NEW YORK, one of the thirteen original states of the North American confederacy, and the most populous and important in the Union. It is bounded on the north by Upper and Lower Canada; on the east by the states of Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut; on the southeast by the Atlantic Ocean; on the south by New Jersey and Pennsylvania; on the west by Pennsylvania, Lake Erie, and the Niagara River; and on the north-west by Lake Ontario and the river St Lawrence. The territory of New York is situated between latitude 40. 30. and 45. north, and between longitude 5. 5. east, and 2. 55. west from the city of Washington. Its extreme length from east to west is about 340 miles, and, including Long Island, 408 miles; and its greatest breadth from north to south is 310 miles, its area being about 46,000 square miles. This estimate includes the whole surface, except the waters of the great lakes.

New York is an epitome of all configurations of surface, and every variety of lake, mountain, and river scenery. It may be described, generally, as an elevated tract, with indentations in various parts below its usual level. The most striking depressions are the great basins in which aré situated Lakes Erie and Ontario, and the long narrow valley which contains the Hudson River and Lake Champlain. The two latter are united by a valley occupied by the Mohawk River and Lake Oneida. The south-eastern angle of the state, about forty miles above the city of New Tork, is mountainous, being traversed by several ridges from New Jersey, one of which crosses the Hudson in the vicinity of West Point, and forms the high lands of that river. It also constitutes the dividing ridge between the Hudson and the Connecticut, and lies partly in the state of Connecticut. The space south of the Mohawk River and the Ontario Valley, and between the River Hudson and Lake Erie, is occupied by another mountainous district, the western part of which forms a table-land having 2000 feet of mean elevation, and is the source of several large rivers, [7:16:183]particularly the Alleghany, the Susquehannah, and the Genesee. The eastern part, lying between Lake Seneca and the Hudson, is occupied by several parallel mountain ridges, which may be considered as continuations of the Alleghany ridge passing out from Pennsylvania. These ridges run in a north and south direction, and their indentations give rise to several fertile valleys. The highest are the Catskill Mountains, which bound the valley of the Hudson on the west. Round Top, the most elevated summit, is 3804 feet above the level of the tide-water of the Hudson. There is also a narrow table-land in this subdivision. situated a little south of the line of the Erie Canal, and continuing almost uninterruptedly from the Catskill Mountains to the head of Seneca Lake. On this elevation are situated a number of lakes, the height of which above tide-water varies from 380 to 1200 feet. A third mountain district is situated to the north of the Mohawk, between Lake Champlain and the east end of Lake Ontario. This division is traversed by at least five or six parallel ridges, passing in a north-eastern direction, and which are considered as continuations of the Appalachian chain. The highest elevation that has been ascertained with accuracy is a peak belonging to the ridge that passes through Herkimer and Hamilton counties, and the northern part of Essex, near the sources of the Hudson. It is 2686 feet above the level of the sea.

We have already mentioned the basins in which are situated Lakes Erie and Ontario, and the valley which contains the Hudson River and Lake Champlain. The two former depressions are portions of the vast St Lawrence basin, which embraces the whole of the five great western lakes. Proceeding along the basin of the Ontario, we pass through a series of fertile counties, constituting the slope, watered by numerous rivers, which all finally terminate in the lake. The Genesee, Oswego, and Black are important streams, which rise in the interior of the state. The first-named river is the outlet of the Canesus, Hemlock, and Honeyoe Lakes. The Oswego, and its tributaries the Clyde and Seneca, convey the waters of Canandaigua, Crooked, Seneca, Cayuga, Owasco, Skaneateles, Onondaga, and Oneida Lakes into Lake Ontario. The Mohawk River occupies the eastern termination of this basin; whilst towards the northeast the slope towards the St Lawrence, indicated by the course of the Grass, Racket, Oswegatchie, and St Regis Rivers, shows it to be a continuation of that towards the lakes. The Hudson and Champlain Valley stretches nearly north and south, and is remarkable for its depth below the general surface of the level of the adjoining country. In the northern part are situated Lakes George and Champlain, which are connected with each other. The southern portion communicates with the valley of the Mohawk, which enters it in a south-easterly direction. The Hudson rises in the northern part of New York, between Lake Champlain and the St Lawrence, and has its whole course in the state. An American writer on geography thus describes this river :—“No fact in the topography of the state of New Fork is more remarkable than the peculiar position of the Hudson and its branches. If we trace the course of any Atlantic river south of it, we shall find the navigation closed by the mountain chain on the west. Not so with the Hudson. It penetrates the high lands, and after passing up some hundred and sixty miles, it is met by a tributary, the sources of which reach nearly to the lakes. Here the happy conformity of the country is such as to permit the establishment of an artificial navigation.” After a course of between three and four hundred miles, the Hudson falls into the Bay of New York, above which it is navigable for ships about one hundred and thirty miles. The Susquehannah rises in this state, and passes into Pennsylvania, as does also the Delaware. The Alleghany of the Ohio collects its head waters in the south-west angle of this state, and passes through its noble pineforests into Pennsylvania. Here are a vast number of lakes and streams besides those named, which would be conspicuous in a state of smaller dimensions, and where the configuration is on a less gigantic scale. But we have preferred presenting general views of the conformation of the face of the country to a dry catalogue of lakes and rivers and mountains, with their courses and terminations. Those which are remarkable for their size or peculiarities will be found more particularly described under their respective designations. Some celebrated mineral springs exist in this state. Those of Saratoga and Ballston are more resorted to than any others in the United States. The Ballston springs are situated in a valley formed by a small creek. There are a great number of them, the strongest and most sparkling waters being those obtained in 1827, by boring 227 feet down. The principal efficacy of the water arises from a chemical union of chalybeate and saline ingredients held in solution, and the presence of uncommon quantities of carbonic acid gas. Saratoga springs are several miles distant from those of Ballston, and belong to the same class of mineral waters. A large and compact village has sprung up at this place, in consequence of the immense resort to it from all parts of the United States, Canada, and even the West Indies. Saratoga springs are thirty-two miles north of Albany. To these may be added the tepid springs of New Lebanon, twenty-nine miles east of Albany, which are frequented for bathing, and on account of their cool and elevated position; and the sulphur springs of Avon; to all which places crowds of fashionable people and invalids resort during the summer months.

Most of the formations discriminated in works of geology exist in this state, and some of them are of a very interesting character, particularly the earth and gypsum found in the western part of the state. Granite, slate, and limestone hills occur; and one species of impure limestone, found in the western and northern parts of New York, has been used with great success in the construction of canals. Marble has been obtained in large quantities, for architectural purposes, from the quarries of Sing Sing. Its purity is said to increase with the depth of the excavations, and several large and beautiful public edifices have been constructed of it. At the head of Lake Onondaga are situated salt springs of the same name, surrounded by the waters of the lake, which still, however, continue perfectly fresh. Plants peculiar to the sea-coast are found here, in particular the salicornia and salsola. Underneath the mud or decayed vegetable matter which constitutes the valley of these springs, a stratum of earthy marl is found, containing numerous fossil univalves; and this again appears to be succeeded by a conglomerate. The peculiar nature of the underlying rock, or rather its position, does not seem to be determined. Great quantities of salt are manufactured here by the various processes of boiling and solar evaporation. Gypsum, in its various forms of earthy gypsum, selenite, and even alabaster, is found, particularly in •the counties of Onondaga and Cayuga, and is extensively used for agricultural purposes. Another prominent article -of mineral wealth is iron ore, immense beds of which are found in the counties west of Lake Champlain. The iron ore of Columbia county is likewise highly valued and extensively manufactured. Lead, silver, zinc, titanium, and other metals, have been detected in various parts of the state; and anthracite or bituminous coal is found, but it is questionable whether in sufficient quantities to afford remuneration for the expenses of raining. Petroleum, porcelain clay, and most of the fossils, are found in different places, and some of the organic remains discovered belong to the higher animals. Transition and secondary rocks compose the body of the state; and in the granitic districts, [7:16:184]near New York, and on the borders of Lake Champlain, picturesque and remarkable projections of rock, caverns, and the like, frequently occur. The cataracts and smaller falls of water are numerous in this state; and those of Niagara are the most magnificent in the world. Cohoes is a fine fall on the Mohawk River, having seventy feet of perpendicular descent. The Little Falls on the same river present most beautiful scenery; and amongst the remarkable objects connected with the artificial navigation of New York, may be mentioned the aqueduct at Little Falls, that over the Genesee at Rochester, and the locks at Lockport, at Little Falls, and at the junction of the northern and western canals. Glen’s Falls on the Hudson, and those on the Genesee in the village of Rochester, and at Ithaca, also deserve mention as very striking cascades, but only too near Niagara to be famous. A limestone cavern of vast dimensions, with its falls, columns, and stalactites, exists on the banks of Black River, opposite Waterton. The ridge road, extending from Rochester to Lewiston, is a most remarkable geological formation. As its name implies, it is a natural road of sufficient width for the purposes of travelling, and generally is extremely level. It runs nearly parallel with the shores of Lake Ontario, from which it is distant sometimes several miles. There is a remarkable natural production of carburetted hydrogen in the towns of Fredonia and Portland, Chautauque county. This gas is obtained in such immense quantities that it has been conducted into these villages, and used as a natural gas-light. In the western part of this state are situated the hunting grounds and residences of the famous six Indian nations, who have now submitted to the restraints of civilization; and these are adorned by the productions of industry and refinement, yet still show traces of their former existence in the mounds and other antiquities occasionally observed.

