USA > New York > Rockland County > The history of Rockland County > Part 15
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At a little distance from the dwelling stood a capacious barn with thatched roof, its mow floors being made of saplings laid loosely across the beams. Nearer the house was the well, with its long sweep heavily weighted at one end for greater ease in raising water; and not infrequently a building of logs, filled in with clay, was in close proximity, and was oc- cupied by the slaves.
In such a community, everyone who was old enough to be of aid, worked. By nine or half-past, at night, the candle light was extinguished and the wearied men and women slept; at four o'clock in Summer and an hour and a half later in Winter, they arose. Before breakfast the male portion of the family had cleaned and watered the stock, the women had milked the cows, and, if it were Summer, the children had driven them to the pasture lot. After breakfast the men started forth to the fields, while the women, having attended to their household chores, began their ap- parently endless task of spinning and weaving, or else made up the linsey- woolsey garments, which were to clothe the family in the future.
The farm labor ran in regular and unvarying routine. In Spring came the ploughing, the planting of the maize and potatoes, and the sowing of the cereals and flax. In Summer the sheep were sheared, hay was gathered, grain was garnered by the men, while the women spun the wool. In Autumn the late fruits and cereals were harvested, the flax was broken, swingled and hatcheled, and everything prepared for the approaching cold season. In Winter the women tended to the manufacture of cloth, while the men threshed the grain and cut wood for the next year's supply.
Wonderful as is this picture of industry, it becomes more wonderful when we recall the implements of husbandry employed. The plough, clumsily shaped and light, was made of wood, and the share only was par- tially sheathed with iron. The motive power was a team of slow and patient oxen. As might be expected, the work was slow, but never monotonous, for the plough-boy was ever on the alert to keep the plough in the furrow; let it once get out and trouble began. Then canie a tug to drag both plough and oxen back, and the ever obtuse beasts became more stupid whenever some intelligence was wanted. At first the sickle was the only implement used in gathering grain. Then came the tre- mendous invention of the cradle. Yet, if after using the cradle of to-day,
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one should grasp the implement that was first? devised, he would lose all interest in agriculture. Pitchforks were made with wooden tines, and ax- handles were "pudding sticks," while the ax-head was poorly shaped and illy balanced.
Despite these difficulties, the settlers succeeded in supplying them- selves with food and clothing, and soon acquired a surplus, which they ex- changed with miller or storekeeper for money or commodities. Here and there throughout the County, as we have already seen, were mills-both grist and saw-and at convenient landing places along the river front were stores. In exchange for tea, coffee, tobacco and sugar ; or crockery and silverware, the storekeeper received the surplus fruits of the farm or the cloth, butter and eggs of the housewife. Home-made cloth was of great value in those early days and the Dutch matrons took much pride in their packed clothes-presses. For his grain, the farmer obtained gold-Spanish Johannes or Joes ($16 pieces) or English guineas. In the eager search for this gold or plate, the British and Hessian soldiery ripped many a feather bed and sounded many a door yard and garden with their bayonets, dur- ing the Revolution. Beside the millers and storekeepers, the blacksmith took part of the surplusage of the harvest in payment for his labor, which he could exchange with miller or merchant for his necessities.
But while there were millers, merchants and smiths in the County, they by no means depended entirely on their calling for support. All owned and tilled land in conjunction with their other occupations. The first blacksmith that came into the Haverstraw precinct was led to do so by a grant of land.
" Know all men by these present, that we whose names are hereunto written, for and in consid- eration that Joseph Wood, of Hempstead, in Queens County, shall settle upon a certain tract of land hereinafter described, and then and there nphold the trade of a blacksmith, as long as he shall be able and capable of working at the said trade, and to work for the persons underwritten according to the custom of a Smith * * We do hereby grant and release unto him a certain tract of land at a place called Kakiat, bonnded west by the rear of the first eastern division of lots, east by a creek or brook called Wood creek, containing 100 acres. July 15th, 1720."
