They go up and down the river Hudson, as long as it is open and free
from ice. They bring from Albany boards or planks, and all sorts of
timber, flour, pease, and furs, which they get from the Indians, or
which are smuggled from the French. They come home almost empty, and
only bring a few merchandizes with them, among which rum is the chief.
This last is absolutely necessary to the inhabitants of Albany; they
cheat the Indians in the fur trade with it; for when the Indians are
drunk, they will leave it to the Albanians to fix the price of the
furs. The yachts are pretty large, and have a good cabbin, in which the
passengers can be very commodiously lodged. They are commonly built of
red Cedar, or of white Oak. Frequently, the bottom consists of white
oak, and the sides of red cedar, because the latter withstands
putrefaction much longer than the former. The red cedar is likewise apt
to split, when it hits against any thing, and the river Hudson is in
many parts full of sands and rocks, against which the keel of the yacht
sometimes hits; therefore they choose white oak for the bottom, as
being the softer wood, and not splitting so easily: and the bottom
being continually under water, is not so much exposed to putrefaction,
and holds out longer.
The Canoes which the yachts have along with them, are made of a single
piece of wood, hollowed out; they are sharp on both ends, frequently
three or four fathoms long, and as broad as the thickness of the wood
will allow. The people in it do not row sitting, but commonly a fellow
stands at each end, with a short oar in his hand, with which he governs
and brings the canoe forwards. Those which are made here at Albany, are
commonly of the white Pine; they can do service for eight or twelve
years, especially if they be tarred and painted. At Albany they make
them of the white pine, since there is no other wood fit for them; at
New York they are made of the tulip-tree, and in other parts they are
made of red or white cedars: but both these trees are so small, in the
neighbourhood of Albany, that they are unfit for canoes; there are no
seats in the canoes, for if they had any, they would be more liable to
be overset, as one could not keep the equilibrium so well.
Battoes [66] are another kind of boats, which are much in use in
Albany: they are made of boards of white pine; the bottom is flat, that
they may row the better in shallow water; they are sharp at both ends,
and somewhat higher towards the end than in the middle. They have seats
in them, and are rowed as common boats. They are long, yet not all
alike, commonly three, and sometimes four fathoms long. The height from
the bottom to the top of the board (for the sides stand almost
perpendicular) is from twenty inches to two feet, and the breadth in
the middle about a yard and six inches. They are chiefly made use of
for carrying goods, by means of the rivers, to the Indians; that is,
when those rivers are open enough for the battoes to pass through, and
when they need not be carried by land a great way. The boats made of
the bark of trees, break easily by knocking against a stone, and the
canoes cannot carry a great cargo, and are easily overset; the battoes
are therefore preferable to them both. I saw no boats here like those
in Sweden, and other parts of Europe.
The frost does frequently a great deal of damage at Albany. There is
hardly a month in summer during which a frost does not happen. The
spring comes very late, and in April and May are numerous cold nights,
which frequently kill the flowers of trees and kitchen-herbs. It was
feared that the blossoms of the apple-trees had been so severely
damaged by the frost, last May, that next autumn there would be but
very few apples. The oak-blossoms are very often killed by the frost in
the woods. The autumn here is of long continuance, with warm days and
nights. However, the cold nights commonly commence towards the end of
September, and are frequent in October. The people are forced to keep
their cattle in stables, from the middle of November, till March or
April, and must find them hay during that time [67].
During summer, the wind blows commonly from the South, and brings a
great drought along with it. Sometimes it rains a little, and as soon
as it has rained the wind veers to North West, blowing for several days
from that point, and then returning to the South. I have had frequent
opportunities of seeing this change of wind happen very exactly, both
this year and the following.
June the 15th. The enclosures were made of boards of fir-wood, of which
there is abundance in the extensive woods, and many saw-mills to cut it
into boards.
The several sorts of apple-trees grow very well here, and bear as fine
fruit as in any other part of North America. Each farm has a large
orchard. They have some apples here, which are very large, and very
palatable; they are sent to New York, and other places as a rarity.
They make excellent cyder, in autumn, in the country round Albany.
All the kinds of cherry-trees, which have been planted here, succeed
very well.
Pear-trees do not succeed here. This was complained of in many other
parts of North America. But I fear that they do not take sufficient
care in the management and planting of them; for I have seen fine pears
in several parts of North America.
Peach-trees have often been planted here, and never would succeed well.
This was attributed to a worm which lives in the ground, and eats
through the root, so that the tree dies. Perhaps the severity of the
winter contributes much to it.
They plant no other fruit-trees at Albany besides these I have
mentioned.
They sow as much hemp and flax here, as they want for home consumption.
They sow maize in great abundance: A loose soil is reckoned the best
for this purpose; for it will not grow in clay. From half a bushel they
reap a hundred bushels. They reckon maize a very good kind of corn,
because the shoot recovers after being hurt by the frost. They have had
examples here of the shoots dying twice in spring, to the very ground,
and yet they shot up again afterwards, and afforded an excellent crop.
Maize has likewise the advantage of standing much longer against a
drought, than wheat. The larger sort of maize which is commonly sown
here, ripens in September.
They sow wheat in the neighbourhood of Albany, with great advantage.
From one bushel they get twelve sometimes; if the soil be good, they
get twenty bushels. If their crop amounts only to ten bushels from one,
they think it very trifling. The inhabitants of the country round
Albany, are Dutch and Germans. The Germans live in several great
villages, and sow great quantities of wheat, which is brought to
Albany; and from thence they send many yachts laden with flour to New
York. The wheat-flour from Albany is reckoned the best in all North
America, except that from Sopus or King’s Town, a place between Albany
and New York. All the bread in Albany is made of wheat. At New York
they pay the Albany flour with several Shillings more per hundred
weight, than that from other places.
Rye is likewise sown here, but not so generally as wheat.
They do not sow much barley here, because they do not reckon the
profits very great. Wheat is so plentiful that they make malt of it. In
the neighbourhood of New York, I saw great fields sown with barley.
They do not sow more oats than are necessary for their horses.
The Dutch and Germans who live hereabouts, sow pease in great
abundance; they succeed very well, and are annually carried to New
York, in great quantities. They have been free from insects for a
considerable time. But of late years the same beetles which destroy the
pease in Pensylvania, New Jersey, and the lower parts of the province
of New York [68], have likewise appeared abundant among the pease here.
It is a real loss to this town, and to the other parts of North
America, which used to get pease from hence for their own consumption,
and that of their sailors. It had been found that if they procured good
pease from Albany, and sowed them near King’s Town, or the lower part
of the province of New York, they succeeded very well the first year,
but were so full of worms the second, and following years, that nobody
could or would eat them. Some people put ashes into the pot, among the
pease, when they will not boil, or soften well; but whether this is
wholesome and agreeable to the palate, I do not know.
Potatoes are generally planted. Some people preferred ashes to sand for
keeping them in during winter.
The Bermuda Potatoes (Convolvulus Batatas) have likewise been planted
here, and succeed pretty well. The greatest difficulty is to keep them
during winter; for they generally rot in that season.
The Humming-bird (Trochilus Colubris) comes to this place sometimes;
but is rather a scarce bird.
The shingles with which the houses are covered are made of the White
Pine, which is reckoned as good and as durable, and sometimes better,
than the White Cedar (Cupressus thyoides). The White Pine is found
abundant here, in such places where common pines grow in Europe, I have
never seen them in the lower parts of the province of New York, nor in
New Jersey and Pensylvania. They saw a vast quantity of deal from the
White Pine on this side of Albany, which are brought down to New York,
and from thence exported.
The woods abound with vines, which likewise grow on the steep banks of
the river in surprising quantities. They climbed to the tops of trees
on the bank, and bent them by their weight. But where they found no
trees, they hung down along the steep shores, and covered them
entirely. The grapes are eaten after the frost has attacked them; for
they are too sour before. They are not much used any other way.
The vast woods and uninhabited grounds, between Albany and Canada,
contain immense swarms of gnats, which annoy the travellers. To be in
some measure secured against these insects, some besmear their face
with butter or grease; for the gnats do not like to settle on greasy
places. The great heat makes boots very uneasy; but to prevent the
gnats from stinging the legs, they wrap some paper round them, under
the stockings. Some travellers wear caps which cover the whole face,
and have some gauze before the eyes. At night they lie in tents, if
they can carry any with them; and make a great fire at the entrance, by
the smoke of which the gnats are driven away.
The porpesses seldom go higher up the river Hudson than the salt water
goes; after that, the sturgeons fill their place. It has however
sometimes happened, that porpesses have gone quite up to Albany.
There is a report, that a whale once came up the river quite to this
town.
The Fireflies (Lampyris) which are the same that are so common in
Pensylvania during summer, are seen here in abundance every night. They
fly up and down in the streets of this town. They come into, the
houses, if the doors and windows are open.
Several of the Pensylvanian trees are not to be met with in these
woods; viz.
Magnolia glauca, the Beaver-tree.
Nyssa aquatica, the Tupelo-tree.
Liquidambar styraciflua, the Sweet-gum tree.
Diospyros Virginiana, the Persimon.
Liriodendron tulipifera, the Tulip-tree.
