USA > Pennsylvania > Philadelphia County > Philadelphia > Annals of Philadelphia, and Pennsylvania in the olden time; being a collection of the memoirs, anecdotes, and incidents of the earliest settlements of the inland part of Pennsylvania, Vol. I > Part 33
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Something like this subject occurred when I was a child. I remember very well to have been taken to a house on the south side of Race street, a few doors east of Second street, where was a black man, who was stated to have sold himself to the devil, and to have come from Delaware or Maryland peninsula, by the aid of the pious in Philadelphia, to procure his ransom or exemption. I can never forget his piteous and dejected countenance, as I saw him, in the midst of praying people, working fervently at his exorcism in an up stairs chamber. I heard him say he had signed an instrument of writing with his own blood. It was probably at black Allen's house, as he was among the praying ones. My mother told me since that hundreds went to see him. Among these was the Rev. Dr. Pilmore, who finally took him to his own house, where at last, I understood, he concluded, from his habits, that his greatest calamity was laziness. I conclude he escaped translation, as I never heard of that.
Several aged persons have occasionally pointed out to me the places where persons, to their knowledge, had dug for pirates' money. The small hill once on the north side of Coates street, near to Front street, was well remembered by John Brown as having been much dug. Col. A. J. Morris, since dead, has told me that in his early days very much was said of Blackbeard and the pirates, both by young and old. Tales were frequently current that this and that person had heard of some of his discovered treasure. Persons in the city were named as having profited by his depredations. But he thought those things were not true. T. Matlack, Esq., told me he was once shown an oak tree, at the south end of Front street, which was marked KLP, at the foot of which was found a large sum of
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money. The stone which covered the treasure he saw at the doo. of the alleged finder, who said his ancestor was directed to it by a sailor in the hospital in England. He told me, too, that when his grandfather Burr died, they opened a chest which had been left by four sailors, " for a day or two," full twenty years before, which was found full of decayed silk goods. Samuel Richards and B. Graves confirmed to me what I had heard elsewhere, that at the sign of the Cock, in Spruce street, about forty-five years ago, there was found in a pot in the cellar a sum of money of about $5,000. The Cock inn was an old two story frame house, which stood on the site of the present easternmost house of B. Graves' row. A Mrs. Green owned and lived in the Cock inn, fifty to sixty years ago, and had sold it to Pegan, who found the money in attempting to deepen the cellar. It became a question to whom the money belonged, which it seems was readily settled between Mrs. Green and Pegan, on the pretext that Mrs. Green's husband had put it there! But it must appear sufficiently improbable that Mrs. Green should have left such a treasure on the premises if she really knew of it when she sold the house. The greater probability is that neither of them had any conception how it got there, and they mutually agreed to support the story, so as to hush any other or more imposing inquiries. They admitted they found $5,000. It is quite as probable a story that the pirates had deposited it there before the location of the city. It was of course, on the margin of the natural harbour once formed there for vessels. In digging the cellar of the old house at the northeast corner of Second street and Gray's alley, they discovered a pot of money there ; also some lately at Frankford creek.
As late as the year 1792, the ship carpenters formed a party to dig for pirates' money on the Cohocksinc creek, northwest of the cause- way, under a large tree. They got frightened off. And it came out afterwards that a waggish neighbour had enacted Diabolus to their discomfiture.
In the year 1762, one Tristram Davies, of Bethlehem, advertises that he has discovered a sure means of ascertaining where any metals of any kind lay in the earth ; for, every metal, says he, has an attraction which he can feel after by his instruments. This shows some reason why so many were credulous in digging for con- cealed money and mines in former days.
Haunted houses were subjects of frequent mention. Some of them were known even down to the time of my early days. On the northeast corner of Walnut and Fifth streets once stood a house very generally called "the haunted house," because of Mr. B. having there killed his wife. He gave the property to Hamilton, the Attorney General, to purge him from his sins by pleading his ac- quittal at the bar. It long remained empty from the dread of its invisi- ble guest-about ninety-five years ago. Such as I can still remember were these: Emlen's house, at the south west corner of Noble and Second streets ; Naglee's house, far out Second street, near the rope.
