Chapter III: Part 3

I'll wager now a _mug of flip_,
And bring it on the table,
Put Yankey boys aboard a ship,
To beat them they are able.
CHORUS.--_Yankey Doodle_, &c.

V.

Then if they go to _argufy._
I _rather guess_ they'll find, too,
We've got a set of _tonguey blades_,
T'out talk 'em, if _they're mind to._
CHORUS.--_Yankey Doodle_, &c.

VI.

America's a _dandy_ place;
The people are all brothers;
And when one's got a _pumpkin pye_,
He shares it with the others.
CHORUS.--_Yankey Doodle_, &c.

VII.

We work, and sleep, and pray, in peace--
By industry we thrive, sir;
And if a drone won't do his part,
We'll scout him from the hive, sir.
CHORUS.--_Yankey Doodle_, &c.

VIII.

And then, on _Independent Day_,
(And who's a better right to?)
We eat and drink, and sing and play,
And have a dance at night, too.
CHORUS.--_Yankey Doodle_, &c.

IX.

Our girls are fair, our boys are tough,
Our old folks wise and healthy;
And when we've every thing we want,
We _count_ that we are wealthy.
CHORUS.--_Yankey Doodle_, &c.

X.

We're _happy_, _free_, and _well to do_,
And cannot want for knowledge;
For, almost ev'ry mile or two,
You find a _school_ or _college._
CHORUS.--_Yankey Doodle_, &c.

XI.

The land we till is all our own;
Whate'er the price, we paid it;
Therefore we'll fight _till all is blue_,
Should any dare invade it.
CHORUS.--_Yankey Doodle_, &c.

XII.

Since we're so bless'd, let's eat and drink
With thankfulness and gladness:
Should we kick o'er our cup of joy,
It would be _sartin_ madness.

CHORUS.

_Yankey Doodle, Boys; Huzza!
Down outside, up the middle--
Yankey Doodle_, fa, sol, la,
_Trumpet, Drum, and Fiddle._

* * * * *

"Going snacks."

At the time of the plague in London, a noted body searcher
lived whose name was _Snacks_. His business increased so
fast that, finding he could not compass it, he offered to
any person who should join him in his hardened practice half
the profits; thus, those who joined him were said to go with
_Snacks_. Hence going _snacks_, or dividing the spoil.

_Salem Observer,_ 1823.

_A Word omitted by Webster_. In a history of the second
parish of Beverly, published not long since, a vote passed
in 1776, to take measures to collect the "behindments" of
certain persons in the parish, is noticed. "Behindments"
meant arrearages.

_Salem Observer,_ 1837.

* * * * *

The following curious collection belonged to Mr. Samuel McIntire, the architect of the South Meeting-House in Salem, whose spire is acknowledged to be one of the best proportioned and handsomest in New England:

_FOR SALE,_

SUNDRY Articles belonging to the Estate of SAMUEL MCINTIRE,
deceased.--VIZ.

1 elegant BARREL ORGAN, 6 feet high, 10 barrels; 1 Wind Chest of
an Organ;
ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA, complete;
Paladio's Architecture, best kind;
1 Ware's do.; 1 Paine's do.;
2 vols. French Architecture;
1 large Book Antient Statues, excellent;
Lock Hospital Collection of Music;
Handel's Messiah, in score;
Harmonia Sacra;
Magdalen Hymns; Massachusetts Compiler;
1 excellent toned SPINNET;
1 excellent VIOLIN and Case;
1 eight day CLOCK, Mahogany Case;
12 Prints of the Seasons;
1 book Drawings of Ships;
1 large Head of Washington;
Number of Busts of the Poets;
2 Figures of Hercules, 2 feet high;
1 Head of Franklin, and Pillar, for a Sign;
Composition Ornaments;
Number of Moulding Planes, and sundry other Articles. Apply to

ELIZABETH M'INTIRE, _Adm'x_.
or to SAMUEL F. M'INTIRE, _Att'y_.

N.B.--The Subscriber carries on CARVING as usual at the Shop
of the deceased, in Summer-Street, where he will be glad to
receive orders in that line. He returns thanks for past
favors.

April 30 [1811]. SAMUEL F. M'INTIRE.

* * * * *

Many years ago there was published in Boston a small volume entitled "Eliza Wharton, the Coquette. By a Lady of Massachusetts." It consisted of a series of letters said to be founded on fact. A young woman died at the Bell Tavern in Danvers in 1788, whose gravestone a few years ago might be seen in the old Danvers (now Peabody) burial-ground. We copy from the "Salem Mercury" of July 29, 1788, the following account:--

Last Friday, a female stranger died at the Bell Tavern, in
Danvers; and on Sunday her remains were decently interred.
The circumstances relative to this woman are such as excite
curiosity and interest our feelings. She was brought to the
Bell in a chaise, from Watertown, as she said, by a young
man whom she had engaged for that purpose. After she had
alighted, and taken a trunk with her into the house, the
chaise immediately drove off. She remained at this inn till
her death, in expectation of the arrival of her husband,
whom she expected to come for her, and appeared anxious at
his delay. She was averse to being interrogated concerning
herself or connexions; and kept much retired to her chamber,
employed in needle-work, writing, &c. She said, however,
that she came from Westfield, in Connecticut; that her
parents lived in that State; that she had been married only
a few months; and, that her husband's name was Thomas
Walker;--but always carefully concealed her family name. Her
linen was all marked E.W. About a fortnight before her
death, she was brought to bed of a lifeless child. When
those who attended her apprehended her fate, they asked her,
whether she did not wish to see her friends: She answered,
that she was very desirous of seeing them. It was proposed
that she should send for them; to which she objected,
hoping in a short time to be able to go to them. From what
she said, and from other circumstances, it appeared probable
to those who attended her, that she belonged to some country
town in Connecticut: Her conversation, her writings and her
manners, bespoke the advantage of a respectable family &
good education. Her person was agreeable; her deportment,
amiable & engaging; and, though in a state of anxiety and
suspense, she preserved a cheerfulness, which seemed to be
not the effect of insensibility, but of a firm and patient
temper. She was supposed to be about 35 years old. Copies of
letters, of her writing, dated at Hartford, Springfield, and
other places, were left among her things.--This account is
given by the family in which she resided; and it is hoped
the publication of it will be a means of her friends'
ascertaining her fate.

