MEMOIR. liii 



swered, "but you must stay and keep house with my 

 wife until I return." 



I was gone before he reached home again, but, with 

 many who wished to consult him about houses they were 

 building, and with many whom he honored and wished to 

 know, awaited his promised visit at Newport. 



Mr. Downing had intended to leave Newburgh with his 

 wife upon Tuesday, the 27th of July, when they would 

 have taken one of the large river steamers for New- York. 

 But his business prevented his leaving upon that day, and it 

 was postponed to Wednesday, the 28th of July, on which 

 day only the two smaller boats, the "Henry Clay" and 

 the " Armenia " were running. Upon reaching the wharf, 

 Mr. and Mrs. Downing met her mother, Mrs. De "Wint, 

 with her youngest son and daughter, and the lady who had 

 been pointed out as the heroine of a tragedy. But this 

 morning she was as sunny as the day, which was one of 

 the loveliest of summer. 



The two steamers were already in sight, coming down 

 the river, and there was a little discussion in the party as 

 to which they would take. But the " Henry Clay " was 

 the largest and reached the wharf first. Mr. Downing 

 and his party embarked, and soon perceived that the two 

 boats were desperately racing. The circumstance was, 

 however, too common to excite any apprehension in the 

 minds of the party, or even to occasion remark. They sat 

 upon the deck enjoying the graceful shores that fled by 

 them a picture on the air. Mr. Downing was engaged 

 in lively talk with his companion, who had never been to 

 Newport and was very curious to see and share its brilliant 

 life. They had dined, and the boat was within twenty 

 miles of New- York, in a broad reach of the river between 

 the Palisades and the town of Yonkers, when Mrs. Down- 



