USA > Rhode Island > The "Old Stone Bank" history of Rhode Island, Vol. IV > Part 8
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badge of the watch was a staff about six feet in length with a hook attached to one end. We should note here that an auxil- iary police is nothing new, for a century and a half ago the local watch was often assisted by citizen volunteers who prob- ably enjoyed the privilege of tapping on windows with their long poles when they observed lights burning at what they judged to be an unreasonable hour. Dur- ing the early stages of World War II it was found to be a bit annoying to have a whistle blow when a streak of light trickled through the blackout curtains, but, what would one think, and what would be said about the patrolman, if he started banging on a window just because the latest crime tale happened to be too intriguing to put down, or because the neighbors refused to leave until one more rubber had been finished, or because a favorite dance band did not come on the air until midnight?
Providence was incorporated as a city in 1832, and from that point on, the his- tory of the police is a long, interesting, excitement-packed narrative. Dealing, as they always have and always will, with that portion of society which finds itself out-of-step with the majority of law- abiding citizens, police officials and police officers find little glamour in their round- the-clock close contact with human ills and misfortune, and, as we know, they have never been paid too well. True it is that the average human enjoys the privilege of telling others what to do and what not to do, but what one sees of police officers on highways and on duty in public places is a small part of their daily routine - at its best unpleasant, disillusioning, lonesome and tragic.
CANDLELIGHT
0 F all the customs which have been known to Christian people since that eventful night in Bethlehem, nearly two thousand years ago, the lighted candle in the window remains as the universal symbol of good cheer at Christmas. The burning taper, placed where all who pass
may see, may be familiar to our children as only a safe and practical device for illuminating windows at holiday time, nevertheless, with all of its modernizing and safeguarding, the Christmas Candle proclaims the age-old message, "Peace on Earth - Good will to Men.'
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Among the very oldest of the year's festivals, Christmas descends annually upon a troubled world, and, for an all too brief period, levels all classes, spices all veins with good cheer, and restores man's faith in himself. The name of this fes- tival is not ageless, but, as a type of general celebration, it goes back to the remote outposts of paganism. From the times of the fierce fighting Goths and Saxons, we derive the name "Yule" which has survived in English to this day; and the trimming, or decking, of the Christ- mas tree is of dim Teutonic origin. As far as the custom of revelry and feasting is concerned, the old Roman Saturnalia was a kind of Christmas season celebration, although the observance was actually a time for welcoming the near return of sun and springtime. Long before the Christian era, there were holidays for feasting and good cheer, days when slaves were invited to join in the merrymaking, and many of those ancient customs and practices have been preserved and cherished along with the ancient rites, beliefs and symbols added since by Christianity. Of all coun- tries, none has observed Christmas more fully than has England. There it was celebrated as early as the year 878, and too, it was there that the custom began of having the Christmas season extend from December 16 to January 6. Of course, England had its period of Puri- tanism, as did the American colonies, when Christmas was completely ignored, but, with the return of royalty in the mother country, and with the arrival in America of English royalists and settlers, from other Christian countries, among these people Christmas soon regained its ancient significance.
The lighted candle, each tiny beam carrying its tidings of good cheer, has been mentioned as a long familiar Christ- mas symbol. Undoubtedly, this custom had its origin in the story of the shining star on high, guiding the wisemen to the humble manger where an event of great significance was about to take place. On the other hand, the custom may have originated in the days when artificial light of any kind was a luxury, when illumina- tion meant life in the midst of desolation, perhaps an invitation to the weary
traveler to come for rest and refresh- ment.
Surely, it is most difficult for us to picture life after dark before the days of electricity, gas or even oil lighting. Eu- ropeans and Americans who are now familiar with "black-out" regulations know full well how depressing and con- fining darkness may be without the benefits of light shed upon the highways and habitations of civilization. It was not so long ago, when the descending sun meant nearly complete inactivity, when the only signs of life in a quieted, motion- less community of people might be the indirect glow on the window pane of a roaring blaze from a fire-place; or a smoking torch carried by a stumbling caller; the dying embers of a camp-fire; or the burning candle in the window, placed there to guide the returning loved one, or to welcome the stranger who might be seeking food and a night's lodging.
