One sunny day in autumn I had occasion to take a long journey "away down
in Maine," when and where there was no railroad. I was seated on the
outside of a four-horse stage-coach, with three or four other passengers,
one of whom was a lady, who preferred riding in that elevated station to
being cramped up inside the coach with eight persons, besides sundry
babies, a poodle dog, and a parrot.
"Sam," our driver, was a sociable fellow, full of pleasant stories,--and
Medford rum, though he was considered a perfectly safe Jehu. The greatest
drawback to his otherwise agreeable yarns was his habit of swearing.
Notwithstanding the presence of the lady, he would occasionally round his
periods and emphasize his sentences with an expletive which had better
have been omitted.
"Can't you tell a story just as well without swearing, Sam?" I inquired.
"O, no; it comes second natur. Why, cap'n, everybody swears sometimes. And
that reminds me--Git up, Jerry" (to the horse). "There was an old doctor,
Pill--Pilgarlic, I called him, on account of his pills, and the strong
effluvia from his cataract mouth. He was up round Champlain, where I drove
before the d--d railroads ruined the great stage business. Well, he was as
religious as a cuss,--that ain't swearin', is it, cap'n? Well, he came
round there pill-peddling, you see, and in order to make the old women
believe in his (expletive) medicines--"
"Don't swear, Sam. You can tell the story better without. Come, try,"
interrupted a passenger, with a twinkle of fun in his expressive eyes.
"Who's telling this story,--you or me?" exclaimed Sam, with a wink.
"Yes, he talked pills by Bible doctrine, swore his essences by the blood
of the Lamb, the ---- old hypocrite. I knowed he was a blamed old
hypocrite, for I had to drive him round every onct in a while, and he
never failed, in season and out of place, to exhort me to seek salvation,
and a new heart, and pure understanding, while, all the time, the filthy
tobacco juice slobbered all over his filthier mug, and down his scattering
whiskers;--now and then one, like the scattering trees in yonder
field,--all over his vest; and his coat sleeves were as bad, from frequent
drawing across his face. Yes, he said, 'Jesus,' but he meant pills. He
said, 'Get wine and milk, without money and without price,' but he meant,
buy his essences, _with_ money. The old gals went crazy over him, and the
pill market was lively. The louder he prayed and exhorted, the faster he
sold his medicines.
"One Sunday afternoon he wanted me to shy him over the lake; so, taking
his Hem-book and Bible in his coat pockets, and his two tin trunks of
medicine, he followed me to the shore. He seated his great carcass in the
starn of the boat, while I rowed him over the lake. All the way he
slobbered tobacco juice; and gabbled his religion at me, while
occasionally I swore mine back at him.
"When we got over, I jumped out, and told him to set steady till I hauled
the boat up further; but he didn't mind, and rose up in the starn with his
kit, a tin trunk in each hand, just as I gave the craft a yerk, when over
backwards he went kerflounce into the water,--carcass, trunks, Bible,
pills, and essences, all into the lake. O, the d----! You ought to have
seen him. Up he came, puffin' and blowin' like a big whale! Then I fished
him out with the boat-hook, and went for his trunks. No sooner had he
reached _terror firmer_ than, blowin' the surplus water and tobacco out of
his throat, _he commenced swearin' at me_. Religion went by the board! O,
Jerusalem! Such a blessing as he gave me I never before heard. I knowed it
was pent up in him, the ---- old sinner, and he only wanted the occasion
to let it out. The bath done it! It was the cussidest baptism I ever
witnessed in the hull course of my life."
"Was he called Dr. Pusbelly?" I suggested, at the close of the narrative.
"Yes, that was his name; but I called him Old Pilgarlic, blame him."
"PROFESSOR BREWSTER."
