 Chapter 10 of Dutch and English on the Hudson by Maud Wilder Goodwin. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Privateers and Pirates. Slaughter did not live long to enjoy his triumph over Liesler, and his death came so suddenly that the anti-Lieslerites raised their eyebrows and whispered poison, while the Lieslerites shrugged their shoulders and sneered delirium tremens. Neither faction seemed particularly reluctant to part with him. Colonel Benjamin Fletcher, who was sent over from England as the next governor arrived in New York in the summer of 1692, his rule is chiefly memorable for the founding of Trinity Church and for the encouragement in which he gave to piracy. These strangely different activities were both obnoxious to the Dutch burgers, who were almost as strongly opposed to the Church of England as to that of Rome, and who suspected the governor of conniving at the practice of piracy, or at least of closing his eyes, to the source of the doubloons of Spain, the Louis-Door of France, and other strange coins, which at this epoch had begun to circulate together with Ivory and Sandowood in the little town at the tip of Manhattan Island. In one sense, Fletcher cannot be held responsible for the existence of piracy in the colony or on the high seas. The institution was as old as navigation. Moreover, the issuance of letters of mark in the war with Spain had legalized privateering which was so near akin to piracy that it was often hard to distinguish between the two. Even royalty was not above accepting a share in the questionable spoils of the sea, as in the well-known case of Queen Elizabeth and the booty which Drake brought home. It is easy, therefore, to guess the source of the eastern rugs that carved teakwood furniture and stuffs from India looms which adorned the houses of the rich men of New York. On the streets pirate captains were pointed out as celebrities. One of them, Edward Coates, presented Madame Fletcher with jewels, silks, and cashmere shawls. Thomas II, another filibuster, is described by a contemporary as a slight dark man about 40 years of age, who wore a uniform consisting of a blue jacket bordered with gold lace and short trousers of white linen covering his legs to the knee below which came embroidered stockings. Around his neck he wore a chain of beaten gold and from his belt protruded a dagger's hilt set with sparkling jewels. These picturesque pirates and privateers swaggered about the taverns in the shadow of the shtat huis or lounged along the wharves at the harbor, everywhere they were the center of attention, and their tales of adventure were listened to with the most eager interest, but these adventures in the end pushed things so far that the government in England found itself obliged to take vigorous action against them. James expressly instructed the provincial governors, Andros and Dangan, to suppress all pirates and sea rovers, for they had become so bold in their activities along the Spanish Main that lawful trading was languishing and merchants were in terror. Many of the adventurers in the West Indies, having been originally engaged in the honest business of boo canning or smoking fish and meat after the manner of the carib savages, they and their piratical comrades were generally known in Europe as bichoniers or buccaneers. By the Harlanders they were named Zee rovers, by the French flea bustier, which was only the Frenchman's way of pronouncing freebooter. In 1652 Samuel Sewell established in Boston a free mint which attracted the pirates to that town where they could bring their booty in gold and silver and have it safely dropped into the melting pot beyond the reach of either discovery or recovery. In 1687 Sir Robert Holmes was sent with a squadron to the West Indies to put a stop to the nefarious trade of the freebooters, and in the next year Nicholson imprisoned at Boston several pirates whose leader was one Peterson. These activities on the part of the authorities had the effect of driving the Zee rovers from the Caribbean to the East Indies for their enterprises and from Boston to New York for their market. See commerce at this time it's so far outstripped a naval power adequate to protect it that piracy grew more and more profitable and many a respected merchant held private stock and some more than do be a sea venture. The coast of Madagascar was a meeting place for pirates and merchant men and their oriental stuffs gold and jewels were exchanged for rum or firearms and the merchant vessel returned to New York where our goods were sold cheaply and no questions were asked. One ship sailing from New York laden with Jamaica rum, Madeira wine and gunpowder returned with a cargo of slaves and East India goods and the voyage was reported to have cleared a net profit of 30,000 pounds. The scandal of adventuring continued to grow and in 1695 Peter Durlach Noy wrote thus to the home government. We have a parcel of pirates in these parts which people call the Red Sea men who often get great booty of Arabian gold. His excellency gives all due encouragement to these men because they make all due acknowledgements to him. One coats the captain of this honorable order presented his excellency with his ship which his excellency sold for 800 pounds and every one of the crew made him a suitable present of Arabian gold for his protection. One captain Tu who has gone to the Red Sea upon the same errand was before his departure highly caressed by his excellency in his coach in six horses and presented with a gold watch to engage him to make New York his port at his return. Tu retaliated the kindness with a present of jewels but I can't learn how much further the bargain proceeded. Time must show that after this all you will perhaps wonder when I tell you that this man's bell rings twice a day for prayers and that he appears with a great effect patient of piety but this is true and it is as true that it makes him only more ridiculous not more respected. Not only were the Buccaneers terrorizing the West Indies the Red Sea and the Madagascar coast but according to the Albany records of 1696 Pyrus in great numbers infest the Hudson River at its mouth and way lay vessels on their way to Albany speeding out from covers and from behind islands and again returning to the rocky shores or ascending the mountains along the river to conceal their plunder. The government in England now prepared to take vigorous measures it desired to fit out an armed force to suppress the Buccaneers but as all the regular Navy was needed in the war with France it was decided to organize a stock company in which the king the Duke of Shrewsbury, Lord Chancellor Summers, heroes of Bellamont, Oxford and Romney, Robert Livingston and others took shares for the purpose of fitting out a private-year vessel to fight the pirates and at the same time to win some profit for themselves. The adventure galley carrying 30 guns and manned by over 100 sailors was fitted out and entrusted to the command of William Kidd, a sea captain of New York who chanced to be in London at the time and who was warmly recommended by Robert Livingston to Lord Bellamont who had been appointed to succeed Fletcher as governor of New York. He was well known as a bold and skillful sailor and a man of wealth and repute in New York and in his marriage certificate he was called Captain William Kidd Gentlemen. The plan finally formed was that Kidd with a privateer furnished with a letter of mark and a special commission from the king should cruise about in search of the pirates and capture them. In pursuance of the scheme Kidd set sail on the adventure galley and reached New York in the spring of 1696. He set up placards all over the town asking for recruits with the result that a motley crew of adventurers rushed to take ship in this strange new enterprise. At this time Kidd was living in one of the handsomest houses in New York on what is now Liberty Street. Before this in 1691 he had married the widow of a fellow sea captain, a woman of great respectability by whom he had one daughter and he was known far and wide as a solid and trustworthy merchant. His venture seemed bewarked by every guarantee but even at that epoch there were not wanting those who predicted strange things for the adventure galley. Few however foresaw any events as strange as those which actually occurred. After cruising along the American coast without achieving the capture of any pirate ships Kidd set sail for the Red Sea and reached the coast of Madagascar in the fall of 1697. Here again he found no trace of their corsairs who had probably been forewarned of his coming. Kidd then took on water and provisions and proceeded to the coast of Madagascar. Still no pirates, water and provisions were running low and the crew threatened mutiny unless they were allowed to take up the business of piracy on their own account. Kidd thereupon decided to yield and the adventure galley began by capturing several vessels owned by the great Mokul as well as some ships sailing under French colors. In December 1698 Kidd captured an East India ship named the Kwardog merchant, the adventure galley being in bad condition. Kidd set the crew of the Kwardog merchant on shore, took possession of the ship, burned his old one and set sail in his new vessel for Madagascar. In spite of their rich spoils the mutineers remained silent and many deserted. The men's discontent led