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[The above is a representation of the large elm, under which it is said was held the celebrated treaty of William Penn with the Indians. This venerated tree stood at Kensingston, the northern part of Philadelphia; it was blown down, March 3d, 1810. "In its form," says Mr. Watson, in his Annals of Philadelphia, "it was remarkably wide spread, but not lofty; its main branch inclining towards the river measured one hundred and fifty feet in length; its girth around the trunk was twenty-four feet, and its age, as it was counted by the inspection of its circles of annual growth, was two hundred and eighty-three years." While it stood, the Methodists and Baptists often held their summer meetings under its shade. A marble monument has been erected on this spot to designate its site, &c.]

and determine small differences between man and man: that children should be taught some useful trade, to the end that none might be idle, that the poor might work to live, and the rich if they should become poor: that factors, wronging their employers, should make satisfaction, and one-third over: that every thing, which excites the people to rudeness, cruelty, and irreligion, should be discouraged and severely punished." These and other judicious regulations attracted numerous emigrants, and within four years from the date of the grant of Penn, the province contained twenty settlements and Philadelphia two thousand inhabitants.

In 1684, Penn was obliged to return to England, where his enemies taking advantage of his absence, had thrown his affairs into a critical situation. He left his province in a tranquil state under the administration of five commissioners, chosen from the council. The unfortunate James II. about this period ascended the throne. "As he has," said Penn, "been my friend, and my father's friend, I feel bound in justice to be a friend to him." He continued his adherence to him while he remained on the throne,

and for two years after he was expelled from his kingdom, the government of the province was administered in his name.

On account of this display of attachment to the exiled monarch, Penn incurred the displeasure of King William, on vague suspicion, and unfounded charges, the founder of Pennsylvania was four times imprisoned. The government of his province was taken from him, and given to Gov. Fletcher of New York. After many persecutions, Penn was permitted to make his own defence before the king and council. By this means, he easily succeeded in removing every unfavorable impression against himself, and was speedily reinstated in his rights as proprietary and governor. William Markham was soon after sent out as deputy governor.

In 1699, Penn again visited Pennsylvania, and found the people discontented. As they complained of some of the provisions of the existing charter, he prepared a new one, which was submitted to the Assembly and accepted by them in 1701. It gave to the Assembly the right of originating bills, which, by the previous charters, was the right of the governor alone, and of amending or rejecting those which might be laid before them. To the governor, it gave the right of rejecting bills passed by the Assembly, of appointing his own council, and of exercising the whole executive power. The Territories, (now the state of Delaware,) refusing to accept the new charter, separated from Pennsylvania, and were allowed a distinct assembly, under the same governor.

Immediately after granting his third and last charter, Penn returned to England, where he remained till his death, in 1717. The executive authority of the province was administered by deputy governors appointed by the proprietor. The people murmured and complained; but the great prosperity of the colony shows that but slight causes of complaint existed. The greatest cause of irritation among the colonists was, the refusal of the deputy governors to assent to any law imposing taxes on the lands of the proprietors, although the sum raised was to be expended for the benefit of the whole province.

In 1742, a treaty was holden at Philadelphia by the government of Pennsylvania with the deputies of the Six Nations, who agreed to relinquish their claim to all the lands on both sides of the river Susquehanna, so far south as the province extended, and northward to the Endless Mountains, or Kittochtinny hills. In compensation for this territory, they received goods of considerable value. The first settlement in the western part of the state was at Pittsburg on the Ohio. This was the site of the French fort, Du Quesne, which, in 1758, was reduced by Gen. Forbes. The town was commenced in 1760, purchased of the Indians in 1768, and in 1785, contained 1,303 inhabitants.

In the early part of the Revolutionary war, the people adopted a new constitution, by which the heirs of Penn were excluded from all the share they held in the government; and the quit rents due from the inhabitants, were finally discharged by paying to the representatives of his family the sum of 570,000 dollars. In September, 1777, this state was made the theatre of war. The battle of Brandywine was fought on the 11th of that month, in which the Americans were defeated; and Philadelphia was taken by Sir William Howe on the 27th. The battle of Germantown, unfortunate to the Americans, was fought on the 4th of October. In June, 1778, the British evacuated Philadelphia and marched into New Jersey.

In 1794, an insurrection took place in the four western counties, to resist the laws of the Union, laying a duty on distilled spirits. On the approach of a respectable force in October, the insurgents laid down their arms, and were pardoned. In 1799, the seat of the state government was removed from Philadelphia to Lancaster; and, in 1800, that of the Federal Government was removed from Philadelphia to Washington. In 1812, the seat of the state government was removed to Harrisburg.

