Susan Bromfield, sisters, daughters of Edward Bromfield, an eminent merchant of Boston. Their sister, Abigail, married William Phillips, and their daughter, Abigail Phillips, 1769, married Josiah Quincy, Jr., the eminent lawyer, leader in the American Revolution, who died 1775, and father of the late Prest. Josiah Quincy, 1772. 1864.

Jeremiah Powell, who married Sarah Bromfield, inherited extensive lands in the Province of Maine, and died there, leaving no children.

William Powell resided in Boston, where his numerous descendants in the female line yet reside, and they possess portraits by Kneller (it is presumed) of Gov. Dummer, Jeremiah Dummer, and their sister, Mrs. Powell, by Copley.

The Bromfields originated also in Wales, where a Hundred in the County of Denbigh yet bears their name. One of the family emigrated from England to Boston, Mass., in 1675. *

The youngest son of Judge Powell (Jeremiah Dummer Powell) a very accomplished, talented and excellent young man, in 180I went into business as a merchant in New York, became engaged in Miranda's Expedition, was captured by a Spanish vessel, and thrown into prison for more than a year. Judge Powell went to Europe to endeavor to procure his release, and was assisted by the celebrated Dr. Jenner and Lord Holland.

A letter from Lord Holland, giving an account of the release of young Powell, is published in the "Memoir of Blanco White," London, 1845.

with Miranda, to liberate the Spanish colonies. He was taken. By law his life was forfeited, but he was condemned, by a sentence nearly equivalent, to perpetual imprisonment in the unwholesome fortress of Omoa. His father, Chief Justice of Upper Canada, on hearing the sad tidings hastened to England. Unfortunately hostilities had commenced under circumstances calculated to exasperate the government and people of Spain. The Chief Justice was determined to try the efficacy of a personal application to alleviate the sufferings of his son by a change of prison, since he despaired of obtaining his release.

Having procured passports he proceeded to the Prince of the Peace from me (Lord Holland), Spain furnished with a letter of introduction to to whom he had applied as recently returned from thence, and not involved in the angry feelings or discussions, which had led to a rupture between the two countries. The Prince received him at Aranjuez, and immediately on

reading the letter and hearing the story, bade

the anxious father remain, till he had seen the King; and left the room for that purpose, without ceremony or delay. He soon returned with an order, not for a change of prison, but for the immediate release of the young man ; and added, with a smile of benevolence, that a parent who had come so far to render a service to his child, would like probably to be the bearer of the good intelligence himself, and accordingly furnished him with a passport, and permission to sail in a Spanish frigate, then preparing to leave Cadiz, for the West Indies."

After the release and the return to New York of Mr. Powell, he became engaged to Miss Eliza Bard, daughter of Dr. Bard* of Hyde Park, N. Y., then 15 years of age. He gave her a complete set of chess men, he had made with his knife, during the year he passed in the dungeon of Omoa, the Spanish prison. Their marriage was delayed by his receiving a lucrative appointment in the West Indies. He embarked from New York, to visit the place of his

appointment, and his vessel was never heard of. 1806. His loss was most deeply regretted by Miss Bard and her family, and by his own family and friends. Miss Bard after some years married Prest. McVickar, of New York. In 1840, after her death, some of the chess men made by Mr. Powell, were by a series of singular fortuitous circumstances, conveyed to his mother, at Toronto, in her 85th year, to her great gratification.

ELIZA SUSAN QUINCY. *For an account of Dr. Bard, see his "Memoir

by President McVickar."

JOURNAL

When I talked of keeping a journal from Montreal to Detroit, I was not aware of the difficulties attending the journey.

I expected it would be tedious, and "thought writing would be a very pleasant employment, and so it might have proved, had it been practicable, but the opportunities for writing were so few, that I found it would be impossible to keep a journal with any degree of regularity, so I left it wholly alone, and trusted to my memory (which never deserved such a compliment) for recalling whatever was worth communicating.

We left Montreal on the 11th of May, 1789, with a large party of our friends, who paid us the compliment of seeing us the first stage, where we took a farewell dinner.

