army. The position he chose was good, and though obliged by superior force, and the desertion of the militia sent to his relief, to abandon it, he is entitled to credit for the spirit he displayed on this occasion: at the foot of the hill on which his little band was posted, lie covered with sod some of the combatants of this day.

From this place to Washington the road is indifferent, the land poor, and apparently unfit for any purpose but that of building. Whatever were the views of the British commander in the destruction of the public edifices* at Washington, it had one great effect,-that of uniting the whole country in one determined opposition. Pre

The officer to whom we alluded, page 68 says, "the army having landed in the United States, its first operations were directed against Washington, to which it met with no other obstruction than a slight affair at Blandensburgh, in which the Americans were defeated. General Ross first sent in a flag of truce with terms,

'But whatever his proposal might have been, it was not so much as heard; for scarcely had the party bearing the flag entered the street, than they were fired upon from the windows of one of the houses, and the horse of the general himself, who accompanied them, killed. You will easily believe, that conduct so unjustifiable, so direct a breach of the law of nations, roused the indignation of every individual, from the general himself down to the private soldier. All thoughts of accommodation were instantly laid aside; the troops advanced forthwith into the town, and having first put to the sword all who were found in the house from which the shot were fired, and reduced it to ashes, they proceeded without a moment's delay, to burn and destroy every thing in the most distant degree connected with government. In this general devastation were included the Senate-house, the President's palace, an extensive dock-yard and arsenal, barracks for two or three thousand men, several large storehouses filled with naval and military stores, some hundreds of cannon of different descriptions, and nearly twenty thousand stand of small arms. There were also two or three public rope-works which shared the same

vious to this, a great portion of the population were much averse to the war, hoping, from the professed disposition of the British administration for peace and amity, and its deprecating any thing like arbitrary measures, that conciliatory steps might have been taken, and have prevented the abhorrent spectacle of brethren seeking each other to mortal combat.

The capitol is recovering from the late devastation, as is also the mansion appropriated to the President's use; which, had it been totally demolished, had not been much to be regretted, as it is a disproportioned structure the interior arrangement is bad; and the idea of purchasing the furniture in France, on the ground of

fate, a fine frigate pierced for sixty guns, and just ready to be launched, several gun brigs arined schooners, with a variety of gunboats and small craft. The powder magazines were of course set on fire, and exploded with a tremendous crash, throwing down many houses in their vicinity, partly by pieces of the wall striking them, and partly by the concussion of the air; whilst quantities of shot, shell, and hand-grenades, which could not otherwise be rendered useless, were thrown into the river. In destroying the cannon, a method was adopted, which' I had never before witnessed, and which, as it was both effectual and expeditious, cannot avoid relating. One gun or rather a small calibre, was pitched upon as the executioner of the rest; and being loaded with ball, and turned to the muzzle of the others, it was fired, and thus beat out their breechings. Many, however, not being mounted, could not be thus dealt with; these were spiked, and having their trunions knocked off, were afterwards cast into the bed of the river.

'All this was as it should be, and had the arm of vengeance been extended no farther, there would not have been room given for so much as a whisper of disapprobation. But, unfortunately, it did not stop here; a noble library, several printing offices, and all the national archives were likewise committed to the flames, which, though no doubt the property of government, might better have been spared."

economy, is preposterous; surely it would have been more politic, as well as patriotic, to have encouraged the manufactures of the country; and their appearance would have been far more pleasing to the eye, than the present tawdry finery which offends the sight in every apartment, The unnecessary expence incurred by the importation of blocks of marble from Italy, to decorate the capitol, is equally censurable, when different marbles, of the finest quality, are met with in every direction throughout the Union.

The city is rapidly increasing, but many intervals still occur between house and house: the streets are laid out at angles, radiating from the capitol, which, with the President's house, being considerably elevated, will form conspicuous objects from every part. The present population, including George Town, which is separated from it by a branch of the Patomac, is little more than 20,000. When standing on the capitol hill, or on that occupied by the President's house, I enjoy what may be called an enchanting prospect. If from the latter, looking down "Pennsylvania Avenue," a wide street of one mile in length, shaded by trees, the corresponding eminence is seen, surmounted by the capitol on the right, and in the rear George Town, the growing city and distant mountains, with the beautiful Patoniac in front, meandering through the vale below, and as it flows,

This was

"Large, gentle, deep, majestic," leads the charmed eye to follow in its maze. the favourite stream of the illustrious leader in his country's cause, on whose banks he passed the quiet of his days, and now reclines in death, remembered and beloved by all. Patomac, as she passes by his tomb, even seems to ripple accents to his praise.

