Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume V.djvu/727

 DAY DAYTON 723 America in 1638, and commenced printing at Cambridge, by direction of the magistrates and elders, in 1639. The first thing printed was the " Freeman's Oath," in 1639 ; next in the same year an almanac, made by Wm. Pierce, mariner ; then the Psalms, " newly turned into metre," in 1640. He also printed a cate- chism ; " Body of Liberties," 100 laws, in 1 641 ; and a second edition of the Psalms, 1647. From his extant works it appears that he was not a skilful printer. The printing house was taken from him about 1648, and put into the hands of Samuel Green. DAY, Thomas, an English author and philan- thropist, born in London in 1748, died Sept. 28, 1789. His father, a collector of the cus- toms, died when Thomas was a year old, leav- ing him an ample fortune. He was educated at the Charterhouse, and at Corpus Christi college, Oxford, which he left after three years' study, without taking a degree. He was in- duced to study law, and was called to the bar, but never practised. He resided successively in different parts of the continent, making himself familiar with the wants of the lower classes, and alleviating them to the extent of his power. Indignant with a nobleman who was believed to be a seducer, he challenged him to single combat, but in vain. He selected from the foundling hospital at Shrewsbury two girls 12 years of age, designing to educate them after the principles of Rousseau, and ultimately to marry one of them. His expec- tations were not realized, although both his protegees did honor to his views of education, and one became the wife of his friend Bick- well. In 1778 he married a lady of Yorkshire having opinions and a fortune like his own, and retired to his estates in Essex and Surrey, where he took an active part as an advocate of American independence and parliamentary reform. He published several poems and pam- phlets against slavery and the slave trade, and on other political questions, but owes his celeb- rity chiefly to " The History of Sandford and Merton" (3 vols., 1783-'9), one of the most popular books designed for the information of youth, written with freshness and vigor, and inculcating the virtues and philanthropy which characterized its author. This was followed by a shorter work of fiction, entitled "The History of Little Jack." Day met his death by a kick from a young horse, which he was trying to train upon a humane principle ; and his wife was so afflicted by the intelligence that she never again left her darkened chamber, though she survived him two years. DAYTON, a city and the capital of Montgom- ery co., Ohio, at the confluence of the Mad and Great Miami rivers, on the Miami canal, 46 m. N. N. E. of Cincinnati, and 66 m. W. S. W. of Columbus; pop. in 1840, 6,067; in 1850, 10,- 977; in 1860, 20,081 ; and in 1870, 30,473, of whom 7,423 were foreign born. There were 6,109 families, with an average of 4'99 persons to a family, and 5,611 dwellings, averaging 5 -43 persons to a dwelling. The city is regu- larly laid out on the E. bank of the Great Mi- ami, with streets 100 ft. wide, crossing each other at right angles, lighted with gas, and lined with tasteful private residences, surround- ed by fine gardens. The public buildings dis- play a magnificence rarely equalled in commer- cial cities of such rapid growth. The county court house, planned after the model of the Parthenon, is an imposing edifice, 127 ft. long by 62 ft. wide, of coarse but compact white marble, quarried in the neighborhood. The roof is of stone, the doors are of solid iron, and the cost of the whole was somewhat over $100,- 000. One of the market houses, 400 ft. long, and paved with blocks of limestone, has accom- modations for a city hall and council chamber in the second story. Several lines of railroad furnish ready means of communication with the principal cities of the west, viz. : the Atlan- tic and Great Western ; the Cincinnati, Ham- ilton, and Dayton; the Dayton and Union; the Dayton and Michigan ; the Dayton, Xenia, and Western; and the Cincinnati, Sandusky, and Cleveland. There is an immense water power within the city limits, a great part of which is obtained from a hydraulic canal, built by a company in 1845, and drawing its supply from a point on the Mad river 4 m. above Day- ton. The power thus obtained is leased to man- ufacturers, and the surplus ultimately finds its way to the Miami. Dayton is a place of great industrial activity, and one of the most impor- tant of the interior cities of the United States. It is especially noted for its manufactures of railroad cars, paper, stov.es, and hollow ware, which amount annually to over $3,000,000. There are also several iron founderies and machine shops, brass founderies, flour mills, saw mills, manufactories of cotton and woollen goods, of linseed oil, agricultural implements, of sash, doors, and blinds, numerous brewer- ies, 3 national banks with $800,000 capital, 2 state banks, and 8 insurance companies with $1,260,000 capital. It is divided into 11 wards. The principal charitable institutions are the city orphan asylum, the county almshouse, and the southern lunatic asylum of Ohio, which has about 250 patients. An institution of great interest is the central national soldiers' home, situated on an elevation 4 m. from the city. It consists of a group of 40 large build- ings, including a handsome church of native white limestone, and a hospital of brick, with freestone facings and trimmings, capable of accommodating 300 patients. There are also a brick dining hall seating 3,000, a library, music hall, billiard room, bowling alley, head- quarters building, and barracks for the men. The grounds embrace 640 acres, shaded with natural forest trees, handsomely laid out, with fine avenues, a deer park, an artificial lake, nat- ural grotto, hothouses, and flower beds. Du- ring 1872 the home provided for 2,426 disabled soldiers; the current expenses amounted to $199,136 68. The public schools are numerous