 Chapter five of Dutch and English on the Hudson by Maude Wilder Goodwin, this LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Domainase and school teachers. Because the Netherlands were not like the New Englanders fugitives from persecution at the hands of their fellow countrymen, the Dutch colonization in America is often spoken of as a purely commercial venture, but in reality the founding of New Netherland marked a momentous epic in the struggle for the freedom of conscience. Established between the long contest with the Inquisition in Spain and the Thirty Years' War for religious liberty in Germany, this plantation along the Hudson offered protection in America to those rights of free conscience for which so much blood had been shed and so much treasure spent in Europe. The Dutch colonists were deeply religious with no more bigotry than was inseparable from the ideas of the 17th century. They were determined to uphold the right to worship God in their own way and to say that their own way of worship was as dear to them as their beliefs as not strikingly to differentiate them from the rest of mankind. They brought with them from the home country a tenacious reverence for their father's method of worship and for the Calvinistic polity of the Dutch Reformed Church. They looked with awe upon the Synod, the final tribunal in Holland for ecclesiastical disputes. They regarded with respect the Class C's, composed of ministers and elders in a certain district, but their hearts went out in a special affection to the Consistory, which was made up of the ministers and elders of the single local Kirk. This, at least, they could reproduce in the crude conditions under which they labored, and it seemed to link with the home which they had left so far behind them. They had no intention, however, of forcing this church discipline on those who could not conscientiously accept it, the devout wish of William the Silent that all his countrymen might dwell together in amity regardless of religious differences was fulfilled among the early settlers in New Netherland. Their reputation for tolerance was spread abroad early in the history of the colony, and Huguenots, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Moravians, and Anabaptists lived unmolested in New Netherland till the coming of Director Peter Stuyvesant in 1647. The religious tyranny, which marks Stuyvesant's rule, must be set down to his personal discredit for almost every instance of persecution was met by protests from the settlers themselves, including his co-religionists. He deported to Holland a Lutheran preacher. He revived and enforced a dormant rule of the West India Company, which forbade the establishment of any church other than the Dutch Reformed, and he imprisoned parents who refused to have their children baptized in that faith. But it was in his dealings with the Quakers that his bigotry showed itself in its most despotic form. Robert Hodgson, a young Quaker, was arrested in Hempstead, Long Island, and was brought to New Amsterdam. After he had been kept in prison for several days, the magistrate condemned him either to pay a fine of a hundred guilders or to work with a wheelbarrow for two years in company with Negroes. He declined to do either. After two or three days, he was whipped on his bare back and warned that the punishment would be repeated if he persisted in his obstinacy. This treatment is recorded by the Dominaise Megapolansis Andresius in a letter to the classes of Amsterdam, not only without protest, but with every sign of approbation. Yet in the end, public opinion made itself felt that Mrs. Bayard, Stuyvesant's sister, or sister-in-law, as some authorities say, procured the release of his victim. In another case, a resident of Flushing ventured to hold Quaker meetings at his home. He was sentenced to pay a fine or submit to be flogged and banished, but the town officers refused to carry out the decree. A letter signed by a number of prominent townsfolk of Flushing declared that the law of love, peace, and liberty was the true glory of Holland that they desired not to offend one of Christ's little ones under whatever name he appeared, whether Presbyterian, independent Baptist or Quaker. Should any of these people come in love among us, therefore, said they, we cannot in conscience lay violent hands upon them. This letter immediately brought down upon the writers the despotic rage of Stuyvesant. The sheriff of Flushing was cashiered and fined, the town clerk was imprisoned, and penalties of varying degree were imposed on all the signers. When accounts of Stuyvesant's proceedings reached Amsterdam, however, he received from the chamber a letter of stinging rebuked informing him that the consciences of men want to be free and unshackled so long as they continue moderate, inoffensive and not hostile to government. The chamber, after reminding the director that toleration in old Amsterdam had brought the oppressed and persecuted of all countries to that city as to an asylum recommended Stuyvesant to follow in the same course. Herewith ended the brief period of religious persecution in New Netherland. The Amyville Dominay, mega pole lenses who acquiesced in these persecutions came over to the colony of Rensselaer Zwick in 1642 in the service of Kylian van Resselaer. He was to have a salary of 40 guilders per month and a fit dwelling that was to be provided for him. So the Reverend Pius and learned Dr. Johannes mega pole lenses Junior set sail for America to proclaim Christ to Christians and heathens in such distant lands. His name, by the way, like that of Erasmus, Melanchthon, Akkalaam, Padius, Dryander and other worthy of the Reformation was a classical form of the homely Dutch patronymic to which he had been born. Apparently, the Reverend Johannes was more successful in his mission to the heathen than in that to the Christians for he learned the Mohawk language, wrote a valuable account of the tribe and understood them better than he understood the Lutherans and Quakers of New Amsterdam and Long Island. In 1664, when Stuyvesant was in the mood to fire on the British fleet and take the consequences, mega pole lenses, so tradition runs dissuaded him with the argument of what avail are our poor guns against that broadside of more than 60. It is wrong to shed innocent blood. One wonders if the Dominate had any room in his mind for thoughts of the useless sufferings which had been inflicted on Hodgin and Townsend and the Lutheran preachers while he stood by consenting. When mega pole lenses arrived at New Netherland, he found the Reverend Everardis Brogardus already installed as Minister of the Gospel at Fort Amsterdam is predecessor, Michaelius, having returned to Holland. From the beginning, Brogardus proved a thorn in the side of the government. He came to blows with Ben Twiller and wrote a letter to the director in which he called him a child of the devil, a villain whose bucks were better than he to whom he should give such a shake from the pulpit the following Sabbath as would make him shudder. The difficulties which Brogardus had with Ben Twiller, however, were as the breath of May Zephyrs compared to his stormy quarrels with Keith. This director had taken Brogardus to task for having gone into the pulpit intoxicated and had also accused him of defending the greatest criminals in the country and of writing in their defense, the fighting person promptly countered on this attack. What he asked from the pulpit are the great men of the country but receptacles of wrath, fountains of woe and trouble. Nothing is thought of but to plunder other people's property, to dismiss, to banish, to transport, to holland. Keith realizing that he had raised up a fighter more unsparing than himself and unable to endure the sarangs from the pulpit, ceased to attend the Kirk, but the warlike Domine continued to belabor him till Keith prepared an indictment beginning, whereas your conduct stirs the people to mutiny and rebellion when they are already too much divided causes sisms and abuses in the church and makes us a scorn and up lapping stock to our neighbors, all which cannot be tolerated in a country where justice is maintained. Therefore, our sacred duty imperatively requires us to prosecute you in a court of justice. The quarrel was never fought to a finish, but was allowed to die out. And the episode ended without credit to either party. Like everything else in the Colony of Newt, Neverland, the original meeting places for worship were of the simplest type, Domine, Megapolensis, health services in his own house, and Bogartus conducted worship in the upper part of the horse mill at Fort Amsterdam, where before his arrival, Sebastian Janssen Kohl and Jan Heuch had read from the scriptures on Sunday. These men had been appointed Zike and Truster or Crank and the Soekers, that is, Consolas of the Sick, whose business it was in addition to their consolatory functions to hold Sunday services in the absence of a regularly ordained clergyman. In time, these rude gathering places gave way to buildings of wood or stone modeled as one would expect on similar buildings in the old country with a pulpit built high above the congregation, perhaps with intent to emphasize the authority of the church. The clerk or Vour Lesser standing in the baptistery below the pulpit opened those surfaces by reading from the Bible and leading in the singing of a psalm, the Domine who had stood in silent prayer during the psalm afterward entered the pulpit and then laid out his text and its connection with the sermon to follow. A part of the service known as the Exordium Remotem. During this address, the deacons stood facing the pulpit, arms back in hand. The deacons collected the contribution by thrusting in front of each row of seats, the Kirk Sacchus of cloth or velvet suspended from the end of a long pole. Sometimes a bell hung at the bottom of the bag to call the attention of a slothful or the niggered lead to the contribution. And while the bags were passed, the Domine was want to dwell upon the necessities of the poor and to invoke blessings upon those who gave liberally to their support. When the sermon commenced, the viewer's singer turned the hourglass, which marked the length of the discourse. The sermon ended, the viewer lesser rose and with the aid of a long rod cleft in the end, handed to the Domine in the pulpit, the request for prayers or thanksgiving offered by members of the congregation. These have been read aloud, another psalm was sung and the people then filed out in an orderly procession. The principle of competitive giving for the church was evidently well understood in New Amsterdam. De Vries has left us an account of a conversation held in 1642 between himself and Keith, in which he told the director that there was great need of a church, that it was a scandal when the English came that they should see only a mean barn for public worship, that the first thing built in New England after the dwellings was a church, and that there was the less excuse for the Duchess, they had found wood, good stone and lime made from oyster shells close at hand. The director admitted the justice of the plea, but asked who would undertake the work. Those who loved the reformed religion, De Vries answered, Keith replied adroitly, that De Vries must be one of them, as he had proposed the plan, and that he should give 100 guilders. De Vries craftily observed that Keith, as commander, must be the first giver, Keith thought himself that he could use several thousand guilders from the company's funds. Not only was he as good as his word, but later he contrived to extort private subscriptions on the occasion of the marriage of Bogartus' stepdaughter. As usual, when the domine was present, the wine flowed freely. The director thought this a good time for his purpose, and set to work after the fourth or fifth drink, and he himself, setting a liberal example, let the wedding guests sign whatever they were disposed to give towards the church. Each then, with a light head, subscribed away at a handsome rate, one competing with the other, and although some