University of Virginia Library

CHAPTER II.

STAY IN NEW YORK, PHILADELPHIA, AND BORDENTOWN, FROM 9TH TO 16TH JULY.

New York is but little inferior to the capital cities of Europe, with the exception of London
and Paris. It has, at present, 220,000 inhabitants, and its commerce is so extensive, animated,
and active, that, in this respect, it is scarcely surpassed by any. There are so many descriptions
of this great city, that to say much on the subject would be merely repetition. The first impression
that it made on me was very striking, on account of the beauty of its situation. In the interior
the style of building resembles that of many English cities. It has one remarkably fine
street, called the Broadway, which traverses its whole length; other parts are old, and not so
handsome. In the Broadway, which is the favourite resort of the fashionable world, is an
uninterrupted line of shops, but little inferior to those of London and Paris. The city is
extremely animated, and people of all nations carry on business here. We were assured that the
population had been diminished, in a few days, by the emigration of 20,000 of the inhabitants, who
had fled to other towns for fear of the cholera. It is well known that this lamentable disease had
been very fatal in Canada, and had now penetrated into the Northern States of the Union: it was
raging at Albany, on the Hudson, at Detroit, and on the great lakes, so that it seemed as if it would
defeat our project of beginning our journey to the interior by that route. This had been my plan,
in which the recommendations of our worthy countryman, Mr. Astor, would have been of great
service, as he is the founder and head of the American Fur Company, which has spread its trading
stations over the whole of the interior of North America. I formed numerous interesting acquaintances,
in a short time, in New York. Several estimable fellow-countrymen, Messrs. Gebhard and
Schuchart, and Mr. Iselin, did their utmost to afford us their counsel and assistance. Mr. Schmidt,
the Prussian consul, contributed not a little to make our stay in this city agreeable; and so did
Mr. Meier and other of our German friends. Mr. Schmidt has a country-house at Bloomingdale,

where we passed some very pleasant days in the circle of his amiable family. Mrs. Schmidt,
an American lady, had visited Europe and travelled in Germany, and remembered, with pleasure,
the banks of the Rhine.

The house at which Mr. Schmidt resides in the summer, is charmingly situated on the
banks of that picturesque river, the Hudson, seven miles from the town. The pretty dwelling-house,
with a veranda all round, covered with passion flowers, honeysuckles, the red trumpet
flower, and other beautiful climbing plants, stands on a verdant lawn, shaded by lofty trees, among
which we observed the finest kinds of this country, the trunks of which were slender, and straight
as pillars. The park extends to the Hudson, where the tall sassafras, tulip, oak, walnut, and
other trees, protected us by their shade; while the large steam-boats, rapidly passing on the bright
surface of the Hudson, had a very picturesque effect. Mr. Schmidt had the kindness to afford us
an admirable view of what is called the island of New York. Near Bloomingdale is a large
and very well conducted lunatic asylum, from the lofty roof of which we enjoyed an inexpressibly
beautiful, extensive, and interesting prospect of the whole country. From this spot we overlooked
the East and North Rivers, the broad bend of the latter, and its high banks towards Albany;
to the north, dark forests, with detached dwellings and country seats; and, in all directions,
luxuriant green thickets, towns, villages, and handsome country-houses. At our feet, contrasting
with that rich and noble view, full of variety and life, we looked down on the buildings and courtyards
of the hospital, in which we could observe the patients; while, in another enclosed space,
Virginian deer were sporting and playing. This asylum is a very excellent establishment, and
contains a great number of patients: the physician resides in the house, and was so good as to
show us over it. New York has many such useful institutions,—hospitals, poorhouses, and
houses of correction, in which latter the young, who may still be reclaimed, are not mixed with
the old, hardened offenders, but are kept apart. There is an asylum for the deaf and dumb, &c.

Our return from Bloomingdale, in the evening, was extremely agreeable, the weather being
delightful. In the dark thickets and woods were swarms of fire-flies; and from the marshes and
pools came the croakings of the frogs, with which we were not yet familiar; but we did not
hear that of the celebrated bull-frog.

