USA > New York > New York City > History of the city of New York : its origin, rise, and progress. Vol. I > Part 44
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When the Assembly came together in October the prospect was dark and dubious. The people had been paying heavy taxes and doing hard duty for a long time with no sign of peace. The neighboring October. colonies denied assistance, and covered and protected those of the soldiers who had deserted; they had also turned to their own account both trade and people. These things were not well understood in England, and the governor, council, and Assembly finally agreed to send two agents, William Nicolls and Chidley Brooke, to correctly represent the case to the king. They sailed, but were captured by the French on their voyage, and threw their papers and letters overboard. They lay for several months in a Paris prison, and it was a long time before they reached Whitehall. 27
418
HISTORY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
While New York was in speechless fear of the approaching French army at the North, Livingston at the English Court was heaping red-hot coals of fire upon the head of Fletcher himself. He, Livingston, was try- ing to recover money which he claimed to have advanced to the govern- ment of New York from time to time for some twenty years past. He said that sums which had been raised by Act of the Assembly to reim- burse him had been misappropriated by Fletcher. He, moreover, declared that the present Assembly had been illegally elected. He preferred so many startling accusations against the governor that the Lords of Trade took the matter up and went through the form of an investigation.
Philip French was in England, and testified to having learned (from hearsay) that Fletcher had threatened to pistol any man who dared vote for Peter De Lanoy ; that he, French, went to dine with Fletcher, and asked if such reports were true, and that the latter did not deny them, but when told that the news came from Colonel De Peyster, angrily ex- claimed, "De Lanoy and De Peyster are both rascals." French further testified that there was great confusion on the day of election, and that he saw many soldiers and sailors, with clubs in their hands, about the polls ; and that there was much talk about "heats in the Assembly " concerning public money. Captain Kidd testified that the sheriff of New York asked him to let his crew come ashore to vote, but could not say that it was by the governor's order. Other sea-captains swore to having been asked to let their crews come ashore to vote, but no one could swear that it was by the governor's order, or that the votes were actually cast. Abraham Gouverneur and Jacob Leisler, Jr., testified that Fletcher hin- dered free elections, and passed soldiers and seamen off as citizens ; that the latter prowled about all day armed with clubs and staves : and that false returns were brought in from many of the counties. They had heard it said that all the goldsmiths in New York were employed in making snuff-boxes and other plate for presents to the governor; also that the illegal Assembly had raised a large sum of money and sent agents to Eng- land to defend their actions. Letters were read fromn Peter De Lanoy, Robert Walters, and others, praying for the recall of Fletcher; they said they were not solicitous whether it was gently done or whether he fell into disgrace, only so they were rid of him.
The Lords of Trade were wary in coming to conclusions ; after consid- erable delay Nicolls and Brooke appeared and put in strong counter-testi- mony. Gouverneur and Leisler tried to impeach them by showing how they had been instrumental in sending two heroes to the gallows. Fletch- er heard in course of events of the charges against him, and denied them so utterly, and was so well sustained in all his explanations by the mem-
419
THE DE PEYSTER FAMILY.
bers of his council, and seemed to have labored so indefatigably to further the interests of the province in its great struggle with the French, that he was exonerated from blame ; and but for a new complication of complaints would have been undisturbed in his position.
Livingston succeeded in collecting his claims of the government, and returned to New York as a commissioned agent for the Indians, at a sala- ry, to be paid by the province, of £130 per annum. Fletcher was in- dignant. He said there was no need of this new office which Living- ston had created ; that it was an additional expense, could not be paid as long as the war lasted, and that all treaties would be negotiated by the governor in person under any circumstances. The council were of the same opinion. Fletcher declared that Livingston had warped the judg- ment of the Lords of Trade by false insinuations ; that, instead of suffering by his loyalty to New York, he had been abundantly paid by fees and perquisites for his services, and had actually made a fortune out of his em- ployment, never disbursing sixpence but with the expectation of twelve- pence in return ; that he had neither religion nor morality, and only thirsted to get rich, and had often been known to say that he " had rather be called knave Livingston than poor Livingston." He was an alien, too, born of Scotch parents, in Rotterdam, and thus disabled from executing any business of trust relating to the Treasury in the English dominions according to a late Act of Parliament. The governor and council met the strong-willed scion of nobility with the most determined opposition; and finally suspended him from the exercise of his office and laid the matter before the king.
