_Stay in Washington, from the 2d until the 15th of November,
1825._
On the morning of the 2d of November I received another visit from Mr.
de Vallenilla. He showed me a golden medal, which had formerly been
coined by the town of Williamsburg in Virginia, in honour of President
Washington, and a very well made miniature of that great man, painted by
Stewart, to which was appended his hair. The medal was in a box made of
wood from one of the trees standing near Washington’s tomb. The medal
and miniature were intended by Washington’s family as presents for
President Bolivar, and Mr. de Vallenilla was to set off within a few
days for Caraccas, in order to present them to his patron, the liberator
Bolivar.
In the public stage I left the friendly city of Baltimore, with which I
was extremely gratified, accompanied by Mr. Huygens, for Washington, the
seat of government of the United States, distant thirty-nine miles. The
weather was good and tolerably warm. The stage travelled slowly, and we
did not arrive before five o’clock in the evening. The road was
principally a turnpike, kept in a very good state. The country belonging
to the state of Maryland is for the most part hilly, covered with wood
of large-leaved oak and pine trees, appearing but very little settled.
The ground is sandy; the fields are planted with Indian corn and
tobacco. The country is for the most part uniform; we did not pass
through a single decent village. The difference between this country and
the northern states is very striking. The houses are a great deal
smaller, and of an inferior construction than the worst log-houses in
the state of New York. The most of these small houses are inhabited by
negroes, who generally had a very tattered appearance. We crossed
several creeks over good wooden bridges, and six miles from Washington,
near Bladensburg, we crossed the east branch of the Potomac, by two
wooden bridges. It was here, that in the year 1814, an engagement
between the English and the Americans took place, in which the American
militia is said to have displayed no very great degree of courage. In
consequence of this affair, the English marched into Washington, and
burned the capitol and the President’s house.
I had not formed a great idea of Washington city, but what I saw was
inferior to my expectation. The capitol stands upon an elevation, and is
to be considered as the centre of the future city. Up to this time it is
surrounded but by inconsiderable houses and fields, through which small
houses are also scattered. From the capitol, several avenues, planted
with trees, extend in different directions. We rode into the
Pennsylvania avenue, and eventually came to the houses, which are built
so far apart that this part of the city has the appearance of a
newly-established watering place. The adjacent country is very fine, and
there are several fine views upon the broad Potomac. We passed by the
President’s house; it is a plain building,[I-29] of white marble,
situated in a small garden.
[Footnote I-29: The Duke of Leinster’s Palace served as the model
for this building; that, however, is one story higher.]
The president resides in the middle building; the four others are
occupied as public offices. They are built of brick.
The plan of Washington is colossal, and will hardly ever be executed.
According to the plan, it could contain a population of one million of
inhabitants, whilst it is said at present to have but thirteen thousand.
To be the capitol of such a large country, Washington lies much too near
the sea. This inconvenience was particularly felt during the last war.
It has been proposed to transfer the seat of government to Wheeling, on
the Ohio, in the western part of Virginia.
Quite early next morning I received a friendly visit from the French
minister, Baron Durand de Mareuil, whom I knew in Dresden, nineteen
years ago, and afterwards as French minister at Naples, and met him in
the same quality at Brussels. General Macomb, commander of the engineer
corps of the United States, paid me a visit, and I was much delighted
with his interesting conversation. Lieutenant Huygens also came, with
whom I rode to Georgetown. This small town is amphitheatrically situated
on the Potomac, whose right bank, covered with wood and partly
cultivated, presents a pleasant view. Georgetown is separated from
Washington, or rather from the ground on which it is to stand, by a
small river called Rocky Creek, which empties into the Potomac, over
which there is a bad wooden bridge. I returned to Washington with the
minister, in order to be introduced to several of the highest public
officers, and to the diplomatic body. At first we went to the office of
Mr. Clay, the secretary of state, one of the most celebrated American
orators. He is a tall, thin man; I found him in mourning for one of his
daughters, of whom he has had the misfortune to lose three in a short
time. Afterwards we went to see the president, who received us very
kindly, and treated me as an old acquaintance. The house of the
president, as already mentioned, is built of white marble. In the
interior there is a large hall with columns. We were received in a
handsomely furnished apartment. Beautiful bronzes ornamented the
mantels, and a full length portrait of President Washington hung upon
the wall.
