USA > Maryland > Leading events of Maryland history; with topical analyses, references, and questions for original thought and research > Part 3
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1 An old colonial house, altered in part, near the site of St. Mary's. It is the home that is mentioned prominently in J. P. Kennedy's romance, Rob of the Bowl.
23
THE SETTLEMENT OF MARYLAND
river was called St. George's Hundred, and others were not long in forming.
Wheat was grown in small quantities, and a good deal of Indian corn was raised, mostly for private use. The great staple in Maryland, as in Virginia, was tobacco. This plant was not known to the inhabitants of the Old World prior to the discovery of America, but was found here by the early explorers. The Indians smoked it, and from them Europeans learned to do the same and the habit soon became widespread. This, of course, caused a large demand for tobacco, and as a result the syste- matic cultivation of the plant was begun and a large and profit- able trade sprang up between the Old World and the New. How important tobacco became you may judge from the fact that it was used in the place of money, and public officers and others had their salaries paid in tobacco instead of in money, - gold, silver, or paper. There were
no
manufactures.
Corn
was
pounded in mortars by hand, and pretty hard work it was, too. Most of the necessaries of life and all its luxuries were imported. Most of the trading was done di- rectly with the ships, as they arrived from England. Besides A Settler's Log Cabin From a drawing based upon contemporary sources the foreign trade, the Maryland- ers also carried on a trade with the Indians, chiefly for furs. These could be purchased, usually at very low rates, and sold in England at handsome profits.
Maryland in these early days was thus a simple community of farmers, or planters, as they were called; there was nothing
24
LEADING EVENTS OF MARYLAND HISTORY
like the commercial business of large cities or older societies. But the province was as yet in its early infancy, and from these humble beginnings greater things were to come.
MARY LAND
Or the
Lord Baltimors
Plantation neere
Virginia
By Giro: Myop Bun
R
6
RE
pracke Bay
Backsmoke
Wye "Rt:
O Chas- Ré:
Ri
Sygnchanel River
Alsop's Map of Maryland, 1666
From the Peabody Fund Publication 15, in the library of the Maryland Historical Society
TOPICS AND QUESTIONS
10. Character and Plans of the Second Lord Baltimore.
For what personal qualities was Cecilius Calvert distinguished ? What can be said about his life and plans ?
Why did not Lord Baltimore accompany his colony to Maryland?
11. The First Colonists ; Lord Baltimore's Policy of Religious Toleration.
How was the first body of colonists composed ?
Who was the first governor of Maryland ?
What combination of circumstances favored religious freedom in Mary- land ? Maryland's honorable record.
25
THE SETTLEMENT OF MARYLAND
12. The Voyage to Maryland ; the First Landing.
When did the first colonists sail and what sort of voyage did they have? Where and when did they make the first landing ? Describe it.
13. The Land of Promise.
Describe, as fully as possible, Maryland as the first settlers saw it.
14. Founding of the First Capital (St. Mary's) ; Relations with the Indians.
Describe the Indians and their manner of living.
Describe the treatment of the Indians in Maryland.
What visit did Governor Calvert pay immediately on his arrival? How did he succeed ?
The site of a permanent settlement is selected and purchased from the Indians ; the terms of the treaty.
Founding of the oldest city and first capital of Maryland, March 27, 1634.
How were the Indians paid for their land ?
Describe the relations between the Indians and the English during their joint occupation of St. Mary's.
15. The Prosperous Beginning.
Conditions favorable to prosperity.
The abundance of fish, game, and other food.
16. Legislative Assemblies ; the People Win the Right to Propose Laws.
When and where did the first legislative assembly in Maryland meet ? What provision did the Maryland charter make in regard to legislation ? On what grounds did Lord Baltimore refuse to assent to the laws passed by the first Assembly ?
Meeting of the Assembly, January 25, 1638. How was this Assembly composed ? Arrival of John Lewger. Rejection of Lord Baltimore's laws.
Successful result of the first struggle for popular rights in Maryland.
17. State of Society.
Maryland an agricultural community.
The " Conditions of Plantation."
Rapid growth of the population and its causes.
Political divisions .-- the " hundred."
St. George's Hundred established.
Raising of wheat and corn.
Tobacco and its history. It becomes the staple of Maryland and is used for money.
