for running us a-ground-this, however, was no time for explanations; but the boats being lowered as quickly as possible, and soundings being taken, it was found that we were on the windward side of the "Browns," a dangerous shoal about twelve miles from land; and that so long as the wind continued from the present quarter, there would be no hopes of the ship floating; and, if the sea rose, she would inevitably go to pieces. As day dawned, the ominous prospect of the head and bowsprit of a ship showed themselves above water, a few hundred yards distant, being all the visible remains of the "Canning" packet, lost two months previously. It was now for the first time, I heard a genuine Yankeeism: "the ship's lost to all eternity," said the captain; "it a'int, I guess," drawled out the old pilot, giving the sentence at the same time a most inimitable twang, which even Mathews himself would have failed in producing.

It was in vain that all efforts were used for three hours to get the ship off; it remained firm as a rock, excepting during the turn of tide, when it again struck heavily. Seeing no prospect of its being moved until lightened, the "star-spangled banner," reversed, was hoisted at the mast-head, while the passengers awaited the arrival of boats from the shore to carry them away. The first craft we saw was a sloop, which, laden with shingles, and steered by a negro, run close alongside of us. The fellow hailed us very coolly, with, "Have you a pilot on board?" and being answered in the affirmative, he continued on his course without tendering any assistance: fortunately, however, we needed none; for the wind veering a point or two, and freshening with the flood-tide, we once more floated, and standing our course up the river, soon over

took our black friend and his shingle sloop, at whom, en passant, a volley of abuse was fired.

As we gained the head of the bay, and entered the contracted part of the river, we caught occasional glimpses of small villages and neat white cottages, scattered at intervals along the banks, which were covered with walnut, oak, and patches of pine. I was leaning over the side of the vessel, admiring the scene, but regretting that the clearings were so "few, and far between," when seeing a carpenter, a countryman of my own, similarly employed, I asked him what he thought of the New World at which we had arrived. "Oh, sir! it is a fine country; only look at the timber." I smiled, as the old story of "nothing like leather" occurred to my recollection; and the worthy planer of wood continued to enlarge upon his opinion in a strain of encomium. He came up to me a few hours after landing, quite delighted with having been hired at a dollar per diem on the Ohio rail-road.

The scene was, indeed, a most pleasing one. The clear bright atmosphere, which is unknown to England, diffusing a cheerfulness over every object, with not even a passing cloud to hide the brilliant rays of the sun, as they fell upon the thousands of white sails which covered the surface of the broad and noble Delaware; while, ever and anon, one of those huge leviathans of the deep, an American steamer, darted past, leaving a long train of white smoke from its timber-fed furnaces. The whole presented a scene striking and novel to an Englishman. If there was any thing to detract from the beauty of the landscape, it was the perfect flatness of the face of the country, there not being a rising knoll, or single ridge to break the back-ground; nor could much be seen be

yond the smiling verdure of the forest-crowned banks: it was a scene, indeed, at this moment, of life and sunshine; but, probably, if viewed on a squally, wet day, would be thought tame and uninteresting enough. We hove to again towards evening to be boarded by an officer from a revenue cutter, moored in the centre of the stream; and at dusk came to an anchor near a small island, where, at five o'clock the following morning, we buried a child which had died of the small-pox during the night; and then getting under weigh, arrived a-breast of Fort Delaware, or the " Pee Patch," built upon a low reedy island, which divides the river into two channels, and is an admirable position for defending the passage. The works are of masonry, and very extensive; but the whole of the interior, including the barracks and light-house, was consumed by fire two years since, through the negligence, as was stated, of an officer reading in bed. No steps have yet been taken towards repairing it, great sums having been expended upon its construction only a few years previous to the above accident. The channel between it and the main land is so narrow, that with a head wind and heavy squalls there was not room to work ship, and we were once more compelled to let go the anchor. Opposite to, and about a mile distant from the fort, is Delaware city, at the junction of the Chesapeake Canal with the Delaware. I went ashore for an hour at mid-day, and walked through the city, which is but a miserable straggling hamlet, with an inn at the landingplace, and one or two stores; at which a friend, who accompanied me, managed to obtain a few cigars, and some Lundyfoot snuff, though the storekeeper would not vouch for its being the true Irish-" it might be Yankee, and made at Boston, but he guessed not." The

canal appeared of noble dimensions, being sixty feet wide at the surface, and calculated for vessels with a draught of eight feet water. The inhabitants, however, told us it would not answer now so well as formerly, a rail-way having been formed five miles higher up the river in the same direction, on which all the passengers travelled between Philadelphia and Baltimore. While we were standing on the side of the tide-lock, two sloops passed through, laden so high with enormous oysters, that the vessels' decks were on a level with the water; being fastened a-stern of a steamer, they were towed up the river at an amazing speed, for the gratification of the gourmands of Philadelphia. The cholera had broken out in England prior to our sailing, and rumours of its ravages had reached America some time; and as, most probably, its effects had been much exaggerated, every one lived in the greatest dread of its appearing in the States. A gentleman, who was standing on the quay at Delaware city, welcomed my friend, and congratulated him upon his return to his native land; but the latter telling him in jest that we had the cholera on board, he parted from us very unceremoniously, nor could all our assurances that it was only the small-pox, induce him to return and continue the conversation.

The passengers were unfortunately prevented from quitting the vessel, on account of the small-pox having been prevalent on board, which (although the last case was disposed of) would probably subject us to quarantine for some days, unless we could manage to pass the Lazaretto before the 1st of June, on which day the quarantine flag is hoisted, and its performance rigidly enforced upon all infected vessels. It was now the 31st of May, and every one being anxious to avoid farther detention, the ship got

under weigh with the flood tide at night; and after running into the mud only once, from which it was again raised by the tide in a few minutes, it carried on all sail until past midnight, and anchored half a mile above the quarantine station, nineteen miles from Philadelphia. The hospitals, with the storehouses, are very prettily situated within a picquet fence on the right bank of the river; a small village adjoins, and the ground rising with a gentle acclivity from the water's edge for upwards of a mile, is covered with farms not too thickly wooded, but in many places assuming a park-like appearance. The country, from the town of Wilmington, the largest town in the state, containing about 12,000 inhabitants, twenty-four miles below, loses its dead flatness; but the ridge, which runs parallel with, and at some distance from the river, does not exceed 200 feet in height. Throughout the day of the 1st of June it blew so heavy a gale of wind, that the ship drifted a considerable distance from two anchors, nor could the pilot venture to get under weigh. The following morning, during the ebb tide, several of us rowed one of the boats to a small island, towards which we had been drifting the preceding day, where a farmer had established himself. In landing, we found a sturgeon of about 120 pounds weight, which had been left by the tide in a shallow pool, and seized upon him for the benefit of the steerage passengers, who, like ourselves, were rather short of provisions, and to whom we thought a little fresh fish would be acceptable. But it was not until after hard struggling and battling, with much splashing and rolling about in the water, that three of us succeeded in securing our prize, and lifting him into the boat. The farmer, also, selling us a lamb and some vegetables, we returned in triumph to the vessel, and