Juglans nigra, the black Walnut-tree.
Quercus ——, the Swamp Oak.
Cercis Canadensis, the Sallad-tree.
Robinia pseudacacia, the Locust-tree.
Gleditsia triacanthos, the Honey-locust tree.
Annona muricata, the Papaw-tree.
Celtis occidentalis, the Nettle-tree. And a number of shrubs, which are
never found here.
The more northerly situation of the place, the height of the Blue
Mountains, and the course of the rivers, which flow here southward into
the sea, and accordingly carry the seeds of plants from north to south,
and not the contrary way, are chiefly the causes that several plants
which grow in Pensylvania cannot be found here.
This afternoon I went to see an island which lies in the middle of the
river, about a mile below the town. This island is an English mile
long, and not above a quarter of a mile broad. It is almost entirely
turned into corn-fields; and is inhabited by a single planter, who,
besides possessing this island, is the owner of two more. Here we saw
no woods, except a few trees which were left round the island on the
shore, and formed as it were a tall and great hedge. The Red Maple
(Acer rubrum) grows in abundance in several places. Its leaves are
white or silvery on the under sides, and, when agitated by the wind,
they make the tree appear as if it was full of white flowers. The
Water-beech (Platanus occidentalis) grows to a great height, and is one
of the most shady trees here. The Water-poplar [69] is the most common
tree hereabouts, grows exceedingly well on the shores of the river, and
is as tall as the tallest of our asps. In summer it affords the best
shade for men and cattle against the scorching heat. On the banks of
rivers and lakes it is one of the most useful trees, because it holds
the soil by its extensive branched roots, and prevents the water from
washing it away. The Water-beech and the Elm-tree (Ulmus) serve the
same purpose. The wild Prune-trees were plentiful here, and were full
of unripe fruit. Its wood is not made use of; but its fruit is eaten.
Sumach (Rhus glabra) is plentiful here; as also the wild vines, which
climb up the trees, and creep along the high shores of the river. I was
told, that the grapes ripen very late, though they were already pretty
large.
The American Elm-tree (Ulmus Americana) formed several high hedges. The
soil of this island is a rich mould, mixed with sand, which is chiefly
employed in maize plantations. There were likewise large fields of
potatoes. The whole island was leased for one hundred pounds of New
York currency. The person who had taken the lease, again let some
greater and some smaller lots of ground, to the inhabitants of Albany,
for making kitchen-gardens of; and by that means reimbursed himself.
Portulack (Portulaca oleracea) grows spontaneously here in great
abundance, and looks very well.
June the 20th. The tide in the river Hudson goes about eight or ten
English miles above Albany, and consequently runs one hundred and
fifty-six English miles from the sea. In spring, when the snow melts,
there is hardly any flowing near this town; for the great quantity of
water which comes from the mountains during that season, occasions a
continual ebbing. This likewise happens after heavy rains.
The cold is generally reckoned very severe here. The ice in the river
Hudson is commonly three or four feet thick. On the 3d of April some of
the inhabitants crossed the river with six pair of horses. The ice
commonly dissolves about the end of March, or beginning of April. Great
pieces of ice come down about that time, which sometimes carry with
them the houses that stand close to the shore. The water is very high
at that time in the river, because the ice stops sometimes, and sticks
in places where the river is narrow. The water has been often observed
to rise three fathom higher than it commonly is in summer. The ground
is frozen here in winter to the depth of three, four, or five feet. On
the 16th of November the yachts are put up, and about the beginning or
middle of April they are in motion again. They are unacquainted with
stoves; and their chimnies are so wide that one could drive through
them with a cart and horses.
The water of several wells in this town was very cool about this time;
but had a kind of acid taste, which was not very agreeable. On a nearer
examination, I found an abundance of little insects in it, which were
probably Monoculi. Their length was different; some were a geometrical
line and an half, others two, and others four lines long. They were
very narrow, and of a pale colour. The head was blacker and thicker
than the other parts of the body, and about the size of a pin’s head.
The tail was divided into two branches, and each branch terminated in a
little black globule. When these insects swim, they proceed in crooked
or undulated lines, almost like Tadpoles. I poured some of this water
into a bowl, and put near a fourth part of rum to it. The Monoculi,
instead of being affected with it, swam about as briskly as they had
done in the water. This shews, that if one makes punch with this water,
it must be very strong to kill the Monoculi. I think this water is not
very wholesome for people who are not used to it, though the
inhabitants of Albany, who drink it every day, say, they do not feel
the least inconvenience from it. I have been several times obliged to
drink water here, in which I have plainly seen Monoculi swimming; but I
generally felt the next day somewhat like a pea in my throat, or as if
I had a swelling there; and this continued for above a week. I felt
such swellings this year, both at Albany and in other parts. My
servant, Yungstroem, likewise got a great pain in his breast, and a
sensation as from a swelling, after drinking water with Monoculi in it:
but whether these insects occasioned it, or whether it came from some
other cause, I cannot ascertain. However, I have always endeavoured, as
much as possible, to do without such water as had Monoculi in it. I
have found Monoculi in very cold water, taken from the deepest wells,
in different parts of this country. Perhaps many of our diseases arise
from waters of this kind, which we do not sufficiently examine. I have
frequently observed abundance of minute insects in water, which has
been remarkable for its clearness. Almost each house in Albany has its
well, the water of which is applied to common use; but for tea,
brewing, and washing, they commonly take the water of the river Hudson,
which flows close by the town. This water is generally quite muddy, and
very warm in summer; and, on that account, it is kept in cellars, in
order that the slime may subside, and that the water may cool a little.
We lodged with a gunsmith, who told us, that the best charcoals for the
forge were made of the Black Pine. The next in goodness, in his
opinion, were charcoals, made of the Beech-tree.
The best and dearest stocks for his muskets were made of the wood of
the wild Cherry-tree; and next to these he valued those of the Red
Maple most. They scarce make use of any other wood for this purpose.
The black Walnut-tree affords excellent wood for stocks; but it does
not grow in the neighbourhood of Albany.
June the 21st. Next to the town of New York, Albany is the principal
town, or at least the most wealthy, in the province of New York. It is
situated on the declivity of a hill, close to the western shore of the
river Hudson, about one hundred and forty-six English miles from New
York. The town extends along the river, which flows here from N. N. E.
to S. S. W. The high mountains in the west, above the town, bound the
prospect on that side. There are two churches in Albany, an English one
and a Dutch one. The Dutch church stands at some distance from the
river, on the east side of the market. It is built of stone; and in the
middle it has a small steeple, with a bell. It has but one minister,
who preaches twice every Sunday. The English church is situated on the
hill, at the west end of the market, directly under the fort. It is
likewise built of stone, but has no steeple. There was no service at
this church at this time, because they had no minister; and all the
people understood Dutch, the garrison excepted. The minister of this
church has a settled income of one hundred pounds sterling, which he
gets from England. The town-hall lies to the southward of the Dutch
church, close by the river side. It is a fine building of stone, three
stories high. It has a small tower or steeple, with a bell, and a gilt
ball and vane at the top of it.
The houses in this town are very neat, and partly built with stones
covered with shingles of the White Pine. Some are slated with tiles
from Holland, because the clay of this neighbourhood is not reckoned
fit for tiles. Most of the houses are built in the old way, with the
gable-end towards the street; a few excepted, which were lately built
in the manner now used. A great number of houses were built like those
of New Brunswick, which I have described [70]; the gable-end being
built, towards the street, of bricks, and all the other walls of
planks. The outside of the houses is never covered with lime or mortar,
nor have I seen it practiced in any North-American towns which I have
visited; and the walls do not seem to be damaged by the air. The
gutters on the roofs reach almost to the middle of the street. This
preserves the walls from being damaged by the rain; but is extremely
disagreeable in rainy weather for the people in the streets, there
being hardly any means of avoiding the water from the gutters. The
street-doors are generally in the middle of the houses; and on both
sides are seats, on which, during fair weather, the people spend almost
the whole day, especially on those which are in the shadow of the
houses. In the evening these seats are covered with people of both
sexes; but this is rather troublesome, as those who pass by are obliged
to greet every body, unless they will shock the politeness of the
inhabitants of this town. The streets are broad, and some of them are
paved; in some parts they are lined with trees; the long streets are
almost parallel to the river, and the others intersect them at right
angles. The street which goes between the two churches, is five times
broader than the others, and serves as a market-place. The streets upon
the whole are very dirty, because the people leave their cattle in
them, during the summer nights. There are two market-places in the
town, to which the country people resort twice a week.
The fort lies higher than any other building, on a high steep hill on
the West side of the town. It is a great building of stone, surrounded
with high and thick walls; its situation is very bad, as it can only
serve to keep off plundering parties, without being able to sustain a
siege. There are numerous high hills to the west of the fort, which
command it, and from whence one may see all that is done within it.
There is commonly an officer and a number of soldiers quartered in it.
They say the fort contains a spring of water.