heartily repented it, when their senses came back, they were obliged nevertheless to pay. In view of this story, it was perhaps a fine irony which inspired the inscription placed on the church when it was finished. A-O-D-O-1642, W. Keith, Dr. G-R-Heath-de-Jameet-desen-temple-doen-booen, that is, William Keith, the director general, has caused the congregation to build this church. The correct interpretation, however, probably read William Keith being director general, the congregation has caused this church to be built. Evidently, religion prospered better than education in the colony for the same lively witness who reports the Bogartus' affair and the generosity stimulated by the flowing wine says also the role has been passed around a long time for a common school which has been built with words. For as yet, the first stone is not laid. Some materials only have been provided. However, the money given for the purpose has all disappeared and is mostly spent so that it falls somewhat short and nothing permanent has as yet been affected for this purpose. The first schoolmaster sent to New Netherland arrived in 1633 at the same time as Bogartus and represented the cause of education even less creditably than did the Bibelist dominate that of religion. Adam Rillenszen was 27 years old when he took up his duties as instructor of youth in the colony and he was as precious a scoundrel as ever was set to teach the young. He eked out his lender income in the early days by taking in washing or by establishing a bleachery which must be noted as one of the most creditable items in his scandalous career. He was constantly before the local courts of New Amsterdam, sometimes as plaintiffs, sometimes as defendant and finally he appeared as a malefactor charged with so grave an offense that the court declared that as such deeds could not be tolerated, therefore we condemned the said Rillenszen to be brought to the place of execution and their flawed and banished forever out of this country. Apparently on the plea of having four motherless children, he escaped the inflection of punishment and continued alternately to amuse and to outrage the respectable burgers of New Amsterdam. He was succeeded in order by Jan Stevenson, Jan Kort Nielsen, William Burstius, sometimes written Bestens, Johannes Maurice de la Montagne, Hamanas van Hoboken and Everett Pietersen. In addition to these, there were two teachers of a Latin school and several unofficial instructors. The duties of these early teachers were by no means light, especially in proportion to their scanty rage. We learn in one case that school began a date in the morning and lasted until 11 when there was a two hour recess after Richard began again at one and closed at four o'clock. It was the duty of the teacher to instruct the children in the catechism and common prayer. The teacher was ordered to appear at the church on Wednesdays with the children entrusted to his care to examine his scholars in the presence of the Reverend Ministers and elders who may be present what they in the course of the week do remember of the Christian commands and catechism and what progress they have made after which the children shall be allowed a decent recreation. Besides his duties as instructor, the official schoolmaster was pledged to promote religious worship to read a portion of the word of God to the people to endeavor as much as possible to bring them up in the ways of the Lord to console them in their sickness and to conduct himself with all diligence and fidelity in his calling so as to give others a good example as we come at the devout pious and worthy consoler of the sick church clerk, pre-center and school master. Throughout the history of New Netherland, we find the church and school closely knit together. Frequently, the same building served for secular instruction on weekdays and for religious service on Sundays. In a letter written by Van Curler to his patron, he says, as for the church it is not yet contracted for nor even begun. That which I intend to build this summer in the Pine Grove or Greenwood will be 34 feet long by 19 y. It will be large enough for the first three or four years to preach in and can afterwards always serve for the residents of the Sexton or for a school. How small were the assemblies of the faithful in the early days we may gather from a letter of Mike K. Elias, the first dominate of the colony, incidentally also one of the most lovable and spiritually minded of these men. In his account of the condition of the church at Manhattan, he observes that at the First Communion, 50 were present. The number of Wallinums and French-speaking settlers was so small that the dominate did not think it worthwhile to hold a special service for them, but once in four months he contented himself with administering the Communion and preaching a sermon in French. This discourse he found it necessary to commit to writing as he could not trust himself to speak extemporaneously in that language. There is something beautiful and pathetic in the picture of this little group of half a hundred settlers in the wilderness gathered in the upper room of the grist mill surrounded by the sacks of grain and drinking from the Avon de Mal, Specker, or Communion Cup, while the raptors echoed to the solemn sounds of the liturgy which had been familiar in their old homes across the sea. There is the true ring of a devout and simple piety in all the utterances of the settlers on the subject of their church. The pioneers were ready to spend and be spent in its service and they gave freely out of their scanty resources for its support. In the matter of education their enthusiasm as we have seen was far less glowing and the reasons for their schoolness are a subject for curious consideration. The Dutch in Europe were a highly cultivated people devoted to learning and referencing the printed book. Why then were there countrymen in the new world willing to leave the education of their children in the hands of inferior teachers and to delay so long the building of suitable school houses? We must remember that the colonists in the early days were drawn from a very simple class. Their church was important to them as a social center as well as a spiritual guide for this church they were willing to make any sacrifice but that down they must pause and consider the needs of their daily life. Children old enough to attend school were old enough to land a helping hand on the bowery in the dairy or by the side of the cradle. Money if plentiful might well be spent on salaries and school houses but if scarce it must be safe for bread and butter, clothing, warmth and shelter. In short, reading, writing and figuring could wait but souls must be saved first and after that eating and drinking were matters of pressing urgency fortunately however not all education is bound up in books and in the making of sturdy and efficient colonists the rude training of hardships and privation when combined with a first-hand knowledge of nature and of the essential industries provided a fair substitute for learning. On the other side of the picture we must consider what type of men would naturally be drawn to cross the sea and settle in the new colony as school masters. Many of the clergymen came urged by the same zeal for the conversion of the savages which fired John Elliott in New England and the Jesuit fathers in the Canadian missions. For the school masters there was not this incentive and they naturally looked upon the question of immigration as a business enterprise or a chance of professional advancement. As a first consideration they must have realized that they were leaving a country where education and educators were held in high respect. There was hardly another lander, says Motley, men women or child that could not read and write. The school was the common property of the people paid for among the municipal expenses in the cities as well as in the rural districts. There were not only common schools but classical schools. In the Berger families it was rare to find boys who had not been taught Latin or girls unacquainted with French. From this atmosphere of scholastic enthusiasm from the opportunities of the libraries and contact with the universities the pedagogue was invited to turn to a rude settlement in the primeval forest where the bible the catechism and the concordance formed the greater part of the literary wealth at his disposal and to take up the multiple duties of Sexton, Bellringer, Precenter, schoolmaster, consulor of the sick and general understudy for the dominate. In return to this he was to receive scanty wages in either cash or public esteem. What hardships were experienced by these early school masters in New Netherland we may understand by reading the reverential request written by Harmanus Van Ho Buchen to the Berger masters and shepherds that he may be allowed the use of the hall and the side chamber of the Stok Lies to accommodate his school and as a residence for his family as he has no place to keep school in or to live in during the winter for it is necessary that the room should be made warm and that cannot be done in his own house. The Berger masters and shepherds replied that whereas the room which petitioner asked for his use as a dwelling and schoolroom is out of repair and moreover is wanted for other uses it cannot be allowed to him but as the town youth are doing so uncommon well now it is thought proper to find a convenient place for their accommodation and for that purpose petitioner is granted 100 guilders yearly. Can we wonder that New Netherland did not secure a particularly learned and distinguished type of pedagogue in the early days in 1658 the Berger masters and shepherds of New Amsterdam with a view to founding an academy petitioned the West India Company for a teacher of Latin and Alexander Carolus Curtis was sent over to be the classical teacher in the new academy but he was so disheartened by the smallness of his salary and by the roughness of the youthful burgers that he shortly returned to Holland and his place was taken by the jidious Luke who though only 22 years old established such discipline and taught so well that the reputation of the academy spread far and wide and Dutch boys were no longer sent to New England to learn their classics. End of chapter five chapter six of Dutch and English on the Hudson by Maude Wilder Goodwin this liberal box recording is in the public domain the burgers in the earliest days of New Netherland there were no burgers because as the name implies burgers are town dwellers and for a number of years after the coming of the Dutch nothing worthy to be called a town existed in the colony in the middle of the 17th century a traveler wrote from New Netherland that there were only three towns on the Hudson Fort Orange Rondout and New Amsterdam and that the rest were mere villages or settlements these centers were at first trading posts and it is as idle to judge of the manners customs and dress prevailing in them by those of Holland at the same epic as to judge San Francisco in the mining days of 1849 by Boston and New York at the same date these early traders and settlers brought with them the character and traditions of home but their way of life was perforce modified by the crude conditions into which they plunged the picturesque farmhouses of Long Island and the crow gables of New Amsterdam were not built in a day savages must be subdued and land cleared and planted before the evolution of the dwelling could fairly begin primitive community life lingered long even on Manhattan Island as late as 1649 the farmers petitioned for a free pastureage between their plantation of scepmos and the fence of the great Bowery number one the city hall park region bounded by Broadway Nassau and and Chambers streets continued very late to be recognized as village commons where the cattle were pastured the cow herd drove the cows afield and home again at milking time into was his business to sound his horn at every gate announcing a safe return of the cows correspondingly in the morning the harsh summons called the cattle from