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Kingston is the county town of Ulfter. Before it was burnt by the British, in 1777, it contained about 200 houses, regularly built, on an elevated dry plain, at the mouth of a little pleasant stream, called Eufopus Kill or creek, that empties into the Hudfon, but is nearly two miles weft from the river. The town has been rebuilt.

Skenectady is fixteen miles north-weft of Albany, in Albany county, fituated on the banks of the Mohawks river. The town is compact and regular, built principally of brick, on a rich flat of low land, furrounded with hills. The windings of the river through the town and the fields, which are often overflowed in the fpring, afford a beautiful prospect about harvest time. As it is at the foot of navigation on a long river, which paffes through a very fertile country, and is the medium of all the weftern trade through the lakes, that comes down the Hudson, it must grow rich in proportion as the country weft of it populates.

Agriculture and Manufactures.] New-York is at least half a century behind her neighbours in New-England, New-Jerfey, and Pennsylvania, in point of improvement in agriculture and manufactures. Among other reafons for this deficiency, that of want of enterprize in the inhabitants is not the leaft. Indeed their local advantages have been fuch, as that they have grown rich without enterprize. Eefides, lands have hitherto been cheap, and farms of courfe large; and it requires much less ingenuity to raise 1000 bushels of wheat upon 60 acres of land, than to raise the fame quantity upon 30 acres. So long, therefore, as the farmer in New-York can have 60 acres of land to raife 1000 bushels of wheat, he will never trouble himself to find out how he can raise the fame quantity upon half the land. It is population alone that stamps a value upon lands, and lays a foundation for high improvements in agriculture. When a man is obliged to maintain a family upon a finall farm, his invention is exercifed to find out every improvement that may render it more productive. This appears to be the great reason why the lands on Delaware and Connecticut river produces to the farmer twice as much clear profit, as lands in equal quantity and of the fame quality upon the Hudfon. If the preceding obfervations be juft, improvements will keep apace with population and the increafing value of lands. Another caufe which has heretofore operated in preventing agricultural improvements in this ftate, has been their government, which, in the manner it was conducted until the revolution, was extremely unfavourable to improvements of almost every kind, and particularly in agriculture. The governors were many of them land-jobbers, bent on making their fortunes; and being invetted with power to do this, they either engroffed for themfelves, or patented away to their particular favourites, a very great proportion of the whole province. This, as has been obferved, proved an effectual bar to population, and of courfe, according to our prefent hypothefis, has kept down the price of lands, and fo prevented improvements in agriculture. It ought to be obferved, in this connection, that thefe overgrown eftates could be cultivated only by the hands of tenants, who, having no right in the foil, and no certain profpect of continuing upon the farm, which they hold at the will of their landlord, had no motives to make thofe expenfive improvements, which, though not immediately productive, would prove very profitable in fome future period. The tenant, depen

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dent on his landlord for his annual fupport, confines his views and improvements to the prefent year; while the independent freeholder, fecure of his eftate for himself and his fucceffors, carries his views into futurity, and early lays the foundation for growing improvement. But thefe obftacles have been removed, in a measure, by the revolution. The fine fertile country of the Mohawks, in Montgomery county, which was formerly poffeffed by Sir William Johnfon, and other land-jobbers, who were enemies to their country, has been forfeited to the state, and is now fplit up into freehold eftates, and fettling with aftonishing rapidity.

The foregoing obfervations will, in a great measure, account for the great neglect of manufactural improvements. Smith, whom I have fo often quoted, thirty years ago obferved, It is much owing to the difproportion between the number of our inhabitants, and the vast tracts till remaining to be fettled, that we have not as yet entered upon fcarcely any other manufactures, than fuch as are indifpenfibly neceffary for our home convenience.' This fame caufe has operated ever fince, in the same

way.

Great improvements in agriculture cannot be expected (unless they are made by a few individuals who have a particular genius for that bu̟finefs) fo long as lands are plenty and cheap; and improvements in manufactures never precede, but invariably follow improvements in agriculture. Thefe obfervations apply more particularly to the country. The city of New-York contains a great number of people, who are employed in the various branches of manufactures. Among many other articles manufactured in this city are the following: wheel-carriages of all kinds, Joaf-fugar, bread, beer, fhoes and boots, fadlery, cabinet-work, cutlery, hats, clocks, watches, potters ware, umbrellas, all kinds of mathematical and musical inftruments, fhips, and every thing neceffary for their equipment. A glafs work and feyeral iron-works have been eftablished in different parts of the country, but they never have been very productive, owing folely to the want of workmen, and the high price of labour, its neceffary confequence; for the internal refources and advantages for thefe manufactories, fuch as ore, wood, water, hearth-ftone, proper fituations for bloomeries, forges, and all kinds of water-works, are immenfe. There are feveral paper-mills in the ftate, which are worked to advantage.

