WILLIAM CHAMBERS ON AMERICA. *

IN this volume Mr. William Chambers gives an account of a tour made during the latter part of 1833 throu portions of Nova Soot's, Canada, and the States ; the line o the St. Law- rence and the Lakes forming the Northern, and Richmond in Virginia the Southern limit of his journey. The journey was made 'rapidly—.often so rapidly that only a man accustomed to ob- serve and note his observations would have-had anything to tell ; and perhaps this habit is occasionally pushed a little too far. Mi- nute detail, without the picturesqueness necessary to enliven description, sometimes renders the narrative dry ; and the inven- torial account of arrangements and accommodations in •steamers and hotels partakes of the same character.

Mr. Chambers was strongly impressed, as his readers will be, with the progress and prosperity of the United States and Canada. He -was undeceived in regard to certain social peculiarities, which the continual iteration of travellers had led him to expect. Ho only encountered one curious questioner—a person evidently superannuated. The race is dying out, and young America is too busy with its own affairs to trouble its head about those of other people ; the stranger may come and go unnoticed. Mr. Chambers looked about him at every opportunity for hasty feeding, but did not find it; indeed, the arrangements of the public tables are such that any person may sit as long as he pleases over his dinner. Mr. Chambers, however, chiefly travelled along leading lines, and put up at first-rate hotels. The strictures of the earlier travellers, too, bore as hard upon the cookery as the " belting." As the Americans in the large cities have sub- stituted French "cuisine" for cookery, it is likely that the tra- velling censors have effected a change in eating and introduced mastication. Mr. Chambers only now and then encountered another much-talked-et habit ; but the continual presence of

ittoons reminded him that the custom was not yet extinct, ongh probably on the wane. Accustomed to the rapidity, the greater general punctuality, the division of passengers, and first-class accommodation of the British railway, the tourist clearly does not admire 'the American system of single lines, fre- quent stoppages either inevitable or accidental, and the uniform accommodation for all ranks ; though he admits it is adapted to the physical and social condition of the country. The hygiene and "'buses " of New York are in the last stage of badness.

Such things, however, are trifles. The broad and novel fea- ture exhibited in this book on America is the stride which the country is making in material progress and prosperity. The reader will be impressed more vividly than he has yet been with the activity, enterprise, and advancement shown in most of the I leading departments of American business. The great establish- ments in many branches of trade apparently exceed the rarest show-places in this country, and with their extensive machinery, the immense range of their home trade, the energy and inventive faculties everywhere displayed, leave the Old Country far behind in all that is included under the hackneyed but expressive term " go-ahead." Neither is this unaccompanied by much splendour

• Things as they Are in America. By William Chambers. Published by W. and Chambers. ,

and richness of decoration, in those things where public or private

Iwealth generally displays itself. The Federal, State, municipal, ecclesiastical, and educational buildings, are not described by Mr. ' Chambers in particularly glowing terms ; but it is evident that as regards materials, magnitude, and outlay, they equal anything in Europe. The private mansions of the wealthy citizens of New York, Boston, and Philadelphia, more especially of New York, are spacious in structure and lavish in -ornament and in rich fur- niture, whatever the taste exhibited may be ; which we infer from the description is something more than florid. The same remarks may be applied to their gigantic hotels, which are indeed sni generis ; and these being used by the class which in this country would only be called respectable, possibly foster and spread it general taste for style and luxury.

I We are accustomed, and perhaps as regards solidity and finish not without reason, to pique ourselves on being the work-shop of the world for machinery. In extent and variety of application to everyday purposes, America semns to exceed this country ; the scarcity of labour and its high remuneration having probably directed attention 'to the subject. The following description of furniture-factories is from the visit to Cincinnati.

" The first establishment I visited was a funaituredactory—a huge brick building, five stories in height, with a long frontage at the corner of two• streets, and in which 250 hands are employed in different department,. Many of these are occupied merely in guiding and superintending machines moved by shafts and belts from a large stearn,engine on the ground-floor. Every article receives its shape in the rough by means of saws ; and these move with such rapidity that their teeth are invisible to the eye. The ar- ticles are next planed, or turned, and morticed, in the same inconceivably rapid manner. In the planing operations some surprising effects are pro- duced. A rough deal, or other piece of wood, being arranged on a bench under the action of a plane which revolved horizontally, was in a few instants smoothed as if by the finest hand-labour. Chairs of a common class, but neatly turned and painted, were the principal article of manu- facture. The number produced almost goes beyond belief. I was informed that the average quantity was 200 dozen every week, or at the rate of 124,800 Chairs per annum, worth from five to twenty-four dollars per dozen. Among these, a large number are rockers. The machinery for scooping oat and shaping the seats was exceedingly in enious. The next article in im- portance is chests of drawers • of which 2000-are manufactured annually. Baby-cribs are another important item ; but the number of them produced

