Its recent progress has been
so amazing that it is now reputed, on good authority, to
harbour at least twenty thousand souls. Viewed from the
sea, it presents, even at the distance of half a mile,
a striking appearance owing to the number and beauty of
its church spires, which rise high above the roofs and
foliage and give to the place its characteristically
religious aspect. The extreme end of the island is heavily
fortified with cannon, commanding a range of a quarter
of a mile, and forbidding all access to the harbour.
Behind this Battery a neat greensward affords a pleasant
promenade, where the citizens are accustomed to walk with
their wives every morning after church."
"How I should like to have seen it!" I murmured to myself
as I laid the book aside for a moment. "The Battery, the
harbour and the citizens walking with their wives, their
own wives, on the greensward."
Then I read on:
"From the town itself a wide thoroughfare, the Albany
Post Road, runs meandering northward through the fields.
It is known for some distance under the name of the Broad
Way, and is so wide that four moving vehicles are said
to be able to pass abreast. The Broad Way, especially in
the springtime when it is redolent with the scent of
clover and apple-blossoms, is a favourite evening promenade
for the citizens--with their wives--after church.
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