of the most agreeable elves have been touched upon. | men, and merry little ladies, who trip it away with It is not worth while to present the darker features blithe hearts, and light footsteps upon their favourite of a gloomy superstition, to the contemplation of the and beautiful places of resort. Poor people delight young. The Kelpies and the wild Huntsmen have to describe wealth and splendour, which they do not found no place in this sketch.. possess, and accordingly, in the tales of the Irish, The legends of the Irish are generally gay, ex- the palaces of the "good people," are full of gold and hibiting the character of that poor, but pleasant brilliance.-Cyclopedia of History. people. The Irish fairies are spruce little gentle THE old Hasbrook-house, as it is called, situated on the west bank of the Hudson, a little south of the village of Newburgh, is one of the most interesting relicks of the first and heroick age of our republick; for at several periods of the war of the revolution, and especially from the autumn of 1782 until the troops were finally disbanded, it was occupied by General Washington, as the headquarters of the American army. The views from the house and grounds, as well as the whole neighbourhood around it, are rich alike in natural beauty and historical remembrances. You look from the old house upon the broad bay into which the Hudson expands itself, just before entering the deep, rocky bed, through which it flows towards the ocean between the lofty mountain-banks of the Highlands. On the opposite shore, is seen the ridge of mountains, upon the bald rocky summits of which, during the war of 1776, the beacon-fires so often blazed to alarm the country at the incursions of the enemy from the south, or else to communicate signals between the frontier posts in Westchester, along the line of the American position at Verplanck's Point, West Point, and the barracks and encampments on the plains of Fishkill. As these mountains recede eastward from the river, you see the romantick stream of Mattavoan winding wildly along their base, through glens and over falls, until, at last, as if fatigued with its wanton rambles, it mingles quietly and placidly with the Hudson. On this side of it are stretched the rich plains of Dutchess county, with their woody and picturesque shores. All along these plains and shores are to be found other memorials of the revolution; for there were the storehouses, barracks, and hospitals of our army, and there, for many months, were the headquarters of the father of American tacticks, the disciplinarian Steuben. To the south, you look down upon the opening of the Highlands and the rock of Pollopell's Island, once a military prison, and thence follow, with your eye, the Great River of the Mountains* till it turns suddenly and disappears around the rocky promontory of West Point; a spot consecrated by the most exciting recollections of our history, by the story of Arnold's guilt and Andre's hapless fate, and the incorruptible virtue of our yeomanry; by the memory of the virtues of Kosciusko and Lafayette; of the wisdom and valour of our own chiefs and sages. The Hasbrook-house itself, is a solid, irregular building of rough stone, erected about a century ago. The excellent landscape, painted by Weir, and engraved with equal spirit and fidelity by Smillie, will give the reader a better idea of its appearance and character than words can convey. The interiour remains very nearly as Washington left it. The largest room is in the centre of the house, about twentyfour feet square, but so disproportionately low, as to appear very much larger. It served the general during his residence there, in the daytime, for his hall of reception and his dining-room, where he re • The Indian name of the Hudson. gularly kept up a liberal, though plain hospitality. At night it was used as a bedroom for his aiddecamps and occasional military visiters and guests. It was long memorable among the veterans who had seen the chief there, for its huge wood fire, built against the wall, in, or rather under a wide chimney, the fireplace of which was quite open at both sides. It was still more remarkable for the whimsical peculiarity of having seven doors, and but one window. The unceiled roof of this room, with its massive painted beams, corresponds to the simplicity of the rest of the building, as well as shows the indifference of our ancestors to the free communication of noise and cold air, which their wiser or more fastidious descendants take so much pains to avoid. On the northeast corner of the house, communicating with the large centre-room, is a small chamber, which the general used as a study, or private office. United States, during the war of our independence. At the supper hour the company were shown into a room fitted up for the occasion, which contrasted quite oddly with the Parisian elegance of the other apartments, where they had spent their evening A low, boarded, painted ceiling, with large beams, a single, small, uncurtained window, with numerous small doors, as well as the general style of the whole, gave at first the idea of the kitchen, or largest room of a Dutch or Belgian farmhouse. On a long rough table was a repast, just as little in