floating house or palace, three stories high, almost consisting of two
or three large saloons, much gilt and decorated, and hung with prints
and filled with passengers. The machinery rises in the centre of the
vessel, as high nearly as the funnel. We went at the rate of twenty
miles an hour. We again enjoyed the beauties of the river, and could
this time see both sides, which we were unable to do on the railway, by
which means too we saw many pretty towns and villas which we had missed
on Saturday. We were back at the hotel by twelve o'clock, and are to
make our next move to-morrow afternoon to Newport, a sea-bathing place,
a little way north of this. We are doing this at the strong
recommendation of Lord Napier, who says, at this time of the year
Newport is worth seeing, as giving a better idea of an American
watering-place than Saratoga, where the season is now drawing to a
close.

We have now become more familiar with this place, and I think are
beginning to feel the total want of interest of any sort beyond a
general admiration of the handsome wide streets and well-built houses.
The Brevoort House is in the fifth avenue, which, in point of fashion,
answers to Belgrave Square with us, and consists of a long line of
houses of large dimensions. A friend, who accompanied us in our drive
yesterday evening, pointed out many of the best of them as belonging to
button-makers, makers of sarsaparilla, and rich parvenus, who have risen
from the shop counter. He took us to his own house in this line, which
was moderate in size, and prettily fitted up. He is a collector of
pictures, and has one very fine oil painting of a splendid range of
mountainous scenery, in the Andes. It is by Church, a rising young
American, whose view of the Falls of Niagara was exhibited this year in
London. We have made frequent use of the omnibus here; the fares are
half the price of the London ones, and the carriages are very clean and