every yard to join the procession toward the meadows when Tien Hoven Stuyvesant secretary sent out information for the benefit of those planning to take up land in new netherland he suggested that those who had not means to build at first might shelter themselves by digging a pit six or seven feet deep as large as needed covering the floor and walls with timber and placing over at a roof of spars covered with bark or green sods even with this rude housing he suggests planting at once a garden with all sorts of pot herbs and maize or indian corn which might serve as food for man and beast alike naturally these pioneer conditions of living lasted longer in the farming region then at new Amsterdam where as early as 1640 we see simple but comfortable little houses clustered in the shelter of the fort and gathered close about the stone tavern the west india company stores and the church of saint nicholas the gallows and pillory in full view seemed to serve notice that law and order had asserted themselves and that settlers might safely solidify their houses and holdings in 1648 the building of wooden chimneys was forbidden and roofs of reed were replaced with more solid and less inflammable material the constant threat of fire led to drastic regulations for the cleaning of chimneys it was ordered that if anyone proved negligent he shall whenever the fire wardens find that chimneys foul forthwith without any contradiction pay them a fine of three guilders for every flu found on examination to be dirty to be expended for fire ladders hooks and buckets which shall be procured and provided at the earliest and most convenient opportunity the early settlers found much difficulty in enforcing public sanitation for in spite of the worldwide reputation of the dutch for indoor cleanliness we find the burgers in 1658 bitterly reproached for throwing their rubbish filth dead animals and the like into the streets to the great inconvenience of the community and dangers arising from it the burgo masters and shepherds ordained that all such refuse be brought to dumping grounds near the city hall and the gallows or to other designated places failure to observe this rule was punishable by fines or severe penalties as prosperity increased all conditions of living improved many ships from holland brought loads of brick and tiles as ballast and the houses began to assume the typical dutch aspect they were still built chiefly of wood but with a gable end of brick facing the street the steep roofs seldom had eave troughs at least in the early days and mention is made in deeds of free drip the house was supplied as the chronicler tells us with an abundance of large doors and small windows on every floor the date of its erection was curiously designated by iron figures on the front and on the top of the roof was perched a fierce little weather cock to let the family into the important secret which way the wind blew the front doors were usually divided as in the old houses in holland into an upper and lower half hung on heavy hinges the door opened with a latch and bore a brass knocker rot frequently in the device of an animal's head only on formal occasions was this door thrown open or the four room to which it gave access used for the life of the family as in all primitive communities was centered in the kitchen here in winter roared the great fires up the wide throated chimneys here children and negro servants gathered in groups and told stories of the old home and the new here the women knit their stockings and hear the burgers smoked when the day's work was done but the four room or four weese though seldom occupied was dear to the soul of the brow of new netherland here stood all the treasures to valuable or too fragile for daily use the leased or chest stored with household linen the cabinet filled with delft plates from holland and generally the carved fore poster covered with feather beds of prime goose feathers and hung with gay chints a shrewd observer has said that luxury implies waste while comfort lives in thrift we are safe in assuming that comfort rather than luxury prevailed in new netherland and that the highly colored pictures of elegant life on the shores of the hudson represent a very late phase when the dutch influence still prevailed under english protection the earlier settlers were afar simpler people whose floors were scrubbed and sanded instead of carpeted who used hourglasses instead of clocks and who sat there for poster beds in the rooms where visitors were formally received it was of course the great burgers who set the social as well as the official tone in new amsterdam it was they who owned the finest houses who imported tables and chests of ebony inlaid with ivory it was they whose wives were bravely fitted out with petticoats over which an upper garment was looped to display the velvet cloth silk or satin which marked the social position and material wealth of the wearer the burger himself went clad according to his wealth in cloaks of cloth or velvet embroidered or silk lined but he always wore wide boots and wide breeches and a coat adorned with an abundance of buttons the whole topped by a broad brimmed hat adorned with buckles and feathers and seldom removed in the house the dress of the farmers was simpler than that of the town dwellers or burgers it consisted generally of wide breeches a hemdrock or shirt coat made of wool or cotton an over frock called a paltz frock a low flat collar the usual wide brimmed hat and shoes of leather on sundays and of wood on weekdays for work on the bowery the children of burgers and farmers alike were clad in miniature copies of the garb of their elders doubtless in many cases wearing the same garments made over by removing the outworn portions it was a question of warmth rather than fashion which confronted the settlers and their children to those of us who believe that the state exists for the protection of the home and the home for the protection of the child it is neither futile nor frivolous to consider at some length what life had to offer to the small colonists little sarah rappel lee the firstborn christian daughter in new netherland was soon surrounded by a circle of boys and girls cornelis mason and his wife came over in 1631 and their first child was born on the voyage following this little hendrick came martin mastin t and tobias we have already noted the two little motherless daughters of dominate mike k leis who were so hard put to it for a nurse a little later came dominate mega pollensis with his children heligand dirrick yon and samuel running from eight to 14 years in age the patroon had directed that they be furnished with clothing in such small and compact parcels as can be properly stowed away on the ship with the era of permanent settlers in new netherland cradles came to be in demand in the region of new amsterdam the familiar hooded variety was brought from holland while farther up the river and especially among the poor folk birch bark was fashioned into a sleeping place for the babies for the older children trundle beds fitting under the big four posters of the elders and rolled out at night weren't much in use since the difficulty of heating made economy of bedroom space a necessity this tree bed and it's protecting for poster however probably came later than the built-in slept bank little more than a bunk in the side of the wall concealed by a curtain and softened by thick feather beds however rude the sleeping place of the babies the old home lullaby sued them to slumber dearest and most familiar was the following trip a drop tronies the varken and the boonies the cages and the clover the patent and the haver the anise in the water place the calver in the long grass so good mine climb property was thus two pictures of pigs in the bean patch and cows in the clover ducks in the water and calves in the matter the little ones fell peacefully to sleep oblivious of the wild beasts and wild men lurking in the primeval forest around the little clearing where the pioneers were making a home for themselves and their children when the babies eyelids and closed in the morning they opened on a busy scene for whatever anxious vigils the father and mother might have kept through the night toil began with the dawn the boys were set to gathering firewood and drawing water while the good row was busily preparing a substantial morning meal of saupon and sausage before her husband began the day's work of loading beaver skins or tilling the ground or hewing timber a pioneer life means hard work for children as well as for their elders and in the early years there was little time for play on the part of the youthful new netherlander as prosperity advanced and as negro servants were introduced the privileges of childhood were extended and we find accounts of their sliding on their sleighs or sleds down the hills of fort orange and skating at new amsterdam on the collet pond which took its name from the dutch caulk or lime and was so called from the heaps of oyster shells accumulated by the indians the skates were of the type used in holland very long with curves at the front and rear and when metal could not be obtained formed of ox bone with an appetite bread of out of door work and play and the breakfast hour at five or six in the morning the children were hungry for the homely and substantial dinner when it eventually appeared at early noon whatever social visits were planned took place at the supper which occurred between three o'clock and six the tea table the chronicler tells us was crowned with a huge earthen dish well stored with slices of fat pork and fried trout cut up into morsels and swimming in gravy the company being seated around the genial board and each furnished with a fort events their dexterity in launching at the fattest pieces in this mighty dish in much the same manner as sailors harpoon purposes at sea for our indian spear salmon in the lakes sometimes the table was graced with immense apple pies or saucers full of preserved peaches or pears but it was always sure to boast an enormous dish of balls of sweetened dough fried in hogs fat and called doughnuts or only keks the tea was served out about majestic delft teapot ornamented with paintings of fat little Dutch shepherds and shepherdesses tending pigs with boats sailing in the air and houses built in the clouds to sweeten the beverage a lump of sugar was laid beside each cup and the company alternately nibbled and sift with great decorum in the houses of the richer colonists as prosperity advanced shell shaped silver boxes for sugar called bite and stir boxes were set on the table and according to one authority the lumps of sugar were of the nature of toffee with molasses added to the sugar the fees tended the young folk went their homework way lighted by the moon or late in the century on dark nights by lantern hung on a pole from every seventh house when the curfew rang from the bell three eight o'clock lights were put out and all was made fast for the night while the children's minds were set at rest by the tramp of the clopperman who shook his rattle at each door as he passed from house to house through the dark hours assuring the burgers that all was well and that no marauders were about if winter offered sports and pastimes bring summer and autumn at each its own pleasures fishing and clam digging shooting and trapping games with ball and slings berry picking and the gathering of peaches which fell so thickly that the very hogs refused them the market days in new amsterdam offered a long procession of delights to the young colonists the merriest of all were the holidays which were observed in new netherland after much the same fashion as in the old home i do not know how to account for the fact that while the struggle of the dutch people with the papacy had been as bitter as that of england and the throwing off of the yoke by the dutch fully as decided they still retained the holidays which the puritans eschewed as dangerous remnants of superstition perhaps it was on the principle of robbing satan of his hoofs and horns but keeping his cheerful scarlet