The Portland daily press., 1874-09-01
Our New York Letter.
Trial Trip of the City of Peking--A dis
tinguishcd Party and delightful Cruise.
NEW YORK. Aug, 81, 1874.

tinguishcd Party and delightful Cruise.
NEW YORK, Aug. 81, 1874.
The steamship ''City of Peking'' is the largest |
vessel ever launched from an American ship |
yard-the largest merchantmen ever built save
the "Great Eastern''-and her projectors saga
cously conceived the idea of introducing her to |
her native element amid the festivities of an /
excursion party. But first, in order to give es- |
pecial eclat to the occasion they secured a |
promise from President Grant that he would |
grace the voyage with his presence. This ar |
ranged, they proceeded to get up the affair on |
a scale of magnifcence altogether without |
precedent The invitation cards, engraved |
with taste and elegance, were issued with such |
limitation as to ensure every possible comfort
to the guests. The embarkation began at 8
A. NJ. on the 26th inst, and the privileged Wis
itors, when they reached the deck of the great
ship, were ushered into drawing room, richly
carpeted, gorgeously decorated with flowers
and furnished with grand piano, and all the
concomtants of social comfort Thence they
were transferred to a luxurious saloon below,
where Delmonico himself was in attendance,
with an efficient corps of practiced assistants,
to regale them with luxurious breakfast.
While the rejection was in progress the Peking
steamed out of the harbor, to the music OF
full band. At Sandy Hook President Grant
and his wife came ON board and some other
ladies and gentlemen, resident at Long Branch
and its vicinity. From this point the voyage
fairly began. The day was exquisite, and
nothing was lacking that could give enjoyment
to the scene. A little later, to be sure there
were among some of the ladies, symptoms of
NAL de naer that detracted from their relish of
the creature comforts provided so lavishly, and
possibly from their appreciation of the beauties
of Neptune's expansive domain; but the num-
Der thus affected was comparatively small, for
the waves proved neither angry nor turbulent.
A statistical passenger, who examined the
purser's roll, announced that there were three
hundred and fifteen guests on board. OF these
not less than an hundred were ladies. The
government was fully represented. Besides the
Chief Magistrate and the Vice President, there
were the Secretary of War and the new POST
master General, both of them admirably oalcu-
lated to contribute largely to the social pleas
ures of such an expedition by their genial man
ners and sprightly conversation. The Senate
was personated by Mr.. Buckingham of Con-
necticut, gentleman of venerable, thoughtful
men, of grave but not austere countenance.
The popular branch Of Congress supplied
several of its members for the occasion.
Pennsylvania sent four, among whom was that
eminent champion of protection and paper
money, William d. Kelley, whose worship of
coal and iron has rendered him utterly oblivi-
GUS of the science of political economy and i'm
patient of the restraints imposed by the law of
gravitation. 1t is worth ones while to see this
earnest, honest enthusiast, and hear him dilate
with all the ardor Of assured conviction in ad-
vocacy of propositions which, the experience of
ages has demonstrated to be fallacious, such
as to make currency better by increasing its
volume and thereby diminishing its value, or to
bestow larger freedom upon commerce by put
| ting it in legislative gives. But he is an up
right man, and his constituents return him SO
| regularly to his seat, that he seems to hold
lifelong tenure of it, and he adheres to his her.
| estes with tenacity which the logic of events
| cannot shake nor the force of reasoning dis
| turb. His colleagues, to name them in the
l order of seniority. were Charles ONeil of
| Philadelphia, Gen. James s. Negley of Pitts
burg, who served in the Mexican War in the
first year of his majority, and made gallant
| record in the Union Army during the rebellion,
and Washington Townsend of West Chester
the representative of the Congressional district
in which the Picking was built.
New York gave the excursion but single
one of her three-and-thirty Congressman, and
| that was Hon. Thomas G. Platt of Owego, not
| one of the talking men of the House, but
| thorough business man, with large fund of
practical common sense, and capacity for
affairs which has brought him fortune and in
| dependence at an early age, for it is only thr-
| teen months since he got on the shady side of
| forty.
Connecticut put in an appearance through
the member from New Haven, Hon. Stephen
w. Kellogg, who is the perfect incarnation of
the activity, thrift, and faculty for adapting
means to ends, which is so characteristic of
that busy laboratory of combs, clocks, and uni
versal Yankee notions One doesn't wonder so
much, come to see him, how he succeeded
three times in carrying district in which the
adverse majority is GENERALLY Iarge-the last
time beating Ex-Governor English, who had
previously enjoy ed the prestige of invinciblity
for he is imbued with spirit of restless en-
ergy which is proof against all discouragements
and superior to every foreboding of failure.
/ New Jersey in lieu of Congressman sent us
her Governor, and a remarkably fine specimen
he is, too, of physical, intellectual and moral
manhood. His tall stature and commanding
presence would have made him an object of in
terest in any assemblage, but an acquaintance
engendered by three days association with him
deepened the sense of respect and goodwill for
him which the first introduction invariably in
spired.
The army, the navy, the press, the bar de-
gall, Wall street and the exchange sent its
delegates. Even Postmaster James, whose as
siduous devotion to the exacting duties of his
place is without parallel in official life, and
calls forth the warnings of his medical adviser
and the entreaties of his friends, laid aside his
other cares-for this time only-to attend to
the service of the Pacific Mail
But the -No!-Jenkins has rights
which I am bound to respect otherwise
should like to express my admiration of their
appearance and behavior throughout the voy-
age. Amid the pallor of seasickness and the
lurches of the ship, they bore themselves with
| patient resignation and accomplishing forti-
tude. All the rest of the time they were con.
tinual contributors to the qualification of their
companions in every variety of womanly fas.
cinaton. They sang. they played, they
talked or listened to the talk of others
with equal grace and sweetness. The
Presidents wife, albeit she began the voy-
age with every purpose to derive pleasure from
it, was perhaps one of the earliest to give indi.
cations Of that languor which results from
disagreement with the sea, and there was an
observable subsistence of her hilarity in the
course of the afternoon. Even Gen. Grant
himself was heard to remark toward evening
that he didn't feel altogether as we'll as he was
won't to on land, though he took his place at
the dinner table, and kept the deck afterwards
till ten o'clock. 1t was very evident he did not
undertake this adventure from any extravagant
prepossession in favor of ga life on the ocean
wave." He has an immense idea Of the i'm
portance of cultivating commercial relations
with the populous empire beyond the golden
gate of the Pacific His utilitaran nature is