From the president’s house we went to the office of the war department,
to visit Mr. Barbour, the secretary, whom, however, we did not find, and
thence to the navy department, to see the secretary, Mr. Southard. This
officer is reputed to be one of the most learned men in the United
States. The four offices are all built alike, very plain, with wooden
staircases; their interior resembles a school-house. There are no
sentinels nor porters; in the building for the war department a woman
kept a fruit shop. Even the president himself has usually no sentries,
and only during the night the marines from the navy-yard keep guard
before his house.
We next visited Baron Mareuil, and I was very glad to renew my
acquaintance with his amiable lady. His house stands quite insulated,
like a country dwelling. The houses stand generally so widely distant in
Washington, that the plan of the city exhibits more streets than houses.
We made our last visit to the Russian minister, Baron Tuill, and the
English minister, Mr. Vaughan, but found neither at home. At five
o’clock I dined at Baron Mareuil’s, who gave a diplomatic dinner in
honour of the King of France’s name-day. I found the greatest part of
the diplomatic body assembled, and observed the French legation,
particularly, was very numerous. It was composed of the consul-general
Durand de St. André, brother of the Baron Mareuil, the vice-consul
Thierry, the secretary of the legation De Bresson, the Count Ganay, and
Mr. De Sonntag, a step-son of the Baron Mareuil, who was attached to the
legation, and of Mr. Laborie, who, however, did not appear. Of the
Russian legation, I found Mr. De Wallenstein, whom I had known in
Boston, and who is very much esteemed and beloved here on account of his
sensible conduct and good character, but particularly on account of his
solid acquirements and correct views. The president, it is said,
entertains a high opinion of him. I saw likewise Baron Maltitz, of the
same legation, who married an American wife some months ago, also the
Chargé d’Affaires of Brazils, Chevalier Rebello. I also became
acquainted with the secretary of the treasury, Mr. Rush, who was for
many years ambassador to England, and I met too with Mr. Brent, the
under secretary of state. The ladies present, were only Mrs. De Mareuil
and Mrs. De St. André. The dinner was truly splendid.
The number of our acquaintances soon increased, and pleasant and
interesting parties ensued. At the same time we saw what was remarkable
in Washington and its vicinity.
With Messrs. Huygens, father and son, we rode to the navy-yard, which is
under the command of a commodore. The commodore was just gone
travelling, therefore, we were accompanied on our tour by Captain Booth.
In this navy-yard ships are only built and refitted; after that they
descend the Potomac into the Chesapeake Bay, and go to Norfolk, where
they are armed. At the time of our visit there were but two frigates in
the yard, called forty-four gun ships, but mounting sixty-four pieces:
the Congress, an old ship, which was repairing, and the Potomac, an
entirely new ship, which has been launched, but subsequently hauled up
and placed under a roof.
Upon the spot where the frigate Brandywine, which carried Gen. La
Fayette to France, was built, the keel of a new frigate was laid, and at
the same time the foundation for a house over this new ship was begun.
The ground being very moist, this building is erected on piles. Opposite
the entrance of the navy-yard, stands a rostral column of white marble
with allegoric figures. It was erected by the officers and midshipmen of
the navy of the United States, to commemorate the death of their
comrades who fell in the attack of Tripoli. The English, at the time of
their taking possession of Washington, on the 25th of June, 1814, broke
the fingers of one hand belonging to the allegoric figure representing
America, and destroyed the stylus in the hand of the muse of history.
This inscription has been added to the column: “MUTILATED BY THE
BRITISH.” At the foot of the monument stand two Spanish brass
twenty-four pounders, taken by the Americans at Tripoli.
