Pittsburg Is The Merthyr-Tydvil Of Pennsylvania - Or Perhaps I Should
Better Describe It As An Amalgamation Of Swansea, Merthyr-Tydvil,
And South Shields.
It is, without exception, the blackest place
which I ever saw.
The three English towns which I have named are
very dirty, but all their combined soot and grease and dinginess do
not equal that of Pittsburg. As regards scenery it is beautifully
situated, being at the foot of the Alleghany Mountains, and at the
juncture of the two rivers Monongahela and Alleghany. Here, at the
town, they come together, and form the River Ohio. Nothing can be
more picturesque than the site, for the spurs of the mountains come
down close round the town, and the rivers are broad and swift, and
can be seen for miles from heights which may be reached in a short
walk. Even the filth and wondrous blackness of the place are
picturesque when looked down upon from above. The tops of the
churches are visible, and some of the larger buildings may be
partially traced through the thick, brown, settled smoke. But the
city itself is buried in a dense cloud. The atmosphere was
especially heavy when I was there, and the effect was probably
increased by the general darkness of the weather. The Monongahela
is crossed by a fine bridge, and on the other side the ground rises
at once, almost with the rapidity of a precipice; so that a
commanding view is obtained down upon the town and the two rivers
and the different bridges, from a height immediately above them.
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