It was a lovely evening, when in the Washington steamboat, I took leave of the embryo metropolis, descending its beautiful river, the view of which, my last, from the city, was intended to convey some idea of. It flows through a bold country, much diversified, its banks decorated with numerous country seats, many of them in commanding situations; Mount Vernon, the residence of the late venerated Washington, occupying one of the most conspicuous. It is now in the possession of his

nephew, the Hon. Bushrode Washington, but will long engage that interest, which its original possessor must impress upon the spot where he reposed from the exhausting cares of public life. Not that he shrunk from its arduous and difficult duties; no, in the hour of danger, when assailed on every hand, when the treachery of some, the jealousies, cowardice, and desertions of others, seemed to render it a hopeless cause, his country found him calm, intrepid, and determined not to be seduced by the most tempting offers to surrender her rights to arbitrary sway; nor, on the attainment of her independence, when his fellow citizens in their excess of joy, and admiration of his virtues, would have raised him to the most exalted station, could he forget the true meaning of patriotism. Impelled by no vain desire of moving in a higher sphere, or of appearing superior to his fellow-citizens, Washington held out an example of greatness of soul, tempered with modesty in deportment, worthy of imitation; and in retiring to the station of private citizen, gave a striking proof that honours can be enjoyed, far superior to that which consists in the power of dispensing stars and ribbands."

PITTSBURGH.

(Fearon's Sketches.)

PITTSBURGH is, in several points of view a most interesting town; from its natural situation, being at the termination of two, and the commencement of a third river, which has a direct communication with the ocean, though at the almost incredible distance of 2500 miles; its scenery, which is truly picturesque; its exhaustless possession of that first-rate material for manufactories, coal; its original situation as an early military post, and remarkable for two defeats of the British, more especially that of General Bradock by the French and Indians, in which the great Washington first distinguished himself, though but a youth and only a militia colonel; and lastly, its present importance as being the connecting link between new and old America; and though it is not at present a Birmingham," as the natives bombastically call it, yet it certainly contains the seeds of numerous important manufactories.

At Messrs. Page and Bakewell's glass warehouse I saw chandeliers and numerous articles in cut glass of a very splendid description; among the latter was a pair of decanters, cut from a London pattern, the price of which will be eight guineas. It is well to bear in mind that the demand for these articles of elegant luxury lies in the Western States! the inhabitants of Eastern America being still importers from the "Old Country." What interesting themes of reflection are offered by such facts to the philosopher as well as to the politician! Not thirty years since the whole right bank of the Ohio was termed the "Indian side." Spots in Tenesse, in Ohio and Kentucky, that within the life-time of even young men, witnessed only the arrow and the scalping-knife, now present to the traveller articles of elegance and modes of luxury which might rival the displays of London and Paris, while within the last half century, the beasts of the forest, and man more savage than the beast, were the only inhabitants of the whole of that immense tract peculiarly denominated the "Western Country:" which is now partially inhabited, and promises soon to be generally so by man-civilized man, possessed of the arts and the pursuits of civilized life. It is already the refuge of the oppressed from every other nation. May it become the seat of enlightenment, of private virtue and public liberty; and it may then, but not till then, expect to rank among the greatest, the most powerful, and the most respected of the nations of the earth!

Upon the whole, I consider Pittsburgh, in every point of view, to be a very important town; and have no doubt, although its prosperity is now at a stand, and property if not declining, is not increasing in value, that it will gradually advance: and that the time must come when it will be an extensive and very populous city. The present population is 10,000, made up from all nations, and, of course, not free from the vices of each: this indeed is but too apparent upon a very short residence.

A day previous to my departure from Pittsburgh, says Mr. Fearon, I called at Carey's Porter-house: Mr. C. stepped forward, and pointing to a young man, said, "Mr. Watson, Sir." For some minutes I did not comprehend his meaning. The person to whom he directed my at