present home."
"Abode, not home," Millicent said, half-jestingly. "Yes, come with me,
but tread softly or you may be heard," and she led the way through the
wood. Upon reaching the brow of the hill she halted, and, placing her
hand on the captain's arm, said, "Look through these trees into the
clearing yonder." He did so, and saw a number of wigwams, with smoke
curling out from their tops, and, sitting about on the ground outside,
several women, and one or two old men.
"And there you have lived for nearly a year; but it is late; I must
leave you. Be of good courage, and believe that never a crusader felt
his pledge to visit the Holy Land more sacred than I do mine to liberate
you;" and, lifting his hat with deference, he withdrew into the forest.
The scene above described carries the reader back to the time of the
fierce and devastating war waged by King Philip against the settlers of
New England, in which all the worst elements of the Indian nature came
to the surface. The firebrand and the tomahawk were the weapons employed
by the Indians to accomplish their purpose of destroying the advancing
power of the white man; and so mercilessly did they use these that the
outposts of civilization were swept away as by a whirlwind. The savages,
avoiding direct conflict with organized forces of the English, made
sudden and unsuspected attacks, under cover of darkness, upon exposed
houses or towns, applying the torch to the buildings, and massacring the
inhabitants or carrying them into captivity. Neither the life nor
property of a white man was safe for an instant. While sitting quietly
by his fireside or working in his cornfield, he was liable to instant
death at the hands of an unseen foe. In such a condition of affairs it
is not surprising that spots, where of late the influence of
civilization had begun to make itself felt, were abandoned by their
terror-stricken inhabitants. Thus, for a while, the rude savages again
appeared as rulers of the land, and the forest often resounded with
their war-cry as they fell on one partly-deserted town after another,
and their yells of triumph rang on the hushes of midnight as they
returned from their fiendish expeditions of plunder waving aloft the
scalps of their victims. For a year or more this bloody war lasted,
bringing death and desolation to many homes, until its guiding hand and
vital breath, King Philip, was struck down, killed by one of his race.
[TO BE CONCLUDED IN NEXT ISSUE.]
THE SINGER.
[FROM THE GERMAN OF GOETHE.]
BY LAURA GARLAND CARR.
"Outside the gate, what do I hear
Along the drawbridge sounding?
A song! Now let it reach my ear
Through palace-halls resounding!"
So speaks the king; the small page flies;
The lackey comes; the message hies;
The old man comes, low bowing.
"These noble lords have welcomed me;
These fair dames give me greeting.
What heavenly kingdom do I see
With star-gleam, star-gleam meeting!
Such splendor, pomp, and wealth allied,
Desire must here rest satisfied,
While Time forgets his speeding!"
He pauses now; now strikes in song
Full toned, of pleasing phrases.
Each knight grows proud in look, and strong;
Dames blush at fancied praises.
The king, for whom the songs awake,
As fair return the bard to make--
A golden chain upraises.
"Oh give to me no gift of gold!
Such to your knights deliver,
Before whose faces, stern and bold,
The foe's best lances shiver.
Or let some chancellor of state
This gift receive, a treasure mete,
Fit token from wise giver.
"I sing as some free wild bird sings,
Among green branches swinging.
The song that from the throat outrings
Its own reward is bringing.
But may I beg a gift of thine?
Then give to me of rare old wine
In golden beaker, brimming."
They bring it in; he drinks it up.
"O drink--sweet, strength-bestowing!
O happy house--where one may sup
With such wealth ever flowing!
Thank God--you share with me a part!
It stirs my brain; it warms my heart!
I go with new life glowing."
[Webster Historical Society Papers.]
THE WEBSTER FAMILY.
BY HON. STEPHEN M. ALLEN.
I.
The family of Webster, which settled on the easterly coast of
Massachusetts and New Hampshire, became quite numerous, and emigrated to
the various parts of western New Hampshire as early as 1763. Stephen
Webster was one of the twelve pioneers of the town of Plymouth, N.H., in
which, with other settlers of the backwoods, they had to endure great
privations and hardships.
