Journal of Jasper Danckaerts, 1679-1680 Part 19

We wrote up the river to Robert Sanders of Albany, and to the poor sick man at the Hysopus, sending him a _vomitorium_ by Meus Hoogboom.

We also went to see the Boston skipper, but he had not obtained any freight.

_22nd, Wednesday._ Mr. Reinderman arrived overland from the South River, leaving Ephraim still there. He started the same day that De la Grange left there, but was not able to overtake him. He had been all this time on the road, and had had a difficult journey, in consequence of there being so much water upon the land.

_23d, Thursday._ We went again to inquire after our boat, and found that the time was changed for the voyage, which made it a great inconvenience to us to be here so long, without being able to accomplish anything. But some other Boston vessels had arrived, which, they said, would return the first opportunity.

_24th, Friday._ Ephraim arrived from the South River at noon to-day, with his wife, and her sister's mother,[376] and other company, overland.

[Footnote 376: Apparently this means the mother of Susanna Huyberts, wife of Casparus Heerman. See p. 130, note 1.]

_25th, Sat.u.r.day._ We went this forenoon to welcome him. He was still very much attached to us, and so was his wife, and both were persuaded and touched with the love which we had shown them, and the wife particularly, for the favor I had granted her, in sending her the translation of the _Verheffinge des Geestes_, in reading which she had experienced great enjoyment, and had been sometimes tenderly affected.

She thanked us for the little parcel of braided goods we had sent her, which had been very agreeable to her. He promised moreover, if it should please G.o.d to call us again into this country to live and to establish His beloved church, we need not be at a loss to find a place; that the land which belonged to him, namely, Bohemia in Maryland, where his father lived, and of which we have before spoken, should with his consent be applied to no other purpose; that it should never go into English hands, hoping that G.o.d would give him this grace.[377] He had brought with him a piece of spermaceti, a portion of which he presented to us. He told us of the disposition of the heart of the Heer Jan Moll towards us, who showed us so much friendship, as we have before related, and will show us all possible kindness in the future; that he had taken well to heart what we had commended to him, and had even reformed several matters in his household, and otherwise; and how it grieved him that Domine Tessemaker had not grace or ability enough to accomplish anything serious in the congregation there, of which he was the elder, as well as president of the king's court. His wife was so far gone in consumption, that they saw no hope of her recovery.

[Footnote 377: See p. 141, note 2, _supra_.]

_26th, Sunday._ Domine Niewenhuyse being sick, there was no preaching yet to-day.

_27th, Monday._ We went to call upon Ephraim again, in order to speak to him particularly, but did not succeed in consequence of his being visited so much, the more so because his wife's sister was soon to be married.[378]

[Footnote 378: According to the records of the Dutch Reformed Church in New York, Elizabeth's half-sister, Helena van Brugh, was married the day before this, May 26.]

_28th, Tuesday._ The supercargo of the last arrived Boston vessel, named Padechal,[379] was at M. van Clief's, who spoke to him about our wishes, and he promised to give us every attention and accommodation, and that he would leave in the coming week. This inspired us with new hope of getting away finally after so much delay.

[Footnote 379: Richard Pattishall of Boston. He was killed by the Indians at Pemaquid in 1692.]

_29th, Wednesday._ The before mentioned Boston trader came to speak with us himself, at the house of M. van Cleif. We talked with him, and he promised us every thing fair. The fare from New York to Boston is twenty shillings in English money for each person, which with the loss of exchange is a pound sterling in the money of Old England, which certainly is dear enough.

_30th, Thursday._ It was now Ascension Day, according to the old style,[380] a day greatly observed by the English. It reminded us of the day we left home on our travels, which was Ascension Day, old style. We wrote to-day to Robert Sanders at Albany, in order that, as we were so long in New York contrary to our intentions, he might regulate himself in the matter of our poor Wouter, the Indian, who, according to our mutual understanding, was to go to Boston by land, with an address from Mr. Robert Sanders, to one John Pisgeon, merchant, of that city,[381] so that we might find him, or he us, in order to go to Europe with us, which he so earnestly desired, and we endeavored with our whole heart to effect; and as this could not well be done by the way of York, on account of the governor and other hindrances, we had chosen that way, as it seemed to us the best.