The situation of Albany is very advantageous in regard to trade. The
river Hudson, which flows close by it, is from twelve to twenty feet
deep. There is not yet any quay made for the better lading of the
yachts, because the people feared it would suffer greatly, or be
entirely carried away in spring by the ice, which then comes down the
river; the vessels which are in use here, may come pretty near the
shore in order to be laden, and heavy goods are brought to them upon
canoes tied together. Albany carries on a considerable commerce with
New York, chiefly in furs, boards, wheat, flour, pease, several kinds
of timber, &c. There is not a place in all the British colonies, the
Hudson’s Bay settlements excepted, where such quantities of furs and
skins are bought of the Indians, as at Albany. Most of the merchants in
this town send a clerk or agent to Oswego, an English trading town upon
the lake Ontario, to which the Indians resort with their furs. I intend
to give a more minute account of this place in my Journal for the year
1750. The merchants from Albany spend the whole summer at Oswego, and
trade with many tribes of Indians who come to them with their goods.
Many people have assured me, that the Indians are frequently cheated in
disposing of their goods, especially when they are in liquor, and that
sometimes they do not get one half or even one tenth of the value of
their goods. I have been a witness to several transactions of this
kind. The merchants of Albany glory in these tricks, and are highly
pleased when they have given a poor Indian a greater portion of brandy
than he can bear, and when they can after that get all his goods for
mere trifles. The Indians often find when they are sober again, that
they have been cheated, they grumble somewhat, but are soon satisfied
when they reflect that they have for once drank as much as they are
able, of a liquor which they value beyond any thing else in the whole
world, and they are quite insensible to their loss, if they again get a
draught of this nectar. Besides this trade at Oswego, a number of
Indians come to Albany from several parts, especially from Canada; but
from this latter place, they hardly bring any thing but beaver-skins.
There is a great penalty in Canada for carrying furs to the English,
that trade belonging to the French West India Company; notwithstanding
which the French merchants in Canada carry on a considerable smuggling
trade. They send their furs, by means of the Indians, to their
correspondents at Albany, who purchase it at the price which they have
fixed upon with the French merchants. The Indians take in return
several kinds of cloth, and other goods, which may be got here at a
lower rate than those which are sent to Canada from France.
The greater part of the merchants at Albany have extensive estates in
the country, and a great deal of wood. If their estates have a little
brook, they do not fail to erect a saw-mill upon it for sawing boards
and planks, with which commodity many yachts go during the whole summer
to New York, having scarce any other lading than boards.
Many people at Albany make the wampum of the Indians, which is their
ornament and their money, by grinding some kinds of shells and muscles;
this is a considerable profit to the inhabitants. I shall speak of this
kind of money in the sequel. The extensive trade which the inhabitants
of Albany carry on, and their sparing manner of life, in the Dutch way,
contribute to the considerable wealth which many of them acquire.
The inhabitants of Albany and its environs are almost all Dutchmen.
They speak Dutch, have Dutch preachers, and divine service is performed
in that language: their manners are likewise quite Dutch; their dress
is however like that of the English. It is well known that the first
Europeans who settled in the province of New York were Dutchmen. During
the time that they were the masters of this province, they possessed
themselves of New Sweden [71], of which they were jealous. However the
pleasure of possessing this conquered land and their own, was but of
short duration; for towards the end of 1664, Sir Robert Carre, by order
of King Charles the second, went to New York, then New Amsterdam, and
took it. Soon after Colonel Nichols went to Albany, which then bore the
name of Fort Orange, and upon taking it, named it Albany, from the Duke
of York’s Scotch title. The Dutch inhabitants were allowed either to
continue where they were, and, under the protection of the English, to
enjoy all their former privileges, or to leave the country. The greater
part of them chose to stay, and from them the Dutchmen are descended,
who now live in the province of New York, and who possess the greatest
and best estates in that province.
The avarice and selfishness of the inhabitants of Albany are very well
known throughout all North America, by the English, by the French, and
even by the Dutch, in the lower part of New York province. If a Jew,
who understands the art of getting forward perfectly well, should
settle amongst them, they would not fail to ruin him. For this reason
nobody comes to this place without the most pressing necessity; and
therefore I was asked in several places, what induced me to go to it,
two years one after another. I likewise found that the judgment, which
people formed of them, was not without foundation. For though they
seldom see any strangers, (except those who go from the British
colonies to Canada and back again) and one might therefore expect to
find victuals and accommodation for travellers cheaper than in places,
where travellers always resort to; yet I experienced the contrary. I
was here obliged to pay for every thing twice, thrice, and four times
as dear as in any part of North America which I have passed through. If
I wanted their assistance, I was obliged to pay them very well for it,
and when I wanted to purchase any thing, or to be helped in some case
or other, I could presently see what kind of blood ran in their veins;
for they either fixed exorbitant prices for their services, or were
very backward to assist me. Such was this people in general. However,
there were some amongst them who equalled any in North America, or any
where else, in politeness, equity, goodness, and readiness to serve and
to oblige; but their number fell far short of that of the former. If I
may be allowed to declare my conjectures, the origin of the inhabitants
of Albany and its neighbourhood seems to me to be as follows. Whilst
the Dutch possessed this country, and intended to people it, the
government took up a pack of vagabonds, of which they intended to clear
the country, and sent them along with a number of other settlers to
this province. The vagabonds were sent far from the other colonists,
upon the borders towards the Indians and other enemies, and a few
honest families were persuaded to go with them, in order to keep them
in bounds. I cannot any other way account for the difference between
the inhabitants of Albany, and the other descendants of so respectable
a nation as the Dutch, who are settled in the lower part of New York
province. The latter are civil, obliging, just in the prices, and
sincere; and though they are not ceremonious, yet they are well meaning
and honest, and their promises are to be relied on.
The behaviour of the inhabitants of Albany, during the war between
England and France, which was ended with the peace of Aix la Chapelle,
has, among several other causes, contributed to make them the object of
hatred in all the British colonies, but more especially in New England.
For at the beginning of that war, when the Indians of both parties had
received orders to commence hostilities, the French engaged theirs to
attack the inhabitants of New England; which they faithfully executed,
killing every body they met with, and carrying off whatever they found.
During this time the people of Albany remained neutral, and carried on
a great trade with the very Indians who murdered the inhabitants of New
England. The plate, such as silver spoons, bowls, cups, &c. of which
the Indians robbed the houses in New England, was carried to Albany,
for sale. The people of that town bought up these silver vessels,
though the names of the owners were graved on many of them, and
encouraged the Indians to get more of them, promising to pay them well,
and whatever they would demand. This was afterwards interpreted by the
inhabitants of New England, as if the Albanians encouraged the Indians
to kill more of the people, who were in a manner their brothers, and
who were subjects of the same crown. Upon the first news of this
behaviour, which the Indians themselves spread in New England, the
inhabitants of the latter province were greatly incensed, and
threatened, that the first step they would take in another war, would
be to burn Albany, and the adjacent parts. In the present war it will
sufficiently appear how backward the other British provinces in America
are in assisting Albany, and the neighbouring places, in case of an
attack from the French or Indians [72]. The hatred which the English
bear against the people, at Albany, is very great, but that of the
Albanians against the English is carried to a ten times higher degree.
This hatred has subsisted ever since the time when the English
conquered this country, and is not yet extinguished, though they could
never have got such advantages under the Dutch government, as they have
obtained under that of the English. For in a manner, their privileges
are greater than those of Englishmen.
The inhabitants of Albany are much more sparing than the English. The
meat which is served up is often insufficient to satisfy the stomach,
and the bowl does not circulate so freely as amongst the English. The
women are perfectly well acquainted with œconomy; they rise early, go
to sleep very late, and are almost over nice and cleanly, in regard to
the floor, which is frequently scoured several times in the week. The
servants in the town are chiefly negroes. Some of the inhabitants wear
their own hair, but it is very short, without a bag or queue, which are
looked upon as the characteristics of Frenchmen; and as I wore my hair
in a bag the first day I came here from Canada, I was surrounded with
children, who called me Frenchman, and some of the boldest offered to
pull at my French dress.
Their meat, and manner of dressing it, is very different from that of
the English. Their breakfast is tea, commonly without milk. About
thirty or forty years ago, tea was unknown to them, and they
breakfasted either upon bread and butter, or bread and milk. They never
put sugar into the cup, but take a small bit of it into their mouths
whilst they drink. Along with the tea they eat bread and butter, with
slices of hung beef. Coffee is not usual here; they breakfast generally
about seven. Their dinner is butter-milk, and bread, to which they
sometimes add sugar, then it is a delicious dish for them; or fresh
milk and bread; or boiled or roasted flesh. They sometimes make use of
butter-milk instead of fresh milk, to boil a thin kind of porridge
with, which tastes very sour, but not disagreeable in hot weather. To
each dinner they have a great sallad, prepared with abundance of
vinegar, and very little or no oil. They frequently eat butter-milk,
bread, and sallad, one mouthful after another. Their supper is
generally bread and butter, and milk and bread. They sometimes eat
cheese at breakfast, and at dinner; it is not in slices, but scraped or
rasped, so as to resemble coarse flour, which they pretend adds to the
good taste of cheese. They commonly drink very small beer, or pure
water.