In this, as well as in other American navy-yards, there are several
buildings. I found large forges where chain-cables are made, and tried
in the same manner I had witnessed two years ago in Newbridge, South
Wales. All the old copper taken from the ships is melted, and with an
alloy of brass, converted into utensils of every description used on
board ships; a steam-engine of fourteen horse-power moves a saw-mill,
consisting of two large and several smaller circular saws, as also,
machines for block-making, which however, can by no means be compared
with Brunel’s block machine in Portsmouth; in the little arsenal are the
muskets, swords, &c. I observed a contrivance on the locks of the guns
to insulate the priming, and secure it in damp weather. I saw also a
kind of repeating musket with two locks, one behind the other. With such
muskets, by means of the anterior lock, twelve consecutive discharges
can be produced, and these being over, the gun is loaded again like an
ordinary infantry musket, and fired by means of the lowest lock. After
the anterior lock is fired, all the remaining shots incessantly follow,
and cannot be withheld at will, as it is the case with the repeating gun
bought by me in New York, already described. It is yet unknown how this
successive firing can be obtained. Captain Booth showed me also double
screws of his own invention, the object of which is to supply the place
of ordinary lanyards for ships. This officer has obtained a patent for
his contrivance, and it has been adopted, for experiment, in the frigate
Brandywine; in the same navy-yard is a laboratory, under the arsenal,
where the necessary fire-works for the artillery are made. The place
seemed to me to be ill chosen, since an explosion that may easily happen
in such an establishment, might cause most terrible consequences to the
navy-yard.
Over the Potomac there is a long wooden bridge, built upon ordinary
cross-beams. I measured it, and found it to be fifteen paces broad, and
one thousand nine hundred long. My paces being to the ordinary ones in
the relation of four to five, it may be assumed that it is about two
thousand three hundred and seventy-five paces in length. It required
nineteen minutes to walk from one end to the other. Every foot-passenger
pays six cents. This bridge astonishes by its length, but not at all in
its execution, for it is clumsy and coarse. Many of the planks are
rotten, and it is in want of repair; it has two side-walks, one of them
is separated from the road by a rail. It is lighted by night with
lanterns. It is provided with two drawbridges, in order to let vessels
pass. It grew dark before I returned home, and was surprised at the
stillness of the streets, as I scarcely met an individual.
Patents of invention are issued from the patent-office; whoever wishes
to obtain a patent for an invention, is obliged to deliver a model or an
accurate drawing of it. These models are exposed in an appropriate
place, where they remain until the expiration of the time for which the
patents are granted; they are then put into the lumber-room. Among such
models, there certainly is a great number of things of little
importance, as for instance, a contrivance for peeling apples; there are
also ninety-six models for making nails in different ways, but some of
them very remarkable. The most interesting models of machinery seemed to
me to be those intended to remove mud from the bottoms of rivers, and
canals, or to make them deeper. One of them consists of an ordinary
steam-boat; with her they go to the spot where they are to work; arrived
at the spot they cast anchor, stop the two water-wheels, and with an
apparatus which is moved by the engine, draw the mud from the bottom.
According to another model, the same operation can be performed by means
of a draw-wheel. A great many models are intended to separate seed from
cotton, to beat, spin, and weave it; none of them, however, are reputed
to be superior to the known English machines.
Of steam-engines and steam-boats there are a great many models of very
singular form, also steam-boats with rotatory motions; they however do
not answer the purpose. I saw patterns of railways, and models of
machines to draw boats from a lower canal into a higher one, by help of
an inclined plane. Then two models of floating covered batteries. One of
them was an oblong case, in which is fixed a steam-engine, giving to two
long iron bars a rotatory motion. These bars, like two clock-hands,
projecting off the deck, are intended to keep off a boarding enemy.
A model to compress leaden bullets, in order to give them more weight.
A great number of household and kitchen apparatus, fire-places of
different descriptions, an earth-augur for seeking water, fire-engines
of various kinds, a fire-proof roof, contrived by a German, several
machines to make bricks, instruments by means of which, in navigating
the Mississippi, trees lying under water can be taken hold of and sawed
to pieces without stopping the vessel in its course, machinery to bore
holes in rocks, and others to hoist rocks out of water; the machine
contrived in London by Perkins to print with steel; models of book
printing-presses; models for combing wool, and dressing woollen stuffs;
fan-mills; leather manufacturing instruments, and among others, an
instrument for splitting hides; a great number of agricultural
instruments, namely, a great many ploughs for every kind of soil,
invented by Germans; machines for mowing grass, for thrashing and
cutting straw. Among the most important machines, I will mention one for
making blocks, which is considered not to be inferior in any respect to
that of Brunel, in Portsmouth, and another which renders steeping of
flax unnecessary, and yet fits it after fourteen days drying to be
broken and heckled. For permission to take a copy of the machine, one
must pay ten dollars to the inventor. I ordered two copies; one for the
Agricultural Society of Ghent, and another to present to my father.