costume or perhaps they thought as roland hill remarked that it was poor policy to leave all the good times to the devil in any case it was all grist to the jildens mill on the first of january always arranged for the greeting of the new year mighty bowls of punch were brewed cordials prepared from long cherished family recipes were brought out and the women in their best apparel seeded themselves in the seldom used aunt vang palmer where wine was handed to their callers to be received with the wish of a happy new year while these stately ceremonies were in progress the young people amused themselves with turkey shooting sleigh riding skating and dancing after new year's day the most characteristic national and local holiday was pink star coming in the seventh week after posh or easter and falling generally in late may or early june the orchards were then white with blossoms and the grass thick with dandelions and spring flowers children set out early to gather bows from the green woods these bows they sprinkled with water and left over the doors of late sleepers that the sluggers might be drenched on opening the door at first all was innocent merriment gathering of pink star flowers and picnicky but for some unexplained reason this festival was gradually relegated to the negroes apple jack was freely consumed barbaric dances began and fun so far degenerated into license that the white people and their children shun the festivity the kermis an old world festival was one of those early introduced at new amsterdam it originated centuries before and had taken its name from that kirk miss or church mass in the olden days it was celebrated with pomp and solemnity but it early developed a more festive character booths and stalls were erected for a market and dances and processions were organized the first stroke of the clock at noon opened at the same moment the market and the first dance the last stroke saw white crosses nailed on all the bridges across the canal and on the marketplace it was indeed a festive appearance that the market presented with its double stalls filled with eggs and gherkins if booze hung with dried fish its pauper ties grom dispensing the tempting batter cakes and its waffle kremen offering the more costly and aristocratic waffles the youths and maidens were given full license to parade arm and arm along the street singing hoson hoson hoson and making the town ring with their mirth and laughter the first kermis held at new amsterdam was in october 1659 booths were arranged on the parade ground and barter and sale and merry making went on gaily for six weeks to the unspeakable joy of the little hindricks and yons and nettees who wandered from booth to booth but keen as the delight of the dutch children may have been there was in their minds the hope of even better things to come a few weeks later at their own a special particular undisputed feast of st. nicholas the beloved santa claus patron saint of children in general and a young netherlanders in particular the 6th of december was the day dedicated to this genial benefactor and on the eventful night a white sheet was spread on the floor around this stood the children singing songs of welcome of which the most popular was the familiar st. nicholas good highly man trekked best in tabard and and rius dammy near amsterdam ban amsterdam gnar spain if the saint would write forth thus accoutre and if he would do what they asked of him the children explained that they would be his good friends as for that matter they always had been and would serve him as long as they lived at last the fateful moment arrived a shower of sweets was hurled through the open door and amid the general scramble appeared the saint in full vestments attended by a servant known as connect ruptract and after the dutch settlements in america a black man who added much to the fascination and excitement of the occasion he held in one hand an open sack and to which to put particularly ill behaved children while on the other he carried a bunch of rods which he shook vigorously from time to time the good saint meanwhile smilingly distributed to the children the parcels that he had brought and after these had all been opened and the presence had been sufficiently admired the children dropped into their trundle beds to dream of all the glories of the day when the dust sheet and litter of wrappings had been removed the older people gathered around a table spread with the white cloth and set out with chocolate punch and a dish of steaming hot chestnuts while the inevitable pipe ornamented with the head of saint nicholas made its appearance and the evening ended with dancing and song in honor of the good highly man besides the stated anniversaries home life had its more intimate festivities such as those celebrating the birth of a child whose christening was made quite a solemn event every church owned its dupe beckon or dipping bowl from which the water was taken to be dropped on the baby's head one beautiful bowl of silver dating from the year 1695 is still in existence and at new york church about a week after the birth of the little new netherlander the neighbors were summoned to rejoice with the proud father and mother in the early days of the colony and in the farming region these gatherings were as rude and simple as they were under similar conditions in holland the men were invited at noon to partake of a long pipe and a bottle of gin and bitters the women arrived later to find spread for their entertainment dishes of rusks spread with aniseed known as muses or mice accompanied by eggnog as society grew more sophisticated in the colony these simple gatherings gave place to the elaborate caudal parties where the caudal was served in silver bowls hung about with spoons that each guest might ladle out for himself into a china cup the rich compound of lemons raisins and spiced wine it is evident that there was no lack of material good cheer among the colonists of new netherland and we may be sure that the boys and girls secured their share of substantial and dainties i fear they were rather rough and rude these young burgers for all the reports which we have of them show them always in conflict with law and order the boys especially owing to deficient schooling facilities were quite out of hand they set dogs upon the night watchman at new amsterdam and shouted indians to frighten him in his rounds they tore the clothes from each other's backs in the school room where the unfortunate master was striving to keep order in fort orange sliding became so fast and furious that the legislators were obliged to threaten the confiscation of the sleaze and it was no doubt with the keen realization of the behavior of the offspring that the inhabitants of flat bush inserted these words in the articles of agreement with the new school master he shall demean himself patient and friendly towards the children and be active and attentive to their improvement however little learning from books entered into the lives of the young colonists much that was stimulating to the imagination came to them by word of mouth from the wild and from the negroes and from their elders as they sat about the blazing fire in the twilight or shimmer licked then the tales were told of phantom ships of ghosts walking on the cliffs of the highlands and of the unlucky white who found his death in the river where he had sworn to plunge in spite of the devil a spot which still bears the name of spute and dovel in memory of the rage boast we may find it hard to reconcile the reputation of the Dutch as a phlegmatic and unimaginative people with the fact that they and their children endowed the Hudson with more glamour more of the supernatural end of elfin lore than haunts any other waterway in america does the explanation perhaps lie in the fact that the Dutch colonists coming from a small country situated on a level plain where the landscape was open as far as the eye could see and left no room for mystery were suddenly transplanted to a region shut in between overhanging cliffs where lightning flashed and thunder rolled from mountain wall to mountain wall where thick forests obscured the view and strange aboriginal savages hid in the underbrush was it not the sense of wonder springing from this change in their accustomed surroundings that people the dim depths of the hinterland with shapes of elf and goblin of demons and superhuman presences at any rate the spirit of mystery lurked on the outskirts of the Dutch settlements and the youthful burgers along the Hudson were fed full on tales mostly of a terrifying nature drawn from the folklore of three races the Dutch the Indians and the Africans with some few strands interwoven from local legend and tradition that had already grown up along the banks of the Hudson it was a simple but by no means a pitiable life that was led in those days by burgers and farmers alike on the shores of this great river never does the esteemed Diedrich Nickerbocker come near the truth and when he says happy would it have been for new Amsterdam could it always have existed in the state of blissful ignorance and lowly simplicity but alas the days of childhood are too sweet to last cities like men grow out of them in time and are doomed to like to grow into the bustle the cares and the miseries of the world in 1657 the burgo masters and shepherds were authorized to create a great burger wrecked the members of which should be in a sense of privileged class he was set forth that whereas in all beginnings something or person must be the first so that afterward a distinction may take place in like manner it must be in establishing the great and small citizenship for which reason the line of great burgers was drawn as follows first those who have been members of the supreme government second the burgo masters and shepherds of the city past and present third ministers of the gospel fourth officers of the militia from the staff to the ensign included the privileges of this cast were open to the male descendants of each class but as they could be secured by others outside the sacred circle on payment of fifty guilders it is difficult to understand wherein the exclusiveness lay the small burgers were decreed to be those who had lived in the city for a year and six weeks and had kept fire and light those born within the town and those who had married the daughters of citizens a payment of 20 guilders was exacted of all such this effort to promote class distinctions was soon abandoned in 1668 the distinction was abolished in every burger on payment of 50 guilders was declared entitled to all burger privileges end of chapter six chapter seven of dutch and english on the Hudson by mod wilder goodwin this is the bravox recording is in the public domain the neighbors of new netherland maquia valley observed that to the wise ruler only two courses were open to conciliate or to crush the history of the dutch in america illustrates by application the truth of this view the settlers at fort orange conciliated the indians and by this means not only lived in peace with the native tribes but established a bulwark between themselves and the french under stuyvesant the settlers at fort amsterdam took a determined stand against the swedes and crushed their power in america toward the english however the dutch adopted a course of feeble aggression unbacked by force because they met english encroachments with that most fatal of all policies protest without action the empire of the united netherlands in america was blotted on the map the neighbors of the dutch in america were the indians the french the swedes and english the earliest most intimate and most continuous relations of the dutch settlers were with the indians these people were divided into a number of independent tribes or nations the valley of the north river was shared by the mohawks who inhabited the region along the west side of its upper waters and the moheagans or moheacans as the dutch call them who lived on either side of the banks of its lower reaches with various smaller tribes scattered between the warlike manhattan's occupied the island