_Journey from Montreal to New York.-- Isle Aux Noix.-- Lake
Champlain.-- Lake George.-- Falls of Hudson.-- Glenn’s Falls.--
Saratoga Springs.-- Saratoga Battleground.-- Shaker Settlement
at New Lebanon.-- Military School at West Point._
As the season was so far advanced, I wished to reach New York without
delay. We therefore concluded to travel soon, and visit Lake Champlain
to its southern extremity, then to Saratoga, Albany, and further down
the Hudson to New York, taking the Catskill mountains by the way, and
inspecting the famous military school of West Point. With this view, on
Friday, the 9th of September, we went on board the steam-boat Montreal,
which runs between Montreal and the right bank of the river.
Lieutenant-Colonel M‘Gregor and Major Loring escorted us to the boat.
In half an hour we found ourselves on the other side of the river. We
landed near the village Longueuil, where stage-coaches awaited us, which
carried us and our baggage to St. John, situated on the river Richelieu,
about twenty-seven miles from Longueuil. The road lies several miles
along the banks of the river St. Lawrence, till you arrive to the
village of La Prairie. In this village we took our leave of this noble
neighbourhood and majestic stream, on whose banks we had tarried so
agreeably. The road led through a plain, which was very little
cultivated, and containing few trees. We only met with a single village
called Lavane. Here and there we observed some larch trees. About half
past one in the afternoon, we reached the village of St. John, having
arrived a mile from the above-named village, at the river Richelieu.
Here we went on board the American steam-boat Phœnix, in order to sail
for Whitehall. This vessel deserves the name, because the boat, whose
place it supplies, was of the same name, and burned some years ago on
Lake Champlain. The new Phœnix is commodious and clean, one hundred and
twenty feet long, having machinery of forty-six horse-power. Both banks
of the river were thickly timbered. Ten miles above St. John we reached
an island called Isle Aux Noix, the last English strong post on Lake
Champlain. The captain had the politeness to tarry here a short time,
in order that I might survey the island and its fortifications.
Isle Aux Noix contains about ninety acres, and is very flat and swampy.
The fort is called Fort Lenox, in honour of the late duke of Richmond;
it consists of a regular square, with four bastions and two ravelins,
and is built according to the system of Vaubans. On account of the
swampy ground, the fortification which anciently stood here, is almost
sunk. The revêtement is a half one, and formed of wood, as well as the
scarp and counterscarp. The whole lower wall consists of roots of trees,
mostly cedar, placed horizontally crosswise, and only those roots which
constitute the revêtement stand upright. On the horizontal roots earth
is thrown and rammed. The engineers believe that this costly work will
stand thirty years. I however believe it would have been better if they
had rammed the roots into the ground and put a grate upon that, and then
a strong stone revêtement, or still better if they had arched it _en
décharge_. The two ravelins, whose basis is also of wood, lie before
the northern and southern front. Under the curtain of the eastern front,
they have built casemates for the garrison. Near the gate in the wall
are small arsenals, and on the inside of the fort stands the
guard-house, which also contains the prison. The base of this
fortification, as well as the few buildings which stand within, are
bomb-proof. The houses are built of blue limestone which comes from the
state of Vermont. A road covered with palisades surrounds the fort.
I observed here palisades which can be knocked down backwards, and might
be advantageous in case of accident, whilst I took a survey of this
work, accompanied by Captain Reed of the seventieth regiment, who is
commandant, and has already been in garrison here one year with his
company, also by the two engineer officers. Northward of the fort stands
the navy-yard, which is in the same situation as it was at the period of
the treaty of Ghent. There were about twelve gun-boats under cover, and
a frigate of thirty-six guns on the stocks, whose keel and skeleton has
rotted ever since. A naval magazine, and the dwellings of the officers,
overseers, and workmen of the wharf, stand behind the navy-yard. The two
branches of the stream separating the island from the main land are
tolerably small, and the shores are covered with trees.
Eleven miles above Isle Aux Noix we left Canada and again reached the
territories of the United States. At the point where the river Sorel
leaves Lake Champlain, and where we entered into the latter, the
American government has erected a fort called Rous’ Point, consisting of
a defensive tower with casemates, which, as well as I could judge in
passing, appeared to have been located with much judgment and erected at
a small expense. This tower completely commands the communication
between the lake and the Sorel, and as the guns are all under cover, the
garrison has but little to fear from the vertical fire of the enemy’s
infantry. The fort stands on a cape. According to the treaty of Ghent,
the forty-fifth degree of north latitude, between the state of Maine and
the St. Lawrence, between the United States and Canada, were fixed as
boundaries; and as to fulfil the terms of the treaty, the commissioners
determined the latitude of several places astronomically, it has been
discovered that this fort lies somewhat north of forty-five degrees, and
consequently is on the Canadian side.
The greatest breadth of Lake Champlain, which contains several large
islands, is six miles. The shore on our right, belonging to the state of
New York, is low and covered with trees; the other belongs to Vermont,
and is more mountainous. As night approached, we were prevented from
enjoying this beautiful part of the country; I was also with regret
prevented from seeing the battle ground of Plattsburgh, at which town
the vessel made a short stay during the night. Some American
custom-house officers came on board, without, however, inquiring after
our baggage, and this was a new and not disagreeable circumstance.
The same night we stopped at Burlington in Vermont, and the Grymes’
family left us here to go to Boston. I expected to meet this interesting
family again in New York in fourteen days. Towards morning we passed the
ruins of Fort Crownpoint, which lie on a hill. At this place the lake is
very narrow and resembles a river. The shores are generally covered with
bushes and pine trees, are hilly, and afford a pleasing prospect. At the
village of Shoreham, twelve miles above Crownpoint, on the eastern shore
of Vermont, we left the Phœnix, which went twenty miles further to
Whitehall, the southern point of Lake Champlain, and landed to see Lake
George, which is celebrated for its romantic situation and shores. Sir
Michael and Lady Clare continued with us, and resolved not to part from
us till we arrived at Albany, after which they would travel to Boston.
