a casual mention of a "festal day" spent at Drayton Hall, a beautiful
home on the bank of the Ashley river. One familiar with those early
times in the southern provinces can fancy Mistress Eliza setting out for
her great day, perhaps going by water in a long canoe, formed by
hollowing out a great cypress tree thirty or forty feet long, which made
a boat, with room in it for twelve passengers, and was rowed by six or
eight negroes who sang in unison as they paddled their skiff down the
river. Eliza and her Mama were landed at the foot of the rolling lawn,
leading up to the mansion where the reception was being held. Or if they
travelled by the road, it was probably in the four-wheeled chaise which
Mrs. Lucas had imported from England the year before. And when they
joined the gay company gathered in the great house, doubtless the
ladies, old and young, wore costumes made of brocade, taffety or
lustering, the materials of the time, and worn over enormous hoops, with
cloaks made of colours to harmonise with the gowns beneath them--while
the men were indeed a great sight in their square cut coats, long
waistcoats, powdered hair, breeches and buckled shoes! A festal day
indeed, doubtless, with a most elaborate feast washed down with
draughts of fine old vintages, and followed by the scraping of fiddlers
making ready for the dance, enjoyed not only by guests, but also in the
servants' quarters where the negroes were as fleet-footed as mistress or
guest.
On her return to Wappoo Eliza feels the reaction, as we see in a letter
she wrote to Mrs. Pinckney. She says:
"At my return hither everything appeared gloomy
and lonesome, I began to consider what attraction
there was in this place that used so agreeably to
soothe my pensive humour, and made me indifferent
to everything the gay world could boast; but I
found the change not in the place but in myself,
and it doubtless proceeded from that giddy gaiety,
and want of reflection which I contracted when in
town; and I was forced to consult Mr. Locke over
and over, to see wherein personal Identity
consisted, and if I was the very same Selfe."
Somewhat cheered by the reading of Locke she returns to her usual
routine of life and writes to Miss Bartlett:
"I have got no further than the first vol^m of
Virgil but was most agreeably disappointed to find
myself instructed in agriculture as well as
entertained by his charming penn, for I am
persuaded 'tho he wrote for Italy it will in many
Instances suit Carolina. I had never perused those
books before, and imagined I should immediately
enter upon battles, storms and tempests, that put
mee in a maze, and make mee shudder while I read.
But the calm and pleasing diction of pastoral and
gardening agreeably presented themselves not
unsuitably to this charming season of the year,
with w^{ch} I am so much delighted that had I butt
the fine soft Language of our Poet to paint it
properly, I should give you but little respite
'till you came into the country, and attended to
the beauties of pure Nature unassisted by Art."
A little later comes this letter, giving a clear idea of the breadth of
the girl's scheme of social service as well as her thoughtfulness and
individuality:
_Dear Miss Bartlett:_--
After a pleasant passage of about an hour we
arrived safe at home as I hope you and Mrs.
Pinckney did at Belmont; but this place appeared
much less agreeable than when I left it, having
lost the company that then enlivened it, the Scene
is indeed much changed, for instead of the Easy
and agreeable conversation of our Friends, I am
engaged with the rudiments of the law, to w^{ch} I
am yet but a stranger.
However I hope in a short time with the help of
Dictionary's french and English, we shall be
better friends; nor shall I grudge a little pains
and application, if that will make me useful to
any of my poor Neighbors, we have Some in this
Neighbourhood, who have a little Land a few Slaves
and Cattle to give their children, that never
think of making a will 'till they come upon a sick
bed, and find it too Expensive to send to town for
a Lawyer.
If you will not laugh too immoderately at mee I'll
Trust you with a Secrett. I have made two wills
already! I know I have done no harm, for I con'd
my lesson very perfect, and know how to convey by
will, Estates, Real and Personal, and never
forgett in its proper place, him and his heirs
forever, no that 'tis to be signed by three
witnesses, in presence of one another; bu^t the
most comfortable rememberance of all is that
Doct^r Wood says, the Law makes great allowance
for Last Wills and Testaments, presuming the
Testator could not have Council learned in the
Law. But after all what can I do if a poor
Creature lies a-dying, and their family takes it
into their head that I can serve them. I can't
refuse; but when they are well, and able to employ
a Lawyer, I always shall.