The governor of New York often confers at Albany, with the Indians of
the Five Nations, or the Iroquese, (Mohawks, Senekas, Cayugaws,
Onondagoes, and Onidoes) especially when they intend either to make war
upon, or to continue a war against the French. Sometimes their
deliberations likewise turn upon their conversion to the christian
religion, and it appears by the answer of one of the Indian chiefs, or
Sachems, to governor Hunter, at a conference in this town, that the
English do not pay so much attention to a work of so much consequence,
as the French do, and that they do not send such able men to instruct
the Indians, as they ought to do [73]. For after governor Hunter had
presented these Indians, by order of Queen Anne, with many clothes, and
other presents, of which they were fond, he intended to convince them
still more of her Majesty’s good-will, and care for them, by adding,
that their good mother, the Queen, had not only generously provided
them with fine clothes for their bodies, but likewise intended to adorn
their souls, by the preaching of the gospel; and that to this purpose
some ministers should be sent to them, to instruct them. The governor
had scarce ended, when one of the oldest Sachems got up, and answered,
that in the name of all the Indians, he thanked their gracious good
queen and mother for the fine clothes she had sent them; but that in
regard to the ministers, they had already had some among them, (whom he
likewise named) who instead of preaching the holy gospel to them, had
taught them to drink to excess, to cheat, and to quarrel among
themselves. He then entreated the governor to take from them these
preachers, and a number of Europeans who resided amongst them; for
before they were come among them, the Indians had been an honest,
sober, and innocent people, but most of them became rogues now. That
they had formerly had the fear of God, but that they hardly believed
his existence at present. That if he (the governor) would do them any
favour, he should send two or three blacksmiths amongst them, to teach
them to forge iron, in which they were unexperienced. The governor
could not forbear laughing at this extraordinary speech. I think the
words of St. Paul not wholly unapplicable on this occasion: For the
name of God is blasphemed amongst the Gentiles, through you [74].
June the 21st. About five o’clock in the afternoon we left Albany, and
proceeded towards Canada. We had two men with us, who were to accompany
us to the first French place, which is Fort St. Frederick, or, as the
English call it, Crown Point. For this service each of them was to
receive five pounds of New York currency, besides which I was to
provide them with victuals. This is the common price here, and he that
does not choose to conform to it, is obliged to travel alone. We were
forced to take up with a canoe [75], as we could get neither battoes,
nor boats of bark; and as there was a good road along the west side of
the river Hudson, we left the men to row forwards, in the canoe, and we
went along it on the shore, that we might be better able to examine it,
and its curiosities, with greater accuracy. It is very incommodious to
row in these canoes; for one stands at each end and pushes the boat
forwards. They commonly keep close to the shore, that they may be able
to reach the ground easily. Thus the rowers are forced to stand
upright, whilst they row in a canoe. We kept along the shore all the
evening, towards the river, it consisted of great hills, and next to
the water grew the trees, which I have above mentioned [76], and which
likewise are to be met with on the shores of the isle, in the river,
situate below Albany. The easterly shore of the river is uncultivated,
woody, and hilly; but the western is flat, cultivated, and chiefly
turned into corn-fields, which had no drains, though they wanted them
in some places. It appeared very plainly here, that the river had
formerly been broader. For there is a sloping bank on the corn-fields,
at about thirty yards distance from the river, with which it always
runs parallel. From this it sufficiently appears, that the rising
ground formerly was the shore of the river, and the corn-fields its
bed. As a further proof, it may be added, that the same shells which
abound on the present shore of the river, and are not applied to any
use by the inhabitants, ly plentifully scattered on these fields. I
cannot say whether this change was occasioned by the diminishing of the
water in the river, or by its washing some earth down the river, and
carrying it to its sides, or by the river’s cutting deeper in on the
sides.
All the grounds were ploughed very even, as is usual in the Swedish
province of Upland. Some were sown with yellow, and others with white
Wheat. Now and then we saw great fields of flax, which was now
beginning to flower. In some parts it grows very well, and in others it
was but indifferent. The excessive drought which had continued
throughout this spring, had parched all the grass and plants on hills
and high grounds, leaving no other green, plant than the common Mullein
(Verbascum Thapsus Linn.) which I saw in several places, on the driest
and highest hills, growing in spite of the parching heat of the sun,
and though the pastures and meadows were excessively poor, and afforded
scarce any food at all, yet the cattle never touched the Mullein. Now
and then I found fields with pease, but the Charlock, (Sinapis arvensis
Linn.) kept them quite under. The soil in most of these fields is a
fine mould, which goes pretty deep.
The wild vines cover all the hills along the rivers, on which no other
plants grow, and on those which are covered with trees, they climb to
the tops of them, and wholly cover them, making them bend down with
their weight. They had already large grapes; we saw them abundant all
this day, and during all the time that we kept to the river Hudson, on
the hills, along the shores, and on some little islands in the river.
The white-backed Maize-thieves appeared now and then, flying amongst
the bushes: their note is fine, and they are not so large as the black
maize-thieves, (Oriolus Phœniceus). We saw them near New York, for the
first time.
We found a Water-beech tree (Platanus occidentalis) cut down near the
road, measuring about five feet in diameter.
This day, and for some days afterwards, we met with islands in the
river. The larger ones were cultivated, and turned into corn-fields and
meadows.
We walked about five English miles along the river to-day, and found
the ground, during that time, very uniform, and consisting of pure
earth. I did not meet with a single stone on the fields. The Red Maple,
the Water-beech, the Water-asp, the wild Prune-tree, the Sumach, the
Elm, the wild Vines, and some species of Willows, were the trees which
we met with on the rising shores of the river, where some Asparagus
(Asparagus officinalis) grew wild.
We passed the night about six miles from Albany, in a countryman’s
cottage. On the west side of the river we saw several houses, one after
another, inhabited by the descendants of the first Dutch settlers, who
lived by cultivating their grounds. About half an English mile beyond
our lodgings, was the place where the tide stops in the river Hudson,
there being only small and shallow streams above it. At that place they
catch a good many sorts of fish in the river.
The barns were generally built in the Dutch way, as I have before
described them [77]; for in the middle was the threshing-floor, above
it a place for the hay and straw, and on each side stables for horses,
cows, and other animals. The barn itself was very large. Sometimes the
buildings in the court-yard consist only of a room, and a garret above
it, together with a barn upon the above plan.
June the 22d. This morning I followed one of our guides to the
water-fall near Cohoes, in the river Mohawk, before it falls into the
river Hudson. This fall is about three English miles from the place
where I passed the night. The country till the fall is a plain, and
only hilly about the fall itself. The wood is cleared in most places,
and the ground cultivated, and interspersed with farm-houses.
The Cohoes Fall is one of the greatest in North America. It is in the
river Mohawk, before it unites with the river Hudson. Above and below
the fall, the sides and the bottom of the river consist of hard rock.
The river is three hundred yards broad here. At the fall there is a
rock crossways in the river, running every where equally high, and
crossing in a strait line with the side which forms the fall. It
represents, as it were, a wall towards the lower side, which is not
quite perpendicular, wanting about four yards. The height of this wall,
over which the water rolls, appeared to me about twenty or twenty-four
yards. I had marked this height in my pocket-book; and afterwards found
it agreed pretty well with the account which that ingenious engineer,
Mr. Lewis Evans, communicated to me at Philadelphia. He said, that he
had geometrically measured the breadth and height of the fall, and
found it nine hundred English feet broad, and seventy-five feet high.
The representation of this fall, which is here joined, has been made by
Mr. Evans. There was very little water in the river at present, and it
only ran over the fall in a few places. In such places where the water
had rolled down before, it had cut deep holes below into the rock,
sometimes to the depth of two or three fathoms. The bed of the river,
below the fall, was of rock, and quite dry, there being only a channel
in the middle fourteen feet broad, and a fathom or somewhat more deep,
through which the water passed which came over the fall. We saw a
number of holes in the rock, below the fall, which bore a perfect
resemblance to those in Sweden which we call Giants Pots, or Mountain
Kettles. They differed in size; there being large deep ones, and small
shallow ones. We had clear uninterrupted sun-shine, not a cloud above
the horizon, and no wind at all. However, close to this fall, where the
water was in such a small quantity, there was a continual drizzling
rain, occasioned by the vapours which rose from the water during its
fall, and were carried about by the wind. Therefore, in coming within a
musket-shot of the fall, against the wind, our cloaths were wetted at
once, as from a rain. The whirlpools, which were in the water below the
fall, contained several kinds of fish; and they were caught by some
people, who amused themselves with angling. The rocks hereabouts
consist of the same black stone which forms the hills about Albany.
When exposed to the air, it is apt to shiver into horizontal flakes, as
slate does.
At noon we continued our journey to Canada in the canoe, which was
pretty long, and made out of a white pine. Somewhat beyond the farm
where we lay at night, the river became so shallow that the men could
reach the ground every where with their oars; it being in some parts
not above two feet, and sometimes but one foot deep. The shore and bed
of the river consisted of sand and pebbles. The river was very rapid,
and against us; so that our rowers found it hard work to get forward
against the stream. The hills along the shore consisted merely of soil;
and were very high and steep in some parts. The breadth of the river
was generally near two musket-shot.
