on the ground floor, and 62,000 square feet of galleries; or substantially, nearly four acres of room. The prize awards were made in the early part of the year 1854; since which time the association has passed through various phases, until the fall of 1855, when the whole was purchased by the American Institute, and the Crystal Palace became a settled fixture of the great metropolis.

During the summer of 1854 the yellow fever visited the southern portion of the Union, more especially the city of New Orleans, and in '55 it concentrated its deadly power in and around the cities of Portsmouth and Norfolk, Virginia. Its fatality exceeded that caused by the Asiatic cholera, when that terrible visitant swept over the country.

Business was suspended for n time, and there was no trade except in coffins and shrouds. And even this ended, so deadly and fatal were the effects of the plague. Thousands who had passed unscathed through the epidemic in other seasons, took alarm and fled. But, notwithstanding the desertion of the population, the whole number of deaths in New Orleans was about 9000! and the burials in Portsmouth and Norfolk could not have been less. Priest and people, physician and patient, nurse and sick, were thrown into 3ne common grave. The formalities of burial were thrown aside, and •carcely were the semblances of respect maintained. Families seated in luiet happiness, seeing the unmistakable approach of the disease, rose and separated for ever. Anxiety and grief wore deep furrows in the countenances of the surviving, and on every side might have been seen tenantless louses and shops—silent witnesses of wailing and sorrow.

The trundling of hundreds of wheels conveying the dead to their restingplace, stunned the ears with a warning like that which precedes the earthquake.

It would seem as if heaven had repented the making of mankind, and vas sweeping them into the grave.

The leading events in tho United States in 1854, were the final settlement of the Erie riots, the mission of Bedini, the Pope's Nuncio, the burning of the Great Republic and the magnificent establishment of Messrs. larpcr and Brothers, New York, and the wreck of the steamer San Francisco, with 500 United State* troops on board, 150 of whom were rescued by the ships Three Bells, Kilby. and Antartic; also the concession of lorse's telegraph patent, and the horrible loss of the Collins' steamship irctic, by collision with the French steamer Vesta, forty miles from 'ape Race, with the loss of 325 lives.

Among the acts of Congress in 1854 and '55, tho most important were the bill for the increase of the naval force by six first-class steam frigates, the award of $100,000 to the otlicers and crews of the ships that relieved the San Francisco, the passage of the Nebraska and Kansas Bills, organizing thoso Territories, the Homestead and French Spoliation Bills, both of whioh were vetoed by the President. Probably no topic of public interest ever received more attention than the Nebraska question.

The President and Cabinet issued a proclamation against the fillibusters in California, ncgociated with Mexico for the settlement of boundaries, tho right of transfer, and secured a large area of territory, concluded the treaty with Japan, settled the Reciprocity Treaty with Canada, and agreed with Russia on Free ships, free goods." Immediately connected with the affairs of government were the negociation of a treaty of annexation with the Sandwich Islands, said to be extremely favorable to the United States, and the expeditions of Messrs. Walker and Kinney, with a view to colonize the disputed territory of the Mosquito King. By the wise action of the execut

ive, the affair was quieted without difficulty. December 2, 1855, witnessed the assembling of the Thirty-fourth Con gress, with the usual routine of business.

OUTLINE HISTORY OF THE DIFFERENT STATES.

VIRGINIA.

Of the original thirteen colonies, this was the largest, and probably the first settled. It received its name in honor of Elizabeth, the “virgin queen" of England. We are told that the London company, soon after its incorporation in 1606, despatched to America three ships, having oc board one hundred and fire persons, destined to begin a settlement in the southern part of this rich and beautiful country. The squadron was commanded by Christopher Newport, and in company with him was Capt. Gosnold, and the celebrated John Smith. Instead of being warned by the failure of Sir Walter Raleigh's attempt formerly to colonise Virginia, and preserving among themselves a unanimity of feeling and action, these adventurers began to quarrel with each other concerning their eventual precedency long before they reached the land.

It seems, a sealed box had been delivered to the commander, wiih orders that it should not be opened until twenty-four hoars after the emigrants had landed in America. It was understood, however, that said oox contained instructions for their guidance in establishing tbemselves colohia.iy after landing. Smith, from a certain bold and perhaps overbearing demeanor, incurred the hatred of his companions, and was most absurdly accused of an intention to murder the colonial council, usurp the government, and make himself king of Virginia. Upon this unfounded accusation he was put in close confinement, and held until tat arrival and debarkation of the colonists. They were fortuitously driven by stress of weather farther northward than their contemplated place of landing, which was the disastrous Roanoke island, and entered the aouth of Chesapeake bay on the 26th of April, 1607. Here they discovered a large and beautiful river, which they named James river, and chose is s proper spot for commencing a permanent settlement, the present position of Jamestown.