keeping with the refined kitchen of Paris, as the room was with its architecture. It consisted of large dishes of meat, uncouth-looking pastry, and wine in decanters and bottles, accompanied by glasses and silver mugs, such as indicated other habits and tastes than those of modern Paris. "Do you know where we now are?" said the host to General Lafayette and his Those who have had the good fortune to enjoy the companions. They paused for a few moments, in acquaintance of officers of the northern division of suspense. They had seen something like this beour old army, have heard many a revolutionary anec-fore, but when and where ? "Ah, the seven doors dote, the scene of which was laid in the old square and one window," said Lafayette, "and the silver. room at Newburgh, "with its seven doors and one camp-goblets, such as our marshals of France used window." In it were every day served up, to as in my youth! We are at Washington's Headmany guests as the table and chairs could accommo-quarters on the Hudson, fifty years ago!" We redate, a dinner and a supper, as plentiful as the late the story as we have heard it told by the late country could supply, and as good as they could be Colonel Fish, and, if we mistake not, the host was made by the continental cooks, whose deficiency in the excellent M. Marbois. culinary skill drew forth in one of his private letters (since printed) the only piece of literary pleasantry, it is believed, in which the great man was ever tempted to indulge. But then, as we have heard old soldiers affirm with great emphasis, there was always plenty of good wine. French wines for our French allies, and those who had acquired or who affected their tastes, and sound Madeira for the Americans A British officer had been brought in from the of the old school, circulated briskly, and were taken river, a prisoner, and wounded. Some accidental in little silver mugs or goblets, made in France for circumstances had attracted to him General Washthe general's camp equipage. They were accompa-ington's special notice, who had him placed under nied by the famous apples of the Hudson, the Spitz- the best medical and surgical care the army could enbergh and other varieties, and invariably by heap- afford, and ordered him to be lodged at his own ed plates of hickory nuts, the amazing consumption quarters. There, according to custom, a large party of which, by the general and his staff, was the theme of officers had assembled in the evening, to sup with of boundless admiration to the Marquis de Chastel- the commander-in-chief. When the meats and cloth leux and other French officers. The jest, the argu- were removed, the unfailing nuts appeared, and the ment, the song, and the story, circulated as briskly wine, a luxury seldom seen by American subalterns, as the wine; while the chief, at the head of his except at "his excellency's" table, began to circulate. table, sat long, listened to all, or appeared to listen, The general rose much before his usual hour, but, smiled at and enjoyed all, but all gravely, without putting one of his aiddecamps in his place, requestpartaking much in the conversation or at all contri-ed his friends to remain, adding, in a gentle tone, “I buting to the laugh, either by swelling its chorus or furnishing the occasion; for he was neither a joker nor a story-teller. He had no talent, and he knew he had none, for humour, repartee, or amusing anecdote; and if he had possessed it, he was too wise to indulge in it in the position in which he was placed. One evidence, among many others, of the impression which Washington's presence in this scene had made, and the dignity and permanence it could lend 10 every idea or recollection, however trivial other-general. Without a word to any of the company, he wise, with which it had been accidentally associated, was given some few years ago at Paris. There is another anecdote of a higher and more moral interest, the scene of which was also laid in this house. We remember to have heard it told by the late Colonel Willet, our "bravest of the brave," then past his eightieth year, with a feeling that warmed the coldest of his hearers, and made the tears gush into the eyes of his younger listeners. have only to ask you to remember, in your sociality, that there is a wounded officer in the very next room." This injunction had its effect for a short time, but, as the wine and punch passed round, the soldier's jest and mirth gradually broke forth, conversation warmed into argument, and, by-and-by, came a song. In the midst of all this, a side-door opened, and some one entered in silence and on tiptoe. It was the passed silently along the table, with almost noiseless tread, to the opposite door, which he opened and The American minister (we forget whether it was closed after him as gently and cautiously as a nurse Mr. Crawford, Mr. Brown, or one of their succes- in the sick room of a tender and beloved patient. sors), and several of his countrymen, together with The song, the story, the merriment, died away at General Lafayette, were invited to an entertainment once. All were hushed. All felt the rebuke, and at the house of a distinguished and patriotick French- dropped off quietly, one by one, to their chambers or