The three Webster families which settled and remained in Plymouth always
claimed Daniel and Ezekiel of Salisbury as first or second cousins.
I quote from Moore Russell Fletcher, M.D., who was connected with the
Webster family on both sides, the following narration. He says that Mrs.
Stephen Webster and her sons and daughters, the youngest of whom was
Mrs. Betsey Fletcher Webster,--the mother of the doctor, and who died in
1863, at the advanced age of eighty-one,--gave him much of his
information.
"Stephen Webster, with eleven others, with their wives and children,
went from Chester, N.H., to Plymouth, N.H., then a wilderness, about
forty-five miles north of Penacook, now Concord, and there, on the
Pemigewasset, near the juncture of Baker's River (afterwards so
called), they erected a log-cabin, in that hitherto transient abode of
the wild animals of the forest and the still wilder Indians, who at
intervals passed through the place on their way to Penacook, Contoocook,
Hooksett, Suncook, and Soucook, their old camping-grounds. These men,
having selected lands for farms, had no alternative but to carry on
their backs the articles of food, implements and seeds requisite for
their colonization. They had axes, saws, augers, and shaves, or
drawing-knives, and for protection and food their guns and ammunition;
not forgetting their bibles, hymn-books, and tinder-boxes. In their
journey through the wilderness from Penacook, a distance of sixty or
seventy miles, they were guided by blazes on trees made by surveyors or
men in search of lands, were obliged to cross streams on fallen trees
reaching from bank to bank, and when hunger and fatigue compelled a
halt, they selected a spot near some stream, drew forth their
tinder-boxes, and with steel and flint struck a fire; then they selected
flat stones, wet some Indian meal, placed it on the stones, and baked it
for their frugal meal--their 'Johnny-cake.' At night they constructed a
little booth of bushes, with their fire at its entrance, and, as they
laid upon the boughs, their feet would be near the fire,--a great
protection against wild animals who infested the forest and who are
known to have great dread of fire.
"Each day was a repetition of its predecessor. Upon their arrival their
first efforts were directed to erecting a temporary wigwam of trees and
bushes in their new home, and all reposed on the boughs, prior to which
all joined in prayer and thanksgiving for their safe arrival and good
health. On the morrow, after locating the spot for buildings, they began
the erection of their log-houses, with one room, with opening for light,
and an attic, which was accessible by a small ladder. The crevices
between the logs were stopped with moss; the floor of the rooms, roofs,
and the attics and doors were of small poles. A few days were sufficient
to get their houses in the rough well under way. For food all had equal
rights and took an equal part in procuring it. Three or four took dog
and gun, and in an hour or two returned with a dead moose, bear, or
three or four deer on their shoulders. They subsisted largely upon game,
which was plenty in the forest, and when a change was desired they
sought fish, with which the streams abounded.
"A few months after their arrival, Mrs. Stephen Webster signified her
expectation of adding another member to her family. It was a matter
deemed of such importance that a town meeting was called, a moderator
and clerk chosen, and the vote put to the meeting upon the name which
should be given to the new-comer, which vote was unanimous 'if a boy his
name shall be Plymouth.' But their vote did not prevent its being a
girl, and she was called Lydia, with the remark, 'the first white child
born in Plymouth.'
"Upon one occasion, food being nearly exhausted, a settler took a bag,
went to Concord, got one hundred pounds of Indian meal, took it on his
shoulder, and carried it to Plymouth, sleeping on boughs, and baking
his corn-cake on a flat stone. His arrival was hailed with enthusiasm.
When tired of moose and bear meat they tried deer, rabbit, coon, and
turtle, then turned to salmon, eels, and pouts. For dessert they had
chestnuts, beech-nuts, and butternuts, and for drink they used the
checkerberry and hardhack, but mostly they used mountain tea and swamp
chocolate-root; these two last-named articles nearly resembled those
brought from foreign countries. They raised flax, and with it made their
clothing for both men and women. For coats and outer garments they
doubled and redoubled the threads, the cloth resembling our present
canvas. Linen was found to be cold for stockings and socks, and their
inventive talent was brought into use. They cut hair from the bear-skins
and mixed it with tow, and thus Bruin furnished them meat, cotton, and
wool.
