USA > New York > New York City > History of the city of New York : its origin, rise, and progress. Vol. II > Part 6
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But he did not obtain relief just then. The proceedings of the French were such as to create wide-spread alarm throughout the colonies, and the absolute necessity of energetic warfare became clear to every mind. Governors Shirley of Massachusetts, Wolcott of Connecticut, Morris of New Jersey, and others, were in constant communication with Clinton, and each other, and a gigantic project was maturing. Each colony had petitioned the crown for help, and the promise of help finally came.
Meanwhile Governor Lewis Morris finished his earthly career at the advanced age of seventy-three. He was interred, according to his direc- tions in the family vault at Morrisania. The funeral cortège left Trenton
on the 26th of May, and reached Amboy the same evening, where May 26. a small vessel was in waiting, which conveyed the remains to Morrisania. The pall-bearers were Chief Justice De Lancey, James Alexander, William Smith, Abraham De Peyster (the treasurer), Joseph Murray, Robert Walters, David Clarkson, and Lewis Johnston. The last rites were performed by Rev. Dr. Standard, rector of the parish of Westchester.
Governor Morris had directed, among other things, some time before his- death, that his remains should be placed in a plain coffin, without cover- ing or lining ; and he had prohibited the giving of rings or scarfs at his. funeral, or the wearing of mourning garments by any of his family on
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his account, as it was an unnecessary expense, which the indigent would attempt to imitate. He ordered, also, that no man should be paid for preaching a funeral sermon for him, but if any one, churchman, dissenting minister, or otherwise, felt inclined to say anything on the occasion he should have no objection.1
With the joyful tidings that the king approved of the aggressive measures against the French, and that the colonial forces would be joined by regular troops from England, the Assembly smiled with exul- tation. Impecuniosity gave way to generous impulses. A grand effort was made to further the important design. Bounties were raised for volunteers, and large sums were appropriated to purchase ammunition, provisions, etc. For immediate convenience there was a new emission of paper money.
Stephen Bayard and Edward Holland from the Council were deputed to superintend the building of a fleet of bateaux, which was esteemed essential for the navigation of Lakes George and Champlain. They re- ported, on the 6th of July, that the naval architects refused to work under pretense of prior engagements, whereupon the House enacted a law au- thorizing the impressment into the public service of all artificers, and their servants, whose assistance might be required, together with horses, wagons, and anything else needful for the success of the enterprise.
The Assembly hesitated at nothing until it came to the providing of equipments, provisions, and transportation of military stores for the Indian service, and then it firmly refused to advance money to the crown, even upon loan, prefering to raise the same by bills of exchange. A grand council was about to be convened at Albany for the common benefit of all the exposed colonies, and the members of the House could see no reason why each colony should not contribute towards the heavy expenses for presents, clothing, arms, and subsistence for the savage allies, - who always fought for honor, scouting the idea of going upon the war-path for pay, and yet must have incentives to action upon a liberal scale.
The session closed on the 15th of July, but not until a joint July 15. congratulatory address from the two Houses had been voted to the king. The committee from the Upper House who prepared the
1 From the Diary of Judge Lewis Morris (the governor's son), under date of May 30, the following is extracted : "Sent back the chaises to Harlem that we borrowed for the burial. There was one quarter cask of wine expended at the funeral, to about two dozen bottles, and about two gallons of rum, a barrel of cider and two barrels of beer." Bolton's Westchester. Papers of Governor Lewis Morris. New Jersey Historical Collections. Governor Lewis Morris donated the timber for the building of Trinity Church, and the vestry granted the family a square pew.
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HISTORY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
document were, Philip Livingston, Chief Justice De Lancey, and Judge Horsemanden.
It was now midsummer, and the colonies were ready for immediate
action. The militia had left their ripening harvests, and with July 21. their muskets loaded, were awaiting the order of march. But neither troops nor other aid had arrived from across the water; not even a message of encouragement. The inaction of the parent government, from which much had been promised and more expected, was re- garded with dismay. Its co-operation was absolutely essential to the execution of the vast scheme in progress, and the fiery ambition with which the provinces had hurried their preparations in order to accomplish grand and hoped-for results before winter, resolved into deep chagrin.
