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Of this book there have been printed 
 for private distribution, two hun- 
 dred and fifty copies on 
 plain paper and twelve 
 copies on Imperial 
 Japan paper 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON 
 
 OF NEW YORK 
 
 MERCHANT 
 
 1781-1851 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON 
 
 OF NEW YORK 
 MERCHANT 
 
 HY 
 
 EMILY JOHNSTON de FOREST 
 
 ^j^^ 
 "^^ 
 
 • SAWNEY LENT THE MaN HIS Mui.I. 
 
 Ano the Mull was lext hy SaiKnei/ 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 PRIVATELY PRINTED 
 
 M C M I X 
 
A.,-'. 
 
 vo/-- 
 
 
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1909 
 BY EMILY JOHNSTON DE FOREST 
 
 (c)<^- 
 
 5. '9^^ 
 
 Oi. A. •,: 4 
 
 <537 
 
 AU3 4 
 
 1909 
 
T () INI Y 
 
 CHILDREN 
 
 AND GRANDCHILDREN 
 
 I LOVINGLY DEDICATE 
 
 THIS BOOK 
 
FOREWORD 
 
 I HAVE sought in the following pages to tell the 
 story of the life of my paternal grandfather, John 
 Johnston, chiefly as it is set forth in his journals 
 and letters. In 1804, at the age of twenty-three, he 
 came from Scotland to New York with a total capital, 
 according to his carefully kept note-book, of $13!^. 89, 
 and by his own energy and industry raised himself to 
 a prominent position in the merchant guild of his 
 adopted city. 
 
 In the references to his Scotch parents I have not 
 sought to trace their origin — a family duty which has 
 been undertaken by my cousin, John Humphreys 
 Johnston. It is enough for all purposes of this sketch 
 to know, as my cousin has told me, that our forebears 
 were of gentle blood and fallen fortunes— a combina- 
 tion only too well known in Galloway, as the result of 
 civil and religious upheaval and spoliation, during the 
 Revolution and Covenanting persecutions. 
 
 [ix] 
 
FOREWORD 
 
 I wish here to record my indebtedness not only to 
 the members of the family of James Boorman Johnston, 
 my father's brother, who have freely allowed me to use 
 the papers in their possession, but alro to the cousins 
 in Galloway, who have granted me the same kind 
 privilege. 
 
 E. J. de F. 
 
 7 Washington Square, 
 June, 1909. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 Foreword 
 
 I Childhood and Scotch Home, 1781-1804 
 II Beginnings in New York, 1804-1809 
 
 III Voyages to India, 1809-1811 . 
 
 IV War with England, 181^-1815 
 V Early Married Days, 1817-1832 
 
 VI Trip to Europe, 1832-1833 . 
 VII Washington Square, 1833-1842 
 VIII Latter Days, 1843-1851 . 
 
 PAGE 
 
 ix 
 
 3 
 
 23 
 
 49 
 
 72 
 
 104 
 
 128 
 
 148 
 
 176 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 John Johnston of New York . . Frontispiece 
 
 From a painting by Rembrandt Peale (1826), owned by 
 his grandson, J. Herbert Johnston. 
 
 The Mull Title Page 
 
 "Presented to Mr. Jn Johnston New York by his friend 
 W?? Johnston Kirkcudbright. 1815." Owned by J. 
 Herbert Johnston. 
 
 FACING 
 PAGE 
 
 Barnboard Mill 4 
 
 From a photograph. 
 
 The Balmaghie Kirkyard 6 
 
 From a photograph. 
 
 William Johnston of Kirkcudbright . . 8 
 
 From a painting in the Kirkcudbright Museum. 
 
 William Johnston's House, Kirkcudbright . 10 
 
 From a photograph. 
 
 Haugh of Urr 1^ 
 
 From a photograph. 
 
 MiLLBANK Cottage 14 
 
 From a photograph. 
 
 John Johnston, Miller of Barnboard, 1837 . 18 
 
 From a painting owned by his granddaughter, Mrs. 
 Joseph Newall, Dalbeattie, Stewartry of Kirkcudbright. 
 
 [xiii] 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 FACING 
 PAGE 
 
 The Tombstone 22 
 
 Marking the resting-place of four generations of Johnstons. 
 
 View of New York from Brooklyn Heights, 
 
 1803 24 
 
 From a contemporary engraving by Samuel Seymour, 
 after a painting by William Birch. 
 
 The Rev. John M. Mason, D.D 36 
 
 From a water-color painting formerly owned by John John- 
 ston. 
 
 Nasserwanjee Monackjee, Sett . ... 60 
 
 From a painting presented to John Johnston during one 
 of his East Indian visits. 
 
 The Shakers' Procession and Dance ... 80 
 
 Reproduced from old engravings. 
 
 The Sea-Fight Between the Chesapeake and 
 
 THE Shannon, during the war of 1812 . . 84 
 
 From a contemporary engraving. 
 
 John Taylor 104 
 
 From a painting owned by his great-grandson, Charles 
 Austin Sherman. 
 
 The Battery in 1830 108 
 
 From a contemporary engraving. 
 
 The Doorway of 16 Greenwich Street . .117 
 
 From a pen-and-ink drawing, after photograph. 
 
 Margaret Taylor Johnston. About 1828. . 122 
 
 From a painting owned by her granddaughter, Mrs. Pierre 
 Mali. 
 
 John Johnston's Four Children .... 124 
 
 From a painting owned by his granddaughter, Mrs. Robert 
 W. de Forest. 
 
 [xiv] 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 FACING 
 PAGE 
 
 HoLYROOD Palace and Arthur's Seat, as 
 
 seen from Regent Terrace 134 
 
 From a photograph. 
 
 City Hotel. One block a])ove Trinity Chiircli . 14() 
 
 From a coiiteniporary engraving. 
 
 "The Row." North Wasliinglon Square . . l.)() 
 
 From a photograj)h. 
 
 "The Long 'Un" 1;>7 
 
 From a pen-and-ink sketch in a, letter, by James Boornian 
 Johnston. 
 
 John Taylor Sherman l.)S 
 
 From a daguerreotype owned l)y his brother, Howard Sher- 
 man, of New Haven, Conn. 
 
 Robert Johnston 100 
 
 From a miniature painted in 1841, owned by Mrs. Robert 
 W. de Forest. 
 
 The New York University. Situated from 
 
 1832 to 1894 on Washington Square . .162 
 
 From a photograph. 
 
 John Bigelow, 1840 IGG 
 
 From a photograph of a painting owmed by his children, 
 
 James Boorman Johnston 168 
 
 From a crayon drawing made by WilHam Morris Hunt in 
 1853, owned by Mrs. James Boorman Johnston. 
 
 The " Olive " Coat 169 
 
 From a pen-and-ink sketch in a letter, by James Boorman 
 Johnston. 
 
 John Johnston 170 
 
 From a photograph of a painting owned by Mrs. James 
 Boorman Johnston. 
 
 [XV] 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 FACING 
 PAGE 
 
 " The Cabins." Hot Springs of Virginia . . 174 
 
 From a photograph. 
 
 Alexander Johnston 184 
 
 From a silhouette made in 1843, owned by Miss Clara 
 Johnston, Dalbeattie. 
 
 The Explosion in Broad Street, 1845 . . . 188 
 
 From one of the " fire prints " of the time. 
 
 John, James and Margaret, 1849 . . . .190 
 
 From a daguerreotype owned by J. Herbert Johnston. 
 
 " Maggie and her Friends," 1847 . . , . 192 
 
 From a daguerreotype owned by Mj s Robert W. de Forest. 
 
 Mrs. John Johnston, 1864 194 
 
 From a photograph. 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON 
 
 OF NEW YORK 
 
 MERCHANT 
 
 1781-1851 
 
CHAPTER I 
 CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 1781-1804 
 
 TO tell the story of John Johnston of New York 
 it is necessary to begin with some account of his 
 parents and of his Scotch home. His father, 
 for whom he was named, was born in the rugged and 
 picturesque County of Galloway, at a farm situated in 
 Balmaghie Parish, on the banks of the River Dee, then 
 as now called " Boatcroft," — "croft" meaning a farm. 
 Nearby was a ferry operated by my grandfather's father 
 when he was a boy; this was superseded in time by 
 the Glenlochar bridge, whose stone arches now span 
 the river near the little group of farm buildings whicli 
 still nestle among the trees. 
 
 Sympathetic accounts of this country are given in 
 "The Men of the Moss Hags" and " Raiderland— All 
 about Gray Galloway" by S. R. Crockett, the author, 
 who was born at the '* Little Duchrae Farm," not far 
 from Boatcroft. Still another book, "The Black 
 Douglas," describes the great Douglas tournaments of 
 tlie olden times as taking place at Glenlochar, and the 
 "Lists" as being "set up on the level meadow that 
 is now called the Boat Croft." 
 
 [3] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 It was probably while living at Boatcroft, in 1780, 
 that John Johnston married Dorothea Proudfoot, one 
 of three sisters, from the neighboring town of Moffat. 
 
 After his marriage the young man rented Barn- 
 board Mill and farm, in Balmaghie Parish, two miles 
 from his old home, and took his young wife there to 
 live. This farm, part of the estate of Balmaghie, 
 consisted of about ninety acres, through which ran a 
 little rippling " burn," which furnished power for the 
 mills — a tiny " lint " mill and a larger grist mill. To 
 the latter all the neighbors brought their grain to be 
 ground, while in the little lint mill flax was so treated 
 that it could be spun into linen thread. 
 
 The farm is picturesquely situated on rolling 
 ground, the mill and farm buildings standing in a little 
 dell shadowed by many fine trees; these trees were all 
 planted by John Johnston the elder, who beautified 
 in a simple way any place in which he lived. At Barn- 
 board Mill, on June 22, 1781, his son John, the sub- 
 ject of this sketch, was born, and there he spent his 
 childhood. 
 
 Dorothea Proudfoot was a woman of beautiful 
 character and her son felt that he owed a great deal 
 to his "good mother." In his journals and letters he 
 always spoke of her with deep tenderness and in later 
 years wrote of her: 
 
 " My mother was a pious woman who was at great 
 pains early to impress upon my mind a knowledge of 
 divine truth — at her earnest solicitation, I read the 
 Bible & because I saw it gave her pleasure I actually 
 became attached to it; and I recollect that I was much 
 delighted to hear her talk of heavenly things & fre- 
 
 [4] 
 
-5 ''' 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 quently slipt to her room door & listened whilst she 
 was at prayer (and in these prayers I always heard 
 myself warmly remembered). I was very rigid too in 
 the performance of what I called prayer & used 
 regularly to repeat, morning & evening, certain forms 
 which she taught me — ^so zealous was I in this duty 
 that if I had omitted it in going to Bed I used to get up 
 in the course of the night, kneel before my Bedside 
 naked as I was, & repeat them. I was likewise very 
 fond of learning & repeating Psalms & Hymns & 
 used generally to say them over until I fell asleep. In 
 this manner I acted until my mother's death, which 
 happened when I was about 13 years of age, when 
 being in a good measure left to my own government, 
 my goodness soon appeared to be like the morning 
 Cloud or early Dew — I soon forgot all her good advices." 
 
 As long as Dorothea was able, she rode to Bal- 
 maghie Church on Sundays on the same horse with 
 her husband, but when this was no longer possible on 
 account of ill-health, she remained at home and de- 
 voted herself to teaching her son his catechism. An 
 old woman named Tibbie Geddes, who used to live 
 near Barnboard Mill, in later years loved to tell of 
 having found my grandfather, during one of his visits 
 to his old home, probably in 1814, sitting on a stone 
 at the burn side, " greeting;" and of his saying, " You 
 will think me childish, but this is where my mother 
 used to sit, and wash my face and comb my hair and 
 teach me my Psalm and questions on the Sabbath day 
 when they were all at church, whither she was too 
 delicate to go." 
 
 "On June 1, 1794," as we read in her epitaph, 
 
 [5] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 " Dorothea Proudfoot, Spouse to John Johnston, miller, 
 Barnboard, departed this life after nine months severe 
 affliction, which she bore with exemplary fortitude 
 and Christian resignation — in the 36th year of her age." 
 
 Her thirteen-year-old son, her only child, was sent 
 on horseback to the eight-miles distant town of Kirk- 
 cudbright to buy white stockings and gloves *' in which 
 to dress her body." She was buried in Balmaghie 
 Churchyard, where her husband's father (William 
 Johnston) and his wife (Janet McCreedy), who had 
 been living with them at Barnboard, were interred 
 shortly afterwards. 
 
 Crockett, many of whose ancestors are buried here, 
 writes of this lovely spot, " Over the hill yonder in the 
 Balmaghie Kirkyard, the sweetest and the sunniest 
 God's Acre in Scotland," and quotes the supposed 
 words of the great " Cameronian Apostle," John Mac- 
 millan, describing the churchyard of this, his new 
 parish : " To me it was like the calm of the New Jeru- 
 salem. And, indeed, no place that ever I have seen 
 can be so blessedly quiet as the bonny kirk-knowe of 
 Balmaghie, mirrored on a windless day in the encir- 
 cling stillness of the Water of Dee." 
 
 The first money saved by the son after he had gone 
 to America, was sent back to Scotland for the purpose 
 of putting up a tombstone to the memory of his mother, 
 and he never visited Scotland without going to see her 
 grave or without being " very much affected thereby." 
 The first headstone was a modest one, for which he 
 sent exact measurements and an inscription. It was 
 to be in brown stone, " plain & neat, as carving 1 
 dislike," painted white with black lettering, and was 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 to be repainted at his expense whenever defaced. This 
 was replaced after his half-brother Alexander's death 
 by the present more elaborate monument. 
 
 During John's boyhood, one of his greatest pleasures 
 was to visit his Aunt Jane Proudfoot, his mother's 
 sister. Her cottage was on the banks of the " bonny 
 Moffat water " and constituted part of " Dumcrief," 
 the estate of Dr. Currie, the well-known editor of 
 Burns's works. Here John spent many happy days, 
 fishing in the river or picking gooseberries in his aunt's 
 lovely garden. Fishing was one of his great delights, 
 and even during subsequent visits to Dumcrief he 
 always found a few spare moments to indulge in his 
 favorite pastime. On one of these occasions he wrote, 
 " This is almost the only place that appears as lovely 
 in reality as my imagination had painted it. I con- 
 sider the time that I spent in my visits to Dumcrief as 
 the most happy of my youthful days." 
 
 My grandfather attended school in the neighboring 
 village of Laurieston, and also at Boreland. The edu- 
 cation thought necessary to fit a boy for life was very 
 meagre in that simple region, and he complained later 
 of this deficiency and took every opportunity to sup- 
 plement it. The course of study consisted chiefly of 
 arithmetic and book-keeping, and the kind of instruc- 
 tion received may be gathered from a letter he wrote 
 many years later: 
 
 " Of the three masters that I attended not one 
 taught English Grammar, or considered it necessary. 
 The last one indeed I importuned to teach me and 
 was accordingly allowed to learn to repeat it by rote 
 like a Parrot, my judgment was never exercised and 
 
 [7] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 I left off just as wise as I began. Latin was universally 
 given up as good for nothing; French was not under- 
 stood neither was good penmanship. Book-keeping 
 and mensuration, no matter how written, were con- 
 sidered as all that was necessary to complete a good 
 education and on these I lost some of the most precious 
 of my time. I say lost not because I consider them alto- 
 gether useless, but because things of equal importance 
 ought to have been attended to at the same time; a man 
 with such an education may be a Scholar among 
 Clowns, but he is only a Clown among Scholars! 
 
 " I have long ago felt the errors of my education 
 in their full force. Many a blush has my miserable 
 penmanship and gross ignorance cost me, and many 
 an hour hard study when I had more need of relaxa- 
 tion. By this means I have recovered a part of what 
 I had lost, but much is irrecoverably gone." 
 
 At Boreland he formed a lasting friendship for one 
 of his schoolmates, Samuel Haining, who later became 
 a clergyman with a parish on the Isle of Man. 
 
 The elder John was a kind and genial man, de- 
 pendent upon a wife and family for his happiness, and 
 in 1795, a year after Dorothea's death, married Mar- 
 garet Rae, a capable and affectionate woman. She 
 made him a good wife and bore him ten children — 
 Jessie (Janet), 1796; Agnes (Nanny), 1797; William, 
 1800; Samuel, 1802; Robert, 1804; James, 1806; 
 Jeanie, 1808; Alexander, 1810; Margaret, 1813; and 
 Dorothea (Dolly), 1816. 
 
 As has been said, John's education consisted chiefly 
 in preparing him to fill an accountant's position, and 
 no assistance of this kind being needed in his father's 
 
 [8] 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 simple affairs, and it being necessary that lie should 
 now begin to support himself, he was sent in 1798, a 
 lad of seventeen, to the seaport town of Kirkcudbright, 
 where for five or six years he " served his time " learning 
 practical book-keeping, etc., in the counting-house of 
 William Johnston, who was, however, no relation, or, 
 at most, a very distant one. 
 
 His employer was thirteen years his senior, but the 
 friendship begun at this time was the most important 
 of his early days and was destined to be of life-long 
 duration, with only one break, which will be alluded 
 to later. A touching change took place in the relation- 
 ship between these two; as a boy John looked up to 
 and depended greatly on his older friend, but with larger 
 opportunity developed more fully, so that as time 
 passed, William, who had always loved him and had 
 been so great a help to him in his youth, came to have 
 a deep admiration for him as well. We notice in one 
 of his letters that William liked " a plain open hearted 
 good lad, not one stuff'd fue o' pride like a Goose 
 with Scallions & Pepper at Christmas." He appar- 
 ently found that this lad answered the description, 
 while John, on the other hand, once wrote to a friend 
 then occupying a position similar to his own earlier one: 
 
 " With regard to Mr. J. I think I know him well — 
 he is a man of a very hasty temper, but his passion is 
 but of a moment's continuance — his heart under a 
 rough surface contains a great quantity of the milk 
 of human kindness & his friendships when formed are 
 lasting. . . . Obey his orders with cheerfulness, always 
 showing a disposition to anticipate his wishes, which, 
 independent of its being your duty, will save you 
 
 [9] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 many an hours bitterness & enable you to finish your 
 two remaining years with both pleasure & profit to 
 yourself." 
 
 The young man became an inmate of William's 
 household, where he was made to feel entirely at home 
 and where he always stayed when, in later years, 
 he revisited Kirkcudbright. According to William's 
 daughters, he was kind and considerate, and, although 
 working diligently, early and late, in the counting- 
 house, devoted every spare moment to study, poring 
 over his books in the evening by the light of a candle. 
 " I had an insatiable thirst for reading," he wrote later, 
 " but having no person to direct my choice of Books I 
 unfortunately chose those that were least calculated for 
 improvement; — namely, Romances, Novels, Plays & 
 sometimes History. — In fact I read promiscuously all 
 that came to hand." 
 
 Here began his great love of books and of reading, 
 a taste that ever increased during his life and that 
 was inherited by his sons. Every penny he could spare 
 was always spent on books. What would not he and 
 William, also fond of reading, have given for the 
 privilege of using the beautiful library since built in the 
 town of Kirkcudbright. The value William Johnston 
 placed upon education, was shown by the fact that he 
 bequeathed money to build and endow the Johnston 
 Free School, still in existence there. 
 
 Another interest which William and John had in 
 common was a desire to discover something about 
 their ancestors. William suggested that they " to- 
 gether overhaul the graves in Galloway," and in 
 1814, on John's first return to Scotland, he was for 
 
 [10] 
 
WILLIAM JOHNSTON S HOUSE, KIRKCUDBRIGHT 
 THE OXK WITH THE DOITBLE DOOR 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 two entire days " occupied with Mr. Johnston in ex- 
 amining & cleaning old grave stones in Moffat Church- 
 yard," as well as at Kirkpatrick Juxta. It was evident 
 that they both had relatives named Proudfoot. 
 
 John's father and William also had many discus- 
 sions on this interesting subject, the former asserting 
 that William was an Annandale (or "thief") Johnston, 
 while William retorted that John was nothing but a 
 Galloway (or " gypsy ") Johnston, proof of which was 
 his well shaped feet and legs, they being a distinguishing 
 characteristic of the " Gypsy- Johnstons." After such 
 controversies they would often, to quote William 
 Johnston's own words, have " a bottle of Peter Black's 
 ale, a snuff and a laugh to hand down our brose " 
 (oatmeal porridge). In fact, William's daughters said 
 that it was always a " red letter day " when the Miller 
 of Barnboard came to see them. 
 
 During the years John spent in William's counting- 
 house, they had long conferences with regard to the 
 young man's great desire to go to America. A brother 
 of the older man was already settled there, to whom 
 he could give John an introduction, and when in 1804 
 the latter undertook the journey, it was William who 
 lent him part of the necessary money. Later, in a 
 letter from America, John referred to these conversa- 
 tions, saying, " I have got to the very summit of my 
 then desires, not only by being safely landed in America, 
 but likewise by obtaining a situation in a counting- 
 house that in respectability yields to none in Newyork." 
 Eighteen months after leaving home he repaid William's 
 loan, adding, "Permit me again my dear Sir to assure 
 you that although I have thus paid what may be called 
 
 [11] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 my legal debt, I by no means consider the debt of 
 Gratitude which I owe to you & to your family can- 
 celled, nor do I wish it; it is a debt which I deem it an 
 honour to owe." 
 
 On William's advice and following in his footsteps, 
 one of John's last acts before he set sail was, on March 
 4, 1804, to qualify and be admitted to the Masonic 
 " Lodge of St. Cuthbert, held in Kirkcudbright." 
 This enabled him to have a feeling of kinship with the 
 brothers of the organization wherever he found them 
 on the " face of the Terragious Globe." The diploma 
 issued to him declares in the solemn language of such 
 documents that " our very Worthy Brother John John- 
 ston was by us Entered, Passed & Raised to the Sub- 
 lime degree of a Master Mason." Many years later 
 his Masonic medallion was still treasured among his 
 " trinkets." 
 
 While the happenings in the Scotch household sub- 
 sequent to John's departure for America, will be touched 
 upon in their proper chronological place, it seems best, 
 in order to give as vivid a picture as possible of the 
 family and home that he left, to relate here the most 
 important of these events. 
 
 After John left Scotland, William wrote to him 
 frequently, giving him news of the old home. This 
 was not always of an encouraging character, and one 
 of the first things the son set himself to do after his 
 establishment in New York and the payment of his 
 debt to William, was to make better provision for his 
 father, who was increasingly unable to manage his 
 money matters. In 1810 John wrote to his friend: 
 
 [12] 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 " It has always been my intention to make my 
 father and his family more comfortable as soon as my 
 circumstances would permit, and although money is 
 perhaps of more consequence to me now, on the eve 
 of commencing business, than it may be hereafter, yet 
 I would not defer doing good until it may be perfectly 
 convenient, lest I be deprived of the power of doing 
 it altogether. I shall therefore write him to confer 
 freely with you respecting his affairs, and I beg that 
 you will arrange them in such a manner that what I 
 send may be applied to the support of his family." 
 
 In 1808 the lease of Barnboard Mill and farm had 
 I'un out and " the Miller," as William Johnston always 
 called the elder John, had moved with his family to 
 Millbank Mill and farm, ten miles distant, at the little 
 village of Haugh on the River Urr (Haugh of Urr), in 
 the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright. 
 
 When in 1818 the younger John, then travelling in 
 Scotland, visited his father's new home, he considered 
 the ]\Iill Cottage inadequate and leasing an adjacent 
 })lot of ground built a house on it, over what had pre- 
 viously been a large grain cellar. This house was after- 
 wards called Millbank Cottage, and he gave it to his 
 father for a home. The plot of ground was held " In 
 Feu " — a species of land tenure common throughout 
 Scotland, meaning that the land was owned in large 
 estates by the Lairds and was leased, often in perpet- 
 uity, while the buildings were owned by the tenants.* 
 
 Millbank Cottage was small — in fact, it is difficult 
 
 *The lease of this land was to run for ninety-nine years and to expire in 
 1917 unless the occupants of the cottage then wished to renew it. It is still 
 owned and occupied by Samuel's daughter, Agnes N. Johnston. 
 
 [13] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 to understand how John's father and his large family 
 crowded into it. Besides the ordinary living rooms, 
 there was a large basement room where the grain had 
 previously been stored, and here parties and family 
 gatherings were held amidst much merriment. The 
 parents had a bedroom on the ground floor, one end of 
 which was partitioned off to form a built-in bed with 
 curtains in front of it. A kind of loft above the kitchen 
 was unused for a long time, and here the rats which had 
 been dispossessed from the cellar congregated. This 
 loft was called the " rat room " by the children, and 
 when the noise of the rats frightened the little ones, 
 the father used to reassure them by saying that great 
 f)reparations were being made for a rat wedding. As 
 time went on, many additions were made to the place — 
 a dairy was built, fruit trees planted, and a garden 
 laid out with a pretty bower at the end of it. 
 
 The life at Millbank Cottage was exceedingly sim- 
 ple. Alexander, the youngest son, gives a vivid account 
 of it worth quoting : 
 
 " I can recollect . . . Father & Mother sitting on one 
 side the fire, father with the tongs in his hand and now 
 & then giving the fire a poke, & mother sitting sewing 
 & mending for us all by the old little round stand; 
 on the other side of the fire sat poor old William Dun- 
 can, with the Dog (Little Hero) on his knee, both also 
 have since gone to their long home; in the middle or 
 somewhere about were Margt. Dolly & myself beside 
 the servant girl and never without some of the neigh- 
 bours dropping in to spend an hour or so, & I can re- 
 member Nanny now Mrs. Maxwell & Jannet, now 
 Dead, & William & Robert, who were at Dumfries 
 
 [14] 
 
MILLBANK COTTAGE 
 IIAUGH OF ridi 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 School, but were home every now & then to spend a 
 day or two with us. Then there were Saml. attending 
 the mill, & James, and the servant man Rob Halliday 
 — all in addition to the before mentioned." 
 
 The father was a strictly religious man, attending 
 church every Sunday even when it meant that he, his 
 wife and their little " Nanny " had to ride on the same 
 horse. Every evening punctually at nine o'clock the 
 father and mother would " tak the Buik "*— that is, the 
 big Bible— to the bower (pronounced " boor ") at the 
 end of the garden and, laying it across their knees, the 
 father would read it aloud. From this ceremony none 
 of the children ever dared to be absent, or even to be 
 late. 
 
 It is either about this Bible or the Bible of Samuel 
 Johnston that a picturesque story is told. The book 
 was of great interest to the children, as it contained 
 numerous pictures, the meaning of which the father 
 explained to them. Wherever there was a representa- 
 tion of a " bad " man, the children used to scratch his 
 face — and the devil was so very bad that the page on 
 which his picture appeared was almost scratched 
 through. After the children had thus wreaked their 
 vengeance on the bad men and the volume had become 
 very shabby, it was determined to get a new one, and 
 
 * Crockett says of " the taking of the Buik " : 
 
 "The family gathered without spoken summons or stroke of bell. No one 
 was absent, or could be absent for any purpose whatsoever. The great Bible, 
 clad rough-coated in the hairy hide of a calf, was brought down from the press 
 and laid at the table-end. The head of the house sat down before it and bowed 
 himself. In all the world there was a silence that could be felt. It was at this 
 time every Sabbath morning that Walter resolved to be a good boy for the entire 
 week." 
 
 [15] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 the old " Biiik " was given to a poor man and thus 
 lost! 
 
 Once, however, the Bible failed the father in time 
 of need — when his son Samuel wrote that he was to 
 marry a Quakeress. The old gentleman was much 
 troubled, for he had never heard of a Quaker. Getting 
 down his never-failing guide, he studied it from be- 
 ginning to end to see if he could find any mention of 
 the name. Not finding it, he went to the minister, who 
 reassured him, saying that the Quakers also took the 
 Bible as their guide. 
 
 Old John Johnston always wore knee breeches, 
 which, for full dress, were of black velvet with buckles 
 at the knees; this was undoubtedly what enabled Will- 
 iam Johnston to comment on his " well shaped feet and 
 legs." He was called the "Jolly Miller," was full of 
 wit and song, and a favorite with everyone, young and 
 old, rich and poor. While he was on congenial and 
 even intimate terms with the Laird of Balmaghie, he 
 was on an equally friendly footing with his poorer 
 associates, and would frequently take care of a neigh- 
 bor's baby for her while she read the newspaper to 
 him — a welcome change of occupation for both. 
 
 Every year he sent a barrel of oatmeal to his son 
 John in America, and in return the son sent barrels of 
 apples and sometimes fruit trees. After the death of 
 both father and son, the family in Scotland still sent 
 to the grandson, John Taylor Johnston, the annual 
 barrel of oatmeal, which usually contained also a tin 
 box of Scotch " short bread " and some bottles of 
 mushroom "ketchup." 
 
 An unfortunate habit of getting into " scrapes " 
 
 [IG] 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 through signing notes for other people was one of the 
 weaknesses of the father, but this did not trouble him 
 much, and if he got out of his difficulty somehow, he was 
 (juite ready to do the same thing again. 
 
 The Laird's "Factor" and he had many disputes 
 over the rental account, and at one time he was so 
 obstinate and so sure of the justice of his claims that 
 he allowed himself to be put in jail rather than yield. 
 This was the occasion of his son John's quarrel with 
 William Johnston, who had in charge a fund for the 
 father's use. As Robert, John's half-brother, wrote in 
 one of his letters, " Mr. Johnston stated that our Father 
 was willing to go to jail, but that was no plea for his 
 allowing him to go." John promptly took his father's 
 funds out of William Johnston's hands. The latter 
 was in a great rage about it, and Robert remarked, " I 
 suppose that is the breaking up of their long standing 
 friendship." This, however, was not the case. The 
 tie was strong enough to stand even this strain. The 
 breach was healed, and it was from William that John, 
 in 1841, had tidings of the death of his father and 
 step-mother. 
 
 Three of John's half-brothers — William, Robert, 
 and Alexander — through his assistance followed him in 
 later years to America and did well there. They, like 
 John, felt the deficiency of their Scotch education, but 
 in addition reproached themselves with the fact that 
 they had not always made the most of such oppor- 
 tunities as had been offered them. Their home letters 
 were full of urgent entreaty that their younger sisters 
 be given the best teaching available, and they often 
 
 [17] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 sent money to this end. Robert, in particular, was 
 very solicitous regarding the character of the school to 
 which Margaret and Dolly should be sent, urging that 
 they not only have " the advantage of a polite educa- 
 tion," but that they be so placed as to enjoy " good 
 genteel society" as well. 
 
 Robert also asked that Samuel send a Dumfries 
 paper over to him that he might read the Galloway 
 news, but with Scotch thrift suggested that Samuel 
 pay half the subscription and read the paper before 
 forwarding it. 
 
 All the daughters except Margaret married during 
 the lifetime of their parents, and on each occasion 
 there was a large gathering of family and neighbors, 
 with dancing in the big underground room. The sons 
 and tlaughters who had left home revisited it from 
 time to time, and always expressed the tenderest feeling 
 for their parents. " The recollections of my mother 
 are still as fresh in my mind and she is as dear to me 
 now as in the days of my infancy," wrote William after 
 he had been ten years in America. And of his father 
 he said, "He is an old man now and cannot be able to 
 work much and it grieves me to think of my old father 
 working so hard while I am working easy." After 
 Alexander had been in America only two years and 
 could ill afford it, he sent a small sum of money to 
 Margaret, saying, " Out of the £5 you must give my 
 good old Mother the first chance of having whatever 
 she likes, then you can keep the Balance and fill my 
 father's Box fu' o' Snuff or buy him a something to 
 make a Night Cap to take before he goes to Bed." 
 
 John, in the course of business trips between 
 
 [18] 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 America and Europe, made frequent visits to his 
 parents. Robert was unable to do so until 1841, 
 twenty years after he had left the Haugh, at which 
 time he presented excellent miniatures of himself to 
 various members of the family. Alick, on his return 
 home, left only a silhouette of himself, but gave money 
 to the family that "likenesses" might be made of botii 
 his father and mother. Only his father's portrait was 
 painted, at which Alick was vastly indignant, saying, 
 " Is not the likeness of my mother as desirable to me 
 as my father's ? " In this picture the father holds in 
 his hand a letter from his "son in America," pre- 
 sumably Alexander. 
 
 On April 26, 1841, John Johnston's wife, Mar- 
 garet Rae, who had been in failing health for some 
 time, died in Millbank Cottage, and her loving hus- 
 band, then in his ninety-second year, survived her 
 only three days. 
 
 "An hour before her dissolution," Dorothea wrote 
 to her brother Samuel, "she was asked if she had any 
 assurance to cheer her through the dark valley. 'I 
 think I have,' she said; she hoped she had seen Jesus 
 in all his Glory waiting to receive [her] — 'I have, O 
 yes ' ; and a Number more such satisfactory and cheer- 
 ing answers. 
 
 " My Father could not think it was death as it came 
 nearer, but thought she was getting better, and would 
 give her tea, gruell, tody, just almost constantly, think- 
 ing if she would get them swallowed she would soon 
 be better and would say, ' I'll be in beside ye the Morn's 
 ^"iglit yet my dear '; and she said; ' poor bodey,' several 
 times; he says, 'ye look bonnier now than ever, and I 
 
 [19 1 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 think you will no leave Me yet.' We got him advised 
 to go Bed as we saw the change appearing." 
 
 In February of that year Alick, then living in New 
 York, had written in his journal, "The poor good 
 folks are still stepping about but very frail, })oor old 
 Bodies." On June 1st, a month after the death of his 
 parents, the word having just reached New York, 
 John said to him: "Ah Alick there is melancholy 
 news this morning. Father and Mother are both 
 dead!" Alick describes these events with so tender 
 a hand that the account is copied here verbatim: 
 
 "They were dead, died within 3 days 3 short days 
 of one another, and buried in one Grave. Mother 
 died first on the 26 April Monday — and Father poor 
 man could not stand the awful shock but took to his 
 bed the following day, and died on Thursday the 29th 
 April — and [they] were both buried on Tuesday in 
 Balmaghie Church yard on 4t}i May . . . 
 
 " Poor Mother bade an everlasting adieu to all ter- 
 restrial things about ^ })ast 4 o'clock; and on Nanny 
 & Dolly going up to tell him that she was at rest he 
 was sitting up in bed, seemingly expecting them and 
 what they had come to tell him, and clasping his hands 
 together, and looking up to Heaven — Exclaimed — ' The 
 I^ord gave and the Lord hath taken away. Blessed be 
 his most Holy name,' and on leaving him to give vent 
 to their feelings in Nanny's room, they heard him 
 getting out of his Bed & praying to the Almighty, that 
 he would prepare him for his last end, as it was near 
 at hand . . . 
 
 " The next day he got up thro' the course of the 
 day, and walked about & gave some orders concerning 
 
 [ ^20 ] 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCOTCH HOME 
 
 Mother's Funeral, and after she had been laid out — 
 Nanny asked him if he wd not like to see Mother once 
 more, he said he wd — and went towards the door, but 
 when the white sheets met his view, he held out his 
 hands & exclaimed, Oh I can gang nae farther! He 
 went to his Bed that night never to rise more. On 
 going into his room on Thursday morning and speaking 
 to him he did not answer, and in attempting to move 
 him, he cried, oh — and they then saw his latter end 
 was approaching fast, and allowed him to remain in 
 the same position, and in a few hours his Spirit took 
 its flight to the Realms of Light, and the voice that had 
 cheered and delighted us all, so oft, and so long — was 
 silent for ever. 
 
 " It had been intended and invitations issued ac- 
 cordingly for Mother's Funeral to take place on the 
 Saturday but was then postponed until the Tuesday 
 following . . . 
 
 " Samuel had started off for Scotland immediately 
 on rect. of the news of Mother's Death but with the 
 fond hope of finding Father there, and staying a few 
 days with him, and hearing some of his old stories 
 told over again, but alas, alas! when he arrived there, 
 there was no hand stretched out to welcome him, no 
 sweet sounds to cheer him, no eye sparkling with 
 delight, as he entered. Ah no, everything was as still 
 and quiet as the grave, there he beheld them stretched 
 out, in their last attire, lying side by side — cold & 
 stiff as the clod of the valley . . . Father, Saml. says, 
 was nothing changed — his countenance pleasant, & 
 face full. 
 
 " Oh what a sight, melancholy k solemn, yet 
 
 [21] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 pleasant. Like Saul & Jonathan, ' They were lovely 
 in their lives & in their deaths they were not divided.' . . . 
 " They were buried on Tuesday 4th May in Bal- 
 maghie Churchyard. Saml. says there must have 
 been over (100) a hundred people at the Funeral & 
 notwithstanding the day being wet & uncomfortable 
 over the half that number followed them to their 
 Graves — a distance I think of over G miles, & had 
 they been Lord & Lady of the Land, they could not 
 have died more respected or more generally regretted 
 round the whole Parish where they lived." . . . 
 
 So they were taken to the " Kirk above Dee Water," 
 the homely name by which the Galloway folk know it, 
 and there some kindly friends undoubtedly said of 
 John Johnston the Miller, as they had said of many 
 another, " Sae he's won awa." 
 
 On his tombstone was written: 
 
 " THIS MODEST STONE, WHAT FEW VAIN MORTALS CAN, 
 MAY TRULY SAY, ' HERE LIES AN HONEST MAN ' " 
 
CHAPTER II 
 BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 1804—1809 
 
 THESE were the surroundings among which young 
 John Johnston grew up and from which he 
 started in 1804 for the New World to make 
 a fortune, not only for himself, but in order that he 
 might assist his family in Scotland. 
 
 William Johnston's brother George was in business 
 in New York, and William therefore decided to send 
 his own son, " George, Jr.," across the ocean in charge 
 of John, whose twenty-three years, made him seem, 
 however, somewhat youthful for this responsibility. 
 George's father having loaned John the £23 necessary 
 to make up the sum required for his journey to America, 
 the two boys shortly thereafter took inside places in 
 the Camperdown coach from Dumfries to Glasgow and 
 from thence proceeded by mail stage to Greenock. 
 
 Here John bought for himself a " Mattrass, Blanket 
 and Rugg, 16s .. . Trousers to wear on passage, 5s. 6d. 
 . . . and a cotton cassimere jacket for passage, 13s. 9d." 
 On March 18, 1804, they sailed from Greenock in 
 the ship Factor and landed in New York on April 
 21st. 
 
