 
 will see that not one paper devotes ten hues to 
 Boston, while New York is quoted for everything ; 
 but we turn out the men of liigh education, and are 
 pre-emhient in all that concerns science and litera- 
 tiu'e." Harvard College is situated at Cambridge, in 
 the environs of Boston. 
 
 The fashionable part of Boston adjoms the Park 
 (called the " Common"), much as Piccadilly and 
 Belgravia adjoin St. James's and the Green Park — 
 indeed the lie of the ground is remarkably similar. 
 The " Common" is a well kept and most ornamental 
 space Avith fine trees, grass plots, flower beds, a 
 small lake, and the other usual adjuncts of pleasure 
 grounds ; it forms a healthy lung for this City, which 
 now nmubers some 350,000 inhabitants. 
 
 The commercial portion of Boston of course adjoins 
 the harboiu". We took good stock of the latter, 
 having been shown every part of it by the resi- 
 dent manager of the Cunard Company, who kindly 
 placed at our disposal a fine screw tug. The 
 harbour is of great extent, — I suppose ten miles
 
 30 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap, il 
 
 square, — shut in from the sea by promontories, reefs 
 and shoals: it is studded with islands, and sur- 
 rounded with towns and villages. The chief pubHc 
 estabHshments, prisons, poor-houses, and the like, 
 are built upon the islands, but many of the latter are 
 still unoccupied. 
 
 In the course of our steam we were shown a re- 
 markably useful buoy, off the mouth of the harbour, 
 which blows a whistle, automatically, as it rises and 
 falls in the seaway. The sound is as loud as that of 
 a steam whistle (or hooter), and the captain of the 
 tug assured me he had heard it ten miles off. 
 
 The entrance to the harbour is tortuous, and the 
 forts on several of the islands look as if they could 
 give a good account of any intruder. The dockyard 
 is deserted ; no admiral-superintendent, and ex- 
 pensive staff of subs ; no masses of shipwrights, 
 riggers, engineers, blockmakers, biscuit bakers, and 
 the like ; no gigantic new basins and works in 
 construction ; one sentry and a watchman or sleepy 
 guard or two were all we saw. The United States 
 are paying off their Debt ! ! ! 
 
 Fasliionable Boston was " out of town," away at 
 Newport and Saratoga, the two great rival watering 
 places of North America, the one on the coast between 
 Boston and New York, the other 250 miles north, 
 far inland, and owing its origin to its mineral waters. 
 Time will not permit us to visit both these resorts 
 of pleasiu-e seekers, so we once more embark in our 
 Pullman for " Saratoga," and turn our backs on 
 Newport.
 
 CHAP. II.] TO SARATOGA. 31 
 
 "All aboard" is the American guard's warning, 
 and without waiting for " wicked man" or anyone 
 else, off the train goes, and woe betide the unready. 
 
 Our route lay by Worcester and Springfield to 
 Albany, thence by Troy to Saratoga. The country 
 between Boston and Albany may be described as a 
 hilly wooded district, with scarcely any flat agricul- 
 tural land, except in the vaUey of Connecticut, wliich 
 we crossed at right angles ; patches of cultivation, 
 patches of wood, rough stony hummocks, or " knows," 
 as the Scotch call them, rather than liills, nothing high 
 or serrated ; now we ran up a rocky valley, with its 
 clear stream and wooded banks, now we wound 
 through a hiUy upland region, until at length we 
 descend upon the fertile and magnificent Hudson, 
 as broad as the Thames at Greenwich, and navigable 
 as far as Albany, by the floating castles I have before 
 described ; in fact, the stream from New York to 
 Albany is, I am told, one of the most lovely things 
 on this Continent. After a short run from Albany, 
 we reached Saratoga, one of the Vanity Fau^s of 
 America, wliich merits more than a passing notice 
 as illustrating one phase of the social life of our 
 Transatlantic bretlu^en.
 
 32 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. in. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 SAKATOGA. 
 
 To English ears the name of Saratoga has no 
 association, causes no pulse to beat quicker. Far 
 different is it with the young Americans of the 
 northern cities. To them the name is associated 
 with an annual outing, a month or six weeks of 
 pleasure seeking. It forms one of the mile-stones 
 of their year, to look forward to or look back at 
 with joy or sorrow as the case may be. 
 
 The routine of the wealthy New Yorker was de- 
 scribed to me to be much as follows : — October to 
 Lent, the New York season, the gayest portion from 
 December on — thence to May, quiet New York life. 
 June, July, country and country-house hfe on the 
 banks of the Hudson and other summer resorts. 
 August, Saratoga. September, Newport, the great 
 seaside resort, the Brighton of Tyburnia, the Cowes 
 and Ryde of Belgravia, the Scarborough of York- 
 shire. 
 
 Saratoga has risen from very small beginnings to 
 its present greatness as a watering-place witliin a 
 quarter of a centmy. Its hotels are on the largest 
 scale I have ever seen. The " United States Hotel," 
 at which we stayed, accommodates twelve hundred 
 people. It has a total frontage of 445 of my paces,
 
 CHAP. III.] HOTEL LIFE. 33 
 
 certainly upwards of 1,200 feet, and for most of its 
 length, is five stories high. It is built romid a 
 quadrangle, the court being laid out as a parterre 
 with grass plots, flower beds, fountains, and at one 
 end, trees, &c. Around the sides, facing inwards, run 
 lofty and Avide arcades with boarded floors, upon 
 which the occupants of the various suites of apart- 
 ments, each of wliich is called a cottage, loll in their 
 rocking chairs or pace to and fro. In the evening a 
 fine band, wliich costs the proprietors £120 a week, 
 plays in the quadrangle, except when there is a 
 printed notice, as there was on the night of our 
 arrival — " The band will not play to-night ; a liop in 
 the ball-room." We went to the hoj) and found an 
 mimense room well filled. The prevailing dance was 
 the " Boston," a valse in very slow time, two steps 
 forward, then one backwards by the gentleman, then 
 two steps the wrong way round, and so on, ad in- 
 finitum. They dance it with much ease and grace. 
 
 The hours of Saratoga are not late, nor early 
 either ; breakfast 8 to 9, dinner 1 to 2, supper 6 to 
 7. Om' friends had friends at Saratoga, who received 
 us with all the cordiahty and kindness imaginable, 
 and we were soon quite at home in the gay world, 
 and being posted up m the smartest Yankeyisms by 
 the " brightest eyes in Saratoga." 
 
 The dangers of Saratoga may be estunated from 
 the fact that there were no less than 47 widows in 
 our hotel, many of them rich and charming, with 
 eveiy adjunct that Worth or La Ferriere, Ehse or 
 Mi's. Stratton, could supply. If the immortal Sam
 
 34 A TOUR IN KORTH AMERICA. [chap. iit. 
 
 Weller had been about to visit America, his anxious 
 parent would have certainly barred Saratoga. 
 
 Drives to the 14 springs, each one more nauseous 
 than the last ; the Geyser, which squii-ts a stream 
 the size of a pencil about ten feet into the air ; the 
 " Champion," a three inch column, 30 or 40 feet 
 high, and so forth, constitute one of the chief attrac- 
 tions ; but few visit Saratoga for the waters, pure 
 and nasty, I fancy. Some no doubt do, and it is said 
 that all manner of diseases are cured, but especially 
 rheumatic afPections. 
 
 Drives to St. George's Lake, boating and picnicking, 
 races and trotting matches, make up the daily life of 
 Saratoga. Trotting is the peculiar fancy of Ameri- 
 cans. It is related that when the late Mr. or Com- 
 modore Vanderbilt (who died a few months ago 
 worth 80,000,000 dollars, £16,000,000 sterhng), mar- 
 ried his last wife at the age of 78, and wished to 
 give her such a treat as no other lady in America 
 could enjoy, he trotted her out to the race com^se 
 at Saratoga and round the "track" (i.e., the mile) 
 in 2 minutes 14 seconds, 2.20 being ahnost un- 
 paralleled. 
 
 But Saratoga is often the meeting place of great 
 men, just as Gastein or Kissingen are the trysts of 
 Emperors. The railway kings of America meet here, 
 part in pleasure, part in earnest. The \\dres are often 
 woven here for many a pohtical combination. Even 
 now I see the free traders of America have met at 
 Saratoga and adopted strong resolutions against the 
 present policy of protection.
 
 CHAP. III.] IHE TELEPHONE. 35 
 
 While at Saratoga we were present at a telephone 
 concert, starthng and almost unearthly even in tliis 
 age of wonders. The songs were sung at New York, 
 and we heard them almost as clearly and distinctly 
 at Saratoga as if but. a few feet instead of 250 miles 
 separated us from the smgers. Every note rang 
 through the large room, and was heard by the 300 
 or 400 people present : — this is one of the most 
 recent wonders of telegraphy, that marvellous, yet 
 infant science. No one must be misled by the belief 
 that the somid itself travels ; each wave of sound 
 at New York sent its equivalent wave of electricity 
 to Saratoga, which the sounding board, attached to 
 the receiving apparatus, reconverted into a sound 
 wave in the latter place, — this was the sound which 
 we heard, not the actual voice of the singer. Talking 
 was attempted ; the sound came, but I could not 
 translate it ; the mflections of the human voice in 
 speakmg are too delicate for separate transmission at 
 such a distance, although I am told that at five miles 
 conversations can be carried on, and my friends at 
 Hamilton, where I am now wiiting, have one in use 
 between theu' office and the railway station, about 
 300 yards distant. 
 
 Our pleasant days at Saratoga came to an end, and 
 we bid our kind friends adieu, to meet, we hope, later on 
 at New York. Again we are aboard our Pullman, 
 covering space insensibly while enjoying a good 
 night's rest. Early dawn found us rumiing tlirough 
 a rich and well-farmed country in the neighbour- 
 hood of Rochester, on the southern shore of Lake 
 
 F 2
 
 36 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. hi. 
 
 Ontario, along which the Hne passes to the Suspension 
 Bridge over the gorge of Niagara, wliich we soon 
 crossed, the steaming vapours of the gTeat Fall rising 
 high into the air on our left, and the vexed waters 
 tearing through the narrow channel beneath us with 
 terrific speed. 
 
 It was too late in the day when we arrived to 
 do justice to this grand display of one of Nature's 
 mightiest forces, and we pursued our journey to 
 Hamilton at the western end of Ontario — an hour 
 or so from Niagara — the head-quarters of the Great 
 Western Railway of Canada, and therefore of our- 
 selves. 
 
 He must be either more or less than human who 
 could resist the impulse thorouglily to exliaust the 
 varying phases of this most wonderful Fall, and we 
 lost no time in devoting a long day to it. Some have 
 expressed disappointment after first visiting Niagara. 
 I cannot share then* feelings. It impressed me with 
 a sense of its own grandeiu", and of the impotence of 
 man, more than anythmg I ever yet saw, more than 
 the Eruption of Vesuvius, the crashhig of a Con- 
 tinental thunder-storm, or an ocean gale. 
 
 To convey an impression in the least degree ade- 
 quate appears to me impossible. If to be viewed in 
 a material sense, let the Engmeer take his formula 
 and calculate the equivalent of two million tons of 
 water per minute, say 35,000 tons per second, falling 
 from a height of 160 feet; and then let liim say how 
 many miles of locomotives, or how many fii'st class 
 ocean steam engines, or how many tons of "Ocean"
 
 CHAP. 
 
 III.] NIAGARA. 37 
 
 steam coal the material force of Niagara represents. 
 On my return home I fomid that the same idea had 
 occurred to Dr. Siemens, and that he had calculated 
 that if the whole of the coal produced from all the 
 mines of the world were used for raising steam and 
 apphed in the most economical manner, it would not 
 exert a force equal to the Falls of Niagara. Or, to 
 view it from an aesthetic point, imagme a sea of raging 
 waters, perhaps a mile and a half wide, dashing over 
 ledges of rock, foaming, tossing its biQows high into the 
 air — on wliich no Hving tiling floats, on which no hving 
 tiling has ever floated and Hved — rushing madly down 
 a steep incline, suddenly contracted by the curving 
 western shore into perhaps one third of its former 
 width, and then leaping wdth one tremendous bound 
 over a precipice of 160 feet; where shallow, broken at 
 once into foam, but where deep (for perhaps 150 yards 
 in width in the centre of the Fall) holding together in 
 one gi'een mass, for some sixty feet, and then sepa- 
 ratmg into a seething veil of purest white, the whole 
 volume dashing on to the rocky beach below, its 
 contact lost in thickest vapours, then emerging, 
 chui'ned into snow-white foam which cu'cles round 
 and round for ever and for ever beneath the cataract, 
 deafening ^A^th its roar, di'enching all around with its 
 spray, a column of white vapour rising high into the 
 sky and floating away (as I saw it last night from a 
 distance) like a summer cloud. Imagine all this, and 
 you have stiU the weakest and faintest idea of 
 Niagara. 
 
 I speak cliiefly of the Main or Horseshoe Fall, be-
 
 38 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. hi. 
 
 tween Canada and Goat Island, over wliicli Fall, I 
 suppose, at least three-fourths of the river runs. It 
 is well named the " Horseshoe" for it is much of that 
 shape. 
 
 The Fall between Goat Island and the American 
 main land is the finest Fall, per se, next to Schaff- 
 hausen, I ever saw ; but it is not to be compared to 
 the " Horseshoe," from which it is separated by some 
 300 or 400 yards of the dark cliffs of Goat Island. 
 That Island is from 50 to 100 acres in extent, prettily 
 wooded, and well looked after, affording admirable 
 points from which to view the Rapids above the 
 Falls and the Falls themselves. I am told that it is 
 private property; if so, its o^vner deserves the thanks 
 of all nations, not alone for the opportunity he gives 
 to the public of enjoying this wonderful scene ; but 
 even more because he appears to have resisted the 
 seductions of those who desire to use the vast power 
 developed by this Fall. 
 
 Above the American Fall there are several hideous 
 mills, but the great Fall is disfigured and desecrated 
 by no such base use. It is stiU as Natiu^e made it — 
 one of her most wonderful works. 
 
 Below the FaUs the river is enclosed in a precipi- 
 tous gorge ; the channel is very narrow, but it is said 
 to be from 300 to 600 feet deep, and it must indeed 
 be so to contain such a volume of water in a width 
 of not more than 120 yards. 
 
 At first the water flows calmly along in its deep 
 channel, but at the distance of about a mile it again 
 rushes madly tln-ough the gorge, and for some hun-
 
 CHAP. III.] PHYSICAL CONDITIONS. 39 
 
 dreds of yards is dashed into waves of almost Atlantic 
 dimensions. It then enters an open space called the 
 Whirlpool, from whence it flows away through its 
 gorge, forming further rapids, until it reaches the 
 placid depths of Lake Ontario, and issues forth as 
 the great St. Lawrence. 
 
 It is curious to reflect on the physical causes of 
 this ofreat cataract. The inland seas of North 
 America, Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, and Erie, 
 he on a vast plateau far above the sea level. This 
 plateau ends in an abrupt escarpment at a short dis- 
 tance from Lake Ontario, which escarpment we see 
 stretchinof in a continuous line along- the banks of 
 that lake. It consists of horizontal strata, much re- 
 sembHng our Lias in its lithological character ; but 
 I could find no fossils to guide me, and I see by my 
 map that it belongs in reahty to the Silurian forma- 
 tion. If any Glamorganshire man will think of the 
 Lias clifis along the coast at Dunraven, St. Donat's, 
 and Southemdown, and imagine the level of that 
 plateau to represent the drainage level of a million 
 square miles to the North, and that all the water 
 wliich falls thereon were gathered together in one 
 mighty river, and launched sheer over the chfi*, he 
 wiU have a fair idea of the physical conditions 
 which create these great Falls. 
 
 I had the theory of the measurement of the world's 
 age by the retrogression of these falls much in my 
 mind, but for various reasons, too long to detail now, 
 I entu'ely disbeheve it. 
 
 The recollection of the first day spent in presence
 
 40 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap, hi, 
 
 of this most wonderful development of one of Nature's 
 greatest forces must ever remain deeply graven on 
 my memory, and indeed, a second visit in no way 
 diminislied the intensity of my first impression. 
 
 A few hours sufficed for Toronto, which can 
 claim no special notice. It is well built and pros- 
 perous, but not progressive. It values itself espe- 
 cially on being the chief seat of learning of the 
 Dominion. It possesses a fine range of University 
 builduigs, with a good staff of Professors and adequate 
 endowments, in fact the University of Toronto is the 
 principal one of Canada. 
 
 Toronto supplies a large district with goods of aU 
 kinds, but it is not distinguished hke Montreal for 
 its commercial activity. The situation of the City 
 on the shores of Lake Ontario is more like that of 
 a Dutch town, flat and altogether devoid of interest. 
 
 Hamilton, at the Western end of the Lake, though 
 younger and rougher, is far more vigorous. Besides 
 being the Swindon of the Great Western Eailway 
 of Canada, it possesses two special manufactiu-es, 
 " Stoves and Sewing macliines," and many of its 
 inhabitants are growing rapidly rich by these 
 industries. The weU-known " Wanzer" sewing ma- 
 chine is manufactm-ed here. In good tunes 300 hands 
 are employed, now only 100, so greatly does even 
 this industry suffer from the bad times. 
 
 The manufacture of stoves is of much importance 
 in this rigorous chmate. Great improvements have 
 been made, and they are well worthy of our attention 
 in England, and especially in North- West Glamorgan.
 
 CHAP, in.] CANADIAN STOVES. 41 
 
 The essential featm-e of the Hamilton stove is that 
 it is a self-feeder, depending on Anthracite for its 
 success. It is lighted in the Autumn, and put out 
 in the Spring, burns but httle coal, gives but little 
 trouble, and throws out a great and uniform heat. 
 I beheve that much economy would residt from the 
 use of these stoves, especially if placed in the pas- 
 sages and entrances of om- houses, the pipes being 
 earned through the living rooms into the cliunneys. 
 My hostess, a most sensible Lancashii-e lady, long- 
 resident at Brecon, which she only left two years 
 ago, is loud in her praises of Canadian stoves — 
 perfect comfort in winter and no heavy coal bills, 
 instead of just the reverse in the old country. If 
 we ^vish to enjoy that special pleasure of an Eng- 
 lisliman, poking the fire, and to preserve the health 
 undoubtedly due to the ventilation produced by our 
 open fii^e-places, we may stiU do so ; but there 
 is no reason why we should not be warm, or why 
 those who can't afford to waste coal should for ever 
 go on doing so. We possess the finest anthracite in 
 the world, and it hes almost imworked. It would 
 be well if our antliracite coal proprietors would push 
 the Canadian stove ; and if any desire to do so, I 
 shall be too glad to show them those I have ordered, 
 which I hope to have in fuU blast before Christmas. 
 Hamilton possesses a good market ; the prices 
 current hi this Canadian town may not be unin- 
 teresting, in view of the sending of dead meat to 
 England — a problem now being rapidly solved. I 
 shall do no more than touch on it, however, as Canada
 
 42 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. hi. 
 
 will not be the source from whence the chief supplies 
 will come to England. When at Chicago I hope 
 fully to investigate tliis important question. I visited 
 the market at Hamilton and received the following 
 replies : — Beef, 4d. to 6d. per lb. for the best pieces, 
 inferior pieces much less, stock meat almost given 
 away ; mutton, 3d. per lb. ; lamb, 3jd. per lb. ; a 
 couple of fine chickens, 2s. 6d., and other poultry in 
 like proportion. These prices were retail. The meat 
 was excellent : I never saw finer mutton and lamb. 
 There was the carcase of a sheep hanging up (a cross 
 between a Leicester and Southdown), which would 
 have done credit to the Yale of Glamorgan. 
 
 But it is not from the restricted lands of Canada, 
 which do not produce more than enough for the 
 consumption of the country, that supphes will come 
 to England. The vast prauies of the west, where I 
 am told cattle roam in countless herds, are destined 
 to supply the wants of England. I learnt at Boston 
 that about one penny per pound will dehver meat 
 from Chicago to Liverpool, all told, and that the first 
 cost is from 4d. to 5d. ; but, as I said before, I will 
 defer this question till I can deal with it on the 
 spot. 
 
 While travelling to Toronto, I was introduced to 
 an ex-official of the Dommion, who was retm-ning 
 from a tour in the far north-west of Canada. He 
 told me that he had visited the farm of a Scotchman, 
 I think in " Manitoba," where he grows annually 
 fifteen thousand acres of wheat. He goes there with 
 his men and Ifis teams, ploughs the land in furrows
 
 CHAP. III.] AGRICULTURE. 43 
 
 six miles long — one furrow out and home is a 
 day's work, — sows and reaps liis corn, clears off, 
 and goes home in three months. Such an operation 
 sounds fabulous in our ears, and I therefore give my 
 authority. No doubt the virgin soil of the prairies 
 is easily handled, and the seasons are wonderfully 
 rapid. Except near the coast, I have not seen a 
 particle of corn standing — all carried, and some 
 thrashed. No portion of the country I have yet 
 seen (and I have ah-eady travelled over thousands of 
 miles) admits of such dashing operations. All that 
 I have "seen has been won by hard toil from the 
 forest. In much the stumps still stand, much is 
 still unreclaimed, much is so rocky as to be irre- 
 claunable ; but I beheve the prairie land is quite 
 different. Thus far I have been surprised to see 
 how Httle good farming exists in the oldest settle- 
 ments ; but I am told that in north-western Ontario 
 the land and faiToinof are excellent. 
 
 Apples, pears, and peaches are abimdant m this 
 part of Canada. The apples unrivalled, the pears 
 execrable ; I have not ate a really good one yet. 
 Singularly enough nectarines do not flourish, nor do 
 apricots and plums. Gooseberries damp off. Cur- 
 rants, strawberries, and raspberries are abundant. 
 Tomatos are grown Hke potatoes. Why not also 
 with us '? The latter are excellent m spite of the 
 Colorado beetle, which I now and then meet walking 
 about like an innocent insect, not at all sensible of 
 the noise he is making in the world. No one men- 
 tions his name here, but I was told when at Boston 
 
 G 2
 
 44 A TOUR IN J^ORTH A^iERlCA. [chap. in. 
 
 that tliey had crossed one of the streets in such 
 numbers as ahnost to stop the traffic. I did not see 
 them, and cannot vouch for the truth ! 1 ! 
 
 The task of going minutely into every detail of 
 a line of railway 900 miles in length, and com- 
 pHcated by all kinds of diplomacy, detains my 
 friend at Hamilton. Well were it for all foreign 
 undertakings made with English gold if their chair- 
 men would pay them a yearly visit and devote six 
 weeks of patient energy and self-denying toil to 
 their concerns. Fewer half-pay officers, widows, 
 and orphans would have their hopes of high interest 
 blasted) and find their straightened means still more 
 straiofhtened, if such were the rule. However, the 
 Great Western of Canada is a fortunate exception, 
 and a fortnight more must be spent at Hamilton 
 before we can take our ffight for our long journey 
 *' out west." 
 
 So we resolve on a trip to the States in the mean^ 
 time. A night in a Pullman lands us at 6 on a 
 lovely Sunday morning at Albany, an ancient City, 
 founded in 1612 on the banks of the Hudson, 150 
 miles above New York, numberiug about 80,000 in- 
 habitants, the capital of the State of New York and 
 seat of its leofislature. It has all the look of an 
 "" old town" — red brick houses and irregular streets, 
 very good public builduigs and really fine clmrches. 
 I can vouch for singing not being neglected, for at 
 St. Peter's, the chief Episcopal Church, I was sung 
 to nauseam by a set of male and female minstrels 
 who executed Venites, Te Deums, Jubilates •and
 
 CHAP. III.] THE HtJDSON. 45 
 
 Voluntariejs, in every letter of the alphabet, I believe^ 
 from a pretentious organ gallery. I hope they sang 
 praises for me as well as for themselves, for I confess 
 my utter inability to take part in such services. 
 
 At an early hoiu' on Monday (10th Sept.), we 
 embarked foi* our steam down the Hudson on board 
 the " C. Vibbard," one of those floating three decked 
 castles I described before, propelled by a 65 inch 
 cylinder engine, 12 feet stroke. Alongside her lay 
 the St. John, the night boat, 85 inch cylinder and 15 
 feet stroke. The most powerful engine in Glamor- 
 ganshire for any purpose is, I beheve, an 80 inch 
 pumping engine. This will convey some idea of the 
 size of these steamers. 
 
 For at least one-third of the 150 miles from Albany 
 to New York the Hudson did not impress me. Its 
 banks are Well wooded, imdulating and fertile, but 
 nowhere more than pretty — here and there a village ; 
 here and there a farm ; much natui'al wood ; all hard 
 wood, no fir. Even the Catskill Mountains, the 
 scene of Rip-van- Winkle's exploits, seemed a tame 
 ^nd uninteresting range of rounded hills, something 
 like the Malvern Hills, but not possessing such fine 
 outlines. 
 
 Below Rhinbeck the scenery becomes much finer. 
 The hills approach the river, which mdens out into 
 splendid reaches and then contracts to a few hundred 
 yards. The reach above Newburg, bounded on the 
 south by the " Highlands," which must be several 
 thousand feet high, vand surrounded by beautifully 
 Xvooded slopes, is very striking. At first one doeiS
 
 46 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. hi. 
 
 not see how the river escapes through the mountain 
 chain, but gradually a narrow gorge comes in sight, 
 with precipitous sides and winding course, in the 
 centre of which upon a projecting promontory the 
 fe,mous Mihtary Academy of West Point is situated, 
 commanding the gorge with its batteries. 
 
 Issuing from the narrow ravine we soon enter on 
 the fine Fjord called the Tappanzee, probably eight or 
 ten miles long by four or five broad, its southern and 
 western shores shut in by high precipitous mountains 
 and bluff headlands, its eastern shore rising gently 
 from the water, and thickly studded with the villas, 
 almost country houses, of the rich New York mer- 
 chants, embosomed in trees, and surrounded by 
 well-kept lawns and parks. The same evidences of 
 luxurious and happy country life continue on the 
 eastern shore for many miles, until the busy quays 
 of New York are reached, while the western shore is 
 a wall of bold and lofty precipices called the " Pali- 
 sades." I have never been more struck with any 
 river scenery. Indeed, mile for mile, I have no 
 hesitation in sajdng that I think the Hudson far finer 
 than the finest parts of the Rhine. I would go 
 further, and say that it has many of the attributes 
 of our own Bay — a fine expanse of water, numbers 
 of ships with their weU-cut white sails gliding hither 
 and thither, bold outlines near and far, lovely vegeta- 
 tion down to the water's edge ; aU this fit by an 
 Italian sun, rendered endurable by a fresh sea breeze. 
 If ever I emigrate, which heaven forfend, it will be 
 to the Hudson.
 
 CHAP. lY.] NEW YORK. 47 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 NEW YORK. 
 
 It would indeed be the height of presumption to 
 attempt any description of New York after spending 
 three days there. Every child knows that it is the 
 chief City of the United States, — that it is called the 
 " Empire City," and does in fact exert Parisian 
 influence tlu'oughout the whole domam of the Union, 
 To fathom and define the mtricacies of its pohtical 
 ramifications, whether " Unionic" (if I may be 
 allowed to coin a word), State, or Mmiicipal, woidd 
 requh-e probably more than the acuteness of the 
 editor of the New York Herald. To study and 
 describe its public institutions would be a work of 
 years ; to detail its social arcana would need the 
 opportunities and pens of Pepys or GreviUe. But 
 even the hasty sketch possible after a three days' 
 glance, every statement to be taken with the classic 
 " gram of salt," may be of some interest. 
 
 Physically, at any rate. New York is easily de- 
 scribed ; and a magnificant physical position it 
 I occupies, covering as it does a long, narrow island, 
 I surrounded on thi^ee sides by water, deep enough to 
 ! float a fine of battle-ship at low tide, completely 
 land-locked, and yet at a short distance from the 
 i Atlantic — about 20 miles — easily accessible chan-
 
 48 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap, iv. 
 
 nels, with 21ft. to 22ft. at dead low water, 27ft. to 
 29ft. at high tide. No enormous expenditure is 
 required to create locks, docks, quay walls, piers, 
 breakwaters, harboiu-s of refuge, and the like. Its 
 wharves are formed by simply driving piles at right 
 angles to the shore, and boarding over the space 
 thus gained from the sea. It is evident that while 
 such frontage m.ay be indefinitely extended along 
 the shores, it may equally be run out at right angles 
 to almost any extent ; and that httle or no capital 
 being required to create floating accommodation, 
 small interest has to be paid, and the lightest possible 
 dock dues suffice. Vessels also can come in and go 
 out when they please, — no detention occurs from 
 want of water at low tide. 
 
 New York was further favoured by her splendid 
 inland water communication before the days of rail- 
 roads, the Hudson River and Erie Canal forming at 
 that time the means of transporting heavy goods, 
 thus making her the outlet for the produce of vast 
 districts at her back. 
 
 No one can contemplate the eastern, western, or 
 southern portions of New York harbour, whatever 
 his experience of the Thames, the Mersey, or the 
 Clyde may be, without feehngs of astonishment and 
 admiration. The movement of sliipping is so 
 perpetual that it almost seems as if the whole 
 surface of those sheets of water was as overcrowded 
 as our London thoroughfares. Steamers of all sorts 
 and sizes, sailing craft, barges, but, above aU, the 
 enormous ferry-boats dash about and diift about in
 
 CHAP. IV.] yEW YORK. 4i) 
 
 all directions. The ferry-boats are wonders in them- 
 selves. I had the curiosity to take the dimen- 
 sions of one, and found it to be 225 ft. long, and 
 60ft. broad, diiven by a 5 Sin. cylinder engme, 12ft. 
 stroke. The centre is occupied by carts, waggons, 
 carriages, and railway trucks, and the sides by 
 covered ways and saloons for foot passengers, the 
 whole roofed over from end to end. Dozens of these 
 may be seen plougliing their way over New York 
 harbour to Brooklyn, New Jersey, Hoboken, &c. 
 Before further bridges are built across the Thames, 
 it will be well to see if every object could not be 
 attained by such commodious ferry-boats ; and even 
 Liverpool, with her broad Mersey, has much to learn 
 from her twin sister on this side. 
 
 The business part of New York is much like the 
 business parts of our large towns, — perpetual noise 
 and bustle, streets too naiTow for the work to be 
 done, open doors "vvith rows of names within, and the 
 modern extravagance in office and w^arehouse build- 
 ing ; dressed-stone fronts, some even of white marble ; 
 rich-carved architraves, polished granite colimins, 
 Corintliian and Moorish capitals ; and inside perhaps 
 " skeletons " carefully nursed in many a banker's 
 parlour. Niunbers of them have now been swept 
 out, and may not so easily be allowed to re-enter. 
 The storm wliich has swept over the world for three 
 long years came from America. Let us pray that 
 the gleam of sunshme now seen here for the first 
 time may re-invigorate us, and start us into fresh 
 life, not, however, we tnast of such unhealthy
 
 50 .-1 TOUll IX XORTH AMERICA. [cHAr. iv. 
 
 tropical luxm'iance, but the stm^dy gro^\i;li of tem- 
 perate climes. 
 
 If we pass from the bustle of Wall-street and the 
 south end of Broadway, and pursue that long 
 thoroughfare steadily towards the north, we find a 
 marked change as we leave each " block" behind us. 
 Great shop-fronts succeed to offices, and we soon see 
 the ways and means by which the money, made by 
 the sweat of men's brows in the south, is wasted by 
 then- gentle mates in the northern end of the same 
 street, which, I am bound, however, to admit, is said 
 to be some five miles long. If we turn to the left, 
 into the renowaied " Fifth Avenue," we still further 
 see how the costly tissues of Broadway are di'agged 
 through the filth by the vanity of woman, as if she 
 desu-ed to prove that Dar^\in is after aU right, and 
 that a three feet trail is needed to complete the at- 
 tractions of her form di\ine. Why are our strong 
 sense Anglo-Saxon dames led to ape the foUies of their 
 GaUic prototypes ? Why do they allow the latter 
 always to set the fashion? The great Mr. Worth 
 assured me last Easter, when I twitted liim with 
 this ungauily folly of tight-tied dresses and di^aggle 
 trails, that he liigUy disapproved, and did all he 
 could to stop it. ^Ir. Worth is the setter of Paris 
 fashion, and a sound-hearted Lincolnshire man, and 
 yet the ladies beat liim. 
 
 Wliat has tliis to do with New York? Oh, 
 " Fifth Avenue !" Well, that street is Belgravia, 
 Kensingtonia, Tybmiiia, and the parts about St. 
 James's, Berkeley, Grosvenor, and all other Squares
 
 criAP. IV.] FIFTH AVENUE. 51 
 
 rolled into one long street, with some cross satelites. 
 The houses are mostly three-windov:ed, and from 
 25ft. to 35 ft. frontaofe, — about the same heig-ht as 
 ours, — some are really fine houses, but each such has 
 a history which, as we rumbled along, was duly im- 
 parted. 
 
 There was the house of the Astors, which recalled 
 to my mmd stories I had read of the adventurous 
 merchant who fitted out his expeditions to the Far 
 West, then unknown, in search of peltries, and, in 
 competition with the Hudson's Bay Company, was 
 the patron of a thousand trappers whose deeds fill 
 the pages of romance. Then there was Vanderbilt's 
 mansion, the king of American raikoads. I gave 
 2min. 14sec. as the time in which the father trotted 
 a mile, with one horse. The son has just done the 
 mile in the shortest time on record with a pair of 
 horses, viz., 2min. 23sec., liis bet being that he would 
 do the mile with a pah under 2min. 25 sec, thus 
 attaining the speed of 25 miles an hom*. 
 
 Last, not least, there was the white marble 
 mansion, with its gold facings, the abode of the late 
 " diy goods" salesman, A. T. Stewart, who died last 
 year, leaving a fabulous sum. " Dry goods" mean 
 Shoolbreds, Harveys, Wliiteley and Co., and it 
 seems to be the most prosperous of all businesses 
 both here and at home. The houses in Fifth 
 Avenue fetch a higher price, house for house of 
 equal frontage, than in the fashionable parts of 
 London. 
 
 At the end of Fifth Avenue is the Park, and it 
 
 H 2
 
 52 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA, [chap, iv 
 
 well deserves that name, for it is upwards of 800 
 acres in extent. The surface is what the French 
 well call " accidente," i.e., broken into liill and vaUey 
 on a nnniature scale. Advantage has been taken of 
 every natural feature. The hill has its circular pla- 
 teau, from which fine views are obtained ; the hill- 
 sides have theil' groves and shady walks ; the valleys 
 their small lakes. Well-kept diwes and " rotten 
 rows" lead hither and thither; and even when we 
 were there, before the return of the gay world, there 
 were fair numbers of carriages, and especially the 
 typical light trotting buggy in which the citizen 
 delights to trot his better half about — I do not mean 
 in the shafts, but gravely sitting by her side, and 
 holding his bormg horse with separate outstretched 
 arms, not as the old mail coachman used to tell me 
 when I was indulged Avith the ribbons, " Old 'em, 
 sir, so as no one could tell you was a 'elding of 
 'em ; sit back, and square yer sholders." The 
 Yankee sits as if the next pull must take him off 
 his seat on to his nag's ears. But for lightness, 
 their carriages are masterpieces. We are in the 
 days of our grandfathers. Peters, Barker, Ward and 
 Co. have yet to learn what a carriage is, and how to 
 build it. We make our horses drag weights which 
 are wholly unnecessary, because we do not know how 
 to use materials proj)erly. I was diiven over some 
 roads m New Jersey which would have shaken any 
 of my carriages to pieces, but the new Jersey 
 waggon, holding six, went over them like a spider, 
 and as easily as a C and underspring barouche.
 
 CHAP. IV.] KEW JERSEY. 53 
 
 And tliis reminds me of that lovely diive along a 
 ridge of liigli ground, finely wooded with oak and 
 chestnut, close above Sandy Hook, at the entrance of 
 New York harbour, from which we looked down on 
 the broad expanse of New York Bay, studded with 
 a thousand sails, with Staten Island, Long Island, 
 and the Narrows in the distance, and the great 
 Atlantic away beyond the narrow neck of Sandy 
 Hook ; inland, a lovely wooded country, broken into 
 hill and dale, the last of the old entailed properties 
 of New Jersey, — one of the most lovely views I ever 
 enjoyed. For this afternoon's pleasure we have to 
 thank a kind friend to whom we had letters, and 
 who imdted us to stay with lum at his country house 
 in New Jersey, the quiet and refinement of which 
 was a most agreeable break to the racket of 'constant 
 Hotel life. It also gave us the opportunity of steam- 
 ine^ down the whole leno^th of New York harbour t6 
 Sandy Hook. Those who attempt to force its 
 entrance ^\ill receive hard blows if the batteries we 
 passed are well armed and manned. 
 
 The gTowth of New York has been marvellously 
 rapid. It is said, with Brooklyn, Jersey City, and 
 its immediate suburbs, to have nearly 2,000,000 in- 
 habitants ; 180 years ago it had but 6,000 ; and 260 
 years ago it had none at all. Brooklyn is as much 
 part of New York as Lambeth is of London, and 
 before long it ^\ill be connected with it by a grand 
 suspension bridge. 
 
 I see it stated that New York has 334 places of 
 worship, of which 7o are Protestant Episcopalian, 55
 
 54 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA. [chap. iv. 
 
 Presbyterian, 45 Methodist Episcopalian, 39 Eoman 
 Catholic, 30 Baptist, 27 Jewish, 18 Reformed Dutch, 
 13 Lutheran, 5 Congregational, 4 Unitarian, 4 
 Universahst, and 18 miscellaneous. Many of these 
 churches are in most respects magnificent structures, 
 especially the Roman Catholic Cathedral which is 
 built of white marble, but is still unfinished. Each 
 Denomination seems to vie with the other in the 
 construction of " temples exceedingly beautiful." 
 The old prejudices as to the conventicle form have 
 passed aw^ay. No man can say as he passes an 
 American church to what Denomination it is likely 
 to belong. 
 
 A good story is told at Toronto upon this point. 
 A well-kno^\Ti English Peer recently visited Toronto, 
 and was lionised by a rich Banker. Among other 
 things of interest he was showai a very fine new 
 Gothic chiu'ch, and he moralized somewhat in this 
 strain : — " How satisfactory it is to see the vigour 
 with which our ancient Church sustains her position 
 in our colonies without adventitious aid." " But," 
 the Banker quietly remarked, "this is a Noncon- 
 formist place of worship, my Lord," to wdiich the 
 Peer replied, " Pshaw ! so hke the arrogance of 
 those Dissenters." The Banker, who was a member 
 of the congreofation, and had contributed 20,000 
 dollars to the church, made no reply, but told it 
 with much amusement to his friends, and it is now a 
 standing joke at Toronto. 
 
 Many of the churches are built in the 13th and 14th 
 century style, but some have n style of their own.
 
 criAi'. IV.] CHCRCIIES. 55 
 
 I have long thought it was unworthy of our age to 
 copy as we do so servilely the style of those cen- 
 turies, and I have wondered that our architects did 
 not strike out some types of thek own not quite so 
 hackneyed. I am bound to say that this reproach 
 does not He at the door of the Americans, who have 
 struck out a style of theu^ own, while retaining many 
 of the best features of our Gothic buildings. Their 
 masonry is more massive, the members of their 
 window traceries are heavier and bolder, they splay 
 out their towers and buttresses, they introduce tur- 
 retted angles instead of plain quoins, their spans are 
 larger, and conceptions generally bolder than ours. 
 I am convinced that the cost of these churches 
 must be great, and it speaks well for the religious 
 feeUngs of Americans that they devote such sums 
 to these objects. 
 
 Philadelphia, where I am now writing, is said to 
 contain 419 churches, and I can testify to the sub- 
 stantial and handsome exterior of many : 9 1 Presby- 
 terian, 75 Episcopahan, 38 Roman Catholic. Only 
 15 are credited to the sect of the famous founder of 
 the city, Wilham Penn. I mention these numbers 
 to convey some notion, however unperfectly, of the 
 relative preponderance of various sections of the 
 Christian Church. I have been told that through- 
 out the United States the Baptists are numerically 
 the strongest, while the Episcopalians are the 
 richest. 
 
 There is little to be said of a fugitive character 
 about Philadelphia ; much, I doubt not, if one had
 
 56 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. tv. 
 
 time to study it ; but here again the extremely short 
 time I can allot to each object of interest intervenes, 
 and, moreover, I have not had the advantage of asso- 
 ciating with those who could give me rapidly the in- 
 formation I could dQsu-e, for the majority of Phila- 
 delphians are away, and not one of those to whom I 
 have letters is to be found. 
 
 Philadelphia ranks next to New York among the 
 cities of America, numbering al^out 800,000 inhabit- 
 ants. In 1777 it had 21,000 ; in 1800, 70,287. The 
 site of Philadelphia was well chosen. The junction 
 of two such rivers as the Schuylkill and the Dela- 
 ware would alonp suffice to endow it with facilities 
 of wat^r communication and picturesque features 
 not possessed by ordinary cities. But still more 
 important is its proximity to the Atlantic, being 
 about 100 miles distant, and accessible to large 
 vessels at high tide; while the great Coalfield at its 
 back adds materially to its commercial and manu- 
 facturing importance. 
 
 In the fashionable quarter I see many houses 
 quite equal to the best in New York. One special 
 feature gives Philadelphia a distinctive character ; 
 white marble appears to be almost its cheapest 
 building stpne. The doorsteps of fourth or fifth-rate 
 houses are of white marble, and many house-fronts 
 are whoUy made of it, as also quoins and dressings, 
 worked in with a very fine red brick. This imparts 
 to the place a singularly clean and bright appearance. 
 Granite is also largely used, as well as a sandstone 
 of a deep red colour, and a drab freestone— I imagine
 
 CHAP. IV.] PHILADELPHIA. 57 
 
 New Red and Permian ; the white marble is probably 
 ''altered Jura/' or OoHte like Carrara; but I have 
 quite failed to get a geological map.. Gneiss crops 
 up in the Park at the Water Works, and Silurian 
 fiui^her on. Nothing is more striking in the Canadian 
 and American Cities, that I have visited, than the 
 variety and good quahty of theu' building stone. 
 