Several fine models of bridges, especially of hanging ones, among
others, one of the bridges in Trenton, near Philadelphia, and another of
that near Fayetteville, in North Carolina; also one of a hanging bridge,
under which is suspended a canal passing over the river. Respecting arms
I did not find much improvement. There was also a triangle of steel,
weighing six pounds, upon which three different hammers struck, to
supply the place of church bells. This ringing is said to be heard at a
great distance. It has been introduced in several places to assemble the
people.
The patent-office is in the same building with the post-office. They
pointed out to me two large gilt frames with the arms of France and
Navarre. They hung before the catastrophe of 1814, in the house of the
president, and contained full length portraits of Louis XVI. and Marie
Antoinette, which were presented in 1783, by those unfortunate monarchs
to the United States, at their especial desire. Both portraits suddenly
disappeared, and it is believed that it happened in 1814, when the
English made their unexpected visit to Washington, and burnt down the
house of the president.
The patent-office is under the direction of Dr. Thornton,[I-30] who is
an able draughtsman. Under Dr. Thornton, a Swiss is employed, whose name
is Keller, a very able mechanic, and inspector of the model room, who
explained every thing to me. Dr. Thornton was so kind as to accompany me
to a sculptor, who, by means of casting a mould upon the face, obtains a
striking resemblance, and has made busts of the first American
statesmen, &c.
[Footnote I-30: [Since deceased. His place is supplied by Dr.
Thomas P. Jones, of Philadelphia.]--TRANS.]
I arranged a party to the Falls of Potomac, with Mr. De Bresson, sixteen
miles distant, where we were accompanied by Mr. Huygens, Jr. On the 6th
of November, at nine o’clock, we left Washington and went five miles
upon a very rough road, along the left bank of the river, which is at
first very broad. Both shores are hilly and covered with wood, for the
most part hickory and different species of oak. Of the primitive woods
nothing is to be seen, for generally the wood is second growth. The
banks soon became rocky, and we observed even in the river some
projecting rocks. On the left shore they have dug a canal, this, however
is too narrow, and only navigable by long boats, resembling the
Durham-boats on the St. Lawrence river. In these boats, wood, lumber,
stones, especially mill-stones, and the harvest from the upper
countries, are carried to Washington.
Five miles above the city, we went over, on a hanging bridge, to the
right shore. The chains consist of bars of wrought iron. The bridge
itself is of wood, as well as the two cross-beams standing on its
extremities, through which the chains are passed; these cross-beams form
a kind of entrance, having an Egyptian appearance. The length of the
bridge is about one hundred and sixteen feet, its breadth sixteen feet.
A rather high toll is paid for passing it; we paid a dollar and a half
for a carriage with two horses, for going and coming. The road, passing
almost incessantly through a wood, became a little better after we
arrived at the other side of the bridge. It was called a turnpike road,
but still it continued hilly. We passed but a single inn, and saw but a
single country house, which belonged to Commodore Jones, whose daughter
became a Catholic and a nun, in a convent at Georgetown; this occurrence
produced a great sensation in the United States. Most of the people we
met with, were tattered negroes, who humbly saluted us. We were now in
the state of Virginia, in the vicinity of the falls; when the road
became very bad, we left our vehicle and went on foot through the
forest, to see this natural curiosity, whose noise made us sensible of
its proximity.
The river runs here over a rocky bed, and is about three hundred paces
wide; in the dry season it is a great deal narrower. It forms several
distinct falls, none of them above fifty feet high. They recall to
memory Glenn’s Falls on the Hudson, between Lake George and Saratoga.
We crept about in the labyrinth of broken rocks, not without danger or
difficulty, in order to obtain different views of these falls. The sun
was shining upon them at the time, and afforded us the sight of several
rainbows; we soon felt ourselves richly rewarded for our pains.
In order to avoid these falls, a canal with locks has been made on the
right shore. The canal passing through the rocks, is in some places dug
down more than fifty feet. We, unfortunately, had chosen Sunday for our
excursion; the inhabitants were gone to church, and there was nobody to
give us the necessary explanations. There was no vegetation on the rocks
about the falls, except some broom and single clover. We saw also upon
the rock a creeping cactus plant, resembling the cochineal cactus, with
small pear-shaped fruit, which contained a purple-red slimy juice. This
plant gave me the first sign of my approach to the south. We returned to
Washington by the road we came. Notwithstanding the late season, it was
as warm as in midsummer.
