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The edifice is surmounted with a dome 115 feet
above the street. The Merchants' Room, in the
Exchangers 53 feet square. The Custom House
is entered from Water Street. It has an exten-
sive saloon divided by colonnades into three apart-
ments. The desks of the officers are ranged
between the columns, and the central area is
occupied by persons doing business with the
department. The Collector's Room is at the
upper end of the hall. The buildings of the
Maryland University ‘are situated in Lombard
Street, and those of St. Mary's College upon
the corner of Franklin and Green streets. A
number of the public schools have handsome
and convenient edifices. A fine building of
Gothic architecture has been erected for the
accommodation of the institution known as
McKim's Free School. Among the benevolent
institutions, the Hospital is provided with a spa-
cious and commodious building in thcN. W. sub-
urbs of the city, which wras erected at a cost of
$150,000. It commands a fine view of the city
and surrounding country. On account of the
number of monuments which it contains, Bal-
timore has obtained the name of the “Monu-
mental City." The Washington Monument, at
the intersection of Charles and Monument Street-,
is a most imposing structure. This is a column
of the Doric order, 20 feet in diameter at the
base and 14 at the top, rising 180 feet from a
base 20 feet high, and bearing a statue of
Washington which is 13 feet in height. The
whole is constructed of white marble. There is
an ascent to the top of the column by a winding
staircase within the shaft, where a most com-
manding view of the city and its environs is
obtained. The Battle Monument, at the corner
of Calvert and Fayette Streets,, is a handsome
structure of fine white marble, erected to com-
memorate the bravery of those who fell in de-
fending the city from the attack of the British
on the 12th of September, 1814. The base is
Egyptian, in the form of a truncated pyramid,
rising about 20 feet from the ground, having
on esfteh front an Egyptian doorway, with the
winged globe and other Egyptian symbols, un-
der the shadow of a deep overhanging cornice.
Above this base rises the column, in the form of a
Roman fasces, on the bands of which are in-
scribed, in letters of gold, the names of those who
fell in the battle. The column is surmounted
by a female figure, emblematical of the city of
Baltimore, saved by the event of this engage-
ment. The British force which invaded the city
in this attack consisted of about 12,000 troops, and
a squadron of 40 or 50 vessels. Fort McHenry
at the entrance of the harbor from Patapsco Bay,
was bombarded by sixteen ships from the squad-
ron for twenty-four hours. These, bring repulsed,
drew off. The troops, to the number of 9000
men, landed at North Point, and proceeded to
within six miles of the city, where they were
met, on the 12th of September, by the Baltimore
brigade, under General Stryker, consisting of
3,200 men. In the severe battle which ensued
the British commander, General Ross, was killed.
The Americans retreated towards the city, and
were slowly followed on the next day by the
enemy; but fearing lest their own retreat should
be cut off, which was contemplated, they hastily
returned on board their fleet, and left the Chesa-
peake. — Baltimore is well supplied with pure and
wholesome water. In different parts of the city |
are public fountains, supplied by springs, en-
closed by circular iron railings, and covered by
small open temples, consisting of columns sup-
porting a dome, which answer both a useful and
an ornamental purpose. But the chief supply
is by means of an aqueduct, in which water is
brought from Jones's Falls, a distance of about
half a mile, into a reservoir in Calvert Street,
and thence distributed to every part of the city.
Baltimore enjoys great facilities both for foreign
and domestic trade. The harbor is very fine, con-
sisting of three parts. The entrance to the outer
harbor, between Fort McHenry and the Lazaret-
to, is no more than about 600 yards in width,
with 22 feet of water. This width gradually in-
creases, with the same depth of water, for a mile
and a quarter, where it is again contracted to
one fourth of a mile, and forms the entrance to
the second or middle harbor, over a channel of
about 12 feet of water. Above this, which is
called Fell's Point, the harbor again expands
into an ellipse, half a mile in width and a mile
long, having a depth of 15 feet. The third or
inner harbor, called the Basin, has a depth of 10
feet, and extends nearly into the middle of the
city. Vessels of 500 or GOO tons can lie at the
wharves near Fell's Point, and those oh 200 tons
or more can come into the city through the inner
harbor. A marine telegraph is located on Fed-
eral Hill, which communicates with a signal on
the Chesapeake Bay. to give notice of the ap-
proach of vessels through the bay. In respect
to domestic commerce, this city possesses distin-
guished advantages. By its natural position -it
must necessarily draw to itself most of the trade
of Maryland, one half of that of the great state
of Pennsylvania, and no inconsiderable portion
of that of the Western States. And then, hv the
means which its own enterprise has provided,
these natural advantages are greatly increased.
It has lines of steam packets running- to Phila-
delphia and Norfolk, and of sailing packets to
New York, and to other large ports on the Atlan-
tic coast. The communication of Baltimore
with the surrounding country is now greatly fa-
cilitated and extended bv railrqads. One chain
connects the city with Philadelphia and New
York. The Baltimore and Susquehanna Rail-
road extends to York, in Pennsylvania, and thence
by another route connects the city with Philadel-
phia. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, which
is' designed to connect the city with Wheeling,
on the Ohio River, is in operation as far as Cum-
berland, near the foot of the Alleghany Moun-
tains, and when carried through to Wheeling,
will open the most direct and speedy communi-
cation between the valley of the Mississippi and
the Atlantic coast. A branch from this road
connects the city with Washington, a distance of
about 40 miles, and thence extends by an almost
continuous route to New Orleans. As a market
for tobacco, Baltimore is second to no other, and
has been reckoned the greatest flour market in
the world. The manufactures of this city ate not
less important to its prosperity than its com-
merce. A great amount of water power exists
in the vicinity, which has been made extensive-
ly available for manufacturing purposes. Upon
Jones's Falls, the small stream which passes
through the city, there is a succession of mill
sites, which are improved for manufacturing pur-
poses. The Patapsco River, though not large,
i has a fall of about 800 feet, through a distance |