to an altercation with William Moore, a gunner in the course of which Kidd hit him on the head with a bucket. The resulting injury grew fatal to Moore and ultimately resulted in disaster for Kidd. After leaving Madagascar the pirate captain sailed for the West Indies and it must have been with a sinking heart that he received the news which awaited him there. The piracy of the adventure galley was already known in England and a committee of parliament had been appointed to inquire into the whole affair. Free pardon for acts committed before May 1699 was offered by royal proclamation to all pirates who would surrender but an ominous exception was made in this proclamation of mercy. Avery, a notorious buccaneer, and William Kidd were not included. The cause of this exclusion from grace is not far to see. It was not that Kidd was a sinner above all others but that he had involved great personages from the King down and that the Tories were making capital out of the connection between prominent Whig statesmen and the misdeeds of Captain Kidd. The outlaw now determined on a course which in a righteous cause might well have been called bold but which under the circumstances could only be described as brazen. He bought at the island of Hispaniola a small sloop which he loaded with gold coin, gold dust, gems, another booty, and with what remained of his crew he set sail for New York. Thus at San Domingo that queer dog merchant with her 50 guns and her valuable cargo was abandoned. Her fate has continued a mystery to this day and from time to time the search for the lost booty is still suggested and inaugurated by enthusiasts for adventure or seekers for gold. When Kidd drew near New York he found that the Earl of Bellamont had gone to Boston and he resolved to follow the governor to Massachusetts. Much uncertainty surrounds his course at this time. It is said that he sailed up Long Island Sound, stopped at Gardner's Island, and buried a chest of treasure there that he presented Mrs. Gardner with brocades embroidered with gold threads and dropped jewels into his wine. It is said that he succeeded in reaching his wife by a letter asking her to meet him at Block Island. Rumor has it that from Narragansett Bay he communicated with Bellamont and informed his lordship that he, William Kidd, was on board a sloop with 10,000 pounds worth of grids and that he was entirely guiltless of the piracy with which he was charged. It is said that Bellamont replied that if Kidd could establish his innocence he might count on the governor's protection. Amid all these rumors there seems good evidence that Kidd landed in Boston in July and had the effrontery to offer the governor a gift of jewels for Lady Bellamont. With the approval of the council Bellamont accepted the gift and handed the gems to a trustee as evidence in the case against Kidd. The Earl of Bellamont, being a man of sterling integrity, was naturally sensitive as to his apparent complicity in the Kidd piracy, refused any further parlay and sent the buccaneer to England to stand his trial there. Kidd was held in London for several months pending the collection of evidence against him and his trial for piracy and the murder of William Moore finally began at the Earl Bailey in the spring of 1701. From this point we have the original documents of the estate trials and a complete record of the evidence for and against Kidd, Bellamont is eliminated as a factor and it becomes the case of the crown against Captain William Kidd and a number of others from murder and piracy upon the high seas. However we may feel as to Kidd's guilt in the matter of piracy we can but realize that according to the standards of modern times he was not given a fighting chance for his life. He was detained in Nugget prison and denied all counsel until he had pleaded guilty or not guilty. In spite of all his protests he was brought to trial on the first indictment for murder, incidentally the least certain of his offenses. The jury being sworn the clerk proceeded with the first indictment for murder and declared that the jurors of our sovereign Lord the King do upon their oath present that William Kidd later London married not having the fear of God before his eyes but me moved and seduced by the devil to make assault in and upon one William Moore and that the aforesaid William Kidd with a certain wooden bucket bound with iron hoops of the value of eight pence which he the said William Kidd then and there held in his right hand did violently feloniously voluntarily and of his malice the forethought beat and strike the aforesaid William Moore in and upon the right part of the head of him the said William Moore then and there upon the high sea in the ship aforesaid and within the jurisdiction of England. Several sailors testified to the circumstances of the murder that Kidd had called the gunner. A lousy dog and Moore had replied if I am a lousy dog you have made me so you have brought me to ruin him any more. At this Kidd's temper being roused he struck Moore with the bucket and the gunner died the next day as a result of the blow. Considering the severity of treatment of mutinous sailors permitted to ship officers at that time there's little reason to think that under ordinary circumstances Kidd would have been a judge guilty of murder for a blow struck in hot blood and under provocation but the verdict was certain before the trial had begun. The jury after an hour's consultation brought in a verdict of guilty and Kidd was remanded to nougat prison to await trial for piracy. The second trial took place in May 1701 and included beside the captain nine other mariners charged with piracy in that day feloniously did steal taken carry away the said merchant ship Quaddagh merchant and the apparel and tackle of the same ship of the value of 400 pounds of lawful money of England 70 chests of opium besides 20 bales of raw silk 100 bales of calico 200 bales of muslims 250 bales of sugar and three bales of lommels. Kidd's defense was that the ships captured were sailing under French passes and therefore lawful prizes according to the terms of his commission these passes he said have been delivered into Bellamont's hands but the court made no effort to procure these passes or to inquire further into the matter the jury was out for a short time only and brought in their verdict against or for the mariners separately all but three were found guilty in addressing them the court said you've been tried by the laws of the land and convicted and nothing now remains but that sentence be passed according to the law and the sentence of the law is this you shall be taken from the place where you are and be carried to the place from whence you came and from thence to the place of execution and there be severly hanged by your necks until you be dead and may the lord have mercy on your souls captain Kidd was hanged at execution dock on May 23 1701 thus entered the most famous pirate of the age his career so impressed the popular imagination that a host of legends sprang up concerning him and his treasure ship while innumerable doful ballads were written setting forth his incredible depravity yet it is curious to consider that had he died a few years earlier he would have passed away as an honored citizen of new york and would have been buried with pomp and circumstance and the usual laudatory funeral oration end of chapter 10 chapter 11 of dutch and english on the Hudson by maude wilder goodwin this liver fox recording is in the public domain colonial government in the 18th century while captain kid was still on the high seas and pirates were still infesting the lower Hudson the Earl of bellamont arrived in new york in april 1698 accompanied by his wife and his cousin john man fan who had been appointed lieutenant governor the citizens greeted the new governor with every demonstration of delight the corporation gave a public banquet and offered a eulogistic address bellamont on his part entered into his task with enthusiasm in the new assembly called in 1699 he spoke of the disorder prevailing in the province left as it was with the divided people an empty treasury ruined fortifications and if you have naked soldiers he spoke of the ill repute of new york as a rendezvous for pirates and said it would be hard if i who come before you with an honest heart and a resolution to be just to your interests should meet with greater difficulties in the discharge of his majesty service than those who have gone before me he declared it his firm intention that there should be no more misapplication of the public money availed attack upon flexor's grants of land and privileges which had become a public scandal he would he said pocket none of the money himself nor permit any embezzlement of it by others and promised exact accounts to be laid before the assembly win and as often as you require the assembly passed a vote of thanks and voted a six years revenue apparently everything was auspicious but the seed of discord was already sown by belemont's early espousal of the leslarion cause which was in effect the cause of the common people in the ecclesiastical records of the state an account of the disinterment and reburial of the mutilated remains of leesler and of his son-in-law millborn shows the determination of belemont to make what reparation was possible in addition to the removal of attainder for the injustice done the document closes with these words yesterday october 20 1698 the remains of commander jacob leesler and of jacob millborn eight years and five months after their execution and burial were exhumed and interred again with great pomp under our new dutch church in garden street their weapons and our memorial ensigns of honor were there in the church hung up and thus as far as it was possible their honor was restored to them special permission to do this had been received by his honor's son jacob leesler from his majesty this gave an honorable joy to their families and to those people who under him had taken up arms for our blessed king william with this circumstance we must trust that the dissensions which have so long harassed us will also be buried to this end our right honorable governor my lord the earl of belemont long wished for by us is exerting his good offices he tries to deal impartially with all acting with great fairness and moderation he has begun his administration by remembering the lord god for he has ordered a day of solemn fasting and prayer throughout the whole land in a proclamation of great seriousness he has exhorted the inhabitants earnestly to pray for these things peace among the people to the divine majesty we hope the lord will bestow his gracious blessings and grace upon your reverences with all our hearts this proceeding on the part of belemont combined with the appointment to office of prominent leeslerians and the dismissal of some of their opponents a raid at once a formidable body of important citizens against him their numbers were augmented by the people who had profited by unlawful privileges won from fletcher and now stripped from them by belemont but the governor pursued his course undaunted either by the threats or by the taunts cast against him as a partner of the pirate captain kid so beloved was belemont by the people and so strongly entrenched by influence in the government at home that he could probably have carried through the reforms which he had at heart but his untimely death in 1701 after a brief rule of three years put an end to all his far-reaching schemes for the good of the colonies his death was followed by a condition approaching civil war between the followers of leesler and their foes in 1702 queen ann who had recently ascended the throne appointed as governor her relative Edward Hyde lord cornberry he suppressed the leeslerians and exalted the aristocratic party thereby restoring order but at the same time bringing odium upon his cause by his personal vices cornberry was a type of everything that a colonial governor should not be a scamp a spendthrift and a drunkard relying upon his relationship to queen ann he felt himself superior to the ordinary restraints of civilization he took bribes under guise of gifts was addicted to all forms of debauchery and incidentally proved as foolish as he was wicked one of his amusements it is said being that of parading the streets of new york in the evening clad in woman's attire his lady was as unpopular as he and it is said that when the wheels of her coach were hurt approaching the house of any of the wealthy citizens of new york the family was hastily set to work hiding the attractive ornaments to which her ladyship might take a fancy as she had no compunction in asking for them as a gift in an expedition to albany in 1702 cornberry's vanity led him to decorate his barge with brilliant colors to provide new uniforms for the crew and generally to play the peacock at the expense of the colony rumor plays the sum of his debts at 7 000 pounds moreover he was charged with the embezzlement of 1500 pounds of government money along suffering community thawney demanded the recall of lord cornberry and demanded it with the same insistence which was to make itself felt in revolution in the last half of the century as is usual with sovereigns when any right is demanded with sufficient firmness queen and was graciously pleased to withdraw lord cornberry in 1708 on the arrival of his successor cornberry was placed by indignant creditors in the charge of the sheriff and was held in custody until the news of his succession to the earldom of clarendon reached the colony the library furniture and pictures of the queen's cousin were sold at auction while the ex-governor sculked back to england to make the best possible showing as to his appropriation of public monies to private uses we can picture him wiping his eyes in pathetic deprecation as he exclaimed if the queen is not pleased to pay me the having the government of new jersey which i am persuaded the queen intended for my benefit will prove my ruin lord loveless cornberry's successor demanded a permanent revenue but recent experience had taught the colonists to hold the financial power in their own hands and they consented only to an annual appropriation thus making the salary of the governor dependent on his good conduct what would have been the result of this clash of interest will never be known since lord loveless died on may 5 1709 the same day on which the act was passed major richard engels b leisler's old enemy now came into power and held the reins for a few months until mismanagement of an expedition against canada caused such indignation that he was withdrawn and robert hunter became governor in 1710 although of humble scotch parentage he had risen to prominence in english society numbering swift and adison among his friends and being married to lady hay whose influence had procured for him success of positions of importance which culminated in this appointment with a view to encouraging the production of naval stores and obtaining a profit for the english government hunter brought over at the expense of the crown several thousand palatines german inhabitants of the rine valley harried by the french thereby adding another alien element to the cosmopolitan population the british government appropriated the sum of 10 000 pounds for the project and agreed not only to transport the emigrants but to maintain them for a time in return for their labor these palatines settled on both banks of the hudson and four villages on lands belonging to robert livingston and then three on those belonging to the crown and situated on the west side of the river authorities differ so widely in respect to the treatment of these german immigrants that it seems only fair to present both sides one shows hunter working in the interest of the english government against that of the colony and represents the movement as a clever plan on the part of the governor to stimulate the production of tar and turpentine to contribute to the government income and to prevent the manufacture of wool linen and cotton goods which at that time were largely bought in england when hunter found that the income did not meet the outlay it is said he notified the newcomers that they must shift for themselves but not outside the province on the other hand the governor asserted that dwellers in the lower palatinate of the rine when driven from their homes by the french beg the english government to give them homes in america they queen angrishly agreed that the palatine should be transported to new york at the expense of the english with the understanding that they were to work out the advance payment and also the food and lodgings provided by the state and by livingston but that the palatines proved lazy and failed to carry out their contract all accounts agree however in describing the hard lot of these unfortunate exiles their ocean voyage was long and stormy with much fatal illness the sites selected for their settlements were not desirable the native pine was found unsuited to the production of tar in large quantities they soon discovered that they would never be able to pay for their maintenance by such unprofitable labor moreover the provisions given them were of inferior quality and they were forced to furnish men for an expedition against canada while their women and children were left either to starvation or to practical servitude in this desperate situation some of the palatines turned from their fellow christians through the native savages and their appeal was not in vain the indians gave them permission to settle at sco harry and many families moved there in defiance of the governor who was still bent on manufacturing tar and pitch but the great majority remained in the hudson valley and eventually built homes on lands which they purchased the climate of new york disagreed with hunter and his mental depression kept pace with his physical debility after six years of hopeless effort he was obliged to admit the failure of his plans to produce naval stores in 1710 he reported of the locality that it had the finest air to live upon but not for me again he says that sancho panza is a type for him since that in spite of every effort to do his duty no dog could be worse treated it is easy to understand that a member of the pope swift bollingbroke circle in england should have found the social atmosphere of early new york far from exhilarating and it is equally easy to comprehend that the pioneers of the new world resented his mismanagement of the campaign of 1711 against canada and his assertion of the english government's right to tax their colonists without the consent of the colonial governments but perhaps hunter and the people appreciated each other more than either realized for when he took leave in 1719 his