V'-"/^ i J ^^H H ^■. /ffsH//fqfo//f0q ■11 y ^/; vTi :^r*'} ■;■•>■/>-■ >,%.t^' • r_.- , i ■2y^ »3 ■ ^■: i ^ ''• "•! i LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, n :i-5. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. / ^ Knickerbocker Sketches FROM "A HISTORY OF NEW YORK.' BY WASHINGTON IRVING. ILLUSTRATED BY F. O. C. DARLEY. P H T T, A T) F, T-V n T A : J. B. LIPPINCOTT CO^IPANY. 1886. ■I Copyright, 1880, by J. B. Lippincott Company. PREFACE. This volume of sketches from " Knickerbocker's History of New York" contains not only mucli that is brightest and most entertaining in all Washington Irving's writings, but also some of the best specimens of the artistic work of ]\Ir. F. (). V. Darlev ; and it is therefore the hope of the publishers that it will commend itself to all lovers of literatmv and art. COISrTE]S"TS. PAOE Y/Tiik Skttlement ok New York 9 V The Golden Reign of "VVoutek Van Tvvillek 34 1 The Reign of William the Testy 40 V The Reign of 1'etkk Stcyvesant 65 LIST OF ILLUSTEATIOJN'S. Oloffe's Vision of the Future City of New Amsterdam. Frontispiece PAGE Oloffe Van Kortland measuring the Land with Ten Broeck's Breeches 29 Portrait of Wouter Van Twiller 37 William the Testy astonishing the Council by his New Method of Making "War ^3 Van Poffenburgh Practising War 73 KisiNGH AND Peter Stuyvesant 83 VIGNETTES. Dutch Exploring Expedition cast away at IIell-Gate "22 Dutch Courtship ■l^ Van Curlet's Bearer of Despatches 51 Great Battle at Fort Christina 87 THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. I. |T was some three or four years after the return of the immortal Hondrick,* that a crew of honest, Lo\\-I)utfh coluuiists set sail from the city of Am- sterdam for the shores of xVmcrica. It is an irrej)- arable loss to history, and a ijreat proof of the darkness of the age, and the lamentable neglect of the noble art of book-making, since so industriously cultivated by knowing sea-captains, and learned supercargoes, that an expedition so interesting and im- portant in its results should be passed over in utter silence. To my great-great-grandfather am I again indebted for the few facts I am enabled to give concernhig it, — he liaving once more embarked for this country, Avith a full determination, as he said, of ending his days here, and of begetting a race of Knicker- bockers that should rise to be great men in the land. The ship ill wliicli these illustrious adventurers set sail was called the Goede Vromo, or good woman, in compliment to the wife of the President of the West India Company, who was allowed by everybody (except her husband) to be a sweet-tem- ])ored lady — when not in liquor. It was in truth a most gal- lant vessel, of the most approved Dutch construction, and made * Hendrick Hudson, the discoverer. 2 9 10 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. by the ablest H^hip-carpenters of Amsterdam, who, it is well known, always model their ships after the fair forms of their countrywomen. Accordingly, it had one hundred feet in the beam, one hundred feet in the keel, and one hundred feet from the bottom of the stern-post to the tatferel. Like the beauteous model, who was declared to be the greatest belle in Amsterdam, it was full in the bows, with a pair of enormous cat-iieads, a copper bottom, and withal a most prodigious poop I The architect, who was somewhat of a religious man, far from decorating the ship with pagan idols, such as Jupiter, Neptune, or Hercules (which heathenish abominations, I have no doubt, occasion the misfortunes and shipAvreck of many a noble vessel), — he, I say on the contrary, did laudably erect for a head, a goodly image of St. Nicholas, equipped with a low, broad-brimmed hat, a huge pair of Flemish trunk-hose, and a pipe that reached to the end of the bowsprit. Thus gallantly furnished, the stanch ship floated sideways, like a majestic goose, out of the harbor of the great city of Amsterdam, and all the bells, that were not otherwise engaged, rang a triple bobmajor on the joyful occasion. My great-great-grandfather remarks, that the voyage was un- commonly })rosperous, for, being under the esi^ecial care of the ever-revered St. Nicholas, the Goede Vrouw seemed to be en- dowed with qualities unknown to common vessels. Thus she made as much leeway as headway, could get along very nearly as fast with tiie wind ahead as when it was a-poo}), — and was l)artily confounded were these poor savages at the tremendous and uncouth soiuid of the Low-Dutch language, that they one and all took to their lunds, and scampered over the Bergen hills; nor did they stop until they liad buried themselves, head and ears, in the marshes on the other side, where they all miserably perished to a man ; — and their bones, being collected and decently covered by the Tammany iSocicty of that day, formed that singular mound called Katti^esnake Hill, which rises out of the centre of the salt marshes a little to the east of the Xewark Causeway. Animated by this unlooked-for victory, our valiant heroes sprang ashore in trium[)h, took possession of the soil as con- querors, in the name of their High Mightinesses the Lords States General ; and, marching fearlessly forward, carried the village of Commuxipaw by storm, notwithstanding that it was vigorously defendetl by some half a score of old s(|uaws and l)a])pooses. On looking about them they were so transported with the excellencies of the place, that they had very little doubt the blessed St. Nicholas had gui;nitude and pros- perity. The neighboring Indians in a short time became accnstomed to the uncouth sound of the Dutch lan- guage, and yn intercourse gradually took place between them and the new comers. The Indians were nuuh given to long talks, and the Dutch to long silence ; — in this particular, there- fore, they accommodated each other completely. The chiefs would make long speeches about the big bull, the Wabash, and the Great Spirit, to which the others would listen very atten- tively, smoke their pipes, and grunt i/ah, )ni/u-/i<'r, — whereat the poor savages were wondrously delighted. They instructed the new settlers in the best art of curing and smoking tobacco, while the latter, in return, made them drunk with true Hol- lands — and then taught them the art of making l)argains. A brisk trade for furs was soon opened ; the Dutch traders were scrupulously honest in their dealings, and purchased by weight, establishing it as an invariable table of avoirdupois, that the hand of a Dutchman weighed one pound, and his foot two poinids. It is true, the sim])le Indians were often puzzled by the great disproportion between bulk and weigiit, for let them place a bundle of furs, never so large, in one scale, and a Dutch- man put his hand or foot in the other, the bundle was sure to kick the beam ; — never was a ])ackage of furs known to weigh more than two jxiuitds in tlie market of C'onnnunijjaw ! This is a singular fact, — Ijut I have it direct from my 13 14 KXICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. great-great-grandfather, who had risen to considerable impor- tance in tlie colony, being promoted to the office of weigh- master, on account of the uncommon heaviness of his foot. The Dutch possessions in this part of the globe began now to assume a very thriving appearance, and were comprehended under the general title of Nieuw Nederlandts, on account, as the sage