"John Allison, " Caleb Halstead,
James Searing, William Hutchins,
Charles Mott, Abm. Denton,
William Osborn, Johnathan Rose,"
Johnathan Seaman."
When sufficient flour had been collected by the miller, and sufficient of the other products of agriculture by the merchant, they shipped the material to New York by sloop, and after exchanging for articles they needed, sold the balance.
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We have already seen that the roads were few and far between. Once a year the King's Highway was worked and its bridges repaired, but the branch roads were never touched and bridges were unthought of. If neces- sity compelled the use of a vehicle, that vehicle was a springless lumber wagon, or, in winter, a sleigh running upon split sapplings, and was drawn at a uniform dog trot by pot-bellied nags. Before the Revolution the two wheeled one-horse chaise had been introduced into New York and its im- mediate vicinity, but I have yet to learn that the people of this County were guilty of any such foolish extravagance up to that period.
Travel was almost entirely carried on on horseback. If the heads of a family went out together, a pillion was used, the woman sitting on it and steadying herself by holding on to the man. This mode of journeying also extended to those who aspired to be heads of families, and courtship in those days was largely carried on in this manner. Trotting horses, under the saddle, were rare; a canter was the ordinary pace for the sturdy Dutchman; but these Dutchmen, like their descendants, were fond of their stock, and an attempt by any one to pass them, roused a spirit of emulation that took no heed of dignity or occasion. A race followed, even though the day was the Sabbath and the church doors were scarcely yet closed upon them. The Perrys of Rockland are said to have been hard riders and never missed an opportunity to race. If a neighbor did not come along frequently enough, these Jehus would run their own horses against each other.
The few trips, that the average resident made to New York in the course of his life, were generally made by the flat-bottomed, slow-sailing, side-board sloops of those days, and these trips were by no means free from danger. The sad experience of the past few years in Nyack and Haverstraw Bays, proves that with all the advance in boat-building, the Hudson can still be master ; and whatever of danger renders the navigation of the noble river perilous at times even now, was ten times greater when the vessels were clumsy and difficult to manage. Solemn, indeed, is the inscription that meets the casual observer, who, in idle curiosity, perhaps, stops a moment in the Coe burying ground by the English Church : "Captain William Coc drowned in the North River with nine others, Nov. 25, 1774." If the observer makes inquiry regarding this catastrophy, he will be informed that it was occasioned by the capsizing of a sloop. Incre- dulous we may be, even if we allow the fullest sway to our imaginations in regard to sudden gust and howling gale, incredulous we may be, when told that the placid flowing Spar-kill has been the scene of drowning for three of these whilom passengers. Yet the statement is true.
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Sometimes the trip to town was made on horseback or by wagon, and, not unfrequently, the traveler walked to New York and back. This has been done by more than one person whom I have known, and was not re- garded by them as anything out of common.
In dress, the first comers were not particular. They wore what they had, and made it hold together as long as they could. As the success of their labors became assured, however, they adopted a garb which followed the fashion of their native land, being changed only by the necessities of their new home. Homespun coats, with great shirts, in which were ca- pacious pockets, a loose-fitting, blouse-shaped, under-coat or waistcoat, knce-breeches, long blue worsted stockings and huge shoes, often home- made, with pewter, or in the very wealthy, silver buckles, formed their apparel ; while the younger unmarried men wore short, square-frocked coats with rows of enormous brass buttons. The elderly dames attired themselves in close-crimped hats, long-waisted short-gowns, homespun petticoats, with scissors and pin-cushions, and gay calico pockets hanging on the outside; and their daughters only differed from them in attire by the use of a tastefully arranged bright ribbon or two, and a coquettish manner of wearing their clothing. If fortune had been unusually kind, silk dresses possessed by the matrons indicated their worldly success.
At a later period the garb of the men changed in style and gradually settled into the habit of to-day, with the exception that the top-coat was made with two or more capes, and contained the pockets that formerly belonged to the body coat. The hair of the men was allowed to grow long, and was generally dressed in a queue up to and during the Revolution. After that period this custom gradually ceased, until now it is an indi- cation of affectation.