The most beautiful spots and environs of New York are indebted for the attraction of their
views, to the variety of the waters surrounding the city: thus, for instance, at the end of the
Broadway, is the Castle Garden, formerly a circular fort, the walls of which are converted into a
public walk. From the wall itself is a fine prospect of the noble harbour, the neighbouring
city, the banks, the opposite coast, and the broad river, where ships of every kind and
of all nations are coming and going. Another favourite place of resort is the garden at
Hoboken, the name of which indicates its Dutch origin, for it is well known that the Dutch
founded the first considerable settlement in this place, numerous traces of which still remain.

The communication with Hoboken is by means of a steam-boat. The garden extends along the
banks of the Hudson, and the lofty trees and thickets are pleasing and interesting to the
stranger. The tall hickory and other kinds of walnut trees had now their fruit half grown.
Storax trees (Liquidambar styraciflua), with their maple-like leaves, grow very high and straight,
Gleditschia triacanthos and inermis, with wild vines, climbing round them; and many other fine
forest trees afford protection against the heat of the summer. Many European trees and shrubs,
too, have been planted here. Thus we saw a hedge of whitethorn, the growth of which, however,
was stunted by other wood. Many birds, whose notes were unknown to us, were heard in these
shades. On my first visit to New York, I was interested by some collections of natural history;
for instance, two museums, one of which, belonging to Mr. Peale, is, however, much inferior to
that of his brother at Philadelphia. Being anxious to see Philadelphia, I hastened to set out for
that city, and left New York, where the cholera was daily spreading more and more.

On the 16th, at six in the morning, I embarked on board the Swan steam-boat, which was so
crowded with passengers that there was scarcely room to sit down. On our left we had Staten
Land; but we soon turned to the right, into the river Raritan, on which New Brunswick is situated.

New Brunswick is a village, consisting of many straggling streets, where all the passengers
landed from the steam-boat, and took their seats in stage-coaches, drawn by four horses,
which were standing ready to receive them. The heat was great, the company very mixed,
and I had the misfortune to have noisy and disagreeable companions. A long hill, with
steep sides, which appears to consist of a reddish clay, extends along the water-side to New
Brunswick. On the eminence above the town it was naked and rather sterile; the road was bad,
and we were roughly jolted as we drove rapidly along. Meadows, fields of clover, rye, oats, and
maize succeeded each other in the vicinity of the habitations, as well as plantations of European
fruit trees, full of large caterpillar's nests, but flourishing in the greatest luxuriance. The beautiful
red trumpet flower partly covered the sides of the houses, about which Italian poplars and
Babylonian willows were frequently planted; the latter are often very high and spreading. The
cattle are partly without horns. Sheep and swine were numerous.

While we were changing horses at Kingston, negro and other children offered milk, little
cakes, and half-ripe fruit for sale, of which a great deal was bought. Some German peasants,
lately arrived from Europe, who were welcomed by their relations, previously settled in the
country, completely filled a couple of stages, and were not a little merry, in their low German
language, at which the Americans laughed heartily. From this place the country was rather
woody. Here and there were fine forests, the shade of which was very refreshing in this hot weather.
The growth of timber was very fine. A pretty wild rose blossomed among the bushes in
the meadows. Oak, sassafras, walnut, chestnut, plane, and tulip trees, displayed their luxuriant
foliage of various and often glossy green. The tulip trees, when young, are distinguished by

their pyramidal shape and beautiful light green leaves; they were at this time covered with their
seed vessels, which were full-grown, but not ripe. The branching phytolacea, and the thorn-apple
with its large white flowers, which were now open, as well as several plants brought from Europe,
grew in abundance by the road-side, also species of sumach, partly entwined with wild vine; and in the
forest was underwood of Rhododendron maximum. We passed rapidly through Prince Town, and
arrived at Trenton, on the Delaware, a straggling town, lying among thickets, on the low banks of
the river. A long, covered wooden bridge led to the opposite bank of this broad river, which
was animated by ships and boats. Such colossal, covered wooden bridges are very common in
the United States; and many travellers have already described the construction of these useless
masses of timber. From Trenton, we hastened over a sandy tract to another place on the river,
opposite to which is Bordentown, and at a short distance lay the steam-boat, Trenton, ready to convey us down the river to Philadelphia. We descended the fine river Delaware, the low, verdant
banks of which are covered with many towns, settlements, and country houses; here and there,
too, with forests of oaks, &c., and of a kind of pine (pinus rigida[1] ). After taking dinner, at which
we were waited on by negroes and mulattoes, we reached Philadelphia about five or six o'clock.