 [23] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 In John's small account book he appraised his 
 belongings as set forth below : 
 
 " Whole value of Wearing Apparel, Books, 
 
 Watch, &e. &c. brot. to America £54 . 16 . 7 ($274 . 14) 
 
 Deducting money borrowed from Mr. 
 
 Johnston .£23 
 
 A balance due Capt. Caldwell . .. 5.5 28 . 5 ($141 .25) 
 
 £26.11.7 ($132.89) 
 
 He was provided with introductions to people who 
 could be of service to him, and with one of them, a Mr. 
 James Thorburn, an acquaintance of Samuel Haining, 
 he lodged. 
 
 George Johnston, to whom he was especially com- 
 mended, was a man of ability and consequence in New 
 York, at this time attorney for one of the sisters of John 
 Paul Jones, in the matter of her interest in the estate 
 of her brother. John Paul Jones, who died in Paris 
 in 179*2, had made Robert Morris of Philadelphia his 
 executor and had left all his property to his two sisters, 
 Mrs. William Taylor and Mrs. Mary Ann Lowden, 
 both of whom lived in the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright. 
 The latter and her family, considering that the settling 
 of the estate had been unnecessarily delayed, had given 
 George Johnston power to force an accounting " and 
 to enter upon and take possession in their name of all 
 and every Dwelling houses, lands, slaves, etc." 
 
 He showed the utmost kindness to the young men 
 and within five weeks after their arrival in New York 
 both of them, through his recommendation, had posi- 
 tions as clerks in the counting-house of Jas. Lenox & 
 Wm. Maitland, and John had the promise of being 
 
 [24] 
 
it y 
 
 ■ ^x 
 
 
 
 CO 
 
 
 o 
 
 ^ ' 
 
 X 
 
 — r— ' 
 
 r- ^ 
 
 /■ ' ^ . 
 
 
 ( - ■ 
 
 2; 
 
 
 -^ 
 
 Cfi 
 
 
 
 f ' / 
 
 ^ 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 made book-keeper in a short time. The members of 
 this firm, warm personal friends of WiUiam Johnston, 
 as well as of his brother George, were from Galloway, 
 James Lenox being the younger brother of Robert 
 Lenox, the founder of the family in America, whose 
 son James presented the Lenox Library to New York 
 City. John fully recognized his debt of gratitude to 
 George Johnston for this early help and wrote to 
 William: "I am under very great obligations to your 
 Brother George not only for his kindness on my first 
 arrival but for his attentions ever since. It was princi- 
 j)ally through his representations that my character was 
 so well established at first entering the oflBce; & I 
 have no doubt that his intimacy with Mr. Lenox has 
 influenced the conduct of the latter towards me ever 
 since." 
 
 The terms of his engagement are thus described in 
 his note-book: 
 
 " 1804 
 
 May 26 This day entered into tlie counting house of Messrs. J. Lenox 
 & W. Maitland and have agreed to remain with them four 
 years from this date at the rate of $800 for the 1st year, 
 $400 for the 2nd year, $500 for the 3rd year, and $600 for 
 the 4th." 
 
 This banking house, which James Lenox had estab- 
 lished in New York in 1796, in addition to its other 
 interests, was engaged in the East India trade, usually 
 sent consignments to Calcutta every year, and always 
 brought back cargoes of India goods. 
 
 Mr. Lenox was interested in John, gave him much 
 good advice, and raised his salary one hundred dollars 
 after the first six months. John was gratified at this 
 
 [25] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 and again wrote to William, " I believe if every Counting 
 House in the city were in my offer I would not change 
 the one I am in." He felt some anxiety, however, lest 
 his handwriting should not be good enough for the 
 important position of book-keeper and describes his 
 plan to improve it: 
 
 " The only thing that gives me uneasiness is that I 
 do not write a better hand — Mr. Lenox writes a first 
 rate hand himself and is very particular in this respect 
 with his clerks. He is extremely partial to a plai7i 
 copy hand and hates dashing with a perfect hatred — 
 now I have been so long accustomed to write in a 
 loose, careless manner that I find it no easy matter to 
 lay aside my long tailed C & such like ' curiosities.' 
 However, 1 must submit, as the province for which I 
 am designed, that of Book-keeper, is by far the most 
 critical in the office; for what might pass without cen- 
 sure in a Letter or Invoice would be deemed very 
 reprehensible in the Ledger. 
 
 " To make the best of a bad bargain I go an hour 
 each inorning to a writing master from whom I receive 
 private lessons at the moderate rate of $20 pr. quarter 
 & this I would not grudge if I saw any reasonable 
 prospect of improvement, or if the Gentleman paid 
 proper attention to the correction of my errors — this 
 he does not — it may be from delicacy, but it is a delicacy 
 that I should willingly dispense with. 
 
 " However from a strict observance of the way in 
 which his letters are formed I perceive that, when I 
 take time, I can write more in the copy stile than I 
 formerly could: — but then when I attempt that my 
 patience has a sore trial, as I am more fatigued with 
 
 [26] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 an hour of my neic hand than with a whole day of this 
 my old one. 
 
 " I now get up at 5 o'clock in the morning, walk 
 till 6, go to school till 7, eat breakfast & repair to the 
 office before 8, dine at 1, drink tea at 7, and either read, 
 visit or walk from that till 10 o'clock; at which time 1 
 regularly go to bed. This is a brief statement of the 
 manner in which I spend my time, & I confess it is so 
 much to my liking that I would not exchange — no not 
 with J. Napier, altho' I believe he turns more to the 
 Credit of Profit & Loss in 7 days than I will do in as 
 many years." 
 
 In spite of his brave statement that he would not 
 exchange his manner of life with "J. Napier," he was 
 lonely in these early days and looked forward with 
 eagerness to receiving the irregular and necessarily 
 infrequent letters from home. " I was agreeably sur- 
 prised," he wrote to his never-failing correspondent, 
 William, " by the receipt of your much esteemed favor 
 of 19th March, which . . . was exceedingly precious in 
 my esteem; . . . my spirits were raised at least 5 feet 
 9 inches higher. ... I do not know of any other pleasure 
 that can in any way be compared to that of hearing 
 from an absent friend; . . . when a person is removed 
 not only from his friends & relatives but likewise from 
 his native country, then it is that ' Good news from a 
 far country' are indeed a cordial." And to others he 
 also wrote: "I long very much to hear from you — I 
 feel the greatest loss from the want of the company of 
 my dear friends. . . . Many a time I reflect with a sort 
 of melancholy pleasure upon those happy hours which 
 we spent together by the cheek of Mrs. Carson's 
 
 [27] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 chimney, whilst the smoke of the Virginia plant ' like 
 burning incense tower'd ' and feel disposed to repine 
 at my heremitical condition." 
 
 He in his turn, to save postage, sent by friends going 
 over, long letters to his father and mother, describing 
 to the latter such homely matters as would interest her 
 — the price of foods and servants' wages, the kind of 
 clothing worn, and his " mortification" at finding that 
 the only usable articles he had brought over were the 
 white shirts she had made him. 
 
 Sept. 18, 1804. 
 " Dear Margt. 
 
 " I wrote my father on 12th May by a Gentleman 
 going to Britain in the Liverpool packet who said he 
 would be at Dumfries & probably Kirkcudbt. and as 
 I perceive by the papers that the vessel arrived safe I 
 have no doubt of your being long ago in possession of 
 that letter. 
 
 " This Country is exceedingly pleasant & the poorer 
 Classes live, or might live, incomparably better than 
 they do at home (I mean in Scotland) no laboring man 
 has less than 4|6 Sterling pr. day — tradesmen & 
 mechanics have from 6|- to 6|9 & some artists have 
 10 1- or even 12 1-. Beef & mutton are lower than in 
 Britain. Flour, although high at present, is generally 
 lower than that which my father manufactures. Pota- 
 toes pretty moderate & apples almost for nothing, 
 even in the common market I could purchase a Bushel 
 of the very best for 2|- Stg. 
 
 *' When you read this you will be ready to conclude 
 that a single person may board for almost nothing but 
 I can assure you it is not so. These blessings so far as 
 
 [28] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 I can see are all monopolized by the Householders. 
 Keeping boarders is here a trade & if a man can have 
 the good fortune to procure two or three Genteel 
 boarders, as they are called, into his family he need 
 not give himself much trouble about what are called 
 habits of industry. If you lodge in a first rate Genteel 
 boarding house you pay only 10 Dollars or45|- Stg. 
 pr. Week, besides paying for your wine &c., if in a 
 second rate 8 Dollars, if in a third rate 5 Dollars & this 
 is the very lowest that any genteel person must pay. 
 Happily for me I have lighted upon what I call Genteel 
 Boarding, in a private family, for little more than the 
 half of even the latter sum; but this must be kept a 
 profound secret, for if it were known, my reputation, 
 as a Gentleina7i .', would certainly be blasted, at least 
 as long as I persisted in such a gross violation of estab- 
 lished habits. 
 
 "House rents are amazingly high, for a tolerably 
 good one, if 2 Stories 35 or 40 feet in front, ,£100 Sterling 
 pr. Annum. White servant girls have 6 Dollars or 27 |- 
 Sterling pr. month and are nearly as proud as Lucifer; 
 if you ask them to do the most trifling piece of service 
 beyond what they choose to prescribe as the limits of 
 their obligation it is ten to one if you do not get a flat 
 refusal, at any rate saucy language. They go just 
 about as fine on holidays as your demi Gentry. 
 
 " Washing as I formerly mentioned is a heavy burden 
 — this alone at an average cost are not less than 3|- Stg. 
 pr. Week — Shoes are moderate in price but of a very 
 bad quality. I have not had occasion to try them as 
 yet myself, but have seen many pairs worn by others 
 in a fortnight — they are reckoned very good if they 
 
 [29] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 last three weeks & superlative if they see the end of 
 the month. 
 
 " Clothes are very high principally owing to Tailors 
 wages — as a specimen — I gave to one of them four 
 Vests to get shortened, — he executed the work in little 
 more than an hour & his charge was only 1 1|4 Dollars 
 (5 1 7 1|2 Stg.) Thus, for lack of better matter, I have 
 given you a detail of matters which although unim- 
 portant may be entertaining to you who have no 
 opportunity of being acquainted with our manner of 
 living on this side the Atlantic. 
 
 " Your shirts will stand me in excellent stead in 
 this place — indeed they are the only part of my clothing 
 from which I can reap satisfaction. My clothes were 
 not at all made suitable for this country. Breaches are 
 never worn by the young men in this place & indeed 
 only in a few instances by the old — a few days after I 
 I came on shore I wore a pair of my best ones & 
 thought myself a fellow of considerable appearance, 
 but by & by I })erceived many people staring at me in 
 so strange a manner that I was glad to j)ut on a pair, 
 & indeed my only pair, of pantaloons. My coats & 
 vests were at least a Century behind the fashion, and 
 my coloured neckclothes entirely useless, nothing but 
 white ones being worn here. My Breaches I mean 
 to wear in Winter, for as every person at that time 
 wears boots it will not be so much noticed. You will 
 no doubt be by this time thinking that I am become 
 quite the fashionable Buck, but I assure you it is dire 
 necessity drives me to it. Had I but a few dressed in 
 the same uniform to keep me in countenance I should 
 not at all care, but I have no inclination to be stared 
 
 [30] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 on by every one that I meet as if I were a creature of 
 another species. 
 
 " Present my respects to my father, Sisters & 
 Brother, & believe me to be always very truly, Dr. 
 Margt. 
 
 "Yours J. J." 
 
 John's absence from home did not weaken his sense 
 of responsibility to his younger half-brothers and sis- 
 ters, and he was constantly planning how the education 
 of the boys might prepare them for a career in America, 
 whither he intended to have them come at the earliest 
 moment. He entreated Margaret to attend to their 
 forming good mental and religious habits, reminding 
 her that " Youth is the time to sow the good Seed. The 
 first impressions are generally the most lasting . . . 
 Let them indulge in no idle habits, they will grow 
 upon them insensibly." He urged his father to give 
 this matter serious consideration and begged to l)e 
 told the progress each child was making in his studies. 
 " I am exceedingly anxious that my Brothers & Sisters, 
 but especially the former, should have a good educa- 
 tion. I know from fatal experience that the ideas com- 
 monly entertained on that subject, in the part of the 
 country where we resided, were very erroneous. . . . 
 
 " Now the truth is, and 1 am happy to think it will 
 yet be in time for your other children, a knowledge of 
 English Grammar is indispensably necessary to every 
 person that would speak even his mother tongue with 
 any kind of precision. The Latin, although not of 
 great use, in common life, is yet so generally studied 
 that it is reckoned vulgar to be without it, and besides, 
 it greatly enlarges the knowledge of the English lan- 
 
 [31] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 guage. The french is very necessary to a merchant, 
 and like the Latin, is so generally understood that it 
 cannot be well dispensed with; and one chief excellency 
 in all these is that they may in youth be acquired with 
 very little loss of time; the lessons being principally 
 studied out of school. Had it been my good fortune 
 to be situated where they were taught, I might have 
 acquired them without the least prejudice to any of my 
 other studies, fishing only excepted. 
 
 " These observations I have made with a view to the 
 Boys' coming out to America, if I be successful in busi- 
 ness. Should you wish to keep any of them at home, 
 or have any other thing in view for them, all this may 
 not be necessary. I would like to know your views 
 upon this subject. I presume that you are now better 
 situated for Schools than you were at Barnboard, and 
 therefore recommend that William and the Girls, if 
 they have not already begun, be immediately put to 
 the study of English Grammar with some master that 
 perfectly understands it; — this need not retard them 
 in reading writing or arithmetick, as they must learn 
 their lessons at home. If the master teaches Latin 
 also, & thinks that William is far enough advanced in 
 English, I should like that he would begin to study 
 that likewise; and I pray you be extremely careful 
 that his hand be not spoiled by a bad writing master. 
 I trust I shall be able to send you as much annually as 
 will pay for his Books & School Wages. Write me 
 very particularly what progress in learning they all 
 have made, how you are situated for schools; what 
 languages &c. are taught & what are the quarterly 
 wages." 
 
 [32] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 John's own spiritual life was also a matter of moment 
 to him. This was still largely nourished by letters to 
 and from his clergyman friend, Samuel Haining, to 
 whom he wrote at this time a vivid description of his 
 early religious experiences, the whole letter being here 
 given, although part has already appeared in the 
 previous chapter. 
 
 8th Feby. 1805. 
 "... You desire some account of the means by 
 which I was first brought under concern for my soul. 
 ... I shall state, as briefly as possible, in what manner 
 I was led stej) by step to think seriously of eternal 
 things. — You know my mother was a i)ious woman 
 who was at great pains early to impress upon my mind 
 a knowledge of divine truth — at her earnest solicitation, 
 I read the Bible & because I saw it gave her pleasure 
 I actually became attached to it; and I recollect that I 
 was much delighted to hear her talk of heavenly things 
 & frequently slipt to her room door & listened whilst 
 she was at prayer (and in these prayers I always heard 
 myself warmly remembered) — I was very rigid too in 
 the performance of what I called prayer & used regu- 
 larly to repeat, morning & evening, certain forms 
 which she taught me — so zealous was I in this duty 
 that if I had omitted it in going to Bed I used to get 
 up in the course of the night & kneel before my Bedside 
 naked as I was, & repeat them. I was likewise very 
 fond of learning & repeating Psalms & Hymns & 
 used generally to say them over until I fell asleep. In 
 this manner I acted until my mother's death, which 
 happened when I was about 13 years of age, when 
 being in a good measure left to my own government, 
 
 [33] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 my goodness soon appeared to be like the morning 
 Cloud or early Dew — I soon forgot all her good 
 advices. 
 
 " I still however had an insatiable thirst for reading 
 but having no person to direct my choice of Books I 
 unfortunately chose those that were least calculated 
 for improvement, namely Romances, Novels, Plays & 
 sometimes History — In fact I read promiscuously all 
 that came to hand except religious Books, and for 
 these I gradually lost all relish. In the year 1798, 
 owing principally to your solicitations, I joined the 
 Barnboard & Boreland Society of which I continued 
 a member until I went to Kirkcudbt. to my apprentice- 
 ship, in the fall of that year. — The only real advantage 
 that I derived from this was the necessity it laid me 
 under of reading religious Books, in order to find 
 answers to the questions there proposed. 
 
 " About this time also I had a fever which brought 
 me nigh to the Gates of Death, I was in a delirium for 
 a whole week & whilst in that state I well remember 
 that one day I imagined myself in a deep Pit in the 
 agonies of death. I saw my religious acquaintances 
 stand at a distance upon the brink, as afraid to ap- 
 proach me — I was solicitous that some of them should 
 speak to me & at last I thought James Harris, then 
 my schoolmaster, came near & enquired upon what I 
 grounded my hopes of Eternal life. The question 
 struck me, I was unable to answer it, Christ never once 
 occurred to my thoughts & I said some incoherent 
 things to my stepmother, then present, about purchas- 
 ing a Proof Catechism & attending Mr. Fulton's School 
 in order that I might be able to answer such questions 
 
 [34] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 should they again occur. This cjuestion stuck in my 
 mind a long while after my recovery & I believe was 
 the means of stimulating me to make more diligent 
 search after religious knowledge. 
 
 " One day, previous to my departure for Kirkt., I 
 was in Wm. Milroy's Smithy, when I happened to lay 
 my hand upon a small tract, entitled ' friendly advice 
 to all whom it may concern ' — in this tract the question 
 was put, ' If you had died yesterday where would your 
 soul have been at this moment ? ' I laid down the 
 tract & considering my case was well assured that my 
 soul should have been in Hell. 
 
 " From this time I made some faint attempts at in- 
 formation, and although I had many relapses yet I 
 still inwardly had thoughts of working out my own 
 salvation by the Law. I went to hear the Wesleyan 
 Methodists then in Kirkcudbt., formed a Prayer meet- 
 ing in conjunction with R. Hyslop, R. Carson, R. Niel 
 &c. and conceived that I was making considerable 
 progress when all at once my views were completely 
 changed even when I least expected it. 
 
 " The doctrine of Predestination was one with 
 which I was almost entirely unacquainted- this doc- 
 trine was broached by the Methodists, Predestination 
 calmly considered was put into my hands, and, as was 
 to be expected, I soon became a warm & decided 
 Arminian. It is needless to expatiate upon the ardoi- 
 with which I entered into this scheme & the violence 
 with which I opposed the contrary opinions — suffice it 
 to say that after many controversies with you & with 
 other of my friends on this subject my Fortress began 
 to totter; you put Booth into my hands who made a 
 
 [35] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 grievous breach, and Elisha Cole razed it to the very 
 foundation. 
 
 " Being now destitute of all hope from this quarter 
 I began seriously to consider my state, I began to dis- 
 cover my former folly and to see that salvation was 
 only to be found in Christ — I felt an inclination to 
 trust in him alone for salvation and although my faith 
 has been sometimes stronger sometimes weaker, my 
 views sometimes clearer sometimes darker and although 
 from the prevalence & growth of an inward body of Sin 
 & Death I have been many times led to doubt whether 
 I had indeed known him — yet I am inclined to adopt 
 the language of his servant Job 'though he slay me 
 yet will I trust in him.' " 
 
 lie soon felt it to be a religious necessity as well 
 as a duty to ally himself with some form of Christian 
 worship and set himself about making such a connec- 
 tion, writing to this same friend : 
 
 "After I first came to this country I went, agree- 
 ably to the plan which you know I had formed previous 
 to my departure, and attentively heard a major part of 
 those who are denominated Evangelical preachers. 1 
 went even farther, being determined not to allow my- 
 self to be blinded by prejudice, and heard some of those 
 who are in Scotland called Methodists, but finding 
 none that in my opinion came nearer the model of a 
 Church of Christ as delineated in the New Testament, 
 than that under the pastoral care of Mr. Mason I have 
 accordingly joined in communion with it. 
 
 " In Mr. M's congregation there are three or four 
 praying Societies of one of which I likewise am an 
 unworthy member. Their mode of procedure is much 
 
 [36] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 the same as that of those with which I was connected 
 ere I left Scotland." 
 
 This noted preacher, the Rev. John M. Mason, 
 was, in 1804, the pastor of the Scotch Presbyterian 
 Church in Cedar Street. With his congregation John 
 Johnston decided to worship and he had always there- 
 after the deepest admiration for him. Later, in 1810, 
 after the Presbytery had refused to build a new edifice 
 for him. Dr. Mason resigned from the Scotch Church 
 and founded a new organization, situated in Murray 
 Street. He was intimately associated with public men, 
 preaching the funeral sermon of Alexander Hamilton 
 and delivering a famous oration on Washington before 
 the Society of the Cincinnati. Professor Silliman of 
 Yale thus describes him: 
 
 " Tall, erect, of fine symmetry of form, with a per- 
 fect muscular development, a noble, intellectual head 
 and strongly marked features, on every line of which 
 mind was stamped, with the graceful air of a high-bred 
 gentleman of the old school, and with the bearing of a 
 man who could not be unconscious of his own talents 
 and fame — elegantly dressed, but with chaste simplicity 
 — as he entered the room all rose from their seats to 
 greet and welcome the pride of New York." 
 
 From the hour of his arrival John Johnston was a 
 keen and intelligent observer of the customs and con- 
 ditions of his new country. He was favorably im- 
 pressed with its democratic institutions and had not 
 been here six months before he wrote, " I believe every 
 person who has resided in this country even for a short 
 time must confess that it is so far superior to Britain 
 
 [37] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 that generally speaking they will bear no compar- 
 ison." 
 
 His early letters are full of lively accounts of what- 
 ever seemed interesting in the life about him — political 
 events, industrial conditions, religious sects, etc., — and 
 were all carefully copied in his numerous letter books 
 before being sent to his friends in Scotland. Extracts 
 from a number of those written during his first year in 
 America are introduced w ithout further comment, trust- 
 ing th[it as they are descriptive of an early period in the 
 history of the republic their insertion is justified. 
 On government and religion: 
 
 " In this Country the people enjoy in an eminent 
 degree the benefits resulting from a good Government. 
 Here equality is established upon the best possible 
 principle — that of equal importance in the Common- 
 wealth. The poorest Citizen has his vote for the rulers 
 of the Land, & his vote is of as much weight as the 
 richest of his neighbours' — here you may either speak 
 or write your sentiments with the utmost freedom & 
 boldness respecting all the movements of Government; 
 their sentiments upon this subject being that there 
 must be a fault somewhere in that Government which 
 will not allow a free & open discussion of its procedure; 
 &: indeed this liberty so far from stirring up plots 
 against it seems to establish it upon the best possible 
 foundation — the abjection of the jjeople. 
 
 " To say the truth this country is very much mis- 
 represented on your side of the water, being talked of 
 as a place not only destitute of many of these temporal 
 conveniences which are enjoyed in Britain, but like- 
 wise of that invaluable blessing the means of Grace, 
 
 [38] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 as enjoyed under a Gospel ministry. Both of these 
 reports are equally false, and with regard to the latter 
 I believe I will not exceed the bounds of truth in 
 asserting that the part of it which I have seen is at 
 least equal if not superior, in point of religious oppor- 
 tunities to any nation in the world. The number of 
 churches in this city is almost beyond credibility." 
 On thieves and beggars : 
 
 " The Laws are mild & gentle — so mild indeed 
 that there has not been for many years an instance of 
 an individual suffering in this state by the hands of the 
 public executioner. 
 
 " Thefts, so far as I can learn, are very seldom com- 
 mitted & when they are, the culprit is confined for 
 such a time as the court thinks fit in a large building 
 called the State prison, where he is made to work for 
 his own maintenance, and if after repeated trials he 
 seem hardened & determined to persevere in his evil 
 courses, he is confined for life. This plan whilst it 
 lops off the rotten branches from the community, at 
 the same time saves them from having their feelings 
 shocked by seeing a fellow creature brought to an 
 untimely Grave, or their property burdened by sup- 
 porting them in needless idleness. 
 
 " The Government is easily maintained, the taxes 
 low & wages high. The people are consequently free 
 from another burden which I conceive falls heavy upon 
 the middling & lower orders of people in Scotland: 
 namely an immense number of common Beggars. No 
 such thing is to be seen here — indeed it would be a 
 shame if there were, as every person who is able to 
 work can find plenty of employment . . . 
 
 [39] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 " To say the truth I see none harder put to their 
 shifts than those of my own insignificant profession, 
 who generally wish to assume the appearance of 
 Gentlemen without having the means." 
 
 Jerome Bonaparte's return to France: 
 
 "About the beginning of June [1804] two French 
 Frigates, the Didon & Cybelle came to this Port for the 
 purpose of conveying home Mons. Jerome Bone., the first 
 Consul's Brother, — He had just got on board with his 
 Lady, — an American, whom he married since his 
 arrival, when to their consternation the British Frigate 
 Cambrimi & The Driver Sloop of War appeared in 
 the mouth of the river. This so scared poor Bone., 
 although the superiority both with regard to men & 
 Guns was greatly on his side, that the same night he 
 quietly disembarked his baggage, of which Madame 
 Jerome may be reckoned a part, & slunk up to the 
 City. To make the matter still worse, the Driver being 
 since gone, the Boston has succeeded her, a Frigate of 
 32 Guns, so to all appearance the poor frencli are re- 
 duced to the dreadful alternative of either fighting or 
 laying in the Harbor.— It does my heart good to see 
 the cowardly Poltroons lying close alongside the 
 Battery whilst our brave countrymen, although inferior 
 in force, are cruising off the Harbor and daring them 
 to come out." . . . "November 30. The French Frigates 
 mentioned in my last, I am sorry to say, have, notwith- 
 standing the vigilance of the British Cruisers, made 
 their escape. In order to effect this they were under 
 the necessity of passing through Hell Gate, a narrow & 
 dangerous sound at the head of Long Island, which 
 has made it proverbial, amongst the Anti-Democrats, 
 
 [40] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 that the French would rather enter the Gate of Hell 
 than meet with the British." 
 
 Advice to a friend about to come to America : 
 
 *' I shall now, as well as I am able, give you advice 
 preparatory to your Voyage — first with regard to your 
 mental accomplishments; — you must be studious to 
 acquire as complete a knowledge of the English lan- 
 guage as the time will admit of — be not ashamed to 
 speak good english, as the most of our countrymen are, 
 but study on all occasions to pronounce correctly & 
 construct Grammatically. I felt severe mortification 
 on my first arrival on account of a deficiency in both 
 these, as they are much attended to here. I pray you 
 attend particularly to writing a plain hand and to 
 spelling correctly; give me leave to tell you that in the 
 latter acquirement you are still a little deficient, — nor 
 must you think it beneath your notice to attend to the 
 little punctilio of making a genteel bow & entering a 
 company gracefully; — you will be introduced into some 
 good company here, & much depends upon the first 
 impression. 
 
 " Your clothes must not be made in the country stile, 
 but as near the London fashions, which are generally 
 prevalent here, as possible; mine were entirely lost on 
 account of awkward Tailorship; — it may be even 
 worth your while to go to Dumfries in order to have 
 them well made — (You may perhaps think these are 
 foppish or foolish observations, but upon your arrival 
 here you will see their propriety.) I wish some friend 
 had given me the same hints previous to my departure, 
 as it would have saved me a good deal of money; & 
 more mortification. 
 
 [41] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 "Clothing being greatly cheaper with you than 
 here you may, if your father can afford it, bring out 
 two fine Cloth Coats, hlack & blue, and one Coatee; 
 Two pair of Cloth Pantaloons to match the Coats; 
 One pair Cassimere Breaches, the Waistbands to come 
 at least above your middle; or say near your armpits, 
 From four to six vests, made short to match the Panta- 
 loons and Breaches; some flannel vests & Drawers; 
 one pair Suwarrow & one pair back strap Top Boots; 
 two or three pair Shoes and as many shirts & muslin 
 Neckcloths as you please . . . 
 
 "Nankeens can be bought cheaper here than with 
 you. You therefore need not trouble yourself about 
 them, neither need you bring any coloured neck cloths, 
 none of that description being here worn." 
 Admonition to a friend: 
 
 "I never shall lend a hand towards making you a 
 hypocrite, & therefore my advice is that if you cannot 
 write on religion you write on something else. Sup- 
 pose now for instance you begin your letter by inform- 
 ing him of your safe arrival & of your intention to 
 have written him sooner had you not been prevented 
 
 by . Next describe the place in a Geographical 
 
 Moral & Religious point of view — you can be very 
 particular in mentioning the number of places of wor- 
 ship, how the people attend & whether they are re- 
 ligiously disposed, then go on to state how you like 
 your situation & how you spend your time & close 
 with Compliments to Mrs. McClea etc." 
 On Methodists: 
 
 " The Methodists are much more numerous & 
 rapidly increasing; — but their conversions are attended 
 
 [42] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 with SO much uproar & confusion that 1 cannot help 
 being, with respect to them, a little sceptical. 
 
 " It really gives a handle to the Enemies of the Cross 
 to blaspheme & hurts the minds of serious Christians 
 to hear of their indecent & ridiculous Gestures & ex- 
 })ressions on such occasions. The work generally 
 begins after the minister has ended his sermon & has 
 come down from the Pulpit — One, or perhaj)s two, 
 begins to pray, in a little while a number will begin 
 to sing, others to utter broken exclamations & ejacu- 
 lations, leai)ing upon the Seats, gathering round & 
 sometimes even beating u})on the persons whom they 
 wish to convert, which together with the dreadful 
 ideas of hell & Damnation which are impressed upon 
 their minds, not unfrequently has the effect to frighten 
 them into Ilystericks; — in short a scene of riot & con- 
 fusion takes place which is much more easy for you to 
 conceive than for me to describe; and this is all ascribed 
 to the spirit of God! I had almost said that to ascribe 
 this to the Spirit of God was blasphemy, but I forbear. 
 
 "That there are a great number of serious & 
 Godly men amongst the Methodists I do firmly believe, 
 and how they can countenance & defend such enormi- 
 ties is what much astonishes me." 
 
 Eighteen months after leaving home John Johnston 
 was able to send William Johnston a note, which repaid 
 his loan of £23, with interest, and left a small balance. 
 This he wished expended in the best "Congo" and 
 presented in his name to his stepmother. As time 
 went on, he continued to send presents home — "braws" 
 for the girls, books for the boys, a dress for his step- 
 
 [43] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 mother — all of them small, but thoughtful, kindly 
 gifts. 
 
 One of his customs, started when he first began to 
 earn money, was to give, conscientiously, one-tenth of 
 his yearly income to the poor, and he adhered faith- 
 fully to this principle even in these early days, when a 
 small sum of money was very important to him. 
 
 After a couple of years he had saved enough to 
 make some small "adventures," shipping raisins and 
 cheeses to New Orleans to be disposed of by James 
 Johnston, a brother of William and George, and im- 
 porting watches from Kirkcudbright — "a dashing ar- 
 ticle," he wrote, "is the thing for this market no matter 
 what be its quality." The business sagacity with which 
 these early affairs were handled gave promise of his 
 commercial success in later years. His next transac- 
 tion was more important. In 1808 he sent "600 
 Spanish milled dollars" to be invested in Calcutta by 
 the supercargo of one of Lenox & Maitland's ships, 
 appropriately named the Galloivay. This was his first 
 large venture and yielded him $300 profit. 
 
 About this time he began to consider his future 
 prospects and to debate with himself as to the best 
 course to pursue. To one of his friends in Scotland he 
 wrote, "I used to look forward to this period as the 
 one in which I should attain unto almost absolute 
 happiness," but a feeling of uncertainty as to the 
 future made him add later: "A wish naturally per- 
 vades the breast of every prudent person to look be- 
 yond the present even in temporal things. I am now 
 in the vigor of youth and whilst my summer lasts I 
 ought to prepare for winter. That I may be enabled 
 
 [44] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 to visit my native country with a small competence 
 and spend my last days in peace amongst my friends 
 is the bounds of my ambition." James Johnston had 
 made him an offer of $1,200 a year to join him in busi- 
 ness in New Orleans, and although grateful to Mr. Lenox 
 for his interest and kindness, John was tempted to 
 accept it. He delayed his decision, writing: "There 
 are some in Newyork to whose friendship I owe much 
 & by whose counsel I wish to be guided (you will 
 easily guess that your bror. & Messrs. L & M are the 
 persons alluded to) and as I have not yet learned how 
 some of them will relish it I must be contented to rest 
 in suspense a little longer." 
 
 Before the winter of 1808 was over, Mr. Maitland 
 promised that if the times should warrant sending the 
 Galloway out to Bombay, they would offer John the 
 supercargoship, which would be worth from $2,000 
 to $3,000. As the voyage would take only one year, 
 John thought the offer a good one and consequently 
 relinquished for the time being all other projects. 
 
 One of Lenox & Maitland's chief reasons for hesi- 
 tating to send the Galloway to India was the disturbed 
 state of commerce due to the strained relations with 
 England. The second war of independence was yet 
 to be fought and England was doing all she could to 
 bring it on by sending men-of-war to cruise the high 
 seas and overhaul our vessels. We were also being 
 hectored by the French, who were constantly molest- 
 ing our ships. To protect our sailors and in the hope 
 of avoiding war Jefferson, on December 22, 1807, 
 had issued the Embargo Act, prohibiting the sailing 
 of ships from the United States to foreign ports. 
 
 [45] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 The effect of this act on the country, is well described 
 in the following extract from a letter of February 10, 
 1808: "The Democratic mob, which predominates in 
 this Government, has been loud for a War with Great 
 Britain, a measure which would most unquestionably 
 have proved ruinous to the commercial part of the 
 Community. An Embargo which was laid on about 
 six weeks ago, & which still continues, has however 
 done w^onders in restoring them to sanity. Hunger is a 
 Potent reasoner & many of these very ragamuffins who 
 were bellowing for bloodshed & eternal war rather 
 than submit to immaginary insults, are now, convinced 
 by dint of his arguments, mild & gentle as lambs, and 
 praying for a repeal of the Embargo & a renewal of 
 our intercourse upon any terms. 
 
 "The truth is that this country swarms with an 
 Irish Banditti, who having been robbers & murderers 
 at home & thereby exposed to the just chastisement 
 of the laws, have fled to this country for refuge, cher- 
 ishing the most deadly enmity against G. Britain. 
 They are here received with open arms as Persecuted 
 for the cause of liberty . . . 
 
 "Fortunately however they display as little economy 
 here as they do at home, and although wages are high, 
 yet they are still in poverty, & consequently are the 
 very first to feel the baneful effects of their own coun- 
 sels. 
 
 "So it is in the present instance, — business is sus- 
 pended, — they are in a state of starvation, — the Poor's 
 house & every other public Charity in this City is 
 crowded, & many hundreds yet un})rovided for & 
 living upon the liberality of the Public. If such are 
 
 [46] 
 
BEGINNINGS IN NEW YORK 
 
 the effects of a temporary suspension of commerce, 
 what would the effects of a War be!" He added, with 
 the pride of a quite new" American, "If you go to war 
 with us from whence do you intend to draw your 
 suppHes?" 
 
 In May of the same year he gave this account of the 
 situation : 
 
 "The Government has been bullied by the french, 
 and, I am sorry to say it, bullied by the English until, 
 in order to avoid a war with the one or the other, or 
 perhaps with both, it has been under the necessity of 
 laying an Embargo in all the American Ports which 
 has continued since the ;2'2nd Decemr. What effects 
 this measure may ultimately produce it is impossible 
 to say; but at present it has produced abundance of 
 distress. There being no vent for produce of any kind 
 it lies rotting in the stores; the Shi})s are laid up in 
 Port & the Sailors thrown upon the charity of the pub- 
 lic; commerce is entirely suspended & consequently 
 innumerable clerks, mechanicks, & laborers dependant 
 thereon, [are] deprived of the means of subsisting 
 themselves & their families — there is however some 
 consolation in reflecting that we have provisions 
 enough in the country, «Jc whilst that is the case we 
 will scarcely starve." 
 
 Now followed a year of uncertainty and weary 
 waiting for the embargo to be raised, which, however, 
 did not take place until March, 1809. John did not 
 waste his time, but wrote to his father: "As the 
 french language seems to bid fair for becoming uni- 
 versal, I now dedicate every spare minute to its study. 
 ... I have removed into a French boarding House for 
 
 [47] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 the purpose of acquiring the language with greater 
 facility; you would be much amused to see me sitting 
 at table with 18 or 20 ugly looking fellows with huge 
 whiskers, swallowing french soups & Ragouts, amidst 
 the delightful perfumes of onions & Garlick. I pay 
 <£100 pr. annum for my Board & have a room to 
 myself." 
 
 He devoted some time also to amusement, having 
 fine sport on the ice while engaged in the Scotch 
 pastime of "curling," and wrote William Johnston 
 that he had become a tolerable player, asking, "Pray 
 what would a handsome stone cost fitted complete, 
 with 'Kirkcudbright' engraved on it?" 
 
CHAPTER III 
 VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 1809-1811 
 
 THE coninierce of tlie count ry once more })eing 
 considered safe, Lenox & Maitland concluded 
 to send the Galloway back to India, and John 
 prepared for his important position as supercargo. 
 This was a great res})onsibility for a young man of 
 only twenty-eighty and the letter of instructions he 
 received is worth quoting as an interesting commercial 
 document of the times as well as an expression of his 
 employers' confidence in his judgment and integrity. 
 
 "J. Lenox & W. Maitland, New York, to 
 John Johnston, Supercargo. 
 
 7 May, 1809. 
 "Dear Sir: 
 
 "As joint owners of the Ship Galloway with our 
 friend Mr. Robert Lenox, and Ship's husbands, we 
 have to address you on the subject of your charge as 
 Supercargo of this Vessel; and we promise that we 
 have great satisfaction in believing that it is only 
 necessary, as in the present instance it is indeed only 
 practicable, to give the outline of our scheme, that 
 
 [49] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 from your sound, correct judgment, and the full 
 verbal conversation we have had, you will be enabled 
 to act in the case equal to one of ourselves. The 
 voyage we propose is to Bombay with the cargo she 
 has on board, where we expect it will answer well, 
 from thence to Mocha for a load of Coffee, intending 
 with the same to return immediately to this port. We 
 do not foresee any difficulty in accomplishing our 
 object. We naturally presume from the state of Europe, 
 as well as this Country for a length of time, that Coffee 
 must be abundant, and unusually low at Mocha — 
 indeed we shoidd not be sur})rised you found it plenty 
 at Bombay and be enabled, especially with the aid of 
 part pej)per to procure a cargo there that may be de- 
 sirable, and supersede the necessity of proceeding 
 further. But on this head, as well as generally what 
 it may be prudent to adopt, you will be able to obtain 
 full information at Bombay. 
 