[Footnote 380: But it was also Ascension Day of the new style.]

[Footnote 381: I do not know who this could be if it were not John Pynchon of Springfield, a.s.sistant and councillor of Ma.s.sachusetts 1665-1703. He owned much property in Boston and was often there; his large possessions in western Ma.s.sachusetts and his position as the chief trader at Springfield would make it natural to use him in the way described; and in 1677 he had, at Albany, taken part, as representative of his colony, in Governor Andros's negotiations with the Mohawks.]

M. de la Grange came with his wife to invite me to accompany them in their boat to the Wale Bocht,[382] a place situated on Long Island, almost an hour's distance below the city, directly opposite Correlaers Hoeck, from whence I had several times observed the place, which appeared to me very pleasant, although I had never been there. He had an old aunt and other friends living there. We set off accordingly in the boat, but the strong flood tide carried us beyond the bay, to a place called the Burnt Mill, where we could let the tide run out.

Meanwhile we fished a little, but we caught nothing except a small codfish. From there we landed on the Mahatans, a little north of the Burnt Mill, on a beautiful farm, having two fine ponds of water before the door, where a mill was standing. These ponds were full of sunfish, and other fish, some of which we caught. The flood having run out at noon, we left there and arrived about two o'clock at the Wale Bocht.

This is a bay tolerably wide where the water rises and falls much, and at low water is very shallow and much of it dry. Inside of the easterly point there was a ship aground, which had struck on the reef of rocks which put out from Corlaer's Hook towards this bay, and had floated over here and sunk. She was a French privateer, which had taken some rich Dutch prizes in the bay of Campeachy and was going through here to New England, in order to dispose of the goods which would not bring money enough in New York. There were many goods still in the sunken ship, and they have tried several times to raise her, but to no purpose. We went ash.o.r.e here, and observed several kinds of fish, which I had not seen before in this country, such as flounders, plaice, sole, etc. This aunt of de La Grange is an old Walloon woman from Valenciennes, seventy-four years old. She is worldly-minded, with _mere bonte_,[383] living with her whole heart, as well as body, among her progeny, which now number 145, and will soon reach 150.

Nevertheless she lived alone by herself, a little apart from the others, having her little garden, and other conveniences, with which she helped herself.[384] The ebb tide left our boat aground, and we were compelled to wait for the flood to set her afloat. De la Grange having to train next week with all the rest of the people, at New York, bespoke here a man to go as his subst.i.tute. The flood tide having made, we arrived home by evening.

[Footnote 382: The Walebocht, or bay of the Walloons, was a bight in the Long Island sh.o.r.e, where the Brooklyn Navy Yard now stands. It was so named from a group of Walloons who settled there at an early date.

The modern form of the name is Wallabout.]

[Footnote 383: Meaning, apparently, "with mere human goodness."]

[Footnote 384: This old woman was Catalina Trico (1605-1689), widow of Joris Jansen Rapalie. She was the mother of eleven children, of whom the eldest, Sara, born in 1625 at Fort Orange, is understood to have been "the first born Christian daughter in New Netherland," Jean Vigne (see p. 47, note 2) being the first-born child. Two depositions by her of 1685 and 1688, printed in _Doc. Hist. N.Y._, III. 31-32, quarto ed., give interesting details of the beginnings of the colony, for she came out "in 1623" (1624, rather) in the _Eendracht_ (Unity), the first ship sent out to New Netherland by the Dutch West India Company.

After three years at Fort Orange and twenty-two at New Amsterdam, she and her husband settled at the Walebocht. In the second deposition she speaks of herself as born in Paris, not Valenciennes. How she was aunt of de la Grange I do not know. He was the son of Joost de la Grange and Margaret his wife, afterward the wife of Andrew Carr. His wife was Cornelia de la Fontaine. Joining the Labadists in their purchase, he was naturalized by the Maryland a.s.sembly in 1684, and in 1692 was understood to be living in their community at Bohemia Manor. _Maryland Archives_, XIII. 126, XX. 163.]

