USA > New York > New York County > Manhattan > Annals of old Manhattan, 1609-1664 > Part 2
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The settlement on Manhattan Island com- prised about thirty small houses clustered around the fort, and tenanted by Dutch, Walloons and English. Provided with as much land as they could cultivate, and ex- empt for ten years from taxation, the col- onists contentedly tended their flocks and herds, and raised their flax and rye and wheat, although denied a voice in the government, forbidden to engage in manufactures, and unable to obtain a permanent title to the spot upon which they built their homes. It is re- corded in the early history of a family, who,
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In the Days of Minuit
in 1626, came to New Netherland and were established as tobacco-planters in what is now Manhattan, that they were required to ac- knowledge the directors of the West India Company as their sovereign lords, and at the end of ten years after settlement, were to render "the just tenth part of the products wherewith God may bless the soil," and from that time forth annually "to deliver on account of the dwelling and house-lot, a pair of capons to the director-general for the holidays."
Peter Minuit was an active, energetic man, firm in temper, friendly in disposition, just and honorable in his dealings. The fact that he was a native of Westphalia has given plausibility to the statement that he was of German birth; but Wesel, just over the boundary line of Holland was, during the re- ligious persecutions of Alva, a place of refuge for the Dutch Protestants; and as Minuit
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was a deacon in the church, composed prin- cipally of descendants of Dutch refugees, it is probable that his parents belonged to that company. His government of New Nether- land, though despotic in theory, granted, in practice, entire religious liberty and a fair amount of political freedom. The director had power to collect fines, and to administer justice up to the limit of the death penalty ; but where that was imposed, the criminal must be sent to Holland for the execution of his sentence. This law must have been abro- gated somewhat later, for under subsequent governors there are records of executions in New Amsterdam.
Having secured possession of the territory, established friendly relations with the Indians, and organized his government, Minuit's next undertaking was the erection of a fort for the protection of his domain. He had brought to the colony a competent engineer, Kryn
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Frederijke, under whose direction the work was promptly begun. Fort Amsterdam was to have " four angles" and to be faced with solid stone; but owing to the difficulty of procuring either expert workmen or suita- ble material, the structure when completed proved but a precarious refuge, and quite unfitted for a stronghold.
During the year 1626, the arrival of several vessels with colonists increased the popula- tion of the little settlement to about two hun- dred. A warehouse was erected, and in one corner of that substantial stone building was opened the first village store. The next nota- ble structure was a mill, which was worked by horse-power. Its loft was set apart for re- ligious purposes, and the building was adorned by a tower, wherein bells, captured from the Spaniards of Puerto-Rico, sounded a summons to worship. Two "visitors of the sick," Se- bastian Jansz Crol, and Jan Huyck, who had
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been sent from Holland with Minuit, con- ducted a service every Sunday, until the ar- rival of the first regularly ordained minister, the Rev. Jonas Michaelius. A letter written by Dominie Michaelius soon after his arrival at Manhattan, to the Rev. Adriaenus Smou- tius in Holland, presents an uninviting picture of life in the colony in 1628. He describes the Indians as "proficient in all wickedness and godlessness; as thievish and treacherous as they are tall," and he complains that "there are no horses, cows, nor laborers to be ob- tained for money," and "no refreshment of butter, milk, etc., to be found." Household arrangements were certainly lacking in lux- ury in those early days, and although the comforts of life in Holland exceeded those considered essential in other countries of Eu- rope, yet the emigrants to New Amsterdam lived in a style extremely primitive. Minuit, his secretary, De Rasieres, and Sheriff Lam-
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po, during three years occupied one house. The dwellings were built of logs, and their thatched roofs proved sometimes a precari- ous protection, easily inflammable under the scorching rays of the summer sun. The letter of Dominie Michaelius alludes to " a general conflagration," in which the colonists lost many of their possessions. 34933
But in the seventeenth century, the Dutch had already gathered experience in the science of colonization, and better than other Europeans knew how to provide for their people. The New England settlers faced privations, and the Virginia colonists braved perils, of which the early inhabitants of New Netherland had no experience. When free from fear of the Indians, theirs was an un- eventful, but an industrious and cheerful life, and soon the lively little hamlet, with its windmills whirling on the hilltops, formed a pleasant picture. There the stout Dutchmen
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were placidly puffing their long pipes; the thrifty vrouwen, in short gowns and spotless, close-fitting caps were busy with household cares; while the blithe young girls, wending their way to the brook, with flax to soften for the distaff, trod so often that winding path, that it won its name, "The Maiden's Lane."
