Part 3 (1/2)

Soust 2, Mr Quincy had the politeness to show me several hospitals of the city

The civil hospital was founded about twenty years ago, and is a ranite, with ten Ionic colu, founded by voluntary subscriptions, and afterwards enriched by legacies, now supports itself by the interest of the capital and by fees which some patients pay The administration of the hospitals and other benevolent institutions, is conducted, without charge, by the principal inhabitants, in a very correct and econoround floor, and hty sick of both sexes, which are placed in different wings of the building

There were at that time fifty-six patients, under the care of six nurses and a matron The house is under the direction of a steward, who is at the same time a physician Those patients who pay ten dollars a week, occupy separate chambers, with separate attendants; others pay only three dollars a week, andat all The latter are all in the saht and well ventilated The sick sleep on beds of hard wood, with good hair ranite, the halls and chambers are planked, and the floors are painted with oil colours I have seen many hospitals, but none in which the sick were so conveniently and suitably lodged, and none in which cleanliness was so well observed The kitchen and wash-house are in the cellar In the former, the victuals are cooked by ed like that in the Plye wooden frames to dry the clothes The session room of the directors, the anatomical theatre, with so of the matron, and the reed in the second story Two reservoirs of water, which may be raised by puround floor Mr Coolidge, one of the directors, accompanied us, and conducted us also to the lunatic asylu stands on an ee and Charlestown

A farhbourhood, which serves as the dwelling of the steward and head physician, as well as for a kitchen and wash-house Behind this house two very solid wings have been built, three stories high, one for males, and the other for females They somewhat resemble prisons, but are concealed by the far aspect, and thus prevents the unpleasant sensations which the institution would otherwise excite in the minds of the unhappy lunatics when they first approach it A large garden, surrounded with a wall, is attached to each wing, serving as a place of recreation for the patients A well-lighted corridor runs along each story, at each side of which are the doors of the cells; in these nothing is placed but a wooden bedstead, as in the hospital Every story has an eating room, and a common hall; in the latter, in which the sick may pass the day, a table is placed with benches, which are nailed to the floor The infuriated are placed in solitary cells, and when they cannot be subdued, are brought under a cold shower bath The chambers are heated, as in the hospitals, by means of flues In this asylureatest cleanliness prevailed

On the 3d of August, Mr Quincy called for me at twelve o'clock, to introduce me, with Captain Ryk and Mr Tromp, to the elder Mr Adams, father of the present president This worthy old ner of the Declaration of Independence, lives ten miles from Boston, on his farm at Quincy, revered by his faard him as their common father

I was much affected when, as I approached this venerable man who had so efficiently laboured in the cause of American independence, he extended to me his hand He was still in full possession of his s which had occurred long ago, but knew also every thing which had recently taken place, or was now passing His bodily strength, however, was dis He conversed withHolland, where he had been a the revolution, and the features of his ancient countenance revived again as he dwelt on the fact, that it ing to hilish aues, could effect nothing When Mr Troreat ancestor, shook his hand in a friendly manner, was much affected, and said to him, ”God bless you, Van Troratulated each other on our good fortune in having been introduced to this departing veteran of a revolution, which may well be called salutary

In his houseseveral good portraits and busts of hio, of his son, the president, and of General _Warren_, who fell at Bunker's Hill We saw also a son of President J Q Adams, who is a lawyer at Boston, and hoo in the Athenaeuood turnpike road It runs over some hills, on which the traveller sees a handsome panorama; behind him the city, on the left the bay, in front a well-cultivated region with handsoht the Blue Hills We passed by several neat farrounds are separated by means of dry walls, the stones of which are partly hewn, and separated from each other, somewhat like those of Scotland No old trees are found, because the first settlers very imprudently destroyed all the wood, and now it ain with much trouble Lombardy poplars, and plane trees are frequent The inhabitants generally appear to be in good circumstances, at least the fare, for instance, we ree blacksranite At the very neat village of Miltonbridge we passed over the river Neponset, which is navigable for small vessels

