To write the History of a Town or City, resembles much the work of a Biographer; for though composed of numbers, these sepa rate units, in their corporate capacity, form but a single figure they have a physical structure which is their own, wants unfelt by others, and means of enjoyment within themselves, in which the stranger has no part, except by courtesy or invitation. To write such a his tory, then, while the subject is still alive and vigorous, is both a perilous and delicate undertaking. It is like selecting a single indi vidual from his family connections, drawing his portrait, as he looks to you, and then passing it around, among his own blood relations, to be criticised by them, and recognized by himself — if that is possible.