Vandcr Donck observes, of their great resemblance to the Dutch Netherlands, — which indeed was truly remarkable, ex- cepting that the former were rugged and mountainous, and the latter level and marshy. About this time the tran([uillity of the Dutch colonists was doomed to suffer a temporary interrup- tion. In 1614, Captain Sir Samuel Argal, sailing under a com- mission from Dale, governor of Virginia, visited the Dutch settlements on Hudson River, and demanded their submission to the English crown and Virginian dominion. To this arro- gant demand, as they were in no condition to resist it, they submitted for the time, like discreet and reasonable men. It does not appear that the valiant Argal molested the set- tlement of Communipaw ; on the contrary, I am told that when his vessel first hove in sight, the worthy burghers M'ere seized with such a ])anic, that they fell to smoking their pi])es with as- tonishing vehemence; insomuch that they quickly raised a ckmd, which, combining with the surrounding woods and marshes, com- pletely enveloped an]X)sed, like that of the illustrious Jean Sansterre, to indicate that he had no hind ; but he insisted, on the contrary, that he had great landed es- tates somewiurc in Terra Incognita; and he had come out to the new world to look after them. He Mas the Hrst great land-speculator that we read of in these parts. Like all land-s})eculators, he was much given to dreaming. Never did anything extraordinary happen at Communipaw but he declared that he had previously dreamt it, being one of those infallible prophets who predict events after they have come to pass. This supernatural gift was as highly valued among the burghers of Pavonia as among the enlightened nations of an- ti(piity. The wise Ulysses was more indebted to his sleeping than his waking uionicnts for his most subtle achievements, and seldom undertook any great ex])loit without first soundly sleep- ing upon it ; and the same may be said of Oloffe Van Kort- landt, who was thence aptly denominated (Oloffe the Dreamer. As yet his dreams and specidations had turned to little personal profit ; and he was as nnich a lack-land as ever. Still he carried a high head in the community ; if his sugar-loaf hat 16 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. was rather the worse for wear, he set it off with a taller cock's- tail ; if liis sliirt was none of the cleanest, he puffed it out tlie more at the bosom ; and if the tail of it peeped out of a hole in his breeches, it at least proved that it really had a tail and was not mere ruffle. Tiie worthy Van Kortlandt, in the council in question, urired tlie policy of emerging from tlic swamps of Communi- paw and seeking some more eligible site for the seat of empire. Such, he said, was the advice of the good St. Nicholas, who had appeared to him in a dream the night before; and whom he had known by his broad hat, his long pipe, and the resemblance which he bore to the figure on the bow of the Goede Vrouw. Many have thought this dream Avas a mere invention of Oloffe Van Kortlandt, who, it is said, had ever regarded Com- munipaw with an evil eye because he had arrived there after all the land had been shared out, and who was anxious to change the seat of empire to some new place, where he might be present at the distribution of " town lots." But we nnist not give heed to such insinuations, which are too apt to be advanced against those worthy gentlemen engaged in laying out towns, and in other land-speculations. For my own part, I am disposed to place the same implicit faith in the vision of Oloffe the Dreamer that was manifested by the honest burghers of Communipaw, who one and all agreed that an expedition should be forthwith fitted out to go on a voyage of discovery in quest of a new seat of empire. This perilous enterprise was to be conducted by Oloffe him- self; who chose as lieutenants or coadjutors Mynheers Abraham Ilardenbroeck, Jacobus Yan Zandt, and Winant Ten Broeck, — three indubitably great men, but of whose history, although I have made diligent inquiry, I can learn but little previous to their leavintr Holland. ITI. O sooner did the first rays of cheerful Phop])Us dart into the windows of C'oninmnipaw, than the little settlement was all in motion. Forth issued from his castle the sage Van Kortlandt, and seizing a conch shell, blew a far-resounding blast, that soon summonwl all his lustv followers. Then did they trudge resolutely down to the water-side, escorted by a nudtitude of relatives and friends, who all went down, jis the common phrase expresses it, "to see them off." And this shows the antiquity of those long family processions, often seen in our city, composed of all ages, sizes, and sexes, laden with bundles and bandboxes, escorting some bevy of country cousins, about to depart for home in a market-boat. The good Oloffe bestowed his forces in a S(|uadron of three canoes, and hoisted his H:ig on board a little round Dutch boat, shaped not unlike a ttd), which had formerly been the jolly- boat of the Goede Vrouw. And now, all being end)arked, they bade farewell to the gazing throng upon the beach, who con- tinued shouting after them, even when out of hearing, wishing them a happy voyiige, advising them to take good care of them- selves not to get drowned, — with an al)undance other of those saire and invaluable cautions, generallv trivcn bv landsmen to such as go down to the sea in shij)s, and adventure upon the dee}) waters. In the mean while the voyagers cheerily urgef land). 20 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. frood Van Kortlandt — who, having no land of his own, was a great achiiirer of other people's — expanded to the full size of a pepper-corn at the sumptuous prospect of rich unsettled country around him, and falling into a delicious revery, he straightway began to riot in the possession of vast meadows of salt marsh and interminable patches of cabbages. From this delectable vision he was all at once awakened l)v the sudden turning of the tide, which would soon have hurried him from this land of promise, had not the discreet navigator given signal to steer for shore ; Avhere they accordingly landed hard by the rocky heights of Bellevue, — that happy retreat, where our jolly aldermen eat for the good of the city, and fatten the turtle that are sacrificed on civic solemnities. Here, seated on the greensward, by the side of a small stream that ran sparkling among the grass, they refreshed themselves after the toils of the seas, by feasting lustily on the ample stores which they had provided for this perilous voyage. Thus having well fortified their deliberative powers, they fell into an earnest consultation, what was farther to be done. By this time the jolly Phcebus, like some wanton urchin sporting on the side of a green hill, began to roll down the declivity of the heavens; and now, the tide having once more turned in their favor, the Pavonians again committed themselves to its discretion, and coasting along the western shores, were borne towards the straits of Blackwell's Island. And here the capricious wanderings of the current occasioned not a little marvel and ])(>r])lcxity torpoises, which had betrayed them into this jh'HI, some broiling on the (xridiron, and othere hissing on the Frying-pan ! These, however, were considered by nuniy as mere fantasies 22 KNICKERBOCKKR SK ETCHES. of