NEW BEDFORD, a city and port of entry of the United States, one of the capitals of Bristol county, Massachusetts, stretches for several miles along the west side of the estuary of the Acushnet river, which opens into Buzzard Bay, and forms an excellent harbour. It is 56 miles almost due south of Boston by the Old Colony Railroad. Of the fact that it has been for a long time one of the wealthiest cities in the State New Bedford affords abundant indications in the character both of its private residences and of its public enterprises and numerous charitable institutions. Among the more conspicuous buildings are the city-hall, constructed of granite in 1839, the custom-house (1836) also of granite, the almshouse (1846), and the public library. This last was erected in 1857 at a cost of $45,000, the city having taken over the “Social Library,” founded in 1803; in 1863 the development of, the institution and the cause of liberal education generally were stimulated by a bequest of $100,000 from Miss Sylvia A∕ Howland. The same lady left a similar sum for the construction of water-works; and in 1867—69 a total of about $1,000,000 was spent in connecting the city with a reservoir for 300,000,000 gallons supplied by the upper part of the Acushnet river. French Avenue, the favourite promenade, was laid out by the municipality in 1853; it runs 4 miles round the shore of Clark’s Point at the mouth of the river, where the United States erected a granite fort in 1860-64. Since the decline of Nantucket New Bedford has been the great seat of the United States whale fishery; in 1854, when this enterprise was at its best, the New Bedford district possessed 410 whalers with a burden of 132,966 tons, but owing to the civil war and other influences (especially the immense ...