Steamer Laurel Hill

We visited this boat on Saturday last, by request, and were much pleased at the substantial manner in which she is being built, as well as her finish and model. She is designed for a semi-weekly packet between New Orleans and Bayou Sara, and is to be commanded by Capt. J. A. Cotton. This steamer is not yet completed, and consequently we cannot speak of her as fully as if finished, but enough can be seen to know that she must rank as a first class boat in elegance, convenience, and best of all, in safety. The care that has been taken in selecting the best materials both for her hull and machinery, and the skill of the workmen, warrant us fully in saying that she will be eminently worthy of public confidence and patronage. The recent law regulating our steamers has been duly consulted, and all the arrangements prescribed for the security of freight and passengers have been adopted and are being reduced to practical purposes on this boat. The boilers are made in the most substantial manner, care having been taken in selecting each plate, and any one showing the least defect was rejected--and all improvements conducive to safety being fully adopted--and when we reflect that under the new law this superior machinery will work with a pressure of only 110 pounds to the square inch we can say that we know the boat must be a safe one, and the safety will be more apparent when compared with the pressure of steam worked on boats built prior to the passage of the late law.... The hull of the Laurel Hill is by William Jones; the boilers and machinery are from the extensive foundry of P. Tellon & Co., and the blacksmith work by E. & S. Marsh.