We then went to our boats; one was fitted up with an awning to protect us from the weather, and held the family and bedding. It was well filled, eighteen persons in all, so you may suppose

we had not much room; as it happened that was of no consequence, it was cold on the water, and we were glad to sit close.

This mode of traveling is very tedious; we are obliged to keep along shore and go on very slowly.

The first night we slept at the house of a" Habitan," who turned out with his family, to give us the best room, where we spread our beds and slept in peace.

I entertained myself with looking at the Canadian family who were eating their supper, saying their prayers, and conversing at the same time.

The next day we reached a part of the St. Lawrence where our boats were obliged to be unloaded, and taken through a Lock, the rapids being too strong to pass; these rapids were the first of any consequence that I had seen.

Perhaps you do not know what I mean by a rapid; it is when the water runs with swiftness over large rocks, every one of which forms a cascade, and the river here is all a bed of rocks.

There is no describing the grandeur of the water when thrown into this kind of agitation; the sea after a tempest is smooth to it.

My brother had traveled the road before, and knew the people, and the distance from house to house.

This part of the country has been settled since the Peace, and it was granted to the troops raised in America during the war. We went from a Colonel to a Captain, and from a Captain to a Major. They have most of them built good houses, and with the assistance of their half pay, live very comfortably.

One night we reached the house of an

old servant of Mrs. Powell's; the children were delighted to see her, and I was well pleased to view a new scene of domestic life. This woman, it seems, had married a disbanded soldier, who had a small lot of land, where they immediately went to live, and cultivated it with so much care, that in a few years they were offered in exchange for it, a farm twice its value, to which they had just removed, and were obliged to live some time in a temporary log house, which consisted only of one room, in which was a very neat bed, where a lovely babe of three months old, lay crowing and laughing by itself.

A large loom was on one side, on the other all the necessary utensils of a family, everything perfectly clean.

Small as the place was, we chose to stay all night, so while Mrs. Powell was giving orders for arranging the beds, my brother and I walked out to enjoy a very fine evening.

The banks of the river were very high and woody, the moon shone bright shone bright through the trees, some Indians were on the river taking fish with harpoons, a mode of fishing I had never seen before. They make large fires in their canoes, which attract the fish to the surface of the water, when they can see by the fire to strike them.

The number of fires moving on the water had a pretty and singular effect.

When we returned to the house, we found the whole floor covered with beds. The man and woman of the house, with their children, had retired to their own room, and left us to manage as we pleased.

tress, which I drew aside, to see how the rest were accommodated. My brother and sister, myself, five children, and two maid servants made up the group; a blazing fire (not in the chimney, for there was none, but in one side of the room, which was opened at the top to let out the smoke, and gave us a fine current of air) showed every object distinctly.

I was in a humor to be easily diverted, and found a thousand things to laugh at. It struck me that we were like a strolling party of players.

At night we always drest a dinner for the next day. When we were disposed to eat it, the cloth was laid in the boat, and our table served up with as much decency as could be expected, if we could be contented with cold provisions.

Not so our sailors; they went on shore and boiled their pots, and smoked their pipes.

One day we happened to anchor at a small Island, where the men themselves had some difficulty in climbing the banks, which were very steep.

I finished my dinner before the rest of the party, and felt an inclination to walk. I took one of the maids and made one of the men help us up the bank; we strolled to the other side of the Island, and when we turned round, saw the whole of the ground covered with fire. The wind blew fresh, and the dried leaves had spread it from where the people were cooking.

We had no alternative, so were obliged to make the best of our way back. I believe we took very few steps, for neither of us had our shoes burnt

The weather was so fine that we ventured to sleep out, and I liked it so much that I regretted that we had ever gone into a house; it is the pleasantest vagabond life you can imagine.

We stopt before sunset, when a large fire was instantly made, and tea and chocolate were prepared; while we were taking it the men erected a tent; the sails of the boat served for the top, and blankets were fastened round the sides; in a few minutes they had made a place large enough to spread all our beds, where we slept with as much comfort as I ever did in any chamber in my life. It was our own fault if we did not choose a fine situation to encamp.

