where almost each succeeding surge of the sea exposed them to the naked view.

General Johnson was clerk of the consistory of the Dutch Reformed church for a period of forty years. In 1796 he became a trustee of the town of Brooklyn; in 1800 he was chosen a supervisor of the town, which station he held until about 1840, having been chairman of the board a large portion of the time. In those days men took office with a full knowledge of the duty and responsibilities assumed by them, and deliberated on the best interest of the public with great care, and the strictest integrity; the citizen felt that he was safe in such hands.

The tenacity with which the early settlers of " New Nederlandt," and many of their descendants, adhered to their simple and innocent habits, is very remarkable. It is within the recollection of several, who were in the habit of attending the meetings of the board of supervisors, to have seen Gen. Johnson presiding with a long pipe in his mouth, surrounded by other members addicted to the use of the weed, enjoying also the luxury of the tube in the midst of their deliberations. The General was elected a member of the Assembly in 1808, and again in 1809, in which station he discharged his duty to the entire satisfaction of his constituents.

General Johnson was fond of military life, and at the commencement of the war of 1812, took an active part in raising troops, &c. He was a brigadier general when the militia of the State of NewYork were called into active service, took his post with alacrity, and was in command of Fort Green during the greater part of our military operations in that quarter. In 1837, he was elected mayor of Brooklyn, and again in 1838. He was one of the most faithful, prompt and indefatigable of public officers; his punctuality was proverbial. The hour of meeting for the common council was 3 o'clock, and promptly to the time the General was always in the chair, and ordered the roll to be called; if there was a quorum present the business went on, if not, the board stood adjourned to the next time of meeting. A portrait of the General, illustrative of his punctuality, is now hanging in the City Hall, Brooklyn; he is represented holding his watch, and pointing to the hands which had reached the hour of meeting.

He was again elected to the Assembly in 1840, and also in 1841; was elected president of the St. Nicholas Society of Nassau Island in 1848, and was respected and honored by all its members. The General made no pretensions to literature, and seldom wrote anything for the public eye; he nevertheless wielded an efficient pen when his feelings were aroused, or his sense of justice and propriety were violated by official malpractices or the wrong doings of individuals. About the years 1831, '2 and '3, several essays from his pen, under the signature Joshua, made their appearance in some of the city papers, treating of the existing topics of the day, which were extensively read and applauded by sensible

men.

General Johnson became a member of the American Institute in 1836, and was unanimously elected an honorary member in 1849. He served as chairman of the Board of Agriculture in that institution for several years, in which capacity he rendered essential service. When a member of the Assembly, in 1841, he was very active as chairman of the committee on agriculture, in completing and urging to its final passage the act for the encouragement of agriculture in the State of New-York, from the operations of which that department of labor has, and we hope will continue to derive lasting benefits.

Early in the spring of 1837, arrangements were made by the Institute for holding their first public exhibition of plowing and testing plows; designed to ascertain the merits of the respective plows then before the public, and to excite the emulation of plowmen, by suitable rewards to those who should exhibit the greatest skill. In this the General took an active part, and tendered the use of a field on his farm for the purpose, which was accepted. The plowing took place on the 28th day of April, 1837, in presence of a large concourse of people who had assembled to witness it, very much to the satisfaction of all concerned. The company then repaired to the village hotel at Williamsburgh, when the awards were declared. On our way there, Gen. Johnson assured the writer of this notice, that the first iron plow ever used in the State of New-York was first put into the soil on the field where we had just been plowing. A large number of the persons assembled

partook of a repast, prepared at the hotel, at which Gen. Tallmadge, president of the Institute, presided, assisted by Gen. Johnson as vice-president. Addresses were made by gentlemen from various parts of the country, by Gen. Tallmadge, Col. William L. Stone and Gen. Johnson, who, at the close of his remarks, proposed the following toast in Dutch, which, as it embodies a historical fact, we insert here, with a translation. Gen. Johnson proposed the memory of,

"Joris Janse De Rappelje, Teunis Guysbert Bogart, ende Jeremiah Remse Vanderbeck, bowleiden van Waael in Nederlandt, die en de Waalleboght in Nieu Nederlandt de erste landt bowers waren, begeninde in het jaar 1625."

