River Delaware. • ii 



building at Philadelphia ; for which purpofe 

 every year fome Engli/b captains take a 

 paffage in autumn to this town, and fuper- 

 intend the building of new fhips during 

 winter, with which they go to fea next 

 fpring : and at this time it was more ufual 

 than common, as the French and Spanijh 

 privateers had taken many Englijh merchant 

 {hips. 



A LITTLE after noon we reached the 

 mouth of Delaware river, which is here 

 about three Englijh miles broad, but de- 

 creafes gradually fo much, that it is fcarcely 

 a mile broad at Philadelphia. 



HEREweweredelighted in feeingnowand 

 then between the^ woods fome farm houfes 

 furrounded with corn fields, paftures well- 

 ftocked with cattle, and meadows covered 

 with fine hay; and more than one fenfe 

 was agreeably affected, when the wind 

 brought to us the finefl effluvia of odorife- 

 rous plants and flowers, or that of the frefh 

 made hay : thefe agreeable fenfations and 

 the fine fcenery of nature on this continent, 

 fo new to us, continued till it grew quite 

 dark. 



Here I will return to fea, and give the 

 reader a fhort view of the various occur- 

 rences belonging to Natural-Hiflory, during 

 pur crofiing the Ocean. 



Of 