Clinton, however, proceeded, according to arrangement, to meet the Six Nations in Albany. He was at loggerheads with his counselors, and only three of them could be induced to accompany him on this mission, - Philip Livingston, Dr. Colden, and John Rutherford. And of these Livingston and Rutherford were sworn personal foes. But Livingston was deeply interested in transactions of whatever nature with the In- dians, and Major Rutherford was already in Albany on military duty. To Clinton's great surprise there were no Indians in Albany to meet him, except two straggling Onondagas and one Oneida warrior ! They brought as trophies two French scalps, which they said they had taken at noonday within sight of the French fort at Crown Point. The leader of the three made a speech to the governor, after which he was rewarded for his bravery with a fine laced coat and hat, a silver breastplate, and a new name, - Path-opener. Each of his companions received four Spanish dollars, a blanket, and a laced hat. The reports from the messengers who had been sent to invite the Six Nations to the council were so discour- aging that Path-opener, proud of his distinction, volunteered upon an embassy to bring the Indians to Albany.
Other scouts came, reporting large numbers of French and Indians at Crown Point, and at various points. Sixteen Mohawks sent to reconnoitre the works of the enemy by Sir William Johnson, brought the unpleasant intelligence that the French were making extensive prepa- rations to attack Schenectady, and the other white settlements in the Mo- hawk Valley, and probably Albany, and that there was an appearance of some private understanding between the Six Nations and the French In- dians about Montreal. Sir William wrote to the governor that there were serious grounds for alarm ; that the white settlers, for twenty miles above him and below Schenectady ; had fled from the country, and that his own property - of which he named eleven thousand bushels of wheat and other
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SIR WILLIAM JOHNSON AND THE INDIANS.
grain - was in jeopardy. Clinton sent a detachment of thirty men to his assistance, and a militia company to the upper Mohawk castle for the protection of the Indians. To increase the embarrassment of the gov- ernor, news came from Shirley that the Atlantic seaboard was threatened by a French invasion.
For nearly a month the prospect of procuring a general attendance of Indians was far from flattering. The temper of the Six Nations was bad. The war, they said, was between the English and French; it was none of their quarrel. If they began to fight there was no rest for them until either they or their foes were swept from off the face of the earth. "The treacherous rascals !" exclaimed Colden, "I have no doubt that some of the chiefs have already pledged themselves to the crafty Jesuit eccle- siastics."
Colden started at once for the Mohawk castles, where he had spent some time twenty years before, and been adopted into their clan and in- vested with an Indian name, and with the assistance of the Rev. Mr. Barclay, at last persuaded three of the sachems who had been on a visit to the governor of Canada, to sustain the cause of the English. At the same time, Sir William Johnson, by request of Clinton, was laboring with the other chiefs. He assumed their dress, painted himself, feasted them, set them to teaching him how to dance their war-dances, and entered into all their athletic exercises and games. The savages were flattered, and adopted him as their war-chief. When they finally consented to go to Albany, a political feud arose among themselves, and they separated, one party marching on one side of the river and the other on the opposite side. As they neared Albany, Johnson put himself at their head, dressed, painted, and plumed, as required by the dignity of his rank as Indian chieftain. When they passed the Albany fort, salutes were exchanged, the Indians firing their muskets and the fort its artillery. Johnson and the sachems were afterwards received in the great hall of the fortress, and served with wine and other refreshments.
All sorts of private maneuvering with individual chiefs was found ne- cessary to induce them to declare war against the French.1 It was a critical moment indeed. There were many difficulties to be ad- justed before the opening of the Council. Meantime Clinton had Aug. 19. been attacked by fever, and the duty of conducting the conference de- volved upon Colden. Commissioners from Massachusetts were present, also
1 The Indian Chiefs were admonished that they must guard against the treacherous wiles of the French priests, and told that their friends, the English, were now going to wipe away the sorrowful tears of the Six Nations ; and some of the chiefs replied, that their blood boiled at the way in which they had been treated by the wicked priests, and that henceforth they should have no further use for them, only for roasting.