About the time of Minuit's arrival, war broke out between the Indian tribes of Mo- hicans and Mohawks, among the hills of the upper Hudson. The Mohawks sought aid from the commander of Fort Orange, who foolishly promised partisanship, and with six of his men marched forth upon the war- path. About a mile from the fort a party of Mohawks was encountered, and Commander Krieckenbeck was killed, with three of his men, one of whom, says the old record, "the Indians devoured, after having well cooked him." I
I Documentary History of New Netherlands.
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OLD DUTCH HOUSE IN PEARL STREET Built 1626. Rebuilt 1697. Demolished 1828
In the Days of Minuit
Anxious for a continuance of trade with the Dutch, the Mohawks sent envoys to Fort Orange, bearing excuses for their conduct ; and Minuit, wisely accepting their protesta- tions of friendship, renewed the old treaty of alliance, and sent Peter Barentsen to fill Krieckenbeck's place. But the incident in- duced a feeling of insecurity, and the gover- nor, deeming discretion the better part of valor, soon transferred to Manhattan Island the families settled at Fort Orange, and left at that post only the garrison of sixteen soldiers.
With the view of promoting advantageous intercourse between the Dutch and their Eng- lish neighbors at Plymouth, Minuit, in 1627, opened a correspondence with Governor Bradford. The letters written by the secre- tary, De Rasieres, were transcribed in both Dutch and French, and conveyed in cour- teous terms many sentiments of esteem and
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good will for the English. In the first letter, which is dated " From the Manhatas in ye fort Amsterdam, Mch 9, 1627," De Ra- sieres, in the name of the director, proposed an exchange of serviceable Dutch commod- ities for beaver and otter skins, or other merchandise in which the Plymouth settlers might be disposed to traffic. Governor Brad- ford, in his history of Plymouth Plantation alludes to " the complementall titles " by which he was addressed, but in his own missive of March 19, which he terms his " obliging answer," while deprecating the " over-high titles " accorded to himself and his associates, he pays his respects to Minuit and the council by saluting them as " Your Honours, Worships, and Wisdoms." After expressing joy in the consummation of the treaty of alliance between England and Hol- land, and referring to the kindness received in Leyden by many members of his colony,
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Governor Bradford declared his disposition to trade with the Dutch whenever his people should be in need of the goods proffered, and desired to be informed how they would take " beaver by ye pound and otter by ye skine."
But, notwithstanding the friendship ex- pressed for the people of New Amsterdam, the letter distinctly intimated the English gover- nor's conviction that the Dutch were trespass- ers, and Minuit was warned that there were " divers others unto whom commissions have been granted as to us, to expulse or make prize of any strangers who shall attempt to trade or plant within their limits." Such sug- gestive language naturally evoked another letter from the director of the New Nether- land, vindicating the rights of the Dutch to their territory, and, as Governor Bradford made no haste to reply, a special messenger was dispatched to Plymouth, who bore a third missive containing reiterated assurances
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of friendliness, and, as an evidence of Minuit's personal good will to the governor, the gift of "a rundlet of sugar and two Holland cheeses."
Governor Bradford's response to these at- tentions was couched in phrases as formally and notably courteous as the other letters, and asserted a disposition to live in friendly association with the New Netherland Colony. His opinions respecting the English claims were not revoked, but he requested that an ambassador be sent to Plymouth for the ad- justment of boundary lines. Minuit deter- mined to dispatch a formal embassy, and appointed De Rasieres envoy. Attended by soldiers and trumpeters, and carrying articles of traffic, the secretary embarked in the ship " Nassau," which conveyed him to Mano- met 1 at the head of Buzzards Bay, and about eight miles from Plymouth. From that point I Now Monument Beach in the township of Sandwich.
