391 



BALTIMORE BALTIMORE BIRD. 



accompanied by violent storms, render this sea dan- 

 fliTniiN fur navigators, although its waves are less 

 terrible than tliose of ttie North sea. A chain of 

 Mauds separates the southern part of this sea from 

 the nurtliern, or the gulf of Motlmia, In the north- 

 i.i-t, the gulf of Finl'iind stretches far into Finland, 

 and separates that province from IXtlumia. A third 

 gulf is that of Riga or Livonia. The Curische Haff 

 and the Frische 1 i ;iii' are inlets on the Prussian coast. 

 The water of the Baltic is colder and clearer than 

 that of the ocean : it contains a smaller proportion 

 of salt, and the ice obstructs the navigation three or 

 four months in the year. Tin- ebb and flow of the 

 tide arc in< on-iilcrable, as is the case in other inland 

 seas, whose outlets are toward the west ; yet the 

 water rises and falls from time to time, although 

 from other causes, particularly on account of the vio- 

 lent current, through the Sound and both the Belts, 

 into tin- Cattegat. In stormy weather, amber is 

 found on the coasts of Prussia and Courland, which 

 the waves wash upon the shore. Forty streams 

 inpty themselves into the Baltic: among them are 

 the Neva, Dwina, Warnow, Trave, Peene, Oder, 

 Persante, Wipper, Vistula, Pregel, Niemen, and 

 the generally insignificant Swedish rivers. Besides 

 Zealand and Fuhnen, may be noticed the following 

 islands : Samsoe, Mon, Bornholm, Langeland, Laa- 

 land, which belong to Denmark ; the Swedish islands 

 Gothland and < Maud, likewise 1 1 ween in the Sound, 

 with the ruins of Oranienburg, the observatory built 

 by Tycho Brahe ; Rugen, now belonging to Prussia ; 

 lastly, the islands of Aland, at the entrance of the 

 gulf of Bothnia, and Dagoe, together with Oesel, on 

 the coast of Livonia, which belong to the Russian 

 empire. Three passages lead from the Cattegat into 

 I lie Baltic sea the Sound, the Great and the Little 

 Belt. At all three a toll is paid, often amounting to 

 600,000 or 600,000 rix dollars yearly. From 4000 

 to 6000 ships enter yearly from the North sea into 

 the Baltic. 



BALTIMORE; a city and port in Baltimore county, 

 Maryland, America, on the north side of the Patapsco, 

 fourteen miles above its entrance into Chesapeake 

 bay ; 37 N. E. Washington, 100 S. W. Philadelphia. 

 Lon. 76 36' W. ; lat. 39 17' N. Pop. in 1790, 

 13,758; in 1800, 23,971 ; in 1810, 46,556, of whom 

 10,343 were blacks; in 1820, 62,738; in 1830, 

 80,519. B. has had a remarkably rapid growth. It 

 was first laid out as a town in 1729 ; and, in 1765, 

 it contained only about fifty houses. It was first 

 erected into a city in 1797, and is now the third in 

 size in the United States. It is admirably situated 

 for commerce, and is a place of great wealth and 

 trade. It possesses most of the trade of Maryland, 

 about hah? of that of Pennsylvania, and a portion of 

 that of the Western States. B. is the best market 

 for tobacco in the United States, and it is the great- 

 est flour market in the world. Its vicinity affords 

 great water privileges, and there are now in opera- 

 tion numerous flour-mills, cotton manufactories, and 

 other water-works. The shipping owned here in 

 1790 amounted to only 13,564 tons; in 1816, to 

 10 1,960 tons. 