There are several islands belonging to the state of New York. Long Island, as its name imports, is a long but narrow strip of insular land, extending east from the city of New York one hundred and fifty miles, forming a curve parallel to the mainland shore, and leaving a broad and beautiful sheet of water not unlike a wide river between, called Long Island Sound. It contains three counties, the chief towns being Brooklyn, Jamaica, Sag Harbour, and Flatbush. The south border is a long belt of sand, somewhat barren; but the northern has a fertile soil, and is in a high state of cultivation, producing large quantities of grain, fruits, and hay. Like other insular positions, it has a climate more mild than that of the adjacent continent. Sag Harbour is the principal port. New York is in a great measure supplied with wood from this island, the eastern part of it being remarkably well adapted to its growth. On the west, Long Island is divided from Staten Island by the narrows, and from Manhattan Island by East River. On the latter island is situated the city of New York, which will be afterwards described. Staten Island is above fourteen miles in length by from five to eight in breadth, and is the most southern land belonging to New York.

In the maritime belt of the state the soil is sandy; in the middle it is a finely undulating and productive country; and in the western and southern divisions it is remarkably level, rich, and inclining to alluvial formation. The state has a great proportion of first-rate land. The country on the Hudson, below the mouth of the Mohawk, has a good medium soil. The counties of Westchester and Dutchess are under very good cultivation. The alluvial flats of Columbia and Rensselaer are very extensive and rich. A considerable district west of Albany consists of sandy plains interspersed with marshes. The alluvial flats upon the Mohawk are large and extremely fertile. The soil of the elevated plain of the western region, being occupied by the small lakes, is a rich mould equally well adapted to grain and grass. The alluvial flats are here extensive; those on the Mohawk comprise about 60,000 acres. With regard to climate, a general view can scarcely be given of a country which stretches over four degrees and a half of latitude. In the northern division, which abuts upon Canada, the climate, as might be expected, is somewhat severe, partaking of the nature of these northern regions. In the south-east, towards the sea, it is temperate, but subject to sudden and great changes. As the eastern boundary of New York passes along the borders of the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont, the climate of these parts resembles that of the states to which they are contiguous. After passing the high lands, and entering into the eastern country beyond Utica, the climate becomes milder than it is to the eastward. In the western parts, contiguous to Lakes Ontario and Erie, the temperature is moderated by these waters, and does not reach the same extremes as in the south-east. The climate of the whole state is in general healthy, and favourable to cultivation. A mass of interesting facts regarding temperature has been obtained, in consequence of the regents requiring annual meteorological reports from the academies under their care. These academies are scattered over every part of the state, and the mean temperature of the whole thus furnishes an approximation towards that of the state generally.

In 1826, the mean temperature of ten places reporting complete annual tables was 49∙38

In 1827, the mean temperature of 18 places was 46∙48

In 1828, the mean temperature of 24> places was 49 ’ 50

In 1829, the mean temperature of 28 places was 46∙45

In 1830, the mean temperature of 34 places was 48 ’ 15

Mean of the five years 48 - 00

The quantity of rain and snow has also been ascertained in a similar manner. Thus:

In 1826, the mean rain and snow of nine places was...36∙34 In 1827, the mean rain and snow of 17 places was...44∙29

In 1828, the mean rain and snow of 25 places was...36∙74

In 1829, the mean rain and snow of 25 places was...34∙88

In 1830, the mean rain and snow of 32 places was...38∙86

Mean of the five years 38∙22

The highest degree of temperature noticed in these tables is 104°, at which the thermometer stood in an academy in the county of Orange, on the 20th of July 1830. It is situated in lat. 41. 32. north, and long. 74. 10. west. The lowest degree noticed is — 33, at which the thermometer stood in an academy in the county of Lewis, on the 31st of January 1830. It is situated in lat. 43. 47. north, and long. 75. 33. west. The range of the thermometer in New York state is therefore 137 degrees of Fahrenheit. It is rarely lower than — 33; but on the 4th of January 1835, it fell forty degrees below zero at New Lebanon. This, however, is an extreme case. The scale of variation in summer may be given at from 35° to 60°, in autumn at from 60° to 73°, in winter at from 70° above to 26° below zero, and in spring at from 3° to 75°. The variation is greatest upon the Atlantic coast, along the St Lawrence, and around Lakes Ontario and Erie; the north-cast, east, south-east, and south-west winds being more prevalent upon the coast, and the north-east and south-west upon these lakes and along the St Lawrence. The variations of the weather at all seasons are great and sudden, changing the temperature in a few hours 40° or 50°, rising with the southerly, and diminishing with the northerly winds.

The staple productions of New York consist principally of wheat and other grain, flour, flax, hemp, provisions, salt, pot and pearl ashes, and lumber. The forest trees, which thrive to the greatest advantage in an alluvial soil, are common in the western divisions of this state, and attain[7:16:185] a large size. Wheat, however, is considered as the grand staple of New York.

The great wheat district of the state commences in the valley of the Mohawk, above the primitive spur at Little Falls, in a fertile soil of calcareous alluvion, which overspreads the valley at German Flats. This district, comprehending the central portions of Oneida county, extends westward to the lakes, and is bounded northwards by the north ridge of the valley, by Lake Ontario, and southwards by a line running south-west from Utica to the mouth of Cattaraugus Creek at Lake Erie. This is the garden of the state, including the rich Seneca vale, and the far-famed Genesee county. Some portions of this district are sandy, and in others the rock rises too near the surface, whilst others are not sufficiently watered; but taken as a whole, it is not surpassed by any district of equal extent in the United States. Here artificial manures are rarely used, and indeed rarely needed. In the newly-cleared lands, the richness of the mould and of the sub-soil is all that the farmer requires, being content if, by clearing away the forest, he can only bring it forth. Amongst the obstructions which the stumps of the trees offer, he is compelled to plough as he can, not as his judgment might dictate. In tracts long cleared, deep ploughing, blending the mould and the soil, preserves the former, and turns up the latter to disintegrate, and thus to yield its calcareous matter. Upon such farms some attention is given to rotation in crops, with a view to the preservation of fertility; but it is not uncommon to find the same field sown in wheat for a series of years, without the intervention of other crops. Taking the whole district together, the average product of wheat may be from twenty-five to thirty bushels the acre; but from forty to fifty are frequently obtained. Instances have been known of more than eighty bushels to the acre, and of Indian corn one hundred and twenty-five. The apple, pear, cherry, and quince, all thrive admirably; and the peach in size and flavour is scarcely inferior to that of the Atlantic coast. Grapes also, both foreign and indigenous, richly repay careful cultivation.

