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OWARD the decline of a brilliant afternoon, I left Annapolis for Washington City. The air was as balmy as spring; "December as pleasant as May." The west was glowing with radiant beauty at sunsetting when I crossed the long bridge over the South River, and quaffed a cup of cold water from a bubbling spring at the toll-house on the southern side. The low, sandy country was exchanged for a region more rolling and diversified; and my ride during the early evening, with a half moon and brilliant stars casting down their mild effulgence, would have been delightful, but for the provoking obstructions which a lack of public spirit and private enterprise had left in the way. highway was the "county road," yet it passed, almost the whole distance from Annapolis to Washington, through plantations, like a private wagon-path, without inclosure. ever the division fences of fields crossed the road, private interest had erected a barred gate to keep out intrusive cattle, and these the traveler was obliged to open. Being my own footman, I was exercised in limbs and patience to my heart's content, for, during a drive of thirteen miles that evening, I opened fifteen gates; who closed them I have never ascertained. The miles seemed excessively long; the gates were provokingly frequent: I never paid tribute with greater reluctance, for it was the exaction of laziness and neglect.

The

I crossed the Patuxent at seven o'clock, and halted at Queen Anne, a small, antiquatedlooking village, some of the houses of which, I doubt not, were erected during the reign of its godmother. It is close to the Patuxent, and for many years was the principal depôt in the state for the inspection and sale of tobacco. Flat-bottomed boats bore away from it, in former years, heavy cargoes of the nauseous stuff; now sand-bars fill the river channel, and the freight-boats stop eight miles below. The tobacco business has ceased; the railway from Annapolis to Washington has withdrawn the business incident to a post-route, and every thing indicates decay. There was no tavern in the place, but I procured a supper and comfortable lodgings at the post-office. We breakfasted by candle-light, and, before "sun up," as the Southerners say, I was on my way toward the Federal city, twenty-three miles distant.

I had hardly left the precincts of Queen Anne before a huge red gate confronted me! I thought it might be the ghost of one I had encountered the night before, but its substantiality as a veritable gate was made manifest by the sudden halt of Charley before its bars. I was preparing to alight, when a colored boy came from behind a shock of corn, and kindly opened the way. How far is it to the next gate?" I inquired. "Don't know, massa," said the lad; "but I reckons dey is pretty tick, dey is, twixt here and Uncle Josh's." Where "Uncle Josh" lived I do not know, but I found the gates more than "pretty tick" all the way until within a short distance of Bladensburg. In the journey of thirty-six miles

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First View of the Capitol.

Rainbow at Noon.

The Federal City, Capitol, and Congress Library.

from Annapolis to Washington, I passed through fifty-three gates! Unlike the doors and windows of the people of the South, I found them all shut.

From the brow of a hill, eight miles from Washington, I had the first glimpse of the Capitol dome, and there I opened the last gate; each a pleasing reminiscence now. I passed to the left of Bladensburg,' crossed the east branch of the Potomac, and entered Washington City, eastward of the Capitol, at one o'clock. For thirty minutes I had witnessed a rare phenomenon at that hour in the day. Dark clouds, like the gatherings of a summer shower, were floating in the northeastern sky, and upon them refraction painted the segment of quite a brilliant rainbow. I once saw a lunar bow at midnight, in June, but never before ob served a solar one at mid-day in December.

Our national metropolis is a city of the present century; for before the year 1800, wher the seat of the Federal government was permanently located there, it was a small hamlet, composed of a few houses. The selection of a site for the Federal city was intrusted to the judgment of the first president, who chose the point of land on the eastern bank of the Po tomac, at its confluence with the Anacostia, or east branch of that river. A territory around it, ten miles square, was ceded to the United States by Virginia and Maryland in 1788 The owners of the land gave one half of it, after deducting streets and public squares, to the Federal government, to defray the expenses to be incurred in the erection of public buildings. The city was surveyed under the chief direction of Andrew Ellicott, and was laid out in 1791. The Capitol was commenced in 1793, but was not yet completed on the original plan, when, in 1814,a the British troops, under General Ross, burned it, together with the library of Congress, the president's house, and all the public buildings except the Patent Office. The city then contained about nine hundred houses, scattered in groups over an area of three miles. The walls of the Capitol remained firm, though scarred and blackened. The present noble edifice was completed in 1827,' more than a quarter of a century after the seat of government was located at Washington.

a August 24.