A widow hereabouts with a pretty little fortune,
teazed me intolerable to draw her a marriage
settlement, but it was out of my depth and I
absolutely refused it, so she got an abler hand to
do it, indeed she could afford it, but I could not
gett off from being one of the Trustees to her
Settlement and an old gentleman the other.
I shall begin to think myself an old woman before
I am well a young one, having these weighty
affairs upon my hands.
From this solemn epistle it is amusing to turn for a moment to Colonel
Lucas's matrimonial plan for his daughter. In those days girls were
married at a very early age, and it is small wonder that Colonel Lucas
spent much thought on the problem of finding a suitable lover for his
favourite daughter, before he broached the subject to her, for marriages
were generally arranged by a girl's parents in those days. And that
Eliza might have some choice in the matter Colonel Lucas picked out two
suitors and wrote to her about them. How she felt on the subject the
following letter shows: She says:
_Honoured Sir:_--
Your letter by way of Philadelphia w^{ch} I duly
received, was an additional proof of that paternal
tenderness w^{ch} I have always Experienced from
the most Indulgent of Parents from my Cradle to
the present time, and the subject of it is of the
utmost importance to my peace and happiness.
As you propose Mr. L. to me I am sorry I can't
have Sentiments favourable enough to him to take
time to think on the Subject, as your Indulgence
to me will ever add weight to the duty that
obliges me to consult what pleases you, for so
much Generosity on your part claims all my
Obediance. But as I know 'tis my Happiness you
consult, I must beg the favour of you to pay my
compliments to the old Gentleman for his
Generosity and favourable Sentiments of me, and
let him know my thoughts on the affair in such
civil terms as you know much better than any I can
dictate; and beg leave to say to you that the
riches of Chili and Peru put together if he had
them, could not purchase a sufficient Esteem for
him to make him my husband.
As to the other gentleman you mention, Mr. W., you
know Sir I have so slight a knowledge of him I can
form no judgment, and a Case of such consequence
requires the nicest distinction of humours and
Sentiments.
But give me leave to assure you my dear Sir that a
single life is my only Choice;--and if it were
not, as I am yet but eighteen hope you will put
aside the thoughts of my marrying yet these two or
three years at least. . . .
I truely am
D^r Sir Your most dutiful & affect Daughter
E. LUCAS.
As no further reference to the rejected lovers is made, it seems that
the Colonel was too fond of his daughter to press a matter evidently so
against her wishes, and she was allowed to remain heart-whole until the
man of her choice came to satisfy her dreams.
Meanwhile she was as busy as usual. Polly was now at school in Charles
Town, which added to Eliza's home duties and she was also full of
anxiety because of an invasion of Spaniards in the vicinity, which
caused all the planters to fear that their negroes might be carried off,
as they had been before. There was also cause for anxiety over the
dangerous sickness of the elder brother, George, who was in the army,
stationed too at Antigua, while the younger boy, Tom, who was still in
London, was so frail that the physicians refused to allow him to take a
trip either to Antigua, or to his mother and sisters in Carolina, all of
which worries wore on the tender-hearted sister.
Meanwhile, Eliza's cares on the plantations grew constantly more
engrossing, as her crops of indigo grew larger and more difficult to
handle. So well satisfied was her father that this plant could be made a
staple export, that he sent to Eliza an "Indigo Maker," named Cromwell,
from the island of Monserrat, where indigo was a famous product. This
man understood the processes, and built brick vats in which the leaves
had to lie for a certain length of time. He apparently knew his
business, but watching him closely Eliza saw he was not getting the
right result, and told him so. This was due to the climate, he asserted,
and saying no more, the girl gave her undivided attention to
experimenting with different processes, and found out not only that he
was wrong, but where his mistake lay. Calling him to her, she dismissed
him, and in his place put his brother, who for a short time was more
successful.
In her public-spirited way, Eliza gave up one whole year's crop to
making seed, for she had great difficulty in getting it from the East
Indies in time for the crops to ripen before a frost. This home-grown
seed she presented to those planters who were interested in raising
indigo, and it was a generous gift, for the seed was by no means cheap.