The year 1695 was eventful in city improvements as well as political encounters. Notwithstanding all the inconveniences of war, there was a healthy, bustling activity among the people, and a rapid increase of population. There was more money in circulation than ever before, and merchants were extending their commerce and growing rich. The priva- teers and pirates whom the war sustained came here to buy provisions in exchange for gold and valuable commodities from the East. Many new houses and stores sprung up, and real estate suddenly advanced.
Colonel Abraham De Peyster built a palatial mansion on Queen Street, nearly opposite Pine. It was fifty-nine by eighty feet, and three stories high. It had a great double door in the center of the front, over which was a broad balcony with double-arched windows. This balcony was for nearly a century the favorite resort of the governors of New York when they wished to hold military reviews. The rooms of the house were immensely large (some of them forty feet deep), and the walls and ceil- ings were handsomely decorated. The furniture was all imported, and
420
HISTORY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
was elaborately carved and very costly. The grounds occupied the whole block, and there was a coach-house and stable in the rear. The style of life of the family was the same as that of the European gentry of the same period. They indulged in elegant hospitalities and costly entertainments ; the chief people of the city and province, and stately visitors from the Old World, were often grouped together under this roof. The silverware in daily use upon the table was estimated as worth about $ 8,500, and the most of it was of exquisite workmanship. The finest cut-glass and the rarest patterns of China adorned the quaint and massive sideboard; and the walls were hung with paintings from the old masters. They had sixteen household servants, nine of whom were negro slaves. De Peyster owned a tract of land on the north of Wall Street east of Broadway to William Street, and thence toward the river, which was called the "Great Garden of Colonel De Peyster Arms. De Peyster," and which after his death was divided into lots and partitioned among his children.
Of the sons of De Peyster, Abraham figured the most conspicuously in public affairs. He was born in the new Queen Street mansion in 1696. He died in 1767 at the age of seventy-one. He was forty-six years treasurer of the province of New York. His descendants in the direct line represent this. ancient and honorable family to-day.1 One of the younger sons, Pierre Guillaume, married (in 1733) Catharine the daughter of Arent Schuyler; their son, Colonel Arent Schuyler De Peyster, entered the military service
1 Abraham de Peyster, Jr., married Margaret, eldest daughter of Jacobus Van Cortlandt and Eve Philipse in 1722. He was treasurer of the province from June 2, 1721, till his death in 1767. He had eleven children, several of whom died young. James was the eldest. son and inherited the estate. He was born in 1726. Frederic (known as the Marquis) was born in 1731 ; he succeeded his father as treasurer of the province. Catharine married John Livingston, and had thirteen children. Margaret married Hon. William Axtell, one of the king's counselors. Maria married Dr. John Charlton. Elizabeth married Matthew Clarkson.
James de Peyster married (in 1748) Sarah, daughter of Hon. Joseph Reade, one of the king's counselors. He had thirteen children. Frederic, the eldest surviving son, married Helen, only daughter of Samuel Hake (claimant of the title of Lord Hake) and granddaughter of Robert Gilbert Livingston. She died in 1801, and he afterwards married Ann, only daugh -. . ter of Gerard G. Beekman and grand-daughter of Lieutenant-Governor Pierre Van Cortlandt. Frederic, the son of Frederic de Peyster, married Mary Justina, the daughter of Hon. John Watts. He rose to eminence at the bar of New York, and has ever been one of her most public-spirited citizens. He is now the honored President of the New York Historical So- ciety. His only son, John Watts de Peyster, married Estelle, daughter of John Swift Living- ston. He was Brevetted Major-General for meritorious services, by concurrent Resolution of the New York Legislature, in 1866 ; and has achieved a world-wide reputation as an author and military historian.
EXPLANATION.
31
NEW YORKE
] The Chappel in the fort of N. Y.
1695
2 Leysters half moon Whitehall battery of 15 guns
12
4 The old dock
5 The cage and stocks
6 Stadt house battery of 5 guns
7 The Stadt , or State, house
11
8 The custom house
32
The
10
11
The new docks
12 13 The French church
14 The Jews synagogue
15 The fort well and pump
Ellet' s alley
16 17 18
The works on the west side of the City The north-west block house
Street
24
A windmill
$2 27
8
27-27 Wells
20
Street
31-31 Shewing the sea flowing about New York
32-32 The City Gates
33 A Postern Gats
29
27 9
Beaver
N
St.