 Pliiladelphia, like most American Cities, is built in 
 squares or "blocks" of houses; the streets rmming 
 north and south are numbered consecutively, begin- 
 ning at the River, so that each succeeding street is a 
 nmnber higher than the preceding one ; thus, if 
 your friend Hves in Forty-fifth street, you know that 
 he is forty-five blocks from the river. Each block is 
 supposed to contain 100 houses, but really contains 
 only from 60 to 70 ; in spite of this deficiency the 
 numeration proceeds on the theory of 100, and thus 
 a simple calculation will always inform you where a 
 house is, the number of the street being known ; 
 thus, my hotel is in Broad or Fomi:eenth Street ; 
 now all the streets wliich cross it at right angles will 
 have 1401 on one side and 1402 on the other, until 
 the next, or Fifteenth Street is reached, when they 
 will begm with 1501—1502. 
 
 The streets crossmg at right angles are here called 
 after trees ; thus Walnut and Chestnut Streets are 
 the two JDrincipal east and west streets. Chestnut 
 Street is full of fine shops, equal to those of any 
 city I ever visited. The old " State Hall," or 
 " Independence Hall," is most interesting to Ameri- 
 cans, for in it was signed the famous Declaration 
 
 I
 
 58 A TOUR IK NORTH AMERICA. [chap. iv. 
 
 of Independence ; the table, chair, and inkstand used 
 on the occasion are still shown ; from the broad 
 steps of its facade the Independence of the United 
 States was proclaimed. 
 
 The portraits of those who took part in the revo- 
 lutionary war are hung round the Hall, while in the 
 adjacent room are original pictm-es of Charles II., 
 George II., George III., William Penn, &c., with 
 many rehcs of the war of independence. Among 
 others they have an old cracked bell called " Liberty 
 Bell," which first rang out the poean of the " Immor- 
 tal Declaration." I thought it a fit emblem of the 
 uncertain sound which the word " Liberty" must 
 now convey to Americans : what with professional 
 politicians, wire-pullers, jobbers, and Presidential 
 " difficulties," the purity of public life seems to 
 have become a thing of the past, and the "Liberty" 
 of the community to govern themselves straight- 
 forwardly, seems sadly shattered. The majority 
 of sensible Americans know this in theu' secret 
 hearts, and would give much to get out of their 
 political difficulties. 
 
 The principal United States mint is here. It is a 
 well conducted estabHshment, now hard at work 
 evidently coining for a resumption of specie pay- 
 ments, and I fear especially in silver. 
 
 Philadelphia is a busy place ; there are numerous 
 establishments for the manufacture of locomotives, 
 mechanical tools, iron of all description, textile fabrics, 
 carpets, and various other industrial products. The 
 main buildinof of the Centennial Exliibition is still
 
 CHAP. IV. J FAIRMOUNT PARK. 59 
 
 standing, and, large as it is, Philadelphian manufac- 
 turers are almost able to refurnish it from their 
 multifarious workshops. 
 
 The exhibition building is really a fine structure, 
 better than any I have seen except our Crystal 
 Palace in 1851. It still contains much of interest, 
 and gives one a fair idea of what it must have been 
 last year. Its site adds much to its efiect, placed as 
 it is on the confines of Fakmount Park, the most 
 lovely and extensive Park, so far as I know, of 
 which any city in the world can boast, containing 
 no less that 1617 acres, of which 17Q represent the 
 water area of the Schuylkill — a broad and fine river, 
 with rocky banks rising 100 feet and upwards from 
 its margin, now approaching close and now receding, 
 covered with a fine growth of natiu^al forest trees, 
 many of considerable age and size, with grassy glades 
 and luxuriant vegetation. The roads are broad and 
 well kept, and paths are carried in all directions. 
 Near the town the ground is laid out in parterres 
 and ornamental gardens, while the more distant 
 portions are allowed to retain their natural charac- 
 teristics. The reaches of the river remind me of the 
 Thames above Maidenhead ; but the Schuylkill is 
 wider, and the banks more broken and varied. At 
 both ends the gorge is spanned by railway bridges 
 of a very ornamental and light construction. 
 
 At the town end the water works are well worthy 
 of a visit. A weir dams back the river to a height 
 of 14 feet at low and 6 feet at high tide. Five 
 tourbines of 1 ft. 3 in. diameter work powerful 
 
 I 2
 
 60 A TO UR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. iv. 
 
 pumps, and force the water up to a reservoir con- 
 structed on an isolated outburst of gneiss, some 
 acres in extent, giving a high service to the City at 
 a trifling cost comparatively. When I first saw it I 
 thought how fortunate are the Philadelphians as to 
 their water supply. But I chive through their 
 beautiful Park, and along the bank of then- broad 
 Eiver, and what do I see on the high ground above 
 me ? Is it possible, or is it a ghastly dream ? 
 I see wliite marble tombstones in thick array. It is 
 their great Laurel Hill Cemetery, T\ath its adjuncts, 
 covering 130 acres of ground, 110 feet above the 
 river which supphes their town with water, the 
 graves I should judge within little more than 50 
 yards of the water's edge. And this Cemetery 
 receives a large proportion of the dead of 800,000 
 people. Ram falls on it : where does it soak to ? 
 and where does it afterwards dram to ? The thought 
 is too hideous to pm-sue ; but if I were a Philadel- 
 phian I should look askance at my iced water, and 
 my tea would lose its charms. I should say, " At 
 once lay in pipes higher up the river than the 
 drainage level of the Cemetery, and conduct pru'e 
 water to the pumps, or else remove the pumps bodily 
 higher up the river. 
 
 I am sorry to pick a hole in such pretty combma- 
 tions as the Park, the Cemetery, and the Water 
 Works, but " honesty obhges." I passed hundreds 
 of hght trotting carriages to-day full of happy Cits, 
 with their wives and children, dashing all uncon- 
 sciously along the well kept roads. I saw thousands
 
 CHAP. IV.] INFECTED WATER. 61 
 
 walking and sunning themselves in the trim gardens, 
 and by the pretty fountains. What if the destroying 
 angel, in the shape of typhoid and cholera, or other 
 plague, now clearly shown to be transmissible by 
 infected water suppHes, struck these happy people 
 through their grave-yard and their river, and the 
 thought had occurred to me, and I had not spoken 
 it out ! ! Good-bye Philadelphia : no more iced 
 water for me within your borders. 
 
 I am off to Pittsbui'g, the Merthyr of America, 
 but my iron and coal friends must not be disappointed 
 if I do not give them a chapter on " costs and yields," 
 or the latest American mventions. My time is short, 
 and between this and San Francisco lie Chicago, Utah, 
 Denver, Colorado, and many a. thousand miles, more 
 novel and interesting to me than iron works and 
 collieries. If time permits as I return, perhaps I 
 may re-visit this district with a carbon and metalhc 
 mind.
 
 62 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. v. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PITTSBUBG. 
 
 The journey by the Pennsylvania Central Rrilway 
 from Philadelphia to Pittsburg, 355 miles, by day 
 Express, in 1 2 hours, is by no means without interest. 
 The first portion of it is through a highly-farmed 
 country, which reminded us much of England, more 
 so than any district we have yet passed through. 
 The fields are large, with substantial post and rail 
 fences. There is much fine timber, and here and 
 there woods — quite as much woodland, in fact, as in 
 any part of England. The country is prettily broken 
 into hill and dale. The houses and steadings have 
 a neat and cared-for look. Orchards abound, laden 
 with fruit. In fact, were it not for the fields of 
 Indian corn and tobacco, one might fancy oneself 
 travelHng tlirough a pretty Enghsh county. 
 
 The latter portion of the line is wilder, and re- 
 minded me of some Continental scenery, but I cannot 
 exactly remember where, — I think the approaches to 
 the Jura from the French side, or the southern 
 slopes of the Hartz mountains. 
 
 After passing Harrisbiu'g, 107 miles from Phila- 
 delphia, the fine crosses the Susquehanna, at this 
 point, — a broad, shallow, lacustrine river, — by a 
 bridge 3,670 feet long, winding its way through a
 
 CHAP, v.] PITTSBURG. 36 
 
 mountain ridge about 1,000 feet to 2,000 feet high, 
 clothed with natural wood to the summit. It then 
 enters the valley of the Juniata, a confluent of the 
 Susquehanna, the course of which it follows for about 
 100 miles between hills of the same type, somewhat 
 like the Neath and Taff Vales ; no bold peaks, but 
 rounded skylines, broken here and there by lateral 
 dingles. These are the spurs of the Alleghanies, 
 which are crossed further on at Altoona. They are 
 said to be very beautiful, but darkness came on just 
 as we reached them. The moon was bright, however, 
 and I confess it seemed to me that the scenery con- 
 tinued much the same as before. I could always see 
 the skyhne at no great height until we reached 
 Pittsburg, which certainly is not Merthyr the smoke- 
 less, but Sheffield the unctuous and smutty, for it 
 lives under that pall of black smoke in which our 
 Admiralty delights to envelope its fleets, when it 
 goes to the North for its coal suppHes. 
 
 The sounds of exhaust steam, counter flies, pinions, 
 steam hammers, hooters, and all other adjuncts of 
 Tubal Cain's calling, were the music of the night, 
 and, when day broke, the broad Monongahela River, 
 with its Suspension Bridge of many piers, and its 
 coal-laden barges, towed by sternwheel steamers 
 lashed alongside, appeared flowing past our windows, 
 while opposite was a precipice 470 feet high, rising 
 almost perpendicularly from the river at a distance 
 of perhaps 80 yards from its banks ; but on that 
 narrow strip of flat land, and as far as could be seen 
 along the river banks, iron, steel, glass, and other
 
 64 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. v. 
 
 works are perched, vomiting forth so thick a vohime 
 of black smoke as to render the chfis opposite almost 
 invisible. Higher up the river the cliffs recede, and 
 some of the largest works, as well as a considerable 
 population find then- " location," as an American 
 would say, on the banks of the Monongahela, which 
 also conveys a large portion of the coal from the col- 
 lieries to Pittsburg. Other works are situate along 
 the proper left bank of the Alleghany River, which 
 unites with the Monongohela, and forms the Ohio 
 within the hmits of the City. 
 
 Up the steep cliff opposite runs a passenger inclme 
 at an angle of at least 45 deg., worked by a stationary 
 engine on the top. If we pay six cents,, in two or 
 three minutes we are pulled up to the top of the cHff, 
 and look down on the city from an elevation of 470 
 feet. On our right and left at our feet is the 
 Monongahela River. Opposite, on a tongue of land 
 gradually widening, and rising as it widens, eventu- 
 ally to an equal elevation with our own, is the city 
 of Pittsburg, enveloped in perpetual darkness under 
 its canopy of unctuous smoke. Over the lower lying 
 houses, and far away towards the East, we see the 
 broad Alleghany River, while to the extreme left we 
 see the junction of these not inconsiderable rivers 
 uniting to form the great Ohio, destmed in its turn, 
 after a course of many hundreds of miles, to be ab- 
 sorbed and lost in the mighty Mississippi. 
 
 Above the town, and out of reach of the smoke, 
 the country is extremely pretty. It is laid out in 
 wide wood-paved roads, of which I was told there
 
 CHAP, v.] LOCAL TAXATIOX. 65 
 
 are upwards of 30 miles, and upon which not less 
 than one million sterling has been expended, the 
 most lavish expenditure of public money I ever saw. 
 The paving is as good as Piccadilly, and the roads 
 nearly double the width. The result of this and 
 other outlays for di-ainage, water, &c., is that the 
 local taxation of Pittsburg is excessive. I make it 
 to be about equal to 3s. lOd. in the £, assuming 
 that a. rebate of two thirds of the gross value is 
 allowed. Thus the assessment is 3^ per cent, on 
 realised capital, — whether personal or real I omitted 
 to ask, but we will assume the latter. Then, if a 
 man lives in a house wliich cost £1,000, w^e will 
 assume that he is assessed at £330, upon wliich he 
 would pay £11 10s. per anniun. If w^e put house 
 property at 6 per cent., liis rent woLild be £60, upon 
 which he would pay £11 10s, or 3s. lOd. in the £ 
 rental. I have assumed one third because I found 
 that that was the proportion assessed in some other 
 American Cities. The moral is, that no one need 
 emigrate to escape local taxation, and that corporate 
 bodies are no more exempt from extravagance and 
 expensive blunders on this than on the other side of 
 the Atlantic. Philadelphia, the refined, expends 
 her money to pump up the drainage of her gi^ave- 
 yard, and gives it to her people to drink. Pittsburg, 
 the grimy, expends a million on roads, which would 
 be extravagcnt in London, and along which not one 
 in a hundi-ed of her population passes. 
 
 From the time I first landed I have enquu-ed, 
 whenever I had an opportunity, as to " local taxa- 
 
 K
 
 66 A TOUR IX NOUTII AMERICA. [chap. v. 
 
 tion," and I have heard the same story everywhere, 
 — bitter complaints of its burthen. Yesterday I 
 spent some hours at the small town of London in 
 Canada. They have no water supply even, but 
 their local burthens are 1'7 per cent., or nearly half 
 as much as at Pittsburg. 
 
 In the suburbs, accommodated by these magnificent 
 roads, the wealthy Pittsburg manufacturers have 
 their villas. I drove through some miles of them, 
 and very comfortable English-Hke homes they seem 
 to be — nicely kept gardens, well mown grass plots 
 watered by small moveable fountains, croquet 
 grounds upon wliich " husbandry" seemed to be as 
 actively pursued as in the early days of that dull 
 game in England, and bright parterres of flowers. 
 
 The chief industries of the place are iron, steel, 
 and glass, the two former expanding into various 
 incidental manufacturers. I visited the largest ii^on 
 works, but it was " standing," owing to a strike for 
 a 25 per cent, advance of wages, wliich had lasted 
 five weeks. The product of this works is " merchant 
 bar" iron. The manager came from Lord Dudley's 
 " Round Oak" Works. I saw nothing new, except 
 the boilers and cold rolhng of machine shafting. 
 The boilers universally abopted are of small diameter 
 in the shell, viz., 4ft. to 4ft. 4in., ^Aith two tubes 
 14in. to 16in., 24ft. to 30ft. long; shell plate J; 
 tubes plates, 5-16lbs. In these boilers they carry 
 80lbs. to 120lbs. steam. They are set, so to say, 
 "hollow," i.e., they have no brickwork about them, 
 but are supported at the two ends only, the fire
 
 CHAP, v.] STEEL WORKS. 67 
 
 underneath, and two or more boilers in a set. The 
 flame returns through the flues. So far as I know^ 
 such boilers are not in use in England, and as they 
 have all the elements of economy in consumption 
 of coal, I mention them especially. I am also not 
 not aware that machine shafting, up to 5in. diameter, 
 is anywhere rolled cold with us. The saving is 
 great, as the shaft leaves the rolls fit for use withou. 
 the very expensive process of turning in a lathes 
 They of course requu^e straightening in pressure 
 machines. My only doubt is whether the cold 
 rolhng may not render them too hard and brittle. 
 
 I also visited an extremely well conducted steel 
 works, on the old system of mixing in pots. I could 
 not learn that there were any Bessemer works at 
 Pittsburg, although there are 15 in America, — the 
 largest I believe at Troy, on the Hudson above 
 Albany. Pittsbiu-g goes in for merchant steel, not 
 for heavy rails. At this works a very high 
 quahty of soft or malleable steel was being made. 
 Although I saw many things wliich interested 
 me, I can call to mind none of general interest, 
 except j)erhaps the fact that in one department 
 they were doing all the work with black men, — 
 puddling and hammering. There were but two 
 exceptions — the " boss," or foreman (every foreman 
 is called a " boss" here), and the engineer. I asked 
 the OMnier of the works, " What wages the black 
 men earn T He replied, " I pay them by the same 
 scale as the white puddlers ; I would not ask them 
 to work for less." He added, they were more easily 
 
 K 2
 
 G8 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA. [chap. v. 
 
 managed and more willing than white puddlers ; 
 that if there was a press of work, they would take 
 out seven heats when a white man would knock off 
 at five ; and that, " when working piece-work, Blackie 
 never heard the steam hooter or signal to cease work- 
 ing." I asked "If they stood heat better than white 
 men?" He said, "Neither better nor worse." A 
 portion of the local Press used to abuse him, and call 
 them " Jim Parks' black bu^ds," but Jim Parks is 
 master of the situation, and don't care what they 
 call hun, and he is quite right. He employs large 
 numbers of men, with whom he is on the best of 
 terms ; he allows no drunkenness or disorder on the 
 one hand, and has a well-organised system of rewards 
 for good work on the other. 
 
 I also visited a large mill for rolling heavy double 
 T girders used in building houses, bridges, &c. The 
 conditions of manufacturing at Pittsbui'g are very 
 favourable. Coal is good and extraordinarily cheap. 
 " Through and through," an excellent rubbly coal, 
 with very little dead small, is only worth 90 cents, 
 for 2,000lbs. delivered in the works, as nearly as pos- 
 sible 4s. per ton. With this coal they can puddle 
 and do any work whatsoever. The best screened 
 coal is worth a dollar and a quarter, say 5s. 7d. per 
 2,000lbs ; and slack 30 cents., or 16fd. per 2,000lb. 
 The quality of the coal is quite equal to om^ Midland 
 or North Country Coal, very hard and cubical in its 
 fracture, bituminous and binding. I saW splendid 
 metallic looking flak} coke made from it. The 
 ash-pits showed that the coal was clean ; in fact, I
 
 CHAP, v.] WAGES. DISTAXCE FROM SEA. C9 
 
 should judge tliat it is quite equal to our bituminous 
 coal. Wages vary from one dollar (4s.) for unskilled, 
 up to four dollars for skilled, labour per day. A 
 puddler gets three dollars, but he has to work for it- 
 Under these conditions, and an abundance of the 
 finest iron ore, I cannot see why Pennsylvania should 
 not compete in its iron industry with us; but it has 
 the curse of protection upon it, and where man 
 interposes his short-sighted laws, the best provisions 
 of Providence are shackled and blio-hted. 
 
 There is but one evil condition under which Pitts- 
 burg labours, as far as I could see, viz., its distance 
 from a sea-port. Via Philadelphia it is 447 miles to 
 New York. To Baltimore about 300 miles, but 
 probably Cleveland on Lake Erie may become its 
 best port, as it is only about 160 miles ; although 
 Cleveland being a lake port can never compete with 
 an Ocean port. It has a canal across the Alleganies, 
 and the Rivers Oliio and Mississippi give it cheap 
 freight to the South, but its main communication is 
 by the Pennsylvania Central PailAvay, which has 
 practically a monopoly, and makes the Pittsburgers 
 pay for it ; in fact, the feeling roused against that 
 line was to some extent the cause of the late riots, 
 the lower classes havmg been excited against the 
 railroad by much publicly expressed discontent. 
 
 It is now ascertained that property to the value 
 of £500,000 in railway stock and merchandize was 
 destroyed dm'ing the riots; 1,G00 railway w^aggons 
 and theu^ freight, 101 locomotives, and the whole 
 of the stations, sheds, and engine houses were burnt
 
 70 A TOUR IX XOllTH AMERICA. [chap. v. 
 
 and wTecked. The State or district will have to pay. 
 Not a dollar's worth of private property was 
 destroyed. 
 
 It seems to have been a thoroughly mismanaged 
 affair, — a Militia Regiment from Philadelphia — hav- 
 ing replied to a little stone throwing (and it is said 
 one pistol shot), by firing into a number of imiocent 
 people, a large portion of whom were women and 
 children ; many w^ere killed. These people had 
 collected innocently enough on a hill side to look at 
 the regiment ; the real strikers were across the Hne, 
 preventing trains from running, but the fight did 
 not begin with them. After this deed the Militia 
 marched away. The workmen, finding that women 
 and cliildren had been killed, attacked and wrecked 
 the station and plundered the cars during the 
 following night. Many of these cars had spirits in 
 them, which were drunk ad libitum, and further in- 
 fmiated the mob, but in all this drunkenness and 
 excess, private proj^erty was respected, and my 
 informant told me that the next morning he accom- 
 panied the Mayor, wliile he endeavoured to pacify 
 the mob, and that looking at them as they faced him 
 he could not see one steady workman among them. 
 
 In such a population (Pittsbiu'g has 160,000 and 
 Allegany City on the other side of the river has 
 70,000) there are always roughs and bad characters 
 ready for any mischief, and those were the men, 
 and not the steady working classes who really caused 
 the riots. One company of Regulars soon put things 
 to rights.
 
 CHAP, v.] PITTSBURG TO BUFFALO. 71 
 
 The Reofulars and Militia have different views of 
 their duty. I was told an anecdote which illustrates 
 this characteristically. A regular soldier on sentry 
 was pacing up and down among the w^reck, w^hen 
 some loafers got about him and tried to fraternise. 
 They said, " Now, if there was another row, you 
 would not shoot us, would you '?" He repHed, " Not 
 
 shoot ! w^hy d ye, I'm paid to shoot ! ! " Rioters 
 
 and Regulars in America are much as they are with us. 
 
 From Pittsburg om- route lay for twenty miles 
 along the banks of the Ohio, a fine river, here about 
 as wide as the Thames at London Bridge. We then 
 turned North, and followed the pretty valley of the 
 Beaver River for, I suppose, thirty or forty miles, 
 until it ceases to bear that name at tlie junction of 
 the Shenango and Mahoning Rivers, up the latter of 
 which the Une to Erie is carried. 
 
 Throughout the whole of our journey we w^ere pass- 
 ing thi'ough an extremely pretty country, well-farmed, 
 clearings alternating with natural woodlands, not an 
 acre of flat land, hill and dale in all directions. Much 
 of this country has a most park-like appearance, and 
 one fancied that at each tm-n a fine country house 
 would come in sight, but such things are not in 
 America. By and bye they may be, but not yet. 
 
 I saw that we were traversing a coal field. Here 
 and there we saw small w^orkings, and from time to 
 time we passed good train loads of coal standing 
 on sidings ; but from the few openings we passed, and 
 the scanty population, it is evident that tliis district is 
 as yet almost untouched.
 
 72 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA. [cuxw v. 
 
 The coal measure sandstone reminded me of York- 
 shire in its hthological character. We passed some 
 considerable iron works, but most of the blast furnaces 
 are idle ; at one village, Sharpsville, the guard told 
 me there were 13, and only two or three in blast ; I 
 also saw some extensive mills standing idle. 
 
 At last I have succeeded in getting a geological 
 map, and I see we were traversing the northern por- 
 tion of the great Pennsylvanian field, which extends 
 far beyond the 41st to 33rd parallel of north latitude. 
 Measured on the map it is 750 miles long and 180 
 miles wide at its northern end. At 350 miles south it 
 is still 100 miles wide. For another 300 miles it is 40 
 miles wide, after which it widens out again to 100 
 miles, endino- in the States of Alabama and Missis- 
 sippi. If we contrast this with the South Wales coal 
 field, which, I think, has the largest area m Great 
 Britain, and so far as I remember is about 80 miles 
 long and 25 wide at most, we shall have some con- 
 ception of the enormous area of this great coal field ;, 
 but the Kansas and Missouri coal field looks much 
 larger. It seems to be 600 miles long, and an average 
 of some 250 miles wide, while the Illinois field seems 
 to be 300 miles long and 170 wide. What the quaHty 
 of then' respective coals may be I know not, but if all 
 is as good and cheap as what I saw at Pittsburg, 
 Providence would seem to have provided for the 
 wants of countless miUions of men during countless 
 millions of ages. 
 
 I said in the discussion on the French Treaty, in 
 the House of Commons, and I repeat, that the
 
 CHAP, v.] LEXGTII OF ^^ LEADSr 73 
 
 production of coal is not measiu'able by the boun- 
 tiful provisions of Providence, but by the hands 
 that can be brought to bear upon its working. 
 England has enough coal, and to spare, for a thousand 
 years. It vi^ould be presumptuous to speculate on 
 what America has, but its enormous wealth of coal 
 will be no more available until men can be found 
 to work it than if it had no existence ; it is a question 
 of men, not coal. 
 
 The great disadvantage under which America must 
 always labour, as a coal shipping country, is the 
 distance of the coal fields from the sea-board ; the 
 nearest point seems to be 150 miles from Baltimore as 
 the crow flies, probably 200 by rail. I am told upon 
 the highest authority that the rate per 2,000lbs. was 
 1 J cents, but that owing to very keen competition it 
 is now reduced to f of a cent per mile, or 6s. per 200 
 miles, or 6s. 8 Jd. per ton for delivery from the nearest 
 colliery to the port, a rate which we should consider 
 prohibitory. In Ehode Island and Massachusets there 
 is a small coal field on the sea ; it seems to be about 
 30 miles mde and 40 long, but with that exception 
 all the coal fields are inland. 
 
 Descending from the higher ground we soon found 
 ourselves on the shores of lake Erie, along which we 
 ran to Buffalo, the point at which the great Erie 
 canal begins, ending near Troy on the Hudson. 
 
 I have been agreeably surprised with everything 
 in Canada and America, except the gi-eat Lakes ; 
 those which I have seen have flat uninteresting 
 shores, while their very extent is so vast as to 
 
 L
 
 74 A TOUR [N NORTH AMERICA. [chap. v. 
 
 produce no other effect than that of Seas. Anyone 
 who expects them to be like the Swiss or Italian 
 Lakes must be disappointed. The only place on the 
 Lakes I have seen, which is really striking, is Sarnia, 
 where I am now wi'iting, at the Southern outlet 
 of Lake Huron. The waters of the great river, 
 here called the St. Clair, but really identical with 
 the Niagara and the St. Lawrence, rush past in a 
 grand volume 400 yards wide, and from 60 to 90 
 feet deep, at seven miles per hour, wMle a mile to the 
 North the apparently boundless expanse of Lake 
 Huron is seen. Tliis in itself is fine, but the feature 
 of the place is the constant passage of large and 
 small craft, from the three-master of perhaps 400 
 tons, or the propeller of 500 or 600, down to the 
 coasting smack of 50 or 60 tons. Long lines of heavy 
 barges, in tow of powerful steamers, laden with grain 
 and timber, are perjDetually passing. It must be 
 borne in mind that this is the only outlet to the 
 great Lakes, Superior, Huron, and Michigan, really 
 vast inland seas, from the shores of which immense 
 amounts of grain and lumber [i.e., timber) are ex- 
 ported, and find then- way to the sea, either via the 
 Erie Canal and the Eailroad, or the Welland Canal, 
 from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario, and thence down 
 the St. Lawrence. This place, therefore, is as the 
 Bosphorus to the Black Sea, or the Belts to the 
 Baltic. 
 
 As I sit in this room, within 10 yards of the gi^eat 
 river, the rush of whose waters I hear, and along 
 whose rapid bosom tliis great trade is constantly
 
 CHAP, v.] LAKE TRADE. 75 
 
 borne, I wonder at my ignorance, for I confess that 
 until a few days ago I had no conception of the ex- 
 tent of the trade of these lakes, and no notion that 
 such a place as Sarnia existed. The only thing I 
 have ever seen like it is the view from the windows 
 of the "Trafalgar" or the "Ship" at Greenwich, at 
 high tide, on one of those delightful whitebait days 
 when the mighty traffic of the world's mart is flowing 
 by ; but here the sky is Italian and smokeless, and 
 the sun powerful enough to make one seek the shade. 
 This, indeed, is a truly delicious climate, — not one 
 really bad day have we had since we landed five 
 weeks ago, — and my letters tell me of floods, and 
 crops destroyed at home. 
 
 A keen struggle for the Lake trade is now going 
 on between the United States and Canada. In the 
 former they are agitating for aboHtion of tolls on the 
 Erie Canal, while Canada is constructing a splendid 
 new system of lockage between Lakes Erie and On- 
 tario, adjoming the old Welland Canal, which will 
 enable vessels drawing, I believe, 18 feet or 20 feet 
 of water to pass. Thus an 800 ton ship will be able 
 to load in these mland seas, and discharge in our 
 EngHsh ports. I think Canada will have the best of 
 it ; and if so, it must greatly influence her future. 
 
 I must not omit to mention little " London," a 
 thriving, vigorous Httle town, of 27,000 inhabitants, 
 famous for its oil and beer. ]\Ir. Carling's pale ale is 
 equal to Bass or AUsop's. Mr. Watennan's manipu- 
 lation of petroleum has gained him the highest prizes 
 at all recent Exhibitions, even last 3'ear at Phila- 
 
 L 2
 
 76 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. v. 
 
 delphia, in competition witli the great American 
 producers. The oil wells are about 15 miles from 
 " London," where the refining takes place. We 
 spent some feAv hours yesterday at the works, but I 
 will not attempt to describe the processes we saw. 
 Anyone will find them far better given in my friend 
 Mr. Hunt's last edition of Dr. Ure. London, like 
 all Canadian Cites, is thoroughly loyal to the old 
 country. It has Victoria and Westminster Bridges, 
 Piccadilly, Pall Mall, and many other of the principal 
 thoroughfares of its great namesake.
 
 CHAP, ri.] SARNIA. 77 
 
 r^HAPTEK VI. 
 
 SARNIA. 
 
 No wonder that the constant passmg and repassing 
 of shipping at Sarnia produces a feehng of astonish- 
 ment in the mind of a stranger, for I see that 
 Secretary Shennan stated in a recent speech that 
 " the whole tonnage passing at a given pomt on the 
 line of the lakes is 3,000,000 tons per annum," or 
 10,000 tons per day, to which must be added the 
 vessels in ballast. 
 
 From Sarnia we ran down to Toledo, and on our 
 way we " struck a cow," not an uncommon occurrence 
 in America, and attended with no such consequences 
 as those which recently happened on the London 
 and South Western, when several passengers were 
 killed, and some mjured. Every American locomo- 
 tive is provided with a "cow catcher" — a wooden 
 frame resembling a double plough (or, as it is spelt 
 here " plow"), which removes any obstruction, and 
 throws it on one, side. Our cow was deposited in 
 the ditch, and we did not feel the shock. There is 
 no sort of reason why every locomoti^'e in England 
 should not have a proper cow-catcher. I have the 
 opinion to that effect of a gallant officer, of all other 
 men most competent to judge, having investigated 
 more accidents in England than any other living man.
 
 78 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. vi. 
 
 and who also is well acquainted with American rail- 
 ways. If our railway companies will not voluntarily 
 adopt obvious and proved means of safety, such 
 as this and the pneumatic break system, with which 
 every railway carriage in America is provided, they 
 must be compelled by law to do so. 
 
 Toledo is a place of considerable unportance, and 
 rapidly progressing. In 1850 the population was 
 under 4,000, and now it is 45,000. It is second only 
 to Chicago in its grain exports. I was told that its 
 export now amounts to 47,000,000 bushels annually, 
 while it can store in its " elevators," as the great 
 grain warehouses are called, 3,000,000 bushels. 
 Eight railroads meet there, and two have their 
 factories in the vicinity. The position of Toledo 
 marks it out as a centre of commerce. It is situated 
 near the mouth of the Maumee River, which, con- 
 necting with the Wabash, runs back between 300 
 and 400 miles, traversing part of Ohio and Indiana 
 States. The Maumee River is deep enough at 
 Toledo for ocean vessels, and as wide as the Thames 
 at Westminster. In fact, vessels load gTain here 
 for Liverpool ; when the Welland Canal improve- 
 ments are completed, vessels up to 18ft. or 20ft. 
 draft \\T.ll be able to engage in the trade. It seems 
 to me, therefore, that the position of Toledo is by 
 far superior to Chicago. 
 
 A glance at the map will show that by sending 
 grain from the West and South to Toledo instead of 
 Chicago, the immense detour involved in sailing up 
 the whole length of Lake Michigan and down Lakes
 
 CHAP. vT.] TOLEDO, 79 
 
 Huron and St. Clair will be saved, not to mention 
 the dangerous navigation of the Straits of Mackinaw. 
 I make the distance by the lakes about 650 miles, 
 against about 250 by rail ; the produce of Indiana 
 and Illinois would not have to pass Chicago at all, 
 and an angle would be saved. I dwell upon this 
 as having an important bearing on the future of 
 the grain trade between England and America. 
 My present impression is that the port of Toledo on 
 Lake Erie must become the greatest grain-shipping 
 port of the United States ; but when I get to Chicago 
 I may hear facts which may change my opinion. 
 
 Like other American towns, Toledo is laid out in 
 broad, straight streets, the business portion substan- 
 tially and even handsomely built, while the suburban 
 roads are planted with double rows of trees, and 
 lined with handsome villas. . 
 
 After spending a few hours at Toledo, I went on 
 to Cleveland, on Lake Erie. I w^as specially anxious 
 to visit it, as it is the lake port nearest to the 
 great Pennsylvanian coalfield, and a place of much 
 industry. 
 
 The line between Toledo and Cleveland runs 
 parallel to but at some distance from Lake Erie. 
 The country is flat and fertile ; in fact, the whole of 
 this district is well farmed, and produces large quan- 
 tities of grain. I say grain, because that word em- 
 braces all descriptions of cereals. Indian corn (called 
 here, par excellence, "corn") is largely grown 
 throughout this district, and I am told that in the 
 memory of man there has been no such harvest as
 
 80 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. vi. 
 
 the present. The farmers are generally satisfied 
 with 20 bushels to the acre, while this year they 
 have 45 bushels. 
 
 Even in this fertile district, at a rough guess, I 
 should say that not above two-thirds of the land is 
 cleared, the remainder being covered with natural 
 hard wood. In many fields the stumps are still 
 standing. Those who tliink that even in the oldest 
 settlement they will see great stretches of flat agri- 
 cultural land, as in Germany and France, are mis- 
 taken. I do not think I have been able to see more 
 than a mile or two from the train half-a-dozen times 
 since I have been in America. 
 
 Cleveland is situated on high ground on the 
 southern shore of Lake Erie, say 200 feet above 
 the Lake, which it overlooks. It owes its origin to 
 the little P^iver Ayahoga, wliich here enters the 
 Lake through a lateral valley with gently sloping- 
 sides, and forms a port accessible to large vessels. 
 Piers are run out, with hghthouses at the end, and a 
 breakwater is about to be constructed, for this Lake 
 is a sea, nearly 300 miles long, and 50 wide. 
 
 The city was first settled by General Cleaveland 
 in 1796. In 1830 it had 1,075 inhabitants, and now 
 I am told it has 160,000. Steamers run from it to 
 every Lake port, and it has an important trade in 
 iron-ore from Lake Superior. Being the nearest 
 port to the Pennsylvanian coalfield, I tlunk it must 
 have a great future before it, both as an export and 
 import port. The coalfield is only 20 miles distant, 
 at its extreme northern boundary, so that the lead
 
 CHAP. VI.] CLEVELAXD. 81 
 
 both outwards and inwards will be inconsiderable. 
 The coal; however, which supplies the works at 
 Cleveland, comes more than 100 miles by rail. 
 
 Cleveland has also canal communication traversing 
 the coalfield, and ending only at the Ohio River. I 
 observed that some of the largest iron works are on 
 the banks of the canal, and it is probable that coal is 
 brought cheaply to them by this means. 
 
 Cleveland boasts of some of the largest and best 
 oil refineries in the States, as well as important 
 steel, iron, screw, and other works. I visited the 
 works of the " Otis Steel Company," having travelled 
 from Swansea to London with its proprietor, who 
 was returning from a visit to Landore. The works 
 are new, and finished with every modern appliance 
 for saving labour and turning out perfect work. 
 Siemen's furnaces do all the melting and heating ; 
 hydrauhc pressure all the heavy laboiu*. There was, 
 therefore, a remarkable absence of the bustle, con- 
 fusion, and duii of an old-fashioned works. As the 
 founder of the largest and best iron and steel works 
 I ever saw, the late M. Schneider, who began and 
 perfected the great Creusot Works, said to me not 
 long before his death, and kept repeating, as having 
 been his guiding rule in all his plans, " Chacun ^ son 
 aise dans la moindre place possible," and that was 
 the case in the " Otis Works." If we mean to keep 
 our heads above water, we must avail ourselves 
 of every means of saving fuel and labour, as well as 
 of every practical scientific improvement. 
 
 The quality of the steel produced is quite A 1 , but 
 
 M
 
 82 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. vi. 
 
 then the materials they liave at coinmand here are 
 simply perfect, — billets of wrought iron made with 
 charcoal direct from the purest ore, without a trace 
 of any impurity. The cost of coal is naturally higher 
 at Cleveland than at Pittsburg. Small (but not dead 
 small) costs 135 cents., and large 190 cents, per 
 2,000lbs., or 6s. and 8s. 6jd. per English ton. 
 
 I also visited the Union Screw Company's Works. 
 The machinery is excellent, entirely automatic. After- 
 wards I drove round the town to the port and harbour, 
 and through the suburbs, which present the same 
 appearance of wealth and comfort which I have ob- 
 served around every American town. A description 
 of one will suffice for all, and I have seen none better 
 than Cleveland. The streets of the town are broad, 
 and at right angles. The chief street is 132ft. while 
 the minor streets are 100ft. broad. Fine stone-built 
 houses five and six stories high. Banks, Stores {i.e., 
 shops). Insurance Offices, State and Court-houses, 
 Post-offices, and the like, make up the centre of the 
 town, while works and factories line the routes of 
 through communication, such as canals, raih-oads, and 
 rivers. The broad street soon fades off into a broad 
 avenue, consisting of a very wide road, having fre- 
 quently two street-car tracks down the centre, and 
 often paved with wood ; then comes a soHd stone 
 curb, say 1ft. wide ; then a well-cut grass verge, say 
 10ft. A\'ide ; then a double avenue of hardwood trees, 
 beneath the inside of which runs the footpath ; then 
 a light iron railing, and sometimes none at all ; then 
 grass lawns, beautifully kept, with foliage plants.
 
 CHAP. VI.] Sb'£UIi£S. 83 
 
 sub-tropicals, and bedding-out stuff, in the midst of 
 wliicli is tlie substantial Villa, generally six windows 
 to the front, (][uite detached, and, as to architecture, 
 " quot homines tot villa3 " — one is no more like its 
 neighbour than the respective physiognomies of their 
 owners ; but there is good Anglo-Saxon home com- 
 fort, and a well-to-do, happy look about each, be it 
 Grecian, Roman, or Snub. 
 
 As I drove along, I saw the fairer halves enjoying 
 rocking chairs and croquet, while their harder por- 
 tions, like the poor niggers of old, " toiled all day '^ 
 in the store or office. In the " Old Country," such 
 villas would cost from £2,000 to £10,000 each, and 
 the average run, £4,000 to £5,000. It may be taken 
 as a rule that every American town has suburbs of 
 such Villas, more or less numerous and costly, accord- 
 ing to the prosperity of the inhabitants. I found 
 that the local rates of Cleveland are three per cent., 
 but that the rateable value is only one-thu-d of 
 the gross. I had not time to visit a large Bessemer 
 steel works six miles distant, but I believe there is 
 nothing specially interesting about it. 
 
 My next day was spent at Detroit, another thriv- 
 ing port attached to Lake Erie, situated at the point 
 where the Great River, here called the " Detroit 
 River," leaves Lake St. Clan- on its way to Lake 
 Erie. The same immense traffic passes Detroit that 
 I saw at Sarnia, on its way to Buffixlo, and the 
 Erie, or the Welland Canal. At Detroit there are 
 some miles of wharves, at which ships of all sizes, up 
 to 500 tons, were lying, as well as large screw 
 
 M 2
 
 84 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. vi. 
 
 steamers, engfasfed in the lake traffic. An extensive 
 import timber business is carried on at Detroit for 
 tlie supply of the district. Iron founderies, machine 
 shops, and last, not least, copper works, were in ac- 
 tive operation, the latter to melt the native copper 
 of Lake Superior, a very simple smelting operation. 
 Four furnaces working only in summer produce 6,000 
 tons per annum. The same company has a Works 
 on Lake Superior consisting of eight furnaces, in 
 which 15,000 tons per annum are produced, being a 
 total of 21,000 tons of copjDer. 
 
 A friend who kindly accompanied me during part 
 of my visit to Detroit said, " When I came here 
 thirty years ago there were not 4,000 inhabitants, 
 and now there are 120,000." I think this is somewhat 
 more than the place looks like, but it is a most rising 
 and important " city." It has public and private 
 palatial offices, chm-ches, and avenues of viUas, not 
 distinguishable by the eye of the ordinary visitor 
 from those of the towns I have described. It is 
 another of the coming cities. 
 
 The hne from Detroit to Chicago passes through 
 the best farmed country I have seen. For many 
 miles the fields on both sides are imder regular crops, 
 corn and seeds. The winter wheat is now in many 
 places showing above the ground, beautifi-dly green 
 and well drilled, the land as fine as a garden. The 
 Indian corn is ripe, and in mows or ready to cut ; 
 but everywhere woodlands abound, no doubt for fuel 
 and shelter. Again and again I asked myself whether 
 I could see a mile from the train, and, with one or
 
 CHAP. VI.] TO CHICAGO. 85 
 
 two exceptions, I was lorcecl to return a negative 
 answer. Yfe passed for the first 200 miles through 
 a gently undulating country, with here and there a 
 river shut in by wooded banks. We were now 
 running across the neck of the great Michigan 
 Peninsula, separating Lakes Huron and Michigan. 
 
 When we approached the latter, the country be- 
 came flat and ugly, as on the shores of the other 
 great American lakes which I have thus far seen. 
 Huge banks of regular sea sand line the borders of 
 this inland sea at its southern end, rising as high as 
 any on the Atlantic coasts. 
 
 The latter portion of our route lay through a flat 
 and dreary country until we reached Chicago, the 
 capital of the West, now said to contain half a 
 million of inhabitants. Its development is perhaps 
 the most marvellous of any city on the American 
 Continent ; but time will not now permit me to touch 
 upon it. I must reserve the slight sketch I may be 
 able to give of it until another mail. To-morrow 
 morning I embark " on board," as they say here, our 
 car for three days, three nights, and twelve hom^s, at 
 the end of which time we hope to land safely at Salt 
 Lake City. As I advance, England recedes, and the 
 chances are the next mail will carry no notes of 
 American Travel from the Far West, unless Mr. 
 Pullman's special private Car is so well hung, and 
 the Pacific Poad is so well laid, as to permit in- 
 telligible writing in it.
 
