272 VESSELS ON THE RIVER LOUISVILLE. 



down the river towards New Orleans, filled with farm pro 

 duce, including sheep. These arks are built of strong tim 

 bers, fitted up with apartments for the navigators, and sold 

 on reaching New Orleans, the crews returning by the steam 

 boats. The numerous steam-boats do not seem to have 

 diminished this mode of conveying farm produce, and pro 

 bably many of them are built on shallow streams in the inte 

 rior of the country, where steam-vessels never can have ac 

 cess. These arks are simply kept in the current, which floats 

 them down, and in this country, where the farmer has so much 

 leisure time in autumn and winter, must be a cheap mode of 

 conveying produce to market. 



Louisville is situated on the south bank of the Ohio, at 

 the mouth of a small stream called Bear Grass, in the State 

 of Kentucky. It consists of several streets running parallel 

 to the river, and the houses are composed of brick. There 

 are many steam-engines employed in sawing wood, grinding 

 Avheat, and other purposes. Louisville is the most thriving 

 place on the waters of the coast connected with the Missis 

 sippi, and contains about 14:,GOO inhabitants ; it is 1448 miles 

 distant from New Orleans by the river, and 590 from Wash 

 ington. 



On arriving at Louisville I could not obtain admittance into 

 either of the two principal hotels, and afterwards had sufficient 

 evidence to satisfy me the denial was entirely owing to my 

 shabby appearance. My third application was at the Ame 

 rican Hotel, a large and excellent establishment ; and feeling 

 somewhat annoyed at the manner of my previous refusals, I 

 asked the bar-keeper if he would accommodate me for the 

 night, and he answered in a smart tone of voice, &quot; Certainly, 

 sir ; we are servants of the public, but I hope you will eat 

 something.&quot; The inmates of the house were assembling for 

 supper in the Exchange room, and on ringing the bell, 

 the rush up stairs into the banqueting apartment was exces 

 sive, there being nearly two hundred individuals assembled. 

 The company were settled down at two large tables, and 

 every thing passed oif well, but not in the same quiet way I 

 had observed at other large establishments. 



The gentlemen were fashionably dressed, and several of 