On the 13th of May they debarked, and proceeded at once to organist their government. The mysterious box, as they had surmised, was focne to contain the names of the council, and instructions fdr their gsidaace. In the list were the names of Gosnold, Smith, Wingfield, and New;«cs. Wingfield was elected President, but a vote was passed excluding Sassi from his seat at the board. They had, however, the magnanimity to release him from confinement; and his subsequent services to tie coJooy were of great moment. It is difficult to accoont for the dilatory spirit of these adventurers, as regards the cultivation of the soil. they hai no visible means of support for any length of lime, and yet oegSectei to put in any crops during the first year of their settlement. Baiter taL negotiation with the Indians for a time sufficed to supply then with the necessaries of life; but this was a very uncertain and precarious audi of subsistence, as they presently found. The aborigines became iware of the comparative dependence of the new comers upon them. and lost, * great measure, that reverential awe with which they bad at firsi wel comed them.

In four months from the time of their landing, fifty of their number

had perished, and the remainder were so disheartened that they deti<r nined upon returning to England. In this emergency the great abilities of Smith were made manifest; he undertook to regulate the affairs 01 the colony, and was certainly very successful in so doing. In 1608, Capt. Newport arrived with one hundred and twenty new settlers, and a supply of provisions. This was a source of great joy to the colony; but their prospects were soon overcast; for about this time they discovered in the bed of a small river near Jamestown, a shining substance which they supposed to be gold-dust. A sort of universal phrensy was excited by this discovery. Immediately," says Smith, "there was no thought. no discourse, no hope, and no work, but to dig gold, wash gold, refine gold, and load gold." Smith U3ed all his influence to convince them of their folly, but to no purpose. A vessel was loaded with the useless commodity, and sent to England. On its arrival there, the cargo was examined, and found to be nothing but earth, filled with small pieces of shining stone.

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In one of Smith's excursions into the interior, attended only by an Indian guide, he was surrounded by a body of savages and taken prisoner. His exulting captors conducted him to Powhatan, the principal chieftain of Virginia. After many ceremonies and consultations they decided to put him to death. He was accordingly led forth to execution. His head was placed upon a stone, and a war-club presented to Powhatan, who claimed the honour of being his executioner. As the chief raised the club to give the fatal blow, Pocahontas, his favourite daughter, rushed through the crowd and clasped the head of Smith in her arms, laid her own upon it, and entreated her father to spare his life. Powhatan was amazed. He let fall the club and set Smith at liberty, and soon after had him conducted in safety to Jamestown. In 1612, Pocahontas incurred the resentment of her father—probably on account oi her attachment to the whites—when she left her home and visited the territories of Jopazows, chief of the Potomacs. Capt. Argoll, having sailed up the Potomac river, on a trading voyage, prevailed on Jopazows, by the tempting offer of a copper kettle, to surrender her to him. He detained and carried her to Jamestown, presuming that Powhatan would do no hurt to the English while they retained possession of his daughter. But the noble-hearted chief felt indignant at the treachery of the whites, and refused to listen to any terms of peace till Pocahontas was restored. During her detention at Jamestown, Mr. Thomas Rolfe, an Englishman of respectable character, became attached to her and offered her his hand. It was accepted, and the consent of Powhatan being obtained, the marriage was solemnized with great pomp, in presence of the uncle of Pocahontas and her two brothers. This event relieved the colony from the enmity of Powhatan, and preserved peace between them for many years. In 1616 she embarked with her husband for England, and was received by the king and queen with the attention due to het rank. While in London she received a visit from her former friend Capt. Smith. Her residence among civilized men was destined, how ever, to be short. While about to embark from Gravesend, with her hus band and an infant son, to return to Virginia, she died, at the age oi twenty-two. Her son was educated in London, and from him are descended some of the most respectable families in Virginia.

In 1609 the London Company obtained a new charter, granting greater power and privileges than the former. They soon after sent out nine ships, with nine hundred emigrants, to Virginia. The vessel on board of which were ihe officers appointed to govern the colony, was unfor tunately driven by a storm upon the Bermuda islands; the others ar rived safely. Most of the persons who came in these were of a vicious •haractcr. They at first refused to submit to the authority of Smith,

and by this means threw the colony into great confusion. Smith determined, however, that he would be obeyed until the arrival of the officers that were appointed to succeed him. He accordingly seized upon the leaders of the sedition, and put them in prison, and by this means order was again restored.

About this time, the Indians, fearing that the white people would become too powerful, concerted a plot to destroy them all. Pocahontas heard of it, and resolved to save them. Accordingly, one dark and stormy night, she hastened to Jamestown, and informed Smith of lis danger. He immediately took measures to put the colony in a state of defence, and the Indians, perceiving that their design was discovered, gave up the project. Soon after, Smith received a severe wound, and returned to England to procure the aid of a surgeon. The most unhappy consequences followed. The Indians, perceiving the absence of the man they feared, attacked the colony with united forces. They cut off all supplies, and thus reduced the settlers to the greatest extremity. Such was their wretched condition, that they devoured the skins of their horses, the bodies of the Indians they had killed, and at last the flesh of their dead companions. This period was remembered by the name of "the starving time." In six months their number was reduced from more than five hundred to sixty, and these feeble and dejected. While the colonists were in this situation, the persons who had been wrecked on the Bermudas arrived. The colonists again determined to retnrn to England, and for this purpose they embarked and sailed down the river. Foitunately, however, they were met by Lord Delaware, who had bees appointed governor of Virginia, with supplies of men and provisions. He persuaded them to return to Jamestown, and by a judicious exercise of authority he restored order and contentment, and for several years the affairs of the colony continued in a prosperous condition.