Elizabeth Whitman was the real name of the stranger, and the following was the inscription on the stone:--

"This humble stone, in Memory of Elizabeth Whitman, is
inscribed by her weeping friends, to whom she endeared
herself by uncommon tenderness and affection. Endowed with
superior genius and acquirements, she was still more
endeared by humility and benevolence. Let candour throw a
veil over her frailities, for great was her charity to
others.--She sustained the last painful scene far from
every friend, and exhibited an example of calm resignation.
Her departure was on the 25th of July, A.D. 1788, in the
37th year of her age, and the tears of strangers watered her
grave."

Although we recollect seeing the stone some years ago, when the whole inscription could be read, we visited the spot in April, 1885, and found only a small portion left,--a triangular piece, perhaps a foot and a half high on one side, at the bottom of which we could only make out: "A.D. 1788, ... the tears of strangers watered her grave." For years, young persons of a romantic turn of mind have visited the grave and chipped off small pieces of the freestone for relics. This modern habit of chipping monumental stones for relics is inexcusable; for it is not done by ignorant or otherwise lawless persons, but too often by the educated, who carry their mawkish sentiment to such an extreme as to deface and sometimes, as in the present case, entirely to ruin a monument. It is in vain to urge that this was only a stranger's stone, and that there were none to care. It was all the more an outrage, if there were no friends to protect it. We are glad to learn that there were people in the town who did what they could to prevent this sacrilege.

The following account of this unfortunate lady we take from Hanson's "History of Danvers:"--

"Elizabeth Whitman came from a very respectable family in
Connecticut, where her father was a clergyman. She was
possessed of an ardent poetical temperament, an inordinate
love of praise, and was gifted with the natural endowment of
beauty and perfect grace, while she was accomplished with
those refinements which education can bestow. She was lovely
beyond words. But her natural amiabilities were warped and
perverted by reading great numbers of romances, to the
exclusion of almost all other reading. She formed her idea
of men by the exaggerated standards she saw in the books to
which she resorted; and thus when she looked around her she
saw no one who realized her ideal. She subsequently became
intimate with a lawyer, said to be the Honourable (?) Judge
Pierpont Edwards."

We next hear of her in Danvers, "where the novelty of her situation," continues Hanson, "and her attractive beauty and manners during her short sojourn, caused the entire village and many from the neighboring towns to attend her funeral. A few weeks after her burial, an unknown hand erected the gravestone with its eloquent inscription." The stone is evidently Connecticut sandstone or freestone. Mr. Hanson says of the volume "Eliza Wharton": "The catchpenny volume of letters which pretend to give her history has but the figments of the imagination of its authoress to recommend it."

* * * * *

Picture of the old Bell Tavern in Danvers. From the "Salem Gazette," January, 1781.

_Danvers, Jan. 1781._

Just published,
And to be SOLD by
E. RUSSELL,
at his Printing-Office,
near the Bell-Tavern;

_The Second Edition of
Russell's_ American ALMANACK,

For the Year of our Redemption, 1781.

Being First after Leap Year; and Fifth Year of Independency.
Fitted for the Meridian of Boston, N. E. Lat. 42: 25 N.
Wherein may be found all Things necessary for this Work.

To which is added, a Declaration of the Rights of the
Inhabitants of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, extracted
from the Frame of Government; and a List of the Chief
Officers of Government, which is thought necessary to be
possessed by every Freeman in this Commonwealth.

Calculated by that curious and accurate Astronomer, BENJAMIN
WEST, Esq; of Providence, State of Rhode-Island.

_At the same Place may also be had, just published;_

The Remarkable Captivity and Redemption of

ELIZABETH HANSON,

Wife of Mr. _John Hanson_ of _Knoxmarsh_ at _Kecheachy_, in
_Dover_ Township, who was taken Captive with her Children
and Maid-Servant, by the _Indians_ in _New-England_, in the
Year 1724.

IN WHICH ARE INSERTED

Sundry remarkable Preservations, Providences, and Marks of
Care and Kindness of Providence over her and her Children,
worthy to be remembered.

_The Substance of which was taken from her own Mouth, and
now published for general Service._

THE THIRD EDITION,

Also, an entertaining Narrative of the cruel and barbarous
Treatment and extreme Sufferings of

Mr. JOHN DODGE,

During his Captivity of many Months among the _British_, at
_Detroit_.

IN WHICH IS ALSO CONTAINED,

A particular Detail of the Sufferings of a Virginian, who
died in their Hands.

_Written by himself; and now published to satisfy the
Curiosity of every one throughout the_ United States.

THE SECOND EDITION.

*** All the above Books, with a Variety of other small
Books, &c. will be sold to Shop keepers, Travelling-Traders,
&c. at the very lowest Rate, if they purchase by the
Hundred, Groce or Dozen.

* * * * *

In these sceptical and agnostic days it may sound a little strange, and perhaps to some seem quite absurd, that the authorities of Harvard in 1791 felt obliged publicly to deny that Gibbon's History was used as a text-book at the University. But with the exception perhaps of Tom Paine, no one in this country had then ventured to assail the literal interpretation of the Scriptures. Probably the masses of the people then believed that "Joshua commanded the sun and moon to stand still, and they obeyed him," that Jonah was swallowed by the whale, and that

"In Adam's fall,
We sinned all."

Of course there were exceptions. Therefore, although Gibbon might be an able writer, it was not safe for young men to study his works, simply because he had thrown doubt or derision on the Christian miracles. So when it was reported that a growing liberality of sentiment was being manifested at Cambridge, and that Gibbon's "Decline and Fall" was to be used, doubtless no little excitement was roused; and hence the notice. Before this time doubts concerning many cherished doctrines had been openly expressed in Boston, Cambridge, Salem, and other places; but Gibbon had rejected and attacked the whole Christian system as false, which was a very different matter.

_For the CENTINEL._

MR. RUSSELL,

A WRITER in the CENTINEL of the last _Saturday_, under the
signature of _Christianus_, says, "that an abridgment of
GIBBON'S history (if his information be true) is directed
to make a part of the studies of the young gentlemen at our
University." I now beg leave, through the channel of your
paper, to acquaint that writer, as also the publick, that
his information is _not true_. The system taught is MILLOT'S
_Elements_ of _General History, ancient and modern_, and
GIBBON'S history was never thought of for the purpose.

JOSEPH WILLARD, _President._
_Cambridge, Nov._ 14, 1791.

* * * * *

THE CHOLERA.--It is worthy of remark that the word occurs in
two passages of the Bible, both in Ecclesiasticus, and both
places in connexion with directions and exhortations to a
sober temperate mode of living, which is still recommended
as the best preservative against this disorder.

_Salem Observer,_ 1832.

* * * * *

The character of Boston ladies in 1788 is set forth in a letter in the "Herald of Freedom." The writer gives his observations on the error of committing children too much to the care of nurses; also makes reference to teaching the catechism, etc., showing the value of early religious training. There can be no doubt, we think, that the old methods were in some respects superior to the present, where in many cases young children are left to Sunday-school teachers, or, as is often the case, receive no religious instruction whatever, for fear, as we have often heard it stated, that they might imbibe some false doctrinal notions at an age when the deepest impressions are made.

* * * * *

_For the_ HERALD _of_ FREEDOM.

LETTER IX.

DEAR PIERRE,

No moments glide away more agreeably than those that are
employed in writing to a friend. Happy am I in having
frequent opportunities of exhibiting my sentiments to you,
and in return receiving yours, which palliates in some
degree, the sorrow our separation occasions.----The glaring
absurdities of the dress of the Boston ladies, occupied the
greatest part of my two last letters. It is but just to say
something of their more laudable qualities; amongst which,
maternal affection deservedly claims precedence.--The
barbarous customs of Europe, in this particular, have not as
yet, and I hope never will be, practised here. Mothers in
this country are so much attached to their tender offspring,
as to forego all the pleasures of life (or rather what are
so termed in Europe) in attending to their nurture, from
which they derive the most superlative of all enjoyments,
the heart-felt satisfaction of having done their duty to
their God and country, in giving robust, healthy and
virtuous citizens to the State. The effeminacy of exotic
fashion has not at present extended its pernicious influence
so far as to induce them to commit the rearing of their
children to mercenary nurses, who are sometimes the very
dregs of a people; and whose vicious habits of taking a drop
of the _good creature to drown sorrow_, does not promise
redundancy of health and vigour to those suckled by them--on
the contrary, children thus unnaturally thrown from the arms
of a parent into those of a nurse, are, almost without
exception, weak and puny; of irrascible tempers and vicious
inclinations.--Nor does the attention of the ladies expire
with the infancy of their children--they still are unwearied
in instructing them as they increase in years, and
assiduously endeavour to inculcate principles of virtue into
their young minds at a time when they are most liable to
make a deep impression--to accomplish which, they never fail
to teach them the catechism, Lord's prayer, &c. &c. all of
which they oblige them to learn, because they are perfectly
adapted to their comprehension, though many parts of the
catechism are altogether incomprehensible to most
adults.--Yet this is not strange to those who credit the
scriptures; nor does it appear the least inconsistent--for
there it says, "God hath chosen the foolish things of this
world to confound the wise."--Therefore, the wonder that
children should be able to _understand_ that, which is the
_foundation_ of all polemical divinity, vanishes, when we
try it by the touchstone of scripture, which is the
criterion by which we ought to judge.--When they are thus
instructed in the rudiments of virtue, they are seldom known
to apostatize; so that for a native to become dissolute and
abandoned, is very rare.--Indeed they have characters of
this kind who emigrate from old countries; but they soon
find employment for such gentry, by obliging them to labour
for the publick good, and "work out their salvation by the
sweat of their brow."--Thus the community is not only
delivered from such pests, but experience beneficial effects
from their confinement. Knavery, though rarely found in a
native, is not entirely extirpated from the breasts of some
among them.

* * * * *

Remarkable instances of longevity.

LONGEVITY. Mafeus, who wrote the history of the Indies,
which has always been a model of veracity as well as elegant
composition, mentions a native of Bengal, named Numas de
Cugna, who died 1566, at the age of 370. He was a man of
great simplicity and quite illiterate; but of so extensive a
memory, that he was a kind of living chronicle, relating
distinctly and exactly what had happened within his
knowledge in the compass of his life, together with all the
circumstances attending it. He had four new sets of teeth;
and the color of his hair and beard had been very
frequently changed from black to grey, and from grey to
black. He asserted that in the course of his life, he had
700 wives, some of whom had died, and the others he had put
away. The first century of his life passed in idolatry, from
which he was converted to Mahometanism, which he continued
to profess to his death.--The account is also confirmed by
another Portuguese author, Ferdinand Lopez Casteguedo, who
was historiographer royal.

_Salem Observer,_ Feb. 22, 1834.

* * * * *

LONDON, May 28.

_Remarkable Instances of Longevity in Europe._

THOMAS PARRE, of Shropshire, died on the 16th of November,
1635, aged 152.

James Bowes, of Killinworth, in Shropshire, died the 15th of
August, 1656, aged 152.

Anonymous, of Yorkshire, aged 140, and his son, aged 100,
were both living, and attended to give evidence at York
Assize, in 1664.

F. Sagar, of Lancashire, died in January, 1668, aged 112.

Henry Jenkins, of Yorkshire, died on the 8th of December,
1670, aged 169.

Robert Montgomery, of Yorkshire, was living in 1670, aged
126.

Countess of Desmond, Ireland, aged 140.

Mr. Ecleston, of Ireland, died 1691, aged 143.

Mr. Lawrence, of Scotland, living, aged 140.

Mary Gore, born at Collinworth, in Yorkshire, lived 100
years in Ireland, and died at Dublin in 1727, aged 125.

Mr. Ellis, of Surrey, died about 1748, aged 137.

Simon Sack, of Trionia, died on the 30th of May, 1761, aged
141.

Col. Thomas Winsloe, of Ireland, died on the 12th of August,
1766, aged 156.

Francis Consist, of Yorkshire, died in January, 1768, aged
150.

Francis Bons, of France, died on the 6th of February, 1769,
aged 124.

Christopher Jacob Drakenberg, of Norway, a boatswain in the
Danish navy, died on the 24th of June, 1770, aged 146.

Margaret Forster, of Cumberland, aged 136.

Gen. Oglethorpe died in August last, aged 103.

A goldsmith, of France, died in June, 1776, aged 140.

Mary Yates, of Shropshire, died in 1776, aged 128.

John Brookley, of Devonshire, living in 1777, aged 134.

Miss Ellis, daughter of Mr. Ellis, of Surrey, died in 1781,
aged 104.

Mr. Froome, of Holms-Chapel, in Cheshire, died in May last,
aged 125.

Mary M'Donald, county of Down, in Ireland, died on the 16th
of June last, aged 118.

Mary Cameron, of Invernessshire, in Scotland, died in July
last, aged 130.

Miss Ellis, of Richmond, in Surrey, living on the 16th of
August last, aged 105.

Mr. Rowe, at Nutwell-House, in Scotland, died in August
last, aged 106.

Donald McKeen, of Argyleshire, in Scotland, died in
September last, aged 109.

John Button, of Liverpool, died on the 18th of November
last, the oldest burgess of that borough upon record; he
lived in six reigns, being born in the reign of James II.

Mr. Smith, a farmer, at Dolver, in Montgomeryshire, died in
November last, aged 103: He was never known to drink any
thing but buttermilk.

John Follart, woolcomber, at Norney, near the city of
Exeter, living and in good health on the 30th of November
last, aged 121; he works still at his business, and retains
his faculties.

_Massachusetts Gazette,_ Sept. 1, 1786.

* * * * *

PHILADELPHIA, August 19.

_Instances of Longevity in America._

In South-America there was said, in the year 1785, to be a
negro woman living, aged about 175; she remembered her first
master, who died in 1615, and that he gave her away with
some other property towards sounding a school.

Some years ago there was living in Virginia, a native of
Ireland, who at the age of 109, was able to work at the
taylor's trade without spectacles; and what renders this
case more remarkable, he was naturally very intemperate, and
would get drunk as often as he could get liquor.

In the year 1776, died one Mr. Payne, in Fairfax, Virginia,
upwards of 100 years of age.

Died, November, 1782, in this city, Mr. Edward Drinker,
almost 102, being born December 24, 1680, in Philadelphia.

In the year 1782, there was living, near this city (and
perhaps may be still living) a healthy negro woman, able to
walk several miles in a day, and wash clothes, who was then,
as near as she could tell, about 103.----She remembers her
being brought to this city before any houses were built
here.

Died last summer, in New-York, Mrs. Slock, aged 108 years
and one half.

Last winter died at Jones's creek, a branch of Pee Dee, in
North-Carolina, Mr. Mathew Bayley, aged 136: he was baptised
when 134 years old; had good eye sight, strength of body and
mind until his death.

There was a woman living last winter, in Uxbridge, state of
Massachusetts, of the name of Aldrich, and likely to live
many years, who has 12 children, all living, and has lived
till 25 of the fifth generation are born, the eldest of
which is more than eleven years of age.

Died on Tuesday the 1st inst. at Hudson, in New-York, Mrs.
Christina de Lametter, in the 94th year of her age. She died
merely of old age, without any kind of disease or fever; but
descended very slowly and patiently to the bottom of the
hill of life. She was a woman, who, through life, has been
remarkable for her silent resignation to the divine will.
What renders the last part of her life remarkable, is, that
she lived 39 days without any sustenance whatever, except
about two spoonfuls of wine with water daily; the vital
motions and functions being so near a cessation, that the
solids needed no reparation; yet she retained all her senses
to the last moment.

In the year 1774, died at Danvers, in Massachusetts, Mr.
---- Nelson, aged 106 years.

_Massachusetts Gazette,_ Sept. 1, 1786.

* * * * *

STOCKHOLM, Aug. 8.

A widow lately died near Landscrone, aged 118 years. She
continued to get a livelihood by spinning till she was 116.

_Salem Mercury,_ Nov. 25, 1786.

* * * * *

DINNER IN "OLD TIMES."

It was an old custom in New England to begin dinner with pudding instead of soup. Many persons of the last generation may remember, as the writer distinctly does, seeing old people who still adhered to this practice as late certainly as from 1850 to 1860. The writer was once at a dinner where all the family began with soup except the father, a gentleman of the old school, who had a piece cut from a fresh-baked plum-pudding. He remarked to the company that such had always been his practice; and so he excused himself for keeping to his own fashion of dining. The custom of eating pudding before meat is still very common in Yorkshire, England. The following extract from a Boston paper of 1819 shows that John Adams, in 1817, kept up the old style of dinner, which, as might perhaps be imagined, was not confined to the common people, so called.

In "old times" it was customary to say to children, "Those who eat the most pudding shall have the most meat."

_Extract from the "Narrative of a Journey of 5000 miles
through the Eastern and Western States of America," in
1817.--By Henry B. Fearon, an Englishman._

PRESIDENT ADAMS.

The ex-president is a handsome old gentleman of eighty-four;
his lady is seventy-six: she has the reputation of superior
talents, and great literary acquirements. I was not
perfectly a stranger here, as a few days previous to this I
had received the honor of an hospitable reception at their
mansion. Upon the present occasion the minister (the day
being Sunday) was of the dinner party. As a table of a
"_late king_" may amuse some of you, take the following
particulars:--first course, a pudding made of Indian corn,
molasses and butter;--second, veal, bacon, neck of mutton,
potatoes, cabbages, carrots, and Indian beans; Madeira wine,
of which each drank two glasses. We sat down to dinner at
one o'clock; at two, nearly all went a second time to
church. For tea, we had pound cake, sweet bread and butter,
and bread made of Indian corn and rye, similar to our brown
home-made. Tea was brought from the kitchen, and handed
round by a neat white servant girl.

The establishment of this political patriarch consists of a
house two stories high, containing, I believe, eight rooms;
of two men and three maid servants; three horses and a plain
carriage. How great is the contrast between this individual,
a man of knowledge and information--without pomp, parade,
vitious and expensive establishments, as compared with the
costly trappings, the depraved characters, and the
profligate expenditure of ---- House, and ----! What a
lesson _in this_ does America teach! There are now in this
land no less than three Cincinnati!

* * * * *

Hogs in New York streets.

Yesterday forenoon, while in Broadway, we witnessed another
instance of the impropriety of suffering Hogs to run at
large in our streets. A highly respectable and most worthy
young lady, was literally run down by a large Hog that was
pursued by a dog. In her fall, her breast struck the curb
stone, and she was considerably injured. After she had
partially recovered, the gentleman at whose store she had
made some purchases, kindly conveyed her to her father's
house in a carriage. The reader may easily imagine the
distressing effect produced on the mind of a fond parent, at
the sight of a darling child, whose pale cheeks plainly
indicated her situation. --> _What would not the citizens of
Boston say of their Police, if Hogs were permitted to run
loose in the streets_?

_Columbian Centinel,_ Boston [1817].

* * * * *

English blunders about America in 1802.

_From the_ (Newyork) EVENING POST.

SPECIMENS _of the_ IGNORANCE _and_ BLUNDERS _of_ English
Geographers, Tourists, _&c. &c. with respect to_ AMERICA.

THE Rev. R. Turner, who has published a book called
Classical Geography, gives the following account of the
cities of Philadelphia and Newyork. "Philadelphia, (says he)
is the finest and _best situated_ city in America,
containing _thirty thousand_ houses and one hundred and
twenty thousand inhabitants, who are mostly
quakers!!!"--"Newyork contains three thousand houses and
twelve thousand inhabitants!"

Another book, intitled Guthrie's improved Geography, after
setting forth in the preface that their (the Editors)
relation of America, will be found both satisfactory and
complete, as they have not only carefully examined the works
of the celebrated Morse, but likewise applied to several
other authentic sources, which have enabled them to give the
best information in the most satisfactory manner, states
that "the city of Newyork contains five thousand
inhabitants, chiefly of Dutch extraction." Here is pretty
strong evidence of the diligence of these London bookmakers,
as to applying to the most authentic sources of information,
as they profess to have done. An imposition of this kind in
any American publication, would afford a fine opportunity
for an English Reviewer to rail against our national
honesty.

The very last edition of Guthrie's original work, describing
the river Hudson, states that this river is navigable to
Albany, which is "_six hundred miles from Newyork_."

An English Tourist, whose name is not just now recollected,
has published a volume of his travels through the United
States, in which he speaks particularly of the orderly
manner in which Elections are conducted in the city of
Newyork. "On the appointed day, says he, all the citizens
take care to be at home at a certain hour, at which time the
inspectors of the election go through the city with ballot
boxes in their hands, and call at every door for votes,
whereupon the citizens step to their doors and deposit
their ballots in these same small boxes, which are
straightway carried to the City Hall; the votes are there
examined, and thus the election is determined in a few
hours, without uproar or inconvenience!!!"

An English Editor of a work, called the _German Museum_, in
his translation of some memoirs of Major André, records,
that this unfortunate officer was taken and hanged "_at the
west point of America_."

A London paper some time ago made mention of certain
improvements which were taking place in Newyork, with a view
to promote the health of the city, and observed that our
corporation were erecting a range of permanent wharves on
one side of the city, which were to extend from Corlear's
Hook to the Battery _along the Delaware River_!

Some notice shall be taken hereafter of the
misrepresentations and falsehoods of Laincourt, Weld, Bulow,
and a number of others, relative to the United States.

_An_ AMERICAN.
_Worcester Spy._

* * * * *

SECRET LOVE.

_From a very rare volume of old Poetry._

The fountaines smoake, and yet no flame they shewe;
Starres shine all night though undeserned by daye;
And trees do spring yet are not seen to growe;
And shadowes move although they seem to staye;
In winters woe is buried summers bliss,
And love loves most, when love most secret is.

The stillest streame descries the greatest deepe;
The clearest skye is subject to a shower;
Conceit's most sweete, when as it seems to sleepe;
And fairest dayes do in the morning lower:
The silent groves, sweete nymphes theye cannot misse,
For love loves most, when love most secret is.

The rarest jewels hidden virtue yield.
The sweete of traffique is a secret game;
The yeere once old doth show a barren field
And plants seeme dead, and yet they spring again.
Cupid is blind; the reason why, is this,
Love loveth most, when love most secret is.

_Salem Register,_ 1827.

* * * * *

_George the Fourth_.--The attributes of this potentate, who
was the most popular monarch England has had for many years,
are thus severely described, by Thomas Jefferson in his
correspondence of 1789.

"He has not a single element of mathematics, of natural and
moral philosophy, or of any other science on earth, nor has
the society he kept been such as to supply the void of
education. It has been that of the lowest, the most
illiterate and profligate persons of the kingdom without
choice of rank or mind & with whom the subjects of
conversation are only horses, drinking matches, bawdy
houses, and in terms the most vulgar. The young nobility,
who begin by associating with him, soon leave him disgusted
with the insupportable profligacy of his society; and Mr.
Fox, who has been supposed his favorite, and not over nice
in the choice of his company, would never keep his company
habitually.

"He has not a single idea of justice, morality, religion or
of the rights of men, or any anxiety for the opinion of the
world. He carries that indifference to fame so far, that he
would probably not be hurt were he to lose his throne,
provided he could be assured of always having meat, drink,
horses & women."

_Essex Register,_ Aug. 26, 1830.

* * * * *

President Stiles of Yale College on the public revenue.

_Extract from President STILES's Election Sermon._

BUT I pass on to another subject in which the welfare of a
community is deeply concerned, I mean the publick
_revenues_. National character and national faith depend on
these. Every people, every large community is able to
furnish a revenue adequate to the exigences of government.
But this is a most difficult subject; and what the happiest
method of raising it, is uncertain. One thing is certain,
that however in most kingdoms and empires the people are
taxed at the will of the prince, yet in _America_, the
people tax themselves, and _therefore cannot tax themselves
beyond their abilities_. But whether the power of taxing be
in an absolute monarchy, a power independent of the people,
or in a body elected by the people, one great error has, I
apprehend, entered into the system of Revenue and Finance in
almost all nations, viz. restricting the collection to
money. Two or three millions can more easily be raised in
produce, than one million in money. This collected and
deposited in stores and magazines, would, by bills drawn
upon these stores, answer all the expenditures of war and
peace. In one country it has been tried with success for
ages; I mean in _China_, the wisest empire the sun hath ever
shined upon. And here, if I recollect aright, not a tenth of
the Imperial revenues hath been collected in money. In rice,
wheat and millet only are collected 40 millions of sacks, of
one hundred and twenty pounds each, equal to 80 million
bushels; in raw and wrought silk one million pounds. The
rest is taken in salt, wines, cotton, and other fruits of
labour and industry, at a certain ratio per cent. and
deposited in stores over all the empire. The perishable
commodities are immediately sold, and the Mandarins and army
are paid by bills on these magazines. In no part of the
world are the inhabitants less oppressed than there.

_Massachusetts Gazette,_ Sept. 29, 1786.

* * * * *

_Religiously Inclined_.--A gentleman perceiving a fellow
leaning against the front of St. Paul's church yesterday,
who was unable to stand without some such support, asked him
if he was going to join the church. 'No,' replied
Bottlenose, 'not edzactly to jine, but I'm only
lean--leanin'--that way.'

_New Era_ [1837].

* * * * *

Meaning of the word.

GENTLEMEN. How the signification of words alter in the
course of a century. There was a time when all persons in
England, below the rank of an _Esquire_, were divided into
_Gentlemen_, Yeomen and _Rascals_. The former word is now
used to signify the individuals of the first order--those
whom you would take by the hand in the street, and sup with
of an evening. The second term retains pretty nearly its
original meaning. But to make an application of the latter
appellative at this time, would operate as an invitation to
be knocked down. 'Gentlemen,' is used in opposition among
the old chronicles to 'simple man,' and neither in any very
exalted sense. It is on record, that the French Princess, De
La Roche Sur Yon, receiving a sharp reply from a Knight, to
whom she gave the epithet of '_Gentilhomme_,' was told by
the King, to whom she complained, that she deserved all she
got, for so offending, herself, in the first instance. The
lower people in England were commonly '_the
Rascality_'--equivalent to the '_Canaille_' of the French,
or our own significant _Rabble_ of the present day.

In what sense do they use the word 'Gentlemen' in
Congress--Eh?--_Charleston Gaz._

_Salem Observer,_ April 3, 1820.

_Professional_ ANECDOTE _of Dr._ FRANKLIN.

WHEN he came to Philadelphia, in 1723, he was first employed
by one Keimer, an eccentric genius, as a pressman, for he
was then printing an elegy of his own composition, on the
death of Aisquila Rose--and as he had but one small font of
types, and used no copy, but composed the elegy in the
press, he could not employ him in the composition. Keimer
was a visionary, whose mind was frequently elevated above
the little concerns of life, and consequently very subject
to make mistakes, which he seldom took the pains to correct.
Franklin had frequently reasoned with him upon the
importance of accuracy in his profession, but in vain. His
fertile head however soon furnished him with an opportunity
to second his arguments by proof.--They soon after undertook
an impression of a primer that had been lately published in
New-England.--Franklin overlooked the piece; and when his
master had set the following couplet--

When the last trumpet soundeth,
We shall not all die,
But we shall all be _changed_
In the twinkling of an eye,

He privately removed the letter _c_, and it was printed
off--

When the last trumpet soundeth,
We shall not all die,
But we shall all be _hanged_
In the twinkling of an eye.

_Herald of Freedom,_ June 23, 1790.

