645 
Gentleman to his Friend.” The author 
of this detcription is Mr. CHARLES WIL- 
LIAMSON,a gentleman of high refpectabi- 
hity, whote refidence in the country which 
he defcribes has given him an cpportunity 
‘of being acquainted with every cireum- 
fiance relative ‘to its fettlement and fitu- 
ation. An attempt was made in 1789 by 
Mr. Phelps, to obtain a fettlement in the 
Genefee country; but little was effcéted 
till the year 1798, when an Englith gen- 
tleman having become the purchafer of the 
traét, vifited it in perfon, and projected a 
plan of fettlement which has been pro- 
fecuted with viyer and fuccefs from that 
time tothe prefent. The town of Bath, 
we are informed, comprehending a diftri& 
of eight miles, contained in the year 1796 
£00 inhabitants, two f{chools, one grift- 
mill, and two iaw-mills. A printing-of- 
fice was eftablifhed in the town, and a 
-news-paper, entitled the «* Bath Gazette,” 
publifhed weekly, which in fix months 
was taken by a thoufand fubferibers ; ano- 
ther paper is’ allo publifhed in the Gene- 
fee, entitled the “* Oxtario Gaxette.”’ The 
fame year a iloop of forty tons was launch- 
ed on the Genefee lake. The climate of 
the Genefee country is reprefented as re- 
matkably genial and the foil pecutiarly pro- 
ine “ thofe parching heats that on the 
fouth fide of the Allegheny mountains 
feem to dry up every particle of nouriih- 
meat from the plants, are never known,” 
fays Mr. Williamfon, ‘¢ in this couatry : 
in almoit every inftance, a hot day is fuc- 
ceeded by a plenuful fhower, which pre- 
ferves throughout the fummer a conitant 
verdure, and affords to us the fineft paf- 
tures and meadows on the continent.” 
The face of the country, is not, it feems, 
as has been erroneoufly reprefented, Hat 
and level, full of fwamps and ftagnant 
water, but on the contrary it abounds with 
gentle fwellings of the land, running moft 
On from north to fouth, the inter- 
mediate {paces affording meadow-land, and 
generally a {mall ffream of water. From 
the ignorance of the firft fettlers, it was 
fuppoled that this fort of land was barren, 
_ and coafequently but of little value: neé- 
cellity, however. drove fome of them. to 
the cultivation of it, and a good crep dif- 
appointed their fears, and in “ numberlefs 
_ inftances they have continued to reap plen- 
tifn crops every year for feveral years 
paft.”’ This kind of Jand. fays the anther, 
which fix years ago would not have fold 
for a quarter of a dollar an acre, is now 
reckoned cheap at ten dollars per acre.» 
- The very rapid progrels towards plenty 
i improvement, which is obfervable in 
@2G 
Retrofpect of American Literature—Biography. 
the Genefee country, muft be highly grate= 
ful to the feelings of every man who has 
a {park of philanthropy in his bofom : and 
we are indebted to Mr. Williemfon fordi- 
verting our thoughts from the complicated 
horrors and barbarities of war, to {fe 
pleafing a fubjeét of contemplation. 
BIOGRAPHY. : 
Dr. JEREMY Br LKNAP was a divine 
of confiderable eminence aad re{pectability 
on the other fideof the Atlantic; he wrote 
a hiftory of New Hampthire, and after- 
wards, indulging his tafte for ancient re- 
featch, publithed a volume of ‘¢ Ameriean 
Biography, or a Hiftorical Account of 
thofe Perfons who have been diftinguifhed 
in America, as Adventurers, Divines, 
Warriors, Authors, and other remarkable - 
Characters, comprehending a recital of the 
Events consected with their Lives: and 
Adgtions.” A fecond volume has’ lately 
made its appearance ; the author had juft 
prepared it for the prefs when his labors 
were terminated by death. The firft vo- 
lume of this work opens with a prelimi- 
nary differtation on the “ circumnavigation 
of Afvica by the ancients. and its probable 
confequence, the population of fome part 
of America.” This differtation is followed 
by a chronological detai! of adventures and 
difcoveries made by the European natives 
in America, before the eftablifhment of the 
Council of Plymouth in 1620. The body 
of the work contains the biographical 
fketch of thirty-one different perfonages, 
ome of whom do not feem entitled to have 
been placed on the lift from any peculiar 
publicity or eminence in their charaéters ; 
fill, however, the narrative of their lives 
has given birth to-the relation of fome 
hiftorical events which makes the article 
at once amufing and inftruétive. 
«Memoirs of Major General HEATH, 
containing Anecdotes, Details of Skir-,° 
mifhes, and other Military Events, dur- 
ing the American War, written by him- 
felf.." Major General Heath underftands 
the ufe of a fword better than he does the 
ufe of a pen: he may be a very good of- 
ficer, but his pretentions are very humble 
as an author. Notwithftanding the nu-- 
merous opportunities which a perfon who 
fuftained {o high a rank during almoft the 
whole of the American war enjoyed of re- 
lating many curious and interefting anec- 
dotes to which*he muft have been an eye- 
witnefs, Major Gen. Heath has given-us a 
mere diary of events from month to month, 
from day to day, without judgement and 
without difcrimination. The work more- 
over betrays many marks of egotifm. 
Mr. AbizL HoLMEs, A. M., has pub= 