 86 
 
 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA, [chap. vii. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 CHICAGO. 
 
 Writing in the train is impossible unless one holds 
 the paper with one hand and the pen in the other^ 
 so that the process is slow and ii-ksome ; however, 
 in passing over a Prairie some 500 miles in length, 
 writing or reading is a resource one gladly avails 
 oneself of, and I will do my best to proceed with my 
 notes. Having crossed the Missouri at Omaha, we 
 are now in the " Far West," on the Union Pacific 
 Line, traversing the boundless Plains or Prairies of 
 Nebraska. 
 
 I must, however, go back to Chicago, for to pass 
 over that city of such solid, yet such mushroom 
 growth, would be an unpardonable omission. 
 Chicago is the capital of the West, and is estimated 
 to number no less than 460,000 inhabitants ; but 
 yesterday it had no existence — in 1830 it had but 12 
 houses and 100 inhabitants ; 34 years ago it had 
 only 7,580 ; 27 years since 28,269, smce which it has 
 advanced with giant strides, and especially since the 
 fire of 1871, when we all remember that nearly the 
 whole city was burnt to the ground — strange to say, 
 almost no trace of that fire can now be seen ; the 
 houses are not only solid but princely ; in fact, I 
 scarcely know to what to compare them, except to
 
 CHAP, vii.] CHICAGO. ELEVATORS. 87 
 
 the great Mancliester warehouses or to some of the 
 costly new ranges of offices in the City. I asked a 
 friend who was kind enough to Honise me, how men 
 who had lost their all had contrived to find money to 
 build such expensive blocks ? He explained, first, 
 that the sums received for insurances were very large, 
 and next, that many mortgages existed prior to the 
 fire, and that the mortgagors were compelled to 
 advance money to rebuild in order to avail them- 
 selves of the value of the sites. 
 
 Be that as it may, the city has been completely 
 rebuilt, and is now one of the finest in the Union. 
 Magnificent Churches abound — there are upwards of 
 200 in Chicago — 31 Boman Catholic, 26 Baptists, 
 2G Presbyterian, 27 Methodist, 19 Episcopal, 10 
 Congregational, 5 Jewdsh, and the balance various. 
 Michigan Avenue is remarkable for the number of 
 fine Churches which line its broad roadway, and I 
 must again comjDliment their architects on their 
 originality, and fine architecture generally, although, 
 of course, there is also much of a debased character : 
 in the main they are solid and costly structures, 
 in good taste, and built in no niggardly spirit. 
 Handsome villas abound here as elsewhere, and give 
 evidence of wealth and the yearning for the comforts 
 of home life inlierent m our race. 
 
 The sights of Chicago are its Grain Elevators and 
 Stock Yards ; the former are lofty warehouses for the 
 storage of grain and for its shipment. The cars con- 
 taining the grain are run in on the basement, two 
 men then enter, each with a large shovel, say tliree
 
 88 A TOUR FN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. vii. 
 
 or four feet v/icle, to Vvrhicl'i a r'^pe connecte:! with the 
 machinery is attached. This rope is alternately 
 drawn in and slackened out. The man draws the 
 shovel inward as the rope slackens, and then, after 
 plunging it deep into the grain, guides it to the 
 side door, while the rope tightens : in this way 
 masses of grain are shot out of the car with but Httle 
 manual labour. From the car it falls into hoppers, 
 from whence an endless belt with buckets lifts it to 
 the top of the warehouse, about 160 feet high. It is 
 then discharged into a hopper weighing machine, 
 from whence it falls into other hoppers, where it 
 remains till wanted for shipment. When requu'ed 
 the grain is again lifted and passed through the 
 hopper-weighers, from whence it is run by long 
 spouts into the ships. The process is carried on 
 almost entirely by mechanical power, the men only 
 superintending the working of the machinery. 
 Some idea of the size of the great gi^ain warehouses 
 may be gathered from the fact that the Elevator I 
 went over could store fifteen hundred thousand 
 bushels, and that the machuiery was set in motion 
 by a 300 h. p. engine. 
 
 The report of the Board of Trade on the transac- 
 tions of Chicago in 1876 is before me, and I see from 
 it that 87,241,306 bushels of Flour and Grain passed 
 through Chicago in that year, value 57,100,000 
 dollars ; Live Stock, 57,500,000 dollars ; Products 
 of Cattle and Hogs, 68,200,000 dollars; Dairy Pro- 
 duce, 8,200,000 dollars ; Wool and Hides, 25,700,000 
 dollars ; Wines and Spirits, 8,500,000 dollar ; Sun-
 
 CHAP. VII.] HOGS. 89 
 
 dries, 6,250,000 dollars ; Total, 231,450,000 dollars ; 
 or about £40,290,000. 
 
 It will be seen how important the trade in the 
 " Products of Cattle and Hogs " is, being nearly 
 Fourteen Millions sterling. In 1875-6 no less than 
 2,320,846 Hogs were slaughtered at Chicago, and 
 1,096,725 head of Cattle passed through its markets. 
 
 The Hog Products " Manufactiu-e " is one of the 
 gi'eat sights of Chicago, The Stock Yards are 
 situated about five miles outside the City to the 
 south. A kind friend drove me out in his light 
 four-wheel " buggy," with his " Trotter," which can 
 do its mile in three minutes. The morning, 7 a.m., 
 was lovely, as usual in this delicious climate. Our 
 road lay through the Michigan Avenue to which I 
 have already alluded, and then through partially- 
 built suburbs over very rough roads, none at all in 
 some places, but the spider-like buggy negotiated the 
 deepest depressions and liighest banks like a prac- 
 tised hunter, and we soon found ourselves approaching 
 an immense Hotel devoted exclusively to drovers 
 and stock dealers. Passing it we entered the 
 cattle pens, strong post and rail enclosures, each 
 of some acres in extent. I was told that the yards 
 extend over some hundreds of acres. 
 
 I saw one prune lot of shorthorns. Next to them 
 a lot of Texans, very inferior ; but in truth I had 
 not time to take stock of the yards, and, moreover, 
 the business is not at this moment very active. 
 They were not killing, but I am told that the 
 process is thus conducted : They drive the animals
 
 90 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. vii. 
 
 into a long passage ; a man walks on a platform 
 above them with a small breech-loading rifle and 
 shoots them behind the head — a single shot disposes 
 of each in the most painless way. 
 
 I visited the Hog Product Manufactory, which, 
 though not savory, is well worthy of a short descrip- 
 tion. The hogs are slaughtered methodically and 
 mercifully, but with extraordinary rapidity. They 
 are driven to the top of a two-storied building, 
 where a pen is provided capable of holding 20 or 30 
 hogs ; in this a man stands with a short u-on chain 
 shackle, which he fastens to the right hind leg of the 
 pig, and then attaches it to a rope working round a 
 pulley. Another man stands on a stage above, and 
 throws the pully into gear, when up goes poor piggy, 
 and almost before he can squeal he finds himself 
 head down and heels up. The man then sliiffcs the 
 shackle on to a hook attached to a " traveller" running 
 on a rail, and pushes piggy a few feet on to the but- 
 cher who stands below with his knife level with the 
 beast's throat. A scientific thrust and cut, and poor 
 piggy is good pork. He is then pushed on, giving a 
 few convulsive struggles, until he is brought up by 
 the carcase of his predecessor. Half-a-dozen or a 
 dozen carcases are allowed to collect on the travelling 
 raih-oad to insure the first being quite dead. It is 
 then lowered into a long tank of boihng water, along 
 wliich a row of men stand, who push the carcases 
 slowly forward. At the end, a huge bent pronged fork 
 lies in the bottom of the tank ; this is lifted by ma- 
 chinery, and whips the carcase out by the rapid
 
 CHAP. VII.] HOGS. , 91 
 
 action of a crank, landing it on a slightly inclined 
 table, on each side of which a row of men stand, 
 naked to the waist, and armed with scrapers. They 
 remove the hair more and more completely as the 
 carcase advances, until in an incredibly short time 
 after death it presents the appearance we see in a 
 butcher's shop. 
 
 After leavmg the table it is di^essed, the offal 
 being carefully separated for its various uses ; the head 
 and feet are cut off, and the carcase is pushed away 
 on long lines of " travellers" to the cooling department, 
 where it hangs for several hours, and is then trammed 
 into the ice chamber, where it is kept 48 hours, after 
 which it is cut up to suit the markets, into Wilt- 
 shire, Staffordshire, Stretford, Yorkshire, Bu-ming- 
 ham, and Irish sides, as well as into pieces of solid 
 fat for the French market — hams and other forms of 
 bacon. 
 
 The offal is boiled into lard and grease, and the 
 residue pressed for manure. The hocks and 
 tongues are specially prepared ; in fact, nothing is 
 wasted. A facetious friend of ours summed it up by 
 saying that piggy trotted in at one end, and came 
 out at the other as bacon, ham, sausage, hair-brush, 
 and saddle, nothing but liis squeal being wasted, and 
 that before long the telephone would probably utilise 
 that also. 
 
 In 1849-50 there were 1,652,220 hogs packed, while 
 last year there were 4,887,999 disposed of in the 
 Mississippi Valley. A considerable proportion of the 
 product is exported to Europe, and yet I am not 
 
 N 2
 
 92 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. vii. 
 
 aware that our markets have been ruinously affected 
 by this immense addition. 
 
 The question arises, how far the importation of 
 dead meat — beef and mutton — and hve stock will 
 affect prices with us ? I am sorry to say that my 
 visit to Chicago has not enlightened me as much as 
 I expected. I met three of the most extensive 
 dealers in " Produce" at dinner, and discussed the 
 question fully with them. They had not interested 
 themselves about it, their business being " hog pro- 
 ducts ;" but to my surprise they seemed to beheve 
 rather in canned meat than in hve stock or dead 
 meat on the refrigerator system. I disagree with 
 them because canned meat is not popular with us. 
 They seem to think that hve stock should be sent 
 to the ports and there slaughtered, but they said 
 that the loss on the stock by this system was 20 per 
 cent. I know^ that good judges are much divided 
 between the two systems. My own impression is in 
 favour of dead meat. The trade is as yet in its 
 infancy, and has not hardened into a sohd business. 
 
 I must be content to do my best, from the in- 
 formation I possess, to state the present condition of 
 this most important and interesting question, but I 
 cannot pretend to exhaust the subject, and I beg that 
 my statements may be accepted with all reserve as 
 most imperfect. 
 
 The trade began at New York in October, 1875* 
 with a shipment of 24,340lbs. ; it steadily increased, 
 till in April, 1876, it reached l,193,233lbs. ; in 
 September, 1876, it was 2,047, 217lbs. ; and in De-
 
 CHAP. VII.] VALUE OF CATTLE. 93 
 
 cember, 3,624,390lbs. ; in March, 1877, it reached to 
 5,797,8 171bs. I have not been able to obtain 
 accurate statistics of later date, but I am told that 
 it has much diminished since, owing to the rise in 
 the price of cattle on this side, and to the w^ant oi 
 proper arrangements for its reception and storage on 
 our side. Many of the refrigerator boxes are now- 
 being used for cheese and butter. 
 
 The vessels leaving New York fitted with re- 
 frigerators are— five of the Guion Line wdth an 
 ap-oresfate measurement used for meat, ice, and 
 machinery connected with it of 4,030 tons ; five 
 steamers of the Wliite Star Line, 1,523 tons; four 
 Inman, 1,374 tons; two Anchor Line, 340 tons ' 
 two Cunarders, 320 tons ; one State Line, 170 tons' 
 total measurement tonnage devoted to this trade out 
 of New York, 7,757. 
 
 From Pliiladelpliia there were shipped in 1876 and 
 1877, 4,677,560lbs. ; and from Boston, 2,387,040lbs. 
 Wlien I was at Boston a contract was being nego- 
 tiated with the Cunard Company for a considerable 
 quantity, and they were contemplating fitting 
 several of their ships Avith refrigerators. 
 
 It is said that the early shipments were profitable, 
 but that the more recent have not been so. From 
 various good soiu'ces I learnt that one penny per 
 pound will cover railway carriage, freight and charges, 
 from Cliicago to Liverpool, What is the first cost ? 
 I have before me the tabular statement published by 
 the Board of Trade of the prices at Chicago during 
 1876, and under the heading, "Cattle, good to
 
 94 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. vii. 
 
 choice," I find that the range of price for quahty was 
 as much as from 3 dollars 75 cents, to 6 dollars 20 
 cents, per lOOlbs,, or from 15s. to 24s. lOd., wliile on 
 another occasion I find a variation for quality of only 
 50 cents., or 2s. per lOOlbs. The average of the 
 year 1876 for "Good" is 4 dollars 50 cents., and 
 *' Choice" 5 dollars 31 cents, equal to from 16s. 2jd- 
 to 20s. 3d. per lOOlb., or say roughly 2d. to 2^d. per 
 lb. Now this is for the beast as it stands ; into the 
 mysteries of the trade I had better not attempt 
 to enter, for I know nothing about them. How 
 much horn, hoof, and hide, bring to the credit, and 
 offal and bone to the debit, I know not ; but 
 there are many who know to an ounce what 2d. 
 to 2jd. per lb. gross would equal in best and second 
 cuts. I have a general idea that meat could be 
 dehvered in England at about 6d. per lb., or at most 
 7d. per lb., and I am old enough to remember meat 
 at that price with us. 
 
 Now we come to the question of supplies, and how 
 far increased demand will cause prices to advance ? 
 I am at this moment ^vriting on the western side 
 of the Rocky Mountains, about 30 miles as the crow 
 flies from Salt Lake City and 1,400 from Chicago ; 
 I have just passed a train laden with cattle evi- 
 dently for that market. In that 1,400 miles I have 
 traversed some 700 miles of the finest corn growing 
 country, and probably about 400 miles of what I am 
 told is the finest grazing country possible, in passing 
 over the vast Prairies of Nebraska and Wyoming, 
 Avhere but a short time ago countless herds of Buffalo
 
 CHAP. VII.] CATTLE-PRODUCING LANDS. 95 
 
 roamed, aiiimals of kindred race and wants. I was 
 told two days ago by Mr. Dillon, President of the 
 Union Pacific Railway, and himself interested in a 
 herd of 12,000 head, that cattle live out all the 
 winter and get fat on the Prauie grass. What the 
 exact limits of this great grazing country are, I know 
 not, but the United States extend about 1,250 miles 
 from North to South at this point, and I know that 
 there are no finer lands than those of Texas on the 
 Southern and Dakota on the Northern -extremity of 
 that wide range ; here and there, it is probable, that 
 there are barren districts, but in the main I believe 
 the bulk of the immense area, represented by these 
 figures, say roughly 1,250 miles from North to South, 
 and 400 from East to West, or 500,000 square miles, 
 is grazing land. Mr. Dillon said that when it is 
 " filled up," i.e., fully stocked, its produce would be 
 enormous. They are now filhng it up by buying 
 Texan cow^s and crossing them with first-class short- 
 horn bulls. At present one travels miles without 
 seeing a herd. 
 
 What number of acres are required on the average 
 for a beast, I suppose no one can say. My unpression 
 is that at present any great demand for meat of good 
 quahty would cause the price to rise, and I therefore 
 think that this trade, like others, must be gradual in 
 its growth, but that at and above a price of, say 
 7d. in England per lb., it is certain to flourish and 
 extend. 
 
 I have chiefly alluded to the grazing lands, but 
 for 700 miles west of Chicago I passed through the
 
 96 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. vii. 
 
 finest possible corn country, and I am told that the 
 farmers are turning their attention more and more 
 to stock feeding : this band of corn land is of great 
 extent north and south. The inevitable conclusion 
 is that in process of time, when herds have been 
 created, the supply will be unHmited. 
 
 I am now in Salt Lake City, and I was told to-day 
 that 20,000 head of cattle were sent from hence last 
 year to Chicago, 1,500 miles, and that they realised 
 satisfactory prices. My informant, the son of a 
 Birmingham cattle drover, now one of the wealthiest 
 men in Utah, sent 150 head a short wliile ago to 
 Chicago, and realised about 2jd. per lb. gross. He 
 tells me that the net varies from 60 per cent, to 50 
 per cent, of the gross weight according to the con- 
 dition of the animal, and that the offal is equal to 
 about Jd. per lb., so that 2^d. gross=5d., net less 
 -ld.=4jd., to which add id. for freight and charges 
 to Liverpool. 
 
 As a proof of the high quality of land here, he 
 told me that he killed a four-year-old last year which 
 made l,4001bs. net and 2501bs. of rough tallow. 
 From these facts it is plain that the District of Utah 
 will also come in to supply the Cliicago market. 
 Utah is a country made up of steep mountains and 
 fertile valleys ; cattle feed on the mountains in 
 summer, and in winter m the valleys. The exact 
 extent I cannot state, but it must be considerable. 
 
 I have not mentioned sheep, because I neither saw 
 nor heard of any at Chicago or on my journey across 
 the Prairie, except one flock which I saw in a valley
 
 CHAP. VII.] UTAH. 97 
 
 near here. I am told that the mountains of Utah 
 suit them well, and that there are about 150,000 
 head within the territory. The average clip of wool 
 is about 5lbs,, and it fetches about 12jd. per lb. My 
 information as to meat goes no further. I must 
 endeavour to perfect it at New York, where I hope 
 to hear of the commercial results and prospects of 
 this most important trade.
 
 98 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA, [chap, tthl 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 CHICAGO TO SALT LAKE CITY. 
 
 I MUST now go back somewhat and journey over 
 the long stretch of the Great Pacific Railway which 
 I have traversed between Chica,go and Salt Lake 
 City, 1,500 miles. And first let me occupy a mo- 
 ment in describing the " car yacht" in which we em- 
 barked — Mr. Pullman's private car, quite new, and 
 fitted with every luxury the heart of the most fas- 
 tidious could desire. At the forward or train end, a 
 kitchen; then a pantry; then a gentleman's lava- 
 tory ; then two berths, seats during the day, and as 
 good beds as I ever slept in at night ; then a 
 drawing-room, with an harmonium and cylinder 
 writing desk, a square table di^awing out to a suffi- 
 cient length to dme ten, arm chairs, ordinary chairs, 
 and a sofa; then a state-room, with large double 
 bed, and a lavatory off it ; and last, a saloon or 
 observatory, with a sofa and arm chairs, plate-glass 
 windows the full size of the sides and end, and a 
 door opening on to the outside platform, capable of 
 holding four chairs, and enclosed by an iron railing. 
 As we are always at the end of the train, we sit on 
 the platform for hom^s in this fine climate, and have 
 an unbroken ^dew of the scenery. The best mess- 
 man was selected to cater for us, two black servants
 
 CHAP VIII.] "OUT west:' 99 
 
 to wait on us {really I love these blackies, they are 
 such quick, good-natured, excellent servants), and 
 the best cook to cook for us. To talk of the hard- 
 ships of a journey under such circumstances would 
 be an ungrateful romance. In fact, we all arrived at 
 the end of our four days and three nights as fresh as 
 when we started. 
 
 Our fii'st day's journey lay through the rich plains 
 of Illinois, a really fertile fanning country — large 
 corn fields thick with high maize, fine rich clover 
 fields, regular fences and some hedges, substantial 
 farm-buildings, and herds of good cattle. Just as 
 night came on we crossed the great ISIississippi, even 
 here a mighty river. We stood on our platform as 
 we crossed it, and watched the distant lights of 
 Bm-Hngton mirrored in its glassy waters, and mark- 
 ing its great breadth. 
 
 Dinner and a rubber brought the first day of 
 car life to a close ; a good night's rest, and the waking 
 hour just in the early twilight succeeded by as lovely 
 a sunrise as I ever saw. Long stratus-clouds in the 
 east, tinged first with that peculiar transparent green, 
 which neither artist can imitate nor pen describe, 
 only to be seen in the clearest and pm^est atmos- 
 pheres, then with the most glowing ruby, reflected 
 on to a mass of nimbus high in the western sky, which 
 was soon to be converted into delicate salmon hues, 
 aU rapidly to fade into the hard tints of every-day 
 skies. This was my waking vision, as I raised the 
 heavy curtain of my berth and gazed on the early 
 dawn, while as far as the eye could reach the 
 
 o 2
 
 100 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. viii. 
 
 earth was clothed in an abundant harvest of Indian 
 Corn. 
 
 We are now in Iowa, not so trim and finished in 
 its farming as Illinois, but still a splendidly rich dis- 
 trict. I am told that the wheat-growing lands lie 
 north and south; we passed but few — all Indian 
 corn. The eye soon wearies of tall maize fields. 
 The dark heavy bhnd is drawn down, and a couple 
 of hours' doze, with now and then a peep at the 
 country, ensue. 
 
 Breakfast, and then the Mssouri is reached — the 
 dirtiest, ugliest river I ever saw in my life. Its 
 valley is a wide cbeary mud flat, with which it plays 
 all kinds of tricks — altering its course for miles at a 
 bound ; Council Bluffs, which a few years ago were 
 on its banks, are now three miles away. It is crossed 
 by a splendid light iron bridge, of nine spans, 250 
 feet each. Two were carried away by a cyclone and 
 spate last year. The railway people will find they 
 have a tough job to keep this reckless river in order. 
 The water looks like Hquid mud — worse^ than the 
 Severn at Gloucester. 
 
 We reached Omaha, on the banks of the Missouri, 
 at 10 a.m. on Sunday; and as the train stayed there 
 some hours, we went to a nice little Episcopal Church, 
 somewhat too elevated for me. However, they are 
 free agents here, and are subjected to no tyranny, 
 nor need any congregation allow practices of which 
 they do not approve. On our way we passed a 
 Chm^ch which was being moved bodily to another 
 part of the town. Much of the wonder ceases when
 
 CHAP. VIII.] THE UNION PACIFIC BAILROAD. 101 
 
 we remember that these structures are of wood, and 
 naturally hold together like a gigantic box. 
 
 Omaha is the last city of the AVest. After you 
 pass it you are in the " Far West" — in the State of 
 Nebraska. The "City" has rather a weird, dis- 
 orderly look — wide would-be streets, frame houses 
 out of all proportion to their grand position, avenues 
 not grown up, roads not made ; but it is to be, and I 
 daresay will be, a great place. It has an Episcopal 
 Church, Bishop, and University. 
 
 Back from Church, and " all aboard ;" but this 
 time our car was not the last of the train. Behind 
 it was the official car of the directors of the Union 
 Pacific Eailroad, and in it Mr. Dillon (the President 
 of the line) and Mr. Jay Gould (a Director, well-known 
 in the railway world). ^Ii\ Dillon was one of the 
 original projectors of this great undertaking, and 
 drove the last spike, made of iron, silver, and gold, 
 when the Central Pacific, approaching from the West, 
 met the Union Pacific, coming from the East, at a 
 point seven miles beyond Ogden, near Salt Lake 
 City. The spike bears a suitable inscription, and 
 Mr. Dillon has it now, for, as he hold me, " the hole 
 was bored large enough, and he took care not to hit 
 it too hard, so that he soon had it out again." These 
 gentlemen gave us most interesting information as 
 we went along, much of which I have already em- 
 bodied. 
 
 Our track lay over a flat low-lying country — the 
 valley of the Platte. In the distance, say ten miles 
 off, were low hills, and alongside the old Mormon
 
 102 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. viii. 
 
 track across the Desert to the Promised Land. The 
 railway follows it almost exactly, often within a 
 dozen feet, for 1,000 miles, over Prairie and Desert, 
 until the Valley of the Salt Lake is at last reached. 
 All along we saw their old " ranches," or resting- 
 places, and I thought as I looked at the track with 
 what varied emotions of joy and sorrow, hope and 
 fear, many weary souls must have toiled along in 
 their tilted waggons, leaving much that was dear 
 for ever behind, and journeying on to the unknown 
 future. 
 
 In the Platte Valley there are patches of corn 
 (maize), but the ground is mostly covered with a 
 coarse rank grass, as high as the back of a caH I saw 
 feeding in it. I beheve aU tliis is capable of growing 
 corn. 
 
 Night came on, and we were still running through 
 the same kind of country. At break of day the 
 high coarse gi^ass had given place to tufty short 
 prairie grass, which I was told afforded much fine 
 feed. Hour after hour the same country : upland 
 downs rising into round-topped hills stretching 
 away as far as the eye could reach. These were the 
 Buffalo Plains of old, and here and there we saw the 
 bleachinaf bones and skulls of those killed and left to 
 rot by wasteful white men. Twice we saw a herd of 
 antelopes, and a few little prairie dogs sitting on 
 their tails or scampering into their holes. 
 
 In the middle of the day we approached Cheyenne, 
 a place of a few thousand inhabitants, whence a 
 branch Railroad leads to Denver City, in Colorado.
 
 CHAP, viii.] SHERMAN. 103 
 
 Up to that point from Omaha the gradient had been 
 fifteen feet to the mile against us, but from here on 
 to Sherman Station it is frequently 1 in 120. We 
 gradually rose until we reached a granite plateau, 
 with characteristic " Tors," like the Cornish, protrud- 
 insf throuofh the siu'face. To the south-west were the 
 high ranges of Colorado about Denver, fine outlines 
 with snow in their northern hollows. At length, 
 about 3 p.m., we reached Sherman Station, 8,300 feet 
 above the sea level, the summit of the Rocky 
 Mountains — the Great Divide of America, from which 
 to the West the waters flow by the Rio Colorado to 
 the Pacific, while to the East they flow to the 
 Atlantic. This is the highest point on the Pacific 
 Railway, and I was glad to find that the backbone 
 of America was granite and porphyry, with an out- 
 burst of serpentine, like the old Lizard. 
 
 From Sherman we ran rapidly down about 2,000 
 feet to the plateau leadmg to the Warsatch range, 
 and when night closed in we were still in prairie 
 country. I was told we were to pass coal mines at 
 5 a.m., at a place called " Rock Springs," and I left 
 orders to be called. Bleak and bitter was the morn- 
 ing, and dreary was the outlook — a perfect desert. 
 Sand and tufts of a kind of heath-sedge, with 
 white alkaline eflorescence covering every spot where 
 water had been. The colUeries puzzled me at first, 
 as I saw neither shaft nor level. At last I dis- 
 covered in a httle stream the crop of a huge vein, 
 about thirty or forty feet thick ; and I saw that they 
 were driving down slants upon it. The coal is black.
 
 104 A TOUR nv NORTH AMERICA, [chap. viii. 
 
 cubical, and full of gas ; but I believe it must be 
 "lignite," or brown coal, and I tbink it is in the 
 Oolite formation, just as I once saAv coal occur in the 
 Maremma Tuscana, in Italy. The rocks bave all the 
 character of that formation. 
 
 Mr. Jay Gould told me that at one place they 
 have two beds of 50 feet thick each, and two of 25 
 feet; while at another they bored 1,100 feet for 
 water, and cut through a number of viens, the least 
 of which was 8 feet thick. The discovery is a gi^eat 
 godsend to this railway and to the country. It has 
 reduced the cost of coal on this line from 16s. to 5s. 
 per ton. 
 
 We ran down the dreary and desolate valley of the 
 Green Eiver, which is in reality the upper waters of 
 the Colorado, and then ascended to the summit of 
 the Warsatch range, 7,800 feet, tlu-ough a barren and 
 iminteresting country. After passing the summit 
 we rapidly descended through Echo Canyon and 
 Weber Canyon to the great Salt Lake Valley. 
 These canyons are fine mountain gorges, overhung 
 first by beetling precipices of red sandstone conglo- 
 merate, then by Silurian and older Eozoic rocks, pre- 
 senting much the same featui'es as the gorges of the 
 Alps and Apennines, wanting, however, the snow- 
 clad serrated outlines of the Oberland or Chamouni 
 — fine passes, but I have seen many similar and some 
 finer. The light lasted us through them, but night 
 fell before we reached the City of the Salt Lake. 
 
 Salt Lake City, more properly the Mormon com- 
 munity, deserve more than passing notice. With
 
 ciiAi'. VIII.] MUUMOXS. 105 
 
 the Mormon religion I have nothing to do. I am 
 wholly unacquainted with their doctrines, and if I 
 knew them thoroughly I should have no wish to set 
 myself up as my brother's judge. They call them- 
 selves Christians, and say they have received certain 
 recent revelations. We need hardly discuss the pro- 
 babihty of recent revelations or recent miracles. Nor 
 need I enter on any argument as to polygamy, which 
 they believe to be permissible, as the Patriarchs of 
 old and the nations of the East, but which we believe 
 to be wrong. I shall speak of them as a Community 
 only, and state what I saw. 
 
 The territory of Utah is almost entirely peopled 
 by Mormons, of whom there are estimated to be 
 140,000. In Salt Lake City there are about 25,000 
 inhabitants, of whom, I was told, 20,000 are Mor- 
 mon. The Gentile, i.e., non-Mormon, population at 
 Salt Lake City are chiefly connected Vvdth mining 
 and trade. The Mormon population are mostly agri- 
 cultural, although there are many men of business 
 among them who have made large fortunes, and have 
 taken a leading part in the development of their 
 country by constructing railways throughout it, as 
 far as theu' means would permit. 
 
 They produce within their own territory almost 
 everything they require ; they export cattle and all 
 kinds of agricultural produce, for their land has been 
 made very fertile by their industry. It is not here 
 as in Ilhnois or Dakotta, to plough and sow the 
 deep, rich soil, and reap an abundant harvest with 
 but little forethought or labour ; here nothing can 
 
 r
 
 106 A TOUR IK NORTH AMERICA, [chap, viik 
 
 be done without irrigation ; water has to be brought 
 from the valleys which debouche on the plains, and 
 then the naturally good soil and fine chmate yield 
 abundantly. It is almost safe to say that no cereal, 
 fruit, or flower refuses to flourish in Utah. I saw 
 wheat, barley, oats and maize, sugar cane, clover 
 and lucerne in great abundance, the latter yielding 
 three crops. Peaches, on standard trees, as large 
 and good as our English peaches, magnificent pears, 
 equal to the best that Jersey or France can produce, 
 apples, and black Hambro' grapes ripe in the open 
 air; the muscat grape will not ripen completely; 
 roses, geraniums, verbenas, and every kind of flower 
 we prize ; in fact, the chmate is excellent, and being 
 upwards of 4,000 feet above the sea, the district is 
 very healthy. The mulberry flourishes, and they are 
 commencing to cultivate it for the production of silk. 
 There is a look of home and comfort about the cot- 
 tages, which are built of brick, stone, or " adobe " 
 (sundried brick), and are surrounded by groves of 
 trees. In fact, plantmg has been one of the dis- 
 tinctive features of Mormon cultivation. 
 
 The City of Salt Lake occupies a very command- 
 ing position on the Eastern side of the valley, which 
 at this point is from 15 to 20 miles wide. It stands 
 on gTadually rising ground, about 150 feet above the 
 level of the Lake, at the foot of a range of mountains, 
 which attain an elevation of 6,000 to 8,000 feet 
 above the plain, and 10,000 to 12,000 above the 
 sea, with fine serrated outhnes, intersected by deep 
 lateral gorges, here called " Canyons," at the head of
 
 CHAP. VIII.] SALT LAKE CITY. 107 
 
 one of Avhich the famous mines of this district, the 
 Flagstaff, Emma, &c., are situated. Clear cold 
 mountain torrents of pure water, issue from these 
 Canyons and irrigate the thirsty alkaH-covered plain, 
 thus supplymg the inhabitants with the necessaries 
 of life in plentiful abundance. 
 
 With the exception of the Tabernacle there are 
 no buildings worthy of note in Salt Lake City. But 
 the Tabernacle is a structure, the like of which I 
 have never seen before. I can compare it only to 
 a Dutch built craft, bottom up, no keel, and 
 rounded stem and stern. It consists of a wooden 
 shingle roof, with rather a graceful curve, and a 
 rounded " hip " at both ends. It is said to seat 
 12,000 people, and has had 15,000 within its 
 capacious borders. Yet its acoustic properties are so 
 wonderfully good that a person speaking, without any 
 special effort, can be heard from one end to the other. 
 
 The whole character of the buildhig may be said 
 to turn upon the roof, the principals of which spring 
 from solid stone pillars ; they are formed of nine planks 
 two mches thick and three feet wide, bolted together 
 and the joints broken, or alternated. I think the arch 
 they form must be a semi. The mterior is 233 feet 
 long and 133 feet wide; double rows of pillars on 
 each side support wide galleries. The floor of the 
 nave is thus arrano^ed : For one thu^d of its lenofth 
 it is flat, and then rises rapidly like the stage of a 
 theatre. This rise, and the shape of the roof, no 
 doubt are the chief causes of the good acoustic pro- 
 perties of the building. 
 
 r 2
 
 108 A TOUR IN XORTH AMERICA, [chap. viii. 
 
 The organ is the second largest in America. It 
 was constructed by a local organ builder in the place 
 it now occupies, and is made entirely of native 
 timber. It contains 3,000 pipes, the largest 2 feet 
 square and 65 feet high. Four men are required to 
 blow it. One of the ladies of our party played 
 A^arious tunes upon it, ending with " God save the 
 Queen," to which the Mormon gentlemen who accom- 
 panied us in no way objected. 
 
 The Temple, a Cathedral in size, is being built of 
 finely-dressed white granite. It is about 30 or 40 
 feet high at present. They are working slowly at it 
 as funds are forthcoming. They build entirely with- 
 out scaffolding by means of a small portable engine 
 inside, which works lofty cranes with jibs of such 
 length and strength as to pick up the heaviest stones 
 outside and deposit them on the walls. When 
 finished the building will have two stories internally. 
 
 I was rather puzzled at their requiring a Tabernacle 
 and a Temple, nor do I quite imderstand it yet. 
 The explanation given me was that the Tabernacle 
 is used for prayer, preaching, and assemblies of the 
 people, while the Temple is devoted to the ordinances 
 of the Church : baptisms, including baptism of the 
 dead, sealing, i.e., marriages, &c. The baptism of 
 the dead is performed by proxy, and admits the 
 deceased person to the Church, vv^hich they have the 
 option of joining in heaven if they like. 
 
 The President occupies the highest pulpit in the 
 Tabernacle, under the organ ; below him sit the 
 12 apostles, and on each side the liigh priests and
 
 CHAP, viir.] THE SALT LAKE. 109 
 
 bishops. At the side of the organ there are seats 
 for a UTrp'e choir, the men on one side and women on 
 the other. 
 
 On our arrival at Salt Lake City we called on the 
 United States' Governor and also on the President 
 pro. tern, of the Mormon community, Mr. John 
 Taylor, who we found at the office of the Zion House, 
 formerly President Young's residence. The office is 
 a low library with a large skylight and gallery. 
 Around the walls are portraits of celebrated members 
 of the Mormon church, beginning with the founder of 
 the sect, Joseph Smith, and his brother, who were 
 murdered in Illinois wlien the people rose against 
 the Mormons in 18 46. 
 
 We were received with much the same formal 
 politeness which we should have experienced on 
 visiting the chief of any State Government, and our 
 interview terminated in the usual manner. 
 
 We had letters of introduction to two of the most 
 active men of business at Salt Lake ; one a director 
 of the Union Pacific and of the Utah Southern Piail- 
 roads, the other a highly successful merchant. They 
 accompanied us by rail to the Salt Lake itself, 20 
 miles from the city — a beautiful spot, much fre- 
 quented for bathing in summer. One of the ladies 
 of our party bathed and found the water wonder- 
 fully buoyant, being in fact brine of such high 
 specific gravity as to support the human body. It 
 contains no less than 25 per cent, of salt, or I think 
 about seven times as much salt as the sea. In former 
 davs, when the Moi'mons first arrived, it contained
 
 110 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. viii. 
 
 33 per cent., but since then the water has risen ten 
 feet, owing to a succession of wet seasons, and as the 
 volume of salt has probably remained the same the 
 considerable dilution above stated has resulted. This 
 year the Lake has fallen two feet. I confess I should 
 not feel comfortable if I were an owner of property 
 in the Salt Lake VaUey. I see no reason why a cycle 
 of wet and cold season, by increasing the rainfall and 
 reducing the evaporation, may not cause a very great 
 rise of water. It is said that when the Mormons 
 first encamped where their city now is, an old Indian 
 told them that he had seen the water at that spot 
 up to a horse's beUy, although it is now 150 feet 
 above the Lake. This I can scarcely credit, but there 
 is the positive evidence of a raised beach, as marked 
 as any I ever saw in the north of Norway, extending 
 in every dii'ection round the hill sides, that for a 
 long series of years the level of the water was about 
 800 feet liigher than at present, and that it then 
 drained into the Colorado. This raised beach is 
 indeed recognised by everyone as the former level of 
 the water. 
 
 It does not seem probable that the lake was ever, 
 except at some remote geological epoch, in communi- 
 cation with the sea, as it is 4,000 feet above it. 
 There are salt springs near it, and its salt is probably 
 due to the existence of a salt formation unmediately 
 adjacent. Indeed, rock salt is found not far off to 
 the south. 
 
 The scenery of the Lake is very striking. To 
 the west lofty hills bound it, while in its midst an
 
 CHAP. VIII.] TO TEE ^' EMMA" MINE. Ill 
 
 island 20 miles long rises into the dignity of almost 
 a mountain range, since it is some 2,000 feet high. 
 
 On the following day we made an early start for 
 the famous " Emma Mine," which is situated at the 
 head of the Httle Cottonwood Canyon, about 20 
 miles from Salt Lake City. The Southern Utah 
 Railway passes the mouth of the Canyon at Sandy 
 Station, 13 miles from Salt Lake City. At and near 
 this station there are several smelting works. The 
 ores of this district are mostly argentiferous galenas, 
 and are therefore easily dealt with. One group of 
 rich mines He to the east of Sandy, and another 
 in the range of mountains which form the western 
 boundary of the valley. These latter mines are less 
 rich in silver, but produce low grade lead ores in 
 greater abundance. Narrow gauge (3ft.) railroads 
 connect both mining districts with Sandy. 
 
 We chose the Eastern group because it included 
 the " Emma" and " Flagstaff" mines, both well kno-^vn 
 in England. On reaching Sandy we embarked on 
 board the narrow guage, not in a luxurious Pullman, 
 but on a granite wagon mthout springs, A miner's 
 chest formed my seat, while that of my compagnoa 
 de voyage was a keg, wliich might have been dyna- 
 mite, but proved to be whisky. 
 
 The gradient was steep, but the little locomotive 
 travelled up it like a mule, and we were not long in 
 reaching the " raised beach," which my mountain 
 aneroid gave as nearly 800ft. above Salt Lake City. 
 Soon afterwards we entered the jaws of the Canyon, 
 a crack in Silurian Rocks, highly inclined, and resting
 
 112 A TOUR ly XOJrni AMI^JIIFCA. [chap. VI fi. 
 
 atj^ainst solid white o-ranite, from which the stones for 
 the Temple are quarried. 
 
 We then ao^ain chano^ed our train for small low 
 wagons, with three benches, and three on a bench, to 
 which two mules were harnessed to drag us up the 
 steep gradient. The first mile lay through a fine 
 Pforofe, which indeed continued to the end, but the 
 remainder of the railroad was covered by snow sheds, 
 and except glimpsewise, here and there, it was impos- 
 sible to see anything, wliilst the dust rose in clouds. 
 At the end of about an hour and a half we 
 emerged from our elongated imprisonment, and found 
 ourselves at the head of the gorge, and in presence of 
 the great " Emma Mine," marked, alas, only by a few 
 tumble-down wooden sheds on a very small scale, 
 presenting no external appearance of much outlay. 
 
 We toiled up the step hill to the mine itself, and 
 my aneroid marked a trifle under 8,900ft. above the 
 ssa. On the "floor" was a small pile of nice ore, 
 compact galena and friable light green stuff", said to 
 be rich in silver, and possibly chloride. Tliis was 
 being selected from the Halvens, and gave con\inc- 
 ing proof of past carelessness and improvidence. The 
 Halvens appeared to me to be small compared to the 
 quantity of rich ore produced, which means that 
 little dead work had to be done, and that the ore 
 must have been but shghtly mixed with waste. 
 
 I then went up to the mouth of the level, where 
 there w^ere a couple of boilers, some winding gear, and 
 steampipes leading into the level, and little else in the 
 way of macliinery. They have, I was told, 19 men
 
 CHAP. VIII.] THE "EMMA MINE." 113 
 
 at work. I made no attempt to go underground, and 
 am therefore unable to give any opinion of the Mine. 
 I, however, fell in with a Cornishman, who gave me 
 some information. How well founded, or how far 
 I have remembered it accurately, I cannot say, but it 
 may serve to give a general idea of the ]\Iine. 
 
 The IVIme was, no doubt, first discovered at the 
 outcrop at grass, but they seem to have gone down 
 the hill, and driven in 400ft. to cut the deposit. 
 They then crossed it 270ft. in solid ore, and sank 
 about the same depth upon it. To the east they had 
 60ft. in width, but to the west were cut off by 
 compact limestone, in which they drove 70ft. without 
 finding ore. Now I am not quite certain whether 
 the man did not mean that the 270 driving and 
 sinking were the same, as I fancy they went down 
 on the slant. I was much hurried, and had only a 
 hasty conversation, as I was forced to leave to catch 
 the train, and I only fell in with the man ten 
 minutes before I left. He told me that the bunch 
 had quite cut out in the bottom, and that they had 
 sunk 150ft. in dead ground. I do not vouch for the 
 accuracy of this account, but give it only as I 
 received it. 
 
