The New York herald., 1879-12-16
L TT e r. A r UR e /.
The Duke Of Argyll Records His First In
pressions Of America.
FOREST AND RIVER.
The Pleasures OF the Rod and
the Canoe.

the Canoe.
His Grace the Duke of Argyll. whose recent trip to
this country Is well remembered, has begun the
record of his "First Impressions of America" In
paper In the current number Of Fraser's Aagasise,
from which We quote:-- ~.
"A fns passage in the good ship Scythia. Of the
Cunard line. with most agreeable fellow pas
sengers, landed at New York on June 8.
1879. visit of only six weeks to the
continent of America can give nothing more
than first Impressions. and those. too, Of only
very small portion Of the country. My visit was
purely personal and private. little of men and
nothing of institutions. From politics OF all kinds.
whether Eastern Western. it was my great object
to escape. But to the forests to the hills. to the
birds. the general aspect of nature in the New
World. went with fresh eye. and in these found
much of which description had given me any
accurate idea. OF few Of the frst and fresh i'm
pressions desire to give account in the pages
that follow.
'In one great feature the Landscape in the States
and the provinces of North America differs worry much
from any expectation had formed. The featu re is
the nature and disposition Of the woods. They
not the woods that stand around the stately homes
Of England. neither Is there any hedgerow timber
such from every elevation in the midland coun-
ties gives to the whole country to the verge
. distant horizon. the appearance OF rich aud
continuous forest. In America. with the
exception Of the trees that planted with admir-
able effect IN the streets and towns and Cities there
Is hardly any indication Of the cultivation of trees
being attended to at all. nothing that could be
called fne timber and woods which showed any
care In thinning. with view to the production Of
such timber in the future. And yet the woods OF
Aerica very varied In form and very beautiful
composition. They are by no means mere patches Of
original forest left In the midst Of clearings nor
is the cultivated country generally bare with the re-
mains OF forests standing in ragged edges around
There indeed. some districts where this is the
aspect of the land and dreary aspect is but
the general character country which has been
long settled is very different. 1t is not land of
brown heath but it Is emphatically land of shaggy
wood. land in which clumps and thickets and lines
and irregular masses OF most beautiful foliage vary
and adorn the surface. This Is what had not ex-
pected and what delighted me much to see The
secret of 1t lies in circumstance, which Is the
cre also OF much else that is characteristic of the
American continent-the overabundance of land
compared with the cultivating and occupying power
of the settled population. It Is not worth while
cultivate any laud but the best. The
struggle for existence is allowed to. go on
among the contending species, and II requires
s,ZaH us mhacr srcn 20 aeseop even IN
the close ncighborhood OF the Oldest cities OF New
England the extent OF land which is abandoned to
middle Of the Oldest States of North America there
are immense areas Of country which, in the srictest
way between Boston and Fail River. line which
connects the most renowned city with one of the
was not little surprised to see I the ' great extent
OF land occupied by the widest jungle Of shaggy
which the rocks Of Loeb Katrine or Loeb
Lomond.
SCENERY OF THE HUDSON,
''The scenery of the Hudson the besuty of which
exceeded my expectations. depends largely upon the
beauty Of the woods. Everywhere. even in the
of New York. there the most beautiful
thickets OF wood climbing the steep banks, hanging
promontories which form the margin Of that mag
nifcent estuary. In truth. the woodedness OF the
landscape is In excess"
Amer3ca:-
vertisements the lovely banks Of the Hud-
SON. To such extent is this nuisance
with the beauty Of one Of the most beautiful rivers
in the world. 1t with much regrct
see it in detail The visw Of AiSspy from M
. distance on the railway is very striking;
America. being large and handsome. and rising
out OF most picturesque intermixture OF tiles and
g.. shs % tSat e,
sequence OF its wealth of land. No economy of it
surface is ever needed and mono is attended to-"
VALLEY OF THE MOHAWK.
In passing through the valley OF the MonaWk No
says:-
of the woodiness OF American landscape. The mix
ture of evergreen with deciduous trees perfect
There are OF course In America no st6 plantations
such too frequently the landscapes OF tho Old
World.
~ HOW YOUNG WIZ ARE
=, 1t Is very difficult in America to rscollect
how young everything there is. and how rapidly the
cu1ture OF the Old World has overfowed and sub
merged all that remained Of or might have come
from the culture OF the native races"
THE ABoRIGNKs.
Writing Of the Indians, the Duke says:-
ron the assumption that the lawDof development
has always worked in one direction It is hard indeed
to account for the total decay OF who had ad
vanced fnr. But II that assumption be false ono.
II the development OF evil is rs certain and even
moro rapid In it's work than the development OF
good. then tho phenomenon Is not incapable OF
plantation. II is well ascertained that the dissp
of contact and collision with che higher civilization
of the European settlers. The uncivilized
melt away YIN in the the 4 aeroo T light of Of Euro, European
culture In general they must not only survive
but multiply and flourish. Something else must
lstion Of North America. The truth Is that their
decay Is only the consummation OF process which
had begun long before Europeans had come into
contact with them, and, then 1t has been consun-
mated from the operation OF purely internal.
HIS GRACE AT NIAGARA FALLS
'The shades Of night had blotted out the landscape
long before reached Niagara. The northwestern
horizon, however. had been for some time inumi-
mated by summer lightning. which soon became
forked and very brilliant. As we crossed the
pensaon bridge, seeing nothing but dim Wilderness
In the distance flash unusually long and vivid lit
mp the whole splendor of tho Falls with its pallid
and CHASTITY light.
the world which when answers SO accurately to
expectation the Falls of Niagara. Pictures and
N every aspect in which they can be represented.
Those in what they cannot be represented are the
last 20 be seen and tho last to be and
the hrst approach to them is perhaps the least i'm
posing view of all. They at the distance or