called by their name while the moheagans raised their wigwams also on the eastern shore of the upper river opposite the mohawks and ranged over the land reaching to the kanedicad river the mohawks with the onidas the onan vigas the kayugas and the senicas formed the famous five nations generally known as the iraqoi their territory was bounded on the north by lake ontaria and the saint lorenz river on the east by lake shampolyn and the north river on the west by lake iri and the naagwa river and on the south by the region occupied by the leninl napi or delaware tribes but their power extended far beyond these limits over dependent tribes they were in a constant state of warfare with their all-gonkwan neighbors on the north and east who had been enabled to offer a formidable resistance by the use of firearms furnished them by the french when therefore the white men appeared among the mohawks bearing the strange weapons which had been used with such dire effect against the iraqoi by the all-gonkwans the mohawks eagerly sought the friendship of the newcomers hoping to secure the same power which had made their enemies triumphant the dutch were intelligent enough to make instant use of these friendly sentiments on the part of the natives and hasten to make a treaty with the iraqoi the mohawks and the leninl napi this treaty which is said to have been signed on the banks of norman's kill in the neighborhood of albany was concluded with all formalities each tribe was represented by its chief the calamet was smoked the hatchet was buried and everlasting friendship was sworn between the old inhabitants and the new by this agreement the dutch secured not only peace with the neighboring indians a peace never broken in the north whatever boils disturbed the lower waters of the river but at the same time a guard between them and any encroachments of the french and algonquans in canada on the other boundaries and outskirts of their possessions the dutch were less fortunate they'd always claimed all the territory from the south or Delaware river to the fresh or Connecticut river but their pretensions were early challenged by the English on the ground of prior discovery and by the Swedes on the argument of non occupation of the land the reports of the wealth to be acquired from the fur trade had quickly spread from Holland to Sweden and as early as 1624 Gustavus Adolphus encouraged by William Uselinks a dutchman and promoter of the dutch with india company was planning expeditions to the new world but the entrance of sweden into the 30 years war in 1630 put a stop to this plan and the funds were applied to war purposes Gustavus Adolphus fell at Lutsen in 1632 leaving the kingdom to his little daughter Christina her government was conducted by oxen Stearn a statesman trained in the great traditions of Gustavus who felt with him that an American colony would be the jewel of his kingdom an instrument for his purpose presented itself in Peter Minuit who had returned to Holland in 1632 smarting under his dismissal as director of new Netherlands he offered his services to sweden for the establishment of a new colony and they were accepted in the opening of 1638 he arrived in what is now Delaware Bay with two ships the Griffin and the Key of Calmar from the Indians he bought large tracts of land in what is now the state of Delaware and on the site of the present city of Wilmington he planted a fort named Christina when news was brought to Kieft that Minuit had sailed up the South River and planned to raise the Swedish flag on a fort upon its shores the director promptly dispatched the following letter I William Kieft director general of Newt Netherlands residing in the island of Manhattan in the fort Amsterdam under the government of the high and mighty state general of the united Netherlands and the West India Company privileged by the senate chamber in Amsterdam make known to the Peter Minuit who stylized thyself commander in the service of Her Majesty the Queen of Sweden that the whole South River of Newt Netherlands both upper and lower has been our property for many years occupied with our forts and sealed by our blood which also was done when thou was in the service of Newt Netherlands and is therefore well known to thee but as thou art come between our forts to erect a fort to our damage and injury which we will never permit as we also believe her sweetest majesty have not empowered thee to erect fortifications on our coasts and rivers or to settle people on the lands adjoining or to undertake any other thing to our prejudice now therefore we protest against all such encroachments and all the evil consequences from the same as bloodshed sedition and whatever injury our trading company may suffer and declare that we shall protect our rights in every manner that may be advisable this bus ring protest Minuit treated with contempt and continued building his fort the Swedish colony soon grew so rapidly as to be a serious menace to the Dutch in spite of their stronger fortifications in 1642 Johan Prince a lieutenant colonel of cavalry was sent over as governor of New Sweden with instructions to maintain friendly relations with the Dutch but to yield no foot of ground he established several other settlements on the south or Delaware river so tactlessly however did he perform his duties that conflicts with the Dutch grew more and more frequent he built two forts on opposite sides of the river and ordered that every ship entering the waters should strike with colors and await permission to pass the first vessel on which the new orders were tried carried as a passenger David devries the skipper asked his advice about lowering his colors if it were my ship devised asserts that he answered I would not lower to these intruders but peace at any price prevailed the skipper lowered his colors and the ship passed on to New Gothenburg the capital of the colony Ier de Vries was welcomed by Governor Prince whom the traveler describes as a brave man of brave size the evening was spent in talk over a jugger runnish wine such friendly intercourse and the aggressions of the English against both Dutch and Swedes led to the temper alliance of these latter in 1651 Indians called in council confirmed the Dutch title to all lands except the site of the Swedish port planted by Minuit and a peace which lasted for three years was declared between the Dutch and the Swedes in endeavoring to understand the relations between the settlements of the different nations in America in the 17th century we must realize that the colonies were only pawns and the great game being played in Europe between Spain and the Papacy on the one hand and the Protestant countries England Sweden and the United Netherlands on the other once apprehending this we can easily understand why the governor of each colony though instructed to seize and hold every foot of land which could be occupied was advised not to antagonize the other friendly nations and thus weaken the alliance against the common enemy as the power of Spain declined however and the estimate of the value of the American colonies increased the friction in the new world became more acute and the instructions from the home governments grew imperative affairs then came to an open rupture between New Netherlands and New Sweden in 1651 governor Stuyvesant inaugurated a more aggressive policy against the Swedes by building Fort Kazemir near what is now New Castle Delaware not far from the Swedish fort three years later Fort Kazemir fell into the hands of the Swedes the Dutch government now commanded Stuyvesant to drive the Swedes from the river or compel their submission as a result the director in his fleet sailed into the Delaware in September 1655 and captured one fort after another till reasing the last of the Swedish governors was completely defeated though the colonists were promised security and possession of their lands the power of New Sweden was ended and the jurisdiction of the Dutch was for a time established New Netherlands had however other neighbors more powerful more persistent and with more at stake than the French the Indians and the Swedes these were the English colonists pressing Northward from the Virginias and Southward from New England from the beginning of the Dutch colonization England had looked to scans at the wedge thus driven between her own settlements she had stubbornly refused to recognize the sovereignty of the state's general in the region of New Netherlands while at the same time she vainly sought a pretext for the establishment of her own England put forward the apocryphal claim of discovery by habit but here she was stopped by the doctrine announced in a previous century that in order to give title to a new country discovery must be followed by occupation when England maintained that since Hudson was an Englishman the title to his discovery must pass to his native land she was reminded that Cabot was a Genoese and that Genoa might as well claim title to Virginia as England to New Netherlands the Plymouth company particularly was concerned at the Dutch occupation of this middle region to which the charter granted by King James gave it a claim it formally protested in 1621 against these Dutch intruders where upon King James the first directed Sir Dudley Carlton is ambassador at the Hague to protest against the Dutch settlements but nothing was accomplished both parties having their hands too full with European quarrels to carry these transatlantic matters to extremities the tension however was constantly increased on both sides by a series of encroachments and provocations in April 1633 for example the ship William arrived at Fort Amsterdam under command of Captain Trevor with Jacob Eelkins as super cargo Eelkins had been dismissed by the West India Company from the post of commissary at Fort Orange and was now in the service of some London merchants in whose behalf he had come as he told the director to buy furs on Henry Hudson's river Don't talk to me if Henry Hudson's River replied Ben Twillard it is the river more vicious he then called for the commission of Eelkins who refused to show it saying that he was within the dominions of the English King and a servant of his Majesty and asking the Dutch Council what commission they themselves had to plant in the English dominion whereupon Ben Twillard replied that it was not fitting that Eelkins should proceed up the river as the whole of that country belonged to the Prince of Orange and not to the King of England after this exchange of amenities Eelkins returned to his ship which remained at anchor for several days at the end of the time he presented himself again at the fort to ask if the director would consent in a friendly way to his going up the river otherwise he would proceed if it cost his life in reply Ben Twillard ordered the Dutch flag to be run up at the fort and three pieces of ordinance fired in honor of the Prince of Orange Eelkins on his part ordered the English flag to be hoisted on the William and a salute fired in honor of King Charles Ben Twillard warned Eelkins that the course which he was pursuing might cost in his neck but the supercargo weighed anchor and proceeded calmly on his way then Twillard then assembled all his forces before his door brought out a cask of wine filled a bumper and cried out that those who love the Prince of Orange and him should follow his example and protect him from the outrages of the Englishmen Eelkins by this time was out of sight saving up the river the people drank but only laughed at their governor and the Vries told him that he had been very foolish if it were my affair he said I would have helped him away from the fort with beans from the eight pounders the William meanwhile journeying up the river and Eelkins who knew the country well landed with his crew about a mile below Fort Orange and set up a tent where he displayed the wares which he hoped to exchange with the natives for beaver skins very soon reports of this exploit reached the ears of the commissary at Fort Orange who had once embarked with a trumpeter on a shallot decorated with green bows the Dutch