No manufactures ; corn pounded by hand. Most necessities and all luxuries imported.
Trade with the Indians.
General character of Maryland society.
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LEADING EVENTS OF MARYLAND HISTORY
QUESTIONS FOR ORIGINAL THOUGHT AND RESEARCH
1. Considering the object of the expedition, do you think the first band of colonists was well composed ? Find out what you can about the settlement of Virginia, and comparing this with what you know about Maryland, see if you can find reasons for the quicker success of the latter.
2. Locate accurately on the map the first landing-place of the colonists, and the situation of St. Mary's. Where is the Thames ?
3. Imagine yourself a passenger on the Ark; how do you feel as the vessel leaves England, during the voyage, and on your arrival ? If you were to sail up the Potomac now, should you behold the same scene that greeted the eyes of the first settlers ? What changes have taken place and why ?
4. Would the Indians have preferred to receive money for their land instead of the articles that Governor Calvert gave them ? Give reasons for your answer. Name some things that you think the English likely to have learned from the Indians ; the Indians from the English. Find out what you can about the relations between the Indians and the English in other parts of America, and compare with Maryland.
5. Name three differences between the first legislative assembly of Maryland and one of the present day. Was it a good provision of the charter that gave Lord Baltimore the right to originate laws ? Were the people justified in taking the stand which they did?
6. Were the Conditions of Plantation liberal, and likely to attract settlers? Explain as fully as you can the causes that favored the growth of popu- lation. Was tobacco a convenient money ? Why was it much less inconvenient than such a currency would be now ?
7. Write an account of " Life in Early Maryland."
REFERENCES
Browne's Maryland, pp. 20-26, 36 -- 37, 41-47, 48-50, and 51-53. Browne's Calverts, pp. 39-62 and 83-87. Thomas' Chronicles of Colonial Maryland, pp. 9-28. Hall's The Lords Baltimore, pp. 28-42, 49-51. Fiske's Old Virginia and Her Neighbors, Vol. I., pp. 268-275. Mereness' Maryland as a Proprietary Province - see index for topics desired.
CHAPTER III
"LEAH AND RACHEL " -- WHEREIN TWO SISTER COLONIES DISAGREE
18. A Jealous Sister; the Character and Plans of William Claiborne. - It has already been said that the charter of Lord Baltimore met with fierce opposition (see Sec. 10). The enmity of the members of the old Virginia Company was noticed, but we have now to observe that a protest was forth- coming from the Virginia colony as well, and to go back a little to notice some very interesting and important events connected with the bad feeling that for a time prevailed between "Leah and her younger sister Rachel." 1 Virginia was jealous of
Maryland chiefly for three reasons. First, Maryland had once been a part of the territory of Virginia ; secondly, Maryland was ruled by Catholics, while Virginia was Protestant and strongly attached to the Established Church of England ; thirdly, the commercial rights and privileges of Maryland were much greater than those of Virginia. Thus for a time Maryland's sister colony and nearest neighbor unfortunately became her worst enemy.
In the protest above mentioned, the Virginians were repre- sented by William Claiborne, their secretary of state. This man, not unjustly called the evil genius of Maryland, was the prime mover of mischief from first to last, and devoted all the
1 In 1656 a book was published in London by Hammond, called Leah and Rachel ; or The Two Fruitful Sisters, Virginia and Maryland. John Fiske uses the phrase also, as a chapter title in Old Virginia and Her Neighbors.
27
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LEADING EVENTS OF MARYLAND HISTORY
energies of his unusually determined and persevering nature to the task of ruining the Maryland colony. For twenty years his influence seriously affected Maryland history, and more than once nearly brought about her destruction.
Claiborne's opportunity came in the following manner. Com- ing over to Virginia in 1621 as surveyor, his force of character brought him rapidly into notice, and at the time of the settle- ment on the St. Mary's he was secretary of state for Virginia and a member of the governor's council. He began to engage to some extent in the fur trade with the Indians. In this he was so successful as to induce a firm of London merchants to employ him as a special agent or partner in the business of trading with the Indians. Claiborne then established a post on Kent Island, in the Chesapeake bay, for this purpose, and obtained licenses to trade; but he did not secure any grant of land. A few dwellings were erected, which were paid for by the London merchants, Cloberry and Company. To complete the claim of Virginia, it should be noted also that Palmer's Island had been occupied by traders, and trading expeditions had been conducted by Henry Fleet, John Pory, and possibly other Virginians. The Maryland charter spoke of the country as "hitherto uncultivated "; but this was descriptive merely, and not a condition of the grant, and if it had been, the traders had not settled or cultivated the country.
