Wednesday.—A great Clay and Frelinghuysen day. A grand procession of the Whigs of many thousands. Mr. Pearce and I visited the Creton Aqueduct for supplying New York with water. It is 1826 feet long, and 836 feet wide, and covers 35 acres. It comes down a tunnel of 35 miles, part of which distance is an aqueduct. We walked to the East River and Astoria, and returned to meet Mr. Blane, Mr. Brough, Mr. C. Vyse, and Mr. Palin, whom I had asked to dine with me at five. We had one of Mr. Blankard's best dinners, and spent a pleasant evening: were joined by Dr. Keen and Mr. Green. Brough sang us three excellent songs. They left at ten; and I to bed.
Thursday.—I finally finished my mission with Mr. Pearce most satisfactorily. Visited Mr. Bach, distiller, Brooklyn—my first time there. Dined with C. Vyse, at Dalmonico's. Met Mr. Blane, Palin, and Bund. A most sumptuous dinner: would cost at least 50 dollars. Left at nine, and spent my last evening at New York with Mr. and Mrs. Pearce. Paid my bill at the Globe, 49 dollars, 75 cents for the week; and to bed. Could not sleep: a restless, disagreeable night.
Friday.—Started at eight per Long Island Rail-way to Boston, Brooklyn, and Greenport, ninety-five miles; per rail thence to Stonington, thirty-two miles; per steamer in the Bay Sounds thence to Providence—a town of 15,000 inhabitants, where H.W. Doe is confined; and to Boston, forty-four miles: in all 218 in ten hours—the quickest travelling I have had; and proceeded to the Tremont-house. Read the English papers; and saw the account of my old friend T. Sidney being made sheriff and alderman in the same week, with the likelihood of his being Sir Thomas before I return. "Some men are born great, and others have greatness thrust upon them."
Population of Boston, 50,000.
Saturday morning.—I visited the Custom-house, by previous arrangement, to clear some pattern-cards. I could not help being strongly impressed with the contrast their Custom-house presented, when compared with some I could mention, and the attention, politeness, and good-humour with which its officers discharged their duties. They saw the force of my arguments at once, and let me have the books free of duty; and at their particular request I promised the Custom-house examiners one. They offered me any amount of money for it, which I declined to take. They are building a new Custom-house upon a large scale. The air here is very piercing—easterly winds prevail a great deal. The houses are bright, and have a gay appearance, the signboards are painted in such gaudy colours; the gilded letters are so very golden; the bricks so very red; the blinds and area-railings so very green; the plates upon the street-doors so marvellously bright and twinkling—and all so slight and unsubstantial in appearance. The suburbs are, if possible, more unsubstantial-looking than the city. The city is a beautiful one, and cannot fail to impress all strangers very favourably. The State-house is built upon the summit of a hill, which rises gradually by a steep ascent almost from the water's edge—a fine building, where all government operations are carried on, as at Albany, and elsewhere in the different states. From the top there is a charming panoramic view of the whole town and neighbourhood. In front is a green inclosure called the Common, a great benefit to the town. The docks are not very good: a great many ships lay over at East Boston. The Exchange is a very fine building, where the merchants congregate; but in fair weather a great deal of business is done in the streets. I wrote about thirty circulars to St. John's and Halifax, instead of going myself; and retired to rest at eleven.
Sunday morning, October 27th.—Attended the Trinity church, and heard a most impressive sermon by Bishop Eastburn, Ephesians iv. 17: "This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their minds." A wet, nasty day; read the Bible till dinner-time; thence to St. Paul's church to hear Dr. Vinton: he spoke so Yankee-like, I could not understand him at the distance I was. Very handsome churches they have here. Took a long walk all round the city; admired the neat houses they are building in all directions; and felt that the State of Massachusetts stood the highest in my estimation of any of the states I had yet visited. Spent the evening with Mr. Schofield, of Henry and Co.'s, Manchester—the most decided man of business I had met with for many a long day. It had been previously arranged that he should carry our patterns through all the states and Canada.
Monday morning.—Took a regular turn through amongst the importers of lace, and was thunderstruck at the enormous quantity of highly-respectable importers, certainly far exceeding New York and Philadelphia. They are first-rate business men: no auctions, which I detest: no overstocks, which will be the ruin of New York; well assorted, and in good condition. In fact, I felt as if I had been in an English town, for the men of business are more like English than Americans. They nearly all import—at least thirty first-rate men import—our goods. I experienced a great deal of civility from Mr. W. Appleton, and Mr. Ward, Barings' agent; and altogether was much pleased with my reception. Had not Mr. Schofield undertaken to receive our orders, I could have done a very large trade. I may here observe, the Tremont is one of the best houses in the states in every respect. Buckwheat cakes to breakfast; and they use the incredibly large quantity of 45 tons of butter per year.
Tuesday morning, the 29th.—A regular wet day; rained incessantly. Called upon all the lace-importers, and found them thorough men of business—very prompt: came to an understanding with nearly all that they would order through Mr. Schofield, of Henry and Co.'s, Manchester.
Wednesday morning.—Received my despatches per Great Western, and proceeded to Lowell per rail. I forget whether I described an American railroad before. There are no first and second class carriages, as with us, but gentlemen's cars and ladies' cars; and, as a black man never travels with a white one, there is a negro car. Each car holds from thirty to fifty. There is a stove blazing hot. Except where a branch-road joins the main one, there is seldom more than one track of rails. They rush across the turnpike-road, where there is no gate, no policeman, no signal. There is painted up, "When the bell rings, look out for the locomotive." I was met at Lowell by my fellow-passenger in the Western, Royal Southwick, intimately connected with the factories there. The first we visited was a cotton cloth and drill factory, where they make about 50,000 yards per day, all by water-power (the Merrimack), and have a couple of hundred girls employed. The good order and clean appearance of both factory and girls contrasted greatly with both in Lancashire. There are twenty-five mills here. We then visited a carpet manufactory, by machinery that reduces labour 75 per cent., and where some of the many girls employed make a dollar a-day. There is no manufactory like this in the world: there is a patent taken out by E.B. Bigelow to protect the carpet power-loom manufactory. They must be making money fast here. We then visited a cloth manufactory upon a large scale, where they employ about 800 hands; and the excellency of the cloth surprized me. They will have no occasion for English cloths much longer. All by water-power. The last place was a large cylinder print-works, where they produce some first-rate goods, and, I think, as cheap as ours. There are several factories in Lowell, each of which they call a corporation, as they are chartered. They employ about 8000 girls, who make 3-1/2 dollars per week, or 14 s. Their neat, clean, and healthy appearance pleased me much: they are well dressed; and, meeting them out, you would take them to be of a higher grade. They pay 1-1/2 dollar per week for lodgings, which are situated near, and belong to the different corporations. They are strictly moral and virtuous, and all contribute to a monthly publication called "The Lowell Offering," well worth reading. I saw the principal editors (young ladies), and ordered it for next year. The rooms in which they work are well arranged; and green plants are trained to shade the glass windows. The laws of the state forbid their working more than nine months in the year, and require that they shall be educated during the other three. There is a hospital or boarding-house for the sick, at 3 dollars per week: they do not often require its assistance, for in 1841 they had 100,000 dollars in the savings-bank. We visited the Mechanics' Reading-room—a large building, with papers from all parts.
The population of Lowell is 25,000; one of the most rising towns in the states. There are also Fall River, Taunton, Manchester, Great Falls, Dover, New Hampshire—all rising manufacturing places. In New England state there is no coal, which is a great drawback. I returned to Boston, and spent the evening with some friends.