Queene
Street
Church
.. .
way
2 Broad-
32
1919
Crowne
mit
28
29
23
reet
24
um
reet
29
W
Princes
25 The Kings Farm 26 Voll. Dungan's garden
Lane
Street
23 The plat of ground designed for the E. minister' s houss 29 The Stockade, with a bank of earth on the inside 30 The ground proper for the building of an E. church
Broad
Petticoat
27-
Kin
Street
The=" Single or Wall
21
27
taiden
Street
15
20
St
Street
Quees
Slip
Burgers, or the slip battery of 10 guns The fly blockhouse and halfmoon The slaughter houses
Great
9
8-8 The bridge
5 Dock Street
19-19 The Lutheran Church and minister's house 20-20 The stone points on the north side of city 21 The Dutch Calvinist Church, built 1692 22 The Dutch Calvinist minister's house 23 The Burying ground
Hull
421
TRINITY CHURCH.
in 1755, and held a royal commission for more than half a century. He commanded at Detroit and vicinity during the most stormy period of the French and Indian War, and contributed largely to the consolidation of the English possessions. His wife accompanied him everywhere, in camp and in quarters, amid savage tribes and in polished communities. His nephew and namesake, in one of his voyages round the world, discovered the De Peyster Islands in the Pacific Ocean.
Of the daughters of De Peyster, Catharine married (in 1710) Philip Van Cortlandt, son of Stephanus Van Cortlandt, and second lord of Cortlandt manor. She was the mother of Lieutenant-Governor Pierre Van Cort- landt. Elizabeth (whose godmother was Mrs. Governor Fletcher, in 1694) married Governor John Hamilton of New Jersey. Joanna, born in 1701, married her cousin Isaac De Peyster.
Fletcher, in his zeal for the good of the church, built a small chapel in the fort in 1693, and the queen sent plate, books, and other furniture for it. It was burned with the other buildings in 1741, and but little is. known of its history. Rev. John Miller was the Episcopal clergyman. As soon as the Assembly passed the act for establishing a ministry in the province, he demanded induction into the living; but it was decided that he was not entitled to it. He accordingly sailed for England ; while on the voyage he was taken prisoner by the French, and threw all his papers into the sea. During his imprisonment he wrote from memory a descrip- tion of New York. He said the commerce of the city had become so extensive that forty square-rigged vessels, sixty-two sloops, and as many boats were entered at the Custom-House at one time.1 The chief part of his little work was devoted to a labored and extraordinary plan for civil and ecclesiastical government on a new basis. This clergyman had greatly stimulated Fletcher in the work of building a church edifice, and had recommended a site. But Fletcher had his eye upon the "King's Farm," which was set apart for the use of the governor ; it consisted of a garden, an orchard, a triangular graveyard in one corner, and pasturage for cows and horses. Andros had leased that portion of it under cultivation for twenty years, at sixty bushels of wheat per annum. As the lease was about expiring, Fletcher granted it to the use of the church-wardens for seven years without fine. A building was at once projected and in course of a few months was completed. A charter, bearing date May 6, 1697,
1 The manuscript of Rev. John Miller, with a quaint map attached, found its way from the archives. of the Bishop of London to the library of George Chalmers, the historian, and finally fell into the hands of Thomas Rodd, a London bookseller, who published it in 1843. Since then the original manuscript has been deposited in the British Museum. The city was then all below Wall Street, the wall remaining; also, the stone bastions at Broadway and William Street.
422
HISTORY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
was granted by an act of the Assembly, approved and ratified by the gov- ernor and council, by which " a certain church and steeple lately built in the city of New York, together with a parcel of ground adjoining " (with full description) was to be known as Trinity Church. The wardens and vestrymen were duly named and constituted,1 and with the Bishop of London for their rector,2 were established a body corporate and politic, with all the privileges and powers usually pertaining to the same.
