History of Delaware : 1609-1888, Part 67

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898. cn
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Philadelphia : L. J. Richards
Number of Pages: 776

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"Although nearly thirty years have elapsed since that eventful perus1, my recollection is vival as to the primary al cirentustaniees, which, from the part I was called upon to act. Were deeply such ou my namely. It was soon as ertained that there were si nodividual, the site of any one of whom could at any forment decide the election, These were your father, the late James A. Bayard, who hold the vote of the State of Delaware, General Moins, of Vermont, who held the divided voir of that state, und Mr. Co.uk, Mr. Denm-, Mr. Thomas and myself, who held the divided vote ot Muyland. Your father, Mr. Frats and my- selt, having compared ideas upon the sulgret, and buding that we enter- tained the sathe views and eggonions, resolved to act tog ther, and accord- iogly entered into a solemn and mutual pledge that we would in the first instance, yield to the wishes of the great majority of the party wath whom we acted, amd vote for Mr. Hurt, but that no con-the ration shontd induce us to protract the contest beyond a trashable period for the pur- puse of as ertauon ; whether he enild be elected. We drb . unbes that a president should be chosen, but we're willing thus far to deter to the opinions of our political friends, whose preference of Mr. Butr wals founded upon a beltet that he was h's little to federal meu and federal measures than Mr. Jeffelsub. General Morris and Mr. Deumis con- curred in this arrangement." 1

The inauguration of Mr. Jefferson took place on the 4th day of March, 1801, at Washington City, the new seat of government, where it had been removed. Richard Bassett, who was Gov- ernor of Delaware at this time, was the first man who cast his vote (while United States Senator) for locating the seat of government on the Potomac.

The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Company was fully organized in May, 1803, with Joseph Tatuall, of Delaware, as president, and William Tilghman, James C. Fisher, George Fox, Joshua Gilpin and others directors, with Messrs. Latrobe and Howard as surveyors.

At the Presidential election in 1:05, Maxwell Bines, Thomas Fisher and George Kinnard were chosen electors, and they east their votes for Charles C. Pinckney for President and Rutus King, of New York, for Vice-President. Messrs. Jeffer- son and George Clinton were elected President and Vice-President, Nathaniel Mitchell succeed- ing David Hall as Governor of the State.

The greatest mechanical improvement of the year 1805, in this country, was made by Oliver Evans, who was born in Newport, Delaware, in

1 The following letter from James A. Bayard, the authenticity of winch was not denied at the time of its publication, is taken from Sales' Weekly Register of Novetuber Ini, 1822 :

"WASHINGTON, 17th February, 1801.

" Dear Sir :- Mr. Jefferson is our prestlent. Our opposition was con- tinued till it was dentotistrated that Bur could not be brought in, and even if he could, he minist come in as a democrat.

"In such case, to evidence his sincerny, he must have swept every offirer in the United states. I have direct information that Mr. Jefferson will not pursue that plan. The Site La land yenth men came out, and declared they meant to go zeithort a constitution and take the risk of a cuil war. They agreed that those who would not agree to mehr sich an extre mity ought to recide without loss of time. We pressed them to go with us and preserve unity in our measures.

"After great agitation and much beat, all agreed bont one. But in consequence of his standing; out, the others refused to atuluion their old ground. Mr. Jefferson did not get a federal vote. Verient gave & Vole by means of Mumis withdrawing. The same thing happened with Maryland. The votes of south Carolina and Delaware bank. " Your obeibient servant,

" J. A. B."

See also upon this same subject an article on the " Presidential Election of loul," in Miles' Weekly Register of January 4, 1-3.

1755, and was a descendant of Rev. Dr. Evan Evans, the first Episcopal minister of Philadel- phia. While apprenticed to a wheelwright, Oliver Evans, at the age of twenty-one years, invented a machine for making card-teeth which superseded the oldl system of band manufacture. Two years later he joined his brothers in the mill- ing business in Philadelphia, and in 1787 obtained the exclusive right to use his improvement in flour-mills in Delaware, Maryland and Pennsyl- vania, with the exception of three mills at Stan-

OLIVER EVANS.

ton, Del. In 1799 he began the construction of a steam-carriage, but finding that it differed materially from the steam engines then in use, he applied it successfully to mills. In 1804 he constructed the first steam dredging-machine made in America. Speaking of this invention, Evans said afterwards :

"In the year 1804 I constructed at Philulelphia a machine, of my awb invention, for cleaning docks-a heavy mund flat, with n strani- engine of the power of five horses in it to work the marlinery. And, to show that both stram-carnage, and steun-tate were practicalde (with my stram-enguos), I fuist put wheels to it and propelled it by the engine a mule and a half and then into the Schuylkill, although its weight was equal to thit of two hundred barils of flour. I tien fixed a paddle-wheel at the stem, and propelled it by the engine shown the Schuylkill and up the Delaware-sixteen makes-having all the Vessels that were under sail full half-way behind me (the wind bring alwadi, although the application was s . temporary i- to priwhite great friction, and the flat was most illy tormed for atiling; done in the presence of thofran is."

Before the boat was taken to the water the in- ventor exhibited it upon the circular road at Centre Square and published the following advertisement in the Philadelphia Gazette :

" To IRE PerLie: In my first attempt to move the Orulter Amphib- oles, at Amphibious ligger, to the water by the power of steam, the

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wheels and axle-trees proved insufficient to beir si greit 'a bunlen, and living previon-ly ubtuned the pamirpin ot the Board of Health (for whom the machine is constar toda, to gratify the citizens of Mintadelphia by the sight of this mochaun al curiosity, at the suppo- ation that it may lead to useful improvements ; the workmen who had constructed it voluntarily offered their labor to make, without wages, other wheels and axle-tre, of sufficient strength, and to touave as their reward one-half of the sun that may le te waved troms & gener. ons public for the sight thereof-half to bon at the disjansst of the in- ventor, who pledges lunself that it will be applied to defray the rx- puses of other new and useful inventions which he has atreaty con- ceived and arranged in his mind, and which he will put in operation only when the money arising from the movention- already moule will defray the expenes. The above machine is not to be spent mariny around ( entre Sypare, at the expense of the workman, who expert twenty-five cents from every generous por- i who may come to ser its operation. But all are invited to come to view it, as well those who cannot, as well as those who can conveniently spare the money. " OLIVER EVANS."

Even before this experiment was made Evans had proposed to construct a road-carriage for freight. He thought the engine would cost fifteen hundred dollars, the carriage five hundred dol- lars and allowed five hundred dollars for " un- foreseen expenses." He thought this carriage, when built, could carry one hundred barrels of flour at an average speed of two miles per hour, thus doing in two days (on the trip from Phila- delphia to Columbia) the work of twenty-five horses and five wagons for three days at a cost of three thousand three hundred and four dollars. The turnpike company refused to enter into a contract with him. Evans then wagered that he " could make a carriage go by steam faster than any horse," but found no takers He also an- nounced that he could build carriages to " run on a railway" at the rate of fifteen miles an hour. The following letter of Evans some years later in the New York Commercial Advertiser shows how thoroughly he understood this subject :

" The time will come when people will travel in stages moved by steam Engines at fifteen tu twenty unles an hour. A carriage will leave Washington in the morning, breakfast at Baltimore, dine at l'Int.delphia and sup at New York on the same day. Railways will be Laid uf word or iron, or on smooth pathis of broken stone of gravel, to travel as well by night as by day. A steamengine will drive a carriage one hundred aud eighty miles in twelve hours, or engines will drive boats tra or twelve miles an hour, and hundreds of boats will so run on the Missis- sippi and other waters, as was prophesied thirty years ago (by Fitch), but the velocity of boats can never be made equal to that of carriages upon rails, because the resistance in water is eight hundred tuå "4 more than that in the air. Posterity will not be able to discover why the Legisla- ture or Congress did not grant the inventor such protection as might have enabled him to put in operation these great improvements suoner, he having neither asked money nor a monopoly of any existing thing."

primitive in view of his courage, industry and knowledge of a science at that time comparatively unknown and unattainable. In this document the ascent of an altitude of more than two or three degrees was not considered feasible. He suggested that the locomotive could be sent to the top of a hill and the cars drawn up by windlass and rope, and, " to obviate danger in making a descent," the engine could be sent ahead and the cars be let down by ropes. He said :

" Mr. John Ellirutt hus engzested that paths be made for the wheels of carriages to run on, of hard substances, such as turnpike roads are made of, with a rail between them, set of posts, to guide the tongue of the carnage, and that they might towel by might as well as by day. Others have proposed lines of logs, flattened at the top, with a three- inch plank pinned on them, to bear the carriage and to guide the wheels ; these strips of plank to be renewed as often as necessity, and while the lug may hat and be sufficient to hold the pains. The ryeuse of repairs would he trithing . . . Mr Sumunel Morey, of New Hunp-Inte, proposes that the two railways hw laid as wear each other as will jurmit, in order to let the carriage's pasa in opposite directions, and to cover the whole with a shght shed, to protect the paswhgers from the inpiry of the weather. . . . But railpuls are best, " he continues, " because, if they cannot he brought to a level, yet they may be brought to within two degrees and a half-the deviation allowed by law on turmakes-and which would do very well And in cres of great ascents the steam- carriage nught be detached and ascend by itself to take a stand an I hanl the other- up by a rope and cylinder, or by a windlass. In other cases the loaded carriages might be let fall astern by verring the rupes to them to slark their motion, until the steam-cartiage has reached descending ground, and then the rope nught be wound up again.

" As soon as any of these plans are adopted, after having made the necessary experiments to prove the principle, and having obtained ne- cessary legislative protection and patronage. I am willing to take of the stork five hundred dollars per mile, of the distance of fifty or sixty miles, payable in steam-car riages or steam-engines, mvented for the phipose fourteen years ago, and will warrant them to answer the purpose to the satisfaction of the stockholders, and even to make steam-stages to run twelve or fifteen miles an hour, or take back the engines if required."

Oliver Evans wrote the " Young Millwright's Guide " and the " Young Steam Engineer's Guide." He died in New York, April 21, 1819, without

OLIVER EVANS' STEAM CARRIAGE.

Oliver Evans' successful experiment for the novel launching of his dredging-machine was the first having seen his "life-dream " of steam railways realized. His limited financial resources was the .main obstacle to the fulfillment of his mechanical experiments, and while he received large sums in royalties from his milling inventions, he was com- pelled also to expend a great deal of money to protect them, and was for several years almost con- stantly in the "courts and before the legislative bodies, including Congress, as defender of his patents. instance in this country of the application of steam power to land carriages. He was enthu- siastic in his scheme for a steam railway and endeavored to secure the construction of one between Philadelphia and New York, but without success. While firm in his faith in the principle of land transportation through the ageney of steam, he does not appear to have any comprehensive conception of the possibilities attending its appli- cation in the operation of railways, and, in The subject of building a State Penitentiary cess. The principal effort in this direction was in December, 1813, he published an address on the was agitated on a number of occasions without sue- subject which demonstrated theories peculiarly

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HISTORY OF DELAWARE.

1809, when the General Assembly declared that labor and solitary confinement should be substi- tuted for corporal punishment, and resolver te es- tablish "a penitentiary house." A committee, consisting of Jonathan Hunn, Abraham Ridgely and Isaac H. Starr, was appointed to report on the proper place of location and the probable cost and expenses of maintaining the proposed institution. The penitentiaries at New York, Philadelphia and Wilmington were inspected, and the committee reported in favor of Wilmington as the proper site, 820,000 as the estimated original cvet, and that the institution might be made self' sustaining, if not a source of revenue. In January, 1810, m consequence of the report of the committee, it was declared inexpedient to take the cost of building the proposed penitentiary out of the public treasury, but in view of popular sentiment it was resolved to appoint " seven gentlemen" from each county as commissioners to procure subscriptions for the purpose of building a penitentiary. No further action was taken and the matter was abandoned.

The Presidential contest of 1809 was conducted with great bitterness. The Democratic candidates for President and Vice-President were James Madison and George Clinton. The Federalists placed in nomination Charles C. Pinckney and Rufus King. In Delaware the election was con- tested with great vehemence. The Presidential electors chosen were James Booth, Daniel Rodney and Nicholas Ridgely, who east their ballots for Messrs. Pinekney and King. Messrs. Madison and Clinton were, however, elected. George Trnitt was elected Governor in 1808. The term of Samuel White in the United States Senate expired March 3, 1809, and he was re-elected. Ile died at Wilmington, November 4, 1809, aged thirty-nine years, and on January 12, 1810, Outer- bridge Horsey was appointed his successor. Ile was elected and began a new term of service March 4, 1815, and continued until March 3, 1821.

