BUCKINGHAM'S EASTERN AND WESTERN STATES OP AMERICA.

THESE three reader-deterring volumes of nearly sixteen hundred pages, which have been lying beside us for some time, complete the Buckingham trilogy on the United States ; and contain the author's ramblings, adventures, observations, and compilations, from Maine to Pennsylvania on the seabord, then slick across the Alle- ghenies, down the Ohio, up the Mississippi, and about on the North- em Lakes; embracing every thing from Michigan to Ohio and Kentucky, with an episodical view and review of the Falls of Nia- gara. The method in Mr. BUCKINGHAM'S crowning work is much the same as that followed in its predecessors. When he comes to a place—province, city, or town, as the case, or rather as the materials may be—he bets hold of the stranger's guide, or topographical history, if it has one ; makes interest with the archiv- ist of the neighbourhood, or " the oldest person in the parish " ; and from these united sources, mingled in the older States with rare facts from recondite works on colonial history, which any- body who chooses may procure, be vamps up, but in a pleasant and skilful enough way, a sort of touch-and-go history of the foundation, rise, progress, institutions, and statistics of the place. In a town, he takes a tour through the streets, describing the public buildings and the general appearance of the private houses. Newspapers, speeches, addresses from societies, and so forth, fur- nish the author with materials, that certainly fill space, if they do not very freshly or profoundly paint society ; and such things as' these, mingled with travelling troubles, and travelling sketches of scenery, make up the bulk of the three great volumes, and; form a gigantic sample of readable very-commonplace. This, however, is only the opinion of the Spectator; against which single criticism, it is but fair to observe, Mr. BUCKINGHAM can oppose a host of " distinguished individuals," who were so gratified by the perusal of the first and second series, that they not only wrote him to ex- press their " approbation," but, what was more substantial and sincere-looking, accompanied their praise with a further order. Here is MR. BUCKINGHAM ON HIS BOOK, AND HIS CRITICAL TAIL.

Aw these volumes-on America have now been quoted, as an authority, by the two great Leaders of Political Parties in the House of Commons—Sir Robert Peel and Lord John Russell ; and as the unsolicited and disinterested testi- monies of individuals of station and intelligence are deservedly esteemed by the world ; it has been thought desirable to state, that they have been commended, in the most flattering terms, by the following distinguished individuals, who, after their perusal of the First and Second Series, communicated their orders for the Third, accompanied by expressions of approbation, of the most gratifying nature— His Royal Highness the Prince Albert. Luke Howard, Esq., Ackworth Grove. His Royal Highness the Duke of Sussex. Richard Oglander, Esq.. Isle of Wight. His Grace the Duke of Newcastle. Colonel Carryon, St. Austell. Cornwall.

William Rathbone, Esq., Liverpool. Right Hon. the Earl of Effingham. Right Hon. the Earl Stanhope. 'F. B. Pease, Esq., Leeds. Right Hon. Lord Skelmersdale. R. Lucas Chamce, Esq., Birmingham. Rev. Thomas Johrutone, Wakefield. The Hon. Mountatuart Elphinstone.

The Hon. R. Bootle Wilbraham, M.P. J. T. newel!, Esq., Ipswich.

Lord James Stuart, M.P. Colonel Mudge. Beachwood, Devon.

Sir Thomas Esmond°, Bart., M.P. J. C. Hall, M.D., F.L.S.. Retford.

William Aldam, Esq., M.P. Admiral Robert Dudley Oliver, Dublin.

J. H. Talbot, Esq.. M.P. Very Rev. Father Mathew, Cork. Sir George Larpent, Ban., Loudon. Sir Andrew Agnew, Barr., Stranraer.

David Williams Wire, Esq., London. Daniel de Lisle Brock, Esq., Guernsey.

Admiral Sir George Monday, K.C.B. Sir John Harvey, K.C.B.. Newfoundland. John Angersteio, Esq., Blackheath. Rev. Frederick Trestrail, Cork.

Rev. Richard John St. Aubyn, Putney. Samuel Gurney, Esq., Loudon.

Joseph Rutter. Esq., Uxbridge. Rev. Septimus Ramsay, M.A., London.