 The mine is situated on the northern side of the 
 gorge, halfway up the steep slope of a limestone 
 escarpment, the beds dipping inwards, and therefore 
 nearly north, so far as I could judge by the eye. I 
 could see the crop of the limestone beds protruding 
 through the herbage, and the run of mines exactly 
 coincided with the strike of the beds. I therefore 
 
 Q
 
 114 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. viii. 
 
 conclude that the occurrence of this ore is not in lodes 
 or veins, but upon the line of one particular bed, 
 which is probably subject to hollows or cavities (like 
 those found in most limestone formations), which 
 cavities have gradually become filled with ore from 
 the subjacent strata by electrical action in the manner 
 first suggested by Mr. Fox, of Falmouth, whose 
 explanation of the formation of metallic deposits is 
 the only one which has ever satisfied my mind, or 
 which has appeared to me to square with ahnost all 
 metallic "occurrences" (I use this word because we 
 have none which appHes as the German word " Vor- 
 kommen" does, and the sooner we fit one into our 
 language the better) that I have seen, and I believe 
 I have visited every mine of any magnitude in 
 Europe, excepting Russian and Spanish mines. The 
 great Monti Poni Mine in Sardinia certainly occurs in 
 the same strata " Old Limestone," I suppose Lauren- 
 tian, and between the beds, in iiTegular cavities, not 
 interstratified but amorphous, just as the glimpse I 
 had of the Little Cottonwood Canyon, leads me to 
 believe the minerals occur there. Within sight, and 
 probably within a mile or a mile and a half, and on 
 the same run, are the foUo\^dng mines from the west 
 to east : — The Flagstaff, South Star and Titus, Alta 
 Consola, North Star, Highland Cliief, Emma, Lavinia, 
 and Bute. Over the hill, I was told, came the 
 Antelope, Prince of Wales, Richard and Thersea, 
 Reed and Benson, and Kate Hayes. 
 
 Deep below, in the basin-shaped amphitheatre at 
 the head of the gorge, is the little mining village of
 
 CHAP. VIII.] HISTORY OF THE ''EMMA.'' 115 
 
 Alta ; on the opposite hillside I saw other workings, 
 but I did not visit them. This Canyon is producing 
 about 100 tons daily of silver lead ore. Lmiestone 
 mines, although often very rich for a time, are 
 always bunchy and uncertain. 
 
 I was told that the history of the "Emma" is the 
 folloA\'ing in a few words : It was discovered by a poor 
 miner, who had resolved that if he was ever offered 
 100,000 dollars, i.e., £20,000, for any discovery, he 
 would sell it. He was offered 110,000 dollars for 
 the " Emma" by a Mr. Hussey, a- banker at Salt 
 Lake City, and he sold it ; it was put on the New 
 York market for 1,500,000 dollars (£300,000), and 
 transferred to the English market at £1,000,000 
 sterling. The details can be filled in from the 
 records of the Court of Chancery and other courts in 
 England and America ; the moral can be drawn by 
 anyone. 
 
 The talk of the place is that there is plenty of oi-e 
 still to be got out of the mine, but when I asked 
 those who said so if they had been underground and 
 spoke of their own knowledge, they admitted that 
 they had not, and did not know more about it than 
 hearsay. A mine that has once been rich may be 
 rich again ; a cave narrows and widens and narrows 
 again, and I look upon these limestone occmTences of 
 ore in the same light. The old miner I talked to 
 and who knew the mine well, denied that the 
 timbering was bad and caused the mine to run to- 
 gether, and I confess T fancy he was correct, for I 
 should greatly suspect the truth of that story. 1 
 
 Q 2
 
 116 A TOUR IN XORTII AMERICA. [chap. viii. 
 
 have dwelt on this Emma mine, because so many 
 in England are, or were, interested in it, and be- 
 cause, perhaps, mine is the only practised and 
 thoroughly disinterested eye that has ever looked at 
 it, short and cursory as my glance was. 
 
 We ao-ain seated ourselves on our little chars-a- 
 bancs, but this time " Dixey," the old mule, was 
 lashed on beliind, and away we went down the 
 incline at a pace which tried even my nerves. I 
 believe we sometunes went 20 miles an hour, or 
 more, through the narrow snow sheds, and round 
 curves of unknown radius ; in fact, we cleared the 
 eight miles in 40 minutes. Once the points were 
 ■uTong and w^e came to a dead halt, much to the injury 
 of my sliins, wliich were the only things damaged, 
 most fortunately. The gradient is steep enough to 
 work self-acting inclines if the road were somewhat 
 straightened, and the stuff might then be got down 
 for a quarter of the cost ; as it is, a mule can only 
 haul back empties equal to the conveyance of 2^ tons 
 in the other direction.
 
 CHAP. IX.] MORMONISM. 117 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 MORMONISM. 
 
 Before leaving Mormondom perhaps I shall be ex- 
 pected to say a word or two about Polygamy, dis- 
 tasteful as the subject may be. I have no statistics 
 to record. I do not know how many Mormons have 
 more than one wife, or how many have any given 
 number. Brigham Young, is said to have had 19 
 when he died ; three or four lived in the " Zion 
 House," and three or four more in the large house 
 adjoining — the "• balance," as an American would 
 say, lived here and there throughout the town. I 
 was shown some of then- houses. Sixty childi-en were 
 named in his will, and he left each about 20,000 
 dollars or £4,000. He is supposed to have died 
 worth £400,000. He made £150,000 at one stroke 
 by sub-letting his Union Pacific Railway contracts. 
 
 A Mormon gentleman, who was exceedingly civil 
 to us and introduced us to his family, has now only 
 one wife, liis other having died some six years ago. 
 He has ten sons, all of whom he is bringing up to 
 different occupations, and two daughters, as lady-Hke 
 and well educated as Enghsh young ladies. His 
 house is large and well furnished ; he has his fancy 
 farm of 300 acres, and a herd of 50 well-bred short- 
 horns, eight or ten miles by rail from the City, and
 
 118 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA. [chap. ix. 
 
 some 50 miles south a stock farm of 3,000 head. I 
 presume he is not less well off than Brigham Young. 
 
 In Mormon society there is every grade — from 
 those I have named to the pauper. Polygamy was 
 economical, but it is now costly. In former days 
 labour was scarce, and the women and their children 
 worked and were profitable. To some extent that is 
 still so among the poorest, but the rich find that their 
 wives and daughters want fine clothes, and that the 
 larger the family the more it costs. 
 
 The Mormon yoimg ki,dies will not marry men who 
 cannot afford to dress them as well as their neigh- 
 bours, and the result is that many are not married 
 at all, and many try to avoid involving themselves 
 in Polygamous connections. A well-informed person 
 said to me that the expensive dress of the present 
 day had given a serious blow to Polygamy. I was 
 told that m some cases wives Uve together in perfect 
 harmony, while in others they require separate esta- 
 bhshments. 
 
 The death of Brigham Young, who undoubtedly was 
 a man of great mental capacity, puts Mormonism on 
 its trial. They think it will strengthen them, as 
 their organization and self-government are complete. 
 Outsiders say that they must break up ; upon that I 
 can express no decided opinion, but I inchne to the 
 former view. 
 
 The Mormon policy is to spread abroad, and occupy 
 as much of the territory as they can. Each Moiinon 
 is expected to contribute one-tenth of his income, in 
 kind, as " Tithing," and the money so raised amounts
 
 CHAP. IX.] OGDEN TO SAX FRANCISCO. 119 
 
 to a very large sum : I think I Avas told fully 
 £100,000 per annum. This sum is used for the 
 piu'poses of the Church, but largely to promote im- 
 migration. They assist about 3,000 persons annually 
 to emigrate from Europe, paying all expenses, which 
 I beheve are afterwards gradually repaid. 
 
 After om- visit to the IVIining District, we pro- 
 ceeded to join the main Pacific Railway route again 
 at Ogden, a distance of 36 miles from Salt Lake 
 City. Ogden is a Mormon town of considerable size, 
 in appearance very much like Salt Lake City, and 
 from its position at the junction of the arterial Ime 
 rumiing South tlrrough Utah with the main Ime of 
 the Pacific Railway, I think it must become a place 
 of great importance. 
 
 We were detained for an horn- at Ogden, where the 
 two Pacific Companies meet, and where passengers 
 dine, luggage is checked, and the tram made up for 
 the 48 hom's' run to San Francisco. It was pitch 
 dark before we moved ofi" for oiu' final journey to the 
 Pacific. The early portion of our route lay over a 
 most uninteresting country : first along the northern 
 end of Salt Lake, where some cultivated lands exist 
 for about 50 miles, and then tlii'ough an absolute 
 desert, about 60 miles square, after passing wliich 
 the country is said to be suitable for cultivation. 
 
 I confess that when I awoke at dayhght, I suppose 
 some 200 miles from Ogden, the prospect was not an 
 inviting one, although I saw a few cattle here and 
 there. We were passmg tlii'ough a wide valley, with 
 a low range of hills on each side, and a small stream
 
 120 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. ix. 
 
 running between thick willow beds in the bottom. 
 The land was covered with sasfe-brush. Nothino^ 
 appears to grow between the bushes on the light 
 sandy soil. 
 
 I am writing in the train, and we are now some 
 90 miles further on our journey. During these 90 
 or 100 miles, to my eye, there has been but httle 
 change in the vegetation. We are passing a long 
 train laden with tea. San Francisco supplies all 
 America with tea, and I hear tea for England is 
 beginning to take this route. It feels like getting 
 on towards China ! ! 
 
 We are still traversing a wide plain covered with 
 the bunchy low growing heath-like plant called sage 
 brush, each bunch separated from its neighbour by a 
 foot or a yard of hght sandy soil, upon which I can 
 detect absolutely no vegetation. I can see perhaps 
 30 miles in one du-ection and 10 in the other, but not 
 a living thing can I discern — fine ranges of hills 
 from 1,000 to 2,000 feet high, of varied outline and 
 configuration and brown hue, bound the plain on all 
 sides, but I cannot detect any valley. 
 
 I wrote the above half an hour ago, and we have 
 now crossed the plain and closed with the Humboldt 
 Eiver, along the banks of which are herds of cattle 
 and droves of horses. It is evidently a question of 
 " water," just as it is in Egypt, where the construe 
 tion of the Sweetwater Canal converted a desert tract 
 into rich land. 
 
 But to return. At 8 a.m., after leaving Ogden 
 the night before, we reached " Elko," a railway sta-
 
 CHAP. IX.] INDIA X SQUAWS. 121 
 
 tion, whence the unportant nrniing district of Cope 
 draws its suppUes. Between Elko and Palisade (so 
 spelt) we passed through two fine Canyons or Gorges, 
 regular mountain passes, through which the Hum- 
 boldt River finds its way, not to the sea, but to the 
 Lake of the same name, in wliich, and the Lake 
 Carson close by it disappears either by evaporation 
 or by sinking into a subterranean channel. 
 
 The first Canyon has nothing of special interest, 
 but the second is veiy striking throughout its course 
 of 12 miles. Igneous action is frequently apparent 
 in the rocks through which the Pass winds. They 
 seemed to me to be metamorphic rocks changed to 
 deep red and pm^ple by igneous action, and I also 
 saw actual eruptive rocks. The hills rise about a 
 thousand feet above the line, now in isolated rugged 
 masses, now in sohd perpendicular walls, very pro- 
 perly called " The PaHsades." 
 
 Two liideously ugly Indian squaws are lookmg in 
 at the window, as I write, for v\^e are now halting at 
 a station, and I will be revenged by describmg them. 
 They have flat, broad, ugly, copper coloured faces, — in 
 fact deeper brown than copper ; they look as if they 
 had been left on a bed when babies and accidentally 
 sat upon, so flat and broad are their faces ; their hair 
 is raven black, coarse as horse hair, and hangs over 
 their shoulders and back without an attempt at ar- 
 rangement or ornament, the " CapilH mtonsi" of old 
 Horace. They are di'essed in dirty cotton shirts, 
 one has a red, the other a brown, jacket; their 
 feet are protected by a sort of mocassin of rough hide, 
 
 R
 
 122 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERTCA. [chap. ix. 
 
 through which in one case the toes protiTide. At a 
 station a few miles back we watched five of these 
 ugly types of humanity squatted in a chcle on their 
 heels and in other less graceful attitudes, playing 
 cards — dirty and coarse looking to the last degree. 
 One had her cheeks, forehead and chin painted deep 
 vermiUion ; five" of then- lords and masters also sat 
 round at a little distance and gambled with cards for 
 black pebble markers, which had a cash value — for 
 each had liis small heap of silver also. What the 
 game was I do not know, but they were expert at it 
 and kept their hands hidden under then' jackets. 
 One of these men had his face pamted vermiUion 
 Hke the woman. 
 
 The men wear their hau* long ; they have round 
 black straw hats with wide bands and narrow brims, 
 loose jackets and hght trowsers. I fancy they took 
 their costume from the Mexicans, for we are now in 
 Nevada Territory, which once belonged to Mexico. 
 The station at which we saw these people was " Bat- 
 tle Mountain," near which a bloody battle was fought 
 in early emigrant days, by wliich the power of the 
 Shoshone tribe was broken. Even while the railway 
 was making, an encounter took place in this neigh- 
 bourhood. Now the Indians beg rather than steal. 
 All is quiet ; a.nd at the same station I saw the parts 
 of a horizontal steam engine awaiting transport to 
 one of the rich mines Tvdth which this country- 
 abounds. 
 
 Palisade Strition is the point of departure for the 
 districts of Mineral Hill, Treasure City, Eureka,
 
 CHAP. IX.] HUMBOLDT. 123 
 
 Spring Valley, Secret Canyon, Grantsville, &c. 
 These lie 30 to 150 miles south of the rail, Vv^hile to 
 north lie Cope, Bull Run, Bruno, &c. " Eureka 
 Consols " has been a good mine for some years. 
 
 The dust along this part of the Hne is very 
 disagreeable. What between it and the hot dry air 
 I require no blotting paper when I turn over a leaf. 
 The temperature has been 75deg. in the shade all 
 day, at an elevation of between 4,000ft. and 5,000ft. 
 
 Four o'clock p.m. : We are still passing tlii'ough 
 the same description of country, — sage-brush plains 
 and lofty mountains rising 2,000ft. or 3,000ft. above 
 them. 
 
 As the shades of evening lengthened, and the 
 waning sun cast a long Hne of gold across the distant 
 plain through a narrow gorge m the mountain range 
 beneath which it was sinking, we approached the 
 small Station of Humboldt, half way between Ogden 
 and San Francisco. There was an inexpressible 
 charm and relief about that place, for it was a true 
 oasis in the great Desert through which we had been 
 passing with such wearied senses ; yet it was in the 
 midst of the sage-brush Desert. There were shady 
 acacia and other trees, the greenest grass, maize, a 
 fruit orchard, a small pond with a mandarin duck 
 and white-fronted geese. All the fertihty was due 
 to water brought from adjacent hills. The story is 
 the same here as in Egypt, — give it water, and the 
 Desert will bear abundantly. 
 
 Night came on, and we were still on the Desert, 
 but soon to leave it, and to climb the eastern slope 
 
 R 2
 
 124 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap, ix- 
 
 of the Sierra Nevada. It is dark now soon after 
 six. We therefore dined early, and resolved to 
 avail ourselves of every atom of daylight to enjoy 
 the grandeur of the scenery. I awoke at four, 
 and found we were toiling up the steep ascent 
 under long lines of continuous snow sheds. The 
 engine panted with a sterterous and oppressed 
 breathing : that harsh metallic sound which indicates 
 the labouring lung and tlie overtaxed piston alike. 
 I could see the stars and tall pine trees through the 
 cracks of the boarding. Soon we stopped at the 
 summit of the Sierra Nevada, 7,017ft. above the 
 sea ; distant from San Francisco, 245 miles. 
 
 Then we began to run merrily down the western 
 slope to the Pacific. I was soon on the rear platform 
 of the car, but we were passing under an unbroken 
 line of snow sheds, of which there are 45 miles, 
 covering the entire width of the Railway in its 
 passage tlu-ough the snow line. The snow sometimes 
 lies 16ft. to 20ft. deep in this portion of the line. 
 
 I could see pines and the outHnes of hilltops 
 through the cracks in the boarding ; once or twice a 
 few planks were wanting, and I caught sight of lovely 
 upland mountain scenery, deep ravines, clad with fine 
 old spruce and pine trees. 
 
 At last the endless sheds ended, and we were 
 rewarded by a grand view. We were winding round 
 the steep sides of a deep ravine, our engine almost 
 at right angles to us. Beliind us were the blue 
 mountain tops which we had passed over, before us 
 ridge succeeding ridge, clad from foot to summit with
 
 CHAP. IX.] CROSSING THE SIERRA NEVADA, 125 
 
 spruce and pine, not the puny trees we usually see, 
 but grand giants of the primeval forest, many feet in 
 diameter, straight as arrows, and carrying up their 
 bulk hidi into the air ; I dare not venture on 
 guessing the height ; as we rushed along I fancied 
 that I recognised many of them as the specunen 
 trees of our own Pinetum. 
 
 The train stopped at Blue Canyon Station, which 
 is situated on an " Elvan course traversing Killas," 
 as a Cornish man would say, that is a band of white 
 porphyi'itic rock passing through clay slate. In our 
 descent we passed one outburst of trap, and one of 
 serpentine, with great masses of metamorphic rocks, 
 exhibiting stronger evidences of igneous action than 
 I have almost ever seen ; m fact, this is a thoroughly 
 iofneous district. 
 
 We soon came in sight of American Canyon, so 
 deep and precipitous as to be impassible, and then 
 passing Alta, an upland village, we saw to om- north 
 the very extensive gold washings of Dutch Flat. In 
 every du'ection launders, called here " flumes," con- 
 structed to carry water to the washings, cHng to the 
 hill sides, while more modern wrought-ii^on pipes 
 traverse hiU and dale without regard to level, bent 
 on the same auriferous errand. 
 
 The gold diggings look like great white sheets 
 spread on the green woodland sward, framed in by 
 lofty pines, many of which are stiU standing. The 
 little village of Dutch Flat, with its frame houses 
 and white church, looks neat and homely. In 
 decending the rapid incline, we passed several gold
 
 126 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. ix. 
 
 diggings, and soon reached the bend called " Cape 
 Horn," the show-view of the line, where the train 
 stops for five minutes on the brink of a precipice 
 1,200ft. deep, to enable the passengers to enjoy the 
 sceneiy. All get out, stand on the giddy edge, and 
 gaze at this fine gorge. We do ditto, and so does 
 our cook, who takes the opportunity of our stoppage 
 to get some chicken and mutton chops for breakfast 
 out of the larder, — a very cleverly-arranged refrige- 
 rator under the car, — in doing this he placed his tin 
 can too near the precipice, over which it rolled to the 
 great amusement of the passengers. We heard it 
 clattering down long afterwards, as it bounded from 
 rock to rock. 
 
 A little further on, at Colfax Station, we took on 
 board some splendid Californian grapes, bunches and 
 berries wliich would take prizes at an EngHsh Horti- 
 cultural Show ; also some deHcious pears, juicy and 
 melting. We felt we were entering a Southern clime. 
 
 It was not until we reached Newcastle Station, 74 
 miles from the summit, that I saw any granite, and 
 we had by that time descended some 6,000ft. In 
 doing so we ran out of the pine forests with scattered 
 oak, into a band of Ilex (evergreen oak) exactly like 
 the growth of Italy. Indeed, the feehng of the air 
 reminded me strongly of the sensation one expe- 
 riences in descending the southern slopes of the Alps 
 and entering Itahan territory. 
 
 At 104 miles from the summit we arrived at 
 Sacramento City, which we have just left, and are 
 now passing ovei' the rich but flat valley of the
 
 CHAP IX.] SACRAMENTO. 127 
 
 Sacramento River, very nearly at the sea level, ^vith 
 the thermometer at 90deg. in the shade. AVe stayed 
 but 20 minutes at Sacramento, during which we 
 walked about the town, and found it to be quite of 
 Spanish type — flat-topped houses, with wide veran- 
 dahs on each storey, covering the footways Hke 
 arcades ; all the stores or shops open to the street. 
 
 We have now 139 miles to San Francisco, and are 
 3,365 from New York, and, roughly, 6,500 from 
 home. I have not altered my watch since I left 
 England, and it is just eight hours out. If correct, 
 we are thus one-thu'd round the world. 
 
 In crossing the Sierra Nevada, I saw no lofty 
 snow-capped mountains, and I beHeve that, near the 
 railway, there is nothing higher than 10,000ft. Those 
 who expect the Pacific route to deHght them with 
 the lofty rugged outhnes of the Swiss or even 
 Maritime Alps, will be disappointed. Wliatever 
 there may be in other portions of this great mountain 
 range, there is no such scenery on the Pacific Railway, 
 fine though some of it undoubtedly is. 
 
 Perhaps most of my countrymen are as ignorant 
 as I was of the Physical Geography of this portion 
 of the American Continent ; in other words, of its 
 Section from east to west. They probably fancy, 
 as I did, that the Rocky Mountains on the east, and 
 the Sieri'a Nevada on the west, are one and the same 
 lofty mountain range, and that their summit is the 
 east and west watershed of tliis Continent, not being 
 aware that two very curious basins are interposed 
 which have no outlet to the sea. At Creston, on the
 
 128 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. ix. 
 
 summit of the Rocky Mountains, we undoubtedly- 
 cross the " Great Divide," for on the east the waters 
 flow to the Atlantic, while on the west they flow by 
 the Colorado River to the head of the Gulf of 
 California on the Pacific. Creston is 7,100ft. above 
 the sea. (The highest point crossed by the Pacific 
 Line is Sherman, 8,242ft., but the Head Waters of 
 the North Platte, which flow to the east, are west 
 of Sherman.) From Creston we have a down grade 
 of 1,110ft. in 108 miles to Green River, which is 
 really the head water of the Rio Colorado, and thus 
 flows to the Pacific ; after which we rise to 7,835ft. 
 at Aspen, on the Wasatch Range, 92 miles to the 
 west. After Aspen we descend to the Salt Lake 
 Basin, and at Ogden reach the level of only 4,301ft. 
 The Salt Lake Basin has no known outlet. We 
 then ascend until we reach the summit of Cedar 
 Pass, at an elevation of 6,118ft. at Moore's Station, 
 305 ixiiles from Aspen, after which there is a descent 
 for 311 miles to the Nevada Desert. The drainage 
 of this Basin is represented by the rivers Humboldt 
 and Carson, both of which flow into Carson Lake, 20 
 to 25 miles long, and 10 wide, and are there lost. 
 What becomes of them no one knows. Some say 
 there are sinks in the Lake, and some that evapora- 
 tion takes off the surplus water. 
 
 It seemed to me that the Humboldt River was 
 smaller by far when we saw it on the plains not far 
 from Humboldt, than it was 100 miles nearer its 
 source. It has a total course of 350 miles before 
 reaching Lake Humboldt, which is 35 miles long by
 
 CHAP. IX.] SACRAMENTO PL Am. 129 
 
 10 wide, and may cause much loss by evaporation. The 
 elevation of Lake Carson is not given, but just be- 
 yond it Desert Station is said to be 4,017ft., and we 
 have thus a fall of 2,101ft. in the Humboldt Basin. 
 
 From tliis we rise to the great backbone of the 
 Sierra Nevada at Summit Station, 7,017ft. liigh, 
 3,000ft. above the Humboldt Basin, the total width 
 of which from Cedar Pass to Summit Station is 427 
 miles. 
 
 We have thus (after passing the " Great Divide " 
 at Creston) the Green Biver Basin, which has 
 a breadth of 200 miles, and a depth of 1,100ft. ; 
 after passing Aspen, the Salt Lake Basin, w^hich has 
 a breadth of 305 miles, and a depth of 3,534ft. ; and 
 after passing Cedar Pass, the Humboldt Basin, which 
 has a breadth of 427 miles and depth of 2,101ft. ; 
 and foiu- water-sheds, viz., Creston, Aspen, Cedar 
 Pass, and Sierra Nevada Siunmit, in 932 miles, 
 instead of one great Divide, as I had supposed. 
 
 Wliile I have been workino' out these fio^ures we 
 have been crossing the great Sacramento Plain, fer- 
 tile no doubt, but hot, dusty, almost treeless and 
 uninteresting, browai and burnt up, with the ther- 
 mometer at OOdeo-. in the shade on the 6th October. 
 
 As I knew that the Sacramento River flowed into 
 the Harbom' of San Francisco, I was not prepared 
 for another minor Pass before we reached that city. 
 After some hours on the plain, we entered a very 
 lovely gorge in a mountain range, and following it, 
 reached an elevation of 70 Oft. above the plain. The 
 hills rise on each side in bold sweeping outhnes, 
 
 s
 
 130 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. ix. 
 
 brown and burnt by the hot sun, but reheved by 
 patches of " live oak " much Uke the Italian Ilex, 
 to an elevation, I should suppose, of 2,000ft. The 
 strata is much contorted, and, I think, is chiefly 
 composed of metamorphic rocks. 
 
 After running for some miles through this fine 
 gorge, called the " Alameda Canyon," we again enter 
 the plain, and turn north-west towards San Fran- 
 cisco, with the distant Sea Loch on our left, and the 
 mountain range through which we had just passed 
 on our right. The plain is highly cultivated, stubble 
 succeeding stubble, substantial homesteads, and large 
 flocks and herds ; the houses and yards are surrounded 
 with poplar, eucalyptus, cedar, and pine plantations, 
 each with its windmill for raising water. It is 
 said that California has suffered a loss of 20,000,000 
 dollars (£4,000,000) this year from drought. A flock 
 of 500 sheep was sold recently for 600 dollars (£120), 
 or 4s. 9|^d. a piece. 
 
 Villas became more frequent, and then the out- 
 skirts of a large town, the suburb of Oatlands, with 
 some manufactories, were passed, and we ran over 
 a long timber viaduct, with shallow water beneath 
 it, like the approach to Venice. One of the im- 
 mense American ferryboats took us across the har- 
 bour, here three miles wide, and just as the sun 
 sank behind the promontory on wliich the capital of 
 the Golden Land is built, we touched the shore. 
 
 A slight sketch of the geographical position of San 
 Frpjicisco may be interesting. The Pacific Ocean is 
 bounded at this part of California by mountain
 
 I 
 
 CHAP. IX.] HARBOUR OF SAN FRANCISCO. 131 
 
 ranges from 400 to 1,000 feet high. At one point 
 the continuity of this range is broken by what, if it 
 were not in part below the level of the sea, would 
 be a deep gorge with precipitous waUs of rock, but 
 which now presents itself as the entrance to an 
 Inland Sea or Loch, extending to the north-east for 
 upwards of 30 miles, with a width varying from 
 three to ten miles, and to the south upwards of forty 
 miles, with about the same width. Most of this 
 great Inland Loch has a considerable depth of water. 
 The entrance wliich I have described as a partially 
 submerged gorge has a depth of some 250 feet. On 
 its northern side the cHffs and mountains behind, rise, 
 I suppose, nearly 2,000 feet above the water, 
 while on the southern shore they may be 300 feet 
 or 400 feet high. Tliis entrance is about a mile 
 wide, and it is well named the " Golden Gate," for it 
 is the portal of the Land of Gold, and even if that 
 were not so, the fact that it forms so safe an entrance 
 to such a magnificent sheet of navigable inland Avater 
 would well entitle it to that name. 
 
 The City of San Francisco is situated about four 
 miles witliin this golden portal, on the southern pro- 
 montory, formed by it. The water alongside the 
 city is deep, and the sliipping lying at the wharves 
 are well protected from the swell of the Pacific, 
 wliich expends itself in the wide space into wliich it 
 expands. After passing the comparatively narrow 
 channel of the " Golden Gate," the roadstead, where 
 the ships anchor off the town, is deep and sheltered, 
 while, as in the harbours of Halifax, Boston, and 
 
 s 2
 
 132 A TOUR nv NORTH AMERICA. [chap. ix. 
 
 New York, unlinaited wharf space is obtained by 
 driving piles and bridging over the spaces with 
 planks. I 
 
 At San Francisco much of the lower part of the 
 city has been won from the waters by piluig and 
 embanking. I am told that almost all the great 
 business street of the city, — " California-street," — 
 was once covered by the tide. 
 
 The position of San Francisco on the western side 
 of the inland sea I have described, and its conse- 
 quent separation from the mainland of California, 
 except by a ckcuit of 40 miles to the south and as 
 many back, is embarrassing and inconvenient. The 
 eastern shore, three miles off, would have been the 
 proper place for the City, but the depth of water is 
 not sufficient to accommodate shipping. They get 
 over the difficulty, as far as possible, by the employ- 
 ment of steam fenyboats, which convey fuU tram 
 loads of railway waggons from one side of the har- 
 bour to the other. Trade coming from the south is 
 not subject to this inconvenience. 
 
 We, in common with other produce of the East 
 and North, had to be passed over this water space, 
 and, as we steamed across, I httle thought that we 
 were to receive so hearty a welcome when we stepped 
 on shore.
 
 CHAP. X.] SAN FRANCISCO. 133 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 SAN FRANCISCO. 
 
 It is true tliat I had letters of introduction to many 
 of the leading merchants and bankers, and we well 
 knew that the same warm-hearted hospitahty, which 
 we had met mth in other parts of America, would 
 be extended to us here ; but I did not expect, that 
 on stepping on shore, I should be surrounded by a 
 crowd of ancient Cymri, some well-remembered faces, 
 members of my old corps, and others, and that I 
 should receive a Welslnnan's hearty welcome, accom- 
 panied by a bouqet of the sweetest flowers of this 
 flowery land, a proof of kmd forethought of that 
 which would most rejoice my gentle partner's heart 
 in this distant region. 
 
 It is difiicult to say how deeply I felt the kmdness 
 of my old friends and neighbours, and still more so 
 when a few days afterwards a deputation of 14 
 Glamorganshire and Swansea men, called on me in 
 the name of the Welsh residents of San Francisco 
 (between 400 and 500 in number) and presented me 
 with a beautiful and costly gold-headed cane, 
 suitably inscribed. The cane itself is made of Cali- 
 fornian u'on wood — it has a crutch handle of pure 
 gold, at each end of which is a medalHon of gold 
 quartz ; the inner medallion opens and displays a
 
 134 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. x. 
 
 tiny collection of the ores of California — Gold, Silver, 
 Copper, Cinnober, (Qmcksilver), Lead and Iron, each 
 in a Httle triangular panel under glass. 
 
 It would be unbecoming in me to enlarge upon 
 this personal incident, an exact paralled of which has 
 probably never happened to any private traveller 
 visiting a far distant land ; but I may perhaps be 
 permitted to say that the genuine and disinterested 
 warmth of feeling which it exhibited, does honour to 
 the ancient nation of the Cymri, and that indivi- 
 dually I cannot be too thankful to accept it as a 
 proof that durmg my three and thu-ty years of 
 private work among my neighbours, and twenty- 
 five years of public Hfe (twenty of which as their 
 Representative) I have succeeded in doing, what 
 I have always earnestly endeavoured to do, " My 
 Duty." 
 
 We passed two hours very agreeably together, 
 talking over old days and fighting over old battles. 
 I found that they have established a Welsh Society 
 and that it is flourishing ; I also found that, as a 
 whole, they are doing well, and that some hold 
 places of high trust. Two of my friends hold appomt- 
 ments in the Mint, one is the editor of a leading 
 journal, and some have more distant employment ; 
 one of my old workmen had journeyed 50 miles and 
 given up two days work, to shake me by the hand. 
 I can only say my San Francisco days will always 
 live in my memory as the brightest of this sunshiny 
 tour. 
 
 I was much amused by my friend, the Editor,
 
 CHAP. X.] THE CHINESE QUESTION. 135 
 
 asking me my opinion on the burning question of 
 the day in Californian politics, namely, the employ- 
 ment of Chinese. It was rather " trying me high " 
 after three days residence, but I happened to be 
 pretty well " posted on " it, for I had been talking it 
 over with some of those best able to form a correct 
 opinion, and what they had told me appeared to be 
 quite sound. 
 
 No one could well treat of CaHfornia, in the most 
 ciu'sory manner without alluding to the Chinese. 
 There are 35,000 to 45,000 Chinamen and 200 
 Chinese women in San Francisco alone ; how many 
 in the whole State, I know not. They do much of 
 the hard work of the place, and much also of the 
 light or woman's work, includmg almost the whole of 
 the laundry and house work, for they are extremely 
 cleanly. Few Native American girls go out to 
 service. In the Eastern States people chiefly em- 
 ploy Irish gMs. Imagine having to employ a raw 
 Irish girl to "clean" your house or "cook" your 
 dinner, to be thankful that you can get her at any 
 wages she chooses to ask, and that you are not 
 forced to do it yourself. 
 
 That is the condition of things as far West as 
 Chicago. A poor friend of mine, a resident of that 
 MetropoUs of the West, was eloquent on the horrors 
 of " Irish cooking ; " but at San Francisco the Cliina- 
 man is ready to learn and to do everything ; he is 
 as docile as a poodle, and moves about his work as 
 quietly as a tame cat, always good-natured and 
 willing, never drunk, never away when he is wanted,
 
 136 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. x. 
 
 no " followers " or flirtation, no " tliis isn't my place," 
 about him, ready to do anything he is told and to do 
 it intelligently, whether it be in the house, in the 
 field, or in the factory. His wants are few, and liis 
 vices almost none, except, indeed, opium smoking 
 and gambhng. 
 
 Without the Cliinese the Great Pacific Eaih'oad 
 never could have been made for many years to come ; 
 the corn could not be harvested nor the grapes 
 gathered. I saw them at work m the vineyards 
 with the patience of women and the strength of men. 
 Yet it is these useful labourers that the lower class 
 of working men, the " loafers," here called " Hood- 
 leums," wish to drive out of the country because they 
 beheve that the Chinese reduce wages, not appre- 
 ciating the fact that this abundance of cheap low 
 class labour causes the community to prosper by 
 enabhng the wliite man to carry out, by vu^tue of 
 his natural superiority and force of character, under- 
 takings which he could not otherwise prosecute, to 
 enlarge those he already has in hand, to comjDete 
 successfully with foreign countries, and to raise 
 generally his own standing and position. 
 
 It is plain that California never could have risen 
 to its present prosperity in 30 years without abmi- 
 dance of cheap labour. The most evil day for the 
 white workmen of California would be that on which 
 the Chinese left. A Chinaman gets 1 dollar per day, 
 and finds himself ; a white man, 2^ dollars ; a skilled 
 mechanic, 3| dollars on the average. 
 , An account of a visit we paid to the Chinese
 
 ciiAr. X.] THE ClITXESE. 137 
 
 quarter will be interesting. I must first explain 
 that tlie Cliinese occupy four " blocks " or squares 
 of houses in the centre of the city. I believe that 
 every block is 100 yards square, so that their quarter 
 is only 400 by 400 yards, and in this narrow space 
 45,000 souls are located ; yet there is but little dis- 
 ease and little to offend the senses. It is a garden 
 of roses compared to many Continental towns, Berlm 
 among the number, not to mention Cologne, Italian 
 towns par excellence, and some French. Tliis arises 
 from their extremely cleanly habits. Wherever a 
 Chinaman may be, he washes from top to toe every 
 morning. No Europeans reside within this quarter. 
 
 The Chinese when they take to a house gut it 
 completely. They then make two stories in place of 
 one on each flat, then they build wooden houses in 
 every nook and corner beliind. Their rooms are 
 mere closets, and they occupy them on the principle 
 of " Box and Cox," " one out and t'other come in." 
 Many work at night, and thus each limited space 
 does double duty. Yv'ithin their quarter they have 
 shops for the sale of everytliing they require. Bacon 
 and vegetables are then- staples, but they are also 
 fond of ducks and chickens. 
 
 They have regular restaurants, and we were invited 
 by one of oiu^ friends to lunch at one in the Chinese 
 quarter. This restaurant had a kind of cook's shop 
 do^vnstairs ; upstaii's we found ourselves in a large 
 square room, with a wide balcony to the front, sepa- 
 rated by a screen of open carved wood from the 
 room behind. The screen was painted green, and 
 
 T
 
 138 A TOUR IK NORTH AMERICA. [chap. i. 
 
 many parts were gilt. The walls were hung vnth. 
 Chinese views, and here and there mottos and 
 notices in Chinese writing. 
 
 Luncheon was served on a lono; table, laid out with 
 little dishes of sweetmeats and bouquets. The dishes 
 were indescribable, but here is a translation of our 
 Menu, made by our friend's Chinese servant : — " 1, 
 Bird's nest ; 2, Fish wing ; 3, Ham chicken ; 4, Fried 
 dove ; 5, Fke duck ; 6, Stewed oyster ; 7, Hightoon- 
 heyee ; 8, Mushroom ; after full of tea and cake, all 
 kind of nut and fruit." 
 
 I did my best to taste everything, but it was a 
 desperate effort, and for long afterwards the nauseous 
 sodden smell stuck to me. The " bh'd's nest " was 
 like a very inferior aspic jelly, ^ith lumps of meat ; 
 most of the other dishes were vegetables cut in sHces 
 and steeped in pork fat, bits of chicken cut round 
 and ham glued on to them, lumps of meat and vege- 
 tables, gelatinous croquettes with forced meat. 
 
 As far as I can remember, this is a fan- description 
 of the viands. We were also given a strong sphit 
 called " Mong-y-lung," (not very good,) and highly 
 scented tea. We ate with chopsticks, which are 
 pieces of ivory thicker at one end than the other, 
 square at the hand end ; they are used with one 
 hand, one or more fingers being interposed to keep 
 them apart. We really got on, as an American 
 would say, " quite smart " with them. 
 
 I afterwards watched a dozen Chinese eatmg their 
 dinner in the next room. They sat round a bowl, 
 and, at a given signal, all plunged theii' chop -sticks
 
 CHAP X.] JOSS HOUSE. 139 
 
 into the bowl and fished out what they could get, 
 which they carried to their respective plates, and ate 
 with all kinds of little sauces and rehshes, placed 
 on little round plates ready at hand ; then all 
 plunged again simultaneously. 
 
 Luncheon over, we adjourned to a Chinese shop, 
 where there was nothing new, and everythmg double 
 as dear as in London Chinese shops. At 8.30 p.m. 
 we (i.e., the gentlemen), accompanied by the poKce 
 officer of the Cliinese quarter, sallied forth to go 
 through the dens and piuiieus, and to thoroughly 
 understand Chmese life in all its phases, 
 
 We began by visiting the Joss House, my first 
 experience of a Heathen Temple. We chmbed up 
 a creaking staircase, walked along a stage with loose 
 and u'regular planking, and halted at a large wooden 
 door. Our conductor gave the password and it was 
 opened. The mside was dimly lighted, and the floor 
 felt greasy, but all looked scrupulously clean. 
 Opposite to us sat three grim idols, with beards, and 
 above them burnt a lamp — a wick floating in a glass 
 of oil — suspended by wires. Tliis, of com'se, was no 
 new sight to me. Before the altar, but at a distance 
 of six or eight feet, was a metal screen, about four 
 feet high and broad enough at the top to support a 
 long tray of polished iron, filled with sand, into 
 which Joss-sticks were thrust ; they are small slow 
 matches, which give off a smell of incense, and keep 
 perpetually but slowly burning down. 
 
 Inside this screen there is an elaborate representa- 
 tion of the history of the world, or of China, which 
 
 T 2
 
 140 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. x. 
 
 is the same thing in their eyes, in carved bronze 
 — quaintly-dressed figures, some on foot, some on 
 horseback, going through all kinds of performances, 
 to illustrate this history. These bronze figures, which 
 are about six inches high, are enclosed witliin an ii'on 
 lattice work. 
 
 To the left on entering was a small cabin, in wliich 
 the Chinese custodian sat, on guard. We were first 
 introduced to two female idols on the extreme left, 
 and were told that they were not good women ; they 
 had their sand-tray. Joss sticks and lamps burning 
 in front of them, and were painted red and gold_ 
 All the idols are in sitting attitudes. 
 
 Passing on from left to right, we came to a male 
 idol, who represented the God of Medicine. He 
 held a large bolus, of the size of a cherry, in his 
 right hand. We were next introduced to the tlu^ee 
 centre idols : the middle figure represented the God 
 of War — a fierce fellow with a black beard. The 
 two figures to the right and left of him are the em- 
 bodiment of the Tartar and Mongolian dynasties, 
 and are connected with the centre figure by a wide 
 ribbon passing over their heads. We next came to 
 the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the God of Finance 
 and Bullion, who held an ingot of gold in liis hand. 
 
 We then came to what struck me as the most 
 remarkable idol of the whole : it represented a very 
 good and virtuous woman, who had had a cliild ; it 
 was gaudily painted and decorated with gold ; a 
 lamp burnt above it and incense before it. Oiferings 
 of paper flowers, &c., had been made to it. I have
 
 CHAP. X.] THE JOSS HOUSE. 141 
 
 seen hundreds of shrines so like this that I could not 
 have told one from the other ; yet I believe the 
 Cliinese rehgion has remained unchanged for several 
 thousand years. I have no books to refer to, but 
 I believe that Confucius lived more than 500 years 
 before our Saviour, and that this religious ritual 
 existed long before Confucius. 
 
 Beyond this female idol the next slirine was 
 dedicated to the God of Beasts, and he had near him 
 a small figm^e on horseback, brandishing an immense 
 sword, representing the slayer of beasts. There was 
 also a very ugly mis-shapen figm^e of an anmial, to 
 which they oifered bacon ; he generally has a large 
 piece on his nose, which in time became so saturated 
 that the rats ate it. The Chinese never clean or 
 dust these idols, and they have not repau-ed the 
 rat-eaten nose. 
 
 In a corner, and not in a line with the other 
 shrines, there is a small slirine, and within it a full 
 length standing figure of an old man, a sort of 
 hermit, to which they pay much veneration. Every- 
 thing in this Joss house came from China. Our 
 guide told us that the common Chinamen know 
 little of reho-ion, that then- festivals are rare and at 
 irregular intervals, and that they appear not to pray 
 much when in the Joss house. Surely, if that be 
 so, the presence of such a large number of Cliinese 
 ought to offer great facilities for their conversion, 
 and the sending back of native Christian mission- 
 aries to China. 
 
 We descended the creaking stairs and entered the
 
 142 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [cHAr. x. 
 
 sleeping quarters, the ramifications of wKich are of 
 unknown extent. They appeared to sleep on raised 
 benches of wood, covered with matting, the bed- 
 clothes in the day-time being neatly rolled up and 
 stowed on shelves, somewhat as in our prisons. We 
 then went through the worst portion of the quarter, 
 which appeared to be perfectly cleanly and orderly. 
 I confess I felt more secure in the real China of San 
 Francisco than I should have done in its na-mesake 
 nearer home, even had I been under the able leader- 
 sliip of Superintendent Wren. 
 