_31st, Friday._ We sold to the wife of Evert, the late mate of our ship, a small looking-gla.s.s, a steel thimble, a pound and a half of white darning yarn, and half a pound of brown thread, for which she gave us a piece of eight.[385]

[Footnote 385: A dollar, piece of eight reals.]

JUNE _1st, Sat.u.r.day._ Nothing transpired to-day, except that several persons came to converse with us, to each of whom we spoke according to his state.[386]

[Footnote 386: It was believed by the local ministers that Danckaerts and Sluyter while in New York engaged actively in proselytizing. Thus, Rev. Henricus Selyns, Domine Niewenhuisen's successor, says in a letter to Rev. Willem a Brakel, "They regularly attended church and said they had nothing against my doctrines; that they were of the Reformed Church, and stood by the Heidelberg Catechism and Dordrecht Confession.... Afterwards, in order to lay the groundwork for a schism, they began holding meetings with closed doors, and to rail out against the church and consistory, as Sodom and Egypt, and saying they must separate from the church; they could not come to the service, or hold communion with us. They thus absented themselves from the church." Murphy, _New Netherland Anthology_, pp. 95, 96.]

_2d, Sunday._ There was no preaching in consequence of Domine Niewenhuise's continued sickness. Ephraim and his wife, among others, called upon us, and we had several conversations with them, and satisfied them in regard to our departure.

_3d, Monday._ We went to inquire whether our voyage would take place, as they said, on Wednesday. They now fixed the last of the week, which did not please us a great deal, because there was so much fine weather pa.s.sing away without our being able to do anything; and also because we discovered that we could depend as little upon the word of the people of New England as of others, although they wished to pa.s.s for more upright persons, which we have not been able to perceive.

_4th, Tuesday._ We were again visited by several persons, and also by Ephraim, and one Pieter Beyaert,[387] a deacon of the Dutch church, a very good sort of person whom G.o.d, the Lord, began to touch and enlighten, both in regard to the destruction of the world in general and of himself in particular. He had a good intention to perform, through the grace of G.o.d, whatever G.o.d convicted him the truth of; for, he said, he had for some time past felt that G.o.d had some purpose concerning him, and to incite him to serve G.o.d with more earnestness; but it was impossible to do so in the city, and in this city of traders, where he lived; and as he observed the hand and providence of G.o.d in this matter because there had fallen to him a good piece of land and farm, without any effort of his, and as he felt that a private life was better for him, and brought him nearer to G.o.d, he intended to abandon the city and commerce and go and live upon his farm, which is on the South River, a small distance below where Caspar Hermans lives. We said to him on this subject what we believed he was in need of, which he received kindly.

[Footnote 387: Pieter Bayard was a nephew of Governor Stuyvesant and a brother of Nicholas Bayard, of the council. He joined in the Labadist purchase, but soon withdrew.]

The large ship of Frederick Flipsen, of which Singleton was captain, besides being lank of herself, was also very badly stowed and laden.

In attempting to run out to sea, she was compelled to put back to Staten Island, in order to be restowed, which delays his voyage for several weeks.

_5th, Wednesday._ We now learned that our voyage was postponed until Monday, and perhaps longer, so little calculation can be made upon voyages in these parts.

_6th, Thursday._ We visited Theunis, whom we found well, the Lord confirming and strengthening him in the grace he had manifested towards Him, which comforted us, and we wished him the blessing of the Lord.

_7th, Friday._ We went to take our leave of the lord governor, who was very much engaged with the officers of the burghers, who were to train the next day, and also with the affair of Lord Carteret,[388] governor of New Jersey. After we had been waiting a long time, he observed us and called us. He asked us what we came to say, not with his accustomed kindness, but a little peevishly, as if he were tired of us and we annoyed him. We answered, we came to take our leave of him, as we intended to leave for Boston, and to thank him for the favor and kindness he had shown us. He enquired with whom we were going; and we named the person. He then asked, when; and we said on Monday. "Well,"

said he, "you will undoubtedly find there in the east a better opportunity than you have found here." We felt that he said this in irony; and replied, we did not think so, as we had seen several good situations within his government, and had been informed they were not so good at the east. He cut off the conversation by wishing us a happy voyage, for which we thanked him and left. We also went to take leave of Frederick Flipsen,[389] whom we requested, in case any letters addressed to us came into his hands, he would be so kind as to direct them to us in the Fatherland, which order we afterwards changed, and gave to M. de la Grange, because we were apprehensive, as he and the governor were one, it might be that our letters, coming from the Fatherland, had been withheld from us by them, as some persons had absolutely declared, and others had half insinuated.

