```"New streets invade the country; and he strays,
```Lost in strange paths, still seeking, and in vain,
```For ancient landmarks, or the lonely lane
```Where oft he play'd at Crusoe, when a boy.=
```"All that was lovely then is gloomy now:
```Then, no strange paths perplex'd him, no new streets,
```Where draymen bawl, while rogues kick up a row,
```And fish-wives grin, while fopling fopling meets."
`````William Elliott.=
````"But all are passing fast away;
`````Those abstruse thinkers too--
````Old churches, with their walls of gray,
`````Must yield to something new.
````Be-Gothic'd things, all neat and white,
`````Greet every where the traveler's sight."
`````Elizabeth Oakes Smith.=
[Illustration: 9310]
ET us stroll through ancient Philadelphia this clear frosty morning
[[November 28, 1848]] ing, and visit the few fossil remains of the
primitive period that lie amid the elegant structures and "be-Gothic'd
things" of the present, like trilobites in secondary limestone. We shall
have little to do with the great town stretching away to the Schuylkill;
it is near the banks of the Delaware that we must seek for the places
hallowed by the remembrance of=
```"The deeds of our fathers in times that are gone;
```Their virtues, their prowess, the fields they have won;
```Their struggles for freedom, the toils they endured,
```The rights and the blessings for us they procured."=
One of the most interesting buildings in Philadelphia is the "Slate-roof
House," on the southeast corner of Norris's Alley and Second Street,
a little south of Chestnut Street. It was built about 1690 for Samuel
Carpenter, and was occupied by William Penn as his city residence in
the year 1700. * There was the birth-place of John Penn, the governor
of Pennsylvania when the Revolution broke out, the only child of William
Penn born in this country. From that circumstance he was called "the
American." There, in 1702, Lord Cornbury, then governor of New York
and New Jersey, was magnificently entertained, with his suite of fifty
persons. James Logan, William Penn's agent, also entertained him at
Pennsbury, in a style quite in dissonance with the plain character of
Quakers. This house was sold to William Trent, the founder of Trenton,
in 1703. For nearly fifty years afterward it was occupied by some of
the first men of Philadelphia (among whom was Deputy-governor Hamilton),
when it became noted as a superior boarding-house. There General Forbes,
the successor of Braddock, died in 1759. In 1764 it was rented by the
Widow Graydon, mother of Captain Graydon, the author of "Memoirs of
Sixty Years' Life in Pennsylvania." Captain Graydon describes the house
as "a singular, old-fashioned structure, laid out in the style of a
fortification, with abundance of angles, both salient and re-entering
Its two wings projected to the street in the manner of bastions, to
which the main building, retreating from sixteen to eighteen feet,
served as a curtain. It had a spacious
* Penn had a fine eountry residence, sometimes called "The Palace," in
Bucks county, on the bank of the Delaware, nearly opposite Bordentown.
It was constructed in 1683, at an expense of $35,000.
[[[Loxley's House.--Mrs. Darrah and the British Adjutant General.]]]
{301}yard half way to Front Street, ornamented with a double row of
venerable, lofty pines, which afforded a very agreeable rus in urbe in
the heart of the city." *
[Illustration: 9311]
John Adams and other members of the first Continental Congress boarded
in the _Slate-roof House_; and there many British officers had lodgings
while the city was in possession of the royal troops in 1778. A young
ladies' boarding-school was kept there at one time, in which a daughter
of General Wayne was educated. ** General Arnold occupied it as his
residence while military governor of Philadelphia in 1778; and there
were given those splendid entertainments before and after his marriage
with Miss Shippen, which contributed to involve him in those debts that
aided in producing his defection to the American cause.
Strolling down South Second Street, I came to an antiquated building, at
No. 177, known as "Loxley's House." Its gallery in front was sometimes
used as a preaching-place by Whitefield. The house was then out of town,
over "the Second Street Bridge." In front of it was a gentle hill,
whose slopes afforded a fine resting-place for the immense audiences
who listened to the great missionary. On that hill Captain (afterward
General) Cadwallader used to drill his "silk stocking company." ****
[Illustration: 8311]
Mr. Loxley, the first owner of the house, was a lieutenant of artillery
under Braddock, and was present at the defeat of that general at the
Great Meadows.
During the Revolution, the Loxley House was the residence of a Quaker
named William Darrah, or Darrach, whose wife, Lydia, was a true heroine
and patriot. While the British had possession of Philadelphia, the
adjutant general made his quarters at Darrah's; and it being a secluded
spot, the superior officers of the army used frequently to hold their
confidential meetings there. On one of these occasions, the adjutant
general ordered Mrs. Darrah to make the upper back room ready for the
reception of his friends, who were expected to stay late; "And," he
added, in giving his order, "be sure, Lydia, your family are all in bed
at an early hour."
His manner was emphatic; and Mrs. Darrah, fearing to disobey, prepared
for their reception. The order impressed her quick perception with
curiosity, and she resolved to know the purport of the meeting. When the
officers came the family were in bed, Lydia alone being up to receive
them. This done, she retired to her own couch without undressing.
She was restless, and at length a higher impulse than mere curiosity
determined her to become a listener. Softly she stole from her room,
and, without shoes, traversed the passage to the door of the apartment
where the officers were assembled. She applied her ear to the keyhole,
when, after a few minutes of silence within, a voice read distinctly
an order of Sir William Howe for the troops to quit the city the next
night, and march out to an attack upon Washington's camp at Whitemarsh.
Lydia had heard enough, and, gliding back to her room, she threw herself
on her bed, but not to sleep. In a few minutes there
* Memoirs, page 53.
** Watson's Annals of Philadelphia, i., 163.
*** This view is from Second Street. The building is of imported brick,
except the modern addition between the wings, which is now occupied as
a clothing store by an Israelite. The house is suffered to decay,
and doubtless the broom of improvement will soon sweep it away, as a
cumberer of valuable ground.
**** Watson, i., 412.
[[[Information sent to Washington's Camp by Mrs. Darrah.--Disappointment
of the British.]]]
{302}was a rap at the door; she knew its meaning, and feigned deep
slumber. At the third knock she arose quickly, and let the adjutant
general and his friends depart.
Mrs. Darrah now possessed a momentous seeret. She was a true friend
to her country, and she felt that she had a duty to perform, and that
quickly. In the still hour of the night she sent up a silent petition
for heavenly guidance, and at dawn she was astir.
[Illustration: 9312]
She awoke her husband, and informed him that flour was wanted for family
use, and that she must go immediately to Frankford for it, a common
occurrence in those days. * It was a cold December Decembers, morning,
the snow several inches deep[[December 3, 1777]] upon the ground. On
foot, and with her bag in hand, she started on her errand, stopping at
the head-quarters of General Howe ** to obtain a passport to leave the
city. Mrs. Darrah reached Frankford, nearly five miles distant, at an
early hour, and, leaving her bag at the mill, pressed forward toward the
American outposts to inform Washington of the intended night attack.
She met Lieutenant-colonel Craig, who had been sent out by the
commander-in-ehief to gain information respecting the enemy. To him she
told the secret, and, hastening baek to the mill, shouldered the bag
of flour, and returned home with a heart full of thankfulness for being
made an instrument of usefulness to her country, as she believed, and as
the result proved.
From her window, on that cold starry night whieh succeeded her morning
mission, she watched the departure of the British troops to make the
attack on Washington's camp. And again she watched from that window when
the distant roll of a drum heralded their return from "a fool's errand,"
indeed; for, "forewarned, forearmed," the Americans were on the alert,
and fully prepared to receive the enemy when they came. Foiled, the
British returned to their encampment in the city. The adjutant general
came to his quarters. He summoned Lydia to his room, and, locking his
door with an air of mystery, bade her be seated. "Were any of your
family up, Lydia," he asked, "on the night when I received company in
this house?"