This city extends a great way along the right bank of the Delaware, but has by no means so
beautiful and striking an effect as New York. It is large and regularly built; the long, straight
streets crossing each other at right angles. The modern part of the city is handsome, consisting
of lofty brick buildings, ornamented in the English fashion; but the older parts of Philadelphia
consist of low, mean houses. It is very judicious that, in hot weather, an agreeable shady walk
is formed by awnings spread before the houses, and that the streets are well watered. The waterworks
are at Fairmount, where there is a basin, from which pipes convey the water to every
part of the city.

The streets which run at right angles to the Delaware are called by the names of different
kinds of trees—Mulberry Street, Walnut Street, Chestnut Street, &c.: the streets which cross
them are numbered, First Street, Second Street, Third Street, &c. Chestnut Street, without
doubt the finest, is full of life and traffic. A part of it has, in the middle, a shady avenue of lime
trees; and, besides, there are, in many of the streets, rows of trees which do not yet afford much
shade. Splendid shops, in almost uninterrupted succession, line the streets, and you find here
all the manufactures and produce of the other quarters of the globe. The ancient, injudicious
practice of having the churchyards in the towns is still retained in America. They are filled with
great numbers of whitish monuments, of various forms, often planted with high trees, and lie
quite exposed to view, being separated from the street only by an iron railing. Philadelphia
has a considerable number of public buildings, especially many churches and meeting-houses of

different religious denominations, most of which are extremely plain brick buildings, without any
external ornaments whatever. This country has no history like the Old World, and therefore we
look in vain for the ancient Gothic cathedrals, and those awe-inspiring monuments of past ages,
from which the traveller in Europe derives so much pleasure and instruction. Besides the
churches, the principal buildings are the State House, where the independence of the country
was proclaimed on the 4th of July, 1776, the United States Bank, the Bank of Pennsylvania,
the Exchange, the University and the Medical College, the Mint, some hospitals, the Deaf
and Dumb Asylum, and many others, which it would lead us too far to mention here.

Philadelphia would make a more striking impression if we could find a spot commanding a
view of the whole; but as it lies in the plain between the rivers Delaware and Schuylkill,
which unite five miles below the city, no such spot is to be found.

It is well known that this city was founded, in 1682, by William Penn, a Quaker, who
concluded, under an elm tree, which recently fell down from age, a convention with the
Delaware Indians, the proprietors of the soil, by which they ceded to him a tract of land.
Philadelphia, literally "the city of the brethren" (Quakers), contains people from all the nations
of Europe, especially Germans, French, and English. In some parts of the city, German is
almost exclusively spoken. In the year 1834, the population consisted of 80,406 whites, and
59,482 people of colour. I arrived in Philadelphia at an unfavourable moment, for the cholera
had already manifested itself also in that city. Letters of introduction from Europe procured me
a kind reception in some houses; but, on the other hand, I had not an opportunity of becoming
acquainted with several scientific gentlemen, because, being physicians, they were now particularly
engaged. Professor Harlan, M.D., well known to the learned world as an author, was of
the number. Mr. Krumbhaar, a German, to whom I had letters, received me with much
kindness, and introduced me to many agreeable acquaintances. He took me to the waterworks
at Fair Mount, one of the most interesting spots near the city, which are indeed worth
seeing. The road led past the House of Correction, where young offenders, who are still
capable of being reclaimed, are confined. On the bank of the river, there are buildings
in which large wheels set in motion the machinery by which the water is raised to the reservoirs,
on an eminence about eighty feet high, whence the pipes are carried to all parts of the city. The
rocky eminence, from which a fine, clear spring rises, is provided with stairs and balustrades,
and adorned with elegant pavilions, which command a view of the water-works, and of the beautiful
valley of the Schuylkill. It is a favourite promenade, and daily resorted to by numbers of
persons, as they can have all kinds of refreshments there. Beautiful plants, the catalpa, plantain,
&c., grow among the rocks with great luxuriance, being watered by the springs. We crossed
the great bridge over the Schuylkill, to return to the city, where I made but a short stay, because
my fellow-travellers were still detained at New York, waiting for our baggage from Boston. As

all the roads were crowded with fugitives from New York, it was not a favourable moment for
travelling; I therefore resolved on an excursion to Bordentown, in order to obtain some little
knowledge of the forests of New Jersey.

