Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1886-07-21
LETTERS OF a TOURIST.
Correspondence of the Alexandria Gazette. !


early yesterday morning | proceeded, by
rail, TO Watkins; but, I'D | Lad explored
the famous Glen two years ago, I did net
visit it. again. Glers and caves are good
places TO visit once, but do not repay the
fatigue of second call. The trip from
that place to Geneva, forty miles up Seneca
Lake, is enjoyable and the delay Of nearly
five hours al that place gave en- opportunity
Of looking srouud it. It has an cid time
look of substantially rather than show, and
though the streets and sidewalks are, like
ours. susceptible Of Improvement. there are
several worry handsome churches and many
elegant dwellings. 1t occupies considera-
bic space on the top and dec'ivtY Of Il hill,
just NJ the upper end Of Seneca Lake, and
SCENE, from the number CT its business
houses to have considerable trade with
the surrounding country.
A ride of two hours brought ns to The city
Of Syracuse, famous for lis salt works. The
salt water iiea, I am told, under the fresh
water Of Lake Onondaga, separated from it
By an imparvious stratum Of clay, through
which it is pumped up for nae. As you ap
preach the city you see hundreds Of sheds
such as were formerly used in brick yards
for placing the bricks to dry. These con-
tain shallow, square boxes, in which the
wafer IS evaporatcd and the salt left. Syr-
acu<o is business place and has mary
handsome stores. 1t is lighted by eleclrici.
~ ard its dwellings are, many of them,
among the finest. as respects situation and
architecture, to be seen anywhere. For n
mile or two last night walked in the soft
moonlight along q street which looked al
most like fairylard. On each side Of it We're
gems of cottages, mostly of marble, or other
white stone, ensconsced in shubbcry or
vines, in the midst Of velvet lawns of the
brightest green, rising li!tlo from the side
walk of single, but very broad, slabs CT
stone, and undivided for Lhe most part even
by hedges from each other or from the
street, tho boundaries being marked, SEEM
ipgly, by trees or flowers only. 1t is of no
use to recommend the abolition of fences in
Alexandria until our parents, teachers and
policemen work the miracle of teaching the
children, white and black, great deal
more respect for the rights Of property than
they now have, but the children in this part
Of tho country all seem TO have been 50
taught by somebody, with regard nj ieas! to
gardens and lawns, and besides the saving
in the cost of fences, the effect is delightful.
One thing, however, our people might do,
and that is. build their houses on somewhat
larger lots, and little OIL the street, in
stead Of crowding them together IN rows.
They are erecting some very pretty houses
in Alexandria now, and the four or five
hundred dollars additional which they
would cost if my suggestion were adopted
would greatly increase their desirability,
and, consequently, their value. | know wa
are poor and must cut our clothes according
10 our CLOTH but land is cheap with lis aud
fresh air saves Doctors bills.
Utica is big and iourishing city, but my
stay here will be 80 short that l shall have
no time to see it, and will, consequently, be
unable to describe it to your readers. My
next letter will be from Alexandria Bay,
one of the jumping of places for people who
90 Canada on their own funds those who
90 viii. other people,, choose ii more rapid
transit. FIDELls.
ALEXANDRIA BAY, n. y, June 18th, 1856
Leaving Utica at very early hour yes
terday, | came cvera very uninterestinG
country to Clayton, al tha st. Lawrence,
which wo reached w rain, about eleven
O'Clock. There 80 took Il small! steamer,
som1 thing Oh the style Of the CID Mystic,
but propeller, Gor this place. Az all The
boats wc met We're small, presume larstr
ones could not navigate the waters, but 1t
was decidedly inconvsulent to nave 40 room
10 move about, ard, had there been i
crowd, it would have Econ very uIco,ntorta-
lie. The little heat was, however, q very
Nd Oh do nd wa
handled. she threaded The narrow chan
ucls among tho Thousand Islands like a
thing Of life, stopping here to put of half a
dozen of her passengers, and there to take
on ono or t@o, at the little wharves with
which all Tia larger Of these islands seem 10
he provided | Cannot gay whether there
are actually thousand of them, but AM
utite ready TO believe that there may as
we'll be more rs less from what have alrea
dy seen, and have been neither to the be.
ginning nor to the end. From the pier at
This pace thero are twenty in full view,
from ono SO long thai you can see neither
end oil it tc un islet 50 sIuall that it would
hold but liminut;vo house. Many Of those
we passed yesterday are no larger than az
ordinary town let with q house in the mid
die Of it, while The larger ones are full Of
cottages and have several landings each.
Gay coors shine out from among tho trees
rs you pass f&gs float from almost
every housotop. and everywhere around
are s!:ii- boats. Lille steam launches, and
canoes gliding about in tho mar.
row channels and among the rocks. On
some Of the islands you see tents, single and
in groups; for camping is one Of the great
enjoyments in this section, and certainly no
place can be found moro desirable for q
camp than those rocky islands, s.oping
on every side to the river, upon which the
wafer of the heaviest rain would make no
Judgment. The scene, as we steamed rap-
idly through it, strkiugly reminded ne OF
Addson's beautiful description OF the isles
of the BEST" in the Vision Of Mirza," and.
to complete the likeness, mist, said to be
produced by smoke from fires in the far of
mountains of Pennsy lvania, had settled over
lis, and the distance wa, shrouded in OBJ
security.
We landed here at noon. The town is
supported chiefly, presume, by it's sum.
mer visitors, but it is quite considerable
one, having a handsome church and some
n