words were warmly affectionate and his address embodied the exhortation may no strife ever happen amongst you but that laudable emulation who shall approve himself the most zealous servant and most beautiful subject of the best of princes and in response to this farewell address the colony of york assured governor hunter that he'd governed well and wisely like a prudent magistrate like an affectionate parent and that the good wishes of his countrymen followed him wherever he went it would be pleasant to dwell on this picture of mutual confidence in regard but the rude facts of history hurry us on to quite different scenes we in bernette son of the bishop of salisbury continued the policy of his predecessor it is true and lived on unusually amicable terms with the assembly identified himself with the interests of the province by marrying the daughter of a prosperous dutch merchant by prohibiting the fur trade between albany and canada yet even bernette clashed with the assembly on occasion and when after an interval william cosby became governor the worst abuses of executive power returned fomenting quarrels which reached their climax in the famous zhengar trial the truth was that no matter how popular a governor might be clashes were bound to occur between him and the representatives of the people whom he governed because they represented divergent interests the question of revenue wasn't ever recurring cause of trouble without adequate funds from the home government the governor looked to the assembly for his salary as well as for grants to carry on the administration of the province no matter how absolute the authority conferred by his commission and his instructions the governor must bow to the lower house of the provincial legislature which held the purse strings under slaughter fletcher belemont and cornberry the assembly had voted revenues for a term of years but when cornberry appropriated to his own uses one thousand pounds out of the 1800 pounds granted for the defense of the frontiers and when in addition he pocketed 1500 pounds of the funds were appropriated for the protection of the mouth of the Hudson the assembly grew wary thereafter before successive years it made only annual appropriations and wisers still by 1739 it voted supplies only indefinite amounts for special purposes short-sighted the assembly often was sometimes in its part of simony leaving the borders unprotected and showing a disposition to take as much and to give as little as possible a policy that was fraught with grave peril as the front and indian war drew on a peace the growing insubordination of the province gave more than one governor anxious thought governor hunter wrote warningly to friends in england the colonies are infants at their mother's breasts and will wean themselves when they become of age and governor clinton was so incensed by the intimacy of the assembly that he said bluntly every branch of this legislature may be criminal in the eyes of the law and there is a power able to punish you and that will punish you if you provoke that power to do it by your behavior otherwise you must think yourselves independent of the crown of great britain end of chapter 11 chapter 12 of dutch and english on the Hudson by mod wilder goodwin this liberal box recording is in the public domain the zhengar trial among the children of the palatines imported by governor hunter in 1710 was allowed of 13 by the name of john peter zhengar instead of proceeding to the palatine colony is widowed mother and her little family remained in new york there peter was bound to printus to william bradford then a well-known printer for a term of eight years at the end of which time he set up an office of his own he evidently found himself hard-pressed for the means of living since one finds him in 1732 applying to the consistory of the dutch church of new york and proposing that since he had so long played the organ without recompense he might take up a voluntary subscription from the congregation and that the members of the consistory should head the paper as an example to others the consistory agreed to allow him provisionally the sum of six pounds new york currency to be paid by the church masters and promised that they would speak with him further on the subject of his seeking subscriptions in the congregation a favor for which john peter was duly grateful governor william cosby as he drove in his coach on a sunday to trinity church or as he walked in stately raiment attended by a negro servant who carried his prayer book on a velvet cushion could have little dream that the young printer striding past him on his way to play the organ in the old dutch church was destined to be the instrument of his excellency's downfall but the time was not far off when this david armed only with a blackened type of his printer's form was to set forth against this goliath all flaming convictions have a tendency to cool into cant and the freedom of the press has so long been a vote catching phrase that it is hard nowadays to realize that it was once an expression of an ideal for which men were willing to die but which they scarcely hoped to achieve when colonel cosby former governor of minyorka came over the seas in 1732 to become governor of new york he brought with him a none too savory reputation all that he seemed to have learned in his former executive post was the art of conveying public funds to private uses his government in new york sustained his reputation it was as high-handed as it was corrupt he burned deeds and served to overthrow old land patents in order that fees for new ones might find their way into his pocket cosby's manner a vast tract of land in the mohawk valley bore testimony to the success of his methods in acquiring wealth upon the death of cosby's predecessor john montgomery in 1731 rip van dan as president of the council had assumed control of the affairs of the province until the arrival of the new governor at the close of his term which had lasted a little more than a year the council passed warrants giving rip van dan the salary and the fees of the office for the time of his service when cosby appeared he produced an order from the king commanding that the perquisites of the governor during the interregnum be equally divided between him and van dan on the authority of this document cosby demanded half of the salary which van dan had received very well answered the stalwart judgment but always provided that you share with me on the same authority the half of the emoluments which you have received during the same period the greedy governor maintained that this was a very different matter nevertheless he was somewhat puzzled as to how to proceed legally with a view to filling his purse since he was himself chancellor he could not sue in chancery he did not dare to bring a suit at common law as he feared that a jury would give a verdict against him under these circumstances cosby took advantage of a clause in the commissions of the judges of the supreme court which seemed to constitute them barons of the exchequer and he therefore directed that an action against van dan be brought in the name of the king before that court the chief justice who had held office for 18 years was lewis morris van dam's council promptly took exception to the jurisdiction of the court and morris sustained their plea whereupon cosby removed morris as chief justice cosby's party included delan see phillips bradley and harrison while alexander stuyvesant livingston cadwaller golden and most of the prominent citizens supported van dan the people of new york were now awakening to the fact that this was no petty quarrel between two men as to which should receive the larger share of government monies but that it involved the much larger question of whether citizens were to be denied recourse to impartial courts in the defense of their rights the only paper published in the province the new york weekly gazette established in 1725 was entirely in cosby's interest and the van dan party seemed powerless they determined however to strike at least one blow for freedom and as a first step they established in 1733 a paper known as the new york weekly journal to be published by john peter zenger but to be under the control of far abler men morris alexander smith and golden were the principal contributors to the new paper and in a series of articles they vigorously criticized the governor's administration particularly his treatment of van dan the governor and council in high dodging it once demanded the punishment of the publisher they asked the assembly to join them in prosecuting zenger but the request was laid upon the table the council then ordered the hangman to make a public bonfire of four numbers of the weekly journal but the mayor and the alderman declared the order illegal and refused to allow it to be carried out accordingly the offending numbers of the journal were burned by a negro slave of the sheriff in the presence of frances harrison the recorder and some other partisans of cosby the magistrates declining to be present at the ceremony whatever satisfaction the governor and his adherence could gain from the burning of these copies of the journal was theirs but their actions served only to make them both more ridiculous and more despicable in the eyes of the people not long after this episode zenger was arrested upon order of the council and thrown into the jail which was at that time in the city hall on the site of the present united states sub treasury building on wall street zenger was denied the use of pens ink or paper the grand jury refused to indict him but cosby's attorney general filed an information against zenger for false scandalous malicious and seditious rivals public interest was now transferred from bandam to zenger and the people saw him as their representative robbed of his right of free speech and imprisoned on an information which was informed and substance and indictment without action of a grand jury months elapsed while zenger was kept in prison his counsel smith and alexander attacked two judges of the court before which he was to be tried on the ground that they were irregularly appointed the commissions of two of them chief justice delansey and judge phillips running during pleasure instead of during good behavior and having been granted by the governor without the advice or consent of his council the anger of the judges thus assailed was expressed by delansey who replied you have brought it to that point gentlemen that either we must go from the bench or you from the bar wherewith he summarily ordered the names of the two distinguished lawyers stricken from the list of attorneys this was obviously a heavy blow to zenger as the only other lawyer of note in new york was retained in the interests of cosby and his faction but zenger's friends never seized their determined efforts in his behalf and smith and alexander remained active in council if not in court meanwhile the judges appointed an insignificant attorney john chambers by name to act for zinger and fancy that their intrigue were sure of success the trial came on before the supreme court sitting on august 4 1735 delansey acting as chief justice phillips as second judge and bradley as attorney general chambers pleaded not guilty on behalf of his client but to the throng who crowded the courtroom to suffocation zinger's case must have looked black indeed there was no question that he had published the objectionable articles and according to the english law of the day the truth of a libel could not be set up as a defense it was even some years later that lord mansfield upheld the amazing doctrine that the greater the truth the greater the libel a part of the importance of the zinger trial lies in its sweeping away in this part of the world the possibility of so monstrous a theory a great and overwhelming surprise however awaited the prosecutors of zinger the secret had been well kept and apparently everyone was amazed when there appeared for the defense one andrew hamilton a citizen of philadelphia a venerable age and the most noted and able lawyer in the colonies from this moment he became the central figure of the trial and his address was followed with breathless interest he touched upon his own age and feebleness with consummate attack and dramatic effect you see that i labor under the weight of years and am born down with great infirmities of body yet old and weak as i am i should think it my duty if required to go to the utmost part of the land where my service could be of use in assisting to quench the flame of prosecutions upon information set on foot by the government to deprive a people of the right of remonstrating and complaining to of the arbitrary attempts of men in power men who injure and oppress the people under their administration provoke them to cry out and complain and then make that very complaint the foundation for new oppressions and prosecutions i wish i could say there were no instances of this kind but to conclude the question before the court and you gentlemen of the jury is not a small nor private concern it is not the cause of a poor printer nor of new york alone which you are now trying no it may in its consequence affect every free man that lives under a british government on the main of america it is the best cause it is the cause of liberty and i make no doubt but your upright conduct this day will not only entitle you to the love and esteem of your fellow citizens but every man who prefers freedom to a life of slavery will bless and honor you as men who have baffled the attempt of tyranny and by an impartial and uncorrupt verdict have laid a noble foundation for securing to ourselves our posterity and our neighbors that to which nature and the laws of our country have given us a right the liberty both of exposing and opposing arbitrary power by speaking and writing truth with scathing irony you fell upon the theory that truth was no defense for libel if a libel is understood in the large and unlimited sense urged by mr attorney there is scarce of writing i know that may not be called a libel or scarce any person safe from being called to account as a libeler for moses meek as he was libel came and who is it that has not libeled the devil for according to mr attorney it is no justification to say that one has a bad name ecord has libeled our good king william bernett has libeled among others king charles and king james and rapin has libeled them all how must a man speak or write or what must he hear read or sing or when must he laugh so as to be secure of him being taken up as a libeler i sincerely believe that we're some persons to go through the streets of new york nowadays and read a part of the bible if it were not known to be such mr attorney with the help of his innuendos would easily turn it into a libel as for instance the sixteenth verse of the ninth chapter of isaiah the leaders of the people caused them to err and they that are led by them are destroyed but should mr attorney go about to make this a libel he would treat it thus the leaders of the people innuendo the governor and council of new york caused them innuendo the people of this province to err and they meaning the people of the province are destroyed innuendo are deceived into the loss of their liberty which is the worst kind of destruction or if some person should publicly repeat in a manner not pleasing to his betters the tenth and eleventh verses of the 56th chapter of the same book there mr attorney would have a large field to display his skill in the artful application of his innuendos the words are his watchmen are all blind they are ignorant yes they are greedy dogs that can never have enough but to make them a libel there is according to mr attorney's doctrine no more wanting but the aid of his skill in the right adapting of his innuendos as for instance his watchmen innuendo the governor's council and assembly are blind they are ignorant innuendo will not see the dangerous designs of his excellency yay they meaning the governor and council are greedy dogs which can never have enough innuendo enough of riches and power thus hamilton skillfully appealed to the independent principles of the jury there was no note satiric pathetic or patriotic which he did not strike overwhelmed by the torrent of his eloquence bradley the attorney general scarcely attempted a reply the chief justice stated that the jury might bring in a verdict on the fact of publication and leave it to the court to decide whether it were a libelness but hamilton was far too wary to be caught thus i know may it please your honor said he the jury may do so but i do likewise know that they may do otherwise i know they have the right beyond all dispute to determine both the law and the fact and where they do not doubt the law they ought to do so nevertheless the chief justice charged the jury gentlemen of the jury the great pains mr hamilton has taken to show you how little regard juries are to pay to the opinion of the judges and is insisting so much upon the conduct of some judges in trials of this kind is done no doubt with the design that you should take but very little notice of what i may say upon this occasion i shall therefore only observe to you that as the facts or words in the information are confessed the only thing that can come in question before you is whether the words set forth in the information make a libel and that is a matter of law no doubt in which you may leave to the court but the show of authority and the attempt at allurement were all in vain the jury took but a few moments to deliberate and returned with a verdict of not guilty the roar of applause which shook the courtroom was more than a tribute to the eloquence of the aged council would accept it an unpopular case without fees because he felt that he was working for the cause of freedom it was more than a tribute to the poor printer who'd risk everything in the same cause it was the spirit of the barons at runny meat of the long parliament of the revolution of 1688 of patrick henry of virginia when he cried give me liberty or give me death the court divided between wrath and surprise strove to check the wave of applause and threatened with imprisonment the leader of the cheers but a son-in-law of ex chief justice lewis moore succeeded in making himself heard and declared that cheers were as lawful there as in west minster hall where they had been loud enough over the acquittal of the seven bishops in 1688 upon this the applause broke out again and hamilton was acclaimed the people's champion the dinner was given in his honor and the freedom of the city was bestowed upon him when he entered his barge for the return journey to philadelphia flags wave cannon boomed and hara's resounded from all quarters end of chapter 