I left Philadelphia, on board the Burlington steam-boat, about noon, and arrived at Bordentown
between four and five o'clock. At this place are the estates of the Count de Survilliers (Joseph
Buonaparte), who had but lately sailed for Europe. The pleasant country house, in the fine park,
is about 300 paces from the village, near to the high road, and near, also, to the iron railway from
Amboy to Camden, opposite to Philadelphia. Workmen were employed in making this road, in
doing which, advantage was taken of the hollow of the valley, so that the railway was much
below the common road, or the street of the town. I found some interesting plants in the
woods opposite the Count's park. There were three or four kinds of oak, among which are the
Quercus ferruginea, with its large, peculiarly shaped leaves; the white oak, the leaves of which are
the most like the European; also, varieties of walnut trees, chestnuts, and the sassafras, a fine,
tall tree, which was just then in blossom, the leaves of which often vary in shape. The
undergrowth of this forest, in which pines were mixed with other trees, consisted of Rhododendron
maximum (Pennsylvanian mountain laurel) and kalmia, the latter of which, in the deep shade,
was already out of flower; but the former still had its large bunches of beautiful white or pale
red blossoms, and was from ten to fifteen feet high. The stiff, laurel-like, dried leaves of this
fine plant covered the ground, and crackled as we passed along, which reminded me of the
Brazilian forests, where this occurs in a much greater degree. On open, uncultivated spots, the
great mullein (Verbascum thapsus), with its yellow flowers, and large, woolly leaves, grew in great
abundance, and likewise the phytolacea. Among the thick blackberry bushes, entwined with vines,
by the road-side, I observed the little striped squirrel, which doubtless climbs to get at the fruit.

At ten o'clock, the heat was already so intense that I returned to the inn, where I arrived very
much fatigued. This house is very pleasantly situated on an eminence above the Delaware, at
the place where the steam-boats arrive, and from which there is a fine view of the arm of the
river, and the adjacent lowland, covered with woods and thickets. A great ornament of this
landscape is the white garden-pavilion of Count Survilliers, which rises above the thick
groves on the left bank of the Delaware, above Bordentown. In the cool of the evening I
usually went to this park. The house itself is a pretty building, on a lawn near the water-side,
where oleander and orange plants are placed. The park is very shady, and extends along the
Croswick Creek, towards which the bank forms a steep, wildly wooded declivity. In this wood
there was likewise a thick undergrowth of Rhododendron maximum, now in full blossom. On an
eminence immediately above the river, stands a kind of tower, several stories high, upon a terrace,
from the gallery of which is a fine and extensive view over the low, wooded country,
and the arms of the river. From this place winding paths lead through the gloomy forest of

pine trees, of different varieties, where many birds, of kinds unknown to me, were flying about.
The cat bird (Turdus felivox, Vieill.), whose voice has a slight resemblance to that of a cat, was
very numerous in this place. From the top of the wooded bank a sort of bridge has been carried
out, a great height above the river, and a square place furnished with seats, from which you
overlook the whole country. An old Canadian pine stands at the edge of the bank, some
branches of which we carried off, by way of memorial. The view from this place is remarkably
beautiful; to the right and left extends the river, or rather broad brook, which, at the feet of the
spectator, is covered with water plants. The yellow-blossomed Nymphæa adversus, and the
beautiful Pontederia cordata grow here in great abundance. There was plenty of occupation
for the botanist and the ornithologist, and the sportsman would have reason to be satisfied, for
in the neighbouring thickets there were deer (Cervus viginianus), and hares (Lepus Americanus),
which frequently crossed our path.[2]

On my return to Bordentown, I found before the door of the inn a number of gentlemen
lying in more than easy positions on the benches; the chief subject of conversation was the
cholera, which filled the whole country with terror.

