which are distinguished for being beautifully proportioned, chastely ornamented, and elegantly executed. Some are in the decorated style of Gothic architecture, while others are in the French style, and are exquisite works of art. Both ancient and modern features of monumental decoration are introduced, and in the summer season when the trees, and shrubs, and flowers, present their most attractive appearance, the Laurel Hill Cemetery, although inferior to Mount Auburn, will be a favourite resort. After a drive through the principal avenues, I went to Girard College, to make a more minute inspection of this magnificent erection, said by some persons to be the grandest building in the world. I regard such statements as exaggerated praise, although bound to confess that the more I iuspect this noble edifice, the more I am impressed with its beauty and its graudeur. When Mr. Charles Dickens was here, more than twenty years ago, he said concerning this palace of learning, that "If completed according to the original design, will be the richest edifice of modern times." If Mr. Dickens could see the college now, he would say that the original design had been vastly improved, for at first there was no provision made for a portico, whereas this is one of its grandest characteristics. There are thirty-four columns, each of which was executed at an average cost of 13,000 dollars. I have seen it stated that this college was built entirely by American workmen, but this is a mistake, for it was intended that there should be such exquisite workmanship displayed, that foreign workmen were obtained, and so long as they were employed it was found that each column cost 17,000 dollars, and with a view to lessen the expense, American workmen were appointed to the remaining columus, and they succeeded in lessening the cost to such an extent that the last was executed at 11,000 dollars, and taking the average cost of each it was as I have already stated 13,000, thus securing a saving of 136,000 dollars on the pillars alone. The statue of Mr. Girard, which is now placed in the vestibule, was executed in Paris at a cost of 9,000 dollars. On passing along the staircases I was particularly struck with the remarkable power of the echo. I pulled out my watch and repeatedly sang a verse, and I found that the echo continued with great distinctness during eight or ten seconds after the last note had been given. I never heard such an echo before. The Girard College furnishes another instance to the many which have preceded it, how possible it is for the will of a deceased person to be

Mr.

set aside, either in its letter or spirit. Girard ordered most emphatically that there was no religious instruction whatever to be given to the students, but the fact is, one of the first exercises every morning is the reading of a chapter in the New Testament. Mr. Girard ordered that no minister of religion, under any circumstances, was to be permitted to enter the precincts of the college, and for some time this was strictly enforced, but at present all ministers of religion are admitted without scruple, if they do not happen to have been ordained. Even if a person has obtained a license to preach, and is constantly acting under such license, if he be not ordained there is no objection to his admission. Mr. Girard was eccentric in various ways. If he paid money amounting to threepence he required a written receipt for the amount. One gentleman told me that he had seen a receipt for five cents (24d.). On one occasion a minister of religion went to him to solicit a subscription towards some specified object, and he immediately gave him a cheque for 500 dollars. The minister reminded him that he had given a larger sum to some other object. Mr. Girard, seeing that the minister was not satisfied, asked for the cheque again. The minis ter, probably supposing that he wanted to alter the amount to a larger sum, returned the cheque, and Mr. Girard immediately. tore it in pieces, saying that his money was his own, and he would do with it as he liked. The minister was more dissatisfied than he was before, when he found that Mr. Girard would give him nothing. On one occasion, in consequence of the shabby dress which Mr. Girard wore in the streets, a gentleman took him to be a very poor man, and he asked him if he would carry some fish home for him. Mr. Girrard complied, and when he delivered the fish, he told the servant to tell the gentleman that Stephen Girard had carried him the fish. When Mr. Girard died he was interred in a Roman Catholic Cemetery, but no funeral service was read over him, and the authorities at the cemetery would have prevented the interment if they could, but it happened that a gentleman had purchased a small portion of the burial ground, and it was decided that he had power to have the body placed there if he liked. The body has latterly been removed by the Eree Masons, he having been a member of that order, but the Catholics demanded 8,000 dollars to permit the body to be removed. The Free Masons refused to give the money, and succeeded in taking away the body without having obtained any permission to

do so. The affair excited a good deal of attention at the time in Philadelphia, but now it is quite settled and it is not expected that legal proceedings will be taken