Trade.] The fituation of New-York, with refpect to foreign markets, has decidedly the preference to any of the states. It has, at all seasons of the year, a short and easy access to the ocean. We have already mentioned, that it commands the trade of a great proportion of the best fettled and beft cultivated parts of the United States. It has been fuppofed, by gentlemen well informed, that more wealth is conveyed down Connecticut river, and through the Sound to New-York, than down the Hudfon. This is not improbable, as the banks of the Connecticut are more fertile, and much thicker and more extenfively fettled than the banks of the Hudfon. New-York has not been unmindful of her fuperior local adyantages, but has availed herself of them to their full extent. Some of her commercial regulations have been viewed as oppreffive and injurious

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to the interests of her neighbours, and been productive of many heavy complaints and unhappy jealoufies, which have proved unfriendly to that political union which ever fought to fubfiit between confederate filter ftates. But as it is expected that the new government will remedy these evils, a bare mention of them is fufficient.

There appears to be a fecrecy in the commercial policy of this ftate. An accurate account of their annual exports and imports, if known at all, is known to few. All therefore that can be expected under this head, in addition to what has already been observed, is fimply an enumeration of the feveral articles exported and imported, without pretending to fix their amount. Mr. Smith+obferves, In our traffic with other places, the balance is almost constantly in our favour.' This I believe has generally been the cafe. Their exports to the Weft-Indies are, biscuit, peafe, Indian corn, apples, onions, boards, ftaves, horfes, fheep, butter, cheese, pickled oysters, beef and pork. But wheat is the ftaple commodity of the ftate, of which no less than 677,700 bushels were exported in the year 1775, befides 2,555 tons of bread, and 2,828 tons of flour. Infpectors of flour are appointed to prevent impofitions, and to fee that none is exported but that which is deemed by them merchantable. Weft India goods are received in return for thefe articles. Befides the above mentioned articles, are exported flax-feed, cottou-wool, farfaparilla, coffee, indigo, rice, pig iron, bar iron, pot afh, pearl afh, furs, deer fkins, log wood, fuftic, mahogany, bees wax, oil, Madeira wine, rum, tar, pitch, turpentine, whale fins, fifh, fugar, molaffes, fait, tobacco, lard, &c. but moft of thefe articles are imported from re-exportation. In the year 1774, there were employed, in the trade of this state, 1075 veffels, whose tonnage amounted to 40,812.

Mountains.] The long range of Allegany mountains commences with the Katts Kill mountain upon Hudson's river. This range, which Mr. Jefferson calls the Spine of the United States, fpreads through this ftate, in a north-east and fouth-welt direction, in several diftinct ridges, with different names.

Medicinal Springs.] The moft noted fprings in this ftate are thofe of Saratoga. They are eight or nine in number, fituated in the margin of a marth, formed by a branch of Kayadaroffora Creek, about twelve miles. weft from the confluence of Fish-Creek and Hudfon's River. They are furrounded by a rock of a peculiar kind and nature, formed by the petrefaction of the water. One of them, however, more particularly attracts the attention; it rifes above the furface of the earth five or fix feet, in the form of a pyramid. The aperture in the top, which difcovers the water, is perfectly cylindrical, of about nine inches diameter. In this the water is about twelve inches below the top, except at the time of its annual difcharge, which is commonly in the beginning of fuminer. At all times it appears to be in as great agitation as if boiling in a pot, although it is extremely cold. The fame appearances obtain in the other fprings, except that the furrounding rocks are of different figures, and the water flows regularly from them.

+ Hift. New-York, p. 213. .

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By obfervation and experiment, the principal impregnation of the water is found to be a fotfile acid, which is predominant in the tafte. It is alfo ftrongly impregnated with a faline fubftance, which is very difcernible in the tafle of the water, and in the taste and smell of the petrified water about it. From the corrofive and diffolving nature of the acid, the water acquires a chalybeate property, and receives into its compofition a portion of calcareous earth, which, when feparated, refembles an impure magnefia. As the different fprings have no effential variance in the nature of their waters, but the proportions of the chalybeate impregnation, it is rendered probable that they are derived from one common fource, but flow in feparate channels, where they have connection with metallic bodies, in greater or lefs proportions.