1 Bladensburg is in Prince George county, Maryland, six miles northeast of Washington. It is made memorable in the history of the war of 1812 from the circumstance of a severe battle having taken place there on the 24th of August, 1814, between a small body of Americans and a portion of the British army, then on its way to destroy the Federal city. Bladensburg had, for a long time, the unenviable notoriety of being the cock-pit for duelists who congregated at Washington City. There, on the 22d of March, 1820, Commodores Decatur and Barron fought with pistols. The former was mortally wounded, and died in the arms of his distracted wife that night, at the early age of forty years. She yet (1855) survives.

The Capitol is of the Corinthian order, built of white freestone. It is upon an eminence almost eighty feet above tide-water, in the center of a large square. It is composed of a central edifice, with two wings The north wing was commenced in 1793, and finished in 1800, at a cost of $480,202. The corner stone was laid by President Washington. The apron and trowel which he used on that occasion, as Grand Master of the Masonic Order, are preserved, and were used by Grand Master B. B. French, at the recent (1851) ceremonies of laying the corner stone of another enlargement of the Capitol. The south wing was commenced in 1803, and finished in 1808, at an expense of $308,808. The central building was commenced in 1818, and completed in 1827, at a cost of $957,647. The whole edifice covers an area of one and a half acres, exclusive of the circular inclosure for fuel, which forms an elegant area and glacis on the west front. The length of the front, including the two wings, is 352 feet; the depth of the wings is 121 feet. A projection on the east, or main front, including the steps, is 65 feet wide, and another, on the west front, 83 feet wide. There is a portico of 22 columns, 38 feet high, on the east front, and on the west front is another portico of 10 columns. The whole height of the building to the top of the dome is 120 feet. Notwithstanding the spaciousness of the Capitol, it is found to be insufficient for the use of our growing republic, and another addition is now (1855) in process of erection.

The British set fire to both wings of the Capitol, and the president's house, a mile distant, at the same time. The government officers and the people fled on the approach of the strong force of the enemy. The library of Congress, the furniture of the president's house, with other articles of taste and value, were destroyed. The bridge across the Potomac, the public stores, and vessels and buildings at the navy-yard, were consumed; and, not content with this destruction, they mutilated the beautiful monument erected in front of the Capitol in honor of the naval heroes who fought at Tripoli. The library of Congress was replaced by the purchase of that of Mr. Jefferson, in 1815, for the sum of $23,000. It contained 7000 volumes, many of them exceedingly rare and valuable. A large portion of this library, which had been increased to 55,000 volumes, was destroyed by fire on the morning of the 24th of December, 1851. It was the result of accident. About 20,000 volumes were saved. The original portrait of Peyton Randolph, from which the copy printed on page 61 of this work was made, and also that of the Baron Steuben, by

The National Institute.

The Widow of General Alexander Hamilton.

Washington's Camp Chest Washington City has no Revolutionary history of its own; but in the library of Congress; the archives of the State and War Departments; in the rooms of the National Institute,' and the private collection of Peter Force, Esq., I found much of value and interest. The city was full of the life and activity incident to the assembling of Congress, and I passed four days there with pleasure and profit. My first evening was spent in the company of the venerable widow of General Alexander Hamilton, a surviving daughter of General Philip Schuyler. Mrs. Hamilton was thena ninety-two years of age, and yet her mind a December, seemed to have all the elasticity of a woman of sixty. A sunny cheerfulness, which has shed its blessed influence around her during a long life, still

makes her society genial and attractive. Her memory, faithful to the impressions of a long and eventful experience, is ever ready, with its varied reminiscences, to give a charm to her conversation upon subjects connected with our history. With an affectionate daughter (Mrs. Holly), she lives in elegant retirement in the metropolis, beloved by her friends, honored by stran

a December,

1850.

1854.

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1848.

gers, venerated by all. She is, I believe, the last of the belles of the Revolution-the last of those who graced the social gatherings honored by the presence of Washington and his lady during the struggle for independencethe last of those who gave brilliancy to the levees of the first president, and, with Lucy Knox and others, shared the honors and attentions of the noble and

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refined of all lands, who crowded to the public audien

ces of the venerated Pater Patriæ, when chief magistrate of the nation. Two years later, I was privileged to enjoy her hospitality, and again to draw instruction from

May Time,

b November, the clear well of her experience. She still lives, at the age of ninety-seven, with the promises of centenary honors impressed upon her whole being. who has dealt so gently with her, bear her kindly to the goal of a hundred years.2