March 18, Sunday.-This morning I went to see the old Meeting House belonging to the Society of Friends. William Penn delivered a funeral oration over the first person who was interred in the burial ground attached to the building It is said to be the oldest burial ground in Philadelphia with the exception of one which belongs to the Swedes' Church. On my way I passed an old burial ground in Mulberry Street, and here I saw the grave of Benjamin Franklin, covered with a plain slab of marble on which was inscribed the following

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, PRINTER, (Like the cover of an old book, its contents torn out, and stript of its lettering and gilding,) lies here, food for worms; yet the work itself shall not be lost, but will, (as he believed) appear once more in a new and more beautiful edition, corrected and amended by the Author.

It is a pity in my opinion that the above epitaph was not placed on his tomb, for it would have been more appropriate than many inscriptions on tombstones in this city. In the grave-yard connected with a Methodist Church I saw to-day a monumental tombstone to the memory of the founder of the Church, and after enumerating the many eminent virtues which adorned the character of the deceased, the inscription contained the following quotation :

And are we yet alive,

And see each other's face.

I could not imagine why such a quotation was made under the circumstances, unless it was because two lines were necessary to fill up the remaining space on the tombstone.In the afternoon I went to Mr. Thomas' Episcopal Church, and heard the Rev. Mr. Alston deliver a discourse preparatory to confirmation, which was to take place on the following Friday, the Bishop of Kansas being about to officiate. Mr. Alston in his discourse dwelt on the nature of confirmation, the authority by which it is sustained, and the qualifications of those who submit to it.

In the evening I attended a Public Lovefeast in Israel Church. The President (Father Gibbs) a coloured person, was very earnest, and spoke of a discussion he had with Mr. Joseph Barker on Christianity, and expressed his high gratification that Mr. Barker had again become a christian professor. I never saw people give such external evidences of their zeal before, for one old negro who had been a professor of religion 66 years danced on the floor as if he had only been a youth of sixteen. He appeared to be quite in extacies. Some of the speakers were believers in the personal reign of Christ on the earth, one of them asserted the fullest confidence that it would not be more than two or three years before Christ would come. The Lovefeast was held in celebration of the conversion of an Englishman, twenty-four years ago, named Joseph J. Luce. He always celebrated the anniversary in this manner, and bears all the expense himself. It was not the mere type of a feast, for the cake was rather rich, and each person was expected to take a slice or more. I am always interested in attending such meetings, as they furnish opportunities for studying character which would not otherwise be possessed

March 19.-Took supper at the house of Mr. Luce, who gave me a sort of history of his life, which had been of a very eventful character He has been a wonderful man, and has evidently left his mark on society, although he is an uneducated person, not able to write his own name. There are many persons in Philadelphia who came from Europe entirely without education, yet they have succeeded surprisingly in the various callings to which they have devoted themselves. An Irishman has become a bookseller, although not able to read a title page, yet he 'as saved 20,000 dollars while he has been in business. He has a surprising memory, for when a person calls and asks for a certain book, he can tell immediately whether he has it in stock, and can reach the volume asked for although he cannot tell a letter. Mr. Luce had two sons in the late war but neither of them got wounded, although one of them was in thirty pitched battles, was once taken prisoner, had several horses shot under him, and on one occasion a rebel ball came with such force as to break the iron of his pistol, yet he has escaped unhurt.

March 20.-Took supper with the Rev. Elisha Weaver, a coloured person, who had this day returned from a visit in the South, and we had some conversation respecting the condition of the freedmen. The Rev. James Lynch, the editor of a weekly newspaper, was also present, and from him I gleaned in

formation with respect to all the newspapers published in the United States under the management or control of coloured persons. The following is a list of the papers and the places of publication:-"Christian Recorder," Philadelphia; "True Communicator," Baltimore; "Coloured Citizen," Cincinnati; "Coloured Tennessean," Nashville; "Republican,' New Orleans; "Tribune," New Orleans; "Loyal Georgian," Aug ista; "Elevator," San Fraucisco; "Pacific Appeal," San Francisco. The editor of the " 'Leader," published in South Carolina, is a white person, but the stock-holders are coloured men. The editor of the "Nationalist," published at Mobile, Alabama, is a white person, but a portion of the stock-holders are coloured per

sons.

