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stead of an arbitrary investigation, England, I should then say, takes advantage of her superior strength; and as soon as the United States can, with any chance of success, oppose force to force, they will, and ought so to do. The pressing a natural born American in any case, but particularly out of an American ship, if not promptly disavowed, and amply redressed, is an enormity not to be endured.

Had the government of the United States kept within these bounds, the dispute would have been settled long since; but they wished to establish the same rule for natural born Americans and naturalized ones, naturalized by means of laws which have changed with every turn of politics. It is notorious that nearly one-half of the crews of American ships sailing from southern ports, beginning at New York, were composed of British seamen. Every individual of them, however, most probably had protections; one-half of which were conse quently false: how could it be expected that such documents as these should be respected? and yet, in point of fact, very few comparatively of these English seamen were impressed,-not, I am persuaded, so much as one out of an hundred ;* but then a few real Americans were impressed along with them; and the utmost use was made of the latter cases, whenever they occurred, to inflame the minds of the people.

Although the principle should be admitted reciprocally, of employing or protecting native sea

* The writer of this journal has owned twenty-four American vessels during the course of this war ;-that is to say, since 1793, forming together more than five thousand tons, and had not ten sailors impressed out of these vessels during all that space of time, although a great number of them were undoubtedly British born.

men only, difficulties would undoubtedly remain as to the mode of ascertaining that nativity, the kind of document to be given; and to prevent fraudu lent substitutions of this document or protection, from one individual to another. Something like the French classes, or registering of sailors in their native parishes, might be adopted. Heavy penalties would go a great way in detecting frauds; and the transfer of papers from one individual to another, might be effectually prevented, by tracing the profile of the individual on the margin of his protection,-which might be done by means of the pantograph, in two minutes. A liberal and dispassionate spirit is what is most wanting to bring this dispute to a satisfactory termination.

August 2-We slept yesterday at Ormskirk, thirteen miles from Liverpool, and did not lose by the change. The local militia was assembled, and looked full as well as troops of the line, performing their exercise with great precision; they were not however very fine men. The females of this part of the country (Lancashire) seem gifted with a larger share of beauty than the men. We meet with many pretty faces, and fine shapes. This evening we are at Kendal; 63 miles to-day through a very fine country. Not the least appearance of poverty any where. The people at work in the fields, making hay, are all decently clothed. The cottages, though meanly built, mostly with mud, and thatched, have good casements; white-washed inside; roses and honeysuckle against the wall, and even jessamines and geraniums. This surely indicates a great degree of ease and comfort among the lower ranks. We passed, in the course of the day, immense fields of potatoes; the blossoms of some fields all purple, and others all white. Wheat

seems cultivated on a smaller scale. Indeed I have. not seen any where, in England, those boundless fields of waving corn, so common in the north of France. There is, on the other hand, much more land in meadows. Judging by their fields, they should consume more meat than bread in this country.

We have crossed many canals to-day, or perhaps the same several times over, on very good stone bridges of a single arch. These canals wind round hills, following levels, like natural streams, and are not at all offensive, in a picturesque light, except when they happen sometimes to travel side by side with a real river. It is not more than half a century since canals were generally introduced in England, and they are principally due to the enterprising spirit of the Duke of Bridgewater (an appropriate name), guided by a celebrated engineer. He constructed, near Liverpool, a canal, bearing his name, which passes over a navigable river by means of a very high aqueduct. Canals intersect the country, in every direction, from north to south, and from east to west. The freight of a ton of coal, of 30 bushels, is about two pence per mile, and so in proportion for other things; wheat from Norfolk, which is a corn country, to Liverpool, which is not, costs for carriage about 9s. 2d. the quarter, of eight bushels; while by sea it would cost 13s. 3d. and without insurance 11s. The toll yields to the stockholders generally seven or eight per cent., and they are restricted to a certain maximum of profits.

*

* France may boast of having the first, and, I believe, the most magnificent and boldest canal in Europe,-the canal of Languedoc, begun by Henry the Great, and finished by Louis the Great, uniting the ocean to the Mediterranean, 200 miles in length, and

The town of Lancaster was in our way, and, con trary to the custom of small towns, it is good looking and well built, of a fine yellow stone, veined like marble. The old castle has been turned into a prison and court-house, the arrangement nearly on the plan of Chester, and owing likewise to the active humanity of Howard; it is even better than the one at Chester, as there is more room. The number of prisoners, however, we were sorry to see so much greater, criminals as well as debtors. The jailor said he had under his lock and key debtors from L. 45,000 (a delinquent, collector of the customs,) to seven shillings. Debtors for sums less than L. 10, we were told, are let out without cost, after as many days detention as there are shillings in the sum they owe; the creditor is obliged to pay for their maintenance. There are ten or twelve criminals executed every year, and a greater number transported to Botany Bay, who do not consider it as any punishment at all. Some are

passing over a height of about 800 feet, which is double the elevation of any canal in England. The United States are not without communications of this sort. The most considerable is the canal which unites the Meriamack river to the port of Boston; it descends 28 feet in six miles, by means of three locks, and 107 feet in 22 miles, by 19 locks, each 90 feet long and 12 wide, solidly built in stone. It was found necessary to cut, in some places, 20 feet deep through solid rocks, to fill up valleys, and construct aqueducts over rivers; one of them across the Shawshire, 280 feet in length, and 22 feet high. The canal only 12 feet wide and 3 feet deep, is navigated by boats constructed on purpose, 11 feet wide, and 75 feet long, carrying 24 tons. A raft, one mile in length, containing 800 tons of timber, is drawn by a pair of oxen, at the rate of one mile an hour. This canal cost 536,000 dollars.-Official Report of Mr. Gallatin to Congress, 1808.

The celebrated royal canal of China, from Pekin to Canton, is 825 miles in length, 50 feet wide, and 9 feet deep, and traverses several large rivers on immense aqueducts.

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kept here at hard labour, something on the plan of our penitentiary prisons in America. The jailor did not seem to believe in the efficacy of this philanthropic punishment. It does not in general last long enough to operate a total change of habits, nor is it fitted for example. What is to be done with all these poor wretches? "On est bien embarrassé des méchans-dans ce monde et dans l'autre." This prison was perfectly clean in every part, to the very dungeons ;-this again is the fruit of Howard's labours. The view from John o' Gaunt's Tower extends over a bleak country, all the trees of which are bent to the ground by the air of the sea, and over the Cartmel Sands, forming a dangerous road, where travellers may be overtaken by the tide, and which we propose to avoid.

The cattle we saw in Wales were all black and small, here all white, or nearly white, very large, and their horns of unreasonable length and fantastic shape, turning down under the neck, or lying backwards, or pointed into the flesh, and each different ways, of no use to the animal as a defence, and quite a deformity; the hornless cattle of Norfolk are less offensive.

The common people here, as well as every where in England, are very willing to answer questions to the best of their abilities, but they seem to know less beyond their immediate calling than the same classes in America;-the farmer knows nothing beyond the plough,-the shopman out of his trade, -and the post-boy only that part of the road to the next stage. Kendal is surrounded by hills, with beautiful valleys between.

Aug. 5.-Ambleside. We arrived here the 3d, in the morning, and discovered the lake of Win

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