"No," she unhesitatingly replied; "they all retired at eight o'clock."
This was true, though Lydia afterward arose. "It is very strange," said
the officer. "You, I know, Lydia, were asleep, for I knocked at your
door three times before you heard me; yet it is certain that we were
betrayed. I am altogether at a loss to conceive who could have given
information to Washington of our intended attack! On arriving near his
encampment, we found his cannon mounted, his troops under arms, and so
prepared at every point to receive us, that we have been compelled to
march back without injuring our enemy, like a parcel of fools." *** Mrs.
Darrah enjoined Lieutenant-colonel Craig not to disclose her name, for
she feared the fury of the enemy; history has therefore omitted the
name of Lydia Darrah in its record of events at that time, and left
well-authenticated tradition alone to embalm it. ****
I walked down to the navy yard, and visited the old Swedes' Chureh,
on Swanson Street, near by. Its present pastor, the Reverend Mr. Clay,
permitted me to view its interior.
* See page 248.
** General Howe's quarters were in a house on High Street, one door east
from the southeast corner of Sixth Street, where President Washington
resided. Three houses, Nos. 192 to 194 High Street, now occupy the
site of this mansion. This view is copied, by permission, from Watson's
Annals.
*** Mrs. Ellett's Women of the Revolution, i., 171.
**** Washington, in a letter to Congress, dated Whitemarsh, 10th
December, 1777," mentions the fact that, on Thursday night previous,
Howe, with all his foree, left the eity, and the next morning appeared
on Chestnut Hill, in front of the American right wing. He says, "From
a variety of intelligence, I had reason to expect that General Howe was
preparing to give us a general action." Writing to Governor Livingston
on the 11th, he savs, Howe "came out with his whole force last Thursday
evening, and, after maneuvering round us till the Monday following,
decamped very hastily, and marched back to Philadelphia."
[[[Swedes' Church.--Wharton's Mansion-house.--The
Mischianza.--Immorality of the Army.]]]
{303}Within and without it has been too much modernized to give a very
perfect idea of its original appearance. In its burial inclosure, among
graves that were dug a century and a half ago, rest the remains
of Wilson, the great American ornithologist. Here was the first
burial-place in Philadelphia; and here was offered the first Christian
worship upon the western bank of the Delaware above the Schuylkill.
Near the Swedes' Church, and fronting the river at the present navy
yard, stood _Wharton's Mansion-house._ It was of large dimensions, with
broad lawns and stately trees around it. There, on Monday, the 18th of
May, 1778, was given a great entertainment in honor of Sir William Howe
and his brother Richard, earl Howe (the naval commander), then on the
eve of their departure from America. It was called the _Mischianza_, an
Italian word signifying a medley.
[Illustration: 8313]
This entertainment was probably the most magnificent exhibition of
extravagance and folly ever witnessed in America. It very properly drew
forth the indignant comments of not only the Whigs in America, but of
the true friends of government here and in England, as an appropriate
finale to the sensualities of the British army during its winter
encampment in Philadelphia. * The loose discipline of the army, during
those six months of idleness, did more to weaken the power of the enemy
than all the battles they had yet experienced here, and fully
justified the remark of Franklin, that "General Howe has not taken
Philadelphia--Philadelphia has taken General Howe." Major Andre, in
the subjoined letter ** to a friend, has given a graphic picture of the
_Mischianza_. It was published in a London magazine in August., 1782.
* The following advertisement, which appeared in a Philadelphia paper
while the British had possession of the city, will serve to show the
impudent profligacy of some of the English officers at that time:
"Wanted to hire with two single gentlemen, a young woman, to act in the
capacity of housekeeper, and who can occasionally put her hand to any
thing. Extravagant wages will be given, and no character required. Any
young woman who chooses to offer, may be further informed at the bar of
the City Tavern.--Watson's Annals, ii., 288.
** "Philadelphia, May 23,1778."
** "For the first time in my life I write to you with unwillingness. The
ship that carries home Sir William Howe will convey this letter to you;
and not even the pleasure of conversing with my friend can secure me
from the general dejection I see around me, or remove the share I must
take in the universal regret and disappointment which his approaching
departure hath spread throughout the army. We see him taken from us at a
time when we most stand in need of so skillful and popular a commander;
when the experience of three years, and the knowledge he hath acquired
of the eountry and the people, have added to the confidence we always
placed in his conduct and abilities. You know he was ever a favorite
with the military; but the affection and attachment which all ranks of
officers in this army bear him can only be known by those who have at
this time seen them in their effects. I do not believe there is upon
record an instance of a commander-in-chief having so universally
endeared himself to those under his command, or of one who received such
signal and flattering proofs of their love. That our sentiments might be
the more universally and unequivocally known, it was resolved among us
that we should give him as splendid an entertainment as the shortness of
the time and our present situation would allow us. For the expenses, the
whole army would have most cheerfully contributed; but it was requisite
to draw the line somewhere, and twenty-two field-officers joined in
a subscription adequate to the plan they meant to adopt. I know your
curiosity will be raised on this occasion; I shall therefore give you as
particular an account of our Mischianza as I have been able to collect.
From the name, you will perceive that it was made up of a variety of
entertainments.
** Four of the gentlemen subscribers were appointed managers--Sir John
Wrottlesly, Colonel O'Hara, Major Gardiner, and Montresor, the chief
engineer. On the tickets of admission which they gave out for Monday,
the 18th, was engraved, in a shield, a view of the sea, with the
setting sun, and on a wreath, the words Luceo discedens, aucto splendore
resurgam. At the top was the general's crest, with Vive vale! All around
the shield ran a vignette, and various military trophies filled up the
ground. * A grand regatta began the entertainment. It consisted of three
divisions. In the first was the Ferret galley, with Sir William and Lord
Howe, Sir Henry Clinton, the officers of their suites, and some ladies.
The Cornwallis galley brought up the rear, having on board General
Knyphausen and his suite, three British generals, and a party of ladies.
On each quarter of these galleys, and forming their division, were five
flat-boats, lined with green cloth, and with ladies and gentlemen. In
front of the whole were three flat-boats, with a band of music in each.
Six barges rowed about each flank, to keep off the swarm of boats that
covered the river from side to side. The galleys were dressed out in a
variety of colors and streamers, and in each flat-boat was displayed
the flag of its own division. In the stream, opposite the center of
the city, the Fanny, armed ship, magnificently decorated, was placed at
anchor, and at some distance ahead lay his majesty's ship Roebuck,
with the admiral's flag hoisted at the fore-topmast head. The
transport-ships, extending in a line the whole length of the town,
appeared with colors flying, and crowded with spectators, as were
also the opening of the several wharves on shore, exhibiting the most
picturesque and enlivening scene the eye could desire. The rendezvous
was at Knight's Wharf, at the northern extremity of the city. * By half
past four the whole company was embarked, and the signal being made by
the Vigilant's manning ship, the three divisions rowing slowly down,
preserving their proper intervals, and keeping time to the music that
led the fleet. Arrived between the Fanny and the Market Wharf, a signal
was made from one of the boats ahead, and the whole lay upon their oars,
while the music played God Save the King, and three cheers given from
the vessels were returned from the multitude on shore. By this time
the flood-tide became too rapid for the galleys to advance; they were
therefore quitted, and the company disposed of in different barges. This
alteration broke in on the order of procession, but was necessary to
give sufficient time for displaying the entertainment that was prepared
on shore. The landing-place was at the old fort, ** a little to the
southward of the town, fronting the building prepared for the reception
of the company, about four hundred yards from the water by a gentle
ascent. As soon as the general's barge was seen to push from the shore,
a salute of seventeen guns was fired from the Roebuck, and, after some
interval, by the same number from the Vigilant. The company, as they
disembarked, arranged themselves into a line of procession, and advanced
through an avenue formed by two files of grenadiers, and a line of light
horse supporting each file. This avenue led to a square lawn of one
hundred and fifty yards on each side, lined with troops, and properly
prepared for the exhibition of a tilt and tournament, according to the
customs and ordinance of ancient chivalry. We proceeded through the
center of the square. The music, consisting of all the bands of the
army, moved in front. The managers, with favors of blue and white
ribbons in their breasts, followed next in order. The general, admiral,
and the rest of the company proceeded promiscuously. In front appeared
the building, bounding the view, through a vista formed by two triumphal
arches, erected at proper intervals in a line with the landing-place.