There is only one paper published in Canada ("Missionary Messenger") by coloured people.-Attended a lecture by Mrs. Ricks in Bethel Church, describing the condition of the freedmen in the Southern States, where she had lived. I was not much interested in her remarks, for it seemed as if she anticipated that some objection would be taken to what she was about to advance, and instead of proceeding with her subject, she took up time in her own defence, when apparently no defence was necessary. It was very bad taste on her part to tell the au lience that if any person thought she had not walked about to promote the interests of the freedmen, she would show them how her feet were blistered over on account of having walked so much-It turned out that the lecturer was stopped very abruptly, for many had come to the church expecting that it was a revival service, and they began to jump and shout in such a manner that Mrs. Ricks was unable to proceed. One tall young man, with a pleasant musical voice, began to call out loudly, Lord save me or I am lost; save me or I shall sink to hell." After repeatedly using the same language he began to jump about with his eyes closed and his arms extended, yet no one paid any attention to him. At length he struck me twice, once on my head with such violence that I considered it prudent to move to a greater distance from him. He continued to jump about until at last his feet became entangled with the legs of a person who was kneeled down in the attitude of devotion, and falling down upon his back I thought he must have injured himself severely, but he continued calling upon God to save him. More than twenty persons began to shout and jump, and a scene of disorder took place such as I had never before witnessed. The Rev. W. Long was present, and after asking me if I had ever seen anything like it in England, I

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replied in the negative, and asked him in return if such demonstrations were peculiar to the coloured race, and he said it was not peculiar to the coloured people, but it was peculiar to persons of a comparatively low development of intellect, whether the people were white or black, for in the Southern States it was not unusual for white people to be subject to such religious excitement as to manifest it in the manner I then beheld it amongst the coloured race. It had been found that as people advanced in educational development they became less excitable.

March 21.-I attended, this day, the annual conference of the Methodist Episcopal denominations. The proceedings were conducted with open doors, the public being free to enter without having to show any ticke's of admission.-Went to the Mercantile Library, connected with which there is the best newsroom I ever saw. I was informed that there were about 150 different newspapers, many of which were daily papers. There is a beautiful arrangement by which persons may readily find any newspaper which is required. The stands are fixed in long rows, and at the end of each there is an index showing what countries are represented on that particular row of stands, whether it be England, France, Spain, Canada, Australia, or any other part of the glode. The name of each paper is placed at the head of the stand. England was not largely represented, for there were only four English papers, three of them being published in London. The only provincial English newspaper was the Manchester Weekly Times, and as I was not expecting to see any Manchester paper there, I was somewhat surprised when, as if by accident, my eye fell upon My American Tour." I was pleased to see the paper, as it was one week in advance of that which I had previously seen. Several gentlemen who had read the papers spoke approvingly of them, one of whom was a bookseller in the city, doing an extensive business. He said that the "Tour" would be read with very great interest on the other side of the water he was sure, for it had been a great pleasure to him to read it, and he had learned a great deal about America which he had never known before.

