passed Jersey City and Stevens's Seat, celebrated for American
steam-boats. The mantle of Fulton may be said to have fallen upon him.
We then passed West Hoboken and the Beacon Race-course. Seventeen miles
down we passed Philipsburgh, an old Dutch settlement. At the Tappan Sea
the river is three miles broad. The Sing-Sing state-prison is in view at
Nyack; and the Croton River comes in about two miles from here. Thence
Vrededicker Hook, on the top of which there is a clear crystal lake of
three or four miles circumference. Thence we pass Stony Point. It really
is past description, and would occupy a book to do justice to the
magnificent scenery. Passed Anthony's Nose, Buttermilk Falls, Sugar
Loaf, West Point scenery, and the Capitol Hotel. There is a public
edifice for 250 cadets. The academy was built in 1802. We then pass West
Point Foundry. The highland scenery is sublime. We then pass Newburgh,
and come in sight of the Catskill mountains, the highest (say 3000 feet)
in the States: we did not ascend them, although report says we should
have been repaid. We arrived at Albany at six o'clock. Population of
Albany, 25,000; the capital of New York State.


_Tuesday_ morning.--Looked through the State House--a fine building. The
Congress Hotel we found comfortable. Nothing worth noticing in the town.
We took stage and passed Rensselaer's Estate all the way to Troy. The
cause of dispute is the doubt the farmers have that one of the Dutch
kings did not give and covenant the seestates, which the Van Rensselaer
can prove by parchment: thus the tarring and feathering is done. Troy
population is 40,000: a nice town, with a splendid arsenal, 156 miles
from New York. The Hudson is navigable no farther. We took a chaise to
the Shaker Village of Watervleit, where we found a Shaker settlement of
about 120 people: there are three more in the neighbourhood; in all
about 400. At this place they have 2000 acres of good land, their own: