Yale University Library 39002002220748 YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY ORIGINAL NARRATIVES OF EARLY AMERICAN HISTORY reproduced under the auspices of the american historical association General Editor, J. FRANKLIN JAMESON, Ph.D., LL.D. DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN THE CARNEGIE INSTITUTION OF WASHINGTON NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA WEST NEW JERSEY AND DELAWARE 1630 — 1707 ORIGINAL NARRATIVES OF EARLY AMERICAN HISTORY NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA WEST NEW JERSEY AND DELAWARE 1630—1707 EDITED BY ALBERT COOK MYERS WITH MAPS AND A FACSIMILE CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS NEW YORK 1912 COPYRIGHT, 191a, BY CHARLES SCRTBNER'S SONS Published February, 1912 c I d NOTE The first of the illustrations in this volume is a facsimile of a por tion of an excellent map entitled " Novi Belgii Novseque Anglise nec- non Pennsylvania? et Partis Virginise Tabula," by N. J. Visscher, a prominent Dutch map-engraver of the middle of the seventeenth century. The whole map embraces, as the title implies, all those parts of New England, the Middle States, and Maryland which at that time had been settled by white men or had become known, more or less accurately, through their explorations. The whole map measures twenty-two by nineteen inches. The part which has been selected for reproduction in this volume covers the regions especially involved in the narratives printed therein. The map is chosen as representing the state of things at the time when Swedish occupation of the Delaware River region gave way to Dutch. Its date cannot be later than June 28, 1656, since a copy of it accom panied a report of that date from the directors of the Dutch West India Company to the States General of the United Netherlands. On the other hand it can hardly have been finished before February, 1655, since in that month the directors of the West India Company authorized the publication of the first edition of Adriaen van der Donck's Beschrijvinge van Niew Nederlant, which has no map, while the second edition, published in 1656, has a map copied partly from Visscher's. I am informed by Mr. Wilberforce Eames of the New York Public Library, to whom I am indebted for much infor mation respecting the map, that, though the map was formerly re puted exceedingly rare, there are probably now in this country a dozen or twenty copies of it in this form. Twenty-eight years later Visscher's son published a reissue of the map from a plate retouched with the addition of Philadelphia and other places and names be longing to subsequent history. The second illustration in the volume is a reproduction of Thomas Holme's " Portraiture of the City of Philadelphia." Thomas Holme vi NOTE (1624-1695), a captain in Cromwell's army, and afterward a Quaker living in Ireland,1 was in April, 1682, appointed by Penn surveyor- general of Pennsylvania, and sailed immediately for that province. As one of the three "Commissioners for Settling the Colony," he laid out the city of Philadelphia in the autumn of that year. He also drew up this map or plan of the city, which was printed in Lon don in 1683 as part of the Letter to the Committee of the Free Society of Traders. It will be seen (page 224) that the title of the pamphlet refers to it, in the words, "with a Portraiture or Plat-form thereof [i. e., of Philadelphia], wherein the Purchasers Lots are distinguished by certain numbers inserted, directing to a Catalogue of the said Purchasors Names." The catalogue is not reproduced in this vol ume, but the explanation of the city's plan will be found in its place, near the map. The original map measures 11J x 17J inches; our reproduction is reduced about two-fifths in each dimension. The plan here presented did not in all details remain permanently in effect. From the Delaware River to Eleventh Street, indeed — counting the Delaware water-front, or Front Street, as the first — it is substantially the plan of the corresponding area of the present city. But as early as 1684, all the streets west of the eleventh were moved eastward, and the street marked Broad Street on the " Por traiture," and still so called, became the fourteenth instead of the twelfth; while the street next east of the Schuylkill water-front re mained, and still remains, Twenty-Second Street. J. P. J. lA fuller account of his life may be seen on p. 242, note 1; a letter from him on p. 292. CONTENTS NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA, WEST NEW JERSEY, AND DELAWARE Edited by Albert Cook Myers PAGH From the "Korte Historiael ende Jotjhnaels Aentetckeninge," by David Pietersz. de Vries, 1630-1633, 1644 (1655) ... 1 Introduction 3 De Vries becomes a Patroon of New Netherland .... 7 The Patroons send the Swanendael Colony to South Bay ... 8 De Vries's Voyage to America, 1632 9 In the West Indies 10 Arrives in South Bay 15 Indian Story of Ill-fated Swanendael 16 Peace with the Indians there; Whaling 17 De Vries sails up South River for Corn 18 Sees Deserted Fort Nassau 18 Beaver Trading with the River Indians 19 Return to Swanendael for more Goods 21 Sails up the River a Second Time 21 Meets the Inland Minquas Indians at Fort Nassau .... 23 Report of Minquas Victories over River Indians 24 Description of the River and Bay 25 Sails for Virginia 26 De Vries's Second Voyage to South Bay, 1644 26 Sails up the River a Third Time; Swedish Fort Nya Elfsborg . . 27 Fort Nya Goteborg; Hospitality of Governor Printz .... 28 Sails to Virginia ... 29 Relation or Captain Thomas Yong, 1634 31 Introduction 33 Yong's Quest for Northwest Passage; to Delaware River ... 37 Defeated River Indians in Hiding from Minquas .... 38 The Minquas come aboard with Presents of Green Corn ... 39 They promise Beaver Trade 40 Yong takes Possession of the Country for the English .... 41 vii viii CONTENTS PAGE Makes Peace with the River Indians 40 Promises them Aid against the Minquas 41 Trades with the River Indians for Beaver 43 Arrives within Nine Miles of the Falls of Delaware .... 44 Asserts his English Claim against the Dutch from Manhattan . . 44 His Lieutenant explores the New Jersey Coast 46 The Indians describe the Sources of the Delaware .... 47 Description of the River; Animals and Plants 47 The Dutch appear a Second Time 49 From the "Account of the Swedish Churches in New Sweden," by Reverend Israel Acbelius, 1759 51 Introduction 53 The Dutch in North America 57 William Usselinx's Proposition for a Swedish Trading Company . 58 Confirmed by King Gustavus Adolphus 58 Peter Minuit's Renewal of the Project; Support from Oxenstiema . 59 Minuit brings Swedish Colony to the Delaware 60 The First Swedish Settlement at Fort Christina, 1638 .... 61 The Dutch Protest against the Swedish Colony 62 Peter Hollender Ridder, the Second Governor of New Sweden . . 64 Johan Printz, Third Governor of New Sweden, arrives, 1643 . . 65 Further Protests of the Dutch 66 They build Fort Casimir, 1651 67 Its Rival Swedish Fort Nya Elfsborg 67 Other Swedish Forts and Settlements 68 Relations of the Swedes with the Indians 69 Their Land Dealings with the Indians 72 Indian Customs 73 Governor Printz's High Hand with the Dutch 74 Dutch and Swedes eject New Englanders from the Delaware . . 76 Weakness of the Dutch on the Delaware 77 Finances of the Swedish Colony 78 Governor Printz leaves the Colony 78 Early Swedish Ministers) Madam Papegoya and Tinicum ... 80 ArFiDAvrT of Four Men from the " Key of Calmab," 1638 . . 83 Introduction 85 The Four Men 86 Their Arrival with Minuit in the Minquas Kill 87 How Five Indian Sachems ceded Land to the Swedes ... 87 The Country called New Sweden; Fort Christina built ... 88 Report of Governor Johan Printz, 1644 91 Introduction 93 Goods for the Indian Trade 95 Cargo of Beaver Skins and Tobacco sent to Sweden .... 96 The Virginia Tobacco Trade 97 CONTENTS ix PAGE State of the People of New Sweden 98 The Colony's Crops 99 Description of the Settlements 99 Relations with the Dutch and Puritans 100 Misadventures of Sir Edward Plowden in Virginia . . . .101 Depredations of the Indians in Manhattan, Virginia, and Maryland . 102 Distrust of River Indians; Uncertain Peace with them . . . 103 Beaver Trade with the Minquas, not with River Indians . . . 104 Boat Building 105 Printz desires Assistant for Latin Correspondence with Neighboring Governments 106 Desires Instructions as to Free and Criminal Settlers .... 106 Desires Provision for Entertainment of Guests of Consequence . . 107 Cattle brought from Manhattan 107 Desires Recall 108 Suggests Swedish Privateering on the Spanish Main .... 110 List of the Inhabitants of New Sweden 110 Register of Deaths 115 Report of Governor Johan Printz, 1647 117 Introduction 119 Returns Cargo of Tobacco 120 Improvements; Possibilities of Country 120 The People; Fort Nya Goteborg burnt; Church built there . . 121 First Grist Mill; Journey to Minquas Land, 230 Miles . . . 122 Dutch Obstruction of the Indian Trade 123 Cattle; Barge built; Needs of the Colony 124 Indians at Peace 125 Renewal of Previous Recommendations 126 Another Appeal for Recall 128 Johan Papegoya sent Home to report 129 Report of Governor Johan Rising, 1654 131 Introduction 133 Colony recovering from Mutiny and Illness; Provisions needed . . 136 Desires full Judicial Authority; Colonists' Complaint -of Ex-Governor Printz 137 Great Advantages of the River; Andreas Hudde's Map of it . . 138 Commercial Possibilities; Plans for Fostering Agriculture . . . 139 Advocates Trading Passage from Elk River to Christina Kill . . 140 Mill Sites in Christina Kill; Advises Occupation of Hoere Kill . . 140 Suggests other Industries, and a Supply of Artisans .... 141 Town Lots surveyed at Christina; Trinity's Twenty Houses . . 142 Trade Conditions; Cargo needed for Minquas 143 Sloop in New England for Supplies 145 Excise Duties 146 Military Affairs 146 Full Records of Colony's Property kept 147 x CONTENTS PAGE Land Titles; need for Closer Supervision 148 Population, 370 Souk . . 149 Church Affairs 150 Report of Governor Johan Rising, 1655 ..... 153 Introduction 155 Hopes for Relief; Necessitous Conditions; Threatening Lenape . . 156 Maryland ruining Minquas Trade . 157 Menaces of Dutch and English 158 Elk River Land purchased from Minquas 159 Abortive Industrial Plans; Long Delays will be Fatal ... 160 Shipping and Commercial Possibilities 161 Supplies of Last Year from New Haven 162 Cleared Land doubled and planted with Corn 163 House-building at Christina; Forts there and at Trinity strengthened . 164 Relation of the Surrender of New Sweden, by Governor Johan Clason Rising, 1655 167 Introduction 169 Governor Stuyvesant with Dutch Fleet descends upon New Sweden . 170 Recaptures Fort Casimir 171 Siege of Fort Christina 173 Pillage of the Swedish Settlements 174 Surrender of Fort Christina and New Sweden 176 The Epistle of Penn, Lawrie and Lucas, respecting West Jersey, 1676 177 Introduction 179 Description of West Jersey disclaimed and corrected .... 182 Land Title of West Jersey; Penn, Lawrie, and Lucas, Trustees . 183 Quakers receive First Offer of Lands 184 Settlers cautioned not to make heedless Removals .... 185 The Present State of the Colony of West-Jersey, 1681 . . 187 Introduction 189 Flourishing Towns and Farms; Abundant and Varied Products . 191 Industries and Trades; Soil and Climate 192 Laws made by Proprietors and Freemen; Religious Freedom . . 192 Method of Land Sales; Information for Emigrants .... 193 Some Account of the Province of Pennsylvania, by William Penn, 1681 197 Introduction 199 Colonies of the Ancients 202 Benefits from Colonies 203 True Causes for Decrease of Population 204 Colonies a Market for the Mother Country 206 Pennsylvania and its Advantages 207 The Constitutions; Conditions as to Purchasers, Renters, Servants . 208 CONTENTS xi PAGE Desirable Kinds of Colonists 209 Equipment; the Voyage; First Work 210 Abstract of Penn 's Charter for Pennsylvania 211 Penn desires Settlers not to come inconsiderately . . . .215 Letter from William Penn to the Committee op the Free Society of Traders, 1683 217 Introduction 219 Description of the Province of Pennsylvania 225 Animals and Plants 228 The Indians 230 The Dutch and Swedes 237 Topography, Population, Government 238 Philadelphia; Situation and Improvements 239 The Free Society of Traders 240 A Short Advertisement of the City of Philadelphia .... 242 Letter of Thomas Paschall, 1683 245 Introduction 247 Healthful Country 250 Extent and Character of Settlements 251 The Swedes and Finns; Products and Prices 252 Plants and Animals; Indians 253 Markets; the Land 254 A Further Account of the Province op Pennsylvania, by William Penn, 1685 255 Introduction 257 Progress of the Province; Extent and Variety of Population . . 1 259 Philadelphia and its Improvements 260 Country Settlements; Townships 263 Products of the Earth; Soil, Crops, Fruits, the Vine .... 264 Products of the Water; Whales, Varieties of Fish .... 265 Prices, Grain Crops, Stock, Dairying, Brewing 266 Robert Turner's Letter, 1685 268 Orchards, Crops, Fruits 268 Philadelphia's Advancement; First Brick House, 1684; Other Building Operations 269 Whaling and Fisheries 272 Germantown's Linen Manufactures 272 Prospective Staples of Trade 273 How Adventurers may best invest 273 Indians; the Government; the Voyage 276 Letters of Doctor Nicholas More, and Others, 1686 . . . 279 Introduction 281 Pennsylvania's Rich Crops and Provisions; Prices; Exports . . 285 Vineyards; Wine 287 xii CONTENTS PAGE Letters of James Harrison and Penn's Gardener; Perm's Flourishing Plantation 289 Of Robert Turner; Crops, Prices, Building . ... 290 Of David Lloyd; Ships and Passengers arriving; Penn's Vineyard 291 Of Thomas Holme; Purchase of Indian Lands . . . 292 Of James Claypoole; Whale Fishery 292 A Short Description of Pennsilvania, by Richard Frame, 1692 . 295 Introduction 297 Wild and Domestic Animals 300 Crops; Plants; Fruits 301 Metals; Timber 302 Inhabitants; Indians 302 Felling the Primitive Forest; Houses 303 Towns and Townships; Germantown and its Linen and Paper . . 304 An Historical and Geographical Account of Pensilvania and of West-New-Jersey, by Gabriel Thomas, 1698 . . . 307 Introduction 309 Dedication to William Penn 313 Preface 314 Pennsylvania; Bounds; Indians; Dutch, Swedes, Finns . . . 315 English Conquest; Penn's Grant 316 Philadelphia; Houses, Streets, Fairs, Markets; Other Towns . .317 Climate; Agriculture; Streams; Metals; Coal 318 Fowl, Fish, Wild Animals, Fruits, Herbs 321 Counties; Varieties of Grain, Harvests, Stock, Bees .... 323 Land; Exports and Imports 324 Cheap Lands for Sale in City and Country 325 Artisans and Tradesmen; High Wages 326 Little need for Lawyers and Physicians 328 Cheap Food and Clothing; Causes for High Wages .... 328 Philadelphia; Wharves, Shipping, Stairs; Germantown Manufactures 329 Country-seats of the Gentry 332 Gardens; No Old Maids; Thomas's First Arrival .... 332 The Indians; Their Language exemplified 333 Religions; George Keith and his Schism 334 An Historical Description of the Province and Country of West-New- Jersey, 1698 338 The Epistle 338 Preface to the Reader 339 West New Jersey; Bounds; Indians; an Indian Dialogue . . 340 The Dutch; First English Settlements; Salem 344 Burlington; Market, Wharves, Houses; Country-seats . . . 345 Gloucester 347 Religions; Climate; Products, Vegetable and Animal . . . 347 Timber; Rivers 349 CONTENTS xiii PAGE Thomas's Purpose in Writing 351 Special Commodities of the Counties 351 CmcrrMSTANTiAL Geographical Description op Pennsylvania, by Francis Daniel Pastorius, 1700 353 Introduction 355 To the Gentle Reader 360 Preface; Pastorius's Autobiography; Divisions of the Globe . . 361 The Fourth Division, America; Columbus, Vespucius . . . 365 Pennsylvania; the Swedes; William Penn and his Grant . . . 368 Penn's Charter 371 His Method and Terms for the Sale of Land 374 Pastorius buys Land for the German Company 375 His Report to the Company 375 Penn's Laws and Province 377 His First Arrival 379 Rising Towns; Germantown; Pastorius's Settlement .... 380 Indian Trade; Currency 382 Exports; the Vine; Weaving 383 Indians 383 Religions 387 The German Company; Pastorius's Voyage to Pennsylvania, 1683 . 388 Pastorius's "Positive Information from . . . Pennsylvania," 1684 392 His Voyage in Detail; Crefelders 392 Meets William Penn; Penn's Character .... 396 The Land ; Poor Farming of the Swedes ; Immigration ; Products 397 Towns; Frankford; Germantown 399 Earlier German Inhabitants; the Indians; the German Com pany's Lands 400 Pastorius's Philadelphia House and its Inscription . . 404 The Company's Germantown Tract; Its Needs in the Province 406 Penn's Popularity; Indian Withdrawal Inland; Caution . 409 Pastorius's Letter on Leaving the Old World, 1683 . . . .411 His Letter to Doctor Jacob Schutz of Frankfort, 1685 . . .412 To his Father, 1691 413 Becomes First Mayor and Judge and draws up Laws of Germantown . 414 Further News from Germantown, 1693; Penn's Loss of Pennsylvania 416 Pastorius's Plea in Verse for Political Harmony 418 The Indians 419 Pastorius's Marriage 421 His Latin Verse to Tobias Schumberg 422 His Letter of 1694; Quietism; Answers about the Indians . . . 424 Letter from Germantown, 1695; Restoration of William Penn . . 427 Letter from Germantown, 1697; Hope for French Peace . . . 429 Surviving Members of the German Company 430 Letter of Pastorius's Children to their Grandfather in Germany, 1697 . 431 Pastorius to his Father, 1697; French Seizure of Letters . . . 432 xiv CONTENTS PAGE To the Rector at Windsheim, Germany; Indians; Indian Dialogue . 433 To his Father, 1698; Penn's Government; Special Germantown Government 435 Occupations of the Germantown People 436 Indian Government 437 Religious Worship in Germantown; Pastorius's Religious Views . . 438 History and Present Status of the German Company .... 440 William Penn's Accessibility 442 Latin Letter of Pastorius's Father to William Penn, 1698 . . .443 Penn's Response in Latin, 1699 444 Still Further Information from Pennsylvania, 1699 .... 445 Another Letter from Pastorius's Children to their Grandfather, 1699 . 447 Letter of John Jones, 1725 449 Introduction 451 Migration of Thomas John Evans, Welshman, to Pennsylvania, 1681 . 455 He finds a Temporary Home with the Swedes 456 Arrival of Edward Jones and Other Welsh, 1682 . . . .456 Evans's Settlement in Radnor, the Welsh Tract 458 Index 461 MAPS AND FACSIMILE REPRODUCTION PAGE Part of N. J. Visscher's Map of New Netherland, New England, and Part of Virginia, about 1655. From a copy in the New York Public. Library 170 Thomas Holme's "Portraiture of the City of Philadelphia," 1683. From a copy of Penn's "Letter to the Committee of the Free Society of Traders" in the New York Public Library 242 Title-Page of Pastorius's "Umstandige Geographische Beschrei- bung," 1700. From an original in the New York Public Library . 360 FROM THE "KORTE HISTORIAEL ENDE JOUR- NAELS AENTEYCKENINGE," BY DAVID PIETERSZ. DE VRIES, 1630-1633, 1643 (1655) INTRODUCTION The scene of action of the collection of narratives assem bled in this volume is Delaware Bay and River, that broad waterway which lies central to what is not only the domain of three great commonwealths but in a deeply significant his torical sense the keystone region of the American Nation. Of the twenty pieces selected, covering a period of three- quarters of a century, this first narrative, as well as the succeeding one by Captain Yong, brings clearly to view the low-lying forest shores of the great estuary in its primitive simplicity of the red man's day, untouched as yet, save for two abandoned sites, by the oncoming, all-transforming com plexities of the white man's civilization. Explorers, traders, and adventurers, in the main under the auspices of the enter prising Dutch, had made more or less brief visits to the ter ritory, and the Dutch laid claim to it as a part of New Netherland. An economic incentive, the lure of the enriching beaver trade with the Minquas Indians of the Susquehanna and Allegheny River valleys, a traffic which was readily tapped from the Delaware, was the prime cause, in general, for this earlier interest, and, later, for settlement prior to the Dutch conquest. Very soon the expanding Swedish and English nations were to seek locations on the river and at intervals to come into effective competition with the Dutch for this profitable trade. The following extracts are translated from a quaint little Dutch book, a small black-letter quarto of [8+] 192 pages, published at Alkmaar, Holland, in 1655. It bears this some what lengthy title, so characteristic of books of that age: 3 4 NAERATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA Korte Histariael, ende Joumaels Aenteyckeninge van verscheyden Voyagiens in de vier deelen des Wereldts-Ronde, als Euro-pa, Africa, Asia, ende Amerika gedaen, Door D. David Pietersz. de Vries, Artillerij-Meester vande Ed: M: Heeren Gecommitteerde Raden van Staten van West-Vrieslandt ende 't Noordenquartier. Waer in verhaelt werd wat Batailjes hy te Water gedaen heeft: Yder Landtschap zijn Gedierte, Gevogelt, wat soorte van Vissen, ende wat wilde Menschen naer 't leven geconterfaeyt, ende van de Bosschen ende Ravieren met haer Vruchten. t' Hoorn. Voor David Pietersz. de Vries, Artillerij-Meester van 't Noorder- quartier. Tot Alckmaer, by Symon Cornelisz. Brekegeest, Anno 1655. This title, as turned into English by the general editor in his sketch of the work and its author, in Narratives of New Netherland (1909), pages 183-185, reads: "Short Historical and Journal-Notes of various Voyages performed in the Four Quarters of the Globe, viz., Europe, Africa, Asia, and America, by David Pieterszoon de Vries, Artillery-Master to the Noble and Mighty Lords the Council of West Friesland and the North ern Quarter [of the Province of Holland], wherein is set forth what Battles he delivered on the Water, Each Country, its Animals, its Birds, its Kinds of Fishes, and its Wild Men counterfeited to the Life, and its Woods and Rivers with their Products." The illustrations, which seem to be etchings on copper, comprise an interesting portrait of the author and eighteen other plates, twelve of which depict American scenes but are for the most part appropriated from the earlier work of Champlain. David Pieterszoon de Vries, the author, wrote these reminiscences of a quarter of a century of world voyaging, in the leisurely retirement of later years in his ancestral city of Hoom, in North Holland. He was born in 1593 in Rochelle on the west coast of France, whither his father went from INTRODUCTION 5 Hoorn, after the murder of William of Orange in 1584. His mother was of Amsterdam origin. When he was four years old his parents returned to Holland, and there De Vries chiefly lived, apparently in Hoorn, although he states that he was experienced in merchandising from his youth both in Holland and in France. He refers to partners in Amsterdam and Rochelle as concerned with him in his mercantile voyages. A religious man of strong Calvinistic convictions, be writes in a plain but vivid style and his book both internally and ex ternally has well stood the tests of trustworthiness. His part in the voyages, although sometimes as commander, was usually as a supercargo. He was a bold and skilful seaman, and a considerable portion of the work is given to navigating and sailing directions. The six voyages which De Vries describes began in 1618 — when he was a young man of twenty-five — with a voyage for grain to the Mediterranean, in which he took part in a suc cessful engagement with some Turkish galleys off the coast of Greece. In his second voyage, 1620-1623, he went to New foundland and carried a cargo of fish to the Mediterranean, where he won a notable fight against privateers off the Spanish coast and accepted a brief service under the Duke of Guise, admiral of France. From 1627 to 1630 he was occupied with his third voyage to the East Indies, of which he gives a long account. The fourth, fifth, and sixth voyages were made to the New World. The first and last of these American voyages include accounts of two visits to the Delaware, both of which are here presented. The first of these extracts covers the first part of the fourth voyage, from the formation of the patroon- ship in 1630 to the departure of De Vries from the Delaware, March 6, 1633. The remainder of the voyage, the part omit ted from our text, relates to Virginia and Manhattan and the return to Holland in midsummer of the same year. The 6 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA fifth voyage, 1634-1636, was taken up with the planting of a colony in Guiana and with trading trips to Manhattan and Virginia. In the sixth voyage, 1638-1644, De Vries was chiefly employed in vain attempts to establish settlements on Staten Island and at Tappaan (Vriesendael).1 Then he sailed again to the Delaware and from October 12 to 20, 1643, made a briefer visit to the river, as recounted in the second of the extracts of our text. After wintering in Virginia he arrived in Holland in June, 1644. Having now passed his fiftieth year, he withdrew from the adventurous life of the sea. Nothing seems to be known of him after the publication of his book. All the parts of De Vries's book relating to Newfoundland, New Netherland, and Virginia, as translated and edited by Henry C. Murphy, were published in 1853 by James Lenox, and in 1857 by the New York Historical Society in its Collec tions, second series, III. 1-129. The extracts concerning the Delaware, as here given, are taken from the Collections, pp. 15-32, 121-123, and carefully revised from the original Dutch text, pp. 94-107, 183-185, by Mr. A. J. F. van Laer, archivist of the state of New York. A. C. M. * For this period and the preceding visit to Manhattan, see Narrative* of New Netherland, in this series, pp. 186-234. FROM THE "KORTE HISTORIAEL ENDE JOUR- NAELS AENTEYCKENINGE," BY DAVID PIETERSZ. DE VRIES, 1630-1633, 1643 (1655) After I had been at home from the Indies two months, I met, at Amsterdam, Samuel Godyn, a merchant, who bade me welcome, as an old acquaintance, and asked me where I came from? I said from the East Indies. In what capacity? I told him as supercargo. He inquired whether it was my intention to remain at home. I said, yes. But he asked me if I wished to go as a commander to New Netherland; they wanted to plant a colony there, and would employ me as sub- patroon, according to the privileges [approved] by the Lords States [General], and granted by the [Council of] Nineteen of the West India Company to all patroons. I gave him for answer that the business suited me well, but I must be a patroon, equal with the rest. He said that he was content that it should be so. So we five first took steps to establish this patroonship; namely, Samuel Godyn, Gilliame van Rens selaer, Bloemaert, Jan de Laet, and myself, David Pietersz. de Vries. But more were afterwards admitted into the com pany; namely, Mathys van Ceulen, Nicolas van Sittorigh,1 Harinck Koeck,3 and Heyndrick Hamel, and we made a con tract with one another, whereby we were all placed on the same footing. We then equipped a ship3 with a yacht for the 1 Given as Nicolaes van Sitterich in list of Directors of the Amsterdam Chamber of the West India Company, in de Laet, Historie ofte Iaerlijck Verhael. ' Johan van Harinck-houck in the same list. * The ship De Waliris, of about 150 lasts, commanded by Captain Peter Heyes, with a cargo of bricks, provisions, a large stock of cattle and twenty-eight colonists, arrived in the Delaware in the spring of 1631. They made a settlement on the bank of the Hoorn (or Hoere) Kill, calling it Swanendael. "They engaged in whaling and farming and made suitable fortifications, so that in July of the same year their cows calved and their lands were seeded and covered with a fine crop." Five additional colonists joined the colony, probably from New Amster dam, making the total number thirty-three. They built a brick house inside the palisades. Van Rensselaer Bowier Manuscripts, p. 240; Amandus Johnson, The Swedish Settlements on the Delaware, pp., 170-171. 7 8 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1630 purpose of prosecuting the voyage, as well to carry on the whale fishery in that region, as to plant a colony for the culti vation of all sorts of grain, for which the country is very well adapted, and of tobacco. This ship with the yacht sailed from the Texel1 the 12th of December, with a number of people and a considerable number of animals, to settle our colony upon the South River, which lies in the thirty-eighth and a half degree, and to conduct the whale fishery there. As Godyn had been informed that many whales kept before the bay, and the oil was worth sixty guilders a hogshead, they thought that they might realize a good profit thereon and at the same time cultivate that fine country. The 20th of the same month, we understood that our yacht was taken by the Dunkirkers the day after it ran out of the Texel, through the carelessness of the large ship, which had lagged behind the yacht, in which there was a large cargo, intended for exploration of the coast of New France. The large ship proceeded on the voyage, having on board some people to land at the island of Tortugas in the West Indies, which island we had made a contract with sixty Frenchmen to hold for us as a colony under their High Mightinesses the Lords States [General] and the West India Company. Anno 1631. In September our ship returned from New Netherland and the West Indies. It was said to have dis embarked a number of people on Tortugas, but [to have] found that the French had been killed by the Spaniards, and further [to have conveyed] the rest to the South River2 in New Netherland, and [it] brought a sample of oil from a dead whale found on the shore. [The captain] said that he arrived there too late in the year. This was a losing voyage to us; because this captain, Peter Heyes, of Edam, whom we had put in command, durst not sail by the way of the West Indies with only one ship of eighteen guns, where he must have made good the expense of this voyage. He was a person who was only accustomed to sail to Greenland, where they make the voyage in three or four months, and then come home. 1 The Texel, the island at the mouth of the Zuyder Zee in Holland. 2 This was the colony at Swanendael, present Lewes, Delaware, thus brought there in 1631 by the ship De Walvis, and shortly after destroyed by the Indians as hereafter recounted by De Vries. 1632] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 9 Anno 1632. The 12th of February we again entered into an agreement to equip a ship and yacht for the whale fishery, to which many objections were raised because we had had such a losing voyage, and no returns from the whale fishery, and saw no prospect of any. But Samuel Godyn encouraged us to make another attempt. He said the Greenland Com pany had two bad voyages with Willem van Muyen, and after wards became a thrifty company. It was therefore again re solved to undertake a voyage for the whale fishery, and that I myself should go as patroon, and as commander of the ship and yacht, and should endeavor to be there in December, in order to conduct the whale fishing during the winter, as the whales come in the winter and remain till March. Before sailing out of the Texel, we understood that our little fort1 had been destroyed by the Indians, the people killed — two and thirty men — who were outside the fort working the land. The 24th May, sailed out of the Texel with the ship and yacht, with a northeast wind. The 26th of the same month, at night, we ran aground through the carelessness of the mates, to whom I gave par ticular directions, before I went to bed, to throw the lead fre quently, and keep the freighter, which was a large ship, and drew full three feet more water than we did, upon our lee; but they not following their orders, we grounded upon the Bree-Banck2 before Dunkirk. We fired a shot, so that our companion came to anchor. My yacht came under my lee, but could not stand it there on account of the surf. I then made our crew lower the boat and also two Biscayan shallops3 and they fled the ship. But I would not leave, and kept both of the mates by me, who dared not leave me for shame, seeing that I remained aboard. Eight or nine plain sailors remained also and I then learned to know the crew well. Those men who had appeared fierce as lions, were the first to escape in the boat. Bumping and tossing along, we got into four fathoms water, where I let the anchor fall, and set to pump- 1 At Swanendael. 3 Bree-Banck, one of the largest shoals before Dunkirk, in France, about four miles from the coast. 3 Convenient rowboats used by Basque fishermen. 10 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1632 ing and got the ship dry. At the same time, the day broke, when we saw our boat and the two sloops tossing about; but when they saw the ship once more afloat they came on board again, and told us that had the night continued two hours longer, they would have headed for the lighthouse and rowed into Dunkirk. We weighed anchor again and sailed for the coast of England, and, on the 28th, ran into Portsmouth, and hauled the ship into the king's dock, where we repaired her. The 10th of July, we sailed from Portsmouth to Cowes in the Isle of Wight. The 12th of the same month, the ship New Netherland, of the West India Company, arrived here — a large ship, which was built in New Netherland, and which was bound for the West Indies, whither I had good company. The 1st of August, with a good northeast wind, weighed anchor, and made sail with my ship and yacht, in company of the ship New Netherland. The 2d, passed Land's End, and laid our course for the Canary Islands. The 13th, we saw Madeira on our larboard, and a Turk came towards us, but as soon as he observed that we were stout ships, he hauled off from us, and we sailed for him. The evening growing dark, I fired a shot for my yacht to come by me. When night came on, we pursued our course, but the New Netherland followed the Turk by night, which seemed to us folly, because we had not got near him by day. We then separated from the New Netherland. The 14th, towards evening, we saw the Isle of Palms on our lee, and set our course from thence to Barbados. The 4th of September, we came in sight of Barbados, and the next day, the 5th, towards evening, arrived at the Island of St. Vincent. The Indians put out with their canoes and came on board of us. I observed the great astonishment of this people. Their canoes or boats getting full of water, they sprang overboard, and with great dexterity lifted up both ends with their shoulders in the water, emptied out the water, and then clambered in again; many of our people, in such cir cumstances, would have drowned, if their boat got full of water, and they had no other aid than their bodies and the sea. While here, we had fifteen good [supplies of] refreshments, 1632] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 11 bananas, pine-apples, and various Indian fruits. We anchored in the Great Channel in 23 fathoms. On the 5th, arrived here also the ship New Netherland, which was separated from us at Madeira. On the 8th, we weighed anchor, and passed by the islands of Martinique, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Montserrat, Redonde, and Nevis, arrived the 20th1 before St. Christopher, where we found some English ships, and obtained a supply of water. The 11th, weighed anchor, in order to sail to St. Martin. Half-way between St. Martin and St. Christopher, we met a French ship with a large sloop in company, which veered con siderably towards us, as if he sought to commit some hostility towards us, but I kept my course and spoke him not. I let the prince's flag' fly aloft, and the red flag behind. When he saw this, he hauled off and passed at a good distance on my lee. Towards evening, we arrived at the roadstead of St. Mar tin and let our anchor fall. We found before the fort three flutes3 under Dirck Femmesz. of Hoorn, two from Water- land,4 and the third an Englishman. The 11th of September, as I lay before the fort with my yacht, the above-named master of the flutes came on board, and inquired if I had not met a French ship. I said, "Yes, sir." And whether he had not attacked me? I said, "No." Had we been a small ship, he perhaps would have done so : for he [Femmesz.] said that he [the Frenchman] had sworn to pay off the first Hollander whom he should meet, because they had shot and killed two of his men from the flute, which was not creditable to them. He told me that this French ship had come into the harbor some days ago, and that the captain was a Knight of Malta, and the vessel a royal yacht of the King of France, in search of Spaniards. When he was taken ashore by the commander of the fort, he inquired whether there was any one who could speak French. The captain of the soldiers understanding French, he requested that the captain might 1 Evidently a misprint for the 10th. * The flag of Prince Frederick Henry of Orange-Nassau, stadtholder of the Dutch republic. ' A fluit (flute) is a three-master of about 600 to 700 ton's burden. ' Waterland, a district in the province of North Holland, between Amsterdam and Monnickendam. 12 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1632 go with him to interpret what should be said. So the cap tain went from the fort with this knight in his skiff to the flutes. Having reached them, the Knight desired that they should sell him a barrel of tar, for money and kind words, as they had enough and he had long sailed in the West Indies; but they gave him a rude answer — that they did not wish to have him in their ships — if the captain of the fort wished to come on board their ships he might, but he must depart with the boat. The Knight stood perplexed at such an answer, when he had met them with every courtesy. At length he said to the captain, his interpreter, that they would return to the fort, [as] he wished to make his complaints to the commander-in-chief. Coming to the commander, he ex hibited his royal commission, and inquired of the commander whether he had not as much right to go in the roadstead where these flutes were, as they? — that they were friends; — that all the ports and harbors in France were open to us. The commander said, "Yes." Then the Frenchman weighed anchor, and wished to come to anchor by them in order to ca reen his ship a little, as the water was shallow there. When they saw the Frenchman had weighed his anchor, they hauled one behind the other, and began to fire upon him, and shot two of his men; when the Frenchman again let his anchor fall, went to the fort and complained of the hostilities which these brutes had committed against him, and desired that the commander, with his officers, should take note thereof; and made his protest. But he was lost on his return voyage, with his ship, people and all, which has caused great comfort to these shipmasters, as he would otherwise have made sport enough for them; but the quarrel was thereby terminated. This we learned afterwards. The 12th of September, I had room made in the ship [to take in salt], in case the whale fishery in New Netherland should fail, as salt brought a good price in the Fatherland. This day the ship New Netherland arrived here, which I had left lying at St. Vincent to refresh. With her arrived the ship Gelderia, which belonged also to the Company, and also two flutes from Hoorn; of one of these, Comelis Jansz. Niels was master; the other flute was the Falcon, and the master was named Gerrit Jansz. 1632] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 13 The 27th of this month, we had our cargo of salt, as much as we wanted, and made ourselves again ready to sail to Nevis, to take in wood and water, because they were both better there than at St. Christopher, and there is also a fine sandy bay for the boats to land. The captains of the flutes, who had committed the hostilities against the Frenchman, inquired of me whether they might sail with me to Nevis, in order to pro vide themselves with wood and water, so as to sail directly for Holland, as they were afraid of the Frenchman, who had called out to them that he wished to meet them when they went to take in water; and they did not mount more than six or eight guns. I gave them for answer, that I was willing that they should sail with me, because they were our citizens, but that I could not prevent any hostility of the Frenchman happening to them, since my ship was no more defensible than theirs. If they wished, however, to sail with me, they could. The 29th, weighed anchor with my yacht to get under sail, but they remained. By evening I arrived before the island of Nevis. I went ashore to the governor, an Englishman, named Luttelton.1 He requested me to take aboard some captive Portuguese, and to put them, on my way to St. Christopher, on board an English ship called Captain Stoon's;2 which I could not refuse him, if I had them only three or four hours in the ship. Maerten Thysz.,3 from Zeeland, had put these Portuguese ashore here. The 1st of November, took my leave of the governor of Nevis, and weighed anchor. At noon, came to the great road stead where the English are. There was a governor, named Sir Warnar.* Here I immediately got rid of the Portuguese 1 Littleton. * Captain John Stone (d. 1634), who figures also in the narratives of William Bradford, of Plymouth, and John Winthrop, of Boston, was an Englishman living for a time on the island of St Christopher in the West Indies and later in Virginia, whence he engaged with his vessel in the intercolonial trade. He was not over-scrupulous in his conduct and dealings; for instance, he made the Dutch Governor Van Twiller drunk in order to secure consent to seize a Plymouth bark laden with furs. His murder by the Indians on his own ship in the Connecticut River was one of the immediate causes of the Pequot war in New England. * Probably Admiral Maarten Thijssen, who later became famous in Swedish naval service under the name of Martin Thijson Anckarhjelm. 4 Sir Thomas Warner (d. 1649), the English governor of the island of St. Christopher, appointed to that office in 1627 and knighted in 1629. 14 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1632 prisoners, gave them over to the Englishman, who wished to sail in company with me to St. Martin. The 2d, weighed anchor, with my yacht and the English man, of London, who had the Portuguese prisoners, whom he was to carry to Porto Rico. He left his barge behind, to follow him with some goods to St. Martin. We arrived in the evening at the anchorage before St. Martin, where we found the whole fleet there still which we had left there. I asked the captains of the flutes why they had not followed me when I weighed anchor. They answered that they thanked me for the offer which I had made them, but they had determined to remain by each other, and expected that they would be ready together, and the Gelderland would go with them. The 4th, the Englishman, expecting his boat from St. Chris topher, knew not what it meant that it staid so long, as it should have followed us at noon. This Englishman wished much to sail with me to the latitude of Porto Rico, which I must pass. The 5th of this month, took my leave at the fort of our governor and the captains, and weighed anchor with my yacht also; having a fair sail set, I could not wait longer for the Englishman's boat. We understood afterwards that this boat was placed in great distress; that it was driven to the leeward by a strong wind, and being in want of provisions and water, the men cast lots whom they should first kill for the others to eat for food; having at length felled one, they fed themselves therewith, till they finally reached the island of Saba, where they subsisted on what they found there, and were afterwards recovered in great distress, but he who was eaten up for their subsistence was gone. The 14th, in the thirty-second degree of latitude, the Ber mudas to the east of us, encountered a severe storm from the northwest, and it was sheer luck that we managed to take in our sails; all around the waters swirled as if it were an hurri cane; it blew so, that standing beside each other we could not understand each other. I feared when I saw the yacht, that it would finally capsize, so dreadful was it to see so small a yacht, of ten lasts, save itself from such a storm. This storm continued until the 18th, but towards the last the wind veered entirely west. 1632] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 15 The 1st of December, threw the lead, in the thirty-ninth degree of latitude, in fifty-seven fathoms, sandy bottom; found out afterwards that we were then fourteen or fifteen leagues1 from the shore. This is a flat coast. Wind westerly. The 2d, threw the lead in fourteen fathoms, sandy bottom, and smelt the land, which gave a sweet perfume, as the wind came from the northwest, which blew off land, and caused these sweet odors. This comes from the Indians setting fire, at this time of year, to the woods and thickets, in order to hunt; and the land is full of sweet-smelling herbs, as sassafras, which has a sweet smell. When the wind blows out of the northwest, and the smoke is driven to sea, it happens that the land is smelt before it is seen. The land can be seen when in from thirteen to fourteen fathoms. Sand-hills are seen from the thirty-fourth to the fortieth degree, and the hills rise up full of pine-trees, which would serve as masts for ships. The 3d of the same month, saw the mouth of the South2 Bay, or South River, and anchored on sandy ground at ten fathoms; because it blew hard from the northwest, which is from the shore, and as we could not, in consequence of the hard wind, sail in the bay, we remained at anchor. The 5th, the wind southwest, we weighed anchor, and sailed into the South Bay, and in the afternoon lay, with our yacht, in four fathoms water, and saw immediately a whale near the ship. Thought this would be royal work — the whales so numerous — and the land so fine for cultivation. The 6th, we went with the boat into the river,3 well armed, in order to see if we could speak with any Indians, but coming by our house,* which was destroyed, found it well beset with palisades in place of breastworks, but it was almost burnt up. Found lying here and there the skulls and bones of our people whom they had killed, and the heads of the horses and cows which they had brought with them, but perceived no Indians and, without having accomplished anything, returned on board, 1 "Fourteen or fifteen [Dutch] miles," or English leagues; forty-two or forty-five English miles, the Dutch mile being equal to three English miles. * Called Delaware Bay by the English. * The Hoorn or Hoere Kill, the present Lewes Creek, in Delaware. * At Swanendael, now Lewes, Delaware. 16 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1632 and let the gunner fire a shot in order to see if we could find any trace of them the next day. The 7th, in the morning, we thought we saw some smoke near our destroyed house; we landed opposite the house, on the other side of the river, where there is a beach with some dunes. Coming to the beach, looked across the river towards the house where we had been the day before, and where we thought in the morning we had seen signs of smoke, but saw nothing. I had a cousin of mine with me from Rotterdam, named Heyndrick de Liefde, and as a flock of gulls was flying over our heads, I told him to shoot at it, as he had a fowling- piece with him, and he shot one on the wing, and brought it down. With it came a shout from two or three Indians, who were lying in the brush on the other side of the river by the destroyed house. We called to them to come over to us. They answered that we must come into the river with our boat. We promised to do so in the morning, as the water was then low, and that we would then talk with them, and we went back to the ship. Going aboard, we resolved to sail in the river with the yacht, as otherwise in an open boat we might be in danger of their arrows. The 8th of December, we sailed into the river before our destroyed house, well on our guard. The Indians came to the edge of the shore, near the yacht, but dared not come in. At length, one ventured to come aboard the yacht, whom we presented with a cloth dress, and told him we desired to make peace. Then immediately more came running aboard, ex pecting to obtain a dress also, whom we presented with some trinkets, and told the one to whom we had given the cloth garment, that we had given it to him because he had most confidence in us — that he was the first one who came in the yacht, and should they come the next day with their chief called Sakimas, we would then make a firm peace, which they call rancontyn marenit. An Indian remained on board of the yacht at night, whom we asked why they had slain our people, and how it happened. He then showed us the place where our people had set up a column, to which was fastened a piece of tin, whereon the arms of Holland1 were painted. One 1 HoUandtsche-Thuyn, literally, Holland yard, or enclosure, referring to the emblem of the Seven United Provinces, which shows the Dutch lion defending 1632] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 17 of their chiefs took this off for the purpose of making tobacco- pipes, not knowing that he was doing amiss. Those in com mand at the house made such an ado about it, that the Ind ians, not knowing how it was, went away and slew the chief who had done it, and brought a token of the dead to the house to those in command, who told them that they wished they had not done it, that they should have brought him to them, as they wished to have forbidden him to do the like again. They then went away, and the friends of the mur dered chief incited their friends— as they are a people like the Italians, who are very revengeful — to set about the work of vengeance. Observing our people out of the house, each one at his work, that there was not more than one inside, who was lying sick, and a large mastiff, who was chained — had he been loose they would not have dared to approach the house — and the man who had command, standing near the house, three of the bravest Indians, who were to do the deed, bringing a lot of beaver-skins with them to exchange, asked to enter the house. The man in charge went in with them to make the barter; which being done, he went down from the loft where the stores lay, and in descending the stairs, one of the Indians seized an axe, and cleft the head of our agent who was in charge so that he fell down dead. They also relieved the sick man of life; and shot into the dog, who was chained fast, and whom they most feared, twenty-five arrows before they could despatch him. They then proceeded towards the rest of the men, who were at their work, and going among them with pretensions of friendship, struck them down.1 Thus was our young colony destroyed, causing us serious loss. The 9th, the Indians came to us with their chiefs, and sitting in a ring, made peace. Gave them some presents of duffels,2 bullets, hatchets, and various Nuremberg trinkets. They promised to make a present to us, as they had been out a-hunting. They then departed again with great joy of us, that we had not remembered what they had done to us, which Dutch territory, represented by a lion rampant inside a stockade, the lion holding in his right paw a sword and in his left paw a bundle of seven arrows, with the motto: Eendracht maakt Macht (In Unity is Strength). 1 The colonists were all killed save one Theunis Willemsen. 3 A kind of coarse cloth. 18 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1633 we suffered to pass, because we saw no chance of revenging it, as they dwelt in no fixed place. We began to make prepara tions to send our sloops to sea, and to set up a kettle for whale-oil, and to erect a lodging-hut of boards. Anno 1633. The 1st of January, at about eight o'clock in the morning, I sailed with the yacht, the Squirrel, up the South River, to see whether I could obtain any beans from the Indians, as our stock-fish was consumed, and the porridge, now doubled, began to grow short. Towards evening we stopped, as it was calm, and the ice, which the tide brought down, opposed us, and we cast anchor in eight fathoms. Saw a whale at the mouth of the South River. The 2d, in the morning, fine and pleasant, saw two large whales near the yacht. Wished much that we could have had the shallops, with the harpooners, which were lying at Swan endael. We weighed anchor with the tide, and by evening came a good mile before Reed Island,1 where we cast anchor, and saw fires on the land. Supposed that they were made by Indians out a-hunting; but an hour afterwards a canoe came alongside. They said that they were a-hunting, but would not come aboard, from which we drew unfavorable conclu sions; but they answered they would come aboard early in the morning. The 4th, after we had chopped some wood, as it began to freeze, weighed anchor with the tide, made sail, and entered about a cannon-shot past Red Hook,2 where we anchored before a kill, because it began to freeze; so that in case the ice should stop us, we could haul in there to secure the yacht. The 5th, we weighed anchor in the morning, and sailed before the little fort named Fort Nassau,3 where formerly some families of the West India Company had dwelt. Some Indians had begun to gather there and wished to barter furs, 1 Evidently the present Reedy Island. 2 Red Hook, near Mantes, now Mantua Creek, New Jersey. "Mantaes hoeck . . . about a long half league below the destroyed " Fort Nassau (Andreas Hudde, in 1662). 9 Fort Nassau, built by the Dutch in 1623 and occupied by them at intervals until the building of Fort Casimir, 1651, was on the Delaware River near the south side of the mouth of the present Big Timber Creek, Gloucester County, New Jersey. 1633] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 19 but I desired to trade for their Turkish beans,1 because we had no goods to exchange for peltries, and our stores had been given away at Swanendael for the purpose of making the peace, so that there were not more than two pieces of cloth left of our goods, and two kettles, for which we wanted com. As far as we could observe, the Indians were very scrupulous.2 They told us that we ought to haul into the Timmer Kill.8 There was a squaw of the Sankitans,4who cautioned us not to go entirely into the kill, as she knew that they intended to make an attack upon us. When we told her that if she would relate to us everything in regard to the attack, we would give her a cloth garment, as we did, she confessed to us that in Count Ernest's River5 they had seized a shallop with Eng lishmen and killed the Englishmen. The 6th, we weighed anchor, and came before the Timmer Kill, where we made everything ready, to see what the Indians would do. While lying there, a crowd of Indians came march ing up, bringing beaver-skins with them, and boarding the yacht forty-two or forty-three strong. A portion of them began to play tunes with reeds, in order that they might not cause in us any suspicion, but we kept ourselves strictly upon our guard, as there were only seven of us in the yacht, and there were forty-two or forty-three of the Indians. When we found the traffic at its height, we ordered them to go ashore immediately, or we would shoot them all. Their sachem took an armful of beaver-skins which he wanted to present to us in order to tempt us, but we desired them not, and gave him for answer that they must make their way to the shore, as we knew that they had evil designs in their heads, that Manetoe (that is, the Devil, whom they call Manetoe) had told us so. They went ashore again, and their villainy was frustrated, God be praised and thanked! If one is a little on his guard against this people, there is, with God's help, no difficulty with the Indians. But, as far as I can observe, those that are in the Company's sloops give the Indians too much liberty, and so accidents occur which otherwise, with friendship, might 1 Indian com. J Shy. ' The present Big Timber Creek, in Gloucester County, New Jersey. ' Or Sankikans. Delaware Indians, living at the falls at Trenton, and above. 8 Not identified. 20 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1633 be prevented. These Indians were from Red Hook, otherwise called Mantes, and had a number of English jackets x on, which gave me more cause of suspicion, as those were not clothing for them, or trading goods. When they were all on land again, there soon came three or four others, who desired that we would trade for their goods; but we answered them that we did not want any beaver-skins, but wished corn for food. The 7th, the chief, whom they call sackima, of the Arme- wanninge, another but neighboring nation, came to us. His name was Zee Pentor, and to him we interpreted our advent ure. He said he had heard that they had been on board of our boat strong. He requested us to return soon to the Timmer Kill with the yacht, whereat I was suspicious. I told my in terpreter to ask him why he was not willing to bring the corn here. He answered that where we were lying, it was too muddy and low to get on board, and it was too cold to go through the mud. So we said to him that we would go to the fort again, where it was hard and dry to come aboard, with which he was well content, and was again conveyed to the shore, saying that when we arrived at the fort, he would come aboard again. The 8th, weighed anchor early in the morning, and came to again before the fort, which we saw was full of Indians, and .more and more constantly coming. This gave us no favorable impression, because of the great numbers of the Indians. When they had all assembled in the fort, a canoe — which is a boat hollowed out of a tree — came at last from the fort to board us, in which were nine chiefs, sachems from nine different places. I saw among them the one who had intended to de stroy us; he had thrown off the English clothes, and put on those made of skins, of which I immediately warned my inter preter. The nine seated themselves in a circle and called us to them, saying they saw that we were afraid of them, but that they came to make a lasting peace with us, whereupon they made us a present of ten beaver-skins, which one of them gave us, with a ceremony with each skin, saying in whose name he presented it; that it was for a perpetual peace with us, and that we must banish all evil thoughts from us, for they had 1 Kaesjacken, probably intended for " cassocks." 1633] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 21 now thrown away all evil. I wanted to make presents to them through the interpreter, to each one an axe, adze, and pair of knives, but they refused them, declaring that they had not made us presents in order to receive others in return, but for the purpose of a firm peace, which we took for truth. The 8th of January, we wished to give them something for their wives, but they said we must give it to them on shore. As it was late, they went ashore again, and said they would come the next day with corn, and they sent aboard that evening seven or eight youth, which showed a good peace with them. The 9th, they came aboard again in the morning, and brought Indian corn of different colors, for which we ex changed duffels, kettles, and axes. We also obtained some beaver-skins, all in good feeling. There came that day about fifty of them into the yacht, but we kept ourselves constantly on our guard. The 10th, in the morning, traded for some beaver and corn; and in the afternoon drifted off with the ebb tide, and in the evening went aground on the shoal near Jaques Island,1 where we remained one tide. The 11th, weighed anchor in the morning, and by evenmg arrived about a league and a half above Minqua's Kill,2 where we anchored, and saw a whale there that evening, which spouted six or seven times. We were surprised to see a whale seven or eight leagues up into fresh water. The 12th, weighed anchor again, and arrived at the mouth of the river; in the evening we came to anchor where the thicket is. The 13th, weighed anchor with the ebb, and at noon came to the ship at Swanendael, where our men were rejoiced to see us. We found that they had shot two whales, but they fur nished little oil. The 18th, the goods were placed in our yacht, and we sailed again up the South River. By evening arrived between Minqua's Kill and Reed Island, where we came to anchor. It 1 Jaques or Jacob's (James's) Island, as given on Lindstrom's map of 1655, was probably Chester Island. 2 Minquas Kill, now Christina Creek, which flows into Delaware River at Wilmington, Delaware. 22 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1633 \ began to freeze. We anchored here because the tide was running down. The 19th, weighed anchor with the tide, and came within a league of Jaques Island. As it began to freeze, and it was difficult to go on, it became necessary to haul into a kill which was near us. Found it a fine creek, where the water was two fathoms deep at high tide; but the current was strong, and [the creek] not above thirty feet wide. The ice began to trouble us some by the rubbing of the current. We quickly cut a number of trees, and fastened them in the ground, before and behind, in order to lie clear of the ice. This is a fine country, in which many vines grow wild, so that we gave it the name of Wyngaert's Kill.1 Went out daily, while here, to shoot. Shot many wild turkeys, weighing from thirty to thirty-six pounds. Their great size and very fine flavor are surprising. We were frozen up in this kill from the 19th to the 3rd of February. During this time, perceived no Indians, though we saw here and there, at times, great fires on the land, but we saw neither men nor canoes, because the river was closed by the ice. The 3d of February, we hauled out of the kill, as the river was open again, and sailed to Fort Nassau, where we had left the Indians before, but found no one there now, and saw no Indians. It began to freeze again, and we hauled into a kill over against the fort, as we were apprehensive, if we should be frozen in there, we might be in danger. When we had lain in this kill eight days to avoid the ice flow, there came a canoe, in which sat an old Indian with a squaw, who brought with them some maize and beans, of which we bought a quan tity. We could not understand from the Indian how it was that we saw no Indians. It seemed as if he were unwilling to tell us; he always looked frightened as if he were fleeing, ran frequently ashore, looked to and fro, so that we could perceive there must be something. They hauled the next day out of the kill, and passed between the cakes of ice and the shore, which we could not do with our yacht. The 11th, full fifty Indians came over the river from the 1 Wyngaert's Kill, if Jaques Island is correctly identified as Chester Island, was evidently Chester Creek, within one Dutch or three English miles of Jaques Island. 1633] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 23 fort upon the ice, with pieces of canoes, directly to our yacht, into which they could step from the shore, and spoke to us. They were Minquas,1 who dwell north of the English of Vir ginia [colony]. They came on a warlike expedition, and six hundred more were to come. They are friendly to us, but it would not do to trust them too far, as they do anything for plun der. I determined, as the flood-tide began to make, that we must haul into the mouth of the kill, so that they could not come upon us on foot and master us, which would never do. Hauling out of the kill about five-and-twenty paces, we could not get any further, because there was not water enough. I told the master of the yacht that he must direct the crew to throw some ballast overboard, but he could not induce them to do it. I then went to them, and asked them whether they would rather trust to the mercy of these barbarians, or throw away the ballast. They answered that while we were in the river, our lives were at the mercy of the ice. I replied that God, who had so long aided us, would help us. Finally, I said that I had three flasks of brandy in my locker, and would give them one of them, if they would throw the ballast over board, and we would all help to do it. When the yacht got afloat, we were driven by the current and with the ice and the ebb tide, which was almost spent, a thousand paces below the kill, between two high pieces of ice, which had fallen on the shore; this happened at nightfall. They all raised a great shout, when they saw that we were driven nearer to the river. In the morning, at daybreak, they saw that we were lying between the two pieces of ice, with the bowsprit over the shore, and came running to the yacht. We stood, eight of us, on our arms. The 12th, we kept them off, as they sought to come into the yacht by the bowsprit, while we were lying, bow on land, between the two pieces of ice. At length the water rose, so that the yacht and the ice floated, and we were to be driven at God's mercy with the ice, which was our great enemy, while the land was our enemy on account of the Indians. We were finally driven up the river, where there was a dry sand-bar 1 The regular habitat of these Indians was about the heads of Chesapeake Bay in Maryland, and in the lower part of the Susquehanna River Valley and beyond to Lake Erie. See post, pp. 70, 103. 24 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1633 running almost to the middle of the river. We were afraid we should be driven upon it by the ice, when God provided two canoes to float by us, which we immediately hauled be fore the bow, one on each side, and broke the ice with them. Then setting the foresail, as there was a good wind, in order to sail up the river with the tide, we passed, by the aid of God, the Vogel-Sant,1 which was our great peril at this place, and arrived at the beautiful island when the tide began to run, and we managed to get to the shore, with the side to the shore lengthwise with the bow. At last, the water began to fall rapidly, and we found that there was a sand-bank along the shore. We immediately set about making the mast fast to [some] good stout trees on land, by means of a rope, and to protect ourselves against arrows. The next day, the 13th, three Indians of the Armewamen came before the yacht. They told us that they were fugitives — that the Minquas had killed some of their people, and they had escaped. They had been plundered of all their corn, their houses had been burnt, and they had escaped in great want, compelled to be content with what they could find in the woods, and came to spy out in what way the Minquas had gone away — the main body of their people lying about five or six hours' journey distant, with their wives and children. They told us also, that the Minquas had killed about ninety men of the Sankiekans; that they would come to us the next day, when the sun was in the southeast, as they were suffering great hunger, and that the Minquas had all left and gone from us, back to their country. The 14th, at night, it began to rain hard, and the wind was from the southwest, which makes it warm there. In the morning we had high-water, which caused the yacht to float finely. We loosened the rope from the tree, to which it had been made fast, in order to prevent the yacht from falling over, because the shore was so shallow there, and let her drift into the river, as the ice was already very soft, like snow. We resolved not to wait for the Indians, as they had been driven away, and could not assist us in those things for which we had 1 Probably Egg Island, or Reedy Island. It may be identified with the island referred to in the grant of the Dutch Governor Kieft, in 1646, to Planck and others for a tract of land on the west side of the Delaware River "almost over against the little island 'T Vogelssant." 1633] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 25 come, so that it was a hopeless voyage for us. Going down the river, we arrived below the Minqua's Kill, where we took in some stone for ballast, which we could not obtain elsewhere in the morning. This is a very fine river, and the land all beautifully level, full of groves of oak, hickory, ash, and chestnut trees, and also vines which grow upon the trees. The river has a great plenty of fish, the same as those in our fatherland, perch, roach, pike, sturgeon, and similar fish. Along the sea-coast are codfish, the different kinds of fish which are in our fatherland, and others. After we had taken in some bal last, we went further down the river, and came to its mouth. We fished with our seines, and caught in one draught as many as thirty men could eat of perch, roach, and pike. The 20th, we weighed our anchor, and with a northwest wind sailed out of the bay, which is ten leagues long, and so wide, that in the middle of it you can hardly see from one shore to the other. It is full of shoals between which are channels, from six to seven fathoms deep, but the deepest channel is on the west side. In order to run up by soundings, as you come from sea to Cape Hinloopen, which lies in thirty- eight degrees and twenty minutes, the shoal of the bank, which stretches from Cape Hinloopen over the bay, reaches Cape May, and when you have passed this a league and a half, and come into the river, so that Cape Hinloopen is south of you, run in then northwest along the west shore, and you will be out of danger of the banks, and keep the west side, where you should keep sounding, but do not get nearer to it than a depth of two fathoms, if the ship be a large one, and this will take you directly to the South River. When you come to the mouth of the river, where it is full two leagues wide, there is a shoal before it, on which, at low tide, there is not more than six or seven feet of water. This you must keep to starboard, and you will see a bushy point ahead on the west side, along which you must hold your course; that is the right channel, the water being three and a half fathoms at low tide, but in side, in the river, it is six or seven fathoms. The tide rises and falls here from five to six feet. By evening, we arrived again at the ship, in which there was great rejoicing to see us, as we had been gone over a month. They did not imagine that we had been frozen up in the river, as no pilot or astrologer 26 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1643 could conceive, that in a latitude from the thirty-eighth and a half to the thirty-ninth, such rapid running rivers could freeze. Some maintain that it is because it lies so far west; others adduce other reasons; but I will tell how it can be, from experience and what I have seen, and that is thus: inland, stretching towards the north, there are high moun tains, covered with snow, and the north and northwest winds blow over the land from these cold mountains, with a pure, clear air, which causes extreme cold and frost, such as is felt in Provence and Italy, which I have often experienced when I was at Genoa, when the wind blew over the land from the high mountains, making it as cold as it was in Holland. I have found by experience in all countries, during winter, that when the wind blows from the land, the hardest frost makes. It is so in New Netherland also, for as soon as the wind is southwest, it is so warm that one may stand naked in the woods, and put on a shirt. The 5th of March, determined to make a voyage to the English in Virginia, as we had failed to obtain com in the South River, in consequence of the war among the Indians, as before related, by which we were placed in such danger, and the grain of the Indians was destroyed; and as we thought that we should not be able to find a sufficient store of it at Fort Amsterdam, on the great [North] river, to serve us on our return voyage to Holland, we therefore deemed it advis able to sail to the English in Virginia. Although there had never been any one there from this quarter, I said, as I had escaped the danger in the South River, I would be the first one of our nation to venture to the English in Virginia, from these parts, as the distance is not more than thirty leagues from the South River or Cape Hinloopen.1 .... [Anno 1643, October.] The 12th, at daylight, the wind from the southeast straight on a leeshore, and it began to blow hard. We were in twelve fathoms water. When it was day, the skipper 1 De Vries sailed out of Delaware Bay, March 6, 1633, for Virginia, as he proposed above, and was hospitably received by Sir John Harvey, Governor of Virginia. Returning to Swanendael March 29 he found that his people had caught seven whales, but had obtained only thirty-two cartels of oil. The expe dition then departed for New Amsterdam and finally arrived in Holland by midsummer. The remaining paragraphs are from the narrative of 1643-1644. 1643] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 27 asked me if I knew where I was. I told him we must mn into eight or nine fathoms, when we should be able to distinguish the land ; but he was afraid of the shore, as he had never been here. Finally ran into shallower water, when he asked me if I knew the country. I said, Yes; and I saw that we were by Cape May, before the South River. He then inquired of me whether we could not sail straight in. I said, No; that it was all over full of shoals, that we must enter at the southwest side. He then threw the lead, and had four fathoms, at which he was startled. I told him he must lay down the lead ; that we must now depend on my knowledge to get in; that it was all a shoal there. We then came by Cape Hinloopen in deep water, when I told him he might throw the lead, and he would find eight to nine fathoms, as he ran into the South Bay, close by the shore. We sailed in by the shore, and he said: "I was in this same place over seven weeks, and there were Ind ians here on land, and a-fishing, and I went ashore with my skiff and spoke Spanish to them, but they could not under stand me. It was so full of shoals, I ran again out to sea and proceeded to New England." Then I said to the skipper: "Had you known the Indian language as I know it, you would not have sailed to New England. This land is called Swanen dael, and these Indians destroyed a colony in the year 1630, which I began. Had you been able to speak to them, they would have taken you up the river to the Swedes, or to our people, who would have informed you that you had passed by the Virginias." I sailed up the bay west by north along the west shore; at evening came before the river by the wild thicket, where we anchored in four fathoms, hard bottom, and in the morning weighed anchor. The 13th, sailed by Reed Island, and came to the Verckens Kill, where there was a fort1 constructed by the Swedes, with three angles, from which they fired for us to strike our flag. The skipper asked me if he should strike it. I answered him, "If I were in a ship belonging to myself, I would not strike it because I am a patroon of New Netherland, and the Swedes are a people who come into our river; but you come here by contrary winds and for the purposes of trade, and it is there- 1 Fort Nya Elfsborg, built by the Swedes in 1643, a short distance below the mouth of Varkens Kill (now Salem Creek, New Jersey). 28 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1643 fore proper that you should strike." Then the skipper strack his flag, and there came a small skiff from the Swedish fort, some Swedes in it, who inquired of the skipper with what he was laden. He told them with Madeira wine. We asked them whether the governor was in the fort. They answered, No; that he was at the third fort1 up the river, to which we sailed, and arrived at about four o'clock in the afternoon, and went to the governor, who welcomed us. He was named Captain Prins,2 and a man of brave size, who weighed over four hundred pounds. He asked the skipper if he had ever been in this river before, who said he had not. How then had he come in where it was so full of shoals? He pointed to me, that I had brought him in. Then the governor's trader, who knew me, and who had been at Fort Amsterdam, said that I was a patroon of Swanendael at the entrance of the bay, de stroyed by the Indians in the year 1630, when no Swedes were known upon this river. He (the governor) then had a silver mug brought, with which he treated the skipper with hop beer, and a large glass of Rhenish wine, with which he drank my health. The skipper traded some wines and sweetmeats with him for peltries, beaver-skins, and staid here five days from contrary winds. I went to Fort Nassau, which lies a league higher up, in which the people of the West India Com pany were. I remained there half a day, and took my leave of them, and returned at evening to the governor of the Swedes. The 19th, I went with the governor to the Minckquas Kil, where their first fort3 was, with some houses inside, where they carried on their trade with the Minqua Indians; our ship came down the river also. In this little fort there were some iron guns. I staid here at night with the governor, who treated me well. In the morning, the ship was lying before the Minckquas Kil. I took my leave of the governor, who accompanied me on board. We fired a salute for him, and thus parted from him; weighed anchor and got under sail, and came to the first fort. Let the anchor fall again, and went on land to the fort, which was not entirely finished; it was made after the English plan, with three angles close by 1 Fort Nya Goteborg or New Gothenburg, on Tinicum Island. 2 Governor Johan Printz. 8 Fort Christina. 1643] DAVID DE VRIES'S NOTES 29 the river. There were lying there six or eight brass pieces, twelve-pounders. The skipper exchanged here some of his wines for beaver-skins. The 20th of October, took our departure from the last fort, or first in sailing up the river, called Elsenburg. The second fort of the Swedes is named Fort Christian; the third, New Gottenburg. We weighed anchor and sailed from the river; arrived at noon at Cape Hinloopen, and put to sea. Set our course along the coast southwest, quite southerly at first. RELATION OF CAPTAIN THOMAS YONG, 1634 INTRODUCTION Captain Thomas Yong, an Englishman, the author of the narrative which follows, was one of the many early seekers for the northwest passage from Atlantic to Pacific waters. It was mainly in pursuit of this famous quest that he explored Delaware Bay and River. Before leaving the river he wrote these observations, and sent them as a report to the English Secretary of State, one of the members of the government giving moral support to the undertaking. Thomas Yong was bom in 1579, in the parish of St. Peter's, Cornhill, in the city of London, of a family, it would seem, of the higher sort of merchants, who had attained, apparently, to some affluence and position. The father, Gregory Yong, who figures in the registers of the parish as "Grocer," with the title "Mr.", significantly respectful in that day, was a native of Bedale, in the north riding of Yorkshire, but early in his career had made his appearance in London, and at the time of his death in 1610 was dwelling at the northwest comer of Leadenhall Street. Captain Yong's elder sister Susanna mar ried Robert Evelyn, of the landed family of the Evelyns of Wotton in Surrey — thus becoming aunt by marriage to the accomplished John Evelyn, the diarist — and the relations of her father's family with the Evelyns, as shown by certain of the Evelyn letters, were intimate. Of the other facts of Yong's life nothing further has been learned beyond those respecting his American exploring expedi tion. He is first heard of as the promoter of this enterprise in 1633, when as a man of the mature age of fifty-four, possessing, it is presumed, wealth and leisure, he petitioned Charles I. for 33 34 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA full powers to equip and lead, without expense to the Crown, but in its behalf, an expedition to America for the discovery, occupation, and exploitation of uninhabited lands. With the support of the group of Catholic1 sympathizers influential at court in those days of the personal government of the King, his request received favorable consideration, and a royal com mission, in which he is mentioned as of London, gentleman, was issued, in September, 1633, granting him authority to carry out his proposals. In company with his nephew Robert Evelyn, jr. (b. 1606), who served him as lieutenant, and with a cosmographer and a surgeon, he sailed from England with two vessels in May, 1634. He reached Virginia early in July and during the re pairing of one of his leaky ships and the building of a shallop, remained for over two weeks at Jamestown as the guest of Governor Sir John Harvey. While in Virginia he talked with leaders on both sides of the controversy between William Claiborne and Lord Baltimore over the conflicting claims of Virginia and Maryland to Kent Island, and wrote what seems to be a fair report of the situation. This report, with an ac count of his journey, he sent in a letter from Jamestown, dated July 13, 1634, to Sir Toby Matthew, one of his Catholic patrons about the English court.2 His expressed sympathies, however, are for Lord Baltimore, who was another of his Catholic patrons. On July 20 Captain Yong set sail from Virginia. From that time the story as he tells it of his experiences in the Delaware can be followed in the text and notes until after the middle of October. He then sent Lieutenant Evelyn to England, by way of Virginia, with this report, along with a let ter, dated October 20, 1634, written from Charles River — he so 1 Although Yong was so closely associated with Catholics in his undertaking, no evidence has been found to support the intimations of some writers that he was himself a Catholic and the agent for the promotion of a scheme of Catho lic settlements in America. 2 See Narratives of Early Maryland, in this series, pp. 47-61. INTRODUCTION 35 named the Delaware in honor of the King — in which he states that despite the obstructing falls of the river, he determines "against the next summer to build a vessell, which he will" launch above the falls and "goe up to the Lakes," whence he hopes "to find a way that leadeth into that Mediterranean Sea. . . . From the lake I judge that it cannot be lesse than 150 or 200 leagues to our North Ocean, and from thence I purpose to discover the mouths thereof which discharge both into the North and South Seas." He adds that he will undergo all hazards and dangers and will "be at much charge for the ser vice of his Matie and honor of my country." Evelyn returned to England and in the latter part of May of the following year, 1635, sailed again for America in the ship Plain Joan to join his uncle, it is stated, upon "special and very important service." How much further exploration was made in the Delaware is not clear but apparently that field was soon abandoned for northern New England. In 1636, according to Samuel Maverick, Yong and his companions went up the Kennebec River, bent upon discovery. "By cary- ing their canoes some few times" they "came into Canada River very near" Quebec, "where by the French Captain Young was taken, and carried for France but his Company returned safe." Here Yong disappears from history. Lieutenant Robert Evelyn, the nephew, whose elder brother Captain George Evelyn (b. 1593) had gone out to Maryland in 1636, seems to have appeared in Virginia in the latter part of the same year, and in 1637 was made surveyor- general and a councillor of that province. In the ensuing year he was a member of the Maryland assembly, probably residing with his brother, who had served for a few months early in the year as commander of Kent Island, and had a plantation at Piney Point in his manor of Evelynton on the Potomac. In 1641, under the title of Directions for Adventurers (reprinted. in chapter III. of Plantagenet's New Albion, in 1648), was pub- 36 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA lished his description of the Delaware, in which he supplements somewhat his uncle's account and states that a draft of the region as supplied by him had been incorporated in a printed map of New England. In 1642 he was appointed commander of the Maryland forces at Piscataway against the Indians, and represented St. George's Hundred in the assembly. The original manuscript of Yong's Relation, and the two accompanying letters of which mention has been made, are in the Virginia State Library at Richmond. The papers were purchased at the sale of the collection of the late Samuel L. M. Barlow, of New York City, who obtained them in the Aspin- wall papers, once for the most part in the possession of George Chalmers, the historian. They are simple unassuming state ments, and believed to be in every way reliable. They were first published in P. C. J. Weston's Documents connected with the History of South Carolina (London, 1856), pp. 25-60; again in 1871 in the Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society, fourth series, IX. 117-131, and then (in 1876) re printed in Fund Publication No. 9 of the Maryland Historical Society, pp. 300-312. The present issue has been collated with the original manuscript. A. C. M. RELATION OF CAPTAIN THOMAS YONG, 1634 A breife Relation of a voyage lately made by me Captayne Thomas Yong, since my departure from Virginia, upon a discovery, which I humbly present to the Right HobU Sr Francis Winde- banke, knight, PrincipaU Secretary of State to his Ma1".1 The particulars of all occurrents, that happened unto mee, from my departure out of England till my arrivall in Virginia; and likewise, what passed while I was there; I sent in a Relation to Sr Tobie Matthew,2 entreating him to present it to yor Honor; wch I presume, is already come to yor handes; And therefore I omitt to trouble yor honor, wth a second repetition thereof, and now only intend humbly to give yor honor account of such thinges, as since that time have passed in my voyage. As soone as I had stopped the leakes of my ship, and fin ished my shallopp, I sett sayle from Virginia, the 20th of July, coasting along the Coast from Virginia to the Northward, faire by the shoare, and the 24th of the same month, I made that great Bay, wherein I purposed at my departure from England, to make triall for the Passage. I came to an nAnchor that night in the mouth of the Bay and the next morning, I entered the same. This Bay is in the mouth thereof 6 leagues broad, and hath in the entrance thereof 12 fathome water. When I was gott into the Bay, I came to an anchor, and sent my Leiuitennant in my shallop ashore, on the Southwest part of the Bay, to see if he could speake with any of the Natives, and to leame what he could of them, concerning this Bay, and the course thereof, who after he had spent most part of the day in searching up and downe, for the Natives, returned towards night, without speaking wtb any of them. The next 1 Sir Francis Windebank (1582-1646), Secretary of State, of Catholic inclina tions. Later he was forced to leave England. 2 Sir Tobie Matthew (1577-1655), English courtier, diplomatist, and writer, in religion a Roman Catholic. 37 38 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1634 morning, being the 26, 1 sayled some tenne leagues higher up into the Bay, and then came to an Anchor, and agayne sent out my shallopp, to see if I could meet w* any of those na tives; but they returned as they did the day before, without speaking with any of them. The 27 in the morning I weighed to proceed yet further into the Bay and after I had passed some 7 leagues up the Bay, my shallop being then on head of me, espied certayne Indians on the West side of the Bay, to whome they made presently, but the Indians made away from them, as soon as they came neere the shoare; soe I sayled along in the middest of the Bay; and they coasted along by the shoare, till about two in the afternoone; and then there came an Indian running along the shoare, and called to my shallop; The shallop presently made towards him, who stayed till theire arrivall, but would not come aboard, wherefore they landed, and went to him, to whome presently also came three or foure more. At last they perswaded one of them to goe aboard my ship, and so they brought him to mee. I enter tained him curteously, and gave him buiscuit to eat, and strong water to drinke, but the water he seemed not to rellish well. I also gave him some trifles, as knives and beades and a hatchett, of which he was wonderfull glad. Then I began to enquire of him, (by my Interpreter, who understood that language) how farr the sea ran, who answered me that not farre above that place I should meet with fresh water, and that the River ranne up very farre into the land, but that he had never bene at the head thereof. He told me further that the people of that River were at warre with a certaine Nation called the Minquaos, who had killed many of them, destroyed their come, and burned their houses; insomuch as that the Inhabitants had wholy left that side of the River, which was next to their enimies, and had retired themselves on the other side farre up into the woods, the better to secure themselves from their enimies. He also told me that not long since there had bene a ship there, and described the people to me, and by his de scription, I found they were Hollanders, who had bene there trading for furrs; Towards night he desired to be sett on shoare, which accordingly I commanded to be done. The next day being the 28, there came aboard of my ship an Indian, with a Canoa with store of Eeles, whereof I bought some for a 1634] RELATION OF THOMAS YONG 39 knife and a hatchett, and whilest I was discoursing with him concerning the River, for now I was entered into the mouth thereof, on a suddayne he fell into a great passion of feare and trembling; I wondered what the matter was, and comforted him, and bad him feare nothing, he then shewed me a Canoa, a good way of, making towards the ship, in which, he said, were some of the Minquaos and that they were enimies to him, and to his Nation, and had already killed many of them, and that they would kill him also, if they saw him, and therefore he desired me to hide him from them; I told him, I would defend him, and that they should not hurt him, and that if they should dare to offer him any violence, I then would kill them, he seemed very glad to heare me say so, and gave me thankes, but yet was very earnest to be hid from them, saying, that if they saw him, they would watch for him ashore, and there murtner him, then I caused him to be putt into a cabbin, betweene deckes, where he could not be seene. The Minquaos rowed directly to my ship, and as soone as they gott neere her, they made signes for a Rope, which was cast out to them, with which they made fast their Canoa, and presently came aboard without any difficultie. Our Interpreter understood but only some few words of their language, so as wee were forced for the most part to gather their meaning by signes the best wee could. They told us, they were Minquaos, and that one of them was a king, (for soe all the Indians call them, who are most eminent among themselves, and they are in nature of Captaynes or Governors of the rest, and have power of life and death, of warre and peace, over their subjects, Some have 1000, some 500, some more, some lesse) and made signes to us, that they were lately come from warre with the other Ind ians, whome they had overcome, and slayne some of them, and cutt downe their come, (which is of the same kind with the come of Virginia which they commonly call Maiz). They brought a good quantitie of greene eares thereof with them, and some they presented to mee, and others they roasted and eate themselves. I used them curteously, and gave them each of them a hatchett, a pipe, a knife, and a paire of sizers, for which they were very thankfull to mee, and then desired to see my trucke,1 whereof I shewed them samples. The King desired ' Articles of barter. 40 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1634 some of my cloath, but having nothing to give me in exchange thereof, I gave him two small peices, one of redd and the other of blew. They made signes to us, that about 10 dayes (as wee thought, but wee were mistaken for they meant weekes, as wee perceaved afterwards), they would come to us agayne, and bring with them great store of trucke of beavers and ottors, and therefore they desired to know where wee would bee; soe I told them that about that time I would send my shallop to meet them there, soe they departed, and as soone as they were gone, I called for the Indian who all this time lay hid in my cabbin, who stayed aboard of me till night, and then departed a contrary way to that which the Minquaos went, promising to be with me the next day. Some two days after I being then gotten some tenne leagues up the River there came to the shoare side 5 or 6 Indians, and haled us. I sent my boate for them; when they were arrived, they told me they came to see me from a king, who lived not farre of, and that if I pleased to morrow he would come and visitt mee. I answered them, he should be welcome, and so after they had stayed awhile, and refreshed themselves aboard my shippe, they departed. The next day wee expected him but he came not, soe wee departed up a little higher up the River, and on the second of August this king came aboard us about noone, accompanied with 40 or 60 Indians. After he had sate still awhile, which they are wont to doe upon the ground, he then told mee I was welcome into the Countrey, and that he came to see me with desire to make peace with me, in regard he understood by an Indian that I was a good man, and that I had preserved him from the Minquaos, who would otherwise have slayne him, and withall asked, if wee had any trucke. He also presented mee with two Otters skinnes, and some greene eares of come, excusing himself that he had no better present for me, in regard the Minquaos had lately harrowed his countrey, and carried much beaver from him and his sub jects, and that the rest they had trucked away to the Hol landers, who had lately bene there. I told him that I was sent thither by a great king in Europe, namely the king of England, and that I came thither to discover that Countrey and to make peace with them, if they desired to imbrace it and that if they would soe do, I would defend them from their enimies, he 1634] RELATION OF THOMAS YONG 41 was very joyfull to hear this, and desired me to tarry two dayes there, for he would bring thither another king, who was his father in law, to make peace with mee, and another king also who was his neighbour, and the proprietor of that part of the River, wherein I then rode. I condiscended1 with him to stay two dayes. In the meane time, I tooke possession of the countrey, for his MaUe, and there sett up his Maties armes upon a tree, which was performed with solemnities usuall in that kind. I enquired of this king how farre this River ranne up into the Countrey, and whither it were navigable or no, he told me it ranne a great way up, and that I might goe with my shippe, till I came to a certaine place, where the rockes2 ranne cleane crosse the River, and that there he thought I could not goe over with my great Canoas, (for soe they call all vessells that swimme upon the water). I then desired him to lend me a pilott to goe up to that place, which he most willingly granted. I presented him with a Coate, a hatchett, and a knife, wherewith he was very well contented, and so after he had stayd some 4 or 5 houres he tooke his leave. About some 3 or foure dayes after, this king returned to me, and in company with him two other kings, whome I mentioned be fore, with whome I also made peace. Of the old king I en quired if he had ever bene at the head of the River, he an swered me no, but that he had heard that the River ranne farre up into the land, and that some few dayes journey beyond the rockes of which I spake before there was a moun tainous countrey where there were great store of Elkes and that before the warr with the Minquaos, they were wont to goe thither to hunt them, but he said that neither he himself nor any of his people had ever bene further then those moun- taines. These kings prayed me that I would do them the curtesie to stay foure or five dayes with them, because they were certainly informed, that the Minquaos would within that time passe over the River to assault them, wherefore they desired me not to suffer them to passe over. I told them I would at their request stay five dayes, and that I would labour to procure them peace, and that if their enimies refused the same that then I would joyne with them against them, and 'Agreed. 2 The Falls of Delaware, at what is now Trenton, New Jersey. 42 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1634 I would lend them souldiers to goe to warre in company with them, and that I would also, if occasion were, invade the Min quaos within their owne countrey, upon this condition, that they shall renounce all trade or alliance with all other per sons, save only his Maties Ministers and subjects, and that they shall be wholy dependant on him, of which they were very joyfull and accepted the conditions and soe wee made a solemne peace, they not long after departed, and it was spread all over the River, that I had made peace with them, and that I was a just man, and would defend them against their enimies the Minquaos. Upon the report heer of some three dayes after, there came to me messengers with a present from two other kings, who lived in a lesser River,1 which falleth into this great River, somewhat neerer the rockes. They told me that their kings desired to make peace with me, according as the other kings their neighbours had done, and that they had some Beaver and Otter skinnes, which they would trucke with me for such commodities as I had. I sent them word that some three days after I would come up to the mouth of that River, where I would desire them to meet mee, and that I would entreat one of those messengers to stay with me, till I were ready to goe, whome I would send to them as soon as I was arrived, and one of them presently offered himself to stay with mee. When the five dayes were expired I sent to the former kings, to let them understand that now I had tar ried five days expecting the Minquaos and that seeing they came not, I had sent my shallop to seeke them out, but it was returned without any notice of them, and therefore that I thought they were not in the River, wherefore now I would goe up higher into the River to meet with the other kings, whither if they had occasion they should send to mee, and I would send to assist them, desiring them withall to send me a pilot to carrie me to the Rockes. They sent me word they were sorry I was departing from them, neverthelesse they hoped I would shortly retume thither againe, and that if they had occasion they would send to mee, and moreover one of them sent me his Brother in company of my messenger, and commanded him to goe up along with me, and to attend mee, and remayne with me till my retume thither againe, which he 1 Possibly the Schuylkill River. 1634] RELATION OF THOMAS YONG 43 did accordingly. As soone as my messengers were come backe, I sett forward and arrived at the mouth of the said River, and not long after I was come to an anchor, about 8 of the clocke in the evening, came the two kings aboard of mee, attended only with some foure or 5 of their principall men, for the rest of their company in regard it was night, I desired them to leave on shoare, till the morning. I entertained them aboard all night, and in the morning early being the 23 of August, the rest of their company came aboard. I gave each of them a present, as I had done to the other kings, which when they had receaved, first the ancient king, and afterward the yonger, called together all their people, and made to them a long ora tion to this purpose. That wee were a good people. That wee were just. That wee were ready to defend the oppressed from the crueltie of their neighbours. That wee were loving people, as a testimony whereof they shewed the presents I had given them. That wee had brought thither such things as they stood in need of, for which wee desired only Beaver and Otter skinnes, whereof they had to spare. That therefore they comanded them to trade lovingly and freely with our people, that they should be carefull that no injuries were either ; privately or publikely done to them. That they should use them as friends and Brothers, and that for me in particular they should honor and esteeme of me as a Brother of their kings, and that they should be carefull to carrie themselves dutifully towards mee, with a great deale more complement, then I expresse. This being done my company and the In dians fell a trucking, while these two kings entered into the same league with me, which the former had done, and then towards evening the elder king went ashore, the yonger remayning aboard with mee. Thither also came two other neighboring kinges, with whom also I made peace. Heere also was the first place, where some of their weomen' came aboard our shippes, and heere during the space of five dayes that wee tarried we had continually store of Indians aboard us. One night about one of the clock in the night, there rose an alarme amongst the Indians that lay ashore, that the Minquaos were come upon them; the yonger king was then aboard my ship, who desired me to receave his people aboard till the morning, which I did, setting a good guard upon them and disarming 44 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1634 them. In the morning I found this to proceed of nothing else but their pollicie to trie whether, if occasion were, I would re ally assist them or no. But howsoever the king gave me great thankes for my love to him and his people. After I had stayed there some five dayes, I departed towards the head of the River, and many Indians as I passed along came aboard my shippe, with such commodities as they had, some with furrs, some with victualls. On the 29 of August I had gotten up with my shippe as far as I could goe with her for now the water beganne to be shoaly, so I came to an anchor, neere to the dwelling of one of the principall kings of this Countrey, who that same night hearing that I was come to his Countrey, came aboard of me to visitt me, with whome also I made peace as with the former. This king and his Brother are the greatest Travaylors that I mett among all the Indians, in the River, for they have bene by land at the lower fort of Hudsons River, and likewise very farre up the River, beyond the rockes, I spake of. On the first of September I sent my leiuetennant in my shallop up to the Rockes, both to sound the water as he went, and likewise to trie whether my boates would passe those rockes or no. The Hollanders of Hudsons River having gotten some intelligence of our being heere by the Indians, who in some places live not above a dayes journey from them, overtooke me heere within sixe houres after I had sent away my leiuetennant to the rockes. They came to an Anchor close by me. I sent my boate presently aboard them to know what they were, and from whence they came, and to bring the master to mee, who soone after came together with his Mar- chant in their owne boate. When they were come aboard of me, I sent for them into my cabbin, and asked them what they made heere, they answered mee they came to trade as formerly they had done. I asked them if they had any comis- sion from his 'Matie to trade in the River or no, they answered they had none from the King of England, but from the Gov ernor of new Netherlands they had, to which I replyed that I knew no such Governor, nor no such place as new Nether lands. I told them that this Country did belong to the crowne of England, as well by ancient discovery as likewise by posses sion lawfully taken, and that his Matie was now pleased to make more ample discovery of this River, and of other places 1634] RELATION OF THOMAS YONG 45 also, where he would erect Collonies, and that I was therefore sent hither with a Royall Commission under the great Seale to take possession heereof. I perceaved by their countenance that this newes strooke them could at heart, and after a little pawse they answered me, that they had traded in this River heeretofore. I then replyed that therein they had done his Matie and his subjects the greater injurie, for supposing, as some of the Dutch pretended, that they had by his Maties leave traded and planted in Hudsons River, yet ought they not to usurpe upon other trades and Countreyes of his Maties without his leave, and since that he is now pleased to make use of this River, either for himself, or his subjects, it would be good manners in them to desist. Then they desired to see my Commission, which I shewed them, and after they had read it, and considered well thereof, apprehending the power I had, if they should trade without licence, to make them prize, they desired me to give them a Copie thereof. I answered them that it was not the custome of England for his Matie8 Ministers to give Copies of their Commissions, they then desired to know how I would proceed with them, which they hoped would be the better in regard they knew not of my commission, I told them I would let them know that heereafter, when my leiue tennant was returned which perhaps would be the next morning. The next day my leiuetennant being returned, I sent for the Hollanders to dine with me, and this day I spent in mak ing them wellcome, and after dinner one of their company dranke to me saying, Heere Governor of the South River, (for soe they call this) I drinke to you and indeed confesse your Commission is much better then ours, how say you Copeman1 (who is the head marchant) said he is it not. To whome the Copeman answered yes indeede, I have not seene a larger Commission. The next day about 8 of the clocke I sent for them to give them an answerre which was this. That in re gard they were subjects to so ancient allies of my Prince, and that they were neighbours heere, and since they had carried themselves civilly, I had used them with all curtesy, that I might lawfully use. That since I had also shewed them my commission, I made no question but that they knew suffi- 1 Dutch Koopman, (pron. Copeman), merchant, 46 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1634 ciently well what they had to doe, neverthelesse, I was willing they might stay at Anchor two dayes longer, to provide them selves of whatsoever they should need, and that I would not suffer any thing to be taken from them during their stay. They then asked me if I would command them to be gone, I answered I command you not to be gone, but you may looke into my Commission, and there you may see whether it be lawfull for you to vizitt or trade into any places I shall pos- sesse, where upon they read over the second time that part of the Commission, and then they answered they would be gone, but they desired a note under my hand for their dis charge, unto their Governor, to shew the cause why they re turned without trading. I answered it was not the custome of England and that they had no need of any such note, since they had seene the Commission under the great Seale, and that I could not beleeve but that their Governor would both creditt and be satisfied with their Relation. Soe they parted civilly though very sadly from mee. Before the time of two dayes was expired, they weighed Anchor and went downe the River, I sent my Leiuetennant in my pinnace to see them cleare of the River, and to watch them least they should doe me ill offices with the Indians, in their way homewards. In their going downe they sometimes went aboard of one another after the manner of the Sea, and the Merchant of the Ship upon some discourse said, that if they had bene in possession at my arrivall they would not have removed, for all my Commission, and not long after he said I would we were in possession of it agayne, yet if the West India Company had been ruled by me, they had planted this River, rather than Hudsons River, and whilest my Leiuetennant commended Hudsons River, for a good place, he replyed, yea so it is, but this is better, and further said were I sure we should loose this River, I would tell you something that would please you. I gave my leiuetennant order that after he had watched these Hollanders out of the Bay he should then goe, and discover all along the Coast, as farre as Hudson's River and so on towards Cape Cod, to see if there were any probability of a passage through. Hee ac cordingly discovered along the coast as farre as Hudsons River, where he was overtaken with foule weather, and con trary windes, where he endured the stormes till he was forced 1634] RELATION OF THOMAS YONG 47 by the incommodiousnes of his vessell, and want of victualls to retume. In this voyage he lost two men who were killed by the Indians, but found nothing worthy of particular Relation. As soone as he was returned I sent him presently up once more to the falls to trie whether he could passe those rockes at a spring tide, which before he could not doe in a neap tide, but it was then also impassable with any great boate, wherefore he returned backe to mee agayne. When he saw he could not passe over the rockes, he went up the River side some five miles above the rockes, to see whither the River were passable or no, who informeth me [it] is deepe and likely to ranne very farre up into the Countrey. Heere also is the Brother of the king of Mohigon, who is the uppermost king that wee have mett with who relateth that he hath bene in a Canoa 20 dayes journey up the River, above the rockes which1 he describeth to ranne northwest and westnorthwest, that he was sent thither by his brother to a king of his Alliance, and that there he heard that this River some five dayes journey higher issueth from a great Lake, he saith further that four days journey from this River, over certayne mountaines there is a great mediterranean sea and he offereth to goe him self along in person the next sommer with myself or my leiuetennant to shew us the same, he saith further that about two dayes journey above the falls or rocks, the River divides itself into two branches, the one whereof is this wherein wee are, and the other trendeth towards Hudsons River, and that the farther you goe up the River the broader. I beseech yr honor give me leave by the way to give you a short relation of the commodities2 and scituation of this River. This River dischargeth itself into a great Bay in the North part of Virginia, in 39 and almost a half of latitude. The river is broad and deepe, and is not inferior to any in the North of- America, and a ship of 300 Tonnes may saile up within three leagues of the rockes. The River aboundeth with beavers, otters, and other meaner furrs, which are not only taken upon the bankes of the mayne River, but likewise in other lesser rivers which discharge themselves into the 1 1, e., the river. 8 Advantages or good qualities. 48 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1634 greater, whereof I thinke few Rivers of America have more or more pleasant. The people are for the most part very well proportioned, well featured, gentle, tractable and docible. The land is very good and fraitfull and withall very healthfull. The soyle is sandy and produceth divers sorts of fraites, es pecially grapes, which grow wild in great quantity, of which I have eaten sixe severall sorts, some of them as good as they are ordinarily in Italy, or Spaine; and were they replanted I thinke they whould be farre better. Heere also growes the finite which in Italy they call lazarroli,1 plumms, divers sorts of berries and divers other fraites not knowne in Europe. The climate is much like that of Italy and all sorts of fraites of that Countrey will thrive heere exceedingly. The earth being fraitefull is covered over with woods and stately timber, except only in those places, where the Indians had planted their come. The Countrey is very well replenished, with deere and in some places store of Elkes. The low grounds of which there is great quantitie excellent for meadowes and full of Beaver and Otter. The quantity of fowle is so great as can hardly be beleeved, wee tooke at one time 48 partriches to gether, as they crossed the river, chased by wild hawkes. I myselfe sprang in two houres- 5 or 6 covies in walking of a mile, there are infinit number of wild pidgeons, black birds, Turkeyes, Swans, wild geese, ducks, Teales, widgins, brants, herons, cranes etc. of which there is so great aboundance, as that the Rivers and creekes are covered with them in winter. Of fish heere is plentie, but especially sturgeon all the sommer time, which are in such aboundance in the upper parts of the River, as that great benefitt might be raysed by setting up a fishing for them, for in the spring and beginning of summer the weather is so temperate, that they will keepe very well. Heere are also great store of wild hops yet exellent good and as faire as those in England, heere are also divers other things which with industrie will prove exellent good commodities, 1 Lazarola or Iazzerola, i. e., the azarole or Neapolitan medlar (Crataegus azarolus), a fruit-bearing shrub allied to the white thorn. "At this spot [on the south side of Christiana Creek, opposite the site of Fort Christina] there are many medlar trees which bear good fruit from which one [Jan] Jaquet, who does not live far from there, makes good brandy or spirits, which we tasted and found even better than French brandy" (In 1679; Journal of Dankers and Sluyter, -p. 188). 1634] RELATION OF THOMAS YONG 49 and for my part I am confident that this River is the most healthfull, fraitefull and commodious River in all the North of America, to be planted. Hither also very lately came the Hollanders a second time, sent hither by the Governor of the Dutch plantation, with a Commission to plant and trade heere, but after much discourse to and fro, they have publikely declared, that if the king of England please to owne this River, they will obey, and they humbly desire that he will declare to them their limitts in these parts of America, which they will also observe. FROM THE "ACCOUNT OF THE SWEDISH CHURCHES IN NEW SWEDEN," BY REV EREND ISRAEL ACRELIUS, 1759 INTRODUCTION In 1638 the Swedes, impelled by the spirit of territorial and commercial expansion aroused under their late King, the great and victorious Gustavus Adolphus, founded the colony of New Sweden, thus planting the first permanent white settlement on the Delaware. This foundation was laid under the personal direction of Peter Minuit, the first governor, at Fort Christina, on a creek of the same name, where the present city of Wil mington, Delaware, now stands. Thence, during the next dec ade, especially under the vigorous rule of the warrior Governor Printz, who arrived in 1643, a thin fringe of settlement in the form of forts and trading posts — barely a dozen in all — with a population at no time exceeding a few hundred souls, was ex tended, mainly on the western shore, about thirty-five miles up and down the river between the sites of Philadelphia and Elsinborough, New Jersey, and not more than three or four miles inland. The Swedish government supported the enterprise through the medium of a trading company organized, under the in spiration of certain Dutch promoters, on the model of the Dutch and English trading corporations. The Indian fur trade, along with the lesser traffic in Virginia and Maryland tobacco, was the chief business of the colony, and for the most part sustained the somewhat dilatory and wavering in terest of the people at home. The colonists gave some atten tion to tobacco culture and grazing, and occasionally raised small crops of grain, but the evidence thus far available shows that they had no particular success in agriculture; frequently they were largely dependent upon their English and Dutch neighbors for necessary provisions. 53 54 NiVRRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA The Dutch, who in 1623 had erected Fort Nassau on the eastern shore of the river near the present Gloucester, New Jersey, claimed the Delaware region as part of New Nether land, and protested from time to time against the Swedish occupation. Vigorous action, however, was delayed on ac count of the close political and economic relations between the two mother countries, Sweden as the great Protestant power in the Thirty Years' War aiding the Netherlands, and the Nether lands, in turn, favoring Swedish shipping and trade. After the Treaty of Westphalia of 1648, these conditions were changed. The Swedes having made a rapid commercial development came into effective competition with the Dutch. The Dutch, with their political independence conceded by Spain as well by the other leading powers of Europe, now sought to curb this dangerous northern rival. They built other forts on the Delaware. In 1655, the Dutch Governor, Peter Stuyvesant, from New Amsterdam, attacked New Sweden. Swedish rule was brought to an end and the Delaware became once more in fact a part of New Netherland. It so remained until the English conquest of New Netherland in 1664. The details of the history of New Sweden, as recounted by the Swedish historian, the Reverend Israel Acrelius, may be followed in the extracts from his work hereafter presented. Bom in 1714 in Osteraker, in Roslagen, near Stockholm, Sweden, Acrelius was educated at the University of Upsala and ordained as a Lutheran clergyman in 1743. In 1749 he was sent out from Sweden as provost of the Swedish congre gations on the Delaware. He took up his residence at Chris tina, now Wilmington, as pastor of the Old Swedes' Church, and thence made periodical visits to the other churches. After an efficient service of seven years he went back to Europe, and during the winter of 1756-1757 devoted himself to study in England. He then returned to Sweden, received a pension from the King, and retired to the living of Fellings- INTRODUCTION 55 bro, in Westeras, near Stockholm. There he completed his history which he had begun in America, and died in 1800. His book, a quarto of xx+534 pages, published at Stock holm in 1759, is written in Swedish and bears the title Beskrifning om de Swenska Forsamlingars forna och ndrwarande Tihtand uti det sa kallade Nya Swerige which in English is "Description of the Former and Present State of the Swedish Churches, in the so-called New Sweden." Of the eight parts into which the work is divided, parts I., II., and III., comprising the first third of the book, form a history of the respective Swedish, Dutch, and English govern ments in the Pennsylvania and Delaware region up to and including Acrelius's residence there in the middle years of the eighteenth century. The remaining two-thirds of the work are devoted to a full account of the Swedish church on the Delaware for the same period. Although writing a century after the Swedish regime on the Delaware, Acrelius had the advantage over later historians of a certain intimacy with his subject, not simply by reason of nearness to the earlier period, but because of his knowledge of the topography of the field concerned and the informa tion obtained in religious visits among surviving families of the colonists of New Sweden. On the whole he made careful and intelligent use of some of the chief original sources, a few of which are not now available. Some errors, it is true, have crept in; parts of the book are antiquated, in the light of modem research; and the writer's views, especially with re spect to the Dutch, are obviously colored by his Swedish sympathies. Nevertheless, the work has independent value and interest. Such of its shortcomings as have been observed in the present text are pointed out in the notes. The whole of the book was translated and edited by the Reverend William M. Reynolds, and published in 1874, in the Memoirs of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, volume XL 56 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA Our extracts are from this translation, pp. 20-29, 43-61, and 85-87, as revised by Dr. Amandus Johnson, of the University of Pennsylvania, from the Swedish of the original edition, pages 5-16, 36-55, and 85-88. The text thus selected and here printed is confined to the three chapters constituting Part I. "Of the Swedish Administration." All of Chapter L, "Of the First Arrival of the Swedes, under Commander Menewe [Minuit]," is given, excepting a few introductory pages on America in general. Of Chapter II., "The Admin istration under Governor Printz," a few sections are omitted. Only the references to the Swedish Church are chosen from the latter part of Chapter III., "The Administration of Director- General Rising." Thus this eighteenth-century narrative serves in the main to fill gaps in those records which are more strictly contemporary in their origin. A. C. M. FROM THE "ACCOUNT OF THE SWEDISH CHURCHES IN NEW SWEDEN," BY REV EREND ISRAEL ACRELIUS, 1759 [Chapter I.] 3. The Entrance of the Hollanders into North America. About the same time the Hollanders undertook to explore these American harbors. They took a fancy to the shores of the bay called by the Indians Menahados, and the river Mohaan. Henry Hudson, an Englishman in the service of the Holland East India Company, had first discovered those places, and called the bay after himself, Hudson's Bay. The East India Company, in the year 1608, sold its right to the country, which it based upon its priority of discovery, to some Hollanders. These obtained from the States General an ex clusive privilege to the country, and took the name of "The West India Company of Amsterdam." In the year 1610 they began to traffic with the Indians, and in the year 1613 they built a trading post at the place now called Albany, and in the following year placed some cannon there. Samuel Argall, the governor of Virginia, drove them out in 1618, but King James I. gave them permission to remain, that their ships might obtain water there in their voyages to Brazil.1 From that time until 1623, when the West India Company obtained its charter,2 their trade with the Indians was conducted entirely on shipboard, and they made no attempts to build any house or fortress until 1629.3 Now, whether it was done with or without the permission of England, the town of New Amster dam was built and fortified, as also the place Aurania, Orange, now called Albany, having since had three general-governors, one after the other. But that was not enough. They wished 1 This is legendary. 2 The Dutch West India Company was chartered in 1621. * They built a fort at Albany as early as 1615. 57 58 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1626 to extend their power to the river Delaware also, and erected on its shores two or three small forts, which were, however, immediately destroyed by the natives of the country. 4. Arrangements in Sweden for a Colony. It now came in order for Sweden also to take part in this gain. William Usselinx,1 a Hollander, bom at Antwerp in Brabant, presented himself to King Gustaf Adolph, and laid before him a proposition for a Trading Company, to be estab lished for Sweden, and to extend [its operations] to Asia, Africa, and Magellan's Land, [with the assurance] that this would be a great source of revenue to the kingdom. Authority was given him to carry out so important a project; and there upon a contract of trade was drawn up, under which the Company was to unite, and subscribe it. Usselinx published his explanation of this contract, wherein he also particularly made the country on the Delaware known as to its fertility, convenience, and all its imaginable advantages. To strengthen the matter, a charter was secured for the Company, and espe cially for Usselinx, who was granted a royalty of one thou sandth part upon all articles bought or sold by the Company. 5. The Execution of the Project. The great king, whose zeal for the honor of God was not less ardent than for the welfare of his subjects, availed himself of this opportunity to extend Christian doctrine among the heathen, as well as to establish his own power in other parts of the world. To this end he sent forth letters patent, dated at Stockholm, on the 2d of July, 1626, wherein all, both high and low, were invited to contribute something to the Com pany, according to their means. The work was continued in the Diet of the following year, 1627, when the estates of the >Willem Usselinx (1567-c. 1647), the founder of the Dutch West India Company and of the Swedish South Company, was a native of Antwerp. He re ceived a business education in Antwerp and spent several years abroad in Spain, Portugal, and the Azores, returning to Holland about 1591, a wealthy man. From 1600 until his death he was engaged in the promotion of great projects and plans of colonization and trade. 1628] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 59 realm gave their assent, and confirmed the measure. Those who took part in this Company were: His Majesty's mother, the Queen Dowager Christina, the Prince John Casimir, the Royal Council, the most distinguished of the nobility, the highest officers of the army, the bishops and other clergymen, together with the burgomasters and aldermen of the cities, as well as a large number of the people generally. The time fixed for paying in the subscriptions was the 1st of May of the following year (1628). For the management and work ing of the plan there were appointed an admiral, vice-admiral, chapman, under-chapman, assistants, and commissaries, to gether with soldiers and officers. 6. Renewal of these Plans. But when these arrangements were now in full progress and advertised everywhere, the German war and the King's death occurred, which caused this important work to be laid aside. The Trading Company was dissolved, its subscriptions nullified, and the. whole project was about to die with the King. But just as it appeared to be at its end, it received new life. Another Hollander, by the name of Peter Menewe,1 sometimes called Menuet, made his appearance in Sweden. He had been in Dutch service in America, where he became involved in difficulties with the officers of their Company, in consequence of which he was recalled home and dismissed from their service. But he was not discouraged by this, went over to Sweden, and renewed the representations which Usse linx had formerly made in regard to the excellence of the country, and the advantages that might be derived from it. 1 Peter Minuit (1580-1638), the first governor of New Sweden, brought over the initial Swedish expedition to the Delaware in 1638, built Fort Christina at the site of Wilmington, Delaware, and thus began the first permanent white settlement on that river. Born of Huguenot parents at Wesel in western Ger many, he went over to New Netherland in 1626 as third Director General. Ap parently his rule was successful but he was recalled in 1631. Becoming concerned in the Swedish plans of expansion he suggested to Chancellor Oxenstierna and to Spiring the first plan for the settlement of the Delaware, proposing the name New Sweden. On his way home from the new colony he was lost in a storm near the island of St. Christopher in the West Indies. See Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, pp. 93-117, 182-186, 191-192, 684-685. 60 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1634 7. Under Queen Christina. Queen Christina, who succeeded her royal father in the government, was glad to have the project thus renewed. The royal chancellor, Count Axel Oxenstierna, understood well how to put it in operation. He took the West India Trading Company into his own hands, as its president, and encouraged other wealthy noblemen to take shares in it. King Charles I. of England had also, in the year 1634, upon representations made to him by John Oxenstierna, at that time Swedish ambassador in London, renounced,1 in favor of the Swedes, all claims and pretensions which the English had to that country, growing out of their rights as its first dis coverers. Hence everything seemed to be settled upon a firm foundation, and all earnestness was employed [in the prosecu tion of the plans for a colony]. 8. Menewe's Outward Journey. As a good beginning the first colony was sent off, and Peter Menewe was placed over it, as being best acquainted in those regions. They set sail from Gothenburg in a ship-of-war, called the Key of Calmar, followed by a smaller vessel, bearing the name of the Bird Griffin, both laden with people, provisions, ammunition, and merchandise suitable for traffic and gifts to the Indians. The ships successfully reached their place of destination. The high expectations which our emigrants had conceived of that new land agreed exactly with the first views which they had of it. They made their first landing on the bay or entrance to the river Poutaxat,2 which they called the river of New Sweden, and the place where they landed they called Paradise Point.3 9. Purchase of Land. A purchase of land was immediately made from the Ind ians, and it was determined that the land on the western side 1 No records confirming this have been found. 2 Evidently the South (later Delaware) Bay and River. • A little south of the present Murderkill Creek, in Kent County, Delaware 1638] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 61 of the river, from the entrance called Cape Inlopen, or Hin- lopen,1 all the way up to the fall called Santickan2 and then all the country inland, as much as was desired, should belong to the Swedish crown forever.3 Posts were driven into the ground as landmarks, which were still seen in their places sixty years afterwards. A deed was drawn up for the land thus purchased. This was written in Dutch, because no Swede was yet able to interpret the language of the heathen. The Indians subscribed their hands and marks. The writing was sent home to Sweden, to be preserved in the royal archives. Mans Kling4 was the surveyor. He laid out the land and made a map of the whole river, with its tributaries, creeks, and capes, which was sent to the royal archives in Sweden. Their clergyman was Reoras Torkillus5 of East Gothland. 10. Christina the First Place of Abode. The first abode of the newly arrived emigrants was at a place called by the Indians Hopokahacking. There, in the year 1638, Peter Menuet built a fortress, which he named Fort Christina,6 after the reigning queen of Sweden. This place, situated upon the west side of the river, was probably chosen so as to be out of the way of the Hollanders, who wished to usurp the eastern shore — a measure of prudence, until the arrival of a greater force from Sweden. The fort was built 1 Henlopen. ' The Falls of Delaware at what is now Trenton. , •The north and south bounds of this first purchase from the Indians by Minuit in 1638 extended only from Christina Creek to the Schuylkill. * Mans Nilsson Kling, who is frequently mentioned in these narratives, came over in the first expedition to New Sweden in 1638 and was the commander of Fort Christina until 1640, when he returned to Sweden. He came back to the colony as lieutenant the following year. Later he was stationed at the fort near the mouth of the Schuylkill River where he continued until his final return to Sweden in 1648. 5 Rev. Reorus Torkillus (1608-1643), a native of Molndal, near Gothenburg, Sweden, attended school at Lidkoping and Skara. He was a lecturer at the high school of Gothenburg and chaplain to the superintendent. He arrived with the second expedition in 1640, conducting services in Fort Christina, thus be coming not only the first minister in New Sweden, but the first Lutheran pastor in the present United States. See Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, p. 697. 6 Now Wilmington, Delaware. 62 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1638 upon an eligible site, not far from the mouth of the creek, so as to secure them the navigable water of the Maniquas, which was afterwards called Christina Kihl, or Creek. 11. The Country Empty and Unoccupied. The country was unoccupied and free from the Hollanders. They had had two or three forts on the river — Fort Nassau, where Gloucester now stands, and another at Horekihl, down on the bay. But both of these were entirely destroyed by the Americans, and their people driven away. The following ex tract from the History of the New Netherland, which Adrian van der Donck published in the year 1655, with the license and privilege as well of the States General as of the West In dia Company, will serve as proof of this: The place is called Hore-kihl, but why so called we know not. But this is certain, that many years back, before the English and the Swedes came hither, it was taken up and settled as a colony by Hollanders, the arms of the States being at the same time set up in brass. These arms having been pulled down by the villany of the Indians, the commissary there resident demanded that the head of the perpetrator should be delivered to him. The Indians, unable to free themselves in any other way, brought him the head, which was accepted as a sufficient atonement. But some time afterwards, when we were at work in the fields, and unsuspicious of danger, the Indians came as friends, distributed themselves according to the number of the Hollanders [at the various plantations]; fell upon them and completely exterminated them. Thus was the colony exterminated, though sealed with blood, and dearly enough pur chased. 12. The Hollanders Protest. Notwithstanding all this the Hollanders believed that they had the best right to the Delaware River, yea, a better right than the Indians themselves. It was their object to secure at least all the land lying between said river and their New Amsterdam, where was their power, and which country they immediately called "The New Netherlands." But as their forces were still too weak, they always kept one or another of 1638] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 63 their people upon the east side of the river to watch any one who might visit the country. As soon, therefore, as Menuet landed with his Swedish company, notice of the fact was given to the Dutch Director-General in New Amsterdam. He waited for some time, until he could ascertain Menuet's pur pose; but when it appeared that a fortress was being erected for the Swedes, the following protest arrived: Thursday, May 6, 1638. I, William Kieft, Director-General of the New Netherlands, residing upon the island of Manhattan, in the Fort Amsterdam, under the government subject to the High and Mighty States General of the United Netherlands, and the West India Company, chartered by the Council Chamber in Amsterdam, make known to you, Peter Menuet, who style yourself Commander in the service of Her Royal Majesty, the Queen of Sweden, that the whole South River of the New Netherlands, both above and below, has already, for many years, been our property, occupied by our forts, and sealed with our blood; which was also done when you were a servant in the New Netherlands, and you are, therefore, well aware of this. But whereas you have now come between our forts to build a fortress to our injury and prejudice, which we shall never permit; as we are also assured that Her Royal Majesty of Sweden has never given you authority to build forts upon our rivers and coasts, nor to settle people on the land, nor to traffic in peltries, nor to undertake any thing to our injury: We do, therefore, protest against all the injury to property, and all the evil consequences of bloodshed, uproar, and wrong which our Trading Company may thus suffer: And that we shall protect our rights in such manner as we may find most advisable. Then follows the [usual] conclusion. 13. Another Proof of this. In his history of the New Netherlands, at the place already cited, Adrian van der Donck likewise relates how protest was made against the building of Fort Christina, but there also he gives evidence that the strength of the Hollanders in the river on the first arrival of the Swedes consisted almost entirely in great words. He says: 64 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1638 On the river lies, first, Maniqua's Kihl, where the Swedes have built Fort Christina, where large ships can load and unload at the shore. There is another place on the river called Schulkihl, which is also navigable. That, also, was formerly under the control of the Hollanders, but is now mostly under the government of the Swedes. In that river [Delaware] there are various islands and other places formerly belonging to the Hollanders, whose name they still bear, which sufficiently shows that the river belongs to the Hollanders, and not to the Swedes. Their very commencement will convict them. For in the year 1638 one Minnewits, who had formerly acted as Director for the Trading Company at Manhatans, came into the river in the ship Key of Colmar, and the yacht called the Bird Griffin. He gave out to the Hollander, Mr. van der Nederhorst, the agent of the West India Company in the South River, that he was on a voyage to the West India islands, and that he was staying there only to take in wood and water. Whereupon said Hollander allowed him to go free. But, some time after, some of our people going thither found him still there, and he had planted a garden, and the plants were growing in it. In astonishment we asked the reasons for such procedure, and if he intended to stay there ? He tried to escape from answering by various excuses, and gave us thus no information. The third time they found them occupied with building a fort. Then we saw their purpose. As soon as he was informed of it, Director Kieft protested against it, but in vain. 14. Peter Hollendare Menewe's Successor. Thus Peter Menuet made a good beginning for the settle ment of the Swedish colony in America. He guarded his little fort for over three years,1 and the Hollanders neither at tempted, nor were able to overthrow it. After some years of faithful service he died at Christina.1 In his place followed Peter Hollendare, a native Swede, who did not remain at the head of its affairs more than a year and a half.2 He returned home, to Sweden, and was a major at Skepsholm, in Stock holm, in the year 1655. 1 These are errors; Minuit remained only a few months in New Sweden and died the same year, 1638, in the West Indies on his return voyage to Sweden. 2 Peter Hollender Ridder, the second governor of New Sweden, 1640-1643. See post, p. 98. 16421 ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 65 CHAPTER II The Administration under Governor Printz. 1. The Second Swedish Colony. The second emigration took place under Lieutenant-Colonel John Printz, who went out with the appointment of Governor of New Sweden. He had a grant of four hundred rix-dollars1 for his travelling expenses, and one thousand two hundred dol lars, silver money, as his annual salary. The Company was invested with the exclusive privilege of importing tobacco into Sweden, although that article was even then regarded as unnecessary and injurious, although indispensable since the establishment of the bad habit of its use. Upon the same occasion was also sent out Magister John Campanius Holm,2 who was invited by His Excellency, Member of the Royal Council and Admiral, Claes Flemming, to become the govern ment chaplain, and watch over the Swedish congregation. The ship on which they sailed was called the Fama. It went from Stockholm to Gothenburg, and there took in its freight. Along with this went two other ships of the line, the Swan and the Charitas, laden with people and other neces saries. During the period of Governor Printz ships came to the colony at three different times. The first ship was the Black Cat, with ammunition, and merchandise for the Indians. Next the ship Swan, a second time, with emigrants, in the year 1647. Again two [other] ships, the Key and the Lamp.3 During these times the clergymen, Mr. Lawrence Charles Lockenius * and Mr. Israel Holgh, were sent out to the colony. 5. Intrusion of the Hollanders. The Hollanders intruded upon the Swedes in their traffic with the Indians, and Printz, therefore, sought to keep them under. In the name of the High and Mighty States General 1 About $500, United States currency, or nearly $2,500 in an equivalent value of our time; the Swedish riksdaler being equal to about $1.25 at that period and about five times as much now. 2 See post, p. 110, note 2. * No Lamp is known and the order of the ships is incorrect. ' Rev. Lars Carlsson Lock. See post, p. 150. 66 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1646 and of the West India Company, under which all their trans actions were carried on, they had never bought as much as a foot's breadth of land; but from time to time sent in some private persons, to treat with the heathen on their own ac count, and thus tried to find out how the Swedes would like it. In the year 1646 came one Thomas Broen with a permit from Peter Stuyvesant, the Holland Director at New Amsterdam, to settle himself at Mantas Huck,1 on the other side of the bay, directly opposite Tenakongh. This permit he showed to Governor Printz, and desired his aid in the building of his abode. The Governor promised this upon condition that he would place himself under the Swedish government. But when he saw beneath this the trick of the Hollanders, he him self bought of the Indians the land from Mantas Huck to Nar ration's, or Raccoon's Kihl,2 and raised upon it a post to which the Swedish coat-of-arms was affixed, whereby the plan of the Hollanders was frustrated for the time. 6. Further about this Matter. Andries Hudde, appointed commandant ad interim at Fort Nassau on October 12, 1645, protested in writing against Printz's land-purchase of September 8, 1646, and gave infor mation of the same to the Director, Peter Stuyvesant, namely, that Governor Printz sought to procure for himself all the land east of the river also; that if he could make himself master of both sides, it was probable that he would export annually thirty or forty thousand beaver skins. Now, as the Holland Company's treasury was entirely empty, and the Hollanders saw that they had no time to lose, they resorted to another plan. Some freemen — Simon Ruth, Cornelius Marizen, Peter Hermansson, Andries Hudde, Alexander Boyer, and David Davids — united together and purchased of the Indians a piece of land extending from Ancocus Kihl 3 to Tenakongh Island,* another place higher up on the river than where the Governor 1 Mantes, or Mantua Hook, on the east side of the Delaware, a long half league below Fort Nassau, but above Tinicum. ' Raccoon Creek, in New Jersey, opposite Marcus Hook, in Pennsylvania. * Now Rancocas Creek, New Jersey. ' This island is near the present Burlington, New Jersey. 1651] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 67 had his residence, and also took a title therefor; but with the reservation that if the Company wished to purchase it for themselves for the same amount, they would renounce their claim. Governor Printz protested against this as an unbecom ing proceeding, which protest also Hudde sent over to New Amsterdam. Peter Stuyvesant, in his answer, complains of their inability to maintain their rights, and promises money to buy all the land from Narraticon's Kihl x to the bay, which, however, was never done. 7. The Hollanders' Purchase of Land, and Building of Fort Casimir. Governor Printz had blocked up the passage of the Hol landers to Fort Nassau by water, but they devised another method of evading his superior power. They entered into a treaty with the Indians for the land which lies between Mani- qua's or Minqua's Kihl and the river, as far as Bombe's Huck or Bambo Hook 2 (Canarosse), and concluded the purchase on July 19, 1651. That agreement was the only one which had yet been made in the name of the States General and the West India Company. But by that they bought the land which the Minquesses had already, in Menewe's time, sold to the Swedes, and it is therefore unreasonable to believe that the true owners of the land subscribed that bill of sale. Imme diately after this Fort Casimir 3 was built at Sandhuk. Gov ernor Printz protested strongly against it; but either he had not the means of hindering it, or had not time for it, and so the matter rested. 8. The Injury Remedied by the Building of Elfsborg. To remedy the injury which the Hollanders inflicted by Fort Casimir, Governor Printz erected upon the place called Wootsessung Sing another Swedish fort, [which he called] Elfsborg,4 one Swedish mile below Sandhuk, and two miles be- 1 Narraticon's Kill, now Raccoon Creek, New Jersey. 2 Bombay Hook. * Now New Castle, Delaware. 1 Fort Nya Elfsborg was built by the Swedes in 1643, eight years before the Dutch built Fort Casimir. 68 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 low Christina, [but] on the eastern shore, from which that dis trict of country was in former times, and even now is, called Elsingborg. From this was fired a Swedish salute upon the arrival of Swedish ships. But its principal object was to search the Holland ships which came before it, and (which stuck very hard in their maw) to make them lower their flag. The fort was afterwards abandoned by the Swedes and de stroyed, as it was almost impossible to live there on account of the gnats (myggor); whence it was for some time called Myggenborg. 9. Other Forts. Besides these there were Fort Korsholm,1 at Passayunk, where the commander, Sven Schute,2 had his residence. Mana- yungh,3 on the Skorkihl, or Skulkihl, [was] a fine little fort of logs, having sand and stones filled in between the woodwork, and surrounded by palisades, four Swedish miles 4 from Chris tina, eastwardly. Mecoponacka, Upland 5 [was] two Swedish miles from Christina, and one mile from Gothenburg, upon the river shore, a level plain, with some houses and a fort. 10. Other Places. Other places were only well known, and not fortified. Chinsessing," a place upon the Schuylkill, where five families of freemen dwelt together in houses two stories high, built of whitenut tree, which was at that time regarded as the best material for building houses, but in later times was altogether 1 Fort Nya Korsholm (1647-1653) was not at Passayunk but on the present Province or Fisher's Island, to the west of the mouth of lie Schuylkill River. 2 Sven Skute. See post, p. 112, note 1. ' Another name for Fort Nya Korsholm or its site. 'About twenty-seven English miles, a Swedish mile being slightly more than six and a half English miles. 6 Now Chester, Pennsylvania, about thirteen English miles from Christina, but rather less than half a Swedish mile — say three English miles — from New Gothenburg, or Fort Nya Goteborg, on Tinicum Island. • Kingsessing, the district about the creek of that name, also at a later time, at least, called Minquas Kill or Creek, a western affluent of the Schuylkill, near the mouth of the river. Wasa or Nya Wasa (c. 1645) was on the north side of this creek. 1655] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 69 disapproved of. Karakung J [had] the watermill,8 which the Governor had built for the people, which was the first in the country. Chamassung,3 also called Finland, a district where the Finns dwelt by the waterside, and Neaman's Kihl,4 one and a quarter miles from Christina. Manathaan,5 or Cooper's Island, was an island below Fort Christina, so called by a cooper, who dwelt there with two Hollanders, and made casks, or wooden vessels and small boats. Techoherassi " — Olof Stifle's place — Gripsholm,7 Nya Wasa,8 etc., which are marked upon the oldest maps, were places laid out and planned, but did not get established under the Swedish aclministration.' 11. To what Land the Swedes had a Right, partly by Purchase and partly by Agreement. The land on the west side of the river, which the Swedes had purchased of the heathen, already in Menewe's time, and afterwards under Governor Printz, or had acquired a right to by agreement, stretched from Cape Hinlopen to the Falls of the Delaware, and thence westward to the Great Fall in the river Susquehanna, near the mouth of the Conewaga Creek.10 1 Karakong, now Cobbs Creek. 2Molndal, or the Swedes mill, on the Karakong Kill, or present Cobbs Creek, was erected in 1645 and was the first water mill within the limits of Penn sylvania or Delaware. Its site may still be seen at the rocks on the east bank of the stream near the Blue Bell Inn on the road from Philadelphia to Darby. 5 Chammassungh or Finland, where the Finns dwelt, was on the west side of the Delaware River, between the present Marcus Hook in Pennsylvania and the mouth of Naaman's Creek just over the circular state line in Delaware. ' Now Naaman's Creek; about eight English miles from Christina. " Now called Cherry Island Marsh, but no longer an island. » On the Delaware at the north side of the present Ridley Creek, now Eddy- stone Borough. 'Thought to be a corruption of Korsholm (Fort Nya Korsholm); it first appears on Visscher's (a Dutch) map of about 1655. 8 On Minquas Kill or Kingsessing Creek, a western affluent of the Schuylkill near the mouth of the river. * These places were established by the Swedes. 10 It is doubtful if the Swedes purchased land from the Indians thus far from the Delaware. The Great Falls of Susquehanna River or Conewago Falls are a manifestation of the river's cleavage of the South Mountain range, the southeastern wall of the Great Valley of Pennsylvania and Virginia. They begin on a line directly opposite the mouth of Conewago Creek, the boundary between 70 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 These Indians were called, by Europeans in general, Delawares, but within a circle of eighteen miles J around the Swedes, there were ten or eleven separate tribes, each having its own Sackhe- man, or king. Among these were especially the Minesinkos,2 the Mynkusses, or Minequesses,3 upon the so-called Maniquas, or Minqua's Kihl (Christina), with whom the Swedes formed a special friendship. These extended twelve Swedish miles * into the interior of the country, on to the Conestoga and the Susquehanna, where they had a fort 6 which was a square sur rounded by palisades, with some iron pieces on a hill, and some houses within it. But some of them were with the Swedes every day, who also, once or twice in a year, made a journey up into the country among the Minequesses, with their wares for sale. The road was very difficult, over sharp gray stones, morasses, hills, and streams, which can still be very well seen by those who travel between Christina and Lancaster. the present Lancaster and Dauphin counties, on the east side of the river, and extend about three-quarters of a mile down the river, not quite so far as the mouth of the other Conewago Creek in York County on the west side of the river. The total descent of the falls is fifteen feet. 1 If Swedish miles are implied the distance would be 118 English miles. 2 The Minsi or Minisinks, a sub-tribe of the Lenni Lenape or Delawares, occupied the northern region of the Delaware River with its affluent, the Lehigh River. The Swedish activity did not reach into this region. * The Minquas Indians were not regular inhabitants of the Delaware River and the Minquas Kill or Christina Creek, as Acrelius indicates. They were of Iroquoian stock, as previously stated, living in the lower Susquehanna Valley and to the northwest and from time to time held the Lenni Lenape, or Delaware River Indians in subjection, travelling at intervals from the Susquehanna to the Dela ware for hunting and fishing, for war or for trade with the whites. See ante, p. 23, and post, p. 103. 1 About seventy-eight English miles. 5 The important fort of the White Minquas or Susquehanna Indians during the Swedish and Dutch regime on the Delaware, was on the west side of Susque hanna River, near the present Mount Wolf, York County, Pennsylvania, at the south side of the mouth of Conewago Creek, just below the stoppage of navigation by the Great Falls. The "present" fort of the Susquehanna Indians is depicted at the above place as a group of wigwams in a circular stockade, on Augustine Hemnan's map, of 1670. Doubtless it was from this fort that the Great Trading Path of the Minquas led across what is now Lancaster, Chester and Delaware counties to Kingsessing Creek or the Upper Minquas Kill at Schuylkill River. Another fort of these Indians was lower down the Susquehanna on the east bank, on the north side of Octoraro Creek, in Cecil County, Maryland. 1655] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 71 12. Proof of this. The old Indians still remember the treaties which their forefathers made with the Swedes, as also how far they were disposed to open their land to them. Of this it may serve as evidence to introduce the following extract from the minutes of the treaty made in Lancaster: The Court-House in Lancaster, June 26, 1744, p. m. Present. — Hon. George Thomas, Esq., Lieutenant-Governor of Pennsylvania, etc.; the Hon. Commissioners of Virginia; the Hon. Commissioners of Maryland; the Deputies of the Six Nations of Indians. Conrad Weiser, Interpreter. Canasatego, the Indians' spokesman, spoke as follows: Brother, the Governor of Maryland: When you spoke of the condition of the country yesterday, you went back to old times, and told us you had been in possession of the province of Maryland above one hundred years. But what is one hundred years in com parison to the length of time since our claim began ? — since we came up out of this ground ? For we must tell you that, long before one hundred years, our ancestors came out of this ground, and their children have remained here ever since. You came out of the ground in a country which lies on the other side of the big lake; there you have claim, but here you must allow us to be your elder brethren, and the lands to belong to us long before you knew any thing of them. It is true that, about one hundred years ago, a Ger man 1 ship came hither and brought with them various articles, such as awls, knives, hatchets, guns, and many other things, which they gave us. And when they had taught us to use these things, and we saw what kind of a people they were, we were so well pleased with them that we tied their ships to the bushes on the shore. And afterwards, liking them still better, and the more the longer they stayed with us, thinking that the bushes were too weak, we changed the place of the rope, and fastened it to the trees. And as the trees might be overthrown by a storm, or fall down of themselves, (for the friendship we had for them) we again changed the place of the rope, and bound it to a very strong cliff. Here the Interpreter2 1 "The Dutch came here in a ship" is the version in the official report in the published Colonial Records of Pennsylvania, IV. 1 At this point Acrelius has omitted a bit of the speech which is supplied from the official Colonial Records of Pennsylvania, IV., as follows: "[here the inter preter explained that they meant the Oneida country.] And not content with this, for their further security, we removed the rope to the big mountains." 72 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 said, They mean the land of Onondago. There we fastened it very securely, and rolled wampum around it. For still greater security, we stood upon the wampum, and sat upon it to guard it, and to prevent all injury, and we took the greatest care to keep it unin jured for all time. As long as that stood, the newly-arrived Germans l recognized our right to the country, and from time to time urged us to give them portions of our land, and that they might enter into a union and treaty with us, and become one people with us.2 That this is more correctly said of the Swedes than of the Hollanders can be inferred from this, that the Hollanders never made such a purchase from them as to include their whole country, which the Swedes did; yet the English are rather disposed to explain this in favor of the Hollanders. The savages regarded both the Swedes and Hollanders, being Europeans, as one people, and looked upon their quarrels as disagreements between private families. 13. How Purchases of Land were made from the Heathen. Purchases of land from the savages were made in this way: Both parties set their names and marks under the purchase- contract. Two witnesses were also taken from among the Christians. When these made their oath that they were present at the transaction, and had seen the payment made, then the purchase was valid. If the kings or chiefs of the Ind ians signed such an agreement in the presence of a number of their people, then it was legitimate on their side. In for mer times they were quite faithful, although oaths were not customary among them. But it was not so in later times, after they had had more intercourse with Christians. Payments were made in awls, needles, scissors, knives, axes, guns, powder and balls, together with blankets of frieze or felt, which they wrap around themselves. One blanket suffices for their dress. The same wares they purchased for themselves, for their skins of beavers, raccoons, sables, gray foxes, wildcats, lynxes, bears, and deer. 1 Dutch, according to Colonial Records, IV. ' Acrelius omits the remainder of the speech. 1654] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 73 14. The Indians a Dissatisfied People. It is true the savages sold their lands at a low rate, but they were a discontented people, who, at no great intervals, must have new gifts of encouragement, if their friendship was to remain firm. Such they always have been, and still are. As they regarded the Swedes and the Hollanders as one people, it was all the same to them which of them had their land, pro vided only that they frequently got bribes. Three years after Governor Printz 's arrival, as gifts were withheld, and Swedish ships came but seldom, the Indians murmured that they did not receive more, and that the Swedes had no more goods for their traffic. Then there came out a rumor that the savages had a mind to fall upon and exterminate them. This went so far that in the year 1654 their sackkeman sent out his son, called his elders together, and had a consultation as to what was to be done. But as they regarded the Swedes as a war like people, who had better not be irritated, as also that they had dealt justly with them, and were shortly expecting other ships with costly wares, they therefore laid aside all hostile thoughts, and confirmed anew their former friendship. 15. They frequency visited the Swedes. After the Christians came in, and the savages gave over their country to them, the latter withdrew farther into the forests in the interior of the country. But it was their habit and custom, at certain times of the year, to come forth in great numbers to visit the Swedes, and trade with them. That was done for the most part after they had planted their maize, namely, in the month of June, and so they remained for some time of the summer, when they gathered wild pease, which grew along the river, and dried them. These pease, in their language, were called Tachy. The Indians were not troublesome, as in the meantime they supported themselves by fishing and hunting, which custom they kept until within fifty years since. These tribes were the Delawares and Myn- quesses, or Minnesinks, who called the Swedes their brothers. Sometimes there came with them some of that race which the Swedes called Flatheads, for their heads were flat on the 74 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1654 crown. These were dangerous, and murdered people, when they found anyone alone in the woods. They first struck the person on the head, so that he either died or swooned, after which they took off the skin of the head, after which some persons might revive again. That is called scalping, and is still in use among all the American Indians, and the skin of the head is called a scalp, which is their usual token of victory. An old Swedish woman, called the mother of Lars Burg, living at Chinsessing,1 had the misfortune to be scalped in this man ner, yet lived many years thereafter, and became the mother of several children. No hair grew on her head again, except short down. On their account the people were compelled to live close together, as also to have stories on their houses pro vided with loop-holes.2 By their intercourse with the savages the Swedes became well acquainted with the Indian language, and there are still a few of the older ones who express them selves quite well in it. The savages stayed much with Olof Stille at Techoheraffi, and were very fond of the old man; b.ut they made a monster of his thick black beard, from which also they gave him a special name.3 16. Governor Printz chastises the Hollanders, and searches their Ships. Governor Printz, for some time, played the master in the river of New Sweden, and held the Hollanders under him, al though he did not exterminate them. Adrian van der Donck, in the passage before cited, testifies how he chastised them at Fort Elfsborg: The Swedish governor, thinking that now is the right time, has built a fort called Elsingborg. There he holds a high hand over each and all, even over the vessels of our Trading Company, 2 Apparently blockhouses. » Olof or Olle Stille", millwright, of Techoheraffi, at the mouth of OUe Still's Kill, now Ridley Creek, at the present borough of Eddystone, Pennsylvania, was a native of Roslagen, in the parish of Lanna, and Penningsby Court, in Sweden, and came over in 1641. His descendant the late Charles J. Stills was provost of the University of Pennsylvania, and president of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. 1646] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 75 and all those who sail up into the South River, compelling them to strike their flags, without exception. He sends two men on board to inquire where they come from. Which is scarcely better than searching us, to which we expect it will come at last. We cannot understand what right those people, the Swedes, have to act so; or how the officers of another power, as these give themselves out to be with full powers, can take upon themselves such high authority over another people's lands and wares, which they have so long had in possession, and sealed with their own blood: especially as we hold it by a charter. 17. Causes the Arms of the States General to be torn down. The Holland commander had erected the arms of the States General upon the shore of the river, but the Swedish Governor ordered them to be torn down. A Swedish lieutenant was bold enough to perform this errand at Santhickan, now the town of Trenton, where the falls of the river are. When the Hollanders asked him, "How dare you do such a thing?" he answered, "If the very standard of the States General stood there, it would be treated in the same manner." This was done on September 8, 1646. Adrian van der Donck refers to this in the passage before cited, where he says: A further proof: Above Maghchachansie or Mechakanzjiaa, at Santhickan, the arms of their High Mightinesses were erected, in consequence of Director Kieft's orders, as a token that the river and all its parts belonged to the dominion, and were the property of the States. But what advantage had we from this? Nothing else than shame, and a diminution of our honor. For the Swedes, in their intolerable haughtiness, threw them down, and now, whilst we keep quiet, they think that they have performed a manly deed. Al though we have protested against that and various other trespasses, they regard it no more than as if a crow should fly over their heads. If the Swedish Governor gets reinforcements in time, we should have more to fear from him than from the English, or any of their governors. That is in brief what relates to the Swedes, whereof the Company's servants could give fuller information, to whose journals and documents we appeal. 76 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1642 18. The Swedes and Hollanders unite in driving out the English. However jealous the Hollanders were of the Swedes for the advantages which they thus gained, and however they con tended with each other for these things, yet they were united as often as it came to shutting the English out of the river. Already in those times the Englishman sought to settle him self on those coasts, and had so far a claim to it as the western shore was regarded as the rear of Virginia, although the times then gave him the best right who had the most strength. The year before Governor Printz landed, the English had fortified a place upon the Schulkihl, to drive out whom the commis sary at Fort Nassau received the following orders: May 22, 1642. Instructions for Jan Jansson Upendam, commissary of the West In dia Company, how to conduct himself upon the South River of the Netherlands: So soon as the sloops Real and S. Martin arrive, he, the said Jan Jansson Upendam, shall repair to both or either of the said sloops (and, if he finds it necessary, he shall collect as great a force as he is able), and go into the Schulkihl, to the place which the English have lately taken possession of, and immediately land there, and demand their orders, and by what authority they under take to rob us of our land and trade. If they have no royal au thority, which expressly commands them to set themselves down upon our boundaries, or a copy of the same, he shall compel them, in a polite manner, to remove, so that no blood may be shed. If they refuse this, he shall take them in custody, and convey them on board the sloops, and in other respects see to it that he may main tain the supremacy, and protect the honor of their High Mighti nesses, as also of the Most Honorable the West India Company. When the English are either taken or driven away, he shall com pletely demolish the place. The said Jan Jansson shall also see to it that the English are not injured in their property, of which a full inventory shall be made out in their presence. Done in our Council in the Fort of Amsterdam, and given as aforesaid. 19. Proof thereof. That the Swedes at such occasions gave assistance [to the Dutch] and probably did the most [for its accomplishment], 1646] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 77 is also testified by Adrian van der Donck in the place often referred to, although he is greatly mistaken as to the situation of the place. There lies another creek on the eastern shore, three miles down below the mouth of the river, called Varckens Kihl, where some English setded, but Director Kieft drove them away, and protested against them, being in part supported by the Swedes; for they had both agreed to drive the English away (page 39). The English have, at various times, and in various places, striven to master that river, to which they insist that they have the best right. This has thus far been prevented by protests and forcible expulsion, well knowing that if we allow them to establish themselves, the river will be lost, or we shall be put to great inconvenience, as they will swarm into it in great crowds. It is given out as certain, that many English families are now on their way thither. But if they once get a firm footing, it will soon be all over with both Hollanders and Swedes; at all events, we shall lose part [of the land], if reinforcements are not speedily sent. 20. The Weakness of the Hollanders. It now seems that it may be reasonably concluded that the strength of the Hollanders in the river was considerable, seeing that they could effect so much; but these movements did not mean much. A few unarmed English families might be driven out of the country by a small force. On the contrary, they neither drove any trade at that time, nor had they any mili tary force, which reflected the least honor on the commandant. 21. Proof of this. The commandant and commissary, Jan Jansson Upendam, who commanded at Fort Nassau, was, on October 12, 1646, called to New Amsterdam, to render an account of goods which he had on hand, for both the West India Company and some private persons. Andries Hudde was sent to Fort Nas sau to examine his books, and return such goods as were un necessary, but was himself to remain as commandant until further orders, and repair the fort that same year. The maga zine was in no better condition than that Upendam in his 78 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1654 account specifies [the receipt of] only two bales of Harlem cloth, and two beaver-skins, which he had on hand during his time, and that was all that he was now to account for. 22. Further Proof. Neither could that command have been of much honor or revenue. Andries Hudde, who had been appointed as com mander ad interim at Fort Nassau, petitioned the Governor and his Council in New Amsterdam, on December 31, 1654, that he might be employed as schoolmaster for New Amster dam, but the matter was referred to the preachers and their consistory. A singular change from commander to school master! But neither would that take shape, for in the year 1660 he was secretary to the Governor at Altona [Christina], and at the same time sexton of the church. 