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walk -- there a man was to be seen hanging without a head; a house out by the Centre Square, where " the five wheelbarrow men" committed the murder for which they were executed; the country seat (in ruins) at Masters' place, where was lately Cook's farm, out North Fourth street, was another haunt of disturbed spirits.
I have seen aged people who well remembered the town talk of the people about seeing a black coach driven about at midnight by an evil spirit, having therein one of our deceased rich citizens, who was deemed to have died with unkind feelings to one dependant upon him. I suppress names and circumstances; but there were people enough who were quite persuaded that they saw it! This was before the Revolution.
The good people of Caledonia have so long and exclusively en- grossed the faculty of "second sight," that it may justly surprise many to learn that we also have been favoured with at least one case, as well attested as their own! I refer to the instance of Eli Yarnall of Frankford. Whatever were his first peculiarities, he in time lost them. He fell into intemperate habits, became a wan- derer, and died in Virginia, a young man. He was born in Chester county, and with his family emigrated to the neighbourhood of Pittsburg. There, when a child of seven years of age, he suddenly burst into a fit of laughter in the house, saying he then saw his father (then at a distance) running down the mountain side, trying to catch a jug of whiskey which he had let fall. He saw him over- take it, &c. When the father came in, he confirmed the whole story, to the great surprise of all. The boy after this excited much wonder and talk in the neighbourhood. Two or three years after this, the family was visited by Robert Verreé, a Friend, and after- wards by Joseph Potts with other visiting Friends from Montgomery county. I have heard, in a very direct manner, from those who heard Verreé's narrative, that he, to try the lad, asked him various questions about circumstances then occurring at his own house in Montgomery county; all of which he afterwards ascertained to have been really so at that precise time! Some of the things mentioned were these, viz: " I see your house is made partly of log and partly of stone; before the house is a pond which is now let out; in the porch sits a woman, and a man with gray hairs; in the house are several men," &c. When Verreé returned home, he ascertained that his mill pond before his house had just been let out to catch musk- rats; that the man in the porch was his wife's brother Jonathan; that the men in the house were his mowers, who had all come in because of a shower of rain. In short, he said every iota was exactly realized.
The habits of the boy, when he sought for such facts, was to sit down and hold his head downward-his eyes often shut; and after some waiting declared what he saw in his visions. He has been found abroad in the fields, sitting on a stump, crying-on being asked the reasons, he said he saw great destruction of human life by men in mortal combat. His descriptions answered exactly to sea VOL. I .-- 2 K
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fights and army battles, although he had never seen the sea, no? ships, nor cannon; all of which he fully described as an actual looker on. Some of the Friends who saw him became anxious for his future welfare, and deeming him possessed of a peculiar gift and a good spirit, desired to have the bringing of him up. He was therefore brought away by Joseph Potts, a public Friend, and com- mitted to the mastery of Nathan Harper, a Friend, engaged in the business of tanning in Frankford. There he excited considerable conversation ; and so many began to visit him as to be troublesome to his master, who did what he could to discourage the calls. Questions on his part were, therefore, shunned as much as he could. He lost his faculty by degrees, and fell into loose company, which of itself pre- vented serious people from having any farther wish to interrogate him.
To instance the kind of inquiries which were usually presented to him it may be stated, that wives who had missed their husbands long, supposed by shipwreck for instance, would go to him and in- quire. He would tell them (it is said) of some still alive, what they were then about, &c. Another case, was a man, for banter, went to him to inquire who stole his pocket book, and he was answered- no one; but you stole one out of a man's pocket when at the vendue-and it was so !
His mother would not allow him "to divine for money," lest he should thereby lose the gift, which she deemed heaven-derived. The idea is not novel, as may be seen in John Woolman's life, where he speaks of a rare gift of healing, which was lost by taking a reward.
These are strange things, evidencing matters " not dreamed of in our philosophy." I give these facts as I heard them-I "nothing extenuate, nor aught set down in malice."