As a slight recompense for the loss of the Grymes’ family, Mr.
Shoemaker, and his wife, from Philadelphia, bore us company hence to
Albany. They were Quakers, but had laid aside the striking costume of
their sect.
At the inn of Shoreham is a place for loading and unloading vessels,
which transport much plaster of Paris and blue limestone for building,
to Canada. Among the stones on the shore we found some which appeared to
be rich iron ore, said to be common in Vermont. At the inn we met with
an elderly lady of the middle rank, who was smoking tobacco; this custom
is said to be prevalent here among elderly women. We passed over the
lake, scarcely half a mile wide, in a wherry, and landed on the other
shore, not far from the ruins of Fort Ticonderoga. This in an old French
fort, lying on an elevated cape, which commands the navigation of the
lake. From the ruins we saw that it was a square with four small
bastions and three ravelins, the scarp, and the counterscarp being
covered with strong stone-work; the bastion contains casemates as well
as the curtain of the eastern front. Several massive buildings stood in
the fort so that it must have had but little room. About three hundred
paces east of the fort, on the extremity of the cape, stands a small
pentagonal redoubt, which communicated with the fort by means of a
covered way. The cape is connected with the main land of New York by
means of a neck of land, which was cut off by a crownwork, consisting of
earth. The eminence on which this crownwork lies, in some measure
commands the fort, and an entrenched camp seems to have been located
here. Between the fort and crownwork we remarked the remains of two
square redoubts. On the same shore, south of the fort, but separated
from it by an inlet of the lake, lies Mount Defiance, which commands the
fort in a great degree, and from which, in July, 1777, the English,
under General Burgoyne, bombarded the fort, which was too quickly
evacuated by the Americans, under General St. Clair. On the eastern
shore of the lake, opposite Ticonderoga, lies another hill, Mount
Independence, of the same height as the fort on which the Americans had
formed their works at that time, under the protection of which they
passed the lake after the evacuation of the fort. This was afterwards
destroyed by the English. In July, 1758, when the fort still belonged to
the French, the English attacked it, but were repulsed with a loss of
eighteen hundred men.
From Ticonderoga we went in a stage three miles further to Lake George,
through a very hilly country. The level of this lake is about three
hundred feet higher than that of Lake Champlain; the stream which flows
from the former into the latter lake, forms a succession of small
cascades, and turns several saw-mills. We arrived at the northern point
of Lake George, and entered the steam-boat Mountaineer, which was ready
to depart; it was ninety feet long with a machine of sixteen
horse-power.
Lake George resembles the Scottish lakes. It is thirty-six miles long,
and never more than five miles broad. The shores are very hilly, the
heights are all covered with trees, and are not, as it seems to me,
above eight hundred feet high. There are several islands in the lake,
generally covered with wood. A single one, called Diamond Island, on
account of the handsome crystals which are found in it, is inhabited.
The inhabitants consist of an Indian family, which lives in a small
house, and maintains itself by selling these crystals. About five
o’clock in the evening, we arrived at the southern point of the lake.
The scenery is very handsome. One of the highest mountains, which rises
perpendicularly out of the lake, is called Rodgers’ rock, after an
American Captain Rodgers, who being hunted by the Indians, during the
revolution, fled to the top of this rock, and in extremely cold weather,
being urged by danger, glided on the smooth surface down to the frozen
lake. Towns are not seen; but few single houses stand along the shore.
At the southern extremity, however, lies the village of Caldwell,
founded about twenty years ago, which, besides a very good and large
inn, where we took lodgings, contains several neat houses. In former
times, an English fort, William Henry, stood here, which, to judge from
its few remains, must have been a square redoubt of earth. It was built
in the year 1755, by order of Sir William Johnstone, who commanded the
English army in the then colony of New York, after having completely
routed, on September the 8th, 1755, a French corps which had come from
Ticonderoga to attack him. In this rencontre, Baron Dieskau, a French
general lost his life. In the following year, however, Marquis de
Montcalm arrived with a stronger force and captured the fort.
A capitulation was allowed to the English garrison, but they were
attacked after leaving the fort, by the Indians, in a disgraceful
manner, and the greater part cut to pieces. After the fort was taken,
the Marquis de Montcalm ordered it to be destroyed. Not far from this
place, in a higher station and on a rocky ground, the English erected
afterwards a new fort, called Fort George, which, at the unsuccessful
expedition of General Burgoyne, in 1777, served his army as a depôt and
magazine, till he moved too far forward and was cut off from the fort.
Remains of it are still plainly seen. It was a strongly-built square
redoubt, the entrance being protected by a _fleche_. It lies in an
advantageous situation, commands the whole southern shore of the lake,
with a large part of the vicinity, stands, as was said before, on a
strong ground, and is covered on one side by a morass. On the eastern
side alone, it is commanded by a high mountain, which, however, is at
some distance. If the American government should resolve to restore
Crownpoint and Ticonderoga, the latter particularly would be adapted,
after fortifying the two mountains, Defiance and Independence, for an
arsenal of a superior kind; it might contain large depôts, serve as a
fortified camp, and be successfully defended by a small garrison. Here
fleets might be completed to command Lake Champlain, and an expedition
against Isle Aux Noix and Canada organized. However, a good road would
be necessary, leading from Ticonderoga to the northern point of Lake
George, three miles distant, and here it would be necessary to protect
the place of embarkation by a fort. A new fort on the same spot where
Fort George was erected, would be necessary. There is a good locality
between this fort and Fort William Henry to found a dock-yard. The
communication between Ticonderoga and the United States would be well
and doubly protected by the southern point of Lake Champlain, towards
Whitehall, and by Lake George. If the English should attack the United
States on this side, they would undoubtedly waste much strength, and not
advance a step, unless they had seized Ticonderoga.
We left Caldwell at eight o’clock the next day, September 11, in two
inconvenient carriages, and passed through a very uninteresting, deep,
sandy road, in a hilly country, covered with thorny trees, on our route
to Saratoga springs, to which the whole fashionable world of the United
States repairs in summer, for the fashionables have here the same mania
which prevails in other countries, to visit the baths in summer, whether
sick or well. The distance is twenty-seven miles. On our passage, we saw
but one interesting object--the Hudson falls, which river we had left at
Albany, and reached again nine miles from Caldwell, coming from the
west.