[Footnote 388: Governor Carteret was not a lord.]

[Footnote 389: See p. 5, note 1.]

_8th, Sat.u.r.day._ There was a training and muster to-day, which had not taken place before in two years, because the small-pox had prevailed so much the last year. Some were on horseback, and six small companies were on foot. They were exercised in military tactics, but I have never seen anything worse of the kind. They comprised all the force of New York and the adjacent places. De la Grange, who supposed he could put in a subst.i.tute, had to appear on horseback himself, although some who were to come so did subst.i.tute others in their places.

This day was the anniversary of our departure from home, and we would have now taken our departure from here, if it had not been postponed.

_9th, Sunday._ Pinxter (Whitsunday). Domine Niewenhuyse having recovered from his sickness, we went to hear him preach, in order not to give any cause of offense at the last. His text was the usual one.

_10th, Monday._ The second day of Pinxter. We had several visitors whom we received with love and affection, each one according to his circ.u.mstances.

_11th, Tuesday._ We called upon Ephraim, from whom we received in charge some spermaceti, with orders to send him from Amsterdam a good new Bible. He presented us on behalf of his wife, who was not at home, two beautiful otter skins, which we dared not refuse, and accepted with thanks.

The governor, attended by his whole retinue of ladies and gentlemen, escorted Carteret, the governor of New Jersey, in great pomp home to Achter Kol. As we are now about to leave New York, and the affair of the Heer Carteret appears to be finished, which happening during our stay here we should have noticed from time to time, only we thought it was not well to write then what we saw, for various reasons, we do not regard it improper now to state what we heard of it.

These two governors lived at first in friendship and concord. Carteret came often to New York, and generally to church, when he usually went to the governor's, in the fort. A difference afterwards arose between them, but the cause of it I have not heard, or whether it was personal or public. It is certain, however, that the governor of New York wished to bring Carteret and his government, to some extent, into subordination to him. Carteret claimed to be as perfectly governor of his province as the other was of his, and to possess the same prerogatives as the governor of New York, and even more than he, in respect to trade and other privileges. The governor of New York disputed with him all right of navigation, declaring the North River was under his own jurisdiction, and therefore all persons who pa.s.sed in or out of it must acknowledge him, pay him duties, and even unlade there, and actually commenced seizing some vessels. Carteret thereupon complained to England, and the governor of New York sent Captain Dyer over there as a commissioner, which he disavowed with an oath, as it is said. This Dyer returned with skipper Jacob, or about that time, but with what instructions I do not know. There also arrived with him a collector for Boston, on behalf of the king, as they said, which was contrary to their privileges of liberties, and he was therefore never acknowledged as such by the merchants there.[390] From this time forth the governor of New York began to act more stringently towards Carteret, and also towards his own subjects. Carteret obtaining information of what had been done in England by Captain Dyer, called together all the princ.i.p.al men among his people, who represented under their signatures the circ.u.mstances of the case, and sent the paper to England. The governor of New York went to Staten Island, as to the jurisdiction over which they disagreed, and sent for Carteret to come there in order, as he said, to negotiate with him in peace and friendship. Carteret, probably perceiving his purpose, refused to go, and requested of him if he had anything necessary to communicate to come to him, as he was now not far from his residence, and as he, Carteret, had been so frequently at the fort in New York, he should come once to his house, where he might be a.s.sured he would be welcome.

Hereupon the governor returned again to New York with his object unaccomplished, and shortly afterwards, by proclamation, declared the nullity of the government of Carteret; that at the most he was only the head of a colony, namely, New Jersey; and that he was guilty of misusing the king's name, power, and authority. He sent boats several times to Achter Kol to demand the submission of the place to his authority, which the people of Achter Kol jeered at and disregarded, being ready to uphold the king and their own governor, whom they bound themselves by an oath to maintain. This occurred repeatedly, and Carteret said that so far from wishing himself to oppose it, he would, on the contrary, immediately submit, if the governor of New York would produce the least authority from the king for what he claimed or did.