Baltimore, as laid out, is four miles square, and it 

 is divided into twelve wards. It is built around a 

 basin, which affords a spacious, secure, and commo- 

 dious harbour, having, at common tides, eight or nine 

 feet of water. The principal part of the city is 

 divided from the portions styled Old Town and Fell's 

 point by a small river, called Jones' falls, over which 

 are erected three elegant stone bridges, and four 

 wooden ones. Vessels of 500 or 600 tons can lie at 

 the wharves at the point in perfect- safety ; but those 

 of only 200 tons can come up to the town. The 

 mouth of the harbour is a narrow strait, and is effec- 



tually commanded by fort M'Henry, which secure* 

 the city against a naval force. The situation of a 

 part of the town is low, and it was formerly account- 

 ed unhealthy ; but the various improvements which 

 have been made, particularly the filling up of low 

 and marshy grounds, have rendered it, healthy. It is 

 supplied with excellent water from four public foun- 

 tains, which are fitted up in an ornamental style. 



Baltimore contains a court-house, a penitentiary, 

 a jail, an alms-house, an hospital, two theatres, a 

 circus, an exchange, a museum ami gallery of paint- 

 ings, five market-houses, and about forty houses of 

 public worship. The exchange is a very large edi- 

 fice, 366 feet by 140, somewhat resembling an II, 

 having four wings one for the United States branch 

 bank, one for the custom-house, and one for a coffee- 

 house. The Roman Catholic cathedral and the Uni- 

 tarian church are very conspicuous and handsome 

 edifices. St Paul's church, the court house, and the 

 Union bank are spacious and elegant. Several 

 of the other public buildings are large and ele- 

 gant. The Washington monument, a lofty struc- 

 ture of stone, is situated on an elevation just 

 above, the compact part of the city. The base is 

 fifty feet square and twenty-three high, on which is 

 placed another square of about half the extent and 

 elevation. On this is a column twenty feet in diame- 

 ter at the base, and fourteen at the top. The statue 

 of Washington is to be placed on the summit, 163 

 feet from the ground. The city is generally well 

 built, mostly of brick. Many of the houses, parti- 

 cularly of those recently erected, display much ele- 

 gance and taste. The streets are well paved, and 

 many of them are spacious. The principal street, 

 called Baltimore or Market street, is about a mile 

 long, aud about eighty feet wide, runs nearly east 

 and west, parallel with the water, and is intersected 

 at right angles, like those in Philadelphia. North 

 and east of the city, the land rises to a considerable 

 elevation, and affords a fine and variegated prospect. 

 The town, the point, the shipping both in the bay 

 and at Fell's point, the bay as tar as the eye can 

 reach, rising ground on the right and left of the har- 

 bour, a fine grove of trees on the declivity at the 

 right, and a stream of water breaking over the rocks 

 at the hill on the left, make a scene of much beauty. 

 The two principal literary institutions of B. ai t St 

 Mary's college and a medical college. The forn.er, 

 which was incorporated in 1806, is a Catholic insti- 

 tution, well endowed, and has a library containing 

 about 10,000 volumes. The medical college was 

 founded in 1807, and, in 1812, it received a new 

 charter with the title of university. 



A formidable attack was made on this city during 

 the war, on the 13th and 14th of September, 1814 

 by the British, under general Ross. On the 13th, 

 the battle at North point was fought ; and, on the 

 14th, fort M'Henry was bombarded. The enemy 

 was repulsed, and general Ross slain. An elegant 

 structure of marble, about thirty-five feet high, called 

 the battle monument, has been erected to commem- 

 orate this event. On the column are inscribed the 

 names of those who fell in defence of the city. (For 

 the Baltimore and Ohio railroad, see Railroad.) 



BALTIMOBE BIRD (icterus Baltimore ; oriolus Balti- 

 more, Wilson ; called, also, hang-nest golden robin, 

 fire-bird, hanging -nest.) The Baltimore bird is a 

 beautiful visitor from the south, which arrives in 

 Pennsylvania about the beginning of May, and de 

 parts towards the last of August or first of September/ 

 It is most generally known oy the name of Baltimore 

 bird, so called, according to Catesby, from its black 

 and orange plumage, these colours being those of 

 Calvert, Ford Baltimore, proprietary of the province 

 of Maryland. The bird is seven inches long, and 



