LETTERS OF HlEERNICUi^ 



LETTER i 



Afoiitezuma, 2GiJi May, 1S20. 

 I AERiVED here yesterday, my dear Sir, ni the 

 ]iackel beat Chief Engineer, which piies betvveeiJf 

 this place and Utica, as consort to the Moiitezu- 

 lua. The latter is a boat 74 feet long aiid 13 

 lV:ct wide, ^,\hich draws, when not loaded, seven 

 iiiciies of water, and when Icr.dcd eleven. The:e 

 passage boats take a trip and a half twice a week 

 between Utlca and Montezuma on the canah 

 The distance Is about 96 rryles. and aUhough the 

 whole voyage can be performed in 24 hours, yet 

 it generally takes nearly two days. They arc 

 drawn by two horses at the ra^ of four miles an 

 }j )ur, which are relieved by relays at the distance 

 of e\ery twehe jrules. The expense oCa passage 

 from Utica to Montezuma rs four dollars ^^ily, in- 

 cluding provisions and a birth for lodging ; and 

 i assure you tliat the accommodations are as 

 good as can be found on board of the steam boats. 

 Tiiere is also a regular packet between Utica and 

 Ilo:ne, which takes a trip once a daj'. By a trijf 

 I mean the voyage out and home. We passed 

 several boats, rafts, and scows on our passage. 

 Some were built on tlie canal, and others trans- 

 ported V) it froQi the Mohawk and Seneca rivers- 