These falls are known under the name of Glenn’s Falls. A village of the
same name is built in their vicinity, on the rocky shores of the river.
The river is crossed by means of a pendant wooden bridge. The arches
rest on pillars, consisting of large beams, which lie across each other,
as tit-mouse traps are constructed in my native country; the bridge
might therefore be called bird-cage bridge. These cages rest on a
foundation of limestone, cut through by the Hudson in its course. This
river is really a remarkable sight in this sandy country. Above the
bridge it is one hundred and sixty yards broad, and crossed by a dam,
which conducts the water to the saw-mills along the banks. A single
rock, on which, also, a saw-mill stands, divides into two parts, the
principal fall, which is forty feet high. But there are, both above and
below the principal falls, a number of smaller falls, which we could
approach with ease, as the water was very low. These falls are not
indeed to be numbered among the largest, but among the handsomest falls
which I have seen. A constant mist arises from them, and, as the sun
shone very brilliantly, we saw several rainbows at the same time. In the
rock, as at Niagara, we observed some remarkable and deep cavities. They
arise from the flintstones which are scattered throughout the limestone,
and are washed away by the violence of the water. When these flintstones
meet with resistance, or fall into a small cavity, they are constantly
agitated by the falling water, and moving in a circular direction, form
by degrees deep cavities in the soft limestone. At the base of the small
island, which divides the chief fall into two parts, a remarkable cave
appears below the falls, leading to the other side of the rock; this was
also undoubtedly made by the washing of the water. The saw-mills, all of
wood, occupy a bold position over the falls, and appear besides, to be
in such a state of decay, that a fear arises, lest they should soon fall
into the abyss. The Hudson is partly navigable above Glenn’s Falls, and
two miles further up, feeds a navigable canal, with thirteen locks,
which runs seven miles north of the Hudson, and then joins Champlain
canal.
We arrived at Saratoga at two o’clock in the afternoon, and stopped at
Congress Hall. The greater part of the company had already departed, so
that but forty persons remained; among these was the governor of the
state of New York, the celebrated De Witt Clinton.[I-10] I was
immediately introduced to his excellency, and very well received by this
great statesman.
[Footnote I-10: [Since, unfortunately for his country,
deceased.]--TRANS.]
The water of the springs is cold, of a somewhat salt taste, and stronger
than the mineral water of Eger. It is said to act very beneficially as a
tonic. When this region was yet covered with forests, inhabited
principally by Indians, and by few white people, the Indians were
acquainted with the virtues of this water; only one spring, however,
High Rock Spring, was discovered. They led to it the above-mentioned Sir
William Johnstone, who was much beloved by the Indians, and in a bad
state of health. By drinking this water he regained his health, and thus
this spring became known. It is not above twelve years since a beginning
was made to clear the ground, and build houses; at present, more than a
hundred, principally of wood, form a street. They are generally arranged
to receive strangers. The four largest hotels are Congress Hall, Union
Hall, the Pavilion, and the United States Hotel, the last of brick, the
three former of wood. Congress Hall alone, was yet open, the others had
closed since September 1st, on account of the frost. The hotel can
accommodate two hundred strangers. In the evening the company assembles
in the large halls in the lower story, at this season, alas! by the
fire, and pass the time in music, dancing, or conversation. Games of
chance are strictly forbidden by the laws of the state, and in general,
public opinion in the United States is much against gaming. I was told
that at a watering-place in Pennsylvania, three genteel young men once
arrived from different parts of the United States. They were at first
very well received, but afterwards were found to be gamblers. All
communication with them was immediately broken off in so striking a
manner that they were soon obliged to leave the place.
The different springs, which do not lie far from each other in a swampy
ground in the same valley, are called Hamilton, Congress, Columbia, Flat
Rock, Munroe, High Rock, President, and Red Spring. The water is
generally drank, but baths are also erected. High Rock Spring flows from
a white conical limestone rock, five feet high, in which there is a
round aperture above, about nine inches in diameter, through which the
water in the spring is seen in a state of constant agitation. So much
fixed air escapes from it, that an animal held over it, as in the
_Grotto del Cane_, near Naples, cannot live above half a minute. Mr.
Shoemaker held his head over the opening, and though he had covered it
with a handkerchief, immediately fainted away; he retained besides,
during several days after this experiment, a bad dry cough. The vicinity
of Saratoga Springs possesses no attraction. Promenades are not yet
constructed. The only pleasure which can be enjoyed must be sought in
company. A large piazza is built before Congress Hall, to the pillars of
which wild vines are attached, which almost reach the roof. I passed the
evening in the lower parlour by the fire, with the governor and Mr.
Schley, from Maryland, in very agreeable and instructive conversation.
The ladies did not entertain us with music, because it was Sunday.
The governor had the kindness to give me some letters for New York, and
a letter of introduction to the Shakers of New Lebanon. Furnished with
these, we left Saratoga Springs, September 12th, at 9 o’clock, in a
convenient stage to go to Albany, thirty-six miles distant. We passed
through a disagreeable and sandy country. The uniformity was, however,
very pleasingly interrupted by Saratoga lake, which is eight miles long.
At Stillwater village, we reached the Hudson. Not far from this, runs
the new Champlain Canal, which was commenced at the same time with the
Erie Canal, but is not yet completed, and which I mentioned on my
passage from Albany to Schenectady. At Stillwater we visited the two
battle-grounds, Freeman’s Farm and Bernis’s Heights, which became
celebrated September 19th, and October 7th, 1777. These actions, as is
known, took place during the expedition of Burgoyne. They closed with
taking the whole corps of this general, to which also the Brunswick
troops, under General Von Riedesel belonged, at Saratoga.
