Letters of a Traveller - Notes of Things Seen in Europe and America

William Cullen Bryant

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• Publié par: idroe
• Publié le: 08 décembre 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 16
• Langue: English

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Title: Letters of a Traveller
Notes of Things Seen in Europe and America
Author: William Cullen Bryant
Release Date: February 9, 2004 [EBook #11013]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
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[Transcriber's Note: Footnotes have been numbered and moved to the end.]
LETTERS OF A TRAVELLER;
OR, NOTES OF THINGS SEEN IN EUROPE AND AMERICA
BY WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT.
1850.
TO THE READER.
The letters composing this volume were written at various times, during the last
sixteen years, and during journeys made in different countries. They contain,
however, no regular account of any tour or journey made by the writer, but are
merely occasional sketches of what most attracted his attention. The greater part of
them have already appeared in print.
The author is sensible that the highest merit such a work can claim, if ever so well
executed, is but slight. He might have made these letters more interesting to readers
in general, if he had spoken of distinguished men to whose society he was admitted;
but the limits within which this may be done, with propriety and without offense, areso narrow, and so easily overstepped, that he has preferred to abstain altogether
from that class of topics. He offers his book to the public, with expectations which will
be satisfied by a very moderate success.
New York, April, 1850.
CONTENTS.
To the Reader
Letter I.--First Impressions of an American in France.--Tokens of Antiquity: churches,
old towns, cottages, colleges, costumes, donkeys, shepherds and their flocks,
magpies, chateaux, formal gardens, vineyards, fig-trees.--First Sight of Paris; its
Gothic churches, statues, triumphal arches, monumental columns.--Parisian gaiety,
public cemeteries, burial places of the poor
Letter II.--Journey from Paris to Florence.--Serenity of the Italian Climate.--Dreary
country between Paris and Chalons on the Saone.--Autun.--Chalons.--Lyons.--Valley
of the Rhine.--Avignon.--Marseilles; its growth and prosperity.--Banking in France.--
Journey along the Mediterranean.--American and European Institutions
Letter III.--Tuscan Scenery and Climate.--Florence in Autumn.--Deformities of
Cultivation.--Exhibition of the Academy of the Fine Arts.--Respect of the Italians for
Works of Art
Letter IV.--A Day in Florence.--Bustle and Animation of the Place.--Sights seen on the
Bridges.--Morning in Florence.--Brethren of Mercy.--Drive on the Cascine.--Evening in
Florence.--Anecdote of the Passport System.--Mildness of the Climate of Pisa
Letter V.--Practices of the Italian Courts.--Mildness of the Penal Code in Tuscany.--A
Royal Murderer.--Ceremonies on the Birth of an Heir to the Dukedom of Tuscany.--
Wealth of the Grand Duke
Letter VI.--Venice.--Its peculiar Architecture.--Arsenal and Navy Yard.--The Lagoons.--
Ceneda.--Serravalle.--Lago Morto.--Alpine Scenery.--A June Snow-Storm in the Tyrol.-
-Splendor of the Scenery in the Sunshine.--Landro.--A Tyrolese Holiday.--Devotional
Character of the People.--Numerous Chapels.--Sterzing.--Bruneck.--The Brenner.--
Innsbruck.--Bronze Tomb of Maximilian I.--Entrance into Bavaria
Letter VII.--An Excursion to Rock River in Illinois.--Birds and Quadrupeds of the
Prairies.--Dad Joe's Grove.--Beautiful Landscape.--Traces of the Indian Tribes.--Lost
Rocks.--Dixon.--Rock River; beauty of its banks.--A Horse-Thief.--An Association of
Felons.--A Prairie Rattlesnake.--The Prairie-Wolf; its habits.--The Wild Parsnip
Letter VIII.--Examples of Lynch Law.--Practices of Horse-Thieves in Illinois.--
Regulators.--A Murder.--Seizure of the Assassins, their trial and execution.--One of
the Accomplices lurking in the Woods.--Another Horse-Thief shot
Letter IX.--An Example of Senatorial Decorum.--The National Museum at
Washington.--Mount Vernon.--Virginia Plantations.--Beauty of Richmond.--Islands of
James River.--An Old Church.--Inspection of Tobacco.--Tobacco Factory.--Work and
Psalmody.--Howden's Statue of Washington.
Letter X.--Journey from Richmond to Charleston.--Pine Forests of North Carolina.--
Collection of Turpentine.--Harbor of Charleston.--Aspect of the City.Letter XI.--Interior of South Carolina.--Pine Woods.--Plantations.--Swamps.--Birds.--A
Corn-Shucking.--Negro Songs.--A Negro Military Parade.--Character of the Blacks.--