Two pavilions, with rows of benches, rising one above the other, and
serving as the advanced wings of the first triumphal arch, received the
ladies, while the gentlemen arranged themselves in convenient order on
each side. On the front seat of each pavilion were placed seven of the
principal young ladies of the country, dressed in Turkish habits, and
wearing in their turbans the favors with which they meant to reward the
several knights who were to contend in their honor. These arrangements
were scarce made, when the sound of trumpets was heard at a distance,
and a band of knights, dressed in ancient habits of white and red silk,
and mounted on gray horses, richly caparisoned in trappings of the
same colors, entered the list, attended by their esquires on foot, in
suitable apparel, in the following order: four trumpeters, properly
habited, their trumpets decorated with small pendant banners; a herald
in his robe of ceremony; on his tunic was the device of his band;
two roses intertwined, with the motto, We droop when separated. Lord
Cathcart, superbly mounted on a managed horse, appeared as chief of
these knights; two young black slaves, with sashes and drawers of blue
and white silk, wearing large silver clasps round their necks and arms,
their breasts and shoulders bare, held his stirrups. On his right
hand walked Captain Hazard, and on his left Captain Brownlow, his two
esquires, one bearing his lance, the other his shield. His device was
Cupid riding on a lion; the motto, Surmounted by Love. His lordship
appeared in honor of Miss Auchmuty.
* A little distance above the present Vine Street.
** This is a copy of the Mischianza Ticket, one half the size of the
original, which, with the drawing of the head dress upon page 306, were
made by Major André. These were presented to John F. Watson, Esq.,
by Miss Craig, one of the ladies who participated in the fête. These
curious relics are attached to manuscript annals of Philadelphia,
prepared by Mr. Watson, and by him generously presented to the Franklin
Library of that city.
* A little below the present navy yard.
"Then came in order the knights of his band, each attended
by his squire, bearing his lance and shield.
"First knight, Honorable Captain Cathcart, * in honor of
Miss N. White; squire, Captain Peters; device, a heart and
sword; motto, Love and honor.
"Second knight, Lieutenant Bygrove, in honor of Miss Craig;
squire, Lieutenant Nichols; device, Cupid tracing a circle;
motto, Without end.
"Third knight, Captain André,2 in honor of Miss P. Chew;
squire, Lieutenant Andre; device, two game-cocks fighting;
motto, No rival.
"Fourth knight, Captain Horneck, in honor of Miss N. Redman;
squire, Lieutenant Talbot; device, a burning heart; motto,
Absence can not extinguish.
"Fifth knight, Captain Matthews, in honor of Miss Bond;
squire, Lieutenant Hamilton; device, a winged heart; motto,
Each fair by turns.
"Sixth knight, Lieutenant Sloper, in honor of Miss M.
Shippen; *** squire, Lieutenant Brown; device, a heart and
sword; motto, Honor and the fair.
** "After they had made the circuit of the square, and saluted the
ladies as they passed before the pavilions, they ranged themselves in
a line with that in which were the ladies of their device; and their
herald (Mr. Beaumont), advancing into the center of the square, after
the flourish of trumpets, proclaimed the following challenge: 'The
knights of the Blended Rose, by me their herald, proclaim and assert
that the ladies of the Blended Rose excel in wit, beauty, and every
accomplishment, those of the whole world; and should any knight or
knights be so hardy as to dispute or deny it, they are ready to enter
the list with them, and maintain their assertions by deeds of arms,
according to the laws of ancient chivalry.' At the third repetition of
the challenge, the sound of trumpets was heard from the opposite side of
the square, and another herald, with four trumpeters, dressed in black
and orange, galloped into the list. He was met by the herald of the
Blended Rose, and, after a short parley, they both advanced in front
of the pavilions, when the black herald (Lieutenant More) ordered his
trumpets to sound, and then proclaimed defiance to the challenge in
the following words: "' The knights of the Burning Mountain present
themselves here, not to contest by words, but to disprove by deeds, the
vainglorious assertion of the knights of the Blended Rose, and enter
these lists to maintain that the ladies of the Burning Mountain are not
excelled in beauty, virtue, or accomplishments by any in the universe.'
"He then returned to the part of the barrier through which he had
entered, and shortly after, the black knights, attended by their
squires, rode into the lists in the following order: "Four trumpeters
preceding the herald, on whose tunic was represented a mountain sending
forth flames; motto, I burn forever. "Captain Watson, of the Guards,
as chief, dressed in a magnificent suit of black and orange silk, and
mounted on a black, managed horse, with trappings of the same colors
with his own dress, appeared in honor of Miss Franks. He was attended
in the same manner as Lord Cathcart. Captain Scott bore his lance, and
Lieutenant Lyttleton his shield. The device, a heart, with a wreath of
flowers; motto, Love and glory.
"First knight, Lieutenant Underwood, in honor of Miss S.
Shippen; squire, Ensign Haverkam; device, a pelican feeding
her young; motto, For those I love.
"Second knight, Lieutenant Winyard, in honor of Miss P.
Shippen; squire, Captain Boscawen; device, a bay leaf;
motto, Unchangeable.
"Third knight, Lieutenant Délavai, in honor of Miss B. Bond;
squire, Captain Thorne; device, a heart aimed at by several
arrows, and struck by one; motto, Only one pierce me.
"Fourth knight, Monsieur Montluissant (Lieutenant of the
Hessian chasseurs), in honor of Miss R. Redman; squire,
Captain Campbell; device, a sunflower turning toward the
sun; motto, Te vise a vous.
"Fifth knight, Lieutenant Hubbard, in honor of Miss S. Chew;
squire, Lieutenant Briscoe; device, Cupid piercing a coat of
mail with his arrow; motto, Proof to all but Love.
"Sixth knight, Brigade-major Tarlton, in honor of Miss W.
Smith; squire, Ensign Heart; device, a light dragoon; motto,
Swift, vigilant, and bold.
** "After they had rode round the lists, and made their obeisance to the
ladies, they drew up fronting the White Knights; and the chief of these
having thrown down his gauntlet, the chief of the Black Knights directed
his esquire to take it up. The knights then received their lances from
their esquires, fixing their shields on their left arms, and, making
a general salute to each other by a very graceful movement of their
lances, turned round to take their career, and, encountering in full
gallop, shivered their spears. In the second and third encounter they
discharged their pistols. In the fourth, they fought with their swords.
At length the two chiefs, spurring forward into the center, engaged
furiously in single combat, till the marshal of the field (Major Gwyne)
rushed in between the chiefs, and declared that the fair damsels of the
* Captain (afterward Earl) Cathcart was a son of Lord Cathcart, the
chief of the knights on this occasion.
** Afterward Major André. The lady in whose honor he appeared was
daughter of Chief-justice Chew. His squire was his brother, a youth of
nineteen, whom the king afterward knighted, as mentioned on page 199.
***Afterward the wife of General Arnold.
* This is from a silhouette cut by Major André.