landed close behind the English and set up a rival tent but the Indians preferred to deal with Eelkins whom they had known years before and who spoke their language in the high tide of success however Eelkins was rudely ordered to depart by a Dutch officer who would come up the river in charge of three vessels a pinnace, a caravelle, and a hoi to enforce the commands came soldiery from both Dutch forts armed with muskets, halfpikes swords and other weapons in order Eelkins to strike his flag they pulled down the tent sent the goods on board ship and sounded their trumpets in the boat in disgrace of the English the Dutch boarded the William weighed her anchor and convoyed her down the river with their fleet and finally dismissed her at the mouth of the river the troubles of the Dutch with their English neighbors however did not end with these aggressions on the Hudson and similar acts on the Delaware in the year 1614 Adrienne Block a great navigator whose name deserves to rank with that of Hudson had sailed through the East River and putting boldly across Long Island Sound had discovered the Hoosatonic and Connecticut rivers he also discovered and gave his own name to Block Island and explored Narragansett Bay once he took his course to Cape Cod these discoveries reported to the state's general of the United Netherlands caused their high mightinesses that once to lay claim to the new lands but before they could secure enough colonists to occupy the country restless pioneers of English stock planted towns in the Connecticut Valley along the Sound and on the shore of Long Island these were uncomfortable neighbors with aggressive manners which quite upset the Placid Dutch of New Amsterdam inevitable boundary disputes followed which reached no adjustment until in 1650 Stuyvesant went to Hartford to engage in a conference with commissioners of the United Colonies of New England the director began as usual with Bravado but presently he consented to leave the question of boundaries to a board of four arbitrators this board decided that the boundary between the Dutch and English possessions should run on Long Island from Oyster Bay south to the Atlantic and that on the mainland it should run north from Greenwich Bay but never approach within 10 miles of the Hudson River the Dutch in New Netherland were amazed and disgusted at the decision but though Stuyvesant is said to have exclaimed in dramatic fashion that he had been betrayed he found it hopeless to struggle against the superior force a raid against him End of Chapter 7 Chapter 8 of Dutch and English on the Hudson by Maude Wilder Goodwin this LibriVox recording is in the public domain the early English governors the English government was fortunate in its first representative after the surrender of Stuyvesant Colonel Richard Nichols who had enforced the surrender with all the energy of a soldier afterward displayed all the tact and wisdom of a statesman it is true that the towns and forts were rechristened and New Amsterdam Fort Amsterdam and Fort Orange became respectively New York Fort James and Albany in honor of the King's brother James Duke of York and Albany to whom as Lord Proprietor the new English province was now granted but the Dutch were not interfered with in their homes their holdings or their religion and for nearly a year the city government at New Amsterdam went on as of old under the control of burgo masters shepherds and shouts in the following year Nichols according to instructions from the Duke of York abolished the form of government late in practice appointed a mayor Alderman and a sheriff to rule New York and directed the new officials to swear allegiance to the Duke he continued the commercial rights of the free men who represented the burgers of the Dutch period and he also introduced trial by jury which placated the dwellers at New York and along the Hudson on Long Island and in Westchester where New Englanders had settled Nichols proceeded with greater vigor this section together with Staten Island was erected into the district of Yorkshire where the Duke's laws were proclaimed and the machinery of English county government was put in operation with its three writings its courts of sessions and its court of assizes Yorkshire soon had an unmistakable English character even though Dutch inhabitants were numerous in Western Long Island and in Staten Island the Duke's laws were compiled mainly from the laws of the New England colonies though they departed in many particulars from New England traditions in the Dutch towns shouts and shepherds gave place to overseers and constables the characteristic form of town government in the province was that in which free holders elected a board of eight overseers and a constable for one year little by little English law and English institutions were to crowd out Dutch law and Dutch political institutions in the conquered province by his wise policy his magnetic personality his scholarly tastes and his social genealogy Nichols seems to have won all hearts Maverick his colleague wrote Lord Arlington that it was wonderful how this man could harmonize things in a world so full of strife entrusted by the Duke of York with practically unlimited power he used it with the utmost discretion and for the good of the province when he resigned his post after four years of service New York was deeply regretful over his departure and Cornelis Steenwick the Dutch mayor of the city gave a farewell banquet in his honor his successor Colonel Francis Loveless was a favorite at court and a gallant cavalier who had been loyal to the king throughout his adversity with far less ability than Nichols Loveless was at one with him and desired to benefit and unify the colony he established a club where English, French and Dutch were spoken and he offered prizes to be run for on the Long Island race course under his rule shipping increased and trade flourished merchants began to hold weekly meetings thus laying the foundations of the merchants exchange but his most notable achievement was the establishment of the first male service on the American continent in spite of all the sea commerce and trading up and down the river by sloops, pinks, flyboats, catches and canoes the colonies of New York and New England demanded swifter and more frequent means of communication and Governor Loveless began to consider how the bonds could be drawn closer in 1671 one John Archer bought part of Van Der Donk's old estate and built the village near unto the passage commonly called Spiting Devil on the road for passengers to go to and fro from the main as well as for mutual intercourse with the neighboring colony Loveless consented to make the village and enfranchised town by the name of Fordham Manor provided its inhabitants should forward to the next town all public packets and letters coming to or going from New York the scheme evidently proved a success for Loveless shortly decided on a wider extension of communication and the year 1673 was celebrated by the setting out of the first post between New York and New England it was to have started on New Year's Day but was delayed by waiting for news from Albany on the arrival of communication from Albany the carrier was sworn into office instructed to behave civilly to inquire of the New England authorities as to the best post road and to market for the benefit of other travelers the message which Loveless sent to Governor Winthrop of Massachusetts on this occasion ran as follows I here present you with two rarities a packet of the latest intelligence I could meet with all and a post by the first you will see what has been acted on the stage of Europe by the latter you will meet with a monthly fresh supply so that if it received but the same ardent inclinations from you as at first it hath from myself by our monthly advices all public occurrences may be transmitted between us together with several other great conveniences of public importance consonant to the commands laid upon us by his sacred majesty who strictly enjoins all his American subjects to enter into a close correspondency with each other this I look upon as the most compendious means to beget a mutual understanding and that it may receive all the countenance from you for his future duration I shall acquaint you with the model I have proposed and if you please but to make an addition to it or a subtraction or any other alteration I shall be ready to comply with you this person that has undertaken the employment I conceive most proper of being both active stout and indefatigable he is sworn as to his fidelity I have affixed an annual salary on him which together with the advantage of his letters and other small portable packs may afford him a handsome livelihood Hartford is the first stage I have designed him to change his horse where constantly I expect he should have a fresh one lie all the letters outward shall be delivered gratis with a signification of post-paid on the superscription and reciprocally we expect all to us free each first Monday of the month he sets out from New York and is to return within the month from Boston to us again the mail has diverse bags according to the towns the letters are designed to which are all sealed up till their arrival with the scale of the secretary's office whose care it is on Saturday night to seal them up only by letters are in an open bag to disperse by the ways thus you see the scheme I have drawn to promote a happy correspondence I shall only beg of you your furtherance to so universal a good work by trail road and waterway the colonists were thus drawing nearer to each other and steadily increasing their facilities for trade when all was interrupted by the reassertion of Dutch sovereignty and the reconquest of the English colony by the Dutch under much the same circumstances as had marked the surrender of Stuyvesant in 1664 the old habit of unpreparedness survived under the English as under the Dutch and the third war between England and Holland began in 1672 and ended in 1674 found the strategic points on the Hudson again unprotected one August day in 1673 a powerful Dutch fleet appeared off Staten Island on the next day it sailed up through the narrows and Manhattan saw a repetition with the difference of the scene of 1664 after a brief exchange of volleys between the strong fleet and the weak fortress the garrison recognized that resistance was hopeless New York surrendered to Admiral Evertson and the flag of the Dutch Republic floated once more over the fortress which changed its name to Fort Willem-Hendrick while New York became New Orange Governor Lovelace was absent from the city at the moment and the blame of the surrender fell upon Manning, a subordinate, who was tried for neglect of duty, cowardice, and treachery his sword was broken over his head and he was pronounced ineligible for any office of trust but no governor could have saved the situation as nothing was ready for defense when the Dutch took possession Captain Anthony Colve was appointed governor he proceeded with energy to put the fort into condition for defense and for a time it seemed as if the Dutch might at last hold their rich heritage along the Hudson at the close of hostilities however a treaty which was signed at Westminster in February 1674 and proclaimed at the City Hall of New Orange in July of the same year stipulated that new Netherlands should again become an English province thus for the third time a national flag was lowered at the fort on Manhattan Island without serious effort at opposition the treaty did not restore New York to the Duke whose name it bore but handed it over directly to Charles II who however again granted it to his brother James Edmund Andros a major in Prince Rupert's regiment of Dragoons was sent out to take control of the province which had now changed hands for the last time his character was probably neither so white nor so black as it has been painted but it is certain that he lacked the tact of Nichols and he brought to his task the habits of a soldier rather than an administrator he never succeeded in winning the complete confidence of the people from the