Our guide to both battle-grounds, which are adjacent, was an
octogenarian farmer, called by his neighbours Major Buel, because he had
been the guide of the American army during the campaign. The ground has
since greatly changed; wood has grown again, so that with the exception
of some remains of the English lines, nothing is to be seen. Not far
from the river, on an eminence, are the remains of a very small work,
called the great English redoubt. Here lies General Fraser, of whose
burial Madam Von Riedesel gives a description so attractive, and yet so
terrific. I broke off, near his grave, a small branch of a pine tree to
present it to Baron Von Riedesel, Land-marshal of the Grand Duchy of
Saxe-Weimar. I inquired after the house in which the mother of the
latter had lived, and in which General Fraser died. This house stands no
longer on the original spot, as the canal passed through its site; in
other respects it is said to be arranged now, as it was then. The place
in the bar-room, where General Frazer died, and a small room behind
this, in which Madam Von Riedesel lived with her children, were shown
me.
At the small town of Waterford we passed along the left shore of the
Hudson on a long wooden bridge, to avoid a bad bridge over the Mohawk.
We proceeded on our route in the night on a very good road, and passed
through Lansingburg and Troy. The latter is very handsomely built, and
many stores are very well lighted up in the evening. Here we returned to
the right shore of the Hudson, and reached Albany at 10 o’clock at
night.
On the 13th of September I went with Mr. Tromp in a stage-coach to New
Lebanon, twenty-eight miles from Albany to see the settlement of
Shakers. We passed through Greenbush, (where the team-boat put us on the
left side of the Hudson,) Schodack, Union, Stephentown, and Canaan. The
country about New Lebanon is extremely handsome; the tops of the
mountains are covered with trees, and the lower parts well cultivated.
The valley is wide, with very neat houses, and resembles a garden. Fruit
is particularly cultivated. On a slight eminence at the foot of a
mountain, the Shaker village is very beautifully situated, and is about
one mile long. The houses stand in groups at a distance from each other,
in general large, built of wood, and painted yellow; the church alone,
or rather the meeting-house, is wide, with an arched roof of slate.
The Shakers are a religious sect, originally from England. It was
founded by Ann Lee, the daughter of a Manchester blacksmith, and wife of
the blacksmith Stanley, of the same city. Her chief doctrines are,
community of goods, a perfect continence with regard to the sexes and
adoration of the Deity by dancing. Ann Lee pretended to higher
inspiration, performed miracles, announced the speedy reappearance of
Christ on earth, spoke of the millennium, and of similar glories. She
commenced in England, by making proselytes among the lowest classes, who
followed her when she preached in public, held noisy prayer, or rather,
dancing meetings, and thus disturbed the public peace. This worthy
prophetess was therefore, with her friends, at different times
imprisoned; the impatient and unbelieving public even began once to
stone her. The good soul, whose convulsions were said by the wicked
world to be the effect of ardent spirits, wandered therefore, in 1774,
with her family, and several of her friends, to New York, where she
settled. But her husband was wearied with the sisterly connexion in
which he lived with her, and resolved to divorce his sisterly wife, and
marry another. Whereupon the repudiated wife wandered towards Albany,
settled first at Watervliet, and held meetings. These meetings, however,
appeared to the Americans so suspicious, (it was during the time of the
revolution,) that the good lady was arrested at Albany with several of
her friends, and transported to the neighbourhood of New York, in order
to give her in charge to the English, who then held the city. But she
soon returned again to Watervliet, and her faithful adherents bought
land near Niskayuna, between Albany and Schenectady, and settled there.
A large part of this people, those particularly who had joined the sect
in America, founded the colony of New Lebanon. Ann Lee died in
Niskayuna, in 1784. As this sect conducted itself very quietly, and gave
no public offence, the government allowed them to live in peace. The
colony numbers about six hundred members, who are divided into families,
some of which contain above one hundred individuals of both sexes. Each
lives in a group of houses with an elder at their head. The elders of
all the families form a counsel, which watches for the public good. They
have for divine service a sort of preachers, two of each sex, who hold
forth on Sundays. The greatest cleanliness prevails in the houses,
equalled perhaps only by the hospital of Boston; the brethren live on
one side, and the sisters on the other. They have a common eating-room,
in which again each sex has its own side, but different working places.
Both the brethren and the sisters live, generally, two individuals in
one room, and two also sleep in the same bed. Many of the sisters,
however, notwithstanding their good food, were pale and wan.
When a family wishes to join the Shakers, the relation of brother and
sister, must immediately take place between husband and wife. The
children are then brought up in Shaker principles. Orphans also find a
home with them; still, however, unfavourable reports are circulated
about the origin of these orphans. Of course, if the principles of these
people should prevail, which, however, may heaven prevent, the world
would soon be depopulated. In countries, however, with too great
population, it might perhaps be of service to receive missionaries of
this sect and promote proselytism.
Every family possesses a shop, where all things made by the family are
laid out for sale. These articles generally consist of wooden utensils,
sieves, brushes, harness, table-linen, somewhat coarse silver writing
pens, very good rose water, &c. Besides, they sell books, exposing the
doctrines of their sect, and containing the life of their founder, Ann
Lee, whom they call mother Ann. They pay also much attention to the
breeding of cattle, make good butter, and particularly good cheese,
great quantities of which they sell. Their hogs are remarkably handsome,
and cleanliness is also extended to them. It is a rare pleasure to walk
about in a Shaker pig-sty! they have a large kitchen garden behind the
church, where they raise vegetables, principally for the sake of seed,
which is said to be here of a remarkably good kind. Medicinal herbs,
roots, and berries, which they cultivate very carefully in a separate
garden, and which, as I heard in Albany, are of a remarkably good
quality, form a principal part of their commerce.
The governor’s letter every where procured me a good reception, as they
generally lead strangers about the settlement with reluctance. The few
men with whom I spoke, and who accompanied me, were elderly people, and
had long ago become Shakers with their parents. An old man told me, that
he had been one of the first adherents of mother Ann at her arrival in
America. They were very polite to me, and appear to be somewhat monkish.