By the gift many planters were induced to try the new seed and at that
time Eliza wrote to her father:
"Out of a small patch of Indigo growing at Wappoo
(which Mama made a present to Mr. P.) the brother
of Nicholas Cromwell besides saving a quantity of
Seed, made us 17 pounds of very good Indigo, so
different from N C's, that we are convinced he was
a mere bungler at it. Mr. Deveaux has made some
likewise, and the people in gen^l very sanguine
about it. Mr. P. sent to England by the last man
of warr 6 pounds to try how t'is approved of
there. If it is I hope we shall have a bounty from
home, we have already a bounty of 5^s currancy
from this province upon it. We please ourselves
with the prospect of exporting in a few years a
good quantity from hence, and supplying our Mother
Country with a manifacture for w^{ch} she has so
great a demand, and which she is now supplyd with
from the French Collonys, and many thousand pounds
per annum thereby lost to the nation, when she
might as well be supplyd here, if the matter was
applyd to in earnest."
After this there are several letters from Governor Lucas, showing how
earnestly he wished to have the raising of indigo a success, and he
suggested that the brick vats may have been the cause of the failure,
and advised trying wood, but the truth of the trouble lay in the fact
that the two overseers sent by the Governor had been traitors, who
purposely achieved poor results, so that the American product should not
compete with that exported from their native island of Monserrat. When
Eliza discovered this her father at once sent a negro from one of the
French islands to replace them, and from that time the results were
steadily satisfactory. Soon enough indigo was raised to make it worth
while to export to England, and the English at once offered a bounty of
sixpence a pound. It is said that as long as this was paid, the planters
doubled their capital every three or four years, and in order to
commemorate the source of their wealth they formed what was at first
merely a social club, called the "Winyah Indigo Club," but later
established the first free school in the province outside of Charles
Town, a school which, handsomely endowed and supported, continued a
useful existence down to 1865.
Indigo continued to be a chief staple of the country for more than
thirty years, history tells us, and after the Revolution it was again
cultivated, but the loss of the British bounty, the rivalry of the East
Indies with their cheaper labour and the easier cultivation of cotton,
all contributed to its abandonment about the end of the century.
However, just before the Revolution, the annual export amounted to the
enormous quantity of one million, one hundred and seven thousand, six
hundred and sixty pounds, and all this revenue to the province of
Carolina, and its added benefits to all classes of citizens, was the
direct result of the perseverance and intelligence of Eliza Lucas, the
girl planter of the eighteenth century. Let the girls of our day look to
their laurels if they wish to be enrolled in the same class with this
indomitable little maid of South Carolina!
LADY JANE GREY:
The Nine Days Queen
IN all England there was no more picturesquely beautiful estate than
that at Bradgate in Leicestershire, belonging to Henry, Marquis of
Dorset, the father of Lady Jane Grey. There Lady Jane was born in 1537,
in the great brick house on a hill, called Bradgate Manor, which
overlooked acres of rolling lawns, long stretches of woodland and
extensive gardens, making a vast playground, and one which might well
have contented a less resourceful person than Lady Jane.
As it was, she was utterly unlike her two sisters, Mary and Katherine,
being a precocious child, fonder of books than of play, and doubtless
was less rugged in after years than if she had romped through meadow and
marsh as they did, or waded in the clear brook that babbled its way
through the woodland depths of Bradgate forests. Instead, while the
other girls ran races, or played some boisterous game of childhood, we
have glimpses of demure little Jane, even then as pretty as a doll in
her quaint dress, fashioned on the model of that worn by her own mother,
either sitting quietly in the house, so absorbed in her book that friend
or foe might have approached unnoticed, or on the velvety lawn
surrounding the Manor House, intent on some dry treatise, far above the
understanding of an ordinary child, looking up now and then to glance
off at the wonderful view spread out below her--a view so extensive that
it overlooked seven counties of England.
There, at beautiful Bradgate, Lady Jane spent the first seven years of
her life, busy with the endless resources at her command, and studying
with her sisters under the instruction of the Reverend Mr. Harding, who
was the chaplain of Bradgate--after the custom of those days--and it was
he who laid the firm foundation of that devotion to the Protestant
religion which was so strongly marked in Lady Jane's after life.