Translation "George Jansen De Rappelje, Tunis Guysbert Bogart, and Jeremiah Remsen Vanderbeck, farmers from Waael, in the Netherlands; they were the first men who began farming in the New Netherlands at the Wallabout, in the year 1625."

The General subsequently attended many of our exhibitions of this kind, at which we always found him the first in the field, and the last to leave it. He was emphatically an extraordinary man, devoting himself with singular fidelity and promptness to whatever he undertook; his opinions were expressed with moderation and sincerity; as a public man, he was discerning and steady; as a partizan, temperate and honorable; as a christian, unobtrusive and confident.

General Johnson died on the 20th of October, 1852, in a perfectly composed and unclouded state of mind; at peace with all his fellow men, and with entire confidence in the saving power of the Redeemer. It was his particular request that his body might be borne to its final resting place, in a strictly private manner, entirely free from all display. In consequence of which the present General Duryea, as a testimony of respect for the deceased, issued an order announcing his death, from which we make the following extract: "It would be proper that this brigade should bear the remains of their old commander to the grave with every tribute of military honor, were it not his expressed desire, that without military or civic escort, by his family alone, this solemn duty should be performed."

An immense concourse of friends and acquaintances assembled at his late residence on the 22d, to be present at the funeral services, which were conducted by ministers of the Reformed Dutch church, in an impressive and solemn manner. A chapter from the scriptures was read by the Rev. Mr. Strong, after which a very appropriate address was delivered by the Rev. Mr. Dwight, and the service was closed with prayer by the Rev. Mr. Greenleaf. The body was kept until the next day, when it was conveyed to Greenwood Cemetery, by the members of his family alone, and there deposited in its last resting place.

A. C.

Not long since the following original paper was handed to us. It is well authenticated, and as it contains an important historical fact, we have taken the liberty of putting it upon record here.

A. CHANDLER, Esq.,

Dear Sir,-A short time before the death of my mother (Feb. 1844,) she gave me this paper, and remarked, "your father and myself were walking in the neighborhood where the bones were scattered over the surface; some partly and others entirely uncovered. He remarked that it was a disgrace to the country. After walking a little farther, he said that he would have them collected. He left me and went to a neighboring house, where he ound that there were several children. He made this agreement with the father, and under this agreement the bones were collected." B. AYCRIGG.

NEW-YORK, Nov. 28, 1853.

"WALLABOUT, LONG ISLAND, Aug. 24, 1805. "I do hereby agree to collect all the human bones as far as may "be without digging, about the shore and banks of this place, "(buried from on board the prison ship Jersey during the revolu❝tion of America,) and deliver the same to Benja Aycrigg, at this "place, at one cent per pound, within one year from this date." AMOS CHENEY.

This novel vessel was presented at our last Fair by the inventor, Mr. L. Alexander, and made two successful descents to the bottom of the river opposite Castle Garden, in presence of a large number of persons who had assembled for the purpose of witnessing the operation. Her last descent was made on the 28th day of October; she disappeared from the surface of the water at half past one o'clock with seven persons on board, and descended to the bottom in 35 feet of water. At the bottom the hatchway was opened, and continued open for one hour and ten minutes. During the time a small rock was broken, the pieces of which were brought to the surface. At the expiration of the time stated, the vessel ascended to the surface and the company landed, dry, and well pleased with the experiment. They testified that the vessel gave proof of capacity to make explorations in much greater depths of water. The cut is a very good representation of the vessel, showing a part of the interior.

Description of the Vessel.

The invention of the submarine Vessel is the application, upon a large scale, of the physical law to which the illustrious Marriotte has given his name, and which is invariable in its effects. This law is, that a certain quantity of air inclosed in a given space, will overcome the force with which a column of water strives to enter the reservoir, and compel the water to confine itself to such limits as are desired, according to the degree of condensation to which the air is subjected.