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the Commissioners of Indian Affairs, and the mayor and corporation of Albany ; among the latter were Myndert Schuyler, Cornelius Cuyler, Nicholas Bleecker, Stevanus Groesbeeck, and John De Peyster.1 Colden delivered an eloquent and carefully prepared speech, explaining the mar- velous feats which the English were about to perform, and at the end of each sentence one of the chiefs called out, " YO-HAY, - Do you hear ?" and a low guttural of approbation came from the whole assemblage. When Colden took his seat the war-belt was thrown down, and the sig- nificant act was followed by a war-shout. Three days afterward the sachems responded satisfactorily ; and in the course of two or three days, presents had been lavishly distributed, the war-dance had Aug. 24. been performed in the presence of the governor and other distinguished gentlemen, - the warriors all painted, - and appropriate songs had closed the entertainment. The Indians started for their homes in fine spirits, but the small-pox broke out among them on the journey, and many died, among whom were two energetic chiefs who had promised to enlist the far Indians in favor of the English.
Clinton remained in Albany a month longer, and conferred with the Stockbridge, the Susquehanna, and other tribes of Indians. In the mean time the savages in the French service kept the New England frontier and the eastern border of New York, in one continuous state of alarm; houses and barns were burned, and fields reddened with blood. The most conspicuous demonstration of the enemy during the season was about the middle of August, when a force of regular troops and Indians, numbering over nine hundred, descended upon Fort Massachusetts, the bulwark of the Berkshire Hills and the headquarters of Colonel Ephraim Williams, the commander of the posts in that region. The fort stood in a long low meadow, commanded by heights in every direction. Its site is now des- ignated by a lone tree, and is about half-way between the beautiful towns of Williamstown- the seat of Williams College, which was founded by Colonel Ephraim Williams - and North Adams. The fort was unfavora- bly situated for defense, and the little garrison, consisting of only eleven men able to do duty (eleven were sick), under John Hawks, were lam- entably short of ammunition. Indeed, Thomas Williams, with thirteen
1 John De Peyster was the grandson of Johannes Da Peyster, born in New York January 14, 1694. He married Anne Schuyler, and settled in Albany. He had two daughters, Anne, who married Volkert P. Donow, and Rachel, who married Tobias Ten Eyck. He was Re- corder of the city of Albany from 1716 to 1728, and mayor from 1729 to 1732. In 1734 he became one of the Commissioners of Indian Affairs ; he was subsequently a contractor with the government to supply Oswego and other outposts with stores, and, in 1755, was one of the commissioners for paying the forces in the expedition in which Johnson defeated Dieskau.
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DISAPPOINTMENT.
men, had just started on a secret tour through the wilderness to Deerfield, for supplies - Colonel Williams himself was at Albany with the greater part of his soldiers, under orders to march with the expedition to conquer Canada. The little band of eleven resisted the nine hundred as long as a spoonful of powder was left in the fort; the defense was one of the most gallant affairs, of its magnitude, on record. Hawks surrendered, finally, to the French commander, M. Vaudreuil, who offered honorable terms of capitulation ; the latter laughed dryly when he found his prison- ers numbered only eight effective men, - three having been killed during the siege, - but he and his officers treated the gallant young sergeant as brave men are prone to treat the brave. The Indians, however, were irri- tated at the smallness of the booty, and butchered all the sick and infirm, and set fire to the fort; 1 the remainder of the prisoners, including two women, and several children, were carried to Crown Point, and from thence to Canada. Sir William Gooch, governor of Virginia, had been commis- sioned by the crown to command the Canadian expedition, and had de- clined; hence Clinton was in actual command of the forces gathered at Albany. He was severely censured for his negligence in not having em- ployed rangers to scour the forests and watch the motions of the enemy, when it was discovered that so large a force had been led through the country, and actually besieged Fort Massachusetts for over forty-eight hours, within forty miles of Albany, without the fact being known until some time after the invaders had retired. There was more than one among the counselors and legislators who attributed it to penuriousness, and some were so bold as to say that the money which should have been expended in such service went into the private purse of the governor.
All this time no news came from Boston or from England. The sum- mer had passed away, and of course the best season for active military operations against Crown Point and Canada. Disappointment settled like a pall over Albany. Finally letters came from General Shirley and from Admiral Sir Peter Warren. New England was absorbed in the de- fense of the coasts, and England had failed in every engagement. No fleet, no troops, no Sir John Sinclair, to lead the colonies on to victory. It only remained for New York to prepare winter quarters for the soldiers, and adopt plans for guarding against the murderous attacks of the foe.