the commodore, while he lav in a trance; especially as he was known to be given to dreaniin<«; ; and the truth of tliem has never been clearly ascertained. It is certain, however, that to the accounts of Oloffe and his followers may be traced the various traditions handed down of this marvellous strait : as how the devil has been seen there, sitting astride of the Hog's liack and j)laying on the fiddle, — how he broils fish there be- fore a storm ; and many other stories in which we must be cau- tious of putting too much fiiith. In consequence of all these terrific circumstances, the Pavonian commander gave this pass the name of Ilelle-gaf, or, as it has been interpreted, Hell-Gate; which it continues to bear at the present day. IV. HE darkness of nio;lit had closed upon this disastrous day, and a doleful night wjis it to the shipwrecked Pavonians, whose ears were incessantly assailed with the rau'liig of the elements, and the howling of the hobgoblins that infested this perfidious strait. J3ut when the morning dawned, the horrors of the preceding evening hatl passed away ; ra})ids, breakers, and whirlpools had disappeared ; the stream again ran smooth and dimpling, and having changed its tide, rolled gently back, towards the quarter where lay their miich-regretted home. The woe-begone heroes of Communipaw eyed each other with rueful countenances ; their squadron had been totally dis- persed by the late disaster. Some were cast ujion the western shore, where, headed by one Kuleif Hopj)er, they took possession of all the country lying about the six-mile stone ; which is held by the Hoppers at this present writing. The Waldrons were driven by stress of weather to a distant coast, where, having with them a jug of genuine Hollands, they were enabled to conciliate the savages, setting up a kind of tavern ; whence, it is said, did spring the fair town of Haerlem, in which their descendants have ever since continued to be repu- table publicans. As to the Suydams, they were thrown u])on the Long Island coast, and may still be found in those parts. But the most singular luck attended the great Ten Broeck, who, falling overboard, was miraculously preserved from sinking by the multitude of his nether garments. Thus buoyed n|), he floated on the waves like a merman, or like an angler's dobl)er, 23 24- KNICKERBOCKER SKETCPIES. until ho landed safely on a rock, where he was found the next niorninuc, Inisily drying his many breeches in the sunshine. I furl)oar to treat of the long consultation of Olotfe with his remaining followers, in which they determined that it would never do to found a city in so diabolical a neighborhood. Suf- fice it in simple brevity to say, that they once more committed themselves, with fear and trembling, to the briny elements, and steered their course back again through the scenes of their yes- terday's voyage, determined no longer to roam in search of dis- tant sites, but to settle themselves down in the marshy regions of Pavonia. Scarce, however, had they gained a distant view of Commu- nipaw, when they were encountered by an obstinate eddy, which opi)osed their homeward voyage. Weary and dispirited as they were, they yet tugged a feeble oar against the stream ; until, as if to settle the strife, half a score of potent billows rolled the tub of Commodore Van Kortlandt high and dry on the long point of an island which divided the bosom of the bay. Some pretend that these billows were sent by old Neptune to strand the expedition on a spot whereon was to be founded his stronghold in this western world ; others, more pious, at- tribute everything to the guardianship of the good St. Nicholas ; and after-events will be found to corroborate this opinion. Olotfe Van Kortlandt was a devout trencherman. Every re- past was a kind of religious rite with him ; and his first thouglit on finding him once more on dry ground, was, how he should contrive to celebrate his wonderful escape from Hell- gate and all its horrors by a solemn bancpiet. The stores which had been ])rovided for the voyage by the good house- Avives of Communipaw were nearly exhausted, but, in casting his eyes about, the commodore beheld that the shore abounded THE .SKTTLKMENT OF NKAV Vollk". ZO with oysters. A great store of these was instantly collected ; a tire was made at the foot of a tree; all hands fell to roasting and broiling and stewing and frying, and a siunptuous repast was soon set forth. This is thonght to be the origin of those civic feasts with which, to the present day, all our pnblic affairs are celebrated, and in which the oyster is ever sure to play an inij)ortant part. On the present occasion, the worthy Van Kortlandt was ob- served to be ])articularly zealous in his devotions to the trencher ; for having the cares of the expedition especially coniniittcd to his care, he deemed it incumbent on him to cat profoundly for the public good. In proportion as he filled himself to the very brim with the dainty viands before him, did the heart of this excellent burgher rise up towards his throat, until he seemed crammed and almost choked with good eating and good-nature. And at such times it is, when a man's heart is in his thr(»at, that he may more truly be said to speak from it, and his speeches abound with kindness and good fellowship. Thus having swallowed the last possible morsel, and washed it down with a fervent i)otation, Olotlie felt his heart yearning, and his whole frame in a manner dilating with unl)ounroeek, who declared the meaning to be that it would be a city wherein a little fire would occasion a great smoke, or, in other words, a very vaporing little city ; — both which interpretations have strangely come to pass ! THE SETTLKMKNT OF NEW YORK. 27 The great object of their perilous expedition, therefore, being thus ha|)pily aoconipli.shed, the voyagers returned merrily to Coniniunipaw, — where they were received with great rejoicings. And here, calling a general meeting of all the wise men and the dignitaries of Pavonia, they related the whole history <»f their voyage, and of the dream of Olott'c \"an Kortlandt. And die people lifted u}) their voices and blessed the good 8t. Nich- olas; and from that time forth the sage Van Kortlandt was held in more honor than ever, for his great talent at dreaming, and Mas pronounced a most useful citizen and a right good man — when he was asleep. Y. |T having been solemnly resolved that the seat of em- pire .should be removed from the green shores of Pavonia to the pleasant island of Manna-hata, every- body was anxious to embark under the standard of Olotfe the Dreamer, and to be among the first sharers of the promised huid. A day was appointed for the grand migration, and on tliat day little Communipaw was in a buzz and a bustle like a hive in swarming-time. Houses were turned inside out and stripped of the v^enerablc furniture which had come from Holland ; all the comnuuiity, great and small, black and Avliite, man, woman, and child, was in commotion, forming lines from the houses to the water-side, like lines of ants from an ant-hill ; everybody laden with some article of household furniture ; while busy housewives plied backwards and forwards along the lines, helping everything forward by the nimbleness of their tongues^ By degrees a fleet of boats and canoes were piled up with all kinds of household articles ; ponderous tables ; chests of drawers