In the blackout nights, before streets were lighted and homes were illuminated with any degree of efficiency, any kind of light displayed for others to see was a signal for welcome, and announcement of hospitality, and, do we not indicate our own desire to be friendly, hospitable, generous - do we not proclaim our own wish to spread good cheer when we add to the super-brilliance of twentieth century night life by sending out beams of good cheer with electric candles, and with many other illuminating devices that have been introduced into the custom of observing Christmas?
It can be imagined that Rhode Island was a rather dark place at night in the early days, because lighting of any kind was still a rarity and a luxury everywhere in the world. Without research, one might take it for granted that the first settlers hereabouts made free use of candles in their homes, and that oil lamps were common among those who laid the foundations of the direct, indirect and flood-lighted cities and towns of Rhode Island. As a matter of fact, for a long, long time after Providence, Newport and other Rhode Island communities were well-established, wax candles were a luxury, possessed only by the wealthy, or used by the more fortunate on "State"
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occasions. "Dips," made of odds and ends of grease, rescued from pot liquor or any form of cooking, fat of all kinds, and perhaps bayberry tallow, provided the first candles for the average settlers, but even these were scarce at first. Tallow, too, was at a premium because cattle and sheep were not raised to any extent.
Whale oil and tallow were imported from England into Massachusetts, but it was a long time after the first settlement at Providence that imports of any kind benefited the outcasts who decided to seek their fortunes along the shores of
EDWARDIR YOUNG
S STAPLES IR
ABBOT "STILL" HOUSE, AN EARLY PROVIDENCE BUILDING FORMERLY STANDING AT THE CORNER OF SOUTH MAIN AND COLLEGE STREETS.
Narragansett Bay. As far as procuring sources of illumination from whales was concerned, it must be remembered that whale hunting was not practised on this side of the Atlantic until 1690, when Icha- bod Paddock of Cape Cod started to hunt the leviathans and set up an industry on the Island of Nantucket. A few stranded or beached whales occasionally supplied the oil cans of the earliest New Eng- landers, but, until 1700, neither wax candles nor whale oil furnished the American colonists, especially in New England, with their means of illumina- tion.
In what is now Rhode Island, much of the illumination was supplied by the great pine forests that surrounded the head of the Bay. Nearly forty years after the founding of Providence, a traveler, writ- ing of customs and practices in this section
of New England, noted that "the Colo- nists used knots of the fir-tree and fat pine instead of candles, and that these will burn a long time." This same writer observed that these flaming knots had a tendency "to make people pale." It is not clear whether "pale" in this instance referred to the actual complexion of people, or to the appearance of faces in the light shed by smoky, flaming pitch pine knots.
Light for houses, and illumination of streets, first in Newport and later in Providence, became less expensive when whale fishing began to develop during the first quarter of the eighteenth century. Sperm oil used in open lamps and finally with glass chimneys, and spermaceti, also a whale product that provided a practical substance for candles, brightened up the homes of our forefathers and encouraged reading, sewing and other domestic activities after sundown. The first street lamps in Newport were suspended from residence and shop windows, but the practice was entirely a private enterprise. Between the years 1745 and 1750, a group of wealthy Portuguese Jews, who had migrated to these shores because of religious persecution abroad, introduced the manufacture of spermaceti candles by a secret process, and, by 1769, there were seventeen candle-making establish- ments in Newport.
From the days of candles and early oil lamps to the introduction of gas lighting, it was a comparatively dark period in Rhode Island, as well as in American history, although many ingenious ar- rangements of lenses and reflectors were devised in Colonial times to magnify the light generated by a burning candle, or cluster of candles. Except in houses of worship, rarely do we see tall white columns of wax with their flickering flames of yellow light, burning freely and dancing to and fro in the gentle draughts of quiet altars; or candle sticks, fragile crystal cylinders that once protected the precious flames. Wall and chair sconces and other candle-light accessories are now nothing more than museum pieces, but, for generations, the simple device of a round stick of tallow, wax, or other fatty material, enclosing a wick of cotton,
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brightened the surroundings of countless people.
Now, the lighted candle burns as a
symbol of "light unto darkness" shedding upon all men the glow of good tidings, and of good-will.