The capitol is a really imposing building. When it is once surrounded by
handsome buildings, it will produce a fine effect. It is built of white
marble, and has three domes; the largest is over the rotunda, and the
two smaller over the wings. The capitol stands on an acclivity, and in
front is three stories high, and on the back, which is opposite the
president’s mansion, four stories high. In front is the entrance, with a
portal of Corinthian columns; on the back part there is a large balcony,
decorated with columns. The entrance under the portal is a little too
low.
In the centre of the building, under the principal dome is a large
circular hall, receiving light from the roof. Pictures are to be placed
in this hall, under the bas-reliefs. One of these represents the
deliverance of Captain Smith, commander of the first English settlement
in Virginia, by the Indian Princess Pocahontas; another is an allegory,
representing the landing of European emigrants. Behind this hall is a
large saloon, contiguous to the balcony, which contains the library of
Congress. During the English incursion in 1814, the library was
destroyed by fire; the present library has been gradually collected
since, and consists in great part of the late President Jefferson’s
books. Under the large hall is a small one, supported by three rows of
columns, not unlike a family tomb. It receives its light from above, by
a round opening in the floor of the large hall, and serves as a passage.
It has been proposed to place there the coffin of the great WASHINGTON.
No principal staircase is yet built, but a great number of smaller ones.
The interior is altogether very angular. Columns and corridors are
numerous in all the lateral galleries and saloons; the capitals of the
columns are mostly of Egyptian taste, and the models seem to have been
taken from the “description de l’Egypte.” In the corridor leading to the
senate chamber, are columns, the shafts of which represent a bunch of
stalks of Indian corn, and the capitals the fruit of the same plant.
In the wings on the right hand side from the entrance, is the senate
chamber, the offices belonging to it, the office of the president, and
session room of the supreme court of the United States. This, and the
senate chamber, are built in a semicircular form. In the centre is a
place for the presiding officer. The members of the senate have their
seats amphitheatrically arranged; every one has a chair, and before him
a small mahogany desk. In this wing are hung the four pictures by
Trumbull, which are hereafter to be placed in the rotunda. One of them
represents the Declaration of Independence: there is a very fine
engraving of this picture; another, the surrender of General Burgoyne to
General Gates, near Saratoga; the third, the capitulation at Yorktown,
and the filing off of the English between the American and French army;
the fourth, the resignation of General Washington, and laying down of
his commission to congress on the 23d of December, 1783. The portraits
are said to be striking likenesses. As to the composition and execution
of these pictures, the first makes one think of the pedantic school of
Benjamin West, and the other loses by faint colouring. The painter was,
moreover, placed under restraint by want of taste in his countrymen for
the fine arts, who resemble, in that respect, their English ancestors:
the posture of almost every single person having been prescribed him.
In the other wing of the building is the hall of representatives,
likewise in form of an amphitheatre, and the offices belonging to it. In
this hall is a full length portrait of General La Fayette. The ceiling
of this saloon, like that of the senate chamber, and supreme court room,
is supported by doric columns, whose shafts are of pudding-stone. The
gallery above the principal dome, affords a very extensive view. The
principal avenues of the city, which is to be built, all depart from
this point, and this view recalls the situation of the castle at
Carlsruhe, with this difference, that here no wood, and but few houses
are seen.
With the families de Mareuil, St. André, Huygens, and all the French
legation, we made an excursion by water to Mount Vernon, the
country-seat of the great Washington. Mount Vernon is situated sixteen
miles from the capitol, and on the right bank of the Potomac, in the
state of Virginia. We hired a steam-boat for the purpose, on board of
which we went at half past ten o’clock, at Georgetown. We went across
the long bridge through an opening of a double drawbridge, and steered
down the Potomac. Washington remaining on our left, had a very handsome
appearance from the water, and especially the cape, named Greenleaf’s
point, situated at the junction of the east branch with the Potomac,
which is fortified, and contains very spacious storehouses. Eight miles
below Washington, we stopped at the city of Alexandria, lying on the
right bank of this river, in order to obtain a boat for landing at Mount
Vernon. Alexandria is one of the three cities of the district of
Columbia, which are Washington, Georgetown, and Alexandria. This town is
said to have a considerable commerce; it has a harbour with wooden
wharves, near which I saw several schooners lying, and also two brigs.