When I lived in Hartford, Conn., some years ago, there resided in that
city a black man, then somewhat noted as a "seer" among various classes of
whites, as well as blacks, and who resides there still, and has since
become quite famous. In what category to place this man,--Professor
Brewster, so called,--it is perhaps a little difficult to determine;
whether among "clairvoyants," "animal magnetizers," "natural doctors,"
"fortune-tellers," or what, or all, it must be admitted that he is a
"character," and wields great influence among certain classes. Nature made
him a superior man of his race, and what thorough, early education
might have done for him, we are left to conjecture. So noted is
Professor Brewster, that I have thought him a proper subject for comment
here, as a living illustration of what a man of subtle genius may
accomplish, though wholly without "book learning," or other approved
instruction, in the field of medicine.
[Illustration: OLD PILGARLIC TAKES A BATH.]
A reliable friend of mine has gathered the following facts and statements
in regard to Professor Brewster, and taken pains to secure the
accompanying engraving of the veritable professor, as he appears in the
year 1872.
[Illustration: PROFESSOR BREWSTER.]
"The full name of this remarkable man, now residing in Hartford, Conn., is
Worthington Hooker Erasmus Brewster, commonly called, by those who venture
on familiarity, 'Worthy' Brewster, for short. Worthy is of full medium
height, powerfully built, and well knitted together. His head is very well
moulded, and also extremely large, but not disproportionally large for his
massive shoulders. He was born of 'poor but honest' (though undoubtedly
black) parents, in the town of Granby, Conn., on the 21st day of January,
1812.
"The boy Worthy, at the age of six years, went with his mother (his father
having died) and her new husband to the hills of Litchfield County to
live, and was there brought up to youth's estate, enjoying the
opportunities of education at the district school in what is now _West_
Winsted. The places of the birth and early rearing of Professor Brewster
are fixed beyond question, which fact will, it is hoped, forbid the
contention of other towns, and of 'seven cities,' or more, over the
question, after he shall have passed away. Worthy was not attracted to
literature and science, however. He seemed to spurn these, as unworthy of
his natural gifts to waste their time upon. But he learned to read, and
can write a 'fair hand.' Seeing no special need of being cramped and
confined by the narrow rules of spelling, Worthy has invented a style of
orthography for himself, and writes a compact, forcible, and even masterly
letter.
"But we must not linger on the details of his youth. Suffice it that
Worthy grew up a powerful lad, and became the conquering athlete of all
the region about his home. No man, of hundreds who tried, was able to
successfully wrestle with him. The strongest men were no match for him. He
was as agile as he was powerful, and to this day retains great elasticity
of foot and limb. He was a mysterious fellow also, and, before he was
sixteen years old, was regarded by his friends and acquaintances, of
African descent, especially, as a sort of prophet, while many whites
considered him a necromancer, and people all about declared he 'had the
devil in him' to no ordinary extent. Worthy claimed, in those days, to
'see visions,' and many stories are current among his contemporaries
regarding his then being able to 'charm snakes,' and do other miraculous
things. Abundant witnesses, such as they are, can now be found ready to
take their oaths that they have seen Worthy, 'with their own eyes,'
perform his miracles. It is certain that these believe in him.
"At the age of twenty Worthy went to New York city, where (in Lawrence
Street) he lived for the period of a year, successfully practising the art
of fortune-telling. While there Worthy first discovered his powers as a
'mesmerizer,' or magnetic physician. A school-girl, knowing that Worthy
'practised the healing art' somewhat, and suffering intensely with a
toothache, jeeringly asked him, 'Why can't you think of something to cure
my toothache?' Whereupon Worthy clapped his hands to her head, and
vigorously drew them down her cheeks, half in fun, half seriously, when,
to his astonishment, he found that all his (sound) teeth ached terribly,
while she declared that the pain had left hers. Such is his story; and it
is by no means an improbable one; for animal magnetism is a fixed fact
(however it may be analyzed or defined), and diseases are often
'magnetically' alleviated; and Worthy, with his powerful body and superb
health, as well as native force of intellect, may be as naturally gifted,
as a magnetic operator, as even Mesmer himself. Indeed, the writer is
inclined to believe that Worthy's great power over many people is largely
due to his superior vital forces.