Quincy contains about four thousand inhabitants, and has assumed this name in honour of the mayor's family, which is here much beloved and esteemed Mr Quincy's country seat, to which we repaired from the house of the ex-president, is about two hbourhood of the sea on a small eminence, from which there is a very handsome prospect towards the bay Mr Quincy introduced us to his fahters The eldest daughter is very acco landscapes in sepia Soara with her fahters are also very well educated, and have a talent forothers, Mr Shepherd, Mr Everett, and President Kirkland, frolish teacher, Mr Cooper, who fled froo, and now directs Coluloomy, austere man, and very different in his address from the hu we returned to Boston by a shorter road, and passed the Neponset by e, which Mr Quincy built not far from the place where it eh Dorchester, and saw on an eht the rereat _Washi+ngton_ took frothened, and thus principally contributed to the evacuation of Boston

I accoust 4th, a party to a Mr Nathaniel ABoston, and is to be filled up in time, and houses built on it Six e over Charles river, which we crossed to see the arsenal on the opposite side This establish yard, surrounded with a wall of granite, is attached to the chief arsenal, which is three stories high, with tings, containing the offices and dwellings of the two directors, Major Craige and Lieutenant Van Nessen The workshops of the different ed behind this building, on each side of the yard; at a short distance froranite, and containing about fifty thousand pounds; thirty thousand stands of ar twenty pieces I saw there a newly-inventeda hundred and sixty-two balls at once, giving them at the same time a perfectly round form The arsenal is very pleasantly situated in Watertown

We passed farther along the shore, through a romantic part of the country, towards Walthae cottonto a company of twenty-five persons

It is under the direction of Mr Jackson, who possesses a very handso, where he appears to pass a happy life with his amiable family

About four hundred and fifty work to the factory, and form a particular colony; they have two schools, a church, and a clergyood circumstances, as the dress, cleanly exterior, and healthy appearance of the works the cotton is spun and woven; but the colouring and printing are performed in another establishment The machines are worked by water, which is said not to freeze in winter, but sometimes fails in dry su, and the dressing h not better, I believe, as they have but one cylinder The weaving h I believe that our iron ones are better The workmen of this factory are, as I have since learned, esteeood manners, and their morality is universally praised But one case of seduction occurred in ten years

After leaving this factory we passed by several very neat houses and parks; the latter are sland, because in this country there are no rights of prieniture, and the estate of parents at their death is divided into as many parts as there are children On this account we do not find such great and powerful landholders here as in England It is a subject of dispute, whether prieniture or equal division be preferable; but it is certain that real prosperity is h the nation in America, and the land is better cultivated

Mr Nathaniel Amory's country seat lies on a se park, and affords an extensive prospect of the vicinity of Boston Mr As of the Flemish school in his travels, and some handsome mosaic work in Rome, hich his house is decorated In the afternoon we took a walk through the park to a cottage, which belongs to the English sea captain, Worh sed, and handsomely situated A small lake, called the Fresh Pond, with its shady trees, affords a very picturesque view After spending soreeably with his friendly fa, by way of Cae to Boston

I visited the navy-yard on the 5th August, in coht, of the marines, and Lieutenant Gwynn In the small barracks of the e; the beds stand on a platform, so that the rooms are very narrow and close The appearance of the soldiers was not reo, and not yet completed, but is very extensive

A dry dock has not yet been eously placed The two line of battle shi+ps, Coluate Java, were in ordinary Two line of battle-shi+ps and a corvette were on the stocks, and not yet named The two former, which were under sheds, were finished, so that they could leave the stocks as soon as government should order But as no loss was incurred, the vessels were allowed to lie on the stocks, and under shelter as long as possible, that the wood er than the English, and are actual houses The two vessels are very modestly called seventy-fours, but have each three decks; the one pierced for one hundred and thirty thirty-two pounders, and the other for an hundred and thirty-six, of the same caliber They are built of live oak, and to prevent the dry rot, salt is scattered ae The vessels are so high and roomy, that I could stand erect in the ter batteries under the beathen and relieve vessels, used in other places, have not yet been adopted here; for instance, I did not observe the crucifor to the plan of Sir Robert Seppings, froland and the Netherlands derive the greatest advantage The saland is observed here, nahts for builders, as in the Netherlands and in France, but carpenters Mr Baker, the ht of this place, hom I became acquainted, is considered to be a very skilful ratified with its good condition, and wishi+ng it ht soon be finished, we visited the lady of the commissioner, Captain Craine, as absent The coovern the navy-yard; the architect who planned it, worried the commissioner with continual questions relative to the forreat vexation, build it _like my ----_ The architect took him at his word, and built it with two round projections standing close together, which have a very curious appearance from the navy-yard We saw in the navy-yard sails of cotton canvass, which are preferred to hempen sails, both because they are more easily worked, and are peculiarly durable They are not, however, liked in the navy, because they are too coerous to a vessel during an action; they are therefore used only for the higher sails