The minutes of Council of 1683, thus state the indictment against Margaret Mattson before named, for witchcraft, to wit:
" Henry Drystreet said he was told twenty years before that she was a witch and that several cows were bewitched by her-and James Saunderling's mother told him she had bewitched her cow, but was afterwards found not so."
Charles Ashcom told that Anthony's wife said she sold her cattle, because her mother had bewitched them-having taken the witch- craft of Hendrick's cattle and put it on their oxen. Also that one night the daughter of Mrs. Mattson called him up hastily and she said there was a great light passed before, and that an old woman with a knife in her hand stood at her bed feet, and there cried out that John Symcock should take away his calves, or else she would send them to hell.
Amnakey Coolin attested that her husband took the heart of a calf that died by witchcraft and boiled it, and that then Mrs. M. came in and asked what they were at-when she ridiculed it, by saying they had better boiled the bones, &c.
The case of a strange woman, from whose breast were taken out
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pins. John Richards and his wife accused Robert Guard and his wife, as having bewitched her. The case being found trivial was dismissed.
As late as the period of the Revolutionary war, the notion of witchcraft was still very prevalent, and especially in the country. It occurs to me, as the memory of the facts in the case are now so fast receding from present notice, to state sundry circumstances within my own knowledge, and which are withal a fair specimen of the prevalent credulity. While writing, one cannot but wonder, at its general extinguishment now as a matter of belief or practice, and this without any known direct means to suppress it. I proceed to my relations, to wit: A respectable man, a farmer in Chester county-and a religious professor, had a daughter, a young woman supposed to be affected with witchcraft. She would often be strangely shivered and agitated, without any heart sickness-often she would scratch the walls, the floor, &c. The father was urged to go to Doctor Fraley, a witch doctor in Germantown ; he was unbelieving and reluctant; he was, however, persuaded by the general voice of the neighbourhood-he mounted a very fine steed horse, and put up one night on his way. The next morning he was amazed to find his horse, most strangely lank and jaded, as if the very witches had ridden him all night !- he however mounted him and rode onward; and was surprised to find him improve in appearance at every mile. Arrived at Doctor Fraley's, he assured him that the daughter was really bewitched, and his medicine would certainly cure her-it was a black liquid contained in a bottle which she was to drink. He was told that she would utterly object to even tasting it. It was truly so; they had to force her; she was speedily and surprisingly cured.
S. H. a Methodist minister, near Valley Forge, remembered per- fectly the case of his brother, when a boy, he was strangely diseased, rapidly pining and wasting away, not able to stand up, his mother who was a pious Quaker woman, insisted that he must be bewitched, and that her husband must go with her to " a witch doctor" living in Chester Valley. They went, taking the child with them. He soon said he was bewitched, and that he could cause the witch to show herself. When he saw the child could not stand up, he said he could make him quickly, and he did so in the same moment by standing him on his bed-as if that was a charmed place-to the amazement of the parents. The mother declined seeing her! but he said she would certainly visit their house once or more on an errand of "begging the loan of something," and that they must " be sure to lend or give her nothing"-for if they did, the child would die! but if they did not he would recover. Soon after they got home, an old woman, already bearing the fame and blame of a witch, came to beg an axe, until she could get a helve to her own axe-she was refused. She then begged a little rye meal to make a poultice. This she was also refused. A day or two afterwards
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she came to borrow a bag-and not getting that, she finally asked for a drink of water, and was told that there was the well, and she might draw for herself. Finding herself wholly baffled, she desisted, and the child quickly recovered, and is now a man alive and well. About this same period of time, the reliance upon dreams, was very prevalent. It was a common practice in families and neighbour- hoods to treasure them up in the memory for relation to one another. They had rules of interpretation, both in books and in traditionary practice. They believed in general, that they forewarned and pre- monished. Many strange " true ones" as they called them, I have heard; and even now several families remain, in which, through the influence of early parental tales, they still give heed to their dreams
SPORTS AND AMUSEMENTS.
" We, shifting for relief, would play the shapes Of frolic fancy-call laughter forth, Deep shaking every nerve."