1 Colonel Williams rebuilt Fort Massachusetts the next year ; he was attacked, while so do- ing, by a large party of the enemy, who came with the intention of hindering his operations, but were repulsed with heavy loss. In 1748 it was the scene of another sharp fight. After the peace of that year was concluded at Aix-la-chapelle, the General Court of Massachusetts granted to Colonel Williams a large tract of land in that vicinity. On the commencement of hostilities in 1755, he was ordered with his command to join Sir William Johnson, and fell in the attack upon Dieskau near Lake George.
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HISTORY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
Clinton did not get on well with the Indian commissioners. He was surly and they were opinionated. His policy differed from their no- tions. He was unyielding, and several of them declined to attend the council. He finally displaced Colonel Schuyler (the son of Hon. Peter Schuyler), and placed Sir William Johnson at the head of the Indian Department.
Oct. 14. He returned to New York early in October. He found the As-
sembly ripe for a quarrel. There was talk about gross misman- agement on the part of the governor, and Colden was criticised for the part he had taken in conducting affairs with the Indians. Clinton was indisposed, and, instead of opening the session in person, sent Oct. 17. for the speaker, and through him transmitted a copy of his mes- sage to the House. This procedure was voted irregular and unprece- dented. The message itself created a tempest. It called for subsistence for the winter encampment at Albany, and for larger appropriations in every direction. It contained subtle hints relative to distrusts that were being fomented by artful, designing men; and admonitions to the effect that one branch of the government should not wantonly encroach upon the prerogatives of other branches of the government.
Frederick Philipse, Judge Lewis Morris, David Clarkson, Henry Cru- ger, and Colonel Schuyler were the committee to draft a reply. They said that larger appropriations had been voted already than even the king had expected. They disapproved of the winter encampment, as the sol- diers could not be made comfortable in Albany, and sickness and deser- tion would inevitably follow. They proposed to enter upon a full inves- tigation of the Indian branch of the public service as soon as the papers and documents relating to it should be placed before the Assembly, and until then no larger sum than usual would be voted for that department, " lest there be further misconduct." They threw back into the governor's face the insinuations respecting the influence of artful and designing men, by remarking, pointedly, that if such persons had been infusing distrust into his Excellency's mind, they must have sinister ends in view, and could be no friends to the country. As for encroaching upon the preroga- tives of others they designed nothing of the kind ; the troubles which had hitherto arisen in the colony had resulted from the bad advice given by designing men to the governors, and not from any wanton stretch of power by the people. They referred to the recent vote of the sum of £6,500 for the subsistence of the troops at Albany, and, in addition to the civil list, of the provision for paying the deficient bounty-money. Beyond that, " the circumstances of the colony (of which they were the most competent judges) would not suffer them to take one step further."
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CHIEF JUSTICE DE LANCEY.
Chief Justice De Lancey, in whom Clinton had reposed great confi- dence during the first years of his administration,1 was now the active head of the opposition. De Lancey had disapproved of Clinton's deter- mination to demand an independent support for a term of years in place of the annual provision accorded by the Assembly. He had given vigorous advice upon other subjects which Clinton swallowed ungra- ciously. Certain members of the Council holding different opinions from the chief justice privately counseled the governor to maintain the dignity of his station, and not allow an inferior to domineer over him.
One day Clinton and De Lancey were dining together, and grew very warm over the discussion of some of the vexed questions of state. De Lancey insisted upon a favorite point with an imperious air, and Clin- ton, losing all patience, declared that he should not be driven. De Lancey retorted that he would make the administration uneasy for his Excellency in the future, and took his leave. Clinton's parting words were, " You may do your worst." And the two were never afterwards reconciled.