It is said to contain about eight thousand inhabitants. The streets are
long and very straight, crossing each other at right angles. After a
stay of twenty minutes, we continued our course. Both banks are hilly,
in some places rocky; there is a great deal of gravel, and they are
covered with wood. At a winding of the stream we passed by Fort
Washington, recently built upon a rock on the left bank, commanding the
stream with its batteries. In an oblique direction on the opposite
shore, we at last perceived Mount Vernon, beautifully situated. The
water near the banks being very low, the steam-boat stopped in the
middle of the stream, about a mile from the shore, and we landed in
boats. We ascended by a very bad road to a place where cattle were
grazing, which I heard was formerly Washington’s garden. Between three
oaks and some cypress trees, we saw a coarse wooden door about four feet
high, in a very bad piece of masonry. I thought at first it was a
spring-house. How great was my astonishment, when I learned that this
was the entrance to the sepulchral vault of the greatest man of his
time; the ornament of his age; of WASHINGTON!
I picked up some acorns fallen from the trees which shaded the tomb; my
object was to plant them when I returned home. I took also from this
sacred spot a twig of a cypress tree. The tomb is no longer opened,
since strangers have nearly cut to pieces the whole of the pall covering
the coffin, in order to preserve it as a relic. It was last opened at
the time of General La Fayette’s visit.
Thence we went to the dwelling-house, about three hundred paces distant,
and situated on a hill, from which there is an extremely fine view of
the Potomac. This estate belongs to Judge Washington, who, being absent
upon business connected with his office the greatest part of the year,
permits his inherited property to decay very much. He has no children.
The house is two stories high, built of wood, and without taste. On the
side next the river, it has a piazza, and on the other, is the entrance
with stone steps, which are almost decayed. By means of a wooden
colonade, the house communicates right and left with the wings and
household buildings. Farther on, are houses for negro slaves, of whose
dirty, ugly, and ragged children, we saw a great many running about. It
being Sunday, we had much difficulty in finding access to the house; at
last we succeeded in getting into the lower story, which has been left
nearly in the same condition it was at the decease of its great
possessor. But the number of books belonging to the library, has been
increased by many new works by the present proprietor. A great many fine
engravings decorate the walls, especially a very handsome Louis XVI.
which Washington was presented with by that unfortunate monarch. On the
gilt frame above, are the arms of France, and below, those of
Washington’s family. In the four corners are the cyphers of the king and
G. W. There are also two very good engravings, representing the battle
of Bunker’s Hill, and the death of General Montgomery; four views of the
attack of Gibraltar and its defence, and a miniature portrait of the
great man painted on enamel. One of the keys of the Bastille, sent after
its destruction by General La Fayette to Washington, is exposed in a
case of glass, under it is a sepia drawing of the demolition of that
prison. The furniture and other regulations of the rooms, are very
plain; in the eating-room I observed a valuable chimneypiece of Italian
marble, with handsome bas-reliefs, and two columns of _gallo-antico_.
It is known that when General La Fayette was visiting Washington’s
burial place, an eagle made his appearance in the air and hovered over
the spot until the general had proceeded farther. We also observed to
day a very large one, which seemed to observe us from the height; we saw
him above us when we were embarking. He seemed to hover over the same
spot for a long while, and when the last boat came near the steam-boat,
he suddenly left the place, flew towards the wood, and was lost to
sight.
In our travelling company, I became acquainted with Count Miot, who had
formerly been minister of the interior in Naples, and afterwards in
Spain, under Joseph Buonaparte, and now was travelling for pleasure, and
to visit his ancient master. Mr. De Mareuil detained all the gentlemen
of our party to dinner at his house, and we remained there till ten
o’clock, very much pleased. At a ball given by Baron Mareuil, more than
two hundred persons, the members of the diplomatic body, the first
authorities of the country, and the principal inhabitants, were present.