The region south of the line above drawn, and north of the southern boundary of the state, and between Lake Erie and that portion of the Kaatsbergs which runs parallel with the Hudson, may be characterized as a grazing country. Upon its northern border, the limestone, being more abundant than in other parts, renders the soil more or less productive in wheat; and this section, producing grain and grass abundantly, is by many preferred to that which is most fertile in wheat. By far the larger portion of this south-western district is yet covered with forests, and in most places upon its southern borders, the chief business of its inhabitants consists in the cutting and vending of lumber, consequently its agricultural products are inconsiderable compared with its population. There are, however, some well cultivated tracts in all the border counties, and in Chautauque, upon the shores of Lake Erie. One of the most useful improvements introduced into agriculture, and the result partly of experience, partly of the necessity imposed by the opening of the eastern markets to the western region, is the appropriation of soils exclusively to the productions for which they are by nature adapted, and the consequent abandonment of the practice of endeavouring to compel every species to yield crops to which it is not congenial. Under this wise system much of the country upon the North River has ceased to be a grain district. Large portions of it are devoted to horticulture, for supplying culinary vegetables to the greatly increasing population of the cities and numerous villages; and those portions of the district most remote from markets are being rapidly converted into pasturage. Thus the comparatively sterile soil of Long Island and Westchester is profitably devoted to the production of garden and field esculents, fruit, hay, oats, and small meats, for the great market of the city, in the proximity of which the cultivator finds ample compensation for the inferiority of soil, and the consequent greater cost of production, his lands being by this circumstance, and the facility of obtaining manures, rendered more valuable than the naturally rich fields of the west. Thus, too, the high and hilly-grounds of Putnam county have, by the free use of gypsum, been made very productive pastures, in which the plough is comparatively little used, and which maintain large droves of cattle and sheep, but chiefly of the former. The counties of Dutchess, Columbia,. and Washington, especially the two first, comprising considerable portions of limestone soil, alternating with slate, produce profitable crops of wheat. But the eastern and northern portions of Dutchess, and the hilly sections of Columbia, are chiefly laid out in sheep farms, and in Washington the raising of sheep is rapidly becoming the staple business. In Orange county the chief products are those of the dairy, and the butter of this county has long been held in the highest estimation. The raising of sheep also extends rapidly here. Ulster and Greene counties likewise produce large quantities of cattle and sheep, and, of late years, of butter and hay for export. The portions of Albany and Saratoga counties which are not covered with sand, and the portion of the latter not included in the primitive mountains, are under good cultivation. Wheat is not unprofitable, and Albany exports large quantities. Still the best returns are obtained from cattle and sheep. The northern counties of Warren, Essex, and Clinton, can boast but little of their agriculture; yet the primitive virgin mould is scarcely anywhere exhausted, and the forest trees grow thickly and to a large size. The abundance of timber, and the facility of getting it to market, together with the rich mineral deposits, have hitherto chiefly occupied the attention of the inhabitants. The northern portions of Franklin and St Lawrence counties, very partially cleared, and level or gently undulating, are well adapted for cultivation. No parts of the state yield better grass, and the raising of cattle and sheep is found to be the most profitable employment of the soil, although it is well adapted to wheat, Indian corn, and other grains. Jefferson county is very productive of wheat, as are other parts of New York, which, hoavever, do not require to be specially mentioned. Societies have been formed in various parts of the state for the promotion of agriculture and horticulture, and they have already been productive of much good.

The line of extraordinary works, supposed to have been of a military character, which may be traced from the shores of Lake Ontario as far as the valley of the Mississippi, and thence southward to an indefinite extent, must not be overlooked in our survey of the surface of this state. These works consist of earthen parapets, the sites of which, with a view to defence, appear to have been selected with much judgment, and upon the construction of these greater skill has been exercised than any displayed by the Indian races known to us. The erection of these fortifications has been ascribed to the European nations, French and Spanish, who, at periods immediately subsequent to the discovery of America, visited its shores, and also to a race of inhabitants supposed to have preceded that found there by the Europeans. The works themselves afford no means of tracing their origin, but they display indubitable marks of high antiquity, so that the opinion of their having been constructed by the French or the Spaniards is at once exploded. The forms of these remains are various, being circular, elliptical, triangular, and square; and they are generally placed in situations which command the adjacent country. Near many of the forts are mounds of earth raised for cemeteries, in which human bones in various stages of decay have been discovered. The number of forts and mounds situated in [7:16:186]the western parts of this state much exceeds an hundred. The enclosed areas of the fortifications vary from six acres to one hundred feet in diameter; and the earthen walls which enclose them, in their present abraded condition, are from ten to twelve feet in height, and from six to eight feet in breadth. Some of these breast-works bear or have borne trees, whose age has been estimated at more than two hundred and seventy-five years, and which may have been preceded by others. One fact seems to indicate that the architects were not greatly advanced in civilization. In the remnants of manufactured articles found, there is an absence of any finished works of art in wood or metals, and the fragments of pottery are rude and of a primitive form. They are therefore in all likelihood not the production of the Toltecs or the Aztecs who found their way to Mexicoover the northern parts of the continent, but must be attributed to the Alligewi or some other Indian tribe.

About twenty-five years ago, this state commenced a system of internal improvement, which has been prosecuted on an extensive scale, and with great success. The enterprise of this nature which was first undertaken is the Erie Canal, one of the greatest and most important works of the kind in the world. It was begun on the 4th of July 1817, and was completed in 1825. The principal canals in New York, with the exception of the Hudson and Delaware Canal, have been constructed by the state, and are now its property. But the railroads have been mostly undertaken by incorporated companies. The railroad first undertaken in the state was the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad, which was begun in 1830, and finished in 1833. Since that time several railroads have been completed, more are in progress, and a still greater number are projected. For details as to the extent of inland navigation in the state of New York, see the article Navigation, Inland.

The following table shows the number of railroads which have been completed.
[table]

The railroads which have been commenced are the following:
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The New York and Erie Railroad, one of the greatest works of the kind that has ever been projected, extending from the city of New York, through the southern counties of the state, to Portland and Dunkirk on Lake Erie, was commenced in November 1835. The total expense of this vast undertaking is estimated at 2,717,518 dollars. Up to the end of 1834 there had been forty other railroad companies incorporated, having a capital of thirty-five millions of dollars; and in the session of 1836 there were no less than forty-two incorporated. One of these, the Utica and Syracuse Railroad, above fifty miles in length, and several others, have either commenced very lately, or are now (1837) about to commence.

The following tables present so complete a view of the actual state of New York as to render any detailed description unnecessary.
[7:16:187]

Census of the Population of the State in 1830 and 1835.^[1. From Williams’s New York State Register. In 1820 there were ten thousand slaves in New York, but slavery is now abolished in the state. New York has thus set an example which might be creditably followed by the other slave-holding states. ]
[table]
[7:16:188]

Aggregate Valuations of Peal and Personal Estate in the several Counties of this State ; also the Number of Acres of Land assessed in each County, the Amount of Town and County Taxes, and the Pate of Taxation on each Dollar of the assessed Valuation, for 1835.
[table]
[7:16:189]

Comparative View of the Census of t h e state of New York in 1825 and 1835.
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Summary of Manufactures in the State according to the Census of 1835.
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The manufactures of this state being of great importance, a detailed account of some of them is therefore necessary. Leather is a most important article of manufacture, and it is made cheaper in this state than it can be, of equal quality, in any other part of the world. The increase in the making of sole leather is 500 or 600 per cent, since 1817, and 200 or 300 per cent, since 1827. It is estimated that above one third of the whole sole leather used annually in the United States is made in New York. Above 16,000 individuals are employed and sustained by the cotton factories, which are located as follows, viz. in Oncida county twenty mills; in Rensselaer county fifteen mills; in Dutchess county twelve mills; in Otsego county eleven mills; in Columbia county seven mills; and in Westchester, Washington, and Herkimer counties, five each. Several other counties have from one to four mills each. In estimating the value of woollens made in this state, it should be borne in mind, that notwithstanding the numerous fixed establishments for the manufacture of this article, household or family manufactures of wool and cotton are still carried on to a great extent. By the state census of 1825, the following articles were made in families during the preceding year.
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In 1835, Mr Pitkms reckoned that woollens alone were manufactured in families to the amount of at least 4,500,000 dollars annually. Now, if we allow the manufacture of linen, cotton, and other cloths, to have risen to 1,500,000 dollars, which is a fair estimate, this will make the total amount of domestic articles made in families six millions of dollars.