"After a few years of roughing it the settlers began to reckon on some
of the luxuries of civilization, and indulged in windows, each allowing
two panes of glass 7 X 9. Their fireplaces and chimneys were built of
flat stones for the first few feet, and were 'topped out' with clay,
mixed with straw, and held by sticks of wood laid up cob-house fashion.
The same kind of chimney may now be seen in the rural districts of
Canada, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. In many places the fireplace and
chimney stand outside of the house, and the fireplace is wide enough to
burn wood ten feet long. The wood requires but little chopping or
splitting. For andirons they used large stones. When the children wanted
to warm themselves they stood at the corner at the ends of the wood.
"They made their furniture, hewing planks from logs for tables, and for
a tub chopped off the end of a log, dug a hole through it, leaving only
a shell, in which, with a jackknife, they made a groove for the bottom,
which also was hewn from a piece of log. The shell of their tub was then
soaked with hot water, to enlarge its circle; the plank bottom was then
crowded into the groove, and the tub dried before the fire. If not
water-tight, the openings were filled with rags. For chairs they took
tops of trees with many limbs, split them into two parts, and the limbs
answered for legs. Their crockery, much of it, was made of hard wood:
from knarls they made trays, bowls, pans, plates, and sometimes spoons,
knives, and forks. Instead of candles they used pitch and candle woods.
My grandfather, had in his house wooden trays, bowls, plates, and wooden
spoons.
"When the number of inhabitants had increased so that it was called a
village, earthen plates and pewter plates and iron spoons were brought
into town from the town and larger settlements. Men carried the flax
wheel on their backs, and their mechanical skill enabled them to
construct looms.
[Illustration: DANIEL WEBSTER ON HIS FARM.]
"As the settlement increased in number, and the people began felling
trees, the Indians, who from time to time passed there on their way to
Penacook, Contoocook, Hooksett, etc., seeing the whites encroaching
upon their lands, began their maraudings and became so troublesome, that
the settlers regarded it as no sin to kill a redskin who was known to
watch about for an opportunity to secretly send an arrow with deadly
intent at their white brothers whenever they ventured beyond the limits
of their little settlement.
[Illustration: BIRTH-PLACE OF DANIEL WEBSTER.]
"There was one, Mr. Baker, whose delight was, we learned of the
Indians,--being at their camping-ground, near the union of what is now
Baker's River with the Pemigewasset River, about a mile above
Plymouth,--to take his gun, as he termed it, and play hide-and-seek with
the redskins. His scouting about would seem to be known, and an Indian
would come out to spy his enemy, hiding from tree to tree. Baker did the
same, and as each peeped for the other Baker placed his hat on the
muzzle of his gun, and held it so that the Indian saw, as he thought, a
white man's head. Then he sent an arrow whizzing through Baker's old
hat, and, seeing it fall, stepped out to finish his foe by raising the
hair, when Baker sent a slug through the redskin. Soon another Indian
came peeping from trees to learn the cause of that report and the fate
of his chief. In a few minutes Baker played the same game on him and
several others. Baker became so notorious an Indian exterminator that
they gave the river his name; hence Baker's River."
[TO BE CONTINUED.]
[Illustration: REV. THOMAS PRINCE.
[The Founder of the Prince Library in Boston.]]
THE NEW ENGLAND LIBRARY AND ITS FOUNDER.
BY VICTORIA REED.
Thomas Prince was an eminent divine and accomplished scholar, well known
throughout New England during the first half of the 18th century. His
life is worthy of consideration on many accounts, but particularly for
the great work he accomplished outside of his profession. He is,
perhaps, best known to this generation as the collector of the Prince
Library, now incorporated with many other private collections in the
Public Library of Boston, although his published work, "The Chronology
of New England," confers an equal benefit on posterity, and both
together entitle him to a place of honor in our annals.
