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minister relief to from 5000 to 10,000 each. The New York Eye Infirmary treats over 1000 indigent patients, for diseases of the eye. The Bloomingdale Lunatic Asylum, located at Bloomingdale, has about 200 patients. It is connected with the New York Hospital.

The City Lunatic Asylum, on Blackwell's Island, has from 300 to 400 indigent patients. There is also a Lunatic Asylum on Murray's Hill, Fortieth street. The Institution for the Blind, on the ninth Avenue, has about sixty pupils.

The Deaf and Dumb Asylum, on Fiftieth street, has a principal, eight professors, and not far from 150 pupils. Its buildings are large and commodious.

There are also six Orphan Asylums in the city, and several institutions for aged and indigent females.

Societies are also founded, for the protection and benefit of emigrants, who throng, in such vast numbers, to the city.

From its central position, and intimate connexion with other sections of the country, New York city has been made the head quarters, of numerous benevolent institutions, whose measures are intended to benefit the whole country. The most prominent of these are the American Bible Society, the American and Foreign Bible Society, the Methodist Book concern, the American Tract Society, the Home and Domestic Mission Societies, the Seaman's Friend Society, the Society for ameliorating the condition of the Jews, the American Temperance Union, the Moral Reform Society, the American, and the American and Foreign Anti-Slavery Societies, the American, and the American Baptist Home Mission Societies, &c. &c.

PLACES OF AMUSEMENT. These are numerous. Beside two museums, each containing extensive collections of curiosities, there are several public gardens, where there are frequent exhibitions, picture galleries, four large, and two or three lesser theatres, &c. &c.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF THE CITY. For the purposes of government and police, the city is divided into eighteen wards, each of which elects, annually, an alderman and assistant alderman, who, together, form the Common Council, and with the Mayor, administer the government of the city.

The police of the city, whose duty it is to preserve order, arrest criminals, prevent riots, felonies, and other misdemeanors, give alarm of fires, &c., are 800 in number, and are distributed through the wards, according to their population.

In each ward is a station house, and the police force of the ward, are under the control of a captain of police, and two assistants. There are six police justices, who hold courts, in three different sections of the city. The whole police force, is under the direction of a chief of police, whose rooms are in the new City Hall in the Park.

BUSINESS OF PARTICULAR STREETS. Wall street has become the great rendezvous of bankers and brokers. Pearl street, of wholesale dry goods dealers. South street, of wholesale flour and produce dealers. Chatham street, of dealers in clothing. Broadway is a fashionable promenade; and the Bowery, Grand, and Canal streets, contain most of the retail stores.

STORES, &c. There are in the city, 1981 wholesale, and about 4000 retail, dry goods stores, employing a capital of more than sixty millions of dollars. There are twenty-seven banks, with an aggregate capital of $25,563,600, besides four saving banks.

There are sixty-seven fire and marine insurance companies, of which twenty-two are on the mutual principle. The remainder have a capital of about fourteen millions of dollars. There are twelve life insurance companies, four of them on the mutual principle, the remainder have a capital of $19,000,000. There were, in 1846, 106 hotels and coffee houses.

Such is an imperfect view of the great commercial metropolis of our country. Her growth, thus far, has outstripped the expectations, and predictions of the most sanguine; and judging of the future by the past, we are compelled to believe, that ere the close of the present century, she will be, in population and commercial importance, what London now is.

Her resources are unequalled, and her capacity for accommodating and supporting an immense population, unsurpassed; and when the cities of the old world have sunk to decay, New York, fulfilling the promise of her youth, will flourish, queen of cities, and mart of the world.

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Long Island forms so distinct a portion of the state, that it merits a distinct description. It extends from 40° 34′ to 41° 10' north latitude, and from 2° 58′ to 5° 3′ east longitude. It is 140 miles long, with an average breadth of 12 or 15 miles.

SURFACE. A chain of low hills divides it centrally, north of which, the country is rough and broken, but south of it, is almost a perfect plain, apparently produced by the washing up of the sand from the ocean. This surface is somewhat sterile, but produces heavy pine timber.

RIVERS, BAYS, &c. There are few streams worthy of note, on the island, although as a whole, it is well watered. The Peconic, Connecticut, and Nissiquogue, are the only ones of importance.

Its bays are numerous. On the southern coast, the Great South bay extends from Hempstead to Brookhaven, a distance of more than 70 miles. It is from two to five miles wide, and is

separated from the ocean, by a beach of sand, varying in width from a few rods to half a mile, broken only by a few narrow inlets, which are constantly changing in depth, with the action of the waves.

At the eastern extremity of the island, the Great Peconic bay has divided it into two peninsulas, of unequal length. Gardiner's bay, between Shelter and Gardiner's island, furnishes a fine and commodious harbor.

Smithtown bay, on the northern shore, is an open roadstead, of no great depth of water, and unprotected from the winds, by projecting headlands. Huntington bay is smaller, but af fords a fine harbor. Hempstead harbor, New York harbor, and Jamaica bay, are the only other bays worthy of notice.