No man in New York prior to the Revolution wielded greater influ- ence than Chief Justice De Lancey. He was an intellectual giant. His breadth of knowledge, culture, magnetic presence, vivacity, wit, condescension to inferiors, and charming good-nature made him a general favorite with all classes. But, extremely affable as he was under ordinary circumstances, - when it was his humor, - he was haughty and over- bearing whenever he was thwarted in his purposes, and his anger was fierce and unrelenting. He could not with grace tolerate opinions differ- ing from his own; implicit and unreasoning acquiescence in his views was the price of his friendship; and to such friends he knit himself with hooks of steel ; there was no service in his power he would not render them, and they served him with a zeal which indicated the marvelous strength of his nature. His bearing was princely. He would have been pointed out in any promiscuous assembly as a man born to command. His enormous wealth rendered him an object of interest to the multi- tude. They pinned their faith to his honesty, because he could have no possible motive for stealing the public money. He was not a foreign invader seeking to enrich himself with the surplus earnings of the hard- working pioneers of the country. He was their friend and champion. His snow-white horses and gilded chariot with outriders in handsome livery excited no envy ; his grand old mansion on Broadway and his still
1 Clinton presented De Lancey, of his own accord, a new commission of chief justice for life, dated. September 14, 1744, in place of his former one, the tenure of which was only " during pleasure."
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more elegant country-seat were objects of pride to the inhabitants of the city. The latter was on the Bowery road above Grand Street. The house stood in the rear of the block between Rivington and De Lancey Streets. It was a broad stately brick building, three stories high, expensive- ly furnished, and contained a generous and well-chosen library ; the walls of the apartments were embellished with choice works of art, and it was otherwise invested with the refined tastes of him who built and beautified it. An avenue shaded on either side by handsome trees, which in sum- mer time formed a leafy arch overhead, led from the mansion to the Bowery Road. The estate spread over an incredible number of acres. The map of the same, sketched by De Lancey while lieutenant-governor of New York, and perfected by his son, James De Lancey, illustrates the symmetry of his plans in regard to the future laying out of streets.1 The attractive square which appears on the map disappeared when the prop- erty was confiscated by the State, and sold in lots to suit purchasers.
Colden, henceforward, became the governor's confidential adviser and staunch supporter. He, no less than De Lancey, was a man of genius and power. Indeed, his erudition quite surpassed the age in which he lived, and the brilliant qualities of his mind shone like the sun among stars.2 He possessed sound judgment, and was honored and respected by the community at large. He was a small, high-shouldered, plain-faced man, with few personal graces, but his iron will was fully equal to that of his brilliant rival. Indeed, while unlike in almost every respect except irritability of temper, the two formidable adversaries were well matched.
James Alexander and William Smith, who had been formerly so valiant in the popular interest, were now squared about, as it were, for they had never been on cordial terms with the chief justice since the Zenger trial3 They stood by Colden, and Colden managed Clinton.
1 Copied through the courtesy of Edward F. De Lancey.
2 Colden was a physician, a botanist, an astronomer, and a historian.
3 James Alexander resided the greater part of the year at his country-seat-his "plentifull estate," as Clinton termed it in writing to the Duke of Newcastle-in New Jersey, near Perth Amboy. That he should have failed in meeting regularly with the council in New York is no matter of surprise, when we consider what were the traveling facilities at that date. A "stage-wagon " crossed New Jersey between New Brunswick and Trenton once a week as early as 1742 (and even before), which appears from a humorous complaint of Governor Morris, about the mode in which a box of beer bot- tles had been sent him : "Whereas at New York it was first landed, then carted up the Broad-way, then down again to the water side, then put on board a boat to New Brunswick, and then carted thirty miles to this place." In 1744, arrangements were made for the "stage-wagon " to run twice a week ; and in 1750, a new line was estab- lished, connecting New York with Philadelphia by the same route, with a "stage-boat."
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Meantime the House became intensely excited over the news that the high sheriff of Albany, by order of Colonel Roberts, an officer of one of the independent companies, had broken open the storehouses in that city, and taken into custody a large quantity of provisions for the soldiers. Colden himself had sanctioned the act, after in vain trying to induce the commissioners to obey the direct orders of the governor, and issue sup- plies for the hungry troops. The House at once adopted a resolution approving of the conduct of the commissioners; and another declaring both Roberts and the high sheriff guilty of a high misdemeanor; and several others, among which was one declaring Dr. Colden guilty of high
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