On the next day Mr Quincy very politely invited me to visit some of the public schools, which are under his direction I accepted this invitation with overn the spirit may be best learnt from the institutions for public education There are also at Boston, besides various private and two public schools, a Latin and a h schools_, which are both maintained at the expense of the city; boys of every class are ad for their tuition[I-6] Well-inforood salaries, are selected as teachers The first teacher of the high school receives yearly two thousand five hundred dollars The study of the ancient languages, the Latin and Greek, forms the basis of public instruction At the saht, the attention, acuteness, and memory of the pupils, are variously exercised; if, for example, any one recites a line of the Eneid, and repeats the last letter, another iinning with this letter The pupils do this onderful rapidity The decla our presence One of the scholars recited the speech of an English member of parliament, with so warm and correct a delivery, that the speech could scarcely have been better spoken in parliaes of a overnood and distinctthe place of each scholar in the class for the next day, is appointed by the teacher, according to the industry which hethe day, and entered into a book At the end of theto this list

[Footnote I-6: The expenses of public instruction, with the exception of Harvard University, are defrayed by ranted by the representatives of the state of Massachusetts, to which every inhabitant of the state is obliged to contribute

This praiseworthy arrangement exists also in Maine, New Hampshi+re, Vermont, Rhode Island, and Connecticut In the last state, lect to keep their children at school, are fined five dollars for every absent child, which suoes into the school treasury]

The h school; it possesses a very good philosophical cabinet We heard one class exaeometry In the former I saw that much attention was paid to mental calculation, and was surprised at the quick and correct solutions of difficult arithher class the teacher proposed a question, and all those iht they could answer it One was designated by the teacher to solve it, and if another thought the answer not exactly correct, he raised his hand, without interrupting the first, and corrected him when called upon I was pleased both with the kind manners of the teachers, and the modest, correct, and easy deportenerally had handsonomy With this they coreatest respect for their parents and teachers It appears topeople, who receive so liberal an education, can grow up to be bad or malicious men I was indeed affected when I left the schools, and could not but congratulate Mr Quincy froeneration! Captain Ryk, who accos

From the schools ent to the state-house or capitol, of the exterior of which I have already spoken, but the interior arrange to the state government, it contains the asseovern the state, the council of the governor, the senate, and the representatives These rooms are spacious; still, however, it is evident, that thirty-seven years ago, when this building was erected, every thing was done in haste, and that architecture had not then ress which it since has All the steps are of wood A trophy is erected in one of the chambers, composed of Brunswick ara One hundred and sixty-eight steps lead to the lantern of the cupola, which is of wood, and covered with copper Notwithstanding the excessive heat, ent up, and our labour was richly recohest point in the vicinity, and affords a view not only of the whole city and the bay, but also of a great extent of ground beyond, in every part of which a nus may be observed

Thus passed al and instructive eneral my state of health allowedobject with serenity of mind; I was indisposed but two days, and this was probably owing to the excessive heat Even the intermediate hours, which could not be dedicated to the inspection of public institutions, generally afforded instructive a and writing, then received or paid visits, and at all times met with attention, courteousness, and kindness I visited the churches on the Sundays I passed in Boston, which are still land The first time I went to a Unitarian church, attended by a son of the mayor; a second time I went to an Episcopalian church, accouished man, and senator of the United States

I dined twice at the inn, but generally accepted soreeably in company at musical parties and other entertainments I also made some excursions into the country besides those already mentioned

The society, especially when ladies are not present, is uncommonly fine and lively--both sexes are very well educated and accomplished So much care is bestowed upon the education of the female sex, that it would perhaps be considered in other countries as superfluous Young ladies even learn Latin and Greek, but then they also can speak of other things besides fashi+ons and tea-table subjects; thus, for instance, I was at a party of Mrs General Humphreys, which was entirely in the European style, without cards, dancing or reeable Thus I passed sohtful hours with Mr Ritchie, Mr