50 
generally afforded instructive amusements. I passed the morning 
in reading and writing, then received or paid visits, and at all 
times met with attention, courteousness, and kindness. I visit¬ 
ed the churches on the Sundays I passed in Boston, which are 
still more quietly kept in America than in England. The first 
time I went to a Unitarian church, attended by a son of the 
mayor; a second time I went to an Episcopalian church, accom¬ 
panied by Mr. Lloyd, a very distinguished man, and senator of 
the United States. I dined twice at the inn, but generally ac¬ 
cepted some friendly invitation, and passed all my evenings 
very agreeably in company at musical parties and other enter¬ 
tainments. I also made some excursions into the country be¬ 
sides those already mentioned. 
The society, especially when ladies are not present, is uncom¬ 
monly fine and lively—both sexes are very well educated and 
accomplished. So much care is bestowed upon the education of 
the female sex, that it would perhaps be considered in other 
countries as superfluous. Young ladies even learn Latin and 
Greek, but then they also can speak of other things besides fa¬ 
shions and tea-table subjects; thus, for instance, I was at a party 
of Mrs. General Humphreys, which was entirely in the European 
style, without cards, dancing or music, and yet it was lively and 
agreeable. Thus I passed some delightful hours with Mr. Ritchie, 
Mr. Dixon, Mr. Homer, Mr. Otis, Mr. Shepherd, and Mr. Ar- 
tiguenave, a Frenchman, formerly an actor in the Theatre Fran- 
gais, at Paris, and now professor of the French language at Cam¬ 
bridge University. Many of those gentlemen who are met with 
in such society, have travelled in Europe, sometimes accompa¬ 
nied by their ladies; Europeans are frequently present, and thus 
there is no want of materials for conversation. The generality 
of the houses, moreover, offer something attractive in the fine 
arts; and in returning home on an evening, the city, the bridges, 
and the Mill-dam are very well lighted, not indeed with gas, but 
with reflecting lamps, and none of that disorderly conduct is ob¬ 
served in the streets, which so often shocks the mind in the ci¬ 
ties of England. 
We made an excursion on the ,1st of August into the country 
with Mr. Dixon in his dearborn. A dearborn is a very light wa¬ 
gon, with two benches and four wheels, drawn by one horse. We 
rode over the neck which unites Boston with the main land, and 
was fortified by the English during the revolution; then in an 
ascending direction towards the heights of Roxbury, where, dur¬ 
ing the blockade, the right wing of the American lines stood. 
The ground is very rocky, and partly covered with fir trees; the 
trees which formerly stood here must have been entirely remov¬ 
ed, as not one high tree can be seen. Passing farther on we saw 