They showed me also their church, which they do not generally do,
Sundays excepted, as every body can attend their worship. My travelling
plan did not allow me to pass a Sunday with them. The hall, which serves
as their church, is about eighty feet long, and above fifty broad. On
one side stand benches in form of an amphitheatre, for spectators and
old members, to whom the dancing has become difficult. The floor
consists of handsome cedar wood, which is well polished; the boards are
attached to each other without nails. Service commences, as I was told,
with a speech, which the congregation hear in a standing position, the
sexes being again divided. Occasionally the spirit comes upon one or the
other; they are so moved by the speech, that they begin to shake, and to
make strange contortions. Then begin the prayers, which are sung, and
during which, they dance. Every member has a spot about four feet square
for jumping, and I was assured this service was done with such a zeal,
that the vaulters sometimes fainted away.
We delayed too long with the Shakers to follow our plan of previously
visiting Lebanon springs, and reach Albany the same day. We consequently
gave up this design and returned to Albany; we were overtaken by the
night, and a storm. It was so dark, that the driver could scarcely find
the way; he therefore took a lantern against my advice. This was
extinguished, and we were in a still worse situation. Two miles from
Greenbush the driver left the road, went to the right towards a slope,
and almost threw the stage entirely over; it fell on the right side, and
my head and arm were injured, though but slightly. On my right side I
was much more hurt, and one of my ribs was actually broken, as it was
afterwards discovered. Mr. Tromp had his head and one of his hands
injured. As we had no baggage, and were but two miles from Greenbush, we
resolved to leave the stage where it was, and walked to Greenbush. At
about eleven o’clock we reached the river. Not a soul was in the street;
the lights were all extinguished, and the ferry boats were on the other
side of the river. Our shouting was of no avail; the pain in my side
also prevented me from calling. In about half an hour, however, the
stage arrived, which the driver had raised with the help of some
farmers; and he made such a terrible noise, that at last, after waiting
an hour, the ferry boats came to take us to Albany. In riding through
the city the jolting of the stage gave me much pain. On leaving the
stage at twelve o’clock I could scarcely speak or walk on account of my
side, which I had also injured two years previously, on my passage from
Ostend to London, and since that time it had constantly retained a
painful sensation.
The next morning I awoke with such dreadful pain in my right side, that
I could scarcely move in bed. The obliging Sir Michael Clare gave me
every assistance. He opened a vein in my arm, took sixteen ounces of
blood, gave me a purgative, and ordered embrocations to the side, by
which treatment the pain had so much abated in the afternoon, that I
could move with more ease. I was, however, confined the whole day to my
bed. The Van Rensselaer family showed me much attention. On the second
day I could indeed leave the bed, but still not continue my journey. On
the third day, September 16th, Sir Michael and Lady Clare left Albany
for Boston, whence they were going to New York. My pains had not much
abated, but I nevertheless resolved to proceed to New York, as I had
read in the papers that the Pallas had arrived there, and as I wished to
receive the attendance of Dr. Schilett. I was indeed obliged to
relinquish my design of seeing Catskill Mountains, but thought of
stopping at West Point to visit the military school.
At ten o’clock we embarked on board the steam-boat Richmond. The banks
of the Hudson are very handsome, and here and there well cultivated.
From Albany to New York it is one hundred and forty-four miles, and to
West Point ninety-six. Hudson, a place twenty-seven and a half miles
from Albany, which we reached at noon, seems to be very handsome and
lively. We remarked in the harbour several sloops, and on shore some
brick stores, five stories high. On the opposite side of the river lies
Athens, between which and Hudson there seems to be much communication
kept up by a team-boat. A very low island in the middle of the stream
between the two places rendered this communication somewhat difficult at
first, as vessels were obliged to make a great circuit. To avoid this
inconvenience, a canal was cut through the island, through which the
team-boat now passes with ease and rapidity. This place affords a very
fine view of the lofty Catskill Mountains.
About eleven o’clock at night we arrived at West Point, on the right
side of the Hudson, and landed at a wharf furnished with a sentry-box.
An artillerist, who stood sentinel, examined us. I afterwards discovered
that this rule was made on account of the visits which the cadets
receive. We were obliged to ascend a somewhat steep road in order to
reach the house, which is prepared for the reception of strangers.
A small but very clean room was prepared for us. The building belongs to
the government, and is designed for the mess-room of the officers and
cadets. The purveyor for this table is bound by contract with government
to keep several chambers with beds in order, for the reception of the
relations of the cadets, and thus a kind of inn arose.
The morning after our arrival we paid an early visit to
lieutenant-colonel Thayer, superintendent of the military school, and
were received in a very friendly manner. He has presided over this
school eight years. It was founded in 1802, during the presidency of
Jefferson. Colonel Thayer has entirely remodelled this institution.
During his travels in Europe he visited the French military schools, and
has endeavoured to make this resemble the polytechnic school. But he
will find it difficult to equal this once celebrated school, as with the
best will in the world he cannot find in this country such excellent
professors as were assembled in that institution. The cadets, whose
number may amount to two hundred and fifty, but at the last examination
consisted of two hundred and twenty-one, are divided into four classes
for the purposes of instruction. They are received between the ages of
fourteen and twenty, undergo an examination before they enter, and must
then pass a probationary term of half a year, during which time the
mathematics are chiefly studied. After six months the young men are
examined on the instruction which they have received, and those only who
pass this ordeal continue in the school; the others are dismissed.
Instruction is communicated gratuitously to the cadets, each of whom
receives monthly eight dollars from government as wages. A public
examination of the cadets takes place every year at the end of June,
by a commission, appointed by the secretary of war. This commission
consists of staff-officers from the army and navy, members of congress,
governors of states, learned men, and other distinguished citizens.
After this examination, the best among those who have finished their
course are appointed as officers in the army; the very best may choose
the corps in which they wish to serve. The others receive stations,
according to their capacity, in the following order: engineers,
artillerists, infantry, marines. Should even these corps have the
necessary number of officers, these young men as supernumeraries,
receive full pay. At the examinations also, the cadets advance from one
class to another. The names of the five best in each class are made
known in the newspapers, and also printed in the army list, which
appears every year. This is certainly an encouraging arrangement, and
worthy of imitation.