In 1611, Lord Delaware, in consequence of ill health, returned to England, and was succeeded by Sir Thomas Dale. Public authority was now rigidly enforced. Hitherto no right of private property in land had been established. The fields that had been cleared were cultivated by the joint labour of the whole, and the produce was deposited in public stores, and shared in common. This plan of proceeding presented but few inducements to industry, and the idle and improvident trusted entirely to what was distributed from the common stores. To remedy these evils, Sir Thomas divided a considerable portion of land into lots of three acres each, and granted one of these to each individual to be his own property. The happy effects of this measure were soon ?o manifest, that another assignment of fifty acres to each one was made, and the plan of working in a common field was entirely abandoned. From this time the colony rapidly increased and improved- In 1616 they began to cultivate tobacco, a plant which was first found in that soil, and became the great staple of Virginia.

Thus far the affairs of the colony had been managed by a gorerno and council, appointed by the London company, and from 1611 tbey had been under martial law, like a garrison of soldiers, but the people had oecome dissatisfied with this state of things. They longed to enjoy the rights and privileges to which they had been accustomed in their native country. To gratify this noble desire of the colonists, Governor Ycardly, in 1619, called a general assembly, consisting of representatives from the several plantations or boroughs. It met at Jamestown o» the 10th of June, and was the first legislative assembly ever held in America. The colony hitherto consisted almost entirely of men who came for the purpose of acquiring wealth, and who intended again to return to England. But in order to attach them more to the soil, and to induce them to regard this as their home, in 1630, the company sent

over ninety girls, to be disposed of among the young planters for wives it first the price of a wife was one hundred pounds of tobacco, but the demand for them increased so much that it soon rose to one hundred and sixty pounds. The same year a Dutch vessel arrived at Jamestown with twenty Africans, and offered them for sale as slaves. They were •urchased by the people. These were the first slaves brought into the :ountry, and thus was laid the foundation for that system of slavery vhich now exists in the United States. Emigrants continued to arrive from England, and the settlements were widely extended. The colony vas now advancing on the full tide of prosperity; but it was destined soon to experience a sudden and dreadful reverse of fortune. The Indians, though apparently friendly, formed a plan for the total destruction )f the English. On the 22d of May, 1622, the savages burst forth upo the settlements and murdered the whites without distinction of agt o< sex. The whole colony would have been cut off, had not a friendly Indian given notice of the plot, in time to put Jamestown and a fow neighbouring settlements on their guard. The English were roused to vengeance by this horrid scene. They attacked the Indians with fire and sword, killed multitudes of them, and drove the remainder far into the wilderness. By means of this calamity the settlements of the colony were reduced from eighty to eight; and .n 1624. out of nine thousand persons who had been sent from Englaad, only eighteen hundred were living. These misfortunes induced King James, in 1624, to dissolve the London company, and take the government of the colony into his own lands. He appointed a governor and twelve counsellors, to whom all authority was committed; and this arbitrary act was followed by others squally oppressive. The colonists submitted to these tyrannical measures until 1636, when Iney had become so disgusted with the conduct nf their governor, tha* they seized and sent him prisoner to England King Charles was so much displeased with this act of the colonists that he sent him back, with full power to govern as before.

In 1639, Sir William Berkley, distinguished for the mildness of his temper, was appointed to the government of the colony, with instruc tions to restore the general assembly. This gave great satisfaction tc the people, and under his wise administration they enjoyed many years of peace and prosperity. In 1652, Cromwell, who was then at the head of government in England, sent a strong force to compel the gov ernor of Virginia to acknowledge his authority. After a brave resistance Berkley was obliged to submit, when for several years governors were appointed by Cromwell, and oppressive restrictions were imposed upon the colonists. At length the people renounced the authority of their oppressors, and again conferred the office of governor upon Berkley, who was still residing in the colony. Soon after this event news arrived that Cromwell was dead, and that Charles II. was on the throne of England. The authority of Berkley was confirmed by the king, but the ntrhta of the people were little regarded. Large tracts of land belonging to the colony were granted to the favourites of Charles; this produced great excitement in Virginia, and resulted in all the horrors of civil war. The opposing party was swayed by the eloquence of a young and ambitious lawyer by the name of Nathaniel Bacon. He was elected general, and arrayed himself, with six hundred armed men, against the governor and council. Hostilities continued for several months, during which Jamestown was reduced to ashes, and the crops in the fields were laid waste. Troops at length arrived from England, who, >u the death of Bacon, which occurred soon after, put an end to the disturbance and restored Berkley to power. Many of the rebels were tried and executed. The assembly, however, soon after interfered, and by wise and salutary laws succee led in restoring peace and harmony