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he despatched a courier with a message to Governor Bradford, asking that a way be provided for accomplishing the remainder of the journey with as little fatigue as pos- sible, as he " could not travill so farr over- land." A boat was accordingly sent through a shallow creek running inland from Cape Cod Bay to within four or five miles of Manomet, and De Rasieres was safely landed at Plymouth, " honourably attended with a noyse of trumpeters."
Bradford alludes to his guest as " a man of fair and genteel behaviour," and that he was politic we know, for he himself states that he sold sewan to the Pilgrims, " because the seeking after sewan is prejudicial to us, inas- much as they would by so doing discover the trade in furs, which if they were to find out, it would be a great trouble to us to maintain ; for they already dare that if we will not leave off dealing with that people they will be
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obliged to use other means, and if they do that now, while they are yet ignorant how the case stands, what will they do when they get a notion of it? "
The secretary seems to have proved a skill- ful diplomatist, for after spending a few days at Plymouth, during which it is recorded that he " demeaned himself to his own credit," he was made the bearer of another letter from Bradford to Minuit, in which, although reiterating his desire that the Dutch should "clear the title of their planting in these parts which his Majesty hath by patent granted to divers his nobles," the governor of Plymouth made no distinct reference to the disputed boundary lines, but, professing himself "tied in obligation " to the Dutch, promised to perform all good offices toward the colonists of New Netherlands. If friendly zeal for the prosperity of his neighbors was not exaggerated in its expression, the worthy
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governor must have been gratified by the edict of King Charles, which soon afterward threw open all English ports to vessels of the West India Company ; but in view of the intimation that the Dutch title to their land might still be disputed, Minuit wrote to Holland, asking for a military support.
Meanwhile the directors of the West India Company complained that their New Neth- erland enterprise was less profitable than other investments, the expenses attendant upon the protection of so small a colony often averag- ing more than the income it yielded. Traders visited the coast, but the farmers of Holland found their homes in that country too satis- factory to be abandoned. Dutch ingenuity devised a new project, however, which Dutch enterprise speedily carried into execution. By a charter framed by the Company, and con- firmed by the States General in 1629, a tract of land not exceeding sixteen miles on one
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side of a navigable river, or eight miles on both sides, and extending inland indefinitely, was offered to any member of the Company who at his own expense, and within four years, should found a colony of fifty adults. The entire district of the New Netherland was offered for this enterprise, with the ex- ception of Manhattan Island, over which the Company, as a unit, retained exclusive pro- prietorship.
The founder of a colony, having secured his claim upon the land by giving satisfactory compensation to the Indians, received the title of patroon, and was accorded certain fixed privileges. He was free to trade in every- thing except furs, under the sole restriction that goods should first be landed at Fort Manhattan, where port-charges of five per cent were claimed by the Company. All fish in the sea and minerals in the mountains be- longed to the patroon; and his colonists, over
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whom he might exercise the rights of a feu- dal lord, were bound to his service for a stip- ulated period. The patroon bore all expenses of preparing the land and building the houses and barns, but he received for these a fixed rental in stock or produce, in addition to his legitimate share as over-lord, and the farmer could not sell any product of the estate be- fore offering it to the patroon. The colonists were exempt from taxation, and were prom- ised by the Company protection from the In- dians, and an adequate number of negro servants ; while each patroon was under ob- ligations to provide for the support of a minister and a schoolmaster, and was respon- sible during a certain length of time for the supply of cattle, wagons, and utensils of labor. After the estate had become self-supporting a division of net-profits was promised to the settlers.
Before the conditions of this Charter of
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Annals of Old Manhattan Freedoms and Exemptions had been publicly promulgated, Godyn and Blommaert, two directors of the Amsterdam Chamber, dis- patched an agent to purchase land from the Indians on the South River, and Kilian Van Rensselaer, a wealthy merchant of Holland, bartered through another emissary for a wide district on the Mauritius. When these trans- actions were revealed, the dissatisfaction among other shareholders in the Company was so vehemently expressed, that a division of the appropriated territory was rendered imperative. Van Rensselaer's estate on the west side of the Mauritius, "stretching two days into the interior," and on the east side, north and south of Fort Orange, "far into the wil- derness," was separated into five shares, three of which were yielded to other members of the Company, Van Rensselaer reserving for himself only two-fifths of his original pur- chase, although the entire district retained
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the title of Rensselaerswijck. Wise provision was made on the estate of the first patroon for the prosperity of colonists, who were sent out from Holland in Van Rensselaer's own ships, with implements of agriculture and other articles necessary for their comfort.