"Worthy now turned his attention considerably to diseases, but returned to
Litchfield County for a while. At the age of twenty-six, he resolved 'to
see more of the world,' and in the capacity of steward embarked at New
Haven on board the brig Marshal, Captain Brison, freighted with horses,
and bound for a long trading voyage to the Island of Demarara, and to
South America, where they coasted during the winters, and took in coffee,
etc., in exchange for their cargo. Worthy was gone from home on this
voyage two years and two months, during which time he learned many
mysteries. He was a foreign traveller now, and his polite and
professional education may be said to have at that time become
'finished.'
"Since then Worthy has practised medicine to considerable extent, told
fortunes, 'looked' (in a crystal) for stolen property, and, if we are to
believe half of what is attested by many astute people (such as police
detectives, etc.), has, by force of his great sagacity, or in some way (he
would say, through clairvoyance), managed to achieve great success in
ferreting out lost or stolen treasures, and bringing thieves to grief.
"People of all classes in society visit him with their troubles of mind
and body. But the major part of his clientage is females. The wives and
accomplished daughters of wealthy men, as well as poor and ignorant women,
come from distant parts of the country to consult him, and a great number
of the first ladies of Hartford also consult him. Worthy carries on the
business of a 'chair-seater,' partly to occupy his time during the
intervals of his divinations, and partly to provide an excuse for cautious
persons to call on him for consultations. Those who consult him do so
mostly regarding secret matters, and they pretend to visit him to engage
him to seat chairs!
"He is consulted in respect to all sorts of diseases, and by unsuccessful,
perplexed, or doubting lovers; by husbands whose wives have absconded, and
who are anxious to call them back; by wives in regard to their wandering
husbands; by hosts of superstitious people (and these are found in all
classes), who believe themselves 'possessed by devils,' or demons. He is
expected to cast out the devils (and he does so as surely as most doctors
cure imaginary diseases). People who have lost property, and officers of
the law in search of stolen goods, consult him; and bachelors and widowers
in want of wives, and countless maids (both old and young), anxious to get
married, visit him and receive his sweet consolations, or mourn over the
ill luck which he prognosticates for them. His correspondence is large. A
hasty glance through several hundred letters in 'Professor Brewster's'
possession convinced the writer that the amount and character of the
superstition and ignorance which exist in these days, in our very midst,
are probably but little conjectured by the more cultivated classes. They
are indeed astounding, but are not confined, as we have before intimated,
to the wholly illiterate classes. People competent to write letters with
grammatical precision, and observing what would ordinarily be called an
'excellent business style,' at least, in their composition, consult the
professor; and so successful is Worthy in his diagnoses of and
prescriptions for various diseases, that many of his patients write him
letters overflowing with gratitude, while others voluntarily and
admiringly attest his skill as a 'seer.' To what talent, 'gift,' or what
secret of good luck, 'Professor Brewster' owes the many successes he wins
(even though he may fail ten times more often than he succeeds), we
cannot, of course, decide. But certain it is that he, with all his claims
to a knowledge of the 'occult,' exists, practises his arts, and through a
period of years has retained his old patients, and the postulants before
his supposed demigodship, while adding constantly to their number. In this
he is a remarkable man. He has accumulated quite a respectable property,
and is decidedly one of the 'institutions' of the enlightened and
cultivated city of Hartford.
"It should be remarked here that Worthy was, during the late civil war, a
true patriot. He was attached to the twenty-ninth regiment Connecticut
Volunteers, under Colonel Wooster (a 'colored' regiment), and was 'gone to
the war' over two years. His powers as a 'clairvoyant,' or 'fore-seer,'
served him in the war, and he 'always knew what was coming,' he says. As a
part of the curious history of the war, serving to show how little the
people of the North understood, in the first years of the contest, that
they were fighting for a great humanitary end,--the abolition of chattel
slavery,--it may be noted here, that Worthy wrote to Governor Buckingham,
in August, 1862, proposing to raise a black regiment, and the governor, by
his secretary, replied to Worthy's proposition, that he then did 'not deem
it expedient,'--which fact institutes a comparison between the judgments
of the governor and Worthy, not uncomplimentary to the latter."
[Illustration]