Sturgeons abound in the river Hudson. We saw them for several days
together leap high up into the air, especially in the evening; our
guides, and the people who lived hereabouts, asserted that they never
see any sturgeons in winter time, because these fish go into the sea
late in autumn, but come up again in spring and stay in the river all
the summer. They are said to prefer the shallowest places in the river,
which agreed pretty well with our observations; for we never saw them
leap out of the water but in shallows. Their food is said to be several
kinds of confervæ, which grow in plenty in some places at the bottom of
the river; for these weeds are found in their bellies when they are
opened. The Dutch who are settled here, and the Indians, fish for
sturgeons, and every night of our voyage upon this river, we observed
several boats with people who struck them with harpoons. The torches
which they employed were made of that kind of pine, which they call the
black pine here. The nights were exceedingly dark, though they were now
shortest, and though we were in a country so much to the South of
Sweden. The shores of the river lay covered with dead sturgeons, which
had been wounded with the harpoon, but escaped, and died afterwards;
they occasioned an insupportable stench during the excessive heat of
the weather.
As we went further up the river we saw an Indian woman and her boy
sitting in a boat of bark, and an Indian wading through the river, with
a great cap of bark on his head. Near them was an island on which there
were a number of Indians at present, on account of the sturgeon
fishery. We went to their huts to try if we could get one of them to
accompany us to Fort St. Frederic. On our arrival we found that all the
men were gone into the woods a hunting this morning, and we were forced
to engage their boys to go and look for them. They demanded bread for
payment, and we gave them twenty little round loaves; for as they found
that it was of great importance to us to speak with the Indians, they
raised difficulties, and would not go till we gave them what they
wanted. The island belonged to the Dutch, who had turned it into
corn-fields. But at present they had leased it to the Indians, who
planted their maize and several kinds of melons on it. They built their
huts or wigwams on this island, on a very simple plan. Four posts were
put into the ground perpendicularly, over which they had placed poles,
and made a roof of bark upon them. They had either no walls at all, or
they consisted of branches with leaves, which were fixed to the poles.
Their beds consisted of deer-skins which were spread on the ground.
Their utensils were a couple of small kettles, and two ladles, and a
bucket or two of bark, made so close as to keep water. The sturgeons
were cut into long slices, and hung up in the sunshine to dry, and to
be ready against winter. The Indian women were sitting at their work on
the hill, upon deer-skins. They never make use of chairs, but sit on
the ground: however, they do not sit cross-legged, as the Turks do, but
between their feet, which, though they be turned backwards, are not
crossed, but bent outwards. The women wear no head-dress, and have
black hair. They have a short blue petticoat, which reaches to their
knees, and the brim of which is bordered with red or other ribbands.
They wear their shifts over their petticoats. They have large
ear-rings: and their hair is tied behind, and wrapped in ribbands.
Their Wampum, or Pearls, and their money, which is made of shells, are
tied round the neck, and hang down on the breast. This is their whole
dress. They were now making several kinds of work of skins, to which
they sowed the quills of the American Porcupines, having dyed them
black or red, or left them in their original colour.
Towards evening, we went from hence to a farm close to the river, where
we found only one man, looking after the maize and the fields; the
inhabitants being not yet returned since the end of the war.
The little brooks here contain Crawfish, which are exactly the same
with ours [78], with this difference only, that they are somewhat less;
however, the Dutch inhabitants will not eat them.
June the 23d. We waited a good while for the Indians, who had promised
to come home, in order to shew us the way to Fort St. Ann, and to
assist us in making a boat of bark, to continue our voyage. About eight
o’clock three of the men arrived. Their hair was black, and cut short;
they wore rough pieces of woollen cloth, of a bright green colour, on
their shoulders, a shirt which covers their thighs, and pieces of
cloth, or skins, which they wrap round the legs and part of the thighs.
They had neither hats, caps, nor breeches. Two of them had painted the
upper part of their foreheads, and their cheeks, with vermilion. Round
their neck was a ribband, from which hung a bag down to the breast,
containing their knives. They promised to accompany us for thirty
shillings; but soon after changed their minds, and went with an
Englishman, who gave them more. Thus we were obliged to make this
journey quite alone. The Indians, however, were honest enough to return
us fifteen shillings, which we had paid them before-hand.
Our last night’s lodging was about ten English miles from Albany.
During the last war, which was just now ended, the inhabitants had all
retreated from thence to Albany, because the French Indians had taken
or killed all the people they met with, set the houses on fire, and cut
down the trees. Therefore, when the inhabitants returned, they found no
houses, and were forced to ly under a few boards which were huddled
together.
The river was almost a musket-shot broad, and the ground on both sides
cultivated. The hills near the river were steep, and the earth of a
pale colour.
The American Elder (Sambucus occidentalis [79]) grows in incredible
quantities along those hills, which appear quite white, from the
abundance of flowers on the Elder.
All this day along, we had one current after another, full of stones,
which were great obstacles to our getting forward. The water in the
river was very clear, and generally shallow, being only from two to
four feet deep, running very violently against us in most places. The
shore was covered with pebbles, and a grey sand. The hills consisted of
earth, were high, and stood perpendicular towards the river, which was
near two musket-shot broad. Sometimes the land was cultivated, and
sometimes it was covered with woods.
The hills near the river abound with red and white clover. We found
both these kinds plentiful in the woods. It is therefore difficult to
determine whether they were brought over by the Europeans, as some
people think; or whether they were originally in America, which the
Indians deny.
We found Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) growing plentifully in a sandy
soil. In gardens it was one of the worst weeds.
We found people returning every where to their habitations, which they
had been forced to leave during the war.
The farms were commonly built close to the river, on the hills. Each
house has a little kitchen-garden, and a still lesser orchard. Some
farms, however, had large gardens. The kitchen-gardens afford several
kinds of gourds, water-melons, and kidney-beans. The orchards are full
of apple-trees. This year the trees had few or no apples, on account of
the frosty nights which had happened in May, and the drought which had
continued throughout this summer.
The houses hereabouts are generally built of beams of wood, and of
unburnt bricks dried by the sun and the air. The beams are first
erected, and upon them a gable with two walls, and the spars. The wall
on the gable is made of boards. The roof is covered with shingles of
fir. They make the walls of unburnt bricks, between the beams, to keep
the rooms warmer; and that they might not easily be destroyed by rain
and air, they are covered with boards on the outside. The cellar is
below the house.
The farms are either built close to the river-side, or on the high
grounds; and around them are large fields with maize.
We saw great numbers of Musk-Rats (Castor Zibethicus Linn.) on the
shores of the river, where they had many holes, some on a level with
the surface of the water. These holes were large enough to admit a
kitten. Before and in the entrance to the holes, lay a quantity of
empty shells, the animals of which had been eaten by the Musk-Rats
[80]. They are caught in traps placed along the water-side, and baited
with some maize or apples.
The Sassafras-trees abound here, but never grow to any considerable
height.
Chestnut-trees appear now and then.
The Cockspur Hawthorn (Cratægus Crus Galli Linn.) grows in the poorest
soil, and has very long spines; which shews, that it may be very
advantageously planted in hedges, especially in a poor soil.
This night we lodged with a farmer, who had returned to his farm after
the war was over. All his buildings, except the great barn, were burnt.
June the 24th. The farm where we passed the night was the last in the
province of New York, towards Canada, which had been left standing, and
which was now inhabited. Further on, we met still with inhabitants: but
they had no houses, and lived in huts of boards; the houses being burnt
during the war.
As we continued our journey, we observed the country on both sides of
the river to be generally flat, but sometimes hilly; and large trails
of it are covered with woods of fir-trees. Now and then we found some
parts turned into corn-fields and meadows; however, the greater part
was covered with woods. Ever since we left Albany, almost half-way to
Saratoga, the river runs very rapid; and it cost us a deal of pains to
get upwards. But afterwards it becomes very deep, for the space of
several miles; and the water moves very slowly. The shores are very
steep, though they are not very high. The river is two musket-shot
broad. In the afternoon it changed its direction; for hitherto its
direction was from North to South, but now it came from N. N. E. to S.
S. W. and sometimes from N. E. to S. W.
Anthills are very scarce in America; and I do not remember seeing a
single one before I came to the Cohoes Fall. We observed a few in the
woods to-day. The Ants were the same with our common red ones (Formica
rufa Linn.) The Ant-hills consist chiefly of the slate-like mouldered
stone which abounds here, there being nothing else for them.
Chestnut-trees grew scattered in the woods. We were told, that
Mulberry-trees (Morus rubra Linn.) likewise grow wild here, but rather
scarce; and this is the most northerly place where they grow in
America; at least, they have not been observed further to the north. We
met with wild parsneps every day; but commonly in such places where the
land was or had been cultivated. Hemp grows spontaneously, and in great
abundance, near old plantations.
The woods abound with Woodlice, which were extremely troublesome to us.
The Thuya occidentalis Linn. appeared along the shores of the river. I
had not seen it there before.