It was precisely the hottest part of summer, and it was scarcely possible to protect one's self
against the swarms of European flies, which are very numerous. On this account there are,
in the inns, negroes and mulattoes, who attend at table, and give the company rest from those
troublesome insects, and, at the same time, cool air, by fanning them with fans, made of
feathers, often those of the peacock. Fans are, in fact, an article of luxury, and are purchased
in the towns; they are made of the tail feathers of the wild turkey, the crane, or the swan, of
palm leaves, &c. It was so hot in the daytime, that it was hardly possible to leave the house;
and the cholera, therefore, spread rapidly in New York. In this sultry season, the evenings
were really refreshing, and gave new life both to men and animals. When it became dusk,
luminous insects flew about, and the crickets chirped in notes like those in Europe, but in more
rapid succession.

On the following day I visited other places and woods in the vicinity of Bordentown. The
town itself is built in the country fashion, with regular, broad, unpaved streets or roads, and
the houses lie detached from each other, shaded by rows of trees: this is very necessary, for now,
at 10 o'clock in the morning, Fahrenheit's thermometer, in the cool passage of the inn, was at 73°.
The avenues of trees in the town consisted of robinia, paper-mulberry, large-leaved poplars,
which exude an aromatic gum, weeping willows, and Syrian mallow, which latter grow to the
height of ten and even fifteen feet. These plants, with their beautiful flowers, flourish here in
much greater perfection than in Germany. In the gardens we observed monarda (Oswego tea),

the Indian cress (tropæolum), purple convolvulus, buckthorn (Lycium Europeum), the climbing
trumpet flower, vine, catalpa, larkspur, &c.

From Bordentown I sometimes passed beyond the iron railroad, and penetrated into the
neighbouring forest. Five or six species of oak, several kinds of walnut trees, beeches, chestnuts,
and dogwood, formed the thick wood, the undergrowth of which consisted of Rhododendron
maximum, kalmia, rhus, and tall juniper.

On the 23rd of July I left Bordentown, and returned to Philadelphia, as our baggage had
not yet arrived from Boston. I made use of this interval to examine the museum of Mr. Titian
Peale, which contains the best collection of natural history in the United States. There is the
fine large skeleton of the Ohio elephant (Mastodon, Cuv.), and likewise most of the animals of
North America, pretty well stuffed. Among them I noticed, especially, the bison, the bighorn or
wild sheep of the rocky mountains, the prairie antelope (Antilocapra Americana Ord.), the elk
(Cervus major, or Canadensis), the grisly bear (Ursus ferox), and others. Mr. Peale, the owner,
accompanied the expedition under Major Long to the Rocky Mountains, where he procured part
of these specimens himself. There are likewise many specimens of foreign animals; for instance,
a rhinoceros; and the collection of Indian dresses, utensils, and arms, is, I think, the most
important that I have yet seen. I was particularly interested by some oil paintings of Indian
villages and scenery by Seymour. This artist also accompanied Major Long's expedition. Mr.
Peale's collection deserves precedence above all the public museums in the United States,
for its more scientific arrangement, and because fewer trifling nicknacks have been admitted into
it. Mr. Peale has also travelled in South America, and his health was still suffering from his
visit to that country.

As the study of the aboriginal nations of America had peculiar attractions for me, I
searched the shops of all the booksellers and printsellers, for good representations of that
interesting race; but how much was I astonished, that I could not find, in all the towns of this
country, one good, that is, characteristic representation of them, but only some bad or very indifferent
copper-plates, which are in books of travels! It is incredible how much the original American race is
hated and neglected by the foreign usurpers. Only a few eminent men, who have felt this reproach
and defect, are now exerting themselves to rescue from oblivion the neglected materials, scarce as
they now are, after it has become next to impossible to collect anything complete respecting the
history of many exterminated Indian tribes. Messrs. Morse, Smith Barton, Edwin James, Say,
Duponceau, Schoolcraft, Cass, M. Kenney, and some others, are an honourable exception in this
respect. A fine work, with coloured lithographic plates, was contemplated at Philadelphia,
which deserves encouragement; it was to give the history of the several Indian tribes, with
portraits of their chiefs, for which the Government was ready to furnish all the materials in its
possession. It seems that this important publication has at length been carried into execution.