_SURNAMES._

In the Cambridge Chronicle of Saturday, August 1, 1772, is
an advertisement said to have been taken from the Canterbury
Journal, which beggars the list of surnames lately
enumerated:

"Mary Scaredevil, widow of the late William Scaredevil, of
Maidstone, does, by the assistance of the Almighty, intend
to carry on the business of Whitesmith, and hopes for the
favors and recommendations of the gentlemen and ladies whom
the late William Scaredevil had the pleasure to serve, which
will be gratefully acknowledged by their most humble
servant,

MARY SCAREDEVIL."

_Salem Gazette,_ Nov., 1805.

* * * * *

Launching of the "Grand Turk."

Thursday last being a very pleasant day, great numbers of
people assembled to see the launching of the large and
beautiful ship from Mr. DERBY'S wharf. They were, however,
disappointed in the pleasure they expected, by her stopping
when she had run about half her length: and all the efforts
which could be made were ineffectual in getting her off at
that time: the next day, however, with the aid of proper
apparatus, and the assistance of the people assembled, she
was again put in motion, and gained the water.--The name of
_The Grand Turk_ is revived in this ship, heretofore borne
by a ship belonging to Mr. DERBY, remarkably successful as a
privateer in the late war, and which was some time since
sold in India.

The ingenious Mr. ENOS BRIGGS, from the North River, was the
master-builder of the new ship Grand Turk.

A CARD.

_Mr._ E.H. DERBY _requests his fellow-townsmen and others,
to accept his sincere thanks for their ready and unwearied
exertions to enable him to complete the launching of his
Ship._ MAY 21.

Mr. CUSHING,

The following lines were addressed to the Ship GRAND TURK,
while launching. They are at your service.

Your's, Z.

_The swelling waves roll joyfully along,
To greet thee, welcome to the azure main;
The gaping multitude in anxious throng,
Their ardent--vacant--tumult--scarce restrain._

_Slow o'er the lubrick ways--immense--you move,
High o'er the stern your flowing honours stand,
In distant climes, on unknown seas to prove
The matchless glory of your native land._

_For thee--the lofty Cedar nods alone,
The sturdy Oak its honours lopp'd deplores,
The forest mourns its tallest beauties gone
To waft Columbian treasure--to the Indian shores._

_Doom'd to resist the rage of warring waves,
Whilst rushing winds impel your foaming way:
The firm built sides their utmost fury brave.
The tempest mock--and in the whirlwind play._

_Safe may you reach your distant--destin'd port,
Nor rocks--nor treach'rous sands--oppose your fame,
May gentle winds your swelling topsails court,
And thousands shout you welcome home again._

_Salem Gazette,_ May 24, 1791.

* * * * *

The oldest person who had lived in Salem up to 1791.

On Friday last, the venerable Mr. JOHN SYMONDS, of this
town, entered the _one hundredth year of his age_. He is the
only male person who has arrived at that great age, from the
first settlement of the town by the English in 1629 to this
day.

* * * * *

Irish Litany.

DUBLIN, May 11.

_To the Printers of the_ Rights _of_ Irishmen.

GENTLEMEN,

I am enabled by an invisible power to communicate to you, a
Litany sanctioned by me, and to be adopted by the
professors of the patriotic religion of Ireland; a Litany
which breathes the spirit of that freedom which I professed
when on earth, and has been here on eternal record; if its
principle and doctrine tend to enlighten and emancipate your
country, it will add (if possible) to that indescribable
happiness enjoyed by him, whom, without vanity, I may now
call the virtuous and patriotic

MIRABEAU.

_Elysium, 5th Feb._ 1792.

_THE LITANY._

1st. Let there be a free, equal, and general representation
of your people in Parliament.

And all the people shall say amen.

2d. Let there be a reform of your church, an abolition of
tithes, and let each sect maintain its own pastor.

And all, &c.

3d. Let the people of my terrestrial country be an example
to your people, and let their freedom be your freedom.

And all, &c.

4th. Let the fetters which the nobles of your land have
forged, be broken asunder; and let those who earn,
distribute the bread of Ireland.

And all, &c.

5th. Let each man freely worship God according to the
dictates of his conscience.

And all, &c.

6th. Let christians be philosophers, and let philosophers be
christians.

And all, &c.

7th. Let the rich few no longer be supported by taxes on the
many and unrepresented poor.

And all, &c.

8th. Let all the sons of Hibernia be free--yea, even as free
as the negroes[D] of Africa.

And all, &c.

9th. Let truth never be deemed a libel, and let the Liberty
of your Press be extended.

And all, &c.

10th. Let the noble (tho enlisted) sons of Ireland never
become the hired assassins of their countrymen.

And all, &c.

11th. Let the army which eats the bread of Ireland, be her
guardian and protector, and not the base invader of her
rights and liberties.

And all, &c.

12th. Let him who first proposed a mortgage on the revenues
of Ireland, be accursed in the annals of your country.

And all, &c.

13th. Let yourselves no longer be the slaves of religion, or
sect, or party, but the united sons of freedom and
philosophy.

And all, &c.

14th. Let the majesty of your king reflect the majesty of
your people.

And all, &c.

_Mirabeau scripsit._

_Salem Gazette,_ 1792.

[D] Vide Wilberforce on the emancipation of the slaves.

* * * * *

Boston School of Fashion in 1807.

Robert Smallpeace,

_At his_ DRESSING ACADEMY, _and_ SCHOOL _of_ FASHION, _in_
MILK STREET, _opposite the South door of the_ Old South,

REMINDS the Sons and Daughters of Fashion and Beauty, that
tho' they may possess every latent excellence, yet they
require the improving hand of ART, like _rough_ diamonds, to
obtain the polish and brilliancy of the _first water_. What
is elegance of form or contour of beauty without
improvement? like "a light hid under a bushel," or whatever
can be conceived to be _most unlike_:--And it is a
lamentable fact, that

_Full many a mind is rear'd with toil and care,
To waste its worth--by_ SLOV'NLINESS _in_ HAIR.