INDIANS IN PENNSYLVANIA.

MUCH that was common to the Indians of this state and New Jersey, has already been given in this work in the account of the Indians of New Jersey. It is supposed by some historians, that there were in the year 1684, as many as ten nations or tribes of Indians in the province of Pennsylvania, comprising six thousand in number. The following, relative to their primitive character and habits, is given by William Penn in his letter, of August, 1683, to the "Free Society of Traders."

"The natives I shall consider, in their persons, language, manners, religion and government, with my sense of their original. For their persons, they are generally tall, straight, well-built, and of singular proportion; they tread strong and clever; and mostly walk with a lofty chin. Of complexion, black, but by design; as the Gypsies. in England. They grease themselves with bear's fat clarified; and using no defence against sun, or weather, their skins must needs be swarthy. Their eye is little and black, not unlike a straight looked Jew. The thick lip, and flat nose so frequent with the East Indians and blacks, are not common to them: For I have seen as comely European like faces among them, of both, as on your side the sea; and truly an Italian complexion hath not much more of the white; and the noses of several of them have as much of the Roman.

"The language is lofty, yet narrow; but, like the Hebrew, in signification, full; like short-hand, in writing, one word serveth in the place of three, and the rest are supplied by the understanding of the hearer: imperfect in their tenses, wanting in their moods, participles, adverbs, conjunctions, interjections. I have made it my

business to understand it, that I might not want an Interpreter, on any occasion; and I must say, that I know not a language spoken, in Europe, that hath words of more sweetness, or greatness, in accent and emphasis, than theirs; for instance, Octocockon, Rancocas, Oricton, Shak, Marian, Poquefien; all which are names of places; and have grandeur in thein. Of words of sweetness, Anna, is mother; Iffimus, a brother; Netcap, friend; Ufqueoret, very good; Pane, bread; Metfa, eat; Matta, no; Hatta, to have; Payo, to come; Sepaffen, Paffijon, the names of places; Tamane, Secane, Menanfe, Secatercus, are the names of persons; if one ask them for any thing they have not, they will answer, Matta ne hatta; which to translate, is, not I have; instead of, I have not.

"Of their customs and manners, there is much to be said; I will begin with children; so soon as they are born, they wash them in water; and while very young, and in cold weather to chuse, they plunge them in the rivers, to harden and embolden them. Having wrapt them in a clout, they lay them on a strait, thin board, a little more than the length and breadth of the child, and swaddle it fast, upon the board, to make it straight; wherefore all Indians have flat heads; and thus they carry them at their backs. The children will go, very young, at nine months commonly; they wear only a small clout round their waste, till they are big; if boys, they go a fishing, till ripe for the woods, which is about fifteen; then they hunt; and after having given some proofs of their manhood, by a good return of skins, they may marry; else it is a shame to think of a wife. The girls stay with their mothers, and help to hoe the ground, plant corn, and carry burdens; and they do well to use them to that young, which they must do when they are old; for the wives are the true servants of the husbands; otherwise the men are very affectionate to them.

"When the young women are fit for marriage, they wear something upon their heads, for an advertisement, but so, as their faces are hardly to be seen, but when they please. The age, they marry at, if women, is about thirteen, and fourteen; men, seventeen and eighteen; they are rarely elder.

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Their houses are mats, or barks of trees, set on poles, in the fashion of an English barn; but out of the power of the winds; for they are hardly higher than a man ; they lie on reeds, or grass. In travel they lodge in the woods, about a great fire, with the mantle of duffils, they wear by day, wrapt about them, and a few boughs stuck round them.

"Their diet is maize, or Indian corn, divers ways prepared; sometimes roasted in the ashes; sometimes beaten and boiled with water; which they call homine; they also make cakes, not unpleasant to eat. They have likewise several sorts of beans and pease, that are good nourishment; and the woods and rivers are their larder.

"If an European comes to see them, or calls for lodging at their house, or wigwam, they give him the best place, and first cut. If they come to visit us, they salute us with an Itab; which is as much as to say, Good be to you, and set them down; which is mostly on the ground. close to their heels, their legs upright; it may be they speak not a word, but observe all passages. If you give them any thing, to eat, or drink, well for they will not ask; and be it little, or much, if it be with kindness, they are well pleased, else they go away sullen, but say nothing.