The trees which grow along the shores, and on the adjacent hills,
within our sight to-day, are elms, birches, white firs, alders,
dog-trees, lime-trees, red willows, and chestnut-trees. The American
Elder, (Sambucus Canadensis Linn.) and the wild vines, only appear in
places where the ground has been somewhat cultivated, as if they were
desirous of being the companions of men. The lime-trees and white
walnut-trees are the most numerous. The horn-beams, with inflated
cones, (Carpinus Ostrya Linn.) appeared now and then; but the
water-beech and water-poplar never came within sight any more.
We frequently saw ground-squirrels and black squirrels in the woods.
At a little distance from Saratoga, we met two Indians in their boats
of bark, which could scarce contain more than one person.
Near Saratoga the river becomes shallow and rapid again. The ground is
here turned into corn-fields and meadows, but on account of the war, it
was not made use of.
Saratoga has been a fort built of wood by the English, to stop the
attacks of the French Indians upon the English inhabitants in these
parts, and to serve as a rampart to Albany. It is situated on a hill,
on the east-side of the river Hudson, and is built of thick posts
driven in to the ground, close to each other, in the manner of
palisades, forming a square, the length of whose sides was within the
reach of a musket-shot. At each corner are the houses of the officers,
and within the palisades are the barracks, all of timber. This fort has
been kept in order and was garrisoned till the last war, when the
English themselves in 1747 set fire to it, not being able to defend
themselves in it against the attacks of the French and their Indians;
for as soon as a party of them went out of the fort, some of these
enemies lay concealed, and either took them all prisoners, or shot
them.
I shall only mention one, out of many artful tricks which were played
here, and which both the English and French who were present here at
that time, told me repeatedly. A party of French, with their Indians,
concealed themselves one night in a thicket near the fort. In the
morning some of their Indians, as they had previously resolved, went to
have a nearer view of the fort. The English fired upon them, as soon as
they saw them at a distance; the Indians pretended to be wounded, fell
down, got up again, ran a little way, and dropped again. Above half the
garrison rushed out to take them prisoners; but as soon as they were
come up with them, the French and the remaining Indians came out of the
bushes, betwixt the fortress and the English, surrounded them, and took
them prisoners. Those who remained in the fort had hardly time to shut
the gates, nor could they fire upon the enemy, because they equally
exposed their countrymen to danger, and they were vexed to see their
enemies take and carry them off in their fight and under their cannon.
Such French artifices as these made the English weary of their
ill-planned fort. We saw some of the palisades still in the ground.
There was an island in the river, near Saratoga, much better situated
for a fortification. The country is flat on both sides of the river
near Saratoga, and its soil good. The wood round about was generally
cut down. The shores of the river are high, steep, and consist of
earth. We saw some hills in the north, beyond the distant forests. The
inhabitants are Dutch, and bear an inveterate hatred to all Englishmen.
We lay over night in a little hut of boards erected by the people who
were come to live here.
June the 25th. Several saw-mills were built here before the war, which
were very profitable to the inhabitants, on account of the abundance of
wood which grows here.
The boards were easily brought to Albany, and from thence to New York,
in rafts every spring with the high water; but all the mills were burnt
at present.
This morning we proceeded up the river, but after we had advanced about
an English mile, we fell in with a water-fall, which cost us a deal of
pains before we could get our canoe over it. The water was very deep
just below the fall, owing to its hollowing the rock out by the fall.
In every place where we met with rocks in the river, we found the water
very deep, from two to four fathoms and upwards; because by finding a
resistance it had worked a deeper channel into the ground. Above the
fall, the river is very deep again, the water glides along silently,
and increases suddenly near the shores. On both sides till you come to
Fort Nicholson, the shore is covered with tall trees. After rowing
several miles, we passed another water-fall, which is longer and more
dangerous than the preceding one.
Giants-pots [81], which I have described in the memoirs of the Royal
Swedish Academy of Sciences, are abundant near the fall of the rock
which extends across the river. The rock was almost dry at present, the
river containing very little water at this season of the year. Some of
the giants-pots were round, but in general they were oblong. At the
bottom of most of them lay either stones or grit, in abundance. Some
were fifteen inches in diameter, but some were less. Their depth was
likewise different, and some that I observed were above two foot deep.
It is plain that they owed their origin to the whirling of the water
round a pebble, which by that means was put in motion, together with
the sand.
We intended to have gone quite up to Fort Nicholson in the canoe, which
would have been a great convenience to us; but we found it impossible
to get over the upper fall, the canoe being heavy, and scarce any water
in the river, except in one place where it flowed over the rock, and
where it was impossible to get up, on account of the steepness, and the
violence of the fall. We were accordingly obliged to leave our canoe
here, and to carry our baggage through unfrequented woods to Fort Anne,
on the river Woodcreek which is a space from forty-three to fifty
English miles, during which we were quite spent, through the excess of
heat. Sometimes we had no other way of crossing deep rivers, than by
cutting down tall trees, which stood on their banks, and throwing them
across the water. All the land we passed over this afternoon was almost
level, without hills and stones, and entirely covered with a tall and
thick forest, in which we continually met with trees which were fallen
down, because no one made the least use of the woods. We passed the
next night in the midst of the forest, plagued with muskitoes, gnats,
and wood-lice, and in fear of all kinds of snakes,
June the 26th. Early this morning we continued our journey through the
wood, along the river Hudson. There was an old path leading to Fort
Nicholson, but it was so overgrown with grass, that we discovered it
with great difficulty. In some places we found plenty of raspberries,
some of which were already ripe.
Fort Nicholson is the place on the eastern shore of the river Hudson,
where a wooden fortification formerly stood. We arrived here some time
before noon, and rested a while. Colonel Lydius resided here till the
beginning of the last war, chiefly with a view of carrying on a greater
trade with the French Indians; but during the war, they burnt his
house, and took his son prisoner. The fort was situated on a plain, but
at present the place is all overgrown with a thicket. It was built in
the year 1709, during the war which Queen Anne carried on against the
French, and it was named after the brave English general Nicholson. It
was not so much a fort, as a magazine to Fort Anne. In the year 1711,
when the English naval attempt upon Canada miscarried, the English
themselves set fire to this place. The soil hereabouts seems to be
pretty fertile. The river Hudson passed close by here.
Some time in the afternoon, we continued our journey. We had hitherto
followed the eastern shore of the river Hudson, and gone almost due
North; but now we left it, and went E. N. E. or N. E. across the woods,
in order to come to the upper end of the river Woodcreek, which flows
to Fort St. Frederic, where we might go in a boat from the former
place. The ground we passed over this afternoon was generally flat, and
somewhat low. Now and then we met with rivulets, which were generally
dried up during this season. Sometimes we saw a little hill, but
neither mountains nor stones, and the country was every where covered
with tall and thick forests. The trees stood close, and afforded a fine
shade; but the pleasure which we enjoyed from it was lessened by the
incredible quantity of gnats which fill the woods. We found several
plants here, but they were far from each other, (as in our woods where
the cattle have destroyed them,) though no cattle ever came here. The
ground was every where thick covered with leaves of the last autumn. In
some places we found the ground over-grown with great quantities of
moss. The soil was generally very good, consisting of a deep mould, in
which the plants thrive very well. Therefore it seems that it would
answer very well if it were cultivated: however, flowing waters were
very scarce hereabouts; and if the woods were cleared, how great would
be the effects of the parching heat of the sun, which might then act
with its full force!
We lodged this night near a brook, in order to be sufficiently supplied
with water, which was not every where at hand during this season. The
muskitoes, punchins or gnats, and the woodlice, were very troublesome.
Our fear of snakes, and of the Indians rendered this night’s rest very
precarious and unsecure.
Punchins, as the Dutch call them, are the little gnats (Culex pulicaris
Linn.) which abound here. They are very minute, and their wings grey,
with black spots. They are ten times worse than the larger ones, (Culex
pipiens Linn.) or muskitoes; for their size renders them next to
imperceptible; they are every where careless of their lives, suck their
fill of blood, and cause a burning pain.
We heard several great trees fall of themselves in the night, though it
was so calm, that not a leaf stirred. They made a dreadful cracking.
June the 27th. We continued our journey in the morning. We found the
country like that which we passed over yesterday, except meeting with a
few hills. Early this morning we plainly heard a fall in the river
Hudson.
In every part of the forest we found trees thrown down either by
storms, or age; but none were cut down, there being no inhabitants; and
though the wood is very fine, yet nobody makes use of it. We found it
very difficult to get over such trees, because they had stopped up
almost all the passages, and close to them was the chief residence of
rattle-snakes, during the intenseness of the heat.
About two o’clock this afternoon we arrived at Fort Anne. It lies upon
the river Woodcreek, which is here at its origin no bigger than a
little brook. We stayed here all this day, and next, in order to make a
new boat of bark, because there was no possibility to go down the river
to Fort St. Frederic, without it. We arrived in time, for one of our
guides fell ill this morning, and could not have gone any further with
his burthen. If he had been worse, we should have been obliged to stop
on his account, which would have put us under great difficulties, as
our provisions would soon have been exhausted, and from the desart
place where we were, we could not have arrived at any inhabited place
in less than three or four days. Happily we reached the wish’d-for
place, and the sick man had time to rest and recover.
About Fort Anne we found a number of mice, of the common kind. They
were probably the offspring of those which were brought to the fort in
the soldier’s provisions, at the time when it was kept in a state of
defence.
