e of the parent. This is
not the case. The entailing of estates was abolished by an act of
Congress in 1788, but a man may will away his property entirely to his
eldest son if he pleases. This is, however, seldom done; public opinion
is too strong against it, and the Americans fear public opinion beyond
the grave. Indeed, were a man so to act, the other claimants would
probably appeal to have the will set aside upon the grounds of lunacy,
and the sympathy of an American jury would decree in their favour.

As you ascend to Albany City, the banks of the river are very fertile
and beautiful, and the river is spotted with many very picturesque
little islands. The country seats, which fringe the whole line of
shore, are all built in the same, and very bad, style. Every house or
tenement, be it a palace or a cottage, has its porticos and pillars--a
string of petty Parthenons which tire you by their uniformity and
pretence.

I had intended to stop at Hudson, that I might proceed from thence to
New Lebanon to visit the Shaking Quakers; but, as I discovered that
there was a community of them not five miles from Troy, I, to avoid a
fatiguing journey, left Albany, and continued on to that city.

Albany is one of the oldest Dutch settlements, and among its inhabitants
are to be found many of the descendants of the Dutch aristocracy.
Indeed, it may even now be considered as a Dutch city. It is the
capital of the state of New York, with a population of nearly 30,000.
Its commerce is very extensive, as it is here that the Erie canal
communications with the Far West, as well as the Eastern States,
debouche into the Hudson.

We have here a singular proof, not only of the rapidity with which
cities rise in America, but also how superior energy will overcome every
disadvantage. Little more than twenty years ago, Albany stood by
itself, a large and populous city without a rival, but its population
was chiefly Dutch. The Yankees from the Eastern States came down and
settled themselves at Troy, not five miles distant, in opposition to
them. It would be supposed that Albany could have crushed this city in
its birth, but it could not, and Troy is now a beautiful city, with its
mayor, its corporation, and a population of 20,000 souls, and divides
the commerce with Albany, from which most of the eastern trade has been
ravished. The inhabitants of Albany are termed Albanians, those of
Troy, Trojans! In one feature these cities are