12 chapter 13 of dutch and english on the hudson by mod wilder goodwin this liver box recording is in the public domain the negro plots as early as the 18th century new york had become a cosmopolitan town its population contained not only dutch and english in nearly equal numbers but also french swedes jews negros and sailors travelers from every land the settled portion of the city according to a map of 1729 extended as far north as beekman street on the east side and as far as trinity church on the west side a few blocks beyond the church lay old win mill lane touching king's farm which was still open country here broadway shook off all semblance to a town thoroughfare and became a dusty country road meeting the post road to boston near the lower end of the rope walk the city of new york is a pleasant well compacted place wrote madame knight who journeyed on horseback from boston over this post road and who recorded her experiences in an entertaining journal the building's brick generally very stately and high though not altogether like ours in boston the bricks in some of the houses are of diverse coolers and laid in checkers being glazed look very agreeable the inside of them are neat to admiration besides its welcoming houses set among spreading trees new york possessed public buildings of dignity and distinction there was trinity church who's tall steeple was one of the first landmarks to catch the traveler's eye as he journeyed down the river from albany the new city hall dating from belemont's time and standing on a site at the corner of wall and broad streets given by colonel abraham to paster was also a source of pride with its substantial wings and arched colonnade in the center it was quite imposing here the assembly council and court sat here too were offices and a library but the cellar was used as a dungeon and the attic as a common prison new markets and wharves told of the growing commerce of the city and province on every hand were evidences of luxurious living there were taverns and coffee houses where gold flowed in abundant streams from the pockets of pirates and smugglers and in the streets crest and blazing family coaches while sedan chairs were borne by negro slaves along the narrow brick pathways in the center of the town the dress of the people told the same story of prosperity the streets of the fashionable quarter around trinity church were fairly ablaze with gay costumes men of fashion wore powdered wigs and cocked hats cloth or velvet coats reaching to the knee breaches and low shoes with buckles they carried swords sometimes studded with jewels and in their gloved hands they held snuff boxes of costly material and elaborate design the ladies who accompanied them were no less gaily dressed one is described as wearing a gown of purple and gold opening over a black velvet petticoat and short enough to show green silk stockings and morocco shoes embroidered in red another wore a flowered green and gold gown over a scarlet and gold petticoat edged with silver everywhere were seen strange fabrics of oriental design coming from the holds of mysterious ships which unloaded surreptitiously along the waterfront the members of one class alone looked on all this prosperous life with sullen discontent the negro slaves whose toil made possible the leisure of their owners these strange and cooth africans seemed out of place in new york and from early times they had exhibited resentment and hatred toward the governing classes who in turn looked upon them with distrust this smoldering discontent of the blacks aroused no little uneasiness and led to the adoption of laws which especially in the cities were marked by a brutality quite out of keeping with the usual moderation of the colony when mrs. grant wrote later of negro servitude in albany as slavery softened into a smile she spoke in the first place from a narrow observation of life in a cultivated family and in the second place from scant knowledge of the events which had preceded the kind treatment of the negroes in 1684 an ordinance was passed declaring that no negroes or indian slaves above the number of four should meet together on the lord's day or at any other time or at any place except on their master's service they were not to go armed with guns swords clubs or stones on penalty of ten lashes at the whipping post an act provided that no slave should go about the streets after nightfall anywhere south of the collet without a lighted lantern so as the light thereof could be plainly seen a few years later governor cornberry ordered the justices of the peace and king's county to seize and apprehend all negroes who had assembled themselves in a riotous manner or had absconded from their masters in 1712 during the administration of governor robert hunter a group of negroes perhaps 40 in number formed a plot which justified the terror of their masters though it was so mad that it could have originated only in savage minds these blacks planned to destroy all the white people of the city then numbering over 6000 meeting in an orchard the negroes set fire to a shed and then lurked about in the shadows armed with every kind of weapon on which they could lay hands as the negroes had expected all the citizens of the neighborhood seeing the conflagration came running to the spot to fight the flames the blacks succeeded in killing nine men and wounding many more before the alarm reached the fort then of course the affair ended the slaves fled to the forest at the northern end of the island but the soldiers stationed centuries and then hunted down the negroes beating the woods to be sure that none escaped six of the negroes seeing that their doom was sealed killed themselves and the fate of the captives showed that they well knew what mercy to expect at the hands of the enraged whites 21 were put to death when being broken on the wheel and several burned at the stake while the rest were hanged after this experience of the danger attending the holding of slaves the restrictions upon the negroes grew even more irksome and the treatment they received more that of outcasts for instance a slave must be buried by daylight without pallbearers and with not more than a dozen negroes present as mourners in spite of bright spots in the picture the outlook grew constantly darker a mistrust ready to develop on slight provocation into terror perturbed the whites and every rumor was magnified to their reigned a panic as widespread as that caused by the reports of witchcraft in new england at length in 1741 the storm burst one march night while a gale was sweeping the city a fire was discovered on the roof of the governor's house in the fort church bells sounded the alarm and firemen and engines hurried to the spot but it was hopeless to try to extinguish the flames which spread to the chapel and to the office of the secretary over the fort gate where the records of the colony were stored the barracks then caught fire and in a little over an hour everything in the fort was destroyed the hand grenades exploding as they caught fire and spreading destruction in every direction a month later a fire broke out at night near the blee market a bucket brigade was formed and the fire was extinguished on the same night the loft in a house on the west side of the town was found to be in flames and coals were discovered between two straw beds occupied by a negro the next day coals were found under the coach house of john murray on Broadway and on the day following a fire broke out again near the blee market thus the townsfolk were made certain that an incendiary plot was on foot of course everyone's thoughts flew to the negro slaves as the conspirators especially when uh mrs. Earl announced that she had overheard three negroes threatening to burn the town the authorities were as much alarmed as the populace and at once leaped to the conclusion that the blame for the incendiary of which they scarcely paused to investigate the evidence was to be divided between the roman catholics and the negroes who without reasonable grounds had so long constituted their chief terror the common council offered pardon and a reward of 100 pounds to any conspirator who would reveal the story of the plot and the names of the criminals involved under the influence of this offer one mary burton a servant and the employee of you son the tavern keeper accused her master her mistress their daughter and a woman of evil reputation known as peggy carry or carry as well as a number of negroes of being implicated in the plot she said that the negroes brought stolen goods to the tavern and were protected by hueson who had planned with them the burning and plundering of the city and the liberation of the slaves on this unsupported evidence peggy carry and a number of negroes were condemned to execution and under terror of death or encouraged by the hope of pardon these prisoners made numerous confessions implicating one another until by the end of august 24 whites and 154 negroes had been imprisoned four whites including hueson and peggy carry were executed 14 negroes were burned at the state 18 were hanged 71 transported and the remainder pardoned or discharged accusations were also made that the roman catholics had stirred up the plot and persons of reputation and standing were accused of complicity the effect of the popular panic which rendered impossible the calm weighing of evidence and