Up to that time the Episcopal service had been performed in the Dutch Church, and the clergymen of the two denominations had lived in all friendship. But Dominie Selyns was uneasy about the legal condition of the Dutch organization, and feared its privileges might at any moment be withdrawn. He and his consistory, therefore, applied to Fletcher for a charter. It was granted, prior to that of Trinity Church (May 11, 1696), and indeed was the first church charter issued in the colony. It secured the independence of the organization by giving it power to call its ministers, and to hold property acquired by gift or device. It also provided for compulsory payment of church rates for the support of the gospel. This last clause was never enforced, and was stricken out altogether as inconsistent with the principles of republican government, when the State Legislature confirmed the charter after the colonies be- came a nation. Dominie Selyns, in writing to the Classis of Amsterdam, said that there were several English ministers in the rural districts about New York who had been educated in New England ; that the University of Cambridge had graduated very many in philosophy and the higher studies. He said that the French minister Dominie Perret, a man of great learning, officiated in New York; that Dominie Brodet had been called to preach to the Huguenots in New Rochelle, five hours' ride from New York; and that Dominie Daillé had gone to Boston. "Morals," continued the pious and accomplished dominie, " have much degenerated, and evil practices have been introduced by strangers and privateersmen. Our calamities spring from the bottomless pool of heaven-high sins, for- eign but nevertheless without suspicion of foreigners. Money increases, high houses are built, and land is made in the water. Since I came the last time the city and its inhabitants have increased more than two thirds."
1 The first church-wardens of Trinity Church were Thomas Wenham and Robert Lurting ; the first vestrymen, Caleb Heathcote, William Merritt, John Tudor, James Emott, Wil- liam Morris, Thomas Clarke, Ebenezer Wilson, Samuel Burt, James Everts, Nathaniel Mars- ton, Michael Howden, John Crooke, William Sharpas, Lawrence Read, David Jamison, Wil- liam Huddleston, Gabriel Ludlow, Thomas Merritt, William Janeway.
2 The appointment of the Bishop of London for a rector, who could not actually perform the duties, was a temporary arrangement to provide the corporation with a head. Book of Patents, VII. 25, Secretary of State's office.
KARST
' He said Tew was agreeable and companionable-had good sense and a great memory, that he had often invited him to his table, and taken him to drive, because it was a source of diversion and information to talk with him. " Page 423.
423
PIRACY.
Piracy had long been in existence. It had been encouraged rather than otherwise by the European governments. In time of war it was agreeable to annoy the commerce of an enemy without trouble or expense. Private armed vessels, sometimes licensed and sometimes unlicensed, roved the seas and robbed and plundered at pleasure. Many of these free-sailors held commissions from the king of England to annoy France. Presently the ships of all nations were seized, plundered and sunk or burned, not excepting those of Great Britain herself. The English gov- ernment was roused only when ocean-commerce seemed nearly destroyed.
Just at this moment the Leislerians seized hold of the lever which fate seemed to have ordained for the complete overturn of political affairs in New York. They accused Fletcher of conspiracy with the pirates ; that is, they declared that he encouraged and protected them. He had in com- mon with the practice in England issued commissions for sea-captains to raise men and act as privateers against the French. He had also accepted bonds and promised protection. But he afterwards denied to the satis- faction of the Lords of Trade having ever aided in such manner known pirates. Meanwhile the evidence of commissions found in the possession of the high-handed sea-robbers, Coats, Hoare, Tew, and others, was used to prove his complicity in their crimes. He said they abused the favor shown them and turned pirates afterwards. He admitted his knowledge of the fact that Tew had been a pirate prior to his acquaintance with him, but said that the latter had promised not to engage in such business any more. He said Tew was agreeable and companionable, had good sense and a great memory ; that he had often invited him to his table, and taken him to drive, because it was a source of diversion and information to converse with him. He said he had it in his heart to convert Tew from the error of his ways, to make him sober and reclaim him from the " vile habit of swearing." He had presented him with a book on the subject ; on another occasion he had given his singular guest a gun of some value. Tew had seemed grateful, and bestowed in return a curious watch upon the governor. Rumor said that he also gave valuable jewels to Mrs. Fletcher and her daughters. But this, if true, was never proven. It was, however, a remarkable intimacy; and Tew subsequently pro- ceeded to the Indian Ocean, where, harboring himself with others of his craft among the creeks of Madagascar, he plundered and murdered until humanity refuses to blot the pages of history with his deeds.
No sooner was Fletcher implicated than some of the wealthiest and hitherto most respectable citizens of New York were accused of sharing in the spoils of ocean robbery. Every new development seemed to justify the suspicion. The remarkable influx of strangers, the increasing
424
HISTORY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
quantity of rich goods exposed for sale, the rapid erection of expensive buildings, and the free circulation of Eastern gold pieces, pointed in the one direction.