23. The Maintenance of the Budget. The support of the Governor and of the garrison amounted annually to twenty-six hundred and nineteen rix-dollars,1 to be drawn from the excise on tobacco in Sweden, and as the income from this did not amount to so much, the Crown's third of all confiscated tobacco was added to it, as also the fines for the offence. If any loss occurred in the management, it was to be made up out of the department of the excise. All the merchant dise which was brought from Holland to Gothenburg, to be shipped to New Sweden, together with all the tobacco and pel tries from New Sweden, were to go free of duty. But the tobacco which the Company imported from Holland was to be subject to a duty. 24. Governor Printz returns Home, and leaves the Administra tion to John Papegoija. Governor Printz indeed saw the weakness of the Hollanders, but pradence suggested to him doubts as to how long that might continue, and what might follow thereafter. He looked 1 About $3,273 United States currency, in values «f that period, or about $15,368 now. 1648] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 79 upon New Amsterdam as a place from which a sudden thunder ing and lightning might burst forth. No doubt he was strong enough to drive the Hollanders out of the river, but how he was afterwards to preserve his advantages he did not know. He had not for a long time had a message from home. The reinforcements which he expected were delayed until his hope turned into despair. Neither were the Indians a people to be much relied upon. As long as the Swedes had anything that they wanted, everything was well; but without that, mur murs and mKunderstandings were heard. Some persons were sent home to Sweden with representations in regard to the existing state of affairs, together with complaints concerning the intrusions by his neighbors, among whom the old Skute J was one. But Governor Printz was afraid that he should have to wait too long; he had not patience to wait for either answer or reinforcement, and therefore, in the year 1652, returned home to Sweden, after he had been in the country ten years. In his place he appointed his son-in-law, Mr. John Papegoija, as Vice-Governor Chapter III. 18. The Fortune of the Priesthood. The Christian work which had been aimed at by the send ing out of five ministers, at the same time received a lamentable check. The Rev. Reorus Torkillus, of East Gothland, who came over with Commandant Menewe, ended his days in Fort Christina, on September 7, 1643. The Rev. John Campanius Holmensis remained no longer than six years, during which time, however, he was very zealous in learning the nature of the country and the language of the heathen, and since he had much intercourse with the wild people, therefore a tradition is still circulated that he travelled up into the interior among them, and so went by land home to Sweden. From his journal, it is seen that he sailed from Elfsborg, in New Sweden, on May 18, and reached Stockholm on July 3, 1648, an uncommonly quick voyage. The Rev. Israel Holgh and Mr. Peter2 followed some years after. Mr. Lars Lock was the only one who re mained in the country, and took care of the poor and scattered 1 Swen Skute. ' Rev. Peter Hjort. 80 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1688 Swedes, preaching at Tenakong and Fort Christina until the day of his death, in the year 1688. 19. The Fortune of the Tenacon Church. Vice-Governor John Papegoija's wife was a daughter of Governor Printz. She lived for many years in the country, residing upon her father's estate at Tenacongh, and preferred calling herself Armegot Printz rather than Madame Papegoija. They still tell of the lady at Tenacong, how haughty she was, and how she oppressed the poor when she was in prosperity, although it is uncertain whether or not she deserved these re proaches. It is, however, true that she, for a considerable time before her return to Sweden, enjoyed a pension from the Holland government. It is reported that, out of contempt for the Swedes, she sold along with her farm the church which was built upon it, as also the bell, to a Hollander. However that may be, they had to buy their bell back again by two days' reaping in harvest time, after Madame Armegot had gone away. The church was used without hindrance until 1700. Perhaps the bell was not excepted in the bill of sale, although the following obligation was given: Copy. Laus Deo, May 24, 1673. I, the undersigned, Armegot Printz, acknowledge to have transferred to the congregation of the adherents of the Augsburg Confession in this place, the bell that has been on Tennakong, that they may do therewith what pleases them, and promise to keep them free from all claims that are made. Before the undersigned witnesses. Given as above. Armegot Printz. His mark, P. K. Peter Koce. His mark, X Jonas Nilsson. The English, during these changes, had not forgotten their pretensions to the country, but were in the way of coming to an understanding with Sweden in regard to the trade with 1655] ACRELIUS'S NEW SWEDEN 81 America, which now, by the intervention of the Hollanders, was entirely broken off. Finally it came to pass that the Crown of Sweden had to relinquish its West India trade entirely to the English, from which it can be concluded that they did not at that time think of leaving the Hollanders much longer upon the Delaware. In like manner, also, arrangements for peace were made with the Republic of Holland, after which no Swedish flag was ever again seen upon the coast of America, and it is a question, whether or not Sweden was ever given satisfaction for the losses she suffered on the Delaware. AFFIDAVIT OF FOUR MEN FROM THE KET OF CALMAR, 1638 INTRODUCTION This graphic bit of narrative, the sailors' own tale of how the first Swedish expedition arrived in Christina Creek, and how the Indians ceded their land to the newcomers, was sworn to before an Amsterdam notary in the same year, 1638, and is prime historical evidence. The original manuscript, which is a German translation of the Dutch original made at the same time and signed by the same notary, was found in the Kammararkiv (Archives of the Exchequer) in Stock holm, Sweden, by Dr. Amandus Johnson, who translated it. It is here printed for the first time in translation, but a fac simile of the original German manuscript is given in Dr. Johnson's Swedish Settlements, between pp. 184 and 185. Of the four men of the Key of Calmar making this report, two were Dutchmen. The one, Michell Simonssen, the mate, "a fine honest man, well acquainted with the coast of North America from previous voyages," was from Zaandam; the other, Peter Johanssen, the upper boatswain, was from the Beemster. The gunner, Johan Joachimssen, was also probably Dutch. Jacob Evertssen Sandelin, the second mate, was a Scotchman, and later figures in New Sweden as the mate of the ship Charitas on the third expedition to the colony in 1641- 1642. About 1644 he seems to have come into a ship of his own, called the Scotch Dutchman, in which he traded to New Amsterdam, bringing a large cargo of goods to Governor Printz in 1645. A. C. M. So AFFIDAVIT OF FOUR MEN FROM THE KEY . OF CALMAR, 1638 Be it known by the contents of this open instrument, to everyone, especially however to him whose business it is to know, that on the 29th of December, in the year sixteen hun dred and thirty-eight, appeared personally in the presence of the witnesses named below, before me Peter Ruttens, the re siding public notary in the city of Amsterdam, admitted and sworn by the Supreme Court in Holland, the mate Michell Simonss., from Sardam,1 about the age of fifty-four years; the gunner Johan Joachimss., about the age of thirty years; the second mate, Jacob Evertss. Sandelin from Scotland, about the age of thirty-eight years; the upper boatswain, Peter Johanss., from the Bemster,2 about the age of twenty-seven years; all four of whom, in the abovementioned respective capacities, have lately served on the ship called the Key of Calmar, and have come with her from West India to this coun try. And the testimony was produced [at the instance of Peter Spiring] 3 that the abovementioned mate, together with the director Peter Minuit, the skipper Johan von de Water and; the former upper boatswain Andress Lucassen and still other officers of the ship's-council, were on this ship, and an examina tion was made by order of the honorable Mr. Peter Spiring, Lord of Norsholm, financial councillor of the worshipful crown of Sweden, and resident of the same in the Hague, and [the above witnesses] have on their manly word and on their con- 1 Zaandam in Holland, a town about six miles northwest of Amsterdam. 'Beemster, a town twelve miles north of Amsterdam, in Holland, in the midst of a district called the Beemster, formerly a lake, which by 1612 was re claimed from the sea largely through the active interest of Willem Usselinx, later the leader in the initial steps of the New Sweden movement. * Peter Spiring Silfverkrona (d. 1652), son of a wealthy Dutch merchant, went into the service of the Swedish government. In 1635 he was sent as a repre sentative of Swedish interests to Holland. See Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settle ments, pp. 695-696, and passim. 86 1638] AFFIDAVIT OF FOUR SAILORS 87 science without and by the confirmation of a sworn oath, affirmed it to be true [as here related]. And at first the above mentioned Michell Simonss. and Johan Joachimss. related in what manner they, in this now ending year, sailed on the abovementioned ship so far into the South River that they came to and by another river, the Minquas Kil,1 which they also in like manner sailed into. And they made their presence known with all kinds of signs, both by the firing of cannon and otherwise, and also sailed several miles into the same [Minquas] river, and went into the country, but neither found nor ob served any sign or vestige of Christian people. Neither did they meet nor see any Christian people; whereupon the above- mentioned Director Peter Minuit requested and caused the nations or people to whom the land really belonged to come before him, whom he then asked, if they wished to sell the river, with all the land lying about there, as many days' journeys as he would request. This they agreed to with the common consent of the nations. The parties were therefore agreed with one another, and thereupon, on the twenty-ninth of March of the above year, appeared and presented themselves before the abovementioned ship's council, in the name of their nations or people, five Sachems or princes, by the name of Mattahom,2 Mitot Schemingh,3 Era Packen, Mahamen, and Chiton, some being present [on behalf] of the Ermewormahi,4 the others on behalf of the Mante s and Minqua * nations. And these sachems or princes, at the same time and place, in the presence of the whole ship's council and hence also of the two first-named witnesses, ceded, transported, and transferred 1 Now Christina Creek. 1 Mattahom, also Amattahorn, possibly of the Delaware Indians of the sub- tribe of the Ermewarmoki mentioned below, who is said to have sold land at the Schuylkill to the Dutchman Arent Corsen in 1633, granted land at the Sandhook, later Fort Casimir, to Stuvyesant in 1651. ' Mitotschemingh or Mitasemint was a chief mentioned in several land transactions with the Dutch and Swedes. He was dead by July, 1651. 4 The Ermewarmoki, also called Eriwoms, Arwames, Ermomex, and Armeo- mecks, apparently a tribe of the Lenni Lenape or Delaware River Indians located near the present Gloucester, New Jersey. » The Mantes of the Delaware or Lenni Lenape tribes were doubtless lo cated on or near the Mantes Kill, the present Mantua Creek, New Jersey, nearly opposite Tinicum Island. • The Minquas or Susquehanna Indians. 88 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1638 all the land, as many days' journeys on all places and parts of the river as they requested; upwards and on both sides. Be cause, however, they did not understand our language, the abovementioned Andress Lucassen, who had before this lived long in the country and who knew their language, translated the same into their speech. Thereupon they all unanimously with one another declared in what manner they transported, ceded, and transferred the said land with all its jurisdiction, sovereignty, and rights to the Swedish Florida Company1 under the protection and patronage of the most illustrious and most mighty Princess and Virgin Christina, elected Queen of the Swedes, Goths and Wends. At the same time they acknowl edged that they, to their satisfaction, were paid and fully com pensated for it by good and proper merchandise, which was delivered and given to them in the personal presence of the abovementioned witnesses and of others of the [ship's] coun cil. The two first-mentioned witnesses and attestors affirm that they have heard and seen all this, and were present as witnesses. Thus the abovementioned Jacob Evertss. Sandelin attests that he with the often-mentioned director himself had [gone] up the Minquas Kill, and also journeyed several miles into the country; but they had nowhere seen nor observed any sign or vestige of Christian people. And he further de poses and says, together and in company with the above- mentioned upper boatswain Peter Johanss., that both of them and the rest of the ship's people, all together, saw the princes of the abovementioned nations enter the cabin of their ship, whereupon they heard and understood that the said princes had ceded and transferred the land in the above-described manner. And thereupon they give testimony, and all four with one another affirm that, after the completion of the said ceding and transference, followed the erection of the arms of Her Illustrious Majesty of Sweden, accompanied by the firing of cannon and other solemn ceremonies, in the presence of said sachems or princes, and the country was called New Sweden. Then a fort was built on the bank of the river, and the same river was given the name of the Elb-River 2 under 1 1, e., the New Sweden Company, founded in 1637 for trade on the South or Delaware River. 2 Now Christina Creek. 1638] AFFIDAVIT OF FOUR SAILORS 89 other solemnities; the fort, however, was called Christina. Here the attestors, closing this account of theirs, after the re lation perseveringly insisted in its veracity and hence that it was to be considered as true. They also offered to confirm the same with an oath of grace before me the aforesaid notary. Accordingly, permission was granted to the exhibitor [Peter Spiring], to use and to make, concerning this, one or more open documents in due form, when and wherever it is proper, which in part has been done in this city of Amsterdam, in the lodging and writing-room of my office, in the sight and pres ence of the honest Cornelius Vignois and David de Willet, called in for this purpose as credible witnesses. Attested, upon request, by the abovementioned. P. Ruttens, Nots. Pub. 1639. REPORT OF GOVERNOR JOHAN PRINTZ, 1644 INTRODUCTION This report, like the other Swedish narratives that follow, is an orderly official statement, and thoroughly reliable. The Swedish original is strongly and clearly expressed; it contains fewer of the Dutch and other foreign words found in Rising's reports, and the sentences are shorter and less involved than in most similar contemporary documents. The author, Johan Printz, governor of New Sweden, had spent only a little over a year on the Delaware, yet he had secured a firm grasp of the situation, and he affords us an intimate view of the problems and conditions of the colony at the end of its first six years of existence. Johan Printz was bom in Bottnaryd in Smaland, in the southern part of Sweden, in 1592. He received a liberal edu cation in the universities of Rostock, Greifswald, Leipzig, Wittenberg, and Jena. After an adventurous youthful career in Germany and Italy, and in the armies of France and Austria, he returned to Sweden in 1625. Entering the Swedish army he saw service in the German campaigns, and in 1638 was raised to the rank of lieutenant-colonel. Forced to surrender the Saxon city of Chemnitz in 1640, he was removed from his command. Receiving knighthood, in November, 1642, at the age of fifty, he sailed for America with his family, to assume the governorship of New Sweden. Arriving in the colony in February, 1643, he established his household on Tinicum Island and made that the capital. For the next ten years he ruled the Delaware with the strong arm of the soldier, maintained the supremacy of the Swedish crown against the Dutch and English, extended the bounds of the colony, carried on the Indian trade, and in general, seems to 93 94 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA have governed in the manner best suited to the rough fron tier conditions. Under him New Sweden saw its best days. Physically he was a huge man, weighing over four hundred pounds; the Indians called him the "big tub." His hospitable side, as we have seen, is depicted in the pages of De Vries. In 1653, dissatisfied with the outlook for the colony, Printz returned home. In 1658 he was made commander of the castle of Jonkoping, in southern Sweden, and in the following year governor of Jonkopingslan, where he died in 1663. Fur ther references to him may be obtained in Johnson's Swedish Settlements, especially pp. 688-690. The original manuscripts of this report, two in number, one in Swedish and the other in German translation, both signed by Printz, are in the Riksarkiv (Royal Archives) at Stockholm. The Swedish manuscript, which is defective in parts, has been printed with some omissions in the appendix of Claes Theodor Odhner's Swedish book, Kolonien Nya Sveriges Grundldggning (The Founding of the Colony of New Sweden), 1637-1640, (Stockholm, 1876), pp. 27-36. Our text is a translation by Dr. Amandus Johnson from Odhner in com parison with transcripts of the Swedish and German manu scripts in the collection of the Historical Society of Pennsyl vania, the defective parts of the Swedish being supplied from the German transcript. The brief portion relating to Sir Edward Plowden, as translated by Dr. Gregory B. Keen, has been previously published in the Pennsylvania Magazine of History, VII. 50-51 (1883), and in Justin Winsor's Narrative and Critical History of America, III. 456-460 (1884); the list of colonists and of the dead is printed in Johnson's Swedish Settlements, pp. 700-709. The remainder of the report is now published for the first time in English. A. C. M. REPORT OF GOVERNOR JOHAN PRINTZ, 1644 Relation to the Noble West India Company in Old Sweden1 sent out of New Sweden on June 11, Anno 1644. 1. The ship Fama arrived here in New Sweden at Fort Christina the 11th of March, and is now sent away in the name of God on the 11th 2 of June. The reason for this long delay has especially been this, that we have this past year not had any special cargoes and therefore no returns to send home again, but now the trade went well with the savages, [and we delayed in order] that the ship might not go back again empty, and that the goods which now were bought might not lie for years and days and be eaten and destroyed by moths, mice, and other vermin (which are very plentiful and destructive) but be sent over with the ship as now has happened. God grant hereto luck and His gracious blessing, that the ship, goods, and people may arrive well preserved and in a right time at the place to which they are destined, etc. 2. The goods sent from Sweden are safely delivered, as the receipt shows, except a good deal of the linen, and the stock ings, which are moulded and entirely rained, as the skipper and his people have seen, yet the abovementioned articles were not (as one observes) rained on the ship, but in Gothenburg in a cellar or in some other damp house, where they were care lessly allowed to stand. And this loss, due to Timon von Schotting,3 can be searched and examined there through him, who is more able to write about it than I am, and ought to be held to account for so considerable a loss. 3. Timon von Schotting has also forgotten to put the price 1 Or, the New Sweden Company. ' Really sailed about July 20. Cf. Printz's next report for 1647, post, p. 120. * Timon van Schotting (1603-1674), a native of Flanders, at the age of about twenty-four accompanied his father to Sweden, settling at Gothenburg, appar- 95 96 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 on the articles, which he has now sent here, which was done last year, and always used to be done. And it ought not to be otherwise, in order that one may know how to make up the bill for each one of those, who are later discharged, and what amount they have received here, and that it may then be subtracted from their salary on their return homeJ But probably this is done with a purpose, in order that, as it happened last year, both the proof and the price of all kinds of goods should be sent back again. And to this paragraph also belongs the remark that one ought not to give to the wives or authorized representatives of these people [in Sweden] any thing on their salaries before they have been informed from here how much they have received, because part of them have spent so much money during their sickness that they have very little to claim, or nothing at all. 4. The returns which it has been possible to bring together in a hurry are herewith sent over, namely, whole beavers, 1300, one-third-part beavers, 538, half-beavers, 299, and one- fourth-part beavers, 5, total, small and large beavers alto gether, 2142 pieces. The tobacco which is now sent over makes all together 20467 lbs. And how the trade has pro gressed here in the last year as well as now, since the ship was here, the commissary's account and written relation will fully show. And it is necessary that we have ships here again next December with all sorts of cargoes, according to the specifica tions enclosed. If this does not happen the Company will in the future suffer no less damage than it suffered in the past year, which cannot be repaired with 20,000 florins. One does not send the beavers now as formerly and as happened before my time, all mixed, large and small together, but, both to prevent fraud and also on account of the customs collector, each kind, as has been said, is packed and strongly sealed by itself, according to which the commissary, both now and here after, ought and shall make his account. In the same manner it can also be seen from the bills that [15476] lbs.1 of the tobacco ently in mercantile business. In 1639 he was appointed factor for the New Sweden Company, and served until 1645 when he was compelled to resign for negligence in office. Later he became burgrave of Gothenburg, and died there. SeeAmandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, especially p. 695. 1 See Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, pp. 317, 318. 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 97 is Virginian tobacco, bought for 6 and 7 stivers J a pound. The rest [4991] lbs. were planted here in New Sweden, one part by our English at Varken's Kil, one part by our Swedish free men, for which we have paid eight stivers a pound; the reasons for giving our own more than the strangers are, first, that one would make them in the beginning more industrious; secondly, in order that people, both of our own nation and strangers, may in larger numbers come here and settle under Her Royal Majesty. When the land, with the help of God, has thus been populated, then one could easily regain the damage which is not very large; yet I have presented this as well as all other things to the Honorable Company's gracious consideration. But our Swedish freemen request humbly that they may be allowed to send their tobacco to old Sweden, where it can be sold to the Company with greater advantage than here. 5. God grant success to the Caribbean trade, and we hope in case it is rightly administered and faithfully managed that it will become a large means for the continuation of this work. Thus the tobacco trade was last year made free in Virginia to all strangers by the payment of toll; if we had here suitable goods which could be taken to Virginia then one could yearly bring from there a considerable quantity of tobacco with our sloops and increase the supply of the same on the arrival of our ships, and twice as good tobacco for as good a bargain, I suppose, as can be obtained from Cribitz,2 and the toll be paid at the residence seat Kekathan,3 50 4 miles up in the river. But we could have a good deal of tobacco from Heckemak 5 yearly and would not need to give toll, but we could arrange with the merchants that they pay the duty, which they can do with practically nothing. 6. Of the people twenty-five have died during the year at 1 About 16 cents then or about 80 cents now, the stiver equalling about 2 cents then, or 10 cents now. 2 The Caribbees or Lesser Antilles in the West Indies. ' Kecoughtan, on the James River, in Virginia, near Hampton and Old Point Comfort. ' I. e., apparently, fifty German miles or two hundred and thirty English miles from Fort Christina or the Swedish settlements to Kecoughtan in Virginia. 5 Accomac, near the end of the Eastern Shore of Virginia, in what is now Northampton County. 98 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 different places, as the daily register shows — twelve laborers, eight soldiers, two freemen, two women.1 The others who are preserved, officers and common people, have no longer any desire to remain here, but since I have caused some provisions to be bought from the English and Dutch sloops and given it to them on their request as part of their salary, they have had better health and have become more willing and have allowed themselves to be persuaded to remain here yet for some time. One observes indeed that it is more for the harm than for the benefit of the Company to give to the people here a part of their salary from those goods which have been bought to be used in trade, from which sum the gain will be subtracted at home, yet rather than that the people should leave, as has now happened, I have at all events thought it more advisable to preserve the people than to look upon the small gain; one sees that the amount and the damage are moderate and will not become in the end altogether too great. But if Her Royal Majesty and the Honorable Company should graciously de cide to erect a trading-place and a shop with all sorts of pro visions, small wares, cloth, and other goods, placing over it a wise and faithful man, who would have both that and other provisions under his charge and in his care, from which they could be given on their salary as much as each one should re quest, then the people could month after month be paid out of the gains alone, and the Honorable Company would prob ably retain the capital and a large part of the profit for its benefit, for everything is fearfully dear here. One barrel of malt, Swedish measure, is worth seven, yes even eight, rix- dollars, a pound of hops, half a rix-dollar, a pound of pork ten stivers, a pound of butter ten stivers, a barrel of grain six rix- dollars, which here could be sown, brewed, and baked and then sold for the highest price to the people. For one barrel of meat I have paid to the English 135 florins, which makes 54 rix-dollars; in short everything is expensive. 7. I planted last year maize all over, thinking, according to the representations of Peter Hollander,2 to receive yearly 1 Add, to make 25, the preacher, Rev. Reorus Torkillus. 2 Peter Hollender Ridder (1607-1691), the second governor (1640-1643) of New Sweden, succeeding Peter Minuit, was of Dutch or German origin, but had entered the Swedish service as early as 1635, being employed by the Admiralty in various capacities in Finland and Sweden. He arrived in the colony with the 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 99 food for nine men from the planting of one man, but I received, as well on the one place as on the other, from the work of nine men hardly a year's nourishment for one man. Immediately I sent the sloop to Manathans1 and caused to be bought there for the company seven oxen, one cow, and [75]2 bushels of winter rye. And although they arrived a little late in the year yet I have caused three places to be sown with rye, also a little barley in the spring. It looks very fine. In addition to this, maize can be bought cheaply from the savages here in the river, so that I hope that the nourishment of the people shall not be so expensive hereafter as it has been before. And therefore I have appointed the people to plant tobacco on all places and have engaged a special master or tobacco planter for a monthly wage of 35 florins; 3 who made good proof of his competence last year. How this will turn out will depend on God and the weather; one must hope, with the help of God, for the best. But as concerns salt-making, oil manufactories, whale-catching, minerals, or silk worms, I must report that I have not been able to find an opportunity for these things, as is reported in my former letters. 8. The places which we now possess and occupy are: 1. Elfsborg, which now (especially on the one side) is so secure that there is no need to fear any attack (if it is not entirely too severe); 2. Christina; 3. Tinnakongh; these two places are also in like manner made so strong that those who are therein need not fear for any savages, even if they were several thou sands; 4. Upland; 5. Schylenkyll;4 these two places are now open, yet strong wooden houses are built upon them with small stone-cannon. In the Schylenkyll there have now been bought, since we received a cargo, three hundred beavers for the Hon orable Company, yet with such discretion that the Hollanders second expedition, in 1640. Upon his return to Sweden he was advanced in the naval service from lieutenant to captain and to major, finally in 1663 receiving the command of the castle of Viborg in Finland. See Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, pp. 691-692. 1 Manhattan, or New Amsterdam. 2 See Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, p. 313. s About $17 United States currency in values of that period, or about $87 in terms of present day values; the florin, a Dutch coin, being equal to about 50 cents at that time, or about $2.25 to-day. * Evidently Wasa, or Nya Wasa, at Kingsessing. 100 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 are not in any manner offended, and although they do not gladly see us here, but always protest and in the meantime loosen the tongue, yet they have nevertheless since I came here kept and yet keep with us good friendship, especially their commander in Manathans, Willem Kiefft, who often and in most cases, when he has been able, has written to me and advised me about what has happened in Sweden, Holland, and other European places. He reminded me indeed in the begin ning in his letters about the pretension of the Dutch West India Company to this entire river, but since I answered him with as good reasons as I could and knew how, he has now for a time relieved me of this protesting. Now a new commander is about to arrive and in that case probably a new action may follow. But how hard the Puritans J have lain upon my neck and yet do lay can be seen from the acts which are enclosed here. I believe that I shall hardly get rid of them in a peace ful manner because they have sneaked into New Netherland also with their Pharisean practices. Now they are so strong there that they have chased the Hollanders from that place called Fort River,2 and now keep it with violence although it 1 Printz had difficulties with New Haven as well as Boston Puritans. The people from New Haven, who in 1641 had made a settlement on the Varkens Kill, now Salem Creek, New Jersey, under the leadership of the agent, George Lam- berton, secured yet another location higher up the Delaware River, at the eastern terminus of the great trading path of the Minquas Indians, from the Susquehanna Valley and beyond, so as to participate in the valuable beaver trade with them. There in 1642, on the present Fisher's or Province Island at the south side of the mouth of the Schuylkill River, as Dr. Amandus Johnson makes clear in his Swedish Settlements, p. 213, the New Englanders built a blockhouse, the first edifice definitely recorded as erected within the present limits of Philadelphia. Both the Dutch and the Swedes vainly protested against this competition, and finally the Dutch descended upon the place, burned the blockhouse and adjacent dwellings, and carried the settlers to New Amsterdam. Lamberton escaped with his vessel, but later was tried in the Swedish court at Fort Christina. In 1647 the Swedes built Fort Nya Korsholm (1647-1653) on the site of this devastated English post. The Boston Puritans who caused Printz some anxiety, were a company of merchants interested in promoting the search for the inland lake where the beavers were supposed to be plentiful. Believing that this lake might be reached from the upper waters of the Delaware, in the early summer of 1644 they sent an ex pedition to the river under William Aspenwall. In spite of Printz's suspicions, he was allowed to pass the Swedish forts but was halted by the Dutch at Fort Nassau and obliged to return to Boston. 2 Connecticut River. 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 101 is the land of the Hollanders. And now neither protest nor good words will avail, but if the Hollanders wish to obtain the place again it must be done with other and stronger means. I look at least a hundred times a day in this mirror, God knows with what meditation, for I am here alone and there are hardly thirty men, of all that are here, upon whom I can rely in such cases. In a like manner I have also in my former writings spoken about the English knight,1 how he last year wished to go from Heckemak 2 in Virginia to Kikathans 3 with a bark and his people, about sixteen persons, and when they came into the Virginian bay4 the skipper, who had conspired beforehand with the knight's people to destroy him, took his course, not towards Kikathanss but to Cape Henry. When they had passed this place and had come close to an island in the big ocean called Smeed's 5 Island, they counselled together how they should kill him and they found it advisable not to kill him with their own hands but to put him on the said island without clothes and guns, where there were no people nor any other animals but where only wolves and bears lived, which they also did, but two young pages of the nobility, whom the knight had brought up and who did not know of this conspiracy, when they saw the misfortune of their master, threw them selves out of the bark into the sea and swam ashore and re mained with their master. On the fourth day after that an English sloop sailed near by Smeed's Island, so that these young pages could call to it. This sloop took the knight (who 1 Sir Edmund Plowden (d. 1659), knight, a Catholic, of Wansted, Hampshire, England, second son of Francis Plowden, of Plowden, Herefordshire, is "the English knight" whose misadventures are here related by Governor Printz. Having received a patent, in 1634, from the viceroy of Ireland, under Charles I. — with vague and inconsistent bounds and without the necessary great seal of England — for a great domain on both sides of the Delaware, called New Albion, the Earl Palatine of New Albion, as he styled himself, had come over to America to try to secure his claim. Befriended by Governor Berkeley, he made Virginia his base of operations, staying with his people apparently at Accomac on the Eastern Shore, in present Northampton County. From here at intervals during the next six years he engaged in hazardous cruising vainly seeking to induce the dislodgment of Printz and the Swedes. His means failing, and his followers de serting him, he went back to England to return no more. 2 Accomac. * Kecoughton. * Chesapeake Bay. 6 Smith's Island at Cape Charles, off the end of the Eastern Shore of Virginia. 102 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 was half dead and black as earth) on board and brought him to Haakemak where he recovered again. But the people be longing to the knight, and the bark, came to our Fort Elfs- borgh on May 6, 1643, and asked for ships to Old England. Then I asked for their passport and whence they came, and since I immediately observed that they were not right in their designs I took them with me (with their own consent, however) to Christina in order to buy flour and other provisions from them, and I examined them until a servant maid (who had been employed as washerwoman by the knight) confessed and betrayed them. Then I caused all the goods they had on hand to be inventoried in their presence, and I kept the people prisoners until the same English sloop which had saved the knight arrived here with the knight's letter, written not only to me but to all the governors and commanders of the whole coast from Florida northwards. Then I delivered the people unto him, bark and goods all together, according to the inven tory, and he paid me my expenses, which amounted to 425 rix- dollars. The principal men among these traitors the knight has caused to be shot, but he himself is yet in Virginia and (as he represents) is expecting ships and people out of Ireland and England. He gives free commission to all sloops and barks which come from there to trade here in the river with the savages, but I have not allowed any one to pass by and will not do it, until I receive a command and order from Her Royal Majesty, my Most Gracious Queen. The savages here in West India set themselves up against the Christians in one place after another. The Hollanders have fought the whole year with the savages around Mana- thans, as they are still doing, and although they have chased them from the one place to the other, yet the Hollanders have lost more than a thousand men at it and the company has re ceived so great a damage from it that (as they themselves admit) it cannot be repaired with a few barrels of gold. In Virginia more than a thousand savages banded themselves to gether about six weeks ago and attacked and fearfully mur dered over six hundred Christians. The Marylanders have also suffered great damage from the Minquas and have lost two cannon and some people. Our savages also become very proud here in the river. I have told them the whole year 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 103 that we shall receive much people with our ships, but three days after the ship arrived and they observed that there was only one ship and no people they fell in between Tinnakungh and Uplandh and murdered a man and a woman on their bed, and they killed a few days afterwards two soldiers and a ser vant. When their commanders found out that I drew the people together in order to prevent a future and a greater damage, then they feared and came together from all places excusing themselves in the highest manner, and said that this had happened without their knowledge, and asked for peace, which was granted them on the following conditions: that in case they hereafter practised the smallest hostilities against our people then we would not let a soul of them live, upon which they gave their writing and all their sachems signed their names to it and (according to their custom) gave us twenty beavers and some sewant1 and we presented them with a piece of cloth. But yet they do not trust us and we trust them much less. Nothing would be better than that a couple of hundred soldiers should be sent here and kept here until we broke the necks of all of them in the river, especially since we have no beaver trade with them but only the maize trade. They are a lot of poor rascals. Then each one could be secure here at his work, and feed and nourish himself unmolested without their maize, and also we could take possession of the places (which are the most fruitful) that the savages now possess; and then, when we have not only bought this river but also won it with the sword, then no one whether he be Hollander or Englishman could pretend in any manner to this place either now or in coming times, but we should then have the beaver trade with the black and white Minquas 2 alone, four 1 Wampum. 2 These Indians were by race and language of Iroquoian stock. There were two divisions, the Black Minquas and the White Minquas. Black Min quas, also called the Black Indians, believed to be the ancient Eries, or Nation du Chat (Cat People) of the Jesuit Relations and the Utchowig ("like a wild cat") of John Smith's map of 1608, had their general habitat in western Penn sylvania, in the beaver region of the Allegheny River and its affluents, be tween Lake Erie and the Allegheny Mountains. "The beavers," wrote Van der Donck in his New Netherland of 1655, "are mostly taken far inland, there being very few of them near the settlements — particularly by the black Minquas, who 104 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 times as good as we have had it, now or at any past time. And if there is some delay in this matter it must nevertheless in the end come to this and it cannot be avoided; the sooner the better, before they do us more harm. They are not to be trusted, as both example and our own experience show, but if I should receive a couple of hundred good soldiers and in addi tion necessary means and good officers, then with the help of God not a single savage would be allowed to live in this river. Then one would have a passage free from here unto Manathans, which lies at a distance of three small days' journeys from here across the country, beginning at Zachikans.1 9. The Honorable Company is also not ignorant of the fact that if sevant is not always on hand here, together with the other cargoes for the savages, it is difficult to trade with the savages; but half or at least the one-third part of the cargoes must be sold for sevant (which also does not happen without are thus named because they wear a black badge on their breast and not because they are really black." Augustine Herrman, a dweller near the Elk River in Mary land as early as 1660, and an excellent authority, writing in 1670, calls the Ohio or its northern branch the Allegheny River, " the Black Mincquaas River," and states that the Black Minquas were accustomed to trade to the Delaware River by a water route which led, according to his description, from the Conemaugh River by the short portage over the Allegheny Mountains to the Juniata River, and thence down the Susquehanna River. The Swedes also, in their turn, made visits from their settlements on the Delaware to the Minquas country, even to the remote wilderness of the Black Minquas, in 1646, especially, when Huygen and Van Dyck with eight soldiers, as may be observed above, penetrated the Minquas land a distance of fifty German, or two hundred and thirty English miles, which would bring them to the Allegheny River about fifteen miles northeast of the site of Pittsburgh. The Swedes had no " trade or intercourse with any Indians farther in the interior than with the black and white Minquesser," writes Lindestrom, in 1654, in his manuscript journal ("Geographia," in H. S. P.), "who don't know the limit of the country, although their nation or tribe has occupied the country such a length of time." The Jesuit Relations report the practical extermination of the Eries by the Iroquois proper in 1654-1655, yet as late as 1662 the White Minquas were expecting the assistance against the Iroquois, of "800 black Min quas," "200 of this nation" having already arrived. The White, True, or Southern Minquas, known to the Virginians and Mary- landers as Susquehannas, or Susquehannocks, and to the French as Andastes, occupied the lower Susquehanna River Valley and the country at the head of Chesapeake Bay. After prolonged conflict with the Iroquois they were driven from the Susquehanna to the Potomac, and in 1675 were almost wiped out by the English. 1 At the Falls of Delaware, now Trenton, New Jersey. 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 105 profit to the Company). Now, as has been stated, our savages are poor, so that one can secure from them only little or hardly any sevant, hence we must buy sevant from Manathans and of the North English,1 where sevant is made, and it can be bought cheaply there from the savages. If we now had among the North English or at Manathans a faithful man stationed year out and year in, who could buy up sevant for us there so that sevant would not be lacking here in the river for the Swedish trade, the Company would have yearly a great profit. Like wise one can secure beavers for gold and rix-dollars in Mana thans as well as here in the river of the Dutch freemen, at the rate of seven florins apiece for the good ones, and the small profit would help to increase the capital at home without no ticeable cost. 10. We have not been able to put into execution our plans concerning the keel-boat which we had in mind to build here, the reason being that two of the carpenters have been sick almost the whole year and one man alone has not been able to do such heavy work. Then the savages set a fire on the island in the night and burnt part of the material which had been sawed and cut for the boat. Yet the one carpenter who has been well has not been idle. He has built two fine gates, one at Elfsborgh the other one at Tinnakungh. But since the car penters have recovered somewhat they have built two beauti ful large boats, one to be at Elfsborg, the other at Christina, and they have likewise repaired and made ready both sloops. No pains shall be spared hereafter, to have them accomplish whatever they can. But the cordage, which was sent here for the keel-boat, since we do not need it so soon, would be good merchandise to sell for beavers and tobacco, but I do not know the price, therefore I have sold, for a test, a piece of it weighing 597 pounds, according to Holland weight, for 26 beavers, less two florins, paying seven florins apiece, or nine stivers a pound, according to Holland weight. I will not sell any more before I have been informed if I have done well or ill in this. 11. And since I often receive Latin letters from different places concerning this work and I can not properly do other wise than to answer them in the same language, in which I now do not find myself very competent, but when need so re- 1 The New Englanders. 106 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 quires I must sit and laboriously collect together an epistle, and when it at last is accomplished it is only patchwork, especially since I have more often for the last twenty-seven years had the musket and the pistol in my hands than Tacitus and Cicero, I therefore humbly request that a man may be sent over to me who is not only able to prepare the mentioned writing but could also give good counsel and when it was necessary could be sent to foreign places. 12. It seems to me that it would not yet be advisable to recall Commissioner Hindrik Hiigen1 and to appoint Carl Jo hansson2 to receive the cargoes and the trade, this for several reasons, but mostly on account of the language of the savages. But Hindrich Hugen has a Holland servant 3 who knows the savage languages and understands well how to carry on the trade. If the said boy could remain here together with Carl Johansson for the sake of the trade, then Hindrich Hugen could probably be recalled from here. Hindrich Hughen does not like to miss the servant (because he is his relative), but if the Honorable Company should find it convenient to command this with the arrival of the next ship, then indeed Hindrich Hugen will be satisfied, especially since he himself desires to leave here and will in no case remain longer than until the arrival of the next ship. 13. And since I sent home in 1643 not only a list of the people but also described the condition and opportunities of each and every one with the humble request to be informed what difference there was between the free people and those 1 Hendrick Huygen, a relative of Peter Minuit, was from Wesel, on the lower Rhine, in Germany. He came over with the first expedition in 1638 and on the departure of Minuit was left in charge of the civil and economic affairs of the colony. From the arrival of Governor Printz in 1643 and the establishment of the seat of government on Tinicum Island Huygen, as chief commissary, had the care of the stores of the colony deposited there. In 1646 he and Sergeant van Dyck penetrated the wilderness to the Minquas country to the westward, and induced further trade between the Indians and the Swedes. Returning to Sweden with Governor Printz in 1654, he brought out the last Swedish expedition, arriving in 1656 after the Dutch conquest. He then entered the Dutch service, settling on Tinicum Island, where he seems to have continued until 1663. 2 Mentioned in Printz's later report of 1647 as the bookkeeper who had been sent over on account of some difficulty which had occurred at Kexholm, in Finland. 1 Gotfred Hermansson or Gotfred Hermer (Harmer), a kinsman of Hendrick Huygen. 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 107 who had been sent here on account of crimes, how long each one of the criminals should serve here for his crime and when his time was past how he should either be sent from here or be kept here with salary and clothes, likewise what should be done with the free people who in nowise wish to remain here, and in like manner a part of the freemen, Finns, and others (especially those who have their wives in old Sweden) desire to leave, and since it is difficult for me to dispose both in this and other cases without orders, I now as before humbly ask that I may be informed about it. 14. I will not omit humbly to relate that when the emis saries of the Hollanders and English arrive here on (as they imagine) missions of great consequence, concerning this work, they expect to receive a considerable entertainment, and are not ashamed to speak about it themselves, that they wish to be treated in a princely manner. There are also other ex penses,1 occasioned by the visits of merchants, with whom we trade, and of others, and we do not know who is to pay for such expenses. Therefore we have until now been as econom ical as we could, yet have caused each one to be treated and entertained according to his rank. And we have used for this purpose the extra income, namely sixty beavers which the English paid as recognition, and twenty-one beavers which the savages presented at the peace-treaty. This, however, is not sufficient, as the bills show. I therefore humbly request that this in like manner may be taken into consideration and decided for my information. 15. The cattle, seven oxen and one cow (which I referred to in paragraph 7) were bought in Manatans for the Honorable Company, as the bill of the commissary shows, for [146] 2 florins, and although they are quite large beasts, yet when one adds the expense to it, it is very dear. But it is impossible to colonize the land without cattle. I ask humbly that I may be informed how this matter shall be conducted hereafter, and on what conditions the freemen shall be supplied with cattle by the Honorable Company. The rye and barley, which 1 The Swedish copy is defective here, so that the translator has been com pelled to use the German translation for the rest of this and the next paragraph. 2 1, e., 124 florins for the oxen and 22 florins for the cow. Johnson, Swedish Settlements, p. 313. 108 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 were sown here in the autumn and spring, stand, as has been remarked, in very fine condition, and I hope to be able to sow so much, that the Company's people and soldiers who are now here may, with the help of God, have their nourish ment for the coining year. We should indeed have been able to sow more in the fall if the oxen had not come here too late. 16. In my former relation under date of April 13, 1643, and in paragraph 23, 1 humbly requested information concern ing the privileges of the nobility and the common people who take up land here in New Sweden each one according to his quota, how they and their descendants should own, enjoy, use, and keep it. Also in paragraph 26 I asked how I should con duct myself in the river against the Hollanders, who usurp to themselves all authority and advantage to such a large degree, as Her Royal Majesty my Most Gracious Queen can see from the enclosed resolution of Commander Kieft. They trade and traffic freely and will not even lower their flags and sails before the flags and forts of Her Royal Majesty, but one must remind them of it with a couple of cannon. All this I can easily forbid them to do at our fort Elfsborg, but not before I have received complete orders from Her Royal Majesty and the Honorable Company. 17. The expenses, which I had on account of the knight's people, being paid by my own means, as I have mentioned in paragraph 8, amounted to 425 rix-dollars, mostly paid me in tobacco. I have also bought some for cash from a Virginian merchant, and part of it I caused to be planted myself, so that the total amounts to 7300 lbs., in twenty-eight hogsheads, which I do not send to any other place (I will add), than to the Honorable Company, with the humble expectation and re liance that the Honorable Gentlemen will agree to it, and allow it for my profit, especially since my expenses here are so great, that I indeed can not defray them with twice my salary. I will gladly do my faithful service for the furtherance of this work as far as the grace of God and my understanding will allow. 18. And as I have, here in New Sweden, in the short time since I came here and with this small and weak people, begun to lay the foundation, which I hope to continue during the time that remains for me here and to bring it so far that Her Royal Majesty shall get so strong a foothold here in New Sweden that (in case the means will not be lacking) it will in- 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 109 crease more and more as time goes on through God's gracious help and will be incorporated as an everlasting property under Her Royal Majesty and the Swedish Crown, so I have likewise, in as good manner as I could, tried to oppose the pretensions of the Hollanders and the Puritans and the other Englishmen in this place and brought it so far that they suffer us now among themselves and have no more special foundation accord ing to which they can act, or are able to stand by their former pretensions, but correspond and trade with us and do our will and bring to us what we ask for, we hoping that they in the future will not press so hard, but to be contented with what has passed. It is therefore my humble prayer and request that when this my term of three years is over I may be relieved and allowed to return again to Her Royal Majesty my Most Gracious Queen and my Fatherland, especially since I am no longer young and since the greatest part of my days have been hard and toilsome. Yet I do not desire to withdraw myself in any manner from the service of Her Royal Majesty and the Father land, but I desire gladly to serve Her Royal Majesty and the Fatherland under other circumstances as long as I am able and as I live. I hope that, with God's help, the one who suc ceeds me will have less toil than I have had. 19. The things which have been written for with this ship I have not referred to among the articles here, but have caused a special list to be made of them, and will allow it to remain this time with what has been referred to here. Only this I yet once again humbly repeat, that I might receive at least a hundred soldiers on account of the arrows of the savages, also twelve-, six-, four- and three-pound cannon-balls, more pow der and lead. And this is thus ended, in humility. Dated at Christina. June 20, 1644. Johan Printz, manu propria. P. S. One should not let it pass unnoticed that the Hol landers at Manathans have this year had a privateer with ten cannon and 40 men in the sea between Spanniola1 and Cribitz,2 which has twice brought four Spanish prizes to Menathans this last year, worth (as they themselves admit) over 50,000 1 The island of Hispaniola or Santo Domingo, in the West Indies. ' The Caribbees or Lesser Antilles. 110 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 rix-dollars, and since we are situated nearer to the Spanish places than they are, we have therefore much better oppor tunity for such an advantage. We have here also, when need should demand it, a clean entrance and good ports as well as sufficient opportunity to provision the ship, year in and year out; and the booty, which God would grant, our ships could yearly bring away with the retum cargo. The privateer could remain in these places as long as God would see fit to preserve it. It must be a well-fitted ship, manned with good people, and if one should be compelled to have a Holland skipper and mate, yet a Swedish captain should be in command to prevent fraud, for when skipper Adrian cruised about here for a few months with the sloop the Grip, it was for his own profit (as his acquaintances . . . admit and say).1 [List of the Colonists.] List of all that people which is now in New Sweden, how they are distributed in all places and plantations, as specified below, for the year 1644. [I] At Fort Christina. The officers:Johann Paapegaia 1 The commissary Hindrich Hugenn 1 The pastor Mr. Johann Campanius2 1 1 MSS. defective. 2 Rev. John Campanius Holm. (1601-1683), a native of Stockholm, had re ceived his theological training at the University of Upsala, and had served as chaplain to the Swedish legation of Russia, as schoolmaster at Norrtalje, near Stockholm, and as preceptor and clergyman at the orphans' home of Stockholm. He arrived in New Sweden in 1643 with Governor Printz and remained more than five years acting as minister to the colonists and as missionary to the Indians. In 1646 he consecrated a Lutheran Church on Tinicum Island, the first house of worship erected within the present limits of Pennsylvania. Having learned the Indian language, he began in this same year the translation of Luther's catechism into the idiom of the Lenni Lenape or Delaware Indians, a work which later he completed in Sweden. Upon his return in 1648 he was for a short time preacher to the Admiralty on the island of Skeppsholm in Stockholm; then in 1649 was made rector of Frosthult and Hernevi, where he continued the remainder of life. See Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, pp. 372-374, 678-679. Holm, is an ab breviation of Holmiensis, meaning, " of Stockholm." 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 111 The barber Mr. Hanns 1 The trumpeter Erich Andersonn 1 The constable Matz Hansonn 1 The blacksmith Mr. Hanns 1 The inarshal-provpst Johan Qhiffzonn 1 The following people employed by the Company plant to bacco On the" plantation at Christina: Knut Marthensonn 1 Perr Gunnersonn Rambo 1 Marthenn Gottersson 1 Lars Andersonn Ulff 1 Manns Andersonn 1 Lars Kaekin 1 Svann Gunnersonn 1 Marthenn Glaasere 1 Joenn Torsonn 1 OluffTorsonn 1 Anders the Carpenter 1 The following are carpenters on the island: Claas Claasonn . 1 Tommas the Carpenter 1 The following are appointed to be on the sloop continually: The skipper Andress . 1 Lars Tommesonn 1 Bengt Torsonn 1 The laborers listed below make tobacco casks and other cooper's articles: Lauriss the Cooper 1 Lukass Personn 1 The swineherd:Anders Minck with his son \ 2 Claas Andersonn J The boy who herds the cattle: Swenn Swensson 1 The miller, who is continually at the mill: Anders Dreyer 1 112 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 The servant of Com. Hindrick Hugen: Gaatfreedh Hermansonn .... .... 1 Soldiers at Christina: Erich Taatt 1 Marthen Hansonn 1 Lars Jacobsonn 1 34 [H] At Fort Elfsborg. Officers: Lieutenant Swann Skuuta1 ......... 1 The watchmaster Gregorius van Dicke2 1 The gunner Johann Matzonn 1 The drummer Swann Andersonn I Common soldiers: Nicklaus Bock 1 Johann Gustaffzonn 1 Petter Meyer 1 Isack vann Eissenn 1 Constantinos Gronebergh 1 Petter Jochim 1 Anders Joensonn 1 1 Sven Skute, who next to the Governor was the foremost military leader in the later history of New Sweden, is first mentioned in this report of Governor Printz in 1644 as lieutenant in command of Fort Elfsborg. In 1648 he success fully opposed the settlement of the Dutch on the Schuylkill. Returning to Sweden in 1650 he reported the condition of the colony before the Queen and Council in 1652. The next year he was engaged in enlisting soldiers and securing emigrants for another expedition to New Sweden. Receiving the commission of captain he came over with the expedition of 1654. Landing with his soldiers at the Dutch Fort Casimir, he captured the stronghold for the Swedes, its name being changed to Fort Trinity (Trefaldighets Fort). At the Dutch conquest of New Sweden in 1655 he surrendered the fort to Stuyvesant, but continued to reside on the Dela ware, being mentioned by the Dutch in 1658 as holding the position under them of captain of the Swedes. 2 Gregorius van Dyck came over in the second expedition to New Sweden, in 1640. In 1646 he accompanied Commissary Hendrick Huygen in penetrat ing the wilderness to the west, as far as the country of the Minquas, and indu cing trade between the Indians and the Swedes. 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 113 Bengt Hindrichsonn Anders Andersonn Jacob Swensonn Walle Looer Joenn the Tailor Knut Liliehock Officers: Lieut. Manns Klingh [III] At the SkyUerkill [Plantation], The working-people, who plant tobacco on the planta tion in the SkyUerkill: Pafvell Jonsonn Swenn Larsonn Hindrich Matzonn Matz Pipere Ambrosius Erichsonn Anders Daalbo Pader Kack 8 [IV] At the Upland [Plantation]. Officers: Pader Liliehock 1 Elias the Tobaccoplanter 1 Mickell Nilsonn the Blacksmith 1 The following laborers plant tobacco on the plantation at Upland: Hindrich Matzonn 1 Matz Hansonn 1 Iffwer Hindersson 1 Johann Andersonn 1 Hanns Mansonn 1 Eskill Larsonn 1 114 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 Lars Bior[n]sonn Bertill Eskilsonn . Johann Erichson . . Jacob Spaniol . . Cleme[n]t Jorensonn ..... 14 [V] At Tinnakumgh. Officers: Governor Johann Printz 1 Placed over the provisions and accounts: Carll Johansonn 1 The secretary Knut Personn 1 The gunsmith Master Niklaus 1 The gunner, in charge of the small copper cannon on Tinna- kiingh: Swenn Waass 1 The soldiers who daily follow, travel [with], and serve the governor: Elias Gyllenngrenn 1 Hanns Liineburger 1 Jorann Snohuitt 1 Lars Andersonn 1 Anders Andersonn 1 Nils Anderssonn 1 Johann Andersonn 1 Manns Nilsonn 1 The laboring-people, who are appointed to cut hay for the cattle, and also in the meantime to follow the governor in the little sloop: Anders Bonde 1 Perr Andersonn 1 Antoni Swart 1 Oloff Erichsonn 1 17 1644] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1644 115 The following have died in New Sweden in 1643, 1644. Officers: Sept. 7, 1643, the preacher Mr. Regardh1 at Kirstina July 18, 1643, the corporal Carll Hackensonn at Elfz- borg Soldiers: June 10, 1643, Mickell Kyrssner at Kirstina . July 3, 1643, Mans Larsonn at Elfzborgh . . " 5, 1643, Erich Hindersonn at Kirstina . Aug. [3], .1643, Rutkiert the German at Kirstina Nov. [?], .1643, Johenn Hartman at Tennakungh March 4, 1643, the following soldiers were killed by the savages between Kirstina and Elfzborgh: Marthenn Bagge Marthen the Finn The following laborers of the Company have died: July 9, 1643, the freeman Jonns Pafvelsonn at Uplandh Carll Marckusonn at Elfzborg Marthenn Bior[n]sonn at Up landh Matz Jorensonn at Kirstina . Joen Isacksonn at Elfzborgh the peasant Per Mickellsonn at Elfzborgh the peasant Larss Andersonn from Alandh at Elfzborgh [the peasant?] Pafvel Pafvelson at Elfzborgh Jacob Tommesson at Kirstina Peder Oloffzon from Giefle at Elfzborgh Joen Jerpe at Elfzborgh . . Zachriss Andersonn at Kirstina Pafwell Personn at the Skyl- lerkill 1 1 Rev. Reorus Torkillus, the first preacher among the Swedes and the first Lutheran clergyman to serve in America. See Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, p. 697. t( 10, «« 12, (< 29, It 30, It 31, It 31, Jig .13, a 14, it 30, tt 31, )ec . 10, it H, 116 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1644 March 1, 1644, the freeman called Johann the Finn was drowned at Uplanndh 1 " 7, " an Englishman, with a Swedish wife, was murdered by the savages 2 " 4, " Giert Elekenn, killed by the savages be tween Fort Kirstina and Elfzborgh ... 1 The following return home to Sweden: Officers: Christer Boije 1 The preacher Mr. Israeli x 1 The barber Mr. Zim2 1 Soldiers: Esbiorn Marthensonn 1 Pafvell Smaal 1 Total 121 Dated, Christina, June 20, 1644. Johen Printz. 1 Rev. Israel Fluviander. 2 Timon Stidden, barber-surgeon. REPORT OF GOVERNOR JOHAN PRINTZ, 1647 INTRODUCTION For the greater part of the interval of three years between the writing of the preceding and of the present report by Gov ernor Printz, the colony of New Sweden had been allowed to shift for itself, the people at home being largely occupied in a war with the Danes. Yet, in spite of these handicaps, the work of the settlement, it will be observed, made a fair degree of progress. This report exists in two manuscript forms, in Swedish, as signed by Printz. They are in the Riksarkiv (Royal Ar chives) in Stockholm. Three transcripts of these are in the col lection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, one of each being used in a translation made by Dr. Gregory B. Keen, published in the Pennsylvania Magazine of History, VII. 271- 281 (1883). The translation, as revised by Dr. Amandus Johnson from these transcripts, is here reproduced. A. C. M. REPORT OF GOVERNOR JOHAN PRINTZ, 1647 Report to the Right Honorable West India Company in Old Sweden, sent from New Sweden, February 20, 1647. 1. From June 20, in the year 1644, when the vessel Fama went from hence, to October 1, 1646, when the vessel Haij1 arrived, two years and four months elapsed; and the whole of this time we received no letters, either from the Kingdom or from Holland. This last vessel was four months on the way, losing her sails, topmasts, and other implements, and fared very badly. The master of the ship, the mate, and all the people, except one man, were sick; so that, according to their report, they would have despaired, if they had not reached land when they did. Not until the month of December was the vessel in repair, and the people recovered; and, the winter commencing at the same time, they were obliged to stay here until the ice broke up. Now, however, on the subscribed date, the ship is dispatched with 24,177 pounds2 of tobacco, in 101 casks, of which 6,920 pounds were planted in New Sweden, and 17,257 pounds were purchased. May God Almighty grant her a happy passage home! 2. The cargo has been safely delivered, according to the invoice accompanying it from Peter Trotzig, excepting eight kettles, one plank, three axes, and fourteen ells of frieze want ing in the measure; fourteen pairs of stockings and 180 ells of frieze were ruined on shipboard; likewise, part of the Norren- berg goods were much rusted, which (except what the com missary has received to sell amongst the savages) are to be sent at the very first opportunity to North England3 for sale. 3. Concerning the improvements of the country: (1) Fort Elfsborgh has been tolerably well fortified. (2) Fort Chris tina, which was very much decayed, has been repaired from 1 Shark. 2 Swedish pounds. * New England. 120 1647] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1647 121 top to bottom. (3) The Fort in Skylenkyll, called Karsholm is pretty nearly ready. We are filling and working at it every day. So that, if we had people, ammunition, and other neces sary resources, we should certainly not only be in a position to maintain ourselves in the said places, but also be enabled to settle and fortify other fine sites. Again, 28 freemen are settled, and part of them provided with oxen and cows, so that they already begin to prosper; but women are wanting. Many more people are willing to settle, but we cannot spare them on account of the places wanting them. The country is very well suited for all sorts of cultivation; also for whale fish ery and wine, if some one was here who understood the busi ness. Mines of silver and gold may possibly be discovered, but nobody here has any knowledge about such things. The Hol landers boast that three years ago they found a gold mine be tween Manathans and here, not in any place purchased by us, but nearer to New Sweden than to New Netherland. Hitherto, however, they have not got any gold out of it. There is no appearance here of salt, or of silkworms, because the winter is sometimes so sharp, that I never felt it more severe in the northern parts of Sweden. 4. The people have all the time been in good health; only two men and two small children have died. The reason that so many people died in the year 1643 was that they had then to begin to work, and but little to eat. But afterward we gave them, besides their regular rations, board to apply on their wages, and they have done well from it. Still, all of them wish to be released, except the freemen. And it cannot be otherwise. If the people willingly emigrating should be com pelled to stay against their will, no others would desire to come here. The whole number of men, women, boys, girls, and children now living here is 183 souls, according to the annexed roll. 5. In the year 1645, November 25, between ten and eleven o'clock, the gunner Swen Wass, set Fort New Gothenburg on fire; in a short time all was lamentably burnt down, and not the least thing saved, except the bam. The people escaped naked and destitute. The winter immediately set in, bitterly cold; the river and the creeks froze up; and nobody was able to get near us (because New Gothenburg is surrounded by 122 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1647 water). The sharpness of the winter lasted far into the month of March; so that, if some rye and com had not been un- threshed, I myself and all the people with me on the island would have starved to death. But God maintained us with that small quantity of provision until we got the grain from the field and were again relieved. By this sad accident the loss of the Company, testified by the annexed roll, is 4000 rix- dollars. The above-mentioned Swen Wass who caused the fire, I have brought to court, and caused him to be tried and sentenced; so I have sent him home in irons, with the vessel, accompanied by the whole record concerning him, submis sively committing and referring the execution of the verdict to the pleasure of Her Royal Majesty and the Right Honorable Company. 6. Again, I have caused a church to be built in New Goth enburg, decorating it according to our Swedish fashion, so far as our resources and means would allow. Also in the same place I have rebuilt a storehouse, for the provisions and as many cargoes as may be sold there on the Company's behalf. Further, to prejudice the trade of the Hollanders, I have built a fine house (called Wasa)1 on the other side of Karsholm, by the road of the Minquas,2 so strong that four or five men, well provided with guns, balls, and powder, will be able to defend themselves there against the savages; seven freemen, sturdy fellows, have settled in that place. Again, a quarter of a mile3 higher up, by the said Minquas' road, I have built another strong house, five freemen settling there. This place I have called Mondal,4 building there a watermill, which runs the whole year, to the great advantage of the country, particularly as the windmill, formerly here, before I came, would never work, and was good for nothing. Now, when the great traders, the Minquas, travel to the Dutch trading-place or house, Nas- 1 So named for the royal family of Sweden. 2 The Great Trading Path of the Minquas Indians led from the Susquehanna River, doubtless from the White Minquas or Susquehanna Fort on the west side of the river at the mouth of Conewago Creek, York County, just below the stop page of navigation at the Great Falls, across Lancaster, Chester, and Delaware counties to Kingsessing Creek or the Upper Minquas Kill at Schuylkill River. 9 About one and two-thirds English miles. 4 On the present Cobbs Creek near the Blue Bell Inn on the road from Darby to Philadelphia. 1647] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1647 123 sau,1 they are obliged to pass by those two places, which (please God) hereafter shall be provided with cargoes. 7. Concerning trade, in the year 1644, when the ship Fama went from here, there was very little of the cargo left in store; and, as we have been without merchandise ever since, not only has the Right Honorable Company suffered the great damage of losing 8000 or 9000 beavers, which have passed out of our hands, but also the Hollanders have drawn the principal traders (the White and Black Minquas) from us; and we shall be able only with great difficulty to regain them. But as soon as this vessel2 arrived I dispatched Commissary Hindrik Hughen, with the watchmaster Gregorius van Dyk and eight soldiers, to the country of the Minquas, fifty German miles3 from hence, offering them all sorts of presents, by which means they were induced to negotiate, and we received assur ance from them that they would trade with us as before, especially as the commissary promised them to give more than the Hollanders. Whether they keep their word will be seen in the future. 8. It is of the utmost necessity for us to see how we can get rid of the Dutch from the river, for they oppose us on every side: (1) They destroy our trade everywhere. (2) They strengthen the savages with guns, shot, and powder, publicly trading with these against the edict of all Christians. (3) They stir up the savages to attack us, which, but for our pradence, would already have happened. (4) They begin to buy land from the savages within our boundaries, which we had pur chased already eight years ago, and have the impudence here and there to erect the seal of the West India Company, calling it their arms; moreover, they give New Sweden the name of New Netherland, and are not ashamed to build their houses there, as can be learned more at length from the Dutch Gov ernor's letter, here annexed, and from my answer to it; in 1 The Dutch Fort Nassau (1623-1651), near the mouth of Big Timber Creek, in the present Gloucester County, New Jersey. 2 The Haij. 2 About two hundred and thirty English miles. It is given as five German miles (or about twenty-three English miles) in one transcript, but that seems an error. In 1648 the Swedes carried goods from Fort Christina thirty German miles (about one hundred and thirty-eight English miles) into the country of the Minquas. 124 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1647 short, they appropriate to themselves alone every right, hoist high their own flags, and would surely not pay the least atten tion to Her Majesty's flags and forts, were they not reminded by a couple of cannon. So that if they are not kept out of the river, either by mutual agreement or other means, they will disturb our whole work. The better to accomplish this intention of theirs, some of the Hollanders have entirely quitted the Christians, resorting to the Minquas, behaving with much more unseemliness than the savages themselves. I have several times written to their Governor about all these improprieties, and also caused their arms to be cut down, but it did not make any difference: they see very well that we are weak; and, with no earnestness on our side, their malice against us increases more and more. And all the people, who are doing this mischief, are merely Dutch freemen, provided with their Governor's passport, and trading on their own ac count, paying duties therefor, the Company itself not trading at all, and deriving very little advantage from this. As to the English Puritans, with whom I had most to do at first, I have at last been able, with the authority of Her Majesty, to drive them from hence; and they have not been heard from for a long time, except that one Captain Clerk1 was sent here last year, from North England, to try to settle a few hundred families under Her Majesty's flag, which I, in a civil way, re fused, referring the matter to Her Majesty's further resolution. 9. The commissary's report will show our provisions and state here in New Sweden. It is a pity that for a long time we have had very little traffic and profit, while the expenses and the wages are the same. Still, could we get rid of the Hollanders, and be left alone in our trade, by successive car goes the loss would be easily repaired in a short time. What profit we have derived from foreign cargoes, besides our own, can be seen in the commissary's account; I think it may be about 10,000 rix-dollars. 10. The cattle roll will give information about the offspring; the two head of cattle which were here before me, and the three I brought with me. It shows they have increased to ten in all, that the purchased cattle are fourteen oxen and one cow, and that one part is divided amongst the freemen, and 1 Not identified. 1647] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1647 125 the other part is in the use of the Company. And, whereas the freemen need cattle as the principal instrament for the cultivation of the land, I intend next May to buy some in Vir ginia, particularly as the Governor there has written to me, also offering his assistance in other ways. 11. I have caused the barge to be fully constructed, so that the hull is ready and floating on the water; but the com pletion of the work must be postponed until the arrival of a more skilled carpenter, the young men here declaring they do not know enough to finish it. Again, we want a good engineer, house-carpenter, mason, brickmaker, potter, cooper, skilful gun- and locksmiths, and blacksmiths, a chamois-dresser, tanner, tailor, shoemaker, ropemaker, wheelwright, and exe cutioner; all these are of great necessity here, and, above all, a good number of unmarried women for our unmarried free men and others, besides a good many families for cultivating the land, able officers and soldiers, as well as cannon and ammunition, for the defence of the forts and the country. And, when the Hollanders and other nations are aware that Her Royal Majesty has such a royal earnestness in this behalf, I think they will be careful, because when I came here, four years ago, they immediately abandoned the bad intentions they had formerly exercised against our people, but afterward, since so little has been done for the affair, they have once more grown overbearing. 12. The savages in Virginia, New Netherland, and North England have made peace with the Christians, and our own savages have been quiet ever since. Thus, if the Hollanders were not here, we should soon be on good terms with them; but the savages now have war amongst themselves, more to the prejudice than to the advantage of the beaver-trade. 13. As before stated the officers, as well as the common soldiers, not settled in the country and not yet willing to settle, want to be released; particularly Commissary Hindrik Hugen, whom I myself now, for the third time, have with great diffi culty persuaded to stay until the arrival of the next ship; he ought to be replaced by a very able commissary. Again, the minister Magister Johan Campanius wishes to be dismissed, and we need at least two clergymen in the places already settled. Again, the freemen desire to know something about 126 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1647 their privileges, for themelves and their descendants; likewise the criminals, how long they must serve for their crimes; as to all which I humbly asked to be informed more circumstantially in my former Reports of 1643 and 1644. 14. Whereas a letter from Postmaster-General Johan Beijer, dated Stockholm, March 17, 1645, apprises me that the ves sels Calmar Nyckel and Fama had arrived in Holland, and that my Report was lost on the way (if this really be the fact), I only recapitulate herein what goods were sent home in re turn by the Fama, annexing a copy of Captain Peter Pawel- son's receipt for the said goods. These were: 1300 whole beavers, 299 half-beavers, 537 third-parts of beavers — great and small together, 2136 beavers; again, tobacco, 20,467 lbs. in 77 hogsheads; again, my own tobacco, which partly I re ceived in payment from foreigners, and partly I planted my self, 7200 lbs. in 28 hogsheads, sent home to the shareholders in Sweden, that they may either reimburse me at eight stivers a pound, or graciously allow me to sell it elsewhere. 15. In the. sixth paragraph of my above-mentioned Report, sent from here in 1644, I mentioned the necessity of erecting a trading-house for various kinds of merchandise, namely, for clothing, shoes, different sorts of stuffs, linen cloth, thread, silk, fine and coarse cloth, divers colors for dyeing, buttons, Leyden ribbons, hats, belts, swords, tanned leather, etc. Those goods are very vendible here, and in Virginia and New Eng land, and can be sold at a profit of 100 per cent. The house is also needed for all sorts of provisions, both for our own people, and for foreigners. A judicious and faithful man, however, must be put over it and all provisions, who may give each of our people what he wants, on account of wages. Thus the people can be paid every month entirely out of the profit, without the Right Honorable Company's diminishing its principal, but perhaps making money, everything here being extremely dear: for example, one barrel of malt (Swedish measure) costs seven to eight rix-dollars, one pound of hops half a rix-dollar, one pound of pork ten stivers, one barrel of com six rix-dollars, which last could be sown in this country, brewed, baked, and afterwards sold to the people with advan tage; I have paid 54 rix-dollars to the English for one barrel of beef: in short, everything is dear. 1647] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1647 127 16. In the ninth paragraph of my above-mentioned Report I also spoke about the zewandt trade in North England, and said that a trusty man ought to be sent to purchase zewandt for us there, because it can be had cheap in that country, while here we are obliged to pay to the English and Holland ers a double price in good beavers, and yet we cannot always get it. It is not possible to keep up the Indian trade by means of cargoes only, because the savages always want zewandt besides, this being their money. Again, I have several times before solicited a learned and able man: first, to attend to the judicial business, sometimes very intricate cases occurring, in which it is difficult, and never ought to be, that one and the same person appear in the court as plaintiff as well as judge; and, secondly, to act as secretary, especially in the Latin language, for many times it has hap pened (as is proved by the annexed paper) that I have re ceived Latin letters from all parts; these it would be well to answer in Latin, as really I have done as best I could, but I submissively entreat if it is possible, for the future, to be re leased from such work through the assistance, as above stated, of a competent person. 