 We had still to visit the opium dens. Perhaps 
 most of my readers know as little of opium smoking 
 as I did, and a little description may not be unin- 
 teresting. The opium pipe is a stick of solid, heavy 
 wood, about the size of our largest round rulers, and 
 some three feet long ; three or four inches from one 
 end a piece of wood, somewhat like a flat low hum- 
 ming top, say four inches in diameter and two inches 
 high, is stuck, peg down into the pipe stick. This 
 disc is sohd except in the centre, where there is a 
 hole into which one might msert a cedar pencil, 
 passing down through the peg into the pipe. The 
 smoker Hes on his side on a piece of matting ; at the 
 length of his pipe a small lamp burns, the top of the 
 flame just level with the glass which incloses it. He 
 has his pipe in his left hand and in his right a stiJff 
 wire, with which he extracts a small quantity of 
 opium from a Httle cup about an inch deep and an 
 inch across. He then holds it over the light, when 
 it melts and swells like a resinous gum, emitting a
 
 CHAP. X.] OPIUM SMOKING. 143 
 
 slight smoke of the odour of laudanum, not alto- 
 gether disagreeable. He turns the wire round, not 
 permitting any of the precious gum to drop off; 
 when well liquified he charges the hole m the pipe 
 with it, and holding it to the flame, draws vigorously 
 at the f)ipe, so as to cause the flame to enter the 
 hole and convert the gum into smoke. During this 
 indi'aft it emits a gurgling sound. Both my friend 
 and myself took several long pulls at it and pro- 
 duced the proper gurgle, but we were in no way 
 affected then or afterwards. Governor S. prudently 
 declined. 
 
 One of the men we saw was the most inveterate of 
 the opium smokers of San Francisco — to affect him a 
 whole measure was required and he had to inhale it, 
 i.e., swallow the smoke. He is an excellent cigar 
 maker, and can earn 4 dollars per day ; but like the 
 drunkards of our chme he smokes away all the money 
 he gets. As he has no wife and family to leave 
 })enniless and starving, his guilt is probably less 
 aggravated than that of our Christian sot. He did 
 not appear to be either stupid or emaciated. Our 
 guide had known him for four years and observed no 
 deterioration in liis bodily condition. He (the giiide) 
 told us that about 7 b per cent, of the Climese smoke 
 opium, and that it incapacitates them, in a great 
 degree, from vices to which other nations are prone ; 
 if they drink, they do so in their own beds, buying 
 as much spirits as they can afford, and drinking 
 secretly. We did not see one drunken Chinaman 
 dui'ing our visit to CaHfornia. It is a very remark-
 
 144 A TOUR IiY NORTH AMERICA. [chap. x. 
 
 able fact that only six police officers are required to 
 keep 35,000 able-bodied Chinamen in order. At 
 present, owing to the disturbances in the country, 
 there are supposed to be 10,000 extra Chinese in San 
 Francisco. 
 
 I must not omit to mention one of the most 
 curious sights of the Chinese quarter, viz., the Theatre. 
 We visited it in spite of having been warned 
 in England that every conceivable disease was to be 
 contracted at it, which is a m3rfch. It is arranged 
 like our theatres, except that it is all pit and gallery, 
 with two small boxes for strangers. We found it 
 crammed with Cliinese. We could not make out 
 the meaning of the "representation;" I cannot use 
 any word familiar to us without conveying a false 
 meanmg ; men and women came on to the stage and 
 went through all kinds of by no means dumb show, 
 for the noise was deafening from gongs, cymbals, and 
 stringed instruments of all shapes, played on with 
 bows, the strings of the bow being imder those of the 
 instrument. Four or more persons acted, while a 
 kind of orchestra sat behind, the leader perched on a 
 high stool. The actors marched in, talked and 
 gesticulated in an excited mamier for five or ten 
 minutes,' and then were succeeded by others ; while 
 from time to time the orchestra emitted the most 
 discordant but exciting sounds. There seemed to be 
 a mendicant, a mandarin with two ladies and a great 
 God, or some other Deus ex machina, di'essed like 
 the Fire Kuig at Cremorne, but what he or they 
 were about we none of us could make out, nor could
 
 CHAP. X.] CHINESE ORGANISATION. 145 
 
 we detect the least plot or scheme. I am told they 
 give whole Reigns of Emperors, and that a play may 
 last for months. 
 
 After the stricter drama came tumblers who risked 
 theu^ vertibrse on hard boards. They were not up to 
 the mark of either our clowns or the Japanese at the 
 Aquarium. 
 
 Nor must I omit a word or two on the way in 
 wliicli the Chinese emigration and remigration are 
 arranged. There are several companies, I beheve 
 tliree, of Chhiese organisation, which undertake to 
 bring then- contrymen to California and to return 
 them ahve or dead to Cliina. The would-be 
 emigrant agrees to pay a certain weekly sum to the 
 company for a certain number of years, and the com- 
 pany agrees to find liim work and protection. The 
 bargain is faitlifully kept, and, after the term is 
 worked out, the man is free. If anyone wants a job 
 of any magnitude to be done, he goes to the company 
 and makes his bargain for so many hands. A China- 
 man always looks to returning home after he has 
 made money ; he beheves that the Spirits of the 
 departed hover around the bones and rubbish which 
 once held them, and thus the idea of being " out in 
 the cold" is unpleasant to lihn. Few of them bring 
 their wives, although some of those who have become 
 rich do so. They frequently go back to China and 
 retiu-n again to California, They are to be seen all 
 tlii'ough the State, in eveiy small town and village, 
 and also in Nevada and Colorado. It is probable 
 that, except at Melbourne and Hong Kong, a 
 
 u
 
 148 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. x. 
 
 a bear garden among business men. What our Capel 
 Court may be I know not, for into that mysterious 
 Temple of Mammon no outsider may enter without 
 fear of assault and battery to his headgear, I am 
 told ; but at San Francisco a gallery is provided, 
 from which the stranger can calmly survey the arena 
 below, and an odd sight it is. At a high bar-hke 
 table sit four clerks and a chairman, raised some lOffc. 
 above the arena. Around it, and raised by a few 
 steps, are rows of armchaks. On these, respectable- 
 looking frock-coated gentlemen sit. The chairman 
 somids an electric bell ; some one shouts out the 
 name of a Stock ; up sprmg a certain number of 
 the broadcloth-covered gentlemen, who rush into the 
 arena, and commence a free fight, in the nature of 
 what our plunger officers call " a bear fight." They 
 push each other about, shout at the top of their 
 voices, set upon one man like the canine species when 
 one has seized a bone, and, after a few minutes of 
 chaos, some retii^e discomfited to their seats, while 
 others rush excitedly to the president, and apparently 
 record their transactions. The bell rings again, and 
 the same scene reciu*s with another Stock. After a 
 time one of the recording angels reads the upshot of 
 the various encounters with extraordinary rapidity, 
 and the wheel of fortune, or the roulette, begins to 
 spin again. 
 
 The speculation in Mining Stocks is keen and 
 constant. I have a list of 201 before me; and, so 
 far as I can learn, the same uncertainty as to the 
 value of the best mines, the same failures and
 
 CHAP. X.] THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 149 
 
 disappointments, and the same questionable prac- 
 tices, prevail as with us, although tnimps here mean 
 four honours and nine others. We have been most 
 kindly received and hospitably entertained this very 
 day by an Irish gentleman, who is supposed to be 
 receiving £900,000 per annum from his share in the 
 great Comstock Mine, here known as the Consoh- 
 dated Vh^gmia and California Mmes. Of this also 
 more hereafter. 
 
 We made several interesting excursions from San 
 Francisco. Our &st was to the well-known Cliif 
 House, on the other side of the Promontory, facing 
 the Pacific Ocean. Our road lay through the Park 
 of the City, a space won from a barren stony desert 
 and dunes of sea sand, now rapidly becoming clothed 
 with flowers and specimen shrubs. After a drive of 
 a few miles, we saw the Pacific Ocean before us to 
 the westward, and it was mdeed natural to me again 
 to look out to the westward, upon what our novel- 
 writing Premier called the " Melancholy Ocean," to 
 which he attributed all the ills of Ireland with 
 what I always accepted as the ludicrous sarcasm 
 of which he is a master. However, here we were, 
 vnt\\ the Ocean to the west of us again, but not 
 looking over, as we do, at the New World of far 
 America, but at the Ancient Empires of China, 
 Japan, and India, and at our o\vn young and vigorous 
 Colonies of the Antipodes. 
 
 We reached the shore, and di-ove along the yellow 
 sands — just as at home — and then climbed a steej), 
 rocky headland on which the Cliff House Hotel is
 
 150 A TOUR /.V NORTH AMERICA. [chap. x. 
 
 perched, overhanging the sea. Close to it, within 
 say four hundi'ecl yards, are three rocky islets, upon 
 which the famous sea Hons disport themselves quite 
 at theii' ease, and regardless of man's proximity, for 
 they know that the law protects them. They are a 
 large species of seal, and we were greatly interested 
 in watcliing their proceedings tlu-ough our opera 
 glasses. There might have been 100, or perhaps 
 double that number. Some lay asleep on the rocks, 
 some played with each other, and uttered imeartlily 
 sounds, approaching the bellowing of oxen ; some 
 swam about in the surf, now climbing on to the 
 rocks, and then takuig headers into the deep water. 
 Like human beings, they have various orders and 
 degrees of precedence, and jealousy prevails. The 
 powerful old sea dogs usurp the most comfortable 
 quarters, and woe betide the youngster who ventures 
 to dispute their sway. Fights and romps alternate 
 among these unlettered denizens of the deep. About 
 25 miles off there is a small island, upon w^liich they 
 congregate in thousands. We saw a few which I 
 believe to have been the fiu'-beaidng seal, the skin 
 of which furnishes om- ladies with thek admu^able 
 winter jackets ; but hereabouts they are scarce. 
 
 Another excursion was made in the Admiral's 
 Launch up the Eastern arm of the inland sea to 
 Mare's Island and VaUejo, where the United State's 
 Pacific Navy Yard is situated. Fine hiUs surround 
 this branch of the harbour on all sides. At its 
 eastern end the Sacramento River enters the sea. 
 We found that there was hterally no work lieing
 
 CHAP X.] THE UNITED STATES' XAVY. 151 
 
 done in this or any of the United States dockyards. 
 It did not appear to me that there were more than a 
 dozen men in the shops, wliich were well arranged, 
 but not extensive. There were a few old-fashioned 
 wooden ships in ordinary, and one old iron monitor 
 housed over. I am told that this is the condition of 
 the United States' Naval Establishments everywhere. 
 Certainly it is so at Boston. They are paying off 
 theu' Debt ! 1 ! Congress will not vote supphes of 
 an adequate amount for the most moderate expendi- 
 ture on the Navy and Army, and the result is that 
 they have no fleets, no men, and an Army reduced 
 to ludicrously small numbers — I believe to not more 
 than 25,000 men all told. The Army pay is now 
 thi^ee months in arrear, Congress only having voted 
 nine months' supphes. The Western Members know 
 notliing of the Navy, and care less for it ; and there 
 is a general dislike to increasing the Army.
 
 152 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xi. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 CALIFORNIA. 
 
 We made another interesting excursion in the same 
 direction, landing at Vallejo, and proceeding some dis- 
 tance by rail to a place called Napa, from whence we 
 drove over to the old Mexican town of Sonoma, and 
 visited on the way the Vineyard of Buona Vista. 
 We then returned to Napa, and ran up the valley 
 to Calistoga. Some of the best vineyards of CaH- 
 fornia are situated in these two valleys. Indeed, 
 about Sonoma, the country is one large vineyard to 
 the foot of the hills. The vines looked healthy, and 
 laden with grapes, which Chinamen were busily 
 picking. The grape most extensively grown is a 
 black grape, called the " Mission Grape," because it 
 was introduced orginaUy by the Spanish missionaries, 
 but other and better varieties, such as my old 
 friends the " Traminer" and " Biesling" of the Rliine, 
 the " Muscat" the " Sweetwater," and " Tokay" all 
 flourish. The wines are reaUy good ; the white 
 wines resemble " Chabhs." The red wines partake 
 more of the character of Burgundy than of Claret. 
 They also make very good Champagne. Californian 
 gentlemen are too chivalrous to give the wines of 
 their own country to their friends, but let me assm^e 
 them that they may do so with perfectly clear con-
 
 CHAP. XI. J VIXE-GROWIXG. 153 
 
 sciences, for tliey are excellent ; sound honest wines 
 which need no bush — we drank notliing else while in 
 Cahfornia. 
 
 I believe the production of wine is destmed to 
 become one of the most imj)ortant industries of Cali- 
 fornia. To show to what an extent it has akeady 
 grown, I may mention that Messrs. Groezinger, 
 whose establishment we visited in the Napa Valley, 
 make on an average 400,000 gallons annually. Cali- 
 fornia also exports grapes on a large scale to 
 the Eastern States ; we saw them packing a 
 truck wliich carried ten tons, net, of grapes ; they 
 put them in skeleton cases, which are screwed to- 
 gether and to the sides of the truck, so that the 
 whole of the inside becomes one solid mass of grapes 
 supported on lath frames. The truck has a false 
 roof and sides which are filled with ice, and in this 
 way the grapes travel without injury to New York. 
 At starting they are worth one penny per lb. ; at 
 what price they are retailed in New York I do not 
 know. 
 
 The Valley of Napa is very lovely, highly cul- 
 tivated and fertile, well timbered with live oak 
 dotted about and forming picturesque groups, as in 
 the old parks of England ; the mountains rise two or 
 three thousand feet on each side of the valley, their 
 sides clothed with fine timber and their rugged 
 peaks standing sharply out against the clear blue 
 sky. 
 
 At the end of the railway, as at present con- 
 structed, is the lovely little Watering place called 
 
 w
 
 154 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xj. 
 
 Calistoga, which deserves to become one of the most 
 famous of the American Continent. It possesses 
 springs of the sulphuretted hydrogen order, hot 
 enough to boil an egg, and to be used as vapour 
 baths. The scenery around is really magnificent — 
 perpendicular precipices of basalt wall it in to the 
 north-east, while behind rises a mountain of first- 
 class magnitude; to the west the gentler hill-side 
 is clothed with pine woods to its summit. I never 
 saw a lovelier spot ; but unfortunately it got into 
 bad hands and was disreputably conducted, so 
 that it has come to grief, and now awaits the " ex- 
 ploitation " of a speculator, combined with a fashion- 
 able doctor, to declare its waters capable of curing 
 ah ills, and to condemn his victims to its noxious 
 potations. 
 
 We were accompanied by Mr. Towne, the able 
 manager of the Great Pacific System of Eailways, 
 2,000 miles in extent ; and, among other interesting 
 information, he told me that a Mr. Mitchel, in the 
 San Joachim Valley, has 90,000 acres under wheat, 
 and that his ambition is to have 100,000 acres ; also, 
 that a Dr. Glen, on the Sacramento, had 40,000 
 acres last year under wheat, and wanted to contract 
 for 20,000 tons of freight for wheat only. The 
 average produce is 25 to 30 bushels per acre, but on 
 the very best land it sometimes runs up to 60 
 bushels ; he told me that he knew an instance of 
 land yielding 30 bushels as a first crop, and after 
 irrigation giving a second crop of 61 bushels the 
 same year. I made a note of this at the time.
 
 CHAP. XI.] COUNTRY RESIDENCES. 155 
 
 and I give my authority, lest these figures should 
 appear too astounding for my agricultural friends, 
 and they should set me down as of too verdant a 
 nature. 
 
 Our last expedition was to the district lying south 
 of San Francisco, an alluvial flat backed up by the 
 hills which border the Pacific. Along the foot of 
 these hills, and among their defiles, are situated the 
 country residences of the great men of San Francisco, 
 and very beautiful indeed they are. One of these 
 gentlemen. Senator Sharon, hospitably entertained 
 us, and drove us on the following day to Governor 
 Latham's lovely residence at Menlo Park. The 
 house is furnished in excellent taste, the choicest 
 specimens of European art having been unsparingly 
 provided for its embeUishment, both in pictures, 
 sculpture, and ftu-niture ; the gardens are all that 
 could be desired, or dreamt of in an eastern dream. 
 Indeed, this deHcious climate needs but little art to 
 produce in profuse abundance in the open air all 
 the shrubs and flowers we most cherish. Our only 
 regret was that the tyrant " Time" dragged us from 
 this most enchanting spot, where we were pressed to 
 remain for some days — indeed, had we been able^ 
 we might have spent many a pleasant month 
 among our hospitable friends. 
 
 Perhaps our most agreeable evening we owed to 
 the kindness of Governor Stamford, to whom the 
 world is indebted more than to anyone elsej for the 
 inception and successful carrying out of the Great 
 Pacific Railway undertaking, of which he is still 
 
 w 2
 
 156 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xi. 
 
 President. His house in San Francisco would take 
 first rank even in London, while its furniture and a 
 fine gallery of modern pictures is equal to anytliing I 
 have ever seen in our most palatial houses. 
 
 However, the time came for us to quit San Fran- 
 cisco, and we headed for the Yosemite Valley, the 
 boast of California ; I would almost say of America. 
 It lies some 250 miles south-east of San Francisco, 
 and is approachable for the last 90 miles by stage 
 coach only. We slept in om- car at Merced, and as 
 the day began to dawn embarked on board a Cali- 
 fornian stage for the first time — a boat-shaped vehicle, 
 drawn by six horses, two abreast ; four rows of seats, 
 face forwards, each holding three passengers ; and a 
 fight leather roof mth oj)en sides protects the 
 inmates from the sun ; no springs except a long strap 
 of leather of six or eight thicknesses, running hori- 
 zontally under each side of the boat protected us 
 from jolts of the most spine-breaking order. The 
 roads are villanous, the pace good, and the consequent 
 jolting almost unendurable ; 180 miles of this kind 
 of traveUing was no joke, but the ladies stood it 
 gallantly, 
 
 The coachman drives with three reins in each 
 hand, and the way he handles his team would have 
 done credit to Probet of our youth, or Jehu of old. 
 In some places it is by no means easy work to coach 
 the team, for the road is wide enough for one carriage 
 only, the turns are sharp, the gradient is steep, and 
 a precipice is often so close on one side that the 
 slightest mistake of man or horse would be fatal.
 
 CHAP. XL] TO THE YOSEMITE. 157 
 
 However, up hill and down our Jelui puslied along, 
 often furiously and always fast. 
 
 Our road lay at first over the flat plain of the San 
 Joachim Valley, luxuriant in Spring, but now burnt 
 to the colour of brown 2:)aper, no blade of green 
 visible. The sheep are dying by hundreds. We 
 passed some large flocks in the mountains, and their 
 track was marked by the dead and dying. We 
 sometimes counted as many as six at once which had 
 fallen dead by the wayside. The drought this year 
 is greater than any in the records of the Colony. 
 They have not had rain for six months, and the 
 winter fall was below the average. After leaving the 
 plain, we entered on the " Foot Hills" ; first rolling, 
 stony deserts, and then higher and clothed with 
 scrub. After a time the Ilex and a species of stone 
 pine began to apjDear, and then we began to ascend 
 the lofty mountains of the Sierra Nevada, crossing a 
 ridge 5,500 feet above the sea. At the village of 
 Honitas, 23 miles from Merced, we found gold digging 
 in active operation, the men working on then- own 
 account, and from what we heard it seemed that they 
 were doing well. We were told that they had taken 
 out 150,000 dollars' (equal £30,000) worth in the 
 last six weeks, and that one old man had got 25,000 
 (£5,000) workmg by himself On the other hand, I 
 saw a fine, strapping Cornishman (who had been 
 injiu'ed by an explosion of dynamite two days before), 
 who told me that he found it better to work for day 
 wages at four dollars per day than to run the risk of 
 working on his own account ; four dollars may be
 
 158 
 
 A TOUR IX NORTH AJIERICA. [chap, xi 
 
 taken as an average earning, therefore, although now 
 and then a man may make a " hicky hit." 
 
 We visited a gold mine by the roadside, and saw 
 gold dust panned out. I went down the crazy 
 ladder into a small opening not more than 15 or 20 
 feet deep, and found a lode of quartz, with a flucan 
 on the back, running through the killas or slate rock. 
 The miners told me that it had a regular strike, 
 proving for a long distance, and that most of the 
 workings about there were on it. 
 
 From this place until some miles beyond Mariposa 
 we passed through slate and metamorphic formations, 
 showing strong signs of igneous action ; all the 
 " gulches," or small valleys, had been worked over 
 for gold, and those who can recollect the early days 
 of California will remember the name of Mariposa as 
 associated with some of the richest workings. As a 
 rule these " gulches" are now worked out, and gold 
 imning has assumed the shape of a regular industry, 
 €arried on by scientific mining and with large capital. 
 I cannot help feeling that these rich deposits of gold 
 in Cahfornia, Austraha and New Zealand were the 
 direct means employed by God to effect the rapid 
 colonization of those fair but then distant and un- 
 peopled lands ; and that having served their benefi- 
 cent purpose, they were so designed as no longer to 
 affect the ordinary course of industry by attracting 
 too many labourers into one description of harvest, 
 nor to disturb the value of the precious metal, now 
 almost universally used as the standard of exchange 
 between nations and individuals.
 
 CHAP. XL] THE YOSEMITE V ALLEY. 150 
 
 Gold had a further and scarcely less important 
 bearing on the rapid development of these regions. 
 The first easily-got metallic riches of California af- 
 forded the capital by which its other latent resources 
 have been so rapidly developed. There is many a 
 man in San Francisco, now so rich as to be ill-de- 
 scribed as a miUionare, who began tliirty years ago 
 as a gold-digger or as a store keeper to supply the 
 digger's wants. Now the day of the poor man and 
 the easily-got gold is over. The country and its 
 commerce and industries have settled down into the 
 ordinary routine of human communities. 
 
 The " gulches" we passed were for the most part 
 narrow, the old workings not extending over perhaps 
 more than 20 or 30 yards in width, and it was cm-ious 
 to observe how the gold appeared to have settled 
 down in the deepest part of the valley alone. 
 Another remark of some interest I tliink I may 
 venture on, viz., that the gold-bearing bottoms are, 
 or were, either on or below the level of the clay 
 slate or silurian formation, and that when, as on the 
 higher lands of the Sierra Nevada, granite takes the 
 place of slate, the gold deposits altogether cease ; 
 thus the Yosemite valley, and the bottom lands ad- 
 joining have never been worked. My guide was an 
 old gold-digger of twelve years' experience, who had 
 worked over the whole districts, from Dutch Flat 
 down some hundreds of miles, and had " broke " 
 himself prospecting, drinking and gambling. When 
 I asked him how it was that the Yosemite bottom 
 lands had never been worked, he said because there
 
 160 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xi. 
 
 was nothing but granite above them, and that gold 
 in paying quantities was never found in granite. 
 
 As to the quartz lodes being the gold bearers, I 
 also take leave to say that I beheve that both the 
 quartz and the gold were originally contamed in the 
 slate rocks, and that they have been concentrated 
 simultaneously m the fissures of the clay slate strata 
 upon Mr. Fox's theory. If tliis be so, much of the 
 gold found in the bottoms was probably never 
 combined with quartz in "reefs" or "lodes," but 
 existed in the clay slate strata, and was deposited 
 in the bottoms during its denudation through 
 countless ages. 
 
 The quartz lodes are extremely hard, and do not 
 exist ill sufficient quantity to account for the gold 
 in the ancient water courses. Unfortunately, I was 
 not able to visit the great gold mining districts of 
 Dutch Flat, Bloomfield and Gravels, &c., because 
 they are all now standing idle from want of water. 
 There is a remarkable mine not far from the Yose- 
 mite, of which I saw an account m a local paper. It 
 is called the " Standard Gold Mine" at Bodo in Mono 
 county. On September 14th it returned 38,039 
 dols. ; on the 25th September, 41,519 dels. ; on 
 October 5th, 73,800 dols., say £30,000 in a month, 
 a small local affair ! ! ! 
 
 In spite of such exceptionally brilliant mines, the 
 total production of California proper is not now one- 
 third what it was some years ago. In 1853 it 
 reached 68,000,000 dols. , while last year it was only 
 19,000,000 dols., and for ten years it has not ex-
 
 CHAP. XI.] THE YOSEMITE VALLEY. 161 
 
 ceecled 25,000,000 dols. ; the ten preceding years 
 averaged upwards of 50,000,000 dols. I am thus, I 
 tliink, justified in saying that gold having satisfied 
 the beneficent end for wliich it was placed within 
 man's reach with less than average toil, has now 
 taken its place among the ordinary industries of 
 CaHfornia. The figures I have just quoted refer to 
 California proper, and not to Nevada, wliich has 
 come in to make up the deficit, having last year pro- 
 duced 49,300,000 dols. in gold and silver bullion 
 owing to the immense output of the Comstock run of 
 mines ; but there it is produced by regular mining, 
 not by independent " Placer work," and therefore 
 does not afiect my argument. I learn from the 
 liighest authority that precisely the same condition 
 of things has supervened in Victoria (Australia) ; the 
 easily got gold has been worked out, and the produc- 
 tion has fallen from £12,000,000 to £4,000,000, 
 obtained by regular and expensive mining — but then 
 the clip of wool has taken the place of gold. 
 
 To retm-n to our Yosemite trip. The further and 
 higher we advanced up the slopes of the Sierra Nevada 
 the more densely the mountains bepame clothed with 
 forest, while the trees appeared to attain a larger size 
 until we reached a region of veritable giants — such 
 pines I never saw or cbeamt of. I do not speak of 
 " The Big Trees," but of the ordinary pines and firs, 
 an enumeration of which may interest some of my 
 'readers. Almost all these pines are old friends of 
 mine, and many can be seen in full vigour in the 
 Singleton Pinetmn. The Yellow Pines (not of
 
 1G2 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xi. 
 
 Canada), Pinus Ponderosa and P. Jeffeiyii ; the Sugar 
 Pines, P. Lambertiniana and P. Monticola ; the 
 Douglas Spruce, Abies Douglasii ; the Silver Fir of 
 California, Picea Amabilis ; the Balsam Fu% Picea 
 Grandis, and the Cedar, Libocedrus Decurrens, all 
 grow to an extraordinary size, with the exception 
 of the latter — hundi'eds of each may be seen eight 
 feet and even more in diameter, and 200 feet and up- 
 wards in height. The Libocedrus does not grow 
 quite so large. These Pines begin to flourish at about 
 3,000 feet, and I saw no diminution in their size at 
 6,500 feet above the sea. It was an innnense treat 
 to me to see these great trees in their fullest 
 development, after having watched them as infants 
 and striplings at home, and now, having seen them in 
 their native grandeur, I shall watch them with 
 double interest in then- exile. 
 
 The sun set and left us in the midst of these 
 splendid forests, but the moon was briUiant ; our 
 driver and his horses knew the road, and we dashed 
 down the steep descent of 1,500 feet, round sharp 
 curves and zig-zags, at the rate of ten or twelve 
 mdles an hour, until we found ourselves at our night's 
 resting place, a comfortable single story frame house 
 called " Clark's." After a really hard journey of 13 
 hom-s, early to bed and an early start for the '' Big 
 Trees " was the order of the day. 
 
 The gray dawn was just breakmg as we mounted 
 our stout Httle mustangs, settling oxurselves for the ' 
 first time on or in the old high-peaked Mexican 
 saddles, and winding in smgle file along a steep
 
 CHAP. XL] WELLINGTON I A GIG ANTE A. 163 
 
 mountain path through the same forest of giant fii's 
 we had traversed the night before. Soon we heard 
 a well known sound, a pack of hounds in full cry ! ! 
 a pack of hounds in this ^vild mountain region ! no, 
 our guide tells us it is a pack of wolves hunting a 
 deer, but no one could have told the difference of 
 theu" music. 
 
 After two hours ride we reached the far-famed 
 Mariposa Grove of " Wellingtonia Gigantea," or as the 
 Americans incorrectly call them " Sequoia Gigantea ;" 
 that name was given to the Red Wood Tree of 
 California before the WeUingtonia was discovered, of 
 wliich there is ample proof Six gi'oves of " WelHng- 
 tonia" have been discovered, but that which we 
 visited contains the greatest number, about 600 of 
 the largest trees. A friend has since informed 
 me that he discovered an unknown grove of 
 Wellingtonias, and had ridden nine miles through it, 
 in a distant part of the Sierra Nevada, and thus it is 
 probable that more " Groves" exist. 
 
 I wish to avoid all " tall writing," and I will 
 therefore use no epithets in regard to these trees, 
 but will state a few facts which may convey some 
 idea of their size. Several have fallen — the interior 
 of one, not the largest, was burnt out, leaving a shell 
 with sides of some tliickness ; tall as I am I rode 
 through it, as it lay on the ground, for some 40 feet, 
 and required to stoop very slightly. I rode alongside 
 another which lay prostrate, and, when sitting up- 
 right on my horse, my friends said that the upper 
 portion was at least double as high as my head — 
 
 X 2
 
 164 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xi. 
 
 seven of us on horseback gathered together within 
 the hollow trunk of one that is still standing and 
 flourishing, Indian fires in byegone times having 
 tunnelled through its trunk, but left enough to 
 support it. Some idea of theii' mighty size may be 
 gathered from these few facts. 
 
 The largest is called the " Grizzly Giant," and 
 is reported to be 90 to 109 feet in ch-ciunference ; 
 one side of it is burnt away, and it is, therefore, not 
 easy to measm^e its exact size. I measured it as 
 fairly as I could and made it 80 feet, but I admit it 
 may be made 90 feet with very httle humouring. 
 Now, 90 feet in ch^cumference means 30 feet in 
 diameter, and 30 feet means the frontage of a first- 
 class London house. Imagine a London house built 
 up 325 (nearly the height of St. Paul's) very slowly 
 tapering, and you then have before you the section 
 which these trees would represent if cut do^vn the 
 centre and left standinof. 
 
 A large Ocean Steamer may be 300ft. long, and 
 30 or 40ft. beam. Imagine it standing vertically on 
 its stern. Imagine a round red granite column like 
 the Duke of York's monument, but 30 feet in 
 diameter, bare as that column for 200 feet, and then 
 a branch 8 feet in diameter, that is larger than the 
 largest tree you, perhaps, ever saw, shooting out 
 horizontally, and you have a pictm'e of the " Grizzly 
 Giant." We gazed in wonder at these trees, and 
 wandered about the grove trying to find cones which 
 had not shed their seed, so that we might recreate it 
 in miniature for our children's children in a far
 
 CHAP. XI.] WELLINGTONIA GIG ANTE A. 165 
 
 distant land ; not for our children's cliildren, for 
 these trees are estunated to be the growth of from 
 1,500 to 4,000 years. If that be so, more than a 
 thousand generations must pass away before their 
 Hke can be seen in England, 
 
 It interested me much to take note of the condi- 
 tions mider which they grow. I had heard that 
 they grew in a valley ; that is not so ; they grow 
 on a ridge G,600 feet above the sea, and 2,600 feet 
 above the valley in which we slept. They do not 
 crown the ridge, but are slightly on the south side 
 of it. The hiUs at a distance rise higher in almost 
 all directions it is true, and they may thus be 
 sheltered to some extent. Most of the trees grow 
 on an outlying mass of silurian rock, but some few 
 are on granite. The soil is damp, in spite of the 
 want of rain for six months ; in fact, a fine spring of 
 water bursts out in the thickest portion of the 
 grove ; they evidently do not flourish where the soil 
 is veiy dry. Most of the trees have passed their prime 
 and are going off, and it is remarkable how small 
 their foliage is as compared to their bulk. I cannot 
 say that I saw more than one flourishing young tree. 
 
 Takino' leave of this wonderful eTove, we retraced 
 our steps and embarked in our six-horsed boat for 
 the Yosemite VaUey, wdiich is in fact the North Fork 
 of the Merced River, we having passed our night at 
 " Clark's," on the South Fork. Our road lay over the 
 dividing spur, and reached an elevation of 5,500 
 feet, the bottom of the Yosemite Valley being 4,050 
 above the sen.
 
 166 A TOUR IiV NORTH AMEBIC A. [chap. xi. 
 
 Having seen the great valleys of Switzerland, the 
 Tp'ol, Italy, Styria and Norway, I wondered whether 
 so blase a traveller, as I fear I am, could find any 
 novelty in the Yosemite ? My verdict is that it is 
 in many respects novel and much to be admired : 
 the Romsdahl in Norway, where the Troll Tmder 
 and Romsdalil Horn rise in sheer precipices 3,500 
 feet out of the valley, and where, for 20 or 30 miles, 
 the sides are too precipitous to allow of egress, 
 approaches most closely to the Yosemite, but the 
 latter has pecuhar an^ very marked features of its 
 own. It is a deep rent in a compact white granite 
 formation. On all sides the precipices are sheer and 
 brilHantly white, while the valley, the tops, and 
 here and there the lateral ravines, are clothed with 
 the splendid pines and firs which I first described. 
 
 The granite, an igneous formation, rent asunder 
 probably by the contraction of the earth's surface in 
 cooHng, has formed domes and peaks, rising like 
 spires from 3,000 to 5,000 feet from the valley below. 
 " El Capitan" juts out a sheer and massive granite 
 cliff 3,300 feet high ; opposite to him, and retu-ing 
 from his bold advance, are the "Three Graces," 
 3,400 feet high ; sheltering beneath them are the 
 " Cathedral Spu-es," 2,600 feet, rising in needle 
 points ; while on the opposite side the " Three 
 Brothers," 3,900 feet, out-top the stalwart Captain 
 and gaze across at " The Three Graces," never 
 however to be re-united until perhaps the crack of 
 this world's doom shall sound and rend the miiverse 
 asunder, causing the precipices to topple to their
 
 CHAP. XI.] THE YOSEMITE VALLEY. 167 
 
 downfall. In the centre of the valley, on its 
 southern side, stands the lone "Sentinel," 3,100 
 feet, an isolated rock towering above the comfortable 
 shanty where we passed the night. 1,000 feet above 
 and behind him rises the " Sentinel Dome." 
 
 Ascending the valley, we have on the left the 
 North Dome, 3,725 feet, and on the right the South 
 Dome, 5,000 feet, which can only be ascended by 
 ropes and ladders. The highest mountain of all 
 closes in the valley to the East, and is well named 
 "Cloud's Kest;" it is 6,150 feet above the valley, 
 and 10,190 feet above the sea. Beneath the two 
 domes is Mirror Lake, a beautiful Httle sheet of 
 water, so sheltered, calm and clear, that it reflects 
 the precipices above it with such perfect sharpness 
 and truth that one hardly knows whether one is 
 gazing at the moimtain itself or its reflection. The 
 well known photographs of " Mirror Lake " give the 
 efiect truthfully, and may be viewed either side up 
 with almost equal effect. 
 
 We had but one day to stay in this wondrously 
 beautiful valley, and it was a question whether we 
 should climb the lofty " Sentmel Dome" or wander 
 through the valley and thoroughly and quietly enjoy 
 its beauties. Our friends chose the former, and de- 
 scribe the views of the distant Sierra and the Foot- 
 hills, almost down to the Pacific, as magnificent, not 
 omitting the domes and peaks of the valley itself 
 below them. We chose the latter, and were equally 
 content with our ride through the lovely park-like 
 scene, and oui' quiet study of the beauties of the
 
 168 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xi. 
 
 valley itself, the towering precipices above us, and 
 the tall trees around us. 
 
 I cannot, alas, describe the waterfalls, for there 
 was " a strike on," and they had ceased to work ! ! 
 The " Bridal Veil," 940 feet, was alone running a 
 few gallons, not enough to shelter the Bride's blushes. 
 The pictui'esque part of the Yosemite Valley is but 
 eight miles long, after which, in each direction, it 
 becomes a gorge, or canyon as it is here called. 
 
 The Yosemite was our most distant j)oint, and we 
 here began oiu^ " back trail," which we have already 
 followed for some 1,100 miles, during which journey 
 most of what I have recorded, beginning with San 
 Francisco, has been written.
 
 CHAP. XII.] A'^EVADA SILVER MINES. 169 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 NEVADA SILVER MINES. 
 
 I HAVE still to describe our visit to the great Nevada 
 Silver Mines on the " Comstock " lode. Oui- kind 
 friends of the Central Pacific Railway gave us a 
 "special" to Truckee (177 miles), wliich saved us a 
 day, and enabled us to see the portion of the Sierra 
 Nevada by daylight wliich we had before passed in 
 the night. We were also permitted to stop our 
 train at the most interesting points. 
 
 I can only describe this portion of the route, i.e., 
 for some 20 or 30 miles on either side of the summit 
 of the Sierra Nevada, as very fine moimtain scenery, 
 but without the lofty rugged peaks of Switzerland 
 or the bold outhnes of Norway. The pine forests 
 have been largely cleared close to the line, but some 
 giants of the same species as those we passed on our 
 way to the Yosemite, still remam. Donner Lake, 
 just below the summit to the east, is a beautiful 
 sheet of water, embosomed in ti^es, but of no great 
 extent. It was the scene of a sad tragedy in early 
 emigrant days : a large party having been overtaken 
 by snow and starved to death. The " siunmit " itself 
 of the Sierra Nevada does not afford a striking view 
 on either side ; it is compact white gi'anite, just like 
 the backbone of old Cornwall. 
 
 Y
 
 170 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xii. 
 
 At Truckee we left the Pacific line, and, sending 
 our car round to Carson City, drove up a fine wood- 
 land valley by a clear stream to Lake Talioe, the 
 highest lake in the world on wliich a steamer plies. 
 It is 36 miles long, 9 or 10 broad, and about 
 7,500 feet above the level of the sea ; its depth is 
 said to be 1,700 feet, and I was told by several 
 people that the best swimmer cannot remain long 
 above the water; a man who camiot swun never 
 rises if he falls into it. The Indians will not venture 
 on it ; its name means " The Evil One ; " it is the 
 only lake I have seen in America which reminded me 
 of Switzerland. The dividuig ridge of the Sierra 
 Nevada forms its western shore, rising many thou- 
 sand feet above it, and terminating in fine irregular 
 outlines. 
 
 We sped across its deep blue waters in a high- 
 pressure steam-launch at the rate of some 1 5 miles 
 an hour, a,nd on landing fomid to oiu- sm^prise a 
 locomotive waiting to push us up a zig-zag narrow- 
 guage hue to the top of the ridge wliich divided us 
 from Carson Valley. This line forms part of a great 
 undertaking for the supply of the Silver Mines of 
 Virginia city with timber, its object being to convey 
 the timber cut upon the borders of the Lake to 
 the top of the ridge, from whence it is floated down 
 in what are called " Flumes," to the Carson and 
 Virginia City RaLboad. These " Flumes" are angular 
 launders of wood, with enough water flowing tlu'ough 
 them to float the timber, which shoots down them 
 at from 10 to 12 miles an hour, and is landed at
 
 CHAP. XII.] VIRGINIA CITY. 171 
 
 Carson, 13 miles away, without the hand of man 
 ever toucliinor it. 
 
 o 
 
 The zig-zags were arranged so that the engine 
 reversed itself at each turn, and first pushed and 
 then pulled us. The Hne was most expensive to 
 construct, having cost £7,000 per mile ; and, with all 
 due deference, I fancy a fixed engine and inchne 
 would have answered every purpose at a quarter of 
 the first and working cost. The whole face of the 
 country was denuded of trees, and looked most 
 forlorn. Soon the beautiful shores of Lake Tahoe 
 will be equally spoiled, for the maw of the mines is 
 insatiable. 
 
 At the top we found another six-horse coach, 
 steered by the most famous whij) of the West ; and 
 away we went down the steepest hill and worst road 
 I ever travelled over, until we reached the Carson 
 Valley, 1,500ft. below. A night in our car, and then 
 an early start for Vii'ginia City, a city literally built 
 upon the greatest silver and gold mines in the world. 
 After 20 miles of rapid ascent and sharp curves, we 
 were in the midst of this " mine of wealth." On 
 the way we had passed several quartz mills for 
 stamping and amalgamating the Comstock ores. We 
 also passed not a few mining claims, which appeared 
 to consist of a white board with a name painted on 
 it, and nothing more. Among others, I saw my own 
 name posted up, indicating the nation and country 
 from which the claimant came. Cornishmen are the 
 best miners, and are more numerous than any other 
 race in the mining world of the West. The poverty 
 
 Y 2
 
 172 A TOUR- IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xii. 
 
 of Comwall has created the wealth of Western 
 America. 
 
 We ran through the extensive mining town of 
 " Gold Hill," and pulled up almost at the office door 
 of the ConsoKdated Virginia and California Mines, 
 beyond all question the two richest mines in the 
 world. The produce of the first in 1876 was 
 16,657,649 dollars, = £3,331,529, and of the latter 
 13,386,956 dollars, = £2,677,391, or a total of up- 
 wards of six miUions sterHng. These two mines are 
 in fact one, and belonged to a great extent to the 
 same OAvners, being worked from the same shaft, and 
 the produce kept separate as a matter of account. 
 Shares are sold separately in each, but they may be 
 viewed as a whole when speaking of them as a mine. 
 The length of both sets together is only 1,500ft., or 
 250 fathoms. 
 
 The whole country for miles round is of a highly 
 igneous geological character. In the valley between 
 Truckee and Tahoe Lake I saw actual volcanic tufa, 
 and as we approached Vkginia City the rocks were 
 syenitic and porphyritic ; a precipitous hill, Mount 
 Davidson, of the same formation (syenite), about 
 1,500ft. high, rises immediately above the mines. 
 
 Mr. Mackay, an Irish gentleman, who owns a very 
 large interest in these so-called Great Bonanza Mines, 
 which are supposed at this time to be yielding him 
 a clear profit of £900,000 per annum, probably the 
 largest income in the world, very kindly donned his 
 miner's dress, and took us underground, leading the 
 way, and showing a perfect knowledge of every part
 
 CHAP XII.] THE GREAT EOiVANZA MiyES. 173 
 
 we visited. They call the ore ground here a " ledge," 
 and I shall use that word, for I know no mining term 
 in common use which properly describes it. 
 