I met with General Bernard, and became acquainted with General Brown, an
aged man, whose right side appeared to be palsied. The most interesting
acquaintances I made, were those of Commodore Porter, whose name, as
well as the important services he rendered to his country, and his late
trial, have rendered him known to the world, and of Colonel Roberdeau,
of the engineers. I became farther acquainted with Mr. Calvert, who told
me his son had studied in Göttingen and had some time ago travelled to
Weimar, where he was presented at court and was very well received. The
ladies were very elegantly dressed, and danced very well. They danced
mostly French quadrilles, but always with the same figures. The music
was good, and by the marine band of the garrison. The ball, however, did
not last long; I was one of the last to go, and came home at eleven
o’clock. The president was not there; he does not accept any invitation
in the city. The present president receives even the foreign ministers
only when they have been announced by the secretary of state. The
president is likewise exempt from returning visits, which he had already
the kindness to give me notice of by Mrs. Sullivan, in Baltimore.
Another ball was given by General Brown, in honour of the marriage of
Captain Gardner, of the fourth regiment of artillery. The gentlemen I
found there were mostly officers of the army. There is scarcely an army
in Europe in which the corps of officers is better composed than in the
small American army; since in the United States no one can on any
account be an officer, if he is not well educated. The officers are
exclusively taken from the military academy in West Point; no subaltern
officer is promoted. The greater part of the inferior officers who were
advanced during the last war, had been dismissed. Such a measure is in
this country unavoidably necessary, where none but people of the lowest
class enlist as soldiers in the army; without such an interval between
the officers and the rank and file, discipline could not be maintained.
Therefore, if a young man is seen in the uniform of an American officer,
it may with confidence be inferred that he is in every respect fit to
maintain his place in the best society.
At the third ball, given by Mr. Huygens, we once more met with a very
pleasant company. I conversed a long time with Lieutenant Wolf Tone, of
the first regiment of artillery. He is an Irishman by birth, educated in
a French military school. He had been formerly in the French service,
and is patronised by General Bernard.
At a visit I made to General Macomb and Major Vandeventer, at the
war-office, the general showed me many drawings and plans of fortresses
and entrenchments, together with two remarkable lists sent in every
month from West Point by Lieutenant-Colonel Thayer. One of them contains
the names of the best and worst cadets in every class, and the other the
names of those who deserve to be rewarded, as well of others who have
been punished, with indication of their faults; finally, of those who
have been expelled, and the reason of their expulsion. Both lists are
put in frames, under glass, and hung up in the general’s office; one is
changed every fortnight, and the other every month. I was told by the
general, that they saved him frequently from wasting conversation with
the parents of the cadets.
The general conducted me also to the topographical office, being under
the direction of Colonel Roberdeau. I found there several repeating
circles, theodolites and telescopes, made by Troughton and Ramsden; also
two transit instruments, destined for the observatory which is still to
be built; an instrument by Troughton, which serves for measuring the
ten-thousandth part of an English inch, and a model measure of the
English yard, French mètre and litre. This gentleman regretted that the
old English measures and weights are retained in the United States,
instead of adopting, as it has been done in the Netherlands, the new
French standard, which is much better.
There were also several good plans of battles and sieges of the
revolutionary war, namely, those of the old fortresses Ticonderoga and
Crownpoint, on Lake Champlain. I missed the most recent drawings. On the
other hand, General Macomb showed me what they call the Indian
department, where all business with the Indian tribes is attended to.
There we found portraits of a great many Indian chiefs, and several of
their wives, who have been at different periods in Washington, in order
to compliment the president. They then receive medals according to their
rank, which they wear by a riband round the neck. There were also
several weapons and different ornaments of tribes I had already seen.
Finally, I visited the ordnance department, which is under the direction
of a colonel. I saw here a gun invented by Mr. Hall, at Harper’s Ferry,
which is loaded from the breech, and with which five sure shots can be
made in a minute. With this gun, three thousand discharges had been
made, and it has proved very exact; several have been ordered, and one
or two companies are to be armed with them in case of war.
At a dinner given by the president, and at which I had the honour along
with about forty persons, to be present, were the diplomatic body, the
state secretaries, several generals, and other persons of distinction.
Among them, I made the acquaintance of Mr. Gaillard,[I-31] of North
Carolina, president pro tem. of the senate. No ladies were present,
because Mrs. Adams was not well. The table furniture was very rich.
