To the good people of New Jersey, and all others whom it may
concern: It is hereby ordered that the wife and children of John
Honeyman of Griggstown, the notorious Tory, now within the British
lines and probably acting the part of a spy, shall be, and are
hereby protected from all harm and annoyance from every quarter
until further orders. But this furnishes no protection to Honeyman
himself.
GEO. WASHINGTON,
Com.-in-Chief.
This paper, which it is said Washington not only signed, but wrote with
his own hand, had been given to Honeyman some time before, and he sent
it to his wife in order that it might protect her in case of danger such
as now threatened her. It was thought very likely that the people of
Griggstown would become so incensed against the Tory butcher, that they
might offer harm to his wife and family; and Washington was, no doubt,
glad to give what protection he could to the home of the man who, no
matter how much he might have deceived other people, was always true to
him and to the American cause.
When the crowd heard the communication from the commander in chief of
the American army, ordering them to refrain from violence to Mrs.
Honeyman and her family, they could not understand why it had been
written; but they understood very well what it commanded, and so,
grumbling a good deal, but not daring to disobey, they dispersed, and
left the wife of the spy in peace.
This paper, of course, was cherished as a great prize by the Honeyman
family, and remained in their possession for many years; and it was
indeed an heirloom worth preserving. But, although it proved a safeguard
for Mrs. Honeyman, it did not remove the prejudices against her husband,
and for a long time after that it would have been a very unwise thing
for Tory Honeyman to come to Griggstown. Of course, it would have been
an easy thing for Washington to have publicly exonerated Honeyman from
all charges of treason and Toryism, but this would not have served his
purpose. There was still need of a competent spy in the British lines;
and there Honeyman remained during the rest of the war, always ready to
give information to the commander whenever he could obtain it.
When peace was proclaimed, Washington did not forget Honeyman, and he
himself told the story of how this brave man became a Tory butcher for
the sake of American independence, and of the great services he had
rendered to the cause. Then, of course, Honeyman went home to his wife
and family, and the people of Griggstown received him as if he had been
a great hero. And in fact, looking at the matter from a war point of
view, he deserved all the honors they could give him, for without his
aid the battle of Trenton could never have been won; and in fact he was
more useful in that engagement than if he had been a regiment of
soldiers.
Honeyman was no doubt a great man in Griggstown. The people who had once
threatened to burn down his house could not do enough for him. Those who
once would not speak to his wife when they met her, now implored her to
let them know what they could do for her, and it was not long before the
popularity of the family increased to a wonderful degree.
Several officers of rank who had heard of what Honeyman had done, came
to see and talk with him; and, more than that, Washington himself came
to Griggstown, and paid a visit to his former spy. Such an honor was
enough to make the once denounced Tory butcher the leading citizen of
the town. Honeyman now became a prosperous man, and bought a large farm
and reared a family of seven children, who grew up and prospered; and
their descendants are now scattered all over the State. He himself lived
to the good old age of ninety-five, and died respected and honored by
all,--never thought of as a spy, but only as a patriotic hero.
It would appear, from the stories of those early days, that whenever a
man or woman acted a good part, and was truly of service to New Jersey,
he or she always lived to be very old, and left behind a vast number of
descendants.