 "You have a letter from our friend Mr. Ilogan to 
 Nasserwanjee Monackjee, Sett, a Dubark, or man of 
 l)usiness, a Native, to whom it is preferable to aj^ply 
 than to any European house — indeed they themselves 
 employ them. Nasserwanjee is reputed a person in his 
 line of the highest respectability. You will therefore 
 immediately call u})on him. He will assist you in your 
 Custom House business, and advise as to the best 
 mode of disposing of your cargo. Such a one as the 
 Galloway has on board may in general be got rid of 
 in an hour, to the Naval Store Keeper of the Crown, 
 or the Marine Store Keeper of the Com})any — but 
 perha})s it may be more advantageous to dispose of it 
 otherwise. Native or European Merchants may prob- 
 
 [50] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 ably give more for it than Public Departments. The 
 Dubark however, will be master of this subject. He 
 will also know at once whether a return cargo of 
 Coffee, or Pej^per, both or either, can be had at Bom- 
 bay, and if it is found necessary for the Ship to proceed 
 to Mocha, will be enabled to give the needful informa- 
 tion as to the mode of doing business there, as also U) 
 furnish letters to persons who may be useful. Business 
 in Bombay we are led to believe is done with great 
 facility and dispatch, and is attended with less expense 
 than in almost any other port in India. The Native 
 agent has usually 2^ pr. Ct. on sales and purchases, 
 which he is supposed fully to earn. It will however, 
 of course be proper to come first to an understanding 
 on this head, in order to prevent anything like a dis- 
 agreement afterwards. 
 
 "Your funds we expect will be ample, having in 
 addition to Cargo, Fifty thousand Dollars s})ecie. 
 Indeed if the outward Cargo sells, and that in return 
 is laid in, as we conceived we have some ground to 
 expect, you nmst have a considerable surplus. This 
 surplus if not of great importance had better be dis- 
 posed of in some articles of value, and little bulk — 
 Say Drugs of a description well understood, or any 
 other articles you may better approve of. But if your 
 extra funds should amount to a sum of moment, and 
 you see nothing advisable to invest them in on the spot, 
 then we would recommend your remitting them to 
 Calcutta to Ram Dalol Day, to be laid out in such 
 goods as from the best of his information he may judge 
 for our interest, and the same ship, giving us due 
 advice for insurance, to any port in the U. States, pre- 
 
 [51] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 ferring of course New York. Your compensation, as 
 understood, will be Two thousand Dollars paid in 
 Bombay, with five tons privilege. 
 
 "We know not that we have much further to say 
 on this subject, though important. As we have already 
 stated we have the greatest reliance in your ability, 
 zeal and attachment to the interest you have in charge, 
 and we must necessarily, from the nature of the under- 
 taking, leave much to your discretion. Not doubting 
 the result will prove this confidence to be well placed 
 and with faith also that the Voyage will terminate 
 profitably and satisfactorily to all parties, we are with 
 best wishes for your health and very sincere regard 
 "Dear Sir — Your obt. Servants 
 
 "J. Lenox & W. Maitland." 
 
 Before starting on this hazardous voyage John 
 "insured" his adventure, writing to his father: 
 
 "It may not be amiss to mention that my Bureau, 
 papers, & that part of my clothes which will not be 
 wanted in India, or on the voyage, are left in the pos- 
 session of Messrs. Lenox & Maitland, as will be 
 policies of Insurance on my adventure pr. the Gallo- 
 way. I will likewise leave written instructions how 
 my small property is to be disposed of in case of any 
 accident happening to me before my return." 
 
 On May 20, 1809, he set sail and began his 
 "Journal," in which he recorded that "The Ships 
 Company consists of The Captain, two Mates, Boat- 
 swain, Carpenter, Sailmaker, Cook, Steward, & Eleven 
 Seamen say in all Nineteen, exclusive of myself." No 
 sooner had they passed Sandy Hook, which took them 
 
 [52] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 three days, than nearly all the "seamen" became sea- 
 sick and the Captain discovered that very few of them 
 had ever been on the ocean before. 
 
 John kept a full account of this leisurely voyage to 
 the Orient. Being intent on improving his French, 
 he wrote his journal in that language, using formal 
 and stilted verbs, as for instance, when he described 
 the harpooning of a "Goulu" (shark) "lequel nous 
 empoignames" or when he said "nous decouvrimes 
 deux grands vaisseaux." After a month in which they 
 made little progress, he remarked pathetically, "Je 
 suis bien fatigue de repeter toujours qu'il y a un temps 
 calme, mais nonobstant il Test encore"! 
 
 Notwithstanding the calm, which naturally made 
 the time hang heavily on their hands, they had some 
 amusing incidents, especially, when, as he wrote, one 
 of the sows " nous a donne sept cochons de lait," or 
 when the cook, having forgotten to prepare the cabin 
 dinner, "re(^'u une application de vingt coups (deux de 
 chacun des matelots) d'une petite planche a la croupe." 
 This punishment was repeated whenever he spoilt a 
 meal. On days when the water was smooth John and 
 the Captain had a boat lowered "et ramcrent autour 
 du Batiment pour voir comment il se porta." Once 
 they had a "fausse bataille," firing five salvos of all 
 their artillery to train the sailors in the use of arms. 
 
 They were in a constant state of apprehension lest 
 they should meet a French frigate, and even the sight 
 of an English flag did not completely reassure them, 
 as this was often used as a ruse and another flag sub- 
 stituted at the last moment. Accordingly they were 
 rather alarmed by the approach of a large vessel which, 
 
 [53] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 however, turned out to be a Portuguese brigantine on 
 its way to Rio de Janeiro with a cargo of slaves. A 
 fatal malady had already carried off fifty-two of the 
 poor wretches, but five hundred and twenty-four were 
 still packed in the hold. John sent all his home letters 
 through the Portuguese Captain, — a roundabout way 
 of getting them delivered in New York — and the 
 Captain presented him by the return boat with a few 
 oranges and a small box of sugar plums. 
 
 Finally, on September 9th, the Galloway ap- 
 proached land, and believing that he was near Bom- 
 bay, but not being sure on account of the fog, the 
 Captain sent the first officer and five men ashore in a 
 boat to ascertain. After anxiously awaiting their re- 
 turn for twenty-four hours, he gave up all hope of ever 
 seeing the men again and was weighing anchor, wdien 
 a large native "Prow" appeared with the boat in tow. 
 It was then explained that the Rajah in whose province 
 they had landed had put the men under guard im- 
 mediately upon arrival, but being finally "convinced 
 that they were English he used them with great civility 
 giving them victuals and sending the Prow with a pilot 
 to conduct [the Galloway] to Bombay." 
 
 That afternoon, September 10, 1809, the one 
 hundred and eleventh day of their voyage, John John- 
 ston and Captain Pray landed in Bombay. The entry 
 in John's journal gives a vivid description of his first 
 hours on Indian soil: 
 
 " At 12 o'clock we were almost abreast of Bombay 
 when a Pilot came off & desired us to lay too until the 
 governor's permission should be obtained for our com- 
 ing in — a horde of officers from the Custom House 
 
 [54] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 marine office, & Garrison shortly after hoarded us to 
 whom I was ohhged to furnish Manifests of the Cargo, 
 lists of the Seamen &c. &:c, 
 
 "About 2 o'clock went ashore, accompanied by 
 Captain Pray & immediately was surrounded with a 
 whole Legion of Umbrella men, with the greatest 
 difficulty after employing one, I made my way for a 
 few paces, when it was literally blocked up by Palan- 
 quins — into one I was forced to get, & the Captain 
 having got into another we were carried to Nasserwan- 
 jee's. Here we were introduced, after passing through 
 a number of splendid apartments, to the great man 
 reclining u})on his So})ha like an Eastern Prince, he 
 treated us with great civility & seated us by him — 
 after transacting the preliminary business with Nasser- 
 wanjee we were carried to the House of the Intendant 
 of Marines where we were likewise received with great 
 civility, I had previously sent him a file of American 
 Newspapers for which he returned many thanks & 
 desired we would command him in whatever he could 
 be made useful. — at 6 o'clock we again returned on 
 board the Ship." 
 
 On their return to the ship it was found that "The 
 Capt. of the Iphigcnia Frigate has been on board & 
 impressed two Seamen . . . both Americans, but who 
 had no protections." John visited the Captain and 
 remonstrated, but to no effect and never succeeded in 
 having the seamen restored. 
 
 As it was impossible to })rocure any boarding place 
 on shore and equally impossible to transact Mr. 
 Johnston's business from the ship, he rented a house 
 and transferred the necessary furnishings from the 
 
 [53] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 vessel. A letter to Samuel Haining gives an account 
 of his household, together with the Eastern customs 
 that struck him as the most strange; it repeats the 
 account of his landing with so much spirit that the 
 letter is quoted entire. 
 
 "I arrived at Bombay on a Sunday & went on 
 shore in the midst of a shower of rain. No sooner did 
 my foot touch the ground than I was surrounded with 
 a legion of umbrella men, who all eagerly offered their 
 services. It was in vain that I urged my ability to 
 carry my own umbrella, & brandished it in my defence, 
 I was soon disarmed, and a dozen competitors in suc- 
 cession erected their standard over my head. In order 
 to put an end to the contest I selected one & by his 
 assistance made my way for about twenty yards when 
 my passage was literally blocked up with Palanquins; 
 into one I was forced to get hoping thus to avoid perse- 
 cution; but my hopes were vain, the other bearers 
 pushed mine away, insisting that the Palanquin was 
 not so good as theirs & that I should therefore change 
 it. Seeing no prospect of a termination to this dispute, 
 and my patience being fairly exhausted, I got out & 
 used a few arguments in the old Oxonian stile, which 
 were so perfectly convincing that I was suffered to 
 proceed without farther molestation. 
 
 "Next day I hired a house for the transaction of 
 my business, & desired a native agent to procure me 
 the necessary number of servants, and how many do 
 you think he employed, why truly no fewer than 
 seventeen! I was amazed when this retinue made its 
 appearance, and demanded what I was to do with 
 them all; he told me I had not one too many, & so I 
 
 [56] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 afterwards found it, for every one had his own province 
 out of which he would not do the smallest service. One, 
 for instance, would carry water to wash your hands; 
 but that once done, nothing could prevail on him again 
 to touch it; — a second calls himself doorkeeper & will 
 do nothing but open the door in the morning, stand 
 by it all day & shut it at night; — a third can sweep the 
 House & rub the furniture, but cannot brush your 
 coat or clean your shoes; — the Pjdanquin bearers would 
 sooner leave your service than touch a dish that had 
 been on your table; & so on with all the rest. 
 
 "These regulations are made l)y the Brahmins & 
 nujy be considered as a remarkable stroke of Policy 
 for the population of India is so immense that were 
 the natives permitted to perform indiscriminate service, 
 a great })roportion of the lower casts nuist necessarily 
 perish for want of Employment. The Europeans have 
 so zealously gone into this custom that they keep a 
 native for every, even the most trifling service; 1 saw 
 many whose sole business was morning & evening to 
 lead out a Dog! and no European, Soldiers & Sailors 
 excepted, appears in the Street without his Palanquin 
 & Umbrella following in rear, whether he intends to 
 use them or not, which requires at least five, sometimes 
 nine servants. 
 
 "The wages paid ordinary servants are only 13|6 
 Stg. pr. month, from which they have to find themselves 
 & their families in food, and yet strange to tell! they 
 save money; & stranger still, the money so saved is 
 laid out in clumsy silver rings which however painful 
 or inconvenient, they wear on their bare arms, in- 
 tending that when they die the rings may purchase 
 
 [57] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 wood to consume the body. They generally go naked, 
 with the exception of a Hkf passed between the thighs 
 & fastened to a Girdle. They are perpetually quarrel- 
 ing & will bawl at one another by the hour, but seldom 
 come to blows; if they do, it is only a stroke with the 
 open hand which I never saw returned. Every thing 
 is here performed by manual labor, a Horse & Cart 
 I suppose was never seen in the place — it is not there- 
 fore uncommon to see a number of these poor wretches 
 staggering along with the mast ... of a 74 on their 
 shoulders. . . . 
 
 "The Persians of the Sect of Zoroaster are very 
 numerous in Bombay, & every morning & evening 
 are to be seen without the walls in hundreds pros- 
 trating themselves in religious adoration before the 
 Sun. I had several conversations with them, and 
 found that their opinions are by no means so absurd 
 as they are generally represented. Their ideas of 
 God, of the Creation, the Deluge, Heaven & Hell are 
 nearly the same with our own; as are likewise their 
 views of the moral duties. They perform frequent 
 ablutions after the manner of the jews, shave the head 
 & chin, but suffer the beard to grow on the upper lip; 
 dress in long muslin Robes, some-what resembling the 
 the long-waisted Gowns of our Grandmothers, & 
 wear turbans. 
 
 " I drank tea twice at the House of a Persee merchant 
 with whom I had some dealings, and never before saw 
 apartments so spacious or furniture so splendid. The 
 Persees drank from Silver Cuj)s of a peculiar structure, 
 which they suffered not to touch their lips, that being 
 reckoned an abomination, and immediately after the 
 
 [58] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 repast they carefully washed their mouths: — this they 
 never omit not even after drinking a Glass of wine. 
 My table, for every Guest had his own table, was 
 furnished with China &c. the whole of which I was 
 afterwards told would be destroyed as polluted & 
 unfit for use; for they never eat or drink out of a vessel 
 after it has been used by a European . . . 
 
 "Their women are kept in the greatest privacy & 
 never suffered to appear before strangers. Once how- 
 ever I was, by the mistake of the servant, introduced 
 while they were in the room. I spoke but they did not 
 seem to understand me, & retired with seeming con- 
 fusion. They were dressed with a profusion of jewels 
 & ornaments but their clothes hung on them in a loose 
 inelegant manner, and some of them had large Gold 
 rings stuck into their nose, which made them per- 
 fectly frightful. They marry very young & the bargain 
 is uniformly made by the parents without consulting 
 the parties. In this House I saw a young couple, the 
 husband appeared to be about four & the wife three 
 years of age! By their law the Girls mi(sf be married 
 before they are 9 years old!" 
 
 Nasserwanjee was a highly educated and intelligent 
 Parsee. John and he had long talks about this sect, 
 and the latter spent part of a forenoon "relating the 
 particulars of the first emigration of his caste from 
 Persia; the former ambition & riches, but present pov- 
 erty & wretchedness of their Padries, or Priests, who 
 are supported principally by charity and are prohib- 
 ited from marrying out of their own cast so that their 
 misery becomes hereditary, & continually increases 
 as their numbers increase." 
 
 [59] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 The Parsee felt a sense of responsibility toward 
 these poorer brethren, as John had the opportunity of 
 witnessing before long. " Passing this man's office one 
 morning I observed a crowd at the door & stepping in 
 found all his Clerks busy in distributing ready made 
 clothing; he told me it was the Persee New Years Day 
 at which time he had long been in the habit of distrib- 
 uting among the poor about 2,000 Rupees (<£250 
 Sterlg.) in clothes & money. The other Persee mer- 
 chants, I was informed, made similar distributions 
 according to their circumstances." 
 
 The two men became warm friends, corresponded 
 for a number of years, and the American thereafter 
 had a portrait of the East Indian hanging in his New 
 York dining-room. The latter showed him many at- 
 tentions, frequently sending him fruit, flowers, kegs of 
 mangoes, etc., and once presenting him with "a very 
 large He-goat." 
 
 John drove out in Nasserwanjee's carriage to his 
 country house, "a Superb Palace" surrounded by 
 beautiful grounds. The Parsee's son treated him with 
 "a collation of fruits &c," but did not eat with him 
 himself, and "when he drank rolled a Hkf round his 
 hand to prevent it from touching the Glass." This 
 matter-of-fact Scotsman seemed to enjoy to a sur- 
 prising degree drinking tea "in the Garden by the 
 side of a delightful Pond, the Oranges hanging over 
 head & ready to drop into the cups." The English 
 residents, as well, did all that they could to make his 
 stay pleasant, their entertainments being "set out 
 with all the Luxuries of the East & served with Eastern 
 splendor." 
 
 [GO] 
 
XASSERWAXJKK M( )X.\( KJKE 
 
 SETT 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 The business dealings, however, were not so agree- 
 able: "It is extremely difficult to push any business 
 in this place as many of the Native merchants reside 
 in the country & do not come to Town before 10 or 
 11 o'clock — they carry the Keys of their respective 
 Godowns in their Pockets which prevents their Clerks 
 & Coolies even from delivering Goods until they ai-e 
 present. The greatest difficulties however is with the 
 latter mentioned Gentlemen who uniformly prefer 
 sitting on their hams to working — they can scarcely be 
 collected before 1|2 past 10 o'clock, they break off 
 again at 5, & should I in the interval step out of the 
 door for a moment the business remains in statu quo 
 until my return. ... It is impossible to do any business 
 with the Persees & Banians without seemins: to be in 
 a passion, . . . but when you seem to get into a passion, 
 the more violent the better, it generally brings the 
 business to a speedy conclusion. . . . Cheating is here 
 reduced to a System. A Gentoo merchant is not at 
 all ashamed when you delect his weights light or his 
 measures short." 
 
 At the same time that he was making every eft'ort 
 to sell his American goods to advantage, he was also 
 purchasing his return cargo, and it was hard for him 
 to decide which of these transactions was the more 
 unsatisfactory and exasperating. The native merchants 
 bought the brandy and gin readily, but Mr. Johnston 
 had much difficulty in disposing of his tar and spars. 
 
 The story of his efforts in this direction is told by 
 extracts from his journal : 
 
 "Sept. 12th. Called at Nasserwanjee's — found that 
 he had seen the Marine agent who considers our quan- 
 
 [Gl] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 tity of Tar much too large for this market. — He how- 
 ever wishes to know the price at which I hold it. After 
 some conversation & reference to Nasserwanjee's 
 former sales, directed him to ask 20 Rupees pr Bbl for 
 the whole. Went to the King's & the Company's 
 yards to see some spars brought by the late Ships from 
 Europe in order to fix the price of my own — returned 
 to N-Wanjee's who promised to procure the prices 
 from the Company's Books. 
 
 "Sept. 14th. In the afternoon received permission 
 from the Governor to discharge our cargo but we can- 
 not begin until we receive the Marine Intendant's 
 answer to an offer we have made him of the Naval 
 Stores — say the Tar at 20 Rupees pr. Bbl & the Spars 
 from 160 to 240 Rupees as in size. 
 
 "Sept. 16th. Mr. Dundas (the Kings commissioner) 
 sent for Nasserwanjee and after a long conversation 
 respecting our cargo, in which he did not fail to under- 
 value the Naval Stores of which it is composed, promised 
 to make an offer for the whole or a }:)art on Tuesday 
 morning. 
 
 "Sept. 19th. Called on Mr. Dundas by his appoint- 
 ment to receive his definitive answer respecting the Tar 
 & Spars, when after pronouncing an eulogy on Arch- 
 angel Tar & Rigo Spars, & stigmatizing those of 
 America as comparatively good for nothing, he in- 
 formed me that he declined purchasing; it was in vain 
 that I represented the impossibility of obtaining a 
 supply from the Baltic in the present situation of 
 Europe. He continued absolutely to decline the Tar 
 at any price, but said he might jx'rhaps take a feiv of 
 the spars if the prices were greatly reduced. As a last 
 
 [62] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 resource made an offer of the Tar to the Governor at 
 15 Rupees pr. Barrel, or if he prefers it, to barter for 
 Malabar Pepper at 80 Rupees pr. Candy. 
 
 "Sept. S'^nd. No answer from the Governor re- 
 specting our Tar. I how feel great uneasiness on that 
 account. 
 
 "Sept. 23rd. Went to the Secretary's office to learn 
 whether the Governor had communicated any thing 
 to him respecting an answer to my Note of 19th Inst. — 
 he said that I would have an answer in the course of 
 the day; & that he believed the Governor declined the 
 Tar. Waited impatiently for the answer all day but 
 received none. 
 
 "Sept. 25tli. Received a Letter from the Secretary 
 stating that the Governor declined the Tar & had no 
 Pepper for sale — called on Mr. Dundas respecting the 
 spars & received the same shuffling kind of an answer 
 as formerly that it was likely he might take some of 
 them at a loiv price but he did not know how many or 
 of what size — he would examine & let me know &c. 
 
 "Sept. 27th. Was exceedingly mortified to find 
 that a person who had been treating for the Barter of 
 Piece Goods agt. our Tar had withdrawn his oft'er & 
 relinquished the idea of purchasing. 
 
 "Sept. 28th. Nasserwanjee . . . procured a place for 
 the storage of the Spars. 
 
 "Sept. 29tli. Commenced Landing the Spars & 
 carrying them into one of the Company's Stores. Went 
 to Nasserwanjee's & examined musters of Sural Goods 
 offered in Exchange for the Tar — found they would not 
 answer. 
 
 "Sept. 30th. Found it would be impossible to dis- 
 
 [63] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 pose of the Tar in any other way than by bartering it 
 against the Piece Goods mentioned yesterday — the 
 most therefore that could be done was to get the most 
 unsaleable part rejected & 100 Gorges of Company's 
 Nankeens . . . substituted in their place . . . the balance 
 of the amt. at 8 1|4 Rupees pr. Barrel, to be paid in 
 Cash. Whatever part of the Tar, if any, is taken by 
 the Military Board (from which an answer has not 
 yet been received) to be deducted & we to receive the 
 Price of the same — closed the Bargain on these terms, 
 exceedingly glad to get it off our hands at any thing 
 like prime cost; as the highest price offered in the 
 Bazar, & that for small quantities, was 5 Rupees, 
 
 "Oct. Cth. Deferred the delivery of Tar until the 
 answer of the Military Board shall be received . . . 
 reed, secret Intelligence that the Military Board intentl 
 to take only one hundred Barrels of Tar. 
 
 "Oct. 8th, Sunday. Had a visit from Nasserwanjee 
 who says that the Military Board will take 200 Barrels 
 of Tar if the price is reduced to 10 Rupees. Disgusted 
 at the mean & paltry spirit that could descend to 
 hammer us down below Vl Rupees (the price we asked 
 for it) when they have been paying, before our arrival, 
 40 to 45 Rupees pr. Barrel, I directed N. to inform 
 them that no reduction in price would be made. 
 
 "Oct. 16th. Addressed a Note to Mr. Newnham, 
 again requesting the answer of the Military Board re- 
 specting the Tar." 
 
 The journal does not tell us which of these ex- 
 tremely unsatisfactory customers finally purchased the 
 "tar and spars." 
 
 Nasserwanjee sold his Spanish dollars for him by 
 
 [04] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 weight, they netting him "226 Rupees per Ct." The 
 return cargo consisted mostly of pepper, and in this 
 also the natives tried to cheat by selling pepper mixed 
 with dust or with tares. He had to guard against false 
 measures being given him; as he writes, "they had 
 made their calculation to save 1 pound in 5(5, had I 
 not detected them by procuring a just weight & prov- 
 ing the others by it." Large quantities of drugs- 
 castor oil, gum arable, olibanum, etc. — were also 
 ordered. 
 
 Becoming exceedingly anxious to hurry the depart- 
 ure of the Galloway, he urged Nasserwanjee "to use 
 every exertion to dispose of the remaining cargo & 
 compleat the purchases as the only remaining hopes 
 of making a good Voyage rested on getting home before 
 the other Amrn. Ships." But the delays were intermi- 
 nable, the excuse being repeatedly made that the day 
 was a "Gentoo holiday," or the "Persee New Years 
 Day," on which no business could be transacted. 
 "Even Nasserwanjee's men," he complained, "were in 
 the confederacy against me." 
 
 He was now in an extreme state of exasperation and 
 found that strong measures were necessary. "Exces- 
 sively mortified & disappointed went home & wrote 
 a very sharp Note to Nasserwanjee, informing him 
 that I absolutely would not be trifled with in the man- 
 ner I had been, — that he must have the Pepper delivered 
 as fast as the Ship could receive it — that it was a thing 
 altogether out of the question, a thing which I had 
 never before heard of, that a Seller should have the 
 privilege of delivering his Goods just as he thought 
 proper & that at the rate in which the Pepper was now 
 
 [65] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 preparing (50 or 100 Bags pr. Day) I should not detain 
 the vShip at an expence of 300 Rupees pr. Day to wait 
 for it; but wd. rather carry her home with what I had 
 got, remitting my funds to Bengal." 
 
 On his own account, being allow ed five tons privilege, 
 he bought valuable articles which did not occupy much 
 space — drugs, nutmegs, a cask of castor oil, baskets 
 of dates, cornelian stones for seals, cornelian necklaces, 
 strings of pearls, and " 1 Box & 1 Bale of Piece Goods." 
 The latter consisted of "Seersuckers, Bandanoes," etc., 
 and included beautiful large silk handkerchiefs (yellows, 
 browns, blacks and reds, with sometimes touches of green) 
 many of which he kept for his own use. These were, 
 in later years, greatly admired by his grandchildren. 
 
 After fifty days of hard work the lading was com- 
 pleted, and John sounded a last note of vexation when 
 he exclaimed: 
 
 "A whole Host of Servants, Coolies, Boatmen &c. 
 &c. indeed all that ever I had employed in the place 
 [assembled] to bid me 'Selaum' (Good Bye,) & 
 receive their Bows. Knowing it to be the uniform 
 custom to give these people something I could not well 
 get over it, but considering myself under no great obli- 
 gations to them I was determined to give as little as 
 possible. Between them & Nasserwanjee's Clerks & 
 Comprodores &c. &c. I was however obliged to part 
 with from 40 to 50 Rupees." 
 
 The Parsee, as a parting gift, presented to his 
 friend a camel's hair shawl for himself, but any grati- 
 fication John felt at this friendly act failed to com- 
 pensate for his unpleasant business experiences, which 
 evoked the following entry in his journal: — "I never 
 
 [66] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 have felt less reluctance in parting from any place 
 than I do in leaving Bombay. In it I have to be sure 
 met with much personal civility; but in the way of 
 business I have met with a continued series of vexation 
 & disappointment." 
 
 The voyage to New York occupied nearly four 
 months. "One afternoon, the Vessel being surrounded 
 with shoals of Blackfish and the calm continuing, we 
 lowered down the Boat and went out after them. After 
 rowing about backwards and forwards among them 
 for about two hours one of them was struck & got 
 along side — he measured l-^ feet in length & we sup- 
 posed his weight to be 10 Cwt. His Blubber was 
 stripped off for oil, two or three cwt. of his flesh (for 
 in its taste it bears not the least resemblance to fish) 
 for eating, and its Jaws for the Ivory teeth." 
 
 Some days later the captain saw three brigs, which, 
 as they showed no flags, were presumed to be French 
 privateers or pirates. John remarked, " We accordingly 
 triced up our boarding net ... & being determined to 
 sell our ship as dear as we could, we called all hands 
 to quarters, loaded our Guns & prepared for action." 
 But their marksmanship remained untested, for at the 
 last moment the brigs hoisted the English colors. At 
 another time they spoke a sloop and found that the 
 captain had been insane for twenty-five days and that 
 the first oflScer had drowmed himself. The Galloway 
 supplied the crew with much-needed provisions, and 
 from a l)rig met soon afterwards Capt. Pray in turn 
 received "Rum, Potatoes & 2 Newspapers." These 
 sea visits and exchanges of small luxuries or necessities 
 were quite a matter of course in those days. 
 
 [67] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 The vessel reached its wharf in West Street Feb- 
 ruary 19, 1810, after an absence of nine months, and 
 on the following day John wrote to Samuel Haining: 
 "The business of a Supercargo is so much to my liking, 
 affording opportunities of seeing different countries. & 
 . . . furnishing also abundant time for indulging my 
 propensity to reading, and what may perhaps have 
 some influence, yielding certain, sometimes large profits, 
 that should another opportunity offer this spring I 
 think it probable I might again be tempted' to visit the 
 Oriental regions." 
 
 This "opportunity" was soon offered to him and 
 in April he wrote to his father: "Finding Commerce 
 completely at a stand and no prospect of doing much 
 Good ashore I have resolved upon another voyage to 
 India & will, I expect, sail about the end of next month 
 or perhaps sooner." 
 
 Accordingly^ on May 20, 1810, a year to a day from 
 the date of his first departure for India, he sailed once 
 more for Bombay. On the voyage over, he describes 
 an "almost miraculous escape from shipwreck." 
 
 "Having been making Southing by the Compass 
 throughout the night we thought ourselves safe from 
 all but the Madagascar shore: — the Ship was then put 
 about & was standing to Westward & had just sounded 
 with 150 fathoms line without finding bottom; when 
 all at once, the night being dark, a range of tremendous 
 breakers appeared close under our lee-bow. The Ship 
 had scarcely got under way from sounding & was hap- 
 pily got about in the moment — one minute more would 
 have decided our fate as the Bowsprit, in putting about, 
 extended to the rocks over which the water was break- 
 
 [68] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 iiig almost as liigli as the masts. . . . Found that it was 
 the reef of Breakers, noticed last year, which extend 
 from the Southern extremity of Juan de nova towards 
 the eastward. We had been drifted north by the 
 strength of the current full 17 miles in the course of the 
 night which was the cause of our getting into this 
 disagreeable situation." 
 
 At Bombay he again enjoyed meeting his friend 
 Nasserwanjee, and it was probably at this time that 
 the latter presented him with the portrait of himself. 
 Conditions in Bombay were very different this year 
 from those that had prevailed in the previous one. 
 Not over one hundred or two hundred candies of pep- 
 per, held at a very high price, were found in the place 
 and these the Governor would not allow them to export. 
 John was "distracted with such prospects" and had 
 thoughts of chartering the ship to the Governor for a 
 voyage to Mauritius. To add to his troubles, some of 
 the seamen deserted, and his dealings with the natives 
 were as unsatisfactory as heretofore. 
 
 "My ideas of the native inhabitants of Bombay are 
 not more favorable than last year . . . they are almost 
 all rogues, & unfortunately are so linked together 
 that it is almost impossible to detect an imposition, & 
 when you do, custom is uniformly pleaded in its de- 
 fence. A more extensive intercourse with the Enfrlish 
 inhabitants than I had on a former occasion, has 
 deeply impressed me with a sense of their hospitality & 
 politeness: — from many of them I have received the 
 most friendly attentions." 
 
 Hearing that plenty of pepper was to be had in 
 Alepy he decided to go there. Before leaving Bombay 
 
 [69] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 he purchased a number of camel's hair shawls, cornelian 
 stones, and a quantity of tortoise shell, and on Novem- 
 ber 29th set sail. At Alepy he happily had no difRculty 
 in procuring a cargo; the pepper was of good quality 
 and plentiful, but none could be sent on board for want 
 of bags. In this predicament two bales of "gunny" 
 were landed from the Galloway and all hands went to 
 work making up bags. 
 
 While this was going on, John was much interested 
 in watching some "Elephants that were employed in 
 carrying Timber. They take up with their trunks 10 
 or 12 massy planks round which a rope is fastened — 
 this Rope they take in their mouths & slowly drag the 
 Plank along until they reach the piles where they 
 deposit them, & slowly pace back for another load; a 
 native posted on their shoulder, like an ant on a mole- 
 hill, without the assistance of rod or bridle, easily 
 governs them, only by now & then telling them what 
 they are to do. ... In the evening saw another proof 
 of the wonderful sagacity & docility of the Elephant in 
 launching a Vessel — two of them were employed, some 
 hundreds of natives were also engaged in pulling with 
 Ropes & Windlasses, & such is the strength of the 
 Elephant that altho' the natives could not move the 
 vessel, yet they on applying their heads to her, moved 
 her along apparently with ease." 
 
 In Alepy, as well as in Bombay, John found people 
 who were kind to him and helped to make his stay 
 pleasant. An English family invited him to their 
 home during his two weeks' sojourn and treated him 
 as if he were a son of the house. He felt "consider- 
 able reluctance" when the time for parting came. 
 
 [70] 
 
VOYAGES TO INDIA 
 
 On the homeward journey Jolin described a dan- 
 gerous experience through which they passed: "One 
 of the seamen having got drunk & struck the officer 
 was put in irons. The others being mutinous we loaded 
 our pistols & resolved in case of need to die hard." Two 
 days later the aspect of things was still threatening. 
 "T. Keemer, late Boatswain, seems very mutinous; 
 removed the cutlasses from the armchest to the Cabin 
 & kept a sharp look out after the persons with whom 
 he associates." 
 
 The voyage was a tedious one; the winds were often 
 contrary and John sometimes records, "We are fifty 
 miles farther from our port than we were yesterday." 
 Even the additional leisure thus gained for reading 
 failed to compensate him for these interminable delays, 
 and having in mind also his unsatisfactory experiences 
 in India, it is not surprising that he should have ex- 
 claimed on his arrival in New York, April 22, 1811, 
 "I have finished I hope forever my East India Super- 
 cargo business." 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 1812-1815 
 
 A YEAR after John Johnston's return from 
 India, the possibility so long dreaded finally 
 became a fact, and in June, 1812, war with 
 England was declared. While this declaration pro- 
 duced no immediate effect upon his affairs, the war 
 later caused him no small personal inconvenience and 
 business embarrassment. Before the crisis occurred, 
 however, he had occasion to see a good deal of the 
 country through some journeys that he undertook. 
 One of these was made in August of that year, at 
 which time he started on a "trip to the N.ward," 
 embarking on the steamboat to Albany. He kept a 
 journal of his travels, according to a custom begun 
 when he sailed for India. 
 
 It was just five years since Robert Fulton had sent 
 his first steamboat up the Hudson, and although a 
 regular line had immediately been established between 
 New York and Albany, the first entry in the journal 
 shows that the personal comfort of the passengers had 
 not progressed very far. "Augt. 8th. Came on board 
 
 [72] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 the Steam Boat Paragon, for Albany ... At 10 o'clock 
 the cabins were cleared out & tables & Benches placed 
 across on which were spread Mattrasses & Blankets. . 
 1 reckoned myself fortunate in being able to procure 
 a place below deck; but had soon reason to change 
 my opinion; for being packed in this place like Herrings 
 in a Cask, so great was the Heat, occasioned by the 
 united influence of the contiguity of so many human 
 bodies & the Steam of the Engine, that I was almost 
 suffocated." 
 
 In the early days of the war, the cry was for the 
 taking of Canada, and when Mr. Johnston reached 
 Schenectady, "called by the inhabitants Snekaday," 
 men were building " 100 flat bottomed boats, part of 
 800 wanted for the transportation of the U. S. troops 
 in their meditated attack upon Montreal." Later at 
 Greenbush, across the river from Albany, he found an 
 army encampment of about twenty-five hundred men, 
 where he "soon had a specimen of American discipline. 
 One of the soldiers came to complain that another one 
 had been put under guard for 'just setting his foot 
 over the line around the encampment,' and on the 
 oflricer's referring him to the Colonel he went out & 
 assembling a few more of his comrades they indulged 
 in some very improper language just by the tent door 
 where the oflficer could hear every word they said. . A 
 short time before 30 of them had turned out & refused 
 to do duty until they received their pay." 
 
 On this trip he was accompanied by David L. 
 Kennedy, a nephew of James Lenox; they spent part 
 of their time at Ballston with their Scotch friends, 
 William Maitland and James Boorman, the latter 
 
 [73] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 soon to become John Johnston's partner. They also 
 visited Saratoga Springs, then a small village with 
 "only two houses of accommodation . . . which to- 
 gether with the want of a regular mail, newsj^apers & 
 reading room" prevented its being a place of popular 
 resort. 
 
 In the autumn of the same year John started in a 
 stage for Boston with some friends and his future 
 father-in-law, John Taylor, "all in good spirits." 
 But two miles from New Haven, he writes, "when on 
 the side of a precipice near Whitney's Mills, the stage 
 overset & tumbling to the bottom was dashed in 
 pieces. In the moment of oversetting I reed, a blow 
 which stunned me and I knew no more until I found 
 the people lifting me out of the broken stage. Mr. 
 Whitney generously put me in his chair & sent a per- 
 son to carry me to New Haven, where, on sending 
 for a Doctor, my head was found to be much cut — 
 my left arm bruised so as to be perfectly unmanage- 
 able, my side & thigh also much bruised and hurt ... I 
 was unable to either walk sit or lye." 
 
 The next day the unlucky travellers returned by 
 packet to New York, and the captain, being "a clever 
 accommodating man and having no other passengers," 
 gave them "the privilege of sitting in sober sadness & 
 moaning their complaints to one another." "On 
 arrival," the journal continues, "Mr. Taylor being 
 the only one that could walk went immediately home 
 & sent for a carriage in which Mr. Magee and myself 
 were conveyed to our respective places of abode, hav- 
 ing returned sooner and in rather different circum- 
 stances from what w^e anticipated at our departure." 
 
 [74] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 He also made in the winter a journey "to the S. 
 ward, " where the same fate overtook him. He had not 
 proceeded beyond Havre de Grace before the coach- 
 man "drove against a stump & overturned the carriage. 
 With my usual luck on such occasions," he exclaims, 
 "I had my head severely cut, & l)led profusely ... I 
 had a surgeon to sew up & dress my wound." 
 
 On reaching Alexandria he found that the turnpike 
 only extended six miles beyond and that the rest of 
 the way to Fredericksburg was extremely bad. There 
 were no bridges except over the large rivers, and the 
 small ones were dangerous to cross on account of 
 floating ice. Only the roughest kind of a road had 
 been cut through the forests, many huge stumps re- 
 maining, so that the carriage had often to make a zig- 
 zag detour through the trees. "What is remarkable," 
 he wrote, "notwithstanding the coldness of the weather 
 we found at all the taverns that they burnt a large fire 
 and kept their doors open. We were told that it was 
 'Virginia fashion' and that the same thing was done 
 in private families." He arrived safely in Richmond, 
 however, and declared it "is certainly the most hos- 
 pitable place that 1 have ever visited. On Monday 
 I had engagements for dinner during the whole week, 
 and when people cannot get you to dine they press 
 you to Breakfast or Sup with them," adding that they 
 "danced Scotch and Virginia reels till midnight." 
 