March 22.-I have often read about cities in America springing up like mushrooms, and I have felt a strong desire to witness the development of some new place of extraordinary growth. While in Connecticut I was told about Vineland, in New Jersey, and determined to make myself familiar with its history. I have generally found that there

was some speciality of circumstance or of position which has called these cities into existence. The discoveries of gold or of petroleum have, at times, caused a great rush of population to a given spot: suitability of site for manufacturing purposes, either by presence of immense water power or extensive coal deposits. have sometimes been the commanding feature which led to extensive progress; while in other instances a beauti ul situation, where mineral waters were abundant, or where a fine sea view is attractive, combine their influences to make some favoured spot a fashionaple resort In Vinelaud, however, there were none of these attractions. About half a dozen years ago it was a vast wilderness, seldom visited except by charcoal burners, or occasionally by the hunters of the cunning fox or the spright y deer, yet now may be found located settlers from the States of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, North Carolina, Tennessee, Pennsylvania Maryland, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, lowa, Kentucky, Nebraska, Minnesota, Kansas, California, and even from Canada, Nova Scotia, France, Sweden, and England. Amongst the settlers 'rom England are some from Manchester and Chester. And now comes the question-Why is it that Vineland has become such a famous place in such a limited period of time? I will endeavour to answer. Vineland possesses a rich soil. When I visited Vineland my first impression was decidedly against its having a rich soil, for it appeared so sandy a region that I thought it never could b rendered very fruitful. I was assured by persons living on the spot that the land was remarkably fruitful, and I knew that they were better able to judge than I. It varies from a clay to a sandy loam, and is found to be suitable for wheat, grass, corn, fruit, and vegetables.

This district is eminently rich as a fruit growing country. Five hundred vineyards and orchards have been planted out by experienced fruit growers, and it is said that the cultivation of peaches, pears, grapes, black berries, strawberries, raspberries, apples, &c., yield immense profits. It will soon become one of the most beautiful places in the United States, and will possess some advantages which are quite peculiar to itself. It is, in fact, a great model parish consisting of fortyfive square miles of land, which is laidout upon. a general system of improvements, and proVision is made for natural and artistic adornment.

It is not only intended that the land shall be brought into a high state of cultivation, but also that the people themselves are

to be highly cultivated It is not permitted for any intoxicating drinks to be sold, and it is expected that they will therefore require a smaller prison, and a smaller poorhouse than would otherwise be the case. Some suppose that no poorhouse ever will be required, the plan of dividing the land amongst the different settlers being calculated to make all the families capable of supporting themselves. The land is only sold to actual settlers, and on account of the great beauty of the place, as well as other advantages it has become the resort of people of taste. It has increased five thousand people within the past three years. Churches, stores, schools, societies of art and learning, and other elements of refinement and culture have been introduced. The price of farm land in lots of 20 acres and upwards, is at the rate of 25 dollars per acre. Fruits and vegetables ripen earlier in this district than in any other locality north of Norfolk, in Virginia. It is said that for persons who desire mild winters, a healthful climate, and a good soil, in a country beautifully improved, abounding in fruits, and possessing high social privileges combined with high civilization, Vineland is exceedingly desirable for a place of residence Mr. Solon Robinson, editor of the agricultural department of the New York Tribune, on visiting Vineland some time since declared it to be one of the most extensive fertile tracts, in an almost level position, and suitable condition for pleasant farming, that he knew of this side of the Western prairies. The whole country is a marine deposit, and all through the soil were found evidences of calcarious substances, generally in the form of indurated calcarious marl, showing many distinct forms of ancient shells, of the tertiary formation; and this marly substance is scattered all through the soil, in a very comminuted forn, and in the exact condition, most easily assimilated by such plants as the farmer desires to cultivate. Geologically reviewed, this region would be at once pronounced most admirably suited to the wants of agriculturists. The marly regions, where the soil is of such an argillaceous character that the water of a shower stands long in puddles in the hard-beaten road, and in the fields makes the ploughed lands muddy, are not barren. For marl, composed of marine deposited carbonate of lime and clay, not so compact but that it readily becomes friable and pulverulent, when exposed to the atmosphere, must be an eternal source of fertility, under an intelligent system of manipulation, and rotation of crops. Marl, in all its forms, has been used to fertilize crops in England, from the time it was occupied by the Romans,