could not be definitely stated. •

0 The next establishment I looked in upon was a bedstead-factory, in which similarly-improved machinery was employed to cut out and finish variousparts of the articles required. As many as 1000 bedsteads are turned out every week, valued at from four to twenty-four dollars each. Some other works were visited, but it -is undesirable to enter on details respecting their products. In the fabrication of iron stoves, locks, and hinges, window- frames, ornamental cabinet-ware, upholstery, fire-arms, hats, boots and shoes, machinery, axes, and other edge-tools, carriages and numerous other things—the operations were on-a similarly gigantic scale. In one of the boot and shoe factories, there are wrought up annually 10,000 sides of sole- leather, 40,000 sides of upper leather, 20,000 sheep-skins, 2500 calf-skins, 6000 pound-weights of boot-nails, and 600 bushels of shoe-pegs. The wages paid away in this establishment amount to 60,,000 dollars per annum. On hearing !acts of this kind, the question contanoally occurs, where do all these manufactures go ? Of course the explanation is found in the per- petual demand over the vast regions of which, as harbeen said, Cincinnati's the centre. Every day, thousands of fresh families are making a settlement in the wilderness, and each needs bedsteads, tables, chairs, and other articles of domestic use. On the quay at Cincinnati, therefore, you see vast piles of new furniture, iron stoves, tin-ware, cases of boots and shoes, and everything else needed by settlers, preparing to be despatched a thbusand miles by steamers on the Mississippi and its tributaries. One manufacturer of cabinet- work told me he had received an-order to make the whole furniture of s be- tel in California."

We could quote other accounts -of a -similar kind, but the -man- ner in which washing is carried on will perhaps give the best idea of the gigantic nature of American industrial operations.

I " The laundry departments of the American hotels ought not to be for- gotten in the list of marvels. Placed under the management of a special clerk, who records all necessary, details, the arrangements for washing, drying, and ironing, would astonish any ordinary laundress. The drying 28 done by rapidly-whirling machines, which wring out the wet, and cause the articles to pass through currents of hot air, so as to turn them out ready for the ironer in the space of a few minutes. Depending on these aide, the American needs not to encumber himself with great loads of under-clothing in his ex- cursions. Anywhere in an hour or two, he can get everything washed and

dressed, as if he had started from home."

Slavery and the condition of the Coloured population in the Free States occupied the attention of Mr. Chambers. As regards the position of the free Coloured race, he agrees with Dr. Marshall Hall: he goes further than. Dr. Hall in 'censuring the professing philanthropists who denounce the Southern planters for keep- ing their l egroes in bondage, while they themselves will not ad- mit a Coloured man, however educated or well-behaved, into their public vehicles, their assemblies, or even their churches, and rele- gate Coloured children to a school of their own. His anticipations of ultimate issues are gloomy ; lie thinks it possible that the ques- tion of slavery may eventually be a means of breaking up the Union. He saw too little of the South to form any very trust- worthy opinion upon the treatment of the slaves. What he saw of the ploughing of the Negroes in Virginia as be passed along, as well as what he heard, impressed him with the dearness and badness of slave labour as compared with free White labour. Some slave-auctions, which he purposely went to Richmond to see, strip off the romance from that feature of the " institu- tion." For manners and incidents, and indeed for novelty, this chapter is the most remarkable in the book: The following are single instances. In the first auction-room, dull and dingy enough, into which Mr. Chambers went, he only found some children "playing at auctioning.' " An intensely black little Negro, of four or five years of age, was standing on the bench, or block as it is called, with an equally black girl, about a year younger, by his side, whom he was pretending to sell by bide to another black child, who wee rolling about the floor. tr-My app.nee did not interrupt the merriment. The little auctioneer ecinfihud hie mimic play, and appeared to enjoy the joke of selling the girl, who stood 'demurely by his side. • " 'Fifty dolla for de gal—fifty dolla;—fifty dolls—I sell die here line gal for fifty dolls,' was uttered with .extreordsnary volubility by the woolly- 'beaded urchin, accompanied with appropriate gestures, in, imitation, doubt- less, of the scenes he had seen enacted daily on the spot. I spoke a few words to the little creatures, but wasacareely understood ; and the fun, went on as if I had not been present : so I left them, ,happy in rehearsing what was likely soon to be their own fate."