 His brother Robert, who after coming to America 
 lived in Richmond, a few years later said: "The 
 society for the most part is agreeable but the Scotch 
 nowadays are by no means the foreigners that are 
 most liked, owing to their plodding, narrow disposition 
 
 [75] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 & many of them, having made fortunes & retired home, 
 has had a tendency to lesson the respect for the present 
 generation of Scotch, & increase it for the Irish, who 
 are mostly of such a jolly disposition, that they are 
 always disposed to take a drink with a Virginian & 
 that pleases them amazingly." 
 
 John remained in Richmond three weeks, during 
 which time he ordered and received from New York 
 a wig for his wounded head. When it arrived he 
 immediately had his head shaved and put it on. 
 He seemed surprised after this when his friends did 
 not recognize him! 
 
 On December 31, 18H, John Johnston, as was 
 his yearly custom, made an inventory of his pos- 
 sessions, beginning with his treasured books, $300, 
 and ending with his nightcap, $.50. The total value 
 (including wearing apparel, furniture, trinkets, etc.) he 
 placed at $1,100 and mentioned that his library then 
 consisted of one hundred and seventy-five books, many 
 of them pamphlets. When we consider that since his 
 arrival in New York eight years before, he had repaid 
 a considerable loan, had given generously to his family, 
 and had made business adventures that needed capital, 
 the sum of $300 is a large one to have invested in a 
 library. Five years later this numbered seven hundred 
 and two volumes. 
 
 Having now been in the employ of Lenox & Mait- 
 land for nine years, he decided to start in business on 
 his own account, and in March, 1813, formed with 
 James Boorman the firm of Boorman & Johnston, 
 Merchants. This partnership was hardly an accom- 
 
 [76] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 plislied fact before John, on April 13, 1813, was 
 made to feel heavily the effect of the war with England. 
 "Having in consequence," he writes, "of my being 
 an alien, received orders from the Marshall of N. Y., 
 a fortnight ago, to retire 40 miles from Tide water & 
 5 from the Hudson River and having then taken a 
 passport to Fishkill (since when I have been secreted 
 in Town) I this day at 5 o'clock p. m. embarked on 
 l)oard the N. River Steam Boat for that place & was so 
 fortunate as to get on board without being noticed by 
 any person that could injure me." 
 
 The exercise of the old Alien Enemies' Act, allow- 
 ing the President to ex})el non-citizens in time of war, 
 sent many Englishmen out of the city into temporary 
 exile, and on John's arrival at Fishkill Village, he met 
 Mr. Hugh Auchincloss, formerly of Paisley, Scotland, 
 the founder of the family in America, and "the whole 
 army of aliens." He and one or two friends estab- 
 lished themselves in a pleasant boarding place; " Town- 
 send's," he wrote, "is an Inn in which however no 
 tippling is permitted — indeed it is quite as quiet as a 
 private family & we have a good sitting room pretty 
 much to ourselves . . . Have as yet made no acquaint- 
 ances in the village; the people look upon us with 
 suspicion & I cannot blame them. If we were dan- 
 gerous members of society in the city we cannot be 
 safe here." 
 
 The people of the neighborhood later became very 
 hospitable, giving parties "purely on account of the 
 aliens," which the latter enjoyed and for which they 
 were truly grateful. 
 
 Their constant thought, however, was how to 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 terminate this forced separation from their business 
 affairs and their friends. On April 21st Mr. Auchin- 
 closs's wife arrived at Fishkill with news which was 
 of the utmost importance to her husband and of great 
 interest to all the other exiles. She had previously 
 procured letters to various influential men, including 
 the President and the Secretaries of State and of War, 
 and thus armed had undertaken the hazardous journey 
 to Washington to plead for her husband's liberty. 
 
 She had now returned, having through her own 
 cleverness and persistency obtained a promise that 
 orders for his release would follow her. The other 
 aliens laughed and said, "Ah, do not trust to their 
 coming. Government promises are like piecrust — 
 made to be broken." The orders did, however, arrive, 
 on April 28th, and Mr. and Mrs. Auchincloss left for 
 New York, which, John Johnston said, "makes a 
 sad breach in our social circle." 
 
 This success encouraged the other aliens to undertake 
 measures of a similar kind, and on May 1st Mr. John- 
 ston addressed the following letter to the Secretary of 
 State, the Hon. James Monroe. 
 
 "Sir, 
 
 "Having in compliance with the order of the Mar- 
 shall of the district removed from the City of Newyork 
 to this place in the early part of last month, where I 
 have remained ever since ... I beg leave respectfully 
 to represent — that I arrived in this country in the year 
 1804 since when I have never left it except for the space 
 of 22 months when making two voyages to the E. 
 Indies in an American Ship & in the employ of an 
 American House. — That it was my intention from the 
 
 [78] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 time of my first arrival in the U. Stales to become a 
 citizen but not being sufficiently acquainted with the 
 Law on that subject, it was not until I applied for 
 Citizenship in May 1809 that I was apprized of a 
 ])revious declaration of intentions being necessary, 
 which declaration I then made in the manner required 
 by Law. That in the month of May last I had occasion 
 to proceed to Boston which prevented me from apply- 
 ing for Citizenship immediately at the end of the three 
 years, but a few days after my return, in the month of 
 June, I made such application when I was informed 
 that the existence of war with G. Britain, of which the 
 accots. had just reached the City, rendered compliance 
 with my wishes impossible. 
 
 "I beg leave further to state — that it is still my 
 intention to become a Citizen as soon as the law will 
 permit; and that I am at present connected in business 
 in the City of Nyork with a resident American Citizen 
 and with no other person whatever. 
 
 "Under these circumstances I trust you will be 
 pleased to take my case into consideration and to 
 direct that I may be permitted to return to the City, 
 my absence from which is to me a source of much 
 inconvenience & loss. With great respect 1 am 
 Yr. mo. ob. hum. St." 
 
 No answer being received to this letter John John- 
 ston and his friends proceeded to occupy and amuse 
 themselves as best they could. They formed a quoit 
 club which met frequently, and as many as were fond 
 of the sports enjoyed good shooting and excellent fish- 
 ing. John fished in all the little streams of the neigh- 
 
 [79] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 borliood, and on one occasion with two of his friends 
 went "in a waggon to a trout creek in the Hook 6 or 7 
 miles off, where," he wrote, "we spent the day and 
 caught in all 113 trout some of them very fine ones." 
 At other times he "went a-fishing with a spear," 
 which he, however, pronounced "very fatiguing 
 exercise." 
 
 About this time he obtained a passport from the 
 Marshal which allowed him to proceed to Ballston, and 
 he started off on horseback. At Hudson he found 
 many ships and brigs, principally from the city, lying 
 there for safety, and at Greenbush again visited the 
 army encampment, finding "400 men . . . that were 
 taking their departure for Canada . . . many of them 
 Boys and old men that had not been a fortnight at the 
 depot, & not a few of them drunk. In marching 
 through a piece of miry ground some stuck fast & 
 others lost their shoes so that the first had to be trans- 
 ferred to the baggage wagons & the latter to hop along 
 some with one shoe & some with none." 
 
 On this journey he made a visit to Lebanon Springs, 
 where the Shakers had had a flourishing colony since 
 1787, and as was usual when anything interested him, 
 wrote out a detailed account in his journal. 
 
 "[May 16th]. Rode about 2 miles to the village of 
 the Shakers to witness their much talked of & very sing- 
 ular mode of worship. Immediately on ascending the 
 height near the Hartford Turnpike (on which their vil- 
 lage stands) I discovered before me the Shakers going in 
 procession to meeting, as they always do, the men in 
 one troop, two deep, the women in another, marching 
 with as much regularity as soldiers at a review. 
 
 [80] 
 
THI-: SHAKEHS 
 I — THE PliOCESSION II — THE DANCE 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 "Their meeting house is uncommonly neat & clean 
 and pretty capacious. The whole number of Shakers 
 this day attending was about 150, of which about one 
 half were women. 
 
 "The dress of the men consists generally of a Drab 
 Coat & Vest, cut in the Quaker stile with a pair of wide 
 brown trousers. The women's dress is perfectly uni- 
 form consisting of a Brown Stuff Gown and white 
 nuislin Handkf, their hands joined before & a white 
 Pocket Hkf. over the left arm. 
 
 "Their manner of standing joined to their sallow 
 complexion & white muslin caps with long flaps similar 
 to those in which the dead are usually dressed and 
 their lengthened inanimate countenance strongly re- 
 called to my mind the idea of a Corpse & seemed to 
 present a miniature picture of the resurrection. Noth- 
 ing like that bloom of health which is so conspicuous 
 in young Quakers of the ordinary kind is discoverable 
 among this people. 
 
 "The men beitig seated on Benches at one end the 
 room & the women at the other, at 10 1|2 a.m. a 
 solemn pause ensued when they all rose as with one 
 consent & forming a triangle . . . began to sing with 
 all their might. After singing two Hymns beating 
 time with their feet — first one and then another of the 
 elders stood forth & exhorted them to ' Sense the Good- 
 ness of God' and to 'Labor to his Glory' upon which 
 the men immediately stripped their Coats & afterwards 
 formed themselves six men deep immediately across 
 the floor; the women formed themselves in like manner 
 & all at once striking up a merry tune they set to 
 dancing with all their might. Their motions were 
 
 [81] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 uncommonly regular & so perfectly uniform that one 
 would have supposed they were a parcel of puppets 
 moved by the same wire. They advance three steps, 
 double beat, retreat three steps, double beat, again 
 advance, face about, advance towards the other wall, 
 face about & then commence again as before. They 
 exercised in this manner about half an hour in which 
 they sung three lively tunes — they keep time to the 
 music very exactly but never change their mode of 
 dancing. 
 
 "They now sat down apparently much fatigued & 
 soon after getting up in the triangular form as at first, 
 they sung another Hymn & broke up, at noon . . . 
 
 "May 17th. I rode . . . down to the Shakers' 
 village. Found it no difficult matter to engage them 
 in conversation & indeed they showed a disposition 
 to argue on the peculiarities of their belief. They 
 however did not seem disposed to receive the testimony 
 of Scripture farther than it suited their purpose & 
 whenever they were hard pressed referred to some 
 Book which they said would satisfy me they were 
 right. This Book I purchased of them for 10|-. . . . 
 
 "One of them, a young man of 22 years, that I 
 found in a workshop at the end of the Village, shewed 
 a great curiosity about what was going on in the world. 
 He seems acute & I wd. not be surprised if he should 
 soon leave them. He seemed very desirous to know 
 the principles & practice of other Christians." 
 
 In May the little colony at Fishkill read in the 
 papers of the "Blockade of Nyork by the English 
 which," John wrote, "very seriously affects my in- 
 
 [82] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 terests & of course my spirits." Bad news travels 
 quickly and on Sunday, June 6tli, word also arrived 
 of the capture of the ill-fated Chesapeake by the 
 Shannon in Boston Roads, only six days after it had 
 taken place, "which greatly disturbed the devotional 
 exercises of the day." 
 
 Meanwhile a bill for the deliverance of "certain 
 aliens" had been introduced in Congress, through 
 whose passage they all had great hopes of release from 
 this involuntary exile. Their hopes were, however, of 
 short duration, for on June 25th a letter was received 
 from their representative at Washington stating his 
 belief that the bill would not pass that session, in con- 
 sequence of which they were "all in the dumps." 
 
 At the end of June George Johnston again did his 
 friend a kindness by interesting some influential men 
 in his condition. Among other measures he recom- 
 mended a petition to Congress, which a Mr. Emott of 
 Poughkeepsie drew up, in which "Sundry aliens 
 petition Congress for relief." It was to be presented 
 to the House of Representatives by "Mr. Fish an 
 Administration man," and was signed by D. Hadden, 
 R. Lee, G. Pott, G. Laurie, J. Laurie, W. Chapman, 
 Cogall, J. McCall, and J. Johnston. It was for- 
 warded to the Hon. Jotliam Post, Jr., to whom Mr. 
 Johnston wrote: "When I last had the pleasure of 
 seeing you I was a freeman — since then I have in 
 common with many others similarly situated had the 
 misfortune to be ordered into bondage . . . 
 
 "I pretend not to say that on this accot. solely I 
 am entitled to indulgence. I admit that where knowl- 
 edge is attainable ignorance is a crime; but I think 
 
 [83] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 that when I . . . am willing to take the oaths & fulfil 
 the duties of a Citizen, it is hard that I should be con- 
 sidered & treated as an Alien Enemy.'' 
 
 Whether this petition did any good or not, we do 
 not know, but on July 29, 1813, John wrote: 
 "Being convinced by the accounts from Washington 
 that the alien Bill would certainly pass I took Passage 
 for Newyork in the Sloop Republican . . . and so ended 
 my Banishment to Fishkill." His exile had lasted 
 three and one-half months. As may easily be imagined, 
 he made great haste to remove the stigma of "alien 
 enemy," and on August 11th paid $3.50 for his "Certi- 
 ficate of Citizenship." 
 
 He and Mr. Boorman then decided that their in- 
 terests would be better advanced by his travelling 
 abroad and increasing the number of their "business 
 correspondents" on the Continent, as well as in the 
 British Isles; Mr. Boorman in the meanwhile was to 
 conduct their afi'airs in New York. 
 
 Accordingly on September 0, 1813, John, accom- 
 ])anie(l })y James Aucliincloss, a brother of his Fishkill 
 friend, look his departure from New York in the Bos- 
 ton stage at 2 A. m. for the purpose of securing a 
 passage to Europe, and arrived in Boston on the fol- 
 lowing day at 9 p. M. Although war was in progress, 
 vessels of neutral countries were engaged in commerce 
 but at the constant risk, as will be seen, of being over- 
 hauled on the high sea and having to exhibit their 
 ship's papers. He succeeded in engaging a berth on 
 the Barque Wohlfahrt, a Swedish vessel, paying $150 
 and finding his own stores. 
 
 The first thing he did after arranging the business 
 
THE SEA-FIGHT BETWEEN THE CHESAPEAKE AND SHANNON 
 DITEING THE WAH OF 181'2 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 of his trip to England, was to make visits to the Athe- 
 naeum library and reading rooms. A " national fast 
 day" falling on September 9th and there being services 
 in the churches, he went to the Episcopal Church to 
 hear the celebrated Mr. Gardiner. His journal gives 
 his impression of this preacher and of other Boston 
 divines : " The discourse unmixed Politics — Text Mark 
 10.41 'They began to be much displeased with James.' 
 He commenced with saying 'The people of these states 
 were beginning, & with great reason to be much dis- 
 pleased with James Madison' . . . The Clergymen of 
 Boston seem to be pretty much of the same stamp, all 
 warm Politicians & generally infected with Unitarian- 
 ism. The discourses I have heard might with propriety 
 have been delivered by Plato or Socrates." 
 
 Just before the Wohlfahrt sailed, two aliens who 
 had made their escape from Fishkill called on Mr. 
 Johnston to see if he would consent to their going in 
 the vessel, the agent having referred them to the pas- 
 sengers. Crowded as the ship was, place was made 
 for them, but not receiving their luggage in time, they 
 were unable to start. 
 
 The barque now set sail on September 20th with 
 six passengers on board— Mr. Myer, the American 
 Consul at Riga, three American merchants, Mr. James 
 Auchincloss of Paisley, and John Johnston— and en- 
 countered such a series of adventures that they must 
 many times have wished themselves safely on shore. 
 The day after the Wohlfahrt left Boston, the journal 
 tells us, the Captain "discovered a large sail bearing 
 down upon us . . . she fired a Gun when we hove too 
 . . She ordered us to steer down to a Brig of war then 
 
 [85] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 in sight 'or he would be after us & fire into us.' I 
 suppose however he thought our Dutchmen too tardy 
 in their motions for before we had got our Ship under 
 way he commenced firing musquets at us and two of 
 the Balls went whistling close over our heads . . . the 
 Brig . . . proved to be H. M. Sloop of War Wasp . . . 
 commanded by Capt. Everitt, a very civil & gentle- 
 manly officer . . . Capt. Everitt carried Capt. B. on 
 board ... A Boat was soon after sent from her to take 
 the Passengers on board and poor Myer after being ex- 
 amined whether he did not hold an offle. situation 
 under the Govt, of the U. S. to which he was obliged 
 to answer in the affirmative, was told by the Com. 
 that he should be obliged to detain him. Remon- 
 strance was unavailing . . . He did not put a single 
 question to any of us: — told the Capt. what cargo he 
 had on board without looking into his papers! — & 
 sent us on board our Barque at 3 p. m." 
 
 The following day they saw another brig of war, 
 the Rover; she fired two shots at them, obliging them 
 to bear down to her, and then sent three officers on 
 board, who threatened to send the Wohlfahrt to Hali- 
 fax. They took the Captain back to the Rover with 
 them and detained him several hours, after which they 
 permitted the vessel to proceed. 
 
 Incidents of this kind happened frequently during 
 this voyage of over a month's duration, but they 
 finally, on October 30th, came to anchor in the Cove 
 of Cork. That very afternoon "an officer came on 
 board to remove the three American Gentlemen as 
 Prisoners of War." Mr. Johnston, who does not seem 
 to have mentioned during this crisis that he was an 
 
 [86] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 American citizen, went ashore and, evidently as a 
 good British subject, made a "representation of their 
 case to the Admiral." After three days detention they 
 were finally liberated. 
 
 A week later Mr. Auchincloss and Mr. Johnston 
 reached Liverpool, where the latter had the pleasure 
 of meeting and dining with a number of American 
 merclunits, among whom was his friend, George 
 Johnston. lie found that even these men were "(le- 
 cidedly hostile to America. 'Let her feel the war' 
 seemed lo be the general scutimcMt." Doubtless Ihey 
 were themselves feeling it very heavily. 
 
 After a few days in Liverpool, where he was "pretty 
 extensively introduced" and where he, as usual, visited 
 all " the different reading rooms," he took the mail stage 
 for Scotland. John Johnston's own words must tell 
 of this first visit to his old home. 
 
 "Dumfries, Novr. 24th . . . Every thing abso- 
 lutely appears almost as strange to me as if I had never 
 been in the country before ... In the afternoon visited 
 Burns' Grave, over which only a plain stone is laid; 
 afterwards dined at the K's x\rms in company with 
 Mr. Johnston &c. 
 
 "25th Novr. After breakfast took a Post Chaise 
 ... & proceeded to Kirkcudbt . . . The country through 
 which we have travelled is all so much changed that 
 I could scarcely recognise it for the same that I saw 
 10 years ago. Happy am I however to observe that it 
 is for the better and that the spirit of improvement is 
 yet active. 
 
 "Kirkcudbright, 26th Novr. Called & saw a 
 number of my old friends some of whom I find much 
 
 [87] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 altered — They all say that, except my being stouter, 
 I look pretty much as I did when I went away; and 
 yet very few of them w ould have known me ! 
 
 "After taking an early dinner, Mr. Johnston, who 
 was kind enough to accompany me, & myself, rode 
 out to the Haugh of Urr. On our arrival there I just 
 walked into my fathers kitchen & enquired 'if the 
 Miller was at liame. ' My stepmother did not know 
 me & replied ' yes ' but on my standing still & not again 
 speaking she recognized me — a messenger was im- 
 mediately dispatched to my father who was in the 
 mill. I went to meet him — the Good old man clasped 
 me in his arms exclaiming 'my son, my son!' It was 
 too much for us both & I was happy we had but one 
 spectator as we shed tears in abundance. On coming 
 into the House my Sisters & Brothers were introduced. 
 All of them were strangers to me. Jen & Nanny, the 
 only two that I recollect, I left children & find Grown 
 up women. The evening we spent very agreeably in 
 mutually enquiring & relating the principal occurrences 
 of our lives during the period of our separation. 
 
 "27th Novr. Mr. Johnston & myself rode out to 
 Balmaghie to see my old friends there ... It is truly 
 astonishing to see the improvements in this Parish . . . 
 The desert may literally be said to blossom as the 
 rose, for certainly I never expected to see what I have 
 this day seen — wild moors. Bogs & Mosses turned 
 into wheat fields! 
 
 "After dinner we rode down to see Barnboard 
 Miln. I viewed without being much affected the 
 alterations that had been made in my father's old 
 farm, along by which we passed, but on crossing the 
 
 [88] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 old croft, the scene of my youthful sports; and on 
 approaching the mansion, now occupied by strangers, 
 where I first saw the light, my feelings fairly overcame 
 me — my heart was like to burst, & until a flood of 
 tears came to my relief, I was unable to move or utter 
 a syllable. The Good people looked at me with 
 astonishment — they knew me not but entreated Mr. 
 Johnston to cause me to alight. I was really ashamed of 
 myself & finding that I could not su|)press my feelings 
 nor restrain my tears I abruptly put about my horse & 
 rode off leaving Mr. Johnston to explain my case as he 
 thought best. It was not until we had ridden a mile 
 that I found myself able to resume a conversation . . . 
 
 "On leaving Dunjop I perceived two persons 
 coming through the field after us at full speed — it 
 was Wm. Geddes [an old family servant] & his son 
 who had run all the way from the Hardgate, nearly 
 two miles, to see me. They insisted on accompanying 
 us to the Brig of Dee. After taking a Glass together 
 we parted & I returned to the Haugli Miln. 
 
 "Haugh of Urr, Sunday, 28th Novr. In imita- 
 tion of former times, passed this day in the bosom 
 of my father's family . . . 
 
 "Kirkcudbright, 30th Novr ... In the evening 
 Mrs. Kennedy made a party on my accot ... I am 
 in a fair way to be overwhelmed with hospitality ..." 
 
 John remained in Scotland until the end of Decem- 
 ber attending to Boorman & Johnston's affairs. Wish- 
 ing to see his old friend Samuel Haining, he journeyed 
 to the Isle of Man and in order to surprise him arrived 
 unannounced at his church. After service John went 
 
 [89] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 up and shook hands with him, but remarked, "he did 
 not know me and I was forced to mention my name. " 
 Samuel Haining had shown his regard for his former 
 schoolmate by naming a son for him, to whom Mr. 
 Johnston in later years left a legacy, referring to him 
 as " Johnston C. Haining, son of my old friend ... a 
 young man who had been long under my care and 
 towards whom I had a father's affection." 
 
 Near Edinborough he visited the "Links to see 
 the golfers play . . . They were dressed in Scarlet 
 Jackets, with a Thistle & two Golfing clubs em- 
 broidered on a blue oval on the left breast. The 
 Ball although not more than half the size of an egg 
 is so hard stuffed that it is said to contain two hatfuls 
 of feathers. The game appears exceedingly simple, 
 yet to play it well they say requires long practice." 
 
 Both in this city and in Glasgow he accompanied 
 friends to the theatre. Feeling, however, that an 
 explanation was necessary for his interest in an en- 
 tertainment tabooed by the rigorous Presbyterianism 
 of the day, he wrote ingenuously: "To this mode of 
 spending time I am opposed in principle; but wishing 
 to see as much of the world as possible during this 
 . . . visit to my native land I intend visiting the theatre 
 once, and once 07ily, in each of the principal towns 
 through which I may pass. It is from the public 
 amusements of a people that their character is to be 
 estimated." It is droll after this emphatic utterance 
 to find him attending the theatre on two successive 
 nights immediately on his arrival in London! And it 
 further transpires that before he left, he had visited 
 every theatre in the city. 
 
 [90] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 In January, 1814, lie received a gratifying offer of 
 partnership from William Maitland, which he never- 
 theless declined. Although his connection with Mr. 
 Boorman had at this time been of short duration, he 
 felt that it offered excellent possibilities for the future. 
 
 Holland was now his objective point, and in January 
 he sailed on a packet from Harwich in the teeth of a 
 severe storm, finding the harbor of Briel so choked 
 with ice that the ship was unable to make a landing. 
 They were obliged to go to Scheveningen, where the 
 passengers were taken oft' in small boats and finally 
 had to be carried ashore on men's shoulders, the waves 
 frequently breaking over them. 
 
 Mr. Johnston spent the remainder of the winter in 
 Amsterdam and made many friends who entertained 
 him handsomely. Some of his English associates offer- 
 ing to share the risk, urged him to undertake another 
 "adventure" — namely, the chartering of a Swedish 
 vessel, which as a "neutral" they thought would be 
 allowed to land her cargo at New Haven or Newport. 
 This he decided to do, but later, hearing "that the 
 English Squadrons on the Am. Coast were ordering 
 off neutral vessels on a|c of the Embargo, took the 
 horrors and was resolved to abandon the contemplated 
 voyage." Unfortunately his friends overcame his 
 reluctance and he concluded the charter of the Maria 
 Fredericka^ saying, "We must now persevere, having 
 gone thus far, but my heart misgives me much." On 
 May 11th the loading of the vessel was concluded and 
 she sailed on her fruitless voyage. 
 
 Having finished this business, Mr. Johnston started 
 for Paris, journeying through Holland and Belgium. 
 
 [91] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 The whole country was in a completely desolated con- 
 dition on account of the late Napoleonic war and 
 Haarlem had the appearance, he wrote, "of a heap 
 of ruins. When the Dutch trade was ruined by Bona- 
 parte's decrees, the Population decreased nearly 1|3 & 
 the Owners of the empty Houses, being still forced to 
 pay heavy taxes on them, had no other alternative but 
 to pull them down." 
 
 After entering France he had much trouble about 
 his passport — in some cities they hesitated to admit 
 an Englishman, and one landlady had orders not to 
 lodge any of them. In this crisis a French officer 
 who was in the stage came to his rescue and interceded 
 for him. The majority of his associates on the journey 
 were Frenchmen, and the whole topic of conversation 
 was the recent failure of the French arms. The com- 
 bined forces of the Allies had proved too great a strain 
 on Napoleon's resources and Paris had fallen on March 
 31, 1814. Although already in Elba, he still had a 
 deep hold on the hearts of the people, who hardly 
 believed the story that he had left the country. Chil- 
 dren followed the stage, calling out "Vive I'Em- 
 pereur Napoleon." Others, better informed or less 
 devoted, shouted for Louis XVIII. As Mr. Johnston 
 neared Paris he found himself in the midst of the 
 recent devastations committed by the Prussians and 
 Cossacks. At Laon, on May 20th, he wrote: 
 
 "I saw the first mournful concomitants of war — 
 Houses burnt & villages pillaged and deserted . . . The 
 skeletons of the Horses are still lying on the surface . . . 
 The whole country through which we passed has been 
 the scene of dreadful conflicts in the late war, and the 
 
 [92] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 villages, which must have been beautiful heretofore, 
 are only heaps of ruins and scarcely a living creature 
 to be seen in them. We stopped at an Inn at Chauvi- 
 gnon (the only one which out of perhaps a hundred is 
 now to be found on the road) for breakfast. The poor 
 landlady had not a piece of furniture left whole in the 
 House and could only give us a slice of fried Bacon, 
 with one knife & fork to two persons, a piece of Brown 
 bread and a Glass of wine! Our conducteur, a very 
 intelligent fellow, told us that 10,000 frenchmen were 
 killed in the different Battles between Laon & Sois- 
 sons!" 
 
 He found Paris crowded and was unable to procure 
 an apartment in the "Rue de Richelieu where the 
 principal hotels are kept. " After a good deal of trouble 
 he was safely but not very comfortably lodged in a 
 hotel on the Rue de Hanovre. 
 
 That first night, in spite of fatigue and his alleged 
 disinclination to "this mode of spending time," he 
 visited the Theatre Fran^ais. The next day he writes, 
 "went to see the 'Musee Napoleon,' Gallery of the 
 Louvre, in which is deposited the plunder of the world. 
 All the Chefs d'oeuvres of sculpture & painting col- 
 lected by the french armies in Italy, Germany, Holland 
 &c. &c. are here arranged in different spacious appart- 
 ments. A very great number of people of all classes 
 was there and what seemed rather indelicate was to 
 see a number of ladies in the rooms where are arranged 
 the naked figures of men." In a later journey to Europe 
 Mr. Johnston had the satisfaction of finding many of 
 these works of art returned to and set up in their own 
 countries. 
 
 [93] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 His journal while in Paris shows with what interest 
 he noted the lights and shades of the world play that 
 was being acted about him. 
 
 "25th May , . . spent the evening at the Circus. 
 After the Equestrian performances were ended, a 
 pantomime called the entry of Henry 4th into Paris 
 was performed, which, being filled with allusions to the 
 present state of things, was received with unbounded 
 applause. 
 
 "27th May. Visited . . . the Gobelins a national 
 manufactory of Tapestry— nuuiy of the pieces represent 
 the triumphs of Na])oleon; but as they are not finished, 
 I suppose they will now be stop|)e(l. 
 
 "I then went to the opera in hopes to see the Em- 
 peror or some of the Kings, but none of them was 
 there. 
 
 "28th May. I returned to the Thuilleries by way 
 of the Hall legislatif a large building decorated on the 
 outside with Emblems of Bonaparte's victories. It is 
 renuirkal)le at what pains this num has been to trace 
 on every public building ik in all public establishments 
 the leading events of his own History — all the public 
 monuments whether arches. Pillars, — Statues or Palaces 
 (however they may have been erected to the ' Glory of 
 the Grand Army ' or to the ' Memory ' of some favorite 
 General), seem to have no other end than this, as the 
 Emperor is always the prominent figure; — even on the 
 walls of the Louvre, which was built long enough 
 before he was born, he has caused his Initials to be 
 placed, and on the Bridges he has sculptured his 
 Eagles ! 
 
 "30th May. This being the day fixed for the re- 
 
 [94J 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 view of the Allied troops previous to their leaving Paris 
 I repaired to the Port d'etoile. They were principally 
 of the Emperor of Russia's Guards & some of the finest 
 men I ever saw — very few of the Infantry seemed to be 
 under 6 feet. The Cossacks were also fine tall fellows. 
 At about noon the Emperor of Russia accompanied by 
 the Emperor of Germany, the Arch Duke Constantine 
 & some other great characters rode along the front of 
 the line — they then returned & the troops filed off 
 before them. There were in all about 20,000 Infantry 
 & 17,000 Cavalry besides a train of Artillery, and from 
 their manner of defiling I had an opportunity of seeing 
 the whole. The Emperor of Germany is a poor little 
 withered looking man & being dressed in white, with 
 blue facings, the uniform of his Guards, had more the 
 appearance of a trumpeter than of an Emperor. The 
 Emp. Alexander is a very fine looking man & has some 
 thing very good in his countenance. 
 
 "31st May. Visited . . . the Luxembourg . . . Here 
 there are many beautiful appartments the greater 
 part of which were formerly hung round with Pictures 
 of Bonaparte's triumphs; but all there are now cov- 
 ered with Green Baize. 
 
 "4th June. Went ... to the Pont de Thuilleries 
 where I had a very good view of the King [Louis 
 XVIIL] as he went to the Legislative Hall. He was 
 preceded by a great number of state carriages with 8 
 Bay Horses each, in which were the Marshalls of 
 France &c. His own Coach was drawn by 8 White 
 Horses, and in it were, besides himself, the due 
 d'Orleans, due d'Angouleme, & due de Berri. Spent 
 part of the evening at the Theatre des Varietcs." 
 
 [95] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 Rumors of John's participation in these important 
 events had reached the far-away Scotch home with 
 the usual accompaniment of exaggeration, and an 
 amusing letter from William Johnston shows the 
 alarm created in the father's mind lest his son should 
 be led astray by the grandeur he was witnessing. "I 
 am much pleased," wrote his old friend, "to find . . . 
 you are in the way of returning to the Land of Cakes. 
 Your father seems to be quite sick about your absence 
 and wrote last Sabbath a very humourous note telling 
 me 'that he had heard that you were at Paris seeing 
 the King Crowned; wishing that you would recollect 
 that you were only the Son of the Poor Millar of Barn- 
 board — and not a Born Gentleman.' 
 
 "The fears of a Parent for his offspring is no Doubt 
 very great — as the Honest Man entertains the Idea that 
 so much greatness may hurt your Brain. 
 
 "But you may answer him as little Tibby Gowan 
 Spinster did — when talking of her Grandsire then in 
 New York (a place she had sometimes been) . . . ' w hat 
 signifies all this greatness since the people of Xewton 
 does not see it.' 
 
 "I have four letters for you one address'd to Sir 
 John Johnston. And had not my son James told me 
 that Sir in French was sometimes used for Master I 
 should have been as much at a stand to understand 
 when you would stop your Career, as the old Gentle- 
 man above alluded to." 
 
 On July 6tli John left Paris for the return trip to 
 England, and at Boulogne regretted that he had not 
 time to visit the harbor, where Napoleon had prepared 
 his flotilla for the invasion of England. On this 
 
 [96] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 journey he found himself travelling at the same time 
 with the Emperor Alexander and his suite. Arriving 
 at Dover, "the usual difficulties arose about the Ex- 
 amination of the baggage . . . the Custom House was 
 shut and the officers assured us we must stay for the 
 evening coach of next day. A Cossack officer ... of 
 the suite of the Emperor Alexander had the privilege 
 of passing; & by representing to them that he could 
 not speak English, which was really the case, and 
 that I had hitherto acted as his interpreter they per- 
 mitted me to pass with him." 
 
 When Mr. Johnston was in London at this time, 
 gas was just being introduced from a central supply, 
 and an entry in the journal shows how marvellous the 
 achievement appeared. "Visited the premises of the 
 Gas-light Company in the neighbourhood of Bishops- 
 gate Street; but not having an order was not permitted 
 to enter. From this place pipes are at present laying 
 all the way to the Strand (more than a mile) & many 
 of the Shops are also lighted with leaders from these 
 pipes." When he returned to London a few years later 
 he made a note of the fact that all the theatres were 
 brilliantly lighted by this means. 
 
 Mr. Boorman corresponded with John whenever 
 he had an opportunity, but mails were irregular and 
 there were long intervals when neither heard from the 
 other. Letters sent from Glasgow in December, 1813, 
 and from Amsterdam in March, 1814, reached New 
 York within a week of each other. The projected 
 "adventure" of the Dutch vessel had been a matter 
 of consideration between them, and on May 18th 
 James Boorman had written: 
 
 [ 97 ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 "The late extension of the Blockade applying to the 
 whole Coast will I fear thwart your plans & I hope no 
 fatality may attend any operations that you have 
 recommended — I can take no provisional steps not 
 knowing whether to expect vessels under our direc- 
 tions or merely shipments, if it were the former I should 
 endeavour to devise means of directing them to Amelia 
 Island, which is the only step that I perceive at present 
 could be taken with them — The first vessel that we 
 heard of being turn'd off it is said went to Halifax — 
 This Blockade is a most unfortunate business, it is not 
 worth while however to take trouble in advance. 
 
 "Knowing the wayward Policy of our Govt, you 
 probably will not have been much surprized to hear 
 of the relinquishment of the Embargo & non Importa- 
 tion Act. This would have opened a fine field for you, 
 had not the Blockade been extended, as we now stand 
 there is no prospect of safety for anything excepting 
 in Licensed Neutrals & I fear the British Govt, will 
 not give such Licenses while the Blockade continues, 
 if they do, there is nothing in our Laws to prevent 
 Neutrals from using them, but great care must be 
 taken to have everything clear to defeat our Privateers 
 which will be on the alert — altho' our Govt, contend 
 that free Ships ought to make free Goods, yet the 
 practise of our courts is the reverse." 
 
 His anxieties were well founded, as John was to 
 experience later. In addition to blockaded ports and 
 seizure of our ships, the American arms were meeting 
 with rebuffs on land in the struggle with Great Britain. 
 In August, 1814, a British force of five thousand men 
 landed about fifty miles from Washington, and a few 
 
 [98] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 days later the Capitol, after very little resistance, was 
 taken and bnrned. New York feared a similar fate 
 and the people prepared for defence. On September 
 2nd Mr. Boorman wrote: "The times look gloomy 
 here ... I think it not unlikely that we may have an 
 attack, but I do not believe it would be successful as 
 we shall have near '20,000 Men here in four or five 
 days. I have to turn out on Monday to go into the 
 service of the U. S. — the troops are only in service two 
 hours morning & evening & I expect will not be unless 
 we have an alarm." 
 
 David L. Kennedy, on the following day, in a 
 jocose style, also gave him an account of what was 
 taking place: 
 
 "We are here just now all in bustle and confusion 
 and every man who is not an Alien Enemy is a soldier 
 — Aliens of every other description shoulder their 
 muskets resolved to defend their adopted Country as 
 long as — the Virginia & Maryland Patriots did Wash- 
 ington and I fancy not a whit longer. Apropos — Did 
 it not my worthy friend rend your heart strings to hear 
 that the Capital of our beloved Country was entered 
 by a barbarous & ruthless Enemy, its public Buildings 
 rendered smoking piles and poor Mrs. Madison de- 
 serted by every living soul except Jacob Barker, who 
 had gone on to negotiate the loan. Madison it is said 
 has great dread that he carried on a negotiation with 
 his wife which had no reference at all to state affairs 
 but whether this vexes him or not he has cares enough 
 besides to prevent his Chair being at all envied. Some 
 say he will resign not daring to shew Congress his 
 phiz. Where these barbarous British Rascals are to go 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 next — I know not, but this I know that being an alien 
 (now when it suits my convenience having the thing 
 at my option) I intend to shew John Bull that it was 
 not for nothing Nature bestowed such a pair of long 
 shanks upon me. At Brooklyn & Harlaem they are 
 busily engaged fortifying and in two days w^e shall 
 have a body of 25,000 men to repel the invader. I 
 sincerely trust an attempt will not be made on us for 
 the object to be attained will not in any degree com- 
 pensate for the vast number of lives that will inevitably 
 be lost. 
 
 "As this vessel no doubt carries newspapers with 
 her, you will see what a disgraceful capitulation 
 Alexandria has made. However it is not much worse 
 than the defence Washington made which in my 
 humble opinion fixes a stain upon the consarned that 
 will not or ought not readily to be effaced." 
 
 The news of the destruction of Washington quickly 
 reached Scotland and was celebrated in a manner dis- 
 tasteful to some of the returned aliens. It however put 
 William Johnston in fine fettle, for he wrote to John : 
 "I enquired at Mr. Dyson if he had any News for you. 
 He said not a Word only complements. But to day he 
 is rather flatt at the Ringing of our Bells for the down- 
 fall of Washington. What will Cousin Madison say 
 to that ? I hope they have given the Foundation Stones 
 of his House the air — and carried him out of its ruins 
 with particular attention in the hopes of sending him 
 on his Elbow alongst with his Uncle Bonie." 
 