Sir Gray Skipwith, Bart., Suffolk. William Allen, Esq., F.R.S., Lomita. John T. Hales, Esq., Suffolk, Rev. C. F. A. Steiukopff. Loudon.

Joseph Marriage, Esq., Chelmsford. Sir Charles Metcalf, Bart.

John Wilkinson, Esq., Leeds. Sir Alexander Cray Grant. Bart.' H.P.. T. C. Whitmore, Esq., M.P. Right Hon. the Speaker of the House of Rev. E. Aubrey. Bath. Commous.

R. Fountayne Wilson. Esq.. Yorkshire. Right Hou.the Earl of Fife. William Ridgway, Esq., Hanley, Stafford.

A note to the Dunciad' says of Mr. Ozstes advertising pa- negyric upon himself, " We cannot but subscribe to such reve- rend testimonies as the Bench of Bishops, Mr. Toland, and Mr. Gildon." In like manner, we have every desire to submit to the decision of such a list of judges, from Prince ALBERT to Friend PEASE : still the uncourtly proverb, " in the land of the blind the one-eyed man's a king," comes across us, making us suspect that the amateurs have judged by individual perception rather than general principles—es the popular apology runs, " they cnly know what pleases them." To our apprehension, the bulk of this book would only be new and valuable if all knowledge upon the subject bad been blotted out upon the advent of Mr. BUCKINGHAM.

This remark applies to the greater portion of the volumes, per- haps to two-thirds or more. The rest, if not positively original, is derived from observation upon things actually existing, with distinctive features ; and sometimes has the novelty of individual- anecdote or adventure. This class of matter consists of sketches, of the scenery of the country Mr. Breanvottest passed' through, of the persons he met with in coaches, boarding-houses, hotels, and so forth, as well as of his own: conclusions from such things as fell under his observation : and of all these various topics, the most striking is the picture he draws (and enables others to draw) of the American character ; which comes out darkly enough. In Mr. BUCKINGHAM'S intemperance touches, something, perhaps, may be allowed for an apostle of the cause, gone forth to preach upon it, and shocked at the depravity he saw around him,—though even here the bias appears to be less in exaggerating facts or con- clusions than in lamenting over the lapses : in other respects, Mr. BUCKINGHAM appears to be an impartial observer, with leanings rather in favour of America than otherwise. Yet he draws a dreary picture of the people, socially, morally, and politically. Foul in feeding, dirty in habits, coarse in manners, devoid of the courtesies of life in themselves and of its conveniences in their houses, and very smart in their practices, they would appear to have most of the qualities of the blackguard and the boor, without the rougher virtues, or at least sets-off, that distinguish those straightforward classes; for a milliner-melodramatic love of finery seems a pretty general characteristic of the States people. Coupled with these social ills is a gross and general dishonesty, public and private ; and what is worse than mere dishonesty, (which may exist in any place,) its tacit approval, or at all events its toleration ; neither public defaulter nor private swindler suffering in estimation or reception. Intemperance, according to Mr. BUCKINGHAM, is general ; dram and other drinking going on, morning, noon, and night, to an extent not conceived in England. The women are loose in their reading, and scandalous in their discourse, amid much affectation of mock-modesty. (Some Southern ladies, whose slaves undress in a very scanty wardrobe, were quite shocked at the sight of kilted Highland soldiers in Canada!) But, although there is a good deal more of seduction and prostitution going on than the American brags of the national morality would induce one to sup- pose, our author does not think conjugal infidelity so common as might be expected from the mode of living ; which he attributes to coldness of constitution, and the attractions of business, politics, and the bar—that is, the drinking-bar. It is right to add, what Mr. BUCKINGHAM emphatically mentions, that there are many in- dividual exceptions to this picture,—families in many places, sets (if we may so say) here and there, but no class of courteous, re- fined, and honourable people. Persons of this stamp are exceptions, exercising no influence and furnishing no example, but often rather induced to conceal their refinement and honour, lest they should offend the majesty of the majority. This uniformity of evil, which has been noticed by many acute- minded writers on America, is a curious subject of speculation, es- pecially in its mixture of moral evil with social barbarism. Some of it arises, no doubt, from the colonial origin of the country. The first settlers in any place are, with few exceptions, either adventu- rers who cannot succeed in life at home, or hard-minded men, who have left their country for some social, religious, or political reason : and whatever good qualities such persons may have, too great an amiability or scrupulousness is not of the number ; nor are such qualities likely to be nourished in their first colonial struggles, if they ever had them in their character. The diverse origin and different character of the States, with the absence of a metropolis, would of necessity give a provincial tone to their views, as that of an upper class would deprive them of a model in manners; for although there were men of rank in the colonies, they were there as individuals, often as individuals only temporarily resident, except- ing perhaps the States of Maryland and Virginia, where alone the American gentleman is yet to be found, as a race. The vast immi- gration to the States, that has now been going on for so many years, has also tended to depreciate society, by pouring into it a mixture of various peoples, not any one class of which has had any distin- guishing advantage ; whilst the majority—we speak of it as a ne- cessary consequence—have been characterized by turbulence, in- temperance, or poverty, and the ill qualities that usually accompany a life of adventure, struggle, or distress. These circumstances, especially the last, must have greatly depreciated society, except- ing in those places where such emigrants do not sojourn or establish themselves : to all which may be added, the unsettled state of society by the extent of unoccupied land, and the facilities it affords to any one who has labour or speculation in him. Character, under such circumstances, is of slender value. A man who has made every place on the seabord too hot to hold him, may cross the Alleghanies and begin de novo. But perhaps a good deal of the coarseness and dishonesty of America must be chargeable upon its equality, or the absence of different classes. Besides the point we formerly noticed in a paper on American literary piracy,* that the public opinion of the few is of a higher tone than of the many, even if as individuals they were equally vicious, different classes of society check one another. The judgment of men upon an offence which is peculiar to their " order" is always lenient, even by persons who would not commit it themselves ; for they can ap- preciate the influence of habit and temptation. The members of other classes, who have no experience of the temptation, and perhaps no opportunity of committing the offence, come to its consideration without any social bias, and test it by a sterner but a purer justice. To take an illustration, not an instance directly in point, the lawyer looks upon chicanery, the soldier upon booty or free quarters, with a different eye from that of the trader, whose mind is not blunteil by habit, interests, or the esprit de corps ; as the others regard the law of profits with a Judgment widely different from the trader's. It is highly probable that many of the lower order of patriots are in a certain sense worse than the worst of the politicians they censure, that is, they