Into the partnership in lands on the South River, Godyn and Bloommaert received several new members, and David Petersen de Vries, an experienced mariner of Holland, having refused the proffered post of under- patroon, was admitted upon an equality with the directors of the Company. Michael Pauw secured the extensive district of Hoboken- Hacking, on the New Jersey shore, which he called Pavonia, as well as Staten Island, so named in honor of "the Staten " or States General. Pauw's colony, distinctively known as the "Commune," has been commemo- rated by the name given to the locality first settled, Communipauw.
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When the Indian chiefs who surrendered the land selected by the patroons had ap- peared before Minuit at Fort Amsterdam, and formally ceded the territory, the condi- tions prescribed by the Charter of Freedoms and Exemptions were considered to be ful- filled, and the patroons received their peculiar property-rights, involving conditions closely akin to those of the old feudal system.
But ere long there were dissensions among the " Worshipful Directors" in Holland, for the patroons, tempted by the opportunities presented, began an independent barter for furs, with the Indians. The West India Com- pany, as a corporation, claimed the exclusive right to engage in that trade, and, as the patroons were members of the Company, the house was divided against itself. Among the directors of the Amsterdam Chamber, there were hot words, threatening hotter strife, until the matter in dispute was referred
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to the College of XIX, a committee of nine- teen directors, charged with the general super- intendence of affairs for the five boards of the Company. While they were deliberating, an incident, apparently irrelevant, precipitated a decision unfavorable to the patroons, and dis- astrous to the governor of New Amsterdam. With the ostensible aim of exhibiting the strength and size of timber grown in the col- ony, some ship-builders proposed to construct a mammoth vessel, and having secured en- couragement from Minuit, emphasized by the promise of payment from the Company's funds, they built at New Amsterdam a ship of eight hundred tons burden, which carried thirty guns. But when the bills for this costly enterprise were presented in Holland, there was widespread dissatisfaction, and numerous complaints concerning the Company's man- agement induced an investigation of their affairs by the States General. These "High
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Mightinesses" decided that the patroons de- served censure, having shown a greater in- terest in individual accumulation of wealth than in the welfare of the colonists, or the benefit of the associated Company, and their opinion was confirmed by the report pre- sented by De Rasieres, who, having fallen into disgrace with Minuit, had returned to Hol- land. The director general fell also into disfavor, being accused of partiality for the patroons, and of having ignored the illegality of their proceedings, and the West India Com- pany determined to recall him.
Late in 1631, Conrad Notelman was sent to succeed Lampo as schout of New Nether- land, and by his hand the summons home was sent to Minuit. In the spring of 1632, the governor set sail from Fort Amsterdam, and for over a year the young colony was left without a head.
Minuit's vessel, the " Eendragt," when off
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In the Days of Minuit
the English coast, encountered a fierce storm, and was driven into the port of Plymouth, where, on a charge of having traded illegally in the domain of the English sovereign, ves- sel, crew, and passengers were detained. Min- uit wrote for assistance to the States General of Holland, and in elaborately composed epis- tles the subject of sovereignty in America was discussed by their High Mightinesses and the Statesmen of England. The attention of the latter was, however, claimed by a complica- tion of affairs within their own realm, and, in the course of time, the "Eendragt" was quietly released, and Minuit reached Holland. After his testimony had been received, special agents were sent to the New Netherland to publish an edict, which forbade all private dealing in sewan, peltries, or maize.
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IV Some Prominent Persons in the Village of New Amsterdam
I N the spring of 1633, by the ship "Zoutberg," three notable per- sons arrived at Fort Amsterdam. They were Wouter Van Twiller, the new director, Dominie Bogardus, the second clergyman and Adam Rolantsen, the first schoolmaster.