 Disasters at home and anxiety about his transac- 
 tions abroad were having a depressing effect upon Mr. 
 Johnston's health. "So much have I lately suffered," 
 
 [ 100 J 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 he had written earlier in his journal, "from trouble on 
 accot. of the adv. fm. Hd. & other bad news that I 
 today weigh only 148 lbs. being fully 30 lbs. less than 
 I did a few months ago." 
 
 In December his worst fears were realized and he 
 received the unpleasant news of the arrival of the 
 Maria Fredcricka in Holland with the Dutch cargo 
 still intact. This obliged him to return there and he 
 set out immediately on the fatiguing journey. The 
 adjustment of loss and the disposal of the cargo, which 
 was a valuable one, was a vexatious business, and he 
 remained until December 27th, when, news having 
 arrived of the signing of preliminaries of peace between 
 England and America, he took his departure. He thus 
 describes the journey between Amsterdam and Rot- 
 terdam: "Left Amsterdam at 8 a.m. in the Post 
 Waggon which certainly is the most disagreeable con- 
 veyance I ever used. It only takes 4 passrs. but is so 
 low in the roof that you cannot sit with your hat on; 
 & having no springs you are agreeably informed of 
 every cobble or cut with which the wheels come in con- 
 tact by a thump on the head. It has besides no window 
 nor aperture to admit the light so that when the side 
 curtains are closed it is perfectly dark . . . We did not 
 arrived until 9 p. m." 
 
 It was inevitable, as has been said, that the strain 
 and responsibility through which Mr. Johnston had 
 passed should have caused a breakdown of even his 
 strong constitution. It came, in February, 1815, in 
 the form of an acute attack of gout. He was then 
 less than thirty-four years of age and during the re- 
 mainder of his life was never free from this painful 
 
 [101] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 malady. In addition to his physical suffering, he was 
 tormented by the fear of being misjudged by a cen- 
 sorious world. 
 
 "Last night I was seized in the midst of a violent 
 perspiration with a most acute pain in the right great 
 toe which has nearly rendered me unable to walk. 
 This distresses me very much as the pain is incessant & 
 increasing. I surely have not been living so freely as 
 to induce a Gout and yet I am at a loss to find another 
 name for it. Should this really be the case I fear I not 
 only have in my constitution the seeds, no longer latent, 
 of the troubles attendant on premature old age; but 
 this will be considered by the world as resulting from 
 excesses which I have always abhorred; and besides 
 my plans and the prospect which was opening to my 
 view will be blasted from my inability to follow them 
 up. Spent the evg. at home alo7ie & exceedingly 
 depressed." 
 
 Days of consultations with physicians, of doubt 
 buoyed up by hope, and ho})e destroyed by pain ensued. 
 The following week he was still lame but by cutting 
 open his shoe "was able to liirple down stairs and 
 hop to the exchange!" 
 
 On March 15th word of the ratification by Madison 
 of the treaty of Ghent had arrived, and on March 25th 
 "the melancholy news of Bonaparte's entering Paris." 
 John immediately began to make preparation for re- 
 turning to America. He paid a final visit to his family 
 in Scotland, where he promised his brother William 
 "if he at tended to his education (grammar, B. Keep- 
 ing and afterwards french) to take him out in about 
 a year" to America, and agreed to "give Jenny £50 
 
 [ lO'^ ] 
 
WAR WITH ENGLAND 
 
 on her marriage to her parents' liking." As a parting 
 gift William Johnston presented to him the "Mull" 
 which is shown on the title-page, a " Mull" being a 
 large snuff-box made from a ram's horn and usually 
 handed around among a party of friends. 
 
 On July 24, 1815, after an absence of nearly 
 two years, John Johnston landed in New York, and 
 closed his journal as usual by a short review of his 
 impressions: "So thus have 1 happily brought to 
 a termination an expedition in which good & ill has 
 been pretty equally balanced — I have seen a good 
 deal more of the world & have perhaps learnt better 
 how to estimate men & things. I have also upon the 
 whole I hope been successful in establishing a corre- 
 spondence for my House, but I have dissolved a charm 
 which had long filled my bosom with indescribable 
 pleasure — I have found that even in my native land 
 and in the midst of many of the companions of my 
 youth the pleasures that enchanted me in my juvenile 
 days cannot again be realized. 1 found that the cares 
 of business too much occupied my mind to allow me 
 to relish the light & innocent pleasures that had 
 formerly occupied my whole soul, and I was unlucky 
 too in engaging in that unfortunate Amsterdam adv. 
 . . . which infused much bitterness into the cup of my 
 enjoyments." 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 1817—1832 
 
 A LETTER written by John Johnston September 
 6, 1808, contams the following words: 
 " My resolutions on this subject are, 1st never 
 to marry a wife until I can support & maintain her in 
 a decent rank — this I hold to be essential to the right 
 enjoyment of matrimonial life. 
 
 "2nd. Never to marry a woman whose religious 
 opinions run counter to my own; for there my happi- 
 ness wd. be marred. 
 
 "3rd. Never to marry a woman merely for her 
 money, for then I might reasonably expect to be more 
 or less under her control, and I hold it to be potent 
 truth & sound doctrine that man is, or ought to be, 
 master of his own house. 
 
 "4th. Never to marry a widow for then in case of 
 matrimonial broils, and such things there will be, I 
 would be afraid of having a contrast drawn betwixt 
 me & her first husband of which the result, in all 
 probability, would not be very flattering to my feelings." 
 
 Yet, in spite of paragraph 4, during the summer 
 of 1817 he was paying earnest suit to Margaret Taylor, 
 
 [104] 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 widow of Reslia Howard! The young people were of 
 common Scotch origin and undoubtedly had become 
 acquainted through their friends, Robert Lenox and 
 his brother James. Margaret's father, John Taylor, 
 was an intimate friend of Robert Lenox, her brother, 
 Robert Lenox Taylor, having been named for him, 
 while John Johnston, as has been told, was connected 
 in business with James Lenox. 
 
 John Taylor, formerly of Glasgow, had been for 
 many years a successful New York merchant, whose 
 city house was 23 Cliff Street. His country home, 
 situated on the site of the present 39th and 40th Streets, 
 ran from Fifth Avenue to the Bloomingdale Road 
 (Broadway), and comprised a farm of about ten acres. 
 The house, a large one among beautiful trees, was 
 encircled by a piazza with high white columns. Here 
 in "Bloomingdale, sweet Bloomingdale," Margaret 
 Taylor Howard had passed the summers of her four 
 years of widowhood, and here, amid these gracious 
 surroundings, John Johnston's wooing took place. 
 
 Margaret, three years his junior, had married Resha 
 Howard in 1809, and had had one child, Elizabeth, 
 who died when a year or two old. She had passed 
 through experiences that mature and deepen, and when 
 for the second time she was asked to join her life with 
 that of another, knew, as the pages of her journal show, 
 the value of an honest man's affection. 
 
 "Why should I hesitate, he is a professor of religion, 
 an excellent character, an agreable person, and if 1 
 credit his word, loves me in the way I have often wished 
 to be loved by him. 
 
 " June 9th. Still in perplexity, what would I give 
 
 [105] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 for a kind indulgent Mother in whose breast I might 
 pour all my troubles; to my Father I dare not speak, 
 yet until I know his will I scarce dare have one of my 
 own; oh, if I ever shoidd be blessed with a family may 
 I teach them to love as well as fear me. 
 
 "June 10th. Last night had an interesting con- 
 versation with J. J. I hope that I have not done wrong, 
 but 1 have given him room to think that if Papa nuikes 
 no objection I shall make none, should we ever be 
 united grant us Oh Lord thy blessing. 
 
 " 17th. This day moved out to Bloomingdale, sweet 
 Bloomingdale, where I have spent my happiest and 
 some of my most miserable hours. I have again a 
 prospect of happiness, my heart look to thy Maker for 
 a continuance of it. 
 
 "24th. The die is cast, my Father has given his 
 consent and cheerfully, too, as I can judge from his 
 behavior. Now I can no longer hesitate; oh heavenly 
 father grant us thy blessing, may we make the reso- 
 lution of Joshua ours, let others do as they will, as for 
 us we will serve the Lord." 
 
 John rented a horse and gig by the month in order 
 to go driving with Margaret, and in August began to 
 prepare for his wedding, which was to take place at 
 Bloomingdale on September 2d. For this important 
 occasion he had made 
 
 " A coat of Impl. Saxon blue cloth $36 
 
 " A white Marseilles vest 5 50 
 
 " A pair drab cassimere pants 14 
 
 " 18 Rich gilt buttons (for the coat) 5s 3d." 
 
 Besides the above he ordered a pair of Wellington 
 
 [106] 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 Ijoots. It would be interesting to know something 
 about the dress of the bride as well. 
 
 He hired a carriage for their wedding journey, which 
 he kept for ten days, driving it himself as far as Hart- 
 ford, and from there sending it back to New York. 
 They probably occupied the remainder of the three 
 weeks they were away, in visiting Margaret's relatives, 
 near New Haven. 
 
 On their return from their wedding journey John 
 took his bride to her new home at 16 Greenwich Street, 
 then a fashionable locality very near the Battery. 
 Battery Park was not as extensive in 1817 as at present, 
 and the trees not half the size they have since become, 
 but the breeze was always cool and fresh, and there 
 in the long summer evenings might be seen a con- 
 course of gaily attired people enjoying the pleasant 
 scene. These promenades in this delightful spot in view 
 of the waters of the harbor were a social feature of the 
 time. 
 
 In Greenwich Street they were joined by Margaret's 
 adopted child, John Taylor Sherman, the son of her 
 sister Eliza, Mrs. Thaddeus Sherman. This little boy, 
 born not long after the death of Margaret's own child 
 Elizabeth, who was named for this same sister, had 
 })robably been informally adopted during her widow- 
 hood. He was now three and a half years old and was 
 hereafter usually a member of John's family. He re- 
 mained w itli them that winter, but when in the spring a 
 journey to Europe was determined upon, was sent back 
 temporarily to his mother, who lived at 51 Maiden Lane. 
 Messages about his health and his progress were fre- 
 quent, Margaret's father writing to her that "Little 
 
 [ 107 ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 John is as hearty as a Uttle Buck ... at school to 
 Mother & learning very well," . . and, " John has 
 nearly forgot Greenwich Street." 
 
 AVhile Margaret clung to this tie of her former life 
 and always felt the deepest affection for the adopted 
 child of her widowhood, it was almost the only associa- 
 tion with the past that she allowed herself. She never 
 from the day of her second marriage mentioned her 
 first husband or the little daughter she had lost, tore 
 out of her journals all the pages relating to that earlier 
 })eriod, and none of her children or grandchildren ever 
 heard her refer to it in the most distant way. Late in 
 life, one of her grandchildren, noticing the letters 
 "R. H." on a piece of silver, was indiscreet enough to 
 ask whose initials they were and received the curt 
 reply that the silver had been "left to her by a 
 friend." 
 
 May, 1818, found the young people on their journey 
 across the ocean, and on arrival at Liverpool they 
 started immediately for Glasgow, where John Johnston 
 had business and where many of his wife's relatives 
 lived. Here her brother Andrew Taylor joined them 
 and remained with them for a long time. Now and 
 then they started in "high spirits" for short trips in 
 Scotland, England or Ireland, both for business and 
 pleasure, but lived most of the time in Glasgow during 
 their year's absence from New York. Margaret's father 
 frequently sent John bills of exchange for his wife's 
 use, at one time writing teasingly that he supposed 
 "Margaret is not strong in funds ... I dare say you 
 are wishing her at home again, being the most ex- 
 pensive part of your Luggage." 
 
 [108] 
 
- ^' 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 One of their greatest enjoyments, Mr. Johnston's 
 journal records, was in going to the "Iron Church to 
 hear the celebrated Dr. Chalmers . . The scope of 
 his sermon [was] to shew that the existence of many 
 estimable moral qualities in Men unacquainted with 
 the Gospel was no proof of their not being totally 
 depraved by nature & Enemies to God . . . He . . 
 finally concluded . . . with a burst of Eloquence sur- 
 passing any thing I ever before heard which perfectly 
 astonished & delighted me. 
 
 "His action is violent, sometimes with the one hand 
 sometimes with the other but never with both at once, 
 the one being used to guide his eye to the notes which 
 he always keeps before him altlio' he is not a close 
 reader. His stile is beautiful altho' he pronounces 
 many words in the Scottish manner." Another time 
 he wrote, "We heard Dr. Dick, whose eloquence is, 
 according to Dr. Mason, that of the still small stream 
 whilst Dr. Chalmers is the bursting dashing & roaring 
 of the mighty torrent." 
 
 They paid a visit to Haugh of Urr, where they 
 found John's father very comfortable in Millbank Cot- 
 tage, the new house his son had built for him. Here 
 they were welcomed and treated with every possible 
 "kindness and attention." They also went to see 
 "Aunt Jane Proudfoot and spent the day on the banks 
 of Moffat water," where doubtless John would have 
 gone fishing as usual had it not been Sunday. Ten- 
 derly as he had always regarded the place, it seemed 
 equally beautiful to Margaret. "My aunt, honest 
 woman, gave us a hearty welcome & a great many 
 good things, altho' in plain stile . . . afterwards walked 
 
 [109] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 in the garden & grounds which have lost none of their 
 beauties. In viewing this phice I am no doubt par- 
 tial from early recollections, but my wife, who can 
 have no such partiality, pronounces it the loveliest 
 spot we have visited." 
 
 Friends had given him letters of introduction to peo- 
 ple of importance, and he and his wife were entertained 
 hospitably in the various cities which they visited. 
 
 In Ireland he was much interested in the con- 
 dition of the peasantry, and wrote in his journal as 
 follows : 
 
 "The inhabitants are almost universally in rags, 
 and form a very extraordinary contrast to the appear- 
 ance of the Country, which seems to produce almost 
 spontaneously very fine crops of Corn & Potatoes and 
 the richest grass I ever saw. Their farming utensils 
 seem much inferior to those of the Scots, and their 
 Carts, or Cars, are paltry little things with thin block 
 wheels about two feet in diameter which turn with the 
 axletree, &: on which they seem to carry a load not 
 much exceeding what might be taken on a wheel 
 barrow. On reviewing our ride through Ireland I 
 am more & more struck, at the prodigious contrast be- 
 tween the country & the inhabitants. The former is un- 
 commonly fine & in despite of indifferent agricultural 
 implements & scanty manure, the accompaniments of 
 poverty, every where produces most Luxuriant crops 
 of Corn & Grass, while the wretched inhabitants seem 
 hardly to have wherewithal to cover their nakedness. 
 This remark applies to the whole of our journey, to 
 the very confines of the capital — we have hardly seen 
 a single farmer, that we knew to be such, decently 
 
 [110] 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 dressed & hardly a Laborer or mechanic that was not 
 clothed in rags." 
 
 He also found much to reflect upon in the condition 
 of the small tenant farmers of his own land, and de- 
 scribes what he saw on a journey from Kenmore to 
 Loch Erne: 
 
 "The stupendous mountains which rise on each 
 side the lake are only skirted with wood along its 
 border & raise their lofty heads, naked & bare, to the 
 clouds — what land is cultivated lies also along the 
 border of the lake, for perhaps half a mile up the sides 
 of the mountains: — beyond that there are few fences, 
 & only heath & rocks to be seen. The population is 
 astonishing for such a barren region as Huts & mis- 
 erable looking farm Houses, all thatched with Brackens, 
 (& many of them with only a hole in the roof for the 
 smoke to escape) are planted thick on both sides; and, 
 as usual, abundance of chubby Children, dressed in 
 the Philibeg, crawling about in the mud. This dress 
 is not so much used by the men — I suppose not one 
 in three of those we have today seen are dressed in it. 
 
 "The inhabitants generally farm a small Patch of 
 one, two, or three acres, for which they pay about £'3 
 })r. acre, with a House. This supports their families 
 & they trust to their labor at some mechanical or other 
 professions, to pay the rent. . . . The language is 
 entirely Gaelic, but most of them understand English. 
 They have good schools, where latin also is taught. 
 The Clergyman . . . preaches half the day in English 
 & half in Gaelic." 
 
 After these trips he and his wife, in November, 
 1818, settled down in Glasgow, where their first child, 
 
 [111] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 a daughter, was soon afterwards born and died. Mr. 
 Johnston was deeply grieved at this "sore disappoint- 
 ment." "I have just returned from laying the remains 
 of the lovely infant in the Churchyard, & with it all 
 hope of having a child that can call the country of its 
 parents its own . . . My heart is full, but I bless God 
 I can say, I trust with resignation, 'Not my will but 
 thine be done.'" The poor father, according to the 
 spirit of the times, seemed to think that this bereave- 
 ment might have been sent as a punishment for their 
 sins and added, " I pray God it may produce the effect 
 of turning us from them, so shall this chastisement, 
 altho' it certainly at present seems grievous, produce 
 in us hereafter the peaceable fruits of righteousness." 
 
 As he always wished to use every opportunity for 
 self-improvement, he attended a course of chemical 
 lectures at the Glasgow University, and by way of 
 amusement went to see the King's Falconer exhibit 
 his hawks. They had here great pleasure in dividing 
 among their friends a consignment of a dozen Virginia 
 hams sent to them from America. It was in Glasgow 
 also that Mr. Johnston wrote his reply to the 
 "queries of Sir John Sinclair relative to the effects in 
 America of the late suspension & resumption of specie 
 payments," in which he said, "1 stated my opinion 
 that the latter measure had in every respect been 
 beneficial to the country. The contrary is what I 
 understand he wishes to establish." 
 
 On February 10, 1819, business obliging him to 
 leave his wife, he "travelled with a heavy heart," 
 moralizing thus as he went: "Man is the Creature 
 of habit — for the last 18 mos. I have spent my hours 
 
 [112] 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 of retirement entirely with my wife, & I now feel 
 miserable without her: — before I was happiest when 
 alone.''' He found, too, that he had lost some of his 
 convivial tastes, for after supping with William John- 
 ston and his friends in Kirkcudbright, where they 
 had a "cheever and a crack" about "auld lang syne," 
 he complains, "the sitting continued longer than I 
 wished it as we did not separate till 2 o'clock." 
 
 During the long stage ride between London and 
 Hull an amusing incident occurred. "At Lincoln ... a 
 lively well informed Gentleman entered," he wrote, 
 "with whom I soon got into conversation. From 
 business we proceeded to the Catholic question where 
 we happened to disagree about the Veto. In perfect 
 good humour (not knowing my profession) he spoke 
 of the solemn dignity of the long faced Presbyterians 
 and I of the cold formality of the Episcopalians. He 
 affirmed the Protestant Church had more to fear from 
 sectaries than from Catholics; and I adduced America 
 as a strong instance of no good resulting from Estab- 
 lishments, Religion there flourishing without them, and 
 took occasion to remark on the crowded churches of 
 the Dissenters in England whose salary depended on 
 their own exertions & the comparitively deserted state 
 of those of the Establishmt. with the exception of a few 
 popular preachers ... I then took an opportunity of 
 asking who he was & found to my surprise it was the 
 Vicar of Hull." 
 
 John was absent a month and on his return they 
 prepared for their departure to America, travelling by 
 coach to Liverpool and sailing on May 1st for home. 
 There were twenty-seven cabin passengers aboard and 
 
 [113] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 when the sea was smooth they used to dance on deck 
 for exercise. Half way over they had the unpleasant 
 experience of a short water supply, when "water was 
 for the first time served out by measure 1 Pint pr. 
 diem allowed each for washing." One afternoon, 
 according to the journal, they "saw a sail resembling 
 the Atlantic ahead at 3 p. m. She hove to & sent her 
 Boat on board of us . . It turned out to be the Atlantic^ 
 and Mr. [Robert L.] Taylor came on board of us. He 
 is hearty & well altho' a little mortified at being so 
 beaten, as the Atlantic sailed 10 days before us. We 
 sent them some wine & sugar & got some candles." 
 
 When they found themselves near Gay's Head they 
 "stood in" and landed one of the passengers, and on 
 June 8, 1819, came to anchor off Beeckman Slip. 
 "Mr. Boorman, Mr. Taylor & many of our other 
 friends soon after made their appearance & we were 
 happy to learn that all were well in whom we took an 
 interest . . . On first landing here, particularly in the 
 heat of summer, a stranger is much struck with the 
 almost universally sallow complexion of the natives — 
 notwithstanding my being so long accustomed to it, 
 my first impression was that my friends had all lost 
 flesh, & had the appearance of being newly risen from 
 a sick bed." 
 
 A few days later the travellers returned to their 
 home at 16 Greenwich Street. Mr. Johnston now re- 
 sumed all his former activities. He had been made a 
 member of the Chamber of Commerce in 1817 and had 
 been for several years a member of "The Reading 
 Room in Wall Street" and the "New York Bath;" he 
 was also a shareholder in the Society Library, and later 
 
 [114] 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 owned stock in tlie Clinton Hall Association, organized 
 to provide a building for the Mercantile Library. He 
 had large shipping interests in connection with his 
 brothers-in-law, Robert L. and Andrew Taylor, and 
 they owned many vessels sailing for Liverpool, Savan- 
 nah, Mobile and other ports. 
 
 His principal business dealings were, of course, 
 centered in the firm of "Boorman & Johnston, Mer- 
 chants." A book written in 1864 by "Walter Barrett, 
 Clerk," called "Old Merchants of New York," gives 
 an account of this widely known and prominent firm. 
 
 "Their business was at first selling Scotch goods, 
 bagging from Dundee, etc. The firm did a very large 
 business with Virginia, and at one time sold nearly all 
 the tobacco that came to this market from Richmond. 
 They also did a large iron business, receiving cargoes 
 from England and Sweden. They always had Swedish 
 vessels coming in loaded with cargoes of iron to their 
 consignment. 
 
 "The store of Boorman and Johnston was on South 
 street [No. 57] a long time. They then removed [their 
 warehouse] about thirty years ago to [119] Greenwich 
 street directly opposite Albany street. It was an im- 
 mense store, with a very large yard. Here were erected 
 sheds and iron bins. 
 
 "In 1835 Boorman, Johnston & Company received 
 a consignment of immense iron })illars. I believe they 
 came from Stockholm. They did their best to sell 
 what nobody wanted. Finally, they set a mason to 
 work, took out the under front wall of their great store 
 in Greenwich street and placed the pillars underneath. 
 There they remain to this day to be seen by any curious 
 
 [115] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 person, and I fancy these were the first iron pillars 
 ever made use of in this city. 
 
 "In 1828 Adam Norrie came out from Scotland 
 and was taken in as a partner of B. & J., and the firm 
 had 'Company' attached to it.* 
 
 "They were the largest Madeira merchants, and 
 received immense quantities of that wine every year. 
 From Italian ports they received large consignments. 
 
 "Probably there are more merchants in this city, 
 who were once clerks with Boorman, Johnston & Co., 
 than with any other house. It would be a curious mat- 
 ter to see the list." 
 
 John Johnston continued to l)e a member of this 
 (irm for thirty-one years and only severed the connec- 
 tion in 1844 because of ill-health. Many years later, 
 after Mrs. Johnston's death, when the contents of her 
 house were divided among her heirs, huge demijohns 
 and magnums of Madeira and other wines were found 
 in the attic, labeled "Sent on voyage to India and back 
 in 1819," some labels showing that the journey 
 had been made twice. These undoubtedly had been 
 so sent by Boorman, Johnston & Co., as a sea voyage 
 was supposed greatly to improve the flavor of these 
 wines. 
 
 The house in Greenwich Street, for which Mr. 
 Johnston paid, unfurnished, $125 a month, was not a 
 large one. Rents were high and good houses hard to 
 find. It had only two parlors on the first floor, a long 
 narrow hall, not over three or at most four feet wide, 
 
 * Boorman, Johnston & Co. first appears in the New York Directory of 183!£ 
 and it was probably at this time that Adam Norrie, who had been their book- 
 keeper, became a partner. 
 
 [116] 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 extending the whole depth of the house, and in the 
 
 rear an enclosed piazza and a winding stairway to the 
 
 two upper floors. The 
 
 bedrooms also were 
 
 small. John wrote to 
 
 his father in 1827, "We 
 
 have now four [children] 
 
 of our own alive and 
 
 one adopted, which fills 
 
 our parlour very well." 
 
 Mr. Howard Sher- 
 man, a nephew of Mrs. 
 Johnston, now in his 
 eighty-eighth year, re- 
 members this building 
 well and says, "I used 
 to stay with Jimmy in 
 the old house in Green- 
 wich Street and we both 
 slept in a little trundle 
 bed drawn out from un- 
 der Aunt Johnston's 
 bed, which was in the 
 second story front 
 room." 
 
 Here all their five 
 children were born — 
 John Taylor, 1820, 
 Andrew Taylor (who 
 only lived four months) 1821, James Boorman, 1822, 
 Margaret Taylor, 1825, and Emily Proudfoot, 1827. 
 Mr. Johnston had not, however, lived long in this home 
 
 [117] 
 
 THE DOORWAY OF 16 GREENWICH STREET 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OP^ NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 before the prevalence of yellow fever in the neighborhood 
 gave him no little anxiety and was one of the reasons 
 which later induced him to remove his family to the 
 country during the summer months. Entries in his 
 journal of 1819 give a graphic account of the visitation 
 of that year. 
 
 "Septem. 6th. Some alarm having existed for one 
 or two days on the subject of yellow fever the Board of 
 health this day made a report of some cases in & near 
 the Old Slip & recommended the removal of the in- 
 habitants from between the Coffee House Slip & 
 Coenties Slip from South, Front, Water & The East 
 side of Pearl Streets . . . 
 
 "Septem. 11th. Dr. Dewitt died of yellow fever. 
 
 "Septem. 13th ... 4 or 5 cases . . . some in Front 
 St. immediately behind our store — we therefore have 
 removed to my house in Greenwich St. Many are 
 shutting u}) their Houses & Co. Houses. 
 
 "Septem. 14th. The movement from the 'pro- 
 scribed district' general— an order of the Corporation 
 for compulsory removals if tiecessary. 
 
 " 15th Septem. The proscribed limits now almost 
 deserted. 
 
 " 16th Septem. Four new cases reported besides that 
 of Mr. Gilbert Aspinwall who is now at the House 
 Jamaica — an order of the Board to abstain from water- 
 ing the streets. 
 
 "17th Septem ... a good deal more alarm — many 
 moving out of town & the lower part of the city pretty 
 generally evacuated. One case reported at the foot 
 of Rector St. which seems rather too near home. 
 
 "18th Septem. This morning the death of Mr. 
 
 [118] 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 Aspinwall & of his young man Johnson produced a 
 prodigious sensation. Removal from all parts of the 
 city common, from the East side almost universal — 
 Broadway filled all day with loads of goods & furniture 
 going out of town. Some of the public offices removed 
 up to the upper part of Broadway. 
 
 "20th Septem. Excha. at Washington Hall where 
 the Brokers also meet instead of Wall St. The entrances 
 to the infected district shut up by Posts Boards & Rail- 
 ing. Only one new case reported but strong rumours 
 of many others that had been suppressed . . . 
 
 "21st Septem. Banks had a meeting & resolved 
 not to remove for the present. Still Wall St. has a very 
 desolate appearance. 
 
 "22d Septem. Five new cases — Mrs. Smith Mrs. 
 Copland & one other death . . . Mr. Boorman returned 
 to Town & we removed our Counting House to 84 
 Chamber St. 
 
 "24th Septem . . . rather close weather which is 
 thought unfavorable to the health of the town. Two 
 new cases — both as usual, from Old Slip. 
 
 "25th Septem . . . made up our mind to go to New 
 Haven on Monday week." 
 
 Mr. Johnston now felt that he had waited too long, 
 for on the day following the last entry, he found on 
 reaching home, that his wife had gone to bed with a 
 high fever. For a week she continued very ill, the 
 fever sometimes more and sometimes less. It was 
 ten days before she was well enough to be taken to 
 New Haven by her husband, whose journal does not 
 say whether it really was a case of yellow fever or not. 
 On October 22d, no new cases having developed since 
 
 [119] 
 
JOHN^JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 a frost which occurred October 13th, "the Mayor 
 issued his proclamation of the city being free from 
 fever," and they returned to New York. 
 
 In 1822 there was a recurrence of this epidemic, 
 with several cases in Greenwich Street, and Mr. 
 Johnston promptly removed his family to a house in 
 Bloomingdale near his father-in-law's home, where 
 they lived during the two succeeding summers. 
 
 Few people had summer homes in those days, and 
 it was the custom for an entire family to visit a watering 
 place during the hottest part of the summer. When 
 we read of the fatigues and difficulties of travelling and 
 the discomfort of the hotels, we wonder they did not 
 prefer to suffer at home. Mrs. Johnston was, however, 
 a woman of much spirit, not to be daunted by incon- 
 venience or hardship. Once when they were travelling 
 through the White Mountains in a closed carriage, she 
 wrote, "I thought my poor neck would have been 
 dislocated jerking my head from side to side that noth- 
 ing might be lost," but added with commendable 
 cheerfulness, "I shall be much benefitted by the 
 journey, jolting over rough roads always does me 
 good." More than once they had a "scramble for 
 beds but the Ladies had enough while the Gentlemen 
 stretched themselves on the floor with their Clothes 
 Bags for Pillows." 
 
 In accordance with the above custom, the whole 
 family, including "John Taylor," "Jemmy" and 
 "John Sherman," accompanied by two servants, a 
 pair of horses and a wagon, started in 1825 for Schooley's 
 Mountain. During this absence they attended a church 
 where, the journal chronicles, "the service commenced 
 
 [120] 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 at 10 1|2 o'clock & continued with an intermission of 
 only half an hour, until near 3 o'clock" . . . [The clergy- 
 man's] two discourses today, altho' delivered with 
 force and rapidity, took 2 hours & nearly 10 minutes 
 & his prayers being also long he must have spoken 
 nearly 3 1|2 hours in all. On his return home he again 
 preached to people of colour & he has meetings of one 
 kind or another to attend almost every day in tlie week. 
 For all this labor in two congregations containing 
 upwards of 300 families he receives only $700 pr. ann. 
 without any House or Glebe." 
 
 On the next "trip" of which we have any account, 
 little "John Taylor, N. Y.," aged nine, wrote the 
 journal. The family went first to Saratoga and after 
 ten days proceeding to Schenectady, took a boat on 
 the Erie Canal, which followed the banks of the Mo- 
 hawk. Utica he referred to as "a pretty village." 
 They continued on the canal until they reached Niagara 
 Falls, travelled by steamboat down the St. Lawrence 
 to Montreal and Quebec, and returned home via Lake 
 Champlain and Lake George. 
 
 The next year they spent three weeks at Saratoga, 
 and one of the first things John Johnston did, a custom 
 pursued wherever possible, was to subscribe to the 
 circulating library on his son John's account as well as 
 on his own. 
 
 On all these trips they were accompanied by Mrs. 
 Johnston's nephew. He and his cousin, six years 
 younger, were called respectively "John Sherman" and 
 "John Taylor," the latter name clinging to John 
 Taylor Johnston even after his college days were over. 
 As years went by, John Sherman, who w^as a charming 
 
 [121] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 but somewhat wayward boy, craved more change and 
 adventure than he could get in his aunt's household. In 
 1829, he was sent to his uncle Andrew Taylor, in Liver- 
 pool, and shortly thereafter was allowed to realize his 
 great longing and go to sea on one of his uncle's ships. 
 
 Not long after his return from Europe in 1819, Mr. 
 Johnston redeemed the promise made to his brothers 
 William and Robert and arranged for their coming to 
 America. William arrived in New York in 1819, and 
 for a year or two was employed in his brother's office, 
 after which he went to Petersburg, Virginia, where 
 John had friends. There he married and spent the 
 remainder of his life. Robert came over in 1821 and 
 settled at Richmond, Virginia, becoming a partner in 
 the commission house of Triplett & Johnston. Later he 
 returned to New York. Alexander, the youngest brother, 
 who had "preferred rather to remain at home & be a 
 Lawyer or something," in 1835 changed his mind and 
 sailed for Charleston in one of his brother John's ships. 
 
 For a number of years John Johnston had been a 
 prominent member of the St. Andrew's Society and in 
 1831 became its president. The dinner that year was 
 given at the City Hotel and took place, as was customary 
 in those days, at five o'clock in the afternoon. The 
 usual "standing" toasts were drunk among which were — 
 
 " The day and a' who honor it." 
 
 " The Land o' Cakes." 
 
 " The land we live in." 
 
 " The land of our nativity." 
 
 " Breathes there a man with soul so dead 
 Who never to himself hath said, 
 ' This is my own, my native land' ? " 
 
 [122] 
 
.mai{(;aket tavloh .loiixsio.x 
 
 Alto IT ]S-,'S 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 John's brother Alexander, who was present at 
 many of these dinners, gives a graphic account of one 
 of them : 
 
 "There were about a hundred as Lang lean hungry 
 looking Scotchmen as you would ever wish to see . . . 
 at last— Up struck the Bag Pipes 'till roofs and rafters 
 a' did DirK and in we rushed to the dining room . . . 
 
 "And now for the eating and drinking; you may 
 talk of your Pumpkin Pies, your Jellies & your Jams 
 and your French cooking but with our party it was 
 wha to eat the most in the shortest time, so as to get 
 at the Drinkables . . . 
 
 "The night went round with song and clatter; 
 
 And ay the yill was growing better; 
 
 The Bailie told his querest stories; 
 
 The compy's laugh was ready chorus; 
 
 McCorquo's face as long 's a mile — 
 
 Did ghastly grin, a dreadful smile: 
 
 Poor Smith who could not use his Pegs; 
 
 Sang a long song about —Cork legs — 
 
 And Rob, after some drinks «S: banter; 
 
 Got up and gave us Tarn o' Shanter. 
 
 Thus songs and tales and Toasts went right, 
 
 Until the witching time of night. 
 "Suffice it, that the Mirth and Hilarity of the Evng. 
 kept pace with the Bottle (and that was by no means 
 slow) until the clock struck 12 it being then Sunday 
 morning." 
 
 As the city developed and prosperity increased, it 
 became the custom for people of means to have their 
 portraits painted by the best artist available. Rem- 
 
 [ 123 ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 brandt Peale was one of these, a man of no mean 
 ability, and in 1826 John Johnston engaged him to 
 paint his portrait, giving him "$50 on a|c." Two 
 years later, the portrait being still incomplete, he was, 
 according to the note book, given the remaining $100 
 "for which painting to be finished." Mrs. Johnston's 
 portrait, a pendant to this, bnt not painted by the same 
 hand, was probably done at very nearly the same 
 time. 
 
 Three years later a pictiu'e was made of the four 
 children, who formed a very attractive group — a 
 group unhappily not long to remain unbroken, for 
 on May 30, 1881, John and Margaret Johnston 
 had the great sorrow of losing their youngest child, 
 Emily Proudfoot, tlien only three and a half years 
 old. This was a grief from which the mother with 
 (hfficulty recovered. Her friends said that she never 
 ceased to mourn for her baby, and John Johnston 
 himself wrote a year later, "This day recalls painful 
 recollections. It was on this day last year my dear 
 Emily was given up by the Doctors." 
 
 In the spring of 1831 Mr. Johnston, with a number 
 of his neighbors, decided to build a row of houses for 
 themselves on the north side of Washington Square, 
 which was then so far uptown that it was for all prac- 
 tical purposes in tlie country. They agreed upon 
 similar plans and all the houses in the present block 
 between University Place and Fifth Avenue were con- 
 tracted for at the same time. The land belonged to 
 the corporation of the Sailors' Snug Harbor, but the 
 dwellings were owned by the following gentlemen, 
 who erected them: 
 
 [124] 
 
JOIIX JOHXSTOX S FOUR f'HILDHEX 
 
 1 s;; 1 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 No. 1. W. B. Lawrence; occupied later for a 
 number of years by Stephen Allen, who was a member 
 of the original Croton Water Commission. This house 
 is now occupied by a great-grand-daughter of John 
 Johnston, Mrs. William A. W. Stewart, and her 
 family. 
 
 No. 2. W. B. Lawrence; occupied later for a num- 
 ber of years by Shepherd Knapp. 
 
 No. 3. Henry Rankin; occupied from 1843 until 
 1868 by Jonathan Thorne. This house was after- 
 wards used as a foundling asylum, and in 1884 was 
 altered into a studio building, the facade being then 
 changed. 
 
 No. 4. Samuel Thomson ; later occupied by Thomas 
 Garner, whose widow lived in the house until 1878. 
 
 No. 5. Edward A. Nicoll; occupied for a number 
 of years by Gen. James Talmadge, at one time our 
 representative at the court of Russia. Later Mrs. 
 Richard Alsop lived here until 1877; later still Mrs. 
 George M. Woolsey, and afterwards Charles W. 
 Gould. 
 
 No. 6. John Johnston; later occupied by Saul 
 Alley, whose widow continued to reside here for 
 many years. Afterwards Mrs. William Redmond 
 owned the house and her family still live in it. 
 
 No. 7. John Johnston; his widow lived here until 
 1879, since which time his grand-daughter, Mrs. Rob- 
 ert W. de Forest, and her family have occupied the 
 house. 
 
 No. 8. John McGregor, Jr., whose widow lived 
 here for many years after his death. 
 
 No. 9. John Morrison; later occupied by George 
 
 [ 125] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 Griswold, whose widow continued to live here until 
 her death about 1877. 
 
 No. 10. William and Robert Kelly; later occupied 
 by John C. Green, whose widow continued to live 
 here until her death in 1893. This house was after- 
 wards the residence of Bishop Henry C. Potter and 
 later that of Mayor George B. McClellan. 
 
 No. 11. Thomas Suffern, the only widower in 
 "The Row;" occupied since 1874 by his daughter, 
 Mrs. Edward N. Tailer, and her family. 
 
 No. 12. Samuel Downer, Jr. 
 
 No. 13. James Boorman; occupied later by his 
 daughter, Mrs. Josiah W. Wheeler, and her family. 
 
 In 1872 William Butler Duncan combined Nos. 
 12 and 13 into a double house for his own residence. 
 This was, until 1904, occupied by Mayor Edward 
 Cooper. 
 