• Spectator, No. 733; 16th July, 1842.

would be more corrupt than he is with the same opportunities ; and even in their own sphere, they are probably quite as unprincipled as he. But when they come to judge of him, they abstract their mind from personally disturbing causes, and rise in some degree to the immutable principles of justice. The higher classes judge in the same way of the vices peculiar to the lower ; and so on throughout the different grades of society ; the test being purer and more abstract, and the censure more severe, in proportion as the censurers are removed from the class that commits the offence. By this means, every grade is criticised by all the other grades : and though this criticism does not do much direct hurt to individuals, or prevent offences, it molifies their character, whilst the general amalgam produces a much higher state of public opinion than where the opinions of a class predominate, even if that class should be of the highest.

In America, unluckily, the dominant class is the lowest class. It may be said, and we think MARRYAT has said it, that there is no practical equality in America : and, no question, men with money, there as elsewhere, may command more luxuries and attention than those who have none ; whilst men of refined tastes and elegant pur- suits will seek out congenial society, and avoid as much as possible a contact with the majority. But the majority decides the standard of opinion, which is for open ostensible equality : it forbids any opposition to this standard, and even in practice requires a public submission to its doctrine. Every one who has written about Washington has given some account of the " free and easy " cha- racter of the President's levees : Mr. BUCKINGHAM introduces a candidate for the Presidency in another phase.

GENERAL SCOTT AT AN ORDINARY.