The prodigious quantity of air contained in this water, makes another diftinguishing property of it. This air, ftriving for enlargement, produces the fermentation and violent action of the water before described. After the water has stood a finall time in an open veffel (no tight one will contain it) the air efcapes, becomes vapid, and lofes all that life and pungency which diftinguish it when firft taken from the pool. The particles of diffolved earth are depofited as the water flows off, which, with the combination of the falts and fixt air, concrete and form the rocks about the springs.

The effects it produces upon the human body are various; the natural operation of it, when taken, is cathartick, in fome inftances an emetic. As it is drank, it produces an agreeable sensation in paffing over the organs of tafte, but as foon as it is fwallowed, there fucceeds an unpleasant tafte, and the eructations which take place afterwards, caufe a pungency very fimilar to that produced by a draught of cyder or beer, in a state of fermentation.

The following curious experiments made on these waters, were extracted from Dr. Mitchell's Journal.

A young turkey held a few inches above the water in the crater of the lower fpring, was thrown into convulfions in less than half a minute, and gafping fhewed figns of approaching death; but on removal from that place, and expofure to the fresh air, revived, and became lively. On immerfion again for a minute in the gas, the bird was taken out languid and motionless.

A fmall dog put into the fame cavity, and made to breathe the contained air, was, in lefs than one minute, thrown into convulfive motions-made to pant for breath, and laftly, to lofe entirely the power to cry or move; when taken out, he was too weak to stand, but soon, in the common air, acquired ftrength enough to rife and stagger away.

A trout recently caught, and brifkly fwimming in a pail of brook water, was carefully put into a veffel juft filled from the fpring; the fish was inflantly agitated with violent convulfions, gradually loft the capacity to move and poife itself, grew ftupid and infenfible, and in a few minutes was dead.

A candle repeatedly lighted and let down near the surface of the water, was fuddenly extinguished, and not a veftige of light on fire remained on the wick,

Thefe

Thefe experiments nearly correfpond with thofe ufually made in Italy, at the famous GROTTO DEL CANI, for the entertainment of travellers; as mentioned by Keyfler, Addison, and others.

A bottle filled with the water and fhaken, emits fuddenly a large quan-tity of aërial matter, that either forces out the cork, or makes a way befide or through it, or burfts the veffel.

A quantity of wheaten flour, moistened with this water, and kneaded into dough, when made into cakes, and put into a baking pan, rofe, during the application of heat, into light and spongy bread, without the aid of yeast or leaven.

From which it appears, that the air extricated from the water is cifely fimilar to that produced by ordinary fermentation.

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Some lime-water, made of abalactiles brought from the fubterranean cave at Rhinebec, became immediately turbid on mixture with the fpring water, but when the water had been lately drawn, the precipitate was quickly re-diffolved.

Some of the rock furrounding the fpring, on being put into the fire, calcined to quick lime, and flacked very well.

When the aèrial matter has evaporated, the water lofes its tranfparency and lets fall a calcareous fediment.

Whence it is true, that the gas is aérial acid, that the rock is lime-ftone, and that by means of the former, the water becomes capable of diffolving and conveying the latter.'

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Minerals nnd foffils.] This ftate embofoms vaft quantities of iron ore. Naturalifts have obferved that ore in fwamps and pondy ground, vegetates and increafes. There is a filver mine at Philipfburg, which produces virgin filver. Spar, zink or fpelter, a femi-metal, magnez, ufed in glazing, peritus, of a golden hue, various kinds of copper ore, and lead and coal mines are found in this ftate. Alfo petrified wood, plafter of Paris, ifing-glafs in fheets, talks and chrystals of various kinds and colours, asbestos, and several other foffils. A small black stone has allo been found, which vitrifies with a final heat, and makes excellent glass.

Literary and Humane Societies.] There are very few focieties for improvement in knowledge or humanity in this ftate; and these few are in the city of New York. The first is The fociety for promoting useful knowledge.' This fociety is upon an establishment fimilar to other philofophical focieties in Europe and America, but is not incorporated. The members meet once a month. Secondly, The fociety for the manumiflion of flaves, and protecting fuch of them as have been or may be liberated.' This fociety meets once a quarter. Both thefe focieties confift of gentlemen of the first character in the city, and of fome in other parts of the ftate. Befides thefe, there is the Philological fociety, inftituted in 1788. This growing fociety has for its principal object the improvement of the English language,

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Literature, Colleges, Academies, &c.] Until the year 1754, there was no college in the province of New York. The ftate of literature, at that time, I fhall give in the words of their hiftorian, Our schools are in

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