Travels in North America 



stories of the dean's wild and chimerical notions; 

 which, as they are characteristic of that extraordinary 

 man, deserve to be taken notice of: one in particular 

 I must beg the reader's indulgence to allow me to 

 repeat to him. The dean had formed the plan of 

 building a town upon the rocks which I have just 

 now taken notice of, and of cutting a road through 

 a sandy beach which lies a little below it, in order 

 that ships might come up and be sheltered in bad 

 weather. He was so full of this project, as one day 

 to say to one Smibert, a designer,* whom he had 

 brought over with him from Europe, on the latter's 

 asking some ludicrous question concerning the future 

 importance of the place: "Truly, you have very 

 "little foresight, for in fifty years time every foot of 

 "land in this place will be as valuable as the land in 

 "Cheapside." The dean's house, notwithstanding 

 his prediction, is at present nothing better than a 

 farmhouse, and his library is converted into the 

 dairy: when he left America, he gave it to the college 

 at New Haven in Connecticut, who have let it to a 

 farmer on a long lease: his books he divided between 

 this college and that in Massachusetts. The dean 

 is said to have written in this place The Minute 

 Philosopher. 



The province of Rhode Island is situated between 

 the 4ist and 42d degree of north latitude; and about 

 72 or 73 degrees west longitude, in the most healthy 



* See Note XVIII. 



[122] 