The following are some of the other manufactures of New York, not included in the general summary, namely, wool and fur hats made and finished in this state, estimated at 3,500,000 dollars annually; boots and shoes, deducting leather, 3,000,000 dollars annually; leather, cloth, and fur caps, probably 2,000,000 dollars annually. The amount of ready-made clothing is not estimated, but large establishments exist, particularly in the city of New York, and immense quantities are shipped to the southern states, and to foreign ports. Cabinet ware of every description is manufactured, not only for home consumption, but for shipment in large quantities to southern ports, South America, and the West Indies. Machinery, pianofortes, and carriages, are likewise manufactured on an extensive scale throughout the larger cities of the state. There are, besides, a multitude of smaller manufactures, such as those of gunpowder, fire-arms, chemical compounds, pigments, including white-lead and other paints, pencils, printing types, and tobacco; and others including the construction of ships and boats, chiefly for the navigation of the great lakes. The Onondaga salt-springs are situated in the town of Salina, Onondaga county, and are the property of the state. The salt is manufactured at four different villages, viz. Salina, Syracuse, Geddes, and Liverpool; and in the year 1833 the state of the manufacture was as follows: Number of manufactories, 131; number of kettles, 3309; number of gallons in the kettles, 312,795; and number of bushels manufactured, 1,838,646. Of this quantity about 103,000 bushels were made by solar evaporation. Coarse salt, of equal purity to any in the world, is also manufactured, and sold at a price which nets the manufacturer[7:16:190] nine cents per statute bushel of fifty-six lbs.; and fine salt is sold at six cents. The trade in salt has been pushed to a considerable extent in competition with the foreign article, particularly since the reduction of the duty in 1834. During that year 1,943,252 bushels were manufactured; and in 1835 the quantity made amounted to 2,222,694 bushels.

The following table presents a view of the exports and imports of New York, for several years, each ending the 30th of September.
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The number and tonnage of vessels entering and departing from New York have of course increased in proportion to the trade. In 1830 there entered of American tonnage 298,434, and departed 229,341; and of foreign tonnage there entered 35,344, and departed 36,574; making a total of American and foreign which entered 333,778, and which departed 265,915 tons. In 1835 there entered of American tonnage 676,173, and of foreign tonnage 357,575, making a total of 1,033,748 tons. During the same year there departed, of American tonnage 589,855, of foreign 343,078, making a total of 932,933 tons. The value of the merchandise annually loaded and unloaded in the port of New York is estimated at from 100,000,000 to 120,000,000 dollars. The number of vessels in the port in the busy season varies from 500 to 750, exclusively of about fifty steam-packets. The total value of the imports into the United States in the year ending on the 30th of September 1832, was 101,029,266 dollars, of which no less than 53,214,402, or more than one half, were imported into New York. The value of the exports from the same place is estimated at between one third and one fourth of the total exports from the whole of the United States.

It will be seen from the above table, that the imports into this state greatly exceed the exports. This is accounted for by the fact, that whilst almost all articles of export from the western states are shipped at New Orleans, the greater part of the more valuable articles brought from foreign countries, and· destined for the consumption of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and to some extent even of Kentucky, are principally imported into New York. The customs’ revenue on the goods paying duties imported into the city of New York amounts to about thirteen millions of dollars, which is more than one half of the total customs’ revenue of the entire United States. The imports comprehend an infinite variety of articles. The principal are cottons, woollens, linens, hardware, and cutlery; earthenware, brass and copper manufactures, and other articles, from Great Britain; silk, wine, brandy, and other articles, from France and Spain; sugar and coffee from the Havannah and Brazil, together with tea, spices, cochineal, indigo, dye-woods, and other articles. The nature of the principal articles of native American produce exported from New York will be seen by the following returns for the 1st of January 1833.
[table]

The tonnage of New York is greater than that of any other city in the world, with the single exception of London, and constitutes between one fifth and one sixth of that of all the United States put together. By a return of the 1st of January 1834, it amounted to 319,209 tons.

The following is a return of the amount of tonnage in the state in 1836. New York, 359,222, with 15,903 of steam navigation; Sag Harbour, 12,314; Buffalo Creek, 3740, with 1680 of steam navigation; Sackett’s Harbour, 2236, with 280 of steam navigation; Oswego, 2040, with 406 of steam navigation; Oswegatchee, 799, with 417 of steam navigation; Champlain, 616; Genesee, 636; and Cape Vincent, 860. These facts will convey, it is hoped, a sufficient idea of the vast extent of the commerce of New York.

This state borrowed a considerable sum for the construction of its canals, particularly the Erie and Champlain Canal, which debt is in the course of being redeemed by the annual income of the state, which always greatly exceeds the expenditure. There are several funds belonging to the state, viz. the general, common school, literature, canal, and bank funds: but the general fund consists of bonds and mortgages for lands sold, loans, and other debts due to the state. For the year ending the 30th of September 1833, the finances stood as under:^[4. From Williams’s New York Annual Register for 1834. ]
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From the large annual receipts obtained from tolls, auctions, sales of lands, and other items, the property of the canals, it is expected that the canal debt will be paid off long before the time fixed on for redeeming the whole of the stock.

In 1829 an act was passed requiring every bank thereafter to be created or renewed, to contribute annually one half of one per cent, on its capital to a fund intended for the payment of the debts of such banks as may at any time become insolvent. These banks are placed under the supervision of commissioners, to whom they are required to make annual reports of their condition, and are called “safety-fund banks.” In 1830 there were thirty-seven banks in New York state, having a capital of 20,083,353 dollars. In 1836 there were eighty-seven banks, and two branch banks, which stood thus: Specie funds, 670,363 dollars; specie, 7,221,335; capital, 31,881,460; circulation, 16,427,963; and deposits, 22,000,000 of dollars. The whole of these banks, with the exception of seven or eight, are safety-fund banks. There are, besides, nine savings banks, having a total capital of 3,855,517 dollars. In the city of New York there are thirteen marine insurance companies, with a capital of 4,550,000 dollars; and twenty-eight fire insurance companies, with a capital of 10,250,000 dollars. In the other parts of the state there are about twenty-two insurance companies, with a total capital of above four millions of dollars. In 1835 there were 1687 post-offices in the state of New York, and the amount of postages for the preceding year was 430,426 dollars, of which 192,493 dollars were for the city of New 5ork alone. In 1834, the military establishment (militia) of New York stood thus, viz. horse artillery 1687, cavalry, /080, artillery 11,669; infantry, including riflemen, 164,979; companies of artillery attached permanently, or for inspection, 3032; total number of men, 178,447. There are five vessels of war employed in ordinary at New York.