THE GRAVE OF ROGER WILLIAMS
S CORES of volumes have been written on the life and times of Roger Williams, thousands of lectures have been delivered on his immortal achievements; millions of Americans have cherished the memory of the great apostle of religious liberty and the founder of the Colony of Rhode Is- land, but even today, nearly three cen- turies after his arrival on these pleasant shores, the original grave of Roger Wil- liams lies hidden from view amid scrub- brush and weeds. The exact location of this hallowed, yet unnoticed, resting place is in the rear yard of the famous Sullivan Dorr mansion, standing today at the northeast corner of Benefit and Bowen Streets in Providence, not far from the Old State House. The only marker is a circular piece of granite quarried in Johns- ton, Rhode Island, back in the year 1828, and originally the base section of one of the huge pillars of the Arcade Building. The story goes, however, that in the proc- ess of construction, one of the pillars was broken and this particular piece of granite was necessarily discarded by the builders. In due course of time, the broken piece was hauled by way of Constitution Hill and placed upon the site of the Williams' grave, and there it lies today, - broken, half-hidden and uninscribed, an unattrac- tive reminder of the greatest American of the seventeenth century.
Historical records disclose that Roger Williams died sometime in the Spring of 1683, although the exact date will prob- ably never be known. He was buried with martial honors at the spot, chosen by him- self, just a short distance from his own home, which, of course, has long since disappeared. In 1771, nearly ninety years after his death, a special committee was appointed by the freemen of the Town of Providence to ascertain the exact location of the Williams' interment, and to draft an appropriate inscription for the grave-
stone which they voted to erect "over the grave of the Founder of this Town and Colony." This noble and commendable gesture toward the erection of a perma- nent marker was forgotten, because Rhode Island was presently in the angry grip of the American Revolution, and the money that was to have purchased a suitable monument to Rhode Island's founder was spent for arms and munitions to protect his ideals of liberty and democracy.
The little graveyard in the rear of the Williams' homestead contained only seven graves, as far as is known today; three of which were those of small children, one a grave of a Mrs. Ashton, a relative of Roger Williams, one unknown, and the other two the graves of Williams and his wife. It seems that in the year 1739, while a workman was excavating the grave of Mrs. Ashton, he dug directly upon the foot of the Roger Williams grave, break- ing in the decayed coffin so that some of the bones were plainly visible. Inhabit- ants for miles around were attracted to the spot to view the decomposed and moss-covered remains, and a Mr. Packard even went to the remarkable trouble of lowering his ten-year-old son into the opening in the earth, permitting the youth to procure a better view of the precious remains.
Earth was soon thrown back into the excavation and the grave remained neg- lected thereafter, until Stephen Randall, a direct descendant of Williams, and a prom- inent and greatly respected citizen, took it upon himself to exhume whatever dust and ashes of his illustrious ancestor might still remain and place them in a proper repository. This work he began in March 1860, with the assistance of several laborers, two experienced superintendents of public burial grounds, and in the pres- ence of several important townspeople who acted in the capacity of official wit-
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Courtesy, John Hutchins Cady
SULLIVAN DORR MANSION ON BENEFIT STREET, LOCATED UPON THE ORIGINAL ROGER WILLIAMS HOME LOT. THE GRAVE OF ROGER WILLIAMS, AT THE REAR OF THIS PROPERTY, WAS EXCAVATED IN 1860 AND HIS REMAINS WERE TAKEN TO THE NORTH BURIAL GROUND.
nesses. A valuable document penned by Mr. Randall is in existence today and therein is described the following historic act of exhumation. The workmen first proceeded to probe the ground with long, sharp-pointed iron rods, for the purpose of ascertaining, if possible, the place where two graves could be found, adjoining each other. ... Finding a place where the earth had evidently been disturbed at some time, for a space of ten or twelve feet in length, the men were set at work, and at a depth of about five feet, discov- ered a rusty hinge, of small size, near the east end of the excavation. Soon after, a number of half-corroded nails were found, having large, flat heads - and to some of them the wood still adhered, having, ap- parently, absorbed the rust of the iron, and become nearly as hard as the metal itself.
The upper, or easternmost, grave was
not dug so deep as the other, by three or four inches, and the form of the coffin was seen distinctly, on the bottom of this grave. In both, it was perfectly easy to discover when the bottom of the original excavation was reached, by the appear- ance of the soft slate-stone, or shale, in which it had been made. More nails and small pieces of decayed wood were found in the lower grave, but no bones or hair in either. In the adjoining grave, sup- posed to be that of Mrs. Williams, was found a wonderfully preserved lock of braided hair, a surprising discovery since the graves were then more than 170 years old.
