itants of the place. The alleged reason
was that the Quarantine establishment was a nuisance, and the residents
had for months been boasting of their intention to destroy the obnoxious
buildings. The miserable inmates would have perished in the flames, had
not some, more charitable than the rest, dragged them from their beds.
The Yellow Fever Hospital is destroyed, and the houses of the physicians
and health officers are burnt to the ground. At the very same moment New
York itself was the scene of the splendid festivities in honour of the
successful laying of the Atlantic Telegraph Cable, to which we have
alluded.

We came in for the _finale_ of these yesterday, when the streets were
still much decorated. In Trinity Church we saw these decorations
undisturbed: the floral ornaments in front of the altar were more
remarkable, however, for their profusion than for their good taste. On a
temporary screen, consisting of three pointed gothic arches, stood a
cross of considerable dimensions, the screen and cross being together
about fifty feet high. The columns supporting the arches, the arches
themselves, and all the lines of construction, were heavily covered
with fir, box, holly, and other evergreens, so as to completely hide all
trace of the wooden frame. The columns and arches of the church were
also decorated with wreaths and garlands of flowers.

On a panel on the temporary structure already mentioned was the
inscription, "GLORY BE TO GOD ON HIGH, AND ON EARTH PEACE, GOOD WILL
TOWARDS MEN," all done in letters of flowers of different colours; the
cross itself being covered with white roses and lilies. In the streets
were all sorts of devices, a very conspicuous one being the cable slung
between two rocks, and Queen Victoria and the President standing,
looking very much astonished at each other from either side. The
absurdity of all this was, that the cable had really by this time come
to grief: at least, on the morning after our landing, an unsuccessful
attempt was made to transmit the news of our arrival to our friends in
England. It was rather absurd to see the credit the Americans took to
themselves for the success, such as it was, of the undertaking.

Besides seeing all this, we have to-day driven and walked about the town
a good deal, and admire it much. It is very Parisian in the appearance
of its high houses, covered with large bright letterings; and the shops
are very large and much gayer looking on the outsid