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news one after another, thus telegraphing it to New York in about eighty minutes.

It took Clinton much longer than that, however, to reach the ocean, for canal travel is very slow. Besides, he had to stop and listen to many speeches on his way. When he finally reached New York Bay, he solemnly poured a keg of Lake Erie water into the Atlantic, to celebrate "the marriage of Lake Erie and the ocean,' which were now connected by an unbroken water way. This was a grand day for New York city, and the people cheered until they were hoarse, for they could now send merchandise to the Western farmers, and receive their

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as stages seemed too slow, people began to talk of building passenger railroads. For more than two hundred years the English had used roughly built railroads to carry coal and other heavy materials short distances. In the year 1804 the first steam railroad was built in England, but it was a very imperfect one, the speed being only five miles. an hour.

A short railroad to carry earth for grading streets had been built in Boston in 1807, where the cars were drawn

by horses or mules.

This was the first attempt at a railway in America, although one of our citizens had said in 1804: "The time will come when a steam carriage will set out from Washington in the morning, the passengers will breakfast at Baltimore, dine at Philadelphia, and sup at New York."

This prophecy seemed very wild to the people who heard it, but it soon came true. Now railroad travel

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is much faster than it was at first, so that one can easily breakfast in Washington, and still have half a day to spend in New York. Besides, people no longer need to stop for their meals, as the trains are provided with comfortable dining cars.

Soon after this prediction, the inventor John Stevens began making experiments with steam railroads, and in 1826 he built a small model road at Ho'bo-ken, in New Jersey. This attempt was laughed at just like the steamboat and canal, but people soon ceased to make fun when they saw how useful it would be. In fact, during the next five years orders were given for the building of several passenger and freight railroads, although the cars on them were at first to be drawn by horses instead of steam engines.

The most joyful event during Monroe's time was a visit

from the Marquis de Lafayette, who was well known to all because he had come over from France to America to help Washington resist Great Britain during the Revolutionary War. After fighting bravely till our independence was won, Lafayette had gone back to France to struggle for freedom there, and had been a prisoner in Austria for five years. Now, however, he was again free, so in 1824 our Congress invited him to make this country a visit.

As the whole nation longed to honor its guest, his visit was a long series of banquets and festivities of all kinds. People gave him so warm a welcome that his tour through the twenty-four states was like a long triumphal march.

Such was the anxiety to meet him, shake his hand, or win some token of his regard, that people constantly crowded around him. We are even told that a foolish lady, hearing he had kissed a little girl, gushingly cried: If Lafayette had kissed me, I would never have washed my face again!" Since she was so silly, it was very fortunate that Lafayette did not kiss her, was it not?

Lafayette visited all the principal cities in our country, laid the corner stone of the Bunker Hill Monument, heard Daniel Webster's famous speech on that occasion, and finally made a pilgrimage to the tomb of his friend at Mount Vernon. There he entered the vault alone, kissed the marble coffin, and doubtless thought how happy he would have been could he only have gazed once more on the strong, good face of his fatherly friend.

On all sides Lafayette beheld great changes, for instead of the three million inhabitants of Revolutionary times, our country now had ten million. Besides, our wealth.

and territory had greatly increased, and, instead of occupying only a small strip along the Atlantic, the United States stretched from that ocean to the Rocky Mountains. Lafayette not only received many honors, but Congress gave him $200,000

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and a fine tract of land

in reward for his services to the nation.

When his visit was finished, and he wanted to return to France, he was sent home on a new man-of-war, which in his honor was called the Bran'dy-wine, because in the Revolutionary War he had been wounded in the battle of that name. When Lafayette died he was buried in a little cemetery near Paris, where Americans often go to visit the grave of

the man who was Washington's dearest friend.

Lafayette's Statue at Washington.

It is because he was Washington's friend, and because he was brave, honest, and noble, that every one admires him. As he helped us in our time of greatest need, Americans have always wished to do him honor, and that is the reason why you will often see pictures and statues representing him.

XVIII. MORE LAND BOUGHT.

ONROE was so good a man that Jefferson once said

MON

in speaking of him: "If his soul were turned inside out, not a spot would be found on it." Still, you must

Before his time as

not imagine that he was a weak man. President was ended, he had to show that, while he was gentle and genial, he could also be very firm.

The Creek Indians, whom Tecumseh had roused to war, had been driven into Florida by Jackson. But they fancied that as they had made war to please the British, the latter would arrange, in the treaty of Ghent, that their lands in Alabama should be given back to them. Great Britain did nothing of the kind, however, and when the Creeks saw that they had been forgotten, they came over the border to take their lands by force.

The Creeks and their allies, the Sem'i-noles, murdered some white settlers, so Monroe sent troops southward to bring them to order. The leader of this force, General Jackson, was such a hard fighter that he soon drove the Indians back into Florida. There, finding the Spaniards. had helped them, he burned a few small towns, and killed two English traders, who had also helped the Indians.

This might have made trouble, for the United States was just then trying to agree with Great Britain about our frontiers. Still, the work went smoothly on, until part of the northern boundary of the United States (that is, of the Louisiana purchase) was fixed as the 49th parallel of latitude, from the Lake of the Woods to the top of the Rocky Mountains. It was also decided that the Or'e-gon

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