** Blended Rose and Burning Mountain were perfectly satisfied with the
proofs of love and the signal feats of valor given by their respective
knights, and commanded them, as they prized the future favors of their
mistresses, that they would instantly desist from further combat.
Obedience being paid by the chiefs to this order, they joined their
respective bands. The White Knights and their attendants filed off to
the left, 'the Black Knights to the right, and, after passing each other
at the lower side of the quadrangle, moved up alternately till they
approached the pavilions of the ladies, when they gave a general salute.
** "A passage being now opened between the two pavilions, the knights,
preceded by their squires and the bands music, rode through the first
triumphal arch, and arranged themselves to the right and left. This
arch was erected in honor of Lord Howe. It presented two fronts, in the
Tuscan order; the pediment was adorned with various naval trophies, and
at top was the figure of Neptune, with a trident in his right hand. In a
niche on each side stood a sailor with a drawn cutlass. Three plumes of
feathers were placed on the summit of each wing, and in the entablature
was this inscription: Laus illi debetur, et aime gratia major. The
interval between the two arches was an avenue three hundred feet long
and thirty-four broad. It was lined on each side with a file of troops;
and the colors of all the army, planted at proper distances, had a
beautiful effect in diversifying the scene. Between these colors the
knights and squires took their stations. The bands continued to
play several pieces of martial music. The company moved forward in
procession, with the ladies in the Turkish habits in front; as these
passed, they were saluted by their knights, who then dismounted and
joined them; and in this order we were all conducted into a garden that
fronted the house, through the second triumphal arch, dedicated to the
general. This areh was also built in the Tuscan order. On the interior
part of the pediment was painted a plume of feathers, and various
military trophies. At top stood the figure of Fame. On the right-hand
pillar was placed a bomb-shell, and on the left a flaming heart. The
front next the house was adorned with preparations for fire-works. From
the garden we ascended a flight of steps covered with carpets, which led
into a spacious hall; the panels painted in imitation of Sienna marble,
* inclosing festoons of white marble; the surbase, and all below, was
black. In this hall, and in the adjoining apartments, were prepared tea,
lemonade, and other cooling liquors, to which the company seated
themselves; during which time the knights came in, and on the knee
received their favors from their respective ladies. One of these rooms
was afterward appropriated for the use of the faro-table. As you entered
it, you saw, on a panel over the chimney, a cornucopia, exuberantly
filled with flowers of the richest eolors; over the door, as you went
out, another represented itself shrunk, reversed, and emptied.
** "From these apartments we were conducted up to a ball-room, decorated
in a light, elegant style of painting. The ground was a pale blue,
paneled From a Drawing bv Major Andre. with a small gold bead, and in
the interior filled with dropping festoons of flowers in their natural
eolors. Below the surbase the ground of rose-pink, with drapery
festooned in blue. These decorations were heightened by eighty-five
mirrors, *** decked with rose-pink silk ribbons and artificial flowers;
and in the intermediate spaces were thirty-four branches with wax-
lights, ornamented in a similar manner. "On the same floor were four
drawing-rooms, with side-boards of refreshments, decorated and lighted
in the same style and taste as the ball-room. The ball was opened by the
knights and their ladies, and the dances continued till ten o'clock,
when the windows were thrown open, and a magnificent bouquet of rockets
began the fire-works. These were planned by Captain Montressor, the
chief engineer, and consisted of twenty different exhibitions, displayed
under his direction with the happiest success, and in the highest style
of beauty. Toward the conclusion, the interior part of the triumphal
areh was illuminated, amid an uninterrupted flight of rockets and
bursting of balloons. The military trophies were on each side.
* The chief portions of the decorations were painted by Major André and
Captain Oliver Delaney, of New York. The Sienna marble was on canvas, in
imitation of scene-painting in theaters. They also painted the scenery
for the theater that was established in Philadelphia that winter, the
proceeds of which were given to the widows and orphans of their
soldiers.--Watson's Annals, ii., 292.
** The costume of the ladies was as follows: those of the Blended Rose a
white silk, called a Polonaise, forming a flowing robe, and open in
front to the waist; the pink sash six inches wide, and filled with
spangles; the shoes and stockings also spangled; the 1 lead-dress more
towering than the drawing, and filled with a profusion of pearls and
jewels. The vail was spangled, and bordered with silver lace. The ladies
of the Burning Mountain wore white sashes edged with black, and black
trimmings to white silk Polonaise gowns. There were no ladies of British
officers at the entertainment, except Miss Auchmuty, the new bride of
Captain Montressor. There were not exceeding fifty American young ladies
present; the otters were married, and these were few, lor most of the
ladies had left the city on the approach of the British.--Watson's
Annals, ii., 293.
*** All these mirrors and lusters, according to Mr. Watson, the
annalist, were borrowed from the citizens, and were all sent hack with
the ornaments on. Mr. Watson derived much information on these points
from Mrs. L, the "queen of the Mischianza." The shell and flaming heart
on the wings sent forth Chinese fountains, succeeded by fire-pots. Fame
appeared at top, spangled with stars, and from her trumpet blowing the
following device in letters of light: Les Lauriers sont immortels.
A sauteur of rockets, bursting from the pediment, concluded the feu
d'artifice... "At twelve supper was announced, and large folding-doors,
hitherto artfully concealed, being suddenly thrown open, discovered a
magnificent saloon of two hundred and ten feet by forty, and twenty-two
feet in height, with three alcoves on each side, which served for
side-boards. The ceiling was the segment of a circle, and the sides
were painted of a light straw color, with vine leaves and festoons of
flowers, some in a bright, some in a darkish green. Fifty-six large
pier-glasses, ornamented with green silk artificial flowers and ribbons;
one hundred branches, with three lights in each, trimmed in the same
manner as the mirrors; eighteen lusters, each with twenty-four lights,
suspended from the ceiling, and ornamented as the branches; three
hundred wax tapers, disposed along the supper-tables; four hundred
and thirty covers; twelve hundred dishes; twenty-four black slaves
in Oriental dresses, with silver collars and bracelets, ranged in two
lines, and bending to the ground as the general and admiral approached
the saloon; all these, forming together the most brilliant assemblage
of gay objects, and appearing at once as we entered by an easy descent,
exhibited a coup d'oil beyond description magnificent.
** "Toward the end of supper, the herald of the Blended Rose, in his
habit of ceremony, attended by his trumpets, entered the saloon, and
proclaimed the king's health, the queen, and the royal family; the
army and navy, with their respective commanders; the knights and their
ladies; the ladies in general. Each of these toasts was followed by
a flourish of music. After supper we returned to the ball-room, and
continued to dance till four o'clock.
** "Such, my friend, is the description, though a very faint one, of the
most splendid entertainment, I believe, ever given by an army to their
general. But what must be more grateful to Sir William Howe is the
spirit and motive from which it was given. He goes from this to-morrow;
but as I understand, he means to stay a day or two with his brother on
board the Eagle, at Billingsport. I shall not seal this letter till I
see him depart from Philadelphia
[[[Major Andrè's Description of the Mischianza.]]]
{304}The _Wharton Mansion-house_,
[Illustration: 9314]
with its beautiful lawns and noble trees, the scene of the wicked folly
of the enemies of freedom in the midst of a suffering people, has long
since dis-
[[[Major Andre's Description of the Mischianza.]]]
{305}appeared, and the streets and lanes of the expanding city cover the
site.
[Illustration: 9315]
Let us turn from the spot and its associations, and make our way back to
the city proper.
[[[Major Andre's Description of the Mischianza.]]]
{306}On Walnut Street, near Sixth, was the prison used as the British
Provost in 1778.