The discipline of the cadets is very rigid; they leave the school only
as officers, on which account their noviciate in the corps of cadets
serves as a practical school of passive obedience. The punishments
consist of arrest, which, however, does not interrupt the course of
instruction; but when a case occurs that a cadet is to be punished a
second time for the same fault, he is dismissed. The same takes place
when after two public examinations he has not learned enough to advance
into a higher class.
The day is thus divided in this school:--
_From day-break till sunrise._ --Reveillé at day-break--roll-call
after reveillé--cleaning of rooms, arms and dress--half an hour after
roll-call, inspection of the rooms.
_From sunrise till seven o’clock._ --First class, military engineering.
--Second, natural and experimental philosophy. --Third and fourth,
mathematics.
_From seven till eight o’clock._ --Breakfast at seven o’clock. --Parade
at half past seven.--Class parade at eight o’clock.
_From eight till eleven o’clock._ --First class, recitations and
engineer and military drawing.--Second, natural and experimental
philosophy.--Third and fourth, mathematical recitations.
_From eleven till twelve o’clock._ --First class, lectures on engineer
and military sciences. --Second, lectures on natural and experimental
philosophy. --Third and fourth, mathematical studies.
_From twelve till one o’clock._ --First class, Monday, Wednesday, and
Friday, lectures on chemistry applied to mechanics and the arts, or
mineralogy and geology. --Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, studies on
the same subjects. --Second, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, lectures
on chemistry. --Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, studies on the same
subject. --Third, French recitations.--Fourth, French studies and
recitations.
_From one till two o’clock._ --Dinner very plain and frugal at one
o’clock--recreation after dinner till two o’clock.
_From two till four o’clock._ --First class, studies and recitations
in geography, history, belles lettres and national laws. --Second,
landscape and topographical drawing. --Third, Monday, Wednesday, and
Friday, drawing of the human figure--Tuesday and Thursday, studies of
the French language. --Fourth, French studies and recitations.
_From four o’clock till sunset._ --Military exercises--inspection of the
dress and roll-call at sunset.
_From sunset till half an hour later._ --Supper immediately after
parade--signal to go to the rooms immediately after the supper.
_Half an hour after sunset till half past nine._ --First class, studies
on engineer and military sciences. --Second, studies on natural and
experimental philosophy. --Third and fourth, mathematical studies.
_From half past nine till ten o’clock._ --Retreat beat at half past
nine--roll-call immediately after--signal to extinguish the lights and
inspection of the rooms at ten o’clock.
TABLE
_Of the Sciences taught and the Books used at West Point._
==============================================================
First Class. Course of fourth year.
--------------------------------------------------------------
SCIENCES.
PARTICULAR SUBJECTS.
TEXT BOOKS.
==============================================================
_Engineering._
INSTRUCTORS.
Capt. Douglass.
Lieut. Mordecai.
Artillery tactics.
Field and permanent fortifications.
Civil and military architecture and constructions.
Treatise on the Sciences of War and Fortification,
by Guy de Vernon.
Traité des Machines, par Hachette.
Programme d’un Cours de Construction, par Sganzin.
--------------------------------------------------------------
_History and belles-lettres._
Rev. Mr. M‘Ilvaine, Chaplain.
Geography.
History.
Moral philosophy.
Laws of nations.
Morse’s Geography.
Tytler’s Elements of General History.
Paley’s Principles of Moral and Political Philosophy.
Vattel’s Law of Nations.
--------------------------------------------------------------
_Chemistry and Mineralogy._
Dr. Torrey.
Lieut. Prescott.
Application of chemistry to the arts.
Cleveland’s Treatise on Mineralogy and Chemistry.
--------------------------------------------------------------
_Tactics._
Major Worth.
Capt. Hitchcock.
Lieut. C. Smith.
Lieut. Kinley, teacher of the Artillery.
Platoon--battalion--school and line-evolutions.
Exercises and manœuvres of artillery
Rules and Regulations for the Field-exercise and Manœuvres
of Infantry.
Lallemand’s Treatise on Artillery.
==============================================================
==============================================================
2nd Class. Course of 3rd year.
--------------------------------------------------------------
SCIENCES.
PARTICULAR SUBJECTS.
TEXT BOOKS.
==============================================================
_Natural and Experimental Philosophy._
Prof. Mansfield.
Lieut. S. Smith.
Lieut. Parrot.
Statistic, dynamic, hydrostatic, hydrodynamic, pneumatic.
Magnetism, electricity, optics, astronomy.
Gregory’s Treatise of Mechanics.
Newton’s Principia.
Enfield’s Institutes of Natural Philosophy.
--------------------------------------------------------------
_Chemistry._
Chemical philosophy.
Henry’s Chemistry.
--------------------------------------------------------------
_Drawing._
Capt. Douglass.
DRAWING MASTER.
Gimbrede.
Landscape.
Topographical drawing.
==============================================================
==============================================================
3rd Class. Course of 2nd year.
--------------------------------------------------------------
SCIENCES.
PARTICULAR SUBJECTS.
TEXT BOOKS.
==============================================================
_Mathematics._
Prof. Davies.
Lieut. Ross.
Lieut. Webster.
Lieut. Greene.
Lieut. Mahan.
Differential and integral calculus.
Analytic geometry.
Perspective shades.
Descriptive geometry and conic sections.
Traité du Calcul Différential et Intégral, par Lacroix.
Essai de Géométrie Analytique Appliquée aux Courbes et aux
Surfaces du second ordre, par Biot.
Crozet’s Treatise on Perspective, Shades and Shadows.
Crozet’s Treatise on Descriptive Geometry and Conic Sections.
--------------------------------------------------------------
_French Language._
TEACHERS.
Berard and Ducommun.
Translation from French into English.
Histoire de Gil Blas, les 3 derniers tomes.
Histoire de Charles XII. par Voltaire.
--------------------------------------------------------------
_Drawing._
DRAWING MASTER.
Gimbrede.
Human figure.
