FOUR DAYS AT ROCHESTER.
Anticipating rain during the forenoon and fearing that my journey might
be interrupted in consequence, I started at an early hour on the morning
of June eighth from Fairport, and riding at a brisk pace came into
Rochester at eleven o'clock.
Just before reaching the city, a halt was made at a little hamlet, two
or three miles out, for the purpose of treating _Paul's_ back.
Heretofore the necessity of meeting my lecture appointments along the
route had given me no opportunity to attend to the painful bruise,
although I had been studying the various modes of treatment recommended
by veterinary surgeons from the time I left Boston until now. The
peculiar nature of my journey gave me an excellent opportunity to follow
this especial course, and I felt confident of my ability to do all that
was possible for my faithful horse, yet at every stopping-place some
kindly disposed admirer of the horse had some favorite prescription
which he had found a never-failing cure for the particular affliction
that daily confronted me. The enterprising little hamlet in question
had its famed savant, who thought it would be highly imprudent of me to
proceed farther without his advice--and a bottle of his "Seven-Sealed
Wonder."
Anxious to make Rochester at the earliest moment possible, I had no time
to discuss the merits of this great elixir, so, noting the price on the
face of the bottle, I handed this modest disciple of AEsculapius the
amount due, although he generously protested, and congratulating myself
upon being the most highly favored traveller between Boston and San
Francisco, rode away.
On a hill just beyond the village and well out of sight, I came upon an
old barn standing to the left of the road, on whose front I noticed a
huge door with a knothole in the centre. Now was my opportunity for
unsealing the "Wonder." In an instant I brought _Paul_ to a standstill
and rising in the saddle, tried my luck. The "Wonder" fell short of the
mark, but it met a resistance from the old door which effectually tested
its powers, and in my humble opinion placed the good doctor high up in
his profession. This momentary diversion over, I again resumed the
march, vowing that this would be my last experiment with "sealed
wonders" and that hereafter I would confine my treatment to battling
_Paul's_ back with warm water and castile soap, whose virtue I had
learned in the cavalry service during the war.
Found that the Rochester papers had been discussing my military record
before my arrival, and that the _Express_ and _Sunday Morning Times_ had
upheld my cause against the _Union_, which had ventured some falsehoods
on the ground that my "youthful appearance" belied my experience as a
soldier. With this pleasant criticism came another greeting from the
city press. It had been announced that I would probably arrive at the
Osburn House at four in the afternoon, hence it was not strange that my
sudden appearance at an earlier hour caused some surprise and led to the
impression that I had come forward by rail, and that my horseback
journey was possibly not an entirely genuine affair. I may add that it
had not occurred to me that my trip across country was of sufficient
importance to warrant any criticism upon my methods so long as I met my
lecture appointments promptly. The sharp comment had no more serious
result than that of increasing the lecture receipts in the cities which
followed.
My tenth lecture was delivered in Corinthian Hall, at the usual hour in
the evening, the introduction being made by Colonel J. A. Reynolds.
Next day, June ninth, gave me an opportunity to look up the familiar
places and to note the changes that had occurred since my last visit to
the city. The cleanliness and beauty of the streets, now in their summer
glory of tree and flower, made such a tour of inspection anything but
unpleasant.
East avenue, where the "flour and coal kings" are at home, is an
attractive place in which to see individual taste carried out in
architecture and horticulture. Down town, where the "kings" are at work,
there is a brisk activity which pervades everything, like an unending
accompaniment to the Falls, whose sounds always mingle with those of the
busy life around them. Perhaps it was this continual encouragement from
the river, offered to her early pioneers, that has given Rochester such
a notable career and made her the metropolis of the Genesee Valley: for
with that first mill-wheel set into the stream by old "Indian Allen,"
the faithful waters have kept up a continual flow of good fortune.
Her characteristic enterprise, milling, begun by this same Allen, has
been an unfailing source of wealth; the golden grain with almost magic
transformation filling the coffers of her merchants and giving her the
security that a healthy financial condition brings. Besides this, she
owes much to that liberal-minded gentleman, Colonel Nathaniel Rochester,
who came with his family from Maryland when the settlement was in its
infancy, and made his home in "the pleasant valley." It is amusing to
fancy the unique procession, headed by the Colonel and his sons on
horseback, that started out towards "the wild west" in the summer of
1802. There were carriages for the ladies and servants, and wagons for
provisions and household goods, stretched out in formidable array: for
railroads were out of the question then.
We hear that the travellers met with cordial hospitality at the villages
and towns along their route, and that their arrival created quite a
sensation. In fact it was an historical event. Two friends of the
Rochesters, William Fitzhugh and Charles Carroll, cast in their fortunes
with them, and in 1802 bought together the three hundred acres at the
Upper Falls, which were laid out for a settlement ten years later. In
those times the prestige of a name went far towards establishing a
reputation, and the one chosen by the people of the settlement was
afterward proudly placed upon the municipal banner. Soon after the
advent of Colonel Rochester and his friends, the scheme for making a
water communication between the Lakes and the Sea began to be eagerly
discussed, and there were not a few energetic representatives from
"Rochesterville" who lent their efforts towards the carrying out of the
plan. When the canal was completed there was the wildest enthusiasm in
Rochester, which would perhaps have a greater benefit than any other
place along the route: for with her big grain and coal interests, her
future prosperity seemed assured.
The natural course of events followed. Improvement and embellishment
began on all sides. New buildings and enterprises started up on solid
foundations, and provision was made for those who might "drop out of the
ranks," in the selection of beautiful Mount Hope, one of the loveliest
cemeteries in point of natural charm in this country. It lies on a
wooded slope between the lake and the city, and its pathways, shadowed
by the great trees from the "forest primeval," are the playgrounds for
the wild little creatures who make their homes there unmolested.