We met with some apple and plumb-trees, which were certainly planted
when the fort was in a good condition,
June the 28th. The American Elm, (Ulmus Americana Linn.) grows in
abundance, in the forests hereabouts. There are two kinds of it. One
was called the White Elm, on account of the inside of the tree being
white. It was more plentiful than the other species, which was called
the Red Elm, because the colour of the wood was reddish. Of the bark of
the former the boats made use of here are commonly made, it being
tougher than the bark of any other tree. With the bark of hiccory,
which is employed as bast, they sow the elm-bark together, and with the
bark of the red elm they join the ends of the boat so close as to keep
the water out. They beat the bark between two stones; or for want of
them, between two pieces of wood.
The making of the boat took up half yesterday, and all this day. To
make such a boat, they pick out a thick tall elm, with a smooth bark,
and with as few branches as possible. This tree is cut down, and great
care is taken to prevent the bark from being hurt by falling against
other trees, or against the ground. With this view some people do not
fell the trees, but climb to the top of them, split the bark, and strip
it off, which was the method our carpenter took. The bark is split on
one side, in a strait line along the tree, as long as the boat is
intended to be; at the same time, the bark is carefully cut from the
stem a little way on both sides of the slit, that it may more easily
separate; the bark is then peeled off very carefully, and particular
care is taken not to make any holes into it; this is easy when the sap
is in the trees, and at other seasons the tree is heated by the fire,
for that purpose. The bark thus stript off is spread on the ground, in
a smooth place, turning the inside downwards, and the rough outside
upwards, and to stretch it better, some logs of wood or stones are
carefully put on it, which press it down. Then the sides of the bark
are gently bent upwards, in order to form the sides of the boat; some
sticks are then fixed into the ground, at the distance of three or four
feet from each other, in the curve line, in which the sides of the boat
are intended to be, supporting the bark intended for the sides; the
sides of the bark are then bent in the form which the boat is to have,
and according to that the sticks are either put nearer or further off.
The ribs of the boat are made of thick branches of hiccory, they being
tough and pliable. They are cut into several flat pieces, about an inch
thick, and bent into the form which the ribs require, according to
their places in the broader or narrower part of the boat. Being thus
bent, they are put across the boat, upon the back, or its bottom,
pretty close, about a span, or ten inches from each other. The upper
edge on each side of the boat is made of two thin poles, of the length
of the boat, which are put close together, on the side of the boat,
being flat, where they are to be joined. The edge of the bark is put
between these two poles, and sewed up with threads of bast, of the
mouse-wood, or other tough bark, or with roots. But before it is thus
sewed up, the ends of the ribs are likewise put between the two poles
on each side, taking care to keep them at some distance from each
other. After that is done, the poles are sewed together, and being bent
properly, both their ends join at each end of the boat, where they are
tied together with ropes. To prevent the widening of the boat at the
top, three or four transverse bands are put across it, from one edge to
the other, at the distance of thirty or forty inches from each other.
These bands are commonly made of hiccory, on account of its toughness
and flexibility, and have a good length. Their extremities are put
through the bark on both sides, just below the poles, which make the
edges; they are bent up above those poles, and twisted round the middle
part of the bands, where they are carefully tied by ropes. As the bark
at the two ends of the boat cannot be put so close together as to keep
the water out, the crevices are stopped up with the crushed or pounded
bark of the red elm, which in that state looks like oakum. Some pieces
of bark are put upon the ribs in the boat, without which the foot would
easily pierce the thin and weak bark below, which forms the bottom of
the boat, for the better security of which, some thin boards are
commonly laid at the bottom, which may be trod upon with more safety.
The side of the bark which has been upon the wood, thus becomes the
outside of the boat, because it is smooth and slippy, and cuts the
water with less difficulty than the other. The building of these boats
is not always quick; for sometimes it happens that after peeling the
bark off an elm, and carefully examining it, it is found pierced with
holes and splits, or it is too thin to venture one’s life in. In such a
case another elm must be looked out; and it sometimes happens that
several elms must be stripped of their bark, before one is found fit
for a boat. That which we made was big enough to bear four persons,
with our baggage, which weighed somewhat more than a man.
All possible precautions must be taken in rowing on the rivers and
lakes of these parts with a boat of bark. For as the rivers, and even
the lakes, contain numbers of broken trees, which are commonly hidden
under the water, the boat may easily run against a sharp branch, which
would tear half the boat away, if one rowed on very fast, exposing the
people in it to great danger, where the water is very deep, especially
if such a branch held the boat.
To get into such a dangerous vessel, must be done with great care, and
for the greater safety, without shoes. For with the shoes on, and still
more with a sudden leap into the boat, the heels may easily pierce
through the bottom of the boat, which might sometimes be attended with
very disagreeable circumstances, especially when the boat is so near a
rock, and close to that a sudden depth of water; and such places are
common in the lakes and rivers here.
I never saw the muskitoes (Culex pipiens) more plentiful in any part of
America than they are here. They were so eager for our blood, that we
could not rest all the night, though we had surrounded ourselves with
fire.
Wood-lice (Acarus Americanus Linn.) abound here, and are more plentiful
than on any part of the journey. Scarcely any one of us sat down but a
whole army of them crept upon his clothes. They caused us as much
inconvenience as the gnats, during the last night, and the short time
we stayed here. Their bite is very disagreeable, and they would prove
very dangerous, if any one of them should creep into a man’s ear, from
whence it is difficult to extract them. There are examples of people
whose ears were swelled to the size of the fist, on account of one of
these insects creeping into them, and biting them. More is said about
them in the description which I have given to the Royal Swedish Academy
of Sciences [82].
The Whipperiwill or Whip-poor-Will cried all night on every side. The
Fireflies flew in numbers through the woods at night.
Fort Anne derives its name from Queen Anne; for in her time it served
as a fortification against the French. It lies on the Western side of
the river Woodcreek, which is here as inconsiderable as a brook, of a
fathom’s breadth, and may be waded through in any part, during this
season. The fort is built in the same manner as the forts Saratoga and
Nicholson, that is to say, of palisades, within which the soldiers were
quartered, and at the corners of which were the lodgings of the
officers. The whole consisted of wood, because it was erected only with
a view to resist irregular troops. It is built on a little rising
ground which runs obliquely to the river Woodcreek. The country round
about it is partly flat, partly hilly, and partly marshy, but it
consists merely of earth, and no stones are to be met with, though ever
so carefully sought for. General Nicholson built this fort in the year
1709; but at the conclusion of the war, then carrying on against the
French, it shared the same fate with Saratoga and Fort Nicholson, being
burnt by the English in 1711. This happened with the following
circumstance: In 1711 the English resolved to attack Canada, by land
and by sea, at the same time. A powerful English fleet sailed up the
river St. Lawrence to besiege Quebec, and General Nicholson, who was
the greatest promoter of this expedition, headed a numerous army to
this place by land, to attack Montreal, at the same time from hence;
but a great part of the English fleet was shipwrecked in the river St.
Lawrence, and obliged to return to New England. The news of this
misfortune was immediately communicated to General Nicholson, who was
advised to retreat. Captain Butler who commanded Fort Mohawk, during my
stay in America, told me that he had been at Fort Anne in 1711, and
that General Nicholson was about to leave it, and go down the river
Woodcreek, in boats ready for that purpose, when he received the
accounts of the disaster which befel the fleet. He was so enraged, that
he endeavoured to tear his wig, but it being too strong for him, he
flung it to the ground, and trampled on it, crying out Roguery,
treachery. He then set fire to the fort, and returned. We saw the
remains of the burnt palisades in the ground; and I asked my guides,
Why the English had been at so great an expence in erecting the fort,
and why they afterwards burnt it without any previous consideration?
They replied, that it was done to get money from the government once
more, for the rebuilding of the fort, which money coming into some
people’s hands, they would appropriate a great part of it to
themselves, and erect again a wretched, inconsiderable fort. They
further told me, that some of the richest people in Albany had promoted
their poor relations to the places for supplying the army with bread,
&c. with a view to patch up their broken fortunes; and that they had
acquired such fortunes as rendered them equal to the richest
inhabitants of Albany.
The heat was excessive to-day, especially in the afternoon, when it was
quite calm. We were on the very spot where Fort Anne formerly stood; it
was a little place free from trees, but surrounded with them on every
side, where the sun had full liberty to heat the air. After noon it
grew as warm as in a hot bath [83], and I never felt a greater heat. I
found a difficulty of breathing, and it seemed to me as if my lungs
could not draw in a sufficient quantity of air. I was more eased when I
went down into the vallies, and especially along the Woodcreek. I
tried to fan the air to me with my hat, but it only encreased the
difficulty of breathing, and I received the greatest relief when I went
to the water, and in a shady place frequently sprinkled some water in
the air. My companions were all very much weakened, but they did not
find such difficulty in breathing, as I had done; however towards
evening the air became somewhat cooler.