resplendent with brass ornaments; quaint cornir-cup- boards ; beds and bedsteads ; M'ith any quantity of pots, kettles, frying-pans, and Dutch ovens, Tn each boat embarked a Avhole family, from the robustious burgher down to the cats and dogs and little negroes. In this way they set off across the mouth of the Hudson, under the guidance of Oloffe the Dreamer, who hoisted his standard on the leading boat. This memorable migration took place on the first of ^lay, and was long citepy days of primeval simplicity, which float before our imaginations like golden vis- ions. The fireplaces were of a truly patriarchal magnitude, where the whole family, old and young, master and servant, black and white, nay, even the very cat and dog, enjoyed a community of privilege, and had each a right to a corner. Here the old burgher would sit in perfect silence, puffing his pipe, looking in the fire with half-shut eyes, and thinking of nothing for hours together ; the goede vrouw, on the opposite side, would employ herself diligently in spinning yarn, or knit- ting stockings. The young folks would crowd around the hearth, listening with breathless attention to some old crone of a negro, who was the oracle of the family, and who, perched like a raven in a corner of the chimney, would croak forth for a long winter aflernoon a string of incredible stories about Xew-England witches, — grisly ghosts, horses without heads, — and hair-breadth escapes, and bloody encounters among the Indians. In those happy days a well-regulated family always rose with the dawn, dined at eleven, and went to bed at sunset. Dinner was invariably a private meal, and the fat old burghers showed incontestable signs of disaj)probation and uneasiness at being surprised 1)V a visit from a neighbor on such occasions. But though our worthy ancestors were thus singularly averse 46 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. to iriving: dinners, yet they kept up the social bands of intimacy by occasional l)anquetings, called tea-parties. These fashionable parties were generally confined to the higlier classes, or noblesse, that is to say, such as kept their own cows, and drove their own Avagons. The company com- monly assembled at three o'clock, and went away about six, unless it was in winter-time, when the fashionable hours were a little earlier, that the ladies might get home before dark. The tea-table was crowMied with a huge earthen dish, well stored with slices of fat pork, fried brown, cut up into morsels, and swimming in gravy. The company being seated round the genial board, and each furnished with a fork, evinced their dex- terity in launching at the fattest pieces in this mighty dish, — in much the same manner as sailors harpoon porpoises at sea, or our Indians spear salmon in the lakes. Sometimes the table was graced with immense apple-pies, or saucers full of pre- served peaches and pears ; but it was always sure to boast an enormous dish of balls of sweetened dough, fried in hog's fat, and called doughnuts, or olykoeks, — a delicious kind of cake, at jiresent scarce known in this city, except in genuine Dutch families. Tlic tea was served out of a majestic Delft teapot, orna- mented witli jxaintings of fat little Dutch shepherds and shep- herdesses tending pigs, with boats sailing in the air, and houses built in the clouds, and sundry other ingenious Dutch fantasies. The beaux distinguished tlicniselves by their adroitness in re- plenishing this ])ot from a huge copper teakettle, whicli would have made the pigmy macaronies of these degenerate days sweat merely to look at it. To sweeten the beverage, a lump of sugar was laid beside each cup, and the company alternately nil)l)led and sipped with great decorum, until an improvement THK (JOLDKN HKKiX OF WOl'TER VAX TWILLEH. A7 was iiitrodiicod by a shre^A•(l and economic old lady, which was to .sus})pnd a lar a wagon. The gentlemen gallantly attended their fair ones to their respective abodes, and took leave of them with a hearty smack at the door: which. 48 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. as it was an established piece of etiquette, clone in perfect sim- plicity and honesty of heart, occasioned no scandal at that time, nor should it at the present ; — if our great-grandfathers ap- proyed of the custom, it ^yould argue a great want of deference in their descendants to say a M'ord airainst it. THE REIGN OF WILLIAM THE TESTY. I. rrJTELMUS KIEFT, who in 1634 ascencled the tiul)orniit()rial chair (to borrow a favorite thoii*ih chimsy appc'lhition of modern phraseologi.st.s), was of a h)fty descent, liis fatlier being inspector of windmills in the ancient town of Saardam ; and onr hero, we are told, when a boy, made very cnrions investigations into the nature and operation of these machines, which was one reason why he atlerwards came to be so ingenious a governor. His name, according to the most authentic etymologists, was a cor- ruption of Kyver, that is to say, a irrfnir/icr or scolder, and expressed the characteristic of his family, which, iltr nearly two centuries, hatl kept the windy town of Saardam in hot water, and ])roduced more tartars and brimstones than any ten families in the ])lace ; and so truly did lie inherit this family i)eculiarity, that he had not been a year in the government of the province, before he was imiversally denominated William the Testy. Ilis aj^pear- ance answeral to his name. He was a brisk, wiry, waspish little old gentleman ; such a one as may now and then be seen stumj)- ing about our city in a broad-skirted coat with huge buttons, a cocked hat stuck on the back of his head, and a cane as high as his chin. His face was broad, but his features were sharp ; his 7 a 49 OO KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. cheeks were scorched into a dusky red by two fiery little gray eyes; his nose turned u[), and tlie corners of his mouth turned down, pretty nuich like the nuizzle of an irritable pug-dog. I have heard it observed by a profound adept in human physiology, that if a woman waxes fat with the ]M'ogress of vears, her tenure of life is soniewhat ])recai'ious, but if haply she withers as she grows old, she lives forever. Such ]>romiscd to be the case with William the Testy, who grew tough in proportion as he dried. He had withered, in fact, not through the process of years, but through tlie tropical fervor of his soul, which burnt like a vehement rush-light in his bosom, inciting him to incessant broils and bickerings. Ancient traditions speak much of his learning, and of the gallant inroads he had made into the dead languages, in which he had made captive a host of Greek nouns and Latin verbs, and })rought olf rich booty in ancient saws and apothegms, which he was Mont to j)arade in his public harangues, as a triumphant general of yore his spolia opiiiui. Of metaphysics he knew enough to confound all hearers and himself into the bargain. In logic, he knew the whole fiimily of syllogisms and dilemmas, and was so })roud of his skill that he never suffered even a self-evident fact to pass unargued. It was observed, however, that he seldom got into an argument without getting into a perplexity, and then into a passion with his adversary for not being convinced gratis. He had, moreover, skirmished smartly on the frontiers of several of the sciences, was fond of experimental philosopliy, and prided himselt' upon inventions of all kinds. His abode, which he had fixed at a Bowerie or country-seat at a sliort dis- tance from the city, just at what is now called Dutch Street, soon abounded with proofs of his ingenuity : patent smoke-jacks that re(|uired a horse to work them ; Dutch ovens that roastetl meat THE llEKwN OF WILLIAM THE TESTY. 