man, who had served his country in his youth in the tents. But the Newburgh Headquarters are also memorable as the scene of a far more important transaction. In the autumn of 1783, the war had closed with glory. The national independence had been won. The army, which had fought the battles, which had gone through the hardships and privations of that long, and doubtful, and bloody war without a murmur, were encamped on the banks of the Hudson, unpaid, almost unclothed, individually loaded with private debt, awaiting to be disbanded, and to return to the pursuits of civil life, without the prospect of any settlement of their long arrears of pay, and without the means of temporary support, until other prospects might open upon them in their new avocations. It was under these circumstances, while Congress, from the impotence of our frame of government under the old confederation, and the extreme poverty of the country, found themselves utterly unable to advance even a single month's pay, and, as if loath to meet the question, seemed but to delay and procrastinate any decision upon it; the impatient and suffering soldiery, losing, as their military excitement died away with its cause, all feeling of loyalty towards their civil rulers, began to regard them as cold-hearted and ungrateful masters, who sought to avoid the scanty and stipulated payment of those services, the abundant fruits of which they had already reaped. Then it was that the celebrated anonymous Newburgh letters were circulated through the camp, touching, with powerful effect, upon every topick that could rouse the feelings of men suffering under the sense of wrong, and sensitive to every stain upon their honour. The glowing language of this address painted their country as trampling upon their rights, disdaining their cries, and insulting their distress. It spoke of farther acquiescence and submission to such injury and contumely, as exposing the high-spirited soldier to "the jest of tories and the scorn of whigs; the ridicule, and, what is worse, the pity of the world." Finally, the writer called upon his fellow-soldiers, never to sheath their swords until they had obtained full and ample justice, and pointed distinctly to their "illustrious leader," as the chief under whose auspices and directions they could most boldly claim, and most successfully compel, the unwilling justice of their country. The power of this appeal did not consist merely in its animated and polished eloquence. It was far more powerful, and, therefore, more dangerous, because it came warm from the heart, and did but give bold utterance to the thoughts over which thousands had long brooded in silence. Precisely that state of feeling pervaded the whole army, that discontent towards their civil rulers, verging every hour more and more towards indignation and hatred, that despair of justice from any other means or quarter than themselves and their own good swords, that rallying of all their hopes and affections to their comrades in arms and their long-tried chief, such as in other times and countries, have again and again enthroned the successful military leader upon the ruins of the republick he had gloriously served. The disinterested patriotism of Washington rejected the lure to his ambition; his firm and mild prudence repressed the discontents, and preserved the honour of the army, as well as the peace, and, probably, the future liberties of his country. It was the triumph of patriotick wisdom over the sense of injury, over misapplied genius and eloquence, over chivalrous, but ill-directed feeling. The opinions and the arguments of Washington, expressed in his orders, and in the address delivered by him to his officers, calmed the minds of the army, and brought them, at once, to a sense of submissive duty; not solely from the weight of moral truth and noble sentiment, great as that was, but because they came from a person whom the army had long been accustomed to love, to revere, and to obey; the purity of whose views, the soundness of whose judgment, and the sincerity of whose friendship, no man could dream of questioning. The Shortly after, the army disbanded itself. veterans laid down their swords in peace, trusting to the faith and gratitude of their country, leaving the honour of the "Continental Army” unstained, and the holy cause of liberty unsullied by any one act of rebellious, or ambitious, or selfish insubordination. They fulfilled the prophetick language of their chief, when, in the closing words of his address on this memorable occasion, he expressed his sure confidence, that their patient virtue, rising superiour to the pressure of the most complicated sufferings, would enable "posterity to say, when speaking of the glorious example they had exhibited to mankind; had this day been wanting, the world had never seen the last stage of perfection to which human nature is capable of attaining." Why should we dilate here on the particulars of this transaction? They form the brightest page in our history, the noblest theme of our orators; but no eloquence can increase the interest and dignity of the narrative, as told in the plain language of Marshall, and in the orders and address of Washington himself. Let it suffice for us to