CHAPTER XVI. THE WAR OF 1812-15.

a successful issue. The war was in reality little more than a continuation of the Revolution of 1776. It ww hardly to be expected that the British should ice pae of their choicest possessions without seizing aa opportunity to attempt to regain it. The Revolution had made us free, but as Franklin remarked, " the war of independence is yet to be fought." As it was expressed at the time, . We are free, but not independent." The reason is not difficult to find. The Articles of Confederation, which were accepted as the Consti- tution of the new-horn States, were not capable of maintaining harmony at home and could not be expected to protect us from foes and enemies abroad. There was no central authority any- whore ; there were thirteen sovereign States, re- taining equal power and authority and each one jealous and watchful of any encroachments by the of her.

Twelve years under the Articles of Confederation were sufficient to make their defects known, and in 1789 the present Constitution was adopted. At this time Great Britain enjoyed the reputation of being the greatest naval power in the world, and the subjects of that nation were apt to presuine upon any prestige aecruing to them through this branch of their government.

In 1793 Washington issued a proclamation of neutrality, definitely stating the neutral position of the United States in the troubles then brewing in Europe, and enjoining our citizens to refrain from any partisan participation. This course was the more necessary since the people of this country would per- haps have given vent to demonstrations of sym- pathy for France by way of gratitude, for services rendered to our people by the French in the Revolu- tion. The British at once exhibited their independ- ent and autocratic indifference to justice in interna- tional regulations on the high seas, and began to is- sue a series of Orders in Council. In June, 1793, they announced that all vessels laden with bread- stuffs bound for French ports or places occupied by French armies should first put in to some English port and give assurance that the eargo would only be disposed of in some country friendly to England.1 This was aimed directly at the United States, and was followed by others equally rigid. America resisted and asserted her right to trade with France

DELAWARE Bay and River, forming as they do, in anything except contraband of war. These dif- ferences were for a time settled by Jay's treaty in 1794.

a convenient arm of the Atlantic, and washing the coasts of Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. were the scenes of many conflicts and exciting A more serious cause of trouble, and the one which eventually led to the War of 1>12, followed immedi- ately on the settlement of these disputes. The rap- idly- growing commerce of the United States made service in our merchant marine particularly attrac- eneounters during the second war with Great Britain. The State was by no means derelict in furnishing its quota of men and resources, and has lent the names of Jones, Maedonough, Rodney, Ilaslet, Du Pont, Stockton, Warren, Van Dyke, tive. The great demand for seamen made wages Wilson, Davis, Leonard and others to add to the high, and our position ofneutrality offered additional list of heroes who brought the War of 1812-15 to

1 l'etkins' "Late War,' p. 12.

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THE WAR OF 1812-15.

inducement to enlist. Many British sailors entered our service, often deserting their own vessels to secure their freedom. To prevent this the government of Great Britain issued orders forbidding British seamen to enter foreign service, and masters of vessels were instructed to board all neutral vessels in search for deserters. American vessels, more than any others, suffered from these decrees. British and American svamen spoke the same language, and in many re- spects the identity of their habits made it an absolute impossibility to distinguish them. British officers would stop our vessels on mid-ocean and impress a number of sailors without further remark than that they were deserters. It has been estimated that thousands of native Americans were thus coerced into entering the British service. Matters gradually grew worse until 1806, when England declared the whole sea-coast bordering on the English Channel, about six hundred miles in all, to be in a state of blockade. But the blockade was a mere pretense for plundering our vessels.

Notwithstanding all these insults, the people hesi- tated long before they decided upon war. William Pinkney, of Maryland, was sent out to act with Mon- roe, the resident minister in London, to attempt to settle the dispute by arbitration. The only retalia- tion taken was a " non-importation " act, prohibiting the importation of certain English goods, but this was suspended in December.

Matters became more complicated by the retalia- tory measures with which Napoleon now began to punish England. The first of these was the Berlin Decree, is-ued November 21, 1806, declaring Great Britain in a state of blockade, and prohibiting any commercial or other intercourse with the British Islands. The American ship "Horizon " was at once seized under this decree, and fresh orders were issued by the British Consul.