General Scott lived at the American hotel during our stay there, and sat immediately opposite to us at table. It was remarkable to witness how little attention was paid to him by any one, considering his universal popula- rity as well as his station, and above all, considering the high dignity to which a large portion of the community, and particularly the citizens of this State of New York, desired so recently to elevate him. Though admitted to be the first military chieftain of the country, of unblemished character, and popular with all classes, not a single person rose when General Scott entered the room, or bowed, or made way, or even looked particularly towards him as he passed. He took his seat at the table with the rest, having on one day a storekeeper and on another a mechanic sitting next to him ; but not a creature near or around him, not even the waiters of the hotel, paid him the least attention, more than they would have bestowed upon the sergeant or the drum-major of the regiment he had reviewed, if they had taken their dinner at the same table ; where all who pay the same price are admitted to the same honours, as well as the same fare, and the loftiest and the lowliest in rank and station are all placed upon the same level of equality. All this, to a person from Europe, accustomed to observe the distinctions which mark the different grades and classes of society there, seems strange and objectionable. At the same time, candour compels me to state, that I could not perceive any practical evil arising from it in the case in question. Habit has reconciled the people of this country to this equality in manners, which they witness from their infancy. The General did not appear to feel uncom- fortable from sitting beside a mechanic, nor was the mechanic embarrassed by sitting beside the General. It should, however, be observed, that there are grades both in public conveyances and ordinaries in Europe, which Mr. BUCKING- HAM omits to take into consideration in some observations which follow ; and that what is the exception in England is the rule in America, and a rule whose evil consequences he has himself re- marked on, in this passage on the EFFECTS OF BOARDING-HOUSES ON MORALS AND MANNERS.

This boarding-house and hotel life, so common over all the country, and especially in the Western cities, must exercise an unfavourable influence on the habits even of men, and still more so on those of women. You cannot ar- rive or depart, come into or go out from these large establishments, without passing through crowds of men of all ages, from sixteen to seventy, the greater number of whom are chewing or smoking, and some doing both, and all loun- ging or sitting in attitudes that would be thought rude and vulgar in any other country than this; some sitting in one chair, and having their legs thrown up on the back of another ; some using the hand-rail of the balcony or piazza for the same purpose; and some with chairs close against the wall of the house, but resting on their hind-legs only, the front-legs being lifted up to give eleva- tion to the knees of the sitters, which are sometimes lifted up as high as their chins. Add to this, the crowd about the bar-room, taking mint juleps, and other morning drinks, with still stronger draughts in the after-part of the day; and it can readily he imagined, that the constant familiarity of such scenes, presented daily before the eyes of young ladies, must tend to blunt their sensi- bilities, and gradually wear away that delicacy and refinement which is the most graceful charm of the sex. The number of children and youths who travel in this country with their parents is much greater than in England ; and on looking up and down the table of the ladies' dining-room, (where only those gentlemen who come to the hotel with ladies are admitted,) it is not unusual to see many young ladies from ten to fifteen, and some married ones from fifteen to eighteen, who manifest no more reserve of manners than their elders, but seem as if they had been accus- tomed to the world for many years. In the ladies' drawing-room, to which, after a fifteen minutes' meal, (which is a longer time than the majority occupy in despatching it,) the freedom of intercourse between young persons of opposite sexes is much more unrestrained than in any country of Europe ; and young girls of twelve or fifteen will take their seat at the piano, without invitation, sing or play with as much nonchalance as if they were in their own private apartments, and no one present but their relatives and friends. Newly-mar- ried couples, also, often pass their honey-moon at a public hotel; and on the first day after their marriage, will breakfast and dine with a company of fifty or sixty perfect strangers, with much less of embarrassment than an English lady would receive her friends a month after her bridal day. In this, and in many other respects, the women of America present a singular combination of ex- treme fastidiousness in some things and of great laxity in others ; while the men present as strange a union of great affectation of sensitive honour in some classes and puritanical piety in others, while both are far less scrupulous in the due observance of moral obligations and strict pecuniary integrity than is consistent with their outward professions : it may be doubted, indeed, whether there is any country in Europe in which there are so many fraudulent trans- actions, so many unprincipled extortions, and so many unfulfilled contracts and monetary obligations, as in this. Every newspaper warns its readers against forged and spurious bills in circulation, and announces the breaking-up

of some fraudulent concern, the absconding of some delinquent cashier, pub- lic officer, treasurer, or trustee.