Industrious as were our ancestors they still found time for amusements, most of which were harmless, none absolutely brutal. Horse-racing had not degenerated into a gambler's occupation, but was a pure enjoyment into which horse and rider entered with equal zest. Two neighbors meet- ing upon the road would have a short brush, and each would feel con - vinced that his animal was the better horse. In a spirit of friendly rivalry they would agree to meet at a stated place, usually some long, level, green sward beside the highway, on the following Saturday afternoon and test the matter fairly ; each would notify his friends of the coming match, and on the afternoon appointed a score or more of young men would be pre- sent to see the trial. Sometimes, in fact often, the spectators would feel satisfied that the animals they bestrode could defeat either of the contest- ing horses, or that of any one present; the result would be another and
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still another race, till the waning hours warned all present that their night work awaited them, then, with great good nature they would ride off home, determining to try again at the first opportunity.
But these were not the only contests of speed which the horses were put to. There were surreptitious night runnings, that the owners of the animals were not aware of. Emulation between the slaves of different fami- lies was as active as that between their owners, perhaps even more so, and when the rest of the household had settled down to sleep, these nocturnal contestants had many a struggle for first place. Sleepy, lazy, exhausted, they accounted next day for their weariness and the sweated condition of the horses by some convenient untruth. In later years, when Methodist itinerants travelled on horseback, the former night contests of the slaves were carried on by the worthy scions of those houses where the ministers tarried over night. They used and abused those ministers' horses to learn what stuff they had in them, and returned the wearied beasts to their stalls just in time to avoid detection. Bold, careful, and yet, withal, kind riders, the men of those days were gentle with their animals, and those animals responded with all the love of their natures to the caresses of their owners.
Other contests between the young men of those days grew out of faith in their personal strength. Matches between them in running, wrestling, and hurling heavy weights were common, and carried on in friendly rivalry. Occasionally, though justice demands that I should say only when braggadocio among them grew unbearable, the youthful owner of slaves pitted his negroes' butting powers against those of some neighbor's Cuffee, and then all the rising generation collected to see the battle. Backing off, till fifteen or twenty feet separated them, the black competi- tors would rush at each other and drive their heads together with a crash, that would break in the skull of an ordinary man, but which only resulted in the felling of one of them. In those rare instances, where one of these negroes had defeated all opponents in thickness of skull and strength of neck, small wagers would be made that he could not break in one of the heavy folding doors which led into the main floor of the barns; and then one of the conspirators would stand within and hold a heavy bar against that part of the door where he would strike. Defcat always greeted the black-a-moor's efforts in such cases, and drew forth from him many cx- pressions of wonder at the stiffness of the particular door, but the fact that he had been deceived never seems to have entered his dull mind.
Hunting was so common as scarcely to deserve classification among the amusements. No one ever thought of going off to the woods or fields in
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pursuit of their daily toil without carrying their trusty gun. In the early days of settlement it would be rare if some of the family did not return at night bearing game which had been shot, and it was not infrequent even within the memory of men still living, for the laborer to cease from his toil, seize his gun and shoot a fox, that, hard chased by the dogs, entered the fields in his flight.
Among those enjoyments into which both sexes joined, were huskings and weddings. In both cases the merriment was carried on in the tre- mendous barns of those days. At the huskings, people were present from miles around. The great heaps of corn were piled up on the floor and the guests, selecting such places as were near their friends, sat round these heaps in circles. Gossip, flirtation, badinage, flew thick and fast, and one, who stood in the mows overhead, would have thought that Babel had been reproduced. Yet in all that tumult of laughter, and song, and jest, there was a ceaseless energy, which heaped high the baskets of yellow corn and ever diminished the piles before the busy talkers.
After the husking was ended all adjourned to the house for refresh- ment, and then, the barn floor having meantime been cleared by the slaves, once more visited it to end the day in jollity and mirth.
In some respects marriages were simpler in those days than in these. While due notice and invitation was given to every family within a radius of miles, for in those days, as has already been said, every one knew each other, the invitations were for what we would call the reception, never to witness the ceremony. Unostentatiously the wedding party drove to the parsonage accompanied only by their immediate relatives. There they were quietly married, and then started for home again, having added one to their number in the person of the good dominie.
At that home were collecting all the people from a wide area, coming on horseback, coming on foot, coming in wagons, and coming in the full spirit of innocent enjoyment. On the arrival of the wedding party came the wedding dinner. And what a dinner ! none of the condiment soaked, highly-spiced foods ; none of the knick-knacks, yeleped pates, and truffles and capons-products of disease, every one of them, which are chosen by the dyspeptic epicures of to-day ; but the table groaned under the weight of solid, substantial vietuals, which were eaten by men and women who ate to live-not lived to eat. Huge turkeys, long the pride of the farm- yard; ducks and geese, swimming in their own gravy ; chickens unnum- bered, and at their head a famous chanticleer; great roasts of beef, and sides of bacon, the vegetables of the season-all these graced the board ; and then for dessert came apple pies, and peach pies, and pumpkin pies,
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the tender olye kok, the crisp cruller, the famous Dutch doughnut-alas, that it is passing away ! sweet cakes, short cakes and ginger cakes ; pre- served peaches, quinces, citrons ; these and more tempted the appetites of the robust guests.
Nor was liquid refreshments lacking. Great tankards of New England rum, vessels of Holland schnapps, and bottles of rare old wine of Gaul stood waiting the beck of the harder-headed guests, while the women quaffed, with full knowledge of its potency, that delectable nectar, lost to us forever, Metheglin ; or else sipped, with appreciative draughts of crusty wine from Oporto, or the wind-swept island of Maderia, while peach brandy, still rare, furnished the parting bowl.
After dinner came the dance. If it were warm enough, the barn was used as the dancing floor. At one end, on an improvised platform made by placing boards across barrels, sat two or more negro fiddlers with their battered but still musical violins. The bride and groom led off the first set. When all was ready, away they started, dance followed dance, more and more uproarious grew the fun, faster and faster the bow crossed the strings, brighter and brighter grew the eyes of the musicians as they entered fully into the spirit of the day; swiftly flew the hours, madly waxed the revel, until finally, wearied with excess of mirth and pleasure, the dancers ceased, the musicians obtained their needed rest and an al- lowance of rum, and about sunset the guests departed with a hearty good night, which meant from the visitors "God bless you," and from the host "God keep you."
In all the social gatherings of those times the dominie was present or the host was disappointed. The first Colonists, who settled in this State, were from the middle and lower class of Hollanders. All were compelled to labor for a living. The wealthy merchant or land owner saw no induce- ment to brave the perils of a long ocean passage, found no cause for leav- ing his comforts and enjoyments, to amass more wealth from the new world, when sufficient abundance was already in.his possession. Among these industrious settlers, but little opportunity could be found for educa- tion, and with the exception of that shrewd common sense, which seemed an attribute of these Dutchmen, almost all were illiterate. For years after the settlement of our County, education among the people made but slight advance, and even up to the close of the last century, the great majority of residents were untaught.
While they were unlettered themselves, the settlers appreciated educa- tion, and gave to it that respect which it must ever command. The one, above all others, among them whom all knew to be studied was their
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dominie, and this was one of the reasons why that dominie was regarded with great esteem. But there was another and in those days a more im- portant reason why the Dutch gave such veneration to their clergy. The fruits of the Reformation had not yet reached completion. For centuries the intellect of all Europe had been held subordinate to the will of Rome.