[Illustration: 9316]
It was under the charge of that infamously cruel scoundrel, Captain
Cunningham, a burly,
[[[Major Andrè's Description of the Mischianza.--Philadelphia Provost
Prison.--Cunningham.]]]
{307}ill-natured Irishman of sixty years, whose conduct as provost
marshal here and in New York has connected his name with all that
is detestable. There were confined the American prisoners taken at
Brandywine and Germantown, many of whom died of starvation after feeling
the lash of Cunningham's whip, or the force of his heavy boot, and were
buried in the Potter's Field near by, now the beautiful _Washington
Square_. It makes the blood curdle to read of the sufferings of those
who fell under the sway of that monster, so devilish in all his ways.
The miseries of others seemed to give him great delight; and often, in
the sight of the starving prisoners, would he kick over a pail of soup,
or scatter a basket of fruit or cold placed upon the door-stone with
the hope that it shall meet him hereafter as provost marshal in victuals
which some benevolent hand had might nourish the famished soldiers! We
New York. Tradition says he was hung
* This edifice was erected in 1774, and taken down in 1836. The
beautiful new Athenæum occupies a portion of the ground on Sixth Street,
and the remainder is covered by elegant dwellings. It is a singular fact
that the architect who constructed it was the first person incarcerated
in it. He was a Whig, and, having incurred the displeasure of the
British, he was locked up in that prison. The Public Ledger of June
26th, 1837, gives an account of an armorial drawing, representing,
in bold relief, a cuirass, casque, gorget, and Roman battle-ax, with
radiating spears, which was made upon an arch of one of the second story
cells, by Marshall, an English engraver, who was confined there for many
years for counterfeiting the notes of the United States Bank. He was the
son of the notorious "Bag and Hatchet Woman," of St. Giles's, London,
who followed the British army in its Continental campaigns, and gathered
spoils from the slain and wounded on the field of battle. Those who were
dead were readily plundered, and the wounded as readily dispatched. This
woman and son were master-spirits in the purlieus of St. Giles's, among
robbers and counterfeiters. The gang were at length betrayed, and the
parent and child fled to this country, bringing with them considerable
wealth in money and jewels. They lived in splendid style in
Philadelphia, riding in a gorgeous cream-colored phaeton, drawn
by richly-caparisoned horses, driven tandem. Their means were soon
exhausted, when the son married, and commenced business as an engraver.
He counterfeited notes of the United States Bank, was detected, and in
1803 was sentenced to eighteen years' confinement and hard labor in
the Walnut Street Prison, then the State Penitentiary. While he was in
prison, his mother, who had wandered away from Philadelphia in poverty
and destitution, was executed in another state for a foul murder and
arson.
[[[Washington Square.--Office of the Secretary of Foreign Affairs.--The
Secretary's Aids.]]]
{308}at Newgate, in England; but the records of that prison, examined by
Mr. Bancroft, exhibit no such name.
Washington Square, the finest promenade in Philadelphia, was inclosed
and set apart as a "Potter's Field"--a place to bury strangers in--in
1704, and was used for that purpose until within the last thirty-five
years. There a great multitude of soldiers, who died of the small-pox
and camp diseases, were buried in 1776--7. It was indeed a Golgotha.
Many of the bodies, buried in pits from twenty to thirty feet square,
were piled upon each other, the topmost barely covered with earth. At
least two thousand American soldiers were buried there within the space
of eight months. The bodies of hundreds of victims of the yellow fever,
in 1793, there found a resting-place. At that time, the ground being
full, interments ceased.
[Illustration: 9318]
It was made a public walk in 1815; and that "city of the dead," shaded
by sixty or seventy varieties of trees, is now traversed daily by
thousands of the inhabitants of the teeming city of the living around
it.
From Washington Square I walked to No. 13 South Sixth Street, to view
the ancient edifice on the premises of the late P. S. Duponceau, Esq.,
mentioned by Watson, in his _Annals_, as the "Office of the Secretary of
Foreign Affairs." * I was disappointed, for improvement had demolished
the venerated building, and stately edifices, dedicated to traffic,
occupied its place. Referring to this building, Mr. Watson observes: "It
is a house appropriately owned by such a possessor [Duponceau]; for in
it he who came as a volunteer to join our fortune, and to aid our cause,
as a captain under Baron Steuben, became afterward one of the under
secretaries to our minister of Foreign Relations, and in that building
gave his active and early services. In the year 1782--3, under that
humble roof, presided, as our then Secretary for Foreign Affairs, the
Honorable Robert R. Livingston. Up stairs, in the small front room
facing the street, sat that distinguished personage, wielding, by his
mind and pen, the destinies of our nation. In the adjoining back room
sat the two under secretaries--Louis R. Morris, since governor of
Vermont,3 and our venerated citizen, Mr. Duponceau. These having charge
of the archives of the nation, preserved them all within the inclosure
of a small wooden press! The only room down stairs, on the ground floor,
was that occupied by the two clerks and the interpreter. One of these
clerks, Mr. Henry Remsen, was afterward president of a bank in New
York; *** and the other, Mr. Stone, has been governor of Maryland.
The translator was the Reverend Mr. Tetard, the pastor of the French
Reformed Church." **** The house, at that time, was quite beyond the
verge of city population; now the site is near the center of business.
There are other localities of lesser note, made memorable by events
of the Revolution. I can not note them all, for other scenes of more
general interest demand our attention. The curious in such matters may
find a full reward in perusing Watson's _Annals of Philadelphia_, which
contain nearly all that is worth remembering of the past of that city.
The sites of many scenes of the Revolution are covered up and forgotten
forever. I tried in vain to find some living person who could point ont
the localities of the intrenchments which Howe caused to be thrown
up across the isthmus at Philadelphia, between the Delaware and the
Schuylkill, and the place of the encampment of the British army when
they first occupied the city. I am enabled, however, to point out those
localities through the aid of a more reliable cicerone than tradition, a
rare and valuable map of Philadelphia, (v) published in London in 1779,
the year following the evacuation of that city by the British. It was
drawn by competent engineers in the king's service. It is upon the same
scale as the plan of Philadelphia published in Tanner's Atlas in 1843.
By a careful comparison
* A picture of this building may be found in another part of this work.
** This is a mistake. Mr. Morris was never governor of Vermont. He was
clerk of the lower branch of the Legislature of that state in 1790, and
a member of Congress from 1797 to 1803.
*** Manhattan Bank.
**** Annals, i., 423.
* (v) This map is entitled, "A Plan of the City and Environs of
Philadelphia, with the works and encampments of his majesty's forces,
under the command of Lieutenant-general Sir William Howe, K.B."
[[[British Fortifications in Philadelphia.--The British
Encampment.--Personal Appearance of the British Officers.]]]
{309}of the two I have obtained the following result, which I am
satisfied is quite correct: The line of intrenchments from the Delaware
to the Schuylkill extended from the mouth of Conoquonoque Creek, just
above Willow Street, to the "Upper Ferry" on the Schuylkill, then
nearly on a line with Callowhill Street. They consisted of ten redoubts,
connected by strong palisades. The first redoubt, which was garrisoned
by the Queen's Rangers, under Simcoe, was near the junction of Green and
Oak Streets, and then near the forks of the roads leading to Frankford
and Kensington. The second redoubt was a little west of North Second and
Noble Streets; the third, between North Fifth and Sixth, and Noble and
Buttonwood Streets; the fourth, on Eighth Street, between Noble and
Buttonwood; the fifth, on Tenth, between Buttonwood and Pleasant; the
sixth, on Buttonwood, between Thirteenth and North Broad; the seventh,
on North Schuylkill Eighth, between Pennsylvania Avenue and Hamilton
Street; the eighth, on North Schuylkill Fifth and Pennsylvania Avenue;
the ninth, on North Schuylkill Second, near Callowhill Street; and the
tenth, on the bank of the Schuylkill, at the "Upper Ferry."