His library was gathered as much for the instruction of others as for
his own gratification. It is interesting to know that this bequest, now
one hundred and fifty years old, obsolete in some respects, is still
highly valued. Some writer says, that, if for no other reason, there
should be a new fire-proof building for the Public Library for the
better preservation of the Shakespeare collection and the Prince
Library. The valuable editions of Shakespeare arranged in glass cases in
the Bates Hall are no doubt familiar to many people, but it is possible
that the majority even of the daily visitors to this institution have no
definite knowledge of the Prince Library, which is found, on
examination, to contain a fund for the curious, as well as many things
of importance to the antiquarian.
This library was added to the Public Library twenty-four years ago, and
was originally a gift to the Old South Church. It is a collection which
should be treasured, not only by Bostonians and all New England people,
but is also of importance to the country at large, as it was, in a
limited sense, the forerunner of all public libraries in the land. It is
of a twofold nature,--an historical section, with the other devoted to
ecclesiastical works. Mr. Prince designed the ecclesiastical or Old
South collection, as he called it, for the use of the pastors and church
of which he was associate pastor forty years. This contained all the
Latin and Greek books, and all in oriental languages.
His will states: "That whereas I have been many years collecting a
number of books, pamphlets, maps, prints and manuscripts, either
published in New England or pertaining to its history and public
affairs, to which collection I have given the name of 'Ye New England
Library,' and have deposited in the steeple of the Old South Church; and
as I made this collection from a public view and desire that many
important transactions might be remembered, which otherwise would be
lost, I hereby bequeath the collection to the Old South Church forever,
to the end that this collection may be kept entire. I desire that this
collection be kept in a different department from the other books, and
that it may be so made that no person shall borrow any book or paper
therefrom, but that any person whom the pastors and deacons of the
church for the time being shall approve, may have access thereto, and
take copies therefrom."
The Prince catalogue states that, "at his death, the New England Library
was the most extensive of the kind that had ever been formed. It
contains, in its depleted state, not less than 1,500 books and tracts
relating to America during the period of our colonial history."
The Mather family and Gov. Hutchinson are alone to be compared with Mr.
Prince as collectors of books, and theirs avail little, as they have
been scattered and destroyed. It is a matter of congratulation that the
greater portion of Mr. Prince's books have been preserved, each of which
had been carefully selected, "many bearing name, date of purchase, cost,
and place where it was acquired." He frequently noted contemporaneous
events of public importance on fly-leaf.
A great number were purchased during a seven-years' residence in Europe,
and some one says, "By means of this memoranda, we can easily trace the
stages of his sojourn abroad." He invented a very quaint book-plate,
with flowered border, in which he inscribed his name.
Many valuable books and manuscripts were destroyed at the beginning of
hostilities, which resulted in the Revolutionary war. The library, when
entire, was a rare monument to the energy and perseverance of Mr.
Prince, who, through a long and laborious life, never lost sight of
this cherished project of his youth. It has never been merged into any
other collection, but remains entirely separate, in accordance with the
will of the testator. It has a special catalogue, and no book is ever
taken from the building, though accessible for reference in the main
hall. The books are deposited in an alcove at the top of the house,
reached by a spiral stairway. Many of them are of immense size, in heavy
leather bindings, while others are of the smallest dimensions. The pages
are yellow with age, and the majority will have only the ravages of time
to contend with, as the contents are not of a nature to make them
attractive to the youth, or even to many maturer minds of this
generation; but to the antiquarian, and as a picture of the growth of a
mind in Puritan days, from its earliest years to advanced age, this
collection is unequalled; for it was carefully selected, subject to the
taste and needs of Mr. Prince's nature, and each book was familiar and
favorite ground to him.
The first book with date bears this inscription: "Thos. Prince, his
book, 1697, 10 years of age." The book was "Marrow of Modern Divinity,"
with "Awakening Call to the Unconverted" attached, and in his 16th year
the following book was added: "Some Account of Holy Life and Death of
Mr. Henry Gearing, late citizen of London, who departed this life Jan.