Back again into the town where the sound of the Falls is heard, and one
thinks of the odd touch a simple character has added to the traditions
of the place, and whose name, to a stranger, is so often associated with
that of Rochester. This quaint figure is none other than "Sam Patch, the
jumper," who met his fate by leaping into the Genesee at the "Falls,"
and who left as a legacy the warning maxim, "Be careful, or, like Sam
Patch, you may jump once too often." History has chronicled Sam's last
speech, delivered from the platform, just before his fatal leap; which,
as a sample of rustic oratory, is amusing.
He said: "Napoleon was a great man and a great general. He conquered
armies, and he conquered nations, but _he couldn't jump the Genesee
Falls_. Wellington was a great man and a great soldier. He conquered
armies, and he conquered nations, and he conquered Napoleon, but _he
couldn't jump the Genesee Falls_. That was left for _me_ to do, and I
can do it, and will."
Rochester, the capital of Monroe County, New York, was first settled in
1810, and incorporated as a city in 1834. It is situated on both sides
of the Genesee River, seven miles from Lake Ontario, two hundred and
fifty miles from Albany and sixty-nine from Buffalo by railway. An
aqueduct of stone carries the Erie Canal across the river, the cost of
which amounted to over half a million dollars. The city is well laid out
with wide and handsome streets, lined with shade trees.
[Illustration: VIEW OF ROCHESTER.]
Within the city limits the Genesee undergoes a sudden descent of two
hundred and sixty-eight feet, falling in three separate cataracts within
a distance of two miles. The roar of these falls is heard continually
all over the city, but no one is inconvenienced by it in the slightest
degree. The cataracts are believed to have formed, at one time, a single
fall, but the different degrees of hardness of the rocks have caused an
unequal retrograde movement of the falls, until they have assumed their
present position. At the Upper Falls, the river is precipitated
perpendicularly ninety-six feet. It then flows between nearly
perpendicular walls of rock, for about a mile and a quarter to the
Middle Falls, where it has another descent of twenty-five feet. One
hundred rods below, at the Lower Falls, it again descends eighty-four
feet, which brings the stream to the level of Lake Ontario, into which
it enters.
The immense water-power thus afforded in the centre of one of the finest
wheat-growing regions in the world, with the facilities of
transportation afforded by the Erie Canal, Lake Ontario, and the several
railways, have given a vast impulse to the prosperity of Rochester and
it has, in consequence, become one of the most important manufacturing
cities in the East. At the period of my visit, there were eighteen flour
mills in operation, grinding annually 2,500,000 bushels of wheat. The
manufacturing interests are immense--ready-made clothing being the most
extensive, and boots and shoes ranking next. Other leading manufactures
are those of iron bridges, India-rubber goods, carriages, furniture,
optical instruments, steam engines, glassware and agricultural
machinery. Of flourishing industries may be mentioned breweries, tobacco
factories, blast furnaces and fruit canning.
The largest nurseries in America are found here. Thousands of acres
within a short distance of the city are devoted to the cultivation of
fruit trees, and millions of these trees are annually shipped to other
States and foreign countries. Over $2,000,000 is the annual product of
these prolific nurseries.
The city is fast becoming a great distributing centre for coal, which is
conveyed in vessels to all points on the Great Lakes. Rochester, being
the business centre of the fertile Genesee Valley, shows a steady growth
in business and wealth. It has a magnificent system of water-works,
constructed at a cost of $3,250,000, the water being supplied from two
sources--one from the river, which is used for extinguishing fires and
running light machinery; the other from Hemlock Lake, twenty-nine miles
from the centre of the city, and four hundred feet above it. This water
is sent through sixty miles of mains, the pressure being such as to
throw from the hydrants a stream one hundred and thirty feet
perpendicularly. No city is more perfectly protected from fire.
At the corner of Main and State streets are the Powers' Buildings, a
peculiar block of stores, built of stone, glass and iron, seven stories
high. In the upper halls is a fine collection of paintings. A tower
surmounts the building, from which a fine view of the city and its
surroundings is obtained. "The Arcade" is roofed with glass and numerous
fine stores line its sides. Opposite stands the County Court House, a
handsome building of gray limestone, with a tower one hundred and
seventy-five feet high. The handsomest building in the city is, I think,
the Rochester Savings Bank, corner of Main and Fitzhugh streets. The
First Baptist, the First Presbyterian and the Catholic Cathedral of St.
Patrick are the finest church edifices.
There are twelve spacious parks here, and four elegant bridges cross the
Genesee. The Rochester University, founded by the Baptist denomination
in 1850, is located on a tract of twelve acres, a little to the east of
the city. It has a valuable library and mineralogical cabinet. The State
Reform School or Western House of Refuge for vicious boys is an imposing
edifice, containing usually about four hundred inmates. Mount Hope, the
site of the cemetery--before referred to--is a beautiful eminence
overlooking the city.
At the time of my visit, Rochester supported thirty-four newspapers and
periodicals, of which six were dailies. The population was about 90,000.
It seems that Fortune has favored the "Flour City," or at least that
wise heads and generous hearts have planned for her greatest good. It is
proper to look back into the beginnings for the keynote to success in
our American towns, and in this case, we doubtless find it in the
unselfish forethought of the first men added to its wonderful natural
resources.
A simple little incident, told of Colonel Rochester, illustrates the
principle, whose benefit others are reaping. He was working in his
garden one day, setting out fruit trees, when a neighbor came along and
stopped to chat. The Colonel said: "I do not know that I shall eat any
fruit from the trees I am planting, but as I eat from trees somebody
planted for me, I must set out trees for those who will come after me."
It was this provision for those who were to "come after" that has done
much towards making Rochester what she is to-day.