THE DORSET COLONY IN MASSACHUSETTS. 113 



than this, " A. B., Esq., East Weymouth, Mass." The gentleman 

 in question was, as I have stated, a most respectable, and, indeed, 

 influential man, and would in England have been entitled, accord- 

 ing to modern usage, although engaged in trade, to be so addressed. 

 But in republican America ! This little incident served, amongst 

 other things, to convince me that our cousins across the water are 

 not, after all, so very different from ourselves, and that they are 

 gradually accommodating themselves to the ways of the world in 

 general, and especially of that portion of it from which they 

 mainly derive their origin. I now quote from my diary. " Wey- 

 mouth, Mass., is really a group of villages, comprising W. Landing, 

 a small port up the river, North W., South W., and East W. At the 

 last place I found my introduction not at his place of business it 

 was closed but at his private residence. I soon found out that I 

 had selected an unfortunate day for my visit ; that nearly all the 

 commercial establishments were closed in consequence of the burial 

 of a much-esteemed inhabitant, who was to have a public funeral ; 

 and, worse still, that my friend was to superintend the organisation 

 of the procession. He, therefore, could personally do nothing for 

 me, but, having kindly placed his trap at my disposal, he directed 

 his nephew to drive me round and show me the neighbourhood. 

 Under his kindly and intelligent leadership this was duly accom- 

 plished, everything of interest being pointed out, and every 

 enquiry answered in the most obliging manner. I may at once 

 state that Old Weymouth and New Weymouth bear no resemblance 

 to each other except in name. Proximity to the sea, without the 

 least similarity of coast-line, is almost too remote a feature to be 

 noticed, and certainly could not have had influence in the choice of 

 the name. East Weymouth is the principal seat of trade, but of 

 the life of the place I really saw nothing, a loss by no means com- 

 pensated by seeing what I did not want to see a grand Masonic 

 funeral. The scenery of the district is of a very ordinary charac- 

 ter, and does not call for description. The houses are nearly all 

 detached dwellings, built of wood, resting sometimes on piles, 

 sometimes on a few courses of stone-work, to keep them 