 The original plan provided for lots about twenty- 
 seven feet front and this is the widtli of the first five 
 houses. Bui Nos. (I to 13 are wider, these eight 
 houses having been erected on nine lots. Mr. 
 Johnston secured two of these thirty-foot plots and, 
 wishing to obtain a larger house for himself, re- 
 tained thirty-two and one-half feet for his own resi- 
 dence. No. 7, building No. G upon the remaining 
 twenty-seven and one-half feet. 
 
 The ground rents of the houses on Washington 
 S(]uare were at first $130 per annum for the narrower 
 and $150 for the wider lots, and a memorial signed by 
 all the lessees appealed to the Trustees of the Sailors' 
 Snug Harbor to make these rents perpetual, they 
 having complied with their leases and having, accord- 
 
 [126] 
 
EARLY MARRIED DAYS 
 
 iiig to the document, "erected houses at least three 
 stories high at vast expense, which has enhanced to a 
 great extent all the neighbouring property." Their 
 co-lessees under similar obligations had "on their part 
 done nothing, ])iit have awaited without any risk or 
 the expenditure of any money the result of your me- 
 morialists' expenditures . . . Your memorialists would 
 respectfully represent that great objection exists, on 
 the part of the Public, to make purchases or to loan 
 money on houses of the great value of these erected by 
 your memorialists without having a perfect security 
 as to the ground rents that may hereafter be exacted 
 from the lessees of the lots aforesaid." Needless to 
 say, the memorialists did not receive a favorable 
 answer. 
 
 The exteriors of the houses were alike and the 
 interiors differed only slightly. The fittings were 
 similar — the mantels, for instance, which were beau- 
 tifully carved, being made in I^eghorn, Italy, from 
 statuary marble. The same handsome gilt and bronze 
 chandeliers were also to be found in a number of the 
 houses. 
 
 In later years, when Mrs. Also}:>, Mrs. Alley, Mrs. 
 Johnston, Mrs. McGregor, Mrs. Griswold and Mrs. 
 Green, who were all intimate friends, had each lost 
 her husband, this block was known as "Widows' 
 Row." 
 
 While their house was being built, Mr. Johnston 
 and his family took a journey to Europe, moving into 
 their new home on their return, in November, 1833. 
 
 [127] 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 TRIP TO EUROPE 
 1832-1833 
 
 THE business affairs of John Johnston having 
 prospered greatly, he decided in 1832 to take 
 his family on a pleasure tour through Europe- 
 Accordingly, he and his wife with their three children, 
 John, James, and Margaret, aged respectively twelve, 
 nine and six, embarked on May 10th, in the sailing 
 ship Formosa for Havre. The weather was very rough 
 at first, and the father of the family had to wait 
 upon his party of five, as even the "chambermaid" 
 was sick. Amusements on board were not many; 
 they had a swing put up for the ladies, and for Sun- 
 days, writes "John Taylor, aged 12," "We have 
 brought Dr. John Mason's sermons and I generally read 
 one to my father & mother every Sunday. Mother 
 also hears James & I our catechism." 
 
 On June 2d they landed at Havre and, the fare on 
 shipboard having been very simple, Mr. Johnston 
 evinced great pleasure over the "Bouillies & dishes 
 w^ith gravies" and the "Salads & Pattes. " Two days 
 later he wrote, "I have a pain in my left foot!" 
 
 [128] 
 
TRIP TO EUROPE 
 
 Seventeen years before, at the age of thirty-four, 
 as has been said, he had had his first attack of gout, 
 and had written in his journal that he could not un- 
 derstand why one so abstemious should be afflicted at 
 so early an age with this troublesome disease. He 
 began shortly after this time to frequent "baths," 
 "drink waters," etc., both at home and in Germany, 
 but with little success. English, Scotch and French 
 doctors gave him contradictory advice. 
 
 "Dr. Abercrombie of Edinburgh," he wrote in his 
 journal, "recommends simple diet, not mixed or 
 variety — Forbids Claret & Beer but permits a couple 
 of Glasses of Sherry after Dinner, and also recom- 
 mends abstinence from acids. In France to drink 
 weak Brandy & Water instead of Wine." Sir Henry 
 Halford (of London) differed from Dr. Abercrombie 
 in condemning all acids — said that "total abstinence 
 would be injurious rather than beneficial;" thought 
 that "good chiret taken in quantity not over one pint 
 a day would not be injurious and that animal food in 
 moderate quantity might be taken with impunity if 
 not too late in the day." Dr. Henry Holland, seen 
 later in London, "listened to my statement and, as 
 they all do, referred me to his book. He said I had 
 done wrong to abstain altogether from wine, as a 
 couple of glasses of good wine after dinner promoted 
 digestion and half a glass in the forenoon with a 
 cracker or biscuit would do no harm." 
 
 At Genoa in 1833, he was already obliged to go 
 sightseeing in a sedan chair. As he advanced in years, 
 the attacks became more severe; in 1835 we find him 
 starting for the Virginia Hot Springs on crutches, and 
 
 [ 1-29 1 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 in Paris, 1843, confined to his hotel for nearly four 
 months. At this latter time his toes were affected one 
 after another, discharging chalkstones from various 
 openings, and his son John wrote, "Until all the stones 
 have come out he cannot be much improved." In 
 later years his knuckles were affected in the same way. 
 
 All drugs except colchicum failed to afford relief, 
 and as it was constantly necessary to increase the 
 doses, the doctors, fearing that the drug might cease 
 in time to be effective, recommended a "Cure" at 
 Wiesbaden. This, alas, left the patient worse off than 
 before and justified the judgment of his wife, who 
 previously had written, "I feel now convinced that it 
 is much better for him to be in a place where he is not 
 tempted to fill his stomach with mineral water every 
 day." 
 
 Mr. Johnston early recognized the fact that his 
 attacks of gout were periodic, and in later years, that 
 they were of weekly occurrence. He endured this inflic- 
 tion for thirty-six years, but notwithstanding his suf- 
 ferings was rarely discouraged. The very first day 
 that he was able, he would go to church or to his 
 counting-house, and in spite of his crippled condition 
 took two extended tours in Europe, travelling and 
 sightseeing every moment that freedom from severe 
 pain would allow him to do so. He also continued his 
 voluminous journals, the one describing his travels in 
 1843-'45 being closely written and filling two good 
 sized volumes. 
 
 From Havre in 1832 the family went immediately 
 to Paris, although they heard startling accounts of the 
 
 [130] 
 
TRIP TO EUROPE 
 
 cholera there. These do not seem to have worried 
 them, nor were they alarmed when, journeying in 
 Scotland a little later on, they passed through a town 
 where this epidemic was raging and where Mr. John- 
 ston wrote: "The Cholera is very destructive at 
 ])resent & we saw one quarter of the Churchyard en- 
 tirely full of new Graves, in many of which four bodies 
 are buried." 
 
 They spent a month in Paris. The Continental 
 observance of Sunday, or lack of observance, according 
 to Mr, Johnston's views, was a constant distress to 
 him. " It seemed strange to us & very shocking to our 
 religious feelings to see the people at work, shops & 
 Theatres open as on week days . . . This day seems to 
 be utterly desecrated in Paris. It is the day that the 
 King chooses to review his loyal troops & the National 
 Guard of Paris." 
 
 After their stay in the French capital they went to 
 I..ondon and there made many preparations for their 
 more extended trip, Mr. Johnston purchased for 150 
 guineas a huge travelling carriage or "chariot," for 
 which he had the most remarkable trunks made — a 
 large flat one, over four feet square and eight inches 
 deep which was strapped on to the top of the carriage, 
 and others queerly shaped that fitted under the rumble, 
 the postillion's dickey, etc. All these extraordinary 
 trunks were found in the attic of No. 7 Washington 
 Square, after Mrs, Johnston's death in 1879. 
 
 In this carriage with post horses they started for 
 Haugli of Urr, stopping on the way at Birmingham, to 
 visit Mr. Johnston's brothers, Samuel and James. 
 Here he saw his sister Dorothea, now a school-girl of 
 
 [ VM ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 sixteen, whom, however, he did not recognize, as she 
 was only two years okl when he was hist in Scothmd; 
 also his l)rother Alexander — "a strapping young man 
 6 feet high." He gave them all handsome presents 
 and directed James to put Dorothea "to a better 
 school," for which he agreed to })ay "£40 or £50 per 
 annum if needful." 
 
 The occupants of the "chariot" then continued on 
 their way, passing Flodden Field, "which Mrs. J. & 
 myself," John wrote, "saw with renewed interest — 
 John Taylor with exstacy." In passing Abbotsford he 
 heard that Sir Walter Scott was still alive but lingering 
 in a hopeless state and observed, "His death will be 
 a great loss to this part of the country on nuuiy accts." 
 
 From Al)botsford it was not far to Moffat, and they 
 went over to Dumcrief to tea. "Aunt Jane, now in 
 her eightieth year . . . was delighted to see us and had 
 provided sumptuously for us and we sat down in her 
 small cottage to the number of twelve persons. Before 
 eating we had a delightful ramble by the bonny banks 
 of IVIoffat Water . . . and had plenty of gooseberries." 
 
 Near Dumfries they visited "Dalskairth," the beau- 
 tiful estate of James Lenox, in whose New York office 
 John Johnston had begun his business career. He 
 showed them his fine gardens, deer forest and fishing 
 streams. In 1818 Mr. Lenox had permanently retired 
 from the firm of Lenox & Maitland and had returned 
 to Scotland to live at Dalskairth, which was in the 
 Stewartry of Kirkcudbright and therefore not far from 
 the Haugh. 
 
 John Johnston was now, after an absence of thir- 
 teen years, again nearing his old home in the heart of 
 
 [132] 
 
TRIP TO EUROPE 
 
 Gray Galloway — the country which, in the uplands, is 
 all granite boulders and stretches of purple heather, 
 while below, in his early days, were "lanes" of water, 
 marshes and moss-hags — the land of which Crockett 
 so loves to tell, which used to be "as it were, all in 
 hummocks and tummocks, with green wet ])atches 
 between, over which at most times of the year one 
 must leap." It was (piite different now, and Mr, John- 
 ston wrote: "Everywhere we found the Mosses smok- 
 ing, the plan being now to pare off the top & burn it 
 for manure and afterwards to drain & sow: — and 
 some very good crops are thus obtained from the other- 
 wise barren moors." 
 
 A drive of a few miles l)rought them to TTaugh of 
 Urr, where they found the family all well; Jolm John- 
 ston, the grandfather of the children, whom the latter 
 saw for the first time, being "in excellent health tho' 
 now nearly eighty." They spent the next day at the 
 Haugh and enjoyed a "stroll among the green fields." 
 
 On William Johnston's invitation they paid him a 
 visit at Kirkcudbright, and the day being Sunday, 
 John Johnston made the following comment: "It is 
 pleasant to observe how quiet & orderly a Scotch 
 Town is on the Sabbath. Altho' this is a seaport, & 
 altlio' there was noise enough until near midnight 
 last night, yet today all is quiet & not a creature to be 
 seen in the streets except those who are going to or 
 coming from Church." 
 
 After calling on other old friends, John Johnston 
 took the road for Balmaghie, stopping on the way at 
 Boatcroft to see old William Geddes, now in his eighty- 
 sixth year, the father of Tibbie Geddes, who once 
 
 [133] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 found the younger John, "greeting by the burn side." 
 From there they passed by his birthplace at Barnboard 
 and, as we read in the journal, "proceeded to Balma- 
 ghie Churchyard to see my mother's grave — perhaps 
 for the last time until I also be gathered to my fathers." 
 
 In Edinborough, where they arrived in the middle of 
 August, they rented a new house. No. 1 Carleton Place, 
 Regent Terrace, and filled it with hired furniture. 
 This house, still unchanged, has a beautiful situa- 
 tion, the Terrace, high above the surrounding country, 
 commanding a fine view of Holyrood Palace and of 
 Arthur's Seat. Mr. Johnston could not look at Holy- 
 rood Palace without deep commiseration for the un- 
 happy Mary. "I constantly have a kind of awe on 
 me when I visit this building rendered venerable by 
 its antiquity & by its association with the independence 
 of Scotland. The certainty too . . . that the rooms, 
 furniture &c. are the same that were used by the 
 unfortunate Mary more than 250 years ago communi- 
 cates a certain feeling which it is impossible to de- 
 scribe, and gives rise to a train of melancholy musings 
 which to me have a peculiar charm." 
 
 In September the boys were entered at the Edin- 
 borough High School near-by, continuing their studies 
 there for about a year, except for the period between 
 March 16th and July 16th, 1833, when they travelled 
 on the Continent with their parents. The children 
 stood well in their studies, even little "Mag" at one 
 time claiming two ha'pennies from her father for 
 having been Dux twice at her school. The parents 
 wrote home that James had turned out to be a good 
 scholar, and that John Taylor learned well but was 
 
 [134] 
 
HOLYROOD PALACE AXU ARTHTtR 8 SEAT 
 AS SEEN FROM REGENT TERRACE 
 
TRIP TO EUROPE 
 
 very thoiiglitless. When the boys left the High School, 
 their father mentioned, with evident pride, that John' 
 Taylor Johnston received the prize of fifth Dux in his 
 class of one hundred and twelve boys. 
 
 The children were taken, as "their weekly reward 
 for good conduct," to the camera obscura, the au- 
 tomaton exhibition, etc., with which they were greatly 
 pleased. They were extremely intelligent and full of 
 individuality. In nine-year-old Jim's letters, which are 
 much more spontaneous than those of John, who 
 rarely mentioned anything more entertaining than a 
 sermon or the weather, the sufferings of a younger 
 })rother from the arrogance of one of earlier birth are 
 amusingly depicted. "I think John takes rather to 
 many airs upon himself (as I think You will be told 
 when you come back) but let that pass." He also 
 told of a new minister with a nose "rather too much 
 like that of the Christian who only allowed himself 
 four glasses of wine," and added by way of postscript, 
 "As Jenny Deans said, 'Excuse bad Speeling & Gram- 
 mer as I have a bad pen!' " 
 
 Their pleasures were very simple. Being o-ood 
 Scotch Presbyterians, they of course had no pres'ents 
 on Christmas, but on New Year's Day John Taylor 
 wrote that he received "the first volume of the New 
 Casket, a small box of sugar plums & a silver eye- 
 glass." On his father's return from an absence, the 
 journal continues, "He brought me a book c'alled ■ 
 'Sketches from Nature;' James, 'Natural Magic;' & 
 sis, 'Natural History.'" During their stay in Edin- 
 borough the boys were delighted by a visit from their 
 cousin, John T. Sherman, who had arrived at Liver- 
 
 [135] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 pool from Savannah on one of his uncle's sailing ships, 
 the John Taylor, and now spent his "shore week" 
 with them. 
 
 On Thursday, June 1st, John Johnston made the 
 following entry in his journal: "This is the Sacra- 
 mental fast throughout the City & very strictly kept, 
 all the Shops &c. being shut." 
 
 In Scotland at this time the "Sacramental fast" 
 was an annual or semi-annual day set apart for humilia- 
 tion and prayer. It was usually observed during the 
 week preceding the celebration of the Lord's Supper 
 and on this day all business was suspended. At the 
 Preparatory Service held at this time, a large pewter 
 medal called a "token" was given to the members of 
 the Scotch Presbyterian Church who were deemed 
 worthy to join in the Lord's Supper, to which no one 
 was admitted without a token. An attack of gout, 
 however, prevented Mr. Johnston from being present 
 at the Communion service on Sunday. "My foot is 
 not well enough to permit me to go to church, at which 
 1 am sorry as I had intended to join in Communion 
 with Mr. Marshall's for which jmrpose I had ob- 
 tained a token." 
 
 In January Mrs. Johnston went to Glasgow to 
 visit her relatives, and Mr. Johnston left for Galloway 
 to see his family there. He made his home, during this 
 visit, with Mr. Lenox at Dalskairth and was feted by 
 all his old friends. After nightly dinners for three 
 weeks with all kinds of good things to eat and, pre- 
 sumably, to drink, it is not surprising that he barely 
 reached Edinborough in time for another severe attack 
 of gout. 
 
 [136] 
 
TRIP TO EUROPE 
 
 A journey to the Continent had been planned for 
 the spring of 1833, and on March 16th, liaving already 
 sent their travelling carriage on board the boat for 
 London, Mr. and Mrs. Johnston left their "little 
 daughter" and her nurse at the house of Miss Miller, 
 who was to take charge of them during the parents' 
 absence, and embarked with the two boys. On shi})- 
 board they had a funny fashion of sitting in their 
 carriage on deck, or even sleeping in it, if it was hot or 
 close below, which must have afforded immense en- 
 tertainment to their fellow-travellers. 
 
 From London they went to Calais, where they had 
 the pole of the carriage taken out and a pair of shafts 
 put in, which enabled them to harness "three post 
 horses abreast, who went at a kind of jog trot & looked 
 almost like English cart horses only . . . handsome 
 with rope and leather harness;" they also had "a 
 Postilion with a thundering Pair of Boots, cracking his 
 whip round his head, as if he set the World at defiance." 
 
 At Paris they took rooms in the Hotel Meurice, and 
 to reach their parlor had to mount one hundred and 
 seventeen steps — a hard tax on the father of the family. 
 Here they were joined by a Mr. and Mrs. Magee of 
 New York, who, in their own carriage, were to make 
 the trip with them. 
 
 On March 29th, they all left Paris and, travelling via 
 Cannes and Nice, arrived at Genoa. The country near 
 Chalons reminded Mr. Johnston of the banks of the 
 Connecticut between Hartford and Northampton, but 
 was more fertile on account of the irrigation. He tells 
 of their arrival at Ventimiglia where "we found the 
 whole town in motion. We w.ere received by the 
 
 [137] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 Priests & their Pupils outside the Gates who all lifted 
 their hats & bowed — by the officers & soldiers at the 
 Gate who presented arms & by the People in the 
 streets bowing & lifting their hats as we passed — & 
 indeed the streets were so thronged there was hardly 
 room for the carriage to pass. We thought it was 
 some great festival & had marked the people down as 
 the most polite in the world; — but soon after we found 
 out the secret. They took us for very different char- 
 acters; not plain Republicans but Scions of Royalty. 
 It appears the Ex Vice Queen of Italy (w^idow of 
 Eugene Beauharnais) left Nice this morning also on 
 this route — & they mistook our Cortege for hers. Hence 
 the attentions we received." 
 
 As they passed from France into Italy, he ob- 
 served: "In personal filthiness & rags the Italians 
 are rather worse than the Provencaux, altho' they are 
 bad enough. The women work by the streams & spin 
 by the road side on the old fashioned distaff as the 
 French do. The men make the beds cook the victuals 
 and lounge about the Houses . . . One remarkable pe- 
 culiarity of the peasants is that however meanly clad 
 they always have a kind of cloak thrown around them 
 & muffled up over their chin. This is frequently noth- 
 ing but a parcel of Patches so that they are to appear- 
 ance worse dressed than the meanest Beggars in 
 Scotland . . . Monks of all orders, Priests & Friars are 
 as thick as Hops in the street." 
 
 A great annoyance suffered in Italy was in connec- 
 tion with the post-horses, the Post Master insisting on 
 their taking more than were really necessary. There 
 was always "a battle about four Horses & two Pos- 
 
 [138] 
 
TllIP TO EUROPE 
 
 tilions to each carriage, which was renewed & fought 
 over at each Post witli varying success — at one Post 
 it was carried by our courier before the Governor, 
 who decided in his favor, & sent a Gen d'Arme to 
 enforce tlie decision; but this did not prevent the same 
 attempt at the very next Post." Througli these dehiys 
 they sometimes did not arrive at their destination until 
 ten o'clock at niglit. 
 
 When, on April 'ilih, they came in sight of Rome, 
 tliey felt greatly disaj)pointed, for they had read about 
 the seven hills on which it was built and expected to 
 find it on a high and commanding situation. Their 
 first day in the Eternal City was a strenuous one. 
 They began at the Piazza del Populo and the Corso, 
 visited the Triumphal Arch of Septimus Severus, 
 through which passed the Sacra Via, viewed the re- 
 mains of the Temple of Jupiter Tonans, the columns 
 of the Tem})le of Concord, the Temples of Antoninus 
 and of Jupiter Stator, the remains of the Temple of 
 Peace and of the palace of Augustus on Mont Palatinus. 
 Next came the (jilded House of Nero, the Coliseum, 
 the Arch of Constantine, the Arch of Titus at the en- 
 trance of the Forum, the Church of St. John Lateran 
 and that of St. Mary Majeur. "We then took a drive," 
 Mr. Johnston cheerfully adds, "in the course of which 
 are the Acjueducts of Appius Claudius, Nero and 
 Caracalla. Round the wall near the Flaminian Gate, 
 by wdiich we again descended to the Piazza d'Espagna, 
 and arrived at our hotel hungry & tired enough at (i 
 o'clock, when we dined!" 
 
 John Johnston had had few opportunities to see 
 good pictures, and some of his comments are rather 
 
 [139 J 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 amusing. Of those in the Borghese Palace he wrote: 
 "Many of them struck even me who have no critical 
 knowledge of art as being beautiful . . . Guido's St. 
 Sebastian with three arrows in his body struck me 
 more than any other. Some pictures were pointed out 
 by the Guide as of first merit of which the colours 
 appeared to me very indifferent & had I met with them 
 anywhere else I should have thought them poor pic- 
 tures." Perugino he did not like — his paintings "are 
 so stiff & highly coloured like Chinese pictures." Of 
 the Tribune in the Uffizi Gallery at Florence he re- 
 marked, "There are two Venuses by Titian, which 
 altho' painted entirely without drapery, & in an attitude 
 so voluptuous as to shock the delicate feelings of our 
 American ladies, are astonishing productions of the Pen- 
 cil & seem to attract more attention than even the Mar- 
 ble Venus which stands below them." 
 
 St. Peter's impressed him greatly; he thought it 
 "beautiful beyond conception." There he heard 
 some most wonderful chanting. "One Eunuch, as I 
 supposed from his appearance & voice, performed 
 two or three solos in a voice I never heard equalled. 
 I shut my eyes & tried to fancy the voice a woman's 
 but there was a something about it still that differed 
 from that, altho' certainly it was not that of a man." 
 On leaving the church, he writes, "our own carriages 
 not having arrived, a cardinal's coachman waiting for 
 his master offered his services & brought us home in 
 fine style for little more than double pay." They saw 
 a newly-made Neapolitan Cardinal returning from 
 mass, and the journal continues, "In his own splendid 
 red carriage he sat with four footmen swinging behind 
 
 [ 140] 
 
TRIP TO EUROPE 
 
 — followed by two other carriages of his ow^i with each 
 two footmen in his livery. This is humility with a 
 vengeance." 
 
 They "did" Rome in nine days, which at the pace 
 begun on the first day would seem quite possible. A 
 week was then spent in Naples; from thence they took 
 boat to Leghorn and drove by way of Pisa to Florence. 
 In Rome John Johnston had ordered marble- 
 topped tables; in Leghorn, four statuary marble man- 
 tels, "like Mr. Suffern's," busts of Wellington and of 
 Hamilton, alabaster vases, colored marble fruits, etc. — 
 all for the furnishing of the new home in New York. 
 He very likely also purchased while in Rome all the 
 copies of old masters and originals by poor modern 
 ones with wdiich his house at Washington Square was 
 filled. 
 
 From Florence they travelled through Bologna and 
 Padua to Venice. To this lovely }>lace they gave only 
 two days, Mr. Johnston greatly admiring its appearance 
 from a distance but not finding much to be commended 
 in the city itself. He remarked that he had seen the 
 bronze horses of San Marco in Paris in 1814 and made 
 the same comment about the Apollo Belvedere and 
 the Laocoon just seen at Rome. The mosaics of San 
 Marco he thought "frightfully ugly being surrounded 
 with tawdry gilding," but added, "some of the Pillars 
 are beautiful." 
 
 He developed a discriminating taste for other forms 
 of beauty and after seeing the Milanese women ex- 
 claimed, "The Ladies [are] some of them very hand- 
 some & if the women would only wear the mantilla of 
 Genoa, instead of the black Lace of Milan, thrown 
 
 [141] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 over their heads they might compare favorably with 
 those of England." 
 
 The family now returned in their lumbering car- 
 riage over the Simplon Pass, from the summit of which 
 they started at a little after four in the morning, in order 
 to get ahead of a troublesome fellow-traveller who 
 usually preceded them with four carriages and took 
 all the horses. They bought watches and musical 
 boxes at Geneva, though they generally had to mount 
 to the seventh story to find the workshops, so necessary 
 is it in these industries for the workmen to have the 
 very best light. 
 
 A test of their remarkable endurance was made 
 during their journey through France. At Avalon they 
 were roused at three a.m. and after their morning 
 coffee took the road. They arrived at Fontainebleau 
 at half past nine that night, having travelled over 
 eighteen hours and having covered one hundred and 
 two English miles. 
 
 At Paris, still intent on furnishing, they visited a 
 looking-glass manufactory and selected plate glass for 
 the mirrors in the Washington S(puire house, one of 
 whicli was, at the suggestion of the manager, silvered 
 in their presence. They also l)ought a })icture clock 
 for the parlor. 
 
 Here the Magees left them, and they continued 
 their journey through Brussels and Antwerp to Lon- 
 don. In the latter place they once more heard Dr. 
 Chalmers preach and again met him personally, much 
 to Mr. Johnston's enjoyment, who remarked: "His 
 flights are sublime but his pronunciation is worse than 
 most of the Scottish clergymen of the present day, 
 
 [142] 
 
TRIP TO EUROPE 
 
 being that of Fifeshire which is sometimes unintel- 
 ligible even to me. Crowds of the nobility & of the 
 first 2:>ersons in Tow^n were there, . the streets in the 
 neighbourhood being lined on both sides with private 
 carriages." Dr. Chalmers reciprocated this interest 
 and admiration, once writing to the Rev. John Mc- 
 Millan that "Kirkcudbrightshire might well felicitate 
 herself on having given birth to such a noble-hearted 
 Christian philanthropist as Mr. Johnston of New 
 York." 
 
 While in England he and his wife were hospitably 
 entertained, and in his journal he comments on the 
 difference between the dinners in London and the 
 course upon course served on such occasions in New 
 York: "The dinners set out here are not so lyrofuse 
 as those we set out in America, but I think are in better 
 taste . . . The stile is pretty much what it was in Holland 
 Eighteen years ago. The meats after being set on the 
 table are taken off & cut up by the Servants & handed 
 round to the guests. The wine also is poured out by 
 the Servants & the master sits in the middle of the 
 table — all retire at once in about two hours after 
 sitting down." 
 
 Before leaving London the carriage was insured 
 and shipped to New York, though it is hardly be- 
 lievable that it was ever used there, and after an ab- 
 sence of four months the family returned by boat to 
 Edinborough, where they found their "dear little girl" 
 and Beulah, the nurse, well, and where they received 
 letters telling of the death, in New York, of Mrs. 
 Johnston's father, John Taylor. 
 
 Dundee was the place from which Boorman & 
 
 [143] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 Jolinston's principal shipments were received, and be- 
 fore sailing for home, Mr. Johnston went there to settle 
 certain business details, and also made a final visit to 
 his Galloway friends and relatives. He once more saw 
 his mother's grave, about which he wrote: "My feel- 
 ings were much overcome at the thought of what my 
 good mother was & that my Dust was in all human 
 probability destined to mingle with that of far distant 
 lands." This was indeed the last time that he ever 
 went to the Balmaghie Churchyard. 
 
 He breakfasted with his father at the Haugli and 
 attended church with him, where "Mr. McWhirr dis- 
 coursed with his usual ability for nearly 3 hours." 
 His old teachers were not forgotten, nor the old family 
 servants; with one he ate curds and cream, and to 
 several he promised small annuities, one of them re- 
 ceiving a pension for over twenty-five years. His father 
 and his stepmother were "much affected at parting." 
 
 In August the family bade adieu to Edinborough 
 and took ship from Glasgow for Liverpool, where they 
 visited the "seat" of Andrew Taylor, and John John- 
 ston wrote, "Walked on 'Change' where I saw many 
 of my old friends." 
 
 Much to the delight of the boys, they took a trip 
 on the " celebrated railroad " to Newton. " The velocity 
 with which we went & came," one of them exclaims, 
 "was truly astonishing. The distance is 16 miles 
 which we did in 30 minutes, being nearly 35 miles pr. 
 Hour — and yet in looking out on the fields you were 
 not sensible of the greatness of the speed — but when 
 you looked at the walls and other objects close to the 
 carriage, particularly the perpendicular rock through 
 
 [144] 
 
TRIP TO EUROPE 
 
 which the railway is sometimes cut, & which approaches 
 near to the carriage on both sides, the rapidity with 
 which they seem to pass gives rise to a sense of 
 Giddiness." 
 
 Before sailing, John Johnston sent gifts in money to 
 the family and to many charities, including the Dum- 
 fries Infirmary and the poor of Kirkcudbright. That 
 he was always ready to help his people in a pecuniary 
 w^ay, is evident from the numerous presents he gave 
 them when "at home" in Scotland, or which he sent 
 them from New York. He paid for his sister Doro- 
 thea's schooling, offered to aid in establishing his sister 
 Margaret on a farm, provided she would "make a 
 match near home, so that she could still watch over 
 the declining years" of her parents, and gave each of 
 his brothers substantial assistance in business. He did 
 not, however, believe in extravagance and wrote to his 
 brother James that he feared "Doro. had spent <£18. 
 1. 6 in last six mos. for Clothes & extras, which was a 
 great deal too much." He had a decided objection to 
 feeling that anyone was imposing upon him, and when 
 he thought that some of his relatives were asking too 
 much, they were informed that he had left them "hand- 
 some remembrances" in his will, and that thereafter 
 any sums they might receive would be deducted from 
 the legacies he had designated for them. 
 
 He constantly assisted in building both churches 
 and schools in Scotland, frequently paying as much as 
 half of the cost and also contributing to their support. 
 Kirkcudbright, Dumfries, Laurieston, Balmaghie, 
 Tongland, Girthon, Anwoth and many other places 
 had substantial help of this kind from him. 
 
 [ 145] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 The long journey abroad was now over, the family 
 having travelled many thousand miles, always with 
 great appreciation and enthusiasm. John Johnston 
 was an intelligent observer; while his artistic sense had 
 not been much developed, he noticed critically the 
 country through which he passed, made comments as 
 to the people, crops, cattle, fences, irrigation, etc., and 
 spoke particularly of the trees, disliking the clipped 
 and dwarfed ones, although his taste lay more in the 
 way of having things neat and tidy than picturesque. 
 
 On entering Switzerland from Italy, he had ex- 
 claimed: "What a contrast the Canton of Vaud 
 furnishes to that of the Vallais! Here all has an ap- 
 pearance of industry & comfort — there of beggary & 
 starvation! Here, for the first time almost since we 
 have entered France, we find beautiful forest trees in 
 their natural state, not stunted and crowned with 
 unsightly bumps . . . No lazy lounging sleepers by the 
 way side & no Beggars — the people decently dressed 
 & men & women busy in their Vineyards." 
 
 Their sightseeing was of the most vigorous kind. 
 Sometimes, as has been said, they would arise at three 
 A.M. and after drinking coffee, would drive several 
 hours before taking breakfast. Apparently they ate 
 only during the times when the horses were being 
 changed. At one time they arrived at St. Jean de la 
 Garde at half past ten p.m., "When,'' Mr. Johnston 
 writes," the night being fine & the Hotel not promising, 
 we concluded to take our supper there & proceed on 
 our way. We accordingly left this place at midnight, 
 it being clear moonlight, and proceeded towards 
 Nismes, 36 1|4 miles farther . . . arrived at Nismes at 
 
 [ 146 ] 
 

 CITY HOTEL 
 
 ONE BLOCK ABOVE TRINITY CHURCH 
 
TRIP TO EUROPE 
 
 8 1|^2 o'clock . . . having been 24 hours in the carriage 
 saving only the 1 1|2 hours at supper." They never 
 seemed to write ahead for rooms and sometimes had 
 to go to four or five hotels before securing accommo- 
 dations for the night. 
 
 On September 16th they sailed for New York on 
 the North America with twenty-five passengers all 
 told. When the voyage was half over, the "gambling 
 passengers," as Mr. Johnston called them, wished to 
 make a "lottery" betting on the day of arrival. It is 
 amusing to note that while neither he nor Mrs. John- 
 ston was willing to purchase anything so questionable 
 as a lottery ticket, yet "to gratify the children" they 
 "let each of them take one, 10s. each." On the Banks 
 they " hove too the Ship & tried for some cod-fish but 
 without success the water being 70 or 80 fathoms." 
 The voyage lasted for five weeks and they landed in 
 New York on October 22, 1833, after having "travelled 
 by land and water about 13,000 miles." 
 
 Following their usual custom, they drove to a 
 number of hotels before finding such rooms as they 
 needed and finally settled at the City Hotel, then the 
 best one in town, situated on Broadway just above 
 Trinity Church. Here they remained until November 
 2, 1833, when, all the furniture having been trans- 
 ferred from Greenwich Street to "Waverly Place, 
 Washington Square," and their European purchases 
 having been unpacked, they moved into their new 
 home. 
 
 [147] 
 
CHAPTER Vll 
 WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 1833-184^2 
 
 THE new house at Washington Square, or, as it 
 was called, "Washington Parade Ground," was 
 greatly appreciated by all the family, who en- 
 joyed living in a real home after their long journeyings. 
 It was surrounded by green fields, very few dw^ellings 
 having as yet been built so far uptown. The houses 
 in "The Row" all had beautiful gardens in the rear 
 about ninety feet deep, surrounded on two sides by 
 white, grape-covered trellises, with rounded jirches at 
 intervals, and lovely borders full of old-fashioned flowers. 
 Mrs. Johnston, who was })articularly devoted to her 
 garden, which she could reach by a flight of steps from 
 her back parlor window, levied contributions in the 
 way of peonies, lilies of the valley and other flowers 
 on her various sisters who lived in the country. She 
 was especially fond of "old man's beard," of which she 
 ahvays carried a sprig to church when it was in season. 
 The garden at No. 7 remained in very nearly its orig- 
 inal condition until an addition to the house containing 
 the new library was built over it in 1894. 
 
 [ 148] 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 The family now settled down to a regular routine. 
 The boys attended school a little farther out in the 
 country, which they reached by climbing fences and 
 going across lots. If on their way they found a build- 
 ing under construction, they would abstract some 
 bricks, a tile or two and, of course, some shavings; 
 then making a little oven, each would produce a potato 
 from his pocket — with a result which may easily be 
 imagined. 
 
 In the Square itself there was a pump with a long 
 handle, which afforded the boys no end of amuse- 
 ment. All the occupants of "The Row" sent here for 
 water for their weekly washing because of its peculiarly 
 soft quality. A comical story is told about this old 
 pump. One of the neighbors requested his coachman 
 to fetch a couple of pails of water from it for Mary 
 the laundress. The coachman said that this was not 
 his business, and upon being asked by his employer 
 what his business was, replied, "To harness the horses 
 and drive them." Thereupon he was requested to 
 bring the carriage to the door. The gentleman then 
 handed the laundress with her two pails into it and 
 bade her go and draw the water. After this the coach- 
 man preferred to perform the duty himself. 
 
 The occujjants of No. 7 did not have to depend 
 entirely upon this source of supply for soft water, as 
 they had a large rain water cistern in their own yard — 
 so huge, in fact, that the man who, in later years, filled 
 it up said it was large enough for a horse to swim 
 about in. 
 
 Mrs. Johnston, who was essentially a domestic 
 woman, took the greatest j^leasure in her numerous 
 
 [ 149 ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 closets, which gave her unHmited possibiHties in the 
 way of systematizing her belongings, and was never 
 happier than when going around the house with her 
 key-basket on her arm, weighing out currants and 
 raisins, filtering the wine, or marking towels and 
 })utting them away by dozens. She had the tiniest 
 brougham that ever was seen, and with it accomplished 
 innumerable errands. Under the coachman's seat was 
 a kind of box with a drop door opening inside, into 
 which she could shove her many parcels. 
 
 While her husband, because of ill-health, was with- 
 drawing himself more and more from general society, 
 she was becoming more social. She had a beautiful 
 large house, a dining table which would seat over 
 twenty, and she loved to accept the hospitality of her 
 neighbors and to entertain them in return, although 
 one of her sons was often obliged to take his father's 
 place at table. Mr. Johnston commented pathetically: 
 "Your mother is becoming so gay that I sometimes 
 wish she had another beau . . . Such gatherings are 
 anything but agreeable to me but as we have young 
 people coming forward, I think it is not our duty to 
 withdraw ourselves from our circle of society until 
 they can take our places." 
 
 When any old friends arrived from Scotland, Mrs. 
 Johnston "made a dinner" in their honor; when Mr. 
 Boorman brought an "Epergne" as a present from 
 Europe, she gave an "evening company" to exhibit it, 
 and when the heirs of John Taylor presented a pair 
 of silver pitchers to her husband as a token of their 
 gratitude for services rendered, he wrote: "It was 
 lucky that they came so late in the season that your 
 
 [150] 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 mother had not a chance to make a l)arty to show 
 them off, as in the case of Mr. Boorman's Epergne, " 
 complaining half whimsically in a later letter to his 
 son John — "Your mother is well and sends her love 
 but she has such an amount of talking to do that she 
 has no time to write," 
 
 There is a little book that goes by the familiar name 
 of "Grandma Johnston's Dinner Party Book," which 
 gives certain interesting if homely details of her en- 
 tertainments; in it we find records of many an " Evening 
 Party" and "Dinner Party," or of a more informal 
 "Tea and Coffee Drinking," and twice of a "Bridal 
 Party. " She always gives the list of guests and some- 
 times makes remarks about them such as — "The 
 ladies were a great deal dressed," or "Everything was 
 very nice but company rather stiff. " We also hear how 
 large the table* was — "Two ends with large and small 
 leaf, large enough for an Evening Tea Party if you do 
 not have oysters," which were always in tureens at the 
 two ends of the table, or that "The middle table, two 
 ends & two leaves, will hold 18 persons." 
 
 The dressing of the "Epergne" is an important 
 item, and we find such entries as "In the middle the 
 Epergne with glass dish filled with fruit and geranium 
 leaves;" "Epergne, artificial flowers, natural leaves;" 
 "Flowers from our own garden;" "Disappointed in 
 flowers, dressed the Epergne with Rose & Fancy Mot- 
 toes very prettily;" or more frequently it is "Superb 
 boquet of flowers from Mrs. Green," who lived at 
 No. 10 Washington Square. 
 