The constitution of this state secures toleration of religious worship, so that every denomination is to be found in it. The following is a statement of the number of the clergy of different denominations in 1835: Presbyterians and Congregationalists, 562; Methodists, 492; Baptists, 442; Episcopalians (one bishop), 181; Dutch Reformed, 116; Lutherans, thirty; Associate Reformed, twenty-three; Roman Catholics, one bishop and thirty-five ministers; Universalists, upwards of twenty; Unitarians, eight; New Jerusalemites, five; Shakers, two societies; Jews, three synagogues; the Friends, a considerable number of societies; besides various other denominations not enumerated in this list, as well as a number of licentiates and candidates belonging to those given, particularly to the Presbyterians. The clergy are supported by subscription, contribution, rents of pews, income from funds, and other sources. The salaries in the city of New York vary from 1000 to upwards of 3000 dollars. The average annual salaries of the clergy of this state are estimated as not exceeding 500 dollars each. The state of the theological seminaries in 1836 was as follows :— General theological seminary of the Protestant Episcopal church in the United States, located in New York, instituted in 1819, four professors, eighty students, and 3880 volumes in the library; the Presbyterian theological seminary at Auburn, Cayuga county, instituted in 1821, four professors, fifty-one students, and 4500 volumes in the library; the Hamilton literary and theological seminary (Baptist), at Hamilton, Madison county, instituted in 1829, eight instructors, 124 alumni, eighty-three students, and 1600 volumes in the library; the Hartwich theological seminary (Lutheran), at Hartwich, Otsego county, instituted in 1816, two professors, nine theological and a number of academical students, and 1000 volumes in the library; and the Oneida institute of science and industry (Presbyterian), near Utica, about fifty students and 1000 volumes in the library. The Baptist college at Brockport, Monroe county, the Methodist academy, White Plains, Westchester county, and a conference seminary belonging to the same sect at Cazenovia, Oneida county, and the Genesee Wesleyan seminary, Lima, Livingston county, also belong to the list of religious institutions. Amongst these may be included the American Bible Society, which has its seat in the city of New York, where a spacious building has been erected for it; the United Missionary Society, instituted at New York in 1817; the American Home Missionary Society, instituted at the same place in 1826; together with several missionary, tract, Sunday school, and other religious societies, which have various ramifications throughout the state. The benevolent institutions are upon a very extensive scale. There are asylums adapted to almost every case of human deprivation and misery; for the deaf and dumb, the blind, the orphan, the widow, the indigent, the aged, and the stranger. In 1834 their number, including religious benevolent societies, was forty-eight, and since then they must, like every thing else, have increased. It may be mentioned, that temperance societies flourish better in New York, and some of the other states, than they seem to do in any other part of the world.

Since the establishment of the state government, great exertions have been made by the legislature to extend the means of education to all classes of the community. The appropriations made for this purpose, including the capital and income of the common school and literature funds, amount to above six millions of dollars. The common schools are amongst the most important and interesting institutions in the state. Every town is divided into a suitable number of school districts, in each of which a school-house has been erected, and is provided with furniture and fuel at the expense of the district. The following notices are derived from the Annual Report of the superintendent of common schools, made in January 1835.
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The number of children actually receiving education is one in every 3∙95 of the whole population. Complaints are made by the superintendent of these schools, of the incompetency of teachers, from the smallness of the remuneration which they receive. The rate of wages, however, is regularly advancing, and competition will gradually cure the evil which exists in this tv ell-organized system of education. By a report of the regents of the university, made in 1833, there were in the state of New York sixty-five incorporated academies, which had 4856 students. The whole state is divided into eight districts, to each of which are apportioned 1250 dollars out of the income of the literature fund, making a total of 10,000 dollars given annually for the support of these institutions. There are also in New York above twenty Protestant and four Roman Catholic free schools, several infant schools, and a number of female and other seminaries of education supported by private individuals, the enumeration of which would form but a dry catalogue of names.

There are six colleges in this state, including the University of New York. The following is the return for 1836: University of New York, established in the city of that name, founded in 1831, seventeen instructors, and 226 students; Columbia College, New York (Episcopalian), founded in 1754, eleven instructors, 1620 alumni, 100 students, 8000 volumes in the college library, and 6000 volumes in the students’ library; Union College, Schenectady, founded in 1795, ten instructors, 1600 ahιmni, 308 ministers, 268 students, 5350 volumes in the college library, and 8920 in the students’ library; Hamilton College, at Clinton, founded in 1812, seven instructors, 270 alumni, sixty-nine ministers, 101 students, 2500 volumes in the college library, and 3700 volumes in the students’ library; Geneva College, at Geneva (Episcopalian), founded in 1823, seven instructors, eighteen alumni, nine ministers, twenty-two students, 820 volumes in college library, and 1150 in the students’ library. There is, lastly, the Hamilton Literary and Theological College, which we have already noticed in connection with religious institutions. There are four medical schools, viz. the College of Physicians and Surgeons, at New York, having seven professors, and 158 students; the College of Pharmacy, of the city of New York; the College of Physicians and Surgeons, at Fairfield, with five professors, and 190 students; and the Geneva Medical College, at Geneva, having six professors, and sixty-eight students. The other medical institutions are, the Medical Society of the State of New York; the New York State Vaccine Institution; the Kappa Alpha Phi Society; the New York Eye Infirmary; the Albany County Medical Society; the Medical Society of the City and County of New York; besides a Lunatic Asylum, the New York Hospital, and two or three other hospitals and asylums. There appear to be no law schools, but there are the New York Law Student’s Association, instituted in 1833 for purposes of mutual discussion on subjects connected with the legal profession; also the New York Law Institute, established in 1828, for much the same purpose as the preceding, and likewise in order to form a large library of law-books. In 1834 there were 2650 physicians and surgeons, and 2052 attorneys and counsellors in this state.

There are numerous literary and scientific institutions in New York. The principal public libraries, besides those already mentioned, are, in the city of New York, the New York Society Library, 25,000 volumes; New York Mercantile Library, 11,400 volumes; New York Apprentices’ Library, 10,800 volumes; New York Historical Society Library, 10,000 volumes; New York Law Institute Library, 2100 volumes; and the Albany Library, 8000 volumes. The principal institutions are, the New York Historical Society, established in 1809, which, besides its library, has a valuable collection of coins and medals; the New York Athenaeum, established in 1824, for the promotion of science and literature; the Lyceum of Natural History, established in 1818, and which possesses a valuable library and museum of natural history; the New York Literary and Philosophical Society; the American Academy of Fine Arts, established in 1808; the American Lyceum, formed in 1831, for the diffusion of useful knowledge; the National Academy of Design, established in 1826; the Clinton Hall Association, established in 1830, for the cultivation and promotion of literature, science, and the arts; and the New York Sacred Music Society, established in 1823. In the city of Albany, besides the library mentioned, there are, the Albany Institute, established in 1829, the museum of which, besides a considerable library, contains above ten thousand specimens in geology, mineralogy, and botany, with coins, engravings, casts, and other articles of vertù; the Athenaeum, established in 1827, in connection with the Albany Library; and the Northern Institute and Academy of Fine Arts, established in 1831. In the county of Rochester, there are the Rochester Athenaeum, established in 1830, for promoting literature, science, and the arts; the Franklin Institute of Rochester, established in 1830, for the same purposes as the preceding; and the New York State Lyceum, formed at Utica in 1831. The other principal institutions are, the New York Chamber of Commerce; the General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen of the city of New York; the American Institute of the city of New York, for promoting the interests of agriculture, commerce, manufactures, and the arts; the New York Board of Trade; three Horticultural Societies; the Linnaean Botanic Garden, and other gardens; the New York State Society of the Cincinnati; the Merchants’ Exchange Company, two typographical, and some other associations. There is a law journal published once a month at New York. In the same city there are issued, of literary and miscellaneous journals, two quarterly reviews, one every two months, six monthly, one every fortnight, and two weekly periodicals in English, and two in French, together with a republication of the Edinburgh Review and some of the leading journals of Europe. At Albany there is one magazine, and at Schenectady another. Of religious journals there are thirteen published in the state, mostly at New York, and in general monthly. There are also three or four agricultural, horticultural, and temperance publications; the total number of journals published in 1834 being forty. In 1810 there were only sixty-six newspapers published in New York; in 1834 they had increased to 267, of which number twenty-one were daily papers.

