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1851. 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



187 



civilized world. Here in this building are people of 

 all nations, conversing in all tongues and languages, 

 at the same time. From pole to pole, the world, 

 both in its industry and its inhabitants, is represent- 

 ed, and a collection of men and things brought to- 

 gether, such as no man living ever sav/ before. The 

 great questions of the day here are. What are to be 

 its results ! Will it benefit trade or injure it 1 8ic., 

 &LC. On these heads long newspaper articles are 

 written, lectures delivered, and sermons preached, 

 and books written. To me, one result seems inev- 

 itable : it will give to the different nations of the 

 world a more intimate knowledge of one another, 

 not only in regard to their industrial, but social re- 

 lations. My own case is an example that I am at 

 liberty to refer to. Here I have been able to exam- 

 ine the fruits and other vegetable productions, min- 

 erals, and manufactures of Russia, Norway, Sweden, 

 Spain, Portugal, China, Egypt, Australia, Algiers, 

 fcc, countries in which I have never traveled and 

 probably never shall ; and although I may have read 

 of the condition of these pursuits and products, yet 

 what is such information, compared to an actual in- 

 spection of the articles themselves. The millions 

 who have visited this palace of industry have all 

 learned something, and the world has received an 

 impetus in its onward progress in the arts. Eng- 

 lishmen are proud of it, and justly too. The idea of 

 such an aifair is grand, but to carry it oat so per- 

 fectly and successfully in all its detail, is grander 

 still : and I can really forgive the t ily glorification 

 of the English journals over it. Ai impression ob- 

 tained all over England that the Un:ted States was 

 unfriendly to the exhibition, and that the Yankees 

 hoped and prayed for its failure. Not a day have I 

 been in the building without hearing, often and often, 

 the expression, " I wonder if the Yankess still pre- 

 dict a failure." This impression created a deep 

 prejudice against our articles, and the "Times" has 

 scarcely failed a day since I have been here, to sneer 

 at and ridicule "our cousins from the United States." 

 It wiil do us no harm in the end — we can aftbrd to 

 lose a litXle of our self-conceit ; but ridicule is al- 

 ways unpleasant. 



The business people of London have experienced 

 some disappointment over it. They expected to 

 empty their stores every week or two, but " business 

 never was more dull," Theatres, and thousands of 

 pla. es of amusement, all of which anticipated fortune- 

 ma ,ng times, are mourning over an unexpected 

 " beggarly account of empty boxes." The exhibi- 

 tion itself swallows all. The working people have 

 for months back been hoarding up their means, and 

 have not made their ordinary purchases, in order that 

 they might be able to take a holiday and spend a few 

 shillings in the exhibition. This has affected trade 

 very much in the aggregate, no doubt. Visitors to 

 London find enough to engage their attention, with- 

 out paying. The public buildings are all accessible 

 now. The castles and palaces of the aristocracy are 

 all thrown open, on certain days of the week, to every 

 body. Their magnificent parks and gardens, their 

 great collections of paintings, and everything that 

 long centuries, unbounded wealth, and cultivated 

 taste have assembled together. These throw all 

 petty shows into the shade. The parks of London 

 alone are now-a-days panoramas, of extraordinary 

 beauty. The only. real luxury I have enjoyed here, 

 has been an occasional stroll in Hyde Park ; and 

 here I must say a word about this park, for the ben- 



efit of those who have never seen it. Imagine 400 

 acres of land with a gracefully undulating surface, 

 a lawn like velvet, studded over with trees of all ages 

 and sizes. I saw several six feet in diameter (elms,) 

 and many are only a few years planted. Through 

 it runs the serpentine river, a stream about as wide 

 as the Genesee, but so clear and quiet does it glido 

 around its graceful serpentine curves, that it is a 

 perfect mirror, reflecting the park on its boscm. 

 The grass is green as emerald to its very edo-e, 

 weeping birches droop their slender bouqhs over it, 

 and at one place it is spanned by a beautiful brido-e. 

 Here are also drives, broad and smofjti-i, kept with 

 more than the neatness of a garden walk, and wind- 

 ing like the river in graceful serpentine curves. 

 Here daily we can see the best blood in England, 

 either of men or horses ; with the latter I am^espe- 

 cially delighted. In this park, too, are groups of 

 cattfe, the finest Durhams in England, and many 

 other breeds. In one place are barracks for the 

 "life guards," and in another a pretty cottage for 

 the keeper. lu every part of it people are strolling 

 and lounging ; and really, when one gets in a quiet 

 nook, pretty well elevated, and takes a survey of the 

 scene, including the "crystal palace," its glassy roof 

 and thousand flags, it impresses them at once with a 

 feeling both of the sublime and the beautiful. 



Hyde Park and the other parks around London ! — 

 what a blessing they are to the people of this huge, 

 smoky, foggy, crowded city. Here they can go out 

 and breathe pure air, see the trees, the green grass, 

 herds of cattie, and in fact, the country in miniature. 

 This cultivates a taste and cherishes feelings that 

 can not fail to counteract some of the evil effects of 

 great cities. 



While I am speaking of parks, I must not forget 

 the great park at Greenvi^ich. Greenwich is a large 

 and ancient town, five miles from London, on the 

 Thames. The Royal Observatory is here, where it 

 is well known all English astronomical observations 

 are made. There is a great park here, several hun- 

 dred acres in extent, and though not so beautiful as 

 Hyde Park, is full as well adapted for a promenade 

 and pic-nic resort. A portion of the ground around 

 the observatory is so high as to command a fine view 

 of London and much of the surroiniding country, and 

 the Thames, with its active, grimy, floating popula- 

 tion, far up and down. In a clear day the prospect 

 is fine, and all around the highest points you will 

 find infirm old sailors (who are closing up their lives 

 here in one of the finest charitable buildings in the 

 world,) witli small telescopes through which you can 

 look at distant objects. The trees in this park are 

 very old and of gigantic proportions. They are 

 planted in avenues straight from one point to another 

 — cutting the park into triangles. It is these ave- 

 nues that make it so pleasant a promenade. I was 

 there during a heavy rain, and thousands of others, 

 too, and we all found a complete shelter in the ave- 

 nues, so broad, dense and interwoven are the ma ses 

 of foliage of these venerable elms, lindens and chest- 

 nuts. There are fine herds of deer in the park, and 

 an extensive rabbit warren. On a fine Sunday after- 

 noon, or during a Greenwich Fair day, (held last 

 week,) 10,000 people may be seen in this park at once. 

 Steamers run on the river, carry passengers from all 

 the bridges every quarter of an hour, and there is 

 also a railroad conveyance every few minutes.for about 

 one shilling your money. I think the influence of 

 these public parks is very evident in the tastes of the 



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