 We descended in a cage like that of a coal mine, 
 sunk vertically to the east of the " ledge," which 
 underHes in that direction at 45 degs. The pit wiU 
 intersect it at, I tliink, 2,000ft. They have cross cut 
 to it at various levels, their last being 1,750ft. We 
 went to the 1,650ft. as the lower level has only 
 recently cut the " ledge," which has a north and 
 south strike. We first went to the end of a half- 
 course di'ift, which was being driven in barren ground 
 to take ak to the face, and was then, I should say, 
 60 yards " before the air" without a brattice. At 
 the end of this drift the temperatiu-e appeared to me 
 to be as hot as the last chamber but one of a Turkish 
 bath. Unfortunately, I did not take a thermometer 
 do^vn with me. Many places in these mmes are so 
 hot that men can only work for a quarter of an hour 
 at a time, and then they require quantities of iced 
 water and iced air. This mine alone uses ten tons 
 of ice per day. Pouring iced water over the wrist 
 produces an extraordinary tingling sensation. The 
 can of iced water appears to steam from the con- 
 densation of the watery vapour around it. The 
 great heat is no doubt in part due to the natural and 
 constant increase of temperature as you descend. 
 As f^ir as I remember, the general law of the in- 
 crement of heat we established by our investigations 
 in the coal commission was, " a normal temperature 
 of 50 degs. at 50 feet., and then one degree (Fahren-
 
 174 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xii. 
 
 heit) for every 50ft. in depth. Therefore at 1,650ft., 
 we should have 50 degs. pkis 32 degs.^82 degs. — but 
 I am sure the heat in the Bonanza mine must have 
 been over 100 degs. Whether the excess is due to 
 the igneous nature of the formation, or to the che- 
 mical action of the vein stuff, I know not. 
 
 Mr. Mackay told me that the " ledge" is about 
 1000ft. broad, but that the ore bearing or pajdng 
 portion varies in their mine from 70ft. to 360ft., 
 being extremely irregular. It is sometimes divided 
 by " Horses," i.e., wedges of barren ground, and he 
 showed me one 70ft, wide in the midst of the ore 
 ground. They take all the ore ground away in its 
 full width, be it wide or narrow, and cross cut to 
 prove the barren parts of the " ledge." As they 
 take it away so they fill in the space quite full of 
 timber, about a foot square, laid horizontally ; the 
 mainways are kept open by the heaviest timbers 
 close together, accurately morticed, and yet they 
 crush. 
 
 The " ledge" of ore ground is composed of nodules, 
 or small iiTegularly-shaped pieces of greenish-drab 
 rock, surrounded by " sugary" quartz. The quartz 
 is not compact and hungry looking, but very friable. 
 Sometimes the quartz and sometimes the drab stones 
 predominate ; the quartz does not carry the ore to 
 any extent ; it is almost wholly contained in the 
 drab stone, wliich Mr. Mackay said was " porphyry." 
 After carefully examining it under a magnifying 
 glass, I think that it is of that nature, that is to 
 say, something between Cornish elvan and tufa.
 
 CHAP. XII.] THE GREAT BONANZA MINES. 175 
 
 I can detect niinute spots of dark ore, which I take 
 to be SLilphide of silver. I also see spots of u'on and 
 copper pyrites, some bright spots may be native 
 silver, but I doubt it. I think I can detect in the 
 specimens I have one mmute piece of gold; but as 
 the ore contains only 2\ ounces of gold per ton, it 
 may well be in combination with the silver, copper, 
 and ii'on sulpliides, for it is perfectly well estabhshed 
 that gold mU go into such combinations with other 
 metals. The averao^e contents in silver are about 
 40 or 50 ounces per ton. The ore averages in value 
 about 100 dollars (£20) per ton, of which about 
 45 per cent, is gold, and 55 per cent, silver. 
 
 Mr. Mackay informed me that the lying waU of 
 the ledge is syenite, while the hanging wall is a kind 
 of clay, marked truchite, greenstone, and porphyhte 
 on Mr. Sutro's section. The character of this occur- 
 
 "^rence of ore is evidently very exceptional, and I 
 cannot pretend to offer an opinion on its origin, 
 except that as the ore ground is confined to one side 
 of the ledge, it would seem as if the strata it is m 
 
 [contact with on that side must have had something 
 to do with the presence of ore in that part of the 
 ledge. The two great mines nicknamed " The Bo- 
 
 jnanza," from that word signifying in Mexican a great 
 bunch or deposit of ore (or possibly " goods"), are by 
 no means the only ones on tliis ledge. Eight ad- 
 
 Ijouiing mines last year produced 7,569,798 dollars 
 (£1,513,959) of gold and silver bnlhon. Some of 
 these mines have been extraordinarily productive in 
 past times, but have now "cut poor" for this district,
 
 176 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xii. 
 
 althougli two, viz., the " Belclier" and " Opliir," 
 produced more than one-half the above sum last 
 year. It is stated on a map, obligingly given me by 
 Mr. Sutro, that up to 1st April, 1870, the Comstock 
 lode had yielded 120,250,000 dollars (£24,500,000) 
 of gold and silver bullion. Its produce since that 
 time has been much greater, but I am not in pos- 
 session of the figures. 
 
 It will be seen that the ore itself is not rich, being- 
 worth on an average £20 per ton, while silver ores 
 sometimes run as liigh as £2,000 or £3,000 per ton. 
 It is the quantity produced which constitutes the 
 richness of these mines. The Consolidated Virginia 
 and California alone are now raising no less than 
 1,400 tons per day, or £28,000 gross, from which 
 m.ust be deducted the loss of metal (equal to about 
 one-tenth) and the cost of getting the ore and " re- 
 turning" the bulHon. This production is much in 
 excess of that of any previous period. 
 
 As to the future of this run of ixiines, it would be 
 presumptuous on my part to speak after a day's 
 visit. Give me the run of the mines and maps for a 
 month, and I might hazard an opinion ; it is plainly 
 an uncertain "bunchy" ore occurrence. I observe 
 on Mr. Sutro's section of 1870 that the blanks at 
 that time outnumbered the prizes, obtained by sink- 
 ing on 17,000 feet of the run of the Comstock lode, 
 as four or five to one. There appears to be no regu- 
 larity in the occurrence of the ore, but when it does 
 occur it is in great masses. I am sorry that I can 
 give no more definite prophesy, because the future
 
 CHAP. XII.] THE COMiSTOCK LODE. 177 
 
 of this great bullion production is of world-wide 
 interest, being supposed to be one of the disturbing 
 elements in the value of silver. Seeing, however, 
 that nearly one-half the value of the produce of 
 these mines is gold, I incline to think that their 
 disturbing influence must have been over-rated. 
 
 In speaking of the future of these mines I ought 
 not to overlook the great work of Mr. Sutro, Avho 
 obtained an Act of Congress enabling him to drive a 
 deep '' Adit," or Tunnel, nearly fom- miles long, to 
 unwater the mmes, at a depth of 2,244 feet. It is 
 evident that this " Adit" mustreheve the mines of a 
 great charge for pumping water, and enable many a 
 poor muie to struggle on and perhaps cut rich again. 
 Moreover, I think it probable that it wiU become a 
 great in-take airway, and give the mines an abundant 
 supply of fresh au* in theu' bottom levels. 
 
 A few words as to the extraction of the gold and 
 silver : this Ls effected by the old amalgamation 
 process, which depends upon the affinity of gold and 
 silver for quicksilver. The ore is stamped wet to a 
 fine slime, then run into circular iron vats about four 
 feet high, and five feet diameter, closed over with 
 sheet ii'on. The stuff is kept m a constant state of 
 agitation by fans revolving in the vats. Quicksilver 
 is added, as also sulphate of copper and salt. The 
 liquid is heated by steam. The well-known chemical 
 reaction takes place, setting free the gold and silvei 
 from theu' primary combinations, and enabling them 
 to combine with the quicksilver, which is then mn 
 ofP, and the uncombined portions of quicksilver 
 
 z
 
 178 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap, xii 
 
 allowed to filter through close linen bags, the amalgam 
 of gold, silver, and quicksilver remaining behind, from 
 which the quicksilver is expelled by heat, in retorts, in 
 the usual way, leaving the gold and silver in such a 
 state as to require only to be melted into ingots. The 
 merits of this process are the saving of labour and 
 fuel, both very costly in this country, and the 
 rapidity of extraction of the precious metals. The 
 demerits are, great loss of quicksilver, amounting at 
 this mine to £15,000 per month, and loss of produce 
 in slimes and taihngs, equal to eight doUars or 10 
 dollars, say 30s. to 40s. per ton of stuff. I am by no 
 means prepared to say that I could not suggest two 
 or three better modes of treatment, but it would be 
 too big an affair for any one to undertake, especially 
 in view of the uncertainty of these mines, and the 
 cheapness and facility of the present process as to 
 labour, fuel, and returns. 
 
 Leaving Virginia City we rejoined the main hne 
 of the Union Pacific at Eeno, and were soon 
 *' hitched " on to a regular Express and well on our 
 homeward way ; three days and nights brought us 
 to Cheyenne on the Union Pacific Railway, from 
 whence we diverged from our old route in a due 
 southerly direction to Denver, 106 miles distant. 
 Up to Cheyenne I have already described our route 
 over vast and dreaiy sage brush plains, reheved only 
 by the passage of the Palissade, Weber, and Echo 
 Canyons, and the fine mountains about Salt Lake, 
 now powdered with their first snows. 
 
 From Cheyenne to Denver our route lay parallel
 
 I 
 
 CHAP XII.] THE HOMEWARD EXPRESS. 179 
 
 with the great chain of the Rocky Mountains, the 
 highest peak of wliich here rises 9,000 feet above the 
 plain and 14,000 feet above the sea. This range is 
 really Alpine in its height and outline. Several 
 peaks, in fact, exceed 14,000 feet, the highest being 
 Pike's Peak 14,336 feet ; the range is intersected by 
 deep canyons or ravines, and at four or five places, 
 forms secluded, so-called " Parks," which I am told 
 are very beautiful, being flat, grassy, park-like 
 spaces, as large as Glamorganshire, embosomed in 
 lofty mountains, and well timbered up to 10,000 feet. 
 Three of these peculiar parks, called North, Middle, 
 and South Parks, have been set apart for the use of 
 the public for ever — one, Este's Park, about 500,000 
 acres in extent, I am told, and containing within it 
 one of the loftiest mountains of the range, (Long's 
 Peak) 14,050 high, has been purchased by the Earl 
 of Duiu-aven, whose admirable work, " The Great 
 Divide," is so well known and appreciated. North 
 Park is about 70 miles long and 23 wide. 
 
 Time would not permit us to visit any of these 
 lovely spots. We had but one day, and we spent it 
 in plunging deep into the Rocky Mountain range. 
 Leaving Denver early we proceeded by broad guage 
 (4 ft. 8^ in.) to Golden, and thence by narrow guage 
 (3 ft.) up the Clear Creek Canyon to George-town, 
 the central town of this Silver Mining District, and 
 the seat of several reduction works, situated 8,675 
 feet above the sea by my aneroid. The little 3 ft. 
 guage line has been carried up this chasm, so narrow 
 at places that it would seem almost impassable for 
 
 z 2
 
 180 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA, [chap, xii, 
 
 a goat, with indomitable energy and at slight cost — 
 only £1,000 per mile. Some of the grades are 1 in 
 26, and some of the curves 36 degrees ; but it works 
 well and pays well. The engine, with three small 
 coupled wheels, can take up 50 tons net. 
 
 Georgetown is 54 miles from Denver, and nine 
 miles only from the " Divide " of the Kocky Moun- 
 tains. They intend ultimately to push theu- Httle 
 line through to the Salt Lake Valley, about 250 
 miles further. Hereafter, this route may become a 
 favourite one to the Pacific, for it is by far the short- 
 est and incomparably grander than the existing line. 
 The Canyon at its lower end is a mere reft in a sohd 
 " Gneiss" formation (the fu'st of that formation which 
 I have seen on this Continent) ; the rocks appear to 
 impend over the narrow gorge, rismg frequently in 
 precipices 1,500 feet above the railway — a wilder 
 place I never saw. 
 
 Central City and Black Hawk, the site of exten- 
 sive reduction works, lie up another branch of the 
 Canyon. Time did not permit us to visit them. 
 Gold washing is prosecuted by poor men as a stand- 
 ing mdustry all along the valley in the gravel beds ; 
 if they get four dollars per day they do well. 
 
 The Silver Mines are regular lodes, ajDparently 
 almost wholly in "Gneiss," wdiich in its Hthological 
 character reminded me strongly of the country around 
 Freiberg, in Saxony, with which, indeed, it seemed 
 to be identical. The ore I saw was a mixture of pure 
 silver ore with some galena, copper, and zinc blende, 
 much as in the Saxon Erzgebirge.
 
 CHAP. XII.] THE PRAIRIES. ANTELOPE. 181 
 
 The whole vakie of metals produced in Colorado 
 was estimated last year at 6,057,000 dollars — 
 £1,300,000. The metalliferous mines extend all 
 along the range of the Eocky Mountains, but the 
 most productive district is tlmt wliich we visited. 
 On our return darkness set in before we regained 
 Denver. 
 
 On the moiTow, at an early hour, we started 
 for our final journey eastward by the Kansas Pacific 
 Railway, over the endless rolling prairies of 
 Colorado and Kansas ; no more sage-brush and salt, 
 but short nutritious prairie grass, upon which num- 
 bers of cattle feed, and here and there herds of ante- 
 lopes ; we vainly bombarded them from the rear 
 platform of our car, having an understanding with 
 our conductor that if we killed one we might stop 
 the train to pick it up ; but it was no joke shooting 
 antelope at 600 or 900 yards from a jolting train 
 gomg 30 miles an hour. We saw many balls strike 
 close to them and turn them, but none took effect. 
 We also passed two wolves within shot, but unluckily 
 were not ready for them. 
 
 For hundi'eds of miles we traversed prairies with- 
 out a house in sight except at the Stations of the 
 Railway ; it is a wild country, and has a somewhat 
 evil repute. It is said that the thirteen desperadoes 
 who stopped and robbed a train on the^Union Pacific 
 just before we crossed to California came from this 
 district, and last night our conductor told us to be 
 ready, as there had been a "difficulty" with the 
 Indians two nights before, about twelve miles from
 
 182 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap xii. 
 
 where we then were, and that they had killed two 
 "ranche men" (a "ranche" is a farm, or "run"); they 
 have never been known to attack a train since the 
 early days of railways out here, and there was no 
 real danger. However, both as we passed " out 
 West," and on our return journey, we have had our 
 guns and rifles ready, and should have given them a 
 pretty warm reception. 
 
 Now we are within a few miles of Kansas City, 
 and have been for some time running through a well- 
 farmed rich country, the Indian corn standing thick 
 and high, higher than a man's head on horseback. 
 The winter wheat bright green, and the fields divided 
 by hedges ; the rivers full, for it has rained heavily, 
 though now the sun is hot and the sky Italian ; the 
 autumn tints are on the trees and are very lovely, 
 ripened as the foliage has been by a southern sun. 
 Cottages and homesteads around us in all directions, 
 — no more antelopes, wolves, Indians, or " road 
 agents" (the American for liighway robbers). We 
 are to " mail" our letters at Kansas City, the last we 
 shall post before we become ourselves the bearers of 
 our own despatches.
 
 CHAP. XIII.] ST. LOUIS. 183 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 ST. LOUIS. 
 
 Kansas City was readied just at simset. We had 
 light enough to see the fine bridge over the tur- 
 bid Missoiu'i, but neither time nor light to see 
 the City, which appeared to be enveloped in smoke 
 and dust, for we had agam reached the great coal 
 districts of America. Indeed, it appears from the 
 geological map that for a long distance west of 
 Kansas we had been passing over the coal measure 
 formation, although I saw no evidence of it — no 
 sidings fuU of coal trucks or surface indications of 
 coal workings — notliing but rich alluvial land under 
 cultivation, purely agricultm^al apparently. 
 
 The usual good night's rest on board om^ yacht 
 car after our supper and our rubber, and then at 
 early da\^Ti we found ourselves approaching St. 
 Louis. The country was well timbered with hard 
 wood ; the leaves faUing and the autumn tints dis- 
 appearmg rapidly; fields in excellent cultivation 
 divided by fences ; meadows in wliich cattle were 
 grazing, and winter wheat of emerald gi^een, made 
 up the landscape, an immense rehef, after the brown 
 plains and hills of California, the dreary sage-brush 
 desert, extending for a thousand miles more or less 
 over which we had passed, and the scarcely more
 
 184 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xiii. 
 
 attractive rolling prairie covered with brown grass 
 and devoid of all features of interest. 
 
 We soon arrived at St. Louis, formerly the undis- 
 puted capital of the Far West. Now its title to 
 that distinction is sharply disputed by its great 
 rival, Chicago. 
 
 Each of these two cities possesses special advan- 
 tages. The one is the chief port of the great lakes 
 of Northern America ; the other, situated as it is at 
 the junction of the two main arteries of inland navi- 
 gation, the Missouri and Mississippi rivers, commands 
 the trade of the country which they intersect. Both 
 are " located " on the borders of the Far West, and 
 are connected with it by lines of railway bringing in 
 to them the abundance of its agricultural produce in 
 grain, cattle, hogs, and sheep. 
 
 The merchants and brokers of both cities gather 
 together the units and send them forth m their 
 organised miUions. Samples of grain of all kinds are 
 brought to the halls of their Chambers of Commerce. 
 The hall of St. Louis is said to be the largest Corn 
 Exchange in the world ; it is 96 feet wdde, 220 feet 
 long, and 60 high. Here grain of all kinds has its 
 proper grade of quahty assigned to it, and here it 
 passes from the hands of the farmer to those of the 
 exporter or miller. Hogs are gathered together in 
 the yards, appraised at their value, and slaughtered 
 or sent forward as I described w4ien at Chicago. 
 Cattle and sheep ai'e dealt with m these great 
 western marts in like manner. 
 
 In the year 1876 St. Louis received and dealt with
 
 CHAP. XIII.] ST. LOUIS. 185 
 
 64,758,528 bushels of grain of all sorts (Chicago 87 
 millions). In hogs St. Louis is far behind, having 
 received 877,160 and packed only 329,895, against 
 two milHons and a quarter at Chicago. I see the 
 average nmiiber of hogs packed in the West is 
 upwards of five millions per annum, and the average 
 price last year (for lOOlbs. gross) was 7.06.56 dollars, 
 say 28s. 3^d. or about 3|^d. per pound. St. liOuis 
 received 349,043 cattle and 157,831 sheep last year, 
 or about one-thu^d as many cattle as Cliicago and 
 half as many sheep. 
 
 These deficiencies are compensated by its transac- 
 tions in other products ; thus St. Louis is the chief 
 centre of the American lead trade, no less than 
 24,175 tons havmg passed through its markets last 
 year ; about one-half of this lead came from the west, 
 and the other half was of local production. Cotton 
 also figm-es as a large item, 244,598 bales having 
 been received during 1876. 
 
 The growth of St. Louis has been rapid, though 
 not so much so as Chicago. In 1799 its population 
 was 925; 1840, 16,469; 1850, 74,439; 1870, 
 310,864 ; and it is now estimated at 495,000, while 
 Chicago is estimated at 460,000. It was originally 
 a French settlement, and retains some of its ancient 
 national characteristics, especially the predominance 
 of the Roman CathoHc religion among many of its 
 leading families. The French language is also still 
 spoken ; an old woman begged of me m French in 
 the street. 
 
 This city is laid out in the ordinary American 
 
 A A
 
 186 A TOUR IN NORTH A3IERICA. [chap, xiil 
 
 way, that is, wide streets at right angles to each 
 other, but there is nothing especially noteworthy 
 that I was able to observe, except the magnificent 
 bridge over the Mississippi. That indeed is a grand 
 engineering achievement ; it consists of three spans, 
 two of 500 feet and one of 250 feet, and carries a | 
 double hne of railway with a 50 feet roadway over 
 it. 
 
 The Mississippi is an ill-conditioned mud-begrimed 
 turbulent stream, the most disappointing first-class 
 river I ever saw ; its bed is a mass of sand which at 
 times it scours away down to the rock. It was, 
 therefore, necessary to carry the stone piers deep 
 enough to place their foundations firmly on the rock 
 itself This was efiected by first building a wrought 
 iron caisson of the size and shape of the fomidation 
 of each pier, viz., hexagonal and 28ft. across. Tliis 
 caisson was open only at the bottom, but was fur- 
 nished with a manhole at the top through which the 
 workmen descended into it; compressed air was 
 pmnped in through pipes. WalHng of massive stone- 
 work was built upon the caisson, tier by tier, until 
 the caisson was sunk deep enough to reach the sand. 
 Then men descended into it through shafts in the 
 masonry, and worked the sand out by proper 
 mechanical arrangements, until at last the caisson 
 reached the solid rock ; it was then filled with con- 
 crete, and became as sohd as the rock itself. The 
 shafts were likewise fiUed in, and the massive piers 
 stood and still stand defymg the rush of tlfis tm^bu- 
 lent river. To reach the rock, and allow 50ft. clear
 
 CHAP. XIII.] THE ST. LOUIS BRIDGE. 187 
 
 above the highest water level, one of these piers had 
 to be bmlt 191ft. high from the bed rock, and another 
 165. Their weight is said to be from 28,000 to 
 33,000 tons. 
 
 The bridge itself depends on eight parallel arched 
 gu-ders of wrought iron ; four support each railway 
 line, two bemg placed vertically, i. e., one over the 
 other in pairs. Each pair is connected by diagonal 
 braces, and kept in a vertical position by very 
 strong distance pieces of wrought iron, stayed by cross 
 ties. The railways and roadways are supported by 
 vertical lattice girders of angle u-on, rising from the 
 diagonal braces of the arched girders, which have all 
 the strain to bear. It is a very splendid piece of 
 work, but I fancy the present American system of 
 builduig bridges of great span is cheaper and me- 
 chanically better. It depends on the use of flat bars 
 on edge below the roadway to take the rending 
 strain, and light tubes above to take the crushing 
 strain, braced together by diagonals and uprights. I 
 think they beat even Brimel's Saltash and Windsor 
 "bow and string" bridges for Hghtness and economy, 
 which I had previously looked upon as the finest 
 engineering m the world. Of com-se such brute force 
 affahs as the Menai and Grand Trunk of Canada 
 Bridge at Montreal can only be named with bated 
 breath as a reproach to EngHsh engineering. 
 
 The St. Louis Bridge was built out from the piers 
 by balance, without scaflblding, that is to say, the 
 pier was first raised to its height, and the iron 
 structure was built out simultaneously on each side, 
 
 AA 2
 
 188 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xiii. 
 
 connecting rods being passed over the pier, so that 
 every ton added on one side a corresj)onding ton was 
 added on the other " to keep the balance true." It 
 Cost, I beheve, about £1,000,000. The German 
 gentleman in charge of the bridge kindly took me 
 over it, and explamed the details. 
 
 I must confess I am much disappointed with the 
 Mississippi. I had visions of the Nile, the St. 
 Lawrence, and the Rhine, and expected to be equally 
 impressed. Instead of those glorious masses of 
 rushing water, I saw a volume of hquid mud, not even 
 of a pictiuresque red tmge like the Severn, but much 
 like the Thames between London and Battersea in 
 its times of deepest defilement. I was even dis- 
 appointed in the size of the river. It is but 500 
 yards wide, and about 30ft. deep. I fancy that the 
 Rhine at Cologne is wider, as deep, and quite as 
 rapid while we all remember the comparative clear- 
 ness of its waters. No doubt the Mississippi at 
 St. Louis is a long way from its mouth, but it never 
 can, I think, become a satisfactory river to those 
 who cannot admire muddy water. 
 
 There is an au^ of business-like activity, without 
 ostentatious display, about St. Louis, which contrasts 
 favoiu'ably with Chicago. There is no architectural 
 extravagance in the offices and warehouses, the out- 
 come of fires, mortgages, and commercial excitement. 
 All the buildings are plain and sohd, as befits the 
 object for which they are designed. The outskirts 
 of the city are fiUed Avith substantial villas standing 
 in their own gardens, and fui'ther afield are well
 
 CHAP. XIII.] CINCINNATI. 189 
 
 arranged parks and pleasm-e gi'oimds. The Churches 
 are numerous and handsome ; as I before said, omng 
 to its French origin, and to the number of Irish who 
 have settled there, the Roman Cathohc element 
 seems to predominate. 
 
 Time unfortunately did not permit of my visiting 
 the lead and kon mines around St. Louis ; in fact, 
 three times three months would not suffice to take 
 stock of the details of this great Continent ; my tour 
 is hke the first rough sketch of the artist, the details 
 may or may not ever be filled in. 
 
 Eastward and ever eastward is now the burthen 
 upon us, and so our next short halt was at Cincinnati, 
 after traversing the rich farming States of Illinois and 
 Indiana. The former is destmed hereafter to be as 
 famous for its mineral as for its agricultm^al resources, 
 representing as it does one of the largest of the 
 American coal-fields. The lower portion of Indiana 
 also includes the Southern end of the same field. 
 
 The City of Cincinnati impressed us most favour- 
 ably ; indeed, it is called the " Queen City" ; its 
 situation is certainly fine, stretching for several miles 
 along the North bank of the Ohio, which here bends 
 to the South, so that the City fills up the inner arc 
 of the hah" cu-cle, thus fronting the river on two of 
 its sides. The ground rises rapidly from the river, 
 then flattens and rises again, causing the City to be 
 built alternately on terraces facing the river, and 
 then to cHng as it were to the hill side, which rises 
 higher and higher until it attains an elevation of 
 several hundred feet.
 
 190 A TOUR IN NORTE AMERICA, [chap. xiii. 
 
 At least one-third of the inhabitants of Cincinnati 
 are either German or of German extraction; they 
 live in a separate quarter on the other side of the 
 Miami canal, which they have christened the Rhine, 
 and the quarter they inhabit is thus " Over the 
 Rhine." Our road to the pretty park and suburb 
 of Clifton lay through this quarter, and one might 
 have imagined one-self in Germany, both names and 
 sign-boards being almost exclusively in German 
 characters, while every third house was a " Bier 
 Keller," or " HaUe," or " Tanz Boden." 
 
 Immense breweries floui^ish in tliis part of the 
 City, and I was told that last year 500,000 barrels 
 of beer were brewed in Cincinnati. I can vouch for 
 the excellence of the produce, for I have never 
 tasted better in Munich itself On this side of the 
 City the hill terminates in a cliff, and on the top of 
 it is perched one of the characteristic German Lust 
 Hauser, where the good Deutschers assemble in 
 summer, and drink huge glasses of frothing amber 
 liquid (wonderfully unintoxicating, probably because 
 made of pure malt and hops alone), to the strains of 
 really good music, or twirl their buxom Fraiien round 
 in the old " trois temps" or " schottish" to the same 
 strains. 
 
 Cincinnati over the Rhine took me back to happy 
 days gone by, for I love the old Deutsche Sitten in 
 spite of their Rauch, and old Deutschland itself in 
 spite of its Rinnen ; and verDy, in Cincinnati, there 
 are the Rinnen, dirty filthy gutters, running down 
 the streets as odorous as in the Fatherland.
 
 CHAP. XIII.] EDUCATION AT CINCINNATI. 191 
 
 The German element appears to have imparted 
 much solidity to Cincinnati. No nonsensical out- 
 ward show is to be seen there ; the warehouses and 
 offices are substantial, Avithout display, and the 
 advanced position which Cincinnati takes in all that 
 appertams to education and the arts, is probably in 
 a great degree traceable to the same influence. I 
 have before me the Forty- Seventh Annual Report of 
 the Education Board of Cincinnati, and anythmg 
 more " thorough" I cannot conceive. The City 
 seems to be divided into 26 districts for primary 
 educational purposes, each provided with good and 
 substantial schools. Then follow foui' " intermediate" 
 schools ; then three liigh schools, then five schools 
 for " coloui'ed" pupils, then a " deaf mute school" ; 
 and, lastly, a " normal school" ; also 17 night schools : 
 aU are free, being supported by local taxation. The 
 examination papers in the higher " grades" of the 
 " high schools" are given in the Report, in Latin, 
 Greek, German, French, Survejdng, Chemistry, 
 Astrology, Natm-al History, Mental Philosophy, Con- 
 stitution, Book-keepmg, Trigonometry, &c., &c. I 
 have been looking over the papers, and am only 
 thankful that my examination in them is not im- 
 pending. (If the Atlantic and the good ship 
 " Russia" behave well, I shall try to touch again on 
 American education before the all-absorbing duties 
 of home-life shunt my pen into other lines.) 
 
 Then the Pubhc Library of Cincinnati is an object 
 of just pride to the good citizens. It possesses 
 84,002 volumes, and £4,000, raised by an infinitely
 
 192 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap, xiil 
 
 small tax on realised property, is expended annually 
 in the purchase of new books. So much is tliis 
 Library appreciated, that last year 662,407 books 
 and periodicals were lent to the inhabitants. Besides 
 this Public Library, there is a large Commercial 
 Library, dependent on an annual subscription of 
 5 dols. — £1. There are also Schools of Art, and an 
 immense building to be devoted to music is now in 
 course of construction. I believe that nearly as 
 flattering a tale might be told of many another 
 American city. 
 
 As a seat of manufacturing industry Cincinnati 
 ranks high. It is stated by some to rank third in 
 commercial importance m the United States, but for 
 that I do not vouch. Certainly its manufactures 
 embrace a wide field. It is famous for its Breweries, 
 Whisky Distilleries, Furniture Factories, Steamboats, 
 Steam Engines, Chui^ch Bells, Organs, Pianos, Car- 
 riages, Trunks, Chemicals, Starch, Glue, Soap, 
 Candles, Cooperage, Wine, Castmgs, Cutlery, and 
 an endless list of other articles. It is said that from 
 no Bailway Depot in the United States is so great a 
 variety of articles exported. 
 
 The annual report of the Board of Trade of Cin- 
 cinnati states that in 1875 it had 4,469 manu- 
 facturing establishments, with a cash capital of 
 63,149,085 dols. invested. The value of real estate 
 occupied was 52,151,680 dols. There were 60,999 
 hands employed, and the value of the products 
 amounted to 144,207,871 dols. The exports of 1874 
 were 221,536,852 dols., and the imports 331,177,055
 
 CHAP. xiii. ] CINCINNA TI. 193 
 
 dols. It is also a great centre for the import and 
 export of pig ii'on to the States of Ohio, Indiana, 
 Illinois, and Michigan — five hundred finns being 
 engaged in manfacturing or dealmg in iron alone. 
 Its transactions in pig iron amount to 25,000,000 
 dols. annually, say £5,000,000. 
 
 The manufactm-ing and commercial prosperity of 
 Cincmnati is based on her situation on the banks of 
 the Ohio, which passing through one of the greatest 
 coal and iron districts of the United States, suppHes 
 her abundantly and at the cheapest possible rate, 
 while it opens to her the riparian coasts of the Oliio, 
 Mississippi, and Missouri, said to be thu'ty thousand 
 miles in length, measm^ing, I presume, both banks of 
 those rivers. 
 
 The first settlement of this prosj)erous city was in 
 1788, but the early settlers had constant and bloody 
 encounters with the Indians, and many years elapsed 
 before their position became assured and peaceful. 
 In 1800 the population was but 750; it is now 
 estimated at about 300,000. The city itself is 
 on the right, or West Virginian bank of the Oliio, 
 but it is connected by a splendid suspension bridge 
 with the Kentucky shore, on wliich, immediately 
 opposite, is the town of Carrington. This bridge is 
 2,252 feet in length, 36 feet wide, and 103 feet above 
 the water line at low water. The central span is 
 1057 feet ; the piers are 200 feet high ; the cost was 
 £300,000 — it is quite one of the finest suspension 
 bridges I ever saw. 
 
 To illustrate the advance in bridgfe buildinc: as to 
 
 B B
 
 194 A TOUR IN XORTII AMERICA. [chap. xiii. 
 
 cost, in comparison with the above and with the 
 Mississippi bridge at St. Louis, I will give the 
 figures of the Southern Railway Bridge now being 
 constructed at Cincmnati over the Ohio. It is a 
 trestle gh^der bridge, and, with its approaches, will be 
 a mile long ; it has one span of 519 feet, two of 300 
 feet, one " door" (or opening) span of 370 feet, one 
 of 110 feet, and will be 40 feet above high water 
 mark; but its cost will only be £133,000. The 
 Severn Tunnel is to cost a milhon, while the bridge 
 over the Mississippi at St. Louis, which is not one 
 third its length, and no wider in one span, cost a 
 million. It is true that the latter carries a double 
 line of railway and a roadway, still the difference in 
 cost is most striking. 
 
 The envh'ous of Cincinnati contain many beautiful 
 villas, amounting almost to country places ; the 
 ground, being broken into hill and valley, affords 
 commanding sites. The Spring Grove Cemetery, 
 some five miles from the city, 450 acres in extent, is 
 one of the most beautiful burial places I have ever 
 seen, containing many monuments exliibitmg high 
 art — one said to have cost £12,000. 
 
 The last stage of our long journey may be 
 said to have commenced at Cincinnati, from 
 whence to Washino-ton we have a run of 22 
 hours, and thence, ma Baltimore, to New York, 
 6 hom-s. The Marietta and Cincinnati, and Balti- 
 more and Oliio Hallways, between Cincinnati and 
 Washington, traverse the States of Ohio and West 
 Yirginia, the latter portion of the route crossing
 
 i 
 
 CHAP, xiii.] THE ALLEGHANIES. 1^5 
 
 the Alleghany Mountains, in the midst of which 
 I am now writing. 
 
 The first 20 or 30 miles of our route lay through 
 a fertile aofricultural district, well tunbered mth 
 hard wood. We then gradually entered a wilder 
 region mth a poor yellow soil, and passed along the 
 banks of a small stream \^ith low lulls rismg about 
 100 feet on each side, clothed with oak coppice, 
 the strips of flat land in the valley yielding grudg- 
 ingly, and the scattered cottages of the inhabitants 
 sharing in the poverty-stricken look of the district. 
 The rocks however begin to look Hke old friends, and 
 soon I see evidences that we have entered on the 
 coal measures again, so that the external poverty 
 may well be compensated by the internal wealth. 
 First we pass an abandoned blast furnace, then the 
 crop of a vein of coal about 4 feet thick, which I 
 trace here and there in the cuttings and hillsides 
 for several miles, dead flat and " in its place" (as we 
 say) with no indication of faulty ground, apparently 
 a very Paradise for the oft-disappomted collier. 
 
 At nightfall we approached Pai'kersbm-g, on the 
 banks of the Ohio, which is here spanned by a 
 magnificent bridge. The scenery of the Alleghanies 
 has the reputation of being very fine, and we had, 
 therefore, arranged to get our car shunted at Belpre, 
 and then attached to the early morning train. The 
 nights are now cold, and a fine fire blazed in the 
 grate of the comfortable little Inn m which we supj)ed. 
 The coal appeared to me to be of the highest quahty 
 for house purposes, a strong binding coal, melting 
 
 BB 2
 
 196 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xiii. 
 
 into fine coke, plenty of gas, and very little ash. It 
 is quite a mistake to suppose that anthracite pre- 
 dominates in America. On the contrary, the largest 
 coalfields appear to be bituminous, the eastern portion 
 only of this field being anthracite. At the point 
 where we crossed it is 150 miles mde, and, as I said 
 in a former letter, its length from north to south is 
 about 750 miles. 
 
 Its surface characteristics between Parkersburg 
 and its eastern outcrop at the upheaval of the Alleg- 
 hanies, reminded me very much of Glamorganshire, 
 both as to its configuration and vegetation. At first 
 valleys of no great depth, like the Llw and Llan ; 
 then larger and deeper valleys, like the Taff", Dare, 
 and Neath, with just such rivers flowing through 
 them, just such steep wooded sides, rising almost 
 into the dignity of mountains, and just such rocky 
 graigs, terminatmg in rounded outlines. Pursuing 
 it further, we pass into a country resembhng Breck- 
 nockshire, Carmarthenshire, Cardigansliire, and so 
 on into the still older formations of North Wales. 
 In fact, a traveller passing north through om- coal- 
 field would traverse much the same country out- 
 wardly and geologically, as we passed in traversing 
 the AUeghanies from west to east, between Cin- 
 cinnati and Washington. The AUeghanies no doubt 
 are somewhat higher, for at one point my aneroid 
 indicated 4,200 feet, but substantially the two 
 districts are very sunilar. Fme mountain ranges 
 open out here and there, as one catches ghmpses of 
 more distant scenerv through the lateral valleys ;
 
 CHAP. XIII.] THE ALLEGHANIES. 197 
 
 but I can convey no better idea of the Alleghanies 
 to my neighbours in Glamorganshire than by 
 referrinq; them to their own surrounclinfrs. 
 
 Geologically this railroad section is very interest- 
 ing, for I could follow the crops of coal veins (and I 
 saw but few) as they rose to the eastern upheaval, 
 until at last we came to a thin bed of Carboniferous 
 Limestone, then to a great development of Old Red 
 Sandstone, then to Silurians, and finally to Gneiss 
 and Eruptive Rocks. 
 
 The vegetation, also, is similar to our own. The 
 oak prevails, mixed with beech, bii^ch, maple, and 
 occasional firs. The autumn tints, however, of these 
 forests far exceed in beauty and variety anything I 
 have ever seen. They range from the brightest ver- 
 milHon to rich purple, bro^vn, and thence to positively 
 transparent gold. No painter dare venture to copy 
 them, for if he did he would be condemned for exag- 
 geration, as well as to inevitable failure. But what 
 interested me almost more than anytliing else was 
 to discover the rhododendron growing wild in its 
 native woods, forming a large portion of the under- 
 growth, especially in the bottoms. The coal mea- 
 sure soil, then, is its natiu-al habitat. No wonder it 
 flom-ishes so luxuriantly in Glamorganshu'e. 
 
 After climbing the steep grades, hugging the 
 sharply-inclined mountain sides, crossing deep ra- 
 vmes on trestle bridges, with clear streams two or 
 three hundred feet below us, we reached the summit 
 level of this Pass over the Alleghany Range, and 
 began to run merrily down the eastern watershed,
 
 198 A TOUR IX NOltTII AMERICA, [chap. xiii. 
 
 swinging round the cui^ves in a style which made 
 standing on the rear platform of the car, with one's 
 body disposed to obey the laws of gravitation, and 
 fly off at a tangent, somewhat risky and nervous 
 work. But a training of nine thousand nules had 
 caused the ladies even to be as fearless as French 
 railway guards, and to keep their footing with but 
 Httle holding on, so that we were able to- take in the 
 whole beauty of the Pass as we chmbed its western 
 and flew down its eastern sides. 
 
 The rivulet below the summit gradually grows 
 into a stream, and the stream begins to assume the 
 dimensions of a river, as we rapidly rush along its 
 banks, and follow its tortuous windings. Wliat is 
 tliis nascent river ? My geography fails me, but the 
 map informs my ignorance. It is a river whose name 
 was often heard in the sad days of the great civil 
 war, now known as the " Recent Difficulty. ' Its 
 banks were the scenes of many hard-fought battles, 
 its waters were often dyed with fraternal blood. 
 Those who remember those evil days will at once call 
 to mind the " Potomac ;" but m charity give it its 
 fine-sounding Indian pronunciation, " Po-to-mac." 
 
 Just as the shades of evening began to lengthen, 
 we approached a spot striking in its natural fea- 
 tures, and ever memorable in the painful annals of 
 that war — " Harper's Ferry," where John Bro^vn 
 was massacred, where an important United States 
 Arsenal formerly stood, where Stonewall Jackson 
 captured a Federal Brigade, and where a hundi^ed 
 other deeds of arms took place. It was a constant
 
 CHAP. XIII.] HARPER'S FERRY. 199 
 
 centre and focus of strife, and, I was told on good 
 authority, changed hands seventy-six times during 
 the war. 
 
 There stand the ruins of the Ai'senal (the only 
 ruins caused by the war wliich I have seen), and 
 there is a shanty close to the railway with the words 
 " John Brown's Fort" painted on it in gTeat white 
 letters. It was there that he was seized before liis 
 murder. And yet one would have said that " Har- 
 per's Ferry" was one of those lovely spots stamped 
 with the seal of Nature's favour, and worthy of 
 better tilings than to be made the cockpit of man's 
 evil strife ; for the sometmie wide valley is here 
 closed in by precipitous cliffs rising perhaps a 
 thousand feet on either side, while a lateral 
 gorge discharges the waters of a not inconsider- 
 able river into the wide Potomac, rushing over its 
 rocky bed. 
 
 The triangular spit formed by this junction rises 
 rapidly from the river, and on its curved shoulder 
 one of the most pictm^esque and old-fashioned look- 
 ing towns I have seen in America is perched ; around, 
 on either side, the cliffs are too precipitous and lofty 
 to admit of defilement by any device of man. If 
 this remarkable spot, instead of being named after 
 the descendant of some evidently nameless bard, 
 possibly possessing a bardic title unpronouncable by 
 the ignorant Sassenach of the fifth century, had re- 
 ceived its distinctive appellation by the original 
 " Harper," and had been called " Rhyd Glendwr," or 
 by the Saxon " Teufelsgang," or even by the Yankee
 
 200 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xiii. 
 
 " Hello-ate," it would have merited its name and 
 been better known to fame. 
 
 But wliat is that gorge and what is the river 
 which issues from it? That is the south fork 
 of the Shenandoah and its valley — the scene of 
 so many battles that it was popularly known as 
 "the valley of the shadow of death." Tens of 
 thousands of brave men lie buried in that valley who 
 fell in the prune of their manhood, the victims of 
 fratricidal strife. A friend who saw those battle- 
 fields, described them to me as a man might describe 
 some terrible nightmare. But those recollections are 
 rapidly fading away, and the present President 
 appears to be wisely determined to bridge over and 
 heal the remaming breaches, so far as in him hes.
 
 CHAP. XIV. ] WASHINGTON. 201 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 WASHINGTON. 
 