You can scarcely conceive a more beautiful scene than was one night exhibited. The men had piled up boughs of trees for a fire, before our tent, till they made a noble bon-fire. In the course of the evening it spread more than half a mile; the ground was covered with dry leaves which burnt like so many lamps, with the fire running up the bushes and trees. The whole formed the most beautiful illumination you can form an idea of.

The children were in ecstasies, running about like so many savages, and our sailors were encamped near enough for us to hear them singing and laughing.

We had, before we left Montreal, heard of his Majesty's recovery, so if you please you can set this all down as rejoicings on that account, though I doubt whether it once occurred to our minds, yet we are a very loyal people.

On the tenth day we reached Kingston; it is a small town, and stands on a

We went to the house of a Mr. Forsyth, a young bachelor, who very politely begged we would consider it as our own. Here we staid three days, and then sailed with a fair wind for Niagara.

At Kingston we were overtaken by two officers of the artillery, one going to Niagara the other to Detroit. They both expressed themselves pleased with joining our party, and accepted an offer my brother made them, to cross the Lake in a vessel appointed for him. We were fifteen where there were only four berths. When the beds were put down at night, every one remained in the spot he had first taken, for there was no moving without general consent.

One night after we had lain down and began to be composed, Mrs. Powell saw one of the maids standing where she had been making the children's beds, and asked her why she staid there?

The poor girl who speaks indifferent English answered: "I am quazed, Ma'am.' Sure enough, she was wedged in beyond the power of moving without assistance.

I heard a great laugh among the gentlemen, who were divided from us by a blanket partition. I suppose they were "quazed" too!

Lake Ontario is two hundred miles over. We were four days crossing it. We were certainly a very good hu

moured set of people, for no one complained or seemed rejoiced when we arrived at Niagara.

The fort is by no means pleasantly situated. It is built close upon the Lake, which gains upon its foundations so fast, that in a few years they must be overflowed. There, however, we passed some days very agreeably, at the house of Mr. Hamilton. We received the most polite attentions from Colonel Hunter, the commanding officer, and all his officers. Lord Edward Fitz-Gerald had been some months at Niagara before us, and was making excursions among the Indians, of whose society he seemed particularly fond. Joseph Brant, a celebrated Indian chief, lives in that neighborhood.

Lord Edward had spent some days at his house, and seemed charmed with his visit. Brant returned to Niagara with his Lordship. He was the first, and indeed the only savage I ever dined at table with.

As the party was large, he was at too great a distance from me to hear him converse, and I was by no means pleased with his looks. These people pay great deference to rank; with them it is only obtained by merit. They attended Lord Edward from the house of one Chief to another, and entertained him with dancing, which is the greatest compliment they can pay. Short as our stay was at Niagara, we made many acquaintances we were sorry to leave. Several gentlemen offered to escort us to the landing, which is eight miles from Fort Erie.

There the Niagara river becomes impassable, and all the luggage was

drawn up a steep hill in a cradle, a machine I never saw before. We walked up the hill, and were conducted to a good garden with an arbor in it, where we found a cloth laid for dinner, which was provided for us by the officers of the post.

After dinner we went on seven miles to Fort Schlosher. The road was good, the weather charming, and this was the only opportunity we should have of seeing the Falls. All our party collected half a mile above the Falls, and walked down to them. I was in raptures all the way.

The Falls I had heard of forever, but no one had mentioned the Rapids! For half a mile the river comes foaming down immense rocks, some of them forming cascades 30 or 40 feet high! The banks are covered with woods, as are a number of Islands, some of them very high out of the water. One in the centre of the river, runs out into a point, and seems to divide the Falls, which would otherwise be quite across the river, into the form of a crescent.

I believe no mind can form an idea of the immensity of the body of water, or the rapidity with which it hurries down. The height is 180 feet, and long before it reaches the bottom, it loses all appearance of a liquid. The spray rises like light summer clouds, and when the rays of the sun are reflected through it, they form innumerable rainbows, but the sun was not in a situation to show this effect when we were there.

One thing I could find nobody to explain to me, which is, the stillness of the water at the bottom of the Falls; it is as smooth as a lake, for half a mile, deep and narrow, the banks very high