NEW YORK. 



223 



dered to the British, in pursuance of the treaty of 

 London. June2i), 1674, a new grant was made by 

 Charles II. to the duke of York. After the accession 

 of the latter to the throne, the colony became a 

 part of the dominions of the British crown, and the 

 government was administered by royal governors and 

 a local council and assembly, until May, 1775, when 

 the people determined to take up and exercise the 

 power of civil government, which was accordingly 

 done, through the medium of committees of safety 

 and of the provincial congress, until the provisions 

 of the state constitution, adopted in April, 1777, 

 were carried into effect. The inhabitants of New 

 York sustained an important part in the war of the 

 revolution, and its territory was the scene of several 

 sanguinary conflicts and of many interesting events. 

 Upon the conclusion of that war, the state commenced 

 a new and distinguished career, which has ever since 

 been steadily continued, and some of the results of 

 which are briefly exhibited in this article. 



A uthorities : Burr's Atlas of the State of New 

 York; Topography of the State of New York, by 

 professor Henry, and other articles in the Transac- 

 tions of the Albany Institute (vol. i.); Darby's Geo- 

 graphical Works; doctor L. C. Beck On the Onon- 

 daga Salt Springs ; M. H. Webster's List of the 

 Minerals in the State of New York ; Smith's History 

 of New York (edition of New York Historical So- 

 ciety); Moulton's History of the Colony of New 

 Netherlands; Spafford's Gazetteer of the State of 

 New York; Williams's New York Annual Register 

 for 1831 ; documents and proceedings of the legisla- 

 ture of New York, &c. 



NEW YORK, the largest and most populous city 

 in the United States, lies in the state of that name, 

 and is situated at the junction of the Hudson and 

 East rivers, at the head of the bay of New York, and 

 about sixteen miles from the Atlantic ocean, in lat. 

 40 42' N., 74 1' 8" W. Ion. from Greenwich, 

 England; and 2 54' 22" E. from the city of 

 Washington. It stands on an island formed by the 

 two rivers just named, and a small river called 

 Haerlem, which connects them. The length of this 

 island is about fifteen miles, from south to north, and 

 its average breadth about one mile and a half. It is 

 separated, on the north, from the continent, by 

 Haerlem river, which is crossed by several bridges ; 

 from New Jersey, on the west, by Hudson's river ; 

 from Long Island, on the east, by the East river; 

 and from Staaten Island, to the south, by the bay or 

 harbour. According to Van der Donck, who pub- 

 lished a History of the New Netherlands, at Amster- 

 dam, in 1656, Hudson's river was the English name 

 of the great river coming from the north ; but the 

 Dutch " called it Mauritius, after prince Maurice, 

 who then presided over the government of Holland." 

 The Indian name of the island was Manhattan ; tke 

 Dutch called the city Nieuw Amsterdam; and the 

 British changed it to the name which it stil) retains. 

 The same writer gives us the following description 

 of the bay of New York : " The bay on which 

 Staaten Island is situated is the most celebrated, 

 because the East and North rivers flow into it 

 rivers, a particular description of which will be pre- 

 sently given, together with a number of kills, gats, 

 and creeks, some of which resemble small rivers, 

 and are navigable, as Raritan kill, kill Van Kull, 

 Nieuvesink, &c. This bay is also so formed as to 

 render it safe from all boisterous winds, and a thou- 

 sand ships of burthen may harbour in it within the 

 land. The entrance into the bay is extensive, and is 

 accompanied with but little danger to those who have 

 once gone, or have been taught the passage. If per- 

 sons are so inclined, and the wind fair, they may in 

 one tide proceed from sea to the city of New A mster- 



dam, which lies five (Dutch) miles from the ocean, 

 and that when deeply laden, with an easy sail, ami 

 by ships of the greatest burthen." The following is 

 the depth of water over the bar, as furnished by the 

 pilot of the United States' ship Boston, which passed 

 it in June, 1830, with the wind from the westward. 



Cnrripd over the bar 

 Tide had fallen . . . 



2i ft fi in. 

 1 6 



27 ft. in. 



The whole island of New York constitutes one county, 

 which is governed by the city charter, and divided 

 into fourteen wards, each equally represented in the 

 common council, and each electing its own municipal 

 officers. Members of congress and assembly are 

 elected by the whole people, and whoever has the 

 highest number of votes, is chosen, whether that 

 number constitutes a majority of the whole or not. 

 The common council sits, and the courts are held, in 

 the city hall, a handsome marble building, finely 

 situated in an extensive park. There is, perhaps, 

 no place in the world where the municipal authority 

 exercises such despotic sway over the property of 

 the citizen, in opening, levelling, widening streets, 

 and other alterations and improvements. It is not 

 an uncommon case for property to be assessed, for 

 one or other of these purposes, for more than it is 

 worth ; and the only privilege accorded to the owner 

 is that of abandoning it to the corporation, and pay- 

 ing the rest out of his own pocket. Under this sys- 

 tem, it cannot, however, be denied, that New York 

 has advanced in beauty and improvements almost 

 beyond example. The population, in 1697, was 

 4302; in 1756, 13,040; in 1790, 33,130; in 1800, 

 60,489; in 1810, 96,373; in 1820, 123,706; in 1825, 

 166,086 ; and, in 1830, 203,009. In 1769, in a hotly 

 contested election of four days, the number of votes 

 taken was 1515 ; of the voters 917 were freeholders: 

 in 1830, the number of votes for members of congress 

 was upwards of 21,000; the proportion of free- 

 holders not known, as property is no longer the 

 basis of representation. The revenue of the city, in 

 1830, was 1,036,930 dollars ; the expenditure, 

 1,033,419; and the debt, 774,455. In the same 

 year, the revenue collected at the custom-house was 

 21,756,709 dollars ; the foreign tonnage entering the 

 port, 450,868 tons ; the arrivals from foreign ports, 

 1510, of which 1366 were American. The number 

 of coasting vessels frequenting the port is almost 

 incalculable. For 1810, the assessment of real and 

 personal property was 125,288,518 dollars; in 1688, 

 the value of estates assessed was 78,231. In 



1824, the number of deaths was 4341 ; in 1825, 

 50J8. The proportion of births to deaths is not 

 known as it ought to be, in order to draw any useful 

 practical conclusions from this subject. Of these 

 deaths, one-sixth were from consumptions. The 

 greatest number of deaths, in 1824, was in the 

 month of August, the smallest in December. In 



1825, the greatest mortality was in July, and the 

 smallest in April. 



Theiair of New York is keen and cold in winter, 

 partly owing to its being entirely surrounded by 

 water, which freezes more or less during that season. 

 The spring is generally lingering and backward, 

 owing to the great prevalence of chilly easterly 

 winds, coming directly from the sea ; but the sum- 

 mer is less oppressive than in Philadelphia and Bal- 

 timore, and the autumn, for the most part, very plea- 

 sant. During the heats of summer, the Battery and 

 Castle garden afford a never-failing source of cool- 

 ness, and a prospect equally refreshing and delight- 

 ful. The nights are almost always rendered com- 

 fortable, even in the hottest weather, by the sea 

 breezes, the influence of which is felt very sensibly. 