==============================================================
==============================================================
4th Class.
Course of 1st year.
--------------------------------------------------------------
SCIENCES.
PARTICULAR SUBJECTS.
TEXT BOOKS.
==============================================================
_Mathematics._
Surveying and measuring.
Trigonometry.
Geometry.
Algebra.
Treatise on Plane and Spherical Trigonometry, and on the
Application of Algebra to Geometry, translated from
the French of Lacroix and Bezout, by Professor Farrar.
Legendre’s Geometry.
Complement des Elémens d’Algébra, par Lacroix.
Lacroix’s Elements of Algebra.
--------------------------------------------------------------
_French Language._
Translation from French into English.
Histoire de Gil Blas, tome I.
Berard’s Lecteur Français.
Berard’s French Grammar.
==============================================================
I was surprised to learn that the young men clean their rooms and
clothes themselves, as well as make their own beds: only the cleaning of
shoes and boots, and carrying of wood may be done by servants. But
Colonel Thayer thinks, that if too many servants were in the school, the
cadets would have too great an opportunity of remaining in connexion
with the world, without the knowledge of the officers. The cadets are
divided in four companies, and live in two large massive buildings,
three stories high. In the older of the two buildings, two occupy one
room; in the other, three are placed in one room. They sleep on
mattresses, which are spread out on the floor in the evening, and have
always two chambers, one for sleeping and the other for study.--This
opens upon a long corridor. The cadets keep their arms also in their
rooms. Their uniform consists of a grey jacket, with three rows of
yellow buttons, bound with black cords; in winter, grey, in summer,
white pantaloons; white leather equipments, as worn by the army, and,
for fatigue service, leather caps. The officers wear the uniform of the
artillery corps, to which they belong. Notwithstanding the
extraordinarily fine situation of the school, the cadets have not a
healthy appearance, perhaps because they have too little recreation.
After having seen the rich private library of Colonel Thayer, he took us
to the school. We met with a class which was engaged in descriptive
geometry. Several cadets, who stood at the board, demonstrated some
problems of this science very correctly, and answered with great ease
and accuracy some questions and objections, which Professor Davies made
to them. We then attended a physical lecture of Lieutenant Prescott,
which, however, appeared to be elementary; he explained the principles
of the doctrine of heat, and then related the theory and history of the
thermometer.
The institution possesses a fine library and a collection of maps, which
receives constant additions. We found several of the newest German maps.
Colonel Thayer is a man who labours under a disease with which they say
I am also afflicted, namely, the bibliomania; on that account I
continued a long time in this library. I remarked here, also,
a full-length portrait of the former president, Jefferson, by Sully, of
Philadelphia, and another of the engineer, General Williams, founder of
the school.
The institution possesses four principal buildings. The two largest
serve as barracks for the cadets, a third contains the mess-room and
inn, and the fourth the church, chemical laboratory, library, and the
hall for drawing, in which are some of the best drawings of the cadets.
As a model of topographical drawing, they had taken the Montjoui of
Gironna, designed according to the Atlas of Marshal G. St. Cyr. They
have adopted the French manner of drawing plans; I saw, however, in the
library, Lehmann’s work translated into English. A very fine marble bust
of the Emperor Napoleon stands in the drawing-hall.
A large level space, consisting of several acres, lies in front of the
buildings, forming a peninsula and commanding the navigation of the
Hudson, above which it is elevated one hundred and eighty-eight feet.
Towards the river it is surrounded with steep rocks, so that it would be
difficult to ascend, unless by the usual way. At its junction with the
main land, it is commanded by a mountain, whose summit is five hundred
and ninety-six feet above the level of the river. This position called
to my mind the plain below Lilienstein, in Saxony, opposite to
Kœnigstein. On the summit of this mountain lie the ruins of Fort Putnam,
so that the plain on which the buildings of the academy stand, is
entirely insulated, and may be very well defended as well in the
direction of the river as of the main land. During the revolution this
fort was erected, like Fort Clinton, and was impregnable. To seize it,
the English had recourse to bribery, and General Arnold, who commanded
West Point, was on the point of delivering this position to them. This
disgraceful treachery was fortunately prevented by the seizure of Major
André. The tragical end of the major, and the flight of Arnold on board
the English corvette Vulture, which lay at Verplank’s Point ready to
receive him, are well known.
The above-mentioned Fort Clinton stood on the eastern point of the
level, and was considered as a redoubt. It consisted of a crown-work of
three bastions, and the redoubt which the two wings of the crown-work
adjoined. The redoubt stands on the extreme point of the rock, and the
remains of the battery can still be seen in it, which completely
commanded the river, both above and below West Point. The fort is now in
a state of dilapidation, and the foundations of the buildings alone, are
to be seen. During the revolution, chains were extended here across the
river. On the left side, in an oblique direction towards West Point,
is another rock, not so high, and similar to a peninsula, washed by the
Hudson on three sides and separated from the main land by a morass. Two
redoubts stood on this rock, in order to have complete control over the
river.
Besides the above-mentioned buildings, several houses and gardens are
situated on the plain of West Point, occupied by the officers and
professors. Large wooden barracks also stand here, inhabited by a
company of artillerists, and some soldiers condemned to confinement in
irons, who are employed to blast the rocks. These culprits have a long
chain attached to one foot, and the other end of the chain is fastened
to a twenty-four pound ball, which they must either drag or carry. Three
iron six pounders stand in front of the barracks. The Americans use iron
cannon, like the Swedes, and are very well satisfied with them. At
another place on the same plain, we saw five six pounders, with which
the cadets exercise. Three are French pieces, presented to the Americans
by Louis XVI. decorated with the French arms; and the motto, ultima
ratio regum. The two other pieces are English, were taken during the
revolution, and as an inscription says, were given by congress to
General Greene as a reward for his conduct in the south of the United
States during the war. His heirs have not yet reclaimed them, and they
consequently remain here. A pyramid of white marble not far from these
pieces was, according to the inscription, erected by General Brown, to
the memory of Lieutenant-Colonel Wood, a pupil of this school, who fell
in 1814, at a sally of Fort Erie.