17. I have caused some waterfalls to be examined suitable as a site for saw-mills, below the dam by the newly built grist mill, as well as in three other places, where there is plenty of oak. But we want a man who can superintend the saw-mill; also, windlasses and blades for saws. If such saw-mills were erected (which might easily be done), every year we might cut and make ready a goodly quantity of planks, besides making compass and pipe timber, which could be very advantageously bartered in the Flemish Islands for wine, which might be either carried to the Kingdom, or sold in Virginia for tobacco. But for this purpose a proper vessel ought to be kept here by the year, which at times could cruise to the West Indies, and by this means the country could be annually provided with victuals. 18. If we are able to renew our friendly relations with the White and Black Minquas (as we are assured and may hope we shall), the trade with these will commence next April, and continue the whole summer until fall. Our present cargo may be sold during that time; therefore, it will be a matter of 128 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1647 necessity, to be provided with new cargoes next November, and about that time we may be able (with God's help) to have on hand a great deal of goods for the retum cargo. 19. In the fourteenth paragraph of my former Report I submissively asked in what way the extra entertainment of foreign guests coming here shall be paid. We have in such things been as sparing as possible; however, the amount of the disbursement increases more and more, and the accidental revenues which are collected here and which have been assigned for this use will in no wise suffice. 20. The freemen already settled want to be paid the rest of their wages; and, whereas their intention is to continue to cultivate the land with that money, I think it advisable to pay them for the good of the country, and as an example for others. But their wives and relations in the old country should not be allowed to draw any of their wages, unless these can show the account from here, because every day we are obliged to give them more or less, according to their wants, and some are already fully paid. 21. The bookkeeper, Carl Johansson, who chanced to get into a misfortune in Kiexholm,1 and for that reason was sent over to New Sweden, has been here six years, and has behaved very well the whole time. Three years ago I not only ap pointed him to take care of the stores, but also trusted him to receive and revise the commissary's monthly accounts, pay ing him ten rix-dollars a month as wages (to be ratified graciously by the Right Honorable Company), which service he in like manner has ever since faithfully performed. Now his submissive request is, by Her Royal Majesty's and the Right Honorable Company's favor, to be allowed to go home to the Kingdom for a while, with the next ship, to stay as long as it may please Her Royal Majesty, to settle his affairs there. His purpose for the future is to serve Her Royal Majesty and the Right Honorable Company willingly and faithfully, to the best of his ability, so long as he shall live, either here in New Sweden, or wheresoever else he may be assigned to duty. 22. Again, I humbly repeat the eighteenth paragraph of my last Report, purporting how I for a great while (namely ' Kexholm, a small town of Finland, fifty miles northeast of Viborg, on the west shore of Lake Ladoga. 1647] REPORT OF GOVERNOR PRINTZ, 1647 129 twenty-eight years) have been in the service of my dear native country, constantly accompanying her armies to the field, and now have served in New Sweden one year and seven months beyond my prescribed term and brought everything into such order that Her Royal Majesty has obtained a strong footing here and that the work does not require anything but sufficient means, to be continued with greater success. Thus (with God's help) this country will forever be subject to Her Royal Majesty, who sent us here, maintained us among all the sur rounding provinces, and brought the trade into good condi tion, and satisfactory relation with that of our neighbors, in somuch that, if means fail not, they will remain satisfied with what has happened. Wherefore, my humble request to Her Royal Majesty and their Right Honorable Excellencies now is, that I be relieved, if possible, and sent home by the next ship to my beloved native land. Yet, I in no wise withdraw myself from the service of Her Royal Majesty and my native country, but I am desirous of doing duty on other occasions, seeking approval in nothing but for faithful service of Her Royal Majesty and my country, in accordance with my duty, so long as I shall live. My successor here (with God's help) will see and comprehend the diligence I have applied in every thing, agreeably to my obligation. 23. The officers and soldiers here have frequently solicited that a faithful and proper man be sent home to the Kingdom, not only for the purpose of giving an oral account of the whole enterprise here, but also to procure an answer to the individual communications they have sent over. Not thinking it proper to refuse them this, I have deputed for that business the noble and valiant Johan Papegaja, hoping that he will both humbly deliver a good report to Her Royal Majesty and the Right Honorable Lords, and faithfully and diligently do his best in everything intrusted to him for the good of this work. Given at New Gothenburg, February 20. 1647. Johan Printz. REPORT OF GOVERNOR JOHAN RISING, 1654 INTRODUCTION This report, which is addressed to the newly established Swedish Commercial College in whose hands the direction of the affairs of New Sweden, through the chartered company, had recently been placed, was written by Johan Classon Rising, the last governor of the colony, barely two months after his coming to the Delaware. Governor Printz had departed in the fall of 1653. Rising on his arrival, the following May, found the settlements in a discouraged and sadly depleted condition. No word had come from Sweden for nearly six years and the population had dwindled by desertions to Maryland and Virginia, and by other causes, to less than a hundred persons. Rising brought with him an accession of over two hundred settlers, and soon infused new life into the languishing colony. Despite the adverse circumstances he writes in a hopeful constructive spirit, describing the situa tion; and with an eye trained under the influences of the new Swedish commercial development, he points out the indus trial possibilities of the Delaware. Johan Classon Rising was bom in 1617 in Risinge, Oster- gotlandslan, in south central Sweden. After courses at the gymnasium at Linkopmg in Sweden and at the universities of Upsala and Leyden, he travelled with the aid of the Swedish government and certain patrons among the nobility, through many of the countries of Europe for purposes of culture and for special information with respect to commerce and trade. In these subjects he became a foremost authority, and from 1651 to 1653 held the office of secretary of the Commercial 133 134 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA College of Sweden. He wrote the first treatise on trade and economics ever compiled in Sweden, a large part of the ma terials having been collected and partly arranged by the autumn of 1653. Receiving knighthood, being then in his thirty-seventh year, he set out from Sweden early in 1654, to take up his duties in New Sweden. His first act was, before landing, to cause the seizure of the offensive Dutch Fort Casimir (now New Castle), which the en ergetic Stuyvesant, as one of the first steps in his campaign of aggression against the Swedes, had erected in 1651, just below Fort Christina. Of the subjugation of the Dutch settlers at Casimir to Swedish rale, of the Indian relations, of the vainly- hoped-for succor from the Fatherland, and of the further events and progress of the colony, as well as finally of the Dutch conquest of New Sweden — all may be read in full de tail as chronicled by Rising himself in this and the two suc ceeding reports. After the surrender, Rising and the other officials, the sol diers, and such colonists as were unwilling to become Dutch subjects, were taken back to Europe. Rising after some wan derings returned to Sweden, but led a precarious existence in devotion to the continuance of his great work on com merce. He died in poverty at Stockholm in 1672. See John son's Swedish Settlements for a more detailed life. His reports, and a manuscript journal for the period 1654- 1655, extending over the greater part of his American experi ence, are replete with succinct and accurate information, plainly and clearly expressed, constituting the most valuable sources for the history of New Sweden under his administra tion. A contemporary manuscript copy of this report in Swed ish is in the Riksarkiv (Royal Archives), in Stockholm. It was printed in Swedish at Stockholm, in 1878, in the appendix of Professor Carl K. S. Sprinchom's Kolonien Nya Sveriges INTRODUCTION 135 Historia (History of the Colony of New Sweden), pp. 92-102, and is now published for the first time in English from a translation of Sprinchom's text made by Dr. Amandus Johnson. A. C. M. REPORT OF GOVERNOR JOHAN RISING, 1654 Most honorable Count, honorable gentlemen, powerful benefactors, and friendly patrons. Although it can well be seen from the diary, which I now send over, how our long journey hither proceeded, and also what our condition is here now, nevertheless I have thought it necessary to relate certain things more at length to the Royal College,1 in order that Your Excellency and Lordships, observ ing from it our disadvantages, may be able through your good directions, to dispatch to us here all needed succor, so that this highly-profitable work may not, after so good a begin ning, receive any set-back or henceforth lack necessary as sistance, but that everything, as time goes on, may be aided in a becoming manner. And although, indeed, several diffi culties have befallen us, ever since we came here, bringing with us a lot of sick and weak people, finding before us an empty country, disturbed partly by despondency, partly by mutiny and desertion; nevertheless, God be praised, we still prosper. The people are now recovering. Would to God that we had provisions for them, now and during the winter. We are awaiting some provisions from the Fatherland and some with our sloop, which is daily expected from N. England; some also from the savages and other neighbors, until, God willing, we are able to harvest the crops of one or two years. Then we hope to be able to get along, as far as food is con cerned. The mutiny here is now fully suppressed; but still there is some smoke after the fire. I hope that good discipline and vigilance will prevent all such disturbances. As to the government of the country, I am able to report that I have, according to Her Royal Majesty's most gracious orders and the desire of the College, taken as assistants the good men whom I found suitable thereto, since I found that 1 The then recently established Royal Commercial College. 136 1654] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1654 137 the Governor had departed from here. These assistants are Captain Sven Scuthe1 and Lieutenant Johan Pappegoija,2 with whose counsel and co-operation I have managed everything, which has so far been done here. I expect a complete gracious regulation by the next ship, according to which I will live and direct myself submissively in all obedience, and all respect for the faithful service of my Most Gracious Sovereign and the advantage of the Fatherland; which will be dearer to me than any of my own profit or reputation, whatever hereafter may be ordained by my Gracious Sovereign for the government of this work. Meantime I would desire that full authority might as soon as possible be given here in judicial matters, in higher and lower trials (especially in order to put down the mutiny); and that for this purpose an executioner with sword be sent here. Through this, much disorder would be prevented, which other wise might hereafter break out through secret plots. The greater part of the colonists indeed complain of the severity with which they claim to have been treated by Governor Printzen.3 But many of them may have caused him much trouble, therefore I handle the case as moderately as I can. I could not refuse to hear the matter in the court, and then I requested them to draw up their complaints them selves. This they did later and I herewith send them over. Since Governor Printzen is now there himself, he is able, in the proper place, to answer them and explain himself. Meantime, I shall exert myself so to direct things here in that matter that neither our Swedes, nor the Hollanders dwell ing here, nor others, can rightly complain of injustice in legal proceedings. If a law-reader could be sent here, it would be desirable. It might for this purpose be ordained that all the fines, which are here imposed, should be divided into three parts, one-third for the accuser (with which a fiscal under the name of substitute could be paid), the second third for the 1 Sven Skute. 2 Johan Papegoja arrived in New Sweden in 1643 where he was married about 1645 to Armegot, daughter of Governor Johan Printz. On his return to Sweden he became a captain in the navy, about 1661. About 1667 he was ad vanced to major. He lived at Ramstorp, where he owned an estate. Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, especially pp. 686-687. s I.e., Printz, en being the Swedish definite article. 138 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1654 court, and the third third for the government, for the pay ment of the law-reader, the support of the poor, or other such things. As to the culture and improvement of this country, I will pass this over briefly, since it is known to Your Countiy Excel lency1 already, what splendid advantages this river has and what conveniences this land possesses (which I have caused to be mapped, as well as it could be done in a hurry, all the way from the bay even up to the falls, by one A. Hudden),2 where fore it is well worth while, in order to get this land into some state of prosperity, to employ a liberal expenditure, which later would pay itself a thousand fold. For both goods and blood are often spent on land which cannot by far be com pared with this. Wherefore should one not risk expense of money and goods, without bloodshed (as we have reason to hope), since we now, God be praised, have free opportunity to settle it, and so to fortify it against all attack, that it, by the help of God, will endure, and later, in case of need, will give good assistance to the Fatherland, and be a jewel in the royal crown, if only succor can now early be sent here? And at the same time this advantage is also to be expected, that our sailors thereby will become trained for the sea, our ships put into motion, the inhabitants here and there animated to trade, our trade so extended, that all the good designs which might be entertained for the improvement of commerce will be carried out, and ship-building and navigation be thereby increased. I will leave it to a more suitable time to discuss, how our commerce to Africa and America, yes, into the West and 1 Count Eric Oxenstierna was president of the college. * Andries Hudde came to New Amsterdam with Governor Kieft in 1638. For some years he acted as surveyor there. In 1645 he was sent to the Delaware River, where he was actively concerned in upholding Dutch interests, and served as commissary, first at Fort Nassau, 1645-1651, then at Fort Casimir, 1651-1654. After the capture of Fort Casimir in the latter year he was employed by Rising, as stated, in making a map of the Delaware River, his compensation from the Governor, according to the notes of Dr. Amandus Johnson, being twenty florins for "some maps of the river and other drawings." Hudde promised to remain with the Swedes but soon slipped away to New Amsterdam. After the Dutch conquest in 1655 he was made surveyor and secretary and later commander at New Amstel. He died, in 1663 at Appoquiminy in Maryland whither he had gone to settle. 1654] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1654 139 East-Sea1 can be combined, through good means, for the great increase of navigation, and the great utility of our dear Father land, which then could seize the advantage derived from the goods which come into the East-Sea — and much of that in the West Sea — but this belongs to its proper time and place. But as far as time and convenience allow I will here use all dili gence, that as much of this land as possible may first be cleared and planted by our colonists, since very little has been sown this year. For the continuation of this work, I have an ad vantage in this, that a part of the old freemen have requested new lands, being encouraged thereto by the freedoms which Her Royal Majesty has now given, and have wished to transfer their cleared land to the new-comers; but no new-comers have means to redeem them, therefore I intend to buy them for the Company (payment for only the clearing being understood), and then set young freemen upon them, lend them oxen for working their lands, give them grain for seeding, and each year take one-half of the grain from the field, and give them cows for half of the increase, on condition that if the cow dies before the Company gets any increase from her then the tenant must pay for her. By this means they are immediately and imperceptibly brought under a reasonable tax. So, if this gets started, they will both clear the land and supply it with cattle, and also give the Company a good income, so that it seems to me (with all deference) in this case, that it could not be taken into better use, without any hazard, inconvenience or cost. It also seems to be more necessary at this time to settle the land along the river itself, than up in the creeks. Therefore I intend to put most of this people between Trinity2 and Christina, near which place a large piece of land ought to be taken up for the property of the Company, and it were good to provide that this should not be alienated. Hereafter it would be well worth while to settle Christina Kill, in order that one might be the more secure against Virginia, and be- 1 North Sea and Baltic Sea. 2 Fort Trinity or Sandhoeck, now New Castle, Delaware. The place experi enced several changes of name just after the middle of the seventeenth century, as follows: Fort Casimir, so named on its founding by the Dutch, in 1651; Fort Trinity, upon its seizure by the Swedes in 1654; New Amstel, in 1656, upon the Dutch conquest of New Sweden, in 1655; New Castle, in 1664, upon the English conquest of New Netherland. 140 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1654 sides to carry on trade with them, making a passage from their river1 into the said kill, by which we could bring the Vir ginian goods here and store them, and load our ships with them for a return cargo. If we could buy Sakakitqz2 and Amisackan3 from the Minquas, then this could well be brought about, and we could also carry on the best trade with them [the Minquas] there. And the Englishman, referred to, Mr. Ringoldh,4 presented it to me and exhorted us thereto, yet probably more for the purpose of discovering our intention about it than because the English would gladly see it accom plished; still the sooner it were done the better. In this said kill and near here there are some water-falls; and at the most important one, called the great fall,5 many waterworks could be placed, for the great benefit of the Company. About this I will use all zeal, as far as is possible with this people and at this time, intending, as soon as everything is harvested and sown, to construct there a good dam, with all the ability of the country, and then a flour-mill, a saw-mill, and a chamois- dressing mill; wherefore it would be good that this fall were not given away nor alienated. But the others are of small value. Apoquenema Kill,8 below Trinity, which runs nearest the English river,7 would also be well worth occupying at the first opportunity, also the Hornkill,8 since the savages now at this time and before this have often requested this of us; other wise their mind will cool, and probably the English* who are 1 Elk River. 2 1, e., Chakahilque or Chakakatique Fall. See post, p. 159, note 3. 5 1, e., Amisackan Fall. See post, ibid. * Thomas Ringgold (b. 1610), one of the county commissioners, resided on his plantation of 1,200 acres, called "Huntingfield," on a creek of that name flowing into Rockhall Creek, on the northeastern part of the Chesapeake in Kent County, Maryland. 6 Apparently in Christina Creek, although the great fall in the Brandywine may be the one referred to. • Appoquinimink Creek, in Kent County, Delaware. 7 The present Bohemia River, in Maryland, a branch of Elk River, which is an affluent of the northeastern part of Chesapeake Bay. From its head waters to those of Appoquinimink Creek in Delaware, was the shortest and usual portage path between the Chesapeake and the Delaware. 8 The Hoorn or Hoere Kill, now Lewes Creek, Delaware. • Of Maryland and Virginia. 1654] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1654 141 now beginning some trade from their own river in this direc tion, will slip in there, which it would indeed be well to fore stall. What other districts there may be in the river, which now call for settlement into large estates, yea, even prince doms, Mr. Pappegoija will probably be able to tell, who has good knowledge about it, and who now returns home for the service of the Company and to report concerning our condition. And since cattle are very necessary for agriculture, there fore I will use all possible dihgence in securing some here for the people. And it is sure that if a cargo were here of shoes, stockings, linen stuff, etc., then we could get as many cattle from Virginia as we wish, and could obtain them for a good price, and give them out or sell them to the freemen with ad vantage. The fisheries we shall gradually (God granting grace and success) practise and carry on with diligence, for there are sturgeon and other fish in the river, but in the creeks there are eel, salmon, thickhead and striped bass in the bay, and outside the bay the codfish and other kinds, — provided only that a few good fishermen with all sorts of implements were sent here. With brewery and distillery and alehouses and well-fitted inns there would be a good profit for the company to be made, provided only we in the beginning had a number of liquors on hand and provided an order were made that on all foreign drinks a duty about equal to their value should be paid, accord ing as might be found necessary here for moderation, but that if the importers sold their drinks to the Company they should not pay more than two per cent. N. B. It is better to grant a free import, but afterwards to collect double excise, of which the buyer and the seller should each pay half to the magistrates. We will also in the future see what advantage can be had from woods and timber, with planks and clapboards, pipe- staves, etc., with which a profitable trade could be carried on in the Caribbee Islands and our own ships could be loaded from here, which now, on account of the sickness of the people and because it is not now the season for cutting logs, could not be accomplished. What advantage various trades could bring here into the country is self-evident, especially if one could make all kinds 142 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1654 of things from these good trees, which could be sold to advan tage. Besides timber-cutters, we need some one who can bum tar and make shoemaker's wax, which is here an expensive article; also a soap-maker, since we have a potash-burner with us. Besides this there are other materials of the land, which could be taken up and manufactured, as saltpeter, for which we have a good man who can seek for it, and if we could here establish powder-mills it would bring us great profit. A powder-mill we could cause to be built on the abovementioned stream, but we should wish that skilled masters and people should be sent here. Of blacksmiths (aside from gunsmiths) we have enough for our needs, as well as cordwainers and leatherdressers, tailors, skinners, swordmakers, glass makers, masons, house-carpenters, etc. But we have need of pottery- makers, brick-makers, lime-burners, cabinet makers, wooden- basin makers and wooden-plate turners, shoemakers and tan ners. An assayer would be needed here. He ought to take the proofs and send them home as soon as the works had been started, in order that the neighbors, who have always tried to get up a copper mine, might not gain possession of one, but that strict orders should be given about it. For here are surely to be found many of the best minerals in the country. A French hat-maker could do much good here; also a wine grower and a bird-catcher who could capture geese and ducks in nets on the low places in spring and fall, since these birds come here by thousands in the fall and spring. Also, if some Dutch farmers could be brought here and settled on the company's own land it would be very useful, and more such things. Upon these and other considerations, it does not seem un wise to lay out a town here at Christina and to place there a good deal of the abovementioned or other laborers, as it is most convenient to establish staple and resident places. To this end I have already caused the field adjoining Christina to be divided into lots by Lindestrohm1 and he has made a plan 1 Peter Martensson Lindestrom (d. 1691) was educated in the University of Upsala, where he specialized in mathematics and the art of fortification. In 1654 he went out to New Sweden as engineer, remaining until 1655. On his re turn to Sweden he secured the position of engineer of fortifications. His final settlement was at Brosater, Sweden. In his later years while bedridden he 1654] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1654 143 of it, which he in humility sends home, and we intend (God granting success) to build houses there in the autumn. And here are suitable places for establishing towns, trading-places and villages, as the time shall give opportunity, but there is now, besides Christina, also Sandhook or Trinity, where there are about 22 houses built by the Hollanders. Concerning the trade, it can be said, that it would be the most important thing in the country, if we only had enough cargo to draw the beaver trade to us from the Minquas and from the Black Minquas, which buy up both our ordinary cargo and also silk and satin cloth, hats and other things; likewise the trade of the Maquas1 and other surrounding sav ages could now be drawn to us, since the Dutch formerly used to buy up yearly at Fort Orange2 from fifty to sixty thousand beavers, and the English are not loved by these savages nor are they accustomed to carry on trade with them. In addi tion it is thought that the English are about to attack Mana- thes.3 Wherefore if the work would be taken hold of with power this trade, which is of great importance, could be drawn here into the river, since no Christian nation is in better credit with the savages than we now are. But in case such a large trade could not yet be brought about, we should indeed get along with the common trade with the Minquas and with our own river savages.4 The other sources of income in the country, such as agriculture, logging and handicraft, would, besides this, next unto the help of God, well support us. Specifications of the necessary cargoes, I send enclosed here with, for which we shall be able to buy up from our near Christian neighbors good return cargoes as well as cattle and victuals for the people and the preparation of the ships. This cargo which we now have brought with us cannot be used for much else at this time than to enlist and hold the savages in good friendship and for the buying of provisions and necessaries, without which we could not subsist here; also to pay the old and newly enlisted people, and to pay the old wrote his valuable Geographica, an unpublished manuscript in the Swedish ar chives, which contains his maps of the Delaware, and of the American colonies for the period of his visit. Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, pp. 682-683. 1 Mohawks. 2 Now Albany, New York. ' Manhattan or New Amsterdam. * The Lenni Lenape, or Delawares. 144 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1654 debts of the Company (which are now presented) and, lastly, to build forts and necessary houses, which are few here, so that, besides that I and the others hardly have room here, a good many of the workmen have been compelled to go idle on account of lack of houses. But although there cannot follow a complete gain from this ship's cargo (and probably not from the next coming ship) on account of the many ex penses which now in the beginning must be made as a founda tion, yet if now an early succor follows upon this, and con tinues all along, these preparations will not be found fruitless in the future. Accurate accounts shall be kept for everything, and it will be rightly handled, as far as is in my power and understanding. No other return of goods can be sent from here at this time, except only this that it can be reported that the country and the river, as far as is possible, have been taken into our possession. Concerning any navigation which we can carry on from here I am not able to report, for until we receive some ships here we have, so to say, our hands and feet tied, and must see with regret how this beautiful ship, which Governor Printzen has caused to be built, must lie without employment in its place. It is well built; only a few things are to be changed and finished. Wherefore, a ship's carpenter would be greatly needed, and P. Trotzigh or H. Hugen might be able to secure Claes the Carpenter from Holland, the same who built this ship. The ropes which we have brought with us are pre served in the store-house on Tinnakonck and are very good, but almost too large for this ship. If, however, we had smaller vessels they would be serviceable for us to sail to the neighbor ing countries as well as in the river, in the bay, and outside, for fishing purposes. A wise and faithful merchant such as Hindrich Hiigen has been reported to have been, is much needed, as also a book keeper. Jacob Svensson1 is now almost the only one whom 1 Jacob Svensson came over with Governor Printz in 1643 and was stationed as a common soldier at Fort Elfsborg. He was a gunner at Fort Christina in 1649 and later served as assistant commissary of the colony for some years, procuring supplies from New England, notably in personal visits with a sloop in 1653 and 1654. He also was an Indian interpreter. Upon the Dutch conquest he became an ensign of New Netherland. 1654] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1654 145 we can use, but we are always having to send him to the sur rounding places, for our necessaries and on other commissions. And he is not yet returned from N. England, but we await him every day with the sloop, if Stuffwesandh1 shall not by ill luck intercept him on the way, which he has threatened, yet we hope that he will get through. I have, therefore, had no one who has been able to carry on any trade in the storehouse, nor has as yet any savage arrived with goods. Therefore, we have no goods to send home with the ship Eagle for the Com pany, but we hope to be able to do it better another time, when our affairs can be brought into better working order. I have indeed used all my diligence to secure some freight home ward for the ship, as well in Virginia as at Manathans, but it could not be done. And since I was instructed by Your Excellency and the worthy College2 to seek in Gothenburg for some good men who would venture their goods hither on the ship to begin a trade with, I did my best, but found no one who had any suitable cargo in store, or who dared to risk it. Since then I have got a quantity of Virginian tobacco on credit from an Englishman, Mr. Allerton,3 on the condition that it be paid for at the next arrival of cargo, but at a high price ; wherefore I would submissively and humbly request that the Honorable College would let me enjoy the favor which it has 1 Petrus Stuyvesant (1602-1672), the capable and energetic but tyrannical last Dutch governor of New Netherland (1647-1664), and the conqueror of New Sweden, was a Frieslander, the son of a clergyman. Trained in the military ser vice, he lost his leg in an unsuccessful encounter of the Dutch with the Portu guese on the island of St. Martin, in 1644, while he was governor of the Dutch colony of Curacao, in the West Indies. After the English conquest of New Netherland in 1664, he was summoned to account in Holland, but soon returned to spend his later days in New York. 2 The Royal Commercial College. 5 Isaac Allerton (c. 1588-1658), one of the commercial leaders of the New World of that day, was a native of England, removed to Leyden in Holland and in 1620 came over with the Pilgrims in the Mayflower to Plymouth in New Eng land. After service as deputy-governor, and as agent for the Plymouth Colony in several visits to England, he engaged in fishing and trading ventures with his vessels on the upper New England coast. Later he removed to New Amsterdam and finally as early as 1646 to New Haven. His chief warehouses seem to have been in New Amsterdam whence his vessels traded to Massachusetts Bay, Dela ware Bay, Virginia, and Barbados. He made several personal trading visits to the Swedes and Dutch on the Delaware, as early as 1644. In July, 1651, he wit nessed an Indian deed at Fort Nassau. 146 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1654 granted to others, namely, that I might be allowed to bring the abovementioned tobacco into Gothenburg free of duty and freight, since many would be encouraged thereby to risk their ship[s] and goods for the increase of the trade in the river; for which I dare to have a sure hope, especially since the ship in any case would have to go from here empty. I should be found to acknowledge this privilege with all faithful service. The moderate duty which has been placed here as well as the other favorable conditions for those who wish to trade here or to settle and live under the protection of Her Royal Majesty, will without doubt draw many here, if only the matter can be pushed forward and brought into effect. Yet it seems (without question) that it would be best if the said duty should be so favorable that all Swedish ships should pay only two per cent, on outgoing and incoming goods and all strangers four to six per cent., except on provisions, which, for a time, in the beginning, might be brought in free, save that all liquors, which are not sold or brought for the good and need of the Company, might pay about as much as the wine costs. And if any ship should arrive here with a cargo and then should not sell it all, that it might in that case not pay any duty on that which was not sold here. But whatever else could be of service here in that regard, is all referred to the Honorable College, either to have it drawn up, or to give power to estab lish such ordinances here as might be best for the furtherance of the trade or the advantage of the Company; then they would here be diligently observed and put into execution. Our military affairs and defense are managed in general like the others, but Captain Skuthe has to give account for the ammunition, shot, and guns, and he is especially now en gaged to fortify Fort Trinity, which is as a key to the river. And if the office of commandant for the military forces should be given to anyone, he is considered a much more suitable man than Hans Amundsson;1 and the greatest part of those 1 Hans Amundsson — the news having not yet reached Governor Rising — had died at Porto Rico, on July 2, 1654, just eleven days prior to the writing of Ris ing's report. Amundsson had been the commander of the ill-fated expedition of 1649, which had been shipwrecked, and maltreated by the Spanish and French in the West Indies. He met his death while coming over on his second voyage to recover his claims in Porto Rico and then to settle on lands granted to him on the Schuylkill. 1654] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1654 147 serving here have said that they will leave the service if such a one as the latter shall get the command, which I only men tion in passing. It seems proper that the military force and all other things should be kept under one direction and not be split up, on account of the evil consequences, which in this matter may follow out of jealousy. Cannon, iron as well as brass cannon, are here greatly needed by us, as well for service on the sea as on the forts, especially for the defense of the river at Trinity, where the cannon which the Hollanders left are mostly useless, and we do not know whether Her Royal Majesty will give them the cannons back again with everything else found in the fort or not. We have therefore borrowed four fourteen-pounders from the ship and placed them in an entrenchment before the fort, the better to sweep the river straight across. At Chris tina other guns are also needed, for most of the old ones are useless. We need a large quantity of powder and bullets, lead and other ammunition. Muskets and guns we have enough at this time, but good French fusils are much more used here in the country and in addition bags of leather with three or four compartments, in which one could place cart ridges; these are many times better in the rain in the woods than bandeliers and match-lock muskets, and they are much sought after by the savages. We also intend to put flint-locks on a large number of our muskets. Whatever the Company's finances and property may be here in the country I will use all diligence to list carefully and will cause it to be valued approximately as soon as I can secure any suitable man for it, as for instance land, cleared and un cleared, woods, streams, fishing-waters, fortresses, buildings, equipments, implements, boats, ships, mills, cargoes for trade and for return voyages, grain, cattle, goods and provisions, ammunition and guns, and especially the means by which the Company can gain some income, also a list of those who wish to buy land and property from the Company, and a list of the lands which have been rented for half of the crops or which have been forfeited for non-payment of taxes. I would also present an account of the industries, namely [stenckery f], of the powder and saltpeter manufactories, of the saw-mills and logging, of breweries and taverns, of the mill toll, of tanneries 148 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1654 and shoemakers and leatherdressers and other such things, also concerning dues on Swedish and foreign shipping, etc. Good and suitable men for this purpose are much needed by us.I also humbly request that the visits which here must daily be received may be provided for either by a certain appropri ation by the Company or otherwise according to reasonable allowances. It is also very necessary, in order to avoid much trouble out here, that no donations be given or any land assigned to anyone, unless he occupies it effectively or settles it himself, or in this either serves the crown or the Company. Otherwise, much confusion will result from the fact, that the land of the Company is given away or land which in reahty belongs to the savage sachems, as for example, Marikens Point.1 This land, together with Finland 2 (on which about five or six free men of the Company have until this been living), I intend now to buy from them for the Company, the improvements only being compensated for, as also Printztorp,3 all the way up to Upland's Kill.4 Hans Amundsson has received Her Royal Majesty's patent for the piece of land which now for the first time last Sunday was given to the Swedes, in exchange for gifts, by the sachem Peminacka as the rightful owner. The sachem Ahopameck also gave to us all the land which Captain Scute had received in donation, only excepting for himself half of the Schuylkill and the land called Passayungh.5 It would therefore be advisable to give authority out here to encourage such donations and to reserve that* which ought not to be divided, either because such land might be found necessary for the uses of the Company or of the country; and all donations not accompanied by a proper certificate should be held back. I have therefore not been able to give a certificate to Captain Scuthe both because the greatest number of the Company's 1 Now Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania. 2 Finland or Chammassungh, between the present Marcus Hook in Penn sylvania and the mouth of Naamans Creek in northern Delaware. ' Printztorp, on the Delaware, on the south side of Upland Kill, now Chester Creek, just over the creek from Upland, later Chester. 4 Now Chester Creek. 5 On the east side of the Schuylkill River near the Delaware, within the present city of Philadelphia. 1654] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1654 149 freemen dwell on that land and also because the savages have only lately presented the land to me, and lastly because I have no authorization from the Honorable Company, but am awaiting one concerning it. For the same reasons a certificate cannot be given to Hans Amundsson. At least it seems that one should withhold that which the freemen have occupied, and that it might now, this year, be taken under the Com pany's management together with Printztorp, to which the Company has a good claim, as is to be seen from the documents of the freemen presented herewith. The pretensions which the English and the Dutch have to this river will fall of themselves, when a complete settlement is made here, especially since our own people have secured for themselves from the rightful owners the first right, and since occupation has followed upon this, although the work has stopped for a time. The Virginians who were here requested to be allowed to buy land and plant colonies. I said that I could not now allow it, since I had no orders. And I do not know whether it is advisable, since we are still so weak, for in N. Netherland the English have thus bought and borrowed land from the Hollanders with the result that they have later pressed them out. But whether or not a man may be allowed to do this on his written oath to Her Majesty's service and the good of the land, I submit to the Honorable College. It would be very well for us to have a good man on our side in Virginia who could settle his servants here. But as to any stranger who wishes to buy land and to settle here I will honor the express orders and permission concerning this from Her Royal Majesty and the College. Concerning our people I can say that they are, (God be praised), mostly well, and altogether three hundred and seventy souls, and the Swedes were only seventy when we ar rived here. The old people largely remain (a number of old men go home again); one of them is better than any of the new-comers, who are weak and a good part of them lazy and unwilling Finns. The best men went away from here with the Governor, of whom a great number would gladly have remained here who at this time could have done much good, which now must stand undone until a more proper time. 150 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1654 Lastly, as to our church affairs, we are indeed in need of a learned priest, although we now have three of them, namely, Matthias Nertunius,1 who indeed is the best one, and Lauren- tius Caroli Lock,2 who has been here before, and is accused of mutiny, wherefore I have intended to send him home to defend and free himself, but he is now become very ill. The third one is Peter Laurentii Hiort3 and he is both materially and spiritu ally a poor priest. He is stationed in Trinity Fort. If now [the land at] Upland 4 which belongs to the Com pany, and is large enough for the sowing of twenty or thirty bushels of grain, might be given to the parsonage for Ner tunius, together with the small houses there, it would be very well; then he would need no other salary from the Company. If one could obtain willingly from the people tithes of grain and cattle, half of them could be assigned for the salary of the ministers, the other part for the maintenance of schools and church buildings. In addition a piece of land should be set aside for the maintenance of the poor and the education of young children, with revenues and some part of the confisca tions, that might be made and of alms and other things, concerning which orders are awaited. Priestly vestments, an altar painting, and two or three bells would also be very serviceable here, if we could receive them by the next ship. This is what I have considered to be the most important to present, this and everything that could serve for the build- 1 Rev. Matthias Nertunius, a man of education, came over to New Sweden in 1653 and remained until the conquest by the Dutch in 1655, when he returned home with Rising and was made pastor of a parish in Helsingland. Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, p. 685. 2 Rev. Lars Carlsson Lock (d. 1688), a native of Finland, for forty years Lutheran pastor of the Swedes on the Delaware, came over with the seventh ex pedition in 1647, relieving the Rev. Johan Campanius of his pastorate. After the Dutch conquest of New Sweden he was the sole pastor among the Swedes, offici ating, alternately, in the church at Tinicum, in Fort Christina, and, from 1667, at Crane Hook, Delaware, until the arrival of Fabritius, in 1677, after which he confined his services to Crane Hook. * Rev. Peter Laurentii Hiort (d. 1704) arrived with the expedition of 1654, and returned to Sweden the following year with Governor Rising, after the Dutch conquest, and became associate minister in Wimmerby and Pelame, Sweden. 4 Now Chester. 1654] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1654 151 ing up of the land being submitted to Your Excellency and Their Lordships. I remain always Your Excellency's and Their Lordships' faithful and obedient servant, Johan Rising. From Fort Christina in New Sweden, July 13, Anno 1654. REPORT OF GOVERNOR JOHAN RISING, 1655 INTRODUCTION NoTwiTHSTANDrNG the threatening dangers from whites and red men, Rising, emboldened by the hope of relief from home, writes with much of the same optimism in this second report, which is dated nearly a year after the first one. The text of the report is from a contemporary manuscript copy in Swedish in the Kammararkiv (Archives of the Ex chequer) in Stockholm, found by Dr. Amandus Johnson, and is now published, for the first time, in English translation by him. The Swedish text, edited by him, has been published (1910) in German American Annals, viii. 87-93, 288. A. C. M. REPORT OF GOVERNOR JOHAN RISING, Honorable Count, Most Gracious Master and Mighty Patron, Honorable High, Noble, and Well-born Lords: After I had sent a relation a year ago with the ship Orn1 concerning the condition of this country and necessary means for its advancement, I also reported last fall about various things, among others concerning the prize [made of] the Gyl- lennhay2 by Stuvesand in Manathas and sent the letter through Mr. Lord3 in Harford to Ben. Bonell4 in London. I will now also humbly report concerning our present condition, namely, that everything is still in a fairly good state and especially since all here have the sure hope that a good succor from the Fatherland will soon relieve and comfort us, especially through Your Excellency and the assistance of the High Lords.5 If the people were not animated by this hope, there would be danger that a part of them would go beyond their limits, or that indeed a large number of them would desert from here, not only because many necessaries are lacking, but also be cause both the savages and the Christians keep us in alarm. Our neighbors the Renappi8 threaten not only to kill our people in the land and rain them, before we can become stronger and 1 Eagle. 2 Golden Shark. ' Captain Richard Lord (c. 1611-1662) went from Massachusetts to Hartford, Connecticut, in 1638 and was one of the most energetic and efficient men in the latter colony. He held various public offices and was a commander in the Ind ian wars. He made trading voyages to New Sweden as early as July, 1643, and was also there in 1654 and 1655, in June of the latter year being present at the treaty made by the Swedes with the Minquas Indians at Fort Christina. 4 Benjamin Bonnell, an Englishman, had been sent from Sweden to London in 1651 to look after Swedish interests in England. Previously he had lived in Amsterdam as a merchant, had spent about twenty years in Spain and Portugal, and in 1625 had gone to Sweden to engage in glass manufacture. In 1640 he had received the appointment of factor of the New Sweden Company at Stock holm. Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, especially pp. 676-677. * Of the College of Commerce. • Lenape. 156 1655] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1655 157 prevent such things, but also to destroy even the trade, both with the Minques and the other savage nations, as well as with the Christians. We must daily buy their friendship with presents, for they are and continue to be hostile, and worse than they have been hitherto. If they buy anything here, they wish to get half on credit, and then pay with difficulty. They run to the Minques, and there they buy beavers and elk- skins, etc., for our goods, and then they proceed before our eyes to Manathas, where the traders can pay more for them than we do, because more ships and more goods arrive there. Yet we associate with them to a certain extent, and they are fond of us, because we do not do them any harm or act hostile towards them. Otherwise, they would indeed rain our cattle, yes probably the people on the land, as they vex them daily and take away whatever they can. Last winter one of them killed a woman not far from here and robbed what there was. Later indeed they promised that they would make amends for it, but have not as yet given more than ten fathoms of sevan. Then the English draw our people to themselves over to Virginia (Saverne)1 as much as they are able and keep those who deserted thither last year. They largely rain our trade with the Minques, especially Scarborough who gives them 7 to 8 lbs. of powder for one beaver, where we are accustomed to give at the highest from 3 to 4 lbs. and cannot give over 5 lbs. except at a loss. During Easter-time two more freemen deserted, leaving their children and wives behind, and prob ably many were about to run, if I had not presented to them so seriously their proper duties, assuring them that the Eng lish would certainly at a later time deliver these up to us and that they would be condemned here and be killed in the sight 1 Severn River at Annapolis, Maryland. 2 Edmund Scarborough or Scarburgh (d. 1670-1671) was not only the lead ing planter and merchant of the Eastern Shore of Virginia but one of the prin cipal figures in seventeenth century Virginia. He resided in Accomac County, at Occahannock, on the north side of a creek of that name flowing into Chesa peake Bay and dividing Accomac from Northampton County. He acquired a large property by planting and trading, his vessels venturing as far as Delaware River and New Amsterdam. He was not only concerned in the fur trade, but had salt works, and in 1662 was employing nine shoemakers. He served as sheriff and justice of the county court, was speaker of the House of Burgesses in 1645, and was made surveyor general of Virginia in 1655. 158 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 of everyone. I keep a close watch on those worthy of sus picion. The Hollanders at Manathes likewise hinder us as much as they can, and threaten strongly that Stufvesand, when he returns from W. India and Curacos, where he went last fall with three ships (among which the Giyllene] Haye was one) will come here and capture Fort Casimir, which we now call Trinity. But if he comes we will see to it that he is received in the manner of S. Martens1 (where, he lostvwie of his legs), and we are in no wise afraid about this. But the savages alarm our people with it, the savages being thus informed by the Hol landers, when they come to Manathes. It accomplishes, how ever, God be praised, very little against us. The N. English bring us our provisions, but we have had the disadvantage in this trade. Those of New Haven (indeed the whole republic of the N. England, as may be seen by the enclosed copy of their letter) lay claim stoutly to a large part of this country (concerning which I also wrote and reported last fall) ; and last spring they had about a hundred men ready to come here to take possession of it. But they gave up their design in the hope that the English would capture Cuba, His- paniola, etc., whither then a good many of them intended to transport themselves.2 And the factor Elsvic3 had a con ference with Mr. Croutier,4 vice-governor in N. Haven, last spring in Manathes, where he had gone, sent there as though he intended to go back to Sweden, to secure some provisions for us; and he then gave him so good reasons and answers that I have not considered it worth while to answer them be fore Your Lordly Excellency and the directors please to send orders to me. My humble idea would be that a good keel-boat 1 Governor Stuyvesant lost his leg in 1644, in an engagement with the Portu guese on the island of St. Martins, in the West Indies. 'See Frank Strong, "A Forgotten Danger to the New England Colonies," Annual Report of the American Historical Association, 1898, pp. 77-94. • Hendrick Elswick, originally a Liibeck merchant, removed to Stockholm, and in 1654 was sent over to serve as factor of New Sweden. He returned to Sweden in 1656. Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, 491-526. 4 Stephen Goodyear (d. 1658), deputy governor of New Haven, had been a London merchant. From New Haven he engaged extensively in foreign com merce, sometimes in company with Governor Eaton and others. In 1654 he was sent to Delaware Bay to treat with the Swedes about the New Haven settle ment near present Salem Creek, New Jersey. 1655] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1655 159 ought to be kept at Rieten Island x with cannon to keep out one or another party, who wish to come in with force, and it would be a good means to prevent injustice when power should be needed; yet it would seem best to come to some sort of an agreement with them, for it seems indeed that they will never quit their pretensions, especially since Governor Eaton2 has contributed most to the English colony and plantation here in the river. All this alarms us indeed somewhat, but it is bome in upon us that we are placed here just as on a theatre; and if we re ceive succor we will with the help of God play our part accord ing to our power as well as the other nations do according to theirs. But now we lack power for so large a design, where such a splendid land and river now stand open for us at this time, and which could be planted and secured with a reason able expense. The Minques, who are yet faithful to us and call themselves our protectors, were recently here and presented me with a very beautiful piece of land 3 beyond (utom) the 1 Reedy Island. * Theophilus Eaton (c. 1591-1658), the first Governor of New Haven, was a native of Stony Stratford, Oxfordshire, England. He had been an agent in Den mark and a successful London merchant before his coming to New Haven, in 1637. He was the leader in the governmental as well as in the commercial affairs of his colony. He was one of the largest investors in the New Haven settlement at the Varkens Kill on the Delaware. * Governor Rising in his unpublished manuscript journal states, that in 1655 "they [the chiefs] ... on behalf of the entire council of the Minquas and their united nations presented to us Swedes all the land which is located on the east side of (wydh) the Virginia River (called Elk River in English), all [the way] from the beginning of the Chakakitque-fall all the [way] unto the ends of Amisackan-fall; a land ... of choice soil and endowed with beautiful fresh rivers, so that many thousand families, who might settle there, can find nourishment" Another Swedish manuscript, of 1667, says that " the warlike Minquas presented to us two beautiful rivers and land situated near their limits, called Cheakakitquate and Amihakan 22 Dutch miles in length and 12 [Dutch] miles in width." The piece of land thus secured from the Indians extended apparently from the "fall line" on Big Elk Creek in Cecil County, Maryland, well up into Pennsylvania. Chakahilque or Chakakitque Fall was possibly the first stoppage of navigation at what is now the town of Elkton, Cecil County. Amisackan Fall may have been in a creek of nearly the same name entering Cobbs Creek, in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania. 160 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 English river, namely, all the way from Chakahilque to Am isackan, which we have long desired, and it is said to be very suitable for drawing to us the trade with the Minques, like wise the tobacco trade from Virginia, and for making a staple here in Christina. Jacob Swensson has accomplished this with them, and has done good service this year and is entirely indispensable in the country. But the Minques stipulated that we should soon build there and keep there all sorts of cargoes for as good price as others give them and have black smiths and artisans for [the mending of] their guns. All this I promised them, when our ships arrive. All such could be placed in good condition with moderate resources, and it would be possible now to do more with one or a half barrel of gold than could be done in the future with millions, when other nations have put their foot there. If succor now is long delayed, then our affairs will have a short end and we shall all be rained among so many jealous people and persecutors, for we sit here already as though we had hands and feet tied. The newly built ship lies in its place and rots. Our sloop is leaking and has been drawn up on the land for lack of timber, and our good intentions of erecting useful manufactories in the country, namely, saw-mills, powder-mills, timbering and logging, brick-making, etc., have not been car ried out. Our trade is lessening and is already very small, and it is unspeakably hard to supply all this people with food and clothes in a desert, yet if they lack anything they are im mediately disposed to run away from here. If large succors do not come soon we shall miss all our credit and respect with the savage nations, who will on that account insult us and do us harm. The Christians will also do us more harm than good, for we sit here as a beam in the eye unto them, and this work cannot be carried on with little succor sent at long intervals, for in that case it is as it was in the beginning, lost expense and work, and in the end it will all go to rain. But on the other hand, as has been said before, our courage among ourselves and our reputation among the others are sus tained by the belief that we shall indeed receive a complete succor, for we assure ourselves that Your Noble Highness and the Well-bom Lords will not allow their work to go to pieces, which can become so great. And if now in the beginning a 1655] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1655 161 half barrel of gold should be employed as a capital, then the land (with God's blessing) would be improved to the value of many barrels of gold, and would bring in fifty per cent, when it has become well established, as the factor Elswic will humbly represent in his proposal. Then the people here would cul tivate the land with pleasure. Sweden would be freed from many indolent people, who in this place would have to work or starve. Much goods would be produced and a good profit would be derived from them. Many skilled workmen would get work and sustenance here and there, and increase the sup ply of manufactured goods; our sailors would become experi enced, our ships and our commerce, and also the building of ships, would increase, trade and produce would develop, and our own goods and the profits of them would remain in our own hands and not be chased into the purses of strangers, as often happens. Indeed, if it could be advanced so far that shipping and commerce could be instituted here in N. Sweden, then a good part of the West Indian merchandise could be stored here and be brought back with our ships for much better price than now happens, especially if our ships would take the proper course to these coasts (according to the course which the English sail from England) which can be accom plished at the most in five to ten weeks, and in this manner they sail in a cold climate and thus lose less people from heat and sickness, and lose less time, have less expense, and indeed ran less risk than is the case with our ships, which come hither by way of the Canaries and Caribbean Islands, and thus sail on the W. Indian coast, a course many hundred miles longer than hither to the North English1 or these coasts. Moreover, all the cargoes needed here, concerning which Your Excellency and High-bom Lords have already been in formed, can also be made up from the supplies of the Com pany at home in Sweden; and since linen, fine and coarse, can be bought for a cheap price, and wadmal2 and hards3 also, then it would be well If it would be continued a hundred fold, for there would be a splendid gain to be secured from these goods from every country, especially here in America, 1 I.e., New Englanders. 2 A kind of coarse woolen cloth. 3 The coarser parts of flax or hemp separated in hackling, a coarse fabric being made therefrom. 162 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 since there is no linen either in the North or in the South. And we wish with the next ship one or two barrels of good flax-seed, and the same amount of hemp-seed, since the former is entirely ruined. If now through the Grace of God and the assistance of Your Excellency and the Well-bom Lords this river could be brought into a prosperous condition, then the Fatherland could be supplied from here with tobacco, calmus, sassafras, sugar, figs and other goods, and our ships could be supplied with provisions homeward, which would save much expense, if the ships could bring more freight. All this I suggest in all humility and good intention, well knowing that the good knowledge of Your Excellency and your regard for the whole work will support me as well as the others. And as we have been compelled for the sustenance of the people to buy provisions and other goods from the above men tioned Richard Lord, merchant in Harfort in New England, and we have not in this predicament had means with which to pay him, therefore we have jointly found no other counsel to satisfy him than that we should draw a draft on the Com mercial College as our principals amounting to [2196J]1 rix- dollars, humbly requesting that said draft might be paid to him, (iron necessity has compelled us to this), and we hope that it will be easier for the Company to pay there, for he as well as all the English do not take beavers in any other way than by the pound, which is an unspeakable injury to us; the same also with the elk-skins and deer-skins. We hope the draft can be paid without any loss. The bills for this will be sent over at the first opportunity as well as the draft. Last year we should have been in lack of bread and pro visions if he had not come to our rescue; we could not have subsisted with so many poor people in a desert country among so many enemies. He offers every good thing to us, promises to bring us sheep of the English breed, bees, fruit trees, and other things for the good of this colony, barley and grain for seed of every kind, and gives directions concerning plantations and our trade and where we can bring lumbering and other things to a good condition. He also says that he will place his brother here under Her Royal Majesty's authority. 'Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, p. 530. 1655] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1655 163 He has also promised to send our letters to Holland and therefore I address these to P. Trotzigh1 in Amsterdam, re questing humbly that Your Excellency and the Well-bom Lords would also send our letters the same way, that Trotzigh may send them to London to the correspondent of Lord. Then they will be delivered safely into our hands, especially if the envelope shall be addressed to him as follows: "To the Hounorable Richart Lord, Marcht. ath Hareforth i Niew England." And I would regard it as the greatest benefaction if I could at least receive letters and news, what we have to expect for the advancement of our work, and how things stand at home. In this manner we could write twice a year and receive letters twice, and be sure of receiving them, for otherwise they will be intercepted. Further, as to what concerns us here in the country, [I can report] that we are in good courage, and each one does his best, and there is not one in the country who has not been put to his work. We now hope for a complete and early assistance as well as a good success in our undertaking, and we have this year cleared more land, and occupied as much again as there ever was in the country, and have planted it all with maize, so that the Company should be relieved for the year from furnishing rations for the people, since they can obtain their own. We have also good hope that the Fatherland will supply a capital for it liberally since, with God's help, it will be re warded with gain. The sum which the factor Elswic has se cured in P.[orto] Rico to be paid in Spain for the loss of the ship Katt, will also help to increase this. The original documents concerning the transaction are still lying here and he will give a report about it. He is an indispensable man here, and does his work with diligence and faithfulness. For here are as many who will scatter, as there are who will hold things to gether, so that I had with difficulty striven to keep things together before his arrival. May God help and grant that 1 Peter Trotzig, a native of Sweden, removed to Amsterdam and was a mer chant there. In 1642 he became agent of the Swedish government and in 1661 commissary, his duties including the hiring of Dutch sailors, officers, and skilled laborers for the Swedish service, the purchasing of ships and the like. As factor of the New Sweden Company in Holland he purchased many of the cargoes sent to the Delaware. About 1666 he returned to Sweden. Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, especially p. 697. 164 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 good people may come over, whereby the madness and ex cesses of some of those who are now here might be remedied. And at this time a few [law] cases could not be tried, be cause our small power will not allow that the cases be fully examined into and the punishment executed, especially since the door of flight stands open. Here at Christina the people are building houses as far as they are able and six or eight lots are now occupied. I expect that when more people come there will be more buildings, in the form of a city, where it seems best to place the staple town, since a port can be made and the place can be fortified against attack, so that ships can lie there in the winter away from the ice of the spring, and at no other place in the river. Fort Christina was built up last autumn with good ramparts of turf, on two sides where it had mostly fallen down. In the spring it was surrounded by palisades, so that one can dwell there securely against the attacks of the savages. Yet one side is greatly dilapidated, which like the forementioned is made of turf. This I have it in mind to mend as soon as the hay and the grain have been harvested, with which the people are now occupied. Commandant Schute is diligently working on Fort Trinity, where already two bastions with the curtain are ready, as also a fine rampart on the water side in front of the fort. He is hurrying the work forward with speed. The Hollanders dwelling there who took the oath are now gone off to Manathans, two or three weeks ago. Yet they have been compelled to pay 14 days' work each upon the said Fort Trinity, of which I according to the agreement could not relieve them, and they were out of their element here in the river. The land is now practically clear of the Hollanders. It would be well if the same thing could be said of the Eng lish, concerning whom I am awaiting orders as well as concern ing other things which should be regulated for us, as for ex ample concerning the rule of the country, its improvement and progress. Regarding these I have indeed made some ordinances ac cording to the commission given to me by the College of Com merce and have had them examined and discussed by the principal men here in the country, but I have not published them before, God willing, a further supply of people shall ar- 1655] REPORT OF GOVERNOR RISING, 1655 165 rive here. And we especially await ordinance concerning the donations, about which I have written before, and which with out further orders will cause much bad confusion here, the basis and organization of the trade, the freedoms of the in habitants, when and how they can in the future be taxed, and other things. Skilled workmen would be very useful to us, especially the following which are now needed — saltpeter-makers and powder- makers, ship-carpenters and house-carpenters, those who un derstand how to cut all kinds of timber (yet we expect to ob tain them best from New England), cabinet-makers, brick- makers, potters (for here is very beautiful clay of every kind, red as bolus[?], white to whitewash houses with, as good as lime, yellow, blue, etc.), and clay workers, millwrights, gardeners, and hop-garden masters, etc., which I have enumerated before. Whatever else may be found necessary for the advance ment of this country according to the desire and pleasure of Your Noble Countiy Excellency and Well-bom Lords expressed in the memorial, this I shall and will strive to do and to accom plish according to my small ability with all faithfulness and diligence and I remain ever, Your Noble Countiy Excellency's and Well-bom Lordships' faithful and most humble servant, Johan Risingh. Dated, Christina in New Sweden, June 14, Anno 1655, in greatest haste.1 'It was received by the Commercial College in Stockholm on Nov. 15, 1655. RELATION OF THE SURRENDER OF NEW SWEDEN, BY GOVERNOR JOHAN CLASON RISING, 1655 INTRODUCTION An eighteenth-century manuscript copy of this report in Swedish is in the library of the University of Upsala, Sweden. It was first published in Swedish, at Upsala, in 1825, by Carl David Arfwedson, in the appendix of his Latin dissertation, De Colonia Nova Suecia (Concerning the Colony of New Sweden), pp. 23-30. It was again printed, in a translation by George P. Marsh, in the Collections of the New York His torical Society, second series, I. 443-448 (1841); and thence re printed in Samuel Hazard's Annals of Pennsylvania (1850) and in Pennsylvania Archives, second series, V. (1890), pp. 239-244. The version in the Collections is the basis of the present text, as collated and revised from Arfwedson by Dr. Amandus Johnson. A Dutch account of the same episode, the absorption of New Sweden into New Netherland, will be found in another volume of this series, Narratives of New Netherland, pp. 279- 286. A. C. M. RELATION OF THE SURRENDER OF NEW SWEDEN, BY GOVERNOR JOHAN CLASON RISING, 1655 Relation concerning the unexpected and hostile Attack on the Swedish Colony in Nova Suecia, by the Dutch, under the Command of P. Stuyvesant, Govemor of the New Nether lands, wherefore the Faithful Subjects of His Royal Majesty of Sweden,1 who have endured such Violence, do most humbly appeal to His Royal Majesty's Most Gracious Shelter and Protection, to the Intent that they may be sustained and in demnified for the Wrongs and Injuries which they have suf fered. In the year 1655, on the 30th day of August, the Dutch from the North River, where Manhattan or New Amsterdam is situated, with seven ships or vessels, under command of the said P. Stuvesant, having on board 600 or 700 men, arrived in the South River, where N[ova] Suecia lieth, and anchored be fore the fortress of Elfsborg, which then lay in rains; the next day, they passed Fort Casimir, and bringing to a little above, they landed, and immediately summoned Swen Skuthe, who was in command, to surrender the fort, enforcing their sum mons both with menaces and persuasion; and proceeded to throw up some works. And although some time before this, when we learned from the savages that the Dutch were about to assail us, we had caused Fort Casimir to be supplied with men and munitions to the best of our ability, and had drawn up a resolution in writing to defend the fort in case the Dutch should attack it, ordering Captain Schutte, the commandant, to send on board their ships, when they approached, and de mand of them whether they came as friends, and in any case 1 King Charles X. Gustavus, who had succeeded Queen Christina upon the latter's abdication in 1654. 170 RT OF N. J. VISSCHER'S MAP OF NEW NETHERLAND, NEW ENGLAND, AND PART OF VIRGINIA, ABOUT 1655 From a copy in the New York Public Library 1655] THE SURRENDER OF NEW SWEDEN 171 to warn them not to run by the said fort, upon pain of being fired upon, (which in such case they could not reckon an act of hostility); but if they were minded to treat with us as friends concerning our territory and boundaries, he should compliment them with a Swedish national salute, and assure them that we were well disposed to a fast friendship ; never theless, Captain Swen Schiite not only suffered the Dutch ships to pass the fort without remonstrance or firing a gun, whereby they gained the command both of the fort and of the whole river, and cut off the communication between the forts, by posting troops between them, as high up as Christina Kill, but also surrendered the fort to Stiivesant by a disad vantageous capitulation, in which he forgot to stipulate a place to which he, with his people and effects, might retire; he also subscribed the capitulation, not in the fort or in any indifferent place, but on board a Dutch ship. So Stiivesant detained the people, and transported most of them to Mana- hatans, whereby we were greatly reduced in strength and left destitute, and not even knowing as yet that Fort Casimir had so suddenly fallen into the enemy's hands, we had sent thither in the mean time, September 1, nine or ten of our best freemen to strengthen the garrison. This detachment, when they had crossed Christina Kill betimes in the morning, found the Dutch posted there, who immediately attacked them, fifty or sixty men strong, and summoned them to surrender; but they put themselves in posture of defence, and after a skirmish with the Dutch, were all taken prisoners, except two, who re treated to the boat, the Dutch firing many shots after them, but without hitting. Upon this we fired upon the Dutch from the sconce, with a gun, whereupon they retired into the woods, and afterwards treated harshly and cruelly such of our people as fell into their hands. The same day the factor Hendr. Elzvii 1 was sent down from Fort Christina to Stiivesant to obtain an explanation of his arrival and intention, and to dissuade him from further hos tilities, as we could not be persuaded that he seriously pur posed to disturb us in the lawful dominions of His Royal Majesty and our principals. But as Stiivesant had so cheaply obtained possession of Fort Casimir, whither we before had 1 Hendrick Elswick. 172 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 sent our best soldiers, thus depriving ourselves in a great measure both of men and munitions, he would give Elzvii no satisfaction, but claimed the whole river and all our territory, and had well nigh detained Elzvii as a spy. When we learned this we collected all the people we could for the defence of Fort Christina, and labored with all our might, by night and by day, on ramparts and gabions. The next day, being Sep tember 2, the Dutch shewed themselves in considerable strength on the upper bank of Christina Kill, but seemed to undertake nothing special. On the morning of the 3d, they hoisted a flag on our shallop, which lay drawn up on the beach, and appeared to be about establishing themselves in a house. We therefore sent over Lieutenant Swen Hook,1 with a drummer, to find out what they purposed, for what cause they posted themselves there, and for what we should hold them. When he had nearly crossed the creek, he asked them from the boat, whether he might freely go to them? They answered yes; and whether, after discharging his commission, he might freely return? to which also they answered yes, as we could all hear in Fort Christina, and can bear witness accordingly. So the drummer rowed the boat to the shore, without beat of drum, because the lieutenant already had their parole, and knowing no cause of hostility, he supposed this ceremony to be unnecessary. They then both went on shore, and an officer met them, and conducted them some dis tance to a house, where the enemy had already taken up a position. The Dutch then sent our lieutenant down to Stii vesant, pretending that he was a spy, and Stiivesant arrested him and threw him into the ship's hold, but Captain Fridr. Konich detained the drummer and his dram in his own custody, and thus they treated our messengers, contrary to the laws and customs of all civilized nations. On the night of the 4th they had planted gabions about the house on the opposite bank of Christma Kill, above [the fort], and afterwards threw up a battery under cover of them, and entrenched themselves there. Some of our people inter- 1 Sven Hook came over from Sweden in the ship Hay, in 1653, and served as lieutenant in the colony. After the Dutch conquest he returned to Sweden and entered the navy, in 1658 commanding the vessel Postryttarens. Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements, pp. 596, et seq., 681. 1655] THE SURRENDER OF NEW SWEDEN 173 preted all this as indicating the purpose of the Dutch to be to claim and hold all our territory up to the creek, and to con struct a fort there, not yet believing that they would, in con tempt of public peace, and without any known cause, com mence hostilities against us, until they had set up some claim, or promulgated some protest against us, whereas up to this time we had received from them neither message nor letter as signing any manner of cause or complaint. On the 5th, the Dutch ships went up to Third Hook1 where they landed their men, who then passed over to Timber Island,2 and thence over the great falls3 and so invested Fort Christina on all sides. They brought their ships into the mouth of the creek, and planted their great guns on the western side of the fort, and when we burnt a little powder in a couple of pieces to scale them, they fired several shots over our heads from Timber Island, where they had also taken post in a house, and announced to us, that they had taken up a position on the west side, by regular volleys. We continued to prepare ourselves to make the best defence which our strength would allow, if we should be attacked, for we were not yet satisfied what the Dutch intended; but in a short time an Indian came in to us with a letter from Stiivesant, in which he arrogantly demanded the surrender of the whole river, and required me and all the Swedes either to evacuate the country, or to re main there under Dutch protection, threatening with the consequences in case of refusal. Hereto I answered briefly, by letter, that, since so strange a demand was sent by him to me, I would reply by special messengers, and sent him my answer by the same Indian. We then held a general council of war, as to what should be done, if the Dutch assaulted us by storm or battery; and it was determined that we should in any case maintain the defensive, and make the best resistance we could, but should not commence or provoke hostilities, on account of our weakness and want of supplies; that we should wait until they fired upon us, or began to storm the works, and then de- 1 An elevated piece of firm land on the north side of Brandywine Creek, be low the railroad bridge in Wilmington, Delaware. 2 Timber Island, on the north-east side of the Brandywine Creek, near Fort Christina. ' Of Brandywine Creek, at present Wilmington, Delaware. 174 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 fend ourselves as long as we could, and leave the consequences to be redressed in the future by our gracious superiors. The Dutch now began to encroach upon us more and more every day. They killed our cattle, goats, swine and poultry, broke open houses, pillaged the people outside the sconce of their property, and higher up the river they plundered many, and stripped them to the skin. At Gothenburg they robbed Mr. Papegoija's wife of all she had, with many others, who had collected their property together in the Hall there. They daily continued to advance their approaches to Fort Christina, (which was a small and feeble work, and lay upon low ground, and could be commanded from the surrounding heights), and threw up two batteries besides those on the opposite bank and on Timber Island, and hoisted their flags on all of them, as well as on our ship in Fish Creek,1 all which hostile acts, in juries, and insults we were, to our great mortification, com pelled to witness and suffer, being unable to resist them, by reason of our want of men and of powder, whereof our supply scarcely sufficed for a single round for our guns. Notwith standing all this, we still trusted that they would at length be persuaded to hear reason, and accordingly on the 7th we sent messengers down to Stiivesant at Fort Casimir, with a writ ten commission, whereby we sought to dissuade him from fur ther hostilities, protesting against his invasion and disturbance of our proper territory without cause assigned, or declaration denying, as far as they could, our right of possession in the river; also suggesting to him the displeasure of our respective sovereigns, and other consequences of great moment which would ensue; that we were determined to defend our rights to the utmost of our strength, and that he must answer for all consequences, and finally required him to cease hostilities, and to retire with his people from Fort Christma. But all this availed nothing with him, and on the contrary he per sisted in his claim to the whole river, and would listen to no terms of accommodation, declaring that such were his orders, and that those who had given them might answer for the con sequences. He then wrote me a letter on the 9th, in which he anticipates all terms of accommodation, will not allow that we have any rights to the said river, seeks to refute our argu- 1 Now Brandywine Creek, near the site of Fort Christina. 1655] THE SURRENDER OF NEW SWEDEN 175 ments, and styles our possession a usurpation, and so interprets every point to his own advantage. As we still determined to maintain our own defence, and abide the result, the enemy continued to carry on their ap proaches day and night, and with our little force of about thirty men we could make no sorties, or prevent him from gaining positions from which he could command the sconce so completely, that there was not a spot on the ramparts where a man could stand in security, and as he now daily advanced his works, and summoned us to capitulate, with threats of giving no quarter, our men proposed to us to go out and try to bring Stiivesant to reason, both on account of our want of supplies, and the advanced condition of the enemy's works, and especially because our provisions were scanty and would soon be exhausted. Besides, our few and hastily collected people were getting worn out, partly sick, and partly ill disposed, and some had deserted. — From these considerations, and the fear of a mutiny, it was agreed, that I and Elzvii should go out the next day and hold a parley with Stiivesant, and endeavor to restrain him from forcible measures, and to bring him to reason. We accordingly went out for this purpose on the 13th, and Stiivesant and Nicatius de Sylle1 met us between the sconce and their most advanced work. We solemnly protested against his procedure and his hostile conduct, and replied verbally to his last mentioned letter, confirmed our title with the best arguments we could, and held a long discussion with them; but all this produced no impression upon them, and they maintained their first ground, and insisted upon the surrender of Fort Christina and the whole river; to which we replied that we would defend ourselves to the last and would await them, clearly showing them that they were unjustly invading our possessions, and declaring that we would appeal to our government to redress our wrongs, and protect our rights thus forcibly trenched upon, 1 Nicasius de Sille (b. 1610), a member of the council of New Netherland, ranking next to Stuyvesant in the expedition, was a native of Arnheim, in the eastern part of the Netherlands, his father being a native of Namur, in Belgium. He had served as advocate to the court of Holland, and as captain in the forces of the States General. He came to New Netherlands in 1653 and was actively concerned in the governmental affairs of the colony until 1660. 