MR. B. ON THE AMERICANS IN GENERAL AND THE WEST IN PARTICULAR.

In consequence of the number and pressure of the passengers, one gentle- man, whose dress and appearance indicated great respectability, fell from the side-rails of the Pocahontas into the river. He struggled for a few moments only ; but being greatly alarmed, and unable to swim, lie sunk within ten mi- nutes after his fall, and never rose again. Short as the time was, however, it was long enough to have saved him had the requisite means been taken, as there was one boat at the stern of the steamer and another at the landing- place on the shore, either of which might have been put off in a minute with a single hand, and have been in time to rescue him from his fate. But a reckless indifference to the less of life is a striking and revolting characteristic of West- ern manners. The stabbing of a man in the streets, or the falling of a man into the river, even when attended with instant death, does not excite an much sensation in the witnesses of these events in this country, as the falling of a horse, or the death of a dog, would do in the streets of any town in England ; and even when the greatest outrages or the most severe calamities are narrated by one person to another, it is rare to see it accompanied by any expression of countenance, or hear it couched in any terms indica- tive either of sorrow or indignation in the narrator. My own conviction is, that in all the softer feelings of love, friendship, humanity, and bene- volence, the national character is deficient, when compared with the French, the Germans, the Swiss, the Italians, the Spaniards, and the Portu- guese; or that these qualities, if they originally existed in an equal degree with those of other nations, have become absorbed and overpowered by the intense love of gain, and passion for display, which swallows up every minor feeling, and leaves only a concentration of selfishness, devoted exclusively to sell- enrichment and self-gratification, without a thought or care for others, beyond that of making them in some way or other subservient to their own benefit. To this again, of course, as to all other general delineations of character, there are bright and honourable exceptions; but they constitute an inconsiderable minority.

It should be observed that the following case was a singular in- stance of indecorum, taking place in a steamer belonging to a Black man who could only get Whites of indifferent repute to man and command the vessel : but though singular, it is indicative as to the state of feeling, where such freedoms would be permitted, or even attempted.

DELICACY IN A WESTERN STEAMER.

About noon, and just as the table was laid for dinner, one of the male pis- sellers, in a state of intoxication, began to undress himself in the open cabin. Stripping off all his garments, including even his shirt, be declared that he had had no sleep in the night, from the bugs and mosquitoes—both of which were indeed abundant ; so that he was therefore determined to get a " snooze" by day, and as it was too hot to wear clothing, be should take it in his " buff.' So acting and so saying. be rolled himself into one of the upper-bertha in the open cabin, where all the passengers were momentarily expected to sit down to dinner ! Ile had the decency, it is true, when lie was fairly in his berth, to draw the curtains close ; but the first turn be made within his frail and narrow bed-place caused the Blender boards that supported the mattress on which he rested to give way, and down be came, naked and heavy, on a stout gentleman who was also taking his noonday nap in the berth below him. The shouts of the falling man, and the screams of the one on whom he had fallen, were strangely mingled; and some dreadful accident being thought to have hap- pened, the cabin was soon filled with passengers from the upper-deck, who in- flicted summary jnstice upon the naked intruder, and hurried him down among the deck-passengers, to whom be in truth belonged.

STATE OF THINGS AMONG THE "FRIENDS."

During our short stay in Philadelphia, there seemed to me to be as many cases of robbery and disorder as occur in London in the same space of time with nearly ten times the population. Sometimes, it would be the open and daring act of three or four thieves surrounding a man at a railroad depot, and snatching his pocket-book from his bands while be was paying fur his ticket ; one running off with the spoils, and the other remaining to obstruct the pur- suit, and raise a clamourand hubbub so as to divert attention from the fugitive. At another time, it would be the housebreaking and shoplifting of midnight robbers, who would carry off the money and valuables in such a manner as to lead to a belief of collusion with some of the servants or inmates; and at others, it would be exhibited in some ingenious device, which would unite the qualities of a robbery and a fraud in one. Cases of personal violence were also multiplying in an alarming degree; and, what was almost unknown here twenty years ago, and very rare even ten years since, namely, conjugal infi- delity, and quarrels between husbands and wives of the lower classes, were matters of everyday occurrence.