The instructions of the proprietary regarding Claiborne were very generous. Acting according to these instructions, Governor Calvert notified Claiborne that his post was within the limits of Maryland. He was given to understand that he would be welcome to the land he had occupied, but that he must acknowl- edge the authority of Lord Baltimore, and hold the land from him and not from Virginia. Claiborne, on receiving this notice, asked the Virginia council what he should do. Their answer
29
"LEAH AND RACHEL "
was, that they wondered at his asking such a question ; could there be any more reason for giving up Kent Island than any other part of Virginia? Thus Claiborne made his own cause and that of Virginia one, and feeling sure of support now, he returned an answer to Governor Calvert in which he utterly refused to acknowledge the authority of Maryland and Lord Baltimore.
19. The Dispute Leads to Bloodshed. - The proprietary's instructions provided that if Claiborne should refuse to acknowl- edge the jurisdiction of Maryland, he was to be undisturbed for a year. But trouble soon arose. The Indians, hitherto so friendly and sociable, became cold and reserved, -a change which alarmed the people greatly. On investigation, Claiborne was charged with telling lies to the Indians for the purpose of stirring them up against the Marylanders, but in justice it must be said that when the Indians were questioned in his presence they declared that he had never done anything to prejudice them against the people of Maryland.
But there was trouble of a more serious nature when a vessel of Claiborne's, under the command of Thomas Smith, was seized in the Patuxent river for trading without a license in Maryland waters. In return, Claiborne fitted out an armed vessel, the Cockatrice, under the command of Lieutenant Ratcliffe Warren, which he sent out with orders to capture any Maryland vessel that might be met. When news of these mighty doings came to the ears of Governor Calvert, he promptly armed and sent out two vessels, the St. Margaret and the St. Helen, under the command of Captain Thomas Cornwallis. "The two expedi- tions met at the mouth of the Pocomoke on April 23d,1 and then and there was fought the first naval battle on the inland waters of America." Several men were killed and wounded on
1 1635.
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LEADING EVENTS OF MARYLAND HISTORY
both sides, Lieutenant Warren being among the killed, and the Cockatrice surrendered. A second fight took place a few days later, in which Thomas Smith commanded the vessel of Clai- borne, resulting in more bloodshed.
20. The Capture of Kent Island. - For a time Claiborne remained in undisturbed possession of Kent Island. But his affairs presently took on a different color, for his London partners, Cloberry and Company, became dissatisfied with his management, and sent out an agent named George Evelin to take charge of their property. Claiborne tried hard to induce Evelin to promise not to give up the island to the Marylanders, but could not succeed. He then went to England and engaged in a lawsuit with the London merchants who had employed him. Evelin went to St. Mary's, after a time, and there he heard the other side of the story, and was fully convinced of the right of Maryland's claim to the island. On his return, he called the people together and explained the situation to them, and Lord Baltimore's authority was recognized. Governor Calvert then appointed Evelin commander of the island.
But the matter was not yet settled. A number of persons were arrested for debts owed to Cloberry and Company, and Thomas Smith (the same who had already taken part against the Marylanders) and John Butler (a brother-in-law of Clai- borne) used every opportunity to stir up dissatisfaction. The matter finally amounted to a rebellion, and Governor Calvert, after several warnings, proceeded to the island himself, with a body of armed men, to offer a little more forcible persuasion. The attack was a complete surprise, and Smith and Butler were captured. The governor then offered to pardon all others who would come in at once and submit themselves to the government of Maryland, " whereupon," says Governor Calvert, in a letter to his brother, the proprietary, " the whole ileand came in and
3I
"LEAH AND RACHEL "
submitted themselves." Smith was tried before the Assembly on charges of piracy and murder, was convicted and sen- tenced to death ; Butler, not being accused of crimes so serious, and having shown a better disposition, was pardoned by the governor and afterward came to hold office in the province.