176 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1655 and so we went back to the sconce, exhorted our men to a manly defence, and encouraged them as well as we were able. As soon as the Dutch had nearly completed their works, they brought the guns of all their batteries to bear upon us, and on the 14th instant, formally summoned Fort Christina, with harsh menaces, by a drummer and a messenger, to capitu late within twenty-four hours. We then assembled a general council of the whole garrison, and it was found to be their unanimous opinion, that inasmuch as we had not sufficient strength for our defence, (the Dutch having completed their works against the sconce, and neither the sconce nor the gar rison being able to stand an assault), and were in want both of powder and other munitions, and had no hope of relief, there fore they were all of opinion, that we should make the best terms we could obtain with the Dutch; all which may be seen by the documents. So the next day we announced to the enemy, that we would consider their summons within the time prescribed, and being now reduced, by our want of sup plies and weak condition, to yield to the violence practised upon us, we concluded a capitulation with Stiivesant, as may be found by the original among the documents, and surren dered Fort Christina to him on the 15th instant, stipulating that the guns and all the effects belonging to the crown or the Company should be restored by the Dutch, according to the inventory, upon demand, and reserving the restitution of our sovereign's rights in time and manner fitting; providing also, that the Dutch should freely transport to Sweden both us, and as many Swedes as chose to accompany us, for we held it better that the people should be restored to their Fatherland's service than to leave them there in misery, without the neces saries of life, in which case they would have entered the ser vice of the Dutch or English, and never again advantaged their country. THE EPISTLE OF PENN, LAWRIE, AND LUCAS, RESPECTING WEST JERSEY, 1676 INTRODUCTION The preceding narratives have to do with the Dutch and Swedish period. The narratives that follow concern the Eng lish period alone. The two groups differ, moreover, in that while the accounts in the first group are mainly official reports addressed to superior authority with no intent of publication, those of the second were contemporaneously put into print, for the most part to attract European immigrants to the shores of the Delaware — an object which they accomplished with great success. In the two decades that intervene between the two parts thus defined, the region of the Delaware had experienced some extensions of settlement and had come under the successive control of two great rival powers. During nearly the whole of the first decade the Dutch held sway. Then the English, with their revival of interest in trade and colonization after the Res toration, which resulted in endeavors to deprive the Dutch of their commercial supremacy and of their American opportu nities, began war, in 1664, and seized New Netherland. This acquisition supplied the one link hitherto missing in the chain of England's American colonies. The Delaware region, along with the remainder of New Netherland, acquired by the English, was transferred by their king, Charles II., to his brother, James, duke of York. Of the Duke's tenure and government, of his grants of ter ritory, and of the later sub-grants with their tedious and in volved recitals, the essentials for our purpose may be found in the succeeding pages. Let it suffice here to state that the large portion of the English conquest on the east side of the 179 180 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA Delaware, the moiety of New Jersey called West New Jersey, came as a trust into the hands of three eminent members of the persecuted sect of English Quakers (the joint authors of this Epistle): and it is this territory that is the theme of their disquisition as here reprinted. The Quakers, whose leaders for years had been on the lookout for a home of refuge in the New World, first became directly concerned in the founding of colonies there in the year 1673-1674, when two of their number, John Fenwick and Edward Byllynge, old Cromwellian soldiers in England, purchased this tract of West New Jersey. A dispute as to the land arising between Fenwick and Byllynge, the foremost of all Quakers was called in as arbiter. This was William Penn, son of the Duke's favorite admiral in the Dutch War, and the future Founder of Pennsylvania, who thus made his first entry into the field of American colonization. "The present difference between thee and E. B. fills the hearts of Friends with grief," wrote Penn to Fenwick. "I took care to hide the pretences on both hands as to the original of the thing, because it reflects on you both and which is worse on the truth" [i. e., on the profession of Quakerism], Fen wick endeavored to evade the award, but finally submitted to it. Byllynge accepted his allotment, but meeting business reverses, was compelled for the satisfaction of his creditors to convey his rights (February 14, 1675) to the above-mentioned trustees, William Penn and two creditors, Gawen Lawrie and Nicholas Lucas. Fenwick, also, notwithstanding extensive sales of his share of the land, fell into debt and had to lease those parts yet unsold to two other Quakers, Eldridge and Wamer, as security for money borrowed. They in turn conveyed their claim to Penn, Lawrie, and Lucas, so that the latter secured control of prac tically the whole of West New Jersey. In 1675 Fenwick brought over the initial Quaker colony in the ship Griffin, and planted INTRODUCTION 181 Salem, the first permanent English settlement on the east side of the Delaware. Gawen Lawrie has been ascribed to Hertfordshire, but in 1676-1677 he is mentioned as a merchant of King's Court, Lombard Street, London. In 1684 he came over with his family to East New Jersey as Deputy Governor, and took up his residence at Elizabethtown. There he died in the fall of 1687. He wrote several accounts of East New Jersey. Nich olas Lucas was a maulster, of Hertford, suffering persecution in that town for his Quaker belief as early as 1658. In 1664 he was the joint author of a Quaker tract and in the same year was confined in Hertford jail, under sentence of banishment, being kept there for eight years. The Epistle may be accepted as a careful statement of the facts. Judging especially from the use of the first person under the tenth heading, it was evidently composed in large part by Penn himself, although the other two men doubtless had a hand in the draft. It is mentioned in Joseph Smith's Catalogue of Friends' Books (1867), volume II., p. 295, as a broadside, with no title, dated 1676. It was reprinted in 1775 in Samuel Smith's History of New Jersey (Burlington, N. J.), pp. 88-91. Our text is from Smith's book. It also appears in Robert Proud's History of Pennsylvania, I. 141- 142 (1797), and in New Jersey Archives I. 231-235 (1880). A. C. M. THE EPISTLE OF PENN, LAWRIE, AND LUCAS, RESPECTING WEST JERSEY, 1676 Dear friends and brethren, In the pure love and precious fellowship of our Lord Jesus Christ, we very dearly salute you: Forasmuch as there was a paper printed several months since, entitled, The description of New-West-Jersey^'XD. the which our names were mentioned as trustees for one undivided moiety of the said province:2 And because it is alledged that some, partly on this account, and others apprehending, that the paper by the manner of its ex pression came from the body of friends,3 as a religious society of people, and not from particulars,4 have through these mis takes, weakly concluded that the said description in matter and form might be writ, printed and recommended on purpose to prompt and allure people, to dis-settle and transplant themselves, as it's also by some alledged: And because that we are informed, that several have on that account, taken encouragement and resolution to transplant themselves and families to the said province; and lest any of them (as is feared by some) should go out of a curious and unsettled mind, and others to shun the testimony of the blessed cross of Jesus, of which several weighty friends have a godly jealousy upon their spirits; lest an unwarrantable forwardness should act or hurry any beside or beyond the wisdom and counsel of the lord, or the freedom of his light and spirit in their own hearts, and not upon good and weighty grounds: It traly laid hard upon us, to let friends know how the matter stands; which we shall endeavor to do with all clearness and fidelity. 1. That there is such a province as New-Jersey, is certain. 2. That it is reputed of those who have lived and have 1 The Description of the Province of West-Jersey is mentioned in Joseph Smith's Catalogue of Friends' Books, II. (1867), 295, as a large broadside [c. 1676]. 2 I.e., of the province of New Jersey. • Or Quakers. « Individuals. 182 1676] EPISTLE OF PENN, LAWRIE, AND LUCAS 183 travelled in that country, to be wholesome of air and fruitful of soil, and capable of sea trade, is also certain; and it is not right in any to despise or dispraise it, or disswade those that find freedom from the Lord, and necessity put them on going. 3. That the duke of York1 sold it to those called lord Berkeley, baron of Stratton, and sir George Carteret, equally to be divided between them, is also certain. 4. One moiety or half part2 of the said province, being the right of the said lord Berkeley, was sold by him to John Fen wick, in trust3 for Edward Byllinge,4 and his assigns. 5. Forasmuch as E. B. (after William Penn had ended the difference5 between the said Edward Byllinge and John Fen wick) was willing to present his interest in the said province to his creditors, as all that he had left him, towards their satisfaction, he desired William Penn (though every way un concerned) and Gawen Lawrie, and Nicholas Lucas, two of his creditors, to be trustees for performance of the same; and because several of his creditors, particularly and very import unately, pressed William Penn to accept of the trust for their sakes and security; we did all of us comply with those and the like requests, and accepted of the trust. 6. Upon this we became trustees for one moiety of the said province, yet undivided: And after no little labor, trouble and cost, a division was obtained between the said sir George Carteret and us, as trustees: The country is situated and bounded as is expressed in the printed description. 7. This now divided moiety is to be cast into one hundred parts, lots, or proprieties; ten of which upon the agreement made betwixt E. Byllinge and J. Fenwick, were settled and conveyed unto J. Fenwick, his executors and assigns, with a 1 James, duke of York, who received the grant of New Jersey from his brother Charles II. in 1664, at the time of the English conquest of New Nether land, reconveyed it the same year to his two favorites, John lord Berkeley and Sir George Carteret. 2 West New Jersey. The sale, for £1,000, took place March 18, 1673/4. ' As later alleged. 4 Edward Byllynge (p. 1684-1685), a Quaker brewer of Westminster, and a former Cromwellian soldier. ¦ Fenwick and Byllynge disputing the title to West New Jersey, William Penn had been called in as arbiter. Fenwick, then, February 10, 1674/5, re linquished to Byllynge's assignees nine-tenths of his purchase for £400. 184 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1676 considerable sum of money, by way of satisfaction for what he became concerned in the purchase from the said lord Berkely, and by him1 afterwards conveyed to John Edridge and Ed mond Wamer, their heirs and assigns. 8. The ninety parts remaining are exposed to sale, on the behalf of the creditors of the said E. B. And forasmuch as several friends2 are concerned as creditors, as well as others, and the disposal of so great a part of this country being in our hands; we did in real tenderness and regard to friends, and especially to the poor and necessitous, make friends the first offer; that if any of them, though particularly those that being low in the world, and under trials about a comfort able livelihood for themselves and families, should be desirous of dealing for any part or parcel thereof, that they might have the refusal. 9. This was the real and honest intent of our hearts, and not to prompt or allure any out of their places, either by the credit our names might have with our people throughout the nation, or by representing the thing otherwise than it is in itself. As for the printed paper sometime since set forth by the creditors, as a description of that province; we say as to two passages in 'it, they are not so clearly and safely worded as ought to have been; particularly, in seeming to limit the winter season to so short a time; when on further information, we hear it is sometime longer and sometime shorter than therein expressed; and the last clause relating to liberty of conscience, we would not have any to think, that it is promised or intended to maintain the liberty of the exercise of religion by force and arms; though we shall never consent to any the least violence on conscience; yet it was never designed to encourage any to expect by force of arms to have liberty of conscience fenced against invaders thereof. 1 John Fenwick, after his settlement with Byllynge, having sold over 100,000 acres of land to about fifty purchasers, Fenwick leased all his unsold tenth, July 17-19, 1675, for 1,000 years to Eldridge and Warner as security for money bor rowed. Eldridge and Warner shortly after conveyed the same to Penn, Lawrie, and Lucas. John Edridge, or Eldridge, Quaker, was a tanner of Gravel Lane, St. Paul's Shadwell, county Middlesex, in 1676. Edmond Warner (d. 1683), also a Quaker, was a citizen and poulterer of London, and is said to have come over to Pennsylvania with his family as early as 1683. 2 Quakers. 1676] EPISTLE OF PENN, LAWRIE, AND LUCAS 185 10. And be it known unto you all, in the name and fear of Almighty God, his glory and honour, power and wisdom, truth and kingdom, is dearer to us than all visible things; and as our eye has been single, and our heart sincere to the living God, in this as in other things; so we desire all whom it may con cern, that all groundless jealousies may be judged down and watched against, and that all extremes may be avoided on all hands by the power of the Lord; that nothing which hurts or grieves the holy life of truth in any that goes or stays, may be adhered to; nor any provocations given to break precious unity. This am I, William Penn, moved of the Lord, to write unto you, lest any bring a temptation upon themselves or others; and in offending the Lord, slay their own peace: Blessed are they that can see, and behold him their leader, their orderer, their conductor and preserver, in staying or going: Whose is the earth and the fullness thereof; and the cattle upon a thousand hills. And as we formerly writ, we cannot but re peat our request unto you, that in whomsoever a desire is to be concerned in this intended plantation, such would weigh the thing before the Lord, and not headily or rashly conclude on any such remove; and that they do not offer violence to the tender love of their near kindred and relations; but soberly and conscientiously endeavour to obtain their good wills, the unity of friends where they live; that whether they go or stay, it may be of good favour before the Lord (and good people) from whom only can all heavenly and earthly bless ings come. This we thought good to write for the preventing of all misunderstandings, and to declare the real truth of the matter; and so we commend you all to the Lord, who is the watchman of his Israel. We are your friends and brethren, William Penn, Gawen Lawrie, Nicholas Lucas. THE PRESENT STATE OF THE COLONY OF WEST-JERSEY, 1681 INTRODUCTION In the gap of five years from our last document the Quaker settlements of West New Jersey made marked progress. Byllynge's trustees soon effected sales of large tracts of land to two Quaker companies in England, one in southern York shire and contiguous territory and the other in London. Much of the land being resold, the number of proprietors rapidly increased. Preparations for sending over another Quaker colony were then energetically forwarded, in connec tion with which a thoroughly democratic constitution embody ing the Quaker ideals was drawn up in England. This was the famous Concessions and Agreements of the Proprietors, Freeholders and Inhabitants of West New Jersey, a document of deep import in American constitutional history. It was signed by Penn, who has been credited with its drafting, and one hundred and fifty other persons representative of the groups mentioned in the title. By this instrument the government was placed in the hands of a board of ten commissioners — to be chosen at first by the proprietors — and in a law-making assembly freely elected by the inhabitants. The second colony of two hundred persons, bearing this constitution, went over in the ship Kent in 1677 and laid the foundations of the town and settlement of Burlington, more than fifty miles up the Delaware from Salem. The Yorkshire and London tracts were located respectively north and south of the new town. Questions having arisen as to the validity of the West New Jersey title, particularly as concerned the power of government, which, it was asserted, had not been in cluded in the original real estate transfer, the commissioners 189 190 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA for the first three years managed the affairs of the settlement under authority of Andros, the Duke's governor at New York. Penn, in the meantime, with persistence and skill, finally in fluenced the Duke to recognize the Quaker title in both the land and government, the latter however being vested solely in Byllynge. It is this reconveyance of the Duke, dated August 6, 1680, that is here announced in The Present State. Byllynge, on assuming control, sent over Samuel Jenings as the first Deputy Governor and authorized the call of the As sembly, which met for the first time in November, 1681. Several hundred more immigrants followed those who came on the Kent, and gradually extended the bounds of the two original settlements of Salem and Burlington. The author of The Present State is unknown, but obviously the pamphlet was sent out by the trustees and proprietors. It seems to be a fair and truthful statement of the existing conditions. The original, a single sheet printed on both sides (11J X 6f inches), is in the collection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. It was published in 1681, probably in Lon don, and was reprinted in 1894, in the Pennsylvania Magazine, XVIII. 158-162. The text which follows is from the original. A. C. M. THE PRESENT STATE OF THE COLONY OF WEST-JERSEY, 1681 The Present State of the Colony of West-Jersey, in America. September, Anno Dom. 1681. 1. Some few Years since, there were several Printed Papers published, giving Account of this Colony, which gave Encour agement to many Persons to Purchase Lands, and Transport Themselves, Servants, and Families thither, who have settled Themselves in that Colony, upon the Great River of Delaware, and the Creeks and Harbors thereof; and have Built some Towns apt for Trade, with Convenient Ports, where large Ships of Considerable Burthen have already unloaded, especially at Burlington, Scituate about a Hundred and Fifty Miles1 from the Sea up the said River. 2. And there are also many Families, who have settled Themselves in that Country; some about Husbandry, others have Erected Mills for Grinding Com, and several other neces sary Tradesmen have There settled Themselves in Towns, and in the Country, fit for their Respective Undertakings. 3. The Husband-Men have good Increase, as well in large Cattle and Hoggs; as also, in all such sorts of Grain which grow in England; and the same are Sold at Easie and Reason able Rates: The Increase of their Com being considerably Greater than in England; of which they Make good Bread, and Brew good Beer and Ale for their Use. And as for other Provisions, they are Plentiful; as Fish, Fowls, Deer, Pork, Beef, and many Sorts of Fruits; as Grapes, Peaches, Apri- cocks, Cherryes, and Apples, of which Good Syder is made. 4. The Country also produces Flax and Hemp, which they already Spin and Manufacture into Linnen: They make sev eral Stuffs and Cloath of Wool for Apparrel : They Tan Leather, Make Shooes and Hats. 1 Only about a hundred miles. 191 192 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1681 5. They have also Coopers, Smiths, Carpenters, Brick layers, Wheel-Wrights, Plow-Wrights, and Mill-Wrights, Ship- Carpenters, and other Trades, which work upon what the Country produces for Manufacturies. 6. For the Soyl it is Good,, and. capable to produce any thing that England doth: [and] the Yearly Increase is far Greater. The Air Temperate and Healthy; Winter not so long as is in England: Few Natives in the Country; but those that are, are yery Peaceable, Useful, and Serviceable to the English Inhabitants. 7. There are many Creeks and Bayes adjoining, and be longing to Delaware-River, beside other Rivers and Creeks along the Sea-shore, which are Navigable. 8. For Minerals within the Earth, they have not had Time to search; only, there are Iron-Mines, — and a Furnace, and Forging Mill already set up in East-Jersey, where they Make Iron. 9. Their Houses are some Built of Brick, some of Timber, Plaister'd and Ceil'd, as in England: So that they have Mat- terials within the Country, to set Themselves at work, and to make all manner of Conveniency for Humane Life: And what they do not Spend, or have to Spare, they sell to their Neigh bours, and Transport the Rest to the other American-Planta tions. 10. There is variety of Trees in the Country, and many of them; as Oak, Cedar, Chesnut, Wallnut, Mulberry, etc. and several sorts that are not in England. 11. For the Title of the said Colony, it stands thus: Some Years since, the King granted under the Great Seal of England, unto the Duke of York, His Heirs and Assigns, several Tracts of Land in America, (in which Jersey is included) with full Power of Government, making Laws, Peace, War, and all other Things whatsoever, for Settling and Governing the same. The Duke of York, (in Affirmation of former Grants and Conveyances thereof) by Conveyance Inrolled in the High-Court of Chancery, Grants and Conveys the Whole Colony of West-Jersey, with all Lands, Rivers, Bayes, Creeks, Royalties, and Priviledges thereunto belonging, unto William Pen, Gawen Lawry, and Nicholas Lucas, In Trust for Edward Billinge, His Heirs and .Assigns for ever: And by like Convey- 1681] THE PRESENT STATE OF WEST-JERSEY 193 ance, the said Duke Granted the Power of Government of the said West-Jersey unto the said Edward Billinge, His Deputy or Deputyes, Commissioner or Commissioners, for Governing and Settling the said West- Jersey; And that in as full and ample Manner, to all Intents and Purposes, as the same was Granted to Him by the King.1 All which Laws and Settle ments are, and are to be Made and Done with the Consent and Approbation of the Proprietors and Free-holders thereof. So that, neither Customs, Charge, Imposition, nor any other Services or Taxes whatsoever, are to be Imposed upon the Inhabitants, but by their own Consent in a Free and General- Assembly of the Proprietors and Free-Holders of the said Colony; which Assembly is to meet once every Year. 12. There is likewise Certain Provision made for the Lib erty of Conscience, in Matters of Religion, that all Persons living Peaceably, may injoy the Benefit of the Religious Exercise thereof, without any Molestation whatsoever. 13. The Method laid down for Sale and Division of the Country of West-Jersey, is by Proprieties, (that is to say) One Propriety contains the Hundredth Part of the Whole Country: Of which Proprieties, many are already Sold, and disposed of to Purchasers; and several of the same remains yet to be Sold. In each of these Hundred Parts or Proprieties, the Quantity of Acres, cannot be absolutely Ascertain'd; but its generally judged to be Twenty Thousand Acres, and up wards; but some have accounted each Propriety to contain much more. And if any Person be not minded to deal for a Whole Propriety; Two, Four, Six, Eight, or more, may joyn in the Purchase thereof; There being Land enough in one of these Proprieties for many Families. 14. The Dividing, and Laying out the Land, is done by Commissioners appointed upon the Place. And there is a large Tract of Land, containing above Sixty English Miles, lying along the River of Delaware, taken up, and Bought of 1 The validity of the grant of Charles H. to his brother the Duke of York having been questioned because of the Dutch reconquest of 1673, Charles II. issued a new patent to the Duke for the region including New Jersey, June 29, 1674. The Duke, then, August 6, 1680, confirmed West New Jersey to Penn, Lawrie, and Lucas, also specifically empowering Byllynge with its government, a prerogative which, it was held, had not accompanied the grant of Berkeley to Fenwick, March 18, 1673/4. 194 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1681 the Natives: The Commissioners lay out (at present) about Five or Six Thousand Acres of Land for a Propriety out of this Tract, as People come over that have Bought: By which Means, the People settle near together, for their Con veniency of Trade and Commerce. And when this Tract of Land is all Settled, then it's intended to take up another Tract of Land, and proceed in the same Method; and so in like manner to continue, until the Whole Country is Divided. And the said Commissioners, for dividing the same, are to be Chosen by the General-Assembly of the Colony, with Approbation of the Gov ernor, or His Deputy, upon the Place. 15. As for the Deeds or Conveyances, signed, or to be signed by Edward [Billinge] and His Trustees, they were at first drawn up by able Counsellors at Law, and are [all] after one manner: So that, every Purchaser hath alike Priviledge. 16. For Transportation of Passengers to West-Jersey, Ships set Sail from London generally Once in Three Months, some times in Two Months: The Master gives Notice Six Weeks (or more) of his Going before-hand. 17. The Price for every Passenger, (that is to say) for Men and Women, Meat, Drink, and Passage, with a Chest, is Five Pounds sterling per Head: For Children of Twelve Years of Age, and under, Fifty Shillings per Head; Sucking Children, Nothing: For Goods, Forty Shillings a Tun Freight, to be Landed at Burlington, or elsewhere upon Delaware-River. 18. Sometimes, ships go from Dublin, sometimes from Hull: But if any Persons, to the Number of Thirty, or more, in Scotland or Ireland, desiring to be taken in There, the Ship- Master will take them in at Leith, Dundee, or Aberdeen on the East, and at Aire on the West of Scotland, and at Dublin or Waterford in Ireland; so as they order some Person in Lon don, to agree, and give Security for so many Passengers to be ready at the Time and Place agreed upon, to be taken Aboard, with Account how many Tun of Goods they intend to Ship. And the Commodities fit to be carryed to New-Jersey, are such as are usually carryed to Virginia, New- York, or Mary-land. 19. Thus far it is thought meet (in short) to inform all Persons, to whose Hands the several former Printed Papers and Testimonies conceming New-Jersey may not come: But if any Desire to have further Information, there are several 1681] THE PRESENT STATE OF WEST-JERSEY 195 Letters from Persons settled in West Jersey to their Friends in England, lately Printed, and are to be had at Benjamine Clarks, in George- Yard in Lumbord-Street, London; and Rob ert Turners, at Dublin in Ireland; David Falkner, at Edin burgh; Hugh Woods, at Hamilton; John Cowey's, at Aber deen in Scotland. And for such who desire to be Purchasers of Land in West-Jersey, or to be satisfyed concerning any thing relating thereto, they may Repair or Write to Thomas Rudyard,2 in the afore-said George- Yard in Lumbard-Street; where they may be further Treated with therein; where, it's doubted not, but they will have Full Satisfaction both as to the Holding, Division, Concessions, and Settlements of the said New Jersey. 1 An Abstract or Abbreviation of some Few of the Many (Later and Former) Testimonys from the Inhabitants of New-Jersey and other Eminent Persons who have Wrote particularly concerning that Place. London, Printed by Thomas Milbaum, in the Year 1681. Pp. 32, quarto (John Carter Brown Library). 2 Thomas Rudyard (d. about 1692), a lawyer, of George Yard, Lombard Street, London, originally from the town of Rudyard, in Staffordshire, had been concerned in the famous trial of the Quakers, William Penn and William Mead, in London in 1670. It was in his office that William Penn's first deeds granting Pennsylvania lands were drawn up and signed. He became one of the New Jersey proprietors, and in 1682 went over as Deputy Governor of East Jersey, serving until the close of 1685, when he set out for Barbados. SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PROVINCE OF PENNSILVANIA, BY WILLIAM PENN, 1681 INTRODUCTION The founding of the province of Pennsylvania by William Penn was the direct result of his active participation — begin ning, as we have seen, in 1675 — in the management of the affairs of the New Jersey settlements. He had thus become fully acquainted with the conditions and possibilities not only of the latter region but of the whole domain of the English America of that day, and particularly of that portion of it contiguous to West New Jersey on the west side of the Delaware. A keen desire (evolved under the influence of his Quaker viewpoint and experiences from a germinating idea, as he tells us, of his youthful days at Oxford University), had grown up in him to plant in the New World a colony all his own, where he might exemplify his altruistic ideals of the government and development of such a settlement and estab lish a democracy, under his paternal care, which while essen tially Quaker in character, would nevertheless attract other desirable European immigrants seeking religious freedom and economic opportunity. Along with these great purposes, but subordinate to them, William Penn as an Englishman of rank and influence in the realm, with the traditions of his class, had also a concern for his material mterests and for the perpetuity of an estate for his family. The realization of his dream of a Quaker commonwealth was made practically possible through a claim of £16,000, which as his father's heir he held against the crown. He could rely also upon the sincere friendship of the royal brothers. Having vainly sought the direct recovery of the debt, he now made this loss to his estate, as he phrases it, the basis of a 199 200 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA petition to King Charles, in June, 1680, requesting the grant of the Pennsylvania tract. The King's favor brought the de sired result, and on March 4, 1681, the charter, after going through the usual stages of preparation, received the royal signature and Penn was duly vested with a great domain nearly as large as England itself. Early the next month Penn appointed his cousin William Markham to serve as Deputy Governor of Pennsylvania and sent him over with instructions to call a council, to receive the allegiance of the people, to settle boundaries, to survey and distribute lands, and to keep the peace. Markham ar rived there about the latter part of June, 1681, and assumed control of the government, which he administered until Penn himself came over. Penn in the meantime began energetically the exploitation of his new province, giving chief attention to the preparation of Some Account of the Province of Pennsilvania (a folio of [2] +10 pages). This was the first of his series of immigration pamphlets in the interest of his project. He did not seek to entice intending settlers by misleading accounts, as did some ' promoters of early — not to speak of later — American emigra tion, but with that scrupulous regard for true statement that characterized Quaker writings, he was careful in this as in other similar publications to present the simple facts without exag geration. Having as yet no personal knowledge of America, his data for the parts of his work relating to it were acquired at second hand, yet before issuing the pamphlet he first took the precaution to read it, as he states in a letter of April 12, 1681, "to Traders, Planters, and Shipmasters, that know those parts, and finally to the most eminent Friends, hereway [London], and so [it] comes forth. I have forebome pains and allurement, and writt truth." Published in London, early in April, as it would seem from the above letter, Some Account was immediately issued on the Continent, under the direction INTRODUCTION 201 of Penn's Pennsylvania agent there, the learned and well-to-do merchant, Benjamin Furley, an English Quaker, resident in Rotterdam. Two such editions appeared, one in Dutch at Rotterdam (a quarto of 24 pages), and the other in German at Amsterdam (a quarto of 31 pages). To these translations was added Penn's letter to the burgomaster and council of the city of Emden, dated London, December 14, 1674, and originally printed in Dutch in 1675. The German edition contains an additional short explanation or glossary, cover ing three pages, of some of the English words retained in the translation. The pamphlet in its respective forms was widely circulated among those most likely to respond to it, especially in those communities and countries where Penn had travelled or was known, notably in England, Ireland and Wales, and in Holland and Germany, and it had considerable influence in inducing the emigration that followed. Some Account was reprinted in Samuel Hazard's Register of Pennsylvania, I. 305-308, (May 17, 1828), with the omis sion of the abstract of the charter, and also, but with less full ness, in his Annals of Pennsylvania (1850), pp. 505-513. It was again reprinted, without the abstract, in Thompson Westcott's History of Philadelphia (Sunday Dispatch, Philadelphia, 1867), chapter xvn. The complete text is here reprinted for the first time, it is believed, in English, from an original copy of the book in the collection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. A. C. M. SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PROVINCE OF PENNSILVANIA, BY WILLIAM PENN, 1681 Some account of the province of Pennsilvania in America; Lately Granted under the Great Seal of England to William Penn, etc. Together with Priviledges and Powers necessary to the well-governing thereof. Made publick for the Infor mation of such as are or may be disposed to Transport themselves or Servants into those Parts. London: Printed, and Sold by Benjamin Clark Bookseller in George-Yard, Lombard-street, 1681. Since (by the good providence of God) a Country in Amer ica is fallen to my lot, I thought it not less my Duty than my honest Interest to give some publick notice of it to the World, that those of our own, or other Nations, that are in- clin'd to Transport themselves or Families beyond the Seas, may find another Country added to their choice, that if they shall happen to like the Place, Conditions and Constitutions, (so far as the present Infancy of things will allow us any pros pect) they may, if they please, fix with me in the Province hereafter describ'd. But before I come to treat of my par ticular Concernment, I shall take leave to say something of the benefit of Plantations or Colonies in general, to obviate a common Objection. Colonies then are the Seeds of Nations begun and nour ished by the care of wise and populous Countries; as conceiv ing them best for the increase of Humane Stock, and beneficial for Commerce. Some of the wisest men in History have justly taken their Fame from this Design and Service: We read of the Reputa tion given on this account to Moses, Joshua and Caleb in Scripture-Records; and what Renown the Greek story yields to Lycurgus, Theseus, and those Greeks that Planted many parts of Asia : Nor is the Roman account wanting of instances 202 1681] SOME ACCOUNT OF PENNSILVANIA 203 to the Credit of that People; They had a Romulus, a Numa Pompilius; and not only reduc'd, but moraliz'd the Manners of the Nations they subjected; so that they may have been rather said to conquer their Barbarity than Them. Nor did any of these ever dream it was the way of decreas ing their People or Wealth: For the cause of the decay of any of those States or Empires was not their Plantations, but their Luxury and corruption of Manners: For when they grew to neglect their ancient Discipline, that maintained and rewarded Virtue and Industry, and addicted themselves to Pleasure and Effeminacy, they debas'd their Spirits and debauch'd their Morals, from whence Ruine did never fail to follow to any People: With Justice therefore I deny the vulgar Opinion against Plantations, That They weaken England; they have manifestly inrich'd, and so strengthened her; Which I briefly evidence thus. 1st. Those that go into a Foreign Plantation, their Indus try there is worth more than if they stay'd at home, the Prod uct of their Labour being in Commodities of a superiour Nature to those of this Country. For Instance; What is an improved Acre in Jamaica or Barbadoes worth to an improved Acre in England? We know 'tis threetimes the value, and the product of it comes for England, and is usually paid for in English Growth and Manufacture. Nay, Virginia shews that an ordinary Industry in one man produces Three thousand pound weight of Tobacco and Twenty Barrels of Com yearly: He feeds himself, and brings as much of Commodity into England besides as being retum'd in the Growth and Work manship of this Countrey, is much more than he could have spent here: Let it also be remembred, that the Three thou sand weight of Tobacco brings in Three thousand Two-pences by way of Custom to the King, which makes Twenty five Pounds; An extraordinary Profit. 2dly. More being produc'd and imported than we can spend here, we Export it to other Countries in Europe, which brings in Money, or the Growth of those Countries, which is the same thing; And this is the Advantage of the English- Merchants and Seamen. Sdly. Such as could not only not marry here, but hardly live and allow themselves Cloaths, do marry there, and bestow 204 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1681 thrice more in all Necessaries and Conveniencies (and not a little in Ornamental things too) for themselves, their Wives and Children, both as to Apparel and Household-stuff; which coming out of England, I say 'tis impossible that England should not be a considerable Gainer. ithly. But let it be consider'd, That the Plantations imploy many hundreds of Shipping, and many thousands of Seamen; which must be in divers respects an Advantage to England, being an Island, and by Nature fitted for Navigation above any Countrey in Europe. This is followed by other depending Trades, as Shipwrights, Carpenters, Sawyers, Hewers, Trunnel- makers, Joyners, Slopsellers, Dry-salters, Iron-workers, the Eastland-Merchants,1 Timber-sellers, and Victuallers, with many more Trades which hang upon Navigation: So that we may easily see the Objection (That Colonies or Plantations hurt England) is at least of no strength, especially if we con sider how many thousand Blacks and Indians are also accom modated with Cloaths and many sorts of Tools and Utensils from England, and that their Labour is mostly brought hither, which adds Wealth and People to the English Domin ions. But 'tis further said, They injure England, in that they draw away too many of the people; for we are not so popu lous in the Countries as formerly: I say there are other rea sons for that. 1st. Country-People are so extremely addicted to put their Children into Gentlemens Service, or send them to Towns to leam Trades, that Husbandry is neglected; and after a soft and delicate Usage there, they are for ever unfitted for the Labour of a Farming Life. 2dly. The Pride of the Age in its Attendance and Retinue is so gross and universal, that where a man of 1000Z. a year formerly kept but four or five Servants, he now keeps more than twice the number; He must have a Gentleman to wait upon him in his Chambers, a Coach-man, a Groom or two, a Butler, a Man-Cook, a Gardner, two or three Lacques, it may be an Huntsman, and a Faulkner,2 the Wife a Gentlewoman, and Maids accordingly: This was not known by our Ancestors of like Quality. This hinders the Plough and the Dairy, from 1 Merchants engaged in the Baltic trade. 2 Falconer. 1681] SOME ACCOUNT OF PENNSILVANIA 205 whence they are taken, and instead of keeping People to Manly-labour, they are effeminated by a lazy and luxurious Living; But which is worse, these people rarely marry, tho' many of them do worse; but if they do, 'tis when they are in Age; And the reason is clear, because their usual Keeping at their Masters is too great and costly for them with a Family at their own Charge, and they scarcely know how to live lower; so that too many of them chuse rather to vend their Lusts at an evil Ordinary than honestly Marry and Work: The excess and sloth of the Age not allowing of Marriage and the Charge that follows; all which hinders the increase of our People. If Men, they often turn either Souldiers, or Gamesters, or Highway-men. If Women, They too frequently dress themselves for a bad market, rather than know the Dairy again, or honestly return to Labour, whereby it happens that both the Stock of the Nation decays and the Issue is corrupted. 3dly. Of old time the Nobility and Gentry spent their Estates in the Country, and that kept the people in it; and their Servants married and sate at easie Rents under their Masters favour, which peopled the place: Now the Great men (too much loving the Town and resorting to London) draw many people thither to attend them, who either don't marry; or if they do, they pine away their small gains in some petty Shop; for there are so many, they prey upon one another. 4ihly. The Country being thus neglected, and no due Bal- lance kept between Trade and Husbandry, City and Country, the poor Country-man takes double Toil, and cannot (for want of hands) dress and manure his Land to the Advantage it formerly yielded him, yet must he pay the old Rents, which occasions Servants, and such Children as go not to Trades, to continue single, at least all their youthful time, which also obstructs the increase of our people. hthly. The decay of some Country-manufactures (where no Provision is made to supply the people with a new way of living) causes the more Industrious to go abroad to seek their Bread in other Countries, and gives the lazy an occasion to loiter and beg or do worse, by which means the Land swarms with Beggars: Formerly 'twas rare to find any asking Alms but the Maimed, or Blind, or very Aged; now thousands of 206 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1681 both Sexes ran up and down, both City and Country, that are sound and youthful, and able to work, with false Pretences and Certificates; nor is there any care taken to imploy or deter such Vagrants, which weakens the Country, as to People and Labour. To which let me add, that the great Debauchery in this Kingdom has not only rendred many unfruitful when married, but they live not out half their time, through Excesses, which might be prevented by a vigorous execution of our good Laws against corruption of manners. These and the like evils are the true grounds of the decay of our People in the Country, to say nothing of Plague and Wars : Towns and Cities cannot com plain of the decay of People, being more replenish'd than ever, especially London, which with reason helps the Country-man to this Objection. And though some do go to the Plantations, yet numbering the Parishes in England, and computing how many live more than die, and are bom than buried, there goes not over to all the Plantations a fourth part of the yearly in crease of the People. And when they are there, they are not (as I said before) lost to England, since they furnish them with much Cloaths, Houshold-stuff, Tools, and the like necessaries, and that in greater quantities than here their condition could have needed, or they could have bought, being there well to pass, that were but low here, if not poor; and now Masters of Families too, when here they had none, and could hardly keep themselves; and very often it happens that some of them, after their Industry and Success there have made them wealthy, they return and empty their Riches into England; one in this capacity being able to buy out twenty of what he was when he went over. This much to justifie the Credit and Benefit of Plantations; wherein I have not sought to speak my Interest, but my Judg ment; and I dare venture the success of it with all sober and considering men. I shall now proceed to give some account of my own concern. 1st. I shall say what may be necessary of the Place or Province. 2dly. Touch upon the Constitutions. 3dly. Lay down the Conditions. ithly. Give my sense what persons will be fit to go. 1681] SOME ACCOUNT OF PENNSILVANIA 207 Uhly. What Utensils, Furniture and Commodities are fit to carry with them, with the charge of the voyage, and what is first to be done and expected there for some time. And lastly, I shall give an Abstract of the Grant by Letters Patents under the Great Seal of England, that an account may be given of the Estate and Power granted to me thereby. I. Something of the Place. The Place lies 600 miles nearer the Sun than England; for England begins at the 50th Degree and ten minutes of North Latitude, and this Place begins at fourty, which is about the Latitude of Naples in Italy, or Mompellier1 in France. I shall say little in its praise, to excite desires in any, whatever I could traly write as to the Soil, Air and Water: This shall satisfie me, that by the Blessing of God, and the honesty and industry of Man, it may be a good and fruitful Land. For Navigation it is said to have two conveniencies; the one by lying Ninescore miles upon Delaware River; that is to say, about three-score and ten miles, before we come to the Falls,2 where a Vessel of Two hundred Tuns may Sail, (and some Creeks and small Harbours in that distance, where Ships may come nearer than the River into the Country) and above the Falls, for Sloops and Boats, as I am informed, to the extent of the Patent. The other convenience is through Chesapeak-Bay. For Timber and other Wood there is variety for the use of man. For Fowl, Fish, and Wild-Deer, they are reported to be plentiful in those Parts. Our English Provision is likewise now to be had there at reasonable Rates. The Commodities that the Country is thought to be capable of, are Silk, Flax, Hemp, Wine, Sider, Woad, Madder, Liquorish, Tobacco, Pot ashes, and Iron, and it does actually produce Hides, Tallow, Pipe-staves, Beef, Pork, Sheep, Wool, Com, as Wheat, Barly, Ry, and also Furs, as your Peltree, Mincks, Racoons, Martins, and such like; store of Furs which is to be found among the Indians, that are profitable Commodities in Europe. The way of trading in those Countries is thus: they send to the Southern Plantations Com, Beef, Pork, Fish and Pipe- 1 Montpellier. 2 Now Trenton, New Jersey. 208 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1681 staves, and take their Growth and bring for England, and re turn with English Goods to their own Country. Their Furs they bring for England, and either sell them here, or carry them out again to other parts of Europe, where they will yield a better price: And for those that will follow Merchandize and Navigation there is conveniency, and Timber sufficient for Shipping. II. The Constitutions. For the Constitutions of the Country, the Patent shows, first, That the People and Governour have a Legislative Power, so that no Law can be made, nor Money raised, but by the Peoples Consent. 2dly. That the Rights and Freedoms of England (the best and largest in Europe) shall be in force there. 3dly. That making no Law against Allegiance (which should we, 'twere by the Law of England void of it self that moment) we may Enact what Laws we please for the good prosperity and security of the said Province. 4thly. That so soon as any are ingaged with me, we shall begin a Scheam or Draught together, such as shall give ample Testimony of my sincere Inclinations to encourage Planters, and settle a free, just and industrious Colony there. III. The Conditions. My Conditions will relate to three sorts of People: 1st. Those that will buy: 2dly. Those that take up Land upon Rent: 3dly. Servants. To the first, the Shares I sell shall be certain as to number of Acres; that is to say, every one shall contain Five thousand Acres, free from any Indian incum brance, the price a hundred pounds, and for the Quit-rent but one English shilling or the value of it yearly for a hundred Acres; and the said Quit-Rent not to begin to be paid till 1684. To the second sort, that take up Land upon Rent, they shall have liberty so to do, paying yearly one peny per Acre, not exceeding Two hundred Acres. To the third sort, to wit, Ser vants that are carried over, Fifty Acres shall be allowed to the Master for every Head, and Fifty Acres to every Servant when their time is expired. And because some engage with me that 1681] SOME ACCOUNT OF PENNSILVANIA 209 may not be disposed to go, it were very advisable for every three Adventurers to send an Overseer with their Servants, which would well pay the Cost. The Divident may be thus; if the persons concern'd please, a Tract- of Land shall be survey'd; say Fifty thousand Acres to a hundred Adventurers; in which some of the best shall be set out for Towns or Cities; and there shall be so much Ground allotted to each in those Towns as may maintain some Cartel and produce some Com; then the remainder of the fifty thou sand Acres shall be shar'd among the said Adventurers (casting up the Barren for Commons, and allowing for the same) where by every Adventurer will have a considerable quantity of Land together; likewise every one a proportion by a Navigable River, and then backward into the Country. The manner of divident I shall not be strict in; we can but speak roughly of the matter here; but let men skilful in Plantations be con sulted, and I shall leave it to the majority of votes among the Adventurers when it shall please God we come there, how to fix it to their own content. IV. These persons that providence seems to have most fitted for Plantations are, 1st. Industrious Husbandmen and Day-Labourers, that are hardly able (with extreme Labour) to maintain their Families and portion their Children. 2dly. Laborious Handicrafts, especially Carpenters, Ma sons, Smiths, Weavers, Taylors, Tanners, Shoemakers, Ship wrights, etc. where they may be spared or are low in the World: And as they shall want no encouragement, so their Labour is worth more there than here, and there provision cheaper. 3dly. A Plantation seems a fit place for those Ingenious Spirits that being low in the World, are much clogg'd and oppress'd about a Livelyhood, for the means of subsisting being easie there, they may have time and opportunity to gratify their inclinations, and thereby improve Science and help Nurseries of people. 4thly. A fourth sort of men to whom a Plantation would be proper, takes in those that are younger Brothers of small 210 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1681 Inheritances; yet because they would live in sight of their Kindred in some proportion to their Quality, and can't do it without a labour that looks like Farming, their condition is too strait for them; and if married, their Children are often too numerous for the Estate, and are frequently bred up to no Trades, but are a kind of Hangers on or Retainers to the elder Brothers Table and Charity: which is a mischief, as in it self to be lamented, so here to be remedied; For Land they have for next to nothing, which with moderate Labour produces plenty of all things necessary for Life, and such an increase as by Traffique may supply them with all conveniencies. Lastly, There are another sort of persons, not only fit for, but necessary in Plantations, and that is, Men of universal Spirits, that have an eye to the Good of Posterity, and that both understand and delight to promote good Discipline and just Government among a plain and well intending people; such persons may find Room in Colonies for their good Counsel and Contrivance, who are shut out from being of much use or service to great Nations under settl'd Customs: These men deserve much esteem, and would be harken'd to. Doubtless 'twas this (as I observ'd before) that put some of the famous Greeks and Romans upon Transplanting and Regulating Colo nies of People in divers parts of the World; whose Names, for giving so great proof of their Wisdom, Virtue, Labour and Con stancy, are with Justice honourably delivered down by story to the praise of our own times; though the World, after all its higher pretences of Religion, barbarously errs from their ex cellent Example. V. The Journey and it's Appurtenances, and what is to be done there at first coming. Next let us see, What is fit for the Journey and Place, when there, and also what may be the Charge of the Voyage, and what is to be expected and done there at first. That such as incline to go, may not be to seek here, or brought under any disappointments there. The Goods fit to take with them for use, or sell for profit, are all sorts of Apparel and Utensils for Husbandry and Building and Household Stuff. And because I know how much People are apt to fancy things beyond what they are, and that Immaginations are great flatterers of the 1681] SOME ACCOUNT OF PENNSILVANIA 211 minds of Men; To the end that none may delude themselves, with an expectation of an Immediate Amendment of their Con ditions, so soon as it shall please God they Arrive there; I would have them understand, That they must look for a Winter before a Summer comes; and they must be willing to be two or three years without some of the conveniences they enjoy at home; And yet I must needs say that America is another thing then it was at the first Plantation of Virginia and New- England: For there is better Accommodation, and English Provisions are to be had at easier rates: However, I am in- clin'd to set down particulars, as near as those inform me, that know the Place, and have been Planters both in that and in the Neighbouring Colonys. 1st. The passage will come for Masters and Mistresses at most to 6 Pounds a Head, for Servants Five Pounds a Head, and for Children under Seven years of Age Fifty Shillings, ex cept they Suck, then nothing. Next being by the mercy of God, safely Arrived in Septem ber or October, two Men may clear as much Ground by Spring (when they set the Com of that Country) as will bring in that time twelve month Forty Barrels, which amounts to two Hun dred Bushels, which makes Twenty Five quarters of Corn. So that the first year they must buy Com, which is usually very plentiful. They may so soon as they come, buy Cows, more or less, as they want, or are able, which are to be had at easy rates. For Swine, they are plentiful and cheap; these will quickly Increase to a Stock. So that after the first year, what with the Poorer sort, sometimes labouring to others, and the more able Fishing, Fowling, and sometime Buying; They may do very well, till their own Stocks are sufficient to supply them, and their Families, which will quickly be and to spare, if they follow the English Husbandry, as they do in New-England, and New-York; and get Winter Fodder for their Stock. VI. and Lastly, An Abstract of the Patent granted by the king To William Penn, etc. The Fourth of March, 168?-. I. WE do Give and Grant (upon divers considerations) to William Penn his Heirs and Assigns for ever all that Tract of Land in America with all Islands thereunto belonging That is 212 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1681 to say from the beginning of the fortieth degree of North Lati tude unto the forty third Degree of North Latitude whose Eastern bounds from twelve English Miles above New Castle (alias Delaware Town) runs all along upon the side of Delaware River. II. Free and undisturb'd use and passage into and out of all Harbours Bays Waters Rivers Isles and Inlets belonging to or leading to. the same Together with the Soyl Fields Woods Underwoods Mountains Hills Fenns Isles Lakes Rivers Waters Rivulets Bays and Inlets Scituate in or belonging unto the Limits and Bounds aforesaid Together with all sorts of Fish Mines Mettles, etc. To have and to hold to the only behoof of the said William Penn his Heirs and Assigns for ever To be holden of us as of our Castle of Windsor in free and common soccage paying only two Beaver Skins yearly. III. And of our further Grace we have thought it fit to erect and we do hereby erect the aforesaid Countrey and Is lands into a Province and Seigniory and do call it Pennsilvania and so from henceforth we will have it call'd. IV. That reposing special confidence in the wisdom and justice of the said William Penn we do grant to him and his Heirs and their Deputies for the good and happy Government thereof to ordain and enact and under his and their Seals to publish any Laws whatever for the publick uses of the said Province by and with the Advice and Approbation of the Free holders of the said Countrey or their delegates so as they be not repugnant to the Law of this Realm and to the Faith and Allegiance due unto us by the legal Government thereof. V. Full power to the said William Penn, etc., to appoint Judges Leiutenants Justices Magistrates and Officers for what causes so-ever and with what Power and in such Form as to him seems convenient Also to be able to Pardon and Abolish Crimes and Offences and to do all and every other thing that to the compleat Establishment of Justice unto Courts and Tri bunals forms of Judicature and manner of proceedings do be long And our pleasure is and so we enjoyn and require that such Laws and Proceedings shall be most absolute and avuilable in Law and that all the Leige People of us Heirs and Successors inviolably keep the same in those parts saving to us final appeals. 1681] SOME ACCOUNT OF PENNSILVANIA 213 VI. That the Laws for regulating Property as well for the discent of Lands as enjoyment of Goods and Chattels and like wise as to Felonies shall be the same there as here in England until they shall be altered by the said William Penn his Heirs or Assigns and by the Freemen of the said Province or their Delegates or Deputies or the greater part of them. VII. Furthermore that this new Colony may the more happily encrease by the multitude of People resorting thither therefore we for us our Heirs and Successors do hereby grant License to all the leige People present and future of us, etc. (excepting such as shall be specially forbidden) to Transport themselves and Families into the said Countrey there to In habit and Plant for the publick and their private Good. VIII. Liberty to Transport what Goods or Commodities are not forbidden paying here the legal Customs due to us, etc. IX. Power to divide the Countrey into Counties Hundreds and Towns to Incorporate Towns and Burroughs and Bur roughs into Cities to make Fairs and Markets with convenient Priviledges according to the merit of the Inhabitants or the fit ness of the place And to do all other thing or things touching the Premises which to the said William Penn his Heirs or As signs shall seem meet and requisite albeit they be such as of their own nature might otherwise require a more special com mandment and warrant then in these presents is express'd. X. Liberty to Import the Growth or Manufactures of that Province into England paying here the legal duty. XL Power to erect Posts Harbours Creeks Havens Keys and other places for Merchandizes with such Jurisdictions and Priviledges as to the said William Penn, etc., shall seem ex pedient. XII. Not to break the Acts of Navigation neither Governour nor Inhabitants upon the penaltys contained in the said Acts. XIII. Not to be in League with any Prince or Countrey that is in War against us our Heirs and Successors. XIV. Power of safety and defence in such way and manner as to the said William Penn, etc., seems meet. XV. Full power to Assign Alien Grant Demise or Enfeoff of the premises so many and such parts and parcels to those that are willing to purchase the same as the said William Penn 214 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1681 thinks fit to have and to hold to them the said Persons their Heirs or Successors in fee Simple or fee Tail or for term of Life or Lives or years to be held of the said William Penn, etc., as of the said Seigniory of Windsor by such services Customs and Rents as shall seem fit to the said William Penn his Heirs and Assigns and not immediately of us our Heirs or Successors and that the said Persons may take the premisses or any Parcel thereof of the said William Penn, etc., and the same hold to themselves their Heirs and Assigns the Statute Quia emptores Terraram in any wise notwithstanding. XVI. We give and grant License to any of those Persons to whom the said William Penn, etc., has granted any Estate of Inheritance as aforesaid with the consent of the said William Penn to erect any parcel of Lands within the said Province into Mannors to hold Courts Barron and view of Francke- pledge, etc., by Themselves or Stewards. XVII. Power to those Persons to Grant to others the same Tenures in fee Simple or otherwise to be held of the said Mannors respectively and upon all further Alienations the Land to be held of the Mannor that it held of before the Alienation. XVIII. We do covenant and Grant to and with the said William Penn his Heirs and Assigns that we will not set or make any Custom or other Taxation upon the Inhabitants of the said Province upon Lands Houses Goods Chattels or Mer chandizes except with the consent of the Inhabitants and Govemour. XIX. A charge that no Officers nor Ministers of us our Heirs and Successors do presume at any time to attempt any thing to the contrary of the premisses or in any sort with stand the same but that they be at all times aiding to the said William Penn and his Heirs and to the Inhabitants and Mer chants their Factors and Assigns in the full use and benefit of this our Charter. XX. And if any doubts or questions shall hereafter arise about the true sense or meaning of any Word Clause or Sen tence contained in this our Charter We will ordain and com mand that at all times and in all things such Interpretation be made thereof and allowed in any of our Courts whatsoever as shall be adjudged most advantageous and favourable unto the 1681] SOME ACCOUNT OF PENNSILVANIA 215 said William Penn his Heirs and Assigns so as it be not against the Faith and Allegiance due to us our Heirs and Successors. In witness whereof we have caused our Letters to be made Patents. Witness our self at West minster, etc. To conclude, I desire all my dear Country-Folks, who may be inclin'd to go into those Parts, to consider seriously the prem ises, as well the present inconveniences, as future ease and Plenty, that so none may move rashly or from a fickle but solid mind, having above all things, an Eye to the providence of God, in the disposal of themselves. And I would further advise all such at least, to have the permission, if not the good liking of their near Relations, for that is both Natural, and a Duty Incumbent upon all; and by this means will natural affection be preserved, and a friendly and profitable corre spondence be maintained between them. In all which I be seech Almighty God to direct us, that his blessing may attend our honest endeavour, and then the Consequence of all our undertaking will turn to the Glory of his great Name, and the true happiness of us and our Posterity. Amen. William Penn. POSTSCRIPT. Whoever are desirous to be concem'd with Me in this Province, they may be treated with and further Satisfied, at Philip Fords1 in Bow-lane in Cheapside, and at Thomas Rud- yards or Benjamin Clarks in George Yard in Lumbard-street. The End. 1 Philip Ford, Penn's steward, who later brought the Founder into financial difficulties. LETTER FROM WILLIAM PENN TO THE COMMITTEE OF THE FREE SOCIETY OF TRADERS, 1683 INTRODUCTION William Penn had been an extraordinarily busy man in the two years prior to the writing of this Letter. By July, 1681, his plans for the sale and settlement of his Pennsylvania lands, as foreshadowed in Some Account, having been more fully developed, were published on the 11th of that month under the caption Conditions and Concessions. With the issue of the latter document, which may be regarded as a form of contract between Penn and those who were to join in his enterprise, the sale of lands began. Journeying between the two great English cities of that day, London and Bristol, Penn, in the next three months, disposed of over 300,000 acres of unlocated lands in amounts of from 10,000 to 250 acres, to about 250 per sons. These grantees, who were called First Purchasers, with special privileges as to the choice of allotment, were largely well-to-do Quakers of southern England. Two-thirds of the territory sold was about equally divided between purchasers in London and Bristol, the other third being taken chiefly in some of the intervening counties. In October, 1681, the Proprietor sent over three commission ers to assist Governor Markham in the work of organizing the colony, especially with respect to the laying out of grants of land and to the choice of a site for the capital city. Along with the commissioners went Penn's advance-guard of immi grants, one group sailing from London in the ship John and Sarah, and the other from Bristol in the Factor. The Free Society of Traders in Pennsylvania, the land and trading company, to which the present Letter is addressed, and of which great things were vainly expected, was incorporated 219 220 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA by Penn in March, 1682. In the following month he sent over the surveyor general, Thomas Holme, who laid out Philadel phia that summer. The same month witnessed the completion and signing of the elaborate Frame of Government, the fa mous first constitution of Pennsylvania, to which were ap pended certain laws agreed upon in England. All these activities in the furtherance of the undertaking delayed the Proprietor's visit to his new province. He was unable to depart until August, 1682. At that time the roll of First Purchasers, as kept in the London office, was closed; more than 600,000 acres of land had thus far been sold. Just before sailing Penn once more prevailed upon his old friend the Duke of York to make him another American grant, that of the Three Lower Counties of Delaware. It was on October 28, 1682, that William Penn first stepped upon American soil. On that day amidst the joyful acclama tions of the inhabitants he disembarked from the good ship Welcome at New Castle and received turf, twig, and water, symbols of bis feudal possession of the country. After devoting several weeks to affairs at Upland (Chester), New Castle, and his rapidly rising city of Philadelphia, he journeyed to New York and paid his respects to the officials of government there. From December 4 to 7 he sat with the first legislative assembly at Chester. A series of important measures known as the Great Law, including the code of laws agreed upon in England, and embodying Penn's ideas and principles, was enacted, thus laying broadly and deeply the constitutional foundations of the Province. The boundaries between Pennsylvania and Maryland, which were long to be a bone of contention, were the subject of a conference between Penn and Lord Baltimore, in Maryland, during the latter part of December, and again at New Castle in the following May. Early in March, 1683, as one of the proprietors, Penn met for a few days with the council of East New Jersey. He then attended, in Philadelphia, the.ses- INTRODUCTION 221 sions of the second assembly of Pennsylvania, and at the instance of that body issued a second Frame or Constitution, which lessened the number of representatives in the council and assembly. Penn's first residence was at Chester, but with the develop ment of the capital town he took up his abode in a house which had been especially erected for him there; he made occasional visits, however, to Pennsbury, a country-seat he was estab lishing on the shores of the Delaware in Bucks County. The movement of population to Pennsylvania under Penn was truly remarkable; in no previous period had it reached such proportions. Beginning with the spring of 1682 a steady stream of immigration had set in. More than thirty ships bringing to the province several thousand settlers arrived in the next twelve months, so that in a little while the older inhabitants of Swedish and Dutch origin were far outnumbered. A fringe of settlement, in some instances reaching several miles into the interior, notably along the tributary rivers and creeks, now extended, at the date of this Letter, along the Delaware from Lewes to above the Falls. The majority of the newcomers were English Quakers; but an initial wedge of Welsh settlement, which in the general advance was destined in after years to cleave the English area of population in twain, had found lodgment west of the falls of the Schuylkill. This Letter, which is in Penn's characteristic, descriptive style, is very properly regarded as the most important and interesting of his series of Pennsylvania pamphlets. He had but recently returned from a general tour of his dominions and he had also been much occupied for some months in treating with the Indians for their lands. He was thus fully informed by personal observation of the events and conditions which he here so faithfully and vividly chronicles. The original draft of the Letter is still preserved in the col lection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. This manu- 222 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA script is a folio of thirty pages, of which twenty-three pages (pp. 3-24 and 29-30) are in the handwriting of Penn himself; the first part (pp. 1-2) and the latter part (pp. 25-27) are in two other hands. The Letter was published the same year in which it was written, 1683, in London (a folio of ten pages), apparently in two editions, since to one copy is appended a list of property-owners in the city of Philadelphia, with num bers affixed to the names designating the lots on the accompany ing plan of the city.1 The next year, 1684, the Letter was pub lished in three continental languages: in Dutch as Missive van William Penn2 (two editions), at Amsterdam; in German,3 as a translation of the latter, included in Beschreibung der in America neu-erfundenen Provinz Pensylvanien, issued at Ham burg; and in French, as translated with the other pieces of Beschreibung, under the title, Recueil de Diverses pieces con- cernant la Pensylvanie,* printed at the Hague. Reprints of the Letter — in some instances not in full — have appeared in Richard Blome's Present State of his Majesty's Isles and Territories in America (London, 1687), pp. 91-111; the Works of William Penn (London editions, 1726, 1771, 1782, 1825); Edward Rack, Caspipina's Letters (Bath and London, 1777), I. 154-209; Robert Proud's History of Penn sylvania (Philadelphia, 1797), I. 246-264; Thomas Clarkson's Memoirs of William Penn (London, 1813), I. 375-406; Samuel Hazard's Register of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, 1828), I. 433- 1 This plan is reproduced in the present volume, opposite p. 242. 2 A contemporary manuscript copy in Dutch from the Konneken manu scripts of the Ministerial Archives at Lubeck, Germany, is reproduced in facsimile, at pp. 10-19 of Julius F. Sachse's Letters Relating to the Settlement of German- town (Philadelphia, 1903). 1 Another early German translation in manuscript was found by Professor Marion Dexter Learned, in 1909, in the Royal Privy Archives in Munich, and printed by him in German American Annals, new series, VIII. 51-75, (March and April, 1910); also by Emil Heuser in Pennsylvanien im 17. Jahrhundert und die ausgewanderten Pf&lzer in England (Neustadt a. H., 1910). 4 See English translation by Samuel W. Pennypacker in Pennsylvania Magazine, VI. 311-328 (1882). INTRODUCTION 223 437; Samuel M. Janney's Life of William Penn (Philadelphia, 1852), pp. 227-238; Thompson Westcott's History of Philadel phia (Sunday Dispatch) chapter xxv. ; and Old South Leaflets, no. 171. A facsimile of the original English edition of 1683 was produced by James Coleman, of London, in 1881, and from this the text which follows is taken. A. C. M. LETTER FROM WILLIAM PENN TO THE COMMITTEE OF THE FREE SOCIETY OF TRADERS, 1683 A Letter from William Penn, Proprietary and Govemour of Pennsylvania in America, to the Committee of the Free Society of Traders of that Province, residing in London. Containing a General Description of the said Province, its Soil, Air, Water, Seasons and Produce, both Natural and Arti ficial, and the good Encrease thereof, of the Natives or Abor igines, their Language, Customs and Manners, Diet, Houses or Wigwams, Liberality, easie way of Living, Physick, Burial, Religion, Sacrifices and Cantico, Festivals, Govern ment, and their order in Council upon Treaties for Land, etc., their Justice upon Evil Doers, of the first Planters, the Dutch, etc., and the present Condition and Settlement of the said Province, and Courts of Justice, etc. To which is added, An Account of the City of Philadelphia, newly laid out, its Scituation between two Navigable Rivers, Delaware and Skulkill, with a Portraiture or Plat-form thereof, wherein the Purchasers Lots are distinguished by certain Numbers inserted, directing to a Catalogue of the said Purchasers Names, and the Prosperous and Advan- tagious Settlements of the Society aforesaid, within the said City and Country, etc. Printed and Sold by Andrew Sowle,1 at the Crooked-Billet in Holloway-Lane in Shoreditch, and at several Stationers in London, 1683. 1 Andrew Sowle (1628-1695) was the Quaker printer and bookseller in Lon don for the Friends of England. He had just removed in this year, 1683, to the above location from his old shop in Devonshire New Building, without Bishops- gate. Upon his retirement in 1691 his daughter, Tacie Sowle, carried on the business. Another daughter, Elizabeth, married her father's apprentice, William Bradford (1663-1752), who brought his wife over to Pennsylvania, and in 1685 established his printing-press in Philadelphia, the first in America south of New England and north of Mexico. 224 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCLETY OF TRADERS 225 My Kind Friends; The Kindness of yours by the Ship Thomas and Anne, doth much oblige me; for by it I perceive the Interest you take in my Health and Reputation, and the prosperous Beginnings of this Province, which you are so kind as to think may much depend upon them. In return of which, I have sent you a long Letter, and yet containing as brief an Account of My self, and the Affairs of this Province, as I have been able to make. In the first place, I take notice of the News you sent me, whereby I find some Persons have had so little Wit, and so much Malice, as to report my Death, and to mend the matter, dead a Jesuit too. One might have reasonably hop'd, that this Distance, like Death, would have been a protection against Spite and Envy; and indeed, Absence being a kind of Death, ought alike to secure the Name of the Absent as the Dead; because they are equally unable as such to defend themselves: But they that intend Mischief, do not use to follow good Rules to effect it. However, to the great Sorrow and Shame of the Inventors, I am still Alive, and No Jesuit, and I thank God, very well: And without Injustice to the Authors of this, I may venture to infer, That they that wilfully and falsly Re port, would have been glad it had been So. But I perceive, many frivolous and Idle Stories have been Invented since my Departure from England, which perhaps at this time are no more Alive, than I am Dead. But if I have been Unkindly used by some I left behind me, I found Love and Respect enough where I came; an universal kind Welcome, every sort in their way. For here are some of several Nations, as well as divers Judgments: Nor were the Natives wanting in this, for their Kings, Queens and Great Men both visited and presented me; to whom I made suitable Returns, etc. For the Province, the general Condition of it take as fol- loweth. I. The Country it self in its Soyl, Air, Water, Seasons and Produce both Natural and Artificial is not to be despised. The Land containeth divers sorts of Earth, as Sand Yellow and Black, Poor and Rich: also Gravel both Loomy and Dusty; and in some places a fast fat Earth, like to our best Vales in England, especially by Inland Brooks and Rivers, God in 226 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 his Wisdom having ordered it so, that the Advantages of the Country are divided, the Back-Lands being generally three to one Richer than those that lie by Navigable Waters. We have much of another Soyl, and that is a black Hasel Mould, upon a Stony or Rocky bottom. II. The Air is sweet and clear, the Heavens serene, like the South-parts of France, rarely Overcast ; and as the Woods come by numbers of People to be more clear'd, that it self will Refine. III. The Waters are generally good, for the Rivers and Brooks have mostly Gravel and Stony Bottoms, and in Number hardly credible. We have also Mineral Waters, that operate in the same manner with Barnet J and North-hall,2 not two Miles from Philadelphia. IV. For the Seasons of the Year, having by God's goodness now lived over the Coldest and Hottest, that the Oldest Liver in the Province can remember, I can say something to an Eng lish Understanding. 1st, Of the Fall, for then I came in: I found it from the 24th of October, to the beginning of December, as we have it usually in England in September, or rather like an English mild Spring. From December to the beginning of the Moneth called March, we had sharp Frosty Weather; not foul, thick, black Weather, as our North-East Winds bring with them in England; but a Skie as clear as in Summer, and the Air dry, cold, piercing and hungry; yet I remember not, that I wore more Clothes than in England. The reason of this Cold is given from the great Lakes that are fed by the Fountains of Canada. The Winter before was as mild, scarce any Ice at all; while this for a few dayes Froze up our great River Dela ware. From that Moneth to the Moneth called June, we en- joy'd a sweet Spring, no Gusts, but gentle Showers, and a fine Skie. Yet this I observe, that the Winds here as there, are more Inconstant Spring and Fall, upon that turn of Nature, than in Summer or Winter. From thence to this present 1 Chipping Barnet, or High Barnet, a town in Hertfordshire, eleven miles north of London, having on the town common a mineral spring, the water of which contains a considerable portion of calcareous glauber, with a small portion of sea salt. 2 Northaw, in Hertfordshire, about four miles northeast of Chipping Barnet, has a fine saline spring, formerly much resorted to. 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCIETY OF TRADERS 227 Moneth, which endeth the Summer (commonly speaking) we have had extraordinary Heats, yet mitigated sometimes by Cool Breezese. The Wind that ruleth the Summer-season, is the South-West; but Spring, Fall and Winter, 'tis rare to want the wholesome North Wester seven dayes together: And what ever Mists, Fogs or Vapours foul the Heavens by Easterly or Southerly Winds, in two Hours time are blown away; the one is alwayes followed by the other: A Remedy that seems to have a peculiar Providence in it to the Inhabitants; the multi tude of Trees, yet standing, being liable to retain Mists and Vapours, and yet not one quarter so thick as I expected. V. The Natural Produce of the Country, of Vegetables, is Trees, Fruits, Plants, Flowers. The Trees of most note are, the black Walnut, Cedar, Cyprus, Chestnut, Poplar, Gumwood, Hickery, Sassafrax, Ash, Beech and Oak of divers sorts, as Red, White and Black; Spanish Chestnut and Swamp, the most durable of all: of All which there is plenty for the use of man. The Fruits that I find in the Woods, are the White and Black Mulbery, Chestnut, Wallnut, Plumbs, Strawberries, Cran berries, Hurtleberries and Grapes of divers sorts. The great Red Grape (now ripe) called by Ignorance, the Fox-Grape (be cause of the Relish it hath with unskilful Palates) is in it self an extraordinary Grape, and by Art doubtless may be Culti vated to an excellent Wine, if not so sweet, yet little inferior to the Frontimack, as it is not much unlike in taste, Ruddiness set aside, which in such things, as well as Mankind, differs the case much. There is a white kind of Muskedel, and a little black Grape, like the cluster-Grape of England, not yet so ripe as the other; but they tell me, when Ripe, sweeter, and that they only want skilful Vinerons to make good use of them: I intend to venture on it with my French man1 this season, who shews some knowledge in those things. Here are also Peaches, 1 Andrew Doz, Penn's French vigneron, with his wife Ann, were among the Huguenot exiles naturalized by royal letters patent at Westminster, London, March 8, 1682. They were brought over to Pennsylvania that same year, and he was placed in charge of Penn's vineyard, on the east bank of the Schuylkill, north of Fairmount, in the manor of Springettsbury, on what is now Lemon Hili, in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. "Be regardfull to Andrew Doze the french man," writes Penn, in 1685, "he is hott, but I think honest and his wife a pretty 228 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 and very good, and in great quantities, not an Indian Plan tation without them; but whether naturally here at first, I know not, however one may have them by Bushels for little; they make a pleasant Drink and I think not inferior to any Peach you have in England, except the true Newington. 'Tis disputable with me, whether it be best to fall to Fining the Fruits of the Country, especially the Grape, by the care and skill of Art, or send for forreign Stems and Sets, already good and approved. It seems most reasonable to believe, that not only a thing groweth best, where it naturally grows; but will hardly be equalled by another Species of the same kind, that doth not naturally grow there. But to solve the doubt, I intend, if God give me Life, to try both, and hope the consequence will be as good Wine as any European Countries of the same Latitude do yield. VI. The Artificial Produce of the Country, is Wheat, Bar ley, Oats, Rye, Pease, Beans, Squashes, Pumkins, Water- Melons, Mus-Melons, and all Herbs and Roots that our Gar dens in England usually bring forth.1 VII. Of living Creatures; Fish, Fowl, and the Beasts of the Woods, here are divers sorts, some for Food and Profit, and some for Profit only: For Food as well as Profit, the Elk, woman in her disposition." The vineyard with 200 acres of land was patented to Doz in 1690, he paying the Proprietor 100 vine cuttings yearly on demand. His grandson, Andrew Doz, was a well-known citizen of Philadelphia. The Vine yard Hill was occupied from 1770 to 1798 by "The Hills," the country mansion of Robert Morris, the Financier of the American Revolution, and later by the Lemon Hill mansion which yet remains. 