Until Jane was seven years old she did not accompany her parents on
their many visits to relatives of noble blood, or when they went to
Court, for she was considered too small for that until she was eight
years old, when she was occasionally taken with her family to London or
elsewhere. Lady Frances Dorset, Jane's mother, was a niece of King Henry
the Eighth, and so the Dorsets belonged to the brilliantly extravagant
court circle of the famously extravagant Henry, and in her ninth year
Lady Jane began to visit frequently her royal great-uncle, who was said
to be as fond of children as he was of pastry, and doubtless enjoyed
having Jane, an exceptionally bright, pretty girl, to divert his
thoughts when the pains in his gouty limbs were unusually severe. And
Queen Katherine, too, was a deeply affectionate aunt, and as soon as it
was allowed, kept Jane constantly with her, directing the child's
studies herself, and giving her the freedom of the Queen's own private
apartments, where keen-eyed, quick-witted little Jane must have seen and
heard much by which a more stupid child would not have benefited, but
which Jane stored up for future reference,--especially the discussions
between the Queen and those learned theologians with whom she so often
talked, and many a scene of which Lady Jane was witness has been
recorded in history.
[Illustration: LADY JANE GREY]
The Queen frequently disputed with the King on religious matters, and
one day when he was especially out of humour, she remonstrated with him
about a proclamation forbidding the use of a translation of the Bible.
This made him very angry, and as soon as the Queen left the room,
Gardiner, one of the King's councillors who was no friend of the Queen,
fanned the King's anger into such a fury by his remarks against her, and
by complimenting the King on his wisdom, that susceptible King Henry
allowed himself to draw up an accusation against Queen Katherine, which
would lead to her being beheaded--as two of his queens had been before.
The document having been drawn up, all preparations for carrying out its
directions were made, when one of the King's councillors dropped it, and
an attendant of Queen Katherine fortunately picked it up, and took it at
once to the Queen. One glance showed the danger she was in, and she fell
into such convulsions of fright that her shrieks reached the private
room of the King, whose heart softened at the sound, and also at the
realisation that no one would ever care for him with the tenderness and
tact of Katherine. Calling his attendants, he was carried to Katherine,
who revived at once, and received him graciously, showing no fear of
him, which was a great point in her favour, and the next morning, having
thought out her plan of action, she visited the King's room, taking her
sister and Lady Jane Grey with her. The King received them pleasantly,
but soon brought up the religious discussion of the previous day. This
time, however, Katherine was ready for him, and with a sweet smile and
downcast eyes, as before her lord and master, she acknowledged that she
"being only a woman" was of course not so well versed in such matters as
His Majesty, that thereafter she would learn of him! This delighted the
King so much that when Katherine added the confession that she had many
times argued with him simply to pass away the weary hours of his pain
more quickly, he exclaimed, "And is it so, sweetheart? Then we are
perfect friends!" and kissing her, bade her depart, and for the moment
the Queen knew that her head was safe. But the next day when she and
Lady Jane Grey and several others were in the garden with the King, the
Lord-chancellor with forty of the King's guards came to arrest Her
Majesty, and not having been told that Henry's mood had changed was
naturally much astonished at Henry's exclamation, "Beast! fool!
knave--avaunt from my presence!"--in fact so discomforted was the
Lord-chancellor that tender-hearted Katherine begged that he be excused,
as she deemed "his fault was occasioned by a mistake," and so charming
was she as she pleaded, that her husband showed his admiration for her.
"Ah, poor soul," said Henry, "thou little knowest, Kate, how evil he
deserveth this grace at thy hands!" and then he lavished a profusion of
caresses on her, when she at last dared to draw a long breath, knowing
only too well from what she had been delivered.
This was only one of the experiences which Lady Jane, still a mere
child, saw and lived through with her beloved Queen Katherine.
On the 27th of January, 1547, Lady Jane's life completely changed. King
Henry the Eighth died, and his will made Jane heir to the throne after
his daughters Mary and Elizabeth, and from having been before merely the
attractive great-niece of the King and eldest daughter of the Marquis of
Dorset, she suddenly became a prominent factor in the political
intrigues of the day, almost as important in the matter of succession as
either Mary or Elizabeth, for Mary, on account of her religion, could
easily be set aside by a faction with a powerful leader, and Elizabeth
also, because of the question as to whether she was the legitimate
daughter of the King.
This being so, almost before the King was buried, poor little Lady Jane
became a puppet in the hands of unscrupulous statesmen, whose only
thought was their own advancement, and so began the series of events
which was to end in that hideous tragedy of which one of the noblest
girls of history was the victim.
