nd well-lighted
shops. It is said of New York, that the winding lanes and streets in the
old part of the town, originated in the projectors of the city having
decided to build their first houses along paths which had been
established by the cattle when turned into the woods. The projectors of
Philadelphia have certainly avoided this error, if error it was; for
there the streets throughout the city are as regular as the squares of a
chess board, which a map of the city much resembles. The streets extend
from one river to the other.

We got up next morning betimes; and as it is our intention to see the
town more thoroughly hereafter, we took advantage of a lovely day (but
what day is not here beautiful) to see a cemetery situated upon a bend
of the Schuylkill. It is very extensive; for they have so much elbow
room in this country that they can afford to have things on a large
scale; and everything here partook of this feature. The plots of ground
allotted to each family were capacious squares, ornamented with flowers,
surrounded by white marble balustrades, and large enough to contain
separate tombstones, often inside walks, and sometimes even iron
arm-chairs and sofas. The monuments were all of white marble, of which
material there seems here to be a great abundance, and none of them were
offensive in their style, but on the contrary were in general in that
good taste, which the Americans in some way or other, how we cannot make
out, contrive to possess.

We went afterwards to see the famous Girard College, for the education
of orphan boys. Mr. Girard bequeathed two millions of dollars to found
it, and his executors have built a massive marble palace, quite
unsuited, it struck us, to the purpose for which it was intended; and
the education we are told, is unsuited likewise to the station in life
of the boys who are brought up in it. As in most public institutions for
the purposes of education in this country, no direct religious
instruction is given. This does not seem in general to proceed from any
want of appreciation of its importance, but is owing to the difficulty,
where there is no predominant creed, of giving instruction in any: but
in the case of the Girard institution, even this excuse for the
omission cannot be made, for a stipulation was imposed by Mr. Girard in
his will, that no minister of any denomination should ever enter its
walls, even as a visitor, though this, we understand is not carried out.
For th