1 "Note, that Edward Jones, Son-in-Law to Thomas Wynn, living on the Sckulkil, had with ordinary Cultivation, for one Grain of English Barley, seventy Stalks and Ears of Barley; And 'tis common in this Country from one Bushel sown, to reap forty, often fifty, and sometimes sixty. And three Pecks of Wheat sows an Acre here." The above foot-note appears in the original text. Dr. Edward Jones (1645- 1737), from near Bala, in Merionethshire, Wales, was one of the leaders of the first company of Welsh settlers, which, sailing from Liverpool in the ship Lyon, arrived in the Schuylkill River in August, 1682. Their settlements were made on a tract of 5,000 acres of land, stretching from the Falls of the Schuylkill westerly of Merion Meeting House (built 1695), in the present Lower Merion Township, Montgomery County. Dr. Thomas Wynne (died 1692), a native of Caerwys, Flintshire, Wales, came over to Pennsylvania in the ship Welcome, with William Penn, in 1682. He was speaker of the first provincial assembly held in Phila- delphia. 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCIETY OF TRADERS 229 as big as a small Ox, Deer bigger than ours, Beaver, Racoon, Rabbits, Squirrels, and some eat young Bear, and commend it. Of Fowl of the Land, there is the Turkey (Forty and Fifty Pound weight) which is very great; Phesants, Heath-Birds, Pidgeons and Partridges in abundance. Of the Water, the Swan, Goose, white and gray, Brands, Ducks, Teal, also the Snipe and Curloe, and that in great Numbers; but the Duck and Teal excel, nor so good have I ever eat in other Countries. Of Fish, there is the Sturgeon, Herring, Rock, Shad, Catshead, Sheepshead, Ele, Smelt, Pearch, Roach; and in Inland Rivers, Trout, some say Salmon, above the Falls. Of Shelfish, we have Oysters, Crabbs, Cockles, Concks, and Mushels; some Oysters six Inches long, and one sort of Cockles as big as the Stewing Oysters, they make a rich Broth. The Creatures for Profit only by Skin or Fur, and that are natural to these parts, are the Wild Cat, Panther, Otter, Wolf, Fox, Fisher, Minx, Musk-Rat; and of the Water, the Whale for Oyl, of which we have good store, and two Companies of Whalers, whose Boats are built, will soon begin their Work,1 which hath the appear ance of a considerable Improvement. To say nothing of our reasonable Hopes of good Cod in the Bay. VIII. We have no want of Horses, and some are very good and shapely enough; two Ships have been freighted to Bar badoes with Horses and Pipe-Staves, since my coining in. Here is also Plenty of Cow-Cattle, and some Sheep; the People Plow mostly with Oxen. IX. There are divers Plants that not only the Indians tell us, but we have had occasion to prove by Swellings, Burnings, Cuts, etc., that they are of great Virtue, suddenly curing the Patient : and for smell, I have observed several, especially one, the wild Mirtle; the other I know not what to call, but are most fragrant. X. The Woods are adorned with lovely Flowers, for colour, greatness, figure, and variety: I have seen the Gardens of London best stored with that sort of Beauty, but think they may be improved by our Woods: I have sent a few to a Person of Quality this Year for a tryal. Thus much of the Country, next of the Natives or Abor igines. 1 The whaling activity centred about the entrance to Delaware Bay. 230 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 XL The Natives I shall consider in their Persons, Language, Manners, Religion and Government, with my sence of their Original. For their Persons, they are generally tall, streight, well-built, and of singular Proportion; they tread strong and clever, and mostly walk with a lofty Chin: Of Complexion, Black, but by design, as the Gypsies in England: They grease themselves with Bears-fat clarified, and using no defence against Sun or Weather, their skins must needs be swarthy; Their Eye is little and black, not unlike a straight-look't Jew: The thick Lip and flat Nose, so frequent with the East-Indians and Blacks, are not common to them; for I have seen as comely European-like faces among them of both, as on your side the Sea; and truly an Italian Complexion hath not much more of the White, and the Noses of several of them have as much of the Roman. XII. Their Language is lofty, yet narrow, but like the Hebrew; in Signification full, like Short-hand in writing; one word serveth in the place of three, and the rest are supplied by the Understanding of the Hearer: Imperfect in their Tenses, wanting in their Moods, Participles, Adverbs, Conjunctions, Interjections: I have made it my business to understand it, that I might not want an Interpreter on any occasion: And I must say, that I know not a Language spoken in Europe, that hath words of more sweetness or greatness, in Accent and Em phasis, than theirs; for Instance, Octorockon,1 Rancocas,2 Ozicton,3 Shakamacon* Poquerim, all of which are names of Places, and have Grandeur in them: Of words of Sweetness, Anna, is Mother, Issimus, a Brother, Netap, Friend, usque ozet, very good; pone, Bread, metse, eat, matta, no, hatta, to have, payo, to come; Sepassen,s Passijon, the Names of Places; 1 Doubtless Octorara Creek, an eastern affluent of the Susquehanna. 2 Rancocas Creek, in Burlington County, New Jersey. • Oricton, in Penn's handwriting in the original manuscript, i. e., Orectons, now Biles Island, was near to the Falls of Delaware, and to Penn's country-seat, Pennsbury, in Bucks County. 4 Shackamaxon, now in Kensington, Philadelphia, where Penn lived in the house of Thomas Fairman, early in 1683, and where he is said to have held treaties with the Indians. 5 Sepassing Land was the name applied to that part of what is now Bucks County which included Penn's manor and country-seat of Pennsbury. 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCIETY OF TRADERS 231 Tamane,1 Secane,* Menanse, Secatereus,3 are the names of Per sons. If one ask them for anything they have not, they will answer, mattd ne hatta, which to translate is, not I have, in stead of I have not. XIII. Of their Customs and Manners there is much to be said; I will begin with Children. So soon as they are bom, they wash them in Water, and while very young, and in cold Weather to chuse, they Plunge them in the Rivers to harden and embolden them. Having wrapt them in a Clout, they lay them on a straight thin Board, a little more than the length and breadth of the Child, and swadle it fast upon the Board to make it straight; wherefore all Indians have flat Heads; and thus they carry them at their Backs. The Children will go very young, at nine Moneths commonly; they wear only a small Clout round their Waste, till they are big; if Boys, they go a Fishing till ripe for the Woods, which is about Fifteen ; then they Hunt, and after having given some Proofs of their Manhood, by a good return of Skins, they may Marry, else it is a shame to think of a Wife. The Girls stay with their Mothers, and help to hoe the Ground, plant Corn and carry Burthens; and they do well to use them to that Young, they must do when they are Old; for the Wives are the true Ser vants of their Husbands: otherwise the Men are very affec tionate to them. XIV. When the Young Women are fit for Marriage, they wear something upon their Heads for an Advertisement, but so as their Faces are hardly to be seen, but when they please : The Age they Marry at, if Women, is about thirteen and four teen; if Men, seventeen and eighteen; they are rarely elder. 1 Tamany is the form in the original manuscript draft of the Letter in Penn's own handwriting, but other variations, as appearing in Indian deeds and official documents for the period, 1683-1697, are Tamene, Tamine, Tamina, Tamanee, Tamanen, Tamanend, and Taminent During the above period, to which his authentic history is confined, he was one of the leading chiefs of the Lenni Lenape for the region of Bucks County, Pennsylvania. 2 Siccane, the form in Penn's hand in the original draft of the Letter, but usually Secane. He was one of the two chiefs granting the region between Schuyl kill River and Chester Creek to Penn in 1683. In 1685 Penn writes that he sends a cap as a present for "Shikane." 3 Secatareus, in the original manuscript draft of the Letter, in Penn's hand. To "Secetareus," Penn was sending a cap as a present in 1685. 232 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 XV. Their Houses are Mats, or Barks of Trees set on Poles, in the fashion of an English Bam, but out of the power of the Winds, for they are hardly higher than a Man; they lie on Reeds or Grass. In Travel they lodge in the Woods about a great Fire, with the Mantle of Duffills they wear by day, wrapt about them, and a few Boughs stuck round them. XVI. Their Diet is Maze, or Indian Corn, divers ways pre pared: sometimes Roasted in the Ashes, sometimes beaten and Boyled with Water, which they call Homine; they also make Cakes, not unpleasant to eat: They have likewise several sorts of Beans and Pease that are good Nourishment; and the Woods and Rivers are their Larder. XVII. If an European comes to see them, or calls for Lodg ing at their House or Wigwam they give him the best place and first cut. If they come to visit us, they salute us with an Itah which is as much as to say, Good be to you, and set them down, which is mostly on the Ground close to their Heels, their Legs upright; may be they speak not a word more, but observe all Passages: If you give them any thing to eat or drink, well, for they will not ask; and be it little or much, if it be with Kind ness, they are well pleased, else they go away sullen, but say nothing. XVIII. They are great Concealers of their own Resent ments, brought to it, I believe, by the Revenge that hath been practised among them; in either of these, they are not ex ceeded by the Italians. A Tragical Instance fell out since I came into the Country; A King's Daughter thinking her self slighted by her Husband, in suffering another Woman to lie down between them, rose up, went out, pluck't a Root out of the Ground, and ate it, upon which she immediately dyed; and for which, last Week he made an Offering to her Kindred for Attonement and liberty of Marriage; as two others did to the Kindred of their Wives, that dyed a natural Death: For till Widdowers have done so, they must not marry again. Some of the young Women are said to take undue liberty before Marriage for a Portion; but when marryed, chaste; when with Child, they know their Husbands no more, till delivered; and during their Moneth, they touch no Meat, they eat, but with a Stick, least they should defile it ; nor do their Husbands fre quent them, till that time be expired. 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCIETY OF TRADERS 233 XIX. But in Liberality they excell, nothing is too good for their friend; give them a fine Gun, Coat, or other thing, it may pass twenty hands, before it sticks; light of Heart, strong Affections, but soon spent; the most merry Creatures that five, Feast and Dance perpetually; they never have much, nor want much: Wealth circulateth like the Blood, all parts par take; and though none shall want what another hath, yet exact Observers of Property. Some Kings have sold, others pre sented me with several parcels of Land; the Pay or Presents I made them, were not hoarded by the particular Owners, but the neighbouring Kings and their Clans being present when the Goods were brought out, the Parties chiefly concerned con sulted, what and to whom they should give them? To every King then, by the hands of a Person for that work appointed, is a proportion sent, so sorted and folded, and with that Grav ity, that is admirable. Then that King sub-divideth it in like manner among his Dependents, they hardly leaving themselves an Equal share with one of their Subjects: and be it on such occasions, at Festivals, or at their common Meals, the Kings distribute, and to themselves last. They care for little, be cause they want but little; and the Reason is, a little con tents them: In this they are sufficiently revenged on us; if they are ignorant of our Pleasures, they are also free from our Pains. They are not disquieted with Bills of Lading and Ex change, nor perplexed with Chancery-Suits and Exchequer- Reckonings. We sweat and toil to live; their pleasure feeds them, I mean, their Hunting, Fishing and Fowling, and this Table is spread every where; they eat twice a day, Morning and Evening; their Seats and Table are the Ground. Since the European came into these parts, they are grown great lovers of strong Liquors, Rum especially, and for it exchange the richest of their Skins and Furs : If they are heated with Liquors, they are restless till they have enough to sleep; that is their cry, Some more, and I will go to sleep ; but when Drunk, one of the most wretchedst Spectacles in the world. XX. In sickness impatient to be cured, and for it give any thing, especially for their Children, to whom they are extreamly natural; they drink at those times a Teran or Decoction of some Roots in spring Water; and if they eat any flesh, it must be of the Female of any Creature; If they dye, they bury them 234 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 with their Apparel, be they Men or Women, and the nearest of Kin fling in something precious with them, as a token of their Love: Their Mourning is blacking of their faces, which they continue for a year; They are choice of the Graves of their Dead; for least they should be lost by time, and fall to com mon use, they pick off the Grass that grows upon them, and heap up the fallen Earth with great care and exactness. XXI. These poor People are under a dark Night in things relating to Religion, to be sure, the Tradition of it; yet they believe a God and Immortality, without the help of Meta- phy sicks; for they say, There is a great King that made them, who dwells in a glorious Country to the Southward of them, and that the Souls of the good shall go thither, where they shall live again. Their Worship consists of two parts, Sacrifice and Cantico. Their Sacrifice is their first Fruits; the first and fattest Buck they kill, goeth to the fire, where he is all burnt with a Mournful Ditty of him that performeth the Ceremony, but with such marvellous Fervency and Labour of Body, that he will even sweat to a foam. The other part is their Cantico, performed by round-Dances, sometimes Words, sometimes Songs, then Shouts, two being in the middle that begin, and by Singing and Dramming on a Board direct the Chorus: Their Postures in the Dance are very Antick and differing, but all keep measure. This is done with equal Earnestness and Labour, but great appearance of Joy. In the Fall, when the Com cometh in, they begin to feast one another; there have been two great Festivals already, to which all come that will: I was at one my self; their Entertainment was a green Seat by a Spring, under some shady Trees, and twenty Bucks, with hot Cakes of new Com, both Wheat and Beans, which they make up in a square form, in the leaves of the Stem, and bake them in the Ashes: And after that they fell to Dance, But they that go, must carry a small Present in their Money, it may be six Pence, which is made of the Bone of a Fish; the black is with them as Gold, the white, Silver; they call it all Wampum. XXII. Their Government is by Kings, which they call Sachema, and those by Succession, but always of the Mothers side; for Instance, the Children of him that is now King, will not succeed, but bis Brother by the Mother, or the Children 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCIETY OF TRADERS 235 of his Sister, whose Sons (and after them the Children of her Daughters) will reign; for no Woman inherits; the Reason they render for this way of Descent, is, that their Issue may not be spurious. XXIII. Every King hath his Council, and that consists of all the Old and Wise men of his Nation, which perhaps is two hundred People: nothing of Moment is undertaken, be it War, Peace, Selling of Land or Traffick, without advising with them; and which is more, with the Young Men too. 'Tis admirable to consider, how Powerful the Kings are, and yet how they move by the Breath of their People. I have had occasion to be in Council with them upon Treaties for Land, and to adjust the terms of Trade; their Order is thus: The King sits in the middle of an half Moon, and hath his Coun cil, the Old and Wise on each hand; behind them, or at a little distance, sit the younger Fry, in the same figure. Having consulted and resolved their business, the King ordered one of them to speak to me; he stood up, came to me, and in the Name of his King saluted me, then took me by the hand, and told me, That he was ordered by his King to speak to me, and that now it was not he, but the King that spoke, because what he should say, was the King's mind. He first pray'd me, To excuse them that they had not complyed with me the last time; he feared, there might be some fault in the Interpreter, being neither Indian nor English; besides, it was the Indian Custom to deliberate, and take up much time in Council, before they resolve; and that if the Young People and Owners of the Land had been as ready as he, I had not met with so much delay. Having thus introduced his matter, he fell to the Bounds of the Land they had agreed to dispose of, and the Price, (which now is little and dear, that which would have bought twenty Miles, not buying now two.) During the time that this Person spoke, not a man of them was observed to whisper or smile; the Old, Grave, the Young, Reverend in their Deportment; they do speak little, but fervently, and with Elegancy: I have never seen more natural Sagacity, con sidering them without the help, (I was agoing to say, the spoil) of Tradition; and he will deserve the Name of Wise, that Out wits them in any Treaty about a thing they understand. When the Purchase was agreed, great Promises past between 236 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 us of Kindness and good Neighbourhood, and that the Indians and English must live in Love, as long as the Sun gave light. Which done, another made a Speech to the Indians, in the Name of all the Sachamakers or Kings, first to tell them what was done; next, to charge and command them, To Love the Christians, and particularly live in Peace with me, and the People under my Government: That many Governours had been in the River, but that no Govemour had come himself to live and stay here before; and having now such a one that had treated them well, they should never do him or his any wrong. At every sentence of which they shouted, and said, Amen, in their way. XXIV. The Justice they have is Pecuniary: In case of any Wrong or evil Fact, be it Murther it self, they Attone by Feasts and Presents of their Wampon, which is proportioned to the quality of the Offence or Person injured, or of the Sex they are of: for in case they kill a Woman, they pay double, and the Reason they render, is, That she breedeth Children, which Men cannot do. 'Tis rare that they fall out, if Sober; and if Drank, they forgive it, saying, It was the Drink, and not the Man, that abused them. XXV. We have agreed, that in all Differences between us, Six of each side shall end the matter: Don't abuse them, but let them have Justice, and you win them: The worst is, that they are the worse for the Christians, who have propagated their Vices, and yielded them Tradition for ill, and not for good things. But as low an Ebb as they are at, and as glorious as their Condition looks, the Christians have not out-liv'd their sight with all their Pretensions to an higher Manifestation: What good then might not a good People graft, where there is so distinct a Knowledge left between Good and Evil? I be seech God to incline the Hearts of all that come into these parts, to out-live the Knowledge of the Natives, by a fixt Obedience to their greater Knowledge of the Will of God, for it were miserable indeed for us to fall under the just censure of the poor Indian Conscience, while we make profession of things so far transcending. XXVI. For their Original, I am ready to believe them of the Jewish Race, I mean, of the stock of the Ten Tribes, and that for the following Reasons; first, They were to go to a 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCIETY OF TRADERS 237 Land not planted or known, which to be sure Asia and Africa were, if not Europe; and he that intended that extraordinary Judgment upon them, might make the Passage not uneasie to them, as it is not impossible in it self, from the Easter-most parts of Asia, to the Wester-most of America. In the next place, I find them of like Countenance and their Children of so lively Resemblance, that a man would think himself in Dukes-place1 or Berry-street1 in London, when he seeth them. But this is not all, they agree in Rites, they reckon by Moons: they offer their first Fruits, they have a kind of Feast of Taber nacles; they are said to lay their Altar upon twelve Stones; their Mourning a year, Customs of Women, with many things that do not now occur. So much for the Natives, next the Old Planters will be con sidered in this Relation, before I come to our Colony, and the Concerns of it. XXVII. The first Planters in these parts were the Dutch, and soon after them the Sweeds and Finns. The Dutch ap plied themselves to Traffick, the Sweeds and Finns to Hus bandry. There were some Disputes between them some years, the Dutch looking upon them as Intruders upon their Purchase and Possession, which was finally ended in the Surrender made by John Rizeing, the Sweeds Govemour, to Peter Sty- vesant, Govemour for the States of Holland, Anno 1655. XXVIII. The Dutch inhabit mostly those parts of the Province, that lie upon or near to the Bay, and the Sweeds the Freshes of the River Delaware. There is no need of giving any Description of them, who are better known there then here; but they are a plain, strong, industrious People, yet have made no great progress in Culture or propagation of frait-Trees, as if they desired rather to have enough, than Plenty or Traffick. But I presume, the Indians made them the more careless, by furnishing them with the means of Profit, to wit, Skins and Furs, for Rum, and such strong Liquors. They kindly received me, as well as the English, who were few, before the People concerned with me came among them; I must needs commend their Respect to Authority, and kind Behaviour to the English; they do not degenerate from the Old friendship between both Kingdoms. As they are People 1 Then as now these streets were in the centre of a Jewish quarter. 238 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 proper and strong of Body, so they have fine Children, and almost every house full; rare to find one of them without three or four Boys, and as many Girls; some six, seven and eight Sons: And I must do them that right, I see few Young men more sober and laborious. XXIX. The Dutch have a Meeting-place for Religious Worship at New Castle, and the Sweedes three, one at Chris tina, one at Tenecum,1 and one at Wicoco, within half a Mile of this Town. XXX. There rests, that I speak of the Condition we are in, and what Settlement we have made, in which I will be as short as I can; for I fear, and not without reason, that I have tryed your Patience with this long Story. The Country lieth bounded on the East, by the River and Bay of Delaware, and Eastern Sea; it hath the Advantage of many Creeks or Rivers rather, that run into the main River or Bay; some Navigable for great Ships, some for small Craft: Those of most Eminency are Christina, Brandywine, Skilpot,2 and Skulkill; any one of which have room to lay up the Royal Navy of England, there being from four to eight Fathom Water. XXXI. The lesser Creeks or Rivers, yet convenient for Sloops and Ketches of good Burthen, are Lewis, Mespilion,3 Cedar, Dover,4 Cranbrook,5 Feversham,6 and Georges,7 below, and Chichester,8 Chester, Toacawny,9 Pemmapecka, Port- quessin, Neshimenck and Pennberry in the Freshes; many lesser that admit Boats and Shallops. Our People are mostly settled upon the upper Rivers, which are pleasant and sweet, and generally bounded with good Land. The Planted part of the Province and Territories is cast into six Counties, Phila delphia, Buckingham,10 Chester, New Castle, Kent and Sussex, 1 Tinicum Island. Wicaco was the Swedish settlement, at what is now Front Street and Washington Avenue, Philadelphia. 2 Shelpot Creek. » Mispillion Creek. * Now Murderkill Creek. 8 Now St. Jones Creek, in Kent County, Delaware. • Not definitely identified, but probably between St Jones and St Georges Creek, in Kent County, Delaware. Feversham is a place-name in the county of Kent, England, not far from Penn's home in Sussex. ' St. Georges Creek. » Now Marcus Creek. •Tacony Creek, Philadelphia County. The next three are Pennypack, Poquessing, and Neshaminy Creeks, respectively. 10 Bucks County. 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCIETY OF TRADERS 239 containing about Four Thousand Souls. Two General As semblies have been held, and with such Concord and Dispatch, that they sate but three Weeks, and at least seventy Laws were past without one Dissent in any material thing. But of this more hereafter, being yet Raw and New in our Geer: However, I cannot forget their singular Respect to me in this Infancy of things, who by their own private Expences so early consider'd Mine for the Publick, as to present me with an Impost upon certain Goods Imported and Exported: Which after my Ac knowledgements of their Affection, I did as freely Remit to the Province and the Traders to it. And for the well Govern ment of the said Counties, Courts of Justice are establisht in every County, with proper Officers, as Justices, Sheriffs, Clarks, Constables, etc., which Courts are held every two Moneths: But to prevent Law-Suits, there are three Peace-makers chosen by every County-Court, in the nature of common Arbitrators, to hear and end Differences betwixt man and man ; and Spring and Fall there is an Orphan's Court in each County, to inspect, and regulate the Affairs of Orphans and Widdows. XXXII. Philadelphia, the Expectation of those that are concem'd in this Province, is at last laid out to the great Con tent of those here, that are any wayes Interested therein; The Scituation is a Neck of Land, and lieth between two Navigable Rivers, Delaware and Skulkill, whereby it hath two Fronts upon the Water, each a Mile, and two from River to River. Delaware is a glorious River, but the Skulkill being an hundred Miles Boatable above the Falls, and its Course North-East toward the Fountain of Susquahannah (that tends to the Heart of the Province, and both sides our own) it is like to be a great part of the Settlement of this Age. I say little of the Town it self, because a Plat-form1 will be shewn you by my Agent, in which those who are Purchasers of me, will find their Names and Interests: But this I will say for the good Provi dence of God, that of all the many Places I have seen in the World, I remember not one better seated; so that it seems to me to have been appointed for a Town, whether we regard the Rivers, or the conveniency of the Coves, Docks, Springs, the 1 The map or plan of Philadelphia made by the surveyor general Thomas Holme, in 1683, and first published the same year at the end of this pamphlet, as A Portraiture of the City of Philadelphia. See it, opposite p. 242. 240 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 loftiness and soundness of the Land and the Air, held by the People of these parts to be very good. It is advanced within less than a Year to about four Score Houses and Cottages, such as they are, where Merchants and Handicrafts, are following their Vocations as fast as they can, while the Country-men are close at their Farms; Some of them got a little Winter-Corn in the Ground last Season, and the generality have had a handsom Summer-Crop, and are preparing for their Winter-Corn. They reaped their Barley this Year in the Moneth called May; the Wheat in the Moneth following; so that there is time in these parts for another Crop of divers Things before the Winter- Season. We are daily in hopes of Shipping to add to our Num ber; for blessed be God, here is both Room and Accommoda tion for them; the Stories of our Necessity being either the Fear of our Friends, or the Scare-Crows of our Enemies; for the greatest hardship we have suffered, hath been Salt-Meat, which by Fowl in Winter, and Fish in Summer, together with some Poultery, Lamb, Mutton, Veal, and plenty of Venison the best part of the year, hath been made very passable. I bless God, I am fully satisfied with the Country and Enter tainment I can get in it; for I find that particular Content which hath alwayes attended me, where God in his Providence hath made it my place and service to reside. You cannot imagin, my Station can be at present free of more than ordinary business, and as such, I may say, It is a troublesom Work; but the Method things are putting in, will facilitate the Charge, and give an easier Motion to the Administration of Affairs. However, as it is some mens Duty to plow, some to sow, some to water, and some to reap ; so it is the Wisdom as well as Duty of a man, to yield to the mind of Providence, and chearfully, as well as carefully imbrace and follow the Guidance of it. XXXIII. For your particular Concern, I might entirely refer you to the Letters of the President of the Society;1 but •The Free Society of Traders in Pennsylvania, a joint stock company, which had been planned and discussed in London throughout the year 1681, and of which great results were expected, received a liberal charter from Penn in March, 1682. Over two hundred persons in the British Isles, largely from among those most interested in the new colony, became subscribers to the stock, which had reached £10,000 in June, 1682. A purchase of 20,000 acres of land in the province was made. The first officers were Dr. Nicholas More, of London, 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCIETY OF TRADERS 241 this I will venture to say, Your Provincial Settlements both within and without the Town, for Scituation and Soil, are with out Exception; Your City-Lot is an whole Street, and one side of a Street, from River to River, containing near one hundred Acers, not easily valued, which is besides your four hundred Acers in the City Liberties, part of your twenty thousand Acers in the Countery. Your Tannery hath such plenty of Bark, the Saw-Mill for Timber, the place of the Glass-house so conveniently posted for Water-carriage, the City-Lot for a Dock, and the Whalery1 for a sound and fruitful Bank, and the Town Lewis by it to help your People, that by Gods bless ing the Affairs of the Society will naturally grow in their Repu tation and Profit. I am sure I have not turned my back upon any Offer that tended to its Prosperity; and though I am ill at Projects, I have sometimes put in for a Share with her Officers, to countenance and advance her Interest. You are already informed what is fit for you further to do, whatsoever tends to the Promotion of Wine, and to the Manufacture of Linnen in these parts, I cannot but wish you to promote it ; and the French People are most likely in both respects to answer that design: To that end, I would advise you to send for some president, at a salary of £150 per annum, John Simcock, of Cheshire, deputy, and James Claypoole, of London, treasurer, the latter two at £100 per annum. These officers removed to Pennsylvania, the president with about fifty servants of the society arriving at Philadelphia in the ship Geoffrey in October, 1682. The principal trading house and offices were erected on the Society tract in the infant city, on the west side of Front Street — the main street — near the south side of Dock Creek, and at the foot of Society Hill, so named from the location of the company. Thence the society's city tract of about one hundred acres extended westerly in a tier of lots from Front Street on the Delaware to the Schuylkill, flanked by Spruce Street on the north and Pine Street on the south. This main station was the centre for the various activities of the society. From here whalers went fishing for whales to the entrance of Delaware Bay, preparing their oil and whalebone on the shore near Lewes. At Frankford a grist-mill and a saw-mill on Tacony Creek, a tannery, brick kilns, and glass-works were conducted. Car goes of English goods were brought in and sold at a profit, but collections being difficult, and the officers tending to look after their private affairs to the detriment of those of the society, it suffered severe losses, and in a few years practically went out of business except as an owner of real estate. 1 "Advise what commodity whale oyl may be with you [in Barbados] for we [the Free Society of Traders] have 24 men fishing in the [Delaware] bay that are like to make a good Voyage." James Claypool's letter, dated Philadelphia, 10 Mo (December) 2, 1683. 242 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 Thousands of Plants out of France, with some able Vinerons, and People of the other Vocation: But because I believe you have been entertained with this and some other profitable Subjects by your President, I shall add no .more, but to assure you, that I am heartily inclined to advance your just Interest, and that you will always find me Your Kind Cordial Friend, William Penn. Philadelphia, the 16th of the 6th Moneth, call'd August, 1683. A Short Advertisement upon the Scituation and Extent of the City of Philadelphia and the Ensuing Plat-form thereof, by the Surveyor General.1 The City of Philadelphia, now extends in Length, from River to River, two Miles, and in Breadth near a Mile; and the Govemour, as a further manifestation of his Kindness to the Purchasers, hath freely given them their respective Lots in the City, without defalcation of any their Quantities of purchased Lands; and as its now placed and modelled be tween two Navigable Rivers upon a Neck of Land, and that Ships may ride in good Anchorage, in six or eight Fathom Water in both Rivers, close to the City, and the Land of the City level, dry and wholsom: such a Scituation is scarce to be parallel'd. The Model of the City appears by a small Draught now made, and may hereafter, when time permits, be augmented; 1 Captain Thomas Holme (1624-1695), the first surveyor general of Penn sylvania, probably of a gentle Yorkshire family of the name, apparently went over from England to Ireland in Cromwell's army, and by 1655 was living in Limerick. Later he removed to Waterford. By 1657 he had become a Quaker, and subse quently was fined and imprisoned. He was a First Purchaser of 5,000 acres of land in Pennsylvania, and a subscriber to £50 of stock of the Free Society of Traders. Early in 1682, with his commission as surveyor general, he came over to Pennsylvania with his family in the Amity, and laid out country lands and the city of Philadelphia, the latter as exhibited in the Plat-Form here referred to, published in 1683, and reproduced in this volume, opposite this page. By 1686 he had gathered connected surveys of the lands as granted, and compiled an im portant map of the province, which was sent to London and printed in 1687. He was a member of the first assembly, and of the provincial council. 1683] LETTER TO THE SOCIETY OF TRADERS 243 and because there is not room to express the Purchasers Names in the Draught, I have therefore drawn Directions of Reference, by way of Numbers, whereby may be known each mans Lot and Place in the City. The City is so ordered now, by the Governour's Care and Prudence, that it hath a Front to each River, one half at Dela ware, the other at Skulkill; and though all this cannot make way for small Purchasers to be in the Fronts, yet they are placed in the next Streets, contiguous to each Front, viz. all Purchasers of One Thousand Acres, and upwards, have the Fronts, (and the High-street) and to every five Thousand Acres Purchase, in the Front about an Acre, and the smaller Purchasers about half an Acre in the backward Streets; by which means the least hath room enough for House, Garden and small Orchard, to the great Content and Satisfaction of all here concerned. The City, (as the Model shews) consists of a large Front- street to each River, and a High-street (near the middle) from Front (or River) to Front, of one hundred Foot broad, and a Broad-street in the middle of the City, from side to side, of the like breadth. In the Center of the City is a Square of ten Acres; at each Angle are to be Houses for publick Affairs, as a Meeting-House, Assembly or State-House, Market-House, School-House, and several other Buildings for Publick Con cerns. There are also in each Quarter of the City a Square of eight Acres, to be for the like Uses, as the Moore-fields1 in London; and eight Streets, (besides the High-street, that ran from Front to Front, and twenty Streets, (besides the Broad- street) that run cross the City, from side to side; all these Streets are of fifty Foot breadth. In each Number in the Draught, in the Fronts and High- street, are placed the Purchasers of One Thousand Acres, and upwards, to make up five Thousand Acres Lot, both in the said Fronts and High-street) and the Numbers direct to each Lot, and where in the City; so that thereby they may know where their Concerns are therein. 1 Moorfields, a moor or fen without the walls of the old city of London to the north. It was first drained in 1527, laid out into walks in 1606, and first built upon late in the reign of Charles II. The name has now been lost in Finsbury Square and adjoining localities. 244 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 The Front Lots begin at the South-ends of the Fronts, by the Numbers, and so reach to the North-ends, and end at Number 43. The High-street Lots begin towards the Fronts, at Number 44, and so reach to the Center. The lesser Purchasers begin at Number 1, in the second Streets, and so proceed by the Numbers, as in the Draught; the biggest of them being first placed, nearest to the Fronts. LETTER OF THOMAS PASCHALL, 1683 INTRODUCTION A Bristol pewterer, Thomas Paschall, is the author of this Letter. He came over to Pennsylvania as a settler in the summer of 1682 and writes from Philadelphia several months after his arrival. Paschall was a native of Bristol, having been baptized in the great church of St. Mary Redcliffe in 1634. His father William Paschall (c. 1608-1670) was also a pewterer by trade and to him the son in 1652, at the age of eighteen, was apprenticed for a term of seven years. In 1661 Thomas Paschall was admitted a freeman of the city, and there he followed his occupation until the time of his migra tion to America. His account book, containing a number of business transactions in Bristol, along with his copy of Agricola on Metals, is still preserved by Philadelphia descendants.1 Before 1665 he was married to Joanna Sloper, by whom he had at least seven children, as mentioned in the city registers from 1668 to 1682. On May 4 of the latter year his son of the same name was apprenticed to him in Bristol, and on the 22nd of that month the father purchased from William Penn 500 acres of land, to be located in Pennsylvania. Soon after this date Thomas Paschall with his family embarked, probably at the port of Bristol, for the New World, reaching Philadelphia somewhat before early September, 1682. His land was laid out to him about five miles from the in fant town of Philadelphia and west of the Schuylkill River, within the county of Philadelphia, near the present Delaware County line; his land warrant was issued by Governor Mark- The family of the late Israel W. Morris, of South Eighth Street. 247 248 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA ham, September 13, 1682. What are now Angora and Mount Moriah Cemetery mark respectively its approximate northern and southern limits. He lodged his family in a rented dwell ing for the first winter but erected a small house on his land for his servants. About six acres of his purchase, he informs us, were cleared at the time of his writing. His house with its single chimney at one end is depicted on a survey of 1684 as about one and a quarter miles from the Schuylkill, between Mill or Cobbs Creek and its branch Ameaseka Run. It was in the old Blockley Township. Paschallville, which is a little to the south of the site, commemorates the family name. Peter Yocum and other Swedish neighbors lived between Pas chall and the river, and it is from them doubtless that he generalizes as to the Swedes. Thomas Paschall was elected to the provincial assembly of Pennsylvania from Philadelphia County, in 1685 and in 1689. Within a few years after his arrival he had taken up his residence in Philadelphia proper. He is named in the first charter of the city in 1691, as one of the twelve common coun cillors, and was also holding the same office in 1701, 1704, and 1705. Although he uses the " thee " and " thy " of the Quakers in the first part of the Letter, it is thought that he was not a Friend; his children were baptized in parish churches of Bris tol and both he and his wife were buried as non-Quakers in the Friends' burial ground in Philadelphia. She died in 1706 and he in 1718. Numerous descendants, some of the name, still remain in and near Philadelphia. The Letter is, to be sure, the raw production of an unlettered tradesman; nevertheless it conveys a true picture of pioneer ing in the initial months of Penn's colony. It was addressed to a friend at Chippenham, in Wiltshire, about twenty miles east of Bristol. It was first printed as a two-page folio by the Quaker publisher, John Bringhurst, at the Sign of the Book, in Gracechurch Street, London, in 1683. This text is INTRODUCTION 249 the one here reproduced. Translations appeared in Dutch1 in Missive van William Penn (i. e., Letter to the Free Society of Traders), (Amsterdam, 1684), pp. 20-23 of one edition, pp. 25- 28 of the other; in German, in Beschreibung der in America neu-erfundenen Provinz Pensylvanien (Hamburg, 1684), pp. 29-32; and in French in the translation of the latter, under the title Recueil de Diverses pieces concernant la Pensylvanie (Hague, 1684). In a translation of the Recueil by Samuel W. Penny- packer in the Pennsylvania Magazine, VI. 311-328 (1882), the Paschall Letter emerges once more into English (pp. 323-328) somewhat smoothed and improved in the order of its arrange ment but lacking the quaint crudeness of the original edition. A. C. M. 1 Julius F. Sachse's Letters relating to the Settlement of Germantown (Phila delphia, 1903; ten copies made) contains a contemporary copy in Low Dutch script, photographically reproduced, pp. 21-24, from the Konneken manuscript in me Ministerial Archives of Liibeck, Germany; a shipping notice, which is not in the original London edition, has been added as a postscript to this version. LETTER OF THOMAS PASCHALL, 1683 An Abstract of a letter from Thomas Paskell of Pennsilvania To his Friend J. J. of Chippenham. My kind love remembred unto Thee, and thy wife, and to all the rest of thy Family, hoping that you are all in good health, as through the goodness of God we all are at this present writ ing, Excepting one of my servants, who was a Carpenter, and a stout young man, he died on board the Ship, on our Voyage. I thank God I, and my Wife, have not been sick at all, but con tinued rather better than in England; and I do not find but the Country is healthfull, for Jhere was a Ship that came the same day with us into the river, that lost but one Passenger in the Voyage, and that was their Doctor, who was ill when he came on board, and those people that came in since continue well. William Penn and those of the Society1 are arrived. W. P. is well approved of, he hath been since at New Yorke, and was extraordinarily entertained, and he behaved himself as Noble. Here is a place called Philadelphia, where is a Mar ket kept, as also at Upland.2 I was at Bridlington3-fair, where I saw most sorts of goods to be sold, and a great resort of people ; Where I saw English goods sold at very reasonable rates; The Country is full of goods, Brass and Pewter lieth upon hand, That which sells best, is Linnen cloath, trading Cloath for the Indians; I bought Kersey and it doth not sell,' Broad Cloath is wanting, and Perniston,4 and Iron-potts; and as for the Swedes, they use but little Iron in Building, for they will build, and hardly use any other toole but an Ax; They will cut down a Tree, and cut him off when down, sooner then two men can saw him, and rend him into planks or what they please; only 1 The Free Society of Traders. See p. 240, n. 1, supra. 2 Chester. ' Burlington, New Jersey. ' Penistone, a kind of coarse woollen cloth formerly used for garments and the like, made at Penistone, a small town in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England. 250 1683] LETTER OF THOMAS PASCHALL 251 with the Ax and Wooden wedges, they use no Iron; They are generaly very ingenous people, lives well, they have lived here 40 Years, and have lived much at ease, having great plenty of all sorts of provisions, but then they weer but ordinarily Cloathd; but since the English came, they have gotten fine Cloaths, and are going proud. Let all people know that have any mind to come hither, that they provide Comfortable things for their passage, and also some provitions to serve them here, for although things are to be had at reasonable rates here, yet it is so far to fetch, that it spends much time, so that it's better to come provided for half a Year then to want one day, I thank God we have not wanted, but have fared well beyond what we did in England. The River is taken up all along, by the Sweads, and Finns and some Dutch, before the English came, near eight score miles, and the Englishmen some of them, buy their Planta tions, and get roome by the great River-side, and the rest get into Creeks, and small rivers that run into it, and some go into the Woods seven or eight Miles; Thomas Colborne1 is three miles in the Woods, he is well to pass, and hath about fourteen Acres of Come now growing, and hath gotten between 30 and 40 li. by his Trade, in this short time. I have hired a House for my Family for the Winter, and I have gotten a little House in my Land for my servants, and have cleared Land about six Acres; and this I can say, I never wisht my self at Bristol again since my departure. I live in the Schoolkill Creek, near Phila delphia, about 100 Miles up the River. Here have been 24 Ships with Passengers within this Year, so that provisions are somewhat hard to come by in some places, though at no dear rate, there is yet enough in the River, but it is far to fetch, and suddainly there will be an Order taken for continuall supply. Now I shall give you an impartial account of the Country as I find it, as followeth. When we came into Delawarebay we saw an infinite number of small fish in sholes, also large fish leaping in the Water; The River is a brave pleasant River as 1 Thomas Coebourn (d. 1698-99), carpenter, Quaker emigrant, from Lamborn Woodlands, Berkshire, England, came over to Pennsylvania early in 1682 and settled on Chester Creek, about three miles northwest of the town of Chester. About 1687 he built a mill — the second on Chester Creek — which gave great offence to the proprietors of the Chester mills farther down the creek. 252 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 can be desired, affording divers sorts of fish in great plenty, it's planted all along the Shoare, and in some Creeks, especialy in Pensilvania side, mostly by Sweads, Finns, and Dutch, and now at last, English throng in among them, and have filed all the Rivers and Creeks a great way in the Woods, and have settled about 160 Miles up the great River; some English that are above the falls, have sowed this Year 30 or 40 bushels of Wheat, and have great stocks of Cartel; Most of the Sweads, and Finns are ingeneous people, they speak English, Swead, Finn, Dutch and the Indian; They plant but little Indian come, nor Tobacco; their Women make most of the Linnen cloath they wear, they Spinn and Weave it and make fine Lin nen, and are many of them curious housewives: The people generally eat Rye bread, being approved of best by them, not but that here is good Wheat, for I have eaten as good bread and drank as good drink as ever I did in England, as also very good butter and cheese, as most in England. Here is 3 sorts of Wheat, as Winter, Summer, and Buck Wheat; the Winter Wheat they sow at the fall, the Summer Wheat in March, these two sorts are ripe in June; then having taken in this, they plow the same land, and sow Buck Wheat, which is ripe in September: I have not given above 2s. 6d per skipple,1 (which is 3 English pecks) for the best Wheat and that in goods which cost little more then half so much in England, here is very good Rye at 2s per skipple, also Barly of 2 sorts, as Winter, and Summer, at 4 Guilders per skipple; also Oats, and 3 sorts of Indian Come, (two of which sorts they can Malt and make good bear of as of Barley,) at four Guilders per Skiple, a Guilder is four pence halfpenney. I have bought good Beef, Porke, and Mutton at two pence per pound and some cheaper, also Turkeys and Wild-geese at the value of two or three Pound of Shot apeice, and Ducks at one Pound of Shot, or the like value, and in great plenty: here is great store of poultry, but for Curlews, Pidgons, and Phesants, they will hardly bestow a shot upon them. I have Venison of the Indians very cheap, although they formerly sold it as cheap again to the Sweads; I have four Dear for two yards of trading cloath, which cost five shillings, and most times I purchase it cheaper: We had Bearsflesh this fall for little or nothing, it is good food, tasting 1 The Dutch schepel. 1683] LETTER OF THOMAS PASCHALL 253 much like Beef; There have been many Horses sold of late to Barbadoes, and here is plenty of Rum, Sugar, Ginger, and Melasses. I was lately at Bridlington-fair,1 where were a great resort of people, with Cattle and all sorts of Goods, sold at very reasonable rates. Here are Gardens with all sorts of Herbs, and some more then in England, also Goose-beries and Roasetrees, but what other Flowers I know not yet: Turnips, Parsnips, and Cab bages, beyond Compare. Here are Peaches in abundance of three sorts I have seen rott on the Ground, and the Hogs eate them, they make good Spirits from them, also from Come and Cheries, and a sort of wild Plums and Grapes, and most people have Stills of Copper for that use. Here are Apples, and Pears, of several sorts, Cheries both Black and Red, and Plums, and Quinces; in some places Peach Stones grow up to bear in three Years: the Woods are full of Oakes, many very high and streight, many of them about two foot through, and some bigger, but very many less; A Swead will fell twelve of the bigger in a day; Here are brave Poplar, Beach, Ash, Lyme- trees, Gum-trees, Hickary-trees, Sasafras, Wallnuts, and Ches- nuts, Hazel, and Mullberies: Here growes in the Woods abun dance of Wortle-beries or Whorts, Strawberies and Blackberies, better then in England, as also three sorts of Grapes and Plums; Here is but few Pine-trees, and Ceder; Here is good Firestone2 plenty enough in most places: and the Woods are full of runs of water. I have lately seen some Salt, very good to salt meat with, brought by an Indian out of the Woods: they say there is enough of it: but for Minnerals or Mettals, I have not seen any, except it be Marcasite,3 such as they make Vitriol or Copperis with in England. Here are Beavers, Rac- koons, Woolves, Bears, a sort of Lyons, Polecatts, Mushratts, Elks, Mincks, Squirills of several sorts and other small Crea tures, but none of these hurt unless surprised: also Rattle Snakes and black Snakes, but the Rattle Snaks I have not seen, though I have rambled the Woods much these three Months, since the beginning of September. The Indians are very quiet and peaceable, having their understandings, and qualifications, and when abused will seek revenge, they live much better since 'In Marginal note, "New-Jersey." 2 Iron pyrites. » Iron pyrites. 254 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1683 the English came; getting necessarys as cheap again as for merly, and many of them begin to speake English, I have heard one say Swead no good, Dutch man no good, but English man good. William Penn is settling people in Towns. There are Markets kept in two Towns viz. Philadelphia, being Chief- est, Chester, formerly called Upland. To write of the Seasons of the Year I cannot, but since I came it hath been very pleas ant weather. The Land is generally good and yet there is some but ordinary and barren ground. Here are Swamps which the Sweads prize much, and many people will want: And one thing more I shall tell you, I know a man together with two or three more, that have happened upon a piece of Land of some Hundred Acres, that is all cleare, without Trees, Bushes, stumps, that may be Plowed without let, the farther a man goes in the Country the more such Land they find. There is also good Land, full of Large and small Trees, and some good Land, but few Trees on it. The Winter is sharp and the Cartel are hard to keep. The people that come must work and know Country affairs; They must be provided with some provisions for some time in the Country, and also some to help along on Board the Ship. I have more to write, but am shortned in time. Vale. Thomas Paskell. Pennsilvania, the last of January, 168f . London, Printed by John Bringhurst, at the Sign of the Book in Grace-Church-Street. 1683. A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF THE PROVINCE OF PENNSYLVANIA, BY WILLIAM PENN, 1685 INTRODUCTION After an absence of over two years in America William Penn had reached England in October, 1684. He had been called home for the defence of the boundaries of the province against the aggressions of Lord Baltimore and also for inter cession on behalf of his persecuted Quaker brethren. The ac cession of his old friend the Duke of York to the throne of England as James II., in the following February, gave Penn great influence as a courtier and patron at court, and was especially opportune for the furtherance of the two chief ob jects of his return. These objects he pressed forward most actively. Thus, by October, 1685, only a few days before the writing of A Further Account, he obtained a favorable report regarding the Three Lower Counties to which Baltimore laid claim; and a few months later he secured the release of more than 1,200 Quakers, imprisoned as Dissenters. Of Penn's Pennsylvania pamphlets A Further Account ranks next in importance to his Letter to the Free Society of Traders, and is really a sequel to the latter. It was written at Worm- inghurst Place, the Proprietor's country-seat in Sussex, in the south of England, and was printed in 1685, in two editions of small quarto, one of twenty pages and the other of sixteen pages, probably from a London press. A Dutch translation entitled Tweede Bericht appeared the same year at Amsterdam. A large portion of the English text was reprinted in Richard Blome's Present State of His Majesties' Isles and Territories in America (London, 1687), pp. 122-134; in Thompson West- cott's History of Philadelphia (Sunday Dispatch, Philadelphia) chapter xxxi., and in William J. Buck's William Penn in Amer- 257 258 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA ica (Philadelphia, 1888), pp. 174-180. It was reprinted in full from the original English editions in the collection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, in the Pennsylvania Maga zine, LX. 68-81 (1885). It is this text that follows. A. C. M. A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF THE PROVINCE OF PENNSYLVANIA, BY WILLIAM PENN, 1685 A Further Account of the Province of Pennsylvania and its Improvements, for the Satisfaction of those that are Adven turers, and enclined to be so. It has, I know, been much expected from me that I should give some farther Narrative of those parts of America where I am chiefly interested, and have lately been; having con tinued there above a Year after my former Relation,1 and re ceiving since my return the freshest and fullest Advices of its Progress and Improvement. But as the reason of my com ing back was a Difference between the Lord Baltimore and myself, about the Lands of Delaware, in consequence reputed of mighty moment to us, so I wav'd publishing anything that might look in favor of the Country, or inviting to it, whilst it lay under the Discouragement and Disreputation of that Lord's claim and pretences. But since they are, after many fair and full hearings before the Lords of the Committee for Plantations justly and happily Dismist, and the things agreed; and that the Letters which daily press me from all Parts on the subject of America, are so many and voluminous that to answer them severally were a Task too heavy and repeated to perform, I have thought it most easie to the Enquirer, as well as myself, to make this Account Publick, lest my silence or a more private intimations of things, should disoblige the just inclinations of any to Amer ica, and at a time too when an extraordinary Providence seems to favour its Plantation and open a door to Europeans to pass thither. That, then, which is my part to do in this Advertise ment is: First. To Relate our Progress, especially since my last of the month called August, '83. Secondly. The Capacity of the Place for further Improve ment, in order to Trade and Commerce. 1 1, e., Letter to the Free Society of Traders, ante. 259 260 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 Lastly. Which way those that are Adventurers, or incline to be so, may imploy their Money, to a fair and secure Profit; such as shall equally encourage Poor and Rich, which cannot fail of Advancing the Country in consequence. I. We have had about Ninety Sayl of Ships with Passen gers since the beginning of '82, and not one Vessel designed to the Province, through God's mercy, hitherto miscarried. The Estimate of the People may thus be made: Eighty to each Ship, which comes to Seven Thousand Two Hundred Per sons. At least a Thousand there before, with such as from other places in our neighbourhood are since come to settle among us; and I presume the Births at least equal to the Burials; For, having made our first Settlements high in the Freshes of the Rivers, we do not find ourselves subject to those Seasonings that affect some other Countries upon the same Coast. The People are a Collection of divers Nations in Europe: As, French, Dutch, Germans, Sweeds, Danes, Finns, Scotch, Irish and English; and of the last equal to all the rest: And, which is admirable, not a Reflection on that Account: But as they are of one kind, and in one Place and under One Al legiance, so they live like People of One Country, which Civil Union has had a considerable influence towards the prosperity of that place. II. Philadelphia, and our intended Metropolis, as I for merly Writ, is two Miles long, and a Mile broad, and at each end it lies that mile upon a Navigable River. The scituation high and dry, yet replenished with running streams. Besides the High Street, that runs in the middle from River to River, and is an hundred foot broad, it has Eight streets more that run the same course, the least of which is fifty foot in breadth. And besides Broad Street, which crosseth the Town in the middle, and is also an hundred foot wide, there are twenty streets more, that ran the same course, and are also fifty foot broad. The names of those Streets are mostly taken from the things that Spontaneously grow in the Country, As Vine Street, Mulberry Street, Chestnut Street, Wallnut Street, Strawberry Street, Cranberry Street, Plumb Street, Hickery Street, Pine Street, Oake Street, Beach Street, Ash Street, Popler Street, Sassafrax Street, and the like. 1685] A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF PENNSYLVANIA 261 III. I mentioned in my last Account that from my Arrival, in Eighty-two, to the Date thereof, being ten Moneths, we had got up Fourscore Houses at our Town, and that some Villages were settled about it. From that time to my coming away, which was a Year within a few Weeks, the Town advanced to Three hundred and fifty-seven Houses; divers of them large, well built, with good Cellars, three stories, and some with Bal conies. IV. There is also a fair Key1 of about three hundred foot square, Built by Samuel Carpenter,2 to which a ship of five hundred Tuns may lay her broadside, and others intend to follow his example. We have also a Ropewalk made by B. Wilcox,3 and cordage for shipping already spun at it. V. There inhabits most sorts of useful Tradesmen, As Car penters, Joyners, Bricklayers, Masons, Plasterers, Plumers, Smiths, Glasiers, Taylers, Shoemakers, Butchers, Bakers, Brew ers, Glovers, Tanners, Felmongers, Wheelrights, Millrights, Shiprights, Boatrights, Ropemakers, Saylmakers, Blockmakers, Turners, etc. 'Samuel Carpenter's wharf, the first in Philadelphia, was built into the Delaware River from his bank lot which was 204 feet wide, about 100 feet north of Walnut Street, and facing his house and lot on the west side of Front Street. The lot was leased to him by Penn in 1684, for a term of fifty years. 2 Samuel Carpenter (1647-1714), a native of Horsham, Sussex, England, after the death of his father in 1670 removed to Barbados, and successfully en gaged in mercantile pursuits. Having joined the Quakers he suffered severe dis traint of his property, and about 1683 migrated to Philadelphia. As a man of considerable capital and of remarkable enterprise he was a very valuable addi tion in the economic and governmental beginnings of the city and province. He not only erected the first wharf of the city, above Walnut Street, as recounted by Penn, but built stores and was concerned in milling and other undertakings in and near the city. In 1693, his assessable property in the province ranked in value next to that of the Proprietor. Furthermore, he actively participated in governmental affairs, serving as assemblyman, councillor, commissioner of prop erty, treasurer, and finally as deputy governor of the province. The mansion built by him, later called the Slate Roof House, was considered the most suitable for the occupation of Proprietor Penn and his family on the occasion of his second visit to the province, in 1699. "That honest and Valluable man [Samuel Car penter] whose Industry and Improvements," wrote Isaac Norris, from Phila delphia, in 1705, "has been the Stock whereon much of the Labour and Success of this Country has been Grafted." 2 Barnabas Wilcox (d. 1690), Quaker, came over from Bristol, England, with his family to Philadelphia in 1682. His rope-walk was then at the north side of the town, running westward from Front to Third, north of Vine Street 262 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 VI. There are Two Markets every Week, and Two Fairs every year. In other places Markets also, as at Chester and New-Castle. VII. Seven Ordinaries for the Intertainment of Strangers and Workmen, that are not Housekeepers, and a good Meal to be had for sixpence, sterl. VIII. The hours for Work and Meals to Labourers are fixt, and known by Ring of Bell. IX. After nine at Night the Officers go the Rounds, and no Person, without very good cause, suffered to be at any Publick House that is not a Lodger. X. Tho this Town seemed at first contrived for the Pur chasers of the first hundred shares, each share consisting of 5000 Acres, yet few going, and that their absence might not Check the Improvement of the Place, and Strangers that flockt to us be thereby Excluded, I added that half of the Town, which lies on the Skulkill, that we might have Room for present and after Commers, that were not of that number, and it hath already had great success to the Improvement of the Place. XI. Some Vessels have been here Built, and many Boats; and by that means a ready Conveniency for Passage of People and Goods. XII. Divers Brickerys going on, many Cellars already Ston'd or Brick'd and some Brick Houses going up. XIII. The Town is well furnish'd with convenient Mills; and what with their Garden Plats (the least half an Acre), the Fish of the River, and their labour, to the Countryman, who begins to pay with the provisions of his own growth, they live Comfortably. XIV. The Improvement of the place is best measur'd by the advance of Value upon every man's Lot. I will venture to say that the worst Lot in the Town, without any Improve ment upon it, is worth four times more than it was when it was lay'd out, and the best forty. And though it seems un equal that the Absent should be thus benefited by the Improve ments of those that are upon the place, especially when they have serv'd no Office, ran no hazard, nor as yet defray'd any Publick charge, yet this advantage does certainly redound to them, and whoever they are they are great Debtors to the Country; of which I shall now speak more at large. 1685] A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF PENNSYLVANIA 263 Of Country Settlements. 1. We do settle in the way of Townships or Villages, each of which contains 5,000 acres, in square, and at least Teh Families; the regulation of the Country being a family to each five hundred Acres. Some Townships have more, where the Interests of the People is less than that quantity, which often falls out. 2. Many that had right to more Land were at first covetous to have their whole quantity without regard to this way of settlement, tho' by such Wilderness vacancies they had rain'd the Country, and then our interest of course. I had in my view Society, Assistance, Busy Commerce, Instruction of Youth, Government of Peoples manners, Conveniency of Religious Assembling, Encouragement of Mechanicks, distinct and beaten Roads, and it has answered in all those respects, I think, to an Universall Content. 3. Our Townships lie square; generally the Village in the Center; the Houses either opposit, or else opposit to the mid dle, betwixt two houses over the way, for near neighborhood. We have another Method, that tho the Village be in the Center, yet after a different manner: Five hundred Acres are allotted for the Village, which, among ten families, comes to fifty Acres each: This lies square, and on the outside of the square stand the Houses, with their fifty Acres running back, where ends meeting make the Center of the 500 Acres as they are to the whole. Before the Doors of the Houses lies the high way, and cross it, every man's 450 Acres of Land that makes up his Complement of 500, so that the Conveniency of Neighbourhood is made agreeable with that of the Land. 4. I said nothing in my last of any number of Townships, but there are at least Fifty settled before my leaving those parts, which was in the moneth called August, 1684. 5. I visitted many of them, and found them much advanced in their Improvements. Houses over their heads and Garden plots, Coverts for their Cattle, an encrease of stock, and several Enclosures in Com, especially the first Commers; and I may say of some Poor men was the beginnings of an Estate ; the difference of labouring for themselves and for others, of an Inheritance and a Rack Lease, being never better understood. 264 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 Of the Produce of the Earth. 1. The Earth, by God's blessing, has more than answered our expectation; the poorest places in our Judgment produc ing large Crops of Garden Stuff and Grain. And though our Ground has not generally the symptoms of the fat Necks that lie upon salt Waters in Provinces southern of us, our Grain is thought to excell and our Crops to be as large. We have had the mark of the good Ground amongst us from Thirty to Sixty fold of English Com. 2. The Land requires less seed: Three pecks of Wheat sow an acre, a Bushel at most, and some have had the increase I have mention'd. 3. Upon Tryal we find that the Com and Roots that grow in England thrive very well there, as Wheat, Barly, Rye, Oats, Buck-Wheat, Pease, Beans, Cabbages, Turnips, Carrets, Pars- nups, Collefiowers, Asparagus, Onions, Chariots, Garlick and Irish Potatos; we have also the Spanish and very good Rice, which do not grow here. 4. Our low lands are excellent for Rape and Hemp and Flax. A Tryal has been made, and of the two last there is a considerable quantity Dress'd Yearly. 5. The Weeds of our Woods feed our Cattle to the Market as well as Dary. I have seen fat Bullocks brought thence to Market before Mid Summer. Our Swamps or Marshes yeeld us course Hay for the Winter. 6. English Grass Seed takes well, which will give us fatting Hay in time. Of this I made an Experiment in my own Court Yard, upon sand that was dug out of my Cellar, with seed that had lain in a Cask open to the weather two Winters and a Summer; I caus'd it to be sown in the beginning of the month called April, and a fortnight before Midsummer it was fit to Mow. It grew very thick: But I ordered it to be fed, being in the nature of a Grass Plott, on purpose to see if the Roots lay firm: And though it had been meer sand, cast out of the Cellar but a Year before, the seed took such Root and held the earth so fast, and fastened itself so well in the Earth, that it held fast and fed like old English Ground. I mention this, to confute the Objections that lie against those Parts, as of that, first, English Grass would not grow; next, not enough to mow; 1685] A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF PENNSYLVANIA 265 and, lastly, not firm enough to feed, from the Levity of the Mould. 7. All sorts of English fruits that have been tryed take mighty well for the time: The Peach Excellent on standers, and in great quantities: They sun dry them, and lay them up in lofts, as we do roots here, and stew them with Meat in Winter time. Musmellons and Water Mellons are raised there, with as little care as Pumpkins in England. The Vine especially, prevails, which grows every where; and upon ex perience of some French People from Rochel and the Isle of Rhee,1 Good Wine may be made there, especially when the Earth and Stem are fin'd and civiliz'd by culture. We hope that good skill in our most Southern Parts will yield us several of the Straights Commodities, especially Oyle, Dates, Figgs, Almonds, Raisins and Currans. Of the Produce of our Waters. 1. Mighty Whales roll upon the Coast, near the Mouth of the Bay of Delaware. Eleven caught and workt into Oyl one Season. We justly hope a considerable profit by a Whal- ery; they being so numerous and the Shore so suitable. 2. Sturgeon play continually in our Rivers in Summer: And though the way of cureing them be not generally known, yet by a Receipt I had of one Collins, that related to the Com pany of the Royal Fishery, I did so well preserve some, that I had them good there three months of the Summer, and brought some of the same so for England. 3. Alloes,2 as they call them in France, the Jews Allice, and our Ignorants, Shads, are excellent Fish and of the Big ness of our largest Carp: They are so Plentiful, that Captain Smyth's Overseer at the Skulkil, drew 600 and odd at one Draught; 300 is no wonder; 100 familiarly. They are excellent Pickled or Smokt'd, as well as boyld fresh: They are caught by nets only. 4. Rock are somewhat Rounder and larger, also a whiter fish, little inferior in rellish to our Mallet. We have them almost in the like plenty. These are often Barrell'd like Cod, and not much inferior for their spending. Of both these the 1 Rochelle, France, and the Isle de Re", just off that city. 2 Ale wives. 266 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 Inhabitants increase their Winter store: These are caught by Nets, Hooks and Speers. 5. The Sheepshead, so called, from the resemblance of its Mouth and Nose to a Sheep, is a fish much preferr'd by some, but they keep in salt Water; they are like a Roach in fashion, but as thick as a Salmon, not so long. We have also the Drum, a large and noble fish, commended equal to the Sheepshead, not unlike to a Newfoundland Cod, but larger of the two. Tis so call'd from a noise it makes in its Belly, when it is taken, resembling a Dram. There are three sorts of them, the Black, Red and Gold colour. The Black is fat in the Spring, the Red in the Fall, and the Gold colour believed to be the Black, grown old, because it is observ'd that young ones of that colour have not been taken. They generally ketch them by Hook and Line, as Cod are, and they save like it, where the People are skilful. There are abundance of lesser fish to be caught of pleasure, but they quit not cost, as those I have mentioned, neither in Magnitude nor Number, except the Herring, which swarm in such shoales that it is hardly Credible; in little Creeks, they almost shovel them up in their tubs. There is the Catfish, or Flathead, Lampry, Eale, Trout, Perch, black and white, Smelt, Sunfish, etc.; also Oysters, Cockles, Chinks, Crabs, Mussles, Mannanoses. Of Provision in General. 1. It has been often said we were starv'd for want of food; some were apt to suggest their fears, others to insinuate their prejudices, and when this was contradicted, and$hey assur'd we had plenty, both of Bread, Fish and Flesh, then 'twas objected that we were forc't to fetch it from other places at great Charges: but neither is all this true, tho all the World will think we must either carry Provision with us, or get it of the Neighbourhood till we had gotten Houses over our heads and a little Land in tillage, We fetcht none, nor were we wholly helpt by Neighbours; The Old Inhabitants supplied us with most of the Com we wanted, and a good share of Pork and Beef: 'tis true New York, New England, and Road Island did with their provisions fetch our Goods and Money, but at such Rates, that some sold for almost what they gave, and 1685] A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF PENNSYLVANIA 267 others carried their provisions back, expecting a better Market neerer, which showed no scarcity, and that we were not totally destitute on our own River. But if my advice be of any Value I would have them to buy still, and not weaken their Herds, by Killing their Young Stock too soon. 2. But the right measure of information must be the pro portion of Value of Provisions there, to what they are in more planted and mature Colonies. Beef is commonly sold at the rate of two pence per Pound; and Pork for two pence half penny; Veal and Mutton at three pence or three pence half penny, that Country mony; an English Shilling going for fifteen pence. Grain sells by the Bushel; Wheat at four shil lings; Rye, and excellent good, at three shillings; Barly, two shillings six pence; Indian Com, two shillings six pence; Oats, two shillings, in that money still, which in a new Country, where Grain is so much wanted for feed, as for food, cannot be called dear, and especially if we consider the Consumption of the many new Commers. 3. There is so great an encrease of Grain by the dilligent application of People to Husbandry that, within three Years, some Plantations have got Twenty Acres in Com, some Forty, some Fifty. 4. They are very careful to encrease their stock, and get into Daries as fast as they can. They already make good Butter and Cheese. A good Cow and Calf by her side may be worth three pounds sterling, in goods at first Cost. A pare of Working Oxen, eight pounds: a pare of fat ones, Little more, and a plain Breeding Mare about five pounds sterl. 5. For EJijh, it is brought to the Door, both fresh and salt. Six Alloes orKocks for twelve pence; and salt fish at three far- dings per pound, Oysters at 2s. per bushel. 6. Our Drink has been Beer and Punch, made of Rum and Water: Our Been was mostly made of Molosses, which well boyld, with Sassafras or Pine infused into it, makes very tol- lerable drink; but now they make Mault, and Mault Drink begins to be common, especially at the Ordinaries and the Houses of the more substantial People. In our great Town there is an able Man,1 that has set up a large Brew House, in 1 William Frampton (d. 1686), Quaker merchant and brewer, justice and provincial councillor, owner of extensive lands in Pennsylvania, had removed 268 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 order to furnish the People with good Drink, both there, and up and down the River. Having said this of the Country, for the time I was there, I shall add one of the many Letters that have come to my hand, because brief and full, and that he is known to be a Person of an extraordinary Caution as well as Truth, in what he is wont to Write or Speak: Philadelphia, the 3d of the 6th month [August] 1685. Govemour. Having an opportunity by a Ship from this River, (out of which several have gone this Year) I thought fit to give a short account of proceedings, as to settlements here, and the Improvements both in Town and Country. As to the Country, the Improvements are large, and settlements very throng by way of Townships and Villages. Great inclinations to Plant ing Orchards, which are easily raised, and some brought to perfection. Much Hayseed sown, and much Planting of Com this Year, and great produce, said to be, both of Wheat, Rye and Rise; Barly and Oates prove very well, besides Indian Corn and Pease of several sorts; also Kidny Beans and English Pease of several kinds, I have had in my own Ground, with English Roots, Tumaps, Parsnaps, Carrets, Onions, Leeks, Radishes and Cabbidges, with abundance of sorts of Herbs and Flowers. I have but few seeds that have mist except Rosemary seed, and being English might be old. Also I have such plenty of pumpkins, Musmellons, Water Mellons, Squashes, Coshaws, Bucks-hens, Cowcumbers and Simnells of Divers kinds; admired at by new Commers that the Earth should so plentifully cast forth, especially the first Years .breaking up; and on that which is counted the Worst Sort of Sandy Land. from New York to Philadelphia in 1683, and at this time (1685) was living in his house at the west side of Front Street, between Walnut and Spruce streets, on a lot purchased in the early summer of 1684. He had there at his death in 1686 a well-stocked shop of general merchandise. His "great brew-house," built in 1683, was on the next lot to the rear, on the west side of Second Street by the south side of Dock Creek, a plot acquired from Penn in the beginning of the latter year. Here also he had a bake-house and a dwelling-house, the latter evidently his earlier residence, but now rented as an inn; and here in 1685 he erected the brick house hereafter mentioned by Robert Turner. Facing his Front Street residence was his wharf, one of the first three wharves of the city in Delaware River, built on a lot which he bought from the Proprietor in midsummer, 1684. 1685] A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF PENNSYLVANIA 269 I am satisfied, and many more, that the Earth is very fertil, and the Lord has done his part, if Man use but a moderate Dilligence. Grapes, Mulberies and many wilde Fraits and natural Plums, in abundance, this year have I seen and eat of. A brave Orchard and Nursery have I planted, and thrive mightily, and Fruit the first Year. I endeavor choice of Fraits and Seeds from many parts; also Hay Seed; and have sowed a field this spring for tryall. First, I burned the leaves, then had it Grab'd, not the Field but the small Roots up, then sowed great and small Clover, with a little old Grass seed, and had it only raked over, not Plowed nor Harrowed, and it grows exceedingly; also for experience I sowed some patches of the same sort in my Garden and Dunged some, and that grows worst. I have planted the Irish Potatoes, and hope to have a brave increase to Transplant next Year. Captain Rapel 1 (the Frenchman) saith he made good Wine of the grapes (of the country) last Year, and Transported some, but intends to make more this Year. Also a French man2 in this Town in tends the same, for Grapes are very Plentiful. Now as to the Town of Philadelphia it goeth on in Planting and Building to admiration, both in the front and backward, and there are about 600 Houses in 3 years time. And since I built my Brick House,3 the foundation of which was laid at thy going, which I did design after a good manner to incourage others, and that from building with Wood, it being the first, many take example, and some that built Wooden Houses, are sorry for it: Brick building is said to be as cheap: Bricks are exceeding good, and better than when I built: More Makers fallen in, and Bricks cheaper, they were before at 16 s. English per 1000, and now many brave Brick Houses are going up, with 1 Captain Gabriel Rappel, a Protestant, from St. Martin, in Fiance, was a fugitive in England in November, 1682, petitioning the Privy Council for liberty to plant in English America. He arrived in the Delaware in 1683, purchasing for the use of a London merchant a plantation of 1,000 acres called the Exchange in Reedy Point Neck, in New Castle County, along with certain live stock and a servant man. He probably conducted this plantation for a few years, and may have made there the wine referred to by Turner. 2 Possibly Monsieur Jacob Pellison, of Philadelphia. 2 On his lot at the southwest corner of Front and Mulberry (now Arch) streets. 270 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 good Cellars. Arthur Cook1 is building him a brave Brick House near William Frampton's, on the front: For William Frampton hath since built a good Brick house, by his Brew house and Bake house, and let the other for an Ordinary. John Wheeler,2 from New England, is building a good Brick house, by the Blew Anchor; and the two3 Brickmakers a Double Brick House and Cellars; besides several others going on: Samuel Carpenter has built another house by his.4 I am Building another Brick house by mine, which is three large Stories high, besides a good large Brick Cellar under it, of two Bricks and a half thickness in the wall, and the next story half under Ground, the Cellar hath an Arched Door for a Vault to go (under the Street) to the River, and so to bring in goods, or deliver out. Humphery Murry,5 from New York, has built a large Timber house, with Brick Chimnies. John Test 8 has almost finished a good Brick House, and a Bake House of 'Arthur Cook (d. 1699), speaker of assembly, provincial councillor, and chief justice, formerly of New Gravel Lane, in St. Paul's Shadwell, London, was building his brick house on the west side of Front Street below Walnut Street. By 1697 he had "a most Stately Brick-House," near Frankford, hereafter men tioned by Gabriel Thomas. 2 John Wheeler (d. 1691), merchant and distiller, ship-owner and trader with the West Indies and Europe, a resident as early as 1667 of New London, Connecticut, where he died. He made only a brief sojourn in Philadelphia, building his brick house on the west side of Front Street, below Walnut Street, near the Blue Anchor Inn, on a lot purchased by him from Penn in midsummer, 1684. This property he sold in 1686 to Edward Shippen, then of Boston, but later of Philadelphia. * Thomas Smith and Daniel Pegg (d. 1702). 4 On the west side of Front Street a hundred feet north of Walnut Street. •Humphrey Morrey (d. 1715-6), was a merchant in New York early in 1684, but by 1685 had become a resident of Philadelphia and had built the "Timber house" at the southwest corner of Front and Chestnut streets. He was the first mayor of Philadelphia (1691-1692) and served as assemblyman and provincial councillor. In his will of 1715 he is described as yeoman, of Cheltenham Township, now Montgomery County. • John Test (d. 1718), a non-Quaker merchant, from London, had probably come over to West New Jersey with John Fenwick's colony in the Griffin, in 1675. He was a resident of Upland (Chester) as early as 1677, and as late as 1679. In 1681 he was made sheriff of Pennsylvania by the court of Upland, and in 1682 the first sheriff of the newly-constituted Philadelphia County. His brick house was at the northeast corner of Third and Chestnut streets. In later life he re moved to Darby, and died there as an innkeeper. 