In each county of this state a jail is established by law. Previously to 1824 jails were very badly managed, but an examination which took place during that year led to the formation of the Prison Discipline Society, “an institution,” says the American Almanac for 1836, “which has already [7:16:193]been productive of the most important and beneficial effects with respect both to the condition and character of the prisoners, and the well-being of society.” All the penitentiaries, with the exception of that at Auburn, were so constructed and managed as to render them only schools of vice and crime; but the object of this society is so to improve prisons in construction and discipline as to produce, as far as possible, the reformation of prisoners. The system adopted is that known by the name of the Auburn plan, and its principal features are, solitary confinement at night and during meals, and combined labour at other hours of the day; religious instruction, particularly on Sunday; and absolute silence amongst the prisoners at all times. The cells are so constructed as to answer the various ends which the society had in view. During the hours of labour the prisoners are employed in workshops, or in the prison yard, in parties of a convenient number each. Attention is paid to health, by the complete ventilation of the small cells, where the prisoners sleep and take their meals; and, to secure the well-working of the system, every violation of the rules laid down is punished by solitude, darkness, or such other infliction as may be found necessary to enforce obedience. The eighth report of the society speaks with confidence of the “favourable moral results ;” and observes, on the whole, in regard to the state prisons, that there is great cause for congratulation and thankfulness. By the same report there are stated to be in prison at Auburn 876 individuals; and the balance of profits in favour of the prison, arising from the earnings of the prisoners, is stated at between eight and nine thousand dollars. The Mount Pleasant state prison, Westchester county, is likewise an admirable establishment, and in excellent condition; as is also that at Sing Sing. The mode of supporting the poor, which, in America, has been found most economical, and best calculated to discourage pauperism, is that of maintaining them in county poor-houses. The former law of settlement, and the practice of compulsory removals, have been abrogated, and a simple rule of settlement, founded principally on the residence of the party, and a summary mode of settling disputed questions, substituted in their stead. The following is an abstract taken from Williams’s New York Register for 1834: “Reports have been received from all the organized counties in the state, fifty-five in number. All these counties have erected poor-houses, with the exception of six; and thirty-seven counties have abolished the distinction of town and county poor. The practical operation of our present poor-house system demonstrates satisfactorily, that it has a decided advantage on the score of economy over every other existing mode of supporting indigent persons; and that the expense of the system, in proportion to the number of paupers supported, is regularly diminishing.” The annual expense of supporting each pauper is stated at thirty-two dollars twenty-one cents. The total number of paupers in the state relieved or supported during 1832-33 was 35,777, of whom only 2252 were town paupers. The aggregate expense of relieving and supporting the whole number was 295,239T5 dollars. There are attached to the poor-houses in the state 5776 acres of land; and the aggregate value of all the establishments amounts to 865,770 dollars, of which the New York city establishment has 248 acres of land, valued at 550,000 dollars. The number of paupers permanently in the poor-houses of the state will be found in the census of the population.

It is scarcely necessary to state, that mails and stages pass between New York and the large towns of the state, and also of the Union generally. Their number is commensurate with the demands of a large mercantile city, and the wants of civilized life. The lines of packets from the port of New York for foreign parts are numerous, including those to Liverpool, London, Belfast, Havre, Jamaica, Carthagena, and Mexico The principal lines of packets between New York and other ports of the United States comprise those to Charleston, Savannah, New Orleans, Mobile, Apalachicoa, Darien, Baltimore, Washington, Philadelphia, Boston, New Haven, Salem, and the principal ports to the east. There are lines of packetboats on the Erie Canal, and steam-boats without number plying on all the waters of this state. On the river Hudson, where steam-navigation was first tried, it is common for one steam-boat to tow ten other boats laden with goods.

By the amended constitution of this state, adopted in the year 1821, the legislative power is vested in a senate consisting of thirty-two members, and a house of representatives consisting of 128 members, all of whom receive three dollars per diem for their services. The senators, who must be freeholders, are elected for four years; but the members of assembly are elected annually. To facilitate elections, the state is divided into eight districts, each of which is entitled to four senators, one of the number being annually appointed in each district. The members of the other house are chosen by the several counties amongst whom they are apportioned, according to a rule prescribed in the constitution. The executive power is vested in a governor, who holds his office for two years. A lieutenant-governor is elected at the same time, and holds his office for the same term of years. He is president of the senate, and officiates as governor when that office becomes vacant. The franchise is exercised by every male citizen twenty-one years of age, who has been for one year resident in the state, and for six months an inhabitant of the county in which he votes. The suffrage is thus very extensive, and the number of electors is accordingly very great. In 1832 the total number of votes for governor, exclusive of scattering votes, was 323,082. Sheriffs, coroners, and county clerks, are elected by the people; but the other civil officers are generally appointed either by the governor and senate, the two branches of the legislature, or the governor alone, excepting clerks of courts, district attorneys, and some other officers, who are appointed by the courts.

The judicial establishment consists of several courts. That for the trial of impeachments and the correction of errors is composed of the president of the senate, the thirty-two senators, the chancellor, and the justices of the supreme court. It is the court of last resort, deciding upon appeals from the court of chancery, and writs of error from the supreme court, but has no original jurisdiction, excepting in cases of impeachments. Its sessions are held at the Capitol in Albany, or at the City Hall in New York. The next is the court of chancery, the powers of which are vested in the chancellor, and in eight vice-chancellors. I he third is the supreme court, consisting of the chief justice and two associate judges. Lastly, there are eight circuit courts, each consisting of a single judge.

The circuits correspond, both in territory and in name, with the eight senate districts. Each of the circuit judges possesses the powers of a justice of the supreme court at chambers, in the trial of issues joined in the supreme court, and in courts of oyer and terminer, and jail delivery. There must be held in each year at least two circuit courts, and courts of oyer and terminer, in each county in the state; and in the city of New York at least four. I he courts are held during as many days as the judge thinks necessary. Courts of oyer and terminer, having power to try all crimes and misdemeanours, may be held at the time and place at which any circuit court may have been appointed. 1he governor, with the senate, has the power of issuing commissions of oyer and terminer and jail delivery, when occasion shall require.

Besides the powers exercised in the courts of law by the circuit judges, each circuit judge (except the judge of [7:16:194]the first circuit) within the limits of his circuit must be a vice-chancellor, and, concurrently with the chancellor, but exclusively of any other circuit judge, must have and exercise all the original jurisdiction and powers now or hereafter vested in the chancellor, in all causes and matters in equity, where the same shall have arisen within his circuit, or where the subject-matter in controversy is situated within such circuit, or where the defendants, or either of them, reside within the same, but subject to the chancellor s appellate jurisdiction. By an act of the legislature, passed in January 1831, the equity powers of the judge of the first circuit were taken away, and a separate vice-chancellor appointed for the first circuit. The superior court of the city of New York consists of a chief justice and two associates. There are courts of common pleas in each and every county of the state, which may be held (except in the county of New York) by the judges of the county courts of each of the counties in this state, or any three of them. Any three of the judges of the county courts of each of the counties (except New York) have the power to hold courts of general sessions to try all crimes excepting those punishable with death or imprisonment for life. The mayor, recorder, and aidermen, or mayor and recorder jointly, or either of them singly, may, with or without the presence of any of the aldermen, hold mayor’s courts in the cities of Albany, Troy, and Hudson.

Besides the above, there are certain courts of a peculiar and special jurisdiction. Surrogates’ courts have jurisdiction of testamentary cases, held by the surrogate of each county. Courts of special sessions of the peace may be held in and for the county of New York, by any three judges of the court of common pleas of the said county, of whom the first judge of the said court, the mayor, or recorder, shall always be one; and for the several counties of the state, by three justices of the peace, or by two such justices and one judge of the county courts of such county, for the purposes provided by law. The justices of the marine court in the city of New York are authorized to hold a court therein, called the Marine Court of the city of New York. Each of the assistant justices in the city of New York is required to hold a court in the said city within the ward or wards for which he is appointed. The justices of the justices’ court of the cities of Albany and Hudson are authorized to hold courts therein, called respectively the Justices’ Court of the city of Albany, and the Justices’ Court of the city of Hudson. Justices’ courts in each county are held by a justice of the peace.

1he constitution of this state has been admirably framed, and not only embodies many of those safeguards usually inserted in bills of rights, but has some provisions of a peculiar character, by which public property and public institutions are secured and protected, scruples of conscience in regard’to bearing arms are obviated, and ministers of the gospel or priests are excluded from all civil and military offices. The common law of England, varied from time to time by numerous acts of the colonial and state legislature, forms the basis of the jurisprudence of New York. Since American independence was established, there have been four revisions of the statute laws of state. The last, which took place in 1827-28, was the most important; and the enactment of this body of statute law, which came into full operation on the 1st of January 1830, is perhaps one of the most important events in the history of American jurisprudence.