For many years previous to this event, an apple orchard had flourished on the site of this old burying ground, and be- cause of this fact a most interesting phe- nomenon, from a philosophical point of view, was disclosed. It is known that
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vegetable life in active pursuit of nourish- ment will often enter the depth of human graves in order to satisfy its appetite for minerals contained in decayed matter. Such was the case in the grave opened back of Benefit Street in the year 1860. While the workmen, under the direction of Stephen Randall, were digging out the earth, they came upon the roots of an apple tree that flourished nearby. This particular tree had pushed one of its ramifying roots downward in a nearly straight course in the direction of the pre- cise spot where Roger Williams' head had rested in quiet peace. There the root took a definitely circular turn, conforming with the general shape of a human skull, and then followed the direction of the back- bone to the hips. Here the root divided in two branches, each following a leg bone to the heel, where each turned at a dis- tinct right angle upwards reaching to the extremities of the toes of the skeleton. One of the roots had a slight twist or crook at the point where a human knee should
be, and this produced an even more strik- ing resemblance to the human form.
All witnesses instinctively turned to the innocent-looking apple tree, the thief that had stolen away the remains of one who has gone down in history as the "founder of religious liberty." One of the distinguished gentlemen present, im- pressed with the suspicion that "the par- taker is as bad as the thief," remarked to the horrified proprietor of the orchard : "It is sufficiently manifest why nothing is left of Roger Williams, for you have been eating him up in the shape of luscious apples." All of the earthy substance which could, by any possibility, have formed any portion of the bodies was placed in a box and deposited in the family tomb of Mr. Randall in the North Burial Ground. The human-like apple root which has many times been the sub- ject for philosophical writings, was taken away, preserved, and is today on exhibi- tion in the museum of the Rhode Island Historical Society in Providence.
STEPHEN RANDALL TOMB IN NORTHI BURIAL GROUND WHERE REMAINS OF ROGER WILLIAMS WERE PLACED IN 1860. BOX CONTAINING THE FOUNDER'S ASHES WERE REMOVED FROM HERE BY THE RHODE ISLAND HISTORIAN AND OTHERS IN 1932, AND FINAL INTERMENT WAS MADE IN BASE OF ROGER WILLIAMS MEMO- RIAL, PROSPECT TERRACE, JUNE 29, 1939. [Insert] PORTION OF COLUMN TO HAVE BEEN USED IN CONSTRUC- TION OF ARCADE BUILDING, BROKEN IN TRANSIT FROM JOHNSTON, RHODE ISLAND, NOW PLACED ABOVE ORIGINAL GRAVE OF ROGER WILLIAMS IN REAR OF SULLIVAN DORR MANSION ON BENEFIT STREET.
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Through the earnest efforts of the same Stephen Randall an organization was formed to raise money for the purpose of providing a final and appropriate resting place for what constituted the mortal remains of Roger Williams, and those too of Mrs. Williams. Several individuals con- tributed small sums and Mr. Randall left $1000 in his will to assist in carrying out his life-long ambition. Certain specifica- tions were included in this bequest, all of which were impossible to carry out at the time, although the original intents and purposes of this Rhode Islander and other generous contributors of his time finally became completely realized.
The box containing the Williams re- mains was practically forgotten and only a comparatively few Rhode Islanders knew of its whereabouts, until the Fall of 1932 when the author of this volume headed a small party organized to ascer- tain the condition of the precious con- tainer in the Randall tomb where it had remained since 1860. With the approval of Miss Maria Hunt Weeden, a resident of Providence, a descendant of Stephen Randall, and the custodian of her an- cestor's tomb, the key was provided and an entrance made. A short search dis- closed the box and its contents, all of which checked with that which was ex- humed from the original grave seventy- two years previously. The contents of the
box, which still contained the rusty, flat- headed nails with decayed wood attached, were carefully transferred to a steel con- tainer, and this was placed under lock and key in the receiving vault of the North Burial Ground.