The encampment extended westward from North Fifth, between Vine and
Callowhill, as far as North Schuylkill Second. The Hessian grenadiers
were encamped between Callowhill, Noble, Fifth, and Seventh Streets.
The fourth, fortieth, and fifty-fifth British grenadiers, and a body
of fusileers, were on the north side of Callowhill, between Seventh
and Fourteenth Streets. Eight regiments lay upon high ground, known as
Bush's Hills, extending from Fourteenth, nearly on a line with Vine,
to the Upper Ferry. Near the redoubt at the Ferry was another body of
Hessians. The Yagers, horse and foot, were encamped upon a hill near the
junction of North Schuylkill Front and Pennsylvania Avenue. On the Ridge
Road, near Thirteenth Street, and on Eighth, near Green, were corps
of infantry. Light dragoons and three regiments of infantry were posted
near a pond between Vine, Race, North Eighth, and Twelfth Streets.
Gray's, or "Lower Ferry," was at the grounds of the Naval Arsenal,
on the Schuylkill. A little below the "Middle Ferry," at the foot of
Chestnut Street, on the Schuylkill, was a fascine redoubt, and near it
the seventy-first regiment was encamped. Some Yagers were stationed
at the "Point House" (see map on page 298), opposite Gloucester. These
localities, with those of the redoubts mentioned on page 310, were all
out of the city; its extent then being from Christian Street on the
south, to Callowhill Street on the north, or the boundary of Spring
Garden. It was widest between Arch and Walnut Streets, where it extended
from the Delaware to Ninth Street. *
When winter set in, many of the troops, and all the officers, occupied
the public buildings and houses of the inhabitants, also the old British
barracks in the Northern Liberties. The artillery were quartered in
Chestnut Street, between Third and Sixth Streets, and the State House
yard was made a park for their use. During the winter, General Howe
occupied a house on High Street, where Washington afterward resided; **
his brother, Lord
* The following composed the entire number of public buildings in
Philadelphia at that time: State House; Market; Jail; Work-house;
Barracks, built in 1755; College and Academy; City Alms-house; Quakers'
Alms-house; two Quaker meeting-houses; Christ Church; Anabaptist
meeting-house; Presbyterian meeting-house; German Lutheran Church; Roman
Catholic Church; St. Paul's Church; St. Peter's Church; the Swedes'
Church; Quakers' School-house; and a small city court-house. The
hospital and play-house were in the unsettled part of the town.
** See engraving, page 302. Watson has the following notice of the
personal appearance of some of the British officers: "Sir William Howe
was a fine figure, full six feet high, and well proportioned, not unlike
in his appearance to General Washington. His manners were graceful, and
he was much beloved by his officers and soldiers for his generosity and
affability. Sir Henry Clinton, his successor, was short and fat, with
a full face and prominent nose. In his intercourse he was reserved, and
not so popular as Howe. Lord Cornwallis was short and thick-set, his
hair somewhat gray, his face well formed and agreeable, his manners
remarkably easy and affable. He was much beloved by his men. General
Knyp-hausen was much of the German in his appearance; not tall, but
slender and straight. His features were sharp; in manners he was very
polite. He was gentle, and much esteemed. He spread his butter upon his
bread with his thumb! Colonel Tarleton was rather below the middle size,
stout, strong, heavily made, large muscular legs, dark complexion, and
his eyes small, black, and piercing. He was very active. General Howe,
while in Philadelphia, seized and kept for his own use Mary Pemberton's
coach and horses, in which he used to ride about town."--Annals, ii.,
287.
[[[Loss of the Delaware Frigate.--Torpedoes sent down the River from
Bordentown.--"Battle of the Kegs."]]]
{310}Howe, resided in Chestnut Street, in the building occupied by the
Farmers and Mechanics Bank; General Knyphausen lived in South Second,
opposite Little Dock Street; Cornwallis's quarters were in Second, above
Spruce Street; and Major André dwelt in Dr. Franklin's mansion in a
court back from High Street. *
As soon as the British had taken possession of Philadelphia, they
erected three batteries near the river, to protect the city against
the American shipping. ** Before the batteries were finished, Commodore
Hazlewood ordered the Delaware and Montgomery frigates, each of
twenty-four guns, and the sloop Fly, some galleys and gondolas, to move
near and attack them. On the morning of the 27th of September, they
opened a cannonade upon [[1777]] the works. The Delaware grounded, at
the falling of the tide, near the present Upper Ferry to Camden from
Kensington, and, before she could be got off, the guns of the British
batteries compelled her colors to be struck. A schooner was driven
ashore, and the remainder of the vessels escaped down the river. The
affair was badly managed, and disaster followed. These batteries, as
well as the lines of fortifications from the Delaware to the Schuylkill,
have long since passed away.
During the occupation of the city, the enemy were annoyed by the
patriots in various ways. In January, some Whigs at Bordentown sent a
number of kegs down the Delaware, which were filled with powder, and
furnished with machinery, in such a manner that, on rubbing against any
object in the stream, they would immediately explode. These torpedoes
were the invention of Mr. Bushnell, of Connecticut, and will be noticed
hereafter. They were intended for the destruction of the British
shipping then lying in the river opposite Philadelphia. It so happened
that, on the very night when these kegs were sent down, the vessels
were hauled into the docks to avoid the effects of the ice then rapidly
forming. They thus escaped mischief. One of these kegs exploded near
the city, and spread general alarm. Not a stick or chip floated for
twenty-four hours afterward but it was fired at by the British troops.
This _battle of the kegs_ furnished the theme for a facetious poem
from the pen of Francis Hopkinson, Esq., one of the signers of the
Declaration of Independence. ***
* Mrs. Bache, daughter of Dr Franklin, occupied his house when the
enemy approached Philadelphia. She left the city, and took refuge with
a friend in the eountry. After her return in July, she thus wrote to her
father, who was then in France: "I found your house and furniture, upon
my return to town, in much better order than I had reason to expect from
the hands of sueh a rapacious crew. They stole and carried off with them
some of your musical instruments, viz., a Welsh harp, ball harp, the
set of tuned bells which were in a box, viol-de-gamba, all the spare
armonica glasses, and one or two spare cases. Your armonica is safe.
* They took likewise the few books that were left behind, the chief
of which were Temple's school-books, and the History of the Arts and
Sciences in French, which is a great loss to the public. Some of your
electric apparatus is missing; also, a Captain Andre took with him a
picture of you which hung in the dining-room."
** One of these, with three guns, was on the site of the present navy
yard; another, with four guns, was below the navy land near Reed and
Swanson Streets; another, with three guns, was in front of Wharton's
Mansion, upon an eminence below Front and Christian Streets.
*** Mr. Hopkinson was also the author of "Hail Columbia," one of our
most popular national songs. The following is a copy of
"THE BATTLE OF THE KEGS.
"Gallants attend, and hear a friend
"'Twas early day, as poets say,
Trill forth harmonious ditty;
Just when the sun was rising,
Strange things I'll tell, which late befell
A soldier stood on log of wood,
In Philadelphia city.
And saw a thing surprising.
"As in amaze he stood to gaze
(The truth can't be denied, sir),
He spied a score of kegs, or more,
Come floating down the tide, sir.
"A sailor, too, in jerkin blue,
The strange appearance viewing,
First d--d his eyes, in great surprise,
Then said, 'Some mischief's brewing.
'"These kegs, I'm told, the rebels hold,
Pack'd up like pickled herring;
And they've come down t' attack the town
In this new way of ferry'ng.'
