The battery, to which I walked, is at the southern extremity of the city and island of New York; there was formerly a Dutch fort here, but it has been pulled down, and the place altered into a public garden, which gives a fine perspective of the entrance of the bay, and of Long Island. West of the battery, in the Hudson river, is a fort, called Castle Clinton, communicating with the battery by a wooden bridge, ninety paces long. This fort forms a semicircle; on the diameter are the former barracks, and behind the walls, which form the semicircle, a battery of twenty-four guns, under casemates. North of this fort, on the same shore, in front of the city, are two other forts of the same description, called North Battery and Fort Gansevoort; being of no use they are abandoned. Castle Clinton is now a public pleasure house. In the barrack is a coffee-house; boxes for parties are arranged within the battery, and on the platform are amphitheatrical seats, because the yard of the fort is used for fire-works, and other exhibitions. From the battery I walked to Brooklyn ferry, and was delighted with the large number of vessels, and the great life and bustle. Brooklyn is situated on Long Island, opposite to New York. The straight, called East river, at Brooklyn, requires about seven minutes and a half to cross it; there are two steam-boats and two team-boats continually crossing. Brooklyn appears to be a flourishing little town, judging by the quantity of stores which are established there. I passed to the left, and after having walked upwards of a mile, spent some hours at the navy-yard, and returned to the city exceedingly fatigued, on account of the great distance.
I went on board of the Pallas with Mr. Hone, president of the Canal Bank of this city, a rich and respectable man, and with Mr. Derviter, a merchant of this city, and a native of Grammont, in Flanders. The Pallas rode at anchor in the Hudson, between New York and Jersey City, a little village in the state of New Jersey, opposite New York, on the right side of the river. Soon after our arrival, boats likewise arrived with some ladies, who had wished to see the Pallas. As the cabin was but small and narrow, the ladies were served, by Captain Ryk, with an elegant luncheon on deck, under an awning; they were some of the most amiable and fashionable ladies of the city, and remained on board till three o’clock, and then went on shore during a pretty heavy storm.
On returning home at night, I observed that the streets were not well lighted. I was afterwards informed, that the corporation of the city was just engaged in a quarrel with the gas-company relative to the lamps; this quarrel protracted the inconvenience, though it was somewhat lessened by the numerous stores, which are kept open till a late hour, and are very splendidly lighted with gas. The gas-lights burn in handsome figures; at a music store, I saw one in form of a harp.
An eminent physician of this city, Dr. David Hosack, who, since his second marriage, is said to have an annual income of twenty thousand dollars, receives every Saturday night, during the winter season, the professional gentlemen of the city, and distinguished foreigners. His library, and collection of engravings, is then opened for the use of the visitors, and a discourse is sometimes delivered. This learned and obliging gentleman, offered himself to me as a guide through the city; I accepted his politeness, and visited several interesting institutions in his company.
The City Hospital was built in the year 1770, by voluntary contributions, and is supported by the interest of its capital, and by the state government. The building is of blue stone, and stands on high ground, in a very healthy situation. An avenue of old and high elm trees leads to it. In the first story is a large room, where the board meet; this contains the library, which is particularly rich in botanical works. In the basement is the kitchen, and several wards for syphilitic patients. They intended to establish a new hospital for these patients, like the lunatic asylum, formerly in one of the wings of this hospital, which is now established out of town. There may be accommodated in this hospital altogether four hundred patients of both sexes. They are attended to by nurses in large wards, each of them containing about sixteen beds. The bedsteads are of wood; upon inquiring why they were not of iron, they replied, they were afraid to use them, on account of the heavy thunder-storms which frequently occur. Six physicians and four surgeons are attached to the hospital, and alternately attend. One physician and one surgeon live free of expense in the hospital, and one of them must always be present for extraordinary cases. The apothecary’s shop attached to the hospital is kept very neatly; however, it appeared to me to be inferior to those in the hospitals of Boston and Montreal.