beginning Andros showed himself hostile to popular liberty and loyal to the interests of his patron as he saw them but the difficulties of his position it must be admitted were very great James Duke of York brother of Charles II and in the absence of legitimate children of the king the heir to the throne had as we have seen been granted all rights in the Concord territory of New Netherland in 1664 part of this territory he promptly gave to two court favorites Lord Barkley and Sir George Catterith the sagacious Nichols protested that this partition which surrendered to a divided ownership the rich lands of New Jersey so called in honor of Catterith's gallant defense of the island of Jersey during the civil wars was a menace to the well-being of New York his warning which might not have been heated in any case did not reach England until the transfer was completed with the Dutch occupation all titles were canceled but under the new treaty James although by this time thoroughly informed of the complications involved with the usual fertility of the stewards now made a grant of the eastern part of New Jersey to Catterith in severally taking no notice of the western part which Barkley had already sold for the sum of a thousand pounds by this grant to Catterith many questions were once raised was Sir George Catterith a lord proprietor like the Duke himself responsible only to the king or was he only a lord of the manor responsible to his master the Duke was East Jersey a part of New York or was it an independent province as usual the importance of the questions was based on commercial considerations if New Jersey were a separate entity then it might trade directly with England if it were dependent on New York it could trade only by permission of the Duke's representative Philip Catterith a kinsman of Sir George whom the latter had appointed governor of his share of New Jersey and who went to America in the same ship as Andros in 1674 determined to test the matter by declaring Elizabeth town a free port while Andros demanded that all ships bound to or from any port in the original New Netherland must enter and clear at New York with equal pertinacity Andros asserted the Duke's authority in West Jersey hailing Fenwick one of the claimants under the original grant of 1674 to court in New York Fenwick's land titles however were sustained and Andros then released him upon his explicit promise that he would not meddle with the government of West Jersey taking advantage of the death of Sir George Catterith in 1680 Andros next arrested and imprisoned governor Philip Catterith on the ground that he now had no authority and then himself assumed the governor's ship of East Jersey but Catterith was acquitted the assembly of East Jersey sustained their governor and the towns refused to submit meanwhile charges of corruption have been brought against Andros in New York where his imperious manner and arbitrary conduct had made enemies he was recalled to England in 1681 to answer these charges and in consequence of the disaffection which he had stirred up he was removed from office Colonel Thomas Dangan the governor chosen to succeed Andros was a younger son of an Irish baronette and a Roman Catholic the laws of England forbade a Catholic to hold office in that country but there was not the same barrier in the province subject to a Lord proprietor James being of the Catholic faith was therefore glad to appoint people of that religion in the New World realizing however that the feeling against Catholicism was strong in the colony the Duke yielded the pill by granting more liberal laws and a more popular form of government than had previously been permitted at the time of his appointment Dangan received instructions from the Duke of York to call a representative assembly of not more than 18 members to be chosen by the freeholders of the province this assembly met in October 1683 and passed some 15 laws the first and most memorable of which was the so-called charter of liberties and privileges the most notable provisions of the charter with those establishing the principles of popular representation and religious liberty and those reciting the guarantees of civil rights familiar to all Englishmen before this charter could be finally ratified by the Duke of York Charles II died from a stroke of apoplexy and James became king after 15 minutes in his closet where he had retired to give full scope to his tears he emerged to work for three years his bigoted will on the affairs of the realm James the king took a different view of many things from James the Duke the status of New York was similarly changed from a ducal proprietorship to a royal province the new charter recognized a lord proprietor but that lord proprietor had now become king of England and this king found some of the enactments of the charter so objectionable to his majesty that he disallowed the charter moreover James did away with the assembly which he had previously allowed to be summoned but the seed of popular government had been planted in the western hemisphere and within the next century it was ripe for the harvesting in 1688 new york and new jersey were united with the eastern colonies under title of the dominion of new england and sir edmund andros was appointed governor general of a territory of imperial dimensions but the year of his arrival in new york marked the departure of his royal master from england bigotry and tyranny had overshot the mark and the english people had determined to dethrone james on the invitation of the protestant nobility james's son-in-law william of orange landed at torbay in november 1688 and rapidly won popular support after beginning negotiations with him james became alarmed and took flight to france at the close of the year william of orange and his wife james's daughter mary then became king and queen of england february 13 1689 and new york once more passed under the control of a dutch sovereign end of chapter eight chapter nine of dutch and english on the hudson by maude wilder goodwin this liber box recording is in the public domain leisler the story of the so-called leisler rebellion illustrates the difficulty of sifting conflicting historical testimony among the earlier chroniclers of new netherland there is the widest difference of opinion about the chief actor in the drama leisler was an illiterate german says one authority another says he was the son of a french clergyman driven into exile and making his home in frankfurt where the little jacob was born the boy was taught to write and speak dutch french and german by being unskilled in the english tongue he was unjustly charged with illiteracy by one party he was branded as a vulgar demagogue ready to allow himself with the mob against the conservative citizenry by another he was acclaimed as the champion of the people's rights and religion when they were threatened with invasion by the minions of the perfidious stewards in regard to the main events of this troubled time there is fortunately little dispute although they are so complicated that they require close attention when james the second fled from england at the end of the year 1688 and was succeeded by william and mary the affairs of the american provinces were thrown into a state of chaos the change of government was not known in massachusetts until march 1689 the immediate result of the news was to fan the popular wrath against sir edmund andros then in boston into such a flame that the governor was seized and thrown into prison before he was able to make his escape to new york his imprisonment left lieutenant governor nicholson andros's deputy at new york in a difficult position andros was still governor and nicholson was unable to communicate with him some people held that nicholson thus became acting governor others claimed that the whole existing machinery of government was swept away by the abdication of james and that the provinces were free to govern themselves till they could learn the will of the new sovereign's nicholson was a weak man and his vacillation produced the impression that he might be engaged in a conspiracy to bring back the rule of james three years before in the king's camp he had knelt when mass was celebrated who knew what catholic designs might lurk behind this significant act rumour grew into suspicion and suspicion turned to panic at length nicholson fell into an altercation with an officer on guard at fort james who asserted his authority in the course of the argument the lieutenant governor remarked angrily i would rather see the city on fire than commanded by an impudent fellow like him next morning word had spread far and wide through the town that nicholson had threatened to burn new york and all was in an uproar a group of citizens appeared at the house of leisler who was an officer in the train band a citizen well known for honesty stands even bigoted protestant and with all a man of firm purpose and they begged him to act as their leader in a determined effort to preserve their liberties and hold new york for william and mary it is easy to see on looking back over two centuries that the dangers of conspiracy were greatly exaggerated but we must remember that these men really believe that they themselves and all that they held sacred were in jeopardy the possibility of war with france was indeed not remote and fear of an invasion from canada with all the horrors of an indian war haunted the minds of every frontier family leisler invited the people of the towns and counties of new york to choose delegates to a convention to be held at fort james on june 25 1689 to consider what was best to be done under existing conditions ulster albany and most of the towns in queens county refused to send delegates the others responded however and the delegates formed themselves into a committee of safety they appointed leisler captain of the fort at new york until orders shall be received from their majesties and leisler accepted the responsibilities of government massachusetts and connecticut congratulated him on his conduct and in the province of new york he was generally approved but he had the misfortune to be opposed by the roman catholics and the landed gentry the former were few in number and after the establishment of the protestant succession a negligible danger though in view of the assertion made by james to the pope that it was his full purpose to have set up roman catholic religion in the english plantations of america we can scarcely call it bigotry on leisler's part to fear their influence unfortunately for the leislarians the gentry made common cause with the catholics against the new government albany which was preeminently dutch and held the reform church in reverence was also aristocratic in sympathy and resented the rule of leisler as the representative of the common people even so had leisler shown more attack and less obstinacy there might still have been a chance to placate the opposing factions but by his fanatical attacks on all catholics and his open defiance of such prominent citizens as nicklas bayard stefanus van courtland frederick philips peter skyler and robert livingston he fomented the strife until conciliation became impossible in the beginning of january 1689 leisler committed a grievous strategical error in permitting nickleson to leave for england to render an account of the state of affairs while the leislarians depended upon communications written in dubious english and carried by a bearer who was of inferior social standing meanwhile leisler won a temporary victory over his opponents in december dispatches arrived from the privy council and the king and queen of england addressed to our lieutenant governor and commander-in-chief of our province of new york or in his absence to such as for the time being take care to keep the peace and administer the laws and authorizing him to take the reins of government calling to his assistance in the administration thereof the principal free holders and inhabitants of the same or so many of them as you shall think fit nickleson having departed for england the messenger was in some doubt as