New York was first settled by the Dutch, who
established themselves at Albany, and on the isl-
and of Manhattan, where the city of New York
now stands, about 1612. The English, disputed
their claim to the country, and Charles II. made
a grant of it to his brother the Duke of York. A
strong force was sent against the colony, and the
Dutch unable to offer resistance, peaceably sub-
mitted. The name of the colony was changed
from New Netherlands to that of New York. It
passed again into the hands of the Dutch for a short
period, but finally became established under the
English government. It was the theatre of some
of the most important military operations during
the American revolution, and the territory was
not wholly abandoned by the British till the
conclusion of peace. The present constitution ~*
the state was established in 1821.

Neto York, city, in the above state, the chief
city in the western world for population, wealth
anil c'ommerce, is situated in the south-western ex-
tremity of the state, upon a wide harbour at the
mouth of the Hudson, communicating with Long
Island Sound and the ocean by two entrances.
The city stands on the southern point of the isl-
and of Manhattan which is washed on one side by
the Hudson, and on the other by the strait called
East River, which separates it from Long Island,
and affords a navigable communication between
New York harbour and Long Island Sound. The
harhour extends 9 m. S. of the city to the sea.
The first settlement was made at the southern ex-
tremity, consequently that portion of the city is
composed of narrow, crooked, inconvenient streets,
and unsightly old buildings; bot the more modern
parts, and especially those which have grown up
within 20 years, are regular and commodious.
The finest street is Broadway, which traverses
the whole city in a straight line from N. to S. be-
ing 3 m. in length and 80 feet in breadth; it is
occupied chiefly by shops and elegant public build-
ings, and few streets in the world equal it for the
splendor, bustle and fashion it exhibits. The Bat-
tery is an enclosed promenade on the shore at the
southern extremity of the city ; it is planted with
trees, and though not extensive, is pleasant, much
frequented, and offers a delightful view of the
harbour.

The Park is a triangular enclosure of 11 acres
in the centre of the city ; upon one side of this
stands the City Hall, an elegant structure with a

front of white marble; it is 216 feet long and 105
broad, and is one of the finest buildings in the
country. The Merchants’ Exchange in Wall
street is handsomely bailt of white marble. The
United States Branch Bank is also a fine marble
structure. St. Paul’s Chapel is esteemed one of
the finest buildings in the city; its spire is 234
feet high. St. John’s Chapel has a spire 240 feef
xc2xab*
in height,, and is the most costly church in the

city, having been built at the expense of 200,000
dollars. St. Patrick’s Cathedral, a Roman Catho-
lic edifice, is the largest of all the churches, and
is of stone, 120 feet long and 80 wide. There are
more than 100 additional churches, some of them
very costly. Trinity Church is a Gothic edifice
of stone, and belongs to the oldest and richest
episcopal establishment in America, possessing
a property to the amount of several millions ot
dollars.

Columbia College at New York, was founded
in 1757, and till the Revolution, was called King’s
College. It has a President and 5 professors.
The libraries contain 14,000 volumes. The stu-
dents are 124. This institution is well endowed.
Commencement is in August; there is but one
vacation of about two months immediately after-
ward. The college building is of stone, stuccoed,
and contains lodgings for the professors, with
a chapel, library, museum, lecture rooms, &c. but
the students do not reside in it. The grounds at-
tached to the college are extensive.

The New York Institution comprises a large
edifice, 260 feet in length, in the rear of the Citv
Hall, and occupied by the Literary and Philosophi-
cal Society, tbe Historical Society, the Academy
of fine Arts, the Lyceum of Natural History, the
Museum, and the "Deaf and Dumb Asylum. The
Historical Society have a library of10,000 volumes.
The New York Society Library in Nassau street
has 20,000. The State Prison is on the eastern
bank of the Hudson, in the upper part of the city,
and is a large stone building, enclosed by a spa-
cious yard. The almshouse is at Bellevue, on
East river, and comprises three stone buildings,
the largest of which is 320 feet in length. The
Hospital is a large and well regulated establish-
ment, and has a library of 4,000 volumes.

_ The city rises with a moderate ascent from both
rivers. The view in approaching it by the Nar-
rows from the sea is particularly fine. The bay
contains many small islands, with forts and castles
upon them, and the lofty spires of the city are
visible at a great distance. The water is every-
where deep and the current rapid; it has not been
frozen over for 50 years. The commerce of the
city is very great, as may be gathered from the
following items. During the year 1830, there ar-
rived 1,489 vessels from foreign ports; sailed for
foreign ports 1,138; entered coastwise 1,332; clear-
ed coastwise 3,474; total arrived and departed
7,433. The revenue collected at the custom house
in 1829 was 13,052,676 dollars; being more than
half the whole revenue of the United States from
foreign commerce. The city expenditure by the
municipal government in 1830, wins 1,033,419 dol-
lars. The population by the census of 1830, was
207,021 in the citv and county which take in the
whole island of New York. Brooklyn, on the
Long Island shore of East river, is properly a
suburb of the city, and contains a population of
15,396.

Packets sail from New York, to Liverpool and
London every week; to Havre every 10 days;
and to Hull, Greenwich, Belfast, Vera Cruz, Car-
thagena, and all the chief ports of the United States
at different times. Fifty steam-hoats constant-
ly pass between New York and the towns on the
Hudson, Long Island Sound and other waters in
the neighbourhood. There are 61 banks in the
city, 28 insurance companies; 463 schools; 40
bookstores; 450 lawyers; 98 clergymen; 50 aoe
tioneers: 300 oyster shops; 56 lottery offices
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