Volume 2 of the classic commentary on the influence of democracy on the intellect, feelings, and actions of Americans. With an introduction by Phillips Bradley. In 1831, the French government sent Alexis de Tocqueville and Gustave de Beaumont to study the American prison system. In his later letters, Tocqueville indicates that he and Beaumont used their official business as a pretext to study American society. [3] They arrived in New York City in May of that year and spent nine months traveling the United States, studying prisons, and gathering information on American society, including its religious, political, and economic character. The two also briefly visited Canada, spending a few days in the summer of 1831 in what was then Lower Canada (present-day Quebec) and Upper Canada (present-day Ontario).