The affair of the " Chesapeake " at last made war the only alternative for settling the disputed issues between Great Britain and the United States, al- though five years elapsed before that culmination was reached. On the 22d of June, 1807, the " Chesa- peake " was lying off Hampton Roads, under com- mand of Commodore James Barron. Late in the afternoon the British frigate " Leopard " bore down on her and seized four seamen -- William Ware, Daniel Martin, John Strachan and John Wilson. This out- rage aroused the greatest resentment throughout the country. The President issued a proclamation warn- ing all British armed vessels not to enter American ports and ordering any that were then anchored to leave at once, Meetings were held throughout the country to give expression to the indignation excited by the occurrence. The people of Wilmington as- sembled on July 4th. with the venerable John Dick- inson in the chair, and adopted the following resolu- tions :

"I odred, that we view with the strongest sentiments of indignation andaiderrence the late unprovoked, lasies and ferocious attack made by the British ship-of-war . Leopard ' upon the frigate . Chrsiju aki,'

and the daring insult offered thereby to the flag, the government and the peujde of the 1 titted Stites " 1

The citizens of Lewistown and the vicinity also held a meeting and passed the following resolution on July 10th :

" Resolved, unanimously, that the repeated aggressions and violations commutted by Great Britain against all neutral nations th general, atul particularly against the persons and privdegerof our citizens, as a free and nodependent people, have excited in us just ablirconce and indigns- tion : that the lite outrage by the . Leopard,' ship of-war, against the 'Chesapeake,' we consider, as a prettieditated insult to our pos- ernment atvi nation il character, and wearing a barbaronsan aspect that Longer patience would degrade the name of Americans.

" Resolved, nuntumously, that it upon the meeting of Congress it shall be found necessary to resort to hostile measures against Great Britain for the attainment of justice, we will cheerfully subunt to any depriva- tions or hardships attendant on a state of war, and we will make every exertion to jeffect outerlives in the military art and equip ourselves to vjfuse the base and cowardly enemy of our country." 2

These patriotic sentiments were followed by a mes- sage from Governor Nathaniel Mitchell to the Senate and House of Representatives, under date of August 4, 1807. Referring to the President's proclamation of July 20, he said he had been called upon to organize and hold in readiness eight hundred and fourteen militia, this number being Delaware's quota. On December 17th, Napoleon issued the Milan Decree, which far exceeded that of Berlin in severity, and declared all vessels bound for, or coming from Eng- land, or which had submitted to English search, to be subject to capture.

The President convened Congress in extra session, and on the day following the issuing of the Milan Decree December 18th, the embargo act was passed by the Sen- ate, and on the 21st by the House. By this unprece- dented measure, American vessels were prohibited from leaving foreign ports and foreign vessels were not allowed to take cargoes from the United States, and all vessels plying along the coast were forced to give security that they would land their cargoes in the United States. American commerce received a terrible blow, but Jefferson defended the embargo, on the principle that the " end justifies the means." The President was empowered to enforce or suspend the act, as he might deem fit.

The opposition to the embargo was intense and bit- ter in the extreme, and it was frequently violated by coasters trading with the West Indies. William Cul- len Bryant, then but thirteen years of age, wrote a poem on the embargo, one stanza of which ran as follows :

"Curse of our nation, source of countless wong, From whose dark womb unreckoned misery flows, Th' Embargo rages, like a swooping wind- Fear lowers before, and famine stalks behind." "

John Quiney Adams, of Massachusetts, was forced to resign his seat in the United States Senate on ac- count of his support of the bill, and when he ran for the Presidency, in 1824, this political sin was resur- reeted and urged by the Northern Federalists as a reason for defeating him. This is but one illustration of the hostility against the measure, which finally compelled Congress to repeal it early in 1802.

Already in 1808 preparations were made for the

1 M. Pan y. "Olive Branch, " p. 113. 2 "Olive Branch," p. 113.

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History of Delaware : 1609-1888, Part 67

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898. cn Publication date: 1888 Publisher: Philadelphia : L. J. Richards Number of Pages: 776

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898. cn
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Philadelphia : L. J. Richards
Number of Pages: 776