; I 277 



NOTES ON AMERICA. No. IV. 



EUROPEAN travellers in the United States, usually complain of the 

 want of those historical and romantic associations, which, in the old 

 world, so often confer an interest on the most barren plains, and 

 lend a charm to the least picturesque of ruins. And an Englishman 

 feels this deficiency more, perhaps, than the stranger of any other 

 nation ; because it so happens, that the few celebrated spots which may 

 be pointed out to him during his progress through the country, are 

 precisely those, the contemplation of which awakens any but delightful 

 sensations in his mind. For my own part, at least, I must confess, that 

 I have no pleasure in surveying the heights of Bunker's Hill, or the 

 plains of Saratoga. The contest which terminated in the establishment 

 of American independence was discreditable to us as a nation, both in its 

 origin, and in the mode in which it was conducted ; and, though I 

 certainly " wish all men to be free, from mobs and kings, from you and 

 me;" still, I have too much prejudiced English blood in my veins, to 

 view with satisfaction those scenes, where even liberty triumphed at the 

 expense of English honour. 



But, although we meet with no monuments of classic fame, no record 

 of the chivalric deeds of the warlike monarchs, and barons bold of the 

 middle ages ; and, although the recent glories of the American revolu- 

 tion may not be such as we love to dwell upon, still there can be no 

 greater error, than to suppose that a journey through the interior of the 

 Atlantic States is a dull, plodding, and uninteresting occupation. We 

 may disapprove of the political institutions of the country, and the 

 manners of the inhabitants may not be to our taste, but the most furious 

 aristocrat under heaven, must acknowledge the grandeur and beauty of 

 much of the natural scenery. Every thing in America is on a mag- 

 nificent scale ; mountains, rivers, lakes, plains, swamps, and forests, of 

 vast extent diversify the face of this immense continent. 



" These are miracles which man, 

 Caged in the bounds of Europe's pigmy plan, 

 Can scarcely dream of, which his eye must see, 

 To know how beautiful this world can be." 



These lines often occurred to my recollection during a journey which I 

 performed on horseback in the interior of the Southern States. There 

 are few means of human enjoyment more delightful, more conducive to 

 mental and bodily health, than such a tour provided always, that the 

 traveller is indifferent to personal accommodation, and possesses a stout 

 heart and a strong horse. 



This latter is indispensable, and the greatest care in his mode of 

 management is also requisite. The plan which I was advised to adopt, 

 and which proved to be an excellent one, is briefly as follows. He must 

 be fed only once per diem, about eight or nine o'clock in the evening, or 

 an hour after his work is over, when he has been well groomed, and is 

 perfectly cool. This the traveller must attend to himself, as a negro 

 hostler will never perform his duty even in the presence of his master. 

 The provender consists invariably of Indian corn sprinkled with salt, 

 and the blades or leaves of the corn plant, with plenty of water. This, 