 Passing the Potomac on the now restored Trestle 
 Girder Bridge, which, from the narrowness of the 
 gorge, must have presented great engineering diffi- 
 culties, we sped along the eastern bank, and after 
 the lapse of an hour or two found ourselves approach- 
 ing the Capital of the United States and driving 
 through its silent streets, over smooth asphalted 
 roads, very different from the usual deeply seamed 
 and pitted thorouglifares of American cities, in 
 passing over which you must be careful not to allow 
 your tongue to protrude lest its end should be 
 lacerated by your teeth. 
 
 The very night look of Washington is cahnly 
 ditrnified as befits its mission ; its wide avenues 
 scrupulously clean and planted like boulevards ; its 
 houses, very varied in character, from the Palace to 
 the old frame shanty, which has been held for a high 
 price ; no appearance of civic magnificence or com- 
 mercial extravagance ; here and there a solid and 
 handsome pubHc buildmg gleaming spectrally white 
 in the bright moonlight ; the whole endowed with 
 an Athenian sentiment. 
 
 The sensation of passing through these dignified 
 silent streets was widely different from that wliich 
 
 c c
 
 202 A TOUR IK NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xiv. 
 
 I had so often experienced on arriving in the scram- 
 bhng young giant cities of the west, and the same 
 feeUng was confinned on the morrow, when, under 
 the kind and skilful guidance of our naval attache, we 
 started to "do " the Capital and Capitol. Unfor- 
 tunately, the President and Chief Secretaries, as 
 well as our own Minister, were away, and I had no 
 opportunity of makmg theu' acquaintance, which I 
 very greatly regret. Wliat w^ould I have given 
 throughout my journey to have been able to mul- 
 tiply my days by thi^ee ! ! ! 
 
 Short of the satisfaction I should have had in 
 making the acquaintance of these distingiushed men, 
 o\u- visit to Wasliing-ton left notliing to desire, and 
 my verdict is that the City and pubhc buildings are 
 worthy of the great people whose national councils 
 are held mthin them. The Capitol is indeed m all 
 respects well suited to its high fmictions ; of its 
 kind I can call to mind no statelier pile ; its 
 position is magnificent, standing as it does on the 
 smnmit of a conical eminence dominating the city, so 
 that great additional effect is given to its massive 
 proportions, which appeared to be architecturally 
 perfect. It is not easy to convey an adequate idea 
 of the Capitol. Many of my readers have been at 
 Paris, and I ask them to imagine the Madeleine, 
 raised on a basement about twice as high as that on 
 which it stands at Pans, and surmomited by a 250 
 feet dome, flanked by buildings of nearly its o^ti 
 height and in its own style, for some 200 feet on 
 either side, with a row of fine Corinthian cohmms
 
 CHAP. XIV.] THE CAPITOL. 203 
 
 stretching along their facades, and terminated at 
 either end by buildings greatly resembling the Paris 
 Boiu'se, with its double rows of columns ; the whole 
 composed of white marble and granite. They will 
 easily understand how imposing such a pile of build- 
 inofs must be. To those who have been at Rome I 
 would say that the general effect is not very unlike 
 St. Peter's and the Vatican. 
 
 The interior is devoted to Congressional uses only : 
 to the Chambers, Committee Rooms, Libraries, &c. ; 
 but no public Departments have thek offices within 
 it. They are dissevered from it, both physically and 
 constitutionally, and are grouped around the residence 
 of the President. 
 
 We were too late to see the Senate in actual 
 Session, as they had just adjourned, but we spent a 
 couple of hours in the House of Representatives, 
 greatly interested in the proceedings. After an 
 apprenticeship of a quarter of a century, I may be 
 prejudiced in favour of our own fomis and rules, 
 but I confess the want of dignity with which the 
 business is conducted in the House of Representa- 
 tives impressed me most disagreeably. The Cham- 
 ber is a long, low parallelogram, occupied by a central 
 arena and galleries, with benches or chairs five or 
 six deep around it, and behind them again a wide flat 
 space on which members collect and gossip — an ar- 
 rangement, as it seems to me, inconsistent with calm 
 and undisturbed deliberation. Indeed, a member in- 
 formed me that the pulDlic occasionally applaud, but 
 that he had never heard signs of dissent or disapproval. 
 
 cc 2
 
 204 A TOUR AV NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xiv. 
 
 The floor of the House is accessible at numerous 
 points. Opposite to each door a screen is placed, 
 and thus a passage is formed nearly continuously 
 round the floor. In the centre seven rows of chairs 
 and desks are placed in a semicircle, the Speaker, 
 Clerks, and Official Reporters occupying a raised dais 
 in the middle. Gang^vays at intervals separate the 
 members' seats. The greater part of the Democrats 
 sit on the proper right, wliile the Pvepublicans occupy 
 the left. The distinction of party seats is not so 
 rigidly adhered to as in oiu' House. 
 
 The Speaker has no official dress nor canopied 
 seat. He sits out in the open and springs up mth 
 rapid action, bangs his hammer do^\Ti with alarming 
 vigour, and enters straight into the fray. The grave 
 and stately dignity of our Speaker, rising in the 
 most studiously high-bred manner, and in calm and 
 measured tones, amid absolute silence, giving utter- 
 ance to dicta never for an instant questioned, forms 
 the greatest possible contrast to what I saw at 
 Washington. 
 
 But the practices which appeared to me most sub- 
 versive of quiet dehberation are the reading, writing, 
 and standing of members in the gangways and on 
 the floor of the house, and more especially the 
 running about of errand boys who lounge near the 
 Speaker's chair, and when summoned by a member 
 clapping his hands, rush to him at top speed. This 
 most unseemly interruption is constantly gomg on. 
 It is unnecessary to remark how miportant it is to 
 maintain the strictest order and decorum in a
 
 CHAP. XIV.] HOUSE OF REPRE&ENTTVES. 205 
 
 popular assembly, and how much is lost by their 
 absence. 
 
 Members of the British Parliament are admitted 
 to the " floor." I was introduced to the Speaker, 
 and subsequently took my seat, almost in the centre, 
 but with a sHght list to the Democratic side ; that, 
 however, was accidental, as I took the place of the 
 member who was good enough to introduce me. 
 Luckily, no debate was going on, and I thus had an 
 opportunity of seeing many forms gone through, 
 such as swearing members, presenting Bills, putting 
 the question, taking the voices, counting by rising 
 in their places, challenging the decision, dividing 
 ■with tellers, and finally, calling over names. They 
 have these four modes of taking divisions, the latter 
 being a very lengthy process. Our system is quick, 
 certain, and open to no cavil. 
 
 I by no means approve of their separate chairs and 
 desks. They occupy such a space that I really 
 believe their 270 members take up as much room as 
 our 650, and, as I before said, the inducements thus 
 ofiered to writing, reading, &c., is most destructive 
 of the attentive debating of any subject. As the 
 number of members increases, so will it become 
 more and more difficult to keep order. The Senate 
 Chamber is similarly arranged. 
 
 From the Capitol we drove past the Treasury and 
 other pubHc offices ; they are all of Grecian architec- 
 ture. The material used in their construction is 
 either granite or white marble, which produces a 
 somewhat wearying sameness. It is therefore not to
 
 20G A rorn IX NOimi AMERICA, [chap. XIV. 
 
 be regretted that the buildings now in course of 
 erection for the War, Naval, and other departments, 
 are to be in the renaissance style. The residence of 
 the President, called the " White House," is in the 
 Greek or Italian style. I had no means of examining 
 it closely. It stands in its own grounds, and is 
 much like an ordinary first-class English country 
 house ; in fact, I believe it was designed by the 
 same architect who built the Duke of Leincester's 
 house at Carton in Ireland. The British Lega- 
 tion is a creditable building, well suited to its 
 purpose. 
 
 We did not omit to visit the cemetery of the 
 soldiers who fell i i the ci\ il war and are buried at 
 Arlington, General Lee's old family place in Virginia, 
 and a very touching spectacle it is in more ways than 
 one. We entered the ofates of the once beloved 
 home of the great Confederate leader, and drove up 
 a pretty valley with its small stream winding through 
 well-kept grassy glades, terminating in woodlands. 
 On either side of us were rows and rows interminable 
 of small marble stones, eight or ten inches above the 
 ground ; on most of them a simple name, or some- 
 times none at all, was inscribed. 
 
 We reached the summit of the hill on which the 
 old Virginian mansion still stands surrounded by its 
 pretty parterres, summer-houses and vme-clad tre- 
 lisses, its terrace commanding a splendid view over 
 the Potomac, with the City of Washington and its 
 lofty Capitol to tile east, and the reaches of the 
 harbour to the south, a homely and once haj^py
 
 CHAP. XIV.] GEN. LEE\S PATRIMOyr DEFILED. 207 
 
 family retreat. No children's toys now occupy its 
 vestibule ; it is filled with the relics of the war. 
 No happy laughter now rings through its corridors ; 
 all is cold and desolate, and from its windows in all 
 directions are seen long rows of white marble stones 
 with here and there the more elaborate memorial 
 stone erected to the memory of some officer, marking 
 the last resting-places of 11,276 brave men: 7,199 
 known, and 4,097 unknown, who fell in civil strife, 
 either as foes or under the leadership of the gTeat 
 General, whose childish footsteps once trod those 
 grassy lawns. It was, indeed, a terribly bitter 
 revenge at once to confiscate his patrunony and defile 
 it with dead men's bones ! ! ! 
 
 An hour's run by rail brought us early next 
 morning to Baltimore, which appeared to me to be 
 so like other American cities that it is needless to 
 describe it ; indeed, time did not permit me to go 
 into any of its details. 
 
 From Baltimore sprang two of the leading firms of 
 America, viz., the late Mr. Peabody and Messrs. 
 Brown Brothers, better known in England as Brown, 
 Shipley and Co. Mr. Peabody has richly endowed 
 the City of his early business life. I visited the 
 handsome institution founded by hun which will 
 ever remain one of the many enduring proofs of his 
 munificence. I was informed that he beg-an life at 
 Baltimore, really and Hterally with a pack on his 
 back, travelling the country round to supply the 
 small storekeepers with " diy goods." Wliile others 
 failed, he succeeded by an intimate knowledge of his
 
 208 A TOUR IN A'^ORTH AMERICA, [chap. xiv. 
 
 customers and a keen appreciation of whom to trust 
 and whom not. From that small beginning he 
 became the possessor of a wholesale " dry goods 
 store," and, prudently extending his business in his 
 native country and England, gradually amassed the 
 immense fortune of which he distributed before and 
 after his death so large a portion with such careful 
 munificence. 
 
 He always entertained the strongest love for Eng- 
 land. I remember meeting him traveUing in Italy 
 a year or two before he died, when he told me from 
 whence in England his family originally came, — 
 somewhere in the northern counties, and that he had 
 visited the spot to find out all he could about them. 
 The same feeling on the part of Americans of the 
 tliird and fourth generation has come under my 
 notice several times, and I behove that a strong love 
 of the Old Country pervades the nation generally. 
 
 While at Baltimore I visited a copper works 
 estabhshed there, and found it managed by an old 
 Wliite Rock man, and manned chiefly by Welsh- 
 men ; it is a small and not very flourishuig concern, 
 I fear. 
 
 A run of fom- hoiu\s through a flat but fertile and 
 well farmed country, brought us to New York, 
 where three days were sjDont most agreeably, thanks 
 to the kmdness of our friends. The hospitahty of 
 Americans exceeds any that I have ever met with, 
 and when the day came for embarking on board the 
 famous old Cunarder " Russia," and we steamed 
 down the magnificent harbour, the sun rismg behind
 
 CHAP. XIV.] ADIEU, AMERICA. 201> 
 
 the great City we were leaving, and lighting up its 
 tall spires and massive buildings till they faded from 
 our sight as we passed the pictm^esquely-w^ooded and 
 villa-crow^ied heights of Staten Island on the right 
 and Long Island on the left, steaming across the bay 
 and past the famous Sandy Hook Light-house, I 
 confess that in spite of my face being set homewards, 
 I could not look back without regret at the country 
 I was leaving, so replete with aU the elements of 
 future greatness, peopled by a race which no right- 
 feeling Enghshman can regard as other than his 
 own, and whom I had found so ready to receive me 
 as an Enghshman with the warmest welcome, and 
 only anxious to manifest m a substantial manner 
 their appreciation of the close ties which exist be- 
 tween us. The idea of any serious disagTeement 
 occurring between the two countries appears to me as 
 monstrous and abhon-ent as a blood feud between 
 members of one family, and I am convmced, that 
 setting aside professional poHticians, the great bulk 
 of the American people are deeply mibued with the 
 same feehng. 
 
 The Atlantic and the " Russia " are behaving 
 tolerably, although November is not August. We 
 are now rather more than " half seas over " (lat. 
 4G-33, long. 38-52, 1,G15 miles from New York and 
 about 1,500 from Liverpool), and I am bound to con- 
 fess that for 36 hours the old ship has been in a 
 most misteady condition, no wind, and blue moun- 
 tains ruslmig down upon us from the northwards, 
 causing her to roll almost to her gunwale, the cabin 
 
 D D
 
 210 A TOL'B JN NORTH AM Eli W A. [chap. xiv. 
 
 ports at one moment looking into the blue depths 
 and at the next up into the murky sky. Last 
 night, I believe, the good old creature got as far over 
 as she ever gets, and certainly, although I have only 
 about three inches " play" on each side of me m my 
 berth, I found it too wide and had to wedge myself 
 in to prevent gathering way at each roll, while my 
 portmanteau set to work to act battering ram in the 
 dark, until I detected its vagaries and wedged it in 
 also. 
 
 I mention these thinofs to sliow what a winter 
 voyage in these fine steamers is, but at the same 
 time let me say that no one need be deterred from 
 visiting America, for out of 52 passengers 28 of us, 
 including eight ladies, are quite happy, and punctually 
 devour the bountiful and substantial, but rough, 
 shaggy, sea-dog fare set before us. A\niy our great 
 steamship companies go on loading their tables with 
 masses of joints, geese and turkeys, at no doubt 
 great expense, and do not think it worth while to 
 engage proper cooks, who might not only do the 
 plain cooking well, but also save largely by making 
 entres out of the unused portions, I cannot under- 
 stand. The table on board the " Messagerie " and 
 other Foreign Companies' ships is mfinitely superior 
 to the Cunard, the Peninsula and Oriental, or any 
 other English Company I know of. 
 
 We are now further advanced on om' voyage, and 
 only 860 miles from Liverpool. The heavy rolHng 
 in a calm was succeeded by a South-wester, before 
 which we have been bowling away grandly, doing
 
 CHAP. XIV.] A STIiO.YG BREEZE. 211 
 
 our 339 knots in the 24 hours. A "strong breeze" 
 or half-a-gale carried away oiu' main-topgallant sail 
 last night, but all the passengers are on deck and 
 enjoying the fine air and grand sea, rolHng in deep 
 blue hills after us, now and then catching us and 
 looking as if it must come on board, but just at the 
 critical moment dying away imder the counter and 
 surging forward in a foaming white mass flecked 
 with the lovehest green ; flocks of gulls are hanging 
 close to the wake of the ship, now floating above her 
 on suspended pinion, now swooping round her, now 
 descending as hghtly as a snow-flake on the surging 
 sea, and then rising gently over its crests. A fine 
 ship running before a strong breeze in the Atlantic 
 is a sight for the gods. I have been luxuriating in 
 it all day, unable to tear myself away and come 
 do\vn to finish up my notes ere the crush of home 
 work comes upon me. 
 
 As I have time on my hands, and little to do on 
 board ship but to read or write, perhaps I may be 
 permitted to close my notes with a few words on the 
 condition of things in general, so far as I have been 
 able to observe them while in America. 
 
 And fii'st as to travelUng : I had heard that the 
 manners and customs of Americans were rough, 
 and that it was doubtful how far a lady ought to 
 travel in the pubHc railway carnages, or to stay at 
 hotels. I can say positively that a more unfounded 
 idea was never entertained. Both from observations 
 made when travelling for some time in the ordinary 
 carriages, and from what I saw when I passed through 
 
 D D 2
 
 212 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xiv. 
 
 the public cars on oiu* long jom'neys, as well as from 
 frequently using the street cars, I can state that in no 
 country have I ever seen greater politeness shown to 
 ladies, or better breeding generally ; even smoking is 
 rigidly forbidden, except in compartments set apart 
 for it, and is never attempted elsewhere. When I 
 contrast this with the disagreeable scenes I have 
 mtnessed in regard to smoking in England and 
 Germany, I wonder at our bad manners as much as 
 I admire the American arrangements. 
 
 The cars are of three classes — first, second, and 
 tlurd, all with end doors, centre passages, and seats 
 facing one way, and supposed to accommodate two 
 passengers on each side of the gangway. The thu'd 
 class have wooden seats and small ^vindows ; the 
 second class cusliions ; the first class seats have re- 
 versible backs, so as to face each other if required ; 
 but permission must be obtained from the conductor, 
 and the hinge unlocked, before the back can be 
 changed. These carriages are uncomfortable ; the 
 backs are too low, and there is notliing to lean the 
 head against. The arms on one side are generally 
 iron with a little patch of stuffing ; on the window 
 side of the carriage all is hard wood with keen edges. 
 
 The Pullman cars are of two kinds — "Sleepers," 
 such as I have described at considerable length, and 
 "Drawing-room" cars, wliich have two or more state- 
 rooms, each holding four arm chairs ; the centre of the 
 carriage is provided also with arm chairs on pivots, so 
 that they can be turned in any direction. I travelled 
 one day in such an arm-chau^, and found it extremely
 
 CHAP. XIV.] PLEASURES OF AMElilCAN CARS. 213 
 
 ii'ksome ; it simply did not fit me, and it is evident 
 that an arm-chair must be difficult to construct, so 
 as to be comfortable for a nine-stone lady, five feet 
 high, and an eighteen-stone man, upwards of six feet 
 high ; besides which, these chairs lean back so much 
 that at one point the backs touch, and being covered 
 with cotton velvet and brass nails, the back of my 
 chair on one occasion got "into gear" with that of 
 the next lady's chair, and as she fidgetted a good deal, 
 every time she swung her chair a quarter turn round, 
 she swung me equally until we had quite a dos-a-dos 
 disagreement. 
 
 Upon another occasion I had two babies, of diverse 
 origin, m the Pullman di'awing-room car; one 
 screamed for hours, and was at last only quieted by 
 the contents of a suspicious-looking Httle bottle, after 
 wliich it slumbered soundly, but whether it ever 
 awoke or slept the everlasting sleep I know not. 
 The other baby had for its guardians a fine Lady 
 Mother, evidently oppressed with the ills of further 
 blessings; a meek Papa of the order which always 
 have quivers full, a quiet patient creature with a 
 longish enduring- looking countenance, straight hair 
 and sparse habit; a smart Aunt, and a rough bounc- 
 ing Irish gM as nurse, largely developed in every 
 direction — great red cheeks and arms, coarse untidy 
 hair and garments to match. The baby cried, the 
 nurse patted it on the back with a hand fit only to 
 wield a Lifeguard's sabre, and then gave it an orange; 
 it still cried ; the Manuna looked at it with upturned 
 lip as if she hated the name of a baby ; the smart
 
 214 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xiv. 
 
 Aunt took it for a moment, and failing to pacify it, 
 soon handed it to the meek Papa, who was the only 
 nurse of the lot, and set to work to undo a basket, 
 get out an Etna cooked pap and stuff the brat with it 
 in a business-like way, but alas ! to no purpose, for it 
 still "was not happy." No doubt all this was inter- 
 esting to the parties concerned, but it possessed no 
 special attraction for myself and twenty other people 
 in the car. 
 
 Then, again, the question of fresh air or draught is 
 a constant source of divergence of views in these 
 large open cars with ten windows on each side : one 
 individual thinks fresh air the staff of life ; his next 
 neighbour hates a draught, and every breath gives 
 him visions of pleurisy, congestion, ague, fever, and 
 every other ill. Wlio is to decide between them, and 
 either keep the windows open or shut. 
 
 Then in winter, I am told, they heat the cars by 
 stoves and pipes to suffocation point. Under our 
 system none of these evils occur. We avoid babies 
 as we should the plague, and we manage our window 
 as we please. Then, we leave the importunate news- 
 boy behind at Paddington ; but in America he is 
 perpetually cu^culating through the cars, and teasing 
 you to buy his trash, so that a testy old gentleman 
 is said to have written in large letters and stuck it on 
 his hat, '■ I want no papers, novels, guidebooks, 
 reviews, cigars, oranges, loUypops, or popcorn." 
 
 The state-rooms, I am bound to say, are comforta- 
 ble, and not open to the objections above enumerated, 
 but one has all the trouble of engaging them before-
 
 CHAP. XIV. ] AMEIUCAX RAIL WA YS. 2 1 a 
 
 hand. For day-work give me an English carriage, 
 for night-work a Pullman. All Pullman cars are 
 subject to an extra payment beyond the first-class 
 ticket. 
 
 I had also heard that American railways were 
 badly laid and unsafe. No statement can be more 
 erroneous. I travelled between eleven and twelve 
 thousand miles, and on the whole the permanent 
 ways were in excellent order, and as I stood and sat 
 for hours and hours on the rear platform with nothing 
 between me and the rail, I had an excellent opportu- 
 nity of observing the condition of the roads. Here 
 and there we came upon lengths of old iron rails, and 
 it was not necessary to look at the road to identify 
 them, the shaking and noise were quite enough; but 
 steel has very largely taken the place of iron already, 
 and passengers, no less than shareholders, are enor- 
 mous gainers thereby. American directors are 
 relaying their hues with steel as rapidly as they can, 
 and at £7 15s. to £8 per ton they can well afford to 
 do so. 
 
 The safety with wliich American railways are 
 worked is very remarkable, especially as they are 
 almost all smgle lines ; I may say entirely so, except 
 those near the great Eastern cities. The New 
 York central has four hues as far as Albany, and, I 
 beheve, further towards Buffalo. The Western lines 
 are all single. This immunity from accident is due 
 to the intelligent use of the telegraph and to rigid 
 rules. I was much struck by the extreme care with 
 which our time schemes were fixed when we were
 
 216 A TOUR IN XOimi AMERICA. [chap. xiv. 
 
 running "special" or "wild cat" as railway officials 
 style it. 
 
 The speed of American trains is not great except 
 on the Metropolitan lines between the Eastern cities. 
 The Pacific lines clear about 20 miles per hour. The 
 Eastern Expresses about 30. The fares are less than 
 in England, being from Id. to l^d. per mile first class, 
 against 2d. to 2^d. in England. I think their system of 
 building carriages may be m some respects better than 
 ours. The carriage bodies are supported at each end 
 on "bogies," i.e., platforms, with four or, better, six 
 wheels, to which they are attached only by a central 
 pivot ; this enables them to go roiuid curves without 
 grinding against the flanges or straining the sides as 
 in our rigid system. The Germans have adopted the 
 American plan, and I believe it to be much safer. On 
 the other hand our carriages, being only half the 
 length of American cars, can be made much lighter, 
 and thus the excessive w^eight of American trains is 
 avoided, higher speeds can be attained with less power 
 and less wear and tear per passenger carried, while the 
 facihty of meeting the demand for places is greater, as 
 our officials can put on a carriage for 24 passengers, 
 wliile the Americans must add a carriage for 40 or 
 50, perhaps to accommodate a dozen people. The 
 great strength of American carriages saves life 
 in accidents, as they do not " telescope." The 
 American buffers and drawbars are vile inventions. 
 Now and then you get a shock violent enough to dis- 
 locate all the vertebrre of your spine. The engines 
 are on tlie plan first invented by Mr. Crampton
 
 CHAP. XIV.] E AIL WAY TEA VEILING. 217 
 
 — two bogie and two coupled driving wheels on 
 each side. 
 
 There are no bridges to carry roads over railroads, 
 nothing but level crossings. Where country roads 
 cross they have no gates but dig a deep pit on each 
 side between the sleepers, and fence up to it. No 
 animal will cross the sleepers laid hollow ; and if it 
 does stray on to the road the cowcatcher of the 
 engme disposes of it quickly. This cowcatcher, the 
 pneumatic break, and the cord which runs through 
 every American carriage, to sound a gong on the 
 engine, ought to be made compulsory by law in 
 England. In fine, no one need fear to travel on 
 American raih'oads on account of dangrer. 
 
 E E
 
 218 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA. [chap, xv. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 AMERICAN HOTELS. 
 
 A FEW words on hotels may not be uninteresting. 
 The hotel is an " Institution " in America. It is 
 often the finest building in the town, and has 
 perhaps cost £200,000 or £300,000. The arrange- 
 ments of all Hotels are much the same. On entering 
 one generally ascends a flight of steps, designed to 
 give height to the basement, in which the barber's 
 shop, lavatories, laundries, &c., are situated. Having 
 ascended, one finds oneself in a large vestibule or 
 hall ; at one side is a long substantial counter, be- 
 hind which the manager and his clerk stand, and on 
 which a large book lies,, in which you enter your 
 name. The blotting paper of this book is printed 
 all over with advertisements ; and, on inquiry, you 
 find that the book is supplied gratis by enterprising 
 advertising agents. 
 
 At this counter all yoiu^ business is transacted. 
 Generally there is a notice, " No cheques cashed, or 
 money loanecV In one corner of this vestibule is a 
 book and newspaper stall, in another a cigar stall. 
 Passages lead in various directions, — one to the 
 "Bar," where "cock-tails," "mint juleps," "cobblers," 
 " eye-openers," " corpse revivers," and other like 
 beverages, are dispensed. I tried two, and more
 
 CHAP. XV.] HOTELS -THE BAR. 219 
 
 nauseous mixtiu'es I never tasted. Behind this 
 " Bar " stands an active, clean-looking man, in white 
 apron, shirt-sleeves, &c. ; and around sit and loll 
 the imbibers, who struck me as of the solemn and 
 stupid order, although I had not much chance of 
 judging. 
 
 The " office counter" and the "bar" thus replace 
 our snug old English " bar-room," to many, I sup- 
 pose, the dearest spot of their native town, where 
 the neat barmaid dispenses the substantial old diinks 
 of England with an archness of wliich the man in 
 the white apron and shirt-sleeves is innocent, for 
 she knows that barmaids have often been elevated 
 to the Peerage, and she has faith in her own fate, 
 until the tooth of time has nibbled away the roses, 
 and then ! ! — well it has always been a mystery to me, 
 w^iat becomes of ancient barmaids. However, the 
 straight- laced clerk of the office and the shirt - 
 sleeved-cocktail-mixer of American hotels have no 
 such romance about them. Which is best ? 
 
 Another passage from the vestibule leads to the 
 writing and reading rooms, another to the reception 
 room and ladies' room, which is also approached by a 
 separate entrance from the street, and generally has 
 a separate staircase near it. Both these are great 
 advantasres, because the vestibule is the resort of 
 loafers and loungers, who hang about, and seem to 
 have no fixed occupation except that of prying into 
 other people's concerns. They are a great annoyance 
 to the hotel keepers, but they cannot get rid of 
 
 them. 
 
 E E 2
 
 220 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xv. 
 
 After registering your name, you are shown to your 
 room, or rather "elevated" to it in the "lift." You 
 find it always clean and well furnished. The good 
 rooms of the best Hotels have private baths and 
 lavatories, with hot and cold water laid on. This 
 is to save labour — a great object in the States — no 
 carrying of water and slops. The beds are good and 
 clean, but there are no tables, excejit perhaps a 
 small oval marble slab, so that your "special corres- 
 pondent" has at times had to shift as he could when 
 writing his notes. There are always baths down- 
 stairs, generally m the basement, in one of which I 
 saw the following specimen of grammar : — " Gentle- 
 men are requested not to overflow the baths, and 
 oblige the manager 1" 
 
 In American Hotels, the custom is to board and 
 lodge you at so much per day — from 3 dols. to 5 dols. 
 {12s. to £1) — and I certainly prefer this system to 
 our own of charging each item separately. Wine is 
 extra, but no one drinks it ; in fact, the prices charged 
 for it are prohibitory. The usual price for a bottle of 
 sherry is 2 dols. (8s.) ; champagne, 3 dols. 50c. 
 (14s.) ; claret, 2 dols. (8s.). Breakfast is served from 
 5.30 to 11 a.m. ; dinner, 1 to 4 p.m. ; supper, 6 to 
 12. A long list is given, from which you order what 
 you like. I have a menu before me, consisting of 
 two soups, two fish, five boiled and five roast meats, 
 nine entres, game, cold meat, and sweets. You are 
 generally kept waiting, however, a long time. The 
 meat is hard and stringy, being kept too long on ice, 
 and the cooking is very inferior. I can only call to
 
 CHAP. XV.] HOTELS. 221 
 
 mind two Hotels, viz., the Brevoort at New York, 
 and the Grand Hotel at Cincinnati, where things 
 were really well done, and I stayed at the best Hotel 
 everywhere. It would cost no more to have meat 
 well cooked and served, and I can only attribute the 
 badness of the cooking to ignorance of how things 
 ought to be done. 
 
 The waiters ai-e generally black men, who are 
 quick and good natured, but run away as soon as 
 they have got theii- orders, and wait till everything 
 is cooked ; in the meantime no one else at the same 
 table can get anything. The master of the Hotel is 
 generally too great a swell to attend to his guests, 
 or look after the cooking and waiters. I presume no 
 one looks after the cooking, and the waiters are left 
 to their headman. 
 
 Many people in America live permanently in 
 Hotels, especially old bachelors, who do not want to 
 be troubled with housekeeping. At Washington, 
 Senators and Representatives are to be found in 
 numbers in all the Hotels, in fact the Hotels appear 
 largely to take the place of lodgings with us. An 
 English watering place is full of lodging houses ; 
 at Saratoga I saw comparatively feAV, but there were 
 ' three gigantic Hotels, accommodating upwards of one 
 thousand persons each. I think the American 
 system is better, for it is evident that a large 
 establishment must be conducted more economically 
 than a number of small ones, and that the visitor 
 must have many more luxuries and conveniences 
 than he could have in small lodgings.
 
 222 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xv. 
 
 Hack carriages, as they are called, are terribly 
 dear. 6s. to 8s. per hour is the common charge, and 
 to a station often 12s. or more for a party of four. 
 You are also charged Is. for every article of luggage 
 to or from a station sent by the Despatch Company. 
 The American " check " system for luggage is in 
 many respects very good. On going to the " depot " 
 {i.e., station) you dehver your luggage to the man 
 charged with its receipt, who gives you a small piece 
 of brass with a number on it for each article, and at 
 the same time loops on a corresponding number by a 
 leather thong to the handle of your portmanteau ; 
 on arriving at your destination you deliver your 
 checks and claim your luggage, or you leave it at 
 the station and claim it when you want it or send 
 for it. This system does not take longer than 
 pasting on labels, the check itself indicating the 
 destmation. There is no weighing or payment for 
 luggage unless it is outrageously in excess of fair 
 passenger wants. 
 
 On the whole, travelling is cheaper in America 
 than in England, and it is about the only thing 
 which is cheaper. One might almost say that a 
 dollar represents a shilling, but certainly it would 
 be no exaggeration to say that everything except 
 bread and meat is double as dear in America as in 
 England. This arises chiefly from two causes, the 
 War and consequent depreciation of the currency, 
 and Protection. Gold has now almost reached " par," 
 greenbacks being at only 2j to 3 per cent, discount, 
 but prices having assumed a high level do not readily
 
 CHAP. XV.] EFFECTS OF PROTECTION. 223 
 
 follow the gradual changes of the gold market, espe- 
 cially as the protective tariff prevents foreign com- 
 petition and maintains a fictitious value generally. 
 
 The result is that the whole trade of America is 
 cramped and paralysed. The high cost of her manu- 
 factures makes it impossible for her to compete in 
 foreign markets with ourselves and Germany, and 
 she has consequently lost many markets which she 
 formerly possessed. Her internal power of con- 
 sumption is diminished, and general stagnation pre- 
 vails. This is keenly felt in all the commercial 
 Cities in the East ; and even in Pennsylvania, the 
 hot-bed of protection, men are beginning to say 
 " Well, things could not be worse, even if we had 
 Free Trade." 
 
 The interests of the West and South are entirely 
 in favour of Free Trade. It is one of the burning 
 questions of the day, second only to the resumption 
 of specie payments, and no one doubts that before 
 long a complete Free Trade policy will prevail. A 
 considerable fall in wages must take place before 
 America can compete with other nations, but so long 
 as men are wilhng, as they now are in America, to 
 do a good day's work and do it well, the reduc- 
 tion need not be so great, and they will probably 
 be fully compensated by the cheapening of the 
 necessaries of life. All articles of clothing, for ex- 
 ample, at present cost double as much in America 
 as in Enirland. 
 
 Dissatisfaction with the working of their Govern- 
 ments, both National, State, and Municipal, seems
 
 224 A TOUR U^ NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xv. 
 
 to pervade all classes of the community. I have 
 lost no opportunity of discussing political and social 
 questions with men of all classes, and I have scarcely 
 met with one whose feelings did not seem to warrant 
 the above statement. 
 
 I say National, State, and Municipal, because it 
 must be remembered that the United States are 
 States united for National or Federal purposes only ; 
 that the Central Government or Congress deals exclu- 
 sively with National questions, such as Peace, War, 
 Foreign Diplomacy, the Army and Navy, National 
 Taxation, mcluding the Tariff, the National Currency, 
 and such portions of statecraft as apply to the nation 
 as a whole, which questions are strictly limited and 
 defined by the written Constitution ; and further, 
 that each State has its separate Parhament and 
 Government, and may enact its own laws, upon any 
 questions which are not reserved by the wa'itten 
 Constitution for Congressional action. 
 
 It was also supposed that by the original Con- 
 stitution any State might retire from the Union and 
 become absolutely free. Perhaps that issue, as much 
 as Slavery and Protection, was the cause of the Civil 
 War. The written Constitution of the United 
 States can only be altered by a majority of Congress, 
 with the consent of the President ; then the altera- 
 tion must be submitted to the Legislative Assembly 
 of each separate State, and unless it receives the 
 sanction of two-thirds of the State Legislatures, no 
 alteration can take place. But few alterations have 
 passed through this cumbrous process since the days
 
 CHAP. XV.] THE CONSTITUTION. 225 
 
 of Washington — the abolition of Slavery being the 
 most notable. 
 
 To Englishmen, who possess no written Constitu- 
 tion, but govern absolutely through their Parhament, 
 it is difficult to reahse this state of things. There 
 can be no question that the Constitution of the 
 United States is far more Conservative than our 
 limited Monarchy ; mdeed, there are two powers 
 w^liich can and frequently do override the State 
 Legislatures, and even Congress itself, viz., the 
 President and the Supreme Court of Justice, wliich 
 can and does often declare that an Act is contrary 
 to the Constitution, and therefore null and void ; in 
 fact, the Americans have an absolute Monarch and a 
 Star Chamber. 
 
 Any Act of a State or Congress deaHng with 
 property, such as the Trust Properties of Old 
 Foundations, or Avith contracts between individuals, 
 if appealed agamst, may be at once set aside by the 
 Supreme Court. Americans say, " Our property is 
 safer than yours, because it cannot be reached even 
 by Congress, and it is well that it should be so, in 
 view of our Universal Suffrage." 
 
 The President is as absolute as the most absolute 
 Monarch. He is elected by a party, and, perhaps, 
 secures his election by the barest majority. The 
 House of Representatives is possibly opposed to his 
 poHcy, or he^may " trim" and throw over the party 
 that elected him. For four years, nevertheless, he 
 is an absolute despot ; he can veto any Act passed 
 by the two Houses, unless it is passed by a majority 
 
 F F
 
 226 A TOUR IN XORTII AMERICA. [chap. xv. 
 
 not often easy to obtain. He dares to do so, because 
 he is not a Constitutional Sovereign, but notoriously a 
 party man. He has no personal object to serve, 
 because in the vast majority of cases he has no chance 
 of re-election. No dynastic considerations influence 
 him ; because his heir can never hope to succeed 
 him ; and so he follows the bent of his inclinations, 
 whatever they may be. 
 
 Then, again, the Ministers of State have no seats 
 in the House of Representatives. They can intro- 
 duce no measure directly, and cannot be " in their 
 place" to explain and defend or modify any proposal 
 affecting their Department ; neither the War 
 Minister nor the Secretary of the Navy can intro- 
 duce and defend his " Estimates," or explain the 
 necessities of the Service with the management of 
 which he is charged. He submits his Estimates m 
 a printed form, and they are then referred to a Com- 
 mittee, which takes evidence upon them, and recom- 
 mends such changes as in their discretion they may 
 deem fitting, thus relieving the Minister of all 
 responsibility in regard to the administration of his 
 Department. 
 
 This is carrying things too far ; I have often 
 thought and think still that the passing of " esti- 
 mates " through our House is one of the broadest 
 farces played on the stage of pubhc hfe, and I have 
 often wished that estimates could be submitted to 
 the quiet and business-hke investigation of a " com- 
 mittee upstairs," but I see how difficult it would be 
 to do so M^thout divesting the minister of his
 
 CHAP. XV.] J^rSI.VESS OF COXGRESS. 227' 
 
 responsibility and shifting it on to the committee. 
 Oiu' system, therefore, of referring any special griev- 
 ance to a committee, but allowing the general re- 
 sponsibility to rest on the minister, is, after all^ 
 probably the best ; at any rate, the American system 
 is fraught with mischief, and I by no means advocate 
 its adoption. 
 
 The working of the business of the Houses of 
 Congress may interest some of my readers. It will 
 have been inferred from what I have said above that 
 Committees form an important element in carrying 
 on the business of Congress. The Senate this year 
 has twenty-eight Standing Comixdttees, and the 
 House of Representatives forty-three. 
 
 The House of Representatives has Standing Com- 
 mittees on Elections, Ways and Means, Appropria- 
 tions, Banking and Currency, Pacific Railroad 
 Claims, Commerce, Public Lands, Post Office and 
 Post Roads, Columbia, Judiciary, War Claims, 
 PubHc Expenditure, Private Land Claims, Manu- 
 factures, Agriculture, Indian Aftaks, Military 
 Affau's, ]\Iilitia, Naval Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 
 Territories, Revolutionaiy Pensions, Invahd Pen- 
 sions, Railways and Canals, Mines and Mining, 
 Education and Labour, Laws, Coinage, Weights 
 and Measm^es, Patents, Public Buildings and 
 Grounds, Accounts, Mileage, Expenditure of the 
 State, War, Navy, Post Office, Interior, Justice 
 Departments, Public Buildings, Reform of Civil 
 Service, Mississippi Levees, and five Special Com- 
 mittees on special subjects not recurrent. 
 
 ff2
 
 228 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xv. 
 
 I have given these details to illustrate the work- 
 ing of Congress, and the subjects it takes cognisance 
 of. The Senate has committees on nearly the same 
 subjects. The numbers of members serving on each 
 committee of the Senate is usually nine, and on those 
 of the House of Representatives eleven. There are 
 a few committees of five members, and one of seven. 
 When Bills are introduced they are read twice pro 
 forma, and then referred to the committee appointed 
 to deal with the subject to which the Bill has refer- 
 ence. The committee reports on it either favourably, 
 with or without amendments, or adversely ; and it is 
 then debated in the House or Senate. This system 
 is necessitated by the absence of Muiisters of State 
 and Government members from the Senate and House 
 of Representatives. Instead of measures emanating 
 from the Government of the day, they are introduced 
 exclusively by private members. No doubt much 
 rubbish might be got rid of summarily and much 
 time saved if we coidd refer BiUs to a standing 
 committee upstairs upon their introduction. 
 
 There are seventy-six Senators, two hundred and 
 ninety-one Representatives, and eight Delegates from 
 territories, one from each territory, viz., Aiizona, 
 Dakota, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, Wash- 
 ington, and Wyoming. The States are thuty-eight 
 in number ; each returns two senators. 
 
 The number of Representatives depends on popu- 
 lation. Thus the State of New York retiu-ns thirty- 
 three Representatives, while Nebraska and Nevada 
 return one each. But the influence of each of those
 
 CHAP. XV.] REPRESENTATIVE GOVERXMENT. 229 
 
 small States iii the Senate is equal to that of New 
 York. Are there then no anomaUes in this bran 
 new representative system ? 
 
 Some of my readers may not understand the dis- 
 tinction between a State and a Territory. The 
 former is, as it were, an independent kingdom ; it 
 has a regular representative system within itself, and 
 can enact its o\\ai laws on all matters not reserved for 
 the jiu-isdiction of Congress, while the internal affairs 
 of territories are governed by Congress. Thus 
 Nevada, with some 60,000 inhabitants, is a State, 
 and can govern itself, wliile its neighbour Utah, 
 separated only by an arbitrary boundary, and con- 
 tainmg about three tunes the population, is still a 
 " Territory " imder the tutelage of Congress. But 
 then, if Utah were to be endowed with State rights, 
 it is perfectly well known that bigamy would be at 
 once legahsed, and the Americans naturally regard 
 such an eventuality with repugnance. So that Utah 
 will be kept in tutelage imtil the " Gentile" element 
 gains a clear ascendancy. 
 
 The national affairs of the United States are 
 managed by nine Chiefs of Departments, each being 
 subordinate to and under the control of the Presi- 
 dent, viz., 1st, the Secretary of State, who holds the 
 highest rank in the executive next to the President. 
 His duty is to conduct all correspondence with the 
 PubHc Ministers and Piepresentatives of Foreign 
 Powers, and generally to manage "foreign affairs.' 
 He is the medium of communication between the 
 President and the several States which go to make
 
 230 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xv. 
 
 up the " United States." He has the custody of the 
 great seal, and countersigns all proclamations, com- 
 missions, and warrants, for pardon and extradition. 
 He publishes the Laws of Congress, Amendments of 
 the Constitution, and the admission of New States 
 into the Union. 
 
 Next to him comes the Secretary of the Treasury, 
 who has charge of the national finances, revenue, 
 and public accounts, and of the issue of warrants for 
 money in pursuance of appropriations. He controls 
 the erection of public buildings, the coinage and 
 printing of money, the collecting of coromercial 
 statistics, and the lighting and buoymg of the coast. 
 He submits to Congress estimates of the probable 
 receipts and expenditure for the ensuing year, and 
 provides for the payment of the pubhc debt. To 
 carry out all these duties his office is divided into a 
 number of departments, and he is assisted by a staff 
 of controllers, commissioners, auditors, treasurers, 
 registrars, &c. These two departments appear to be 
 the most important and laborious offices. 
 