June the 29th. Having compleated our boat, after a great deal of
trouble, we continued our journey this morning. Our provisions, which
were much diminished, obliged us to make great haste; for by being
obliged to carry every thing on our backs, through the woods to Fort
Anne, we could not take a great quantity of provisions with us, having
several other very necessary things with us; and we did always eat very
heartily. As there was very little water in the river, and several
trees were fallen across it, which frequently stopped the boat, I left
the men in the boat, and went along the shore with Yungstroem. The
ground on both sides of the river was so low, that it must be under
water in spring and autumn. The shores were covered with several sorts
of trees, which stood at moderate distances from each other, and a
great deal of grass grew between them. The trees afforded a fine shade,
very necessary and agreeable in this hot season; but the pleasure it
gave was considerably lessened by the numbers of gnats which we met
with. The soil was extremely rich.
As we came lower down the river, the dykes, which the beavers had made
in it, produced new difficulties. These laborious animals had carried
together all sorts of boughs and branches, and placed them across the
river, putting mud and clay in betwixt them, to stop the water. They
had bit off the ends of the branches as neatly as if they had been
chopped off with a hatchet. The grass about these places was trod down
by them, and in the neighbourhood of the dykes we sometimes met with
paths in the grass, where the beavers probably carried trees along. We
found a row of dykes before us, which stopped us a considerable while,
as we could not get forwards with the boat, till we had cut through
them.
As soon as the river was more open, we got into the boat again, and
continued our journey in it. The breadth of the river, however, did not
exceed eight or nine yards, and frequently it was not above three or
four yards broad, and generally so shallow, that our boat got on with
difficulty. Sometimes it acquired such a sudden depth, that we could
not reach the ground with sticks of seven feet length. The stream was
very rapid in some places, and very slow in others. The shores were low
at first, but afterwards remarkably high and steep, and now and then a
rock projected into the water, which always caused a great depth in
such places. The rocks consisted here of a grey quartz, mixed with a
grey limestone, lying in strata. The water in the river was very clear
and transparent, and we saw several little paths leading to it from the
woods, said to be made by beavers, and other animals, which resorted
here to drink. After going a little more than three English miles, we
came to a place, where a fire was yet burning, and then we little
thought that we had narrowly escaped death last night, as we heard this
evening. Now and then we met with several trees lying across the river,
and some dykes of beavers, which were troublesome to us.
Towards night we met with a French serjeant, and six French soldiers,
who were sent by the commander of Fort St. Frederic, to accompany three
Englishmen to Saratoga, and to defend them in case of necessity,
against six French Indians, who were gone to be revenged on the
English, for killing the brother of one of them in the last war. The
peace was already concluded at that time, but as it had not yet been
proclaimed in Canada, the Indians thought they could take this step;
therefore they silently got away, contrary to the order of the Governor
of Montreal, and went towards the English plantations. We here had
occasion to admire the care of Providence for us, in escaping these
barbarians. We found the grass trod down all day along, but had no
thoughts of danger, as we believed that every thing was quiet and
peaceable. We were afterwards informed, that these Indians had trod the
grass down, and passed the last night in the place where we found the
burning brands in the morning. The usual road which they were to take,
was by Fort Anne, but to shorten their journey they had gone an
unfrequented road. If they had gone on towards Fort Anne, they would
have met us without doubt, and looking upon us all as Englishmen, for
whose blood they were gone out, they could easily have surprised and
shot us all, and by that means have been rid of the trouble of going
any further to satisfy their cruelty. We were greatly struck when the
Frenchmen told us how near death we had been to-day. We passed the
night here, and though the French repeatedly advised and desired me not
to venture any further with my company, but to follow them to the first
English settlement, and then back to Fort St. Frederic, yet I resolved,
with the protection of the Almighty, to continue my journey the next
day.
We saw immense numbers of those wild pigeons flying in the woods, which
sometimes come in incredible flocks to the southern English colonies,
most of the inhabitants not knowing where they come from. They have
their nests in the trees here; and almost all the night make a great
noise and cooing in the trees, where they roost. The Frenchmen shot a
great number of them, and gave us some, in which we found a great
quantity of the seeds of the elm, which evidently demonstrated the care
of Providence in supplying them with food; for in May the seeds of the
red maple, which abounds here, are ripe, and drop from the trees, and
are eaten by the pigeons during that time: afterwards, the seeds of the
elm ripen, which then become their food, till other seeds ripen for
them. Their flesh is the most palatable of any bird’s flesh I ever
tasted.
Almost every night, we heard some trees crack and fall, whilst we lay
here in the wood, though the air was so calm that not a leaf stirred.
The reason of this breaking I am totally unacquainted with. Perhaps the
dew loosens the roots of trees at night; or, perhaps there are too many
branches on one side of the tree. It may be, that the above-mentioned
wild pigeons settle in such quantities on one tree as to weigh it down;
or perhaps the tree begins to bend more and more to one side, from its
center of gravity, making the weight always greater for the roots to
support, till it comes to the point, when it can no longer be kept
upright, which may as well happen in the midst of a calm night as at
any other time. When the wind blows hard, it is reckoned very dangerous
to sleep or walk in the woods, on account of the many trees which fall
in them; and even when it is very calm, there is some danger in passing
under very great and old trees. I was told, in several parts of
America, that the storms or hurricanes sometimes only pass over a small
part of the woods, and tear down the trees in it; and I have had
opportunities of confirming the truth of this observation, by finding
places in the forests, where almost all the trees were thrown down, and
lay all in one direction.
Tea is differently esteemed by different people; and I think we would
be as well, and our purses much better, if we were both without tea and
coffee. However, I must be impartial, and mention in praise of tea,
that if it be useful, it must certainly be so in summer, on such
journeys as mine, through a desart country, where one cannot carry wine
or other liquors, and where the water is generally unfit for use, as
being full of insects. In such cases, it is very relishing when boiled,
and tea is drunk with it; and I cannot sufficiently describe the fine
taste it has in such circumstances. It relieves a weary traveller more
than can be imagined, as I have myself experienced, together with a
great many others who have travelled through the desart forests of
America; on such journeys, tea is found to be almost as necessary as
victuals [84].
June the 30th. This morning we left our boat to the Frenchmen, who made
use of it to carry their provisions; for we could not make any further
use of it, on account, of the number of trees which the French had
thrown across the river during the last war, to prevent the attacks of
the English upon Canada. The Frenchmen gave us leave to make use of one
of their boats, which they had left behind them, about six miles from
the place where we passed the last night. Thus we continued our journey
on foot, along the river; and found the country flat, with some little
vales here and there. It was every where covered with tall trees, of
the deciduous kind; among which the beech, the elm, the American
lime-tree, and the sugar-maple, were the most numerous. The trees stand
at some distance from each other; and the soil in which they grow is
extremely rich.
After we had walked about a Swedish mile, or six English miles, we came
to the place where the six Frenchmen had left their bark boats, of
which we took one, and rowed down the river, which was now between
nineteen and twenty yards broad. The. ground on both sides was very
smooth, and not very high. Sometimes we found a hill consisting of grey
quartz, mixed with small fine grains of grey spar. We likewise observed
black stripes in it; but they were small, that I could not determine
whether they were of glimmer, or of another kind of stone. The hills
were frequently divided into strata, lying one above another, of the
thickness of five inches. The strata went from north to south; and were
not quite horizontal, but dipping to the north. As we went further on,
we saw high and steep hills on the river-side, partly covered with
trees; but in other parts, the banks consist of a swampy turf ground,
which gave way when it was walked upon, and had some similarity to the
sides of our marshes, which my countrymen are now about to drain. In
those parts where the ground was low and flat, we did not see any
stones either on the ground, or on the softer shore; and both sides of
the river when they were not hilly, were covered with tall elms,
American lime-trees, sugar-maples, beeches, hiccory-trees, some
water-beeches, and white walnut-trees.
On our left we saw an old fortification of stones laid above one
another; but nobody could tell me whether the Indians or the Europeans
had built it.
We had rowed very fast all the afternoon, in order to get forward; and
we thought that we were upon the true road, but found ourselves greatly
mistaken: for towards night we observed, that the reeds in the river
bent towards us, which was a mark that the river likewise flowed
towards us; whereas, if we had been on the true river, it should have
gone with us. We likewise observed, from the trees which lay across the
river, that nobody had lately passed that way, though we should have
seen the steps of the Frenchmen in the grass along the shore, when they
brought their boat over these trees. At last, we plainly saw that the
river flowed against us, by several pieces of wood which floated slowly
towards us; and we were convinced, that we had gone twelve English
miles, and upwards, upon a wrong river, which obliged us to return, and
to row till very late at night. We sometimes thought, through fear,
that the Indians, who were gone to murder some English, would
unavoidably meet with us. Though we rowed very fast, yet we were not
able to-day to get half-way back to the place where we first left the
true river.
The most odoriferous effluvia sometimes came from the banks of the
river, towards night, but we could not determine what flowers diffused
them. However, we supposed they chiefly arose from the Asclepias
Syriaca, and the Apocynum androsæmifolium.
The Musk-Rats could likewise be smelled at night. They had many holes
in the shores, even with the surface of the water.
We passed the night in an island, where we could not sleep on account
of the gnats. We did not venture to make a fire, for fear the Indians
should find us out, and kill us. We heard several of their dogs barking
in the woods, at a great distance from us, which added to our
uneasiness.