Travels in the United States of America Part 8

EXERCISE, &c.

It may perhaps be presumption in me to say any thing on this subject; but I cannot help thinking it should be the _reverse_ of what is used in the Line. They should be encamped as much as possible in a woody country, as the art of _freeing_, as the back woodsmen call it, is one of their best manoeuvres. Their whole time should be taken up in the _real_ study of their profession, not in powdering, pipeclaying, blacking, polis.h.i.+ng, and such military fopperies.

The rifle out of the question, I do not think _slow, deliberate firing_ sufficiently attended to in the english army. Want of ammunition first introduced it into this country at Bunker's Hill, and afterward at Sullivan's Island. The carnage that ensued was a fatal proof of it's efficacy.

I have often thought, that the success of our navy was in a great measure owing to _cool, deliberate firing_; and there is no doubt but that the military fame of our ancestors was owing to their great superiority in shooting the long bow; for the exercise of which, b.u.t.ts were erected in every village in the kingdom.--

From

Yours, &c

_Philadelphia, February 12th, 1796._

DEAR FRIEND,

Were I to characterise the _United States_, it should be by the appellation of the _land of speculation_.

Such has been the rapid rise of every article of american produce, of house-rent, and land (to say nothing of mercantile speculation, great part of the carrying trade of Europe being now in the hands of the Americans), that surely there never was a country where that pa.s.sion was so universal, or had such unbounded scope.

The last great purchase of land from the Indians, on the confines of Georgia, was at the rate of a cent per acre; one hundred acres for a dollar!

Before the american war, flour, was sold at _two_ dollars, per barrel; it is now selling at _fourteen_.

But perhaps the most tempting speculation is that of the _mines_. Our friend, Parsons, who is here looked upon as an agent to some english speculators, has lately received the enclosed, which I begged a copy of, for your perusal but should first inform you, the cheapest fuel you can burn in some parts of America, is english coal from Liverpool!

Farewell.

COPY OF A LETTER TO B. PARSONS.

"SIR,

"The coal mine, of which you requested, me to give you a description, is situate in the county of Hamps.h.i.+re, on a spur or arm of the Allegany mountains. At the foot of this, within the distance of one mile, is the river Patowmack, at the confluence of it's north branch with the Savage river. To this point, the Patowmack Company, incorporated for this purpose, intend to extend their navigation, and have already perfected it within the distant of six or seven miles. The work is going forward, and I believe will be completed next summer. This being perfected, there will be a good navigation for large flat-bottomed boats, within one mile of the coal-bank, to which a good road may be had on the side of the mountain.

"This immense body of coal, which lies not above two or three feet under the surface of the earth, was discovered by the falling of a tree, the roots of which brought up some pieces of coal. It has been made use of for some years by the neighbouring blacksmiths, who have made a perpendicular opening, about ten feet on this side of the mountain. Intending to purchase this property, I employed a man about two years ago to dig about twelve feel lower down than the first opening, and found nothing but a solid body of coal, of an excellent quality. I am inclined to think it extends to the bottom of the mountain, and may be procured with so much ease, that one hand, as I am a.s.sured, could deliver three hundred bushels a day.

"From the information I have received, there is a body of iron ore within seven or eight miles of the coal-bank; and I expect a very advantageous situation for water-works might be found at the confluence of the North Branch and the Savage. Among the great objects contemplated by the Patowmack Company in clearing the navigation of that extensive river, was that of forming an easy communication between the eastern and western waters, which you know are divided by the Allegany Mountains. The s.p.a.ce that separates them at present is about sixty miles; but when the obstructions to the navigation down the Patowmack, which, pa.s.sing through an extensive and fertile country, leads to the seat[Footnote: The writer means _intended_ seat of federal empire.] of federal empire; and thence widening by degrees to the width of twelve miles, empties itself into the bay of Chesapeak.

"Should any of your friends in England incline to form an establishment here, in the smaller branches of non manufactory, I should he glad to treat with them on terms mutually beneficial.

"Yours, &c."

_Philadelphia June 27th, 1796._

DEAR FRIEND,

"In some part of the middle states, a climate similar to that of England may easily be found."

Inform our old acquaintance H----, that if he emigrates to America on the strength of this a.s.sertion of Cooper, (on which, you tell me he so much depends), he will, on his arrival, find himself egregiously mistaken. The sameness of lat.i.tude does not always indicate similarity of temperature: there are many other causes, which contribute to make this a very different climate from that of Great Britain.

The middle states of North America are hotter and colder _at intervals_, not only than England, but than any part of the Old Continent, under the same parallel of lat.i.tude.

Jefferson says, "Our changes from heat to cold are sudden and great. The mercury in Fahrenheit's thermometer has been known to descend from 92 to 47, in thirteen hours."

And I copied the following from a New York paper:--

"Wednesday, the 14th of May, the mercury in Fahrenheit rose to 91 degrees, The Sat.u.r.day night following, there was a severe frost. The next Tuesday and Wednesday, the mercury rose to 85 degrees; from the 20th to the 26th, it has been nearly stationary, varying only from 60 to 64.: Easterly wind, and rain."