IT may help our conceptions of the olden time to be led into an acquaintance with the nature of their sports and amusements; to this end, the following facts may be contemplated with some ad- vantage, to wit :
The dances of the polite part of society were formal minuets. Country or contre dances, although understood, were of rarer occur- rence. Hipsesaws and jigs were the common dances of the com- monalty. It was long before dancing was encouraged in Philadel- phia sufficiently to present a school for a dancing master. The aged Mrs. Shoemaker told me she supposed the first dancing master ever named in Philadelphia was one Bolton, who taught about eighty-five years ago. In the year 1730, Mrs. Ball, in Lætitia court, advertises her school for French, playing on the spinet, and dancing, &c. When Whitfield laboured in Philadelphia, in 1739, such was the religious excitement of the time, that the dancing school, the as- sembly and concert room were shut up as inconsistent with the gospel. This was opposed by some others ; so far so, that some of the gentlemen concerned broke open the doors, but no company went to the assembly room.
In later time, however, the dancing assembly among the gentry had high vogue, partaking, before the Revolution, of the aristocratic feelings of a monarchial government-excluding the families of mechanics, however wealthy. The subscription was £3 15s .; ad- mitting no gentleman under 21 years, nor lady under 18 years.
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The supper consisted of tea, chocolate, and rusk-a simple cake, now never seen amidst the profusion of French confectionary. For then we had no spice of French in our institutions, and consequently did not know how to romp in cotillons, but moved with measured dignity in grave minuets or gayer country dances. Every thing was conducted by rule of six married managers, who distributed places by lot ; and partners were engaged for the evening-leaving nothing to the success of forwardness or favouritism. Gentlemen always drank tea with their partners the day after the assembly-a sure means of producing a more lasting acquaintance, if mutually desirable.
Fox hunting formerly formed the field exercise of some of our wealthy citizens, within the memory of several of the aged whom I have conversed with. There was a kennel of hounds kept by one Butler, for the company. It was situated then as out of town, but in a place now populous enough-say on the brow of the hill north of Callowhill street, descending to Pegg's run, and at about sixty feet westward of Second street. Butler himself dwelt in the low brick house adjoining the northwest corner of Callowhill street on Second street. As population increased, their game decreased ; so much so, that the establishment had to remove over to Glou- cester, so as to make their hunts in the Jersey pines. At the same time the company provided for their old huntsman, Butler, by setting him up, in the year 1756, with the first public stage for New York. Old Captain Samuel Morris, dead about thirty years ago, was for many years the life and head of the club. I well remember to have seen the voracious and clamorous hounds in their kennel near Gloucester ferry.
Horse races appear to have been of very early introduction, and bringing with them the usual evils-hard to be controlled. They were, at an early period, performed out " Race street,"-so popu- larly called because of its being the street directly leading out to the race ground, cleared out for the purpose, through the forest trees, still long remaining there.
As early as the year 1726,I see that the Grand Jury present, "that since the city has become so very populous the usual custom of horse racing at fairs in the Sassafras street is very dangerous to life; also, it is an evil that they who erect the booths, &c., in that street, at the fairs, do sell all sorts of liquors, &c." It is not improbable, from this description, that they then ran straight races along the line of the cleared street-then a street but very little used for travel- 'ing.
The late very aged T. Matlack, Esq., was passionately fond of races in his youth. He told me of his remembrances out Race street. In his early days the woods were in commons, having several straggling forest trees still remaining there, and the circular course ranging through those trees. He said all genteel horses were pacers. A trotting horse was deemed a base breed ' 41 these 24
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Race street races were mostly pace races. His father and others kept pacing studs for propagating the breed.
Captain Graydon,in his Memoirs, says racing was a great passion of his young days. The race horses, in 1760, were kept at Mrs. Nicholls' stables, which extended down Fourth street, two-thirds of the way to Chestnut street, from the rear of her tavern then at the corner of High street. "The enthusiasm of the turf (says he) pervaded the Academy ; and the most extravagant transport of that sport was transferred to the boys' foot races round the whole square in which the Academy stood-stripped to the shirt, the head and waist bound up with handkerchiefs, and with the shoes off, they ran near half a mile at a heat !"