 Next come the Secretaries of War and of the 
 Navy : these departments are directly under the 
 control of the President who is Commander in Chief 
 of both forces. This appears to be a remarkable 
 provision for a Republican form of Government, in 
 view of the struggle of our own country to curtail 
 the prerogative in regard to a standing army ; but 
 so it is nevertheless. 
 
 Then comes the Secretary of the Interior whose 
 duties are to supervise patents, public lands includ-
 
 • cuAP. xv.j GOVERNMENT. 231 
 
 ing mines. Indian affairs, education, the census, and 
 other minor matter. As each State really governs 
 itself, the Secretary of the Interior's office becomes 
 of far less importance than that of our Home 
 Secretary. 
 
 Next comes the Postmaster General, who also is 
 largely controlled in his appomtments, contracts, 
 and the like, by the President. 
 
 Next follows the Department of Justices, presided 
 over by the Attorney General, assisted by the Soli- 
 citor General. His duty is to give opinions on legel 
 questions arising, in the Executive Government, and 
 to superintend the United States Attorneys and 
 Marshals in the States and Territories. 
 
 Last comes the Department of AgricLilture, pre- 
 sided over by a Commissioner, whose duties are to 
 collect and diffuse useful information on subjects 
 connected with Agriculture, and to acquire and 
 preserve in his office all information he can obtam on 
 that subject by means of books and correspondence, 
 by practical and scientific experiments, and the 
 collection of statistics, also to coUect new and valu 
 able seeds and plants, to learn by actual cultivation 
 then- value, to propagate those found good and 
 distribute them among agriculturists ; he is assisted 
 by a satistician, entomologist, botanist, chemist, and 
 miscroscopist, and has a propagatmg garden, seed 
 division, and library. As we have nothing of this 
 kind I have copied his duties at length from the 
 official record, from which indeed, I have epitomised 
 the Executive System of the United States, I hope
 
 232 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xv. 
 
 not at too great length, and not without affording 
 information to my readers. 
 
 In spite of the care thus officially bestowed on 
 agriculture, it seemed to me that good farming, in the 
 sense that we understand it, is almost wholly absent 
 in the United States. My only opportunity of 
 judging was from closely observing the state of 
 cultivation as I passed tln-ough the various districts 
 by railway. I saw no green crops : I really cannot 
 remember that I saw one turnip or mangold crop in 
 the many thousand miles of country I passed through 
 in September and October. There was also an utter 
 absence of that neatness which distinguishes the 
 well-farmed districts of England : all seemed rough 
 and unkempt. But of course merely passing through 
 a country does not enable anyone to give an opinion 
 of much value upon the condition of its agriculture. 
 
 Besides the care bestowed on agriculture by the 
 Central Government, each State has its Annual Show, 
 frequently on a large scale. Much attention is paid 
 to improving the breed of animals. I have no doubt 
 that America wiU soon possess herds of cattle second 
 to none in England; but I am not so sure as to 
 sheep. I scarcely saw a flock of sheep in the United 
 States, excepting in California, where there were 
 Merino sheep bred for their wool. 
 
 The constantly reciu-ring necessity of electing a 
 President is a very serious evil, and one which should 
 make every EngHshman value the ancient Constitu- 
 tion under which he enjoys such imbounded freedom 
 of self-government, untainted by any source of
 
 CHAP. XV.] CONSTITUTION. 233 
 
 excitement and political jobbery. Long before the 
 end of every foiu'tli year the country is convulsed 
 and business interrupted by the approaching election 
 of a President ; no one knows with any certainty 
 what the outcome will be, or how to shape his course 
 safely. 
 
 After the President is elected no one knows what 
 his line of action may be. All officers, down to the 
 village Postmaster, may be changed, for party reasons 
 only, and men quite new to the work, and often 
 quite mifit for it, put in. If Americans could only 
 get over the first wrench, and elect a king of the old 
 stock, utder the same limited constitutional condi- 
 tions as our Sovereigns, and weld their separate 
 States into one compact and solid Nation, many of 
 them would be only too thankful. 
 
 I cannot help suspecting, also, that they would not 
 be sorry to transform their Senate into a House of 
 Peers. There are fortunes amply large enough to 
 support hereditary rank, and men, who \\t11 not now 
 enter political life upon any consideration, would 
 doubtless do their duty as patriotically as our Peers, 
 if not compelled to face the dirt of candidature. 
 
 As to aristocratic ideas being foreign to Americans, 
 I do not believe it for a moment ; on the contrary, I 
 beheve them to be a highly aristocratic people. Talk 
 of exclusiveness ! Why, an old Bostonian holds his 
 head as high above members of the newer communi- 
 ties as any blue-blooded Norman among us, and so 
 does the descendant of the old Knickerbocker (or 
 ancient Dutch settler) of New York ; into that 
 
 u G
 
 234 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xv. 
 
 privileged cii'cle the outside barbarian can no more 
 enter than he can gain admission to our most exclu- 
 sive set, or into the Borghese, Dora, &c., cncle at 
 Rome, or the Quartier St. Germain salons of Paris. 
 Those who can go back to the " May Flower" are as 
 proud and exclusive as the direct descendants of 
 William's Norman knights. And many a Welshman 
 who reads these lines will, in his heart of hearts, say, 
 " What are WilHam's Norman knights and Norman 
 blue-blood ? Were they not a mongi'el cross between 
 Scandinavian pirates and the ancient Gauls, whose 
 lands they took and held for only some 400 years 
 before Wilham's time ? Did not my ancestors own 
 the whole of Britain before liistory began ? I am 
 entitled to claim the purest, most ancient, and bluest 
 blood ! Out with the Normans, the Knickerbockers, 
 and the ' May Flower.' " And such is the world, be 
 it old or new ! ! 
 
 New York is divided into as many " sets," with as 
 decided lines of separation, as that of London. San 
 Francisco is but thirty years old, and yet its aristo- 
 cracy is as marked as if it could multiply thirty by 
 thirty, and go back to the Conquest or Caradoc. 
 
 The refinement and luxury of American society is 
 scarcely exceeded by anything in Europe. There 
 are, doubtless, fewer houses of a palatial class in New 
 York than m London or Paris, but there are large 
 numbers equal to those of oiu: great squares, and the 
 richness of then- fmniture certainly equals if not 
 exceeds our o^vii. Fewer servants appear to be 
 kept, and I saw no really well-turned- out carriages,
 
 CHAP. XV.] SOCIETY. 235 
 
 with liigli steppers, bob-wigged coachmen, and 74- 
 inch " Johns," whose merit is measured by their 
 inches, and whose heads are vahied only by the 
 powder they can carry. But in ladies' dresses we 
 must yield them the fig leaf, without dispute. I 
 must say that in spite of their hostile tariff and 
 the cruel taxes they have to pay upon then- outward 
 adornings, they still will have the cream of creams. 
 A young lady told me that she had once paid 1,600 
 dollars — £320 — duty on one box ; and another lady 
 told me at San Francisco that the day before a 
 consi<^*ument of dresses had arrived from Paris, and 
 that one dress had immediately sold for 1,200 
 dollars — £240. There was lace on it, it is true, 
 but so " planned" as to be almost useless for future 
 wear. Every American lady of fashion has her 
 measure in the books of Mr. Worth, Laferriere, or 
 some other Paris dressmaker, and many cross the 
 Atlantic for no other purpose than to bring home a 
 fresh outfit and cut down then" rivals. An American 
 lady thinks no more of sucli a voyage than our ladies 
 do of runnina: over to Paris for Easter. 
 
 This was not always so, and you may see the steady 
 old Quaker parents, the old lady in her poke bonnet, 
 russet brovtTi gown and neat white shawl; the gentle- 
 man in his snuff-coloured cutaway, knee breeches, 
 gaiters and shoes, half scandahsed, half proud of the 
 dashing daughter in gorgeous array trailing her 
 yards of satin, much as a hen who has all un- 
 consciously brooded over the eggs of a duck, 
 watches her bantlings when, like the pretty 
 
 GG 2
 
 230 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. iv. 
 
 little Quakeress, tliey obey their natural instincts, 
 and plume themselves on the turbid waters of this 
 troublesome world. 
 
 The fashionable and the great of America are the 
 same as theu^ like among us ; their manners are as 
 polished, their refinement quite as great, but there is 
 a kindliness and heartiness about them which is 
 usually wanting in our great world, and to meet 
 which, with us, you must go to the country home of 
 your friend. 
 
 In this respect I believe that Americans have by 
 no means come up to our standard. The idea of 
 possessing great landed estates and making them 
 their homes during at least half the year, has not 
 entered deeply into the American mind. They have 
 no domains upon which theu^ ancestors have been 
 seated for hundreds of years. They have Villa hfe 
 on the banks of the Hudson or some other favoured 
 spot, but country life amidst broad acres is unknown 
 to them. Their land is split up into small holdings 
 of 100 to 200 acres, and universal pot hunting has 
 improved all game off its face. You must go far 
 afield to get your gun hot in America. I doubt 
 much whether a cormtry is the better for its young 
 men hangmg about cities and threading balls through 
 croquet hoops rather than breasting the hill or 
 charging the ox fence in the grand excitement of a 
 run with a fast pack across a stiff" country. 
 
 There is nothing an American is more anxious to 
 become acquainted with than our country house life ; 
 perhaps a time may come when those who realise
 
 CHAP. XV.] MILLIOX AIRES' INSTINCTS. 237 
 
 large fortunes may desii-e to invest them in land ; at 
 present the Americans appear to have no such in- 
 stincts. The man of millions may be seen any and 
 every day sitting by his ^^dndow in the Fifth Avenue 
 labouring at fresh railway combinations to pile up 
 more useless milHons. Our views of happiness are 
 different, and om- early habits have much influence 
 on them. Perhaps the proprietor of the New York 
 Herald is not so happy in the Belvoir Country, 
 where he is now hunting, as Mr. Vanderbilt in his 
 window in Fifth Avenue, where he is probably now 
 sitting. The custom of dividing fortunes among 
 children equally has much to do with the disin- 
 clination of wealthy Americans to acquii'e large 
 landed estates.
 
 238 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xvi. 
 
 CHAPTEH XVI. 
 
 " REPUBLICAN " AND " DEMOCRAT." 
 
 As to the political parties wliicli divide America 
 -^-" Republican" and " Democrat" — I can only say 
 that, having done my best, I have failed to arrive at 
 any broad line of distinction. No doubt the Repub- 
 licans were the anti-slavery party ; but that is all 
 over. The resumption of specie payments is a De- 
 mocratic ticket, but gold is now only at 2|- per 
 cent, premium, so that it is no longer a burning 
 question. The double standard of gold and silver is 
 an open, but only a momentarily excitmg topic ; it 
 will be ado|)ted, but for reasons which probably will 
 never be pubhshed, and do not appear in the report 
 of the committee on that question. 
 
 Free Trade and Protection is a bm^ning question. 
 The Democrats in the main are for Free Trade, but 
 they are rather fearful to approach it too closely, or 
 to pledge themselves too deeply ; while the Repub- 
 licans have been afraid to oppose it too vigorously, 
 the fact being that they are both fighting for Party 
 and not Patriotic motives. Nevertheless, come 
 from which side it may, Protection is doomed to 
 a very short existence in America, and it is well 
 for the country that it is so. I hear that in the 
 Universities even, a large proportion of the students
 
 CHAP. XVI.] FREE TRADE. EDl'C AT/OX. 239 
 
 are Free Traders : but the question will not wait for 
 tlieir maturity. 
 
 I am not prepared to say that England is likely to 
 be greatly benefited by Free Trade with America. I 
 beUeve that she can produce every article as cheaply 
 or cheaper than we can, if she will only cease to 
 interfere with Nature's laws and allow the general 
 value of her products to find their natural level. 
 Wages must fall, but the cost of living must fall also ; 
 America will then be able to compete with us in 
 foreign markets, and a most formidable competitor 
 she will be. That we shall ever hereafter be able to 
 compete with American manufacturers in their own 
 home markets, I greatly doubt. 
 
 It will be understood from what I have said that 
 such matters as Education, Poor-reHef and the like, 
 are State and not National Questions, and as the 
 practice is difierent in each of the 38 States, it is not 
 unnatural that any one who desires to obtain a 
 comprehensive idea of a country so vast as America, 
 and has only 100 days to do it in, should be unable 
 to go into the details of the administration of so 
 many different States. I must, therefore, smiply say 
 that few States, I believe, have regular Poor Laws, 
 although there are many charitable institutions, and 
 in some I saw regular workhouses. 
 
 On the other hand, in the matter of Education, I 
 believe no State has failed to organise a most com- 
 plete system, by w^iich instruction is provided gratis 
 for all ages of children from five years old and 
 upwards, ending only with and including the High
 
 240 A TOUR IX NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xvr. 
 
 Schools and Colleges. The cost is met by rates 
 levied on the real and personal property of the dis- 
 trict witliin which the schools are situated. In tliis 
 respect America is many years in advance of Eng- 
 land, and the system of education is still far more 
 complete. 
 
 I was much struck in travelling through the 
 country by the size of the school buildings as 
 compared with the apparent extent of the town or 
 villaofe, and the class of houses of which it was com- 
 posed. In America almost aU houses in the agricul- 
 tural districts are "frame houses," i.e., Avooden frame 
 work boarded over; but the School House is generally 
 a substantial stone fabric. In the most out-of-the- 
 way places on om- road to the Yosemite Valley we 
 passed school houses without apparently any habita- 
 tions near them : the cliildren ride and drive miles 
 to attend them. 
 
 The nature of the instruction may be gathered 
 from the following short extracts from the syllabus 
 of the Cmcinnati Schools, which I beHeve may be 
 taken as fairly representative, embracing the twelve 
 years of school life : — 1st year — Slate- work, Pen- 
 manship, and Dramng. 2nd year — The same, with 
 Mental Arithmetic, Grammar, and Spelling. 3rd — 
 The same, plus German, Composition, and Written 
 Arithmetic. 4th — All the foregoing, plus Geography 
 and Music. 5th — The same. Then come what are 
 called " Intermediate Schools." 6th year — All the 
 above, plus the Kules and Principles of Arithmetic. 
 7th — The same. 8 th — The same ; but from the list
 
 CHAP. XXI.] EDUCATION. 241 
 
 of text books I have before me, and the examination 
 papers, it is easy to see, although it would be too 
 tedious to specify, the advance made in each year. 
 
 Then come the High Schools. 9th year — Latin, 
 History, Algebra, and German. In the 10th year — 
 Physiology, Physical Geography, French, and Greek, 
 are added. 11th year — Geometry, German, Natural 
 Philosophy, Enghsh Literature, Botany, French, and 
 Greek. 12th year — Greek, Latin, French, Survey- 
 ing, Chemistry, Mental Philosophy, Geology, Natural 
 History, English Literature, and Book-keeping. 
 Many of these subjects are of course optional, and 
 most children do not complete the course ; but edu- 
 cation of the above class is open to all without pay- 
 ment, and at then' own doors. 
 
 Imagine the immense advantage which such a sys- 
 tem of general systematic education confers on the 
 community. Think of the poor widow left with a 
 large family, and the burden of their education upon 
 her as well as that of finding their daily bread — how 
 eagerly does she strive in England to get her boys 
 into the Blue Coat School and her gMs into Howells' 
 Charity or some kindred institutions ; how hard and 
 often how hopeless are her efibrts. Think of strug- 
 gling professional men or clergymen, and the diffi- 
 culties they have to encounter. They know well 
 what education means, and they eagerly desire to do 
 their duty by their children by conferring its benefits 
 upon them. I fear they are often compelled to deny 
 themselves, some even of the necessaries of life, in 
 order to keep their boys at school. We have met the 
 
 H H
 
 242 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xvi. 
 
 case of working men by our Board Schools, but what 
 have we done for those whose struggles in life are 
 often harder? We shall never be able to call our 
 system of education "National" until it embraces 
 the teaching required by all classes without payment 
 of any kind, the cost being met by a general rate, as 
 in America, and the rate need not be a large one. 
 In some cases portions of land have been set apart to 
 provide funds for educational requirements, and thus 
 local rates are relieved. In the main, however, the 
 expenses are borne by the ratepayers. 
 
 Before I leave the question of education, I desu-e 
 to say that while I admire the completeness of the 
 American system as a national and local institution, 
 I in no way desire to see our great public school sys- 
 tem interfered with. I beheve that system turns out 
 better men than any other in the world. 
 
 While thus caring for the mental culture of the 
 young, the State and municijDal authorities are not 
 unmindful of the bodily health and enjo3rment of 
 their citizens. I have in the course of these notes 
 occasionally aUuded to the Parks which have been 
 created near the large cities which I visited. I 
 believe that I shall not overstate the case if I say 
 that every town of any size has now its Park, pro- 
 vided and maintained by the local authority, for the 
 free use of the inhabitants, and that with no nig- 
 gardly hand or misplaced economy. The Park at 
 New York is 800 acres in extent ; that of Philadel- 
 phia is more than double as large. Chicago has, I 
 think, three Parks, each of considerable size. The
 
 CHAP. XVI.] PUBLIC PARKS. 243 
 
 one wliich rims along the shores of Lake Michigan 
 was almost created by deposit mg the debris of the 
 great fire on the low land adjoining the Lake. San 
 Francisco has won its Park from the arid desert and 
 sandy dmies of the Pacific shore. I might go on 
 describing my drives through the Parks of the various 
 cities I visited until both my readers and my pen 
 were weary. 
 
 The moral I wish to draw is, that the American 
 local authorities are far-seeing enough to appreciate 
 the advantages wliich accrue to the communities 
 they preside over from the retention of spaces for 
 public pm-poses, where their citizens can breathe 
 untamted au', where the child can make its daisy 
 cham on the green grass instead of its mud pie in 
 the pestilential gutter, where the young can develop 
 their muscles in manly games instead of undermin- 
 ing then' health and imbibmg bodily and mental 
 poison in the music hall or biUiard saloon, where the 
 tradesman can, after harnessing his business nag to 
 his light waggonette, trot out his wife and family for 
 a wholesome airing instead of boosing in some bar 
 room. 
 
 The lawns are well kept, and I saw hundreds of 
 men and lads playing on them, some at "base ball," 
 a species of "rounders," of which they are extremely 
 fond all through the States and Canada ; some at 
 cricket, some at croquet. At Philadelphia I saw 
 six full-grown niggers, dressed m black coats and 
 white waistcoats, gravely playing croquet in the 
 Park. 
 
 H H 2
 
 244 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xvi. 
 
 The walks are well kept, and are thronged by 
 those who cannot afford carriages. The roads are 
 excellent, the only good roads I saw in America, 
 and are crowded with vehicles of all kinds. They 
 generally manage to have a piece of water, on which 
 the " aquatics" disport themselves ; in fact, the 
 Americans thoroughly enjoy then- Parks, which have 
 now become institutions among them. 
 
 This was not always so, for I found that most of 
 the Parks are of comparatively recent creation. 
 There has been a great awakening to their necessity 
 in America. Why not in England? Local taxes are 
 as burthensome in America as mth us, and yet they 
 tax themselves to provide Parks. 
 
 The State authorities are so fully aware of the 
 advantage of free spaces that they have passed Acts 
 devoting the most striking and beautiful creations of 
 Nature within their dominions to the use of the 
 public for ever. The region of the great trees of 
 California and the Yosemite Valley have been set 
 aside by Act of Congress as public property; so in 
 the same way the singularly beautiful spots in the 
 Rocky Mountains, near Denver, now called the 
 " North," " Middle," and " South" Parks, have been 
 reserved for the use of the public, and cannot be 
 occupied by settlers. 
 
 These so-called Parks are plains covered with 
 luxuriant vegetation and occasional groves of fine 
 timber trees, walled in by the loftiest ranges of the 
 Pocky Mountams, and watered by the purest 
 streams. Their area is great ; that of the North
 
 CHAP. XVI. j 
 
 SEWERS. 245 
 
 Park, I believe, I before stated to be somewhat 
 larger tlian the whole county of Glamorgan, about 70 
 miles long and 30 wide. Through these lovely wilds 
 now roam the bear, the antelope, and the wapiti 
 (here called elk) in considerable numbers; but un- 
 less the authorities interfere to protect them, the 
 ruthless pot hunter will soon as completely clear 
 them out as he has done in the older settle- 
 ments of America. It is a pity that the Govern- 
 ments of the ^United States and Canada cannot 
 combine to prevent further desecration of Nature's 
 grandest work, "Niagara." Thus it is abundantly 
 evident that the necessity for open spaces has 
 taken deep root in the American mind. May it 
 do so in our own. 
 
 We are no doubt many of us heavily taxed and 
 many of us may feel that much unwisdom has pre- 
 vailed in our local expenditure. To my mind it has 
 for some time seemed that no greater folly was 
 ever committed by a civilized nation than our ex- 
 penditure on sewers. I look upon it that we have 
 by their construction created a huge manufactory of 
 pestilential gas beneath oiu' feet which, in spite of 
 " traps" and hydraulic contrivances, will prepetually 
 and insiduously issue forth, carrying its deadly poison 
 into the palace of the prince and the crowded alley, 
 with like deadly effect. Hmnan ingenuity or 
 insanity could invent no better method of breeding 
 malarious poison than by pouring out all the refuse 
 of om- houses into sewers with abundance of atmos- 
 pheric air to aid its decomposition, and by at the
 
 246 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xvi. 
 
 same time giving great facility for the reintroduction 
 of tlie poison, in a gaseous form, through every ill- 
 made joint and rat-hole in the connecting drains. 
 
 And aU the while, to carry out this precious sys- 
 tem, we waste millions and milhons worth of those 
 fertihsing agents which, in the economy of nature, 
 were provided for perpetually maintaining the fertility 
 of our soil. 
 
 If we devised means of properly economising these 
 fertilising agents which we now spend our millions 
 in wasting, it is scarcely an exaggeration to say 
 that we should have Httle need to send so many 
 millions across the ocean to buy our food, nor need 
 we seek for and utilise, as one of our most valuable 
 fertilisers, the excreta of saurians which disported 
 themselves on the mud of the Cam unknown cen- 
 turies before the creation of man. 
 
 Nature has placed the means to effect this great 
 economy within our reach in the simplest form ; she 
 has endowed all soils with marvellous powers of 
 neutraHsing noxious matters, and at the same time 
 retaining their fertilising properties. A day must 
 come when the well known system of availing om'- 
 selves of this most valuable property with which 
 common earth has been endowed will be generally 
 adopted, and when oui" costly sewers will be conduits 
 for rain w^ater alone; then they will breed no more 
 typhoid and other evil consequences of malarious gas, 
 then nothing but the debts, sad mementos of the 
 folly and ignorance of this our generation, will 
 remain to our descendants to })ay and bewail.
 
 CHAP. XVI.] THE RELIGIOUS POSITION. 247 
 
 I have frequently alluded to the number and 
 costly character of the Chui'ches in America, and 
 perhaps I ought to say a very few words on the reli- 
 gous position in that country. I have no more statis- 
 tics than I have given from tune to time. I cannot 
 say how many of the 40 milHons of Americans are 
 ranged under one or other of the denominations into 
 which the Christian Church is divided ; nor from my 
 point of view would it be a matter of any importance 
 to be acquainted with such statistics. I can draw no 
 distinction between the great Christian sects of 
 America which, with trifling differences, more of dis- 
 cipline than doctrine, are travelling side by side along 
 the same road, and with the same high mission in 
 view. 
 
 There is no Established Church, of course, nor 
 could I see or hear that its absence was felt. 
 There appeared to be ample accommodation for reh- 
 gious worship everywhere ; not alone in the great 
 cities, but in the country villages in which as we 
 passed along, I always saw one or more Churches. 
 The buildings were substantial and frequently costly. 
 The outward adornment of Churches appeared to be 
 the aim of all denominations alike. The old wish for 
 simpHcity in Church architecture seems to have 
 passed away entirely. 
 
 I suspect that denommationaHsm is not half so 
 strong a sentiment in America as it is with us. I 
 was much struck at New York with the rephes my 
 friends made to my question, " What Church is 
 that ? " The reply generally was, " That is Mr. So
 
 248 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xvi. 
 
 and So's Chui'ch." " But what denommation ? " 
 " Well, let me see, I think he is such and such." It 
 seemed to me that "Mr. So and So" was the 
 stronger element of the two — that the "personal" 
 outweighed the "denominational." 
 
 At the time of the rebelhon, 100 years ago, the 
 Episcopal Church sided with the Royal Party and 
 incurred great odium. Three generations have 
 scarcely sufficed to obliterate that feeling ; but now, 
 I am told, she is receiving great accessions, and I 
 rather fancy it is more "fashionable" to belong to 
 the "Old Chm'ch" than to any other sect. RituaHsm 
 is rearing its head, but there is a great preponder- 
 ance of feeling against it. The Sabbath is marvel- 
 lously well observed — almost more rigorously than 
 in England ; all shops are closed and work sus- 
 pended. 
 
 I must not omit in thus summarising the cliief 
 features of American life, to allude to the only fea- 
 ture which can be permanently connected with death, 
 viz., the sacred spots set apart for the resting-place 
 of all that remains of poor mortals when once the 
 breath of life has passed from its frail tenement. 
 Nothing can exceed the beauty of American ceme- 
 teries. They are generally one of the points of in- 
 terest to which a stranger is conducted, and except 
 for their melancholy character, they are well vrorthy 
 of his notice. 
 
 In most cases a secluded site is selected, the sur- 
 face being of varied and irregular contom\ Roads 
 and paths follow the undulations and depressions
 
 CHAP. XVI.] CEMETERIES. 249 
 
 with constant windings, so that no stronger contrast 
 can be conceived than the cities of the Hving and 
 the dead. The one is made up of nothing but 
 straight lines and angles ; the other has every wind- 
 ing and curve to be found in the works of Newton 
 or our Lord Lieutenant. The line of beauty lies 
 with the dead. 
 
 A large staff of men must be employed ; for no 
 pleasure ground I have ever seen is kept in more 
 perfect order, while the monuments are costly, and 
 in good taste for the most part. Some are very 
 touchmg and suggestive. So far as I know, the 
 cemeteries of England are far inferior to those of 
 America, exceptmg always our old village church- 
 yards, the yews in some of which I believe are 
 older than the Chiistian Era, and point to God's Acre, 
 having been " The Grove" of an earlier worship. 
 
 1 1
 
 250 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [cuap. xvn. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 MINERAL RESOURCES. 
 
 I DO not know that I can say much more on the 
 mineral resources of America than I have said inci- 
 dentally when passing through the various mining 
 districts, but perhaps a few general remarks may not 
 be without interest. 
 
 So far as I was able to judge, America possesses 
 every principal mineral, except tin, in great abund- 
 ance. Her coal fields are gigantic. The quaHty ap- 
 peared to me to be excellent, and the price at which 
 it is sold to the Pittsburg Works proves that it is 
 cheaply got. There are, in fact, few parts of England 
 where coal of like quality can be produced at this 
 moment at so cheap a rate. The cost and quality 
 of coal is the basis of almost every manufacturing 
 industry, and I cannot see, therefore, what is to 
 prevent America from becommg, not only entirely 
 self-supplying in all branches of manufacture, but 
 also a largely exporting country, if only frail man 
 will leave nature's laws to have their free sway. 
 
 America possesses iron ores of the finest steel- 
 making quahties and in vast abundance. That she 
 will ever again depend on England for u'on or steel 
 seems to me impossible. She is beating us m hard- 
 ware. I took some pains to go over the stock of an
 
 CHAP. XVII.] MINERAL RESOURCES. 251 
 
 intelligent ironmonger in Canada, and in many arti- 
 cles he proved to me the superiority of those of 
 American manufacture — saws, locks, joiners' tools, 
 and the like. 
 
 We all know the extraordinary ingenuity of 
 various American machines for saving labour. Our 
 ladies owe the sewing and our agricultimsts the 
 reaping machme, with countless other clever me- 
 chanical contrivances, to American inventors. I 
 was told that by their automatic machinery they 
 are even beating the cheap labour of Switzerland 
 in the manufacture of watches and clocks. 
 
 If our iron, steel, and mechanical industries are to 
 hold their own, every man from the master to the 
 mechanic, ifrom the capitalist to the handworker, 
 must exert himself and all the intelligence that God 
 has given him to the full. There must be no scamp- 
 ing of work, or restricting of the due hours of labour, 
 nor must there be disagreement and cross purposes : 
 all must pull cordially together or we shall be left 
 behind in the race. 
 
 America seems to possess all other of the im- 
 portant metals in equal abundance, with coal and 
 iron. The region of Lake Superior supplies her with 
 some twenty-two thousand tons of copper annually 
 of the very finest quaHty that I am acquainted with; 
 so much so, that American brass makers by the aid 
 of the high quaHty of this copper and that of New 
 Jersey spelter, have been able to meet the specifica- 
 tions of the Russian and Turkish Governments for 
 cartridges, punched out of the solid in such a fashion 
 
 1 1 2
 
 252 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA. [chap. xvii. 
 
 as no brass made from ordinary copper and spelter 
 would stand, and thus the Americans have had the 
 largest share of the supply of cartridges for the war 
 which is now raging. Time was, and I remember it 
 well, when the United States drew the bulk of 
 its supplies of copper and spelter from this country. 
 Besides the great district of Lake Superior, copper 
 is found in Vermont and in various other localties 
 along the eastern coasts of America. It is also 
 found in the States of Colorado and CaHfornia, 
 though in no great abundance. 
 
 I have alluded to the great lead production of 
 Missouri and the districts centermg at St. Louis, 
 through which market alone 24,000 tons of lead 
 annually pass. Utah and California are akeady large 
 lead-producing districts, and are being rapidly de- 
 veloped, yet but a few years ago the United States 
 drew its supplies of lead from England. 
 
 I need scarcely allude to the gold and silver pro- 
 duction of California, Nevada, Utah, and Colorado. 
 The production of silver in the United States, which 
 in 1868 was only £2,400,000, was estimated to have 
 been £7,000,000 in 1875; the whole production of 
 the world being about £14,000,000. The produc- 
 tion of the United States m gold may be taken at 
 about £8,000,000 annually, while that of the world 
 is estimated at from £17,000,000 to £18,000,000. 
 These figures will show that the United States now 
 produce nearly one-half the precious metals of the 
 world, while but a few years ago they produced 
 none.
 
 CHAP. XVII.] METALS. 253 
 
 Quicksilver, which plays so important a part in 
 the metalliu'gy of gold and silver, is at hand in the 
 heart of the Pacific Mining Districts, — as if Provi- 
 dence had ordamed that nothing should be wanting 
 to their prosperity. In 1874 California produced 
 27,000 flasks of 76llbs., worth about 6s. per lb., say 
 £43 per flask, say £600,000. But for the fortunate 
 existence of quicksilver in their niidst, the mines of 
 California and Nevada would have had to pay an 
 exorbitant price, for in former days it was the 
 monopoly of one great firm. Now California sup- 
 plies her own wants, and exports two-fifths of her 
 production. 
 
 When we reflect that thirty years ago scarcely 
 one of the minerals to which I have alluded was pro- 
 duced at all, and that at tliis moment each one, in 
 its respective class, excepting coal and iron, probably 
 nearly equals any other similar production in the 
 world ; and that in this short period the United 
 States has passed from an importing to an exporting 
 country, it is difficult to foresee to what extent her 
 mineral wealth may develope itself in time to come, 
 especially when we consider the vast areas over 
 which, in all geological probability, these mineral 
 deposits extend. 
 
 I have said that the areas of the American coal- 
 fields are enormous. They are stated in the Report 
 of our E,oyal Commission on Coal, at page 249 of 
 the second volume, at 220,166 square miles, of 
 which only 4,800 are anthracite. I have caused the 
 areas shown on my geological map (which, although
 
 254 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xvii. 
 
 official, is on too small a scale to insure complete 
 accuracy) to be measured, and it comes out 251,123 
 square miles of true coal measures. In addition to 
 these areas, it was supposed in 1871 that there were 
 200,000 square luiles of lignites, tertiary, and other 
 inferior coal adjoining the Kocky Mountains. The 
 samples I saw of tliis latter coal enable me to say 
 that it is valuable fuel. When we compare these 
 stupendous areas with those of the United Kingdom, 
 amounting to only 2,920 square miles (that of South 
 Wales alone being 906 square miles), and yet consider 
 that our Commission arrived at the conclusion that 
 we have more than ninety thousand millions of 
 tons yet unwrought, the probable amount of coal 
 in America will appear too vast for the human mind 
 to grasp, — as impossible to reaHse as the distance to 
 the nearest fixed star or the countless hosts of 
 heaven. I assume always that the coal section of 
 these areas is about equal to our own, which I believe 
 it to be. Truly if the world is to last till the coal of 
 America is exhausted, its end must be very remote. 
 
 Its prospective metallic resoiu-ces seem equally 
 boundless, taking a general and theoretical view of 
 them, based on the occurrence of the various geo- 
 logical formations and their proved productiveness 
 so far as developed. Along the eastern coasts of 
 America there is a band of Eozoic and Silurian 
 rocks, some 200 miles wide, extending from the far 
 north nearly to the Gulf of Mexico, in which con- 
 siderable deposits of copper are found, beginning 
 with the great deposits of copper ore at Betts' Cove
 
 CHAP. XVII.] METALLIC FORECAST. 255 
 
 in Newfoundland. These rocks, where I saw them, 
 seemed to me to be almost identical with those of 
 Cornwall. 
 
 Alonof the whole of the north of America the same 
 rocks prevail until they are lost beneath the creta- 
 ceous formations about the 96th parallel of west longi- 
 tude, to appear again however in the same line 
 about 12 degrees further west, and thence to extend 
 to the Pacific. In this last mentioned range, the 
 great Lake Superior Copper Mines occur. In the 
 centre of America, between the coal fields, the 
 Silurian, Devonian and Lower Carboniferous rocks, 
 which produce the great lead deposits of Missouri, 
 occupy the entire area up to 95 degrees west 
 longitude ; from thence to the Rocky Mountains, at 
 the 105th parallel, we have Coal measure. Cretaceous 
 and Tertiary formation, and then begin the enormous 
 gold and silver bearing formations of the Rocky Moun- 
 tains and the Sierra Nevada, about a thousand miles 
 wide and twelve hundred long, from the British 
 Possessions in the North to Mexico in the South. 
 
 In this great area patches of Cretaceous and Ter- 
 tiary rocks occur, but in the main it is one great 
 mass of Eozoic and Igneous Rocks, which, wherever 
 they have been prospected, appear to contain veins 
 of the precious metals of greater or less richness. 
 Thirty years ago none but the trapper had set his 
 foot within these wilds, and now they are pro- 
 ducing half the gold and silver of the world, and that 
 from a band of country chiefly dependant on the 
 Pacific Railway, which has opened a means of access.
 
 25G A TOUR IX XORTII AMERICA. [chap, xvii. 
 
 So far as I can see, no sjDecial geological conditions 
 exist on that line. Lateral narrow guage railways 
 have been run out for a certain distance it is true on 
 each side of the Pacific line, and rich districts have 
 thus been opened up, but I cannot help believing 
 that as these railways are extended, and as other 
 east and west hues of communication are pushed 
 through this wide region of mountains, far to 
 the north and south of the present Pacific line, 
 fresh mmeral districts will be opened up and the" 
 present production of bullion increased, or at least 
 maintained. Time and toil alone can realise my 
 forecast. 
 
 I can call to mind no subject of general interest 
 upon wliich I am competent to write wliich I have 
 omitted in my rough and hasty sketch of the con- 
 dition of things in America, but before I close my 
 notes I must devote a few lines to Canada, a subject 
 wliich ought to command our deepest interest. It 
 ill becomes Enghshmen to undervalue Canada. We 
 are perhaps too apt to think of it as a Hyperborean 
 region inhabited by a mixed, and largely by an alien 
 race, which sends us timber of the nature of papier 
 mache, and gives us occasionally some trouble and 
 anxiety. 
 
 My opportunities of observation iu Canada were 
 shght, and I speak with all diffidence; but I am 
 bound to say that although my feelings on entering 
 Canada were somewhat akin to those I have de- 
 scribed, I left her with a very different estimate of 
 her worth. I had absolutely no opportunity of 
 
 i
 
 CHAP. XVII.] CANADA. 257 
 
 judging of the French-speaking population, but I 
 was told that they are more than contented with 
 their government, and thoroughly loyal to theu' 
 Sovereign. Quebec, theu* ancient capital, with its 
 quiet grass-grown streets and faded grandeur, is 
 perhaps a visible symbol of the old French com- 
 munities ; Montreal, of the bustluig vigorous 
 Anglo-Saxon life, which is pushing Canada forward 
 in the world's race — commerce is thrivmg there 
 and in some other of the young towns of Canada. 
 
 Nature has not endowed Canada A\dth coal fields 
 excepting only those of Nova Scotia and New 
 Brunswick, which are too remote to benefit the 
 interior, however imjDortant in themselves and to 
 their own district. The chief export of Canada 
 is timber, and that must in process of time cease. 
 Metallic mines will probably be developed, for the 
 geological formations of which she consists are 
 identical with those of the United States, which 
 prove so productive on the southern shores of Lake 
 Superior. 
 
 The area embraced in the Dominion of Canada to 
 the North is as large as that of the United States 
 themselves, and much of it in process of time will 
 doubtless be inhabited. The clmiate is severe in 
 winter, but probably not more so than in much of 
 Northern Europe. In suimner the weather is deli- 
 cious, crops ripen rapidly, and in the portions of 
 Canada between Lakes Hui'on and Ontario some 
 of the finest land and the best farming in North 
 America are to be found. I believe, in fiict, that 
 
 K K
 
 258 A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA, [chap. xvii. 
 
 Canada must look to agriculture for her future 
 development, and probably cliiefly to her North 
 Western possessions, so recently visited and graphi- 
 cally described by her Governor- General, who has 
 won the hearts of Canadians so completely that the 
 task of his successor will be no easy one. 
 
 Grave responsibility rests on those who are called 
 upon to select a Governor- General for Canada, and 
 they cannot do better than take Lord Dufferin as 
 their model. The Canadians are loyal to the back- 
 bone — ^more English than Enghshmen ; but they are 
 sensitive and proud of their countiy, and unplea- 
 santness might easily arise from the injudicious acts 
 of a Governor-General. 
 
 They value their freedom far too much to enter- 
 tain the slightest wish to be incorporated with the 
 United States. I believe if the dominion were 
 polled, not one man in fifty would vote for annex- 
 ation. Indeed, as I told a bumptious American, 
 who said, " Oh, we shall soon annex Canada," 
 " There is much more chance of Canada amiexing 
 you than of your annexing Canada, for the simple 
 reason that you are all discontented with your sys- 
 tem of government, and would be only thankful to 
 possess the same as Canada, while Canada is tho- 
 roughly contented and happy under her form of 
 government." 
 
 There is one bad feature in the present condition 
 of public feeling in Canada. Under the hostile tariff 
 of the United States, Canadian opinion is di^ifting 
 rapidly towards protection. I hope that ere they
 
 cuAP. XVII. HOME. 259 
 
 take such a fatal step as to enact protective duties, 
 the States mil have struck off the shackles wliich 
 fetter their commerce, and that Canada may be saved 
 from herself. 
 
 And now my notes have ended. Weeks have 
 slipped away since I looked through the thick glass 
 of my " port " in the good ship " Russia," about four 
 o'clock on the dark morning of the 16th November, 
 and saw the Fastenet Light (Cape Clear) dancing 
 over the troubled waters, since, four hoiu's after- 
 wards, I stood on the well-known deck and saw the 
 Cove of Cork crowded with shipping — driven in by 
 stress of weather, gradually open as we ghded on, 
 since the pilot gig boarded us and the tug ranged 
 up alongside with letters and newspapers only one 
 day old. It was a lovely calm morning, just breeze 
 enough to fill the sails of a splendid American full- 
 rigged sliip which came spanking after us with every 
 sail set to her royals. The inclosures of untidy Ire- 
 land looked neatness itself after American farming 
 as I swept them with my glasses, and there were the 
 country houses, the luxurious homes of England, 
 nestling among woods, with weU-kept lawns running 
 down to the water's edge. 
 
 Then followed the calm and pleasant run up chan- 
 nel, so different from its rough behaviour on our 
 outward voyage ; plenty of shippmg, a rehef after a 
 whole week without sighting a sail, which much 
 surprised me, for I thought in my ignorance that 
 the Atlantic was nearly as much thronged as the 
 Straits of Dover ; and in the distance the blue
 
 2G0 A TOUR IN NORTH A3IERICA. [chap. xvii. 
 
 outlines of the Wicklow mountains were just visible. 
 Then nightfall, and light combining with Hght to 
 point us on our way. Then the last night on board, 
 and the hubbub on deck, as in the murky ghmmering 
 of a Mersey November morning the tender came 
 alongside, and strange faces boarded us ; and then 
 the ills of life began — care of luggage, hustle of 
 landing, and the like. 
 
 But one's foot is again on the firm soil of Old 
 England, and we are soon flitting through the 
 pleasant pastures of Cheshire. How neat it all 
 looks after the snake fences and weed grown lands 
 of America. And then we leave the civihsed dis- 
 tricts and run through the valleys of dear old 
 Wales, with mountains of very respectable dimen- 
 sions towering over us. The names of the stations 
 have a homely sound, and the tongue of the 
 Cynu"i is once more heard, and then we rush 
 through the well-known wood where many a good 
 day's sport has given us fresh vigour, and many a 
 cock has flown his last flight, and then we emerge 
 into the fine bay, with its triune headland and 
 sweeping outlines, and then — well, then we are very 
 soon in our " bright and happy homes," with hearts 
 ever thankful for the health and safety vouchsafed 
 to us during our long journey of nearly seventeen 
 thousand miles. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 PKINTKU AT " THE CAMURIAN " OTFICE, WISD-STREET, SWANSEA.
 
 I 
 
 I
 
 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-URBANA 
 
 SoTeI OF A TOUR IN AMERIc!^ LOND 
 
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