He however never brought forward anything of the kind, but continued his proceedings; and at night, and unseasonable hours, and by surprise, took from New Jersey all the staves of the constables out of their houses, which was as much as to deprive them of the power to act. Seeing he could accomplish nothing by force, he declared the inhabitants released from their oaths to the Heer Carteret; they answered they could not acknowledge any release from their oaths, unless by the same authority which had required it of them or the exhibition of a higher one, that of the king. At length he corrupted one of Carteret's domestics, for Carteret had no soldiers or fortifications, but resided in a country house only. He then equipped some yachts and a ketch with soldiers, arms, and ammunition, and despatched them to Achter Kol in order to abduct Carteret in any manner it could be done. They entered his house, I know not how, at midnight, seized him naked, dragged him through the window, struck and kicked him terribly, and even injured him internally. They threw him, all naked as he was, into a canoe, without any cap or hat on his head, and carried him in that condition to New York, where they furnished him clothes and shoes and stockings, and then conducted him to the fort and put him immediately in prison. When they seized him at Achter Kol the armed boats had gone home, and the seizure was accomplished through treachery. Two of the head men of Carteret immediately took possession of his papers, such as were of importance to him, and travelled, one to Maryland, and the other, crossing the upper part of the North River, to Boston overland, and both to England, in order to remonstrate. The governor sent immediately to Achter Kol, took possession of the place, posted up orders, and caused inquiries to be made for the man who had set Carteret over the river, but without success.

[Footnote 390: Edward Randolph, the famous royal agent, arrived in New York December 7, 1679.]

While Carteret was in prison he was sick, very sick, they said, in regard to which there were various surmises. Meanwhile a court of a.s.sizes was convened, to which on every occasion the governor was conducted by three trumpeters in advance of him. Carteret was brought before the same court, after him. The governor had caused a seat to be erected in the court room high up above all the others, and higher than usual on which he sat. Governor Carteret, as a criminal, was in the middle. The court being seated, the governor presented Carteret as guilty of misusing the king's name, power, and authority, and usurping the government of New Jersey; that he was only the head of a colony, etc. Whereupon Carteret, having the right to speak, said it was far from his intention to seek to defend his case before that court; he did not acknowledge it as a court having power to decide his case, because in the first place the question could not be determined in a court of a.s.sizes, as it did not concern a private right, but the right of the king; in the next place, if such a question could be disposed of in such a court, this nevertheless could not act, because he was not subject to its jurisdiction; and thirdly, because it was a court of one party, and he said this without wishing to offend any of the individual members of the court; yet notwithstanding all this he was content that he and his case should be brought before them in order that they might be witnesses of what was done and to be done. As to what the governor of New York alleged, he said it was wonderful to him that he should be thus treated, and that they should dispute a matter which neither the governor of New York, nor his court, nor any one in the world had ever disputed, or with reason could dispute. The governor said he had never acknowledged him as governor of New Jersey.

"It is surprising," said Carteret, "that at one time there can be disavowed before all the world, what has been a.s.sented to before all the world at another;" and thereupon he took out of his pocket several letters of the governor of New York, all addressed to the governor of New Jersey. The governor did not know what to say to this except that he had so directed them because Carteret was generally styled governor, and not because he was so in fact; "for," said he, "although I have done that, can I therefore make you governor?" "No,"

replied Carteret, "but the king has made me governor, and you as well as all the world have acknowledged me as such." The acts of the king in relation to the governorship were then produced, and it was found that the one to Carteret was some time older than that to the governor of New York, and therefore, said Carteret, it is to be preferred. The governor of New York replied, "mine is more recent, and yours is therefore annulled by it." "That is to be shown," rejoined Carteret.

Although the governor of New York had employed a lawyer, he could not succeed. When at last the jury retired, in order to consult among themselves, Carteret exhibited letters from the king himself, in which he called him governor of New Jersey. The jury returned and declared Carteret not guilty of what was charged against him. The governor made them retire a second time, saying to them it would be well for them to consider what they did, as more depended upon the matter than they imagined. They came back a second time with the same verdict.