fulfil faithfully the humbler task of the local antiquary, which we have here undertaken to perform. When any of our readers visit this scene, they will feel grateful to us for informing them, that it was in the little northeastern room of the "old stone house" at Newburgh, that Washington meditated on this momentous question, and prepared the general orders to the army, and the address, which he read, with such happy effect, to the military convention that assembled, at his invitation, on the fifteenth of October, 1783, at a large barrack or storehouse, then called "the new building," in the immediate neighbourhood. It was but a few days after this, that, upon the lawn before the house, Washington finally parted with that portion of his army which did not accompany him to take possession of New York. He parted with his faithful comrades with a deep emotion, that contrasted strongly with the cold and calm serenity of manner which had distinguished him throughout the whole seven years of the war. That parting hour has often suggested itself to the writer, as affording one of the most splendid and abundant subjects that American history can furnish to the painter. It combines the richest materials of landscape, portrait, history, and invention, any of which might predominate, or all be united, as the peculiar talent or taste of the artist might dictate. It offers to the painter, magnificent and varied scenery, shipping, and river craft of the old times, with their white sails and picturesque outlines, arms, military costume, fine horses, beautiful women and children with every expression of conjugal and filial joy, mixed with the soldiers in groups such as art might dispose and contrast at its pleasure, numerous most interesting historical personages, and, above the whole, the lofty person and majestick presence of the chief himself, not the grave and venerable man we are accustomed to see in the fine portraits of Stuart, but still in the pride of manly and military grace and beauty, and melted into tenderness as he parts from the tried and loved companions of seven years of danger, hardship, and toil. Ornaments and price of American art; Allston, Trumbull, Vanderlyn, Dunlap, Cole, Sully, Morse, Inman, Weir; we commend this subject to your genius, to your patriotism! It is a natural and good tendency of the human mind, and one leading to excellent ends, that prompts the man of taste or the scholar to "Worship the turf where Virgil trod, And guard each leaf from Shakspeare's tree, But how much more elevated the feeling, how much worthier in the motive, and salutary in the influence, are the emotions that throb in the patriot's breast as he treads upon a soil, dignified by recollections of wisdom, of courage, of publick virtue, such as those we have now imperfectly described! If, therefore, to use the often-quoted, and deservedly often-quoted language of Johnson, " that man is little to be envied whose patriotism would not gain force upon the plains of Marathon, or whose piety would not grow warmer among the ruins of Iona:" what shall we say of the American who feels no glow of patriotism, who kindles not into warmer love for his country, and her glorious institutions, who rises into no grand and fervent aspiration for the virtue and the happiness of this people, when he enters the humble, but venerable walls, of the HEADQUARTERS AT NEWBURGH.-Verplanck.-N. Y. Mirror. SHOES, AND THEIR VARIOUS FORMS. The invention of this useful article of dress must necessarily be attributed to a very remote period in the history of the world, for as soon as mankind had made even a moderate progress in the arts of life, their attention would naturally be directed to the contrivance of some method for preserving the soles of the feet from injury. In preparing a covering for the head, the most delicate materials, such as straw, shavings of wood, &c., were in the first instance resorted to, the only object being to protect the head from the heat of the sun, and occasionally from rain; but any substance calculated to guard No. 1. No. 2. No. 3. the feet from injury, must be capable of enduring much wear and tear. On this account it is, that the earliest coverings for the feet, of which any traces exist, were formed of leather. The first three engravings represent shoes, or rather sandals, (for the covering of the upper part of the foot is a much later invention,) of Egyptian manufacture, and show the high state of civilization in Egypt nearly three thousand years ago. The sandals of the Greeks are the next we have to notice, and in these, the upper part of the foot is still left uncovered, although, perhaps, greater dexterity is exhibited in the different methods of fastening them on the feet. Much uncertainty, however, exists, as to the correct forms of the sandals of this celebrated nation, as most of the statues which have been preserved are greatly damaged, and the feet have been restored by modern artists: in addition to this, the greater number of the statues of their heroes or gods, are represented with their bare feet. The form of the coverings for the feet of the ancient Romans is evidently derived from the Greeks, but they assumed a greater variety of shapes; in general, however, the