At the time of the Tercentenary observ- ance of the founding of Providence, popu- lar interest was again aroused in respect to providing an appropriate and permanent repository for the remains of Roger Wil- liams. Headed by Addison P. Munroe of Providence and composed of public- spirited, patriotic citizens, the Rhode Island Roger Williams Memorial Associa- tion, Inc., undertook this long-delayed project. Using funds which had com- pounded to a sizable amount over the years since Mr. Randall and others had made their generous contributions, and assisted in the plans by contributions from the State of Rhode Island and from the Rhode Island and Providence Tercente- nary Committee, the Association erected and formally dedicated, on June 29, 1939, the Roger Williams Memorial. In a small bronze casket, placed securely within the solid stone base of the artistic expression of tribute which stands on Prospect Ter- race overlooking the City of Providence, now rest all that exists as evidence of mortality of the first man, in world his- tory, to establish soul liberty as the basis for civil government.
ALMANACS
S OMETIME in January, in the days of our great and great-great grandparents, an annual event would take place in most households - the putting aside of the old, and the installation of the new, family almanac. Actually this was an important procedure, inasmuch as the almanac was once as much a fixture of the average home, as were the well, Bible and cat. A new almanac hanging on the old familiar hook in the kitchen, or above the mantel in the living room, meant that a new year was well launched upon its way, that months and weeks would come and go, tides ebb and flow, moons rise and suns
set, according to schedule. Often it was a misdemeanor of unpardonable severity to disturb the useful compendium of handy knowledge and general information, un- less special parental consent were granted. In many a home, failure to return the almanac to its customary place, after use, was infinitely worse than neglecting to rub down the horse, or to leave the buck- saw out in the rain.
For at least half the span of American history, almanacs were important to domestic routine. The information they contained was important in respect to the average means of earning a livelihood.
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"THE OLD STONE BANK"
THE VILLAGE OF PROVIDENCE IN 1762 LOOKING SOUTHWEST TOWARDS WEYBOSSET BRIDGE FROM GAOL LANE (MEETING ST.). FROM A SKETCH IN POSSESSION OF THE HOPE CLUB, DRAWN BY HENRY A. BARKER AS A DESIGN FOR SCENERY IN THE PRODUCTION OF "IN COLONY TIMES" A CELEBRATION PLAY GIVEN AS A PART OF THE BROWN SESQUICENTENNIAL, 1914.
Farmers planted their crops, planned their harvests, did their haying, and scheduled many another agricultural ac- tivity according to the prognostications and astronomical projections contained in the not always accurate paper books that boldly anticipated the future. Sailors did their reckoning, shipowners planned voyages, fishermen went out or remained in port, and parsons set the day for the annual Sunday School picnic, according to what the almanac had to say. Doubt- less too, many a traveler studied the storm warnings and the fair weather prophecies before purchasing passage on a coastwise packet, or on the Providence to New York stage that accommodated both passengers and baggage. Besides, the old almanacs provided a source of literary entertain- ment in the days when newspapers were scarce, books expensive, and when the reading matter was limited to the Scrip- tures, a Psalm book, and perhaps a primer. Once upon a time it was mighty interest- ing to learn when the moon would be full two months hence, on what day Easter would fall a year away, or to know the true apparent places of thirty-seven of the principal fixed stars for every tenth day of the year. It was also enlightening to know the exact hour for the autumnal equinox, the meaning of the signs of the zodiac, and how to remove ink stains.
Who was the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Brazil? When would plum trees be expected to flower in Savannah, Georgia? Who was the govern- ment agent for the Choctaws, or the Creeks? What about a good clam tide at Field's Point? The almanac had the answers, and, as time went on, wider and wider fields of human knowledge were covered by the editors of these indispen- sable sources of facts, and of fancies too, since the early almanacs were distinguished by homely philosophical observations, witty sayings, and practical advice, as well as by their scientific and prophetic information.
As a matter of fact, an almanac was the first book printed in the English colonies. Calculated for the meridian of Massa- chusetts by William Pierce, master of the Mayflower, it was printed at Cambridge by Stephen Daye, in 1639, from the type and on a hand press donated to Harvard College. The first almanac published in Rhode Island was the product of the press of James Franklin, elder brother of Ben- jamin, and the pioneer issue appeared in Newport, in the year 1728.
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