Thomas Bradford, Esq., telling me of his recollections of the races, says he was told that the earliest races were scrub and pace races, on the ground now used as Race street. But in his younger days they were ran in a circular form on a ground from Arch or Race street down to Spruce street, and from Eighth street of Delaware to Schuylkill river-making thus two miles for a heat. About the same time they also run straight races of one mile, from Centre Square to Schuylkill, out High street.
In the year 1761, I notice the first public advertisement of a race ; wherein is stated the terms of running the intended races " at the centre race ground-to run three times round the course each heat." The grounds themselves at the same time were familiarly called " the Governor's woods."
At the Centre square the races used to be continued till the time of the war of 1775. None occurred there afterwards ; and after the peace, they were made unlawful.
The first equestrian feats performed in Philadelphia, was in 1771, by Faulks ; he executed all his wonders alone-himself riding from one to three horses at a time.
Bull baiting and cock fighting were much countenanced. The late aged and respectable T. M. had once a great passion for the latter, so that some wags sometimes called him Tim Gaff; thereby affecting to slur a latin signature which he sometimes assumed as a political writer, of which T. G. were the initials of his two latin words.
As respectable a person as Doctor William Shippen, in 1735, in writing to Doctor Gardiner, says, " I have sent you a young game cock, to be depended upon-which I would advise you to put to a walk by himself with the hen I sent you before-I have not sent an old cock-our young cockers have contrived to kill and steal all I had." This is the same gentleman who speaks of " his beloved friend Mr. Whitfield, the Rev. preacher."
Very aged persons have told me of a celebrated place of amuse- ment out Third street by Vine street. It was the place of Charles Quinan's-always pronounced Queen Ann's place. It stood on the site of Third street, not then opened ; and was famous for alluring the citizens of middle life. There he kept "flying coaches and
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norses ;" they were affixed to a whirligig frame. The women sat in boxes for coaches, and the men strode on wooden horses-in those positions they were whirled around !
Aged persons inform that bullbaiting, bearbaiting, and horseracing, were much more frequent in old time than since the war of Inde- pendence. T. B., Esq., tells me that many men of rank and cha- racter, as well as the butchers, reared and kept dogs for the sport. John Ord, an Englishman, southeast corner of Second and High streets, kept apair of bull-dogs for the purpose of the breed.
In the days of my youth, the barbarous sport of bullbaiting was but too frequent on the commons in the Northern Liberties. Hap- pily, however, they have been quite laid aside for the last thirty years. They were got up and supported by butchers-a class of men much more ferocious and uncivilized than now. They were stopped by Squire Wharton-our spirited mayor. He went out to the intended sport seemingly as a friendly observer-and so they expected. When all was prepared for the onset of the dogs he stepped suddenly into the ring, and, calling aloud, said he would, at the peril of his life, seize and commit the first man who should begin ; at the same time, calling on names present to support him at their peril, he advanced to the bull and unloosed him from the stake. He then declared he would never desist from bringing future abet- tors of such exercises to condign punishments. They have never been got up since-a happy circumstance, for which we owe him many thanks !
In the year 1724, slack rope and tight rope dancing by men and women is announced in the Gazette as to be exhibited for twenty evenings at the new booth on Society hill. This was of course then out of town-somewhere near South and Front streets.
They used to have a play at the time of the fairs, called "throw- ing at the joke." A leather cylinder, not unlike a high candlestick, was placed on the ground over a hole. The adventurers placed their coppers on the top of the joke, then retired to a distance and tossed a stick at it so as to knock the whole down. The pennies which fell in the pot were to belong to the thrower, those which fell out, to the owner of the joke. The leather was pliable and was easily bent to let the pennies drop. They played also at the fairs the wheel of fortune, nine holes, &c.
In former days the streets were much filled with boys "skying a copper,"-a play to toss up pennies and guess heads or tails ; " pitch penny," too, was frequent-to pitch at a white mark on the ground ; they pitched also "chuckers"-a kind of pewter pennies cast by the boys themselves. All these plays have been banished from our city walks by the increased pavements, and still more by the multi- tudes of walkers who disturb such plays.
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