4th, 1693, aged 61. Boston in New England, printed for Sam'l Phillips,
at the Brick Shop, 1704." Underneath is written, "Anno Domini, 1704,
Thomas Prince, Duke of Landwich, Earl of Pen^apog."
The taking down of the first Old South and "Ye day of laying foundation
of y^e South Church, New Meeting House, March 31, 1727," are duly
chronicled in books of those dates. All through his life Thomas Prince
showed a wonderful adaptability in noting the minutest as well as
greatest events, and we trace a thorough command of detail in his
published work, both lay and clerical. This, joined with enthusiasm and
unflagging zeal, caused him to master all difficulties, and to
accomplish tasks that would be appalling to an untrained or
undisciplined mind.
One of the cards used for reference in the Public Library contains the
following: "The Prince Library has some rare specimens of the earliest
typographical art in British America, and other books of peculiar
interest in the history of New England, though not printed in America.
The Bay Psalm Book, which was printed at Cambridge, Mass., in 1640,
being the first book ever printed in the British Possessions, 'The
Freeman's Oath' and a small almanac only preceding it. What is supposed
to be the original draught of the preface of this book, in the
handwriting of one of the editors, the Rev. Richard Mather, is among the
Prince MSS. Elliot's Indian Bible,--first edition printed at Cambridge,
1663,--also Eliot's Indian Primer, 1720, in original binding, and
thought in that style to be unique. Capt. John Smith's description of
New England, printed in London, 1616, with the early map. This copy
contains the old and new names, and has differences from most copies
that have been preserved."
Mr. Prince collected the original manuscripts of the "Mather Papers,"
and arranged them chronologically with notes. He seemed to know
intuitively that everything should be preserved that would be of the
least advantage to future historians. The salvation of the records of
this most important family, who, with extreme rigor and cruelty even, in
some cases, ruled the Puritans of their day, was a natural and
thoughtful act on Mr. Prince's part.
The "Hinckley Papers" are of great interest also. The catalogue of this
portion of the library has been very carefully prepared, as each letter
in all these manuscript collections is designated by subject, the name
of the writer, date, and volume that contains it. The Hinckley papers
were those belonging to Mr. Prince's maternal grandfather, Gov.
Hinckley, who had a very extensive correspondence during the twenty
years he was governor of Plymouth Colony. It contains letters from all
men of note of that period,--Roger Williams, the Cottons, the Mathers,
Gov. Winslow, a letter of King Charles II. to Gov. Josiah Winslow, Gov.
Hinckley's address, and petition to James II.; also many personal
letters to wife and daughters. Mr. Prince says "that on his
grandfather's death he took these papers from his study, but while he
was in Europe some of curiosity and value were unhappily lost." There
are some Prince papers, mostly letters of distinguished divines to his
brother, Rev. Nathan Prince. In his brother's commonplace book he
inscribes, "This book belongs to the New England Library. Begun to be
collected by Thomas Prince upon his entering Harvard College in 1703,
and was given by Prince to s'd library in memory of his late dear
brother, y^e Rev. Nathan Prince, M.A., formerly Fellow and Tutor of
Harvard College. Born at Sandwich, November, 1698; died at Rattan, 1748,
and wrote this manuscript before he left s^d college in 1742." The
catalogue remarks: "Two vols. MSS., evidently companions to this book,
are in the Library of Bishop of London at Fulham."
There is in the Prince Library quite a large collection of
ecclesiastical history and biblical literature.
The psalms in numberless versions, metres, and paraphrases, in Hebrew,
Latin, and Greek; one hundred and six volumes on natural, polemic, and
practical theology. All his own works are to be found here; as many as
thirty-three sermons, mostly funeral discourses, others commemorating
great events, such as victories at Culloden and Louisburg. He gave
frequently the genealogy of the person eulogized in his funeral
orations, thus making them valuable for family reference, and often of
historical significance. We easily trace the early bent of his mind
toward chronology. It gathered force throughout his whole career, and
finally bore fruit in his own "Chronology of New England," on which he
spent many years of preparation.