In England the final blow was now struck against the cause of Claiborne. The quarrel over Kent Island had been referred to the Board of Commissioners for the Plantations (a body having charge of colonial affairs), and they decided that as Lord Baltimore had a grant from the king of England, while Claiborne had merely a trading license, the title was undoubtedly with the former. Claiborne has defenders even to-day, and possibly he really thought he was defending his rights ; but his contentions were clearly illegal, and his methods, as his history shows, were by no means honorable.
21. Changes in the Organization of the Assembly; Troubles with the Indians. - The Kent Island affair was now closed for the time, but only to be reopened through a series of remarkable events. We have seen the struggle of the people of Mary- land for the right of proposing laws, and the success which crowned their effort. That success was complete, and it was arranged that laws passed by the Assembly should go into opera- - tion at once if approved by the governor, in order to save the delay that must ensue if the colonists were kept waiting for the laws to go to England and then return after receiving the pro- prietary's approval. He, of course, reserved to himself the right of final veto. When the Assembly met in 1639, it was no longer composed of all the freemen of the province, but of repre- sentatives called "burgesses " from the hundreds. Many laws were proposed at this session which, like the laws of England at the time, were very severe. The penalty of death was pre- scribed for murder, robbery, sorcery, polygamy, perjury, and
32
LEADING EVENTS OF MARYLAND HISTORY
blasphemy. Weights and measures were established and courts of justice created. But not until the following session, for some reason, were these laws finally enacted. For several years the Assembly consisted of but one House, the governor and his council sitting with the burgesses, and the governor presiding. Afterward the Assembly was organized with an Upper and a Lower House, the former composed of the governor and his council, and the latter of the burgesses elected by the people.
While the relations of the people of Maryland with the neigh- boring Indians remained friendly, the fierce Susquehannocks to the north and Nanticokes on the Eastern Shore were constantly troublesome and dangerous. On several occasions houses were burned and settlers were murdered. A system of signals was established by the English, and energetic measures were taken by the governor to stop the outrages.
22. The Civil War in England and the Rise of Cromwell. - It will be impossible to understand the allusions that follow, as well as the general course of Maryland history in the events now about to be narrated, without some understanding of the events that were occurring in England at the same time.
King James I, the same who befriended George Calvert and made him a knight and nobleman, was the first of the royal house of Stuart that reigned in England. He entertained very high notions about the rights of kings. In fact, he believed that a king ruled by " divine right " and not by authority of the people, that the authority of a king was of right absolute, and that he could not be called to account by anybody. His son Charles, the same who granted the province of Maryland to Lord Balti- more, succeeded him and became Charles I; and unfortunately he succeeded to his father's high notions about the rights of a king as well as to his kingdom.
Now the power of making laws and of taxing the people rested
33
"LEAH AND RACHEL "
with the Parliament, - the legislative body in which the English people were represented, - while the king had the power of veto. But Charles claimed the right to make laws and to tax the people without the consent of Parliament, and proceeded to act accord- ingly. He collected various taxes and imprisoned at pleasure those who refused to pay, and actually ruled for eleven years without calling a Parliament. Almost from the beginning of the reign of James, the people had been angry and discontented over the tyranny of the king and his claims to absolute power, and these feelings had steadily grown. After all these years a Parliament, called the Long Parliament because it continued for twenty years, met; and from the measures it passed in opposition to the king it soon became apparent that civil war was at hand.
The year 1642 found the king and Parliament engaged King Charles I After the painting by Van Dyke in actual warfare, - England's great civil war had begun. After a long struggle, in which first one side and then the other had the advantage, and during which the king plotted and deceived in anything but a kingly manner, the war finally ended in victory for the Parliament. Then the king was brought to trial as a "tyrant, traitor, mur- derer, and public enemy," and sentenced to death. He was be- headed at Whitehall palace, London, in 1649.
One of the ablest generals on the side of the Parliament was Oliver Cromwell, and after the death of the king he soon ob-
34
LEADING EVENTS OF MARYLAND HISTORY
tained the chief powers of the government and came to the head of the nation as "Lord Protector of the Commonwealth." His rule was firm and just, and was respected at home and abroad. At his death he was succeeded by his son Richard. But Richard did not possess the ability of his father, and his government soon fell to pieces. The result was the resto- ration of the Stuarts, in the person of Charles, son of the late king, who was crowned King Charles II (1660). He reigned until his death in 1685.