In the rooms of the National Institute (a portion of the Patent Office building) are a few of the most interesting relics of the Revolution now in existence, carefully preserved in a glass case. Upon the floor stands Washington's camp chest, an old fashioned hair trunk, twenty-one inches in length, fifteen in width, and ten in depth, filled with the table furniture used by the chief during the war. The compartments are so ingeniously arranged, that they contain a gridiron ; a coffee and tea pot; three tin sauce-pans (one movable handle being used for all); five glass flasks, used for honey, salt, coffee, port wine, and vinegar; three large tin meat dishes; sixteen plates ;3 two knives and five forks; a candlestick and Pine, on page 135, were burned, together with a large collection of ancient and modern medals, presented by Alexander Vattemare, and other precious things, which can not be replaced. The original Declaration of Independence was again saved from the flames.

1 The National Institution for the Promotion of Science was organized at Washington City in 1840. The President of the United States is patron; the heads of the Departments constitute the directors on the part of the government, and an equal number of literary and scientific citizens are directors on the part of the institution. Its collections (to which have been added those of the United States Exploring Expedition, and the Historical Society and Columbia Institute of the District) are in the great hall of the Patent Office building, a room 275 feet long and 65 feet wide.

2 She died November 9, 1854, aged 97 years and three months.

3 These are the dishes alluded to in the following letter, written by Washington, at West Point, to Dr. John Cochran, surgeon general of the northern department of the Continental army. It is dated "August 16, 1779." The original is in the present possession of the New York Historical Society, where it was deposited by Dr. Cochran's son, the late Major Cochran, of Oswego. See page 221, vol. i.

Washington's Letter to Dr. Cochran.

Pomp of Ancient Generals.

"The Sword and the Staff."

tinder-box; tin boxes for tea and sugar, and five small bottles for pepper and other mate

rials for making soup. Such composed the appointments for the table of the commander-in-chief of the American armies, while battling for independence, and laying the corner stone of our republic. What a contrast with the camp equipage of the heroes of other times and other lands, whom history has apotheosized, and whom the people of the earth call great! With all the glitter and the pomp of wealth and power, which dazzle the superficial eye, the splendor which surrounds them is but dimness compared to the true glory that haloes the name and deeds of Washington, appreciated by the consequences of his career.

Standing near the camp chest is Washington's war sword, and with it Franklin's

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cane, bequeathed to the hero by the sage. Of these relics Morris has sweetly sung, in his ode called

"THE SWORD AND THE STAFF.

"The sword of the Hero!
The staff of the Sage!

Whose valor and wisdom

Are stamp'd on the age!

Time-hallowed mementoes
Of those who have riven
The scepter from tyrants,
'The lightning from heaven.'

"DEAR DOCTOR,-I have asked Mrs. Cochran and Mrs. Livingston to dine with me to-morrow; but am I not in honor bound to apprise them of their fare? As I hate deception, even where the imagination only is concerned, I will. It is needless to premise that my table is large enough to hold the ladies. Of this they had ocular proof yesterday. To say how it is usually covered is rather more essential; and this shal' be the purport of my letter.

Since our arrival at this happy spot, we have had a ham, sometimes a shoulder of bacon, to grace the head of the table; a piece of roast beef adorns the foot; and a dish of beans, or greens, almost imperceptible, decorates the center. When the cook has a mind to cnt a figure, which I presume will be the case to-morrow, we have two beef-steak pies, or dishes of crabs, in addition, one on each side of the center dish, dividing the space and reducing the distance between dish and dish to about six feet, which without them would be nearly twelve feet apart. Of late he has had the surprising sagacity to discover that apples will make pies; and it is a question if, in the violence of his efforts, we do not get one of apples, instead of having both of beef-steaks. If the ladies can put up with such entertainment, and will submit to partake of it on plates, once tin but now iron (not become so by the labor of scouring), I shall be happy to see them; and am, dear doctor, yours," &c.