The capital of this state is Albany, but by far the largest and most populous cit∙y is New York, the commercial emporium of the United States. It is situated on New York Island, formerly called Manhattan Island, at the confluence of the Hudson or North River with the strait called the East River, which connects Long Island Sound with the Atlantic Ocean. It is less than twenty miles from the western extremity of Long Island Sound on the northeast, and the Atlantic Ocean on the south. The City Hall is in latitude 40. 42. 40. north, and longitude 74. 2. 8. west from Greenwich. The city and county are of the same limits, comprising the whole island, which extends from the battery on the south to Kingsbridge on the north, thirteen miles and a half. The average breadth is a mile, but in one part it is two miles and one third across; and the area of the island is about 14,000 acres. It is separated from the continent on the north by Haerlem River, which is crossed by several bridges; from New Jersey on the west by Hudson’s River; from Long Island on the east by East River; and from Staten Island to the south by the bay or harbour. The island of New York is formed on a bed of rocks, generally primitive granite, with some limestone in the northern section, where there are quarries of white marble. The elevation above tidewater is very considerable throughout the whole extent, in some parts 238 feet. The general slope of the island is from west to east, and an elevated range of ground runs in this direction, which slopes towards the northern and southern parts of the island. This physical feature of the island is considered as of great importance, since it enables water reservoirs to be so located as to command the whole city at an elevated head. The harbour or bay, which is twenty-five miles in circumference, is safe and commodious, and the largest vessels may come up to the very wharfs of the city. On the bar the depth of water at high tide is twenty-seven feet, and at low water twenty-one feet; and thence to the city the channel is from thirty-five to fifty feet deep. There is a lighthouse at Sandy Hook, on the New Jersey shore, eighteen miles distant from the city; and vessels frequently anchor in the outer harbour, or Raritan Bay. The entrance to the harbour is called the Narrows, between Staten Island on the west and Long Island on the east, about eight miles from the city. There is a lighthouse on the western part of the latter island, twenty miles north-east of New York. The harbour is rarely obstructed with ice. The principal commercial business is transacted on the east side of the city, the East River being the most safe and convenient part of the harbour. The width of the East River is from one third to one half of a mile to the opposite shore of Brooklyn, on Long Island. The Hudson, or North River, is one mile in width opposite to Jersey city, and a mile and a half at Hoboken, New Jersey. The approach to New York by sea is one of the most splendid sights of the kind which the world can present. The works of nature are here on the grandest scale, and the tout ensemble of islands, rivers, bays, and forests of masts, with spires towering amongst the trees which shade the streets, constitute a scene as varied and interesting as can be beheld.

The principal fortifications for the defence of the harbour are at the Narrows, about eight miles from the city. But on the Long Island shore are Forts Hamilton and La Fayette; and opposite them, on Staten Island, are Forts Tomkins and Richmond. There are several small islands in the harbour; and upon those called Bedlow’s and Ellis’s Islands, situated on the western side, there are batteries; whilst Governor’s Island, opposite to the battery, and very near the city, is strongly fortified. The Battery is situated at the south-west extremity of the city, and is handsomely laid out, being intersected with gravel walks, and tastefully decorated with shrubs and trees. Castle Garden, connected with the Battery by a bridge, is a fine promenade, and is much frequented during the summer. A telegraph is established on the heights of Staten Island, communicating by signals with one in the city. A panorama of New York presents the compact part of the city occupying the southern part of the island, and stretching along each river about three miles. It is, generally speaking, regularly built, the [7:16:195]principal streets running north and south, and being crossed by others extending from the river on the east to that on the west. Great improvements have been made on the compact part of the city within the last ten or twelve years, the clumsy fabrics of the Dutch having given place to the more tasteful and convenient erections of modern times. The style of building with granite and marble fronts to the basements is now almost uniformly adopted in the construction of warehouses. The northern part of the city has been very handsomely laid out in wide streets and spacious avenues; and the style of building for dwelling-houses is neat, and frequently elegant.

Broadway, the most splendid street in the city, or in the United States, runs through the centre, and extends three miles in length from north to south, terminating at the Battery. It is eighty feet wide, and generally presents massive and noble buildings, including three fine churches, several large hotels, Washington Hall, the Masonic Hall, with a variety of elegant shops. From this street there is a gentle slope east and west to the rivers. The following is a summary of the principal streets in this city, from a work entitled New York as it is in 1833.^[5. By Edwin Williams, author of the New York Annual Register. ] “Greenwich Street is wide and elegant, and runs parallel with Broadway, between that street and Washington Street, which last is a fine avenue, next to West Street, extending along the North River. Pearl Street, between Broadway and the East River, is above a mile in length, and its course is nearly in the form of a crescent, containing numerous spacious warehouses, and is the principal seat of the dry goods and hardware business. Front and Water Streets, between Pearl Street and the East River, are occupied principally by the wholesale grocers, commission merchants, and mechanics connected with the shipping business. South Street, running along the East River, contains the warehouses and offices of most of the principal shipping merchants. Wall Street runs from Broadway to the East River, and is occupied by the banks, insurance companies, merchants’ exchange,^[6. This, along with a considerable portion of the city of New York, was consumed by fire on the 16th and 17th days of December 1835. The following account of this destructive conflagration is from the American Almanac for 1837 ≈—“Sixteenth. A tremendous fire breaks out in the city of New York, at nine o'clock in the evening, and is not fully suppressed till one o’clock p. μ. on the 17th∙ It commenced near Wall Street, and destroyed most of the entire seat of the greatest mercantile transactions of the city, although comparatively but little inhabited. It was the most destructive fire that has ever taken place in the United States. The loss, according to the official report of the committee, amounted to 17,115,692 dollars. The merchandise destroyed was estimated at 13,115,692 dollars; the buildings, the number of which was 529, at 4,000,000 dollars. The Merchants’ Exchange, a magnificent edifice of marble, was estimated at 150,000 dollars, and the Garden Street Church at 50,000 dollars.” The places of the destroyed edifices have been supplied with buildings of the same description, with a rapidity quite unparalleled in any other country. In March 1836, Congress passed a bill for the relief of the sufferers; but no aid was solicited from abroad. ] newspapers, and brokers’ offices, being the seat of heavier monied transactions than any other place in America. Canal Street, running across Broadway to the Hudson River, near the centre of the city, is a spacious street, principally occupied by retail stores. The Bowery is a wide and extensive street, running directly north and south-east of Broadway. The third avenue, extending from the Bowery to Haerlem, is macadamised, and is the principal avenue to the city from the east. Chatham Street, East Broadway, Nassau Street, Maiden Lane, Broad, Fulton, Cortland, William, Hudson, Division, Grand, and Broome Streets, deserve particular notice, as among the principal streets and avenues. The streets are generally well paved, with stone or brick side walks, and lighted at night.”