Van Twiller had been a clerk in the office of the West India Company at Amsterdam, and in the interests of his employers had made two previous voyages to America; a fact that environed him with a nimbus of attributed knowledge, which shone irides- cent in the light of the seventeenth century, but has failed to endure the crucial tests of later times. He had married a niece of the
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patroon, Kilian Van Rensselaer, whose influ- ence in the Council of XIX, perhaps, pro- cured an appointment which provided an interested superintendent for the estates of Rensselaerswijck, if it failed to secure a com- petent governor for the colony of New Netherland. The new director was attended by one hundred and four soldiers, the first military force in the country, and as the " Zoutberg" brought also to port a Spanish caravel, captured on the ocean, the arrival was an event that aroused the enthusiasm of the people, who flocked to the fort with cordial greetings.
Van Twiller's personality was not impres- sive ; Irving's vivid picture portrays him as " exactly five feet six inches in height, and six feet five inches in circumference," but perhaps a portrait more nearly exact may be conceived by the aid of contemporary testi- mony, which describes him as short and stout,
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Some Prominent Persons
with sandy hair and small blue eyes. He was kind-hearted and good-natured, but intellec- tually untrained and inefficient. Experienced in the duties of a tradesman only, he assumed his new office devoid of all practical knowl- edge of its responsibilities ; and by his hesi- tating decisions and irresolution in emer- gencies soon won the title of " Wouter the Waverer."
Quite the reverse in temperament as well as in physique was Dominie Bogardus, a tall and stately man of " high character but hot tem- per." His eyes were of the " dark and pierc- ing type," but mercy was mingled with justice in the expression of his mobile mouth. He was in no wise an exponent of "the poore parson of the towne," for the house built for his use, with the Company's money, was one of the most attractive in the little hamlet, and its front door was distinguished above others by the elegant adornment of a bright brass
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knocker. Hints have echoed along historic corridors, concerning the convenient vicinity of this residence to the Company's brewery, and there are intimations that the good domi- nie sometimes pressed his principles with unwarranted force, until even the epithet " quarrelsome" was associated with his rev- erend name. It is certain that with Van Twil- ler he frequently differed in opinion, and it is recorded that once, from the pulpit, a pedi- gree the reverse of " complimentall" was as- cribed to the honorable director, and he was threatened with "a shake that would make him tremble."
But the dominie was a man of many es- timable traits, and a powerful personality in the province. If he was relentless in the de- nunciation of conduct he disapproved, we may believe that he was actuated by a con- scientious sense of responsibility. Even to his declining years the strength of his convic-
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Some Prominent Persons
tions remained unimpaired, and we read of differences with Governor Kieft when feel- ing ran so high that drums were ordered to be beaten during sermon time to drown the preacher's voice.
Although often at variance with the guard- ians of the law, the dominie claimed legal protection when needful, and records tell of "a female," who, for slandering the minister, was summoned to appear in the fort at the ringing of the bell, and compelled before governor and council to declare that " she knew the dominie to be honest and pious, and that she had lied falsely."
For Dominie Bogardus the first church in New Amsterdam was erected; a plain wooden structure, situated on the north side of Parel Straat (Pearl Street), between the present lines of Broad and Whitehall Streets. It was built in 1633 with the Company's funds, and the congregation of fifty members was then
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transferred from the mill-tower to a conse- crated edifice.
Intellectual attributes seem to have been of secondary importance in the required quali- fications of a New Amsterdam schoolmaster, but the incumbent of that office was expected to supplement the work of the dominie by acting as a worthy consoler of the sick, by " promoting religious worship " in the ca- pacities of precentor and church-clerk, and, by turning the hour-glass, to indicate to the preacher that the time allotted for a sermon had elapsed.
Adam Roelantsen, the first schoolmaster, ran a turbulent career, amid many antago- nistic conditions, in which his conduct did not entitle him to the respect of the com- munity. Although he had no rivals in his profession, he failed to achieve either a rep- utation for scholarship or satisfactory pecu- niary reward for efforts to train the young
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