as safe, it gives you far less sense of safety, it disposes you
the more to sympathize with objects of terror. Indeed, when
you fairly get to the extremity, and find yourself standing
out in this world of waters on a slip of wood only large
enough for your feet to rest on, and which is quivering
beneath you;
when the waters are rushing down under you;
when the spray is flying over you; and when the eye seeks
to fathom the unfathomable and boisterous gulf below; you
have, perhaps, as much of the terrible as will consist with
gratification. Very many of the visitors never think of
encountering this point of view; those who do, and have
a taste for it, will never forget it. It is among the finest
of the fine.

"In returning, I wandered round the little island. It is covered with forest trees of a fine growth, and is full of picturesque beauty. Days might be spent here in happy and deep seclusion:-protected from the burning sun; regaled by lovely scenes of nature, and the music of the sweetest waters; and in fellowship, at will, with the mighty Falls.

"The next morning was the last; and it was given wholly to the Great Fall. I prepared, in the first instance, to go behind it. This is the chief adventure; and is by most writers described as dangerous. There is no danger if the overhanging rocks keep their places, and if you have moderate self-possession. I made use of the oil-cloth dress provided by the guide, and was quarrelling with it as damp and uncomfortable; but that grievance was quickly disposed of. I had not made my entrance behind the scenes before I was drenched, and the less I had on the better. However, it was an admirable shower-bath; and there was an end to the question of wet or dry. "Take care of your breath," was the cry of the guide; and I had need, for it was almost gone. On making a further advance, I recovered it, and felt relieved. "Now give me your hand," said the guide; "this is the narrowest part." Onward I went, till he assured me that I was on Termination Rock: the extreme point accessible to the foot of man.

:

"As the labour of the feet was over, and there was good standing, I determined on making the best use of my eyes. But this was not so easy to do. The spray and waters were driving in my face, and coursing down my sides most strangely a strong wind from the foot of the Fall was driving in the opposite direction, so as to threaten not to blow me down, but to blow me up to the roof of the vault. However, I soon ascertained that we were at the extremity of a cavern of a large and wonderful construction. It is in the form of a pointed arch; the one span composed of rolling and dense water, and the other of livid-black rocks. It was some fifty feet from the foot of the rock to that of the water, and I had entered about seventy feet. On the entrance, which is mostly of thinner waters, the sun played cheerfully, and with glowing power; but within, it was contrasted by the dim light and heavy obscurity which are generated by the density of the fall, to which the whole power of the sun can give only a semi-transparency. What with this visible gloom, the stunning noise of the Fall, and the endless commotion of wind and waters, the effect is most singular and awful. It is a scene that would harmonize with the creations of Fuseli; and it has, I will venture to say, real horrors, beyond what the cave of old Æolus ever knew.

"On returning to my dressing-room, I received a certificate from the guide that I had really been to Termination Rock; an ingenious device to give importance to his vocation, but in the success of which he does not miscalculate on human nature. The rest of the morning was employed in taking peeps at the Falls from favourite points of observation; but chiefly from the Table Rock, and at the foot of the Great Falls. The day was exceedingly fine, and every feature of the amazing scene was lighted up with all its beauty; and I now communed with it as one would with a friend who has already afforded you rich enjoyment in his society. I was delighted—was fascinated. Everything, apart or together, seemed to have acquired greater power and expression. I studied all the parts; they were exquisite,

lovely, noble; I put them all together, and it overwhelmed me, subdued me, fixed me to the spot. Long I stayed; but all time was short. I went, and returned; and knew not

how to go."

DISTANCES.

From Steamboat Landing across to Chippewa

From Fort Schlosser to Chippewa,

From the Falls to Chippewa

From the Eagle and Cataract Hotels to Table Rock, Miles 11
From the above Hotels to the top of the bank,.... Rods 100
Top of the bank down the Staircase to the River..
Width of river at the Ferry,

Up the Canada bank,.

From the Falls to the Mineral Springs,.

To the Whirlpool,

To the Devil's Hole,

To Erie Canal at Tonawanda,

To Buffalo,

To Lockport,

To Lewiston,

Depth of water at the Horse-Shoe,

28

76

Depth of water at the Ferry, . .

174

ADDRESS TO THE NIAGARA RIVER.

(From the Spanish of Jose Maria Hereclia.)—United States Review, and Literary

Gazette.

TREMENDOUS Torrent! for an instant hush

The terrors of thy voice, and cast aside
Those wide-involving shadows; that mine eyes
May see the fearful beauty of thy face.

I am not all-unworthy of thy sight;
For, from my very boyhood, have I loved,-
Shunning the meaner track of common minds,—
To look on nature in her loftier moods.
At the fierce rushing of the hurricane,

At the near bursting of the thunderbolt,

I have been touch'd with joy; and when the sea,
Lash'd by the wind, hath rock'd my bark, and show'd
Its yawning caves beneath me, I have loved

Its dangers, and the wrath of elements.

Thou flowest on in quiet, till thy waves

Grow broken midst the rocks; thy current, then,
Shoots onward, like the irresistible course
Of destiny. How terribly they rage,—

The hoarse and rapid whirlpools there! My brain
Grows wild, my senses wander, as I gaze
Upon the hurrying waters; and my sight
Vainly would follow, as toward the verge
Sweeps the wide torrent: waves innumerable
Meet there and madden; waves innumerable
Urge on and overtake the waves before,
And disappear in thunder and in foam.
They reach, they leap, the barrier; the abyss
Swallows, insatiable, the sinking waves;

A thousand rainbows arch them, and the woods.
Are deafen'd with the roar. The violent shock
Shatters to vapour the descending sheets;
A cloudy whirlwind fills the gulf, and bears
The mighty pyramid of circling mist
To heaven. The solitary hunter, near,
Pauses with terror, in the forest shade.

A