extinguished any sense of proportion is seen in the letters of governor george clark on june 2017 41 he writes to the lords of trade as follows the fatal fire that consumed the buildings in the fort and great part of my substance for my loss is not less than 2000 pounds did not happen by accident as i at first apprehended but was kindled by design in the execution of a horrid conspiracy to burn it and the whole town and to massacre the people as appears evidently not only by the confession of the nigger who set fire to it in some part of the same gutter where the plumber was to work but also by the testimony of several witnesses how many conspirators there were we do not yet know every day produces new discoveries and i apprehended that in the town if the truth were known there are not many innocent negro men i do myself the honor to send your lordships the minutes taken at the trial of quack who burned the fort and of another negro who was tried with him and their confession at the state with some examinations where about your lordships will see their designs it was ridiculous to suppose that they could keep possession of the town if they had destroyed the white people yet the mischief they would have done in pursuit of their intention would nevertheless have been great whether or how far the hand of potpour has been in this hellish conspiracy i cannot yet discover but there is room to suspect it by what two of the niggers have confessed the ease that soon after they were spoke to and had consented to be parties to it they had some checks of conscience which they said would not suffer them to burn houses and kill the white people where upon those who drew them into the conspiracy told them there was no sin or wickedness in it and that if they would go to hueson's hueson's house they should find a man who would satisfy them but they say they would not nor did go margaret kenney carrey was supposed to be a paperist and it is suspected that hueson and his wife were brought over to it there was in town some time ago a man who was said to be our romish priest he used to be at hueson's but has disappeared ever since the discovery of the conspiracy and is not now to be found later in the summer the governor recorded his suspicions as follows we then thought the plot was projected only by hueson hueson and the niggers but it is now apparent that the hand of potpour is in it for a romish priest having been tried was upon full and clear evidence convicted of having a deep share in it we are by whom or in what shape this plot was first projected as yet undiscovered that which at present seems most probable is that hueson an indigent fellow of a vile character casting in his thoughts held to mend his circumstances enticed some niggers to rob their masters and to bring the stolen goods to him on promise of reward when they were sold but seeing that by this pilfering trade riches did not flow into him fast enough and finding the niggers fit instruments for any villainy he then fell upon the schemes of burning the fort in town and murdering the people as the speediest way to enrich himself and them and to gain their freedom for that was the niggers main inducement the conspirators had hopes given them that the spaniers would come hither and join with them early in the spring but if they failed of coming then the business was to be done by the conspirators without them many of them were christened by the priest absolved from all their past sins and whatever they should do in the plot many of them sworn by him others by hueson to burn and destroy and to be secret wherein they were about to punctual how weak so ever the scheme may appear it was plausible and strong enough to engage and hold the niggers and that was all that the priest and hueson wanted for had the fort taken fire in the night as it was intended the town was then to have been fired in several places at once in which confusion much rich plunder might have been got and concealed and if they had it in view to to serve the enemy they could not have done it more effectually for this town being laid in ashes his majesty's forces in the west indies might have suffered much for want of provisions and perhaps been unable to proceed upon any expedition or piece of service from whence they might promise themselves great rewards i doubt the business is pretty now at an end for it since the priest has been apprehended and some more white man named great industry has been used throughout the town to discredit the witnesses and prejudice the people against them now i'm told it has had in a great measure its intended effect i'm sorry for it for i do not think we are yet gotten near the bottom of it where i doubt the principal conspirators lie concealed with the collapse of the excitement through its own excess ends the history of the great negro plot whether it had any shadow of reality has never been determined judge horseman then who sat as one of the justices during the trials growing out of the so-called plots compiled later a record of examinations and alleged confessions whereby he sought to justify the course of both judges and juries but the impression left by his report is that panic had paralyzed the judgment of even the most honest white men all among the migros are still greater terror combined with a wave of hysteria led to boundless falsification and to numberless unjustified accusations end of chapter 13 chapter 14 of dutch and english on the hudson by maude wilder goodwin this liberal box recording is in the public domain sir william johnson the story of the french nindian wars on our border does not fall within the scope of this chronicle but in order to understand the development of new york we must know something of the conditions which prevailed in the province during that troubled epic the panuria's policy pursued by the dutch and continued by the english left the colony without defenses on either the northern or southern boundaries for a long time the settlers found themselves bewarked against the french on the north by the steadfast friendship of the six nations comprising the mohawks the unidas the onan dagas the kayugas the senicas and the tescaroras but at last these trusty allies began to feel that the english were not doing their share in the war the lack of military preparation in new york was inexcusable the niggeredliness of the assembly alienated successive governors and justified clinton's assertion if you deny me the necessary supplies all my endeavors must become fruitless i must wash my own hands and leave at your doors the blood of innocent people when the indians under the leadership of the french actually took the war path the colonists at last awoke to their peril upon call of lieutenant governor delancey acting under the instructions of the lords of trade all the colonies north of the potomac except new jersey sent commissioners to a congress at albany in june 1754 to plan measures of defense and of alliance with the six nations albany was still applies to little dutch town mrs. grant of legan in scotland who visited albany in her girlhood wrote of it afterward with a gentle suavity which led glamour to the scenes which she described she pictures for us a little town in which every house had its garden at the rear and in front a shaded stoop with seats on either side where the family gathered to enjoy the twilight each family had a cow fed in a common pasture at the end of the town in the evening they returned altogether of their own accord with their tinkling bells hung at their necks along the wide grassy street to their wanted sheltering trees to be milked every one door were young matrons at another the elders of the people at a third the youths and maidens gaily chatting or singing together while the children played around the trees were waited by the cows for the chief ingredient of their frugal supper which they generally ate sitting on the steps in the open air the courthouse of albany to which the commissioners journeyed by boat up the hudson is described by peter calm a swedish traveler and scientist as a fine stone building by the riverside three stories high with a small steeple containing a bell and topped by a gilt ball and weather vane from the engraved print which has come down to us it seems a barren barrack of a building with an entrance quite inadequate for the men of distinction who thronged its halls on this memorable occasion in this congress at albany benjamin franklin from pennsylvania and william johnson of new york were the dominating figures the famous plan of union which franklin presented has sometimes made historians forget the services rendered by this redoubtable colonel johnson at a moment when the friendship of the six nations was hanging in the balance though gifts had been prepared and a general invitation had been sent only a hundred and fifty warriors appeared at albany and they held themselves aloof with a distress that was almost contempt look at the french exclaimed hundry the great chief of the mohawks they are men they are fortifying everywhere but we are ashamed to say you are all like women bare and open without any fortifications in this crisis all the commissioners deferred to william johnson as the one man who enjoyed the complete confidence of the six nations it was he who formulated the indian policy of the congress he had been born in ireland his mother was an one sister to captain