Soon after the death of King Henry, it occurred to Sir Thomas Seymour,
the Lord Admiral, that it would be a wise move to obtain the
guardianship of so valuable a personage as Lady Jane Grey, and he at
once sent a messenger to ask the Marquis of Dorset for the transfer of
the girl to his care, sending word that this would be a great chance for
Lady Jane, who being, so said Seymour, "the handsomest lady in England,"
could then doubtless be married to the young King Edward Sixth, through
the Admiral's influence. This suggestion naturally pleased the ambitious
parents of Lady Jane, and she was sent to Seymour Place--Thomas
Seymour's London residence, which was presided over by his mother, the
Dowager Lady Seymour, and we cannot doubt that Lady Jane enjoyed leaving
quiet Bradgate, where she had been since the death of her uncle, King
Henry, and where she was a victim of extraordinary severity from her
parents, even in that age when children were often so severely
disciplined.
Not alone did she go to Seymour Place, but with a governess, and a
number of waiting women, as befitted her rank, and was received with due
courtesy. But though it seemed such a diplomatic move to allow her this
chance to make a brilliant match, it was really most unfortunate, for
Edward Seymour, the Duke of Somerset, who was Protector of the realm
and brother of the admiral, had determined that if another plan then on
foot for the marriage of King Edward, should fail, then should Edward
marry Somerset's youngest daughter--and when he found that his brother
had conceived the same plan, with Lady Jane Grey for its central figure,
and actually had her in his own house in pursuance of that plan, he was
very angry and determined to spoil his brother's scheme if possible.
At this time, the Duke of Northumberland, a powerful and unpopular
nobleman who had won many victories by land and sea, had come to be
Somerset's greatest rival in the affection of King Edward. This same
powerful Duke of Northumberland knowing that young Edward had not long
to live, and that he was devoted to the Protestant faith, also that he
knew the Princess Mary's deep interest in the Catholic religion,
determined to so influence the young King that he would break his
father's will, and leave the crown to Lady Jane Grey. He also determined
that, during the time necessary to ripen his scheme, he would marry his
son, Guilford Dudley, to Lady Jane Grey, in which event he would be the
father to a Queen of England, and if she did as he wished, to a Prince
Consort as well, which would exactly suit his ambition. So in different
ways the tangled threads of cruel circumstance were fast winding around
an innocent young victim, who was ignorant of them all as yet.
Several months after the death of King Henry, Thomas Seymour, whose ward
Lady Jane Grey now was, won the Dowager Queen Katherine's
affections--having been her lover before she married King Henry--and
they were privately wedded, after which Lady Jane Grey went to live with
them at Hanworth, in Middlesex, and it was her great joy to be once more
with the friend whom she so dearly loved, and to resume lessons under
her care. Princess Elizabeth was living there too, and the contrast
between these two young women was indeed striking. Both were fond of
books and were staunch Protestants and both were very young, Elizabeth
being then sixteen, and Jane four years younger, but while Elizabeth was
bold and free in her behaviour, Jane was the exact reverse, being so
modestly reserved in manner and pure in thought that she won golden
praise from all who knew her well.
In a short time Katherine died, Lady Jane having been with her through
hours and days entirely too sad for such a young girl to have witnessed,
but as Katherine clung to Jane, the loving girl gave no heed to her own
grief or pain. The loss of his wife seemed a terrible blow to Thomas
Seymour who at once decided to break up his household, and to send Lady
Jane back to her father, but suddenly reconsidering, he wrote, begging
that after all he might keep her with him, saying, "My lady, my mother
shall and will, I doubt not, be as dear unto her as though she were her
own daughter, and for my own part, I shall continue her half-father, or
more. . . ."
But the Marquis was unwilling to agree to this proposition, and Lady
Jane who was now extremely pretty, went with her parents to Dorset
House, their London residence. Here Seymour visited the Marquis and
urged that Lady Jane be left in his care, repeating that he would try to
make a brilliant marriage for her with the King, but when he found that
her father would not consent, he made a practical offer of two thousand
pounds, five hundred of it to be paid at once, for which sum he was
again to become Jane's guardian. At that time, the Dorsets, never
wealthy, were deeply in debt, and this amount of money would do much to
mend their affairs, so the offer was accepted. But at the same time the
Marquis wrote to the Duke of Somerset and spoke of some negotiations he
was conducting for the marriage of Lady Jane with Somerset's eldest son,
showing that he felt it wise to have more than one string to his bow,
and in some way to marry Lady Jane to his own advantage. Dear little
Lady Jane, fate surely did its worst for you, and never a nobler soul
was born than you--poor little nine days Queen!