In enumerating the public buildings, the first place belongs to the City Hall, which is the most prominent and important edifice in New York. It is situated in the Park, about half a mile from the Battery, and is 216 feet in length by 105 in breadth, and, including the attic story, sixty feet in height. The front and ends are built of white marble, behind it is of free-stone, and it consists of a centre building and two wings, principally of the Ionic and Corinthian orders. The tout ensemble is elegant, if not splendid, and the edifice reflects great credit on the inhabitants for their munificence and taste. It was commenced in 1803, and finished in 1812, at a cost of 538,734 dollars. It consists of the City Hall proper, comprising a large suite of rooms for holding the different courts of law, and which are fitted up in a rich and expensive style; and of the new City Hall, which includes the police office, and a number of offices and rooms adapted to various necessary purposes. Many of the churches are in general large, but there is nothing in their architecture, or that of the steeples, particularly requiring notice. There are above one hundred places of worship in New York, which is about the same proportion to the number of inhabitants that we find in Great Britain. Columbia College, above the City Hall, is advantageously and handsomely situated in a fine square. The edifice and grounds attached are extensive, and it possesses an estate valued at 400,000 dollars. The college contains a chapel, lecture rooms, hall, library, museum, and an extensive philosophical and astronomical apparatus. The standard of classical education is supposed to be higher here than in most of the other colleges of the Union. The University of the city of New York is projected on the broad and liberal scale of the universities on the continent of Europe, and promises to be of great advantage to the literature of the country. It is governed by a council of thirty-two members, chosen by the subscribers, together with the mayor and four members of the common council of the city. The New York Institution is a brick building, 260 feet in length by forty-four in breadth, and is appropriated to associations of literature and the fine arts, such as the Literary and Philosophical Society, the American Academy of Fine Arts, and the like. The State-prison and the Lunatic Asylum are large edifices, built of stone. The Alms-house and the Asylum for the Deaf and Dumb are also buildings of ample dimensions, built of brick. The Park Theatre is a spacious edifice, eighty feet long, 165 feet deep, and fifty-five feet high, and is calculated to contain 2400 persons. The New York Theatre, in the Bowery, displays much architectural beauty, and amongst the modern ornaments of the city stands pre-eminent. It has a front of seventy-five feet, and is 175 feet deep and fifty feet high. Besides these, there are other theatres and places of public amusement in New York. The Medical College is a conspicuous edifice; and the following are spacious buildings: Clinton Hall, the Bible Society’s Depository, the American Tract Society’s buildings, the Arcade and the Arcade Baths, the New York Baths, the Public Marine Bath, the Manhattan Water-works, the Exhibition Room of the National Academy of the Arts of Design, Rutger’s Medical College and Public School, Masonic Hall, Orphan Asylum, Fever Hospital, House of Refuge for Juvenile Delinquents, the City Hotel, the Mansion House, the National Hotel, the Franklin House, Tammany Hotel, and several other hotels. The markets, banks, insurance offices, school-houses, and buildings for public institutions of all kinds, are quite as numerous as in British cities, the difference of population being taken into account. A number of squares have been laid out in the upper part of the city, the principal of which is Washington Square: Hudson’s Square or St John’s [7:16:196]Park is part of the extensive tract of land, in the northwestern part of the city, belonging to Trinity Church. It comprises an area of four acres, and the square is enclosed with costly and valuable private dwellings, having St John’s Church on its western side. Amongst the places of fashionable resort in the city and its vicinity may be mentioned the Battery, which extends somewhat in the form of a crescent along the southern extremity of the city, and covers an area of nearly eleven acres. This favourite promenade was originally a fortification thrown up by the Dutch, and planted with cannon, from which circumstance it derives its name. But it is now divested of its warlike appurtenances, having for many years been used as a public walk; and being shaded with trees, and constantly fanned by the ocean breezes, there is not a more agreeable or healthful retreat during the summer months. In or near the city there are a number of parks and public gardens, which are also much frequented. With regard to the buildings of New York in general, Mr Stewart observes,^[7. Three Years in North America, by James Stuart, Esq. 1833. ] “The churches, at least many of them, are large, but there is nothing in their architecture, or that of the steeples, particularly requiring notice. There is no building here to bear any thing like a comparison with many of the public buildings in the European capitals, such as St Martin’s Church in London, the front of the Register Office in Edinburgh, or that of the Chamber of Deputies at Paris; but there are churches and public buildings in all those cities quite as deficient in good taste as any of those which I observed here. In short, my notion is, that, though there is no very fine building in the city, there is not much to hurt the eye of the fastidious; and the city is generally composed of clean-looking buildings and streets, and is regularly built.” New York is divided into fifteen wards, each ward electing annually an alderman and an assistant alderman, two assessors, one collector, and two constables, who are formed into a common council of two boards. The mayor is elected annually by the joint ballot of both boards. The situation of the city is considered as very favourable to the health of the inhabitants, from the elevation of the island, and the vicinity of the ocean. The climate at most seasons is mild and agreeable, the winters being less severe than in the interior of the state, and the sea-breezes rendering the heat of summer less oppressive.

The religious, benevolent, and other institutions, the banks, insurance offices, and miscellaneous companies, the state of the press, literature, religion, and education, the manufactures, trade, commerce, lines of packets, and stages, of New York, have been already enumerated in the general account of the state, as fully as our limits will permit. There is no city in the United States, perhaps in the world, which possesses greater advantages of situation than New York, both for internal and external commerce; and these have been immensely increased by art. It is hither that merchants and traders resort from all quarters, from the shores of the Atlantic, the confines of the lakes, and the banks of the great Mississippi, with a certainty that they can dispose of their own produce, and supply themselves with every article which they require. It is at this point that the vast stream of immigration at first collects, as in a reservoir, whence in course of time it distributes its contents over the whole country. Here, too, strangers and travellers congregate as the place of departure to every part of the world, attracted by the ample facilities afforded them at fixed and short intervals. It may serve to give some idea of these to state, that there are opportunities, by regular packets, to sail to Liverpool four times a month, to Havre three times, and to London twice a month. The advantageous situation of this city naturally inclines the inhabitants to commercial pursuits; but of late years large capitals have been invested in manufactures, which are becoming more and more objects of attention. But the probability is, that New York will long remain, in a great degree, a central point for the commerce of the United States. The numerous failures which occurred in America during 1837 have of course affected New York; but this is not the place to speculate on the causes and consequences of these casualties. One thing seems perfectly clear, that the natural resources and advantages of the United States are too vast ever to be permanently affected by the state of trade in any other country, at least for ages to come. The population of New York, and the principal cities in the state, for three periods, are as under.
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Albany, the political metropolis, is situated on the western bank of the Hudson, 150 miles from New York, and has a position equally convenient for communication with that city and with a vast interior country. The appearance of Albany from the opposite side of the river is striking and splendid; its situation on the side of a hill is favourable for every part of it being seen, and the Capitol and public edifices are conspicuous objects. It consists of one street of very considerable length, running parallel with the river, from which the rest of the city rises abruptly. The Capitol, built upon the upper portion of Albany, on an elevated site, is 115 feet in length by ninety-eight in breadth. There are ten or twelve other public buildings, some of which are very handsome. This city is very rapidly increasing, as the population returns sufficiently indicate. The other towns enumerated in the foregoing list are also places of considerable and growing trade.

The history of New York is so closely interwoven with that of the United States generally, and the latter part of it in particular with the war of independence, and the subsequent consolidation of the country as a federal republic, that it is only necessary in this place to give a brief abstract of its early annals. That part of America to which New York belongs was discovered by Sebastian Cabot in the year 1497. He claimed the country for his sovereign, but made no effort to form settlements; nor was an undertaking of this kind attempted by the English until after the Dutch had colonized a portion of the country. It is certain that, in 1609, Henry Hudson, an Englishman, entered the bay of New York, and sailed up the river now called by his name, as far as latitude 43° north; but whether he was employed by the English government in this service, and sold the country which he thus discovered without authority, is a point not so clearly settled. English writers take this view of the case; but the Dutch historians assert that he was at the time in the service of the Dutch East India Company. At all events, the English for some time made no opposition to the settlement of the country by the Dutch, who immediately commenced [7:16:197]a trade with the natives of the country. The right of the English to the territory, however, was formally recognised, by the Dutch applying for and receiving from James I. in 1620, permission “to build some cottages on Hudson’s River, for the convenience of their vessels engaged in trade with Brazil.” To the colony which they settled under this license they gave the name of the New Netherlands. Buildings were erected in the following year near the junction of the East and North Rivers, and a governor was appointed by the Dutch in 1629. Complaints were made by Charles I. of the encroachments of the Dutch on New England, and the states-general declared, that the settlement of New Netherlands was “only a private undertaking of the West India Company of Amsterdam.” In 1664, Charles II. granted to his brother, James duke of York, “all Mattawacks, now Long Island, all Hudson’s River, and all the lands from the west side of Connecticut River to the east side of Delaware Bay, together with the royalties and rights of government.” James sold that part of the grant which comprehends New Jersey, and retained the remainder, which comprehends the present state of New York, a name bestowed upon it in honour of the proprietor. The states-general guaranteed the possession to him by the treaty of Breda in 1667. Previously to these transactions, however, the parties themselves had been settling the point of possession in the disputed territory itself. In 1664 the New Netherlands was taken by the English; in 1673 it was retaken by the Dutch; and in 1674 it again fell under the power of the English, to which it remained attached until the time of the revolution. The remaining portion of the history of New York belongs to that of the United States. (r. r. r.)