51 without fire ; carts that went before the horses ; weathercocks that turned against the wind ; and other wrong-headed contri- vances tliat astonished and confounded all beholders, Tiie Ikjusc, too, was beset with pai-aiytic cats and e peddler would ]>enetrate to their household, and nearly ruin the good housewives with tin ware and wooden bowls. Tin-; HKIOX OF WU.MANf TMK TKSTV. o9 It was long before William the Testy could ho persuaded that his much-vaunted war-measure was ineflf'ertual ; on tlie con- trary, he flew in a passion wliencver it was doubted, swearing that, though slow in operating, yet when it once began to work, it would soon purge the land ot" these invaders. Wiicii con- vinced, at length, of the truth, like a shrewd physician he at- tributed the faihu'c to tlie (|nantity, not tiie quaHty of tlie medicine, and resolved to douljk' tlie dose. He fidminater('ssiv(' warning to all militai-y commanders. It was neither carried by storm nor famine ; nor was it undermined ; nor bombarded ; nor set on fire by red-hot shot ; but was taken by a stratagem no less singular than effectual, and which can never fail of success, whenever an (tpportunity occurs of putting it in practice. GO KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. It seems that the Yankees had received intelligence that the garrison of Jacobus Van Curlet had been reduced nearly one- eighth by the death of two of his most corpulent soldiers, who had overeaten themselves on fat salmon caught in the Varsche river. A secret expedition was immediately set on foot to sur- prise the fortress. The crafty enemy, knowing the habits of the garrison to sleep soundly after they had eaten their dinners and smoked their pipes, stole upon them at the noontide of a sultry summer's day, and surprised them in the midst of their slumbers. In an instant the flag of their High Mightinesses was lowered, and the Yankee standard elevated in its stead, being a drial codfish, by way of a spread eagle. A strong garrison was appointed, of long-sided, hard-fisted Yankees, with AVeath- ersfield onions for cockades and feathers. As to Jacobus Yan Curlet and his men, they were seized by the nape of the neck, conducted to the gate, and one by one dismissed with a kick in the crupper, as Charles XII. dismissed the heavy-bottomed Russians at the battle of Narva ; Jacobus Yan Curlet receiving two kicks in consideration of his official dignity. lY. IHE ovcs of all Now Amsterdam wero now tuniod to SCO what would be the end of this direful feud be- tween William the Testy and the ])atroon of llen- .sellaerwiek ;* and some, observing the consultations of the governor with the skijiper and the trumpeter, j)redi('ted warlike measures by sea and land. The wrath of William Kieft, however, though quick to rise, was quick to evaporate. He was a perfect brush-heap in a blaze, sna})ping and crackling for a time, and then ending in smoke. Like many other valiant potentates, his first thoughts were all for Mar, his sober second thoughts for diplomacy. Accordingly, Govert Lockerman was once more despatched u}) the river in the Com])any's yacht, the Goed Hoop, bearing Antony the Trumpeter as ambassador, to treat with the belliger- ent powers of Rensellaerstein. In the fulness of time the yacht arrived before Beam Island, and Antony the Trumpeter, mounting the poop, sounded a parley to the fortress. In a little while the steeple-crownetl hat of Nicholas Koorn, the wacht- meester, rose above the battlements, followed by his iron vis- age, and ultimately his whole person, armed to the very teeth ; while, one by one, a whole row of Helderbergei's reared their round burly heads above the wall, and beside each pnui])kiu- head peered the end of a rusty musket. Nothing dauntetl by * Duriii"; "Woutor V;in Twillcrs administration Kiilian Van Rensellaer came from Holland and founded a colony upon the ujiper regions of the Hudson. He encroached upon the colony of Nieuw Nederhinds, and subse- quently got into hot water with William the Testy. 61 62 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. this formidable array, ^Vntoiiy Van Corlear drew forth and read with audible voiee a missive from William the Testy, protest- ing against the usurpation of Beam Island, and ordering the garrison to quit the premises, bag and baggage, on pain of the vengeance of the potentate of the Manhattoes. In reply, the wacht-raeester applied the thumb of his right hand to the end of his nose, and the thuml) of his left hand to the little finger of the right, and spreading each hand like a fan, made an aerial flourish with his fingers. Antony Van Corlear was sorely perplexed to understand this sign, which seemed to him something mysterious and masonic. Not liking to betray his ignorance, he again read with a loud voice the missive of William the Testy, and again Nicholas Koorn ap- plied the thumb of his right hand to the end of his nose, and the thumb of his left hand to the little finger of the right, and repeated this kind of nasal weathercock. Antony Van Corlear now persuaded himself that this was some short-hand sign or symbol, current in dij)lomacy, which, though unintelligible to a new diplomat, like himself, would speak volumes to the ex- perienced intellect of William the Testy ; considering his em- bassy therefore at an end, he sounded his trumpet with great complacency, and set sail on his return down the river, every now and then j)ractising this mysterious sign of the wacht- meester, to keep it accurately in mind. Arrived at New Amsterdam, he made a faithful report of his embassy to thp governor, accompanied by a manual exhibi- tion of the response of Nicholas Koorn. The governor was equally perplexed with his embassy. He was deeply versed in the mysteries of freemasom-y ; but they threw no light on the matter. He knew every variety of windmill and weathercock, but was not a whit the wiser as to the aerial sign in question. Till". UKKiN OF WILLIAM THE TKSTV. 63 He had even clal)l)led in Egyptian hieroglyphics and tlie mys- tic svnibols of the obelisks, but none furnished a key to the rej)lv of Nicholas Koorn. He called a met^ting of his eouneil. Anton V Van Corlear stood forth in the niidst, and putting the thumb of his right hand to his nose, and the thuml) of his left hand to the finger of the right, lie gave a faithful fac- simile of the portentous sign. Having a nose of unusual di- mensions, it was as if the reply had been put in capitals; but all in vain : the worthy burgomasters were equally perplexed with the governor. Each one put his thumb to the end of his nose, spread his fingers like a fan, imitated the motion of Antony Van Corlear, and then smoked in dubious silence. Several times was Antony obliged to stand forth like a fugle- man and repeat the sign, and each time a circle of nasal weather- cocks might be seen in the council-chamber. Perplexed in the extreme, William the Testy sent for all the soothsayers, and fortune-tellers, and wise men of the Man- hattoes, i)ut none could interpret the mysterious reply of Nich- olas Koorn. The council broke up in sore perplexity. The matter got abroad, and Antony Van Corlear was stopped at every corner to repeat the signal to a knot of anxious news- mongers, each of whom departed with his thumb to his nose and his fingers in the air, to carry the story home to his family. For several days, all business was neglected in New Amsterdam; nothing was talked of but the diplomatic mission of Antony the Trumpeter, — nothing was to be seen but knots of j)()liti(ians with their thumbs to their noses. Tn the mean time the fierce feud between William the Testy and Killian Van Rensclhu-r, which at first had menaced deadly warfare, gi'adually cooled off, like many other war-questions, in the prolonged delays of diplomacy. 