He went to another room, and appeared among the examiners. " While intending purchasers were proceeding with personal examina- tions of the several lots, I took the liberty of putting a few questions to the mother of the children. ,The following was our conversation. ' Are you a

married woman?' Yes, sir.' `How many children have you had ?' ,"Seven." 'Where is your husband ?' 'In Madison county." When did you part from him?' On Wednesday—two days' go. Were you sorry to _part from him ?' 'Yes, air,' she replied with a deep sigh my heart was a'most broke." Why is your master selling you ? ' -"I don't know—he wants money to buy some land—suppose he sells me for that.'

"There might not be a word of truth in these answers, for I had no means of testing their correctness ; but the woman seemed to speak unreservedly, and I am inclined to think that she said nothing but what, if necessary, could be substantiated. I spoke also to the young woman who was seated near her. She, like the others, was perfectly black, and appeared stout and healthy, of which some of thepersons present assured themselves by feeling i ter arms and ankles, looking into her mouth, and causing her to stand up. She told me she had several brothers and sisters,' but did not know where they were. She said she was a house-servant, and would be glad to be bought by a good master—looking at me, as if I should not be unacceptable.

' "I have said that there was an entire absence of emotion in the party of men, women, and children, thus seated preparatory to being sold. This does not correspond with the ordinary accounts of slave-sales, which are repre- sented as tearful and harrowing. My belief is, that none of the parties felt deeply on the subject, or at least that any distress they experienced was but momentary—soon. passed away. and was forgotten. One of my reasons for this opinion rests on a trifling incident which occurred. While waiting-for the commencement of the sale, one of the gentlemen present amused himself with a pointer-dog; -which, at command, stood on its hind-legs, and took pieces,of bread from his pocket. These tricks greatly entertained the row of Negroes, old and young; and the poor wonian, whose heart three minutes ' before was almost broken, now laughed as heartily as any one."

Ne,sale could be effected here; the lots were all bought in. 'At another room Mr. Chambers was more successful.

"Mingling in the crowd, I went to see what should be the fate,of the man and boy, with whom I had already. had some communieatien- " There the pair, the two cousins, sat by the fire, just where I had left dteni an hour ago. The boy was put up-first. 'Come along, my man—jump up ; there's a good boy ! ' said one of the partners, a bulky and respectable-looking person, with a gold chain and bunch of seals ; at the same time getting on the block. With alacrity the little fellow came forward, and, mounting the steps, stood by his side. The forms in front were filled by the company; and as I seated myself, I found that my old companion, Wide-awake, was close at hand, still chewing and spitting at -a-great rate. " 'Now, gentlemen,' said the auctioneer, putting his hand on the shoulder of the, boy, ' here is a very fine boy, seven years of age, warranted sound— what do you say for him ? Iput him -up at 500 dollars-500 dollars. (Speak- ing quick, his right hand raised up, and coining down on the open, palm of his left.) 500 dollars. Any one say more than 500 dollars. (560 is bid.) 560dollars. Nonsense ! Just look at him. See how high he is. (He draws the lot in front of him, and shows that the little fellow's head comes up to his breast.) You see he ie a fine, tall, healthy boy.. Look at his bands.'

. "Several step forward, and cause the by to open and shut his handa—the flexibility of the small fingers, black on the. one Aide and whitish on the • other, being well looked to. The hands and also the mouth having given satisfaction, an advance is made to 579, then to'580 dollars.

"'Gentlemen, that is a very poor price fora boy-of this size. (Address- _ ing the lot): Go down, my boy, and.show them how-you can ran.'

"The boy, seemingly happy to do as ,lie was bid, went down from the

• block, and ran smartly across the floor several times; the eyes of every one in the room following him.

'Now, that will do. Get up again. (Boy mounts the block, the steps being rather deep for his short lege ; but tine atetioneer kindly lends him a

• hand.) Come, gentlemen, you see this is-a first-rate lot. (590-600-610 —620-630 dollars are bid.) I will sell him for .630 dollars. (Right hand coming down on left.) Last call. 630 dollars onee-630 dollars twice. (A. pause ; hand sinks.) Gone ! ' "

The traveller's opinion of Lower Canada was not favourable ; owing to the impediments which the old French laws and customs relating to land interpose in the way of improvement, and to the oldfasliioned prejudices of the habit,ans. lie has formed a high opinion of Upper Canada as a place for residence or emigration; nor did he trace that backwardness compared with the American frontier which has been ,so often spoken of. Doubtless, like the fast eating and the intrusive questioning of the Americans, it has been improved. Nova Scotia he also found more advanced than he expected. Throughout British America he perceived no dissa tisfaction as regards the connexion with - the Mother-country, and no wish for annexation.