 She seems to enjoy a variety and receives at times 
 
 * This table is now used as the tliiiing table in E. J. de F.'s country home. 
 
 [151] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 in the "Front Parlor" and at other times in the "Draw- 
 ing Room," as the back parlor was called. Sometimes 
 they dine in the "Drawing Room," at others in the 
 "Front Parlor" and again in the front basement room, 
 which is their ordinary dining room. Once she has a 
 large supper served in the two front rooms of the 
 second story. She also tries experiments in the lighting 
 of the rooms and usually leaves the second room un- 
 lighted or the folding doors closed until supper time, 
 even if there are thirty or forty people in the one re- 
 maining room. The lighting of the "chandelier in the 
 Drawing Room" is mentioned as an occurrence of 
 great importance. This is the gilt bronze one which 
 now hangs in the parlor at No. 7 Washington Square, 
 and was then used with candles. 
 
 The guests sit in a large circle around the two 
 parlors, walk round and round in couples, or listen 
 while Mrs. Johnston's nieces, Janet Sherman and Susie 
 Taylor, sing "Love's Young Dream" and "When the 
 Swallows Homeward Fly." Sometimes, but rarely, 
 there is dancing, and then only when a guest volunteers 
 to "play on the piano," while the company dances the 
 polka or the lancers, or, more rarely still, a Scotch 
 reel. 
 
 Mrs. Johnston is of a frugal turn of mind, and 
 although she is anxious that everything shall be hand- 
 some and that her guests shall have all they want to 
 eat, still she can not bear to see waste, and hence there 
 are notes — "Only half eaten" or "The Table was 
 almost cleared." No one who reads the list of dishes 
 served at one of her dinners can, however, accuse her 
 of providing too sparingly. At a family dinner of four- 
 
 [ 152 ] 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 teen persons, served 
 following menu: 
 
 Dinner 
 2 Soups 
 2 Fish 
 
 Fillet of Beef 
 Capon in Jelly 
 Tongue do 
 Boiled Turkey 
 Sweetbreads 
 Terrapin 
 Ducks & Quails 
 Partridges 
 Croquets — Oysters 
 Chicken Patties 
 Mushrooms 
 Vegetables 
 Rolls 
 
 at five o'clock, they have the 
 
 Dessert 
 Plum Pudding 
 Mince Pie 
 Charlotte de Russe 
 Meringues 
 Cocoa nut Cake 
 Jelly 
 
 Blanc Mange 
 Candied Fruit 
 Brandy Peaches 
 Ice Cream 4 qts. 
 Grapes & L. Apples 
 Mottoes— Cake 
 
 Too much Dessert 
 Middle Table, 2 ends 
 
 A Social Cheerful Party $71.93 
 
 One of her friends, after suggesting a number of 
 eatables for an evening entertainment, advises her to 
 have also: 
 
 " Cake in forms — - 
 
 Hounds standing on a rock — or birds in a nest 
 
 Or chanticleer in his pride, or rabbits in pairs 
 
 Or any shapes you choose — the animals iced. 
 
 (Weller makes them to order.) 
 
 "If you do not have these you will require Con- 
 fectionery Baskets or something of the kind, high, 
 to stand between the flowers, up and down. 
 
 "Also, Three Vases Flowers — Let Flora be gen- 
 erous.'* 
 
 [ 1-53 ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 There was a good deal of evening visiting 
 among the ladies of the neigh})orhood. Mrs. Johnston 
 would "run in" to see Mrs. MeGregor, Mrs. Griswold, 
 Mrs. Alley or Mrs. Green, and they would return the 
 compliment. These informal calls were made in the 
 library in the second story, which was comfortable and 
 homelike, although the furniture was covered with 
 slippery black haircloth. The parlors had stiff rows 
 of damask-covered chairs and sofas around the walls, 
 and marble-topped tables in the middle with mosaic 
 representations of the Roman Forum or of Pliny's 
 doves, while worsted-work mats, daguerreotypes, ala- 
 baster vases, stone fruits, etc., were used as ornaments. 
 
 In one of the parlors hung a picture of a Swiss 
 valley with a church in the foreground, in the steeple of 
 which was a clock that used to strike the hours and play 
 a tune, the hour being then repeated by the clock of an 
 unseen and more distant church. This " picture clock, " 
 })ought in Paris, was for many years out of order and 
 silent, but on taking it, in 1880, from its long accus- 
 tomed place, it began, like the harp in " Jack and the 
 Beanstalk," to cry aloud and was carried off, protesting, 
 to the storeroom, where it continued for some time to 
 remonstrate against its removal, by playing its pathetic 
 little tune. In these parlors Mrs. Johnston received her 
 friends on Friday afternoons, Friday being, as it still is, 
 "Washington S([uare Day," but it was not customary 
 on these occasions to provide any refreshments for the 
 guests. 
 
 It must not be thought that John Johnston's wife 
 neglected him in any way, for she was devoted to her 
 husband and he very dependent u})on her. In a letter 
 
 [ 134 ] 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 to her soil she refused an invitation to visit him at New 
 Haven, saying: "What would your father do without 
 me should he have one of his gouty attacks, from which 
 he is now scarcely a week free?" Through all his 
 years of ill-health her husband had no other nursing, 
 although from an early date he was obliged to have 
 the assistance of a "man servant." It was his wife, 
 however, who made and aj)plied his numerous ])()nllices 
 and her solicitous care increased with his increasin<j: 
 infirmities. "The less I visit the more indifferent 1 
 become about it," she wrote. 
 
 With Mr. Johnston the clay was always bcgnn by 
 family prayers. 'I'hese took place in the front basement 
 room, which, as has been said, was the dining room. 
 Between the windows stood a little table, on which lay 
 the Johnston family Bible and that of John Taylor as 
 well, while in a drawer of a desk were to be found the 
 "Farmer's Almanac," and the "New England Primer" 
 with its ((uaint little pictures and long s's, from which 
 the children could learn that "In Adam's fall we sinned 
 all," or that "Young Obedias, David, Josias all were 
 pious." 
 
 On Sundays, old and young attended the Scotch 
 Bresbyterian Church in its new building on Grand 
 Street, in which Mr. Johnston for many years held 
 the position of Elder, his son John later filling the 
 same office. The pastor at this time was the Rev. 
 Joseph McElroy, who served this organization nearly 
 fifty years, beginning his ministry in 18*22, in the old 
 Cedar Street church, from w hich he went with his con- 
 gregation to Grand Street, and finally in 1853 moved 
 with them to the edifice which they had built in Four- 
 
 [ 155 ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 teentli Street just east of Sixth Avenue. "He became 
 one of the great figures in the New York pulpit, a noble 
 and eloquent preacher," who often gave them sermons 
 over an hour and a half long, which ran from " Firstly " 
 all the way to "Fifthly" or even "Ninthly"; after which 
 usually came the phrase — "A few more words and I 
 have done," indicating that the discourse would be 
 finished in about fifteen minutes. 
 
 Even after this old church had moved to a fashion- 
 able locality in Fourteenth Street, it still adhered so 
 strongly to "old school" principles that, as late as 1867, 
 about one-third of the congregation left when the old 
 precentor, who used to strike his tuning-fork on the 
 railing of the gallery to get his pitch, was supplanted 
 by an organ. It was in this building that the great 
 debate on the revision of the Westminster Confession 
 of Faith and also the trial of Dr. Briggs took place. 
 
 One of the quaint customs of this church was the 
 arrangement made for the communion service; tables 
 spread with a "fair linen cloth" were set the length of 
 the middle aisle, as well as in the transverse aisles. 
 Benches were placed on either side of the tables, and 
 the communicants left their pews and took seats on 
 these benches, where the elements were passed from 
 hand to hand. Mr. Johnston and his wife for many 
 years occupied the first seats at the central table. 
 
 On their return from service the mother, after ques- 
 tioning the children as to the text and the "Heads of 
 Discourse," would mark the former in a big Bible 
 which always lay on the table in her room, and could 
 in this way, if not from memory, tell whether Dr. 
 McElroy was repeating himself. 
 
 [150] 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 Alexander always spent Sunday with his brother's 
 family at Washington Square, and was a great favorite 
 with "John's young ones." He joined them at church 
 and walked home with them for dinner, after which 
 came a second service and then tea, when they usually 
 ate "oat cakes and Palmazan cheese," of which they 
 were all very fond. They spent the evening reciting 
 hymns and "saying their catechism," this latter being 
 the Westminster cate- 
 chism, which consists of 
 one hundred and seven 
 long and difficult ques- 
 tions and answ^ers. Alick 
 complained that he was 
 a little hurt when Mrs. 
 Johnston, to quote his 
 own words, "gave me a 
 Scotch Mother's Cate- 
 chism to refresh my mem- 
 ory, although I think I 
 am pretty fair at my ques- 
 tions considering." After 
 
 his brother's family had gone to Europe, he wrote a 
 quite pathetic account of his visiting, after church, the 
 closed and padlocked house at Washington Square. 
 
 "The Long 'Un," as his nephews dubbed Alick, 
 was very fond of horseback riding and with "little 
 Jimmy" took frequent rides up the Bloomingdale 
 Road before breakfast, often on the back of one of the 
 coach horses, and sometimes returned with a "bockay" 
 in his hand for Margaret. Of these excursions the 
 aforesaid little Jimmy writes: "The I^ong 'Un & I 
 
 [1.57] 
 
 "the long UN 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 had a fine ride this morning — he came running up about 
 half an hour after his time. I had just mounted & was 
 riding down towards the University when I saw him 
 away down at 4th Street. As soon as he saw me 
 (thinking I was going off without him) he raised a cry 
 like the sound of a Howl in the Wiklerness, and came 
 up University Phice as fast as a pair of deuced long, 
 ugly legs could carry him. We had a fine ride liow- 
 ever. 
 
 "John Taylor" and his uncle used to make long 
 "Pedestrian Excursions" together, often extending 
 I hem to a distance of two hundred miles or more. 
 Tlicy enjoyed these trips extremely and John's mother 
 was always easy in her mind when she knew that her 
 son was with Alick. The latter had a genuine admira- 
 tion for his brother and wrote home to his Scotch 
 relatives: "John and family are all well — a fine fam- 
 ily. Mrs. Johnston a very kind indulgent pious woman 
 — and John is truly an exemplary man & what is more 
 I believe him to be a sincere Christian." 
 
 Mrs. Johnston's nephew, John Taylor Shernum, 
 was also intimate in the household and made his home 
 with her part of the time, but his roving sea life left 
 him little time ashore. He sailed in various capacities 
 on several of the ships owned by his Uncle Johnston 
 and his Uncles Robert L. and Andrew Taylor, finally 
 having command of the Naj)oleon. In 1841 this ship 
 was lost in Mobile Bay, but through no fault of Ca})t. 
 Sherman, as the pilot was in charge at the time. 
 
 After this he was given command of another ship, 
 but once when he did not bring the vessel into port on 
 time, his Uncle Johnston wrote him rather sharply 
 
 [158] 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 that he had been dih^tory in business. His feelings 
 were terribly hurt, and he went off and disappeared, 
 his family hearing nothing of him for a long time. 
 Finally, they learned that he had died in London on 
 October 1, 1844, and later, a heart-broken letter was 
 received from a young English girl who claimed to 
 he his widow, which, however, could never be veri- 
 fied. 
 
 He was evidently a fascinating fellow and w\as called 
 "the handsome captain." His "Aunt Johnston," who 
 was exceedingly fond of him, always made excuses 
 when his ship did not arrive on time, and according to 
 one of her friends, would "feel his death quite as much 
 as his own Mother." 
 
 A very old family friend w\as George Johnston, 
 the brother of William of Kirkcudbright. He was 
 Mr. Johnston's first friend in New York, had his in- 
 terest so much at heart and was so unfailingly kind 
 that John, a few years after his arrival, had written to 
 William, "You may rest assured that I shall take no 
 steps without your brother's advice and approbation." 
 When the latter was quite an old man, with a "caustic 
 temper" and already lame in one leg, he had the mis- 
 fortune to fall when getting out of an omnibus, and the 
 wheel passed over his good leg, breaking it in several 
 places. After this accident he was confined to the 
 house and became very irascible. "The Old Gentle- 
 man is as crusty as ever," his friend wrote of him 
 at this j)eriod, " and told Mrs. Kennedy the other day, 
 as you know he told my Br. Robert once, that he knew 
 her time was precious & he would not detain her — so, 
 said he, 'Good bye.'" 
 
 [159] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 His nephew, George Jr., had been a "thorn in the 
 flesh" from the time of his first arrival with John in 
 New York, He was an altogether worthless young 
 fellow, unwilling to work, very extravagant, and always 
 expecting his uncle to get him out of the troubles into 
 which his own follies led him. His uncle finally cast him 
 off, and John Johnston, who from the first had tried to 
 help him in every way, and had been exceedingly pa- 
 tient through all these years, also became entirely dis- 
 couraged. When in 1840 he married, the latter could 
 not contain his indignation and exclaimed, "The 
 great ass! He has never been able to support himself 
 and now he is about to raise a family of Paupers!" 
 Two years later George was imprisoned and convicted 
 of a criminal offence, and his long suffering mentor, for 
 the sake of the young man's father, paid the entire 
 claim, a very large one, and succeeded in having him 
 liberated. This was one of the reasons why old 
 William so adored his friend. 
 
 About 1837 Boorman, Johnston & Co., transferred 
 all the dry-goods part of their business to Wood, 
 Johnston & Burritt. Robert Johnston, through his 
 brother's influence, had become a partner in this con- 
 cern and had had assigned to him the latter's "l|10th 
 of the profits of the co-partnership." Later, when 
 Robert had built the Dolphin Mills at Paterson, New 
 Jersey, Alexander became a member of the firm in his 
 stead, and it was then called Burritt & Johnston. 
 
 John Johnston was by habit an early riser; he 
 breakfasted at seven o'clock each morning, reached his 
 counting-house very early, and returned to dinner at 
 four, while Mr. Boorman did not go down town before 
 
 [160] 
 
ROBERT JOH X.ST( JX 
 
 AGED THIRTY-SEVEN 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 ten and stayed late, a condition of affairs which cansed 
 mnch grnmbling among the clerks. 
 
 One of these clerks was James Boorman Johnston, 
 who in 1840, when he had been for some months in his 
 father's office, wrote to his brother as follows: "1 
 have been transferred at Mr. B.'s request from father's 
 to his room and yon may judge the consequences. 
 Instead of sitting cross-legged on a high stool sucking 
 my thumbs and reading the Brother Jonothing, I find 
 occupation enough for both thumbs and legs. The 
 way it came was . . . one of Mr. B's clerks was absent 
 and Mr. Boorman came in and asked Mr. Sampson 
 if he could have one of his youths for the morning — 
 granted — and your humble servant was the hon'd 
 mortal — vae mihi. My endeavours happened to please 
 him and he asked Father for me, which my unnatural 
 parent granted." A month later his father said: 
 " James comes on famously in the other office and is in 
 high favour with the ruling powers. Poor fellow, he 
 gets more cold than warm dinners now, as he seldom 
 gets home before 5 o'clock." 
 
 One matter gave Mr. Johnston a great deal of 
 worry about this time — a worry lasting over a number 
 of years. His wife's father, John Taylor, who died in 
 June, 1833, had made him one of his executors, and 
 almost immediately afterwards, Andrew, the son who 
 lived in Liverpool, began to make difficulties about the 
 terms of the will. His sister wrote with reference to 
 him, "He seems as obstinate as a mule." This trouble 
 continued until a final settlement was reached, princi- 
 pally through the efforts of Mr. Johnston, in June, 1840, 
 when the latter received from the heirs of John Taylor 
 
 [IGl] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 two very beautifully embossed silver pitchers, engraved 
 with appropriate inscriptions, as a token of their 
 gratitude.* 
 
 Much of John Johnston's interest was centered in 
 the New York University, which was located on Wash- 
 ington Square. In 1830 he had become one of its one 
 hundred and seventy-five Founders, or shareholders, 
 and a member of the Corporation. In 1835 he was 
 elected a member of the Council, and a little later Vice- 
 President, both of which offices he held until 1845, 
 when he was obliged to resign on account of ill-health, 
 his son John, then only twenty-seven years old, being 
 by unanimous vote elected a member of the Council in 
 his stead. It was here that the son had received his 
 college education, having entered as a sophomore in 
 1836 and having graduated in 1839. 
 
 The father was actively occupied with the affairs 
 of the University and gave it generous financial assist- 
 ance. His letters are full of allusions to it — he gloated 
 over the increasing number of students, and at the time 
 when the officers and faculty were planning to add a 
 medical department, wrote, "Our selection of pro- 
 fessors is a promising one. We stole a march on the 
 profession here or we should have got no rest in our 
 beds at night for applications." 
 
 Other matters, both political and financial, inter- 
 ested him. Although becoming more and more of an 
 invalid, he was usually very conscientious about casting 
 his vote, but in November, 1840, wrote to John: "You 
 used to say that the side I voted on always lost. 
 The Whigs cannot blame me for their defeat this time, 
 
 * These pitchers are now owned by his grandson, John Humphreys Johnston. 
 
 [162] 
 
THP: XEW YORK ITNIVERSITV 
 WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 as I did not vote at all. I entirely disapprove of their 
 management. That Mr. Grinnell and other respectable 
 men of the party would have organized the plan for 
 importing voters I do not believe, but think they winked 
 hard while it was done by the understrappers. The 
 Tammany party is so low that to vote with them would 
 be contamination and so I maintained a 'dignified 
 retirement.'" 
 
 The financial disasters that had spread over the 
 country in the late thirties and early forties caused a 
 reorganization of many local banks and on January 
 20, 1841, we find him writing: "I am still able to at- 
 tend to my out of doors duties. — lately I have been 
 performing a very unpleasant one at the Bank of Amer- 
 ica, as Chairman of a Committee for reducing the Ex- 
 penses of the Establishment. We have dismissed 8 
 Clerks, and reduced the Salaries of the remaining 17, 
 including the Presidt. and Cashier, so as to save up- 
 wards of $10,000 per annum in the expenses of the 
 Establishment!" 
 
 He wrote frequently to his parents, now^ growing 
 more feeble each year, and on April 29, 1841, gave 
 Robert, who was returning after twenty years absence 
 to Scotland, a letter to carry to his father. Neither 
 Robert nor the letter arrived in time, for old John 
 Johnston had died at the very time it was being written, 
 three days after his faithful wife had breathed her 
 last. 
 
 While Mr. Johnston was not unprepared for these 
 events, they, in a way, emphasized his own growing 
 limitations. " John leads a very quiet and retired life, 
 seldom sees company but just sits and reads; he gen- 
 
 [163] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 erally drives down to his oflBce about ten or eleven 
 o'clock and leaves about three for the day," Alick had 
 written of this period. 
 
 His library was a great resource to Mr. Johnston 
 during this time of increasing disability. Always a 
 great reader, he had collected a large number of books, 
 many of which were bought in Europe; some of them 
 were valuable, but as his library was for use only, we 
 iiud no mention in his papers of a rare or first edition. 
 In his will he divided the books between his two sons. 
 
 Three large bookcases, one of them containing a 
 writing-desk, reached almost to I he ceiling of the library. 
 This was a large sunny room in I he second story, facing 
 Washington Square, and here John Johnston spent a 
 great deal of his time reading his books and writing his 
 letters. The impossibility of reaching the upper shelves 
 without assistance obliged him to have a flight of wind- 
 ing steps made for the purpose. This piece of furniture, 
 built of as handsome mahogany as that of the dining 
 table, is still in existence and is fully seven feet high; 
 it moves on castors and has banisters and a handrail 
 to match those of the main staircase in the house. His 
 grandchildren always dubbed this erection "the pul- 
 pit," and many times did it figure in their games, being 
 often called upon to represent a "dungeon tower" with 
 a distressful maiden waving from the top of it. 
 
 Not being able to take much exercise, a "joggling" 
 or "dispepsy" chair was procured for him — a veritable 
 instrument of torture in which, by violently working 
 its two handles, he threw himself up and down, thus 
 securing somewhat the same exercise one would get 
 by riding, without stirrups, on a horse whose trot was 
 
 [164] 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 hard! This chair also figured in many of the chihh'cn's 
 games in conjunction with the "pulpit." 
 
 Margaret or, as they affectionately called her, 
 "Mag," was an extremely attractive young girl, and 
 her letters are bright and sprightly. When she was 
 fourteen, she wrote to her brother John: "You say it 
 is a shame for all the young ladies to get married 'nou\ 
 but on the whole it is better for them to clear out before 
 Lydia Bally and Maggie Laughter come on the stage, 
 & it will save them (the old young ladies) the ])ain of 
 seeing tliemsclves (juite neglected." 
 
 She was at this time studying at the Misses Green's 
 school at No. 1 Fifth Avemie, and her father said of 
 her, "INIag is a great student, — studies till 9 p.m. and 
 lights her lamp & sets to again before day light." At 
 about the same time Margaret spoke thus about her 
 different instructors: "Mr. Earnest & I are coming 
 on swivmigbj in our Latin. We also have an other 
 young man, for Botany. Oh he's so handsome. It is 
 Mr. Bigelow,— perhaps you have heard of him, he's 
 very smart too." This refers to the Hon. John Bige- 
 low, who on January 1, 1907, after seeing a copy of 
 this extract, wrote: 
 
 "None of the numerous testimonials of the season 
 with which, by virtue of my rather uncommon longevity 
 I presume, I have been honored, has touched me so 
 tenderly as the extract you have sent me of Margaret 
 Johnston's note. I first met her at the Misses Green's 
 School and at an age when a young man of 21, if ever, 
 is susceptible of the charms of your sex. She was then 
 the most attractive girl that had yet crossed my horizon. 
 Nothing ever occurred to change the estimate 1 then 
 
 [165] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 formed of her, and which I hope you will pardon me 
 for expressing in a learned language, especially as I 
 shall use for my purpose what Lord Macaulay pro- 
 nounced the finest lines in the Latin language. You 
 may find them in the VIII. Eclogue of Virgil, 37th and 
 following lines. 
 
 '"Sepibus in nostris parvam te roscida mala 
 
 (Dux ergo vester eram) vidi cum matre legentem. 
 Alter ab undecimo turn me jam ceperat annus. 
 Jam fragiles poteram ab terra contingere ramos. 
 Ut vidi ut peril, ut me mains abstulit error.' 
 
 "As ladies are not expected now to know Latin as 
 in the days of Lady Jane Grey you will pardon me for 
 trying to give the English of these lines though our 
 iidiospitable language — in my hands at least — is in- 
 capable of expressing all the merits attributed to them 
 by Macaulay. It will however answer my present 
 ])urpose. 
 
 "When thou wast but a child, I saw thee with thy 
 mother gathering the luscious apples on our hedges; 
 1 was your guide, I had then just entered on the year 
 next after eleven and barely able from the ground to 
 reach the fragile boughs! How I stared, how I lan- 
 guished! How the dread intoxication overcame me. 
 
 John Bigelow. 
 
 her Confiteor." 
 
 Margaret certainly was gay and vivacious, so that 
 the suggestion of melancholy expressed in her letters 
 to her young neighbor, Lydia Alley, must have been 
 one of those brief affections sometimes assumed by 
 
 [1C6] 
 
JOHN HIGKLOW 
 .\(;i:d t\vkn'1V-t\v() 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 very young ladies. "I was very happy on the passage, 
 more so than I expected, not but that I had my gloomy 
 moments, but I chased them away & allowed not the 
 demon melancholy to take possession of me/' she wrote 
 to the friend of her bosom. Later she sends forth this 
 impassioned question: "Lydia do you yet love me 
 with your wonted enthusiasm ? I know you do; I must 
 feel the conviction, or give up all confidence in human 
 friendship . . . Indeed I often think I am growing too 
 dull. I want life. You will scold me on my return 
 more than you used to for I talk less even than I did. 
 But I cannot shake off my disinclination for conversa- 
 tion, & society." 
 
 That Margaret's melancholy was not very deep- 
 seated is shown by a gay letter written from Sharon 
 Springs to her brother in August, 1847. "I have been 
 carrying on a flirtation with Gen. Cooper a married 
 man . . . General Cooper got up a coach & four, with 
 four outriders the other day, and took six of the ladies 
 to Cherry Valley. I drove three miles coming home, 
 sitting up on the high seat beside him. Four in hand 
 is the highest to which I shall aspire. What think you 
 of that.?" 
 
 Her ideas of music, especially of "piano-playing," 
 were original and amusing: "1 knew you would give 
 up your music. Indeed to any thinking minds the 
 attention given to this branch of education, among 
 our American girls, must come under the head of 
 waste of time, when it is carried to such an excess. It 
 is indeed very delicious to hear it, but it does not repay 
 the time & labour. I am speaking particularly in 
 reference to piano playing, I don't think we w'ere sent 
 
 [167] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 into the world to thump for hours a day on Httle bits 
 of ivory — then call ourselves industrious. Is this 
 serving God? or doing good to those around us ?" 
 
 James, as has been said, was in Mr. Boorman's 
 office, where he seemed to give satisfaction to every- 
 body. His letters are extremely entertaining and he 
 often illustrated them with clever pen-and-ink sketches. 
 His mother was sorry he did not go to the various 
 watering places with them and thought that "Little 
 Jim might enjoy himself here very well if he would be 
 content to find amusement for himself to play ninepins, 
 ride, walk, etc." But " Jimbo, " as he was sometimes 
 called, did not care much for such things and preferred 
 to travel about by himself, paying occasional visits to 
 his family, though Saratoga, from which place he wrote 
 the following letter could hardly have been very 
 entertaining: "Me voici — in the Bar-room of the 
 Congress Hall, thirsting for a Cobbler & afraid to ask 
 for one at the Bar, for I have an awful suspicion that 
 it is a Temperance house and I can detect no trace of 
 any tipple stronger than Congress water in the room, 
 and but little appearance of jollity in the population. 
 There were a few very promising red noses set out as 
 decoy ducks upon the Piazza as I came in, but I am 
 afraid they belong to some more genial locality. Quan- 
 tum mutatus ab illo! . . . Poke Wright has just come in, 
 he must surely drink Cobblers." 
 
 In his correspondence with his brother we often find 
 jocose sentences such as, "I merely write to tell you 
 that you are an ass/^ or "Of course the main object 
 of my writing you is to give vent to the volcano of 
 affection that burns in my bosom, but it also occurs to 
 
 [168] 
 
JAMES BOOKMAN JOHX.STOX 
 
 FROM A CRAYON DRAWING BY WILLIAM MORRIS HCXT 
 
 1 S.).'} 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 me that I deferred doing anytliing about tlie alteration 
 in the stable . . . the redoubtable 'Pineher' had better 
 be chained up while the men are at work, to prevent 
 his running away and to preserve the integrity of 
 Richardson's pantaloons — he is partial to broadcloth 
 is that dog." 
 
 Jim's description of ordering a coat for his brother 
 John shows that it was as diflScult 
 a matter in those days for men 
 to select the colors for their clothes 
 as it was for ladies: "The one 
 I selected is an Olive, and I think 
 a beautiful color — and particularly < -^ 
 well suited to this season of the 
 year — there was a bottle green 
 there that was very pretty but 1 
 thought it too light, and only suit- the " olive " coat 
 able in my opinion for the very mid- 
 dle of summer — and another tho' rather trifling objection 
 to it was that those polished buttons you mention & which 
 I think very pretty would not suit with it. These were 
 the only two that I thought likely to suit you — there 
 were some pretty browns, clarets, etc., but they look 
 too warm for summer . . . the pockets as you wished 
 lower than the waist . . . the edges corded & a velvet 
 collar— the price $30." 
 
 The "Son John" having graduated from the Uni- 
 versity in 1839, went in the fall of that year to New 
 Haven to attend the Yale Law School. His absence 
 was a great deprivation to his parents, for "Jim," 
 working busily in the counting-house, had to leave 
 home early and return late, while "Mjig," then at- 
 
 [100] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 tending Miss Green's school, was studying hard, so 
 tliat the father pathetically said, "Mother and I are 
 solitary and alone." 
 
 He wrote to John at New Haven: "I am hardly 
 yet reconciled to the vacancy of your place at table 
 and I have every morning a desire to call 'John' at the 
 top of the stair as I have long been accustomed to do. 
 It is a sacrifice for me to part from you for so long a 
 time but I hope it is for your good and I am therefore 
 willing to make it . . I hope my dear John, that you 
 will bear in mind that, although you are not now under 
 my eye, the eye of God is upon you and that you will 
 therefore conduct yourself as you must answer to Him, 
 for young as you are, it will not be long, even if your 
 life is prolonged to the usual })eriod of the longest life, 
 until you appear before him and how few there are that 
 reach their three score and ten! ! 
 
 "Oh beware how you make the Sabbath a day for 
 exercise and amusement for I have noted through life 
 that this is generally the first step in the downward 
 course and I never knew a man that had enjoyed the 
 advantages of a Christian education that afterward 
 despised and profaned the Sabbath that did not go 
 to destruction." 
 
 And in another letter he said: "I sympathize with 
 you in your feelings of loneliness, for I have known 
 what it was to leave home and friends . . . You may 
 rest assured that you are not forgotten and there is 
 hardly an hour passes in which you are not in my 
 thoughts and not a night in which the question is not 
 between your mother and me, 'Where is John Taylor 
 now ? Is he in his room or at Aunt Sherman's ? ' At 
 
 [170] 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 dinner —'This would (or would not, as the case may 
 be) please John Taylor.' Indeed, John, it is impos- 
 sible for you to know^ or conceive the yearnings of a 
 parent's heart. As age cree})s on, our friends, as you 
 well remark, die off and it is to our children that we 
 look for almost all the consolation that earth can give, 
 and miserable indeed is that parent whose hopes in 
 this respect are blighted." 
 
 These letters, as well as many others, illustrate 
 John Johnston's strong feelings with regard to the 
 keeping of the Sabbath. He never travelled on that 
 day or allowed his children any recreation other than 
 attending church two or three times, repeating the 
 "Heads of Discourse" of the sermon just listened to, or 
 reciting their catechism and hymns. The only excep- 
 tion noted was at Niagara Falls where he wrote," Think- 
 ing it no harm to look at and a(hnire the wonderful 
 works of God, took a walk with my children u}) to the 
 table rock to look down upon the falls." He carried 
 this feeling about the correct observance of the Sab- 
 bath so far that he refused to meet the Pope in Rome 
 because the Pontiff appointed a Sunday for the au- 
 dience, and he was inexj)ressibly shocked by all that he 
 saw taking place on that day in Paris. 
 
 With all this strictness he was not really stern. Jn 
 fact, his tenderness is shown in the letters just quoted. 
 The year following the loss of his child he wrote very 
 lovingly and with evident iuiguish of the death of "my 
 little Emily," always alluded to Margaret as "our 
 dear little girl," was "much affected" every time he 
 visited his mother's grave, and in tears when he sat 
 upon the stone where in early days she used to teach 
 
 [ 171 ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 liim his catechism. He, Hke many others, could express 
 his tender feeHngs in writing, when he could not speak 
 of them. His sons in this respect greatly resembled him. 
 
 In the summer of 1835 John Johnston's family 
 decided to take him to the Virginia Hot Springs, as 
 lie was now "so lame as to be unable to walk a step 
 without crutches." They took a steamboat at 9 a.m. 
 lo South Amboy, thence railroad cars to Bordentown, 
 again a steamboat to Philadelphia, where they arrived 
 at 6 r. M. and had to put up at a second rate hotel. 
 The next morning they were "stirring with the Lark" 
 and on board the steamboat for Newcastle at 5:30 A. m., 
 from which place they went by railroad to Frenchtown, 
 then took another steamboat to Baltimore, which 
 they reached at 3:30 p.m., and not being completely 
 worn out, drove around the town for a couple of 
 hours! 
 
 The following day, they started at 9 A. m. in an 
 "extra" stage for Washington, arrived in six hours, 
 and again took an afternoon drive. That evening 
 they slept on board the steamboat, and landed the next 
 morning within nine miles of Fredericksburg. Here, 
 by paying for ten seats for four people, they secured 
 another "extra," and after travelling over "execrable" 
 and "intolerably bad" roads arrived after four days, 
 via Charlottesville and Staunton, at Warm Springs. 
 It therefore took them seven long days of hard trav- 
 elling from New York to reach their destination. Mr. 
 Johnston, poor man, had been "so pounded as to feel 
 very sore, " and was "unable to rise without assistance. " 
 They remained in Virginia two months, visiting the 
 White Sulphur and Hot vSprings. 
 
 [ 172 ] 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 The return journey was even more arduous than 
 the earlier one; "the stage was nearly over two or three 
 times and we passed the spot where the mail had been 
 upset this morning." Some of their friends who 
 actually experienced such an upset had to spend the 
 night by the stage in the woods. The baths not hav- 
 ing much benefiteti Mr. Johnston's lameness, he be- 
 came rather discouraged about the future and began 
 to "fear the worst." 
 
 June, 1836, found them again on their way to Hot 
 Springs, this time by way of Winchester, where they 
 attended the Presbyterian Church, and Mr. Johnston 
 commented on a remarkable custom that prevailed 
 there: "The ladies occupy the seats in the middle 
 block of Pews, apart from the men, in order, I under- 
 stand, to escape from the Tobacco juice so constantly 
 ejected by the latter." Near Winchester the road was 
 "almost impassable, the clay being again up to the 
 hubs of the wheels and pools of water that almost set 
 the Horses a swimming." 
 
 At Hot Springs they expected their party of four to 
 have a double cabin of four tiny rooms — "but catch 
 Dr. Goode at that," wrote Mrs. Johnston; "for no 
 sooner had we our trunks &c. arranged than we re- 
 ceived notice that the other part was engaged so we had 
 to scroudge into one cabin." She complained bitterly 
 because they had to pay "$13 a week for the baths & 
 board," and added, "I think it is shameful extrav- 
 agance, but we must submit." Her husband also 
 considered the food deplorably bad and gave an ac- 
 count of it to John: "Our Table is regularly served 
 with tolerable tea, poor coffee. Hot rolls and tough 
 
 [.173 ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 steaks at breakfast — at dinner we have mutton boiled 
 baked & roasted with Potatoes about the size of Wahiuts 
 a few half boiled beets and a few cold string beans — 
 and stale bread sour. This is our regular fare. I can 
 hardly live on it . . . you would starve." 
 
 Of his bath he said: "I got up at daybreak & repaired 
 to my old spout, (of which I am to have the key every 
 night by an agreement with Peter), where I had a com- 
 fortable bath & returned to bed again at 5:40," adding 
 a day or two later: "Deceived by the moonlight I 
 got up to dress myself this morning for the Bath & 
 when I had done so I looked at my watch & found it 
 was only 2 o'clock! However persevered & had a very 
 comfortable bath." 
 
 On their return trip they drove to Guyandotte, 
 from there took boat down the Ohio to Cincinnati, 
 and again drove as far as Sandusky, where "after 
 travelling nearly 60 hours without stopping except to 
 change horses," the doughty tourists wrote: "we felt 
 rejoiced at the })rospect of a night's i'e})ose, but on our 
 reaching I he Hotel the bell of the Steam Boat was 
 ringing her Passengers on board for Buffalo & as it 
 was uncertain when there might be another oppor- 
 tunity of a good Boat, we reluctantly left the hotel 
 with our baggage & went on board." 
 
 From Buffalo they visited Niagara Falls and re- 
 turned to their Washington Square home after a 
 journey of nearly 2000 miles. Mr. Johnston declared: 
 "It is surprising that altho we have thus travelled 
 so far over miserable roads without regular sleep and 
 with our minds often excited by fear, yet we are all 
 ((uite well^Indeed I am much better." 
 
 [174] 
 
THE CABIXS 
 
 HOT SPRINGS OF VIRGINIA 
 MR. JOHNS'ION OfTI'I'IICD THE ONE AT THE LEFT 
 
WASHINGTON SQUARE 
 
 But the improvement was only temporary and five 
 fruitless years followed in a search for health. Vir- 
 ginia was revisited in 1837, but with little advantage to 
 the invalid. In the two succeeding years the family tried 
 Saratoga and Ballston Spa, and in 1840 Mr. Johnston 
 announced his intention of going to Virginia once more. 
 The Hot Springs, however, afforded him no relief, so 
 they left and, as it were, shook its dust from their 
 feet. Mrs. Johnston fired this parting shot: "Bade a 
 final adieu to Dr. Goode & all the rest of the filthy 
 set, for it seems a waste of time & money to come here 
 as your father receives so little benefit." 
 
 In 1841 a few weeks were spent at Lebanon but the 
 experiment was not a great success. Neither were the 
 White Mountains of benefit, whither they went in the 
 summer of 1842. After these ineffectual journeys they 
 felt that there was nothing left but Europe, and con- 
 sequently the following year they again "made a trip 
 abroad." 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 LATTER DAYS 
 
 1843-1851 
 
 WHEN on September 25, 1843, John Johnston 
 again took his family abroad, or, rather, was 
 taken by them, for he was now very infirm, 
 he exclaimed: "Oh how different my health and my 
 feelings now when on the wrong side of sixty to what 
 they were on former occasions, when with buoyant 
 health and spirits I looked forward to new objects of 
 interest." 
 
 As before, the family went by sailing vessel to Liver- 
 pool, the ship carrying two hundred and thirty-two peo- 
 ple all told — a greater number, as Mr. Johnston said, 
 "than could be saved by boat in case of accident." At 
 Liverpool they took the train for London, where they 
 met Mr. and Mrs. James Colles and their two daugh- 
 ters, Augusta and Frances. The Channel was crossed by 
 way of Shoreham and Dieppe, at which latter place 
 Mr. Johnston had much trouble with the customs. 
 "As usual the officers made a great fuss about my 
 evening apparel — and altho' there were only two coats 
 in my trunk, one of which I had occasionally used in 
 
 [176] 
 
Lu\TTER DAYS 
 
 tlie U. States for more than a year, yet they made me 
 pay duty on them." The officers also insisted on 
 detaining his "paper case because they found some 
 letters [of introduction] in it one of which was unfor- 
 tunately sealed. " 
 
 At Dieppe they took the diligence for Paris and the 
 travellers noted a "curious mode of procedure with 
 the Passengers. Instead of causing them to get out & 
 go into the R. R. cars they hoist the Diligence from the 
 wheels & drop it on those of the R. Road — again on 
 arrival at Paris they replace it on wheels." 
 