and in France and Germany a marl bed is counted on as a valuable bed of manure, that can be dug and carted aud spread over the field. How much more valuable then it must be when found already mixed through the soil, where new particles will be turned up and exposed, and transformed to the owner's use every time he stirs the earth. The tract of land in Vineland is over thirty thousand acres. One of the farmers (Mr. W. D. Wilson) purchased laud about eight miles from Millville, and he purchased 306 bushels of potatoes on one acre, worth sixty cents a bushel in the field. Next year, seven acres, without manure, produced 356 bushels of oats. In one field, the first crop was potatoes, planted among the roots, and yielded 75 bushels. The potatoes were dug and wheat sown, and yielded sixteen bushels, and the stubble turned under and sown with buckwheat, which yielded thirty three bushels, and then the ground was sown with clover and timothy, which gave as a first crop 21 tons per acre. In Vineland no log cabins are allowed to be built, nothing but pleasant country homes, although some of them are comparatively small. Some of the houses are elegant in appearance, and they are all built a little back from the road, so as to leave space for ornamentation. Farm houses have to be erected at a uniform distance of seventy-five feet from the road, and houses on the town lots have to be twenty feet back. Forty miles of public roads have been opened, about one hundred feet wide, so that the town will always be airy. The town plots are laid out in such a manner that to each is allotted fifty feet by one hundred, but a person can take two allotments if he chooses. One of the settlers, who came from Michigan, said that the winters in Vineland are much milder than in Michigan, while the summers are no warmer. He found that the soil was suited to the raising of most kinds of fruit and vegetables, and being of a warm, quick nature, the crops can be got to market early, when they command a good price. Another person who came to Vineland from the West, said he was at a loss to find words to picture such a wonderful place. He had a Concord grape which made 170 feet of new wood in a year, and ripened sixty-two bunches of perfect grapes Some of his pears weighed over a pound each, and squash twenty-five pounds each, without any extra cultivation. On one acre of land, there were of Indian corn ninetyfive bushels of ears, and in some instances, one cob had as many as 1,200 grains. One of the settlers had gathered from a strawberry bed eleven rods in extent, no less than 135 quarts of strawberries, which was at the rate

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of sixty bushels per acre. He realized more than £5 from the above small bed in one season. Dr. Chace, after more than a year's residence in Vineland gave it as his opinion, that compared with Maine, where he had practised medicine more than twenty years, there was not one fifth of the amount of sickness. There were no miasmatic influences, no epidemics, and no fevers of a typhoid character. The water was soft and pure, and to this many ascribed their almost immediate cure of the gravel, with which they had been afflicted for years. A cool sea breeze during the day rendered labour comparatively comfortable to man and beast, while the nights were universally cool and refreshing. He, like hundreds of others, went to Vineland in search of health, his wife having been afflicted for a number of years with a severe bronchial affection, which resisted all remedies, and would probably have proved fatal if she had not removed to Vineland. Experience and observation had given him a much higher opinion of the qualities of the soil than he at first entertained, and he was satisfied that it was the best kind of soil for fruit and vegetables, quite equal to the North for grass, and superior for corn. the grape, no preparation of the soil is required in subsoiling, trenching, and manuring, thus saving hundreds of dollars per acre. The largest vines he ever saw, were growing wild in Vineland, laden with large clusters of fruit. He had planted Concord vines, and in less than two months they had grown from four to six feet, with nothing but coal dust and ashes for dressing, while others had done quite as well without any. Peaches, strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries had proved a success. Vegetables of all kinds grow finely, and he never saw such rapid growth anywhere else. The society of Vineland consists of an intelligent, social, and enterprising community, who, joined together by the ties of a common interest, are resolved to put down everything tending to injure the prosperity of the place, while ever ready with their influence and meaus to sustain those who are labouring to make it a model town, the pride of its inhabitants, and the wonder of all. When I visited Vineland, I was particularly struck with the rural beauty of the scene, but as the day was gloriously fine, it is possible that I may have an exaggerated impression of its general loveliness. No doubt, the absence of leuces in some parts of the district contributes materially to the improvement of its general aspect. Its attractiveness has recently inspired the poetic muse, the following lines having been written by Auna M. Spaulding on