64 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. Still to this early affair of Rensellaerstein may be traced the remote origin of those windy wars in modern days which rage in the bowels of the Helderberg, and have wellnigh shaken the great patroonship of the Van Rensellaers to its foundation; for we are told that the bully boys of the Helderberg, who served under Nicholas Koorn the wucht-meester, carried back to their mountains the hieroglyphic sign Avhich had so sorely puzzled Antony Van Corlear and the sages of the Manhattoes ; so that to the present day the thumb to the nose and the fingers in the air is apt to be the reply of the Helderbergers whenever called upon for any long arrears of rent. THE REIGN OF PETER STUYVESANT. I. ETER STUYVESANT was the last, and, like the renowned Wontcr Van Twiller, the best of our ancient Dutch governors, "NVouter having surpassed all who preceded him, and Peter, or Piet, as he was sociably called by the old Dutch burghers, who wvw ever prone to familiarize names, having never been equalled by any suc- cessor. He was in fact the very man fitted by nature to re- trieve the desperate fortunes of her beloved province, had not the fates, those most })otent and unrelenting of all ancient spin- sters, destined them to inextricable confusion. To say merely that he was a hero, would be doing him great injustice : he was in trutli a combination of heroes ; for he was of a sturdy, raw-ljoncd make, like Ajnx Tclamon, with a ])air of roiuid shoulders that Hercules would have given his hide for (meaning ills lion's hide) when he undertook to ease old Atlas of his hcid. He was, moreover, as Plutarch describes Coriolanus, not only terril)lc for the forc(> of his arm, but like- wise of his voice, which sounded as though it came out of a barrel ; and, like the self-same warrior, he possessed a sovereign contempt for the sovereign people, and an iron aspect, wlu'cli was enough of itself to make the very Ijowels of iiis adversaries 9 65 66 KXTCKER BOOKER SKETCHES. quake with terror and dismay. All this martial excellency of appearance was inexpressibly heit»:htened by an accidental ad- vantage, with Avhich I am surprised that neither Homer nor A'irgil have graced any of their heroes. This was nothing less than a wooden leg, which was the only prize he had gained in bravely fighting the battles of his country, l)ut of which he was so proud, that he was often heard to declare he valued it more than all his other limbs put together ; indeed, so highly did he esteem it, that he had it gallantly enchased and relieved with silver devices, which caused it to be related in divers histories and legends that he Avore a silver leg. Like that choleric warrior Achilles, he was somewdiat sub- ject to extempore bursts of passion, which were rather unpleas- ant to his favorites and attendants, whose perceptions he was apt to quicken, after the manner of his illustrious imitator, Peter the Great, by anointing their shoulders with his walking- staff. Though I cannot -find that he had read Plato, or Aristotle, or Hobbes, or Bacon, or Algernon Sydney, or Tom Paine, yet did he sometimes manifest a shrewdness and sagacity in his measures, that one would hardly (■x])ect from a man who did not know Greek, and had never studied the ancients. True it is, and I confess it with sorrow, that he had an unreasonable aversion to experiments, and was fond of governing his prov- ince after the sim])l('st maimer; but tiien he contrived t(» keep it in better order than did the erudite Kieft, though he liad all the ])hilosophers, ancient and jnodern, to assist and per})lcx liinu I nnist likewise own that he made but very few laws; but then, again, he took care that those few were rigidly and im- ])artially enforced ; and I do not know but justice, on the whole, was as well administered as if there had been volumes THE HKKJX OF PETEU sriVVESANT. 07 of sage acts and statutes yearly made, and daily neglected and f(ji'g<)tten. He was, in fact, the very reverse of his ])redecessors, being neither tranquil and inert, like Walter the Doubter, nor restless and fidgeting, like AVilliani the Testy, — but a man, or rather a governor, of such nnt'onuuon activity and decisidii of mind, that he never sought nor accepted the advice of others, — depending bravely upon his ;?ingle head, as would a hero of yore upon his single arm, to carry him through all difficulties and dangers. To tell the simple truth, he wanted nothing more to complete him as a statesman than to think always right; for no one can say but that he always acted as he thought. He was never a man to flinch when he found himself in a scra})e, but to dash forward through thick and thin, trusting, by hook or by crook, to make all things straight in the end. In a word, he pos- sessed, in an eminent degree, that great quality in a statesman, called perseverance by the polite, but nicknamed obstinacy by the vulgar, — a wonderful salve for official blunders, since he who perseveres in error without flinching gets the credit of boldness and consistency, while he who wavers in seeking to do what is right gets stigmatized as a trimmer. This much is certain ; aiitl it is a maxim well worthy the attention of all legislators, great anil small, who stand shaking in the wind, irresolute which way to steer, that a nder who follows his own will pleases himself, while he who seeks to satisfy the wishes and whims of others runs great risk of pleasing nobody. There is nothing, too, liki' jMitting down one's foot resolutely when in doubt, and letting things take their course. The clock that stands still points right twice in the four-and-twcnty hoiu's, while others may keep going continually and be contimi;illy going wrong. 