I was particularly pleased with a service of silver gilt. The
eating-room is very spacious, besides which there were two richly
furnished rooms open. I remarked several handsome Sèvres, porcelain
vessels, and a marble bust of the great Washington, by the Italian
sculptor Ceracchi, who was afterwards shot in Paris, on account of a
conspiracy against Napoleon’s life. A great chandelier was remarkably
fine; it was made for the Emperor Napoleon, and purchased in the year
1815, by the American minister in Paris. The imperial eagles now pass
for American.
[Footnote I-31: Since dead.]
General Brown,[I-32] during a visit, showed me a large gold medal which
was presented to him by congress, on account of his services in the late
war. On one side of it is a bust of the general, and on the other a
trophy of English arms surrounding a fasces. Four shields bear the
names, Sackett’s Harbour, Niagara, Chippewa, and Erie, with the dates on
which these places witnessed the general’s deeds. At the foot of the
trophy an American eagle is represented, holding in his talons an
English banner. This medal is not intended to be worn: the general
preserves it in a box. The American citizens are not allowed to wear any
foreign decorations; even General Bernard was obliged to lay aside those
he had so truly merited. General Brown showed me also a gold box,
presented to him by the city of New York, together with the freedom of
the city.
[Footnote I-32: [Since dead.]--TRANS.]
On the 14th of November I began to make farewell visits, for the
dwellings in Washington are so far distant, that such visits require a
great deal of time. On this occasion, I had a long conversation with the
secretary of war, Mr. Barbour, and general Macomb, on military subjects.
I differed in opinion from the secretary about the efficiency of militia
men, of whom he, as their former general,[I-33] seemed to entertain too
high an opinion. At Mr. de Wallenstein’s I saw some good instruments;
a barometer for measuring heights, and a telescope which he had adopted
as a transit-instrument. I found there also Krusenstern’s large Atlas of
the South Sea, a fine work on bad paper. Mr. de Wallenstein had
translated an astronomical work from the Spanish into English; he had
also an English copy of the illustrations of Göthe’s Faust laid open.
With General Bernard I conversed for a long while on the science of
military engineering. He told me he had served at the defence of two
fortresses, and obtained the experience, that there can be no strong
defence, without having covered works on the front of attack. Respecting
coast batteries, he was of opinion that the best were those which had at
least an elevation of thirty feet above the surface of the water, in
order that the rebounding shots coming from ships should not attain the
breastwork. He considered the establishments for military instruction in
this country susceptible of great improvements. He had proposed to
establish a military exercise school, to which should be alternately
sent battalions of infantry, and companies of artillery; this
proposition has not been adopted. The general said also a great deal
about the importance of Anvers, and gave me many interesting
explanations of Napoleon’s designs in fortifying that place. Finally,
the conversation turned on the battle of Waterloo, at which the General
had been present as aid to the Emperor. Tears came into the eyes of this
gallant man, while speaking of his former master.
[Footnote I-33: He had commanded the militia when Governor of
Virginia.]
On the last day of my stay in Washington, I took a ride with Messrs.
Huygens, and Mr. de Bresson; we went to the marine barracks, where, by
order of the secretary of war, experiments with Hall’s muskets were to
be made. Mr. Hall, who is inspector of the gun manufactory at Harper’s
Ferry, was present himself.
Experiments were made on the celerity of firing; Mr. Hall fired with his
gun, and the sergeant major of the marines with an ordinary infantry
musket. The last could make but four shots in a minute; whilst Mr. Hall
made six. He has also applied his invention to ordinary infantry muskets
and rifles, and caused them to be constructed at Harper’s Ferry. They
cost the government eighteen dollars a piece. An essential improvement
would be to introduce percussion fire-locks. Moreover these arms can
only be given into the hands of very well exercised men. The government
intends to arm the left wing companies with them. For the riflemen or
light infantry, this gun seems to be very well suited. I expressed a
desire that Mr. Hall would make such a gun for me; but he replied, that
being in the service of the government, he was not allowed to make any
without particular permission of the secretary of war. The few marines
in quarters were paraded under the command of a Lieutenant, and I was
received with music and presented arms. The whole of the marine corps is
composed of but seven hundred men, who were employed on board the
squadrons in the Mediterranean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, and in the South
Sea, to serve on board the receiving ships, and in the navy yards of
Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Washington and Norfolk. Hopes were
entertained, that the next congress would consent to augment this corps
to the number of fifteen hundred men, and this augmentation would, no
doubt, have a great influence on the improvement of the service.