In the evening we saw the cadets exercise; they form a small battalion
of four divisions, and are commanded by their officers, and the eldest
cadets of the first class, who wear officer’s scarfs, and swords. The
young men perform their exercises uncommonly well, and I was gratified
at the good order which prevailed. A band of music, paid by the
government, belongs exclusively to them, and is said to afford the best
military music in the United States. Every one has his taste, but I must
confess that even the celebrated music of the English guards, and the
American music, are far behind that of the French, Netherlanders, and
Germans.
In company with Colonel Thayer, we crossed the Hudson to visit an iron
foundry which belongs to a society, whose director is Mr. Campbell,
a friend of Colonel Thayer. Two high furnaces are in constant
employment, as the foundry furnishes all the iron arms which government
requires. One piece had just been cast, and we saw several other pieces
cast from a new high furnace. Next to the foundry is a building for
boring the guns, in which ten pieces may be bored at once; for this
purpose they lie in a horizontal position, the machinery being turned by
a large wheel. As, however, in hot and very dry summers, or in very cold
winters, the water now and then fails, they contemplate substituting a
steam-engine in place of water-power.
Notwithstanding my injured side, I ascended the rocky mountain on which
the ruins of Fort Putnam lie. My way led through a handsome forest of
oak, beech, chesnut, and walnut trees. The fort occupied the summit of
the mountain, was erected in an indented form, of strong granite, and is
altogether inaccessible on the side next the enemy. It had but a single
entrance, with very strong casemates, and two small powder-magazines. It
was built during the revolution on private property; the owner of the
ground claimed it, and government were obliged to restore it to him,
after which he destroyed the fort. The government afterwards acquired
the ground on which West Point stands, as well as the adjoining heights.
It appeared to me, if not necessary, still to be useful to build Fort
Putnam again, in order to complete the important position of West Point,
which can serve in time of war as a fortified camp, or place of refuge
for the people, &c. as impregnable as it was before. But to my
astonishment, I learned that this would probably not take place, that on
the contrary, with regard to the defence of the country, reliance was
placed on the fortified entrance of New York, and that in general in the
interior of the country no fortifications would probably be made. They
appear to think that the impregnability of the country particularly
consists in having no powerful neighbours; that England could not send
over a strong army, and that even if this should happen, England would
be obliged to scatter her strength too much, so that single corps could
be subdued with ease. This view appears to me doubtful; I wish from my
heart that these excellent people may never find by experience, that
they have deceived themselves. But security, when too great, is always
dangerous. A very fine view is enjoyed from Fort Putnam of the plain of
West Point, and of the Hudson, which here calls to mind the high banks
of the Rhine. The view to the north is particularly handsome, in which
direction Newburgh, lying on the river, is seen in the back ground. We
saw nothing of the Catskill mountains.
We went with Colonel Thayer and the cadets to church. The chaplain of
the academy, Dr. M‘Ilvaine, an Episcopalian clergyman, performed divine
service. The sermon was very good and sensible, and very well adapted to
the young men. He proposed several objections which are made against the
superiority of the Christian religion, and refuted them all, by deriving
his arguments from the new testament and human reason. I was much
pleased with the deportment of the cadets in the church, a deportment
which is not always observed in young people in other countries at such
times.
The topographical drawings which the cadets make, and according to which
they are instructed in fortification, were shown to me by the excellent
Captain Douglass, teacher of engineering. The so called modern system,
or the Carnmontaigne system, improved by the French engineers, forms the
basis of the instruction. Captain Douglass, who also instructs them in
the formation of roads and bridges, makes use of Wiebeking. Many of the
cadets who do not intend to remain in the military service as officers,
being bound to remain but one year in service, after leaving the
academy, serve each in his own state, as civil engineers, and perform
very essential services. All officers of the army and navy are now
supplied by cadets from the academy; for there are no cadets in the
regiments, and in time of peace no subaltern officers are promoted.
I was very sorry that we were obliged on the third day after our arrival
to leave this agreeable place, which had so extremely pleased me; but I
was obliged to go to New York at last! Our West Point friends
accompanied us to the steam-boat, and here we took an affectionate
farewell. A Captain Randolph, of Virginia, with whom I had become
acquainted at West Point, with his wife, went also to New York, so that
I was agreeably entertained on board; the boat was so filled with
people, we scarcely found room at the dinner-table. The shores continue
to be handsome. We passed several handsome places and country-seats,
which denoted that we were on the road to a large and flourishing city.
At a turn of the river the shores approximate, and here stands a
handsome country-seat with a garden, called Verplank’s Point; opposite
is a fort, Stony Point, the possession of which was disputed during the
revolution by several bloody fights. The situation of Singsing, where
there is a house of correction, is very handsome. We saw the offenders
engaged in blasting rocks. The stream now becomes broad, and forms two
successive bays, the former Haverstraw Bay, and the other Tappan Sea. On
the right shore of the latter is the town of Tappan, where, condemned by
the court-marshal as a spy, Major André was hung and buried. The English
government ordered him to be dug up some years ago, and his remains to
be transported to England, if I am not mistaken, to be laid in
Westminster Abbey, whilst the remains of General Fraser, who fell like a
hero in open battle, at the head of the royal troops, still lies without
the slightest memorial in the old redoubt of Stillwater! The tree which
grew on André’s grave was also taken to England, and as I was assured,
transplanted to the Royal Garden, behind Carlton Palace!!
Below Tappan Sea, the shores again approximate, and the right side
becomes very steep, resembling the rocks near Pirna, on the Elbe, and
are called the palisades. After sundown we came into the vicinity of New
York, the largest city in the United States, which attracts nearly the
whole commerce of the country, and now already numbers one hundred and
seventy thousand inhabitants. We landed about eight o’clock in the
evening, and on account of the incredible number of strangers could not
obtain lodgings at five different taverns. At last we were very glad,
after much fatigue from running about, to find a miserable bed-chamber
in a common and ordinary tavern, the Theatre Hotel, handsomely situated
near the park and theatre.