68 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. Xor tlid this magnanimous quality escape the discernment of the good people of Nieuw Nederlands ; on the contrary, so much were they struck with the independent will and vigor- ous resolution displayed on all occasions by their new gov- ernor, that they universally called him Hard-Koppig Piet, or Peter the Headstrong, — a great compliment to the strength of his understanding. This most excellent governor commenced his administration on the 29th of May, 1647, — a remarkably stormy day, distin- guished in all the almanacs of the time which have come down to us by the name of Windi/ Friday. As he was very jealous of his personal and official dignity, he was inaugurated into office with great ceremony, — the goodly oaken chair of the re- nowned Wouter Van Twiller being carefully j^reserved for such occasions, in like manner as the chair and stone were reveren- tially preserved at Schone, in Scotland, for the coronation of the Caledonian monarchs. II. IXD now the great Peter,* Iiaviiiiji; no iinincdiatc hos- tility to apprehend from the cast, turned his face, with characteristic vigilance, to his southern frontiers. Tlie attentive reader will recollect that certain free- booting Swedes had become very troublesome in this quarter in the latter part of the reign of William the Testy, setting at naught the proclamations of that veritable potentate, and putting his admiral, the intrejiid Jan Jansen Alpendam, to a perfect nonplus. To check the incursions of these Swedes, Peter Stuy- vesant now ordered a force to that frontier, giving the command of it to General Jacobus Van Poffenburgh, an officer who had risen to great importance during the reign of Wilhelmus Kieft. He had, if histories speak true, been second in command to the doughty Van Curlet, when he and his warriors were in- humanly kicketl out of Fort Goed Hoop by the Yankees. In that memorable affair Van Poffenburg-h is said to have received more kicks in a certain honorable part than any of his com- rades, in consequence of which, on the resignation of Van Curlet, he had been promoted to his place, being considered a hero who had seen service, and suffered in his country's cause. It is tropically observed by honest old Socrates, that heaven infuses into some men at their birth a portion of intellectual gold, into others of intellectual silver, while others are intel- lectually furnished with iron and brass. Of the last class was General Van Poffenburgh ; and it would seem as if dame Xa- * Shortly after bocominij ijovcrnor, Peter was threatened with a Yankee invasion, which was averted by the defection of Massachusetts. — Ed. 69 70 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. turo, who will sometimes be partial, had given him brass enough for a dozen ordinary braziers. All this he had contrived to pass off upon AVilliam the Testy for genuine gold ; and the little governor would sit for hours and listen to his gunpow- der stories of exploits, which left those of Tirante the White, Don Belianis of Greece, or St. George and the Dragon quite in the background. Having been promoted by William Kieft to the command of his whole disposable forces, he gave im- portance to his station by the grandiloquence of his bulletins, alwavs stvlino; himself Commander-in-chief of the Armies of the New Netherlands, though, in sober truth, these armies were nothing more than a handful of hen-stealing, bottle-bruising ragamuffins. In person he was not very tall, but exceedingly round ; neither did his bulk i)roceed from his being fat, but windy, being blown up by a prodigious conviction of his own impor- tance, until he resembled one of those bags of wind given l)y ^olus, in an incredible fit of generosity, to that vagabond war- rior Ulysses. His windy endowments had long excited the admiration of Antony Van Corlcar, who is said to have hinted more than once to William the Testy, that in making Van Poffenburgh a general he had spoiled an admirable trumpeter. To this copper captain, therefore, w'as confided the coinmand of the troops destined to i^rotect the southern frontier; and scarce had he departed fi)r his station than bulletins began to arrive from him, describing his undaunted march through sav- age deserts, over insurmountable mountains, across impassable I'ivers, and through impenetrable forests, conquering vast tracts of uniniiabited country, and encountering more perils than did Xenophon in his far-famed retreat with his ten thousand Gre- cians. THE REIGN OF PETER STUYVKSANT. 71 Peter Stuyvesant read all these gramlilcxjuent despatches with a dubious scre\viu<^ of the mouth and shaking of the head ; but Antony Van Corlear repeated their contents in the streets and market-places with an appropriate flourish upon his trumpet, and the windy victories of the general resounded through the streets of New Amsterdam. On arriving at the southern frontier, Van Poffenburgh proceeded to erect a fortress, or strongh(^ld, on the South or Delaware river. At first he bethought him to call it Fort Stuyvesant, in honor of the governor, — a lowly kind of hom- age prevalent in our country among speeulatoi-s, military com- manders, and office-seekers of all kinds, by which our maps come to be studded with the names of political patrons and temporary greiit men ; in the present instance. Van Poffenburgh carried his homage to the most lowly degree, giving his fortress the name of Fort Casimir, in honor, it is said, of a favorite pair of brimstone trunk-breeches of his Excellency. His fortress being finished, it would have done any man's heart good to behold the swelling dignity with which the gen- eral would stride in and out a dozen times a day, surveying it in front and in rear, on this side and on that ; how he would strut backwards and forwards, in full regimentals, on the top of the ramparts, — like a vainglorious cock-pigeon, swelling and vaporing on the top of a dove-cot. There is a kind of valorous sj)leen which, like wind, is apt to grow unruly in the stomachs of newly-made soldiers, com- pelling them to box-lobby brawls and l)roken-licadc(l (piMrrels, unless there can be found some more harndess way to give it vent. It is recorded in the delectable romance of Pierce Forest, that a young knight, being dubbed by King Alexander, did in- continently gallop into an adjacent forest and belabor the trees 72 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. with .siioli might and main, that he not merely eased off the sudden eifervescence of his vah)r, but convinced the whole court that he was the most potent and courageous cavalier on the face of the earth. In like manner the commander of Fort Casimir, when he found his martial spirit waxing too hot within him, would sally forth into the fields and lay about him most lustily with his sabre, — decapitating cabbages by pla- toons, hewing down lofty sunflowers, which he termed gigantic Swedes, and if, perchance, he espied a colony of big-bellied pnn'ipkins quietly basking in the sun, — " Ah ! caitiff Yankees !" would he roar, ''have I caught ye at last?" — So saying, with one sweep of his sword he w^ould cleave the unhappy vegeta- bles from their chins to their waistbands ; by which warlike havoc his choler being in some sort allayed, he would return into the fortress with the full conviction that he was a very miracle of military prowess. ITT. OW luul the Dutc'lnncn siintclicd a hw^v rcjKist,* and iiiuling theniselv'cs wonderfully ('iic()iira;j:;od and ani- mated thereby, prcj)ared to take the field. Expee- tation, says the writer of the Stuyvesaiit maiiuseript, — Expcetation now stood on stilts. The; world forgot to turn round, or rather stood still, that it might witness the affray, — like a round-bellied alderman, watching the combat of two cliiv- alrons flies upon his jerkin. The eyes of all mankind, as usual in such cases, were turned upon Fort Christina. The sun, like a little man in a crowd at a pupj)et-sh()w, scampered about the heavens, popping his head here and there, and endeavoring to get a peep between the unmannerly clouds that ()l)truhants br(»ke through the ranks of their own army. The little Hoppers were borne down in the surge; the sacred banner emblazoned with the gigantic oyster of Communipaw was trampled in the dirt ; on