peter warn who served with reputation in the royal navy and after it became night of the bath and vice admiral of the red squadron of the british fleet captain warn was less than a dozen years older than his nephew whom he regarded with affection at interest he described him as a sprightly boy well-grown of good parts and keen wit but most unruly and struppers and the sailor added i see the making of a strong man i shall keep my weather eye on the lad the result of this observation was so favorable that the captain who was on station in america sent for william johnson to come out and aid him in the development of a real estate venture a large tract of land near the mohawk river had come into warren's possession and as a sailor warn naturally found difficulty in superintending land at what was then a week's journey from the sea coast billy was his choice as an assistant and the boy who was then 23 years old left the old world and in 1738 reached the new plantation where his life worked lay before him for this he was admirably equipped by his irish inheritance of courage tact and humor by his study of english law and by a facility in acquiring languages which enabled him to master the mohawk tongue in two years after his arrival in new york the business arrangement between captain warn and his nephew provided that johnson should form a settlement on his uncle's land known as warren's bush at the juncture of scohari kill and the mohawk that he should sell farms over at sea settlers clear and hedge fields girdle trees in order to kill them and let in the sun purchase supplies and in partnership with warn established a village store to meet the necessities of the new colonists and to serve as a trading station with the indians in compensation for his service as he was to be allowed to cultivate a part of the land for himself though it is hard to imagine what time or strength could have been left for further exertions after the fulfillment of the onerous duties marked out for him a few years after his arrival at warren's bush he married a young dutch or german woman named kathryn weisenberg perhaps an indentured servant whose passage had been prepared on conditioned service in america little is known of the date or circumstances of this marriage it is certain only that after a few years kathryn died leaving three children to whom johnson proved a kind and considered father in spite of an erratic domestic career which involved his taking as the next head of his household caroline niece of the mohawk chief hendrick and later molly brandt sister of the indian joseph brandt molly brandt by whom johnson had eight children was recognized as his wife by the indians while among johnson's english friends she was known euphemistically as the brown lady johnson she presided over his anomalous household with dignity and discretion but it is noticeable that johnson who was so willing to defy public opinion in certain matters was sufficiently conventional in others as we learn from a description of the daily life of the legitimate daughters of the house while mohawk chiefs united braves englishmen of title and distinguished guests of every kind thronged the mansion and while the little half-breed children played about the lawns and disported themselves on the shores of the kaya durasurus creek close at hand the young ladies lived in almost conventional seclusion the grim baronial mansion where this mixed household made its dwelling for many years was called variously mount johnson castle johnson and fort johnson it was built in 1742 with such massive walls that the house is still standing in the town of amsterdam in 1755 when the indian peril loomed large on the horizon the original defenses were strengthened a stocky was built as a further protection and from this time on it was called fort johnson owing perhaps to johnson's precautions and the indians knowledge of his character the fort was not attacked and its owner continued to dwell in the house until 1762 when having become one of the richest men in the colony he built an attractive land in john's town a more ambitious and it is to be hoped out more cheerful mansion known as johnson hall this house was built of wood with wings of stone pierced at the top for muskets on one side of the house lay a garden and nursery described as the pride of the surrounding country here johnson lived with an opulence which must have amazed the simple settlers around him especially those who remembered his coming to the colony as a poor youth less than 30 years earlier he had in his service a secretary a physician a musician who played the violin for the entertainment of guests a gardener a butler a waiter named pontiac of mixed nigra and indian blood a pair of white dwarfs to attend upon himself and his friends an overseer and 10 or 15 slaves this retinue of servants was none too large to cope with the unbounded hospitality which johnson dispensed a visitor reports having seen at the hall from 60 to 80 indians at one time lodging under tents on the lawn and taking their meals from tables made of pine boards spread under the trees on another occasion when sir william called a council of the uroquois at fort johnson a thousand natives gathered in johnson's neighbors within a circuit of 20 miles were invited to assist in the rationing of this horde of visitors the landholders along the mohawk might well have been glad to share the burden of sir william's tribal hospitality since its purpose was as much political as social and its results were of endless benefit to the entire colony at last the indians had found a friend a white man who understood them and whom they could understand he was honest with them and therefore they trusted him he was sympathetic and therefore they were ready to discuss their troubles freely with him as an indian of mixed blood declared to the governor at albany and speaking of sir william his knowledge of our affairs our laws and our language made us think he was not like any other white but an indian like ourselves not only that but in this house is an indian woman and his little children are half breed as i am the english therefore were peculiarly fortunate in finding at the most critical stage of their political dealings with the indians a representative endowed with the wisdom and insight of sir william johnson unlike the french he did not strive to force an alien form of worship upon this primitive people unlike the dutch he insisted that business should be carried on as honestly with the natives as with the white men unlike his fellow countrymen he constantly urged adequate preparation for war on the part of the english and demanded that they should bear their share of the burden in a written report at the albany congress he strongly recommended that in as much as the six nations owing to their wars with the french had fallen short both in hunting and planting they should be provided with food from the english supplies finally he testified to the sincerity of his convictions by going to the war himself and rendering valuable service first as colonel and later as major general after the battle of late george johnson was knighted by the king and received a grant of five thousand pounds from parliament in the same year he was appointed by the crown agent and sole superintendent of the six nations and other northern indians inhabiting british territory north of the carolinas and the Ohio river johnson is described by one who saw him about this time or somewhat earlier as a man of commanding presence only a little short of six feet in height neck massive broad chest and large limbs great physical strength the head large and shapely countenance open and beaming with good nature eyes grazed black hair brown with tinge of auburn his activity took every form and was exerted in every direction his documents and correspondence number over six thousand and filled twenty six volumes preserved in the state library nor did these representatives chief activities he was constantly holding councils with the native tribes either at fort johnson or at the indian camps it was he who kept the mohawks from joining in ponteax conspiracy which swept the western border it was he who negotiated the famous tree at fort stanwicks in 1768 in the mid-summer of 1774 he succumbed to an old malady after an impassioned address to 600 iraqoi gathered at johnson hall he was one of the fortunate few whose characters and careers fit exactly he found scope for every power that he possessed and he won great rewards his tireless energy expressed itself in cultivating thousands of acres and in building houses forts and churches he dipped a lavish hand into his abundant wealth and scattered his gold where it was of the greatest service he loved hospitality and gathered hundreds round his board he was a benevolent autocrat and nations bowed to his will he paid homage to his king and died cherishing the illusion of the value of prerogative he was fortunate in his death as in his life for he was spared the throes of the mighty changes already underway when the king's statue should be pulled down to be melted into bullets when new york should merge her identity in the union of states and when the dwellers along the banks of the hudson and its tributaries should call themselves no longer dutch or english but americans end of chapter 14 end of dutch and english on the hudson by mod wilder goodwin