Winter Climate of South Carolina.
Letter XII.--Picolata.--Beauty of the Season.--The St. John's.--A Hammock.--Voyage
from Charleston to Savannah.--City of Savannah.--Quoit Club.--A Negro Burial-Place.-
-Curious Epitaphs.--Bonaventure.--Majestic Avenues of Live-Oaks.--Alligators.--Black
Creek.
Letter XIII.--Woods of Florida.--Anecdotes of the Florida War.--Aspect of St.
Augustine.--Its Streets.--Former Appearance of the City.--Orange Groves.--Fort of St.
Mark.--Palm Sunday.--A Frenchman preaching in Spanish.
Letter XIV.--Climate of St. Augustine.--Tampa Bay.--Melons in January.--Insects in
Southern Florida.--Healthfulness of East Florida.--A Sugar Plantation.--Island of St.
Anastasia.--Quarries of Shell-Rock.--Customs of the Mahonese.--A Mahonese or
Minorcan hymn.
Letter XV.--Florida the "Poor Man's Country."--Settlement of the Peninsula.--The
Indian War.--Its Causes.--Causes of the Peace.--The Everglades.--St. Mary's in
Georgia.--Plague of Sand-Flies.--Alligator Shooting.--Tobacco Chewing.
Letter XVI.--The Champlain Canal.--Beauty of its Banks.--Whitehall.--Canadian
French.--A Family setting out for the West.--The Michigan Lay.--Vermont Scenery.
Letter XVII.--Grasshoppers.--White Clover.--Domestic Arrangements of two
unmarried Ladies.--Canadian French Laborers.--Quakers.--A Pretty Mantua Maker.--
Anecdote told by a Quakeress.--Walpole.--Keene.--A Family of healthy young Women.
Letter XVIII.--A Voyage to Liverpool.--Mountains of Wales.--Growth of Liverpool.--
Aspect of the Place.--Zoological Gardens.--Cemetery among the Rocks.--Ornamental
Cultivation.--Prince's Park.--Chester.--Manchester.--Calico Printing.
Letter XIX.--Edale in Derbyshire.--A Commercial Traveller.--Chapel-en-le-Frith.--The
Winnets.--Mam Tor.--Heathy Hills.--The Lark.--Caverns of the Peak of Derbyshire.--
Castle of the Peverils.--People of Derbyshire.--Matlock.--Derby.
Letter XX.--Works of Art.--Power's Greek Slave.--Exhibition of the Royal Academy.--
Turner's late Pictures.--Webster.--Thorburn.--New Houses of Parliament.--Artists in
Water-Colors.
Letter XXI.--The Parks of London.--Their Extent.--Want of Parks in New York.--
Sweeping of the Streets.--Safety from Housebreaking.--Beggars.--Increase of
Poverty.
Letter XXII.--Edinburg.--The Old Town.--The Castle.--Solid Architecture of the New
Town.--Views from the different Eminences.--Poverty in the Wynds and Alleys.--
Houses of Refuge for the Destitute.--Night Asylums for the Houseless.--The Free
Church.--The Maynooth Grant.--Effect of Endowments.
Letter XXIII.--Fishwomen of Newhaven.--Frith of Forth.--Stirling.--Callander.--The
Trosachs.--Loch Achray.--Loch Katrine.--Loch Lomond.--Glenfalloch.--Dumbarton.--
The Leven.
Letter XXIV.--Glasgow.--Its Annual Fair.--Its Public Statues.--The Free Church.--FreeChurch College.--Odd Subject of a Sermon.--Alloway.--Burns's Monument.--The
Doon.--The Sea.--Burns's Birthplace.--The River Ayr.
Letter XXV.--Voyage to Ireland.--Ailsa Craig.--County of Down.--County of Lowth.--
Difference in the Appearance of the Inhabitants.--Peat-Diggers.--A Park.--Samples of
different Races of Men.--Round Towers.--Valley of the Boyne.--Dublin.--Its Parks.--
O'Connell.--The Repeal Question.--Wall, the Artist.--Exhibition of the Royal Hibernian
Society.
Letter XXVI.--Lunatic Asylum at Hanwell.--Humanity and Skill.--Quiet Demeanor of
the Patients.--Anecdotes of the Inmates.--The Corn-law Question.--Coleman's
Improvement on the Piano.
Letter XXVII.--Changes in Paris.--Asphaltum Pavements.--New and Showy Buildings.--
Suppression of Gaming-Houses.--Sunday Amusements.--Physical Degeneracy.--
Vanderlyn's Picture of the Landing of Columbus.
Letter XXVIII.--A Journey through the Netherlands.--Brussels.--Waterloo.--Walloons
and Flemings.--Antwerp.--Character of Flemish Art.--The Scheldt.--Rotterdam.--
Country of Holland.--The Hague.--Scheveling.--Amsterdam.--Broek Saardam.--
Utrecht.
Letter XXIX.--American Artists abroad.--Düsseldorf: Leutze.--German Painters.--
Florence: Greenough, Powers, Gray, G. L. Brown.--Rome: H. K. Brown, Rossiter, Lang.
Letter XXX.--Buffalo.--The New Fort.--Leopold de Meyer.--Cleveland.--Detroit.
Letter XXXI.--Trip from Detroit to Mackinaw.--The Chippewa Tribe.--The River St.
Clair.--Anecdote.--Chippewa Village.--Forts Huron and Saranac.--Bob Low Island.--
Mackinaw.
Letter XXXII.--Journey from Detroit to Princeton.--Sheboygan.--Milwaukie.--Chicago.--
A Plunge in the Canal.--Aspect of the Country.
Letter XXXIII.--Return to Chicago.--Prairie-Hens.--Prairie Lands of Lee County.--Rock
River District.
Letter XXXIV.--Voyage to Sault Ste. Marie.--Little Fort.--Indian Women gathering
Rice.--Southport.--Isl