blundered and tlunidered the heavy-sterned fugitives, the Swedes pressing on their rear and applying their icct il parte poste of the Van Arsdales and the Van Bummels with a vigor that ])rodigiously accelerated their movements ; nor did the renowned ^Michael Paw himself iail to receive divers grievous and dishonorable visitations of shoe-leather. But what, O INIuse ! was the rage of Peter Stuyvesant, when from at"ar he saw his army giving way! In the ti'ansp(n-ts of his wrath he sent forth a roar, ent)ugh to shake the very hills. The men of the Manhattoes plucked up new courage at the sound, or, rather, they rallied at the voice of tiieir loader, of whom they stood more in awe than of all the Swedes in 11 82 KXICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. Christendom. Without waiting for their aid, the daring Peter dashed, sword in hand, into the thickest of the foe, Tlien might be seen aoiiievements wortiiy of the days of the giants. Wherever he went, the enemy shrank before him ; the Swedes fled to right and left, or were driven, like dogs, into their own ditch ; but as he pushed forward singly with headlong courage, the foe closed behind and hung upon his rear. One aimed a blow full at his heart ; but the protecting power which watches over the great and good turned aside the hostile blade and directed it to a side-pocket, where reposed an enormous iron tobacco-box, endowed, like the shield of Achilles, with super- natural powers, doubtless from bearing the portrait of the blessed St. Nicholas. Peter Stuyvesant turned like an angry bear upon the foe, and seizing him, as he fled, by an immeasurable queue, "Ah, whoreson caterpillar," roared he, "here's what shall make worms' meat of thee !" So saying, he Avhirled his sword, and dealt a blow that would have decapitated the varlet, but that the l>itying^ steel struck short and shaved the queue forever from his crown. At tliis moment an anpiebusier levelled his piece from a neighboring mound, with deadly aim ; but the watchful Minerva, who had just stopped to tie up her garter, seeing the ])eril of her fiivorite hero, sent old Boreas witli his bellows, \vh(», as the match descended to the pan, gave a blast that blew tlie priming from the touch-iiole. Thus waged the fight, when the stout Risingh, surveying the field from the top of a little ravelin, perceived his troops banged, beaten, and kicked by the invincible Peter. Drawing his falchion and utt(M'ing a thousand anathemas, he strode down to the scene of combat with some such thundering strides as Jupiter is said by Hesiod to have taken M'hen lie strode down the spheres to hurl his thunderbolts at the Titans. THE REICX OF PETER STUYVESAXT. 85 Wlu'ii the rival licroes came face to face, eaeli made a pro- (liujious start in the style of a veteran 8tage-('hamj)ion. Then did tliev regard each other for a moment uith the hitter asi)e('t of two furious ram-cats on the point of a chijiperchnving. Then did tiiey throw themselves into one attitude, (hen into another, striking their swords on the ground, first on the i-ight side, tluMi on the left; at last at it they went, with iniTedihle ferocity. Words cannot tell the prodigies of strength and valor displayed in this direful encounter, — an encounter compared to which the far-famed battles of Ajax with Hector, of ^Eneas with Turnus, Orlando with Rodomont, Guy of Warwick with Colbrand the Dane, or of that renowned Welsh knight. Sir Owen of the Mountains, with the giant Guylon, were all gentle sports and holiday recreations. At length the valiant Peter, watching his opjiortunity, aimed a blow, enough to cleave his adversary to the very chine; but Risingh, nimbly raising his sword, warded it off so narrowly, that, glancing on one side, it shaved away a huge canteen in which he carried his liquor, — thence pursuing its trenchant course, it severed off a deep coat- pocket, stored with bread and cheese, — which provant rolling among the armies, occasioned a fearfid scrambling between thi' Swedes and Dutchmen, and made the general battle to wax more furious than ever. p]nraged to see his military stores laid waste, the stout Ri- singh, collecting all his forces, aimed a mighty blow full at the hero's crest. In vain did his tierce little cocked hat oppose its course. The biting steel clove through the stubborn i-ani beaver, and would have cracked the crown of any one not entlowed with supernatural hardness of head; but the brittle weapon shivered in pieces on the skull of Hardkojipig Piet, shedding a thousand sparks, like beams of glory, round his griz/.ly visage. 86 KNICKERBOCKER SKETCHES. The good Potcr reeled with the blow, and turning iij) his eyes beheld a thousand suns, besides moons and stars, daueing about the firmament ; at length, missing his footing, by reason of his wooden leg, down he came on his seat of honor with a crash which shook the surrounding hills, and might have wrecked his frame, had he not been received into a cushion softer than velvet, which Providence, or Minerva, or St. Nicho- las, or some cow, had benevolently prepared for his receptioji. The furious Risingh, in despite of the maxim, cherished by all true knights, that " fair play is a jewel," hastened to take advantage of the hero's fall ; but, as he stooped to give a fatal blow, Peter Stuyvesant dealt him a thwack over the sconce with his wooden leg, which set a chime of bells ringing triple bob- n)ajors in his cerebellum. The bewildered Swede staggered with the blow, and the wary Peter seizing a pocket-pistol, which lay hard by, discharged it full at the head of the reeling Risingh. Let not my reader mistake ; it was not a murderous weaptm loaded with ])owdcr and l)all, l)ut a little sturdy stone j)<)ttle charged to the muzzle with a double dram of true Dutch cour- age, which the knowing Antony Van Corlear carried about him by way of replenishing his valor, and which had dropped from his wallet during his furious encounter with the druiiuuer. The hideous weapon sang through the air, and true to its course as was the fragment of a rock discharged at Hector by bully Ajax, en- countered the head of the gigantic Swede %vith matchless violence. This heaven-directed blow decided the battle. The jionder- ous ])ericranium of General Jan Risingh sank uj)on his bi'cast ; his knees tottered under him ; a death-like torpor seized upon his frame, and he tumbled to the earth with such violence, that old Pluto started witli affright, lest he should have broken tiirough the roof of his infernal palace. THE IM:I(;N ok PHTKR STrVVKSANT. 87 His fall was the .signal of tlefeat and victory : the Swedes gave way, the Dutch pressed forward ; the fjniier took to their heels, the latter lujtly pursued. Some entered with them, j)ell- inell, through the sally-port; others stormed the bastion, and others .scrambled over the curtain. Thus in a little while the fortress of Fort ChrLstina, which, like another Troy, had stood a siege of full ten hours, was carried by assault, without the loss of a single man on either side. Victory, in the likeness of a gigantic ox-fly, sat perched upon the cocked hat of the gallant Stuyvesant ; and it was declared, l)y all the writers whom he hired to write the history of his expedition, that on this memorable day he gained a suflicient (piantity of glorv to immortalize a dozen of the greate-st heroes in Christendom ! ^^. :X "» ' i ;vv| \ i:\i.r'-