TIPPLING.

In the bar-room of this hotel, where 1 had to wait so long for an answer, the scene was moat painful and degrading. In the centre was a stove, around which some twenty persons were seated, smoking cigars ; and at the bar, which is ranged along like a shop-counter, were never less than ten or fifteen persons demanding drink. A great number of these drank wine-glasses of raw brandy, gin, and whisky, or native rum ; some took spirits-and-water, but always of great strength, or slightly diluted; and more than half the persona thus sup- plied with drink were already intoxicated. The habit which prevails in Eng- land of persons sitting in a parlour, forming a convivial party round a table, and having their wine or spirits-and-water sent to them, over which they sit some time, employed in conversation, debate, or singing, while they are drink- ing, so as to mingle social conviviality with their intoxication, is unknown here. All liquors are drank standing, at the bar or counter, as at a gin-shop in London ; and, so far is this from being thought disreputable here, that very many of the members of the Legislature, some living in the house, and others visiting from other hotels, were among the number of those who met at this bar, drank their glasses together, and then retired.

LOVE, MARRIAGE, AND MORALS.

The members of the Legislature, though they come from all parts of the State, and are here for five months in the year, rarely or never bring their fami- lies with them. The result of this separation is, undoubtedly, greater dis- soluteness of life, among the men at least : while this constant herding of men together in large masses, without the softening influence of domestic life, or the discipline of naval or military subordination, has a tendency to beget rude- ness of manners, as well as looseness of morels ; and both, unhappily, are seen here among those who might be expected to present better examples.

We remarked at Harrisburgh, as we had dune elsewhere, the frequency of unequal marriages with respect to age ; it being quite common to ace young girls of sixteen or eighteen married to men of fifty and sixty. They are then usually the second or third wife, and sometimes the fourth, but rarely the first. The reason assigned for this, by persons likely to be most conversant with the facts, are these. The daughters of all American families arc brought up so much above their station, initiated in early life into such expensive habits of dress and ornament, and made so averse to labour in every shape, that when they come to be of marriageable age, they are wholly unfit to be the wives of men in the same rank as their brothers, as they know nothing of domestic economy, and are wholly unfit to superintend or manage either housekeeping or

the bringing up of a family. Their only occupation since leaving school having been to dress extravagantly, pay morning visits, attend halls and parties, they are neither qualified to assist a husband by their industry in any shape, nor to be more to him than an expensive toy, to be maintained without any return in the way of utility. Both their mothers and themselves, therefore, usually look out for some elderly gentleman, bachelor or widower, who has a good income ; and if he can be induced to make an offer of marriage, it is eagerly accepted; the means of living expensively, and without care, being quite sufficient com- pensation for the inequality of age, dissimilarity of tastes, or the absence of children. The lady is taken at once to a hotel or boarding-house, to avoid the cost and cares of housekeeping. The husband, being engaged in business, leaves her after breakfast, and sees her only at meals and in the evenings; so that she has all the day at her disposal, to dress, gossip, visit, and receive company. Scarcely an hour a day seems to be given either to needlework, study, or any other effort of utility or improvement ; the piano and the novel engrossing all the small portion of time given to any thing intellectual ; and these are resorted to more for mere pastime than from any real enjoyment derived from either the one or the other. Such is a melancholy but at least faithful picture of a great proportion of the marriages in this country ; where I believe the instances of passionate attachment, such as are so often seen in the purely love-matches of England and other countries of Europe, and of romantic devotion, such as is seen in Germany, Italy, and Spain, are fewer than in any other country of the civilized world; and fewer even than in many Oriental nations, where the great mass of marriages are mere unions of convenience at the dictation of parents, but where come instances are continually occurring of the most ro. mantic and fervent love, unmixed with the slightest particle of interested cal- culation, which appear to be almost wholly unknown here. At the same time it must be admitted, that there are fewer infidelities, elopements, and sepa- rations in married life, in America, than in most countries of the Old World; a fact which is chiefly to be attributed to the colder temperament of the people, and to the greater influence of those prudential calculations as to the evil consequences of such a step, than are made by the more ardent tempera- ments of Europe.