1 Montfauçon, in his Antiquity Explained, gives an account of the splendid processions of the conquerors of Persia, and the gold and silver vessels used in the tents of the generals. After mentioning the vast number of gold and silver vessels, chairs, tables, couches, &c., in the magnificent tent of Ptolemy Philadelphus, he thus describes the triumphal procession of Antiochus Epiphanes:

"First came twenty thousand Macedonians, the greatest Part of which had brass Shields, and others silver Shields. Then three thousand Horsemen of Antioch, most of whom had gold Collars and gold Crowns. Two thousand Horsemen more, all with gold Collars. Eight hundred young Men, each wearing a gold Crown. A thousand young Men, each carrying a silver Vase, the least of which weighed a thousand Drachms. Six hundred young Men more, each carrying a Vase of Gold; and two hundred Women, each with a Gold Vase to scatter Perfumes. Eighty Women carried on Chairs, the feet of which were Gold; and five hundred other Women, carried on Chairs with silver feet. This pompous Procession would appear very magnificent, were it not put after the former [Ptolemy Philadelphus], which surpasses every thing that can be imagined."-Supplement, tome iii., book v., p. 323.

I refer to this parade as an example of the contrast alluded to.

Doctor Franklin, in the codicil to his Will, wrote as follows: "My fine crab-tree walking-stick, with a gold head curiously wrought in the form of the cap of liberty, I give to my friend, and the friend of mankind, General Washington. If it were a scepter, he has merited it, and would become it. It was a present to me from that excellent woman, Madame De Forbach, the dowager duchess of Deux-Ponts, connected with some verses which should go with it."

Revolutionary Relics.

"This weapon, O Freedom!
Was drawn by thy son,
And it never was sheath'd
Till the battle was won!

No stain of dishonor

Upon it we see !

'Twas never surrender'd-
Except to the free!

2

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The war sword of the chief is incased in a black leather sheath, with silver mountings. The handle is ivory, colored a pale green, and wound spirally with silver wire at wide intervals.' It was manufactured by J. Bailey, Fishkill, New York, and has the maker's name engraved upon the hilt. The belt is white leather, with silver mountings, and was evidently made at an earlier period, for upon a silver plate is engraved 1757."

Washington's commission, signed by John Hancock, and the suit of

WASHINGTON'S WRITING-CASE.

SWORD AND STAFF.

clothes which he wore when he resigned that instrument into the custody of Congress, at Annapolis, are also there, together with a piece of his tent, and the portable writing-case represented in the en graving, which he used during all of his campaigns. The case is of board, covered with black leather, ornamented with figured borders. But the most precious relic of all was the original Declaration of Independence, written upon parchment, and bearing the autographs of the signers. In the year 1818, this priceless document was allowed to go into the hands of Benjamin Owen Tyler, a teacher of penmanship, for the purpose of making a fac simile of it for publication. By some process which he used for transferring it, it narrowly escaped utter destruction. Many of the names are almost illegible, while others are quite dim. This document (which was since removed to the Congress Library), with other precious things, was saved when the public buildings were burned by the British in 1814. In another part of the rooms of the Institute, which is devoted chiefly to the scientific collections made by the exploring expe dition a few years ago, is the printing-press with which Franklin labored in London, when a journeyman printer, in 1725-6. It is carefully preserved in a glass case. It is an exceedingly rude apparatus, and presents a wonderful contrast to the printing machines of Hoe, of the present day, from which twenty thousand impressions may be thrown each hour. The platen is of wood, the bed of stone. Its construction is in the primitive style universally

1 Upon the thigh of the chief, in Leutze's picture of Washington Crossing the Delaware, is a perfect representation of this sword. 2 See note on page 690, vol. i.

3 In 1841, John B. Murray, Esq., of New York, being in Liverpool, was informed that this press was in the possession of Messrs. Harrild and Sons, of London. Mr. Murray visited their establishment, and proposed to purchase the press for the purpose of sending it to America. The owners informed him that they had thought of presenting it to the government of the United States, and assured him that they would not part with it for any other purpose. After some negotiation, the Messrs. Harrild agreed to let Mr. Murray have it, on condition that he should procure a donation to the Printers' Pension Society of London. The press was forwarded to Liverpool, and there exhibited. It attracted great attention; and finally the Reverend Hugh M'Neile, of Liverpool, was induced to deliver a public lecture on the Life of Franklin, the proceeds from admission tickets to be given to the society above named. In November, Mr. Murray had the pleasure of remitting to the treasurer of the Printers' Pension Society $752, to be appropriated to the relief of one pensioner, a disabled printer of any country, to be called the Franklin pension. Mr. Murray brought the press to the United States, and it now occupies an appropriate place among the historical relics of our country at the Federal metropolis.

The lecture of Mr. M'Neil was published, with a fac simile of a letter written by Franklin in 1756, to the Reverend George Whitefield, and also a page containing an engraving of the press, which was printed upon the identical machine thus honored.

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