"The soldier flew, the sailor too,
And, scared almost to death, sir,
Wore out their shoes to spread the news,
And ran till out of breath, sir.
"Now up and down, throughout the town,
Most frantic scenes were acted;
And some ran here, and others there,
Like men almost distracted.
"Some fire cried, which some denied,
But said the earth had quaked;
And girls and boys, with hideous noise,
Ran through the streets half naked.
"Sir William* he, snug as a flea,
Lay all this time a snoring;
Nor dream'd of harm as he lay warm
In bed with Mrs. L... ngt
"Now, in a fright, he starts upright,
Awaked by such a clatter;
He rubs both eyes, and boldly cries,
'For God's sake, what's the matter?'
"At his bed-side he then espied
Sir Erskine, at command, sir;
Upon one foot he had one boot,
And t'other in his hand, sir.
"'Arise! arise!' Sir Erskine cries;
'The rebels--more's the pity--
Without a boat, are all afloat,
And ranged before the city.
'"The motley crew, in vessels new,
With Satan for their guide, sir,
Pack'd up in bazs, or wooden kegs,
Come driving down the tide, sir.
"' Therefore prepare for bloody war;
These kegs must all be routed; '
Or surely we despised shall be,
And British courage doubted.'
"The royal band now ready stand,
All ranged in dread array, sir,
With stomach stout to see it out,
And make a bloody day, sir.
"The cannons roar from shore to shore;
The small-arms loud did rattle;
Since wars began I'm sure no man
E'er saw so strange a battle.
"The rebel dales, the rebel vales,
With rebel trees surrounded,
The distant woods, the hills and floods.
With rebel echoes sounded.
"The fish below swam to and fro,
Attack'd from every quarter;
Why sure (thought they), the devil's to pay
'Mong folk above the water.
"The kegs, 'tis said, though strongly made
Of rebel staves and hoops, sir,
Could not oppose their powerful foes,
The conq'ring British troops, sir.
"From morn to night, these men of might
Display'd amazing courage,
And when the sun was fairly down.
Retired to sup their porridge.
"A hundred men, with each a pen,
Or more, upon my word, sir,
It is most true, would be too few,
Their valor to record, sir.
"Such feats did they perform that day
Against these wicked kegs, sir,
That, years to come, if they get home,
They'll make their boasts and brags, sir."
* This was a musical instrument invented by Dr. Franklin. He saw, in
London, a musical instrument, consisting of tumblers, and played by
passing a wet finger around their rims. The glasses were arranged on
a table, and tuned by putting water in them until they gave the notes
required. Franklin was charmed by the sweet tones, and, after many
trials, succeeded in constructing an instrument of a different form, and
much superior. His glasses were made in the shape of a hemisphere, with
an open neck or socket in the middle, for the purpose of being fixed
on an iron spindle. They were then arranged, one after another, on this
spindle; the largest at one end, and gradually diminishing in size to
the smallest at the other end The tones depended on the size of the
glasses. The spindle, with its series of glasses, was fixed horizontally
in a case, and turned by a wheel attached to its large end, upon the
principle of a common spinning-w-heel. The performer sat in front of the
instrument, and the tones were brought out by applying a wet finger
to the exterior surface of the glasses as they turned round. It became
quite a popular instrument. A Miss Cecilia Davies acquired great skill
in playing upon it, and, with her sister, performed in various cities in
Europe. She performed in the presence of the imperial court of Vienna at
the celebration of the nuptials of the Duke of Parma and the Archduchess
of Austria. Metastasio composed an ode for the occasion, expressly
designed to be sung by her sister, and accompanied by the
armonica.--Sparks's Life of Franklin, page 264.
[[[Alarm during the Mischianza _Fete_.--Boldness of
Americans.--Interesting Places near Philadelphia.]]]
{311}On the night of the Mischianza, while the enemy were enjoying the
festivities of the _fete_, Colonel Allen M'Lane, father of one of our
ministers to the court of St. James, devised a stratagem to break them
up. At ten o'clock he reached the _abatis_ in front of the British works
with one hundred and fifty men, in four divisions, supported by Clow's
dragoons. They carried camp-kettles filled with combustibles, and at a
given signal they fired the whole line of _abatis_. The British beat
the long alarm roll, and the assailants were attacked and pursued by the
strong guard along the lines. The officers at the _fete_ managed to keep
the ladies ignorant of the cause of the tumult without. M'Lane and his
associates escaped to the hills of the Wissahicon, and bent their
way toward Valley Forge. This was the last time the British felt the
annoyance of the patriots while in Philadelphia; for they soon afterward
evacuated the city, crossed the Delaware, and marched for New York. We
shall overtake them on the plains of Monmouth.
Germantown, Whitemarsh, Barren Hill, and Valley Forge, lying within a
short distance of Philadelphia, are all intimately connected, in their
Revolutionary history, with the city, particularly in relation to
its possession and final evacuation by the British in 1777--8. We
will proceed to these interesting localities, after considering, for a
moment, the patriotism of the _women_ of Philadelphia, which beamed out,
clear as Hesperus, at the darkest hour of the struggle for freedom."
In the summer of 1780 the distress of the American army was very
great, on account of the scarcity of clothing, and the inadequate means
possessed by the commissary depart-
** He is represented by some as Sir William Erskine.
** Sir William Howe.
*** The wife of a Boston refugee, who was then a commissary of prisoners
in Philadelphia, being second only to Cunningham in cruelty, while
others speak of him as an honorable man.
[[[Patriotism of the Philadelphia Women.--Mrs. Reed and Mrs. Bache.--De
Chastellux's Visit to Mrs. Bache.]]]
{312}ment to afford a supply. The generous sympathies of the ladies
of Philadelphia were aroused, and they formed an association for the
purpose of affording relief to the poor soldiers.
[Illustration: 9322]
Never was the energy of genuine sympathy more nobly exercised than by
the patriotic women who joined hands in this holy endeavor. Mrs. Esther
Reed, the wife of General Joseph Reed, though feeble in health, and
surrounded by family cares, entered with hearty zeal into the service,
and was, by the united voice of her associates, placed at the head of
the society. * Mrs. Sarah Bache, daughter of Dr. Franklin, was also a
conspicuous actor in the formation of the association, and in carrying
out its plans.
[Illustration: 8322]
All classes became interested, and the result was glorious. "All ranks
of society seemed to have joined in the liberal effort, from Phillis,
the colored woman, with her humble seven shillings and sixpence, to
the Marchioness De La Fayette, who contributed one hundred guineas in
specie, ** and the Countess De Luzerne, who gave six thousand dollars
in Continental paper. *** Those who had no money to contribute gave the
service of their hands in plying the needle, and in almost every house
the good work went on.
It was charity in its genuine form, and from its purest source--the
voluntary outpourings from the heart. It was not stimulated by the
excitements of our day--neither fancy fairs or bazars; but the American
women met, and, seeing the necessity that asked interposition, relieved
it. They solicited money and other contributions directly and for
a precise and avowed object. They labored with their needles, and
sacrificed their trinkets and jewelry." **** The Marquis De Chastellux,
who was in Philadelphia while these efforts were in progress, was
delighted with the event. In describing a visit to several of the
American ladies, he says, "We began by Mrs. Bache. She merits all the
anxiety we had to see her, for she is the daughter of Mr. Franklin.