Tobe sure Lippershey, a Hollander, had discovered the telescope, but the fate of Bruno for theorizing, and the punishment of Galileo for stating as to what that telescope would and did reveal, was not encouraging to further investigation. To be sure, at the very moment of Dutch settlement on this Continent, Descartes was making Holland his home and was soon to issue a philosophy which would change the aspect of all civilization, but almost a century was to elapse cre his teachings became generally understood. To be sure two centuries had elapsed since Gutenberg had invented the printing press, but the Index Librorem Prohibitorem of the Church had checked free discussion long before. In reality the Pontifical authority still rested upon Europe. The habit of centuries is not changed in a day. From time beyond the conception of man's imagination, the clergy had been the greatest authority recognized by the common people. At their entrance into the world, a member of the sacerdotal order had baptized them in the name of Christ ; such catechising as they had had was received from a servant of the Church of Rome; as the years advanced, they had learned to carry the burden of their earthily as well as spiritual sorrows to their parish priest, and in the privacy of the confessional had received wise worldly advice as well as spiritual comfort, and as the end of this life ap- proached, and the mystery of the hereafter drew nearer; it was a clergy- man who held the hand, stiffening in death, and pointed towards a glorious resurrection.
The Reformation had changed the form of worship. The Reformation unloosed the human intellect ; but while the people now performed their devotions in greater simplicity and argued with their pastor concerning the meaning of Scripture, they still retained all the foretime affection and reverence for that pastor's holiness and wisdom. If this was true of the old world, far more true was it of the new, where dangers and sorrows, un- known in their native land, stood round the colonists on every side. In the full realization of the great responsibilities thrust upon them; in a clear comprehension of the many diversified duties they would be called on to perform; those pioneer ministers of God entered upon their missions, braved the perils of a stormy ocean, risked the unknown dangers of a new settle- ment, lent physical aid as well as administered religious consolation to the struggling pioneer, preached Christ crucified to the settlers in the midst of
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primeval forests, and by the uprightness of their lives and their Christian charity, extorted expressions of gratitude from even the taciturn Indians.
With their religious duties these dominies combined worldly knowl- edge. They kept posted on the important events of the day, and narrated and explained the tendency of these events to their congregations. Often they acted as arbitrators in neighborly disputes, and soothed down angry passions. Often their advice was sought in regard to proposed purchases or sales of land or stock, or new ventures in the business of life. Always welcomed at the plain but bounteous board, they visited much among their congregations, and entered into all their pleasures and sorrows as one of the family. Truly they followed the oft-repeated saying of one of the last of their number, Dominie Lansing: "I have never said to you, Do and Live, but Live and Do!"
As can be imagined, with such feelings toward the minister, all the residents of this County went to church. The first edifice erected for worship was, as we have already seen, that at Tappan, in 1716, and this was followed by the churches at Clarkesville and Kakiat, at which latter church the service was held in the English language. At the Tappan, and later at the Clarkesville church, for both churches were supplied by the same minister till 1830, the service was in Dutch, a language which held into and through the ministration of Dominie Nicholas Lansing, who alternated during the last years of his life, preaching one Sabbath in Eng- lish and the next in Dutch.
At ten o'clock in the morning the first service was begun by the clerk, who also was chorister, reading the lesson and lining the psalms. Then the sermon would begin and last until noon, when the first service ended. But we must remember that many of the congregation had come a long distance, over wretched roads, which precluded all hope of their going home for dinner and returning in time for the afternoon service. These people brought their lunch with them, and while those, who resided near at hand, went home for their meals, the others ate either in the church or under the shade of the trees, and then had time, the men for a short smoke, the women for a brief gossip, ere the second service began. This was after an hour's intermission, and it lasted an hour and a half. Two services in a day were only held in the Summer and Autumn. Church edifices were unheated in those days, and while the fervor of religious zeal was strong, it was testing human endurance too far to sit more than two hours in an icy temperature. To alleviate, as much as possible, the suffer- ing from cold, the elderly ladies carried quaintly designed foot stoves, some of which are still preserved in the older families, which they passed
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to others, who were unprovided, when their blue faces indicated actual distress; while the men resorted to the bar of Mabie's tavern, both before and after service, and fortified themselves against the cold or warmed their chilled blood by drinking hot gin. At a later period "box" stoves were introduced into the church, one of which stood on either side of the en- trance doors. Even then it was not rare for some benumbed members of the congregation to rise, during the service, walk back and warm them- selves at the stoves, and then return to their seats.
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