1685] A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF PENNSYLVANIA 271 Timber; and N. Allen1 a good house, next to Thomas Wynns,2 front Lot. John Day3 a good house, after the London fashion, most Brick, with a large frame of Wood, in the front, for Shop Windows ; all these have Belconies. Thomas Smith and Daniel Pege are Partners, and set to making of Brick this Year, and they are very good; also, Pastorus,4 the German Friend, Agent for the Company at Frankford, with his Dutch5 People, are preparing to make Brick next year. Samuel Carpenter, is our Lime burner on his Wharf. Brave Lime Stone found here, as the Workmen say, being proved. We build most Houses with Belconies. Lots are much desir'd in the Town, great buying one of another. We are now laying the foundation of a large plain Brick house,6 for a Meeting House, in the Center,7 (sixty ' Nathaniel Allen (d. 1692), Quaker, a cooper of Redcliffe Street, Bristol, England, was one of the three commissioners who preceded Penn to Pennsylva nia, in 1681, to lay out Philadelphia and the lands of the First Purchasers. His house was on the west side of Front, above Chestnut Street He finally settled with his family on his plantation "Allenbury," on the west side of Neshaminy Creek in Bensalem Township, Bucks County. 2 Dr. Thomas Wynne (1627-1692), Quaker, a native of Bronvedog, parish of Yskewiog, Flintshire, Wales, came over in the ship Welcome with William Penn in 1682 and was the first speaker of the assembly of Pennsylvania held in Philadelphia. His lot was on the west side of Front Street about midway between Chestnut and High (Market) streets. 5 John Day (d. 1696), carpenter, from the parish of St Nicholas Cole Abbey, London, his brick house with adjoining orchard being on Front, between Sassafras (now Race) and Mulberry (now Arch) streets. 4 Francis Daniel Pastorius. % 'The "Crefelders," from Crefeld, Germany, near the Dutch border. See post, p. 393, note 3. • "Our first [Quaker] Meeting-house in the sd City," writes Pastorius, who came in 1683, "was nothing else than a Lodge or Cottage, nailed together of Pine- boards, Imported from New-York, and sold a hundred foot at 10. Shill. And never the less the Lord appeared most powerfully in that Tabernacle of Shittim wood." Learned, Pastorius, pp. 212-213. 7 The Friends' Meeting House in the Centre Square of the city, midway be tween the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers, where the City Hall now stands, was built of brick, in 1685-1686, and was used for a time for the more important First-day (Sunday) morning and business meetings of the society. The location being in the midst of the forest some little distance without the town, and its two or three streets along the Delaware, the meeting was not well attended; the Friends preferred to wait for the afternoon meeting at the Bank Meeting House, near at hand, within the town proper; consequently, in a few years the Centre Square meeting was abandoned. 272 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 foot long, and about forty foot broad) and hope to have it soon up, many hearts and hands at Work that will do it. A large Meeting House,1 50 foot long, and 38 foot broad, also going up, on the front of the River, for an evening Meeting, the work going on apace. Many Towns People setling their liberty Lands. I hope the Society will rub off the Reproaches some have cast upon them. We now begin to gather in some thing of our many great Debts. I do understand Three Companies for Whale Catching are designed to fish in the River's Mouth, this season, and find through the great Plenty of fish they may begin early. A Fish erman this Year found the way to catch Whiteins in this River, and it's expected many sorts of fish more than hath been yet caught may be taken by the skilful. Fish are in such plenty that many sorts on tryal, have been taken with Nets in the Winter time: The Sweeds laughing at the English for going to try, have since tried themselves. The River so big, and full of several sorts of brave fish, that it is believed, except frozen over, we may catch any time in the Winter. It's a great pity, but two or three experienced Fishermen were here to Ply this River to salt and serve fresh to the Town. A good way to Pickle Sturgion is wanting; such abundance in the River, even before the Town: many are Catcht, Boyld and Eaten. Last Winter great plenty of Dear brought in by the Indians and English from the Country. We are generally very Well and Healthy here, but abundance Dead in Maryland this Summer. The manufacture of Linnen by the Germans2 goes on finely, and they make fine Linnen: Samuel Carpenter having been lately there, declares they had gathered one Crop of Flax, and had sowed for the Second and saw it come up well: And they say, might have had forewarder and better, had they had old seed, and not stay'd so long for the Growth of new seed to sow again. And I may believe it, for large hath my experience 1 The Bank Meeting House of the Friends, built in 1685-1686 for the after noon meetings, was at the north end of the town on the west side of Front Street, then the principal thoroughfare, just above Mulberry (now Arch) Street. This structure was replaced, evidently in 1703, Isaac Norris writing in that year that there was "a new house built in the place where the old bank meeting House Stood." 2 In Germantown. 1685] A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF PENNSYLVANIA 273 been this Years, though in a small peece of Ground, to the ad miration of many. I thought fit to signify this much, knowing thou wouldst be glad to hear of thy People and Provinces welfare; the Lord preserve us all, and make way for thy return, which is much desired, not only by our Friends but all sorts. I am, etc., thy truly Loving Friend, Robert Turner.1 Of Further Improvements for Trade and Commerce. These things that we have in prospect for Staples of Trade, are Wine, Linnen, Hemp, Potashes and Whale Oyle; to say nothing of our Provisions for the Islands, our Saw Mills, Stur geon, some Tobacco, and our Furs and Skins, which of them selves are not contemptible; I might add Iron (perhaps Copper too), for there is much Mine; and it will be granted us that we want no Wood, although I must confess I cannot tell how to help preferring a domestick or self subsistance to a life of much profit, by the extream Toy of forraign Traffick. Advice to Adventurers how to imploy their Estates, with fair profit. It is fit now, that I give some Advertisement to Advent urers, which way they may lay out their Money to best advan tage, so as it may yield them fair returns, and with content to 'Robert Tinner (1635-1700), one of the wealthiest and most prominent mer chants of the Philadelphia of that day, was a native of Cambridge, England; joined the early Quaker movement in Ireland, suffering in consequence fines and imprisonment; acquired large means as a Dublin linen draper; became one of the New Jersey proprietors by the purchase (1) in 1677, with other Irish Friends, of a share of West New Jersey and, (2) in 1681, along with the Earl of Perth, Penn, Barclay, and others, of the whole of East New Jersey. As a friend of Penn he entered largely into the Pennsylvania enterprise, buying 5000 acres of land in the province and subscribing £500 for stock of the Free Society of Traders. In 1683 with his family and seventeen servants he came over to Pennsylvania in the ship Lyon and established his residence on his Philadelphia lot at the southwest corner of Front and Mulberry (Arch) streets, where in 1684, as he states, he built the first brick house in the city, as well as a wharf, called Mount Wharf, on his lot facing the river, one of the first three wharves of Philadelphia. He served as judge, receiver general, commissioner of property, provincial councillor, and as one of the five commissioners governing the province. In the Keith schism he joined the Keithites. 274 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 all concerned, which is the last part of my present task; and I must needs say so much wanting, that it has perhaps given some occasion to ignorance and prejudice to run without mercy, measure or distinction against America, of which Penn sylvania to be sure has had its share. 1. It is agreed on all hands, that the Poor are the Hands and Feet of the Rich. It is their labour that Improves Coun tries; and to encourage them, is to promote the real benefit of the publick. Now as there are abundance of these people in many parts of Europe, extreamly desirous of going to America; so the way of helping them thither, or when there, and the return thereof to the Disbursers, will prove what I say to be true. 2. There are two sorts, such as are able to transport them selves and Families, but have nothing to begin with there; and those that want so much as to transport themselves and Families thither. 3. The first of these may be entertained in this manner. Say I have 5000 Acres, I will settle Ten Families upon them, in way of Village, and built each an house, an out house for Cattle, furnish every Family with Stock, as four Cows, two Sows, a couple of Mares, and a yoke of Oxen, with a Town Horse, Bull and Boar; I find them with Tools, and give each their first Ground-seed. They shall continue Seven Year, or more, as we agree, at half encrease, being bound to leave the Houses in repair, and a Garden and Orchard, I paying for the Trees and at least twenty Acres of Land within Fence and im proved to corn and grass; the charge will come to about sixty pounds English for each Family: At the seven years end, the Improvement will be worth, as things go now, 120 I. besides the value of the encrease of the Stock, which may be neer as much more, allowing for casualties; especially, if the People are honest and careful, or a man be upon the spot himself, or have an Overseer sometimes to inspect them. The charge in the whole is 832 1. And the value of stock and improvements 2400 1. I think I have been modest in my computation. These Farms are afterwarde fit for Leases at full rent, or how else the Owner shall please to dispose of them. Also the People will by this time be skilled in the Country, and well provided to settle themselves with stock upon their own Land. 1685] A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF PENNSYLVANIA 275 4. The other sort of poor people may be very beneficially transported upon these terms: Say I have 5000 Acres I should settle as before, I will give to each Family 100 Acres which in the whole makes 1000; and to each Family thirty pounds English, half in hand, and half there, which in the whole comes to 300 1. After four years are expired, in which time they may be easie, and in a good condition, they shall each of them pay five pounds, and so yearly for ever, as a Fee-farm rent ; which in the whole comes to 50 I. a Year. Thus a man that buys 5000 Acres may secure and settle his 4000 by the gift of one, and in a way that hazard and interest allowed for, amounts to at least ten per cent, upon Land security, besides the value it puts upon the rest of the 5000 Acres. I propose that there be at least two working hands besides the wife; whether son or servant; and that they oblige what they carry; and for further security bind themselves as servants for some time, that they will settle the said land accordingly and when they are once seated their improvements are security for the Rent. 5. There is yet another expedient, and that is, give to ten Families 1000 Acres for ever, at a small acknowledgement, and settle them in way of Village, as afore; by their seating thus, the Land taken up is secured from others, because the method of the Country is answered, and the value such a settlement gives to the rest reserved, is not inconsiderable; I mean, the 4000 Acres; especially that which is Contiguous: For their Children when grown up, and Handicrafts will soon covet to fix next them, and such after settlements to begin at an Im proved Rent in Fee, or for long Leases, or small Acknowledge ments, and good Improvements, must advance the whole con siderably. I conceive any of these methods to issue in a sufficient advantage to Adventurers, and they all give good encouragement to feeble and poor Families. 6. That which is most advisable for People, intended thither, to carry with them, is in short all things relating to Apparel, Building, Housholdstuf, Husbandry, Fowling and Fishing. Some Spice, Spirits and double ear, at first were not a miss: But I advise all to proportion their Estates thus; one-third in Money, and two thirds in Goods. Upon pieces of eight, there will be almost a third gotten, for they go at 6 s. and by goods well bought, at least fifty pounds sterl. for every 276 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 hundred pounds; so that a man worth 400 I. here, is worth 600 1, there, without sweating. Of the Natives. 1. Because many Stories have been prejudicially propa gated, as if we were upon ill terms with the Natives, and some times, like Jobs Kindred, all cut off but the Messenger that brought the Tidings; I think it requisite to say thus much, that as there never was any such Messenger, so the dead People were alive, at our last advices; so far are we from ill terms with the Natives, that we have liv'd in great friendship. I have made seven Purchasses, and in Pay and Presents they have received at least twelve hundred pounds of me. Our humanity has obliged them so far, that they generally leave their guns at home, when they come to our settlements; they offer us no affront, not so much as to one of our Dogs; and if any of them break our Laws, they submit to be punisht by them: and to this they have tyed themselves by an obliga tion under their hands. We leave not the least indignity to them unrebukt, nor wrong unsatisfied. Justice gains and aws them. They have some Great Men amongst them, I mean for Wisdom, Truth and Justice. I refer to my former Account about their Laws Manners and Religious Rites. Of the Government. The Government is according to the words of the Grant, as near to the English as conveniently may be: In the whole, we aim at Duty to the King, the Preservation of Right to all, the suppression of Vice, and encouragement of Vertue and Arts; with Liberty to all People to worship Almighty God, according to their Faith and Perswasion. Of the Seasons of Going, and usual time of Passage. 1. The Ships go hence at all times of the Year, it must be acknowledged, that to go so as to arrive at Spring or Fall, is best. For the Summer may be of the hottest, for fresh Com mers, and in the Winter, the wind that prevails, is the North West, and that blows off the Coast, so that sometimes it is difficult to enter the Capes. 1685] A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF PENNSYLVANIA 277 2. I propose therefore, that Ships go hence about the mid dle of the moneths call'd Febraary and August, which allowing two moneths for passage reaches time enough to plant in the Spring such things as are carried hence to plant, and in the Fall to get a small Cottage, and clear some Land against the next Spring. I have made a discovery of about a hundred Miles West, and find those back Lands richer in Soyl, Woods and Fountains, then that by Delaware; especially upon the Sasquehannah River. 3. I must confess I prefer the Fall to come thither, as be lieving it is more healthy to be followed with Winter then Summer; tho, through the great goodness and mercy of God we have had an extraordinary portion of health, for so new and numerous a Colony, notwithstanding we have not been so regular in time. 4. The Passage is not to be set by any man; for Ships will be quicker and slower, some have been four moneths, and some but one, and as often. Generally between six and nine weeks. One year, of four and twenty Sayl, I think, there was not three above nine, and there was one or two under six weeks in passage. 5. To render it more healthy, it is good to keep as much upon Deck as may be; for the Air helps against the offensive smells of a Crowd, and a close place. Also to scrape often the Cabbins, under the Beds; and either carry store of Rue and Wormwood; and some Rosemary, or often sprinkle Vineger about the Cabbin. Pitch burnt, is not amiss sometimes against f aintness and infectious scents. I speak my experience for their benefit and direction that may need it. And because some has urged my coining back, as an argu ment against the place, and the probability of its improv- ment; Adding, that I would for that reason never return; I think fit to say, That Next Summer, God willing, I intend to go back, and carry my Family, and the best part of my Per sonal Estate with me. And this I do, not only of Duty, but Inclination and Choice. God will Bless and Prosper poor America. I shall conclude with this further Notice, that to the end such as are willing to embrace any of the foregoing proposi tions for the Improvement of Adventurers Estates, may not 278 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1685 be discouraged, from an inability to find such Land-Lords, Tennants, Masters and Servants, if they intimate their desires to my friend and Agent Philip Ford, living in Bow-Lane in London, they may in all probability be well accommodated; few of any quality or capacity, designed to the Province, that do not inform him of their inclinations and condition. Now for you that think of going thither, I have this to say, by way of caution; if an hair of our heads falls not to the ground, without the providence of God, Remember, your Removal is of greater moment. Wherefore have a due rever ence and regard to his good Providence, as becomes a People that profess a belief in Providence. Go clear in yourselves, and of all others. Be moderate in Expectation, count on Labour before a Crop, and Cost before Gain, for such persons will best endure difficulties, if they come, and bear the Success, as well as find the Comfort that usually follow such considerate undertakings. William Penn. Worminghurst Place, 12th ) of the 10th Month 85. ) LETTER OF DOCTOR NICHOLAS MORE, 1686 INTRODUCTION Of the collection of seven letters from Pennsylvania put forth by Penn in the pamphlet here reproduced, the initial one by Dr. Nicholas More, which appears in full, occupying nearly one-half of the space, is of most interest and deservedly gives title to the piece. The other letters, however, although simply in the form of abstracts, contain items of value and — barring that of the Pennsbury gardener — are by men of like prom inence in the governmental affairs of the province; but notice of them is reserved for the notes. Attention now is devoted to the writer of the most important letter alone. Dr. More was a personage. He was not only the first speaker of the provincial assembly, held at Chester in Decem ber, 1682, but he has even the greater distinction of being the first (1684-1685) of the long and illustrous line of chief jus tices of Pennsylvania. In 1686 he was appointed by Penn one of the five commissioners to govern the province. He was, moreover, a great landowner, having in his tenure the manor of Moreland, a tract of 10,000 acres of land in Philadelphia County, adjacent to the Bucks County line. This territory, which now covers the greater part of Moreland Township, Montgomery County, was granted to him as a barony, entitling him to hold a court baron and a court leet and to take view of frankpledge. These feudal privileges, however, he never exer cised. Adjoining his manor on the south was his country- seat "Green Spring," located about thirteen miles northeast of the Philadelphia of that day and about a half mile west of the present Somerton. It was here on September 13, 1686, that he wrote his letter and it was here that he obtained the agricultural results he describes. 281 282 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA Concerning Dr. More's parentage and other details of his early life nothing is really known, although the evidence seems to point to origin from an armigerous family. Bom about 1638, probably in London, he became a physician of that city, living there until his removal to Pennsylvania. In 1670 he was a resident of the parish of St. Gregory's, London, his marriage occurring that year, in the church of St. Dunstans- in-the-East. His bride, a girl of sixteen, only one half his years, was Mary Hedge, of St. Catherine Coleman, daughter of Samuel Hedge, merchant. His brother-in-law, Samuel Hedge, had preceded him to America in 1675, as a settler with John Fenwick at Salem in West New Jersey, becoming the husband of the latter's daugh ter Ann. Doubtless thus early through this relative Dr. More would become familiar with the possibilities of the region of the Delaware and would thus be all the more disposed six years later to take up with Penn's project. At all events, before October, 1681, Dr. More had acquired the title to the 10,000 acres of land, which later was located as his manor of Moreland, and early in 1682 he had subscribed £ 300 to the stock of the Free Society of Traders. Of this company he was made the first president at a salary of £ 150 per annum. In September, 1682, with his family and fifty servants of the Society, he sailed from London in the ship Geoffrey or Jeffries, and after a quick passage of nearly a month, reached Pennsylvania about the time of William Penn's arrival. He made his first location on the Society lot in Front Street, Philadelphia, but by the early part of 1684 had given up his office as president, and soon settled upon his plantation of "Green Spring." Although a man apparently of good abilities he was a non- Quaker, out of sympathy with members of that sect, who then made up the majority of the governing class. After the early part of 1685 he suffered from ill health. He was, besides, a INTRODUCTION 283 man of a somewhat haughty and arbitrary temper. Those handicaps, for a time at least, made his tenure of office very uncomfortable. In 1685 he fell so much under the displeasure of the assembly that the latter body presented articles of im peachment against him to the council, charging him with "assuming to himselfe an unlimited and unlawful Power." Towards the close of his life he became financially embarrassed and at his death in 1687 his estate was disposed of by the sheriff. An original copy of the pamphlet, which was printed in London, in 1687, as a quarto of nine pages, is in the John Carter Brown Library at Providence. A reprint, appearing in the Pennsylvania Magazine, IV. 445-453 (1880), is the basis of that which follows. A. C. M. LETTER OF DOCTOR NICHOLAS MORE, 1686 A Letter from Doctor More with Passages out of Several Letters from Persons of Good Credit, Relating to the State and Im provement of the Province of Pennsilvania. Published to prevent false Reports. Printed in the year 1687. The Preface. Divers false Reports going about Town and Country, to the Injury of the Province of Pennsilvania, I was prevailed with by some concerned in that Province, and others that desire the truth of things, to Publish such of the last Letters as made mention of the State of the Country; to serve for answer to the Idle and Unjust Stories that the Malice of some invent, and the Credulity of others prepare them to receive against it; which is all the part I take in this present Publica tion. William Penn. A Letter from Dr. More. Honored Govemour. I have seen a Letter from your hand, directed to me, among many in this Province, which came by Captain Richard Di- mond:1 It was in all respect welcome to me, and more particu- teriy, for that you make mention of your coming to us again, with your Family; a thing so much desired by all in these parts, and more particularly by my self. But I fear that Madam Penn should give too much credit to the evil Reports that I do understand are given out by many Enemies to this new Colony, as if we were ready to Famish, and that the Land 'Captain Richard Diamond, or Dymond, of the parish of Bermondsey, Surrey, England, master of the ship Amity, of London, voyaging to Pennsylvania in 1682, 1685, and 1686, arrived in Pennsylvania 5 mo. 15th of the latter year. 284 1686] LETTER OF DOCTOR MORE 285 is so barren, the Climet so hot, that English Grain, Roots and Herbs do not come to Maturity; and what grows, to be little worth. How untrue all these things are you well know; but we that have seen our handy Work, accompanied with God's blessing upon it, since your departure from us, are able to say something more to encourage you to return to us again. You know, that when you went for England, there was an indif ferent plenty of most things, and that many hundred Families were clearing of Land to Sow and Plant, as I was also doing; since that, our Lands have been grateful to us, and have be gun to reward our Labours by abounding Crops of Com this Year. But to give you to understand the full of our Condi tion, with respect to Provision in this Province; we had last Fall, and the Winter, abundance of good fresh Pork in our Market at two Pence half-penny per pound, of this Country Money, which is an English two Pence; Beef at the same rate; the like is this Year; and Butter for six Pence per Pound; Wheat for four Shillings per Bushel; Rye three Shill ings; and now all this Summer Wheat is at three Shillings, and three Shillings 6 Pence; Rye at eight Groats, and half a Crown; Indian-Corn seven Groats, and two Shillings this Country Money still; so that there is now some Corn Trans ported from this River. Doctor Butler has bought two hun dred Bushels of Wheat at three Shillings six Pence, to Trans port, and several others, so that some Thousands of Bushels are Transported this Season, and when this Crop that now is gathered is Threshed, it is supposed that it will be abundantly cheaper than now it is, for there has been abundance of Corn this Year in every Plantation. The last year I did plant about twelve Acres of Indian Com, and when it came off the Ground, I did only cause the Ground to be Harrowed, and upon that I did sow both Wheat and Rye, at which many Laughed, saying, That I could not expect any Com from what I had sowed, the Land wanting more Labour; yet I had this Year as good Wheat and Rye upon it, as was to be found in any other place, and that very bright Corn. I have had a good Crop of Barley and Oats and whereas my People did not use my Barley well, so that much was shed upon the Ground, I caused it immediately to be Plowed in, and is now growing, keeping a good Colour, and I am in hope 286 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1686 of another Crop of Barley, having good Ears tho the Straw be shorter. I did plant an Hopp-Garden this Spring, which is now exceeding full of Hopps, at which all English People admire. Richard Collet J and Samuel Carpenter,2 etc., hav ing had some Fields of Rye the last Summer, and plowed the Stuble in order to sow other Com, by some Casualty could not sow their Fields; yet have they had considerable Crops of Rye, in the said Fields, by what had been shed on the Ground in Harvest time. I have had seventy Ears of Rye upon one single Root, proceeding from one single Com; forty five of Wheat: eighty of Oats; ten, twelve and fourteen of Barley out of one Corn: I took the Curiosity to tell one of the twelve Ears from one Grain, and there was in it forty five Grains on that Ear; above three Thousand of Oats from one single Com, and some I had, that had much more, but it would seem a Romance rather than a Truth, if I should speak what I have seen in these things. Amoldus de la Grange8 hath above a Thousand Bushels of English Grain this year, there is indeed a great increase every 1 Richard Collett (d. 1717), yeoman, of Byberry Township, Philadelphia, a neighbor of Doctor More, was a son of Richard Collett, husbandman, of Binton- on-the-Hill, Gloucestershire, but had lived for a time prior to his emigration in Fenchurch Street, London, as serving man to William Mead. 2 Samuel Carpenter held land not far from Dr. More. 'Amoldus de la Grange (c. 1650-c. 1694), Labadist, had a considerable tract of land on Christiana Creek in New Castle County, Delaware, where evidently the grain mentioned was raised. Near by on the same stream was a mill owned by him in partnership with two Swedes. Doubtless born of a Huguenot family sometime resident in Holland, he was living with his wife Cornelia nie de la Fontaine as a shopkeeper in New York in 1679 when visited by Labadist mis sionaries who describe him as "dressed up like a great fop as he was." He seems to have made frequent business trips to the Delaware, as early as the later date, holding title to several tracts of land, along with a claim, through an in complete purchase by his father, to Tinicum Island. In the latter part of 1681, apparently, he located with his family in New Castle, having in that year built a windmill for grinding grain in the town. The following year he was one of the residents of New Castle to welcome William Penn to the new domain on the Pro prietor's first landing at the town, and was thereupon constituted one of the jus tices of the court of New Castle and naturalized. In 1684-1685 he was concerned in the purchase from Augustine Herrman of over 3000 acres of land on Bohemia River in Bohemia Manor in southern Cecil County, Maryland, for the commu nistic settlement of the Labadists, and by 1692 he was a regular inmate of that community. 1686] LETTER OF DOCTOR MORE 287 where. I had the last year as good Turnops, Carrots and Par snops as could be expected, and in no wise inferior to those in London, the Parsnops better, and of a great bigness; my Children have found out a way of Rosting them in the Em bers, and are as good as Barbadoes-Potatoes, insomuch that it is now become a dish with us. We have had admirable English Pease this Summer; every one here is now persuaded of the fertility of the ground, and goodness of the climate, here being nothing wanting, with industry, that grows in England, and many delicious things, not attainable there; and we have this common advantage above England, that all things grow better, and with less labour. I have planted this Spring a Quickset, of Sixscore Foot long, which grows to admiration; we find as good Thorns as any in the World. We have had so great abundance of Pigeons this Summer, that we have fed all our Servants with them. A Gentlewoman near the City, which is come into this Province since you went for England (Mrs. Jeffs1 from Ireland) Cured Sturgion the last year, and I have eaten some this Summer at her House, as good as you can get in London; Some Barbadoes Merchants are treating with her for several Barrels for the Barbadoes, and will give her anything for them. We are wanting of some more good Neighbours to fill up the Country. There is a French Gentleman2 who made the last Year some Wine of the wild Grapes, which proved admirable good, and far above the best Mader as that you ever tasted, a little higher colour'd. And one thing I must take notice of that we strove to make Vinegar of it, but it is so full of Spirit that it will not easily turn to Vinegar; a certain evidence of its long keeping. Your Vig[n]eron3 had made a Barrel of the same Wine, resolving to keep it for your Entertainment; I being one day there, and speaking of what I had tasted at Monsieur Pelison's,2 he shewed me a Barrel, which he said was of the same sort that he had 1 Mary Jeffes (d. 1709), wife of Robert Jeffes. They lived at this time in Frankford or Oxford in a house rented from Thomas Fairman in 1684, shortly after their arrival from Ireland. Later they removed to the Falls, in Bucks County, where he died in 1688. In 1702 she was living in Philadelphia. 2 Monsieur Jacob Pellison, of Philadelphia, who was legatee of the will of Charles de la Noe, in 1686. 2 Andrew Doz. 288 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1686 taken a great deal of care to secure from being meddled with, he tapping the head, it sounded empty, at which the man was so amased, that he was ready to Faint; afterwards look ing about, it had leaked underneath, to about two Quarts; I tasted it, and it was yet very good Wine, so I left the poor man much afflicted for his loss. But I must acquaint you with one thing, that he having planted some French Vines, the twenty fourth of March, the last year, the same Vines have brought forth some Grapes this year, and some of them were presented to President Lloyd1 the 28th of July, fully Black and Ripe, which is a thing unheard of, or very extraordinary. I thought that this short account of our present State and Con dition, and Improvement would not be ill news to you, con sidering that you know me not forward to put my hand to Paper slightly; wherefore I hope that your Lady will not despise what I do here report, as being the very truth of things ; and if I could contribute thereby to her full Satisfaction, I should have my end, as being willing to see you and her in this place, where I shall not fear being rebuked for mis-repre senting things, I shall conclude, Governor, Green-Spring the 13th of September, 1686. J Your traly affectionate Friend and Servant, Nicholas More. Madame Farmer2 has found out as good Lime-Stone, on the School-kill, as any in the World, and is building with it; she 1 Thomas Lloyd (1640-1694), the highest officer in the province, then presi dent of the provincial council, which included the deputy governorship, 1684-1688, and 1690-1691. He also served alone as deputy governor, 1691-1693. Born of the gentle family of the Lloyds of Dolobran, Montgomeryshire, Wales, he was graduated with the degree of B. A. from Jesus College, Oxford, in 1661, and be came a practising physician. Joining the Quakers he suffered persecution and imprisonment. He brought his family over for settlement in Philadelphia in 1683, on the voyage having the congenial companionship of another university man, the learned Francis Daniel Pastorius, with whom he conversed in Latin. 8 Mary Farmar (d. 1687), widow of Major Jasper Farmar (d. 1685). They migrated from Arderolaine, County Tipperary, Ireland, to Philadelphia in 1685 and settled on a large tract of 5000 acres of land, on the east side of Schuylkill River at a place they called Farmars Town, in what is now Whitemarsh Town- 1686] LETTER OF DOCTOR MORE 289 offers to sell ten Thousand Bushels at six Pence the Bushel, upon her Plantation, where there is several considerable Hills, and near to your manner of Springfield.1 N. M. In a Letter from the Governors Steward,3 Octob. 3, 1686. The Gardiner is brisk at Work. The Peach-Trees are much broken down with the weight of Fruit this Year. All or most of the Plants that came from England grow, (being about four Thousand.) Cherries are sprang four and five Foot. Pears, Codlings and Plumbs three or four Foot. Pears and Apple Grafts, in Country Stocks, and in Thorns, are sprung three and four Foot. Rasberries, Goosberries, Currans, Quinces, Roses, Walnuts and Figs grow well. Apricocks from the Stone four teen or sixteen Inches sprang, since the Month called April. Our Bam, Porch and Shed, are full of Com this year. In a Letter from the Governers Gardiner,3 dated the 14th of the Month, call'd May, 1686. As for those things I brought with me, it is much for People in England to believe me of the growth of them; some of the Trees and Bulbes are shot in five weeks time, some one Inch, some two, three, four, five, six, seven, yea some a eleven ship, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. The tract, which even yet is among the most important for limestone and lime burning in the vicinity of Philadelphia, is almost the eastern terminus of that underlying belt of limestone that stretches away continuously southwesterly through the Chester Valley of Chester County, and spreads out into the great limestone area of central Lancaster County. ' The proprietary manor of Springfield, to the east of the Farmars' tract. 2 James Harrison (c. 1628-1687), Quaker minister, speaker of assembly, and provincial councillor, had been appointed steward at Pennsbury on Penn's de parture from the province in 1684 and held that office until death. Bom near Kendal, Westmoreland, England, he learned the shoemaker's trade, joined the Quakers, became a minister, and travelled in that service all over England, ex periencing imprisonment and distraint of property. Living some years at Stiall Green, Cheshire, he removed, in 1668, to Bolton-in-the-Moors, near Manchester, thence in 1682 migrating with his family by way of Maryland to Pennsylvania and settling in Bucks County between the Falls and Pennsbury House. 5 James, the second gardener for Pennsbury— Ralph Smith, the first gardener, having died in 1685 — was a Scotchman bred in Ireland. His surname is un known. "A good gardner," writes Penn to the steward at Pennsbury in sending James over from England the latter part of 1685, "counted a rare Artist at it, lett him have at least three hands, for he will put things, I hope, in a very good 290 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1686 Inches; some of them not ten days set in the Ground before they put out Buds. And seeds do come on apace; for those Seeds that in England take fourteen days to rise, are up here in six or seven days. Pray make agreement with the Bishop of London's Gardiner or any other that will furnish us with Trees, Shrubs, Flowers and Seeds, and we will furnish them from these places; for we have excellent Trees, Shrubs and Flowers, and Herbs here, which I do not know I ever saw in any Gardens in England. In a Letter from Robert Turner, a Merchant in Philadelphia and one of the Councel, the 15th of October, 1686.1 I also advise, that, blessed be God, Com is very cheap this Season; English Wheat sold here, to carry for New-England at three Shillings six Pence per Bushel, and much Wheat- Flower and Bisket for Barbadoes. Things prosper very well, and the Earth brings forth its encrease; God grant we may walk worthy of his Mercies. Of other Grains, plenty. As to the Town, Building goeth on. John Readman2 is building one Brick House for Richard Whitpain,3 of sixty Foot long, and fifty six Foot wide. For the Widow Farmer, another Brick House. For Thomas Barker and Samuel Jobson* two method, thou wilt have the tryall of him." "Thou Knowst his country:" he adds, "he must be kept to the Seed, for if he be lett up, they want not for head. The man has lived well." The gardener was indentured for three years, having his passage paid, and was to receive a month to himself each year and at the end of his term £30 and 60 acres of land. 1 See his previous letter, pp. 268-273, supra. 2 John Redman (d. 1713), bricklayer, of Philadelphia. » Richard Whitpain (c. 1631-1689), Quaker butcher, of St Leonards, East- cheap, London, remained in London, but his sons John (b. 1663) and Zachariah (b. 1665) came over to Philadelphia; in 1690 there is mention of "the great house they Live in." "Taking into consideration the great expense of Richard Whit pain," writes Penn, in 1687, "to the advancement of the province, and the share he taketh here (in England) on all occasions for its honour, I can do no less than recommend to you for public service his great house in Philadelphia, which, being too big for a private man, would provide you a conveniency above what my cot tage affords." In 1695 the assembly met there. The house stood on the bank or bluff on the east side of Front, below Walnut Street. 4 Thomas Barker (d. 1710), wine merchant, of London, and Samuel Jobson, fellmonger, of St Mary Magdalen, London, sent over Jacob Chapman to act as their agent in Pennsylvania, in 1685. 1686] LETTER OF DOCTOR MORE 291 Brick Cellars, and Chimnies for back Kitchings. Thomas Ducket1 is Building a Brick House at the Skulkil, forty eight Foot long and three Stories high; there are two other Brick Houses to be built this Summer. In a Letter, of the 2d of October [1686], from David Lloyd,2 Clerk of the Peace, of the County of Philadelphia. I shall only add, that five Ships are come in since our ar rival, one from Bristol, with 100 Passengers; one from Hull with 160 Passengers; one from New-England for Com, and two from Barbadoes; all of them, and ours (of above 300 Tun) had their loading here, ours for New-England, and the rest for Barbadoes; and for all this, Wheat (as good, I think, as any in England) is sold at three Shillings six pence per Bushel, this Country Money, and for three Shillings ready Money (which makes two Shillings five pence English Starling) and if God continues his blessing to us, this Province will certainly be the Grainary of America. The Governours Vineyard goes on very well, the Grapes I have tasted of; which in fifteen Months are come to maturity. 1 Thomas Duckett (d. 1699), Quaker minister, a bricklayer, from Wiltshire, England, came over to Philadelphia in 1683 and settled on the west side of the Schuylkill, opposite the town. 2 David Lloyd (1656-1731), the Welsh Quaker lawyer, destined a few years later to become one of the great lawgivers and agitators for popular rights in the early history of the American colonies, had been a resident of the province but a little more than two months, having arrived with his family at Philadelphia, in the ship Amity, from London, July 15, 1686, to take up his duties as attorney general of Pennsylvania. A native of the parish of Manoron, in Montgomery shire, Wales, he was a kinsman of the most prominent man in the province, Governor Thomas Lloyd. He probably received his legal training at the Inner Temple in London and — so Governor Gookin stated in 1709 — "under my Lord Chancellor Jefferies." He lived for some years in Philadelphia and then about 1700 removed to Chester. He was a member of the provincial council, 1695-1700, but accomplished his most important work thereafter as a member of assembly, serving for more than a quarter of a century, frequently as speaker. He was the leader of the popular party in that body, tenaciously contending for the privileges and liberties of the common people in opposition to the proprietary interests as defended by James Logan, the proprietary secretary and agent To him "liberal government in Pennsylvania," says Pennypacker, "owes more than to any other man among our early lawgivers, unless we except Penn himself." In 1718 he was made chief justice and served until death. 292 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1686 In a Letter, of October last [1686], from Thomas Holmes1 Surveyor General. We have made three Purchases of the Indians, which, added unto the six former Sales they made us, will, I believe, be Land enough for Planters for this Age; they were at first High, and upon their Distances; but when we told them of the Kindness our Govemour had always shown them; that the Price we offer'd far exceeded former Rates, and that they offered us the Land before we sought them, they agreed to our last Offer, which is something under three hundred Pounds sterling. The Kings salute our Govemour; they hardly ever see any of us, but they ask, with much affection when he will come to them again; we are upon very good terms with them. I intend to send the Draughts for a Map2 by the first In a Letter from James Claypole3 Merchant in Philadelphia and one of the Councel. I have never seen brighter and better Corn then in these parts, especially in the County of Chester. Provisions very cheap; Pork at two Pence, and good fat fresh Beef at three half-pence the Pound, in our Market. Fish is plentiful; Com cheap; Wheat three and six pence a Bushel; Rye half a Crown ; Indian Com two Shillings, of this Money: And it is without 1 For Thomas Holme, see p. 242, note 1. 2 This was Thomas Holme's well known wall map of Pennsylvania (32§x55 inches), the most important of the early maps of the province, giving the south eastern part with the streams, counties, townships, towns, the individual surveys or plots containing the owners' names and the like. It was engraved by E. Lamb, and published without date in London. But the date was 1687, for William Penn on his way from London to Bristol Fair in September of that year stopped at Marlborough in Wiltshire and exhibited a "Mapp" showing lands in Penn sylvania. ' James Claypoole (1634-1687), a native of London, son of a justice and member of Parliament, and brother of John Claypoole, who married Oliver Cromwell's daughter Elizabeth, was a prosperous Quaker merchant. Previous to his migration he had lived in Scots Yard, in Bush Lane, London. Having social, religious, and business relations with William Penn he became actively concerned in the Pennsylvania project from its beginning, purchased 5,000 acres of land in the province, was elected the first treasurer of the Free Society of Traders in 1682, and in the following year came over with his family to settle, 1686] LETTER OF DOCTOR MORE 293 doubt that we shall have as good Wine as France produces. Here is great appearance of a Trade, and if we had small Money for Exchange, we should not want Returns. The Whale- Fishery1 is considerable; several Companies out to ketch them: There is one caught that its thought will make several hundred Barrels of Oyle. This besides Tobacco and Skins, and Furs, we have for Commerce. arriving at Philadelphia in the ship Concord in October. He located on his lot at the southwest comer of Front and Walnut streets, and during the remaining four years of his life was busily engaged in attending to his duties as treasurer of the Free Society and promoting his private trading enterprises, at the same time holding important public offices as justice of the courts, register general, assembly man and provincial councillor. His manuscript letter-book (1681-1684), printed in part in the Pennsylvania Magazine, X. (1886), is a valuable historical source for the period. 1 "I have been 3 weeks from home," Claypoole writes from Philadelphia, 2 Mo. (April) 4, 1684, "about 150 miles of [off] whare they take the whales, they took 2 while I was there, they had killed about 12 in all and lost 3 of them and they intend to stay till the end of this month and may expect to girt 5 or 6 more they fish for the Society [Free Society of Traders] but must be pd. the Markett prise for § of the oyle and bone besides some other Charges we are at so we are like to gett no great Matter by it this time, this is the first year of their fishing and they were not provided with Nessesarys in time else they might have made 1001b each man, here being great plenty of whales and very easy to take them here is abundance of Sturgeon and other fish." A SHORT DESCRIPTION OF PENNSILVANIA, BY RICHARD FRAME, 1692 INTRODUCTION In 1692, William Bradford, the Quaker printer, of Philadel phia, published a small quarto (6£x4f inches) of eight pages en titled A Short Description of Pennsilvania. This little book is in verse and is believed to be the first metrical composition printed in Pennsylvania. The only known copy of the work is in the Ridgway Branch of the Library Company of Phila delphia, to which it was bequeathed by Charles A. Poulson some sixty years ago. An element of uncertainty hangs over the authorship of the verses. The title and last page of the book assign them to one Richard Frame. Yet strange to say a thorough search of all Pennsylvania sources likely to be fruitful of results has failed to reveal a single reference — other than these citations in the book itself — to substantiate the existence of a person of this name here at that time. It is true that some of the public and many private records for the period have perished or are otherwise defective; never theless those that survive are so full and of such a varied character that it is rare indeed to find entries lacking of settlers of even the most humble position. The observing intelligence discernible in this writer would seem to raise him far out of the obscurity of the latter class. The suggestion that the author may have made only a brief sojourn here and so have escaped record or chronicler finds no support from the internal evidence, which indicates an extended acquaintance with the province. This absence of data, then, respecting the presence of Richard Frame raises the question whether this was not an assumed name. Be that as it may, we are confined to the book itself for 297 298 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA biographical facts as to its author. From it may be deduced the somewhat scanty conjectures that he was a native of Eng land, that he had come to Pennsylvania at the beginning of the Penn era, had actively participated in the felling of the forests and the clearing of the land, and had joined in the pioneer farming of which he writes so familiarly. Despite his manifest defects of education he was a man of sense and good powers of observation. He seems to know whereof he writes, evidently having a personal acquaintance with the settled part of Pennsylvania proper. His verse, to be sure, falls far short of poetry; it will never find a place in the American Anthology: yet what it lacks in poetical form it makes up in the quaint interest and valuable information of its content. It conveys a truthful and not un- pleasing impression of the state of Penn's colony — of its flora, its fauna, products and the like — after a decade of prosperous growth. Granting that Richard Frame was the author's real name, he may have been related to the family of Fream or Freame of Gloucestershire, England. A Thomas Fream, from Avon, in that county, was a settler in Bucks County, Pennsylvania; his will dated September 5 was probated October 10, 1682, being the first will recorded in Philadelphia. Again, a Robert Freame, of Cirencester, supposed to be Penn's First Purchaser of this name in 1681, was the father of Robert and John Freame, prominent Quakers, of London, in the latter part of the seven teenth century. Both the latter held shares of stock in the Pennsylvania Land Company of London. Thomas Freame, son of Robert, jr., married William Penn's daughter Margaret in 1727 and lived for a time in Pennsylvania. A Short Description was reprinted in a small edition (118 copies) by Samuel J. Hamilton (Dr. James Slack), at the Oak- wood Press, a private press, in 1867, with an introductory letter by Horatio Gates Jones. The present issue is from a INTRODUCTION 299 careful copy of the unique original book compared by the editor. The title-page is worn and broken in places and the first page of the text has been trimmed so closely for binding that the first one or two letters of each line have been cut off; a tear also appears in the sheet. These defective parts have been supplied in brackets as well as may be from portions of letters remaining, or from the obvious sense. Doubtful words are so indicated. A. C. M. A SHORT DESCRIPTION OF PENNSILVANIA, BY RICHARD FRAME, 1692 A Short Description of Pennsilvania, Or, a Relation What things are known, enjoyed, and like to be discovered in the said Province. [Presen(?)]Wed as a Token of Good Will [to the People(?)] of England. By Richard Frame. Printed and Sold by William Bradford in Philadelphia, 1692. A short Relation of what things are Known, Enjoyd, and like to be Discovered in the Province of Pennsilvania. TO all our Friends that do desire to know, What Country 'tis we live in, this will show. Attend to hear the Story I shall tell, [N]o doubt but you will like this Country well. We that did leave our Country thought it strange, [T]hat ever we should make so good Exchange: P(?)] think 'tis hard for me for to express, [H]ow God provideth in a Wilderness, [ torn ]arge a wo[fora] [torn] Wolves, and Bears, and Pa[torn] [Fo]xes, Raccoons and Otters dwelleth here, [Be]side all these the Nimble footed Dear; [T]he Hare so lightly runs for to escape; [Y]et here are things of a more stranger shape, [T]he Female Possum, which I needs must tell ye, [Is] much admired with her double Belly; [Tjhe Belly for her Meat, she hath beside [A]nother where her Young Ones use to hide. [0] strange! 'tis hard, I think, for me to name [T]he Multitudes of Beasts, both Wild and Tame: [B]evers here are, whose Skins are soft as Silk, [H]orses to Ride on, Cows to give us Milk, [Be]sides the Beasts, whose Nature is so Rude, 300 1692] A SHORT DESCRIPTION OF PENNSILVANIA 301 [To] speak of them, I think I must Conclude. [Al]so the Flocks of Fowle, and Birds, pray mind, [The] Swans, and Geese, and Turkyes in their kind, The Turky-Buzard, and Bald-Eagle high, Wild Ducks, which in great Companyes do fly; More sorts of fowle here are, than I need [tell], Yet here are other things, which do excell. The Fields, most fruitful, yield such Crops of Wheat, And other things most excellent to eat. As Barley, Rye, and other sorts of Grain; In peace we plow, we sow, and reap again, Good Indian Com, which is a larger breed, It doth our Cattle, Swine and Horses feed, Buck-Wheat and Oats, beside, good store of Reed, A plentiful Land, 0 plentiful indeed, For Plants, and Roots, and Herbs, wee'l let them be, To name the Fruit that grows upon each Tree: The fruit Trees do flourish, and are green, Where Apples, Peaches, Quinces, Plumbs are seen, With other Fraits, whose glittering Faces shine. The Grapes grow plenty on the fruitful Vine: Wall-Nuts, Chest-Nuts, Hazel-Nuts appear, These things are plenty with us every Year. More things I can relate, for all is true, And yet, not give the Country half his due. Also, here is of divers sorts of Fish, So good, so pleasant as a man need wish, Within our Rivers, swiming to and fro. Great ones we catch, but small ones let them go. Here are more things than I can well express, Strange to be seen in such a Wilderness. By Day we work, at Night we rest in Peace, So that each Day our Substance doth increase: 0 blessed be bis Name, who doth provide For you, and us, and all the World beside. The first part that I writ is good indeed, But yet perhaps the second may exceed: The Truth in Rhyme, which I do here compose, It may be spoken thus, as well as Prose: 302 NARRATIVES OF EARLY_ PENNSYLVANIA [1692 Therefore unto my words once more attend, Here are more Properties I shall commend. The Riches of this Land it is not known, What in the after Ages may be shown; My words are true, for here was lately found Some precious Mettle under-neath the Ground, The which some men did think was Silver Oar, Others said Copper, but some think 'tis more. They say there is a vein of Lead or Tin, Where choicer Mettle lodgeth further in; So divers men have divers judgments spent, And so the matter lies in Argument. If men would venture for to dig below, They might get well by it, for ought I know: Those Treasures in the Earth which hidden be, They will be good, whoever lives to see. A certain place here is, where some begun To try some Mettle, and have made it run, Wherein was Iron absolutely found, At once was known about some Forty Pound. We know no end of this great Tract of Land, Where divers sorts of Timber Trees doth stand, As mighty Oaks, also, here's Cedars tall, And other sorts, 'tis hard to name them all, The strong Hickery, Locust and lofty Pine, 'Tis strange to see what Providence divine Hath in the World ordained for to be, Which those that live at home do never see. I also give you here to understand What People first inhabited this Land: Those that were here before the Sweeds and Fins, Were Naked Indians, Cloathed with their Skins, Which can give no account from whence they came; They have no Records for to shew the same; But I may think, and others may suppose What They may be, yet I think few men knows, 1692] A SHORT DESCRIPTION OF PENNSILVANIA 303 Unless they are of Esau's scattered Seed, Or of some other wild corrupted Breed. They take no care to plow, nor yet to sow, Nor how to till their Land they do not know, Therefore by that we may observe it plain, That this can hardly be the Seed of Cain; Some Men did think they were the scattered Jews, But yet I cannot well believe such News: They neither do New Moons nor Sabbath keep, Without much Care they eat, they drink, they sleep; Their care for Worldly Riches is but light, By Day they hunt, and down they lie at Night. Those Infidels that dwelleth in the Wood, I shall conclude of them so far so good. You that will seek a Country strange, Attend to what is true, All that are willing to exchange, An Old place for a New. We that our Country did forsake, And leave our Native Land, Will do the best we can to make Our Neighbours understand. Although I have a good intent, Yet hardly can express, How we, through Mercy, were content In such a Wilderness. When we began to clear the Land, For room to sow our Seed, And that our Com might grow and stand, For Food in time of Need, Then with the Ax, with Might and Strength, The Trees so thick and strong, Yet on each side, such strokes at length, We laid them all along. So when the Trees, that grew so high, Were fallen to the ground, Which we with Fire, most furiously To Ashes did Confound, 304 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1692 Then presently we sought for Wood, I mean (not Wood to bum, But for) such Timber, choice and good, As fitted well our turn. A City, and Towns were raised then, Wherein we might abide, Planters also, and Husband-men, Had Land enough beside. The best of Houses then was known, To be of Wood and Clay, But now we build of Brick and Stone, Which is a better way. The Names of Some of our Towns. Philadelphia, that great Corporation, Was then, is now our choicest Habitation. Next unto that there stands the German-Town, Also, within the Country, up and down, There's Haverford, where th' Welch-men do abide, Two Townships more, I think, they have beside: Here's Bristol, Plymouth,1 Newtown, here doth stand, Chester, Springfield, Marple in this Land, Darby, and other famous Habitations, Also, a multitude of New Plantations. The German-Town2 of which I spoke before, Which is, at least, in length one Mile and More, Where lives High-German People, and Low-Dutch, Whose Trade in weaving Linnin Cloth is much, There grows the Flax, as also you may know, That from the same they do divide the Tow; Their Trade fits well within this Habitation, We find Convenience for their Occupation. One Trade brings in imployment for another, So that we may suppose each Trade a Brother; From Linnin Rags good Paper doth derive, 1 Near present Norristown, in Montgomery County. 2 "A Town of Dutch and German People that have set up the Linnen Manu factory, which weave and make many Hundred Yards of pure fine Linnen Cloath in a Year." — Letter of John Goodson, Philadelphia, 1690. 1692] A SHORT DESCRIPTION OF PENNSILVANIA 305 The first Trade keeps the second Trade alive: Without the first the second cannot be, Therefore since these two can so well agree, Convenience doth approve to place them nigh, One in the German-Town, 'tother hard by. A Paper Mill J near German-Town doth stand, So that the Flax, which first springs from the Land, First Flax, then Yam, and then they must begin, To weave the same, which they took pains to spin. Also, when on our backs it is well [worn], Some of the same remains Ragged and Tom; Then of those Rags our Paper it is made, Which in process of time doth waste and fade: So what comes from the Earth, appeareth plain, The same in Time returns to Earth again. So much for what I have truly Compos'd, Which is but a part of what may be disclosed, Concluding of this, and what is behind, I may tell you more of my Mind; But in the mean time be content with this same, Which at present is all from your Friend Richard Frame. 1 The first paper-mill in America, erected in 1690, on a branch of Wissa- hickon Creek, in Germantown, by William Rittmghuysen or Rittenhouse (1644- 1708), a Mennonite paper-maker, with the assistance of a company consisting of William Bradford, the first printer of the middle colonies, and the wealthy Phila delphia citizens, Samuel Carpenter, Robert Turner, and Thomas Tresse. Brad ford obtained his paper from this mill. Rittenhouse was a native of the prin cipality of Broich, near the city of Miilheim-on-the-Ruhr, Germany, not far from the borders of Holland. His ancestors for generations had been paper-makers at Amheim. In 1678 he was a resident of Amsterdam; thence he came to New York, and in 1688 to Germantown, where he served as a minister in the Mennon ite congregation. AN HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL AC COUNT OF PENSILVANIA AND OF WEST- NEW-JERSEY, BY GABRIEL THOMAS, 1698 INTRODUCTION The book here reprinted was the largest and most preten tious that had yet appeared descriptive of the twin provinces on the Delaware. The author was a Welsh yeoman who, having been a pioneer in Penn's colony during the fifteen years of his young manhood, the very period of its rise and development to this time, had returned to the Old World, and in 1697 prepared this account from his experiences and observation. The work was published the following year in' London. The first part, which has to do with Pennsylvania, is dedicated to William Penn, and apparently was issued with his knowledge and en couragement, although Penn's recent removal to Bristol and subsequent travels in Ireland doubtless gave him no oppor tunity to read either the manuscript or proof of the book. Gabriel Thomas was the author. He had his origin in the extreme southeastern part of Wales, in Monmouthshire, not far from the English border and at no great distance from Bristol. Pontemoil, a little place nestling at the foot of a spur of the Drynos mountains, was his birthplace. There he first saw the fight in March, 1661. His parents, Lewis and Grace Thomas, who had lived at the place as early as 1650, were Quakers. One Lewis Thomas, a dissenting Quaker liberated from Monmouth jail in 1671, was probably the father. No further records of Gabriel Thomas in Wales have been found. In the fall of 1681, being then in his twenty-first year, Gabriel Thomas set out for Pennsylvania, sailing from London with the first company of Penn's emigrants in the ship John and Sarah. At Philadelphia, he informs us, "I saw the first Cellar when it was digging for the use of our Gouvemour Will. Penn." His parents with nearly all of their eight chil- 309 310 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA dren also came over to the province, but the time of their arrival is unknown. In 1688 two of his sisters were married by the Quaker meeting in Philadelphia, his younger sister Rachel at that time becoming the bride of Thomas Wharton, the founder of the distinguished Philadelphia family of that name. In the same year the father died, being mentioned in one of the papers of his estate at Philadelphia, as "late of West Jersey" and in another as "late of Philadelphia." The mother died in Philadelphia in 1694. The records indicate Thomas's presence in the city in 1692 and in 1693 and that was probably in general his place of residence in Pennsylvania. Proceeding to London about 1697, being then aged thirty- six, he saw his book through the press and remained there as late as 1702. In this year he figures in an acrimonious con troversy with William Penn. With the plea, as he states, that his book on Pennsylvania had "proved to the province's great advancement by causing great numbers of people to goe over to those parts," he sought the proprietary post of collector of quit-rents for New Castle County. Penn failing to meet these expectations, Thomas took sides with Colonel Robert Quarry, judge of admiralty in the middle colonies, in the latter's cam paign of aggression against Penn and the government of Penn sylvania, and finally invoked the aid of the British Board of Trade in his endeavors to secure the place. In his petition to this body Thomas complains that he is now "reduced to great poverty by reason" of Penn's "unjust dealings" and is persecuted because of assistance given to Colonel Quarry. He then declares that he is ready to appear as evidence for the Crown against Penn. The incident closes with Penn's re sponse to the board under date of August, 1702, in which he characterizes Thomas as "so beggarly and base a man, that I am sorry to finde time lost upon him." ' By 1706 Thomas had come back to America and was living as a yeoman in Sussex County in the present state of Delaware, INTRODUCTION 311 where he possessed a plantation of about a thousand acres called "Pleasant," located on the north side of Prime Hook Neck. In 1712 he was again a resident of Philadelphia and there he doubtless continued until his death, which occurred in December, 1714, at the age of fifty-three. Gabriel Thomas, as we have seen, was not only a birth right Quaker, but he used the Quaker form of speech in his dedication to Penn, and is so named in the records of the British Board of Trade. In later life, however, his membership was discontinued, as both the burial records of the Philadelphia Friends and the manuscript " Beehive," kept by Pastorius, the contemporary German Quaker, enter him as a non-Quaker. The intent of Thomas's history, like that of our other nar ratives for this English epoch, was chiefly to -incite the move ment of European population to the Delaware. The book is written in a simple, descriptive style, but with an undercurrent of playfulness and occasional touches of satire that lend a certain charm and quaint pleasantness to the account. Along with these evidences of the Cymric temperament of the writer is a tendency to exaggerate in some of the passages; these lapses, however, are easily discernible. Where he writes what he himself knows he is in general reliable, but he falls sadly into error with respect to some of the dates and places that are without his own experience. These inaccuracies are cor rected in the notes. An Historical and Geographical Account is a sextodecimo book published in London in 1698. The part dealing with Pennsylvania comprises 8+55 pages. The second part con cerns West New Jersey, and is inscribed to the proprietors of that province. Although bound up with the first part, it has its own title-page and separate pagination, numbering 11+34 pages. A map covering the region of both provinces is in cluded in the volume. A German translation forming part of the Pastorius Continuatio der Beschreibung der Landschafft 312 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA Pennsylvaniae (2 + 40 pages) was published at Frankfort and Leipzig about 1702. Our text is from a lithographic facsimile of the original London edition, published in New York in 1848 by Henry Austin Brady. The original edition was also reprinted in the Philadelphia DaUy News, in August and De cember, 1864, and again by Burrows Brothers of Cleveland, Ohio, in 1903 (pp. 83), with an introduction by Cyrus Town- send Brady. A. C. M. AN HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL AC COUNT OF PENSILVANIA AND OF WEST- NEW-JERSEY, BY GABRIEL THOMAS, 1698 An Historical and Geographical Account of the Province and Country of Pensilvania; and of West-New-Jersey in Amer ica. The Richness of the Soil, the Sweetness of the Situation the Wholesomness of the Air, the Navigable Rivers, and others, the prodigious Encrease of Corn, the flourishing Condition of the City of Philadelphia, with the stately Buildings, and other Improvements there. The strange Creatures, as Birds, Beasts, Fishes, and Fowls, with the several sorts of Minerals, Purging Waters, and Stones, lately discovered. The Na tives, Aborogines, their Language, Religion, Laws, and Cus toms; The first Planters, the Dutch, Sweeds, and English, with the number of its Inhabitants; As also a Touch upon George Keith's New Religion, in his second Change since he left the Quakers, with a Map of both Countries. By Gabriel Thomas, who resided there about Fifteen Years. London, Printed for, and Sold by A. Baldwin, at the Oxon Arms in Warwick-Lane, 1698. The Dedication. Friend William Penn, I Here present Thee with a succinct (yet compleat) Account of the late Improvement, and Present State of the Noble Prov ince, and Fertile Countrey of Pensilvania; with the strange things that have been found there, as the Salamander-Stone,1 and several others, mentioned in this Treatise; discovered since thou earnest out of those Parts. I desire Thee to excuse me for addressing to Thee, such a Plain and Peasant-like Piece ; yet however homely or coarse it may appear, Thou wilt find here a true and genuine Description of that (once) obscure, 1 Asbestos. 313 314 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 tho' (now) glorious Place. So considering how generous and candid a Man Thou art, I know thou wilt bear with my weak and imperfect Performance, and accept of my good Meaning and kind Intention, which may encourage me, in time to come, to add some more Memoirs to this rough Essay of mine. Being unwilling to tire Thee with any long or tedious Epistle, I take my Leave of Thee, (Most Noble and Excellent Governor) and am Thy hearty Well-wisher, ever ready to serve Thee on all Occasions, (in the way of Truth,) Gabriel Thomas. The Preface. Reader, There never having been any fair or full Account given to the World of Pensilvania, I thought the Curious wou'd be gratified with an ample Description thereof. For tho' this Country has made little Noise in Story, or taken up but small room in Maps, yet thus much with great Justice may be said of it, that notwithstanding the Difficulties and Inconveniencies the First English Colonies met with before they were well settled there, yet the mighty Improvements, Additions, and Advantages that have been made lately there, are well worth Communicating to the Publick, and I am sensible they will be well receiv'd. The late Tedious, Hazardous, and Expensive War1 (in which England, in Conjunction with the Allies was so deeply engag'd) was without doubt no small Bar or Obstacle to the Flourishing of this New Country. The great Discouragements the Traders thither lay under, (together with the frequent Capture of their Ships out and home, cou'd not chuse but baulk them in their honest Endeavours, which (now Peace is restor'd) they may pursue with greater Security and Satisfac tion. Nor is there the least question or doubt to be made, but this Noble Spot of Earth will thrive exceedingly, and that in a short time too, and advance considerably to the mighty Ad- ' Known in the colonies as King William's War, 1689-1697, ending with the treaty of Ryswick in the latter year. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 315 vantage of the Present and Future Propietors, who have, and are willing to give all due Encouragement to any that shall Transport themselves thither. I cou'd say much here in Praise of that sweet Tract of Land, but having spoken so largely and particularly thereof in the Book it self, I shall forbear the least mention in this place. Nor will I Anticipate or forestal thee, by presenting thee here with what thou wilt find there, with the greater Satisfaction. And so I bid thee heartily farewel. Gab. Thomas. The History of Pensilvania, etc. Pensilvania lies between the Latitude of Forty and Forty five Degrees;1 West- Jersey on the East, Virginia on the West, Mary-Land South, and Canada2 on the North. In Length three hundred, and in Breadth one hundred and eighty Miles.3 The Natives, or first Inhabitants of this Country in their Original, are suppos'd by most People to have been of the Ten Scattered Tribes, for they resemble the Jews very much in the Make of their Persons, and Tincture of their Complexions: They observe New Moons, they offer their first Fraits to a Maneto, or suppos'd Deity, whereof they have two, one, as they fansie, above (good,) another below (bad,) and have a kind of Feast of Tabernacles, laying their Altars upon Twelve Stones, observe a sort of Mourning twelve Months, Customs of Women, and many other Rites to be toucht (here) rather than 1 Although several of the boundaries of Pennsylvania were then either not fully determined or in dispute, yet Thomas even for that period had very errone ous and inconsistent notions as to some of them. His absurd extension of the northern boundary to the forty-fifth parallel of north latitude, the present northern line of the state of New York, included the province of New York in Pennsylvania, a claim at no time made by Pennsylvania; while his restriction of the southern boundary of Pennsylvania to the fortieth parallel, as contended by Maryland, left out Philadelphia, which is in 39° 57', and half of the province as then settled, not to speak of the Three Lower Counties of Delaware (now the state of Delaware), at that time constituting a part of Pennsylvania. The present state of Penn sylvania lies between 39° 43' and 42° 15' north latitude. 2 The province of New York not Canada was on the north. 1 The present state of Pennsylvania is 307 miles long in its greatest length from east to west, and 177 miles wide from north to south. If "forty-five" is a misprint for "forty-three" Thomas has these directions in mind. 316 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1623 dwelt upon, because they shall be handled more at large at the latter end of this Treatise. They are very Charitable to one another, the Lame and the Blind (amongst them) living as well as the best; they are also very kind and obliging to the Christians. The next that came there,1 were the Dutch, (who call'd the Country New Neitherland) between Fifty and Sixty Years ago, and were the first Planters in those Parts; but they made little or no Improvement, (applying themselves wholly to Trafique in Skins and Furs, which the Indians or Natives fur- nish'd them with, and which they Barter'd for Rum, Strong Liquors, and Sugar, with others, thereby gaining great Profit) till near the time of the Wars between England and Them, about Thirty or Forty Years ago. Soon after them came the Swedes2 and Fins, who apply'd themselves to Husbandry, and were the first Christian People that made any considerable Improvement there. There were some Disputes between these two Nations some Years, the Dutch looking upon the Swedes as Intruders upon their Purchase and Possession, which was absolutely terminated in the Surrender made by John Rizeing,3 the Swedes Govemour, to Peter Styreant,4 Govemour for the Dutch, in 1655. In the Holland War about the Year 1665,5 Sir Robert Carr took the Country from the Dutch for the English, and left his Cousin, Captain Carr,8 Governor of that place; but in a short time after, the Dutch re-took the Country from the English, and kept it in their Possession till the Peace was concluded between the English and them, when the Dutch Surrendered that Country with East and West-Jersey, New-York, (with the whole Countries belonging to that Government) to the English 'Evidently here referring not simply to Pennsylvania proper but to the larger Delaware River region which was first occupied by the Dutch at least seventy-five years before 1697, Fort Nassau in New Jersey being built in 1623. 1 The first Swedish settlement was made at present Wilmington, Delaware, in 1638. 8 Rising. 4 Stuyvesant. » 1664. 6 Captain John Carr accompanied his brother, not his cousin, Sir Robert Carr, on the conquering expedition of the English against the Dutch on the Dela ware in 1664 and after the departure of his brother remained in command at New Castle (the new name for the New Amstel of the Dutch), until the reconquest by the Dutch in 1673. 1681] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 317 again.1 But it remain'd with very little Impovement till the Year 1681, in which William Penn Esq; had the Country given him by King Charles the Second, in lieu of Money that was due to (and signal Service done by) his Father, Sir William Penn, and from him bore the Name of Pensilvania. Since that time, the Industrious (nay Indefatigable) Inhab itants have built a Noble and Beautiful City, and called it Philadelphia, which contains above two thousand Houses, all Inhabited; and most of them Stately, and of Brick, generally three Stories high, after the Mode in London, and as many several Families in each. There are very many Lanes and Alleys, as first, Huttons-Lane,2 Morris-Lane,3 Jones's-Lane,4 wherein are very good Buildings; Shorters-Alley,5 Towers- Lane,8 Wallers-Alley,7 Turners-Lane,8 Sikes-AUey,8 and Flowers- Alley.10 All these Alleys and Lanes extend from the Front Street to the Second Street. There is another Alley in the Second Street, called Carters-Alley." There are also besides these Alleys and Lanes, several fine Squares and Courts within this Magnificent City, (for so I may justly call it,) As for the particular Names of the several Streets contained therein, the Principal are as follows, viz, Walnut-Street, Vine-Street, Mul berry-Street,12 Chesnut-Street, Sassafras-Street,13 taking their Names from the abundance of those Trees that formerly grew ' In 1674. 2 The second alley above Walnut Street Thomas Hooton being owner of an adjacent lot. * Possibly opposite the bank lot of Anthony Morris (1654-1721), the emigrant, a rich Quaker brewer, mayor and provincial councillor. 4 The first alley above High (now Market) Street, running from Front to Second Street, adjoining a lot of Griffith Jones (d. 1712), a Welshman, one of the wealthiest citizens. • Not located, but Elizabeth Shorter owned a lot above Chestnut Street. • Ewers Lane, above Chestnut Street, adjoining Robert Ewer's lot. 7 Not located. "The first below Mulberry (now Arch) Street, adjoining Robert Turner's property. • May have been opposite the bank lot of Nathaniel Sykes, below Chestnut Street. 10 Doubtless named for Enoch Flower, Quaker, who taught the first school in Philadelphia, in 1683. " The first below Chestnut Street, William Carter owning an adjoining lot on Second Street. 12 Now Arch. u Now Race. 318 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 there; High-Street,1 Broad-Street, Delaware-Street, Front- Street, with several of less Note, too tedious to insert here. It hath in it Three Fairs every Year, and Two Markets every Week, They kill above Twenty Fat Bullocks every Week, in the hottest time in Summer, for their present spend ing in that City, besides many Sheep, Calves, and Hogs. This City is Situated between Schoolkill-River and the great River Delaware,2 which derives its Name from Captain Delaware, who came there pretty early: Ships of Two or Three Hundred Tuns may come up to this City, by either of these two Rivers. Moreover, in this Province are Four Great Mar ket-Towns, viz, Chester, the German Town, New-Castle, and Lewis-Town,3 which are mightily Enlarged in this latter Im provement. Between these Towns, the Water-Men constantly Ply their Wherries;4 likewise all those Towns have Fairs kept in them, besides there are several Country Villages, viz. Dublin,5 Harford,6 Merioneth,7 and Radnor in Cambry; 8 all which Towns, Villages and Rivers, took their Names from the several Countries whence the present Inhabitants came. The Air here is very delicate, pleasant, and wholesom; the Heavens serene, rarely overcast, bearing mighty resemblance to the better part of France; after Rain they have commonly a very clear Sky, the Climate is something Colder in the depth of Winter and Hotter in the height of Summer; (the cause of which is its being a Main Land or Continent; the Days also are two Hours longer in the shortest Day in Winter, and shorter by two Hours in the longest Day of Summer) than here in England, which makes the Fruit so good, and the Earth so fertil. ' Now Market. 2 So named by one of the Virginia adventurers, Captain Samuel Argall, who visited the Bay in 1610, in honor of the then Governor of Virginia, Thomas West, Lord de la Warr, of whose alleged visit there no evidence is known. • Lewes, in Sussex County, Delaware. 4 Light boats used on rivers. * Now Ogontz, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. • Haverford. 7 Merion. * Cambria, i. e., the Welsh Tract, that area extending northwesterly from Schuylkill River and embracing at that time the townships of Merion, Haverford, and Radnor, occupied by Welsh people, many of them from the northern counties of Wales — principally Merioneth, Denbigh, Montgomery, and Flint. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 319 The Corn-Harvest is ended before the middle of July, and most Years they have commonly between Twenty and Thirty Bushels of Wheat for every one they Sow. Their Ground is harrowed with Wooden Tyned Harrows, twice over in a place is sufficient; twice mending of their Plow-Irons in a Years time will serve. Their Horses commonly go without being shod; two Men may clear between Twenty and Thirty Acres of Land in one Year, fit for the Plough, in which Oxen are chiefly us'd, though Horses are not wanting, and of them Good and well shap'd. A Cart or a Wain may go through the middle of the Woods, between the Trees without getting any damage, and of such Land in a convenient place, the Purchase will cost between Ten and Fifteen Pounds for a Hundred Acres. Here is much Meadow Ground. Poor People both Men and Women, will get near three times more Wages for their Labour in this Country, than they can earn either in England or Wales. What is Inhabited of this Country, is divided into Six Counties, though there is not the Twentieth Part of it yet Peopled by the Christians: It hath in it several Navigable Rivers for Shipping to come in, besides the Capital Delaware, wherein a Ship of Two Hundred Tuns may Sail Two Hundred Miles up. There are also several other small Rivers, in num ber hardly Credible; these, as the Brooks, have for the most' part gravelly and hard Bottoms; and it is suppos'd that there are many other further up in the Country, which are not yet disco ver'd; the Names of the aforesaid Rivers, are, Hoorkill- River, alias Lewis River, which runs up to Lewis Town, the chief est in Sussex County; Cedar-River, Muskmellon-River,1 all taking their Names from the great plenty of these things growing thereabouts; Mother-kill alias Dover-River, St. Jones's alias Cranbrook-River, where one John Curtice2 lives, who hath Three Hundred Head of Neat Beasts, besides great Numbers of Hogs, Horses, and Sheep; Great Duck-River, Little Duck- River, Black-Bird-River, these also took their Original Names from the great Numbers of those Fowls which are found there ' Mispillion. 2 John Curtis (d. 1698), who was of the Whorekill, now Lewes, in 1679, soon after located on a plantation on St. Jones Creek in Kent County, Delaware. He represented Kent County in the Pennsylvania assembly and in the provincial council. 320 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 in vast quantities: Apequinemy-River,1 where their Goods come to be Carted over to Mary-Land,2 St. George's-River, Christen-River,3 Brandy-Wine-River, Upland alias Chester- River, which runs by Chester-Town, being the Shire or County- Town; Schoolkill-River, Frankford-River,4 near which, Arthur Cook hath a most Stately Brick-House; and Nishamany-River, where Judge Growden5 hath a very Noble and Fine House, very pleasantly Situated, and likewise a Famous Orchard adjoyning to it, wherein are contain'd above a Thousand Apple Trees of various sorts; likewise there is the famous Derby-River,6 which comes down from the Cumbry by Derby-Town, wherein are several Mills, viz. Fulling-Mills, Corn-Mills, etc. There is curious Building-Stone and Paving-Stone, also Tile-Stone,7 with which latter, Governor Penn covered his Great and Stately Pile, which he call'd Pennsbury-House,8 the Name it still retains. There is likewise Iron-Stone or Oar, (lately found) which far exceeds that in England, being Richer and less Drossy; some Preparations have been made to carry on an Iron- Work: There is also very good Lime-Stone in great plenty, and cheap, of great use in Buildings, and also in Manu ring Land, (if there were occasion) but Nature has made that of it self sufficiently Fruitful; besides here are Load-Stones, Ising-Glass, and (that Wonder of Stones) the Salamander- Stone, found near Brandy- Wine-River, having Cotton in Veins within it, which will not consume in the Fire ; though held there a long time." 1 Appoquinimink. 2 To Bohemia River, a northeastern affluent of Chesapeake Bay. This was the shortest and usual portage between the Delaware and Chesapeake. * Christiana. 4 Now Tacony Creek. 