The _tailor_, or _milliner_, may encase us with taste and
elegance; the _dancing master_ teach us the steps of ease
and dignity; the _musician_ instruct us in our throats and
fingers; and the _preceptor_ may inform our minds; and yet,
with all these _accomplishments_, can we even be PASSABLE,
if the _highest_ accomplishment of all be neglected? and the
HEAD be left to its own "disorder worse confounded,"
exhibiting a "_paltry crown of mud and straw_," placed upon
an "_edifice of ivory and gold_!"--and further--

_What though the_ EYE _voluptuous roll,_
_The_ FORM _possess each heavenly grace_;
_Say, can they_ ANY HEART _control,_
_Draw_ FRIENDSHIP _near--bid_ LOVE _take place,_
_'Till_ SMALLPEACE _touch them_!--he _whose trade is,_
_T' make_ Gods _of_ Men--_and_ Goddesses _of_ Ladies!

--> SMALLPEACE has elegant apartments for Ladies and
Gentlemen; and will be found constantly at "the post of
honour," and attendance, to wait upon them.

Oct. 17 [1807].
_Columbian Centinel._

* * * * *

The novels of 1833; from the "Salem Observer," July 13.

The decidedly bad moral tendency of some of the most popular
novels of the times is forcibly depicted in a magazine
recently established in England, by two of the sons of
William Cobbett, in the following language:--

"Would you seduce a wife? Falkland shall teach you to do it
with gravity and dignity. Would you murder? Eugene Aram
shall show you its necessity for the public advantage. Would
you rob? Paul Clifford shall convince you of the injustice
of security, and of the abominableness of the safety of a
purse on a moonlight night.--Would you eat? Turn to Harry
Bertram and Dandy Dinmont to the round of beef. Would you
drink? Friar Tuck is the jolliest of companions. Would you
dance, dress, and drawl? Pelham shall take you into tuition.
Would you lie, fawn, and flatter? Andrew Wylie shall
instruct you to crawl upward, without the slime betraying
your path. Would you yawn, doze, sleep, or dream? Cloudesly
shall do it for you, for the space of the first volume."

* * * * *

THOMAS MOORE.

Hostile feelings to the Americans having been imputed to the
poet MOORE in the first number of the (London) Westminster
Review, the following paragraph appeared in the London Times
of the 4th Feb., 1824.

"In the first number of the Westminster Review, just
published, there is an article upon a late work of Mr.
Moore's, in which the writer says, 'Mr. Moore has resided in
America, and, we understand, speaks of the Americans with
unbounded dislike and contempt.' In this assertion we can
confidently state, the writer is entirely mistaken. Whatever
opinions Mr. Moore may have hastily formed, when a very
young man, with respect to the character and institutions of
the Americans, we know that he has long since learned to
correct them, and to feel towards that people all the
admiration and respect which the noble example they set to
the other nations of the world demands."

_Boston Telegraph,_ 1824.

* * * * *

From the "Salem Gazette," Sept. 6, 1811.

Aiken's blood-letting Sermon

_for sale by Cushing & Appleton._

* * * * *

From the "Boston Transcript," Dec., 1834.

OLD TIMES.--Mr. Thatcher stated, in his Lecture before the
Boston Lyceum, that the Old Latin School in this City was
commenced two hundred years ago, according to the records of
the Town, which begin at the same year. For a long time it
was the only school; and there was no writing school among
us until November, 1684, (just 150 years since.) Master
Cheever presided over the Latin 38 years, till he died at
93. He was the teacher of two of the Mathers, and the second
Doctor said of him in an obituary essay, with his own
peculiar felicity, that

----to vast age he grew,
_Till Time's scythe waiting for him rusty grew._

Lovell was his second successor, and held on 92 years, till
in 1776 he left the town a Loyalist. The old gentleman had a
house furnished for him in School street, and a garden that
reached nearly to Court street, which his best boys were
allowed to till; and they had also the privilege as a reward
of merit of sawing his wood and bottling his cider.--The
Lecturer remarked that this was the first manual labor
school he had heard of.

* * * * *

A quotation from Scripture.

"In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is
hired."

* * * * *

From the "Salem Observer," 1840.

LITERARY CURIOSITY. The following letter was written by a
young gentleman to his "lady love," under the direction and
eye of a rigid old father. The understanding, however,
between the lovers, was, that she should read only every
other line, beginning with the first. Love is full of
expedients.

MADAM,--

The great love I have hitherto expressed for you
_is false, and I find that my indifference, toward you_
increases daily; the more I see of you, the more
_you appear in my eyes an object of contempt._--
I feel myself every way disposed and determined to
_hate you. Believe me, I never had an intention to_
offer you my hand. Our last conversation has
_left a tedious insipidity, which has by no means_
given me the most exalted idea of your character;
_your temper would make me extremely unhappy,_
and if we are united, I shall experience nothing but
_the hatred of my parents, added to their everlasting dis-_
pleasure in living with you. I have, indeed, a heart
_to bestow, but I do not wish you to imagine it is_
at your service; I could not give it to any one more
_inconsistent and capricious than yourself, and less_
capable to do honor to my choice and to my family.--
_Yes, Madam, I trust you will be persuaded that_
I speak sincerely; and you will do me a favor
_to avoid me. I shall excuse your taking the trouble_
to answer this. Your letters are always full of
_impertinence, and you have not the least shadow of_
wit or good sense. Adieu! Adieu! believe me, I am
_so averse to you that it is impossible for me ever to be_
your affectionate friend and ardent lover.

Transcriber's note:
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