upper part of the foot was either wholly or partially covered. The engraving, No. 4, represents what may perhaps be most appropriately called a boot. sole, is, evidently, intended for the purpose of rendering the wearer sure-footed, in ascending or descending steep acclivities, or in crossing plains of ice, or frozen snow. The next is almost a perfect shoe, but to what nation it belonged is uncertain. The third is a species of wooden clog, and is almost similar to those worn at the present day by the ladies of Syria. The fourth appears to be formed of leather; it is copied from an ancient fragment, but it is uncertain to what country it is to be attributed. Referring to the shoes of modern nations, the first, and perhaps the most antique, are those worn by the Chinese. Like every other article of dress of this singular people, the shoes of the richer classes are chiefly formed of silk, and beautifully embroidered. Nos. 10 and 11 represent the foot and shoe of a Chinese lady of rank, which, from its extremely small size, was, no doubt, of the most fashionable form. This strange desire of the Chinese females of all ranks, to reduce the size of their feet, is only another proof of the inconveniences and torments which have been endured for fashion's sake; and, although at first sight it appears extremely singular, it is not a whit more unnatural than the tight lacing of the ladies of the present age. To such an extent is this practice carried, that, says Lord Macartney, "Even among the middle and inferiour classes, the feet were unnaturally small, or rather truncated. They appeared as if the fore-part of the foot had been accidentally cut off, leaving the remainder of the usual size; and bandaged like the stump of an amputated limb; they undergo, indeed, much torment, and cripple themselves in a great measure, in imitation of ladies of higher rank, among whom it is the custom to stop, by pressure, the growth of the ancle, as well as the foot, from the earliest infancy; and leaving the great toe in its natural position, forcibly to bend the others, and retain them under the foot, till at length they adhere to it, as if buried in the sole, and can no more be separated. Notwithstanding the pliability of the human frame in tender years, its tendency to expansion at that period, must, whenever it is counteracted, occasion great pain to those who are so treated; and before the ambition of being admired takes possession of these victims of fashion, it requires the vigilance of their female parents to prevent their relieving themselves from the firm and tight compresses which bind their feet and ancles. When these compresses are constantly and carefully kept on, the feet are symmetrically small. The young creatures are, indeed, obliged for a considerable time, to be supported when they attempt to walk; but even afterwards they totter, and always walk upon their heels. Some of the very lowest classes of the Chinese, of a race confined chiefly to the mountains, and remote places, have not adopted this unnatural custom. But the females of this class are held by the rest in the utVOL. III.-20 most degree of contempt, and are employed only in the most menial domestick offices. "So inveterate is the custom which gives pre eminence to mutilated over perfect limbs, that the interpreter averred, and every subsequent information confirmed the assertion, that if of two sisters, otherwise every way equal, the one had been thus maimed, while nature had been suffered to make its usual progress in the other, the latter would be considered as in an abject state, unworthy of associating with the rest of the family, and doomed to perpetual obscurity, and the drudgery of servitude." How this singular fashion arose, is uncertain; the common story in China is, that a certain lady of very high rank, happened to be gifted by nature with extremely small feet, and, no doubt, took good care that her advantage over the rest of her sex, should not be unknown; this naturally excited the emulation of others, and an endeavour was made to supply by art, that which was considered a deficiency on the part of nature. This curious covering for the leg and foot (No. 12,) was in use among the Anglo-Saxons, it was employed chiefly by the higher classes, and by the clergy in general; a shoe was also worn along with it These leg bandages, or garters, were at times very richly embroidered, and sometimes instead of being rolled one way, as in our engraving, they were employed and bound round contrary ways, so that, when they were of two colours, the appearance resembled a Highland stocking; this was called cross-gartering. The shoes of the Anglo-Saxons were very simple, but, at the same time, well contrived for comfort; they were usually tied at the instep by a leather thong. No. 12. After the time of the Anglo-Saxons, when the nation began to import its fashions from other countries, the form of the boots and shoes was constantly varying, indeed, they appear to have been made rather according to the whim or caprice of the wearer, than in consequence of any settled fashion; we must not, however, omit to notice the long-toed boot (No. 15,) so much worn in the reign of Richard the Second. It is said by historians that these |