LAKES. There are numerous small lakes, or ponds, scattered over the surface of the island, some of them at short distances from the shore. They are very uniform in their height and temperature, being seldom frozen in winter, and maintaining a most delicious coolness in summer. Ronkonkama, Great Pond, Fort Pond, and Success or Sacut Pond, are the principal.

ISLANDS. A number of islands adjacent to Long Island, are included in its territories. Of these, Shelter, Gardiner's, Plum, Robbin's and Fisher's islands, toward the eastern extremity, and Riker's, Coney, Barren, &c., at the southwestern, are the principal. A part of these are inhabited.

RAILROAD. The Long Island railroad traverses the whole length of the island, and furnishes to its inhabitants easy and speedy access to New York city.

HISTORY. Previous to its discovery and settlement by the whites, Long Island seems to have been densely populated by Indians.

Historians have enumerated the names of fourteen or fifteen tribes, of which the principal were the Canarsee, Rockaway, Merikoke, Marsapeague, Secatogue, and Patchogue tribes on the south side; the Matinecock, Nissaquogue, Setauket, and Corchaug, on the north side; and the Shinecock, Manhasset, and Montauk, from the Canoe Place to Montauk Point. Of these tribes, the Canarsee were subject to the Iroquois; the others were tributaries to the Montauks, whose sachem, Wyandanch, was regarded as the grand sachem of the island. The Pequots, however, had crossed over from the northern shore of the sound, and levied a heavy tribute on these tribes; and after that warlike people were subdued by the English, the Long Island Indians paid tribute to the English, and sought their alliance and protection.

The division of the Island, between the Dutch and English, was long a bone of contention. At length, by the treaty of Hartford, made in 1650, it was settled that the English should hold all of the island east of Oyster bay, and that the remainder should belong to the Dutch. After this date, the eastern part of the island was under the government of Connecticut. till 1664, when the Duke of York claimed it as a part of his patent.

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1. Brooklyn, 1788.

2. Gravesend, 1788.

TOWNS.

3. New Utrecht, 1788. 5. Flatlands, 1788.
4. Flatbush, 1788. 6. Bushwick, 1788.

Rivers, &c. B. East River. E. Atlantic Ocean. r. Jamaica Bay. i. Wallabout Bay.

Bays, &c. A. New York Bay. a. Narrows. d. Coney Island.
Forts. Hamilton. Lafayette.

Battle Fields. Battle of Long Island.

Cities and Villages. Brooklyn, Flatbush, Williamsburgh.

BOUNDARIES. North by East river, and New York harbor; East by Queens county; South by the Atlantic; West by New York bay, and the Narrows.

SURFACE. On the northeast, for three or four miles back from the East river, it is hilly. Brooklyn Heights forms the

termination of the ridge, which runs through the island. On the southeast, a sandy plain extends to the ocean.

RIVERS, &c. There are no streams of importance. The chief bays, or indentations of the coast, are Gravesend bay, Gowanus cove, and the Wallabout bay. Plumb inlet, and Rockaway inlet, on the south, communicate with several ponds in the interior.

GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. A considerable portion of the formation of the county is alluvial. The northern portion is granite. Large boulders are found scattered over this, and the adjoining counties. They are mostly granitic.

The principal minerals are hematitic iron ore, iron pyrites, lignite, porcelain clay, magnetic iron sand, and garnet sand. There is also some peat, and a few fossils.

SOIL AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS. The soil of this county is possessed of greater natural fertility, than that of the other portions of the Island, and it is highly cultivated. It is well adapted to horticulture, and fruits and flowers arrive at great perfection. The grape is extensively cultivated, throughout the county. Little timber is found.

PURSUITS. Manufactures are the pursuit of a majority of the inhabitants. The principal articles are distilled liquors, (to the amount of $1,680,000,) cordage, iron ware, oils, flour, oil cloths, leather, glass, ale, &c.

Agriculture, and particularly horticulture, receive considerable attention. Corn, oats, butter, potatoes, fruit, and market vegetables, are produced in large quantities.

Its commerce is large, but being included under the reports for New York city, it is difficult to ascertain its amount with accuracy.

SCHOOLS. There are twenty-four public schoolhouses in the county, in which schools were taught, the whole twelve months, in the year 1845. During that year, 8891 children received instruction, at an expense of $17,095, for teachers wages. The libraries contained about 13,000 volumes.

The school organization of the city of Brooklyn has been already described, (see page 126.) There are also ninety-nine select schools, containing 3516 pupils; one academy, and two female seminaries, with 150 pupils.

RELIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS. Methodists, Dutch Reformed, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Roman Catholics, Baptists, Congregationalists, Universalists, Unitarians, and Friends. Number of churches, 75, of clergymen, 85.

HISTORY. The first settlement, in this county, was made by a small party of Walloons, or Waaloons, from the borders of France, in 1625, on the shores of Wallabout bay, (called from them Waalebocht or the bay of the Walloons.)

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