"They are great concealers of their own resentments; brought to it, I believe, by the revenge, that hath been practised among them. In either of these they are not exceeded by the Italians. A tragical instance fell out since I came into the country: a king's daughter, thinking herself slighted by her husband, in suffering another woman to lie down between them, rose up, went out, plucked a root out of the ground, and ate it; upon which she immediately died: and, for which, last week, he made an offering to her kindred, for atonement, and liberty of marriage; as two others die to the kindred of their wives, that died a natural death. For, till widowers have done so, they must not marry again. Some of the young women are said to take undue liberty before marriage, for a portion; but when married chaste.

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But, in liberality they excel; nothing is too good for their friend: give them a fine gun, coat, or other thing, it may pass twenty hands before it sticks; light of heart, strong affections, but soon spent. The most merry creatures that live, feast and dance perpetually; they never have much, nor want much: wealth circulatett

like the blood; all parts partake; and though none shall want what another hath, yet exact observers of property. Some kings have sold, others presented me with several parcels of land: the pay, or presents I made them, were not hoarded by the particular owners; but the neighbouring kings, and their clans being present, when the goods were brought out, the parties chiefly concerned, consulted what, and to whom, they should give them. To every king then, by the hands of a person for that work appointed, is a porportion sent, so sorted and sold, and with that gravity, that is admirable. Then that king subdivideth it, in like manner, among his dependants, they hardly leaving themselves an equal share with one of their subjects: and be it on such occasions as festivals, or at their common meals, the kings distribute, and to themselves last. They care for little; because they want but little; and the reason is, a little contents them. In this they are sufficiently revenged on us: if they are ignorant of our pleasures, they are also free from our pains. They are not disquieted with bills of lading and exchange, nor perplexed with chancery suits, and exchequer reckonings. We sweat and toil to live; their pleasure feeds them; I mean their hunting, fishing and fowling; and this table is spread every where. They eat twice a day, morning and evening; their seats and table are the ground. Since the Europeans came into these parts, they are grown great lovers of strong liquors, rum especially; and for it exchange the richest of their skins and furs. It they are heated with liquors, they are restless till they have enough to sleep; that is their cry, some more, and I will go to sleep; but, when drunk, one of the most wretched spectacles in the world!

"In sickness, impatient to be cured; and for it, give any thing, especially for their children; to whom they are extremely natural. They drink at those times, a teran, or decoction of some roots in spring water; and, if they eat any flesh, it must be of the female of any creature. If they die, they bury them with their apparel, be they man or women; and the nearest of kin fling in something precious with them, as a token of their love: Their mourning is blacking of their faces; which they continue for a year. They are choice of the graves of their dead; for lest they should be lost by time, and fall to common use, they pick off the grass, that grows upon them, and heap up the fallen earth, with great care and exactness.

"These poor people are under a dark night in things relating to religion, to be sure the tradition of it: yet they believe a God and immortality, without the help of metaphysics: for, they say, There is a Great King that made them, who dwells in a glorious country, to the southward of them; and that the souls of the good shall go thither, where they shall live again. Their worship consists of two parts, sacrifice and cantico. Their sacritice is their first fruits; the first and fattest buck they kill, goeth to the fire; where he is all burnt, with a mournful ditty of him, that performeth the ceremony; but with such marvellous fervency, and labor of body, that he will, even sweat to a foam. The other part is their cantico, perforined, by round dances, sometimes words, sometimes songs, then shouts; two being in the middle, that begin; and, by singing and drumming on a board, direct the chorus. Their postures, in the dance, are very antick and differing, but all keep measure. This is done with equal earnestness and labor, but great appearance of joy. In the fall, when the corn cometh in, they begin to feast one another. There have been two great festivals already; to which all come, that will. I was at one myself: their entertainment was a great feat by a spring, under some shady trees, and twenty bucks, with hot cakes of new corn, both wheat and beans; which they make up in a square form, in the leaves of the stem, and bake them in the ashes; and after that they fall to dance. But they that go must carry a small present, in their money; it may be sixpence; which is made of the bone of a fish: the black is, with them, as gold; the white, silver; they call it all wampum.

"Their government is by Kings; which they call Sachama; and those by succession, but always of the mother's side. For instance, the children of him, who is now king, will not succeed, but his brother by the mother, or the children of his sister, whose sons (and after them the children of her daughters) will reign; for no woman inherits. The reason, they render for this way of descent, is, that their issue may not be spurious.

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Every King hath his council; and that consists of all the old and wise men of his nation; which, perhaps, is two hundred people. Nothing of moment is under

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