The Lords of Trade brought the startling subject before the king as soon as he was capable of attending to business after the death of Queen . Mary. It was some months before any action was taken, and then not until an event occurred which could not be passed by unnoticed. The pirates had destroyed some of the Mogul's ships in the Indian Ocean, one in particular that he was sending laden with presents to Mecca.
The East India Company learned that the Mogul had information that the corsairs were Englishmen, and also that he was about to take reprisals for damages. A man-of-war must unquestionably be sent to put a stop to such traffic. But Parliament had so appropriated the nation's funds that no money could be obtained for the purpose. "We can make it a pri- vate undertaking," said King William to his counselors. "I will give £3,000, and you can furnish the balance." Lord Somers and the Earls of Oxford, Rumney, and Bellomont, with Robert Livingston, who was still at court, discussed the question, and finally contributed the whole amount, some £6,000, the king failing to advance the sum which he had prom- ised. Livingston introduced Captain Kidd to Lord Bellomont, and recom- mended him as a fit man to command the expedition. Livingston said Kidd had sailed a packet from New York to London for some years, was known to be honorable and brave, was well acquainted with the habits and haunts of the pirates in the Eastern seas, and was ready to perform deeds of valor for the good of the country. He was accordingly employed, receiving a commission from the Admiralty, which gave him power sim- ply to act against the French. It was not deemed sufficient, and another commission was finally furnished under the Great Seal, dated January 26, 1696, giving him full authority to apprehend all pirates wherever he should encounter them, and bring them to trial. Livingston entered into bonds with Kidd to Bellomont, to account strictly for all the prizes secured ; and a grant under the Great Seal provided that all property taken from the pirates should vest in the parties at whose cost the vessel was fitted out, the king to receive one tenth of the proceeds. There was abundant ground for complaint, and great handle was made of the arrangement, for it was against law to take a grant of goods from offenders before convic- tion. But the case of pirates was manifestly different from that of other criminals. They could never be attacked except in the way of war, and whoever undertook such an enterprise ran a great risk, and it was reason- able that they should have a right to what they should find in the enemy's hands, whereas, those who seize common offenders have the strength of
425
CAPTAIN KIDD.
the law within immediate reach, and incur so little danger that the cases are by no means parallel.
Kidd set sail in April, 1696, under brilliant auspices. He stopped in New York and shipped ninety additional men, and in July was fairly at sea on his fatal mission. The sequel - how, instead of suppressing piracy, he became the prince of pirates, and nearly involved not only the Lords of Trade, but even the king of England himself, in the blackest of charges - is well known. The undertaking was in itself innocent and meritorious. Yet it was traduced until, in the House of Commons, it was voted as highly criminal, and but for energetic action on the part of a few, would have condemned its projectors forever.
Kidd was an attractive and cultivated man, and there was no occasion to distrust his intentions. As far as known his previous life had been irreproachable. He had a comfortable and pleasant home in Liberty Street, New York, and a wife beautiful, accomplished, and of the highest respectability. She was Sarah Oort, the widow of one of his fellow-offi- cers ; they were married in 1691, and at the time of his departure for the Eastern Ocean, they had one charming little daughter. Many supposed that he had secret orders from the government to pursue piracy. But the stain upon England's records did not prove indelible.
Dudley, the former chief justice of New York, was in London, taking advantage of his interest at court to obtain the governorship of Massachu- setts, Sir William Phipps having recently died. He opposed the bill to reverse the attainder of Leisler and Milborne in the House of Commons with all his strength, which was not inconsiderable. The agents from Massachusetts took the opportunity in consequence to urge against him the conspicuous part he had borne in the trial and condemnation of the unfortunate men, and he lost his appointment for the time. Bellomont was the favorite candidate henceforth. When it became evident that Fletcher must be recalled, it seemed the part of wisdom to appoint one general governor over New York and New England for convenience during the continuance of the war. At the same time each colony was to have an Assembly and courts independent of each other. Bellomont had been created an earl by William as a reward for his many distinguished ser- vices to the royal pair; he had been the treasurer and receiver-general of Mary, and the personal and confidential friend of the king. He was esteemed one of the most honest as well as able men about the throne. William told his Lords that Bellomont would be more likely to put a stop to piracy than any other man he could think of. Bellomont received the appointment, but, owing to disputes about the salaries of both sovereign and statesmen, consequent upon the financial distress of the kingdom at that juncture, he did not reach his government for more than two years. 27
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