For the purpose of visiting the newly-erected lunatic asylum, we called upon Thomas Eddy,[I.13] an aged and venerable Quaker, who is at the head of the hospitals, charitable institutions, &c. I was introduced to him at Dr. Hosack’s. We found Mr. Eddy at home, with his two daughters, his son, and partner, who is likewise a Quaker. The family was dressed in the plainest style, and this simplicity joined to the greatest cleanliness, prevailed through the whole house. Mr. Eddy is in possession of a fine library, which he showed us; it contained several splendid works on natural science; among others, Wilson’s American Ornithology, with the splendid supplementary volume published by Charles Lucian Buonaparte, son of Lucian Buonaparte. Mr. Eddy then drove with us to the country-seat of Dr. Hosack, on the East River, opposite the navy-yard. Dr. Hosack, who was formerly married to a sister of Mr. Eddy, accompanied us to the Lunatic Asylum. This is five miles from the city, on a hill, in a very healthy situation, not far from the Hudson River. The road lies between country-seats and handsome gardens, and it is one of the most pleasant places I have seen in America.
The asylum is built of sand-stone, is three stories high, and surrounded by a garden; it was built mostly by subscription, but is likewise supported by the state government. Mr. Eddy is one of its greatest benefactors and patrons. There were one hundred and thirty-three maniacs, by which number the building was almost filled; they were about to enlarge it by two other wings. Besides the meeting rooms for the committee in the first story, there are the apothecary’s shop, and the wards for the poor patients, who have a large corridor and sitting room. One wing of the building is inhabited by the male, and the other by the female patients. There are subterraneous passages from the corridors to the large yard, which is surrounded by walls, and serve the patients for walking, exercise, and play. In the middle of each yard is a shelter supplied with benches, for bad weather. In the upper stories are the rooms for the inspectors, and several other apartments where patients may live separately. In the whole establishment great cleanliness is observed; but still the institution appeared to me less perfect than the asylum of Boston, or that of Glasgow in Scotland. The garden is kept in very good order; there is likewise a hot-house, which is supplied mostly from Dr. Hosack’s collection. On the roof of the house is a platform, from which we had a very pleasant and extensive view.
A Philosophical Society hold their meetings in the same building containing the American Museum. In one of the rooms is a collection of minerals, not yet very extensive, but exhibiting many fine minerals from the northern frontiers of the United States. Another saloon contains a collection of paintings, which do not appear to be very valuable. The best picture was a portrait of the celebrated American painter, Benjamin West, who died in London; this picture is from the masterly pencil of Sir Thomas Lawrence. There are two paintings by Teniers, and two others by Salvator Rosa. I was particularly pleased with one of the latter; an old soldier praying in a wild landscape before a simple cross! Two other paintings are said to be by Rubens: among these I observed a portrait of Rubens, of which the original is in the collection of Mr. Schamp, at Ghent. There are likewise good plaster-casts of the best Roman antiques, of a Venus of Milo, and the three Graces of Canova, and likewise two gladiators of full size by the same artist.
The house of Commodore Chauncey[I.14] is situated on a hill in the navy-yard, which affords a fine view of the wharf and Long Island. The commodore took a walk with me to the wharf. As I left his house, I was escorted by a guard of honour of thirty marines, commanded by a captain; in the meantime the man-of-war Franklin saluted me with twenty-one guns. This mark of respect was quite unexpected in the United States, and of course I was the more surprised and flattered.
In the navy-yard two frigates and two corvettes, not yet named, were building; one frigate was finished, but was still under cover. Both frigates are called forty-fours, but carry each sixty-four guns. These are intended to be thirty-two pounders, which is now the common calibre of the navy of the United States. The vessels are built of live oak, from North Carolina; the timbers are salted in order to prevent the dry-rot. The three ships of the line, Franklin, Washington, and Ohio, were in ordinary; they are called seventy-fours, but the two first are each calculated for eighty-six and the latter for one hundred and six guns. I saw likewise the renowned steam-frigate Fulton the First, of which many fables have been fabricated in Europe. The schooner Shark, of eight guns, was perfectly fitted out, and ready to sail in a few days for the coast of Africa, in order to prevent the slave-trade.