These violent transitions from heat to cold, are produced by means of the N.W. wind, which in this country is the most keen and severe of any that is to be met with on the face of the globe. It is much the most prevalent wind we have, and seldom fails to blow four or five days with great uniformity. This wind is perfectly _dry_, and so uncommonly penetrating, that I am convinced it would destroy all the plagues of Egypt in a very short time. You may recollect, I informed you of the astonis.h.i.+ng effect of this powerful agent in stopping the yellow fever in a few hours, last year, at Baltimore.

Neither the prevalence, nor uncommon severity of this wind has been properly accounted for; but we may now expect something more satisfactory on this subject, from the celebrated Volney; who is here endeavouring to investigate the causes of this, and other phenomena, relative to the winds of this continent.

Our heats in summer are sometimes very great; but the excess seldom exceeds three days; the rotation is generally as follows; the first day perhaps the mercury rises to 86, the next to 90, and the 3rd to 97, and sometimes, though very rarely, to upward of 100 then comes a thunder gust, which restores the air to it's usual summer temperature, till another three days period of excessive heat begins and ends in the same manner, at intervals, through the season. The succession of the degree of cold in winter is exactly the same: I never knew the excess exceed three days; not that we have then a thaw but that the weather is moderate, till another excess commences of three days.

On these occasions the mercury _sometimes_ descends to 10 or 12 degrees below 0. Rivers a mile broad are frozen over in one night, and the bay of Chesapeak traversed in waggons and sleighs!

Though this climate, compared with that of England, is not in my opinion on the whole so good, yet it possesses many advantages, such as the clearness of the atmosphere, greater equality of the length of the days, and _certainty_ of settled weather; for though the transitions are more _violent_, they are by no means so _frequent_ as in England; where you have the wind from every point of the compa.s.s, and experience all the seasons of the year in twenty-four hours!

Recollect these observations on the climate of America are confined to the _middle states_, including Virginia in this description. Those of the north, and south, are _somewhat_ different; but I am informed the country to the S.W. of the Allegany Mountains is _materially different_. The distance the N.W. wind has to travel to this country, and the opposition it meets with from those mountains, in a great measure meliorates and destroys those penetrating qualities, which make this wind so formidable to the Atlantic States. I have heard so many extraordinary accounts of the South-western territory, that I have long made up my mind to visit that country: two _trifling_ reasons alone prevented me; viz. want of _time_ and _money_; and from some disagreeable intelligence I have lately received from _Wells_, instead of climbing the _Allegany,_ I apprehend I shall soon be obliged to cross the _Atlantic;_ in which case, I shall have the pleasure of returning you thanks in person for your obliging attention to my order concerning the........... which I received by the Peggy.

At present I must content myself by a.s.suring you of my being

Your obliged friend, &c.

_Philadelphia, September 13th, 1796._

DEAR SIR,

I write this in my way to Boston, where I am going to fulfil my engagement with W----, the particulars of which I informed you of in a former letter.

When I arrived at Newcastle, I had the mortification to find upwards of one hundred irish pa.s.sengers on board the packet.

For some time before I left Baltimore, our papers were full of a shocking transaction, which took place on board an irish pa.s.senger s.h.i.+p, containing upwards of three hundred. It is said, that, owing to the cruel usage they received from the captain, such as being put on a _very scanty_ allowance of water[Footnote: By a law of the United States, the quant.i.ty of water and provision every vessel is obliged to take (in proportion to the length of the pa.s.sage and persons on board) is clearly defined. A master of a vessel violating this law forfeits five hundred dollars.] and provision, a contagious disorder broke out on board, which carried off great numbers; and, to add to their distress, when they arrived in the Delaware, they were obliged to perform quarantine, which, for some days, was equally fatal.

The disorder was finally got under by the physicians belonging to the Health Office. We had several of the survivors on board, who confirmed all I had heard: indeed their emaciated appearance was a sufficient testimony of what they had suffered. They a.s.sured me, the captain sold the s.h.i.+p's water by the pint; and informed me of a number of shocking circ.u.mstances, which I will not wound your feelings by relating.

It is difficult to conceive how a mult.i.tude of witnesses can militate _against_ a fact; but more so, how three hundred pa.s.sengers could tamely submit to such cruelties, from a bashaw of a captain.

I am happy to inform you the Philadelphia Hibernian Society are determined to prosecute this _flesh butcher_ for _murder_; As the manner of carrying on this _trade_ in human flesh is not generally known in England, I send you a few particulars of what is here emphatically called a _white Guinea man_. There are vessels in the trade of Belfast, Londonderry, Amsterdam, Hamburgh, &c., whose chief _cargoes_, on their return to America, are pa.s.sengers; great numbers of whom, on their arrival, are _sold_ for a term of years to pay their pa.s.sage; during their servitude, they are liable to be _resold_, at the death or caprice of their masters. Such advertis.e.m.e.nts as the following, are frequent:--

"To be disposed of, the indentures of a strong, healthy, _irish woman_; who has two years to serve, and is fit for all kind of house work.-- Enquire of the printer."