23. Maryland at the Beginning of the Civil War. - The unhappy quar- rel that now divided the mother country of course extended to the colonies, and they took one side or Oliver Cromwell the other, while partisans of each After the painting in the National Portrait Gallery, London side might be found in the same col- ony. In Maryland several happen- ings, together with the general restlessness and discontent noticeable among the people, indicated that trouble of a serious nature might occur at any moment. Lord Baltimore's father had been a friend of the last king, and he himself was indebted for many favors to the present king ; hence it was not unnatu- rally thought that in the present quarrel he would take the king's side. On the other hand, the principles of the king as shown in his government were entirely different from the prin- ciples of Lord Baltimore as shown in the Maryland government. The truth seems to be that Lord Baltimore did his best to pre- serve a neutral attitude in the struggle.
In these difficulties Governor Calvert was naturally anxious and uncertain what course it was best to pursue, so he determined
35
"LEAH AND RACHEL "
to go to England and consult his brother, the proprietary. He left the province in April, 1643, leaving Giles Brent to act as governor during his absence.
24. The Invasion of Claiborne and Ingle; the "Plundering Time." - " The governor of Maryland, as well as the governor of Virginia, had gone to England on business, and while the cats were away the mice did play." The province being still in the restless and uncomfortable state in which Leonard Calvert left it, there sailed into the harbor of St. Mary's, with his ship, Captain Richard Ingle, a trader who was accused of being at the same time a pirate. Ingle was a violent partisan of the Parliament, and pretty soon information was laid before the deputy-governor, Brent, that he had been making such re- marks as ." the king was no king," and that he was "a captain for the Parliament against the king," - all this in a very violent manner with many flourishes of his sword and threats of cutting off the heads of any who contradicted him. Thus, in the absence- of the governor, Maryland was brought face to face with the issue she dreaded; for if Ingle were arrested and punished, the province was committed to the cause of the king, while if he were allowed to go free, it was committed to the cause of Par- liament. The proceedings in the case were curious. Ingle was arrested by order of the governor and a guard placed on board his ship ; whereupon Captain Thomas Cornwallis, commander of the militia, and Councilor Neale, took him on board his ship, ordered the guard to lay down their arms, and Ingle took com- mand and sailed triumphantly out of the harbor. For this very serious offence Cornwallis was simply fined, and Neale temporarily suspended, so there can be little doubt that these strange pro- ceedings were simply an ingenious device to avoid what would perhaps have raised a rebellion in the province.
At the same time Claiborne was active and doing his best to
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LEADING EVENTS OF MARYLAND HISTORY
stir up the inhabitants of Kent Island. They inclining toward the cause of the king, Claiborne produced a paper of some kind which he declared was a commission from the king, which gave him the power to seize Maryland. In September, 1644, Governor Calvert returned, and found Claiborne and Ingle making ready to invade the province. This was a strange friend- ship indeed, since Ingle professed to act under authority of the Parliament, while Claiborne pretended to hold a commission from the king. But "Ingle with his letters from Parliament and Claiborne with his ' king's commission ' were drawn together by an affinity that was stronger than either." Ingle suddenly ap- peared before St. Mary's in a heavily armed ship and captured the town, while Claiborne recovered Kent Island. Governor Calvert found refuge in Virginia.
For nearly two years the province was without anything like government, Ingle and his men roaming about and robbing at will. According to the accounts of Marylanders, they plundered the plantations, and carried off corn, tobacco, and everything of value, even to the locks and hinges of doors. The Great Seal (which was of silver) and the official records were stolen or de- stroyed, to the great loss of the province. The stations of the missionaries were broken up and the aged Father White sent to England in irons to be tried for treason, but he was acquitted. Governor Calvert watched the progress of affairs, and presently gathering a force of men he returned to Maryland, recaptured St. Mary's, and resumed the government for Lord Baltimore. The rebellion of Claiborne and Ingle was at an end, but it was long remembered by the people as the " plundering time."
Ingle has been warmly defended, and most of the charges against him have been disputed. In forming an opinion we must keep in mind the fact that his was a time of violence and immoderate partisanship, while the records are very meagre.
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