0 Joseph Growden (d. 1730), gentleman, justice of the provincial supreme court, speaker of assembly, and provincial councillor, was a son of Lawrence Growden, of Trevose, parish of St. Merryn, Cornwall, England. As one of the First Purchasers of Pennsylvania he brought over a ship loaded with his own cargo in 1683 and located on his purchase of 5,000 acres of land on the Neshaminy Creek in Bensalem Township, Bucks County. "Trevose," his "Noble and Fine House," although altered is still standing. His daughter Grace became the second wife of David Lloyd. • Darby. ' Slate. ' Pennsbury House, Penn's country-seat, was in Pennsbury Manor, a tract of over 6,500 acres of land, in Bucks County, about twenty-seven miles up the Dela ware River from Philadelphia. » Asbestos. GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 321 As to Minerals, or Metals, there is very good Copper, far exceeding ours in England, being much Finer, and of a more glorious Colour. Not two Mile from the Metropolis, are also Purging Mineral-Waters, that pass both by Siege and Urine, all out as good as Epsom; And I have reason to believe, there are good Coals also, for I observ'd, the Runs of Water have the same Colour as that which proceeds from the Coal-Mines in Wales. Here is curious Diversion in Hunting, Fishing, and Fowling, especially upon that Great and Famous River Suskahanah,1 which runs down quite through the heart of the Country to Mary-Land, where it makes the Head of Chesepeck-Bay, in which place there are an Infinite Number of Sea and Land Fowl, of most sorts, viz. Swans, Ducks, Teal, (which two are the most Grateful and most Delicious in the World), Geese, Divers, Brands, Snipe, Curlew; as also Eagles, Turkies (of Forty or Fifty Pound Weight) Pheasants, Partridges, Pidgeons, Heath- Birds, Black-Birds; and that Strange and Remarkable Fowl, call'd (in these Parts) the Mocking-Bird, that Imitates all sorts of Birds in their various Notes. And for Fish, there are pro digious quantities of most sorts, viz. Shadds, Cats Heads, Sheeps-Heads, Herrings, Smelts, Roach, Eels, Perch. As also the large sort of Fish, as Whales (of which a great deal of Oyl is made), Salmon, Trout, Sturgeon, Rock, Oysters (some six Inches long), Crabs, Cockles (some as big as Stewing Oysters of which are made a Choice Soupe or Broth), Canok and Mussels, with many other sorts of Fish, which would be too tedious to insert. There are several sorts of wild Beasts of great Profit, and good Food; viz. Panthers, Woolves, Fither, Deer, Beaver, Otter, Hares, Musk-Rats, Minks, Wild Cats, Foxes, Rackoons, Rabits, and that strange Creature, the Possam, she having a false Belly to swallow her Yonng ones, by which means she preserveth them from danger, when any thing comes to dis turb them. There are also Bears some; Wolves are pretty well destroy'd by the Indians, for the sake of the Reward given them by the Christian for that Service. Here is also that Remark able Creature the Flying-Squirrel, having a kind of Skinny Wings, almost like those of the Batt, though it hath the like ' Susquehanna. 322 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 Hair and Colour of the Common Squirrel, but is much less in Bodily Substance; I have (myself) seen it fly from one Tree to another in the Woods, but how long it can maintain its Flight is not yet exactly known. There are in the Woods abundance of Red Deer (vulgarly called Stags) for I have bought of the Indians a whole Buck (both Skin and Carcass), for two Gills of Gunpowder. Excellent Food, most delicious, far exceeding that in Europe, in the Opinion of most that are Nice and Curious People. There are vast Numbers of other Wild Creatures, as Elks, Bufalos, etc., all which as well Beasts, Fowl, and Fish, are free and common to any Person who can shoot or take them, without any lett, hinderance or Opposition whatsoever. There are among other various sorts of Frogs, the Bull- Frog, which makes a roaring noise, hardly to be distinguished from that well known of the Beast, from whom it takes its Name: There is another sort of Frog that crawls up to the tops of Trees, there seeming to imitate the Notes of several Birds, with many other strange and various Creatures, which would take up too much room here to mention. Next, I shall proceed to instance in the several sorts of Wild Fruits, as excellent Grapes, Red, Black, White, Muscadel, and Fox, which upon frequent Experience have produc'd Choice Wine, being daily Cultivated by skilful Vinerons; they will in a short space of time, have very good Liquor of their own, and some to supply their Neighbours, to their great ad vantage; as these Wines are more pure, so much more whol- som; the Brewing Trade of Sophisticating and Adulterating of Wines, as in England, Holland (especially) and in some other places not being known there yet, nor in all probability will it in many Years, through a natural Probity so fixed and im planted in the Inhabitants, and (I hope) like to continue. Wallnuts, Chesnuts, Filberts, Heckery-Nuts, Hartleberries, Mulberries, (white and black) Rasberries, Strawberries, Cram- berries, Plumbs of several sorts, and many other Wild Fruits, in great plenty, which are common and free for any to gather; to particularize the Names of them all, would take up too much time; tire, not gratifie the Reader, and be inconsistent with the intended Brevity of this little Volume. The common Planting Fruit-Trees, are Apples, which from 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 323 a Kernel (without Inoculating) will shoot up to be a large Tree, and produce very delicious, large, and pleasant Fruit, of which much excellent Cyder is made, in taste resembling that in England press'd from Pippins and Pearmains, sold commonly for between Ten and Fifteen Shillings per Barrel. Pears, Peaches, etc. of which they distil a Liquor much like the taste of Rumm, or Brandy, which they Yearly make in great quan tities: There are Quinces, Cherries, Goosberries, Currants, Squashes, Pumpkins, Water-Mellons, Muskmellons, and other Fruits in great Numbers, which seldom fail of yielding great plenty. There are also many curious and excellent Physical Wild Herbs, Roots, and Drags of great Vertue, and very sana tive, as the Sassafras, and Sarsaparilla, so much us'd in Diet- Drinks for the Cure of the Veneral Disease, which makes the Indians by a right application of them, as able Doctors and Surgeons as any in Europe, performing celebrated Cures there with, and by the use of some particular Plants only, find Rem edy in all Swellings, Burnings, Cuts, etc. There grows also in great plenty the Black Snake-Root, (fam'd for its sometimes preserving, but often curing the Plague, being infused only in Wine, Brandy or Rumm) Rattle-Snake-Root, Poke-Root, called in England Jallop, with several other beneficial Herbs, Plants and Roots, which Physicians have approved of, far ex ceeding in Nature and Vertue, those of other Countries. The Names of the Counties are as followeth; First, Phila delphia County; Second, Bucks County; Third, Chester County; Fourth, New-Castle County; Fifth, Kent County; Sixth, Sus sex County. The chiefest and most commodious places for raising To bacco, as also for Breeding and Improving all sorts of Cattle, are the Counties of Kent and New-Castle; the other chiefly depend upon Raising and Improving English Grain, of which they have a prodigious Encrease, which I have particularly instanced in the beginning of this Book, both as to their Quality and Quantity: All those Counties also very much abound in all sorts of Cattle, both small and great, for the Use and Service of Man. Their sorts of Grain are, Wheat, Rye, Pease, Oates, Barley, Buck- Wheat, Rice, Indian-Corn, Indian-Pease, and Beans, with great quantities of Hemp and Flax; as also several sorts of 324 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 eating Roots, as Turnips, Potatoes, Carrats, Parsnips, etc., all which are produc'd Yearly in greater quantities than in England, those Roots being much larger, and altogether as sweet, if not more delicious; Cucumbers, Coshaws, Artichokes, with many others; most sorts of Saladings, besides what grows naturally Wild in the Country, and that in great plenty also, as Mustard, Rue, Sage, Mint, Tanzy, Wormwood, Penny- Royal and Purslain, and most of the Herbs and Roots found in the Gardens in England. There are several Husband Men, who sow Yearly between Seventy and Eighty Acres of Wheat each, besides Barley, Oates, Rye, Pease, Beans, and other Grain. They have commonly Two Harvests in the Year; First, of English Wheat, and next of Buck, (or French) Wheat. They have great Stocks both of Hogs and Horses, kept in the Woods, out of which, I saw a Hog kill'd, of about a Year old, which weigh'd Two Hundred weight; whose Flesh is much sweeter, and even more luscious than that in England, because they feed and fatten on the rich (though wild) Fraits, besides those fatned at home by Peaches, Cherries and Apples. Their Horses are very hardy, insomuch that being very hot with riding or otherwise, they are tum'd out into the Woods at the same Instant, and yet receive no harm; some Farmers have Forty, some Sixty, and from that Number to Two or Three Hundred Head of Cattle : Their Oxen usually weigh Two Hundred Pound a Quarter. They are commonly fatter of Flesh, and yield more Tallow (by feeding only on Grass) than the Cattle in England. And for Sheep, they have considerable Numbers which are generally free from those infectious Diseases which are inci dent to those Creatures in England, as i;he Rot, Scab, or Mag gots; They commonly bring forth two Lambs at once, some twise in one Year, and the Wooll is very fine, and thick, and also very white. Bees thrive and multiply exceedingly in those Parts, the Sweeds often get great store of them in the Woods, where they are free for any Body. Honey (and choice too) is sold in the Capital City for Five Pence per Pound. Wax is also plentiful, cheap, and a considerable Commerce. Tame Fowls, as Chick ens, Hens, Geese, Ducks, Turkeys, etc., are large, and very plentiful all over this Countrey. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 325 And now for their Lots and Lands in City and Countrey, in their great Advancement since they were first laid out, which was within the compass of about Twelve Years, that which might have been bought for Fifteen or Eighteen Shil lings, is now sold for Fourscore Pounds in ready Silver; and some other Lots, that might have been then Purchased for Three Pounds, within the space of Two Years, were sold for a Hundred Pounds a piece, and likewise some Land that lies near the City, that Sixteen Years ago might have been Pur- chas'd for Six or Eight Pounds the Hundred Acres, cannot now be bought under One Hundred and Fifty, or Two Hundred Pounds. Now the true Reason why this Fruitful Countrey and Florishing City advance so considerably in the Purchase of Lands both in the one and the other, is their great and extended Traffique and Commerce both by Sea and Land, viz. to New- York, New-England, Virginia, Mary-Land, Carolina, Jamaica, Barbadoes, Nevis, Monserat, Antego,1 St. Cristophers, Bar- mudoes, New-Found-Land, Maderas, Saltetudeous, and Old- England; besides several other places. Their Merchandize chiefly consists in Horses, Pipe-Staves, Pork and Beef Salted and Barrelled up, Bread, and Flower, all sorts of Grain, Pease, Beans, Skins, Furs, Tobacco, or Pot-Ashes, Wax, etc., which are Barter'd for Rumm, Sugar, Molasses, Silver, Negroes, Salt, Wine, Linen, Houshold-Goods, etc. However there still remain Lots of Land both in the afore said City and Country, that any may Purchase almost as cheap as they could at the first Laying out or Parcelling of either City or Country; which is, (in the Judgment of most People) the likeliest to turn to account to those that lay their Money out upon it, and in a shorter time than the aforementioned Lots and Lands that are already improved, and for several Reasons. In the first place, the Countrey is now well inhabited by the Christians, who have great Stocks of all sorts of Cattle, that encrease extraordinarily, and upon that account they sare oblig'd to go farther up into the Countrey, because there is the chiefest and best place for their Stocks, and for them that go back into the Countrey, they get the richest Land, for the best lies thereabouts. 1 Antigua. 326 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 Secondly, Farther into the Countrey is the Principal Place to Trade with the Indians for all sorts of Pelt, as Skins and Furs, and also Fat Venison, of whom People may Purchase cheaper by three Parts in four than they can at the City of Philadelphia. Thirdly, Backwards in the Countrey lies the Mines where is Copper and Iron, besides other Metals, and Minerals, of which there is some Improvement made already in order to bring them, to greater Perfection; and that will be a means to erect more Inland Market-Towns, which exceedingly promote Traffick. Fourthly, and lastly, Because the Countrey at the first lay ing out, was void of Inhabitants (except the Heathens, or very few Christians not worth naming) and not many People caring to abandon a quiet and easie (at least tolerable) Life in their Native Countrey (usually the most agreeable to all Man kind) to seek out a new hazardous, and careful one in a Foreign Wilderness or Desart Countrey, wholly destitute of Christian Inhabitants, and even to arrive at which, they must pass over a vast Ocean, expos'd to some Dangers, and not a few Incon- veniencies: But now all those Cares, Fears and Hazards are ^vanished, for the Countrey is pretty well Peopled, and very ^nuch Improv'd, and will be more every Day, now the Dove is return'd with the Olive-branch of Peace in her Mouth. I must needs say, even the present Encouragements are very great and inviting, for Poor People (both Men and Women) of all kinds, can here get three times the Wages for their Labour they can in England or Wales. I shall instance in a few, which may serve; nay, and will hold in all the rest. The first was a Black-Smith (my next Neighbour), who himself and one Negro Man he had, got Fifty Shillings in one Day, by working up a Hundred Pound Weight of Iron, which at Six Pence per Pound (and that is the common Price in that Countrey) amounts to that Summ. And for Carpenters, both House and Ship, Brick-layers, Masons, either of these Trades-Men, will get between Five and Six Shillings every Day constantly. As to Journey-Men Shooe- Makers, they have Two Shillings per Pair both for Men and Womens Shooes: And Joumey-Men Taylors have Twelve Shillings per Week and their Diet. Sawyers get between 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 327 Six and Seven Shillings the Hundred for Cutting of Pine- Boards. And for Weavers, they have Ten or Twelve Pence the Yard for Weaving of that which is little more than half a Yard in breadth. Wooll-Combers, have for combing Twelve Pence per Pound. Potters have Sixteen Pence for an Earthen Pot which may be bought in England for Four Pence. Tanners may buy their Hides green for Three Half Pence per Pound, and sell their Leather for Twelve Pence per Pound. And Curriers have Three Shillings and Four Pence per Hide for Dressing it; they buy their Oyl at Twenty Pence per Gallon. Brick- Makers have Twenty Shillings per Thousand for their Bricks at the Kiln. Felt-Makers will have for their Hats Seven Shil lings a piece, such as may be bought in England for Two Shil lings a piece; yet they buy their Wooll commonly for Twelve or Fifteen Pence per Pound. And as to the Glaziers, they will have Five Pence a Quarry1 for their Glass. The Rule for the Coopers I have almost forgot ; but this I can affirm of some who went from Bristol (as their Neighbours report), that could hardly get their Livelihoods there, are now reckon'd in Pen silvania, by a modest Computation to be worth some Hun dreds (if not Thousands) of Pounds." The Bakers make as White Bread as any in London, and as for their Rule, it is the same in all Parts of the World that I have been in. The Butch ers for killing a Beast, have Five Shillings and their Diet; and they may buy a good fat large Cow for Three Pounds, or there abouts. The Brewers sell such Beer as is equal in Strength to that in London, half Ale and half Stout for Fifteen Shillings per Barrel; and their Beer hath a better Name, that is, is in more esteem than English Beer in Barbadoes, and is sold for a higher Price there. And for Silver-Smiths, they have be tween Half a Crown and Three Shillings an Ounce for working their Silver, and for Gold equivalent. Plasterers have com monly Eighteen Pence per Yard for Plastering. Last-Makers have Sixteen Shillings per dozen for their Lasts. And Heel- Makers have Two Shillings a dozen for their Heels. Wheel and Mill-Wrights, Joyners, Brasiers, Pewterers, Dyers, Fullers, Comb-Makers, Wyer-Drawers, Cage-Makers, Card-Makers, Painters, Cutlers, Rope-Makers, Carvers, Block-Makers, Turn ers, Button-Makers, Hair and Wood Sieve-Makers, Bodies- 1 A square or lozenge-shaped pane of glass. 328 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 Makers, Gun-Smiths, Lock-Smiths, Nailers, File-Cuters, Skin ners, Furriers, Glovers, Patten-Makers, Watch-Makers, Clock- Makers, Sadlers, Coller-Makers, Barbers, Printers, Book- Binders, and all other Trades-Men, their Gains and Wages are about the same proportion as the forementioned Trades in their Advancements, as to what they have in England. Of Lawyers and Physicians I shall say nothing, because this Countrey is very Peaceable and Healty; long may it so continue and never have occasion for the Tongue of the one, nor the Pen of the other, both equally destructive to Mens Estates and Lives; besides forsooth, they, Hang-Man like, have a License to Murder and make Mischief. Labouring- Men have commonly here, between 14 and 15 Pounds a Year, and their Meat, Drink, Washing and Lodging; and by the Day their Wages is generally between Eighteen Pence and Half a Crown, and Diet also; But in Harvest they have usually between Three and Four Shillings each Day, and Diet. The Maid Servants Wages is commonly betwixt Six and Ten Pounds per Annum, with very good Accommodation. And for the Women who get their Livelihood by their own Industry, their Labour is very dear, for I can buy in London a Cheese-Cake for Two Pence, bigger than theirs at that price when at the same time their Milk is as cheap as we can buy it in London, and their Flour cheaper by one half. Com and Flesh, and what else serves Man for Drink, Food and Rayment, is much cheaper here than in England, or else where; but the chief reason why Wages of Servants of all sorts is much higher here than there, arises from the great Fertility and Produce of the Place; besides, if these large Stipends were refused them, they would quickly set up for themselves, for they can have Provision very cheap, and Land for a very small matter, or next to nothing in comparison of the Purchace of Lands in England; and the Farmers there, can better afford to give that great Wages than the Farmers in England can, for several Reasons very obvious. Aa First, their Land costs them (as I said but just now) little or nothing in comparison, of which the Farmers com monly will get twice the encrease of Corn for every Bushel they sow, that the Farmers in England can from the richest Land they have. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 329 In the Second place, they have constantly good price for their Com, by reason of the great and quick vent J into Bar badoes and other Islands; through which means Silver is become more plentiful than here in England, considering the Number of People, and that causes a quick Trade for both Com and Cattle; and that is the reason that Com2 differs now from the Price formerly, else it would be at half the Price it was at then; for a Brother of mine (to my own particular knowledge) sold within the compass of one Week, about One Hundred and Twenty fat Beasts, most of them good handsom large Oxen. Thirdly, They pay no Tithes, and their Taxes are incon siderable; the Place is free for all Persuasions, in a Sober and Civil way; for the Church of England and the Quakers bear equal Share in the Government. They live Friendly and Well together; there is no Persecution for Religion, nor ever like to be; 'tis this that knocks all Commerce on the Head, together with high Imposts, strict Laws, and cramping Orders. Before I end this Paragraph, I shall add another Reason why Womens Wages are so exorbitant; they are not yet very numerous, which makes them stand upon high Terms for their several Services, in Sempstering, Washing, Spinning, Knitting, Sew ing, and in all the other parts of their Imployments; for they have for Spinning either Worsted or Linen, Two Shillings a Pound, and commonly for Knitting a very Course pair of Yarn Stockings, they have half a Crown a pair; moreover they are usually Marry 'd before they are Twenty Years of Age, and when once in that Noose, are for the most part a little uneasie, and make their Husbands so too, till they procure them a Maid Servant to bear the burden of the Work, as also in some meas ure to wait on them too. It is now time to return to the City of Brotherly-Love (for so much the Greek Word or Name Philadelphia imports) which though at present so obscure, that neither the Map- Makers, nor Geographers have taken the least notice of her, tho she far exceeds her Namesake of Lydia,3 (having above ' Sale. 2 Grain. 2 Philadelphia in Lydia, Asia Minor. A marginal note in the original reads: "Three German Miles from Smyrna." 330 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 Two Thousand l Noble Houses for her Five Hundred Ordinary) or Celisia, or Caelesyria; yet in a very short space of time she will, in all probability, make a fine Figure in the World, and be a most Celebrated Emporeum. Here is lately built a Noble Town-House or Guild-Hall, also a Handsom Market- House, and a convenient Prison.3 The Number of Christians both Old and Young Inhabiting in that Countrey, are by a Modest Computation, adjudged to amount to above Twenty Thousand.3 The Laws of this Countrey, are the same with those in Eng land; our Constitution being on the same Foot: Many Dis putes and Differences are determined and composed by Arbi tration; and all Causes are decided with great Care and Expe dition, being concluded (generally) at furthest at the Second Court, unless they happen to be very Nice and Difficult Cases; under Forty Shillings any one Justice of the Peace has Power to Try the Cause. Thieves of all sorts, are oblig'd to restore four fold after they have been Whipt and Imprison'd, accord ing to the Nature of their Crime; and if they be not of Ability to restore four fold, they must be in Servitude till 'tis satisfied. They have Curious Wharfs as also several large and fine Tim ber- Yards, both at Philadelphia, and New-Castle, especially at the Metropolis, before Robert Turner's Great and Famous House, where are built Ships of considerable Burthen; they Cart their Goods from that Wharf into the City of Philadelphia, under an Arch, over which part of the Street is built, which is called Chesnut-Street- Wharf,4 besides other Wharfs, as High- Street Wharf, Mulberry Street Wharf, and Vine-Sreet Wharf, and all those are Common Wharfs; and likewise there are very pleasant Stairs, as Tras5 and Carpenter-Stairs," besides 1 This number doubtless is an exaggeration. 2 The prison was in the centre of High (now Market) Street, a short distance east of Second Street. "The Cage," a small jail, built in 1683, was still stand ing at the intersection of High and Second streets. 8 Probably an excessive estimate for that period. * An error; Robert Turner's wharf was at Mulberry (now Arch) Street 'Tresse's Stairs, built by Thomas Tresse from the bank or bluff of Front Street down to King Street between High (now Market) and Mulberry (now Arch) streets. 8 Carpenter's Stairs, built by Samuel Carpenter from Front to King Street, between Chestnut and Walnut streets. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 331 several others. There are above Thirty Carts belonging to that City, Four or Five Horses to each. There is likewise a very convenient Wharf called Carpenter's Wharf,1 which hath a fine necessary Crain belonging to it, with suitable Granaries, and Store-Houses. A Ship of Two Hundred Tun may load and unload by the side of it, and there are other Wharfs (with Magazines and Ware-Houses) which front the City all along the River, as also a Curious and Commodious Dock2 with a Draw-Bridge to it, for the convenient Reception of Vessels; where have been built some Ships of Two or Three Hundred Tuns each: They have very Stately Oaks to build Ships with, some of which are between Fifty and Sixty Foot long, and clear from Knots, being very straight and well Grain'd. In this famous City of Philadelphia there are several Rope-Makers, who have large and curious Rope- Walks especially one Joseph Wilcox.3 Also Three or Four Spacious Malt-Houses, as many large Brew-Houses, and many handsom Bake-Houses for Pub lick Use. In the said City are several good Schools of Learning for Youth, in order to the Attainment of Arts and Sciences, as also Reading, Writing, etc. Here is to be had on any Day in the Week, Tarts, Pies, Cakes, etc. We have also several Cooks-Shops, both Roasting and Boyling, as in the City of London; Bread, Beer, Beef, and Pork, are sold at any time much cheaper than in England (which arises from their Plenty) our Wheat is very white and clear from Tares, making as good and white Bread as any in Europe. Happy Blessings, for which we owe the highest Gratitude to our Plentiful Provider, the great Creator of Heaven and Earth. The Water-Mills far exceed those in England, both for quickness and grinding good Meal, their being great choice of good Timber, and earlier Com than in the aforesaid Place, they are made by one Peter Deal,4 a Famous and Ingenious Workman, especially for in venting such like Machines. All sorts of very good Paper are made in the German-Town; as also very fine German Linen, such as no Person of Quality ' See p. 261, notes 1 and 2, supra. 2 1, e., Dock Creek. 3 Joseph Wilcox, previously mentioned as having succeeded to his father's rope-walk at the north end of the town. He was mayor in 1706. 4 Peter Daile (d. 1703) of Pennypack Mills in 1703. 332 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 need be asham'd to wear; and in several places they make very good Druggets, Crapes, Camblets, and Serges, besides other Woollen Cloathes, the Manufacture of all which daily improves: And in most parts of the Countrey there are many Curious and Spacious Buildings, which several of the Gentry have erected for their Country-Houses. As for the Fruit- Trees they Plant, they arrive at such Perfection, that they bear in a little more than half the time that they commonly do in England. The Christian Children bom here are generally well-fa voured, and Beautiful to behold; I never knew any come into the World with the least blemish on any part of its Body, being in the general, observ'd to be better Natur'd, Milder, and more tender Hearted than those born in England. There are very fine and delightful Gardens and Orchards, in most parts of this Countrey; but Edward Shippey1 (who lives near the Capital City) has an Orchard and Gardens ad- joyning to his Great House that equalizes (if not exceeds) any I have ever seen, having a very famous and pleasant Summer- House erected in the middle of his extraordinary fine and large Garden abounding with Tulips, Pinks, Carnations, Roses, (of several sorts) Lilies, not to mention those that grow wild in the Fields. Reader, what I have here written, is not a Fiction, Flam, Whim, or any sinister Design, either to impose upon the Ig norant, or Credulous, or to curry Favour with the Rich and Mighty, but in meer Pity and pure Compassion to the Num bers of Poor Labouring Men, Women, and Children in England, half starv'd, visible in their meagre looks, that are continually wandering up and down looking for Employment without finding any, who here need not lie idle a moment, nor want due Encouragement or Reward for their Work, much less Vaga- ' Edward Shippen (1639-1712), a wealthy Quaker merchant, mayor, speaker of assembly, chief justice, and president of the provincial council when it was vested with the deputy governorship. Bom in Methley, Yorkshire, England, he removed to Boston, Massachusetts, in 1668 and thence to Philadelphia in 1693- 1694. His "Great House," which was on Second Street, north of Spruce, and overlooked Dock Creek and the river beyond, was occupied for a time in 1699 by William Penn and his family at their first arrival on the occasion of the Proprietor's second visit to his province. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 333 bond or Drone it about. Here are no Beggars to be seen (it is a Shame and Disgrace to the State that there are so many in England) nor indeed have any here the least Occasion or Temp tation to take up that Scandalous Lazy Life. Jealousie among Men is here very rare, and Barrenness among Women hardly to be heard of, nor are old Maids to be met with; for all commonly Marry before they are Twenty Years of Age, and seldom any young Married Woman but hath a Child in her Belly, or one upon her Lap. What I have deliver'd concerning this Province, is indis putably true, I was an Eye-Witness to it all, for I went in the first Ship that was bound from England for that Countrey, since it received the Name of Pensilvania, which was in the Year 1681. The Ship's Name was the John and Sarah of London, Henry Smith Commander.1 I have declin'd giving any Account of several things which I have only heard others speak of, because I did not see them my self, for I never held that way infallible, to make Reports from Hear-say. I saw the first Cellar when it was digging for the use of our Govemour Will. Penn.2 I shall now haste to a Conclusion, and only hint a little concerning the Natives or Aborigines, their Persons, Language, Manners, Religion and Government; Of Person they are ordi narily Tall, Straight, well-turn 'd, and true Proportion'd; their Tread strong and clever, generally walking with a lofty Chin. Of Complexion Black, but by design, Gypsie-like, greasing themselves with Bears-Fat Clarified, and using no defence against the Injuries of the Sun and Weather, their Skins fail not to be Swarthy. Their Eyes are small and black. Thick Lips and flat Noses so frequent with Negroes and East Indians, 1 Of 100 tons burden. She departed from London in October, 1681, and arrived in Pennsylvania before December 15. 2 Governor William Penn's house, built in 1682 in the centre of a large lot between Front, High (Market), and Second streets, patented in 1701 to his daughter Laetitia. After his first visit (1682-1684) the house was occupied by some of the provincial offices for several years, the council meeting there. Robert Turner's letter of 1685 (see p. 269, ante), stating that his house, built the year previously, was the first brick house erected in Philadelphia, would seem to dis credit the generally accepted view that the so-called Laetitia House, the brick structure in Fairmount Park, removed thither from the above lot some years ago, is the house built for Penn in 1682. 334 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 are rare with them. They have Comely Faces and Tolerable Complexions, some of their Noses having a rise like the Roman. Their Language is Lofty and Elegant, but not Copious; One Word serveth in the stead of Three, imperfect and un- grammatical, which defects are supply'd by the Understanding of the Hearers. Sweet, of Noble Sound and Accent. Take here a Specimen. Hodi hita nee huska a peechi, nee, machi Pensilvania huska dogwachi, keshow a peechi Nowa, huska hayly, Chetena koon peo. Thus in English. Farewel Friend, I will very quickly go to Pensilvania, very cold Moon will come presently, And very great hard frosts will come quickly. I might Treat largely of their Customs and Manners, but that will not agree with my proposed Brevity. As soon as their Children are bom, they wash them in cold Water, especially in cold Weather. To harden and embolden them, they plunge them in the River, they find their Feet early, usually at Nine Months they can go. The Boys Fish till Fifteen, then Hunt, and having given proof of their Man hood, by a large return of Skins, they may Marry (else 'tis a shame to think of a Wife) which is usually at the Age of Seven teen or Eighteen; the Girls stay with their Mothers, and help to hoe the Ground, Plant Com, bear Burdens, and Marry about Thirteen or Fourteen. Their Houses are Marts, or Barks of Trees set on Poles, Barn-like, not higher than a Man, so not expos'd to Winds. They lie upon Reeds or Grass. In Travel they lodge in the Woods about a great Fire, with the Mantle of Duffils they wear wrapt about them, and a few Boughs stuck round them. They live chiefly on Maze, or Indian Corn rosted in the Ashes, sometimes beaten and boyl'd with Water, called Homine. They have Cakes, not unpleasant; also Beans and Pease, which Nourish much, but the Woods and Rivers afford them their Provision; they eat Morning and Evening; their Seats and 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 335 Tables are the Ground; they are reserv'd, apt to resent and retain long: Their Women are Chaste (at least after Marriage) and when with Child, will not admit of their Husbands Em braces any more till Deliver'd. Exceeding Liberal and Gen erous; Kind and Affable; uneasie in Sickness, to remedy which, they drink a Decoction of Roots in Spring- Water, for bearing Flesh, which if they happen to eat, it must be the Fe male; they commonly bury their Kettles and part of their Goods with their Friends when they die, suspecting (poor Souls) they shall make use of them again at the Resurrection. They Mourn a whole Year, but it is no other than blacking their Faces. Their Government is Monarchical, and Successive, and ever of the Mothers (the surest) side, to prevent a Spurious Issue. The Distaff (as in France) is excluded the Regal In heritance. Their Princes are Powerful, yet do nothing with out the Concurrence of their Senate, or Councils, consisting chiefly of Old, but mixt with Young Men: slow and deliberate (Spaniard-like) in resolving, naturally wise, and hardly to be out-witted. Their Punishments are Pecuniary. Murder may be aton'd for by Feasts and Presents, in Proportion to the Quality of the Offence, Person, or Sex injur'd; for if a Woman be kill'd, the Mulct is double, because she brings forth Children. They seldom quarel, when Sober, and if Boozy, (which of late they are more apt to be, having leam'd to drink, a little too much Rum of the Christians, to their shame) they readily pardon it, alledging the Liquor is Criminal not the Man. The way of Worship the Sweeds use in this Countrey, is the Lutheran; the English have four sorts of Assemblies or Religious Meetings here: as first, The Church of England, who built a very fine Church in the City of Philadelphia in the Year 1695.1 Secondly, the Anabaptists:2 Thirdly, the Presbyterians, and two sorts of Quakers (of all the most numerous by much) one Party held with George Keith;3 but whether both Parties 1 The site now occupied by Old Christ Church. 2 Baptists. 5 George Keith (1639 ?-1714), a Scotchman, probably native of Aberdeen shire, holding the degree of M. A. from the University of Aberdeen, originally a rigid Presbyterian but by 1664 a persecuted Quaker minister, one of the ablest and most active of the age of Penn and Barclay, a companion of Penn and Fox in the tour of Germany in 1677, had removed to New Jersey in 1684-1685, serving 336 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 will joyn together again in one I cannot tell, for that Gentle man hath alter'd his Judgment since he came to England, con cerning his Church-Orders in Pensilvania, by telling and shew ing them Precepts that were lawful in the time of the Law, but forbidden under the Gospel to pay Tithes, or Ministers to Preach for Hire, etc. As also to sprinkle Infants; and he tells the Presbyterian Minister, That he must go to the Pope of Rome for his Call, for he had no Scripture for it, and that Water-Baptism and the Outward Supper are not of the Nature of the Everlasting Gospel; nor essential Parts of it, see his Truth Advanced page 173. He gives likewise a strict Charge concerning plain Language and plain Habit, and that they should not be concem'd in the compelling part of the Worldly Government, and that they should set their Negroes at Liberty after some reasonable time of Service; likewise, they should not take the Advantage of the Law against one another, as to procure them any Corporeal Punishment : These Orders he tells his Followers, would make Distinction between them and Jews and Moral Heathens, this was in the Year 1693. in Pensilvania: But now the Year 1697. since he came to England, his Judg ment is chang'd, for he tells his Disciples, that Water-Baptism is come in the room of Circumcision; and by so doing, they would distinguish themselves from either Jews, Pagans or as surveyor-general of East Jersey and in 1687 locating the boundary line between the east and west divisions of that province. Coming to Philadelphia in 1689 he had served but a year as teacher of the Friends' School when his restless and aggressive spirit began to stir up trouble among the Friends. Feeling himself leader of the denomination in America he was offended by the disregard by the Philadelphia Friends of his proposed amendments to the code of "discipline" of the Society. He questioned the orthodoxy of leading ministers and importuned for a confession of faith. A ready writer and a keen polemic he raised a bitter doctrinal controversy with stormy disputations and a pamphlet war which dis rupted the Society for a time, and was largely responsible for Penn's loss of his province, 1693-1694. Keith was expelled from die Society, but not before he had drawn to his side a considerable body of followers, including a few men of prominence. He formed a separate body of "Keithites," which in breaking up resulted in the growth of the Baptist denomination and the establishment of the oldest Episcopal churches. He returned to England in 1693 and in 1700 re ceived ordination in the Church of England. He revisited this country in 1702 upon a special mission of reclaiming the Quakers to the mother church. After two years he went back to England and was given the small living of Edburton in Sussex, where he ended his days as an Episcopal clergyman. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 337 Moral Heathens: He keeps his Meeting once a Week at Turn ers-Hall in Fill-Pot-Lane, London, on Sundays in the After noon; he begins between Two and Three of the Clock and com monly ends between Four and Five. Friendly Reader, by this thou mayst see how wavering and mutable Men of great Outward Learning are, if the Truth of this be by any Body question'd, let them look in the Creed, and the Paper against Christians being concem'd in Worldly Government, and the Paper concerning Negroes, that was given forth by the Appointment of the Meeting held by George Keith at Philip James's House in the City of Philadelphia, in Pensilvania; and his Letter also in Mary-Land against the Presbyterian Catechism, Printed at Boston in New-England in 1695. with the Answer to it bound up together in one Book and in Truth Advanced, page 173. And for what relates to him since in England, let them look into the Quakers Argument Re futed, Concerning Water-Baptism and the Lord's Supper, page 70. And now Reader, I shall take my leave of thee, recom mending thee with my own self to the Directions of the Spirit of God in our Conscience, and that will agree with all the Holy Scriptures in its right place; and when we find our selves so, we have no need to take any Thought or Care what any Body shall say of us. The End of the History of Pensilvania. 338 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 An Historical Description of the Province and Country of West- New-Jersey in America. A short View of their Laws, Customs and Religion: As also the Temperament of the Air and Climate; The fatness of the Soil, with the vast Produce of Rice, etc. The Improvement of their Lands (as in England) to Pasture. Meadows, etc. Their making great quantities of Pitch and Tar, as also Turpentine, which proceeds from the Pine Trees, with Rozen as clear as Gum- Arabick, with particular Remarks upon their Towns, Fairs and Markets; with the great Plenty of Oyl and Whale-Bone made from the great number of Whales they yearly take: As also many other Profitable and New Improvements. Never made Publick till now. By Gabriel Thomas. London: Printed in the year 1698. To the Right Honourable Sir John Moor, Sir Thomas Lane, Knights and Aldermen of the City of London, and to the rest of the Worthy Members of the West-Jersey Proprietors. Worthy Friends, To whom can the History of West. Jersey with more Justice pertain, than to you the Noble and Generous Proprietors. That was the chief Motive that inclin'd me to this Dedication, which I hope will be the more acceptable to you, because the Account of that Country is so Sincere and Candid. I have endeavour'd (by setting forth) the great Encourage ments there are) to persuade the Poor, the Idle, the Lazy, and the Vagabonds of these Kingdoms and of Wales to hasten thither, that they may live plentifully and happily, and I doubt not but they will hearken to it, because it is their true Interest. I have done my best endeavours to possess them and others of the great Fertility and Plenty in those Parts, which I need not repeat to you, who must needs be well ac quainted with the State of that Place. That it may Flourish and mightily tend to your Advantage, as also to the Benefit of England, the hearty desire of your Friend, Gabriel Thomas. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 339 The Preface to the Reader. Courteous Reader, My Chief Design in writing this short Account of West- New-Jersey, is to inform all (but especially the Poor) what Ample and Happy Livelihoods People may gain in those Parts, whereby they may subsist very well without either Begging or Stealing, for if they Steal, they are Whipt, and oblig'd to pay Four Fold; and if they are not of Ability to do that, they must abide in Servitude till they have made Satisfaction to the in- jur'd Person: And if they should be Lazy and turn to Beg, they will get nothing by that Base and Scandalous Imploy- ment; But if they be so Poor that they have not of their own to supply their Wants and Necessities, nor are able to Work, they will have no need to Beg, for People out of their own free Compassion and pure Charity will relieve them in their Ne cessities. Now if this were all, (though it is not) it wou'd be a sufficient Encouragement to the Idle, the Sloathful, and the Vagabonds of England, Scotland, and Ireland to hasten thither, where besides this, they have a fair prospect of getting con siderable Estates, at least of living very Plentifully and Hap pily, which Medium of Life is far better than lingering out their Days so miserably Poor and half Starved; or Whipping, Burn ing, and Hanging for Villanies, they will have little Tempta tion, nay or Inclination to perpetrate here. The French Ref ugees or Protestant People, wou'd soon find it their Interest to remove thither, where they wou'd live far better than in Germany, Holland, Ireland or England. Written by one who earnestly wisheth thy Wellfare and Prosperity in the ways of the Lord, and then thou canst not do amiss in this World. Gab. Thomas. 340 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 The History of West-New-Jersey. West-New-Jersey lies between the Latitude of Forty, and Forty two Degrees;1 having the Main Sea on the South, East- Jersey on the North, Hudson's2 Bay on the East, and Pensil vania on the West. The first Inhabitants of this Countrey were the Indians, being supposed to be part of the Ten dispersed Tribes of Israel; for indeed they are very like the Jews in their Persons, and something in their Practices and Worship, for they (as the Pensilvanian Indians) observe the New Moons with great De votion, and Reverence: And their first Fraits they offer, with their Corn and Hunting-Game they get in the whole Year, to a False Deity or Sham-God, whom they must please, else (as they fancy) many Misfortunes will befal them, and great In juries will be done them. When they bury their Dead, they put into the Ground with them some House-Utensils, and some Money, (as Tokens of their Love and Affection) with other Things, expecting they shall have Occasion for them again in the other World. And if a Person of Note dies very far from the Place of his own Residence they will carry his Bones home some considerable time after, to be buried there. They are also very curious, nay, even nice in preserving and repairing the Graves of their Dead. They do not love to be asked twice their Judgment about one Thing. They are a People who gen erally delight much in Mirth, and are very studious in observ ing the Vertues of Roots and Herbs, by which they cure them selves of many Distempers in their Bodies, both internal or external. iThey will not suffer their Beards to grow; for they will pluck the Hair off with their own Fingers as soon as they can get hold of it, holding it great Deformity to have a Beard. They are very loving to one another; for if three or four of them come into a Christian's House, and the Master of it 1 West New Jersey extended from Cape May on the south in about 39° N. to what was called, by the deed of agreement of 1676, the northernmost branch of the Delaware River. The line of division between West and East New Jersey — although a subject of dispute — ran from the latter point on the Delaware southeasterly to Little Egg Harbor. 2 On the east of East Jersey but not of West Jersey. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 341 happen to give one of them Victuals, and none to the rest, he will divide it into equal Shares among them: And they are also very kind and civil to any of the Christians; for I my self have had Victuals cut by them in their Cabbins, before they took any for themselves. Their chief Imployment is in Hunt ing, Fishing, and Fowling, and making Canows, or Indian Boats, and Bowls, in all which Arts they are very dexterous and ingenious: Their Womens Business chiefly consists in planting of Indian Com, and pounding it to Meal, in Mortars, with Pestils, (as we beat our Spice) and make Bread, and dress their Victuals, which they perform very neatly and cleanlily. They also make Indian Mats, Ropes, Hats, and Baskets (some of curious Workmanship) of their Hemp, which there grows wild, and Natural, in the Woods, in great Plenty. In short, the Women are very ingenious in their several Imployments as well as the Men. Their Young Maids are naturally very modest and shamefac'd: And their young Women when newly married, are very nice and shy, and will not suffer the Men to talk of any immodest or lascivious Matters. Their Houses are, for the most part, cover'd with Chesnutt Bark, but very close, and warm, insomuch that no Rain can go through. Their Age in Computation may be compared with the Christians. Their wearing Habit is commonly Deer-Skins, or Duffles. They don't allow of mentioning the Name of a Friend after his Death; for at his Decease, they make their Face black all over with black Lead; and when their Affairs go well with them, they paint their Faces with red Lead, it being a Token of their Joy, as the other is of their Grief. They are great Observers of the Weather by the Moon. They take great De light in Cloaths of various Colours. And are so punctual that if any go from their first Offer or Bargain with them, it will be very difficult for that Party to get any Dealings with them any more, or to have any farther Converse with them; And moreover it is worthy of Remark, that when a Company of them are got together, they never interrupt or contradict one another, 'till two of them have made an end of their Dis course; for if never so many be in Company only two must discourse at a time, and the rest must keep Silence. The English and they live very peaceably, by reason the English satisfies them for their Land. 342 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 As to the manner of their Language, it is high and lofty, with a Short Sentence. Their way of counting is by Tens, as to say Two Tens, Three Tens, Four Tens, Five Tens, etc. I shall now proceed to show something of the manner and way of Discourse that happens between them and the Neigh bouring Christians that use to deal and traffick with them, or when they meet one another in the Woods accidentally, one a looking for his Cartel, and the other a Hunting the Wild Deer, or other Game, by way of Questions and Answers. I shall put the Indian Tongue on one side of the Leaf, and the English just opposite. Their Discourse is as followeth. The Indian Tongue. Quest. Hitah takoman? Answ. Andogowa nee week- m. Quest. Tony andogowa kee weekin? Answ. Arwaymouse. Quest. Keco kee hatah kee weekin? Answ. Nee hatah huska wees youse og huska chetena chase og huska orit chekenip. Quest. Chingo kee beto nee chase og youse etka chekenip. Answ. Hadopa etka nisha kishquicka. Quest. Keco kee hata kee weekin? Answ. Nee hata orit poonk og huska horit haloons etka nesket og marchkec ochqueon. The English of it. Quest. Friend, from whence com'st? Answ. Yonder. Quest. Where yonder? Answ. My House. Quest. Where is thy House? Answ. Arwaymouse, which is the Name of an In dian Town. Quest. What hast got in thy House? Answ. I have very fat Veni son, and good strong Skins, with very good Turkeys. Quest. When wilt thou bring me Skins and Venison, with Turkeys? Answ. To morrow, or two days hence. Quest. What hast thou got in thy House? Answ. I have good Powder, and very good Shot, with red and blue Machcots.1 1 Match-coats, made of match-cloth, a coarse kind of woollen cloth. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 343 (0 huskia orit.) Quest. Kee namen neskec kabay og marchkec moos etka opeg megis? Answ. Mata namen megis nee namen neskec kabay un- dogwa tekany. Quest. Kee namen march kec moos undogwa tekeny? Answ. Mogy. Quest. Kee squa og eny- chan hatah? Answ. Mogy. Quest. Kacha hatah? Answ. Neo. Quest. Benoingtid etka squatid? Answ. Nisha benointid og nisha squatid. Quest. Tongtid enychan ha tah? Answ. Mogy. Quest. Etka aroosise? Answ. Neo kishow. Quest. Etka aroosise kee? Answ. Pelenacheenckan ka- tingan aroosis. (Very well.) Quest. Did'st thou see black Horses and red Cows, with white Sheep? Answ. I saw no Sheep: I did see black Horses yonder in the Woods? Quest. Did'st see red Cows yonder in the Woods? Answ. Yes. Quest. Hast thou a Wife and Children? Answ. Yes. Quest. How many hast? Answ. Four. Quest. Boys or Girls? Answ. Two Boys and two Girls. Quest. Hast got a young Quid? Answ.Quest.Answ. Quest.Answ. Yes. How old? Four months. How old art thou? Fifty years old. In the next Place I shall give an account of their way in counting or numbering; which is as followeth. The Indian Counting. Kooty, nisha, nacha, neo, pelenach, Kootash, nishash, choesh, peskonk, telen. Nishinchkan, nachinchkan, neochinchkan, pelenchinch- kan. The English of it. One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten. Twenty, Thirty, Forty, Fif ty, etc. 344 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1675 The Names of some of the Indians. Anachkooting, Bussabenating, Okonycan, Potasko, Quin- damen, Lames, Alpoongan, Kohonk, Hiton, Temeny. The Dutch and Sweeds inform us that they are greatly de creased in number to what they were when they came first into this Country: And the Indians themselves say, that two of them die to every one Christian that comes in here. Reader, I shall not insist any farther upon this Subject, because what is deficient or short here, is inserted already in the preceding History of Pensilvania; for the Natives both of that, as well as of this Country, speak the same Language, and live after the same manner; for my chief aim, in the next place, is to ac quaint thee how, and after what manner the Christians live there. And I hope I have pleased thee so far, as it may prove a means to encourage me to give a larger Description here after. The next who came there were the Dutch; which was be tween Forty and Fifty Years agoe,1 though they made but very little Improvement, only built Two or Three Houses, upon an Island (called since by the English) Stacies-Island; 2 and it remained so, till about the Year 1675, in which King Charles the Second (or the Duke of York, his Brother) gave the Coun trey to Edward Billing,3 in whose time, one Major Fenwick 4 1 At least seventy-five years before. 2 Matinneconk, Stacys, or Burlington Island of about 400 acres in the Dela ware River, just opposite Burlington, New Jersey. It is mentioned in the records of the Swedes and Dutch on the Delaware. Peter Jegou, a Frenchman, seems to have acquired it about 1668. In 1678 Robert Stacy, one of the Yorkshire com missioners, leased it from Governor Andros for seven years. In 1682 it was vested in the town of Burlington for the support of education. ' Edward Byllynge, who did not acquire West New Jersey directly from Charles II. or James, the Duke of York, about 1675, nor yet so simply as Thomas states, but by the more involved chain of title, with consequent disputes: (1) Charles II., the whole of New Jersey to the Duke, at the English conquest of New Netherland, in 1664; (2) the Duke, the same to his favorites Berkeley and Carteret, in 1664; (3) Berkeley, his moiety, West New Jersey, to John Fenwick, in 1674, intrust, as later alleged, for Byllynge. Cf. pp. 179, 180, ante. 4 Major John Fenwick (1618-1684), the Quaker founder of Salem and Fen- wick's colony, the first permanent English settlement in West Jersey, in 1675, was the second son of William Fenwick (1581-1647), of Stanton Hall, lord of a 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 345 went thither, with some others, and built a pretty Town, and call'd it Salam;1 and in a few Years2 after a Ship3 from London, and another4 from Hull, sail'd thither with more People, who went higher up into the Countrey, and built there a Town, and called it Burlington, which is now the chiefest Town in that Countrey, though Salam is the ancientest; and a fine Market- Town it is, having several Fairs kept yearly in it; likewise well furnished with good store of most Necessaries for humane Support, as Bread, Beer, Beef, and Pork; as also Butter and Cheese, of which they freight several Vessels, and send them to Barbadoes, and other Islands. There are very many fine stately Brick-Houses built, and a commodious Dock for Vessels to come in at, and they claim equal Privilege with Burlington for the sake of Antiquity; tho' that is the principal Place, by reason that the late Governor manor in Northumberland. He studied law at Gray's Inn, London, 1639-1640, and perhaps longer; was described in 1649 as a member for several years of John Goodwin's Independent congregation in London, established in 1645; as early as 1648 he had married Elizabeth (d. about 1655), daughter of Sir Walter Covert, knight of Slaugham, Sussex, and was located as a fanner dealing extensively in sheep on an estate at Brockham, in Surrey. About this time he was commissioned as major in the army of Parliament, but it is not clear that he saw much military service. In 1652 he entered upon an additional estate at Worminghurst, in the adjacent county of Sussex — to which he changed his residence — possibly as the tenant of Gulielma Maria Springett, then aged eight, who had inherited from her father, Sir William Springett, Worminghurst Place, the most important house with large park and considerable lands in that parish, later (1677) the home of her and her husband, William Penn. In 1662 Fenwick had taken a second wife, Mary Burdett, and had become a Quaker. In 1674 (March 18, 1673/4) he made the purchase of West New Jersey from Sir John Berkeley for £1,000. In the subsequent settlement of the dispute with Edward Byllynge over the sale, effected through the mediation of William Penn, Fenwick in 1675 (February 10, 1674/5) relinquished to Byllynge's assignees nine-tenths of his purchase. The other tenth he retained and during the succeeding five months was busily en gaged in exploiting its sale and in arranging to emigrate. Having disposed of over 150,000 acres, in tracts of from 500 to 20,000 acres, to about fifty purchasers, chiefly in London, he set sail from London late in July, 1675, in the ship Griffin. with a colony of about 150 persons, including his three daughters and ten ser vants. He arrived at the site of Salem in September of the same year, laid out the town and for the remainder of his life was concerned with the development of his colony. 1 Salem. 2 In 1677. 3 The Kent, Gregory Marlow, master. 4 The Martha. 346 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 Cox,1 who bought that Countrey of Edward Billing, encouraged and promoted that Town chiefly, in settling his Agents and Deputy-Governors there, (the same Favours are continued by the New-West-Jersey2 Society, who now manage Matters there) which brings their .Assemblies and chief Courts to be kept there; and, by that means it is become a very famous Town, having a great many stately Brick-Houses in it, (as I said before) with a delicate great Market-House, where they keep their Market: It hath a noble and spacious Hall over-head, where their Sessions is kept, having the Prison adjoining to it. Likewise in the said Town there are very many fine Wharfs and large Timber- Yards, Malt-Houses, Brew-Houses, Bake- Houses; and most sorts of Trades-Men (whose Wages are upon the same Foot with the Pensilvanians), viz. Cloath-Workers, who make very good Serges, Druggets, Crapes, Camblets (part Silk or Worsted, and part Camels Hair), and good Plushes, with several other Woollen Cloathes, besides Linnen. There are many Fair and Great Brick Houses on the out side of the Town which the Gentry have built there for their Countrey Houses, besides the Great and Stately Palace of John Tateham Esq; 3 which is pleasantly Situated on the North side of the Town, having a very fine and delightful Garden and Orchard adjoyning to it, wherein is variety of Fruits, Herbs, 'Daniel Coxe (1641-1730), M.D., Cambridge, 1669, of London, physi cian to the queen of Charles II., and to Queen Anne, member of the Royal Society, before which he read papers, was a large landed proprietor in the colonies and, although he never came over, was one of the foremost promoters of undertakings there. In 1687, after the death of Byllynge (d. 1685) he acquired the latter's interest in West New Jersey and became the governor. He moved the seat of government to Burlington, started whale and cod fisheries, and initiated other helpful enterprises in the province. In 1692 he sold his West New Jersey prop erty to the West New Jersey Society. 2 The West New Jersey Society, to whose officers and members Thomas in scribes this History of West-New-Jersey, consisted of about forty-eight members, largely non-Quaker London merchants with head-quarters in London. The Society purchased West Jersey from Dr. Coxe in 1692, and governed it until 1702, when the whole of New Jersey became a royal province. 9 John Tatham (d. 1700), gentleman, of Burlington, a rich man for that time and place, evidently a Roman Catholic, having at his death seven slaves, a silver crucifix, a silver plate of Saint Dominic, and other silver, a wooden cross with the image of Christ, and a collection of books, many of them being of a Catholic character. He was the New Jersey agent for Governor Daniel Coxe. 16981 GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 347 and Flowers; as Roses, Tulips, July-Flowers, Sun-Flowers (that open and shut as the Sun Rises and Sets, thence taking their Name), Carnations, and many more; besides abundance of Medicinal Roots Herbs, Plants, and Flowers, found wild in the Fields. There are kept also in this Famous Town several Fairs every Year; and as for Provisions, viz. Bread, Beer, Beef, Pork, Cheese, Butter, and most sorts of Fruit, here is great Plenty and very Cheap; all those Commodities are to be bought every Market-Day. A Ship of Four Hundred Tuns may Sail up to this Town in the River Delaware; for I my self have been on Board a Ship of that Burthen there: And several fine Ships and Vessels (be sides Govemour Cox's own great Ship) have been built there. There are also two handsom Bridges to come in and out of the Town, called London and York-Bridges. The Town stands in an Island, the Tide flowing quite round about it. There are Water-Men who constantly Ply their Wherry Boats from that Town to the City of Philadelphia in Pensilvania, and to other places. Besides there is Glocester-Town, which is a very Fine and Pleasant Place, being well stor'd with Summer Fraits, as Cherries, Mulberries, and Strawberries, whither Young People come from Philadelphia in the Wherries to eat Straberries and Cream, within sight of which City it is sweetly Situated, being but about three Miles distance from thence. There are several Meetings of Worship in this Country, viz. the Presbyterians, Quakers, and Anabaptists: Their Privilege as to Matter of Law, is the same both for Plaintiff and Defend ant, as in England. The Air is very Clear, Sweet and Wholesom; in the depth of Winter it is something colder, and as much hotter in the heighth of Summer than in England. Commonly (with them) the Days differ two Hours in length from ours here. The longest Day in Summer is shorter by two Hours than the long est Day in England, and the shortest Day longer by two Hours than with us here. As for Com, they have Wheat, Rye, Pease, Oates, Barley, Rice, etc., in vast quantities: Also Indian-Corn, Pease and Beans, likewise English Hemp and Flax, which prospers there exceedingly. Eating Roots, Pumpkins, Cashews, Water-Mel- 348 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 ons, Muskmellons, Cucumbers, Squashes, Carrots, Artichokes, Potatoes, Turnips, Garlick, Onions, and Leeks grow there in greater Plenty than in England. And for Herbs, they have Cabbages, Coleworts,1 Savoys,1 Lettice, Purslane, and other Sallads in abundance; beside Wild Herbs which are there very common, as Penny-Royal, Mint, Mustard, Sage, Rue, Tansey, etc., and likewise there are choice Phisical Roots, as Sassafras, Sarsaparilla, Black-Snake-Root, Rattle-Snake Root, and Poake Root, with divers others, which there is great store of. Of Fish, they have Whales, Sturgeon, Cod, Scale-Fish, Cole and Hake-Fish, large Mackeril, Flat-fish, Rock, Shadds, Cattes, Eels, Perch, and many other sorts in prodigious Shoals: And Wild- Water-Fowl, as Geese, Ducks, Swans, Divers, etc., are very numerous, even beyond all expectation. As to Land- Fowl, Turkeys, Geese, Pheasants, Partridges, Pigeons, Wood cocks, Blackbirds, etc., they are there in extraordinary great abundance, and very large. There is also that uncommon and valuable Bird (being near the bigness of a Cuckoo) called the Mocking-bird (known, but not very well in England, being so very Nice and Tender, that they usually die by the way) with several other (Dharming and Curious Birds, too tedious here to specifie. As to the Wild Vermin, There are Otters, Beavers, Foxes, Mush-Rats Minx's, Wild-Cats, Rackoons, Pollcats, and also that cunning Creature the Possom, particularly mention'd and distinguish'd in the annex'd Account of Pensilvania for its remarkable Qualities, whither I refer the Reader, not in the least being fond of Tautology. This Creature is about the bigness of an English Cat, being of a light gray colour. Like wise there were some Wolves and Bears, but now they are very rare to be seen, by reason the Indians destroy them (as before). Also that strange Creature the Flying Squirril, men tion'd in the foregoing Book. There are great numbers of Wild Deer, and Red Deer also; and these wild Creatures are free and common for any to kill and take. And for Wild Fraits, there are Chesnuts, Filberts, Hickery-Nuts, Grapes, Mulberries, Strawberries, Rasberries, Huckleberries, and Craneberries, with several sorts of Plumbs, and all those Fruits in great plenty be ing free for any Body to gather. 1 Of the cabbage family. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 349 Now I am a coming to the Planted Fruit-Trees, as Apples, Pears, Apricocks, Quinces, Plumbs, Cherries, Gooseberries, Cur rants, and Peaches, from which last they distil a liquor as in Pensilvania, much like Rumm or Brandy, in the taste; and all those Trees will come to bear in a little more than half the time, they do in England, the Soil is so rich; they have great plenty of the aforementioned Fraits, which are exceeding de licious. These, as also many other Fraits that come not to any pitch of Perfection in England, are the Natural Product of this Country, which lies warmer, being more befriended by the Sun's hot and glorious Beams, which without doubt is the chief Cause and true Reason, why the Fruit there so far excells the English. They have likewise great Stocks of Horses and Hogs, raised in the Woods; of the latter of which I have seen some of a Prodigious Weight that only fed there, their Horses are very hardy, strong, and of good Spirit for Labour or Travelling; they commonly go unshod (which in many Years saves much Money). Their Plow-shears require but small Reparation, wearing out but little. They Harrow their Ground with a Wooden-tyned-Harrow, and twice over does the business. Of Bees also they are well provided, and abound in Sheep naturally very sound, and that stand well, the Rot, Scab, Mag gots, etc., rarely invading them; they usually bring forth two Lambs at once, and their Wooll is very fine, white, and thick; they have great Stocks of Cattle, as Cows, Oxen, etc. Their Oxen commonly weigh well. Tame Fowl there are (almost) incredible in numbers, viz. Geese, Turkeys, Hens, etc. In this Country also is great Plenty of working Timber, as Oaks, Ash, Chesnuts, Pine, Cedar, Walnut, Poplar, Firr, and Masts for Ships, with Pitch and Rosin, of great Use and much Benefit to the Countrey. Here are several good Navigable Rivers, besides that famous River Delaware (which I have mentioned elsewhere, and where the Tobacco is excellent) being deep enough for Vessels to come in: First, Prince Mor- ise's River,1 where the Sweeds used to kill the Geese in great numbers, for their Feathers (only) leaving their Carcasses be hind them; Cohansey River, by which they send great store 1 Maurice or Prince Maurice River, in the southern part of New Jersey, flowing into Delaware Bay. 350 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 of Cedar to Philadelphia-City; Allaway-River; SaJanvVRiver, which runs by Salam-Town (of greatest Antiquity;) Naman- River, Rackcoon-River,2 which had its Name from the great numbers of those Creatures that always abound thereabouts; Old Man's River; Manto-River;3 Woodberry-River; Great Eggharbor River (up which a Ship of two or three hundred Tuns may sail) which runs by the back part of the Country into the Main Sea; I call it back, because the first Improvement made by the Christians, was Delawar River-side: This Place is noted for good store of Com, Horses, Cows, Sheep, Hogs, etc., the Lands thereabouts being much improv'd, and built upon: Little Egg-Harbor-Creek, which take their Names from the great abundance of Eggs, which the Swans, Geese, Ducks, and other wild Fowls off those Rivers lay thereabouts: Tim ber-River,4 alias GIocester-River, which hath its Name (also) from the great quantity of curious Timber, which they send in great Floats to Philadelphia; a City in Pensilvania, as Oaks, Pines, Chesnut, Ash, and Cedars. This River runs down by Glocester-Town, which is the Shire-Town; And Newton-River,5 that runs by Newton; Cooper-River;6 Pensokin-River;7 Northampton-River,8 with several others, at a convenient dis tance upon the Sea, the Shores whereof are generally deep and bold) of less Note, as Wissahiskonk-River,9 that runs down into the great River Delaware, by Burlington. The Countrey inhabited by the Christians is divided into four Parts or Coun ties, tho' the Tenth part of it is not yet peopled ; 'Tis far cheaper living there for Eatables than here in England; and either Men or Women that have a Trade, or are Labourers, can, if industrious, get near three times the Wages they commonly earn in England. Courteous Reader, As yet I have given thee no Account of East-Jersey, because I never was there, so in reality cannot properly or pertinently speak to that Matter. I will not pre tend to impose any thing on the World, but have all along, and shall still declare nothing but Verity; therefore one Word of that by and by. I might have given thee a much larger Ac- • Salem. * Raccoon Creek. ' Mantua Creek. 4 Big Timber Creek. « Between Gloucester and present Camden. " At present Camden, New Jersey. » Pensauken Creek. • Rancocas Creek. » Assiscunk Creek. 1698] GABRIEL THOMAS'S ACCOUNT 351 count of this Countrey, and have stretch'd this (now) Pocket Volume to an extraordinary Bulk and Size; and yet without straining or deviating in the least from the Principles of my Profession, which are Truth it self. I have no Plot in my Pate, or deep Design, no, not the least expectation of gaining any thing by them that go thither, or losing by those who stay here. My End chiefly in Writing, nay, indeed my great Aim, is to inform the People of Britain and Ireland in general, but particularly the Poor, who are begging, or near it, or starving, or hard by it (as I before took notice in my Preface) to encour age them (for their own Good, and for the Honour and Bene fit of their Native Countrey, to whom they are now a Scandal and Disgrace; and whose Milk and Honey these Drones eat up, and are besides a heavy Burden to the Commonwealth, in the Taxes paid by every Parish in England, etc., to support them. Law-Causes are here (as in Pensilvania) speedily deter mined, in the second Court at least, unless in some difficult Business. One Justice of the Peace hath Power to try a Cause, and give Judgment therein, if the Original Debt be under forty Shillings. And for Thieves and Robbers (as I hinted before in the Preface) they must restore fourfold; which, if they are not able to do, they must work hard till the injured Person is satisfied. I shall conclude with a Word or two on New-East-Jersey. This Countrey is exceeding fruitful in Cartel, of which I have seen great numbers brought from thence, viz. Oxen, Cows, Sheep, Hogs, and Horses, to Philadelphia, the Capital of Pen silvania. The chiefest Manufactory (besides English and In dian Grain) fit for Traffick that this Countrey affords. Now I shall give thee an Account of the English Manufac tory, that each County in West-New-Jersey affords. In the first Place I shall begin with Burlington-County, as for Peltage, or Beavers Skins, Otter-Skins, Minks Skins, Musk-rats Skins, Rackcoon, Wild Cats, Martin, and Deer-Skins, etc. The Trade in Glocester-County consists chiefly in Pitch, Tar, and Rosin; the latter of which is made by Robert Styles,1 an excellent 1 Robert Stiles (d. 1713), was living in 1711 on his farm of over 200 acres on Pensauken Creek, in Chester Township, Burlington County, just over the line from Gloucester (now Camden) County, New Jersey. 352 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA [1698 Artist in that sort of Work, for he delivers it as clear as any Gum-Arabick. The Commerce carried on in Salam-County, is chiefly Rice, of which they have wonderful Produce every Year; as also of Cranberries which grow there in great plenty, and which in Picle might be brought to Europe. The Commodities of Capmay-County, are Oyl and Whale-Bone, of which they make prodigious, nay vast quantities every Year, having mightily advanc'd that great Fishery, taking great numbers of Whales yearly.1 This Country for the general part of it, is extraordinary good, and proper for the raising of all sorts of Cartel, very plentiful here, as Cows, Horses, Sheep, and Hogs, etc., likewise it is well Stor'd with several sorts of Fraits which make very good and pleasant Liquors, such as their Neigh bouring Country before mention'd affords. Now Reader, hav ing no more to add of any moment or importance, I salute thee in Christ; and whether thou stayest in England, Scotland, Ireland, or Wales, or goest to Pensilvania, West or East-Jersey, I wish thee all Health and Happiness in this, and Everlasting Comfort (in God) in the World to come. Fare thee well. 'About 1690 Dr. Daniel Coxe established a town and an extensive whale fishery on the bay side of Cape May. CIRCUMSTANTIAL GEOGRAPHICAL DESCRIP TION OF PENNSYLVANIA, BY FRANCIS DANIEL PASTORIUS, 1700 INTRODUCTION Upon the most trustworthy estimate, one-fifth of the blood of the United States is German. In Pennsylvania the propor tion runs even higher. The German contribution to American civilization defies numerical estimate. Plainly, therefore, a book which aims at presenting typical narratives of Pennsyl vania's foundation should include the chief writing relative to the beginnings of German colonization in that province, and especially if that principal writing should by chance have emanated from the chief figure in that earliest movement of German settlement. That classical position belongs so pre cisely to Pastorius's Umstandige Geographische Beschreibung Pensylvanice, that it is surprising that it has never before been presented, save in fragments, in an English translation. Francis Daniel Pastorius was bom September 26, 1651, at Sommerhausen in Franconia, the son of Melchior Adam Pas torius, legal counsellor to the Count of Limpurg,1 and of Mag- dalena Dietz, his first wife. His father's removal to the city of Windsheim, where the elder Pastorius became burgomaster and judge, brought it about that Francis was educated first at the gymnasium in that city, under a Hungarian schoolmaster named Tobias Schumberg.2 In 1668 he proceeded to the univer sity of Altdorf, and for the next eight years was engaged in studies, chiefly of law, there and at the universities of Strass- burg, Basel, and Jena. Taking his degree of doctor of laws at Altdorf in 1676, he practised law at Windsheim and at Frank- fort-on-the-Main till 1680, when as the companion of a young ¦ For a fuller account of Melchior Adam Pastorius, see below, p. 361, note 1. 2 A poem of Pastorius addressed to his former schoolmaster is printed below, pp. 422-424. 355 356 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA nobleman he entered on a period of travel, lasting two and a half years, and extending through Germany, the Netherlands, England, France, and Switzerland. Frankfort in 1682 was the very centre of the Pietists, who were endeavoring by revival of devout and practical Chris tianity, tinged often with mysticism, to melt and vivify the creed-bound theological and sacramentarian system of the Lutheran Church. That Pastorius would by natural sympathy be drawn into their circle is plain from the account of his spir itual development which he gives in the preface below. So when a kindred spirit, the Quaker William Penn, who in 1677 had paid a memorable religious visit to the Frankfort Pietists, became four years later a great landed proprietor in America, and through German translations of some of the documents already presented in this volume appealed to the Pietists and Mennonites of Germany to take part in his "holy experiment," it was natural that Pastorius should be strongly attracted. A Frankfort group bought 15,000 acres of land in the new province. He was made their agent, sailed for America in June, 1683, and arrived at Philadelphia in August. The main section of the first body of German immigrants to Pennsyl vania, a Crefeld group, came in October. Uniting the inter ests of the German (Frankfort) Company and of the Crefelders, Pastorius by skilful management obtained favorable terms from Penn for the Germans, and before the end of October founded Germantown. The development of this first of German townships in Amer ica can be followed during its first sixteen years in the pages which follow. Pastorius continued as agent for the German Company till 1700 only, but throughout his lifetime remained the chief citizen of Germantown, bailiff or clerk of the corpora tion in many years, justice of the peace, occasionally member of the General Assembly of the province. He shared in, per haps wrote, the famous protest (1688) of the German Friends INTRODUCTION 357 or Mennonites of Germantown against slavery. From 1698 to 1700 he served as schoolmaster of the Friends' School in Philadelphia, from 1702 till after 1716 he was master of the school in Germantown. Add to these occupations that of scrivener, in which capacity he was in much request, and it will easily be seen that no one was better qualified to testify as to the early days of the German village. In Germantown he lived until his death, which occurred between December 26, 1719, and January 13, 1720. The chief account of his life and writings, and an excellent one, based on most painstaking re searches, is The Life of Francis Daniel Pastorius, the Founder of Germantown, by Professor Marion D. Learned (Philadelphia, 1908). Pastorius was a man of wide learning, not only in legal and administrative matters, but in science, medicine, agriculture, history, theology, and business. His learning, his large library, his skill with the pen, his eagerness to do good, and, we must add, some willingness to display his talents, impelled him to most copious writing, now in vivacious if not too orderly prose, now in verses plainly meant to be, and thought of as being, poetry. Half a dozen printed books and a great mass of manu scripts remain to attest his literary zeal. The chief of the latter is the Beehive, a combination of commonplace-book and ency clopaedia which he wrote for his children. The chief of the printed books is that which is here translated. From its pages, though the great waves of German immigration into America began several years after its publication, we can at least ob tain priceless and abundant data regarding the first small beginning of that process. The first printed account of Pennsylvania by Pastorius was an eight-page tract, headed Sichere Nachricht auss America, wegen der Landschafft Pennsylvania, von einem dorthin gereiss- ten Teutschen, de dato Philadelphia, den 7. Martii 1684 (Posi tive Information from America, concerning the Country of 358 NARRATIVES OF EARLY PENNSYLVANIA Pennsylvania, from a German who has migrated thither, dated Philadelphia, March 7, 1684).1 Of this excessively rare tract there is a copy in the city library of Zurich. A longer state ment, entitled Francisci Danielis Pastorii Sommerhusano- Franci Kurtze Geographische Beschreibung der letztmahls erfun- denen Americanischen Landschafft Pensylvania (Short Geo graphical Description of the recently discovered American Country Pennsylvania), was printed in Nuremberg in 1692 as an appendix to Melchior Adam Pastorius's Kurtze Beschrei bung Der H. R. Reichs Stadt Windsheim. This also is rare, but there is a copy of it in the library of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. The appendix fills only thirty-two pages. By expansion of these to forty-five and by many additions Pas torius composed bis final treatise, Umstandige Geographische Beschreibung Der zu allerletzt erfundenen Provintz Pensylvania, In denen End-Grantzen Americce In der West-Welt gelegen, Durch Franciscum Danielem Pastorium, J. U. Lie. und Frie- dens-Richtern daselbsten. Worbey angehencket sind einige nota ble Begebenheiten, und Bericht-Schreiben an dessen Herrn Vat- tern Mekhiorem Adamum Pastorium, Und andere gute Freunde. Franckfurt und Leipzig, Zufinden bey Andreas Otto. 1700.2 (Circumstantial Geographical Description of the Lately Dis covered Province of Pennsylvania, Situated in the Farthest Limits of America, in the Western World, by Francis Daniel Pastorius, J. U. Lie, and Justice of the Peace in the Same, to which are Appended certain Notable Events, and Written Re ports to his Honored Father, Melchior Adam Pastorius, and to Other Good Friends.) A second edition, without change of ' A translation of this interesting document, by the general editor of the series, has been substituted below, pp. 392^11, for those pages of the book of 1700 which present merely a brief summary of the Sichere Nachricht. Other versions may be seen in J. F. Sachse, Letters relating to the Settlement of Germantown (Phila delphia, 1903), and in S. W. Pennypacker, The Settlement of Germantown (Phila delphia, 1889), pp. 81-99. A photographic facsimile of the original may be found in Learned's Pastorius, between pp. 128 and 129. 2 A facsimile of the title-page will be found opposite p. 360 of the present volume. INTRODUCTION 359 substance, was issued under the same imprint in 1704. This usually has, bound up with it, a German translation of Gabriel Thomas's Historical and Geographical Account, and Daniel Falkner's Curieuse Nachricht. Friedrich Kapp republished Pastorius's part (Crefeld, 1884) with an introduction. The Umstandige Geographische Beschreibung is a small book, printed on paper 6 $ x 3 £ inches in size, and contains xii+140 pages. It was edited for publication by the writer's father, Melchior Adam Pastorius, and the last twenty pages are occupied with his autobiography, supplied at the request of his grandsons. It is a very interesting document, but as its interest is wholly European, it has not been thought needful to include it in the present translation, which accordingly stops at page 120 of the original. As will be seen, the book opens with seventeen chapters of a more or less systematic treatise, but is continued by the printing, in nearly chrono logical order from 1683 to 1699, of various letters of Pastorius, together with a few written by bis sons, his father, or William Penn. No one should look to it for a methodical history of Pennsylvania or of Germantown, but surely no one can look into it without catching vivid glimpses of early Germantown and Pennsylvania, without seeing, to some degree, "the very form and pressure of the time." About a fifth of the book, in an imperfect English transla tion by Lewis H. Weiss, was printed in 1850 in the Memoirs of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, volume IV., part 2, and reprinted in 1898 in no. 95 of the Old South Leaflets. The present version was made by the late Miss Gertrade Selwyn Kimball of Providence; Professor M. D. Learned has kindly revised it. The foot-notes are by the editor of the volume, Mr. A. C. Myers. J. F. J. CIRCUMSTANTIAL GEOGRAPHICAL DESCRIP TION OF PENNSYLVANIA, BY FRANCIS DANIEL PASTORIUS, 1700 Circumstantial Geographical Description of the Lately Discovered Province of Pennsylvania, Situated in the Farthest Limits of America, in the Western World, by Francis Daniel Pas torius, J. U. Lie., and Justice of the Peace in the Same, to which are Appended certain Notable Events, and Written Reports to his Honored Father, Melchior Adam Pastorius, and to Other Good Friends. Frankfort and Leipzig: To be found at the Shop of Andreas Otto, 1700. TO THE GENTLE REhADER I herewith present to you the province of Pennsylvania, lately discovered by means of the expeditions sent out under Charles Stuart the First of England, and likewise its inhabit ants, the Christians as well as the native savages, together with the laws, form of government, customs and habits of both of these, and also the towns which have already been settled, and the commerce which has been established, all most faithfully described, not only by the governor of the province, William Penn himself, but also by the local authorized representatives of the English and High-German Companies. And it is worthy of remark that this province, as early as the year 1684, contained four thousand Christian souls; there fore, at the present time, at the end of sixteen years, it must, necessarily, have a much greater population, both because of the yearly arrival of settlers, and because of the natural in crease of the Christian colonists, and must also have attained to a state of greater prosperity in agriculture, in dwellings, and in trade. This is especially the result of the inestimable vigil ance, admirable bearing, and prudent conduct of the above- 360 Umjfttabfge ©eogra* p&tfcfoe ^cfd)rei6iing ©er ju Merte&t afun&encn graving PENSYLVA- NIjE, 3n ftcncn €nD*etfen / tmf> 3©et*4)t*