 The Colles family had preceded them to Paris, and 
 had engaged rooms for them at the Hotel Westminster, 
 renting for themselves a handsome apartment at No. 9 
 Place de la Madeleine. Within a few days after his 
 arrival Mr. Johnston had a very severe attack of gout, 
 which affected first one part of his body and then 
 another and made it impossible for them to leave Paris 
 until four months later. During tliis time the two 
 families saw a good deal of each other and became 
 very friendly, although evidently "J. T. J." did not 
 realize that he had met his fate in the person of Frances, 
 the younger daughter. Augusta Colles had been at 
 school with Margaret, and her brother's journal shows 
 how mutual their interests continued to be. "Mother 
 and Mag were engaged, with the assistance of Miss 
 Colles . . . making their purchases, engaging dress- 
 makers, and other preparations for the winter cam- 
 paign . . . Mag commenced a short course of dancing 
 lessons yesterday with the two Misses Colles & Miss 
 Hunt at Mrs. Colles' apartments." 
 
 The young people were indefatigable in seeing the 
 
 [177] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 sights of Paris. John and his brother, accompanied 
 sometimes by their friends, Drs. Metcalfe and Punnett, 
 who were studying medicine there, visited the Found- 
 Hng Asylum, the Abattoir, the Gobelin manufactory, 
 the Morgue, and of course all the picture galleries, 
 libraries, etc. John, in particular, went to all the book 
 and print stalls, where he purchased a large number 
 of books. He bought a Galignani guide and visited 
 each quarter of the city in turn— in fact, nothing more 
 thorough than their sightseeing can be imagined. He 
 and Jim saw a man guillotined, and he and Maggie 
 were presented at court. 
 
 At the latter function Margaret was chaperoned by 
 Mrs. James I. Roosevelt, and for it John had a "Court 
 dress" made— "a single-breasted blue dress coat but- 
 toned up to the chin, brass buttons, & embroidery on 
 the collar, cuffs & flaps of pockets; white cassimere 
 pantaloons with a gold stripe, chapeau bras, & sword." 
 His journal thus describes the levee: 
 
 "About 8 1|2 the King entered, followed at inter- 
 vals by the Queen & the Due de Nemours, the first & 
 last being accompanied by aid-de-camps, the Queen 
 by two Ladies of Honour. The presentees were ranged 
 along the sides of the rooms according to the seniority 
 in standing of their Ambassadors; as Uncle Sam has 
 only a Charge here at present, the Americans were 
 the last to be presented . . . 
 
 "The King spoke to each of us in English & dis- 
 played a considerable knowledge of American affairs; 
 the Queen (who told one of the party ' I speaks English 
 very unwell') confined herself to French & spoke too 
 low to be generally understood. Her hair is very 
 
 [178] 
 
LATTER DAYS 
 
 white; her general appearance is very prepossessing & 
 motherly; Louis Philippe looks strong & hearty & 
 as if he had a dozen years in him yet though he is now 
 73. He takes pains to be civil to the English & Ameri- 
 cans. As a body the Americans looked very well both 
 as to dress & manners." 
 
 At the '* Italiens " John and Jim heard such great 
 singers as Mario, Lablache and Persiani, and at the 
 Theatre Fran^ais had the pleasure of seeing Rachel. 
 John thought the other actors and actresses *'too 
 French in their style of acting" but "Rachel," he 
 said, "is very impressive; she has a very excellent voice, 
 a fine tragic countenance though not beautiful, & 
 expresses the deepest emotions without those external 
 grimaces & contortions which to a Gaul are indis- 
 pensable on all occasions." When he saw her at 
 another time, he mentioned that "Rachel played in 
 her usual neat style" — a strange way of alluding to the 
 great tragedienne. 
 
 Mr. Johnston was much depressed by his severe 
 and prolonged attack of gout. His son said, "Father 
 . . . feels quite dispirited and sat all day hardly uttering 
 a word;" and about the same time the latter wrote, "1 
 feel out of sorts and home sick . . . my constitution 
 much shattered cannot hold out much longer ... I 
 am rather under the influence of what is called the 
 blues." This is as much of a complaint as is any- 
 where found in his writings, and in this respect his 
 son John in later years, when he was ill and suffering, 
 emulated his example. 
 
 Nothing daunted, the family started, as soon as Mr. 
 Johnston was well enough, for Rome. Having hired 
 
 [179] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MEKCHANT 
 
 another large heavy carriage or "BerHne, " they drove 
 via Lyons to Marseilles, thence went by sea to Civita 
 Vecchia, and so arrived in Rome on March 20th. 
 There, the weather being still cold, they soon drove on to 
 Naples, escorted part of the way, as a precaution against 
 brigands, by a mounted soldier. At Naples they ex- 
 claimed with joy, "We can now sit with open windows 
 all day long . . . The outlook on the Bay is exactly 
 what father wanted." After a few days the Colles 
 family made their appearance in their coach, and as 
 usual they all saw a great deal of each other and made 
 many expeditions together. 
 
 One of these was a drive to Baia, of which excur- 
 sion John writes, "At Baia some rustics danced the 
 Tarentella for our especial gratification . . . We then 
 refreshed ourselves with roasted oysters & after being 
 nearly upset by our drunken coachman we turned our 
 heads towards Naples. On the road Mr. Colles' coach- 
 man managed to run against a wall & snap off his pole 
 cK: break his whiffle-tree whilst our pole went through 
 his sword case." On another trip into the mountains 
 very primitive means of locomotion prevailed; "all 
 the horses were taken out from the carriage and 
 four bullocks attached to it for 3 miles, which took 
 1 1|2 hours." 
 
 Returning via Rome and Florence, they took the 
 same route as in 1832 — Bologna, Venice, Milan, and 
 over the Simplon to Geneva. In Venice Mr. Johnston, 
 as before, found St. Marco "tawdry & confused," and 
 remarked with reference to the loungers on the borders 
 of the canals: "The Italians are certainly the most 
 sleepy race I ever saw, except the negroes, & I suppose 
 
 [180] 
 
LATTER DAYS 
 
 it arises in both from the same cause, namely want of 
 internal resources." 
 
 From Geneva they went directly to Wiesbaden, 
 where they spent six weeks. Mr. Johnston drank the 
 waters and took the baths regularly, after which John 
 wrote in his diary: "It was determined that father 
 should resume the use of Colchicum, as he seemed to 
 remain in about the same state from day to day with a 
 constant tendency to fever. This was tacitly giving 
 up all hopes of his deriving benefit from the waters as 
 the two are pronounced incompatible. Since then he 
 has steadily improved." The improvement was but 
 slight and the diary continues: "Father leaves this 
 place much worse than when he arrived & it will take 
 some time to place him where he then stood; but as 
 the experiment of the use of the waters was one which 
 might have done him good, we should all have felt 
 unsatisfied if it had not been made." Colchicum was 
 the only drug which had helped Mr. Johnston in the 
 past, and in returning to its use the doctors greatly 
 feared that the efl^ects might in time wear off, in which 
 case the patient would, indeed, be in a hopeless condi- 
 tion. 
 
 On August 26th they left Wiesbaden and proceeded 
 to Cologne, where John Johnston thought that the 
 Cathedral looked like a ruin and predicted that it would 
 never be finished, as it would cost $4,000,000 to ac- 
 complish that result. Leaving Cologne, they passed 
 through Holland and Belgium to Paris, and after a 
 two weeks' stay in the latter place started once more 
 for Italy, travelling via Aix-les-Bains to Nice, and along 
 the coast of the Mediterranean to Genoa, Pisa, Sienna 
 
 [181] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 and Rome. During this journey they had an adven- 
 ture, the journal account of which deserves to be 
 quoted. 
 
 "Left Mentone at 7 1|4 o'clock amidst a torrent of 
 rain, which, with slight intermissions, continued all 
 day . . . 
 
 "The Hotel at St. Remo is a miserable one and we 
 proceeded on our journey till we reached the River 
 Ormea which although much swollen we passed with 
 ease. We then proceeded through the small village 
 of Arma to the River Capriolo, on approaching which 
 we were informed, to our dismay, that it was impass- 
 able. After satisfying ourselves of this fact by actual 
 observation we returned on our steps intending to 
 sleep at St. Remo, but by the time we again reached 
 the small river Ormea it had swollen to such an extent 
 as to be also impassable. Here then were we in a sad 
 dilemma — shut up between two rivers, unable either to 
 advance or retreat — the rain pouring down on us and 
 night coming on! As a last resource we drove back to 
 the village and tried the miserable looking Houses in 
 succession to see if any of them could take us in but 
 none of them could do it, and there was no Inn in the 
 place. 
 
 "In this dreadful predicament we stood in the road, 
 expecting to sleep in our carriage, but not knowing 
 what would become of the Horses, when our courier, 
 directed by somebody, made application at the Chateau 
 of the Proprietor of the village, who with great liberality 
 at once desired him to bring us all to his House and he 
 very kindly received us at his door amidst the pitiless 
 pelting of the storm. His stable was not large enough 
 
 [182] 
 
LATTER DAYS 
 
 to receive our carriage — that remained in the road 
 under protection of our courier, who slept in it — but 
 we were nobly entertained and furnished with excellent 
 beds so that we were much more comfortable than if 
 we had reached St. Remo. 
 
 "The old Gentleman devoted his whole time to me 
 which, however kindly meant, at last proved rather 
 irksome, as his French was none of the best & mine 
 still worse so that it cost an effort on both sides to 
 maintain a conversation." 
 
 The adieus a day or two later must have been try- 
 ing to an undemonstrative Scot. "The parting," his 
 son wrote, "was a la mode Italienne, kissing on both 
 cheeks not being confined to the females. It was 
 amusing enough to see father & the old gentleman 
 kissing & hugging like two boarding school misses." 
 They considered their hospitable lodgment a piece of 
 great good fortune, for some English friends detained 
 by the same storm had "had to pass the night in a 
 miserable hut swarming with vermin and up to their 
 ankles in water." 
 
 The family arrived in Rome on November 1st, 
 settled down in a delightful apartment on the Piazza 
 di Spagna for a four-months stay, and did all the things 
 that it was proper for a tourist family to do. Margaret's 
 portrait was of course cut in cameo, (price lira 17.50), 
 John purchased the usual number of prints, casts, 
 etc. (which still ornament his former country home at 
 Plainfield, New Jersey) and Mr. Johnston, who could 
 at that time have bought fine "old masters" for a mere 
 song, gave an order instead for a picture with "St. 
 Peter's Cathedral in the background. In the front our 
 
 [.183 ] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 servants in the costumes of the country and employed 
 in the pecuKar amusements of the place." 
 
 They enjoyed a good deal of social life, but de- 
 clined to meet His Holiness because he had appointed 
 a Sunday for the audience. 
 The following item written 
 in John Johnston's journal 
 is of touching interest in 
 view of what transpired 
 years later: "Beyond the 
 walls of the City we stopped 
 to examine the English 
 Burying Ground containing 
 Shelley's tomb, and the 
 Protestant Burying Ground 
 containing . . . that of Keats 
 'whose name was writ in 
 water.'" In this graveyard 
 Margaret herself was laid 
 in 1875. 
 
 While the family were 
 this winter in 
 Rome, John and James had 
 home letters telling of the 
 critical state of their Uncle Alick's health. In 1844 
 the latter had planned a long-anticipated visit to his 
 Scotch home and hoped to realize his "dream of sailing 
 on Loch Lomond, catching fish in Loch Catrine and 
 chasing the Deer & the Roe on Brae Mar and the 
 Grampian Hills." He had written urging " Jack," his 
 old pedestrian companion, to join him, with "your 
 Shoon well oiled, your knapsack on your back & your 
 
 [184] 
 
 spending 
 
 ALEXANDER JOHNSTON 
 AGED THIRTY-THREE 
 
LATTER DAYS 
 
 cudgel in your hand ... so that I may stretch your 
 legs for you in the Highlands." Jack was travelling 
 with his parents and Alick had had to take the trip 
 alone, little thinking that it would be such a disastrous 
 one for him. A neglected cold, caught while fishing, 
 developed into consumption and he returned to Amer- 
 ica in a serious condition. 
 
 On hearing this news Margaret exclaimed, "Poor 
 dear Alick, we have all been so uneasy and unhappy 
 about him. How dull our Sundays would be without 
 him." They were never again to spend them together, 
 for when they reached home in July, 1845, Alick was 
 hopelessly ill at the home of his brother Robert, in 
 Paterson, New Jersey. 
 
 While in Rome, Mr. Johnston also learned through 
 Mr. McMillan of the serious illness and death on 
 April 6, 1845, of his old friend, William Johnston 
 of Kirkcudbright. The latter was then nearly eighty 
 years of age and had been very infirm for a long time. 
 Alick, who had known him well and appreciated the tie 
 which bound him to John Johnston, wrote to his nephew 
 Jack: "And so poor old Willie Johnston of Kirkcub- 
 rie — (as we used to call him) is Dead! How unfortu- 
 nate that he cd. not be spared long enough to have 
 seen your Father once more, I really think he wd. have 
 given all he was worth for that one single priveledge 
 — I never saw any man so completely wrapt up in 
 another as he was in your father." 
 
 With their usual diligence the family went sight- 
 seeing early and late and when they once more left 
 Rome, felt as if they " were quitting home for a second 
 
 [185 1 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 time." After three weeks in Naples, they returned by 
 sea to Marseilles, and completed their sojourn on the 
 Continent by a short stay in Paris. Mrs. Johnston and 
 her sons had great pleasure in visiting the Louvre, 
 where they "strolled down the Grand Gallery com- 
 })aring the pictures with those by the same masters" 
 which they had seen in Italy and elsewhere. Leav- 
 ing Paris, they spent a couple of weeks in London, 
 where they saw everything, from the new Houses of 
 Parliament to Mme. Tussaud's Wax Works. 
 
 The time for returning home was now drawing 
 near, and Mr. Johnston planned a farewell tour in the 
 land of his birth. The "fast train" took them to Edin- 
 borough across a "highly interesting and fertile country 
 which it seemed a shame to hurry through at such a 
 rate." After a few weeks at the latter place, during 
 which time the young people spent a week seeing the 
 Highlands, they all started for Glasgow to bid Mrs. 
 Johnston's aunt and cousins adieu. A carriage was 
 then procured and they drove all the way to Moffat, a 
 method of progression which Mr. Johnston much pre- 
 ferred to the railroad train. He mentions the great 
 spaces filled with "unenclosed sheep walks of vast 
 extent . . . green and beautiful studded as they are 
 with sheep browsing or lying at rest"— a particularly 
 graphic description of the Scotch hills. 
 
 He did not visit his old haunts with the same en- 
 thusiasm as formerly. He was now very infirm, his 
 father and stepmother were dead, the family scattered, 
 and Millbank Cottage closed. His Aunt Jane Proud- 
 foot also was no more, and the only element of bright- 
 ness in this last trip lay in finding his Aunt Jane's 
 
 [18(5] 
 
LATTER DAYS 
 
 nephew, William Proudfoot, who had always lived with 
 her, happily married to a "nice young wife" and settled 
 in her old cottage. 
 
 The travellers reached Liverpool in due course, and 
 for the first time in their lives boarded a steamship, 
 the Great Western, sailing on July 5th, with one hun- 
 dred and thirty passengers, among whom was their 
 Paris friend, Dr. John T. Metcalfe, now engaged to 
 Miss Augusta Colles. 
 
 They landed in New York on July 21, 1845, after 
 an absence of nearly two years, and remembering their 
 Custom House difficulties abroad, where half -worn 
 clothes were rigorously examined and duty exacted and 
 where the discovery of a sealed letter caused infinite 
 vexation, young John said, "The examination of our 
 baggage was only a formality; pity that the English & 
 French Custom Houses would not go & do likewise." 
 Such a comment could hardly be made at the present 
 time. 
 
 On the dock they were, according to Mr. Johnston, 
 "greeted by the news of another dreadful conflagration 
 [second in importance only to the Great Fire of 1835] 
 . . . My six stores in Broad St. & Exchange place are in 
 ruins, and my fire stocks to the amount of nearly 50,000 
 rendered of little value, but I have great reason to be 
 thankful I have enough left." His son's journal gave 
 further details: 
 
 "The destructive extent of the fire was owing to a 
 tremendous explosion in No. 38 Broad Street which 
 proceeded as well as can be ascertained from an im- 
 mense quantity of saltpetre stored in the building. So 
 dreadful were the effects of this explosion that the 
 
 [187] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 stores in the immediate vicinity were at once pros- 
 trated, burying many in their ruins, the doors & win- 
 dows (iron) for some distance round driven in, & such 
 openings made for the fire that it became almost irre- 
 sistable. Broadway is burned on the East side from 
 Exchange Place to Whitehall St. & so far as the flames 
 extended not a building escaped." 
 
 The fire started in New Street on the night of July 
 19th, and worked through to the buildings on Broad 
 Street, where the great explosion afterwards occurred. 
 A "Joint Special Committee" was later appointed to 
 examine witnesses with regard to the causes of the 
 explosion, some of whom gave thrilling accounts of 
 their experiences. 
 
 Timothy Waters, a fireman, described hearing the 
 fire bells and starting with his engine in the middle of 
 the night from the engine house — "only two of us 
 having hold at first, but gained help on the way, so 
 that we had about twenty men when we got to the fire." 
 A bystander, Edward W. Rogers, told of his witnessing 
 the disaster: "I had just time to turn round and have 
 a good view of the scene, when the final explosion took 
 place . . . Accompanying this last explosion was an im- 
 mense body of flame, which appeared to fill nearly the 
 whole block in Broad street, between Exchange and 
 Beaver, and about seventy or eighty feet high; that 
 swept across Broad street with the explosion, and I 
 distinctly saw a number of the stores, on the opposite 
 side of Broad street, fall to the ground as if thrown 
 down by an earthquake. The walls seemed to fall in 
 one mass." 
 
 Francis Hart, Jr., a fireman, testified: "I was . . . 
 
 [188] 
 
•riivr vs -x^-m ■sshhtxio m-^yiiOmo^ an' ■j:ai^ ftii:*A'i TiM'ji xa i>ra'jr_"TC'a;i. 
 
 THE EXPLOSION IN BROAD STREET 
 184.5 
 
LATTER DAYS 
 
 on the rear of the fourth story of the chair factory in 
 Broad street (No. 36) when that building took fire . . . 
 when I undertook to go down, the flame and smoke 
 were so great as to prevent my descending, and I went 
 on the roof of the chair factory. I went along from that 
 building to the corner of Broad and Exchange streets, 
 breaking each sky-light as I proceeded over the roofs, 
 but found no stairs leading from such sky-lights. Find- 
 ing myself thus on the third building from the chair 
 factory, without any means of getting dow^n, I sat in 
 the scuttle. I did not then consider myself in any 
 danger. I had been there about five minutes, when I 
 heard the first explosion — a species of rumbling sound 
 — followed by a succession of others of the same kind. 
 The gable of the house next to the corner shook with 
 the first and each successive explosion, so that I had 
 prepared myself, if it threatened to fall, to jumj) 
 tlirouo;h the scuttle of the corner house. After the 
 small explosions the great explosion took place, the 
 noise of which seemed to be principally below me. I 
 perceived the flames shooting across the street — I felt 
 the building falling under me, and the roof moved 
 around so that a corner of it caught on the opposite 
 side of Exchange street, and was thrown off into Ex- 
 change street, but without any serious injury to my 
 person. As far as I could judge, the whole roof that 
 I was on moved in one piece, and the walls under it 
 crumbled down beneath it." 
 
 The picture of the explosion shown here is one of 
 the "fire prints" of the time, taken from Wall Street 
 looking south through Broad; the first opening on the 
 right is Exchange Place, and the buildings on the 
 
 [189] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW' YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 corner in the act of falling are those that belonged to 
 John Johnston. 
 
 As soon as possible after the ground was cleared he 
 erected large warehouses on this property, which about 
 1865 were altered into offices, the entire structure then 
 being known as the "Johnston Building." In 1894 
 this was torn down and the present sixteen story granite 
 edifice took its place. Many well-known firms were 
 among Mr. Johnston's tenants in the old building, 
 some of whom still have offices in the new one. 
 
 The family came home, however, to a sorrow far 
 greater than that occasioned by the loss of these build- 
 ings — a sorrow for which they were not, however, en- 
 tirely unprepared. Poor Alick, who had spent the 
 winter in the South in the vain hope of restoring his 
 health, had now been brought back by his brother 
 Robert and was in the hitter's home at Paterson, New 
 Jersey. His two nephews went over to see him the 
 second day after their landing and found him "sadly 
 altered." Mr. Johnston also at the earliest moment 
 visited Alick, Robert writing to the Scotch relatives: 
 "My brother John made out a few days after his 
 arrival to come down to see him but it cost him great 
 exertion," adding, "some one or other of the boys is 
 down once a week." 
 
 This bright, afl^ectionate, jolly young fellow only 
 lived until the following December. He had an in- 
 tense love for his old home and requested that he should 
 after death be taken to Scotland and buried near his 
 mother. On the tombstone in Balmaghie Churchyard 
 is written, "His body lyes here by his own desire." 
 
 [ i»o ] 
 
LATTER DAYS 
 
 His nephew John was so fond of him that years later, 
 in attempting to tell his son Herbert of Alick's death, 
 he broke down and was unable to proceed — the only 
 time his children ever knew him to be thus affected. 
 
 A year and a half after this, on August 11, 1847, 
 Mr. Johnston lost his old friend George Johnston, who 
 j)assed away, aged seventy-nine years. Even if the 
 old gentleman had become "crusty and irascible," the 
 former could never forget the many kindnesses shown 
 to him in his early New York days, and it gave him a 
 real satisfaction to have his lonely old friend laid in his 
 own vault at Greenwood. 
 
 The two summers following the return from Europe, 
 were spent at Sharon Springs. John Johnston's in- 
 firmities slowly increased and in 1847 he said: "1 
 am now one year older & cannot expect that my com- 
 plaints should be fewer." His journals and letters 
 became little more than chronicles of ill-health, although 
 he continued to dwell upon the brighter side. "I am 
 still lio})elessly lame and at times nuich pained . . . yet 
 my general health is good and although incapable of 
 free locomotion I can when I sit still reasonably enjoy 
 life in the society of my friends or in reading or writing 
 and as in worldly matters providence has made my 
 cup to overflow, I have much — very much — to be 
 thankful for & very little comparatively to complain 
 of." 
 
 The courage and cheerfulness displayed by the 
 parents under all circumstances enabled their children 
 to have always beautiful memories of them. John once 
 said of his father, "As to good spirits, in that he was 
 
 [191] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 never lacking," and of his mother, who was left for so 
 many years to be a joy to her children, "My Mother 
 remains in excellent health & good spirits. She is as 
 light on her feet as a young girl." 
 
 To this time belongs a daguerreotype of "Maggie 
 and her friends" which John had made in 1847, princi- 
 pally, it is declared, because he was already interested 
 in Fanny Colles and knew of no other way of secur- 
 ing hei- picture. After it was finished he claimed it as 
 his own, which the girls considered a mean trick. 
 Maggie formed the centre of the group — at her right, 
 standing up, was Louise Alley, who later became Mrs. 
 Thomas Whitaker. In front of her sat Phoebe Anna 
 Tliorne, the only one of the group now living; while 
 next to her was Frances Colles, the object of all the 
 deep scheming, soon to wed the young man himself. 
 On Maggie's left, leaning against her, sat Caroline 
 Greeley, who had already become Mrs. George Cornell; 
 above was Charlotte Pearsall, who married Mr. Edwin 
 Thorne; and on the end was Maggie's bosom friend, 
 Lydia Alley, later Mrs. George Griswold, Jr. They 
 were an engaging circle of young ladies and many of them 
 were present at Margaret's wedding two years later. 
 
 Margaret was married on May 17, 1849, to John 
 Bard, and in the before-mentioned "Dinner Party 
 Book" her mother gives a description of the wedding: 
 "A morning bridal party for my daughter and Mr. 
 Bard. The day was lovely and our rooms were crowded 
 with company. The ceremony took place at half past 
 one o'clock and there were very few present^ — only our 
 relatives and intimate friends — but our invitations to 
 the reception were widely extended. The table was in 
 
 [ 192] 
 
LATTER DAYS 
 
 the back room across the windows and stood all the 
 time. It was very elegant and much admired." The 
 young people went to live at their new home in the 
 country, "Annandale," near Barrytown-on-Hudson, 
 which left the parents very lonely. 
 
 This state of affairs was, however, somewhat alle- 
 viated shortly afterwards by John's marriage on May 
 15, 1850, to Frances Colles, the young couple having 
 been invited to make their home with Mr. and Mrs. 
 Johnston at No. 7 Washington Square. It is character- 
 istic that the father should have presented a pew in the 
 Grand Street Presbyterian Church to his son, as soon 
 as he became engaged to an Episcopalian, lest he l)e 
 tempted to wander away from the church of his fathers. 
 
 Three years and a half later, on October 13, 185,'j, 
 James Boorman Johnston also married. His bride was 
 Mary Hoppin Humphreys, daughter of Mr. May 
 Humphreys, of Philadelphia, and the wedding took 
 I)lace at St. Andrew's Church in that city, the cere- 
 mony being performed by Dr. Stevens, later Bishop 
 of Pennsylvania. Mr. Johnston did not, however, live 
 to see his second son's marriage. 
 
 Only two months before Mr. Johnston's death, his 
 first grandchild, the daughter of his son John, was 
 born in his Washington Square home— an event which' 
 gave him much pleasure. He used to have the child 
 put in a basket on the floor alongside of his chair, so 
 that he could look down on the little one. 
 
 He was now a very great and constant sufferer, and 
 when in his seventieth year death came, on April lO, 
 1851, it was, as he had often said it would be, "a great 
 deliverance." 
 
 [193] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 Samuel Johnston, who then lived at Barnboard Mill, 
 John Johnston's birthplace, wrote of him, "one of the 
 noblest and most generous souls ever the South of 
 Scotland produced . . . You may well be proud of such 
 a Father and I of such a Brother." His friend and 
 kinsman, the Rev. John McMillan of Kirkcudbright, 
 wrote a fine appreciation of his character, in which 
 he declared that: "Few men have been more justly 
 esteemed or more extensively useful ... & the great 
 day alone, I believe, will discover the extent of his 
 liberalities & kindnesses." 
 
 The funeral took place at No. 7 Washington Square, 
 and besides the eight pallbearers, there were invited 
 to take part, as was the custom in those days, no fewer 
 than eight clergymen and six physicians. His pastor 
 and friend, the Rev. Joseph McElroy, who had been 
 on intimate terms with him for so many years, made 
 the funeral address, with some extracts from which 
 it is appropriate that this sketch of his life should be 
 brought to a close. 
 
 "... a man of sound and well-balanced mind. If 
 less remarkable than some for those brilliant and 
 striking qualities which dazzle and oft-times mislead, 
 he was more remarkable than most for those better 
 qualities which inspire confidence and elicit respect; 
 and all his mental powers were expanded and im- 
 proved by extensive reading and habits of reflection. 
 
 "He was a man amiable and cheerful in temper, a 
 happy spirit, who always met you with a smile. And 
 the happiness he felt himself he was anxious to impart 
 to others. No man, even of the humblest walk in life, 
 
 [194] 
 
LATTER DAYS 
 
 could approach him without feeling the kindness of 
 his disposition. 
 
 *' He was a man of unbending and incorruptible in- 
 tegrity—governed by moral principles in all the trans- 
 actions of life. Extensively engaged in mercantile 
 pursuits for nearly half a century, his probity and 
 lionor have been unimpeached and unimpeachable; 
 and he has gone from among us, with the veneration 
 of many, and the unfeigned respect of all who knew 
 him. 
 
 "He was naturally a generous man, and for the 
 gratification of this disposition Providence gave him 
 ample means . . . and as riches increased, he did not 
 set his heart upon them, but devoted them to their 
 true uses — employed them as became a man of intel- 
 ligent benevolence and warm-hearted piety. His 
 benefactions were large, his charities were open- 
 hearted and open-handed, embracing in their sphere 
 the temporal necessities of his fellow creatures, the 
 promotion of the cause of education and learning, and 
 every object of Christian benevolence. He was always 
 with the foremost in every good work; and never have I 
 known a more 'cheerful giver.' Nor were his liberal 
 contributions to such objects as those mentioned wholly 
 the result of natural generosity. They proceeded from 
 principle. He felt himself to be a steward, and that 
 the hour of reckoning was approaching. Most forcibly 
 was I struck with an observation which he made to me 
 during the past winter, when referring to an investment 
 which he had been urged to make, and which had been 
 represented as likely to prove exceedingly profitable. 
 'If, said he, 'I had been sure that that representation 
 
 [195] 
 
JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK, MERCHANT 
 
 would be realized, I should not have made it. I have 
 enough — as much as I wish to be answerable for ' . . . 
 
 "But 'the heart knoweth his own bitterness.' I 
 have lost a friend. To part with such a friend in a 
 world like this is no small matter." 
 
GENEALOGICAL 
 TABLES 
 
H 109 89 
 
H 109 89 
 
■(. 
 
 THK CHILDREN OF 
 JOHN JOHNSTON OF BARNBOARD 
 
 ) II N J O H N S T O N , 1749— April 29, 1841. 
 3,. Doiothfii I'roudfoot, 1780 (1758— June 1. 1794). 
 
 1 JOHN JOHNSTON, June «2, 1781— April 16, 1851. s~ .,ppo.i« m.i.., 
 „. Margaret Rae, 1795 (1776— April 26, 1841). 
 
 I JESSIE (JANF:T) (April ii, 1796 -March 11, 18IS) died of 
 
 c'on.sumptioii. 
 
 II AGNES (NANNY) (December 31, 1797 January 13, 1884) 
 
 married first George Nishet and afterwards Thomas Maxwell. 
 She lived at Dalbeattie and had in all seven children, one of 
 whom, Mrs. Joseph Newall, still resides there. 
 
 ill WILLIAM (April ii, 1800— died at some date between 1837 and 
 1841) married Elizabeth Davidson on March \i, \H4i>. He 
 went to America in 1819 and was engaged in business in 
 Petersburg, Virginia, where he had a partner named Arthur 
 Johnston. At the time of his death he left one daughter, Mary 
 E., who was afterwards educated and taken care of by her 
 vindc Robert in his home at Paler.son, New Jersey. 
 
 |\' SAMl'EL (July 7, 180^— March 19, 1890) married Ilaimah Bar- 
 row, an English Quakeress, and had a family of nine children. 
 He lived for a long time in Birmingham, England, but after 
 his father's death returned to Scotland and occu|)ie<l at various 
 times both Barnboard, or as he called it, "Glentoo" mill, and 
 Millbank mill. His daughter, Agnes N. Johnston, still owns 
 Millbank cottage, and lives there with his son Robert. His 
 daughter Dorothea, Mrs. Henry Maclellan, lives near-by in 
 Castle Douglas. 
 
 \ ItOBERT (July 7, 1804— June «8, 1848) never married. He went 
 to New York in 1821 and some years later was engaged in a 
 commission business in Richmond, Virginia, under the firm 
 name of Triplett & Johnst<m. Afterwards in New York he 
 was a |)artner of Silas Wood and Francis Burritt, and still 
 later built the Dolphin Mills at I'aterson, New Jersey, and con- 
 ducted a successful business there in the manufacture of hemp 
 bagging, etc. He was killed during the destruction by fire of 
 the PatPTSOTT cluiirli, while aiiling in — rm — ulli^nifil lu mpv^*^fa^~ 
 organ. 
 
 JAMES (July 29, 1806— May 6, 1859) married Mary Cooper, an 
 Englishwoman. He, as well as Samuel, was in business in 
 Birmingham. Later, he also returned to Scotland and lived at 
 Dalbeattie. He had six children, of whom one daughter, Clara 
 Johnston, .still lives there. 
 
 VII JEANIE (May 25, 1808— September 25, 1808). 
 
 VIII ALEXANDER (June 14, 1810— December 12, 1845) never 
 
 married. He was for a short time with his brother Samuel 
 in England before coming to America. In 1835 he .sailed for 
 Charleston and remained in the South for a year or two, 
 engaged in the cotton business. Later, in New York, he was 
 a head clerk in the commission house of W'ood, Johnston & 
 Burritt, of which his brother Robert was a partner. He be- 
 came a partner himself in 1844, when his brother moved to 
 Paterson, and the firm was then called Burritt & Johnston. 
 
 During a visit to Scotland in the summer of 1844 he con- 
 tracted a cold which developed into "a con.sumption." He 
 lived until December, 1845, and was interred, according to his 
 own re(|uest, in Halnuighic Kirkyard. 
 
 IX MARGARET (March 18, 1813 -April 11, 1890) was the only 
 
 one still remaining at home at the time of her parents' 
 death. She afterwards married George Carruthcrs and had 
 ten children. They lived at Ashby de la Zouch, England, 
 and later at Durham-Kirki>atrick, Scotland. After her hus- 
 band's <leath she returned to England, and some of her 
 children still live at Ashby de la Zouch. 
 
 \ DOROTHEA (DOLLY) (March 18, 1816 — March 1,), 1849) 
 married James Harker and lived in England. She had seven 
 children, who all died, the last one in 1860. 
 
 DESCENDANTS OF 
 .JOHN JOHNSTON OF NEW YORK 
 
 J O H N J O H N S T O N , June 22, 1781-Apr. 16. »851- 
 
 m. Margaret Taylor, Sept. 2, 1817 (Sept. 10, 1784-Dec. 12. 1879). 
 
 JOHN TAYLOR JOHNSTON. Apr. 8, 1820-Mar. 24. 189S 
 m. Frances Colles. May 15. 1850 (Apr. 29, 1826-July 20, 1888) 
 
 Emilv Johnston, Feb. 13, 1851 — 
 
 m. Robert Weeks de Forest, Nov. 12. 1872 (Apr. 25. 1848- ■ 
 
 JOHNSTON DE FOREST. Sept. .'.. 187S— 
 
 m. NaUlie Coffin 0.-I. 6. 1904 (Ocl. 30. 1»8.'»— .\|.r. ««. I9W)- 
 IIKNIIY LOCKWOOD in: KOttEST. Aug. B. 1875- 
 m. Amy H Brown. Aug. «♦. 1899 (Apr. «8 1878— 
 Mat de FoKiMT. Mar. «7. 190«— 
 EuiLY J0HN8TON DE Forest 4nd. May ii, 1903 — 
 
 ETHEL DE FOnEST, Mar. IS, 1877— 
 
 m. Allen Earle Whitman, Ort. 1 1907 (March 48. I87e— 
 Allen Eahle W'HrruAS Jr.. Sept. «6, 1908— 
 FKANCES EMILY de FOREST. Dec. U 1878 — 
 
 m. William Adams Walker Stewart. May 1. 1900 (Sept. 10. 1876- 
 Fkancks Dorothy Stewart, Apr 1, 1901 — 
 [ Aug. 1 190«- 
 
 Ethel de F.i 
 William Ad^ 
 Edward Sue 
 
 &rE« 
 
 i Stei 
 
 . Sepl. i* 1903— 
 . Oct. 10. 1905— 
 
 CoLLM Johnston, Mar. 14, 1853— Sept. 11, 1886. 
 
 John Heubeht Johnston, Feb. 22. 1855 — ■ 
 
 m. Celcstine Noi-l. May 23, 1892. f 
 
 EMILIE NOEL JOHNSTON. Jan. 43. 1894— 
 
 Frances Johnston, Jan. 9, 1857 — 
 m. Pierre Mali, Apr. 30, 1892. 
 
 JOHN TAYLOR JOHNSTON MALI. Mar. 47. 1893— 
 
 GERTRUDE MALI, Apr. M, 1894— 
 
 EVA MALI. Dec. 5, 1895- 
 
 HENRY Jl'LIAN MALI. .\ug. 11. 1899— 
 
 EvA Johnston, Sept. 19, 1866— 
 
 ra. Henr>' Eugene Coe, Nov. 27, 1888. 
 
 EMILY' COE. Nov. 41, 1889— 
 ROSALIE COE. Sept. 46, 1891- 
 COLLES JOHNSTON COE, .Mar. 48, 18113— 
 HE.NRV ELUENE COE, Jr., Ocl. 4, 1894— 
 
 ANDREW TAYLOR JOHNSTON, Nov. 13, 1821— Mar. 14. 1822. 
 
 JAMES BOORMAN JOHNSTON, Dec. 30, 1822— Sept. 26, 1887. 
 in. Mary Hoppin Humphreys, Oct. 13, 1853. 
 
 Mary Hu.mphrevs Johnston, Sept. 4, 1854 — 
 Margaret Taylor Johnston, Sept. 24, 1855 — 
 John Humphreys Johnston, Nov. 2. 1857 — 
 m. Annie Lazarus, June 21, 1899. 
 
 M.VKGARET TAYLOR JOHNSTON, Nov. 23, 182.5— Apr. 10. 1875. 
 Ml. John Bard, May 17, 1849. 
 
 Emily Baud, July 12, 1851 — 
 
 III. Charies B. Lutyens, Sept. 28, 1886. 
 CHARLES (JRAEME Ll'TVENS, July 11. 1887— 
 LIONEL GALLIVEY Ll'TVENS, Dec. .30. 1889— 
 EADREU JOHN TEXN.\.\T LL'TVENS, July 1, 1891— 
 ENDEKBV CJORUON LUTYENS, July 1«. 189*— 
 MARGARET SYLVU De N. LUTYENS, Aug. 14, 1895— 
 
 Caroline Bard, Feb. 15, 185.5— Nov. 17, 1879. 
 Wii.LiAM Barii. Feb. 29, 1856— Feb. 17, 1868. 
 Ros.KLir. UE NoHMANDIE Bark, Sept. 15, 1867 — 
 Ml. Charles A. Moran, Oct. 14, 1891. 
 
 ROSALIE BARI> MOR.\N. Sept. 47, 1894— 
 
 CHARLES BLAKE MORAN, June 30, 1894— 
 
 BARD MOHAN. July 46. 1900— 
 
 ANSON BLAKE .MORAN, Jan. 6. 1904— 
 
 ELIZABETH MOU.\N. Feb. 4, 1904— 
 
 1:M1LY PKOUDFOOT JOHNSTON. Sept. 10, 1827— .May 30, 1831. 
 
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