to the proper recipient of the message bayard and his faction strove to obtain possession of it but it was finally delivered to leisler he appointed a council of eight men all reputable citizens and by no means representing the rabble as his enemies charged in this procedure he was acting in strict conformity with the letter from the privy council leisler assumed the title of lieutenant governor and much to the chagrin of his foes took his seat in the governor's pew at church it was his moment of triumph but troubles were already darkening the horizon in november leisler sent to albany his deputy an englishman named mill born to demand the recognition of his government but the mandate being opposed by skyler livings in a bayard all well known and highly esteemed in albany and representing the aristocratic faction that town refused entrance to mill born and his escort and refused likewise to recognize leisler as governor the albany records for november 1689 described the incident as follows three sloops near albany bearing troops under jake of mill born and the immediately captain wendell and blocker johannes kyler and remire barons go aboard to learn the object of his visit jake of mill born asks is the fort open to receive me and my men the reply is no the mayor is in command and will hold it on the receipt of this inhospitable message reinforced by military demonstrations mill born wisely withdrew his inadequate force and returned to new york to report the failure of his mission three months after mill born's rejection in the bitter february weather of 1690 the village of schenectady at that time a western frontier post was burned and its inhabitants were massacred in a french and indian raid once more leisler sent his deputy at the head of a body of troops to the assistance of the albanians and this time mill born was not denied entrance to the town having thus gained control of the province leisler summoned a convention of delegates from massachusetts and kinetica to meet at new york on may 1690 in order to discuss the defense of the colonies meanwhile the leis larians and their opponents were bombarding the new king and queen with their conflicting claims in 1690 captain blag congratulating their majesties on the late happy revolution in england asked their majesties approbation for leisler on the ground that nickle sent like colonel dongan had neglected to repair the fortifications of the city which excited suspicions against his loyalty and he was disaffected towards the late happy revolution in england hence jacob leisler had been chosen with a committee to make such repairs and to administer the government until william's pleasure could be known the memorial goes on to say shortly after their majesties proclamation arrived by which william and mary were to be proclaimed king and queen of england notice was given to the late council of nickle sent and to the mayor and alderman to assist with proper ceremonies in this proclamation they desired an hour's time for considering it and then refused leisler and his committee and most of the inhabitants did then celebrate the event with many demonstrations of joy and affection the mayor and alderman were then suspended from office and certain opponents of the revolution and their majesties interests were imprisoned shortly after their majesties letters arrived directed to lieutenant governor nickle sent or in his absence to such as for the time being do take care for the preservation of their majesties peace and administering the laws in that their majesties province ordering such to take upon them the place of lieutenant governor and commander in chief of the said province and to proclaim king william and queen mary king and queen of england scotland france and ireland and supreme lord and lady of the province of new york if not already done which was accordingly done the inhabitants generally were satisfied therewith and leisler's committee was dismissed and a council chosen to assist him in the government but the members of the old government opposed all this and created a faction this excited fear lest the province should yet be delivered up to the french in canada which fear greatly agitated the protestant population the said faction also surrounded captain leisler and abused him with ill language and threats and would have done violence to him if they had not feared the people who rescued him out of their hands and imprisoned the ringleaders of the opposition multitudes also flocked into the city from the country to defend the existing government and it was with great difficulty that their zeal could be restrained the prisoners were ultimately fined and discharged upon their own recognizance to keep the peace the fort and city were therefore now in a good condition accepting a lack of ammunition the commission of all military men who had acted under governors dongan and andros had been called in and other commissions issued in the name of their present majesties and only to those who were well affected there too but our efforts thus to secure their majesties interests have been greatly misrepresented and we have been loaded with reproaches our actions have been called a dutch plot although three-quarters of the inhabitants are of dutch descent and speak dutch and our ruin is threatened if the government ever falls into the hands of our opponents to this lengthy defense and nickles made response as follows jake of leisler a man of desperate fortune ambitiously did assume unto himself the title of lieutenant governor of this province of new york and chose a council of the meanest and most abject common people made to himself a broad seal which he called the seal of the province with the usual arms of kings of england and to fix the same to some unlawful grants of land within this province and commissionated under ye same justices of ye peace in whose hearts were mistyre he constituted courts of orye and terminé and tried several subjects for pretended treason mirther and other crimes he taxed and levied money upon their majesties subjects to their grievous oppression and greatly impoverishment when he wanted more money for his occasions he forcibly robbed and spoiled broke open doors and locks where he guessed it was to be found and carried away to ye value of some thousands of pounds and money or goods and all this against the best Protestant subjects in the province he imprisoned whom he feared without any other cause and that their integrity to ye Protestant interest and fidelity to their majesties became a terror to him some of them after a tedious confinement without color of law he whipped and branded and some he kept in the rest so long as he held ye for it upon one point both the followers and opponents of leisler agreed there was no dutch plot behind this revolution the notion of a dutch plot cannot be applicable to leisler and his adherents said bayard the much greater part of albany which wholly consists of dutch people and all the men of best repute for religion is state and integrity of the dutch nation throughout the whole province having always been manifested against leisler and his society and all their illegal and irregular proceedings to these representations their majesties advisors made no reply but the appointment of governor of new york was given to colonel henry slaughter a profligate neater and narrow-minded adventurer the selection of whom did little credit to the wisdom of william of orange all the papers from both factions were committed to this inefficient officer with instructions to examine the allegations strictly and impartially and to make a true report in december 1690 slaughter set sail with several ships and a body of troops by some accident the vessels were separated and the ship bearing major richard engelsby a rash hotheaded man who had served in holland and recently returned from service in ireland arrived in the beaver two months before slaughter ship reached new york his commission required him to obey the royal governor but did not give him authority to act as commander-in-chief in case of slaughter's absence or death nevertheless engelsby at once announced the appointment of slaughter and demanded the surrender of the fort leisler replied by offering quarters for engelsby's soldiers but refused to surrender the fort till he saw the major's commission engelsby had no credentials whatever but he issued a proclamation calling on the people and magistrates to aid him in enforcing the royal commission leisler issued a counter proclamation warning him at his peril not to attempt hostilities against the city or the fort but on receiving assurances that engelsby had no intention of using force against the people of new york he permitted the troops to land the fort however he would not yield with rival forces in the town peace was difficult to maintain neither commander trusted the other recrimination followed protest finally on the 70th of march leisler fired on engelsby's troops killing two and wounding others at length on march 1961 slaughter entered the harbor of new york representative anti leislerians hastened to board his ship and escorted him to the city hall where he took the oath of office at 11 o'clock at night he immediately dispatched engelsby to demand the surrender of the fort again leisler's bigotry in obstinacy overcame his prudence instead of surrendering at once he dispatched a messenger bearing letters and warning him to look well at slaughter and be sure he was no counterfeit slaughter informed leisler's messenger that he intended to make himself known in new york as well as in england and ordered engelsby for the second time to demand possession of the fort and to release from their prison colonel bayard and mr. nickles that they might attend the council to which they had been appointed members leisler refused either to surrender the fort or to release the prisoners but sent millborn and der latinoy to endeavor to make terms slaughter and prison both on voice and ordered his frigate to hold itself in readiness to fire on the fort leisler at length and too late realizing that resistance was useless sent a letter to the governor offering submission for the third time engelsby was ordered to demand the possession of the fort this time the garrison yielded and leisler was put under arrest with millborn now his son-in-law and eight others leisler was arraigned before a court having inveter royalists as judges two insurgents were acquitted six made their defense were convicted of high treason and were reprieved leisler and millborn declined to plead and appeal to the king they were however condemned and sentenced through death slaughter was reluctant to sign the death warrants but his associates more particularly bayard who had been imprisoned by leisler were determined on the execution it is maintained that the governor's signature was obtained at a banquet when he was under the influence of liquor and that an officer stole with a warrant to the prison in order the victims let out for immediate execution be this as it may slaughter's compunctions were overcome and the death warrants signed the scaffold was erected at the lower end of the park and weeping people thronged about the victims leisler's dying speech which was marked by neither anger nor bitterness affirmed that he had no other aim than to maintain against potpoury or any schism or heresy whatever the interest of our sovereign lord and lady and the reformed Protestant churches in these parts the drop fell the populace rushed up to claim some relics of their leader the bodies were taken down beheaded and buried and so the worthless slaughter thought to make an end of a troublesome fellow but the leisler blood still flowed in the veins of the dead man's son who never ceased fighting till in 1695 the attainder on the estate was removed this action of the english parliament was tantamount to confession that leisler had been unjustly accused tried and hanged and that these the only people ever put to death for political reasons on the sword of new york died as misguided martyrs not as criminal conspirators end of chapter nine