Simple in her manners, like her respectable father, she possesses his
benevolence. She conducted us into a room filled with work, lately
finished by the ladies of Philadelphia. This work consisted neither of
embroidered tambour waistcoats, nor net-work edgings, nor of gold
and silver brocade--it was a quantity of shirts for the soldiers of
Pennsylvania. The ladies bought the linen from their own private purses,
and took a pleasure in cutting them out and sewing them themselves. On
each shirt was the name of the married or unmarried lady who made it,
and they amounted to twenty-two hundred." (v) The results of this effort
* Mrs. Reed was a daughter of Dennis de Berdt, a London merchant, and
for some time agent for the colonies. De Berdt's house was the resort
of many Americans in England, among whom was Joseph Reed, who afterward
became his daughter's husband. They were married in London in 1780. Her
father became a bankrupt, and died soon afterward. Esther accompanied
her husband to America immediately after her marriage. The Revolution
soon broke out, and, as Mr. Reed was an active participator in its
earliest hostile scenes, the young wife and mother was kept, almost
from her first residence in America, in a state of excitement and alarm.
Fragile in body, and of nervous temperament, her health suffered; and,
a few months after she became an active member of the association of
ladies for the relief of the American army, she went down into the
grave. She died on the 18th of September, 1780, aged thirty-four years.
** La Fayette contributed this sum in the name of his wife. In his
letter to Mrs. Reed inclosing the amount, he remarked, "Without
presuming to break in upon the rules of your respected association,
may I most humbly present myself as her embassador to the confederate
ladies, and solicit in her name that Mrs. President be pleased to accept
her offering."
M. De Marbois, the French secretary of legation, in a letter to Mrs.
Reed on the occasion, said, "You have been chosen, madam, for that
important duty, because, among them all, you are the best patriot, the
most zealous and active, and most attached to the interests of your
country."
*** Equal to nearly one hundred dollars in specie.
**** Mrs. Ellet's Women of the Revolution, i., 53. Life and
Correspondence of President Reed.
* (v) Travels in North America, i., 197. The marquis, in his account
of his social intercourse in Philadelphia, mentions a visit to Mr.
Huntington, the President of Congress. "We found him,'' he says, "in his
cabinet, lighted by a single candle. This simplicity reminded me of that
of the Fabricius's and the Philopemens.
Mr. Huntington is an upright man, and espouses no party." Mr. Duponceau
relates that Mr. Huntington and himself often breakfasted together on
whortleberries and milk. On one of these occasions Mr. H. said, "What
now, Mr. Duponceau, would the princes of Europe say, could they see the
first magistrate of this great eountry at his frugal repast?"--Watson,
i., 424.
[[[Contributions of Clothing for the Soldiers.--Germantown.--James
Logan.--Speech of Logan, the Indian Chief.]]]
{313}were great and timely. The aggregate amount of contributions in
the city and county of Philadelphia was estimated at seven thousand five
hundred dollars in specie value. Added to this was a princely donation
from Robert Morris of the contents of a ship fully laden with military
stores and clothing, which had unexpectedly arrived. * During the cold
winter that followed, hundreds of poor soldiers in Washington's camp had
occasion to bless the women of Philadelphia for their labor of love.
On the morning of the 29th of November, I left Philadelphia for
Germantown, about six miles distant, accompanied by Mr. Agnew, who
journeyed with me to Whitemarsh, Barren Hill, Valley Forge, and Paoli.
It was a delightful morning, the air a little frosty. The road from
the city to its ancient suburban village passes through a pleasant,
undulating country, and was swarming with vehicles of every kind a
greater portion of the way. The village of Germantown extends along a
fine Macadamized road for nearly three miles, having no lateral streets,
and, though so near a great commercial city, few places in the United
States present more striking appearances of antiquity. Twenty or
thirty of the low, steep-roofed, substantial stone houses, with quaint
pent-eaves and ponderous cornices, built by the early inhabitants,
yet remain, and produce a picturesque feature in the midst of the more
elegant modern mansions of a later generation. ** It was first laid out
and a settlement commenced under a grant to Francis Daniel Pastorius in
1684. He purchased six thousand acres from William Penn, and the whole
was settled by Germans. James Logan, the confidential secretary of Penn,
had a favorite country house upon a hill at the southern end of the
village, which is still called Logan's Hill. ***
* De Chastellux, speaking of Robert Morris, says, "It is scarcely to be
credited that, amid the disasters of America, Mr. Morris, the inhabitant
of a town just emancipated from the hands of the English, should possess
a fortune of eight millions. It is, however, in the most critical times
that great fortunes are acquired. The fortunate return of several ships,
the still more successful cruises of his privateers, have increased his
riches beyond his expectations, if not beyond his wishes." Morris
lost as many as one hundred and fifty vessels, most of them without
insurance, during the war; but, as many escaped, and made immense
profits, his losses were made up to him. In a letter to a friend in
England, Mr. Morris remarked that, notwithstanding he lost immense sums,
he came out of the difficulties, at the peace, "about even." Among the
numerous clerks employed by Mr. Morris was James Rees, who entered his
serviee in 1776. then a lad in his thirteenth year. Mr. Rees died at his
residence in Geneva, New York, on the 24th ol March, 1851, at the age of
eighty-seven years.
** Mr. Watson says (p. 19, vol. ii.), "Many of the old houses in
Germantown are plastered on the inside with clay and straw mixed, and
over it is laid a thin lime plaster. In a house ninety years of age,
taken down, the grass in the clay appeared as green as when first cut.
Oldmixon describes Germantown in 1700 as composed of one street, a mile
in length, lined on each side, in front of the houses, with 'blooming
peach-trees.'"
*** James Logan was the Indian's friend, and, in remembrance of him,
Shikellimus named his son Logan. Shikellimus was a Cayuga chief, and one
of the converts to Christianity under the preaching of the Moravians.
Logan beeame a chief among the Mingoes, and dwelt in the present Mifflin
county, in Pennsylvania. He was a friend of the whites, but suffered
dreadfully at their hands. His whole family were murdered on the Ohio, a
little below Wheeling, by a band of white men who feigned friendship, in
the spring of 1774. In the autumn of that year his consent was asked
to a treaty with Lord Dunmore. On that occasion he made the following
speech to the white messenger, which Mr. Jefferson has preserved: I
appeal to any white man to say, if ever he entered Logan's cabin hungry,
and he gave him no meat; if he ever came cold and naked, and he clothed
him not. During the course of the last long and bloody war. Logan
remained idle in his cabin, an advocate for peace. Such was my love for
the whites, that my countrymen pointed as they passed, and said, 'Logan
is the friend of the while men.' I had even thought to have lived with
you, but for the injuries of one man. Colonel Cresap, * the last spring,
in cold blood, and unprovoked, murdered all the relations of Logan, not
even sparing my women and children. This called on me for revenge. I
have sought it. I have killed many. I have fully glutted my vengeance.
For my country I rejoice at the beams of peaee. But do not harbor a
thought that mine is the joy of fear. Logan never felt fear. He will not
turn on his heel to save his life. Who is there to mourn for Logan? Not
one!"--Notes on Virginia.
* It has been satisfactorily demonstrated that Logan was mistaken in
the name of the leader of those who slew his friends. This subject is
noticed more in detail in a subsequent chapter.
[[[Officers of Government at Germantown.--Chew's House.--Destructive
Effects of War.--Benjamin Chew.]]]
{314}In various ways the history of Germantown is intimately connected
with that of Philadelphia, particularly at the time of the Revolution.
It was then the residence of several men distinguished in the annals of
the war; and in 1793, when the yellow fever was raging in Philadelphia,
the officers of both the state and federal governments resided there for
a short time.
[Illustration: 9324]
President Washington occupied the mansion of the Perot family, where
General Howe had his quarters at one time. Jefferson, who was secretary
of state, occupied the building afterward the Bank of Germantown; and
other officers of the general government were in private houses. The
trustees of the Academy agreed to rent that edifice "to the Congress of
the United States, at their next session, for the sum of three hundred
dollars." The whole building was only eighty feet long and fifty
wide, yet it was considered sufficiently large to accommodate the
representatives of the nation at that time.